Where Missions Begin

Anakin held himself in the most perfect posture he could muster and tried to firmly hold calm around him like a shield. Jedi were always calm, so he would be calm now. He would. Because inside he was practically shouting for joy, bouncing in eagerness, and oh-so ready to get going.

Why?

Because he and Obi-Wan were before the Council.

Now normally, this would be a cause for irritation for Anakin, because over his years at the Temple, if he got called to the carpet in front of the Council, it was because of something he'd done wrong. It was never his fault! (Not entirely, anyway...) The Council had never really liked him and he knew that. But they were Jedi. They wouldn't let their dislike of him color any judgments of him.

But this time, he wasn't before the Council because of some mishap. Nope. He and Master Obi-Wan were here for their first mission. Their first mission together.

Anakin was thrilled.

He wanted desperately to impress the Council. To show them that they weren't wrong to allow him to train, to show his Master that he could do anything that was asked of him. Obi-Wan was always so patient and understanding (even if he did lecture non-stop and always had him meditating...) and sometimes he seemed like the only Jedi in the Temple that understood that Anakin hadn't been raised there and thus, needed different explanations for things that most Jedi took for granted. Anakin couldn't have asked for a better Master, but he knew that the Council didn't support Anakin's training. So Anakin tried not to make trouble for his master. He rarely succeeded, but he tried. And he was going to do this right so that everyone could see. See that he was more than just a special case that wasn't completely authorized. See that Obi-Wan was an excellent teacher and didn't need to be left in the lurch just because Anakin seemed to attract trouble.

So Anakin kept to the best posture and decorum he could.

"Welcome, young Obi-Wan and young Skywalker," Master Yoda greeted warmly.

"Masters," Obi-Wan bowed and Anakin mimicked him to perfection, saying nothing as a Padawan was not supposed to.

Master Windu leaned forward, arms on his knees, looking every bit as intimidating as he did when Anakin was first brought before the Council for testing. Anakin struggled briefly with his nervousness and tried to wrap calm around himself. Master Windu always made him so nervous...

"There has been a request for Jedi assistance on one of the AgriCorps worlds," Master Windu explained. "It seems that the Hutts are trying to make a claim on some of the mines. The Governor of the planet wishes for a Jedi to mediate the dispute, else lose the progress made in the past fifteen years."

Anakin was already envisioning himself beating down the Hutts and kicking their evil slime across the galaxy. If this was what Jedi missions were like, he was going to really enjoy being a Jedi.

"Of course, Masters." Obi-Wan bowed again. "Which world shall we be heading to?"

Master Windu answered, "Bandomeer."

Anakin had been in the middle of a nice image of himself squishing a random Hutt when a spike of something went through him so fast, he almost lost the perfect posture he was trying to hold on to. That feeling certainly hadn't been his. Anakin risked a glance at his master. But Obi-Wan was the perfectly calm Jedi, completely at peace with everything as he reached up and stroked his beard.

"Of course, Masters," he said again. "Having been there before, I believe I'll have great insight into this mission."

Wizard, Anakin thought. His master had been there before. He couldn't wait to ask for the details. Did Obi-Wan put the Hutts in their place last time or was it some other sort of adventure?

Along the bond, Obi-Wan gave an almost rueful smile. You've watched me prep for missions before, my young Padawan. Ready to do it for me this time?

Anakin had no problem sending back his eagerness. He may not be as adept with the bond as his master was, but since he'd made that realization about exactly what Obi-Wan was to him, he'd been finding it easier and easier to use it. He was hardly any good yet, but he was noticing his own progress and Anakin just knew that one day, he and his master would have the strongest bond that any Jedi had ever had before.

They were dismissed and Anakin stayed the proper distance behind his master and kept calm around him until they reached the lift. Then, his giddiness bubbled over and he was laughing in excitement. Finally! A mission! No more facing off with Ferus Olin in debate in class for at least a few weeks! Stars, no more classes for a few weeks! He'd have to catch up, granted, but he wouldn't be under the strict and suspicious noses of his teachers! Reprieve! Anakin was just oh-so happy!

"Pada-"

Anakin turned to his master with a broad, bright grin. "You do the research, Master. I'll book us passage, set up our supplies, contact my teachers and do all the small stuff. If I can't get a transport for today, we can go over the details of the mission tonight before we got to sleep. I want to know everything."

Obi-Wan gave a small quiet chuckle and reached out to ruffle his hair. "My eager, young Padawan, patience. Book our passage for tomorrow regardless. I need to look up a few things in the archives. It has been over a decade since I've been to Bandomeer and I need to research what might have changed in that time."

"Of course, Master!" Anakin agreed, all excitement and enthusiasm. "Is there anything else I can do for you?"

"Thank you, no." The doors opened and they stepped out. "You've put a lot on yourself to get done today, Anakin. You'd best get going. I'll meet you in the dining hall for dinner and then we can start going over the details."

Anakin nodded. "You sure you want food from there? I could slip out to Dex's, no problem and at least get a pastry or something to celebrate our first mission together."

Obi-Wan was looking away, lost in thought about something. "Together... yes." He blinked and looked at Anakin. His master gave a large grin and winked. "We will get our meal at the dining hall, I won't have time to cook tonight, but if you happen to arrive with something sweet for desert, I would not be adverse to it."

Anakin wanted to shout out a great cry of "Yes!" at the top of his lungs, but since they were in the halls and other Jedi were mingling about, he didn't dare. But he did give his own massive smile and gave Obi-Wan a brief hug before running off to start on the long list of things he knew he needed to get done.

It was several hours later, after turning in the last of the work that he'd already finished to his teachers, that Anakin took a small moment for a break. He'd been running around nonstop in his excitement, booking passage, getting any supplies they might need (and making sure he had a well stocked medkit... especially after the last mission Obi-Wan had come home from...), and of course, checking in with his teachers, getting the work he'd be missing out on, turning in the work he wouldn't be able to, the list went on and on.

Not that Anakin was annoyed by this. Oh, after several missions he'd probably be bored doing all of this kind of preparation, but for now, he did it because he could and because he was going. That was enough to make him very happy.

A quick glance out the tall windows showed that the sun was starting to set, so Anakin got moving again. He had just enough time to go down to Dex's Diner for the perfect pastry for desert (a favorite that both Obi-Wan and himself agreed on...) to cap off this absolutely wonderful day.

"Hmmm, young Skywalker. In such a rush today, are you?"

Anakin skidded to a halt, embarrassed to have been caught... not quite running, but certainly not maintaining the dignified pace of a Jedi. "M-Master Yoda," he quickly bowed in greeting.

The tiny, old Jedi Master was in his hoverchair, smiling gently. "Eager, you are, for this mission, hmmm?"

"Ah, um," Anakin's nerves seemed to completely overtake his previous joy. What to say, what to say... But Obi-Wan's voice, what was becoming the embodiment of his conscious, told him to answer honestly. "Yes, Master Yoda," he bowed again, hoping that he wasn't displeasing the old master with his inability to control his emotions.

Yoda gave a light-hearted chuckle. "Yes, eager you are. Very eager; like all young Padawan's on their first mission. No different, are you, hmmm?"

Anakin's nerves lessened, grateful that others were just as excited for their first missions as he was. They all probably just hid it better than him.

Yoda locked his eyes with Anakin's and Anakin suddenly felt the weight of the stare, much like when Obi-Wan was about to impart a piece of wisdom.

"An important lesson for you, on this mission there is."

Anakin only nodded.

"Look outside yourself, you must. Need you, your master will."

Anakin blinked. What did that mean? Was his master going to get into trouble? Would he be hurt or something? (Star's End, no!) What did that mean?

But Yoda seemed unaware of his conflict, and offered a takeout bag. "Meaning to get this, you were?" he said with a smile.

Anakin took the bag, already smelling the delicious pastry that he'd been planning to get, but that was secondary to the worry he was feeling over Obi-Wan.

"Thank you, Master Yoda," he mumbled, blindly turning and heading back to his quarters.

Behind him, Yoda smiled gently.

Just shy of his thirteenth birthday, Anakin realized that he had only seen a smattering of planets. Tatooine had been a yellow and brown ball, no color or life to define it. When the boy had watched it shrink away before entering hyperspace, the only thing that made his throat tighten in mourning of leaving the planet was the knowledge that his mother was still there, and it was the only thing on that rock that mattered. Coruscant was a lot of colors, mostly silver and reflective because of the buildings, with dots of yellow and gold that were lights. Naboo, when he'd gone to save Padme's planet, was the prettiest so far: blue and green with ever-changing patterns of white. Three planets was pretty pitiful, Anakin had decided, and such thoughts always made him more antsy for a mission, something to make him explore and discover - the Temple had fast been running out of mysteries.

So when he and Obi-Wan exited hyperspace he'd rushed to the view-port of their cabin to see what Bandomeer looked like. He was disappointed to see that it was mostly grey, with five patches of green scattered throughout the boring shades. He thought worlds would be prettier, like Naboo. Was it the only jewel in the galaxy? It undoubtedly was, if only because Padme was from it.

"Amazing," Obi-Wan murmured, looking out view-port with his Padawan. "They've made so much progress in fifteen years..."

Anakin frowned. "What do you mean?"

"The Agri-Corps," Obi-Wan supplied, leaning back in his seat. "Those green territories you see are Enrichment Zones. The planet has undergone so much strip-mining that the natural environment had all but died out. The local government, to try and restore it, contacted the Agricultural Corps. When I was there the Enrichment Zones had only been around for a few years and each one encompassed at most a few acres. To see that they've grown so much is astounding." The Jedi smiled slightly, his eyes looking at a memory. "I wonder how RonTha is doing. He loved talking about plants: seed growth and shaft width and sun-to-water ratios, germination cycles - oh, the germination cycles! - and ozone affects on the plants."

Anakin yawned. "Sounds boring," he commented.

"It wasn't, actually," Obi-Wan corrected lightly, a small smile on his face. "But unfortunately, RonTha had a way of making everything sound boring."

The Padawan shrugged, not particularly caring. "So what did you and Master Qui-Gon do down there?"

He was looking out the viewport, so he didn't see his master's face tighten slightly before answering. "A corporation called Offworld Mining was... causing trouble."

Anakin heard the pause and turned around, curious. Obi-Wan's face was completely closed off, however. The Padawan blinked and leaned forward. "So, did you beat up Hutts or something?"

Obi-Wan responded with a faint smile. "Or something," he said simply. "Master Qui-Gon handled most of the intrigue."

That... didn't make sense somehow, but not in a way that Anakin could put his finger on. He asked, "If he was handling all the intrigue, then what were you doing? I thought Padawans followed their Masters everywhere?"

If it was possible, Obi-Wan's face became even more closed off. "We had... separate assignments."

Anakin cocked his head to the side, and was about to press the matter, when an announcement came over the speakers: "We are now breaching the stratosphere; because of possible turbulence please buckle up. We are now breaching the stratosphere; because of possible turbulence please buckle up."

"Come, Padawan," Obi-Wan said, reaching up for the safety strap. "Buckle up. Our minds shouldn't be on the past but the present. Let us focus on the task at hand."

Anakin looked around in confused awe as he and Obi-Wan were led down the corridors of the Governor's Palace in a city called Bandor. Their guide was chattering on and on about something, but Anakin wasn't listening. This "Palace" felt oddly... humble. It had been built on a modest scale that attempted to be grand. Hallways were wide, but not overpowering, décor was pleasant, but not intimidating. In a way, the humble nature reminded Anakin of the Temple. He'd always thought that palaces were supposed to be elegant and grand, like Padme's. Even back on Tatooine, where a Hutt controlled any palace of any kind, had vast rooms and expensive artifacts.

"I see this Palace seems to have gotten some money since last I was here," Obi-Wan commented, reaching out and brushing a hand against a massive drapery. "I'd imagine the ionite has helped with that?"

"Oh yes!" their guide tittered. "Between the profits from the ionite and the azurite, and that the Enrichment Zones are providing a good source of food so that we don't have to import it from off-planet have given us the finances to really get things done!"

Obi-Wan gave a smile and Anakin thought he felt something briefly along the bond. But when he stopped to look, there was nothing there. The guide turned as they reached a set of doors and held out his hands, palms down in the Meerian departure. Obi-Wan and Anakin mimicked it and turned.

Obi-Wan glanced down at him. "Anakin. I know you seek adventure. When adventure happens, it will happen. But this is your first mission. For now, observe. Tonight I'd like to discuss what you've seen and your thoughts on the subject."

Anakin gave a small scowl. "Meaning nothing exciting's going to happen."

"On the contrary," his master replied cheerfully. "I happen to find your thoughts and impressions of things very exciting."

He couldn't help the bubble of happiness that rose within him. He took a deep breath and reached for the Jedi calm he'd held when they'd been assigned this mission. He wondered how long he'd be able to hold onto it and if he'd lose it before the end of their meeting with the Governor.

"Very good, my Padawan. Let's go."

They entered the room that, like the rest of the Palace, was modest yet pretty. To Anakin's surprise, there were cushions on the floor and with a small gesture from his master he took a seat next to him, across from the small Meerian who greeted them with her palms facing up.

Anakin jerked when the seats rose, bringing everyone to eye level. He liked the idea of always being on an even setting with everyone. But he didn't worry about that too much anymore. He no longer reached his master's waist, but was up near Obi-Wan's shoulder.

"Greetings, Jedi. I am SonTag, Governor of Bandomeer."

"Jedi Knight Obi-Wan Kenobi and my Padawan, Anakin Skywalker," Obi-Wan replied, placing a hand on Anakin's shoulder and squeezing it.

SonTag blinked, her brow furrowing briefly, before she smiled and set about business. "I would have liked to wait for the leader of the Home Planet Interests, but she seems to be running late. Shall we begin?"

"Of course."

Anakin set about holding his focus. He knew this was probably going to be very boring, but his master wanted his opinions, so he had better pay attention.

... Plus, Anakin couldn't forget Master Yoda's words. That Obi-Wan would need him.

"As you no doubt know, the Home Planet Interests runs all the mining on the land half of Bandomeer," SonTag explained. "The Hutts left behind after Offworld abandoned our planet have maintained control of the deep sea mines. The Hutts, over the years, have built ports along the coast, understandable since they need to export what they dig up. But the Hutts are getting greedy-"

What a surprise...

"-and want to claim a mine on the coast." SonTag frowned. "That goes against all agreements we've made in the past decade. And now there have been incidents of theft. Mining equipment, supplies are disappearing from coastal warehouses." She pinched the bridge of her nose. "I suspect the Hutts, but have no proof. They claim we're doing it to frame them."

Obi-Wan gave a slight grin. "I am familiar with the tactic."

SonTag nodded. "It is why we called for a Jedi. We need a neutral party."

The door burst open and a dark-haired woman with grey at the temples came in. "Sorry I'm late!" she exclaimed.

"Ah," SonTag greeted, palms up. "Clat'Ha. Glad you could make it."

"Sorry Son," the new woman greeted. "Always some last minute thing," she grumbled, taking a seat on a cushion. It rose so that she was at eye level with everyone. "Hello," she dipped her head and held her hands out, palms up. "I am Clat'Ha and I am in charge of Home Planet Interests."

"Both the native Meerians and the Arconans, if I'm correct?" Obi-Wan stated with a knowing grin.

"Yes," Clat'Ha nodded. She looked at his master. "We asked for Master Qui-Gon Jinn, did we not? He has the most knowledge as he helped take care of the Hutts and Offworld before."

That statement struck Anakin as very, very odd. Didn't they remember his master at all? Obi-Wan had come here before with Master Qui-Gon. Surely they would remember both master and Padawan? But Obi-Wan had said they were on different assignments.

... Just what did that mean?

"Ah," Obi-Wan sighed. Quietly, he said, "It seems you have not heard. Master Jinn joined the Force almost four years ago."

Anakin looked down briefly.

"I am Jedi Knight Obi-Wan Kenobi," his master introduced again, "and this is my Padaw-"

"Kenobi?" Clat'Ha interrupted. "Obi-Wan Kenobi?"

"Yes, and this is my Pad-"

Clat'Ha jumped of her seat, came over, and gave Anakin's master a fierce hug. "You knew Master Jinn personally. You helped him; you helped us on the transport here. I'm sorry for your loss."

"Aaah, thank you," Obi-Wan muttered gently, looking terribly awkward. Anakin smirked at that. Obi-Wan knew that hugs could save the world, but he wasn't yet comfortable with them in public yet, let alone from someone other than Anakin.

"Of course!" SonTag exclaimed. "You were the child that got kidnapped and dropped off as a slave at one of the deep sea mines. Master Jinn rescued you! That's why your name was familiar."

Anakin blinked, looking to Obi-Wan. Master? What happened when you were here last time? Because Anakin didn't think a Jedi would ever know what it was like to be a slave. Questions were lining up one after another in Anakin's head, all demanding to be answered right away, but he'd promised that he'd discuss things with his master that evening. With no other options, Anakin bit his cheek to keep his mouth shut.

Master? I'd like to know-

Not now, please. Tonight.

I'm holding you to that, Master.

There was a weak grin over the bond. I'd be surprised if you didn't.

"Back to the question at hand?"

Clat'Ha finally released him from her hug. "Yes. Those slugs." She returned to her seat, her green eyes flashing something. "It's just like when we were coming here." She stared at Obi-Wan, pausing. "I'm sorry, Master Jedi, I keep thinking of that scrawny, gangly kid when we were coming to Bandomeer. You turned out well."

Anakin couldn't hold back a laugh.

Obi-Wan gave a small huff. "I was in a growth spurt at the time," he defended himself. "Now, about the Hutts?"

"Yes," SonTag replied. "Issulla runs the Hutt mining operations. She was the one who negotiated the initial divide that we currently have. For almost a decade, she has shown no sign of wanting to change the profitable set up we have."

"Still a Hutt," Clat'Ha grumbled. "Got worse when Grondo showed up. Now he's complete slime, through and through."

Obi-Wan gave a small grin. "Worse than Jemba and Grelb?"

"Much."

"I doubt they're worse than Jabba," Anakin muttered.

Obi-Wan stole a glance at him, and Anakin dropped his head in apology.

The meeting continued from there, theorizing, planning and sharing information with Obi-Wan and Anakin both. Grondo seemed to be the most likely source of the trouble, since Issulla had stuck to the agreement for so long, but Clat'Ha distrusted Hutts on principal. Anakin agreed with this sentiment wholeheartedly. Obi-Wan and Anakin would go visit the Hutts the following day to get their side of the story and then start investigating the sites of the thefts.

"Obi-Wan?" Clat'Ha asked at the end of the meeting. "You've got an old friend in the Enrichment Zone's who'd love to see you."

His master gave another small smile. (Seriously. Why were all of his master's smiles small today?) "After lunch. Which Enrichment Zone?"

"I'll take you there myself."

Anakin wondered what friend his master was going to see.

Author's Note: Originally, this mission to Bandomeer was supposed to be one drabble. Thirty pages later and a lot still to go, we thought it needed to be broken up. We're not that happy with the title for this drabble and trying to find good area to break off as a drabble proved difficult. Most of this is set up for later in the Bandomeer mission and the "mystery" of Obi-Wan's "first" mission with Qui-Gon. Note that Obi-Wan hasn't been keeping that mission a secret from Anakin. More along the lines of it brings up some painful memories and Anakin respects the privacy of that. (Palpatine's influence, that every being has secrets that they don't want to share...) Also note that Anakin knows he'll have the strongest bond with Obi-Wan that the Jedi Order has ever seen. Much like he knows he'll marry Padme one day. ^_^ Foreshadowing much?

Next week (yes we're going weekly now): Obi-Wan meets an old friend and Anakin asks a lot of questions about Obi-Wan's first time on Bandomeer.