Chapter 4: Reunion
Hera and Ezra stood in silence for what it seemed like an eternity. The young man didn't know what to do and he felt a little nervous about what the Twi'lek was going to do.
Hera on the other hand, wanted to run and embrace her boy but she feared that Ezra would try to run away, so she decided to wait to see what he would do.
"H-Hera, h-hi!" Ezra said nervous. "Congratulations, Sabine told me about…your son." The last part had a little sadness.
Hera sighed and took a step forward. "Ezra…"
"Sabine told me you and Jacen visit her every month. You don't have to worry about me, I'm not going to be around when you are here, so…" He said.
"Ezra." The pilot said firmly and the young man stayed quiet.
She walked forward and wrapped her arms around him. Ezra was shocked but he hugged her back and buried his face in her shoulder and started to cry softly, he really missed his surrogate mother. The Twi'lek smiled through her tears and also started to cry and ran her hands through his hair.
"It's okay, hun. You're back." She whispered softly. "I'm not mad, I promise."
After a few minutes, Ezra broke the hug. "It's nice to see you again." He said.
Hera smiled and rested her hand on his cheek. "It's nice to see you too." She said.
Ezra leaned into the touch. "I'm sorry for leaving like that." He said.
"It's okay, hun. I understand why you did it." Hera said. "And don't think we forgot about you. You were always in our thoughts." She said.
"Sabine told me that you and she always tell Jacen stories about me." The Jedi said.
"That's right and he can't wait to meet his older brother." The Twi'lek said smiling.
"His older brother?" Ezra asked surprised.
"Yes, I hope it doesn't bother you." She said.
"No, it's just…" He started to say. "I never knew you saw as a son."
Hera smiled. "I have seen you as my son since the first Empire Day you were with us and I know Kanan thought the same thing." She said.
"Why you never said anything?" He asked.
The Twi'lek sighed. "Life happened. That's one of many things I regret, hun." She said sadly.
Ezra stayed silent. "I know I am pretty old to be adopted now but it would be bad if I call you mom?" He asked.
She gave him a choked laugh and hugged him again. "No, I think it would be wonderful if you call me mom." She said.
He smiled. "I think I'm ready to meet Jacen." He said.
Her smile widen. "C'mon, let's go to the Ghost." She said and headed to the ship.
Once they were in the cargo bay, Hera used her comm and called Sabine. "Sabine?" She asked.
"Go ahead, Hera." The Mandalorian answered. "
"Where are you?" The pilot asked.
"We are in the common room." She answered.
"We're heading that way." Hera answered.
"Okay." Sabine answered.
They headed to the common room and Ezra stared to feel nervous about meeting Jacen. When they stood in front of the door that led to the common room, Ezra took a deep breath and Hera placed a supporting hand on his shoulder.
The young Jedi sighed and the door opened. He was in shock when he saw the little boy sitting beside Sabine, he looked more like a human but Ezra saw Jacen had green hair and his ears were a little pointy at the end, they even had a greenish color.
Sabine looked up and smiled softly, then she leaned down and whispered something in Jacen's ear. The boy looked up and his eyes widen in surprise when he saw the new person standing next his mother.
He slid out from the booth and walked carefully to Ezra. The Jedi smiled and knelt to Jacen's level.
"I know you." Jacen said.
Ezra smiled. "You do?" He asked and Jacen nodded.
"Yeah, 'Bine and Mommy always talk about you." The boy said. "You're Specter six."
Ezra's smiled widen. "That's right, I'm Ezra Bridger and I'm your older brother, nice to meet you Jacen." He said and extended his hand.
"Nice to meet you too!" The boy said happily but instead of shaking Ezra's hand, he threw himself at the Jedi and gave him a big hug.
The young man was a little surprised but he wrapped his arms around Jacen and hugged him. The women smiled at the sight and Sabine left out a small sigh of relief.
When they broke apart, Ezra just ruffled Jacen's green hair and the boy giggled.
"If you are my older brother, does that mean Mommy also carried you in her belly?" He asked.
The grown-ups chuckled. "No, she didn't but she and your dad took me in when I was alone." He answered.
"What happened with your real mommy and daddy?" Jacen asked.
Ezra looked away for a second and then, he looked at Jacen again. "They were taken by the Empire when I was seven but the always taught me to stand for others." He said.
"Oh, I'm sorry you lost them." The boy said.
"Thank you but years later I found another family and they taught me to fight for others." Ezra said as he looked up and smiled at Hera.
The Twi'lek smiled in return and placed her hand on his shoulder.
"Hey Chopper." Ezra said when he saw the droid.
Chopper beeped in response and the Jedi chuckled.
After having dinner, Sabine and Hera couldn't stop smiling at the sight that greeted them when they finished picking up the kitchen and walked into the common room.
Jacen was leaning against Ezra's chest while they were watching a movie in a datapad, slowly, the little boy snuggled closer to Ezra and laid his head on Ezra's chest and fell asleep. The Jedi smiled and kissed him on top of his head, he really loved Jacen from the minute he saw him.
Hera walked forward and tapped Ezra's shoulder and motioned to her sleeping son, the young man passed the boy to the Twi'lek and slipped out from the booth and they made their way to the rooms.
When they were in front of Ezra's and Zeb's old room, the boy stirred lightly. "Mommy?" He asked.
"Yes, sweetheart?" Hera asked.
"Can Ezra sleep in my room?" He asked.
"I will, Jacen." Ezra said.
The boy gave him a sleepy smile. Hera also smiled. "Let's change you into your sleepwear, Ezra will be there in a few minutes." She said.
"Okay, mommy." The boy answered and they walked into the room.
Ezra and Sabine stood in the hallway with smiles on their faces. "He's a great kid." He said.
"I knew you were going to love him from the first moment." Sabine said.
The raven-haired man chuckled. "Think you can sleep without me while they're here?" He asked.
Sabine rolled her eyes playfully. "Please, I slept five years alone, I think I can survive a couple of days without you." She said.
Ezra pretended to be hurt. "Ow, that hurt." He said as he placed his hand on his chest.
The Mandalorian laughed and wrapped her arms around his neck. "Don't worry, I can give you something so you can dream with me." She said softly.
"Really? What is it?" He asked.
She stood up on her tiptoes and kissed him on the lips. He smiled into the kiss and wrapped his arms around her waist and deepened the kiss.
A few meters behind the young couple, Hera was watching them with a sad smile on her face. When they broke apart, Ezra just gave her a kiss on the forehead.
"Night 'Bine." He said.
"Night, Ez." She said.
He turned around and walked to Jacen's room. "Goodnight, mom." He said when he saw the Twi'lek.
"Goodnight, hun." She said and kissed him on the cheek. He smiled and walked into the room.
When the door closed behind him, Hera turned around and saw Sabine smiling softly with a dreamy look in her eyes.
The Twi'lek chuckled. "You know, I never thought I'd see the great and fierce Sabine Wren in love." She said.
The Mandalorian blushed. "Well, Ezra and I talked and I just told him…everything." She said.
Hera placed a hand on Sabine's shoulder. "I'm happy for both of you but while we are here, you can't sleep in the same room. I don't want to expose my son to that yet." She said.
"Hera!" Sabine said, her face was a bright red.
The Twi'lek chuckled. "I'm happy for you, I'm serious." She said.
"Thanks." Sabine answered.
"Have you two made plans? You know, the marriage kind?" The pilot asked.
The Mandalorian gave her a shy smile. "I told him that I want to spend the rest of my life with him." She said.
"That's wonderful, Sabine." The pilot said.
"Yeah, I know." She said and they stayed quiet. "You know, it took me two years to realize I had feelings for Ezra and when I decided to tell him, he left." She said breaking the silence.
"Sabine, you can't blame yourself." Hera said.
The Mandalorian sighed. "I know, but the reason it took me too long to realize my feelings was because…Mandalorians love for life." She said.
"You wanted to be sure." Hera said and the younger woman nodded.
"Yes. Many people don't understand why we Mandalorians are so closed off when it comes to feelings but the truth is that we took our time to analyze our feelings for someone." She said.
"To see if it is the right person." The Twi'lek said.
"Yes." Sabine said.
"Well, I always knew you and Ezra would end together." Hera said smiling. "Do you know when are you going to tell your parents?"
"Soon, I hope." Sabine answered.
Around midnight, Ezra woke up when he felt Sabine's force signature passing by his room. Her signature had too much fear, sorrow and regret so he got up slowly from his bunk and left the room quietly and went to look for her.
He found her outside, staring at the moons, he walked outside and stood behind her.
"You okay?" He asked her softly.
"Yeah, I'm good." She lied.
Ezra sighed and wrapped his arms around her waist from behind, the young woman leaned on his chest and her hand found his and they intertwined their fingers. The Jedi placed a small kiss on top of her head. "What's wrong? Tell me." He said.
"I had a nightmare." She answered.
"You want to talk about it?" He asked.
"Ashoka and I went to look for you and I found you but then, someone attacked the planet were you were living and they hurt you pretty bad." Sabine said as she felt tears in her eyes.
"You…you were dying in my arms and I told you that I loved you, you smiled and you said you loved me too and then…you died." She said and started to cry, then she turned around and buried her face in his chest.
Ezra hugged her tightly and rubbed her back. "I'm here, okay? And I will never leave you again, I promise." He said.
The Mandalorian continued crying; when she stopped, she looked up at the young man she loved with red and puffy eyes. "I'm sorry, Ezra."
"Why are you apologizing?" He asked confused.
"For all those times I turned you down and for not telling you my true feelings for you." She said.
"Hey, I'm not mad at you. I'm glad that you told me that you feel the same way I feel for you now, instead when we were fighting the Empire because I always dreamt taking you on a date." He answered.
"You want to take me on a date?" Sabine asked.
"Of course." He said.
She smiled. "You'll need to ask me properly, Bridger." She said teasingly.
He gave her his signature smile she loved so much. "Sabine, will you go out on a date with me?" He asked.
Her smile widen. "I'll be honored to go out on a date with you, Ezra." She said, then she stood on her tip toes and kissed him on the lips.
He kissed her back. When they broke apart, they rested their foreheads against each other's.
"I love you." She said.
"I love you too, babe." He said.
"I like the sound of that." She said. "Do you have more pet names for me?" She asked.
"Baby, love, dear and sweetheart." He said.
The young woman wrinkled her nose. "I'm not sure about three of them but I like you call me love and babe." She said.
"Alright, I'll use those." The Jedi said. "Do you have any pet name for me?" He asked.
She stayed quiet a few seconds and her eyes lit up when she found the right word for him. "Cyar'ika." She said.
"What does that mean?" He asked.
"It's Mandalorian and it means beloved, dearest or sweetheart." She said.
He smiled and kissed her forehead. "I like it." He said.
"C'mon. Let's go inside, it's getting cold." He said when he felt her shivering.
The next morning, Hera was woken up by Jacen who had walked into her room and shook her shoulder.
"Mommy, wake up." Jacen said.
Hera groaned and opened her eyes and meet with the blue ones of her son. "What's wrong, sweetie?" She asked.
"There's something you should see in the common room!" He said.
"What is it?" The pilot asked as she got up from bed.
"Come!" Jacen said as he ran to the door and exited the room.
The Twi'lek followed her son and she frowned when she saw a big smile on his face.
"Look, mommy!" Jacen said.
She looked inside the common room and smiled at the sight in front of her.
Sitting on the bench of the common were Sabine and Ezra, they were asleep with Ezra leaning against the backrest of the bench with Sabine snuggled on his side and he had his arm wrapped around her frame. Hera walked forward and took the two empty mugs that were on the dejarik table.
She guessed that probably Sabine had had a nightmare the night before and Ezra had comforted her and made some tea to relax but eventually, they fell asleep in the common room.
"Mommy? Are Ez and 'Bine going to be okay?" Jacen asked.
"Yes." Hera answered. "They're going to be okay, sweetie."
"Do I wake them up?" The boy asked.
"No, let them sleep for a little bit longer, hun." She said. "What do you say if we watch one of your favorite shows in the meantime?" She asked as she lifted the little boy up.
"Yeah!" Jacen said.
