Nu Kyr'adyc, Shi Taab'echaaj'la

Chapter 2 - Timeless

Author's Note: Enjooooy the bonding! :') And yes, things are changing. Slowly but surely. 

~ Amina Gila

They hold a memorial ceremony for Fives. It's a thing the clones do ordinarily, a small gathering of the brothers closest to them. Anika's never been to them before, never been invited – and she understands that, because she's not truly one of them, even if they all adore her and respect her – but she knows enough to get the idea of what they're all about. This is... not what she was expecting. She thought there would be a few dozen men there, tops.

She... was not expecting to see hundreds. Most of them are from the 501st, but there are some from other battalions as well. And Fox is there, lingering in the back, radiating feelings of grief, guilt, and regret into the Force strongly enough that she almost goes to him to speak to him. But she doesn't, in the end, because this is about Fives, about remembering and honoring him and his sacrifice. She knows she's here because of their relationship, because of how much they meant to each other, and she's... touched to see how closely Rex and Cody are hovering, and even Jesse, too, as if their presences alone could dispel the pain.

Fox approaches her when it's over, his helmet under his arm, his fingers tracing the edges of it in a way that would betray his nervousness, if she couldn't already feel it in the Force. "General, can I speak with you?" he asks hesitantly.

Anika glances at Rex and Cody, her new shadows, before nodding, taking a few steps away from the assembled so they can have a modicum of privacy. "What is it, Commander?"

"I – I'm sorry," he says, and there's genuine remorse on his face, in his eyes, "About what happened with Fives."

Anika... had not expected that, if she's being honest, and the grief inside her flares sharply when Fives' name is mentioned. "Why?" she questions, after taking a moment to absorb the words, and control her own instinctive reaction to them, one of anger. "Why did you do it?"

"I – I had orders," he admits, shaking his head. "I know it's no excuse; I should have refused to carry them out. I don't... I can't explain why I didn't."

Alarm bells go off in her head, a choking, rising dread building up in her chest, and she has to swallow before she can respond. "What – who gave you those orders?" She doesn't want to ask, but she needs to know, because all she can think of is Fives' words, his warning about the Chancellor, the warning she hadn't been able to listen to, because it was Palpatine who always helped her after she came to the Temple.

Obi-Wan is... he's a good master, but he's her teacher, and that's not what she'd needed at the beginning. She couldn't confide in him about anything, and she never felt comfortable trying to do so after the number of times he shut her down. So, she went to Palpatine instead, or at least she went to him after he started encouraging her to. He helped her process her feelings so many times, helped her express herself when she would otherwise have become closed off and bitter. She's the person she is today because of him, and she'd told him, so many times, about Fives, about how close they are, though she never divulged the specifics. She talked about her clones, her best friends, and he'd listened to her, as always.

But – but – this –

Fox looks away. "The Chancellor told me to deal with Fives," he answers quietly. "He told me that Fives was dangerous and couldn't be trusted, that he would undoubtedly try to seriously harm someone, so I should use lethal force." He breathes out shakily, and when he meets her eyes, they're haunted. "I'm sorry."

The words wash over her, trailing ice down her spine. She wants to rage and scream. She wants to burn down the galaxy over this betrayal. She wants – she wants –