Hera darted out the door of the briefing room. She needed to have a little chat with the Ghost's ever-elusive resident Jedi Knight about what had gone down a few minutes before.

"Hey! What's with you?" she called, soon catching up to him down the hallway. "Do you have any idea how inappropriate that was?"

That came out angrier than she had intended, but Kanan didn't seem to notice. Or if he did, he was using his primary social tactic and ignoring it. "Actually, no: I don't."

The offhand way he said it faded as the last syllable left his mouth. He was clearly just as unhappy as she was – but what about, she didn't know. She would have to get it out of him somehow, but first he needed a talking to.

She put a hand on his shoulder to stop him from walking away from her. "You can't just tell Chopper to project a hologram in a secret debriefing without authorization," she said, her light green eyes meeting his turquoise ones.

"Authorization; procedure! That's what's bothering me!" he whispered in a heated tone, and Hera was quite certain that in any other situation, she would have been angry that he had read her thoughts so casually like that... But she wasn't.

"All right," she said softly, putting her hands up the air in a gesture meant to pacify him. "Talk to me."

Kanan sighed. "After this mission, I want us to go back on our own. Fighting alongside soldiers isn't what I signed up for."

Hera's gaze darted back down the hallway, and she caught sight of more people coming their way. So she grabbed hold of his shoulders and shoved him into a doorway, where they would have some privacy. Taken by surprise, he let her.

"You seem to be forgetting these soldiers helped save your life," she reminded him pointedly, gazing up at him and once again having that look ignored.

"And I'm grateful, but that doesn't mean I want to join their little army! When you and I started together, it was rob from the Empire, give to the needy: a noble cause. And now we're getting drawn into some kind of... military thing! And I don't like it, Hera."

"We are fighting a bigger fight," she said. "But it's still the right fight."

"I survived one war." He began walking away from her, his tone dropping in sadness and regret, and maybe even a little fear. "I'm not ready for another one. I... I saw what it did."

"To the Jedi?"

"To everyone."

Ezra watched as Kanan and Hera walked away down the hallway. Although he hadn't caught much of their conversation, he felt like what he overheard a moment ago compelled him to seek harder for information about Kanan's past, and that of the galaxy as a whole during and before the Clone War.

But, instead of asking, he retreated to his private little corner of the Ghost, the aft gun turret. And as always, it was to sit by himself and gaze up at the stars.

He often came here to think, or just to be alone and away from the bustle of his crewmates as they went about their respective duties aboard the ship. And said activity had increased a fair amount since the beginning of their partnership with Phoenix Squadron on missions for Commander Sato and others.

And there was yet another facet to this strange new experience of being a part of something bigger: Teri, or Fulcrum, the best informant in the Rebellion. The crew had worked with him several times in the last month since meeting him, but Ezra himself hadn't yet had the chance to have a real conversation with the man.

"Hey, kid. How's the weather up there in space?"

But maybe that was about to change.

"Same as always. Dark, and blank... and full of stars," he called, bending back to look underneath him soon catching sight of Lux Bonteri staring up at him. Ezra climbed down a few rungs of the ladder up to the turret, before dropping down the last few and landing in front of the tall dark-haired man.

"I wanted to talk to you," Teri said. "And since we won't be leaving for a while yet, I think now would be best. Common room?"

Ezra smiled, flicking a lock of blue-black hair out of his eyes. "Sure thing."

Maybe now I can get some answers.

When the pair reached their destination, Teri parked himself on a stool on one side of the holo-chess table, while Ezra took a spot across from him on the couch.

"You have questions, Ezra – I can see it in your eyes. You want to know about me and the war that Kanan spoke of."

The young Jedi's eyes widened. "How did you–?"

"I have my ways," Teri said, chuckling as if remembering some sort of fond memory. "I can sense things most other people can't... And besides, I hacked the security cams months ago. Sato had a fit when he found out, but then I located a traitor in our midst, sending secrets along to Xizor and the Black Sun who were then getting them to the Empire. He doesn't argue much with me now."

"Whoa," Ezra said softly, amazed. He hadn't thought that anyone could cross Commander Sato like that and get away with it. The man had always seemed so... unassailable. It took a lot to shake him. "But..."

"You're wondering if I'm a Jedi or not."

"Yes," he said, surprised that Teri had guessed so easily. "I know you can touch the Force – Kanan and I can both feel it when you're around – but you're not like him. You're not like what he's told me about the Jedi Order."

He chuckled. "No, I certainly am not like the Old Jedi. I never was a part of their Order of Knights and Padawans. For the longest time, I didn't even know I was Force-sensitive. Hah. Just a late bloomer, I guess.

"How'd you find out?"

"It was a few years ago, when I ran into a Knight, one who left the Order before the war ended. She trained me a bit, but I didn't catch on very fast. Most of what I know now I had to teach myself." He smiled. "She was my best friend..."

Something in the way Teri said 'best friend' sounded off. Or maybe it was the shine in his eyes he got from talking about her – it made him look years younger, like he hadn't seen enough to be as serious as he was. Whoever this person was, she had clearly been far more than just a friend to the informant.

"'Was'?" The question had passed Ezra's lips before he could stop himself. "I'm sorry," he amended quickly. "I shouldn't be asking."

"No, it's all right." Teri took his lightsaber off his belt and turned it over in his hands. "This had a twin, once. She made both of them, and when she disappeared... So did the other one. Sometimes, I think she'll come back, and the twins will be together again. Other days..."

"I'm sorry... Sounds like she meant a lot to you," Ezra said.

"Yeah." He stood up and walked to the other side of the room. "But that was a long time ago, Ezra. Over ten years."

It might have just been the way the light was hitting him, or the way Teri was talking, but something about the whole ensemble was very familiar. An image he'd long since buried came floating to the surface of his consciousness.

"You know, you remind me of someone," the young Jedi said.

"Who?" asked the dark-haired man, an inquisitive half-smile on his face.

"My dad. He always did what was right, no matter the consequences or how hard it was. You've got that... well, some sort of spark in your eyes. It's like his was."

Teri's grey eyes were full of compassion. "Have you been missing him long?"

It was an odd question, the kind that could have different answers. But Ezra was sure of one thing: Teri was quite fond of dual meanings. He liked open endings.

"Longer than anyone should have to miss their parents," he answered truthfully. He curled up on himself on the worn fabric seat, tucking his knees to his chest. "How long have you been missing her?"

"So long sometimes I don't know how I'm still even breathing." To underline his statement, or perhaps just for the sake of it, he took a deep breath and exhaled it slowly. "But I am, so I carry on. I know what my part to play is in all of this – at least for now – and I do it. So, come along, Ezra: let's go rescue that defector."

*Teri and Ezra have cemented the beginnings of a friendship. But it's quite possible that when secrets that have been kept with the utmost care for years come to light, that what trust and respect the crew of the Ghost has placed in the rebel informant will come crashing down... 

Hey guys! Yep, it's one of those nights... Updates galore!!! *sips smoothie*

And oooooh, we find out some more about Lux's past... And that's soon gonna come into play. I just like the thought of Ezra and Teri being friends, because it's like there's this smart guy who knows something about the Force and has a wealth of knowledge about the Clone War and Ezra feels he can talk to him. Plenty of deep conversations upcoming :D

I'm watching the next bit of The Siege Of Lothal right now, so I might just have another chapter ready tomorrow... And I also realized that the episode actually has WAY more plot subtleties than I'm prepared to deal with in terms of writing. (What did I expect, really? It's like forty-five minutes long. Past self, you are DUMB.) So I'm probably gonna end up skipping a big chunk of the episode to get to the action. 

Also, I have a sudden urge to go draw Teri concept art... Why, I have absolutely no idea. But that's always the best thing about drawing XD

I'll do my best to update soon... *walks off berating self for not thinking the story structure through because issues such as these can usually be avoided easily*

May the Force be with you,

Sharron