#also i tried to get back into the mandalorian for season 2 but i just couldn't

[davosmymaster]

Hope, Confessions

TAGS AND WARNINGS -  +18, Minors DNI (more like minors don’t read), smut, masturbation, p in v, light choking, creampie (wrap it before you tap it), more like making love, love-struck Din, marriage proposal (kinda), angst, hurt/comfort, reader is heavily implied to be shorter than Din. My lack of star wars knowledge is also a warning. I wrote this right after finishing season 2. This fic happens right after Grogu leaves. Talks of cheating if you squint.

PAIRINGS - Din Djarin x fem!reader

WORD COUNT - 4.6k

SUMMARY - Din lost everything that day. Well, almost everything. He still has you to keep him sane, to keep him from giving up on everything he once was. (or Din tries to return his beskar to the Mandalorians but you won’t let him.)

English is not my first language

 The continuous growl of the engine was both what lulled you to sleep and woke you up that day. Still half unconscious, in that dreamy, sweet and comfortable state when you're neither awake or asleep; your hand stretches over the mattress looking for heat, for that silky skin where your head rests over most nights and the heartbeat under. Far from finding what your subconscious is looking for, your eyes open when you notice the cold sheets on Din's side of the bed.

 Despite having your eyes open, you still see nothing.

 "Din?"

There's no response, and having made sure he is not in the room with you; you take your sleep mask off. The room is as dark as usual. Small, narrow, cramped with things you fail to find a purpose for. When you had first been in his room, he hardly had a makeshift bed on the floor. It was, above all, an uncomfortable mattress with loud springs and a blanket. The next day, after you had shared your first night together, he had replaced it with a proper bed with a base and sheets. Your own bed has been long forgotten since then.

 You get your cargo pants from the floor and put them back on, deciding to check on him. Worry tugs at your heart while you remember the last few days; and it is even worse when, by pure muscle memory, your legs bring you to the corner where Grogu's hovering pram used to be, just outside Din's room. The kid's not there anymore, and you hardly doubt he will ever be again. If your heart is broken just by the sight, you can't even begin to imagine what it is like for Din. Not after all you both did to get him back to safety.

 Something flashes in the corners of your vision, then. And you follow it, finding his armor and helmet gently rearranged on the floor. There's a folded blanket underneath as if he didn't want the beskar to be in contact with the metallic ground of the ship. Crouching down, you take his helmet in your hands and close your eyes, shaking your head.

 "You idiot..." you whisper. "You should have come to me..."

 There's no need for him to suffer in silence the way he does. Why would he torture himself that way?

 The coldness of the beskar is something you are used to, but carrying Din's helmet in your hands fills you with a type of dread you're not sure you can explain, not even to yourself. He had always been so adamant about it, not wanting to risk it even when you two were in bed.

 The first time he had taken it off around you, he had blindfolded you with your own shirt. He had been drooling to have a taste of your lips. From then on, you had used different things to cover your eyes, all so you could sleep next to him, calm his anxious dreams and simply stay.

 But that was back when Grogu lived in the razor crest. There was a time when you couldn't begin to fathom the idea of Din without Grogu by his side, and still couldn't. But now things are different, vastly different. And as Grogu's presence isn't there anymore and you are now carrying Din's helmet —the two things that make Din who he truly is— you wonder what man you'll find once you enter that cockpit.

 "Mando?"

 He's sitting in his usual place, in front of the controls, fumbling with buttons and levers. From where you stood, you can have a peek at his brown hair and the skin on the back of his neck. Despite all the efforts he had done at the beginning, this isn't the first time you see him without the helmet.

 "Mando," you insist.

 He doesn't respond, stubborn like only he can be. He doesn't respond for the very same reason that he left his armor and helmet in the hallway; he doesn't believe himself to be a Mandalorian anymore.

 "Din..." you whisper.

 There's a creaking sound as the chair turns on itself, and before you have the whole sight of his face, you close your eyes and cover them with your hand. The other, stretching in his direction, offers him the helmet.

 He doesn't take it.

 "You can uncover your eyes, mesh'la."

 You shake your head.

 "Not until you put it back on."

 He sighs in your direction.

 "There's no need for it..." he says, the sorrow coming from his lips tastes bittersweet. Not having to wear the helmet is a relief, in a way, but a curse once you know what it entails. "I'm not a Mandalorian anymore."

 You don't know what to say, don't know what to do, either. Your figure stays there, unseeing and frozen for a few seconds. You still don't give up.

 "This is a non-negotiable, Din."

 He waits, hoping you will give up at some point; but you don't. Beskar, especially the amount of it needed to make a Mandalorian helmet, weighs a lot and your arm begins to tremble from the effort of holding it in his direction. You had never regretted more having artificial gravity.

 "Okay..." he whispers, then takes the helmet and you wait for him to give you a sign. "Done."

 You open your eyes, but the sight is not at all what you had expected. You should have known better than to just blindly follow his command. You should have listened for the modulator.

 A pair of brown eyes stare at you, full of concealed grief. The helmet gently cradled on his lap. He is only wearing his black flight suit, which allows him a kind of movement that his beskar armour doesn't always allow. For example, one of his legs is crossed under the other now. And he seems almost... relaxed. Despite having told him repeatedly how much you wanted him not to be so stressed, constantly looking for jobs to get done and credits to take, the odd mixture of calmness and despair just concerns you further. If that's even possible.

 "You..."

 "Told you," he says. "Not a Mandalorian anymore."

 You are angry. Want to be angry at him for lying and forcing you to look at his face. But you find yourself unable to express that rage, not against him, at least; not when he looks like a kicked puppy. The man in front of you is a version of Din that you never thought you'd encounter. Therefore, he is a Din that you don't quite know how to handle.

 You want to be there for him, though.

 In no time, your fingers are brushing his patchy beard in the gentlest way possible. At first, his big brown eyes are stuck in yours; and even though he is sitting and you are standing, the height difference is still noticeable because his eyes and yours are not that far apart. Din looks at you in that specific way, the way he only does when he thinks you're not aware of his presence. With so much longing in those dilatating pupils.

 His eyelids drop, revelling in your touch. But the moment is short-lived, as in the same exact moment his shoulders relax, he grabs your wrist and pulls it away.

 "You should buckle up," he says. "We're leaving hyperspace soon."

 "Where are we going?"

 Not before putting the helmet down, Din swivels the chair back to the controls. It is obvious that he is simply ignoring you, because all he does is look through the glass into the endless void. He taps a button or two trying to distract himself, but he's not really doing anything.

 "Din, where are we going?" you ask him again, your hand now gripping his shoulder.

 "I'm not a Mandalorian," he repeats. And at this point, you start to wonder if he is trying to convince himself or he is this deeply traumatized from betraying his creed. "Beskar belongs to the Mandalorians. I'm gonna hand over all the beskar I have."

 "What?!"

 The sound that comes from your mouth is half a shout half a whisper. Soon, you're turning the chair back in your direction, your body bent over your middle and your hands gripping both armrests tightly. You look into his eyes for any sign of mocking, but your Mandalorian has never been the pranking type.

 "Please, Din..." you almost beg. "Tell me you're joking."

 His jaw clenches. Hard. His eyes swim to somewhere behind you, far away from there, trying to distance himself from you emotionally and mentally as he cannot do it physically. But his eyes still well with tears.

 You've never seen him cry for obvious reasons. And the sight clouds your mind. It sends a blaster shot through the middle of your chest. You pray to the maker that he won't let those tears spill, because you don't think you'll manage not to break if he does.

 "You can't," you tell him. "Din, you can't. It's your armor, your helmet. No one else should ever have it."

 A muscle in his jaw ticks. He's clenching his teeth so hard that you can't help but think that it has to hurt. Your palms quickly find the edges of his face, and your thumbs gently massage the skin there, trying to soften his grip with gentle circles. You see him try to take a deep breath, but it is then that he breaks.

 A sound, like that of a hurt animal, rips through his chest. His forehead quickly falls forward, trying to hide his tears. In a second, your arms find their home around his broad shoulders while he lets a few tears slip into your shirt. He sobs into your collarbone. Inconsolable.

 "It's okay, baby," you still try. "Let it all out."

 You caress his back ripped by the earthquakes his tears cause. At some point, one of your hands travels to the back of his head and they get knotted in the short hair there. It takes him a while, but he eventually slips into that kind of numbness that follows the tears.

 When he's done, you don't dare to get too far away from him. You take a seat next to him, on the chair Grogu used to occupy, and take his hands in yours giving a gentle squeeze.

 "I miss him," he says, as if he could read your mind.

 You nod, wiping the wetness from your face too. There's not much you can say about the matter. There's no other way in which you could express, those three words are enough.

 "Me too."

 Rather than lecturing him, telling him once again how necessary it was that Grogu trained with a real jedi, you just accompany him through the sadness. Anything you could ever say, he already knows. Feelings are not logical. His heart doesn't understand that the kid is safe and sound, happy, training to expand his control on the Force. His eyes don't see that. All he sees is the absence, the lack of that part of him that he unknowingly gave to his child, the very same part of him the kid took with him and now he is missing. Like a table with three legs or a ship without an engine or a medkit without bacta.

 "Din, you can't give your helmet and armor away," you try again.

 He shakes his head, the curls of his brown hair waving in the air. His eyes are fixed on your fingers while he plays with them, caressing them, drawing circles over your palm, tracing the lines that supposedly form your future.

 "This all has to do with you taking your helmet off in front of those people, right?" you ask him, although there's a fear in your chest that it could be another reason. "Or is it because... of me?"

 His neck snaps in your direction in front of him. He is breathless when he asks.

 "What?"

 "Is it because I saw your face first?" you ask him, needles pricking your lungs as you ask. "Those times... I'm sorry if I- insulted your faith... I-"

 "No," he responds in a thready voice. His palms land on your knees and he squeezes, trying to comfort your shivering form "Of course not. How could you say that? No, you didn't insult anything. It's okay."

 The weight that lifts from your shoulders is heavy, so heavy that you can't help but let out a sigh of relief.

 "I'm sorry I never told you before," he says then, and you quickly get your hands off of your face to look at him. "I never knew how. I kept trying to find a way to explain it, but I didn't know how."

 Your face twists into a confused grimace.

 "Din... what are you talking about?"

 He takes a steadying breath and decides to just say it.

 "I consider you to be my riduur," he says, shielding himself in the fact that you don't know what that word means in Mando'a. "That's why I can- could take my helmet off around you. It's okay. That's allowed."

 You frown at the strange word.

 "What is that?"

 He swallows the lump in his throat. Even after all of this time, he's still terrified of getting rejected. The pain that causes him the fact that you might not want him to the same extent that he wants you is killing him. It would kill him, that's certain, if you would confirm his suspicions right now. With no kid and no identity, he doesn't want to think about the possibility of losing you too.

 For a second, he considers lying. But doing that would mean the complete obliteration of your trust and his own mind.

 "It means partner..." he says. And your body goes stiff for a second, but he cannot stop there. "As in... husband, wife..."

 He watches you attentively, like a mere witness to a terrible accident; knowing that whatever happens now is solely his fault. But, at the same time, knowing he has no power over your actions and feelings.

 Din watches you blink repeatedly. Your jaw falls from its hinges, lips lightly parted. Even now, he wants to kiss you. He always wants to kiss you.

 "And... you consider me your riduur?"

 He nods for a moment, liquid chocolate dances around in his eyes. Melting. Warm. And you can't help but think that he is so handsome. With that silky patchy beard, and the small heart the lack of hair forms next to his chin. It's like he was born to be hugged by your arms, and kissed by your lips.

 "Yes," he insists. He takes a deep breath and closes his eyes. "But I should've asked you before-"

 You interrupt him.

 "Are you telling me that the first time you showed me your face..." you start, your mind coming back to that night when he lazily made love to you, allowed you to kiss every inch of his face, tug from his hair until he moaned. "...are you telling me that was you accepting me as... your wife?"

 He wants to say something, anything, but the words don't come. His mind is also lost in that night, in the way your face lit up when you saw him for the first time, how you complained that he was so handsome and it was so unfair for the galaxy to have that pretty face covered. Just to make up your mind a split second later and happily realize you were the only one who he would grant that sight to.

 He doesn't say anything, but doesn't have to.

 "Oh, Din..."

 Before he can close his eyes, you're on him. His fingers curl over your waist, the place where his hands always end up no matter what situation you're in. It feels natural, like his hands are a magnet drawn to your flesh. He dips the pads of his fingers under the hem of your shirt, and the contact of his naked cold fingers —always covered by the gloves— make you gasp in his mouth. As a consequence, he gasps too, feeling your exhale stuck in his own lungs.

 Your knee is buried in the leather of the chair, between his knees; enclosing him into a tiny little space that he doesn't want to get out of. Your lips are warm, your tongue, warmer. And as his teeth nibbles at your lower lip, your body seems to melt under his touch. His hands get into action, a featherlight touch grazing your clothed inner thighs, burying the pads of his fingers into the fabric until your legs open. He presses a single digit to where he knows your entrance is.

 "Ah..." you moan, gripping his shoulders tightly. He is enamoured with how air leaves your lungs when he touches you, there's pride in that, too. And he rubs, taking more moans from you. "Din..."

 "Keep doing that, cyar'ika."

 He stands and grips the back of your thighs, urging you to close your legs around his hips. The next second, he has you pinned against the right side of the control panel, one that is pretty much empty and has only a few colorful buttons here and there. Your lips only part from his to remove the top of his flight suit. It has a lot of Velcro and straps, although it doesn't look like it at first glance. When you groan in frustration, Din tugs at his own clothes and in two seconds his chest is bare. You barely have time to close your lips around his pulse point before he unzips your pants and gets rid of them and your panties.

 Laying against the console, your thumb delineates his swollen and wet lips. His pupils are so big there's barely any chocolate in there anymore.

 "I'm so mad at you..." you gasp, breathless. "You should've told me before. I would've made it special."

 He remembers that night. He remembers how soft your skin was, your wide eyes when he took the helmet off. Your lovely words that made him, the Mandalorian that he was, blush. That night hadn't been premeditated. He had been wondering for some time what a riduur would look like for him, what it would feel like, and all his thoughts ended up coming back to you. He felt the urge to show you his face, for you to truly know him, and he simply responded to that urge.

 It was simple as that. Easy. As love you should be.

 "I'm sorry," he says, even if there's not a tinge of regret in his voice. He cannot feel any, not when he knows he is soon to be squeezed by your warmth. "Still, I don't think it could have been more special."

 "You get so cheesy when you're hard."

 You both chuckle. That is, until he brings the head of his thick cock to your clit. Rocking back and forth, he rubs you with it, swallows your moans and makes them his own. You can feel every crease, every swollen vein. You clench around nothing, your own heart beating down there.

 "Din," you gasp. "Please, Din. I'm ready."

 Without stopping yet, he leans into your neck and licks just below your jaw. You're still wearing your t-shirt and, by the way the zipper of his flight suit grazes your inner thighs, he didn't get completely naked either. You're still glad you could take off his shirt; his chest is boiling against your own, even if still clothed. The curve of his biceps is your favorite place to hold on to.

 "A bit more..." he says, and a moan follows.

 "Please, my riduur," you beg. "Please, give it to me."

 With a single thrust, he enters you. The sudden stretch makes you see stars, your thighs trembling on each side of him. He nestles deep in your insides, reaching places your fingers could never. He pushes your knees against your breasts, waiting just a second, looking at you and checking that it doesn't hurt, that he wasn't too rough, didn't get caught up in the moment.

 He rolls his hips back, and thrusts.

 He's slow, deep. One of your knees inevitably ends up over his shoulder when he leans in to kiss you, to drown your moans or merge them with his own, you're not sure.

 "My riduur..." he murmurs into your ear. "Mine, mine, mine."

 "Oh, fuck. Din," his own enthusiasm for the word has you clenching around him now that you understand the meaning of it. You never thought you'd be able to get turned on by a single word in Mando'a. As it was known to be, across all the galaxy, a brute language, borderline aggressive. Everyone joked about how even saying 'I love you' sounded as if you were cursing someone.

 He curls his fingers around your neck and presses you against the console, there's a snarl tugging from one of the sides of his lips. The sight of Din fucking you is, most of the time, what brings you near the edge. The gentle touch of his lips to your neck, what makes you come undone. Still, nothing compares to the way he chokes you; the way the pads of his fingers press against the sides of your throat and it is your own arousal that makes you feel like you can't have enough oxygen. He is not doing it that hard, the bridge of his palm nowhere near your windpipe, but you feel breathless nonetheless.

 He growls. And it is the only good thing about his helmet, really, the fact that his growls with the modulator sound so much deeper.

 He is thrusting mercilessly. His stamina so high he doesn't feel the need to slow down. Not like you do when you ride him, something that always fills you with envy.

 "You cum first, cyar'ika," he says, bringing his thumb to your clit. His cheeks have the faintest shade of red. A round, fat drop of sweat runs down his sternum, and you can't help but lick it clean. It is salty and sweet at the same time.

 He doesn't have to work you up much, he flicks his thumb twice, drawing tight circles over your bundle of nerves as he kisses your womb with the head of his cock. And just like that, ecstasy runs a marathon through your veins, leaving goosebumps behind and locking your thighs in its place.

 "Oh," Din lets a long moan out, as he feels you clenching around him impossibly tight. "Oh, that's it," he buries his nose into your hair, his thrust becoming sloppier. "That's it, my riduur. Milking my cock so good."

 By the time you regain your own breath and vision, a split second later, he's filling you up with his seed. The sounds make you drool. The feeling of him balls-deep in you is comfortable, familiar. He is warmth and safety and home. And there's no other place any of you would like to be right now than the arms of one another.

 "Thank you," he says.

 He doesn't know why. Not consciously, at least. Maybe it was because he never thought he would be this close to anyone. Maybe because he had been so touch-starved once that even holding hands made him nervous back then, and now he gets to experience this. Maybe it is because he finally is naked —both literally and figuratively— with someone who knows all his virtues and sins. Maybe because he has taken this as a yes, that you accept him as your riduur and he couldn't be happier.

 Maybe it is all of it.

 You love the way he is a ruthless warrior to everyone's eyes, yet still melts at the faintest of your touches.

 Cradling his face into your hands while he is still inside you, you bring the topic back. Hoping that now that he is content and comfortable, he will at least listen to you.

 "Din, please," you say, and by the way your eyes are looking at him, he knows he will do whatever you want him to. He will fly into a supernova if you ask him right now. "Don't give your armor away. You're my Mandalorian. I'd hate to see you regret that too."

 Din sighs, both mentally and physically tired. Yet a part of him knows you're right. What else would he be without his faith, his purpose? Without it, he was a blank canvas, and he wasn't sure he would be able to fill that void with anything. Being a Mandalorian was a big part of his identity and pride. Would he ever be able to forgive himself if he gave everything away?

 "You weren't always a Mandalorian," you tell him. "And before the initiation ritual, plenty of people saw your face. You were not Mandalorian before, and then you were. Why can't you swear to your Creed again?"

 "It doesn't work like that," he says, and his following words sound bitter even if he didn't mean to. "A promise is unbreakable, it's not something you can do a thousand times. You wouldn't forgive me if I took advantage of your trust a thousand times, would you?"

 Your lips part, and he could have sworn he heard your heart breaking. The thing that scares him the most, however, is that you say nothing. You yourself don't even know if that is true, if you'd be able to not forgive him a thousand times.

 "I- I didn't mean to say that..." he says, his heart is pumping aggressively in his chest. He doesn't know what to say. He doesn't want to screw it up even more. "I'm sorry. I would never- I-I hope you know that."

 "I know, Din," you whisper, kissing his cheek once. "I know. Still, there has to be a way."

 Finally, he slowly pulls out. His cum runs down your thigh as soon as he leaves, and he uses your own panties to clean the path it draws in your flesh. You pull up your pants and in a moment, he is fully dressed again. A part of you wants to whine, cry for the loss of his warm skin against your own, the familiar weight of him over your body. Perhaps the sight of him cleaning you up had turned you on. Again.

 He throws your panties in the laundry basket in the fresher. By the time he comes back, the blissful glow from fucking you is almost gone again. This time, however, you're not letting him bury himself in sadness again.

 He lets you hug him and kiss his forehead, once again leaning against the control panel. His smile appears a second time today, even if brief. But your heart flutters in your chest, happily.

 "If there's no other way..." you tell him, looking into his eyes so he understands your next words. "I want you to know I still love you. Mandalorian or not. And I wanna be there to help you through whatever you're going through."

 "I love you too," he responds, pecking your lips once. Your face between his calloused, warm hands. "Maybe if I could make them forgive me somehow... earn the helmet back..."

 It is just a spark of hope, but it is enough for both of you. Your eyes lit up at his words, and he sees it and knows he has tro try. Even if he knows you love him all the same Mandalorian or not.

 "We go?" you ask him, urging him to get out of hyperspace wherever the other Mandalorians are. Part of you hates that their judgement will dictate if Din can "become" a Mandalorian again or not. But this is his faith, and if this is how the whole thing works, then you'll do whatever means necessary to make sure he succeeds.

 He nods, a sprinkle of hope shining bright in his eyes.

 "We go."

#din dijarin x reader #pedro pascal x reader #the mandaloria/reader #Din Djarin/reader #The mandalorian fanfiction #The mandalorian fanfic #Din Djarin imagine #star wars x reader

[wannab-urs]

Trust

Prompt #634 "I trust you not just with my life, but with the lives of others."

Pairing: Din Djarin x gn!reader

Summary: season 2 finale fight scene rewrite

Warnings: uhhh brief threat of death? That's it really. WC: 418

A/N: Due to my crazy ass writer's block, and thanks to the recommendation from @ramblers-lets-get-ramblin, I'm gonna start doing these @creativepromptsforwriting challenges. You pick a number 1-1065 and write for 15 minutes based on the corresponding prompt.

Did I even use the prompt? No not really. Is this drabble creative, interesting, or innovative in any way? Also no. But it's words! Which I've been struggling with. It's unedited also.

Din Djarin Masterlist | Main Masterlist | AO3 | Kofi | Prompt Fills

Mando is one of the most trustworthy men you know. He would never let anyone down if he could help it. You trust him with your life, with Grogu’s life, with the lives of any stranger that needs help.

That’s why it’s incredibly concerning that he isn’t here now. It’s very unlike him to leave you to fend for yourself. 

Moff Gideon has you pinned in the corner of some godsforsaken cell, the kid cradled protectively in one arm while the other keeps a blaster trained steadily on the Moff’s head. The strange weapon he wields twirls from his fingertips as if it weighs nothing. He seems completely unphased by the weapon aimed at him. 

“Hand over the child and no one has to lose any limbs,” he taunts.

“No kriffing shot, Gideon.” 

He won’t swing on you with the child in your arms… you hope. Gideon presses in closer, forcing you further back into the cell. You fire off a shot at his head, hoping it doesn’t ricochet back into you or Grogu. 

Gideon blocks the shot easily with his energy blade, sending the blaster bolt into the ground by your feet. Too close. And Gideon knows it. Knows you won’t risk another shot. He closes the space between you and tries to yank Grogu from your arms, but you twist away from him. 

With your back exposed to him, he can easily run you through with his sword without harming the child. This is it. Where the fuck is Mando? 

You brace for death, but it doesn’t come. Instead, you hear the distinct sound of beskar clashing with that strange sword. You slouch onto the ground, Grogu pressed tightly to your chest, and watch your mandalorian battle the Moff. 

He’s beautiful with that spear in his hands. All swift, fluid motion. The sword hums and growls with every impact, but it doesn’t seem to be able to cut through the spear. 

Mando hooks the spear behind Gideon’s leg and yanks, dropping the man to flat on his back. He presses the tip of the weapon against the Moff’s throat, but doesn’t press in. 

“Drop the saber, Gideon.” 

Gideon retracts the blade back into the hilt, flips it around, and holds it out to Mando. 

“Take it. You defeated me in combat. It’s yours.”

Din stares down at him, seeming to falter a bit. 

“I don’t want it.” 

“It doesn’t matter. It’s yours. Bo Katan will not be the leader of her people after all… Mand’alor” 

“Kriff.” 

@creativepromptfills

#Din Djarin #Din Djarin fics #Din Djarin fanfiction #Din Djarin x reader #Din Djarin x you #The Mandalorian #The Mandalorian fics #The Mandalorian fanfiction #The Mandalorian x reader #The Mandalorian x you #634 #creativepromptsforwriting

[reluctant-mandalore]

🍂 Fictober 🍂 Day 1: Cold Weather (Din Djarin x gn!Reader)

During the chilly fall season on a new planet, you go on an afternoon outing with the Mandalorian and his son. Though of course you forgot your coat.

Warnings: Fluff, found family, crushes, pre-relationship, little bit of flirting, not beta read Word Count: 1771 Pairing: Din Djarin x gn!Reader a/n: I slept for most of the first day and then my back was achy when I was trying to edit this. So its late. But it's here. And thats all that matters. Enjoy a fall afternoon outing with our fave clan of two. Day 2's prompt should be out later today (hopefully lmao).

“Grogu, we’ve been over this, you need to wear your coat.”

The child had huffed at the Mandalorian’s words. His large ears lowering, as he frowned and shook his head. You had watched them be trapped in this standoff for quite some time now. Neither father nor son wanted to budge. It was starting to get colder on this planet in recent days. But despite the chill—and despite his fathers lecturing—the little one had been determined to take his coat off any chance he got.

This had been his third time taking off the coat while hoping that neither of you would notice. Din had always been overprotective though, and he had been even more observant. He always had a keen eye for noticing these things, and there was nothing the child—or you—could seem to get past him.

“It’s getting colder out, and I don’t want you getting sick.” Din had tried reasoning with him. “You don’t want to get sick. Right kid?”

Grogu had huffed again. He pouted up to his father before trying to look past him over to you sitting on the bench nearby. Clearly he hoped to rally in your support to his losing battle, and most days those wide pleading eyes of his would convince you to his side in a heartbeat. Unfortunately for the child though, today you found yourself agreeing with the Mandalorian. As you had also caught yourself wishing you had remembered to bring your own coat this chilly afternoon.

Discovering that you wouldn’t be helping him, Grogu had huffed one more time, before finally allowing Din to bundle him back in the coat. The pout he wore as his father buttoned him up making you want to chuckle.

“See? It’s not so bad.” Din had patted the little one’s head after he finished with the last button. Although Grogu only sent a frown back his way, before toddling off back to the leaf pile he was playing in earlier.

The Mandalorian had watched Grogu from where he kneeled for a moment. Though soon he had stood to come back and sit next to you on the bench. He had given you a small nod as he sat, and you had returned it with your own smile. A comfortable silence had fallen between you two then, as you watched the child explore and play in the little clearing. Despite not being pleased with the coat he wore, Grogu still seemed to be enjoying himself at least. He had been throwing leaves here and there. Giggling and laughing to himself as he did so.

“I don’t understand why he doesn’t want to wear it.” After some time Din had been the first to speak, as he shifted a bit awkwardly next to you. “He was so happy picking it out in the market a few days ago, but now he wants nothing to do with it.”

You gave him a shrug. “He’s probably just not used to it—that’s all—give him some time.”

“You think so?”

“Yeah, sometimes kids are just picky with these things.” You said smiling again as you watched the child chase down a frog, struggling to keep up in his puffy jacket. “He’ll get used to it eventually.”

Din had let out a bitter sigh, but you could hear the smile in his words. “Yeah you’re right.”

“I usually am.”

He had snorted at that reply, and quickly the two of you fell back into silence. The only sound once again being that of the child's happy geal and the birds singing their sweet tunes. Another breeze had swept through, rustling the leaves and sending an icy chill to roll down your spine. Once again you had found yourself wishing you hadn’t forgotten your own coat, as you shivered and shuddered with every gust of wind that passed.

“Cold?” Din’s question had nearly made you jump, and you looked over to find him looking at you with a tilt of his helmet.

“A little.” You admitted with another shiver, now feeling a bit embarrassed while under the Mandalorian’s gaze. “I honestly didn’t think it would be this cold when we left earlier.”

He had hummed in understanding and went back to watching the child for a moment. You went back to doing so as well. Thinking that had been the end of the discussion, though soon the heavy weight that rested over your shoulders proved otherwise. The cape—his cape—that he tucked around your shivering form had enveloped you in an instant warmth. The cozy fabric making itself the perfect barrier for you from cold.

No wonder he wore this thing all the time—it was stylish and warm.

“There.” He murmured in a hushed tone, as he smoothed out some of the wrinkles in the fabric, and adjusted it around you a little more snuggly. “That should help you stay warm.”

“Thank you.” Your voice had struggled to speak, as you couldn’t help but feel yourself grow shy.

Din had been so close to you as he fixed the cape. His leg had brushed with yours at every movement, and if it weren’t for the helmet that shielded his face, you would have felt how his breath fanned your cheeks. He hadn’t seemed to realize it though until the two of you shared a glance. Your eyes locked to one another, and mere inches apart. Only then did he seem to catch himself. Clearing his throat as he pulled away and averted his gaze. A mumbled apology quickly leaving him as he did.

“Keep it till we get back.” He didn’t dare look at you as he spoke, crossing his arms over his chest awkwardly. Although you couldn’t help but notice how his leg still seemed to brush with yours every now and then. “I don’t need you getting sick either.”

You only nodded. Smiling to yourself a little, and snuggling further into the cape. Your heart feeling like it would jump out of your chest at any moment.

“You know…” He continued quietly, his voice trailing and words a bit teasing, as he had looked at you from the corner of his eye with the tilt of his helmet. “You’re just like the kid with not wanting to wear a coat.”

You gave a little laugh at his words, unable to deny his claim. “Guess I’m a bad influence then, huh?”

“No. I wouldn’t say that.” He shook his head while giving a small chuckle himself, and glancing away from you to watch the child again. “I’d say the opposite actually. You’re a great influence on the kid.”

“You think so?”

“Of course! He adores you…” Din had almost seemed to pause in thought before allowing himself to finish. “We both adore you. Things wouldn’t be the same without you around.”

There was another flutter in your chest at his words, and suddenly it wasn’t just the cape that gave you warmth. The two of you had looked to one another, unable to stop yourselves from leaning closer, as the air between you had seemed to shift. It had been hard to deny the feelings that both of you were beginning to feel for one another lately. And moments like these had only seemed to make it even harder.

“Patuu!”

The sound from Grogu had broken you both from the trance, and you both looked to find him standing before you two now. The smile he wore bright, as he held out his hands for you to see what he had found. It had been acorns—of course—the child had been fascinated with them since arriving to this planet.

“Oh! Is this for me?” The child had beamed up at you at the question when you realized he held one out to you, and with a smile you took the acorn. “What a lovely little acorn! Thank you Grogu.”

Grogu had let out a happy noise at your acceptance of his gift. His eyes bright with excitement as he watched you look over the acorn. Pleased with seeing your approval, he glanced at the other acorn still in his hand, and then looked to the Mandalorian at your side.

“Do I get one too?” Din seemed to perk up, but any hope he had died quickly as Grogu soon sent a glare his way at the question, before turning to waddle rather grumpily away back to his leaf pile.

“I think he’s still mad about the coat.” You barely managed to stop the laugh that threatened to spill from your lips at the sight.

“Yeah.” The Mandalorian almost sounded like he had been pouting, and based on how his shoulders had sunk you wouldn’t put him past it. “I guess he is”

“Oh don’t worry Din.” You patted his shoulder gently. Trying to reassure him.“He’ll forgive you soon.”

“He can be pretty stubborn.” He mumbled back. Sounding utterly defeated.

You gave a teasing hum. Nudging him with your arm a little. “He’s just like his dad then.”

“I’m not stubborn.” He had tried to argue, but any defense he had fell quickly at the look you sent his way. “I’m only stubborn when I need to be.”

The two of you shared another small laugh at that before falling back into that familiar silence and watching over the child play. The three of you would spend the rest of the afternoon out there. Only leaving when Din would finally decide it had been time to pack up, and head back to the ships. Grogu had almost fought with him over it, but unlike with the coat, he had quickly been won over with the promise of food.

Though it wouldn’t be until the next day where the little one would finally seem to have forgiven his father. This time when you three went to leave for the afternoon outing he did not fight the Mandalorian over the coat. Instead he let his father bundle him up with little complaint. Babbling in bits of gibberish, and pulling out the acorn he had found the other day. Handing it to Din with a bright smile before immediately waddling off in the direction of the clearing.

“See, Din?” You smiled at him, as you both began walking to follow behind the child. “I told you he’d forgive you.”

He had looked over the acorn. The smile he wore hidden behind the helmet. “Yeah, you were right.”

“I usually am.” You had gone to laugh, but an icy breeze had swept through as you spoke, and instead you could only seem to shiver while Din had chuckled.

Of course you had forgotten your coat again.

#din djarin #din djarin x reader #din djarin x gn!reader #the mandalorian #the mandalorian fanfic #star wars fanfic #my fics #reader fic #cy's fictober 2023 #mandalorian fanfic #fanfic #fictober #fictober2023

[yukipri]

I saw somewhere someone says it wasn't the Jedi fault what happened at Galidraan, they were there to arrest and investigate, not to kill, and it was the mando who attack first. Is that true ? I didn't read it

Ahh fandom misunderstandings about Galidraan continue.

Understandable, given it's from a relatively obscure base media but the event comes up a lot in fan works. I'll do my best to break it down.

All you need to know about the Massacre on Galidraan

The following info is all from the Legends comic Jango Fett: Open Seasons, specifically focussing on the 3rd installment, Winter. Here's a photo of my physical copy I have open as I type this, so you know I'm not pulling this info out of my ass.

First, some crucial facts:

1: Galidraan was not a Mandos vs Jedi conflict.

It may appear that way at first glance, and likely seemed that way to many outsiders across the Galaxy who only read about the massacre in a heavily censored news article. But while the battle was the True Mandalorians fighting against the Jedi and ultimately all dying except for Jango, that is not what the conflict was about.

2: There were 4 factions involved in Galidraan.

People oftentimes boil it down to Mandos vs Jedi, but that isn't accurate, because there were 4 parties involved:

The True Mandalorians (Haat Mando'ade; Jango's people)

The Jedi

Death Watch (led by Tor Vizsla, who killed Jaster, Jango's mentor)

The Governor of Galidraan

I have no idea why some fandom takes on Galidraan forget to mention the last two, when they are why the massacre took place at all.

3: The party responsible for the conflict on Galidraan was DEATH WATCH, with the Governor of Galidraan as their accomplice.

&

The Jedi were used, and the True Mandalorians were victims.

You can endlessly debate whether or not the Jedi or the True Mandalorians could have taken different actions to have possibly prevented the massacre. And it's true, it might have been possible! There were certainly other actions that both sides could have taken.

HOWEVER. That discussion can ONLY take place after understanding that both sides were very intentionally, and very MALICIOUSLY manipulated by a third party.

This was not a normal Jedi vs Mandos clash. Neither the Jedi nor the True Mandalorians would have fought (would have even been on the planet in the first place!) without these manipulations, so to ask which of the two was to blame without first understanding that Death Watch set them up is failing to get Galidraan at all.

Here's what happened at the Massacre of Galidraan:

Jango and the True Mandalorians took a job from the Governor of Galidraan to kill his political opponents. The True Mandalorians are mercenaries, and this was just a job for them. It's also implied that Jango knew in advance that the Governor of Galidraan had been harboring Tor Vizsla and funding Death Watch*, and he intentionally took the job in order to get the Governor to owe him and pay him with information on them.

Jango and the True Mandalorians killed the Governor's political opponents, just as they were hired to do, and upheld their agreement. When Jango goes to collect payment, it was a trap—Tor Vizsla and Death Watch were waiting for him, and attempted to kill him.

Jango escapes, but his jetpack is damaged, as are his comms (or perhaps more likely, his comms were intentionally blocked). This is important because Jango now knows explicitly that they were set up: that the Governor of Galidraan was always working with Death Watch, and that he and his people being called to this planet was a trap in order to kill them. He tries to warn the True Mandalorians (Myles, his second, to be exact) to evacuate, but is unable to reach them because of his comms connection.

Back with Death Watch and the Governor, after Vizsla fails to kill Jango, they watch as the Jedi land on planet. The Governor states: "Yes, as you [Tor Vizsla] instructed, I begged for [the Jedi/the Republic's] help. Informed them that the Mandalorians were slaughtering political activists, which is basically true."

So, let's get this straight: the Governor of Galidraan, who personally HIRED the True Mandalorians to get rid of his political opponents, is now calling the Jedi to say "Oh no the Mandalorians are killing political activists!" And he did so under the explicit orders of Tor Vizsla. He explicitly backstabbed the True Mandalorians.

Should note that the True Mandalorians do follow a code, and only killed the specific people considered a threat (aka combatants). The True Mandalorians did not touch civilians, but as you can see from frames above, Death Watch goes ahead and kills them to make false evidence against the True Mandalorians and therefore justify their slaughter.

Again: Death Watch/Tor Vizsla and the Governor of Galidraan EXPLICITLY set up the True Mandalorians/Jango.

Next: Jango gets back to the True Mandalorians' camp as soon as he can, and arrives just as a large group of Jedi arrive, led by Dooku. Their lightsabers are already drawn.

Dooku says to them: "You stand accused of murder. Surrender now and we will ensure that you are fairly treated."

The girl next to Dooku, presumably young Komari Vosa, adds, "But fight us, and we will bring swift justice!"

Jango's response: "Mandalorians, open fire! And shoot the loudmouth first!"

And so the battle begins.

Without any of the previous context, sure, it might be easy to say "Jango's responsible, he fired first." But take a moment to think about what led up to this moment.

Jango knows, explicitly, that Death Watch and the Governor are working together.

He knows that Death Watch just wants him dead, and in fact very literally just escaped being killed.

He knows that he and his people are caught in a trap, and that Death Watch and the Governor want them all dead.

He probably isn't sure how they're going to be killed—until he arrives back at camp, and sees a shitton of Jedi with their lightsabers drawn, who are accusing them of a crime they did not commit. And he must have thought, ah, that would do it.

This isn't a normal encounter with the Jedi. It's true that Mandalorians have reasons to dislike Jedi as a whole, but Jango didn't shoot first because of that.

Jango shot first because he recognized that the Jedi were the weapon that Death Watch and the Governor chose for the execution of himself and his people. And he wasn't wrong.

Could Jango have maybe stopped to have a gentlemanly chat with Dooku and say "Good sir, we did not commit any murder, you were told false information and are being manipulated and we the True Mandalorians have been set up. Please put away your lightsabers so we can talk"? I mean. He could have. But.

With all of the context above, his decision to raise arms also makes sense.

After the battle, all fo the True Mandalorians present have been killed except Jango, as well as roughly half of the Jedi. Many of those Jedi were killed by Jango himself, with nothing but his bare hands—this is how he gains his infamous reputation as a "Jedi Killer." But to him, he was acting in self-defense.

The Jedi—or rather, at least Dooku—realize that they have been used only after the fact, and that they've done something horribly wrong and have killed innocents. Surrounded by the bodies of Jedi and True Mandalorians, and having just watched Jango strangle one last Jedi, Dooku says:

"What have we done...?"

In the "present" of the comic (pre-clone deal), Dooku also tells Sidious about Galidraan, "It was a misguided mission from the start. And not the first of the Council's many...poor decisions."

So what happened afterwards?

Jango alone was captured alive, and for some darn reason the Jedi turned him over to the Governor of Galidraan*. The Governor sold Jango to slavers and he was forced to work on a spice transport, until an opportunity arose to escape.

After escaping, did Jango seek out the Jedi?

No.

He beelined straight back to Galidraan, where the Governor, who had sold him and worked with Death Watch, had taken his armor (Jaster's armor) as some sort of twisted war trophy. He recovered his armor, and threatened the governor to get info on Tor Vizsla's location.

After that, did he go on a revenge campaign against the Jedi?

No.

He went straight for Tor Vizsla, who was PERSONALLY responsible for the deaths of the True Mandalorians at Galidraan. And he fought him. And killed him.

(or more specifically, injured him then let dire-cats eat him alive. Looks like Fetts have always had good luck with animals)

So that's the facts about Galidraan.

After Thoughts:

I hope this breakdown of the events makes it explicitly clear that Death Watch and the Governor were at fault for Galidraan, and that it was never a Mandos vs Jedi conflict. The same thing would have happened had Death Watch chosen a different executioner—though to be fair, not much can kill a trained group of Mandalorian mercenaries like the True Mandalorians.

Could both the True Mandalorians and Jedi have taken different actions that could have averted tragedy? Possibly. But just as likely, had Jango tried to talk, word would have reached the Jedi's ears that oh no, more Mandalorians are slaughtering the Galidraan women and children! (what Death Watch was doing while the True Mandos and Jedi were fighting) and then one of the more hot headed Jedi like Vosa probably would have been like "These negotiations are a distraction! Even now you're killing innocents—we fight!" And the True Mandos would have been killed anyway.

Again, they were set up. The True Mandalorians to be killed, the Jedi to be used as their ignorant executioner. They were not the only parties involved, and any attempt to peacefully negotiate their way out of it would have been hindered by the true aggressors, who already had contingency plans at the ready. And also, both parties were already expecting certain things of the other: Jango knew the Jedi had been sent to kill them (though not why the Jedi believed they should), and the Jedi thought they were a bunch of murderers, not a professional group simply hired for a job.

This is just my personal take, but while I don't think either Jango nor Dooku acted unreasonably at the time of the battle, there were two points where I think they could have made better decisions (marked with * above):

1) When Jango decided to take a job on Galidraan in the first place, knowing in advance that the Governor was friendly with Tor Vizsla and Death Watch. Admittedly, the comic doesn't provide much context for this, and perhaps the intel Jango had suggested a more distant connection, or something else to imply the Governor would be willing to rat out Death Watch. It seems almost cute that Jango goes ok, well I don't want to just randomly bust this guy's door down to threaten him for info on my arch nemesis, so I'm going to do a job for him and get him to owe me, and then we'll talk.

If there is one not so intelligent move Jango made, it seems like this one, though again there's not much context so perhaps it does make more sense.

2) When the Jedi give Jango to the Governor of Galidraan. I don't know about the rest of the Jedi, but Dooku at least seemed to sense that something had gone horribly wrong with the mission immediately after the battle, before they took Jango into custody. But despite KNOWING this, they didn't take the time to thoroughly investigate (better late than never) before handing Jango to his enemies on a silver platter. I would say that the Jedi ARE pretty responsible for this part, especially since they had reason to know better.

This action of the Jedi handing Jango over also implies that even if Jango had complied and he and all of the True Mandalorians had surrendered to the Jedi in hopes of talks, the Jedi would have handed them all over to the Governor (and Death Watch) to either be turned into slaves or executed. So no, I don't think that would have worked out well at all.

(I'm going to give at least Dooku the benefit of doubt, since the comic shows that at least he (and possibly he alone of the Jedi present) recognized that something was wrong. I'd hope that as the leader and presumably most senior member of the group of Jedi, he'd have some sort of authority, but then again, this is the Senate. He might have tried to at least delay Jango being handed over to the Governor until an investigation was conducted, but was perhaps held back by too much legal tape, and had to watch as someone he was sure was a victim was handed over to a suspicious party. Maybe he personally did an investigation afterwards and found that his bad feelings were correct, but when he tried to bring it up with the Council/Senate, he was told to forget about it. That would certainly shatter what remaining faith he had in the Republic and the Jedi, and possibly also lead him to search out Jango specifically as a candidate for the clone project—but again, this is purely speculation. Either way, Galidraan forms a potentially very fascinating connection between Dooku and Jango that predates Sidious.)

On the Jedi:

While the Galidraan conflict isn't about the Jedi, and they were simply used, I think internally, it does reveal some deep flaws in the Jedi Order as a whole, and that Dooku's criticisms of how they acted are fair. Dooku tells Jango, "[Galidraan] was the last of my foolish errands for the Senate. And the Jedi."

The Jedi are supposed to be peacekeepers, are supposed to understand and help people across the Galaxy, which their connection to the Force is supposed to help with. But by becoming an entity controlled by a political power that responds to mission requests through that chain, the Jedi are at risk of being used for various political agendas, sometimes to terrible consequences—like at Galidraan.

The quote above shows that the orders for the Jedi came from the Senate, who got them from the Governor of Galidraan. The fact is that the Jedi are a completely external force with zero familiarity with Galidraan or its current happenings, who were summoned by a government to do their bidding. If there was any investigation done, it clearly wasn't enough, and the Jedi were essentially turned into super deadly government attack dogs.

Galidraan laid bare the great danger that the Jedi can be, when their power is given to the wrong hands. Again, the Jedi were used—but that they could be used, that they likely have been used in the past and will be used in the future so long as they are beholden to a Republic whose orders they must follow—that's something to think about.

Again, it's not about Jedi vs Mandos. Sure, the fact that the Jedi have bad history with Mandos may have affected the lack of depth in their investigation. But it could have just as easily been "Group of X people are murdering innocents!" and the very same thing could have happened. This conflict revealed far less, "wow the Jedi really hate Mandos!" and more, "the Jedi and the Republic have a flawed relationship, and obeying government orders does not necessarily a peacekeeper make."

Given that the Jedi decided to give Jango to the Governor, I think it's very likely that no deep investigation was ever done into Galidraan, and if it was, it was covered up. After all, it's against the Republic's interests to show that they passed manipulated info to the Jedi, because they can't have the Jedi wanting to question future orders or worse, refuse to obey! And in a way, it's against the Order's interests to show that they not only fucked up by going to the mission at all, but further fucked up by handing the last surviving victim to the enemy after the fact. Add to that the fact that Death Watch was on site actively manipulating evidence and muddling the truth, and Jango no longer has anyone left alive to vouch for him so it's only his word, it's very likely that the truth really never got out of the small circle of those personally involved.

Perhaps the Jedi taught about Galidraan internally as a cautionary tale about being careful about the orders they're given. But given the above, I think that's incredibly generous and frankly unlikely.

On Jango Fett

This leads me to a final point: I disagree that Jango passionately hates and wants revenge on the Jedi.

At least, based on this story, as well as his depiction in the Bounty Hunters video game (which is supposed to be a sequel to this comic, even though its depiction of the start of the cloning contract isn't mutually compatible with the version in this comic) Jango doesn't actually really appear to care all that much about the Jedi at all.

You can say what you will about his actions, but he always has a very clear target for who his enemy is, and he goes straight for them. Immediately post Galidraan, it was the Governor of Galidraan and then Tor Vizsla specifically—not even the rest of Death Watch!

And while there isn't all that much official info on what Jango did after he killed Vizsla until he was pulled into the cloning project, I see zero evidence that he was consumed by revenge, or that he attempted to hunt down the rest of Death Watch or kill any Jedi despite the harm they have done to him in the past.

In fact, from his depiction at the start of the Bounty Hunters game, which I think is the best source of this period of his life that I can think of, it looks like Jango just kind of threw himself into bounty hunting work. After all, one does not have the reputation as "best bounty hunter in the galaxy" overriding "former Mand'alor, leader of the True Mandalorians" unless he did, well, a lot of bounty hunting.

He was a loner who didn't have any friends, which implies he didn't go looking for any surviving True Mandalorians—and there must have been, not everyone could have been in that battle. I suspect it's out of guilt, but that's a separate discussion. He didn't go hunting Jedi specifically, because presumably not many Jedi (who still identify as Jedi) have bounties on them, and "Jedi Killer" would certainly be a reputation louder than bounty hunter if that was his main focus.

But no. He was just a sad, lost dude who's really good at killing people so continues the Honorable Mercenary traditions of his people who are now gone, all by himself. Even the contest that lead to him being chosen as the Prime clone was originally just another job, and he just happened to meet Montross in the process, but he didn't really go out of his way to hunt him down either, despite how he was personally responsible for Jaster's death.

However—if you don't know that about Jango, and again don't have a full understanding of what happened at Galidraan (which again, I doubt many people do), I think it would be very easy to go oh! The Jedi killed all his people! So of course he hates Jedi!

(Which then provides a reason for why the Sith would think he would want to work with them to hurt Jedi—but does NOT explain why the Jedi would not think it suspicious that he's the Prime clone for an army supposedly made to help them. But that too is a separate exploration.)

All of this makes Jango a very fascinating character for me, and I could go on to explore his motivations and actions so much more—and in fact I do!!! All of those explorations of Jango and his motives and past are included as a large part of my fic, The Prime Override! So I won't go into it more here, this post is long enough, but you can check out my thoughts there! (LMAO sudden self-promo)

But anyway!!! I hope this whole thing was interesting for you, and that it helped you understand what happened at Galidraan better!

Again, the comic is Jango Fett: Open Seasons, written by Hayden Blackman, art by Ramon Bachs, Raul Fernandez, and Brad Anderson, published by Dark Horse Comics in 2002.

While I believe the standalone comic is out of print (I had to hunt down my copy on ebay), it's all included in Marvel Unlimited's digital comic library. It's also in the Star Wars Omnibus: Emissaries & Assassins collection, which might be cheaper because it's more recent.

As tragic as Jango's past is, it's one of my favorite Legends stories and I recommend reading the story for yourself if you can!

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#YukiPri rambles #YukiPri replies #Galidraan #Jango Fett #Star Wars #Star Wars Legends #Count Dooku #SW Lore #Open Seasons #comics #longpost #long post #OP comment: All of this is also why it absolutely BAFFLES me that new canon seems so obsessed with Death Watch #and has made lots of other Mando factions but hasn't really done much about the True Mandalorians??? #like that is what I was expecting the Book of Boba Fett to be about #especially given the timing of being after Mando S2 and Din getting the Darksaber but before Mando S3 #Should note: this comic predates the Darksaber's existence by 8 years #so people who say 'oh Jango and Jaster were never the true leaders of Mandalore bc they never had the Darksaber' #my dude the Darksaber did not appear as a concept until 8 years after these stories were published #Anyway if you are like me and think gosh most of the new canon Mando factions are real assholes in some way or another #why is there no Hero Group #here they are: the True Mandalorians and Boba Fett's heritage #Anyway really REALLY hoping they bring this story back into new canon #Jaster was an easter egg and now technically canon thanks to Boba's armor chain code which means True Mandos are also presumably canon #so here's to hoping... #Anyway yeah I wrote this essay in place of updating fic oops

[deewithani]

So I had an idea after yesterday's episodes, regarding what it means to be "unaltered" and why Omega is so important.

Nala Se knew, without testing, what would be found with Omega's blood.

Rewind to Season 2, when she was talking with Lama Su. Notice they're talking about Jango's original genetic material and creating a "superior" clone. Also note that Nala Se says she needs a "direct source".

They're not talking about Gen 1 clones, they likely still have several Gen 1 clones that they could access. They're specifically talking about Jango and the unaltered clones, Boba and Omega.

They're special specifically because they're unaltered.

But unaltered is special because I believe they discovered Jango himself was special.

It wasn't ever necessary for her to test Omega's blood. She knew exactly what they would find because they tested Jango.

And if Jango wasn't special himself then there was no need to mention that his original genetic material was degrading.

I suspect that the Kaminoans already knew that it was possible to clone people with high midiclorian counts, you just did it like any other cloning. The test for them was removing high midiclorian counts from the resulting clones.

The next problem is "degraded genetic material". They couldn't use Jango's anymore. The problem is degradation. You know who else is probably actively degrading since being crispy fried by Mace Windu?

This could also be because he's getting old as balls too, but it still stands.

We don't see who is in the clone tanks on Tantiss, but I've seen a couple of different theories. Whether it's dead Jedi or Palpatine clones, it doesn't really matter. What matters is that whatever or whoever it is, is degrading, and they're trying to find a suitable genetic host to allow those degraded midichlorians to grow and replicate.

(Personally I think it's Palpatine clones, since dead Jedi are shown in both 'Rebels' and 'Obi-Wan Kenobi'.)

And what about Boba? How does he end up working for the Empire so long but no one tried to come after him for his DNA? This is a fairly easy loophole, tbh. The only ones who really knew that he was a clone were the Kaminoans, the Jedi, and the othet clones, and how many of them knew he was unaltered, and if none of them said anything then how would the Empire ever know he was anything other than a natural born son of Jango?

And would Vader even know that Palpatine was looking for an unaltered clone of Jango? Could just be a case of the right hand not knowing what the left hand was up to.

My big question now is what made them so special. It's not like Palpatine didn't have access to living people with the Force. I think that there is 2 different issues at play. The first is degradation, but the second is the dark side itself. Midichlorians from a degraded sample won't replicate in a dark side host. The Force is living, after all. I think there is some sentience here that the Empire is trying to fool.

If they could have used Inquisitors to do this, then they would have.

This is also why there were attempts to abduct force sensitive children in TCW and in Rebels. This is also why they're desperate to get Grogu in The Mandalorian.

Notice that they're all children. Too young to be tainted by the dark side and evil.

And there you have it. Omega is force sensitive, but so is Boba, and so was Jango.

It also means that probably every clone could have been force sensitive, and that it is genetic (I argued that on a previous post), but removing force sensitivity was part of their modification and was knowingly held back by Kamino until they thought that a "superior" clone was needed.

Also, Glitch is correct.

#this was really long #and i wrote it between calls at work so forgive me if i got something wrong #star wars speculation #tbb spoilers #bad batch spoilers #the bad batch spoilers #Youtube

[mozart-the-meerkitten]

Been rewatching the Mandalorian seasons 1 and 2 and honestly it’s criminal that they didn’t let Din and Luke interact more, purely because Din Djarin is one of the few people in the universe who can match the Skywalker’s pure unbridled chaos.

Like, the man had a jetpack for TEN MINUTES and, after being told it wouldn’t listen to him until he practiced with it, used it to fly up and ATTACK A TIE FIGHTER with his bare hands and some bombs. The man let a dragon eat him so he could blow it up from the inside SOLELY TO GET SOME RANDOM MANDALORIAN ARMOR BACK. He attacked the JAWA’S MOVING FORTRESS with all the foolhardy confidence that the Skywalker clan ever had. I could go on.

He finds out Luke was off his home planet for like two days and managed to free an Imperial prisoner AND blow up the Death Star and he’s like “oh yeah that’s like the time I rescued my kid from an Imperial remnant and tried to fight the entire bounty hunter’s guild on my own”. They would be BEST FRIENDS and you cannot convince me otherwise.

(Also the fact that Din has this ridiculous chaotic energy and is calmer than the Skywalkers ever managed to be is hilarious because the Jedi are supposed to be chill and in control but nah man, not the Skywalkers, and then you have this Mandalorian who seems so chill and you’re like “oh he must be more levelheaded” but NO he’s just as bad he’s just outwardly calm about it [and internally screaming])

#the mandalorian #star wars #din djarin #luke skywalker #also the deadliest duo in the galaxy #han is right there with them discussing chaotic stunts #leia and cara are off in the background reminiscing about alderaan #artoo is babysitting which just means they've put a baby harness on grogu and tied it to artoo #and the two of them are getting up to shenanigans while the adults aren't looking #chewie is /actually/ watching artoo and grogu but he's too amused to stop them

[darlin-djarin]

Its during season 2 when Din and Boba ask for Bo Katans help to rescue Grogu. She spends most of the scene being quite racist towards Boba Fett specifically targeting him because he is a clone.

Saying he's a disgrace to his armour, that he shouldnt be considered a Mandalorian, and calls his father "his donor" and says shes heard his voice thousands of times and thats why shes being hateful about his existence.

Its very uncomfortable to watch because shes white, being racist to a character played by a Maori man. But his helmet is on during he scene to make it look less racist.

Maybe its because im indigenous too, but the racism in that scene stood out a lot and it upsets me the show refuses to acknowledge it. (Id recommend a scene rewatch its really jarring to see compared to how they portray her this season)

oh oh my god

thank you for telling me, that scene went right past me. bo-katan’s racism is so… yikes. i know there’s general racism towards clones by a lot of people but the fact that bo-katan outwardly expressed it right to BOBA FETT’S FACE.

honestly tcw bo-katan seemed much more likeable just because her hatred and rage made her an interesting character. no hate to katee but live action bo-katan is so dulled down and her getting a THIRD CHANCE at the darksaber is getting so fucking boring like. just bc she’s a woman doesn’t erase her blatant racism and terrorism. ik it’s fun to joke about “god forbid women do anything” but like real talk here, bo-katan (in the live action at least) is getting more and more unlikeable. i don’t want to see any more of her. i’ve seen a lot of people saying that they hope she dies and frankly it’d do her better if she did. make her go out doing something honorable in parallel to her horrible past.

handing the show to bo-katan is such an awful take. i try to avoid controversy in the fandom but giving the “princess” role to a white woman who’s very much racist and has also expressed her hatred towards followers of the creed (calling din’s covert a cult when miss maam was literally part of the death watch) is so UGHH. like i love women but get this clown out of here. i tried liking her, i did. i actually really liked her in the clone wars and her characterization there was so interesting but putting her into the live action and doing her dirty just feels so wrong.

i’m sorry that scene was so jarring for you. i’m indigenous as well so i understand how you must feel about it. i’ll probably rewatch it soon just to remember what happened.

taking away the spotlight from a man of color just to give it to a racist white woman who’s lost the ONE thing giving her importance twice and then giving it back to her for a third time is just. like respectfully, i don’t think ANYONE wanted to see that. and people who are like “it’s good that din gets to be a side character! bo-katan deserves to be the princess she is!” are literally lying to themselves. favroni is systematically giving us bad content so our standards are lowered and we celebrate the smallest things even if they’re terrible. bo-katan being a princess is a boring idea and taking away din’s development into WHY he doesn’t want the saber is just bad storytelling.

i have so much more to talk about but i just KNOW people are gonna get mad 💀 sorry to hate on your fav but she is a racist white woman who plays no importance unless she has an object that she’s lost 2 times before.

#star wars #the mandalorian #bo katan kryze #the clone wars #boba fett #din djarin #oil.

[pointesdulac]

totally cool to ignore/delete this, but I'm curious what your ideal mando s3 would've been. (bonus question: what parts of the season did you like/were your favorite?)

you're fine, anon!! um, for the bonus question i will admit i have not actually watched any of this season. i have only consumed gifs/tweets/learned what's happened via friends who are still watching. i only heard bad things about the show, so for my own sanity i didn't watch any of it. LOL. i truly believe that people should hit da bricks if it's annoying them!! nothing of value is lost!!

that being said, I liked that Bo-Katan and the Armourer are girlfriends now??

ANYWAY. This is a layered question because I'm not sure if you prefer I answer "how would you logically make s3 for a general audience (no gay kissing in sw)" vs "what would your fanfic of s3 be (ample gay kissing)" because those answers are very different for reasons even aside from the obvious (gay kissing). I am a huge advocate for Din becoming king since, disregarding common jokes, I think it's perfect for his character and his journey.

Ummm Worlds Apart is already my 'Din slowly accepts becoming king' exploration. I'd probably write it a little differently now, since some stuff was going on at that point and I lost passion for it along the way. I was kinda forcing myself to finish it but it's still decent I think. This was written before the BOBF episodes, though, so I guess with those developments, uhhh... Anyway, super briefly since I don't let Mando take up much space in my brain since I'm kinda disillusioned:

I'd probably do a longer/deeper exploration of Din going to the mines and getting redeemed, and keep Grogu and Din apart long enough for that to have sincere emotional weight! Obviously this isn't a realistic wish since CGI Luke is not viable for main plot, but Luke existing and then vanishing from the plot is just bizarre, so.

So, Grogu is missing his father and it affects his training. You get a great parallel from prequels when Anakin gets told how his mind is thinking so often of his mother and it's not a good thing (I am not going deeper into this or someone will jump down my throat about Jedi stuff but you get the implication). Luke picks a different tactic than the previous generation and realizes Grogu needs to go back to his dad. As this happens, Din is grateful obviously but also explains his journey/task to redeem himself. Obviously, Luke helps Din navigate Mandalore/the Mines since he feels responsible for putting Din in that position unknowingly. On this journey they get to talk about resurrecting old cultures, feeling lost in revelations about their people, and starting new paths.

Luke being in the plot in real life can't work because we can't CGI budget it, but they really made him feel like a piece of glue connecting it. He makes the Gideon force-clone business make more sense. Together, Din and Luke fight 1) Gideon's awful conquest of Mandlore and 2) figure out the clone conspiracy/learn lost Jedi information. Luke is constantly dealing with clone shit in legends. It makes sense and the unifying mando/jedi themes are romantic, complementary and we get to see both Luke and Din rise into positions of leadership/honour in regards to their chosen cultures in unison! They're mirrors they're foils they're soulmates.

I wanted to see Din become king so bad and Gideon deserved to die by having his head cut off with the heirloom of the people whose planet and culture he tried to extinguish!!! gideon was fucked up for using the darksaber against the mandalorians and it should've thematically come back to get him!! din deserved to rule as a just, earnest king who proved mandalore was not what everyone believed it to be!! literally hero's journey 101 and they couldn't follow the clear path they laid out for themselves!!

but what do i know i just like to think about the guys kissing and stuff

#anyway #i'll delete this later #idk i don't interact with fandom anymore for obvious reasons #save for a few friends #but sometimes i miss my ship but i feel like i can't interact with it #them's the breaks

[dotthings]

There are some people who might want to think about how tv production--especially for a show on the platform and format of The Mandalorian--works before they decide they know what happened behind the scenes.

The Mandalorian is created for streaming. It has a massive budget. LFL plans things well in advance. It has a long post-production time as well. The entire season is written and the season completed before it even gets an airdate.

This is not filmed like broadcast network tv with a 22 episode season.

At most, what happened was the producers had enough time to plan story arcs to allow for Pedro's heavily filming schedule with TLOU. But given that Bo-Katan Kryze was already established as part of The Mandalorian in Season 2, her role was likely always planned to be big. She's a significant legacied Star Wars character who deserved further story.

Also remember that a lot of the Din work is a stunt double with Pedro doing VA work. I'm not seeing how TLOU casting would have to be the entire reason for the Bo-Katan storyline.

As I said in my earlier post, starting in Season one I realized that The Mandalorian was about Mandalorian culture not just Din Djarin. He's the window into that world. That was even more obvious in S2. It was also obvious from season 1 that Din and Grogu would not be the only characters on the show. That was stepped up very gradually bringing others in, but even in S1, Din had a group of allies.

Some dates:

The announcement of Pedro Pascal starring in TLOU was made in February 2021.

The Mandalorian season 3 started filming in October 2021 and wrapped in March 2022.

TLOU started filming in July 2021, wrapped June 2022.

There's no way they altered story plans midstream while making S3. At most, the writing of S3, in advance, tried to lighten Pedro's load a bit. It was worked out before they even started filming.

The emphasis on Mandalorian culture with multiple Mandalorians in the story, and Bo-Katan getting a major storyline, isn't a late insert. It is not a last minute hasty patch or adjustment. Let me repeat--Bo-Katan is a significant legacied Star Wars character. Do people really think LFL did a show called The Mandalorian without ever planning to go back to Mandalore, and to such a significant Mandalorian character, already established in the SW universe, before The Mandalorian even got started.

There's nothing surprising here.

#The Mandalorian

[bearsbeetsbeskar]

Ah yes yes yes, I love all of that!

I'm sometimes frustrated because I didn't enjoy season three while it seems most fans did (which I'm glad for them), and it's kinda discouraging sometimes. I loved season one and two so bad and wanted to love season three, but I just couldn't :(

Ngl, unless I hear that the movie and/or season four is back to what the show once was, I'm not gonna watch it.

I'm just really happy to have the first two seasons, and if worst comes to worst, I'm more than grateful to live off those.

Yes yes yes this is exactly how I felt love!

I wanted to like season 3 so SO badly, I really tried. But after every episode I was left feeling confused, disappointed, and short changed.

Many people argued that season 3 was amazing regardless but to me it just did not follow the vibes and overall 'badassness' if you will, that season 1 and season 2 had. I think I also was so excited and hyped for season 3 cause it was the first season I would be able to enjoy after joining the fandom, and splitting from my ex (who had such an insecurity complex over my love for the show and pedro - like to the point where he told me that I ruined the show for him bc of how obsessed I became with pedro - like OK bro). And for it to go the way it did, I felt so let down.

also, this is completely an aside - but due to pedro's filming schedule with tlou, his stunt double brendan wayne was in the suit for majority of filming for s3, and I don't know what's up with that man but he has some kind of major ego trip. Especially after season 3 aired. Making all kinds of posts with subtext or slights that completely diss pedro's inability to be in the suit, calling himself the actual mandalorian. Like WHAT? you're a STUNT DOUBLE BRO. I will be genuinely surprised if Disney keeps him on, but they need someone to be in the suit when pedro can't physically be there so I doubt that will be happening anytime soon

And I just don't get how people could like a season that barely focused on the relationship between the two main characters that were the heart of the show in the first place?

But again, that is just my opinion, to each their own.

I am apprehensive about season 4 (if there will even be a season 4 at this point), and I am apprehensive about the movie. As you said, if it isn't about grogu and Din, I will be severely disappointed and continue to live in my bubble where I only acknowledge season 1 and season 2. And I'm really hoping for the wow factor of the movie that we will get a helmet less Din scene, or at least that pedro will be under the suit for majority of filming, as a final send off for Din

but THANK YOU for sharing your thoughts with me, it means a lot to know there are others who feel the same way about our beloved Din and this show. I'm always so eager to nerd out about my love for this show and that bucket head and his green son ❤️

#the mandalorian #din djarin #nicoles mindless rambling about mando continues

[thevibraniumveterans]

《The Mandalorian》『SEASON 3 : Episode 8 - Chapter 24』-「THE RETURN」

SPOILERS!

Thoughts on rewatch……

This episode picks up where last episode leaves off. Did not expect the jetpack to last that long for Axe; given that the fleet was just outside atmosphere.

Bo Katan has a plan. Normally, her plans (just like anyone else’s plans) don’t quite go as intended. But she’s confident, and sends Axe up to the ship.

Ever the leader, she charges in but brings up the rear, setting a detonator charge to buy her some time.

Din is bound between two troopers, and we get a first-person POV from inside his helmet. I’d assumed one’s line of sight from inside the helmet wasn’t much, but I’m wrong.

Din asks Grogu, “You with me?” The music soars from the drums (important later), straight into the theme music.

Din contacts Bo-Katan and lets her know he and Grogu are okay for the time being, and tells her what he’s doing. She updates him on her plan, and tells him to “stay safe”. No surprise, the camera immediately cuts to the Captain, and the crew leaves their current predicament.

Next scene is the TIE/IN Interceptors. They hang upside down like bats, and they drop and take off like them too. It ups the scary factor, as they can launch with little notice. We also see bombers screaming skyward to the flagship. The shot of numerous TIE fighters shooting out of a hole in Mandalore’s surface is just… something else to see.

Gideon puts on his helmet, and when he says “I’ll take care of them myself”, he sounds a lot like Darth Vader.

The shots of R5, Din, and Grogu sneaking around the base feels A LOT like the sequence in A New Hope where R2D2, Kenobi, Han, Luke, and Chewbacca are sneaking around the Death Star. It’s also interesting how Din speaking to Grogu is sort of a meta-narration, so we learn the details the same time Grogu is hearing it.

Axe notifies command, and sends all his troops down to the planet. He orders them to leave the capital ship. At this point I’m thinking, “Axe is crazy! That’s incredibly self-sacrificing!” But then I remember loyalty is one of the best traits any Mandalorian has, so it’s no surprise he’s willing to do what it takes to help defeat Gideon and his army. Axe’s troops head down to the waiting Gauntlets, and they dive toward the surface. The Gauntlets are accompanied by several smaller fighter ships. I really love the shot where the Gauntlets descend to the planet, the camera lingers above the clouds, and not a few seconds later, the TIE Interceptors shoot out from beneath the clouds and up to the capital ship. The Mandos going down, and the Imperials going up, it is a foreshadow for a later scene, but I’ll explain that later. How ships of both parties never hit each other is beyond me, but smart of the Mandos to use the cloud as cover.

Axe trying his damndest to stay put in the pilot’s seat is a feat in and of itself. He’s fighting the fight/flight instinct. I’ve never seen anything like it.

The scene where Din instructs R5 to keep opening the laser shield doors one at a time is pretty intense, it’s like each door he passes, the level of difficulty goes up. The first pair of guards Din fights, he grabs a knife and fights with it momentarily and throws it at one guard, and he tries to get it back, and he fails. He doesn’t let that stop him. He gets another knife from the first downed guard and tells R5 to open shield #2. The weapons get bigger, and the guards get tougher. He fights messy, but acquires an electro-staff and an actual shield. He instructs R5 to open shield #3. He loses the knife, acquires a blaster. R5 gets intercepted, but does not back down, and opens shield #4. Din loses a shield, but retains the blaster; he shoots the last few guards a few times for good measure. Din now has two blasters. He went from being weaponless to being fully-armed. After all, weapons are part of his religion.

Din and Grogu pass clones of Gideon. This might be a bit of a canonical throwback, but the fact that Gideon has been able to clone himself kind of points to why the Empire, years ago, was looking for Omega from the Bad Batch. She was one of the special ones. Even so, last episode, Gideon says that cloning was not his obsession; clearly that was a lie, but also a misdirect, since he did say about his beskar armor, “the most impressive improvement is that it has me in it.” That, was not a lie. It was a foreshadow. Din shuts down the tanks, which explode, and he and Grogu leave.

Even though Bo and her troops arrive at their very temporary shelter (as they leave literally right after this), it’s not simply just worldbuilding. The Captain explains that though he and his crew have had to cultivate the plants, it was a giant metaphor for just how stubborn Mandalore and its people are. The Empire bombed the planet until it looked like there was nothing left, and yet, and YET people, plants, and animals clung to life. Life on Mandalore does NOT quit. The Captain says, “Life persists.” Bo admits, “I’ve only ever seen gardens in the domed cities.” To which the captain replies, “All they need is room to grow.” Fitting metaphor for the Mandalorians themselves.

Bo’s troops go up, Axe’s troops go down, and they reunite as a single deadly fighting force. Bo takes out the Darksaber - as she believed that it is only with the blade she can reunite her people. This is not really true, and I’ll explain why later. The Mandalorian troops head back down into the planet, and are met with ascending Imperials. Remember the foreshadow earlier when the Gauntlets went down then the TIEs went up? That was a foreshadow for this scene! And what an aerial battle it is. I have never in my life watched a jetpack battle between people in Mandalorian armor. It’s a really awesome scene. The reason why Bo can actually wield the Darksaber is because her goals and feelings regarding her people and her planet are very, very clear - she may not want to rule Mandalore, but she sure as hell wants her home planet and her people back. We hear the frantic but controlled alto instruments, but also the bass line of the Mandalorian theme song playing as the clash begins.

Gideon thought he could “[isolate] the potential to wield the Force” (that’s what he wanted from Grogu a season or two back), but the Force is not something you “get”, it’s something you have. You either have it or you don’t. If you don’t have it you can’t wield it. Gideon’s movements are calculated, controlled rage. His movements sound like there is a robot behind the suit rather than a human, making him seem more menacing. He lets Din face the Praetorians alone. Much like their real world counterparts, Praetorians are elite guards. When Grogu becomes a target, the Guards rush after him. Din tries to run after Grogu, but gets repeatedly downed by Gideon. We see an unnamed Mandolorian warrior make use of her knee blasters. The battle rages on three fronts: The Praetorians are attacking Grogu, Gideon fights Din, and the Mandalorians exchange blaster fire with the Imperials. Bo Katan spears one through the midsection with the Darksaber - brutal, but necessary. She comes in with a flying kick, aided by her jetpack, and downs Gideon. She tells Din to get Grogu. Bo fighting with a saber is definitely NOT the first time we see a non-Force sensitive person wield a saber (see: Han in ESB (briefly), and Sabine Wren in Rebels). Also love how Grogu is just casually using the Force to aid Din, and Din doesn’t even know it (maybe he does).

Meanwhile, the capitol ship is on a downward trajectory that cannot be corrected: this is intentional; Axe meant for this to happen. He will crash the ship into the base, the only way to hurt Gideon where it matters most. Gideon knocks her down, but Bo is furious, gets back up, and lunges. Gideon destroys the Darksaber, removing the one thing Bo thought she could use to reunite her people. Suddenly, she is alone again; in the sense that she theoretically loses authority. Gideon states, “You’ve lost everything.” For context, Obi-Wan had told Anakin in AOTC that a saber is a very precious possession, and extremely meaningful to one’s life. To lose it is tantamount to losing one’s life and meaning. So, to Bo, it’s like she lost everything, all over again. Gideon taunts her, saying “Mandalorians are weak once they lose their trinkets.” This is not true. Last episode, Din told her he’s not loyal to some weapon. The Darksaber means NOTHING to him, and now Bo realizes this. She’s had enough of the power grabs and divisions that the Darksaber has caused between Mandalorians, and she fires back: “Mandalorians are stronger together.” Which is her journey so far. She realizes this only now because if not for what had happened to her, she would not have known this otherwise. The Darksaber is but a mythical weapon, ultimately meaning nothing. Bo has stated last episode, “Mandalore has always been too powerful for any enemy to defeat. It is always our own division that destroys us.” Meaning, the Darksaber is nothing but a curse; without it, the Mandalorians come together NOT BECAUSE OF A BLADE, but to retake their damn homeworld once and for all. Bo did not have to worry about some blade. To nobody’s surprise, the moment she utters this, Din comes marching in with Grogu, blasters firing.

The ship is still going down; at this point I’m thinking, “Axe is on a suicide mission!” But then, right after I finish the thought, he shoots out a window and escapes, free to fight another day. His and Bo’s troops evacuate the base. The ship crashes into the base; Din, Gideon, and Bo face off. Din gets hit on the wrist, and Bo comes to his rescue, shielding him. The place explodes around them, Grogu uses the Force to disadvantage Gideon; Din rushes to protect Grogu, and Bo rushes to protect them both. The flames engulf everyone. It looks like they might not survive this, BUT BUT BUT! Grogu saves the day! He is using the Force to create a bubble to shield Din and Bo. This scene feels so familiar because it feels like a heroic inversion of that one scene in S4E8 of Rebels, “Jedi Night”, where Kanan uses the Force to hold back an explosion to save the Ghost crew but sacrifice himself; here Grogu saves both Bo AND Din from the flames. Bo is astonished; she looks from around her, to Din, and finally down at Grogu, like she can’t believe she’s alive. The flames around them dissipate, and both Mandalorians stand up, and we cut to black. It’s not over.

Remember the drums I mentioned earlier? The Mandos are at the Mines of Mandalore, where Ragnar finally gets to be properly baptized, as his last attempt didn’t go so well. Din practically adopts Grogu right there and then, and the Armorer approves. Someone mentioned once that it took so long for Din to call Grogu his son, because he started off a mission but now Din has grown close enough to basically be a dad. It was about time that happened.

So the thing with names- “Din Grogu”, right? I’m thinking, what if, if “Grogu” is a first name, and “Din” is something like a last name, only put before his first name “Djarin”? Therefore “Din Grogu” would make sense on a lastname-firstname basis. It’s not the same with Bo-Katan, or Axe Woves, or even Sabine Wren, for that matter. If Din and Grogu are a Clan of Two, then clearly it should be called Clan Din. It only makes sense that way, that in Clan Din there is Djarin and Grogu. This is the way names work, I think?

The Armorer states, “You must leave Mandalore and take your apprentice on his journeys, just as your teacher did for you.” And why, you might ask? This is the fulfillment of the Hero’s Journey: the Hero returns to whence he came, after a call to adventure, where he meets supernatural aid and comes across guardians, mentors, and friends; he reaches a revelation, a rebirth, after which he transforms, atones, with the gift of the “Goddess”, and returns. Din had started his journey on the call to adventure, and meets Grogu, his supernatural aid. Greef Karga is his mentor and friend. Bo is also his friend and ally. Din’s revelation is sort of him removing his helmet; his transformation, he changes because of how he feels toward Grogu. However, he must atone for that, so he requests that Bo guide him to the Mines so he can baptize himself in the Living Waters to atone. Then he returns to Mandalore to help fight Gideon, and subsequently also returns to his starting point, as a gunman and bounty hunter for hire.

Bo, the Armorer, and the rest of the Mandalorians meet at the Great Forge, finally able to reclaim Mandalore after so many years. The Armorer hands Bo-Katan Kryze a torch, and she lights the Forge. It roars to life, symbolic of the Mandalorians being one once more. The Mandalorians have finally come home, UNITED, and it wasn’t even a blade that reunited them.

Din returns to the rebel base. Some time passes, and he returns to Nevarro. Greef Karga gifts him a home for between assignments, and Din gifts Karga his IG-11 droid back, but improved. For what is perhaps one of the few moments in his life, Din has peace. He sits outside his new home, his N1 parked just outside, and watches Grogu practice his abilities.

===

FINISHING THOUGHTS:

1. I loved this episode, largely in part due to the aerial fights and carefully planned shots. The characters I theorized last week could show up, didn’t, and that’s okay. They didn’t, because they didn’t need to.

2. I also loved the foreshadowing, the visual references, the metaphors. I also loved how the Darksaber is no more. Don’t get me wrong, it is an AWESOME weapon, but it has plagued the Mandalorians for far too long, and has been one of the things that divided them. Struggles for power and all that, all for a blade. It took ages of infighting, division, it took Din telling Bo that the blade didn’t matter to him; it took Gideon finally destroying the very thing that divided the people of Mandalore, for Bo-Katan Kryze to finally, FINALLY, realize that Mandalorians are stronger together. It’s not that she didn’t know, it was that she chased after the blade like her people before her did; now that she doesn’t even have it, she doesn’t even need it! And she is still able to unite her people! WITHOUT THE BLADE!

3. Something about the Great Forge being “the heart of our civilization” (per Axe, last episode), and the Mandalorian creed vows about the words being forged into their hearts, I’m not quite sure how to put into words this association but there’s certainly something there.

4. More thoughts on the Hero’s Journey and episode titles of The Mandalorian:

- S1E3Ch3 : The Sin (“Temptation”/“Threshold”)

- S1E7Ch7 : The Reckoning

- S1E8Ch8 : Redemption

- S2E3Ch11 : The Heiress (“Goddess”)

- S2E6Ch14 : The Tragedy

- S2E8Ch16 : The Rescue

- S3E1Ch17 : The Apostate (“Transformation”)

- S3E3Ch19 : The Convert (“Atonement”)

- S3E8Ch24 : The Return

5. Overall, excellent episode, very much looking forward to Season 4. Which might take place either concurrently to, or after the events of, the Ahsoka series. I guess we’ll find out eventually.

#star wars #the mandalorian season three spoilers #the mandalorian #star wars grogu #din djarin #bo katan kryze #moff gideon #greef karga #the armorer #pedro pascal #katee sackhoff #giancarlo esposito #carl weathers #jon favreau #dave filoni #reference #star wars rebels #kanan jarrus #star wars the clone wars #sw tcw #star wars a new hope #star wars attack of the clones #star wars the bad batch #star wars meta #long post #thoughts

[apocketfullofstones]

The Mandalorian s3 e1 & 2 Review

Just some articulated thoughts about chapters 17 and 18 because I have opinions.

Spoiler Alert!!!

The first two episodes of The Mandalorian season 3 have both been a flop so far. First off, episode one just carried on from where Boba Fett's show left off with absolutely no explanation as to why or how Grogu is back with Din for the viewers who maybe didn't watch TBoBF, which is fucking annoying because it forces people to watch something they might not have been interested in in the first place.

Secondly, they should have of built up to Din going to Mandalore and getting some character development where he realizes that there is more to his life than just blindly following his covert's beliefs. And that life-altering epiphany along with his reunion with Grogu, learning how to properly wield the dark saber, and reaching the planet that was razed to the ground (depending on his decision on whether or not to rejoin the covert) should've been the overarching storyline. Instead we get to start off episode two with Din arriving at the desolate planet with Grogu in tow.

And don't even get me started on the sudden inclusion of Bo-Katan as Din's trusty sidekick. You know, the woman who joined an extremist group that was pretty open about their plan to assassinate the ruler of Mandalor -which was her sister at the time- just because they didn't like that she was a pacifist. The very same woman who wants the dark saber, not because she's selflessly trying to rebuild her people, their home, and their culture, but because she's selfishly after power. The woman who would happily slit Din's throat in a heartbeat if it meant that she could have the dark saber. That Bo-Katan? Yeah, okay. Needless to say, I'm finding the "new best friend" Bo-Katan storyline a hard pill to swallow.

Also can we acknowledge that Din falling like he did while bathing in the living waters was fucking dumb. I tried to rationalize it, giving him the benefit of the doubt by writing it off as him just being woozy from blood loss and not noticing the drop off. But even then, that doesn't explain why he plummeted so far, so ridiculously fast. It's because his armor is heavy!!! I can hear you typing furiously. But, you're wrong. We've seen in the previous season that the armor that Din wears is not actually that heavy. Like on the ship in s2e3 "The Heiress" he dives into the water and then is able to swim to the surface, treading water and holding onto the bars. The point is, he didn't sink. And he should have immediately went straight to the bottom of the hold after diving into the water if we were to believe that the beskar is really that heavy. Basically what I'm trying to say is that they are already retconning shit they've established just to hit these lame story beats instead of just writing the scene in a way that is loyal to the rules they've set in previous seasons and it's only the third season.

I fear that it can only get worse from here.

Oh! And I recently watched a short on YouTube that put some things into perspective about the choices that were made regarding the entire show. Apparently seasons 1 and 2 were filmed pretty much back-to-back, so while s1 was just airing, they were already well into shooting s2. So that means that the showrunners had no idea how big Grogu was going to get, which is why he was always handed off to someone else or left on the ship/in the pram and had very limited screentime in both season 1 and 2. It also explains the horribly rushed reunion because it is my belief that it was the writers original intention to write Grogu off the show at the end of season 2 by sending him away with Luke (and they would only bring him back as a cameo or something along those lines).

But with "Baby Yoda's" sudden internet popularity, they had to basically abandon their initial goal in order to keep their tiny, adorable cash cow (affectionate). If this theory of mine were true, it would also explain why Grogu's inclusion in s3 so far has been a bit awkward, like the writers aren't quite sure what to do with him and they just wrote him into scenes simply for him to be there. Because to me it felt like Bo-Katan was supposed to have accompanied Din to Mandalore from the jump, but then they had to change the script so that Grogu could do something other than just sit in his pram and look cute the entire time (like going to fetch Bo-Katan when Din is put out of commission). That would also make the pacing issues of episode 2 make sense cause it definitely took a while for Grogu to fly to Bo-Katan's castle (I doubt that she was less then an hour away) and the villain just so happened to wait to start up the machine to drain Din of blood until Grogu made the trip there and back? Yeah, no.

Also, I refuse to believe that Grogu couldn't help Din escape with his "force powers" at this point (take for example his feats in TBoBF), so him not even really trying was just a poorly disguised plot device to get Bo-Katan involved. And the minute that the audience notices that the plot is driving the characters, and not the other way around, the cracks start to become visible, breaking the immersion and making the show unenjoyable to watch because then fans (like me) are just gonna start picking apart everything that's wrong with the story.

#the mandalorian #the mandalorion spoilers #the mandalorian s3 #chapter 17 “The Apostate” #chapter 18 “The Mines of Mandalore” #episode tag #episode review #the mandalorian critical #review #din djarin #grogu #baby yoda

[ravenalla]

Alright episodes finished, thoughts under the cut

Overall, best episode of the season I’d say just in terms of technical aspects. It looked a lot more cinematic and less cheap, the choreography is still awakened as hell sometimes for the fight scenes but it was at least entertaining.

I’ve known about the IG-11 thing months before the season started because of leaks and was dreading it. It’s such a silly idea to give Grogu an iron man suit, and the fact that it’s this basically made out of this character who had an emotional death in season 1 really rubbed me the wrong way. Seeing it now it definitely isn’t as bad as I thought it was going to look, but it still feels kinda lame to do that. Like they just wanted some reason Grogu would even be on this mission besides Din.

However, speaking of that WE FINALLY GOT SOME MORE DAD! DIN DJARIN CRUMBS YESS!!!! Grogu being a insistent little toddler who wants his way while Din just is so done was so fucking adorable. Also guys I don’t know if Pedro was in the suit for that season or he just had an extra boost of motivation while recording seeing it was finally a scene where he got to show some of that prior personality Din had, but he didn’t sound the same monotone he has all season, he sounded so lively again with inflictions in his voice like in season 1! It was like an oasis in the desert I loved it.

As for the elephant in the room..urgh yeah let’s talk about that scene with Din and Bo-Katan. I know the shippers are going to go crazy over it, but I refuse to believe this confirms some love story. Din has always been shown to be respectful and loyal. As he said, honor is his way. To me that is all that was, Din once again showing he’s a dependable person when he is helping people and knows how to let those around them truly see themselves. Am I happy that after reducing his character to be nothing but Bo’s sidekick he has a like proclaiming his service to her? Fuck no, but at the very least I can say this doesn’t seem out of character for me if we just accept that Bo-Karan’s past is never going to be properly addressed and she just is a good person now Din would trust.

Which like, istg you had a scene with her admitting her past failures to the other mandalorian and there was nothing about her ACTUALLY BEING DEATH WATCH??? SHE WAS A TERRORIST!!! And yet that’s not brought up at all, it’s just more “oh don’t feel bad you tried your best 🥺” God even when she is saying how she failed everyone it’s a new situation they wrote where she was clearly in the right for trying to save her people, why tf did they write her in Clone Wars to be this complicated messy individual if Dave just wanted to basically erase all that and do the shes simply misunderstood thing. That’s so fucking frustrating, if you want to have your character grow then actually acknowledge their past flaws.

On a more brighter note, Moff Gideon will never not be entertaining, even if it makes the season 2 finale worthless in another way THANK YOU FOR SOME ACTUAL COMPELLING CONFLICT FINALLY. Him with the Mando helmet and suit looked fucking sick (in a villain way of course I mean this is clearly cultural appropriation and genocide we are dealing with here). I know people are gonna be freaking out from the Thrawn mention and whatever else sequel triology related stuff they said but I don’t care I’m just happy Moff Gideon got to come back and antagonize once more for my entertainment lmao.

Sigh. Paz. You were just starting to get a bit more fleshed out and they killed you off. Don’t get me wrong its an honorable death at least, but god see this is what I mean when I saw Bo-Katan has taken over everything, Din’s known him practically his whole life and we didn’t even maybe get to see a shot of him seeing him killed as he was dragged away, it’s just a moment between Bo and him because she is the protagonist at this point. Maybe if they had had a conversation about their personal different upbringings or something, but as is it just feels like a random moment between them. Oh well, still made me sad because I like Paz and at least it meant something saving both factions of Mandalorians I GUESS? That also has been handled pretty poorly imo, since this show doesn’t let people actually talk to one another hardly (unless it’s assuring Bo she’s a great person yada yada). I have one thing that really bothered me about that confrontation scene where Grogu stepped in, but I’m gonna make another separate post for that.

Finally, let’s talk about our main man himself. Din getting kidnapped at the end is slightly insulting after having to be saved by Bo constantly all season, however on it’s own I do love the vulnerable spot he is in and this creates a cool cliffhanger that makes me actually excited for next week! (first time all season lmao). I really thought they were going to take his helmet off in front of everybody right there, which idk I think that would have been a cool way to just further insult the mines and Din after he (albeit pretty easily and cheaply) redeemed himself, especially in front of Paz. But we didn’t get that so eh, maybe next episode is where we get our helmetless Din Djarin sequence who knows. I am so hoping for him to finally get the spotlight next episode and get a personal scene between him and Moff Gideon, it’s not going to feel as satisfying as it would be if Din had the proper development this season he deserved but still it would be better than nothing.

So overall, best episode of the season in my my opinion, but that still doesn’t mean there isn’t the same problems the whole season has had concerning Din and I wouldn’t say it’s the best of the series by a long shot. I do actually want to see the ending though, but apparently it’s going to be very controversial. I don’t know what they’re gonna pull up their sleeves but as long as Din and Bo aren’t confirmed to kiss at the end like a Disney princess tale or some shit, I will be cautiously waiting.

#the mandalorian #the mandalorian spoilers #the mandalorian season 3 #din djarin #grogu #bo katan kryze #paz viszla #random thoughts

[nimata-beroya]

MY THOUGHTS ON THE MANDALORIAN - Chapter 18 "The Mines of Mandalore"

Days late, but here it is my impressions about the latest episode. It was so great that reduced me to a screaming mess, especially with that ending. I still cannot believe it!

As I've watched the episode a few times already, this is going to be more my general thoughts on what stood out more for me than reactions to every scene. I should apologize in advance, because I'll get a bit rant-y on some points (about the fandom, not the show).

So, let's begin…

I love that Din did a pit stop in Tatooine and visit Peli (I love her so much). It was obvious that she was his go-to to find the circuit for IG-11. I've seen people complaining that that bit of trying to fix IG-11 in the previous episode is irrelevant now if Din was getting R5 anyway, and honestly, it makes me shake my head. Haven't any of you watched the trailers? We KNEW Din would fly the N1 with R5-D4 docked in the astromech port. It was obvious (to me, at least) that he was going to use him to navigate to Mandalore. Besides, astromech were made exactly for that function. IG droids were not.

I know that there's the thing about Din trusting one (1) droid, which gives all the feels, but that of bringing IG-11 back won't go to waste. I think IG-11 will be fixed anyway to be Nevarro's new marshal, which fits much better with his original function, don't you think? That'd be great because it'll mean we'll see him again and again as long as the show continues.

I wonder how many languages Peli speaks, because so far we've seen her speaking Basic, droid, Jawaese, Rodian, Frog, whatever it was Dr. Mandible spoke, and I assume she speaks Huttese too. She's a human universal translator!

And Grogu is going to say his first word this season and going to be dad, buir, or an equivalent. It'd be funny if he goes from babbling incoherently to perfect speech in a night. Extremely unnerving, but funny as hell.

Another thing I've seen in other reviews is that some people didn't expect Din going to Mandalore so soon. I was not among those. I think it's perfect. And for what we saw in the trailers, that should've been obvious too. People might think the footage in the trailers covers the whole season. I got news for you, my darlings: it does not. It covers only the first half of the season (just like it did in season 2). So, considering that, Din wasn't going the entire season going from here to there before getting to Mandalore. Remember that this season also is somewhat setting things up for Ahsoka and is upping the stakes. It's no longer only Din and Grogu anymore.

My heart melted completely when Din said "Our people" talking to Grogu about Mandalore. The whole scene is amazing. Not just because of Din including Grogu as a mandalorian, but also because we got more tidbits of his childhood. He confirmed what I suspected; that he's never lived in Mandalore, just in Concordia. And, we got a geography lesson, making canon that Mandalore and Kalevala are in the same system.

Grogu was a ball of anxiety the whole episode, first when Din sent R5 to get the readings, then when Din got kidnapped (me, too), and because of the bird-lizard thing that went after him. Poor baby!

But I can't help laughing at how fast Grogu convinces Din of anything. Repeated knocking or a whine is enough for Din to give in.

An episode where Din doesn't get his ass kicked is not a Mandalorian episode, and like in the premiere he wasn't, he got a double dose in the second 😆 And I like that he still struggles with the darksaber. We need Sabine to train him!

Live-action Mandalore, I love it. It's both beautiful and haunting, the way the crystallized rock resembles explosions. I love the design of the wreckage city, that you almost can see how it was before, especially if you've seen TCW and Rebels (mostly TCW, bc Rebels was set outside Sundari, and in Krownest).

What the hell was that thing that tried to bleed out? take bone marrow? from Din?! I don't know what it was, but first, it sounded a lot like Grievous; and I guess it needed Din's fluids to function/survive. All I know is that it was creepy as hell and well sure it didn't help Din and his trauma with droids.

Grogu being able to control his own pram is the best!. I thought at first that he was moving it with the Force (maybe for going forward) but then I realized there are controls for him in the front.

I must say that even when I'm not a fan of Bo-Katan, this episode made her bloom as an even more complex character. I love that for her. It's obvious that she has plenty of regrets for all she did in the past, but my beef with her is that, sure, she sees now all the mistakes that were made by all Mandalorians, but she hasn't spoken out loud of her part in it. She always speaks in general terms of Mandalorians but never say I did this, I was one of those, except to say I was the ruler and the Empire came and defeat me. She distances herself from her worst mistakes. Not that it isn't a normal human reaction, but it'd be nice having her owning her mistakes.

Putting my personal feelings about her aside, the scene of Bo battling that thing was awesome!!! So badass!!! The ease with which she wields the Darksaber is satisfying to watch. My favorite part is when she slides underneath the droid and cut it open. So cool!

It didn't occur to me until I heard it in a YT video, that when Bo says she didn't embarrass her dad when she took the creed might not mean that she usually displeased her dad and that specific day she didn't, which is how most people took it as. Maybe what she meant was that she DID take the creed while Satine didn't (because of her pacifist ideals), and therefore, embarrassing their father. That it's an interesting theory. I like it. It'd add more flavor to family drama (as if it didn't have enough of it 😆)

Deep down, I knew Din wasn't going to take his helmet off to bathe in the Living Waters, but he would take the rest of his armor, so he didn't sink, exactly like he did. That scene is both beautiful (as he recites the vow) and funny (the moment he sinks). Then fears hits, and I first wondered how he sunk so fast! The only explanation I can find is that the mythosaur pulled him under.

And OH MY GOD!!! The reveal of the Mythosaur was AWESOME!!! As soon as I saw the tusks, I lost it!!! This is when I became a screaming mess. I couldn't believe one of my wildest theories was true!! Since last year, when the Armorer said that the mythosaur would rise up to herald a new Mandalore, I had the feeling that Mythosaur were down in the mines, or at least one. I can't believe I was right!

#episode review #the mandalorian #mando spoilers #chapter 18 the mines of mandalore #din djarin #grogu #bo katan kryze

[nikibogwater]

Niki Blethers: The Bad Batch Season 2 Pilot

Spoilers under the cut!

Is it wrong that this is my most anticipated piece of Star Wars media since the second season of The Mandalorian? Whatever, I don’t care. This is my most anticipated piece of Star Wars media since The Mandalorian. My hype was at an unusually high level going into this, and I was not disappointed.

The boissssssss! Love their updated armor! I want to know the story behind Hunter’s scarf. Like, he wears it on the outside of his breastplate, so clearly it’s not for keeping warm. Did he just....see it in a market somewhere and go “Hm. Red. My favorite color. Yes, I’ll wear that.”? *GASP!* DID OMEGA GET IT FOR HIM?????? FILONI, I NEED ANSWERS RIGHT NOW!

OMEGAAAAAAA!!! SHE’S SO BIIIIIG!!! LOOK AT HER LOOK HOW MUCH SHE’S GROWN!!! LOOK HOW CONFIDANT AND SKILLED SHE IS!!!! LOOK HOW THE OTHER MEMBERS OF THE SQUAD TRUST HER WITH ROLES IN THE MISSIONS! LOOK AT TECH HOMESCHOOLING HER AND WRECKER LIFTING HER UP STEEP CLIMBS AND HUNTER BEING HER DAD AND ECHO BEING HER EMO BUT STILL SOFT-HEARTED BIG BROTHERRRRRRR!!!!!!!

Listen, I am a simple woman. You establish that a once-isolated and lonely child has flourished and grown strong thanks to her found family, and you have my whole heart. 

Kevin Kiner continues to flex with the score.

I hope Phee comes back and tries to flirt with Tech again. I would gladly watch him being Totally Oblivious for hours.

Hunter’s goals from season 1 haven’t changed, and in fact have only been reinforced by what happened on Kamino. It’s really touching that, despite literally being bred for war, he’s determined to back out of the fight in order to give Omega a more stable environment. 

Echo protesting Hunter’s plans to go into hiding long-term also makes a lot of sense, and brings some welcome tension to the group dynamic. Out of everyone in the Bad Batch, Echo is the one who has suffered the most due to the war, and it’s only thanks to Clone Force 99 rescuing him and taking him on as one of their own that he’s even here to begin with. It’s no wonder that he prioritizes fighting the Empire and saving others.

That being said, he never comes across as a complete jerk, even when he points out that Omega is the reason their lives are so chaotic and dangerous in the first place. He screws up just enough to create a small rift between him and Omega, but not enough that the audience ends up hating him. 

Also Echo telling Omega that even if he could go back and do it all over again, he still would have gone back to Kamino for her--HNNNNNNNNNNNNNNG YEP, TEARS INBOUND, I’M CRYING NOW. 

“Tech! Are you okay?”  “My left femur has been fractured by approximately 150 kilograms of pressure. So....no.” 

If I had to pick my favorite character, it would be Tech.

Also the fact that he just....keeps going, despite having experienced one of the most painful injuries a human being can endure, all the while maintaining his cool and matter-of-fact demeanor--what a king.

Something that The Bad Batch does really well, in my opinion, is making the most out of relatively simple stories with simple characters. The missions the crew goes on are always fast-paced and exciting without ever feeling samey. I care a lot about these characters, despite their simplicity, or perhaps even because of it. Star Wars as a franchise tends to tell very big stories with lots of twists and turns. The Bad Batch is refreshing to me because it’s almost never about anything other than a band of genetically mutated brothers trying to earn enough gas money to avoid the cops and take care of their little sister. There’s tons of references to the Bigger Goings On of the Galaxy, but the core of the series is just about a family surviving from one day to the next. 

Anyways, an excellent start to this season, imo, and I am SO PUMPED for future episodes. 

#niki blethers #star wars #the bad batch #star wars tbb

[ghouligancentral]

Not the Only Ones

"Your Gravity Holds Me Down" Chapter 2

Din Djarin X Fem!Reader

Summary- Din asks you about your parents and you are finally able to see what is on that data stick.

A/N- While there is a tab bit of divergence,I tried to keep the story to canon timeline. So there could possibly be some spoilers if you are currently watching Rebels, but nothing too shocking. Also I just found out that Fenn Rau will be in The Mandalorian season 3 and I am chuffed to bits!

Chapter Warnings: None, this is a slow burn, babes.

You both turn to look at eachother, not that you would be able to see his expression through the helmet. Din is expecting to find you shocked, but what he sees surprises him, there is no reaction. No panic, no excitement, nothing. Yarya extends her hand to give you back the metal. 

“Ok, so what does this even mean? The Pykes stole a historic artifact, what else is new?” You ask as you take the cold lump of beskar from her hands. 

“Well, that’s the thing. This was only made around 15 years ago,” Yarya explains.

That… that’s not possible. That would mean that it was created after the siege of Mandalore and the Great Purge. After all of the Protectors, except for your father, were slaughtered by the Gar Saxon and his warriors. As the memories come flooding in, you feel tears begin to well up in your eyes. No! You will not do this here, not now. 

You take a deep breath to calm yourself, you feel Din’s hand brushes yours. This is his silent way of telling you that he’s there for you. He understands what you are feeling, his people were also murdered. 

“Do you think—” 

“It means that the Protectors still live,” you answer Yarya’s question before she can even finish it. 

“And if it is true, that there are still some Protectors alive, what do the Pykes even want with this?” Mando asks. 

“That I don’t know,” Yarya replies,” but if they are somehow caught up in all of this, that will make things more complicated for you two.” 

 You sigh in agreement, still staring at the metal slab in your hands, turning it over a couple of times. Yarya can see the exhaustion in your eyes. 

“It’s late. You need to get some rest,” Yarya says as she motions for you to follow her,” we can talk about this more in the morning.” She leads the both of you down a small hallway lined with maybe four or five doors. A few of the doors are open, showing that there is no one else staying here. 

“Here,” she explains as she pushes a button, opening the last two doors on the right side of the hall,” this will be your room and Mando’s is right next door. My room is right down the hall if you need anything.” 

You all say your ‘good nights’ before Yarya turns and shuffles back through the hall to her own room. As you step into the room, you allow your eyes to flicker over its interior. It is small, containing only a bed, side table, and chair. The room is dark, save for the purple light from a sign outside, flickering through the tiny rectangular window over the bed. Upon setting you bag down, you are surprised to find that Din follows behind you instead of going to his own room.  He waits for the door to close behind him before he speaks. 

“Tell me about the Protectors, tell me about your people,” Din utters as he steps a little closer to you. Now that all of the alcohol has left your system, the close proximity in which Din is standing causes your cheeks to heat up. Your eyes slowly roam over his body as you look up at him. 

In the past few months, you have found yourself becoming more and more attracted to Din. It wasn’t that you weren’t attracted to him when you first met. Sure, when you did meet for the first time, he had terrified you. Which was a given, since he was hunting you down to bring to the Pykes, but there is something to be said about a big, mysterious man that never removes his helmet. But now the feeling is different, there is more emotion behind it. You care for him in a way you’ve never felt for anyone else. 

All you want to do is reach and touch him. You want to feel him, but you don’t. Instead, you just turn and take two steps before arriving at the bed. 

“You’re the real Mandalorian here. Shouldn’t you already know this?” You grunt as you flop down onto the mattress.

 “I was told I could never remove my helmet if I was a true Mandalorian. So forgive me if I’m not up to date on Mandalorian History.” 

“And they’re not my people, Din,” you reply. 

“Your father is of Mandalore, therefore you are as well,” Din explains, trying to be as gentle as possible but still get the information he seeks, “So who were they?” 

“They may be my people, but I’ll tell you one thing,” you groan as you sit up to face him,” they wouldn’t want me.” 

Sure, your father had trained you as a warrior when you were a child, but that didn’t change the fact of what you are. You are a thief. A dirty, rotten, no-good thief. 

“So tell me,” Din prompts once more as he sits down beside you on the bed. You continue to stare at the ceiling until you hear the sound of his helmet being removed, followed by the clank of armor being set down on the floor. 

“Tell me,” Din whispers as he gently cups your jaw and moves your face so that his eyes meet yours. Those brown eyes have always had the power to melt your heart, ever since the first time you saw them. All Din wants right now is to help you through whatever you are feeling, but he’s not sure how. This moment would be romantic if it weren’t for the nagging anger in the back of your mind. You let out a long sigh as you sit up. 

“Fine,” you groan,” Many eons ago, a group of elite Mandalorian warriors swore an oath to the Mand’alor, with this they vowed their loyalty to Mandalore and its people. For many centuries, the Protectors established themselves as the greatest warriors.” 

You knew these lines by heart. Your father had taught them to you just like his parents had to him. You look back at Din to see if that was enough to satisfy his curiosity. It isn’t, so you continue. 

“The Protectors remained loyal to the Mand’alor until the Siege.” 

“What changed?” 

“Maul. The Protectors felt that Maul had no right to be the ruler of Mandalore and they left to set up a base on Concord Dawn. This ensured that they  were able to make it through the Siege, but during the Purge,” you swallow once before continuing,” they were betrayed by the people they thought could be trusted.” 

“Who did this?” 

You take another deep breath before continuing. 

“ Supercommandos, fellow Mandalorians, led by Gar Saxon. They ambushed the Protectors and slaughtered them all. Even those who could not fight weren’t spared. And for what?” you scoff,” an Empire that would be brought to its knees by a single Jedi.” 

Din’s heart drops when he hears this. He was taught that Mandalorians were not to fight amongst themselves, that they could disagree but always remained loyal to each other. I guess there is no honor among us, Din thinks before placing a hand on your knee, attempting to offer you some sort of comfort. 

“My father spent his every waking moment tracking them down, avenging the death of his fellow warriors, but then he met my mother. He always blamed himself for what happened to them,” you explain, pulling your knees up to your chest.

“Your father?” Din questions, cocking his head to the side. 

“Yes. He said that if he had been there, they wouldn’t have been killed. My mother always told him there was nothing he could have done, that he would have probably been killed as well and then he would have never met her.” 

You smile a little as you recall the love your parents have for each other. Your father would go to the ends of the galaxy for your mother and she would do the same for him. You never really understood it until you met Din, but now you are beginning to understand how you can care for someone so much. That smile quickly fades from your face as the memories of your father’s pain come back. 

“What happened to Gar Saxon and the other Supercommandos?” Din asks. 

“Saxon was killed by a member of Clan Wren,” you spit, the feels vial in your mouth.

” After that my father joined the Rebellion. I don’t know what happened to the others,” your jaw clenches in anger as you utter the words

With the rage comes the tears, you stay silent as you feel them welling up in your eyes. Din stiffens a little, feeling uncomfortable as he watches the tears beginning to roll down your cheeks. His heart breaks for you but he doesn’t know what to do. He would give anything to be able to take this pain away. 

“What do you want to do?” Din asks as he looks into your eyes, searching for any answers. 

“I… I don’t know,” you sniffle. You’re already exhausted, both physically and emotionally, from living with a bounty on your head and this latest discovery just pushes you over the edge. Din remains silent as he pulls you against his chest and you allow it, just wanting to feel close to someone. 

The tears continue to stream down your face for a few more minutes before they finally dry up. The Mandalorian continues to soothe you with his touch. You expected him to have unwrapped his arms from you by now but he hasn’t and doesn’t show any signs of doing it soon. 

“Um, Din?” you question, wondering why he is still holding you, not that you’re complaining. 

“Oh sorry. You need to rest. I… uh… I’ll go,” Din stutters, standing up. 

“No, stay,” you exclaim, a little too eagerly,” please.” 

Din nods slowly before he sits back down beside you. With a sign, you roll over to lay down on the bed and pat the open space beside you, indicating that you want him to join you. Hesitation flashes in Din’s eyes and you end up having to pull him down. 

“Let's deal with the Pykes and then we can try to track down where the beskar came from,” Din utters. He watches as you wiggle a little so that you have room to look up at him. 

“Maybe there is something on that data stick that will help us find an answer,” you say as you attempt to sit up to get it. Din stops you and pulls you back down onto the mattress. 

“You can do that tomorrow, for now, you need rest,” Din whispers. You close your eyes and attempt to get settled, but no position feels comfortable. After a couple minutes, you are able to get into an okay position. Eventually, you drift into a restless sleep. 

—-------------------------------------------------------------

The next morning you wake to sunlight trickling in through the widow. Feeling the weight of an arm over you, you realize that Din is still beside you sleeping. You had expected him to go to his own room after you fell asleep, but this was a pleasant surprise. While you shift a little, your rear bumps into something hard. Didn’t Din take all of his armor off last night? Ohhhh...

A blush heats up your cheeks when you realize you are pressing up against. You know Din would absolutely die if he woke up to find his arms wrapped around you and his erect member pressed into your back. Slowly, you wriggle out from his grasp to make your way to the fresher, grabbing your bag as you walk past.  

After completing your morning routine and changing out of the dress you had slept in, you return to the room to find the Mandalorian awake and already in the process of putting his armor back on. 

When he notices you staring he tenses a little. When he had woken up to find you missing and his morning wood, Din thought the worst. But the way you smiled at him made him think that maybe you hadn’t noticed.  

“Good morning,” you chirp, giggling a little at the state of his hair. 

“Morning,” Din replies, as he slowly relaxes. 

“I’m going to go talk to Yarya. I’ll bring you some food so you can eat in private. After you’re finished we will meet in the living room, okay?” 

“Alright,” Din grunts as he watches you leave. She didn’t notice, right?

—------------------------------------------------------------

You found that Yarya is already awake and making caf. A yawn escapes your lips as you walk up to stand beside her. She hands you a mug and you go to pour yourself a cup of the caffeinated liquid.  

“Have a good night's sleep?” Yarya grins before giving you a wink. 

You blink at her a couple of times trying to understand why she had emphasized ‘sleep’. Then it dawned on you. You noticed that the door to Mando’s room remained open and  the bed had not been slept in on your way to the kitchen. She must have seen it and put two and two together. 

“It’s not like that,” you blush, averting your gaze. 

“Oh really?” Yarya asks as she leans against the counter before taking a long sip of her morning brew, eyeing you over the rim of the mug,” coulda fooled me.” 

“What’s that supposed to mean?” 

“Oh come on. He can’t keep his eyes off of you,” Yarya quips,” Or at least I think those are his eyes, I can't really tell through the helmet and all.”

“That is if he even has eyes. Does he have eyes? Is he even human?” Yarya muses before she looks back at you. Your puzzled look prompts her to continue with a sigh. 

“Are you telling me you really haven’t noticed? Even through the helmet and all the armor, I can tell that man is about ready to drop to his knees and profess his love for you. And don’t lie and say you don’t feel the same, I know you too well for that,” Yarya explains with a grin. Your blush deepens as you continue staring into your mug. 

“I... I don’t think he feels that way towards me,” you utter. 

“Uh huh. Here,” Yarya says while passing you a plate of food,” take this to him. I’m assuming he won’t be joining us for breakfast.” 

You nod before delivering the food to the Mandalorian. 

“Din?” you question as you knock on the door. The door sweeps open to reveal the man in his full armor. 

“Here.” 

You pass him the warm plate without stepping into the room. 

“Thank you,” the modulated voice answers before you turn around to go back to eat with Yarya. Was Yarya right? Did he really have feelings for you? 

—----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

“So do you have any idea where to find more information on the sigil?” you ask before taking a sip of the warm caf. 

“Shouldn’t you be asking your Mandalorian friend? I would think he’d know more about this than me,” Yarya explains.  

“He’s not well versed in the subject of Mandalorian history,” you shrug. Just then you watch as the Mandalorian makes his way into the room with the empty plate in his hand.

“Well, what about your father? You could try going to him,” Yarya offers, the statement has you choking on your caf. 

“Are you okay?” Din asks as he rushes to your side. As you sputter out a couple more coughs, you look up to see Yarya raising her eyebrows at you. You know exactly what she’d say, ‘I thought you said he didn’t care about you in that way.’  

You wave Din off as you assure him that you are fine. He reluctantly leaves your side and continues to the kitchen to put away the dish. You take a couple of deep breaths to steady yourself. This time Yarya waits until you put your caf down to speak. 

“So?” 

“So what?” 

“What do you think about my idea of asking your father?” Yarya questions. 

“You know I can’t do that. I can’t endanger my family by bringing them into this,” you explain as guilt and shame creep into the corners of your mind. Suddenly you remember that you still have the data stick from the club last night. 

“Do you have somewhere I could take a look at this?” You ask as you hold up the data stick. Yarya nods before she leads you over to a holoscreen. 

“This should work,” she states as she plugs it in. Your eyes scan the screen, looking for the file with your name on it. Ah Ha! Once you spot it, you point it out to Yarya who taps on it. The file contains a list of everything the Pykes ever had you do. Every item, data, and plot all listed out in great detail. However, there is something that you don’t recognize, and you have Yarya open it. A series of numbers appear on the screen, they look like coordinates to somewhere in the Outer Rim. Why would there be coordinates under my name? 

“Can you locate where this leads to?” You ask. 

“Sure,” Yarya says as she begins typing once more,” but it will take a minute.” 

While the data is being uploaded, you go back to the previous conversation. 

“Are there any other ways besides bringing my family into this?” 

“Maybe,” Yarya utters, her words seeming hesitant,” there could be some more information in Kavasmor, an ancient temple on Mandalore.” 

Yarya shuffles over to the bookshelf lining the back wall of the room. You watch as she makes little ‘hmms’ as she searches for a specific text. While Yarya is looking, Din comes over to stand by your side.

“Aha!” She exclaims. Din walks over to help her as soon as he sees her heave a gigantic book off of the shelf. When it is placed in his hands, Din fumbles it a little, not expecting the sheer weight of it. Din grunts when he drops the book down onto the table. Landing with a thunk, dust rushes out from in between its pages. 

The text has seen better days. Its cover is peeling and the spine is cracked, the entirety of it is withering away just as the age in which it was written. Yarya bumps Din out of the way to get to the book. Upon opening it, her finger traces lightly over the delicate paper as she scans through a list. You peer over her shoulder in hopes of getting a glimpse. Unfortunately the text is written entirely in an ancient Twi'lek dialect, one in which you aren’t well versed. 

“This atlas was created many centuries ago,” Yarya explains as she flips through the pages,” so long, in fact, that many of the maps aren’t accurate today, but it should still be able to help us.” 

She stops on a page depicting a large planet, even with the age and inaccuracies of the book you can tell that this is Mandalore. 

“So where exactly is this temple?” Din asks as he places both of his hands on the table, craning his neck to get a look. 

“Therein lies the issue. No one really knows for certain since the ancient maps were lost or destroyed.” 

You groan at this information. Here you were, so close, yet so far. A smile slowly creeps onto Yarya’s face. 

“All except for a few,” Yarya grins as she flips the page,” my father and I managed to smuggle this book off of Ryloth before it could be found by the Empire.” 

“Scholars believe that it was located in the northern mountains. Here,” Yarya states, placing her finger on the map,” so if I were you that’s where I’d start.”

You take a few moments to stare at the page which depicts a mountain range covered in snow, before the holo screen pings and the three of you turn to see where the coordinates had led to. Everyone’s eyes widen at the sight. 

“I thought you said maps to this place were extremely rare,” Din utters as his eyes flicker over the screen. 

“They are,” Yarya replies,” but it looks like you two aren’t the only ones looking for the temple.” 

“And they think that I have something to do with all of this,” you sigh. 

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I hope you are enjoying this. I'm really excited about where this is going and I already have the next couple of chapters planned out. As always likes, reblogs, and comments are always appreciated. See you next chapter!

#the mandalorian #din djarin x reader #din x reader #din dijarin fanfiction #star wars #mandalorian fanfic #siege of mandalore