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The light was too bright. A dull, throbbing ringing played mercilessly between his sensitive ears as his eyes stayed half-closed, blurring out the edges of the barren room.
Grogu slid his eyes fully shut, focusing on silently counting his stilted breaths. In and out. In and out.
Wincing at the soft rattling sound of his breathing, Grogu forced himself to continue as he fought the exhaustion creeping into every crevice of his bones.
Weakness had never truly bothered Grogu before, too young perhaps to fully understand it’s implications. Now though, Grogu had something he was willing to fight for, someone for he silently swore to stay strong.
His Mandalorian would come for him.
Once, not so long ago, pain and fear had been constant incessant companions, filling each of his days with the horrifying dull nature of loneliness. Over time, Grogu had stopped wishing for respite, wishing for rescue, because it seemed not a single being in the whole galaxy even knew to call him by his name. No one would care if he died, no one was willing to step up and help him live.
What was the point of wanting a different life, wishing for a family, when there was no hope? Grogu wasn’t someone's son or even a friend. He was nothing but a science experiment, barely even seen as a real creature.
There were many days when Grogu hadn’t felt real even to himself.
And then-- The Mandalorian.
A man of armor, a gruff voice stilted by a helmet, a gentle hand around his back, lifting the Child up and away from fear and pain.
Grogu wasn’t quite sure why the Mandalorian had taken him in, protected him with savage ferocity, and bestowed him with the fond name of Ad’ika.
He knew he was trouble, always driven awry by his curiosity and attracting unwanted attention. Grogu didn’t always understand those around him but he knew instinctively that the danger plaguing the pair was following him, not his guardian.
But he couldn’t regret it. He couldn’t regret them, their little clan of two.
When Grogu heard his true name spoken from the mouth of his protector, joy flooded through his veins leaving a pleasant warmness in its wake. It was in that moment that Grogu allowed himself to really believe, perhaps for the first time, that this was real. The Mandalorian had chosen Grogu and what they shared was far more than a chance encounter and basic loyalty to a cultural code.
They were a family, in the only way they knew how. He would keep breathing, in and out, in and out, for the hope of seeing his armored man again.
Grogu’s eyes slid back open.
The wretched man stood before him, facing the closed cell door as if Grogu was barely worth his attention.
Moff Gideon. The name spoken like a curse by the Mandalorian. Grogu didn’t need any more evidence to know of the malice flowing through the man before him. His wickedness oozed out around him like a sludge, filling the room with sparking energy.
“He is foolish, your Mandalorian.”
Grogu refused to lift his eyes to this man, instead staring resolutely down at the floor. He would not be tricked. He would not be manipulated. All Grogu had to do was keep breathing, keep waiting.
The figure before him turned his head back, glaring down at Grogu as though he were an annoying insect. “He’s gathered himself quite the little army of ragtag supporters but he has no true idea what he is up against. So much trouble, for a child who isn’t even his.”
You’re wrong, Grogu thought fiercely, unable to further resist the urge to glare up at the man, meeting his dark, cruel eyes. It is you who has no idea what you have done. What you have brought down upon yourself.
A foundling. That is what his Mandalorian called him. Ad’ika, my foundling, the one I must protect. The one I have chosen to protect.
This is the Way.
Gideon snorted cruel laughter down at him. “Your Mandalorian is the very definition of disorder. He has no place trying to keep you from us. He has no idea how important you truly are! What you could do for the Empire.”
He raised the glistening dark saber higher, leveling it off right above Grogu’s head. “What you will do for the Empire. It is your destiny, little one. It does not pay well to run from one’s fate.”
Grogu’s heartbeat quickened beneath his heated skin. No, he would not surrender to this fear. For too long Grogu had spent each and every day in a state of abject terror and crippling solitude. He was not alone now, the Mandalorian promised him that he would never be alone again. Grogu was not afraid, he knew-
The cell door slid open with a sharp hiss.
The Mandalorian always struck an impressive figure, tall and cold with a long spear swung around his back and gun drawn in his hand. It only took his guardian a single moment to take in the scene before him, eyes sweeping over Gideon to meet Grogu’s gaze.
His hands raising seemingly of their own accord, Grogu stretched out towards the doorway, wrists stinging from the sparking cuffs. He could feel the sharp heat of the sword directly above his ears and had to fight the urge to launch himself off the bench, towards the man he knew in his heart would not abandon him.
Over the next minutes, Grogu’s sight and hearing faded in and out as he fought exhaustion, determined to save his strength. He didn’t know if he had enough power left to defend his Mandalorian should the battle turn in Gideon’s favor, but Grogu would give it his all regardless.
How could he go back to the life he once accepted as inevitable when he now knew there was another way? Days filled with adventure, new food, toys, and an affectionate hand stroking the top of his head.
He would not go back to that fear and loneliness. Grogu was strong now, stronger than he had been in a very long time. Here with his guardian, he knew they would both rather fight to the death than endure more forced separation.
All of a sudden, the Mandalorian was right in front of him. Grogu looked up, feeling calm for the first time in days. There was his guardian, reaching gentle hands down to him. In a moment, he would be back in the arms of the one he trusted, the one he adored. They would escape together, they would be together, they--
A screeching hiss erupted through the air as the dark saber struck a devastating blow to the Mandalorian’s turned back.
Grogu drew in a distressed breath as the Mandalorian was forced back, bringing his armored arms up to defend against the onslaught. The ringing of saber on armor filled the room, breaking the quiet tension between the men.
Watching the back of Gideon disappear through the doorway, Grogu struggled to his feet, arms uselessly hanging out in front. With a grimace, the Child bodily hefted himself off of the bench, landing painfully on one side.
The sounds of the battle outside filled his sensitive ears as Grogu forced himself to sit up. Black spots danced on the corners of his vision as he strained to hear the mayhem. A troubling sizzle echoed back into the room as Grogu pulled himself across the floor.
Please. Please, I just got him back, he came for me. I don’t want this to be the end.
Then - silence. Grogu paused, his blood running cold at the sudden finality in the air. The battle outside the door appeared to have ended out of sight, the quiet almost more disturbing than the grating sounds of struggle.
Grogu lifted his head to face the entryway, little hands still balled into fists.
He would fight. If this evil man had hurt his guardian, Grogu would fight in his place, for him, for them. Grogu had never been a coward and now, with something so worthwhile to protect, he would fight with every ounce of the strength he had so long locked deep inside.
A flash of movement and then abruptly, there he was.
A soft cry bubbled up Grogu’s throat as he stretched out his shackled hands.
Two steps forward and the Mandalorian fell to his knees in front of the Child. He reached out shaking arms and Grogu tipped himself down into them.
Fingers, always so gentle, closed around his sides as Grogu was lifted into the air, bearing him up until he was face-to-face with the shiny helmet. Grogu cooed and examined his own reflection. His skin was sallow and taut but his eyes gleamed hauntingly.
It was only in this moment that Grogu realized that he hadn’t actually been 100% certain that his guardian would come for him once again. He was trouble for the Mandalorian, Grogu knew that much, knew that the danger haunting their path came from his little life and enormous, uncontrollable power.
Over the years, he had encountered other sympathetic souls who could not stomach the torture of a child. They would reach out a gentle hand, rubbing away his tears, pulling a blanket around his shoulders. But eventually, inevitably, the risk would become too much or his strangeness would begin to unnerve them and they would back out of his cage to flee, never to return.
It never paid to care for Grogu.
Grogu hoped, wished, begged for the Mandalorian to be different. This one had chosen him. This one threw himself in between the Child and danger. This one called him Ad’ika before he’d even known Grogu had a name.
This one had to be different, and still, Grogu could not stop himself from worrying that this time, loving him would be too difficult even for such a determined warrior.
“Kid,” the man before him gasped. A thumb crossed reverently over his cheek. “Ad’ika . Grogu. You’re ok. You’re ok now. I’m here.”
Grogu turned his face into the caress, cooing softly. His fear, moments before clouding his mind in a dull haze, was gone. Perhaps that was foolish, to rely his state of mind so thoroughly on just one man, but this Mandalorian was Grogu’s Mandalorian so how could he be afraid while enclosed in his embrace?
The Mandalorian made quick work on his bound hands, rubbing carefully at his fingers once they were free.
“I wish we had more time, kid, but the fun’s not over yet,” he said, eyes shifting back the doorway. “We’ve got to get out of here. Don’t worry, I- I won’t let anything happen to you.”
His voice cracked painfully on these last words, and not for the first time, Grogu wished he could catch a glimpse of his guardian’s face. His actions showed his emotions, his intent, but Grogu longed to know the color of his Mandalorian’s eyes. To know what they looked like as they gazed upon their foundling.
Grogu gripped the man’s fingers and leaned down to nuzzle against them.
He heard and felt the Mandalorian take another shaky breath as his grip on Grogu tightened.
“I’m sorry, Grogu. I’m here now, and I’m going to protect you. We are going to get out of this. I promise.”
Grogu believed him. This man had returned his faith and Grogu felt a bit guilty that his own belief had wavered, even for just a moment.
He was Grogu and this was his Mandalorian. As the man slipped Grogu back into the familiar sling at his waist, the Child burrowed into the cloth and safety with a contented sigh, allowing his tired eyes to slip shut.
He could rest without fear now, though his time of waiting was not over. Something else, something old and powerful was coming for him. Grogu knew this. The very air around him quivered with the promise of change.
But for now, he was safe and cared for, protected, and beloved.
Grogu intended to focus on this moment and imprint its memory into his heart so that no matter where they went from here, he would carry it with him always.
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Then, later --
Warm brown eyes.