A knock at my front door causes me to drop the towel I'm scrubbing at a very stubborn stain in my countertop and glance toward the front door then probe as I walk.

She's…not supposed to be here?

I open the door, then take a decent look at her. "Hell—oh. What's wrong?"

"Can I come in?" Sabine says, face slightly swollen and her voice tight while carrying a backpack a canvas and an armful of art supplies.

"Yeah." I quickly step aside then grab to take some stuff out of her hands.

She's shaken.

Sabine walks inside, past me to the empty spot in my living room where a table would be and she sets up a stand and sets her blank canvas in its designed place. "Sabine?" I ask quietly.

"I…give me a second." She shoots her eyes at me, not even making eye contact before sliding past me toward my kitchen and sniffling.

"Is everything okay?" I ask her, spinning around to keep her in my line of sight as she sets her backpack down and pulls out a box.

"May I borrow a glass?"

I nod. "You're kind of scaring me here."

She's acting like a tragedy's happened. Nothing bad has happened today.

Sabine doesn't answer, instead pulling out a glass out of my cabinet, poking the box before pulling on a lever while holding the glass underneath.

Oh. It's boxed wine.

"How'd you get that?"

"Jaicey bought it for me." She smiles. "You can have some if you'd like."

"Not right now, thanks." I wave my thanks before putting her in my crosshairs again. "Sabine?"

She slides past me again, sipping her wine and crouching down to pull more out of her backpack. "Didn't you see? It was all over Twitter."

"No, I haven't checked Twitter all day. What'd I miss?"

"The FBI came in. Filed a whole bunch of charges, arrested some coaches. Matt's coach, Coach Offman, my coach, half the football staff, the athletic director, charges are coming against the assistant. Everyone."

Oh.

"For what?" I ask, keeping my lost tone.

"Mostly money laundering. Improper use of funds. Some other stuff, I think. All recruiting related really." She frowns dramatically. "We're getting killed online."

Metaphorically, of course.

"Isn't there a…governing body? You know I don't really know this." I gesture blankly, then turn to her for help.

She thankfully nods. "They're called the NCAA. The FBI went over their heads. It's above them. From what PR said at the meeting, it's all really bad, no good stuff."

"Yeah, sounds like it." I incline my head, before I swear I see the lens inside the top of my TV move.

Eyes. Which means ears too.

I need to distract Sabine.

I turn back to her. "Do you mind if I take a look? Stop asking questions you don't want to answer?"

"I don't mind, it's—." She starts, then swallows. "It's been a long, bad day Ezra. I'm not being short, am I? I'm trying not to be."

"No, I'm not just going to make you rehash what you know, blow by blow if I don't have to." I shake my head then slide into the kitchen and glance at my phone.

Twos – 1 New Message

Cayle – 1 New Message

Oh great.

"I'm uploading all the information we have to get a gist of what the raid looked like Ezra." –Twos

"Back from my short vacation. Discovered a Laufius. Council wants you back asap, covertly. Eyes and ears." – Cayle

I smirk to myself, then pour myself some water and walk back in, pausing only to subtly give the TV and the Council a wave of acknowledgement.

I know they're there. I could have sworn I saw it move, and I was right.

"I've got snacks in the kitchen if you'd like." I tell Sabine as she's laying out something large and clear. "You got it?"

"Yeah." She nods. "I don't want to mess up your carpet. I've got something to hold my paint. What'd you say again? Sorry."

"Snacks. Kitchen. Get some. You looked starved." I tease her.

She does look hungry.

"Okay. Uhm, I actually never went to get dinner. The meeting from the AD's office started after our game. That's why I'm so late. Sorry." She looks embarrassed.

I wave her concerns away. "You're fine, I told you you're always welcome. Now—." I start to tell her to order food, before her stomach rumbles loudly. "Postmates." I change tact suddenly. "Order it here."

Sabine maintains her blush, biting her lip. "Thank you."

"You're welcome." I smile, then move to lie down on my couch. "What are you going to paint?"

"I don't know. Whatever comes to me, really. I just know I need a…a stress reliever. Would you like something?" She asks, causing me to lift my head up off my couch pillows.

"Something of what?"

"Chinese." She smiles.

I return it, then laugh. "Actually yeah. Can you get an order of pepper steak and rice?"

"Sure." She nods, then randomly beams at me. "Did you eat?"

"Yeah, but I'm hungry still. And it saves." I defend myself, causing her to giggle. "I can pay for myself, are you paying with cash?"

She shakes her head no. "Card, it's already on my account."

"Do you take cash?" I joke, then reach for my wallet on my coffee table.

"I do!" She laughs. "But not from you. I've got it."

"Sabine." I fire back. Sabine only sets her face, shakes her head then turns her back to me. "Fine, okay. I see how it is."

"It is."

"Hmm."

"Humpf." She mimics me sassily.

"I'm gonna read."

"You do that."

STOP.

I glare at her, then look at my phone as it vibrates, indicating a new message.

Cayle – New message

"Good start. Message received."

I swipe over to respond. "Laufius?"

The. Laufey.

"Yup." - Cayle

I sigh, then scratch my nose. "Copy. I'll dig thru my head. I'll start that way whenever I can find an opening."

Sending the message, I prop myself up on an elbow and see Sabine immersed in her work, mixing paints and glancing at her phone while talking to herself.

"So, I'm caught up." I tell her.

Sabine doesn't look back. "I'm listening."

"Looks like it's all about the coaches. No athletes were directly implicated."

In my investigation, that's where it seemed to die. Logically, it seems like the next step that these 'bagmen' funneled their cash thru more shell companies or private entities, turned the money into real, cold hard cash and slipped that cash to the students.

The administrators, it's a lot simpler. They think they can't be caught, so Twos found a lot of direct links.

As per reported by ESPN and many other national establishments.

"Thanks Twos." I text her as Sabine mixes paints.

"Directly. I…you don't understand." Sabine shakes her head.

"Can you explain it?"

"The money." She bites. "There's an implication with the money. Especially with football. People have always, always paid to win in football, since there's so much to be gained there. The implication Ezra!"

"Matt and Trey." I deduce.

The top QB and WR recruits. Package deal, widely considered. All in all, a pretty open and shut recruitment. But Matt was the top rated recruit since some guy named Clausen.

"Exactly! I mean, I know Trey was having some financial issues before he got here over the summer. Matt mentioned it when I met him over the summer at Rookie Bridge Camp. Not anymore though, have you seen his car?"

"A mid 2000's sedan?" I nod. "Never been in it."

"How'd that get paid for?" Sabine asks. "What about the dorm he's in? He's on a full ride, but California doesn't allow everything to be covered like that. There's a gap. Not everybody is like me that has parents who can pay for all this, plus spending money."

"Spending money." I say, it all clicking in my head.

"Yes." She says strongly. "Matt's from fucking Hermosa Beach. That says everything you need to know about that. But how many other Trey's do they have? Basketball too!"

"JJ? Is he okay?"

Sabine nods. "Alright, I think. I don't know what his parents do but he's from Oregon. I could be wrong."

"Anybody connected to you?" I nervously ask.

Twos connected to dots to her coach, but after that I purposely didn't look. It makes too much sense.

Why would she come here, from Chicago?

"I don't think so." Sabine shakes her head, then squints at me. "You…"

"Yeah?"

"Are you…wondering about…me?" She says, her tone different than what I've heard from her before.

I shrug, then glance at the floor as the Force vibrates with her irritation. "It's a logical step."

"I didn't get a dime. I…I'm safe here, right?" She asks.

Oh damn. I don't know but can't guarantee that.

"Of course, why not?" I turn the question around.

"Well I never know, okay? But you snitching on me…I'll kill you."

I laugh, then smile to loosen the tension coming from Sabine. "Okay."

"I swear. I'll come over and beat the crap out of you."

"Okay, okay I get it." I raise my hands in acquiescence before Sabine lets out a heavy sigh and looks back to her blank canvas.

It's silent for a bit, maybe even a moment before Sabine speaks again. "I did get offered. Kind of. I think."

I think. Plausible deniability.

"So you have plausible deniability."

Sabine turns to face me, only to shrug. " I don't know. In high school, I went to a prep academy. Not like you and private school, but close enough. Things were given there. When I was at Bridge camp and all the freshman athletes that were there were getting our schedules and dorms sorted out…somebody did ask."

"Okay." I nod. "Doesn't sound bad to me. You said no, right?"

Sabine nods. "I'm fine. But how many people said yes?"

And the ones that are, their whole team is implicated. Coaches, players, everyone.

"I'm starting to see the problem." I admit to her.

"Yeah! It's absolutely huge!" Sabine says, then moves her leg around awkwardly. "Ugh, can I go change? I brought clothes."

I nod, but before I can respond, she darts off, presumably to the bathroom.

I did not think of this when I was given this assignment. But I didn't know Sabine then. So…

Laufius.

He was one of the primary reasons we were able to hold influence after the Purge. Could slide into important summits and meetings as a key figure and shape policy that my father thought would be beneficial to our Empire.

And if you didn't comply, he could always have a strong enough base or a single figurehead that would do the job for him, since he cannot be everywhere at once.

He's a huge dude. Always had my father's ear. Elias and he trained together a lot.

Granted, I did too.

I sip my water, then get up and walk over to the paints Sabine's mixed.

Whatever it is she's going to paint, it's going to be a dark painting. Gray is the single lightest color.

"Hey." I hear Sabine just before she slides up close and stops in front of me as my eyes get drawn down to her, before an neon yellow object grabs my—

Oh. Up. Look up.

"Yeah?" I ask breathlessly.

Sabine just gazes up at me for a split second that feels like forever. "There is one other thing."

"What is it?"

"I might have to leave. Maybe. Kind of." She blurts out, then starts pacing in front of me.

Leave?

"Why?"

"The party." She snaps. "I'm only suspended, not kicked off. Initially, I think that was the plan. If people had thrown a fit, I probably would be gone. It was mercy by Coach. If he is connected, we'll need a new coach. Who will probably see nothing but a problem that had to hang around."

"No, you carried that team. Tons of goals. Yeah, you made a mistake. But you apologized and the team accepted it. That's what's important."

Sabine's eyes are suddenly shimmering. "I am sorry."

"Just one mistake. You're human." I try to pound into her head.

"Yeah." She shakily nods before sliding over to me and resting her head on my chest. "And we're still friends."

"Better friends." I smile at her, causing her to look up.

"Yeah."

A knock at the door causes us to break eye contact, then jump away and she instinctively hustles to the door, then looks at herself and jumps again. "I can't— nope. You get it."

"Why?" I fire back.

"It's a guy, he can't see me? Dammit, this stupid fluorescent bra…" She mutters to herself.

I sigh, then walk past her and open the door, and am greeted by the sight of a guy about my age who hands me a bag and a box, with a receipt taped to the bag, before he just walks away.

Uhh, huh?

Well, uhm. Sure.

Helplessly, I look back to Sabine, who is peeking back at me, looking again, like I feel.

That was weird.

"I'll grab plates." I tell her, then do just that before Sabine walks in, barefoot and digs into the bag.

Depositing my container on my plate and hers on her plate, Sabine smiles contently, then walks away again.

Water and dinner would be weird. But I have that and apple juice for the kids, I'm all out of iced tea. Leaving the wine.

And the Council's watching.

"Well they'll just have to deal with it." I mutter to myself before grabbing a glass and pouring myself a glass then walking back to the couch.

"How'd you know what paints to grab?" I ask as I sit down, angling myself so we can continue this conversation.

"I don't know." She shrugs while flipping thru her phone. "I…I was upset, and my roommate is doing what she does best and I didn't want to be there, so I just grabbed what appealed to me."

I hesitate, fork still in my mouth as Sabine sets her phone down and spears a piece of what I assume is chicken.

Doing what she does best. Meaning…an aural component?

"What's she doing that's bugged you so much?"

This time it's Sabine who freezes up. "Uhm, she got a boyfriend. And uhm, yeah."

Oh.

"Why'd I ask?" I ask her.

There's only so many options, and that's probably the worst of them.

"Because you're awkward." She smirks at me before her face falls again. "Besides, I'd had a really crappy day. I almost came straight over here but thought it'd be weird—" She rambles.

"You're always welcome." I cut her off. "I'm always happy to see you."

"Thanks." Sabine says, then keeps eating.

We settle into a comfortable silence, punctuated by us enjoying the Chinese food before my phone buzzes.

"You have got to do something about that." – Cayle

"That?" I reply.

"Her. Ezra. Look. At. Her."

Oh boy.

I roll my eyes, then peek over at Sabine conspicuously.

I mean, she is very pretty. Long, strong legs. Toned muscles. Yeah, I get it. Am I thinking with my big brain still? Yes!

"She came over because of a bad day and clearly forgot a different bra. Other than that highlighter, I've seen this before."

He's being a caveman. A guy and a girl can be friends. Sabine clearly doesn't have time for a relationship. Last time I saw her was for breakfast and she joked I'm the only non-athlete she texts or talks to.

Last week she liked a tweet by somebody that basically said that if a student athlete is talking to you, they're making time to do so. They don't have it, and are exhausted most of the time.

"Dude. I'm telling you. You can lock her up. Clinch it, have her in your life FOREVER. Just start slowly making a move?"

I shake my head, then spear a bite and reply "Can the Council see your texts?"

Grey dots.

"They examine my texts on a regular basis, just like every other member of the Order."

And technically, it's a committee made up of Jedi Knights, FBI agents, counter intelligence people, a linguist and actually a therapist.

Maybe I should…

I pop up out off the couch and walk toward Sabine and my desk and spot that she's low-ish on wine. "I'll grab you a refill."

"Thanks." She answers, sounded distracted.

Yeah, definitely. I've got everything locked down, all my weapons are confiscated. And they'd be too well hidden. Plus I can wave away anything if she does protest.

I have an FBI agent for a friend.

"Here you go. Oh, and I got you a gift." I extend Sabine her wine glass back.

"No you didn't." She shuts me down.

"Yeah, I did. And I don't like you dismissing me so easily." I bite back at her.

Hey now. I'm putting my neck out there, in front of the damned Council, who will not like that I'm doing this. Take a hint Sabine.

Sabine's eyebrows drop, then she spins to me, pointing a unused brush at me. "Are you actually mad?"

"Humor me? Maybe even trust me?"

Sabine blinks heavily. "Okay. But I'm not up for games."

I can tell!

"Just go check underneath my doormat. Okay?"

"Underneath your…" She mutters as she walks away, then opens the door. As she does that, I make a strong motion toward my TV.

This is MY call. I don't want to hear their protests.

Sabine lingers with the door open for a moment before I hear the mat get dropped back down and the door to shut. Then she pops out, eyes to the floor but rushes to me and tackles me into a hug.

"You didn't…I mean…" She says, voice shaking again, this time also trembling.

I pull Sabine closer and let out a breath then rub my thumbs on her shoulder blades. "Like I said, you're always welcome. And I imagine you don't want to hear your roommate get serviced at all hours of the night."

Sabine giggles loudly then lays her forehead on my sternum. "Yeah, that part sucked."

"Learn any tips you could pass along?" I try to keep breaking the ice before Sabine blushes and giggles louder.

"Being as loud as possible enhances the experience." She jokes before both of us laugh and Sabine seems to melt closer to me.

I shake my head, only to be the first to let go and to get a dirty look before Sabine reluctantly lets me go. "Oh shoot, that reminds me. Halloween."

"That's like a week-ish away." I remind her.

"Yeah, but there's a party. And there's a plan. You know most girls are evil, right?"

Is this a trick?

"Uhh…" I shrug helplessly. "I guess? You're evil."

Sabine turns just as she was moving to take a bite of her dinner. "Stop it." She swats at me. "Sit down. At your desk. I wanna talk to you."

"About?"

"Why the hell you don't have a kitchen table." She gesticulates. "You have everything else."

"I don't want one. I can eat at my desk or the kitchen or the couch."

Sabine, mouth full, rolls her eyes. "Well that's a load of crap. But I can put my canvas here, so I'm okay with it for now."

"See? Better use of the space."

"Oh shut up." Sabine waves me down. "Seriously though, Halloween. You need to be careful. Softball and some of my teammates are plotting."

"Plotting?" I ask in disbelief then as Sabine turns to her canvas I turn to the TV and make a face.

Oh you have got to be kidding me. What are they going to do, plot to kidnap me? Been there! Done that!

Sabine, unaware continues as my phone buzzes in my pocket. "Yeah. Since you haven't gone to anything since that fight, everyone has been trying to think of ways to get you to come out. And Halloween is the biggest bash of the year outside of Spring Break. It's on a Friday, everybody can dress up, whole shebang."

"I don't understand."

"You have to come out for Halloween. I want you to, it'll be fun. I promise not to get too lit or anything, just kind of chill out and stuff. But it's everyone else you've got to watch."

I'm totally lost.

Before I can reply Sabine clearly reads my facial expression. "They're going to try and roofie you. Some of them, at least."

"Spike my drink." I repeat it back to her. "That's a bad idea."

That is one of the worst ideas I've ever, EVER heard.

BEST case scenario is I'm sedated, coerced into bed with somebody. BEST CASE.

Worst, you ask? JJ's best friend Vader appears.

We don't even know what he'd do in a sexually charged situation.

"Yeah, I know." Sabine continues on. "I don't know with what, but I heard some girls in the bathroom talking about it, thinking I wasn't there."

"So mostly softball." I try to get a name out of her.

Give me a target on who to avoid. I think she's like Jaicey and won't sell out a teammate.

Sabine's face looks like one of forced calm. "Yes."

"Then I don't need to go."

Problem solved.

"No, I want you to go!" Sabine hastily says. "Just bring your own drinks. I can ask Jaicey to buy us more wine if you want me to."

I begin to reply, then stop myself, only for Sabine to smirk and turn back to her painting. "Why do you want me to go?"

"Because it'll be more fun. And they are right: You haven't done anything except be Ezra-bot since then. And we've talked about Ezra-bot."

"Classes got busy, okay. Life got busy."

"Not that busy." She retorts. "It'll be nice. You'll have to go as somebody though."

No I won't.

"I'll just be me." I disagree.

Sabine blindly snaps at me, then sets her fork down and swallows. "No, that's not allowed!"

"Says who? We don't even know who is throwing the party." I counter her.

"I do!" She lights up. "It's a rule. All attendees have to have a costume—hey wait, I've got it! You can be Zac Efron in Neighbors! Not as much of a swoldier, but still. You can buy the hair gel, floof your hair a bit…"

I don't think I want to know.

I eye her cautiously, then start back to the couch. "Oh come on!" She calls back to me. "Work with me!"

"Not until you get better ideas. Something tells me my shirt will be gone by the ten minute mark." I glance up to her.

"And…?That's the point!" Sabine gestures wildly again.

Of course it is.

Spearing another bite and pulling out my phone again, I—

5 new iMessages – Cayle

Oh boy.

"Wow. You were on a roll until you bit her head off. Why man?"

"Oh."

"The Council is furiously debating right now. A poor Padawan just got summoned to make coffee for everyone. Bold, bold move. I like it."

"I hope you liked that hug. She clearly did."

"I'm going to start looking for avenues to stop their drugs."

"Well that's a lot to take in." I reply. "The Council can deal with it, I stand by my decision. And isn't that a DEA thing?"

This wine doesn't go bad with this chicken. It neutralizes the spice enough for it to go down super smoothly.

"Yeah, doesn't mean I can't poke around. Council is against you going, but currently debating the idea of blowing your cover by proxy."

Yeah. Because if it walks like it's hiding. Talks like it's hiding. Hasn't gone out, it's hiding. Making it more likely for somebody to find me if they're looking for me. They'll know where I'll be.

"I'm a duck." I reply.

And I'm full.

I pop to my feet, grab my empty container of food, finish off my wine, then start to the kitchen. "I think I'm going to go work out. That was delicious."

"I kind of figured you'd say that/" Sabine says mournfully before I peek around the corner to see her focused on the blank canvas.

I watch her chew on her bottom lip, sloshing the wine in her glass before teasing her "You gonna draw something or what?"

"You are such an…ignorant art person. By the time we graduate from here, I'm going to have you intimately knowing the ins and outs of Van Gogh, Michelangelo, Picasso, hell maybe even a Van Zant or a Rembrandt." Sabine vows, looking slightly offended at me.

"Intimately? Why'd you have to say that?" I ask her as I walk back to my room and grab some workout clothes for my cover.

"It's a figure of speech! You would know since you're so computer heavy! Have you ever even kissed a girl?!"

I stop, shorts in my hand. "Yeah! I have!" I call back. "And I think she liked it, seeing as she wouldn't really stop!"

Sabine lets out a loud, laugh, almost a cackle as I grab a shirt and start back to her. "Then what was the problem?"

"She kissed like a dog." I shake my head.

Diplomat's daughter. It was a play. We didn't watch much of it.

We, listen to me.

Sabine does let out a cackle this time, then runs around my living room doing high knees while laughing her head off. "I love it! Kisses like a dog…"

"It's true. And it was bad."

"Bye." She says firmly, shaking her head as I grab the door.

"Don't wait up for me. Feel free to crash in my room if you get tired."

She's going to come down off her emotional high pretty soon.

Sabine doesn't immediately reply, and I start to shut the door behind me, only for her to suddenly stop it with her hand, then quickly hug me again. "Thank you."

"You're welcome." I reassure her while returning her hug again. "I think you're going to crash soon."

"I think you're right. Plus I just ate. I'll try not to fall asleep." She laughs.

I roll my eyes in mock irritation. "Just be comfortable."

"Okay." She nods, then lets me go. "Have fun. Don't work too hard."

"I never do that." I disagree, the watch as Sabine shakes her head then shuts the door behind me.

Well then.

Automatically, I slide down the stars and hop into my car, turning the key just in time for my entertainment system to go crazy and for multiple voices to start talking simultaneously, leaving me to scramble to turn the volume down.

"Ahh, there he is!" Cayle's voice finally comes thru.

"Your apartment is messy!" Kanan teases me.

"I've been doing homework and being normal. Sorry I haven't vacuumed."

"When's the last time you did laundry?"

I sigh and set my blinker on to get on the 5. "That's a weekend thing."

"I think Sabine might do it for you. Just ask her, buy her food and maybe sprinkle in another hug or two."

Ignore.

"How'd you get him? Did we lose anybody?" I change the subject as I speed up to ease into the flow of traffic.

It's late enough I should be able to make good time.

"No." Master Windu answers. "We seem to have caught him completely off guard."

What?

I turn to my dash and give it a look. "Really?"

"Yeah. He was clearly doing stuff, but it couldn't have been much. He legally had a couple of acres and a pirate radio broadcast."

They know how much he can do with that. And that's a lot of space.

"It doesn't really sound like him to be caught so off guard."

Cayle interjects. "I read over your notes from way back in the day. He's a dude."

"Yeah." I say strongly. "Dad used him when he felt vindictive. He can fit in anywhere."

There's a name his nickname amongst the Sith, Jedi and the underworld was "The God of Mischief."

"Well now he's fit into our secure holding cell, waiting for you Ezra." Master Tano says, sounding like she's being patched in.

"I'm on my way."

"Haste would be appreciated." Master Kenobi adds.

"Noted. I'll be there in a few minutes." I answer, then swipe over to end the conference call.

It'll take a little more than that, but they all are probably tracking my car.

I let the silence hang around before my mind starts spinning again.

Elias would be a better questioner than I would be. Dad thought he was much better than I would be with him. Granted, I spent more time honing Vader and being worked up into a blind rage in order to learn how to control it than learning the subtleties of spying and information gathering.

I can use that in my favor. I'll just have to ask the right questions. Problem is, I've never even seen him break. He's always had the same smug, superior look on his face.

Realistically, the Council knows that I can't get to him. They're probably playing the long game. Having me come in, and for nothing to come of it would tell them that they'll probably throw him to the Raft on a different level than my father and go from there.

Years and years of imprisonment on the chance of valuable intel one day.

"A rather inefficient process." My father's voice pops into my head, causing me to shake my head slightly.

Get out of my head.

Positives: I do know him. Know his calculating manner. Every word is important. I cannot let him under my skin. I know he's going to come with some jabs. The Council knows this and are using me as their trump card in an effort to shock him.

I've become a spirit, a memory. Seeing me pop into his interrogation will probably give him the shock of his life.

Even for him.

I pull into the empty parking garage, use my pass to slide up to the designated level and slide into a spot near the elevator before hopping out, locking up and walking toward the Temple.

Cayle.

The elevator doors open before I reach them, leaving Cayle tapping on a tablet. "She was affectionate."

"I think that's who she is."

Cayle hits a button and the lift starts moving. "Or it could just be you."

She did come to me today.

"Can we focus?" I ask Cayle, causing him to glance up and take in my outfit.

I wore Sabine's soccer shirt to class today with some jeans. They're playing a big game tomorrow.

"I like the jersey."

"Thanks."

"The Council probably will want you to throw on a jacket or something."

I wince as the implication hits me in the face. "Oh I am so dumb."

"No, but you know what Master Kenobi would say."

"Yeah, well I'm battling more against the fact I only have 24 hours in the day and more stuff to do than that."

Cayle ignores me and slips into his Master Kenobi impression. "Attention to detail is attention to the world, young one. Displaying a lack of it is an offense not to be taken lightly."

"If I'd thought of it, I would have changed." I snap. "I was being covert."

"I think Sabine appreciated you wearing that today. Even though she didn't say anything." Cayle comments as the door pops open.

Focus.

Cayle and I walk for a minute, then he extends me my lightsaber. "Good luck. We're watching, and I'm right out here."

A guard silently extends a logo less black jacket to me, and I slip it on with a nod of thanks. "Maybe he's changed and will tell me all."

Cayle laughs mirthfully. "Oh, I wish. Can dream though."

Yup.

Wordlessly, I nod to Cayle and the guard, then open the door and change my stride to make it longer and more arrogant before sliding inside and popping it closed with a gentle push of the Force, causing Laufey to look up from his position, chained to the table in front of me with the lights brightly shining on him but low in the rest of the room.

"Well well…" He says quietly, as his expression changes greedily. "Look who it is."

"Laufey."

"So they moved me to who knows where, only to bring you in?"

I roll my eyes. "Talk. Start explaining why you came in without a fight."

"I see you read the newest additions to my file."

I smile and lean over to the table. "I'm the one who found you, dumbass. A message board? Really? Quite a fall for the esteemed "God of Mischief". Really leaning into it now aren't you? Not cutting your hair."

Laufey only smiles at me, giving me nothing else. "You've really grown up, my Lord."

Years do that. And not topical.

"You truly do look like your father." He says when I turn my back, and I can't help but freeze for a split second.

"I know you're working under his orders. They're years old now. No longer relevant. Up to the times."

Laufey laughs at the statement, then shifts in his seat. "Oh you know that's not true. Your father has a magnificent gift for predicting the future. I truly believe that he has a gift."

"Well look where that got him." I counter.

He concedes the point, shifting back in his chair as much as he can. "A treacherous son. Is what it got him." I ignore him again and pull up his file again on a tablet before he speaks again. "Tell me, do you feel safe, out there in the world?"

"Yes." I say simply.

"Even with the largest bounty on your head in history?"

I quirk an eye at him, playing into Vader's character. "My face is a mystery. Hidden behind the terror of the mask."

"You hide behind your words." Laufey goads me. "Do you really think you can just be…normal?"

"That's what I am right now."

Laufey laughs again. "Riiight. Friends, parties, maybe even a girlfriend? No. You and I both no better. But then again, you were late coming here."

"Late? I'm right on time." I fire back.

"Were you with your girlfriend? I know you were talking to that girl before your father wisely kicked her to the curb. Necessary sacrifice. Maybe you found her?"

I laugh coldly. "She was a child."

"And what does that make you? If it's not her, I would be willing to venture a guess that she's not even your girlfriend. You're probably too afraid to make a move. Too scared to lose her."

Yup. This is him.

Laufey's expression changes as he stares at me. "There it is."

"Nope."

"Then too afraid of yourself. For feeling too much and letting the beast out. Your true self."

I laugh again, then twirl my lightsaber in my hand and start pacing around him. "I've got to hand it to you. You get captured, in humiliating fashion, without a fight and you're taunting me." I scowl at him. "Big talk from a washed up has-been."

"That makes two of us." He smiles.

"Where's Elias?"

Laufey moves to raise his hands before they're stopped by his cuffs. "How should I know? I'm not his keeper."

"You know he's loose."

"Loose to you. I knew he wasn't captured. The word was that he received a secret assignment from your father after you…" He stops, sits up fully and puts up his best air quotes. "Disappeared."

"I don't buy that." I shake my head. "He trusted nobody."

"He trusted your brother more than you. The true, worthy heir to the Sith Empire's glorious throne."

As opposed to me, you mean.

"Your jabs fall on deaf ears." I blink at him.

"I can tell."

I'm not getting anywhere. Just as I thought.

Impulsively I pop up and start to the door. "Let me know when the "God of Mischief" wants to actually talk."

"Oh, I will." He calls after me before I shut the door firmly.