Chapter Text
The sound of running feet seemed to echo throughout the late-night streets of Mos Espa. The runner, a small figure in a hooded, oversized cloak, dodged and weaved around the usual denizens that lingered in similar ports of call the galaxy over at this time of night. They darted around a corner and found themselves in a deserted, dead-end alleyway. They made their way to the back wall and sank down to the ground.
A soft whimper sounded from the depths of the cloak. The hood slipped down, revealing a head of short cropped blond hair. As they tried to settle more comfortably, the cloak continued shifting, seemingly of its own accord. A moment later, another, smaller figure emerged, this one with a rather floppy head of brown hair on its head.
“Rex,” the brunet whined as he flopped down beside the other, “I’m hungry.”
“I know, Echo,” the now identified Rex sighed heavily, sliding his arm around the smaller boy’s shoulders and pulling him to his side. “But we don’t have anything. And there’s nothing to salvage on this godsforsaken planet. Look, just try and get some sleep and we’ll figure something out in the morning, okay?”
Echo sniffed in response but curled closer into his side. The blond retrieved the cloak and settled it around them both to fight off the nightly chill. The pair sat in silence for a long stretch and the older boy was sure the other had fallen asleep.
“Rex,” well, apparently, he was wrong about that as the brunet shifted slightly, “how did this happen? How did we get here? Why are we like this? We’re not supposed to be like this.”
His voice had grown shakier and higher pitched with each question he asked, until he was almost sobbing at the end.
“I don’t know, vod,” Rex shook his head as tears began to fill his own eyes. “I feel like I should have the answers, but I don’t.”
He sniffed, trying to regain control. His mind was hazy and felt heavy. He didn’t remember anything before he had woken up at the spaceport with Echo at his side. It was like a veil or mist was covering everything from before, keeping him from grasping anything solid.
“What do you remember?” he asked quietly, almost scared of the answer.
“You,” the younger boy sniffed piteously. “I know you’re my vod, but everything else is fuzzy. And… and we’re tiny, Rex! We’re not supposed to be tiny. I… I want Fives.”
“I know,” the blond frowned.
He wasn’t sure who exactly Fives was, but he knew he was important, to both of them. There were others too, but he couldn’t grasp it. Everything seemed to be slipping through his fingers, like the grains of sand beneath his hands.
“I know you’re my vod, too,” he took a shaky breath. “But I just remember waking up here. I don’t even know where here is.”
“It’s okay, Rex,” Echo patted his arm consolingly. “It’ll be okay. You’ll figure it out. You always do.”
“Yeah.”
No pressure there or anything. Though, the younger boy’s faith in him was… nice, it was a lot and definitely overwhelming. But it was reassuring that even in their current… circumstances his vod’ika still believed in him.
“Go to sleep, Echo,” he tucked the brunet up under his chin. “I’ve got the watch.”
888
Boba Fett grumbled quietly as he fumbled for the commlink on the nightstand that was currently disrupting his sleep. He finally managed to grab the comm and sat up to answer it.
“This is Fett,” he barked once it connected.
~Sorry to bother you, boss,~ the voice of Drash, leader of his group of Mods, filled the silence of his room, ~but we’ve got a bit of a situation in town.~
“What kind of situation?” a frown marred his scarred features.
There shouldn’t be any type of situation in town. They had just driven off the Pykes, for kriff’s sake. The Hutts had given up their claim. There should be no one challenging him right now. Though, with it being a new gotra, now would actually be the best time to root it out before it truly established itself. He was just being naïve if he thought otherwise.
~There have been sporadic reports all night of a child running around the city,~ the young woman answered.
“A child?” he clarified slowly. “In Mos Espa?”
That was like claiming there was sand in the desert. Obvious and not something that should even remotely come as a surprise.
~I know, boss,~ she sighed heavily. ~And I wouldn’t normally bother you with this. But the reports started at the spaceport and the most recent was from the Worker’s District. The thing is, boss, no one seems to know who this kid is. We think they might be a runaway.~
“A runaway?” the Daimyo ran his hand over his head, he detested slavery and it would be the next thing he worked to eliminate from his territory. “What have you done so far?”
~I sent the rest of the Mods to the Worker’s District,~ she replied. ~I’m on my way there now.~
“Good,” he nodded, even though the other couldn’t see it. “Were they caught on security anywhere?”
~There are a few grainy shots from the port,~ she sighed. ~After that, they got a cloak from somewhere, so they’ve been harder to track, and we haven’t got a clear shot.~
“Send them to me. And Drash,” he took a deep breath, “try not to corner or scare them. If they are truly a runaway, we want to make them feel safe.”
~Got it, boss,~ she acknowledged before ending the call.
Boba sighed heavily before placing the comm back in its place. He then pulled himself out of bed and went to retrieve his armor. It looked like he wasn’t getting any more sleep tonight anyway.
Once the helmet was on his head, he loaded the footage the Mods had transferred to him. He quickly flicked through the various feeds and holos, looking for anything he could use to possibly identify or locate this child that had fallen into his domain. After several minutes, his HUD froze on two images, side by side. One was a grainy still from the spaceport feed, just as Drash had warned, the other of a small, cloaked figure darting through the streets.
To the untrained eye that looked like all there was. His eye, however, was not untrained. He was a bounty hunter, the best in the galaxy in fact, for many years. And he spotted something in both pictures that could be easily missed. It was harder to see in the grainy still but in the other the cloak had shifted just right to show a glimpse of the kid’s arm. However, it was the smaller, extra appendage that had truly caught his attention.
Dank ferrick, there were two of them! No wonder the youngling was running. Gods, what if one of them was hurt? Would the Mods even know how to handle something like that? Did he? If only Djarin were still here, he’d know how to handle this. He did have his own kid after all. But alas, the Mando was not there.
Well, there was nothing for it. He was going to have to join the search. He wasn’t sure how much actual help he would be in consoling the younglings, but he had to at least try. He couldn’t, wouldn’t allow these children to live in fear, not on his planet.
888
Rex jolted awake. He wasn’t sure what had woken him, but some instinct in him had him instantly alert. Thankfully, whatever had roused him hadn’t disturbed Echo’s sleep in the least.
It was still dark out, maybe a couple hours after they had stopped. He hadn’t meant to fall asleep, but his current… condition was hindering him. He just didn’t have the stamina. But that didn’t matter now. Right now, he needed to figure out what had brought him around in the first place.
Honey brown eyes darted around as he kept himself as still as possible. The alley he had found them was still apparently deserted, though the shadows had lengthened, and he couldn’t be completely sure of that assessment. The sounds of people still on the street were ever present and made it difficult to distinguish anything closer. He wished he had something that could enhance his senses somehow, allow him to see in the dark.
The scrape of a boot on the hard packed ground snapped his gaze to the shadows on the right. A dark figure emerged from the shadows, the hue of their clothing allowing them to blend almost seamlessly with the surroundings. He tensed as if to run, but with Echo, and their current state, he knew he would never make it. Well, he might, but he would rather die than leave the younger boy behind.
“Easy, little one,” a modulated voice came from the figure.
An achingly, hauntingly familiar modulated voice. He wasn’t quite sure why it was so familiar, but it niggled something in the back of his mind. He had to choke back the sob that almost escaped his throat. Something else held him back. Just because he somewhat recognized the voice didn’t mean he could trust it.
“I promise no harm will come to you,” the other continued. “To either of you.”
Great, so he knew about Echo. That just made him smart or observant, or both. Or that Rex was getting sloppy. The latter didn’t sit too well with his ego, but as Echo had so helpfully pointed out earlier, they were tiny, and things were sure to slip through the cracks.
“Says you,” the blond snapped, clutching the smaller boy to his chest protectively.
“I swear to you,” the man reached up and pulled off his helmet, “on my armor, no harm will come to you while you are in my care.”
The words triggered something in his mind. No vod would swear on their armor, the one thing that was ever truly theirs, and dare to break it. With that thought filling his head, a relieved sob broke free and he launched himself forward.
888
Boba wasn’t sure why he made that vow to the youngling. He only knew two groups who would appreciate the magnitude of what the implications of the words meant: Mandalorians and the Clones. Other sentients could understand that his armor was important to him and that would keep him relatively honest. So, he was expecting hesitancy, maybe a little lessening of the guard to allow him to earn their trust. He was not, however, expecting the child to practically throw themselves at his legs.
He had to do a bit of juggling as he managed to keep the kid from knocking him over and colliding with his armor and throwing up his other hand to keep his personal assassin from shooting the poor thing. When he was fairly confident the latter wouldn’t happen, he carefully unraveled the child from his person so he could hunker down in front of them to make them eye level.
“That’s better, isn’t it, little one?” he tried to give a reassuring smile, but it just felt weird on his face.
This close, he was able to get a better glimpse of the kid. His helmet gave him a pretty decent view, but it had all been in night or thermal vision. But now, he could at least tell the kid had light hair, cut close to the scalp, and dark eyes. He couldn’t even attempt to guess their age, not being overly familiar with younglings. Though, there was something about their features that was niggling at the back of his mind, like he knew them somehow.
The little one stared long and hard into his eyes, as if looking for something. After a few moments, they must have found what they were looking for because they gave a shaky nod to his question.
“Alright then,” the Daimyo nodded. “Now, why don’t we get your… friend and we’ll get you somewhere safe. The streets of Mos Espa are no place for younglings.”
The kid nodded once more before rushing back to the corner they had been inhabiting before. They rummaged with what he assumed was the cloak they’d been wearing. After a moment, a whine emitted from the material and a head of tussled dark hair appeared.
“Rex?” the newcomer yawned. “What’s going on?”
“Come on, Echo,” Rex nudged the other up. “We’re going somewhere safe.”
The former bounty hunter watched as the new youngling curled sleepily into the now identified Rex’s side. Gods, this one was even tinier than the first. He didn’t even know they came that small. Okay, so he theoretically he knew they came that small, but younglings were not in his wheelhouse. As a rule, he didn’t deal with them unless they were the species equivalent of ten human years. Well, except for Djarin’s kid, but that didn’t really count. He hadn’t really interacted with the green… gremlin.
“Rex,” the smaller one’s, Echo’s, voice cut into his musings, “who’s that?”
Right, he hadn’t exactly introduced himself yet. He had just opened his mouth to rectify that when the other’s answer had the words dying in his throat.
“Vod.”
Boba was shocked how easily the younglings came to him after this pronouncement. The younger one practically threw themselves into his arms, the tiny limbs winding around his neck as the child expertly shuffled around until he was comfortable against his armor. Once they were settled, the older one latched onto his belt, intentionally leaving the bounty hunter’s dominant hand free, and looked up at him expectantly.
The absolute faith and trust the pair were placing in him was actually quite humbling. And he wasn’t sure he actually deserved it. Because all of this hinged on that one word: vod.
After his father’s death, he had not considered himself Mandalorian, not that they would’ve accepted him anyway. And as far as the Clones went, he had never been a part of them. Having been chosen by Jango as his son had kept him separate from the others, never allowed to interact with any of the troopers. And afterwards, well, he hadn’t exactly endeared himself to them.
He felt like a liar, letting these younglings believe it. Though, truthfully, he had never been considered a good man. And hadn’t he said sometimes fate stepped in to rescue the wretched. Maybe this was part of his second chance.
His thoughts carried him to the entrance of the alley where a speeder was waiting for them. He almost sighed in relief when he noticed that most of his force had dispersed, leaving only Fennec to drive the speeder. The younglings didn’t need to be gawked at or crowded right now.
When they reached the speeder, the blond deigned to let go of his belt and scrambled in first. He then attempted to place the younger down next to the other, only they refused to let go. In fact, the little limbs tightened almost painfully around him. He didn’t mind, really, he hadn’t intended to leave them alone in the back. So, instead, he maneuvered them both in and settled the little brunet on his lap.
Once they were situated, Fennec took off in the direction of the palace. The ride commenced in silence, as the two children both fell asleep before they even reached the city limits, and the two adults were loath to disturb them.
Upon arriving at the palace hanger, Boba managed to extricate himself and the two younglings without waking either. His personal assassin took it upon herself to lead the way into the palace proper. Apparently, a room had been prepared for the pair next to Boba’s, but he decided to forgo that for the time being and instead carried them into his own chambers and settled them on his bed.
In the better lighting of the room, he was finally able to get a good look at his little guests. His breath nearly caught in his throat at the sight before him. The two boys, and they were clearly male, were now curled up together, sleeping peacefully. It had been a long time since he had seen anyone else with Fett DNA, much less ones so young, but there was no denying those features. The cut of the jaw, the arch of the brow, even the shape of the nose. The Fett genes were obviously very strong. The only thing that was throwing him off was the shock of blond hair on the older boy.
The two obviously weren’t actually clones. They were too young. The Fett clone project had been terminated over twenty years ago. They were more than likely second or third generation out.
His thoughts were interrupted by the clearing of a throat behind him. He turned to find Fennec still there, leaning casually against the doorframe, looking pointedly between him and the younglings. When she was sure she had his attention, she gave a quick jerk of her head, indicating they should move to the other room. With one last glance at the pair on the bed, he reluctantly made his way out of the room after the assassin.
“So, boss,” she said, settling onto the couch in his sitting room, “what’d you plan to do?”
“I don’t know,” he rubbed his eyes, trying to stave off the headache he could feel building.
“I took you for many things, Boba Fett,” she leveled him with an unimpressed stare, “but a liar wasn’t one of them. You know exactly what you want to do with those boys.”
“I don’t know if I should,” he let out a heavy sigh, taking his own seat across from her. “I don’t feel I have the right to claim them.”
“Bantha shit,” she scoffed. “They look exactly like you and they’re on Tatooine, they’re obviously yours. Unless you can look me in the eye and tell me you never took any personal bounties before you fell into the sarlaac.”
“I lived and worked in the palace of Jabba the Hutt,” his eyes narrowed indignantly, “it would’ve been an insult to not partake in the various… pleasures he had on offer. And no one survived long if they dared that.”
“So, it seems a couple came to collect on you,” she shrugged and reached for a bottle of spotchka, conveniently placed on the table in front of her. “I mean, we can run a DNA test if you want, but I think we both know what the results would be.”
“Gods,” he ran his hand over his head, “I hadn’t even thought they could be mine. I just assumed they belonged to one of the others.”
“It’s a possibility, I suppose,” she agreed. “But I’ve not heard of any other clones coming out to this dust bowl of a planet. And from what I know of children, which granted isn’t much, I don’t deal with brats, but they seem to be the right age to be yours.”
“I don’t know if I’m ready to be a father,” he let out a slightly hysterical chuckle.
“You’ll do fine, boss,” she leaned back and propped her feet on the table. “Besides, you’ll have all of us to help you out.”