Hey, everyone! Got another one for you…this was actually the first oneshot I wrote for The Mandalorian and it chronologically story-wise would take place before any of the other stories I've written (if there's any sort of order). (That also means that there's no influence from TBOBF episodes in this one either.) Mixture of angst/hurt/comfort/fluff…my favorites in other words. Just as a disclaimer: the extent of my knowledge of anything medical as well as mountain climbing is limited to Google so there ya go, be gentle.
Also, a shout-out of a huge heaping of THANKS to YourGuardianAngel08 as she helped give a lot of fantastic encouragement and guidance on some edits and tweaks and direction for this story! Couldn't have done it without her! (If you haven't checked out her stuff yet for Mandalorian, you should be ashamed of yourself. Go check out her stories after you've read this one haha.)
"And you're not going to do it again, you hear?" Marshal Carasynthia Dune stared up from her desk at the offending party, unwavering.
"Yes, ma'am. Don't need to ask me twice," agreed the teenage Twi'lek male, his juvenile cockiness still slipping through his tone and stance as he reached out to accept the offered slip of paper. Cara jerked the paper back just out of reach at the last second.
"I wasn't asking," clarified Cara slowly with an authoritative smile and a threatening, implied promise. Immature foolishness faded into ashamed understanding as the teen's face fell gradually in realization.
"Yes, Marshal," came the quiet reply.
Cara extended her hand out again to issue the receipt slip before the Twi'lek scurried out the door. The shock trooper let out a long sigh, slowly leaned back in her chair, and put her feet up on the desk. The whisper of a headache teased at the front of her forehead. She groaned and rubbed her eye sockets roughly.
"Hard day?" Cara removed her hand and blinked her eyes back open to find her boss standing in front of her desk.
"Not hard…just long," sighed Cara. "Just accepted payment for another speeding delinquent. Aside from two of those today and the issuance of a hunting license, that's been it."
"Why don't you take the rest of the week off?" suggested Greef as he crossed the room to his own desk to rifle through the mail laying in a stack. "It's been quiet lately so I'm sure nothing will pop up here. You haven't taken time off in forever…go somewhere nice, find a hot beach and get a cabana boy and a tan." Cara snorted.
"You think I'd leave this volcanic rock for a hot beach and a tan? Yeah, that sounds like a change of pace."
"Noticed you didn't negate the idea of the cabana boy, though," mumbled Greef. Cara rolled her eyes and didn't dignify his comment with a reply.
"I think I'll just settle for a drink at the cantina," she sighed and rose from her desk to call it a day.
"Whatever floats your boat…but seriously, Dune. Take the week off. Whatever needs doing can get done when you get back. Get out of here and relax," reiterated Greef as he looked over his shoulder only to find Cara's impressive silhouette disappearing out the door and into the street.
"Spotchka, please." A large glass of the neon teal liquid slid down the bar top and right into the Alderaanian's hand. Without a second thought, half was drained in one go. Cara sighed, both to breathe and to release her tension. Though the chaotic and loud atmosphere of the bar wasn't ideal for her looming headache (probably not to mention the spotchka), it was a pleasant distraction. She knew Greef was being kind in letting her take some time off, but she had every intention of going back in tomorrow as usual. Right now this week she wanted to be kept busy. She'll take some time off in the near future. Just not right now. Not this week.
Diverting her eyes to divert her thoughts, she watched the tacky strip tease show behind the bar. It was gaudy and bright and flashy and awful but hey—Cara didn't care about quality as long as it was efficient at keeping her interest. She downed the rest of her drink just as her communicator on her hip buzzed. Setting the empty mug down, she reached for her belt to see who wanted her attention. Noting the incoming ID, she opened her money pouch, tossed a couple of local credits to the bartender for her bill, and slid off the seat to head outside the pulsing club.
Finding a quiet alley not far away, Cara answered the video call. A blueish hologram image fuzzed into focus. "Mando," the shock trooper acknowledged with a smile.
"Cara." The familiar image of the Mandalorian nodded his helmet slightly. As short and to the point as the greeting was, it was good to hear his voice again.
"Long time no see. What can I do for you?" Cara asked as she leaned against the alley wall.
"Are…you busy?" His tone was casual, so it wasn't an emergency and he wasn't dying. He was also vague and his verbal pacing was hesitant, so he wasn't certain how she would take what he had to discuss.
"Meaning to talk right now or as in availability?" she clarified but with a small smirk of amusement. Din sighed before replying.
"Both." Wow, so he must be nervous to talk, judging by his tone and dismissal of her tease. Or maybe he was just tired. Hard to tell. Either way, she decided not to make it painful for him and sobered up.
"Yeah, I've got time. What's up?"
"Picked up a job on Posarion. Could use another pair of hands if you're interested." Cara frowned. She wasn't familiar with that planet. Must be far in the Outer Rim as she was pretty familiar with most locations.
"What's the bounty?"
"Counterfeiter. Also wanted for past money laundering. Hiding out in the mountains somewhere. I'll split the payment."
"Doesn't sound that hard," mused Cara as her brow furrowed deeper. "What do you need me for?"
Din's response was interrupted by an eager high-pitched squeal, and Cara noted a small wrinkly green hand out of the corner of the hologram. It reached forward and just as Din suddenly scolded "No! Don't touch th—" ZIP! …the communication ended. Cara snorted in amusement and waited an extra minute for her communicator to buzz again. She answered it and could have sworn the masked Mandalorian looked sheepish.
"Sorry about that."
"So, you've got the womp rat back with you, I see," noted Cara as she smiled at the little green creature now sitting in Din's lap, a safe distance away from the communication controls in the Razor Crest II.
"Yeah, summer break from Jedi lessons more or less." Beskar pauldrons shrugged up and down, but Cara didn't miss the way the Mandalorian's thumb and forefinger affectionately rubbed Grogu's hand. "Anyway, are you interested?" Cara thought about the offer. Certainly didn't seem like she was needed on this one, but it would be something to do. Keep her mind off things.
"Sure, I'm in."
Din nodded in acknowledgment and his tone lightened. "I'm currently not far from Nevarro and can pick you up in four hours. Pack warm. Posarion has snowy climates."
Good. No hot beaches or suntans or cabana boys.
Cara tilted her head to the side to keep her hair from sweeping in her face. The Razor Crest II touched down on the outskirts of town and the ramp lowered with a hiss of steam. Shiny beskar emerged from the foggy shroud to greet the passenger.
"Need a hand?" the Mandalorian warrior offered as he met the Marshal at the bottom.
"Thanks, I got it," refuted Cara with a smile as she heaved her single bag over her shoulder and clapped the man on the shoulder. "Good to see you again."
"Yeah. You too," Din nodded before glancing towards town. "I've got an errand to run real quick and then we can be off. Make yourself at home."
"All right, will do," the woman agreed and trekked up the ramp as the Mandalorian headed towards town. She had flown with him before on random odd jobs when he needed her talents so she knew where the extra bunk was stored in the wall. Finding Din had already pulled it out for her, she dropped her bag on top of the cot and glanced around. Everything pretty much looked the same since the last time she was in the Crest. Din had managed to find a replacement ship of the same model—just a newer year with some added upgrades to suit his purposes—so everything pretty much looked the same. Except there were a few more bins strapped in the storage section containing what looked to be like live frogs eerily swimming in murky water. Cara wrinkled her nose in disgust. Yeah, she was going to have to cover that with a blanket before trying to sleep.
Speaking of the little frog connoisseur, Cara swept her eyes over the cargo hold, looking for Grogu. There was no sign of movement anywhere and no noises. Noting that the door to Din's small sleeping quarters were shut, she guessed he was down for a nap. Knowing what sort of chaos the creature could get into when he was awake, Cara decided to leave the door shut for the time being.
Heading to the cockpit ladder, Cara effortlessly pulled herself up. The layout looked similar to the old one except everything was a bit shinier, less beat up, and maybe a few new switches. The silver ball, she noted, was still missing on this model's handle. One new addition did catch her eye however—a very tiny safety seat was strapped into the copilot's chair. The shock trooper smiled widely at the thought of the fearsome Mandalorian buckling in the wiggly, green baby.
The sound of boots on the ramp drew her attention, and she climbed back down the ladder. Din had his hands full of a couple sacks. "Needed to restock on a few things," he explained as Cara offered to help take a sack to help put away. "Everything is still stored in the same place." Cara nodded as she began to rifle through the contents of the sack: standard rations, milk powder, tea, salt, protein mixture, chocolate bars, and LOTS of cinnamon and nutmeg. She raised her eyebrow on the last one but didn't comment. She was well aware of the Mandalorian cultural preference for strong flavors. Reaching for the storage bin of spices, Cara began to put the items away but a small container in the bin caught her eye. Tilting it upward in order to better read the label, her eyes widened in surprise.
"Swingling mint? Where on earth did you get this?" she asked, her eyes not leaving the small jar of the dried plant. Din looked over his shoulder from where he was stashing extra medical supplies.
"I picked that up just recently on my last run. I'd have to check my charts for the planet's name. Wasn't familiar with the plant, but it smelled nice and strong." Cara unscrewed the cap and breathed in the intense minty flavor. The familiar scent both made her stomach settle and her heart ache.
"Something very similar grew on Alderaan. It's even hard to find this variety," she quietly commented as she replaced the container back in with the rest of the spices. She could feel Din's stare from behind her as he remained quiet for a moment.
"If I'm ever out that way again, I can bring you back some." Cara kept her head turned away so he wouldn't see her moist eyes.
"I'd like that."
They finished putting away the rest of the purchases without further comment and Din climbed into the cockpit to take off. Cara was about to follow him up when a quiet tat-tat-tat tapping sounded from within the sleeping quarters. Letting the smile cross her face, the woman crossed over to release the lock and was met with a sleepy looking Grogu, leaning just over the edge of the hammock so he could reach the door. The creature was rubbing his eyes awake but when he noticed it was Cara and not Din who greeted him from his nap, his face lit up at the unexpected surprise. Squealing with glee, he reached out two eager hands.
"It's good to see you too, Grogu," laughed Cara as she reached forward to remove him from his bed. Instantly his claws clung to her shirt and his mouth began to babble, telling her all about everything that had gone on that she had missed. He was still chattering nonstop even as Cara managed to climb up into the cockpit. Din's helmet briefly tilted to the side from his seat.
"Someone is excited to see you," he commented, a slight chuckle in his rasp.
"Clearly the kid is starved for some conversation," Cara teased flatly, but Din shook his head.
"He's telling you all about his Jedi lessons. I've heard all this twice before." Cara absently wondered if Din actually understood anything Grogu was saying, but she politely paid attention to the animated tales and dramatic hand gestures and tried to fill in the blanks creatively herself. When he finally seemed to come to the conclusion of his adventures, the now exhausted child looked up expectantly at her to comment.
"Sounds like a lot of fun and a lot going on," Cara mused, not sure exactly what to say. "Can you show me anything you've learned?" Grogu cooed in the affirmative before squinting his eyes and raising his hand toward his safety seat. The shock trooper watched as Grogu lifted both sides of the seat's buckle through the Force and brought them properly together with a CLICK! "Great job, buddy!" cheered Cara impressed.
"Show her what you showed me yesterday," prompted Din as he continued to set the Crest on course for their destination. If Cara didn't know better, she could have sworn she heard a hint of fatherly pride in his voice. Grogu gurgled excitedly and then pointed to a small box with a lid off to the side near his chair. Understanding his meaning, Cara reached over and gave him the box. Sliding the lid upwards, Grogu showed her its contents: a bunch of random objects—a bottle cap, a stone, a leather bracelet, a shiny bead, etc.—but each object had a duplicate within the box. Grogu selected one of each of the unique items to hold in his lap before garbling something at Cara and turned the box towards her. She blinked in confusion not understanding. "He wants you to pick an item from the box but keep it hidden behind the lid so he can't see it," explained Din as he reached to toggle a few more switches above his head. Unsure where this was going, Cara decided on the shiny bead and carefully held it behind the lid so the child wouldn't see it. Grogu squinted his eyes in concentration and hovered his hand above the identical objects in his lap. Finally, he selected the matching shiny bead and held it up triumphantly. Cara's eyes doubled.
"Wow, good job, kid!" she praised him as she revealed her bead. They tried it again, this time with the bottle cap. Grogu did not disappoint. She looked up towards Din who had now swiveled his chair towards them. "I didn't know mind-reading was part of his power. Spooky."
"I don't think it's mind-reading exactly," shrugged Din as he watched Grogu play with the bottle cap. "I think he can sense what's hidden."
"Good luck keeping presents a secret then," remarked the Marshal with a laugh. The collection of items was returned to the box for safe-keeping, and the adults carried on the conversation while Grogu sat content in Cara's lap.
"So, Posarion, huh? Not familiar with that one. Ever been there?" inquired Cara as she leaned back in her seat.
"Nope. I'd never heard of it either. Guess it's pretty remote, but not too far from here. We should get there in a couple of hours," explained Din as he double checked his marked route on his holomap.
"And just how cold is this climate?"
"Pretty cold. Sub-zero temperatures most nights. Explains the documented desolate landscape. Not many settlements there."
"Good thing I brought my warmest stuff then," remarked Cara as she watched Grogu play with her fingers. "What other planets were listed as comparable?" Din paused before swiveling partway to flick on a hologram display.
"Hoth, Dwisdere,…and portions of Alderaan," he stated somewhat quietly. Cara tensed slightly as the image of the planet appeared in the hologram but brushed it off quickly.
"Probably because of some of the mountain ranges. So, what's up with this guy? Just hiding out in retirement? Does he need to be breathing when we bring him back?" Din rolled with the topic change and clicked off the hologram.
"I guess he used to run an intricate money scam in a couple of the popular ports in the Core. Got discovered a few years ago due to audits. Some offended parties want justice. Full payout for alive, half for dead," the man explained as he noted Grogu starting to get restless and Cara starting to get uncomfortable.
"Is he dangerous?" questioned the soldier as she attempted to placate the fussy baby and failed.
"I don't think so. Sounds more like a desk-crime sort of guy on the run," shrugged Din as he reached forward to relieve Cara of the child. He tucked Grogu into the crook of his arm and laid a hand gently on his back before standing up. "I'm going to feed him," he commented, changing topics, "and then probably get a few hours rest before we arrive. Feel free to raid the bins for whatever you want or…"
"I'll maybe come down in a bit for a nap too," nodded Cara as she leaned farther back and propped up her feet to get comfortable. Din nodded before heading down to the hold, Grogu in his arm grumbling about his empty tummy. Left to the quiet hum of the Crest, Cara let her mind go numb as her eyes succumbed to the hypnotic stars flying past.
Cara awoke to the Crest's soft alarm of arrival. The horrible kink in her neck informed her that she had dozed off in the cockpit. Groaning at the twinge of pain, Cara blinked her eyes opened and yawned just as Din climbed up the ladder, Grogu tucked in his elbow. His helmet cocked in curiosity as he stepped past her to take his seat at the helm.
"The cot's probably more comfortable in the future," he remarked as he dropped the ship out of lightspeed.
"Duly noted," mumbled Cara sleepily as she gripped her neck and twisted in order to relieve the tension. Rubbing the soreness away, she squinted out the window. "So that's Posarion, huh?"
"Yep."
"Pretty much looks like a snowball," she observed dryly as the swirly white planet hung in stark contrast to the darkness. Grogu, kept stable by his father's hand around his middle, leaned forward to coo in awe of the snowy sphere from his position on Din's knee. Cara's gaze briefly flittered to the child. "Has he even seen snow before?"
"Once, on Maldo Kreis. Maybe he did before he came to me, I'm not sure."
"Maldo Kreis?" Cara's nose crinkled. "What on earth were you doing there? I've heard they've got some nasty wildlife on that planet. Like big bugs and stuff." Din merely sighed.
"You got that right. The kid had nightmares for two weeks." At being mentioned, Grogu tilted his head to look upward, a slightly confused expression on his face.
"Meh?"
"Yes, you."
"Hmm," purred Grogu in doubtful thought.
"You refused to even sleep apart from my side for the first week," reminded Din casually as he effortlessly steered the ship single-handed. Cara heard Grogu grumble something, almost like he still wasn't sure about Din's claim but let the matter drop as his attention was diverted to the view as they broke through the atmosphere.
The scenery was spectacular to say the least. The snowy scape rippled and stretched to glorious heights no matter where you looked. Crisp, untouched snow sparkled in the midday rays of light. The robust mountains towered like all-knowing silent sentinels, keeping dangerous secrets and infinite wisdom from the rest of the universe. It was all in all a threatening beauty, to be both respected and feared.
"How does our counterfeiter survive out here?" asked Cara incredulously.
"Well, my research data is showing there's actually a little village just on the other side of this mountain range. But my tracker shows him as being isolated up the mountain aways," explained Din.
"Let me guess. We're gonna have to hike, aren't we? Now it makes some sense why you wanted me along," mused Cara. Din's helmet bobbed slightly in neutrality as he examined the read-out of his scanners and punched in a few variables.
"Looks like I can't set the Crest down anywhere near his location up the mountain. Too unstable. I can maybe try to get us part of the way up with my pack, but I'm currently low on fuel for it."
"So, we do this the old-fashioned way. Great," concluded Cara with an uneasy sigh. "I've got a bad feeling about this."
"Meh?"
"No, that's the hole for your head. This is the one for your arm."
"Patu."
"Sigh."
Cara watched amusedly from her seat on the cot as Din patiently wrestled his son into a thick thermal covering. The little guy wasn't too fond of the many layers and continued to whine. The fussy and fidgety retaliation of the infant stood in stark contrast to the calm and steady movements of the Mandalorian warrior. Eventually, Grogu was so generously bundled he could no longer fight back against his father's ministrations and gave up with a huff.
"It's for your own good, ad'ika," assured the man quietly with a hint of apology. Grogu merely huffed again. Cara smirked and finished attaching her crampons to her boots.
"All set?" she asked as she stood and zipped up her outer coat liner.
"All set," echoed Din as he secured Grogu in his pouch sling protectively against his hip. He double-checked his amban rifle before slinging it across his back and following Cara out and down the ramp. The Razor Crest II was nestled safely on a solid portion of the mountain that wasn't as covered with snow, due to an overhang. Luckily, it wasn't as far from the bounty's hideout as first feared. However, the trek was trickier.
Cara slipped her protective goggles over her eyes and peered up the mountain. Immediately she didn't care for the steepness of the incline. "You're really sure we can't use your jet pack?" Din joined her side once he signaled the ramp to raise and looked up as well.
"Yes," Din replied but his tone was regretful. "Doesn't have enough juice to get us both up there. Not to mention multiple trips coming back with an additional body. I'd rather save the limited fuel for emergency purposes only in case things go sideways."
"Fair enough. By the looks of that incline, we're going to have to rope up for at least part of the way. We could maybe manage it without, but I'd rather not risk it with the kid and this wind," Cara commented as she began to unwind the rope from her backpack.
"Agreed. Show me what to do." After a quick crash course on mountaineering, the trio began the climb. Per the tracking fob, the bounty was located about a mile up. Cara led at a steady pace with Din not far behind. The wind was a bit troublesome at times but otherwise, the bright sun and breathtaking view made for a pleasant hike.
"How did you pick up mountaineering?" inquired Din about halfway up. Cara paused to plunge another piton into the mountain before continuing upward.
"My father taught me and my brothers," the shock trooper explained. "He would take us to a section of the mountain range closest to us and have us practice in every season. Winter was honestly my least favorite."
"I can understand why," agreed Din as his footing briefly slipped, causing Grogu to cry out in surprise.
"One time in the winter our line broke and we were stranded up in the mountains for an entire day before we were rescued. Wouldn't have lasted the night," continued Cara as she grunted and struggled to jar loose her ice axe. "My father and older brother were debating about whether or not to try heading down and leave my younger brother and me on the mountain in order to get help. Both scenarios would have been too dangerous."
"How did they find you or know where to look?" questioned Din as he followed her path along the rope.
"My mom. We always told her where we'd be climbing," Cara explained as she threaded the rope through the next piton. "We never did long trips beyond a day, so she knew to come looking for us. Which that's lesson number one with climbing: it's always best to let someone know where you'll be heading for safety's sake."
"So, I guess I've already failed the course then," observed Din as he carefully maneuvered around a tight bend. Cara laughed out loud, her breath puffing in a fog.
"Technically, yes. But I also get how bounty hunting doesn't work best when it's publicly advertised. That's why you brought me," she smirked before driving her axe deep into the icy snow above her head. Din focused on his footing before replying.
"Your skills do come in handy," he agreed as he shielded Grogu from being side-swiped against a wall of snow. The group trudged up the mountain in silence for another two hours before reaching a point that leveled out some. Taking advantage of the breather, Cara turned to take in the view. Din soon joined her once he cleared the crest of ice.
The mountain range was nothing short of breathtaking. Sunshine pierced through the fog farther below and glistened off the tops of the peaks. The sharp angles and steep slopes towered unforgivingly, and its silence swallowed everything. The commanding presence of its glory pressed upon the shoulders of the soldier and the warrior. "You certainly don't see that every day," awed Din in a rough, quiet voice, and Grogu cooed quietly in agreement as he peered out from his pouch and layers. Cara took a deep breath and let it out slowly.
"Not anymore, no," she muttered heavily, her voice catching. Out of the corner of her eye she saw the Mandalorian's helmet rotate ever so slightly in her direction to check on her, but he said nothing. Wanting to move on, Cara sniffed briefly before gathering her resolve and turned back toward the mountain. "We don't want to get caught out here after dark. Better get moving again."
Another hour passed before Din's tracking fob began to beep quicker. Switching the fob to silent mode, Din motioned to Cara to quiet her movements. "We should be reaching the crest of this ledge here shortly," the woman whispered glancing up at the remainder of the progress to be made.
"His safehouse should be nestled not too far from the top then," Din whispered back. "Stay below the ledge until I can scope it out first." Cara nodded in the affirmative as she plunged in another piton as silently as she could.
"Ah-oo-gah," mumbled Grogu in a hushed tone and tried to cling to Din's hip. The Mandalorian looked down into the frightened face of the child peering up at him and could sense his fear.
"Something's wrong," muttered Din under his breath and tried his best to peer upward but the bright sun made the glare off the snow distracting. Cara paused her progress.
"What do you mean?"
"Not sure…but the kid's worried."
Cara huffed as she started up again. "Maybe he's scared of heights? Or just nerves?"
"He's fine with heights," Din shook his head. "My gut also feels off."
"Well, can you fly up there and check it out since we're almost there now?" suggested Cara as she knotted off the rope.
"I'm afraid it will ruin our element of surprise," worried Din. "And with our tight quarters to move, I'd rather not give up the one advantage we know we have so far." Cara knew Din was right…the incline had steepened quite a bit and the surrounding jagged rocks were more dangerous. Not to mention the heavy blanket of snow covering the ledge that made things more treacherous and potentially unstable. Their tenuous environment didn't make for favorable odds.
"I'm almost at the top. Just calm your gut until we get there and can scout," advised Cara as she quickened her pace with her carabiners. Grogu gurgled worriedly from the pouch again, but Din laid a comforting hand on his head to quiet him.
Ten minutes more and they reached the top edge of the ledge. Once Din had sidled up beside Cara just under the snow shelf, he slowly raised his head and turned on his thermal imaging. The safehouse—nothing more than maybe a two-room cabin—stood not but 50 feet away from the ledge. A smaller shed leaned just off to the far side of the house, its doors mostly closed. The stretch leading up to the safehouse was covered in a thick blanket of snow, untouched. Din focused on the heat signatures and noted that a faint trail linked the house and the shed while a much larger signature of heat was pulsing from within the cabin. His eyes drifted to the smoke puffing from the chimney.
"He's got a fire going…makes it hard to tell where he is," whispered Din, but before he had barely finished his sentence, a rifle shot fired from the shed and the ringing sound of beskar vibrated in the air. Din instinctively ducked after the shot reverberated off his helmet, and Cara helped to steady him against the mountainside.
"So much for the element of surprise," hissed Cara disappointed, tucking in closer to the snow.
"He must have heard or seen the ship coming in," guessed Din, also discouraged at their loss of advantage. "I'll handle it, but this could get messy." As if to substantiate the prediction, another rifle shot was fired in their direction, this time clipping the shelf and spraying them with snow.
"Dank ferrick!" swore Cara as both she and Din tucked down lower and tighter. "A desk job, my ass!" Din didn't respond as he hurriedly began to untangle himself from the pouch containing his son. Carefully, he handed the precious bundle to the shock trooper. "What the…Din, I didn't sign up for this trip to babysit!" clarified Cara hurriedly, gripping the worried, chirping child tightly, afraid of dropping him.
"Please, just take him! I can't have him right in the line of fire up there," implored the Mandalorian as he swung his own rifle from his shoulder and carefully began to unhook himself from the rope. "I'll fly up and distract him. If you see an opening, pull yourself up."
"All right, but be careful," warned Cara as she slung Grogu's pouch sling over her shoulder. As another shot was fired in their direction, Din managed to free himself from their rigging and activated his jetpack. Soaring speedily, Din shot upward and farther away from Dune and Grogu's location. Immediately the blasts coming from the shed multiplied and followed the Mandalorian, ricocheting off his armor when Din couldn't manage to dodge them. Aiming his own rifle, Din attempted a round toward the shed but without sights on the target, it was impossible to get a clean shot.
Meanwhile, Cara carefully wedged her feet in crevices in the rock on the mountainside in order to gain better balance. She crouched below the snow shelf and slowly raised her head just above the peak to get a good look. Extracting her blaster from her hip, she squinted to see if she could get a clearer shot than Din. She could just barely see the slit in the door where the bounty was poking out his own rifle, but the angle of her position was wrong. She swore again under her breath but tried her luck. The bolt from her blaster singed into the side of the shed, just off the mark of the crevice. In return for her attempt, she received a volley of shots fired at her head. Gasping and ducking just in time, Cara huddled close to the mountain as the snow above her was mutilated. Grogu cried out in fear from her hip and buried his head. The shots persisted until another round from the air distracted the bounty's attention again. Thankful for Din's assistance, Cara attempted to regain her balance and wedged her feet deeper into the crevice, planning to attempt another aimed shot. But a sudden crack and low grumble of what sounded like a ripple of thunder reached Cara's ears from within the mountain. She froze. Recognizing the sound of the beginning of an avalanche, she knew they were out of time.
The firefight continued in the air and Din's fancy flying finally coaxed the bounty to emerge from the sanctity of the shed in order to get a more solid shot closer to the lip of the ledge. The Mandalorian noticed the target had switched rifles to a much larger one that required loading miniature rockets. Confident he could swoop in and take out the criminal as long as he managed to dodge the first rocket, Mando changed trajectory and hurriedly flew closer. The bounty quickly heaved the large gun to his shoulder and let the first rocket fly with a resounding backfire. Din managed to barrel roll out of the way as the rocket harmlessly flew past him but activity on the ledge itself drew his attention. In fact, the activity was the ledge itself as it suddenly started to shift and move.
"MANDO!" cried Cara as she furiously tried to hunker herself and the kid in tight against the nearly vertical incline. Din watched in horror as the entire snowy plain of the edge of the ledge began to crack and rumble as it turned into quickly deteriorating chunks. And Cara and the child were right in its path. Turning his jetpack on full blast, Din sped towards his friends to try to rescue them out of harm's way. But those few extra seconds of distraction were just enough for another rocket to be reloaded.
The second reverberating boom bounced off the mountain and further shook the snow loose just as Din managed to hover right above Cara. "Grab my…" But his command was drowned out by the sound of the rocket smashing into his jetpack engine, the jolt causing the pack to sputter and malfunction. The impact sent Din suddenly freefalling, arms and legs flailing, downward and into the side of the mountain. His chest harshly collided with an exposed rock jutting out just below the ledge, his head following suit and rebounding sharply.
"DIN!" screamed Cara as she threw all of her weight out and forward to grasp the lip of his cuirass before his limp body could finish rolling off the rock and plummet to the base of the mountain. The sudden shift in weight threw her body nearly backwards, wrenching her shoulder, and an eruption of pain emanated from her left ankle as it twisted awkwardly in the crevice. Dune growled in pain above the ever-increasing thunderous rumble and steered herself to hoist the Mandalorian upward while keeping a vice grip on the rope she was still attached to. She barely managed to drag him closer to her chest as she pinned him between herself and the mountain, tucking her head down against his helmet just as the avalanche of snow finally gave way above her.
Cara Dune held onto the rope she was connected to and prayed for all she was worth that it would hold. As the barrage of snow tumbled on and around her, her muscles tensed against the sheer weight and pressure. She pinned the unconscious Mandalorian tighter against the mountainside, knowing that it was her mere strength keeping him from tumbling down with the rest of the avalanche. As the thunder roared around her, she attempted to twist her hip closer to the rocks to tuck Grogu underneath Din to protect him. She could neither see nor hear the child and hoped for all she was worth that he had not somehow fallen out of the pouch. Din would never forgive her for that. She wouldn't either.
Within minutes, it was over. The echoing crash of the avalanche rippled up from below as Cara dared to lift her head to survey the damage. The mountainside was rockier than before, and the true edge of the ledge itself was more pronounced, no longer covered in snow. The quarry was nowhere in sight, at least from what Cara could see. Her whole body trembled from the exhaustion and precarious balancing act, but she knew she couldn't give out just yet. Her left shoulder pulsed and throbbed, tremors vibrating down to her shaking left hand that still unconsciously clenched the upper edge of Din's cuirass. She ignored the screaming pain of her left ankle and tried to shift her weight to her right.
"Grogu? You still with me, buddy?" she called out, unable to twist and see if he was okay. A wave of relief swept through her as she heard a babbling reply and felt him squirm against her thigh. "Okay, good. Just sit tight. We'll be out of this soon," she promised and steadied her breathing. She carefully readjusted the balance of her friend's body across her bent legs against the mountain. "Mando? You with me, tin can?"
No response.
Cara forced herself to not panic and to focus. They couldn't hang where they were for much longer as her muscles began to cramp painfully. She sighed in frustration, unsure what to do. Typically, she figured she could hoist Din up and over the ledge, but with him being deadweight and with her tenuous position on the mountainside—not to mention her injuries—she wasn't sure she had the strength to do it. "Dank ferrick," she groaned and leaned her head tiredly against the rocks, her voice pleading. "Din, I really need you to wake up now." She then realized that she didn't even know if he was breathing or if he had broken his neck. She tried to listen for the rasp of his moderator, but the wind whipping around her drowned out any chance of picking up such a soft sound. She had to work off of the assumption that he was still alive—she couldn't go down that other path right now. Her body shivered in exhaustion briefly and her mind snapped to attention. "Think, Cara," she berated herself and steeled her resolve. "You've only got so much time before your body gives out so it's now or never."
Looking upward, she judged the distance she had to clear to be two meters in order to reach a safe and solid enough spot to get him over the edge. Wasn't much, but she wasn't sure she could shove Din upward that far, and he was more or less hanging at her waist level so it was going to be even farther. Arriving at the conclusion that she would have to try climbing up the mountain a bit while keeping Din balanced against her before she could thrust him up, Cara began to extract her twisted ankle out of the crevice. Her nerves flared in pain as she bit back a scream and hoped she hadn't actually broken it. Clinging to the rope, she shifted her balance to adjust her other foot to then push upward. Her body shook with the effort and this time she couldn't help the growl of exertion that escaped her lips. Four inches. "Slow but steady, keep moving, Dune," she coached herself.
As she adjusted her weight once more to climb again, she felt a hot tingling sense at her hip. It prickled her nerves and stung, especially in her shoulder. But her muscles throughout her entire body suddenly calmed and her ankle felt numb to the pain. She frowned in confusion until she heard a soft coo from the pouch. Grogu. Silently lifting up a prayer of thanks, Cara pushed herself to climb again, this time with less struggle and pain. Even Din's weight seemed to have lessened considerably. "Thanks, buddy," she gratefully said through gritted teeth as she continued to climb. She reached the top of the ledge and braced herself against the mountainside. Slowly leaning back and breathing steadily, she tested the grip the rope had with her waist harness.
It held.
Letting go with her hands and relying on her mountaineering skills and the rope to hold her, she began to maneuver her grip on the Mandalorian to lift him upwards. "Okay, Grogu, if you can help give a boost this one last time, I'd be eternally grateful," she breathed as she steeled herself. She felt the stinging but strengthening of his power at her hip as it flooded her body before she began to lift. She growled out in aggressive effort as she lifted the Mandalorian's fully armored body up and over her head and rolled him just past the edge of the mountain. As the weight was released, Cara's body crumbled against the mountainside. The child also sagged in exhaustion, wheezing. Allowing for only a minute's relief, Cara forced herself to finish pulling herself and the child up and over the jagged rocky edge. Her body gave out fully once sprawled on the cold stone, and she blissfully allowed the darkness to claim her.
Din Djarin slowly came to. The first muscles to move were his eyelids as they were the only things that didn't hurt. He sluggishly blinked his eyes open, only to find himself staring upward into a bright blue sky. The light pierced his brain like a thousand shards of glass. "Okay, so don't do that," he surmised and shut his eyes quickly, swallowing against the pulsing vibrations. The rest of his body then began to wake up and file complaints. Literally everything hurt. His pounding brain tried to take stock of the worst injuries: crippling headache, ringing ears, vertigo, sore muscles, painful breathing, and aching back. His stomach also rolled, and he swallowed back bile. "Concussion…" his sluggish brain noted as he attempted to sit up. Sharp pain shot through his chest, and he was forced to lie still and breathe through it. "Broken ribs," his brain added as he fought to breathe deeper but couldn't. Calming his panic to control his breathing, he focused on wiggling fingers and toes. Good, he could still do all that with feeling and with minimal pain, only soreness. He tried shifting his back and concluded his spine wasn't broken either. Judging he wasn't going to die then, Din forced himself to roll over onto his side and rise to kneel. His vertigo swooned violently, and he nearly vomited inside his helmet. Keeping both palms flat against the smooth ground, Din lowered his helmet to the rock and curled inward, breathing in through his nose and out through his mouth for several rounds. Unable to take deeper breaths, his world continued to spin for several minutes before he felt stable enough to slowly lift his head.
Gently opening his eyes once more, the Mandalorian surveyed his surroundings. He was on the ledge in front of the cabin. The ledge itself was now smaller as a significant amount of snow had been displaced. The avalanche… Din's mind suddenly filled in the blanks of his last memories before he blacked out. He spun his head (too quickly) around to look for Cara and Grogu. He luckily didn't have to look far and found the marshal just to his right, sprawled out on the ground on her stomach, eyes closed. Quickly, he crawled forward and pressed a glove to her throat. A steady, strong heartbeat pulsed against his fingers—good. She was merely sleeping then. His eyes travelled down her body to take note of any injuries and aside from one ankle laying at an uncomfortable angle, she seemed intact and unharmed. He was also overjoyed to find the pouch still tucked against her hip and could just make out a fuzzy, pointy green ear. Reaching over, he extracted a drowsy Grogu from the sack and cradled the creature gently in his arms.
"You okay, pal?" he asked shakily as two dark eyes sleepily blinked open.
"Ooo-gah," muttered Grogu tiredly and tilted his head into his father's chest. Din took stock of his son and thankfully determined no injuries. The next thought was the entire reason for this disaster of a mission: the quarry. Glancing around, Din saw no sign of the man. Reaching inside his belt, he pulled out the tracking fob and turned it back on only to find it silent. So, either the man was dead or he had escaped. Din sighed dejectedly. He personally didn't care either way, but simply despised the fact that all of this effort was practically for nothing.
Knowing he had to check, the Mandalorian pressed his hand against the stone beneath him to push himself to his feet. A groan escaped his lips as he swayed violently. He clutched Grogu tighter to his side in protection as he awkwardly took an unsteady side-step, afraid he might fall back down. Fixing his eyes on a singular spot on the ground, Din forced himself to ride out the vertigo and plant his feet. His skull continued to pound, and his stomach lurched viciously. Refusing to vomit, Din turned his attention to his feet to move closer to the ledge. Somewhere in the back of his befuddled brain a voice whispered that teetering like he was that close to a mountain's edge was probably not the smartest idea he had ever had, but he told himself he had to know if they were safe. Peering over the ledge where the avalanche had tumbled, Din easily found his answer in a bloody, splattered mess about a hundred feet below him, snow still being stained with scarlet.
His already-queasy stomach suddenly lost the battle upon the sight of the unrecognizable quarry. Stumbling away from the edge, Din ungracefully crashed to his knees, his free hand barely sprawled out in time to brace himself against the hard ground. Carefully dropping Grogu by his knees, he wrenched up the lip of his helmet past his chin just barely in time. The combination of the harsh landing along with the painful, clenching contractions in his gut ignited a new wave of pain throughout his body. His right hand gripped the smooth stone the best he could to steady the rocking of his heaving while his other hand trembled against his helmet. All he could hear was the reverberating pounding from his concussion in his ears while his stomach continued to rebel. The spasms in his abdomen did nothing to help the already-injured ribs. "Calm. Down," Din berated himself as he attempted to painfully breathe his system back into submission. Soon, his core muscles began to obey his command and softened from clenches to quivers. Swallowing the lingering foul taste in his mouth, Din ran a shaky gloved hand across his mouth before lowering the helmet back into place. Chest aching with each breath but his head a little clearer now, Din forced himself back on his feet, scooping Grogu up with him. The kid was so exhausted he hadn't even woken him with his retching.
Leaving his sick behind him, Din slowly weaved his way in a drunken walk back to Cara. Looking down at his friend, Din felt regret for even asking her to come along. Sinking to his knees, he reached out to her shoulder and squeezed firmly. "Hey." Cara didn't respond so Din shook her to wake her. "Hey. Cara." This time at the sound of her name, Cara breathed in loudly and roused herself awake. She groaned as she too was reminded by her body of recent events. Twisting herself to sit up on her bum, the shock trooper hissed as she gingerly angled her left leg.
"Good to see you awake," she mumbled, a bit disoriented from her nap. "You and the kid okay?"
"I'll live. He seems fine, just tired. You?"
"Wrenched my shoulder a bit. Other than that, just my ankle, I think," winced Cara as she leaned back on her right arm and tested rotating her foot. She gasped at the pain and gently set it back down. "Not sure if it's broken or just twisted. Either way, I'm not going to get back down the mountain like this."
"I'm not sure I should attempt a descent either just yet," admitted Din even as his body tilted unsteadily again.
"Concussion, I assume?" guessed Cara with a sympathetic glance towards him.
"Yeah. And I think some of my ribs may be broken," Din added as he gingerly wrapped his arm around his chest and shifted his cuirass uncomfortably.
"Not surprised. You hit the mountainside pretty hard when your jetpack went on the fritz," commented Cara, her eyebrow raised in emphasis. "And I probably wasn't too gentle either, trying to haul you the rest of the way up." Din turned his helmet fully towards her and paused before speaking.
"Thank you…for saving my life. And for saving his." Din absentmindedly fondled a fuzzy ear.
"Don't mention it. Friends do that kind of stuff," Cara brushed off as she raised her protection goggles and looked towards the cabin. "Think we should check and see if the nearest motel has any vacancy?" The Mandalorian looked over his shoulder at the house.
"The quarry's dead. Went over the cliff in the avalanche," he responded and held up the dead fob for her to see.
"So, the answer is yes, then. Help me up. I'd like to get in and get warm."
Din managed to assist Cara out of her harness and to her feet, and the two stumbled slowly towards the warm cabin. It was in fact deserted but clearly had been lived in. The rustic structure consisted of two rooms: the main living area with a kitchen and a smaller bedroom off the back with a bathroom. A longer sofa and lounge chair huddled around the lit fireplace at the center of the cabin. Books littered the place on shelves, tables, stacks in the corner, etc. A small but modest kitchen area sported a surprisingly modern stove and refrigeration unit along with a couple of cabinets for supplies. Aside from a small, crude transponder unit on the side sofa table for receiving news, no other piece of technology could be found.
"Cozy safehouse," observed Cara as Din helped her over to the sofa by the warm fire. "But I'm kind of surprised a big-time counterfeiter would hide out in something so…simple and primitive."
"Not every man's dream is a mansion," confessed Din as he settled a sleepy Grogu in Cara's lap and carefully raised her left leg onto the cushions to prop it up. His eyes strayed back to his son as he messed with the pillows under her ankle. "Did he…use his powers? I wasn't expecting him to sleep this hard."
"Yeah, he helped heal me enough to numb the pain so I could get you the rest of the way up. I think he actually healed my shoulder a good deal. Pretty sure he also helped me lift you somehow," admitted Cara, glancing down at the fragile creature in doubt. "Was that a bad thing?"
"No, he uses his powers when he wants to and there's no telling him otherwise," muttered Din with a tone that hinted to many previous instances of trying and failing. "He usually just sleeps it off. He should be okay." Grunting as he stood straight again, Din took a step away from the sofa but had to shoot out a hand to balance himself against the fireplace mantle.
"You really did hit your head hard," winced Cara as she struggled to shrug herself out of her backpack and her coat, gingerly testing and rotating her shoulder as she did so. Din didn't reply and merely concentrated on leveling out his breathing as he tried to gain his balance. Once he figured he was steady enough, he reached behind him to detach his jetpack but the awkward reach sent lightning bolts of pain up his chest cavity. The Mandalorian gasped and wheezed as he tilted forward and pressed a hand to his chest. "All right, seriously, get over here. This is ridiculous. I'll do it," beckoned Cara as she tucked Grogu between her and the couch cushion and pulled herself up straighter. Din relented without a word and carefully tread back to the couch in defeat while using the low table between the fireplace and the furniture to balance him. Kneeling with his back to her, Din allowed Cara to remove his disfigured pack, the loss of weight relieving.
"Thank you," he gratefully stated as he already felt less of a struggle to breathe.
"Think you can maybe repair this?" came the question from behind him.
"Maybe? Not without tools, though," sighed Din as he carefully rose back up to his feet.
"Our host might have some laying around somewhere. Perhaps the shed?"
Din nodded in agreement. "I'll check there later. Do you still have the stuff I gave you to pack?" This time it was Cara's turn to nod.
"Yep, right here." She slid the backpack over toward him, and Din began to take stock of their resources: food, medical supplies, and a few additional climbing tools.
"I'm going to guess our established path down the mountain is no longer secure? Or even there?" asked Din as he began to organize the supplies and put the food stuffs in the kitchen.
"It's possible. I think the danger would be more that the snow buried some of the path rather than the pitons coming loose," theorized Cara as she watched Din busy himself around the kitchen—a rather amusing sight, she noted, to see a fully armored Mandalorian reorganize a pantry. "I think I lost my ice axe, though."
"Mine too, but we did pack an extra in the backpack," he muttered as he opened the fridge to survey their options. "One piece of good news is that we certainly won't go hungry."
"Oh good, cause I could probably eat an entire wampa in a short bit," replied Cara, a hopeful glint in her eye at the prospect of food. Din merely nodded and then checked the freezer. He rummaged about for a bit before finding an ice pack. Grabbing a hand towel from a kitchen hook, he methodically wrapped the ice pack before heading back to the couch.
"For your ankle," he remarked handing it to her before crossing over to the lounge chair.
"Thanks, I should probably wrap it as well," Cara grimaced as she first began to carefully unlace her boot and remove her sock. She frowned at the troublesome ankle before putting the ice pack on it. Definitely swollen.
"I should probably check it first before we wrap it to see if it's actually broken or not." The clarity change in Din's voice made Cara's head shoot up in his direction. The shiny, impassive helmet was now sitting beside him on the side table. Cara's breathing stopped for a split second, her eyes fixed on the helmet and too afraid to look directly at its owner. She had only seen him with his helmet off the one time on Moff Gideon's cruiser, and even then, it had been very brief and most of the time she had only seen the back of his head.
Feeling like she was invading her friend's privacy, Cara quickly turned her gaze away and to the window. "Uh-um, it's okay, I can check to see if it's broken," she offered, cursing herself for her telling stutter.
"It's okay, Cara. You can look at me." The tone of his voice was shy but gentle, and while his deeper rasp was still there, it was much richer without the helmet's modulator. Her gaze hesitantly swept back to the unmasked Mandalorian sitting in the lounge chair, fiddling with removing his vambraces. His hair was a sweaty mess and his armored shoulders sagged tiredly. He had the slight growth of a mustache, a little more than the other time she had seen him, and the whispers of stubble about his chin. The wrinkles around his forehead and eyes spoke of some difficult years but did not exaggerate his age (although Cara realized she really didn't know exactly what his age actually was). His dark brown eyes, a bit weary with pain, then flickered upward and met her gaze steadily for several silent seconds before shyly looking back down. "I don't mind if you see me," he clarified quietly.
"Um…why? Er, won't you get in…trouble?" Cara inwardly cringed at the pathetic and demeaning question, but Din didn't seem phased by it. He shrugged with some uncertainty as he laid his gloves and vambraces aside by his helmet.
"Not sure really. I haven't been able to find the remnants of my Covert yet, so…I guess I'll cross that bridge when I come to it." He glanced up briefly and nodded towards Grogu fast asleep tucked into Cara's side. "But I often take it off with him as he's family." Din reached up and tapped one finger on the mudhorn signet on his right pauldron for emphasis. The implicated connection then was not lost on Cara: Din considered her as family.
Cara chewed on this thought as Din continued to slowly remove all the pieces of his armor. He looked a lot smaller without the intimidating bulk of the beskar but still was the lean, muscular build of a warrior. He reverently piled his armor carefully in the corner, most likely to clean later. A quiet hiss of pain escaped his lips as he stood, and he blinked his eyes several times to regain his balance as he turned back around. "I can look at your ankle if you like. I've had my fair share of twisted and broken ankles," he offered as he rubbed the side of his chest and fought for deeper breaths.
"Only if you'll let me wrap your ribs," countered Cara and eyed him worriedly. "You sure you didn't puncture a lung or something?" Din shook his head as he dragged the corner of the table closer to the end of the couch by her feet.
"No, I've had my fair share of that too and I know what it feels like," Din almost laughed but stopped himself mid-wince. "I think these are just cracked or broken, definitely nothing punctured."
"Good, cause while I can do patch-ups like any soldier, I'm definitely no surgeon or doctor," Cara clarified and widened her eyes briefly at the truth of that statement.
"That makes two of us then," Din replied with a small smile. He scooted closer to the couch from his seat on the table and his hands hovered above her ankle. Cara watched the expressions vividly change on his face almost in rapid succession: focused intensity on the problem, sudden fear at the necessity of touching her, second-guessed hesitation with the offer to help, genuine concern in assisting with the problem, uncertainty about her approval of aid. Finally, his eyes helplessly travelled up to meet hers, a shy question reflecting in them. She merely nodded her consent and tried desperately to keep the smirk off her face at his awkward adorableness. Having worn a helmet for most of his life, he clearly hadn't learned the art of schooling his expressions.
Din removed the ice pack and cradled her foot in his hands. She was surprised by his extreme gentleness as he carefully felt along the bones in her ankle, his eyes staring blankly into the couch before eventually closing, his focus entirely through his fingertips. Cara bit her lip several times to keep from making a noise when he hit a more tender spot and only once did she instinctively jerk her foot away from him, almost kicking him in the face. He avoided that particular spot after that. The fire crackled in the silence as he worked, the sun starting to set outside and casting golden orange hues through the windows. Eventually he carefully set her ankle back down on the propped-up pillow and sighed.
"I think it is broken," he admitted regretfully and gave her a sympathetic frown. Cara sighed disappointed but nodded her head.
"I figured as much. Go ahead and wrap it up then. We should have those bandages in the backpack." After one broken ankle was properly wrapped and the ice placed back on, it was time to move to the next injury.
"So broken ribs…any others I should know about?" inquired Cara as she unwound enough bandages to wrap his chest.
"Nothing else broken. Just the concussion and those classic symptoms…pounding headache, dizziness, nausea," Din listed in a strained voice as he very slowly began to slide out of his shirt as delicately as he could.
"You're not gonna throw up on me, are ya?" wondered Cara out loud as she watched him struggle with the black, long sleeved woolen shirt.
"If I do, I'll aim the other direction," muttered Din from inside the shirt just before he managed to pull it over his head. That simple action was exhausting, and he was forced to stop and regain his shallow breath. He let himself sink to the floor and held his head in his hands, swallowing hard.
"You…okay?" asked Cara concerned, watching him like a hawk. Finally, Din raised his head, his eyes pinched in serious pain, and simply nodded before scooting closer to the couch. Cara twisted in her seat so she could better reach him and surveyed the damage. The man was certainly toned—Cara wasn't going to lie about that—but the collage of bruises was horrible. "Kriff, Din," she whispered sadly.
"Some are old and healing from recent jobs," he amended as he raised his fingers to his side to investigate the damage. "I think maybe…three broken? Maybe…a few more cracked." His breathing hitched in pain as he continued to feel along his purple and black splotched rib cage.
"I'll be as gentle as I can, and I won't wrap you so tight in case it continues to swell a bit. Don't need you passing out on me…again," said Cara, finding the end of the bandage to begin. Her fingers gently but confidently reached to his lower right side, just above his abdomen, and began weaving the bandage around him. She felt him unconsciously tighten up and shy away at her touch. He wasn't used to hands other than his own touching him, she suddenly realized. She sighed sympathetically. "Din, you have to relax or else I'm going to wrap you too tight. Just try to breath and stay loose."
"Right, I just…need a minute," he confessed in a vulnerable tone and looked away ashamed.
"It's okay. Take your time," Cara soothed in a steady voice. She watched his eyes close in silent concentration and his breaths cycle in and out slowly. Her heart softened as she patiently waited, realizing this was probably a lot harder for him to do than she even realized. It was another minute before Din's body began to calm and she watched his muscles relax. The shock trooper decided on a different approach as she started again.
"Tell me something new you've learned about Grogu." While talking maybe wasn't ideal for him, it would keep him distracted. And it was obviously a topic he was fond of. This time when she touched him, he didn't avoid her hands.
"Hmm," sighed Din, his forehead wrinkling in thought. His eyes strayed over to the snoozing child and a warm smile teased at the corner of his lips. "Well, I learned he enjoys playing hide and seek."
"Didn't know they had recess at Jedi school," muttered Cara as she reached around behind him to thread the bandages around.
"Not at school, I mean with me." Cara couldn't keep her bark of laughter contained.
"With you?"
"Yeah, with me. I'm an involved father," Din replied with a teasing defensive tone and a proud smirk. He even had a sparkle in his eye. Cara just shook her head in amusement.
"Where do these shenanigans take place…on the Crest? I'd like to know where you manage to hide your bulky armored ass in that sardine can," she retorted with a snort of disbelief.
"Well, usually he's the only one who hides and I find him," clarified Din with a slight shrug. "He's got about five favorite spots I can count on."
"And what happens when you find him? A tickle fight?" Cara rose her eyebrows comically as she finished securing the bandage.
"No, I usually wrestle him into a hold and threaten to feed him to the frogs in the tank. He loves it," smiled Din unabashedly. Cara mirrored his smile and leaned back into the couch, her gaze dropping to the little green infant.
"Well, he's one lucky kid to have such a dad," she complimented as she stroked a fuzzy ear.
"Yeah, well, tell him that, will ya, when he's not listening to me…" mumbled Din as he carefully stood. "Dinner?"
"Yes, please!" agreed Cara enthusiastically.
As Cara was mostly useless on the couch, Din took care of raiding the kitchen for food. The drop soldier assumed the meal would consist of whatever could be thrown together in a hurry, but the Mandalorian even went as far as to grill up some meat and what looked like vegetables on the stove.
"I didn't know you could cook," remarked Cara as Grogu began to stir awake at the smell of food.
"You technically haven't eaten it yet so you might want to withhold your judgment," Din called back over his shoulder. "But yes, I can cook basic things." He soon finished assembling their plates and brought it back to the fireplace along with cups of water.
"Smells good, whatever it is," beamed Cara as she eagerly took her plate.
"I hope we don't get food poisoning. I have no idea what kind of meat that was," admitted Din. Noticing Grogu was now awake and interested in what was being served, the man picked him up and settled him in his lap as he sat down in the chair to eat. Scarfing her own meal down, Cara noticed he let the child have most of the food.
"You need to eat too," she advised. "It's actually pretty tasty."
"My stomach's still not quite settled. I'm sure I'll be hungrier tomorrow," Din replied as he wiped some meat juice off his son's chin.
"Even so, you should at least drink," Cara commented between mouthfuls. "And you should probably drag the mattress out here to sleep. So that I can check on you if need be." Surprisingly, Din simply nodded without a fuss and yawned tiredly. The rest of the meal was spent in silence aside from Grogu's noisy chewing and the fire's crackling. Cara smiled to herself, set aside her empty plate, and settled back into the couch cushions.
"You know…" she commented as she slowly shut her eyes and yawned herself. "For as kriffed up as this job was, this part is pretty relaxing." Din guiltily looked up from Grogu.
"Yeah…this was not the plan. Sorry about that."
"Don't be. Aside from a couple of injuries and being stranded for a bit, we lucked out. Could have been drafted in a snowbank out there, freezing our buns off."
"Meh?" Grogu looked curiously at Cara.
"Yeah, and you would have been a pint-sized snowcicle," joked the woman and widened her eyes in mock shock at the little tike.
"Or we could have all fallen off the cliff and died," added Din matter of factly.
"Meh?" worried Grogu and twisted his head to look up towards his father.
"That got dark fast," muttered Cara with an exasperated look towards Din. "Didn't your dad ever tell you not to scare a kid before bedtime?" A sudden awkward silence fell in the room as Cara realized her mistake when Din's eyes met hers, a haunted look in them. She swallowed and wanted to shoot herself for her flippant comment. "I'm sorry," she quietly muttered and looked towards the fire for a distraction. "I didn't mean to dig up the past." Another silent pause before Din cleared his throat.
"It's okay," he amended graciously in a soft voice. Suddenly the cabin was too confining and claustrophobic, and Cara desperately wanted out when Din spoke again. "Want a drink?"
"Yes, please," Cara practically begged a little too quickly. She felt Din rise from his chair and head back to the kitchen. Thankful for even the little bit of space, Cara sighed tiredly and watched Grogu as he attempted to lean and stand on his tiptoes in order to look around the chair to watch his dad in the kitchen. How could she have been so stupid? Cara inwardly groaned and resisted running a hand down her face. The atmosphere was now awkward and uncertain, and Cara felt every bit of guilty responsibility for that as she glanced at the back of her companion as he finished gathering their drinks in the kitchen. Eventually, Din returned with two larger mugs and a smaller teacup.
"I hope this is really stiff," muttered Cara as Din pressed the mug into her hands. The strong scent of the liquid hit her nostrils immediately and suddenly unlocked a thousand memories: swingling mint. The effect was inescapable, and Cara felt her heart skip a sad beat. Her wide eyes travelled up to Din who met her with a small smile and a gentle understanding in his deep, brown eyes. Hurriedly, Cara took a sip of the hot beverage and the authentic taste of the Alderaanian tea unlocked a million more memories. The powerful mint, the kick of ginger, the whisper of cardamom, the hint of honey…the recipe was too spot on to be an accident. "Why did you really ask me on this job?" Cara asked in a tenuous voice. Din said nothing as he turned back to his chair, slowly sat down, and carefully handed Grogu his smaller cup of hot chocolate. The man took a sip of his own hot chocolate—spiced heavily with cinnamon and nutmeg—before speaking.
"When I first took the job, I researched this planet. Found it was similar to Alderaan like I said before," Din calmly explained as he settled into the chair and propped up his feet, his son snuggled into his side sipping away. "I began to research Alderaan in order to determine its climate and terrain but ended up reading much more…about the culture, the social structure, the successful trades, all that stuff. I somehow got onto holidays…" Cara swallowed hard and felt her eyes moisten against her will. "…and I learned about the Equinox holiday." Cara's tongue stuck in her throat as the mention of the holiday brought back flashes of old, beloved memories: party lights, festivals, presents, games, feasts, dancing, laughter…and family. "That's how I stumbled upon that drink recipe. Guess it sounds like that was a staple at that event," remarked Din quietly, noting the effect all of this was having on her.
"Yes, it was," was all Cara could manage and instinctively took another sip of her past.
"I also read that it was only three weeks away from being celebrated when….it happened. And that the anniversary was this week," Din delicately stated, empathy in his eyes. Grogu, sensing the mood change in the room, cooed mournfully. Cara smiled reflexively to try to pull herself together and failed. Her breath audibly caught in a pre-sob, and she then tried to clear her throat to cover it up.
"Yeah, the anniversary is this week. Today actually," admitted Cara, her voice tremoring despite her desperation to get it under control. Pull yourself together, Dune. "My family was all there when it blew. Most families were…because of the gathering and preparation for Equinox. Only reason I wasn't there yet was because my assignment got delayed a couple days." She paused to breathe and Din let her take her time. She then pasted the fake smile back on and forced her tone to be steady. "I do often drink on the day actually…but usually I'm drinking to forget. And usually its spotchka." Din nodded his head once in understanding before drinking his hot chocolate again, lost in thought. Cara pushed the conversation back to the silent Mandalorian. "You still didn't explain why you brought me along."
Din swallowed and stared into his mug in thought for a moment before replying. "I drink on an anniversary too," he said. "My parents' death." Cara's heart clenched in empathy as she listened closely as Din continued. "It's technically tomorrow but I wanted to share in the drink with you. I don't remember much about my parents honestly, but I like to honor them. One of the few things I do remember is that they'd make me hot chocolate before bed." Grogu gazed up quietly at his father and purred subtly in rapt attention. "So, each year I drink on the anniversary…to remember them," explained Din with a soft smile. Cara hardly knew what to say in response.
"Did your parents like heapings of cinnamon and nutmeg too?" At that Din gently laughed.
"No, that was the Mando'a influence. But it fits well because the Mandalorians were there for me when I needed them. Not just that first year, but every year. Many of us were foundlings…had lost someone or another along the way…they were always a comfort to me and didn't leave me alone. And I guess…well, I guess I just didn't want you to be alone either," explained Din with a sigh. If a single tear escaped down Cara's cheek, no one saw it.
"Thank you, Din."
"You're welcome. Like you said…friends do that kind of stuff."
Cara smiled and raised her mug. "To family?" Din smiled back and raised his own.
"At aliit."
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Mando'a Translation:
Ad'ika = affectionate term for child
At aliit = to family