A Star Among Planets (Star Wars Rebels Fanfiction)

Chapter 45: Motherly

    After they dropped Adlerleaf, Sabine, Zeb, Molis, and Keen off, Halftail couldn't stop pacing and he didn't know why. It was almost worse than Bluefeather's stomping and grumbling. They just had different ways of expressing their fears. Eventually he realized that pacing was getting him nowhere. He could feel Kanan through the force, who seemed just as worried as him.

He threw his head sideways and he realized that he needed to do something productive. He strode into the cockpit and saw Hera and Kanan still talking. Bluefeather was sitting in a seat behind Hera, looking at her paws while she seemed to be repeating something softly into her chest fur. Halftail drew forward and flicked his ears upward to see if he could catch it.

Bluefeather turned and smiled when she realized he was there. "Oh, hi, Halftail. I didn't realize you were here. How long have you been standing there," she murmured softly.

Halftail shrugged. "Not long," he assured as he leaped onto a seat behind Kanan. He slumped a bit, not wanting Bluefeather to go back to her muttering. "I'm sure that Keen will be fine. He has a lot of eyes watching over him."

Bluefeather smiled, but it was certainly forced. "I know. I'm sorry if I stepped on your paws. I should have asked if it was alright with you for Keen to go with them," she apologized.

"It's not a problem. I would have said that he could go. However, I'm glad that you told him to go," Halftail meowed as he licked a paw and drew it over his ear in quick grooming. "I know that was probably hard for you to let him go. You two are extremely close."

Bluefeather's eyes gleamed. "We are. Every since his parents died it was only us and Ezra. I raised them both, which wasn't easy, but I felt like it was my duty. That was what was asked from me."

Halftail couldn't imagine raising a nephew and a human child while living on the streets and with the Empire closing in. "I commend you."

Bluefeather shook her head almost dismissively. "I love them like they were my own. I just want to protect them. They're growing up, though, so they don't need me like they used to," she confessed. Her voice almost seemed sullen.

"They will always need you," assured Halftail quickly. Even as Swifttail grew older, Halftail still knew that he needed him. He may not admit it, but Swifttail did need his father. "You raised them more than their parents were able to."

Bluefeather shuffled her paws embarrassment. "That was the Empire's fault. They left to protect those that they loved. I commend them for actually leaving. I know how much it hurt my sister and her mate."

"How long were they able to be with Keen," pressed Halftail. Bine had only seen Swifttail for a few heartbeats, but the longer you're with a kit, the longer you grow attached to them.

Bluefeather raised a paw and he wiped a tear away. "Not as long as they would've liked. It was enough time to get to know him and his littler personality. However, a lifetime wouldn't have been enough time for them. They wanted to be there for his whole life. It just didn't work like that."

Halftail licked his lips, unsure of what to say to make things better for Bluefeather. He couldn't change what had happened and he wasn't sure if all these questions were bringing up painful memories. "If you don't mind me asking, why did they decide to name him Keen?" That was certainly an interesting name and he wouldn't have thought of it.

Bluefeather chuckled as she swayed her head a bit, more tears falling from her face. "Keen was an only pup, there was only one in the litter. He was certainly howling and wailing the moment he was born and keen does mean a loud, grief filled wailing. The better reason, though, was because as soon as he opened his eyes we saw how handsome and blue they were. That's when they named him Keeneyes."

Halftail drew back a bit, surprised. "I never knew that his name was Keeneyes. Why is it Keen now?"

Bluefeather shrugged a bit before she turned her head and flicked more tears from her eyes with her wings. "He asked to change it. It reminded him too much of his past and his parents. I would find him crying at night for moons after I told him that his parents weren't coming back. That's when we changed his name to Keen."

"I'm so sorry that the Empire did this to you," sympathized Halftail as he dipped his head in respect. He just wished the Empire knew what happened to good families like this.

Bluefeather shrugged. "You lost a lot too thanks to the Empire as well. I've heard Molis talking a lot about your mate. Bine, right," she inquired.

At the mention of Bine, a purr seemed to fill Halftail as he nodded. "You're right. I lost my mate and my two kits. But, I still have Swifttail and I will be forever thankful."

"I will be thankful for Keen and Ezra forever," vowed Bluefeather as she arched her back in a small stretch, showing her beautiful flowing wings. Despite himself, Halftail envied her.

Halftail dipped his head. "They love you very much, however, I see the way that you look at Molis. Don't try and deny it because I've been through it many moons ago."

Bluefeather blushed and she turned her head away from Halftail's accusing gaze. "Well, I didn't have a chance to find a mate. As soon as the war started and the Republic crumbled, I had to stay with my sister and her mate to protect myself. Keen wasn't even a thought at the time, but Ezra was born. I helped as much as I could, but then things got tough. I took on the mother role when everyone had to leave, but finding a mate was never a concern for me. Besides, Lothal males aren't the best, except for Sparn."

Halftail knew how toms could be especially since he was one. Finding a good one was hard, but for him, finding a wonderful she-cat was even harder. Bine had been just a blessing to him and he hoped that he was a blessing to her. He would never know, but that was his hope. "I can tell that Molis likes you. He was pretty cold and callous when I met him, but you seemed to change his mind set. He actually appears, you know, happy."

Bluefeather perked up. "I'm glad I make him happy. I just don't know how Keen would react."

Halftail froze at that. He knew how Keen would react and it hadn't been promising. However, he really wasn't ready to tell Bluefeather that just yet. "I'm sure he'll be fine with it," he lied loosely.

"I'm not sure about that, Halftail. I just hope that he understands how I feel," she murmured as she lifted a paw to scratch behind her ears.

Halftail was about to say something else, but before he could, he heard a beeping noise. A comm was coming in! "Is Keen okay," Bluefeather broke out before she drew back after a harsh shushing from Hera.

Ezra suddenly appeared on the hologram and it made Halftail settle. "The plans have changed," confessed Ezra as he looked down almost in shame.

"What kind of change," inquired Halftail as he leaned forward, almost falling off the seat.

Ezra looked over to Halftail. "I just need you to be at the point that we discussed. We're going to have to go a little deeper than we discussed."

Bluefeather gulped at that and Halftail remembered what she had said about raising them. She hadn't really been apart from Ezra since he was a child.

"Ezra, I don't like this," confessed Kanan, his voice strained

Before anyone could say anything else, they jumped to hyperspace and Halftail sunk his claws into a seat, leaving a mark. Kanan swore as he thrust his hands on the control panel.

"It's okay," assured Hera in her usual calm voice that she usually used to calm down Kanan. He listened to her in a surprising way. "He's been alone on his own before we came along."

Bluefeather leaned forward and narrowed her eyes. "Not completely alone," she muttered darkly.

Halftail looked over to Halftail. "It's okay, Bluefeather. They're not alone. I promise that everything will be alright," he vowed as he blinked his eyes at her gently.

Bluefeather drew back and she pressed her head against the back of the seat, closing her eyes and breathing deeply. Halftail hoped that he was right, but then again, he knew that they were capable. He and Kanan had done Jedi training with them and he was sure that they would use it.

They sped through hyperspace and Halftail hoped that they would be there in time.