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Ento and Padmé arrived at the Grand Arena of Mos Espa's hangar on the back of a quadruped creature. His eyes trailing over everyone they went passed. It didn't seem like the shadow was here, it wasn't hiding in plain sight.

"Hm..."

"Is something wrong?" Padmé looked over at Ento with concern.

"No, the shadow didn't follow us here. Perhaps it is waiting..." Ento spoke quietly as he gazed forward, looking over at Qui Gon Jin who was talking with Watto. "I'm going to go check the farm, once the race starts, since it's a bit closer."

Blinking a few times, she looked at him. "Why?"

"If we're leaving Tatooine, I'll need my parents credit chit and local currency. Maybe... Probably some clothes, since I doubt I'll be coming back." Ento glanced behind them as they were entirely inside and out of the sun. It felt nice in here, though it was still considerably hot.

"How are you going to get there?"

"Watto," his eyes narrowed on the two figures bickering, Jin and Watto respectively.

Blinking several times as she observed the mannerisms of the one talking with the Jedi Master. He seemed greedy, business oriented and shrewd. Why would he help him for free?

"Patience my blue friend, you will have your winnings before the sunsets..." Jin seemed to be replying to the Toydarian, who was wanting to see the ship immediately after the race.

Ento chuckled lightly as he walked towards them, his hands folded behind his back.

The girl walked beside him, only a single pace behind him. Her eyes subtly watched him from the side of her sights. She was curious about him, not knowing what exactly was going on in his head, which ultimately made her worry.

So calm, collected and young. He played cards like he had played them a thousand times over. His knowledge about the stars, even though he had been here for the majority of his life, seemed to surpass her own. So this also made her curious, could his knowledge help her people too?

She let her arms hang out at her sides.

"...And we'll be far from here," Jin continued talking as they were walking along the interior of the podracing hangar.

Waving his cane in front of him, the blue flying alien spoke with a spark to his tone. Believing that he already knew Anakin Skywalker wasn't going to win. "Not if your ship already belongs to me, huh, I think~?"

Ento knew how this man laid bets. Often when his father came here with him, they'd lay bets, using his precognition abilities. Whenever they were there are the races, Watto follow their bets.

Laughing, Watto fluttered in front of Jin, "I warn you. No funny business," he was well aware of his Jedi Powers. Though it wasn't as if Jin could influence the race all on his own, well, he probably could. He was a Jedi Master, but Ento was sure the Jedi Master wouldn't need to.

Ento's eyes trailed over toward's Anakin's pod for a moment before returning his gaze to the two ahead of them.

Jin raised a brow as he reached into his pocket, "You don't think Anakin can win?"

Curious of what he was pulling out, Watto gave the man's pocket a glance before looking to his face. "Don't get me wrong... No, but I have great faith in the boy," He knew that the boy had talent, but he didn't think he'd win. "He's a credit to your race." The little hand gestures didn't help his greater than thou response. "But, uh, Sebulba over there is going to win, I think."

Ento's eyes wandered over towards the Dug who was with two blue skinned aliens, Twi'leks to be exact. They were appealing, skin showing under their yellow sleeveless bodysuits and white headbands.

He let out a light sigh and set his eyes back on Watto. He was sure Anakin was going to win, he had the feeling, through the force, he knew.

"Oh no!" Jar Jar suddenly shouted, though apparently not loud enough, as he spotted the alien.

Ento glanced towards the amphibian who seemed to dislike the creatures presence. Perhaps something happened between them? That didn't take long. That particular dug while popular as a cheating podracer, was also a criminal.

Laughing, Watto encircled Jin, "I am betting heavily on Sebulba. Haha."

Jin swayed slightly as he kept one hand on his hip before folding his arms with conviction, he had thought of his next move, like in a game of chess. "I will take that bet."

"You what?" Watto in surprise looked to the man once more as he was basking in his own glory. He squinted his lids and closed in on the Jedi Master.

"I'll wager my new racing pod against, say... The boy and his mother." Jin seemed pretty confident in himself that he'd win. Was it a bluff? Most probably couldn't tell, but it was likely just like Ento, he felt that the boy would win this particular race.

"No pod is worth two slaves, not by a long shot!" He swiped his hand aside.

"Not unless you get the winnings," Ento stepped out from Jin's shadow and into the spotlight. His eyes resting on the flying junk dealer. A small smile across his lips as he looked to the being.

"Haha! Ento, it has been over a year, huh?! Where's your father? Are you here to bet today?"

Jar Jar, Jin and all the others present seemed to frown, the atmosphere becoming rather dark.

"Hm?" The shrewd businessman looked over them for a moment, before shaking his head. "Bah! What happened to him?" He fluttered towards Ento, looking the boy over curiously.

His father was one of his best customers.

"The farm was attacked a days ago... They're dead. Both of them," Ento didn't give this being the waterworks. It couldn't work on the type of person he was, and he also knew that mental manipulation didn't work either.

"Ah..." Watto put his hand near his mouth, curling his fingers up.

"I was wondering if I could use one of your transports... To go back and get my things." Ento was blunt about what he wanted. He let it sit in for a few seconds, he knew that Watto wasn't the type to show that he had some sort of love of affection towards anyone.

Watto made a pondering sound from the depths of his throat.

"I don't expect it for free. I'll give you eighty percent of my parents Wupiupi, and the verbal agreement to the deed of the property." He wasn't planning on coming back, that was for sure, so he had no use for the Huttese currency.

However he wasn't going to give any Peggat that he found, though it was unlikely that he'd find any. He had been gone from the homestead, so just about any vulture could've come by and sifted through the remains.

Watto nodded to the boy as he reached into one of his pouches and held out a small transponder key, to a landspeeder, for the boy to take. "I expect it back in one piece, huh!"

Ento gave a simple nod, keeping his eyes aligned with the creature's, "Of course."

"Eh... It's in the regular place." Watto quickly turned his attention back towards Jin as they resumed their betting. However the junk dealer quickly rested his eyes back on Ento as he and the unknown girl were walking away.

"I will bet on both, I think, hehe." He seemed to rub both hands slightly. He had a lot of money he wanted to put on Sebulba, but the words and tone Ento had used. He was going to assume Anakin actually had a chance at winning.

Jin nodded seeing him, "Just the boy then?"

Watto still nodded to this, he wasn't going to say yes to taking the mother as well. They were both valuable and he secretly liked the two of them. Anakin was his favorite slave, and Shmi made money on the side from her own side business.

Based on his sudden appearance though, he was pretty sure the boy was now aligned with the Jedi here and his crew. Or at least the girl, that he had yet to meet.

So Watto decided against rolling a dice to decide fate, since Jin already accepted just the boy.

+ + +

Entering the private parking area filled with landspeeders, Ento lead the Queen through the maze of parked repulsorlift vehicles near the Grand Arena.

Walking over towards what appeared to be a four seater landspeeder. It was sleek and thin with a tall tail fin and side-mounted engines. The speeder was rather sporty.

Climbing into the front seat, he helped Padmé up into the passenger side and they both flopped down into their seats. "You... Know how to drive this right?"

Padmé was rather concerned, not knowing if he had driven one of these before. Though he did seem to know where the 'regular' place was to find it during this race.

"Yes, my father taught me how to drive one of these. I've driven one from the Moisture farm to Mos Espa and back before." Ento used the transponder key, turning the vehicle on.

"Ah..." Padmé seemed to calm down at the mention of this. He had the experience, so her worries were gone rather quickly. At least some of them.

One of the Weequay Guards, employed by the Hutts to guard the vehicles, glanced over. He raised one hand with his pinky down, Ento raised his hand, but with only his ring finger up.

Nodding, the Weequay glanced away as Ento began to pull out from the parking space and maneuvered out of the private lot.

It didn't take long before they were out in the open, sand kicking up behind the speeder.

"So how far away is the farm? You were going around for days... Weren't you?" Padmé asked as she was leaning back in the seat, pretty much hiding behind the windshield that protected her face from the sand ahead of them.

"About a dozen miles," Ento responded with a soft smile across his lips. "I was routed in the opposite direction by the Tuskens."

Nodding at the addition to the story of what happened to him, she looked out along the horizon. She could hear the announcements behind them as the race was beginning to start. "I hope that boy doesn't get hurt."

"He'll be fine," Ento kept his eyes forward as he kept tracing over their surroundings. "He trusts his instincts, and like a Jedi, the force will guide him."

Blinking when he said these words, Padmé turned to face him again as he transversed the transport through the Dune Sea with considerable skill. "You want to become a Jedi?"

"I learn what I can from them, and then I'll probably leave them." His eyes drifted over toward her, before flickering forward quickly. He didn't have much of a plan for his future yet, no big ambitions, but becoming a Jedi would make him stronger. "Unless they get tied up in some sort of war..."

Padmé smiled hearing this, as she knew of the world that the Jedi lived in, was a lonely one. Though the idea of him being brought into a war, it made her heart sink.

War brought death and grieving to all, even to those who weren't directly involved.

For the rest of the ride, they were particular quiet. The sound of the repulsors and the engines humming filled that void, like music, curing the silence.

Pulling Watto's Landspeeder up to the front of the entrance that lead down to the subterranean home, Ento took the transponder key out of the vehicle and hopped out of the speeder.

His eyes traced over the burns on the exterior structures from blaster fire. His eyes then moved towards a bisected body dressed in tattered green hermit's robes. It was his father's corpse, face down, yet he didn't see his mother's body anywhere.

It was likely she had been taken to be tortured, much like the Queen's decoy would've been, or she managed to get away. Though there was also probably the off chance that she was inside based on the blaster marks on the stairwell housing's exterior structure.

Ento walked towards the entrance of the home and stared down the steps. It was dark except for the natural light that came down into the exposed courtyard of the home. "Watch your step, it seems the powersource has been damaged by the Sandstorm or shot by the Sand People."