"You what?" Hera wasn't quite sure that she'd heard Kanan right-the force? Kanan thought that he had the force? Body markings were one thing, but having some sort of mystical powers? It sounded-

"I know you guys would think it was crazy," Kanan mumbles, staring down at his drink.

"I…" Hera wasn't sure what to think. It sounded impossible, yet at the same time it didn't really sound like he was making this up.

"Kanan, what makes you think that you have the force?" Zeb asks. "Have you been moving things with your mind or anything like that?"

Damn, that was a good question, why hadn't Hera thought of that instead of immediately jumping to skepticism?

"Kind of? Maybe?" Kanan shrugs, looking a bit nervous. "Not moved things, exactly? But sometimes I've noticed that if I knock things over, or drop them, they'll slow down or even stop for long enough for me to catch them? And I've been getting… Not visions of the future, exactly, just little nudges right before something happens? Like Hera, I knew to pick up my phone and check my texts right before you texted me to know that you were here. And Zeb, the reason I went to the testing facility the day we found each other was because I had this really strong feeling that I was supposed to go there!"

"I… This is a lot to take in," Hera admits. She wanted to believe Kanan, but all the things she'd mentioned could very easily be chalked up to coincidence or wishful thinking.

"I know," Kanan sighs, his fingers tangling in his hair in an agitated manner. "That's why I've been trying to ignore it, but it's getting harder and harder to do that…"

"Guess there's only one thing we can do," Zeb says matter-of-factly.

"And what's that?" Kanan asks.

"We can test those 'powers' of yours."

"What do you mean by-hey!"

Hera lets out a small, involuntary gasp as Zeb reaches over and tips Kanan's drink over in her direction. She instinctively flinches, preparing herself to get a lap full of hot coffee. But the coffee never comes, and she gasps again in shock (and maybe even awe) when she sees the cup and half-spilled drink frozen in place, almost looking like a very life-life sculpture.

"Wow," Zeb breathes. "Kanan, that's incredible!"

Kanan didn't reply-his full attention seemed to be on the cup. Ever so slowly the coffee flowed back into the cup, while the cup itself came back to a rest flat and upright on the table, until it was impossible to tell that the drink had ever been pushed in the first place.

"What were you thinking?" Kanan asks Zeb with a glare when he finally breaks his concentration. "You could have dumped that all over Hera!"

"Exactly-needed to give you some extra motivation to make it stop," Zeb answers as if it was obvious.

Kanan didn't look too happy about it, but Hera had to admit that it had been a pretty clever plan. It had given them what seemed like pretty solid evidence that Kanan had the force. The question was, what now?

She didn't realize that she'd apparently said that last part out loud until Kanan answers, "I don't know. I have no idea how this is even happening, let alone what I'm supposed to do about it!"

"And the only person who might have answers is refusing to talk to us," Zeb adds, and under his cover of annoyance he sounded almost… Afraid? "What do you think is going to happen to us? I mean…. Are we going to fully turn into our avatars? Not that I didn't love being Lasat in the game, but out here I'd have to go into hiding or else risk getting locked up and experimented on!"

"If anyone saw what I'd just done I'd probably get locked up too," Kanan says quietly, and Hera could see the fear in his eyes.

Okay. This was getting out of hand. Yes, maybe the others had valid fears. But getting bogged down in fear wasn't going to help them, if anything it was going to make things worse. It was clearly up to her to keep the situation from escalating and be the rational one, even though she herself was feeling herself sliding more toward the panicked side of things herself.

"Hey," she says, surprising herself with how commanding she sounded, feeling some of her old instincts come back to her from leading their crew as captain on the Ghost, and then from leading the rebellion as a general. She hadn't allowed panic to get the better of them back then, and she wouldn't now either. She saw both Zeb and Kanan looking to her, as if for guidance on what they should do, and suddenly she knew exactly what to say.

"Look, I know this is scary, especially since we don't know what's going on. But let's look at the facts. I don't think we're turning into our avatars, at least not fully. If we were, I think I could have started growing leku instead of the markings showing up on my arms, and all of my skin would be turning green, right?"

"True," Kanan slowly agrees.

"And Zeb, you haven't found your hair or skin turning purple, aside from those couple of stripes, or started growing fur, have you?"

"No," Zeb admits.

"Alright then. So whatever's going on so far has only been relatively minor-I almost feel like, maybe, they're just things meant to help us find each other? Like you and me, Zeb-if we passed each other on the street normally we probably wouldn't recognize each other, right? But those stripes helped me find you in the crowd here today, and if my leku markings had been showing-"

"I would have spotted you right off!" Zeb says, understanding seeming to be dawning on him.

"And it felt like the force was telling me when you were walking towards us so I could find you!" Kanan adds, grinning at Hera. "And before that it helped me know when to go to the testing facility to find Zeb! So you think…?"

"I think whatever is at work here is just trying to help us find each other," Hera finishes for him.

"Wow." Zeb leans back in his chair. "That at least makes this slightly less terrifying…"

"Do you think this means we'll find the kids?" Kanan asks eagerly.

"And Alex?" Zeb adds.

"I don't know," Hera admits. "I don't want to get our hopes up too high. But I don't think any of this will hurt our chances." She made a mental note-even though she wasn't fully comfortable with them, when she was off duty she'd start wearing clothes that would let the marks on her arms be visible if it might help them find the rest of their family.

"So… What do we do in the meantime?" Zeb asks.

"What do you mean?"

"I mean… Well, what do you want to be with us out here? We're not exactly all living on a ship together fighting a war anymore so we're not automatically spending time together. Ever since we've found each other Kanan and I have been hanging out a lot-getting dinner after work during the week, and we've been spending the weekends at my gran-well, I guess at my house."

"Obviously we don't expect you to do any of this if you don't want to!" Kanan quickly puts in.

"But you are welcome to join us, if you want," Zeb continues.

Hera considered this. It had been awhile since she'd really allowed herself to have friends-any time she tried they'd gotten tired of her erratic schedule keeping her from making it to events so they'd just stop inviting her. Kanan and Zeb, though… Not only had they seen her at her most highly stressed and busy, in the middle of a war, it seemed like they really considered her family and wanted to spend time with her. So maybe, just maybe she could open herself up a bit and give this a chance.

"I'd really like that," she says. "Of course, you should know upfront that as a pilot my schedule is all over the place so I can't guarantee when and how often I can hang out…"

"Any time with you is wonderful," Kanan quickly answers, and Hera felt herself blushing at the way his gaze lingered so tenderly on her. She wasn't quite sure where things stood between them out here, but the way he was looking at her was making warmth pool in her stomach, making her want to see if his kisses were just as sweet in real life… But that was ridiculous, right? She couldn't expect anything that had happened between the two of them in the game to be considered real out here, could she? But she felt Kanan's hand coming to rest on her knee, and any reservations that she had about this started quickly disappearing.

Zeb, for his part, was looking between them with a knowing smirk.

"I think that's my signal to go," he says, standing up. "You kids have fun, and just text me whenever you're ready to figure out when we want to all get together again."

"Maybe we could all go somewhere next Saturday?" Hera offers, trying to salvage her dignity. "I've got the whole day free, I fly back in early Friday afternoon."

"I don't think I have anything planned then so that should be fine with me," Zeb agrees amiably.

"I'm free then too," Kanan agrees. "I'm just going to see my students perform on Friday night, but I don't have anything going on Saturday."

"Perfect-we can text or call to figure out where we want to go," Zeb says with a satisfied nod before waving and taking his leave.

"So… Your students, huh?" Hera asks, turning to Kanan, as much to prevent any awkward silences as that of genuine curiosity. "You teach?"

"Wait, what?" Kanan almost jumped, seeming oddly nervous now that they were alone.

"You mentioned your students putting on a play," Hera gently prompts. "I'm guessing that you're a teacher?"
"Professor, actually," Kanan answers, and Hera could feel his leg fidgeting next to hers under the table. "I teach theater-mostly basic courses, but my real passion is stage combat and prop making, especially prop weapons."

"That sounds exciting." Hera gives his knee a gentle nudge with hers under the table. "You know, I wouldn't mind going to see a play with your students in it, if you wouldn't mind me coming."

"Really?"

"Really. Maybe we could go together, have some dinner before we go?"

"You mean like a date?"

"Yes, if you'd like it to be." She knew that she might be pushing things, but she'd rather know now where Kanan stood on their relationships than constantly be second guessing things.

"I…" Kanan seemed to be struggling to find the words to answer, and Hera wasn't sure if he was just getting flustered or if this was a bad sign.

"Hera-I love you," Kanan finally says softly, his fingers coming to rest on the back of her hand. "I know it might sound like it's too soon to know out here when we only really know each other from the game, but I do, without a doubt. But I feel like I need to be honest with you about a couple of things before I let you commit to anything… Commit to me, that is."

"Okay." Hera nods slowly. The fact that Kanan had said that he loved her made her want to gloss over anything else that he had to say that might ruin the moment, but she knew that she had to be smart and actually listen. As much as she wanted what she had had with him in the game back, she knew that she also had to protect herself.

"The first thing you need to know is… My alcoholic, over-partying past in the game? It was real. And in fact that's exactly the type of life I had until I went into the game. So you actually were the one who pulled me out of it, in real life as well," Kanan says, the hand that wasn't on hers tracing indiscernible patterns on the tabletop. "Ever since I woke up from the game, I've been trying my hardest to live the kind of life that would make you and the others proud of me and for the most part I think-I hope-I've been able to do that. I haven't gone to any parties, haven't had a drop of alcohol since I left the game."

"Kanan…" Hera turns her hand over so it was holding his, firmly squeezing it. "You know that I never judged you for your choices before or even after you met me in the game. But the fact that you've managed to pull yourself out of it out here, all on your own? I am so, so proud of you! I-I don't know if I could have done the same thing if I was in your shoes."

"I think you could have," Kanan answers, squeezing back. "You're pretty amazing yourself."

Hera ducks her head, trying not to let on that Kanan's words were making her blush like a giddy schoolgirl.

"Of course some of my coworkers who always expected me to be the life of the party, even if it involved me hurting myself, aren't too happy about the change, and a lot of them have come to the conclusion that it's because I've 'met someone'-which I have-so you might not be greeted too kindly by some of them if they see you with me on campus," Kanan says, wincing slightly as he adds, "Especially some of my former… Well, not exactly partners, I never dated any of them, but I guess hookups, for lack of a better term?"

"Kanan, I ran into a few of your exes in the game and handled it, I think I can handle this," Hera answers with a wry smile. "Especially since I'm pretty sure none of them will be bounty hunters or daughters of galactic crime lords."

"Heh, fair," Kanan weakly chuckles, absently tugging at his ponytail. "But that might actually be the easiest part of this for me to tell you…"

"Okay." Hera nods, wondering what else Kanan could have to tell her.

"I… When I came back, I was really, really missing you," Kanan says softly, his voice barely a whisper. "I spent two months trying to find you, but I was starting to give up hope, I didn't even have proof that you were real, or, if you were real, that you even wanted to be with me since I had no sign that you were trying to find me…"

Hera feels a lump in her throat. He had a point. She hadn't been trying to find him, so she couldn't blame him for anything he'd done after waiting for her all that time.

"Kanan... Is there someone else?" she quietly asks.

"No! Maybe? It's… It's something that almost happened. I knew that I was in love with you so I didn't do anything until I'd given up hope that you were real, and I thought I liked this person but then you called all of a sudden and I knew I couldn't be with them even though I kind of wanted to, but we've talked about it now and both decided that it was just a desperation thing and it wasn't healthy or a good idea so if you still want me I am totally committed to you-"

"Kanan, I'm sorry but you're not making much sense," Hera gently cuts him off because she had completely lost track of whatever he was trying to say.

"...It was Zeb," Kanan finally says, his voice barely above a whisper. "We were both really lonely and missing the rest of you so we… We kind of almost kissed. And we might have if you hadn't called us right when you did…"

"Oh." Hera blinks, taking a moment to process that. Kanan and Zeb? She hadn't ever really expected that, but they were about as close as two people could be without being in a relationship so maybe it made some sense.

"I promise, it was only a one time thing and we've talked about it and both agreed that it was a bad idea and we're better off as just friends!" Kanan tells her, and there was a note of panic in his voice. "I'm so sorry for making that mistake, but I promise I love you and now that I know you're real and you're here I would never-"

"Kanan, it's okay." Hera reaches over to gently touch his cheek. "I'm not angry. How could I be? I- I wasn't even looking for you, how could I blame you for falling for someone else when it was my own fault for abandoning you? I feel like I'm the one who should be apologizing…"

"Hera, please, don't blame yourself," Kanan says softly. "Please. Can we- Can we just move past this and go back to the way things were?"

"Do you want to?"

"Of course I want to!"

"Are you sure?" Hera presses. "If you still want to be with Zeb, I won't blame you-"

"No." Kanan shakes his head fiercely. "You're the one I want to be with, and Zeb wants to be with Alex, and we're perfectly fine just being friends!"

"...You know that it is possible to have more than one partner, right?" Hera asks, an idea slowly starting to form in her mind.

"It's what?" It was Kanan's turn to look surprised. "Isn't that cheating…?"

"Not if there's open communication and everyone's agreed to the relationship," Hera answers. "It's called polyamory, and I actually have a coworker who's in a very happy relationship with her two partners, they even have some kids together!"

"I… I'd never heard of that before," Kanan admits, looking like he was experiencing a bit of culture shock.

"Kanan, if you want to date Zeb as well, as long as we all talk about what we're comfortable with I'd be fine with it," Hera tells him, adding with a small laugh, "If anything, a bit selfishly I feel like it would be a good idea since I work so much and I've lost almost all of my relationships and a lot of friendships because people can't handle my work schedule, and I'd feel like I wasn't leaving you all alone so much…"

"I… I appreciate what you're trying to do," Kanan says after a moment. "To make things easier for me and Zeb. But we've both agreed and we're better off as friends. And even if there was something there, until we found Alex and could talk to him about this…"

"Of course." Hera squeezes his hand. "I don't want to pressure you one way or the other. But please just know that I want you to be happy, living your life however makes you happiest."

"You're who makes me happiest, Hera," Kanan answers, squeezing her hand. "I love you so, so much. I-I didn't even know what I was doing with my life without you…"

"Kanan…" Hera feels herself smiling in spite of herself. "Why are you such a romantic sap?"

"You know that you love it," Kanan answers with a playful smile, daring to press against her side. "So… What do you think? Would you be willing to go back to what we had? Or at least something similar? I know that it might be a lot for you to consider us married still since that only happened in the game…"

"Married might be a bit much right now," Hera admits. "But I'm not saying that I wouldn't be open to considering it again, once we've had a chance to get to know each other-well, out here?"

"Really?" Kanan beams at her like she'd just told him that he'd won the lottery.

"Yes!" Hera laughs, playfully nuzzling into his neck. "I've missed you, you ridiculous, romantic dork."

"I'm your dork, though," Kanan laughs, kissing the top of her head and eliciting a small sigh of contentment from her. "So… Would you maybe consider letting me call you my girlfriend, at least for now?"

"Yeah," Hera answers, pulling away so that she could smile up at him. "I think I'd like that."