CDWSRM
The air aboard the Resolute, normally filled with shouts and commands and chaos, seemed for once to carry a feeling of serenity throughout the ship. The two Jedi Knights, Obi-wan Kenobi and Anakin Skywalker, along with his apprentice Ahsoka Tano, relaxed in the commons lounge after a long and difficult mission. They had recently been hopping from planet to planet, fighting battles left and right, trying to push the Separatists as far away from the Inner Rim as possible. After a final stop and refuel on the small planet of Rugosa, they and their crew were finally on the way back to Couroscant.
With no pressure or missions to complete, the three Jedi took advantage of their free time. Anakin and his Commander Rex played a game of holo-chess, Obi-wan sat back in a comfy chair to read, and Ahsoka was scribbling in a notebook with a small pencil. The scratching of lead on paper caught Anakin's attention as Ahsoka seemed completely concentrated on what she was writing.
"Whatcha doing, Snips?" Anakin asked, humor present in his tone. Ahsoka wasn't the academic type, he would be heavily surprised if she was doing any studying.
"Adding to the list of planets I've visited." She replied, not looking up from the book.
"Why's that?" He asked, waiting on Rex to move his holographic monster.
"I don't know... I've always wanted to visit as many planets as possible. When I was a youngling I said I was going to see them all someday." Anakin snorted at her explanation. It was kind of cute, as it was pretty much impossible to visit the millions of planets in the span of one lifetime.
"What's so funny, Anakin?" Obi-wan chimed in from his chair, "I remember a certain youngling who once said he wanted to visit them all as well..." Ahsoka chuckled as Anakin's cheeks started to turn pink.
"Very funny, old man." He retorted, turning his attention to his game once more. Ahsoka glanced over at him to discover he was losing by a small margin. She was about to make a comment, when she had to stop writing as she started to cough. She thought she could feel a small tickle in the back of her throat, but after a minute or so it still hadn't gone away. The coughing fit continued for another 30 seconds or so before anyone said anything.
"Why don't you go get some water Snips, before you cough up a lung." She only rolled her eyes as she went and got the water. Ahsoka disappeared into the refresher, taking small sips of water from her cup. After a while, the coughing quit but her throat slightly burned from the fit.
A few hours had gone by, and Obi-wan had gone to talk with Admiral Yularen. Anakin had made fun of him for it, since they still had a few days in space before they got even close to Couroscant. He and Ahsoka had gone to the mess hall to get some food instead. As they ate, the two sat in a comfortable silence. At least, until the unexplained tickly feeling in her throat returned. She set her fork down as she started coughing again, her fist pressed against her mouth. She took a drink again, but still she coughed until her sides started to heave. She took a few deep breaths, trying to ignore it until eventually she quit sputtering.
"Are you gonna live?" Anakin asked her, staring at her with an eyebrow raised.
"It's probably the dry space air," she replied, "I'll be alright."
The day continued as normal, with several more coughing fits here and there. Ahsoka didn't pay much attention to it, after all it would probably be gone the next day anyway.
The crew eventually wound down as people started to go to sleep. Ahsoka and her master bid Obi-wan goodnight as they returned to their shared quarters. The two beds were slits in the walls, on opposite sides of the room with a small refresher attached to the side. They were both in bed, settling down and drifting off. Just as Ahsoka was on the brink of sleep, she began to cough again. She groaned as she heaved, pinching the bridge of her nose in annoyance.
She stood up and went into the refresher, noticing the annoyed look on Anakin's face as she passed him. He must have been almost asleep too. She took a gulp of water from the tap with her hand, though it still didn't help. It slid down her throat, aggravating it more than it helped. She decided maybe taking a hot shower would help, the steam and mist soothing her irritated throat. She stepped into the shower, and a few minutes later she finally quit. But even still her sides hurt, she hated coughing fits. She got them sometimes when they went to a dusty planet, but they had only been to lush forested planets thus far, and even they didn't usually keep her up at night.
For lack of something better to do, she stayed in the shower for quite a while. She would cough every now and again but after a while she had quit. She got out of the shower and dried herself off, putting her pajamas on again and leaving the refresher. A cloud of steam followed her out, as her bare feet touched the cold durasteel floor. She cringed; the floor was really cold compared to the tile in the refresher. She took a look at her master, who was still awake and still looked slightly annoyed.
"Better?" He asked her.
"I think so." she said, pulling the covers over her as she crawled into bed. She lie awake for quite a while, finding it impossible to get to sleep. She tossed and turned, trying every position to get comfortable but none worked. She kicked the covers down to her feet, feeling very hot and uncomfortable, and turned over her pillow every few minutes or so. She cleared her throat a few times, but her fit hadn't returned yet.
"Oh for forces sake, Snips, would you go to sleep already?!" She looked at her master, who has his back to her and his hands on his head.
"I'm trying," she said irritably. She glanced at the chrono, and noticed it was about three in the morning.
At some point, however, she must have fallen asleep because before she knew it, Anakin was shaking her shoulder.
"Hey, wake up." She sat up, the top of her montrals brushing the ceiling of her bed.
"Why'd you wake me up?" She asked tiredly, "it's not like we have anything to do today."
"Cause if I can't sleep, neither can you." She glared at him before he chuckled. "Just kidding. The mess hall stops serving breakfast soon so I thought you might want to eat." She nodded sleepy and stood up, putting on some slippers and following him. She didn't really care that she was in her pajamas, it was just a pair of shorts and a t-shirt.
On the way there, however, she began to cough again. It was even more uncomfortable than the day before, as it was more of a wet cough, phlegm building up and putting a foul taste in her mouth.
"Not this again," Anakin complained. "You kept me up all last night with your hacking. Do you need to go to the med bay?"
"No, I'm fine," she said between coughs.
"You sure? I'd give you my lungs if I could, since yours seem to be broken." She chuckled a little bit, her coughing dying down a bit.
"I think I'll live," she said sarcastically, "thanks though."
They reached the mess hall and found Obi-wan already at a table, sipping at a cup of tea and reading a book.
"Good morning Anakin, Ahsoka." He greeted us as we sat down with our breakfasts. "How did you sleep?"
"I didn't," Anakin replied, casting a glance at Ahsoka.
"Sorry..." She mumbled, taking a bite of toast. The scratchy shards trickled down her throat, setting her off again for what felt like the billionth time.
"I almost wish we had separate quarters," Anakin joked, "you're good company but the coughing is driving me crazy." She laughed, though her heart wasn't in it. She rested her hand on her head, feeling an impending headache surface.
Hi! I decided to re-do this story, so I hope you like it! The original has been taken down but I hope you like this one better.