Disclaimer: I don't own anything not mine. Star Wars is not mine. Joad
is. Please do not use her in any of your stories. Thank you.
Wow. Thanks for the reviews. No really, thank you! Reviews encourage me so much. VampireNaomi, the things that I did to get better involved looking at a picture or something cool in nature and going over my head how would I describe it in words. Cool thing to do, and it passes time. Just kept writing (thought not my fanfiction stories as much).
Chapter 19
Han stood with Leia as the gazed around the clearing. It was empty and devoid of sound. There wasn't even the groaning of the injured. Not anymore. There was no birdsong or the pleasant rustle of animals in the undergrowth. There was no sound at all. Leia shivered. She and Han were also alone. Very, very alone.
Chewie had run off with the children, and they were safe. No one had run off after them, and Chewie was well apt to protecting them. But Boba Fett was gone. Leia had last seen him confronting Janda, but hadn't watched. The last sounds of the battle had been a sickeningly juicy explosion and a few blaster shots. She was immensely glad that her children and Joad were not here. Such carnage for one so young was unthinkable. Leia had avoided looking towards Janda, or what was left, ever since she had first laid eyes on it.
The head was gone, splattered about, but the body lay slumped over, one hand clutching a still hot blaster rifle. Leia's eyes fell on it, her small amount of Force sensitivity telling her that there was something else. It moved. Well, shifted it more like it, a tiny fraction of it moving up the down.
"Han.." But she didn't have to finish. They both watched Boba Fett pull himself from under dead weight and stand. He staggered, on hand on the stiffening body for support, but he stood. On arm was wrapped firmly around his waist, gripping his side. He turned and walked toward him. Leia saw the blaster burn. It wasn't a graze. He had been shot between the plates of his armor. How he was still walking, she didn't know.
"Where is she?" He was wounded, perhaps seriously, and all he could think about was Joad. Once the bounty hunter, always the bounty hunter, Leia decided. Cold precision was how you survived, and the great Boba Fett wasn't going to let a little thing like a blaster wound in a seriously painful spot slow him down.
"Safe. With Chewie," Han replied. Fett turned and began walking in the direction that Chewie had run off in. He got a few steps before staggering again, barely catching himself before he fell.
"Fett, you should get some medical gear before you return to Joad." Leia felt it was her duty to protect Joad from this monstrosity for as long as possible.
Fett turned away from the forest to face her. Perhaps he was about to reply, perhaps just give her the Fett look, but he really didn't have time. A tiny missile flew from the forest, catching him in the back of his knees. He grunted and fell with a clatter. Leia and Han gasped. Leia could only think of one thing that would explain this.
"She's attacking him!"
Sure enough, Joad and Boba appeared to be brawling. Boba rolled over as Joad scrambled toward him. He grabbed her under the arms and lifted her. She hung, looking at him expressionlessly as he lay on his back, just holding her. A tear slide off her cheek and landed on the T visor. Han and Leia watched in amazement.
"It thought you had left," Joad whispered. Boba sat up and placed her on the ground, blaster burn seemingly forgotten. Chewie, with Jacen and Jania, stood unmoving at the edge of the carnage filled clearing, Chewie trying unsuccessfully to get the children out of here. They were staring about the field of carnage with wide eyes, horrified, not looking at the bounty hunter and his daughter. Leia and Han stood together, speechless.
"Never," was the soft reply as he wiped her face with a gloved finger. And indeed it was soft. The voice amplifier was off, and Fett's voice was soothing and deep, with a strange accent. The same as Joad's. He stood from his kneeling position next to her and suddenly it all clicked. Han made a choking sound.
"_You're_ Joad's father?" Han's eyes were wide, waiting for Boba to shake his head, to deny it. But the bounty hunter nodded silently, placing one hand on a tree for support.
Leia looked down at Joad and up at Fett. So, the notorious bounty hunter was the one Janda was after. It seemed.unreal. How could Boba Fett have a sweet daughter? "How.? Who.?"
"You know what few else know in this galaxy. Everyone in Janda's employment who knew accompanied her." Boba stopped and retrieved a small disc chip from a pocket and tossed it to Han. "For your silence." But Leia knew what else it was for. It was for her, no, _their_ protection. Word would eventually leak out. Boba Fett was alive and he had a daughter. And only an idiot would try and take her from him.
Joad tugged on a gloved finger and Fett looked down at her. Somehow that T visor seemed soft when he looked at her, but Leia didn't know how. Joad lived in the view of that visor. She wondered if he took it off at home. "They were real nice to me Dad."
"I know."
"Can I go say good bye to them?
"No."
"Why not?"
"We may," he paused and tightened his hold on his side and spoke again with gritted teeth. "We may be staying a little longer."
They didn't stay in the ruined house. They stayed in a lower profile house. It turned out to be perfect for Boba's needs. It was Han's "back- up" house and had weapons and more defense than their previous house and, most importantly, a large stock of medical supplies. It even had a bacta tank.
It had been hard for Fett at first. He hesitated and tried to think of some way to get out of it. But Joad could not fly Slave I. If something happened to him while returning to Kamino.. He had to stay here. He had to get the Solo's help. He had to take his helmet off.
At a glance, the burn was not too serious. Nothing a bacta patch couldn't take care of, right? Wrong. His side was stiffening and his fingers were beginning to go numb. Janda's wild shot was causing more trouble than it was worth. The last 100 yards or so, much to Fett's embarrassment and frustration at being so vulnerable, Chewbacca had had to carry him. Maiden style. His legs would no longer support him and his ribs were giving his agony. Joad understood that she was to be out of the way and quiet, but Jacen and Jania kept wondering, and loudly, what was going on. They did until Leia told them to hush. The rest of the way was made in silence. They weren't complete idiots, but they hadn't been trained since they could walk either. They were just above average little kids.
Joad had insisted on being in the room when Boba was to have his bacta treatment. Boba smiled when she rummaged through the neat pile his armor had made and pulled out a blaster. It was a small hand blaster, but it would injure any unwary intruder. Leia had frowned and Joad but made no abjection when Boba had voiced none.
Both Han and Leia had stayed in the room, pretending to go over the treatment container. Boba was not fooled. Han could have seen his face once, when Chewbacca had ripped off his helmet, but he had been busy getting away. Leia was a woman, and curious; Han was, well, Han.
Hours later, Boba was dressing privately with Joad. He let her help him, proud that she would show such interest in his armor. She knew what he did now. She accepted it, which made pride swell in his chest. She was a Fett, daughter (blotched clone) of a Fett. Fetts didn't cry.
His side bothered him. It wasn't heeled all the way. The Kaminoians were cloners, but they also had advanced medical technology so he wasn't worried. He just needed to get back.
He left the room and came face to face with Leia. Well, more of helmet to face with Leia. He didn't want them goggling at his face anymore than they had to. She blinked in surprise with him in his armor then put on a determined expression. He had seen that look on her before, just before they had retrieved the children. Right before a hard battle.
"Joad, go say good bye to Jacen and Jania." Joad ran down the hall and around the corner. He watched her go, watching Leia out of the corner of his eye. She was watching Joad too.
"You really love, don't you?" Nod. That was all. Just a nod. "I assume the mother doesn't live with her? Or you? Did you love her as much as you love her daughter?"
"Why do you assume her mother doesn't live with us?"
"Because, she's like a mini you. It doesn't seem like she's had much feminine loving before this. Or does she have a nanny? Is that who Taun We is?"
"Was. She is far to old for a nanny."
Leia frowned. She doubted there were any lies in there, but riddled with twists and turns in the truth. The "was" could be implying that Tuan We was no longer a nanny, or no longer existed. Possibly a guardian for when he was away. "Who's the mother?"
He was looking at her now, his T visor no longer soft looking, but hard and sharp, not missing any detail. Leia kept her face determined. She would not tell anyone about Joad. The dear was just so sweet. She would protect Joad and her mother. If that required protect Boba Fett as well, so be it.
"The Mother is nearby." The Mother is what the Kaminoians called the cloning machine for single clones. Leia's eyes narrowed, but she found it hard to believe that anyone would be able to stand living with Fett. His living quarters, or possibly a house, would probably be in extremely neat precision, more so that hers. And he's cold. Except, she reminded herself, when he talked or looked at Joad. Who was this mysterious mother? Joad didn't seem like she had had very much womanly influence. "And don't get any ideas Solo. I can raise Joad just fine." Leia frowned. Her face must have given too much away.
"I doubt you've had much lessons in raising children Fett. It's a woman's job."
"Not necessarily."
"Don't be stubborn. You could just drop her off once in a while."
"No."
"Just once a-"
"No."
"Just-"
"No."
"But-"
"No."
"Fine."
Boba began to walk past her but paused. When he spoke, his voice amplifier was on again. It was back to business. "Once again, for you silence." He handed her another chip, which had considerable less credits on it, but enough to bribe someone.
"I don't need your bribing Fett." Leia's voice would have frozen ice on Hoth. "I wouldn't betray Joad to any monster who would use her."
Boba nodded and tucked the chip away. He believed her but he wondered if she would be saying that in 10 years or so. But enough time to worry about that. It was past time to be gone.
Wow. Thanks for the reviews. No really, thank you! Reviews encourage me so much. VampireNaomi, the things that I did to get better involved looking at a picture or something cool in nature and going over my head how would I describe it in words. Cool thing to do, and it passes time. Just kept writing (thought not my fanfiction stories as much).
Chapter 19
Han stood with Leia as the gazed around the clearing. It was empty and devoid of sound. There wasn't even the groaning of the injured. Not anymore. There was no birdsong or the pleasant rustle of animals in the undergrowth. There was no sound at all. Leia shivered. She and Han were also alone. Very, very alone.
Chewie had run off with the children, and they were safe. No one had run off after them, and Chewie was well apt to protecting them. But Boba Fett was gone. Leia had last seen him confronting Janda, but hadn't watched. The last sounds of the battle had been a sickeningly juicy explosion and a few blaster shots. She was immensely glad that her children and Joad were not here. Such carnage for one so young was unthinkable. Leia had avoided looking towards Janda, or what was left, ever since she had first laid eyes on it.
The head was gone, splattered about, but the body lay slumped over, one hand clutching a still hot blaster rifle. Leia's eyes fell on it, her small amount of Force sensitivity telling her that there was something else. It moved. Well, shifted it more like it, a tiny fraction of it moving up the down.
"Han.." But she didn't have to finish. They both watched Boba Fett pull himself from under dead weight and stand. He staggered, on hand on the stiffening body for support, but he stood. On arm was wrapped firmly around his waist, gripping his side. He turned and walked toward him. Leia saw the blaster burn. It wasn't a graze. He had been shot between the plates of his armor. How he was still walking, she didn't know.
"Where is she?" He was wounded, perhaps seriously, and all he could think about was Joad. Once the bounty hunter, always the bounty hunter, Leia decided. Cold precision was how you survived, and the great Boba Fett wasn't going to let a little thing like a blaster wound in a seriously painful spot slow him down.
"Safe. With Chewie," Han replied. Fett turned and began walking in the direction that Chewie had run off in. He got a few steps before staggering again, barely catching himself before he fell.
"Fett, you should get some medical gear before you return to Joad." Leia felt it was her duty to protect Joad from this monstrosity for as long as possible.
Fett turned away from the forest to face her. Perhaps he was about to reply, perhaps just give her the Fett look, but he really didn't have time. A tiny missile flew from the forest, catching him in the back of his knees. He grunted and fell with a clatter. Leia and Han gasped. Leia could only think of one thing that would explain this.
"She's attacking him!"
Sure enough, Joad and Boba appeared to be brawling. Boba rolled over as Joad scrambled toward him. He grabbed her under the arms and lifted her. She hung, looking at him expressionlessly as he lay on his back, just holding her. A tear slide off her cheek and landed on the T visor. Han and Leia watched in amazement.
"It thought you had left," Joad whispered. Boba sat up and placed her on the ground, blaster burn seemingly forgotten. Chewie, with Jacen and Jania, stood unmoving at the edge of the carnage filled clearing, Chewie trying unsuccessfully to get the children out of here. They were staring about the field of carnage with wide eyes, horrified, not looking at the bounty hunter and his daughter. Leia and Han stood together, speechless.
"Never," was the soft reply as he wiped her face with a gloved finger. And indeed it was soft. The voice amplifier was off, and Fett's voice was soothing and deep, with a strange accent. The same as Joad's. He stood from his kneeling position next to her and suddenly it all clicked. Han made a choking sound.
"_You're_ Joad's father?" Han's eyes were wide, waiting for Boba to shake his head, to deny it. But the bounty hunter nodded silently, placing one hand on a tree for support.
Leia looked down at Joad and up at Fett. So, the notorious bounty hunter was the one Janda was after. It seemed.unreal. How could Boba Fett have a sweet daughter? "How.? Who.?"
"You know what few else know in this galaxy. Everyone in Janda's employment who knew accompanied her." Boba stopped and retrieved a small disc chip from a pocket and tossed it to Han. "For your silence." But Leia knew what else it was for. It was for her, no, _their_ protection. Word would eventually leak out. Boba Fett was alive and he had a daughter. And only an idiot would try and take her from him.
Joad tugged on a gloved finger and Fett looked down at her. Somehow that T visor seemed soft when he looked at her, but Leia didn't know how. Joad lived in the view of that visor. She wondered if he took it off at home. "They were real nice to me Dad."
"I know."
"Can I go say good bye to them?
"No."
"Why not?"
"We may," he paused and tightened his hold on his side and spoke again with gritted teeth. "We may be staying a little longer."
They didn't stay in the ruined house. They stayed in a lower profile house. It turned out to be perfect for Boba's needs. It was Han's "back- up" house and had weapons and more defense than their previous house and, most importantly, a large stock of medical supplies. It even had a bacta tank.
It had been hard for Fett at first. He hesitated and tried to think of some way to get out of it. But Joad could not fly Slave I. If something happened to him while returning to Kamino.. He had to stay here. He had to get the Solo's help. He had to take his helmet off.
At a glance, the burn was not too serious. Nothing a bacta patch couldn't take care of, right? Wrong. His side was stiffening and his fingers were beginning to go numb. Janda's wild shot was causing more trouble than it was worth. The last 100 yards or so, much to Fett's embarrassment and frustration at being so vulnerable, Chewbacca had had to carry him. Maiden style. His legs would no longer support him and his ribs were giving his agony. Joad understood that she was to be out of the way and quiet, but Jacen and Jania kept wondering, and loudly, what was going on. They did until Leia told them to hush. The rest of the way was made in silence. They weren't complete idiots, but they hadn't been trained since they could walk either. They were just above average little kids.
Joad had insisted on being in the room when Boba was to have his bacta treatment. Boba smiled when she rummaged through the neat pile his armor had made and pulled out a blaster. It was a small hand blaster, but it would injure any unwary intruder. Leia had frowned and Joad but made no abjection when Boba had voiced none.
Both Han and Leia had stayed in the room, pretending to go over the treatment container. Boba was not fooled. Han could have seen his face once, when Chewbacca had ripped off his helmet, but he had been busy getting away. Leia was a woman, and curious; Han was, well, Han.
Hours later, Boba was dressing privately with Joad. He let her help him, proud that she would show such interest in his armor. She knew what he did now. She accepted it, which made pride swell in his chest. She was a Fett, daughter (blotched clone) of a Fett. Fetts didn't cry.
His side bothered him. It wasn't heeled all the way. The Kaminoians were cloners, but they also had advanced medical technology so he wasn't worried. He just needed to get back.
He left the room and came face to face with Leia. Well, more of helmet to face with Leia. He didn't want them goggling at his face anymore than they had to. She blinked in surprise with him in his armor then put on a determined expression. He had seen that look on her before, just before they had retrieved the children. Right before a hard battle.
"Joad, go say good bye to Jacen and Jania." Joad ran down the hall and around the corner. He watched her go, watching Leia out of the corner of his eye. She was watching Joad too.
"You really love, don't you?" Nod. That was all. Just a nod. "I assume the mother doesn't live with her? Or you? Did you love her as much as you love her daughter?"
"Why do you assume her mother doesn't live with us?"
"Because, she's like a mini you. It doesn't seem like she's had much feminine loving before this. Or does she have a nanny? Is that who Taun We is?"
"Was. She is far to old for a nanny."
Leia frowned. She doubted there were any lies in there, but riddled with twists and turns in the truth. The "was" could be implying that Tuan We was no longer a nanny, or no longer existed. Possibly a guardian for when he was away. "Who's the mother?"
He was looking at her now, his T visor no longer soft looking, but hard and sharp, not missing any detail. Leia kept her face determined. She would not tell anyone about Joad. The dear was just so sweet. She would protect Joad and her mother. If that required protect Boba Fett as well, so be it.
"The Mother is nearby." The Mother is what the Kaminoians called the cloning machine for single clones. Leia's eyes narrowed, but she found it hard to believe that anyone would be able to stand living with Fett. His living quarters, or possibly a house, would probably be in extremely neat precision, more so that hers. And he's cold. Except, she reminded herself, when he talked or looked at Joad. Who was this mysterious mother? Joad didn't seem like she had had very much womanly influence. "And don't get any ideas Solo. I can raise Joad just fine." Leia frowned. Her face must have given too much away.
"I doubt you've had much lessons in raising children Fett. It's a woman's job."
"Not necessarily."
"Don't be stubborn. You could just drop her off once in a while."
"No."
"Just once a-"
"No."
"Just-"
"No."
"But-"
"No."
"Fine."
Boba began to walk past her but paused. When he spoke, his voice amplifier was on again. It was back to business. "Once again, for you silence." He handed her another chip, which had considerable less credits on it, but enough to bribe someone.
"I don't need your bribing Fett." Leia's voice would have frozen ice on Hoth. "I wouldn't betray Joad to any monster who would use her."
Boba nodded and tucked the chip away. He believed her but he wondered if she would be saying that in 10 years or so. But enough time to worry about that. It was past time to be gone.