Shaak Ti appeared immediately and, together with the agitated and pale Katuni, they rushed to Skywalker's dwelling. The girl was simply terrified at the sight of Asoka, whom Anakin carried into the house in his arms. She was as pale as death, dressed as she had been on the first day, her clothes stained with blood, some of which had spilled onto Skywalker's shirt. But worst of all was the thick, sharp branch that was stuck firmly into her knee, preventing her from bending it at all. It looked like her leg was broken, as evidenced by the Torgut's blue face contorted in pain. Shaak, however, needed no clarification, nor did she waste time on tragic exclamations. She listened carefully to Katuni's disjointed story and, as soon as she fell silent, gave her an order with a calm expression:
"Now, wipe your nose and come with me. There's little hope for Skywalker, you'll have to help me.
Katuni had no choice but to nod obediently and wait silently while the Togruta gathered the necessary items into a small cloth bag. She knew from experience that it was useless to argue with the Magister, even though she wanted to help Asoka, whom she liked very much. Soon they returned to Skywalker's hut, where, for some reason, he was not to be found. He'll get what he deserves for leaving Asoka alone, thought Shaak, glancing at Tano. She looked truly miserable, thanks to Anakin, who, before his shameful escape, had at least had the sense to put her on the bed and lay a sheet under her so that the blood wouldn't soak through the linen, rather than just throwing her on the floor like a piece of rubbish.
"How could you, Asoka?" the Master exclaimed, throwing up his hands. "How did you manage to hurt yourself so badly?
"I was hunting," she squeezed out through lips clenched in a painful spasm. "I flew into the forest, fell down a slope, and now look," she pointed to her leg and immediately grimaced from a new wave of pain.
"Don't move, I'll take a look," Shaak ordered her, continuing to question her. "And Anakin, where was he? Didn't he keep an eye on you?"
"He wasn't there, ouch! I was flying alone," moaned the Togruta, crying out in pain when Shaak began to feel her leg, checking to see if any bones were broken.
"And why, may I ask?" Shaak asked indignantly. "You don't know how to do it properly. This isn't Shili, it's a different nature, different laws. You should have asked one of us if you really couldn't manage.
"I thought I could do it myself..." Tano persisted, but was interrupted:
"I can see that you did it yourself, and you did a good job! You're lucky, there's no fracture, just a dislocation, but you'd better stay in bed for a few days.
Asoka didn't answer, nor could she, because when Shaak Ti began to set the dislocation, the pain returned, so intense that she had to grit her teeth, and when she began to pull out the splinter... Her vision darkened, her consciousness clouded and slowly drifted away for several minutes. It only returned when everything was over. The dislocation was secured with a bandage, and another covered the hole left by the splinter.
"There you go," Shaak Ti said with satisfaction, washing her hands from the bucket Katuni was holding over them. "Don't go anywhere today, and try not to strain yourself tomorrow either. Ask Anakin to help you. He's your husband, after all, or at least the tail of a bow.
Ahsoka nodded, promising she would, although she didn't know if she could. When Shaak Ti went into the kitchen to prepare something for her dinner, Tano leaned back on her pillow and closed her eyes. The pain had subsided a little, but she still tried not to disturb her leg unnecessarily. Why make her situation worse when her soul was already in turmoil? Skywalker's parting words had shaken her to her core. It was an involuntary admission, spoken in the heat of the moment and without preparation, and it simply could not have been said deliberately to mock or hurt her. Neither of them was in that state, and besides, Anakin, although emotional and passionate, was not a sadist or a moral abuser who would throw around such serious words. No, when it came to feelings, he was always serious, sometimes even too much so, so what he said could only mean one thing, which was, in fact, the truth. And that still didn't explain anything, as it contradicted his actions.
"I loved you," flashed through Asoka's mind again, with all the intonations and feelings with which Anakin had said it. He said it with pain and bitter regret, but without any mockery or self-admiration. This is how someone who has experienced strong feelings in the past that were not reciprocated due to the fault of others usually speaks.
"Whose feelings, I wonder? Mine or Padmé's?" Asoka continued to turn the question over in her mind. "Hardly mine, considering how easily he forgot about our meeting back then."
Her memory easily transported Togrut to that distant day, which now seemed like another life. Anakin was so lonely and lost, and Asoka knew why, but she didn't tell anyone. After all, she couldn't say that he was grieving the departure of his wife or a serious quarrel with her. So she just tried to be there for him, to be loyal and irreplaceable, for as long as she could. At first, it was just friendly support, but then, after spending more time with Anakin, the Togruta realised that she saw him in a completely different light than before. Behind the mask of a confident and slightly arrogant superhero, there was a true essence, fragile and vulnerable. Someone she wanted to hold close and never let go. He responded actively and often made it clear that he felt better in Tano's company than without her. Only in her presence did he come alive and become his old self again. Both seemed genuinely surprised that they had not noticed each other for so long, even though they had been in close contact. And now, having discovered this new side of each other, neither of them wanted to give it up to anyone else. But very soon, walks and intimate conversations were no longer enough, and Anakin was the first to break the silence, arranging a very special meeting with Asoka at a restaurant. And he didn't show up. The next day, they tried to apologise and mumble some excuses, but Tano could see that it was just a formality, a mere gesture of politeness. Skywalker's thoughts were elsewhere, and there was no place for Ahsoka in them, just as there was no longer any trace of the wonderful atmosphere of ease that had existed between them. Torguta easily understood why, and pride and self-esteem forced her to save face and maintain a relaxed smile. She responded to his apology cheerfully and casually:
"Oh, come on, Skywalker, to be honest, I didn't come either, I just couldn't, I called to tell you, but you didn't answer. Never mind, lovers are a little distracted.
Anakin believed her and seemed to breathe a sigh of relief, realising that there would be no scandal. Right now, it would be an annoying distraction from his newfound domestic bliss. That's probably why he didn't think it necessary to question Asoka properly or even look her in the eyes more closely and understand that the Togruta wasn't being entirely sincere when she feigned indifference. And that behind her shield lay real pain and a bleeding heart. But no, he didn't do that. Instead, he nodded goodbye and left. Asoka turned away so as not to watch him leave, and after that she honestly tried to live as if that period in their lives had never happened and they were still just colleagues and nothing more. And so it was, until the terrorist attack and her forced departure. And now here they were again, a new meeting, new pain, proving that the feeling hadn't gone away, at least not hers. But what about his? Asoka couldn't answer that question unequivocally... She couldn't before, but now? It seemed that the answer would soon be found, and it wouldn't be quite what she had originally thought. This involuntary admission confused everything. It turned out that he hadn't forgotten her either, but then why was he behaving like this towards her? Was it only because he was angry with her for leaving the Order? Or was Anakin deliberately being rude to her so as not to let his true feelings for her show? Maybe, maybe not, no one knew.***
There was a noise outside the door, and soon it opened, revealing Shaak Ti and Katuni standing at the stove, the owner of the house. The look of displeasure had faded from his face, and now he looked only friendly, eager to fix what he had clearly done to Ahsoka's feelings with his confession, and he had been praying desperately the whole way that she wouldn't notice him.
"How is she?" he asked Shaak first.
"How is she? Just like everyone else who's been left to fend for themselves," she said indignantly, putting her hands on her hips. "You should have let her go hunting alone, without even explaining the rules to her.
"I didn't ask her to go, she decided on her own, and I'm not her bodyguard, I can't be with her 24 hours a day," Anakin snapped back. "I'll explain everything to her right now.
"Not now," Torguta stopped him. "She has a dislocated joint and a through-and-through wound. You'll have to relieve her of her duties for a while, and right now she's asleep, so don't disturb her."
"I won't," Anakin agreed unexpectedly. "Just let her know that I'm very worried about her. She's almost all I have left."
But they were wrong. Ahsoka wasn't asleep, and the answer to her question had finally been found.
***
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