Chapter 13: Questions of Care

"Should we really be doing this?"

"Shhh!"

Anakin scowled at her, not happy with being ignored. She knew he would rather be in the cockpit asking thousands of questions to the pilots, but he didn't have to follow her if he didn't want to.

His moral compass was also a bit straighter than hers, and eavesdropping on a Jedi was not in his list of things to do, unfortunately. Without her, he would've missed out on the opportunity, trying to be good and polite to make a good impression.

Ears pressed to the door, she could just make out the voices of Qui-Gon and someone else from his comlink while Anakin broodily kept watch.

"Going back to Naboo? This is dangerous, not only for the queen, but for everyone going with her. If this blockade is as serious as you imply, Qui-Gon, she should come to Coruscant and ask for help from the senate."

"That was the plan, until the Queen ordered for the ship to turn back to her home planet. I'm not sure what made her change her mind, but from the very start she was reluctant to leave her people, so I can't say I'm surprised by this turn of event. Asking for help would be leaving her planet under occupation longer."

"Does she even have a plan? There is little her military can do under the Trade Federation's occupation." The voice on the other side of the communicator sounded sceptical.

"I believe she means to plead for help from the Gungans, and if we are willing, my apprentice and I could participate in the fight along with the few fighters she has as her entourage."

There was a pause in the conversation. By the way Anakin slowly approached the door, still looking out so they don't get caught; he was finally interested in what was being said, too.

"Should this turn into a war, I strongly advise you to keep your distance. The Jedi cannot be accomplices in the creation of this type of conflict."

"But we can try and diffuse the situation as much as we can, so it does not come to war. Trust me Mace; I believe the outcome will be more favourable with our aid than without."

A sigh could be heard coming from the now identified Jedi Master. "Alright. When all is done, you'll have much to discuss with the council. What about this being you fought? Do you believe you will encounter him again?"

"It is possible. If it is the case, I'll see if I can discover more about him, and his origins."

"Do so. I highly doubt the Sith could have come back without our knowledge like you implied, but a Force sensitive this strong in the Dark side of the Force is still concerning. As for the… convergence you speak of. Bring them to us, the council will see for themselves if they might have something to do with the prophecy or the anomaly. May the Force be with you."

"And with you."

With that, the conversation ended and footsteps could be heard heading toward the door they were leaning on, as well as Obi-Wan's voice asking his master 'What now?' Zarya and Anakin quickly scrambled to get away without having to prompt the other, walking as fast and quietly as possible to the small cafeteria a few doors farther. They were out of view before the Jedi opened the door.

(( ))

Only when they were seated with a tray of food each did Anakin lose his tension, exhaling loudly.

"I can't believe we just spied on Qui-Gon!"

Zarya gazed amusedly at him. "Can't you?"

"Rephrase: I can't believe you made me spy on Qui-Gon," he deadpanned. Then, he grew agitated again. "How are you so calm about this?"

"It's not like he would have punished us, or at least I don't think so." She shrugged, picking what looked like bread from her tray and taking a bite. "Plus, I want to know what will happen to us. Don't you?"

"Well, yeah." He shifted uncomfortably on his seat. "We could just ask him, you know."

"He would've dumbed it down, or told us he'll take care of everything so we shouldn't worry."

"I trust him to take care of us. And we didn't hear anythin' about us anyway."

"Yeah we did. We are going to Naboo with them, so now we know there'll be a fight. And they spoke of a convergence or something."

Confusion flooded the bound from both sides. "You mean when he said 'prophecy' and 'anomaly'?" Anakin asked. She nodded. "What did he mean by that?"

She was about to answer when a third tray appeared abruptly in front of them, making them both jump in surprise.

"He meant none of you concern, that's what." Obi-Wan said, taking a seat facing them both looking unimpressesd. "Now what was that about spying?"

"Nothing!" They both answered too quickly.

He lifted an eyebrow, amused at their panicked, synchronized response.

"We didn't mean to!" Anakin continued.

"I did." Zarya corrected. Ani poked her mentally, reproachful. "What? No one is telling us anything, so I looked for answers myself."

Obi-Wan observed her carefully. Then, he tilted his head, looking pensive. Zarya was tempted to look inside his head to know what he was thinking about, but just like Qui-Gon, his mind was quiet to her. Quieter than Qui-Gon's, even. He suddenly nodded to himself, and looked at them both seriously.

"My master believes you two might be a dyad in the Force, something extremely rare as well as dangerous. He also believes you might be the ones to bring balance to the Force, something from an old prophecy we have, or you might be the source of a weird event in the Force we continue to simply call the anomaly." With that, he nodded again and simply turned to his food, ignoring the children's confusion.

…What's a dyad?

They think it's dangerous?

There's a prophecy about US?

What's the anomaly?

Their thoughts came and went from one to the other rapidly, trying to make sense of what the padawan just dropped on them. While Zarya knew about the prophecy and a little bit of what a dyad was, she didn't know how to explain them, not really. She knew even less how to explain where her knowledge came from without appearing crazy.

"You're suddenly quieter than I've ever seen you both since the day we met."

No shit, she almost quipped back.

"Wanna explain any of what you said?" she asked instead.

"They won't want to train us, will they."

It was said as a statement, surprising both Zarya and Obi-Wan at how quietly it was said by the boy.

Anakin didn't understand much of what was being said, but what he did know, was that he trusted Zarya. And among all that she was projecting to him, mostly unwillingly, her doubt was at the forefront.

All this time, since the Jedi found them, she had gone with the flow, following Anakin and feeding off his excitement and endless optimism. But just as much as he was a guiding light to her, she was a rock to him, solid, unwavering and constant. Now that there was so much she didn't know—

What did he mean by dangerous? Do all Jedi see dyads like that? Do they have no chance at all at being trained by them?

What's the anomaly?

—Needless to say, she felt a lot more unstable right now. And Anakin felt her doubt as strongly as she did.

To her continued surprise at the turn the conversation was taking, Obi-Wan's eyes softened when faced with the defeated air surrounding Anakin.

"I can't say for certain, but I do know Qui-Gon won't back down either. He feels very strongly about training you both and he tends to be stubborn when he's made up his mind."

That seemed to rekindle Anakin's optimism, if only a little bit. She knew he would bounce back with time. He always did.

But why did Obi-Wan care? She distinctly remembered comments about 'pathetic life-forms' and the like.

"How do you feel about this?" Zarya inquired, observing him closely.

The young man blinked, as if he was not expecting the question.

"I'm not sure. I guess… I guess I'm still uncertain of what I think about all this. Only time will reveal what would be best, for everyone involved."

She wasn't surprised by his answer, but she was surprised that she believed him. He should've been vague only to avoid the question, to hide his disapproval, not because he truly was uncertain. Wasn't he completely against training Anakin at first? What did she change? Nothing, as far as Obi-Wan was concerned.

So why was he acting so different?

"And Zarya?" She jumped when he spoke again, meeting his eyes which still shone with honesty. "I don't know why you've had to spy on people before, and I won't ask if you don't want to tell me. But trust me when I say that you don't need to do that kind of thing anymore. We'll take care of you from now on."

She could only nod bemusedly. Anakin felt happy at that.

(( ))

Naboo was a welcomed change from the grey walls of the ship. Being back in a familiar (unfamiliar) environment did wonders for her mood (bittersweet). She looked at all the greenery as much as Anakin, trying to memorize every shape and shades of every plant around, while he was swivelling his head in every direction, trying to see everything at the same time.

At any other time, she would have been amused at his quiet awe, the way he reached as if to touch the long grass, the rough bark of the trees and the fluttering leaves surrounding them before hesitating, unsure if he should. But even the sight (and the feel) of all this life, so delicate and beautiful compared to the harshness of Tatooine, could barely hold her attention as she mindlessly followed the mismatched group in their trek towards the Gungan's sacred place.

She knew, from the moment she felt a connection to Anakin, that no one in this universe was simply a character anymore. They were not only truly and wholly alive; they made choices every day, unaware and uncaring of a movie script from another universe. Things were different, not only their faces (not the actors she knew, similar yet different), but their choices too.

This scared her. The butterfly effect, wasn't it what it was called? A small fluttering of a butterfly's wings sending ripples in the air, causing a tsunami farther away. And she was that butterfly now, clumsily flying around, influencing people in small ways for now, but who knows where, or what, the tsunami will be.

Anakin was changing the most, clinging to her and their connection like a stubborn koala. Obviously, this was a huge differnece in itself, since he wasn't alone with strangers off to an uncertain life; he had her by his side, and his mother could soon be free. He wasn't as scared as he could have been.

Obi-Wan wasn't as easily explained, though. There was too much unknown, was it because of the dyad thing, if it was even what was happening between the two children? Because there was supposedly not one, but two chosen ones now?

Because of that anomaly?

"Hey." Anakin whispered, nudging her. "You okay?"

She nodded. It did little to deter his concern, since, you know. He could feel her distress.

"Obi-Wan said that he and Qui-Gon will be taking care of us, remember? I know you won't tell me a lot about what's on your mind most of the time, but maybe you could tell them? I'm sure they can help you, they're Jedi."

His sad, yet hopeful comment slammed into her like a punch in the guts.

Here she was, constantly worrying about herself and Anakin, yet she hadn't realized how worried he was about her. He felt, and even heard her internal conflicts all the time, was upset she wouldn't share her burden with him like he did with her, and offered another source of help since she wouldn't accept his own.

You don't need to do that kind of thing anymore. We'll take care of you from now on.

They were going to be taken care of, in a way that Shmi couldn't as a slave.

Zarya understood now why she gave up her only child, her only source of joy so easily.

They were far from out of the water. But they were safe, and they could simply be children now.

I'm not going to trust strangers over my own brother with this, Ani.

But you don't trust me with this. I only wanna help.

In that moment, she made the same decision the Queen of Naboo was making right now, marching until she was standing in front of the Gungan, her entourage behind her and her people's life in her hands. In the face of the current conflict currently hurting her people, she put their fate, and her own, in the hands of someone who had the capability of helping them.

And so Zarya made the same decision, to trust someone else with her and Anakin's fates, because whether she wanted to admit it or not, she desperately needed help.

And so as everyone got on their knees to plead the leader of the Gungans for his help, (Anakin's shock at Padmé being the real Queen amused her, she would definitely tease him about it later) she too, let go of her tight grip.

When we get the time, I'll show you everything you want to know. I promise.

Anakin was smiling bigger than anyone else when the friendship between the Gungans and the Naboo people was established.

(( ))

The plan, as far as she could tell, was very similar to what happened in the movie. The Gungan army would provide a distraction out of the city to lure out a good number of droids, leaving the palace more vulnerable. This would give the queen and her guards the chance to enter it and capture the viceroy, as well as allowing the pilots to reach their ships so they can go and destroy the blockade.

Why they thought the safest place for two children to be was by their side in this operation, she didn't know. Probably safer than alone in the ship or something, but still.

Obi-Wan seemed tense.

He was acting kind of weird, stealing glances at both his master, Anakin and her every so often as they sneaked in the city towards the palace. He was also acting with Anakin how Zarya would have expected Qui-Gon to act, putting a hand on his shoulder when he was near and making sure he, and she, weren't straying from their side. He didn't go out of his way as much for her, unless she was near Anakin. The latest seemed to share this out of place familiarity, going to him when he had questions or wanted reassurance more often than he did the older Jedi.

Even Qui-Gon seemed to find his padawan's behaviour out of character, looking at him worriedly. He seemed to communicate a bit telepathically with him too, since both Jedi sometimes shared vague gestures with each other, as people sometimes do when they talk.

Nonetheless, all this didn't change the fact that everything was going in a predictable direction, and Zarya couldn't help but wonder how she could change that fact. Not much she could do at her age though, and she had just accepted that fact, she wasn't going to spiral into her usual vicious circle of worry again.

A few minutes later, with more close calls at being detected than she was comfortable with, Padmé flashed a light, signalling to the captain on the other side of the court that they were in position. Qui-gon crouched in front of the children, taking them each by a shoulder and looking at them seriously.

"Once we get inside, you two find a place to hide and stay there, alright?"

"Okay." She had no plan of getting in the crossfire anyway.

"Sure." Anakin was, for some reason, a lot less committed to safety than her.

"You stay there." Qui-Gon repeated, pointing at Anakin specifically before rising, preparing for the battle that was coming.

Before she knew it, an explosion triggered the fight, blaster fire shooting from everywhere and forcing them to duck as they ran to the palace so they didn't get hit as those with blasters returned the fire in kind. The Jedi blocked the lasers straying near them with their lightsabers as they followed Padmé closely, Zarya and Anakin hot on their heels, holding hands to avoid being separated.

The doors opened to a hangar that was also guarded by droids, which quickly fired at them as they entered.

"Ani, Zarya, find cover!"

"Get to your ships!"

More people were coming in the hangar, dispersing to reach the ships or destroy the droids respectively as she crouched behind metal crates near the wall, still holding Anakin's hand tightly.

Maybe he won't get in a ship this time if I don't let him.

It was chaos, the engines of spaceships starting loudly before taking off, people dodging them and blaster fire at the same time, some falling to the ground after being shot and oh god she could feel them slipping away, they were dead and she felt it.

Her moment of inattention cost her, since as she looked for Anakin, trying to see if he felt that too, he was gone, somehow managing to free himself from her grip.

That idiot was scaling the stairs to a cockpit and how was R2 there again, what the hell?!

A ship could be heard whistling in the wind as it fell from the sky and finally crashed to the far away ground. She tried to get to his side, but a stray shot flying right over her head made her crouch back in her hiding place.

Get out of that ship, Anakin!

Its fine, I thought I could give them a hand but the fight is finished anyway, look!

Just like he said, most ships had taken off and the last few droids were being shot down, the place becoming more and more quiet.

Still, get out of there before you do something stupid!

He sent her what she could only translate as a mental eye roll. The brat.

"My guess is the viceroy is in the throne room." Padmé was saying.

"Red group! Blue group! Everybody this way!"

Her captain guided everyone to a big door opposite of where the ships left, the groups hurrying to the next step of the plan.

"Hey, what about us?" cried Anakin.

"Stay where you are. You'll be safe here," Qui-Gon told him. He looked around for a second. "Zarya?"

"Over here!"

She finally left her small corner behind the crate showing that she was safe.

"You two look after each other until we come to get you."

"But—"

"Stay in that cockpit, Ani."

Or not, that would be smarter.

Zarya was about to go get him out of there herself before he could fly away without her—

Until the large doors slid open, revealing the red and black Zabrak waiting for them.

(

I know! I know everything seems to be the same for now, but they won't be for long.

I saw no way to change the invasion, and had no desire to either. The plan works and a seven year old can't do much anyways when it comes to battle plans and gun fights.

But Zarya is far from useless; a simple nudge here and there can change a lot of things… spoilers!

Whit the small changes she's already made, what consequences do you think could happen in the long run?

Thanks to angelacorus, thatfanboi, .gamer, That's Balderdash, MsPotato and svpatil20000 for leaving a review!

Until next time!

-Maginary

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