Chapter Text
Thirty-four years had passed since that fateful day when the Mandalorian had lost Grogu to Moff Gideon. Over the years, Yoda had brought Din’s little Ad’ika to visit from the world of Force Ghosts. Each trip was equally as heartbreaking as the first one, but Din did feel some comfort in knowing that eventually, he would see his kid again.
The second time they had appeared in front of Din, the Mandalorian had learned of his Ad’ika’s real name.
“Grogu.”
Din laughed at how quickly the child’s head had snapped up toward his direction. Apparently, the kids name was all it took to get the little gremlin to behave.
Over time, the visits remained few and far between. Din Djarin continued on as a bounty hunter and had decided to place roots down in Sorgan. He never married or had any kids of his own, but all of the kids of the village loved him and were fascinated by him, just as the kids (who were now parents) did the first time he and Grogu had touched down on the planet.
About ten years ago, he finally hung up the title of being a bounty hunter and retired. He spent his days telling stories to the village kids and helping out wherever he could.
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“Can you tell us another story?” one of the small children asked, snapping Din back out of his thoughts.
“You know it’s already past all of your bedtimes,” Din told them knowingly. Omera smiled and ushered all of the kids out of the hut and outside to their parents.
Omera and Din had remained good friends after all this time. Grogu had even popped up once in front of her. She would have been shocked, had Din not told her about all that had happened.
“He hasn’t been by in a while, hasn’t he?” Omera placed a hand on Din’s shoulder. It was true. Grogu and Yoda hadn’t appeared in nearly five years.
“No he hasn’t,” Din confirmed. He sighed. It was true that visits had always been few and far between, but it had never gone on this long. Omera knew that Din usually preferred to be alone with his thoughts, so she bid him a goodnight.
Din got up as well, and sat under a lone tree on the outskirts of the forest. He was so tired. He started to drift off, but he was interrupted. Din looked up, hearing Grogu before the child suddenly appeared in front of him. Yoda appeared not long after. Grogu ran up to his Buir and gave him a hug.
“Hey kid,” Din sighed, giving the friendly ghost a tight hug. “You’ve been gone a while. I missed you.”
“Eager to see you, he was,” Yoda remarked. “Told him to wait, I did.”
Grogu proudly showed Din the Mythosaur necklace that he had been gifted so long ago.
Huffing in amusement, Din reached forward and rubbed the metal between his thumb and forefinger. He was impressed that his kid had kept it safe for so long.
“Why wait?” Din asked. He wasn’t being accusatory, and he wasn’t hurt. Just curious.
Yoda looked at father and son and hummed.
“Still strong, the guilt you felt. Time to live, you needed.”
Din thought about how, although he missed Grogu dearly, he did have other friends, and a life of his own he made on Sorgan.
“I understand.”
Grogu was being very needy, nestling into the crook of Din’s elbow.
“I can’t imagine he was thrilled with the news,” Din said, absentmindedly playing with the fuzz on the baby’s head.
Yoda laughed. The man certainly knew his son. Grogu was inconsolable for days after Yoda told him that they would not be visiting his Buir any time soon. Force temper tantrums became the norm for quite a while.
“Made him a promise, I did.”
Din tilted his head, looking at the older ghost.
“Take you with us we would, the time we saw you next.”
Din paused, feeling oddly relieved. He was old now. He missed his Ad’ika.
“It was time anyway, wasn’t it?” Din asked. He recalled how tired and slow he had been feeling lately. It all made sense.
Yoda nodded. Din closed his eyes in acceptance.
What happened next Din Djarin never would have believed if it didn’t happen to himself. One second, he was talking to Yoda and Grogu is tugging on his fingers, the next he is literally standing over his own helmeted body.
The only reason he wasn’t outwardly panicking was his decades of Mandalorian training, and bounty hunting. It helped that as soon as he was in the same state as Grogu and Yoda, Grogu absolutely lost it.
“Buir! Buir! Buir!” The tiny tot was running laps around his father, practically tripping over himself.
Din laughed. Scooping up the hyperactive child, Din removed his helmet with one hand and pressed his forehead to his Ad’ika’s.
“I’m here Grogu. And I’m not going anywhere.”
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In the morning, Omera went to the Mandalorian’s hut. He was nowhere to be found, and by the looks of it, he never made it in last night. Heading out to where he had always gravitated towards, she went to the lone tree. Perhaps he had dozed off there. When she was nearby, she saw the outline of a figure.
She smiled wistfully at what she saw. There he was, propped up against the tree. Too still to be sleeping, she knew he must have passed away overnight. While she and the village would miss their friend, she knew that Mando was where he had been dying to be for decades.
He was finally at home with his son.