#Kotep the Loth Cat

[tailorvizsla]

Hi Momma! Its been a little while since I sent you a #chaotic ask. I was just thinking on what your HCs might with Din, Paz, and the Armorer if their S/O was a bleeding heart who just HAD to rescue and sneak an orphaned baby loth-cat into the covert? Love, your angle

Oooh I like this chaotic ask! I have Din’s ready, but not the other two. For a good reason, I promise. ;) HCs: Din Djarin’s Reaction to SO Bringing Home a Stray Loth Kitten Word Count: ~900 Rating: PG-13 Warnings: Animal abuse. Kotep is hurt when she is little by someone.

- Din will pet animals and sometimes feed strays if he has food on him, but he isn’t really interested in bringing a pet home. He doesn’t have the time or energy to dedicate to homing an animal and getting it acclimated to his nomadic lifestyle.

- (He will never tell anyone, but he is actually scared of adopting a pet. His biggest fear is needing to leave in a hurry and accidentally leaving the animal behind. Even though he knows he will immediately turn around to go pick it up, he does not want any living creature to experience the feeling of abandonment, even if it’s for a few minutes.)

- One day, while on a supply run, you and Din split up in town. He goes to get medical supplies and you go to the market to get some fresh fruit and veggies. While there, you hear yelling and go to investigate the cause of the ruckus.

- The shop keeper – one of the people you buy goods from on a regular basis – is standing in front of his stall, waving his arms and yelling. Other people are trying to calm him down, but he is on a rampage. He draws his foot back and kicks at something, sending a small lump flying into the wall, cutting off its pained cry with a sickening crack.

- “Vermin!” he spits as he stomps back into his stall. “Filthy animal!”

- From here, you can see that the vermin he was referring to is nothing more than a raggedy brown loth-kitten. Crouching down, you hold your hands out to the kitten and call to it gently. It cowers on the ground in front of you, trying its best to curl its body into a tight little ball, clearly expecting to be abused.

- You can see that its soft, downy hide is covered in a myriad of wounds. The kitten is missing a big chunk out of one ear and it looks like the whiskers on one side of its face have been ripped out. The streets haven’t been kind to the tiny creature.

- “Come here, Kotep,” you croon gently, “I will not hurt you.”

- The loth-kitten stares up at you with big green eyes, ears pinned back, for several long moments. Then it slinks forward on three legs – the fourth is badly broken – and curls up next to your knee. The instant it rests its head on your leg, you know you have to take this little creature with you.

- Slowly, to avoid startling her, you reach into your pocket and take out a handkerchief. The kitten doesn’t move as you wrap the material around its torso, keeping its broken leg immobilized. Then you carefully lift the kitten into the bend of your arm.

- As you pass by the stall, the shopkeeper calls out to you. “Hey, Mando!” he says. “What can I get you today?”

- You look at him, hoping to convey your disgust with your posture alone.

- “What kind of man kicks a loth-kitten hard enough to break its bones?” you ask loudly, drawing everyone’s attention. “When it was merely begging for scraps?”

- His face drains, turning an ashen shade of grey. The market bursts into a flurry of whispers at your admonition. You know that many people see you as nothing more than a murderous bounty hunter, exchanging lives for money. You hope that your words have brought the shopkeeper immense shame. (Honestly, kicking a tiny, helpless kitten? He deserves prison, you think, for his cruelty toward an animal.)

- The nearest veterinary clinic is in the fancy side of town, so you call Din and let him know you’ve been delayed. Fortunately, he doesn’t question you. At the clinic, you settle in the nice, plush chairs to wait, ignoring the weird looks you get from the hoity-toity clientele. Once you explain what happened to the veterinarian, they agree to treat Kotep for a reduced fee. (Even so, the cost of the treatment, vaccinations, and care items wipe out your savings account entirely.)

- From there, you head back to the Razor Crest, trying to smuggle your new companion in. Of course, Din doesn’t miss a thing, especially since you only have a bundle in your arms and a small, colorful bag on your shoulder. Definitely not the supplies you had come here for.

- “Where’s the food?” he asks, folding his arms in front of his chest. You give him back the money Armorer had given you two to buy supplies with.

- “Uh, there was a problem,” you say, trying to hurry past him. “We’ll need to go somewhere else from now on.”

- “Right, and what are you trying to hide from me?” he asks patiently, blocking you in.

- Before you can think of something, Kotep pokes her head up from your arms and lets out a curious meeww??

- “Oh, no,” Din says. “We are not adopting a cat.”

- “Her name is Kotep,” you say stubbornly. “I spent all my savings getting her patched up. So we’re keeping her.”

- “No, we aren’t,” Din says. “You’re taking her back to where you found her.”

- “That hut’uun shopkeeper kicked her so hard he broke her leg and three of her ribs,” you say. “I’m not taking her back there.”

- Din exhales gustily, tilting his head back to look up at the ceiling in exasperation. For a few seconds, you wonder if he really will make you take her back to that horrible place, but he relents.

- “Welcome to the Tribe, Kotep,” Din says grumpily, wiggling a finger at the kitten in your arms.

- Kotep lets out a mraoowr of happiness and licks his finger, her ears coming up in curiosity. 

- That night, Kotep sleeps in the bed with the two of you. When you wake up, Kotep is curled up on Din’s chest, her head tucked under his chin, tiny snores escaping her. Junior is laying across his stomach, tiny snores escaping him as well. You quite literally have to bite down on the insides of your cheeks to not burst into hysterical laughter at the sight of the mighty warrior becoming nothing more than a pillow for two babies.

- As Kotep grows bigger, she takes it upon herself to look after Junior, often picking him up and bringing him to one of you if he starts getting into mischief. Din is especially appreciative of the third pair of eyes on the kid. (Junior, on the other hand, is often sour about having his mischief interrupted.)

- The day you take Kotep back to the Tribe, some idiot of a hunter makes the mistake of getting into Junior’s personal space. As the hunter kneels to waggle a finger at Junior, Kotep launches all 13 kilograms of herself at the hunter, using her sharp claws and teeth to utterly wreck whatever parts of him are not covered in armor. Then, just as quickly, she leaps off him, grabs Junior, and drags the kid under the couch, snarling at anyone who dares come near the couch.

- That day, Kotep is named an honorary member of the Fighting Corps. The hunters debate on having a jetpack or maybe a flamethrower made for her, but you overrule that line of thought. After a few weeks, the hunter apologizes to Kotep. As a peace offering, he gives her a very large piece of fish. She forgives him, and eventually lets him pet her.

- (Having learned his lesson, he often brings her back something small to stay on her good side.)