Chapter Text
Din was standing amongst a small group, Greef Karaga among them in the main plaza of Navarro. The High Magistrate was hosting a celebration, Din couldn’t keep track of which this was, Karga always seemed to be hosting celebrations these days, and had extended an invitation to Mandalore. Although the rebuilding efforts were in full force, Mandalore had managed to send a good number of people to join in the festivities.
“So Mando, where’s my favourite little green terror?” Greef asked.
Din looked around the small gathering, spotting a shock of red hair on the opposite side of the courtyard. She was laughing at something someone around her had said when, as though she could feel his eyes on her, she turned her head, locking her gaze onto him, a bright, warm smile on her face. She looked down to Grogu, who was sitting against her hip and pointed in Din’s direction, the two shared a playful look before turning their attention to him and laughing together. Din smiled under his helmet as Bo-Katan excused herself and made her way over.
“He’s on his way over it seems” Din said, turning back to the group.
The group watched as Bo-Katan gracefully made her way over, the green child held securely in her arms. They were laughing together as they drew closer to where Din and the others were standing, looking every bit the mother and son everyone already assumed they were. But that wasn’t the case, not officially at least.
“Please tell me you’ve finally come to your senses and married that woman already!” Greef said, loud enough for those around to hear him clearly. Din groaned knowing what was about to happen.
He heard Bo-Katan laugh, a deep belly laugh as she came to stand beside him. “Oh, he’s asked High Magistrate, several times in fact.” Bo said, earning a shocked expression from Karga, Din had heard this before, more times than he wished to count. Everyone who had known himself and Lady Kryze for any length of time seemed to be asking this question constantly.
Din rolled his eyes under his helmet, Bo tilting her head, waiting for his typical response, “I have asked her, but she refuses to agree.”
Bo hummed, a satisfied smile on her face as she turned her attention back to Greef and then to Grogu, affectionately stroking his ear, “That’s right isn’t it ad’ika, I won’t marry your Dad until he moves you two back to Mandalore, those are my terms aren’t they.” She said in her sweetest voice, pure joy spreading across her face.
Grogu, the traitor that he was, chirped happily up at Bo, nodding his head in agreement, both of them turning their attention to Din, who shifted uncomfortably from one foot to the other.
“Mando, you fool! You’re telling me you’re living on my planet, when you could be on Mandalore, married to this amazing woman?” Greef asked incredulously.
Bo-Katan turned her pointed stare from Din and then to Greef Karga, “That would be correct, it seems Din Djarin would rather live in a cabin on the lava flats on your lovely planet than be bound to me. A shame really.” Bo shrugged, mirth in her eyes as she dug Din a hole for himself.
Din sighed, they had had this conversation hundreds of times at this point and each time it was harder and harder for him to convince himself that Bo was wrong. “I have to focus on Grogu’s training, he needs to be out on his journeys, learning what it is to be a Mandalorian.”
Bo-Katan arched her brow at him, Grogu gurgling disapprovingly. The little womp rat really was a traitor. “Do you not think, in order for Grogu to learn what it is to be a Mandalorian, he should be with..oh I don’t know…other Mandalorians between your jobs?” Bo stated, her arguments having been solidified over the weeks and months of having this conversation.
Greef clucked his tongue, “Lady Kryze has a point Mando, you come here in between missions and Bo-Katan is normally here to greet you when you arrive, why not skip the hassle and head straight home to her?”
It was a valid question, one he had asked himself hundreds of times. Bo was typically waiting for them on Navarro when they arrived home from their mission. Din had insisted that she not go to so much trouble for the likes of them, and she had brushed it off, assuring them it was no trouble. Each time they returned to their little cabin after a job, Bo was there, making them a meal, bathing Grogu and tucking him into bed for the night before settling on the sofa with Din, relaxing his tense muscles with her dexterous fingers and lulling him into the most restful sleep he had had since the last time she had done it.
After three months of this routine, Din had grown so accustomed to Bo-Katan’s presence that when she wasn’t there to greet them after their mission, he had felt like he had been run through with the darksaber. Grogu was a terror the whole night, it wasn’t until Bo came through via holomessage that he settled down. Din had felt a deep emptiness without her that was impossible to ignore and so, when Bo-Katan arrived the next day, Din had asked her, before she even made it off the ramp of her ship, to marry him.
He would never forget the look on her face as his question washed over her. Her eyes softened, filled with love and promise as she smiled at him, walking the rest of the way down the ramp, placing her palm gently against the cheek of his helmet. They met in a keldabe kiss, Din had felt a peace like he had never known settle in his bones that was just as quickly snatched away as she spoke.
“Din Djarin, I love you more than anyone in this galaxy, but I won’t marry you, not yet.” Bo told him softly, placing a kiss to the opposite cheek of his helmet.
He felt as though the wind had been knocked out of him, he thought, he didn’t know what he thought, he didn’t understand anything in that moment and told her as such, stammering as he tried to wrap his head around her rejection.
Bo had remained in his embrace, looking up at him with sympathy in her eyes as she explained, “I will marry you the moment you return to Mandalore, for good. You and Grogu belong in Mandalore, with our people, with me. Navarro is nice, it’s fine, but it isn’t your home. Once you are ready to accept that, I’ll be there waiting for you.”
“I can’t…Grogu’s training…you know that I…” Din had tried desperately to get the words out without sounding as broken as he felt.
Bo had simply smiled again, clearly having anticipated his reservations “Grogu’s training can be done from Mandalore. Nothing would affect that, you would simply be based there, instead of here on Navarro, his training would still be your priority.”
Din took a deep breath, ready to formulate some argument as to why it wasn’t possible or a good idea, but Bo silenced him.
“I will wait for you as long as you need, Din Djarin. I am yours, nothing will ever change that, but I won’t marry you until you are ready to fully embrace a life together.” She smiled warmly as she said it, a confidence in her eyes that assured him she was positive he would come around.
And now here they were, four months later, standing on Navarro, being asked by everyone around them why they weren’t married yet. Bo-Katan knew his reservations, his fears, his insecurities. She knew why he was struggling to embrace their life together, as she had told him she was a patient woman and he loved her all the more for it, but Din still didn’t feel worthy.
Before he could dwell further on his internal battles, Greef spoke up with his solution. “Well if all it will take is you leaving my planet, consider this your eviction notice, Mando. As of today, you are no longer a resident of Navarro and I revoke my offer to the cabin.”
Bo chuckled at the dramatics of it all. “All though I do appreciate you offering to force his hand, Din has to make the decision himself, for us.” Din felt her hand come to rest against his tricep, squeezing lightly to reassure him that she wasn’t going anywhere, no matter how long it took him to come to his senses. But as he looked from Bo-Katan to Grogu, the two people that held his heart and soul in their hands, the pieces fell together and Din saw his future clearly for the first time. No matter where he was, his home was with the two people in front of him. Din knew that Bo’s place was with their people on Mandalore. As the ruler she could be nowhere else but Din’s place was only with her. It didn’t matter where she was, he was meant to be by her side. She had spent the majority of their time apart bridging the distance, making the trip to be with him, no matter how stressed or busy she was, when he could just as easily have moved back to Mandalore, just as she had been saying for months.
It was his turn to make her life easy. To make all of their lives easier.
“I understand, High Magistrate. Grogu and I will clear out our belongings from the cabin and will return to Mandalore with our people tomorrow.” Din said confidently, though he prayed Bo-Katan could hear the humor in his voice.
She must have because she threw her head back in laughter a moment later. “That’s it, that’s all it took? An eviction notice. Force, if I had known that I would have brought you up to speed months ago, Greef.” Bo said with a laugh as she turned her attention back to Grogu who had begun to babble excitedly in her arms. “Do you hear that ad’ika? Your dad finally came to his senses!” Grogu squealed with delight as Bo nuzzled her nose against his.
Greef Karga stood there chuckling “So you’ll finally put this man out of his misery then?” he asked her.
Bo’s smile turned devious as she looked between the two men. “Once he asks me again, in our home, on Mandalore, I’ll consider it” She purred before her smile softened to the one she only gave to Din and Grogu, the full weight of the love and devotion she felt for the two of them clear in her eyes.
Shortly after, the clan of three made their departure from the celebration, heading to the cabin on the lava flats together to pack Din and Grogu’s belongings, all of them ready to embrace their lives together, finally.