Kyber Heart - Poe Dameron

Chapter 63

41 ABY – SIX YEARS LATER

"Okay. You wanna tell me what these do?"

A small hand reached out to point to the controls, accompanied by a little voice that listed carefully: "Sensors... landing... accel-erom-eter..."

"Yeah. And what about this one?"

"Shields?"

"Yeah!" Poe beamed, squeezing the little girl close. "You'll be flying on your own in no time."

She giggled, wriggling in his lap to turn and look up at him with big brown eyes. Her mother's eyes. "Can we go flying later? Pleease?"

"We'll see," he chuckled.

"Can I come too?" a second little voice piped up, very similar to the first.

"Of course you can." Poe frowned at where the voice had come from, turning to find his second daughter sitting on the wing of the ship. "Shara, what have I told you about going up there when I'm not looking?"

"Sorry, Daddy..." she said, lowering her eyes to her lap. The old part she had been floating dropped into her hands.

"I don't want you to fall and get hurt."

"I know..."

He sighed softly. He could not stay mad at either of them – a quality he often joked they had inherited from their mother. From the moment they were born, he had been wrapped around their little fists.

Another warm day on Yavin IV was drawing to a close. A gentle breeze blew through the jungle, and the last afternoon shadows were creeping in. A very tranquil event.

"Alright, come on you two. Let's go in."

"Aww," both girls whined, disappointed by the day's end, as small children often were. Nevertheless, they did not argue further, and began their descent back to the ground after their father.

Alizeh, the younger of the two, made it down first, still giggling happily. "Can I be a pilot like you and Mommy when I grow up?"

"I don't see why not – woah!"

Shara had slipped on the ladder, barely managing to catch herself before Poe scooped her up in his arms. A mess of dark curls cascading down to hide her as she laid her head against his shoulder. Little arms securely wrapped themselves around his neck.

"You okay there, baby?" he asked, brushing the curtains of her hair aside to reveal her face.

She looked a little woeful, but nodded. "I want to be a Jedi, like Aunty Rey."

"Then we can go on adventures together!" Alizeh squeaked with delight. "Like Mommy and Aunty Rey!"

Her twin's enthusiasm brought a smile back to Shara's face.

The pair were thick as thieves, and had been since the moment they could talk. Always together, pretending to go on adventures in the edges of the jungle. Both fascinated by the stories their parents would tell them of their missions across the stars – at least the ones they were old enough to hear.

Poe kissed Shara's forehead, and ruffled Alizeh's hair. "You two are gonna take the galaxy by storm."

The twins were the happiest accident to befall the couple, though of course they would never know it.

Nova had freaked when she first found out, leading to a day spent mostly on the floor of the refresher.

Poe had not left her side that entire time, holding her while she did her best to process all her thoughts and feelings. Unsurprisingly, he had been overjoyed at the news, but had kept calm as he talked everything over with his wife.