Family by Heart (A Star Wars Rebels fanfic)

Chapter 17

Rex was walking down the main ship's halls since Ahsoka had told him to go find Athena and wake her up. He wasn't sure why she couldn't do it, but when he asked she just told him she had some business to take care of and that Athena sometimes punches people when they wake her up. She was starting to sound like a younger Ahsoka already. Rex remembered the old times when Ahsoka was Athena's age and how she always had a snippy remark to anything and everything, the whole punching thing is just Athena, probably gets it from Kanan.

Then he started to think how the two are siblings, odd. They did look alike, but Athena seemed to build trusts with people much quicker than Kanan. Ahsoka told him how she was a foster kid back on Earth, it was weird thinking that Athena grew up thinking that the rest of the universe was a myth,fiction.

Rex reached Athena's door and pressed the button to see Athena on her top bunk, but she didn't seem like she was in a peaceful rest. She seemed like she was almost gasping for air.

Rex went over to the teen to see that she was coughing violently he shook her arm to try to get her up.

"Athena! Wake up!" Rex called.

Athena continued to violently cough and gasp for air.

"Athena!"

Athena's eyes opened and showed fear in her eyes with redness around them, but continued to cough and sat up quickly.

"Hey, you ok?" Rex asked.

Athena shook her head 'no', but said nothing and continued to gasp for air.

"What was it?" Rex asked "Hey, come on, spit it out."

Athena then started to cough into her arm and Rex got more concerned.

"Oh, Force. Come on, Athena, we better get you to the medbay."

Athena shook her head 'no' once more and continued to cough.

"What was it?Nightmare?"

Athena shook her head 'yes' and coughed much more violently.

"Come on, you have to get to the medbay. Don't make me get Ahsoka."

"A-hsok-a" Athena coughed "isn't h-ere."

"Okay, you can talk, that's better." Rex said. "Now what was the nightmare?"

"I-I was" Athena had a small cough fit and continued "th-rown i-in a r-iver and I-I couldn't br-eath."

"Hey, you're alright." Rex assured Athena as she gasped for more air and the coughed some more. "You sure you don't need to go to the medbay?"

Athena shook her head 'no' and Rex could see the fear in Athena's eyes go away slowly "I'm-I'm fine."

"You sure?"

"I'm no-not a baby."

"Come on, let's get you to the Ghost crew." Rex offered.

"No, I'm fi-ne." Athena coughed. "I'll just stay here."

"Hm... now why were you having a dream about being thrown in a river? Seems quite odd."

"It wasn't a dr-eam." Athena coughed "It h-append to me when I-I was 5."

Rex could relate to having nightmares like Athena just had, flashbacks of the Clone wars, flashbacks of his fellow men dieing, it was hard to fall asleep sometimes, but he managed.

"Someone threw you in a river?"

"I bro-ke a vase and my foster mo-m threw me in fo-r punishment." Athena coughed.