Morning Ride
"I got the second eopie!" Kitster cried from the street outside of the Skywalkers' hovel. The young boy tugged on the reigns, trying to keep the animals under control.
"Come on, let's go!" Anakin exclaimed, picking up his racing helmet and hurrying out into the blidingly bright sunlight to help Kitster hitch the animals to the podracer and the engines. Qui-Gon and Jar Jar left earlier to meet with Watto at the arena.
The only guest still at the hovel was Padmé. She had awakened Anakin that morning after he'd dreamt all night of visions of angels and wars. He quickly turned to see her smiling radiantly, walking toward him. "We're coming, don't worry," she said, touching the excited boy reassuringly on the shoulder.
"Go on, Anakin, I'm closing things up in here," Shmi called from inside the small house. Padmé, Anakin and Kitster hitched the vehicle to one eopie, the twin engines to the other eopie. Kitster got both of the animals to kneel on the sand so everyone would be able to climb up onto the saddles. Kitster got on one of them. "Come on," he waved at Anakin. But Anakin hesitated. "It's okay, Kitster. I'll ride the other one with Padmé." He looked up expectantly at his new friend. "Right?"
"Of course, Ani." He took her by the hand to the riderless eopie and held it as she climbed onto the saddle. Anakin climbed on in front of her to hold the eopie's reigns.
"I'll ride with you Kitster," Shmi said, climbing on behind Anakin's befuddled playmate. Her smile acknowledged her son's crush on their pretty visitor.
Padmé's droid Artoo and Threepio trundled along behind the procession, bickering back and forth.
The eopies trundled through Mos Espa's dusty streets toward the canyons where the arena was located. Padmé nearly lost her balance with the animal's movements and instinctively she wrapped her arms around Anakin's waist.
"You've never been on an eopie before?" he asked with amusement.
"I've gone riding on animals that are, well, different," she replied. "Nothing like this one before."
"It'll be all right. Eopies are pretty docile. Even if they stink and stuff." He looked behind his shoulder with a grin.
Padmé smiled back. Then she grew serious. "Are you nervous, Ani?"
"A little. But Mom will be there. All of my friends will be there. And Qui-Gon believes in me."
Padmé sighed. "I believe in you too, but I wish you weren't risking so much just to help me."
"You heard Mom. I was meant to help you," he said.
"Yes, but..."
"I'm just a boy. I know," he groaned.
"I'm sorry...I don't wish to hurt your feelings."
"Don't worry about me. I'll be okay. I promise," Anakin said. He was silent for a few moments, then he changed the subject by talking about points of interest in and around Mos Espa. As they headed out of town and into the open desert, all sorts of beings traveled alongside them toward the Boonta Eve race. Some rode beasts like eopies, rontos, and banthas. Anakin pointed out a family riding a small dewback. Others rode vehicles like swoops and dusty old speeders. And many simply traveled on foot.
"Thousands come from all over, even from as far as Mos Eisley or Anchorhead. There are even people who came from off-world to see the Boonta Eve."
"It's an important race, then."
"Yeah, one of the biggest on the whole pod racing circuit. Outside the arena there's a huge bazaar, where you can buy just about anything." He pointed to a strange, blocky vehicle rolling in the distance. "That's a sandcrawler. The Jawas are coming to sell things too."
"Jawas?"
"Theyre these little guys who sell mostly droids and droid parts, but they have anything you can salvage. Or steal. Watto and I trade with them sometimes. Watto thinks they're bigger cheats than he is." Both of them laughed.
Padmé squinted into the horizon. "Is that the arena?" She pointed at a group of sand-colored buildings.
"Yup. We're almost there." For the rest of the ride, Anakin regaled Padmé with stories about Tatooine and its denizens as well as his dreams to become a pilot and see other worlds.
"What's your world like?" he asked. "What's it called again?"
"Naboo," she said. "It's nothing like it is here. There are grassy hills, forests, lakes, rivers, oceans. There's life everywhere."
"Wow! I've seen holos of places like that. I would love to see it for myself. I've never even seen it rain before."
"Maybe someday you'll visit Naboo. It rains often enough there."
The eopies passed through a carnival-like atmosphere on the arena grounds and entered a vast hangar filled with machinery, vehicles, droids, and crowds of beings. Anakin brought his eopie to a halt, then the eopie kneeled just as Qui-Gon approached them.