Sins of the Father (Maul x OC)

Favours with Favours

Thrawn made his way back inside the building. To an outsider he might look cold, and business as usual, but on the inside, the young man was very pleased. An impromptu lunch date with a mysterious and beautiful woman? Moreover, an intelligent one? What could be better? He'd made several mental notes during the meal, most prominent that she definitely had something to hide. Which of course made her all the more intriguing. There was nothing he loved more than a puzzle.

She had given him open answers when discussing her history, though slightly too vague and full of double meanings. She was clever, too clever for her own good. It was a shame. Clever girls like that often got themselves into trouble. If she wasn't careful... Well it would just be such a waste.

In truth the political world was something of a mystery to him, he much preferred people to say what they meant. The girl had said do too though he did notice she did not follow through with her actions. He had to wonder -- was she a liar for the fun of it? Or did she have to? Watching her, seeing the way she dressed herself, implied she wanted to express herself. Yet her actions said otherwise. She was a walking contradiction, but he did not yet have enough information.

The Mayor had wanted Thrawn as part of his 'team' not for his political aspirations - he didn't really have any - but for the way his mind could spot the weakness in the Mayor's opponents. Any threats were measured and assessed. Thrawn kept Palpatine protected.

Now he had to figure out if this girl was one of those threats.

The young Chiss man made his way up the stairs to the large stately office that housed the very seat in which the most powerful man in the city governed from. Palpatine was a shrewd man, and though not everything he did was completely "by the book", Thrawn believed that this man was capable of doing what needed to be done for the sake of the city, to keep dissenters at bay and keep the peace.

The man himself sat, facing the large window that looked out into the courtyard where the fountain lay, bubbling away like a peaceful picture of tranquillity. Thrawn however knew from experience that the Lord Mayor was not looking at the fountain, but beyond it into the city itself. It was such a pity Palpatine did not have the same appreciation Thrawn did for beauty and culture. It was times like that that made him wonder if this path on which he was set... was it the right one?

"I take it you have a report for me?" Palpatine asked, seemingly knowing who it was before he turned his chair around. He laid his hands, fingertips pressed together on his desk and looked at the younger man with watery blue eyes.

"Indeed sir, I did my own reconnaissance this time, I was able to gain the information from a few trusted informants." Thrawn unbuttoned his jacket as he took a seat opposite the older man, relaxing into his chair. "He seems... well successful might be a stretch considering his line of work, but it seems to be thriving."

"Hmm..." Palpatine brought his hands up to his lips, in the same fingers together position, a thoughtful look on his wizened face. "That will not do, he needs to be brought down a peg." Thrawn's neat brows rose slightly.

"Did you not send your son out to make a name for himself? To find success?" the Deputy asked. It was strange, whilst Thrawn had never personally met Maul, Palpatine acted as though the event some years ago was beholden to a crime worth banishment, when by all accounts Thrawn had discovered it was Palpatine himself that had asked the Zabrak to take care of the situation. One small mistake had cost him his life as he knew it.

Thrawn of course knew that it was prudent to punish those that were incompetent, though the fallen son seemed hardly that.

Wasn't family important? Maybe not so much to Thrawn, whose family had not cared for him, bit the way Palpatine preached about the importance of family and the values... he had even adopted a boy -- even younger than his other son -- into the fold as an example. It seemed in the coming years, this Skywalker boy had completely replaced the first son. Thrawn had not seen any trace of the red and black skinned fellow anywhere, no photo nor trinket or any sort. It was as though Palpatine had attempted to erase his existence altogether.

Something about that sat odd with Thrawn, though he was not privy to domestic matters, so in the greater picture, it didn't really matter.

"I sent him to learn, not to try and build a criminal empire in order for him to destroy me," Palpatine sneered. "No, something must be done before things get out of hand and we need to clean up another of his messes." The old man waved a dismissive hand, then lifted a finger as though he'd just had an idea. Thrawn suspected Palpatine had thought of this long before he even arrived in this office.

The moment was interrupted however by the phone on Palpatine's desk ringing. His secretary knew better than to interrupt any of the Mayor's meetings, and so it ought to be important.

"Yes?" he asked flatly as he answered. "Hm, I see, put him through." Another pause. "I assume you have your reasons for this call, Commissioner Serenno?" Palpatine asked with a derisive tone. "Very well." Thrawn could not hear the replies from Dooku but he got the gist when Palpatine reached for the remote and flicked to the correct channel on the large screen on the far wall.

Footage of the Amidala woman appeared. She was giving a speech to the sound of raucous applause and cheers. Thrawn glanced out of the corner of his eye, noting the displeased look crossing Palpatine's face as he stared at the screen. The Mayor was wise enough to mask his true feelings, but the slight downturn of his mouth and crease to his brow told Thrawn enough. Displeased might have been an understatement.

"And yet another issue that needs taking care of..." he sighed and stood, leaning his gnarled hands on the table. His eyes were focused on the screen, the caption stating that she may have a greater chance in gaining votes from the lower classes and poorer citizens of Coruscant. That did not bode well for the campaign. Likely the campaign manager, Tarkin, was already planning multiple responses as they sat there.

Palpatine suddenly leaned into the phone receiver again, "the utter nonsense from this girl..." he scoffed. "Yes I can deal with it, but I need you to take care of my other problem. I think it's time we call in a few favours, would you not agree?" There was a pause, Thrawn could hear Dooku's voice rumbling through the phone though nothing distinctive. After a moment he hung up, but immediately began to dial another number. With his free hand, he waved Thrawn away, and the man knew better than to linger.

As he departed, he heard Palpatine speak, something about an upcoming event. Then there were some muffled sounds. Whoever it was on the other end of the line had a very bad cough.

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Notes:

Hello friends!

I hope you enjoyed this chapter, I am nervous once more about how I write Thrawn, I still don't know him super well but I am doing my best to characterise him well. I have had a hard time writing this week so I am doing my best to get the chapters out.
I do have a holiday coming up so I may need to take a brief break so I can enjoy my time to the fullest. So if the next chapter is delayed, that is why! But for now, please enjoy!

In the next part, Maul makes contact with the ones that raided the warehouse!

As always -- I love feedback and comments, so please please, if you can spare a moment, I'd love to know what you think!

Until next time!