Dear Qui-Gon,

I am beginning to wonder if my reputation as a great negotiator was overstated, or if Tatooine is just so far removed from the culture and etiquette I am used to that it has left my talents blunted. I admit that perhaps the Tusken's fear of me has contributed to a lack of progress, although the more pressing concern is the communication issues.

I have journeyed to the Tusken settlement several times over the past few weeks, although I am no longer permitted inside the camp. The Shaman will meet me outside accompanied by two warriors, and on occasion I believe only the presence of the lightsaber hanging from my belt prevents them from lodging a gaderffii stick in my skull.

I have been able to discern some intent from the Tuskens through the Force, but the nuance of negotiation is so often in the use of language cues, which has frustrated my efforts to find common ground between them and the moisture farmers. I know the thrust of the dispute of course – the Tuskens are indigenous to Tatooine and see the water as their divine right, usurped by the arrival of the settlers despite the generations which have passed since colonisation.

It is a dispute so old that it hardly seems productive attempting to resolve it – the best I can hope for is convincing the Tuskens to halt their recent aggression which has led to damage of equipment on several outlying farms. It was only today that I made progress, when I received a quite unexpected visit from Marei.

She had a mission for me from Jabba – a bounty who his sources believed was hiding on Kiffu.

"What is this man's crime?" I asked her, my continued debt to Jabba quickly becoming an issue I cannot ignore.

"He thought you might ask," Marei said, looking down at her hands. "He said that was none of your concern and he had other bounty hunters in his employ if you did not wish to take the job."

A warning, since I knew Owen and Beru's livelihood relied on Jabba's goodwill. If I were to refuse the bounty he could very well renege on our entire agreement, and again push the Lars family into poverty despite the tithe I had paid him. I admit that in some of my wilder dreams I imagine convincing them to leave Tatooine with me, running off to somewhere more hospitable. And yet I quickly push aside such thoughts, knowing they would never be swayed to leave their home, and even if they could be, there is nowhere in the galaxy we would be safe.

"Tell Jabba I will take the job, with gratitude," I told Marei, putting aside the quandary for reflection later. "It is good to see you again," I added softly, indicating she should take a seat at my table. "Come share tea."

But Marei stood rooted to her position, and eyed me with something like pity. "You know why he sends me, don't you?"

I was slightly surprised by the question which seemed quite out of the blue. "He trusts you, I suppose."

"No." Marei shook her head. "He knows you cannot help me, and he wants to remind us both of that fact."

"I will help you," I told her, guilt lacing through me for my neglect the past few weeks. "I promised, didn't I?"

Marei seemed skeptical, hugging her arms around herself. "Have you had any more luck with deactivating the implant?"

"No, I'm sorry," I told her, rubbing my forehead. "I've been distracted lately – trying to stop a war between the Tusken Raiders and moisture farmers."

"Don't let Jabba know that," Marei warned me. "War is profitable."

"Jabba's not involved in this is he?" I asked. "Riling up the Tuskens to agitate the farmers so they retaliate?"

"I don't know," Marei shook her head. "Jabba had a Tusken working for him once – he'd been exiled from the tribe for some reason. Ar'tk was his name. He always said the Tuskens hated the farmers, but they'd only attack if they knew they could win. They scare easily, especially if they're outnumbered."

That was surprising intelligence, and I leaned forward on my chair. "Is this Ar'tk still at the Palace?"

"No," Marei said sadly. "He didn't take to life there well, but nor could he go home. There is only one way to escape Jabba the Hutt." She touched the back of her neck lightly, where the implant remained burrowed into her skin.

I shuddered thinking about it, and although Marei has been strong all the years she's been a slave I worry for her resolve. "I will find another way," I promised again. "If you know who keeps the codes for the deactivator wands, perhaps I could pluck it from their mind."

"Only Jabba knows those." Marei looked away.

"Well, the answer is there," I assured her. "I just have to find it."

Marei was silent for a few moments, biting her lip as she stared out my window as if deep in thought. I watched her with deepening concern – the bruise around her throat, the slight nervous tremor in her hands and the thin, sallow skin that cling tight to her bones. When she turned back to face me, she was full of unexpected determination.

"I know the Tusken language," she said, her voice firm. "Ar'tk taught me, with the help of Jabba's protocol droid. I could help you negotiate with them." She shifted her weight from one foot to the other nervously when I did not respond. "I do not have your experience, but I have listened to Jabba conduct business for years, and I have learned much. If you give me a chance-"

"Marei," I stood, holding up my hands to stop her. "Do not mistake my surprise for scepticism." I approached. "I would welcome your help, but are you sure you want to risk it? Jabba's wrath would be terrible."

Marei looked up at me, tilting her chin. "I have asked much of you, Ben, and you offered help without a second thought. I have never known such kindness or bravery, so should I not follow your example?"

"You need do nothing to earn my assistance," I told her gently. "You have it."

"I know," she said, a new fire replacing her former listlessness. "I want to help – for you, for that little boy you watch over, for Ar'tk and all my slave sisters who have died with their hands still bound."

It was defiance, I realised. An act which was not ordered or forced, but done of her own free will, to prove to herself that she could.

The people here continue to surprise me, Qui-Gon. Although lacking the sophistication of the Core, they have a steely resolve and fierce hearts and are in many ways the better of those like myself who rose through opportunity and grace.

In many ways, perhaps it makes Tatooine the perfect place to rear a young Jedi.

Ben Kenobi