Chapter Text
"So, uh... don't get mad, but..."
"What did you do this time, Waxer?" Boil didn’t bother looking up from his datapad.
"Remember when you said we couldn't keep that tooka kitten on Ordus Prime?" Waxer asked, and Boil could hear him shuffling from foot to foot. It was a nervous habit he'd had since their cadet days.
Boil sighed. "The tooka kitten you swore up, down, and sideways got left behind? That one?"
"Er, yeah. About that..."
Boil finally looked up from his 'pad, fixing his brother with an unimpressed look. "Let me guess. It got loose somewhere in the ship and now you can't find it."
"That about sums it up, yes," Waxer said. He had the grace to look embarrassed, but embarrassment wouldn't make the tooka appear. "So will you help us look for him? I'm sure he couldn't have gotten very far, we think he got out when Wooley left before his shift."
"And how long ago was that?" Boil was already getting up and pulling his boots back on. His brothers might be idiots, but he wouldn't leave them out to hang. The sooner the tooka got found, the sooner Boil could go back to living in a world where the kitten had definitely been left behind as ordered.
"An hour ago? Maybe more?"
Boil sighed. Again. An hour was more than enough time to get into trouble, and now his afternoon of catching up on Nubian holodramas was shot.
"There!" Trapper said, pointing down the corridor where a flash of orange fluff disappeared around the corner. Longshot and Buffer darted forward, barely managing not to trip over the mouse droid on its cleaning rounds.
"Keep it down!" Gearshaft hissed, following them. He rounded the corner to find his brothers empty-handed. "Do you want everyone on board to know what we're up to?"
"Sorry," Buffer said, rubbing at the back of his neck.
Trapper came to join them, eyes scanning the hall. "Where'd it go?"
"Hell if I know," Longshot groused. "Why is it we always get stuck doing this sort of thing?"
"Because we'll all get in trouble if one of the nat-born officers finds the thing before we do," Gearshaft explained for the sixth time, hoping maybe this time Longshot would actually listen and stop complaining. "Just keep your eyes open. There's only so many places it could have gone."
If Obi-Wan had to guess, there were at least half a dozen clones trying to be quiet outside his room. He shared an amused look with his commander, who was valiantly trying to hide a scowl at how badly they were failing.
"Di'kute," Cody muttered under his breath.
"It sounds as if they're enjoying themselves." Obi-Wan didn’t bother to try and hide his smile. The 212th hadn't had more than a handful of days of rest over the last six months, and none of them had been consecutive. Most of a week in hyperspace was practically a vacation in comparison. He was glad their men were taking the chance to unwind.
"They could do with a little more subtlety," Cody said. "You'd think they were a batch of shinies out there."
"There's an easy way to point that out, my dear," Obi-Wan said, leaning back in his chair to stretch his arms over his head. His back cracked, drawing the attention of their visitor lounging on Obi-Wan's sleep cot.
“And ruin their fun?” Cody's scowl smoothed into an amused smirk. “Never."
Waxer paced the short distance along the bunks. "He has to be somewhere, right? It’s not like he could have just hopped on a transport and flown away, so he’s somewhere on the ship.”
"You had someone check the engine room?"
"Barlex and Jude. Threepwood and Battle checked the bridge. Mogs, Sailor, and Thell searched the forward hangar while Clever, Quantum, and Mollusk took the aft. Gearshaft, Longshot, Trapper, and Buffer took all of the corridors. Unless he’s learned to open doors, we should have found him by now." Waxer paused, rubbing his hand over his freshly shaved head. “He’s out there all alone, Boil. Lost. Scared. What are we supposed to do?”
"Or it followed a mouse droid somewhere it shouldn't have," Boil said. "Face it, vod, it's time to tell the commander."
Waxer turned and gave him a pleading look he probably picked up from Numa. It could almost rival Wooley’s. Boil, fortunately, was long since immune to it. "Do I have to?"
"You brought the damn thing on board, Waxer, now it's time to own up. What if it gets into the hyperdrive? And it will need food eventually." He knew appealing to the thing's safety would get Waxer to take some responsibility.
Waxer sighed. "You'll come with me?" he asked hopefully.
Boil rolled his eyes, heading for the door. "You owe me for this. Big time."
"Come in," Kenobi called out when the door chimed. Cody turned around to face the door so he could see as Waxer and Boil entered, looking as nervous as a pair of cadets before their first live fire exercise. "Ah, welcome, gentlemen. What can I do for you?"
"We were, uh, actually looking for the commander, sir," Boil said while Waxer fidgeted at his side.
"Of course. Would either of you care for some tea? Caf?" the Jedi asked. He stood, not waiting for an answer as he shuffled the rust colored tooka from his lap to his shoulder before turning to the small kitchenette. "Cody?"
"I'm fine, sir," Cody said, keeping his expression neutral as Boil and Waxer went wide-eyed. Waxer managed half a step forward before Boil's elbow met his side. Cody met both of their eyes in turn. "What did you need?"
"Uh," Boil said, eyes darting past Cody to where Kenobi was coming up next to him, mug extended in one hand. "What's that?"
"Caf," Kenobi said, all wide eyes and innocence. The tooka was purring loudly enough Cody could hear it even on the general’s other side. "Unless you would prefer tea?"
"No, I mean, what--"
Cody raised an eyebrow at Boil, challenging him to finish his statement. Wisely, Boil stopped himself.
"Tooka," Waxer croaked out, flapping one hand vaguely in the general's direction.
"Ah, yes!" Kenobi said, with the same sheer delight he used when coming across rare Force artifacts and unexpected platoons of clankers. "This is Commander Nibbles, my new Padawan."
Cody was glad he had mentally prepared himself for whatever bantha shit was about to come out of Kenobi's mouth because it meant he was able to keep a straight face while Waxer and Boil both just gaped like Felucian fly traps.
"Commander--" Waxer started, before his voice cracked, eyes darting back and forth between Cody and the tooka. "Right. Uh."
"You two needed something?" Cody prompted.
"No," Boil said, grabbing Waxer by the arm. "We found what we needed, sir. General, if you'll excuse us."
"Of course," Kenobi said. He was still smiling pleasantly as he reached up a free hand to scratch behind the tooka's ears.
Cody waited until they were almost out the door before he stopped them. "Make sure the rest of the men know that Commander Nibbles will be shown all the proper respect and decorum of a Jedi," Cody said, voice as dry as Tatooine. He could hear the general making smooching noises at the kitten behind him.
The two troopers managed to nod before beating a hasty retreat. Kenobi was still grinning when Cody turned back around. "Really, sir? Your new Padawan?"