I do not own Star Wars in any capacity.

Enjoy Chapter 12!

Sabine slowly walked around Kaadak's small establishment. It was filled from floor to ceiling with various tech and tools. There seemed to be some method of organization, but Sabine couldn't figure it out with only a couple minutes of perusing the vast collection.

"This is no ordinary slave collar…"

Sabine turned back to where Nova Kaadak was examining Chopper's scans. She was a Theelin woman, with pale blue - almost white - skin and periwinkle hair. Sabine hasn't known too many Theelins in her time, but she would guess the locksmith to be the human equivalent of middle aged, definitely older than Kanan and Hera.

"Yeah, we know," Kanan said impatiently. "That's why we're here." He had his arms wrapped around his chest, one hand tightly grasping a bag of clothes they had bought earlier. The fingers on his other hand were tapping his arm frenetically, and his shoulders were hunched up as he glowered at the woman with one of his harsher glares. Kanan was definitely wound up more tightly than usual.

But Kaadak wasn't cowed by his demeanor. That wasn't terribly surprising. One couldn't survive in a place like Nar Shaddaa without having a thick skin. Instead she just seemed confused, still focused on the holo. "What the hell kind of Imperial prisoner do you have here? Did they commit high treason?"

"No questions," Kanan growled. Actually growled. "That's the deal."

Kaadak raised her hands up defensively. "Yeah yeah, but I gotta say, this kinda tech is bound to pique some curiosity…" She glanced up at them. "You know this isn't going to be cheap, right?"

"We're aware," Sabine said, stepping forward. Kanan was so tense, she was worried he would snap himself in half at any moment. "And we're prepared to pay. Just name your price."

Kaadak shook her head. "No price. Not yet. I need to see the collar first. This scan isn't near good enough for me to make a decent appraisal."

"Any estimates?" Sabine asked. "That way we can at least begin to pull together the necessary creds."

Kaadak leaned back with a hum. "From what I'm seeing here and from what you've described? Minimum three thousand."

"Three thousand?" Sabine echoed.

"Possibly five," Kaadak said bluntly. "Look, we're in Hutt space so I'm not terribly worried about the tracker. But it's still an incredibly complicated piece of Imperial tech, no doubt designed for their more dangerous prisoners. There is risk involved, not just for the prisoner, but for myself as well. I want the three thousand upfront. Depending on the complexity and any tools that that collar might fry, I might require a couple more thousand before I complete the job. Deal?"

"You can't possibly expect us…!"

"Deal," Kanan cut in.

"What?" Sabine spun around to him. "Kanan!"

"We don't have much choice, Sabine," he said curtly. "We've got the creds…"

Barely, Sabine wanted to qualify, but she knew better than to let Kaadak know that.

"As long as there're no questions, and she can get the job done? We got a deal." Kanan said flatly.

Kaadak gave a half smirk. "I'll be ready in two hours," she said. "I'm eager to see this fascinating little device in person."

"Looking forward to it." Kanan gave a small sarcastic salute before tossing the bag of clothes over his shoulder and ducking out of the stall, Sabine following close behind.

"We could have at least tried to bargain," Sabine said, trotting after him. He was walking faster than usual, and with his freakishly long legs, it was difficult to keep pace with him through the thick crowds. "You know she probably highballed us. She can tell we're desperate."

"I'm aware, Sabine," Kanan said, not slowing his pace. His nervous tic was in full gear, his hand shaking and hitting his leg in rapid succession. "But Kaadak isn't wrong. This kind of tech is unprecedented. And the sooner we can get that infernal contraption off of Ezra, the better."

Sabine was certainly in agreement with him there. Still, it rubbed her wrong that this was going to cost them so much. It's not like they had that much in reserves, and most of it was for keeping the Ghost in repair. "And what exactly are we supposed to do after that? We only have enough fuel and supplies for a week, maybe."

"We'll figure it out."

Kanan suddenly stopped, and Sabine ran into his back. "Ow, Kanan…!"

"Sorry," he said, not sounding particularly apologetic. He dropped the bag of clothes from his shoulder and turned to place a hand on Sabine's arm. "Sabine, I know this week has been a lot. For all of us."

Sabine pulled herself from Kanan's grip. "I don't need your patronizing. I'm just trying to be realistic."

"I'm not - " Kanan huffed. "I'm not trying to patronize you. Sabine, this has been a hard week for all of us. And I know you. You're still the same capable and fiercely independent young woman you were when we found you on Garel two years ago. Stubborn and willful…"

"What exactly is your point?" Sabine asked tiredly.

"You don't need to be the adult here," he said earnestly. "I'm not making these decisions lightly."

"I never said you were." Although even as she said it, she was a little skeptical of where Kanan's head was right now. While Sabine had full confidence that he wasn't taking any of this lightly, she was uncertain how clear his judgement was. Everything with this Ezra kid was obviously hitting Kanan and Nara close to home. He was trying to hide it, but it has rattled him far more than any of this had rattled her.

"We'll figure it out," Kanan said, turning away from her. "We always do."

They began walking again, Kanan's pace a little less frantic than it had been before. His hand was calmer now, although it was still tapping his thigh in an even tempo. She supposed that was as good a sign as any.

When they got back to the Ghost, Kanan handed Sabine the bag. "Can you give these to Ezra and tell him to get changed? Nara knows you're coming. I'm going to go over everything with Hera."

Sabine frowned. "Don't you think you should be the one doing this? I can talk to Hera…"

"I need to go over some particulars that don't concern you."

"Still…" Sabine glanced at the cargo door. "Kanan, the last time I went in there, I electrocuted him."

"It was an accident, he knows that."

Sabine gave a skeptical laugh. "Does he?"

"I know you have no way of knowing this, but a lot has changed for Ezra in the last couple days. Which part of the reason you should do this. You… both need to get used to each other."

"'Get used to each other'? What do you mean by that?"

"I mean, that Ezra and his daiima are…" Kanan hesitated, looking for his words.

Sabine sighed, starting to see what Kanan was getting at. "Look, I know we're not going to just drop them off at some random moon after this. And that means they're going to be staying on the Ghost for a while."

"Maybe," Kanan qualified. "Once we get Ezra's collar off, Nara and I may be taking them somewhere safe."

"Taking them somewhere… You mean leaving the Ghost?!"

"Nothing is settled yet," Kanan assured. "Bottom line… you're right. They're here to stay for a bit. This is a first step for you two to get acquainted with each other."

Sabine rolled her eyes. It's not so much that he was wrong or didn't have a good point as much as this seemed like a stupid 'first step'. But she also suspected he was just trying to give her a distraction while he spoke with Hera. "Whatever," she murmured, taking the bag. Kanan and Hera were in charge. As much as she hated being kept in the dark, she did - begrudgingly - accept that there had to be boundaries.

Kanan gave a small smile, patting her shoulder before climbing the ladder to the cockpit.

With a small sigh, Sabine made her way to the cargo bay. This was bound to be interesting. She had to admit, she was curious about these so-called changes. Kanan seemed to think that Ezra had changed for the better, although how much better remained to be seen.

Standing in front of the cargo bay door, Sabine took a moment to collect herself. She wasn't fearful for her life or anything like that - she knew Nara would protect her - but Ezra and his daiima were still an unknown variable to her. Kanan and Nara were really the only ones who have spent any time with them.

Which, she supposed, emphasized Kanan's point.

Sabine knocked on the door, and Nara almost immediately responded. "Come in."

She stepped inside and quickly surveyed the state of the cargo bay. While the cot she had made was now in the far corner, Ezra was curled up on the estrade instead. He had his arms wrapped around his lothcat-formed daiima, who was curled up in his lap. Ezra's face was a red and slightly swollen, his eyes downcast. Obviously he had been crying. Nara was sitting just a few meters from them as she turned her head towards Sabine "You have the clothes?"

Sabine nodded, walking over and putting the bag on the ground between Nara and the estrade. "Yeah, we got a few different things. Hopefully something fits. They're all plain and completely non-Imperial." She looked over Ezra's outfit. He was no longer sporting his pauldrons, so his uniform wasn't immediately identifiable as being issued by the Empire, but it was too clean and sleek. He would still stick out like a sore thumb in a place like this. "Your boots are fine, but you'll have to take everything else off."

Ezra visibly swallowed as he stared down at the bag, making no move to get up. He curled a little tighter on himself, squeezing his daiima to his chest.

"Well, I guess there's no huge rush…" Sabine said in response to that. "Kaadak said it'd be a couple hours, and it's not exactly a long walk."

Ezra glanced up at her, and Sabine's heart skipped a beat. His eyes were a brilliant dark blue… but that was impossible. His eyes were a bright yellow. Sabine had literally stood inches from his face before. There was no way she had mis-seen them. They must have changed. How was that possible? Was this some sort of weird Inquisitor thing?

The kid looked down again, turning away from them slightly. A bit perturbed, Sabine stepped a little closer to Nara, a bit at a loss for what to do now. The kid had shut down, and who knew how long Kanan and Hera would be talking.

"You're not missing anything," Nara said quietly to her.

"Hmm?" Sabine questioned.

"Kanan and Hera. They're not talking about anything you'd have interest in."

"You know I don't like being kept in the dark," Sabine huffed, covering up the slight unease Nara's comment stirred. While she knew Nara and Kanan were connected, it was still unnerving at times. It felt like she was talking to the same person, yet in two completely different entities. It was hard for her to wrap her head around.

"They're not keeping you in the dark," Nara insisted. "Kanan just has some things to talk out with Hera in private."

"And what about you?" Sabine asked. "He doesn't seem to be making much effort to keep you out of the loop."

There was a low rumble in Nara's chest, her equivalent of a thoughtful hum. "I don't know if Kanan could even if he tried. Although…"

Nara returned her attention to estrade, which had Sabine also looking back at Ezra and the lothcat. It occurred to her that she had no idea what the daiima was even called. In fact, she was fairly certain she had never even heard the daiima speak. Sabine glanced back and forth between the lothcat and the giant wolf beside her. They might be the same sort of weird Force manifestation, but the way they acted with others and their respective Force wielder was so different from one another. The only commonality she could see was the way Ezra was holding his daiima. It was similar to how Nara would curl up around Kanan.

"You should get something to eat," Nara suggested to Sabine. "I'll make sure Ezra does the same. You need to keep your strength up."

"For what?" Sabine chuckled. "The total six klick walk round trip from Kaadak's?"

"Just… stay on your toes," Nara said with the same dry tone Kanan would use. She gave a huff. "And make sure to watch Kanan's back."

Sabine gave an amused huff back. "You know I always do." She gave Ezra one last glance before she turned to leave. Nara was right. She could use a bite. "We'll be leaving in about an hour. I'm sure Kanan'll come back down before then."

Nara gave a single nod. "Thank you, Sabine."

Ezra's breakthrough with his daiima was unquestionably a step in the right direction. Evidently, Kanan just needed to remove himself from the situation for a bit for it to occur.

Yet, it didn't do much to put Kanan at ease. Not with the Force still niggling at the side of his head in warning. It was driving him nuts, and he had no idea what to do about it.

"Is there something else?" Hera asked quietly.

Kanan glanced back over at her. "No," he said tiredly. "Once she gets the collar off of him, we just need to get the hell outta dodge."

"Sounds like a plan." Hera's eyes narrowed slightly. "So what aren't you telling me?"

Kanan sighed, wringing his hands together as he tried to keep his hand from ticcing. "It's nothing you have to worry about."

Hera just hummed. "Why don't you let me decide that?"

"Hera…"

"Kanan, this is my ship and this involves my crew. So spill."

"It's nothing like that!" Kanan insisted. "It's just a feeling!"

"What kind of feeling?"

Kanan closed his eyes and inhaled deeply, reigning his emotions back under control. The last thing he wanted to do right now is lash out. He couldn't help but growl as he exhaled, but he felt in control. "I think… something is going to happen. Something bad."

"And you think this because of the Force?"

Kanan nodded, leaning back in his seat. "It's frankly ridiculous. Of course something bad is going to happen. I have a kriffed up child Inquisitor in my care, we're at a black port, about to employ a sketchy if reputable locksmith…"

"This is hardly our first black port, and we've worked with people who were much more sketchy than Kaadak," Hera pointed out.

"But this is different," Kanan emphasized. "Everything with Ezra is."

Hera let out a small sigh, looking out the viewport. "What exactly are you planning?" she asked quietly.

Kanan bit his lip. "I don't see what choice I have…" Hera had to understand, this was all he could do. "We can't just keep Ezra and his daiima cooped up in the cargo bay. Even when we get that collar off, they will still be hunted. We'll still be putting the Ghost in danger."

"We're always in danger."

"Not like this," Kanan said, giving her a pointed look. "We need to go into hiding. Deep hiding. It's the only way I know how to help them."

"You said Ezra and his daiima have been making progress," Hera said, her voice softening slightly. "You don't have to leave us behind. It's easy for the Ghost to go into hiding."

That was true, but Kanan knew Hera better than that. "I don't know how long we'd have to hide. I can't see… I can't see Sabine tolerating being locked down for any longer than a couple weeks."

Hera let out a soft sigh, her hands tightening on the steering spoke. "You don't have to do this alone."

"I won't be alone. I'll have Nara."

The glare Hera gave him confirmed that she saw straight through that flimsy argument. "I'm not just talking about us," she said. "Ezra isn't the first person to defect from the Empire. It's possible that we could get some help."

"From Fulcrum?" Kanan growled and shook his head. "The last thing Ezra needs is to be exposed to even more strangers."

"It doesn't have to be direct help. They have intel about the Inquisitorious that could help us."

Kanan frowned at her. "How much have you told them about Ezra?"

"That… we have a child Inquisitor in our custody."

"And how much do they know about me exactly?"

"The same they've always known. That I met you on Gorse, and that you are one hell of a gunslinger. I've never mentioned Nara or anything else."

Kanan hummed. "I'm surprised Fulcrum hasn't demanded we bring Ezra to them…"

"Well, certainly not with that beacon."

"And once we get the collar off?" Kanan said, his heart starting to race.

Hera pressed her lips together. "Fulcrum… does want to make direct contact. They've been gathering intel on the Inquisitorious for years. From what they told me, Ezra is the first Inquisitor ever to escape with some semblance of their sense of self."

"I am not about to let Ezra and his daiima get swept up by Fulcrum's network to be poked, prodded, and interrogated."

"That's not what would happen, and frankly, I'm a little offended you think I would let that happen…"

"No, I know that, I just…" Kanan growled, roughly running his fingers over his hair. "Hera, you don't understand. The more Ezra is out there, the more exposed he is, the greater danger he is in!"

"He's already in danger! And if Fulcrum can help him…"

"You don't know that! We don't even know who Fulcrum really is! Who knows what kind of connections their network has, who might zero in on Ezra…!"

"Zero in on Ezra… or on you?"

His stomach clenched and squirmed painfully. Kanan quickly looked away, digging his fingers into his thigh.

"Kanan," Hera said softly. "There's no way Fulcrum is connected with - "

"Please don't…" Kanan murmured. A shiver ran along his shoulders as he grit his teeth together. He could feel Nara's hackles rising instinctively, as if they were his own.

Hera gazed at him silently for a moment. "We'll play it by ear," she whispered. "Ezra trusts you more than anyone else right now. If you think taking Ezra to Fulcrum is too risky, I'll follow your lead."

Kanan let out a shuddered sigh as he relaxed slightly, the squirming in his belly not quite as painful. "Let's just… finish this and get off of Nar Shaddaa."

Hera nodded. "Chop and I will keep the engine warm in case anything goes awry."

"Hopefully it doesn't come to that," Kanan said as he stood. He had his doubts but maybe, just maybe, luck would be on their side for once.

[Ezra still hasn't gotten changed…] Nara said. [He and the Little One are still just curled together on the estrade.]

[Well, I'll be down in a sec.]

Kanan took deep breaths as he headed down to the cargo bay, shaking his hand out. He really needed to get a grip. If the Force was trying to warn him about something, panicking certainly wasn't going to help. He needed to act rationally and calmly. Worse comes to absolutely worse, he did have his saber with him. Although the thought of having to use it made him ill. And the way it hung heavily on his belt was only contributing to his imbalance.

But for the sake of Ezra and his daiima… he needed to find his center.

Kanan entered the cargo bay to find them just as Nara had described. Ezra did sit up slightly when Kanan stepped in. The bag of clothes was sitting on the ground near the estrade, obviously untouched. "We'll need to leave soon," Kanan said. "You should get changed."

Ezra let out a shaky sigh. "R-Right…" He slowly scooted over to the edge of the estrade, his daiima crawling up and shifting into a small bird to settle on his shoulder.

Kanan knelt by the bag and pulled out a couple pairs of pants of different sizes and a couple of shirts that were definitely going to be oversized but would work nonetheless. Beyond the collar, Ezra would look like any other regular kid. "Hopefully these fit you," Kanan said as he handed Ezra the clothes. "If the pants are too big, I have a belt you can use.

Ezra just nodded, staring at the clothes in his lap. He ran his gloved hands slowly over the fabric, as if he had no idea what to do with them. His daiima had tucked herself up right next to his neck, rubbing her head against his chin.

"You can use the refresher," Kanan stated, trying to kick start them into getting up.

With a small flinch, Ezra quickly nodded. "Okay," he murmured, getting up and trotting over to the refresher.

When the door closed behind them, Kanan went over and leaned against Nara, wrapping his arms around her neck. He was already exhausted, and they haven't even done the hard part yet.

[At least Ezra has begun to let his daiima back in…] Nara pointed out.

[And I'm glad] Kanan replied. [But there's still just so much ahead of us.]

[One thing at a time. There's no reason not to take a moment and celebrate our victories. Given what we know of Ezra's childhood… this is a big step for them.]

That was true. And it seemed remarkable that it would happen so quickly given the circumstances.

Then again, perhaps not. A jemma and daiima were meant to be together. Despite their childhood trauma - Ezra's parents forcibly separating them, the Inquisitorious beating into them that daiima were nothing more than weapons - the need for one another might very well have intensified rather than waned. Now that they were completely free to be with one another, it was no wonder that they found each other again so quickly.

The door to the refresher opened, and Ezra stepped out with his shoulders hunched and his gaze fixed on the ground. With the slightly too long pants and the oversized shirt… the boy looked smaller than ever.

His daiima was still perched on Ezra's shoulders as he walked over to the estrade and carefully placed his Inquisitor blacks down next to the pauldrons, the gorget and knee cops resting on top. Ezra took a moment to smooth out the cloth and straighten the plasteel pieces of armor before turning to face Kanan and Nara with his arms crossed tightly. His limbs were skinnier than Kanan had anticipated, with a myriad of scars marring his skin. Most were streaks of darkened flesh that Kanan recognized as lightsaber burns, but there was also a very distinctive pattern of dotted scars that looked to have come from a large sharp-toothed animal. And with the kid's bare hands out in the open, Kanan could see the results of the Inquisitors' punishment.

"No, please! I won't touch her again, I promise! I promise!"

The center of Kanan's chest burned, the edges of his vision going slightly unfocused. The savagery of what the Inquisitors had done to Ezra… Had these sorts of tortures really been so necessary?

But of course, it wasn't just about making Ezra and his daiima into good soldiers for the Empire. It was about the pain, about the fear. It was about taking that pain and fear and twisting it into rage, the perfect fuel for the Dark Side.

His kyber crystal burned at the base of his back.

"A-Are you okay?"

The hesitant question brought Kanan back to the present, his gaze refocusing on the boy. There was a jolt in his chest when he met Ezra's gaze. Great big blue eyes were staring up at him with uncertainty. While Kanan could sense Ezra's fear, he couldn't help but feel a deluge of relief at the sight. The sickly yellow, the infection from the Dark Side, had drained out of Ezra's eyes. Had the boy really already begun to heal?

Ezra seemed more uncertain the longer the silence stretched. "What's wrong…?"

Kanan shook his head, unable to suppress a warm chuckle. "Nothing, kiddo." He reached over and wrapped an arm around Ezra, placing his hand on the boy's shoulder. "Let's get moving."

Ezra still seemed confused, but the tension in his shoulders eased as they walked out of the cargo bay. His daiima was back in her lothcat form and being held tightly in Ezra's arms.

Sabine was waiting in the loading dock near the ramp, her hand on her hip. "About time," she said. Her eyes scanned over Ezra with a smirk. "Nice outfit."

"Th… thanks?" Ezra replied, cocking his head slightly to the side.

Then Sabine's eyes settled on Ezra's arms. "Yeah, you're gonna want to leave her behind."

Ezra's arms tightened around his daiima, and he took a small step back. "W-What?" he squeaked with an edge of panic.

"Sabine, he can't," Kanan stated, his hand tightening on Ezra's shoulder.

"Pets are illegal in the Empire," Sabine said, as if she was pointing out the obvious. "The only people around these parts with them are powerful crime lords flaunting their power. Nara can't come with us, so neither can…" Sabine looked back over at Ezra's daiima. "I'm sorry, what are you called?"

"M… my conscience…?" Ezra murmured, barely audible.

But that was when Kanan remembered that he and Nara were the only Force sensitive Sabine has ever encountered before. "They literally can't be apart," Kanan said. "What Nara and I can do isn't normal."

Sabine raised a skeptical eyebrow at Kanan. "What are you talking about?"

Kanan sighed, wishing that he could just avoid this entire topic altogether. "For basically all Force users… they can't be separated from their daiima. No more than a few meters. Attempts to do so can literally kill them."

She blinked hard at him, her mouth gaped open slightly. "So… what about you and Nara?"

Kanan growled, viciously shoving down the echoes of that horrible day. "We're different." Sabine looked like she was about to argue but Kanan harshly cut her off. "It's not important. But Ezra's daiima…" They were definitely going to have to remedy the name situation, but now wasn't the time. "... needs to stay with him."

It was obvious that Sabine wanted to argue, to push and question, but they didn't have the time for it right now. Kanan knelt in front of Ezra and addressed his daiima. "You're going to have to stay out of sight," Kanan stated quietly. "You can hide in Ezra's shirt. It's baggy enough it should obscure your form, but try not to move too much."

She gave a small nod before shifting into a small colorful beetle, diving into the collar of the oversized shirt. Ezra crossed his arms again, and while Kanan could tell that he was nestling her through his shirt, it was baggy enough that it wouldn't be obvious to any casual observers.

Sabine sighed and shook her head. "Well, if we really don't have any other option…" She turned and pounded her fist on the controls, the ramp lowering. "Let's get moving."

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