The ship jumps as it kicks into hyperspace. They let out a collective gasp as they leave the firefight. Imperial ships had come out of nowhere with guns blazing. For a few seconds there, Hera was worried that she wouldn't be able to make it past their intense blockade.
But with her crew, she should have known they would have made it out in one piece safe and sound.
She turns around in her chair, looking at the group. "Good job, team. If we wouldn't have worked together, I think I would have had to surrender." She teases with a smile.
"You wouldn't surrender. You'd let us get blasted into pieces." Zeb counters, crossing his arms over his chest.
"Would you rather be taken prisoner?" Sabine asks, tilting her head back to look at the Last.
Zeb grumbles then chuckles. "No. I guess I'd rather be a bunch of bits."
He and Chopper then both exit the cockpit, heading to their respective rooms. Once the doors zip shut, Ezra immediately pounces to grab the back of Kanan's headrest. "That was so cool how you pulled the ship towards us. When did you learn that?" He eagerly asks.
"It was a long time ago." Kanan briefly smiles before turning back around in his seat.
"Like 'in the Order' a long time ago?" Ezra cautiously asks.
Hera and Sabine both stiffen, their eyes quickly glancing to watch Kanan's reaction. Kanan doesn't talk about his past. Anything involving the Order or the Temple is almost forbidden around him.
"Yeah." Kanan eventually answers, his voice tight.
Ezra falls back into his seat, looking down at his hands. "I wish I could have seen it." He says. "It must have been so cool having so many Jedi Masters around. You probably learned so much."
The air begins to tense up, no one having any idea what to say. Though Hera has always heard stories about the Jedi, she herself hardly knows anything about the Order or how it was to grow up there. She doesn't feel that she has room to speak about the Jedi. Sabine, knowing even less than Hera, also feels uncomfortable commenting.
"Ezra, follow me," Kanan says, suddenly rising from his seat. He flicks the boy's head, making him jump up and follow.
Hera turns to look at Kanan. She's afraid she'll see pain in his eyes. Instead, he sends her a wink and closes the door behind himself.
As soon as it shuts, Sabine jumps up to Hera's side. "What's going on? Is Kanan going to hurt Ezra?" She asks. She would hate for something to happen to the boy, considering he doesn't quite know when to stop.
"He'll be fine, Sabine." Hera comforts with a smile.
"But Kanan never talks about his past."
"Do you?"
"Well, no. But I'm not an adult. When adults hide their past, it's usually because it's something bad."
"I'm sure it'll be alright."
xxx
Ezra quickly follows behind Kanan, eager to know what's happening. Everytime he's asked about growing up in the Temple or what it was like to be a Jedi, Kanan typically gave out clipped responses. Now, maybe he'll get a better picture of what it was like.
"Sit," Kanan says, gesturing to his bed. Quickly, Ezra hops up beside him, his eyes looking at the blue holocron. Kanan holds back a smile, feeling how excited Ezra is through the Force to hear anything about Order or look at its artifacts.
"Can I hold it?" He asks, reaching out for the Holocron.
"Hey, hey. Slow your roll." Kanan scolds, holding the device away from the kid. "I haven't even got to explain to you why this is important to me."
"Oh, sorry," Ezra says, quickly folding his hands in his lap. He sits up, being on his best behavior. Kanan can't help but laugh at the sight. If talking about Jedi is all it takes to get Ezra to listen, maybe he could pull that card on the boy more often.
"When I was a padawan, my master gave me this Holocron." Kana gently explains, bringing it back down so that Ezra can properly see it.
"Master Billaba? Right?" Ezra asks, his eyes meeting Kanan's for a quick second.
"Yes." He responds, slightly surprised that Ezra remembers her name. She's only been mentioned once or twice in passing. To now see that she means a lot to Ezra as well makes something inside Kanan stir. Ezra doesn't even know what she looks like but understands that she means so much to him.
Ezra smiles brightly at him, clearly happy that he's gotten her name correct.
"Master Billaba gave me this Holocron, just as her master gave it to her," Kanan explains.
"Cool!" Ezra grins, his eyes widening. "So, it's like a gift?"
"In a way. Many cultures have something that they pass onto the next generation. Jedi did this in the way of making their lightsabers similar to their master's." Kanan begins as he pulls out his lightsaber.
Ezra pulls out his lightsaber too. "Sorry. I didn't know that was a rule." He says as they compare the two. There isn't that much that the two of them share. Ezra's might have a few pieces that Kanan collected for him, but they don't look alike. He would have to remember to study Kanan's before making his next one in the future.
Kanan ignores Ezra's comment, continuing on. "But some Jedi also passed on other items, like this Holocron. This has been passed down our lineage for a very long time, surviving many difficult times."
"Wait," Ezra says, furrowing his eyebrows. "Our lineage?"
"Yes. I'm your master, right?"
"So far."
"Then you're in my lineage."
"So a lineage is like a family tree? But for Jedi?" Ezra asks, his face scrunched. Kanan watches him, trying to hold back a laugh as the idea finally makes sense to the boy. "Oh, I see. So your master would be like my grandma."
Kanan furrows his eyebrows. "I mean, I suppose. But Master Billaba wasn't that old."
"Who was your grandparent?" Ezra suddenly asks, jumping up to get closer to Kanan. He didn't know that Jedi have grandparents. All of this is so new and exciting to him. He wants to learn more.
Kanan pushes the boy back, sitting him down again. "His name was Mace Windu."
"What was he like? What was your master like?" Ezra asks, rapid firing questions. "Is our lineage cool? What were other lineages like?"
"Calm down and I'll tell you." Kanan scolds, glaring at the boy. Ezra stiffens and sits back down quietly. Kanan sighs, hardly able to stay mad at him. He's happy that Ezra takes such pride in their lineage. He just needs time to tell him what he knows.
"Sorry. I just want to know everything about our history." Ezra sheepishly chuckles, rubbing the back of his neck.
"I know, but you need to be patient," Kanan says, poking his chest.
"And you should talk faster." Ezra counters, poking him back.
"Stop that," Kanan says, shoving him off the bed. Ezra laughs, quickly jumping back up to sit next to him. "To answer your first question, I don't really know what Master Windu was like. While I was growing up in the Temple, he was very busy with the Clone Wars and political efforts. From what I remember, he was very powerful and strict."
"Strict?"
"Yeah. He wouldn't have liked having you around." Kanan teased. "At least, that's what he would say. Though very few saw it, Master Billaba assured me that he did have a fun side." He adds, making Ezra grin wide.
"And Master Billaba? What was she like?" He asks, practically jumping up and down in his seat. Learning about his new Jedi family brings Ezra a new joy. He had no idea that they were so connected to each other. It's almost like they were actually one huge extended family living at the Temple.
Kanan softly smiles, thinking brightly of her. "She was one of the best Jedi I had ever met. She was so wise and thoughtful. While many Jedi treated their padawans like unexperienced students, she listened to me. She humored my questions and never told me if she thought they were stupid. She was very kind." He says, his eyes drifting to look at the door.
Ezra leans to get into his line of view. "Would she have liked me?"
Kanan chuckles, the thought of Billaba meeting his padawan a real treat. "I think so. She seemed to like me."
Ezra smirks, tossing some of his hair out of his face. "What? Were you a trouble maker like me?"
"Something like that." He replies, nodding his head. The conversation begins to die down, neither one knowing what to say. At the thought of Billaba, Kanan feels his heart sink. He hasn't thought about her in a long time, at least not until he took on the job of training Ezra.
Feeling his sudden sadness, Ezra reaches out to Kanan. "How did you two meet?" He asks. "I mean, the Temple had to be full of Jedi and padawans. How did she find you?"
Kanan shrugs, now looking at Ezra. "Well, I actually stumbled upon her in a bacta tank. It was almost like a feeling. I had felt it all happen in an instance. There's not really a way I can explain it."
"Like us," Ezra says.
"Hmm?"
"You know." Ezra coaxes. "On Lothal right before I stole those crates. Something told me to look your way and we made eye contact. It just felt right to see you and be near you."
Kanan chuckles, the day now coming back to him. "You know, I never really thought about that. You're right. It was kind of like that."
Ezra smiles, seeming to be happy to relate to Kanan's own story. The two of them then sit in silence, a feeling of peace settling between them. Though they are a much better team now, Kanan realizes how much opening up has connected him to Ezra. Just spending this time has strengthened their bond.
He clears his throat, getting Ezra's attention. "Anyway, I wanted to give this Holocron to you now."
"Really?" Ezra asks as Kanan drops it into his hands. "But your master gave it to you."
"And her master gave it to her." He smiles, nodding his head. "So to keep our lineage alive, I'm passing it onto you. Just like they did generations ago and we'll do for generations to come."
"So it's mine? Like actually mine now?" Ezra repeats, his eyes wide with both shock and pure excitement.
"Until you start training a padwan, yes."
Ezra looks up, his eyes meeting Kanan's, and the man freezes. What he sees reminds him of the once hopeful Caleb Dume. He was so excited to get into the field and find his calling as a Jedi. He wouldn't let the galaxy hold him back.
It almost makes him want to cry seeing that emotion again present in the boy who has lost so much.
But Kanan is not a crier and never will be.
"Just don't break it or I'll have to break you." He teases, pulling Ezra in for a noogie.
"Okay! Okay!" Ezra laughs, trying to free himself from his grasp. The two of them then freeze, sensing someone outside the door. "It's Hera." Ezra quietly whispers.
Kanan looks down at him. "Wow, you have gotten better." He softly compliments.
"Well, I am learning from the best. Who learned from the best. Who learned from the best. Who learned--"
"I get it," Kanan whispers back, rolling his eyes. The two of them remain still, until Hera passes. Once she has gone past, Kanan drops Ezra to the floor.
Ezra rolls over, playfully pouting. "Not fair. I wasn't ready!"
"Oh. Maybe you're not as in tune with the Force as I thought." Kanan shrugs, rising from his seat.
"Funny." Ezra snarkily replies, rising from the floor and following Kanan out of the room. "I'm going to get you back for that."
"Sure, sure."
~~~~~~~~~~~
Do you guys ever get comments on your stories that make you feel really bad? I woke up today to find a bunch of rude and hurtful reviews on two of my stories, this one-shot book and Tantrum on FanFiction. Thinking about it makes me so mad and hurt all at the same. I've been trying to ignore them all day, but this person has really gotten under my skin. I don't expect positive reviews every time I write something, but none of these reviews were even slightly constructive. They just attacked everything that they didn't like and what I wrote about.
Idk, just kind of wanted to get that off my chest a little. Usually, I brush these comments off and try to reach out to the person who wrote them, but I can't with this person because they're on a guest account. Maybe that's what's really setting me off. They can type whatever they want, but I can't confront them.
Thankfully, I've received nothing but helpful and kind comments here on Wattpad. You guys are awesome and thank you for always being so great to me! :)