Chapter 4: Chess Ko, Pateesa (Careful, Friend)

"He seems like he keeps you on your toes."

Qui-Gon is helping Ben clean up the kitchen after their spare but satisfying meal. Ani had dragged Padmé off to another room after Ben suggested he show the girl the droid he is refurbishing. Ani was excited to show off for the pretty handmaiden, but Padmé had given them both an unamused look that told them that she was aware that Ben's suggestion was a ploy to get the children out of the room so the adults could talk.

Ben snorts, but grins. "He's getting better though. He's down to usually giving me only one or two heart attacks a day."

Qui-Gon smiles. He remembers with a pang of regret what it's like to raise a boy that age. "Really? I thought I counted at least four in our conversation over the meal alone."

"More like seventeen," Ben groans. "And I said usually, didn't I? There are days that are outliers."

Qui-Gon pauses a moment, watching Ben scrub the plate in his hand with sand. "Are you really all right with this plan? It's risky, in more ways than one, and Ani is taking on a significant portion of that."

"I know," Ben says, handing the plate over to him so he can run it under the sonic. "But sooner or later, probably sooner, Watto is going to make Ani race again. He's too greedy not to. At least this way we can control some of the circumstances. Hopefully give Ani a fighting chance." He glances at Qui-Gon. "And it's probably better that he race with Jedi supervision."

Qui-Gon nods. Ben's reasons for doing this are quite rational. They belie what the man must feel about putting his son in danger. Qui-Gon finds though, that he is having difficulty perceiving through the Force what exactly Ben is feeling. His shields seem to be strong, and Qui-Gon isn't about to press. But it does bring up a question he's had ever since he felt Ani reaching out to him in the Force.

"You've met Jedi before, haven't you?" he asks Ben. The man tenses, but nods. "Was it a Jedi who trained you and Anakin?"

Ben's hands clench on the spoon he's scrubbing. He gives Qui-Gon a wary look. Qui-Gon just looks steadily back, keeping himself open in the Force so that Ben can sense he means no ill will. "The way you use the Force when you fight echoes teachings of the Jedi arts. And Ani's and your Force presences are more disciplined than I would expect of someone untrained."

Ben raises an eyebrow, a smile tugging up the corner of his lips. "Ani? Disciplined?"

Qui-Gon smiles as well. "He's young. He's doing well for a beginner. With more training I'm sure he could develop further."

"I trained Anakin," Ben finally admits. "There was no other who could."

"And you? Was it a Jedi who trained you?"

Ben turns away from him. "Might've been," he mutters. He stalks off to put away the handful of clean utensils. Qui-Gon lets out the breath he was holding and decides to back down. It's clear that Ben doesn't trust him yet, and since Ben has only known him for about an hour, that's probably fair.

"So what's the plan after the storm passes?" Ben asks, returning with a brush that he begins using to sweep the floor. The brush is short, and Ben has to bend at the waist to use it, which causes him to wince again. Qui-Gon jerks the brush out of his hand with the Force and takes over the task of sweeping himself. Ben doesn't need to aggravate his injuries any further. Ben raises an eyebrow at him, but doesn't comment, just goes to put away the rest of the clean dishes.

"First I'll go to Watto to convince him to let Ani race 'my' pod and make an agreement about the winnings."

"He's going to want you to pay the entry fee."

"I can, with the winnings from the arena."

Ben shakes his head. "You'll need to use the winnings to finish that pod. Ani did a great job on it, but it needs a few final touches. Better power converters for one. A paint job. You should try to get Watto to pay the entry fee."

It's a good suggestion, and it sparks another idea from Qui-Gon to maneuver Watto into a bet involving their ship. Ben agrees and helps with refining the plot so that it will appeal to Watto's avarice and gambling addiction. Then Ben calls Anakin back in and sets him to making a shopping list with R2 of everything he needs to finish the pod. Padmé comes with him and surreptitiously adds food and water to replace what they ate to the list, and Qui-Gon makes a note to buy bacta and bandages as well. They lay their plans, and by the time the storm has blown itself out, they are ready.

Ani runs off to Watto's while the other three stop at the betting office to pick up their winnings. Qui-Gon gives most of the money to Ben, who takes Padmé and R2 to start picking up the things they need. Qui-Gon joins Ani at Watto's shop. The ploy works perfectly, Watto takes the bait, and they're all set to race tomorrow, so Anakin and Qui-Gon head off to help with the shopping.

Anakin manages to direct them straight to Ben in the busy streets as though he's following a homing beacon, and Qui-Gon realizes that the reason is because the boy has an unusually strong Force bond with his father. Qui-Gon wonders why he hadn't thought of that before; Ben raised and trained Ani and is Force-sensitive as well—it would be more surprising if they didn't have a bond. He remembers how Ben made his way to the house earlier, even though the sandstorm was in full swing and visibility close to zero by the time he arrived. Qui-Gon wonders if Ben wasn't using the Force and his connection to Ani to navigate home.

Qui-Gon also wonders if Ben's powers of Force suggestion are particularly advanced after he sees the young man in action bartering for the things they need. He seems to know every shop in Mos Espa, exactly which place will sell what they need, which trader will gouge them and which one can be convinced to let their wares go for less if Ben calls in a favor. He calls every shop owner by name, knows which of them will be charmed by a dimpled smile and small talk and which will only respond to direct dealing, and bargains with each of them so effectively that he frequently manages to beat their cost down to half the asking price. Qui-Gon is one of the most experienced negotiators of the Knights Consular in the Jedi Order, and he has to admit he's impressed.

This is to say nothing of the number of beings that seem to know Ben personally. Throughout the afternoon, there are many that acknowledge him in some way, whether it is just a nod, or clasping his hand or arm in a friendly gesture. Qui-Gon turns around once to catch sight of an elderly woman embracing Ben and kissing him on both cheeks. She presses a few small fruits into his hand before patting a grinning Anakin on the head and departing. It eventually dawns on Qui-Gon that these people are also enslaved, and that they are expressing their relief that Ben, a member of their community, is alive and well after his battle this morning.

Padmé asks Ani what color he wants to paint his pod, and he blushes and asks for blue. Qui-Gon eyes the blue tunic Padmé is wearing. He leans towards Ben and says quietly, amused, "I think your son might have a little infatuation."

Ben glances at him, eyebrow raised. "Yes, but only a little one." He nods at Anakin, who is now walking next to R2, hand on the droid's blue dome as he chatters away to it. "Honestly, at this point in his life, I think Anakin is more interested in her droid than he is in her," he says, voice rich with suppressed laughter. Qui-Gon chuckles.

The afternoon and evening are spent in the slave quarter of Mos Espa, preparing for what is to come. Ani and Ben, with R2's help, tune up the pod, while Padmé and the unfinished protocol droid C-3PO start designing a flag. Some of Ani's young friends drop by as well, and one boy even stays to help Padmé with the flag. Qui-Gon buffs and primes the pod's exterior for paint and watches the father and son team work.

Qui-Gon realizes that Anakin isn't just Force-sensitive. He truly is a prodigy, and though he has had training, most of it is raw talent. He uses the Force instinctively to map the pod's engines and systems, find what's wrong, and tune it to precisely what he wants. Though he is not as strong in the Force as his son, Ben is a stabilizing influence on Ani's near complete immersion in the Force, helping to focus and ground the boy through their bond. They work seamlessly, handing each other tools and lending each other a hand without needing to communicate outwardly.

Their partnership is beautiful, so strong in the Force. Qui-Gon laments the fact that they were not born in the Republic, where they might have been identified early and brought to the Temple. Of course, if Ben had been found as a youngling, Anakin probably never would have been born…

Qui-Gon wants to help Ani, Ben too if he can. They could be so much more if they were free. Ben is too old now to be a Padawan, but perhaps he could join one of the Service Corps. Ani is older than younglings typically brought to the Temple, but Qui-Gon is sure that he could convince the Council to admit him. And if not, he could claim the boy as his own Padawan. He'd rather not claim the boy himself, not after the kind of experiences he's had with apprentices, but if it came down to it, he would do it to bring Anakin into the Jedi Order.

The four of them and the two droids work until after dark falls, then they retire to the house for latemeal. Padmé had insisted on buying some bantha meat and vegetables, which have been simmering in a stew over a solar-powered hot plate for most of the afternoon. It's hardly a banquet, but Anakin is delighted; apparently he and Ben almost never eat meat or fresh vegetables as they're far too expensive. Ben's face flushes a little when Ani says this, as though he is embarrassed. Qui-Gon wants to reassure him that he is doing as well as he possibly can for his son and has no reason to be ashamed, but it's not his place.

When the kitchen is clean again and Ben has gone to clean up, Qui-Gon takes Padmé aside and hands her the small tube of bacta gel he acquired while out looking for parts. "I would appreciate it if you would offer this to our host," he tells her.

"I would be happy to, but is there a reason it has to come from me?"

Qui-Gon folds his hands under his poncho. "I think it would be better received coming from you than me."

Padmé nods slowly. "He does seem pretty tense around you. Why is that?"

Qui-Gon hesitates, wondering how much he should reveal to her. She seems to really care for Ani and his father, so he decides he can tell her enough of the situation. "Ben and his son are Force-sensitive, powerfully so." He watches the girl's eyes grow wide at the revelation. "Ben knows that, as a Jedi, I can sense what they have successfully hidden so far. If I were to let slip what I know, they could be exploited for their abilities by their owner. Also, he may believe the rumor that Jedi steal children, and is afraid that I will take Anakin from him."

Padmé's eyes narrow. "Oh, so you don't plan to snatch up Ani the first chance you get and take him with you?"

The girl's accusation pulls him up short. Had he been so obvious in his interest in the boy? Qui-Gon searches his feelings and realizes that he has indeed thought much about how to free Anakin and bring him into the Order. He realizes for the first time that if he does this, father and son will have to let go of the special bond they have that he had so admired. Is this what would be best for little Ani?

Padmé crosses her arms, and Qui-Gon realizes that he hasn't responded to her question. His silence, though, is answer enough for her. "I guess I can see why Ben's nervous about you, Master Jedi," she says, and walks away, leaving Qui-Gon to ponder this new development.

"Why do Jinn's plans always involve so much gambling? It can't be healthy."

"Guided by the Living Force, Master Qui-Gon has been. Though impulsive it may seem, unhealthy it is not, to follow his intuition."

"I meant that it can't be healthy for me, always having to spin his ridiculous antics into something acceptable to the Senate. I'm already on the strongest dose of headache medication the healers will allow, you know."

"Relax you should, Mace. Well all is that ends well."

"I'm not sure whether to blame you or his master for this behavior. Though come to think of it, I can't really picture Yan Dooku stooping to using sabacc to get what he wants."

"An excellent sabacc face I have. My prerogative it is to pass on to my grand-Padawans this skill."

"I'm beginning to think that perhaps I dodged a blaster discharge when Master Jinn refused to take me on."

"Yeah, right out of a Sullust volcano and into a lava flow. At least you would have had to participate in a lot fewer fights to the death as Jinn's Padawan. Probably. Maybe."

"What a resounding endorsement of Master Jinn's teaching methods."

"You were an arena fighter, right? I've heard arena fights are not necessarily always to the death, only that there is always a risk of death. Not that that isn't bad enough."

"It depends on the arena and the fight. Usually the fight goes until one side yields, sometimes until first blood. There's always the chance that the arbiter of the games will call for the death of the losing party, though that's less common than people think. Executions are always to the death, of course. I didn't do much fighting against sentients after I turned sixteen though. At Gardulla's, they started training me to fight beasts, which I eventually specialized in. Beast fights are different—animals don't abide by the rules; they'll do whatever they can to defend themselves from an attacker, including kill."

"I'm sorry, you didn't have many fights against sentients after you were sixteen? Implying that you did fight sentients in arena games before you were sixteen?"

"Well, not very many in the arena, no. I was fighting in the pits before that, which is where most of my experience fighting other sentients comes from."

"…I sense that I'm not going to like the answer to this question, but what is the difference between the pits and the arena?"

"Well, pit fighting is more dangerous and…brutal. The pits don't really have rules of engagement. Including the rule about not continuing the fight after one person yields. Anything goes really, so it's not surprising there are significantly more deaths and maimings."

"And you were fighting in these pits at the age of fifteen?"

"Fourteen, actually."

"Fourteen!"

"There are also no age restrictions in the pits."

"Why would anyone, even a slaver, put a fourteen-year-old in a pit fight?"

"In my case, the first time was…punishment, and an intended execution. I had tried to escape from the spice smugglers that owned me at the time, but was caught. They wanted to make an example of me and wanted me to suffer. Shooting me outright was too clean for their purposes, and entering me in the pits had the added benefit of offering a way to recoup some of their losses sustained from disposing of a runaway slave."

"Since you're sitting here with us, it seems safe to say that didn't quite work out like they intended."

"Not quite. I survived the fighting that first night, and in doing so garnered the notice of a promoter, who made an offer to the smugglers for my purchase. So began my career as a pit fighter. I spent several months traveling around the Outer Rim circuit and my ownership changed hands a few times until Tatooine. My owner at the time managed to convince the person in charge of acquisitions for Gardulla the Hutt to buy and train me for the arena. I was lucky—not many slaves make the transition from the pits to the arena."

"I think your definition of 'lucky' may be different from mine."

"More than likely. On Tatooine, we say you're 'Tatooine lucky' if you end up with a slightly less terrible outcome than the worst possible thing that could happen."

"So basically, 'lucky' in the sense that 'it could be worse'?"

"Exactly. Helps keep us looking on the bright side."

"I suppose that's one way to look at it."

"Hmm. Again, lucky, you say you are. Believe in luck, do you? Or the will of the Force?"

"I think perhaps I believe in both, Master Yoda. I have always believed in the will of the Force, but my faith does not make it easier to understand what that will is, nor to follow it. Most of the time it feels like I stumbled upon the right path more by accident than design."

"Unless by design, the accident was. Considered, have you, that stumbles, always missteps they are not?"

"So…it's the will of the Force that I stumble? …Or accidents are the will of the Force?"

"I call bantha poodoo on this one, Master Yoda."

"Mysterious are the ways of the Force."

"Not this again."

"Did you say that just to annoy Master Windu?"

"Mmm. Very mysterious."

Ooooo, looks like Qui-Gon didn't recognize Obi-Wan! But will he figure it out? Nobody tell him, let's see how long it takes. I'm taking bets for the pool.

If you still want to know what happened to Shmi, you'll have to be patient for one more week. In the meantime, I will be more than pleased to hear any theories you have. :D

ln(^_^)

Edit: So, I was mostly kidding when I said that I was starting a pool, but someone has already placed a bet, so I've decided it's going to be a thing. That's right, we're making a thing! The prize for winning the pool will be one (1) drabble written by me of a "missing scene" from this AU, winner's choice, to be delivered after the completion of this fic.

To Enter: Comment (or PM me) on this chapter or the next which chapter of this fic you think Qui-Gon will figure out that Ben is Obi-Wan (e.g. Chapter 7). I will give you until I post Chapter 6 to place your bet, which will be 2 weeks from now. Therefore Chapters 6 through 15 will be valid bets.

May the Force be with you!