Parental Duties
By Rey
Chapter summary: Jon is haunted and confused, but one thing is clear.
11. Jon: The Trials
Most of everyone are hunting for fresh meat safe to eat and skin for later use, or gathering nearby plants safe for consumption or to act as sleep mats. Jon is supposed to be inside their shelter, meanwhile, with the littlest children and one of the adults named Boba.
Three of the four littlest children are very uncooperative, however. Jon cannot let up his attention for even a moment, let alone leave them be to meditate on this unexpected circumstance he has found himself in. The brats have nearly escaped the shelter thrice, as it is! Especially the littlest one in body and maturity named Grogu. And, in each instance, they are learning to evade him better.
Worse, Boba only watches on. With palpable amusement. Even when Jon asks – begs – for his assistance.
"You're doing good, kid," is what Boba says now, when Jon pleads for his assistance even as the younger male has to scramble across the uneven, crowded expanse of wooden panels that make up the floor of their shelter, chasing after Rey and Ezra, who are in turn chasing after Grogu.
Dark Woman never tauht him this: How to deal with a child, let alone multiple children, in a relatively peaceful setting and for an extended period.
But then again, some part of Jon would vastly prefer this inadequacy. There is no bitter or dark memory related to this. There is no ghost of her voice barking at him impatiently or sighing at him with disappointment even when he is injured and in pain. There is only the honest mistakes of a first-time learner learning by oneself. And Boba, the only available mentor he has in this topic at this time, is practically a total stranger that has no emotional or mental tie to him whatsoever.
But still!
"Hey! Can't you go meditate or something?"
His hands struggle to scruff Ezra and Rey without choking them or letting them go while the rest of him tries to cage Grogu in, with ample help of the Force.
And, on that remark, Ezra freezes, twisting back and looking up at Jon, flabbergasted and bewildered. "Medi-what?"
Jon is taken aback. He even nearly lets the trio of troublemakers go.
"Me-di-ta-ting," he spells out, equally flabbergasted and bewildered.
`The kids came with a few other Jedi – discounting the pilots of those fighters! And they're all Force-sensitives in the first place! How don't they know anything about meditating? Or are those 'Jedi' not Jedi – just stole some padawan clothes?`
The last option is wholely unpleasant. But the Outer Rim knows to repurpose, reuse and recycle everything that can be repurposed, reused or recycled. The clothes and other belongings of a dead Jedi padawan are just one example of such, which have popped up from time to time even just in Jon's own vicinity. Children wearing such things are not automatically responsible for the deaths of those padawans, too. Scavanging is not an alien occupation in poor and oppressed worlds and peoples from Wild Space to even the Inner Rim, after all.
`What a complication!` he whinges, inwardly, plaintively, even as he ushers the trio back to Boba, back to the fourth child whose name is a string of numbers.
Well, he has to admit that this is also an unexpected mystery that he is eager to explore and solve. But, compared to the hassle, compared to the fact that he is now far, far away from any help of the Jedi kind, compared to the Jedi-less expanse of the dimmer, darker shade of the Force wherever – and whenever – he is now…?
`I can't even be sure that this is not some trap in the Sith temple and the little-kid's voice inviting me here – Grogu's? someone like him? – was just the lure.`
Well, mercifully, Boba at long last takes hold of Ezra and Rey. He even ties them together and to him, after they have been situated at his side. He takes custody of Grogu, too, and stuffs the wily, slippery, tiny green toddler into a sachel placed on his lap, from which the child's grumpy face peeks out.
Jon has to entertain CT-100-4141 elsewhere and show the latter useful skills, in exchange, but this is a good bargain… right?
No, wrong.
It starts right as the child trots after him to the doorway of their shelter, when the very young voice asks in a mixture of nervousness and excitement, "Where are we going, Commander? Are we scouting? Do you have a blaster I can use? My blaster is… not here. I'm so sorry. I heard the voice and came here – I mean, to the planet we were on, before we came here – and I didn't bring any of my kit."
`Oh, Force! Blaster? Scouting? Kit? He's a child soldier on top of everything!`
Jon has no real name. "Jon Antilles" was jotted down when he needed a name the first time, when Dark Woman ordered him to become a bounty hunter to save ancient manuscripts of the Jedaii from the bounty's collection. But he likes "Commander" even less. So he introduces himself as "Jon Antilles, Jedi knight on trial" as they leave the shelter and, overriding the child's persistence of using that, proceeds to instruct the latter to be silent and perceive through the Force for possible dangers and safe paths.
He never thought he would ever take anybody as his padawan. Dark Woman has rather thoroughly cured him of such notion long ago, especially after the bounty-hunting stint. But now he finds himself instructing a child.
And the child timidly, pitifully confesses, "Um, I don't have the Force, Commander Antilles. I'm just a clone."
Jon's exasperated sigh hitches into an abrupt stop before whooshing out in a soft wheeze of shock on the child's latter admission.
"Clone?" he splutters, whipping round to stare uncomprehendingly down at the fidgeting child just before they pass the treeline.
The child stares back just as uncomprehendingly at him.
"Yes?"
"But…."
But what? But the child looks "normal"? But the child's presence is distinct in the Force, just like any other sentients?
Well, Jon simply knows too little about the child, or anybody else he now shares life and travel with, and has no comparisons to draw up with other possible clones.
He knows about the Force, however, and he can teach someone Force-sensitive about it.
He doesn't even have to prescribe to Dark Woman's methods. She is not here to eyeball him, criticise him, harass him, make him do things.
The child needn't even be a padawan, and Jon needn't be a master.
Perhaps, they could even be bounty hunters together to help provide for this little group. Someday. If they are still together as a group.
So, picking a nice tree to perch on, Jon begins to coach CT-100-4141 about listening to his surroundings and filtering the noises so he will get what he wants without getting distracted.
And then he has to flee Dark Woman's perceived admonishments before he can coach the excited ball of bright, bright energy seated on a thick branch across from him to be more focused, to be more selective.
He shan't be anything like Dark Woman, although he can't deny that she is a good Jedi.
CT-100-4141 is not a Jedi, anyway, although he keeps insisting that he and his many, many brothers are made for the Jedi.
`Bounty hunters. Yes. Bounty hunters. I can do it. We can do it.`
He can pass this trial, whether it is a Sith trap or not, and he will bring along CT-100-4141 with him while he is at it.