Random Caralorian stuff and oneshots and spam because I'm obsessed with them

1. "I'll always be here for you."

~ Please keep in mind that this is terrible ~

~ Don't say I didn't warn you ~

~ Last chance to stop reading ~

~ Here goes nothing ~

The elevator door slams shut, sending an echo through the hall to where they stood. Cara tries her best not to let herself cry; Grogu didn't belong to her and it seems selfish to cry over his leaving when it must hurt Mando even more. Maybe that's what's hurting me so much. The thought of him in pain, she says to herself.

Mando told her about Grogu almost leaving with Ahsoka. The way Cara sees it, he was ready to let the kid go then. But now, right after getting him back- she can't imagine what he must be feeling like.

Then there was him taking off his helmet. Despite the situation, Cara can't help but feel curious about how he looks. She wants to see the face of the man who, even though he tried to keep his personality trapped behind that suit of armor, made her fall in love with him. She wonders if he'll put the helmet back on, try to forget he ever removed it. Maybe he'll leave it off because he doesn't care about the Creed anymore, he doesn't care about anything now that the kid is gone.

Cara glances sideways at the others, Koska, Fennec, and sees that they're looking down as if they know how much Grogu meant to Mando. Even Bo-Katan, with all her fury about losing the Darksaber, has enough respect to keep her mouth shut.

Cara bites her lip, trying harder than ever to keep the tears from spilling. She wants to go to Mando, hug him or something, let him know that she'll always be there for him. But how would he react? She stares down at the floor, but the sight of him turning to her catches her off guard. She always wondered what she would say if she ever saw his face. If he was extraordinarily handsome, she would make some joke about him being ugly. But she never thought about what to say if he were actually ugly. 

Luckily, he isn't.

She looks up at him, but only sees the eyes of somebody in as much pain as she was in when she lost her family. It's hard for her to realize that he's the same guy who always seems so cool and composed, when really it was only the helmet hiding what he felt like. He steps forward and unexpectedly puts his arms around her.

Cara doesn't hesitate before hugging him back. It calms her down to know that he won't just put the helmet back on like nothing ever happened. That would only cause him more pain.

"It's okay," she whispers. "You did promise you'd see him again." Though he doesn't answer, she knows he needs to hear it again. "You promised. It's not like you're losing him forever." But it feels that way. Cara realizes that it will never be the same. So she finally lets herself cry, not caring if he'll think she's over-dramatic because she wasn't as close with the kid as he was. But after a few moments, she remembers that she's supposed to be the comforting one.

"Hey," she says, pulling away and looking into his eyes. "You can still go see him." The words seem dry, like they have no meaning. "I'll go with you."

"You will?" he whispers. It breaks her heart to hear the quiver in his voice.

She nods. "I will. I'll be there with you. Okay?" At this point she doesn't care what Koska, Fennec, and Bo-Katan are thinking. "Mando..." She pauses, wondering if she dares say what she wants to say next. What she wanted to say for a long time, but was always too scared. Maybe now isn't the time either, maybe she needs to wait a little longer. So she sighs and steps a little bit closer to him. "Din...I'll always be here for you," she says softly.

"I know," he says. It makes her heart beat a little bit faster; the tone he spoke in, the way he gazed into her eyes while saying it. It was as if... as if he understood what she wanted to say. "I'll be here for you too," he repeats.

"Really?" It slips out before Cara can stop it.

"Really." He reaches out and takes her hand. She allows herself a faint smile. Back when they parted on Sorgan, she thought she saw the last of him. But he kept coming back to her, again and again, which now makes their unspoken words quite clear.

~ As soon as I heard Gina say there was a deleted scene with these two, I knew I had to write my own version ~