Holiday Past
Hello! And Happy Holidays! I hope you enjoy this story. There will only be two chapters.
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Kanan walked down the streets of Lothal. It was his turn to get supplies for their ship The Ghost, after having run out. But as he walked, he realized something was wrong. Something did not feel right. The streets were empty. It seemed that not a single being was outside their homes. All the market shops were closed, as well as the bars. Confused, Kanan turned back around and headed back to the ship. This had never happened before.
What's going on?
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Zeb entered his room, preparing to lie down and rest. When he opened the door, he saw Ezra, his roommate, still lying in bed. Zeb recalled that he did not get up to eat earlier when they finished off the last of the supplies for breakfast. However, Zeb just thought that the kid was off getting into trouble. He did not think that he would still be in his bed. It was not like Ezra to not be moving around. He was a very energetic kid. Debating whether to prank him or let him sleep, Zeb spoke up.
"Oi, kid. What are you still doing here?" Ezra turned around in his bed, his eyes bloodshot and tired.
"It's my room too. I can stay here." He argued, as he began to turn back around.
"Yeah – but you've been there all day." Zeb voiced his concerns, worried about his health. But he would never admit this to anyone.
"So?" Ezra replied back, and it sounded angry.
"So get up." Zeb said, deciding it was best for Ezra if he got up and did something. It would also be better for him, because then he would have the room to himself. Zeb walked over to the bed and grabbed Ezra's leg and pulled him off the bunk.
"Hey!" Ezra shouted as he fell onto the floor. Zeb continued dragging him, as Ezra desperately tried to grab onto something – anything. But it was no use. Zeb dragged him outside of the room and he ran back in and closed the door.
Ezra got up and banged on the door, shouting to let him back in. Knowing it was no use, he hit it one more time, and then he walked away from the door and into another room.
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Ezra was sitting and laying his head on the table when Hera saw him. She wondered what could possibly get his usual upbeat attitude so down. Even though he had a troubling past, he was still strong. She walked over to him and sat down.
"Hi Ezra." She said. But the boy barely registered her presence as he replied.
"Hey." Hera began to feel concerned. Most of the time the boy was talkative, trying to make up for all the years that he was alone.
"What are you up to today?" She questioned, trying to avoid what she really wanted to ask, knowing it would scare him off. Even though he was talkative, he sometimes got uncomfortable.
"Nothing." He responded, still staring off into nothing. Hera was about to question him about what was wrong, but the swoosh of the doors in the room opening stopped her. She looked up, and the doorway stood Kanan. And something was wrong.
His faces looked concerned, as well as confused. Worry started to fill Hera's mind.
"Kanan? What happened?" Hera asked. Kanan turned towards her, but did not speak yet. Everything that Hera was afraid of filled her mind.
Did the Imperials find us? Are they on their way? Is the Inquisitor here, demanding for Kanan and Ezra to surrender so they could kill them?
Kanan then spoke up, stopping Hera from filling her mind with more worries and fears.
"The people on the planet..." Kanan started, and took a breath, his face showing concern. "They're all gone. Vanished." He walked out of the doorway, and the door closed behind him. Hera could see him thinking, as he placed his hand on his chin, thinking.
Hera was about to question what had happened, a snort could be heard from next to her. She turned, as did Kanan, at the source of the noise. It was Ezra.
He looked up at the two adults, their faces showing confusion, and he looked back down chuckling.
"Sorry, but that's just the most ridiculous explanation I've ever hear. Vanished. Ha!" He said again, as he continued to chuckle to himself.
"What do you mean?" Hera asked Ezra, who was shaking his head at them.
"I've heard everything. Plague, abandonment, the Empire. But vanished?" Ezra chuckled again. "That's a new one."
"What are you talking about? Do you know what happened?" Kanan asked, obviously annoyed that Ezra knew something they did not.
"As a matter of fact, I do know what happened. It's called Lothal has a Holiday." Ezra said sarcastically as he continued. "Every year around this time, everyone gathers together and celebrates being together. There's a gift exchange, great food, and…" Ezra paused, as the light in his face faded away. "And family." He said quickly, trying to brush it off as he always did. Hera looked to Kanan and they exchanged looks. They looked back at Ezra, who seemed to be lost in past memories.
"Anyway, everything closes down and everyone stays in their house and relaxes. Everything will go back to normal tomorrow. So no reason to freak out." Ezra said as he stood up. Hera looked at Kanan, and gave him a look. Kanan took the hint.
"Ezra – Are you okay?" Kanan voiced to his padawan out of concern, that reflected on his face. Hera looked to Ezra to see how he would respond.
"I'm fine." He responded, but she knew this was not true. She could see it in his eyes. They were distant, probably recalling times where he was with his family, or maybe all those times he was alone. But what he failed to realize, was that he was not alone anymore. He did not have to put up an act.
But as Hera thought, she finally began to understand.
He put on this act because it was what he was used to. He never got a complete childhood, having to grow up too fast on the crime ridden streets of the planet. He had to put up this act of being okay even when he was not. It was what he had adapted to, and it was what he was use to by now. Hera promised to herself that this year it would be different. She did not celebrate the Holiday, but Ezra did, or use to. And that was good enough for her.
Ezra turned and walked out the door, looking at the floor as he walked. As soon as the door closed, she looked up at Kanan, with a grin on her face.
"Uh-oh." Kanan said. "I know that look. What are you going to pull me into this time?"
"What are you talking about? This is my normal look." Hera teased. "And I'm not pulling you into this. I'm forcing you." She smirked.
"There it is. What do you have in mind?"
"We are going to make this Holiday, Ezra's best Holiday yet."
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As soon as Ezra was out of the room, he let out the breath that he noticed he was holding in. He walked off the ship and up into his tower, where he had spent the last few years alone. He walked onto the balcony, to his favorite spot on the edge. He leaned on the railing, and looked out into the city, as he thought of the Holidays in his past.
Eight Years Ago
Ezra woke up, and immediately his mind was flooded with thoughts. Today was the day! He jolted up in his bed, and looked out the window. The sun was just rising, and it reflected off the walls in the city. He threw of his covers, and ran across the hall into his parent's room. He sprang up onto the bed, and began jumping around. He knew he would be in trouble later, but he was too excited to care.
His mom and dad awoke, and were smiling at their son's joy. They walked down the stairs into the living room, where a present sat on the table. He ran to it, and tore open the paper.
Present
Ezra smiled at the memory that played in his head. His parents always made him the best breakfast after he opened his present, and they would play with him all day. The memories made him smile, but the smile quickly faded away when he had another memory of after they were gone.
Two Years Ago
Ezra was bored out of his mind. He sat in his tower, just feeling sorry for himself. And he hated that. He was okay. At least, he tried to convince himself he was. Deciding to try to take his mind off the day, he walked into town, fully aware that it would be empty.
He did not dare go anywhere near his home. He did not trust his emotions to stay firm and unchanging, even though he wanted to cry.
He walked around, scavenging for any food he could find, which was very little considering most of it was going into people's stomachs at the time. He let out a small sigh. Why did he stay here, in his home city? He had a speeder. He could leave. He could drive away, and never look back. Maybe start a new life.
But he knew why he stayed.
Secretly, even though he had convinced himself otherwise, he wanted his parents to be alive. He wanted them to come home one day, and maybe he could go back to normal.
He shook his head as he walked the empty streets. Nothing would ever be the same if they came back. And they would not come back. They were dead. But no matter how many times he told people that, no matter how many times he had told himself, he could still feel a sliver of hope. But he could not let it consume him. If it did, he knew that he could never move on. But did he want to move on?
Present
Ezra stood up, done with reflecting of his past experiences of this day. He shook his head, and started walking back to the ship, still lost in thought. However, the sound of a speeder brought him back to reality. He looked up to see three Imperials on speeders, which halted right in front of him. On the one closest to him, there sat Kallus, holding something small in his hand.
"Happy Holidays, Rebel." He smirked, and threw what he had in his hand and sped off. Ezra looked down to what he through, and as he heard the beeping sound, he figured it out pretty quickly.
Adeline rushed through him as he bolted in the other direction as fast as he could, but the explosion caught up to him, and the world went black.
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Next part coming out tomorrow!
Read and Review!
~ Kavella ~