"𝙒𝙤𝙧𝙧𝙮 𝙤𝙛𝙩𝙚𝙣 𝙜𝙞𝙫𝙚𝙨 𝙨𝙢𝙖𝙡𝙡 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙜𝙨 𝙖 𝙗𝙞𝙜 𝙨𝙝𝙖𝙙𝙤𝙬."

Even though I was Obi-Wan's Ranger, there were a couple Jedi I was authorized to accompany on missions. Those Jedi being Plo Koon and Anakin. I was sent with them on a mission to the humid, jungle planet of Felucia.

We watched the droid reinforcements arrive to back up the Separatist outpost on Felucia. Plo assigned each of us a side to attack from.

"I'll take the left flank. Skywalker, attack the front gate. Ahsoka and Rakus, you scale the back wall," Plo pointed at each of the positions. "We'll meet in the middle."

I nodded at the orders and joined up with Plo's Wolfpack as we waited for Ahsoka who was speaking with Anakin. I tried to read the expressionless helmets of the men I was about to trek through the jungle with. They stood motionless as we waited.

"Are you guys sleeping in there?" I waved a hand in front of Boost's helmet.

"We are definitely not sleeping," he replied chuckling.

"Well, sometimes I can't tell," I smiled.

"Do I need to remind you that you were the one who got a concussion after the last mission?" Wolffe asked. I could almost see him rolling his eyes under that helmet.

I nodded in agreement. "That's fair."

Plo started to leave and Wolffe followed after him. Ahsoka approached us and gestured towards the jungle. "Let's go."

We weaved through the thick, colorful plants with weapons on the ready. A bead of sweat rolled down my neck from the humidity. It was dark out, but warm nonetheless.

"Hold up," Ahsoka held up a hand.

We stopped in our tracks and listened carefully.

"I sense something out there," she looked through the thicket of plants.

"A droid?" Comet suggested.

"I don't think so," Ahsoka said. "Probably just an animal."

I tightened my grip on my blasters. If something had a Jedi on edge, I needed to be on high alert.

"Come on, we gotta get to that wall," Ahsoka pointed at our objective.

The wall finally came into view and I found droids stationed at the top. Anakin and Plo confirmed they were in position as well. Our tanks fired from overhead and bombarded the Separatist outpost. I could see explosions coming from the front gate and a smile fell on my lips. That must've been Anakin's work.

Ahsoka gave us the okay and we took out the droids on top of the wall. We ran towards it and aimed our ascension cables.

"Comet, Sinker, Boost, Sil, get up there," Ahsoka ordered.

The three of them launched upwards while Ahsoka ignited her lightsabers.

"You coming, Ahsoka?" I asked.

"I'm right behind you," she reassured me.

I nodded and fired my cable. The four of us climbed over the wall and looked down to see Ahsoka still on the ground.

"We're all clear, Commander," Comet said. "Come on up."

"I'll be right there," she called back.

Comet and I shared a look and then charged into the base with guns blazing. The teams converged and destroyed all the droids.

"The outpost is secure," Anakin announced and praised us. His eyes scanned the base with worry. "Where's Commander Tano?"

I grew nervous. She should've been up here by now.

"She was covering our flank when we scaled the wall," Comet answered.

"Everybody fan out," Anakin ordered. "I want a perimeter sweep now."

The men nodded and took off in different directions. I was about to leave until Anakin called me.

"Sil," Anakin said. I stopped and turned towards him. "Take me to where you last saw her."

I nodded firmly and motioned for him to follow. I led him to the wall where I left Ahsoka. She wasn't there.

Anakin jumped down and looked up. I hopped off and he held out his hands, using the Force to ease my fall. When I reached the ground he helped steady me, but his attention quickly diverted. He observed our surroundings and started walking. I went to his side and searched with him. Anakin spoke hopelessly into his comlink, his voice growing weary.

"Where could she be?" Anakin asked desperately.

I put a hand on his shoulder and squeezed lightly.

"Hey, we'll find her," I said.

He put his hand over mine and closed his eyes, sighing deeply. "We have to."

The night carried on and we searched. The sun rose and there was still no sign of Ahsoka. I stayed near Anakin as he reached out with the Force trying to find his lost padawan.

Rex approached us glumly. "General, we've been over the same area a dozen times. There's no sign of Commander Tano."

"Not good enough, Rex," Anakin's words laced with anger. "Try again," he pointed into the jungle.

Rex simply nodded and walked back in.

Plo came over to tell Anakin that he notified Republic forces throughout the Outer Rim, assuring him that Ahsoka would be found.

"Skywalker, our mission here is finished," Plo told Anakin. "We must return to Coruscant."

Anakin shook his head. "I'm not abandoning her."

I took a step back and allowed Plo to talk to Anakin. I admired Anakin's dedication, but it was time to go. I had a feeling Ahsoka wasn't even on this world anymore.

Plo evidently convinced Anakin that we needed to leave. I was surprised by Plo's ability to get Anakin to listen. That was an impressive trait. Plo and his boys walked into the gunship. On this mission I noticed how devoted the Wolfpack was to their general. I could tell they had a lot of affection for him just by seeing the artwork on the gunship. I turned to see Anakin heading towards the ship with his head held low.

Back on Coruscant, Anakin was no less impatient. He spent hours in the map room trying to get a lead.

I sat with Obi-Wan in the Jedi temple. I told him about what happened on Felucia and how distressed Anakin was.

"This is troubling," Obi-Wan placed a hand over his mouth in thought. "Anakin has a strong bond with his padawan. I can't imagine this has been easy for him at all."

"It hasn't been," I affirmed tracing circles on my leg.

Obi-Wan released a sigh. "Attachments are dangerous," he mumbled.

"What do you mean?" I asked. I heard about Jedi not being allowed to have attachments, but I never truly understood what that meant.

"Attachment means having possession, being greedy," Obi-Wan explained. "It is a selfish love."

"Aren't some attachments good?"

"It would seem so," Obi-Wan sighed. He had something on his mind. "Attachments give you weakness. They leave room for jealousy and anger. Those are dangerous feelings and we cannot give in to them. We must let go."

"That sounds pretty hard," I replied. I thought about the people and things I was close to. "But isn't it impossible to not have some kind of attachment? Like, what about your lightsaber. Isn't it important to you?"

Obi-Wan watched me thoughtfully. "You're right, it's impossible to not have some form of attachment," he agreed. "But we can only try."

The door opened and Plo walked into the room. "I just spoke with Skywalker."

"He hasn't left the map room, has he?" Obi-Wan asked.

Plo shook his head.

"Rakus," Plo turned towards me. "Perhaps you could talk to him. He might listen to you."

I nodded. "All right, but I can't promise anything."

I got up from my seat across Obi-Wan and walked through the halls of the Jedi Temple. I arrived at the room and entered. Anakin stood hunched over a holo-map with his hands gripping the edge of the table. He looked exhausted.

"Anakin," I called softly.

He turned to look at me and then redirected his gaze on the map.

"If you're here to tell me to give it a break, forget about it," he said.

"I'm not going to tell you that," I replied. I made my way towards him and looked at the map of the Outer Rim.

I laced my arm around his and leaned on his shoulder in hopes of providing him some comfort. His head snapped in my direction and then he looked back at the map.

"For what it's worth, I have a feeling she's going to come back," I said quietly.

"You're no Jedi," Anakin said.

I frowned slightly. "Just because I don't have the Force, doesn't mean I can't have a feeling about something."

"That's not true," he replied.

"What?"

"You do have the Force," Anakin said and I squinted in confusion.

"In fact," he went on. "The Force is strong enough in you that you could've been selected as a youngling."

"What?" I asked in disbelief.

"I guess they never found you."

I found it hard to believe that I had the Force. It never helped me before. I couldn't move things or read people's minds.

"You do have the Force," Anakin said. "You just don't realize it," he angled his head downward to look at me. "Think about it. You have an easier time dodging blaster fire, your aim is perfect, and you probably find it easy sensing the clones' emotions, even with their helmets on."

Everything he said was true. I let go of his arm and held the table. Did I really have the Force this whole time and never realize it?

"You're not selling me a bunch of bantha crap, are you?" I pointed a finger at him.

Anakin let out a laugh for the first time since Felucia. "I'm not."

I crossed my arms and glared at him playfully. I still felt skeptical.

"Here, let me show you," he gestured for me to come closer.

I stood at his side and he pointed towards the door of the map room.

"Try and open it with your mind," he said.

I scoffed at his idea. "I can't do that!"

"Yes you can," Anakin gave me an encouraging smile. "Just hold your hand out and give it a shot."

"Fine," I muttered. I held out my hand towards the door and waited for it to open.

"Stop thinking about how stupid you look with your arm sticking out," Anakin said.

"Stop reading my mind!" I grinned and tried again.

"Just close your eyes," he said gently. I did as he said and held my hand out with more focus this time. I felt his hand cover mine as I stood with my back against his chest.

"Feel the energy between you and the door," he whispered. "It's always been there."

I felt it. I felt the energy in the room. The energy of the people in the Temple. I could feel it connecting me with everyone else. I could feel it between me and Anakin.

I opened my eyes to see the door slide open. My eyes widened in excitement. I turned around to see Anakin with a proud expression on his face.

"I did it!" I threw my arms around him and held him tight. With slight hesitation, he slowly wrapped his arms around my waist. "Thanks for believing in me."

"Anytime."

We pulled away from each other and smiled. I looked to see the holo-map still on. I returned my gaze to him.

"She's coming back, Anakin," I assured him. "I know it."

"Then you see clearer than I do," he put a hand on my shoulder and turned off the holo-map. "Let's get something to eat," he said.

***

Days passed and contact was made with a ship that was heading for Coruscant. Ahsoka was on board and she was coming home. The relief I felt in Anakin couldn't be measured. Unfortunately, he released it onto me in a bone crushing hug.

We approached the platform of the Jedi Temple where younglings and Wookies had just got off the ship. I smiled when I saw the familiar padawan.

"Ahsoka!" Anakin called out.

He made his way over to her and I stood back, allowing the pair to have their reunion. After Anakin and Ahsoka had their moment, I ran up to her. Guilt had eaten away at me too while she was missing. After all, I was the last one to see her before she got captured.

"Ahsoka I'm so sorry about what happened," I apologized. "I should've stayed at the wall. I should've waited for you."

"It's alright, Sil," she chuckled. "I'm back now, that's all that matters," Ahsoka flashed me a smile which I shared. "And thanks for keeping an eye on Anakin," she added quietly.

"Of course," I replied.

With that, I stepped back. The master and padawan walked into the temple, finally together.