#corrieweek2024

  "Hey, what are you doing here all alone?" Fox tried his best to not look like a big, scary clone commander. He could tell his efforts weren't successful. In his defense, appear non-threatening in a full set of armor and a blaster strapped to your thigh was a pretty difficult task. The child didn't look scared of him, though. Quite the opposite.

  They didn't answer.

  "What's your name?" Fox tried instead. He wasn't good at guessing people's age but this child was at least five standard years old. Five years old nat-borns were old enough to know their name, right?

  The child muttered something Fox didn't quite catch.

  "Can you say it louder?"

  "I don't have a name."

  "You don't?" Now that was a situation Fox wasn't prepared for. As far as he knew, nat-borns were supposed to have names. According to everything he's ever read about nat-borns, parents usually named their child whie they were still a baby. They weren't like clones, who had to wait for when their batchmates picked them a name, usually based on something they did or something they liked.

  The little Zabrak nodded. After taking a closer look, Fox guessed they were most likely male but he wasn't certain.

  "Where are your parents?"

  "I don't know."

  "Alright. I will take you to my office now and we will find them."

  "No! I'm not supposed to find them."

  "What do you mean?" Nat-born children were supposed to love their parents, or at least Fox has always thought that. Because why wouldn't they? Nat-born parents weren't like the Kaminoans, emotionless and only caring about perfection. They weren't like the trainers, only trying to get the best results out of their trainees no matter what it cost. They weren't a genetic template who only wanted one son and money and didn't care about anyone else. No, parents were an entirely different thing. They loved their children, they protected their children and they provided for them. So why exactly wouldn't this nameless kid be supposed to find their parents?

  The child shrugged. "They left me here and told me not to follow them."

  Alright, that was weird. It almost sounded as if these parents wanted to get rid of their kid so they just left him alone on a random place on Coruscant? "Do you like your parents?"

  "No."

  "Why not?"

  "They are mean."

  So apparently parents could be mean. Fox supposed he was going to have to work with that. "And why did you come to me?"

  "Because you feel kind."

  "What?"

  "You feel kind," the kid repeated themselves. Fox had no idea what that was supposed to mean.

  "Okay. Now we will go to my office and get you something to eat, what do you say?" Fox hoped he was doing this right. He had no idea how to talk to children.

  "Okay."

  Bringing a child into the Coruscant Guard's headquarters was a big deal, apparently. Fox didn't do anything more than sit the kid in his office and give him a glass of water and some of the priced treats Fox sometimes got from the nicer senators that he liked to give shinies and his comrades in particularly bad situations. The only other food available were ration bars and that was no food for a child.

  Not that the kid was in need. Ever since Fox brought him in, troopers have been coming into his office, bringing the child treats that Fox didn't really know where they got from, makeshift toys or just to take a look.

  "Aww, he's so tiny!" Thire cooed upon seeing the kid.

  "Told you he's a cute little thing."

  "Shut up, Thorn. It's not my fault I had senate duty and couldn't come to look at him sooner."

  Fox made a show of covering the kids ears. 'Shut up' wasn't by far the worst thing that the troopers said and Fox usually didn't mind but there was a child in the room!

  "I never would have guessed that marshal commander I have a stick up my ass Fox would become such a buir." Thorn grinned at him. He seriously had to stop swearing around the child or else. And Fox shouls also probably get rightfully offended to save his reputation of having, as Thorn put it, a stick up his ass.

  "So that's how you address your commanding officers?"

  "Apparently."

  "You know, senator Clovis requested a bodyguard to accompany him to a meeting with banking clan..."

  "No. Not Clovis. Please. I beg you." Thorn seemed terrified. Any trooper would. Senator Clovis was always rather awful to clones and he was so suspicious the Corries had a betting pool on when he openly defected to the Seppies. 

  "Maybe if you will kindly stop swearing in front of a child, I might consider looking further, even if you certainly have all the required skills."

  "Yeah, sure. Anything. Just not Clovis."

  Fox decided to take that as a promise. The kid didn't seem to get what was going on but he wasn't complaining. A darling really.

  It was a few hours later that the boy started to get bored. Fox tried entertaining him with a holo movie but that didn't work, the child felt the need to share what was going on the screen every minute or so. So Fox downloaded him a video game. That seemed to work. Until now.

  "Do you really have to work?"

  "Yes."

  "Why do you have to work so much?"

  "Because I have things that need to be done and I have a certain amount of time for each of them. Like this form that I'm filling right now, this one needs to be done today," Fox did his best to explain. In his humble opinion, he was getting pretty good at answering the kid's curious questions.

  "Oh... Okay. And will you play with me when you're done?"

  "I will have some more work then but we can play when I'm done, okay?"

  "Okay."

  The kid was clearly trying to be quiet. He wasn't very good at it. He was either kicking into Fox's desk, opening random drawers and then always sighing in disappointment when there was nothing but stacks of paper work, or quietly humming to himself. It was distracting but Fox let it slide. He remembered how difficult it was for him and his batchmates to stay silent when they were cadets. The only thing keeping them quiet was their fear of the Kaminoans and the trainers and he didn't want this sweet little thing to ever experience something like that.

  "Fox?"

  "Yes, kiddo?"

  "Will you get angry if I make things float?"

  "What?"

  "If I make things float," the boy repeated himself.

  Fox wondered for a bit if floating had any other meaning than, well, floating. He didn't think of anything so he just assumed it was some kind of a game. "Of course I won't get angry."

  The child beamed at him. Then the boy reached out with his hand and made the data pad Fox borrowed him float.

Hound's voice crackled over the comm, followed by a vid clip of Skye arm-in-arm with a beautifully-dressed woman. Far too beautiful to be safe in that neighborhood.

Skye turned his head to smile at his girlfriend just as the lights of a passing speeder framed them.

Fox stared. He played back the clip. He played it again. He paused it just as the light fully revealed Skye's face. He grinned.

"Stay on them, Hound," he ordered. "Do NOT lose them! I'm on my way to you right now!"

He was already running out the door. Guardsmen flattened themselves against the wall as he passed, and he knew they'd be worried to see their Commander running, but explanations could wait. This was too big, too important for decorum.

Hound kept him updated as be broke a few speed rules of his own in order to catch up.

"Uh... sir?"

Dread curled in Fox's stomach at the Trooper's sudden reluctant tone.

"You didn't lose them, did you?"

"Oh, no sir," Hound reassured him. "It's just, uh... they've gone into the Nookie Nook."

Fox's grin grew even wider as he swung around a final turn, using signals and staying aware of everything and everyone around him.

The "Nookie Nook" was the unofficial name for one of the small, public gardens that were scattered through this sector of Coruscant. It was in slightly better shape than most and provided a little shelter for those seeking to get high... or those seeking a different kind of thrill.

The most important part of it was that it was a public garden. Coruscant had laws against public indecency. Very minor ones, for the most part, and as long as everything was consensual, the Guard was willing to turn a blind eye to a little bit of public sex, but not this time.

There was nowhere to park, of course, so Fox simply found an out-of-the-way spot, parked, and put his Guard placard in the window.

Hound was standing with his back to the entrance of the Nook, fidgeting. Grizzer sat beside him, but stood to wag her tail as Fox approached.

"They still in there?"

Grunts and moans answered him before Hound could.

"...Yessir."

"Don't worry, Hound, I've got this."

The tiniest of giggles escaped him. Hound froze.

"Uh? Are you- I mean, yessir!"

He stepped out of the way. Fox gave him a reassuring pat and moved in. He made sure his helmet was recording- for evidence- and then hit the lights on his helmet.

"Coruscant Guard! Come out with your hands up!"

Screaming. Swearing. The desperate rustle of clothing and displaced foliage.

"Go away!" an all-too-familiar voice snarled. "This is none of your business!"

"Public indecency is very much my business, sir." Fox struggled to keep his tone calm and bored. "Now, step out and prepare to be arrested!"

There was more arguing, of course, but eventually the couple stepped into full, inescapable view.

Anakin Skywalker looked furious and ready to strangle him. His girlfriend, Senator Amidala, at least had the decency to look mortified, trying to shield her face with one hand while the other kept her dress held in place.

"You can't do this to us!" Skywalker growled. "Do you know who I am?"

"Nika Skye," Fox answered. "Street racer responsible for multiple accidents, injuries, and property damage."

Nika Skye. Of all the stupid, ham-fisted aliases he could have picked... but then Fox hadn't really thought about it himself until he got a good look at him. The promo images and candids always showed him in his racing helmet. Ha. Apparently even an idiot could learn a thing or two from his betters. Wait til Rex found out.

Skywalker blinked, appearing caught off guard.

"Well, yeah! That!" he said. "Except I never hurt anyone! I'm just an ordinary citizen, enjoying a night out with my wife."

"We're so sorry for the trouble, Commander," Amidala said, voice dripping professional sincerity. "It won't happen again, I promise. If you'll just let us go-"

"I'm afraid I can't do that, ma'am," Fox said. He hoped the Jedi couldn't sense his glee. "Public indecency is a crime on Coruscant. And there's also the matter of Mr. Skye's multiple traffic violations, involvement in an illegal racing ring with ties to the Black Sun Syndicate-"

Amidala gasped. Skywalker just looked annoyed.

"-as well as damaged property, speeders, and personal injuries related to those traffic violations. Once we're back at the station, you'll be allowed to call an attorney."

"You won't take us in."

There was a pressure to Skywalker's words, an urge to obey, but Fox ignored it.

"We can also provide an attorney for you, if you don't have one of your own," he concluded. He was willing to bet that Amidala, at least, had a whole fleet of lawyers at her beck and call, and he knew the Jedi had some of their own as well.

"Did you hear me?" Skywalker's glare intensified. "I said you won't-"

"Come with us, sir. Quietly," Fox told him. "Resisting arrest will only make things worse." He reached for the binders on his belt.

"Ani." Amidala placed a hand on her boyfriend's arm, but he shook it off, still glaring.

"You'll regret this, Commander," he said. "I'll have your job for this."

Fox rolled his eyes. "Good luck with that, sir. I've been trying to get out of it since the war started."

He did, in fact, get to put binders on Skywalker, citing him as a flight risk. It was one of the greatest moments of his life.

Hound and Grizzer provided backup as they made their way back to the speeder.

"Are you sure about this, Fox?" Hound asked, as they headed back to headquarters. He'd twigged to Skye's true identity as well. "We could get in a lot of trouble for this."

"The Jedi aren't above the law," Fox told him. "And that goes double for Skywalker. Arrogant little shit has been a vibroblade in my side for too long. Flaunting the laws. Acting like he's better than us. Taking advantage of his 'friendship' with the Chancellor to make everything better for himself with no regard for anyone else-"

"Yeah, okay, I know," Hound interrupted. He shifted on the passenger seat, Grizzer in his lap. "But this is gonna bring in the Jedi-"

"I'm counting on that."

"And probably the Chancellor. Like you said, they're friends."

Fox paused. That was a big concern, and the only dark spot in this otherwise wonderful day.

"I'll handle it," he said. He was not giving up this chance for a little payback.

-

Skywalker's story changed as soon as they were in the Processing Room.

"Look, Commander, you really don't want to do this," he said. "I know the Guard doesn't see a lot of action here on Coruscant-"

The thunderous whoosh of indrawn breaths from the listening Guards drowned out his next words.

"...Anakin Skywalker."

Fox refused to rise to the insult Skywalker had carelessly flung at the Guard. Chances were he actually believed what he said.

"And yet your ID says you're Nika Skye."

That earned him another scowl. "Are we really going to play this game, Fox? I know you can't be that stupid."

Fox muted the general chatter feed. Guard opinion of Skywalker was mixed, but mostly positive bordering on indifferent. That was being revised downward fast.

"Lieutenant Rattle, add possession of false ID and lying to an officer of the law to the list of charges," Fox said.

"Mmm," Rattle murmured. Her hands shook more than usual as she added the charges.

"I OUTRANK YOU!" Skywalker roared, making everyone flinch.

Amidala, who'd been on a comm call, turned to look at him.

"It's okay, Ani, I'm handling it," she said.

"You may outrank me, General, but you don't outrank the law." Fox had taken an involuntary half-step back at Skywalker's outburst.

Skywalker closed his eyes and took a deep breath in an apparent effort to calm himself. When he looked at Fox again, his eyes were still bright with rage, but a smile was plastered across his face.

"At least let Pad- Senator Amidala go," he said. "She's an innocent in all of this."

Fox arched a brow, not that Skywalker could see it. Amidala was many things, but innocent wasn't one of them. She was in deep with Skywalker and his schemes, and was probably one of the reasons they hadn't caught him until now.

Still. She was a Senator, and that would be a whole political mess of its own. He tilted his helmet.

"She'll stay here until her security team arrives and then reassess," he said.

Skywalker huffed, rolling his eyes. "Finally! Some sense! I guess I'm so used to Rex-"

"Who's your emergency contact?" Fox interrupted.

"My what?" Skywalker's frown seemed more confused than angry this time.

"Who should we call at the Temple to alert them to your circumstances?"

It was like flipping a switch. Gone was Skywalker's arrogance and bluster. It was replaced with fear and anxiety.

"Oh, uh, that- that won't be necessary, right?"

He was looking anywhere but at Fox. Interesting.

"It's- it's High General Kenobi, sir," Rattle supplied.

Skywalker flinched. "Here?! He can't be! He's supposed to be in a meeting with the High Council!"

Fox's grin returned.

"Thanks, Rattle. I'll be sure to give him a call and let him know his former Padawan is safe."

And wouldn't that be a fun call. In a meeting with the other High Generals? And Fox could interrupt? The day kept getting better and better.

"Wait! No!"

"Burke, Boot, please escort General Skywalker to holding," he said. "We wouldn't want anything to happen to him before General Kenobi gets here."

"Sir!" They said in tandem, moving to herd the suddenly worried Skywalker to the cells.

"Commander Fox," Amidala said, holding the comm to her chest as she spoke. "I know we've caused unbearable upset for you and your Guard, but-"

"Senator Amidala, ma'am," he said. "You're free to leave once your security detail arrives. What you do to help your 'husband' after that is your business."

The already pale Amidala went chalk-white at his words. About the security detail? Or- shit. He'd thought Skywalker was bluffing about the wife thing. The Storms had truly blessed him on this day.

"Please," Amidala whispered, her eyes wide. "You can't tell-"

"If you'll excuse me, ma'am, I have a lot of work to do. Have a good night."

Group Chat: “Shebs Squad Lives (despite trying hard not to)”: Woof, Coat, Fly, Socks, Bonds, and Wrecks are active.

Socks: @Coat help me

Bonds: first time we’ve heard from Fox since deployment and it’s a cry for help

                This is normal

Wrecks: are you sure about that?

Bonds: that Fox needs help? Or that that’s the only way he’d voluntarily comm us after refusing to respond for months?

Woof: someone is bitter

Socks: @Coat! It’s Important!

                and urgent!

Fly: wow

                Exclamation marks

                That’s serious business

Coat: I’m kriffing BUSY @Socks!

Socks: trying to get in your Jedi’s Obi in not busy

                now how the kriff did you handle Rex as a cadet?

Wrecks: why are we talking about me?

Socks: it’s not ABOUT YOU!

                It’s about how KOTE HANDLED YOU

Bonds: oh

                my

                Force

                @Socks

                Did you obtain a CHILD??

Socks: kriff off Ponds

Woof: omf he totally did

                kriff

                how did Fox become a buir first?

                I had money on it being Ponds :/

Fly: you owe me so many drinks, vod

Woof: hate that for me

Coat: First of all

                I AM NOT

                Second of all

                I just winged it

                he turned out fine

Wrecks: to this day I am traumatized

Coat: you are the only Captain in the GAR with Commander responsibilities

                you turned out fine

                now

                I AM BUSY!

*Coat is now marked as AWAY.*

Socks: that did not help me

Bonds: I practically raised you lot

                I have some good advice

Woof: don’t lie to yourself, vod

                17 raised us

Bonds: lies and slander

Fly: no Wolffe is right

                17 raised us

                you just gave him the least amount of gray hair

Socks: whatever

                what do I do with this tiny fragile child?

Bonds: how tiny is tiny?

Socks: *has sent 3 holopics*

Fly: Fox

                vod

                why the kriff do you have a natborn tubie?

Socks: I DON’T KNOW!

                Someone left them at the front door to Corrie command!

Woof: seems like theyre better off with you than with someone who would leve them outside on CORUSCANT

Socks: I have never in my life wanted to be a buir

                this could have happened to literally ANY OTHER vod and they’d be ecstatic

                instead it goes to the one who ABSOLUTELY DIDN’T WANT THE RESPONSIBILITY OF ANOTHER LIFE

Wrecks: you are literally responsible for every Guard there is

Socks: those are fully grown soldiers who can take care of their damn selves

                this is a being that can literally do NOTHING on their own

                I don’t have time for this osik

                I’m busy doing actually important things and not trying to get into my Jedi’s pants

                *cough* @Coat

Bonds: the shade is real

                also

                I have no clue what to do with a tubie outside of their growth vat

                sorry vod

Fly: doesn’t Coruscant have foster? Adoption agencies? Something like that?

                you could literally just go hand them over

Socks: …

                you want me to leave my tubie WHERE?

Wrecks: ah

                there’s the shebs squad’s attachment problem

                genuinely thought that skipped Fox

Socks: I can’t just leave my tubie any which where BLY

                those services are dangerous and very corrupt

                what if they ended up in a worse place?!

Bonds: worse than the stoop of Corrie Guard Barracks?

                didn’t think that existed tbh

Socks: stku Ponds

                you don’t get to kark over my troopers just because yours can’t kriffing behave on leave

Bonds: BEHAVE???

                YOUR CORRIES ARREST THE GAR FOR THE STUPIDEST REASONS!

Woof: oop

                got Ponds big mad

Wrecks: been a while since that happened

Socks: the reasons are in the Welcome to Shore Leave datapad EVERY TROOPER HAS ACCESS TO

                not my Guards’ fault you GAR type can’t kriffing read

Bonds: GAR TYPE???

                VODE KRIFFING AN YOU SHEBS’PALON!

Socks: since kriffing when???

                as far as GAR troops are concerned, the Guard stopped being Vode as soon as they were deployed to Coruscant

                you can take your sanctimonious kark and shove it in your shebs

                I’ll get someone who actually kriffing likes me to help

*Socks has left Group Chat: “Shebs Squad Lives (despite trying hard not to)”*

Woof: well kriff

                that didn’t go well

Fly: good job Pondsie

                he finally got on and you made him leave

Wrecks: truly one for the books

Bonds: kriff you guys

                like you wouldn’t have done the same

Woof: actually I was more excited to see Fox reaching out that being big mad about my troops ending up in the slammer

                they know exactly what they did to get arrested

                I made them all read the Shore Leave datapad

                they just do it anyway

Wrecks: my trouble makers would make it a to do list so I confiscated all the copies

                but I did read it

                it’s very thorough

Fly: Aayla read it then gave me a tl;dr

Bonds: kriff

--

Fox holed himself up in his office as soon as he found the tubie. Away from the noise and nosiness of the rest of the Guard. (They can’t help it, they all live on top of each other, you can’t hide osik from anyone in Corrie HQ. Not that Fox was hiding the tubie.)

“Should we give them a name?” Thorn was kneeling on the floor and looking at the tubie in Fox’s laps with eyes bright enough to put a sun to shame. It’s been awhile since Fox has seen that look.

“I think we should just call them tubie until they can pick their own. That’s what all vode do. They shouldn’t be any different.” Thire added his two credits, smiling as the tubie gargled in his direction, a bubble of snot popping from their nose.

Adorable.

“Yeah, but they don’t have a number to call them by in the meantime. We can’t just call them tubie, that’s a general word.” Stone murmured, carefully leaning over Fox’s shoulder to get a closer look at the so very small tubie.

“Maybe we should give them a Use Name? There’s a lot of cultures that have them and then pick their own when they reach majority age, so thirteen in natborn years probably.” Hound kept Grizzer close by even as the massiff wagged their entire body in excitement.

“What could be use as a Use Name though? That feels a little too like Naming them and I don’t like that.” Thorn frowned, lightly trailing his fingers down the tubies little pudgy arm, smiling helplessly when they grabbed his hand and giggled.

“Obviously it should be a variation of Fox, he did find them.” Thire looked up to Fox with a smirk and if he wasn’t holding a tubie Fox would have actually punched them.

“There are no variations of Fox, unless you want to call them Faux with the properly pronunciation, but I don’t like that.”

“What about Sox? Senth, osk, xesh? That’s a spelling play on socks. I think it fits.” Stone carefully avoided Fox’s eyes, being the only one in the room that knew his batch chat user name. Not that it mattered anymore.

“Did Cody have any advice?”

“No. He was busy.”

“Oh…well you were typing a while…were the others helpful?” Oh Thire. Ever the optimist.

“No. They were mostly concerned that I ended up a buir first, or blaming me for their troopers getting arrested for breaking the rules on Coruscant.”

The entire room echoed the patented Corrie Stank Face™ because Fox had his entire command staff whipped into the proper shape of vod that he got along with.

Competent shebs’palon’e that they are.

“Well, at least we still have Vos.” Thorn sighed, still held captive by the little tubie.

“I don’t know if Vos should count as reliable information about the care of a natborn tubie, but he’s all we have at this point.” Fox looked down into warm brown eyes and smiled helplessly at how adorable his tubie was.

“Ooooh! His Use Name should be Plots! Because that’s what Fox is the best at!”

The room filled with laughter for the first time since Fox arrived to this horrid posting, he almost forgot what it sounded like. All thanks to his little Plots.