Hello there!

Thank you all soooooo much for checking out my story! If you like it, it's very inspiring to me if you let me know in some way, and thank you in advance for every fav, follow, or nice review; they're my own version of caffeine. :D :D :D :D :D

If you have an idea for a story, check out my bio page to find out details on the chance to have a one shot written for you.

I now have a Facebook page where I post sneak peeks for most of the chapters I write. It also has my updating schedule for those wanting to know what I'm working on next. And if you like what you've read and are feeling inspired to show your appreciation, you can find the details on how to do so there. Just search for 'Thelonerebel's Stories' in your Facebook search bar and you should find me. :D

If any of you are artists, and are inspired to make some fan art based on one of my stories, I would be ecstatic to use it as cover art for said story and give your the credit.

Disclaimer: I don't own any Star Wars characters and any OC's that resemble real people are entirely coincidental.

There is an explanation of how my calendar works and a list of helpful translations for my commonly used Star Wars words in 'Flame of Hope - Everyone' if you're curious.

A/N: Okay people. I said I wouldn't start a new story no matter what, but the new Clone Wars episode (7x9) has bitten me in the butt and it won't let go. I've watched it over and over, and now I just have to write a story based on it. Because I'm supposed to be working on other things based on my own strict schedule, I'm going to limit this to roughly 1000 word chapters. The good news is that I will probably post a chapter every day or two until it's finished. (But no guarantees.)

I'm posting this as a T rated story for now, but it will move to the M section later, just to warn you. This story will also float between the Clone Wars, Star Wars, and Rebels pages depending on which is the most applicable to the latest chapter posting.

My story will stay mostly canon in terms of events with only a few little edits here and there. I'm just going to play with their relationships a bit. :D

And finally, I freaking love Ahsoka. She is my favourite Jedi of all time, whether she calls herself a Jedi or not. This story is dedicated to her.

Old Friends, Reunited and Lost Again

Welcome Back:

D344/20 BBY

Ahsoka had known this was going to be hard, but it was even worse than she'd thought.

Seeing Anakin again, all she'd wanted to do was run into his arms and hug him for an hour straight. She missed cuddling with her big brother so much it hurt. But she had a monster to catch and an entire people to save; taking time for affection just wasn't in the cards right now.

At least, that's what she'd told herself to ease the guilt at how devastated her former Master had looked when she'd forced herself to act like a cold hearted bitch to him to save her own heart from being hurt, since she knew that she couldn't re-establish her friendship with him. Not really. The Council would never let them.

Acting cold towards Obi-Wan, on the other hand, had been easy. He'd been one of the Council members who'd thrown her under the figurative speeder at that farce of a trial and hadn't stood up for her when he bloody well should have. She used to think of Master Kenobi as a beloved uncle, much like Master Plo. But they'd both allowed her to be put through hell because they didn't trust her word.

Only Anakin and Rex had stood up for her innocence, and they'd been ignored.

She just couldn't keep up the distant act with Anakin, though. He hadn't let her aloofness get to him during the meeting about capturing Darth Maul (during which time Obi-Wan acted even more like an arsehole Jedi than ever), but was nudging at their old bond with hopeful little knocks, just waiting to be let back in.

And then they were alone and he told her he had a surprise for her. Ahsoka caved. (And not just because she loved surprises.)

She dropped her shield and Anakin flooded their bond with joy and relief. She let him feel her own too. Let him feel how much it meant to her to see him again. By the time they'd made it to the doorway that led out of the command center, Ahsoka gave up entirely on trying to stay indifferent. With a mumbled, "Kriff it," she threw herself into his arms almost faster than he could catch her.

And oh, the relief in his strong hold. The way he whispered her name like a prayer. It made the struggle of living on her own for the last few months seem like a distant dream. Hanging on to him and breathing in the familiar scent of his robes was everything that had been missing from her life. She'd spent so many hours snuggled into his side as she slept after long battles or did homework while eating in the mess hall that it had felt like a portion of her was missing when she walked away from the clearly flawed Order.

The hug lasted only a minute, but it felt like a perfect eternity. He whispered, "I missed you, Snips," into the side of her montral, and it was almost enough to make her cry.

Ahsoka reluctantly pulled out of his clinging embrace and smiled up at him with a wavering smile as she blinked back the threatening moisture in her eyes. "I missed you more, Skyguy."

His warm chuckle filled the empty spaces in her heart that she'd inflicted on herself by walking away from him so many months ago.

His next words made her laugh too as they left the command room.

Anakin looked her up and down assessingly, his blue eyes shining with pride and amusement. "You know, you grew some more. At this rate, you'll be taller than Rex by the time you're done, and he won't like that at all."

Grinning, she nudged her shoulder into his arm as they walked down the familiar corridors of the Venator that felt like home to her. "Maybe then he'll stop trying to tell me that he still outranks me based on experience."

He threw his head back, his curly hair longer than she'd ever seen it, and he laughed loud enough and long enough to draw smiles from passing by clones.

Clones who called her Commander and saluted her as if she'd never left.

Her smile faded and confusion set in. Most of them weren't even from the 501st but were painted in orange stripes because they were on Obi-Wan's flagship. She'd never had command of the 212th, but Anakin's and Obi-Wan's units had worked together so often that the 212th had always felt like an extension of the 501st.

It was disconcerting to be shown such respect by them when she'd all but abandoned them. And she'd told Anakin so as they walked wherever they were going. "They shouldn't salute me anymore. Not since I left the Order."

She felt Anakin mentally flinch at the reminder, but he hid it quickly behind his words. "It doesn't matter to them. It's a sign of respect. They know what you went through for them, day after day, battle after battle. Loyalty means everything to the clones."

Her breath caught. But in the end, I LEFT them. How is that loyal?

She never got a chance to ask it, because they'd arrived at one of the many doors that led into the large central hangar. It opened for Anakin as a sense of pleased anticipation flowed down their bond. Whatever his surprise was, it was here.

She looked inside, and those tears from earlier threatened to make another appearance.

Rex stood there, at the front of a squad of the 501st, looking handsome and fit. And in his arm was a helmet painted orange, with HER white forehead markings on it. In fact, every clone in the squad had an orange painted helmet.

Oh Force. What have they done?! I don't deserve this. I don't.

"Company! Ten hut!" Rex called, and they all turned and presented themselves smartly, like she was a Grand Admiral or something.

I can't do this! I can't do this! Her feet were frozen to the floor.

Anakin, sensing her reluctance, gave her a mental nudge and said, "Go ahead. They've been waiting to see you."

Her feet still weren't convinced. But Anakin was so happy for her, and Rex was practically beaming, even though he was trying to keep a straight face, so she stepped into the hangar and pretended like she wasn't dismayed beyond words as she walked up the middle of their ranks. What hurt even more was the fact that she recognized every single Force signature under the identical armour. They were all men that she'd fought with countless times and were the best of Rex's squad, most of them surviving almost two whole years of pointless battles.

Their tribute to her was beyond anything she'd ever deserved to have.

And she was touched to the very core of her being.

She could feel how much these clones loved her, and she'd forgotten (or forced herself to forget) how much she loved them back.

But none so much as Rex, she thought as she turned back when Anakin explained that they'd painted their helmets as soon as they heard she was coming back.

She walked up to the blond clone, whose golden brown eyes were soaking her in like she was the last drink of water before a two day trek across the Dune Sea, and her chest clenched with pain at how much she'd missed him too.

If Anakin was her big brother, then Rex was her best friend.

At least, he had been, before she'd left him behind as well.

And how it hurt that there wasn't even an ounce of blame or betrayal in the clone Captain's eyes. He was just happy to see her again.

Oh, Rexi... You're too good for me.

She vowed in that moment to never abandon Anakin and Rex again, even if the best she could do was send them a holo message every other day on the sly.