Chapter Text
It had been a few days since they went camping, and the three of them were in the cockpit. Darcy was in the co-pilot’s chair, Din was piloting, and the kid was sitting up by Din on the control panel, watching his dad clicking buttons as they came out of hyperspace. They were just arriving to Corvus, and Darcy couldn’t help but feel a little dread.
They would soon have to give their son up, and as much as Darcy and Din didn’t want to, they both knew it had to be done. She’d gone over in her head a speech to make sure that Ahsoka would allow them to visit the kid. It was mostly giving Luke Skywalker as an example of a Jedi who has attachments, and look at what he did! He saved the freaking galaxy. Plus, the Jedi rules against attachments were garbage. Darcy would do whatever was necessary to make sure they got to see their son again.
She got a good look at the planet. The atmosphere looked hazy from smoke caused by the many lines of fire that snaked across the land. She could see some bodies of water, some green, but also a lot of burned land. Darcy had to wonder how anyone could live there with how much of it looked burnt.
“We’ve made it,” Din said, turning his head to look at Darcy. He turned back towards the viewport, his hand left the control, and he rubbed the kid’s back softly as the child cooed up at him.
“Looks, uh, fiery,” Darcy said with a frown.
“Yeah, hopefully Calodan is away from the fires. I’m picking up a beacon,” Din said as he flicked more switches. “I’m going to start the landing cycle.” Din looked at the kid, “Hey, buddy, you’ll need to go sit with your mom.”
The kid babbled as he crawled down the control panel, he waddled towards Darcy, and she quickly leaned down to pick him up, setting him in her lap. She rubbed one of his ears as he looked up at her, smiling. “You have fun sitting up there?” Darcy asked. He babbled excitedly.
As they flew into the atmosphere, the amount of smoke was ridiculous. How were people able to live here with such horrible air quality? The city they were heading to looked to have giant walls surrounding it. The forests that were outside the city looked to have been burned. Darcy didn’t see any people beyond the walls or any other cities nearby.
“Are the walls to keep the fire out or the people in?” Darcy wondered out loud.
“We’ll need to keep our guard up, just to be safe. But Bo-Katan said that Ahsoka would be found here in Calodan.”
“I should probably go change then,” Darcy said. Din was already in all of his armor.
Din landed the Crest far away from the city gates, in a clearing.
Darcy got up, setting the kid back in the chair, and went and got changed into her planetside clothes. She figured since she was going to be meeting Ahsoka, she wanted to look nice, so Darcy added a vest and braided her hair back from her face.
The cockpit was empty when she came out of the captain’s quarters. She went down the ladder, seeing the ramp at the back of the ship down, and Din outside. The kid was toddling towards him. Darcy got into the gun storage, getting her blaster and vibroblade.
She made her way to the ramp, watching as the child was halfway down the ramp when he suddenly sat down. Din turned to look at the kid.
“Hey, that’s supposed to stay on the ship,” Din said as he leaned down, grabbing something from the child’s hand. The kid whined. It was the metal ball that the child was obsessed with. Darcy watched Din pocket it.
She got to the kid and picked him up. “It’s okay, buddy. Your dad’s no fun,” she cooed to the child.
Din sighed. “I’m fun.” She could hear him pouting.
Darcy closed the distance between them and rubbed one of his arms. “Absolutely, babe. You’re the most fun Mandalorian in all of the galaxy,” she said, grinning.
Din huffed out a breath.
There were weird deep howling sounds further in the forest. Darcy looked around Din to see big creatures out in the distance. The weather was hot and dry, the air was hazy, and smelled like burned wood. The forest trees were black and charred looking.
“There’s not much to see out here,” Din said.
“Yeah, can’t believe people live here. Is the planet even safe with all of the fires?” Darcy replied.
“You’ve been to Nevarro. They built a town over a lava river.”
“That’s an excellent point. People will live anywhere.”
“We should check out the town to see if we can find the Jedi,” Din put out his hands for the kid.
“I can carry him,” Darcy said, frowning and hugging the child closer to her.
“We don’t know what we’re walking into. It would be best if we’re ready, in case there’s a fight,” Din said.
He had a point. They didn’t know if the people in the city would be friendly or not. Darcy reluctantly handed the child over to Din, who set the kid in the bag he had across his body. The child’s head peeked out from under Din’s cape. Darcy reached out and rubbed one of his ears while he chattered up at her.
“You ready?” Darcy asked, looking up at Din’s t-visor. His hand went to the back of her head to bring her forward so they could gently touch foreheads.
“Yeah, let’s get going.”
They started walking towards the city, shoulder to shoulder. The back of their hands touching occasionally, Darcy smiling at the feel of his glove against her skin. She knew he was doing it on purpose, and she felt warmth blooming in her chest that he probably wanted to hold her hand, but he had to be his intense Mandalorian self, so accidental touches would have to do.
She hoped that things would be easy. That they’d get to the town and be directed to Ahsoka with no problem.
But, things never seemed to be simple for them.
It made Darcy wonder what roles Din and the kid had in this universe. Did everyone who lived here always live like this? She’d only seen the movies, and they focused on the main characters. She had to assume not everyone had a mission or was the chosen one. There had to be farmers, and shopkeepers, just regular people, living their lives as mundane as possible. Din and the child seemed anything but ordinary. And now here she was, joining them on their adventures, and they’d had such an eventful time over the last month. She loved being with them, and she was genuinely having the time of her life, but she had to wonder if there was something more at play here.
“You’re being quiet,” Din said, breaking Darcy from her thoughts. Din’s hand grazed hers again.
They weren’t even in view of the city yet, still walking through the burned trees.
Darcy hummed. “Just thinking,” she said, glancing over at him.
“About what?”
“You ever feel like maybe you have more of a purpose than you realize?”
“You and the kid are the only purpose I need or care about.”
Darcy smiled. “You’re sweet. I just mean before you took in the kid? Was your life so… uh… eventful?”
“I’m a Mandalorian and a bounty hunter,” Din said slowly. “Maybe not as dramatic, but still pretty eventful,” he replied, shrugging.
“I’ll take your word for it,” she said. Darcy decided to change the subject. “I hope this city has some food we can buy. I could go for something cooked.”
Din hummed in agreement. “You’ve been spoiled with all of the stops we’ve made recently. Before you and the kid came along, I’d go months without having fresh food.”
Darcy frowned. “That’s kind of a bummer, dude. You just lived on meal packs?”
“Yeah.”
That made Darcy sad and tugged at her heart. His life before them seemed so achingly lonely. Just him alone traveling the galaxy, constantly tracking bounties, and he hadn’t even bothered to eat decent food. Because it wasn’t a necessity to him. He only ate to survive. It wasn’t because he enjoyed it. It wasn’t like he could sit in a cantina and have a meal, anyway.
The entire time Darcy had been with the two of them, Din would get them a small variety of perishable foods along with the meal packs when he’d get supplies. He would, of course, only choose easily reheatable things since the only cooking appliance they had on the ship was a weird space microwave that Din had told her repeatedly was not a microwave.
“It’s a compact nano-wave cooker.”
“So, a space microwave?”
“No, a nano-wave cooker. Microwave projectors are for weapons.”
The point was, Darcy realized that he went out of his way to make sure the kid and her had decent food to eat, even though he didn’t seem to have a preference himself. He cared about them and wanted them to be happy. It made her want to bake for him or buy him treats. He said he liked nerf steak. What other foods did he enjoy?
Darcy grabbed Din’s hand, lacing their fingers together. She wanted to hug him, but holding hands would have to do for now. “Do you have a favorite food?” Darcy asked, giving his hand a squeeze.
“No?”
Darcy looked at him. “Nothing? If you could have anything to eat, right this second, there isn’t anything that comes to mind?”
“Maybe uj cake?” He sounded unsure.
“What’s that?”
“Uj'alayi. It’s a Mandalorian cake.”
“I’ll need more descriptors,” Darcy said, giving him an encouraging smile. “I can assure you, I have eaten and baked a lot of cakes in my time, and there are so many different kinds.”
“It’s flat and, uh, dense? Has nuts and dried fruit in it. It’s made with a spicy-sweet syrup to keep it from going dry.”
Darcy tried to imagine what something like that would taste like. She settled on it sounding tasty, and she’d be willing to try it.
“It sounds good.”
“In the Fighting Corps, we’d have it for celebrations. Haven’t had it in years. I liked it.”
Darcy decided that if she ever had a chance to, she would try and make this dessert from his childhood. Maybe she could find a recipe on the holonet?
“Do you think the kid would like it?” Darcy asked. She knew the answer.
“What doesn’t the kid like?” He replied, turning towards her.
The child in question made excited noises from his bag, and Darcy laughed Din chuckling.
They continued the rest of the walk in comfortable silence, the kid occasionally making little noises.
They’d stopped holding hands before they got into view of the gate. Darcy could see the wall was made of giant concrete bricks. They stopped walking just beyond the entrance. Above the gate was a platform for the guards and a weird bell looking thing. There were two guards with weird facemasks that had tubes, Darcy could only assume for air, and one human-looking guy peering down at them.
“State your business,” the man called to them. He was an intimidating older looking man.
Darcy would let Din take the lead. She liked it when he went into intimidating Mandalorian mode.
“We’ve been tracking for a few days. We’re looking for a layover.”
“Nice armor,” the man replied. “You’re hunters, then?”
Darcy’s back straightened, trying to look as badass as possible, keeping her face blank. She was really just doing her best Natasha impression. Nat always looked like she’d could kill you at a second's notice.
“That’s right,” Din said.
“Guild?” The man asked.
“Last I checked.”
The man turned to one of the guards. Darcy couldn’t hear what was being said.
The man turned back towards them. “Open the gate,” he said.
The gate slowly opened, and Din and Darcy made their way in. As soon as they entered, it was shut behind them.
For a large city, the residents didn’t seem to be living in the best conditions. Lots of people were milling about, avoiding looking at the two of them, or just straight up running in the opposite direction they were going. It was making Darcy uneasy.
“I’m getting such weird vibes,” Darcy whispered. She spotted an armed guard on top of a roof. “Remember how I asked what the walls were for? I think we know.”
Din hummed in agreement. “Do you think the people will talk to us?” Din asked, keeping his voice low.
“They’re running away the moment we get close. We can try.”
There was a woman selling food. They slowly approached.
“Excuse me, vendor?” Din started.
The woman immediately scurried away. Din sighed. The kid was babbling in his bag. Darcy reached out and rubbed his ear between her fingers.
They spotted a man and two children down an ally and, without another word, headed towards them.
“Excuse us, we’re in need of some information,” Din called to the man who was bent down talking to the children. “We’re looking for someone.”
The man whispered something to the children before they got up and left. The man slowly came up to Din and Darcy, keeping his distance.
“Please don’t speak to them or any of us,” the man said carefully.
Darcy could tell the man was scared. She wondered what was going on here and frowned.
“We don’t want to cause any trouble,” Darcy said, slowly. “We’re just trying to find-”
“The Magistrate wants to see you,” said a mechanical voice from behind them. Darcy turned to see two armed guards with the weird masks behind them. Darcy sighed. She could tell that this trip was not going to be simple like she hoped.
She sent the man they’d been talking to an apologetic look, then looked to Din, who gave her a slight nod. They didn’t seem to have a choice but to follow the guards. There was one in front of them and the other at their backs. They were led further down the street towards another gate. The closer they got to the gate, Darcy’s eyes widened when she saw people strapped onto poles, who were being electrocuted. There were screams, and as they walked by, the prisoners begged them for help. Darcy felt lead in her stomach.
Corvus was turning out to be a fucked up, dystopian planet that Darcy could’ve only imagined reading about in an edgy young adult book. Except this was a real place, and Darcy hated it. She hated seeing these innocent people suffering. Darcy hadn’t even met the Magistrate, and she despised the person. Darcy looked over at Din and could see his shoulders had tensed up.
More guards opened the gate for them, and they walked through before going through one last gate.
The Magistrate’s palace was a stark contrast to the city that they had just walked through.
The path was lined with water on both sides. On the other edges of the water were gardens. Luscious green trees, bushes, and plants, Darcy would’ve thought it was beautiful had she not just seen how the townspeople were living. There was a woman who was feeding what Darcy could only assume were fish or some other aquatic creatures, and at the end of the path a droid holding a spear.
“Come forward,” the woman called, her voice slightly accented. She gave off the vibe of being in power, and Darcy wasn’t liking it. They moved forward before stopping again. “I see you’re a Mandalorian,” the Magistrate said, still not looking at them.
“I am,” Din replied.
“I have a proposition that may interest you and your partner.”
“Our price is high,” Din said.
The Magistrate finally looked at the two of them and stepped away from the water.
“This target is priceless. A Jedi plagues me. I want you both to kill her.”
Darcy kept her features schooled as she listened. The Magistrate must have been talking about Ahsoka.
“That’s a difficult task,” Din said.
“One that you are well-suited for, with that armor,” the woman eyed Din’s beskar. “The Jedi are the ancient enemy of Mandalore.”
Out of the corner of her eye, Darcy saw Din’s hand flex above his blaster.
“As I said, our price is high.”
The Magistrate put her free hand out behind her as the droid came up to her with a spear. She grabbed it and slowly approached the couple.
“What do you make of this?” The Magistrate asked, presenting the spear.
They slowly walked over to her, Din putting his hands out to take it. He examined it, testing the weight in his hands, before tapping it against his vambrace. It made the high ‘ting’ sound that the vibroblade Darcy got him made.
Darcy hid her shock.
The spear was beskar.
“Beskar,” Din said, staring at the spear.
“Pure beskar… like your armor,” the Magistrate had a smile on her face that Darcy didn’t like. “Kill the Jedi, and it is yours.”
Darcy knew for a fact that they wouldn’t be taking this offer, but the Magistrate didn’t need to know that. All they wanted was Ahsoka’s location, and they’d totally lead this scary lady on to get the information.
Din handed the weapon back to the woman. “Where do we find this Jedi?” Din asked.
The Magistrate looked pleased. “My lieutenant will give you their last known coordinates.”
They took that as their leave, and the guards led them back through the city to the main gate. The man who had let them in was waiting for them. He quickly gave them the last known coordinates and then escorted them out of the gate with a couple of armed guards at his back.
The kid made some sounds from his bag, which caught the attention of the lieutenant. “What is that thing?” He asked.
The child grunted, Darcy frowning. “We keep it around for luck,” Din replied.
“You’ll need it where you're going.”
They started the hike back out into the forest in silence.
When Darcy felt like they were a safe distance away from the city, she finally spoke.
“I didn’t like her one bit,” Darcy said.
“Me either.”
“The whole place, awful. The people? They were so scared.”
Din sighed. “They were.”
“What do we do?”
“We find Ahsoka and deliver the kid, then leave.”
Darcy frowned. “We just let the people suffer?” She asked eyes narrowed.
Din sighed again, this time more heavily, and they stopped walking. He turned towards her. “The two of us can’t take out the small army of guards—“
“Not with that attitude…” Darcy mumbled.
“ —Unless we had help…”
Darcy raised an eyebrow. “Like Jedi help?”
“You’ve mentioned the Jedi are strong warriors, and Ahsoka has been trying to get to the Magistrate.”
Darcy smiled. “We’ll have to ask her.”
Darcy hoped they could help the people. She couldn’t get the prisoners out of her mind.
They continued walking for quite some time, Darcy talking about random things, Din listening, and occasionally asking questions. By the time they got close to Ahsoka’s last known location, it was beginning to get dark.
Din had taken his pulse rifle off his back, gripping it with his hand, so they could walk underneath big tree roots.
“Well, these are the coordinates,” Din said as they continued walking. “Keep your eyes open. We should be close.”
“This planet looks like the setting of a horror movie, and I hate it,” Darcy mused. Everything was looking spookier in the dimmed light.
“I don’t know what that means.”
“I’ll explain later.”
They’d made it into a clearing. There was rustling a distance away from them.
“Did you hear that?” Din asked.
“Yeah.” Darcy pulled her blaster out of its holster.
They stopped by a rock. “Don’t worry,” Din said, trying to sound reassuring. He pulled the kid from his bag and handed him to Darcy. She took the child in one arm, hugging him close to her chest while keeping the blaster at the ready. “The two of you, stay here, and I’ll go see what’s out there.”
“Be careful,” she said.
“I will,” Din replied, nodding.
He walked further into the clearing and got out his scope, using it to see further. Darcy watched as he stopped and heard him sigh. “False alarm,” he called, looking back at her.
Before Darcy could even comprehend what was going on, duel lightsabers were ignited, and a figure was lunging at Din, yelling.
Darcy gasped as the sabers came into contact with Din’s vambraces. Darcy recognized Ahsoka Tano, the orange skin, white and blue striped cone-like horns above her head with head tails that fell over her shoulders.
“Wait!” Darcy yelled. Din and the Jedi were now full-on fighting. “AHSOKA TANO, WE WERE SENT BY BO-KATAN!!” Darcy screamed.
The Jedi suddenly stopped, looking in the direction of Darcy and the kid. Confusion came over her face when her eyes met Darcy’s.
“We need to talk to you,” Din added, breathing heavily from behind the Jedi, one hand up and the other holding his blaster.
Ahsoka’s attention moved to the child. “I hope it’s about him,” she said, turning off her lightsabers.
Darcy nodded. “Yes, it is.”
Ahsoka and Din approached them. The kid was cooing in her arms, looking at the other Jedi in interest.
They were silent for a moment, Ahsoka and the child staring into each other’s eyes like they were having a conversation without speaking. Suddenly, Ahsoka looked up at Darcy, looking at her curiously for a moment before she finally nodded.
“Follow me back to my camp. We can speak there,” Ahsoka said, turning on her heel and heading away from them.
Darcy looked at Din and shrugged. He picked up the scope he’d dropped and his rifle, and then they followed the other woman. Din’s hand found its way to the small of Darcy’s back as they walked.
By the time they made it to Ahsoka’s campsite, it was dark. The Jedi took the kid from Darcy’s arms and sat him on a rock, Ahsoka taking a seat across from him, a lamp between them.
Darcy assumed that Ahsoka wanted to do Jedi stuff with the child, so Darcy tugged Din away, where they hung out and watched from afar. Darcy could tell Din was nervous. His shoulders were tense, and after a while, he started pacing.
Darcy put her hand on his arm. “Quit pacing. You’re making me nervous,” she said with a smile.
Din stopped in his tracks, sighing. “What are they doing?” He asked softly.
“Probably talking through the force and getting to know each other.” Darcy shrugged.
“They can do that?” He asked slowly.
“There’s a lot that can be done with a mystical thing like the force. Wouldn’t surprise me.” She stepped closer to him, wrapping her arms around his waist. They usually kept the PDA for when they were alone, but Darcy could tell Din needed comfort. “It’s gonna be okay.”
Din pulled her into him. “I hope so.”
They stood like that for a little while longer, comforting each other while their son talked to the Jedi, who would be taking him away from them.
After a while, Ahsoka looked over at the couple for a moment. Darcy had to wonder what the kid was telling her. Ahsoka picked up the child and made her way over to them with the lamp. She set the kid down on a rock and took a seat next to him. Din and Darcy moved closer, continuing to stand. The child was looking at Ahsoka, cooing at her.
“Is he speaking to you?” Din asked.
“In a way. Grogu and I can feel each other’s thoughts,” the Jedi replied.
“Grogu?” Darcy questioned, brows furrowed.
The kid’s head turned to her as he made an excited sound.
“Yes. That’s his name,” Ahsoka replied.
Grogu looked back at Ahsoka.
“Grogu,” Din said, carefully, testing the name.
The kid’s head turned towards him and smiling and cooing in acknowledgment.
Darcy’s face lit up in a grin. She turned to Din. “He has a name!” She was so excited to know their son’s name.
Din nodded, head still staring down at their son. “He does.” Din sounded awed. “Hello… Grogu,” Din said, his voice thick with emotion.
The kid looked up at Din, smiling and babbling. He was clearly enjoying being called by his name.
Darcy could feel herself tearing up at this moment. “This is amazing,” Darcy whispered as she got down close to Grogu and rubbed her hand over his head. He cooed at her attention.
Darcy wondered if he had told Ahsoka anything else about himself. She looked at the Jedi. “Did you learn anything else about him?” She asked.
“Yes. Grogu was raised at the Jedi Temple on Coruscant,” Ahsoka started. Darcy’s eyes widened, and her breath hitched in her throat as she looked at Grogu. He would have been there during order 66 when the Jedi were slaughtered. “Many Masters trained him over the years. At the end of the Clone Wars, when the Empire rose to power, he was hidden,” Ahsoka continued. Darcy’s free hand went to cover her mouth. Her son lived through that. Her heart was aching for the little guy. “Someone took him from the temple. Then his memory becomes… dark. He seemed lost. Alone. Until he was found by the Mandalorian. I’ve only known one other being like him.”
“Yoda,” Darcy said without thinking. She picked the child up and cradled him in her arms, rocking him gently. His eyes were drooping, and Darcy just wanted to hold him. She moved into Din’s space, standing at his side, a comforting presence next to her.
Ahsoka’s eyes narrowed. “Yes… you knew him?”
Darcy quickly shook her head. “No, I’ve heard of him.”
“He was a wise Jedi Master,” Ahsoka’s attention moved back to Grogu, a smile creeping up on her face like she was remembering a fond memory. “Can Grogu still wield the force?”
“A little bit?” Darcy replied. “If he uses it too much, he passes out.”
Grogu had fallen asleep in her arms.
“What is the force?” Din asked.
“It is an energy field created by all living things. To wield it takes a great deal of training and discipline.”
Din nodded. “My task was to bring him to a Jedi.”
“The Jedi order fell a long time ago,” Ahsoka said sadly.
“So did the Empire, yet it still hunts him. He needs your help.”
Ahsoka sighed. “We’ll let him sleep for the night, and then I’ll test him in the morning,” Ahsoka looked at Darcy. “Grogu says your name is Darcy, Darcy what?” The Jedi asked, one eyebrow lifted.
“Uh…” Lewis wasn’t really a good Star Wars last name. Were there even any characters in the universe named Lewis? Darcy was regretting not using more Star Wars name generators. She couldn’t say Skywalker, Solo, or Kenobi, that could cause issues. She hadn’t married Din yet...
“Djarin,” Din said suddenly, taking Darcy out of her thoughts. Her head turned towards him quickly and then back at Ahsoka.
“Uh, yes. My name is Darcy Djarin,” she said, chin rising, feeling the name roll across her tongue. She liked it. It had a nice ring to it, and she couldn’t help the smile that blossomed on her face.
“Hello, Darcy Djarin. I don’t understand how, but you don’t have a force signature. Why is that? You’re clearly living.”
“I, uh, don’t have a force signature?”
“No, it’s as if you’re not a part of this universe. I can’t feel you at all. Grogu, the Mandalorian, the animals around us, the people in the city, I can feel them, but you, there’s nothing. If I didn’t see you with my own eyes, I wouldn’t have known you were there. What are you?” Ahsoka’s eyes narrowed.
“I’m human? Just a regular human, totally from here, this universe, I mean,” Darcy chuckled nervously. “I came from Tatooine? That’s where Mando and Grogu picked me up.”
After embarrassing herself in front of Cara Dune, Darcy had decided that it would be best to tell people she was from Tatooine since technically that was kind of where she came from. At least that’s where she had arrived, anyway.
Ahsoka didn’t look convinced. Her eyes moved to Din. “You found her on Tatooine?”
“Mos Eisley. She was working in a cantina. She was good with Grogu, so I gave her a job.”
The Jedi turned back to Darcy. “Grogu trusts you, and with what he’s been through...” Ahsoka looked between Din and Darcy. “He has been through a lot, but coming into your care seems to be a bright spot in all of the darkness. I can see that he views you as his parents and that he loves you. From the memories he showed me, you both love him as well,” Ahsoka said, her attention turning to the sleeping child.
Din wrapped his arm around Darcy’s waist, pulling her close to him. Her chest constricted, and Darcy felt her throat get tight, emotions bubbling. Their son loved them and accepted them as his parents. She looked at Grogu, his eyes shut and snoring softly. “Yeah, we do love him. Love the little guy a lot,” she said, getting choked up. “But he needs to be trained. He can’t use his powers too much without getting absolutely drained.”
Ahsoka nodded. “I worry his attachment to the both of you may make him vulnerable to his fears.”
Darcy frowned. “All Jedi have fears, and the rule against attachments is dumb. There have been so many light side force users who have had families and loved ones. He’s a child, and he can be shown how to not give in to the dark side. He’s a good kid.”
“You seem to know a lot about the Jedi. Yoda, rules about attachments, light side, and the dark side? Not things you could pick up from the holonet,” Ahsoka said carefully.
Din’s hand tightened on her waist. Darcy sighed. It was no use lying to Ahsoka, but she also needed to keep her secrets safe. “No, not the holonet. It’s safer if you don’t know the full extent of my knowledge? I promise that I mean no ill will to you or any of the remaining Jedi. We share common enemies, at least I hope we do? I want to take down the remaining bits of the Empire and assist in making sure nothing tries to take its place. My point is, I come in peace. Empire, Sith, dark side? Bad.”
Ahsoka nodded. “Okay, Darcy,” the Jedi replied, seeming to be satisfied with Darcy’s response. “The three of you are welcome to stay here tonight. The animals will stay away. You will be safe.”
“Thank you,” Din replied.
“Yes, thank you for giving us a place to rest and for trusting me,” Darcy added.
“You haven’t given me a reason not to. I can see you have Grogu’s best interests at heart,” Ahsoka nodded, getting up from where she was sitting, and then headed for the small tent that was situated a bit away from them.
When the Jedi was out of sight, Darcy turned to face Din. He immediately pulled her into his arms, being careful not to jostle the child.
They stood there for a moment in silence, letting everything they’d learned about their son wash over them. Darcy felt a bit overwhelmed, sad that he had gone through so much.
“He’s been through so much,” Darcy whispered, finally breaking the silence.
“He has,” Din leaned back, looking down at her. “We should get some sleep.”
Darcy nodded. Din led her over to a big log. They sat down in front of it, side by side, Darcy cuddling into him, with Grogu still passed out in her arms. Din wrapped an arm around her, his helmet leaning against her head.
Darcy wasn’t sure if she would rest with all of the thoughts running through her head. Knowing what Grogu had been through and the possibility that Ahsoka wouldn’t let them see him again. She worried about the people in Calodan, wondering if they had a chance at saving them. It was a lot. But before she knew it, she was falling asleep.
Darcy woke to someone gently shaking her arm and softly saying her name. She slowly blinked her eyes open to find Din crouched down in front of her, his hand on her arm.
“Hmph? What’s wrong?” Darcy asked, her voice thick with sleep.
“Ahsoka wants to test Grogu soon. I wanted to make sure you had time to eat before we go,” Din replied quietly.
“Oh, okay,” she started to get up, Din offering his hands to help her rise. Once standing, she stretched and yawned. She looked around. Grogu was sitting on a rock with a meal pack in his lap, munching away. Darcy smiled, heading in his direction.
“Good morning, Grogu,” she cooed, rubbing a hand over the top of his head. He looked up at her and smiled, babbling, before trying to hand her a piece of food. “Awe, thanks buddy! You eat that. I’ll have my own.” He stuffed it into his mouth.
Darcy took a seat on a nearby rock, Din getting into his bag to hand her a meal pack. When they were done eating, Ahsoka showed up, asking them to follow her. Din picked up the kid, and they followed the Jedi.
Darcy wasn’t sure how long it took, but they ended up on a surprisingly green hill. Trees were surrounding them. There were bits of grass and moss scattered about on the ground and on some stones situated in the center of it all.
Ahsoka turned and smiled at Grogu. He cooed in Din’s arms. “Let’s see what knowledge is lurking inside that little mind,” Ahsoka said as she lightly booped Grogu on the nose.
Din set the kid down on a rock, Grogu babbling. Ahsoka walked away for a moment finding a small stone. Darcy and Din were off to the side, watching as the Jedi put her hand out with the stone, standing a bit away from the child. Ahsoka, using the force, levitated the rock sending it to Grogu’s outstretched hands. He cooed when he caught it.
“Now, return the stone to me, Grogu,” Ahsoka said with her hand out.
Grogu looked at her and then the rock.
“He doesn’t understand,” Din said.
“He does,” Ahsoka replied.
Grogu whined, looking back down at the rock. Darcy frowned. She agreed with Ahsoka that Grogu did understand what he was supposed to do, but for some reason, he was resisting.
“It’s okay,” Ahsoka said gently, trying to reassure him. “The stone, Grogu.”
Grogu turned his head towards Din and Darcy. Darcy smiled and nodded, and she could see out of the corner of her eye, Din’s helmet nodding towards Ahsoka, trying to get Grogu to listen.
The kid looked back down at the rock and dropped it, making a sad sound.
Din sighed, Ahsoka’s hand fell down to her side. The Jedi walked over to Grogu, crouching down to pick up the fallen rock. Grogu was refusing to look her in the eye. Darcy didn’t like how sad he looked.
Why wasn’t he wanting to use the force? He’s shown his powers freely in the presence of both of them before. It wasn’t often but on occasion. Was it because there was a new person? He should be able to see that Ahsoka was a friend.
Ahsoka carefully took one of Grogu’s hands between her fingers, sighing. “I sense much fear in you,” she said softly. Darcy felt her heart ache that Grogu was scared. He finally looked up, babbling for a moment. Ahsoka stood back up, walking back to her original place. “He’s hidden his abilities to survive over the years. Let’s try something else,” Ahsoka looked at Din. “Come over here.”
“Me?” Din asked, confused.
“Yes. I want to see if he’ll listen to you.”
Grogu was watching from his rock, his eyes on Din.
“He only sometimes listens to me. He’s stubborn,” Din said, as he moved to stand next to Ahsoka.
“Sometimes is better than never,” Ahsoka replied. She handed him the stone. “Hold the stone in the palm of your hand and ask him to lift it up.”
Din held his arm out, palm up with the stone. “All right, Grogu. Lift the stone.”
Darcy smiled. “Say please!” She called.
Din sighed. “Please, lift the stone.”
Grogu’s head tilted, his eyes darting from Darcy to Din and to the stone. Ahsoka strolled over to stand next to Darcy.
“Grogu,” Din said. The kid cooed in response. “Come on, please take the stone.”
Grogu grunted, looking down, not wanting to do as he was asked.
Din sighed, looking at Ahsoka. “See, he’s stubborn. Maybe Darcy should try?”
“No,” Ahsoka shook her head. “He’ll listen to either of you. You just need to connect with him.”
Din took a deep breath, looking at the kid for a second. It was quiet as they both gazed at each other, Darcy wondering what they were both thinking. Din dropped the rock, and his hand went into his pocket, pulling out the metal ball that Grogu loved. Darcy smiled. That was definitely a way to connect with the kid.
Din rolled it around in his fingers for a moment before he held it up. “Grogu...” the kid’s hand went up like he was asking for the piece of metal. “Do you want this?” Din crouched down, still holding the ball up. “Well, go ahead. You can have it. All you have to do is take it.”
Grogu’s eyes closed a little bit, his hand up, and the next thing they knew, the ball was flying from Din’s fingers into Grogu’s hand.
“Good job!” Din shouted, standing up. “Good job, kid!”
“Yes!” Darcy clapped, bouncing on her toes.
Din walked over to Grogu, crouching down in front of him. “I knew you could do it. You did very good,” Din praised, taking the ball from the kid. Grogu cooed up at him with a smile on his face.
Darcy was so proud.
“I knew the attachment to you both was strong,” Ahsoka said.
Din was rubbing Grogu’s arm, the child babbling excitedly.
“I cannot train him,” Ahsoka continued.
“What!?” Darcy and Din said at the same time. Their attention turned towards the Jedi, Din abruptly standing up and moving away from Grogu.
“He has the abilities,” Din said, sounding angry.
“Yes, he has the abilities, but look at what it took for him to show them. He’s too attached to the both of you,” Ahsoka turned to Darcy. “I’ve seen what fear does to a fully trained Jedi Knight.”
Darcy frowned. Ahsoka was referring to Anakin Skywalker. But Darcy suspected Ahsoka didn’t know her former master had also been manipulated. “Yeah, but Grogu is still a child, a youngling. As I’ve said before, a lot of Jedi have fears, Grogu could be taught to overcome it and not give in to the dark side.”
“It’s not just fear that he has; there’s anger too. I may not be able to sense you in the force, Darcy, but I get the feeling you know what happens when a Jedi has too much anger,” Ahsoka tried to reason.
“Fear leads to anger, anger leads to hate, hate leads to suffering,” Darcy recited the line from Revenge of the Sith.
Ahsoka’s eyes widened in surprise, “How do you…”
Darcy put up a hand. “The less you know.”
Darcy shook her head. She just couldn’t imagine such a sweet kid going down that path. Darcy knows a lot of people would have said the same thing about Anakin, but there was an outside force feeding into his pull to the dark side. Grogu was just a regular force-sensitive kid that needed to be trained. Darcy fully believed that he would be fine and would make a great Jedi.
Darcy continued. “He won’t turn to the dark side. The kid could use some happiness in his life. Allow us to still see him, let him have us, his family, but also show him how to be a Jedi, how to control his abilities. You said it yourself, the Jedi Order fell a long time ago, and there were many flaws to how they taught. You can help him hone his abilities without all the garbage Jedi rules.” Darcy could see it on Ahsoka’s face that she wasn’t going to budge. “Look at Luke Skywalker!” Recognition flashed across the Jedi’s face. “He has friends, close friends, and a sister, and look how he turned out! He saved the galaxy, and he considers himself a Jedi. He definitely has attachments, and boy, don’t get me started on the stuff he’s gone through!”
They’re quiet, Ahsoka thinking over what Darcy had told her. Finally, she spoke. “Even as that may be, I can’t start this child down that path. It’s best to let his powers fade.”
Darcy was about to scream.
“The Magistrate sent us to kill you,” Din suddenly said. “We obviously didn’t agree to anything. But Darcy and I will help you with your problem if you see to it that Grogu is properly trained and you allow us to see him.”
Darcy could kiss him on the mouth. Of course, Din would have a backup plan.
Ahsoka thought it over, her mouth set in a frown. The Jedi hadn’t been able to get to the Magistrate by herself; she needed them, and Darcy and Din knew that. Darcy couldn’t help feeling nervous. Ahsoka could turn them down, and then they would be back to square one or, and Darcy dreaded this the most, Ahsoka would accept Grogu for training and not allow them to see him again. Darcy sent a silent prayer to any deity listening that Ahsoka took their offer. The silence became almost too much before the Jedi finally responded.
“Okay,” Ahsoka nodded. “I accept your terms as long as you help me get to the Magistrate,” Ahsoka finally said. “Let’s make a plan while we head back to my camp.”
Darcy nodded, relief washing over her. She quickly walked over and scooped up Grogu into her arms. She kissed the top of his head. The kid babbled as the group began walking.
Din went into mission planning mode. “The Magistrate has a small army of guards armed with A350 blaster rifles, two HK-87 assassin droids, and a hired gunfighter. He reads ex-military to me. Combined, not even your laser swords would be able to protect you from all that firepower.”
“Did you just call her lightsabers ‘laser swords?’” Darcy asked, her face scrunched up. She was embarrassed.
“That’s what they are?” Din said slowly, turning his head towards her.
“Oh, my sweet summer child…” Darcy sighed. She didn’t want to go on a whole tangent about lightsabers.
Ahsoka smiled. “It’s fine. We shouldn’t underestimate the Magistrate,” Ahsoka said, getting them back on topic.
“Who is she?” Din asked. “She offered us a staff of pure beskar to kill you.”
“And she’s torturing people? The townspeople looked frightened,” Darcy added, frowning.
“Her name is Morgan Elsbeth,” Ahsoka started. “During the Clone Wars, her people were massacred. She survived and let her anger fuel an industry which helped build the Imperial Starfleet. She plundered worlds, destroying them in the process.”
“She’s definitely still in business,” Din said, looking around at the burned forest.
“How many people were being tortured?” Ahsoka asked.
“Three villagers strung up just outside the inner gate,” Din replied.
“We’ll have to figure out a way to free them.”
“A Mandalorian and a Jedi? They’ll never see it coming.”
They really wouldn’t. Darcy was sure that the Magistrate was too full of herself.
They made the plan as they walked.
Ahsoka would storm the main gate, taking out as many guards as she could. When the Magistrate showed her face, Ahsoka would claim she had killed Din and Darcy, presenting Din’s pauldron with the mudhorn signet as proof. Ahsoka would then lure most of the army away from the inner gate, so Din and Darcy could fly in and free the prisoners.
Seemed simple enough.
They’d agreed to do everything at sundown.
Din, Darcy, and Grogu left Ahsoka at her camp to get Grogu onto the Crest, where he would be safe.
They didn’t talk about the fact that after this job was completed, they’d be parting from their son. For Darcy, she knew if she thought about it, she would start crying, and she couldn’t cry or let her emotions get the best of her since they had a job to do. She had wanted to save the people, and she now had the chance to do just that. After they’d saved everyone, she’d let herself cry. She had a feeling Din was also tampering down his feelings on the matter.
They dropped the kid off, feeding him and then putting him in his hammock. They watched as he slowly fell asleep, Darcy feeling a bit better, knowing that he would rest while they were out kicking ass.
Everything was going according to plan. Din watched what was happening through his helmet, able to pick up the heat signatures of all of the guards. As soon as Ahsoka had the majority of the army running after her, Din and Darcy flew in. They quickly took out the two remaining guards who were about to execute the prisoners. Darcy was getting used to shooting her blaster while hanging onto Din, and flying wasn’t so bad.
Once the guards were down, the man from the day before who had told them not to speak to anyone, came over to them, wanting to help save the prisoners. They made quick work of getting the people down.
After the last person was let down, Din grabbed his pauldron, securing it back onto his shoulder.
“Where can they go?” Darcy asked.
“They can hide in my house,” the man replied, opening the door to his home.
“Get inside,” Din said, ushering people into the man’s house.
The people were whimpering as they ran, crowding into the small home. The man was last to enter, shutting the door.
Darcy sighed in relief that they were able to get them all. Her relief was short-lived when down the street, the lieutenant came out from an alley.
Darcy moved herself to be behind Din, who in a jam made an excellent walking shield. She had her blaster at the ready, looking over her shoulder to see Ahsoka standing on the wall. That meant that the army had been dispatched. Darcy wondered if the assassin droids had been dealt with too, she’d keep guard at Din’s back. That left the lieutenant and the Magistrate.
“So you threw in with the Jedi,” the lieutenant called, rifle at the ready.
“Looks that way,” Din replied.
Darcy peeked out from behind Din. “Yeah, asshole,” she shouted.
They could hear Ahsoka and the Magistrate fighting behind the wall.
“Who do you think’s gonna win? Could be your side… could be my side.”
Din’s hand was hovering over his blaster, the lieutenant was edging his way closer to them. He didn’t stand a chance against them, though.
“I don’t have a quarrel with the both of you,” the man called.
Din put a hand out. “That’s close enough,” Din said, an edge to his voice.
They could still hear the grunts and clashing of weapons in the distance.
Darcy could feel the villain monologue coming.
“We’re a lot alike,” the lieutenant started.
Darcy sighed. Here we go… She kept herself at an angle, blaster drawn, protecting Din’s back.
“Willing to lay our lives down for the right cause,” the other man continued. “Which this is not.”
There was the sound of the beskar spear falling to the ground. “Sounds like you win.”
Darcy peeked past Din again to see that the lieutenant was making a show of setting his weapon down. Darcy bet the guy was going to try and pull a fast one with another blaster. Sure enough, Din was shooting the guy when he went for it.
Movement caught her eye up on a building. She pointed her blaster taking out the last assassin droid with a shot to the head.
Din and Darcy had their weapons drawn, scanning around them for any other foes. The nice man opened his door to see if everything was okay.
“Maybe just stay inside for a little bit longer,” Darcy said, giving the guy a smile. “We should have everything just about taken care of.”
The man nodded. Closing his door again.
“Do you think we got them all?” Darcy asked Din.
“I think so.”
They kept their weapons out, waiting for Ahsoka to give them an all-clear.
“We saved a city,” Darcy said, smiling.
“We did,” Din agreed, turning towards her.
“We found the Jedi.”
“We also did that.”
“What’s next?”
“You said it yesterday. We take down the Empire.”
“You’re cool with that? You wouldn’t prefer bounty hunting? Laying low?”
“Wherever you go, I go.”
Darcy grinned.
The doors to the inner gate opened, and Ahsoka walked out, beskar spear in hand.
“Is it done?” Din asked.
“It’s done,” Ahsoka replied.
Darcy immediately holstered her weapon and went to knock on the nice man’s door. He opened. “You’re good!” She said a smile on her face. “Let the rest of the town know that the Magistrate is done for.”
The man smiled at her. Opening his door wide, as he ran down the street, banging on people’s doors announcing that they had been freed.
Din, Darcy, and Ahsoka made their way out of the city, the sounds of the people cheering behind them. Darcy felt good that they’d saved the people. They made it outside the gate, stopping, Ahsoka looking at them.
“I believe this was your payment,” Ahsoka said, presenting the spear to Din.
Din shook his head. “No, I can’t accept. I didn’t finish the job.”
“No, you didn’t finish the job. But this,” she held the spear out. “Belongs with a Mandalorian.”
Din finally grabbed it. Nodding.
“Your son is back on the ship?” Ahsoka asked.
“Yeah,” Darcy answered, not being able to help the sadness in her tone. It was time. They had done their side of the bargain, and now they would need to hand Grogu over.
“Wait here,” Din said. “We will go get him.”
They made their way back to the ship in silence. Darcy was a ball of emotion. She reached out and grabbed Din’s hand, holding it tightly as they walked. They arrived at the ship, Din putting away the beskar spear and removing his jetpack, they went together to the bunk where Grogu was still passed out in the hammock.
“I’ll miss his snores,” Darcy whispered. Tears were stinging her eyes.
“Yeah.”
Darcy reached out, rubbing one of his ears between her fingers. Din stroked his finger over Grogu’s arm. They stood there for a moment, watching the child sleep.
“Wake up, buddy. It’s time to say goodbye,” Din finally said, his voice gentle and soft.
Grogu’s eyes blinked open, smiling at the sight of the two of them. He cooed. Darcy moved, so Din could reach in and pick him up, cradling him to his chest.
They were quiet for a little bit, just being in the company of one another. Grogu was looking at each of them.
Din started speaking in Mando’a, something Darcy hadn’t heard before. Her brows furrowed, his voice full of emotion as the words rolled across his tongue quickly. When he finished speaking, he carefully pressed his forehead to Grogu’s and then leaned back. The kid was babbling excitedly.
“What did you say?” Darcy whispered.
Din looked at her and repeated the Mando’a, then spoke in Basic. “I know your name as my child,” he said softly. “It’s the Mandalorian adoption vow.”
Tears started streaming down Darcy’s face, a sob stuck in her throat. “It’s beautiful.”
Din carefully handed Grogu over to her, who looked concerned that she was crying. She rubbed one of his ears, “I’m okay, buddy. I’m just going to miss you so much. We will visit and check up on you every chance we get,” one of Grogu’s hands came up to touch her chin. “We love you, Grogu,” she sobbed again, holding the kid closer to her.
Din pulled them into his arms, and they all stood there, Darcy quietly crying, as Din’s hand rubbed circles into her back.
She wasn’t sure how much time had passed, but Din finally broke the silence. “We should get him ready to go.”
Darcy sniffled but nodded, handing Grogu back to Din. She quickly wiped the wetness from her face with her sleeve.
They walked over to some crates by the back landing ramp, setting him on one. Din fussed over Grogu’s outfit, the kid babbling.
Din turned towards Darcy. “Are you ready?”
She shook her head. “Of course not. Are you?”
“No, but we knew this had to happen.”
Darcy nodded.
They did know. But that didn’t mean they had to like it.
“Okay, we can do this.”
Din picked up the kid, and they started heading towards the ramp. Ahsoka was already waiting.
“You’re his parents,” Ahsoka called. They slowly walked down the ramp. “I cannot train him.”
Darcy frowned. She’d be lying if she said she hadn’t felt a little bit of relief at hearing Ahsoka say that.
“You made us a promise, and we held up our end,” Din replied.
Ahsoka sighed, approaching them. They all looked at Grogu, who was cooing. Ahsoka let his little hand grab onto her finger. “There is one possibility,” she said, looking up at Din. “Go to the planet Tython. There you will find the ancient ruins of a temple that has a strong connection to the Force. Place Grogu on the seeing stone at the top of the mountain.”
“Then what?” Din asked.
“Then Grogu may choose his path. If he reaches out through the Force, there’s a chance a Jedi may sense his presence and come searching for him,” she’s quiet for a moment, crossing her arms over her chest. “Then again, there aren’t many Jedi left.”
Grogu made sad noises.
Darcy wracked her brain about what other Jedi were out there, and only two names were coming to mind.
“Thank you,” Din said, nodding his head at Ahsoka.
“Yes, thank you,” Darcy added. “Also, I just have to say what an honor it was to meet you.”
Ahsoka smiled. “You’re different, Darcy Djarin. But it was nice meeting you too. Grogu is in good hands with the both of you.”
Darcy grinned. “May the force be with you,” she said, a bit too excited to be saying the phrase to an actual Jedi.
“And also with you.”
Din and Darcy turned, heading back into the ship.
The three of them had gotten up into the cockpit, Din quickly getting them into space and plotting out their course.
Grogu was happily hanging out in Darcy’s lap, babbling excitedly.
She looked down at him, his big eyes watching her. “Ahsoka was very nice,” Darcy cooed. “Can’t believe we met her. I’m sorry she didn’t want to train you.”
Which was what Darcy got from Ahsoka’s reluctance. The Jedi definitely had the ability, but something was making her not want to train their son. Darcy wondered if it was what Ahsoka had gone through with Anakin or if possibly Grogu had said something? That maybe he wasn’t ready to be separated from his parents. Whatever it was, they had more time, and Grogu would be the one to choose his next step.
Grogu smiled at her and chattered. “I’m glad we get some more time with you, too,” she whispered. She kissed his forehead.
It wasn’t long before they were in hyperspace, the bright streaks of stars flying past the viewport.
Hopefully, the next Jedi who came along would accept their situation a lot better. Darcy couldn’t help but stress about what Jedi it could be. There were only two she could think of, and one of them was helping run the New Republic. She highly doubted Luke Skywalker would show. He was too important.
They’d been given some extra time, though, and Darcy realized that something important needed to happen before the kid went off.
“Din?” Darcy called, looking at Din’s helmet.
He turned his head towards her. “Yes?”
“Are you busy, right this second?”
“I just finished up the flight calculations.”
Darcy was a bit nervous asking this.
She bit her lip. “Can I ask you something? And you can say no, it won’t hurt my feelings.” She rubbed one of the kid’s ears.
“Sure?” Din sounded confused.
“Can we make ‘Darcy Djarin’ Mandalorian official?”
Din was quiet for a moment. “You mean, get married? Say our vows?”
“Yes. We’ve got Grogu for a bit longer, and I think we’d both want him present. Plus, we've already started telling people my last name is Djarin. It would make sense to just do it? You know?” She was rambling. “And what better place to do it than in our home, cause the Razor Crest is absolutely our home, even if it doesn’t have a kitchen-”
“Darcy,” Din said, interrupting her. Darcy’s mouth shut, her attention on his t-visor. “In the cockpit or down in the hull?” Din asked.
Darcy’s brows furrowed. “What?”
“Do you want us to say our vows up here in the cockpit or down in the hull?” He said again, a little slower.
Darcy’s heart sped up. “Here, with the stars flying past us.”
Darcy couldn’t think of a more romantic place to get married. One of her favorite things was sitting in the cockpit, just staring, completely mesmerized as they traveled faster than the speed of light.
And the Crest really was their home.
Yeah, she wouldn’t want to get married anywhere else.
“Okay,” Din said, nodding. He turned back toward the viewport and clicked the button on his chair to turn it all the way around, and then got up quickly.
This was really happening.
“Come here, Grogu,” Din said, picking up the kid from Darcy’s lap. He turned and set Grogu down in the pilot’s chair. The child was looking at the both of them curiously, then Din spun around and put his hands out to Darcy. She smiled, placing her palms in his gloved ones as he helped her up from the chair. He walked her, so they were both standing in front of the pilot’s seat, Grogu cooing. “Are you ready?” Din asked, his head tilted as he looked at Darcy, her hands still in his.
She nodded. “Yeah, I am.”
“It’s okay if you mispronounce the words,” he reassured her, squeezing her hands gently.
Darcy huffed out a laugh, a smile firmly on her face. “I promise I’m going to give it my all.”
“I wouldn’t expect anything less.” He let go of one of her hands to cup her cheek, letting out a soft sigh. “I love you, cyar’ika (sweetheart).”
She felt her cheeks heat at the sweetness in his voice. “I love you, too.”
They both looked at Grogu, who was watching them with a smile on his face.
Din grabbed onto her hand again, pressing it against his chest plate over his heart. Darcy stared up at his t-visor and she could feel his eyes on her.
“Mhi solus tome,” he started, slowly. Darcy said the words back carefully, surprised that the words coming out of her mouth sounded like what he’d said.
“Mhi solus dar'tome,” Din continued. Darcy followed.
“Mhi me'dinui an.” Darcy stumbled over the second word, Din squeezing her hand reassuringly.
“Mhi ba'juri verde,” Din said, and Darcy followed.
Din pulled her close to him, Darcy yelping at the sudden change in position, and then he was grabbing the back of her head to touch their foreheads together. Darcy closed her eyes, grinning.
“Ner riduur,” Din said softly. Darcy understood riduur, meaning spouse or wife. She assumed ner meant my. Her heart was beating rapidly in her chest, and she felt beyond happy.
They were married!
“What are the vows in Basic?” Darcy whispered she wanted to know what they had promised each other.
Din leaned back, looking at her. “We are one when together, we are one when parted, we will share all, we will raise warriors.” Darcy could hear him smiling as he spoke it to her. She felt her eyes tearing up.
“I’m going to try to say this,” Darcy said. “Don’t make fun of me,” she jabbed her finger against his chest plate. Din’s head tilted in confusion. Darcy remembered how he’d say it to her. She started speaking the words slowly. “Ni… kar'tayl... gar... darasuum… Uh… ner… riduur?” She winced, pretty sure she had messed up the pronunciations. She thought the last two words meant ‘my spouse,’ or at least that’s how she understood them.
Din’s quiet for a moment before grabbing her hand against his chest and pulling it up under his helmet so he could kiss her fingertips. He brought her hand down to rest on his chest plate, over his heart. “You said it perfectly,” Din finally said. There was a roughness to his voice. He pulled her forward into his arms, his strong arms holding her tightly against him. Her face rested against the beskar on his chest. “I love you, too, ner riduur (my spouse).”
Grogu was making excited noises from his seat, having watched his parents get married.
Darcy moved out of Din’s arms to pick up the kid, bouncing him in her arms as he squealed.
Din hugged the both of them to his chest.
This was her happy place.
Here, with her two favorite people, on the ship they called their home.
Darcy let out a contented sigh, giving Grogu a kiss on the top of his head and then leaning up to kiss Din’s helmet.
She didn’t want to be anywhere else but here.