Armored Passion | The Mandalorian

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"Fuck. It's hot."

"Feels pretty decent to me," Din mutters, shrugging his shoulders while glancing down at me for a few moments. I roll my eyes at his quiet response and quickly strip my brown leather jacket off before undoing a few buttons on my shirt in hopes of cooling off. 

We start walking towards the cozy Dameron residence, following the partially-cleared path that weaves through the many looming trees surrounding the small house. As we stroll through the first, I casually grab the small metal ball that I had tucked away in the breast pocket of my button-up and toss it up into the air, glancing over my shoulder as it zooms down towards the kid's hands. He grasps onto it, holding it tightly as he rocks gently in Din's arms. 

"Nice one, bud. You're already getting better at that," I say, winking at him before turning back around. 

"I'm really gonna have to get used to that," Din says as we walk up the thin stone path that leads to the front door of the house. I let out a quiet chuckle and nod my head, thinking about the notion of Grogu and me fucking around with Din by using our force abilities. He is most definitely going to have to get used to it. 

I rap my knuckles against the wood surface of the door, waiting for a few long moments, but no one answers. I furrow my brows and take a small step away from the door, quickly peering through the large living room window to see that the house looked completely empty. I step back towards the door and quirk my head to the side. 

Maybe they just went to town or something. 

The buzz of the jungle around us resonates a little louder as we wait, filling the unusual silence that's starting to feel suffocating and uncomfortable. I lift my hand again and knock once more. This time around, I hear a pair of footsteps trail up behind the door before it slowly creaks open. Kes appears in the doorway, looking tired and worn out—more than usual, I should say. 

"Hey! Sorry, we kinda disappeared for a while. We've just been a little busy with a few things around the galaxy," I apologize, running a quick hand through my raven hair. "We were in the area so we decided to just stop by and say—"

Kes suddenly lurches forward and wraps me up in a tight hug, tucking his face into the crook of my neck as he practically folds in half to hug me properly. My eyes widen and I immediately hug him back, unsure of what had caused him to be in such a slump. He stays silent as he hugs me tightly and it takes me a few moments to process what's going on, and even then, I still don't really know what's going on. 

"Hey, what's wrong?" I ask, my voice delicately soft as I hold him tightly. He continues to stay silent, his fingers starting to dig into the fabric of my shirt. "Kes?"

"Shara died."

"Wait, what?" I question before gently pushing him away so I could see his face. 

Did I hear him correctly?

I couldn't have. 

But the look of melancholy in his eyes says it all. 

I pull him back into a tight hug, letting him hold onto me again as if his life depends on it. I glance back at Din and he just nods his head in an understanding manner. Tears prick my eyes at the thought of Shara passing, but I don't dare let them fall. I have a feeling that'll just set Kes off even more, and I don't think either of us needs that right now. 

"Come on, let's get you back inside," I whisper, slowly pulling away from him before leading him back inside. I look back at Din and nod my head, telling him to follow. We walk into the living room and Kes plops down onto one of the couches, sinking far into the plush cushions before leaning forward to set his head in his hands.