(   rebelsouled   //   cassian andor   )

he didn’t quite know what to expect from his mother – it had been so long since he could look at her and she look to him and see her son; not her long deceased husband. this wasn’t it, and he was pleasantly surprised. something warm and tight gripping at his heart in ways that were almost foreign and unknown to him. he had been afraid, afraid that when he got here she would be just as confused as he was used to ; that it tore him up inside that his mother hadn’t looked to him and seen him for years – and that she was going to pass without truly knowing who he was.

the moment was bittersweet. when he took her hand, he could feel just how frail she was. it was nearly like holding a skeleton, her flesh lacking the heat that he had grown used to as a child. but, behind her eyes, he could see that spark ; the one that had been absent after his father’s death. he could see the recognition, and it broke his heart just a little as the pilot’s fingers smoothed over the outside of her hand. 

“ te he visto. en la televisión. luchando contra esos monstruos, ¿estoy en lo cierto? “ she asks him. her words are slow and deliberate - a stark contrast to how she had been prior to now. as cassian hesitates and worries down on his bottom lip, he’s soon nodding to her. his mother was never fond of her husband and son’s soldier complexes. she had accepted it, because she knew the terrors of the kaiju, but she always watched them sadly – even though it was with pride. “ al igual que tu padre. “  and he huffs out a shaky breath before he was looking back up to his mother.

there’s a sad smile on his lips when he finally responds, “ no sin persuasion, “ he breaths, his eyes flickering over to mako in the corner before back to his mother.

and, cassian is once more surprised, because martina laughs. she’s placing her other hand – just as boney, just as shaky, atop cassian’s. “ luchas contra esos monstruos, mi hijo. luchas por mí. y para tu padre. “

before cassian could catch his breath after swallowing his heart down his throat, he didn’t have much of a chance to speak, because his mother was turning her gaze on mako – “i know you,” she’s breathing, her words more carefully picked in english. used to, martina’s english was better than cassian’s. but it was one of the first things to suffer when she was taken here. “you fight with my son? he takes a lot of looking after. stubborn boy – just like his father. understand?” she asks mako with a faded smile.

       WHILE IT WASN’T HER INTENT TO EAVESDROP on their conversation, a part of her was thankful that she could understand their quiet exchange. it seemed their reunion was turning into a positive one, martina much more vocal   &   clear minded than she had been in years. it is cruel fate that this, during what had to be the last few minutes of her life, that she was given a momentary relief of the pain   &   confusion she suffered for years. a fleeting thought soon enters the warrior’s mind, wondering how much longer martina could manage to stay connected to this world before she was taken into the next ?

       WHEN CASSIAN TURNS TO STEAL A GLANCE at his fellow jaeger pilot, she can’t help but chuckle lightly in response. eyes twinkle for a moment as she met his gaze, highly amused by his words. it felt like years since she last thought about how the two came to know one another, the warrior remembering how she had to use all her social prowess to persuade cassian into riding a jaeger again. she almost thought she had failed miserably when he stormed out of the kwoon after their first session, leaving her alone   &   utterly confused   ——   their strong connection unlike anything she had ever experienced. cassian was definitely one of the more difficult people she had to convince to return to his original occupation, but the effort was worth it in mako’s eyes. if she had not pursued it, she never would of had the deep connections with him that she held now. it was something that she hoped would never fade   ——   the ghost drift that held the little bit of him within her, now permanently clung to her whole being. he meant so much, yet she hadn’t uttered a word on the subject. it still was not the best time. the opportunity, no doubt, would soon present itself.

       MARTINA DIRECTS HER NEXT SET OF WORDS towards her,   &   mako can’t help but be caught completely off-guard. she was standing far away from the mother   &   son duo, doing her best to give them the privacy that they needed. but when his mother mentions that she knows of her ? she can’t help but feel her pulse quicken in excitement, eyes growing soft as her worn countenance held her gaze. tears threatened to flow down her cheeks, touched that she would even acknowledge her presence. there’s a slight hesitation that lingered within her, steps carefully taken as she approached the two, taking another chair so that she was on the opposite side of the bed. eyes brimming with tears, she would reach for martina’s hand, holding it gingerly to avoid the IV that clung to the back of her hand. “   we fight together, yes,   “ she began softly, a hand reaching to gently remove the loose strands that covered her thin face. “   he is very stubborn, but   ——   he has a good heart. you taught him well. i’m truly lucky to have him as my fellow jaeger pilot.   “ as these words left her lips, she turned to give cassian a warm smile. her cheeks were tinted a crimson color, eyes now cast down to the off-white floor.