Bred by the King

28. Rain

You packed a bag of toiletry items and clothes fit for the desert, then dressed in tan cargo pants tucked into your new boots, a long-sleeved top, and A'Lek's belt. Then you threw over the ensemble a hooded cloak with holes for your arms.

Boba drove you out to the tribe on his speeder, and when you arrived, he reminded you that you could comm him any time if you needed him to come get you. Otherwise, he would pick you up after the rains.

A kid playing in the sand jumped to their feet when Boba pulled up to the outskirts of the settlement. Boba signed to them, and then they scampered off.

"She's going to find A'Lek," Boba explained.

You worried a bit about how communication would work given that you knew all of three signs and none of the spoken language. Before, Boba had mediated conversation between you and the man who wanted to marry you. Now, you would have to communicate with him on your own. The comm on your wrist eased that anxiety; if it wasn't working out, you could just go home to the palace.

You recognized A'Lek by his ornamentation and his confident gait as he strode over to greet you, then Boba. Boba translated the signs and guttural speech.

"He says he's glad you could make it. He's excited to introduce you to his husband."

"Oh!" That was right; A'Lek had another partner. He'd been away the first time you visited. "I can't wait either."

Boba hesitated, shuffling next to the speeder. In the sky, clouds were already gathering, a premonition of rain. "I guess I'll head out, then. Unless there's anything else you need from me?"

"I don't think so," you said. The point of this visit was to get away from Boba for a bit and reset.

Boba mounted back up, gave you one more lingering glance, and then rode off toward the palace.

A'Lek gestured for you to follow him, not into the camp, but to a secluded spot just outside it. He took a knee, smoothed a patch of sand, and began writing with his finger in aurebesh characters: 'Can I teach you some signs?'

A'Lek could write in Basic as well as understand it. You wondered if Boba had taught him. "Please," you said aloud. "That would be helpful." You knelt next to him.

The lesson proceeded with A'Lek writing a word in the sand and then demonstrating the sign for it. He'd done this once before, when he'd taught you 'want' and 'melon.' Now he taught you 'nice to meet you,' 'please,' 'thank you,' and 'I don't understand.' Helpful signs for navigating your visit.

'Husband's name is Orr'ur,' A'Lek wrote. 'He does not know much Basic.'

"Can you translate for us?"

A'Lek nodded. He wiped out the two previous sentences and drew more words. This kind of communication was tedious, and you hoped you could study enough Tusken to become conversant so that A'Lek would not always have to write down everything he wished to tell you. Maybe when you went home, Boba could teach you. A'Lek wrote, 'Try a spoken word?'

"Sure," you said. "What do you want me to say?"

He thought a second, then wrote, 'Hello.' He demonstrated the word to you aloud. It sounded like urrrgt.

You weren't sure you and A'Lek had the same kind of vocal cords, and even if you did, he had grown up speaking the strange syllables of Tusken and you hadn't. You were going to have a heck of an accent, if you could even pronounce the word at all. But you were willing to try. You did your best to imitate the word that meant 'hello.'

A'Lek let out several loud barks of laughter at your attempt. Then he took your hands, deliberately pushed them closer to your body, and patted them. The meaning was clear: you could stick to signs.