Part III: A Decision Made

Prauf nearly rolled his eyes. He wished Eddie would get to the point. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"Jedi usually travel on these ships when on their missions. This happened during the Purge, when Order 66 was executed. So imagine the clones turning on the Jedi aboard that ship. Guess who would be running to the escape pod if they made it out of the massacre?"

Prauf finally understood. "Jedi."

"Exactly." Eddie snapped his fingers triumphantly.

"So you're saying that the escape pod landed on this planet too. And assuming the survivors are alive, they'd likely be roaming around on Bracca."

Eddie smiled, "precisely, my friend. That means that there is a mighty buck load of credits walking around on this junkyard planet, if we manage to catch them and turn them to the Empire."

"Why are you telling me this?" Prauf hesitated.

Frowning, Eddie said, "We were chatting on the train the other day. You said you'd like to get out of here...you could retire on Coruscant if you did this one job. Like a dream come true, isn't it?"

"I was joking then. I wasn't actually serious. Why didn't you ask Jarrus then? I thought you two were quite close."

"I've asked him," Eddie gritted his teeth. "But he can be pretty cowardly at times. Said that Jedi were impossible to capture, and that we'd be dead if we tried. But I don't believe that. We just need to plan properly and do it right. Jedi are often complacent; we'll lure them in when their guard is down. But I can't do it alone."

It didn't sit right with Prauf. Tricking and them and selling them out to the inquisitors who would likely kill them felt wrong. But Eddie kept pushing.

"Think about it this way." Eddie reasoned, "The clones were just fulfilling their orders, aren't they? They were instructed to kill all Jedi, and so they did. Like it or not, it's their job. It's like how we are stuck here being scrappers because we need to feed ourselves and our family. We're not doing this out of choice."

Eddie continued, "But the Jedi who escaped on that pod? They could've just left on the pod, but they chose to blow up the entire cruiser and everyone on board. The clones, the innocent people and children on board who had no idea what was happening, the whole crew. Even if the explosion was necessary to mask their escape, they deemed their lives more worthy than the thousands on board. So tell me who, really, deserved to be hunted down and killed by the Empire?"

Prauf was silent. He'd never thought of it this way. Of course he knew that Eddie was baiting him to join his cause, but his argument seemed...logical. Then again, the clones were not exactly human, were they?

Eddie said quietly, "I know there are Jedi hiding out in Bracca, probably laying low and keeping a low profile. We just have to find them, and let the Empire know of their location. I'm offering to split the bounty half-half. We could be rich and leave this scrapyard planet together. Are you in?"

To be honest, Prauf wasn't sure at all. He was sitting on the fence. It seemed so easy to tell Cal earlier that he wouldn't mind bounty hunting as long as it was morally right. But now, when he was faced with the decision, he wasn't so sure. Maybe the Jedi survivors only blew up the ship because it was their only chance of survival to get away and regroup with any other survivors across the galaxy. Maybe they did that to protect their friends who were also trying to escape in the pod. If that were the case, Prauf supposed it justified their actions. Does that still make them responsible for the death of thousands on board?

Prauf didn't think so. But he wasn't sure how Eddie would take it if he rejected the offer.

Eddie was waiting for his answer. "Do we have a deal? We team up to find that Jedi, and we split the credits equally."

"I…" Prauf said tentatively, "what if I sit this one out?"

Pulling a face, Eddie's eyes hardened, "You'd miss your one opportunity to get out of the tough life, simply because you don't have the guts to turn in a cold-blooded killer?"

There was a clanging sound and creaking of metal straining under boots as some scrapper lowering himself down on a rope from the level above must have slipped. The figure landed ungracefully onto the ground in a heap, before quickly getting to his feet. Nursing the rope burns on the palm of his ungloved right hand, he turned around, trying and failing to pass off the fact that he'd fallen.

Realising that almost everyone in the vicinity had stopped their work to stare at him, the person ducked his head sheepishly and his eyes landed on Prauf.

It was Cal.

Prauf let out a small laugh, surprised at such a clumsy act from the young man who climbed around the dangerous rigging around the scrapyard in near perfect footing every day.

"Hey Cal!" Prauf called, waving him over. "You okay?"

Looking down at a nasty red welt that was forming on his palm, Cal shrugged, "yeah, I'm fine, thanks for asking. It'll heal in a couple of days."

Glad for the interruption, Prauf tried his best to make up an excuse to leave, racking his brains for a reason that could remove himself from this situation. Eddie was still focused on him, narrowing his eyes pointedly while not wanting to say anything in front of the newcomer.

Whether or not Cal could sense the tension between them, although Prauf suspected the boy picked out that something was amiss, Cal asked lightly, "was on my way for lunch, and I thought I'd just stop by to see if you're free."

He was talking to Prauf, who would gratefully stop his work for a break. But Eddie said with a tinge of irritation in his voice, "Sorry, kid. Prauf can catch up with you in a bit. I need him here for just five minutes."

Cal had his head slightly tilted to the side, seemingly asking Prauf a silent question if everything was alright.

Sighing, Prauf gave a reassuring nod. "Go ahead, Cal. I'll be there in a second."

"Yeah, run along, kiddo." Eddie said, "Let the big guys talk."

Cal started walking backwards slowly, before turning his back on them, "alright, I'll see you later, Prauf."

The boy stalked away, turned a corner and disappeared. Eddie made sure that he was out of earshot before prompting Prauf again, "So? I'm waiting for an answer."

The Abednedo had made up his mind in that few moments. Selling out Jedi to the empire was as good as trading them in to die or be tortured. He accepted that some of them may have deserved it, but were probably many more who were innocent people caught up in the questionable plans of the Council. These Jedi would be now suffering and in hiding from the deeds of their Order. It'll be selfish to play the judge and sentence them to death simply to earn credits for himself.

So Prauf lowered his voice, and said firmly, "No, Eddie. That's my answer. I won't be part of this."

Eddie opened his mouth to argue, but Prauf added fiercely. "No. And that's final."

Breathing heavily with frustration at being turned down, Eddie seethed, "Fine. One day I'll cheerfully wave to you as I leave this junkyard of a planet. And then you'll regret this decision."

"Trust me, I won't." Prauf said, then to signal that their conversation was over, he turned away, walking towards where Cal had disappeared a while ago, "Better be on my way for lunch. Don't want to keep Cal waiting."

"This stays between us though, you got that?" Eddie added quietly, although the threat was clear.

"Sure. Whatever."

-Line Break-

Cal had been waiting for him at the food collection point, and the minute Prauf had taken his tray of distributed food, the pair of them headed for the secluded dark shed they'd sat once before. It offered privacy due to the general inaccessibility and distance from the rest area.

As he dug into the meal, Prauf already knew that Cal would ask him about his less than friendly conversation with Eddie earlier. Curiosity was one of Cal's traits, and was what made him a fast learner. Unfortunately for Prauf, satisfying the young man's curiosity would be going against what Eddie had very firmly told him not to do.

He noted, rather suddenly, that Cal's demeanour seemed off. The boy obviously looked nervous, Prauf observed, although he seemed to be trying to hide it. Unconsciously rubbing his palms together, his breath shallow but rapid… and nervous? Or was it fear?

"So," Cal said after a long time, "has Eddie been giving you a hard time?"

Prauf sensed genuine concern in his voice, but there was something else laced with it that he couldn't quite identify.

Waving away his worry, Prauf shrugged, "Not really. Eddie can just be a little pushy at times, but nothing I couldn't handle."

"What was it about, anyway?" Then adding hastily, "if you don't mind."

To be honest, Prauf really didn't mind. Firstly, Cal was not a talkative person by nature, which meant that it was unlikely that he would pass on the information to anyone else. Secondly, both of them have had conversations regarding bounty hunters and Jedi in the past, the latter already being a controversial topic to many, yet there was a consensus in both their views on the Jedi. Thirdly, and mainly, Prauf felt that the boy was trustworthy. Sure, while he had only started hanging out with him for a couple of weeks, Cal had proved to be a loyal friend. Prauf had learnt to trust his instincts when it came to strangers because they were usually right.

And even though these same 'instincts' were telling him now that Cal was hiding something, that feeling didn't warn him of any danger or malicious intent. The uneasy and restless movements the boy tried to hide was not a deception he should be worried about.

So without much hesitation Prauf asked, "how much of our conversation did you overhear?"

He was sure that Cal had picked up some of their exchange before he fell down from the rope. As far as Prauf was concerned, the kid never lost his balance or slipped on such things. That meant he must have lost his concentration and so startled that he lost his grip. Piecing two and two together, Prauf concluded that he must have heard what Eddie was talking about, even if he pretended like he hadn't eavesdropped.

"A bit." Cal admitted, "Eddie was showing you something on a holoscreen and he told you about his suspicion of Jedi on Bracca. He asked you to join him in search of them."

Ah, so he had been listening into their conversation, confirming an inkling suspicion he had earlier. Prauf could tell since the very first day he'd been introduced to Cal that the boy was cautious and weary of everyone he met. He kept to himself a lot, and as far as Prauf could see, he trusted no one. It was a smart move in a time and place like this, but was also a lonely way to live.

Suddenly abashed, Cal sounded apologetic when he quickly added, "I'm sorry. I couldn't help it at the time. It sounded like a private discussion and I should not have listened."

"It was," Prauf said, without any heat. "But I don't care if it's just you. Eddie might, though."

"Did you join him, then?" Cal asked, leaning in with interest.

"Does it matter?" Prauf said, lifting an eyebrow.

Cal gave a small smile and a shrug, though Prauf missed the fact that his smile never reached his eyes as he said lightly, "Not really. But I'm curious."

Prauf could feel Cal's penetrating dark green eyes on him searching for an answer, and raised his own to meet the gaze steadily.

Firmly, he said, "No. I didn't want to."

Cal still hadn't looked away, and Prauf was struck by the intensity the boy held, as though looking into his soul.

At long last, the redhead looked away, asking quietly, "why not?"

Prauf took a deep breath, "Because those Jedi that survived on that pod probably got enough on their hands keeping a low profile and hiding from the Empire and its inquisitors. Whatever mistakes their Order had made in the past affects not only us, but them too. They don't deserve additional torture from the Empire. To sell them out in exchange for a comfortable life just seems wrong."

Cal was silent, just listening to his words.

"You can't tell Eddie all of that, alright? He made me promise not to let anyone know of that recording. Probably thinks he got a real shot at some bounty," Prauf said.

"Yeah. Eddie could do a lot of damage if you get on his bad side." Cal said, then as an afterthought, "you didn't need to tell me though."

Agreeing, Prauf said, "I didn't need to, sure. But I trust you, Cal."

Startled by the sudden display of affection, Cal could only stutter, "I - I -"

"Kid," Prauf said, placing a hand on his shoulder gently, "I know living alone in Bracca's streets can make it very difficult to trust anyone. But it's also important to be able to freely speak to someone, just to let it all out. Maybe you don't know me well enough yet, or you're afraid of being judged. But if you need a friend to talk to, you can always come to me."

Cal gave a single nod, saying softly, "I know. I trust you too, Prauf."

There was no way Prauf could have seen what was to come.

He would understand in less than a month why Cal so desperately wanted to know his thoughts of the Jedi.

He would find out the reason behind the boy's distrust and cautiousness around strangers.

But Prauf would also realise just how much the bond they shared meant to Cal. So much so that he was willing to risk exposing the identity he'd fought so hard to remain hidden, in order to break his fall into the depths of the Maw.

Prauf could not have seen all of that, nor that he himself would make the choice to give up his life for a Jedi, which would be the root cause in setting off a series of events that set back the Empire and their inquisition.

- The End -

And there you have it! Hope you enjoyed this little three part titbit on how Prauf and Cal met in Bracca. Big thank you to the few who reviewed, faved and followed from the start. Feel free to throw in suggestions of other one-shots of your interest!