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Phase 1

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Part 5

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Mos Espa

Tatooine

It was odd coming back here. Obi-Wan didn't imagine revisiting Tatooine anytime soon. This arrival was similar yet different from the last, not so long ago. Yet, it was more than enough to make him miss Qui-Gon more.

In contrast, Anakin was like a burst of blazing sunshine next to him. He was broadcasting his emotions, and it didn't help that the boy jumped up and down in impatience.

A few Council Members who decided to visit the town with the Chancellor found it amusing, that much Obi-Wan could easily sense. Others, not so much.

Obi-Wan found it hard to believe that the Chancellor got rid of his formal outer robes and borrowed a simple brown cloak from the Jedi. The same was true for the group of Judicial Forces who surrounded Palpatine. They got camouflage overalls from one of the storage bays of the transport and used them to hide the distinctive painting scheme of their armor.

Anakin kept babbling in excitement, pointing in various directions and explaining the dangers, or at least the tall tales he had heard. Surprisingly enough, the Chancellor had a grandfatherly smile on his face. He appeared pretty entertained by the jubilation of Obi-Wan's Padawan.

They reached the town much faster than Qui-Gon did, in no small part because their transport landed quite a bit closer this time. Between the detachment of Judicial Forces on board, the Senate Guard, and the Jedi, their ride out of the desert was reasonably safe. Another reason for landing close to the town was simple – to mitigate the Chancellor's exposure to danger.

In that regard, Obi-Wan wasn't sure if the old man was a bit naive or if he trusted the Jedi to keep him intact on Tatooine of all places.

They soon reached the town, and Anakin's excitement reached a new peak.

"You're going to have your hands full with this one, young Kenobi." Master Koon murmured.

"Any advice?"

"Tread carefully. A typical approach won't work."

Obi-Wan nodded, yet had to wonder how much that advice was worth in practice. Did a Council member really just tell him to wing it?!

The noise of loud conversations and traders peddling their wares gradually died out as their group walked through Mos Espa's sandy streets. Curious and wary eyes of all kinds traced their every movement.

"No one is usually this quiet!" Anakin eventually exclaimed.

"People are likely taking us for some rich fool with his mercenaries sticking their noses where they don't belong. Let's not dissuade them unless we have to."

Palpatine's quiet words caught Obi-Wan off guard. Pretending to be a mercenary was demeaning. However, he could almost see how the locals might mistake them for such a bunch. He glanced at the Judicial Forces, who most certainly didn't hide their weapons, which looked both new and well-maintained.

Anakin led them through a bazaar where everyone warily moved out of their way. This display of fear and wariness made Obi-Wan feel uneasy. Only criminals should have such a reaction when seeing Jedi, not regular people, out to the market!

Finally, they got to a shop near the far end of the bazaar. Anakin darted forward, and Obi-Wan dashed after his unruly Padawan.

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Watto slowly flew through his shop, cursing his luck. Ever since that damned Jedi took Anakin, everything turned for the worse. The brat's mother was nowhere near as good at fixing things, which severely hit his profits. The loss of his special weighted die didn't help. It didn't help that the damn Jedi went to get himself killed on Naboo, possibly getting the boy killed too! That was yet another bit of bad news to ruin Watto's days.

Perhaps, he should have kept his mouth shut when he came back, but say what you will about him, Watto wasn't completely heartless! Still, the Skywalker woman kept moping and worrying for her son. That might be understandable, yet it meant even more losses for Watto.

He was at the end of his patience, and it didn't help that he was a bit worried about the foolish boy. Being a Jedi was a surer way to get killed than being a pod racer. At least Anakin was a good pilot who always ended up in one piece when the dust settled!

Watto kept buzzing back and forth, grumbling to himself. There wasn't a single customer today! When the boy was here, and people knew he could fix their junk, his shop had more than enough clients to keep Watto happy.

He really shouldn't have risked gambling with Anakin as the prize. Well, it couldn't be called proper gambling if he used a weighted die, right? So it was all that dead Jedi's fault!

That belief sadly brought Watto no relief. It didn't make customers magically appear in his shop, much less bring in sorely needed money!

A short form darted into the shop like back in the good old days a few weeks ago. Watto closed his eyes and rubbed his face. Great, now he was getting hallucinations. That was what his mother warned him might happen if he ever got to lose so much money! Losing your business sense was among the worst things to happen to any good Toydarian!

"Anakin! What are you doing here!? Are you all right?!" Skywalker's worried words brought Watto out of his daze.

He stared numbly at the tiny human he could barely see because his mother was doing her best to squeeze his life out.

Could it be?

"Did the Jedi get you almost killed, boy? Hm? I've been telling your mother you would have been better here!"

"I seriously doubt that." A different human voice interrupted Watto. He glared at the door and saw Jedi and what looked like mercenaries enter his shop.

"Jedi, what did you do now? What trouble did you get the boy into!?" Watto demanded.

"Well, that's better than I expected!" One of the Jedi announced happily. He removed his brown cowl revealing the face of an older man who didn't have to endure the suns and sands of Tatooine.

Watto blinked at the Jedi… He knew that face! He saw it on the news back in Mos Eisley, but that was impossible! What would the Chancellor of the damned Republic do in his shop?!

"I'm here to make a deal." The old human looked at the Skywalkers and smiled as if terribly pleased with himself.

"You aren't here just to reunite the boy with his mother?" Watto cursed himself mentally for that dumb question. That Jedi must have done something to him with his space magic! His business sense was totally gone!

"In a manner of speaking. As distasteful as I find it, I would prefer we do it the easy way. How much?"

Watto carefully looked around. Jedi. People he would have taken for mercenaries as well. They were anything but, considering the impossible man he was talking with. Watto had to conclude that those were Republic soldiers, likely the real deal, not the bunch of rent-a-cops like the ones mercenaries in the cantinas joked about.

"You know, usually, I would be ready to offer you a sweet deal, sir!" Watto smiled nervously. "However, as of late, I've been in a tough spot."

"Young Skywalker had been doing all the profitable work, hadn't he?" The human shrewdly asked after looking over the shop.

Watto's nervous smile froze on his face. Of course, this particular human wouldn't be a fool.

"I'm willing to hear a reasonable offer."

"Lieutenant, please."

One of the soldiers moved from the door, and her hands vanished under the brown cloth she wore over her armor. The human woman fished out a small bag and put it on the counter in front of him.

Watto sighed in relief and flew lower to see what was inside. He opened it, and his eyes bulged at the sight of jewels.

"I trust that will be ample compensation?" The blessed Chancellor asked lightly.

Watto grabbed the bag as if his life depended on it and rubbed it. This was his precious salvation!

"Sold! All sold!" Watto rapidly agreed.

The human looked pointedly at him and offered his open palm.

"Right, right! Here it is!" Watto fished out the remote controlling Skywalker's slave chip and very carefully put it in the open hand.

"Sir, we've gathered more than enough attention." One of the humans stated. "It would be for the best if we return to the ship now."

The Chancellor looked at the remote. "How do I disarm the chip?"

Watto couldn't possibly explain fast enough. His heart almost burst when Anakin escaped his mother's grasping hands and collided with the Chancellor. This kind of stress wasn't good for an honest merchant!

"Mr. Palpatine! Thank you, thank you!" The boy babbled.

What did the Jedi do to him anyway?

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Part 6

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Republic One

Hyperspace

We got back to the ship without incident, though there were a lot of wary and greedy eyes following us on the way back. In the end, our arrival and departure were fast enough to ensure no one could get the crew needed to tangle with my security detail. It also ensured that it would be hard for the local cut-throats to get permission and backup from the Hutts for what might be an incident with an unknown party.

It was amusing to watch the Jedi try to explain to Anakin why it would be for the best that he all but forgot about his mother. To my utter lack of surprise, their very logical arguments fell on deaf ears. It didn't help that said ideas all danced around Anakin being too old already. Thus his attachments to his mother were even more dangerous than usual.

If it wasn't for my Mask and Palpy's knowledge enhancing it, I would be unable to suppress my glee. Yoda sat on a chair beside the med bay, where Shmi was busy receiving the attention of a happy Medical Droid. He observed the circus with drooping ears.

Anakin stood in front of the closed door as if guarding it. He glared at Obi-Wan, who looked like he was at the end of his wits. Koon's breath hissed quietly through his breathing device. The Jedi Master leaned on the bulkhead across from Yoda. He was content to watch events unfold without showing his intentions or thoughts.

"Anakin, I can sense your anger and frustration." Obi-Wan pleaded. "This is why the Council was reluctant to allow you to become a Jedi! These emotions lead straight to the Dark Side. Any attachments that can lead to these emotions are extremely dangerous! Do you want to become like that monster who killed Qui-Gon?!"

"Master Kenobi, perhaps we should take a moment to calm down?" I suggested, playing the role of a concerned old man. "I don't think pushing young Skywalker right now would be constructive."

Obi-Wan huffed and drew a hand through his short hair in a nervous gesture.

"Calm down, we should." Yoda tapped the floor with his stick. "Take a moment, meditate you should." He pointed his stick at Obi-Wan and then at the door leading away from the med bay.

"Yes, that's right, Master Yoda." Kenobi bowed. "I apologize." He glanced at Anakin and then left the corridor.

"Young Skywalker, Anakin." I slowly knelt before the boy to look him in the eyes. The anger and determination I saw in his gaze would have made many a Sith I knew gleeful to have him as an Apprentice. The power I knew he would one day possess made him both an opportunity and a headache if mishandled. "I want to reaffirm my promise, and that of Naboo, that we will take care of your mother. We owe you that much and more. I won't lie to you and tell you that there's nothing to worry about in the future. No one knows what their destiny will be. That said, your mother is and will be in good hands. Do Queen Amidala and her handmaidens appear like people who would hurt her in any way?"

Skywalker stared mutinously at me. "You got mother free, Mr. Palpatine! The Jedi just left her! If it wasn't for you…." He trailed off.

Yes, he might be young, but after spending his childhood as a slave, he was wiser than his years might imply. Well, at least in some regard. In others, he was understandably ignorant.

"It was the right thing to do and the least I could do to begin repaying the debt my home world owes you, my young friend."

I stood up and looked at the Jedi, who observed us.

"Master Yoda, considering your experience, I expected you would have handled this better." I didn't bother to hide my disapproval.

Oh, I was gleeful at how the Jedi's creed blinded them. At the same time, this kind of wilful idiocy was painful. This was what the best the Jedi Order had to offer these days?! It was just as pathetic as how far the Sith had fallen.

I had Palpatine's memories. I intimately knew what he was capable of. It was painful to think about so much wasted potential. Only the Emperor could have rivaled him back in the Empire if he got the proper training and experience. For all the potential Palpatine had, much of it was wasted due to the lack of worthy opponents to push him to his limits and beyond.

The same was true for the Jedi, I guessed. From what I knew for a fact, they've spent the past thousand years restricting dangerous knowledge and thus crippled themselves. Even the likes of Yoda were pale shadows of what they had the potential to be.

"Dangerous the situation is. Great anger I sense in you, young Padawan."

"Of course I'm angry! You want to keep my mother away from me!" Anakin snapped.

"Master Yoda, it's rare that one could defeat emotions with logical arguments." I pointed out.

"The Chancellor is right, Master Yoda." Plo Koon finally spoke. "We should talk again only when tempers calm down. Continuing right now will only make things worse."

I shouldn't have been surprised that the Jedi could show insight and wisdom from time to time, yet here I was. I was perhaps giving them too little credit between what I saw so far, Palpy's biasses and my own. If not the organization as a whole, then to individual Jedi who might not be as blind as the rest of their kind.

This was a valuable lesson to keep close to my heart.

"That might be for the best." I agreed.

"Don't you have matters of state to attend to, Chancellor?"

"I'll have my plate full when we get back to Coruscant. Until then, I'm enjoying what might be the only peace and quiet I might get for months."

"Speak with Obi-Wan, I will. Too young to handle this Padawan he might be." Yoda slowly got off the chair and followed Kenobi outside.

"My young friend, take a few deep, calming breaths. No one is going to take your mother from you right now." I offered and sat on one of the seats near the med bay.

Anakin stared warily at Koon, who nodded and headed out as well after giving us a shallow but respectful bow.

"Anakin, I hope you can trust me and tell me exactly what you're afraid of." I offered with my best grandfatherly smile.

"They won't let me see my mother!" Anakin grumbled.

"There might be ways to work around things in the long run," I suggested. "Now, for various reasons I won't get into detail right now, the best place for your mother to recover and put her life back together will be Naboo. You've been there. You know my home world is a nice place when there aren't droids invading."

Anakin warily nodded at that.

"First, your mother needs to recover and get the time to choose what she wants to do with her life. I'm sure that Queen Amidala can eventually get your mother into her service. It won't be unusual for the Queen to check up on the heroes who saved Naboo. If nothing else, she can quietly give you a message or two. When you grow up a bit and our Jedi friends are less wary of you, we can quietly arrange for you to meet with your mother without raising questions or causing you trouble. Don't get me wrong. I greatly respect the Jedi. Yet, I believe they could be a bit too stuck up in their ways. You aren't a regular Youngling picked up by the Jedi, yet they find it hard to bend their ways and find one that would best work in your case, my friend."

"It's not fair!" Anakin grumbled.

"Life seldom is. If it were fair, neither you nor your mother would have been slaves. The Trade Federation wouldn't have invaded my world…." I trailed off. "But you know that."

"I know. I don't have to like it!"

"Of course not. I don't like it either."

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