Holocrons or Waffles?
Sabine took a step back from the wall and sighed as her tired eyes inspected her work, the skyline of Mandalore still didn't look right. It was missing something essential but Sabine couldn't quite put her finger on what exactly. The mural stared back at her, hostile and uninviting, nothing like the home she remembered.
She whipped gray paint across her brow and started having second thoughts. She had impulsively drenched three old storm troopers in black in a fit of anger after Kanan and Ezra had returned.
After a vigorous spark of inspiration two nights ago, Sabine was having regrets. She turned hesitantly back towards her bunk, it was awfully late, one or two in the morning if she had to guess, and she was practically asleep on her feet. She stared at her bed beseechingly and then felt a deep tremor run through her as her stomach growled, loudly.
A snack, she decided, and then bed. She tiptoed stealthily towards the crews kitchens although she knew that next door Zeb slept like the dead. Nobody would be up for several hours until the crack of dawn when Hera would rise to check the specks. Then Kanan would wander in blindly seeking his caff. Zeb would be next loudly rummaging through the cupboard for his precious space waffles and finally after much banging on the door Ezra would come in sulking from his room.
He spent a lot of time in his room recently; Sabine reflected as she turned the corner, it made her look almost sociable. Sabine was fine with it personally, their encounter with Vader had been two weeks ago and Kanan was still muttering in his sleep.
She kept it hidden, but Sabine was secretly terrified as what their misadventure emptied for the crew. Vader was the least of her worries, but Darth Maul left her squirming inside her armor. She entered the kitchen ghostlike and was surprised to find Ezra nodding off at the table, a space waffle in one hand and the Sith holocron in the other.
He snaps his head up startled as the Mandalorian came in and made a move to hide the holocron. "Don't bother," Sabine yawned as she pulled up a chair. "If there's something you should hide it's the waffles." Ezra halfheartedly put the strange pyramid back onto the table. "Rough night?" Sabine asked through a mouthful of breakfast food.
Ezra rubbed his bloodshot eyes "Something like that," He didn't look to good, his muscles were tensed, his jaw was set and his eyes had dark bags underneath. "How about you?"
Sabine nodded and fiddled with her pistols, "Same." She admitted, "I can't seem to fall asleep, every time I close my eyes my mind wanders."
Ezra's eyes fell to the holocron, "Sabine, can I ask you a question?"
"Sure, shoot."
The young padawan took a moment to collect his thoughts, "The Empire took your family, yes?"
The artists eyes grew cloudy but she nodded silently.
"They took everything from you—"
"In a manner of speaking yes," Sabine whispered not liking where the conversation was going.
Ezra's voice cracked in anger, "all they do is take. They took your family, they took my parents, they took Zeb's people, Hera's planet, Kanan's master. They'll take everything in the galaxy until there's nothing left. "His red eyes became determined, "They must be stopped-"
"-Ezra" Sabine groaned.
"Hold on a minute. I guess my question is- how far would you be willing to go to stop the Inquisitors, Vader, the Emperor himself in order to save the ones you care about?" He threw his hands in the air and Sabine's eyes widened fearfully to see the holocron glowing in his palm.
Sabine glanced at Ezra concerned, "I'd be willing to go as far as it takes-"Ezra nodded seeming satisfied. The artist reached across the table and grabbed the holocron out of his hand. She gingerly set it on the table right in front of him, "I'd be willing to go as far as it takes, as long as I don't corrupt myself in the process. Ezra if we-, you-, sink to their level we are no better than the empire, we will no longer be worthy to be called rebels." Her voice cracked, "Don't corrupt yourself on the excuse it's for the greater good."
"I don't understand" the young padawan objected, "Maul said that in order to defeat your enemy you must understand him. This-"He pointed to the holocron hungrily, "Is how I can do that."
"Again with Darth Maul Ezra! Don't you know he's using you?" Sabine inquired exasperated.
Ezra tightened his fist underneath the table, "I know but he helped us defeat the inquisitors-"
"He killed them!"
Ezra bore holes into his comrade, "Don't be a hypocrite."
Sabine crossed her arms insulted, "There are different kinds of killing Ezra,"
Ezra snorted "Do you even hear yourself right now? He was just trying to help. Besides, he can't be all dark, I don't sense he's completely evil"
"He blinded Kanan!"
A shadow crossed Ezra's features, "They were fighting, what did you expect, him to simply love tap his enemy? Why do you care about him so much anyway? You've never even met him, why do you hate Maul?"
Sabine gripped her pistol tighter, "My house had history with Darth Maul,"
"Seriously, that's it."
Sabine stood up disgusted, "If you truly understood Darth Maul Bridger that would be all you need."
Ezra sat up as well, he was getting taller, and he now came up to Sabine's eyelevel. He glared at her, "So that's it? Your house was in some kind of feud with him? What did he do hurt your tough Mandalorian feelings?" He immediately regretted the words as soon as he uttered them.
Sabine punched him, hard, and Ezra went flying back into the table. He sat up rubbing his head, "What the hell?"
"I hope that knocked some sense into you," Sabine muttered and kneeled down inspecting his growing bruise. "You want to know why I hate Maul so much? Do you Ezra? Let's not talk about the fact that he threw a Coup to overthrow Mandalore, Let's not talk about how my house was foolish enough to think they were doing the right thing by assisting him." Her voice dropped, "Let's not talk about how he slaughtered Pre Viszla with his own blade, or how he nearly killed my mother, or how he murdered my aunt right in front of her lover's eyes? Oh no, he's not responsible for that at all, how did you put it? He was just trying to help?" Sabine sneered and shoved the warm holocron and a cold waffle into his chest. "You're going to have to make a choice, Ezra Bridger, which will it be? Holocrons or waffles?"