"I'll make it a surprise," I proposed as he turned around, less as an offer and more as a plan. "I'll bring her to you," I promised him as I had already intended to bring her inside to begin giving her the tour. "Hurry," I ordered as I grabbed his shoulders and circled around so that we were now facing the directions opposite to the ones we had been earlier, recognizing the time since the scream up until now had extended even further, whatever had happened was in the past now, there was nothing I could do to prevent it, but I might still arrive there in time to help. "Hide in there," I commanded, pointing to the first hiding spot I saw, which was the playroom, as I pieced together elements of a makeshift surprise party, which I knew included hidden guests. "We'll make it a makeshift welcome home party." I shared my idea with him since he seemed rather perplexed about why I had spun him around so that his back was facing me and I was pushing him towards the playroom by his shoulders. As he opened the door, I realized he was the only adult guest and a party required more than one guest. I knew Rebel wouldn't have wanted the entire rebellion present, only her closest friends and family, plus Benji, so now all we were missing was her brother. "We need Wrecker," I announced and spun around to begin my search for him, calling out his name to hopefully gravitate him towards me as I looked. "Wrecker!" I cupped my hands around my mouth as I yelled and leaned past the doorway, coincidentally seeing him as he ambled down the hallway at the precise moment. Before he even had the opportunity to look up, I yanked him into the playroom by his broad shoulders. "Get in there!" I demanded as I shoved his back and he clumsily stumbled in, eventually regaining his balance after much flailing of his arms. "Wh-why?" He asked, stuttering as he turned around since it was so unusual of me to manhandle him, or anyone. Considering the fact that subtlety was never one of Wrecker's strong points, I decided to invoke an excuse that involved the task I normally required his assistance for rather than telling him the truth as I knew he wouldn't be capable of keeping the surprise party a surprise. "We've got a situation," I reported, placing my hands upon his chest to hold him back so that he wouldn't attempt to escape as he typically did whenever I made such an announcement. "Code brown," I said, indicating one or all of the kids had pooped and since Wrecker was they're uncle, he held some responsibility in that area. "I need all hands on deck." I backed up towards the door swiftly, still holding up the palm of my hand to him, signifying for him to stay. He had been frozen ever since I'd thrust him into the room and was now looking at me with a dumbfounded expression on his face as I closed the door behind me. "I thought the kids were old enough not to do that by now," I was able to hear him say confusedly to Benji as I leaned with my back up against the door, exhausted after the feat of lugging Wrecker into the room. I heard Wrecker's stomping, loud enough to be perceived from a parsec away, indicating that he'd turned around. "Who are all these kids?!" He asked in his booming voice and it was difficult to contain my snickers as I finally caught my breath, winded from dragging around the two men and from being pregnant, although just barely. I eased my back off of the door and headed to the airstrip once more with the goal of finally discovering what had happened. I crept up the ramp to the ship, suspicious now that the area was silent. Upon nearing the peak of the incline, I finally made out the top of Rex's bald head as he was crouched down, looking at the ground with disdain, but once I ascended further, I saw that he was not peering at the ground, but at Rebel. I cocked my head to one side at the perplexity of the scene as I saw her lying on the floor on her back. Her arms were unnaturally straight at the sides, her muscles tense, her teeth were clenched in pain, and tears were flowing across her temples from her eyes and into her hair behind her ears. "What happened?" I demanded to know in an urgent voice as I crossed my arms and glared only at Rex for the response to my question since he seemed to be the most viable means of explanation as Rebel seemed to be in no condition to converse. Both looked up at me, neither of their expressions changing, Rex's one of scorn, Rebel's one of fear as she still panted after emitting, what I'm sure was, a lung burning scream. "Why is she on the floor?" I gestured to her with one of my hands before immediately tucking it back under my other arm, my annoyance at both of their silence growing as I began to tap my foot and exercise my jaw. I gave a groaning sigh as more time passed without a reply from either of them and decided to change the subject and ask a question that required less of an explanation, one that I could already guess the answer to, one that would determine if they were planning on being honest with me or if I was going to be forced to spend the remainder of my day investigating the actuality of their interaction on my own. "Did y'all make up?" I asked indifferently, expecting both of them to shake their heads. "Yes," Rex, instead, looked down at Rebel and smiled as he took hold of her hand and jerked her into an upright position as he rose to his feet as well. He knew his weakness was lying and me especially, being his sister, could tell when he was being dishonest. "We did." He nodded and draped his arm around Rebel's shoulders as she looked up at him, terrified and confused, while he gave me a forced smile. "Everything is fine now," he said to her slowly and through clenched teeth as he looked down at her with raised eyebrows as if he were being subtle. She put her hand up on his chest in an attempt to push him away, but I saw him tighten his grip on her shoulder farthest from him that his hand was resting on. Finally, after a brief staring contest, Rebel eventually surrendered to the lie. "Yeah." She nodded and drew closer to him before working her hand from against his chest to around his torso and she hugged him, looking at me with a genuine smile on her face and her head on his chest. "Okay," I said skeptically with my eyebrow raised, confused as to why the two wouldn't simply admit they hadn't reconciled when it was a well known and widely accepted fact that they disagreed on virtually everything. I would just have a separate conversation with Rebel later to uncover the truth behind they're quite obvious deception. I devised a way to isolate Rebel and I without Rex's presence so she'd feel comfortable revealing to me what had transpired and thought of Rebel's firstborn children she'd no doubt want to see, which Rex would have no interest in since he'd seen them every day. "Well, the kids are in the playroom if you wanna see them." I gestured at the base behind me by tossing my thumb over my shoulder. She slid out of Rex's embrace and intertwined her fingers as she locked them together in front of herself and nodded eagerly with a calmer smile than she had been giving me during her hug with Rex, her eyes less squinty. I looked around in search of a suitcase to help her with. Even though she was only staying for a week, she was traveling with three toddlers, she was bound to have brought along some supplies. "Where is your luggage?" I asked as I made fists with my hands and set my knuckles on my hips. My plan was to invite her to her room first. There, our conversation could be truly private, without even the kids to distract or interrupt us. She stepped to the side and pointed to the pile of packed bags behind her. I walked over to them and began looping handles under my arms and grasping suitcase handles as I rolled them towards the opening of the ship. "Oh, Rue, you don't have to," Rebel protested, holding her hands up to me with her palms facing me and waving them back and forth as she shook her head. "I'll-" She started, but I interrupted her. "It's not up for debate," I said firmly, but with a teasing smirk as I wheeled the suitcases past her, the bags hanging off my arms swinging wildly as I held my chin high and marched down the ramp. "Thank you," she said as she began to follow me. I led her down the hall and to the room that was diagonally across the corridor from my quarters. "This is your room," I said as I unloaded my haul in the middle of her room. "This is lovely," she commented as she lingered in the doorway as if she was reluctant to enter and examined the room thoroughly from her observation point, peering at the walls and ceilings as she leaned forward on her tiptoes for a better view, but never daring to step foot inside. "Thank you," she said appreciatively, which was unusual for her, not that she was ungrateful, she just didn't commonly express it. I followed her gaze, glancing at the ceiling and walls, wondering if the reason she was inspecting them so carefully was because she was silently judging them. "Is it big enough?" I asked worriedly. Perhaps she was used to much larger rooms and was disappointed by the lack of accommodation, especially considering her time in the palace with its massive rooms. Larger rooms in the rebellion did exist, perhaps she would be more comfortable in one of the others. I had only specially requested that this one remain unoccupied and available in case she ever showed up again, but if these quarters weren't suitable enough for her, I would sacrifice having her closeby for her comfort. "Will you be comfortable here?" I asked immediately after my previous question, not allowing her any response time. Maybe she was only concerned that the room was too small for the three of her children as well. Since they were still toddlers, perhaps they still shared the bed with her and she was wondering if the space was large enough for such a purpose. "I don't know if the kids sleep with you or not," I said as I spun around and checked to see if the area was large enough to furnace additional bedding, but my original idea had been for Ansa, Apollo, and Aaron to share the nursery with Rebel's first set of triplets. "There's plenty of room for them in the nursery which is right next door to you," I pointed to the wall to my left which the nursery was on the other side of. "But if they prefer to sleep in the same room as you we can bring some extra beds in or we can-" Now, it was her turn to interrupt me. "Rue," she halted my frantic babbling which never would've ceased had she not intervened, which I'm sure she was aware of. "It's perfect," she assured me with a contented smile on her face. "Thank you so much," she thanked me again and after I gave her a gracious bow, we were on our way to the playroom. I decided not to ask her about her interaction with Rex. I didn't want to ruin her seemingly cheerful mood or force her to wait any longer to see her firstborn children or cause Benji and Wrecker, whom were being confined to the playroom, to become impatient with how long it was taking for Rebel to be delivered to them, although I was sure Wrecker was still clueless that Rebel was even back. I opened the door to the room a few doors down and extended my arm past the threshold, gesturing for her to enter first as I looked at her behind me with an anticipatory smile. She gratefully dipped her head to me and passed through the doorway into the playroom, instantly gasping, yet the person she initially noticed was not who I expected her eyes to be drawn to first. "Ally?" She said in a questioning tone as she squinted at her silhouetted figure in the corner of the shadowy room. Next, as her eyes adjusted to the dimness of the room, since the kids preferred to play in darkness like Loth-bats, she was able to perceive her brother. "Tall guy!" She exclaimed, utilizing his nickname as he waddled over to her and lifted her feet off the ground as he wrapped her up in his embrace, compressing her arms to her sides as he swayed her side to side. "Shortie!" He cried out as he squeezed the life out of her and I felt like prying them apart as Rex had done to her and I so as not to trigger her trauma. I wasn't entirely certain as to how it was triggered, but I did know that by hugging her and Rex merely attempting to place his hand upon her shoulder, she had been made uncomfortable, so, for the time being, I wished everyone would refrain from physical contact with her, especially since I couldn't even come near her without her flinching. "It's really you!" Wrecker finally set her back down and grasped both of her shoulders so as to hold her there in front of him indefinitely, which I had assumed would make her cringe, but instead she did something quite unexpected. She laughed, allowing her eyes to shut as she did so, showing a sign of peace and serenity, and her shoulders bounced as she chuckled. However, the most unexpected, and slightly hurtful, thing she did was that she hugged him back. Perhaps she was simply at ease by now, her nerves calmed, perhaps I'd been too eager and had lunged for her too soon, but it made me jealous to see her embracing him when she refused to even look me in the eye anymore. "It's really-" She nodded as she gently pulled back away from him and her gaze fell on one guest in particular. "Benji!" She squirmed away from Wrecker, shoving against his chest to reunite with her long lost love and bolted straight for him, her arms swinging wildly as he chuckled timidly and held his arms up at his sides for her to collapse into. She slid to an abrupt stop in front of him and puckered her lips for a kiss and boosted herself up on her tiptoes to claim it as she wrapped her arms around his neck and her foot kicked up behind her. I felt my eyes widen and my cheeks flush as I crouched down and covered as many of the children's eyes as I could with my arms and hands, but they shoved my shielding out of their faces with their tiny, but forceful hands. "Sorry," Rebel jerked her head back and wiped her mouth as her foot became grounded again. "I just-" She tried to explain as she took a step back from him and looked up at him, but he only smiled and cupped her face in his hands before resuming their session. I quickly seized the children's hands, gathering up as many of theirs as I could fit in mine and led them out of the playroom. They were too young to see what was about to ensue. "I didn't realize the rebellion had turned into a real life rom-com," I muttered under my breath as soon as the playroom door had shut proceeding our exit and released the kids' hands as I thought of a way to keep them occupied without their toys. I knew kids liked pets, at least Ash and I's kids did when they were Apollo, Aaron, and Ansa's age, but I wondered if their father would have ever allowed them to be in contact with animals considering how strict he would no doubt be. "Apollo, Aaron, Ansa," I squatted down and looked at each one of them as I uttered their name. "Have you ever seen a tooka?" I asked. "No," they responded, shaking their heads simultaneously. "Would you like to meet one?" I asked. "Sure!" Ansa replied cheerily and tilted her head to one side as she gave me a squinty-eyed smile that was utterly contagious. I stood up and guided them to Tooki's favorite residence atop her tower Ash had constructed for her out of wood and carpet. She was lying flat on her stomach on the highest ledge, surveying her surroundings with her front paws dangling off the front of her shelf, her tail swishing behind her rhythmically and judgmentally. "This is my tooka, Tooki." I held my hand up to her in a presentative fashion, my palm flat up facing the ceiling. "Aww!" Ansa cooed and propped her tilted head up on the intertwined fingers of her two fists as she looked up at Tooki. "Do you want to pet her?" I offered as I watched her staring up longingly at Tooki and set my fists on my hips. Ansa silently nodded at me in answer and dropped her hands from under her chin down to her sides as she turned towards me. "Okay," Since she'd never pet a tooka before, I figured it would be appropriate to give her some pointers. "She's a little unsure of new people," I warned her and she nodded, listening attentively. I thought my description of Tooki's aloof personality reminded me of Ansa's initial reaction to Rex's question. "A little like you, Ansa," I pointed at her and she smiled, appreciative of the comparison in order for her to have a better idea of how to approach Tooki. "So be slow and hold your hand out like this to let her sniff it." I demonstrated by extending my arm straight out in front of myself with my hand curved downwards, the back of it facing outwards and Ansa tilted her head at me with a confused expression, oblivious as to the reason why. "That's how she checks you out since she can't talk to you to get to know you like we can," I explained as I gestured to the space between her and I as her mouth rounded and formed an 'O' shape as she wordlessly nodded her head, an expression of understanding dawning over her face. I bent down to Ansa and she held up her arms at her sides, preparing to be lifted up and I did so, hooking my hands underneath her arms and hoisting her up into a seated position on the side of my hip. I looked over at Tooki, already skeptically testing the scent of the air with her glistening pink nose twitching. I thought about the first time I'd met Tooki and how when she'd butted my hand as a request to be pet, the cold, damp sensation of her nose had startled me. "Her nose is a little cold, so don't let that scare you," I informed Ansa as she stretched her hand out to my tooka's nose. Tooki sniffed Ansa's steady knuckles for a few moments and after detecting no traces of unfriendliness she dipped her head and rammed it into Ansa's curved hand. "Aww!" Ansa squealed happily as she stroked Tooki's forehead in an awkward upwards motion with the back of her hand. "Yeah, she's soft, isn't she?" I asked rhetorically as I scratched Tooki's cheek involuntarily, unable to help even myself as I practically answered my own question with my action and Ansa pulled her hand away from my tooka after one fluid stroke, appearing to be at a loss for what to do next as she hadn't received any instruction following the introduction process. "You can pet her just like this," I stroked Tooki from her forehead to the base of her tail with my flat fingers. "Or scratch her chin," I said as I demonstrated the action and Tooki began purring and closed her eyes. "She really likes that," I explained what the vibrating sound meant as Ansa seemed rather concerned by it and began clutching my chestplate, but after my harmless explanation, she reached out and copied me, giggling when Tooki started to knead on the carpeted ledge. I looked over at Ansa and smiled at the sound of her childish laughter, something her mother never had the opportunity to experience as a child herself. I was glad her children were being given that opportunity. "What about you?" I asked as I tickled her chin, imitating what she had been doing to Tooki. "Do you like that?" I asked jokingly as she swatted me away, laughing giddily. "That tickles!" She squealed while giggling and I booped her nose, contracting her laughter as I realized it, too, was contagious. As our laughter died down, I heard the tinkling sound of a bell coming from below and I looked down to discover the origin of it had been from one of Tooki's toys suspended from a string by one of the tower ledges and Kali was batting it back and forth with her hands as it was at just the right height for her, at eye level. "Do you like playing with Tooki's toys?" I asked her curiously. She had become very distant from me these past few weeks and hadn't spoken to me personally in over a month, always assigning her siblings to be her personal translators between her and I. I'm not sure what I was doing wrong or what caused this to begin with, but I had been patiently communicating with her through her interpreters ever since and I hoped today would be different. She looked up at me and mimicked one of Tooki's sounds. "Meow!" At least it was a friendly sound, I supposed her hissing at me would've been worse. "Oh, I see," I said as I nodded, hoping I had gained enough experience from watching her siblings translate for her to understand to some degree. "You're pretending to be a tooka," I said aloud what my interpretation of her tooka sound had been as I set Ansa back down on the ground, noticing how Tooki was pawing at my arm, indicating she wanted to be fed. I reached over to the shelf containing her cans of tooka food and grabbed one, cracking it open. The smell made me want to retch when it never had previously, the reaction must've been caused by my heightened sensitivity while pregnant. Suddenly, I received an idea, not my most intelligent, but one likely able to accomplish my goal of getting Kali to speak to me. If the aroma had triggered such an intense reaction from me, it was reasonable to assume the same would occur with Kali and she might finally be impelled to speak to me to express her disgust and since she wanted to be a tooka so bad, I figured I'd help her succeed in her quest. "Well, how about I feed you some of Tooki's food?" I asked as I leaned down to her and put the can underneath her nose. "Ew!" She grimaced and stuck her tongue out as she shoved my arm away and I chuckled. "You don't think it'd be tasty?" I asked jokingly, striving for an actual response this time as I stood up and turned back towards Tooki. "No!" She yelled, pinching her nose shut with her index finger and thumb as she swatted at the air to fan the stench away, her repulsion strong enough to stimulate a reply. Although it was only a one word answer, it was progress. "Aww, okay," I shrugged one shoulder, pretending to sound disappointed as I dumped the tooka food into Tooki's bowl and she instantly scarfed it up. "Suit yourself," I said, unable to contrive any additional methods for getting her to talk to me. "More for Tooki I guess." I stroked my tooka as she sat up after gulping down the last mouthful of her food and licked her lips. I sighed, thinking of how else to keep the kids entertained as I put my hands on my hips. They seemed to enjoy meeting Tooki, so I decided to introduce them to the rebellion's other pets. "What about an anooba?" I asked as I crouched down in front of the children. "Have you ever seen one of those?" I clarified on what I was asking as I scanned their faces for a response when I saw Armani's hand shoot up beside her head. "Oh, I know you have, Armani." I rolled my eyes at her as I chuckled. "Put your hand down, silly girl." I swatted my hand at her and focused solely on Rebel's second set of triplets who shook their heads. "Do you want to go meet one?" I asked and they eagerly nodded. "Okay, let's go." I extended my hand to Ansa and she took it, then offered my other hand to Armani and she took a hold of it as well. "Bye, Tooki!" I looked over my shoulder and waved farewell. "Bye, Tooki!" Ansa turned to face the feline and copied me, waving her small hand at the lofty tooka who almost seemed to dip her head in reciprocation. We walked over to Tuck's kennel where he was bouncing excitedly inside as he saw knee-high visitors approaching, his favorite type of visitors, usually because they carried various tasty crumbs in the corners of their mouths and crevices of their hands to slurp up. "This is Tuck," I presented him to the children as I released Armani's hand to hold it flat up in front of Tuck's face as a demonstrative act. He pressed his nose up to the bars and inhaled deeply, trying to get a whiff of my hand before giving up and resuming springing up and down and spinning in circles around his crate. I found it humorous, but also slightly embarrassing, the difference between Tuck and Tooki's mannerisms. "He's quite the opposite of Tooki," I chuckled. "He's very excited about meeting new people," I explained why he had begun anxiously whining as he pawed at the lock on the kennel door and I knelt down in front of it, puffing out a nervous breath as I hoped he wouldn't bolt and trample the kids as soon as the door was unlatched. His ears pricked up as he heard the creak of the cage unlocking and as I cracked it open, he shoved it the rest of the way open with his head, barging his way out into the open. "Okay, okay," I said to him soothingly as I hooked my fingers around his collar, holding him in place. "Calm down, boy," I instructed in a subdued voice, sitting down on the floor and pressing my palm up to his fluffy chest as he strained to charge at the kids, in a friendly way of course. "Calm down," I repeated and looked over at the children as Tuck eventually gained composure and sat down, panting, but Ansa and Aaron were cowering behind Kai, Kali, and Armani as they shivered and peeked over their half-siblings' shoulders. Only Apollo was brave enough to be standing off to the side, fearlessly staring Tuck in the eyes, his head tilted back to do so as Tuck was visibly taller, a disturbing, almost challenging, smile on the child's face. "Apollo," I addressed him concernedly, dragging his name out as I raised my eyebrow at him, but he refused to break his eye contact with Tuck. Finally, I figured, with the way he was looking at him, he must've wanted to pet him, perhaps my perception of his expression was only skewed from this angle and he wasn't looking at him in a menacing manner. "Do you want to say hi?" I asked and Apollo, without answering, marched confidently up to the anooba, swinging his fists as he walked and puffed out his chest to meet Tuck. "Do you want to let him sniff-" I began to instruct him on how to introduce himself to the canine when he, in the middle of my question, reached up and roughly patted Tuck on the muzzle. "Oh," I said surprisedly as I leaned back, startled by his boldness. "Okay," I remarked with a smile on my face as I lifted up my hands in surrender, releasing Tuck's collar, knowing he wouldn't dart off now since he was intently concentrated on the little boy in front of him. "Good boy," Apollo praised him as he smacked him twice on the nose again with Tuck blinking each time Apollo's hand made contact with his muzzle, yet he stared at the young boy, his wide eyes twinkling with adoration and I smiled at their tender interaction. "WRECKER, WHY DID YOU CORRUPT THIS POOR MAN?!" I heard Rebel yell from across the base, the context was an absolute mystery to me, but I assumed I'd be finding out soon enough. "Ugh," I groaned. "Always something," I muttered as I face palmed. "WHAT?!" Wrecker hollered back. "I have to go see what's wrong, kiddos," I announced reluctantly as I latched onto Tuck's collar with my fingers again and dragged him back into his kennel. He fought against me, whipping his head back and forth to release himself, but ended up only choking as he also planted his paws on the ground to create resistance, but proved unsuccessful as I overpowered him and re-shut the door on him once he was inside. "WHY DID YOU-" Rebel began to loudly repeat her question. "OH, FOR FORCES SAKE, JUST COME IN HERE," she impatiently requested. "Do you want to come with me?" I asked the kids as I bent down, propping my hands up on my knees. "WHY?!" Wrecker wailed, prolonging their rebellion-wide discussion which Rebel had already proven he could not be absolved from without his physical presence in the same room as the kids nodded in response to my question. "Okay, let's go," I whispered in a hurried tone, picking up on the increasing irritation in Rebel's voice and knowing exactly what would ensue if I didn't arrive soon. I took hold of Armani and Ansa's hands once more and ran back to the playroom, dragging the two girls along with me as the other kids trailed after us. "IF YOU DON'T COME IN HERE, I'M GOING TO-" I skidded to a stop in the doorway just as she began her threat and Wrecker halted in the doorway beside me at the same time, coming from the opposite direction. Apparently he had left Benji and Rebel to their alone time as well. "What?" Wrecker asked agitatedly as he lifted his arms up, then slapped them back down against his outer thighs. Rebel cleared her throat and flicked her gaze down towards the ground where Benji was lying on the ground, his limbs sprawled out and contorted at uncomfortable angles, his eyes fluttering shut as his head lolled side to side showing he was drifting off into a state of unconsciousness as he groaned softly. "Ayo, he's me!" Wrecker declared enthusiastically as he pointed to him. I looked up at Rebel, sensing her eyes on me as I knew it would be a moment worthy of sharing a look of playful annoyance at Wrecker's ease of amusement and lack of concern. She rolled her eyes with her hands on her hips and shook her head teasingly as I giggled, hiding my smile behind my hand. "You wanna meet Patrica?" Wrecker asked randomly as he turned towards the both of us, moving on from the previous topic just as quickly as it had been brought up in the first place. "Who in Kamino is she?" Rebel asked in a contemptful tone at the fact that Wrecker thought someone else took precedence over her Benji as she threw her hands up beside her head and suspended them there, her palms facing the ceiling, her face displaying the scorn she already harbored for this person she hadn't even met yet for there daring to detract the focus from Benji. Wrecker smiled at the look of disdain on his sister's face, seeming to know it would melt away as soon as she met his girlfriend. Yep, you read that right, his girlfriend. Since Wrecker had never been in a relationship before, Ash had set out on a secondary quest during his mission to locate Rebel, to set Wrecker up with his first girl in his 31 years of life. At least he'd been successful in that endeavor, he'd found a girl that was crazy enough to agree to go out with Wrecker and not only that, but continue dating him! It had seemed an impossible challenge, especially to find someone who Ash knew he could trust with keeping the rebellion a secret since Wrecker would eventually need to tell her since they'd be moving on from the planet they were temporarily stationed on and where they had found her to proceed in their search for Rebel and Wrecker couldn't simply abandon her with no explanation. When Wrecker had informed all of us at the rebellion he'd struck up a relationship during his three year long mission, we'd expected them to continue dating via long distance since no girl in her right mind, no matter how in love, would leave her homeplanet with a random boy she'd only been on one date with and had just met a day ago to live on his run down ship with three of his companions and join him on a galaxy-wide hunt for his long lost sister, but this girl was different. On the day he arrived back at home, we hadn't expected her to emerge behind Wrecker, a few inches taller than him, and introduce herself to us in person, but she did and acted as if she were any other ordinary recruit to the rebellion, prepared to perform whatever task was available for her without delay or complaint. Whenever we displayed any confusion or skepticism towards her decision to become a member of the rebellion without any hesitation whatsoever, she acted as if she were the one who was perfectly sensible and logical and we were the ones who could not be understood. She seemed to feel that the matter of whether or not to join the rebellion was not a choice for her, as if enlisting was the only option if she wanted to remain Wrecker's girlfriend. Collectively, just as the rebellion had begun to trust Benji, all distrust surrounding Patricia faded away as we witnessed her determination to dutifully and willingly carry out her responsibilities and her generous attitude and her involved presence within the rebellion. Wrecker took a step towards the door as I shuffled out of his way and he waved us forward, indicating his silent request for our pursuit. As if she sensed us searching for her, she suddenly appeared, darting for Wrecker and calling out to him by his pet name. "Babe!" She sprinted towards him even faster when he smiled and waved to her shyly, her light blue hair, the color of Ansa's, flowed straight out behind her until she collided into his chest and bowed her head to nuzzle it under Wrecker's chin as she wrapped her long arms around his torso. He gave her a loose, reluctant squeeze around her hips and a bashful smile as if embarrassed now that his younger sister had her watchful eyes on them and his cheeks noticeably darkened in color once he pulled back from her embrace and scratched the back of his head. I looked to my side for Rebel's reaction and saw her with her mouth hanging wide open at the scene before her. "Who the kriff-" She began to ask, but cut herself off as she whipped her head side to side, perhaps remembering there were children present. "BACK UP," she yelled as she herself took a step back, holding her arms straight out in front of her towards the couple, her palms facing them as she looked down at the ground, a distant, processing look in her eyes. "REWIND," she screeched, holding her finger up and twirling it in a circle to symbolize rewinding. "BACKSTORY, CONTEXT," she looked back up at the two of them, barely lifting her head, only her eyes, as she resumed holding her palms out toward Wrecker and Patricia. "EXPLAIN, NOW!" She demanded as she forcefully pointed down at the ground, signifying the current moment. I snorted with laughter, unable to contain it any longer and held my hand up to my mouth again as I turned my face away from them in an attempt to disguise my amusement. "Rebel, I presume." Patricia released Wrecker and turned towards Rebel with a friendly smile on her face as she stuck out her hand for Rebel to shake as a greeting. "Yes," Rebel acknowledged suspiciously as she drew out the word and took hold of Patricia's hand with one eyebrow cocked. "And you are Patrica?" She asked in the same tone as she turned her face more towards Patricia and began shaking her hand. Patricia nodded affirmatively and her smile grew wider at the fact that the famous Rebel was actually aware of her name. "Can I just say," Rebel paused as she let go of Patricia's hand and leaned back, pointing at her as I held my breath due to Rebel's mischievous smirk. "I love your hair color!" She complimented, propping the hand she was using to point with up on her hip. "Omg," Patricia exclaimed and bounced up excitedly. "I know, right?!" She asked rhetorically as she twirled a strand of her hair around her finger. "Sabine did it!" She held the strand between her index and middle finger as she leaned toward Rebel. "Really?!" Rebel asked, amazed as she felt the soft texture of Patricia's hair, running her pointer finger down the strand Patricia extended towards her. "She knows her hair colors!" Rebel praised as she leaned away from Patricia and pointed at her once more. Patricia shyly swayed side to side, flustered by the amount of attention as she nibbled on her lower lip, still twirling her hair. Rebel planted both of her fists down on her hips and squinted at Patricia in a scrutinizing manner as Patricia nervously watched her, Rebel's silence making her anxious, but I was confident my sister's analysis would result in her positive opinion and approval of Wrecker's girlfriend. "And your makeup is gorgeous!" Rebel cried, opening her eyes to their normal extent as she gestured towards Patricia's face where she had on pink eyeshadow accentuating her emerald green eyes and the wings she'd made with her eyeliner were sublime. "Thanks!" She said confidently as she giggled and flipped the hair dangling off the front of her shoulder over to the other side. "Actually," she said seriously as she held her pointer finger up to the ceiling, receiving an idea. "Maybe we could do a little makeover and get to know each other," she proposed as she held up her arms at her sides questioningly and looked at both Rebel and I. "Sabine on hair," she touched her right index finger to her left one as she stuck it out and looked down at it. "Me on makeup," she said pointing to her middle finger. "And Rue on clothes?" Finally, she pointed to her ring finger as she spoke in a questioning tone and looked up at me for input. I began to mouth, hoping some excuse to explain the reason I couldn't would make its way out somehow, but Rebel interrupted me before I could utter any sound of protest. "I thought you would never ask!" Rebel squealed as she hopped up and down and clapped her hands. I hadn't wanted to join them mainly because I knew nothing about fashion. I only ever wore either my armor or the same old shirts and pants Leia and Ahsoka had bought me all those years ago that were worn out and no longer flattering. I hadn't wanted to be embarrassed by these younger girls who were much more experienced on the subject of fashion than I and I certainly hadn't wanted to disappoint Rebel. Sabine and Patricia would be successful in providing Rebel with a proper makeover while I would only ruin their talents with my inexperience. Besides, I already knew Rebel, and Sabine and Patricia already knew me, Rebel deserved to get to know the both of them without me getting in the way. In fact, perhaps it was better if I just stayed away from her during the entirety of her visit since I only seemed to make her uncomfortable. "Oh," I interjected as Rebel reeled me out of the depths of my thoughts and back into the current situation by snatching my hand and tugging me down the hallway towards the refresher. I jerked my hand back, pulling on my wrist with my other hand to combat her strength as I dug my heels into the ground so that I skidded to a stop. Rebel halted and looked back at me over her shoulder as she wordlessly asked for the reason I'd stopped and I saw her face deflate as it was drained from its enthusiasm. "You know I'm not much of a fashionista," I whispered to her confidentially as I leaned towards her since I was speaking solely to her due to the fact that no one else was aware of my incompetence when it came to clothing and I didn't want them to, but apparently everyone had heard. Either that or they were urging me to accompany them regardless of my reason for separating from them. "Come on!" Patricia whined as she turned back towards me and slumped her shoulders disappointedly. "Come on, Rue!" Rebel implored, adding onto Patricia's cries as she seized my hand again in both of hers and squeezed it, looking up at me with pleading eyes and a protruding bottom lip. "Please, please, please!" Sabine appeared out of nowhere, startling me as she begged me to join them as well, her palms pressed up against each other in a prayerful gesture. "Yeah, come on!" Patricia prodded further as she waved us towards the refresher with her hand. I felt a smile slowly creep over my face at their mutual insistent desire for my presence that eventually affected my internal feelings as well and won over my heart, altering my decision. "Okay, okay, okay." I giggled and held up both of my hands, palms facing them in a show of surrender to put an end to their pleas. Their incessant begging reminded me of that of a child's which also reminded me of my other reservation towards accepting their invitation to join them. I looked down at the six children crowded around my legs who were the object of my hesitancy as they looked back up at me, mirroring my look of confliction. I hadn't wanted to abandon them in a rebellion where they didn't know any of the adults personally even though I knew everyone they would be around would be safe. Just because I had assurance that they were safe though, didn't mean Ansa, Apollo, and Aaron would feel secure in their presence. I was sure they didn't want to sit in the refresher with us while we chatted for what I knew would be hours though either, leaving me torn between wanting to associate with their mother and wanting to ensure her children were comfortable. Finally, I came to the conclusion that I would ask the kids for their feelings on the matter just as I'd done with every issue prior to this one since I'd already received their mother's thoughts on the subject. "Let me just make sure the kids are settled," I said as I pointed to them behind me and gradually turned around, bending down to face them at their level. "You'll be okay for a few hours while we remind your mama of how gorgeous she is?" I asked, taking Ansa's hand in mine and rubbing the back of it with my thumb as I tilted my head back in a gesture to her mother, giving Rebel a subtle compliment along the way which was that she didn't need a makeover to be beautiful, she always was, without any artificial products, she just forgot that sometimes and our purpose was to remind her of that fact. Ansa gave me a distinct nod as she put her other hand in mine which earned a smile from me. I wanted to make sure her experience at the rebellion was a pleasant one and that started with ensuring her family would treat her and her siblings with kindness. Unfortunately, I'd missed the opportunity to do so with Ria and that had already caused a permanent dent to be made in Ansa's opinion of the rebellion, I couldn't allow anymore. I felt it was especially my responsibility since it was my biological child who'd done the damage in the first place, making it more my fault than anyone else's. "Kai, Kali, Armani," I looked over Ansa's shoulder and addressed her half siblings. "Be nice to your sib-" I misspoke, almost accidentally using the incorrect relationship term, although not incorrect in terms of blood, only legally, but I shook my head and corrected myself. "To your cousins, okay?" I asked, waiting for their response before continuing as I moved my hands up to rest on Ansa's shoulders once she'd let go of my hand. "Uncle Benji should be in the playroom," I said once Kai, Kali, and Armani had nodded, informing them that a trusted adult would be in the room they would most likely choose to go to, but it was important to me that they also knew where we were and that we were available. "And if you need anything, you can ask us, we'll be in here," I said, pointing to the refresher. "Okay, Mama," Armani replied receptively as she nodded. I could always count on her to be the voice for the group, which was a refreshing constant and a nice balance between her siblings who either refused to speak to me or, when they did, it was always curt. They were still family though and I loved them unconditionally. "I love you," I said automatically with a smile, then realized I had only been looking at Armani when I spoke. "All of you." I quickly corrected myself as I looked around at all of the kids, including Ansa, Apollo, and Aaron whom I also loved dearly. "Love you too, Mama!" Armani announced for the group and seized her half sister, Ansa's, hand and her full sister, Kali's hand and ran to the playroom with the boys following closely on their heels, shoving each other out of the way as they raced to see who among them could reach their destination first. "Have fun!" I called to them as I cupped my hands around either side of my mouth and watched them disappear around the corner, listening to the pitter patter of their small feet against the ground become fainter as they traveled farther and farther away from me. "We will!" Armani's voice floated back to me, carrying a guarantee. I stood back up and sighed as I propped my hands up on my hips, staring at the corner they'd vanished around for a few seconds before turning around to see Rebel, Patricia, and Sabine all watching me with adoring smiles. I felt my cheeks flush with embarrassment and I shooed them towards the refresher. Once we'd entered, we sat Rebel down on the most comfortable chair we could provide in front of the sink and Sabine washed her hair, then dyed it the deep indigo color she had selected earlier and dried it for her, scrubbing her scalp gently with a towel until all of the dampness had been extracted from her head. Patricia and I then took turns holding segments of Rebel's hair out of Sabine's way while she styled the rest. We enjoyed playing with it and feeling how soft and silky smooth it was and watching the white lights of the refresher bounce off of the strands. After her hair had dried completely and Sabine had finished styling it in her preferred fashion, Patricia began applying Rebel's makeup while it was Sabine's turn to be her helper. She handed Patricia her desired products upon her request and I did the only thing I knew how, I painted Rebel's nails. It was the only area in the beauty department I felt skillful enough to participate in the makeover. I had chosen a bright red polish, mainly because it was the only color I owned, but also, in part, because I thought it would look good on her. "So," Rebel spoke up after the prolonged period of silence and cleared her throat as she anxiously stared down at her fingernail which I had begun painting, waiting for a topic of conversation to tumble effortlessly out of her mouth. "Patricia," she grumbled her name as if dreading discussing whatever subject would be imminently approaching from whatever she was planning to say next. "How did you and Wrecker meet?" She asked, feigning cheeriness as Patricia hooked her finger around Rebel's chin to tilt it up and towards her so that she was now looking at her and in a better position to be applying her makeup. For the long version of this story, which we obviously had time to tell, I felt I was better equipped to relay it since I was partially involved in the backstory. Evidently Patricia thought so too because she looked over at me and tipped her chin downwards as she raised her hand that was holding a container of concealer in a gesture to me, so I began narrating the account by setting the scene and reminding Rebel of the reason why Wrecker and Ash were together since both were fundamental characters in the anecdote. "Well," I began as I shifted on my knees that were beginning to hurt after kneeling beside Rebel for so long on the tile floor to paint her nails. "You know how the rescue team searching for you was Ash, Ahsoka, Hera, and Wrecker?" I asked Rebel as I looked up from her hands to her face where I saw she was observing me from the corner of her eye since she was unable to move her head with Patricia holding it in place as she brushed cream colored powder on her cheeks. "Yeah," she answered as her head twitched from holding back a nod. "Well, at one point during their search, they stopped on Nar Shaddaa and Ash took Wrecker to the restaurant where Ash and I had our first date." Here's where my involvement in the story comes into play. The whole reason Ash knew to take Wrecker to that restaurant in the first place and how he knew there would be a girl there Wrecker would fall in love with was due to that first date of ours. "Now, flashback to that first date," I said as I pointed behind me to indicate the past. "Ash takes me to this really nice restaurant," I said, emphasizing the words as I continued painting Rebel's short nails. "But he seemed super out of place there," I said, squinting to portray my past skepticism of him. "Like he was trying too hard to seem like he fit in," I told them my theory. "So, I," I placed my palm over my heart, realizing now, all too late, that the way I'd confronted Ash all those years ago had not been the most considerate. "Being the considerate person that I am," I said sarcastically as I smiled innocently up at the girls and batted my eyelashes, resting my chin on the back of my hand. We all giggled at how silly I assumed I looked and I resumed relaying the tale as soon as the laughter subsided. "Decided to call him out on it," I finished my sentence. "I asked him to start naming the waitresses since he told me he'd been there before," I said, remembering the detail I'd accidentally omitted as I transported myself back to that date five years ago to recall the exactness of our conversation. "And the first few he tells me he doesn't know because they just started working there that day, how convenient," I muttered, rolling my eyes teasingly. "Finally, I point to this one girl," I looked up at Patricia and smiled as I jutted my chin out towards her, indicating that it was her I'd pointed to all those years ago and she smiled back. "And he goes: 'That's Patricia,'" I said, deepening my voice to mimic Ash's. "And I go: 'You just made that up just now, didn't you?'" I asked, struggling to conceal a smile as I repeated the question I'd asked him all that time ago. "He gets all offended and says: 'No!'" I denied adamantly, again speaking in a deep voice. "You know, cool guy, he's not gonna admit it," I said in a relaxed manner as I leaned back. "So, I go: 'Fine, whatever.'" I swatted the air carelessly, a nonchalant expression on my face. "'He told a little white lie to make himself more likable to me. No big deal.'" I shrugged, brushing off the alleged offense. "So, I don't believe him," I summed up the entirety of my inner monologue to the girls. "Well, five years go by and…" I trailed off as I looked over at Patricia and nodded, transferring the storytelling privileges to her since I hadn't been present for this part of the story. "I'm just working my normal shift," she picked up right where I left off, continuing to tell the story in the same style I'd been telling it as she failed to repress her prideful smile at the way she'd so expertly copied my version of storytelling, dipping the makeup brush back into the concealer to collect more on the bristles. "When in walks my good friend, Ash," she said in a told-you-so fashion as she leaned towards me and stuck her tongue out, tilting her head side to side tauntingly and I scowled teasingly as a smile threatened to peek through. I held my hand up to her face and pretended to shove her away without ever making contact with her, but she dramatically pretended to have been violently pushing backwards and exaggeratedly stumbled on her knees before catching herself and breaking her fall by planting her palm on the ground. She looked up at me, feigning horror as she silently gasped and slapped her palm against her heart, then, after showing I was not remorseful in the slightest by crossing my arms and looking at her smuggly, she shook her head shamefully, squinted at me, and tutted at me by clicking her tongue against the roof of her mouth with her hands on her hips scoldingly. We all giggled uncontrollably after breaking character and resuming our natural, at ease, personalities. "And this big, handsome fella is with him," Patricia continued telling the account as she flatteringly described Wrecker, flexing her muscles and alternating which shoulder she thrust forward as she pretended to strut. "Ugh, gag me," Rebel mumbled under her breath as she leaned towards her left side over the chair arm to be better heard by me and I chuckled, unable to contain the laughter even behind my hand. "Anyway," Patricia interrupted our giggles loudly as she glared at us and leaned towards our direction. Rebel and I were eventually able to compose ourselves and dawn serious faces as we straightened up and prepared ourselves to listen once again. "Ash introduces me to my now boyfriend and we start talking and the rest is history," Patricia shrugged as she concluded the story and dusted Rebel's forehead with concealer. "Well," Rebel grumbled as Patricia patted the brush into the powder again. "Good luck with that," she said pessimistically and immediately switched subjects, bored with the current one. "Niece," Rebel perked up as sat up straight, clutched the arm rests of the chair with her hands, and addressed the Mandalorian sitting to Patricia's left. Sabine pointed dazedly to herself for conformation and Rebel nodded with an interested smile on her face. "What's new with you?" Rebel asked curiously. "Well," Sabine shyly fidgeted with her sleeves as her shoulders rose up to her ears and her cheeks flushed with color. "Ezra and I started dating," she confessed and looked up at us as she bit her lip excitedly. "Oh my goodness!" Rebel bounced up, nearly out of her seat and pressed her palms together in front of her mouth in shock, her voice laced with excitement. "Congratulations!" She cheered as she threw her hands in the air above her head and wiggled her fingers. "Thank you," Sabine said through an elated chuckle. Patricia and I had already expressed our congratulations since we'd known for about a week, that being the date of their first official date which we'd helped her prepare for, but we still couldn't help but smile. They were a good match and it was delightful to witness their exhilaration at announcing the news to everyone and to see so much optimism in the attitudes of certain rebels today since it was such a rare quality among them. "How's that going for you?" Rebel asked and Sabine sighed lovingly before answering. "Really good," she replied as she snatched a tube of lipstick out of Patricia's makeup kit since she was holding out her hand to Sabine and wordlessly flexing her fingers inwards towards her palm as a signal for her to pass her something, how Sabine could tell what she was requesting, I had no idea. "Well, good." Rebel banged one of her fists down on the arm rest as she nodded to emphasize her point. "I'm glad." She untucked her thumb from her fist and stuck it up in the gesture for a thumbs up. Eventually, the four of us drifted off into silence again as we each focused on our individual tasks. As I finished painting Rebel's right pinkie finger, her last remaining unpainted one, I yawned, suddenly becoming aware of how sleepy I was which made me wonder how late it actually was. "Oh my!" I exclaimed as I looked at the time, realizing that the kids should be in bed and asleep by now and I hadn't wanted to leave it up to Benji since it was quite the challenge, especially alone. I wondered how hyper the kids were right now though if they weren't already in bed and how badly they were terrorizing Benji. "It's past the kids' bedtime," I announced as I screwed the lid on the nail polish, explaining why I'd cried out to the girls who were looking up at me with concern in their eyes. "I should go tuck them in." I began to stand up as I set the polish on the counter, but Rebel squeezed my hand tighter since I'd already been holding it to keep her hand steady in order to paint her nails. "No, Rue," she desperately protested as she shifted in her seat to face me. "Stay!" She pleaded as she grabbed my arm with her other hand and nearly cut off my circulation with the tightness of her grip. I wanted to assure her I'd be back very shortly as it wouldn't take long, but I knew the kids' resistance to bedtime would make it difficult to follow through on that promise. However, there wouldn't be much left for me to do if they had already been put to bed as I was confident Benji, after living here for over two years, consequently knowing the kids' routine, and being a father himself, would have done especially with his kindness, so I could return in almost no time at all. "I'm sure Benji's already put them to bed," I soothed her worries as I squeezed her arm back with not near as much vigor as she was squeezing mine, but she still refused to let up, my statement not sufficient enough to her. Her demeanor again reminded me of that of a child's, the terror in her vulenerable eyes, the clinginess, and it reminded me that I always felt secure watching the kids sleep, knowing they were safely in their beds, dreaming peacefully. If I didn't have confirmation of that fact, my mind would wander towards them all night and I would be absent mentally from whatever situation I was supposed to be focused on, therefore, I couldn't give Rebel my full attention until I'd checked on them. I suppose the habit had begun after I returned from my confinement on Naboo where I had been incapable of checking on them, it not even being an option. "I just want to say goodnight," I explained to her just how brief of a period I would be gone for, hoping that would influence her to release me. "I'll be right back," I promised as I nodded, looking trustworthily into her eyes. Finally, that proved to be a satisfactory enough guarantee for her to liberate me from her grasp. I smiled at her gratefully and gave both Sabine and Patricia a farewell nod as I departed and headed towards the nursery. I stood in the doorway losing track of time as I leaned up against the doorframe and watched the dozing toddlers. Kali and Armani each in their respective beds that were against the wall opposite to the door, the feet of their beds facing me. The girls had their blankets, pink for Kali, purple for Armani, neatly pulled up to their shoulders as they slept on their sides, facing each other. The boys, however, Aaron and Apollo, were snuggled together on Kai's bed which was against the wall on the left side of the room. Kai was laying on top of both of them, snoring, his mouth wide open as the covers had apparently been kicked off and were wrinkled, the blue blanket barely clinging to the corner of the mattress. It was difficult to contain my laughter at the contrast between the two genders, but manageable if I kept in mind the fact that the kids were sleeping and I dared not awaken them from their slumber. Eventually though, my desire to draw closer to them and listen to their steady, wheezing breath up close and feel their warmth was not manageable. I squeezed into the space between Armani and Kali's bed where there was just barely enough room for the narrow nightstand against the back wall of the room and knelt down beside Armani's bed. I combed my fingers through her soft, jet black hair and leaned my head on my arm that was propped up against her mattress, unintentionally causing her to stir. Her eyelids fluttered as she came to life, inhaling a deep, sharp breath. "Hey," I whispered as I winced, sucking in a breath of air through my clenched teeth and jerking my hand back and out of her hair, feeling guilty I'd awoken her. "I'm sorry," I whispered an apology. "I didn't mean to wake you up," I said, maintaining my hushed tone as I stroked her cheek lightly with my finger, hoping to lull her back to sleep. "You didn't." She smiled as she lied to me and rubbed one of her eyes with her fist, keeping the other open and on me, watchful of my reaction to her dishonestly. I gave her the reaction she knew she would receive from me, which was to shake my head scoldingly while I eyed her meaningfully to remind her that we did not tell untruths in this family. She simply chuckled at my response and rubbed both eyes, satisfied now that she'd observed me. I knew the best way to coax Armani into returning to her slumber was to strike up a conversation with her, I knew she couldn't carry one on when she was already exhausted and the drone of voices would be like a lullaby to her. Besides, I was curious to learn how her interactions with her half-siblings had gone, if there was any tension, and how she perceived them. I wondered if she noticed any similarities between them and if she had any suspicions that they were related more closely than she had previously been told. Now would be the best time to ask since it was the freshest it would ever be on Armani's mind and we weren't in the alert presence of Ansa, Apollo, and Aaron, she could tell me her honest opinion of them without fear of offending them. "Did you have a good day today?" I asked as I brushed her thick, glossy hair, identical in appearance and texture to Rebel's, with my fingers again. "Mmhmm," she hummed a response as she nodded, her cheek against her pillow, and she stuck her hands back underneath her covers. "That's good," I commented and nodded, though she couldn't see it because her eyes had already begun to close as she prepared to fall back asleep and I smiled at the fact that my method was starting to work already. "How do you feel about your cousins?" I asked before she surrendered completely to the power of sleep. "I like them," she replied, her words slurred with tiredness, but clear enough to be comprehended. I smiled, grateful both our impressions of Rebel's new triplets were positive. "Yeah, me too," I agreed and from the pace of her breathing I could tell she wasn't asleep yet, so I questioned her further. "Did you have fun playing with them?" I inquired. "Yeah," she mumbled almost incoherently. "Good, good," I whispered as I nodded, my gaze slowly drifting over to the walls surrounding us. I tried to think of more questions to ask her, but when none arose, I thought of how much I yearned for her to know how valued and appreciated her goofy personality that I'd witnessed in action multiple times today was in our lives. "Thank you for entertaining them because I know they don't have the best home life and I know they could use some laughter," I explained to her why her entertainment was being especially praised today as I looked back down at her, continuing to fondle her hair. "So thank you for being your usual silly self," I commended her a second time. Then, to solidify the point I was attempting to make, I, without thinking, told her just what she meant to Ansa, Apollo, and Aaron as I leaned over her ear, hovering my mouth above it as I whispered directly into it to ensure she heard me. "You're a good sister," I said quietly. "You mean cousin," she corrected me, even in her sleep deprived state, as she cracked one eye open. "Yes, I mean cousin," I readily and gratefully accepted the correction as I immediately nodded, but so as to not evoke suspicion in Armani, I sought for a sliver of truth in my statement. "But I also mean you're a good sister to Kai and Kali," I told her as I patted her back and saw that her eyes had closed once again. "And Ria." She reminded me that Ria, although biologically her cousin, was one of her siblings as well. "And Ria," I echoed her, appreciative of the fact that her reminder had been gentle as opposed to impertinent and the fact that she was inclusive of her sister who could at times be greedy and selfish when I have no recollection of Armani ever being either of those things. She was a good kid, despite her siblings' distasteful character traits. I accredited all of her desirable qualities to her genetics, rather than her upbringing. "You're a good daughter too." I rubbed her shoulder with my hand, wishing I could claim her as my own. "You keep me in line," I joked as I patted her shoulder. "You're a good mama," she muttered sleepily and my eyes widened as I looked down at her, checking to see if she was perhaps speaking to someone else or it was possible that she was asleep and was seeing Rebel in her dreams and talking to her. "Really?" I asked in disbelief as she seemed to still be conscious. "You think so?" I asked, seeking confirmation. "Mmhmm," she mumbled out between closed lips as she nodded slowly. I could tell it took effort for her to move her head up and down while it rested on her pillow and also while she was drowsy at the same time. It seemed unreasonable to accept her response as a truthful one when I had raised three disobedient children on my own with no one else to blame for their misbehavior. "Sometimes I don't feel like it," I admitted as I sat down on the ground to give my knees a break. I stretched my legs straight out in front of me and faced the door, untangling my hand from Armani's hair and fitting my hands together in my lap as I looked down at them. "Well, you are," she argued with me as she rolled onto her back. The stubbornness in the tone of her voice reminded me of one person and one person only which made me smile so big my cheeks hurt and my eyes squinted so much that nearly all of my vision was blacked out. She'd never sounded more like her mother than she did in that moment. "Thank you, baby," I whispered, grateful for her compliment that was given at precisely the right time, right when I was feeling like the worst mother in the galaxy, it was good to know at least one of my children, even if she wasn't biologically mine, thought I was a good parent. It was actually even more of a compliment because she didn't have say that since she didn't owe me her life for having given birth to her. Her four small words carried the power of a full Rebel speech and I wondered if her youngest daughter had inherited the impeccably timed words of encouragement gene as well since she reminded me a lot of Armani. As I looked around for the child in question, I realized she was nowhere to be found. "Where's Ansa?" I asked, hoping Armani might have an inkling to her whereabouts. "I think she's still in the playroom with Benji," she said unsurely as she slapped the back of her wrist over her forehead exhaustedly and I decided to quit interrogating her finally, assuming I'd tuckered her out enough while also wanting to verify the validity of Armani's theory on Ansa's whereabouts. "Okay, thank you." I thanked her for her input as I rose to my feet, pushing against the mattress for support in order to stand up. I loomed over her for a few more moments, unable to pry myself away and she eventually peeked at me from behind her forearm, evidently sensing me still watching her and gave me the most sheepish smile that made me want to deliver every wholesome thing the universe possessed into the palm of her hand. "Do you need anything?" I instead asked, ensuring she was content. "No, thank you, Mama." She shook her head and threw her arm back down against the mattress in a straight position at her side. "Good night. Sleep well, my darling." I pinned her hair back from her forehead with my palm and bent down to kiss her forehead. "Thank you, Mama. You too," she said politely as she pulled the blanket up to her chin with both hands and I turned around to exit through the door. "Thank you," I said as I paused in the doorway and looked at her over my shoulder as I pressed my palm up against the doorframe to get a better one last glance at her before rounding the corner and heading to the playroom in search of Ansa. Once I arrived in the doorway, I stumbled upon Benji rocking Ansa who was curled up in his lap as he sat in the rocking chair, humming a low, soulful tune to her as she dreamt. I leaned up against the doorframe to observe again as my smile was no doubt unmeasurable. Meanwhile, Benji looked as if he might rock himself to sleep, he looked so fatigued. I wondered if he'd had any time to himself all afternoon. Suddenly, he looked up at me and smiled wearily, his eyes barely open as he seemed unsurprised by my appearance in the first place. "You should get some rest," I sincerely advised as I crossed my arms. "I will," he promised as he nodded weakly, his voice hoarse and his eyes shut by now, his smile had fallen. "She's just having a hard time sleeping in a new place." He tilted the side of his head down towards Ansa whom he was cradling in his arms and she seemed quite comfortable as she clung to his shirt consolingly. It was a rather touching scene, Benji had sacrificed his entire evening to ensure she slept soundly in a new environment and Ansa had bonded with him so quickly that she felt comfortable enough to let her guard down around him. "You're sweet to stay up with her," I commended him for dedicating his free time to caring for her. "I'm a dad." He shrugged. "It's what I do." He excused his selfless act as merely a duty, seeming to enjoy the task as he smiled back down at Ansa who had just mumbled in her sleep. It reminded me of when Ria was a baby and her cries would awaken Ash who would always rush to her aid. He never seemed to mind lulling her back to sleep, instead reveling in the fact that he was the only one capable of reuniting her with her slumber. Speaking of Ria, I'd yet to see her since she stormed out of the cafeteria and it was important that I speak with her about that incident. I had handled the situation incorrectly and there were certain things I needed to apologize for, but she had also behaved wrongly and needed to understand why that behavior should not be repeated. "Do you know where Ria is?" I asked as I straightened up and began wringing my hands, hoping she hadn't run away from home. "I just put her down in her room," he informed me as he tossed his chin in the direction of the room right next door. "Thank you," I thanked him as I gave a slight bow, pressing my palms against each other as I did so. "Good night, Benji." I waved to him as I stepped back out of the doorway and into the hallway. "Good night, Rue," he bid me farewell, jutting his chin out towards me as a substitute for a wave since his hands were full and I went on my way, towards Ria's room. I knocked on her partially open door cautiously, not wanting to provoke her by barging if she was awake, but when I didn't hear a response I gently leaned on the door to open it the rest of the way. Inside I saw Ria sitting with her legs folded into her lap as she sat facing the foot of the bed, a forlorn expression on her face and she only lifted her head once she saw the door swing open, but her expression didn't falter. "Hey, Jellybean," I greeted her delicately as I crossed the threshold to step inside.