Just because I know how much you love, Jango.
Can I request a Jango and whatever you wish. Write away... love oo
Let Her Be Mine
Summary: When Jango Fett was 14 years old, his people were slaughtered and he was sold into slavery. His cell mate on the slave ship was a small girl, younger than him, though she had been a slave for much longer. Jango’s biggest regret is not acting before she was sold. And then he runs into her again...and this time he’s not letting go.
Pairing: Jango Fett x F!Reader
Word Count: 4134
Warnings: Slavery
Tagging: @trixie2023 @n0vqni
A/N: Okay, this is a labor of love that took me days to write. A big thanks to @daimyosprincess for helping me with a sentence that was far too wordy. And thank you for giving me such an open ended ask, lol. I kind of just ran with it.
Jango remembers the first time he met her with surprising clarity. He remembers the feel of chains around his wrists, the heavy slave collar wrapped around his neck, and the scent of unwashed people and fear all around him.
And he remembers her.
She was younger than him by a couple of years, though she looked much younger. The rags that she was wearing, designed for men much larger than her, hung on her small frame like a dress. And razor thin scars crisscrossed her body like some kind of twisted tattoo.
She didn’t have a name, she told him with a small smile. A peaceful smile, as though she had accepted her lot in life and was okay with it.
Jango named her Sen’ika.
A little bird in a little cage.
The slavers shoved him into the same cage as her, claiming that they were both so small that they could share. In truth, he didn’t mind. She deserved to be protected, and surely even he couldn’t kark that up.
His Sen’ika became his reason for surviving. He learned to bite his tongue when the slavers came through, learned to take the beatings from men who beat down on people smaller than them just to make themselves feel important. He learned the importance of listening, rather than just reacting.
And when things were so bad that he couldn’t handle it, his Sen’ika would take his hand and curl against his side, and tell him that tomorrow will be better because it couldn’t possibly be worse.
She was always right.
And on nights when the darkness of despair blotted out all the light, when even his Sen’ika struggled to cradle that fragile flower of hope, Jango would tell her what freedom tasted like.
He’d weave the most amazing stories of the planets that they’d visit and the people that they’d meet and the places that they’d see—
It helped. It gave him something to cling to, and it bolstered her waning spirits. And she would flash him the tiniest of smiles, and Jango would feel ten feet tall.
He couldn’t be that terrible of a person if someone as kind as his Sen’ika smiled at him like that.
And then the auction happened.
And then his Sen’ika was sold. Ripped from from his arms and clapped with heavy chains that weighed her down, as though she was a threat.
They clipped her wings so that she might never fly free.
And the last time he saw his Sen’ika, was when she was being forced into the back of a van with the other children that her new owner purchased.
Jango remained a slave for ten years. Ten long, dragging, years.
Ten years where he never stopped hoping that he might see his Sen’ika again.
Ten years where he clung to life just on the off chance that his Sen’ika might still be out there.
And when Jango escaped, he did so in the bloodiest way possible, slaughtering anyone who might have tried to stop him. And a part of him was glad that his Sen’ika wasn’t on board, because she deserved more than this.
It’s been several years since then, and Jango is now pushing thirty.
He’s a rather prolific Bounty Hunter, having elected to stay away from Mandalore in the hopes of finally tracking down his Sen’ika. If nothing else, all evidence points to her still being alive...even if he can’t find her.
And that’s when he’s approached by the Jedi.
Now, Jango Fett has no love for the Jedi, with very good reasons. Jedi and Mandalorians mix about as well as oil and water on a good day, and the last time Jango saw a Jedi he was leading the slaughter of the True Mandalorians.
So Jango is less than thrilled at the arrival of the Jedi.
Somehow he’s even less thrilled when the Jedi inform him that they are reaching out to him on behalf of the Senate. But his ship needs some work and credits are credits, so he agrees to listen to them while mentally tacking several additional zeros to the end of the number that he usually charges for a job.
“I am sure that you are aware of the uprising in the outer rim.” The Jedi begins, “The Senate has been trying to reach out to the person who is currently leading the Pirates, to come to an agreement.”
“And?” Jango asks, bored out of his mind.
“And the Jedi they sent to negotiate were told to leave and not come back.”
Jango chokes back a laugh with great difficulty, “I fail to see how this is my problem.”
“We would like you to go and speak with them on our behalf.” The Jedi replies, “We think that they might be more receptive to someone more like me.”
“You mean you think I might be able to make contact because I’m closer to pirate than I am to cop.” Jango says with a sharp smile.
“I...didn’t say that.”
“You didn’t have to.” He’s quiet for a moment, “Yeah, alright. I’ll take the job. I want half my fee up front.” In truth, he was going to reach out to these pirates anyway, they’re known for freeing slaves, and he’s hoping that they’ll have a good clue as to finding his Sen’ika.
The Jedi inhales sharply, and Jango arches a brow. “Problem?”
“This is...quite a lot.” The Jedi replies calmly.
“I’m very good at what I do. But, if you’re not interested-”
“No! No! The fee is fine,” The long haired Jedi hastens to reassure, “And you’re quite sure that you’ll be able to get them to talk?”
“I’m sure I can get them to hear me out. Anything else is on them.”
“That will have to be good enough, I suppose.” The Jedi muses thoughtfully, “Oh. Where are my manners. My name is Qui-Gon Jinn. It’s a pleasure to be working with you.”
Jango blinks once. Twice. A third time.
“I beg your kriffing pardon?”
“Oh yes, did I not mention? I will be joining you on this.”
“You did not.” Jango says through clenched teeth, “You did say that the Pirates kicked the last Jedi out.”
“Well, yes. They did.” He smiles politely and Jango wants to punch him in the face. “But you can’t speak for the Republic. So I need to be there.”
Jango grinds his teeth in annoyance, “Do you have a ship, Qui-Gon Jinn.”
“I do, in fact.” The other man says brightly. “I wouldn’t dream of trespassing on your ship, Mister Fett.”
Well, that’s something, at least.
“Fine. We’ll be leaving as soon as the credits are transferred to my account.” Jango says as he stands, “Pleasure doing business with the Republic.” And then he sweeps out of the dingy little bar to head back to his ship.
So much for him plans to search for his Sen’ika.
Whatever, the Jedi won’t be with him the whole time. Odds are he won’t even be allowed to land on Tatooine, which means he’ll be able to talk to them without being interrupted.
At least. He hopes so. If this Jedi ruins his one chance of getting usable data on where his Sen’ika is...Jango might actually kill him.
He makes the long trek back to his ship, he wasn’t kidding about leaving as soon as he got his payment. Though he fully expects the payment to take a few days. Since this is the government that he’s working with.
So, when he gets the initial credit transfer less than an hour later, Jango is genuinely surprised. Though, as he thinks more about it, he really shouldn’t be. The Republic is so eager to get ahead of this, that they’re willing to hire him, of all people, to help them deal with it.
“So,” He murmurs to the empty ship, “This is what a desperate Republic looks like.”
Three weeks later, Jango lands his ship in his assigned landing bay on Tatooine. He’s aware, vaguely, of the Jedi landing his ship only a few landing pads away, and he sighs.
He was kind of hoping that the Jedi would be barred from landing at all.
Jango pays the fee needed to keep his ship secured on this pad, and heads out of the spaceport, though he’s very quickly joined by the older man.
“Ah, Tatooine,” Qui-Gon says as he looks around at the city. “Have you ever been here before?”
“More than you, probably.” Jango replies, his eyes narrowing as people glance at them and whispers start spreading through the market. They’re not whispering about him, he’s been here many times and he’s never gotten this reaction before.
He glances at the man standing next to him.
The man clad in, obvious, Jedi robes.
And he sighs. So much for the more stealthy approach he was hoping for.
“Are you the representative from the Republic?” A woman, shorter than him and carrying an infant on her back, asks as she approaches the pair of men. She looks older than she actually is, if Jango had to guess.
“I am,” Qui-Gon said, “My name is Qui-Gon Ji-”
“I don’t care.” The woman interrupts, “You are a Jedi, yes? Your kind was told never to return to Tatooine.”
“This is true,” Qui-Gon flounders, “But my companion here is not authorized to speak for the Republic-”
“Then perhaps one of the Senators should have gotten out of their plush offices and come here themselves,” She interrupts again, and then she frowns, “Were it up to me, you’d be back on your ship and off my planet. But it isn’t.”
“You are to be our guide then?”
“I will guide you to the taxi stand and no further.” The woman says, “I have my own business I must attend to.”
The Jedi next to you, seeming unable to keep his mouth shut, just has to speak again. “Forgive me, but are you a slave for the new leader of Tatooine?”
The woman stiffens in offense, and Jango presses his hand against his helmet and shakes his head.
“Were you anyone else, and not a guest of our new Imperator-” She takes a deep breath and stalks away, “Follow, and stay close.”
The woman leads the men through the winding street of Mos Espa, until she stops by a taxi droid. She speaks to the droid and then stalks away, back to the market.
“Hm…” Jango sighs as Qui-Gon gazes after the woman thoughtfully, “Her child is very force sensitive.”
“If you think you can convince her to give him to you-” Jango says, sounding bored out of his mind.
“Ah...no. I think she might shoot me if I try.”
“Pity.”
“That she’d shoot me? Yes, I agree-”
“-that you won’t ask.” Jango interrupts, “Seeing you get shot would make this a slightly more interesting trip.”
Qui-Gon actually looks surprised at his words, hopefully it’ll keep him from talking overly much on the trip to the palace. Thought, Jango wouldn’t put money on it. The Jedi seems to like the sound of his own voice overly much.
And, true to his prediction, the older man started chatting with the Droid as soon as the speeder started moving. Not that the Droid was the chattiest of drivers. He’s a driver, not a tour guide after all.
Jabba the Hutt’s palace, ah no, it’s the Imperator’s palace now, looks just as it had the last time he was here. Worn down from age, with antenna sitting on the roof. The windows are open, though the heavy metal shutters are drawn low, to keep the twin suns from heating the building over much.
There are some difference too, though.
Jango’s fairly certain that those are solar panels attached on the sun facing side of the building. And it almost looks as though someone is trying to cultivate a cacti garden off to the side of the path.
That or the Imperator thinks that death by cacti is an appropriate punishment for interlopers.
Much to Jango’s surprise, they’re invited inside immediately, by a young twi’lek boy dressed much nicer than any twi’lek would have ever been allowed to dress while Jabba was in charge.
“You wait here.” The boy orders imperiously, before he turns and runs down the hall.
If the outside of the palace looks the same, the inside couldn’t be more different if they replaced the entire building. The formerly dimmed halls are well lit, and the walls, formerly covered in blood and other...unsavory...things, are now covered in tasteful tapestries.
Probably items that Jabba received as tribute over the years, Jango thinks with an amused smile as he steps away from the door and onto the new looking plush carpet that covers the hallway.
“I admit,” Qui-Gon murmurs, “This is not what I was expecting from someone called Imperator.”
“What, were you expecting slaves lining the halls or something?”
“...in a manner of speaking, yes.”
Jango takes a moment to remove his helmet, now that the twin suns aren’t beating down on him, “Are you karking stupid? These people free slaves. There aren’t any slaves on Tatooine anymore.”
“That...the reports the Jedi were given-” He’s cut off as a different child, this one a little Chiss girl, runs up. “Oh, hello.”
“The Imperator will see you in the throne room. He expects you both to keep your weapons sheathed while you are guests in our home.”
“Of course,” Jango agrees, “We wouldn’t dream of threatening the Lord of this place.”
The little girl nods, and focuses her attention on Qui-Gon, “This message is for you, Master Jedi.”
“I’m listening.”
“The Imperator is not happy that the Republic have ignored his wishes for no Jedi to trespass on his home, however, in the spirit of cooperation, he is willing to hear out what you have to say.”
“That is very magnanimous of the Imperator.”
“Yes,” The child agrees, “It is. Follow me please.”
The little girl leads them through the winding halls of the palace, and Jango takes the time to take in all of the changes. New coats of paint, flowers growing in pots, little mouse droids designed to travel the halls trailing perfume after them-
Jango much prefers this version, over the Jabba’s version of the same palace, which always smelled like blood and bile, even through his helmet.
The child stops in front of the throne room and pushes open the door, “Imperator, the Mando and the Jedi are here.” And then she moves to the side to let the two men into the room.
The Imperator is a Tholothian male, dressed in pirates armor. And, if Jango had to guess, he would easily be the same height as him, if not a little taller, though even with the armor, he’s much less broad and much more wiry.
Jango wouldn’t want to have to fight him hand to hand, that’s for sure. Which he knows that he’d win, it’d be a hard fought fight.
“Jango Fett,” The Imperator speaks with a crisp Coruscanti accent, which is rather jarring when compared to his more roguish appearance, “It’s always a pleasure to host a man of your caliber.”
Jango nods, once. Accepting the compliment for what it is.
“Master Jinn,” The Imperator’s voice goes cold, “Your presence is much less welcome in my home.”
“Yes, the Jedi apologizes for being unable to adhere to your request-”
“It was not a request, Master Jinn.” The Imperator interrupts, and the room descends into a, slightly awkward, silence before their host claps his hands together, “Now, I am willing to hear you out, however, not today.”
“Is there a reason that we can’t start negotiations today?” Qui-Gon asks.
“Yes. I don’t want to.”
And, well, that’s that.
“I have taken the liberty of preparing rooms for the both of you in my palace. Though, you will not be staying in the same part of the palace, I’m afraid.” The Imperator says, and he genuinely sounds grieved. Or he would if it wasn’t for the gleam in his eyes.
“You honor us,” Qui-Gon says politely.
“Indeed, I do. Master Jinn, you will be staying in the lower levels, it’s a bit cooler but also noisier. Jango, I have a room set up for you upstairs.”
“Thank you,” Jango replies.
The Imperator nods once, and there’s a look of mirth on his face before he waves his hand and the two children from earlier run into the room, “Please show our guests to their rooms.”
Jango falls into step behind the little twi’lek boy, who keeps glancing at him and giggling like he knows a secret. He’s not bothered, he remembers being a child, after all.
He’s also in a much better mood since he doesn’t have to spend anymore time with Qui-Gon Jinn.
“Have you heard a good joke, ad’ika?” Jango asks as the little boy glances at him and giggles again.
The child clamps his hands over his mouth and shakes his head, “We gotta surprise.” He whispers.
“A surprise? For me?”
“Uh-huh. But,” He leans in and lowers his voice, “It’s a secret! So-so...come on!”
The boy almost sprints up the stairs, though Jango follows at a more sedate pace, and he trails behind the boy until they stop in front of a door. There are plants sitting in planters on each side of the door.
“Here!” The boy presses a scrap of flimsy into his hand, “Here’s the door code!” And then he sprints off, giggling as he does so.
Well, Jango thinks to himself as he glances at the numbers on the scrap and starts keying them in, this is either the most obvious trap I’ve ever walked into, or it’s actually a surprise.
The door slides open and Jango steps into the room. And the first thing he notices is all of the green.
There are plants on every open surface. All sorts of plants from all over the galaxy.
The second thing he notices is that the vanity in the corner is covered in woman’s hair care products, and slowly his eyebrows raise. Surely the Imperator wouldn’t have given him a room that already belongs to someone, right.
Finally, he notices her. Dressed in loose, comfortable clothes, and kneeling next to a small table covered in succulents. And, at first he’s slightly bemused that he was shoved into another person’s room, and then he looks again.
And he realizes that he recognizes her.
He clears his throat, and she turns her head slightly, before she favors him with the warmest smile. “Jango.”
His helmet falls from his fingers, “Sen’ika.”
She stands, and she’s still so small and still so thin, and her skin is still covered in razor thin scars, “You remember me!”
“Of course. I never stopped looking for you.” Jango steps closer to her and reaches out, though he stops shy of actually touching her. Sen’ika doesn’t have any such qualms, as she takes his hand in both of hers and presses it against her cheek.
“I knew you wouldn’t.” She replies as she rubs her cheek against his gloved hand, “I knew that you’d find me eventually.”
Jango releases a shuddering breath and steps even closer into her space, before ripping his glove off and pressing his bare hand against her cheek, “I’m sorry I’m late.”
“That’s okay. I forgive you.”
Jango takes a moment to tug off his other glove and presses his hand back against her cheek, “Just look at you,” He breathes out, “You’ve grown up.”
She presses her hands over his, and there are tears in her eyes, “So have you. You’re not that scrawny kid anymore.”
“Scrawny?” Jango asks with a laugh.
“Scrawny.” She agrees. Her smile doesn’t waver when she releases his hands and reaches out to cup his cheek, “How have you been?”
“Lonely.” Jango admits, “It’s been...a very lonely galaxy without you with me.” This is the first time he’s admitted it, though he could never lie to his Sen’ika. “How about you?”
She leans her head into his touch, “Lonely. The Imperator he’s...great. But he’s not really a friend. And his people don’t like me much.”
“How could they not like you?”
She shrugs, “They say I have stars in my eyes. That I’m not meant for…” She gestures vaguely to the room, “This.”
He laughs softly, “And what are you meant for, then?”
“Well,” She averts her gaze for a moment, “You once promised me that you’d show me the galaxy.”
Jango stares at her, surprised.
“If that offer is still open-” She adds, hesitantly.
“You’d leave this? To wander through the stars with me?”
“It sounds...romantic, when you put it like that.” She says softly, wistfully.
“You think so?”
Her smile is small, “Wandering through the stars with the man I’ve loved since he was a boy? Sounds like a fairy tale.”
“Love, huh?”
Her smile doesn’t waver, “Sorry.”
“Don’t be. After all, I fell in love with a little girl who kept hope alive when I had none left.”
She looks surprised, “Oh. Really?”
“Really.” Slowly he leans in and presses his forehead against hers, “We don’t have to rush, we can take things slow. Especially since we’re going to be together from here on out.”
“Together, I like that.”
“Me too.” Jango closes his eyes and tries to draw her in closer, “As soon as I’m done with my job here, we can get you settled on my ship and then we can go wherever we want.”
“What’s your job here?” His Sen’ika asks as she lightly traces his face with gentle fingers.
“I was hired by the Republic to help open a Dialogue between them and the Imperator.” Jango replies.
“It won’t work.” Her answer is immediate.
“Yeah, I don’t think it will either. But credits are credits.”
She shakes her head, “The Imperator has a thing about the Republic and their weak stance on slavery.”
“I don’t blame him.”
She’s quiet for a very long moment, and then she sighs, “Jango. As soon as his army is large enough he intends to go to war with the Republic. You shouldn’t get involved.”
Jango pulls back and stares at her, “I see.” He scans her face for a moment, and then sighs, “Well, I did get half of the money up front, and there’s no love lost between me and the Republic.”
“Jango?”
“Pack what you need, Sen’ika. We’re leaving before we get any more involved in this.”
Her smile is almost blinding, “Give me a few minutes.”
He watches her dart around the room, shoving clothes and other items into her bag, and then she’s back by his side, “Okay, I’m ready. I’ll leave the plants to the kids.”
“Do we need to tell the Imperator that you’re leaving?”
“He knew that I would be going with you the moment you arrived on planet, Jango.” She says breathlessly, her eyes sparkling with excitement. “No one is going to stop us.”
True to her words, not a single soul stopped them as they head through the palace and back to the taxi stand. And no one stopped them as they headed back to the spaceport. And no one stopped them when he started up his ship and flew through the pre-flight checks.
And no one stopped them as they left Tatooine’s atmosphere for greener pastures.
As they sit high in orbit over the desert planet, Jango watches his Sen’ika watch the stars around them, and a small smile crosses his lips. “So,” He starts, turning in his chair to allow her to sit on his lap, “Where do you want to go?”
“Um...someplace new.” Sen’ika replies as she lightly sits on his lap, her gaze locked on the open space outside his ship.
Jango chuckles, “Someplace new it is.” He lightly taps her chin, pulling her attention off of the openness of space and onto him. He flashes a small, mischievous, little smile and tugs her in to press his lips against hers in a quick, and very chaste kiss.
When he pulls away, she looks flustered and has her fingers pressed against her lips, “Was that okay?” He asks.
Shyly, she meets his gaze, and then she nods. “Yeah. Yeah, it’s perfect.”
“Good,” He wraps a secure arm around her waist, and then focuses his attention on his computer, “Someplace new….hm...I know. I have just the place.”
Six months later, The Imperator declares war on the Republic, aided by a growing number of formerly Republic Planets who were jaded by the inaction of the government they supported for so long.
But that’s a different story.
As for Jango Fett and his Sen’ika, they write themselves out of the story, content to wander the galaxy, so long as they can wander together.
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