Hi folks! Here's the next episode, which will bring together all the main characters for this series. The series will be mostly about Bo and Din, but as I mentioned earlier, I'm also giving Med his own slow burn romance. And now it's time to reveal that he will be paired with Cara Dune. This story is the first time all of them will be together and I wanted to play around with all the various emotions, and maybe a few misunderstandings (because what's a romance without some of those?) a mission like this might bring up.

Enjoy!

Moki

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"What's next?"

Din Djarin walked up to Captain Carson Teva and shook his hand in greeting.

The New Republic captain paused to watch as the latest Imperial remnant was marched onto the waiting prison transport ship, handcuffed, and surrounded by guards. The prisoner glared at the Mandalorian as he walked past. If the bounty hunter noticed the furious look, he gave no outward sign.

Shaking his head, Teva turned back to the confidential independent contractor who'd been making his life a lot easier recently.

"Well, Mando," he replied, "after the way you handled this job, I think I can turn over something that I thought I'd be forced to give to one of my teams, even though I know they can't handle it."

"Oh?" Din asked, tipping his head in question.

Teva huffed a short chuckle, noting that the warrior's small apprentice peered at him with nearly identical curiosity. How a man in full Mandalorian gear, including a beskar helmet, could look just like a small green child with large ears was beyond him.

"I won't lie to you, it's a tough one. I don't recommend bringing the youngling," Teva nodded at Grogu, who frowned at him, not happy about the idea of being left behind. "You said you were going to be picky about jobs and trust me, this is one that you're going to want to be picky about."

Din shook his head. "He's my apprentice. Wherever I go, he goes. If the job is too dangerous for him, then send someone else."

Teva sighed. "None of my teams have the skills that you have, though it will require a fair bit of work, even for you. It's more than just capturing a single person. It's a rescue mission."

"A rescue mission doesn't require a bounty hunter. I'm sure one of your own teams can handle it."

"Don't you get it, Mando? There is no one else who can do it, and those people need help. We're getting word that at least one, possibly more, may be injured."

Din felt his resolve break a little. "Sounds like I'd need a team." He wasn't sure why he said that. It wasn't as if he was thinking of going. Was he?

Teva nodded in agreement. "If they're as trained and skilled as you are, you could do it with a team of four. Though I'd recommend that you bring along someone who is at least a field medic."

Din sighed. He was already putting together a team in his head, there was no point protesting any longer.

"Give me the coordinates."

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After getting a brief rundown of the job, Din flew immediately to Mandalore. There was no time to waste, and he needed to leave his son with people he trusted.

The last time Din had gone on a mission without Grogu, the boy had been a foundling. Would his clan still help now that he was living off-world, and his son was an apprentice?

It wasn't as if apprentices never returned home with their teachers. Trainers often came back to the clan from time to time to rest or recover between missions, or to give their apprentices more sparring to hone their skills. It was something Din had already been doing with Grogu, but he'd always stayed with his son. He'd never left him behind to be completely put in the care of the foundling Guardians.

Once he landed, Din's first stop was to see Bo. He wanted to check in with the leader of Mandalore before he just dropped off his kid like the Guardians were his own personal babysitter.

"Of course, he can stay with the foundlings," Bo said as soon as Din asked. "I'm sure he'd enjoy that."

"Thank you. I hate to just drop him off and leave."

"You're not, you're bringing him to your ancestral home, to be with others who are his people – he was a foundling and is now a Mandalorian apprentice. He belongs here, you both do."

Din dipped his head in gratitude. "Thank you, again."

They walked to the training grounds and Grogu immediately scampered off, spotting some of the youngsters he played and trained with during their previous visits. Bo smiled as she watched the little one, then turned to her companion.

"Actually, your timing is perfect. I was planning to contact you, I wanted to talk to you about something. Or, more accurately, I wanted to show you something. Come with me."

With a final look to ensure Grogu was happy with the other trainees, Din followed. Bo led him deeper underground and into the tunnels, past the Great Forge and the subterranean gardens. Din looked around, curious about the location. He could see that doors had been cut into the rock walls of the caves.

"Was this here before the Purge?" Din asked as they continued to walk.

"Yes and no. There were housing units here, mostly for those who traveled a lot and were sent out on missions, basically like soldier berthing. It was nearly destroyed in the bombings, but it looks like the Imps were planning to use them again. That was one good thing about their attempt to take over, they at least cleaned all of this up and even repaired quite a few of the units."

"That's good. Not that they were here, but that it was easier for you to establish homes for our people."

"It's been very helpful. I'm quartered not too far away myself."

"Here?" He hadn't pictured their leader living in such simple conditions.

"What? Did you expect me to be ensconced in my royal palace, surrounded by servants?" Bo gave him a sideways glance, one eyebrow raised as she sauntered next to him.

"Well, you did have that massive castle all to yourself with only your servant droids on Kalevala, so…" Din shrugged.

"Okay, fair enough," she laughed lightly. "But I like to think I've changed since then. Traveling with you and Grogu, living among the Children of the Watch, it gave me a different point of view. Not that I ever felt like I belonged in a palace anyway, it was just what I was used to, it was all that I knew."

"I can understand that. And for what it's worth, I do think you've changed. Or maybe now you're just who you were always meant to be. Leading our planet, but also living among your people - it suits you, if that's not too forward of me to say."

"It's not and thank you, I appreciate it."

Bo stopped when they reached a specific door. The quarters in the area were designed for families and had larger living spaces, including some with multiple bedrooms.

"This is what I wanted to show you," she palmed the door, and it slid open.

Inside Din found a plain, but tidy set of quarters. The door opened in the corner and a kitchen ran along the wall to the right, with a living space lining the perpendicular wall leading ahead. An iron stove fireplace stood in the far corner of the living area, next to a large couch. Din could see a bedroom through a doorway straight ahead and assumed another was probably behind the other door to the right on the same wall. There appeared to be a hallway behind the bedrooms, which probably led to the fresher and laundering areas.

"This is nice," Din said approvingly. "Your crews must have been working day and night to get these done in such a short time."

"Oh, they have," she assured him. "I especially wanted to make sure this one was done soon."

"Why is that?"

"These are the quarters for Mandalore's beroya."

Din tipped his head sideways. "You've named an official beroya for Mandalore?"

"I have."

"I didn't know you had assigned someone. I'd like to meet them."

"Oh, you know them quite well."

Din looked at Bo with his head pitched, making her imagine the raised eyebrows she guessed were under the helmet when he looked at her like that. Finally, she shook her head and smiled.

"It's you, Din."

"Me? But I can't accept this," as he looked around, Din realized the home was fully decked out with everything someone would need, including bedding and cookware.

"Besides, I work for the New Republic," he added.

"I know that, but I doubt we'll need you very often. I'm sure our assignments could be done in between your other work. No criminal captures, just missing persons, and rescues. Now that more and more of our people are coming out of hiding and requesting to return home, I think many are going to want to look for their other loved ones."

Sensing that he still seemed unsure, Bo turned to Din and regarded him with serious eyes.

"I'm sorry if I overstepped. If you're too busy, that's not a problem. I'm sure we can find another within the clan. I know there are more than a few trained beroyas, though you are our best. But if you can't…"

"No, it's not that," he assured her. "I would be honored. I just feel like this…" he gestured around. "is too much."

"It's really not. These are standard quarters, well within the station of a master beroya like yourself. I know you have your home on Nevarro, and I would never ask you to leave it. This is for you to have a place when you come to visit. So that you and your son have a home here. You've more than earned it. Don't forget you're the main reason we're here at all. You led us back home, Din."

"Besides," amusement dipped into Bo's voice. "I've given your brother a medic's quarters and asked him to head our new medical center once it's ready. How can I not offer you a home and a position as well? After all, I met you first. It would hardly seem fair if I didn't give you the same opportunity."

When Din looked at her, she could feel his surprise through the helmeted façade. "You asked Med to lead a hospital?"

"I did. He's the best medic I've ever seen and believe me, I don't say that lightly. I got to watch him in action, dealing with a medical emergency unlike any other."

Din realized she was talking about his own poisoning by the nano-droids. He'd always known his brother was an excellent medic, but it was gratifying to hear it coming from someone else. Especially the Mand'alor herself.

"Through it all," Bo continued. "Med always thought on his feet, doing whatever it took to keep you alive. He came up with ideas that I doubt a doctor at a large hospital on the richest planet would have thought to do. He was the one who thought of bringing in the Anzellans. And how many doctors give their own blood to a patient to give them an extra boost while waiting for an antidote?"

"Med's always been like that," Din was thoughtful. "I knew he had accepted your offer to train as a licensed doctor at the new medical center, but I didn't know he was also going to be running it."

Bo sighed and shook her head with an indulgent smile. "Both of you, so modest. You never brag about your hunting reputation, so I can't say I'm surprised he didn't mention all of this to you yet. I hope I didn't ruin a surprise, though."

Din chuckled. "No, I don't think so. Like you said, he probably didn't think to mention it. Or, knowing him, he may even think he already told me."

Din's voice was full of gratitude when he spoke again.

"I figured I would continue to make camp when Grogu and I came for additional training, but this is even better. Thank you, and please let me know the moment you require my services. I am here to serve, my lady." He bowed his head, fist over his chest.

"You're very welcome," she responded, bowing her own head in reply. "Now, you never told me what the mission is that requires you to leave Grogu behind."

"It's a rescue mission and more complicated than my typical jobs. I was advised not to bring my apprentice and now that I've gotten more information about where I'm going, I agree with that assessment."

"You're not planning to do it alone, are you?" Bo felt a tinge of worry. Though Din was the best hunter they had, there were still jobs even the most highly trained warriors shouldn't take on alone.

"No. I've been told I could do it with a team of four. One has to be a medic according to Teva, so I'm going to ask Med."

"Good idea. I'd be happy to help as well."

"I can't ask you to leave Mandalore to help me with a job," Din protested.

"Well, it's a good thing you didn't ask, then. Besides, I could really use some time in the field. How can I be the leader of a race of warriors if I never get out and fight? Not that I'd ever tell anyone where we went and what we did," she reassured. "I know your missions for the New Republic are top secret."

Din wanted to protest but Bo was right. He needed people he could trust on this mission, and she was one of those people.

"So, who's the fourth?" Bo asked.

"I was thinking of asking Cara."

"I remember her. The shock trooper who helped us take the cruiser and capture Moff Gideon, right?"

Din nodded.

So much had happened since then, Bo wanted to be certain she was putting the right name to the right face. She was ashamed of the fact that she'd been so focused on getting back the Darksaber at the time that she hadn't really acknowledged or remembered the other people Din brought along on that particular mission.

"Cara is in Special Forces now. She might be able to take time off to help, since she won't be able to do this as an official mission."

"Well, it sounds like a good team. Let me know when we leave. We'll use my ship since the Gauntlet is equipped for troop deployment and you obviously can't use the N-1 for a mission like this."

With that Bo walked out of his new residence, leaving Din chuckling to himself at her presumption that she was not only on the team, but flying them to their destination. Just like that, he had the second on his team and a ship. Now it was time to recruit the medic for his team of four.

Din went to visit his brother next. Once there, Din folded his arms and spoke with a frown Med heard in his voice.

"I hear you're going to be the lead doctor in the new hospital. Were you ever planning on telling me that?"

"Didn't I?" Med sounded distracted.

"No."

"Sorry, I really thought I did, but I've been busy. Did you know I have to take an actual test to become a licensed physician?"

Din chuckled. "I assumed there would be something like that, didn't you?"

"I figured that would be the case for someone who hasn't been working as a field medic for decades. It's not like I'm some young intern fresh out of medical school."

"True, but they also can't just give out medical licenses to people because they say they've been working in the field. You're not worried about the test, are you? I'm betting you know more than anyone who's just graduated from medical school."

"Maybe, maybe not. My experience is all practical, not from books. Bo got me the texts I need to study, so I've been staying up late every night going over everything in them. It's more than I thought it would be, that's for sure."

"I'm sure you'll be fine."

"Maybe, maybe not," Med repeated.

Din wasn't used to seeing his brother nervous. But becoming a doctor meant a lot to Med and so would running the new hospital. Med had always wanted to help as many people as possible and heading up an entire medical center would be a perfect way to do that. All of this was his brother's dream come true, even if Med had never put those thoughts together before Bo had asked him.

"When is your test?"

"Not for a few weeks. I just don't want to get caught unprepared."

"Good. Then you have time to help me."

"What do you need? Is everything okay? Is Grogu all right?" In seconds, Med switched into doctor mode and went from worrying about himself to worrying about his brother and nephew.

"I'm fine," Din waved a casual hand. "I have a new mission and I need a team of four. I've been told that there will probably be wounded to rescue, and that I should bring a medic. You up for a little bit of field work?"

"Are you kidding? I need to get away from these books for a while. I realize it's terrible to say this, but we haven't had many people in need of my services recently. Which is a good thing, but it also means I haven't had any distractions. A field mission sounds good. I'll get the other junior medics to cover for me. I'll also alert the medical center on Plazir in case anyone needs to be transferred while I'm away."

"Great. It will be good to work together again. It's been a long time, brother."

"That is has. You said you needed a team of four? Who are the rest?"

"Bo already volunteered, so that leaves one more. I'm planning to contact another friend I've worked with many times, someone I trust. Her name is Cara Dune, she's a former shock trooper."

"Wow, a dropper, and the leader of Mandalore. You don't mess around when it comes to recruiting a team, do you?"

"And don't forget the future head of the Mandalore Medical Center," Din said, clapping his brother on the shoulder while Med chuckled.

Once he had secured his team, Din headed back to the training grounds to get Grogu.

"Hey kid, did you have fun?"

Yes! Fun! Grogu signed.

"Good. I've got something to show you. It's a bit of a walk so, come on." Din gestured for Grogu to hop into his arms. The boy did immediately, holding onto his father's chest plate as he balanced on Din's vambrace. With the missions and extra training, Grogu was becoming more independent and didn't always want to be carried. But he had no problem hitching a ride and taking advantage of his father's much longer legs when they had to go long distances.

Din brought them to their new quarters. He palmed open the door and took his son inside.

"This is where we're going to stay when we're here on Mandalore. What do you think?"

Home here? Grogu seemed confused. Not cabin?

"No, that's still our home. This is like another home. Bo gave this to me, to us, because I'm going to be helping out and doing bounty work for Mandalore sometimes. Not that I mind sleeping in a tent, but this is better, right?"

Grogu was wandering around, taking in the place. Yes, better. Like here, he signed.

"Me too, buddy."

Din had been happy to find there were indeed two bedrooms in their new quarters. He was sure Bo had done that on purpose. The second bedroom would give Din his own space to sleep without his armor, and he appreciated it.

Later that evening, once Grogu was in bed, Din recorded a holo message for Cara asking if she was available for the mission. When he woke up the next morning, he had a response saying she'd be there the following day. Which gave Din enough time to go through the intel that Teva had sent to him and formulate his plan.

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All right folks! There's the first chapter of this new story. I'm not sure exactly how many chapters it will be, probably around four. Next up is when things get a little more interesting for everyone.