Chapter 2 - Calli's first period with the boys...
A/N: This takes place shortly after Calli's first mission with the boys on Felucia. I've been wanting to do this one shot for a while but had some trouble coming up with what to write. But I've finally finished this one shot and I'm quite proud of it and hope it'll make you laugh! Of course, some of this is exaggerated for humorous purposes.
WARNING: Mentions of blood and they talk about periods and stuff. If that makes you uncomfortable, please don't read, I won't judge you lol. I understand that not everyone is open about topics like these.
When Calli woke up, there was only one word to describe how she felt: crappy. She wasn't sure why though...yet. But when her lower stomach suddenly felt like it was being stabbed, she instantly knew. Her period was about to start.
Son of a bantha. Usually, the cramps started a day or two before her actual period.
Hearing the others begin to stir awake, her irritation morphed into embarrassment and horror. It's only been three weeks since she joined the squad. They were still getting used to one another and getting to know each other, and now this has to happen?
Calli had to hold back a groan when another stab of pain came from her lower stomach, fell back down on her bed and curled into a fetal position on her side while clutching her middle.
Unfortunately, she couldn't stay like that, and a little while later was forced to get up and help Tech with doing some repairs on the ship. Their mission on Felucia had ended with a little air battle with a few leftover Separatist fighters and they'd done a number on the shields and one of the wings - and instead of going to one of the Republic Cruisers that were orbiting above the planet, Tech insisted they could land on a different planet and do the repairs themselves.
Once Calli had changed, she made her way into the main hold where Tech and Crosshair were the only ones to be found and were eating ration bars for breakfast.
"Well good morning, sleeping beauty." Crosshair quipped, and Calli only sent him a glare in reply before getting a ration bar of her own, though truth be told she was really craving something sweet.
"Uh, you alright Callista?" Tech asked with concern, noticing that the girl hadn't countered Crosshair's remark with a sarcastic one of her own.
"I'm fine." Was Calli's short reply. Tech didn't buy this, but knew better than to question her further, much to the teenager's relief. "Where's Hunter and Wrecker?"
"They left for the town about fifteen minutes ago to get supplies." Calli nodded, then realized she didn't have any feminine supplies of her own. She sighed to herself, wondering how she was going to be able to sneak off to go buy what she needed.
I'll figure something out.
If there's one thing Calli has learned from being with the Bad Batch, it's that Tech is very protective of the Havoc Marauder. He's referred to it as his ship when Hunter isn't around, though Calli is certain that the Sergeant is aware of Tech's attachment and is nice enough to let his brother lay claim to the ship.
Calli didn't mind it one bit, until she started being Techs' helping hand with repairs and such. On top of being possessive of the Havoc Marauder, Tech also had his pride over being exceptionally smart and thus almost always considered his way of doing things the only right way to do it.
This was harder for Calli to deal with, but she usually could deal with his know-it-all attitude.
Usually.
But, Calli was in extreme pain which worsened her already short temper. And in the two hours they were working on the ship, Wrecker and Hunter had returned.
Wrecker seemed to be especially hyper and loud today, and Calli found herself on multiple occasions close to snapping at him. That, coupled with Crosshair and his usual salty attitude and snarky remarks, added to Calli's aggravation.
At the moment she was removing some wires that had been fried and replacing them.
Calli could feel Tech's presence behind her, looking over her shoulder as she worked. She tried her best to ignore the goggled clone and focus on her task, but she could feel him breathing down her neck and it was very, extremely, utterly annoying.
Finally it seemed Tech couldn't keep quiet.
"No, that's not the right way to do it." He stated, and Calli closed her eyes and sighed, before nodding and attempting to correct her apparent mistake. She heard Tech draw in a breath and ground her jaw in frustration, not having to turn around to know he'd raised his signature pointer finger as he spoke again. "No no, the correct way to do that is -" Calli growled and finally snapped, swiveling around to glare at her squadmate.
"Tech!" She said sharply, and he stopped talking, not expecting to be interrupted, "I've worked on starships the second I was able to hold a tool properly. I think I know what I'm doing." Tech nodded and again raised his stupid finger and Calli had half a mind to rip it off.
With her enhanced strength it was totally possible.
"I know, I am simply trying to help and offer a few suggestions-" Calli interrupted him.
"Well maybe I don't want any suggestions, did you ever think about that?" She asked rhetorically, before throwing her hands up, "You know what, if you don't trust me then you should fix this kriffing ship yourself." Calli proceeded to throw her tools on the ground, and after moving around Tech was going to head somewhere to cool off only to be stopped by Hunter who'd heard all the commotion and came outside.
"Alright, what's going on?" Hunter asked, this not being the first time Calli has gotten into a fight with one of the boys. They were still getting used to the new addition and some arguments were bound to happen. So far Hunter has managed to diffuse most of them, only one involving an actual physical fight - between Calli and Crosshair. Hunter didn't even know why the fight started, though he figured it was over something stupid as those two were the most petty of the whole bunch. He might've let it continue so they could hash it out - Hunter and his brothers got into many physical fights growing up but it was never too violent, maybe just some shoving and wrestling, which is what Calli and Crosshair were doing though the former did try to throw a few punches - but since Calli had enhanced strength and wasn't entirely in control of it he feared that she might actually hurt Crosshair more than intended. Of course Hunter never said that exactly as it would tick off his brother and make it sound like he was weak.
"Nothing," Calli replied shortly and she tried to walk around the Sergeant but unfortunately was unsuccessful.
"Don't give me that."
"Why don't you ask Tech as he seems to know everything." Calli replied snarkily. Instead of being mad that his youngest squad mate was giving him attitude, Hunter was concerned and put a hand on her shoulder.
"Are you alright?" He asked, "There's something off about you, I can sense it." For a brief moment Calli panicked, completely forgetting that she wasn't the only one with enhanced senses.
"I'm just... not feeling too hot right now." As if on cue her lower stomach exploded in pain, feeling as if someone had plunged a vibroblade into it. She tried to hold back a grimace though some expression of discomfort must have made its way onto her face because Hunter immediately asked if she was alright. "Y-Yeah. I'm gonna go get something to eat." This time Hunter let her pass though watched her retreating form with a suspicious expression. He was still learning about Calli and therefore didn't know if this sudden outburst was the result of something bothering her or if it was just normal for Calli - Tech had called a squad meeting one night after Calli had gone to sleep and gave an impromptu lecture about how to act and take care of a teenage girl, (somehow Tech got it in his mind that since Calli was underage, not only was she a member of the squad, but technically in a way they were her guardians) though truth be told Hunter tuned most of it out. He viewed Callista as just another member of the squad and treated her as such.
Perhaps I should've listened, then I might know what's going on.
Meanwhile, inside the Havoc Marauder, Calli was rifling through the provisions the boys got on the supply run and she hoped that Wrecker had convinced Hunter to get something even remotely sweet or at least had some flavor that wasn't tasteless rations.
Crosshair walked into the main hold and paused while raising an eyebrow upon seeing Calli's legs sticking up in the air as her upper body was completely inside the crate as she dug around.
Alas, she found nothing and had the sudden urge to burst into tears over it. She just wanted something yummy, as stressed spelled backwards is desserts and so the solution to her current predicament.
"Are you crying?" He asked once she'd pulled herself out of the crate, eyes watering and wearing a pout on her lips as she slumped down to the floor of the ship. Crosshair didn't sound the least bit concerned, more like he was taken aback and maybe a slight bit amused by the sight. Calli tried her best to act tough and to see her reduced to tears was very unlike the girl.
"I just want something other than rations right now - and - and we don't have any!" Crosshair blinked in shock, not expecting that sort of answer. Tears were now streaming down her face and Crosshair did the only thing he could think of - have someone else deal with a crying girl.
"Hunter!" The Sergeant casually walked in from outside, figuring that Crosshair was going to complain about something like he always did.
"What?" He asked, looking first at Crosshair and then noticing Calli. Hunter looked at his brother with a questioning expression.
"... she's crying because we only have rations to eat..." was the sniper's answer and Hunter at first didn't believe him, but Crosshair's expression was completely serious. He looked back at Calli, who continued to cry for another ten seconds - then her mood completely shifted and after drying her cheeks she stood up and looked at the boys with an indifferent expression.
"What are you looking at?" She asked with attitude and when the boys didn't answer - to freaked out if they were being honest - she huffed and walked to a different part of the ship. The two brothers looked at each other with bewilderment.
And things only got worse from there...
The next morning...
When Hunter woke up suddenly, he didn't know why at first. It was still nighttime on the planet they were on and everyone was sleeping soundly. He heard some noise coming from the cockpit but knew it was Tech who pretty much only slept when he was on the verge of collapsing from exhaustion, his mind always racing - an unfortunate result of his enhancement.
But that's not what caused Hunter to wake up. Then what was it?
Then the smell hit him like a ton of bricks. Blood. His heightened sense of smell picked up the slight metallic scent that he was all too familiar with, being a soldier and all.
Immediately the Sergeant got up from his bed and went to turn on the lights, which caused a series of groans to come from Wrecker and Crosshair, while Calli surprisingly remained conked out - that in itself was unusual as any small and foreign noise or sudden change like the lights being turned on awoke her - it took her a few days to get used to the racket Tech made while the rest of them slept.
Hunter was aware of her lack of reaction and quickly climbed up the racks to reach hers on top and his heart sank when he laid eyes on the stained red sheets. At some point during her slumber Calli had kicked off her blanket and was laying on her side facing the wall, giving the Sergeant a full view of the blood now on the bunk and her pants.
"Holy kriff!" Hunter exclaimed, losing his cool for a moment as he took in how much blood there was. He put a hand on Calli's shoulder and began shaking it roughly to wake her up, not thinking of the consequences of doing such a thing.
Calli's eyes opened and out of reflex grabbed the hand on her shoulder proceeded to twist the arm attached to it in an unnatural way, and Hunter let out a cry of pain. When Calli registered the voice, she shot up in bed while letting the hand go, only to hit her head on the roof of the ship and let out a cry of pain of her own and fall back down on the mattress.
"Dank Ferrik!" Calli swore, her voice groggy yet laced with irritation as she rubbed her forehead while trying to wake up. "What the heck is wrong with you?"
"You're bleeding!" Hunter yelled, pointing to the blood stain. In her half asleep state, it didn't quite register at first what the Sergeant said, and she blinked in confusion before looking to where Hunter was pointing and then her eyes became saucers when she saw the bood. Now wide awake, Calli said another curse word in Mando'a and her face became red from embarrassment.
Kriff kriff kriff!
"Come down so Tech can look you over!" Hunter ordered, going into full dad mode, "Did you get hurt on Felucia and not tell us?!" Calli sighed and honestly just wanted to crawl into a hole and die. Of course she couldn't do that, so she settled for the next best thing and reached to where her blanket was bunched up at the end of the bunk, pulling it over her body and head then curling back into a ball. Hunter watched all this with complete bewilderment. How can she be so calm when she's bleeding? And if she's been injured this whole time, how did I not smell the blood before?
Hunter came to the conclusion that she lost too much blood and was on the verge of dying with her lack of panic over bleeding.
"Wrecker go get Tech and find the medkit!" The giant clone was splayed out on the floor of the ship and was in a slight daze from being woken up so suddenly, and looked up at the Sergeant with confusion.
"What's going on?" Wrecker asked, still groggy and not being able to process fully what his brother was saying. That there was an apparent emergency involving their youngest squad mate.
"Tech. Medkit. NOW!" Hunter yelled and Wrecker understood his orders this time and jumped to his feet to go do as he was told, still confused as to what was going on but knowing better than to argue with an agitated Hunter. Some shuffling and angry mumbling came from Crosshair's bunk before the sniper rolled back the privacy curtain to glare at his brother.
"Hey! Some of us are trying to sleep!" He snapped.
"Well it's nice to know you don't care about the fact that Calli might be BLEEDING to death!" Hunter snapped back and Crosshair blinked, now confused.
"What? Bleeding?"
"Yes Crosshair, BLEEDING!"
Right after Hunter yelled that, Wrecker reappeared with Tech close behind, the latter with the medkit, ready to help. But by now Calli had had enough of the shouting and panic and growled - yes, growled - while throwing the blanket off to glare daggers at the boys.
"CAN EVERYONE JUST SHUT THE KRIFF UP!" Calli screamed at the top of her lungs, causing Hunter to jump and wince as he was closest to her and it hurt his ears. The other three boys all wore similar looks of bewilderment, none of them understanding what the heck was going on. "Just leave me alone, I'm fine!"
"The blood says otherwise." Crosshair stated dryly, now seeing what Hunter did from his bunk which was across from his. Once again Calli's face became a dark shade of red that rivaled the stain on her sheets.
"It's - It's not what you think." She muttered quietly, internally feeling mortified as now everyone was aware of what was happening. Hunter scoffed in disbelief and shook his head.
"Then enlighten me." Hunter countered. Calli opened her mouth, but then shut it, her embarrassment increasing tenfold as four sets of eyes looked at her expectantly, waiting for an explanation. It all became too much for the fifteen year old, who up until now never had to deal with her period around other people. Now she was living with four grown men who probably never had things like periods explained to them - after all it wasn't useful in the heat of battle. Heck, even Calli didn't know about them, as apparently Nala Se didn't think it necessary to explain such things to her. So when she experienced it the first time, well let's just say she was prepared to die, especially when the blood flow continued for six days straight. Of course she noticed that some days were heavier than others, and that confused her even more. Thankfully through the power of the holonet, Calli figured out what was happening after day three. Yet she was confused when researching that there would also be terrible cramping and the possibility of her emotions being all over the place - only that didn't happen and Calli stupidly thought that maybe she'd be spared all those unpleasant side effects.
Calli found out the hard way that she was oh so wrong, as the second period was way worse.
Back to the present, Calli without warning shoved Hunter back so he fell to the ground(he landed on his feet, don't worry), thus allowing the girl to get off her bunk. She kept her head down and pushed the guys away when they attempted to come closer and see if she was alright, shuffling her way to the refresher. After locking the door and ignoring the commotion on the other side, Hunter demanded that she come out. He wasn't angry at her, though it came across that he was by the tone of his voice but he was worried. Sure it's only been a few weeks since Calli joined the squad and they'd learned pretty quickly she was prone to angry outbursts and they were all getting used to living together, but she'd never acted this way.
Outside in the main hold...
"What exactly happened?" Tech questioned Hunter, trying to get a better understanding of what exactly the situation was. Hunter sighed and ran a hand through his hair anxiously, Wrecker wearing a similar expression and while Crosshair appeared to be calm he couldn't help but feel a twinge of worry for the girl. They haven't exactly gotten along, both of them always at each other's throats, but still when someone you know wakes up with blood around them, it's bound to worry even people like Crosshair who preferred to keep their feelings locked up.
"I-I don't know. I woke up and smelled blood and found it on her sheets." Hunter reamined staring at the door as he spoke, so he didn't see when realization dawned on the genius clone's features, "But I can't tell where it came from." Tech couldn't help but facepalm at his brother's cluelessness; after all he'd explained it all to the boys weeks ago. He'd suspected that they didn't pay much attention, but hoped his brothers at least listened to the part about the menstrual cycles.
"Tech..." Crosshair said in a low voice, recognizing his brother's 'I know something you don't' look. Hunter's head snapped in Tech's direction, squinting his eyes upon seeing the hint of a smile on his mouth. How could he be smiling at a time like this?
"What's so funny?" Hunter asked in the same tone as Crosshair, though his sounded even more intimidating, yet Tech didn't feel threatened. Instead he shook his head and motioned for Hunter to step away from the door, and Hunter did, reluctantly, eyeing his brother as he knocked softly on the door.
"Callista? I know what's happening and I can help you, if you'll let me in." It was quiet for a little while, then they heard the door unlock. Before going in, Tech said over his shoulder, "Just look up menstrual periods on the holonet. Maybe next time you'll listen when I explain something to you." With that the door shut, leaving three clones gawking at their youngest brother.
In the refresher...
Calli was pressed into the back corner of the refresher, fighting off tears - out of embarrassment or just plain emotional mood swings, Tech wasn't sure. It was a very tiny room, and Tech stood there awkwardly for a moment, and decided to sit down on the ground in front of the door, slightly turned to the left so he was facing Calli, leaving about two feet of space between them. It was a tight fit, especially with all his armor, but somehow Tech found a comfortable position, sitting with his legs crossed and hands on his knees, wracking his mind for a way to approach the problem without setting Calli off. He understood her embarrassment and just wanted to help. Much to his relief, Calli spoke up first, in a quiet almost nonexistent voice.
"How can you help me?" Tech suddenly looked very pleased with himself and reached over to the small cabinet located underneath the sink. Opening it, he took out a box and held it out to Calli. She gave him a confused look but took the box from his hands while Tech began explaining.
"I'd known that women had cycles that they go through and something told me that I should learn more about it as I assumed you went through it. I know you have a period once a month and it lasts up to seven days at most." Calli nodded, slightly weirded out by the fact that he researched periods but at the same time there was some relief over the fact that one of her squadmates knew what was going on and didn't think she was dying. She was even more surprised upon opening the box to find things she'd need during her period, including a heating pad! And there were a few bars of chocolate, and again Calli had to hold back tears as it had been exactly what she was craving. She looked up at Tech with bewilderment as he continued, "I got them shortly before our mission to Felucia."
"B-But how did you know when I'd you know, start?"
"I calculated shortly after you joined the team. It's been about three and a half weeks since you've joined the squad and I made an estimated guess as to when it would start. Though sometimes they can be late, even if you're not pregnant. I simply wanted to be prepared for it and knew you'd be too self conscious about it to ask us to stop somewhere to get the needed supplies and that wouldn't be ideal for you or the rest of us. I think the other's reactions pretty much confirm that." This made Calli chuckle and Tech found himself smiling too as they thought about how freaked out Hunter had been. Hunter was never going to live that down.
After laughing for a bit Calli became quiet again and Tech noticed the tears pool in them and his eyebrows drew together in concern. Had he done something wrong, maybe forgotten something?
"What's the matter?" Calli shook her head and wiped her eyes but Tech looked so worried that she had to give him an explanation to lessen his anxiety.
"It's just... No one has ever, you know, gone through the trouble to help me like this. It's weird, but not in a bad way. I guess what I'm trying to say is... thank you. I appreciate it."
"It's no problem. I simply wanted to be prepared and you to be comfortable. I know we aren't the easiest people to live with and it's been hard for you to adjust. And you're more irritable during this time and hoped this would at least keep me in your good graces. It's why I included the chocolate." Calli couldn't help but bust out laughing at his confession and Tech chuckled while massaging the back of his neck nervously, sort of embarrassed for basically admitting he didn't want to be on Calli's bad side during her period. "Anyways, i'll give you some privacy and try to calm the others down, though they're most likely mortified. And if you need space, I'll be in the cockpit but won't bother you so feel free to hang out in there." Again Calli was on the verge of tears, but she was able to hold back her emotions, at least until Tech left.
Ten minutes later...
When Calli finally mustered up the courage to exit the refresher, she found Hunter and Wrecker crowded around a data pad that the Sergeant held in his hands. Their mouths were agape and they all looked absolutely mortified at what they were learning. Crosshair was standing off to the side, having already read what he needed to and getting the gist of what was happening. His brothers couldn't tear their gazes away from the article though, both rereading it over and over, unable to comprehend the information at all! They all looked up when Calli reluctantly stepped into the room and if Calli wasn't still embarrassed she'd have found their reactions hilarious.
"So... you bleed... for seven days straight?" Wrecker asked slowly and Crosshair rolled his eyes while Calli confirmed this. Wrecker sputtered and looked at Calli with eyes as wide as saucers, "How do you not DIE?"
"Well it certainly feels like I'm dying." Calli admitted, relaxing slightly as the boys didn't seem to be disgusted by her period, just surprised and maybe a little horrified as well.
Crosshair tsked from his spot by the door leading to the cockpit. "I think you're being a little overdramatic." He said while shaking his head, and Calli slowly turned to look at him with daggers for eyes. Hunter and Wrecker shared weary looks and the former ran a hand down his face, knowing that his brother had probably just signed his death sentence. Calli can be testy on a regular basis, but right now she is in immense pain and extremely uncomfortable, and Crosshair just wrote off her pain like it was nothing.
"Oh really? How about I kick you somewhere special and you can get a small inkling of what I'm going through!" Calli threatened while stepping closer to the sniper in an attempt to intimidate him, even if he was a foot taller than her.
"Studies have shown that the level of pain women experiences with the cramps rivals that of when they're giving birth." Tech inputted, appearing out of nowhere with a bottle in his hands that no one noticed at first. He was hoping to diffuse the tension between Calli and Crosshair by spouting off facts in hopes that the sniper would empathize more with their youngest squadmate, though there was a fat chance of that happening. Severe and unyielding was his nature, Tech had learned that long ago.
Before Crosshair could come up with another scathing remark, Tech turned to Calli and held out the small bottle to her.
"What's this?" Calli asked, too lazy to read the label.
"Painkillers."
"Painkillers..." Calli repeated, more to herself and she looked at the bottle for a second, then back at Tech as if he'd just performed a miracle, and in a way he did. "Painkillers!" she said again with enthusiasm, and she let out a short breathy laugh, "How come I never thought to take them for the cramps? Tech you're a genius!" Calli quickly unscrewed the lid and poured the proper amount in her hand. After handing the bottle back to Tech, Calli popped the pills in her mouth and without asking took Crosshair's cup of caf from his hands and used that to wash them down. (Quick author's note: I know it might be weird that Calli didn't know you could take painkillers to help with cramps. I based that off myself because for some reason I never put two and two together nor was told that I could take stuff to lessen the pain. I only just learned that recently after dealing with super bad cramp pains for years. It probably makes me seem dumb but oh well, that's just what happened. Back to the story.)
"Hey!" Crosshair exclaimed, but his protest fell on deaf ears. Out of spite Calli downed the entire drink and after letting out a content hum she plopped the cup back in his hands, giving the clone a smug look before sauntering off to the cockpit. Crosshair clenched his jaw and after letting out a harsh sigh he went to make himself another cup of caf.
Later...
Calli was in the cockpit, watching a movie on her datapad and munching on one of the chocolate bars Tech - who'd stepped out briefly to check something on the outside of the Havoc Marauder - had given her. It turned out to be a real tear jerker and while Calli normally didn't cry so easily this time she did.
Wrecker walked in, looking for his Lula doll and stopped in his tracks when he heard sniffling. Looking around the room, his eyes spotted Calli in the co-pilot's seat. She spun the chair around when she heard someone come in, thinking it was Tech. Wrecker took in her tear stained face and immediately rushed to her side asking what was wrong. Calli began sputtering out random nonsense in a failed attempt to explain what the movie was about and why it had made her cry, but unfortunately Wrecker couldn't understand any of what Calli said and he had half a mind to go get Tech.
"Uhhh, do you need a hug or something?" he asked once Calli finished her babbling. Calli nodded and before Wrecker could even give her a hug she stopped crying for a second and held out the datapad in Wrecker's direction.
"Wanna watch with me?" she asked, also waving the chocolate bar in his direction to persuade him with the promise of sharing her sweets.
Ten minutes later Hunter went into the cockpit, and he froze in his tracks at the scene before him. Wrecker and Calli were sitting side by side against the console at the front and were both blubbering like babies as they had just finished watching an emotionally charged scene of the movie. Still sobbing, Calli held out the chocolate bar to Wrecker and he broke a piece off while crying also, not looking away from the screen.
It's going to be a long week... Hunter thought to himself.
Hope you all liked this chapter! I didn't intend for it to be so long but 5,000 words later and voila! A bunch of humor and fluff! And I know Crosshair was kinda mean but remember this is when she first joins the squad, and their relationship is still rocky. But Calli stood up for herself, go her! At least Tech sympathized with her right? And made sure she had all she needed! And Wrecker is there to give hugs and cry along with Calli! Hunter of course imagined the worst was happening but that just added some humor to the whole situation, and I hope it made you laugh!
~B.C.