I'm updating this now, I should do homework…strangest thing is that I have a C in Literature; I'm just not good with essays and stuffs like that.
Anyways, onto chapter 2!
I forgot to mention that Sabine took off her helmet in chapter 1.
"WAIT! WAIT! WAIT!" I hold my hands in front of me in a stopping motion. "Sabine, you seriously want me-" I point to myself, "-to join your-" I point to her, "-crew?"
"Well, I asked didn't I?" Sabine says in a 'well-duh' tone, "Besides, I've seen your artwork. You don't really appreciate the Empire do you?" She puts her hands on her hips and waits for me to answer her.
"Okay, okay," I say slowly, "I don't love the Empire but that doesn't mean I can join your crew."
"You can't join our crew? Kid, by the looks of it, you can't get a roof over your head!" Sabine gestures towards my tattered paint-splatter clothes and my dirty appearance.
"That was rude but it is kinda true…" I trail off and try to avoid Sabine's gaze.
"Cleo, I know this sounds absolutely insane but I really want you to join our crew! Please, just at least think about it." Sabine pleads. As she finishes talking a woman, the one Sabine was talking to on her com outside, speaks on the loudspeaker of the ship. "Everyone in the lounge now. Sabine, bring your friend with you too."
"I guess your crew wants to meet me?" I laugh awkwardly at the pilot's announcement.
"Yeah. I guess so, follow me," Sabine sighs and walks out her cabin with me following her closely. I guess I'm still unconsciously afraid of people because I apparently let out a whimper causing Sabine to put her hand on my shoulder in a comforting way. I smile to show that I'm fine and we walk into the lounge. In the left corner there's a c-shaped booth with red cushions and 2 matching red stools. The table in the center of the c-shape is black rimmed and the center is checkered black and white. Next to the booth is a big wooden looking rocking chair and to the left of that is some sort of unit, maybe for storage.
"Who's our guest?" a gruff male voice grumbles. I look at the source and see a gray purple and purple striped Lasat with green eyes. He has a beard on his chin and sides of his face. His armor (shoulders and chest) is green and has designs painted on it while the rest is a jumpsuit of a dark yellow-green color.
"Sabine's apparent friend," the familiar voice of the pilot replies. The pilot is a Twi'lek with green skin and light green patterns. Her eyes are a green-blue. She's wearing a white band think around her head and base of her tails and over that are a pair of goggles and headphone looking things. The shoulders, chest and boots of her outfit are brown with the rest of it a yellow-orange color.
"Sabine you know we don't have enough credits for another member. We're barely making do now that we have Ezra," a human male says in a consoling manner. He has brown hair and tan skin. His eyes a unique teal color. His armor is on his right arm is a dark green and goes up to his right shoulder, where there is also a symbol of sorts. The rest of his outfit is a dark yellow-green sweater, blue pants and brown boots. He has a blaster on his right leg and a cylindrical object hanging from his belt.
"I heard my name, what about me?" a teenage boy walks out from one of the rooms in the hallway where Sabine's room is. He has dark blue hair, electric blue eyes and tanned skin. He's wearing an orange jumpsuit with multiple pockets, a tan vest over that and green gloves. The left knee and lower of the jumpsuit is torn off and brown while his right knee has a white covering going down to the end of the pant leg. His boots are also a brown color.
A droid that was parked between the two stools warbles an answer and the teen understood. The droid was a C1-10P with an orange top and a white bottom. One of his legs was mismatching from the other.
"So, Sabine. Who's your friend?" the teenager asks.
"This is Cleo. I found when she was getting chased by bucket-heads on the street," Sabine pushes me in front of her. I start to feel shy and hold my elbow from behind my back. I look to the side to avoid everyone's gaze. "Cleo this is Kanan-" she points to the human male, "-Hera-" she points to the pilot, "-Zeb-" she points to the Lasat, "-Ezra-" she points to the teen, "-and Chopper." She points to the droid.
"Why was she getting chased by troopers again?" Hera asks Sabine, wondering how someone so young would be able to get into so much trouble.
They think I'm ten! This always happens! Just because I'm on the short side doesn't mean that I'm a little kid! I think to myself, annoyed that I'm so short. 5 foot 2 inches to be precise. I sigh and look down at my feet.
"Hey, kid," I feel someone tapping on my shoulder. I look up and see Kanan smiling at me. "You know I can hear you? Right?" His face looses the smile and maintains a serious look.
"What do you mean?" I ask him quietly.
"I think what Kanan is talking about is the Force. You can use the Force, Cleo?" Ezra questions me excitedly. Force. Force. Force. Where have I heard that term? It's on the tip of my tongue! Where? Think! I furrow my eyebrows upset that I can't remember where I had heard the term before.
"Whoa, kid. Relax. Don't think so much. You'll blow out your brains." Kanan says gently.
"You can hear my thoughts?" I ask him a bit louder.
"Well, yes."
"How?"
"That's going to be hard to explain," Kanan sighs softly.
"What's the Force? Let's just start with that," Ezra suggests.
"Okay, let's start there. But I'll explain later." Kanan says. I look at Ezra who looks let down that Kanan won't explain it to me. A silence fills the room when my stomach decides that it's a good time to let out a big growl. I feel myself blush, remembering that I had skipped breakfast like usual and missed out on lunch.
"Would you like something to eat?" Hera asks concerned and almost going into mother-mode.
"Yeah," I mumble quietly.
"I'll make something," Hera left the room, presumably to the kitchen.
^Hey. Hey, kid.^ I hear Kanan's voice inside my head (AN: Kanan's voice inside Cleo's head will be surrounded by ) ^Can you hear me?^
What do you want?
^Answer a question for me will you?^
Fine.
^Where are your parents?^
I don't know.
^Everyone knows where his or her parents are. Just guess^
Fine. I guess dead.
^That was a quick guess. Even Ezra had a tough time admitting to himself that his parents were dead.^
I tend to not care about things I don't remember.
^You don't remember your parents?^
No. I don't really want to.
^Why not?^
Because, they've been gone my whole life and I don't see the point in seeing them now.
^Okay, onto the next subject. Do you want to get cleaned up?^
Sure.
"Cleo, I'll show you to the shower," Kanan gestured for me to follow him. Sabine handed me a spare set of clothes she found in her room.
"They might be kinda big on you. If they are just ask Ezra to borrow his clothes." She says.
"Okay," I take the clothes and quickly follow Kanan.
"Here, this makes the water colder and hotter and use this body wash." Kanan showed me the shower.
"Get out so I can shower." I say to Kanan.
"Right," he says, "Sorry it just doesn't look like you're a girl."
"Yeah," I comment, "I always cut my hair and my clothes are baggy so you can't really see my chest."
"I could explain what the Force is to you through the Force while you shower," Kanan suggests, "It'll make things go faster."
"Sure," I say and close the door. I start to strip and see a bin in the corner full of clothes. I throw my dirty clothes into the bin and look at the shower controls. I take off the mini flashlight that I keep on a chain around my neck and a stone that also hangs around my neck but on red string. I take off none of my bracelets because those can get wet.
^Do you want me to start explaining now?^ Kanan asks suddenly.
Whenever you want to start you can start. I turn on the shower and step in, the warm water rinsing off all the dirt and paint on my body.
^So the Force is everywhere, it surrounds us, penetrates us, it binds the galaxy together. It's stronger in some people and barely noticeable with others.^ Kanan says briefly.
So it's in this water?
^You could say that, yeah.^ Kanan thought/said with a laugh.
Am I breathing it in? I ask curiously. I pour the body wash onto my palm and start to scrub down my skin.
^Sure^ Kanan laughs again.
I lied. I tell Kanan guiltily.
^About what?^
My parents.
^I figured that. After all most people aren't willing to tell people they just met about their personal life.^
Yeah. But I know where they are.
^So, won't they be worried about you?^
No. They forgot I exist.
^I'm no parent but shouldn't that be impossible? I mean for a parent to forget about their own kid.^ Kanan says with disbelief.
It's not their fault. I don't blame them for forgetting me. It was most likely for the best. I sigh and scrub my face and neck for dirt and grime. Then move onto my hair, which is not tangled because I spent most of my time with my hair tied in a small ponytail, but it's still tangled. I tug on my hair with my fingers as a comb, gravel and dirt draining into the pipes, along with some strands of my black hair.
^It's not my place to ask but what happened?^
I barely remember. But here's what I do remember. I think I was 5 when it happened. Someone was knocking on our door, loudly; I think the person was wearing white. My dad answered in and I heard blaster shots. Next thing I see is my mom running from the other room and scooping me up, placing me in a wooden crate. She left too, after placing me on the neighbor's porch.
^What happened after that?^
The neighbor didn't want me. They were cruel and ended up throwing me to the Loth-wolves. But as you can tell, I didn't get eaten. After being raised by some animals for a few years, I left them and went into the city. After a few more years in the city, I saw them again, my parents. They were walking around like nothing had happened years before. When I went up to them out of excitement and happiness they said they didn't know who I was. Makes sense, they hadn't seen me for 6 years. I told them I was their daughter and they replied by saying that they never had a daughter. I'm 14 now, so it's been a while since I last saw them and that happened.
^Kid, Loth-wolves haven't been seen in a hundred years, you would be eaten. You said the person who shot your parents was wearing white?^
I think so. I wash my feet and between my toes.
^The Empire then.^
Most likely. I say, finishing my shower. I turn off the water. Which towel do I use?
^We have a spare in the cabinet in the corner. You can use that.^
Okay. I find the towel and dry myself off. I unfold the clothes that Sabine loaned me. The t-shirt is purple with different colored dots and the pants are blue shorts. I pull on the underwear that doesn't really fit me but I use a bobby pin I found in one of the draws to make the waist smaller. I step into the shorts and realize that Sabine's size is way bigger than mine. Which make sense because I'm way shorter and thinner than her. I notice a string and pull it, making the short's waist tighten. I shrug knowing that this was my best bet. I hold out the shirt in front of me, it's obviously not going to fit me. If I put it on it will look like I'm wearing a tiny bed sheet. I reach out to Kanan with the force, Hey, Kanan.
^Yeah?^ He replies, probably wondering why I was taking so long.
Can you ask Ezra if I can borrow a spare shirt? The one Sabine gave me to wear is way too big for me. I toss my towel into the hamper.
^Sure. I'll be right back.^ Kanan leaves the doorway and I hear his footsteps fading.
"I really wish I had a comb," I talk out loud to myself. I look in the mirror and see that I look awful. I have dark circles under my light green eyes, my tanned skin is a slight red from all the scrubbing and my hair is visibly knotted in many places. I look at the scar on my cheek for a moment before looking at the rest of my figure. I still have a ton of fresh cuts and bruises from when a few weeks ago and many scars from years before. I sigh and hear Kanan's footsteps again. This time he talks out loud.
"I have Ezra's shirt. He says you can keep it. He was going to throw it away anyway," Kanan passes on Ezra's message.
"I'll tell him thanks later. I have to cover up, so wait a minute," I look around for something to cover my chest so I can open the door to get the shirt.
"I'll just close my eyes and give it to you," Kanan says, "I'm going to open the door."
"O-okay," I say nervously. The doors open and Kanan has his left hand over his eyes.
"Here," he holds out the shirt. I take it and he steps back and the doors close again.
"Thanks," I mumble.
"No problem. I'm going to wait with the others in the lounge. Come out when you're ready," Kanan notes. I hear his footsteps walk away.
I look at the shirt Ezra gave me. It's normal and looks the right size. The shirt is mainly white but has orange stripes on the sleeves and stomach. I sigh and slip the shirt over my head. It fits well but still sags around my shoulder. I put on my shoes and my two necklaces and leave the bathroom. As I walk back to the lounge, I retie my wet hair and wipe my wet hands on the shirt.
"Sabine, hon, I really don't think that we need another crew-member," I hear Hera's voice echo.
"But she's an orphan! And she paints!" Sabine exclaims.
"It looks like she's force sensitive, too," Kanan comments.
"I agree with Hera," Zeb grumbles, "This is just going to be like Ezra all over again and I don't want another Ezra."
"I kinda like her," Ezra notes, "Besides we have to help her! I don't want another person living a life like mine."
Hera groans, thinking of an idea, "How about this? We take her on our next mission and see if she's good enough. If not, we'll find someone to take care of her."
"Okay, that's not a bad idea," Sabine thinks about it.
Chopper warbles something that I translate to say "Let's just dump her, we have more than enough meat-bags on this ship."
I sigh again; some of them really don't want me here. I decide that I should stop eavesdropping and go into the room. I step inside and immediately smell something mouth watering. On the table there are 6 plates full of pasta and mashed potatoes. I must have taken a long time. I wave nervously as they stop shouting at each other.
Ezra breaks the silence first, "Hey Cleo!" He pats the stool to his left (he was sitting on the right stool), "Come eat. Hera's cooking is delicious!" Ezra smiles at me, most likely trying to get me to feel welcomed.
"Thanks," I sit next to Ezra hesitantly, I look at the food and my mouth fills with saliva.
"Eat, you need the energy," Kanan say, leaning on the wall next to the door that goes to everyone's cabin.
"Thanks," I say quietly and start to eat the spaghetti. It was good like Ezra said.
^Do you like it?^ Kanan asks me through the Force.
Yeah. I admit to him.
-I'm glad!- Ezra surprisingly joins in on our Force conversation. (AN: Ezra's voice in Cleo's head will be surrounded by - -)
^Ezra!^ Kanan says strictly like saying 'What are you doing?!'
-Sorry. Just wanted to know what you guys were talkin' about.-
It's fine. I start to chew on the potatoes. This is one of the best meals I have had in years!
-Judging by your expression, I guess you haven't had a good meal in a long time.- Ezra smiles at me while I eat.
"Can you guys stop it with the talking with the Force? We really would rather hear what you say. Out loud," Zeb says loudly in an annoyed tone.
"Sorry," I apologize, involuntarily cringing at the harsh tone.
"Zeb!" Hera says with an expression that says 'Quit scaring her!'
"We were just talking about when Cleo's last good meal was," Kanan reassured Zeb that they weren't making fun of him. I snort-laugh and finish my meal.
"Do you want seconds?" Sabine asks me.
"No thaaaaaanks," I manage to say through a yawn.
"Are you tired? It's early but you can bunk with Sabine," Hera suggests as I try to stay awake. I feel a wave of drowsiness overcome me and my eyes start to droop.
"Yeammmhmhmhm…" I trail off my words as my start to feel even more tired. I get up to go to Sabine's room but end up stumbling into Kanan. "Sorrmmym…" I try to apologize as my vision blurs when my eyelids start to close.
"How 'bout I just carry you to bed?" Kanan asks me even though he probably knows I can't reply in my sleepy state. Instead I just let him carry me to Sabine's cabin. When he places me on the bed, I feel so happy that I got to sleep on something so soft. I snuggle into the fabric and Kanan drapes a blanket over me. I sense the other crewmembers watching us but for some reason it doesn't bother me. I hear someone teasing Kanan about being something. My vision turns black and all the noises drown out. I fall asleep and don't dream that night.
I wake up to a loud noise. The noise being a loud clang of metal. I wake up and rub most of the sleepiness out of my eyes. I slowly stand up and follow the loud sound to the lounge. In the lounge Zeb and Chopper are arguing about something, Sabine is designing something on a paper and Ezra, Kanan and Hera are nowhere insight.
"Hey, sleepyhead." Sabine waves at me from her seat the booth.
"Hey," I manage to say, my throat feeling scratchy and dry.
"You've been asleep for a while," she notes as she goes back to sketching.
"What time is it?" I ask when I sit down.
"1pm."
"Do you have water?" I ask trying to make my throat less dry.
"Yeah, just wait here," she stands and goes to the kitchen.
"Chopper! Stop that!" Zeb yells again.
Chopper warbles a reply "You're the one that kicked me!"
"You know that I can't understand you!"
Chopper replies, "Because you don't have a brain!"
Zeb huffs and ends the fight. They've probably been at it for a while.
"You're up!" Hera says as she steps into the room from the doors that lead to the cabins.
I wave and go back to observing Chopper.
"Are you hungry?" Hera asks me, trying to make conversation, sitting down on the stool in front of me.
"I'm fine," I say, not feeling hungry at all. Skipping breakfast and lunch is normal for me anyways.
"I heard that." Kanan walks in with Ezra, "You need to eat. Skipping meals is bad for your health."
"What'd she say?" Ezra asks curiously, sitting on the other stool.
"I got you juice and fruit," Sabine enters from the kitchen and sets the glass of apple juice and plate of cut up jogans in front of me.
"There. Eat." Kanan orders me.
"What'd she say?" Ezra asks again.
"She said that she normally skips breakfast and lunch," Kanan tells Ezra my thoughts.
"I used to do that! It's hard to eat more than three meals if you haven't in a while," Ezra explains the reason why I wasn't hungry.
"Okay, then lets just start with one meal and a snack," Hera comprimises.
I nod nervously. I don't even think my stomach can handle that much food…
"All stomachs can. Ezra eats a lot more than all of us," Kanan says.
"Okay, then I'll try to eat more," I smile forcefully.
"Thanks for saying that, now eat up," Hera smiles, glad that I agreed to eat more.
"What were you guys doing?" I ask while munching on a slice of jogan.
"Jedi training!" Ezra says happily but holds his head when Kanan hits his head.
"Ezra! What have I said about holding your tongue!" Kanan sighs and rubs the bridge of his nose.
"Well, she should know about training. She is going to be staying here after all." Ezra explains.
"I know what Jedi are. So that round thing on Kanan's belt and that square think on Ezra's belt are lightsabers?" I ask finishing my jogan.
"You catch on fast! Yup, do you wanna see mine?" Ezra asks excitedly.
"Sure!" I say, feeling happy for the first time in a while.
"I'll show you outside! We can go on top of the ship," Ezra waves for me to follow him and leaves.
"Thanks for the jogans!" I shout at Sabine who is smiling along with Hera and Kanan.
"Try not to get into any trouble!" Kanan shouts after us.
"We won't!" Ezra laughs.
Well…sorry it's a bit short.
Also! Updates won't usually come this fast. I just update whenever I have time or an idea.
Please review so I can get better!
THANKS!