AN: This was intended to be a oneshot, but I'm open to expanding it in either direction if anyone has interest in that or suggestions for where it should/could go. Don't own it. So much would be different if I did.

"I only wish..." she trailed off as her gaze shifted through her son and into the past, "He didn't even know."

A sorrowful silence descended upon them until Ezra broke it, "he knew." Hera's gaze snapped back to meet his eyes. "What?" she breathed. Ezra reached for her hands and pulled her gently down onto the bench next to where they stood. "He knew, Hera, I know he did."

Ezra closed his eyes, searching for the memory. "The night that he…when Kanan died, his only thoughts were for you. I could feel it. It was like he forgot about everything else. Nothing mattered to him in that moment except for you. I know he would've died for any of us, I mean, he almost did die for me. But in that moment, he wasn't thinking about anyone else. You were the only person he reached for. He died for you. For your son."

Hera shook her head as tears filled her eyes, "he wasn't reaching for me, Ezra, he just wanted me to stop…"

"No," he interrupted, "not like that. I mean with the Force. He was reaching for you. I'd never seen him so fiercely protective of any of us before. There were times when any of us might have died, times when he almost died, but he was so…I don't know. Resolved? Determined? Something changed."

"Hera looked at him sadly, "I'd like to believe that." The silence descended again but was quickly interrupted by Jacen requesting a snack from his mother. She smiled at him fondly as she led him away towards the galley. Ezra watched them go, then suddenly stood and turned toward Sabine, "Sabine, where did you say you found the remnants of the Jedi Temple?" Sabine stepped out of the shadows and moved to his side. "They're right where we found them, only there's so little left," she answered, resting her hand on his.

"Take us there?" Ezra asked, motioning towards the cockpit. Sabine stood frozen for a moment before silently agreeing as she moved towards the cockpit. She paused in the doorway and turned back, "Ezra? It's been so hard for her without him. Please, just…be careful with her." Ezra nodded, resolute. "I know, Sabine. But I know I'm right, and I think she deserves to know it too."

They landed a short while later. Memories of Kanan, the Loth-wolves, the Emperor, the battle, all of it threatened to overflow his mind. He shook his head free of them. He found Hera still in the galley with Jacen.

"Hey, Jacen?" Ezra called, "Sabine told me she wants to liven up these old rocks. Wanna help her?" Jacen leapt from his chair with excitement. "Can I go?" he asked his mother. Hera looked to Sabine for confirmation of her plan. She'd heard Ezra's suggestion and seemed to understand. "Come on, Specter Seven. Let's go choose our colors. I'm thinking a little purple would do these rocks some good." "And orange!" Jacen added as they walked down the hall towards the cargo bay. "And orange," Sabine echoed."

Why are we here, Ezra?" Hera asked once Jacen was out of range. She'd recognized the ruins of the Temple as the approached. He took a deep breath and grabbed her hand. "There's something I think you need to find, and I think you'll find it here," he answered vaguely. Hera hesitated only a moment, her brows furrowing in confusion, before nodding, "lead the way."

They descended into a cavernous area of the ruins, Ezra guiding them through his connection to the Force within the Temple. A soft glow illuminated a segment of rocks in the distance, and Ezra urged Hera on towards it. Once they reached the source of the glow, Ezra saw that it was the fist. He suddenly doubted his decision to bring Hera here. He didn't know if he could get in, and if he did, if what he was hoping to find would even be there. Just as he'd almost changed his mind, a low growl filled the cavern. Turning back towards the entrance, he found a Loth-wolf standing guard, as if telling him he couldn't leave. He turned back to the glowing fist and raised his own to rest upon it. At first, nothing happened, then suddenly, he and Hera were falling through a pitch-black darkness. Kanan's voice surrounded him, then Sabine's, Ahsoka's, until they were finally flung onto a hard surface. He looked up to find the darkness intertwined with blazingly white pathways and an infinite number of doors. Hope filled his heart. "

"Hera," he knelt to help her up. "It's still here." Hera shook her head and blinked hard as she recovered from the abrupt change in her surroundings. "What is this place, Ezra?" she asked in disbelief. "It's…time," he decided. "It's the past, the present, the future. It's an infinite number of possibilities. Some never were, some never can be, some are in flux, and some can never change."

"Ezra," Hera breathed in disbelief, "are you telling me we can save Kanan?" Ezra winced, "no. I'm sorry Hera. I wanted to, and I almost did, but then I realized, if I saved Kanan, the rest of us would die. He knew what he was doing, and he made a choice. He wouldn't want me to change it, and I can't honor him if I don't respect it." Hera's face fell, but she nodded in understanding before her understanding became confusion, "so why did you bring me here?" Ezra drew in a breath and hoped he hadn't been wrong. He reached out for Kanan and asked for the reassurance he wanted to give Hera. The door next to them shifted, and Kanan appeared in his bunk.

It was night, and he lay underneath the blankets, seemingly asleep. As they watched, he awoke. He reached over to the empty bed next to him and frowned. "Hera…" he whispered as he closed his eyes. A moment passed in which it seemed he'd gone back to sleep, but then his eyes flew open. "Hera," he said to himself again as he sat up. He laughed. Exuberance flooded his face. Tears wet his eyes as he stood, running his hands through his hair with an air of disbelief. Still he laughed, but as more tears fell down his face, the laugh became strangled and broken, until he was sobbing tears of anguish. He fell onto his knees with his head in his hands. Hera's own face had contorted to match Kanan's. She reached for the door, but Ezra grabbed her wrist and gently pulled it away.

"We can't, Hera," he told her with regret."Please," she begged, "couldn't I go in? Just for a moment? You can bring me back, I won't stay. How could that change anything?" Ezra shook his head, "Hera, I'm sorry, but you don't know that."

Then a voice, familiar yet foreign, spoke in his mind, "let her in." Ezra whipped his head around expecting to see someone standing there behind him, but he and Hera were still the only people on the path. He was unsure what exactly prompted him, but he found himself releasing Hera's wrist and instead nudging her towards the door. "Go," he said. "Quickly, while there's time."

Hera didn't need to be told twice. She fell through the door towards Kanan, grabbing onto him the second he was within her reach. "Hera!" Kanan jerked away from her in surprise. "How did you…wait. You're…different. Who are you?"

"It's me, Kanan," Hera replied as she reached out to touch his face. "Ezra brought me here, but I can't stay." Hera stroked his cheek with amazement. "How can this be real? It's you. You're really here." Kanan stepped back into her arms as she asked, "When is this?" Kanan, as mysterious as ever when it came to the Force, seemed to accept this with relative ease. "You've just been captured. We're coming for you."

"I know, love. You always do," she answered with a sigh. She nestled into his arms, and they simply stood together for a moment. "Hera, I think I understand what happens," Kanan finally spoke. "That's why Ezra brought you here, isn't it?" Hera's shoulders shook with a sob. "Please Kanan, let's not talk about that. Why were you crying?"

Kanan hesitated as if unsure whether he should tell her. "I felt him," he finally answered. Hera looked up at him with hope, "who, Kanan? Who did you feel?" Kanan didn't answer. Instead, he gently ran his hand down her back and around her hip to rest low on her stomach. "Hera," Kanan started with obvious worry and reluctance, "did something happen?"

"What?" Hera asked, confused. Kanan furrowed his brow as his own confusion increased. "I thought…you're some future version of my Hera, aren't you?" "That's right," Hera answered.

"Hera," Kanan's voice cracked with uncertainty, "my Hera, she's pregnant. I felt her change. I felt him. That's why I was crying. I was...overjoyed. Then I afraid."

"Oh Kanan," Hera gasped as she leaned into to kiss him. It was everything she needed, the missing piece that made her feel whole again. "I thought you never knew." Hera seemed to realize her mistake the moment she spoke, but it was too late to take back her words. She froze, glancing up at Kanan with panic in her eyes. "I was afraid of that," he said calmly. "I don't want to leave you Hera. I thought maybe there would be another way, but now more than ever, I won't think twice about dying for you. For our son." He pulled her even more tightly into his arms. "I'll try to make sure you know that if I can."

Hera shook her head, "no, I don't know if I could handle knowing so soon after…" she cleared her throat, "it was weeks before I found out, and we did things, important things, that maybe I wouldn't have done if I'd known. I don't know. What I do know, is that I needed this, Kanan. I needed to know that you knew." Kanan nodded and caressed her stomach gently with the back of his hand.

"Is he…" he gestured vaguely, unsure of how to ask the question that terrified him. "He's beautiful," answered Hera. Kanan let out a sigh of relief. "I wish you could see him, Kanan. He's perfect."

"Of course, how could he not be with you as his mother?" he said, kissing her forehead. "Hera, I've never been so happy in my life as I am in this moment. I've never been so sad either. Make sure he knows how much I love him. And don't forget how much I love you." He leaned down to kiss her just as a clanging in the hallway alerted them to someone else's approach.

Hera felt a strong tug that pulled her away from Kanan, and despite how hard she tried to hang on, he slipped right through her fingers. She tumbled out of the door and collapsed on top of Ezra who was struggling to pull her back. "No! Please, Ezra, just another minute," she pleaded as she looked through the door to where Kanan stood, silently staring at the place Hera stood just a moment before. All the pain of losing him came rushing back as raw as the first night he died. The door to his room opened and young Ezra entered, "Kanan! I think we have a plan for how to rescue Hera. Come on." Kanan closed his eyes for only a moment before turning back into his reality and following young Ezra out of the room. As they left, the room faded away into a softly glowing emptiness.

Ezra wrapped his arms around the now sobbing Hera as they sat on the path, regretting what could have been yet grateful for what they were given. It seemed like hours passed before Hera finally calmed enough to turn to Ezra and say, "thank you for letting me have him just one last time." Ezra rubbed her back and leaned his head against hers. "I'd give him to you forever if I could. But what you do have forever is knowing that he knew. He knew, and he loved it. He loved the idea of being with you, of having a child with you. He loved you and Jacen. More than anything."

Hera nodded and with one last wistful glance at the door, she pulled out of Ezra's arms to stand. He followed her lead, and they left the past behind, keeping it alive in their hearts.