I do not own Star Wars in any capacity.

Enjoy chapter 21!

It had been nearly four weeks since they first touched down on Denova. It was almost uncanny the progress Ezra and his daiima have made. Their recovery has been much faster than their own had been. Of course, it hasn't been a straight road. There were good days and bad days. Nights plagued with nightmares, days riddled with dissociation and panic attacks… Then there were days of calm stagnation, long wordless hours where Ezra and the Little One simply finished their chores, ate, and meditated.

A couple days after Nara had spoken with the Little One, her dynamic with Ezra noticeably shifted. Nothing particularly profound happened, but they were working and acting more in sync. Ezra was more openly affectionate with her, they even shared words with one another. And in the evenings when Ezra and Kanan meditated together, Kanan could see how their bond had opened up and glowed with warmth.

In the days and weeks since, they focused on strengthening that bond, nurturing their connection. And it was not only their bond that was growing. The Force bonds that connected Kanan and Nara to Ezra and the Little One have only become brighter and stronger with each passing day. And through these bonds, they were able to help soothe them through even the worst of their episodes.

Kanan was still a bit disquieted by these bonds. While Nara took to it naturally, instantly connecting with the Little One and helping her gain some much needed confidence, Kanan was still struggling to reconcile his connection with Ezra. When his bond with Master Billaba had formed, it had felt like destiny. Like the Force was telling him that he really did belong by her side, that he was meant to fight in the Clone Wars.

And look where it led them.

Kanan understood now that Force bonds were not destiny. There were no guarantees. And in fact, Kanan thought it was quite cruel of the Force to bond this traumatized child to the likes of him: a man who was a failure in every manner of the word. Ezra didn't seem to have much awareness of their bond, and Kanan was grateful for that. While the bond was useful for coaxing the boy out of panic attacks, utilizing it for much more would likely do the boy more harm than good.

For the most part, Kanan was able to keep these thoughts from Nara. She would only scold him, and he frankly wanted to preserve this small bit of space for his self-loathing. It gave him a healthier and more accurate view of what he really was. He needed to counter Nara's boundless optimism.

But all things considered, Kanan was immensely proud of the progress Ezra and his daiima have made in such a short time. It was incredible the healing and rejuvenating power this peaceful and plentiful planet. It was difficult to explain why. All Kanan knew is that it was what had saved them over a decade ago.

More importantly… it was time for Ezra and his daiima to discover her name.

"So Nara's name wasn't just given to her?" Ezra asked.

"No, we 'discovered' it," Kanan replied. "As children, Jedi in the Temple meditate with their daiima in order to find their daiima's names in the Force."

"... How?" Ezra asked skeptically.

Kanan and Nara glanced at one another. Back when Master Yoda and Oona had explained how the process worked, they had asked the same question. It hadn't made any sense to them the way they had described it. The Force was just supposed to tell them her name? Now that they've experienced the process themselves… it was difficult to describe.

"The two of you will meditate as you always do," Nara finally said. "Then you will need to focus on one another and let the Force guide you to her name."

The Little One looked up at Ezra from where she was sitting between his legs. Their confusion was evident, and Kanan sighed as he rubbed the back of his neck. "Look, there is no good way of explaining it. The only advice I can give is to just concentrate on her as you meditate. How does she look and feel in the Force? Then… just listen."

Ezra frowned slightly as he squirmed, holding his daiima tightly. "W-Will you help me?"

Traditionally, a jemma and daiima were supposed to seek out the daiima's name on their own, in the privacy of a meditation room. The idea was that it was such a personal and important ritual that absolutely no one else should be involved.

But Ezra was gazing up at Kanan with such hesitance and fear, Kanan couldn't deny him. Besides, nothing about their circumstances were traditional. "Sure. I can start the meditation with you. But in the end, you're going to have to reach out on your own. It's not something I can find for you."

Ezra nodded eagerly. "I understand."

Kanan shifted so that he was kneeling back on his heels. "Sit across from one another and find your center."

The Little One hopped out of Ezra's lap and sat down just a few strides away from him. Once they settled and their breathing had evened out, Kanan closed his own eyes to fall into a meditative state. First he focused on his bond with Nara, skirting the hot and broken threads of their tether and letting himself relax in the light of his daiima. Nara's Force signature intertwined with his own, and they relished in the closeness. It would never be quite the same as before but… it was close enough.

Then they shifted their focus to their wards. The connection between Ezra and his daiima was stranger than it had ever been, although at the moment it was writhing with nervous and excited energy. Kanan and Nara gently brushed up against them, emphasizing that they can support them from the sidelines, but ultimately they needed to do this on their own.

Some time passed as they meditated. It was different from their usual sessions. Ezra and his daiima were scared, afraid of doing this wrong, of failing and letting them down…

This wasn't any good. They needed to be calm and confident, not worrying about Kanan and Nara. "Just concentrate on her," Kanan instructed softly.

Ezra let out a shaky sigh. He readjusted his seat and tried to focus. His signature curled up with the Little One's, and they both calmed minutely as they drifted. Unfortunately, it didn't last long. The longer they meditated with nothing happening, the higher their fear rose once again.

"Ezra…"

With a defeated groan, the young teen trembled as he pressed the palms of his hands to his eyes. "What am I doing wrong?"

Kanan slapped the side of his thigh. Thankfully, Ezra was accustomed to his tics at this point and wasn't startled by the sudden motion. "You're not doing anything wrong." He scooted closer and placed a hand on his shoulder. "It's only been a few weeks. Maybe it's just too early…"

"But we're ready," Ezra insisted. "I know we are. I just want to do this one thing right."

"And you will," Kanan promised. "But there's no rush. And there's no shame in waiting."

With a small wince, Ezra quickly looked away and crossed his arms across his chest. His daiima slowly stood and walked up to him, putting her front paws on one of his knees as she rubbed her face against his. He let out a shaky sigh. "That only makes me feel worse…" he muttered, obviously in response to something she had said.

"Why do you want this?" Nara asked.

"She's my daiima. You said it yourself, she needs a name."

"But why do you want this?" She looked between the both of them. "Both you."

Ezra and the Little One exchanged a look. "She… she deserves a name…" Ezra said, sounding uncertain.

"Y-You said so," she added hesitantly.

"You can't do this for us," Kanan emphasized. "You need to do it for yourselves. The Force isn't going to tell us her name." He sighed. "I think it's better if you two meditate on your own. Keep Nara and I out of the equation."

A shiver ran through Ezra's body as his fear rumbled in the Force. "I-I still don't know what to do…"

"We didn't either," Nara said. "All we could do was focus on the Force and listen. And it did eventually speak to us."

"We'll be right here," Kanan said, putting a hand on Ezra's shoulder. "But you're not doing this for me or Nara. This needs to be about you."

Ezra swallowed and gave a shaky nod. "O-Okay…"

Kanan smiled and gave his shoulder a squeeze before sitting back and leaning back against Nara's side. "Go on. Take your time."

He and Nara watched as Ezra and the Little One fell back into a meditative state. They only gently probed the Force to check on their mood, making sure they weren't stuck in a spiral of fear or self-doubt. Thankfully, they mostly just seemed nervous.

[They're ready] Nara said confidently. [They just need time. If I recall, it took us hours to find my name.]

Kanan chuckled. [Yeah it did…] The rest of their clan had finished within the first hour. As the time had slowly ticked on, they became more and more distressed. It had been quite frightening. Why wasn't the Force speaking to them? Were they just doing it wrong, or did the Force just not think they were meant to be Jedi…?

But it did happen. It wasn't at all like they had been expecting. It wasn't like how Oona had described, that the Force would speak to them like it always did. It had been like an ancient whisper, a voice echoing from ages past. Or like it was coming from some great distance. How it happened didn't really matter, but it had been strange.

Kanan smacked his thigh a couple times, his other hand twisted in Nara's fur. [What do you think her name will be?]

[Who knows?] Nara's tail was thumping on the ground. [I'm just so happy that they've gotten this far. That they're acting like a jemma and daiima should, and that she'll finally have a name…]

That was true enough.

Excitement fluttered in the Force. It was emanating from both Ezra and the Little One. It had only been about twenty minutes, but clearly they had made some sort of breakthrough. Their breathing was deep and in sync, their signatures pulsating with warmth and life.

And then like a jolt of electricity, it happened. Ezra opened his eyes, and they were practically sparkling as he gazed down at his daiima. "Cantara…" he whispered.

The Little One - Cantara - wiggled in enthusiasm. "T-Tara," she said. "I wanna be called Tara." She looked over at Nara. "Then my name can be like yours!"

Nara chuckled, crawling over and licking the top of head. "Yes, our nicknames are quite similar."

"Nickname…?" Ezra questioned. "Nara's not your full name?"

"Her name is Naramu," Kanan said with a smile. "While I could technically say her name, it felt so long to me so… I shortened it, and it stuck."

Ezra's smile faltered. "Naramu?" he echoed.

Kanan frowned. "What is it?"

"N-Nothing. I just feel like I've heard that name before." Ezra shook his head. "It's probably nothing, I'm being stupid…" He smiled again and swept Tara up in his arms, nuzzling his face into her fur. "Tara…" he breathed.

Kanan smiled as he watched Ezra hold his other half, muttering her new name over and over again like a prayer. It was an affirmation and a promise. It was just the first few steps to a long road ahead of them, but they would make it through. Kanan and Nara would make sure of it.

We need to speak at your earliest convenience.

This most recent message from Fulcrum somehow sounded both casual and urgent. If it had been a recorded message, Hera assumed there would be an underlying tone of annoyance. Fulcrum was not happy that Hera had essentially ghosted them for the last few weeks.

After departing from Denova, Hera had sent a single report informing them that Ezra had been taken somewhere safe to recover. Ever since, Hera had been ignoring Fulcrum's responses. They obviously wanted to know more, but there was no response Hera could give without going into who Kanan really was. Even for the sake of the rebellion, that was a line she refused to cross.

In the meantime, the three remaining Spectres have been taking jobs from Vizago and Old Jho on Lothal. It was enough to keep their bellies full, the ship running, and even squirrel away a bit for savings. Fulcrum's messages tapered off, and Hera believed that was that. Maybe once Kanan and Ezra were ready to rejoin the crew, she would reach back out to the Fulcrum network.

So this latest message was unexpected, and Hera's curiosity couldn't help but be piqued by the lack of details. It had to be about something else. So Hera locked herself into her cabin and hailed the secure Fulcrum channel.

It was only a couple seconds before the blue holo expanded over her console. As always, Fulcrum's voice was scrambled and their face obscured by a large hood. "Thank you for taking this call."

"What is this about?" Hera asked warily.

"There have been some concerning developments. Another cell has been independently investigating Inquisitor sightings. And they recently came to me with a disturbing report."

Hera kept her expression neutral as her stomach squirmed. Was this about Ezra after all?

Fulcrum sighed. "There is no easy way to say this. Nova Kaadak is dead."

Her lekku suddenly stiffened, feeling numb with disbelief. "What? How?"

"According to my contact, she was killed by an Inquisitor with a nexu partner."

The blood drained from Hera's face. It wouldn't have been surprising to hear that an Inquisitor visited Nar Shaddaa after Kanan had killed that Purge Trooper, but to have somehow made the link with Kaadak? How was that possible? They couldn't have tracked the Ghost, otherwise the Inquisitor would have been on top of them by now. Unless they somehow made the connection to Denova?

Hera's stomach was tying itself in knots. Kanan hadn't hailed them for an emergency pick up, so she had to assume that they were still safe. If an Inquisitor had found them, he would have found some way to tell her, to warn her… right?

"They also said that there was an 'incident' a few weeks back. An Imperial trooper was fighting a child with a shapeshifting animal… until an Inquisitor and a giant wolf cut in and killed said trooper."

She squeezed her lips together as she tried to figure out what she could say. Obviously Fulcrum would know that the child was Ezra. But what did she think about this 'Inquisitor' and the giant wolf?

"Hera, when you told me the Inquisitor child was safe, I believed you. I still believe you. But you obviously haven't been completely truthful with me. Your last report was sparse at best."

There was no disputing that. It had been sparse on purpose. But even now, Hera had no idea what more she could say that would satisfy Fulcrum without betraying Kanan and Nara's trust.

"I have my own assumptions," they said bluntly. "I can only think of one reason that you would omit having a close encounter with another Inquisitor. And that's if you were purposefully trying to protect them."

Hera couldn't breathe. She was vaguely aware that she hasn't said anything in the last couple minutes, but there was still just nothing to say. Fulcrum hadn't quite figured it out, they didn't necessarily know…

Fulcrum sighed. "Hera… is Kanan an ex-Inquisitor?"

Suddenly, she found her voice again. "No," she said firmly. "He's not."

The agent's eyes weren't visible, but Hera could practically feel them burning a hole in her. "But he was the one who killed that Imperial on Nar Shaddaa." It wasn't a question, so Hera didn't answer, which of course was all Fulcrum needed. "I assume he's with the child? He and his daiima are the ones keeping him safe?"

Hera frowned. "Yes, they are…" Fulcrum knew the term 'daiima'? As far as she knew, it was just a Jedi term. Ezra hadn't even known the word until he had met Kanan. Of course, it was Fulcrum's job to know about these sorts of things. They knew about Inquisitors, after all.

"They're being hunted, Hera. Kaadak's death was disturbing enough, but it happened days after the child's collar had been deactivated. This Inquisitor is going to extreme lengths to find him, even by Imperial standards. They are in danger."

"It's been over a month," Hera said. "There's been no sign of the Inquisitor since."

"For which I am grateful. But there have been whispers throughout the underworld. If Kanan is not an ex-Inquisitor, he is still a person of great interest. I would expect the Empire to send more Inquisitors to not only retrieve the child, but to apprehend Kanan as well."

Hera sighed, her hands on either side of the holo projector as she leaned against it. The plan had been for them to stay on Denova until the incident on Nar Shaddaa blew over. Except that wasn't what was happening. Not the way Kanan had thought it would. Still… "What could possibly be safer than where they are? Hidden?"

"On the run. And unfortunately, it's not just about keeping them safe… Ezra has key intel that could finally help take down the Inquisitorious for good."

Hera shook her head. "He won't respond well to being interrogated." And she knew Kanan would rather disappear with Ezra forever before letting that happen.

"He doesn't need to be interrogated," Fulcrum said. "The cell that came to me with this report? They have years of experience investigating the Inquisitorious. They have also helped other Inquisitorial candidates escape in the past."

Hera's lekku twitched in excitement. She had had no idea that there had been other survivors. Although it begged the question… "If they've saved others, why is it so crucial to speak with Ezra?"

"Most of them were young. Very young, and they had only been held by the Inquisitors for a couple months. Their knowledge of the Inquistorious' operations were limited at best. Besides Ezra, there has only been one escapee with actionable experience, and… She died many years ago."

Hera sighed and bowed her head. Figures. At least the children hadn't been forced to suffer like Ezra had.

"But the leader of this cell, Cal Kestis… He'll be able to help the boy, and his crew are accustomed to avoiding detection by the Inquisitors."

"And what makes him more qualified to help Ezra?" Hera couldn't help but challenge.

"... Cal Kestis doesn't wield a red blade."

Hera winced at that. She wasn't entirely sure of the significance of a red lightsaber, but she knew that they were associated with Inquisitors. Kanan might not have been an Inquisitor, but obviously the existence of his saber had been so painful that he had kept it hidden for years. The fact that it was red must mean something truly awful. "You… You don't understand…"

"Then why don't you explain it to me."

Hera shook her head. "I can't. I'm sorry…" She doubted she could even articulate what she did know properly.

Fulcrum sighed. "I trust your judgement. And despite my reservations, I'm not going to demand that the boy be brought to Kestis. But I do think he would be safer with him, and I believe Kestis would be well suited to not just help Ezra, but Kanan as well."

Hera didn't give an outward reaction, but the prospect hooked into her mind. This might be the solution she had desperately been searching for weeks ago when Kanan first proposed leaving the Ghost. Maybe Kanan wasn't an Inquisitor, but his past wasn't terribly different from one. If this Kestis was not only knowledgeable about the Inquisitors, but experienced with helping other survivors… Maybe he could help the both of them.

And if Kaadak really was dead, if they really were being hunted… Fulcrum was right. Being on the move was always safest. It was only a matter of time before the Empire found its way to Denova.

It was time to bring them back home.

"How do I get in contact with this Kestis?"

What do you think? Write a review and let me know.