During another mission to Lothal, the Ghost crew run into a young orphan earlier than in canon. Yeah, another one of those 'Ghost crew find Ezra early' fics. But stay tuned for the twist.

They were back on Lothal. Again. Many things have changed in Kanan's life, from losing the Jedi order, to becoming a respectable member on Captain Hera's crew, and then making that crew, as odd as it was, what with a teenage Mandalorian and a Lasat. Yet for all the changes it seems like they always ended up on Lothal. Usually coming here ended the end of some sort of cycle, generally revolving around employers or missions.

Usually coming here meant rest. At the moment, however, Kanan was nonchalantly strolling through the streets of the capital, ensuring that no one would notice him or the large backpack he carried. Zeb was bringing the other half of the shipment they had stolen from the Empire. They were top grade power packs and hand-held weapon schematics which they could use for themselves or sell for a hefty price.

Kanan eventually made his way off the main streets to the back ones, treading through dust and garbage to the meeting spot. Once Sabine returned from recon, they could head back to the Ghost.

Nothing was ever that easy.

Three-fourths of the way there, Kanan's com crackled.

"Spectre One, do you read?" It was Zeb. He sounded winded.

"I'm here. What's up?"

"Uh, we've encountered a… small problem…"

"What kind of 'small problem?'"

"Well, we got past the Imperials,"

"Mm -hmmm…."

"And gathered the schematics,"

"Yeah?"

"And made it to the streets."

"And?!"

"So I…had to set my pack down briefly in order for a passing contingent of Stormtroopers to pass without noticing me, and when I turned around there was a little street rat there and he stole some of the disks!"

Kanan sighed. This could be bad. "So you're saying a kid stole some of them?"

"Yes."

"And now we have to go find him?"

"Well not exactly. I'm chasing him as we speak."

"What?!"

"Fast little bugger."

Just then Sabine showed up, joining Kanan at the meeting spot.

"I've been tuned in. what are we going to do, Kanan?"

Kanan sighed. "Sabine, can you get my pack to the Ghost alone?"

"Easier done than said."

"Where are you, Zeb?" Kanan handed Sabine his pack.

"South of the outpost, just passed Epsilon street."

"I'll meet you there."

The Jedi and the Mandalorian set off.

Finding the landmarks Zeb gave him through the com was easy. Finding where exactly they were in proximity to said landmark was difficult. Careful, oh so careful application of the Force did speed things along, though.

Finally, Kanan saw the big, purple mass that was his friend hunched down in an alleyway. Kanan crept to his side.

"Where is he?" Kanan whispered.

Zeb, having already heard his friend approach, pointed to some shadows on the other side of the street. "Over there. See that group of men? I think he's already selling off our stuff. Karabast."

Kanan nodded. Sure enough, the tiny, black haired boy had exchanged something with the less than savory looking characters before darting off down the street. They needed to act, fast.

"Here's how it goes," Kanan improvised. "You get the data back, I follow the kid. He may still have some of them." Kanan stood.

"How do I get it back?"

"However you like." Kanan set off after the kid. Zeb cracked his knuckles, doing a quick check at his hip to ensure the rest of his mission was still present.

"Oh, yeah. My way now."

Kanan followed the kid, careful to keep his distance. So far, it seemed that the boy had not noticed him. Dark skin, black hair and what Kanan had thought he saw of dark blue eyes, the boy could not have been older than ten or eleven, though he was pretty scrawny.

The boy did not lead him into some dark hovel, but back to one of the marketplaces in town. Once hitting the crowds, the boy had slowed to a walk, blending in, and making it that much harder for Kanan to find him.

The kid finally stopped in front of a shop, quickly entering, and Kanan set up to watch for him across the street. Reading the sign above the building, Kanan realized that it was a medicine shop, stocked with over the counter and homeopathic remedies. About three minutes later the boy emerged, and Kanan could see the kid shoving a bottle into his pocket. Kanan continued to follow him as he went through the market, buying food and a large container of water, before heading back the way they had come.

Weighed down with the supplies, the kid moved slowly through the streets. Kanan had shut off his com, not wanting an ill-timed call to give him away. The boy traveled further and further from the normal resident areas, and entered a semi abandoned section of the city.

Several times Kanan had had to duck out of sight, but the Force did not indicate surprise or fear or any other indication that he had been discovered. Finally, the kid entered a dark, decrepit building.

Kanan hesitated. It was more than obvious now that the boy probably did not have any guardians, and while he was not happy about the theft, something had been nagging at him all day.

Again, gently, with great caution, Kanan reached out towards the small, impromptu abode with the Force.

And gasped.

Now that he was paying attention, he realized…

The boy was Force sensitive.

For a moment Kanan simply stood there, deciding what he should do. They couldn't just leave him here, especially considering what he was. If he fell into the wrong hands…

Kanan couldn't approach the boy. Not without backup, not without a plan. Since the boy was alone, he could no longer risk grabbing back the schematics and letting the boy bolt back home.

He didn't really have one, Kanan thought with a grimace.

Kanan stayed and watched for a while, and eventually the boy left again, sans the supplies. Taking a risk, Kanan let him go and snuck into the home.

It took a moment of searching, but he uncovered where the boy hid his stash. Now that this was his confirmed hideaway hole, Kanan could risk leaving to gather the others for help. He knew where to find him. While he was there Kanan did a cursory search for any of the potential schematics but turned out empty handed.

As he left, Kanan marveled at just how strongly the boy's presence resided here, even with him gone. They had to keep him out of the Empires hands.

He set off down the streets, not turning on his com until he was already in the plains.

"A Force sensitive?" Hera's tone was flat, but her expression was open, giving Kanan more hope of convincing them.

"Yes. We will have to be careful how we approach him about the data he still has—"

"We're missing two of the disks still," Zeb gestured to the packs on the seat. He had…reacquired the third from the almost buyers already.

"But I'm sure with your connections, Hera, we can fid a safe place for the boy."

Hera nodded. "We can't just leave him, you're right, but we do need to have some kind of plan before we get him."

"We have to be quick about it," Sabine interjected, polishing her helmet as she sat perched on the holodesk, "he could be selling the other disks as we speak."

There was silence. It was Hera's ship, and ultimately her decision as to what happened aboard it.

"I am not opposed to him staying with us for a bit," she finally said. "Once we sell these off we will be set long enough to have some down time to deal with him."

"We will have to wait until morning until we can bring him here

"What?" Zeb's ears perked forwards, finally listening. "Here?!"

The Next Day

"So we really want him on board."

"Yep."

"A kid. A sneaky little—"

"Zeb."

"—who has already proven himself a thief, traipsing through the halls of the Ghost. Besides, do we really have time to watch him?"

"We do now," Hera said, looking up at Zeb through narrowed eyes.

"Shhh, there he is," Kanan peered around the corner, motioning for everyone to get into place.

There was hardly anyone around to witness. Sabine rounded the building to block off the back alley, Zeb climbed it in order to be available from above. Kanan and Hera would represent the united front.

Entering the street they began to approach the boy, making eye contact. Almost immediately the boy noticed Kanan and Hera, and the child ran into the nearest alley. Kanan and Hera were close behind.

Sabine was already blocking the exit.

The boy froze, fear playing across his face, before morphing into what Kanan assumed was supposed to be a ferocious expression.

"Hey, what's the deal?"

Kanan tried not to scoff at the ridiculously young voice. "We don't want to hurt you, we just want to talk."

The kid sneered. "I've never met you before, and we've got nothing to discuss."

Kanan wondered distantly how much trouble that mouth had gotten him in. "Oh really? I think you may still have something of ours."

Kanan held forth the disk they had retrieved yesterday. Instantly, the kid's confident posture melted, only defiance was left.

With a sigh, Kanan put the chip in his pocket. "Look, all we want is to talk with you. We aren't with the Empire, and we aren't a part of any of the local gangs."

Sabine had stepped closer.

When they made no moves to cause harm, the boy relaxed a shred, crossing his arms. "Fine, I'm not busy at the moment."

Kanan decided to ignore the comment. "I'm Kanan. This is Hera, that is Sabine, and—"

From the rooftop Zeb leapt down, landing with a loud thud. "An' I'm Zeb."

The boy seemed rattled by the sudden appearance of a large Lasat and stayed silent.

"And may we ask you're name?"

The boy shrugged. "Call me Jabba."

Hera raised one of her eyebrows, and Kanan tilted his head.

Sigh. "Ezra. My name is Ezra."

"Well, Ezra, if you wouldn't mind, we would like out disks back. Do you still have them?"

"I might."

Zeb stepped forwards, and Ezra backpedaled into the wall.

"Zeb," Hera's voice suddenly rang out. She turned to Ezra. "What if we paid you to give them back?"

Kanan turned to her, nodding. That was a good icebreaker.

Eyeing the Lasat warily, Ezra seemed to consider. "You would pay for what I…took?"

Hera said nothing, letting the kid come to a decision.

"What would you pay?"

Hera shrugged. "What do you want?"

The boy hesitated. "There's…I…would you be willing to, uh, say, go to the medbay and pick something up?"

Now Kanan crossed his arms. "You want us to get drugs for you?"

"No, well, not those kind of drugs. It's this years trivalent H, I think it's called. The one you can take orally."

Smart kid. "And why do you need this?"

"You said anything I wanted."

Silence.

"Okay. I, I'm repaying a friend. He needs it."

Under her mask, Sabine raised an eyebrow. He could have asked for anything.

"Why don't you get it yourself?" Kanan asked.

At this the boy looked down. "Under Imperial law, you need an adult to get anything stronger than an everyday painkiller."

Hera looked at Kanan. This transition would be important. "Alright, let's go."

Ezra looked up in surprise. "Now? Oh, now. Right now."

"Yeah," Sabine spoke for the first time. "Sooner we pay you for our stuff," her tone dropped a bit, "sooner we get it back."

Kanan stepped to the side, gesturing for Ezra to lead the way. He followed at Ezra's right side, Hera further behind to the left, then Sabine and Zeb dropping back far enough to not be associated with the group.

So far, it was going well.

Kanan didn't trust the boy for a second.

"So here is how it goes," Kanan said, and he knew that he had Ezra's ear even though the boy did not acknowledge him. "I am going to go get the medicine. Once you show us both of the disks, then and only then will we give it to you. Agreed?"

Ezra nodded, wild hair bobbing in front of his eyes.

"Good."

Kanan was mildly surprised that nothing had happened so far. They made their way further up the market, doing their best to not draw attention as Stormtroopers became more and more frequent. Finally, they made it to their destination.

"Hera, you stay here with Ezra. I'll get it."

Entering the building, he immediately made his way to the counter and asked for what he wanted. Fortunately, there was nobody else in the store. After showing off his (fake) ID and getting authorized, he purchased the somewhat large bottle and headed outside.

The price had made him wince.

Now Kanan was beginning to be worried about this 'friend'. What circumstance would have a ten year old being required to acquire it for them?

His eyes adjusted to the brightness outside, but Hera and Ezra were not there.

The street had been flooded with Stormtroopers.

Quickly, Kanan ducked behind the building, walking fast enough to leave ahead of the arriving contingent, but not quite fast enough to be suspicious.

He turned on his com.

"Spectre Two, anybody, do you read?"

"This is Spectre Five. I see Hera and the kid, they are okay, heading southwest. Kanan, I tapped into the Imperial frequencies, they've noticed their missing disks. That's what they're starting to look for. The search is already citywide, what are we going to do?"

"This is Spectre Two. I read all of that. What's the plan?"

Kanan paused. "Hera, ask Ezra where the disks are."

Faintly he heard, "Wha—I won't tell you that!"

Subconsciously, Kanan held his com a bit closer. "Listen, Kid, Hera's going to take you back to our ship."

"What?!"

"And you are going to tell me where those disks are!" Jedi authority was swelling in his chest growing with every word. "I'll bring the disks and the medicine with me and you can get your prize when I get there! Clear?"

At least the kid understood authority. He sighed. "They're back at my place. I'll have to show you—"

"I already know where that is."

"How—"

"Hera, see you there." The last thing he heard on the com was, "All I have to do is scream."

"You're welcome to it." Hera's voice was flatter than the plains of Lothal.

"Spectre Four, are you there?"

"Right here, Spectre One."

"Meet me at….Epsilon Street." That's a place they both knew. "You're going to help me find those disks."

"Copy that." And they were off.

Hera was confident in Kanan's abilities. Sabine had joined her, and they were both keeping an eye on Ezra. Technically, they were kidnapping him at the moment, but, that was neither here nor there.

Once they reached the outskirts of the city, she figured she would have to try and soothe the fuming preteen.

"So, if I may ask, do you know where your parents are?" get the hard stuff over now.

The boy shrugged. "Dead," Was all he said.

Hera nodded, allowing a moment of silence as if to commemorate the fact.

"I know it's hard. You're very smart to have survived on your own like this though."

"Well, lots of kids do it, it's not that special."

A pang went through Hera's heart, but she plowed on. "Yet you do know something's different about you?" Since Kanan wasn't there, she would make the initial pitch for him to join their crew. Hera watched Ezra out of the corner of her eye, and saw the response that he tried to cover up.

Hera continued. "Sometimes…things just work better than they should? Things happen that normally couldn't?"

They were on the plains now, evening falling. Ezra immediately stopped and tried to bolt, but Sabine caught his arm and swung him around.

"You can't do this! I won't let you! You can't make me perform for you or anybody else! I won't let you sell me to the Empire for it's stupid reward—"

"That is our last intention, Ezra," Hera said. Time to come clean…Most of the way. "We have been trying to get you away from the Empire. I have a friend who could teach you to use your gifts. So you don't have to worry about accidentally exposing yourself, or be unable to defend yourself ever again."

Kanan had told her about the insecurities of a young or runaway Jedi, especially during these times. And indeed, Ezra seemed to become thoughtful.

"I just want the medicine for my friend."

Hera nodded, signaling to Sabine to let Ezra go. "We won't make you do anything Ezra. Just think about it. For tonight, you will be safe from the Empire." Ezra nodded and didn't resist as they continued across the plains.

Night had fallen, and Kanan and Zeb had finally arrived at the 'house'. It had been long hours of ducking into shadows, but they had made it undetected.

Entering the house, Kanan and Zeb pulled out their glowsticks and began searching the abode.

"Ahh! Karabast! All I see is trash and food!" Zeb sniffed a can. "Ugh…And trashy food."

Kanan reached into the Force, releasing the stress of trying to find the disks into it. Again, he felt the strong residue of the boys presence. It was unlike anything he had ever experienced before. Bright, flickering—

Wait…

It wasn't a—

Kanan gasped. There was another child somewhere in here.

Authors Note: Chapter Two will be up before next Tuesday and possibly Chapter Three. That will finish the beginning segment of this story, then it will be continual 'one shots' of their life and times as this crew until i am all out of ideas:)