"Thank you Chopper." Hera said, smiling. She took the offered wrench from the astromech and kept working on putting the panel back together. It was just the two of them on the Ghost today. The rest of the crew were off, somewhere on Lothal, while her child, Jacen, was at his school.
She hummed. The last thing she had expected was to be a mother. She had figured her and Kanan's one intimate night before he had left for Mandalore was the cause, even if they hadn't meant it to be. She had never had a chance to tell him before he had died. She let out a quiet sigh, unnoticed by Chopper.
One of the many regrets she had.
After the Battle of Lothal, she broke the news to the crew. Everyone had supported her along the way. Even her father, the traditionalist that he was, was happy and excited after he got over the initial shock.
She would always be grateful for everyone for supporting her in Kanan's absence.
Chopper suddenly warbled beside her, breaking her from her thoughts. The grumpy, old droid was obviously content for once. Hera smiled at him. "Enjoy the peace while it lasts, Chop. You know Jacen will want to play when he gets home." She said. Chopper let out an annoyed growl, and Hera chuckled. She knew the old astromech loved the child in his own kind of way, and did everything he could to help keep him happy.
Slowly, she sat up, handing the wrench back to the droid. She wiped a few beads of sweat from her forehead, and glanced at the time. "Speaking of: its time I picked him up." She told him, only now realizing how much time had passed. "I'll be back soon." She added, and stood. She didn't wait for Chopper's reply as she hurried out, walking the short distance into town and toward the small preschool Jacen attended. The day was calm and peaceful, and she smiled to herself as she walked through the door.
The smile immediately dropped from her face, and the calm, peaceful atmosphere was shattered when Jacen ran up to her, tears streaming down his cheeks.
"What is it, love?" She quickly asked, kneeling down to his level. Jacen wrapped his arms tightly around her, whimpering softly. He sniffled. Looking around, Hera gently scooped him up, and looked for his teacher. When she didn't see anyone, she looked down at the boy again. "Jacen, what happened?" She asked, gently, trying to keep the worry out of her voice. Jacen just sniffled and shook his head, hiding his face against her neck. She rubbed his back, trying to soothe him.
Quickly, she signed him out for the day. She hoped he would open up to her about what had made him cry.
"Would you like to get something to eat?" She asked him as she walked out of the building. She felt him shake his head in reply. "Not even a Jogan? It's your favorite." She tried to coax him.
He just shook his head again, and she sighed, heading back to the Ghost. On the way, Hera struggled to remember what her mother used to do with her and her brother in these types of situations. She found she always longed to ask her for advice.
Or to have Kanan here to help.
Jacen remained silent, so she rubbed his back again.
After what seemed like forever, they arrived back at the Ghost. She lowered the ramp, and sat, carefully adjusting Jacen to sit on her lap. He quietly sniffled. Chopper warbled a greeting and Zeb followed him out.
"Heya Kid!" Zeb smiled, approaching him. Jacen saw him, and quickly hid his face against Hera's shoulder again. Zeb shot Hera a confused look, obviously a bit hurt at the response. Hera shrugged as best as she could. "I think something happened. Let me talk to him." She whispered. Zeb nodded and took the cue to go back inside the Ghost. Chopper followed after a second, leaving Hera alone with her son.
She sat with him in silence for a while, letting him gather his thoughts. When the sun started to set, she finally spoke.
"Will you tell me why you're upset?" She asked, quietly. Jacen sat up, and sniffled. Hera looked at him. "Did something happen at school?" She pressed.
He gave the tiniest nod in reply.
"Can you tell me about what happened?" She kept pressing. He sighed, and finally spoke. "I don't wanna go back to school." He said, simply. Hera sighed. "Why not?" She asked.
Jacen looked away. "I just don't want to go back." He said.
Hera remained silent for a second. "Jacen, please, talk to me. Tell me what happened." She said.
Jacen seemed to deflate as the fight left him. His shoulders drooped, and he sniffled once again,
"Why do I look funny, mommy?" He asked.
The question took Hera aback. Before she could reply, Jacen continued. "The other kids said that I looked funny..." he whispered. The more he continued, the more furious Hera got. "They said normal kids don't have green hair and ears.." he looked up at her, the hurt raw and plain in his eyes. Those eyes that reminded Hera so much of his father.
"Why do I look funny, mommy?" Jacen asked again, his voice breaking, and tears threatening to spill from his eyes again.
Hera blinked and gently kissed his forehead. "Sweetheart.. you don't look funny." She told him, firmly. "But I look different from the other kids in my class!" He protested. "Their hair and their ears aren't green!" He reminded her.
Hera gently shushed him, and he fell silent, listening to her. "That's okay, Jacen." She told him. "Not everybody has to look similar. You are unique." She told him, and he looked down. "I.. just don't want them to make fun of me.." he muttered.
Hera pushed aside a new wave of anger. She took a deep breath.
"Jacen, people get too caught up on appearances, sometimes." She said, and he looked up at her again, his blue eyes, those blue eyes, wide. "Just because you're different, doesn't mean you're any less than anybody else." She said. "Yeah... but.." he sighed. "How can I show them that?" He finally asked.
Hera thought for a second. "Think about Zeb." She said. For the first time since she picked him up, she saw the tiniest of smiles appear on Jacen's face. He loved to play with Zeb, who was somewhat of an uncle to him. "Zeb doesn't look like anybody on Lothal. But I guarentee you he's the strongest." She said.
Jacen looked down, his forehead wrinkling in thought. "What can you do?" She asked, and he continued to think for a while. Suddenly, his eyes widened in realization. "Well... I can run faster than a lot of them.." he said. "And I can climb higher than a lot of them when we're playing outside." He added.
Hera smiled. "See?" She asked, and ruffled his hair. He laughed. To Hera, that laughter was like the sweetest, most joyful melody she had ever heard.
But the frown soon appeared on his face again. "But what if I show them this, and they still make fun of me?" He asked, looking at her. Hera hummed. "I'll talk to your teachers. If they continue to bully you, you can always go to them, alright?" She asked. He looked at her. "Okay..." he whispered.
Hera hugged him, and he leaned into the reassuring embrace.
"Thank you, mommy." He whispered. Hera smiled.
"I'm always be here for you, Jacen." She reminded him. "And so will the rest of the crew."
He smiled.
Hera stood, holding his hand. "Now how about we go see if Zeb wants to go out for dinner?" She asked. Jacen jumped up and down with excitement. "Do you think he'll let me ride on his shoulders on the way there?" He asked. Hera smiled.
"Only one way to find out." She said, and he ran inside ahead of her, already yelling for Zeb.
So this will be my current project until I get more inspiration to finish my other stories. A collection of short one-shots about Jacen and the crew. Honestly, Jacen's so adorable, and I was so excited to find out Hera and Kanan had a kid (my own theory about how that happened is hinted in this chapter. Not sure if I'll expand on that later).
Now, for the fun part. Feel free to send in requests! Either in a review or private message! Keep the prompts approatriate, and centered around Jacen's interactions with the Ghost crew (as well as characters like Kallus and the clones!) and I'll do my best to update as much as possible!