Helpful tip for newly moving peoples: don't move during the end-of-grading-period-study-cram phase. Especially if you're going to do so and delay having the Internet people delay on installing their product. It makes for a stressful week of homework-doing and an even more stressful time period of simple agony as you sit there thinking about all the fanfiction you could be writing. -_- These past weeks have not been fun.

But I am back! Again! And noticing that this always seems to happen! Ah well!

I will be updating frequently now, however, as that period of no available writing medium gave me a lot of time to think about how I want to progress this story. So, every cloud has a silver lining? Something like that. AND SEASON TWO OH MY GOSH IT'S AMAZING AND REX AND AHSOKA AND EVERYONE IS JUST PURE AWESOME AND THEN THE INQUISITOR AND GAAAAGH I LOVE IT SO MUCH.

Disclaimer: Do you ever think how weird it would be if there were actual cameras filming TV events as they happened? In cartoons, I mean. And you know where I would be in such a case? Still right where I am now, because I am in no way affiliated with the Disney or the Star Wars franchises. Excepting in the dozens (possibly hundreds) of products I purchase from them. -v-

What was he thinking?

Sabine frowned at the ceiling, tracing the only patch of light with her eyes. It came from a small window in the door, and the lights outside were angled just right for a small circle of light to shine on the ceiling instead of the wall. Sabine was glad for it, because it gave her something to focus on in the night while she pondered just what Spectre six had been thinking.

He'd shared his plan- it was rather genius, but that wasn't what Sabine was mulling over. Throughout his entire stay (he'd remaiend until the nurses had kicekd him out) Ezra had looked... distracted. Not so much when they were planning, they were both completely focused while doing that, but through the rest of his time here he'd looked like there was something else floating around in that blue-haired head of his.

Worries? No; he was worried, but she'd been around him long enough to distinguish between worries and something else. This most definitely was something else.

Guilt? ...Maybe. There'd been a moment when Ja'lan had come back in and had started commending Tama on cauterizing Sabine's wound that Ezra had gone pale and shaky. She knew he was shaken up and felt guilty, that wasn't a question.

But guilt to the point of distraction was Kanan's area of expertise. And while Ezra had been steadily picking up that habit (much to Hera's dismay), he wasn't yet on his Master's level. Sabine hoped.

A question, then?... Yeah, that seemed... appropriate. Or it fit, anyways. If he hadn't asked during his visit, though then it was either something he didn't deem important, or something he deemed very important, and there were just too many potential ears listening in to what they were saying.

Sabine frowned, and a shadow momentarily covered the spot on the ceiling as a nurse walked by outside. If Ezra had something important like that, he would've found a way to ask her, or at least have given her more clues to go off of that he was holding something back. At the same time though, if he thought his question wasn't important, then he wouldn't have been so distracted by it.

So... an important question, but not one that was life-threatening? But then, why wouldn't he just ask her?

Unless he was worried about her answer?

I'm probably thinking way too much into this. She most likely was. But there wasn't a whole lot that'd worry Ezra- scratch that, yes there was -but there wasn't a whole lot that would worry him about the crew that he wouldn't share. He was obviously a secretive person by nature, but if he was concerned about some issue with someone on the Ghost, he'd flat out tell them, or ask them what was wrong.

So what was worrying about- what question was he worrying about -that he felt he couldn't share? What kind of question would have him worrying about her answer?

Sabine blinked.

Does he- did I say anything about...? No... had she? Had her concussed mind gone and spilled the beans about what'd been going on in her head? Honestly, Sabine couldn't remember anything other than the few images and scenes she'd already pulled up from sifting through the mass of sensations. She could have babbled her entire heart out to Ezra and she would still have no idea about it.

Blinking once again at the light spot on the ceiling Sabine bit her lip.

Do you know I like you?

Stupid stupid stupid.

This plan- he was so... stupid,

'Hey Sabine, how you doing? Oh, by the way, when you were injured and concussed and dying you said you liked me, is that true?'

Yeah right- asking Sabine was one of the worst plans he could ever have come up with. Ezra groaned, slapping his hands on his face and breathing deeply. I should just forget about this.

But here, in the dark of Tama's house, there was little else to think of as he struggled to fall asleep on the too-soft couch. That question- those thoughts -had kept him up near hours, now... and he was about as close to getting an answer as he'd been in those sewer tunnels. How could he be any closer, when he hadn't asked Sabine anything?

But that was a good thing. It meant a, he didn't pull a doosh move, and b, he didn't come off as a desperate prick. Because if he asked her, he would most definitely be playing the part of both roles. 'Oh hey, remember that near-lethal traumatic experience you went through a few days ago? Yeah, well, I'm gonna completely ignore that because I'm a super arrogant jerk and all I care about is how you feel about me. How do you, by the way?' No. Keeping silent was probably the best way to go. No- no probably, it was.

And yet Ezra still wondered.

How long would the appropriate amount of time be until asking wouldn't seem-

I can't believe this.

He shouldn't be up this late thinking these things. They'd be leaving in three days- he should be planning some more, or even going to sleep! Not lying awake, thoughts going around and around like a hologram on loop.

Ezra sighed deeply through his nose, turning his gaze to the pile of Sabine's belongings in the corner of the room. He stared at her helmet- but without her underneath it, it just looked blank and... empty. He couldn't find any of his answers there... only she could help him, in the flesh. But the question was so wrong, and totally inappropriate in their current situation. Still...

What;s going to happen once I find out?

Ezra breathed out slowly, closing his eyes. No matter his reasons and no matter the right or wrong thing, with nothing else to focus his attention on, there was no way he could distract himself from thinking about Sabine and his selfish questions. He was just going to have to... to promise himself that he'd ask when the time was right. He wouldn't be a prick about it, and he wasn't going to be stupid about it... but he wouldn't be able to banish the question from his head until it was laid to rest.

When the time is right... and no sooner.

Because he wouldn't do that to Sabine. Not now, not in ten years, not ever. That wasn't fair to her. He would wait until the time was right- Ezra would wait.

That's what the Jedi did anyways.

It was two days later that they were planning to leave. It wasn't a long time, and it gave them little time to prepare, but any longer and both Sabine and Ezra feared the Empire would have caught onto their scheme and hunted them down. The two days did, however, allow Sabine more time to heal- though she felt a little vindicated to stay so still while Ezra prepared for their departure.

It wasn't like she could do anything else, though. Until the time came, any activity from her- a supposed miner's daughter with an injury enough to incapacitate most -would be viewed as odd, suspicious, and draw unwanted attention. She had to stay still and inconspicuous, and pray the Empire wouldn't match her files here with her files from the Academy. That would give them a direct lead to her position.

But there wasn't anything they could do about that either- so for now, they were just waiting with baited breath and trying to stay under the radar.

Sabine groaned, unused to avoiding all the action. She was raring to go- the sooner they went through with their plan, the sooner they could finally get back to the Ghost and finally bring this op to an end. There'd been few missions that the crew hadn't been able to complete, but she swore this wasn't going to be one of them.

Staring around the window-less room, Sabine desperately wished for something to take her mind off of the absolute nothingness there was as she waited. Ezra wasn't there- she didn't want him there or anything like that (though his company would be very welcome) -but he wasn't there because he was acquiring the tools and supplies they'd need to execute their plan. Nothing much, just a few restocking materials to get them through the op without sustaining anymore life-threatening injuries. Blaster packs, some more tools to replace those that Ezra had lost, a washing for their usual outfits- though Tama and Eilene were supplying that -and general items that would come in handy.

They wouldn't be able to make more of Sabine's explosive paint, however. Purchase of such volatile materials was bound to draw attention. Besides, such a small town like Jhothal wouldn't be able to supply the items needed for the 'boom' in her bombs.

However, that did not, by any means, mean that she wouldn't be of use as they executed the plan. Oh no. She was just as dangerous with her paints as she was without- it just meant her... creative side would be more active than usual. To the demise of the stormtroopers, of course. And with any luck, the tower itself.

She just had to wait until the time to leave... And in the meantime imagine all the different ways that her limbs alone could be used to take down a soldier of the Empire. It wasn't like she was bored with the activity-

There were many ways.

A soft knock on the door was the only indicator Sabine got before a small, blue-haired teenager was darting into her room. It didn't much matter though- she'd been wide awake before-hand.

"Did you have any troubles?" She asked quietly as the door hissed close behind him.

"Nope. You'd think a hospital would be a little harder to infiltrate than this." Sabine hummed, eyeing her colored helmet in Ezra's arms with relief. She suspected the rest of their gear was in the stuffed pack on his back- no doubt lent by Tama's family. Tonight was the night they left- and the night their planning came to fruition.

"Well, considering Jhothal isn't really a high-tech town, it's not too surprising. There's not too much income to be spent on things like high-tech security,"

"Yeah, I guess. Anyways, there's still some stuff at Tama's house- I couldn't fit all of it into the pack." He grinned sheepishly at Sabine, who rolled her eyes with a smile in return. "But for now, I figured-" Ezra slipped the pack off his back, opening it and pulling out her two shoulder pad pieces, "-you'd appreciate your armor, at least."

Sabine's eyes glinted in the soft night lighting the hospital provided, glancing quickly over the paint-speckled pieces before looking up at Ezra with a broad smile. "Just what I needed- and I managed to get a few bacta pills as well, when Ja'lan wasn't looking." Ezra nodded, looking pleased, and then tossed his pack over to Sabine, who deftly caught it.

"Those'll come in handy- but for now, it should just be best to get cha- get your gear on and then we'll sneak out." It was hard to tell in the dark, but Sabine swore, as Ezra ducked back out into the outside corridor, there was a faint tinge of pink on his face.

Weird.

Sabine rummaged around in the pack, pleased when she felt what appeared to be her whole set of armor... and some extra cloth? She grabbed it out of the bag, confused at its presence, and then sighed exasperatedly as she pulled out a role of cloth bandages. It seemed Ezra wasn't as willing to forget as she was that she was still injured.

This boy- shaking her head fondly, Sabine stripped of the hospital gown and gladly changed into her much more comfortable armor. She hadn't realized it, but the snug body-suit provided a layer of comfort that she doubted anything else could, even with a layer of bandages on her abdomen.

And so, it was fully donned in her armor that Sabine walked out of the room, having taken the few bacta pills she'd 'acquired' from Ja'lan and the medical staff and storing them in a small storage compartment on her wrist. Ezra was waiting outside in the hallway for her, his head snapping up to meet her helmeted one after previously standing guard. He was leaning against the pale blue walls, arms crossed, but as soon as she stepped into the much lighter corridor he was up and ready.

"It's not the best plan to go out the front doors, so we're going to have to go out through one of the windows." Sabine nodded, carefully observing how much her abdomen was tingling. She'd still have to be careful about her movements, but other than that she was pretty much a-okay.

"Well, you'd have the most experience with that now, wouldn't you?" Sabine grinned under the helmet, and judging from Ezra's returning quirky smile, he saw through the black visor to notice it.

"I have dabbled in the arts of window-jumping- accidental or not."

Sabine laughed, careful to keep her voice down in case there was a nurse attending one of their patients nearby. The facility wasn't a big one, but there was still a certain amount of caution that needed to be exhibited.

"See, it's the 'accidental' window-jumping that makes me worry."

"Hey- as long as you stick the landing, it doesn't matter if it was accidental or not."

"Right, right." Sabine rolled her shoulders, fingers twitching slightly as they missed holding her pistols by her side. "We should get going- how much longer is it going to stay night?"

Ezra hesitated, then shrugged and started jogging quietly down the hall, Sabine following after a second. "Not sure. I left just about the same time the second moon started up, so a fair few hours."

"That's a relief. Wouldn't want to try this in day-light- how far away is Tama's place?"

"Not too far- only took me about fifteen minutes to get here." Sabine nodded, padding behind Ezra on silent feet. Fifteen minutes while holding all her hear would translate to about a mile, and then there was the actual trip to the facility. The overall journey would take them a while, maybe about an hour... maybe less if they found speeders. Though if they did come across some vehicles, they'd have to ditch them before ever reaching the tower, to maintain the element of surprise.

Though with Ezra's plan they wouldn't stay stealthy for long.

Ezra rounded a corner, tense, but sprang up and sprinted after making sure the coast was clear. Following, Sabine ran into a loung-ish area, the soft night light-settings casting the few bits of furniture in an amiable and comforting fashion. More pleasing than the light, however, was the presence of a large line of paned windows signifying their exit.

Darting forwards faster than a Loth-cat on a Loth-rat, Ezra moved over to one of the windows and began easing one of the panes out. "If we just shoot through the glass it'll alert the sensors-" blaster-fire sensors, yeah, Sabine could see why a hospital would use them, "-and I don't know about you, but I'm not exactly wanting to punch through some glass right now." Sabine hummed, moving forwards to help her friend disassemble the window and making a hole large enough to jump through.

At least, Sabine thought dryly, we aren't on the second floor.

The plains were wide and open, the double full moons illuminating the ground beneath them and making clear their route to Tama's. They were walking quickly, but their 'escape' from Jhothal had honestly gone a whole lot smoother than either Sabine or Ezra would have expected. Though they had both noticed the increased number of stormtroopers in the usually empty town... and neither underestimated Morden's ability to keep his soldiers focused and on the lookout for them.

"They don't know for sure how many of us there are, though," Ezra was explaining, "since he never saw you. We know he knows I didn't make it out, but they don't have a definite lead that you didn't either."

"True- but the Empire probably has a head-count on our cell, now. We can't take it for granted that they don't know I'm with you."

Ezra hummed, acknowledging her point. "Still, they won't know we're coming tonight. Though Morden'll probably expect us to come back sometime soon." Sabine sighed, sucking in a large breath through her nose and releasing it with such emotion it would have made Kanan proud. With just her and Ezra against an entire fortified base, Sabine knew their chances of pulling off the op were slim.

Though when were they ever otherwise?

"You know," Sabine started, eliciting Ezra to look back intrigued, "I really think Kanan's planning skills are starting to rub off on us." Ezra smirked, turning around and walking backwards so he could shrug his shoulders and fully face her.

"Only a little bit- I mean, all we're doing is sneaking in, fighting, and running out, right?" Ezra's entire body perked up as another thought came to him, and Sabine smiled as he deepened his voice in an imitation of Kanan: "There's no way this one will go wrong, right guys? Come on- let's be optimistic!"

Sabine laughed, imagining the frown their fearless leader would be sporting if he were here to witness Ezra's impersonation of him. "But Kanan, your plan has flaws everywhere!" Sabine played along, prompting Ezra to tap his chin and pretend goatee thoughtfully.

"Really? You can see them? Ah well- let's go!" Ezra whirled around, marching forwards like a grossly over-exaggerated general- until he tripped over something in the long grass and had to fling his arms out to prevent him from falling.

"Your plan's falling apart already, 'Spectre one'," Sabine giggled, and Ezra held up a single finger to contradict her-

"Not to worry- we are extremely experienced in the art of making stuff up on the fly; we'll be alright!" The both of them laughed, Sabine ignoring the twinges and pulls of her abdomen in favor of the light-hearted moment with Ezra as they poked fun at Kanan. Once they got within sight of the tower, there would be no room or time for entertainment. Even now, while they were still alone and mostly safe, Ezra was trailing off early, an odd thing coming from such a lively teenager.

But his eyes were pinched in a frown- and as Sabine saw Ezra's eyes dart over to her face before rapidly looking away, Sabine knew he was thinking about whatever had distracted him before.

Right- enough questions and worries. You're going to spill or I am going to make you.

"Ezra-"

"Look- there's Tama's house. D'you see it?" Sabine snorted, tempted to growl at the interruption but at the same time knowing that the op had now begun.

Oh well, asking Ezra now didn't matter- she'd weasel what was bothering him out sooner or later.

Business now- focus. Sabine squinted across the horizon, trying to zoom in with her helmet's scanners and wincing when the picture came out blurry and unfocused. Apparently more extensive repairs were needed on it than they'd initially thought- but she could still see the basic outline of a house over in the distance.

"Kinda small, isn't it?" Sabine asked, smirking when Ezra shrugged with indignance.

"They're farmers now- you heard Eilene. Besides, it's just the two of them living alone."

"No need to get defensive here," Sabine teased, earning a light jab from Ezra as she drew even with him.

"I'm just saying. But come on, let's go!" Sabine rolled her eyes as Ezra started running through the tall grass, smiling as she joined him and pumped her legs to stay even with the teenager. Ezra laughed, voice getting snatched behind him by the wind, and then there was nothing more in the movement than a friendly race to a distant target that grew ever closer.

The outline of the was was dark, lit only by the moons and Sabine's visor. However Ezra crept up to one of the windows with no problem, easing it open silently. He hopped through the open gap, casting a hand back to silently beckon her in.

Tama's hosue was small and modest, furnished with a few couches and sitting spaces. Sabine could see a hall leading to what appeared to be two other rooms, and a door to her right that she presumed led to the rest of the house... though there wasn't a whole lot of it. Ezra padded through the room, relaxed, looking as though he was walking completely normally and yet making no noise. A special talent of his, most probably accumulated through too many nights creeping through the streets.

He moved over to the corner of the room, where there rested a small pile of things. Sabine joined him as she caught sight of her pistols, which Ezra handed to her, smiling. The Mandalorian holstered them gratefully, sighing with relief as the familiar weights settled on her waist. There were a few other objects lying on the floor, including Ezra's lightsaber (which he belted quickly as well), spare cloth bandages, and a few odd tools that Ezra carefully placed into his pack in certain places Sabine was sure he had especially reserved for them. However, there was still one more item lying there that Ezra hesitated over, frowning.

"Protein bars?" He whispered, and Sabine hummed in questioning. "I didn't... I didn't buy these..."

"Sorry-" both Ezra and Sabine whirled around, hands flying to their respective weapons before they registered Tama smiling gently at the both of them, standing in front of the door Sabine had noticed earlier, "-but I figured they might come in handy for you two."

Ezra relaxed, and Sabine lowerd her hands from her newly acquired blasters, following his example. He knew these people best, so Sabine would trust in his decisions regarding them. The miner-turned-farmer approached quietly, nodding at the protein bars in Ezra's hands. "I figured you'd be leaving soon, so when I check in on you only to find you gone and your things in a pile, it wasn't too hard to come to the conclusion that you were preparing to go out. Good to see you're doing better, Sabine." The Mandalorian nodded tersely, then cleared her throat.

"Well. Thanks. But like you said, we need to leave."

Ezra hesitated, taking a breath and giving Sabine a look that she could clearly read 'one-more-second' from. She sighed, but these people had saved their lives. The least they could offer in thanks was a proper good-bye.

"Thank you for all your help, um, Mr. Oriena." Ezra nodded his head in a sort of awkward bow that made Sabine smile lightly under her helmet. "I know Sabine and I would most likely be dead without your help, so... yeah. And if- if you or Eilene ever need help, um, contact us, if you can. We owe you that much at least. Sorry. And thanks again. And... bye." Tama smiled lightly, accepting Ezra's thanks with a nodd of his head.

"We were happy to give aid to those who needed it- especially when you are some of the few among us prepared to give your lives to your cause. Just try-" his voice turned serious, "not to actually give them up, alright? There's too much death in this galaxy already."

Ezra smiled, nodding his head in a silent promise Sabine hoped he could keep. "Goodbye, Tama." He said, nodding at Sabine as his obligations to the miner were upheld. Sabine hesitated, then gave a quick farewell wave to the man before hopping through the open window. A second later Ezra followed, travel pack on his shoudlers and determined smirk set on his face. Sabine let loose a breath, clear-headed and ready to kick some bucket-head butt.

Tama slid the window shut behind them, and Sabine felt content at their parting. The civilian and his family wouldn't be in any more danger, now- at least not because of her and Ezra.

"You ready?" Sabine asked, totally and completely prepared to perform her utmost best in their coming op, and to get back home. Whatever was thrown at them next, they could handle it- with a little luck, teamwork, and a lot of explosives. They could do it.

Ezra grinned sheepishly at her. "Do you know which way to go?"