Mandalorian Menace

Chapter 4 - In the Mind

Author's Note: To my readers, y'all are awesome, and I love you! The fact that so many people care about this fic enough to leave so many nice comments is overwhelming. :')

PS. There is Mando'a in here, and I put all the translations at the end. Let me know if I missed anything! ^-^

~ Amina Gila

Anakin is insanely curious to know what Mando might want to talk to Mom about, but he doesn't ask. It was obvious that it was meant to be a conversation strictly between the two of them, so he takes Grogu to his room and begins showing him around after setting him on the bed. "I build things," Anakin tells him enthusiastically. He doesn't know if Grogu can really understand him or not, but he doesn't care either. It's nice to have such a willing, seemingly interested audience. "I'm building my own droid. See?"

He pulls away the cloth covering C-3PO, and Grogu coos with interest leaning towards the workbench. After a moment, the child reaches out a hand demandingly. "What?" Anakin asks confused. "What do you want?"

Grogu waves his hand again, and Anakin approaches him. The baby eagerly grabs one of Anakin's fingers in his tiny fist, before his eyes fall partially closed in... concentration? There's a strange prickling that Anakin can sense suddenly, but it doesn't feel dangerous. It feels... well, he's not really sure how to describe it. Perhaps it's as if there's something strange and foreign and warm poking his head. But there's nothing there.

He tries to shake it off and dismiss it as nothing when – hi. The word slips into his mind, and it's definitely not his own. It's different. It sounds younger, more childlike. His eyes snap to Grogu in surprise. The child is sitting there with an open look of delight on his face.

"Is that you?" Anakin asks. He didn't know that Jedi could do that. That is so cool!

Grogu giggles. Who else?

Okay, this is weird, but it's definitely not the strangest or worst thing which has happened to him. It's actually kind of fun. "Can you do this with Mando?" He's curious, okay? He knows that Mando isn't a Jedi, of course, but he is definitely very close with the toddler.

Said toddler shakes his head. He's not sensitive, he elaborates.

Anakin frowns. "What do you mean? Sensitive to what?" He strokes the back of Grogu's hand absently with his thumb.

The Force. Jedi use the Force. You have the Force too. It's strange that the words aren't entering his mind as words per se, so much as they're entering as a series of thoughts and impressions which a part of him is interpreting and putting into words.

"You mean I could be a Jedi?" Anakin can barely hide his surprise and glee at that thought. There is so much he could do as a Jedi, starting with freeing all the slaves on Tatooine. He promised his best friend, Kitster Banai, that he would help free everyone on Tatooine someday, and that's a promise he has every intention of keeping.

Somehow, Anakin knows that Grogu isn't happy by that thought. He can do that sometimes: sense how other people are feeling. Maybe it's because of the "Force," whatever that is. You could be, but you shouldn't be.

"Why not?! Jedi help people! And why don't you want me to be a Jedi?" He's honestly confused. Why would anyone not want to be a Jedi? Laser swords are cool, and they would be such helpful weapons, from what he's heard. He recalls how, earlier Grogu had seemed quite adamantly against Mando taking Anakin to the Jedi. It doesn't make sense.

You won't be able to see your mother anymore, Grogu explains. Whisps of a memory flash into Anakin's mind, and he can't help but be awed by the abilities that Grogu has. He wants to be able to do this too. It's cool to speak in someone's mind without words, and being able to share memories? Wizard!