Chapter Text
When Din comes to his senses, he is leaning on a round rock in the middle of a stone ring that looks familiar. He scrambles up as soon as he realises he must be on Tython, just where he left from, and Grogu and the Jedi must be…
He scans around himself, then runs to the edge of the ring to look down to the valley. His ship is there but no sign of anyone else. He jumps off and lowers himself down to the ship with the help of his jetpack. But even inside the ship, he finds no trace of Grogu, not even the hammock Din fixed for him in the sleeping quarters. And in the cockpit, the knob of the hyperdrive lever is firmly in its place, no little toothprints on it.
Din’s heart clenches. Was it all a dream? Did he dream up the whole thing about turning against the Guild to rescue a bounty? Or…
Did something happen while he was away in the past? It would seem that he spent only a short time there and did not do anything particular, mostly spent his time standing or sitting around so that a sad young Jedi could hug him. But was there still something that happened? Something that changed the course of events so that, in the current reality, Grogu was never his bounty? Was there never any bounty on Grogu?
The thought is somewhat soothing. Maybe there is a reason he has never met the little one. Maybe Grogu is happy and safe somewhere and does not need him in this reality. And now, Din can travel and work without the constant worry of a baby wreaking havoc on his ship or getting shot by a stray blaster bolt. But even as he tries to convince himself that things are better this way, he already feels the tears stinging his eyes. Next, they are on his cheeks, and he has to take off his helmet so that he can wipe them and blow his nose.
Sure, he would be free now to live like he wants, take any job he wants. In this life, he is probably still a member of the Guild, probably known as a good one, one who can ask for high rates. But what does that matter anymore? What does it matter when knowing how it would feel like to return after work to a delightfully cooing child? How it would feel like to fall asleep listening to the quiet sniffling of a tiny green nose? To start the day caressing the fuzzy hair on a proportionally giant ear?
Din squeezes his fist around the knob of the hyperdrive lever and remembers the sensation of the invisible extensions of Grogu’s hands wrenching it from his hold. That makes him cry some more. His very special foundling. Not his foundling anymore. Not his foundling anymore. Not his foundling anymore. Maybe, if he repeats it enough times, it will magically become easier to accept.
Except that it does not become any easier. He keeps thinking about where Grogu is. If he is happy. If he is good with using his powers. If the Jedi teach him in this life. Jedi… He found a Jedi once. Apparently not in this life because she is not with him here, but he could do it again. He can find anyone, even people who are determined to hide. Din buckles up and dries the rest of the tears from his cheeks before putting his helmet back on and taking off.
Turns out that in this reality, Jedi hardly have a reason to hide. Anyone he asks seems amused about the question and tells him politely that he can find all the Jedi he wants in the Temple on Coruscant. So despite his remaining dislike of the giant city, back to Coruscant is where he heads.
He lands at the same spaceport he remembers, though now crowded with more modern ships. Razor Crest looks like the vintage one among them, just like Din is familiar with and silently proud of. He hitches a speeder ride to the tall, round building he remembers from last time.
In front of the entrance, he is caught in a crowd that looks like children of various species streaming out of the doors, greeted by their parents who pick them up on speeders and drive away with the busy traffic. Rising above the heads of the kids, Din recognises the form of Ahsoka Tano.
She is smiling, nodding at the parents and waving at the kids who leave her with different versions of ‘bye, Master Tano, see you tomorrow!’
When Din moves close enough for her to see him, she makes no sign of recognising him, only nods politely and goes back to what apparently is her job now. Then, Din looks down at the thinning crowd of kids and sees it: a tip of a green ear peeking out from behind the back of a little Rodian with a runny nose.
In the next moment, the Rodian kid is lifted into his mother’s arms, and the full figure of Grogu becomes visible. He waves his little hand at the Rodian who waves back, but none of the adults come to pick him up. Instead, his eyes dart to Din’s boots, then he cranes his neck back to scan his full form.
Grogu shows no sign of recognition either. Rather, his face lights up with the same curiosity Din remembers facing when first opening his pod in the Nikto hideout. Din finds himself grinning widely behind his visor. He squats down closer to the child’s level and hands him one gloved finger. Grogu reaches back to examine its tip with his claws.
The gesture looks all innocent and cute. If Din did not know better, he would be ready to believe that Grogu could never hurt a single frog and especially could never ignore what he is told and try to touch every button on a ship’s control board. But even though he knows better, he is longing for everything about this tiny creature - everything that makes Grogu himself.
“Grogu?” Ahsoka’s voice comes from above and Grogu’s gaze darts up to her. Din quickly pulls his hand back in an effort to show that he had no intention to snatch the kid or anything like that. Looking around, he finds that the other adults are gone and Ahsoka is left surrounded by only a handful of kids, apparently the other ones with no parents of their own, at least not on this planet.
“Time to head back to the crèche”, she continues. When Grogu looks back at Din once more, she tilts her head as she examines his armoured figure. “Do you know each other?”
“Something like that”, Din says.
“He says no.” Ahsoka frowns a little but then smiles. “But we did study about Mandalorians last week, and he has been fascinated since then. If you wouldn’t mind coming in for a while, I’m sure he’d be very happy.”
Din’s heart twists with fondness, and he turns back to Grogu. “Is that right, Grogu? Would you be happy to see me? Even though you don’t know me?”
Grogu gurgles in delight, and Ahsoka chuckles. “His room is full of drawings of Mandalorians, and he’s saying he’d love to add yours.”
A sense of warmth settles inside Din as he nods and follows Ahsoka and the kids into the Jedi Temple.
Just like Ahsoka said, it turns out that Grogu’s room is full of shaky drawings of Mandalorians in armour of various colours. After showing him around, Grogu nudges Din to sit down on the couch in the crèche’s living room and starts drawing him with crayons on a flimsi. When done with one drawing, he starts another one, then another.
Din relaxes into watching the tiny hands at work and large eyes flicking between himself and the flimsi. He would never have believed to find this kind of peace and happiness in the heart of Coruscant of all places.
Other kids are playing quietly, levitating various toys across the living room and apparently making the sound effects and voices telepathically, because every once in a while they giggle even though Din has not heard anyone say anything. Ahsoka is sitting on the opposite couch, braiding the tentacles of little Nautolan twins. Everything is calm and domestic like rare things in Din’s life have ever been.
But approaching along the neighbouring corridor, Din can hear something different - a heated conversation. When it turns close enough, Din spots the voice of Luke Skywalker:
“No, Dad! You have to let me teach in my own way.”
Another, older voice continues, and Din suspects he recognises the accent:
“Luke’s right. Anakin, you can’t interfere so much. Luke’s pedagogical ideas are…”
Obi-Wan Kenobi's words are cut short when the three of them arrive to the living room and take in the view.
"It's you", the other old Jedi gasps, and Din realises he must be Anakin.
“What?” Luke asks, but the two older men by his side pay no more attention to him. Instead, they are already on their way through the living room, surprisingly agile for their age. They navigate among the kids and toys on the floor, until sitting on the couch on either side of Din. Immediately, their heads find their places on Din’s pauldrons.
Luke eyes curiously at their activity. “Are you a Mandalorian?”
“I am”, Din responds, and Anakin gestures Luke to come closer and experience himself what Mandalorians are armoured with and what it does to the Force in a Jedi’s head.
Luke is more modest and considerate than the older Jedi but does follow their example and sit down next to Din’s leg. After asking for permission, he first tentatively lays his head on Din’s thigh, then fully relaxes against his leg as the beskar makes its effect.
“It’s wonderful”, Luke gasps aloud. That draws Ahsoka’s attention. In one Force-assisted leap, she is by Din’s other leg, with her head splayed over the cuisse. She is followed by the kids, all flocking around Din wherever they can fit.
When other Jedi pass through the room, they, too, are overcome by curiosity and join them. Among them, Din recognises Ezra and Plo Koon, who looks as old but a lot healthier than when Din met him last time. Din knows none of the others, but once he feels their serene, beskar-influenced presence all around him, he does not really mind.
But then, through all the wonderful sense of peace and comfort, Din feels something even better: something small crawls its way through the Jedi bodies and settles right against Din’s chestplate, little nose nuzzling into the crook under his helmet, six clawed fingers digging into the fabric over the unarmored patch by his neck. It is too crowded for him to turn his head to look down, but he does not need his eyes to know who it is and say:
"Hey, kid. I think we're home."