The Lost Get Found

Chapter 8—The Vow

Din finally processes his 'aha' moment, Ahsoka and Ezra share some new information….and Cara and Sabine get to see something very special happen!

**Warning—major spoilers for 'The Mandalorian' Season 2, Episode 5 (Chapter 13)**

Din sat on his bed, taking a moment to admire the beauty of polished Beskar after an overdue shine. Cara had offered to keep the baby occupied in the galley, so he could have some 'helmet-free' time on the ship's lower level as he prepared himself, physically and mentally, for their meeting with Sabine and her Jetti companions.

Cara had been on the ship for little more than half a day cycle, but the difference it had made in his life so far was remarkable. The baby had been uncharacteristically clingy since he'd started teething—but now Din could take a shower or prepare a meal without dreading the tears that had become inevitable every time he was out of the little one's sight for more than a few minutes.

Not only that, but it was nice having another adult to talk to, especially now that Paz was back home on Nevarro. Din had always kept his social circle small, but the idea of being away from his Tribe and family for an indeterminate amount of time seemed to magnify the sense of loneliness he was usually able to keep at bay. And having Cara back on the ship, even temporarily, meant there was someone to share responsibilities, but also the many cute and humorous moments that came from having a baby on board. On top of that, she'd met his family, and had become acquainted with a number of others from the Tribe through fielding their calls, so he could talk freely about his life outside bounty hunting—knowing she would keep the things closest to his heart to herself.

And then, of course, there was the conclusion he'd come to in the sleepy haze of the previous night—that he loved her.

He wasn't sure what to do with that. He'd had crushes as a child and teenager, but his personal, stringent commitment to the Fighting Corps had kept him from acting on them even after he reached the traditional dating age of sixteen. When he'd finally left the Corps at twenty-three, the transient nature of bounty hunting had kept him from staying in one place for long—though he'd never met anyone who'd made him want to. Maybe if the Purge hadn't happened—if he'd been able to live on Sundari, with a steady life and steady job—he might've met a woman with whom to share his life. But the Purge had happened, and there was no use thinking about 'what-ifs' ten years after the fact.

Din knew he was extremely fortunate to have been brought up in two loving families. Both his birth parents and the Vizslas had loved each other dearly, which had set a high standard for what he wanted in a relationship of his own, should the opportunity arise. And now, with his hopes of adopting the kid moving ever closer to reality, he knew it was even more important to choose a woman that would help him create the same sense of love and security for the little guy.

And that was the confusing part. Cara had told him she didn't 'do the baby thing'—but she'd come to do just that by helping him out. She'd fed the little guy, and helped Din give him a bath—and he was almost certain he'd heard her singing to the tired toddler just before he'd fallen asleep himself the night before. Maybe it wasn't something she'd be interested in long-term—but the contrast between her words and actions made him wonder what might be going on beneath the surface.

He was pulled from his thoughts as the comm chime sounded on his vambrace, and he quickly put on his helmet before answering.

"Hey, we're just finishing shut-down, and Ahsoka's landing now," Sabine told him. Her smile softened. "How's my little green buddy feeling this morning?"

Din gave an answering smile beneath his helmet. "Better. Paz took a look at his teeth last night, and said they're almost through. Little womp rat woke up happy from his morning nap, and now he's coloring with Cara. He should be in a good mood for our visit."

Sabine's face lit up. "Ah, an artist! Must be the Wren in him," she said with a wink. "I can comm Ahsoka and tell her to meet at your ship instead. If he's having a good time, there's no need to disrupt the creative process."

"Baaaaaad idea—trust me," Ezra added, which earned him a laughing elbow to the ribs from his wife.

"What about lunch?" Din asked. Ezra had offered to prepare a Lothali shrimp dish that sounded almost as good as tiingilar.

The blue-haired man grinned widely. "All the prep work is done—I just have to stick in in the pan for a few minutes when we're ready to eat."

"I don't want to inconvenience….."

"Din, I promise you it's okay," Sabine insisted. We all know how toddlers and transitions to new activities can go. Making the change is nothing to us—but it could mean a lot to him."

Din nodded. "All right. It'll be a tight fit in the galley, but we'll make it work.

Her smile made his heart ache, because it reminded him so much of his adoptive mother. "Great—we should be there in ten, maybe fifteen minutes. If he wants to keep coloring, awesome. If he's ready to move on to something else, we'll take it from there."

"Thank you for being so understanding—I really appreciate it," Din said gratefully."

"Aliit baatir par aliit," she replied, echoing Paz's use of the phrase the night before.

"Okay, let's try this again—Boo-eeer" Cara said, purposefully overenunciating the Mando'a word for father. The Vizsla kids had sent the baby some of their color sticks, and he was happily making use of them at the galley's small table.

"Ba?" he replied, looking confused.

"No, silly—buir. It means 'daddy'—but it's in his language—so it'll mean more to him when you say it. Can you try again? Buir."

"Boo."

She shrugged. "Hey, it's a start—and who knows, maybe that's how all little Mandos start out. Can you say it again?"

"Boo!"

"Good job!" she replied, earning a giggle as she tickled under his chin. "One more time?"

"Boo!"

"Yay!" She clapped her hands, and he did the same. "Now that we know that you can say it, we need to work on saying it to him." She heard the sound of the sleeping compartment opening on the lower level, and two big green ears perked up.

"Do you hear him? Do you hear your buir?" she whispered.

"Boo!" he exclaimed, giving Cara a toothy grin that warmed her heart.

"Good, buddy! Now you just have to say it when he comes up here, all right?"

He shook his head. "No."

She laughed. "I'm not sure if you say stuff like that because you don't understand—or because you do."

The slight change in pressure let her know the ship's hatch was opening below, and she called down to Din, "Hey buddy, you should've told me they're here—we'll be down in a minute."

"No need—they're coming up there."

Cara looked around the small space. "You think we'll all fit?"

"Sabine insisted he should keep coloring—and some of us can spill over into the cockpit if we need to."

She shrugged. "Suits me."

"No," the baby said, looking up at her for a moment before he refocused on the task at hand—scribbling a large yellow spot in the center of the page.

She smirked. "So….you want me to stay in here with you?"

"No." He floated a purple color stick over to her.

"Do you want me to color?"

"No." He shot her a toothy grin, and pushed a sheet of flimsiplast in her direction.

Cara thought for a moment. "Do you…want to have frogs for lunch?"

"No."

She laughed, tickling his little round belly. "I know that one's a lie!"

He laughed for a few seconds before his ears perked up again at the sound of new voices below. "Ba?"

"Yep. Your cousin and her Force friends are here. They're gonna talk to you about your powers, and teach you to use them in good ways. And Buir and I will be right here with you so we can learn, too," she said, placing a kiss on the wrinkled green heart of his forehead.

"I hear we've got a budding artist up here!" a female voice rang out from the ladder. A few seconds later, a bright pinkish-orange head emerged, amber eyes twinkling as her face lit up with an adoring smile at the sight of the baby.

"Look, it's your cousin, Sabine!" Cara said to him, standing to grasp the other woman's wrist.

The Mandalorian woman knelt next to his seat, so their eyes were almost level. "Hi little guy, are you having fun?"

He held up a green color stick, and Cara could practically see the woman's heart melting.

"You don't have to ask me twice!" She sat down across from Cara, and immediately started sketching out a graffiti-style portrait of the baby.

"Hey, I wanna color, too!" a male voice said from the doorway. "Can I have blue?"

"Boo?" the baby asked.

"Hey, you said it—good job!" Ezra said. He exchanged a brief greeting with Cara before sitting beside his wife on the opposite side of the table.

"Got room for two more?" Ahsoka asked, waving from the doorway.

The baby gave a happy shriek, and floated more art supplies in her direction. She handed a sheet of flimsi to Din, who was standing behind her, and held up the two colorsticks in a silent invitation to choose one.

"I'll take red," he responded, and sat next to Cara as Ahsoka sat on a tall crate at the opposite end of the table from the baby. "How is the Tribe doing?" he asked Sabine and Ezra.

"Better, I think," Sabine replied as she used a pink colorstick to shade the inside of the baby's ears. "Some of the adults swear they have no artistic talent—but Dad and I have done a couple of guided painting classes, where they see how to break it down step by step—and it's a much-needed reminder that they can do hard things. Same for Ezra and his meditation sessions."

The blue-haired man nodded. "It's been really good. Jedi and Mandalorians actually have a few shared beliefs—so sometimes it's as simple as just changing up terminology to make it more familiar. It's also been encouraging because some of the people who were unaccounted for have come back—and a couple more are heading back to Nevarro."

"Really?" Din asked, and Cara had to cover her mouth to keep from laughing when the baby scowled at him because he'd stopped coloring.

"Yeah, a young couple who already adopted two Foundling siblings, and a tall guy—Ace, I think? They all came back the day we left….and the lady who has her two nephews was pretty happy about that," Ezra replied with a smirk.

Din chuckled. "Ace and Reza have been dancing around each other for months, according to Paz."

Cara snorted with laughter, "So you and your brother sit around and gossip about Tribe romances like old mother nunas?" she teased.

"As beroya, it's important that I know what's going on," he replied, then quickly changed the subject by asking, "Do you know who was going to Nevarro?"

Sabine nodded. "Two sisters, a few years younger than me, according to Ana. Jeni and…..."

"Koska," Din supplied. "Jos will be glad-Koska was helping her prepare for her ani kar'ta—which will be happening in another month or so."

"So it's like a ceremony?" Ezra asked, looking confused. "How come no one told me about that? Is that something I'll have to do later?"

Sabine placed a hand on his shoulder. "You don't have to do it because you became a Mandalorian as an adult. For those who swear the Creed of the Resol'nare at thirteen, it's a ceremony that certifies them as adults in Mandalorian society—usually when they turn eighteen."

"Did…..you do that…..at some point?" he asked. "I know you were still on the Ghost with us when you were eighteen."

Sabine's expression instantly became solemn. "I did…..after you left, but before the Purge. It was really special…..like things had finally come full circle, in more ways than one. That's actually when I changed my armor to the design I had when we found you."

Ezra gave her a smile so full of love that it made Cara's heart clench. "That one was nice-—but I kinda like the new one better," he said, touching a small blue Loth cat the exact shade of his eyes on her pauldron.

"Ugh, newlyweds," Ahsoka said, rolling her eyes and trying not to laugh. "If you two are going to be all mushy, can I at least have the blue colorstick? I need it for my lightsaber blade.

"Sure," Ezra said, floating it over to her."

The baby's face broke out in a wide grin.

"See, we can do that, too," Ahsoka said, floating Cara's purple over to Sabine, who quickly signed her latest work and held it up for the little one to see.

"Look, it's you!" she said.

"Gu!" he exclaimed.

"Good job, kid—you learned another new sound!" Din exclaimed.

The baby whined, and reached his arms up, showing that he wanted out of his seat.

"Okay buddy, I gotcha," Cara said, lifting him out—but was surprised when, instead of being content on her lap, or even Din's, he reached for Ahsoka.

"Hello little one-would you like to sit with us?" she asked.

The baby smiled, and once Din had passed him to the Togruta, he stretched his feet downward until they touched the table—then plopped himself down between her and Ezra.

"Is there something you want to tell us?" Ahsoka asked him, holding out a hand.

The little one wrapped his own tiny hand around two of her fingers, then held out the other to Ezra, indicating he wanted him to do the same. Then he began to chatter, in what sounded like baby talk—but from the nods and encouraging smiles the two adults gave him, Cara was pretty sure there was more going on than that.

"What are they doing?" Din whispered, making her startle—and realize how close he was to her on the narrow bench.

"I don't know—just go with it. If they can understand what he's saying, maybe we'll learn something. It's okay," she said, lacing their fingers together beneath the table.

After ten minutes or so, the baby let go of their fingers, and reached toward Din, who gathered him close with his free arm while still holding Cara's hand.

"Well…he's got a lot to say, that's for sure. But since it's been over thirty years since he was around someone who could understand him, I guess it only makes sense." Ezra told them.

"Thirty years…..that's almost my entire life," Sabine replied sadly.

Cara could feel Din's hand trembling in hers, and she stroked the back of it with her thumb in hopes of giving him comfort. "What happened?" she asked.

"He was raised in the Jedi temple on Coruscant, just like I was—though I don't remember him," Ahsoka said. "Maybe my Master would have, since they were around the same age."

"So, did he have a Master?" Sabine asked.

"He was trained by a number of Masters over the years…..at least until Order 66 happened, and he was taken from the Temple…..and had to hide to survive."

"Like Kanan," Ezra said sadly.

"I'm so sorry you had to go through that," Din told the baby softly, and the sad coo he got in response made Cara's heart hurt.

"What about the years since then?" she asked, trying to keep her voice steady.

"His memories of that time are dark—it's like they're barely even there-until you found him," Ahsoka said to Din. "Then…..it's almost like he came back alive."

Cara looked down at their joined hands, swallowing hard as her vision blurred. Not here….not now she told herself—until Sabine sniffled across the table, and that was it. When did I become so soft? she thought, even though she knew the answer.

It was the day a Beskar-clad man and a tiny green baby with big ears walked into her life….and now, she admitted, they had somehow made their way past the carefully constructed barricades she'd built since Alderaan's destruction—and made their way fully into her heart.

"You know why he said 'gu'" when Sabine showed him her drawing?" Ezra asked, his smile soft.

"Why?" Din asked, barely more than a whisper.

"It's his name…..or part of it," the man said.

"His name? He told you…..what is it?"

Ezra's smile grew even bigger. "Grogu. His name is Grogu."

"Grogu," Din said, his voice filled with wonder—and the little guy's ears immediately perked up as his face shone with a toothy grin.

"Boo."

Din froze.

"Did he just…?" Sabine asked.

Cara nodded, her throat so tight it took a few moments before she could speak. "I taught him to say it right before you got here this morning—but he refused to…until now."

"It makes sense," Ahsoka said softly, looking up at Din. "He sees you as his father."

A sound, somewhere between a squeak and a sob, came from the armored man beside Cara.

Ezra cleared his throat. "I think it might be time to get started on lunch—anyone want to help me?"

"Sure," Ahsoka said hastily, giving Grogu a quick pat on the head before following her friend out of the galley.

"I'm just gonna….." Sabine said, her voice almost squeaky.

"Stay," Din choked out, his breathing hard and unsteady.

"Are you sure?"

"Yes. You're family….and…it's time I…past time, really."

Something inside Cara shattered, and she knew she had to get out quick before she completely lost it—because despite the feelings she had for both Din and Grogu—she wasn't family. To her surprise, as she started to stand, she was quickly halted as Din's hand tightened around hers.

"No!" he replied, sounding almost panicked. "I mean…..I want you here for this, too." He took the baby from his seat, and stood him on the table in front of them, taking his tiny hand before lacing the other with Cara's again.

"Want…..want me to come over there?" Sabine asked, tears freely flowing down her cheeks now.

"Yes."

Cara slid over a bit, to make a little more room on the cramped bench, and Sabine squeezed in at the opposite end.

Din took a deep, shaky breath. "I'm going to say the adoption vow…..and give him a name as an official part of my clan."

Cara closed her eyes, leaning her head against his right pauldron as she let out a sob. I love you both….so, so much, she thought.

Grogu watched the three adults with curiosity. He seemed to understand that they were all happy—but didn't understandwhy they were crying.

After a few minutes, Din composed himself enough to speak. "This vow is knowm in our culture as the 'Gai bal manda'—which means 'name and soul'. It's very simple—all I do is say the words, which translate to 'I know your name as my child', and say his name, followed by the name of my Clan and House."

The thought of his house—House Viszla, made Cara's teary eyes widen. "What about Paz….and Bryn and the kids? Won't they be disappointed that you didn't wait for them?"

Sabine shook her head. "Aside from the Creed of the Resol'nare, which covers the Six Tenets that define us as Mandalorians, our most important vows are for adoption and marriage—and they're very direct, in case they need to be performed during wartime. No paperwork, no witnesses—just a promise to those directly involved." The tears she'd been momentarily able to push back returned as she spoke the next words. "As Nula, Din's mother, said…..they're beautifully simple….and simply beautiful."

Din gave a watery chuckle. "Let's just call it payback for the fact that I wasn't there when they adopted Ajay and Nima."

Sabine sniffled again, but she was smiling. "My mom and Ana are already planning a party for him—and I'm pretty sure Bryn's in on it, too. That's another common thing—to have a reception of some kind later, to introduce the newcomer to the larger group of friends and family."

Cara nodded. "If they're happy, I'm happy."

Din gave her hand one more squeeze before placing the other one on the table, where Grogu quickly wrapped his tiny hand around his soon-to-be-official father's fingers.

"Ni kyr'tayl gai sa'ad, Grogu of Clan Djarin, House Vizsla."

"Boo!" Grogu exclaimed happily, and Din quickly gathered him close in another hug.

"I love you, son…I love you so much…I always will, beyond this life….and into the manda," he managed, touching his forehead to the baby's. "Do…..do you want to see my face now?" he asked hesitantly

The answer was an eager nod.

"I guess Cara and I can head over to out ship and help finish lunch prep," Sabine said. "That way you don't have to cram yourself into the refresher or your bunk for him to see you."

Din nodded. "All right, I'll see you then. Thank you for staying," he said.

The brightly-colored woman tapped a finger on the Grogu's nose, which earned her a giggle. "Welcome to the family, little guy," she said, then, after a moment's hesitation, stood and gave Din a brief hug. 'Congratulations, buir," she said before heading toward the ladder.

Cara leaned forward, and gave Grogu another kiss on the forehead before throwing her arms around Din in a tight embrace. "I'm so happy…..for both of you," she said, smiling as she wiped her eyes, looking from baby's big brown eyes to his father's black visor. "Congratulations. How's it feel to be an official dad now?" she asked.

"It feels…good. Really good. But this helmet…not so much right now. It's a little…..soggy inside."

She pulled back, taking his hand again. "Take your time…..but not too much, or you might not get any lunch," she teased, and gave him a wink.

He chuckled. "I'll believe that when I see it."

Once Cara left, Din quickly ducked into her room to dry his face and helmet. When he'd finished, he returned to the galley, where Grogu was now scribbling on Ezra's unfinished drawing of a Mythosaur.

"You can draw on that one—but I'm having the one Sabine did framed."

"Eh?" Grogu asked.

"I'll try to explain it to you a little better when you're older…but for now…" Din trailed off, and after taking a deep breath, released the air lock on his helmet. Just as today had been the first time anyone had used Grogu's name since the Empire became a thing, it had been almost as long since a living being had seen his face.

"You sure you're ready for this, ad'ika?" he asked softly, feeling a bit choked up again.

"Ba!" Grogu responded.

Din slowly lifted his helmet, feeling right about it as his chin, nose, eyes, and finally hair were revealed to his son. He lowered his head, so that it was at the baby's eye level.

"Hello, Grogu," he said

"Boo!" Grogu replied, giggling as he reached out a hand to touch Din's cheeks, then his ears, then his hair, before finally placing a finger on his lips.

Din gave the tiny finger a quick kiss. It was the first time his lips had touched another being since before he joined the Fighting Corps. "Yeah, I look a lot different than you, don't I? I…..hope you're not disappointed."

"Boo," Grogu replied, in a tone filled with love and affection. He then proceeded to place his own open-mouthed kiss on Din's cheek—the way Din remembered baby Sabine doing back when he was a boy of ten or eleven.

"Eeee?"

Din studied his son, confused. "What?"

"Eeee!" he said, pointing to the cupboard on the wall above Din's head.

"No, we're not eating here today. Your new buddy—or I guess he's a cousin by marriage now—Ezra, is making lunch for us." Din looked down in annoyance as his own stomach growled. "It's definitely time to eat, but if you want to stay a little longer to…."

"EEEEEE!" Grogu insisted, giving his father a toothy grin.

Din laughed, and slipped his helmet back on. "Yes, let's go eat."

It's official—Grogu has a name in canon, and is officially part of Clan Djarin/House Vizsla in this story now! I was expecting a Y name, because of Yoda and Yaddle….but Grogu is growing on me….and I'm So glad that that I don't have to just keep calling him 'the baby' or 'the little one', haha!

This chapter took waaaaay longer than I anticipated—over six weeks, when I'd been getting a new one out in about two! I had Jedi visit/name/adoption plans for this one all along—but it just wasn't working until Chapter 13 aired—and then everythign clicked, and I was able to write over 15 pages in a little more than a day after watching (which I don't think has ever happened!) What took so long to post is that I spent over a week trying to add in a scene after the last one—but nothing worked, so I went with my original instinct to cut it off as is (even though it's a 'short' chapter for me, at all of 24 pages ;) )

In addition to the family feels (with even some extended family thrown in!) we also got more Caradin….including the fact that both acknowledge to themselves that they love the other—which is progress, right? :D

Annnnnddddddd...some other Season 2 characters...as part of the Tribe? Yeah, we're so far from the canon line now that it's a dot-and I'm good with that ;)

Next chapter we'll be hearing from the Tribe—I'm excited, because I've missed them so much!

Reviews are holding hands and coloring with those you looooove!