- the calm before the storm.

reunions

A light breeze swept through the air, causing the tall grain to bend around Echo's waist. She tipped her head back, letting the cool air hit her face and push her dark hair away from her back and neck. The breeze passed, leaving the grain in the field swaying as a reminder of what had been moments before.

Echo let out a small sigh as she straightened up again, taking a glance around the field she stood in. Everything was still, as usual, besides the grain still swaying from the breeze, but something felt off.

She scanned her surroundings again, this time turning around completely. Had she been standing about a step back, she would've turned into the person standing behind her.

She made a noise somewhere between a yell and a swear, tripping backwards and nearly hitting the ground. The man grabbed her forearm to keep her from falling and pulled her back to her feet.

"Holy crap, man," Echo pulled her arm away and took a few steps back, putting distance between herself and the man. "Shouldn't you warn someone before you just appear behind them?"

"Sorry," the man apologized, his brow furrowing as he looked at her. "Who are you?"

"Who am I?" Echo raised her eyebrows, "who are you?"

"I asked you first." The man said sharply, crossing his arms.

"Okay, and I'm a kid you found in a wheat field, while you," she pointed at him, "could be trying to kill me for all I know." She watched him open his mouth, then close it again when no words came out. "Yeah, buddy, so who are you?"

"Something led me here to you, so who are you?" He asked, using her words.

She squinted at him. "I don't know," she then shrugged, "I'm not special, so you can go along doing your...thing. Scaring random people?"

He rolled his eyes, and had he not felt that certain pull to her, he would've walked away. "Kid, seriously, who are you?"

"Tell me your name and I'll tell you mine." She reasoned.

"Kanan." He replied, "Kanan Jarrus."

Echo eyed him for a moment, then resolved to tell him her name. "Echo."

Kanan couldn't help the disappointment that hit him like a ton of bricks. He didn't know anyone with that name. Had he gotten his hopes up for nothing? No, he wasn't giving up that easily. Something about her was different, and the Force had led him to her, and he had to know why.

"Do you know the name Dume?" He asked, and as he did, he watched Echo seize up.

She glared up at him. "How do you know that name?"

"How do you?" He shot back.

"Everyone with that name is dead for all I know," she said firmly, "how do you know it."

Kanan looked down at her, now hoping against hope that his gut feeling was right, there was no way she would've known that name unless it was hers, because, like she had said, everyone with that name was dead for all he knew too.

"What's your real name?" He asked, dropping the volume of his voice. "You tell me yours, I tell you mine."

Echo stared at him, shocked at his offer, in all honesty. How he had known that it wasn't her real name, she had no clue, but he had made the counter offer of telling her his name too, so what was there to lose?

"Elisia Dume." She replied finally.

Kanan couldn't help the smile that tugged at the corners of his mouth at the sound of her last name. He reached into a pocket of his pants and pulled out a small, stainless steel, rectangle on a leather necklace.

As he held it out to Echo, she shoved her hand into an inside pocket of her jacket and pulled out an almost identical one and they traded.

Echo ran her thumb over the scratched up letters that were etched into the steel, his first initial, then their last name in all capital letters, exactly like the one that she had always carried.

"Are you serious?" She asked, looking up at him, a smile growing on her face.

He stared down at her pendent for another minute, then met her gaze. "Yeah," he nodded, also smiling. "Proposition, Ech," he said, holding out the necklace to give back to her. "I have a crew, come back with me and you can join."

Echo dropped his necklace back into his outstretched hand and took hers, tucking it back into her pocket again. "You sure your crew would be okay with that?"

"They don't have a choice, kid," he put a hand on her shoulder. "You come back with me, they deal with it." He snapped his fingers, an idea coming to him. "You'll love Lexie."

She grinned, raising an eyebrow, "Is that your girlfriend?"

Kanan rolled his eyes as he moved to stand behind Echo and push her forward by her shoulders. "No, not my girlfriend, people should stop saying that. Get moving, kid, you have people to meet."