Vibrant Eyes | Din Djarin

30: forged.

Three months passed. 

They fell into a routine of taking care of the child. Most days they could be found floating in the depths of space. Always waiting, always listening for a message that might lead them to a Mandalorian, a covert, and the chain of information he sought in order to track down the kid's kind.

Cutting the foods and dividing them up became a weekly routine of comfort. He washed them, she cut them, he separated them into containers. They had shifts to take care of the child but, besides the shifts they laid out clearly, oftentimes he found himself sitting with her when he had no obligation to. 

And she was almost always around, a casual observer and commentator.

As the kid slept, they didn't speak much, but silences were never uncomfortable. Maybe she had a staring problem, but he did too. Usually the other person couldn't tell past his helmet but she always knew in that way she knew everything.

They gambled in cards most nights. At first he was hesitant but she reassured him that any upperhand she had was easily countered by a personal weakness of hers. She wouldn't specify what it was, but they played enough times for the validity of her statement to be proved.

Because she seemed absolutely clueless about her cards. She always knew everything there was to know about his, but hers were a mystery to the both of them. It made no sense to him but it made a repetitive game more interesting.

However, it wasn't hard to notice when their funds began to diminish.

Venus led them from the depths of the ship into the pouring rain. Like a sheet falling over them, the torrential rain pounded upon their heads with the very first step outside. A crystal blue sun hung low in the sky near the edge of the horizon and Din followed the shadowy figure ahead of him. 

Cloaked in a cloak of deep brown with a deep hood she claimed to have brought upon the ship from that very first day with Cara, she cut an imposing shadow in the dark and among the blur of pouring water.

Din wore a thicker cape than usual, wrapping it around himself to avoid water seeping in through the fabric between plates of armor. The falling night was silent for the most part but it was hard to find an atmosphere foreboding when he kept hearing the child babble at Venus. He'd begun to do it with Din more often, too, and he only encouraged it, knowing discouragement could stop any progress in its tracks.

They walked for an hour at most and it rained the entire time. Finally they entered a small village lit up in the night with torches lining the central path ensconced in globes of iron and glass around the vibrant flames. The homes and shops on either side looked nearly abandoned, cascades of rain water pouring from the roofs. But every doorway had been designed to be an opening in the manmade waterfalls. 

Every building, essentially, was surrounded by walls of water save for the entryways.

But he could see that something had happened to this town from the stray debris and number of broken street lamps. Now, he had no idea why they were there. But he thought he trusted Venus enough now to know she wasn't leading them into a death trap so, when she pointed at a passing planet, he decided to humor her. It was safe to say he wasn't a fan of the constant rain, though.

She strode onward through the empty town of pouring sky and flickering flames to a small, unassuming building that shone white against the dark of night. The front door was cracked open and warm light leaked from within. Before they entered he heard quite a few pained groans and had an idea about what they were walking into.

He spent the next few hours watching Venus care for a people not her own, a people she'd just happened to know needed the touch of a healer.

He watched her mend broken bones, stitch wounds, and apply local pulstices after a single sniff. The child helped too, playing with the other children whether they were injured or there for the injured. He even sat with quite a few adults, babbling nonsensically to take their minds off of the pain and fear.

In the end the village thanked them profusely and gave Venus a large bag of credits for her work. Wordlessly she passed it to Din and he attached it to his belt. Then Venus promised to stop by if they ever required her help again and they left.

But Din's thoughts were far from any of it. His mind replayed every touch she gave another, every wound that improved under her influence. Then it replayed the memories of withdrawing poison and a sealing cut. The ebbing and fading of aches that should have taken weeks to dissipate.

He watched her walking ahead of him in the pouring rain, something dark curling around his heart. 

Suspicion. Worry. Hurt.

Because he'd known she kept secrets from him. He'd allowed it for a very long time, even. He'd fallen into a pit of domestic complacency. But no more.

He wanted to know Venus.

And he was sick and tired with the secrets and the mystery. So, he vowed to get an answer after the kid fell asleep and they were alone with none to hear, with none to distract, and no one to stop him from getting those answers. 

No more secrets, no more letting her avoid the hard questions.

No more.