The village Ezra lived in was quiet, small, quaint. Frey-Lo was the name of this wonderful village. Everybody knew everybody. Homes ranged from tiny straw huts for a single traveler to larger, brick-built cabins for families. Each one individually maintained by the person/people living in it. The weather in this village was normally the same, warm with dry air and a large sun in the sky speckled with fluffy, large clouds. To her, it was paradise. Living here for over a year, she grew accustomed to the people, and them to her. She assigned herself to gatherer and became a seamstress. Within a few months, Ezra picked up an interest in nursing, and started working in the infirmary, helping the sick and injured. She would help hunt and gather on the side, also helping with making clothes when she could find the time. This village quickly became her home. The people adored her. Ezra felt, for once in her life, welcome and safe. She was far away from people who wanted nothing to do with her unless it came at a reward for them. She was safe. She was home.

Until today. Ezra was in the market, a woven basket in the crook of her left arm. The market smelled like freshly baked bread and sweets. The individual tents had woven tarps over them, colorful and a bit eccentric with their asymmetrical patterns. Ezra wore a floor-length dress the color of the sky with a thin, white, cotton hood over her head to protect her from the blazing sun. Her cheeks were flushed and the minimal freckles on her face were making a grand appearance because of the heat. She was looking at a small hut decorated with jewelry. Gold, silver, black-metal rings were display in velvet wracks and dainty necklaces and chains laid out in front of her. As she picked up a hammered ring, the owner of the little stand made her appearance. She was around Ezra's age, but looked older. This lady was beautiful with her shoulder-length blonde waves and doe-shaped, green eyes. She had fourcchildren and her curvy figure showed it.

"Ezra!" The woman exclaimed. "So nice to see you!"

She chuckled. "You saw me just yesterday, Jei."

"So? It's always nice to see my sister." Sister. When Ezra arrived to Frey-Lo, Jei was the first person to greet her and they've been inseparable since. When they met, Jei was pregnant with her fourth child, and a few months later, Ezra was there for the birth of her friend's daughter. "Have you heard?"

Ezra raised a brow. "That I'm getting this for free?" She joked, gesturing towards the ring.

Jei laughed. "I don't care if you keep it. Anyways, there's a traveler a few towns over and he's coming here!" Her voice lowered to a whisper as she said, "I heard he's a bounty hunter. He's looking for someone. Isn't that exciting? Someone in this village is on the run!"

Her heart sank to her stomach. She nervously fidgeted with the ring she was gifted. "Are you sure that's what you heard? Is it credible?" It felt like she was going to throw up her lunch right then and there. She fumbled over her words. "That's some crazy rumors, huh? I thought nothing weird happened here."

"It might be nothing and no one, might just be a hippie traveler looking for a peaceful place to lodge for the day. I'm not sure. But isn't that news by itself just get you excited? The last person to come by here was you nearly two years and before that, we haven't gotten any new people for years."

"Yeah... it could be nothing." She gulped and slipped the ring on and off her finger nervously. There was no hiding her nerves from her best friend.

"Are... you okay?" Jei gently rested a hand over her friend's nervous ones.

"I just... don't like new people." It wasn't a lie. She didn't like change. Her first day here she refused to meet anyone or befriend anyone, but Jei showed up and showed her pure kindness and gained her trust over time. Even though she trusted Jei, she didn't know about Ezra's past, and she wouldn't. For the safety of her friend. "You know what he looks like?"

Jei shrugged. "I heard he's dressed like a tin can." They both let out a laugh, soothing Ezra's nerves a bit with her humor.

"A what?" She chuckled some more. "I'll keep a look out for the Tin Man and I'll come straight to you if I see him. Breaking News: Tin Man in Frey-Lo for an oil change." With another laugh, Ezra excused herself from her friend, bought groceries for the week from the market and headed home. Her hut was small, made of bricks that desperately needed to be replaced. She had to constantly patch up some holes in the ceiling or on the tile floor. Her bed was delicately dressed in her comforter and assortment of pillows. She walked to her bed and knelt down, pulling a chest from under it. As she opened it, she got whiff of her old perfume. I can't believe it still smells like my old scent, is all she could think. In there, was the gown she wore before she changed, before her ship landed at the harbor at Frey-Lo, her floral tiara and her mother's saber in a velvet pouch. She sighed as she pulled it out.. without touching it. It levitated over the palm of her hand. The golden hilt glistened in the light, and she felt an incredible urge to hold it. She knew why she was here and brought her here in the first place; the gift that was passed down from mother to daughter. She was no longer in that part of her life. But here she was, levitating this saber with the Force she thought she hated because of everything it put her through. Ezra put it back in its velvet pouch and shut the chest.

When the sun set, the party begun. Frey-Lo had their annual flower festival. This village had an abundance of wildflowers growing around it, making it seem that much more like paradise. Every hut, cabin and home was decorated with beautiful flowers ranging from shades of royal-purple to crimson-red and everything in between. The dress she was wearing this evening was a beautiful shade of washed-out yellow, nearly pastel. It was long with a thigh-slit, hugged her waist and had loose, off-the shoulder sleeves, exposing her collar bone and the freckles that were sprinkled down her neck and shoulders. She wore her long hair in a half-updo, the upper half in a loose braid and her waves laid out on her back like a waterfall. She exited her home and went to Jei's. One of Jei's oldest children, a boy named Peater, answered the door. Peater was nearly a teenager, quite tall for an eleven-year old, towering over his twin sister, Reina. He hugged her when he saw her and handed her a crown made of wildflowers.

"Thank you," Ezra commented, fixing the crown on her head. "It's beautiful!"

"Me and Mama made it for you," Peater added. "It's pretty like you!"

"You're so sweet. Are you coming with us to the festival?"

"For a little bit. I want to spend time with Papa and Alda before it gets too late." Alda, his youngest sister, the baby Jei had given birth to a year ago. Peater has always been a responsible, emotionally-mature kid.

Jei appeared from behind Peater with Alda in her arms, latched onto her breast. "I'll be right there, Ez. Alda's finishing up. You can come in, though. Oh, the flower crown! I hope you like it." She pointed to the crown on her head. "It was Peater's idea to have matching crowns." Ezra stepped inside and greeted Reina, and Paco, who was six years old. He had curly honey-colored hair like his siblings, and his mother's eyes. Reginald gently took Alda from Jei's arms when she was finished, planting a soft kiss on Jei's cheek.

"Have fun, honey," He said to his wife. "Nice to see you, Ezra. Bring her home by ten!" He joked.

Ezra chuckled. "It's not a date."

Jei nudged her. "It's definitely a date." She gave a playful wink. "I'll be back soon, Regi. Peater, Reina, are you coming?" The twins rushed to the door and they all waved goodbye as they left. Jei looked stunning in her dress, it hugged every curve on her body and its wonderful shade of blue made her beautifully seafoam-green eyes pop. Jei looked like a goddess. And Ezra, her nymph sidekick.

The village seemed more lively during this festival. Lots of laughing, dancing and music filled Frey-Lo. Joy bustled through the village like an earthquake. The best time of the year. Jei pulled Ezra into the crowd, they downed a few drinks and danced. The night sky was clear of any clouds, the moon was shown as a sliver, and the stars winked from above. They both frolicked and danced, exchanging dances with people they knew, ending up back together dancing with each other to lively tunes. Ezra stepped out from the dancing circle to catch a breath, feeling her chest tighten with every inhale she took. How long has she been dancing, she didn't know, but she was already feeling exhausted. She stepped away for a moment, looking back and seeing her friend having the time of her life. Ezra envied her best friend. She had a beautiful family, loving husband, everyone here loved her, knew her since she was born. This was Jei's home, and Ezra just blended in it. She wanted so badly for that to have been her life from the beginning. But unlike Jei, Ezra was given a rotten hand from the beginning. It was because of Jei she lived so happily at Frey-Lo.

Turning on her heel, she walked towards the empty marketplace, fidgeting with the ring Jei had given her earlier that day. She stopped walking, getting an intense, worry-like feeling in the pit of her stomach. Home. She took off full speed toward her hut. Avoiding the large crowd, she could see her home. When she got to the door, she saw it was cracked open. Her heart sank. Slowly opening the door, she saw the chest under her bed peaking out a bit. Someone had moved it. Rushing to the chest, she opened it and checked for the saber. Ezra sighed in relief, taking it with its velvet pouch and strapping it on her thigh with a holster buried deep in the chest. She stood up and sighed, shoving the chest back under her bed and walking towards the front door. As soon as she opened the door, she saw a crowd, but behind that crowd, was a man dressed in armor, a silver helmet over his head. Her heart began to race. The Tin Man. She couldn't see his eyes but she knew he was staring at her. Standing completely still, his gaze was on her. Her hands were shaking. Stepping out of her hut, she pretended like she wasn't worried, and went back in the crowd to find Jei.

Her drinks caught up to her and made her head light and fuzzy. She needed to find Jei. Ezra kept looking over her shoulder as nonchalant as she could make it look, trying to spot the Tin Man. But she couldn't find him. As she turned her head, she walked right into someone. "I'm so sorry," she said, stepping back and looking at the person she walked into. Ezra felt a knot in her throat. It was him. Tin Man. She had a feeling he wasn't here for a damn oil change.

"Seems like you know I'm here for you," he said, his voice was robotic under that helmet.

"My father sent you, didn't he?"

"Yes."

"What ever he's paying you, I'll double it. You can't bring me back to him."

"Nothing personal," he reached towards his blaster. "It's strictly business."

Ezra looked at his hand that was resting on the holster of his blaster. "You won't kill me," she commented. "My father needs me alive." She met his gaze and he cocked his head.

"He'll understand if I bring you back cold."

"I doubt it. He'd kill you. He's killed for much less."

"If you don't want any trouble, you'd come with me."

"I really don't want to beg, but I'm pleading. You can't take me back there. You have no idea what he'd do to me. There's a reason I left. I'm not his daughter to him, I'm cattle. A pawn in his twisted game of chess."

"Like I said, it's strictly business." He grabbed her wrist and she pulled away.

"No," she hissed. "This is my home. You can't arrest me in front of them." She nodded towards the crowd of Frey-Lo. In the crowd, Jei was frozen in place, her eyes glued on her best friend. She wasn't moving. Ezra shamefully looked down at her feet. "Don't let anyone see." Her voice was hushed, soft, embarrassed. The helmeted man looked around, meeting Jei's gaze, then looked back at Ezra.

"Where, then?"

"Where there's no people."

He nodded, placing a gentle hand on her back and guiding her through a dark, secluded part of the village, near the woods that surrounded Frey-Lo. Tears started in her eyes, she looked back, seeing the crowd, hearing its bustles of joy slowly fade the farther she walked away. "I will pay you double," she insisted. "Triple, even. I promise. Just, please don't do this. You're bringing me back to a tyrant." He said nothing. The woods grew closer, her heart raced faster. "Please." Her voice broke. He stopped walking and so did she.

"Your father said you were wanted for treason."

"Treason? He wanted me to marry someone who's basically a carbon copy of him. Oh, and by the way, that same man forced himself on me when I denied his proposal, I'm sure you can guess what he did to me. In hopes I became pregnant with some insanely powerful Jedi baby for my father."

"Your fiance is a Jedi?"

Ezra's face twisted in disgust. "He's not my fiance. And no, he's not a Jedi..." She hung her head as she said, "But my mother was."

After a long pause, analyzing everything, he said, "I'm sorry."

"No, you're not, because you're not going to let me go."

"I'll make you a deal. I'll bring you to your father, but you'll wear a wire. I'll leave, fly to a different town so no one sees my ship, but I'll be able to hear everything. As soon as I hear something from your wire that proves what you've told me, I'll come back to you."

"You'll bring me back here?"

"I'll bring you back wherever you want to go."

"How do I know you're telling the truth and not just trying to shut me up?"

He tilted his head. "A Mandalorian's word is everything to him. But-" he took off a crest on his shoulder and handed it to her. It was smaller than her palm, shaped like a horn. "-That crest means a lot to me. At the end of the mission, you'll give it back to me, and you get your freedom."

She tucked it in her bra and nodded. "Deal."