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Chapter Text

"This geomagnetic storm is something else!" Hera held the Ghost's helm steady as the Ghost pitched and heaved through the turbulent radiation.

"Are all the dials supposed to be on critical?" Asked Sabine as she gawked at the dashboard and adjusted her restraint.

Chopper gurgled and blooped.

"I haven't seen a geomagnetic storm this bad since I can't remember when." Hera gripped the yoke so tightly her knuckles turned white.

"Maybe it would be best to land somewhere and weather the storm." Suggested Ezra.

"Not at a time like this." Insisted Hera.

"I don't know if it's safe for us to continue like this. We don't have any Imperials on our tails and the longer we stay here the higher our chances of the Ghost getting damaged." Said Sabine.

"Of course isn't safe, but we need to fly through the storm." Hera squinted out the transparisteel.

"Hold it!" Interjected Kanan. "There's a habitable planet not even a click away. We can weather the storm there."

Hera peered over. "And considering that it's winter in the northern hemisphere now, it's a good thing the Ghost is weatherproof." She made a calculation, shifted the yoke, and pulled down on a lever. "We're going in."

The Ghost crash-landed on a field of snowdrifts, with white powder spraying everyherer.

"Well, we're out of the storm, but I have a feeling that the landing gear or worse is damaged." Said Hera. She surveyed the snowdrifts and snow-covered bare limbs of the trees in the distance.

"Let's have a look." Hera got out of the pilot's seat and left the bridge.

Hera, Kanan, Sabine, Ezra, and Zeb descended the Ghost's gangplank and out into the bitter cold air.

"It sure is cold." Observed Zeb.

"And this is coming from someone with fur." Said Ezra, shivering against the snow as they made their way around to the Ghost's stern.

"Well, there are worse places to get waylayed. We could have been waylayed on a desert planet with a sun brighter than both of Tattooine's suns put together that has kilometers-long sandworms that dwarf the Sarlacc and it's so dry that you have to wear suits that reclaim and distill all of a body's moisture back into drinkable water or else you'll fry." Said Sabine.

"ALL of a body's moisture? Gross!" Said Ezra.

"Gross but practical." Affirmed Sabine.

"And wouldn't it smell?" Said Ezra.

"I have body spray." Sabine insisted.

"You do." Admitted Ezra, suddenly aware of how Sabine always smelled so nice. "But you do realize that body spray of yours is about ninety percent water."

"It can be distilled into a highly concentrated alcohol or oil." Said Sabine.

"Knowing you, we'd all smell like cactus blossoms and existential dread." Said Kanan.

"I think she's watching too many holodramas." Said Zeb.

"I don't watch too many holodramas!" Protested Sabine.

"Uh, you do." Confirmed Hera as she took out a toolkit, brushed away some snow, and began to inspect for damage on the Ghost's hull. "There is damage to the hull all right."

Just then, a scrap of paper came drifting across the snowy plain in the wind and plastered against the Ghost's hull.

HAPPY LIFE DAY it said in big red letters.

"Is it really that time of the standard year?" Sabine stood on her toes and examined the paper.

"I'm going to need some spare parts to make these repairs, and they're just the ones I don't have on hand." Hera stood up and brushed the snow off and shivered. "But I need to go back inside before my lekku freeze off." She looked off to the distance. The sun was getting low over the city ramparts in the distance.

"Not now. It's getting dark and we can go into town tomorrow to get some spare parts." Kanan heaved up Hera's toolbox

"Maybe we can do some restocking when we go into town tomorrow." Suggested Sabine as they trudged through the snow.

"Our first priority is getting the Ghost fixed." Insisted Hera as they ascended the gangplank back into the Ghost.

"Even so, maybe there are some sales for people doing last-minute Life Day shopping. There has to be something we need." Said Ezra.

"We are not going to be using it as an excuse to be buying things we don't need with money we don't have." Insisted Hera.

"We can sneak out." Sabine whispered to Ezra.

"I heard that." Said Hera.

Chapter Text

The next day, the Ghost crew got up bright and early go go into town to get the parts to repair the Ghost. Hera, Kanan, Zeb, and Chopper headed off to the hardware store, and Sabine and Ezra split off from them to get some supplies.

"Did Hera HAVE to get us up at the crack of doom? Asked Ezra.

"Agrarian worlds have an expression, make hay while the sun is shining- and considering the days are very short we needed to be up at first light to remove all the snow from under the Ghost and run some diagnostics." Said Sabine.

"What was stopping us from using the Force?" Asked Ezra.

"I think I beat you to it when I used my flamethrower to melt away all the snow." Replied Sabine.

"And then Hera flew off the handle when it immediately froze to ice and that just made more work." Said Ezra.

"And then we had to listen to Kanan give Yoda's aphorisms about how shortcuts make for long delays." Said Sabine. Her head whipped around. "Are those people drinking from mugs shaped like boots?"

"It appears to be." Ezra turned around and got a look.

"It seems like lots of people are drinking from boots." Sabine observed how many people out on their daily errands were drinking from boots.

"I would say let's split one but Hera would call that a 'frivolity.'" Ezra and Sabine headed to a canopied market lining a blocked-off street with heat lamps all around.

"See anything you like?" Asked Ezra.

"Of course I see things we like, but do we see the utility blades Hera requested?" Sabine parused a table of a vendor who was selling knives. They headed on to the next vendor.

"Ooh! I love these colors!" Sabine held up a knitted blanket that was checked with black, teal, and lilac. She lifted it up from the table and examined it.

"Everything here is made from hand-shorn and hand-dyed wool." Said the woman from behind the table of knitted blankets, sweaters, socks, gloves, and hats. She was knitting something big and red that extended over her lap.

"Want me to get it for you? For Life Day?" Asked Ezra.

"You don't have to." Said Sabine.

"Of course I don't have to! Do you want me to get it for you?" Asked Ezra.

"I was just thinking maybe I could dye my hair these colors." Sabine set the blanket down on top of the other blankets on the table.

"Let's not give you any ideas." Ezra inspected the table's wares.

"Isn't this a cute hat?" Sabine held a black stocking cap with lilac horizontal stripes of various widths and a black and lilac pompom on top and held it up against her head.

"If you'd like a mirror I have one." The vendor placed a wood-framed square mirror and Sabine tried the hat on and inspected her reflection.

"It's not only toasty but I think the color brings out the color in my eyes." Observed Sabine.

"I think it brings out the color in your soul." Said Ezra.

"Take your time." Said the woman behind the table.

"Is that another blanket you're knitting?" Asked Sabine.

"Actually, it's a sort of Hutt tail-sock." Replied the woman.

"I didn't know Hutts wore clothes." Said Ezra.

"Most don't need to, as they have very thick skins and thick layers of blubber that makes them very resiliant to most environments, but yes, Hutts do wear clothes from time to time." The woman removed some stitch markers. "There are Hutts who wear vests, shawls, corsets-"

"Corsets." Laughed Ezra. "Could you imagine a Hutt in a corset?"

"I'm not sure I want to." Sabine laughed

"It's really more for practicality than for fashion. Corsets help with the posture, you see, and this Hutt who has commissioned me is particularly fond of socks. I can't say I like doing business with the Hutts but I'm not about to turn down five thousand credits." Explained the woman. Her needles clicked.

Sabine kept on eyeing herself in the mirror, examining the angles of the black and lilac hat.

"I love the colors and it's so nice and warm." Sabine's voice was covetous.

"You want me to get it for you as an early Life Day Gift?" Asked Ezra.

"You don't have to." Said Sabine.

"Of course I don't have to, but I can see you looking on it with lustful eyes." Said Ezra.

"I'm tempted to take you up on your offer, but here's the deal breaker-the pompom wouldn't fit under my helmet." She took one last look, sighed, and took off the hat and laid it on the table with all the other brightly colored stocking caps.

"Thank you." Said Ezra as they headed to the next table.

"Thank you for stopping by!" The woman looked up briefly and then resumed her knitting.

"Why is it that when shopping for a trace gas analyzer, you find everything BUT a trace gas analyzer?" Asked Ezra.

"Did you honestly expect to find a trace gas analyzer here? In a shop that sells cookies on strings with messages on them?" Replied Sabine as she examined one such delicacy that said "I love you to the moons and back."

"To be honest, I don't think either of us have tried looking for one." Said Ezra. "Or a rechargeable battery slots, or body flaps, or a modular service tool, or retention bolts, or grid cutter tools, or plate access panels, or anything she send us out for."

"We have found fleece slippers, paper stars, jams, jellies, chutnies, home-brewed drinks, mugs, ceramic Life Day village sets, furs, cutting boards, and all manner of other nice things we have no space for on the Ghost." Said Sabine.

"Maybe that big store over there has things we need." Ezra pointed to a large store at the corner of a stripmall across the street.

Ezra and Sabine entered the store. A whole winter wonderland scene had been set up in the center, complete with mini monorails on mini repulsorlifts.

Sabine and Ezra immediately rushed over and examined the miniature diorama and gawked at it for several minutes.

"None of the people have the same face." Observed Ezra.

"Could you imagine how long it took to paint all that by hand?" Said Sabine.

"I could only, but I don't think the repulsor generator on the monorail is large enough for the Ghost." Ezra and Sabine left to explore the departments.

"Uh-oh, this could be dangerous." Said Ezra as he and Sabine approached the art supply department.

They were perusing the aisles of paints, inks, solvents, pens, markers, and paper when Sabine examined a brightly colored box containing several cans of fabric dye, with the cans of purple, orange, and green in the forefront.

"This color palette is just what I had in mind." Said Sabine.

"In mind for what?" Said Ezra.

"My plain white sheets were boring enough to begin with, and they have some stains on them, so instead of getting new sheets, I could cut mythosaurs out of contact paper and use them as stencils to cover the stains on the sheets and they'l be good as new." Said Sabine.

"That's actually pretty clever." Said Ezra.

Sabine looked at the price tag, sighed and put it back. "But I don't need it." She left with Ezra.

Ezra observed all the festive decorations that festooned the store. "Aside from one Imperial propaganda poster, everyone's in such a good mood."

"And absolutely no one's dead." Said Sabine.

"On the contrary, we are standing on a mass grave." An eavesdropping employee chimed in.

"What?" Said Sabine.

"Many years ago, there was a plague, and many of the victims had to be buried in a mass grave." Said the employee. "It was before I was born, but there was an awful plague that made the afflicted cough up chunks of lung and were dead within days. In fact, if you go outside, there plaques on the sidewalk that say "grave site' on them."

Sabine and Ezra gave each other a look.

As they passed a gear department, Ezra noticed a pair of tactical gloves on an endcap. He took a pair off the hook and examined them.

"Do you want me to get those for you for Life Day?" Said Sabine.

"I don't know." Said Ezra.

"What do you mean you don't know." Teased Sabine.

Ezra put them back. "Let's get the things Hera sent us for."

Once they had found some of the items on Hera's shopping list, they paid and departed the store, lugging their merchandise, and braced against the cold.

"I can't believe we were standing on top of a mass grave." Said Sabine.

"I thought I detected something in the Force but I couldn't put my finger on it." Ezra brushed away snow with the toe of his boot to reveal a round brass plaque embedded in the sidewalk that said "grave site" on it.

"And there's another one right there." Sabine pointed to another grave site plaque one segment over that was exposed from the snow.

"Who would have thought? Everyone's in such good cheer it's as if nothing bad ever happens on this planet. The world is quiet here." Said Ezra.

Just then, Ezra's commlink beeped.

"Ezra? Are you there?" Said Kanan.

"Yes, I'm here." Said Ezra. "Sabine is here too."

"Did you get any of the things Hera asked for?" Asked Kanan.

"Most of them. There are still a few things we need to get elsewhere." Answered Sabine.

"Meet me at the main square. I have a surprise." Said Kanan.

"You know I hate surprises! Tell me what it is and I'll act surprised." Said Sabine, but before she could finish, the transmission had already ended.

Sabine and Ezra arrived at the main square, a large, circular promenade with a frozen over fountain in the center, with a town hall, a café, some eateries, and some stores around its perimeter.

Ezra and Sabine found Hera, Zeb, and Chopper sitting on a bench outside the café, but there was no sign of Kanan.

"Have you seen Kanan?" Asked Ezra as they approached.

"He told us to meet him here." Said Zeb.

"But we haven't seen him anywhere." Added Hera.

"There you are!" Exclaimed Sabine as Kanan came out of the café, carrying a tray of steaming cups of hot chocolate.

Ezra and Sabine each took a mug. "Aw, You didn't have to." They both took a sip.

"Think of it as an early Life Day gift." Said Kanan as Hera and Zeb took their cups.

Chopper reached for the remaining cup but Kanan pushed his arm back.

"No, this one's mine." Asserted Kanan.

"BEEEEEEEEEP!" Chopper shrieked in indignation.

"Are you sure you didn't want one for yourself?" Asked Hera, noticing the remaining cup was a different than the rest.

"I'm fine with hot water." Affirmed Kanan.

"You want some of mine?" Offered Hera.

"That's kind of you to offer but it's yours." Kanan took a sip of scalding hot water.

"Suit yourself." Hera blew on her hot chocolate to cool it down.

"This was a very thoughtful early Life Day gift. Thank you, Kanan." Said Sabine, and took another swig.

"It sure was. Thanks, Kanan." Ezra plucked a marshmallow out of his hot chocolate.

"Not normally the hot chocolate sort but thanks, Kanan. This really hit the spot." Said Zeb.

"Where did you get the idea?" Asked Hera.

"Does it really matter? It's extremely cold out and I'm in the Life Day spirit-I mean I'm feeling generous." Said Kanan.

"Are you trying to not admit something?" Asked Sabine.

"Sabine, you have a blob of foam on your nose." Said Kanan.

Sabine laughed and wiped her nose on the back of her hand.

"Once we're done we still have things to get." Sabine set her empty cup on the tray.

"You do that." Hera tilted her head all the way back to slurp up the last few clumps of cocoa.

"Ezra, are you thinking what I'm thinking?" Asked Sabine.

"Am I thinking what you're thinking?" Asked Ezra.

Inside a shop window, they found just the sort of thing they thought Hera would like for Life Day: A compact hydroponic system for growing meiloorun fruit. They immediately headed inside and examined it.

Sabine measured the unit. "It wouldn't take up too much space on the Ghost." Observed Sabine.

"And considering the price point, if we chip in together, we can afford it." Said Ezra.

Sabine approached a salesmen. "We're interested in buying this hydroponics unit." She said.

"Would you happen to have any in stock?" Asked Ezra.

"If not, would it be possible to order one and have it be ready by Life Day?" Asked Sabine.

"We get a shipment later tonight, after closing. That will be our last shipment before Life Day and they're selling fast. If you'd like, I could place a hold on one for you and then you could pick it up first thing in the morning." Said the salesman.

"Perfect." Sabine and Ezra agreed and chipped in their credits for a deposit.

"I'll even throw in a complimentary zero gravity shower drain filter." Added the salesman.

"For Zeb." Said Ezra.

"I don't know how he'd take to that." Said Sabine.

"We could say it's a gag gift." Ezra and Sabine signed their names on a datapad and left.

"Let's see, we got Hera a gift, we kind of got Zeb a gift, we need to get Kanan a gift." Said Ezra.

"But what could we get him?" Whenever you ask him if you can get him anything he says he doesn't want anything." Said Sabine.

"We'll have to surprise him, I suppose." Said Ezra.

"With what? This monstrosity?" Sabine gestured to a window display of lamps on posts of legs of various species-human, Twi'lek, Togruta, and Zabrak, to name a few, that were wearing a stocking and a high heel with a lampshade on top.

"Fra-jee-lee. Must be Huttese." Ezra read the sign over the lamps.

"It says, 'fragile!'" Stated Sabine. "And besides, Hera might get jealous and force it out the airlocks."

"I don't think she'd be jealous, she'd just call it a waste of space." Said Sabine.

"I'm sure there's something. We just have to look harder." Ezra and Sabine headed into another store.

"I suppose that was a somewhat successful day." Hera announced as they left the city gates to return to the Ghost.

"Only somewhat? We got a ton of stuff!" Ezra shifted a small rectangular box that was shoved under his chin.

"And the day's not over yet." Said Zeb.

"Not over yet?" Moaned Ezra.

"We need to work on the landing gear while there's still light." Stated Hera. "And then there's maintenence that needs to be done inside the Ghost that we can do after the sun goes down, AND Chopper needs his internal circuit processor serviced."

"GGURGLEGURFLEBLOOPBEEEEEEP" Chopper shreiked in indignation.

Zeb reached into a bag, retrieved a very colorful bar of handmade soap, most likely purchased from a street vendor, and thrust it into one of Chopper's intake outputs.

"BEEPGUGRGEGURGLE!" Was Chopper's muffled protest.

"That was supposed to be a Life Day gift but with language like that, you're going to need to wash your vocal encoders out with soap." Said Zeb.

Chopper removed the bar of soap and placed it back in one of Zeb's bags.

"Are we back to the Ghost yet?" Asked Ezra.

"You know not to ask 'are we there yet?'" Said Kanan.

"I do too, but it's really cold and I should have gotten those tactical gloves I saw earlier! Or eggnog in a boot-shaped mug." Said Ezra.

"Boot-shaped mugs are tacky and expensive. Besides, I got some powdered eggnog mix we could keep with us on the Ghost." Said Hera.

They finally arrived at the Ghost and began to unload their purchases and put stuff away, and as soon as Sabine and Ezra were done, they immediately challenged each other to a game of sabbac.

"Sabine! Ezra! Please come and help us with the landing gear!" Hera called.

"One moment!" Called Sabine, but they kept on with their game.

"Sabine, Ezra. Please come help us with the landing gear!" Called Kanan.

"One moment!" Called Ezra, but they kept on playing.

Then Kanan appeared over Sabine and Ezra and gave them a stern look.

"If we were caught goofing off while we were supposed to be doing something else, Master Yoda would make us stand on our heads, and only our heads, using only the Force to hold us upright, for ten hours straight, while repeating the Jedi Litany Against Fun." Said Kanan.

"The Jedi Litany Against Fun?" Asked Ezra.

"I've never told you about the Jedi Litany Against Fun? It goes 'I must not have any fun. Fun is the time-killer. Fun is for the idle and with no aspirations. I will ignore the temptation of fun. When the fun is over, I will have accomplished something greater, and only what I managed to get done will remain." Said Kanan.

"Aww man!" Groaned Ezra.

"No wonder the Jedi and Mandalorians hate each other. For all we are or aren't, we sure do like to have a good time." Added Sabine.

"Wait a minute." Ezra detected in the Force that that Kanan was lying, and saw he was holding in laughter. "Did you make this up?"

"I should have known you'd see through that. But then one day me and some other padawans found a lost puppy and we were having a contest to see who could tell the biggest lie, and whomever told the biggest lie got to keep the puppy, when Yoda approached and asked us what we were doing, and when we explained, Yoda said." Kanan imitated Yoda's voice. "'When your age, I was, never tell any lies, I did.' And we let Yoda keep the puppy." Said Kanan.

Sabine and Ezra were laughing, when suddenly Ezra said "Wait, you said Master Yoda was in his nine hundreds, wouldn't that mean if when he was your age, relatively speaking, he'd still be a baby?"

"Species age differently, I never knew him, but then, is that the sort of thing Yoda would say either?" Sabine gave Kanan a quizatical eye.

"All right, maybe I am pulling your legs." Kanan conceded.

"It doesn't seem like the Jedi way to pull people's legs." Said Ezra.

Kanan tilted his head, as if he was enjoying their reactions to his tall tales. "Yoda did however say, and I really mean it." Kanan imitated Yoda's voice. "Takes all the fun out of life, setting a good example for our children does."

"You don't need an outlandish made up story when there's a much more interesting real one." Said Sabine.

"I need you to come help us and asking politely wasn't helping. You'd better come help us while the sun is still up." Kanan beckoned Ezra and Sabine to the Ghost's gangplank. "Or else I really will make you stand on your heads and recite the litany against fun! In the snow!"

Ezra and Sabine abandoned their game of Sabbac and headed down the Ghost's gangplank.

"We should be done in enough time to go to bed early so we can get up early to pick up Hera's present." Sabine whispered to Ezra.

"If they aren't too cranky with us." Ezra whispered to Sabine.

Kanan called down to them as they set foot on the ground. "And don't get me started on the litany for whispering as loudly as possible!"

Chapter Text

Ezra was standing on some rocks, near some crags and cliffs that extended off to the side. It was extremely hot and dry, the blue sky had not a cloud, and rolling dunes extended off into the distance as far as the eye could see. Ezra looked up to the sky. There was only one sun, but it was hotter and brighter than both of Tatooine's suns put together. He then looked down to find he was wearing a skintight black suit that was covered in interlocking catchpockets and tubing, and it felt as if something was stuck up his nostrils. He then turned to find Sabine was also wearing a skintight black suit with interlocking catchpockets, and she too had noseplugs coming off a tube from behind her ear.

"What is this place?" Ezra asked.

"I don't know but suddenly Tatooine seems positively paradisical by comparison." Replied Sabine.

"And where is your armor?" Asked Ezra.

"You think I'm wearing armor in this place? Solid black is really not my color scheme but in beskar I would end up literally roasted to death." Sabine then took a swig of water from a tube from behind her ear.

"Do I want to know where that water came from?" Asked Ezra, suddenly realizing he was quite thirsty.

"It's just repurposed sweat. It might not taste very good but it will keep you hydrated." Sabine replaced the tube behind her ear.

"I'm still not so sure about it." He climbed to another precariously placed rock.

"I'n not sure about it either." Sabine almost lost her balance and then crouched on a rock next to Ezra.

"Not sure about-"

"About what?" Asked Ezra.

"This place." Answered Sabine. "There is sand EVERYWHERE!"

"Everywhere here and on all desert planets." Said Ezra.

"But sand here is rougher and coarser and irritatinger here than most! I have sand in my butt crack!" Complained Sabine.

"Irritatinger isn't a word." Ezra hoisted his weight onto a rock. "Wait, why am I not using the Force? And where is your jetpack? And why are we climbing on rocks when we could just hike across the dunes."

"We have to walk without rhythm." Answered Sabine.

"It's a good thing we're neither walking nor have any rhythm, doing this over here, even if-" Ezra jumped off the rocks with the Force and landed on his feet and began to hike across the sand dunes.

"Ezra! Have you lost your mind!" Sabine jumped off the rocks and ran after him.

The desert sands began to ripple with serpentine fissures and static charges filled the air.

"I have a bad feeling about this." Ezra panicked.

A massive worm, taller than a spacescraper and as long as three spacescrapers laid in end, emerged from the sand, raised its head, and parted its massive jaws, revealing radials of pointed teeth.

"Look at the size of that thing!" Suddenly Ezra forgot all his Jedi training. He tried to run but couldn't as the worm drew near.

Sabine deployed a paracord whip and ran alongside the worm and forced the prongs of a grappling hook under one of the worm's segments.

"I'm going to get us off this litterbox!" She grabbed Ezra by the wrist, and holding onto the paracord whip tightly, began to rappel up the side of the worm as its massive segmented body rotated upward and Ezra followed.

Sabine anchored more grappling hooks onto the surface of the worm once she reached the top, and Ezra followed.

"Do you even know what you're doing!" Ezra shouted as he rappeled to the top of the worm.

"I just hope I'm doing this right!" Sabine tossed a length of fibercord whip to Ezra. He lunged up next to her.

"Hang tight!" Sabine gripped the paracord whip like reigns and the sandworm took off at breakneck speed across the plains.

"This beats a jetpack any day of the week!" Sabine exclaimed and crouched down and gripped the fibercord.

"No one's more resourceful than you, Sabine!" Ezra grinned from ear to ear against the desert sunlight, unable to get over the intense adrenaline rush and shared enjoyment as the collossal worm sped across the distant plains of sand.

"Ezra! Wake up!" Sabine nudged Ezra.

Ezra groaned and shifted upward slightly.

"We need to pick up Hera's Life Day gift." Sabine reminded him.

"But I was having such a nice dream." Ezra turned back his blankets and rubbed his eyes.

"Oh really." Said Sabine.

"I dreamed we were on a desert planet that was hotter than Tatooine and you and I were riding a giant sandworm that was bigger than a Sarlacc." Ezra sat up in bed and rubbed his eyes.

"And that isn't a euphemism for anything." Sabine's tone had a note of mischief.

"I don't know what it could be a euphemism for. Just you and me on a desert planet, wearing black suits with noseplugs and speeding across the desert on a giant sandworm. Exactly what it says on the tin." Ezra sat up in bed and winced against the chill air.

"Don't go back to sleep now." Sabine chided as Ezra wrapped himself in a blanket.

"But it's so nice and warm in bed and it's so cold out of bed." Ezra stood up and tossed the blanket into his bunk. "Once I'm all bundled up we can leave to pick up Hera's present."

"And not get caught." Added Sabine.

"But first let's not wake up Zeb." Ezra put on a heavy jacket.

They descended down the Ghost's gangplank and out into the plain. It was still dark out, the stars winked at them from the dark blue sky, across the blanket of snow, and the air smelled cold and crisp and clean.

"Wow." Was all Ezra could say as they raised the gangplank behind them and began trudging through the snow, their breath fogging in the cold.

"It's mornings like this that remind me of a Mandalorian folk song." Said Sabine. She began to sing.

"On a cold winter morning

In the time before the light

In flames of death's eternal reign

We ride towards the fight

When the darkness has fallen down

And the times are tough all right

The sound of evil laughter falls

Around the Galaxy tonight"

"It certainly gets you pumped up and I'm not surprised that's what Mandalorians sing about, but I'm kind of sort of glad we're picking up Hera's present and not going into battle right now." Said Ezra.

"You can go into battle at any given time." Sabine indicated to her blasters in their holsters.

"I knew that" Ezra indicated to his lightsaber clipped at his belt. "But for right now, that's not our intention, and I'm glad it's not, and I hope it stays that way." In the distance, two crescent moons were beginning to set.

They continued to the edge of the forest with a sign giving direction to the city's western gate.

"The receipt said to meet them at their western gate location." Said Sabine.

"That means we go through the forest." Ezra and Sabine began to head through the forest of naked trees with snow covered branches. Somewhere in the distance, a furry animal hopped through the snow.

"Hopefully we'll be back before the sun is up." Said Sabine.

"Me too." Agreed Ezra when they stumbled upon a squat square abandoned building of gray stone. Its roof was covered in snow.

"What's this?" Ezra felt a pull on it from the Force and ran up to it through the snow.

"It's an abandoned building." Said Sabine, but Ezra felt in the Force that it was so much more than that.

Ezra went over to the icicle-encrusted door and peered within.

"There isn't much to see here." Noted Sabine. "Aside from some snowdrifts, dust, dirt, and dried leaves left over from summer."

"Of course there isn't much to see here." Affirmed Ezra. "But it's not what you can see, it's what you can't see. I can feel it in the Force. Many things happened within these walls, but something, the Force signature left behind suggests something pivotal happened here. Something that altered the course of history. Something in which nothing was ever the same again."

"Did a Jedi and a Mandalorian sneak out in the middle of the night to pick up a gift for their captain?" Asked Sabine.

"No, but there was a Jedi and a Mandalorian. That I can feel." Answered Ezra.

"We're not going to pick it up there." Sabine beckoned to Ezra and they continued heading through the forest.

"Well, we're here." Sabine and Ezra went through the gate, past loading zones where transports were loading and unloading cargo, and to the store they were picking up the hydroponics unit from.

Sabine and Ezra went to the kiosk at the front, showed them the receipt, then were given a number and were instructed to go over to the side door, where they were greeted by a green Twi'lek in beige coveralls.

"First in line." Said the green Twi'lek as he took their number and receipt. "You two wait right here. It will be out for you soon." He went off to a land-freighter and disappeared.

Over on the street, a vendor was setting up shop.

"I don't know what that vendor over there is selling but it smells really good." Said Sabine.

"It does." Agreed Ezra. He headed over to the street to get a closer look at the street vendor's cart.

"It says they're selling ta-mals." Said Ezra as he returned to wait with Sabine.

"A ta-mal sounds nice right now but we need to be here when they call us." Said Sabine. "And they haven't called our number yet."

"They haven't called mine yet either." An elderly human woman behind them said. "Usually you come at this hour and they're with you faster than it takes to jump to hyperspace."

Just then, grating mechanical noises were heard from a tractor-crane that was carrying a unit of cargo. The tractor beam was failing.

Ezra immediately sprung up, dashed across the loading zone, and held up the cargo unit with the Force. He grunted and gritted his teeth at the strain. Sabine wrapped a grappling hook to the top of the tractor crane, zoomed up, and flung a fibercord whip down around the cargo unit.

"The tractor beam is online again!" Called a voice.

"You can let go now, Ezra!" Called Sabine.

Sabine and Ezra were at the side kiosk, with Ezra holding Hera's gift and Sabine signing the final papers.

"I don't know you, but I was captain of a cargo ship for twenty years. If I still had my ship, I would ask you when you could start." Said the green twi'lek in the beige coveralls.

"That's really flattering of you to say but we already have our own ship." Sabine returned the paperwork and they left.

"Maybe we should get some tam-als. I worked up an appetite." Said Ezra.

"Same. They can't be too expensive." Said Sabine as they headed over to the vendor whose cart sign said "Tamales."

"How much is a tam-al?" Asked Ezra as he set Hera's gift down.

"That's tam-al-eh." Corrected the vendor. "They're a Life Day tradition on my homeworld." The vendor opened up some steam containers to reveal bundles of what appeared to be corn husk. "I have bantha, nerf, cheese, and shuura fruit."

"How much a tam-al-eh?" Asked Sabine.

"Since you're the first customers, I'll give you a discount. Two for a credit." Said the vendor.

"I'll have nerf." Said Sabine.

"I'm having what she's having." Said Ezra.

The vendor selected two tamales with tongs and placed them in an insulated bag. "Happy Life Day." Said the vendor, handing over the tamales and Sabine gave him a credit.

Sabine and Ezra were just outside the city ramparts, Ezra holding the box and Sabine holding the tamales.

"We can take turns, let me know when you need to swap." Said Sabine as they had already covered some ground.

"Look." Said Ezra.

"At what?" Asked Sabine.

"Look at the sun." The sun was rising, and the sky was streaked with vivid pink.

"Nature on this planet has chosen a great color palate but there's no time to ooh and ahh at it." Said Sabine as they began to head through the forest.

"There's no way in Malachor we're getting back before everyone else is up." Said Ezra.

"We've taken turns several times over, and even though these tamal-ehs make nice handwarmers, They'de be better off inside us." Acknowledged Sabine as they approached the abandoned stone building.

"It might not be much to look at but maybe here's the best place to stop and eat our tam-als." Said Ezra.

"May as well." Said Sabine as they rounded a corner to the back wall of the building and set the box down against the wall.

They sat down on the box and took the tamales out of the bag.

"They're still nice and warm." Said Ezra as he began to unwrap his tamale.

"They're like little gifts." Said Sabine, undoing the knots of the thin strips of corn husk that were holding the tamale together.

"Early Life Day gifts." Agreed Ezra as he unwrapped the corn husks on his tamale.

"They're also kind of like energy bars." Added Sabine as she peeled the corn husk away from the savory corn dough. "They have carbs, fat, and protein and you can eat them on the go." She took a bite of the corn dough and tender, spicy braised meat. "I wonder why the Mandalorians didn't think of these."

"You can wonder all you want but can you appreciate the-ouch!" Ezra exclaimed.

"Ezra! Are you all right?" Asked Sabine.

"I almost broke a tooth on an olive stone. Be careful." Ezra spat the olive stone onto the snow.

"I will watch out for errant olives." Affirmed Sabine. She took another bite of tamale, careful of olive pits.

"There sure is a lot to do to get ready for Life Day." Said Ezra.

"There is, but to be honest, I don't celebrate Life Day." Said Sabine.

Ezra almost spat out his tamale. "What?"

"Well, some Mandalorians celebrate Life Day, but generally speaking, most don't." Said Sabine.

"That's news to me." Said Ezra.

"We do however have a holiday that coincides with Life Day on the Standard year. It's nine days long and-"

"Nine days?" Stammered Ezra.

"But it's not eight days of drinking eggnog and singing 'Joh Blastoh.' It's eight days of honoring the fallen. There is gift giving and eating and visiting and singing, but it's a very solemn holiday. The best part is when it's over." Sabine looked down at her half-eaten tamale.

"I see nothing wrong with a holiday honoring the fallen." Said Ezra.

"I don't either, but it can be hard when you're in the solemn mood and everyone around you is in the merry and bright mood." Said Sabine.

"What's wrong with celebrating both?" Said Ezra.

"Well, of the multitudes of people in the Galaxy who celebrate Life Day, most use it to spread goodwill towards others, although in ancient days there were species who would use it as an excuse to persecute us Mandalorians." Said Sabine.

"That was then, this is now." Said Ezra.

"So, even though I've been participating in Life Day since I joined the crew of the Ghost, it's not without a guilty conscience." Said Sabine.

"It sounds to me like if they were using a holiday to celebrate life as an excuse for the persecution of others, then they didn't value life to begin with and weren't celebrating life to begin with." Ezra looked up. "But do keep in mind that if anyone persecutes you on Life Day or any day, they're going to end up shorter if I'm around or my name isn't Ezra Bridger."

"I can take care of myself." Said Sabine.

"I know you're quite capable of that, but just keep in mind that I've got your back and the Ghost has got your back. Just enjoy Life Day and don't worry about anything else." Said Ezra. "Now what do we do with these husks and wrappers?"

"We can't just leave them here." Agreed Sabine.

"Stuffing them in our pockets and someone finding them would be a dead giveaway we were out, and the husks and wrappers are biodegradable. Let's bury them." Ezra pushed away the box and began to dig in the exposed earth and Sabine helped. The dirt was very cold but surprisingly loose.

"What's this?" Ezra held up a flat plastic pouch.

"It appears to be a ration package. Judging by what's left of the design it's very old. Republic Era, at least." Sabine set it aside. "Now what is this?" She picked a broken blister pack out of the dirt.

"It once held some sort of medicine." Ezra peered at it. "Hy...rox...q...in. The other letters have crackled away."

"Someone was here awhile ago." Sabine mused. "Imagine if this building could talk." She put a hand on the stone wall and then placed the refuse in the hole.

"What should we do with the ration pouch and the blister pack?" Said Ezra.

"Probably bury them alongside the husks for some other Jedi and Mandalorian duo to find in the future." They finished burying their trash, hoisted up the box, and continued on their way.

"Let's make sure this fits in the cargo hold." Ezra shoved Hera's gift among some boxes.

"And that it remains hidden." Sabine shoved some boxes in front of it.

"Mission accomplished." Ezra and Sabine opened the door to the cargo bay to find Hera glaring at them.

"There you are! We've been looking for you all morning!" Hera put her hands on her hips.

"We just, um, went for an early morning...training." Ezra improvised. It really wasn't a lie.

"Early morning training in the bitter cold." Hera seemed uncertain if she bought it and began to enter the cargo hold.

"Stay out of the cargo hold." Ezra gestured to Hera to leave.

"I need something in the cargo hold." Hera practically shoved her way in.

"Stay out of the cargo hold. You'll live longer." Sabine pushed Hera away.

"Did you bring home an animal?" Hera crossed her arms over her chest.

"Yes, a big aquatic animal that can swallow anything in a single gulp." Said Sabine.

"Why would we bring home an animal? One animal on board the Ghost is bad enough, two would be truly terrible." Said Ezra, shutting the door to the cargo bay behind him.

"I heard that!" Snapped Zeb.

"You were supposed to! And I mean that as a compliment!" Ezra followed Hera and Sabine to the galley.

Kanan was making breakfast. He set out dishes of r
omlettes, bacon, and tinned fruit on the table.

"I checked the weather report. The geomagnetic storm isn't expected to be over until after Life Day." Announced Hera as she and Zeb helped themselves and Kanan prepared a plate for Sabine and a plate for Ezra.

"That's odd. Usually you two are hungry at this hour." Observed Kanan as he placed an urn of caff on the table that Sabine and Ezra hadn't touched their breakfasts.

"We, um, had a large dinner last night, didn't we?" Said Ezra.

"Wait a moment." Kanan then noticed a barely noticeable smear of red sauce on Sabine's cheek. "Did you go into town to get something to eat?"

Sabine reached up touched her face. There was a fleck of red sauce on her fingers. She turned to Ezra. "Why didn't you tell me I had food on my face?"

"Didn't see it." Ezra shrugged.

"They can't go sneaking out like that." Said Hera.

"They went out and came back just fine. Once the bantha's been milked, there's no shooting the cream back into her udders." Said Kanan.

"I'll have your portions." Said Zeb.

"Take them." Ezra shoved his plate to Zeb and Sabine shoved her plate to Ezra who shoved them to Zeb.

"If you two are not going to eat, I have plenty of work for you." Said Hera. She held up shield generator servicing kits and thrust them at Sabine and Ezra.

Sabine and Ezra groaned and stomped off.

"Make sure you get the initial stage done fast-we're going into town within the hour!" Called Hera.

Chapter Text

While the rest of the Ghost crew was bickering over some vent converters, Ezra snuck off into the department store, over to the crafts section, and selected the box of cans of fabric dye for Sabine. He was on his way to the checkout when he passed the endcap where the tactical gloves were. He stared at them. He had enough credits for the gloves, or the dyes, but not both. He sighed and made his way for the checkstand.

"There you go! Happy Life Day." Said the cashier. Ezra then left. They even put tissue paper in the bag so prying eyes wouldn't notice.

"There you are!" Sabine was just going in.

Ezra hid the bag behind himself.

"Hera wants me to make some exchanges." Said Sabine. "Wait, are you trying to hide something?"

"Uh, no." Ezra blushed.

"Then why were you here?" Asked Sabine.

"I needed new, um, underwear." Said Ezra.

"I'm sure you did. With orange wildcat print and purple and green and pink flowers." Said Sabine.

"Your underwear collection is none of my business!" Called Ezra as Sabine went inside. Ezra remembered how yesterday they wandered past the lingerie department and saw Sabine turning her head all the way around towards a table of brightly colored panties. He did not think it would be an appropriate gift to give her or anyone. Much too embarrassing.

"Where'd you run off to?" Asked Zeb once Ezra met them at the main square.

"To, um, put my socks in alphabetical order." Said Ezra.

"That one's almost as good as playing sabbac with your bantha." Said Kanan.

"You got something." Zeb noticed the bag.

"Yes." Ezra removed the tissue paper from the bag to show and Zeb. "This is what I'm getting Sabine for Life Day."

"She's going to have a field day with every textile on board the Ghost." Said Zeb, looking into the bag.

"Please don't tell." Said Ezra.

Zeb made a "hush" gesture.

"There you are!" Sabine called as she approached. Ezra quickly shoved the tissue paper back in the bag.

"Did you really get something else?" Asked Sabine.

"Yes I did! I got an early Life Day gift for Zeb! Happy Life Day, ya filthy animal!" Ezra thrust the bag at Zeb and he took it.

"We need to be getting back to the Ghost now. I got some takeout." Said Hera. They began to make their way towards the Ghost.

"It's not jool-kayk, it's yuleh-kah-keh." Corrected Sabine.

"How was I supposed to know?" Said Ezra, scraping his plate of any remnants of meatball, gravy, mashed potato, mushroom salad and pickled red cabbage.

"It says on the wrapper, julekake. It has a pronunciation guide.The J is silent." Said Sabine, wrapping up her and Ezra's unfinished portion of sweet fruit and spice infused cake.

"Beats the fruitcake Chopper stole and that the shopkeeper didn't want back." Said Zeb.

"There's probably only one of them and they've been passing it around for years." Said Kanan.

"Will you now please hurry up with putting the leftovers away?" Said Hera. She began to wash dishes.

"It seems there's enough left over that we can have the rest for dinner." Sabine observed as she put the leftovers in the refrigeration unit.

"And that's good." Hera wiped her hands on her flight suit. "Because I have a lot to do this afternoon and you have a lot to do this afternoon. I need you to leave now and not come back until after sundown." Said Hera.

"But I'm tired." Protested Ezra.

"Have some caff. It will keep your hands warm." Hera poured Ezra a cup of caff into a disposable cup and began pushing everyone towards the gangplank. "I need a few hours to myself!"

"Bye, Hera." Ezra, Kanan, Zeb, and Sabine waved from the snow-covered field as Hera raised the gangplank.

As soon as Hera had the Ghost all to herself, she immediately began to attend to her first order of business. Whenever she saw something a crew member might like and it wasn't too expensive, she bought or obtained it and stored it away for occasions such as Life Day. She had many things she needed to do, but this took prescidence. She took out some bags and wrapping paper and tape, and immediately began to sort the gifts and prepare them for wrapping, tagging, bagging, and hiding.

"Why was Hera evicting us like that?" Asked Ezra as they crossed the snowy plain.

Chopper beeped and booped.

"No, Chopper, it doesn't mean she doesn't love us anymore." Said Zeb

"She probably wants some time to herself." Said Sabine.

"And we need to file a claim at the insurance office." Said Kanan.

"Insurance? The Ghost has insurance?" Said Ezra.

"Don't ask. It's going to be enough of a headache dealing with them and not getting caught." Explained Kanan.

They arrived at the western gate and entered.

"Now where is the insurance office?" Asked Ezra.

"That's what we need to find out." Said Kanan.

They navigated the streets in search of the insurance office to no avail.

"The town is on a grid. You'd think we'd find it." Said Sabine.

"Maybe we could get some eggnog in boot mugs."

Chopper gurgled and blooped and pointed to a display in a store.

"No, you are not getting silicone-based oil for your oil baths. Petroleum based oil worked just fine." Said Kanan.

"BEEEEPBOOP!" Screeched Chopper. It probably meant "you're mean."

"How about I get some for you for Life Day?" Asked Zeb.

"Boobbeep?" Trilled Chopper.

"Good. It's not like you deserved it anyway." Said Zeb.

They finally arrived at the insurance office. A squat brick building with a bough of holly over the front door.

They were all about to enter when they noticed the sign on the door.

NO GUESTS. With an Imperial cog underneath.

"I guess that means I'll be going in alone." Kanan put a hand on the doorknob and turned to Sabine, Ezra, Chopper, and Zeb.

"This could take awhile. Wait here." Instructed Kanan. "And there is to be NO mischief of any kind."

"Yes, Kanan." Affirmed Sabine, Ezra, Chopper, and Zeb.

Kanan shut the door behind him.

"Why would they not allow any guests?" Asked Ezra.

"Probably security reasons, but in the winter it's kind of odd to leave us out in the cold like we're a bunch of unwanted stepchildren." Said Sabine.

Time rolled by. No sign of Kanan.

"What's taking so long in there?" Asked Ezra.

"Must be a line." Said Zeb.

"Never underestimate the slowness of a bureaucracy." Said Sabine.

Time kept on rolling by.

"How long is he going to be in there? Or has he left us here to rot?" Ezra made a snowball and threw it at a sculpture.

"Kanan would never leave us to rot. And even then, it's kind of hard to rot in this weather." Sabine scraped some snow from the iron railing surrounding the sculpture and ate it.

Chopper banged on the railing.

"Chopper, you know damaging things is bad." Said Zeb.

Chopper shrieked in protest.

They continued to wait idly. Off in the distance, a bell chimed on the hour.

"I wonder how much longer Kanan is going to have to wait." Said Zeb.

"Maybe we should have brought sleeping bags." Suggested Sabine.

"Yeah, for when they make us camp out here." Said Ezra.

Chopper gurgled and beeped.

"Why would we bring a power bank for you? We like you better when you're battery's out." Said Zeb.

Chopper screamed.

"Hey, those two who arrived after us are leaving before us. Not fair." Said Ezra.

"Quiet, Ezra." Chided Sabine.

The hours rolled by. There was no sign of Kanan anywhere. The sun began to sink low in the sky.

Chopper gurgled and trilled.

"You wonder what would happen if an organic being were to stick their tongue to a frozen pole?" Asked Ezra.

Chopper beeped and affirmative yes.

"Their tongue would probably get stuck to it." Said Ezra.

Chopper beeped and booped sassily.

"How would I know? We once saw a holodrama where someone stuck their tongue to a monorail track on a bet and the fire department had to come rescue them." Said Ezra.

Chopper trilled and beeped.

"Yes, Chopper, there's a street sign over there." Said Ezra.

Chopper beeped and gurgled.

"I'm not sticking my tongue to that pole to see if that's what really happens." Said Ezra.

Chopper beeped.

"You dare me?" Asked Ezra.

"I dare you too." Said Zeb.

"What?" Asked Ezra.

"There's nothing else to do here" Said Zeb.

"I double dare you." Said Sabine.

"What? That's unlike you." Said Ezra.

"I'm feeling unlike myself. If a good way." Said Sabine.

"I double dog dare you." Said Zeb.

"Let's go easy here." Said Ezra.

"Don't be a chicken, Ezra." Said Sabine.

Sabine, Zeb, and Chopper blurted in unison.

"We triple dog dare you."

"You triple dog dare me?" Began Ezra. "Breaching ettiquite and skipping the triple dare and going straight for the coup de grace." Ezra stared down at the ground. "Well, the last thing I would want to be thought of is a chicken."

Ezra, Sabine, Zeb and Chopper headed over to the street sign.

Ezra stood right up next to the street sign, closed his eyes, and stuck his tongue to the frozen pole.

Ezra opened his eyes.

"Dit actuay innt tho bab." Said Ezra as best he could.

"We told you so." Said Zeb.

"I cud geth uthd tho thith." Muffled Ezra. He then tried to pull away but couldn't.

"I'm thuk!" Muffled Ezra.

"You're what?" Said Zeb.

"I'm thuckkkk!" Whined Ezra.

"I think he means 'I'm stuck." Said Sabine. Then it dawned on her. "Oh crap!"

Chopped beeped and gurgled. It probably meant "just pull it off you big wimp." And rolled over and banged on the pole.

"Thap ith! Ahhhh!" Whined Ezra.

Just then, Ezra's comlink beeped.

"That must be Hera! Turn it off!" Exclaimed Sabine.

Ezra turned his comlink off.

"Whaa we gaa do?" Complained Ezra.

Sabine's comlink beeped. She turned hers off. "First thing, don't tell Hera."

Zeb's comlink beeped. "No sooner said than done." He said.

"Of all the electives I could have taken at the Academy, maybe I should have taken first aid." Said Sabine.

"Lotta good it will do you now." Zeb's comlink beeped again and he silenced it.

"Waa we gaa daa!" Aaaaaa!" Moaned Ezra.

"What happened?" Asked a very bewildered Kanan as he approached.

"We triple dog dared him to stick his tongue to the pole and he did." Confessed Sabine.

"All of you. Calm down." Kanan gripped the pole with both gloved hands and began to use the Force to heat up the pole. "Run back to the Ghost, I'l get this taken care of!"

Sabine, Zeb, and Chopper were ascending the gangplank of the Ghost when Hera greeted them an unwarm welcome.

"There you are!" Snapped Hera as the gangplank shut behind them. "I've been worried sick about you!

"Better late than never." Said Zeb as they headed into the common area.

"And where is Ezra?" Asked Hera.

Zeb, Sabine, and Chopper were silent.

"I said, where is Ezra?" Repeated Hera.

"Gurglebeepbeep." Trilled Chopper.

"Who's Ezra?" Repeated Hera. "Don't tell me you don't know who Ezra is."

Just then Kanan entered with Ezra, with Ezra sucking on a bacta patch.

"Kanan, what is the meaning of this?" Hera demanded cooly.

"Hmmfm hmmaaffmmm." Ezra tried to explain.

"We triple dog dared him to stick his tongue to a frozen pole and he did." Confessed Sabine.

"So this is what it comes to!" Snapped Hera. "I had a nice quiet afternoon where I could actually get a little work done without any interruptions! I did several repairs, I caught up on my reading, I took a bath..."

"We have a bath?" Interrupted Sabine.

"No, but we do have an oblong storage box and I have an imagination." Hera shook her head. "And I had a wonderful afternoon where I had the Ghost all to myself and it all comes to a screeching halt with this! Do you have any idea how worried I was when nobody was answering their comlinks? I was worried sick!"

"Hera, I'm sorry. I accept full responsibility for this." Said Kanan.

"Don't be, Kanan. They're mature enough to not do stupid and potentially dangerous things like this." Said Hera.

"Mh mh mhuh muh huh huh huhhuh huh ahaahuh." Muffled Ezra.

Hera glared down at the other members of the Ghost crew.

"Somebody put Ezra up to this." Said Hera.

The other Ghost crew members stared dumbly at her.

"All right then, since nobody is going to confess, you are all going to write an essay, 'What I Want For Life Day.'" Intoned Hera.

The Ghost crew let out a collective groan.

Hera retreived some paper and pencils and began passing them out. "We are going to do this the analog way. Please begin immediately. We are going to read them all out loud in one hour."

The Ghost crew sat around the common room, squinting at their papers. Ezra immediately got to work writing his essay and almost couldn't write fast enough.

What I want for Life Day: for Life Day, I want an odorless, tasteless, and colorless alternative to bacta. Bacta is great, but it smells awful, tastes even more awful, and for big wounds you have to be submerged in it. Only an odorless, tasteless, colorless alternative to bacta will do. It could be a clear serum that you only need a pea-sized blob of for it to begin to heal on contact. Only a razor-thin application would be necessary for big injuries. I don't care what it's made of. Secretion of an anal gland of a nerf, morbid secretion of purgill, it could be made of leech saliva for all I care! If I can get an odorless, tasteless, colorless alternative to bacta for Life Day, I will never ask for anything else again.

Sabine looked down at her sheet of blank paper. She knew how to write essays, she was quite good at it, as a matter of fact, but had not written an essay since her days at the Academy, and was quite rusty. The page yawned at her like a white void. The cans of fabric dye were what she was really itching for, and there was no way anyone could know that she wanted them if she didn't tell anyone, but she didn't want to announce it to everyone.

Sabine looked down at her blank paper and then raised her head in rage.

"SUDDENLY BEING STRANDED ON A DESERT PLANET THAT'S HOTTER AND DRIER THAN TATOOINE AND WITH BIGGER SANDWORMS WOULD HAVE BEEN PREFERABLE!"