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vanishedangels · 2 years

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Castles on the sand

Blame it on the storm Sequel

Summary: After the storm that brought them together ended, rebel pilot Luke Skywalker and bounty hunter Din Djarin started a long-distance relationship. It gets more and more complicated when they realize they're developing deep feelings for each other.

Pairing: Din Djarin/Luke Skywalker

Characters: Luke Skywalker, Din Djarin, Leia Organa, Han Solo, Wedge Antilles, Xi'an (Star Wars), R2-D2, Paz Vizsla, Yoda, Grogu.

Rating: Mature (+18)

Tags: Canon Divergence (AU), Long-distance Relationship, Post A New Hope (Star Wars), Fluff and Angst, Protective Din Djarin, Tumblr Prompts.

Chapters: 3/3

Navigation: <- Previous Chapter • Next Part ->

Part 2 of Wonderwall series

Excerpt:

He parted his lips a little "Din?" He asked with a sigh, not believing his eyes. After all, Dagobah was a strange place, where he already has fought against a vision of Darth Vader that looked real, very real. Was this another ghost from his past? Was Din really there? "Are you real?" He asked trembling.

The mandalorian raised his hands as in surrender nodding slowly "Luke? Cyare?" He asked walking slowly towards him. When Din was inches apart of him, Luke blinked back tears still shuddering and he huffed resting his chin on Din's pauldron, breathing heavily.

Din wrapped his arms around Luke's waist "Yes, cyare, I'm really here."

Chapter 3: Blast from the past

Tatooine appeared before his eyes like a ghost from the past, childhood memories tinged with sadness and even regret.

Luke swore he would never come back to his home world the day he decided to leave, that was two years ago, but even when it was painful, he couldn't leave Din behind.

He mingled with the crowd wearing his civilian clothes again, he knew where to look to get what he needed to search for Din in the vastness of Tatooine desert. Mos Eisley was still the atrocious town that Luke remembered so well, he thought back to the first time he talked to Din, how he was throwing out words as he usually did when he was nervous, and how Din soothed him by telling him that he was worthy of a place like Mos Eisley if he hit the floor at least once even when somebody ended the fight for him, and it flooded his soul with a wave of despair. Din. His fingers clutched the satchel hanging from his shoulder and then pulled it over his head, handing it to the tradeswoman before him. She took the satchel and opened it looking inside, her round face lit up as she whistled, she looked up at the blonde's face.

"Sir, what can I do for you?" She asked him.

Luke leaned his hands on the counter "I need a X-34 landspeeder and fill it with supplies... You know, edibles, milk and a medical kit. I'm racing against the clock, so you better hurry up." He said with a blank expression.

The woman pouted peeping into the satchel one more time, raising her eyebrows "Kriff, sir, for these credits you're gonna get what you want faster than the speed of light." She nodded "Gimme ten minutes." Luke couldn't believe it, that was indeed faster than he was expecting, he frowned incredulous staring at her. "Or maybe five?" She asked pulling a face.

Luke nodded.

He stood by the X-34 while the woman and her two kids were packing the provisions, the landspeeder looked as ramshackle as the one he owned when he was living in his uncle's moisture farm, he shook off those memories as he was trying to focus on Din.

"All settled, sir." The woman said gesturing at the landspeeder "She's a little rusted but I promise I kept it in good shape, the engine works just fine." Luke nodded at her realizing that the woman was selling him her own transportation, fortunately he brought all his savings in that satchel.

He held the steering wheel tight, pressing his lips together, thinking back to the last time he drove his own landspeeder, then he closed his eyes, trying to reach out through the force, to find Din, he only did it once before and that time he canalized the force in a way that everything became clear, he blew up the Death Star guided by the force then, this time shouldn't be different.

Please, love, show me the way.

He breathed out frowning, opening his eyes slowly, igniting the machine, he shivered when his prayers were answered, an indiscernible pull was invading his whole being. He traveled across the desert for hours until his heart started throbbing in his chest and he knew he was close. He slowed down the speed, seeking, searching around when he finally spotted a glint at the foot of a dune. He stopped the engine and jumped off the landspeeder running towards the dune, when he was closer he could perceive what was the cause of that glint between the dust, the twin suns light reflecting on a mandalorian's shiny beskar. Luke got down on his knees clutching the mandalorian's pauldron, the man was half buried in the sand, Luke felt the way his eyes brimmed with tears as he rolled the man over to see the front of his helmet, the tears were falling down on the man's beskar as Luke sobbed, he drew his hand to the mandalorian's neck, trying to find his pulse. He didn't know he was holding his breath until he felt a weak but steady heartbeat against the pad of his fingers.

"Din..." He said under his breath, licking a salty tear at the corner of his lips.

The mandalorian groaned writhing "Luke?" His voice came out faint but Luke smiled relieved through the tears rolling down his cheeks.

"Tell me, are you injured?" He asked as his hands roamed over Din's legs, arms and stomach until he felt something warm against his fingers. Din groaned again, Luke's eyes went round when he realized that there was a small cut on his flight suit, right under his left ribs, and he stared at his fingers, they were stained with Din's blood.

He looked at Din's visor "Where else?" Din shook his head. "Your head?" Luke insisted.

"No, cyar'ika, my head is fine." He said levering himself up onto his elbows "How did you find me? What-what are you doing here?"

Luke hauled him to his feet and a weak whine came from inside his helmet "Doesn't matter now. I need to treat that wound." He said passing Din's arm around his own neck and grabbing him by his waist, walking him to the landspeeder. They managed to get Din inside the cockpit, Luke looked around frowning.

"We're in the Western Dune Sea." He muttered, he looked at Din again "We're close to Jundland Wastes."

Din shrugged pressing his hand against his injured ribs.

"I think I know a place where I can clean your wound, Din." He said jumping into the speeder "I'll take you there."

Ben Kenobi's hut looked oddly uninhabited, it was like the time had stopped the day Luke and Ben left Tatooine, unfortunately in Ben's case, for good.

Luke helped Din to lie down on a table, carefully, as he was leaving the medical kit on a chair, the dust covering everything around them.

"Din, no one is coming here, look at this place, it's been unoccupied for two years now, please, babe, I need you to remove your chest plate." He pleaded soothing his hand on Din's arm.

Din stared at him and then he nodded. Luke was very focused on Din's wound, he took care of it tenderly, finally putting a bacta patch over before admiring Din's skin, he hesitantly touched his chest and Din drew his hand forward, placing it atop Luke's. He nodded again at Luke, the blonde nodded back and leaned forward resting his face on his man's chest, listening to his heartbeat, feeling Din's chest raising and falling, he was alive, he was safe, and he was there, beneath Luke. The blonde pressed a kiss on his chest before pulling back as he stroked his skin, he smiled softly.

"Thank you, cyar'ika. I owe you one."

No, you don't.

"How did you find me, mesh'la?" Din asked resting his forearms on the table.

Luke frowned realizing that, again, he couldn't say the truth, he swallowed hard "Paz Vizsla told me you were here."

Din didn't say a word, he looked frozen and Luke looked down avoiding his visor.

"You've been to Nevarro?"

Luke nodded.

"Still, how did you find me here? Tatooine is huge." Din insisted.

"A hunch, I guess." He shrugged hating himself for lying to his man.

Din grabbed Luke's glass of blue milk "You even brought provisions."

Busted.

"Okay, Din, I was planning on persuade you to spend some time with me here once I found you." What a despicable liar. He sighed staring at his visor "And when I found you you were badly hurt. I'm glad I came here." More lies, he always knew he would find Din hurt, or even worse. He couldn't avoid the subject anymore "Alright, I came here because I was worried about you, three weeks Din, can you blame me?"

"I understand, but I'm a bounty hunter, Luke." He shook his head slowly "I crashed my ship and my com broke, I made a deal with a mechanic, his son needed to cross the Western Dune Sea, so I escorted him, in the meantime his father was repairing my ship. When I was going back to Mos Eisley some mercenaries attacked me, a blaster shot hit my speeder bike and when I was on the floor they approached me." He sighed as Luke was holding his breath boring into his visor. "Don't worry, I killed them but, ah, before that, one of them stabbed me and, the speeder bike was unusable, I walked then, walked for hours until I collapsed, I think. Bleeding."

By the time Din ended his story Luke's lower lip was trembling.

"I still can't believe you found me, cyar'ika." Din added offering his hand to him over the table, Luke nodded, grabbing Din's gloved hand and squeezed it. Now, with Din sitting across from him, he considered how would it feel to lose him for good and his heart sank, he intertwined their fingers sighing deeply. Din was so special, he never asked further, letting Luke have his own way, by telling him half-truths, maybe because Din was being secretive about some aspects of his life as well.

After he wrapped a sleepy Din in a blanket, Luke left the hut, staying in his late Master's home was affecting him deeply, he's been feeling a tightness in his chest since the moment he was sure Din was out of danger. He sat behind the hut, his forearms propped on his knees, he looked down, touching the sand, he thought back to a particular morning when he was a child, around ten years old, his uncle Owen was teaching him how to repair the auxiliary generator, the sand was getting inside the system and his uncle was cursing under his breath, little Luke was pressing his lips together holding back a laugh, his uncle looked at him and huffed. When they were walking towards the farm his uncle looked at the horizon, he frowned and then looked at Luke "Yes, the sand can be treacherous, Luke, but remember one thing, you should respect it. You should never build a castle on the sand, build a small house, the one you can call home, with a solid foundation that will keep it stable and secure, is the same with life, son, don't you ever forget about that."

And boy, he didn't forget it. He didn't notice he was holding a handful of sand, he let the grains run through his fingers. Was he building castles on the sand? Was he building a relationship with Din on a fragile base? Was love enough? He looked up, staring at the twin suns going down, just like the last evening he spent on Tatooine, the last time he stood outside his childhood house as a farm boy, he thought about his uncle and his aunt, and how he never saw them again after that day and tears shimmered in his eyes. He gasped through tears when he felt a soft touch on his back. Din was sitting beside him with some difficulty, Luke rested his hand on Din's knee in silence, he started crying heavily, not taking his eyes off the suns. Din soothed his hand on his back "It's okay, cyare, I'm here. Let it out." Luke nodded as the binary sunset was leaving the sky. "Let it out."

That night while Luke was dozing off, Din wrapped one arm around him from behind, he caressed Luke's chest softly, Luke was wearing his blindfold, Din wasn't wearing his helmet. He pressed a kiss on Luke's blonde hair and whispered "Ni kar'tayl gar darasuum, cyare." Luke hummed half asleep. "Ni kar'tayl gar darasuum, Luke." Din said again, but this time Luke was already asleep.

As the months passed it became more difficult to synchronize their schedules, nevertheless the times they could spend together it was like they were the only two people in the galaxy. Din started to show himself more vulnerable since Tatooine, he even started to remove some pieces of his armour to snuggle up with Luke under their warm blankets, the first time it was one of his pauldrons, Luke rested his face against his shoulder hardly believing it, even through the thick fabric of the flight suit the blonde could feel his lover's warmth and he rewarded him with kisses and whispering sweet nothings against Din's ear.

Luke was heading towards the meeting room, smiling at every person on his way, he was radiant, knowing that his man was waiting for him. Yes. His man was on Hoth again and he couldn't wait to be alone with him in the intimacy of their home. Luke widened his eyes when he realized he was considering the Razor Crest his home, their home. He smiled shyly looking up, his eyes meeting Din's helmet and then he frowned noticing that Leia and Han were talking to him. Something was definitely off. Din looked tense and Leia's face was irradiating frustration, that was new. Din's visor was on him, then he looked back at Leia and nodded, walking towards the blonde and when he was close to Luke he pressed their foreheads together, his gloved hand caressing the nape of Luke's neck.

The mandalorian pulled back a little "I'm waiting for you, cyar'ika." His visor fixed on Luke's eyes. He withdrew his hand from him and walked away from Luke, leaving him alone and slightly befuddled.

"We need to talk, Luke." Leia tilted her head inviting him to come close to her. Luke obliged shifting his gaze between her and Han Solo.

"What is it?" He asked leaning his backside against a table staring at his friend's face.

"Din gave us some information, Vader hired a bounty hunter, his target is the rebel that blew up the Death Star." She narrowed her eyes boring into Luke's, a cold wave invaded Luke's body at once.

The blonde's heart skipped a beat, he swallowed through the lump in his throat "Din would never." He stated feeling tears prickling at the corner of his eyes.

"I know that." She said shaking her head slowly "Still, it's too risky, we're not hiring him anymore, we're not working with Din from now on."

"What?" Luke's face contorted leaning forward.

"We're not receiving people outside the alliance anymore, I won't ask you to stop seeing him off world of course, I'm just asking you to be cautious, Luke."

"Cautious?" Luke was infuriated by Leia's words.

"Yeah, kid, what if one of his buddies followed him and found us?" Solo crossed his arms over his chest trying to catch his eyes making Luke stare at his face. "Besides, he is a bounty hunter, and there's a high price for your head."

Luke was fuming, knowing exactly what Han was implying "I said he would never do such a thing." He said through gritted teeth.

"How do you know?" Han shrugged "I don't trust him." He added cocking his eyebrows.

"Well, I do trust him." Luke said leaning back like trying to put some space between him and his friends, he was suddenly feeling attacked by them and his heart was breaking into pieces "You don't know him."

"Oh, and you do?" Han nodded pressing his lips together "You know what? Screwing the man from time to time doesn't mean you know him."

"Fuck you, Han." Luke said feeling his throat going tight as he was leaving the room, curling his hands into fists, he couldn't wrap his head around his friend's hurtful comment. That was what Han thought about them? How could Han underestimate their relationship, when he knew for sure that Luke was in love with Din?

When he walked inside the Razor Crest he came to a halt the moment his eyes met Din's visor. The mandalorian was standing there, still, not making a move, he looked expectant. Luke walked towards him finally encircling his waist with his arms, hiding his face in his neck.

"You're not coming back home anymore." The blonde said under his breath. Din soothed his hands on his back humming. He pulled back to stare at his visor, his eyes glistening "I don't know when I'm gonna see you again, Din."

Din nodded "I know. They asked you to stop seeing me, right?"

"No." Luke answered frowning resting his hands on the man's chest plate "They didn't, they won't hire you anymore but I'm free to see you wherever I want."

The mandalorian tilted his head "Are you okay with that?"

"Din." Luke said reassuringly, stroking his chest plate.

"I mean we're not seeing each other quite often, are you okay with that?"

Luke thought about what Din was trying to say, it was true, they were lucky if they found a moment to meet somewhere else lately. No, he wasn't okay with that. Then, an idea popped up in his mind, he smiled as his eyes went round "Oh! I've got it!" He nodded enthusiastically "Join us! Be part of the rebel alliance, Din!"

"Cyar'ika..." Din said running his hands down and placing them on Luke's small back.

"Yes! You can be one of us, you're a terrific pilot and you know about weapons and you're covered in beskar, you're a warrior, you're perfect! They would kill to have a member like you, I mean it." Luke kept staring at Din's visor.

"Luke." The man said under his breath.

"You won't need to worry about credits anymore, you're gonna get a weekly income, you can still provide for your people and you won't be chasing the next job, this is so good Din, and I can see you every day. It's perfect." Luke's eyes were glistening but not with sadness anymore, hope was taking him over.

"Luke." Din said again and the blonde smiled. "This is not the way. I'm a bounty hunter, I'm my people's beroya. My tribe is where I belong to." Luke's smile dwindling slowly. "The empire, the Old Republic, the Core Words, they've got nothing to do with my people, my tribe. Please, don't ask me that." He added cupping Luke's face "I'm sorry, cyare."

A castle on the sand, Luke thought, maybe he was acting like a selfish man, but he wanted to build their relationship on a solid foundation, apparently Din didn't want the same. He snorted out a laugh, trying to hide that he was heartbroken "Alright Din, you're right."

"Please understand." Din pressed his helmet against his forehead "I can't, but I would go anywhere to see you, cyare, you won't get rid of me even if you wanted to." He chuckled rubbing Luke's cheeks with his hands. "You don't know how much you mean to me."

Then show me.

Luke didn't say a word instead but deep down he was desperate to hear Din saying it, to know how much he meant to him, maybe his mandalorian was lying and maybe he didn't love Luke back. He drew in a sharp inhale holding Din tight, at least today you're still mine.

The rebel alliance was losing the battle. The Death Squadron discovered the base on Hoth and Luke and the rest of his squadron fought back giving the rest of the base personnel the chance to evacuate the place and leave the planet before Darth Vader could even set a foot in the facilities. Luke was lying on the snow, face down when he heard the sound of his friends' ships flying away, he looked up to the sky holding his breath. Home was now a distant concept and his stomach twisted at the idea. In the midst of despair Luke could hear his late Master's voice calling for him.

"Ben?" Luke asked astonished seeing his Master's apparition, he looked like a ghost, a blue glow surrounding his form.

"You will go to the Dagobah system. There you will learn from Yoda, the Jedi Master who instructed me."

Luke narrowed his eyes, he looked around. Why was his late Master appearing for the first time now? He frowned realizing that the rebellion was now weaker, and leaving them behind to train in the ways of the force wasn't a choice but an obligation. It could only make them stronger. He accepted his fate that day, he left Hoth to go to a place he had never heard about before. R2-D2 was his only companion, he stared at the blurry stars before his eyes, he thought about Din, he clutched his com device and thought about communicate with him, then he frowned realizing that his man would ask a lot of questions and he couldn't answer them, his mouth twitched not saying the words he was supposed to say and he turned his comlink off.

On Dagobah Luke learned about his own limitations, his fears, as well as his own strength. Master Yoda was a wise Jedi, the last of them and the most powerful. He was small, tiny if you want, with green skin and big eyes and big ears, he had never met a member of his species until then, and he was old as time. Luke felt a little intimidated by him, his little Master was pushing him to places he wouldn't go by himself.

And the planet was something else entirely, so different from his old Tatooine. Dagobah was hot and humid, Yoda's hut was surrounded by swamps and caves, the constant fog made it mysterious and the green forest was an evidence that this was an unexplored terrain. It was also one of the purest places in the galaxy within the force.

After several weeks of strenuous training Luke left Yoda in his hut and walked to the swamp, he sat near the shore looping his arms around his legs, he sighed staring at his sunken X-Wing, every day his ship was sinking more and more into the muddy waters. Was he doomed to stay there for the rest of his life? He looked over his shoulder staring at Artoo, the little droid shut himself down to conserve power as he usually did. He rubbed his sweaty cheek against his shoulder and then he stood up, his gray tank top was plastered on his skin, he brushed his damp hair off his eyes with his fingers, sighing, walking into the jungle, thinking about the future, his new path and his people. Yes, his people, and that included Din.

After a couple of hours he was walking back to Yoda's hut when he heard a sound coming from behind, the sound of a twig breaking, and he turned around drawing his blaster out but when he could finally see the person before him he froze as his heart leapt in his chest.

Din wrapped his arms around Luke's waist "Yes, cyare, I'm really here." He said under his breath rubbing his helmet against Luke's temple making the blonde groan. When they pulled back Din's eyes behind his visor were taking him in, he sighed as his hands were still holding Luke in place, like an anchor, as always. He moved his hands to caress Luke's sweating arms as Luke was cupping his helmet in his hands.

"What are you doing here? How-how did you find me?" The blonde asked pressing his forehead against Din's.

Din groaned "I'm a bounty hunter, remember?"

How could I forget?

Luke didn't answer.

"I'm sorry, I was worried. Your comlink didn't work and I couldn't com Organa for obvious reasons, I needed to find you." He sighed still pressing their foreheads together "What are you doing here, cyare?" They pulled away.

"I'm on a mission." Luke muttered not able to tell Din the real reason. He frowned realizing that he has been hiding his abilities from Din for three years now. "A secret mission." He added.

Then he considered that if Din could find him there, then any other bounty hunter could find him as well and he swallowed hard. He shook his head thinking that this was Din, he was the best of his kind and there was a strong bond between them as well. Still, Din's mere presence on Dagobah could put not only Yoda but also Din himself in danger. What if someone is following Din? What if someone is already here while we're talking? He looked over his shoulder worried about his Master's safety, then he looked at Din again.

"Din, I'm sorry, it's too dangerous, you can't stay here." He said and his voice cracked a little.

The mandalorian nodded "I understand, but I'm only leaving if you tell me that nothing is wrong and you're here of your own free will." He stated and the blonde nodded.

"I am, Din." He blinked grabbing Din's hand and squeezing it reassuringly.

"Alright." Din looked at his face while Luke was letting his hand go, something uneasy settled heavily in Luke's gut the moment he took two steps back. He knew what was coming. "Can I com you?" The mandalorian asked.

"It's dangerous. And I'm-" Luke wetted his bottom lip with his tongue "I need time to complete my mission." He said and his heart was throbbing in his chest as he was blinking back tears.

"How long will it take?" Din asked shrugging and Luke pursed his lips avoiding his gaze "A month?" He added, Luke shook his head.

"I don't know, Din." He managed to say as he could feel his pulse pounding in his ears.

"A year?" Din insisted.

Luke looked at his visor with his eyes brimming with tears "I don't know." He said again and this time his voice broke choked with emotion.

Din didn't say anything, he didn't move for a while but then he nodded "Alright." He looked at Luke like he was trying to know by heart every single detail about him "You know where to find me." He added after a long silence and he turned around slowly as Luke's chest heaved and his breath was coming uneven staring at the distant form of the mandalorian when he was walking away. How could he make Din wait for him when he didn't know if he could come back to him? When he didn't know if the empire would chase Din through the galaxy only because he was the man he loved. No. This was Luke's destiny, to be the last of his kind, if he wanted to give Din and his friends a chance he had to sacrifice everything except them, and that day Luke sacrificed his happiness. He sat down against a tree, legs crossed, with one arm hooked around a still turned off Artoo and he cried his heart out for hours until his Master appeared before him, with his little hands on the handle of his cane. Luke stared at him through tears and his Master nodded, Luke hated himself but he stood up wiping his cheeks with his fingers, knowing he would never be the same man after that day.

Chandrila's main city, Hanna, was now Leia's home, Luke was resting his backside on the balcony railing, his blue eyes focused on his brother-in-law and his nephew playing on the living room floor, they looked so happy, that sight made Luke smile. Then he frowned turning around, staring at the city, the sunset looked breathtaking, something stirred inside him, thinking back to Tatooine binary sunset and the last time he contemplated it, glimpses of the man that was beside him that last time. He was lost in thought when Leia's hand caressed his upper arm softly, he looked at her face smiling a little not realizing his eyes were glistening with tears.

"What is it, Luke?" His sister asked, it was new to them, being brother and sister. When they learned they were twins, Luke couldn't help but think about Din, the only person that looked at them and could decipher the real nature of Luke and Leia's bond. Leia looked at her husband and his baby son and she smiled tenderly "Are you thinking about him?" She looked at Luke again.

Luke shook his head pressing his lips together, then he pressed a kiss on her forehead "I'm going home, sister." He smiled back at her.

Him.

He didn't need to ask who was Leia referring to, he knew quite well. And home? His rented apartment in Hanna wasn't his home, Luke blinked thinking that he didn't have a place he could call home. Not anymore.

That night he was tossing and turning and he sat up on the mattress coated in sweat when he felt something reaching him through the force. It was a child in pain, scared and confused. How could a child channel the force all by himself like that? Then it became clearer, the child was calling for him, asking to be trained, he wanted to learn about the force to protect a beloved one, a man that took care of him, a man that he saw as a father and Luke's heart was pounding against his ribs. When their connection ended he could still feel the kid through the force, he was drinking a glass of water in the kitchen when he felt the terror the young boy was facing when he was kidnapped before his keeper's eyes.

He left his apartment immediately, clipping his lightsaber to his belt and heading to his X-Wing. Artoo was waiting for him inside the droid compartment. He sighed already sitting inside the cockpit, he nodded realizing that this was the reason why he chose this path, he gave up on everything to be a Jedi Master and if that meant that he could be this child's only hope then it was worthwhile.

The bridge's doors of the light cruiser slid open, Luke stepped in extinguishing his lightsaber, he removed his hood to reveal his face and his heart gave an extra beat when his eyes met a mandalorian's visor. The man in beskar flinched and Luke started to think that this wasn't just a random mandalorian, this was indeed Din?

"Luke?" The mandalorian asked shifting his weight from one foot to the other "Luke?" He said again but Luke couldn't articulate words. "Are you a Jedi?" The mandalorian asked finally and he sounded desperate.

The Jedi tried to hide how uneasy he was feeling and the way his chest tightened, but deep down he was as scared as a little kid and his heart was throbbing uncontrollably "I am." He managed to say.

He was grateful he couldn't see Din's face because he wouldn't bear the sight of those brown eyes when Din would finally become aware of Luke's betrayal.

Luke's heart broke when Din told him that they had lost everything and how he put the child in danger looking for a Jedi all over the galaxy. He could have prevented that only by being honest with the man he loved when they were on Hoth, when everything was new and the sky was the limit, but now in front of a tired and defeated Din Djarin he could only feel remorseful and full of self-loathing.

He didn't know how he managed to get through the entire encounter, he was holding his breath until he left the bridge with the little child in his arms, but he did it. He was still shaken by meeting Din under such circumstances.

When he was inside his X-Wing cockpit he couldn't stop thinking about Din's despair, and staring down at little Grogu nesting in his arms he touched the baby's robes realizing that this child had been going through a rough patch and his stomach clenched caressing the kid's worn-out clothes. He sighed blinking, thinking about Din's suffering trying to protect the little force-user against the imperial remnants, still powerful and ruthless, and he shed a tear holding the baby closer.

He remembered the way his fingers trembled when he was giving Din his coordinates, he shook his head. Only time will tell if Din could forgive him, even when Luke couldn't forgive himself. He blinked back tears, not sure if he could face the mandalorian when the time came, nevertheless the man was now in his life again. He sighed feeling exhausted but full of hope at the same time. He was determined to make amends to Din, he would be waiting for him wearing his heart on his sleeve. After seeing him again Luke couldn't fool himself, he realized that he still had a soft spot for Din.

He had to be strong even when his soul was aching.

Get back up Luke, always get back up.

#dinluke #din djarin #luke skywalker #dinluke fanfiction #castles on the sand fanfic #skydalorian

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