I do not own Star Wars: Rebels in any capacity. Just the purely creative content of this fic.
Wow, I'm not going to lie: I wasn't expect to get so much interest in this fic. It's good though. It motivates me to write more XD
Enjoy Chapter 2!
Kanan's mind immediately began formulating a plan for how to get out of this. This woman didn't look like much of a fighter, especially with her fine dress and abundance of jewelry that was clinking together even as she just stood there. Probably just a civilian with a pistol for protection's sake. Then the question became: what was she doing with this boy? Why was she treating him like this? From what he could tell, she didn't seem particularly Force-sensitive.
Only a moment passed before she sneered at the boy in his arms. "What could you possibly want with this… filth?"
Reflexively, Kanan squeezed the boy against his chest. "If he's such filth, why do you care?"
The woman seemed almost bored. "What do you want? Ransom? I promise you, the brat isn't worth the trouble. So why don't you put him back where he belongs…" She indicated the hatch. "And we can all forget this incident ever happened?"
"He's a child!" Kanan declared, as if the woman didn't know. "What reason could you possibly have for treating him this way?!"
"He's an abomination!" she spat. "I never wanted him! Barnabas should have left him on the dirt planet he came from!" Then she schooled her features. "I can have you arrested," she said calmly. "You are not only trespassing on my ship, but the Grand Warden's residence? This won't end well for you."
Kanan had to think fast. Shifting the kid so that he was holding him with one arm, Kanan reached through the Force and waved a hand in her direction. "You're going to let me leave with this boy."
The woman's eyes widened. Then she shrieked, "You're one of those filthy Jedi!"
The Force nudged him to the side, and Kanan compiled just in time, the plasma bolt flying past him. He held onto the kid tightly as he rolled behind one of the couches.
Kanan could feel his shirt roughly rubbing against the back of his neck as Ezra clung to his collar. He couldn't blame the kid, having to live with this schutta. But even if his mind trick didn't work, his pistol certainly would. Unclipping it from his belt, he whipped around his cover and shot at her.
She let out a yelp of surprise before falling back unconscious. Yup, definitely not a fighter. Kanan allowed himself to relax slightly, but he knew he couldn't dawdle. Re-holstering his weapon, he held Ezra with both arms as ran out of the ship. He paid enough attention to know where the guards where, but otherwise, made a beeline to the outer wall. Once they got there, he knew the only way they were going to make it over was to jump with the Force. He tried not to think about how much he had been relying on it tonight.
"Hey," he whispered, attempting a lighthearted tone. "Wanna see something neat?"
Ezra only stared at him with a mixture of confusion and fear.
So much for making him feel better. Kanan easily jumped over into the adjacent alleyway. He didn't hear any commotion yet, which meant he had a head start. Deliberately blocking out every emotion he or the small child in his arms had to express, he yanked the black cloth off his face and calmly walked out into the main street. There were a few people, but not enough to act as sufficient cover. Kanan forced himself to walk slowly down the Yabol Opa streets. He was a father carrying his child home. There was nothing strange to see here.
Kanan could have sworn his heart stopped a dozen times before they reached his apartment. Even the slightest twitch of a local had set him on edge. It was only when he had locked the door behind him that he let himself relax. Leaning his back against the closed door, he slid to the floor with a sigh of relief.
That was when he realized that the child he was holding was still terrified. Kanan's shirt was damp with tears, Ezra's breathing stuttered and panicked. Kanan squeezed his arms more tightly around the young one. "You're okay," he whispered. "I promise, I'm here to help."
Through the Force, Kanan could sense Ezra's confusion. He felt safe, but he was still terrified. He was hurting, but he believed what Kanan was saying. He felt he could trust Kanan… but had no idea why.
"Let's get some sleep," Kanan suggested weakly. "We can figure things out in the morning."
This didn't seem to assuage any of the kid's fear or doubt, but he didn't protest either. So Kanan stood up and placed him on the ratty old couch the apartment had come with. He easily broke the cuffs off, tossing them aside with sneer of disgust. Ezra rubbed his wrists as Kanan placed an equally ratty and old blanket over him, forcing a smile. "You're okay," he repeated the upteenth time. "I promise."
Ezra looked up at him with his dark blue eyes, disbelief still shining in them. He reached out hesitantly, his small hand shaking as it barely peeked out from under the blanket. Kanan grabbed the hand and squeezed it. "I won't let anyone hurt you. Not ever again." He wanted to reach out through the Force and let the kid feel how sincere he was, but he hesitated. He shouldn't be using the Force this much. And he shouldn't be encouraging this… bond that seemed to be rapidly developing between them.
He didn't know how long it took, but eventually Ezra's eyes slipped closed, his hand loosening its grip. With a heavy sigh, Kanan sat back. What in Bane's name had he just done?
Of course, the most obvious point was that had just taken in a Force-sensitive being. But not a former Padawan, just some random kid. Had the Jedi Order still been around, Ezra probably would have been recruited as an infant. But nowadays, all the Force-sensitives were either being killed off or turned over to the Empire.
Which brought Kanan to the next point. What was this rich family doing with a Force-sensitive locked up in their ship? The only reasonable explanation he could come up with was that he was their child and they were ashamed of him. The Empire's propaganda against both Jedi and Force users has been extreme since the Purge, it wouldn't be surprising if some families in the inner rims were abusing their Force-sensitive children.
The thought made his heart ache, especially as he looked at the bruised up face of young Ezra. Kanan leaned over and brushed aside some errant strands of hair. What a horrible time to be born Force-sensitive.
Well, no matter what the circumstances, Kanan needed to figure out what to do next. He silently wished the for old Jedi temples to still be active, but he knew they weren't. Within this galaxy, there were virtually no safe places for a Force-sensitive to hide. He should know.
Maybe he should just stay with you.
Kanan abruptly stood, shaking his head. There was no way he could take care of someone else, especially someone as young as Ezra. Sure, maybe if the Jedi Order had remained in tact, he might have taken on his own Padawan at some point. However, the galaxy had changed. Not only had he never finished his own Jedi training, but the entire Empire was actively hunting down anyone even remotely like him. The Force was an outdated philosophy, and the only way to survive was to forget that the Force even existed.
He looked back at Ezra, who was sleeping soundly now. Who knows? Maybe he would get lucky and find a willing family to take him in. Honestly, almost anyone would be better equipped to take care of a child than him.
Even a Force-sensitive one? Who's going to be willingly take a Force-sensitive in when the Empire has practically outlawed them?
Kanan hit the side of his head. "You're not helping," he muttered to himself. He walked to his cabinets and sighed despondently at the empty liquor bottles that resided there. Of all times, now was when he could really use a drink.
Resigning himself to a completely sober night, he gave the kid one last glance before heading off to bed. He only hoped he could figure out a better plan of action come morning.
As it turned out, Kanan couldn't sleep. Whether it was the lack of alcohol, or the annoying amount of concern he was feeling for his new charge, he wasn't sure. All he knew was that he could lay on his right side. Or his left side. Or his back or his stomach, but none of these orientations were going to let him fall into a blissful unconsciousness.
So, he laid awake, painfully aware of world around him. The energy of the universe flowed, and there was no way he could completely ignore it. At least, not without the help of alcohol. And in his immediate vicinity, he could feel the young boy at the other side of the room, the Force flowing strongly through him. Kanan could even feel the kid's dreams, but they were unsettled and disjointed. Not at all like the dreams of a healthy child. After a while, Kanan got up and strode over to kneel by kid's side. He placed a hand on Ezra's head and breathed slowly, trying to make himself feel calm so Ezra could feel it too.
It took several breathing cycles, but the boy's breathing eventually matched his. The nightmares faded away, letting the child sleep in peace.
Kanan smiled. At least he was good for something.
Dawn came all too early, but Kanan bit his lip and accepted it. Sliding into his tiny kitchen, he started cooking some rudimentary breakfast. He didn't usually eat this early, but from what he felt last night, the kid needed the bulk. Ezra's bones should not be sticking out that much.
Kanan could feel Ezra waking up, and he turned around just in time to see him sitting up and rubbing his eyes sleepily. "Hey there, kiddo. How do you like your gartro eggs?"
Ezra flinched at his voice, then his eyes widened as they scanned the small apartment. His breathing quickened as he scrambled back until he hit the far end of the couch.
"Hey, hey, it's okay!" Kanan raised his hands placatingly. "Do you remember what happened?"
The kid frowned, his breathing still quick. Then it slowed, his eyes narrowing. He seemed to be remembering the previous night's incident.
"I found you," Kanan said, hoping to fill in the blanks. "I… felt that you were hurting."
Ezra finally looked up at him, though he didn't seem convinced. "W… Why?" he finally asked.
Kanan shook his head. "Why what? Why did I take you away?" It seemed like such a stupid question, but when he saw the incredulity on the boy's face, his heart broke. "They were hurting you, Ezra. You didn't deserve to be hurt like that."
Ezra quickly shook his head, burying his face into his knees. "I'm b-bad… I-I'm filthy…"
"No!" Kanan barked, more disgust rising up in him at woman in the yacht. "I don't care what anyone else has said, they were wrong. You're not bad! You're just… different."
Ezra didn't seem convinced. He gripped his legs tighter to his chest with trembling arms, his eyes regarding Kanan with an edge of caution. Then his eyes met with Kanan's and they filled with tears.
Unable to stand seeing the tiny child in so much distress, Kanan sat down next to Ezra, wrapping his arm around him. The boy in turn gripped Kanan's shirt, clinging to him tightly. And not just physically. Kanan could feel Ezra clinging to his mind, likely the only other Force-sensitive he had ever encountered. He probably wasn't even aware he was doing it. The poor kid was starved for any sort of contact, physical or otherwise. Almost on reflex, Kanan reached over and brushed his black locks out of his eyes. That was when he saw (remembered) the bruises. He sat back. "Are you hurt anywhere else?"
Ezra's body stiffened before he quickly shook his head. "'M fine."
He was lying. Kanan took a more studious look at the kid's face. The left side was particularly swollen, although he had a couple older bruises decorating his right cheek and jaw. His lip was split and he had several small cuts littering his face, probably because whoever had been beating him had been wearing a ring. Kanan could feel his blood boil. If this was the condition of just his face, he had no doubt there was even more damage underneath his clothes. "Ezra, I need to know if you're hurt. Can you take your shirt off so I can get a look?"
The boy's shoulders were tense as he fiddled with a couple of frayed fibers at the hem of his shirt. Which, Kanan just realized, was dirty and threadbare. He was about to comment when Ezra slowly moved to pull it off. As he did so, Kanan slid off the couch to kneel in front of him and get a better look.
Just as Kanan felt earlier, Ezra's ribs and hipbones were sticking out so sharply it was sickening. But even that fact seemed to pale in comparison to the bruises that were covering his chest and midsection. Some were recent, dark purple in color, while others were older in various shades of green and yellow. Ezra wrapped his skinny arms around his chest, and Kanan could see the bruises littered along their length as well.
Leaning forward, Kanan gently let his fingers prod over the worse-looking injuries. He paused when Ezra's breathing hitched, but he needed to do this. Last thing he wanted was a child dying of internal bleeding on his watch. The worst seemed to be an almost black bruise on the left side of his rib cage. Kanan could feel heat radiating from it when his fingers hovered over it, and Ezra flinched away and whimpered when he touched it. "Hey hey, it's okay..." Kanan whispered, forcing himself to smile.
Continuing his inspection, Kanan leaned forward slightly to get a look at the boy's back. There were dozens of purple and red stripes. They looked to have been inflicted by something like a belt. What was even worse were the old scars barely visible underneath them, skinny jagged lines where someone had actually used some sort of switch on the kid.
At this point, Kanan's lungs were burning with anger. Who would do this to a child? This obviously hadn't been a one time incident or an accident. Someone had been continuously and deliberately abusing him for who knows how long.
"I-I'm sorry…" Ezra whimpered, his body trembling as he glanced up at him fearfully.
Kanan quickly put up a mental barrier, realizing that Ezra was sensing his anger and mistakenly believe that it was aimed at him. It had been a mistake to let the kid cling to his mind through the Force earlier. He had no idea how this bond had developed so quickly, but he knew he shouldn't be encouraging it.
He placed a hand on Ezra's shoulder which made him flinch again, but Kanan was determined to prove that he wasn't going to hurt him. "I'm not angry at you," he said, keeping his voice low and unthreatening. He took a deep breath and forced himself to approach this more clinically. "Does it hurt when you breathe?"
Ezra was still trembling, but he slowly nodded, placing a hand over his ribs. "A l-little…"
It was likely a broken rib. "Have you been coughing at all? And noticed any blood when you cough?" To his relief, Ezra shook his head. In that case, there wasn't too much that could be done. As horrible as it all looked, only time was going to heal these injuries. Although he made a mental note to try and find some sort of painkiller. "Okay, you can put your shirt back on." He also made a note to get the kid some new clothes that actually fit him.
Ezra did as he told then wrapped his arms around himself and shaking like he was cold. Now that Kanan had his block put up, it was a little harder to read how the kid was feeling. "You cold, kid?" Ezra shook his head, his hair flopping from side to side.
That was when the bitter smell of smoke hit his nostrils. "Ah, dammit!" Kanan ran back to the kitchen and turned the heat off. The oil he had put in the pan had burned and blackening. "Alright, let's try this again…"
After he cleaned the pan, he stayed in the kitchen while he heated up more oil and pulled out the remaining eggs he had. He was going to have to get more food, too. He was in the middle of stirring the eggs up when he noticed Ezra out of the corner of his eye. The kid was standing at the edge of the kitchen, his hands twisted in his shirt nervously as he stared wide eyed at the food Kanan was making. Kanan was relieved to see the kid up on his feet. His legs were a little shaky, but it meant they probably weren't injured.
"Food's almost ready," Kanan tried to say casually. "I can't vouch for the taste though." Spices were expensive, and Kanan had learned a long time ago how to stomach plain or foul tasting food for the sake of survival.
His worry was unwarranted though. When he first put down their plates of food, Ezra had hesitated. But once Kanan assured him it was okay to eat, the kid quickly shoveled the eggs down without complaint. Kanan had to admit: it was kind of cute in a sad sort of way.
Once they were done eating, Kanan glanced at the time. He was going to have to leave for work soon, but first he wanted to get a few things straight. "Ezra, I want to ask you a few questions, okay?" It took a moment, but the kid eventually nodded. "Alright… first off, who was that woman on the ship? Is she your mother?"
Ezra shook his head. "Aunt Sarai."
"She's your aunt?" The boy nodded, but didn't add anything more. "Was she… I'm assuming she's the one who hurt you?"
Ezra looked down at his hands before nodding. "I was bad…" he mumbled.
"Stop saying that," Kanan growled. "You're not bad. You're just a kid, and your aunt is a piece of kung." Ezra flinched at the vehemence in Kanan's voice, making him sigh. He was in way over his head. "Why were you with her in the first place? Where are your parents?"
"My parents are dead," Ezra said monotonously, his head still down. "They were traitors to the Empire and executed when I was a baby."
It was said so matter-of-factly, that Kanan almost didn't believe him. Then again, it's not like Kanan would have had any emotional response to news about his own parents. He never knew him, so they were no better than strangers. "So you've always lived with your aunt?"
Ezra nodded more slowly this time, as if he were uncertain of his answer. He was fiddling with the hem of his shirt again. "A-And my uncle and c-cousin," he murmured.
"Do you know if you have any other family? Family or friends that you trust and can take you in?"
Finally looking up, Ezra glanced at Kanan with a stricken expression. But as soon as he did, the expression faded and he looked away. "N-No."
Kanan frowned at the response. He didn't think the boy was lying, but the question obviously held a deeper meaning for Ezra. He was tempted to reach forward and try to sense what exactly Ezra was feeling, but caught himself before he did.
Of course, all of this brought Kanan to square one. He had no idea what he was going to do with the boy. If Ezra didn't know or trust anyone else, Kanan had no idea where he could take Ezra where he would be safe from the Empire and its sympathizers. Leaning back in his chair, he rubbed his face and glanced at the clock again. "Alright, kiddo. Listen, I gotta go to work. Stay here and don't make any noise while I'm gone."
Ezra watched as Kanan stood up and started to change his clothes. "You… You're leaving?" he asked, the panic evident in his voice.
"Just for a few hours. I need to make money, especially now that I have two mouths to feed." Pulling off his current set of clothes, he pulled his other set out. He gave them a small sniff, cringing slightly. At least they were fresher. He glanced over his shoulder and saw Ezra squirming uncomfortably in his seat. Once Kanan finished getting dressed, he walked back over and knelt next to him. "I know this is probably all really overwhelming. But trust me, okay?"
For the first time, Ezra locked gazes with Kanan. "I… I do." He still sounded confused and a little fearful, but Kanan could tell that the boy meant it.
And that made Kanan smiled. "Good."
The next chapter will be from Ezra's POV.
Please review and let me know what you think!
