A few hours later, towards the end of the afternoon.

The Mandalorian headed to the store the Vnar couple operated. Not only did he need more supplies, but they were some of the very few people that he was actually willing to see again. When he arrived at the store, Din wasn't surprised to see there were already quite a few customers. Judging by their looks : Most of them were undoubtedly smugglers or bounty hunters, or a mix of the two. Again, this was no surprise. So, Din ignored them and started looking for some needed supplies. Leena's parents were certainly busy with so many customers wandering through their shop. He could meet with them later. Though, after mentally going down his shopping list, Din remembered a particular item of furniture he needed. One of his last targets had been particularly unruly after they had been taken aboard the ship. And now, he found himself in need of a passenger seat. Preferably one of a sturdier design. One that could take more than a couple of hits from a stun stick. As he continued to search through the store, however : Din found himself unable to locate either of Leena's parents. Despite there being plenty of customers and plenty of transactions, the only owner that Din could find was Leena. Not even her older brothers seemed to be around. And hough he decided to ask her where her parents were, he couldn't deny the grim feeling beginning to sink through him.

Something was wrong.

Upon hearing Din's heavy footfalls, Leena turned to face him. In this setting : She gave him a polite smile and acknowledging nod, much like she would any other customer in the shop. Though, Din didn't miss the slight note of warmth in her smile. Something that she did not favor any of the other customers with.

« Leena... Your parents ? » He ventured slowly, pronouncing her name with an obvious tenderness.

Though Leena's smile remained, the warmth in it faded. It had been many months since the Mandalorian had last visited them, and quite a lot had changed since then. She softly cleared her throat, before she found her voice.

« Unfortunately… The–They died... a few months ago. » She murmured, keeping her voice down so that only Din could hear her. Sighing and shifting her weight, Leena continued. « My older brothers, Barhis and Kor… They left. They left to go off-world. Of course, they offered to let me go with them. They said that they would take care of me, but… » Leena drifted, her voice briefly failing her. She then composed herself once again. « Well... I could not leave this place. This shop. This planet. This place is the only home I've ever known and I... I couldn't leave. »

« I... understand... » Din replied quietly with a nod. Though he only spoke two words : It was obvious by the Mandalorian's broken voice and downed posture that he was deeply shaken by the news he had just been given.

Leena's parents had welcomed Din into their shop right from his first visit, providing him with respite when he had needed it the most. Usually, it was to recover from injuries. But the bounty hunter had soon come to appreciate the supplies their shop provided. And then, he had met Leena... Though she had first cared for him at the behest of her parents (due to her blindness, as it would be convenient for the Mandalorian and the Creed he had sworn), such a task soon became something Leena did on her own will. Her delicate attentions had helped Din recover many times and in a way that simple rest and solitude could not. It had been one of the first things that had helped develop his fondness for her. Above all else, though : Leena's parents had gently offered Din anything they could. They had done such every time and without hesitation, despite their humble situation. They had been a rare source of kindness and generosity in an otherwise inhospitable and harsh galaxy. And now, they were gone. Forever gone. And Din hadn't even been afforded the chance to bid them farewell...

Pulling himself out of his thoughts, Din refocused on Leena. Her blind gaze had been on him the whole time, but she had obviously understood through his silence that he was taking in all she had just told him. Clearing his throat with a short, rough noise to let her know he was still there and paying attention : Din nodded and began scanning the customer clientele that was milling about the shop.

« I'll be coming back later tonight. » He murmured, though not so low as to still attract attention. « Once I've gotten what I need and have refueled the Crest, I'll be back here for the rest of the evening. We... need to talk... »

Obviously understanding, Leena flashed Din a smile. Again, it had a note of warmth that she never gave anybody else. It was one of those moments where Din was grateful for his helmet. It concealed the ghost of a smile that tugged across his features.

« Certainly. » Leena agreed, keeping her own voice low to match Din's tone. She then gave an almost playful tilt of her head, her smile never faltering. « In that case, I cordially invite you to dinner. »

« Then, I cordially accept. » Din answered without hesitation. « I'll be back later. » He repeated Leena.

Leena nodded with a sweet smile.

And with that, the Mandalorian strode through the shop with an obvious sense of purpose. From the corner of his vision, he could see Leena working her way adeptly through the crowd. Despite her blindness, she never once betrayed the disability. She continued on her way with helping customers and guiding them to the supplies they sought. Even so, Din couldn't help but keep a closer watch on her now. Now that he knew neither her parents nor her older brothers were no longer present to keep a watchful eye on her, a sense of protectiveness had reared up in him. Leena may not be able to see if someone was trying to take something they hadn't paid for, or worse... But he could. Eventually, Mando had to finish gathering up the supplies he needed. He didn't want to arouse unnecessary suspicion by lingering too long in the shop. No matter how much he may have wanted to keep a watch on Leena. So, with a short frustrated sigh to himself : He picked up the last supply he needed and made his way to the check out.

« That'll be forty credits. »

Once again, Din found himself so focused on the crowd around them that he had almost missed what Leena was saying. Almost. Handing over fifty credits, Din promptly pushed them gently into Leena's hand. Though he didn't need to say it, she understood the gesture. With a polite appreciative nod, she kept the change and set it aside in the register.

Then, with obvious reluctance : Din stepped out of the way to take his leave. He started to leave, but couldn't help but pause and turn around to look back at Leena. She was already helping the next customer and involved in a polite conversation. Fortunately, the customer seemed to be agreeable enough, so Din once again went to take his leave. Yet, as he did : Something he had noticed about Leena gnawed at the back of his mind. Din paused and turned around again. Sure enough, there it was. The blaster he had given her many years ago...

[... some years ago ...]

« Carefully. » The Mandalorian instructed, keeping his hands lightly atop Leena's as he helped her take aim at the target standing right behind her back. « Take in a deep breath... And focus. » Hearing Leena draw in a long breath and feeling her steady under his touch, Din lifted his hands away from Leena's and stood still.

She fired off a couple of shots. While the first shot pinged across the target, the recoil sent the resulting shots whizzing by harmlessly. And though she couldn't see the missed shots, it was obvious from Leena's frown and quiet noise of disgruntlement she had heard the shots had missed.

« You got the first shot off. » Din pointed out. He then scoffed a dry chuckle. « Sometimes that's all it takes. »

« I would rather them all hit, though. » Leena replied, despite the smile tugging at her lips.

« So would I. » Din agreed. He gently grasped Leena's hands and helped guide her aim to the target once again, tightening his embrace around her. « Try to visualize the target in your mind. Try envisioning the shots hitting before you even pull the trigger. »

Nodding in agreement, Leena drew in another breath and followed Din's guidance. She let her hands be moved towards the target. But before she pulled the trigger, Leena paused. Heeding Din's advice, she tried to picture the target in her mind. What it would look like, where it was in front of her and how it would react to the shot impacting it. Finally, she pulled the trigger. Once, twice and then a third. There was the satisfying sound of the shots hitting the target over and over.

Nodding in approval and lightly patting Leena on the shoulder, Din looked over the target. There were now smoldering holes where the three shots had hit. Even though she was still needing some guidance for her aim, she was making notable progress.

« We'll need to keep practicing, for sure. But you're making notable improvements. » Din commented.

« Thank you very much for your help. » Leena replied, tilting her head towards the Mandalorian.

« ...Of course. » Din murmured, gaze going to the girl. Noticing when his focus lingered a little too long on her, he cleared his throat and motioned to the target not willing to let himself be distracted. « Let's try again. »