Archive of Our Own

Cara Dune sipped from the chipped, wooden mug in her hand, her eyes raking over the room from her seat in the corner.

She deliberately chose this position to be able to survey the room and stop any hostiles before they saw her.

She’s been on Sorgan for about a month by now, hopping from town to town, and the people who live here are mostly boring and ordinary. Everyone gives her a wide berth, but are friendly when she approaches them. Lately, she’s been hanging around this beta-run settlement for the past week.

Nothing happens on Sorgan. It’s quiet, dull, and quite frankly, a little primitive.

That makes it a perfect place to stay for someone like her.

Of course the planet is not without its problems.

She’s still an outsider and as one of the few alphas around, many inhabitants hurry their omegas into their homes and lock them out of sight.

Cara doesn’t mind all too much. It’s not like she’s looking for an omega, no matter what stereotypes may say.

She’s perfectly fine on her own, in fact, she prefers it this way.

She doesn’t need a soft, delicate omega slowing her down while she’s traveling. And she certainly doesn’t need any children.

Cara doesn’t do the baby thing.

Anyway, it would be impossible to find a partner who is up to her standards.

Alphas are thickheaded and stubborn. They’re all easy to anger. She’d admit that she likes sparring with them frequently. She likes to seek out alphas when she’s in the mood to beat something. But the thought of traveling and constantly being around them would drive her nuts.

Betas are better to be around, which is why she tends to stick to beta-inhabited settlements. They are neutral creatures that make up the bulk of the population. The only problem is that they tend to smell less desirable, or they don’t carry a scent at all. They remind her a lot of those few creatures who are born without a dynamic. They are also, more often than not, boring.

Omegas? Hah, don’t make her laugh. Any omega she sees already have their bellies swollen with pups or are always carrying babes in their arms. Parents always usher single omegas out of view for fear that they will be taken by an overzealous alpha. Once again, they’re sensitive creatures that always have to be pampered.

Like that saying goes, “Keep your omega happy and you’ll never have to worry a day in your life.”

What a load of bantha shit.

An omega is a definite no for her.

Cara would like to reiterate that she is in no way looking for a romantic partner. Someone like that is just not in the cards for her.

She’s always better off on her own.

Cara sips her drink again when a scent brushes against her nose.

An omega.

Scenting one isn’t strange at all. She tends to smell one without seeing them all the time.

No, the strange part of this is that the scent carried the hint of smoke, like the air after a shot from a blaster, and a fresh, almost clean metallic aftertaste.

The scent intrigued her. Most omega scents were sweet, almost sickly so, enough to give her a headache on most occasions.

But this one, this omega carried the undertones of sweetness, but less of the pure sugary kind and more of a mellow tinge, something that could be easily missed.

Now Cara isn’t one to go looking for omegas, hell, she just had a whole internal monologue about how she will never get into a relationship with anybody, let alone an omega, but she has to admit that she is curious. She kind of wants to know the type of person to carry such a unique scent.

She sets about finishing her drink when a full-armored, silver Mandalorian walks by her table.

The metallic and smokey scent that tickled her nose grew stronger, wafting past her and riding on the air current caused by the warrior.

She lowered her cup, eyes slightly widened. 

Was that… the Mandalorian?

Disbelief blossomed in her chest. 

There’s no way.

Mandalorian sightings are few and far between after they were hunted down by the Empire. But seeing and smelling an omega Mandalorian? This must be some kind of joke.

Considering the shrinking population of the armored people and the fact that many species simply believed that omega Mandalorians were nonexistent, Cara is surprised that this one isn’t kept under lock and key, hidden away in whatever secret holes the endangered people stuff themselves in.

She wished that she could tell their gender through scents. Unfortunately, that skill was reserved for omegas.

The armor made it difficult to tell, especially since she had no idea what species lay behind the layer of metal.

Looking down, a small green creature followed closely by the Mando’s feet.

A pet?

Getting over her initial reaction, she narrowed her eyes, taking in the armored person.

The green thing could also be a bounty.

The Mandalorian could be a bounty hunter.

They could be looking for her.

Cara needs to stay on her toes, it doesn’t matter if they are an omega or not, she will protect herself.

She noticed the omega taking a special interest in her. Their helmet tilted to her while talking to the waitress.

Maybe they are here for her.

She couldn’t tell what they were talking about, but she wasn’t too keen on sticking around.

As soon as she saw the Mando’s back turned towards her, she got up and slinked out the door, trying to put some distance between her and the potential bounty hunter.

Climbing up the side of one of the buildings, she carefully stepped onto the roof and crouched low to wait.

If the Mando was after her, then they would surely show up soon, and if they’re not after her, well, better safe than sorry.

As she waited, the Mando stepped into view, scanning the ground.

They were definitely Guild.

They showed signs of experience.

She had to end this now.

Cara only felt slightly guilty at jumping the omega from above, but she figured that if they are a bounty hunter, then they should be able to handle themselves in a fight.

Once the Mando stopped tracking whatever they were looking at, Cara leapt off the roof and used a flagpole to swing herself into the bounty hunter.

The grunt he made confirmed that he was male.

She barely got to think too much about that when the omega quickly got over his surprise and the fight turned into an all-out brawling match.

He definitely held up his own very well. Cara got a few heavy hits on him, enough to knock him to the dusty ground, dank farrik he could hit hard!

He recovered quickly and activated a flamethrower?!

Cara stomped on his forearm to keep the flames from reaching her.

She got down and reached under his helmet to get ahold of his neck, trying to knock him unconscious by strangulation, but it didn’t work as he fought back and flipped them both over.

He gained the upper hand and tried to bring his fist down on her face when she bucked upwards and flipped him over once again.

He kept his grip on her arm, landing heavily on his back in front of her.

Cara drew her blaster to end the match when she looked up and similarly found the omega’s blaster mirrored back at her.

Panting with exertion and knuckles stinging from punching metal, Cara couldn’t believe that the fight technically ended in a draw. No one can best her in a match, at least not in recent years.

Wondering who was going to give first, her thoughts were interrupted by loud slurping.

Looking to the side, it was that green creature that she saw following the Mandalorian around not too long ago. It cupped a bowl of soup in its three fingered hands.

Before she even had time to question it, the omega suddenly asked:

“You want some soup?”

She… could go for some soup right about now.

“Uh… sure.” Cara felt the compelling need to smile at him. “As long as you’re buying.”

The Mandalorian nodded from his place on the dirt and retracted his blaster.

Cara followed suit and slipped her blaster back into its holster.

“You can let go of my arm now.” The armored man said, voice level through the modulator. “I won’t fight you.”

Fighting the heat rising to her cheeks, she quickly released him. “R-Right.” Cara quickly rolled to her feet to hide her embarrassment.

Dusting off her clothes, she snuck a glance at him through the corner of her eye.

The Mandalorian was on one knee wiping the creature’s mouth gently with the edge of his cape.

Cara’s eyebrows furrowed. Was that thing a child?

Was it the omega’s child?

Somehow she didn’t think the man was green with large ears stuffed into his metal helmet.

But who was she to judge?

Running a hand through her hair to try and make it look a bit more presentable, she noticed the smoky scent clinging to her hand.

When did that happen?

Ah, she grabbed his arm.

She must’ve gotten too close to his wrist scent glands.

The thought of brushing against the omega’s scent glands without his explicit permission made her sick to her stomach.

With wrist glands being the easiest ones to access, Cara knew alphas liked to take advantage of that by purposefully grabbing omegas by the wrist.

It had been an accident of course, nothing personal. Just something done in the middle of a fight to gain the upper hand, but Cara felt like she should apologize for it anyway.

However, she refrained from doing so. She just met the man, so she didn’t know how he would respond to an apology.

Turning around, Cara was about to start back to the cantina when she saw the Mandalorian rising to his feet and subtly rubbing his wrists.

Feeling guilty, she thought that she should apologize for it anyway.

Almost like he felt her gaze on him, the Mandalorian stopped. His helmet faced her and he tilted his head in the direction of the cantina. “Shall we?”

Nodding, she followed him back through the trail with the little green creature close by his boots, somehow keeping up with them.

Or maybe the Mandalorian was just walking slowly.

She thinks that’s the reason.

Settled at a table again, Cara decided that she could trust this man enough to share her past.

She talked about her time in the Rebel army as a dropper and how she wanted no part in the politics or as law enforcement.

It wasn’t something she planned to do with her life.

“How did you end up here?” Mando asked.

She shrugged. “Call it an early retirement.” Cara said, slurping at her free soup. Watching the omega seem unbothered by their earlier brawl, she felt like she owed him some sort of explanation. “Look, I knew you were Guild. I figured you had a fob on me. That’s why I came at you so hard.”

“Yeah, that’s what I figured.” He simply said.

Curiosity sated and apology dealt, Cara saw no reason to linger around any longer. Putting the empty bowl down, she stood from her seat. “Well, this has been a real treat,” and it really was. Meeting the only omega Mandalorian around for parsecs has got to be the experience of a lifetime. He had no problem going toe to toe with her and almost winning. He was, quite frankly, nothing like the traditional omega she expected and he was certainly an interesting character. “But unless you wanna go another round,” she really hopes to meet him again, it has been awhile since she last had a challenge like that and it was fun, “one of us is gonna have to move on, and I was here first.”

He has a fairly trustworthy character. Something about him just made her want to trust him. So she had no doubt that he would leave her alone after this.

It was almost sad not to get his ‘gram so she could reach him again, but she told herself that she would not go chasing after no omega. Not even someone as interesting as the silver Mandalorian.

Apparently it didn’t take long for him to find her again.

She had to give him some credit, he was a damn good bounty hunter.

“Ready for round two?” The Mandalorian asked her. She could almost hear the smirk in his voice, almost mopped away through the modulator.

Her blaster was pulled up and at the ready the moment the bag of credits hit the floor.

But she knew she didn’t need it. He means no harm.

The man explained what the credits were for and what the job was.

She raised an eyebrow. “So we’re basically running off a band of Raiders for lunch money?”

He shrugged. “They’re quartering us in the middle of nowhere. Last I checked, that’s a pretty square deal for someone in your position.” It did sound like a pretty good deal. “Worst case scenario, you tune up your blaster. Best case, we’re a deterrent.” The omega tilted his head in an almost cheeky manner. “I can’t imagine there’s anything living in these trees that an ex-shock trooper couldn’t handle.”

His body language wasn’t matching his voice. Cara couldn’t tell if he was joking or being serious.

Regardless, she found herself smiling back.

She likes this guy.

Slapping her thighs and getting up from her position on the floor, she shrugged helplessly. 

“Alright, I’m in.”

The village wasn’t much and it really was in the middle of nowhere.

Wooden huts littered the area in a disorganized manner, but the krill ponds surrounding the village were all perfectly in line.

It was so peaceful that it was hard to believe that they were getting raided every other day.

The cart slowed to a stop and adults and young children alike were drawing closer with relieved smiles.

“Well, looks like they’re happy to see us.” Cara commented as kids were laughing and shouting that they were here.

It made them sound like some kind of heroes.

“Looks like.” The Mandalorian agreed. 

The children clustered around the green creature perched on the edge of the cart and they all cooed at how adorable it was.

Cara still thinks it looks like some weird mutated womp rat, but with the omega scanning the group of children for any signs of hostility or danger, she’s definitely convinced that it has to be his pup.

Omegas generally don’t hover like that unless it’s something they deeply care for.

They unload the cart and the villagers lead them to their quarters.

Cara decides that her humble little room isn’t the worst place they could put her.

At least not when she hears that the Mandalorian was put in the barn .

She had a good laugh at that.

Once she finished unpacking, there was a knock at the door. Well, doorway since this village doesn’t seem to believe in doors.

The armored-omega stood in the entrance.

He seems to have some kind of sixth-sense for knowing when Cara is idle. It’s unnerving.

“You want to go scout the forest?” He asks her.

“Did you finish unpacking and settling in already?” It was hard to believe they finished at the same time.

“I finished a while ago. I was just waiting for you.” He answered, leaning against the doorway.

He waited for her?

Huh, she couldn’t help but think she pegged him wrong the first time. Being an omega was one thing, but the shiny armor that coated almost every part of him gave him that intimidating, dangerous appearance.

And yet, he waited until she finished unpacking to ask if she wanted to scout the forest with him.

She couldn’t help but tease him for that.

“Oh? So you need the ex-rebel shock trooper to hold your hand in the scary forest?”

He shrugged and his helmet tilted to the side. “Maybe I thought you needed someone to hold your hand. The forest will be dark in a couple hours.” He matched her tone well. “Not scared of the dark, are you?”

Cara grinned. “Not in the slightest.”

The Mandalorian gave her a sharp nod. “Good.” With a swish of his trailing cape, he turned out the door. “Let’s go.”

This man.

Cara shook her head. 

He’s nothing like what she thought Mandalorians would be like.

This is uncharted territory.

Making their way through the trees, Mando scanned the forest floor, searching and following something.

She’s still not sure what he’s seeing through that visor of his, but he did the same thing before when he was tracking her, so it must be really helpful.

He pointed to the dirt and his finger followed some invisible path.

“About 15 or 20 of them came through here on foot.”

Uh, wow, okay. Yeah, whatever is in that helmet is something pretty powerful.

She had to get herself one of those.

Mando looked up at the trees and pointed up as well. She followed his line of sight.

“And something big sheared off those branches.”

Cara has a bad feeling about that. They moved closer to the broken branches and, sure enough, a giant mechanical footprint sat there innocently. 

She bristled as realization dawned on her. “AT-ST.” She growled. 

Nope, nope, this village is done for.

Time to pack up and hit the road again.

“An imperial walker. What’s it doing here?” Mando asked thoughtfully.

Cara shook her head. “I don’t know, but this is more than I signed up for.” She said, feeling the need to back away.

As much as she tried to keep it contained, fear fluttered around in her chest and a cold hand gripped her heart.

She knew first-hand what one AT-ST can do to a group of soldiers.

She doesn’t want to imagine what it could do to just the two of them.

Cara didn’t want the possibility of losing her life hanging above her. This was supposed to be a simple job of running off raiders, not reliving her time fighting the Empire.

“Hey.”

Cara blinked. She didn’t realize that her breath had quickened.

“Cara, look at me.” The Mandalorian said.

She dragged her eyes from the footprint to the black T-visor of the man’s helmet.

“We don’t have to fight it.” He said softly. The previously unnoticeable scent of the omega grew stronger and brushed her nose. It was… soothing. She inadvertently relaxed. “We can just tell the villagers to move somewhere else.”

Cara stood there taking in his words, and his scent, and felt her breathing slow.

She shook herself roughly and nodded. “Yeah, yeah, you’re right.”

He seemed to give her a once over before nodding back and turning in the direction of the village. He started back, not saying another word.

She followed him in awe, mulling over the events.

Kriff, no wonder there are so many omega-based pheromone drugs in the black market.

That stuff is a seriously potent relaxant. 

Returning to the village, they called a meeting and made the inhabitants gather around the hut where Cara was being quartered.

Cara thought the Mandalorian was going to ease them into it. After all, being an omega meant that he was sensitive to their feelings and emotions.

Boy was she wrong.

“Bad news. You can’t live here anymore.” He deadpanned.

If Cara had a drink, she would have spit it out.

Predictably, the villagers were in uproar.

“What? Why?”

“Nice bedside manner.” She muttered to the omega, coughing to hide her amusement. 

“You think you can do better?”

“Can’t do much worse.” She shot back. Raising her voice, she addressed the village. “I know this is not the news you wanted to hear, but there are no other options.”

“You took the job!”

“Yeah!”

“That was before we knew about the AT-ST.” Cara tried to get them to understand. She and Mando can’t fight that thing off by themselves and fight the bandits. It doesn’t matter how good they are, they can’t be everywhere at once.

“What is that?” Someone asked.

Did they seriously not know about the giant kriffing armored machine?

“The armored walker with two enormous guns that you knew about and didn’t tell us!” She said, becoming agitated. Did they not see it during the raids or something?

The villagers pleaded to her and listed all the reasons why they couldn’t move away.

She gets it, she really does.

Their whole life is here in the small village that they lived in for generations. The land was passed down to them from their parents and their parent’s parents.

She wants to help them, and, thinking logically, she and the Mandalorian could probably take down the AT-ST, but they’d need back up for the rest of the raiders.

“Then teach us!” One of them shouted.

“We can learn! We can!”

“Give us a chance. Please.” They pleaded.

“I’ve seen that thing take out entire companies of soldiers in a matter of minutes!” She said. Cara needs them to understand what they were up against. This wasn’t something they could learn to do in a day or two. Training takes time, a lot of it. Especially if they want to become proficient in fighting brutes that want to take everything they own.

“We’re not leaving.” An omega, Omera she thinks is her name, said stubbornly, everyone agreeing with the sentiment.

“You cannot fight that thing.” She asserted.

The Mandalorian stepped forward and put a hand on her shoulder, effectively silencing her. “Unless they’re shown how.”

Open to a plausible solution, the villagers immediately agreed with him, showing support for the new side.

Outvoted, the whole problem was practically settled. The villagers weren’t leaving no matter what and Cara and Mando couldn’t fight the mech and the bandits all at once. 

This is the best solution they have.

“Go home.” The man said, dropping his hand off her shoulder. “Get some rest. A plan will be made for you all first thing tomorrow morning. Don’t be late.”

And that was that.

Muttering amongst themselves in equal parts excitement and dread, the villagers dispersed to their respective huts.

Before Cara could say anything to him, he nudged her in the direction of the hut.

Stepping inside, Cara lowered herself down onto one of the cushioned seats with a sigh. Mando leaned against the wall.

“How are we supposed to train a bunch of krill farmers to fight off raiders? And an AT-ST?” She asked him. “They won’t be able to learn everything in a few days, and we don’t even know when the raiders will strike again!”

The silver helmet quirked to the side. “We?”

She looked up and frowned. “Uh, yeah, we .”

He hummed. “I didn’t think you’d want to stick around after learning about the AT-ST.”

Cara hesitated. 

Did she want to stick around? He was giving her the option to leave right now. She wasn’t obligated to do anything she didn’t want to do.

She didn’t have to fight.

But she supposed that he helped her back in the woods, kept her from spiraling too far. She wanted to help him in return if he was going to be staying here.

Cara also supposed that she kind of owed it to these people. She took their credits so the least she could do was help them not lose their homes.

Like she lost hers.

“Well, I’m not just going to leave you here to train them by yourself.” She said instead. “What kind of person do you take me for? Besides, I’m not scared of the AT-ST, I just didn’t think it was plausible for us to fight raiders and a mech at the same time.”

The Mandalorian stood there silently, processing her words.

He nodded, seemingly satisfied at what she said.

“Okay, since you’ve dealt with them before, how can we take down the AT-ST?”

Cara grinned, an idea forming in her mind. “Well…”

They talked, well into the night and the early morning, brainstorming different plans and strategies on how they were going to take out the hostiles. Sometime during their conversation, the Mandalorian migrated to the seat across from her.

And halfway through their conversation, the omega’s pup wandered into the room and sat itself by his leg.

Pausing, Mando leaned over to pick it up. “Hey, you little womp rat. It’s past your bedtime.” He said fondly.

The child cooed at him and snuggled into the crook of his arm.

The Mandalorian sighed and caressed the creature’s ear. “Sorry about him, you were saying?”

Feeling lighter at the roughened warrior’s contrasting display of affection, she continued with the villager’s training plan.

Early the next morning, Cara awoke with a snort and a crick in her neck at sleeping in the cushioned chair, awkwardly positioned.

She groaned and stretched out, rolling her neck and trying to ease the soreness. She rubbed at it with a hand.

Looking ahead, she smirked at the Mandalorian who was in the same position on his chair. He snored softly with the child held in his arms, stretched out across his lap.

Oh boy, what a way to start the day.

Once they were both ready, they found themselves explaining the plan to the villagers by one of the krill ponds.

“You got two problems here.” The Mandalorian explained, breaking down the well-thought out plan, “You got the bandits and you got the mech. We’ll handle the AT-ST, but you gotta protect us when they come out of the woods. And I don’t have to tell you how dangerous they are.” He glanced at Cara and continued. “Cara Dune here was a veteran. She was a drop soldier for the Rebellion, and she’s gonna lay out a plan for you, so listen carefully.”

Cara nodded at him and stepped forward. “Now, there’s nothing on this planet that can damage the legs on this thing, so we’re gonna build a trap…”

The explanation went over fairly well, as they thought it would.

The only hard part was the actual training.

They spent the first half of the day directing the villagers where to dig a hole for the AT-ST and where to set up barriers to enforce the village.

Cara then spent the rest of the day introducing half of the villagers to fighting with a spear while Mando worked with the other half on shooting blasters and rifles.

They agreed that it would be easier and faster to separate the villagers into distinct roles rather than teaching them everything at once.

That night, the two returned to Cara’s quarters to share their thoughts on the events of the day.

Cara sipped at her spotchka as a way to unwind.

The Mandalorian sat across from her once more, looking as statuesque as he does all the time.

His intimidating aura was ruined by the pup sleeping in his arms the same way as the previous night.

Cara sighed. “Caben and Stoke are slowly getting better at using a spear, but they’re kind of sloppy. I might need to work them harder to get them to the same level as everyone else.” She sipped her blue drink again. “Otherwise, my group is progressing, very slowly, but they’re progressing nonetheless.”

Mando hummed. “It was only their first day using weapons. That would mean that they’re doing better than I expected.”

Cara supposed that she had to give credit where credit was due. These villagers are persistent. “How’s your shooting squad? Will you make Mandalorians out of them yet?”

Mando snorted in amusement. “Sure. Most of them have the hand of an amateur stormtrooper and the trigger finger of an Ithorian. If they keep up like this then yeah, they’ll make decent Mandalorians in the next century or so.”

Cara laughed, swallowing quickly before she could spew her drink all over the place. “Oh, Maker, that was a good one.”

The man sat back in his seat. “But that woman, Omera, is a pretty good shooter. She clearly has experience with a blaster.”

“That omega, right?” She remembered the black-haired woman from when she delivered food to her and from the village meeting.

He nodded. “She has a steady hand and a sharp eye. A good asset to have in the upcoming battle.”

“At least we have one competent fighter to back us up.” Cara commented.

Mando grunted in agreement.

The silence stretched out between them, but somehow, it didn’t feel awkward or uncomfortable.

Cara watched as he adjusted the sleeping child in his arms and pulled the little blanket up between the metal armor and the child’s skin.

He moved so naturally and carefully, as if he had been doing that for years.

She blamed the spotchka for loosening her tongue.

“Can I ask you something?”

“Shoot.”

She opened her mouth to speak, but then closed it. She hesitated. 

Should she be asking this? It really wasn’t any of her business.

Her choice was made for her.

“Is that your pup?”

Mando paused in his ministering and looked up at her at what appeared to be surprise. It was kind of hard to tell.

He was silent for a few moments.

Feeling stupid, Cara tried to retract the question, thinking that it was much too personal. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean–”

“Is that what it looks like?”

She shut her mouth. “What do you mean?”

“Does… it look like he’s my pup?” His modulator made it hard to tell what he was feeling, and the blank face of the helmet didn’t help much either.

Cara decided to be honest.

“Well,” she gestured to the bundle in his arms, “kind of, yeah.”

He exhaled heavily. “He’s… not really my pup.”

She sat back in her seat. “Oh.” She said intelligently. She thought as much, but it was better to hear the answer directly from the source.

“I found him.” Mando said, gently rubbing the child’s ear with a gloved hand. The bundle cooed in his sleep. “He was a bounty for some Imp and I was tasked with bringing him in.” He tapped on his chestplate. “This was my reward.”

A question formed on the tip of her tongue, but she stayed silent. He answered her unspoken question soon enough.

“I couldn’t leave him there. Not in the hands of imperials.”

Cara grew somber. She could tell he was still beating himself up about turning a child into the hands of Imps.

“Not a lot of bounty hunters would’ve done the same in your position.” She said, setting down her cup. “You should be glad you went back for him when you did.”

“Yeah, but I shouldn’t have handed him in in the first place.” He replied with a surprising amount of vitriol. His fist clenched. “That was wrong of me to do and it goes against The Way. I only realized that when…” 

His hand grew lax and he sighed. “I just haven’t been the person I should’ve been for a long time.” He said, so quietly that Cara didn’t think she was supposed to hear it.

She wasn't sure what “The Way'' was, but she assumed that it was some Mandalorian thing. Other than that, she felt for him. She really did.

Cara knew what it was like to wholeheartedly regret past decisions and wish you could change them.

But there really was nothing she, or anyone, could do about it.

The past is the past and it would just be better for everyone to keep moving forward.

“Look, Mando,” she said, bringing his attention back to her. “We’ve all done things we’re not proud of. Our galaxy is an unforgiving one and some people know that better than most.” She tried to smile at him. “I’ve only known you for a couple days, but as far as I can tell, you’re a great parent to this child. I’m sure he’s thankful to you for saving him from the Empire.”

His helmet tilted down to the sleeping child.

The soft snoring from the pup was the only source of sound in the room.

“I suppose you’re right.”

The next day passed in a blur, full of shouting and blaster fire and the frequent whine for a break from a villager here and there.

They trained hard until Cara and Mando were satisfied.

The plan was to be put into motion that night.

They were rushing the timeline a bit because they weren’t sure when the next raid would be, but the two of them believed that they were prepared enough.

Halving the village and splitting them into teams really made things faster. It also helped that they were all so determined to protect their village and do their best.

Waving at the villagers as the sun went down, Cara and Mando disappeared into the woods to draw out the raiders.

They moved quickly and quietly with the Mandalorian in the lead, tracking their way to the raider’s camp.

They swiftly and efficiently dispatched the two klatooinian guards before making their way to the main tent.

They slinked inside, blasters fully prepared to fire.

There was no one guarding the inside. They must all be out chatting around the campfire or doing whatever raiders do on their downtime.

Mando set a charge on the main support structure of the tent before nodding at her.

They went to make their escape when Cara heard the sound of footsteps.

Whistling at the Mandalorian, she drew his attention to the entrance.

He nodded in understanding as he stepped back.

They took down two more of the unsuspecting klatooinians in unison, working like a well-oiled machine even though they have never fought together before.

Cara grinned.

It was nice having someone who could match her level.

More raiders charged into the tent, finally realizing something was wrong.

They fought them as they came in, but each klatooinian that entered only prolonged the time they spent in the tent next to a charge ready to blow.

Soon enough they were pinned in the tent as the raiders fired wildly at them.

Cara and Mando looked at each other as they both heard the rapid beeping of a charge ready to blow.

Noticing that blaster fire weakened the wall of the tent, they nodded to each other as they both thought of the same thing.

“Come on, I’ll cover you!”

Cara needed no more prompting.

After a few blaster shots, she pushed herself up and threw herself through the weakened wall, the Mandalorian following not far behind.

They dove to the ground just as the charge blew, flames erupting in the tent and small pieces of debris flying everywhere.

Panting, Cara looked at Mando. “I hope the plan worked.”

Hearing the sounds of hydraulics and mechanical clanging, they both looked to the side.

The red eyes of the AT-ST were glaring back at them.

It definitely worked.

“Go. Go!” Mando commanded.

They both took off running back to the village.

Running away from an AT-ST through a dark forest isn’t something she would recommend to people.

They were somehow able to make it back to the village in good time though.

Quite a bit of distance was put between them and the mech, giving Cara and Mando enough time to prep the villagers.

After that, everything went by in a blur of tense waiting, showers of sparks, and coming up with a last minute plan to get that kriffing mech to step into the pond.

Throwing caution to the wind and trusting in the abilities of the Mandalorian, she took his pulse rifle and ran to get closer to the AT-ST.

She knew that the raised bank of the pond would shield her from the blasts from the mech. She also knew that it would need to get closer in order to see her over the edge once she jumped into the pond.

So that’s exactly what she did.

Hugging the rifle close to her, she shot at the mech, agitating it enough to make it look for her.

She registered the sounds of the villagers fighting in the background, but focused on her task at hand.

She shot the mech again, right in the eye.

Score.

The AT-ST took that final step forward, leg collapsing into the deep hole in the pond and falling onto its side.

Considering how well she and Mando fought together earlier, she had no doubt that he would get the next part of her plan.

Sure enough, out of the smoke the warrior ran forward with surprising speed, scaling the side of the tipped mech and tossing a blast charge inside it.

The AT-ST exploded the moment he hit the water.

That’s it.

They had won.

“Was that the plan?” Mando asked her, breathing heavily.

She couldn’t help the relieved laugh that came out of her mouth. “Yeah, something like that.”

The clean up after the battle began at midday, once the villagers were rested after the exciting night.

Spirits ran high and there was a noticeable pep in everyone’s step as they began to rebuild and clear out the debris from the battle.

It only took about two days to get the village back to normal.

These people moved fast.

Life continued normally for them, tending to their krill and trading with the main town. The only difference was they were able to work without the fear of raids hanging over their heads.

Cara and Mando hung around the village, watching the woods to make sure the raiders didn’t try again.

Fortunately, the woods remained quiet for a week.

Mando told her that if they were to attack again, they would have done it by now.

The villagers cheered at their success and celebrated. They served a wide variety of food and newly-brewed spotchka and they danced around a bonfire.

The air was filled with adults singing and children laughing.

Cara sat with the Mandalorian outside of her quarters, like they did just about everyday now, watching the festivities.

After spending all this time by Mando’s side, fighting with him and talking late into the night, she figured that it was safe to say that they were friends. After all, friendships forged on the battlefield were one of the strongest bonds in the galaxy.

And she’s had a very long overdue apology.

His little green child ran over to him from playing with the other children with some sugary delight smudged all over his mouth.

He clicked his tongue. “C’mere, kid.” He lifted him into his lap. “You have a pretty good idea where your mouth is, so I don't know how you keep missing it like this.” The child gurgled in his lap, seemingly trying to explain himself. Mando tried to wipe his mouth with his cape. “Quit squirming, kid, this stuff is pretty sticky. And just tell the other kids that if they want to feed you stuff, make sure it goes into your mouth, okay?”

Sufficiently cleaned, the child climbed down from his lap and hurried back to the group of children waiting for him. Mando sighed exasperatedly and with a hint of fondness. “Kids.”

Cara hummed in agreement. “You can understand him?”

The armored omega shrugged. “No. I just saw the other kids try to feed him candy so I assumed that’s what happened.”

She snorted, amused. “Well that explains it.” The conversation drifted into comfortable silence and Cara thought that it was now or never. “Hey, Mando?”

“What’s up?”

“I owe you an apology.”

His head didn’t turn from watching the bonfire, the orange dancing flames reflecting off his visor. “What for?”

She sighed guiltily. “The first day we met. I accidentally grabbed your… wrist.”

“No harm done.” He said simply.

“Oh.” She frowned. It kind of felt like a big deal at the time. She couldn’t shake the memory of him just standing there and rubbing his wrist. “I just felt bad about it for a while. Didn’t want you to get the wrong idea.”

He hummed. “I’ve had worse.”

Cara almost got whiplash from how fast her head turned. “ What? ”

Noticing her tone, his helmet turned to her, alarmed. “What?”

“What does that mean?”

“What does what mean?” He asked, sounding genuinely confused. “I’ve had worse? It means that I’ve experienced worse.” Noticing her glare, he explained, “You know, stab wounds, blaster wounds, the likes.”

Calming significantly, she turned back to look into the fire. “Oh, Maker, I thought you meant like…” She shifted uncomfortably, looking away. “Sexual assault or something.”

“Well that too.”

“Huh?!” Her head whipped back to him. How could he be so nonchalant about it?

“It all comes with being an omega.”

“Yeah, but I thought that…” You’d be an exception. Cara couldn’t think that someone would look at a full suit of beskar and think that a Mandalorian could be an easy victim. She supposed that some sick alpha would… enjoy a challenge.

“It was a long time ago.” Mando said. “Nothing to worry about.”

“But-But that doesn’t make it okay!” Cara spluttered.

“I never said it was.”

Her mouth closed with a snap.

Now she felt even more guilty for even bringing it up.

It’s clear that there were a few experiences there, but Cara didn’t think they were close enough for him to share.

But now what? What can she say?

It seemed like her accidental wrist grabbing paled in comparison to whatever happened in his past.

“I-I’m sorry.” She settled for apologizing again. She didn’t know what else she could say to that.

“Thank you.” He said. “You feel bad about it. That’s more than you could say for the other alphas.” Mando seemed to notice her dampened mood after that because he continued in a significantly lighter voice. “They only apologized after I beat them senseless.” 

Cara couldn’t help the relieved chuckle at his poor attempt at a joke. She didn’t ruin their newly-built friendship.

She was also relieved to hear that those alphas got what they deserved.

Two more weeks later, they sat in the same place watching the children play.

Cara could sense a change in the air.

Mando seemed to be restless.

She’s caught him looking up at the sky more often than not and, a week ago, he began patrolling the perimeter of the village.

She’s not sure if he was expecting something to happen or if it was just his overprotective omega nature.

Cara is enjoying her time on Sorgan, in this nice peaceful village, but Mando’s constant pacing is making her anxious.

Eventually, he settled down next to her, sitting at the edge of his seat.

Biting her lip, she looked around to find something to start the conversation.

Her eyes locked onto the pup.

“He’s happy here.” She commented, trying to fill the space.

“He is.” Mando agreed.

She snuck a glance at him from the corner of her eye. His visor tilted downward towards the child after staring up at the sky for a long moment.

“Fits right in.” The armored omega said a little softer. There was something in his voice that hid behind the modulator. Something was on his mind.

Cara waited. She had the feeling that he was going to say it soon if the past week was any indication.

“You know, we raised some hell here a few weeks back.” And there it was. “It’s too much action for a backwater town like this. Word travels fast. We might wanna cycle the charts and move on.”

Disappointment reared its ugly head. 

Cara knew he was right. Of course he was. She just didn’t think that they would go their separate ways so soon.

She had the honor of meeting a rare Mandalorian omega and befriending him. 

And it wasn’t just the addition of gaining bragging rights to boast about him, she genuinely enjoyed his company.

He was strong and independent, much like her, and yet had no problem working with her as a team. He could keep up with her and match her blow for blow.

Sure, Mando made some horrible jokes now and then, but she had to admit that she would miss his surprisingly pleasant personality.

She hid the downward curve of her mouth behind her cup of spotchka.

“Would not want to be the one who’s gotta tell him.” She muttered, her eyes on the cheerful child.

“I’m… leaving him here.” Cara almost jerked out of her seat. Did she hear him wrong? There was no way he was even thinking that, right? “Traveling with me, that’s no life for a kid. I did my job, he’s safe. A better chance at a life.”

It almost sounded like he was trying to convince himself and not her.

Cara put down her cup. “That’s… gonna break his heart.”

And it would. She knew it would.

She’s seen Mando handle the child with a remarkable amount of care and- dare she say it- love. The child even reciprocated that back.

He would run to Mando anytime he got startled which showed a high level of trust in the Mandalorian despite how intimidating he could seem to younglings.

From what Cara could see, the child already sees him as a parent- or a caretaker at least. It’s just Mando that doesn’t seem to see it. That, or he’s trying not to.

There could be a number of reasons why he’s distancing himself from the child, it couldn’t just be because he’s a bounty hunter.

“He’ll get over it. We all do.”

Cara needed Mando to see what she sees. That leaving the child behind here won’t make things better, for either of them.

“Mando-”

He stood up abruptly. “I’m going to talk to Omera to make arrangements for the child to stay here.” Then he marched out towards the krill ponds.

Cara watched him go before she too stood up. 

She sighed.

She needed to clear her head.

Leaving behind the half cup of spotchka, Cara heads out to the woods for a walk.

She followed the scent of Mando through the forest, retracing his steps from his patrol earlier.

She didn’t know what was keeping the man from just taking the child with him if he planned to move on.

Unfortunately, it wasn’t any of her business to pry into his life.

She wondered if it had anything to do with his alpha problem that happened “a long time ago.”

But that wouldn’t make any sense because that situation had nothing to do with pups.

Or did it?

Did the Mandalorian have pups sometime in his life? He didn’t sound too old.

At the same time with how protective he was of the green child, it also seemed like this was his first time caring for one.

Cara sighed again. 

There was no use thinking about all this stuff. The Mandalorian made his choice, so who was she to butt into his decisions–

A scent.

She abruptly stopped and threw herself behind a tree.

She cautiously sniffed the air.

The scent, a beta, was upwind of her.

It wasn’t any scents that she would recognize from the village.

In fact, the scent was kind of musty, like they recently came from some kind of desert or dusty planet.

Peeking around the side of the tree, she was shocked at how close she got without them noticing her being there. Or without her noticing them.

It was a cloaked figure kneeling on the ground.

The beta held a sniper rifle in their hands aiming at…

With a quick, confirming glance, she realized that they were pointing towards the village.

In the moment, it didn’t matter who they were or who they were looking to shoot, she had to stop them now.

Cara quickly moved behind him and drew her blaster.

She shot the cloaked figure.

It was over in less than a second.

Mando came rushing through the woods towards her with his own blaster drawn.

Spotting her and the bounty hunter on the ground, he stuck it back into his holster.

He stooped down to pick up a tracking fob that she didn’t notice, its little red light blinking rapidly.

“Who’s he tracking?” She asked, already aware of the answer.

“The kid.”

“They know he’s here.”

“Yes.”

“Then they’ll keep coming.”

The Mandalorian sighed and dropped the fob. He destroyed it with a quick stomp of his boot.

“Yes.”

“What are you going to do about it?” She asked him.

He remained silent for a moment.

Then he raised his chin and turned to her.

“I’ll protect him.” His voice was stronger than it had been during their previous conversation. “I’ll make sure they don’t hurt him.”

Cara resisted the urge to smile.

Now this seemed like something he wanted to do.

It didn’t take long before both of them were packed and ready to leave.

She approached the speeder.

“Are you sure you don’t want an escort?” Cara asked him once more.

She really didn’t mind if he wanted one. She could stand to hang around him for a while longer.

“I appreciate the offer,” Mando responded, loading the last crate onto the speeder. “But we’re gonna bypass the town and head straight to the Razor Crest.”

She assumed that was what his answer would be.

Grinning at him, she offered her arm. “Well then, until our paths cross.”

Without a second thought, he reached out and clasped her arm firmly. “Until our paths cross.” He repeated.

Stepping back, she watched him sit himself into the speeder and take off.

Her eyes followed him until he disappeared into the woods, then she said her own goodbyes to the villagers before starting her own trek back to the town.

She had a good few weeks. It was much more enjoyable than she originally thought they would be.

She paused after a few steps and looked back at the villagers clustered on the path.

“Hey,” she called to them. Omera was the closest and looked at her. Pulling out the small bag of credits that they gave her to take the job, she tossed it to the woman. She winked at them. “Why don’t you guys keep that?”

Then off she went.

Until our paths cross, Mandalorian.

She shook her head in disbelief, chuckling to herself.

Maker, she can’t believe that she got attached to an omega.

An armored one at that.