Fett was almost ready to leave Home.  He wore almost all of his armor now.  The only things he didn't wear were the heavier weapons.  He had spent most of his time working on the Slave 1.  It was almost completely repaired.  Everything else required parts that he didn't have on hand and would fix when he returned to the rest of the galaxy.  His arm was still stiff, which made targeting difficult, but that was temporary.  He spent time working with his weapons.  He wanted to be sure he would be completely back to his normal level.  Seris had often come to watch him practice.  The boy had changed over the time Fett had been on Home.  He now seemed older, more focused.  Since their last conversation the boy had been strangely quiet.  Fett wasn't sure what to make of this, but he owed Seris and would wait to see what the boy did.   
            For the first time Seris stood and approached slowly.  Fett didn't turn towards him.  This didn't stop him now though.  Seris had become accustomed to Fett. 

 "May I try?"  the bounty hunter shrugged and handed him the blaster.  He almost smiled as Seris nearly dropped it surprised at the weight.  "This is heavy!" 

"Hold it up like this, aim carefully.  Try to hit that tree."  Fett still owed Seris, and he would be polite.  Also there was something about the boy now.  Seris almost reminded him of someone Fett had thought long gone; another boy from long ago taking a blaster for the first time.

He saw Seris eye the tiny black hole already burned there.  The boy took a deep breath and lifted the blaster squinting at the tree.  His first shot went wild, completely missing the tree.  Fett moved the blaster slightly, and pushed his hands closer up.  Seris tried again, this time nearly hitting it.  Fett had to admit, the boy was good.  With training he could very well provide competition even for Fett himself.  Fett pushed it from his mind, and picked up his other blaster to continue what he was working on.  They continued until the sun was low in the sky and shadows stretched out from the trees ahead of them.  The bounty hunter gathered his weapons while Seris picked up his bag. 

Fett whipped around as the scream of the first ship streaking by overhead tore through the sky.  He broke into a run.  Seris took off after him.  It was only a moment for him before they reached the house.  Seris's mother had gathered his sisters and took them away from the door.  Her eyes were wide, but her face was calm.  Fett nodded to her as he strapped on his weapons.  They both knew who was here and why. 

"I will repay my debt to you."  He addressed her while picking up his blaster.

"You will."  She acknowledged.  There was no doubt in her voice.  In all the years after Fett would never be able to discern how a woman such as her came to live on Home.

Seris stood in the door as the bounty hunter turned to leave.  "I'm coming too."  He still held one of Fett's blasters. 

"No."  Fett moved to go around him but Seris braced his feet shaking his head. 

"You said you owed me.  This is how I want you to repay it.  Let me help."  The boy's eyes blazed.  For a moment Fett was taken aback.  Another thing he would never have expected to find here.  Then he shrugged and nodded.  Seris returned the nod coolly and left the door.  By now more ships filled the sky.  A few were taking runs of the town.  Fett leapt behind a building as lasers struck the street around him.  He saw others diving for their homes as well.  None of them as calmly as the family he had just left.  Fett launched a rocket from the equipment on his back.  A ship spiraled down crashing into the trees spewing smoke.  The pirates already on the ground were reaching the edges of the town. 

Fett leveled his blaster and opened fired on the approaching line.  The first few fell, but the others kept coming.  He dove behind a low wall to avoid the return fire.  He shot back over the wall.  There were still too many of them for him to take alone.  He fired off another rocket.  The explosion rocked the town's closest buildings.  A few bricks tumbled from the wall.  They were close now. 

Fett leaped over the wall firing.  A few shots nearly razed his helmet, but he dodged out of the way.  He activated the flamethrower, burning a being in a dirty green flight suit of an unrecognizable species.  A mercenary's shot nicked his leg causing him to stumble. Fett rolled to one side wincing, at least it wasn't deep. 

He glanced around.  They were still firing.  This would be difficult.  Even Fett was surprised when a new wave of blaster fire came one of the buildings nearby.  The mercenaries began yelling as several of them went down.  Fett sat up, and began firing over the pile of rubble.  Fett eyed the mercenaries, if he could find Sumark this would be over; without the fear of his retribution they would probably turn and flee after Fett did a little convincing with his blaster. 

There, that was him.  Fett could see the leader's bright red uniform as he stood on ground which he believed to be out of range.  Fett aimed carefully, it would be easy to use a blaster, but a rocket would take out his lieutenants and provide a bigger effect for his followers to see.  Not even the money he had paid them would keep them here after their leader was blown up in a seemingly safe location.   A shot from one of the mercenaries hit the brick in front of him, exploding it backward and throwing Fett with it. 

It took only a moment for him to collect his thoughts.  The bounty hunter forced himself up in time to see Seris standing over him, the launcher that had been knocked from Fett's hands now cradled in the boy's.  Seris took careful aim and fired. 

This time a plume of fire lit up the darkened sky.  Sumark disappeared in the blaze.  Revenge was not true justice.  At least that had been shown here today.  The mercenaries and pirates wavered and the fighting slackened.  Though they could still win they now realized how few would be left to celebrate.  No fight was worth that, and especially one with no loot at the end of it.  A dead bounty hunter, even as one as famous as Fett was not worth their lives. 

Soon all return fire had stopped.  Seris offered Fett his hand.  The bounty hunter took it and the boy pulled him to his feet.  Though maybe he wasn't truly a boy anymore.   They looked at each other and Fett nodded.  He could see the other mercenaries fleeing in the distance.  Some of them must have had communicators because the ships overhead were veering off as well.  Fett wondered what story they had told the others to explain their defeat.  Whatever it was, it could only help his reputation. 

Seris' eyes were big, "I…what they were doing was wrong.  They were killing innocents."  He took a breath, "I had to do this."  Fett almost laughed at the expression on the boy's face, a few minutes after he had been trading shots with professional mercenaries.  Fett nodded solemnly though.   It wasn't easy to kill no matter how much death was deserved by that individual.  At least not at first he amended in his head.  As long as you never grew to enjoy it…

"It was justice."  Fett shrugged, "That's the way the universe works."  For a moment he was silent and then he added, "You did well."  Seris looked down and smiled.  Those were words he had wanted to hear for some time.  "We need make sure your family is safe.  I still owe your mother, and I will repay my debts."   Fett turned and started off down the street, not even limping.  Seris followed him.  The rest of the town's people peeked out of the windows, their expressions registering varying levels of disbelief.  Fett wasn't sure if this was at him or at Seris' actions.  The mercenaries' bodies were draped everywhere on the street.  Fett scanned the area, but there didn't seem to be any left alive.  He was glad it was over fairly quickly, not that he thought mercenaries and pirates would have been too much of a problem.  Not any harder than an Imperial garrison anyway.

Everything was all right at Seris' home.  The family was in the kitchen.  Seris' father had an ancient blaster rifle, and his brothers and sisters were around the table, looking slightly frightened.  Upon a closer look at the weapon Fett was fairly certain it was a collector's item or antique in the rest of the galaxy.  They all looked up when Fett arrived with Seris.  Karim didn't let them say anything.  First she checked over her son, and then she went for Fett.  He had sat down in one of the chairs; now that it was time for him to leave they would have to decide how they wanted him to repay his debt.

Karim insisted on bandaging the blaster burn, but Fett interrupted her, "Karim, I still owe you a debt.  It must be repaid."  She looked him straight in the eye, not something easily accomplished, and answered, "Fett, you have repaid me by getting all of these mercenaries and pirates off of Home.  That is all the payment I need."  Fett nodded.  "And you Seris?" 

Seris sat quietly for a moment.  "I would like to leave Home.  I think I have a new career I would like to try."  He looked up at Fett again.  Fett considered.  He did owe the boy, and Seris was one of the few who did understand justice.  No one could be a hunter forever, not even the best, and Fett didn't intend to let anyone end his career by killing him.  Seris showed promise, not that Fett would take care of him though.  Once the debt was repaid, he would be on his own, although Fett had grown used to him now.  He allowed himself to hope that Seris would succeed. 

After careful deliberation Fett nodded.  He stood and walked from the room, leaving Seris to deal with his clamoring family.  Only Karim was quiet.  The way she looked, Fett wondered if she had known this would happen all along. 

Years Later

Fett scanned carefully through the readout on the screen of the Slave 1.  It appeared that a young man named Sarev had taken another of the high priced bounties.  Many sentients were waiting for Fett to do something about this upstart, but let them wait.  Fett had watched Sarev's career from it's beginning, which now seemed like an age ago.  Fett leaned back in his pilot's seat thinking of a young boy on a planet called Home.  He also remembered his own thoughts about retirement, he had an heir now, and maybe it was finally time, time to give justice a new champion.  Fett turned the idea over in his mind as the stars streaked by in hyperspace.  

Author's Note:

 *~*~*~*~*~*~*

Well then, it's all done.  I apologize for being slow.  I lost the file for a while!  So it almost didn't get finished at all.  But hey, it was rescued and is now complete.  Thank you to all of you who reviewed.  I really appreciated it!  If you want more, I recommend some of my other Fett stories.  (That may be a hint ;) )