The Clone Wars doesn't belong to me. Just Sky & Co.
Big thanks to Delta808th for beta reading! And an early Happy Birthday too!
Big thanks to my reviewers: Panda, Meydral Skirata, Kelana-ti, Janizary, SaintOfAllSaints01, and Parker Fallon for reviewing!
Jinx looked back at Skylar and just shook his head, his expression plainly saying that he thought that she'd finally lost it. Quirk and Dover wore similar expressions. It was Wreck who became uncharacteristically vocal.
The former sergeant was so upset that he could barely keep himself from slipping completely into Mando'a, "If this is some kind of joke, Sky, it isn't nuhunla. You've troch lost your dikutla mirshe."
Skylar turned her gaze to Lyle, hoping he'd back her up. He stayed where he was, standing off to the side with his arms crossed and his posture literally screaming that he did not want to get involved in this. Any trooper who'd heard of Cordav's boys knew enough to realize that they'd literally kill to protect their sister.
She sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose, "Vod'ikase, this is our yaim I'm talking about. I can't just stand aside while the Kyr'stad try to take it over!"
Quirk moved a step closer, laying a hand on her small bump, "S'ika. Please think about this. You're three months yaihadla. It's not just us and you anymore. If anything happens to this baby on our watch, I... I'll hate myself for the rest of my life. Just imagine how devastated your-"
Skylar cut him off with a frantic shake of her head and a glance at Lyle. She still didn't trust him not to turn her in if he found out who the father of her baby was. He was a good man, but still very much brainwashed.
Quirk lifted a brow in question, but nodded his head, "I mean, the father will be absolutely devastated."
She laid her hand on top of his, "I know this, Quirk. But I also know that it's become more than just our family and the rest of the boys. We're the only ones in any real position to do anything, we have to help our people."
"Quirk's right, Sky," Jinx spoke up softly from his seat at the briefing table. "Putting yourself and your ad'ika at risk like this won't help anyone."
"It's just a reconnaissance mission-"
Wreck shook his head, his disbelief still plain on his face, "That's what you said when we went to Florrum. And we lost-" he choked and it was well over a minute before he could compose himself. "It was a disaster," he added softly. "And we almost lost you too."
Dover squeezed Wreck's shoulder gently before turning his gaze on Skylar, "And don't forget about Tea. She's already lost both of her parents once before," he sighed. "Do you really want us to have to tell her that we lost her mother and vod'ika?"
"That won't happen-"
"They're right, Skylar."
She pulled away from Quirk and whipped around to look incredulously at Lyle, who'd managed to keep quiet until right then. "Are you serious? I have to-"
Jinx came up behind her and pulled her into a bear hug. He was shaking so bad Skylar knew that he was scared of what might happen should she insist on coming. He'd lost too much already and she remembered him telling her that he was terrified of losing her too.
No one said anything for several minutes. Skylar was well aware that her brothers knew that she was so close to losing it on them. Jinx squeezed her gently and she sighed, turning around to bury her face in his chest. "The only thing you have to do right now, S'ika, is focus on having a healthy baby boy or girl. Let us do the spying and fighting. What else was all that training for?"
Skylar pulled her head back far enough so that she could meet his eyes, "You shouldn't have to." She turned her head, meeting her brothers' gazes and Lyle's. "None of you had a choice. No one asked if you wanted to fight. They made all of you train. They make all of you risk your lives. I can't just sit on the sidelines-"
"You're not," Lyle said, coming close enough so that he could rub her back soothingly. "Having someone like you to come home to... Can't really describe how good that feels." He smiled at their shell-shocked expressions, "You and your boys aren't the only ones with a secret family, Sergeant."
She smiled back at him. They were right, of course. But that didn't mean that she was going to drop the issue. "At least let me come along to moniter you boys. Gedet'ye?"
Jinx looked at the rest of his squad and met Lyle's eyes too. "Fine," he sighed.
"But you're going to do exactly as we tell you," Dover added. The others nodded in agreement.
Skylar glared at her boys, "Excuse me, but I thought that I was the Rus'alor here."
"You should have thought about that before you got yourself knocked up," Dover shot back.
She stuck her tongue out at him.
"So you're leaving tomorrow then."
Wreck looked up at Kenna from his place on the floor. If it weren't for the gravity of her statement, she'd be laughing at the scene. He was surrounded by Griff's blocks that he was trying to build a tower out of. For the past hour. However, their son seemed to think it was hilarious to knock over his father's work every time Wreck came close to finishing. Not that Wreck seemed to mind, he seemed to have been enjoying himself.
Until she'd spoken up.
He sighed, pulling Griff into his lap and kissing his son's temple as the one year old wrapped chubby arms around his neck. "I'm afraid so, Kenny."
She slid onto the floor, close enough to reach out and touch him but still far enough away to keep things from getting too intimate. "I don't understand, Mandalore's not even in the war. You don't even have solid proof that anything is even happening there, just hearsay."
"Tarcca's contacts are reliable, Ken. No one in their right mind would lie to a Wookiee."
She looked down, picking up a block and turning it over and over in her hands, "I suppose. It just seems pointless to go all the way out there..."
"I know, but Sky thinks the Death Watch will expand like they did before and we'll end up having to fight on two fronts. I'd rather not have another enemy at our backs. If we can prevent that from happening by checking out for ourselves how things are going back home..."
She looked back up at him, her gaze cold, "I thought you said that wherever I am is your home?"
"I did, Kenny. And I meant it. The same thing goes for Griff. But, if it wasn't for that planet and it's culture, I would have been a good little soldier and wouldn't have ever thought of asking that beautiful girl out on a date and I certainly wouldn't have asked her to marry me."
Kenna looked back down at the block in her hands, suddenly uncomfortable. "You've changed."
"I grew up." His larger hand cupped her chin, so she had to meet his gaze. "I'm still me, just less of a jerk."
She couldn't help it, she laughed.
"You sure you don't want to wait another day-" Rex began, only for Ahsoka to cut him off with an impatient wave of her hand.
"Kix did say that I could leave today if I wanted to. If I stay here another minute, I'll go crazy!"
The captain just sighed and shook his head, "But you'll at least be taking it easy-"
"And you're being an overprotective sourpuss."
He sighed again, giving her a look, "Sourpuss?"
The Togruta woman gave him a mischievous smile, "First thing that came to my mind. See, I'm already going crazy!"
He rolled his eyes, but couldn't prevent a small smile of his own. Her smirk turned into a grin and he found himself fighting the urge to kiss her. The urge wasn't helped by the fact that he knew that her medbay room wasn't monitered and that the door was closed. Take it slow, Rex. She might not be ready for you to kiss her just yet. Pushing down his feelings, he gave her a stern look, "Our next battle isn't for a few days, so you're going to take it easy until then. Captain's orders."
Ahsoka rolled her bright blue, mesmerizing eyes at him, "Yes, Dad."
Mando'a = the Mandalorian language
nuhunla = funny
troch = certainly
dikutla = idiotic, stupid
mirshe = brain
vod'ikase = little brothers
yaim = home
Kyr'stad = Death Watch
yaihadla = pregnant
ad'ika = little one
vod'ika = little sibling
gedet'ye = please
Rus'alor = sergeant
