𝐒𝐄𝐂𝐔𝐑𝐈𝐓𝐘 - DIN DJARIN

Nova (Interlude)

You nod again, reaching out to accept the rifle when Din hands it to you. The rifle feels natural in your hands as you assess its features just like before, feeling more confident now that Din's demonstrated them for you.

"Keep testing the weight," Din instructs you. "I'll grab a stick of my own."

Din trots towards the woods as you swing the rifle in your hands, getting used to the way it feels when you use it as a melee weapon. You hadn't gotten the chance to train with many stick-like weapons before, but the moves still feel fluid as you improvise them. You're so wrapped up in this that you barely notice Din's return until you see the long stick he's retrieved just beside you.

"Looks like you'll get the hang of this easily," Din comments, his voice warm as he tilts his helmet admiringly at you. Your face starts to burn as you shake your head at him. "I would expect nothing less from you, cyar'ika."

"All right, all right, let's not start with the flattery," you remark, raising your brow as you flip the rifle in your hands again. "Yet."

Din chuckles, tightening his grip on the stick as he goes back into combat mode. Using the stick, he takes you through a few traditional movements with the rifle, incorporating more advanced sequences with steps and turns. Just as Din had guessed, you pick it all up easily, moving with the rifle as if you've always wielded it. You can imagine Din's fond gaze behind the visor as he watches you move. "Ner rid'ika," Din begins, his modulated voice dreamlike as he sets his stick upon the ground and leans against it. "You look so... powerful."

You shake your head, looking down in the face of Din's sweet affections. "You're distracting me, my love."

You can hear Din hum even through the modulator, looking up again as he approaches you. "That's a new one." He refers to the endearment, making you shrug as he tilts his helmet at you. "If I didn't know any better, I'd think you were trying to distract me."

With a shrug and a smirk, you close the distance, your chest just barely touching his cuirass as you look straight into his visor. "Don't start something you can't finish, Djarin."

The breath Din takes is visible as his armored chest rises and falls slowly. Then, with the focused nod of a warrior, he nods. "You're right, Djarin." Din lifts his stick from his side, taking a step back and holding it with both his gloved hands in front of him. He then flips it in his right hand and puts one foot back, bringing him into an attack position. "I have to see this one through."

You furrow your brow with worry when you realize what he's proposing. "Din," you start to argue, keeping your voice low to be extra cautious that people don't hear your utterance of his name, "what if I hurt you?"

"You won't." Din offers another nod, this time in reassurance. "But if you do, then I know you'll patch me up." Din tilts his helmet at you again. "And I happen to like the feeling of your hands on me."

You shake your head with a huff, narrowing your eyes as you start to focus on the fight ahead. With a few quick movements of the rifle, you get yourself into a similar position to Din, raising your brow at him as if you're challenging him to attack first. You know he won't.

So, you do.

You take two quick steps towards him and start to lunge with the rifle to one side, getting him to dedicate to protecting that side of himself. At the last second, you step and turn over your shoulder, taking the rifle with you as you aim to knock away his grip on the stick. Instead, Din recovers quickly, meeting you there as the stick keeps you from reaching his hand. He leans into the stick to force you and the rifle away, though before he can make another move, you roll onto the ground and prop up on one knee. You pretend to charge up the rifle with a disintegration, though Din reacts fast. He uses the stick to knock away the metal prongs of the rifle, making you fall onto your side. Din raises his stick in preparation to strike down hard, but you know this fight is hardly over.