It took Hera nearly a week to find any hint of a larger group of rebels on Coruscant, even with Chopper listening in on languages she couldn't understand. During the course of the week she had been to more than a dozen different bars, spending hours just listening, then coming back to their place only to spend yet more time in a bar being ogled by strange men. Fen had not budged an inch. She refused all arguments and cajoling to Hera's increasing irritation. She had tried to ask the bartender if it was okay that only one of them worked, but that had required a hasty lie to explain that Fen was sick in order to prevent him from evicting them on the spot. And still, Fen refused. Annoyed and stressed, Hera had taken to spending more and more time looking for rebels.
She understood what Fen had gone through, she really thought she did, but this intransigence was deeply frustrating. As she had told Fen in several arguments, it might be hard, it was hard for Hera, but they didn't have many options as their funds continued to dwindle. Her current singular and slender ray of hope was that once she found rebels, they would help her fund a move to a different room, ideally one that didn't include working in a bar.
The tenth night of their stay on Coruscant found Hera at yet another bar, this one the furthest yet from their room where Fen likely still sat, as reserved and uncommunicative as she had been when Hera left. Anger at Fen was burning closer and closer to the surface, and yet, despite all her flaws, she would occasionally give Hera a brilliant smile that melted her heart without effort, or say exactly the right thing at exactly the right time and all would be forgiven. Even now, annoyed as she was, Hera missed her, worried about her, her presence always near the forefront of Hera's mind with a strength that was almost concerning. How quickly this girl had dominated her.
Despite the ghost of Fen in her mind, she had a job to do. The room around her was continuing to fill up, the sounds of idle chatter and drunken laughter her constant companions these days. From the side of the room, she watched, observing the crowds as they shifted and swelled, carefully focused on the discussions around her. It seemed that Ascention week was coming up, a large series of parties planned, but that would be on the higher levels, most people up their would even get time off. Down in the lower levels there might be fireworks, maybe some confetti, certainly not a day off of work. She tuned out that discussion. Nothing interesting.
A couple walked into the bar, catching Hera's eye as they scanned the room, clearly looking for someone with a focus that seemed out of place for this establishment. Expressions clearing as they found their friend, they went and sat down directly in front of Hera, who turned her attention to them. The conversation started out innocuous enough that she almost turned her attention away. "Enough of this, did you get the information or not?" One of the people, a human woman, at the table hissed." Hera snapped her attention back, still casually sipping her drink.
"Not here Driller." The woman hissed. "This stuff is sensitive, I don't want this falling into the wrong hands."
"So you did get something?"
"I think so, but please, don't ask me anymore." The woman looked around nervously, but Hera was pretending to be engrossed with the couple dancing on a table several feet in the other direction.
"Got it right from under the Moff's nose." The final member of the group whispered smugly.
"Rysha!" The woman hissed, swatting her partner in the arm. Hera had to restrain a smile. She had something. "Let's get back to the dojo, we can talk more about it there." They paid for their drinks a few minutes later. Hera followed as soon as they were out of the door.
Twenty feet off, the trio walked, heads together, discussing something quietly. One of them peeled off and Hera's desire for Fen to be at her side rose again to the surface. She fell a little further back of the main group and pulled out her comlink
"Fen, are you there?"
"Yeah." Her voice was completely neutral.
"Can you come and find me, I'm walking back down the main street towards the bar, I think I found some people who know something."
"Okay."
Putting her comlink back, Hera continued to follow, keeping a solid twenty feet between her and the pair at all times. They looked back a couple of times, but never seemed to spot her. Yet another gift from her father. Hera quashed the sudden pain in her heart quickly. This was no time for sentiment. A few minutes later, Fen appeared at her side, as sudden as a shadow.
"Hey."She whispered, Hera's heart leapt in a way that only had a little to do with being startled.
"Hey. I'm following those two up ahead, the woman with the blonde hair." Fen's eyes narrowed as she caught sight of their quarry. "What can you tell about them?" It was a bit of a risk, asking Fen to use the Force, but it was a subtle enough act and it had just occurred to her that this could easily be a trap for people just like her.
Fen paused for a moment, something about her essence changing slightly as she called upon the Force. They kept walking, Fen moving like a predator, silent on her feet, eyes focused briefly with unnatural intensity.
"It's not a trap or anything." She whispered, returning to normal. "They seem nervous, but not malevolent. They're concerned someone is following them, but it seems like they always think that. The woman is also very excited about something she has in her pocket, she keeps fiddling with it."
"Thanks." Hera relaxed slightly.
They continued to follow down alleys and up levels for another twenty minutes, apparently without being spotted, before the pair turned into a building with a dimly flickering sign that announced that this was the Yinchom Dojo.
"There's quite a few people inside." Fen muttered to Hera under her breath as a trandoshan walked passed. Hera nodded.
"What's the mood in there?" She asked, trying to contain herself as Fen's eyes brightened and then snapped shut, brows furrowing briefly in concentration.
"Nothing to be concerned about. They seem to just be training. Wait." Hera held her breath. "Hmm, there's a few that seem a little worried and excited, but it could be nothing."
"Okay. Let's go in."
"Both of us?" Hera was already following, and, despite their recent arguments, she knew Fen would follow.
A little bell rung as she opened the door, walking in, shoulders straight. At first glance it seemed to be just a training dojo. Her eyes slowly swept the room, passing for now, the groups fighting on the floor. Her attention turned to the back where she spotted one of the people from the bar. The woman was staring at her.
"She's nervous." Fen whispered in her ear, following her gaze.
"Let's go convince her she has nothing to be worried about."
The woman didn't make a move as Hera advanced, her gaze unwavering. "How can I help you?"
"I think we can help each other. I'm Hera, this is Fen." She extended a hand. The other woman didn't take it.
"I'm Juahir. What help do you think you can provide?" Her tone was guarded, but not totally unwelcoming.
This dance was familiar, it was easy enough to follow the steps. "I think we can help you with your … extracurricular work." She was dressed in an instructors uniform, probably a cover.
"You think so?" The woman paused for a long time, staring at each of them in turn. Hera could feel Fen twitching with impatience beside her but all she could do at this point was hope she held her tongue. She complied for a few more moments as Juahir looked them up and down a few times. "Follow me."
They were lead into a small, windowless office, almost a supply closet. As the door closed behind them, Fen tensed. Hera twined their fingers together for a moment. It would be alright. "I saw you in the bar, didn't I?" Her voice was lightly accusatory.
"You did."
"And you were listening?"
"I was." Lying would serve nothing here.
"You are … sympathetic to our cause?"
"We are, very much."
Juahir nodded slowly, contemplating. "Well. We're always looking for help." Beside her, Fen relaxed. "Do you have experience in the field?"
"We do, we've just arrived from Ryloth, we've been working with the organization there."
"Ryloth." She nodded again. "I think we can find a use for you two. Do you have any particular skills?"
Hera smiled. "I think you'll find we do." She turned to Fen, in her eyes, there was a question. "Go for it." It was time to commit.
A pause as Fen closed her eyes and focused. Then, everything in the room not nailed down slowly rose into the air, hovering several inches. Juahir's mouth dropped open. The furniture slowly lowered itself to the ground. "Jedi." A wide smile slowly spread across her face. "This must be my lucky day. I think you guys are going to work out great."
Fen dropped her hands, grinning slightly, the rush of the Force pounding through her veins, their calculated risk seeming to have paid off. "Do you have something in mind that we can do?"
"And your skills?" Juahir, the rebel asked Hera, barely taking her eyes from Fen. This kind of attention, awe, disbelief, the mild fear of the unfamiliar, she emphatically did not mind.
"I'm a pilot, mechanic, tactician, my father got me to do all sorts of things."
"Your father?" Hera seemed to catch herself suddenly. Still a sensitive subject. Fen shifted a few inches closer, their shoulders almost brushing.
"My father is Cham Syndulla, leader of the rebellion on Ryloth." She stood taller at this. Despite it all, she was his daughter. Fen smiled at the pride in her voice.
"Cham Syndulla, yes I know of him. Really, you're his daughter?" Hera nodded, from his angle, Fen saw her clench her jaw. She leaned against Hera. "Wow! What are you doing here on Coruscant."
"The spark of rebellion we have on Ryloth, it must spread past our world, to cover the galaxy if we are to succeed."
"And they sent you?"
"In a manner of speaking. Do you have something we can do?" Hera repeated Fen's question, changing the subject.
"Something you can do… I'll have to make a few calls, can you check back in a day or two?" Hera nodded. "Where are you staying?" Juahir stopped them as they were turning to leave.
"Above the Black Hole, a couple levels down." Hera named their bar with a sour twist of her mouth. Fen tended to agree with that assessment. She would rather go almost anywhere, except perhaps back up to the Temple. The bar made her want to peel her skin off, to take a hot shower, run as far as she could. She didn't need to be downstairs to sense the intentions and moods of the patrons, especially regarding the other servers. For a moment, Fen hoped their new ally would give a similar expression, get them out of there. She only nodded, dashing Fen's hopes.
"Okay. Good to know where to find you."
Fen and Hera left the dojo in silence. "Let's head back." Hera sighed.
"Can we go somewhere else?" She sensed the sudden irritation in Hera's mind and strengthened her own resistance in response. Hera could pretend she understood what Fen had been through, what she was going through, but that could not be true.
"Fen…"
"Not somewhere else to stay … just go somewhere for a while." Somewhere that didn't reek, that didn't make her want to scream, somewhere safer.
"We have to be getting back. They're expecting both of us in the bar." Hera placed an accusatory emphasis on the 'both' and Fen fell further back into a defensive position.
"Hera, I can't do that and you know it."
"They're expecting you, I can't keep covering for you forever! If you don't do what we agreed to they're going to kick us out! Would you rather sleep on the street?"
"You agreed to that Hera. I didn't and I won't." She was almost yelling but she didn't care. She was frustrated by this circular argument, by her filthy surroundings, by the home that no longer felt like home. She had come all this way, they had escaped slavery together! If she went down to that bar, they would hardly be better off. She had told Hera as much, but it hadn't seemed to move her.
"Fen please, it's not awesome and I know it'll be hard for you, but we really don't have any other options."
"Yeah. We do. We can just find somewhere else to live." This argument had also been found to be previously unacceptable. Hera recognized this. With a sigh, she threw her hands in the air and walked away. Lacking other options, Fen followed, fuming in silence.
As the reached the outside of the bar, Fen moved to go around back but Hera grabbed her arm. "Can you do this for me, please?" There was a look of desperation in Hera's eyes that Fen hadn't expected.
"Hera…"
"If you don't we are going to be out here, on the streets and despite what you want to believe, it's a lot more dangerous for me out here than it is for you." Fen blinked in confusion, briefly unable to respond as her mind processed.
"What do you mean?"
"I'm a twi'lek. Here on Coruscant, alone. At least when people look at you they give you the benefit of the doubt. My people have a reputation."
"Oh." Fen's voice was very small in her own ears. It was a fact she had not considered.
"I may not have been through as much as you have, but believe me, I feel their eyes on me the same way. So please, can you do this for me? Just for a little while?"
Every fiber of her being wanted to resist the urge, her legs were on the verge of walking her up to her room and hiding. But Hera looked at her, into her heart, desperate, pleading. She could not say not to this, not to her, not now. Ignoring her body, which was still trying to go into revolt, she nodded, heart rate increasing. The smile that broke across Hera's face was like the dawn. For a moment, Fen calmed. She stared at her face, memorizing the angles and planes. She would need it soon. "Thank you." Hera whispered, grabbing her hand as she lead her inside.
It took an alarming amount of willpower to force herself to cross the threshold as the wall of music, chatter and the clinking of glasses hit her ears. She pulled the Force around her as a shield, eyes scanning the room, quickly judging the current occupants as she followed Hera up to the bar. They seemed to be human for the most part, she let out a quiet breath of relief, humans she could manipulate. "Your friend feeling better?" Fen whipped her attention back to the current threat : the bar and the man who had just risen from under it, scanning her up and down.
"We're ready to get to work." Hera said, still holding Fen's hand out of the bartender's line of sight.
He nodded, still with his eyes fixed on Fen. Her skin crawled as she retreated further into the Force. "Get to work then."
Together, they turned around the bar, heading for drink trays, Hera's hand slowly pulling away from hers. The bartender was still focused on her, she could feel it, like a knife in her back. Fen stopped, whirling back around, a dangerous idea in her mind, but once it had occurred to her, she had not the will to stop it. She heard Hera hiss her name as she walked back, eyes focused on his, bold with her idea. Fen stopped in front of him. "You will leave us alone." She made a small gesture with her hand to channel the Force, pushing against his mind, trying to worm her way inside. Anger would make this last. The thought was no more than a whisper in the back of her mind, but she complied, fear twisting her heart. Fen pulled on the chord of her anger, jerking it to the surface. WIth nothing but her rage and her will, she forced herself into the man's mind, enforcing her command.
He staggered back from her, jaw a little slack. Fen stood tense, eyes wide, breath racing, ready to run if it failed to take. "I will leave you alone." His eyes were slightly gazed for a moment and then cleared, looking right past her. A smile spread across her face and satisfaction warmed her trembling limbs. It had worked. She had used the dark side again, her smile flickered slightly, but it had worked. Emboldened she grabbed Hera, who was staring at her, mouth agape and pulled her back upstairs.
"I don't think we'll have a problem with him anymore." She couldn't help but grin as she passed the bartender again, who didn't even glance in their direction.
"What did you do?" There was less happiness in Hera's voice than Fen had expected.
"I made him ignore us." She couldn't keep all the smugness out of her voice, reaching back, feeling the befuddled mind of the man they had left behind.
"You can do that?"
"Yep. I may have to repeat it every once and a while, but I don't think we'll have to spend time in that bar anymore." The door to their little room groaned open, looking brighter than before. Possibilities were opening in front of her eyes. As a padawan she had never even tried a mind trick, but the mind had always been her speciality and now, they were open to her, more than ever before.
"You're amazing." Hera smiled as they flopped back down onto the bed together, her hand gracing the side of Fen's face. She leaned into the contact. "I just hope no one saw that." A small trickle of icy fear bled through her happiness. There had been a lot of people down there, She hadn't been overly careful. She also hadn't told Hera about the incident with the speeder. Shaking her head, she pushed the worry from her mind.
"I'm sure it's fine."
That night she had a strange dream of a cloaked figure with a bright red lightsaber endlessly following her. She stopped, tried to confront it, ask what it wanted but it only laughed and whispered You. The next time she awoke, the dream faded from her mind like dawn mist.