When A Loved One Dies: A Star Wars Rebels Story

Remembering

Ezra, Sabine, Zeb, and Chopper went up to Kanan's door. He hadn't even shown them the baby, which made them feel excluded. They knew Kanan and his baby just needed to sleep, but still.

"Kanan, will you let us in please?" Sabine asked through the door. There was no answer.

"Ugh! We don't have time for this! We have a mission to do!" Frustrated Ezra said while using the force to open the door. Looking into the room, they saw Kanan and his baby wrapped in a blue fuzzy blanket, both fast asleep. Kanan wore a small smile on his face. His baby was wrapped in his arms and in blankets, held to his chest. The baby was sleeping peacefully, sometimes making little squeaks as she dreamed.

"Aww!" Sabine whispered, a giant smile spread across her face.

"Cute, but we need to get going!" Ezra whisper-shouted.

"Fine! Let's go. Chopper you're staying here though." Sabine whispered, a little angry at Ezra, and she left the room followed by Zeb and Ezra.

Chopper didn't leave though. Instead, he rolled over to Kanan's bed and shook his arm a little. Kanan's smile disappeared as he woke up and stared in front of him.

"Chopper? Is that you?" Kanan asked while blinking sleep out of his scared, blind eyes.

A few beeps and boops came from the droid and Kanan nodded, knowing what Chopper had said. He laid Maarchje on his bed, pulled off the fuzzy cover, and stretched. Just then, Maarchje started to cry. Kanan scooped her up and walked out of the room, not paying anymore attention to Chopper.

He walked out of the room, swinging his baby in his arms. Her little cried didn't stop until Kanan changed her diaper. He took her into the kitchen and found more baby milk in the fridge. He held it to her mouth and she drank it, but she started crying again. Kanan thought to himself for a second, then had an idea.

He started to sing. The lullaby was in twi'lek and Hera had been the one to teach it to Kanan. Maarchje stopped crying and wide cyan-teal eyes stared up at Kanan. When Kanan stopped singing, Maarchje was quiet. Kanan smiled and walked to the cockpit with his baby.

He sat down in the co-pilots seat and set his eyes on the window. He was thinking of what Chopper Base would look like, when the door to the cockpit opened.

"Kanan," Cham's twi'lek accent sounded out. "Can I see my grandchild?"

Kanan thought for a moment, not wanting to let his girl go. But, it was Cham, who was his daughters grandpa, so he handed Maarchje over to Cham.

Cham sat in the pilots chair and rocked the tiny calm baby. "She is beautiful," he told Kanan. "What did you name her?"

"Maarchje," Kanan replied.

Cham looked at Kanan, who was still staring out the windshield. He had a sad look in his blind eyes. Cham knew what it was about. So many things had happen in just a few months. Cham handed the baby back over to Kanan, who took her and held her against his chest, rocking her.

"Well, I've got to go now. And Kanan," Cham said to Kanan who actually looked at him. "Hera's funeral is in a week. Will you be there? I'm not asking you to say anything there, but will you come?"

Kanan remember watching through the force Hera die in that med-bay bed. He nodded, just wanting the conversation to be over. He turned back to staring out the window. Cham patted his shoulder as he stood and left the room.

And a minute after that, a small tear fell onto the swaddled baby's blanket.