┏━━━━━━˙*¨༺ ༻¨*˙━━━━━━┓
𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐏𝐓𝐄𝐑 𝐍𝐈𝐍𝐄
┗━━━━━━˙*¨༺ ༻¨*˙━━━━━━┛
THE FIGHT WITH THE RAIDERS and the AT-ST the previous night was no joke. There were some unexpected change of plans but luckily, Cara was there to save it.
It was now morning and Aeryn found herself helping Omera fish for Krills again. She liked Omera. To her, she was a good mother figure, a nice lady, and a great friend.
"You are learning quite fast." Omera spoke from beside Aeryn, placing her basket back into the pond.
"I think I learn from the best." Aeryn responded and flashed Omera a smile.
The young widow found Aeryn's words flattering and returned a gentle smile.
"Thank you." Omera thanked her with sincerity. "Why don't you stay here? I am certain that the whole village would be glad."
The question caught Aeryn off guard. She wasn't expecting that and she knows that Omera had a point. Aeryn knew that the decision wasn't hers to make. At least, not alone.
She knew that whatever happens, it was her and Mando. Together.
"It would be nice, really, but," Aeryn paused to look at the child in front of her. "I still have something important to do."
Omera nodded in acknowledgement and gave Aeryn a small smile. "I understand."
Mando and Cara sat in front of a hut as they both watched the now normal life in the village. He can't help but notice Aeryn as she smiled at the child watching her fish for some Krills, children running around them.
She looked happy.
They both did.
"So, what happens if you take that thing off?" Cara asked as she sat near Mando, a cup of spotchka on her hand. "They come after you and kill you?"
"No," Mando answered, watching Aeryn. "You just can't ever put it back on again."
Cara, on the other hand, had an amused look on her face.
"That's it?" she scoffed. "So, you can slip off the helmet, settle down with that beautiful partner of yours and raise your kids sitting here sipping spotchka?" she added with a sly smirk visible on her face.
"You know, we raised some hell here a few weeks back. It's too much action for a backwater town like this. Word travels fast." Mando turned to look at Cara. "You might wanna cycle the charts and move on."
"Wouldn't wanna be the one who's gotta tell them." Cara replied and turned her attention to Aeryn and the child.
"I'm leaving them here." Mando replied, looking back at Aeryn. "Travelling with me... that's no life for her nor the kid. They're safe here. Better chance at a life." he added and surprisingly, Aeryn saw him. She gave him a wide, genuine smile.
"It's gonna break his little heart." Cara answered and saw Aeryn smiling at Mando. "Especially hers."
"They'll get over it. We all do." Mando answered, giving Aeryn a nod. She, then, turned her attention back to the pond.
He was leaving, and the worst part of leaving was saying goodbye.
˙*¨༺ ༻¨*
IT WAS NOW MIDNIGHT.
The whole village was silent and the only thing you could hear was the crushing sound of tree leaves as the wind blew softly. The stars were shining brightly that night, as if they were sending codes to one another.
It was peaceful.
But not for Aeryn.
That night, a memory-a dreaded memory-visited her in her dreams. It was the memory that never failed to keep her up at night and miss her sleep.
"Din!" a young version of Aeryn yelled as chaos struck their city.
Explosions were everywhere, blaster shots, droids-everything around her was pure chaos. Everyone around her was dying.
Aeryn's red cloak flew behind her as she tried to run and look for her friend. A droid's shot almost hit her but luckily, she was able to duck.
Making one turn, she saw Din being carried by his parents, placing him inside an underground storage.
"Din!" she called for his name but he wasn't able to hear her.
Aeryn tried to get closer but she was stopped. As the storage's hatch was shut by Din's parents, an explosion followed.
The violet-eyed girl was thrown at least a few feet away from where she was before, hitting the cold ground.
Sharp pain radiated throughout her body as she opened her eyes. Aeryn felt every inch of her body throb in every attempt of standing up that she did.
For a child like her, it was unbearable.
Din.
Thinking of her close friend, she slowly tried to stand up but it was no use. She only managed to get a blurry glimpse of where Din was and it wasn't a good sight.
There was a huge droid standing in front of the open hatch, about to kill Din.
All Aeryn could remember was the droid being shot by something-someone-and it collapsed to the ground.
Then everything around her went black.
"No." Aeryn bolted awake, gasping for air. She was panting as she observed her surroundings. "I'm safe." she whispered to herself.
Everything around her was dark but she knew she was safe.
After a few deep breaths, Aeryn was finally able to calm herself down. She slowly headed towards the window, careful not to wake Mando or the child.
Aeryn carefully sat a feet away from the window as she watched the starry sky.
It was beautiful. It was mesmerizing.
The stars shone differently compared to previous nights and she noticed that. The cool midnight air coming from the window brushed against her face, sending her some chills.
It was peaceful.
And yet, tears started streaming down her face. She covered her lips with both of her hands as she tried to silence her sobs. Aeryn's tears flowed like a river.
Silently, she cried.
Those memories have haunted her for years. It never failed to awaken the voices that whispered inside her head. The voices that she never wanted to hear.
"You will never find him."
"You don't even know if he's alive
"You will never know who you truly are."
Those words never left her head as she cried. It sent an incredible amount of pain to her heart.
Again, again, and again.
She heard them.
"You okay?" Mando's voice suddenly spoke from behind her.
Aeryn quickly wiped the tears off her face and ignored the fact that Mando's voice sounded different.
It wasn't slightly robotic.
It sounded...normal
"H-huh? Y-yes, I'm okay." Aeryn answered as she continued wiping her tears.
Mando knew it was a lie.
He was awake the whole evening, hearing Aeryn mumble things in her sleep. No, it was a name. Mando heard her call for his real name; Din.
It has been a long time ever since he heard that name and when he did, he finally figured out why Aeryn's eyes felt familiar.
The reason behind the hole he always felt in his chest whenever she saw Aeryn's eyes.
Ryn.
That was what he remembered calling her. That was why Aeryn's name didn't ring a bell when he first heard it.
To him, it was her special name.
"No, you're not." Mando replied as he slowly headed for Aeryn's back. He sat behind her, not wanting for her to see his bare face.
After all, he wasn't wearing his beskar helmet.
"Can I trust you?" Aeryn asked him, covering her eyes that were filled with tears.
"Yes." Mando answered and this time, his voice felt closer to Aeryn.
"Do you think I'll ever find the person I'm looking for?" she asked. "Do you think I'll find him even though I don't know if he's alive or not?" she continued, her voice slightly cracking.
"Mando, do you think-"
Aeryn was cut off as she felt Mando bury his face on the right crook of her neck. He gently reached for her hands that was covering her eyes and held them.
Mando hugged Aeryn from behind as he held onto her hands.
Aeryn's eyes widened at the realization that Mando wasn't wearing his beskar helmet.
"Mando, stop. You're not weari-"
"I trust you, Aeryn." Mando whispered, still burying his face on the crook of Aeryn's neck . "And trust me, you will find him."
"I trust you too, Mando."
The pair stayed like that for a while. They were both certain that something felt different.
For the pair, it felt like the missing pieces of them were finally found.