Of Sith And Street Rats

[neverwantedtobesith]

Between thinking it best to steer as far away from the Core as possible given the current regime, and needing repairs to his ship, he finds himself on some backwater planet in the middle of nowhere. Not only that, but so far as he could tell, there were only a handful of cities worth the name with one of them being the capital city. Which was also oh-so-imaginatively named Capital City. It seemed to be his best bet, so it was the one he chose to land at.

While his ship was undergoing repairs, he heads out into the city. The workers don't need him breathing down their necks, so he may as well see what, if anything, was of interest. So lightsaber firmly hidden in his jacket, and anything the mechanics didn't need access to firmly locked, he heads out. May as well start with the market. Wherever it is.

Comments

[neverwantedtobesith]

"Size doesn't really matter when one has the Force. After all, I knew you were there without ever having seen you, didn't I?" Garth'zel points out before thinking of something and going to a cabinet to rummage around, finding something meant to transport meals in.

"I just thought of this. It's meant to carry one's lunch or supper in if one is going to be out somewhere and either can't or don't want to buy food when hungry."

[lothrat]

"I'm a lot bigger than a rat." Even if people do call him a street rat sometimes.

But now his face lights up a little when Garth'zel comes back with a lunch box. He can remember using those to take his lunch to school before. That'll work perfectly!

"Yeah!" he says. "I can use that! Mom used to let me use one of those before, but- but it had Loth-cats on it." Look, he likes Loth-cats, okay? But even though this box doesn't have any childish designs on it, he still reaches his hands out anyway. A box is a box, and a deal is a deal. This way he can keep his food with him!

[neverwantedtobesith]

Garth'zel hands it over. "I forgot I had it since I don't need it very often."

Maybe now he can get this child to get clean. He can figure out what to do afterward later.

[lothrat]

"If you don't need it, can I keep it?" Ezra doesn't think he'll get a yes for that, but he thinks it won't hurt to ask. Either way, he's already pulling out the bits of sandwich from his pockets and putting the sorry pieces in the box. Once he's done, he closes it up, feeling satisfied that his food is protected now, even if a rat's sneaked onto the ship.

He looks at Garth'zel now, expecting to be led to the 'fresher.

[neverwantedtobesith]

"I said I don't need it often not that I never need it," Garth'zel corrects gently. In other words, that's a 'no'.

"Come on. I can get you one of my shirts to wear while you're waiting for your own clothes to be clean," he says as he opens the door to head in the direction both his room and the refresher are in.

[lothrat]

"Okay..." Well, he hadn't expected a yes, so he can't exactly be disappointed. It's too bad, though. He could use a box like this once he goes back home.

Carrying it with him, Ezra follows Garth'zel, paying attention to where they're going so he can find his way back out if he has to. He still isn't ruling out the need to make an escape at some point.

[neverwantedtobesith]

Garth'zel finds a shirt of his that just needs to be pulled on rather than buttoned and turns it over to Ezra as well before showing him where the refresher is.

"While you're in there, I think I'll check on how repairs are coming along." No point hovering outside the room the entire time Ezra was in there, after all.

[lothrat]

Ezra hesitates for a moment before he nods, clutching the shirt to his chest. This could be his chance to escape if he wants, he realizes. But...

But food and a job. Money he can save to buy more food later, after the job is done. And he made a deal. He promised. A box for a shower in the 'fresher.

I can always leave later, if I don't like him. Another nod, this time to himself, before he closes the door.

Sometime later, a little boy emerges wearing a too-large shirt and miraculously (mostly) free of dirt. He's got his box of food and, if Garth'zel isn't back yet, Ezra's going to explore. Garth'zel didn't say not to, after all.

[neverwantedtobesith]

It actually didn't take Garth'zel too long to check on the progress of the mechanics.

Most of the time Ezra spent in the 'fresher was spent doing work around the ship, although by the time he's found, he's reading.

[lothrat]

Ezra wasn't just looking for Garth'zel, of course (though that's what he'd claim he was doing if asked). Every room he's come across, he's poked his nose in and explored, getting to know the layout of the ship and what might be in each room. Garth'zel's probably had plenty of time to read before Ezra finally finds the room he's in.

"I finished," he announces before even crossing the room. Then curiosity prompts him forward. "Whatcha reading?"

[neverwantedtobesith]

"A history book. You probably wouldn't be interested," Garth'zel says, looking up. "Ready for me to get your clothes washed then?"

He knows better than to trust an eight-year-old with doing laundry. He's aware of little kid logic that leads to the reasoning that more soap is better and doesn't want to have a sea of bubbles.

[lothrat]

Ezra shrugs in response - and then immediately has to hike his shirt back up on his shoulder. It really is too big for him. "I guess," he says. It would be nice to wear clothes that fit. "I left them in the bathroom. I didn't know what you wanted me to do with them."

If there had been a bathtub, though, he might have taken the initiative.

Yes, with lots and lots of soap.

[neverwantedtobesith]

"Since I know better than to let an eight-year-old who most likely has never done his laundry before do it, leaving them for me to deal with was the right choice," he says, tapping on the screen to mark his place before shutting it down to head to the refresher to retrieve Ezra's clothes to clean them.

"You think about my job offer yet?"

[lothrat]

Ezra trails after him, much like a small puppy, but really, what else is he going to do? Just sit around waiting for his clothes to get cleaned, bored?

Besides, it's kind of fun having someone who'll talk to him.

"Could I try it just to see if I like it?" he asks, still a little bit cautious. Garth'zel's been nice enough to earn that much at least, but Ezra's hesitant to make a commitment for something without any experience.

[neverwantedtobesith]

It takes Garth'zel a moment to work out which Ezra was responding to, since 'it' wasn't very descriptive before nodding. "That works. You have somewhere safe to sleep tonight, or are you spending the night here?"

So he knows if there's a risk of tripping over a small child before he's properly awake.

Clothes fetched, he takes them to the laundry room to get them cleaned.

[lothrat]

Sorry, Garth'zel. Eight year olds aren't exactly known for having clear communication skills.

"I got somewhere to sleep," Ezra says quickly. Safe is a relative term, but he thinks it's safe enough. Besides, he wants to see if Garth'zel will even let him go. "I just need my clothes first."

[neverwantedtobesith]

"After your clothes are clean and dry. There's not much point in getting you clean if you're just going to wear dirty clothes again," Garth'zel says firmly. He knows that sometimes there's not much choice, but this time, clean person and clothes is able to happen.

[lothrat]

"How long do I gotta wait?" he asks. He honestly doesn't know the answer. He doesn't have a clear memory of how long it took his mother to clean his clothes before. She just took his clothes and then handed them back later. It wasn't something he paid attention to. "An'- an' what do I do until then?"

[neverwantedtobesith]

"Somewhere under an hour. Since this isn't a full load of clothes, they don't need as much time. I need to see if the washer will let me set it to spend less time than usual since they're only a few things. Otherwise, it'll take around half an hour. Should be able to get the dryer to take about fifteen or twenty minutes though, since I doubt they'll need the full half hour." Probably more information than wanted, but oh well. Ezra can't say he isn't being kept informed.

As he talks, he gets things sorted out so that the cleaning can happen. "I have a dejarik board. Has anyone taught you how to play?" He's a little short on things for a small child to do for fun on board the ship.

[lothrat]

Yeah, just a little more information than he wanted, but he did ask. And it did give him an idea for how long he can expect to be stuck here before he can leave, so he's not going to complain about Garth'zel talking too much.

No, instead he'll switch his focus to the question he just got asks. Ezra shakes his head, but perks up, interested. "No. I seen some people play in Old Joh's, but they wouldn't let me play." So he at least has a concept of what the game's about, but no firm knowledge of the rules. "Will you teach me?" A game sounds like the best way to pass the time, but he's not sure if Garth'zel's offering to teach him here.

[neverwantedtobesith]

"That was the intention if you didn't already know how to play, yes," Garth'zel says with a nod as he gets the washer started. "Looks like this part is going to take the full half hour. That gives plenty of time for you to learn the basics and get some practice in so you can play the game properly."

[lothrat]

Ezra's face lights up. Dejarik is one of those games that's always looked like a lot of fun (because let's be real, what little boy doesn't want to see monsters battling it out?) but he's never had anyone willing to take the time to teach him how.

Already, Garth'zel is rising higher in Ezra's regard.

"Then let's go play!" he says, excited, and he even frees up one hand from his box of food so he can reach up to take Garth'zel's hand, so that he can tug him along faster.

[neverwantedtobesith]

Garth'zel blinks as he gets pulled along. He can't say he was expecting that. "You want to go back to where you found me."

Also known as the lounge. Where people entertain themselves outside of their rooms.

[lothrat]

Better get used to it, Garth'zel. Ezra's only going to grow more bold as he gets used to you and starts feeling out boundaries.

"Okay! I 'member where that is!" And he does. It's not just childish boasting. There's a decent memory in that brain of his. Good enough that he leads them unerringly back to the lounge, even though he's only been there one time.

His eyes spot the dejarik board quickly enough, and that they're here, he lets go of Garth'zel's hand in favor of climbing into a seat at the table. "Can I turn it on?"

[neverwantedtobesith]

"You mean may you turn it on, and yes, you may," Garth'zel says, seating himself across from Ezra, taking his reader off the dejarik table to set it aside.

"We'll go over the controls first, and then..."

And so it goes for the next half hour until Garth'zel checks his chrono. "Time to put your clothes in the dryer. Still want to play, or do you need something else to do?"