Work Text:
When he woke in the middle of the night and found himself unable to fall back asleep, he figured a walk would help to clear his mind. Checking on Grogu in his pod and finding him in a deep sleep, Din decided to head to the one place he thought would bring him some peace and clarity. As he quietly exited the Gauntlet, not wanting to disturb Bo-Katan who was asleep in her quarters and had been working tirelessly the last few days as more of their people returned to Mandalore, he walked the now familiar path from camp to the mines.
He hadn’t expected to find anyone at the waters this late at night but he should have known that his subconscious would lead him to her. It always did.
As he crossed the threshold into the sanctuary of the Living Waters, the first thing he noticed was her helmet and armor stacked neatly atop her flight suit on the steps leading to the waters. After the months he had spent with her in both the covert and searching the outer rim for her fleet, he had become so familiar with her armor, the color of the paint and the scars marking her battles, he knew it almost as well as his own.
Unusual ripples in the waters caught his eye, and as he let his gaze follow the them to their source, he found the woman his mind and body seemed to be constantly pulled to. Bo-Katan Kryze was floating on her back about 15 feet from the last step, wearing nothing but her compression band and underwear, her red hair floating around her head like a halo. It wouldn’t matter how many times he saw her, either in full beskar'gam or naked as the day she was born, Din would always be struck by her beauty and tonight was no exception.
He stood there watching her for a time as she floated peacefully. Her eyes were closed, she finally looked relaxed. The worry lines that had seemed to be permanently etched into her forehead as she worked to set up the initial groupings of workers and mediated every minor quarrel that seemed to constantly be brewing between tribes and clans, had vanished. He hadn’t seen her this calm and unworried since he had found her fast asleep in her captain’s chair with Grogu nestled comfortably against her chest a few weeks ago,
He watched as her arms dragged through the waters beside her, but the movement of her right hand caught his full attention. She was continually clenching her hand into a fist and extending her fingers wide. But the movement seemed strained, her fist never firmly closing and fingers never fully straightening. Before he could take a step forward or say a single word, she seemed to read his mind.
“It hasn’t been the same since Gideon crushed the Darksaber. It feels tight.” Her voice called out, echoing off the walls in the silent stone chamber. Of course she would know it was him standing there, she had been able to sense him from the very beginning, as though she were innately attuned to his presence, as he was to hers. “The water seems to help loosen the muscles.”
Din hummed his response. “Didn’t you once tell me there was nothing magical about these waters?” he asked with a cheeky tone, already stripping himself of his own beskar and layers.
He saw her amused smile as he gripped the bottom of his helmet, pulling the mask he wore in front of the rest of the galaxy away leaving only Din Djarin staring at Bo-Katan Kryze as her eyes slowly opened to find his. “Yes well, when you see a mythosaur, your opinion of magical waters tends to change,” she deadpanned.
His own smile mirrored hers as he began to make his way into the waters and towards her. “And the reason you needed to do this in the middle of the night, with no security or clothing on?”
She only shrugged, her hand continuing to flex and extend under the water. When he reached her, he took her hand in his and began to gently massage the joints. He watched her face for any sign of pain, easing his movements when he came across an area particularly uncomfortable for her. As he worked, her face began to relax once again. “You know, bacta would likely work just as well to heal your hand.”
She shook her head, “There are others that need the supply of bacta we have more than I do, Din. This will heal in time.”
“And until it does, you’ll just continue to have nightly magical physiotherapy?” he questioned, his brow raising skeptically.
“That was the plan, yes,” she agreed, the torchlight dancing in her eyes, though he knew she was completely serious.
He shook his head in joyful disbelief but already knew he would join her in the waters every night for as long as it took for her hand to heal, “Just, wake me up tomorrow, yeah?"
She smiled lovingly, nodding her head softly and letting her eyes close once more as she continued to float with her hand held securely in his, “Of course dear.”