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That symbol. That voice. The betrayal that broke her apart and made her put herself together again. Sabine could barely believe that that mission had happened even after returning to the Ghost and making some sort of reconciliation with Ketsu. They really had been sisters. Together through the academy, leaving together, working together, and then suddenly she was alone with nothing else.
But oh was it good to see her again. To work with her again.
“Are you ok?”
Sabine looked up and saw Ezra standing nervously at her door. She forgot she hadn’t closed it, maybe that was for a reason.
“Yeah, yeah, I’ll be fine. It was just...we were family.”
Ezra nodded, looking unsure of himself in a way he rarely was. Family. A hard topic for them all. Missing. Dead. Abandoned. The Ghost was just a hub of family issues. But maybe…
“Do you think you’ll see her again?”
Did she want to see her again? Sabine closed her eyes and images flashed through her mind. Secret smiles during class. Sparring, Ketsu winning more often than not. Living together. Delighting in explosions together. Being abandoned.
“I hope so,” Sabine finally settled on and looked over at Ezra. She hadn’t wanted to get close to him. He was a puppy and puppies got hurt in this world but he was proving over and over again that he could handle it, that he could thrive. So she smiled and stood up and walked towards him and grasped his shoulder, “let’s go get some food.”
----
Chopper nudged at Sabine comfortingly as she and Ezra ate in comfortable silence. He had seen the most of that turbulent relationship, had seen Ketsu struggle with him and herself before giving in and making sure Sabine made it off the shuttle. It may be wrong to choose but out of the entire crew Sabine was his favourite. Her personality just worked with his and they were a great team.
Sabine smiled and nudged him back, nodding softly.
This was home.
----
“I’m glad you found me,” Sabine blurted out to Hera. They were together in the cockpit, flying more supplies to Imperial oppressed planets and she just couldn’t help it. All the thoughts of what might have happened to her, who she would have become, if Hera hadn’t decided to extend an invitation to a young former cadet, former bounty hunter with nowhere to go. Ketsu had mocked her working for a cause but it was so fulfilling in a way that working for money had never been. The Black Sun had been a dream at one point but it was completely overshadowed by the rebellion.
Hera smiled back, “I’d say it was good thing for all of us.”
“A very good thing,” Kanan’s voice came from behind.
Kanan and Hera shared that secret smile that always made Sabine want to roll her eyes and scream at them to kiss before turning to her with all the look of love and pride of parents and it made Sabine want to hug them and bolt back to her room.
“Yeah it turned out alright,” she said instead, smiling at them. “I think I like it here anyway.”
---
Zeb waited for Sabine to come to him. She reminded him of his little sister once upon a time and from what Chopper had said that sort of relationship was a bit of a hot button for her right now, even more than just the long lost friend turned enemy showing up.
Ezra had immediately wanted to know about Sabine’s bounty hunter past when he got back although he’d mellowed fast enough when he realized what a painful topic it was for Sabine. Not a simple case of a change of heart.
Finally, there she was, wild hair, custom armour, nothing uniform or hidden, the girl who expressed herself as much as she could, never wanting to be just another face in the crowd. No words were necessary. Zeb opened his arms and she went into them holding onto him tight.
---
Sabine sat and stared at the two drawings she’d done. In one, two girls in perfectly pressed Imperial Academy uniforms, hair as standard as can be, expressions blank. If it weren’t for the fact that they were holding hands staring determinedly at a ship they’d be model students.
In the other the same two girls had stripped themselves of all uniformity, laughing and smiling all light and colour. It was a time of her life she hadn’t ever been able to draw because the way it ended was just too much but now, she touched Ketsu’s face in the second drawing, now maybe it was time to start thinking about it again. It hadn’t been all bad. Hadn’t been bad at all until the end. She’d worshipped Ketsu, learned everything she could about explosives from her and then expanded upon them. Ketsu had always encouraged her drawing, even in the Academy. Go express your colours she’d always told Sabine when she’d start to get too jittery and anxious.
She’d thought she’d lost her colours afterwards until, Sabine pulled out a third drawing, until she’d found new colours. The whole crew and The Ghost looked back at her from the page. Everyone exhausted and happy and thrilled to be with each other and working towards a cause they all believe in.
She’d never thought a third family would be possible. Her parents were too Imperial, too conformist, Ketsu was too wild, too desperate, but here, on The Ghost, with these people, a perfect balance had been struck. Hera needing the best for everyone, Kanan and Ezra guiding each other, and the entire ship really, on a path to learning more about The Force, Chopper always there and ready to help any of them and Zeb ready for anything. Maybe they were all a little broken and would forget on occasion that the galaxy was so much bigger than their ship and inner quarrels and other times the galaxy and the Imperials were so huge and overwhelming it seemed impossible to fight but throughout it all, one thing remained the same.
This was home. This was family.