Eedy Dearest: Tales of Motherhood and Megalomania
Chapter Two: First Job
Coruscant, 25 BBY
"Welcome to Dex's! How can I serve you?" asked a fifteen-year-old Syril.
"Hi," said the Gran sitting at the table. "I'll have the roast ronto sandwich and a jawa juice."
Syril smiled and tapped the order into the datapad he was carrying.
"Just the root leaf stew for me," said the Dug accompanying the Gran.
"We'll have that to you as soon as we can," Syril said, pressing send on the order and going to the kitchen to obtain the juice.
He checked his reflection in the window as he went past, and he thought he looked very official in his clean, white uniform and cloth hat.
This was Syril Karn's second week working at Dex's Diner. His mother had seen an ad on the HoloNet and told him that he should apply and finally bring some money into their home. He scraped together a few credits to pay for an airtaxi to and from the restaurant in order to attend his interview.
When he had first entered the diner, he was struck by how many different species were in the place. Despite the size and diversity of Coruscant's population, his mother's only non-human friend was a green-skinned Mirialan woman who lived down the hall. Syril had seen various species, but as Eedy kept him on a tight leash, he had previously had very little chance to interact with alien Coruscanti.
Dexter Jettster had welcomed him in with a pat on the back and a free meal. Syril instantly took a liking to the big Besalisk, who, after fifteen minutes of conversation, offered him a waiter job on the spot. Syril was elated to be able to work (and earn actual money!) in an environment so different from the home he was used to or the overcrowded, underfunded school he attended.
"One jawa juice," Syril said to Hermione Bagwa, a human waitress a few years older than Syril. Hermione was usually responsible for pouring the drinks during the lunch rush when Dex had four hands full of work.
"Coming right up, sugar," Hermione said.
Syril liked Hermione. She always called him, "sugar," which was nicer than anyone had ever been to him. She was a hard worker who maintained a smile at the busiest times and with the harshest customers. He also thought she was very beautiful, with her blonde hair and fashionable dresses.
No sooner had Hermione poured the jawa juice into a tall, grey cu, Dex's WA-7 waitress droid rolled up with a tray holding the sandwich and stew that Syril's customers had ordered. Syril placed the drink on the tray and took it from the droid.
"Thanks, FLO!" he said, still amazed at how quickly and efficiently Dex handled his orders.
"Don't mention it, honey!" FLO said before wheeling off to take the next order off Dex's hands.
Syril, standing tall and holding the tray on one hand with perfect balance, returned to the Gran and Dug patrons.
"Lunch is served, my fine gentlemen," Syril said politely, placing their items on their placemats with his free hand.
"I can't remember the last time someone called me a gentleman!" the Gran laughed. "Thanks, kid!"
Syril smiled to himself, happy that he had brightened the Gran's day.
The entrance doors slid open, and two men walked in. They wore tan tunics and leggings over brown, leather boots.
"Well, look who stopped in just in time for lunch," boomed Dex's voice from the kitchen window.
"Hello, there!" said the older of the two, who sported long-ish hair and a light brown goatee.
Dex strode out of the kitchen and into the dining area, where he wrapped the man in a four-armed hug, which the man enthusiastically reciprocated.
"And how are you doing, sport?" Dex asked the younger, blonde boy. He looked to Syril to be around his age.
"I'm okay, Dex," he said.
"Find a seat, boys!" Dex commanded jovially. "Syril here will take care of you while I finish all of these orders. Then we'll have a nice catch-up."
Syril, ever trained to follow orders, jumped towards the table where these friends of Dex were sitting. "Welcome to Dex's! How can I serve you?" he recited.
"Hello," the older man said. "Just some water for my apprentice and me."
The younger man clearly looked disappointed, but he cheered up when he saw Hermione coming his way.
"Coming right up," Syril said.
He glared jealously at the young man as he whispered something to Hermione. Meanwhile, he dispensed some water into two cups and returned quickly to the new patrons.
"I'll take care of that for you, sugar," Hermione said to the younger, who winked at her before she walked away.
"Your water, gentlemen," Syril said, less kindly than he had to the Gran and the Dug.
The older man nodded and smiled and then promptly turned back to his "apprentice."
Syril skulked back to the beverage station where Hermione was counting her tips.
"Who are the big shots over there?"
Hermione smiled, which Syril did not like. "The guy with the beard is Obi-Wan. He's an old friend of Dex. The handsome one is Anakin."
Syril's face flushed. "So handsome Anakin is that guy's apprentice. If they're friends with Dex, are they chefs?"
"No, they're Jedi, silly!" Hermione laughed. "Haven't you ever seen a Jedi before?"
If Syril didn't like this Anakin character before, he definitely didn't now. His mother had always told him about what a drain the Jedi were on regular people like the Karns. And now this dashing young Jedi was coming into HIS job to flirt with HIS Hermione.
"Friends of yours too?" Syril asked.
Hermione continued to smile, oblivious to Syril's envy. "I've met them a few times. They're some of our best customers."
"A good customer would come in and order more than just water," Syril muttered. "And they wouldn't pull Dex out of the kitchen when he's busy."
"I have a meiloorun cobbler for table twelve!" came FLO's electronic voice.
Syril stomped over to the droid and took the tray. As he turned to serve the dessert to the customer, he slammed into a Bith who was making his way to the refresher, upending the tray and pressing the plate of sticky cobbler into his crisp, white uniform.
"Sorry," said the Bith as he stepped away.
Syril looked around and saw that the boy named Anakin was laughing at him, and Hermione was struggling not to giggle herself.
His clean shirt now had a large, orange stain all over his abdomen.
"Anakin, don't be rude," he heard Obi-Wan hiss.
"It's alright, Master," Anakin cackled. "It's not like he got hurt."
Just then, the doors to the entrance opened once again, and Eedy Karn toddled into Dex's Diner. Syril went as white as a sheet, which only helped to highlight the large stain on his abdomen.
"Well!" Eedy announced. "Here, I pulled together what meager credits I had to come across town and have a humble lunch and see how hard my son is working. It turns out he's just standing in everyone's way and making a mess." She turned to Hermione. "Do you work here?"
Hermione gave a nervous smile. "I do."
"Please, accept my apologies for Syril. He does the best he can, but I know best how difficult he can be to have around."
"Syril has been doing a great job!" Hermione said with a hint of indignance. "You just caught him at a bad moment."
Eedy sneered incredulously at the young waitress. "Story of my life. You! Droid!" she snapped her fingers at FLO. "Get me a caf and a nerf burger! I'd ask my son, but I don't want him to throw it on the floor."
The atmosphere of the diner had shifted, and everyone, including the Jedi, were zeroing in on Eedy. Conversations began to die down as patrons waited to see what the obnoxious woman would do next. Dex must have sensed that something was off, because he came out of the kitchen to look around for a few seconds.
Eedy moved herself into an empty booth right next to the Jedi, grabbing a menu to look at Dex's other offerings. Syril retreated back towards the kitchen.
Dex looked down at Syril's shirt. "Had a bit of a spill, I see?"
Syril's face flushed red again. "I'm sorry. I promise I will clean this shirt."
Dex patted him on the back. "Don't worry about it, son. When you work in a noisy diner with good food and lots of people, spills happen. If you want, you can get a fresh one in the back."
Syril, unused to this kind of treatment, didn't know how to respond, but he did go to the back to change his shirt.
When he returned to the kitchen, Hermione was talking quietly to Dex. "We have a customer who wants to talk to you, hon. She's Syril's mom."
"Oh, alright," Dex said innocently, wiping his hands on a cloth and following Hermione into the dining area.
Syril, fearing what would happen next, followed his coworkers through the swinging doors.
"Fifteen credits for a nerf burger?!" Eedy practically shrieked at Dex. "What kind of piracy is this? My father did not work his whole life to move us to Coruscant from the Mid Rim for us to be taken advantage of like this!"
"I'm sorry about the price, ma'am," Dex said diplomatically, "but it is made of good, ground nerf all the way from Alderaan. When you taste it, it will be worth it, I guarantee!"
Syril knew where the conversation was going to go as soon as Dex mentioned Alderaan.
Eedy frowned. "I sincerely doubt it. Good to know you're lining Lyin' Bail Organa's pockets with credits though!"
The Jedi named Obi-Wan turned in his seat to face Eedy. "Ma'am, I know times have been tough for many citizens of the Republic. I would be happy to buy your lunch for you."
Eedy turned to the Jedi, noticing them for the first time. "O-ho!" she looked back and forth from Dex to Obi-Wan. "So, these are the kind of patrons who hang around this establishment?! No wonder you're paying for Alderaanian prices. It's people like you who have their polished boots on the neck of the rest of us who live on this planet."
Obi-Wan thought back to the many times he and Qui-Gon had encountered beings who felt disenfranchised by the Jedi or the Republic and felt empathy for the angry, little woman. "If you have concerns about the Jedi, my padawan and I would be happy to listen to you."
"You're not going to get me like that!" Eedy screeched. "I sit down with you and you try to control my brain and make me vote against poor Chancellor Palpatine!"
"Chancellor Palpatine is my friend!" Anakin said. "He has been kind to me since I was a little boy."
Syril really hated Anakin now. He had looked up to Sheev Palpatine for much of his life, but he knew he would never be important enough to actually meet him. Now, this rich Jedi, who came into the diner, only ordered water, and stole Hermione's attention also was casual acquaintances with the chancellor himself.
"If you believe in what Palpatine stands for so much, why are you hurting our economy by only ordering water?" Syril jumped into the conversation. Hermione and Dex rounded on him, but when he looked at his mother, she offered an approving smile and nod.
"Anakin told me they were going to pay for everyone's bill today," Hermione said, dropping the, "sugar." "That's what he was whispering to me earlier."
Syril was embarrassed, but it was too late now.
"Come on, Syril!" Eedy said, taking her son's hand. She reached onto his shirt and unclipped the nametag, hurling it at FLO. "We are taking your talents somewhere where they take better care of decent folk like us instead of catering to the Jedi and Bail Organa."
Syril looked from his mother to Dex and back again.
Dex stepped forward: "Hold on, folks. Let's just take a deep breath for a minute. I think we all got the wrong end of the stick here. Syril, why don't you and your mom have lunch on me, and then I can introduce you to my Jedi friends and maybe change a few hearts today."
Syril loosened his grip on Eedy's hand. He had liked working for Dex, and he wasn't sure he wanted to leave forever.
Eedy squared her shoulders and stepped towards Dex, apparently unintimidated by his massive height and build. "I wouldn't have my son dine with the likes of you if he was starving. Come on, Syril!"
The Karns swept from the diner.
"What a jerk," Anakin said to Obi-Wan.
Obi-Wan frowned. He felt very bad for that boy.