Requited Attraction:

"Would you like to stay here for the night?"

Kanan wiped the grin off his face with a concealing hand as he watched Fenn Rau's signature literally come to an attentive point like a well trained hunting mooka. Fenn's got it bad. Annnnd the love bug strikes again. The older Mandalorian male was so enamoured with Bo-Katan Kryze that even the invitation made in the name of innocent efficiency was enough to make the poor man twitch to attention. Literally. I'm sure he's quite thankful for his codpiece right now. Or cursing it. (Kanan knew from experience there was very little room for growth behind the armour meant to protect one's groin.)

Despite the fact that the vibrant woman (he had no idea what her actual colouring was, but her Force signature was that particularly energetic and determined blend that made him guess redhead) was addressing their whole group, Kanan was the only one capable of replying at the moment.

Fenn seemed to be working on retrieving his tongue from where he'd swallowed it, and Alrich Wren was frowning at the cake crumbs on his plate while his signature radiated deep sorrow, and the kids were both mentally elsewhere; Sabine back on her datapad with studious intent, and Ezra gazing at her like he was trying to figure out how it was possible that she'd singlehandedly hung the stars in the sky. (Like usual.)

And… Kanan was supposed to be the leader of their little group (but Sabine had somehow taken over for the most part.), so he answered the Countess of Clan Kryze who was seated beside Alrich. "That would be most appreciated, I'm sure. We're all tired, and flying back to our camp seems like a waste of time and resources."

Bo-Katan nodded with a regal inclination of her head. "That is what I guessed." She waved her hand at a large, armoured man sitting on her far side. (The man hadn't said much, but Kanan had seen him studying their group through the entire meal with a keen intelligence, coming to who-knew-what kind of conclusions. Hopefully good ones, but not likely. We're not exactly showing our best sides at the moment.) "This is my second in command, Kar-Anar. He will find accommodations for you. And there is power and fuel for your droid, if he is running low."

"Of course I fragging am!" Chopper beeped from the end of the end of the table where he'd parked himself, waving his manipulators in exasperation. "You've had me fragging flying all over this fragging dust ball all fragging day!"

"Chopper! What did Hera tell you about your language in polite company?" Kanan admonished, wishing he was close enough to kick the droid.

"What polite company? These Mandalorian meatbags curse more than I do!"

Bo hid a smile behind her cup. The droid has a valid point. "You need not scold your droid on my behalf. As he pointed out, I am used to coarse language. And Chopper has been a valiant warrior today. He deserves a little pampering." And he really does need more power and fuel if he's to be of use in our next mission.

Kanan somehow resisted the urge to scowl, keeping his face blank, as Chopper basked in the praise. How come Chopper always manages to win the females over to his side? It makes zero sense. They should be the ones most offended by his pain-in-the-ass behaviour.

"Finally! Someone acknowledges my contributions!"

Kanan growled under his breath, making Ezra chuckle quietly. (Apparently the boy had swum up from the pool known as Sabine to listen to the conversation around him.) I'll acknowledge your contributions right out the nearest airlock the next time we're in hyperspace, you bloody rustbucket.

Bo smiled at the out-of-date astromech and then nodded slightly to Kar. He immediately rose to his feet. "Come," he commanded their guests.

Ezra nearly fell over as he stood, he was silently laughing so hard from Kanan's internal dialogue. Kanan had to steady him with a subtle hand. Hunh. Apparently I thought that last one with a little too much enthusiasm.

"Yes, you did." Ezra thought back down their bond. "Don't let Hera catch you saying that one out loud."

"She already did. Twice. I slept alone for days each time."

Ezra's shoulders shook harder, but he somehow kept it all internal. Kanan was impressed. The boy sucked in a breath of air to calm himself back down and then bent over Sabine, whispering in her ear that it was time to move.

The girl hummed in acknowledgement but didn't budge, still typing away on her datapad at lightning speed. (Her two pieces of chocolate cake had only distracted her for a few minutes, unfortunately.) Ezra ended up picking her up by her elbows and placing her on her feet and then guiding her from behind as they walked and she typed, all of them following Kar-Anar Kryze.

Except for Fenn, that is. Kanan was not surprised. He didn't bother to hide his grin, since he brought up the rear of their little train.

While Kanan waited for their borrowed tent to be set up by Kar-Anar, Alrich, Sabine, and Ezra, the kids giggling as they rushed to outdo each other, Kanan had Chopper make an attempt at contacting Hera. He wanted to let her know what was happening. And hear her voice. Her beautiful voice that had always made his heart sing.

Kanan could live without his sight, but he wasn't sure if he'd survive if he never heard Hera talk to him again. The frequent thought was a reminder that things could always be worse and to be grateful for what he did have.

"She's not picking up either the Ghost comm or her wrist comm," Chopper beeped forlornly. (The droid missed Hera just as much as Kanan did, as loathe as the Jedi was to admit it.)

Kanan sighed. Probably busy with Rebellion stuff. Maybe she's flying something new. That would make her happy. "Leave her a message then. Tell her that we are going into battle in a few hours and that I will call her back as soon as we're safe."

"Okay." A moment later… "It's done. I'm going to charge with the other droids."

Kanan waved his hand distractedly at the droid. "Sure. Have fun. Try not to get in trouble."

Chopper rolled off, raising a manipulator in a crude gesture.

I'm going to pretend I didn't see that.

I hope Hera's okay. He reached for his bond with her, weak at this distance, but still a reassuring hum in his soul. She felt happy, bubbly, excited. Definitely flying something new. I bet it's those new X-Wings the Rebellion ordered. I hope High Command recognizes her skill and gives her an appropriate position of command.

The kids sure are falling into their new relationship quickly, he thought as he watched their signatures tussle over a tent pole and who got to put up the last one. They ended up rolling on the ground, having a tickle fight that produced a lot of wheezing laughter while Kanan and the other two older men finished the tent and put up the cots.

"Are they always like that?" the father of one of the rollees stage whispered to Kanan.

Kanan snorted. "Pretty much, but now I'm resigned to the inevitable make out sessions that come with their new relationship. It was much easier on me to think of them as just best friends. This is going to take some getting used to."

Ezra chose that moment to hear Kanan, as the Master had intended, his signature lighting up with embarrassment as he pulled Sabine up onto her feet. "I swear we'll try not to make you uncomfortable, Kanan."

Sabine dug her elbow into Ezra's side. "Maybe we should. How many times have we caught him and Hera in a compromising position over the years? Isn't it time for a little payback?"

Kanan groaned, hiding his face behind a scrubbing hand as Kar-Anar outright laughed at him as he snapped the last cot into an upright and usable position. "Good luck with those two. You're going to need it." The Kryze warrior clapped Alrich on the back, making the smaller man stumble a step. "It's good to see you in one piece still, brother. We should catch up when things settle down again."

Alrich nodded at the man, squeezing his shoulder in return. "It's good to see you as well, Kar. It's been too long."

Kar nodded back. "It has. But at least we're all back on the same side again. That has happened so rarely in the last few decades," he said over his shoulder as he left their tent.

Ezra and Sabine settled onto the edge of a cot with her all but in his lap as he wrapped an arm around her waist and nestled his chin on top of her head. At least she'd given up her fascination with the datapad. Kanan chose the cot in the middle of the five, and Alrich picked the one to Kanan's left, leaving an empty one beside the kids' so that they could sleep side by side if they wanted. Now there's a generous father. Not so sure I wouldn't be putting up a ten metre thick wall between them, if it was me and that was my real daughter.

Kanan turned his head towards Alrich. "Soooo, was that your real brother, or just a term of friendship?" Because Kanan couldn't really see things like detailed facial features and eye colour, he had no idea if there was a familial resemblance.

"My real brother," Alrich said with a smile. "Older, and the 'normal' one in our immediate family. The rest of us are artists and politicians. He glommed onto Bo's branch of the family as a child as soon as he realized he didn't fit in with ours. They've been fairly inseparable ever since."

"Should I be telling Fenn his attraction to Bo-Katan is going to hit a big wall?" Kanan asked.

Alrich laughed and so did Sabine. "No. Fenn has a shot, sort of," Sabine offered. "Aside from the fact that Uncle Kar is married and has two kids, he and Bo are more like siblings than Father and he are. Right Father?"

"True. But Sabine's right about the 'sort of' as well; Bo's had maybe three semi-serious relationships in her whole life, and they didn't last long."

"That sounds like Fenn," Ezra said with a laugh. "From what I've been able to pry out of him, he's waiting for his cyar'ika to show up."

"You don't think Bo is her, do you?" Sabine asked with wide eyes, turning her head over her shoulder to look at Kanan.

Kanan shrugged. "It's possible. Fenn's Force signature seems to think so. I'm assuming his mind is also of the same persuasion."

"That would be fantastic if they got together," Sabine gushed. "Those two deserve to be happy."

Fenn slid over into the space Alrich had vacated, placing him within breathing distance of Bo-Katan's enticing scent of soap and woman. "Thank you for defending Ezra a few minutes ago. The boy is over-enthusiastic sometimes, but he means well."

Bo's mouth twitched up into a smile, unobtrusively studying the handsome lines of Fenn's face. "I noticed. He does seem competent enough under pressure, though, if a little bumbly. And his dedication to Sabine can't be questioned."

"No, it can't. He'll protect her to his last breath, and you can't ask for a better consort than that."

Bo frowned slightly at the man, head tilting a little to the side as she turned on the bench and studied him more openly. "You seem quite comfortable with the Jedi and the girl who was a known Dar'manda. How did this come to be? For while I have not met you before, I have heard of you, Fenn Rau, Protector of Concord Dawn. You used to train the clones to fly. You fought for the Republic. You defend the traditional Mandalorian way of life fiercely. It used to be a known fact that you had no good feelings left towards the Jedi that supposedly betrayed the Republic, nor the Rebellion that fights foolishly against the Empire, but now you work willingly with both. And I know you would never abandon your honour long enough to befriend a dar'manda girl, so there must be some fascinating stories to your tale. I want to hear them." Her eyes flicked around the tent, which had gradually hushed as those around them overheard her speaking. "We all do."

Fenn was pleased, to say the least, that she was willingly engaging in further conversation instead of dismissing him. This woman was everything he'd ever hoped to find in a mate for himself, but had never yet stumbled across. At his age of fifty-two, Fenn had basically given up finding his cyar'ika. His parents had had a cold and miserable arranged marriage, inspiring Fenn to want the complete opposite. To find one's soulmate was not the easiest thing to do, but it was always worth it, according to those who had.

He slid just a fraction closer to her, pushing Alrich's dessert plate out of the way. "You know an impressive amount about me, Lady Kryze, and I have to admit I know much about you as well."

"Bo. You can call me Bo."

Fenn did an internal happy dance, smiling warmly at her. "Bo, then."

Bo found herself smiling just as sweetly back. His deep voice seemed to caress the single syllable of her nickname with every possible innuendo, inspiring a wave of heat to brighten her cheeks and emerald eyes. "You can skip my back story. Everyone here knows it. Just tell me more about you… And the Jedi and the girl." Haar'chak! Do you think he noticed the pause?

Of course Fenn noticed the pause. Everyone in the tent did, inspiring a few raised eyebrows. Countess Kryze was notoriously standoffish with men who showed her too much attention, but this man seemed to be climbing through her defenses quite easily. They were going to be watching the development of their relationship with eager eyes and gossiping mouths.

Fenn's internal happy dance was degenerating into a happy puppy wiggle, but you'd never know it from his face. Decades of self-discipline were worth something, after all. "All right. First off, I should clarify that I've never believed that bantha crap about the Jedi betraying the Republic, so I'm not sure where you heard that one. I fought with many of them during the Clone Wars and for the most part, they seemed every bit as honourable as a Mandalorian. They listened to their Republic keepers like well trained mookas and with just as much dedication as the programmed clones."

"Hmmm. So you're saying they were essentially slaves to the Republic, like the clones were?" That fits with the impressions I got of Kenobi. He seemed like he was betraying everything by coming to save my sister alone and against orders. If he'd had backup by more Jedi, maybe Satine would not have died.

"That's the impression I got. Most of them were incredibly brave fighters, too, and very worthy of respect. They had no problems fighting with my squad, so the Mando/Jedi wars were far from their minds or completely forgotten. In fact, the first time I met Jarrus was way back then, at the Third Battle of Mygeeto. He was just a kid, a Padawan, barely fourteen if he was a day, but he fought just as hard as the rest of us. WE don't even send our children into battle until they're sixteen. The Republic was brutal to the Jedi and they just took it. If they were going to rebel against the orders of the Senate, they would have done it much sooner than three years into war and hundreds upon hundreds of Jedi casualties later. I'm positive the so called Jedi uprising was a front to wipe them out. Palpatine had the perfect tools in place to do it, too, with those clones. When you fight beside someone day after day, you learn them inside and out. The clones knew exactly how to defeat their Generals. I know it goes against everything we were taught as children, but I feel sorry for the few Jedi still alive, and all of you should as well."

Bo watched her clan and the visiting ones nod, and murmur to each other. Fenn's words had brought a new perspective that none of them had ever thought of. A necessary one, it seemed. "I have always had a soft spot for the Jedi, or at least one of them. Jedi Master Obi-Wan Kenobi did everything in his power to save my sister, against the orders of the Jedi Council and the Senate, and I will never forget that. Kanan Jarrus and Ezra Bridger and any other Jedi they happen to raise or come across will always be welcome in my home or camp." This was said pointedly towards those assembled more than at Fenn, and they knew it. The drop of their eyes said so.

Satisfied that she'd made her point, Bo refocused on the man on her right, who somehow seemed even closer than the last time she looked. Sneaky bastard. But he smells really good, so I think I'll let it slide. And those glacier blue eyes are something else. Is my heart beating faster than normal? "So how did you meet Jarrus and his Padawan again? Does it have anything to do with Saxon's gloating over his annihilation of the Protectors?" She was unsurprised to see Fenn's eyes instantly harden into chips of ice. Someone hates Gar Saxon just as much as I did.

Fenn nearly snarled. "Saxon. May he rot in the seven hells." He took a deep breath and regained control of his emotions before he came across as overly savage. "Yes, they did have something to do with it. Sabine too. I hated them at first, believing they had caused the death of my Protectors. But later I found out that I owed them my life."

"So that's why you fight with them now? A life debt?" That makes sense. The other warriors seemed to think so too, looks of understanding crossing their faces.

Fenn smiled crookedly. "Yes. And no. They've earned my respect and loyalty. Let me tell the story of how I met them, and you'll understand, I think."

Bo nodded with her eyes. "All right."

"Nearly two years ago, a small squad of Rebellion A-Wings jumped into space near Concord Dawn. They wanted to talk about using the nearby hyperspace lane for their Rebel ships to pass through the sector safely and negotiate an alliance against the Empire. But because I had an understanding with said Empire, it was my duty to eliminate them. We did. All but three that jumped away. One was Sabine, another was Hera Syndulla."

Bo raised a brow. "Syndulla? As in General Syndulla? The famous Twi'lek rebel?"

Fenn nodded grimly. "Yes, his daughter. And Kanan's cyar'ika. And I almost killed her when she put herself between my entire squad and Sabine so the girl could jump to safety. I'm not even sure how her A-Wing made the jump back, it was flaming so badly."

"Osik."

"Exactly. Hera is one of the best pilots I've ever met. Maybe only second to Skywalker, who I had the privilege to fly with on a few occasions. It would have been a crying shame if she'd been lost in that skirmish." Fenn's shoulders dropped slightly as he sighed. "Anyway, about a day later, Wren and Jarrus show up at my camp. Jarrus had come to try and talk some sense into me, having remembered me from before, and Sabine had come to destroy me for all but killing someone she considers family. Kanan had apparently talked her into something a little less Mandalorian and a little more Jedi at some point, because she did challenge me to a Fight to the Death, but only shot the blaster from my hand and then blew up all but one of our Fang fighters and half the camp. It seemed like she wanted to see me fail and Kanan had talked her into capturing me as their plan."

"Sounds like Ursa in a good mood," Bo said with a smirk, sipping from her cup of mead. She gave Kar-Anar a brief smile as he sat back down beside her, nodding to indicate that their guests had been satisfactorily accommodated.

"They are disturbingly similar," Fenn said with a chuckle, until his face fell. "Or… they were." He shook his head, dispelling the gloom. "Anyway, I made for the last fighter still in one piece that she must not have had time to attach an explosive to, so I could track down whatever ship they arrived in and blow it to pieces in retaliation while my men supposedly took care of capturing them alive. I had a vision of forcing them to watch me destroy whatever pathetic Rebel fleet that they had in their arsenal."

A Fighter for a Fighter, of course, but we Mandalorians like to take it up a notch with each successive exchange of blows. "I take it you weren't successful?" Bo smirked at the man as he flushed in embarrassment.

"Yeah, no. Kanan jumped on my fighter and absolutely would not be shaken off as I flew. Bloody clingy Jedi," Fenn said with a hint of respect under the annoyed tone. "Then he disabled my ship with his lightsabre, slashed the transparisteel cover off the cockpit, and proceeded to punch me out with one blow. He might not look like the strongest man you've ever seen, but he hits like a Star Destroyer. I woke up with my hands manacled together, tied to the seat of a shuttle. Sabine was glaring at me from the seat across the way, possibly still contemplating murder, and Kanan was flying. I was escorted to Phoenix Cell's flag ship, made the acquaintance of their Commander, Jun Sato, who died a hero's death in their escape from Chopper base a couple days ago, came to a reluctant alliance for the use of the hyperspace lane with him, and was then escorted to a cell."

"Lovely."

"I thought so. I was a very pissed off, very uncooperative 'guest' for a long time."

"How long?"

"More than a year."

"By the Manda, you must have been going insane." I know I would have if I was locked up for that long.

"I was. They did let me out for exercise every day, though. Under supervision, of course. My favourite form of exercise was sparring with the members of their cell and beating the crap out of them." Fenn grinned when Bo and many others laughed. "There were only a few who challenged me, and even beat me on occasion; Kanan, Sabine, Ezra, and a clone called Rex, who you may have heard of. He was Captain of the 501st."

"Skywalker's unit? Blue on white?" she asked in surprise.

"Yes."

"Then yes, I've worked with and fought beside him, actually. He was Commander of the offshoot unit that helped me win Mandalore back from Maul. Our people owe him and the Togrutan Jedi, Ahsoka Tano, a great debt which I never had the chance to pay them back for. I'd heard that their Venator went down on the way back to Coruscant and that there were no survivors. But if Rex is still alive - and I'm surprised there are any clones left considering the rapid aging - then perhaps I'll get my chance."

"It's possible," Fenn said with a slight smile. "And Rex has actually gotten younger looking since I first met him, since someone finally made a cure for their aging problem. Funny thing is, I'm pretty sure I taught him to fly when he was just a cadet. Time is a funny thing and the galaxy is smaller than one would expect, the way I seem to keep running into people from my past."

"That does tend to happen," Bo said with an amused smile. "I hope that works for me in this case."

His expression sobered again. "I can probably make Rex appear in your vicinity, But as for Tano, I've never met her, but I through hushed rumours that she didn't survive a fight with Darth Vader."

Bo's green eyes went from bright jade to dark with grief in an instant. "Shab, that is a shame. She was such an amazingly kind person and a worthy warrior. I liked her. Worked and trained with her for almost four months. Even Ursa liked her, and that's saying something."

"It is," Fenn responded with a flicker of a rueful smile. "She only tolerated me."

"She liked me," Kar said with a proud smirk.

"You were her brother-in-law and a more warrior-like version of her cyar'ika," Bo said with a roll of her eyes. "Of course she liked you."

Kar just grinned into his mead.

With an even more exaggerated roll of her eyes, Bo shoved him just hard enough to make him spill on himself.

Fenn laughed along with their neighbours as he sputtered and she turned her focus back on him. "So... back to where we were. How did you go from reluctant 'guest' to a free ally of the Rebellion?"

Fenn snorted. "The hard way, of course. When Saxon razed the Protector camp, the Rebels lost communication with them so they decided to send someone to investigate; Sabine, Ezra, and Chopper to be specific. I talked them into letting me accompany them. On the flight there, I found a moment when Ezra was distracted, turning all of his attention to Sabine - which has got to be his biggest weakness by the way, boy's gotta work on that – and I knocked him out from behind. I borrowed his blaster and stunned Sabine before she could get out of the pilot's chair. I flew us the rest of the way to Concord Dawn without their astromech even knowing that something had happened until we landed and I was the only one to walk out of the shuttle. Chopper spent a good minute cursing me in binary and even tried to shock me, the little shit. But I ignored him as I ran over to see why there was so much smoke trailing across the sky."

Fenn's shoulders drooped a little with remembered sorrow, inspiring Bo to put a hand on his thigh in support as she knew what was coming next. He looked at her with a flash of his eyes that said he was very aware of where her hand was, and he liked it. Of course he does, he's a male isn't he?

Bolstered by Bo's sympathetic gaze and the touch of her elegant hand on him that was sending sparks up and down his body with awareness, Fenn continued his story after taking a long swig of his mead to help control his body's reactions. "What I found was a destroyed camp and bodies everywhere. Not a single warrior had been spared Saxon's execution. The angle of the shots indicated that they'd been attacked from above by high powered weapons, and had barely been given a chance to defend themselves. I would have died along with my men if I hadn't been in the care of the Rebels."

As their listeners growled with outrage, Bo also curled her lip up in distaste. "That sounds like the usual dishonourable crap that Gar Saxon used to pull on a regular basis. He ruled by fear; join him or die. It took me a long time to convince even a few clans to oppose him. Many more joined me when he died and his even slimier brother took over."

"We have the Wrens to thank for that," Fenn said with grim smile. "But I almost left Sabine to die at Saxon's hands on Concord Dawn. In a move that I'm now quite ashamed of, while Sabine and Ezra were occupied fighting Saxon and his Super Commandoes that had showed up only minutes after we did, I took off in their shuttle. I was nearly out of the system when my conscience sent me back. I was just in time to blow up Saxon's Kom'rk and see Sabine and Saxon fighting in an all out brawl. The girl was holding her own, no question about it, even being half his size." Fenn smiled fondly in memory. "She impressed me that day, and the respect that had been growing for her over the last year became a full-fledged thing. I willingly joined the Rebellion after that. Some months later, Sabine found the Darksabre while Ezra was dealing with Maul yet again."

"Maul?" The gasp came from more than one person in the tent.

"Yes, Maul. He'd become rather determined to win Ezra over for his own apprentice."

"Really?" The doubt in Bo's voice was clear to everyone. "I don't see why."

Fenn smirked. "Yes, really. The boy may seem like a bumbling, lovesick fool to most, but Kanan says he's incredibly powerful with the Force, especially when it comes to visions of the future and his ability to communicate with animals. And I've seen him in action on many an occasion; he actually is a very good fighter. His inexperience with a jetpack today did not shine him in the brightest light, I'm afraid, but that's Sabine's fault. He begged her for months to let him practice with hers or make him his own, but she refused, saying he had his Force abilities and to leave her something that was just hers."

"I can see her point, but he did look like an absolute di'kut today. He should have left it off and used the Force like Jarrus did."

"But then we may have lost Alrich Wren as well."

Bo frowned. "Good point."

"Ezra was very insistent that he get a jetpack of his own this morning. I'm guessing he knew he'd need it. He rarely puts his foot down when it comes to Sabine, but when he does, she listens because she knows it's actually important."

"That's something, at least," Bo said with a smirk. "Otherwise I'd think Sabine had just claimed herself a pushover. Having a man worship you is one thing, but they still have to have a mind of their own."

Fenn's eyes grew slightly heavy lidded as he placed his own hand over the one that was still on his thigh, tracing his thumb over the top of her hand, thankful he'd pulled his gloves off to eat so he could feel the satin texture of her skin. "I can assure you I have a mind of my own, My Lady Bo. I can also promise an unprecedented amount of worship." he murmured huskily.

Beside her, Kar-Anar snorted into his mead. Bo kicked her closest friend in the shin without even looking. She was pleased to hear him suck in a breath and then choke on the liquid he'd been swallowing. Serves him right. I can make eyes at a man if I want to. Not that I'm usually inclined to do so, but this fine man here is worth a second look. And a third. And maybe without any clothes on. We'll have to see how things progress.

To distract herself from the tingles racing up her arm that seemed to be working through her and down to her core, Bo asked, "I believe you were there on Krownest when Saxon was defeated?"

He nodded. "I was. Kanan had been training Sabine with the Darksabre, which she was very reluctant to touch at first, knowing what it represented. Sabine is a born leader, but I don't think she saw herself as such, not until recently. When we all felt that she was ready to face a real opponent with it, and she was mentally in the right place, she agreed to go back to Krownest and try to make amends with her mother in a bid to win help from us Mandalorians in the Rebellion cause. Ursa, of course, betrayed Sabine and called Saxon, feeling like it was the only way to preserve the safety of her clan. When Saxon showed up, he in turn betrayed Ursa and declared the entire clan as traitors for harbouring fugitives from the Empire… After Ursa gave him the Darksabre."

"Bastard." There were many nods of agreement from those eagerly hanging on Fenn's every word. Ursa had told Bo her side of the story, but it was always nice to hear another.

Fenn squeezed her hand gently for agreeing with him. "A fight ensued, of course, after Saxon made Tristan choose between his family and his loyalty to the Super Commandoes. Tristan chose family."

"As he should. He was a good son. A promising warrior. He will be missed. Everyone we lost today will be missed." The occupants of the tent hung their heads in a moment of respect at Bo's words.

"Korkie," Kar whispered into the silence, and was heard by all. The moment of respect became another, deeper one.

Fenn bowed his head along with the others, but kept an eye on Bo in his peripheral vision. When he saw her swallow convulsively, and felt her hand tense as though it wanted to curl into a fist under his, he threaded his fingers through hers in a show of silent support.

Bo took a slow, deep breath and squeezed Fenn's hand back in gratitude. She broke the silence. "Tell me the rest of your story, please." I need the distraction.

Fenn smiled softly at her, wishing they were alone. He'd cup her beautiful face in his hands and kiss her forehead. And then keep kissing downwards until he reached her petal soft looking lips. And hope she doesn't punch me out for it. "Of course. A fight broke out and in the chaos, Saxon snuck up on Ursa with the intention of cleaving her in two with the Darksabre. Sabine saw what was happening and moved to shoot him, but someone shot the blaster right out of her hand. Ezra, seeing her predicament, threw his lightsabre at Sabine from all the way across the Great Hall, and she rushed to defend her mother just in time. Saxon and Sabine fought with lightsabres, flying through the glass and out into the snow. She won. Fairly and honourably. She won the Darksabre back."

The tent inhaled as a whole, knowing what that meant; Sabine was rightfully the next Mand'alor if she wanted to be.

"With two lightsabres held crosswise around Saxon's neck, she could have ended it then and there. But as I said earlier, the Jedi have influenced her towards compassion. She walked away, leaving him to live with his defeat by a teenage girl to weigh on his soul. I almost agree with her choice, for that would be hard to live with for any respectable warrior. But he met his end only seconds later when he drew a blaster on Sabine, pointing it at her back. Ursa shot him through the forehead. No mercy shown for anyone who would do such a dishonourable thing. Gar Saxon was a blight on this galaxy, and we are well rid of him."

"Hear, hear!" the crowd cheered.

When they settled down, Bo rose to her feet, gently extracting her hand from Fenn's warm and callused one with a tinge of regret, and waited for all eyes to fall on her. "Now, all we have to do is remove Tiber Saxon from power and Mandalore will be ours again!"

The tent roared with cheers.

Bo smiled at them, pleased with her people.

Fenn rose to his feet and scooped up his helmet and gloves, gaze locked on her smiling eyes through the whole maneuver. When she focused on him again, he gently grasped her hand and raised it to his lips, kissing her knuckles gallantly. "I shall take my leave now, My Lady. I look forward to fighting at your side on the morrow."

Bo felt herself blushing while Kar snickered behind her again. Someone needs another kick. She extracted her hand from Fenn's before he took up the notion to kiss it some more, which would seriously mess with her self control. "As do I, Lord Rau. May your sleep be deep and untroubled."

Fenn's mouth quirked up in amusement. "And yours, Beautiful Bo. But I have a feeling my sleep will be graced by visions of you, leaving me quite… unsettled." he murmured in that husky bedroom voice again that had played havoc with her nerve-endings the first time he'd used it.

Bo felt the sudden urge to fan herself. Who turned the heat on in my bodysuit? She shoved Fenn away from their table playfully. "Go on with you or neither of us is going to get any sleep tonight."

Fenn planted his feet to the floor, refusing to be budged until he was ready. "Promise?"

Bo huffed at him, blushing harder than she ever remembered doing. "No. Now get out of here and I might contemplate picking this discussion up again tomorrow after we take care of the Empire."

Fenn smiled like a very content tooka. I'll take it. "Good night, My Lady," he breathed in her ear, leaning into her personal space. "Dream of me."

As Bo's breath caught, pupils dilating with awareness and desire, Fenn beat a strategic retreat.

Bo watched his broad shoulders walk away, trailing her eyes down the tapering back to a very fine set of buttocks. That man is asking to be eaten alive, and I can't wait to do it. Seeing him naked is definitely a priority now.

Kar's snorting laughter registered once again. Bo turned and smacked him upside the head. "Cut it out or I'm telling Nuala that you were ogling another woman."

"Hey! That's not fair. I haven't ogled anyone but my wife since I met her."

"It's fair if I say it's fair. Now stop laughing at my courtship."

Kar sighed. "Yes, Bo. But it's so much fun watching you fall all over yourselves and be all goggly eyed."

Bo sighed, rolling her non-googly eyes. "Whatever. Let's hit the sack and hopefully this lot will follow our example. They'll be lucky if they get three hours of sleep at this rate.

Fenn was practically whistling and his steps bouncing as he made his way down rows of tents, aiming for the furthest one in the hopes that it was the correct one by process of logic. He could have asked Kar-Anar where his accommodations for the night were, but he hadn't wanted to lose the impact of his final words to Bo. Nor had he wanted to listen to any more of the brunette man's snickering. Man is definitely related to Alrich. Aside from looking similar enough - if you make Alrich bigger - they have the same warped sense of humour.

Fenn stopped at the last tent, which still had its door open and peered inside.

He grinned when he found his group sitting on their cots (the kids together on one), chatting away about all the places and things Sabine had 'improved' with her graffiti by the sounds of it.

"Did you really paint an entire TIE?" Alrich asked, chuckling.

"She really did," Ezra said proudly.

"And then they flew it into Tarkin's Star Destroyer to rescue me," Kanan said, sounding like he was rolling his eyes under his mask. "A stupider plan had…"

"It was brilliant!" Sabine protested.

"More ill conceived…"

"It worked didn't it?" Ezra defended.

Kanan didn't deign to answer, just shook his head at his Padawan and then turned his focus to Fenn, who was hovering the in the doorway. "How did it go with Lady Kryze?"

Fenn beamed and closed the door before sauntering over to the empty cot on the far right. "Oh, it went." And that's all I'm saying about it to you lot of nosy children.

He pulled off his armour, setting an example for the others who all started moving and disrobing to various degrees, and then settled on his cot, pulling the military issue blanket over his body. As he relaxed into the marginally comfortable mattress, there was a huge smile on his face that he doubted would ever wipe off.

Oh yes, It went, all right. Countess Bo-Katan Kryze will be mine within a week or I'll eat my boots.

Thank the Manda, I finally found my cyar'ika.

On the other side of the tent, Ezra and Sabine lay facing each other, eyes open in the dark, until his fluttered closed from exhaustion and eventually stayed that way. Good night, Sabine, was his last thought before dreamland took him.

Good night, Ez'ika, Sabine thought when his eyes closed, happily drinking in his handsome features for one more minute before she turned over onto her back, studying the ceiling of the tent with barely registering eyes as memories and regrets flooded her yet again.

One cot over from Fenn, Alrich's good humour faded away as he mourned the loss of his cyar'ika and son, knowing he'd never again wear a silly, lovesick grin like Fenn was sporting, silent tears once again streaming down his face. I miss you, Ursa.

And in the middle, Kanan's eyes closed as he pulled a memory of Hera in all her gorgeous green glory into the forefront of his mind; her soft curves and strong limbs wrapping around him in his imagination. I miss you, Hera.

Mando'a translations:

Kar-Anar - a play on words that would roughly translate to 'One who defends with his heart.'