#tzura

Grogu grumbled softly. He hoped Ta’lan’s father understood him. 

“Ah… yes. He’s fine, but he is worried. Not about what transpired mind you, but what needs to be done now.”

Wow. Kish sounded just like a Jedi Master. Grogu wasn’t going to tell him that, but he did appreciate the ‘not an answer’ answer he just gave the Mandalorian.

“Out with it, Kid. You’re being asked to take up a quest. What do you have to get and where do you have to go?”

The Mandalorian sounded like he’d known all about the whole thing, but Ta’lan, who probably did know about the whole thing was no where in sight. Since when did his dad get so smart?

“Grogu, I’m a bounty hunter. I didn’t stop thinking like a bounty hunter just because you became my son. ‘Things’ call to Ta’lan and now to you. I guessed that might happen. My guess is the thing you have to look for requires a lot of research and maybe a trip somewhere that could delay our return to Tatooine or Nevarro. I suppose it’s too much to hope that whatever the thing is, you’ll find it here, on Tzura?”

Grogu sighed. Dank Farrik! His dad had already figured everything out! Maybe he could just tell Grogu where he would hide a holocron if he had happened to an ancient Jedi Master who was about to meet a powerful Sith Lord and didn’t want the Sith to find the holocron?

“Nope. Not here.”

Grogu tried to sound happy about that. Yippee! They were going on adventure! That’s what they liked to do, right? 

“I see. Do you know where it is?”

A reasonable question.

“Nope.”

“Do you know who actually hid the holocron?”

“Nope.”

The Mandalorian stood up and Grogu could tell that his father was grinning. Grinning? Why would he do that? Shouldn’t he be annoyed?

“Grogu, most of bounty hunting is collecting data and trying to learn something from it. Turning it into information that may help you turn it into knowledge. Finding an ancient artifact, like a holocron, is no different.”

The Mandalorian paused and Grogu felt a little silly. He knew all of that and his dad knew that he knew all of that, but still for Kish’s sake Din Djarin had to say it all out loud. Uff.

“Kish, I take it your archives here have information about the person who gave Grogu this quest, as well as the person who caused the holocron to hidden?”

Uff! Grogu should have thought of that. Of course the archives probably had all the information and they could spend their time here on Tzura finding it, discussing it, and formulating a plan. That is what a good bounty hunter would do.

“They do, Din Djarin. I will have to take you both there, as the access way is not something Grogu can manage on his own. I would have Ta’lan do this, but Sha has sent her on an errand and she will be busy with that for the rest of the day.”

Grogu was distracted by that for just an instant. He was sure that if Ta’lan were with them she would know exactly where the holocron was and who brought it there and why they brought it and everything else about the whole event. But if that was the case, why did his brain itch? Why did Jedi Master Ylani task him with its retrieval? They had plenty of opportunity to task Ta’lan with something like that, but they hadn’t. Was it because they didn’t need to bring it to Tzura yet, or was it because no one knew how to find the holocron?  He decided to ask Kish.

“I expect Grogu, that my daughter refused to perform the task. I am sure she has told you before that she has many items, planets, even people who ‘call’ out to her. She must prioritize the tasks she performs. That is why she has not been given something closer to the standard work the vast majority of the Brethren perform. The Jedi within the temple have often made requests of her and when she has the time and the urgency is real or, they are her favorites, she will undertake that work. I expect that she believes that this work was required of someone else. Frankly, I thought she meant my brother, Seb. But perhaps they both knew that one day another Jedi would join us and find a reason to take up this quest.”

Grogu was glad to hear that. He’d been worried that Ta’lan knew it was just too dangerous and was refusing because of she felt about her family, including him and his dad.

“Then we should probably go to the archives now and get started. We can talk to her about the quest when we all know more. That should help.”

Grogu liked his dad’s thinking but he saw the look on Kish’s face and wondered what was wrong. The man who was usually cheerful and inquisitive, again looked old and frail to Grogu. This was a task that Kish had also hoped he would not have to take part in completing. Was it because of the Jedi? Or because of the Sith? Or because no one else had succeeded in performing it?

Uff. Too many questions. 

“Food first.”

Since he was the one with the ‘itchy’ brain, Grogu decided that he was the project team leader and the first order of business was to eat. They all needed fuel for what was certain to be a long and grueling session of locating and evaluating data and information. Just thinking that made him a little tired and he hoped he could get some caf without his dad noticing.

“This is the Way.”

Fortunately, she hadn’t quite left the apartment yet. She was holding the door open and a brisk breeze was blowing into the room he entered. If nothing else had convinced him to wake up, that breeze certainly would have done the trick. He was shivering before he knew that it wasn’t just brisk, it was cold.

“Grogu, if you wish to go with me, I suggest that you put your coverall on. There is some cold weather heading our way. If we are lucky, it might snow.”

What?! Snow? On Tzura? Why would there be snow on a planet with a bunch of people who could make the wind and air do just what they wanted?

“Grogu, we do not disrupt a planet’s normal weather for our own comfort. That would be very unbalanced. It will be cool to cold here for the next several days. That is why I wanted you to be here during this time. There are lessons that are best taught during these conditions. Of course, we could always make a trip to Hoth instead.”

Ta’lan had turned toward his dad with that suggestion.

“No! I think if you have lessons to teach Grogu, I would much rather he learn them here, than on Hoth.”

Grogu wasn’t surprised that his dad felt that way about Hoth. The last time they’d been there was really unpleasant. Neither of them wanted to experience that again.

Grogu chirped back at them that he would get dressed and would be back in a couple of minutes, as he trotted back to his room. Wow. He’d slept away half a day. He hadn’t done that since he’d had to fight off Moff Gideon’s Imps on Nevarro that time Greef Karga got attacked by those lizard bird things. Uff. That was going back a long time.

That thought made Grogu pause. It had been a long time since he’d met Din Djarin on Arvala-7. They had so many adventures. Went so many places together. They had found a way to stick together through it all, even with that bit of time Grogu spent at Luke’s Jedi Sleep Away Camp. During all that time the only other place he’d gone that was cold enough to have snow on the ground was Maldo Kreis. Uff. Ice spiders. He didn’t need to learn lessons about how to deal with them. His plan was to avoid them. All the time. Everywhere.

He found his coverall and his small pack. They were in a pile on the floor under his blankets. Uff. He was glad his dad hadn’t followed him into the room. If Din Djarin had seen the mess he had made, the Mandalorian bounty hunter would be telling Ta’lan that she would have to wait for Grogu to finish his chores before he could go with her to someplace fun. He quickly used the Force to put the blankets back on the bed and scrambled into his coverall. 

A minute or two later he walked into the main room again. Ta’lan had closed the door and the space had warmed back up or Grogu just felt warmer because he had rushed to get ready. Either way. He was ready to leave.

“I have something for you. Sha made them. She said that just because I was comfortable walking barefoot everywhere, didn’t mean you were. They are a cross between slippers and socks. Let me assure you, it gave her great pleasure to make them.”

Ta’lan handed him a pair of little knit objects. Grogu had no idea what slippers were, but he knew what socks were about. His dad destroyed them fairly regularly, which Grogu found hilarious. 

Everything else the Mandalorian owned seemed to be decades old, except most of the armor. The boots, the gloves, the second layer, even some of his first layers, were ten to twenty years old. But not those socks. Once every thirty days, like clockwork, new socks had to be procured. They also had to be made of specific materials. No variation was allowed. His dad said it disrupted his gait if they were too thick or too thin or made from any other fiber. It was another thing that the Mandalorian was very fussy about.

With that in mind Grogu trotted over to his dad and showed him the slocks, or were they soopers? Either way, he showed his dad the foot coverings.

Din Djarin studied them carefully. He weighed them in his hand, opened them to look inside, rubbed them against the back of his hand,  and then handed them back to Grogu.

“They are beautifully crafted. Do you think Sha would make him a small cape or poncho? He never complains about being too hot or too cold. It just hadn’t occurred to me that these might be necessary?”

“I am sure she would be delighted to do that and I can’t promise you that she isn’t already working on such a thing.”

Ta’lan was grinning at them both as she beckoned Grogu to her side, so she could help him put the slicks on. He hopped onto the table top and offered her his feet.

“He probably hasn’t complained because the Force really is capable of doing more than most people dream of. It can cool him when it is blazing out and warm him when it’s cold. That’s part of what I wanted to teach him during this cold snap. I want to help him understand how to extend that comfort to others. It is a very useful survival skill. There. These should help keep his feet dry and clean. And… the candy shop won’t let anyone in without something covering their feet.”

Grogu laughed at that. He was going to get to spend time in a candy shop without anyone stopping him from getting all the candy he wanted. Yippee!

“Buddy, don’t celebrate just yet. She said she was picking something up for Kish. You know what that means? She has something just like those in her pack. They probably match yours.”

Dank Farrik!

“It’s true Grogu. Sha made me a set. For the same reasons. But since this is something your father finds so amusing, do you think we should ask him to change into the ones she made for him? They are very pretty and they look like a rainbow. She was inspired by his problem solving yesterday.”

Yippee! Grogu clapped and giggled when Ta’lan brought the tall boot socks out of her pack and handed them to his dad. 

“Fine, I’ll wear them this one time. Just this one time. I hope this candy shop is worth it.”

“They stock Mandalorian Fire Balls for me. They are worth it.”

Djarin wasn’t sure if he was happy about all that chatting. He wasn’t sure why he wouldn’t be glad that Ta’lan was the one engaging in the process and asking the questions that Grogu had, so his son really felt like that particular batch of candy was being made for him and him alone. The Mandalorian didn’t even know what questions to ask. This was the first time he’d ever watched someone make the sweets that his son enjoyed so much. He should be happy that she was doing the talking so he didn’t have to do it. But that’s not how he felt.

After that first batch was made and Grogu had a sample and Ta’lan had offered him a sample, the candy maker started to make a batch of a completely different candy. Djarin had tried to get Grogu and Ta’lan to move on. They had some candy to purchase for Kish and of course something for Grogu and Sha and anyone else since they were there. He hadn’t thought they were going to spend all afternoon watching candy being made. It wasn’t that he had anything better to do, but he just wanted to be somewhere quieter.

Grogu, on the other hand, was absolutely dedicated to watching the second batch of candy be made and he kept up a steady stream of chirps, coos and signs for Ta’lan to decipher and explain to the candy maker. Which she still did without hesitation or complaint. 

The candy maker, a short, squat male human, was only too happy to continue to explain everything and found time to ask questions about her son. Ta’lan had laughed and explained that Grogu was the Mandalorian’s son and she was his teacher. 

“So you two aren’t a couple? Ta’lan, one day you will need to find a partner and settle down. You are my favorite customer. If you have a family here you’ll stop by more often and I’ll be able to expand my offerings. You know those Mandalorian Fire Balls are very popular.”

Uff. He had to make that comment. Djarin liked Ta’lan well enough. When she wasn’t aggravating him with her fearlessness, recklessness, and unnerving ability to know what he was thinking when he absolutely didn’t want her to know what he was thinking, she was a great companion on a mission, in a fight, and during the boring parts she was willing to play chess or just quietly do research or go over lessons with Grogu. But that didn’t mean that they were suited to being partners. They were barely suited to being friends.

“I am glad they are popular. It is good for Mbrk to try new things and it’s very good for the people of Mandalore and Ordo to have a new market for their goods. Also, if I spent all my time here with a partner and children and all that entailed, I would not be out traveling the galaxy to find you new candy to try.”

Dank Farrik! Had she known he was uncomfortable about the direction of that conversation? Of course she had. She had to know that Grogu would have stayed on Tzura if he could have his own way. He loved being with all the Force workers and he loved his teacher more than almost any other person they’d ever met. Was that what was bothering Djarin? That his son, his apprentice, loved someone other than him? Uff. This was not the place to be so introspective. He didn’t want Ta’lan to realize how that made him feel. She’d start saying or doing things to make him more comfortable and that would just make things harder. 

“I’m going to check the other stock. Is that okay?”

Grogu didn’t even acknowledge what he said, because they had reached the part of the process when the thick, dark brown goo was being poured onto the cooling table. Djarin didn’t remember what the stuff was called but he knew it had chocolate in it and it was no doubt being made just for Ta’lan’s consumption. She never passed up an opportunity to have the rare treat.

“Of course. Keep in mind some of the names of these candies are simply fanciful. Others are the literal translation from the originating culture. Not everyone likes Sweet Fried Crickets, but a number of Twi’leks within our community enjoy them. If you have questions, just ask before trying anything. My favorite, other than these chocolate chews, are the muja fruit jellies. My caretakers on Takodana often gave them to me when I’d made a particularly interesting find. You might like them. They are sweet and sour.”

“Thank you.”

Djarin walked away as Grogu and Ta’lan continued to watch the candy making. The image of the two of them being so connected was both sweet and sour to him. He couldn’t imagine why she cared what he might or might not like. She knew him well enough by now to know that he wasn’t some sort of self-absorbed jerk, although right then he was probably giving the candy maker that impression. 

He could have stayed with the two of them, slipped his arm around her shoulders to help secure Grogu, who was standing on one shoulder and holding onto her hair so he had the best view. He could be that much closer to both of them and not have it seem out of place. What was he so afraid of? That she would pull him closer or that she would push him away? Uff. Why couldn’t they just buy the candy and head back to the enclave?

“Did you find anything you liked? Grogu and I have the items we want. I also picked up half a kilo of the Fire Balls for you and Seb. They are his favorite. I like spicy food but I don’t know how you Mandalorians manage to eat so many things with so much hot spice.”

She was smiling at him and he noticed that Grogu was no longer with her, but chatting with candy maker who was letting him sniff and taste test a number of other candies. He didn’t want to say the first thing that popped into his head, which was that he liked her. Given that, he asked the second question that popped into his head.

“How many scars do you have from candy making?”

Uff. Why the heck had he asked that?

“None. I am absolutely prohibited from helping out at the candy making station. Kish made the mistake of tossing a ball of hot candy to me when I was about seven years old. 

He thought I would catch it with my hands and learn some sort of lesson about reacting to changing circumstances. 

I caught it using the Force and that caused it to cool instantly and transform into a multitude of small spheres. They fell all over the floor and made footing pretty tricky for everyone who was here that day. 

Rem, the candy maker, said it was about time that Kish learned that some things were just too hot to handle. I guess I’m just one of those things.”

Ta'lan was smiling at him and the best Djarin could do was nod and grab a small bag of the first candy he spotted. He handed it to her.

“Wow. Sugared Yob Shrimp. I would not have picked these out for you in a million years. You’ll have to let me know if you like them.”

He’d learned more about interior design than he’d really thought he would during his years at the Jedi Temple. It was an occupational hazard according to Master Kenobi. You spent so much of your life walking in those loft halls, with huge statues of Jedi past watching over you, that you began to consider any space smaller than a Smash-Ball rink as being too closed in. Huge, grand, open, towering, spaces were the style everywhere you looked and for someone of Grogu’s petite stature, even the rooms that didn’t seem grand to other padawans still seemed that way to him. 

Ta’lan brought them to a storage facility and they were able to pick out two speeder bikes. Grogu had asked if they had one for him and Ta’lan seemed surprised that they didn’t. 

“I suspect that Naeibos has taken it to Mbrk for the day. Naeibos is just about 100 centimeters tall so they use the smallest equipment we keep in this facility. We have more small speeders near the training grounds.”

Grogu was about to tell Ta’lan that he’d like to go get one of those smaller bikes, but his dad wasn’t having it.

“Grogu, you can ride with me. I know you feel safe here and I’m glad about that, but I’d rather have you with me in case anything happened.”

Uff. Din Djarin must have meant anything like fun! But Grogu didn’t want to make Ta’lan feel bad or have his dad cancel the whole trip. He wanted to see whatever dwelling she had built as a teenager. It hadn’t even occurred to him that anyone would do that on Tzura. Especially if your mom was Sha and made the best food Grogu had ever experienced.

He jumped onto the speeder bike in front of his dad and waited for the trip to get underway. Ta’lan packed some things in the carriers that were on each speeder and when she was done with that, she opened the access door of the storage facility so they could slowly and calmly move the speeders outside.

That was the last slow, calm thing they did related to riding those speeders and that at least brought a wide smile to Grogu’s face. He should have remembered from their trip to Jakku that Ta’lan road a speeder like a maniac. He was certain that his dad had remembered that, given the grumbling he heard from the Mandalorian as they plunged down a ravine only to find themselves making a hard banking turn to face a landscape that was now dotted with distant mountains capped with snow.

As they raced across Tzura at top speed Grogu was certain that the path she took ensured that the ride was as exciting as anything he’d done at Biggs Bigsbee’s Balance Garden and Entertainments. Even if it hadn’t been that exciting Grogu was still enjoying the trip. The mountains were getting closer and the air temperature was dropping and instead of being annoyed, Grogu was actually pretty excited. His imagination began to run away with him as he began to consider what kind of dwelling a teenage Ta’lan would have built in such a dramatic place. 

Given how much she loved water, Grogu could immediately envision a castle made of ice so clear that it looked like glass-steel. Transparent but stronger than anything other than beskar. It would have a tall tower with a cantilevered deck at the top of the tower that gave her a lot of room for stargazing. It would sound like the tinkling sounds of ice cracking but it would play a song that made you think of all the beauty the galaxy had to offer you if you only looked up at the sky once in a while. 

It would also have a complex of water falls that acted like steps going from the top to the bottom of the castle. They would empty into a silky smooth river that acted like a pathway to anyone who could use the Force. At least the people who could use the Force the way the Brethren did. Sith would have no idea what to do because it would be such an affront to everything they stood for, if they stood for anything.

Finally, Grogu could imagine a whole flock of small mechs made out of snow that would greet them and take their things and usher them into the dwelling affording them all the honor and kindness their creator typically showed everyone she met. Stone platters would be used to serve them cups of warm broth and Fire Stacks. 

“Grogu, we’re almost there. Just a few more minutes. Hang on, the climb gets pretty tricky from here on.”

Ta’lan spoke to him through the Force. He supposed that was the only way to get his attention. He was so caught up in imagining the amazing castle she had built that he hadn’t really noticed how slowly they were going now. It didn’t matter! He just wanted to get there and see how absolutely amazing the castle was. He just hoped his dad liked it too.

Of course, that all came back to Grogu. Finding him on Arvala-7 and then realizing that he wasn’t an adult who had transgressed the mostly unwritten rules of the galaxy, but a child. At the time, Djarin had no idea that the child he would rescue had ‘powers’ that made him unique. He just saw a small, helpless child. Then, when Grogu saved him from the Mudhorn, the Mandalorian knew Grogu was special. A special child. He’d talked himself into believing that people who had searched for him meant him no harm. He took the beskar because he knew their other foundlings who weren’t that lucky. 

As soon as he saw the child’s pram on the trash heap, the Mandalorian had known that Grogu, the child he now knew as Grogu, was just as vulnerable as those foundlings and clearly had no one to look out for them. As soon as he returned to the access point, to simply check on the child’s status, he worst fears were realized and he did what any Mandalorian would have done. He rescued the child. 

Now, here he was, years later, and he’d been drawn into all manner of drama related to the Jedi, those people who had trained Grogu to use the Force, the Sith, who were in constant opposition to the Jedi and had supported the sweeping changes that had turned a republic into an empire, and the Brethren, who had hidden in plain sight doing things that no one should be able to do, helping as they were able. 

Why him?

He had nothing to do with that sort of thing. He didn’t even understand it. Oh, he’d seen it displayed plenty of times but what was the Force? Ta’lan had told him it was the embodiment of the connection between everything in the galaxy. Like a great tapestry or lacework or starship control harness. But it wasn’t tangible. He couldn’t see it or measure it or touch it. It still made no sense to him. But here he was trying to find information on the various people who used the Force for good or bad thousands of years ago and all because his son had an ‘itchy’ brain. The Mandalorian wished he knew words harsher than ‘Dank Farrik’ so he could express himself adequately in situations like this one. 

He and Grogu and Kish, Ta’lan’s adoptive father, had been pouring over the first tranche of records that the small pit droid had brought them for hours. He had been compelled to use a dozen different translating solutions because the language, even Gal Basic, had changed so much since those times. When he wasn’t being bogged down by that, he was amazed that the Brethren had managed to amass so much detailed information about the comings and goings of people who they were unlikely to have known. 

Then he reminded himself that the Brethren were able to hide in plain sight. Even Ta’lan Bet. She had managed to follow he and Grogu all around Takodana before she finally stepped forward to fight the battle droids that were sent to attack them. She was a striking looking woman even without the scars, but somehow he’d managed to ignore her and Grogu had only realized who she was when she stepped forward and commanded them to leave the tavern before the attack began. And that was the person he was choosing to share his life and his son’s life with. Uff.

“Kish, do the Brethren maintain records like this for all the planets they visit?”

He had thought that was a fair question. What kind of records did they have for Mandalore or Aq Vetina?

“No. There are many planets for which we have very little information. We do what we can to resolve those gaps, but our records here are not perfect.”

It took Djarin an hour of slogging through information on Ossus before he realized that Kish hadn’t realized answered his question because he hadn’t actually asked the question he wanted the answer to. The Mandalorian had always assumed that Ta’lan had learned that behavior from Seb, but it was clear that the brothers were more alike than he had given them credit for. 

That made him reconsider all the data he was reviewing. It had been created by the Brethren, not the Jedi or even the Sith being fought with at that time. As such, it lacked some of the biases he was used to sifting through during his work as a bounty hunter.  

Often the people who requested a bounty be placed on any individual acted as if the person they wanted apprehended was the worst possible person in the entire galaxy and surely must be causing havoc wherever they went. Din Djarin knew that was a convenient lie. They just wanted more urgency placed on their request than the others he might have been working in tandem. Sometimes those exaggerations pointed to important information about the person requesting the bounty. They were telling on themselves but ascribing the behavior to the person they were chasing. 

“Kish, do you have Odan Urr’s reports back to the Jedi Council from that time? Or the reports of any of his staff? I’d like to understand how they thought of what was happening. Diary entries, person reminiscences, conversations, anything like that?”

Kish had fallen silent for a moment, sighed, and then smiled at him. Not just his normal ‘happy go lucky’ smile that he used to make people feel comfortable around him, but a genuine grin one trickster bestowed upon another trickster. Djarin realized that his status had changed with Kish and he wasn’t sure if that was a good thing or not.

“Son, it’s a very good thing. Yes, I have some accounts like that. I will have Doomed gather them for you.”

Doomed? 

“Ta’lan’s favorite pit droid. She and Seb were up to something on Nomad a number of years ago and this pit droid was thrown at her feet and she was challenged to repair it for its owner or they would all be doomed… People of all kinds find their way to Nomad. In this case it happened to be a member of the Moog Crime Syndicate. My daughter, being who she is, repaired the droid and in the course of doing so learned the secrets that particular Moog wanted hidden. She agreed to safe guard that secret in exchange for the droid and then called it ‘Doomed’ as a joke of some sort. When they returned here, she gave it to me and explained that she had updated its programming to include data acquisition and organization. I mostly use it to carry things for me. My back is not all it once was.”

Djarin waited until they took a break to eat and take care of other needs. Grogu had to use the privy before he considered how hard it was to maintain some semblance of privacy when he was with the Brethren. Kish didn’t usually answer his thoughts, but that morning had shown the Mandalorian just how easily the other man could do that. Djarin was mostly happy that he’d been so busy with the research that he wasn’t thinking about Ta’lan and how he really felt about her. He wasn’t ready to explain that to anyone else and could barely explain it to himself. 

But in the quiet privacy of the privy he could consider that meeting her had certainly added something to his life that he didn’t have when he and Grogu were at work, stopping Imperial Remnants from destroying the peace the New Republic was just beginning to enjoy. It wasn’t purpose. It wasn’t just having an extra pair of hands. He supposed the best way he could express it was that she made him hopeful. He hoped that one day they could just relax and tell each other stories and play a game of chess while Grogu complained about a shocking lack of siblings and they would all laugh at that. 

Hope was what rebellions were built on… had that been true for Odan Urr as well?

Huh? He was supposed to speak their native language? He’d only heard and learned a bit of it from Master Yoda and Master Yaddle. What if he said it wrong or didn’t know the words?

“You are among friends, Grogu. Say what you can. It will be all right.”

Grogu took a deep breath and proceeded to speak to Master Ylani in the language of their people. To Kish and anyone else, excepting perhaps Ta’lan, it would have sounded like nothing more than coo’s and chirps and exclamations. It definitely didn’t sound like Gal Basic.

“I am Din Grogu, of Clan Mudhorn. My father is Din Djarin and I claim Ta’lan Bet as my mother… but please don’t tell her that. I don’t want her to be hurt.”

Master Ylani acknowledged Grogu’s greeting with a nod of their elegant head and a grin that reminded Grogu of Ta’lan strangely enough.

“Kish Ta’low! He has claimed your daughter as his own mother! What a joy for you! It has been a while since I have spoken to her, padawan Grogu. She likes speaking to those who need her wisdom more than she needs theirs. But that is because she is Brethren and not a Jedi.”

“Ylani, we are all worthy and you know that, or you would not be here. Were you causing the Force to direct Grogu to you?”

Grogu was glad that Kish asked that question because he was still imagining what Ta’lan would have said to this master when they spoke the very first time.

“Your Dream Guardian is remarkably balanced within the Force, Grogu. The first time we met, she told me that she would like to learn our language. I asked her why and she said that she felt ‘called’ to learn it. Then I learned that she was a Dream Guardian and that was enough for me to agree to begin our lessons. That is all you need to know about her to understand why she does the things she does.”

Grogu had another question to ask.

“Why are you here and not on Coruscant or Dantooine or Ossus or Ahc-to?”

“Or Lothal, or Jakku, or Takodana, or Chandrila, or Corellia, or any of the other myriad of failed Jedi temples? Because this temple is still whole. The Brethren never forgot the Jedi, even as the Jedi forgot them. We ‘live’ on here to continue to serve the Force and share our knowledge and our wisdom. That is, when Kish is not taking us to his study and having us help him with his own research. Tell me, father to many and to none, have you found the holocron for the savior of Ossus?”

“Which one? Ta’lan located Tasalia’s holocron many years ago. I believe it still resides on Corellia. Is there another?”

Grogu was about to ask if the one Ahsoka Tano had been given when they met her on Jakku was the one that Ylani was interested in and then decided to wait and hear what they had to say for themselves.

“The one on Corellia was not made by a Jedi, as you well know. Master Nomu hid a holocron somewhere, although Tasalia never said where, that was among the ones that Odn Urr made for the preservation of the Order, fearing the havoc that Exar Kun was about to wreak upon it and the galaxy. Have you located that one?”

Grogu shivered at the holographic image’s shift in tone. It reminded him of being scolded by Master Yoda for so many things during his time at the Jedi Temple.

‘Run not so fast, youngling Grogu. Food will there be when arrive you do.’

‘Chores away do not go when ignore them you do.’

‘Sleep for day’s end is, not when Jedi History taught is.’

And many more sayings along those lines. They always made him feel like he had disappointed Master Yoda without knowing that Master Yoda was paying attention to him at all.

“You know I have not. Is that why you have called Grogu here? To take up that request?”

Ylani began to laugh and Grogu relaxed. He thought perhaps the holocron of the ancient Jedi was playing a trick on Kish and had needed a very specific audience for it to be effective. He hoped that was true, mostly.

“Of course that is why I called him here. That holocron must be located. Those who dealt with Odan-Urr had little idea that he would also betray them. Master Nomu understood betrayal. He did as his heart told him to do and placed that holocron out of the reach of the Sith who would follow Odan-Urr’s command in years to come. Now it must be located and brought here.”

With that, the holocron shut itself off and Grogu was left to stare at Kish who seemed as bewildered as Grogu felt. Grogu coughed a small cough to get Kish’s attention and tried to smile at his ba’buir when the older man looked at him and seemed both tired and frail, conditions that Grogu never associated with Ta’lan’s father.

“Well, Grogu, which of us will tell my daughter about this? That is the task that even Master Ylani was afraid to undertake.”

Grogu sighed. Kish wasn’t wrong, but Grogu hoped he wasn’t right either. Ta’lan would know how these things worked. She had done the same many times. He was worried about Din Djarin. The Mandalorian had never met Master Yoda or Master Yaddle. How would he react to such a demand from Master Ylani? There was no way to bring them in cold…

“That’s true. Remember what happened when you went off and explored Fett’s palace without anyone going with you? We don’t really need to repeat that sort of adventure.”

Uff. His dad would remind him about that. Grogu hoped that Din Djarin wouldn’t just start blabbing about that ‘adventure’ to Ta’lan. She didn’t really need to know how that all worked out. After all her dad promised to keep it a secret!

“Don’t worry ad’ika. I have had more than my fair share of adventures like this one. I can promise you most of my scars come adventures that are very embarrassing. Imagine finding a kyber crystal every time you go somewhere new because you accidentally step on it? After a while people just complain that you’re a magnet for the things. Now, would you like to take the tour or have something to eat?”

Grogu didn’t even have to think about that for more than a moment. Eat!

“Very good. Follow me. The preserver and everything that goes with it are back here. Sha and Kish make sure it’s kept up to date because they never know when I might need to come here and just be away from everyone else.”

Grogu hopped out of her arms and was happy to touch the floor without anything bad happening. While he liked being held and cuddled and all that, once he was thinking about food that was really all he was thinking about. 

“Buddy, take it easy. The food’s not going to run away.”

Uff. Of course it wasn’t going to run away. Didn’t his dad listen to what Ta’lan said? Sha and Kish made sure it stuff that Ta’lan would eat. That meant it was going to be delicious. Not because she would notice. She ate her food like a barghest. But no way were her parents going to let her just eat a bunch of ration packs!

“Okay. Let’s take a look… I have four different types of ration packs…”

What?! Was Ta’lan teasing him? If she was, that wasn’t nice!

“And there appears to be about a dozen other things. Both Kish and Sha enjoy cooking. I’m sure Seb suggested the ration packs. Let’s see… seasoned meat skewers, seasoned fish skewers, layered vegetables, skewered vegetables, whatyagot stew, layered fruit… mmm, it’s all pretty delicious. What would you like?”

“Rations.” 

Dank Farrik! Of course his dad was going to say that!

“Grogu, what would you like? The fish skewers or the whatyagot stew? That’s one of Kish’s favorites. It’s a mix of everything else but no veggies. He always keeps those separate for me.”

Grogu stepped forward and simply hugged Ta’lan’s leg. He was so lucky that she understood how much he didn’t like veggies and how much he didn’t like ration packs.

“You don’t really need to make him something special.”

Uff! Din Djarin! Couldn’t you just let the nice lady make your son something delicious?

“It’s no trouble. They all heat up pretty quickly. We can eat in the front room and I can explain how this place came to be here and we can enjoy that view while we do it. If you want to take Grogu back out there, I’ll get this stuff sorted and bring everyone something to drink as well. It feels a little dry in here right now. I bet Kish shut off the waterfall.”

Grogu wanted to push out of his dad’s arms and run off to find the waterfall and then remembered two things. He didn’t want to use he Force on his dad, ever and he didn’t really need to whack his head on another hard object he didn’t see coming. 

“A waterfall? Why am I even surprised?”

“I don’t know Mandalorian. You’ve known Grogu long enough to know that all Force workers are full of surprises.”