A/N: Yes, Zeb is staying! (Yay!) He's a hard one to write, but I gave it my best shot here. I hope you guys are still reading. I'm attempting to update once a week...so hopefully it won't be long until the next time. Please let me know what you think. I live for your reviews!

14.

"His vitals are strong," Hera reported from where she stood, monitoring the strapped in Lasat on the medbay table. "He should be coming around soon."

"I think he'll be fine," Kanan said, standing on the other side of the Lasat, examining his face. He had apparently fought it out with whomever had frozen him in carbonite. The creature's face was cut in several places, the cuts somewhat healed, but not completely. Kanan hadn't really seen many Lasat in his life and hadn't expected to after the Empire had practically exterminated the whole race from their planet of Lasan. "Hera...if we hadn't looked in the box..." He looked up at her, "this guy would've been a trophy on a wall for that Hutt. I've got a bone to pick with that Gravik guy if I ever see him again."

"You and me both," she replied, taking a cool cloth and wiping the Lasat's face gently.

The creature came around slowly, groggy from the sedative on top of everything else. This time, he seemed to be able to discern shapes in front of him, but he didn't make eye contact with them or focus on them at first. His large green eyes blinked in the bright light shining down.

"Take it easy there..." she soothed. "How do you feel?" She reached out to place a hand on his shoulder.

"W..wh..where am I?" The Lasat turned his head both ways, attempting to see his surroundings with no success. His anxiety seemed to increase the longer he tried to see something.

"You're on our ship, the Ghost. I'm Hera Syndulla and this is Kanan Jarrus." Kanan put a hand on the creature's other shoulder. "You're safe. We're not going to hurt you."

"Yeah, okay...if you mean well, why am I strapped down?" He growled suspicously as he strained against the straps that held him down.

"We were a little worried you might think we were the ones that put you in that block of carbonite. You woke up a bit grouchy, but it's understandable." Hera said, reaching over and released the straps. He began to sit up, then groaned and laid back against the pillow.

"Just rest," Kanan added. "You're weak from hibernation sickness. The blindness is only temporary. Any idea how or why you were turned into a Lasat popsicle?"

The fur-covered creature thought a moment, then shook his head. "No. It's all a blur in my mind. What...what did you say your names were again?"

"I'm Kanan and that's Hera."

"I'm Zeb. Garazeb Orellios. Thanks for gettin' me out of there."

Zeb opened his eyes and for the first time in two days, he was able to see. Kanan had brought him up from the medbay yesterday, and had settled him into quarters across from his own. He'd slept almost around the clock, waking up only to eat, and then collapsing back down into a deep sleep.

Now he was able to look around the tiny room and see details, although they were blurry. There were two bunks, but other than that, the room was pretty much empty. His clothes, now free of blood and a lot cleaner than they had been, were neatly folded and stacked on a chair sitting to the side. With a groan, he sat up and slowly got dressed. It was a long process because his equilibrium was off, and when he was done, he had to rest for a while.

The male and female that had helped him, Kanan and Hera, were certainly different than he'd first thought. He had to work hard not to let a thread of suspicion weave its way into his mind; he'd not had anyone treat him well in such a long time. After the fall of Lasan to the Empire, he had found very few friends in the galaxy. The ones that recognized him as a Lasat felt as if he was bad luck, and they either ignored him or tried to take him prisoner to turn him in to the Empire for a few credits. The ones who didn't recognize him as a Lasat merely thought he was some sort of strange Wookie and left him alone. But these two...they had fed him, dressed his wounds and told him he was safe here. He felt caught between disbelief and an overwhelming feeling that he owed them a debt...a debt he meant to repay.

Unsteady, but stronger now after a rest, he moved across the room and opened his door. Their voices came to him from somewhere down the hallway. He couldn't make out the words at first, and only caught bits and pieces as he walked into the hallway.

"...think he was meant to be here."

"You felt it? That he was...really MEANT to be here?"

"Yeah."

Zeb huffed out a sigh and shuffled his feet a little as he made his way into the small common area and kitchen. He didn't want them to think he was trying to eavesdrop. As they looked up at him, he took the seat across, lowering himself down with a grimace. "I thought a change of scenery was due, now that I can actually...uh...heh...see the scenery a bit." He looked from one of them to the other, noticing a strange expression on the Twi'lek's face. Worry. About him?

Hera reached out to take his big paw in her hands. "How are you feeling?" Her voice was warm and kind. The way she asked let Zeb know again that she really did care. He tried furiously to blink away the tears that suddenly threatened his vision.

"Better. I'm uh...sorry about before. If I'd been able to see both of you, I would have known-that people like you...uh...didn't mean me any harm." He swallowed hard, still fighting his emotions and uncomfortable with showing it. "Not being able to see...made it worse."

"We understand. More than you could know," Kanan said softly. This Lasat was probably one of the last of his kind. Kanan understood that feeling well. His research with Chopper and Hera on the rifle earlier this afternoon had given him a lot to think about, and if it was true, he and Zeb were a lot more alike than Zeb knew.

"Zeb." Hera began, trying to change the subject to ease Zeb's anxiety while Kanan seemed to be musing on something. "You don't remember any of what happened to you?"

"Well...I had been taking a job or two here and there as a bodyguard after...after Lasan." A quick check of their eyes let him know he didn't have to explain any more than that. "A few times, I had a job as a bouncer at some of the clubs on couple of planets near Lothal. I..." He shook his head. "I don't know. I seem to remember a fight, a shot to the face, then everything turning fuzzy." He shrugged and rubbed the back of his neck. "Karablast. I'm just not sure."

"It's okay." Hera soothed. "Be patient. It might come back to you later."

"How did I get here...as in here on your ship?" Zeb asked.

"Well...that's a bit of a story." Kanan began, giving half a smile to Zeb. "We...well...we ship cargo for people who don't want a lot of questions. We don't ship slaves or spice, but...other than that, we don't mind slipping past an Empire blockade or two, if you know what I mean. This guy named Tonnus Gravik contacted us to deliver a carbonite-frozen sabercat to a Hutt. Specifically, Jabba the Hutt on Tatooine. Any of those names sound familiar?"

"Maybe that Hutt guy. But not because I've had any dealings with him personally or anything."

"Well, this Gravik was a smuggler in a bad spot with Jabba. Supposedly this rare 'sabercat' was to pay off a debt. I opened the container, but...but I didn't know...about you. I mean I saw your-" he gestured, "-paw, but I didn't take the cover completely off. I just assumed the guy was telling the truth. The story seemed legit to me at the moment." He shook his head. "I'm sorry. I should've asked more questions."

"There was no way you could've known." Zeb said.

"Yeah, but all the same..." Hera began. She reached into a pocket of her flight suit, then set a large stack of credits down on the table in front of Zeb. "It wouldn't be right of us to keep these."

Zeb looked at the golden bars and then back up at Hera. "This is what you got paid for the job?" He asked slowly.

"Yeah. Half of it, anyway." Hera shrugged. "We were supposed to get the other half on Tatooine. Anyway, it's yours."

Zeb shook his head. This was a lot of money, money that he knew they must need. Running a ship had to be expensive. By not delivering him to the Hutt as they'd contracted to do, he realized that they were losing out on a ton of credits. Without even batting an eye. It said a lot about them.

He narrowed his eyes and looked from the Twi'lek to the human with the blue-green eyes. They were so different than the people he'd had dealings with. Honest and straightforward. Concerned with doing the right thing. A lot like the Honor Guard of Lasan. "No. I owe it to you. For saving me." He pushed it back across the table to them.

"Hey, now look...we haven't done anything..." Kanan began to protest.

"Don't take this the wrong way, but shut up about it. I'm not likely to change my mind once I have it made up, so you're wasting your time, friend." The words were brusque, but he smiled as he leaned back, crossing his hairy arms across his chest.

"You're crazy to turn down credits." Kanan shook his head, but his eyes were still studying Zeb, Weighing and measuring him. "But maybe you won't turn this down." He said cryptically before he got up, went into his quarters and came back with something large in his hands. He held it out to Zeb wordlessly.

Zeb's blurry vision didn't allow him to see it at first, but then his large peridot-colored eyes widened. Stunned, he held out his hands as Kanan placed the weapon into them.

"This is a bo-rifle, isn't it? The exclusive weapon of the Lasan Honor Guard." Kanan waited for his reaction.

Zeb was speechless. Ever since he'd awoken in this strange place, something had been missing. His bo-rifle had been his prized possession; it was the only thing that he had from his past. After awakening on the Ghost, he'd never dared hope that somehow he'd find it again.

He trailed his fingers over the weapon fondly. "Yes. It's mine." He said simply, feeling the tears well in his eyes.

Kanan placed his hand on Zeb's shoulder wordlessly sharing the feeling of loss with the Lasat. He'd informed Hera of his suspicions and while Zeb had been sleeping, they had searched for information on the holonet. Together, they'd figured out what the rifle was. Kanan knew a little about the Lasat from his studies in the Jedi temple so he'd been able to put two and two together.

"Hey. Uh...Don't advertise that fact." Zeb said softly, blinking away tears before they fell. "With all the bucketheads about now a days..."

"Don't worry." Hera said, leaning forward to catch his eyes. "We know how to keep secrets..."

"And we're no friend of bucketheads or any Imps, for that matter." Kanan grinned.

"Now you guys sound like my type of people." Zeb said with admiration.

"Zeb, feel free to stay with us. As long as you want to." Hera offered, mostly because she trusted Kanan's feeling about the fierce Lasat warrior sitting in front of her, but also because she could sense his brave, honest spirit. The gleam in his eyes at Kanan's remark, and the note in his voice said more than his words ever would. He would fit in with them, she was sure. Kanan's words that he felt that Zeb was supposed to be with them, also bolstered her confidence about this decision.

Ever since she had left home, her eventual plan was to have her own 'crew' to fight the Empire. She didn't know how much good one ship and a few people could do, but she had to do something. Her heart had known that Kanan would be an asset if he decided to come with her and it wouldn't lead her astray now.

Not wanting to accept charity longer than he absolutely needed to, Zeb struggled to find the right way to answer. Kanan broke in first, however, "Maybe we can locate this Gravik sleemo and find out who put you in that block of carbonite. I think paying him another visit might give us some info. I don't appreciate being lied to."

Again, Zeb's eyes gleamed. "Now that sounds like a plan I can get behind." He grinned, pounding one fist into his other hand at the thought of confrontation. "Count me in."

"I'll put some feelers out." Hera said, getting up. "It's time for me to check in with Chop anyway. Maybe you can grab a nap, Zeb." She leaned over, letting the sweetness tinge her voice the way she knew would drive Kanan crazy. "Think you could make something to eat for all of us, love?" she asked the Jedi, who nodded. Then, she let her eyes slide to Zeb. "He's a surprisingly good cook. Get him to tell you about the time he worked as a chef in a Melahnese place on Norda."

Kanan groaned as Hera turned to head back to the front of the ship. "That was only for a weekend! And it wasn't my fault..."

"Don't let him leave out a detail." She called over her shoulder.

"All right. I gotta hear this story now." Zeb set the rifle down on the table and leaned forward avidly.

"Okay, look..." Kanan explained as he got up to head into the kitchen. "It all started when I met this Theelin who needed a favor..."