Kallus and Ezra sat a top of the Ghost, looking up at the stars of Yavin. A peaceful silence filled the air as the two gazed at the twinkling lights above them.
"You use to do this kid?" Kallus asked
"All the time on Lothal" Ezra replied then his smile faltered.
"When you could actually see the stars."
Kallus gave Ezra a sympathetic look. He'd heared that Lothal had been burned and now the sky was polluted with black smoke.
"Sorry about your home kid, Lothal dosen't deserve what the Empire has given it" Kallus placed a hand on Ezra's shoulder.
Ezra gave the man a small smile.
"Thanks Kallus...what happened to your home planet?"
The man suddenly fell silent, hands gripping his knees. Ezra knew he'd hit a sensitive topic.
"Kallus?" He asked.
"My home...it was destroyed by the Empire" he muttered.
"They forced me to join their ranks after my parents and younger brother were killed."
Ezra felt his mouth open slightly.
"They forced you?" Ezra repeated.
"I thought you joined on your own accord?"
Kallus shook his head, eyes glued to the ground.
"How old was your brother?" Ezra asked.
"Six. I was eleven at the time" Kallus replied quietly.
Ezra could tell by the man's tone he didn't want to speak about it anymore. Ezra respected that though. He always felt a little uncomfortable when he spoke about his parents. However, he had one more question to ask.
"So, have you forgiven the Empire for forcing you into their ranks?" Ezra inquired.
Kallus gave a scoff before rolling his eyes.
"Please, after everything they've done to me, I won't even begin to pity them if their Emperor is eaten by the Space Worm."
Ezra grinned at Kallus who smiled in return.
"So, your parents. Why did they speak out against the Empire in the first place? Didn't they know they were putting you in danger in the process?" Kallus asked.
"They did, but they were trying to give everyone hope. Give the galaxy light in the darkest times. They also did it for me. They wanted me to have a better future."
Ezra exhaled before continuing.
"They were always rebellious, almost a little crazy. But I loved them for who they were."
"So that's where you get your rebellious behaviour?" Kallus teased.
Ezra rolled his eyes and elbowed Kallus's ribs making the man slide away but he prodded Ezra back. The boy gave yelp before grinning and poking Kallus's side.
"Alright that's it!"
Kallus hooked an arm around Ezra's neck and yanked the teen towards him.
"Kahahahalus!" Ezra laughed as the man gave him a noogie.
Kallus only grinned before taking his arm from the boy's throat and placing it around his waist. Forcing the boy to be still.
"Kallus! Hang on! Wait!" Ezra yelped but his words fell on deaf ears.
The man clawed his fingers over Ezra's sensitive stomach making the boy's back arch as he squealed.
"I'll never get over how ridiculous that sounds" Kallus chuckled as Ezra squirmed in his lap.
"Shuhahahdup!" Ezra yelled as he giggled uncontrollably.
Kallus went over Ezra's ribs, making the young Jedi yelp and do his best to scramble away.
"Not on your life kid" Kallus grinned as he went for Ezra's armpits.
The teen fell back against Kallus, laughing harder as the man got the most ticklish parts of his weak spot.
'Why does this keep happening to me?!' He thought.
'Why does everyone tickle me so much?'
The Jedi did his best to ignore the tickly sensations but was failing miserably. All he could do was wait until the torture ended. Thankfully for him, Kallus was merciful. He let Ezra go after a minute or two and they sat side by side.
"You know" Ezra panted.
"You stop tickling me a lot faster than anyone else."
"Oh? Did you want me to continue?" Kallus smiled.
"What?! No! I just mean, I'm grateful for that. I swear one day I'm gonna die laughing with the torture the others put me through."
Kallus exhaled a chuckle and messed up Ezra's shot raven hair.
"I'm a lot nicer then most when it comes to this kind of stuff" he said.
"Yeah, that's good to know" Ezra smiled, trying to put his hair back in place.
The two looked back at the stars, joy lighting up their pupils.