That man in Beskar [The Mandalorian x OC]

XXIII. The Most Important Things

Last night after our little moment Din and I spent talking and fixing some parts of the ship to make sure it is really ready to fly. When we were finished we continued talking and telling jokes to each other, making me discover that Din's dry humor is actually pretty fun. I didn't even notice how tired we were, so tired we fell asleep on the seats of the ship.

I wake up suddenly hearing a loud noise and I instinctively look for Grogu. Not seeing him I look towards the entrance to see the wall of the ship completely gone, revealing a red and black background on the outside. I feel the Force shifting, something doesn't feel right.
I fill with worry, I have a bad feeling about this.
"BB!" I yell for my Droid, but I don't hear his usual beeping answer.

Then I see it

I gasp spotting his colorful body on the ground, stained with burn marks and wires pulled out. The lens on its head is dull, still. I feel it empty, energy left its body. I try to shake him, to make it alive again,but is useless. My Droid was killed.

I feel tears blurring my eyes.
I look at the passenger seat, and I don't see the familiar presence of my travel buddies.
"GROGU! DIN!" I yell, desperately searching for my friend and his son.
Not hearing response, fear creeps into my mind, and I have to stop for a second to clear it.

"This is not the Jedi way, Kai. Come on, be calm and rational"
Slowly breathing out I run outside waving my hand to clear the smoke that surrounds me.
How is it possible that I didn't realise sooner what was happening? Was I that tired?
I turn my head in all directions, screaming for the Mandalorian and my Padawan.

Lava and fire surround me, covering dark brown soil. The temperature makes it hard to breathe properly, so I have to try not waste too much oxigen. I look at the flaming river near me, with rocks melting in it. I hear faint yells along with the sound of the lava river, as if they were connected

If you're not with me, then you're my enemy
It's over, Anakin. I have the high ground
I hate you!

We're on Mustafar, the place where my father figured out his Padawan became Darth Vader.

I ignite my lightsaber, trying to feel stronger than the big mess I am right now. The fear I tried to get rid of won't disappear from my body. The rational thinking of a Jedi knight seems impossible to reach. I breathe in and out as I spin around looking for Grogu and Din. I walk fast around the ship, looking at every single piece of surface, trying not to panic. Then I see him.

"Din..." my voice cracks as I start crying

In front of me there are Fenn Gideon and one of his stormtroopers. The soldier is grabbing Grogu by his robe, while Gideon keeps his hand in front of Din's throat, threatening to force choking him.

"There she is" the Imperial smiles cruelly to me "What a disappointment you are... And I thought Jedi were tougher than this"

Din tries to take away the hand from him but he's too weak.
"You better leave them now, or I swear to the Force you'll be melting in the lava in three seconds"
"I'd like to see you try"
I run towards him with my lightsaber, ready to fight, and when I am a few inches from him an invisible wall pushes me back, making my weapon fly into the lava. I look at my empty hands as my enemy smirks.
I raise my hand to use the Force, but it doesn't work. It's like I lost all the skills and the years of mastering my connection with it. I try and try again, desperate to save my friends.

"You didn't protect the ones you care about, now I have both of them" Fenn Gideon continues after laughing "And it's all your fault"

I yell in anger, fear and pain
Din tries to speak
"Kaira, I l-"
But he can't finish the sentence, Gideon closes his hand, and the Mandalorian collapses.

I fall to my knees and close my eyes, crying as Gideon walks away with Grogu and the stormtrooper grabs my shoulders and shakes me.

"Kaira!" he yells
"Kaira!" the voice calling me becomes two, then three, then a thousand, messing with my brain as I cover my ears and keep my eyes shut
One voice emerges, stronger than the others.
"Kai!"
I open my eyes, hearing the short version of my name, the one that only Grogu and Din use.

"Kai!"
I see the helmet of the Mandalorian
"Please, wake up!"
I'm back in the Spark, and it was just a nightmare.

"Dank farrik, are you okay?"
I'm still in shock
"Calm down, I'm here" he squeezes me tightly in his arms "I'm here"
I touch his helmet with my hand to feel if he's real
"It's me"

I start crying, melting in his embrace
"It was just a dream"
I feel Grogu tugging my cloak, causing me to pick him up once I release Din's shoulders.

After a few deep breath I feel calmer, and I look at Din, a bit embarrassed of what happened. I hate looking weak in front of others.

"Are you okay now?" Din asks me, caring.
I nod "It's just... I dreamt about Grogu being in the hands of the empire"
I stop to brush the kid's cheek
"They killed you, Din. I couldn't protect you two"
He puts a hand on my knee
"I'm here, with you. I'm good. You don't have to worry, I'm not planning on leaving you two any time soon"
"I just feel like I'm not doing enough to ensure Grogu's safety... And yours too"
"Are you serious? You are a kriffing Jedi, you have a lightsaber and lots of skills, you've been protecting my son for a year now. And weren't you the one who saved my life not too many days ago?"
I open my mouth to reply, but I can't think of anything to say.
I look down at the floor just to feel Din's gentle fingers under my chin, pulling my head back in front of his, then shifting to hold my cheek.

"Don't ever think you're not good enough" He says softly. "You are Kaira Kenobi. You're one of the most amazing people in the galaxy. You know me by now, I'm not a peoples person... The fact that I opened up to you should make you see how great you are. You don't have to worry about us. We're safe with you. And you are with us"

Another tears falls down my cheek, this time not because of sadness or fear, but of happiness and gratitude.
"Can you smile for me? So I know you got it" he says, taking away his hand
I smile softly at the man
I feel him smile back before he gets Grogu from my lap.
"Time to eat, little man"

"Thank you, Din" I say to him after a few seconds as he starts to feed the child.
"My pleasure, mesh'la"
I frown, confused.
"Mesh'la? What does it mean?"
He clears his throat "Nothing"
I tilt my head, suspicious, then I smirk.
If he wants mistery, he's gonna get it.
"Okay, carino, as you say" I reply playfully. This time Din is the confused one.

The bad feelings of the nightmare rapidly fade away as I see Din struggling to make Grogu eat without creating a mess.
"Oh come on, ad'ika, be good"
"Soup!"

As I watch them in awe with my head supported by my hand I hear BB-4's beeping outside. I stand up and run out to him.
"Hey buddy!" I called kneeling beside him, scratching his belly lovingly
He beeps excited, not used to this.
"You're one true friend, always remember it"
He rolls around my asking me 'why am I being so strange'
I smile at him
"I'm just happy we're okay. Happy we're all here together. Happy my favorite beings are with me right now"
He rubs its head on my leg, then tells me to follow him to help him with repairs.
I glance one more time at Din and Grogu inside the ship before following the droid, sure that from now on I won't have bad dreams. Din made me sure of it, and I am grateful for him

A/N
A bit of fluff before the big stuff...
See you next chapter!

-Haar'chak_Kaira