"Stop, thief!" shouted a man's voice.
On a building, there stood an eighteen-year-old boy with sandy blonde hair and blue eyes dressed in rags, who was holding onto a loaf of bread.
The boy looked behind him and saw three of the royal guards with their lightsabers at the ready.
"I'll have your hands for a trophy, street rat." said Guard Mace Windu, one of the toughest of the guards who really had it out for the poor boy.
"All this for a loaf of bread?" said the boy, whose name was Anakin, scratching his head.
Anakin jumped off the edge, catching himself on some clothesline, and using bits of a special power he had that slowed down his fall. But it didn't stop a blanket from falling on him.
"You won't get away that easy!" called a guard named Ki-Adi Mundi.
"You think that was easy?" taunted Anakin.
Some women were giggling at how cute Anakin looked.
"Uh oh!" Anakin got himself covered as he saw more guards approaching.
"Morning, ladies." said Anakin.
"Getting into trouble a little early today, aren't we, Anakin?" said Mrs. Jocasta, a lady who worked at the local orphanage where Anakin grew up and recently aged out from.
"Trouble? Ha! No way." smiled Anakin. "You're only in trouble if you get caught."
"Gotcha!" exclaimed Mace, grabbing Anakin.
"I'm in trouble."
"And this time..."
Before Mace could finish his sentence, he was tackled by a gray and blue bloodhound with a red scarf named Artoo.
The dog barked and held Mace down.
"Perfect timing, Artoo, as usual." Anakin said, scratching his dog's ears. "Come on, let's get out of here!"
Anakin and Artoo started to dodge more guards as they tried to get away from the guards.
Anakin:
Gotta keep one jump ahead of the breadline
One swing ahead of the sword
Artoo gave the guards a hard time by chewing holes in their robes, or occasionally swiping a boot off their feet and playing Keep Away.
I steal only what I can't afford
And that's everything
Anakin kept running, dodging every blow the guards known to some as Jedi.
One jump ahead of the lawmen
That's all, and that's no joke
Anakin and his dog climbed up a pile of barrels to get away, and kicked one down, covering the guards in sticky syrup.
These guys don't appreciate I'm broke
Guards:
Riff raff!
Street rat!
Scoundrel!
Man: Take that!
Anakin dodged some fruit that was thrown at him as he stood on top of a construction frame of some sort. He tried to reason with them that he was only taking what he needed to survive. But, the guards abided by the rules of the law, not by those of simply needing food to live and not having any money to buy it.
Anakin:
Just a little snack, guys
The guards started moving the structure back and forth by the Force to knock Anakin down, but he jumped far behind them.
Guards:
Rip him open
Take it back, guys
Anakin:
I can take a hint, gotta face the facts
You're my only friend, Artoo.
Anakin and Artoo jumped into the window of another building that turned out to be where some young dancers abotu his age were preparing for a performance.
Girls: Who?
Oh, it's sad, Anakin's hit the bottom
He's become a one-man rise in crime
Then came another woman, presumably their manager, who grabbed a broom and tried to strike Anakin, only for him to duck.
Woman:
I'd blame parents, 'cept he hasn't got 'em
Anakin: Gotta eat to live, gotta steal to eat
Tell you all about it when I got the time
Anakin and Artoo left the performance hall and continued on their way Of course, Artoo grabbed an apple from a table
One jump ahead of the slowpokes
One skip ahead of my doom
Anakin hid behind a muscular male model striking some poses, but missed one movement, revealing himself to the guards and leading him to run again.
Next time gonna use a nom de plume
One jump ahead of the hitmen
Anakin and Artoo then leapt over a herd of horses passing through town, which slowed the guards down some.
One hit ahead of the flock
I think I'll take a stroll around the block
At one point, Artoo started sniffing and started munching on the beef jerky samples from one stand.
Guard: Stop, thief!
Shopkeeper: Vandal!
Anakin: Artoo!
Anakin got his dog away from the scene.
Customer: Scandal!
Anakin: Let's not be too hasty
Anakin ran up some stairs, where the guards were blocked by yet another young woman who was attracted to him.
Girl: Still I think he's rather tasty
Anakin: Gotta eat to live, gotta steal to eat
Otherwise we'd get along (Guards: wrong!)
"Get him!" Mace exclaimed as he and the guards continued their pursuit.
Anakin and Artoo kept running, but everywhere they went, more guards kept coming. But, like always, Anakin found a way because he always found himself one step ahead before he even knew it.
Anakin:
One jump ahead of the hoofbeats (Guards: Vandal!)
One hop ahead of the hump (Guards: Street rat!)
One trick ahead of disaster (Guards: Scoundrel!)
They're quick, but I'm much faster
Anakin and Artoo jumped into another window and came to another one. Anakin picked up his dog and got ready to go.
Here goes
Better throw my hand in, wish me happy landin'
All I gotta do is jump!
Anakin jumped out the window, landing on a ledge, and letting the guards fall into some big piles of fertilizer while he jumped from ledge to ledge until he got to an alleyway where the guards never found him.
Anakin laughed as they were victorious.
"And now, esteemed effendi, we feast." Anakin said, sitting down and breaking some of the bread to feed his dog.
Artoo got right to eating, but before Anakin could take the first bite of his bread, he spotted two Twilek kids. A little girl and a little boy. They were searching through the trash for scraps.
Anakin saw that they were alone, and probably had no home or even parents. It broke his heart.
Unlike them, Anakin was pretty much all grown up and could go a little longer without eating. These poor little kids, they would starve to death if they didn't get some nourishment soon.
With a gentle smile, Anakin approached the children and knelt down.
The girl held onto her little brother, scared as this strange man approached them.
Anakin knelt down and broke the bread in two pieces, enough for each child. And he offered it to them.
"Here you go." said Anakin.
The kids were hesitant at first.
"Go on, take it. It's fresh." Anakin said.
The kids were so happy when they bit into the fresh, tasty bread they were given by this kind gentleman.
Suddenly, Anakin heard some trumpets blowing and saw a crowd just outside the alley.
Curious, he walked out and saw on a very beautiful white thoroughbred Arabian sat a well-dressed man, by the name of Prince Rush Clovis of Scipio.
"On his way to the palace, I suppose." said one man.
"Another suitor for the princess." groaned another man.
It was well known throughout the kingdom, that many suitors had gone to the palace of Naboo to ask for the hand of the beautiful princess, but every single one left in less than twenty-four hours.
Suddenly, Anakin saw the two kids he'd helped before running out into the streets and in the way of Prince Clovis' horse.
"Out of my way, you little brats!" said the prince, threatening to hit them with a whip he carried.
But Anakin Force-pulled the whip from the prince's hand.
"Hey!" Anakin exclaimed. "If I were as rich as you, I could afford some manners."
"Oh. I will teach you some manners." Clovis said, kicking the younger man into the mud.
Other men laughed at Anakin.
Artoo growled angrily.
"Look at that, Artoo." said Anakin. "It's not every day you see a horse with two rear ends."
People gasped at the boy's audacity. Clovis glared at Anakin.
"You are a worthless street rat. You were born a street rat, you'll die a street rat, and only your fleas will mourn you."
"And you are a spoiled prince who's obviously too helpless and weak to fight his own battles face-to-face." Anakin said.
Clovis stopped his horse again.
"What was that?"
"You heard me. Frankly, you look like you'd lose a fight to an alley cat." Anakin said, turning his back and leaving the scene.
"Now, hold it there!" said the prince getting down from his horse and approaching Anakin. "I dare you to fight like a man."
Anakin turned back to Clovis, who tried to punch him, but Anakin ducked the punch, then he grabbed Clovis' arm and yanked it hard behind his back.
"AGH!" Clovis cried out.
"Consider that a warning shot." Anakin smirked. "The next person you fight probably won't go so easy on you. And for the record, I'm not worthless, and I don't have fleas."
Anakin dropped Clovis onto the ground and left with Artoo, the two of them running before any guards could see them.
Anakin and Artoo travelled into the night through one of the poorer neighborhoods of Naboo.
Anakin:
"Riffraff, street rat"
I don't buy that
If only they'd look closer
Anakin and his dog soon came to an abandoned building they called their home. It was pretty run down, but at least they had a roof over their heads, and no one bothered them in those parts. There were even a couple of old pillows and blankets just comfortable enough for them to rest okay.
Would they see a poor boy? No, sirree
They'd find out
Anakin fluffed up Artoo's ratty dog bed, and Artoo walked around before curling up to go to sleep for the night.
There's so much more to me
Anakin looked behind the makeshift curtain at the beautiful Naboo palace in the distance. He couldn't quite explain it, but for some reason, a palace just spoke to him as though he belonged there, not that he'd want nothing but that lap of luxury.
At this point, Anakin would settle for just a one-story place, as long as it had all the necessary amenities and would keep him and Artoo safe and warm.
"Someday, Artoo." said Anakin to his sleeping dog. "Things are gonna change."
Anakin fingered an old necklace he wore around his neck. A necklace with a silver star with his name engraved in it. The one thing that connected Anakin to his past.
You see, when Anakin was a little boy, he was found in the streets, all alone and unconscious. He had no clue who he was, where he came from, or even how he got there. It was only by that necklace he could at least remember his first name.
Luckily for him, he was taken to the orphanage by some kind women. Unfortunately, on any adoption day, no one picked Anakin and he couldn't understand why. You'd want to shower kisses all over him if you'd seen how adorable he was as a child. And his only friend since he was thirteen was a puppy he found in an alley and named Artoo.
According to the rules, Anakin had to leave the orphanage once he turned eighteen. So, now, he was on his own. Except for Artoo.
"Someday, we'll be rich, live in a palace, and never have any problems at all." Anakin sighed, looking at the palace, dreaming of such a life.
Sure, he could've sold his silver necklace, but... Anakin believed it may be the only thing he had left of his family. What if they were looking for him and it was how they would know it was him? Assuming they were alive somewhere, anyway.
Anakin tried not to get his hopes up too high. But, he didn't stop believing in the possibility that he would find his family.