The Wolf Pack

Chapter 61

Kriari was fucking done with the entire situation. The amount of testosterone in the air was more noticeable then than when she had first joined the GAR. Back then it had never been a problem, even when headfirst had challenged her to a spar.
She was done with Zapal's glances and Wolffe's sudden lack of propriety. The only person on board who seemed to have a level head was her master but that was no surprise.

Master Plo had always been good at keeping things to himself, even in less than ideal situations. Which was the very reason he hadn't really cared his padawan was in a relationship with his clone commander: he had never told anyone, but the Jedi Council's view on attachment didn't sit well with him. Even now, when Wolffe was acting more like a hormonal teenager than an army officer, he didn't care as long as he didn't escalate things any further.

Plo Koon was a master at getting his priorities right: as long as everyone performed their duties and did not make an unfavorable impact on others, he did not care.

That was, of course, not the case for everyone, and he knew Zapal to be extremely fond of rules and regulations. It made sense, because it was those very things that kept clones and Kriari -beings superior to him in every aspect- beneath him. Master Plo Koon knew that it was Zapal's insecurities that inflated his ego and cemented his love for rules of conduct.

This little detail was now their biggest inconvenience, Zapal would gladly take any misstep on their part as an excuse to bend the situation in his favor or simply to inconvenience the Pack. Or more specifically, Wolffe and Kriari.

"Well, if the General agrees I would like to deviate off the schedule and pick random departments to inspect at my pleasure. This is supposed to be as thoroughly done as possible and I would not want anyone depending on the schedule to meet their deadlines."

This was a very strange request to all the present, but it was Wolffe that decided he needed to be more aware of Zapal than ever. He might have been a pain in his ass, but the man lived and breathed regulations and this was highly unusual. Both his General and his Commander seemed to be aware of that fact as well, but it was Wolffe who shifted positions and took the rear. If he needed to restrain the man, it would be easier like that.

Reason told Wolffe that the Admiral was not a threat, not really, but everything else in his body and soul -and maybe even the Force- told him that there was something wrong. And Wolffe would be damned if he didn't protect Kriari and his Father  at all cost.

Zapal wanted to inspect the engine room first, he fiddled around with the controls as if he had any Idea of what he was doing. Then, he asked to see the hyperdrive, then the ventilation and insulation systems, then the gravity generators and so on. The man was clearly on a mission to find something wrong, or so it seemed, and it was worrying and annoying the life out of Wolffe.

To their credit both Plo Koon and Kriari stayed stoic and professional the entire time, just wishing the entire ordeal would be over. It really did piss off the Clone Commander, how cool Kriari was about the entire situation. She was all polite smiles and genuine eyes and Wolffe couldn't really tell if she was uncomfortable or not. That told him she must have been used to this, conditioned from a very young age to be able to take shit from others without putting up a fight. This was when her negotiation skills and Jedi training shone brightest: in the face of a man disrespecting her.
Wolffe knew better than to be angry at her, but still he couldn't wait until Zapal was gone and he could show her just how little he liked it when she was polite, quiet and submissive. He knew her, and he wanted to see the fire in her eyes when he finally got her alone again.

He just needed to get rid of Zapal first.

…

Kriari was on the verge of punching a hole in Zapal's jaw. It was taking her entire life's training to suppress the urge. Not only was the Admiral doing whatever he damned pleased but he was annoying the shit out of her personnel and interrupting everyone's work to fiddle with things he did not understand.

She also noticed Wolffe seemed a lot more on edge as the inspection continued. It came to a point where his Force signature was the same as it was when he was in active combat, so Kriari couldn't ignore it anymore. She fell a little behind so as to catch up with him and spoke low so that only he could hear.

"Tell me."

"Something is wrong."

"Other than Zapal being a pain in all our asses?"

"He's asking to oversee areas on the ship he should have no knowledge of but are essential for flight and combat performance. The very same I would target if I was assigned a sabotage mission."

Kriari stopped walking as the shock sunk in.

"Were you keeping an eye on everything he touched?" She asked finally as they resumed their pace.

"What kind of clone would I be if I hadn't?"

Kriari sighed and purposefully brushed her hand against his in an almost unnoticeable way.

"Good, put your helmet on, have every clone in every station Zapal touched, do an extremely thorough sweep and diagnosis on every system. I'd rather be safe than sorry, and I trust you," she paused for a second and then in an even lower voice said, "have everyone on high alert and ready for battle. I want no casualties."

It was times like these when Wolffe fell even harder for Kriari and respected her most. She didn't call him paranoid, she didn't dismiss his instincts as paranoia and she took precautions in case he was by any chance right. Kriari knew the limits to her abilities and did not have the pride some Force sensitive beings had.

So Wolffe made sure no one was watching before he kissed her. It was quick, short and stupid but before she could scold him he put his helmet on and walked away, delivering orders on the closed comm circuit. He heard Kriari chuckle behind him, and even in the face of an unknown danger, he smiled underneath the bucket.

One day, in the future, he would marry her. No matter how long he had to wait.