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"Mom!" Zarina called out.
"Mom, we're home!" Anakin added.
"Ah, dissen cosy." Jar Jar murmured as a woman dressed simply entered the room.
"These are our friends, Mom." Zarina explained.
"Hello." She nodded to them.
"I'm Qui-Gon Jinn."
"I'm building a droid. You wanna see?" Zelena nodded quickly and Anakin dragged her into his room.
"Your son was kind enough to offer us shelter." Amalia responded.
"I could use some assistance preparing dinner." Shmi said.
"Of course." Padmé offered and Cordalia followed her.
Once dinner was prepared, Shmi shooed them from the room and set the food on plates she would bring out.
"All slaves have a transmitter placed inside their bodies somewhere." Shmi explained.
"I've been working on a scanner to try and locate mine." Zarina said.
"Any attempt to escape and they blow you up!" Anakin joked and Zelena laughed at his joke.
"How wude!" Jar Jar exclaimed.
"I can't believe there's still slavery in the galaxy." Cordalia said.
"The Republic's antislavery laws..." Padmé began.
"The Republic doesn't exist out here. We must survive on our own." Jar Jar's tongue shot out and grabbed a fruit before retreating back and he swallowed loudly.
"Excuse me." He apologized.
"Has anybody ever seen a Podrace?" Anakin asked.
"They have Podracing on Malastare. Very fast, very dangerous." Amalia responded.
"I'm the only human who can do it." Anakin said proudly.
"You must have Jedi reflexes if you race pods." Jar Jar's tongue shot out again, but Qui-Gon grabbed it before it could reach the fruit. "Don't do that again." Jar Jar shook his head making a wierd noise while doing so.
"You're Jedi knights, aren't you?" Zarina asked breaking the silence and pointing to Qui-Gon and Amalia.
"What makes you think that?" Amalia asked.
"I saw your laser sword. Only Jedis carry that kind of weapon." Anakin said.
"Perhaps I killed a Jedi and took it from him." Amalia grinned.
"I don't think so. No one can kill a Jedi." Zarina told her.
"I wish that were so." Amalia said sadly.
"I had a dream I was a Jedi. I came back here and freed all the slaves." Zarina said.
"Have you come to free us?" Anakin asked.
"No, I'm afraid not." Qui-Gon said.
"I think you have. Why else would you be here?" Zarina smirked.
"I can see there's no fooling you both. We're on our way to Coruscant, the central system in the Republic on a very important mission." Amalia explained.
"How did you end up out here in the outer rim?" Zarina asked.
"Our ship was damaged, and we're stranded here until we can repair it." Cordalia answered.
"I can help. I can fx anything." Anakin said.
"I believe you can." Zelena said encouragingly.
"But first we must acquire the parts we need." Amalia responded.
"Wit no-nutten mula to trade." Jar Jar exclaimed.
"These junk dealers must have a weakness of some kind." Padmé offered.
"Gambling. Everything here revolves around betting on those awful races. Podracing." Shmi scoffed.
"Greed can be a powerful ally." Amalia said.
"I built a racer. It's the fastest ever. There's a big race tomorrow on Boonta Eve. You could enter my pod." Anakin said.
"Anakin, Watto won't let you." Zarina snapped.
"Watto doesn't know I've built it. You could make him think it was yours and get him to let me pilot it for you." Anakin told Amalia.
"I don't want you to race. It's awful. I die every time Watto makes you do it." Shmi said.
"But, Mom, I love it. The prize money would more than pay for the parts they need." Anakin pleaded.
"Anakin. Your mother's right. Is there anyone friendly to the Republic who can help us?" Amalia asked.
"No." Shmi shook her head.
"Mom, you say the biggest problem in this universe is nobody helps each other." Shmi pondered her son's words.
"I'm sure Qui-Gon doesn't want to put your son in danger. We'll fnd some other way." Cordalia told Shmi.
"There is no other way. I may not like it, but he can help you. He was meant to help you." Zelena smiled at Anakin. •••••
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The following day, Padmé, Cordalia, and Amalia headed off to Watto's shop to bargain. "Are you sure about this? Trusting our fate to a boy we hardly know? The queen and chief advisor will not approve." Cordalia asked her unwitting mother.
"The queen and chief advisor don't need to know." Amalia responded.
"Well, I don't approve." Padmé pouted.
"Nor do I." Cordalia sat down and waited for Amalia to return. She only hoped that Amalia hadn't recognized her yet. She was wrong.
