As the weeks went by, and they spent more time in the village, Mando and Hestia grew closer. It both scared the twi'lek and thrilled her. She was afraid of how much trust she was placing into the man, but she also couldn't help it.

Omera walked up to them, and handed both Cara and Hestia a blue drink they were both familiar with. Hestia smiled in thanks, taking a sip of the spotchka.

Omera returned the smile and turned to the mandalorian. "Can I fix you something in the house?"

Mando denied her offer politely, and Omera nodded, looking at the child who was playing with the other kids.

"He's very happy here", she said softly. Mando nodded in agreement.

"He is", he said quietly.

"Fits right in", Omera added, still watching the kid who looked so different from the village kids. Mando doesn't say anything, so Omera leaves the trio to themselves

"So what happens when you take that off?" Cara asked Mando, who was leaning against the doorway of the barn.  Cara and Hestia were sitting on the steps, watching the village. "Do they track you down and kill you?"

"No", Mando replied. "You just can't ever put it back on again."

"That's it? So you could slip that helmet off, settle down that beautiful widow over there, and raise your kid sitting here, sipping spotchka?" Cara said. Hestia froze for a second, before forcing herself to relax. That was the other thing.

Omera and Mando had grown close as well. Hestia's dejected thoughts overwhelmed her for a second, knowing that Omera had more of a chance with Mando than she did. After sorting through her thoughts, she tuned back into the conversation.

"I'm leaving the kid here", Mando said. "He'd be happier here."

Hestia blinked, looking up at the man she had spent the past few weeks sharing a hut with. "But he'll miss you."

"Travelling with me... that's no life for a kid", Mando said, looking back at the twi'lek. "And Hestia, you'd be safer if you stayed here too."

 Hestia glared at him. "No way am I leaving you now. I'm staying with you through and through. Besides... I don't think I'm ready to settle down just yet. There's more for me out there than there is here. Besides... I still gotta meet my nephew."

Cara chuckled. "If you're leaving the kid here, you need to talk to Omera. As well as tell the kid. Gonna break his little heart."

"He'll get over it. We all do." Mando said as he walked past the two woman. Hestia watched as he walked away, ignoring the tugging feeling in her heart that told her to follow him.

"So... you have a thing for a guy in armor, huh?" Cara smirked. Hestia jumped, and looked at Cara, heat spreading across her cheeks.

"What? No", Hestia denied. Cara laughed, standing up and offering her hand to Hestia. The twi'lek accepted gratefully, and smiled at the dropper. As the two walked around a hut, Cara spoke.

"You keep telling yourself that", the rebel said. "But don't wait too long. Or else someone else is going to make a move."

Hestia stopped in her tracks, seeing Omera's hands on Mando's helmet, going to take it off. Cara looked back at her, and followed her gaze. The woman sighed, before grabbing Hestia's hand and leading her into the forest. They walked silently, and Hestia tried to keep herself from crying. He wasn't hers anyway, so she shouldn't be crying that someone else made the first move. 

Cara stopped, and Hestia bumped into her. She looked up from the ground and noticed that her companion was on the alert. She looked ahead and saw someone laying on the ground, a rifle in hand, and aiming into the village. Cara didn't hesitate to shoot them. In what seemed like less than a minute, Mando was by their side. They rolled the body over and found two tracking fobs. One was flashing quickly, and when aimed at Hestia, flashed faster. Mando and the twi'lek's gazes met, and a silent message passed between them. It's not safe anymore on Sorgan.

They hurried back into the village, gathering their belongings. Hestia had a few more belongings now, thanks to Omera. The woman had gladly given her some of her old clothes so Hestia could get out of her bloodstained ones. They loaded up a speeder, and said their goodbyes. Hestia turned to Omera, who smiled at her.

"Take good care of him, Hestia", the woman said, tears shining in her eyes. "He'll need it."

Hestia nodded, and turned to Cara. The woman smiled at her, and offered her hand to shake. Hestia ignored it and pulled her into a hug.

"Thanks for being there for me, Cara", she whispered. Cara was stiff and unyielding underneath the hug, but nodded anyway. Hestia pulled back, and smiled as she climbed into the speeder, Mando following close behind her.

As the village faded from view, Hestia spoke, a smirk on her face.

"So... you and Omera, huh?" she asked, teasing him to avoid her own pain.

Mando rolled his eyes underneath the helmet, even though Hestia couldn't see it. He didn't say anything, which only made Hestia's heart ache even more. She elbowed him, a teasing smile on her face.

"You're not denying it", she sang, watching him for any kind of reaction.

"Why should I deny what's not there?" he asked. Hestia raised an eyebrow.

"She nearly took your helmet off from what I saw", the twi'lek said.

Mando shook his head. "Yeah, nearly. But she doesn't know me as well as you do."

"Oh, really? So she doesn't even know your hair color, Mr. Brown Hair?" Hestia teased. Mando shook his head.

"No. Only you know that", he said. Hestia froze, her mind racing a million miles a minute. Her heart was beating faster than that, and a warmth spread across her face. She looked away from him.

"Oh."

They sat in silence as they continued their ride back to the ship. When they arrived, they unpacked everything into the ship, telling the droid driving the speeder to head back to the village.

And then once more, they were in the darkness of space.