((The next chapter will be posted tomorrow, which will be Christmas. At least in my time zone. I hope you all get good presents!))
"Zam, when is Santabot getting here?" Boba asked, staring out at the stormy sky. The 6-year old had been checking the window periodically since he had finished decorating and it didn't take a Jedi to know he was bursting with impatience.
"Boba, Santabot doesn't come until night time. We'll all probably be asleep by then." Boba walked away from the window and sighed. "What time is it?" He asked.
"It's 7'o clock." Zam said, "What time is your bedtime?"
"8:30." Boba said. He glanced back at the window again. "Zam, if we're all asleep when Santabot gets here, how will we capture him?"
"Well, after Santabot teleports in here, the decorations you set up will keep him from escaping. Then, uh, well I guess somebody will have to tell him to give us presents. I guess you can leave that to your father and me. If he's back by then." Jango had been called away on urgent business with a client, much to Zam's annoyance. Even bounty hunters should be home for the holidays. Especially bounty hunters, Zam thought. It wasn't right to be dealing in death on Christmas.
"Maybe we should leave him a note." Boba suggested.
"Leave who a note?" Zam asked, woken from her thoughts.
"Santabot. We can leave him a note telling him to give us presents. Then once he's given us presents, he can wake somebody up to let him out." Zam decided that now wasn't the best time to explain to Boba that not all bounties followed an honor code. "We could do that. Do you wanna go write it?" She asked instead. Boba nodded, already reaching for his crayons on the shelf.
Zam sighed and looked at her chrono. What did people do for fun on a planet where it was always a rainy day? Boba had books and holos, but most of them were too childish for Zam. Jango spent most of his time training the ARC troopers and increasingly Boba how to fight, but obviously, Zam lacked the authorization or expertise to do either. Zam's mind wandered tediously as she stared at the blank white ceiling. She heard a cough and looked down to see Boba, holding out a sheet of paper and a few crayons. "You can draw with me if you're bored." He offered. Zam smiled and got up from her chair. She sat down on the floor next to Boba, feeling a bit foolish as she looked down at her blank paper and wondered what to draw. She smiled as she thought of what to do. Picking up a crayon, she drew a large, uneven shape that was supposed to be a sleigh, followed by some brown, shaggy forms that were supposed to be banthas. Boba watched her draw curiously. Suddenly, he picked up a crayon and added a red and white figure in the sleigh. "Don't forget Santabot." He said. Zam just smiled and continued drawing. Every once and a while, Boba would reach out and add another detail; horns on the banthas, an extra ornament on the sleigh. Eventually, he ran out of practical things to add to it. So, instead, the next time he reached out to draw something, he drew laser cannons on either side of the sleigh. Zam laughed, "Good idea. Santabot needs to be protected against bounty hunters like us." Zam added some sharp spikes to the bantha's horns. Boba added knives sticking out of the side of the sleigh. Zam put some extra armor on Santabot. By the time they were done, Santabot and his banthas were armed to the teeth and Boba and Zam were grinning wickedly at their festively lethal creation. Santabot looked like he could take on an army of starfighters and win with all his presents intact. "We should get that framed." Zam chuckled, glancing at her chrono. It was almost 8:30. "Looks like it's time for you to start heading to bed." She said. A look of excitement passed over Boba's face. "Can I stay up to see Santabot?" he asked eagerly.
"No can do, kiddo." Zam said, "Santabot only visits when everybody is asleep. He measures brainwaves." Zam had to say, she was getting pretty good at coming up with Santabot related explanations. Boba looked a bit disappointed, but still went to bed without protest. Zam smiled and walked back into the main room. She saw Boba had placed his note for Santabot under the tree. Careful not to change its position, she looked over the messy note. "Dear Santabot," it began. Actually, 'dear' had been crossed out. Boba had probably decided it didn't sound bounty hunter-ish enough. "If you are reading this, it is because you have teleported into my house and can't escape. The only way you can escape is to give us all your presents. If you do, you can wake somebody up to let you out. They will only let you out if you give us presents. Don't try anything, because we're all bounty hunters and can beat you. Thank you, Boba." Zam spent the next few minutes trying to control her laughter.
