Unification Day.

It was a day celebrated in the whole galaxy as the day the whole known world was gathered as one. No longer enemies squabbling amongst each other for the universe's merger resources. They became brothers and sisters who looked after one another. Who cared for one another. They shared the same fate. The same destiny. The same life.

Each year, the governor would give his speech about how united the diverse constitutions that made the Galactic Empire were. How lucky they were to be part of it. People would nod their heads, some even eagerly. But none of them were truly listening to him.

Yahya spent the week roaming around the nicer and richer neighborhoods. The richer families already gone to spend the holidays in the core world, he was free to roam without their scrutinizing glances at his back.

It was a lonely holiday.

It also didn't help that Jomaira went each year with her family to visit their relatives. And his mother…well, his mother would spend what little remained of her free time holed up in her room. Reminiscing about a time long gone. About his father.

Like many empire soldiers, his father had given his life for the empire on the Day of Desolation thirteen years ago. The final battle that annihilated a quarter of the galaxy's populace.

Unification Day was both a day to celebrate the empire's victory against those that sought to plunge the galaxy into darkness, and the end of the Great War. A war that had lasted for decades. A war that had laid waste to whole star systems.

A war that had cost him, and his mother, his father.

Andor was far from the clamor of war. Having little to no resources to offer had helped the small planet evade the warring parties' greedy hands. None of the natives truly cared about the celebrations. The only ones who showed up at the memorial day were old veterans who had fled the war and self exiled on this dust ball of a planet.

His mother would be even more grim and gloomy those days. She would work extra shifts just to keep her thoughts away from what the celebrations truly meant. From the loss they embodied.

Yahya hated it. In all of his thirteen years, there wasn't a day he abhorred more. His father had missed his birth by a mere couple days. The only memories he had of him were what little his mother shared with him.

That was to say, little to none.

He wanted his mother to sit with him and watch the holoscreen as the emperor went to the martyr square and paid his respect to the lost soldiers.

He wanted her to talk to him about his father.

He didn't want to be alone.

Yahya stared at the small empire flags hanging the long of the school canteen. A red flag with a black roaring Chimera. It was that time of year again. The other students were buzzing around the hall, talking excitedly about their upcoming plans for the holidays. Some of them would be spending them off planet.

Yahya's appetite waned the more he thought about that week.

Jomaira sat next to him, separating all the vegetables from her plate to dump them on Yahya's still untouched one. They both had the whole table to themselves. Groups of seven students crammed together on seats that barely sufficed four people. Others opted to stay standing. None of them approached their table.

Yahya often wondered if it was because of him. He was rather well acquainted with the school bully.

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“Hey, loser.”

Speaking of which...

Yahya glared up at the bulky Andorian who towered over him, taking up most of his field vision. Yahya looked down at his food, deciding it was best to ignore him. He didn't feel like getting into another fight. He would rather not have the school call his mother for another complaint. She had enough to deal with.

Maybe, just maybe, he would get bored and leave.

He took a bite of the boiled meat and grimaced, it was in need of a bit of seasoning. Scratch that, it was in need of lots of seasoning. Seriously, whoever thought of adding this dish to their school plan was a sadist.

“I'm talking to you, loser.” Tobias slammed his hand against the table, his action garnering the attention of the other students. They furtively glanced at them, trying hard to be subtle about it.

Yahya rolled his eyes. Why bother trying?

“Yesterday wasn't enough for you? Back for more?” Yahya drawled, a bored expression on his face.

Yesterday, Tobias had put nails inside Yahya's running shoes. A dumb and outdated move. Who would wear his shoes without checking if some small insect hadn't taken residence inside? Maybe Tobias did.

So, as retaliation, Yahya had stuffed his locker with two days old leftovers. His mother had asked him to throw them away, and he, as usual, had forgotten to do it, too immersed in the new video game Jomaira had bought. Jomaira had completely obliterated him, to top it off.

He put the leftovers in Tobias's locker. The smell was terrible. Andor was a desert planet. Food rotted faster when not cooled properly. It was a field day. Tobias had been called to the principal's office and had been given a good scolding.

“It was you?” Tobias's face darkened with rage.

Well, he wasn't alone. Jomaira had checked the hall for any prying eyes. A willing accomplice.

Tobias grabbed the front of his shirt. Yahya didn't wait for him to drag him up. He shot up to his feet and mirrored Tobias's move.

In a battle of strength, Yahya would never win against Tobias. But that didn't mean he would back down. If he was going down, he would do so fighting and kicking. He clenched his fists into a ball.

Jomaira slammed her fork on the table, hard. The ringing sound echoed loudly around the hall. They both turned to her.

“Move along before I make you stroll around the school naked for the next period,” she said calmly, her eyes staring at Tobias.

A deafening silence echoed loudly around the hall. Everyone stared expectantly at them.

Tobias grumbled an insult under his breath, not loud enough to be intelligible. He threw a glare Yahya's way and stalked outside the hall, nearly tripping in his haste to leave.

Having lost their entertainment, everyone turned back to what they were doing prior, a hint of disappointment on their faces.

Yahya sat back down, his lips twitching. He turned to Jomaira who was busily moving her food from one side of the plate to another. “Naked? That would be quite the sight.” He snorted.

She groaned as she hid her face behind her hands. “Don't put that image in my head. I'm trying to eat! You're gonna make me lose my appetite,” she protested.

Yahya laughed, a loud bellied laugh. “You suggested it.”

“Well, he deserved it.” She huffed. “I can't believe him. After everything he still comes and bothers you. It's like he's asking for it.”

He nudged her with his elbow. “Thanks.”

She nudged him back. “Welcome.”

She eyed his unfinished boiled meat. “You gonna eat this?” Without waiting for his response, she dug her fork into it and snatched it away.

Yahya chuckled, shaking his head.

“You're leaving for Unification Day?” Yahya asked as he chewed on the vegetables that piled his plate. It wasn't much of a question, not when he already knew the answer.

“I don't know.” She scrunched her nose up. “Honestly, I don't want to. Nothing good ever comes out from cramming a group of mind reading Liekis in one space. Drama is ensured to happen.” She snorted in laughter.

“You're not going?” Yahya looked at her, food forgotten at the thought of companionship in that arduous long week. He could feel hope bubble in his chest.

“Maybe.” She shrugged. “I've been trying to convince my parents to let me stay here.”

“What did they say?” He pushed at his food, stopping for a second as Jomaira dumped the remaining veggies on his plate.

She looked at him smiling. “They're not refusing. They have some conditions to let me stay though.”

“What? I can help you.” Yahya couldn't contain his giddiness. Finally this year he wouldn't be alone.

Jomaira snorted. “Of course you will. I will not be cleaning the storage room by myself.”