This is a fill from the swrrequests blog on Tumblr.

Prompt: Hera and Kanan saving one or more of the kids from a circus

My headcanon for pre-Zeb, Sabine, & Ezra is that Hera and Kanan used to sit and make fun of people in front of them. it's like mean girls... in space.

Might do a part 2 with Ezra. We'll see.

Enjoy!

"The circus," Kanan said flatly. "You want us to go to a circus?"

Hera swiveled around in her chair and beamed at him. "Well, technically Fulcrum has us a mission. We're picking something up, and the contact just so happens to own the circus. I just figured we could make a day of it. We could use a little fun."

"That's not my definition of fun," Kanan said. Hera made a fake pouty face at him.

"Fine," she said. "I'll just take Chopper."

Kanan screwed up his face in disbelief. He leaned back in his chair and bit the inside of his cheek. "You know, I've never been to the circus," he mused. "That sort of mindless entertainment wasn't encouraged growing up."

"I vaguely remember going to one as a child, before the Clone War broke out on Ryloth," Hera said, looking amused. "All I remember are the clowns."

Kanan shuddered. "I don't like clowns."

Hera leaned forward, a smile growing on her face. "Big bad Kanan Jarrus isn't afraid of the Empire, but is afraid of clowns?"

Kanan rolled his eyes. "If we see one tonight, you're buying me cotton candy."

Later that afternoon, Kanan and Hera approached the circus tent. The line was wrapped around the tent twice; it was a giant circle, decorated with bold red and white stripes. Pleasant, upbeat music was emanating from inside, and humans and aliens alike were standing around, laughing and talking. Hera and Kanan blended right in, and they slipped in the end of the line.

"Our contact is named Honir," Hera whispered into Kanan's ear. "Fulcrum said he's a human, and that we could meet him after the show."

"What exactly are we picking up?" Kanan whispered back, eyes scanning the crowds in front of him. The line was slowly inching forward, and children were running around everywhere, laughing and screaming.

"Not sure. Fulcrum didn't say what it was, just to get it. Oh, and apparently there's another optional item we may be interested in recovering."

"Something we're interested in?" Kanan asked, looking confused. Hera shrugged. "Whatever." He tried to brush off the uneasy feeling prickling at the back of his neck. Ever since they'd set down the Ghost, something in the Force had been off. But like always, Kanan did his best to ignore it. The Force only caused him more trouble than it was worth for him nowadays.

They finally got to the front of the line, and Hera handed over the tickets to a pimply, gangly teenager.

"Enjoy the show," he said, looking bored out of his mind.

"Wait! Do you know where we could find-"

The kid had already turned to the next customer, ignoring her. Hera huffed and turned to the amused Kanan standing next to her.

"Come on," she scowled, grabbing his wrist and tugging him to go find their seats.

Hera had bought decent seats in the middle row of a section on the left. Kanan tried to step over the Rodian sitting on the end, then accidentally stepped on an Ithorian's foot. He stumbled forward and practically fell into his seat. The family behind them snickered. Both aliens tripped over scowled, the latter leaning forward to give Kanan a piece of his mind. Hera scooted in right behind him, flashing them a winning smile and apologizing. The Ithorian mumbled something and sat back.

Kanan looked entirely too uncomfortable, knees practically pressed to his chest. The seats were too small, and the toddler on his right kept leaning over into his personal space to babble and reach for his beard. Hera grinned at him and settled down nicely in her seat, sitting next to an adult woman on her other side who had a strong concept of personal space. He rolled his eyes back.

"How long is this thing supposed to last?" he whispered. She shoved his arm.

Soon enough, the lights in the tent began to dim, and Hera leaned back in her seat, ready to enjoy the show.

A short, slightly overweight man walked out and stood on a circular platform on the edge of the stage. He had a tall black top hat on that covered a shiny bald head, and he had watery, beady eyes that constantly darted back and forth. A lone spotlight followed his movement. Kanan snorted under his breath and leaned over to Hera.

"Check out this nerfherder," he whispered into her ear. "10 credits says he's our contact."

"You're on," she whispered back.

"Ladies and gentlemen," the man said, tilting his hat towards the audience. There were more than a few girlish giggles around them, and Hera wrinkled up her nose in distaste. "Welcome to the glittering, glamorous Galactic Circus!"

Colorful lights shone and twirled in circles all over the tent, and some of the younglings in the audience stood up and screamed with excitement.

"My name is Xunpein Honir, and I'm going to be your Ring Master for this evening!" He held out his arms in display of the room, a big (and fake) smile on his face.

"Told ya," Kanan said. "You owe me 10 credits." Hera rolled her eyes at him.

"Let the celebrations begin!"

Towards the beginning of the show, Kanan and Hera were definitely both impressed. Banthas with shiny blue ribbons wrapped around their horns and braided through their hair were marched around the circle. There was a giant domesticated Rancor who balanced a giant ball on his nose. A couple of Tookas did tricks. Clowns rode around on Tauntauns dyed purple, and just generally acted foolish. Hera laughed at Kanan's disgusted face as one clown kissed another and then proceeded to trip over its own two feet. Twi'lek acrobats amazed the crowd with flips and twirls on wires high above their heads. One alien even swallowed fire in some dazzling trick.

"Can you do that?" Hera asked Kanan, teasing.

"Yeah," he said, not taking his eyes off of the performer. Hera studied his face, and was actually a little surprised to realize that she couldn't tell if he was kidding or not.

At last, the lights dimmed again, and the spotlight focused back on the Ring Master. The audience resumed cheering and clapping, and even Kanan begrudgingly joined in.

"And now, the attraction you've all been waiting for..."

"There's more?" Kanan whispered, looking confused. "What more could they show us?" Hera shook her head and turned her attention back to Honir.

"We all know the... tragic circumstances that befell on Lasan." Honir swept his hat off of his head and pressed it to his chest, doing his best to give an air of respectful silence. "However, lucky for you fine people today, we have a very nice surprise... Our very own Lasat!"

"Oh, no..." Kanan's shocked expression mirrored Hera's own. She tensed up, and he put a hand on her wrist and squeezed lightly. Both waited with bated breath.

"Bring out the Lasat!" Honir called out, watching as two clowns pulled out a Lasat by thick metal chains.

He looked miserable, ears pressed flat against his head, and shackles around his hands. His fur was dark and matted on the places where it wasn't shaved, and it was all cut unevenly. He kept his head down, purposefully avoiding the jeers and yells from the crowd. The clowns pulled him into the center of the stage, and some of the audience members threw cups and food at him. He hunched in on himself even more. Lasat were once such proud creatures... and they had come to this?

"Come, Lasat! Show us what tricks you can do!" The Ring Leader's smile didn't seem so friendly anymore.

Hera stood up suddenly, wrenching her wrist from Kanan's grip. "I can't watch this," she said, storming out. Kanan followed, casting one last look at the scene before him. The Lasat was staring in their direction, and he made eye contact with Kanan before he ducked out.

When Kanan finally made his way outside, Hera was pacing back in forth. They could still hear faint jeers and yells, even from all the way outside. He folded his arms and leaned back, watching her have a mental debate with herself.

"I can't do this, Kanan," she said, finally turning to him. Her lekku were stiff behind her. "A business deal? With that... nerfherder?" she spat.

"I know," Kanan said soothingly. "I don't like it, either."

Hera took a deep breath. "What do we do?"

"You can tell Fulcrum we're going to pass on this one," Kanan said. "We can go a little while without a mission." Privately, he knew that they were low on supplies, and that they could actually really use the credits now, but if Hera wasn't happy, then they could wait a little longer.

Hera bit her lip, lost in thought. "That Lasat? Did you see him? He looked absolutely miserable. He's sentient; but he's being treated like a slave. How could someone treat him like that?" She shook her head, at a loss for words. Kanan remained silent, just watching her. "I don't like slavery. Too many of my people are slaves, and it's abhorrent."

By now, people were starting to file out, all talking excitedly about the show they'd just seen, and how they couldn't wait to go back again.

"Well," Kanan said slowly, giving her a grin that grew into something fierce. "How do you feel about a little jailbreak?"

Hera blinked at him once before it finally clicked, and her grin rivaled Kanan's own. "I knew I asked you to join my crew for a reason, luv."

"Chopper? Hey, yeah, we got a new change of plans."

WUB? came the annoyed reply.

"We need you to cause a distraction. A big one. That's up your alley, right?"

WUB WUB! WUB?

"No, not now! Are you crazy?! Wait, don't answer that! I'll give you the signal."

"Finally, he can cause as much trouble as he want that doesn't affect me."

"Aren't you lucky?"

When the rest of the audience cleared out, Hera and Kanan headed their way back inside towards the stage. There were several droids sweeping and cleaning up the stage, and the Ring Leader was ordering them around with a scowl on his face.

Kanan cleared his throat, and Honir swiveled around.

"We're closed," he said, somewhat rudely. His eyes flicked from Kanan to Hera, and his expression changed ever so slightly.

"We're not here for the circus," Hera said. "Xunpein Honir? Fulcrum sent us."

Immediately, the Ring Leader's scowl transformed into a blinding smile. "Ah, yes. My friends, I am so sorry we got off on the wrong foot."

Kanan hmphed under his breath and crossed his arms menacingly. Honir watched him with hesitation, but Hera stepped up and gave him an easy smile.

"It's no trouble, I would have done the same thing," she said. Honir licked his lips, and Kanan stiffened from beside her. She nudged his warningly. "My name's Shala, and this is... Ellin."

"Shala's a beautiful name," Honir purred. A brief grimace flicked on Hera's face before it smoothed away to something more neutral.

"Why don't we just get down to business?" Kanan said, stepping in front of Hera. He deepened his glare, and Honir's gaze flicked between the two. He gulped.

"Follow me," he said, smiling at Hera but giving Kanan a wary glance. He turned and went to walk out of a slit in the back. Hera brushed past Kanan and shot him a Look as she followed him. He flashed her an easy grin back.

"Ellin?" he whispered. "Really?"

"First name I could think of."

"So," Honir said, clearing his throat. He cast a glance back at them. "How long have you been doing business with Fulcrum?"

They were seated in his makeshift office, waiting for the droids to bring out the packages. They'd already transferred the credits over. Hera and Kanan looked at each other.

"Long enough," Kanan said, shifting his weight.

"Have you ever seen Fulcrum?" Honir tried again, speaking in a whisper this time. They exchanged another long look.

"No," Hera said, raising an eyebrow.

"I have," Honir bragged. "Fulcrum and I have been business acquaintances for a long, long time. In fact, we went to school together."

"School?" Hera repeated, her expression a mix of skepticism and amusement.

"Aren't you special?" Kanan said sarcastically. Hera gave him an amused look.

"Why, I don't mean to brag, but yes!" Honir replied, the sarcasm going straight over his head. "In fact, Fulcrum and I-"

"How about we change the subject?" Hera said, not really wanting to sit and listen to a long - and overly fabricated - story. "Ellin and I were... impressed with your circus performance today."

Honir's eyes lit up. "It's my baby, my pride and joy. And you enjoyed it? That just goes to show that you have excellent taste," he winked. Hera forced a polite laugh, inwardly gagging.

"Actually, Ellin and I were more interested in hearing about the Lasat," she said, changing the subject. Kanan leaned forward. "Do you think, by chance, you could let us see him?"

Honir's expression changed to a more hesitant one. "I don't know if that would be a smart idea," he said. "He's not very cooperative outside of showtime."

"He was cooperative in showtime?" Kanan muttered, too quietly for Honir to hear him. Hera pointedly ignored him.

"But Xunpein," Hera said, sticking out her lower lip and fake pouting. She was totally playing him, and everyone but Honir knew it. "Aren't we friends?"

A greedy look flashed in Honir's eyes. "Oh, alright. You'll make an honest man out of me yet, Shala. I don't see any problem with it." He stood up and looked to Kanan. "Ellin, would you like to stay here to make sure you get your packages?"

Kanan raised an eyebrow at Honir and looked at him like he was crazy. "No," he said, giving the Ring Master a hard, warning glare.

"I see your point," Honir said hastily. "Why would anyone want to pass up this great opportunity? Follow me."

"And the shipments?" Hera said.

"That's our priority," Kanan added.

Honir waved a hand in dismissal. "The droids will take care of it. You said you have a droid of your own?"

"Yes, we have an astromech. Our droid will wait at the base of our ship. Your droids can coordinate it."

"Good, good. Now, please, follow me."

They weren't even close to the cages when a horrible stench enveloped them. Hera gagged in spite of herself, and Kanan coughed, but Honir seemed not to notice anything amiss. They passed the other creatures from the performance, most of them looking pitiful in too small, dirty cages.

"We can't leave any of them here," Hera whispered as they passed the Tauntauns bleeting unhappily. Even when they passed the Rancor, it shrank back at the sight of Honir. "Why is Fulcrum doing business with this man?"

"We can't fit them all in the Ghost," Kanan said. "Think Fulcrum could call in some favors?"

Hera shook her head. "I don't know. She may have a part in all of this."

Kanan was about to reply when Honir skidded to a stop in front of them. Hera almost ran into his backside. Honir pointed into the cage in front of them towards a dark shadow in the corner.

"Here it is," he said proudly. "My pride and joy."

Kanan felt the bile rise in his throat, and he had to swallow it back down. The cage reeked of urine and waste, and of the terrible unwashed odor they could smell all the way back. The Lasat didn't even lift up his head at their arrival. Kanan glanced over to Hera; her horrified expression mimicked his own.

"How the Force did you... get him?" Hera said faintly.

Honir puffed out his chest. "After the Empire massacred Lasan, I was in a bar, advertising the circus, and I came across this fellow. He was sad, lonely, depressed, you name it, and completely drunk. I sat with him, talked to him, became his friend for the night. And before I left, I, uh, convinced him, yes, that's the word, to join the circus."

"Convinced him?" Hera repeated, looking confused.

"You roofied him," Kanan realized with a start. "And kidnapped him?!"

Honir shrugged. "I prefer to put it in much more family- friendly terms." He saw the angry expressions on both of their faces, and hurried to try and justify himself. "Don't worry, his life here is better than before."

"That's a lie," a hoarse voice said, surprising all of them. They turned towards the cage, where the Lasat had shifted. He was still in the shadows, but now Kanan could see two angry green eyes shining at them.

Hera blinked, and Honir scrambled to cover. "Don't listen to him, he doesn't know what he's talking about."

"What's your name?" Hera asked, facing the Lasat in the cage.

"Oh, he doesn't have one," Honir said, waving a hand dismissively.

"That's a LIE!" The Lasat roared. Honir stumbled back and fell onto the ground as the Lasat suddenly jumped up and slammed his body weight into the bars. "My name is Garazeb Orrelios," he snarled, gripping the bars tightly. "You'll never be able to take that away from me."

Honir recovered quickly and pulled out a small remote control from his pocket. Immediately, the Lasat's - Garazeb's - eyes went wide, but he didn't cower back down, instead growling on more and trying to get out.

"Why, you ungrateful monster," Honir snarled. "The Empire should've done away with you when it had the chance."

"I'm not the monster here!"

Honir's face twisted into an ugly expression, and he pressed the button. Immediately, Garazeb howled in pain as he was shocked by a hidden collar around his neck. He stumbled into the back wall of the cage, panting.

"Stop!" Hera said, rushing forward and ripping the remote from his hand. "You'll hurt him!"

"He deserves it," Honir snarled, breathing heavy, but did as she asked. He snatched the remote back and slipped it into his pocket. "He deserves so much more than that. He'll have to wait and get his /real/ punishment when my guests leave." Honir directed that last part towards Garazeb, who glared back with absolute fury in his eyes.

Hera glanced backwards at Kanan, who gave her a tiny nod. It was time to spring their jailbreak plan into action. Kanan slowly pulled out a lock pick from his coat pocket and handed it to Hera behind her back. She pressed a button on her comlink to signal Chopper. Now they just had to wait.

"My friends, do understand," Honir said. "Some creatures just can't be thought. This is what's best for them."

"I think we're finished here," Hera said. There was no more kindness in her eyes, and her voice was cold and hard. Honir picked up on this.

"I am sorry we are no longer at an agreement," he said. Whatever he was about to say next was cut off, because all of a sudden, there was a sudden crash way off in the distance, accompanied by an angry howl of some sort of creature.

Honir snapped to attention and his head swiveled around. He seemed to debate staying there and arguing his defense, or running off to go find it and do damage control. There was another crash, and another howl, and Honir made his decision.

"My friends! Please stay here, I will be right back."

"What's the matter, Honir?" Kanan said, looking far too amused and not enough concerned with the situation. Hera jabbed him in the side.

A drop of sweat slid down Honir's face, and his eyes darted back and forth frantically. "Oh, I'm sure it's nothing. You know how temperamental Banthas can be." There was another crash, and another scream, and his face paled even more. He turned away and bolted without another glance towards them.

"There's our cue," Hera said. As soon as Honir was out of sight, she whirled around and started to pick the lock on the cage. "You /know/ Chopper enjoyed that one."

"Your crazy Murderbot? Uh, yeah," Kanan said, pulling out a blaster from a holster on his back and readying it for if Honir came back.

A pair of glowing eyes stared at them from the darkness. "What are you doing?" The Lasat said, his voice gravelly from disuse.

"We're breaking you out," Hera said, sticking the tip of her tongue out in concentration. "I'm Hera, and that's Kanan."

"Pleasure," Kanan said, turning his head and calling out over his shoulder.

"Why?" Garazeb said, eyes guarded. "In exchange for what?"

Hera frowned but didn't take her eyes off of the lock. "In exchange for nothing," she said. "Nobody deserves to live like this."

Garazeb's eyes widened. "You're serious," he said. At once, his eyes lit up, and his posture straightened up. His hope had returned. "Well, it finally took someone long enough. Call me Zeb," he said.

All of a sudden, Honir came back into sight in the far off distance. "HEY!" He screamed, immediately bursting into a sprint towards them. "WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!"

"Hera," Kanan said in a low voice. "Come on!"

"I'm trying!" Hera retorted. "How about you try to do this under pressure!"

"I have!" Kanan said. "And successfully!" Hera muttered something under her breath. Kanan turned back towards Honir and lifted his blaster back up.

"Kanan," Hera repeated, a note of desperation in her voice. He debated pushing her out of the way, but with the speed Honir was approaching at, they would've run out of time.

Ugh. Kanan didn't want to do this. He immediately whirled around and closed his eyes, stretching out a hand. Desperate times call for desperate measures. The Force enveloped him like it used to so many years before, and he felt whole. He pictured the locking mechanism in his mind, and soon he heard a sharp click that signaled it was unlocked.

He opened his eyes, and the door to the cage slid back. Zeb stepped out shakily, eyes focused on Kanan. Kanan focused on the collar around his neck, and that fell off after another moment of concentration.

"You're a-"

"Come on!" Hera said. "We have to get back to the Ghost!" She took off running in the opposite direction. Zeb stumbled a bit at first but eventually caught up. Kanan glanced back at Honir before following; for someone so old he sure could run fast.

"Chop!" Hera spoke into her comlink. "Are you back yet? Get us moving! We're on the way."

Chopper warbled off a sarcastic reply about how slowly organics move, but Hera could hear the telltale sounds of the engines starting in the background.

"How are you holding up?" Kanan yelled over her head. Hera turned to head to look at Zeb. Zeb was panting and starting to struggle.

"You know, it's been a while since I've had to do this," he said. "I'm a little out of practice."

"We're almost there," she said, pointing into the distance. "Look!" The Ghost was all lit up a ways away and slightly hovering off the ground, the ramp extended.

"I hope Chopper got all the cargo," Kanan said, squinting in that direction.

"Chopper is more than capable," Hera scolded him. "Be nice to my droid."

"I'll be nice to him when it's nice to me!" Kanan replied. His gaze flicked from Hera's grinning face to Zeb's slightly puzzled one. When Zeb noticed Kanan was looking at him, he turned away.

Kanan looked back over his shoulder to check on Honir. Honir was speaking into some sort of communication device, most likely calling for backup from planetary security or the nearest stormtrooper patrol.

Luckily, the backup wouldn't arrive in time. The Ghost was really close now. Hera was the first one on, then Zeb, then Kanan.

"Chopper, go!" Hera yelled as soon as they were on. She immediately began scaling the ladder to get to the cockpit. Kanan slammed the button to shut the ramp, and Zeb slouched over, elbows on his knees. They could hear Honir's faint shouts from outside, and Kanan grinned in spite of himself. He turned around, and there was the cargo Fulcrum wanted. Kanan counted the boxes; it was everything they'd gone for.

"Well," he said, exhaling a deep breath. "That was easy."

Zeb looked at him like he was crazy. He had slumped down onto the ground, a wary eye trailing Kanan's every move, and it honestly made him kind of uncomfortable.

When Kanan ran out of things to fake check, he turned back to Zeb and shoved his hands in his coat pockets. It didn't sound like anyone was shooting at them, and there was no warning from the Force, so Kanan assumed that they had made it away successfully. They looked at each other awkwardly for a moment, and Kanan balanced on the balls of his feet.

"So," Kanan said.

"So," Zeb echoed. He blinked. Kanan blinked. Well, this was awkward. "You're a Jedi."

Kanan made a face. "Was," he said. "Not anymore."

Hera climbed back down the ladder and turned around, hands on her hips. Perfect timing.

Both Kanan and Zeb turned to her, grateful for some semblance of authority.

"Welcome to the Ghost," Hera said. "I think we need to talk."

"Yeah, but, uh, do you have a shower first?"

While Zeb was in the shower, Hera called Fulcrum and gave her their report.

"We picked up the goods," she said. "Where are the drop off coordinates?"

"I heard you not only just picked up the crates," Fulcrum said. Hera's lekku twitched impatiently.

"We may have also picked up a Lasat, yes. His name is Zeb."

"I did say you might have another pickup you were interested in, did I not?" Fulcrum asked, sounding amused.

"There was no way I was going to leave that circus without doing everything in my power to free another sentient being," Hera said, snapping a little. "Also, I do have a question: why would you do business with Honir if you knew what a sleemo he was?"

Fulcrum was silent a moment before giving a long, slow chuckle. "You're right, Hera. You'll be happy to know that my partnership with Honir has been... disbanded, and I already sent in... others to help free the rest of the animals. I don't have any desire to be linked to someone who's practically a slaver, either."

Hera sat back. "Oh," she said. "Good."

"Tell me, Hera," Fulcrum said, changing the subject. "What exactly is your plan for Zeb?"

Hera pursed her lips. "Kanan and I haven't gotten that far yet."

"Let me know what you decide," Fulcrum said. "I hear that Garazeb Orrelios used to be an Honor Guard on Lasat. Sounds like he could be a valuable crew member, if you ask me." Fulcrum leaned forward and turned off the holocom.

Hera paused a moment, chewing on the inside of her cheek. "Hey, Kanan," she called out, standing up and moving to go find her partner. "I think I have an idea..."

"You're offering me a job?" Zeb asked, looking at Hera and Kanan incredulously. "I don't even know you people." Zeb was dripping water onto the floor in the kitchen, surrounded by as many ration bars as Kanan could find. Kanan had also given him an electric razor, and he had done his best to even out the uneven patches of fur.

"That's typically how it works when you enter a new job," Kanan said.

"If you're not interested, that's fine," Hera said. "We'll drop you on the nearest SpacePort we can find with as many credits as you'll need, and you will never have to see us again."

"You don't even know if I'm qualified," Zeb pointed out. Hera exchanged a long look with Kanan before giving a small shrug.

"I've heard it on good authority about your reputation. I would say you have more than enough qualifications."

"What exactly would this job entail?" Zeb asked, actually seeming to think about her offer.

"Being a member of the crew. Chores, repairs, ops. The usual."

"Sounds kinda boring."

"Did I mention we like to raise Hell for the Empire?"

"Sign me up!"

R&R.