Chapter Text
"FINN. You were stabbed. IN THE BELLY. Less than a week ago! SIT. DOWN," Rey scolded, because Finn was standing shakily, holding onto the bed. He had expected that he would be fine by now, completely recovered—it wasn't like he'd been nearly killed by a lightsaber or impaled himself in an AT-AA crash. But it turned out it wasn't quite that easy.
"I'm tired of being in here," he whined, but he sat back down on the bed.
"Here, hold your kid. Sammy, don't let him up!" Rey said. She handed Sam over and Finn smiled at the boy while he drooled all over himself.
"Hm, did the doctor order resting a child on the wound site?" Poe said as he entered, shifting Sam to Finn's uninjured side. Rey pulled a rude face at him, and he pulled one right back before kissing her, and then kissing Finn. "Anyway, you have to rest up and be at peak capacity in...seventy-nine days, because I have wedding night fantasies that need to be fulfilled," he told Finn, squeezing his shoulder. "Speaking of: we have some last-minute plans to work out!"
"Like how we're going to stop the First Order in two months?" Rey said, intentionally overly-serious, and she and Poe exchanged a glance, and then both looked at Finn and laughed.
"Yeah, yeah, what happened to Kylo Ren's head on a plate as a wedding gift, hmm?" Poe accused. “Better get going on that, I hear they need like, a few weeks to set it into a wall mount.”
Rey cackled.
Finn looked from Rey to Poe. "Are you done?" he asked, and then laughed. "You’re disgusting. I don’t know why I love you so much. Anyway, we have close to three months, and that’s a long time, is all I'm saying. Who knows what'll happen between now and then?" He shifted to give both of them room to sit on the bed with him. "What actual last-minute plans are there?" he asked.
"You see, look at this guy, suddenly he's a Major and goes to Intelligence briefings I'm not even allowed into and he gets all mysterious on us," Poe said, unable to stop teasing his beloved, just so he could kiss the pout off his face.
"You weren't not allowed in the last one, Poe, you just decided to spend it cooking! For our birthday!" Finn protested in a loud voice.
Sam, deciding this meant it was screaming time, let forth a high-pitched shriek that had them all wincing.
"Ow. Okay, yeah, fine. Actual plans." Poe sat down, gave Sam his hand to cling to and play with—and, eventually, try to stick in his mouth—and pulled up his datapad. "I have a list."
"I'm actually shocked," Rey said.
"I'm a little turned on," Finn said, grinning.
"Right? Poe being organized ?"
"Shut up," Poe said, blushing, and flicked through his list. "Okay. How are we figuring Sam into this? He's a bit small to be a flower-boy, so someone could carry him. I had a hilarious idea where we pin the rings to him and he figures as the ringbearer pillow, but there's a few problems with that, not least of which—"
[That is my job!!] BB-8 hooted, all but surging out of their charging port. [Friend-Sam will only attempt to ingest them! BB-8 is clearly the most trustworthy choice!!!]
"Of course you are, buddy! How else would you show off your paint?" Finn said to the little droid, who whistled and rolled in a small circle. "You're my favorite droid, Bee," he added, because he loved Poe's little droid. He looked down at Sam and then back at Rey and Poe. "So what do we do with Sam?"
"He could be my bouquet," Rey suggested, and then beamed at her own idea. "Aww! A little flower crown for Sammy!"
"No! He should be Finn's bouquet!" Poe exclaimed. "Then I get to have a bouquet, too, and I get to make Snap hold it through the ceremony! Yes, this wedding is getting better all the time!" Poe said, pumping his fist. He loved Temmin Wexley with all his heart, but he loved the stock Snap gave to gender roles much less. "Then you can hand him off to Jess for the ceremony," Poe suggested, “and she’d love that. Okay, I need pink flowers. With, like, glitter..." he mused.
Finn smiled and bounced Sammy on his belly until Rey and Poe glared at him. "What do you think? Want to be my bouquet and let aunt Jess hold you during the wedding?" Sam stuffed his fist thoughtfully in his mouth, which Finn took as a yes.
Poe laughed. "It's settled, then," he said, and went back to his list. "Okay, I'm figuring out transports—I’m so pumped, you guys, you're going to love Yavin!" he exclaimed giddily. They were in the middle of talking table centerpieces when BB-8 chirped a reminder tone to Rey.
“Oh! Sorry, I have my meeting now,” she explained, standing up and slipping into her shoes.
Poe, who was figuring out how she got his droid to give her reminders, and who wasn’t good at keeping track of his own schedule, much less those of his affianced, knit his brow: “Where are you going?”
“She has her meeting with Timons,” Finn, who was good at keeping everyone’s schedule’s straight, said, taking her hand and squeezing it. “Thank you,” he whispered, kissing her hand.
She beamed down at him. “It’s a pleasure,” she said, leaning down to kiss him, a slow, warm kiss that was interrupted when Sam screamed, either wanting them to stop or wanting a kiss of his own.
“Hey, I want one, too,” Poe pointed out after she had planted a kiss on Sam’s forehead, and waited expectantly.
Rey laughed and gave Poe a kiss, and then she was gone.
Finn looked at Poe. "So I've been thinking—I could really recover on the Falcon or in our room instead of being stuck here," he said. The only reason he was still in medical was because Dr. Kalonia, maybe justifiably so, worried that he would get up to shenanigans if she let him out of her sight. Also, he still needed some hefty antibiotics just to be cautious, since it was an abdomen wound. Finn hated them, because they upset his stomach, but he would gladly promise to keep taking them if she let him leave medical.
But first he had to convince Poe that it was a good idea.
"Hm, I don't knooowww, going against doctor's orders, that doesn't sound like me—when do we leave?" Poe asked, scooping Sam up into his arms as he leaned in for a kiss from Finn. "Come on, kid, if anyone's going to teach you how to misbehave, it better be your fathers," he said, to which Sam cooed and offered his slobbery nubbin in solidarity.
"I thought you might need this," Dr. Kalonia said, standing at the door with a hoverchair, looking way more imposing than a woman of her age and stature had a right to look. "If you wanted to, say, get out of medical and stay there." This sounded strongly like a threat.
"I...was just going to ask you that?" Finn said.
Dr. Kalonia gave him a flat look, because she knew they both knew better than that. "Uh huh. Amateur hour." Kalonia looked between the three of them. "At least one of you has an excuse." Sam murmured softly in Poe's arms, the very picture of innocence.
"Good answer, Finno. Sammo, soften her up," Poe said, handing the baby off to the doctor as he brought the hoverchair over to the bed. He grinned down at Finn. "May I have this dance?" he asked, leaning down to ease his arms under Finn's armpits to help him to his feet.
Finn really hated that he needed Poe's help, but standing required muscles that still protested being used. "Some dance that would be," he grumbled in response, but let Poe help him to the hoverchair.
"Do I need to warn you about strenuous activities or are you going to behave?" Dr. Kalonia asked. Finn offered her a smile. "I'm going to tell BB-8 to keep an eye on you, and I expect you here every day for the next three days for the last of your antibiotics," she said sternly, although the effect was somewhat ruined as she held a babbling Sam on her hip.
Poe helped ease Finn into the chair, and then balked, turning around to place a hand on his hip. " Madam , how dare you insinuate that I would not wait the prescribed amount of time before allowing him to engaging in any strenuous activities! We are fathers now, think of the children —"
Dr. Kalonia rolled her eyes. "Oh, I am thinking of the children," she said, depositing Sam on Finn's lap.
"Come on , Dr. K, it's been a week already!" Poe said, shifting to whining now.
"Right, I'm sorry, because you'll have plenty of time for that later if he tears his stitches or develops an infection or—"
"Okay, fine ," Poe grumbled, situating himself behind the hoverchair. "You'll let Rey know we went back to the Falcon ?"
"I'll let her know. Don't make me regret this." Finn managed a smile that was genuine this time, and nodded.
"Thanks, Dr. K. I'll behave," he said, and gestured the hoverchair backward to bump Poe's shins.
"Stop that, I'm driving. Nothing strenuous," Poe reminded him obnoxiously, and kissed his cheek, waved at his son, and whistled as he guided the hoverchair out of medical. "You wanna swing through mess, or head straight to the Falcon ?" he asked. "How's our diaper situation?"
"Seems okay," Finn said after a tentative sniff. He used both arms to hold Sammy so he could face out without tipping forward. "But I think I'd rather go to the Falcon , if it's all the same..." The beds in medical were not terribly comfortable, and he really wanted to curl up in the comfy, cozy little space Rey used for their bedroom.
"Great. I think I've got some ration packs we can heat up for dinner. Maybe some...pickles." Poe hated having an empty larder, but there was a war on. People waved as they passed, glad to see Finn up, but mostly glad to see Sam. Sam, for his part, was glad to be processioned around the base, and grinned at everyone around him with his nubbin in his mouth. Nien Nunb stopped them to chatter in Sullustan to Sam, which amused the baby to no end, and Poe smiled. It took them over half an hour to actually make it inside the Falcon in the end.
"You know, if I'd've thought about it, I would have waited until later before escorting the two most famous people in the Resistance through the base," Poe commented, easing the hoverchair to the bedroom. "Hey, Sammy, wanna come to Papa?" he asked, and Sam happily complied so Finn could get up.
Finn pulled himself up until he could get his legs under him, and then stood and half-stretched. The bed was calling his name, and he made a happy sound as he sat on the edge. "Sammy wins everyone over," he said, "It's because he's hopelessly cute. Just look at him!"
"You know that would be super narcissistic of you if it wasn’t entirely true," Poe said, kissing Sam's chubby cheek. "You all right?" he asked, but Finn had moved himself pretty well on his own, and since BB-8 and Dr. Kalonia weren't here, Poe and Finn as Manly Men could trust Finn to know his own limits, or something. "I was kidding about strenuous activity, but we could watch a show and make out. Maybe work on our awesome Clone Wars novel," he grinned. "What do you want for dinner?"
"Hmmmmm...how about...food?" Finn asked angelically. He had no idea what he wanted to eat, only that he was hungry. "What if we made out first and then ate?" he asked. "And can we snuggle?"
Poe laughed. "Snuggling and making out while holding our baby. My ideal evening." But when Poe slid in beside Finn and kissed him, slow and loving, Sam decided he was in danger of being squished and shrieked loudly.
Finn laughed when Sam shrieked indignantly and kissed his nearly-bald head. "Sammy, my guy, how about you cuddle up here and go to sleep and we'll watch a movie and everything will be perfect?" Finn asked him. He leaned in to kiss Poe softly, scratching gently at Sam's arm in that way that always made him sleepy.
Poe couldn't help but snort. "I can't believe he has that same weakness," he said, smiling helplessly and enthralled with his beautiful son, more so even than with his more beautiful husband. But Finn's lips soon drew his focus again, and Sam yawned and closed his eyes. Poe drew Finn into his arms, so that Sam rested tucked between them. "I love you, Finn," he sighed, cupping the side of his face, and deepening the kiss. "I love you and our gorgeous kid," he hummed, and when Sam fussed again he pulled back. "What do you say I get some us-food, some Sammy-food, and put a holo on. We trade the datapad back and forth to write." He grinned and waggled his eyebrows. "They were just reunited, after all, the pilot and the clone trooper..."
"That sounds wonderful. I'll make sure Sam doesn't run off or throw any wild parties while you’re gone," Finn said of the baby who was sleeping between them. "Should I take my turn?" he asked, and waved the holopad where they were writing their story.
"Oh, is it your turn? Who am I kidding, it's always your turn," Poe teased, and kissed Finn again before he could get mad at him for that. "And that kid," he said, pointing, "is going to be a party animal when he's older. He'll be combing boys and girls of all species out of his hair when he's old enough to date. You know, like, forty-five," he said, rubbing Sam's head fondly. "Be right back."
Poe ducked into the galley, taking a moment to send Rey a com for whenever she got done with Timons, and nuking some ration packs for them to eat. They also had some veggies that were going bad, so he cut them up to eat fresh dipped in dressing, and grabbed the bag of cookies. "Oh, I brought beer for you to watch me drink," he said when he returned. "You can't drink while you're still on your meds. We also have some yogurt if the antibiotics are messing with you, buddy."
"Ha ha," Finn said as he took the food Poe had brought and arranged it where they could both reach it. "You're very funny, and just for that you owe me a beer when I can have one." He leaned over to give Poe a quick kiss. "Why would yogurt help my stomach?"
Poe shrugged. "Puts good bacteria back in your stomach, or something." He laid set his food aside and traded Finn for an awakened Sam, so he could feed him first. "Hey, buddy, bottle time? You hungry, champ? I bet you are. Yeah," he hummed, feeding Sam his formula. Sam was a good eater generally, and he finished his milk and promptly nodded off again so Poe could lay him in his carrier and eat his own dinner. "Did you write me a reply?" he asked, laying his head on Finn's shoulder.
"Of course I did! See? It's right here," Finn said. He handed the holopad over with its (admittedly short) reply. He set about eating his own food, but only made it several bites in before his stomach grumbled unhappily. He frowned. "You're sure the yogurt won't just make me hurl?" he asked doubtfully. The yogurt didn't seem like it would be especially helpful, since the thick texture bothered him even on a good day (it reminded him too much of the protein paste he ate every day for twenty years of his life).
"I can get you some to try," Poe said, frowning, as Finn had hardly touched his food. "Or whatever sounds good." He set his own dinner aside and slid in close. "If you're not hungry, though, you don't have to force yourself. You can take your time." Then he was up again, fetching yogurt and turning on their show to watch, and somehow before the introductory credits had rolled he had produced a reply for Finn. "Here, something to distract you," he said, offering the datapad and a cup of yogurt.
Finn took a bite of the yogurt and then read and wrote Poe a bit more of their storyresponse. Since his stomach didn't seem any worse, he ate some more of the yogurt and leaned on Poe, watching him read until the show distracted him.
"You want the rest of your dinner?" Poe asked, getting up to warm it up again, since he had written another reply, and laid the datapad on Finn's chest. "Do you want some painkillers?" he asked, squeezing Finn's shoulder and gazing into his eyes. He pressed his lips together and tried not to say something a few times, before finally managing: "Terex is a bastard. I should have killed him. When I first met him."
Finn looked down at his hands quietly for a time before speaking. "He was a bad person," he agreed. "But he was what we expected." He sighed, thinking he'd like those painkillers. "I know I should have been more careful in trusting that one stormtrooper, but I just...I couldn't leave her there just because I didn't have backup. But I'm sorry I wasn't more careful," he said, and turned to bury his face against Poe's chest. They were all safe now—but for how long?
Poe pulled Finn into an embrace that as much as possible didn't stress his healing wound, and took Finn's hand to kiss his palm.
Finn was fiddling with the spinner ring Rey had made for him, but stopped at the brush of lips.
"If every stormtrooper you ever meet ends up betraying you, I know you're still going to trust the next one. And I hope you always do. Because you don't do it because you're naïve or gullible, but because you're the kindest man with the greatest faith in humanity I've ever known, and you give every person an equal chance." He kissed Finn's neck and held him. "And it's because of you that I reckon we have to have people like Hux and Terex, because for every good person like you, we need a festering pustule on the face of humanity. To…balance things out."
Finn blushed, face still hidden against Poe's chest, not sure what to do with all of Poe's compliments. "I love you," he told him, and then he sat up enough to give Poe a proper hug. "I didn't know that was…exactly what I think I needed to hear. But I will be more careful."
Poe huffed, kissing Finn's hair and scratching his fingernails over his arm. "As long as you come back," he whispered. "I'm so proud of you, Finn. And I admire the kriff out of you, buddy."
"He knew too much," Finn said softly, after a few moments. "Knew we are getting married, although he thought it had already happened. He knew about Sam." And he'd threatened every member of Poe's family, and Sevens, and everyone in the Resistance. He'd threatened to recondition Finn and send him back. "And he wanted to know where the Resistance was hiding," Finn added—it had been one question in amongst all the threats.
Poe nodded, and slowly let out a breath. "Buddy, you don't need to tell me what he..." Poe swallowed. They had been over this, of course, in a debrief setting, formal and official and these were the things he asked , this is what I told him , no, our base isn't currently compromised , yes, the Guavian Death Gang is working for the Order and are now in control of Jakku , no, we don't know if Terex made it out alive, but his ship certainly didn't .
"At some point I kinda just stopped asking how Terex knew so godsdamned much all the time. Like he's always one step ahead, so you have to be three. But—" Poe licked his lips, pulled back and grasped Finn's shoulders. "Do you think he's got someone here ?"
Finn thought about this. It made a lot of sense, actually, and he shivered suddenly. "I hadn't thought of it that way...but...yes." Which meant they weren't safe, even here. "Kriffing—we have a spy ?" he asked.
"I don't—I don’t know , Finn, you're the one who talked to Terex, you tell me," Poe said, and slid into another hug. As if on cue, Same woke up and started crying, and Poe set both of their half-eaten dinners aside so he could lift his son from his little carrier and comfort him. Luckily, Sam stopped crying once he was picked up, and Poe looked back at Finn with dark eyes. "Or, we could not think about it. Who would—I mean, who would fake something like that? The food here's not that good, believe me." He patted Sam absently, and then sighed. "Are we just giving up on dinner?" He couldn't say he was terribly hungry now, either.
"We could comm Rey and ask her to get cake on the way home..." Finn suggested, happy enough to drop the subject. Leia knew everything Terex had said, and that he had had details he shouldn't have had—but she and Luke could take care of it. Finn looked down at Sammy, who was perfectly happy now that he was in someone's arms. "Hello, little one! What do you think? Should Papa and Daddy have cake for dinner?" he asked.
Although Poe had tied off the sleeve on the nubbin-side of Sam's onesie, this did not deter Sam from trying to stuff it in his mouth, and indeed, he seemed to be enjoying drenching the knot in saliva. "Ew, Sammo. You're gross, man. Of course he'd agree we should have cake for dinner. He's a little rebel, look at him!" Indeed, his onesie clearly read "L'il Rebel" on it. It had been a birthday gift from the pilots and it finally fit Sam, who was growing fast.
"Or we could go. Maybe I could use some fresh air." And Sam loved the mess hall, which meant laughter and smiles that would put Finn's heart somewhat at ease. He could pretend he hadn't nearly been tortured to death by a madman who knew too much about his family and everything he held dear.
"Yeah?" Poe said, already leaping into action, fetching the hoverchair and the diaper bag— "Oh, here, hang on, let me just change him now," he corrected. "You doing all right?" Poe checked, eyeing Finn carefully and waiting for a nod—Finn hadn't had anything like a panic attack or a flashback in going on six months now, but all it needed was a monster like Terex to trigger something, probably—before laying Sam down to change his indeed dirty diaper. Although Poe was unfazed by any bodily fluids Sam could yet introduce him to, the spit-soaked onesie just had to go, it was truly disgusting. "Now you stay there, kid," he said, leaving a fussing baby who couldn't turn himself over yet to help Finn back into the hoverchair. "Here you are, sir. One clean baby," he said, grinning as he rested Sam's warm little weight in Finn's lap (it was the only way to get Finn to wear a blanket). Sam cooed and stuffed his fist in his mouth in response.
"You're lucky he's cute," Finn said, suffering the annoyance of a kriffing blanket like a kriffing ancient only because it would keep Sam warm. And the kid loved it—he flung his arms over Finn's restraining forearm and babbled happy baby sounds. Finn gave Poe a look that was deeply unimpressed about all of this except their son.
Poe laughed: no matter how dark the subject, no matter how long the day, coming home to Sam made it all worth it, and made it all better for all of them. "Come on, Sammy, let's go get Daddy some cake." Poe slung the diaper bag over the back of the chair and guided it back out of the Falcon and back through the hangar to the mess hall.