“I dunno,” Muna demurred.
“What if we just-”
“Don’t think about it so much, if it’s gonna make you so nervous,” Paxti whispered back.
“But I heard the Yard can be dangerous at night.”
“Not on bright nights.
Come on, you prom-.”
A shrill voice suddenly interrupted them “Is that Paxti
Bentun talking while I’m talking?”
Muna and Paxti didn’t need to look up to know everyone else in the
classroom was looking at them. Paxti
slumped her crinkled body into her seat while Muna turned her eye-stalks
downward.
“Perhaps one of you would like to explain to the class how
the Kymer constraint demonstrates the upper limits of hyperspeed, hm? Since I’m apparently doing such a boring job
of it.”
“Oh!” Muna perked up, “Well, Dr. Yader, that’s sort of a
trick question, isn’t it? Hyperspeed has
a limit but we don’t really know why.
The Kymer constraint is just what we call that obstacle. The faster your hyperspeed, the stronger it
becomes because, well, because it’s just a place holder.”
Dr. Yader’s lifted her goggles off as she eyed Muna carefully. Her pale orange skin
folded neatly on its self, a clear sign of a morning routine, which was more
than could be said for Paxti next to her.
The top of her head tapered as it rose backwards.
“She showed you!” Said a boy up front, and the rest of the
class erupted into laughter.
Dr. Yader
put her brown goggles back onto the end of her eyestocks. “Settle down, settle down. Very good, Muna. Imagine how much you could learn if you
actually paid atten-.”
“Dr. Yader,” Paxti interrupted, “I don’t think it’s fair you
asked us a trick question.”
“And I don’t think it’s fair you keep interrupting me. Detention, Miss Bentun. And just as well, I have a lab this afternoon
and could use a hand in cleaning up.”
The boy up front snickered again, though he quickly covered
his short snout with his large hand.
“You too, Mister Perguss.”
“But I was trying not to!”
“Trying and failing,” Dr. Yader declared. “Effort isn’t everything in the galaxy, Udah
Perguss. Without results, it’s just a waste of energy. Now then, where were-”
Suddenly the bell rang and the students hurried out of Dr. Yader’s classroom,
who furiously shouted the homework at them.
During lunch, Paxti opened her bag and laid out what her dad
had packed her. Milkbean sandwich, Opee
slices, and a bag of processed fruit snacks.
She put the Opee slices back in with a groan. Muna sat down next to her as she popped a few
fruit snacks in her mouth.
“Sorry, Pax.”
“Hm?”
“About the detention.”
“Oh,” Paxti said, then swallowing she added, “Thanks for the
reminder, I’d almost forgotten. That
would have been bad.” It had been
another two torturous hours of school since the incident. Paxti thought it was a wonder she remembered
her own name through it all. Taking finishing
off the bag Paxti went on, saying, “It’s alright, Moon. Scrag, I’m just glad
you knew the answer. If I’m gonna have
detention, I’d rather it be because she looked stupid than because we did.”
“Want some of my lunch?”
Muna offered quietly, opening her bag for Paxti to look into.
She leaned forward over the green table. “You sure you need two bags of silseeds?”
“Take them both, I hate those things!”
“Oh yeah?” Paxti
thrust a big hand into the bag, grabbing both bags at once. “This is
great! I can’t believe you don’t like
them. Oh, hi Marq.”
Marquita shook the table as she slammed her tray
down. “You will not believe what
happened during math this morning – I am steaming.”
She took a seat next to Muna. “I sit right by Robund, you know, and I asked
him about tonight, and he said he’s going to the Yard, and I said we were too,
and so we talked about it a bit, and it was very cool. He said he usually hangs out by the pit with
his W-board, and that I should come by and say hi while we’re there.”
“No! Way!” Muna and
Paxti both yelled.
“Yeah, yeah!”
“So, what did you say?” Paxti said.
“I said I’d try to get by to see him. No idea where that came from, but that’s what
I said and as soon as I said it I thought Whoa, that was good.”
“That was good,” Muna said enviously.
“So now we pretty much have to go,” Paxti said,
turning to Muna.
“I mea, I-“ Muna sputtered.
“And anyway, once we go, if you don’t like it – which won’t happen
– but if it does chu then Marq can find Robund, chat for a bit, and then we’ll
go home.”
“But what if we hit it off?” Marquita whined.
“On the first night?” Paxti retorted opening a bad of
Silseeds and pouring them into her hand.
“Come on. Leave him wanting
more. Plus he’ll know you had nothing
better to do if you talk to him all night.”
She popped the seeds into her mouth and sucked on them. The sour taste made her eye stalks stiffen
briefly, and the caps of her eyes dilated briefly.
“Or what if you run out of things to say,” Muna put in. “Leave before then. My parents haven’t had a new thing to say to
each other in years. It’s always dinner
and laundry and schoolwork and meetings, meetings, meetings.”
“I’d love to talk to Robund about laundry for the rest of my
life.” Marquita said, eyecaps glazing over.
“Oh, come on.” Paxti
said, opening up the second packet.
“Want any?” Marquita opened her
hand and took a few. Muna shook her head
vigourously.
A silence came over the group as Paxti and Marquita sucked the sour seeds, “Pax has a date with Udah Perguff.” Siezing the moment, Muna said. Paxti smacked the table and shook her head in protest, but Muna went on, “It’s the perfect set up! Two troubled souls, drawn together in detention.”
Paxti swallowed the seeds quickly to respond, too quickly. “Is not!" She shouted, before suddenly being engulfed in a coughing fit. Muna and Marquita leaned forward towards Paxti, making kissing sounds with their snouts. “Stop it!” Paxti shouted as she caught her breath. “Udah’s gross. If we see him at the Yard, we’re gonna leave right away."
“Awwww, look how shy she’s being!” Marquita chuckled.
“Stop it!” Paxti
demanded. “I don't like him at all!”
“Sure, sure,” Marquita teased, then turned to Muna. “And who do you hope to see at the Yard? Or not see?”
“Test tubes and pans,” she said quickly, then adding, “please.”
“Aah, finally some manners.
Sponge and soap is in the back, too.
Be careful not to drop anything – unless you want to pay for some new
supplies.”
Paxti hung her yellow bag on the hook near the door and
walked to the other end of the room, picking up a few test tubes on her way that
were lying on the lab tables. Humming a
tune to herself, she got to work. Fill
the test tube with water, add a pinch of soap, shake the test tube, pour out
the water, hang it on the electro-rack for it to dry. A simple and mindless task. Certainly easier than doing homework, though
she would still need to do that. No
excuses for her – it was now written clearly on the board.
Paxti hated school. What
a waste of time! Her parents didn’t use
school learning at their jobs as far as she could tell. She was only really interested in drawing, but
as the rest of her grades were so bad, she hadn’t been given the opportunity to
sign up this year. Something about
limited space and needing to earn the privilege and blah blah blah – whatever
the head master had said. It didn’t
matter any more. Despite her efforts,
her grades had not improved much during the first part of the year, so she had
just given up. But her dad had insisted
she graduate.
You bring me up / to knock me down / you go all out / I
only frown.
You think it’s just you here, yeah yeah yeah you think
it’s only you, but we all got bills to pay, you won’t get your way.
She didn’t realize she’d started singing until a voice
behind her startled her. “Hey P!”
Turning around, she saw Udah holding a wet mop. A blue mouse droid
squeaked behind him. “Hey,” She said, turning quickly back to the sink, hoping he hadn’t heard her.
“How’s it going?”
“Fine, what about you?”
“Just acing this mopping class.”
She felt a smile contort her snout. “Yeah, washing these test tubes is exactly what I signed up
for, too. Think Dr. Yader will give me a
reference for the central cantina’s kitchen?”
“Central cantina!”
Udah let out a scoff. “High
hopes, you have there. Though maybe eventually
you could front the band!”
Her smile vanished and she felt her face turn orange in
embarrassment. He’d heard after
all. She said “Yeah, well, whatever,”
and went back to scrubbing the test tubes; silently this time.
“Sorry, I,”
Paxti cut him off. “Just leave me alone, ok Udah? Let’s just do our shablin’ jobs and maybe we
can get out of here early. Scrag!”
If Udah said anything in return, she didn’t hear him. But eventually she heard the droid clank back towards the front of the room and knew he had gone.
When she finished the test tubes, careful so they’d all fit on the rack, she went to the other tables and collected the pans. These would take more time, but that’s because they took more work. Paxti didn’t mind that. Staying after school stunk, but actually cleaning wasn't so bad. She liked working with her hands. It was working with her head she didn’t like, which was most of school. She had heard that core worlds had droids do this kind of work – kitchens or even whole houses that were completely automated. She couldn’t imagine that and didn’t want to.
Gonna go, gonna get out, gonna find where I belong.
She caught herself and looked over her shoulder. Udah was gone, and Dr. Yader was sitting at
her desk, hunched over a pile of datapads. Paxti went back to singing quietly. If there
had been a class for singing, maybe she would have liked that school
better. But if there had been a class
for singing, she probably would have lost that privilege, too.
Out of this world, out of this galaxy, I hate Alderaan answers that you're givin' me!
When she was finished with the pans, she picked up her bag
and said. “All set. Have a good weekend, Dr. Yader.”
“Wait, one moment, Miss Bentun. Come here.
Your test…”
They’d taken a test earlier in the week. She was certain she’d passed – if barely.
But Paxti saw Dr. Yader had zoomed in on the corner of the
datasheet. “Is this your drawing?”
“Yes,” Paxti said, seeing no gain in lying.
“You got so many answers wrong, surely your grade could have
improved if you’d spent more time on the questions.”
“Yes, ma’am.” Paxti said diligently.
“What is this?”
Despite a familiar tide of resentment building in her she
knew it was easier just to comply.
Teachers and imperials were all alike.
Comply and get it over with. “Just,
just a mistake. I’m sorry. I won’t do it again.”
“No, no, I want to know.
What did you draw? It’s an Amani,
right?”
“Uhh, yes.”
“Yes, yes, I knew it. You
know, I remember when they first started moving into the sector. Anyway, this is a good drawing.”
“Oh?” Paxti didn’t
know what else to say.
“Usually people say “thank you” when they receive a
compliment, Miss Bentun” Dr. Yader smiled slightly.
“Thank you, Dr. Yader.”
When she didn’t get an immediate response she said, “May I go now? My parents will be getting worried.”
“Yes, yes. But, and
this is just for you to think about, there are lots of good jobs that use
drawing. You think the same geniuses who
write the textbooks also draw the pictures?
There’s more to science than just knowing. Drawing is an important part of the
discipline.”
“Ok.”
“Ok. Think about
it. Thank you, Miss Bentun. You are dismissed.”
Paxti tromped out of the classroom, uncertain of what to
make of what Dr. Yader said. That she
was speaking kindly to her was a surprise in itself. But her thoughts were quickly
interrupted. Udah was standing in the
hallway.
“I’m sorry I laughed,” Udah said.
“Were you waiting for me?”
“Kind of. What are
you doing tonight?”
“Weird. I have plans
with my friends. I have to get home.”
“Did you know it’s a bright night? Are you going to the Yard?”
“Yeah.”
“Yeah to which?”
She didn’t answer, the dam of her resentment breaking quietly inside of her. The two of them stared at each other for a while.
“Quit being so thick,” she snapped. “I gotta go, don’t follow me, slimo, it’s creepy!”
She stepped forward, prepared to push by him if needed,
but he stepped out of the way and said, “If you are going, maybe I’ll see you there! I’m sorry I laughed, it’s just. I’m not a mean guy, I promise.”
“Yeah, whatever.”
She quickly walked down the hallway and out into the rocky wilderness,
nodding to the stormtroopers in their speeder exactly 100 yards outside school
grounds.
“You know me – big time rebel leader here. Exactly who they’re looking for.” She chuckled, though her father did not. She went on, “Dr.
Yader had me wash lab stuff for her.”
“Because…?”
“Because she’s hard on everyone. I swear, it’s good she never had any kids of
her own. She’d be a real Mamatine.”
“Pax!” That
got them laughing. She even heard her
mom from another room. “Pax, that’s
terrible. Where’d you hear that?”
“I dunno,” she said,
putting her bag down in the corner. “What’s
for dinner? And when?”
“I just put it in the oven,” Her dad said, “so should be
soon. It’s stonewolf hide and some
Caruceflower.”
“Ok,” Paxti said. She
patted her dad’s big arms as she walked by, and waved to her mom as she went
into her room and closed the door behind her.
When she heard it click, her mom got up and went into the kitchen.
“Mamatine. Kids these
days, hm?”
“At least we know where she stands on the issue, Uluk.”
“I was just reading the rags. Seems the parade will have a tank, too.”
“Sounds like Zarx knew what he was talking about.”
She leaned back to make sure Paxti's door was still closed. It was. Nevertheless, her voice fell to a whisper. "So the Rebels are really coming?"
"Yup," Codie said simply.
“And us?”
"I don’t know. Truth
is we don’t know how valuable our mines are to the Empire any more. They may decide Utapau isn’t worth it. Or they might decide this is
their next big stand against the Rebels.
Hard to know what they’ll do without their Emperor."
She sighed, “We almost got out of this war unscathed. If the Rebels turn us into a warzone,” her
voice choked, “I just don’t know.”
“Hey,” he said firmly, “The Rebels didn’t occupy our planet, or
dissolve the Senate, or,”
“I know, I know.” Uluk insisted. “It’s not like I like the Empire, I hate
it! You know that. I just miss when the war was further away.”
Codie stopped himself from responding. She’d heard his tirades all before. She was willing enough when he told her the
Rebels had reached out to him, but that didn’t mean she’d ever truly see things
his way. After steadying his breathing, he turned and took her big hands in his own. “Together,” He said.
“Together,” She said, deftly moving her fingers through his.
After a moment she kissed him on the cheek, then let go and crouched to look into the oven, taking in the scent through her snout. Standing, she said loudly, “I want the right side tonight. Looks plump.”
The Bentun family dinner table was a steel-blue metal sheet, which Codie had recovered from a junk heap years before. “This kind of blue is expensive – you believe some people just throw it out?! Whenever we have company over, no matter what we serve, it will look ten times better on this blue table!” Paxti didn’t think so. Who would be fooled by a table? Not that stonewolf was bad fare, but dinner was dinner.
“Anything happen at school you want to share?” Dad asked.
“No.” Paxti answered
automatically, putting another bite of Caruceflower in her snout. But, as usually happened, something came to
her afterwards. “Well, Dr. Yader complimented one of my drawings.”
Dad’s surprise was evident, “You showed her one of your
drawings?!”
“No, uhh," She looked at the ceiling and said quietly, "I kinda drew it on a test.”
“Why’d you do that?”
He asked.
“Dunno.”
“I remember tests.”
Her mom said. “Boring, almost
hateful things.”
“Did you at least pass the test?” Her dad said.
“I think so. She
didn’t really mention it – just the picture.”
“What was it?” Her mom asked.
“I dunno.” She desperately wished she hadn't said anything at all.
“You don’t remember your own drawing?” Her dad pressed.
“Ummm, I
think it was an Amani, or something.”
“So you do remember,” he said, winking and chuckling.
That really ticked her off.
“Or maybe it was something else. Scrag,
what does it matter?!”
Her parents looked at her for a bit and let the silence hang a few moments.
“We were just curious.” Her mom eventually said.
“It doesn’t matter. It’s
your drawing,” Her dad said sullenly.” But
we were curious.”
“What do you care – you couldn’t get me back into drawing
class.” She huffed.
“We care quite a bit!”
Her mom said, voice rising, “And you know we argued a good deal for
you. That school was unfair.”
“So why do I have to go.”
“Cause life isn’t fair, Pax” her dad went on. “Never has been. I’m sorry, but you’ve got to finish
school. You know how often I gotta show
a new client my cert? People care about
that, even when they shouldn’t.”
Paxti smirked and said sourly, “So why do you let them?”
Dad’s face skipped orange and went straight to bright
yellow, but her mom raised her hand, still holding a fork, and said.
“Codie, please. Pax,
what we’re trying to say is the gal isn’t what it ought to be, but we can’t wave
our hand and make it better. Even when
the Jedi and the Republic were around, there were problems. There will always be problems. You gotta find a way to live your life in the
gal as it is, not how you wish it were.”
“Why can’t we fix the gal?”
“Fix the whole gal?” Mom let out a hoot, “Where would we
begin? And anyway, what do you care what
happens in Ord Mantell, or Dantooine, or even Couruscant? Those places don’t affect you. Utapaun’s your home. Make it work for you. Fix everything here, then you can try your
hand everywhere else.”
“Maybe I will,” Paxti huffed.
An uneasy silence settled over the table, broken by the
sounds of ferro-ware scratching the plate and chewing. After a bit, Paxti said, “Dr. Yader liked my drawing.
That was all. Why’d you have to make
it about you two.”
“We’re your parents,” her father said soothingly, “And we
want to see what you drew. We like your
drawings.”
“But you’re supposed to like what I draw. Dr. Yader hates everything,” Paxti
chuckled, and her mom and dad smiled a bit.
“Sounds like a good drawing, then,” her dad said.
After dinner, Paxti stood and began collecting the dishes. “What do you want?”
Her mom asked, suspiciously.
“Moon and Marq and I are going out tonight. They should be here soon.”
“Where you going?”
“The Yard,” Paxti said
“When will you be back?”
“We’ll be back late.”
“How late?”
“It’s the weekend, and I don’t have any plans tomorrow. So pretty late.”
“How late?” She asked
again, her eye stalks moving to focus on Paxti.
“I – I really don’t
know.” Paxti replied. “I’ll call you around midnight to check in.”
“I’ll call you at midnight to check in.” Mom said.
“Call me before, if you don’t want an intrusion.”
“All right,” She said, failing to hide her annoyance
as she turned on the water. Comply,
comply, she told herself.
“Who’s driving?”
“Muna. She’s never
had an accident!”
“And Muna will be driving you home?”
“Yes, mom.”
“And you’ll stay with her all night?”
“Or Marquita, yes.”
“You girls should all stick together.”
“Okay, thanks.”
“Will you?”
“Yes, mom!”
“You know I’m only telling you what you need to know to be
safe – not to be a party pooper. I went
to the Yard at your age too, you know.
Just want you to be safe.”
“Yes, mom!” Paxti raised her voice again, despite her
attempts to keep it level. It was
amazing how difficult it was. School was worse than home, but there was something about her parents’ voice that
dug into her. She knew when she became a
parent she’d be nothing like them. Dishes done, she blew past her mom to go to he room, hardly making eye contact.
“And make sure you bring your papers,” Her dad said, “With
their big parade in a few days the imps will be on high alert.”
“Yes, dad!” Paxti said, slamming the door to her room.
Uluk sat next to Codie on the couch. He gave her a peck with his snout and said,
“You know, the Grit’s speeder is always tracked. If anything goes wrong, Conprise can
help. You remember how we were at her
age.”
“Yeah, and that’s what I’m afraid of. We got lucky, Code. Lots could have gone wrong."
Codie rolled his eyes, “You should be afraid of becoming a mamatine,”
he chuckled, turning on a hologram program.
“Stop that!” She
whispered harshly, hitting his arm.
“Come on, we turned out alright. They’re good kids.”
“That’s not the point,” she said. “Bad things can happen to good kids.”
“I guess,” he shrugged.
“But we have to live in the world as it is, right?”
“No. We have to
prepare for the world as it is. And if
that means we have to be a bit of a nerf sometimes, so be it. A tracker’s no good if all it does is help us
find her body.”
Cody recoiled and made a distasteful grunt. “Ok, ok, you’ve
made your point.”
The wind whipped by their faces as the faded blue speeder bounced
along the rocky road. The streetlights
barely gave off enough light to reach the ground – if they were working at all. But on bright nights the moon more than
compensated. It’s greensilver light
reflected on the bent guard rail ahead, and Muna turned smoothly. The radio was on and the girls were singing
loudly.
And I’d follow you through all these rocks / and the sto
– oh – oh – oh – ones ! To a pile we
could call our oh – oh – oh – oh – oh – oh – own.
But tell me, baby, tell me tell me won’t you, what would you give up for me.
Finally they pulled to a stop in an open field, the sound of horns and drums in the distance. There were speeders spread out everywhere,
parked disorderedly.
“So what’s the plan?” Muna asked, opening the door.
“Well I need to go to the pit to find Robund. You two cannot come with me. I want that boy to myself.”
“But you’re not gonna do that right away,” Paxti said,
leading the group through the winding path between the speeders.”
“Plus, we need to stick together,” Muna reminded them.
Marquita waved her eyestalks in the air in annoyance before
turning them to Paxti. “Well, of course not!
Need him to wonder where I am first.”
“Whatever we do first, keep an eye out for Udah. He really gives me the creeps. If we see him, let’s go another way.”
“And deny you a life of happiness?” Maquita said, “Imagine
how magical it would be to be with someone who makes you laugh all the time.”
“Don’t be gross.” Paxti said.
“We’ll keep an eye out,” Muna said, reassuringly. “Let’s just find a spot to enjoy some music."
"And a drink," Marquita said.
"A few drinks," Paxti clarified.
On the edge of the field were a dozen stormtroopers, spread
out in pairs along the parking area. At
each pair there was a line of people waiting to be let in. As they went to the back of the shortest
line, the girls took out their identification.
“Think we should tell them it’s my birthday?” Muna asked,
suppressing a smile.
“Yeah,” Marquita groaned, “And maybe they’ll let you drive a
TIE around. I don’t think so.”
“I was just kidding,” Muna said.
“Well sorry if I don’t think,” she hissed the next word, “stormies
are very funny.”
“Oh right,” Muna said, remembering. “Sorry, Marq.” A thick silence quickly grew between them. When the discomfort was too much to bear she added, "We don't even know that's what happened to him! Maybe he just left without saying-"
“Just drop it," Marq whispered intently.
“Next!” Shouted a
monotone voice. The girls each held up their IDs to be scanned. The stormtroopers clicked the scanner over the
holoimage and waved each one by, dully saying “Move along.” After scanning Muna’s he added, “And have a
happy birthday!”
“Oh uhhh, thanks.” She said, skin turning orange as she
looked down and hurried by.
Walking onward, they soon came to the edge of the Yard - which was actually a giant crater. The crest of the crater had been covered with durasteel plates for an industrial purpose long now forgotten. But the plates remained, reflecting the moon around the crater. Though parties were held at the yard regularly, the monthly full moon parties were really the ones to attend. Deeper into the crater there were bonfires and grills.
Gingerly the girls began walking down the crater. Rarely was there a party where someone didn’t
fall on their way down. An embarrassing
way to enter. But in recent years the plates had been given grip bumps making it much easier to go down –
if you knew where to walk.
“Hey, ladies!” Came a
voice from below. “Come join us!” Looking down they saw a group of kids
standing around an open flame.
Muna grabbed Marquita’s hand and put her snout directly in
her earhole. “Is that safe?”
Marquita blew out the air in her snout in a chuckle. “Oh come on – it’s more fun this way! But yes, it’s safe enough for ya.” Marquita waved conspicuously. Paxti carefully followed behind them.
When they made it down a boy called Amalk tossed each of them a can. “Cheers!” Everyone shouted as they downed their drink. Marquita had to help Muna open hers.
The conversation went from galactic celebrities to the
hardest graders (Paxti was relieved Dr. Yader was at the tip of everyone else’s
snout, too). Paxti sipped from her can
throughout. No stranger to alcohol, she
had never been overly fond of the taste.
She preferred mixtures, but those weren’t thrown around as liberally as
simple brews. This one tasted like
cooked rock.
“You all going to the parade?” One asked.
Everyone laughed bitterly. Empire
Day parades had been mandatory for as long as they all remembered. Rumor had it stormtroopers went into
everyone’s home during the parade to make sure everyone attended, though Robund
had insisted once he stayed home and no one came to bother him, or if they did
he paid them off.
“I heard they’re gonna fix Empty Square.”
“We already fixed it!”
Amalk shouted. After the
Emperor’s defeat at Endor, protests had erupted in Utapaun, and most of the
Emperor’s statues had been defaced or taken down. In the capital they had proclaimed it Empty
Square and occupied it for a week or two before the sight of a TIE bomber chased them all out. Paxti and her parents had visited a few times
during the occupation, but they never spent the night. The Empire would outlive the Emperor, turns
out. “We were naïve to think it would
all end so easily,” Her dad had sighed.
“I heard they’re gonna announce a new Emperor.” Said another
boy named Cheep
“That’s what you said last year,” Marquita said,
nudging him.
“And now I’m saying it this year.” He said.
“The Rebels are coming. My uncle's been-” A girl named Supyura said.
“Quiet, Supy.
They’ll hear you.” Muna snapped,
gesturing towards the parking lot.
“Oh please,” Supyura laughed, dropping her can in the pile at
her feet. Then she let out a ferocious
yell: “WHAT THE SCRAG ARE THE IMP’S
GONNA DO TO ME! THEY GOTTA BE 100 FEET AWAY!”
Everyone froze, and a few looked towards the crest of the
crater. When no one came a few let out
some nervous laughter. The local council
had passed a law years earlier that, to protect the freedom of Utapaun’s
inhabitants, Stormtroopers had to remain 100 feet away from most publicly owned
spaces. Given it’s long history of
docility, the governor allowed the ruling to stand. However, in recent months government officials had been purchasing public spaces, allowing them to station Stormtroopers on "their" property.
“Yeah, Supy’s right!”
Amalk said, raising his drink.
“To hell with them all.”
“To hell with them all!”
Everyone echoed, taking a drink.
Then the conversation died down and the group started
singing to the tunes being played by the band at the center. Paxti reached over to Muna and lifted her can
– it still felt quite full. She leaned
over to her and said, “If you don’t like it, we can find something else.”
“Yes, please,” Muna choked back, letting the can go so Paxti
could finish it herself. She remembered
her first time, last year at one of Nimind’s parties. She’d pushed through it because Nimind didn’t
have anything else, but the Yard had all sorts of options. No reason to tortore poor Muna. She wasn’t the tough type.
“Come on, let’s go,” Paxti shouted, tapping Marquita’s shoulder. When Paxti finished Muna’s can, she saw a cleaning droid standing a short ways off. She tossed the can towards the droid, and the others followed suit. The grey block of a droid moved it’s one arm to pick up each can and drop it into a hole in its chest.
As they neared the stage the band came into view. Two Utai were on horns with one on drums. Up front was an older boy singing. It had become too loud to talk, so Paxti just pointed towards one of several booths set up. She bobbed her head as she sang along with the well-known refrain.
Take me down to Bespin system. We can lose ourselves in the clouds.
At the booth Marquita pointed to the menu above their heads. Her snout was right to Muna’s earhole as she described the different drinks. Muna shrugged at every suggestion.
“I got this!” Paxti shouted. She went to the dark yellow amani at the booth and ordered Tall Sunshines for all of them.
The bartender held up his hand, with two fingers slightly
apart. Paxti took out her ID and handed
it over. He pointed to Muna and
Marquita. Paxti rolled her eyesstalks
and went back to the others. She held
her own ID up and pointed to them both.
When she returned the amani looked at the IDs, then rubbed a long
fingers on the back of each. Satisfied,
he handed them back, turning to prepare the drinks. Paxti pocketed the IDs while she watched him
mix the drinks, remembering what her mother had taught her not-too-long ago.
He came back and handed her three drinks. Carrying them all to her friends at once, she laughed and shouted “He took more time with these than the Stormie!” She laughed as she handed the IDs back. Then she held her drink up, and the others followed. “To Muna,” she practically screamed to be heard over the music. “Finally, an adult!!” They touched glasses and drank. She finished hers in three gulps. “I was getting sick of hanging out with a kid anyway,” Paxti chuckled as she finished hers.
As Marquita finished hers, Paxti turned to Muna, expecting
it to still be half full. Instead, it
was already empty. “I love it!” She was shouting, holding the glass out for
someone to refill. "My turn!" Marquita laughed as she took
the glasses and went back to the booth. Too loud for a conversation, they sang with
the band.
And it isn’t what they wanted, and it isn’t what I asked
for, but damn this life is fun! What
good is school if it leaves you bored.
What good is family if they drag you down. Just me and you and this thing called
love. And it isn’t what they wanted, and
it isn’t what I asked for, but damn this life is fun!
Marquita returned with the drinks, and Paxti pointed to an
open space they could sit. They hurried
over before anyone else took the spot.
“Oh, I got this!” Muna yelled, reaching into her red
purse. She pulled out a credit and
before anyone could stop her she slipped it into the slot. A blue light suddenly encircled them from
below, and the music became much quieter.
Paxti laughed while Marquita groaned.
“Muna!” Paxti yelled,
and then adjusted her voice “Come on, only wet wookies use these domes. We’re gonna look like a bunch of scrag.”
“What?” Muna said,
hurt clear in her voice. “But whenever
my parents took me here for concerts this is what everyone did there. We can make the volume louder, if you
want.” She pointed to a knob near the
creditslot.
“That's because these things are for families and their kids!" Paxti exclaimed. "Come on, turn it off before somebody sees us.”
“Turn it off!”
Marquita echoed urgently.
“Ok, ok.” Muna said,
hitting a red button. “Sorry.”
Paxti was going to respond, but when the dome vanished the
force of the music hit her like an asteroid.
It took all her focus not to fall over and spill her drink. By the time she recovered, Muna looked downright
downtrodden.
She scooted to sit closer to Muna. “Hey, you didn’t know. Don’t worry about it.”
“I didn’t even want to come!” Muna yelled, taking a swig from her cup. “Why
did you make me come to the Yard! It’s
such a stupid place!”
“Hey, hey, hey,” Paxti said, taking the cup from
Muna’s hand. “Take a break from that
stuff for the moment. Look, we’re here
under the full moon in the coolest place there is to be. And you belong here, Muna.”
“No, I don’t,” She pouted.
“Everyone belongs here,” Marquita shouted. “It’s the Yard! Don’t over think it, we all make mistakes.”
“But everyone saw us!”
“Really?” Paxti stood
up and made a show of looking around. “No
one’s staring.” She sat back down. “You’re not the only one who’s done this, I
bet.”
“Did you?”
“Listen, I don’t remember a thing about my first time here
without my parents. So I mean, maybe.”
“Ok.” Muna said
slowly. She reached out for her
drink. “Sorry.” She said again.
After a few more songs (and drinks), the band cleared up and left the stage. Pre-recorded music played through the speakers as the next band set up.
“Generic scruff,” Marquita said
derisively. “I’m going to find Robund.”
“Marq,” Muna said, “We gotta stick together.”
“Then come with me – but stay back.”
“But I’m comfortable.”
“Well I’m bored.
But if you’re so comfortable then don’t leave until I come back.”
“You won’t come back,” Paxti said, “You’ll talk to Robund
for hours.”
“About laundry!” Muna teased.
“Shut up!” Marquita
snapped back. “Call me on my comm if I
take too long. Oh, that’s a good
idea. It will make me seem
popular!” Then she turned around and
left.
“Shouldn’t we really stick together?” Muna said.
“We should be home studying,” Paxti said,
smiling. Muna let out a laugh. Paxti’s hand reached out and rested on her
friend’s hand.
“This really is generic scruff,” Muna said laughing.
“Yeah. Want another
drink?” Paxti said, standing up.
“Should I come with you?” Muna asked.
“Someone’s gotta stay to keep our spot.”
“Oh.”
“I’ll be right back.”
By now there was a line to get a drink. While she waited she called her mom on the
comm. Her mom made her promise to call
again in an hour. When they hung up, a
familiar voice said, “Who was that?”
“What?” Paxti said as
she turned around. Udah was right there,
right behind her.
“How’s this for luck!”
He yelled.
“Yeah, bad luck.” She
said coldly.
“Aww, come on. I
wasn’t waiting for you this time, promise!”
The silence began to stretch. He said, “So, how about this generic
music? Can’t wait for the next band.”
“Yeah, me too,” she agreed plainly.
“Know who it is?”
“No.”
“I do,” He said, his voice suddenly gleeful. “It’s my band! Well, technically it’s my brother’s!”
“Oh” She felt her interest pique despite herself, “Are you
any good?”
“Yeah! Well, you’ll
see for yourself. Well, hear for
yourself. You know. Whatever.
I play the horn. I’m just getting
drinks for everyone. But we don’t have a
singer right now. Our last singer got,
well, we don’t really know.” He lowered
his voice and quickly added, “Run-in gone wrong, maybe.” Then he went on, “So we need a new singer. Maybe you’d be interested? You’re a good singer!”
“Oh,” Paxti didn’t quite know what to say.
Behind Udah someone shouted, “Hey move it,
sister!” She turned around and saw the
path to the booth was wide open. Glad
for the excuse, she hurried away and ordered her drinks.
“Whatcha getting?”
Udah said, suddenly beside her.
“None of your business, Udah.”
“Udah, my booki!” The
amani shouted, “Preshow regular?”
“Yeah, Retfret. And
whatever my friend here wants, I’ll get that, too.”
“No!” Paxti
yelled. “I can get my own drinks, thank
you very much. And you’re behind
me.”
“Listen, what’re you so mad at me about?” Udah said, taking
a few steps back.
“You spied on me while I was singing, then you waited for me
out in the hall when no one else was around, now you’re asking me to join your
little band. Pretty creepy.”
Udah cocked his head, and his eyestalks floated a little
before recentering on her. “That what you think happened? No!” A sternness entered his voice she had
never heard before. “I was cleaning the
floors like Dr. Yader asked, and I heard you sing. We’ve been really worried about tonight
without a singer, and that’s been on my mind.
Waiting around was a bit awkward, but it was worse for me, needing to
hear you chit-chat with Dr. Yader like old friends. I was about to leave when you came out.”
The amani came back with the drinks. “Sure,” she said dismissively, slamming the
credits on the counter.
“I have my own life, you know. It isn’t all about you, P. If you don’t want to sing you don’t need to
sing, but you don’t have to make such a big deal out of it. We’ll find someone else.”
Paxti let out a harumph, took her drinks, and stomped back
to where she’d left Muna.
Muna sipped her drink and said, “Singing in front of all
those people – no thank you.”
“I know right,” Paxti agreed. “I mean, not with him. Maybe one day. I don’t know, think I’m good enough?”
“Absolutely!” Muna
exclaimed, “Paxti, you’ve got an amazing voice, and any band would be
absolutely whizzed to have you. I say
you’re better than Marquita, though don’t tell her I said that. Hey, where is she, should we go find her?”
Paxti took out the comm.
It rang and rang and rang. “Must
be a good conversation,” Paxti shrugged, putting it back in her pocket. “We’ll try again later.”
“I think Udah’s cute,” Muna said suddenly. “In a scruffy kinda way,” she said,
defensively.
“You think everyone’s cute,” Paxti laughed. “And believe me that stuff won’t help. How do you feel, anyway?”
“Loose, I think. My
snout feels longer, if that means anything.
I don’t know. I feel good. Thanks for bringing me here. Sorry for complaining earlier.”
“No problem,” Paxti said, reaching her hand out. Muna took it.
“This place definitely looks better in the moonlight than
during the day.”
They sat there pleasantly, quiet, sipping their drinks. Suddenly a voice came over the speaker. “We’d like to introduce our next band,
Reckless Encores.”
“Uh, yes hello.” Came a squealy voice. Unfortunately our singer couldn’t, uhh,
couldn’t make it tonight. So we’re gonna
play some familiar crowd pleasers tonight, and we hope you’ll sing along.”
The horn rang out loudly as a recognizable but uninspired
version of Loyal to the End played.
Paxti and Muna sang along softly with each other, but when it became
clear the others weren’t joining in, they stopped. “This sucks,” Paxti said, finishing off her
drink in one gulp. “Let’s go find
Marquita.”
“What about our spot?” Muna said, finishing hers more
slowly.
Paxti pointed to the stage, “For this? No, no.
Let’s go!” Paxti tossed her cup
towards a nearby droid before grabbing Muna’s hand to drag her along.
“They really need a singer,” Muna said blithely.
“Well it won’t be me.
I’d need a lot more drink in me than this before then!”
“Alright,” Muna said, by then catching up to Paxti so she
wouldn’t have to be dragged. “Where are the pits, anyway?”
“I think they’re that way.” Paxti said, though she didn’t
point in any direction. Muna raised her
eye stalks to see above everyone. They
passed throngs of people as they wandered through the Yard.
“I think we’re lost,” Muna said, as the edges of the crater
came into view.
“Then maybe they’re this way.” Paxti said, pulling them to
the left.
“Why don’t we ask someone?”
Muna said, motioning towards a group standing by a fire.
“Oh come on, Muna.
They’ll think it’s our first time, and that we don’t know our way
around.”
“Well,” Muna said, “It is my first time, and I don’t
know my way around.”
“Fine, but I’ll wait here.
You go embarrass yourself.”
“Chill out.” Muna
said, walking away.
Paxti paced back and forth while she watched Muna. She saw a group of older kids huddled by a
small fire, and curiosity drew her near.
She heard a monotone voice, cracking as if through a transmitter: “Wedge, you seeing this?"
"Yeah. Looks like we've got company. Corran!"
"Yeah, boss."
"Divert those TIEs to point oh-five-three."
"Roger that."
“They say it’s that way,” Muna said, bringing Paxti back to
the moment. She was pointing to the
right.
“I knew that.” Paxti
said, “Let’s go.” With a bump she walked
right into Muna’s outstretched hand, which was holding a drink. Some of it spilled onto her and she gasped.
“Come on Muna!”
She wiped the liquid off her shirt before it soaked in.
“Sorry,” Muna said.
“But you should watch where you’re going.”
Paxti felt like exploding, but instead grabbed the drink out of Muna’s hand. A bit more of it spilled. She poured some into her snout before she said something she’d regret.
“Gah!” She exclaimed,
her eyesockets tightening up. “What in the Gal is this?” It was then she
realized the drink wasn’t yellow at all.
“I don’t know,” Muna said, taking a sip. Ack, is that silseed?”
“Yeah,” Paxti said, shaking her snout. “Real strong, too.” She took another sip of the blue drink. “Ugh,” she said. She threw the cup towards a nearby droid,
blue liquid spilling as it spun. “That
was gross,” she said.
Muna tried another sip. “Scrag!” She said, spitting it out and throwing her
cup. Paxti started to laugh. Muna’s face turned embarrassed. “I’m sorry, OK!” Muna shouted defensively. She threw up her hands. “I screw up again.”
“No, no,” Paxti chuckled.
“Moon. You just said Scrag.”
Muna waved her snout around a little, and her eyesockets drifted
aimlessly as she processed that. “Oh,” she started to giggle. “Well I did, didn’t I.”
Paxti laughed louder, “Marq will be so upset she
missed this.”
“Scrag, Scrag, Scrag!”
Muna shouted through her giggles.
“Oh, that’s fun!”
“We gotta tell Marq!”
“This way,” Muna grabbed Paxti’s hand and dragged her
towards the pits, still laughing.
They found Marquita was standing with a group of other kids
they recognized. Several of them had W
boards, holding them up by the middle joint.
Behind them, in the distance, W shapes popped up and down like a speeder’s
carbeen firing. The music was louder
here.
“Marq!” Paxti shouted
over the music. “Come on, we have to
go!”
“You’ll never guess what I said!” Muna yelled. She didn't respond. Muna got next to her and smacked her shoulder, “Hey, Marquita.”
She waved vaguely in their direction and kept talking. The boy she was talking to turned to the new
arrivals. He was tall and handsome, with
a narrowing snout and eyes the color of ground milkseeds. His voice had a certain melody, and it said:
“Sorry, ladies, I’m busy.”
“What?!” They yelled over the music.
“Alright, alright, if you insist.” Robund shouted louder than before. He turned back to Marquita, “Hold my drink,
will ya Princess?” Marquita giggled and
took the brown drink in her hand. “Watch
this,” he said, facing the other two.
He put his W-board on the ground and placed his feet at
either end of the shape. With a firm
stomp the board levitated slightly, and with a bend of his body he dropped out
of view as he went into the half-pipe.
“Let’s go! Remember, you
want to leave him wanting more.” Paxti
said.
“Come on, you’re missing some solid bonding,” Muna added.
“We were bonding here, too.”
“Marq, come on!” Muna
yelled. “We didn’t come here for this.”
“Well maybe not you.”
“Come on, Marq, you know what we mean," Paxti said.
“Check me oooouuuuutttt!” They distantly heard Robund shouting from a
distance. He had gone up the halfpipe and
was rotating in the air as he went up, until he stopped, then went back
down. He grabbed his board as he went
down.
“That’s so´cool!”
Marquita announced, and she was right.
The others only nodded, feet rooted to the ground as Robund did a series
of other tricks, including some flips and even a jump-kick.
“You know, I taught him that.” Someone leaned over to Paxti. “Yeah, Robund’s a fast learner, I’ll give him
that.” Paxti took a few steps back.
“Nuh-uh!” Another boy
said. “I taught him! You couldn’t do a double frupple if the
Galaxy depended on it!”
“Can, too!” Said the
first.
“Let’s go!” Said the
second.
“You’re on, Rawn.” Then he turned around to Paxti and said,
“Wait for me."
The girls were left on the edge of the pit. The boys bounced up and down at the far edge
of the halfpike, shouting at each other.
“See?" Muna said, pleadingly, "They already forgot we’re
here,” Muna
reached her hands to her friends, “Come on.
I want to go back to the music.”
“But he’s expecting me to wait for him,” Marquita replied
“And I’m expecting you to spend time with me for my
birthday!” Muna said, raising her voice.
Paxti didn’t dare to breathe as she waited for
Marquita. On the horizon the boys
rotated and flipped, jeering each other all the while. After a few excruciating seconds, Marquita
turned around. “You’re right,” she
said. “I’ll leave him wanting more.” She finished off his drink and put the cup
down on the ground.
As they headed back to the stage, Muna told Marquita all about her first curse.
“Oh, oh, I’m sorry I missed it.” She giggled. “Do it again. No, wait! I want it to be authentic. OK, we’re not leaving until Muna does it again. I’ll get the next round to get her going. There’s a spot! Go grab it, I’ll be back. Tall Sunshine?”
Muna looked at Paxti, who said “Yes, that’s the one. Or something like it. No silseed, though.”
"Never silseed," Muna said, laughing.
The crowd had thinned out by the stage, so Muna and Paxti took
a spot much closer than last time. The
music was actually quieter here since the speakers were farther out in order to
catch the crater’s edges. Marquita came
back with the drinks, and the three girls sat and talked.
“Hey, you!” A voice
suddenly called. They looked around, and
saw Udah shouting from the stage. “We’re
onto our last song. Honestly, thank the
Whils, we’re not doing too well. But if
you want a debut,” his voice rose inquisitively at the end.
“Oh, no, uhh, no.” Paxti stumbled out.
“What’s this?” Marquita
said dumbly.
“Oh come on!” Muna pleaded. “Come on, Pax, it’s my birthday. Sing one for me?”
Paxti found it hard to deny that whine.
“Here,” Muna said, struggling to stand up. “You said you’d need more first. Finish mine.
Marquita, get us another round.
Pax is gonna sing the Yard!”
“Oh wow,” Marquita said, floored.
Pax slowly stood up.
She looked at Udah’s outstretched hand, and back at Muna’s eager
face. “Come on come on come on!” She suddenly said. Paxti grabbed her drink and finished it in
one swill. Then she took Muna’s and finished that, too. She walked to the stage and where Udah pulled
her up.
“Ladies and gentlemen, guests of the Yard,” Udah’s brother
said into the microphone, “For our final song, I am pleased to announce we have
found a singer,” A polite applause came up from the crowd. “What would you like?” Udah said as his brother went on with the
introduction.
“What?” Paxti asked
“The song, what song?”
“Oh, uhh,” Her mind had gone quite suddenly blank.
“How about I belong?”
Udah suggested.
“Yeahhhhh” Paxti said, dragging the word out.
“Just do your best, big shot,” Udah’s brother said as he
picked his horn back up.
“Ok, ready? On three.”
As they counted off Paxti she forgot the words. She didn’t know any words at all. Had she ever sung in her life? Were the stars always this blurry?
The band kicked up and immediately Paxti regretted her
decision. But then she remembered the
song had an intro. She quickly thought
through the song in her head, and all at once it came back to her. She remembered everything with such clarity. She felt a buzzing in her side, but ignored
the nerves. The bass dropped, and there
were two chords before the words began.
And then one.
And then Paxti Bentun fell over, and threw up onto the
ground below.
Marquita and Muna ran over to her, and badgered her with
questions, but she felt fine now. Yes,
even the buzzing in her side had stopped.
And the band kept playing – it was a huge crowd, after all, and most of
the audience wasn’t even near the stage, and they needed to meet their
contract, even if the gig was falling apart, even if this was probably the last
gig they’d ever get.
“Come on!” The drummer
shouted.
Paxti stood up. She
felt much better now. Her head was
bobbing with the song. It song was only
half over, and she knew the words for sure.
Muna and Marquita were amazed to hear their friend sing so
well. They knew she could sing, they’d spent
miles listening to her in Muna’s Father’s X40 Sorosuub. She could hit notes they had to pretend
to. But not only that. Even the beat itself seemed to get inside
her. They both envied her timing, and
the natural way her hand tapped the side of the speeder in rhythm, whether they
were driving 150 down an open road or taking tight, wild turns, or sitting on
the hood at Jung’s Heights after a round of frozen sweet cream. But they’d never heard her sing like this
before.
You think it’s just you here, yeah yeah yeah you think
it’s only you, but we all got bills to pay, you won’t get your way.
You think of only you, uh uh uh, you think of only you,
uh uh uh, but isn’t it lonely, in an orbit of your oh – oh -oh -oh – own!
Not you, no no, no no, not you and not here. I’m gonna go, gonna go, gonna get out, gonna
find where I bellloooooonnnnngggg!
Paxti held this final note for a long time – Udah’s brother
had a hard time holding the horn’s note as long. When it ended, the commotion of the Yard returned,
but quickly replaced by a great applause.
Some people even stood up and raised their hands above their heads. Paxti bowed, her skin now flush bright green with
pride. She bowed once, twice, three
times, turning each time she bowed.
She heard yelling behind her and turned around. Udah, his brother, and their third band
member were clapping and cheering, too.
Udah ran up to her and wrapped his wide arms around her. “You were great, P!” Paxti was so ecsatic she didn’t mind being so
close to him and even hugged him back.
He released and stepped back.
“Ood wasn’t kidding.
That was quite good!” The drummer said.
“Once you got around to it” Udah’s brother said.
“Hey!” Udah yelled. “Come on.”
“What?” His brother
said, “It was a compliment!”
A tall adult stepped onto the stage, “Where was she
for the first dozen songs?! Well done,
young lady. Now, everyone, please clear
off. Oh, young lady, what’s your name?”
“Paxti.”
“Everyone give it up for Paxti and the Reckless
Encores.” He said into his mic,
thundering it across the yard. The
applause rose up again as they all shuffled off the stage down the back stairs. They were greeted by a small group of fans. Muna and Marquita were at the back. As the band came down the stairs the crowd
gave way to make some room, but one walked forward.
“Who’s the new girl?”
She asked dismissively. Udah’s
brother put his arm around her shoulders.
“Aww, baby, tell me you’re not jealous. She’s just the new singer, you know you’re
the only one I want. Hey everyone, let’s
go hang in our spot. Hey P,” He said,
turning to Paxti. He put two fingers to
his snout. “You spark?”
Paxti, still riding high from the applause, refused among a whirl of giggles. “Me? Oh, no. No, no, no, no, no.”
Without another word, Udah’s brother turned around and walked
away, and the group followed him. Udah
and the drummer turned back to Paxti as Muna and Marquita pushed through to be
at her side.
“Sorry,” Udah said, embarrassed by his brother’s lack of
manners, “He can be a bit of an ugnaught.”
“Left us with the equipment again, too” the drummer
groaned. “But seriously, if you want to
join, let us know. You were really good
for just getting up there.”
“Yeah, yeah!” Paxti
said. “I will! I want to, yes!
“My client will have to check her schedule,” Marquita said,
waving her hands in a grand gesture.
“But I assure you that you’ll hear from our people soon.”
“Uhh, OK.” The
drummer said, looking at Marquita. He
turned to Paxti, “Really, though, that would be great!” He turned to Udah, “Let’s put this stuff away
and get to your brother. Make sure he
doesn’t do anything stupid.”
“Ok. I’ll reach
out. Your comm’s in the school
directory, right?”
“Our people will reach out, right? Right!” Muna said, speeding up her voice to sound like the agents in the news.
Udah looked at the three girls and seemed confused. The drummer tapped him with his foot and
jerked his head toward their equipment trailer.
“Yeah, OK. Well, you were
great. See you! But next time you’re helping us,” he laughed,
turning around.
“Wow, that was so good!” Muna exclaimed as they walked away. They were arm in arm, Paxti in the
middle. She described every moment of
being on stage in prattling detail, but they kept asking for more.
Suddenly she said. “Oh,
am I thirsty!”
“I’m about out of money,” Muna said. “And sort of want to go home now. It’s late.”
“No, no, just some water is all I need. I’m done, too. I don’t feel so good - my leg keeps buzzing.”
Paxti reached down to touch it, and was surprised to find a bump. Then she remembered. “Scrag!” She shouted, and she yanked the comm out of her pocket. No sooner did she activate it that a voice boomed out of the speaker,
“DO YOU HAVE ANY IDEA WHAT TIME IT IS!” Paxti’s mother’s voice boomed out of the
speaker.
“Uh oh,” Muna said.
“Uh oh is right, missy.
I was about to head out there myself.”
“No, no,” Paxti said.
“I’m fine. We’re fine.”
“Why didn’t you pick up?”
“She was singing!”
Muna and Marquita shouted.
“Who’s that?” Her
mother said.
“It’s Muna,” Muna said.
“She was on stage singing”
“At the YARD?!”
Mister Bentun exclaimed. “My
Force, what got into her?”
Muna let her eyestalks wander upward to see Paxti. “She was really, really great.”
“The band invited me up!”
Paxti said.
“Yeah, it was really whiz.” Marquita said
There was silence on the other side for a moment.
“And who is that?”
“Marquita. Come on
mom, I told you.”
“Oh, oh right, right." She laughed nervously, "You
kids are good?”
“Better than good!”
Paxti laughed. “I’ll tell you
about it later, OK?”
“Ok. Stay with
Muna. She’s got a good head on her shoulder. I mean, so do you. And Marquita.
You know what I’m saying, you’re all good kids. I love you.
How much longer will you be out?”
“We were just talking about coming home.”
“Ok.”
“See you when we see you,” Marquita said.
“Thanks,” Paxti said, and hung up.
They got some water from a booth as they headed back to the parking lot. While they stopped to drink it, Paxti found herself looking wistfully at the stage, now far in the distance. Would she ever sing that good again? Maybe tonight was just a fluke. A new band was just getting started. They'll be so good, everyone will forget about me. Just then the ground rumbled as a forceful explosion rolled through the Yard. Above, they saw green and red lights flash through the sky.
“These guys are crap,” Muna leaned in, speeding up her voice
again. “You hear me, crap! You don’t use fancy intros like that if your
music’s got soul. That’s what you got,”
She threw her arm around Paxti and poked her sternum. “You got heart, kid. You’re going places.” Paxti laughed and felt herself relax.
When they finished their water they continued walking
back. Once over the crest of the Yard their
elation was replaced with exhaustion, and Paxti had to be literally dragged
into the speeder. They put her in the
back seat, and Muna took off her sweater and balled it up for her to use as a
pillow. Through the ordeal they didn’t
even realize the stormtroopers were gone.
“Are you alright to drive?”
Marquita asked as they got into the front of the speeder. Already they could hear Paxti snoring in the
back. “We can find a place to pull over
and sleep if-”
“Hey!” Muna demanded loudly, “Which of us has never had an
accident, even during driver’s training?”
“Alright, alright” Marquita said, buckling into her seat.
A tired but determined Muna drove them all home. She still didn’t see the burning, wrecked TIE
on the road until it was mere meters away.
She had to swerve to avoid it, cursing as she did. “Hah!” Marquita mumbled, eyes still closed,
“Nice one.”
Copyright ©️ 2020 Maslow Stories
