When Sith Beat Jedi To The Prize (Of The Chosen One)

[neverwantedtobesith]

Garth'zel had intended never to go to Tatooine again. The entire experience the first time he was there was hot and miserable. The only good point, so far as he was concerned, was meeting Andronikos. But as luck would have it, his ship ended up deciding to need minor repairs. Nothing too bad, but it did require him to land somewhere to get the parts he needed, because of course, the bit that went was something he didn't have spare parts for. The only planet within reasonable range? Tatooine.

It didn't take long for a Force-sensitive boy to catch his attention. One strong enough that he was surprised the Jedi didn't already find him. Well, their loss was his gain. ...Once he pried him loose from Watto, anyway. He suspects he actually had an easier time of it than a Jedi would, although he's not going to hang around and give one the chance to give it a shot. At least, unlike them, he's willing to come to Tatooine from time to time so Anakin could see his mother. Probably not more than a couple times a year or so, due to it being best to go there when they're at least vaguely in that part of the galaxy anyway, but it's far better than 'sorry kid, we're never bringing you back'.

Of course, there is one tiny problem with this whole thing. He's never had to raise children before and doesn't know what he's doing. With the ship safely in hyperspace and not due to come out of it for a good long while, enabling him to do things that didn't involve sitting in the pilot's seat of the ship, he's in the lounge area. Time to figure out what he's doing. "Have you managed to get any kind of schooling? Like from someone you know, sitting down with you for an hour here and there as time permitted to teach you things like how to write?"

May as well figure out what he needs to teach besides how to use the Force consciously instead of unconsciously drawing on it.

Comments

[neverwantedtobesith]

If Tatooine was ever worth living on, it'll be news to him.

Garth'zel blinks at him. "What about it?"

[bittykin]

"Your ship. How different is it? The hyperdrive, the handling, the landing gear, everything. Has that changed a lot?" While he could tell the difference in parts sometimes and generally with intact things like engines or entire ships, and droids tended to be pretty easy, the differences were more aesthetic than most people realized, with older pieces that survived having been better made in general. Which he guessed what just cheap things breaking and being torn apart.

[neverwantedtobesith]

"Ah. Most things are the same, actually. Ships are faster than back then. Granted, only hours or a couple of days have been cut off of trips I'm used to taking a certain amount of time, but that adds up." He skips a beat. "Of course, less time in hyperspace going to one location simply means being back in hyperspace to go somewhere else sooner."

[bittykin]

Anakin thought about it, quiet for a bit as he took that in and applied it to what he'd heard the deep space pilots talk about, and their travels. Applied hours or days and how that would hit profits, prices, and what made things available to places like Tatooine.

"I wonder how fast we can make hyperdrive go? Like, if there's a limit. Hyperspace lanes are a factor, of course, and there's plenty of places without them, and that limits things." Garth'zel might want to make damn sure Anakin couldn't get into the engineering bay for a while.

[neverwantedtobesith]

Garth'zel gives him a weary look. "We are not finding out. Because that risks damaging the hyperdrive and I'd rather not get stuck in hyperspace for eternity. Among other options." He'd rather not find out what happens if they push it too much, thanks.

[bittykin]

"I wouldn't put us in it! A pilot droid or an astromech. It's not hard to find one - or even ships - in slag heaps, you just have to put them together." The likelihood of Anakin letting go of that idea anytime soon was almost zero, but it wasn't something Anakin thought would be an easy project - it took him years to build a pod racer and those were simple.

[neverwantedtobesith]

"We are not spending enough time on any one planet for you to figure out how to restore a ship for this." Right, they're back at the relevant docking bay, time for him to fish out his remote to open the door up so they could get in.

[bittykin]

"Not ever?" He'd figured they would be traveling some for a few months at a time, but not setting ever? That meant he'd see a LOT of space but even then, he couldn't quite wrap his head around it.

Anakin glanced around, watching for pickpockets and such as Garth'zel opened the door. What he'd do with his arms full, who knew but he'd have figured something out if he needed to.

[neverwantedtobesith]

"Any longer than a month, and I start getting twitchy and ready to travel again," Garth'zel says with a shrug as he starts heading into the ship.

[bittykin]

"Oh." That would be a lot of moving, which was both exciting and a little scary, because that wasn't a lot of time to learn about whatever planet or moon they were staying at but it also meant a lot of new places to see and visit.

"How do you plan where to go?"

[neverwantedtobesith]

That's what having Anakin read up on their destinations is for. (Once Anakin can actually read, that is.) Not to mention videos like the one Garth'zel had found for him for the Rishii trip.

"Who says there's any actual planning?" Garth'zel says with a wry smile. "Give me your food so I can put it in the galley while you drop off your new clothes in your room."

He'll probably drop off Anakin's new school things in his room for the interim. They can be handed over for Anakin to find homes for them somewhere in his own room later.

[bittykin]

Once he can read, yes. But he can't imagine you can find the best parts of Tatooine in a book.

"You have to plan somehow. Fuel and food and water and weather, like you have to plan for that." So many hours, weeks, months, probably two years of his life listening to pilots. He hands over his food, and shifts what's he's carrying to take off sprinting to put his things away. Or at least down. He has no idea where he's going to put it all yet.

[neverwantedtobesith]

"That's what refueling at basically every stop is for. Along with at least a week's food," Garth'zel calls after him before heading off to the galley to put Anakin's leftovers in the cold storage unit. Next he veers off to his own room to drop off the rest of Anakin's new stuff.

A trip to the refresher later, he's at the ship's ramp. "Might be a good idea to use the 'fresher if you haven't already."

[bittykin]

Can he sense the silent judgment? Can he?

Anakin does take at least a few minutes to organize his new clothing however, and then after thinking it over, changing into a new outfit. Something that seems to fit in with what he saw others boys wearing.

Hearing Garth'zel he calls back "I will!" and then hussles to the ramp a few minutes later. "I'm ready."

[neverwantedtobesith]

Look, when he knows he's going to be somewhere for a while, he accordingly gets however much he needs. It's fine.

"We'll be out for probably at least two or three hours," he says as he starts heading down the ramp. "More likely more. It depends on how much city there is to explore these days."

[bittykin]

Still judging!

But at least he's cleaned up, dressed nicely, and ready to go explore. "I'm fine." He will be, utterly and completely.

[neverwantedtobesith]

"Mmm. Areas outside the city can wait until tomorrow, I think. So we can take along food and whatnot." And he can be prepared to fish Anakin out of a body of water if needed.

[bittykin]

That was a little disappointing. Not that he had any idea how big the city was. Or what all there was to do. After all, he only remembered one.

"I'm following you." No matter how much he wanted to run off and explore on his own.

[neverwantedtobesith]

"Good to know I won't have to effectively tuck you under one arm," he says in a tone of amusement, as he hits the relevant button on the remote, so the ship's ramp will close up behind them. "Time to see if the cantina I mentioned still exists. Or rather, if there's still a cantina there."

[bittykin]

Anakin couldn't quite decide if he was amused or not at the idea he was still young enough (or fragile enough) to require carrying. He wasn't a baby and only his mother had ever carried him and that had stopped once his legs could keep up. Around the time Watto had come to own them, he thought.

"What was it like?" The only catinas he'd been in has been when Watto took him for gambling purposes, and he could remember being uncomfortable, both with what was going on and how some of the patrons looked at him. Watto's threats didn't help any but didn't think Garth'zel would take him to a place like that.

Or he didn't want to think so.

[neverwantedtobesith]

Garth'zel was mostly kidding with that, anyway.

"Well, given the pirates everywhere at the time, it was a bit rough. It only took one dead idiot to convince everybody else that it was best to leave me alone. The owner wasn't impressed at needing to dive behind her bar and then having to deal with a body and fresh blaster bolt marks on her walls, though. Not that she had much, if any, sympathy for him. He apparently had a rep for causing shit." In other words, if he hadn't killed the guy, someone else would have.

"I have been in cantinas where people were better behaved. It depends on the area and therefore clientele, really." Often enough, the people in them just wanted to have a drink or two in peace. And enjoy any entertainment such as the band (or more grown-up things) available.

[bittykin]

The description doesn't set Anakin at ease. It sounds a little better than the one Watto often dragged him to but it still didn't sound...good. That Garth'zel could and would so violently defend his space was very reassuring but still.

"So um." It wasn't characteristic of Anakin to hem and haw, words flew from brain to mouth fully formed seeming to bypass any filter. Filled pauses were not common and yet he was throwing one out common every other word. "How uh should I um act?"

[neverwantedtobesith]

Garth'zel raises an eyebrow at him. "Normally. Remember, that was a long time ago. The area's had plenty of time to change in terms of what kind of people live here."

No, he doesn't mean in terms of species.

[bittykin]

No he wouldn't assume he meant species. Still.

"Has Tatooine changed that much?" 'Normally' probably wasn't what Anakin, because he didn't know if he meant 'act like you always do' or 'act like you always do in a cantina'

He chewed on his bottom lip, staring down at the ground before looking up without lifting his head. A coached position that came off coy. "I went to some. Before."

[neverwantedtobesith]

Garth'zel slows to a stop and just looks at Anakin. "One, are you aware of how that's coming off, and two, am I going to want to pay Watto a little visit?" he asks in a quiet tone, which anyone from his own time who knew him would recognize was a dangerous sign.

Question from Anakin, what question from Anakin?