Chapter 8

Responses:

Or-lan-do626: Thanks for sharing your appreciation, but who's the Mother? I'm not that big of a legends lore fan so everything past the barebones of Mara Jade and the A New Dawn storylines might as well not exist for me. She won't be appearing, I've already got the storyline planned out.

Guest(August 21): They are getting interesting, and thanks for clearing up where the Mother is. Still not gonna have her in the story though.

"You're thinking about him."

Sabine looked up at Ketsu, leaning against a bulwark and slightly smirking. They were a good half-day into hyperspace now, Cassian and Ahsoka taking over pilot duties while Sabine and Ketsu were free to do as they liked. Which in Ketsu's case, it seemed, meant torturing Sabine about her maybe-love. The Mandalorian scowled before replying.

"Actually no, I was thinking about how I owe you yet another favour." Ketsu laughed and sat down beside her on the bench, exaggeratedly listing off on her fingers.

"Yeah, you owe me for covering when you were late at the Academy, not taking you in as bounty for the Black Sun, helping take back Lothal-"

"That last one isn't really me," Sabine interjected. "Ezra called you in, he pays off the favour."

"You gave him the comm number, didn't you? But fine, I've got an idea anyways."

"Like what?" Sabine was instantly suspicious. Ketsu didn't normally smirk this much, even when they ran around bounty hunting together.

"Oh, some of this, a bit of that. Anyways, when d'you plan on telling him?"

"Telling him what?"

"It's obvious Sabine, it was obvious four years ago, and it's still, if not more obvious now. You love him."

"That might be a bit strong of a word-" Sabine struggled to find ground on that argument; she had caught herself thinking the words cyar'ika in her head at least twice, and Force knows how many had slipped by unnoticed. Ketsu was equally sceptical of the statement, and showed it.

"Give it a rest with the hard, untouchable persona, 'Bine. We both know that's the exact word you're using in your head, your own 'cyar'ika.'" Sabine was mentally floored for a second; she blinked, then looked away. Definitely not blushing. No. Definitely not.

"Aaand you're blushing about it, that pretty much seals the deal. Relax, if my experience with him is anything to go by, he's had the hots for you for a while. There is literally nothing to be worried about."

"He could have moved on ages ago." Sabine started firing back quickly, giving voice to all her inner doubts and fears. "He could be dead, could have been dead for years, or maybe he doesn't even remember me. A lot can happen in four years, especially when you're in a random corner of wild space with no one but an entire shipful of stormtroopers- Oh, and the greatest tactician the Empire has ever produced. So yeah, there's a damn lot to worry about." Sabine was standing now, and she would never admit to crying, but she could feel some fluid gathering in the corners of her eyes. Ketsu stood up again next to her, and though the Shukuti wasn't usually one for comfort, Ketsu clapped a hand on Sabine's shoulder and pressed their foreheads together, saying a prayer in Mando'a.

Vi Kelir bralir. De te grace be Tarre, vi Kelir bralir.

We will succeed. By the grace of Tarre, we will succeed.

Sabine sniffed, then wrapped her arms around Ketsu.

"Thanks. I guess keeping that for four years wasn't the healthiest decision, huh?" Sabine heard a chuckle in her left ear.

"No, but healthier than keeping it in until we see your Cyar'ika again." Pulling away, Sabine gave a dirty look to Ketsu, who relented.

"Fine, your 'Jedi Knight'. Ugh, stupid Mandalorian and their grammar police codes. See, this is why I left Shukut."

Although Ketsu was insulting her culture in every which way, Sabine couldn't help but let a smile crack in.

"You know, there's a lot more to Mandalorian culture than grammar police."

"But you can't deny that you've never thought that." It was Sabine's turn to relent.

"Fine, it's not perfect. But it's good, and getting better. Lady Bo-Katan is a good ruler, you know. You could come back, live with the Protectors, or Clan Wren." Ketsu shook her head sadly.

"I've got warrants for arrest in nearly every major sector, from Onderon to Ord Mantell, Kuat to Corellia- Force, even some credits are on me in Jakku's measly outposts. It's a wonder I haven't been tracked down yet, and if I stayed on Mandalore, maybe Bo-Katan would be welcome, but some resentful womp-rat would hear about my record, and try something. Of course I'd get away, but not without making a mess. I'm better off a free spirit." Ketsu gazed out the porthole into the blues and whites of hyperspace, before shaking herself and moving over to the canteen door. "You want anything?" Before Sabine could reply, a voice crackled over the intercom, in a decidedly Festian accent.

"Maybe hold onto that idea, you will want to see this." The comms crackled again, and Ahsoka's voice came over. "Don't worry, we turned off comms as soon as you started having that heart-to-heart. Now get in here." All thoughts of snacks forgotten, the two young women rushed up the short ladder to the cockpit of the Shadow Caster, stopping short once they saw what lay outside the window. A largeish black diamond, with red patterns across its surface. As they watched, a light pulsed for a few secs, then grew, encompassing everyone's vision. As Sabine lost consciousness, the last thing she heard came from Ahsoka's mouth.

"Yeah, that's Mortis."

(A/N And the POV's start intersecting! The timeline difference will be explained eventually, but for now you get Sabine/Ketsu sister bonding and bad attempts at incorporating culture. That prayer and Ketsu's rap sheet was a total spitball, for the former I opened an English/Mando'a translator and stuffed some lore in, the latter I looked through my Star Wars Galactic Atlas and picked alliterative planets that weren't completely abandoned/inhospitable. I'm not gonig to be tying this in with The Mandalorian and it's supposed collapse of social structure, because I don't have the energy nor time to watch eight forty to fifty minute episodes, take notes on what appears to have happened, then try and draw up a plot leading into S2. This is a Rebels fanfic, not a rewrite of the entire Sequel Era. Personal headcanon; if they had to pick a famous bloodline for Rey's heritage, Sabine/Ezra would have worked fine. Feisty personality, strong with the force, dark hair, brown eyes. It all fits. Even if they didn't want to prematurely reveal Sabine and Ezra together (if that's what is happening, I'm firmly in the camp of 'romantic Sabezra' but Filoni is trolling us at this point) they could have done an epilogue film/short with it. I'm ranting, and most of you probably skipped this part, but if you didn't, review with your thoughts on the sequel, and how it might tie in with The Mandalorian.

Vaya con Queso,

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