"Echo," Hunter sighed, finding his brother sat on the bench in his garden. The former sergeant had made it himself during a quiet period at work, in the spot where Echo liked to sit amidst all his plants, and on occasion, where Crosshair liked to paint. More recently, Echo enjoyed sitting out there with little Omega in his arms, once one of the others carried her outside for him. Now, he was hunched over and visibly very upset with himself.
"Is Omega-"
"She's fine. Tech did a medscan. No harm done, she just got a little spooked," Hunter stepped closer, "Now she's getting to know her cousins."
"I could have..." Echo's voice trailed off, shaking his head. Hunter sat down beside him.
"Don't think like that," he put a hand on his shoulder, "She's safe, that's what matters."
"What if she isn't next time?" Echo's voice was barely a whisper.
"There won't be a-"
"You don't know that," Echo snapped, "I can't be trusted with her. I can't care for her alone, I can't even pick her up without help."
"It's not your fault, Echo," Hunter sighed.
"I know it isn't," Echo's voice shook, "I know I didn't make myself this way, Hunter. I know that."
He squeezed his eyes shut, "I just want to care for her like the rest of you can."
"I know," Hunter said, unsure what else to say as a single tear trickled from Echo's glistening eyes. He let out a sigh, "You know...seeing her with Cut and Suu, the kids, I can't help but think..."
Echo looked up at him, a little wide-eyed, "Are you saying-"
"Are you alright, Echo?" Tech came outside with some kind of sling attached to him. Little Omega was safely tucked inside, nestled into Tech's arm that supported her weight beneath the sling.
"And what is that?" Hunter smirked in amusement.
"I've been experimenting with ways to help ease Echo's mind holding Omega, but Suu told me about this. The likelihood of the same happening again is slim, but this sling can eliminate any likelihood of her falling," Tech slowly moved his arm away and allowed the sling to hold her weight, to demonstrate.
"And so you stole Omega away from them?" Hunter folded his arms.
"No, she and Cut suggested I show you," Tech frowned, "It will be useful for all of us, if we ever need our hands while holding her. Not only that, but it is beneficial for her too. My further research suggests that the closeness to her caregiver will help Omega remain calm and sleep better, and it is said that it will improve her bonds with us. Much like the skin-to-skin contact none of you have tried yet. It is also a similar experience to being in the-"
"We get it, Tech," Hunter chuckled, "Thank you, vod. Nice work."
Tech looked down at the baby with fond eyes, and moved his arms to hold her himself again, "I'd say she finds the blanket comfortable, though, and that's the most important thing. There's more than one way to babywearing, I just have yet to attempt the other methods."
"Babywearing?" Hunter raised an eyebrow.
"Yes. It's not a new concept," Tech frowned, "At least one of us is researching-"
"Can I try it?" Echo asked quietly, looking up hopefully at the tiny pink hand visible from the sling.
"Of course," Tech began to smile, "Hunter, take Omega a moment."
Hunter got to his feet and carefully lifted Omega from the sling, automatically hushing her in a soft voice when she fussed from the disturbance. He held her little hand between his finger and thumb and kissed it softly, gazing down at her completely enamoured. Echo couldn't help but smile as he watched. His former sergeant was completely and utterly taken with her, as were the rest of them. That little girl had appeared on the doorstep and brought so much love and joy with her. She was the light they hadn't known they had needed. But were they what Ishe/i needed?
"Stand for me, Echo," Tech approached his brother, having detached the blanket sling from himself.
"I...I shouldn't-"
"Did you not listen to me?" Tech had a hint of frustration in his voice, "This eliminates any chance of her falling. That means you can stand and hold her with no risk. No need for concern."
"Got it," Echo sighed, his anxiety not subsiding as he stood and stepped closer to him. Tech hung the blanket from his shoulder and secured the ends tightly, as well as attaching the sling to Echo's clothing for extra security.
"Are you ready, Omega?" Tech's voice softened, "Back to the sling, now."
The baby was passed over to Tech, who slowly settled her down into the soft material of the sling. Echo supported her weight under the sling with his scomp, watching as her big brown eyes looked up at him sleepily.
"See? Perfectly safe," Tech said quietly, as Echo reached into the sling and allowed Omega to clutch at his finger. "You have nothing to worry about, Echo. I do wish you'd stop doubting yourself. Clearly Omega feels safe being close to you."
"Can we have the baby back yet?" Wrecker called from the house, "The kids want to see her again before they go home!"
While Wrecker cradled Omega in his arms with Shaeeah and Jek on each knee, Cut approached Hunter and Echo, who were stood by the kitchen doorway with solemn expressions.
"Alright, what's going on?" he folded his arms, "What's happened?"
Hunter and Echo exchanged sorrowful glances, before Hunter finally spoke, "This...I...Omega deserves better than what we can do for her."
"It's early days, Hunter, did you think I was a childcare expert when I first moved in with Suu and the kids?" Cut smirked, "Give yourself time."
"She needs a family, Cut. A proper, normal family," Echo looked down.
"What even is a proper, normal family?" Cut frowned, "You five are brothers. Does that not make you a family?"
"Five brothers don't raise a child together," Hunter sighed, "Maybe five is too many. All we've done is clash, make mistakes. I couldn't cope after a sleepless night, we-"
"I almost dropped Omega before you arrived. I'm not safe to care for her," Echo still couldn't meet Cut's eyes.
"I know what you're trying to say," Cut said after a long pause, "And...honestly, I don't think Suu would object. I can't say we haven't talked about the possibility of more children, and technically speaking, she's my daughter as much as she is yours. But I also think Suu wouldn't want to take away Iyour/i child, especially if you hadn't thought it through."
"You want us to take Omega?" Suu kept her voice low, so the children wouldn't hear, "Is that what you really want?"
"It's...what she needs," Hunter blinked away the tears stinging his eyes.
"Don't rush into this, especially not without discussing it with the others. It's all five of your call to make," Cut said calmly, "I hope you can reconsider, she belongs in the care of who she was left with. Her mother trusted her with Iyou/i. But if you really feel you can't cope, if you're sure there's no other solution, then..."
"Then we will love and raise her as our own," Suu looked from Hunter to Echo, who couldn't hide the pure heartbreak on their faces. For their sake, she hoped they'd see sense. No matter how much she had fallen in love with that tiny little girl, to take her away from her five buire, even with their blessing, would feel so, so wrong, "But Ionly/i if you're certain it's what you want."
"We'll talk with the others," Hunter's voice cracked, "And we'll let you know."
Echo finally looked up, looked at the baby being fussed over by Shaeeah and Jek, her potential new siblings. They'd take such good care of her, she'd be lucky to have a big sister and brother like them. If she stayed with her five buire, she was an only child. She wouldn't be alone, of course, but she would grow up mainly in the company of adults, of men. With the Lawquanes, she would grow up with other children, and would have a mother and a sister.
From the corner of his eye he spotted Tech staring at he and Hunter in disbelief. He'd been recording the scene in front of them, he'd recorded so much of Omega's life already. He'd been observing her and noting down his findings, tracking her progress and development, recording as much as he could. It was a scientific log more than anything, but the others had added pictures and holo-videos and turned it more into the kind of baby book that parents would have for their child. They enjoyed adding to it, and were sure it would be something great to look back on. By the looks of his datapad held close to his ear, he had been rewatching what he had just been recording. Not rewatching, Ilistening/i. It seemed their conversation with Cut had been recorded as well as the tender moment in front of them.
"You have a lot to discuss," Suu put a hand on Hunter's shoulder, looking over to the couch, "Children, we should get home and prepare for dinner. What do you say to your uncles?"
"Thank you for letting us hold her!" Shaeeah grinned, jumping off the couch.
"Bye, baby Omega!" Jek leaned to kiss her head, "Can we come visit again, Mom?"
"Of course, whenever you want," Hunter managed to force a smile, "I think she loves her cousins already."
While Wrecker waved off the Lawquanes with Omega, Tech quietly approached Hunter and Echo, still lingering by the kitchen doorway.
"You want her to go with the Lawquanes," he said, his voice dejected.
Echo sighed, "Tech..."
"We vowed to protect her, do what's best for her...the Lawquanes might be what's best for her," Hunter's eyes glinted with sadness, "She deserves more than we can give."
"I...agree," Tech looked down, "Crosshair was right...I-I can't...it wasn't the first time..."
He stumbled over his words, a sure-fire sign of his distress, "I would never want her to...to be harmed, I-"
"We know, Tech, this isn't your fault," Hunter said, "We're all doing our best in an unfamiliar situation, just...perhaps it's better she's with people who Iare/i familiar."
"Ignore Crosshair," Echo said with a reassuring smile, "You said it yourself, he projects his own anxieties on us."
"He never left Omega unprotected near a welding job," Tech said adamantly, "The odds of her sustaining an injury, serious or otherwise, were still low, but had anything gone wrong...it's not intentional, but he's right. When focused on the task at hand I have little regard for anything else. None of you are so careless. I'm not...I'm not, I guess some would say, 'buir material'."
"It's not like that, Tech," Hunter sighed, putting a hand on his shoulder as Tech looked down in shame, "Mistakes happen. You saw me yesterday, struggling to swaddle her until her leg was practically blue, I failed so miserably."
"Still no idea how you managed that," Echo shook his head.
"That's different-"
"Well, I think our little tooka is gonna grow up with two best friends in Shaeeah and Jek," Wrecker grinned, his eyes still focused on the baby, "They loved- hey, what's wrong?"
He frowned at the sight of his three brothers stood together, all visibly upset, "What's happened?"
The three of them remained silent for a moment, all unsure what to say.
"We...we think Omega could be better off with the Lawquanes," Hunter said, his voice lowered. He couldn't meet Wrecker's already wide, confused eyes. Losing Omega might just hurt him the most; he seemed to be the only one truly thriving at parenthood with little concern or worry. Hunter couldn't bear to watch that hurt appear on his face.
"You want to send her away?" Wrecker's voice turned small, his smile fading completely.
"She needs a family, Wrecker," Echo folded his arms, turning in on himself.
"IWe're/i her family," Wrecker said firmly, holding Omega closer, "She's mine-she's Iours/i, you told me that, Echo."
"We're five men, with little know-how. She has the opportunity to grow up as part of a conventional family, a mother, a father, two siblings. I wouldn't like to say that she wouldn't thrive without a female parental figure, because it isn't true, however, it might be beneficial for her to have a mother and sister around, as opposed to an unconventional set of five male buire," Tech was talking fast, but the usual spark of interest and curiosity that usually came with his endless streams of information, was absent.
"Conventional?" Wrecker's shocked expression turned into a glare, "When have we Iever/i care about being normal?"
"This isn't about us, Wrecker," Tech sighed.
"But-"
"We want to give her all we didn't have," Hunter finally met Wrecker's eyes.
"We didn't Ineed/i parents, we had each other," Wrecker's voice became less firm, more desperate.
"Omega isn't us, Wrecker. Our first ten years were nothing but intensive training, and we were grown and sent into battle by the end of it. We didn't have Itime/i to need or want parents," Echo said, "Ten years for Omega, and she'll still be a child."
"And us having each other is different to Omega having us," Hunter looked down, "We grew up together, Echo grew up with Fives and their squad. We're not her siblings."
Wrecker looked at Omega, as she yawned and began to doze off in his arms, "You...really think she'll be happier with them?"
"We still need to discuss with Crosshair, it's just as much his decision as it is ours," Hunter said, "But Cut and Suu are willing to take her, and I'm sure the kids wouldn't protest either."
"They love her," Wrecker watched the baby sadly, blinking away tears, "But so do we."
"Of course we do...and we wouldn't be losing her. She wouldn't be far away," Echo stepped closer and looked at Omega with a saddened smile.
"All we'd lose is the role of buir," Tech mumbled, and the four of them fell silent.
When the sky had long darkened, Crosshair trudged home in the rain, cursing his earlier decision to walk to work as opposed to taking the speeder. The weather had seemed so much brighter earlier. Being wet from the rain, paired with the rowdy, argumentative customers at the bar that night, meant the bad mood he had left home with hadn't much subsided. He regretted how he'd spoken to Tech, though, and dumping Omega on Echo while fully aware of his anxieties, was a cruel move. It wasn't an excuse, but he felt like he could sleep for a month, the exhaustion that had built up over the last two weeks was like nothing he'd felt before. He could sleep through a crash landing during the war. Now, it seemed he wasn't so lucky.
He could see a glow from the lounge, while no other rooms were illuminated. Even Tech's workshop was dark. At least one of them was still awake downstairs.
They were all in the lounge, silent, solemn, and just sat there. Omega was laid on Hunter's chest, fast asleep. He was holding her close, almost as if she were a tooka plush.
"A welcoming committee," he smirked, "How touching."
"We have something to discuss with you, Crosshair," Tech said, matter-of-factly, but also seemingly nervous.
"If it's about what I said earlier...I shouldn't have been so harsh. I'm sorry," Crosshair sighed.
"They want to give Omega to the Lawquanes," Wrecker mumbled.
"IWhat?/i" Crosshair's face dropped.
"Cross, we-"
"I Itold/i you we couldn't do this," he began to scowl, "What happened to duty? Our duty to care for her?"
"Crosshair-"
"Save it," he snapped, "I was thinking of Iher/i when I said we were in no position to raise a child, but you all Iinsisted/i I was wrong."
The others remained silent, unable to meet his eyes. He shook his head, letting out a sharp sigh, "I'm going to bed, we can discuss this in the morning."
IOne Week Later/i
"Wrecker, sweetheart? Talk to me," Aola's voice snapped Wrecker out of his thoughts, looking up to see the elderly twi'lek with Omega nestled up in her arms, wide awake and staring up at her.
"Sorry," Wrecker mumbled, "Got distracted."
"Yes, I can tell...Little Miss could do with a fresh diaper and it appears you forgot to bring any, or any milk for that matter. And you've destroyed that pie without eating so much as a mouthful," Aola frowned, stroking Omega's back, "Something's on your mind, sweet. This isn't like you at all."
Wrecker looked down at his plate, at the berry pie that had been absentmindedly mashed with his fork. He looked back at Omega nestled up in Aola's arms, her little hand clutching at her finger. She was wearing the little purple cardigan that her surrogate grandmother had knitted for her, paired with one of her tooka hats in a complementary colour. It would all be taken away soon, and Wrecker couldn't bear it. The decision had been made, the Lawquanes had been contacted, and they'd given them a week to prepare and get everything ready before they picked her up. From Wrecker's point of view, it was only prolonging the pain even further.
He hadn't wanted to agree to it, not really, but it seemed the others couldn't be swayed. Crosshair didn't need convincing. In his words, he'd wanted to send her away the moment she arrived, he was only angry that they'd let themselves get attached to her to make this all the more difficult. They'd never seen Tech so anxious and upset with himself over his careless actions, and had needed reassurance multiple times that Omega was unharmed, and that was the most important thing. Hunter looked both certain and uncertain about the decision. He had convinced himself he couldn't be the buir she needed, but his fear of letting her go was also very much apparent.
And then there was Echo. Wrecker wasn't sure how the idea of sending her to the Lawquanes came about, but however it happened, it was clear that Echo felt responsible. Not that it mattered who started it, Echo couldn't agree fast enough to send her away regardless. Either he truly felt they weren't the right place for her, or he couldn't cope with watching Omega's other buire being able to care for her like he couldn't, and so it was easier to just send her away from all of them. Echo wasn't that selfish, though. His only thought would be Omega's safety and wellbeing, not his own suffering.
"I'm...not really hungry. I'm sorry," Wrecker muttered.
"Well now I'm Ireally/i worried," Aola smiled, hoping for at least a smile in return. He couldn't even meet her eyes.
"Wrecker," she reached out her hand to him, "You're worrying me now. What's wrong? What's happened?"
"There's only a day left," Wrecker mumbled, tears trickling down his cheeks, "Then she isn't ours anymore."
"Isn't yours? What? Wrecker, what are you-"
"She's going to live with our brother. He's got a wife, kids, he's better suited to take care of her. He knows what's it's doing. The others think it's whets best for her."
"The others?" Aola took his hand and squeezed it, "But what do Iyou/i want?"
"I don't know," Wrecker shrugged half-heartedly, "They're probably right...but, but we can do better, we've barely had any time to try...I...I don't want her to go."
"Then tell them. You've been so much happier since she's arrived, I'm sure you all have," Aola kept hold of his hand, "It's clear how safe and happy she feels with you, it's clear she's so loved by all five of you. She already lost her mother, she shouldn't lose you too. I hope they can reconsider."
Wrecker didn't respond, looking down as more tears spilled over. She wasn't sure she'd ever seen him look so defeated. The joy exuding from him over the last few weeks had been stolen from him entirely.
"Oh, darling, come here," Aola pulled him into a close, one-armed hug, holding Omega carefully with the other, "She'll always be yours. No matter what."
She held him for as long as he needed, her chest clenching as he failed to hold in his emotions any longer. After a few minutes, she let him go, looking down at Omega, "You go back to your Wreck'buir now. He needs all the cuddles and love you can give him."
Echo struggled to sleep, just like he had the entire week. Once morning came, they had a day left. One day and one night left, and then she wouldn't be theirs anymore. He supposed they'd become uncles to her instead, and she would grow up knowing no different. She'd remember nothing of her first few weeks.
It was for the best, it was. As much as it would hurt to let her go, as painful as it would be to see the only recently finished store room-turned-nursery empty once again, it was for the best. The five of them had changed drastically in such a short time, they'd never been so happy and content, that little girl had brought them so much joy. But Omega needed a family, a proper family. In a few day's time she'd have a mother and father, a big brother and sister, she'd have a whole farm to run around. She would grow up in a loving, normal family.
Of course, there was space to run around here too, she was loved here too, even if it was a less than conventional family unit. After everything, though, after all clones had lived through, didn't their daughter deserve a touch of normality?
Tech was on night duty, and while it was Hunter's turn the following night, Echo was almost certain the five of them would all be awake and fighting over every feed, every change or cuddle. He wondered if anyone was even sleeping right now. They'd all barely spoken since they'd made the call to the Lawquanes. It felt as if they were on the brink of a massive loss.
He found Tech sat up in bed, Omega tucked up under his shirt, laid on his chest. Making the most of the skin-to-skin time he had left. He stared blankly at nothing, stroking her back to keep her calm and relaxed.
"She's gonna miss that time with you," Echo said with a small smile, and Tech startled, his rhythmic stroking of her back halting for a moment, "Sorry, I didn't mean to-"
"She won't miss it, not for very long, at least. Once she's gone, I won't visit. Not for a week or two at least, for that reason. So she can forget about me, so she won't be confused if I'm not there. We should all do the same, so she can acclimatise to her new parents," Tech's voice was flat, emotionless, far from the Tech that Echo had come to know within the last few weeks.
"Would it not be easier on her to ease her into it? Us suddenly not being around, what if that unsettles her?" Echo sat on the bed, "She's already had her mother disappear without warning, we can't do that to her again."
"I...I didn't consider that. Perhaps...It's possible I was thinking of my own feelings more than hers," Tech couldn't meet Echo's eyes, as if in shame.
"It's alright to look out for yourself too," Echo's voice softened, "This is hard on all of us."
"It's been two weeks, yet babies have a frustratingly strong effect on their caregivers. It should be easy to let her go after such a short time," Tech sighed.
"I know," Echo looked down, "But she's not going far, Tech. Just a speeder ride away, we don't have to be strangers."
"I don't know if I know how to be anything but her buir," Tech's voice grew quiet, dejected.
"Give yourself time, you haven't even tried yet," Echo smirked, but his brother didn't smile with him. Instead, Tech kept his hand on the baby as he reached for a data rod, with the pendant she was left with wrapped around it.
"I want this to go with her. It's...all my observations and tracking her progress. All holos and recordings I have taken," Tech looked at it fondly, "Do you...do you think they'll add to it? Parents do enjoy documenting their children's development?"
"I'm sure they will, Tech. Or there's nothing stopping you from adding to it," Echo said, "You should keep it. To remember the time she was ours."
"IObviously/i I have my own copy," Tech rolled his eyes, sounding agitated, "And the pendant is Ihers/i. But I highly doubt Cut and Suu will appreciate me frequently visiting so I can, what Crosshair calls, use Omega as a human science experiment."
A tear spilled over and trickled down his cheek, and he sighed in frustration. Echo felt a pang in his chest at the sight of his brother in this way.
"Tech..."
"Am I letting her down?" Tech's voice cracked, looking at Echo almost fearfully.
"We're all doing what's best for Omega, Tech. Admitting we're not the best place for her, finding her a family that can give her the life she deserves, that's not letting her down at all," Echo reached and put his hand on Omega's back, "She's going to be alright, that's what matters."
"Then why does it feel like failure?"
Echo had to stop himself pulling Tech into a hug. He'd only push him away with discomfort. All these years and he had never seen such sadness, dare he say heartbreak, in Tech's eyes. It was rare he couldn't complete what he put his mind to, and usually it resulted in anger and frustration. This time, defeat.
"Because you're so used to succeeding at everything else," Echo offered him a reassuring smile, "This isn't failure. You're just passing the challenge to someone more knowledgeable, like what everyone else usually does when handing you tasks they can't complete."
Tech didn't respond for a while, taking Omega off his chest and rewrapping the blankets around her. He cradled her in his arms, studying her face with a tearful but doting expression.
"She will need feeding soon," he said quietly.
"I can prepare the bottle. She's comfortable where she is, no point moving her," Echo stood up and headed downstairs, leaving Tech alone with his ad'ika. Omega yawned and stretched out her arms, making a soft squeaking sound as she wriggled a little in Tech's arms and settled down again. He couldn't take his eyes off her as he took her little hand between his finger and thumb. The others seemed so certain that everything could be how it was, that the new routine, the new addition to the homestead could be forgotten about, but he wasn't so sure. He wasn't sure anything could be the same again.
