Babysitting! The man grumbled to himself. I'm actually babysitting! And a Jedi kid to boot! What have I gotten myself into now?
The bounty hunter, Jango Fett, fretted as he flew on. His little Jedi guest was still virtually comatose in her bunk. And he realized he did not even know her name, let alone her age. She was so tiny and fragile-looking that he guessed her age to be around three, possibly four, but her demeanor suggested that she might be much Older, perhaps twice what Jango supposed.
"Roz, I'm coming in," he called. "And I've got a guest."
"Guest?" Rozatta inquired. "Warm or cold?"
"Guest, Roz, not a bounty. Just get a nice room ready for her, alright. A nice comfortable one."
"Well now. If you're paying, Jango, she can have the best suite I can rig up," the Toydarian woman told him. Then, "Did you say her?" Roz did not bother to hide either surprise or her utter delight from her voice.
"Well, it's about time. We'll be ready for you and your, um, guest," the Toydarian's grin was evident in her tone even if Jango could not see it.
"No, Roz. She's not," Jango began, but Rozatta had already ended transmission.
She's gonna be so disappointed, Jango thought grinning to himself. Then a worse thought occurred to him. Oh, she will never let me live this one down. She is gonna start all that old nonsense about me settling down and starting a family again.
Jango sighed heavily. It was so irritating but why did his mind keep going back to that child? Sure, she was temporarily his responsibility. And yes, she did looked so helpless right now, and he would never get her cry as her Master died out of his head or his heart, he knew that. The little girl had gone so limp and so still right after that nightmare device exploded that, until they got back to Slave I and he scanned her, he feared that she had died, too. Had her connection to her dead Master been that strong?
But he also kept reminding himself, tried to anyway, that she was not a normal child. She was a Jedi child. A jedi!
Eventually, Jango gave up on his inner struggles, put Slave I's auto-pilot into action, and went to sit by the child's bed. For a long time, He just sat there and gazed over at his unwanted guest. Come on, Sweetheart. Wake up for Uncle Jango, he thought before mentally giving himself a really good slap for thinking that way.
Reaching out a hand, he lightly laid it on her hair, and winced. She really did need to be cleaned up, but he could not bring himself to do it yet. He was even afraid to move her, but her hair and clothes were liberally spattered with the blood of her dead Master. This was one of a very few times in his life that Jango wished he had a good all-purpose service droid around. Better still, a really top of the line nurse droid. Then he could just put the child in its care until they got back to Corruscant, and he would not need to interact with her at all. He certainly had enough credits to buy one and not even consider the cost ...
The hardened bounty hunter broke off mid thought and bowed his head, feeling very ashamed of himself. Jedi child or no, Jango knew he would never do that, even if he could. Children, even Jedi children, deserved personal attention and care, something even the best of nanny or nurse droids could not do, in Jango's humble opinion.
Well, unpleasant tasks are best dealt with quickly, Jango told himself. With one last look back at his charge, he rose and went to look through his stores to see what he had to care for the child. The first task should be simple enough. He wanted to get all that blood out of her hair and quickly. And if the little darling force swatted him across the room while he did it, he would just have to pick himself up and try again.
A/N:
Hello wonderful readers!
for any who may not know, the character of Rozatta is from the video game, Bounty Hunter.
I hope everyone enjoyed this piece, short though it is. As the story progresses, I promise (or warn) you the chapters will likely get much longer.
Thanks to everyone for reading and/or reviewing, commenting, and just for being Jango Fett fans.