Here you guys go. Not sure where this story is going to go, but I'm enjoying it. Have a good day. Stay home, stay safe.

True to her word, Ahsoka went to meet Ezra again. This time, she would enter the cell with him. The Togruta woman was impossible to have her mind changed when she had it set. Even the pleading of Captain Rex couldn't change her mind.

"With all due respect Commander, he was trained in the ways of the dark side." Rex knows that is is next to useless to reason with her, but he tried anyways.

"He defected, and he has shown no resistance." Ahsoka points out.

"Yes, but going IN to the cell WITH him?" Rex doesn't trust dark siders. Bad memories of the Clone Wars. "What if he tries to attack you?"

"The cells have cameras and microphones. Someone will hear and see everything." Ahsoka stops walking, and looks at the Clone with a smug smile. "You forget, I'm not the cocky, naïve girl you once knew."

Rex huffs at this. They both know that she may not be naïve, but she still has that snippy attitude. "Maybe. But the kid could use this opportunity to escape. And before you say what I think you are going to say, I'm telling you out of concern that this kid is DANGEROUS."

"He's not dangerous. He didn't choose to be taught in the dark side. If I can-"

"Ahsoka!" Rex cuts her off. She can tell that he is worried about her. He only calls her by her first name when something truly scares him.

"Rex, he is not dangerous. If something happens, I promise never to see him again. Okay?"

The clone gives a sigh. "Yes sir commander. Just be careful."

"Come on. You know me better than that." The Togruta walks off, and finds the cell the 15 year old is in.

What she finds is... interesting. For starters, his arm is off, along with his shirt. She was surprised to see that he had so much muscle on his upper body, when at his age, she only really had a firm figure, and maybe the formation of biceps. Even now, she doesn't really have much muscle showing herself, but that doesn't make her any less strong in the physical sense. Second, it looks like he is doing pushups. Well, I'll say one thing about the kid. He sure is strong. "Hello Ezra. I'm back like I said I would be." Ahsoka says.

Ezra looks at her, and puts the arm back on. Putting on his shirt, he says, "Well, I'll be honest, I didn't think you would come. As an Imperial, you get used to making promises you don't keep."

The Togruta then does the unexpected. She opens the cell, and actually enters. She shuts the door to prevent him from escaping, but the act of entering, let alone opening, the cell surprises him. "But you aren't an Imperial anymore. Are you?"

Looking at her suspiciously, he says, "Guess not."

Noting how tense he looks, Ahsoka says, "Relax. I'm not here for an interrogation. I just wanted to talk." She walks over, and sits down on the bed with him. "How are you doing? Are you enjoying your stay?"

Ezra smiles a little, and answers, "It's not much different than the Empire. Except the food is 5 star, and the living arrangements are first class. You guys spend too much money on beds, you know."

Ahsoka says, "We try to make things as humane as possible for our prisoners. Although I don't agree with you being in the cell, there really isn't a lot I can do."

"Yeah, well, the chain of command is hard to break." Ezra says.

Wanting to continue the conversation, Ahsoka says, "How did you become so skilled in lightsaber combat? You were a Padawan under the Grand Inquisitor? And you managed to defeat Kanan, our other Jedi."

"When I wasn't training with the Grand Douche himself, I would use the training droids. They could change their holographic figure to fight in the style of a different Jedi." Looking at her a little closer, Ezra says, "You said your name was Ahsoka Tano?" She nods. "Well, then I guess I have fought you before. The training droids were accurate in their programing to mimic your style. I have to say, you were one of the tougher simulations to beat."

"Well, I'm glad I gave you a challenge." She says, kind of impressed at his resources for training.

"You study form V, similar to your Master, Anakin Skywalker. Your style is, impressive, but a little sloppy. At least that's what the GI used to say. It kind of makes sense. You use the Force to increase your strength, while you are more of a natural in acrobatics, which you tend to use a lot in your fights. Why didn't you study form IV? Playing into your more natural abilities, and applying the teachings of your master could have made you rival the Grand Master Yoda, who was an Ataru master."

Ahsoka thinks about this. As a young girl with dreams of being the greatest dualist in the galaxy, and being more attracted to brute strength of things, she chose to spend more time learning about increasing her own strength with the Force. She was a natural at acrobatics, but chose to build off of her lesser skills. It helped with her knowledge of the Force and trusting it, but Ezra makes a good point about playing on your strengths and natural abilities, which were teachings at the Temple.

"I guess it was the ambitions of a little girl. Wanting to prove that she could be stronger than anyone else." Ahsoka looks at the young boy. "What about your fighting style? What do you use?"

Ezra is surprised that she is taking this much of an interest with him. "Form V same as you. Often, I'll revert to using my metal arm because I can put more strength into it, and at the same time, use less energy. My lightsaber, the one that looks like a blaster, is made out of the same thing as my arm. Extremely light-weight, and easy to move."

"I'm impressed. You seem like the kid who doesn't do things by the book. I had a friend like you. As for your lightsaber, I know someone who would use the term uncivilized."

"Yeah," Ezra flashes a cocky grin at her. "I've never been one to do things by the book." Ezra thinks for a second before asking, "Why are you doing this? And don't say that it's the Will of the Force. Right now, I could care less about the Will of the Force with all the crap I've seen. So why are YOU doing this? What could you possibly hope to gain, when I said I'm not interested in joining your little army?"

Ahsoka wasn't really surprised at his question. She figured it would be asked sooner or later. She's kind of glad it's sooner. "I don't think it's what you can give me, but what I can give YOU. You have already proven to be smart, and skilled in escaping. I'm assuming you are figuring out an escape plan right now, and plan on escaping soon. But you also just defected, and you are going to have an entire EMPIRE looking for you. And, what are you, 15? You want to go off on your own, and you know Vader, or the Grand Inquisitor will be hunting you. I know you can take care of your self, but believe me when I say, sometimes, you need someone to take care of you."

At those last few words, Ezra's stone blank expression slightly cracks. He's... Sad, almost? Don't believe it. "Look. I've been on my own since I was 7. Okay? I've seen things, DONE things that NO ONE should do. I've killed CHILDREN because it was the only way to survive. Everything I do is for my survival. You are right. I'm not an Imperial anymore. But that doesn't mean I want to fight them. Running is the only thing that will keep me alive. You should know."

Ezra learned about the Purge. The Jedi were suddenly wiped from the Galaxy. The Clones turned on the Jedi with Order 66. Ezra always felt bad for the Clones. They were bred to follow orders and to be soldiers, but he felt sorry that those men lost their free will. Ezra also knew that with Ahsoka Tano being alive, there were other Jedi as well, like Kanan. Ezra figures that they must have ran. Because they did.

"But that doesn't mean you have to be alone." Ahsoka tries to reason. "Ezra, I'm not going to force you to do anything you don't want to do. But, I can't, in good conscience, allow you to just go off on your own. I'm sorry that the Empire made you do things that NO ONE should do. But like you said, you did it for survival. And you are here now. Doesn't that give you some peace?"

"No. It just makes me disappointed." Ezra scoffs. "I doubt that the Empire is much different than the Republic."

Ahsoka is taken aback by this. "The Republic tried to fight the droid army. The Confederacy was causing chaos. Why do you say that the Republic and the Empire are alike?"

Ezra answers. "Didn't the Republic have children lead some of the war? I read the records. Ahsoka Tano, the Padawan of Anakin Skywalker, the greatest Jedi to ever live. You are considered a hero to the Republic, much like your master. You lead squads into battle. You destroyed Grievous' station while one of your droids were working for him. While your Master took a damaged Jedi Frigate, you lead pilots into battle while the droids were confused. That got supplies to Ryloth. You broke into a DROID FACTORY on Geinosis. AND managed to destroy it. A 15 year old child is already a war hero. I would be considered a hero to the Empire if I wasn't so top secret." Ezra ponders for a second. "You know the massacre of Lasan?"

"Yes. Why?"

"I lead the charge. I was on the planet as the Lasats were disintegrated one by one with the T7 Disruptors. I even USED one." Ezra shakes a little bit. The memories and the screams coming back to him.

Ahsoka doesn't know what to say or DO even. If she leaves now, he may think that SHE thinks he is a monster. If she stays, he may take it as a form of interrogation.

"I'm sorry Ezra. I can't imagine someone so young leading such a horrific event." She turns to leave, and says, "I'll be back again tomorrow." With nothing else to say, and with the teen sitting back on the bed, she leaves.

A short chapter, I know, but I wasn't sure what else to do. See you next time. Stay home, stay safe.