Hogwarts Rebels

Christmas Eve

~ It's been a few months since Ezra and Sabine were adopted by Kanan and Hera. They've had a lot of time to bond but now the true feelings for one another are shown. Ezra and Sabine haven't had a Christmas since they stepped into the orphanage. Now, they'll see what Christmas is like in the Jarrus household.

"We'll be back in at least an hour!" Kanan called as he and Zeb walked out the door.

"Mum, where's dad and Zeb going?" Sabine asked.

"To get the Christmas tree, we're going to decorate it later on" Hera replied.

"A Christmas tree?" Ezra repeated.

"You guys celebrate Christmas?"

"Of course. Don't you?"

Ezra and Sabine dropped their gazes.

"We haven't had a single Christmas for four years" Ezra mumbled.

"Miss Atama never let us celebrate it. She always invited her friends and family over and we were forced to cook and serve the food and drinks. Miss Atama told us if she caught us eating any of the food, she'd... she'd..." Ezra couldn't finish.

"She'd beat us for hours on end" Sabine said, gently rubbing her brother's shoulder.

Out of both the siblings, Ezra seemed the most affected by the beatings he'd received. Hera felt a stab of sadness and rage. How dare that woman beat and slave children. She remembered how timid and jumpy Ezra was when anyone raised a hand. He must've thought they were going to hit him. He was clearly shaken and scarred by the memories of being hurt. Hera put her arms around the two children, they snuggled into the warmth of the embrace. Always enjoying the feeling of love and safety in their mother's arms.

"Well, you'll see what we do for Christmas here. You two want to bake some cookies?" Hera asked.

"Yeah!" The two exclaimed joyfully.

Baking with Hera was the best. They always enjoyed it.

It wasn't long at all before the entire house smelled like biscuits. It was a smell that sometimes filled the orphanage but for some reason, it smelt better in the Jarrus household. Ezra had used the cookie cutters and shaped his cookies to look like stars. Sabine on the other hand had created some hearts. Hera had gone with making reindeer and phoenix biscuits expertly.

"I once worked in a cafe" she told her children with a smile at their stunned faces.

"I used to make these types of cookies all the time."

"They're amazing" Ezra commented and Sabine nodded in agreement.  

While the kids were amazed at Hera's cookie cuttings, Hera was shocked at how skilled they were in the kitchen.

'Guess that's what happens when you spend a few years of your life being a slave' she thought sadly.

The poor children had been forced to do the dirty work for Miss Atama in the past. But Hera felt a warm glow in her heart when she saw how happy the two siblings were while baking with her.

'There's a difference between work and fun' she remembered.

'And right now, they're doing the latter.'

Kanan and Zeb returned with the tree a few hours later. It was large and rather bushy. At first, Ezra and Sabine were stunned, then their faces broke into true delight.

"You guys do bring a tree indoors!" Sabine said happily.

"Of course, who dosen't?" Zeb asked.

"Miss Atama" Ezra replied taking a good look at the tree.

Kanan and Hera shared a dirty look. They swore if Miss Atama ever showed her face to them, they'd kill her.

The Jarrus family started decorating the tree with tinsel, small toys and some of the cookies Hera, Ezra and Sabine made. Ezra looked at the top of the tree that was so far above him. He gazed down at the golden star in his hands, feeling a little sad. He wanted to put the star on the top of the tree but how could he if he couldn't reach it? A pair of arms suddenly lifted Ezra up. The boy looked over to see Kanan as the man put his son in his shoulders. Beaming, Ezra carefully placed the star on top the tree. Kanan lowered his son to the floor and Zeb went over to the light switch. Flicking it, the lights instantly lit up. Small, colourful dots covered the tree. Making it look like multi coloured fireflies were resting in the thick branches. Ezra and Sabine's eyes shone with delight at the beauty of the Christmas tree. Their hearts filled with joy.

Later that night after dinner, Hera and Kann put their kids to bed. Tucking them into the bedcovers, they kissed their foreheads.

"Good night kids" Hera said.

"Sleep well" Kanan added.

"Night mum night dad" Ezra and Sabine said in sync.

They got comfortable and soon fell asleep.