Chapter Text
Luke doesn’t know why he goes to the cantina that night. On the other nights, he had returned to his ship to eat ration bars and meditate after spending all day searching in vain for a rumored Jedi temple. Now, even after a week of searching, Luke feels like he has searched most of the dusty little backwater planet called Llorn Minor—and has absolutely nothing to show for it.
Well, it’s not that Luke doesn’t know why he goes to the cantina—more that he doesn’t want to think about why a drink sounds so good. Ducking inside off of the only street in the town, Luke sees the cantina is mostly empty while everyone else in the small settlement celebrates in the streets. A bright sign in the small foyer greets him, “Welcome to Ret’s! Republic Day Special! Pantorran Whiskey half off!” Luke frowns at the sign for a moment before stepping inside.
Republic Day. Exactly one standard year ago, the Rebellion’s victory at the Battle of Endor saw the end of the Empire. Luke can’t begrudge others for celebrating, even if he himself finds the anniversary more bittersweet than cause for open celebration, tinged as it is with the memories of his father’s death. Leia had been frustrated with him for leaving right before the celebrations scheduled on Coruscant to go on this hopeless quest for Jedi artifacts and knowledge, but she also hadn’t tried too hard to get Luke to stick around for the parades and parties. Her path is that of a Senator, essential to the foundation of the fledgling Republic. Luke’s path, as a Jedi, is clouded and… lonely. Luke shakes his head at his own maudlin thoughts before finally stepping up to the bar.
“I’ll have a Tholothian Indigo.” Luke throws a couple credits on the bar, and the barkeep grunts in response before turning around to make the drink.
“Tholothian Indigo? You must be feeling sorry for yourself.”
Luke starts at the voice, and turns to the speaker, the only other human in the place. “Sorry?” Luke asks in surprise.
“Come on. You’re ordering a Tholothian Indigo, and it’s Republic Day but you’re in this scumbucket cantina all alone.” He drains the last of his drink, which seems to glow orange in the dim light.
“You’re in the same cantina,” Luke retorts.
The stranger laughs as the barkeep turns around to give Luke his drink. “Yeah, I guess you’re right. I’ll have a Tholothian Indigo, too.”
Luke smiles into his drink, and is genuinely surprised when the other man moves a barstool over to sit next to him. The stranger seems to be about Luke’s age, handsome with dark blue eyes and black hair cropped short. His clothes are non-descript and don’t say much about his line of work, but Luke takes note of the shiny blaster strapped to his thigh.
They sit next to each other in comfortable silence for a moment, watching as the bartender measures and mixes the dark liquors for the drink before Luke decides to turn and face his new drinking companion. “I’m Luke.”
“I’m Lando.”
“Like, Lando Calrissian?”
The barkeep puts the drink in front of the stranger, who nods his thanks and drops some credits on the counter. “That’s the one.”
“Really?” Luke laughs. “You know, I’ve met Lando, and I have to say I remember a moustache.”
The stranger grimaces. “Then I guess you can call me Zare.”
It’s another fake name, and the man looks at Luke as if daring him to call the bluff, but Luke just nods. “Zare, then.”
“So,” Zare asks, after taking a sip of his drink, “how do you know Lando?”
Luke shrugs. “We’ve met before.”
Zare smirks at Luke’s cagey answer. “I heard a crazy rumor that he’s some hero now. Was even a General for the Rebellion.” Luke doesn’t answer, and at the silence Zare continues, “I met him once, back when he was a smuggler.”
Luke can’t help but show his surprise. “Really?”
Zare nods. “Yeah. He used to have a farm on Lothal, where I grew up.”
“Lothal…” Luke paused, trying to remember where he had heard that name. “Wait, as in the Lothal that was the center for rebels back in the early days of the Rebellion?” Now it’s Zare’s turn to look surprised, and he nods blankly. Luke blushes at his own enthusiasm before continuing quickly, “It’s just that I used to hear all about how the Empire fought against rebels on Lothal from the deep space pilots when I was growing up.”
“That would be Lothal.” Zare looks sad for a moment, and older than his years.
Luke is surprised at his own desire to fill the silence, and to keep the conversation with Zare going. “I grew up on a planet in Hutt space. The Hutts had such a chokehold on everything that the Empire never had too much influence. Although,” Luke adds, laughing, “it could just be that the Empire couldn’t find any reason to occupy a planet like Tatooine.”
“You’re from Tatooine?” Zare asks, his brief moment of melancholy forgotten. At Luke’s nod, he laughs. “I’ve been there! And yeah, can’t say I remember anything that the Empire would want. All I remember is sand.”
“Sand is all there is,” Luke laughs along with Zare. “I can’t imagine why you would go to Tatooine.”
“I was looking for someone.”
“Did you find them?”
“Yes, but he wasn’t who I thought he’d be.” Once again Zare looks lost in the past, and Luke studies his profile.
“So, if you aren’t from Llorn Minor, then why are you here?” Luke asks.
Zare shrugs. “Just travelling, I guess. You?”
“I was looking for something.”
Zare hums. “Mmm. And did you find it?” The echo to a moment before makes Zare smile faintly.
“No.” Luke finishes his drink. “I guess it was a wasted trip.”
“I don’t know about that,” Zare says, finishing his drink as well. “The night’s still young.”
Luke blushes in spite of himself. That Zare has met Lando and been to Tatooine might seem like pure luck—but Luke is suddenly reminded of Ben Kenobi telling Han, In my experience, there’s no such thing as luck. The memory makes Luke smile. “The next round is on me.”
Luke goes to wave and catch the barkeep’s attention, but Zare puts his hand on Luke’s to stop him. “This place is overpriced,” he explains, and Luke is surprised at how disappointed he feels that Zare is done for the evening.
“I mean,” Zare says, leaning closer, like he can sense Luke’s disappointment, his hand still on Luke’s, “that I have I Manaanian wine back on my ship.”
And maybe it’s irresponsible and not very Jedi-like (and maybe Luke’s response surprises himself), but Luke stands up from the bar stool and smiles at Zare. “Lead the way.”
Zare’s ship, as it turns out, is in the small station on the opposite side of the Llorn outpost where Luke’s X-Wing waits. It’s small and old and armed to the teeth. Inside is dark, but clean and devoid of any personal belongings. Absurdly, Luke is reminded of some old Jedi scroll, extolling the virtues of non-attachment to physical goods. Zare leads Luke to the small table in a main hold, which seems to double as a galley.
“It’s a nice ship,” Luke says, as Zare pours the wine into small mugs.
“It’s not bad,” Zare says, with a shrug, and gives Luke his glass. Before Luke can drink, Zare mock-clears his throat, and holds his glass up in a toast. “To not wasted trips.”
Luke smiles and clinks his glass against Zare’s. They both drink, and Luke tries to dispel the sudden nervousness in his stomach. Luke thinks about saying something like, “this is the first time I’ve gone to a stranger’s ship like this,” but then imagines what Han’s—or even worse, Lando’s—reaction would be if he ever told them he said that in the course of his one night with a stranger on Llorn Minor.
In the dim light, Luke suddenly notices something colorful and bright on the counter behind Zare. “What’s that?”
“Oh, it was a gift from…” Zare trails off, as if struggling to find the word. “A family member.” Zare picks up the box and offers it to Luke. “There are meiloorun cookies inside, if you want one.”
Luke takes the box. Zare’s “family member" had decorated it with drawings of stick figures in bright greens and oranges. A small note in slanting Aurebesh reads, “Jacen made the box for you — I made the cookies — we can’t wait to see you — H.”
Luke smiles at the note and glances up. Zare’s back is to Luke, and Luke thinks he can read embarrassment in the rigid line of his shoulders. Luke goes to open the box, but his nerves are worse than he thought: instead of just opening the box, he fumbles.
The box falls from his hands towards the floor, and, without even thinking, Luke slows the fall with the Force. Time warps around Luke, and the box falls as if instead of open air, it’s falling through caramel. He grabs the box out of the air and straightens up, pleased that he didn’t break anything—
“What the hell did you just do?” Zare whispers, turned around and staring at Luke. His face is pale, and his eyes are wide.
“I’m sorry,” Luke puts the box down and stands, his hands extended towards Zare. “I — I didn’t mean to —” Luke’s mind races. He didn’t actually drop it! Another thought hits Luke—how did Zare even see him drop the box? He had been turned around, and the whole ordeal took less than a second. No one could have possibly been able to tell what had happened—
“You can use the Force?”
Luke freezes. “You could tell?” No one could ever tell when Luke used the Force, except… “Are you a Jedi?”
Zare clenches his mouth shut and the word Jedi seems to hang in the air.
For a moment, Luke thinks Zare is going to speak, but then Zare’s eyes harden. “Get off my ship.”
Luke thinks later it felt like a bubble popping; like whatever future they might have had dissipated in a single instant. Luke numbly lets Zare half-guide, half-push him off the ship, and a few seconds later, Luke stands and watches, helpless, as Zare’s starship takes off into the night.
**************
Ezra tries, but he can’t stop thinking about Luke. Their night had all started so well, and then… It wasn’t just that Luke had used the Force, it was how he used the Force. When Kanan used the Force, or Ahsoka, it had always been noticeable, not overpowering but strong and controlled. When Ezra felt the presence of Darth Vader or Maul, it felt untethered and icy, unspeakably powerful and dark. But then there was Luke. Even months later, Ezra could recall the exact feeling of when Luke had slowed time for a moment; the memory weighed on his thoughts and haunted his dreams.
Luke’s presence was as powerful as Vader or Maul, but bright and good.
When Ahsoka and Sabine found Ezra beyond the Outer Rim, almost nine months after the fall of the Empire, Ezra had gone back to his family only briefly. He didn’t know if they had changed or if he had, but it wasn’t what he thought it would be. The Rebellion that Ezra had worked so hard to help establish was gone; in its place was a new Republic. Zeb was heading back to his people with Kallus, Hera was training new pilots for the Army of the Republic while Rex trained new soldiers, Sabine was working with politicians to rebuild Mandalore, Ahsoka wanted to begin to rebuild the Jedi Order, and Ezra—Ezra didn’t know where he was supposed to fit in.
So he left. He turned his back on his family, abandoned all of his responsibilities, and disappeared. For a couple months Ezra went to whatever systems he wanted, whenever he wanted. When he was desperate for credits, he’d pick up an odd job or two transporting goods between systems (and if that “transporting” was really smuggling to get past the Republic’s new taxes, he would choose to ignore it).
It was a good way to kill time, and most of the time, Ezra could ignore the guilt. Sometimes, he would dream about Kanan, who had given up everything to help his family. But Kanan was a Jedi, Ezra thought one day, staring out the viewport at the blue streaks of hyperspace. I’m not a Jedi. Not anymore.
For a while this thought brought comfort to Ezra. If I’m not a Jedi, then I’m not letting anyone down. But then Republic Day drew closer, and Hera asked if Ezra would come to Coruscant to see everyone and to celebrate. When he refused, she asked if she could send him something special. Ezra stayed in the Mygeeto system long enough to get her package of meiloorun cookies before moving on again. With the package was a note from Ahsoka. The note was short; it just told him that she was thinking about travelling around the galaxy to find Jedi outposts and temples, like the one on Lothal. Ahsoka was too kind to say it outright, but the message was clear enough to Ezra: wouldn’t he like to travel with her, and with a purpose, instead of wandering the galaxy alone?
Then Republic Day came, and Ezra was in the Xo-ha system when something in his gut whispered to him that Llorn Minor was only a couple systems away. Ezra followed his gut and met Luke and everything seemed to be going well—
Back in the present, Ezra exhales, frustrated at himself again for getting so caught up in the past. Luke was six weeks ago, and Ezra is on his last leg of his journey to Coruscant.
“It’s just nerves,” he mutters to himself. Ezra tells himself he’s only nervous because he hasn’t told anyone he’s coming. He had written and then scrapped about a hundred messages to his family: originally Ezra was going to tell Ahsoka he had decided to help her, but then realized that Hera would kill him if he didn’t also send a message to her, which meant he should also send personalized messages to Sabine and Rex and probably Jacen and even Chopper… it ended up seeming easier to just show up and hope everyone was happy to see him.
There was another issue, too, and one that Ezra really wanted to explain in person. He knew that if Ahsoka was rebuilding the Jedi Order, she would want other people that could use the Force. Ezra grinds his teeth together. Like Luke. He didn’t know where to even start looking for someone he knew for about an hour in total, and definitely didn’t want to talk about where and how they met, but a Force wielder that powerful had to be someone Ahsoka would want to talk to.
Coruscant, which Ezra has been to only a couple times before, is as bright and busy as he remembers. He joins a stream of traffic and heads towards the military base Hera and Rex will likely be at in the middle of the day. His stomach is a queasy mess, but he forces himself to take a deep breath as he lands on a platform. He’s halfway down the loading ramp when a familiar voice calls out to him.
“Hey! You can’t land here! This platform is reserved for—Ezra?” Before Ezra can say anything, Rex pulls him into a bear hug.
“Hi, Rex,” Ezra says, and is surprised at the tears in his own eyes.
“It’s good to see you, kid. We’ve all been looking forward to having you back.” Rex guides Ezra over to the edge of the hangar, they turn a corner and—
“Ezra!” Hera’s hug is possibly tighter than Rex’s, but shorter; she almost immediately pulls back and holds Ezra in front of her, studying him critically. “You look tired. Have you been eating well? Did you ever get those cookies I sent?”
“Yeah, I got the cookies. And I’m fine, I’ve just been flying for a while.”
Hera purses her lips. “Well, I would send you off to my apartment to catch some sleep, but I’m sure Ahsoka will want to see you first.”
“Ahsoka is here? I figured she would be off-system.”
“She’s been spending time around here, trying to find information about where to look for Jedi landmarks in what’s left of the Jedi Temple.” Hera and Rex lead Ezra onto a lift and through a corridor before stopping outside a door.
“Plus,” Rex adds, “she’s been spending lots of time training Luke.”
The name clicks too late, and Hera has already opened the door. “Wait, what?” Ezra turns aside, maybe to run away, but then Rex shoves him into the room. Ahsoka, the hood of her white cloak covering her head, sits cross-legged and watches as another figure, wielding a lightsaber and wearing a large helmet with lowered blast shield, practices blocking the rays being shot from a small training remote.
At the sound of the door opening, Ahsoka waves her hand, and the small droid floats to the ground. She smiles at Ezra warmly, and then the student lifts his helmet.
For a moment, Ezra feels that time stands still. Rex and Hera stand behind him in the doorway, Ahsoka raises her hand in greeting—but Ezra doesn’t pay attention to them. Instead, he and Luke stare at each other in open shock for what feels like a lifetime.
“Do you two know each other?” Ahsoka asks, and both men snap their mouths shut.
“No,” Ezra says.
“Yes,” Luke says, at the exact same time.
Behind him, Ezra hears Rex scoff and Hera hum, but Ahsoka doesn’t seem surprised. “I was just going to make tea. Hera, Rex, will you join us?”
Ezra doesn’t turn around, his gaze still locked with Luke’s, while Hera says, “No, Rex and I need to get back to work. Ezra,” and finally Ezra looks away and glances back at Hera, “come find me later. I have a guest bedroom you can sleep in, and I’m sure Jacen would be happy to see you.”
Ezra nods, numbly, and then the door snaps shut. When he turns back around, Ahsoka is standing and Luke is putting his blast helmet on a table.
“I’m glad you’re here,” Ahsoka says, putting a hand on Ezra’s shoulder before walking past him out into the corridor. Ezra follows her closely behind.
Inside him, Ezra’s heart races. At least I don’t have to tell her about Llorn Minor, he thinks sardonically. The thought doesn’t bring much comfort though as Ahsoka leads him into a small sitting room. She gestures for Ezra to sit on one of the low, wide chairs, clearly designed to sit cross-legged on. He sits and a moment later Luke steps into the room as well. He sits on the chair across from Ezra and then stares at his hands awkwardly as Ahsoka begins to make tea.
“So,” Ahsoka says conversationally, “did you get my letter?”
“About your quest for Jedi temples and stuff? Yeah.”
Silence descends again in the room for a moment. Luke is still carefully looking at everything except Ezra, while Ezra stares openly at him.
“And?” Ahsoka prompts.
“And I think it’ll be hard to find anything—that temple on Lothal was really well hidden.”
“We’ve already had some luck,” Ahsoka says, handing Ezra a cup of tea. “Luke and I have both gone out chasing leads around the galaxy, and we’ve found three outposts so far.”
“Three outposts—after how many trips?” Ezra asks.
“Almost twenty.” Ahsoka hands Luke a cup, and finally takes a cup for herself and sits.
“Why are you looking for outposts and temples?” Ezra asks.
“When the Jedi Temple here on Coruscant was destroyed, so was most of the history, culture, and knowledge of the Jedi. Each outpost Luke or I found has had scrolls, texts, and holocrons. If we want to rebuild the Order, then we need to collect whatever we can.”
All three sit quietly and sip their tea for a moment. Ezra’s mind races. He wants to rebuild the Order, wants to see the Jedi restored, but… Luke is young and can’t have been trained as a Jedi. Ahsoka left the Jedi, Ezra thinks, frowning into his tea. Why do they want to restore the Order? And then, a darker thought hits him. And why should I? I’m not a Jedi—I failed Kanan, almost became a Sith, and then spent years beyond the Outer Rim while my family fought the Empire—
“Ahsoka, can I talk to you?” Ezra blurts, and then adds after looking at Luke, “In private?”
Ahsoka frowns. “I’m sure you can say whatever it is here.”
Ezra sighs, and then places the cup of tea on the table in front of him. “It’s just,” he starts, unsure. “Why do you think the Jedi Order should be rebuilt?” It’s not the question Ezra wants to ask, but Ahsoka seems to understand.
“I know that I left the Order,” she says, also placing her cup on the table, “but I believe that the Jedi can be—should be—a force of good in the galaxy. I left because, at that time, I felt it was the right thing to do. But now, as one of the only people in the galaxy with Jedi training, I know the right thing to do is to help see the Order rebuilt.” She peers at Ezra carefully, and he looks down at his clasped hands. Ahsoka is perhaps one of the last who trained in the Temple, but Ezra’s time training with Kanan might make him the second-most qualified person in the galaxy for this quest.
“Master,” Luke asks, and Ezra is surprised to hear him use the term for Ahsoka, “why did you leave the Jedi?”
Ahsoka pauses; even now, so many years later, Ezra can feel her pain through the Force. When she speaks, it’s quiet. “During the Clone War, things were different. The Order became something it shouldn’t have. The Jedi should have been peace-keepers, but instead we served as a military branch of the Republic. The politics and the intrigue of the war invaded even the Jedi Council. But I guess I left because—” she falters, as if searching for the right words. “Because I was framed for a terrible crime, and the Council didn’t believe I was innocent. When I needed their support, they didn’t believe in me.” Ezra has heard the story before, but Luke looks shocked.
“I may no longer be a Jedi, but I know that there are other Force sensitive beings in the galaxy.” Ahsoka says, her voice stronger, “I see the need for Jedi, and the role that they can fill as peace-keepers and protectors of the innocent. No one else will be able to do what we can. It’s up to us to rebuild the Order.”
—
It’s an hour later, and Luke still feels slightly off-kilter.
In front of him, Ahsoka is meditating peacefully, but Luke can’t stop his mind from racing.
“Yes, Luke?” Ahsoka asks, eyes still closed.
“Who was that? I mean, who is that?”
“You said you had met before.”
Luke sighs. “No, not really. We ran into each other, once. All I know is that he said his name was Zare.”
Ahsoka opens her eyes and smiles. “Then I guess you don’t know him.” At Luke’s expression, she laughs. “His name is Ezra.”
Luke mouths the name once before speaking again. “He seems too young to have been trained at the Temple.”
“Yes. He was trained by Kanan Jarrus, who had been a Padawan when the Temple fell. Ezra helped build the Rebellion.”
Luke pauses. “Do you think he’ll help us?”
“You should ask him at supper.” Ahsoka stands up and stretches. “We should get going, anyway. Hera won’t appreciate us being late.”
Luke sighs at that before standing up himself. He likes Hera, and Rex, and Sabine, and Jacen is always ecstatic to see Luke, but Luke can’t help but feel he’ll be intruding on their reunion. Ezra clearly thought as much, judging by the face he made when Hera asked if Ahsoka and Luke would join them for supper.
The transport to Hera and Jacen’s place takes only ten minutes, and Luke stops himself from peppering Ahsoka with questions the whole time. Why did Ezra only help build the Rebellion? Where was he during the later battles? Why wouldn't Ezra jump at the chance to help rebuild the Order?
And why did Ezra get so upset when Luke used the Force on his ship?
Ahsoka and Luke walk into a party already in full swing. Jacen runs over and hugs Luke’s legs, chattering away about what he’s learning in school, while Hera, Sabine, and Rex all walk over and greet them. From the kitchen, Luke hears a series of beeps and whistles that signals Chopper’s presence. Ezra stands awkwardly in the back, arms crossed. At least he isn’t frowning, Luke thinks. Instead he’s just staring at me. They make eye contact for a moment, until Luke looks away to focus on Rex, who’s talking.
They sit, and supper is delicious. Luke, thankfully, doesn’t have to talk too much; everyone wants to talk to Ezra instead. They talk about lots of things: a message from friends on Lira San, the current situation on Mandalore, and how someone Ezra knows named Hondo is currently wanted by the new Republic for some piracy-related crimes.
Luke can’t help but notice, however, how the conversation steers away from Ezra himself or what Ezra has been doing. That is, until after Sabine’s second drink.
“So,” Sabine says, leaning over the table, “what other systems have you been to since the last time I saw you? I know you wanted to see Peragus and Telos.”
“Yeah, I went to both. I also went to Kashyyyk and Dantooine and—” Ezra pauses, and counts on his fingers, “—Corellia, Mon Calamari, Ord Mantell, Xo-ha, Llorn Minor—” at this last one, he glances quickly at Luke, “—plus a couple other places. You know, just, all over,” he finishes lamely.
“I hear you may have a chance to add a few more systems to your list,” Hera says, from the head of the table. “I know Ahsoka is eager to get off Coruscant again.”
“Is your plan still to leave in a week?” Sabine asks Ahsoka.
Ahsoka starts talking about their plan to go to Korriban, but Luke watches Ezra. His dark brows are furrowed and his lips are pressed in a thin line. “I thought Korriban was a Sith planet,” Ezra interrupts.
Ahsoka nods. “Yes, it was. But on many systems, the Jedi tried to lessen the evil of the place by building their own temples over the remains of Sith ones. Even the Jedi Temple on Coruscant was built over the ruins of a Sith Altar.”
“We found an old holocron,” Luke adds, “with a partially complete map that we think points to Korriban as the site of a Jedi settlement.”
Ezra frowns, but finally makes eye contact with Luke. “We shouldn’t go there. Sith temples are dangerous.”
Around him, Luke can feel everyone else has frozen; something about Ezra and Sith temples has everyone listening carefully. “The Sith are all gone. If there’s a chance that we’ll find something that can help us, that risk is worth it,” Luke says calmly.
Ezra scoffs. “You don’t know the Sith.”
Luke wills himself to be patient, but knows he sounds petulant. “I think I know them well enough.”
“Well, then, since Ahsoka has you to travel with, there’s no need for me to come along.” Ezra’s voice is loud and his hands are clenched into fists.
The table is awkward and silent for a moment. “I think you should all go and work together,” Jacen adds, helpfully. “In school, we read a story about how working together is always better.”
After that, conversation picks up again, but once more the tension of skirting around certain topics (namely: Ezra, Ezra’s past, anything about the Jedi or the Sith or the Empire) is practically palpable. On one hand, having another sort-of Jedi along would make the search on Korriban easier. On the other hand, Luke thinks, feeling Ezra’s eyes studying him from across the table, a sort-of Jedi who apparently sort-of hates me may not be the best company.
—
Before Ezra knows it, a week has passed. He tentatively agreed to travel to Korriban three days ago. Even now, Ezra doesn’t know if he agreed because that itch to travel, to keep moving—a survival instinct from being lost in Wild Space—is telling him to leave Coruscant, or if he agreed out of a desire to help Ahsoka in her quest to rebuild the Jedi Order.
Of course, it’s not just Ahsoka’s quest. That much is made painfully clear by the fact that at every meeting, every meditation session, every meal, every mention of anything having to do with the Jedi, Luke is there. Ezra, in a moment of what some may call “immaturity,” has decided the best way to deal with Luke’s presence is simply to pretend that he isn’t there.
Despite Ezra’s best efforts at avoiding Luke, it seems like everyone else in the galaxy can only talk about him. During meals in the commissary, Ezra sometimes overhears people talk about the “Jedi.” There’s some interest in the older togruta (“I heard she survived Order 66!”), and even some talk of the young newcomer (“I heard he spent time in Wild Space!”). But those rumors are nothing compared to what they say about Luke. Those rumors range from the obviously untrue (“I heard he’s immortal and was trained by the Jedi back before even the Clone Wars!”) to the ridiculous (“I heard he’s able to kill people with his mind!”) to the downright crazy (“I heard his twin sister is Princess Leia Organa!”) (and that one Ezra knows can’t be true; he met Leia years ago, and she was too quick-witted and cultured to be related to Luke. Also, how would that make any sense?).
What Ezra can’t figure out is why everyone is so obsessed with Luke. To an extent, Ezra gets the appeal—Luke is good looking and endlessly kind and funny and smart and—Ezra shakes his head. Despite his ongoing attempts to hate Luke, he can’t. He’s exactly who Ezra remembers meeting in that cantina.
But unlike Ezra, who had that night in the catina as an excuse to think about Luke nonstop for weeks and weeks and weeks, there’s no reason for everyone else in the military base to obsess over some random Force wielder.
“Hey, are you going to dry that or not?” Sabine cuts into Ezra’s thoughts. They’re standing over the sink in Sabine’s apartment, which is conveniently a floor beneath Hera and Jacen’s and next door to Rex’s.
“Oh, yeah. Sorry,” Ezra mutters, getting back to drying dishes.
“Are you nervous about tomorrow?”
“What’s tomorrow?”
“Ezra, are you serious?” She stops drying her hands long enough to turn and face Ezra. “You’re going to Korriban to find a Jedi temple with Ahsoka and Luke.”
“Right,” Ezra rolls his eyes. “How could I forget?”
“Okay, that’s it.” Sabine crosses her arms. “What’s your problem with Luke?”
“I don’t have a problem.” Ezra says, but at her glare he sighs. “It’s just—I don’t know. He doesn’t actually know anything about the Jedi or the Sith. He’s just some guy who happens to be able to use the Force.”
“Are you serious? You think Luke doesn’t know anything about the Jedi or the Sith?”
Ezra shrugs and Sabine rolls her eyes. “Wow. I knew you were out of contact, but I didn’t realize—you never read anything about the end of the war against the Empire? You really don’t know who Luke Skywalker is?”
“Skywalker? Like the guy from those old lightsaber training videos? Ahsoka’s master?”
“What? No. I’m talking about Luke. You don’t know who he is?”
“They didn’t exactly have Holonet in Wild Space,” Ezra retorts.
“Luke single-handedly killed both the Emperor and Darth Vader,” Sabine says, picking up plates to put away. “Plus, he helped destroy two different Death Stars.”
“There were two Death Stars?” Ezra asks, but Sabine ignores him.
“He’s pretty much solely responsible for the end of the Empire,” she says over her shoulder. Ezra tries to come up with something clever to say, but internally he’s reeling. Luke? He thinks, incredulous. As in, the same Luke who apologized today when he beat me while sparring?
He had heard, of course, about Vader and the Emperor dying, but the stories he’d heard in the cantinas around the galaxy were all confused and contradictory. Ezra had eventually decided that it didn’t matter: his family had been involved with the Battle of Endor, so as far as Ezra was concerned, that was the only fight that mattered.
“Maybe he’s just really lucky,” Ezra suggests, but he knows that isn’t it.
When Luke had used the Force that first time on Ezra’s ship, it had been shocking. After so long alone, it had felt like a vivid reminder of the world and the people waiting for him to return from his time away. Now that Ezra was spending each day training alongside Luke and Ahsoka, he is no longer surprised by Luke’s mastery of the Force, even if it still burns brighter than Kanan’s and Ahsoka’s power combined. Someone that powerful—I guess it wouldn’t be impossible—
“Look,” Sabine starts, frowning at Ezra’s distracted expression. “You don’t have to get along with everyone. Now that I’m—” she makes a face “—a politician, I have to work with people I hate every day. But that doesn’t change the fact that we still have to work together, because we all want to rebuild the Republic and Mandalore.”
“I don’t hate Luke,” Ezra mutters.
Sabine punches him in the arm. “Good. Then you’ll have no problem on your little trip with him.”
That night, Ezra can’t sleep. He knows he’s been unfair to Luke—ever since Llorn Minor. On Republic Day, back when Ezra was trying to run from the crushing feeling of failing his family, it felt like a cruel trick of fate that Luke, so clearly destined to be a Jedi, would show up and use the Force. But even crueler was the fact that after they parted ways, Luke haunted Ezra’s thoughts. During the day, Ezra would hope to run into him on whatever planet he happened to be on; at night, Ezra’s dreams always seemed to return to a blond stranger, laughing over a drink in a dusty cantina. And with the dreams came always the feeling that Luke was everything Ezra was not: strong in the light side of the Force, good, loyal...
Now, after a week together, Ezra is disappointed to discover that all of those assumptions were correct. He is patient and kind and driven… and Ezra remembers what Sabine said last night. Apparently while I was off in Wild Space, he was becoming the hero of the Rebellion. Which means he did more to save my family’s lives than I did.
Ezra’s uneasy mix of thoughts and dreams is interrupted by a knock at the door. “Ezra, are you awake?” Hera pops her head in, already dressed despite the early hour. “You know you’re leaving in less than an hour.”
Ezra dresses and eats breakfast half in a daze, and suddenly he’s being led onto a light freighter that reminds him of the Ghost. Hera and Sabine both hug Ezra, while Rex offers a salute and says, “May the Force be with you.” Chopper spins around his appendages and whacks Ezra’s shins hard enough to bruise, which Hera reminds Ezra is simply the crazed droid’s way of saying goodbye.
Luke shows up then, with Ahsoka and—
“Princess Leia?” Ezra exclaims. She looks at Ezra and smiles.
“Ezra Bridger. It’s been a long time.” Both Luke and the other man with her, some scruffy looking man in a black vest, look confused. “I’ll explain later,” she says to the man, before hugging Luke.
Once they’re in hyperspace, Ezra leaves the cockpit to sit in the galley. Luke and Ahsoka walk in a minute later. Ezra wants to continue to ignore Luke—it’s like Sabine said. I don’t have to be his friend, we just have to work together—but then he remembers that bizarre rumor about Luke and Leia and his curiosity wins.
“Is it true that Leia is your sister?” Ezra blurts out.
Luke, eyebrows raised in surprise that Ezra would speak to him, nods. “We’re twins, but we only found out a little over a year ago.”
“I thought you were from Tatooine—” Ezra pretends not to notice how Ahsoka starts at the revelation that Luke and Ezra have talked about their homes with each other “—so how is a princess from Alderaan your twin?”
Luke pauses, and Ezra worries that maybe he’s stepped over some line he shouldn’t have. When Luke speaks, he does so quietly. “Our parents… died. We were raised apart, her by the Organas and me by our aunt and uncle on Tatooine.”
The answer doesn’t tell Ezra much—why would you raise twins separately? Why wouldn’t they know they were twins? But Luke’s discomfort makes Ezra stop himself from asking anything else.
After a moment of silence, Ahsoka stands up. “We have about three hours until we reach Korriban. I’m going to meditate until then—and you two should do the same.”