Set after Return of the Jedi:
Summary – In a reality where both Kanan and Ezra survived the Battle for Lothal, the Spectres face the prospect of a peaceful galaxy for the first time in years. This newfound tranquillity provokes certain crew members to make some radical propositions... (BF/GF)
There are certain moments in life where people ask, where were you when it happened? Sometimes it was a great battle, with the fate of the entire galaxy hanging in the balance. Where were you during the Battle of Endor? And sometimes it was the little things, treasured moments between family and friends which would mean nothing to most. Today was one of those days, and in that moment, Ezra found himself sat in his cabin on the Ghost, fiddling absent-mindedly with his lightsaber. Normal folk would sit on a chair, or on the edge of a bed when doing this sort of thing. But Ezra was far from normal. Instead, he sat cross-legged on the floor, a pair of welding goggles hanging flimsily around his head. Alongside Zeb, Sabine and Rex, Ezra had fought groundside on the forest moon of Endor. And during that tense conflict, a blaster bolt had very narrowly missed his chest, instead colliding with his lightsaber hilt. He smiled as he remembered Sabine instantly letting out a battle cry and decimating the poor buckethead with her blaster pistols. Still, it had been a lucky thing. And ever since that hit, the blade hadn't quite been working the same. It would turn on just fine, but while activated it would flicker and didn't seem to glow quite as brightly. Ezra had assumed it was an issue with the focusing crystals but was beginning to think otherwise.
"Hm...maybe the cycling field energisers..." he thought aloud, frowning down at a series of gold rings inside the hilt. He flicked the goggles over his eyes and activated the welder, but just as he moved close to his project, the cabin door suddenly burst open. Ezra recoiled in a quick motion, accidentally igniting his lightsaber. The room glowed with an emerald hue for a moment as Ezra quickly deactivated it again, before turning around with a sharp glare. Chopper stood at the door, garbling a fast and incoherent series of mumbled bleeps. A second passed, and Zeb suddenly appeared behind the droid, a look of surprise on his face.
"What's going on now? Tell me Sabine hasn't painted another mural" Ezra questioned, thinking back to last week's...incident. His darling girlfriend, for a joke, had decided to paint a less than flattering image of him on the wall of the ship's gantry. It depicted him staring out with a blank expression as he accidentally ignited his lightsaber through a meiloorun he'd been hoping to eat. Despite Ezra's clear displeasure after seeing the mural, it was still painted there now, much to his annoyance.
"Come quickly kid! To the quarterdeck...Kanan...Hera!" Zeb stuttered, unable to finish his sentence before quickly running off again. Chopper raced off after him, causing Ezra to roll his eyes. Even now, after so many years, Zeb still called him kid. He knew he ought to stay and finish repairs on his lightsaber, but as always, curiosity got the better of him.
Ezra strolled through an empty corridor, sensing an immense amount of tension and trepidation in the force. It felt as though every lifeform on board the Ghost was waiting for something, but he could not tell what. He quickened his pace and walked through a doorway to find a scene he'd always been waiting for. Kanan was lowered on one knee, holding a small black box in his hand. Hera stood in front of him, her hands covering her mouth in a state of shock. And around the room, the rest of the crew silently watched, eyes widened. For once, even Chopper was quiet, and that was a rarity. Ezra crept to Sabine's side, subtly linking his hand in hers as they both anxiously waited for Hera's response. It was then, with a confident smile, that Kanan made his speech.
"Hera. The moment I watched that second Death Star explode, it gave me a sudden realisation. The war is over...it's time to make sure it wasn't fought in vain. I adore and respect you, you're the fiercest and kindest woman in the galaxy. Not to mention, the most beautiful. I always knew I could never measure up to you, but I've tried to all the same. You would make me incredibly happy if you said yes now. So, Hera Syndulla, will you marry me?" he asked, and a quiet choked sob made its way from Hera's mouth. Kanan had always been such a goof, quite similar to Ezra in a way, hiding his true emotions behind cheap jokes. But that speech...that said it all. Sabine tightened her grasp around Ezra's hand as anxiety increased. She bit her lip, and with his free hand, Ezra crossed his fingers. And with a smile, Hera began to nod her head. It was slow at first, but quite soon she uncovered her mouth, revealing a beaming smile.
"Yes! Yes, of course I will!" she answered, and Zeb gave a subtle sigh of relief. With a calm smile, Kanan stood up and slid the engagement ring onto her finger. It was a beautiful specimen: a bright shining silver ring housing a spectacular green gem which Kanan had claimed was the same colour as Hera's eyes. The Jedi had an eye for jewellery, who would have thought? And to make it even more special, if that was even possible, this gem was a kyber crystal, which Kanan had travelled Ilum to acquire. It appeared the Empire had not completely desecrated that planet. Apparently, the Jedi had spent hours searching for a crystal with just the right colour. As if Hera needed any more reasons to say yes.
After the silent tension of the proposal, the room soon devolved into a cheering applause as Hera happily held out her hand, and the ring around her finger. Ezra hadn't seen her this happy in a long time. For so long, she had been consumed with security meetings and war planning alongside the likes of Mon Mothma and Admiral Ackbar. Now she seemed like a changed woman, moving from one person to the next, showing each of them the ring in turn. She reached the young Jedi and he smiled.
"You have a Kyber crystal now...as if I needed any more reasons to be afraid? I'm happy...for both of you, you both deserve a win" Ezra remarked with his patented blend of humour and sincerity. Hera gave a grateful nod before moving onto Sabine, who made a comment about the crystal's remarkable colour. While Hera and Sabine carried on talking about how much of a shock the proposal had been, Ezra wandered over to Zeb and Kanan.
"So how long have you been planning this gig?" the Lasat questioned, a grin on his face. Kanan gave an almost exhausted chuckle.
"Years..." he answered breathlessly, causing Zeb to let out a booming laugh.
"Well done, mate. I'm happy for you" he remarked, slapping the Jedi over the shoulder roughly. Kanan smiled, subtly rubbing his shoulder with pain while Zeb looked away.
"So, I guess we can confirm you're not following the Jedi Code now, master" Ezra commented with a smile. Kanan gave a content sigh, staring over at Hera with the eyes of a man in love.
"I hope I don't set too bad an example for you" he responded, watching his wife-to-be laughing in conversation with Sabine.
"I don't think the Jedi were right about everything. Some things in life you just can't live without, love's one of em" Ezra remarked genuinely, showing a rare intelligence. Kanan smiled. He had always been so immensely proud of his apprentice, and now was no different. He could still remember Ezra when they had first met, an undisciplined street rat, stealing to survive. Even then, he had seen the spark in him, the spark of rebellion. And now, so many years later, Ezra had truly proven himself. He was Kanan's mirror image, and so much more.
"You aren't wrong, Ezra. I don't think Master Yoda himself could deny the happiness in here today. Now, I think I'm just going to head up and check the bridge. Wouldn't want to smash into a purrgil, that'd really ruin the day" the Jedi stated, walking away with a chuckle. Zeb gave a nod, turning to Ezra.
"So, kid, you ever considered it?" he questioned, causing Ezra to frown in confusion.
"Considered what? Purrgils?" he asked in reply. What could one possibly contemplate regarding purrgils? Their deep and hidden culture?
"No...marriage. With a certain feisty Mandalorian?" Zeb replied, causing Ezra's eyes to widen.
"Sabine? Married?! Oh...uh, I'm not so sure she'd be interested in that sort of thing, Zeb. I-I mean...do Mandalorians even marry?" he stuttered, gulping after he finished. Zeb chuckled, patting him on the back and shaking his head.
"Hah...the day you propose, that'll be something to watch" he remarked sarcastically, slowly strolling away towards the galley. Ezra stood there for a moment, completely alone, contemplating what Zeb had said. Getting married? That was such an...adult concept. He was only...twenty-five? Kriff...he'd known Sabine for over a decade now. Maybe it was time to finally tie the knot, but how would he do it? And how would he know if she was even interested? He turned to see Hera and Sabine both laughing aloud...while looking straight at him. Had the Twi-Lek just made the very same suggestion? With a rare lack of self-confidence, Ezra quickly exited the room, making his way back to his cabin.
In the years since they had gotten together, Ezra and Sabine had shared her old cabin. The walls, ceiling and even floor were covered in her paintings, but Ezra didn't mind. He was just grateful to be away from Zeb's incessant snoring. In deep thought, Ezra strolled into the cabin, absent-mindedly locking the door behind him and taking a seat on his bunk. He and Sabine both had separate bunks, although most of the time they shared hers, so much so that they just called it theirs now. With a frown, Ezra stared down at the floor, his eyes drawn to an old mural of the entire crew in their youth. It was painted at a time when Sabine still had purple hair, and he himself still dressed like a street rat. The good old days, he thought to himself fondly. There was one strange aspect he noticed regarding the painting. His silhouette seemed to be painted in far more detail than any of the others, including Sabine herself. Did she have feelings for him even back then? Perhaps he was just imagining things, Zeb's talk of marriage had put him in a strange mood.
"How would I propose to a Mandalorian?" he questioned aloud, not realising he was speaking until after the sentence had formed. It was lucky he was alone. Perhaps he could contact Fenn Rau about it, knowing Mandalorians, there was probably some ancient and sacred tradition regarding marriage as there was with everything else. He adored Sabine and her culture, but one of the most difficult things about dating a Mandalorian was understanding their heritage.
Suddenly, there was a noise from outside, a quiet crash followed by muttered cursing. Ezra frowned, before realising with a gasp that he'd accidentally left the deadlock on, locking Sabine out of her own cabin. He rushed up to the door, opening it with a sheepish grin.
"The Kriff, Ezra? I know you didn't like that mural last week but come on..." she remarked with a slightly annoyed face, closing the door behind her.
"Sorry 'Bine...wasn't thinking, got distracted..." he answered, causing her to shake her head with a small smile. He certainly got distracted easily, made her wonder how he ever did his Jedi meditation properly. She detached her blaster holster from her belt, ignoring him for a second while she placed it on a desk nearby. And then, in a sudden movement, she darted over to him and planted a strong kiss on his lips. Ezra widened his eyes in surprise, before gradually melting into it with a contented hum. As they separated, Sabine gave a cocky grin.
"You're forgiven...laserbrain" she stated, causing him to shake his head with a smile. Mandalorians. She sat down on their bunk, leaning back and reaching for her drawing pad. Ezra gently sat down beside her, watching her silently for a moment.
"What're you up to?" he asked. Obviously, she was drawing, but he wondered what had given her the inspiration.
"I'm drawing the proposal...the look on Hera's face when Kanan knelt down. I never want to forget it..." she replied, grabbing her pencil from beneath the duvet where she'd shoved it previously. Ezra smiled, putting his arm over her shoulder. The Jedi and the Artist indeed.
For hours they simply sat there, Ezra watching quietly over Sabine's shoulder as she contentedly worked on her latest masterpiece. Every now and then, he would lend some advice from his limited experience. Sabine would nod in agreement with a hum, altering her drawing to suit his recommendations. She didn't have to, but she did. It began as a rough sketch, but over time it developed into an artistic piece. It was a pencil drawing, no colours or anything, yet somehow Sabine managed to capture the moment perfectly. Kanan's hope. Hera's shock. The rest of the crew gathering around anxiously. It was like reliving the event all over again, and it made Ezra think. Everyone had been so happy after Kanan's proposal, if he did it right, could he be as successful? He loved Sabine more than he could ever put into words, but if he was going to propose, he would have to do it right. As he sat there, so deep in thought, he noticed something different. He could no longer hear the scrawling of pencil against paper. He glanced down and noticed Sabine's head leaning on his shoulder. She snored softly, her pencil gradually falling from her limp fingers. Ezra smiled, carefully closing her drawing pad and resting it safely at her side. And as he looked down at her, he studied her features. Her copper skin. Her gentle smile. Her fiery red and orange hair...as intense as an erupting star. Where were you when Ezra Bridger decided he wanted to marry Sabine Wren? Ezra could say he was sat right here, with the woman of his dreams resting against him...