Chapter Text
Okadiah Garson had been around for a long time— longer than he cared to admit. Suffice to say, if experience outranks everything, Okadiah had more than the rest of his crew combined (with the possible exception of Chopper).
He’d seen a lot in his time, too. He’d seen gang lords take over a city in a matter of hours, seen massive many tentacled space whales floating through a sea of stars, seen an army of men with the same face fighting endless waves of droids.
He’d seen a moon explode, and a young man and woman come to his rescue when he thought his life was at an end. And it was that young couple that he worried for now.
The whole crew knew that Kanan and Hera cared about each other— more than just cared about each other. Okadiah had seen the way the boy had looked at her, all the way back on Gorse at the very beginning, and even then, he’d had a feeling. This would be more than just a one time flirtation.
Time and again, Kanan had proved Okadiah’s theory right, and now here they were, working alongside Hera and her crew. Okadiah heartily approved of it, too. The two of them made each other better in a way he’d rarely seen, even in all his years. Despite how they claimed to not have feelings for each other, despite how they pretended not to care— they were a team, and Kanan did not look at Hera like she was a friend.
Okadiah was very fond of the young couple, and he wanted to see them happy. Unlike Kasmir, however, he didn’t want to stick his nose too far into their business— he was fairly certain his friend wouldn’t miss an opportunity to shower Kanan with questions about his love life, or lack thereof. Which Kanan did not appreciate.
So Okadiah generally tried to stay out of the way, and had decided to let the two of them figure it out. Or, he had.
But a few weeks ago, Hera had been taken captive by the Empire, and Kanan had gone to rescue her. And upon their return, something had been different. Okadiah couldn’t quite say what, but something had happened. Hera seemed unaffected, other than the gap in her memory due to the Inquisitor’s questioning.
But Kanan was… edgy. Guarded. Okadiah had caught him deep in thought on many occasions, and while he wasn’t outright avoiding Hera, he seemed to be spending more time working with Ezra than strictly necessary. He couldn’t say whether Hera had noticed, but he’d be surprised if she hadn’t. Their captain was observant, particularly where Kanan was concerned.
In any case, Okadiah had made up his mind to ask Kanan about it, as best he could. He knew Kanan could probably brush it off, but he had to try. And with any luck, his words would have something of an impact on the man.
He made his way, two mugs of caf in hand, into the lounge in the Ghost . Kanan was settled in the booth in front of the dejarik table. His lightsaber was in two pieces, and he was cleaning the hilt with a few tools Okadiah had seen him use before, along with a polishing cloth.
Looking up, he spotted Okadiah as he entered. “Captain Syndulla heard you were still up, and sent you some of this,” Okadiah explained, setting one of the caf mugs next to Kanan as he took a seat at the edge of the dejarik booth.
A small smile flickered across Kanan’s face as he set down the lightsaber and took the caf, sipping with an appreciative noise. “Thanks, Oke. What are you doing up this late? It’s a big day tomorrow.”
“Technically, I won’t be part of the actual team who goes to infiltrate the control tower,” Okadiah pointed out mildly. “I’ll leave that to you young rebels. I’m perfectly happy working as comm control and whatever else needs doing.”
“And we appreciate you for it,” Kanan said, taking another drink before turning his attention back to his lightsaber. “I wouldn’t be here without you, after all.”
Okadiah chuckled. “While I flatter myself that I helped you on your way, I wouldn’t go so far as to say that. Still, it’s a nice thought.” He paused, pondering his words for a moment. “What keeps you up at this hour?”
Kanan grimaced as he rubbed the polishing cloth along the inside of the saber’s hilt. “Not much— just processing some details about tomorrow night’s mission. Ezra’s still nervous, I think. Which usually makes me worry, and not without good reason. Every mission we’ve gone on lately has been hounded by that Inquisitor.” His scowl deepening, he dropped his polishing cloth and rubbed a hand over his face, leaving a streak of grease above his cheekbone. “But I’m overreacting. We haven’t seen the Inquisitor since Empire Day, and it’s unlikely that the Empire’s figured out this plan. Hopefully.”
“An understandable concern,” Okadiah said mildly, sipping at his own caf. “But you can handle whatever the Empire throws at you. You’ve certainly handled it before. Besides, you have an excellent team who fights alongside you.” Seeing a smile crossing Kanan’s face at the words, he casually added, “Not the least of which is Captain Syndulla.”
He was possibly too casual. Kanan’s gaze sharpened, and he narrowed his eyes at Okadiah. “Don’t you start. I’ve had enough to handle, what with Kasmir and Ezra pestering me every five seconds.”
“I’m not here to pester you,” Okadiah assured him. “Just to ask a few well meant, if slightly nosy, questions, and then I’ll leave it be.” He paused, then asked, “Is everything alright between you two?”
Grabbing the polishing cloth again, Kanan scrubbed at the metal again, not meeting his gaze. “Fine.”
Sometimes, he almost made it too easy to tell when he was lying. Okadiah spoke slowly, not wanting to increase Kanan’s anger. “I won’t ask what happened. It’s not for me to pry, nor to fix. But you know I don’t like to see you unhappy, lad, either of you.”
Kanan sighed, some of the anger stiffening his movements melting away. “I know. And I appreciate it, Okadiah, but… there’s really nothing you can do.”
“So there is something wrong?”
“I—” Kanan opened his mouth, shut it again, then threw him a rueful glance. “Very sneaky.”
“I can’t help it if the esteemed spymaster has taught me a thing or two.” Okadiah frowned at Kanan, feeling concern ripple through him. “I know you don’t want to talk about this, but I do wonder what happened between the two of you. You can’t pretend that she doesn’t mean the galaxy to you— I’ve seen how you feel about her from the very start. But nothing’s happened, unless it has and I just don’t know.”
“No, it’s—” Kanan sighed, staring down. “Nothing’s happened. And nothing is going to. She’s made that clear, and I’m going to respect that.”
“Well, I find that very hard to believe,” Okadiah remarked, and Kanan gave him a look. Holding up one hand in defense, he said, “Not the part about you respecting her— I have no doubt you’ll respect Hera for the rest of your lives. But I somehow doubt that nothing’s going to happen.”
“Okadiah, she told me as much. She said we should stay friends.”
“Hmm. And you’re certain she still means it?”
Okadiah saw the boy hesitate, just for a moment. “I thought as much,” he murmured. “Well, I’m hardly telling you to push past her boundaries, that would be incredibly ungentlemanly, and probably get you killed by multiple people. But perhaps you should talk to her about whatever’s troubling you?”
“Why is that always the advice I get?” Kanan grumbled half-heartedly.
Sipping his caf rather grandly, Okadiah said, “Because that’s how relationships with communication work, Kanan. Whether it’s romantic or not, you should treat all relationships with the same level of care.”
“Point taken,” Kanan admitted. He slumped back in his seat, glancing at Okadiah. “Thanks, Oke. I appreciate it.”
“Any time, lad.” Okadiah gave him a smile, his heart swelling with fondness for the boy that he thought of as a son in many ways. With any luck, the mission the next night would go off without a hitch and Kanan would come back and talk to Hera, and maybe, just maybe, things would finally be settled between them.
He should have known things wouldn’t be that easy. He knew it when the crew came back without Kanan, with Ezra shaken and Kasmir furious.
But he also knew, the moment he saw the look in Hera’s eyes, that they’d get him back. It was the kind of look that said she’d fight the entire Empire to get to Kanan, whatever it took.
It was the kind of look that made Okadiah think that perhaps things could work out between their fearless leaders after all.