Parental Duties
By Rey
Note on names:
Amma: term for mother/primary parent/adopter, not in Mando'a
Ra: Rey-verse T'ra Saa's nickname
Ré: Rey-verse Fay's nickname
Té: Rey-verse Tarre's nickname
Tre-Fay: Rey-verse Fay's complete given name
Chapter notes and warnings: This chapter follows the last one closely, so please beware of depression and suicide ideation themes, this time from the POV of a sibling. Also, there is a reference to non-sexual post-infancy breastfeeding here, though it's rather blink-and-miss.
Chapter summary: Sometimes Fay is a troublemaker, not just a troubleshooter. But it is for a good cause! Why not do both, anyway?
17. Fay: The Salvage
It was very frightening, to sense Té slipping even though their body was there and alive.
It is equally frightening, to know that Té considers this accidental squad of mostly children just a patch until they can go home. Because, how if they can never go home?
Ré has known Té since her earliest memory. They met in the dreamscape each time she slept, for at least a short while before her own brain took over and used it to give her sometimes stupid, sometimes prophetic, sometimes frightening, sometimes confusing dreams of her own. And then they met each other in the flesh, when Ré was old enough to brave the galaxy at large alone with relative safety – as long as she was very careful and very cunning – and made her way to them in their home on Mandalore.
Té had been dreaming about her sporadically throughout the centuries of their life before she had even been born, it turned out, which was weird and fantastical, but also awesome. And, this way, also because Té had been talking about those dreams to everyone that mattered, she was easily folded into their family.
They have been rarely parted since then despite their somewhat differing interests and duties, and Ra was even added to their dynamics a while after that fateful moment.
They are together even now that they are suddenly a universe away.
However, if Té keeps slipping away, if the invisible edge has been hit and nobody knows about that before they go beyond….
Ré shivers, fights not to cry, longs for Amma's hug, for a chance to be nestled in Amma's vast, ancient mind, for Amma's milk that's another hug of its own.
And if she – not Amma's womb-child by any means, despite everything – longs for them so, what about Té? They conceived and carried and birthed and raised Té, and Té is part of their soul and flesh and blood, and… `…Oh, to be cut off so suddenly from such a bond….`
Ré shivers harder. Her bond with Té is nearly as deep, seconded only by hers with Ra. `Would I fall into such despondency, too, if Té were gone? Or Ra? Is this why the masters tried to separate us when they found out?`
She purses her lips, and tamps down yet another shiver. She has just noticed that more than one person is looking at her closely, including one of the nominal adults in charge, and she would rather not have to explain this messy, private business to any of them.
`Well, if I would rather that my business be not known more than it has, best handle it as soon as possible, right?`
She eyes Té, who is once more back in their armour and aiding others to dry off using their affinity with water. She also eyes Ra, who is looking longingly back outside at the rain that is now thunderless and not as windy as before. And then she reaches out to the universe beyond their shelter, observing the solar storm, and the living – if drenched – world all round her, and the state of mind of everyone in this shelter.
`We are all restless, and the storm is nearly gone, anyway. No predator is nearby, too. If I can distract those three busybodies and organise a hunt somewhere near…, or foraging for edibles, or a trip to check on our ships….`
She hums and stares contemplatively at the aforementioned adults, who seem to be preparing to take turns under the rain. Then she nudges at Té both through their bond and a poking finger at the chainmail-covered spot on their waist between the top plates and the bottom ones.
They twitch, tickled, and proceed to immediately, grumpily retaliate, pausing from carefully untangling and combing through Rey's long hair.
She giggles softly. This is more like Té!
Ra perks up, dragging her attention somewhat reluctantly away from the rain outside. `Are we doing anything fun, now?`
Ré fights not to let out an incredulous laugh out loud, or let the feeling that sparks it be readable in her body language, or seep out of the confines of their bond and minds.
It is simply rare that Ra is the one asking for fun. The asker is usually Té, while Ré is content to follow any mad scheme the former might hatch.
Ra is just as desperate and unmoored as she or Té or anyone summoned by the little green one, she knows. But it sounds odd coming from Ra, all the same.
And shows that they need to act as soon as possible, definitely.
So, while making sure that she herself is physically occupied with helping Jon deal with a very bouncy Grogu in order to avoid undue attention, Ré explains the plan that she has just come up with to her siblings: `The full adults seem to be from this universe, alongside Grog'ika. They certainly have contacts here, or at least know where to go and what to do, and we certainly need their help for this much. With how many we are, any contact of theirs must prepare first before we drop on them, too. So, I thought, you could offer to combine all the long-range components of our comm stations into a commlink that they can use to make such preparation, Té. You can use measured exposure to the end of the solar storm as a slingshot to fling the signal Rimward, right? Or do you need a physical satellite for that? I think I still have one, the one that you left in my Bird, if the cleaners did not find and confiscate it yet. And, to do that, of course we must fetch the necessary parts from our ships, and the three of us should volunteer ourselves to do so. if they are too busy with everyone here, they might not think of assigning anybody to go with us, too, and that means, once we arrive at the ships and have done what we need to do, you and Ra could bask under the rain as much as you wish with no one bothering you. I could even keep guard, keep up a deflecting wall, so nothing and nobody will bother you.`
`What will occupy them so thoroughly, though?` Ra immediately runs with the idea. `A prank? A small, harmless animal loosed here, maybe? I could find one that might fit the criteria.`
`Something that is relatively harmless, and not so annoying for them,` Té ventures in, surprisingly very cautious. `Those three have been kind to all of us, and I would rather not pay them with chores and difficulties. We need them, as well, in this foreign universe. We cannot assume that everything is the same as… which we left.`
Ré fights to keep up her chipper air, this time. Stars, if it was already rare that Ra would seek excitement, it is practically unheard of for Té to be this careful of any plan that is not for battle or gifting Amma something special!
`Well, we could discreetly ask the others for ideas? Tell them that it is just to liven up the atmosphere after the success of the rain-bathing?` she scrambles.
And, judging by how not-there Té is suddenly in the bond the three of them share and that tilt of their helmet, they have just noted the desperation she has been trying to conceal and sussed out that it is related to them.
`Fierfek.`