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

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.

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"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.

"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?"

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.

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.

Edited Date: 2022-07-09 06:29 pm (UTC)

"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."

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."

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."

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.

"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.

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.

"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."

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.

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.

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?"

Edited Date: 2022-07-24 06:15 am (UTC)

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.

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."

Edited Date: 2022-07-24 12:40 pm (UTC)

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?

Oh Anakin recognized it as dangerous - he wouldn't have survived as long as he had in Gardulla's estate if he didn't know to read 'danger' when it bared it's teeth in front of him. And that he held the posture for just a moment before rolling his shoulders back and lifting his head to a level position before shrugging probably answered at least the first question before Anakin could even try to put it to words. "I know what it's for," was finally what he settled on.

"He never actually let anyone do anything," at least, not to Anakin's thinking, "said he'd lose too much money with me not working in the shop. But if I didn't make money or kept losing him money on the races..." Well. The threat was there. "But I knew how to look pretty before Gardulla lost us to him. Mom used to try to hide me in places but she couldn't always." Anakin was entirely too calm about everything - the danger right in front of him, the very long list of wrongs he'd just named. It wasn't a freeze or a shutdown - he didn't tend to react that way - but it was measured. A subconscious throwing of the brakes to figure out if fleeing, flighting, or fawning was the safest response.

A muscle in Garth'zel's jaw twitches. "You're not who I'm pissed off with." Just to head that off at the pass. "I want you to act like you normally do when you're outside a cantina in there. Otherwise, I may have to murder someone if they interpret that pose as permission."

The best he could say about that happening is that whoever it was would die fast. He would not be kriffing around.

Anakin wouldn't believe there wasn't mutual studying going on, Anakin studying Garth'zel intently and Garth'zel studying him just as much. General life experience told Anakin it didn't actually matter if Garth'zel was pissed off with him or not - he was close and had no recourse to fight back. Experience with Garth'zel said he wasn't the type to take his temper out on Anakin. The latter wins out, even if only barely. With time, Anakin would trust that more - he just needed time. "Ok." He could do that even if he wasn't going to be relaxed.

Not everyone waited for permission, but he was dressed better at least. That would be some protection.

Garth'zel smiles thinly. "Anyone who tries anything with or without saying anything to me first is in for a rude surprise." Yes, he could hear the unspoken.

He takes a moment to blow out a slow breath, focusing on that to get his mind off its current track, before shaking his head slightly and getting moving again. "Shall we?"