Star Wars Rebels Aftermath

Part 17

"You are the son of Hera Syndulla, yes?" A tall man with blue skin, red eyes and white tattered clothing confirms as he takes a seat on a crate.

Jacen doesn't reply, only stands extremely still as he watches the strange man suspiciously. 

"Sit, Jacen." He pulls up another crate, half the size of the one he sits on. 

Hesitantly, the boy complies and shuffles onto the short, locked metal crate.

"How do you know my mom?" Jacen asks skeptically

Thrawn gives the boy a slight smile, "We used to happen to run into each other all the time." He says calmly.

Jacen only gives a small nod as he continues staring at the blue man. 

"Your Father was Caleb Dume, yes? Your Mother wouldn't have bothered having you learn his other name."

Jacen can't bring himself to do anything other than nod. This man seems to certainly know exactly what he is talking about.

"You appear distressed, young Jacen," 

Jacen stares at the man, keeping his mouth zipped shut. Neither break eye contact as the silence in the cargo hold grows to an uncomfortable extent.

"Your mother must tell you everything" 

"No she doesn't." Jacen states bluntly,

"Oh? Then how do you know so much, Jacen?" Thrawn pries,

"I don't. I've barely told you anything." 

"I never said you did."

"I spy on her when she talks to people on the hologram thingie," Jacen blurts out,

"Is that so?" He lifts himself upright, off the crate and strides around to room, his hands held behind his back, studying a worn out poster hanging on the wall. "And what was the last conversation she had with the hologram thingie?" Thrawn questions with casualty.

"Umm.." Jacen lifts a finger to his chin, seemingly in deep thought. Most, if not all of his suspicions of the man and this whole situation gone, "It was with some guy. It wasn't really anything interesting. Something about a new school that guy wanted to make or whatever."

Thrawn traced a gloved finger along a red outline on an dull abstract poster, "Surely, a small boy like you wouldn't have been able to catch this guy's name, though." 

"No, I did!" Jacen fixes his posture and stares with a proud and confident expression at the man who's facing the wall opposite him, "It was Luke Skywalker." 

Thawn doesn't physically show any sign of interest in the dramatic name drop. He takes a moment though before retrieving his hand from the wall and placing it in his other behind his back. 

"Was there anything else said?" Thawn stays with his back facing Jacen, admiring yet another object hanging from the wall of the cargo hold.

Jacen now stares at the man with an unreadable expression. "Nope."

There is a long silence for Jacen to speak up if necessary. But he doesn't. Thawn soon accepts this and saunters over to the cargo control area. He swipes a piece of random plastic from the ground beside his left foot and presses it against a square shaped button in order to not use his own hand.

Almost immediately, a rumble echoes throughout the hold as the large ramp lowers at a decently fast speed.

Jacen draws his attention to the now open ramp and hops off the crate. The little boy jogs outside after a final glance at the strange man with blue skin.