Armored Passion | The Mandalorian

|38|

"Alright, bud. Let's see if I can manage to do this without injuring myself," I mutter under my breath as I carefully pick up Poe, who has been asleep for the past few hours or so. 

We had landed on Endor early in the morning, spent the entire day planetside, and then left in the late hours of the afternoon (which turned out to be a huge mistake due to our arrival time). Now, it's the early hours of the morning, it's still painfully dark out, and I'm attempting to get out of a tight-spaced cockpit of an X-wing while making sure that my sleeping nephew doesn't fall off of my back. 

It's going great.

I carefully climb out of the cockpit of my X-wing, continuing to carry Poe on my back as I make my way down the short extended ladder set beneath me. A quiet sigh of relief slips past my lips once my feet hit the ground and I immediately loop my arms around his legs to keep him up so he doesn't fall to the ground. 

Most of the lights in the house are still on and shining bright, meaning I can safely assume that Din and Kes are still up and about doing whatever it is they've been doing for the past day a half that we've been gone. I step up to the front door and gentle knock, waiting for someone to open it up for me. Two pairs of footsteps lead up to the door and the wood slab in front of me soon swings open. 

"Well, you look tired as shit," Kes says, smirking while moving out of the way so I could make my way inside. I roll my eyes at his sardonic comment and step into the warm house, shaking off the humid yet chilly air as I walk past him and Din.

You know, regardless of me looking absolutely exhausted, Kes looks like he's doing a lot better than before. Even the air of the house has less of a macabre feeling to it, which is pretty fucking relieving. Whatever they've been up to has definitely been benefiting him in some way. 

Din slowly steps up beside me and the gaze of his blank visor lands on my face. I'm surprised to say that he's not in his armor anymore. The only piece of beskar on him is his helmet. It's unnatural for him to be so bare around other people like this, but it's also nice to see that he's starting to get comfortable around my family. 

"How was your trip?" Kes asks as I turn around to face him.

"This one"—I turn to the side a bit so they could see the sleeping kid on my back—"fell asleep on the flight back home, but we had a lot of fun while we were on Endor. We just took a long walk around the area, examined some of the flora, climbed a few trees, and met some Ewoks. You know, the usual."

"Endor's like a few days away. How the hell did you make it there and back in two days?" he asks, perking a curious brow. 

"Well, I got to build my own engine and hyperdrive when the New Republic issued me my backup ship. Let's just say I didn't skip out on the fund they provided me," I say, winking at him. He laughs and shakes his head as a genuine smile spreads over his face. I look up at Din, wondering what he had done to get my brother in a good mood. "Anyway, I'm gonna go put this one to bed."

"Sounds good," he says, nodding his head towards the short hallway behind me. I pivot around on my heels and walk down the hall, stepping into Poe's room. I place him down on his bed, pulling the covers over him before sitting down on the edge of the plush mattress. I raise my hand and run my fingers through his curls for a few moments. 

"It's gone be okay," I whisper, regardless of whether or not he can hear me. I sigh and walk out of his room, quietly closing the door behind me. I walk back into the living room where the boys are and let out a small yawn. "Fuck, sometimes I forget how tiring flying can be."

"You guys should get some rest. Mando stayed in your usual room last night, so I'm sure you two can share," Kes says, winking at me.

"Thanks," I say before letting out another long yawn."You need anything else before we turn in for the night?"