'You're a funny little boy.' The amused smile returned. 'How do you know so much?'
Anakin smiled back and shrugged. 'I listen to all the traders and pilots who come through here.' He glanced toward the salvage yard. 'I'm a pilot, you know. Someday, I'm going to fly away from this place.'
The girl wandered to one end of the counter, looked away, then back again. 'Have you been here long?'
'Since I was very little-three, I think. My mom and I were sold to Gardulla the Hutt, but she lost us to Watto, betting on the pod races. Watto's a lot better master, I think.'
She stared at him in shock. 'You're a slave?'
The way she said it made Anakin feel ashamed and angry. He glared at her defiantly. 'I am a person!'
'I'm sorry,' she said quickly, looking upset and embarrassed. 'I don't fully understand, I guess. This is a strange world to me.'
He studied her intently for a moment, thinking of other things, wanting to tell her of them. 'You are a strange girl to me,' he said instead. He swung his legs out from the counter.
'My name is Anakin Skywalker.'
She brushed at her hair. 'Padme Naberrie.'
The strange creature she had come in with wandered back to the front of the shop and bent over a stout little droid body with a bulbous nose. Reaching up curiously, it pushed at the nose with one finger. Instantly armatures popped out from every direction, metal limbs swinging into place. The droid's motors whizzed and whirred, and it jerked to life and began moving forward. Padme's odd companion went after it with a moan of dismay, grabbing on in an effort to slow it down, but the droid continued marching through the shop, knocking over everything it came in contact with.
'Hit the nose!' Anakin called out, unable to keep himself from laughing.
The creature did as it was told, pounding the droid's nose wildly. The droid stopped at once, the arms and legs retracted, the motors shut down, and the droid went still. Both Anakin and Padme were laughing now, and their laughter increased as they saw the look on the unfortunate creature's long- billed face.
Anakin looked at Padme and the girl at him. Their laughter died away. The girl reached up to touch her hair self-consciously, but she did not divert her gaze.
'I'm going to marry you,' the boy said suddenly.
There was a moment of silence, and she began laughing again, a sweet musical sound he didn't mind at all. The creature who accompanied her rolled his eyes.
'I mean it,' he insisted.
'You are an odd one,' she said, her laughter dying away. 'Why do you say that?'
He hesitated. 'I guess because it's what I believe...'
Her smile was dazzling. 'Well, I'm afraid I can't marry you...' She paused, searching her memory for his name.
'Anakin,' he said.
'Anakin.' She cocked her head. 'You're just a little boy.'
His gaze was intense as he faced her. 'I won't always be,' he said quietly.
In the salvage yard, Watto was studying the creen of a portable memory bank he held in one hand, tracing through his inventory record. Qui-Gon, arms folded into his farmer's poncho, stood waiting patiently, the R2 unit at his side.
'Ah, here it is. A T-14 hyperdrive generator!' The Toydarian's wings beat wildly as he hovered before the Jedi, his gnarled finger jabbing at the viewscreen. 'You're in luck. I'm the only one hereabouts who has one. But you might as well buy a new ship. It would be cheaper. Speaking of which, how're you going to pay for all this, farmer?'
Qui-Gon considered. 'I have twenty thousand Republic dataries to put toward-'
'Republic credits?' Watto exploded in disgust. 'Republic credits are no good out here! I need something better than that, something of value...'
The Jedi Master shook his head. 'I don't have anything else.' One hand came up, passing casually in front of the Toydarian's face. 'But credits will do fine.'
'No, they won't!' Watto snapped, buzzing angrily.
Qui-Gon frowned, then passed his hand in front of the pudgy blue alien again, bringing the full force of his Jedi suggestive power to bear. 'Credits will do fine,' he repeated.
Watto sneered. 'No, they won't!' he repeated. 'What do you think you're doing, waving your hand around like that? You think you're some kinda Jedi? Hah! I'm a Toydarian! Mind tricks don't work on me-only money! No money, no parts, no deal! And no one else has a T-14 hyperdrive generator, I can promise you that!'
Chagrined, Qui-Gon wheeled back for the shop, the R2 unit following at his heels. The Toydarian shouted after them to come back when they had something worthwhile to trade, still scolding the Jedi Master for trYing to foist Republic credits on him. Qui-Gon reentered the shop just as Jar Jar pulled a part from a large stack and sent the entire arrangement tumbling to the floor. His efforts at correcting the problem brought a second display crashing down as well.
The boy and the Queen's handmaiden were deep in discussion, paying no attention to the Gungan.
'We're leaving,' Qui-Gon announced to the girl, moving toward the shop's entry, the R2 unit trundling along behind.
Jar Jar was quick to follow, anxious to escape his latest mess. Padme gave the boy a warm smile. 'I'm glad I
