The next day…
"So, where do you want to go next?" Esinon asked as Slick and Dogma joined her in the cockpit.
"I'm out of ideas," Slick said, Esinon looked over hopefully at Dogma.
"Do you have anywhere you want to go?" he asked, Esinon paused. She hadn't really thought about that. She did have an idea of somewhere she could take them if all others failed, although she felt bad just dropping in.
"Uh well… there's one place I thought you two would be safe," she said slowly,
"So where is it?" Slick huffed, well he was in a better mood than usual.
"Saleucami," she replied, well it stood to reason that neither Dogma nor Slick could report Cut or his family to anyone since they weren't a part of the GAR anymore. "Rex and I got injured while hunting for Grievous and we found a farm."
"But the Captain said that was abandoned," Dogma said, of course, he had read the report.
"I'm not living at some abandoned farm." Slick grouched, Esinon sighed,
"We only said it was abandoned to protect who lives there. A brother, a deserter. He has a wife, and two kids." she explained, "His name is Cut,"
"Really?" Dogma squeaked, "With a family?" Esinon nodded. Clones didn't consider that they could even have families, they all expected that the battle they were in to be their last.
"Yes, a little girl Shaeeah, and a boy Jekk. Cut will probably recognize me and said if I needed anything that I could come by," she said,
"Sounds as good as any," Slick said, Esinon let out a breath before giggling at Dogma. He looked about three seconds from screaming in excitement,
"Alright, Saleucami it is," she plugged in the hyperspace coordinates and sent them hurtling forward.
Esinon didn't know how long she had been staring at that wall of holos for. It felt like hours. She didn't know if she would ever be able to move past Obi-Wan's death, Umbara, any of it. She stared at a holo of her and Obi-Wan from when she was thirteen, that seemed like ages ago. She was going to be seventeen in a few months. A life day without Obi-Wan. That wasn't something she was looking forward to.
"Hey Master," she whispered, "I-uh, you're probably shaking your head from force heaven about all of my attachments. Some apprentice I am. I really hope that something I did while I was your padawan made you proud. I'm sorry I couldn't save you, it's something I'll always regret. And part of me will always regret not killing Hardeen, not getting vengeance for you, but revenge isn't the Jedi way I guess. I'm not much of a Jedi huh? What with Sith abilities I've been hiding because I'm afraid. I can still feel the light, and the call to the darkness it's been there since I was little but every Jedi has temptations, right? Maybe not. Maybe I am just a failure. I'm sorry Master, for everything."
"Can I talk to you for a minute?" Slick asked, Esinon glanced up at him from the whipping lights of hyperspace.
"Uh, sure," she said, following him into their quarters. Esinon sat down on her bed and Slick sat down next to her.
"Look, you've been pretty open about your past with me, and I'm thankful for that. It helps me see a different side of you, hate you less I guess." Slick said, she glanced at him, she didn't really know where this conversation was leading… "So I may regret this later, but I wanted to explain some of my past, why I 'betrayed' the Republic." Esinon shifted on the bed.
"Ok, you don't have to if you don't want to. But I won't tell Dogma anything," she said softly, Slick nodded, rubbing his hands along his pants.
"You already know that I was with Kenobi on Christophsis. That was before my transfer. I was under an abusive Jedi General, I'm not gonna tell you his name, it doesn't matter now because he's long dead. He did not care about me, or my brothers. He wouldn't let us retreat unless he said so, would beat my Commander, and abuse all of us. We lived in fear. I lost my squad pretty early in the war, all of them slaughtered in front of me. Although they never liked me very much, it still hurt. The point is, when I was trying to find some time to grieve, my General said grieving is for civilians, not clone units." Esinon's fists clenched around a blanket,
"Slick I-"
"That's why I call Jedi slavers because they use and abuse us. Now that I've spent time with you, I see they're using you just as much as me. You're a victim, just like me. And I'm sorry that they're forcing you into war." he said, Esinon looked up from the floor,
"I'm sorry Slick." she said, "I wish you could have been placed with a Jedi who would have treated you well."
"It's in the past now, and it's better to leave it there," Slick said, making it clear that Esinon was not to bring any of this up again. She nodded,
"Thank you for telling me Slick," he nodded, patting her knee before leaving the room. Esinon couldn't believe it, for one that Slick had opened up to her but that there were more abusive Generals. How many more clone legions were suffering? How sheltered was she really? Her fists clenched around her blanket,
"I can't control everything, I can't control everything, I can't control everything," she whispered trying to calm herself. She wanted to fix everything. The guilt was overwhelming.
"Do you think the kids will like me?" Dogma asked, Esinon heard Slick grumble at Dogma's never-ending stream of questions. Esinon had parked the ship a pretty far walk from the homestead but that was only because there was no space to park it on the homestead. They had been walking for about half an hour,
"Shaeeah and Jekk will probably just be happy to have a new face around. As far as I could tell, the only person who really leaves the homestead often is Cut." She said, "I have no idea if he'll be delivering harvest since I'm not a farmer and don't know how crops grow."
"We're not new faces though," Slick said, both she and Dogma glanced at him, "Clone humor." Esinon sighed,
"Anyways, he's been there since the first battle of Geonosis." she explained, "they're very wonderful people, and you two will be happy here if you choose to stay. The war hasn't been out here since Grievous crashed here, the only reason I could think of for the Republic wanting it would be for farmland but they haven't shown any interest." Slick scoffed,
"I didn't think of myself as much of a farmer,"
"I'm sure you'll figure it out," Esinon said, "And besides not all people farm on Saleucami." She grinned as the homestead finally came into view, "We're here," Dogma smiled, she could feel his force signature wriggling with excitement. Two heads poked out from behind the house, the little blue twi'lek figured out who was approaching first and sprinted out.
"Esinon!" she cried, with Jekk close on her tail. Esinon knelt down to greet the two children.
"Hello, hello, hello!" she exclaimed, hugging both of them close, "Force, you've both gotten so big!" they two half twi'lek, half-human children pulled away.
"Dad will be so excited to see you!" Shaeeah exclaimed Jekk was busy staring up at Dogma and Slick. Dogma waved, trying not to spook the young child. He'd never interacted with kids so young, so he didn't know exactly how they'd react.
"Where'd my helpers go?" an all too familiar voice asked,
"Daddy!" Shaeeah shouted, running over to her father who was coming around the corner of the house. "Esinon's here!" Cut looked up from his daughter,
"Hi Cut," she said, the elder clone's eyes shifted up to Dogma and Slick.
"I think you have a long story to explain," he said, Esinon nodded sheepishly.
Cut thumbed the edge of his water glass,
"That's quite a story," he said, Esinon nodded, fiddling with the end of her tunic.
"I couldn't think of another place they'd be safe, and hopefully happy," she said,
"It'll be a little tight for you three,"
"I can sleep on the ship, it's not a far run." Cut glanced at her, she had said it took them half an hour to walk here. "Oh, I forgot to tell you I'm a speedster." He raised an eyebrow,
"Ok, you all are welcome here for as long as you need," he said,
"Thank you Cut," Esinon said softly, the elder clone smiled and nodded, "And I can help with chores and such, I don't like to be left not busy."
"I'll probably take you up on that offer," he joked, she smiled,
"Really, I can't thank you enough. I'll be here for a month, maybe less. I'm surprised I haven't been called back to the front lines." she said, Cut nodded.
"Dinner should be ready by six if you need to run back to the ship that's fine," he replied, she nodded before disappearing from the house.
Later that night…
"I'm gonna go to bed," Esinon said, patting Dogma's shoulder.
"O-ok, are you feeling alright General?" he asked, it was only seven o'clock. Cut glanced up from the dishes he was doing at Dogma calling her General, she cringed to herself. She'd left out the part of Obi-Wan's death and her becoming a General. She just told him the omitted version of Umbara and everywhere they had been up to coming here.
"Yeah, I'm just tired and Fives is calling me in a couple of minutes anyway. Worried about when I'm gonna come back," she said,
"I'll probably be up in a few minutes, now that I think about it I'm wiped," Dogma said, dragging a hand down his face. She smiled softly before disappearing in the guest bedroom that Cut had added during the repairs after the commando attack. It was small and only had one bed, but Esinon had decided to sleep in the bay window because she was small enough to do so. By the time she had fallen asleep, Dogma had drifted into the room, collapsing into bed, immediately falling asleep. The only one left downstairs was Slick, the kids were in bed and Suu had disappeared into the kitchen.
"I can tell something's on your mind," Cut said, Slick finally turned his gaze from the window. "We're brothers, I'd be a bad one if I couldn't' tell when something was wrong."
"You don't need to worry about taking three people in," Slick finally said,
"Did Esinon already get called back?" he asked, Slick shook his head.
"No, I'm not staying," he said, Cut paused for a moment.
"You're not staying…" Cut repeated slowly, Slick nodded,
"That's what I just said. I don't belong here."
"You can belong wherever you choose," Cut argued,
"I don't I don't belong here."
"Why?"
"Why!" Slick shouted, he mumbled something to himself, dragging a hand down his face. "Why…" Cut motioned to the chair and Slick begrudgingly sat down. "When the kid… Esinon came to get us from the detention center, one of our brothers told her something. That she couldn't let her guard down around me, that I would kill her if given the chance." Cut paused for a moment, a look of upset crossing his face.
"But she's- Esinon's here. They were wrong," he said,
"No. He wasn't, I did on Scipio. I was outside on the balcony and I heard the familiar hum of a Jedi fighter. Esinon has a little sister who is force sensitive. A Jedi came for her. Her father is hiding her from the Jedi, hoping and praying they won't take Thea. And that Jedi tried to take her to the temple. And then I did it. Esinon could have been standing right there and I still would have done it." he said,
"It? What is 'it'?" Cut asked,
"The nightmare that we all have. It's not one to me. It's a dream." Slick said, his voice rising, "Standing over his body with his lightsaber in my hand, I felt more alive than I have in my entire life!" Slick's head dropped as he let out a harsh breath. "That's why I can't stay here. I'm not like them, and they can't find out about this. I… I couldn't face Esinon's if she found out. She's not just some Jedi anymore, she's my Jedi. Besides she takes the guilt of the galaxy on her shoulders if she found out I killed one of her own to protect her sister… and Dogma… he wouldn't ever look at me the same way." Cut stared at his feet, trying to process everything.
"If you don't think you belong here, you can leave. I can show you where the spaceport is," Cut said, Slick nodded,
"Could I have a transmitter as well?" he asked, Cut nodded, walking over to Slick and squeezing his shoulder.
"I hope you find what you're looking for."
"Thank you, Cut."
Esinon blinked her eyes a couple of times as sunlight streamed through the window. She looked groggily around the room, Dogma was still sleeping, blankets, and pillows a mess. She scanned the floor for Slick, the sleeping bag on the floor looked like it hadn't even been touched. Then again, Slick obsessively made his bed from his time as a soldier.
As much as he tried to rebel against the Kaminoans and his training, he could not get that part of his training to go away. She decided to get up and go in search of food and Slick, she slipped downstairs where all of Lawquanes were missing.
She poked her head out the door to see Shaeeah and Jekk running around, Cut was already out in the field and Suu was sitting on a chair on the porch happily watching her family.
"Good morning," Suu greeted, Esinon smiled at her,
"Good morning, is Slick helping Cut or did he-"
"Did Slick not tell you?" she asked, Esinon looked at her slowly,
"Tell me what?"
"He left last night," she said,
"What?!" Esinon exclaimed, "When?"
"I'm sorry but not long after you and Dogma went to sleep," Suu said, Esinon sighed, running her hands down her face.
"Please tell me he at least told Dogma," she said,
"Told me what?" Dogma asked, as he came out onto the porch. "Are things not working out here General?"
"No…. it's not that," she said slowly, she didn't know how to tell Dogma that a brother he had become very close with had just left. "Dogma…"
"He left didn't he," Dogma sai quietly, Esinon nodded, "He didn't even say goodbye,"
"I'm so sorry Dogma," she said, placing a hand on his forearm.
"I know it's not the same Dogma, but he did leave you a message on the ship," Suu said,
"He did?" Dogma asked, Suu nodded,
"He left it on your bunk," she said, a look of determination crossed Dogma's face.
"I need to go check,"
"Do you want me to run you there?" Esinon asked, Dogma shook his head,
"Thank you General, but I want to go alone," he said, Esinon nodded smiling softly,
"May the force be with you," She said, watching Dogma sprint in the direction of the ship. Suu turned to Esinon,
"Although Slick didn't leave something for you, he asked us to tell you thank you, for everything," Suu said, Esinon smiled softly. She walked down the steps of the porch, staring up at the sky,
"You're welcome Slick, and I hope you find what you're looking for," she said,
Hey Dogma.
I love you, you know that right? I hope you know that.
I know you have a lot of questions, and you know me. I don't always have a lot of answers.
Ones that don't involve me ranting anyways. Stars you've been patient with me.
I want you to know right now that you did nothing wrong. Neither did the kid. Me leaving is not your fault.
I was always distant from my squad when I was younger, maybe because they didn't like me very much, or I was doing things I wasn't supposed to be doing, but all of our brothers have always found solace in being around others.
I'm not like that I guess.
But spending time with you and the kid has helped me find myself, and these past weeks have been so good for me. Seeing life in a different light, both of you have been so patient with me, letting me move at my pace and letting me lash out and still loving me anyways.
I've wanted freedom for so long, but now I'm realizing my definition of freedom doesn't involve others.
I've wanted happiness for our brothers for so long, and I want happiness for you.
I know I'm a coward for leaving without saying goodbye, but I don't think I could face you.
I need to share something that might make you hate me. But I would understand if you do.
It's sad, it's really sad. And I've only told one person, and telling you is one of my worst fears, but here we go.
I killed a man on Scipio.
He was a Jedi. I swear he wasn't there for the kid. He was there for her sister.
I had to stop him.
And if I only save that one little kid, then I think I can make peace with that.
I can't make this sound noble. I killed him because I wanted to. Because seeing him enraged me.
And not just because of my past, and I loath the Jedi. But when you told me that Esinon… has been a part of this war since I was arrested...
I- what am I fighting for if the people who told me they're right are using children in their war?
I've seen her scars, she doesn't deserve that.
If I could, I would just save everyone. But I can't carry that, I've seen Esinon try and it's breaking her.
At the beginning of this trip, I was trying to get Esinon to leave the order. I thought she'd be happier away, that's part of the reason I took her back to her home planet. But she doesn't belong there either. I think that she needs to figure who she is, just as much as I need to.
If nothing else counts, I save one little kid and if that's all I get in life then I think I can make peace with that.
If you're still listening, how about I tell you something a little upbeat. More hopeful.
A little more Esinon-esque. That tiny bouncy child.
Gah, you've gotta love her.
These past few weeks, I know myself now more than I ever have and I wouldn't trade it for anything.
I've become a better person because of all of this. Because of both of you.
And I can't thank you enough.
I've got Cut's contacts, I'll call you first. I need a little time to get settled.
It probably won't help, but you don't have to worry about me. I'll be fine.
I want you to have a long happy and healthy life.
I love you Dogma.
A few days later…
Esinon wiped her brow, looking around the barn. She staked her pitchfork in the pile of hay, turning her attention to the eopie. She picked up a brush off the bench that Rex had once slept on.
"Alright little guy, I won't make this difficult if you want," she said softly, opening the stall. The eopie nudged her face, she giggled as his snout tickled her ear. She started to slowly brush the eopie, cleaning the folds just like Cut had taught her. "Life must be easier out here, maybe I could stay. But I won't. I'm not brave enough for that." she whispered, the eopie nudged her face again. "You understand? I bet you're braver than me, huh?" The eopie snorted, "I like to pretend I'm brave, it's easier that way."
"Esinon? Are you doing ok in here?" Cut asked, walking into the barn. Esinon tensed up for a moment. How much had he heard? Probably not much, she wasn't talking very loud.
"Yep, just moving onto brushing the eopie," she said, poking her head over the eopie's back.
"Do you have a minute to talk?" Cut asked, motioning to the table as he pulled up his stool. Esinon nodded before hopping up on the table. "So, I've heard Dogma calling you General. Last time I checked you were a Commander, not a General." Esinon sighed, Cut's dad mode was kicking in. Even though they hadn't known each other as long as she had known other clones. "Are you going to tell me what that's about?" Esinon sighed, rubbing her hands along her pants.
"Have you been listening to the holo-net at all?" she asked, Cut shook his head. "Ok, so… normally with a clone legion what will happen if their General dies is they will either be dispersed to other legions or a new Knight will be appointed as General. For whatever reason…" she let out a harsh breath, "That wasn't the case with my legion. My Master… was killed in action. I was promoted twenty-four hours later, now I'm General of the 212th." she finished quietly, Cut stared at his feet before reaching out and placing a hand on her knee.
"For how long?" he asked softly,
"Three months now," she whispered, a lump forming in her throat.
"I am so sorry." he said, Esinon nodded, "So is there more to Umbara as well?" She nodded again,
"All of them are gone." she choked, her voice rising, "Half of Rex's battalion was wiped out because of me. Almost all of Dogma's squad is gone, Waxer's whole platoon is almost gone. And the worst part, Krell turned the legions against each other. All of those men were killed by their brothers." she hurriedly wiped at her eyes as hot tears slipped down her cheeks. She felt Cut's hand tense on her knee, "And I wasn't there for them. What did I do when I found out, I went into shock and then cried like a tiny child." she said in self-loathing. Cut didn't say anything, he rose from his stool and gently wrapped her in a strong hug. Esinon let out a shuddered breath, "And then I tried to give my life because I don't feel like I deserved to be alive because I had failed so miserably but this kriffing galaxy won't. Let. Me. Die." Cut let go and placed firm hands on her shoulders,
"I wasn't there, but you are a good kid. You cannot save everyone." he said, "The first thing you need to do is forgive yourself."
"That's the thing. I don't really think I deserve forgiveness," she whispered, giving a strained smile. Cut heaved a sigh embracing her again, "I feel so sick and guilty all of the time."
"Survivors guilt, you feel like if you can't save them you might as well just die right along with them." Esinon nodded, fists clenching around Cut's green tunic. "Have you tried to process any of this?" she shook her head,
"No. Because I have all this stuff to do and if I think about any of it the grief and guilt are crippling. I can't shut down and I will if I think about any of this." Cut sighed, rubbing his hand up and down her back.
"You need to. You need to process all of this. You need to take a break because you don't have to be a strong General out here." he whispered, Esinon tried to choke down a whimper, "You need to forgive yourself."
"How?"
"Thinking about it, processing it, talking about it," he said softly, Esinon finally let tears slip down her cheeks.
"I'm sorry, this should be my burden. Not yours," she whispered,
"Suu was there for me, and right now you need someone there for you. I get to be that person," he said, Esinon nodded finally starting to let go.
"I know they're safe in the afterlife, but I want them here. They didn't deserve to die."
"And you don't either," Cut finally let go. "Have you ever thought that maybe instead of trying to die for them, you should try and live for them? Fight for them, fight for what they believed in?" Esinon shook her head, "I feel like that might be the best way to get out of this guilt. You did not kill those men. Their deaths are on the war. You didn't start the war. All that you have done if been forced to face this war, and then burden the guilt that is not rightly yours. Do you understand me?" She nodded, wiping at her face.
"Thanks, Cut," she whispered, he nodded,
"If you need to talk, please come to me," he replied, she nodded.
"I will."
"Good."
Two weeks later…
"We'll be back in the morning," Cut explained to his two children,
"Thank you so much for watching the children," Suu said, as she pulled on a coat. She and Cut were going into town for some time away. Life had finally adjusted into normality, and the guilt on Esinon's shoulders was finally starting to lift.
"Of course, I think we can have some fun," Esinon said, both children smiled up at her mischievously,
"Just don't burn the house down," Cut said, Dogma chuckled,
"I think we'll be just fine," Suu placed a kiss on both her children's heads before she and Cut left.
A thunderstorm raged outside, rain pounded against the house. Dogma had disappeared into the bedroom hours ago, but Esinon had stayed up to read for a while. Another crack of thunder rattle the house,
Esinon curled up further into her blanket, her tiny twelve-year-old form becoming a tiny ball on her bed. She shuddered as another crack of thunder shook her room. She was terrified, every time thunder cracked it sounded like an explosion. She was scared she would be thrown roughly to the ground, listen to the screaming of her men, feel the fire blistering her skin.
Esinon swiped to the next page of her book, listening to the rain slap against the windows.
She actually whimpered at the next thunder crack as she tried to slam up her mental shields as Master Kenobi had taught her. He didn't want a weak padawan. He had trained Anakin Skywalker. The Hero with no fear. He didn't want a padawan who was afraid of thunder. She yelped as lightning flashed and the thunder cracked louder than ever. She pulled the blankets up over her head. At the next crack of thunder, she jumped out of her bed. She quickly sprinted down towards Master Kenobi's room, she paused hovering her hand over the door. She couldn't do this. She needed to be brave, just as she was about to head back to her room, more thunder raged outside. Tears slipped from Esinon's eyes, her heart and head pounding. The blast door to Master Kenobi's room slid open, and peered out groggily, his normally impeccable hair was mused from sleep. He spotted her standing in the hallway,
"Padawan mine, are you alright?" he asked, Esinon quickly nodded.
"I'm sorry Master, I went to the kitchen to get a glass of water and got a little lost in the-" thunder cracked and Obi-Wan's bond with Esnon was flooded with fear. Then it dawned on Obi-Wan, the thunder reminded her of battle. That's why she looked terrified. He silently cursed the universe for putting the burden of war on a twelve-year-old's shoulders. She should be admiring the storm, not confusing it with the front lines.
"Come here Esinon," he said, opening up his arms Esinon slowly walked over seemingly ashamed of her own fear.
Esinon glanced up at a creak of the stairs, she spotted Jekk.
"Jekk, are you alright?" he shook his head, Esinon stood up and walked over to him, sweeping him up in her arms. "Did you have a bad dream?" she whispered,
"No," he whispered, more thunder shook the house, he shuddered, his small arms tightening their grip on her body.
Obi-Wan gently embraced his padawan,
"You are safe, I promise," he said, Esinon's tiny arms tightened around his waist.
"I'm sorry," she whispered, Obi-Wan smiled softly,
"Come here, I want to show you something," he said,
Esinon gently rocked Jekk back and forth, starting to pace the room slowly.
"Is it because of the thunder?" she asked, he nodded,
"I sleep with Mommy and Daddy when there's a thunderstorm," he said,
"I used to be scared of thunderstorms too," she said,
"Are you still?" Jekk asked, looking up at her. Esinon smiled, gently stroking one of his lekku.
"Sometimes it makes me a little antsy, but I learned a cool trick that makes me like the thunderstorm a little more."
Obi-Wan set Esinon up on the kitchen counter so she could look out the window at the rain and lightning.
"Do you want to do something fun?" he asked, gently rubbing her back as she leaned into his embrace. Esinon nodded, "So if you count the seconds between a lightning flash and the thunder cracking, and then divide by five you can figure out how many miles the storm is a way." he explained,
"Really?" she whispered, Obi-Wan nodded. Lightning flashed, "One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, ten, eleven, twelve, thirteen, fourteen, fifteen." she counted quietly until thunder cracked. This time she didn't flinch as violently.
"Now divide by five," Esinon said to Jekk after he finished counting, he quickly did the math in his head.
"Fifteen," he said, as Esinon shifted him to her hip.
"That's right, do you feel better?" Jekk rested his head on her shoulder, tucking her head right underneath her chin.
"It's kind of pretty," he said quietly, Esinon smiled softly,
"It is, isn't it," she replied,
"Do you feel better?" Obi-Wan asked Esinon nodded.
"I'm sorry," she whispered, Obi-Wan shook his head.
"You have no reason to be padawan mine, I don't mind," he said,
"You promise?" she asked, he nodded,
"I promise,"
"Do you really have to go?" Dogma asked, Esinon sighed, smiling softly,
"Yeah, I got the call this morning." she said, "The people of Kiros have gone missing, and I'm needed." She fished something out of her pocket, a couple of folded up holos. "I want you to have these," Dogma took them from her hand and unfolded them, there was one of her and his squad, and the other was of him, Esinon and Slick. Dogma smiled softly,
"Thank you General," he said, his eyes welling with tears. Esinon gave a strained chuckle wiping at her eyes. She was really going to miss Dogma. "Permission to hug you, sir?"
"Permission always granted," she said as they embraced. She squeezed him tight, "I'm gonna miss you Dogma."
"I will too, General," he whispered, the two of them finally let go.
"I'll try to visit and call when I can," she said,
"Thank you, General, for everything,"
"You're welcome Dogma," They both hugged each other one last time before Esinon disappeared back to her ship to make the trip back to the Negotiator. Little did Esinon know, her next mission was a trap.
Alright! Guilt and Secrets is finished! Although this is not the last time we'll be hearing from Slick and Dogma.
Next up on let's make this canon corner: not relevant to the chapter but Thea is very attached to Fox before she moved to Scipio. She got excited when Esinon introduced the two of them and she found out he was named Fox like the stuffed animal she carries around obsessively.
Just in case yall were wondering it's still a few chapters till Obi gets back. I know this is a long arc but it's really setting up who Esinon is going to be as a person later in the story.
Thank you for reading and make sure to leave a review!