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1.
An acrid stench assaulted Cody’s nose as he and General Kenobi walked into the bar. It was on the lower levels of Coruscant, and naturally, possibly the seediest, skankiest place Cody had seen in his life. It was a sharp contrast to the pristine conditions of the upper levels and the Senate building. Currently they were undercover, on the trail of someone who was supposedly a slave trader. Initially, the Council had wanted to send Skywalker, but apparently the subject of slavery was too close to him. How lucky Rex was. Cody took a sip of the violently fluorescent drink that had been placed in front of him, and tried not to wince at the taste. He casually leaned back, looking around for the suspect. All they knew about him was apparently he was Mandolorian.Kenobi nudged his arm, “That’s him.”He nodded his head in the direction of a well dressed man, sitting at a table with 3 scantily dressed women surrounding him. As they approached the table, the man sent the women away, and focused his attention on them with a hungry grin that made Cody’s stomach turn.“Pirusti, pirusti, pirusti, meg vaabir vi ganar olar?” Well, well, well, what do we have here? Even knowing he was a Mandolorian, Cody was surprised to hear him speak Mando’a, but didn’t let it show on his face.“Evaar'la clients, ret.” New clients, perhaps. Cody tried his best to sound friendly. The man’s smile only grew, increasing Cody’s uneasiness.“Nayc, nayc, evaar'la burc'ya,” No, no, new friends. He patted the seats. “Sit, sit,” he switched to basic, clearly noticing that Kenobi seemed a bit lost.
“My name is Groo Barnebo, but business can wait. First we should get to know each other.” He gestured at the bar for more drinks to be brought over to them. Cody fought off a scowl.“Kaysh cuyir mesh'la, vaabir gar me'dinuir?” He is pretty, do you share? Barnebo slid his slimy gaze over Kenobi, and Cody desperately tried not to blast this man where he was seated.“Vaabir not tigaanur kaysh. Kaysh's pal'vut.” Don’t touch him. He’s mine. Cody responded with gritted teeth. Barnebo just laughed and put his hands up in surrender.“Now. Business.” Cody wanted to get out of here as fast as possible.“Of course.” Barnebo dipped his head toward him, his slick smile not wavering an inch.As he and Kenobi negotiated the deal with Barnebo, Cody couldn’t shake the feeling of pure rage he felt whenever he looked at the man. He had a sneaking suspicion that it wasn’t just because the man was a slave trader (though obviously that was a factor), it was something else that Cody didn’t feel like examining further.Cody shook Barnebo’s hand, gripping maybe a smidgen too hard, sealing the deal. When Barnebo was shaking Kenobi’s hand, and his other hand was caressing Kenobi’s bicep, well who could blame Cody for accidentally tripping over his feet and spilling his drink on Barnebo?“My apologies,” Cody said, perhaps a little too dryly to be convincing. He couldn’t help putting a possessive hand on Kenobi’s arm as they walked out of the bar, daring anyone to even think about touching him.-2.
Cody’s face broke into a smile upon the sight of Rex’s blond head. Cody wouldn’t admit it, but Rex was a sight for sore eyes. The 212th and 501st were on their first campaign together in a while, and Cody was very glad to have Rex with him, even though Skywalker was a walking headache.The two of them were in the war room of the Negotiator with Kenobi and Skywalker, discussing plans for an upcoming campaign. It was a rescue mission to get a Senator that a separatist group was holding hostage. It was expected that Kenobi and Skywalker would take control of the strategizing, after all, they were the Generals and Jedi, but they both showed genuine interest in making sure that Cody and Rex were included in the conversation. It made Cody feel warm all over. Even though it was something small, it meant a lot to Cody that Kenobi valued his opinion and input.After the meeting was over, Kenobi turned to Cody saying,
“I thought you should know, I found a new holonovel for us to discuss.” Cody immediately smiled. Their midnight tea times had started because of a shared inability to let go of their responsibilities, but had turned into an almost book club once they figured out they had similar tastes in literature. Cody always enjoyed every new thing he read, the escapism, the reminder that the galaxy was far larger and had more to offer than just the war, but getting to discuss it was even better. He loved the way that Kenobi’s whole body lit up when he would passionately rant about a particular passage he liked or motif he noticed. He also loved the way that Kenobi challenged him to think in new ways, and the way he hoped he was doing the same for him. It had become the thing he looked forward to most.He nodded at Kenobi, “I look forward to it.”Cody turned to say something to Rex, but Rex was looking at him curiously.“Gar're o'r kar'taylir darasuum ti gar general.” You’re in love with your General. Rex observed very matter of factly, as if he was commenting on Cody’s hair color. Cody froze, his previous thought immediately forgotten.“Meg? Nayc! Ni shi admire kaysh,” What? No! I just admire him, was Cody’s immediate response, though he winced a bit on how defensive he sounded.“Gar don't even kar'taylir bic,” You don’t even know it, responded Rex, sounding almost sympathetic. “Kote, te ara gar haa'taylir sha kaysh,” Cody, the way you look at him, Rex hesitated, “Ni ganar draar seen gar haa'taylir sha anyone guuror ibac.” You’ve never looked at anyone like that.Cody dragged Rex out of the room with a hasty goodbye to the generals, and yanked him down the hallway to his own quarters, quickly shutting the door behind him. He could apologize for rushing out like that on them later.“Look, I can’t be in love with him.” Cody said defeatedly.“Why not? It’s obvious Kenobi feels the same.” Rex returned.“He doesn’t.” Cody said shortly. Rex started to say something else but Cody cut him off.“He doesn’t,” he repeated, “And even if he did, it doesn’t matter. He’s a Jedi and my superior officer. It’s against regulations.”“Fuck regulations. Skywalker is in a relationship with Senator Amidala and nobody bats an eye.”“That’s different. She’s a senator for a powerful planet. I’m a clone.”“Cody, you deserve a chance to be happy,” Rex said softly. Cody looked up from the fascinating spot on the floor he had been looking at.“Maybe, but that’s not how the world works. I’m meant to be a disposable part in this war that we were made to fight in. I’m lucky I’m even still alive, and so many of our brothers have died. I can’t ask for more.” Cody couldn’t help the way his voice wavered, and he knew that Rex hadn’t missed it, with the way that Rex was looking at him.“Cody…” Rex began softly.“Rex, please. Let it go.” Cody said a bit desperately. “The only thing that could make this worse is false hope, so please don’t give me that. I’m lucky enough to even have some semblance of his friendship. It’s enough. It has to be enough.”Rex looked like he wanted to argue the point but evidently seeing that Cody very much did not, he finally just shrugged his shoulders, and began to tell Cody about how painful it was to have a General that was in a very obvious relationship, and having to pretend not to know about it. Cody was grateful that Rex hadn’t pressed the issue, but Rex putting words to the feelings Cody was trying to ignore left him with a sick feeling in his stomach.-3.
The campaign was starting to seem like it was never going to end. They had been drudging through a winter tundra for days trying to locate a separatist supply cache that was supposed to be around here. They had lost half their supplies in an avalanche they’d been forced to run from a few hours ago, and now they had no choice but to find the base, because Cody was pretty sure they didn’t have enough supplies to try to backtrack. Not to mention, the avalanche put a mountain of snow directly on their path back, and traversing around it would take even more time.Cody was freezing and miserable and couldn’t feel his toes. He hated the cold, had for as long as he could remember. He hated the way it bit right through him, freezing him to his core. The intermittent snow and piercing wind made the already soul-sucking cold that much more difficult to bear. Finally General Kenobi motioned for them to stop.“We’ll make camp here.” He said to Cody. Cody didn’t know how it was possible but Kenobi looked even colder than him. His beard was crusted with snow, and his cheeks and nose were a bright red. At least Cody and the rest of his Vod’e had their armor for protection.“How do you want to split up the rest of the supplies General?”Kenobi surveyed the remaining supplies thoughtfully.
“I guess we’ll all have to share tents, but it’ll keep us all warmer anyhow.”Cody let him handle it while he looked at their food supplies, and began to ration them out, praying that they found the supply cache soon because they were concerningly low on food, and could only last a few more days at best with the supplies they had.After the food had been sorted, fires had been made, and tents had been set up, Cody finally allowed himself to relax a bit and warm his frozen fingers. He sat down heavily next to the fire, his tired bones aching from cold and exhaustion. Kenobi was already seated there, dangerously close to the fire in his apparent attempt to defrost a little bit. Cody fought the urge to pull him away like he was one of his brothers, instead contenting himself with keeping an eye on him to make sure he didn’t fall in.Cody wasn’t sure how much time had passed but his eyes were starting to get heavy and the fires were starting to burn down, and he knew he needed sleep to face the long trek ahead.“Which tent am I sleeping in, General?” Cody yawned.He assumed Kenobi would’ve assigned him with Waxer or possibly Boil, but Kenobi didn’t tell him as he gestured at a tent to his left. Cody nodded at him before entering it, slightly surprised at the emptiness. Most of the troopers had retired to their tents by now, seeking relief from the wind and snow. He was too tired to dwell on it and figured whoever was bunking with him would join him soon, or maybe there had even been enough tents for him to get his own. He took off his helmet, and started peeling off his armor piece by piece. He was down to his basics and unrolling his sleeping mat when he heard the zip along with the rush of cold air that signified the opening of the tent flap. He turned, and almost did a double take at seeing Kenobi enter the tent.His surprise must have shown on his face because Kenobi said in a rush,
“There weren’t enough tents for everyone and I didn’t think anyone should sleep alone anyway because of the weather.” Cody nodded at him, turning back around to continue to unroll his sleeping mat.“If you’re uncomfortable with this, I can find my own tent, I won’t hold it against you at all.” Kenobi added.“It’s not a problem, sir. Not freezing to death would be a good tactical move.”
Cody could hear Kenobi taking off his outer jacket and pants, and kept his eyes fixed on the pillow he was currently over-fluffing.“I keep telling you that you can call me Obi-Wan when it’s just us, Cody.” Cody never had taken him up on it before. It felt too personal, too intimate, a line he wasn’t sure should be crossed, but he tried it out in his mind.
Obi-wan. Obi-Wan.
After a good hour of tossing and turning, Cody was immensely frustrated in his inability to fall asleep. Obi-Wan was clearly not suffering this affliction as his breathing had evened out and soft snores had emerged from his side of the tent. Fuck it. Cody thought. He gave up on sleep and opened his eyes. He turned on his mat to face where Obi-Wan was sleeping. He indulged himself in something he would never usually be able to do. He just looked at Obi-Wan. The light dusting of freckles over his nose, the way his eyelashes brushed his cheeks. The dance of the dying firelight from outside the tent barely lit up Obi-Wan’s face, and softened his sharp edges. Cody was used to seeing his General. A man who had hundreds of troops under his command, and carried responsibility for every single one. A Jedi Master. Cody was reminded that Obi-Wan was still just a man, beyond everything else. A man who had been burdened by war, even though the Jedi were supposed to be peace keepers. It took every ounce of his self control not to tuck the strand of hair that had fallen onto Obi-Wan’s forehead back behind his ear. Instead, Cody let himself wonder what it would be like to run his hands through that thick auburn hair.Cody’s indulgences abruptly halted with a sound from Obi-Wan. It was just a quiet whimper, but the small size of the tent let Cody hear it over the howling wind. He could see the change on Obi-Wan’s face. His peaceful expression replaced by a downturn in his mouth, and wrinkles by his eyes. He began to move in his sleep. Cody tried to remind himself that this was none of his business, and doing anything would most certainly be crossing a professional boundary that he really shouldn’t.His resolve cracked at the sound of Obi-Wan repeating a distressed, “No, no, no” over and over.He cautiously reached his arm towards Obi-Wan, desperately trying to remember what he’d done for his vod’e when he would comfort them after nightmares. Obi-Wan turned into his touch immediately. Cody tensed up, but Obi-Wan was still asleep. He relaxed incrementally,“Ni'm olar ner kar'taylir darasuum. Bic's morut'yc. Ni'll cabuor gar.” I’m here for you, love. You’re safe. I’ll protect you. He repeated this softly to Obi-Wan until he had fully relaxed in his arms and seemed to be back to sleeping peacefully. Cody briefly worried about falling asleep with the general in his arms, but he was too tired to care, and Obi-Wan was so warm, and he really, really wanted to. Even if he could only do this just this once. It was worth it.Cody woke up slowly with Obi-wan’s hair tickling his face, (confirming that it was in fact as soft as it looked). He knew he should probably move before Obi-Wan woke up, but he just couldn’t quite make himself, savoring Obi-Wan’s comforting weight on him. He wanted to treasure this as much as he possibly could. The desire to wake up like this every day hit Cody smack in the chest. A rush of unexpected sadness ran over him. He could never have this. Not really. But he tightened his grip around Obi-Wan anyway, because he could allow himself to dream for one morning.That afternoon, when they finally saw sun glinting against metal, a sign they had reached the supply cache, Cody caught himself feeling a flicker of disappointment amongst the relief.-4.
General Kenobi swung his lightsaber in a vicious dance, clearing the path of droids. The 212th was aiding a rebel group against the Separatist occupation of the planet of Coyerti. Their target was a separatist droid factory that had been built on the outskirts of the capital city, right on the edge of the jungle that covered most of the planet. Cody watched Obi-Wan’s back as he set the charges around the factory, sniping droids from atop a nearby hill. He hadn’t wanted Obi-Wan to go alone, but he had insisted upon it. Obi-Wan was very stubborn when he wanted to be, and by this point Cody had learned there was no use arguing with him. Cody watched as Obi-wan set the last charge, and began his mental timer; 30 seconds until detonation.An uneasy feeling passed through Cody as he felt the ground begin to rumble; Separatist reinforcements arriving from the city. Cody ran forward, his General’s orders forgotten at the sight of Obi-Wan surrounded. He had 15 seconds before the bombs went off. Time seemed to slow down around him. He could see Obi-Wan’s mouth moving as he whirled around fighting off droids. He was beautiful, the epitome of power and grace, a whirlwind of tan robes and blue light. Cody was too far away to hear what Obi-Wan was yelling at him, his voice drowned out by the blaster fire, probably something along the lines of get back, but Cody couldn’t think of anything except I have to protect my general. I have to protect my Obi-Wan. Just as he was closing in, with Obi-Wan only a couple hundred feet in front of him, the countdown in his head reached zero.Cody felt himself be thrown backwards, his scream of “General” ripped from his lungs, and lost in the sound of the explosion. He tasted blood, and his head was spinning, he thought he may have hit it on a rock. Obi-Wan’s form was lost in the smoke and fire. He groggily saw some of his brothers going into the debris of the explosion before his vision finally faded to black.Cody blinked his eyes open to the sterile white light of the medical wing of Negotiator. His head was pounding and throat felt like he’d gargled concrete. He sat up slowly, trying to ignore the piercing pains behind his eyes every time he moved. His memories slammed back to him in a rush, and in a second he was out of the bed on his feet, only to be steadied by the hand of the 212th’s newest medic, Tuck.“Woah there Commander, slow down. You’re going to injure yourself worse.”“Kenobi,” Cody croaked past his dry throat. “Where’s the general?”“He’s alive.” Tuck responded, gently but very firmly steering Cody back toward the bed. Cody relaxed infinitesimally, but anxiety gnawed at him at the lack of news beyond that. He opened his mouth to demand more information, fully ready to pull rank on the shiny, but Tuck beat him to it.“Don’t argue with me. Sleep. There’s nothing you can do for him if you’re still injured.”
Honestly, Cody was surprised that the medic talked to him like that, and despite himself also felt an inkling of respect. Seeing the look on his face, Tuck said grimly,“I’ve been warned about certain members of this battalion being… less than inclined to heal fully. I believe the words ‘stubborn shit heads’ were used.” Cody felt himself getting thoroughly tucked back into bed, and his eyes started to drift shut into sleep again.The next time he awakened, Tuck was gone. His head felt at least forty-eight percent less like he was being spiked in the brain, which he counted as a win. Looking both ways to make sure that Tuck was gone (yeah, he was a little ashamed of hiding from a shiny medic but whatever), he exited his bed, on a search for his general. He quickly donned the armor on his bedside, and downed a cup of water so his throat felt less like it was on fire. The action had him finding himself longing for tea with Obi-Wan. Then again, he longed for a lot of things with Obi-Wan, things that caused an ache in his chest when he thought about it for too long.He found Obi-wan lying in a bed further into the medical wing, seemingly unconscious. Cody felt a stab of fear shoot through his heart at how pale Obi-Wan looked. It was such a stark contrast to see him like this. He was usually so alive, even when he was tired and Cody could tell he hadn’t slept in 3 days and was a hairbreadth away from collapsing due to force exhaustion. Seeing him lying in this hospital bed made Cody feel uncomfortable. Obi-Wan didn’t belong there. Cody had seen his general injured before, of course he had, it was a war they’d been fighting for a long time now, but for some reason, this one in particular was hitting him hard. Obi-Wan was usually the first one to insist he was okay, even when he wasn’t, and for once Cody wished he would, just to prove he could.Cody heard the rustle of blankets and looked up from his holopad immediately. Obi-Wan blinked wearily up at him.“I thought I told you to get back Commander.” The rough sound of Obi-Wan’s voice had never before filled Cody with so much relief. He couldn’t help but slip out,“Ni'll ratiin cabuor ner kar'ta.” I’ll always protect my heart.Immediately Cody looked back down at his holopad. Clearly Obi-Wan’s injury had affected him more than he had thought, because the barriers he had worked so hard to trap his feelings behind were crumbling. He was lucky he managed to switch to Mando’a and hadn’t said that in basic, but it was too close. When the blush in his cheeks had gone down enough for him to be able to look at Obi-Wan again, Obi-Wan was studying him like he was a mystery. The intense scrutiny of Obi-Wan’s gaze made his whole body feel hot.Cody was immensely grateful at the arrival of Tuck for dissipating the tension and freeing him from his embarrassment. Tuck shooed Cody out of the medical wing, so he took up residence in his quarters, trying to bury himself and his feelings in paperwork, and pointedly trying to ignore the feeling that lingered from Obi-Wan’s gaze.-5.
Cody sat down heavily on the chair that had been pulled out for him, and accepted the drink he was offered. The clones weren’t technically supposed to be drinking, but Cody couldn’t give less of a fuck about regulations right now. It had been an absolutely grueling campaign and the troops hadn’t had a break between the last four campaigns. They deserved a break. Besides, who was he to turn down free drinks and Wooley’s infamous moonshine? He, along with the majority of the 212th would probably end up with horrible hangovers tomorrow, but for now, Cody tossed back his drink, enjoying the burn that spread through him.“Damn, Commander.” Wooley grinned at him, refilling his drink.Once his drink had been refilled, he raised his cup to Wooley, tossing this one back too. The alcohol made him feel looser and lighter, easier to forget the horrors of war, all of the brothers he had lost, and the pressure of being the one responsible for the lives of the brothers he had left. He let go of his command and got to just be with his vod’e. Laughing with their jokes, participating in some light betting on who would throw up first, and if he was challenged to a drinking contest by Waxer and Boil, well who was he to refuse? Someone had to put them in their place.Cody was in the middle of an invigorating, if not slightly incoherent, conversation with Tuck about which of the big crime families would have the most entertaining reality show, when a hush began to fall over the room. Cody looked up to see Obi-Wan in the doorway. Shit. He looked around the room, nodding at Wooley that he would handle it. After all, he was the commander, and it was his responsibility to keep the troops in line. He stood up, desperately trying not to sway or stumble as he made his way to Obi-Wan.“General, it was my idea, the troops are not at fault.”Obi-Wan interrupted him before he could continue with a hand up.“I’m not here to be a general. Pass me a bottle, would you Cody?” Cody felt a smile peek through on his face as the tension eased from his shoulders. As Obi-Wan began to take an impressive swig from the bottle, the apprehension in the room began to dissipate and the chatter began to pick up once more. Cody sat down heavily on a couch in the corner, quietly observing Obi-Wan chatting with Waxer and Boil for a moment.He must not have been as subtle as his drunk mind had thought, because Obi-Wan caught his eye, his mouth upturning into a smile. Cody wasn’t sure when a bottle had been placed in his hand, but he raised it towards Obi-Wan nonetheless. Obi-Wan clearly didn’t care about any formalities as he casually dropped onto one end of the couch, still holding his bottle.“I do hope I’m not intruding. I didn’t mean to impose on your relaxation, but while the Temple is great for unwinding through meditation, it’s not so much for drinking. Not to mention sometimes the company can leave a little to be desired,” the last part said in an exaggerated whisper. Cody couldn’t help the surprised laugh that escaped his mouth.“Don’t worry about it Obi-Wan, you’re practically a brother.” Obi-Wan seemed delighted by this, if the tell-tale reddening of the tips of his ears was any indication. Maybe it was the alcohol that made him brave, maybe it was the fact that Obi-Wan had chosen to sit with him out of everyone, maybe it was seeing Obi-Wan’s smile, but he decided to ask,“How long are we supposed to pretend we don’t know about Skywalker and Senator Amidala’s relationship?” Obi-Wan’s laugh made Cody feel warmer than the alcohol had.“Well Anakin’s never been one for rules.”“Right. And who did he learn that from?” Obi-Wan feigned shock saying,“What are you implying, my dear Cody? I certainly taught him to be more subtle, but clearly that lesson didn’t take.”My dear Cody. He slid the words over and over again in his mind, memorizing the way they felt. He knew it was stupid to latch on to that, but what was alcohol for if not to do something a little stupid?“Ru'kel gar shukur te ke'gyce par ni?” Would you break the rules for me? Cody wasn’t quite stupid enough to ask it in Basic, but he couldn’t help the words as they fell out of his mouth. Before Obi-wan could respond, he quickly said,
“That means, you have broken the rules then, just more subtly?”Obi-Wan gave him a look that Cody’s intoxicated brain couldn’t interpret, before answering,“I cannot confirm nor deny anything,” with a smirk.Cody took a large swig straight from the bottle, big enough to cause him to make a face. He wanted to drown the warm pit in his stomach that Obi-Wan’s smile opened up. After that, Cody began to slightly lose sight of his surroundings. He remembered flashes of Obi-Wan’s smile and laugh, and then Obi-Wan's warm hand guiding him back to his quarters, steadying him when he stumbled. He vaguely remembered talking to Obi-Wan in Mando’a.“Gar gaan cuyir warm.” Your hand is warm.
“Gar cuyir bid mesh'la.” You are so beautiful.
“Gar Kelir ratiin ganar ner kar'ta.” You will always have my heart.
“Gar cuyir bid warm.” You are so warm.Cody woke up tucked into his bed, with only a vague memory of someone bringing him there. He winced at the bright lights, and hobbled over to the refresher to vomit his guts out. Whoever had tucked him in had left him a glass of water, which he greatly appreciated. He didn’t remember much of the night before. He had vague memories of talking to a bunch of his brothers, participating in a drinking contest, (that would explain the monster hangover), and having a conversation with Obi-Wan, but couldn’t for the life of him remember what they had talked about. He begged all that was good in the force that he hadn’t said something too embarrassing.
He couldn’t help but chastise himself for getting black-out drunk with Obi-Wan.His slight crush on his General was becoming too much to handle, and combined with sabotaged self-control and decision-making, it was a disaster waiting to happen. He would consider himself lucky if he hadn’t let anything slip.
Then again, Obi-Wan would probably be nice enough to never mention it, rather than go through some insanely awkward but no doubt polite rejection. Cody just hoped it wouldn’t ruin Obi-Wan’s respect for him. He knew he had to get a handle on these feelings. They were becoming distracting, and distraction was not something Cody could afford, not with the lives of his brothers at stake.And yet, he couldn’t forget the warmth that flooded his body everytime Obi-Wan so much as looked his way, much less laughed or smiled. He couldn’t help the ache in his chest every time he saw Obi-Wan remembering a clone’s chosen name, even if he had only met them once before. It was bare minimum, treating the clones like they were individual people, not just means to end, but Obi-Wan seemed to genuinely care about each and every one of them. Cody knew that Obi-Wan felt the losses almost as deeply as he did. He could see it in the lines in his face that always seemed to deepen after each campaign. He could see it in the bags under his eyes when they had tea together in the middle of the night because neither of them could sleep. It was getting harder and harder to remind himself that Obi-Wan was not an option. He was a Jedi, he was his general, it would never work. But making Obi-Wan smile? That feeling seemed to drown out all the rest.He flopped back into his bed, and closed his eyes, eager to get a few more moments of rest before he had to face the inevitable teasing of his brothers.-+1.
Cody woke up to a pounding headache. He blinked a few times, trying to adjust his eyes to the brightness so he could assess where he was. It was an unfamiliar room, though clearly a cell. He flexed his wrists, which had been chained above him, his toes grazing the floor. The last thing he remembered, they had been on a campaign trying to find a cell of Death Watch that had been threatening Senator Amidala. Skywalker had been very adamant about finding them, and it was shocking that he thought he was being subtle. Cody absorbed his surroundings as best he could past his aching head. He wasn’t sure what planet he was on, or how much time had passed, only that obviously it was a planet with a breathable atmosphere given that his helmet had been removed. He saw his helmet on the ground a few feet away from him, with pieces that had been broken off. They had to have hit him pretty hard to manage that, which explained the headache. He had just started to experiment with the mobility the chains allowed him when someone wearing Mandalorian armor entered the room, the death watch insignia inscribed on their helmet.“Oh good. You’re awake.”Cody stayed quiet, waiting for them to get to the point of why he was here.
The Mandalorion removed his helmet, revealing a pale man with blond hair and cold eyes.“Tell me about your General. Obi-Wan Kenobi, is it?” Cody stared back at him defiantly, not uttering a word.“You’ll save yourself a lot of unnecessary pain, Commander,” the man said. Still Cody remained silent.“Your loyalty is admirable, but stupid. We will pry the information out of you either way, and if we don’t, he’ll come for his precious Commander, and we’ll just kill him then, so really you're just prolonging the inevitable.” Frustration was beginning to creep into the edges of his voice.Cody finally broke his stony silence.“He won’t fall into such an obvious trap,” He won’t come for me, “So I guess you're shit outta luck.” He let a dry smile curl around his lips. Anger flashed in the man’s eyes. “Well then, I guess I’ll have to figure out something to do while we wait and see who’s right.” He leered at Cody, drawing an electro-shock prod from his side and igniting it. The crackle of electricity echoed in the room, but Cody didn’t flinch. He just stared at the other man, refusing to be the first to break eye contact. That lasted until the first jab of the prod, and then it took all of Cody’s willpower not to scream.When Cody woke up again, he was alone in the cell. He couldn’t fully open his left eye, and he felt the dull ache of a broken nose. His ribs throbbed as he gingerly lifted his head up and flexed the chains around his wrists. He hoped his ribs weren’t broken, because a punctured lung would mean it wouldn’t matter if Obi-Wan came or not. His throat hurt from when screams had eventually been ripped from him, and he felt a slow trickle of blood flow down his temple.Movement caught his eye, the man returning once again. Cody barely stopped the flinch that accompanied the sight of him. He unhooked Cody’s chains from the pipe and dragged him out of the room without a word, the blaster pressed against the back of his head message enough. Cody didn’t have the strength to fight, so he observed instead. There were dozens of Death Watch members moving around, all armed to the teeth, various orders being shouted from all directions. He recognized it for what it was. Battle preparation.The man finally stopped to shove him into a new cell near the center of what was clearly a Death Watch base, chaining him back up.“You were wrong, Commander. Your General came for you after all. There’s been a ship spotted in the atmosphere, one life form, and we will be here waiting for him when he arrives. His Jedi arrogance will be the death of him.” Cody fought to keep his emotions off of his face. He believed in his Jedi, he knew Obi-Wan was powerful. He also knew that even a Jedi would have trouble taking on dozens of fully armed Mandalorians by themself.Obi-Wan’s arrival was made clear with the increase of yelling and blaster fire, and Cody could do nothing but sit in his cell and wait. Two Death Watch members had been left to stand guard outside his cell, and he assumed they would be the ones to execute him once Obi-Wan had been taken down. The yells and blaster fire were moving closer and closer, and Cody’s hope began tentatively growing with it the closer it came. It was selfish to think, but Cody thought that if he was going to die, he’d like to see Obi-Wan’s face one more time. He tugged at his chains again, but just as the ten times before, they didn’t budge. One of the Mandalorians turned, and pointed his blaster at him.“Ni'm warning gar al'verde, Ni kelir koperar gar.” I'm warning you commander, I will shoot you. He said in Mando’a. Cody rolled his eyes and slumped at the wall behind him. The Mandalorians outside his cell suddenly tensed, panicked shouting growing closer. Cody heard clear orders cut through the chaos.“Te jetii cuyir coming. Kyr'amur te mirci't.” The Jedi is coming. Kill the prisoner. Cody braced for the shot, but a familiar voice stopped him.“Kebbur bic bal gar ash'amur.” Try it and you die. The blasters were ripped out of the Mandalorians hands, and Obi-Wan came into view, his lightsaber glowing and his eyes glinting with a determination that Cody had never seen before. He force threw the Mandalorians out of Cody’s sight, and he heard the thunk of bodies hitting a wall a second later. Obi-Wan rushed into the cell, his lightsaber cutting through the chains as if they were nothing.“Hello there, my dear Cody.”He looked up to say something, apologize, maybe, for getting captured in the first place, but the raw relief he saw in Obi-Wan’s face stole the words out of his mouth. He still wasn’t expecting it when Obi-Wan turned off his lightsaber before wrapping his arms around him like he couldn’t believe Cody was really there. Cody got over the shock and clutched Obi-Wan back, shaking. He savored the feeling of resting his weight on someone else for a second. Cody blamed the unexpected contact for his slow processing of the fact that Obi-Wan had spoken Mando’a a few minutes earlier. When it hit him, he felt his whole body go stiff. Obi-Wan had spoken Mando’a. Obi-Wan speaks Mando’a. Obi-Wan understands Mando’a.He was forced to put the panic attack he was having about this new information to the side as the sounds of more Death Watch troopers running down the hall reached them. Obi-Wan detangled them and handed Cody a blaster as he powered up his lightsaber. Even with his injuries, it was still easy to fall into the familiar feeling of fighting at Obi-Wan’s side. Even so, he had never seen Obi-Wan fight with such ferocity before. The fact that it was for him? Well that didn’t feel real at all. Together they fought their way back to Obi-Wan’s ship, and Cody could barely wrap his head around the fact that neither of them had died.Without the immediate threat of death, however, Cody’s brain was free to continue its previous panicking over the fact that Obi-Wan knew Mando’a. He was sitting in a corner of Obi-Wan’s ship, letting Obi-Wan dab bacta on the cuts and bruises littering his body as the ship flew through hyper-space. It was silent, and Obi-Wan applied the bacta with a gentle hand. His only tell was the slight intake of breath at some of the worse injuries. Cody thought he might’ve actually died, and was in a special kind of hell. Everywhere Obi-Wan touched left his skin burning and craving more. He had actually shivered when Obi-Wan ran his fingers over his ribs, and it had nothing to do with the bruises there. His face burned red, but Obi-Wan just kept working in silence. Finally Obi-Wan reached the bruises on his face. His fingers running along Cody’s jaw felt intimate in a way Cody had never experienced before. He closed his eyes and tipped his head forward, his forehead meeting Obi-Wan’s in a keld’abe. Obi-Wan stilled against him, his hand still holding Cody’s jaw gently.“It was reckless of you to come after me,” was what came out of Cody’s mouth to break the silence that had sat between them.“Maybe. But I’ll come for you every time anyway.” Cody couldn’t stop the well of emotion that rose in his chest at that.He leaned back slightly.“You speak Mando’a.” It wasn’t a question, but Obi-Wan answered it anyway.“Yes. I spent some time on Mandalore a while ago and picked it up.”“Why didn’t you tell me?” Cody asked, distress tinging his question. Obi-Wan looked the tiniest bit ashamed.“It never came up, and then I was hearing things not meant for my ears, but-” he paused, and then looked right at Cody, “I didn’t want to stop hearing them.”Cody’s brain could hardly keep up with what was happening. Cody was still processing Obi-wan’s confession when Obi-Wan spoke up again, clearly mistaking his silence for anger.“I truly am sorry. That was an invasion of privacy and very selfish of me-” He was cut off by Cody kissing him. Obi-Wan froze, and for one horrible moment, Cody thought he read it all wrong, and then Obi-Wan leaned into him, and he stopped thinking altogether.