Wolven | The Mandalorian

Chapter 20: From the Desert Comes the Stranger

Chapter 20: From the Desert Comes the Stranger
Word Count: 3,712
*EDITED*

Din helped Elodie dismount the starfighter. Lush greenery surrounded them on Ossus, at ground level and up on the mountainous peaks. It was a space of many islands encased in vast watery planes. It was a good environment for Grogu to learn in, Elodie summarized. The weather was not too warm or too cold, and the trickling of water in the background was calming. No settlements were nearby, not as far as they saw on their ride down anyway.

The astromech R2-D2 beeped, his antennae sinking back into his head after allowing them to follow his beacon. The two walked up to the droid and greeted him warmly, eager to see their foundling.

"Hello, friend. I'm looking for Skywalker." Din said, and the droid beeped back. The Mandalorian seemed to be more amenable towards droids after mourning for IG-11, the one droid that Din trusted and ended up sacrificing himself. Elodie gushed, "We came to see Grogu."

The astromech turned and took off into the dense woods, humming to itself. It wasn't as gloomy as she was expecting, the light still penetrated through the leaves of the canopy. They passed some ant droids carrying large rocks, and they followed them to where they were delivering them through a break in the woods.

On the hill ahead, they were working in what looked to be a factory line, stacking the rocks to build a hut. "Where is he?" She asked. No one was around to greet them, and they looked around in confusion. R2-D2 backed away from where they stood and switched himself off.

"Is this where they are?" He tapped the droid on the head. "Hey. Droid. Don't shut off. Wake up." It was of no use; it wasn't coming back online anytime soon. "Hey, I'm looking for Skywalker. He had a kid with him. Is that a bench?" He paused, watching the ant form a bench from some of the gathered materials. "How long will I be waiting? Is anyone here? Anyone alive?" All around them were droids, with no signs of humans or intelligent species.

Some ant droids had been pulled away from their main mission to assemble a bench to their right, cushioned with palm leaves. Elodie leaned in close. "We should just take a seat, Mando."

Din faced her, offended. "Did I do something wrong?"

"What? Mando." She looked back at him in confusion. He took her pinkie finger with his own. "No. Call me by my name." The Wolven's heart softened at the man. "I thought you would prefer it if I called you Mando in public, so hide your identity."

"I could care less about people we meet in passing. You are forever." Din defended, stepping closer so his cuirass pressed against her chest. She stared up at him and looked deeply into his visor. "Okay, Din. As I was saying, I think we should take a seat."

The Mandalorian was twitchy, whether it was from anticipation to meet his son or nerves in an unknown surroundings she did not know. "Do you want to sniff him out? Might get us there quicker." Elodie shook her head and sat down on one side of the bench. "If we're here, that means they might be busy. I don't want to interrupt his training."

Hours passed, and the Mandalorian had taken to resting his head on Elodie's lap as she ran her thumb under his chin to stroke his beard. She could practically hear him purr as he rested under her touch. When R2-D2 powered back to life, Elodie opened her eyes, and Din raised in alarm, blaster in hand. Leaning against a tree, the familiar face of Ahsoka stood with her arms crossed, staring at the two. Elodie was not as alarmed as she heard her quiet approach.

"You. I didn't expect to see you here." Din gaped as they stood from the bench. Elodie took a moment to stretch, having been in the same position for a long time. She didn't want to move in fear the Mandalorian, who had fallen asleep in her lap, woke. The man deserved a power nap.