A Star Among Planets (Star Wars Rebels Fanfiction)

Chapter 71: Help Will Come

    After the brutal beating, Halftail woke up. He groaned in pain, a deep ache settling in every fiber of his being. He didn't even want to turn because he knew how bad he probably looked. He could feel every bruise and painful mark on his body and he wanted nothing more just to fall asleep and see Bine. However, as a Jedi, that wasn't what he was trained to do.

    He heard a groan and realized it was Fallowfern. "Fallowfern," he sputtered as he dragged himself over and pushed his muzzle against her cheek.

    She lifted her head weakly and Halftail realized that she looked even more battered than he was. "Er, Halftail, is that you? I can't see very well."

    Halftail saw that her eyes were nearly swollen shut. He began to lap at them gingerly. "Yes, it's me. I'm so sorry that this happened to you!" His voice rose to a wail and Halftail struggled to contain the pain that he felt. This was all his fault!

    Fallowfern purred hollowly as she touched her nose to his. "It wasn't your fault, Halftail," assured Fallowfern and Halftail could see the affection in her voice. "You did what I told you to do. Besides, I don't think that I would have lasted here much longer."

    Halftail rose to his paws, but he slumped down heavily. He whimpered in pain and was about to look over his shoulder, but Fallowfern let out a whimper as she shook her head. "I wouldn't look if I were you. I can see from here and it's not pretty."

    Halftail turned himself around and crawled over to Fallowfern. "Let me at least try and see if I can do anything for your wounds. You don't deserve to be in pain like this," he sniffed as tears shown in his eyes.

    Fallowfern looked up gratefully, although her eyes were still swollen shut. "Okay. I'll clean your wounds as well. It's not fair that only I get to have the special treatment." Her voice was light, yet Halftail could feel the pain in it.

    Halftail allowed her to lap at his back while he did hers. The cool and frequent rasp of Fallowfern's tongue on his back made the brutal beating not feel as painful. He just hoped he was doing the same for Fallowfern. "I...er....met with someone that you may want to know about last night."

    Fallowfern stopped her licking for a heartbeat before continuing. "Who? Was it in a dream?"

    "Sort of," answered Halftail as he ran his tongue over the most black and blue mark on Fallowfern's back under her fur. It was near her shoulder and when he touched it, she flinched. "I went to Starbound, the animal heaven, and I saw your kits."

    Fallowfern stopped grooming Halftail and her breath seemed caught in her throat. "You saw them?! You really saw them?!" Her heart seemed to beat a mile a minute in her chest.

    Halftail's eyes lit in sympathy. "Yes I did. They're beautiful and so smart," he meowed as he remembered Mistyfur and Petalfall standing in front of him. "They wanted me to tell you something."

    "What," asked Fallowfern as her whiskers rose a bit. "I'd do anything to be able to hear their voices again."

    Halftail grimaced. "They said that the Empire was the one that killed them. They set those wild dogs on their scent and that's when they were killed."

    Fallowfern's eyes rounded in horror. "I had no idea. They killed my kits!"

    The sound of her screech could have woken up anyone on the ship. Halftail knew the grief that she felt. He had felt the same when when Bine, Sweetsong, and Wildspirit had died. "I'm so sorry, Fallowfern," he meowed gently.

    Fallowfern's fur stood on end. "I can't just let them get away with this. They were the most important things to me and they were killed," she whimpered as she sat up and hung her head.