To gain everything and lose everything in the space of a moment. That is the fate of all princes destined for the throne. -C.S. Pacat, Kings Rising (Captive Prince, #3)
Alright, so I might have been slightly obsessed with Cody since he went from stoic professional to spin-kicking a droid within the first 5 minutes of the pilot movie.
Cody: Contrary to what you’re about to say, General, I do think, and I have concluded that I am going to fight the entire separatist army with my own body
You know what. Fix-it AU where Cody just gets to beat up all the villains.
Wait, – what’s this?? IT’S MARSHALL COMMANDER CODY WITH A METAL CHAIR
BY GAWD! He killed him! As the force is my witness, he is broken in half!
Its not that Din really is small but compared to Paz, he has always been smaller and he’s making himself smaller in this moment as he’s quivering, legs twitching and his breathing hitched as he shudders through half stifled sobs into the sheets.
His adiik is gone.
When the Armorer had contacted Paz, given him Din trajectory, Paz hadn’t been sure what to think. After Nevarro, after being exposed, after Din had stolen the adiik and the covert exposing themselves so obviously, they all fled with only a smaller guard kept behind to ensure the Imperials wouldn’t find the others.
A suicide mission, the people who took it had known that the likelihood of surviving it was smaller than a porg’s asshole.
Ships, normally stashed away in hidden caves and unused areas, were used to flee into the stars, some taking the foundlings and others going alone, everyone leaving their own trail or extinguishing them depending on if they were leading the Imperial trackers after them or trying to hide the younglings.
After all, they’d rather have the remains of the Empire tracing after the lone warriors and not the foundlings. The Armorer had stayed, everyone knew she would have, to try and scavenge what remained and try to keep the beskar in their hands as best she could.
It had been months and in all those months, trying cautiously to make contact with other mandalorians without attracting attention and surviving, Paz had spent the months thinking about Din and the quiet moments in the alcove, with of Din’s shaking body tucked in his lap, the tired grumble through the vocoder and the tiny traces of scent Paz had caught in the moment.
Paz had thought about the moments later, the way the soured scent had turned even softer with the adiik in his arms, the way Din’s arms had been protectively wrapped around the foundling that night.
The way it had looked right.
And now that foundling was gone once more.
There was a reason, a reason even Paz could understand, but for an omega, that had bonded to their child, to give them up despite knowing it was for their own protection…
It hurt.
Din was hurting so much when Paz had finally managed to track the other down on Slave 1.
He had barely noticed when Fett and the others had leveled blasters his way when he had come tearing over Nevarro’s sand, hadn’t cared as he had called for the stumbling man standing in the sun.
Honestly, it was good Din had friends, friends willing to shoot a beskar covered infantryman.
He had needed someone, especially after the covert was destroyed and they had all fled to each their corner of the galaxy.
Maybe they would have shot Paz if Din hadn’t recognized and been conscious enough to call Paz name back, Fett visibly twitching at the name Vizla but holstering his blaster still, the group watching as Paz pulled Din into his arms and the omega just folded against his chest.
Paz hadn’t cared at the time how close he had gotten to being shot, just so relieved to see Din at all, he had found the remains of the Razor Crest and at the time he had thought…
He had thought…
Dune had explained, Din leaning exhaustively against Paz chest, hands holding weakly onto the cuirasse. Paz couldn’t blame him, after everything he had gone through, from his the adiik being abducted, the hunt for information, to Gideon to the Jedi coming, ensuring their survival.
Only to return empty handed in the end.
No adiik.
A wound cutting deep and hard.
Karga had set them up with a place, the beta was fond of Din apparently and had understood that Din needed space, the scent of distressed omega curling around everyone as Din had run out of scent blockers with the destruction of the Crest and Fett had none, the alpha needing none himself and Shand being a beta herself.
It was a decent space, one where Paz took care of Din, carefully removing all his armor except the helmet before removing his own armor, guiding Din into his side as they sat on the bed.
Without the armor, Din was even smaller, just like that time in the alcove and the longer he sat against Paz, the more his body shook until low, hitched noises escaped him.
Paz wasn’t the others alpha, not really for all that he wanted but he was a packmate, despite them not bonding as deep as they should.
And with his heart in his stomach, shattering at every hitched sound, he had taken a chance and gently pressed Din down on the bed, covering the other up with his own body.
Just hoping, hoping he was providing some comfort as he eased himself to cover up Din as best he could.
A physiological thing, Paz acting like a weighted blanket with pheromones as he tried to sooth and with the way Din had latched onto his kute, Paz knew that at the very least Din wanted him to stay.
But to listen to him sob under his helmet, pressing his own to the back of Din’s as he shook and twitched, it was breaking Paz soul and the alpha in him whined helplessly.
He wanted to help but could do nothing more but hold the other, crooning quietly as Din cried and cried and cried for a adiik he had given away.
Paz had never felt so useless and so helpless as in this moment.
Brushing his hand along Din’s side, as if gentling an animal, Paz crooned deeply. “I’m here Din. I’m here.” He whispered.
It was the only thing he could offer the omega, he couldn’t offer that things would be alright, he couldn’t offer to get the kid, he couldn’t offer anything but himself. But Manda, if it helped, then that was what he’d give.
All of himself.
He might have imagined it, but Din’s noises seemed to have grown slightly quieter as Din tucked himself even more under Paz body, his shaking not as severe.
Playing with Leia’s dark hair as she napped on his chest, Anakin let out a steady, deep breath. “They reminded me of myself.” He finally stated quietly in a subdued tone.
His old master had come by the day after arriving back home, quietly pulling Anakin with him to his new quarters, one Anakin had quickly noticed was larger than normal and had three bedrooms.
Anakin would guess that one was intended for whoever was visiting, a guest bedroom basically to house another Jedi or potentially a trooper that wanted to stay over.
The second, the master bedroom that was in the middle, was obviously Obi-Wan’s and had a twin bed in it.
But the third one had a particular color scheme of 212th yellow and little knickknacks that Anakin recognized as belonging to Cody.
That was Cody’s room.
He and Obi-Wan were living together in the new temple and Obi-Wan had guest bedroom, likely to house members from the 212th if they wanted to come by and stay over. He wondered if Obi-Wan had known all along that Cody had been hinting to them living together or if this had on his mind as much as the troopers.
Not that he got to think much about it as Luke had taken that moment to poop himself out and Leia had started crying, causing both Obi-Wan and Anakin to become preoccupied for a while, both working on settling the kids comfortably until they fell asleep in the respective man’s arms.
Feeling tired himself, Anakin had curled up on Obi-Wan’s couch when the other had sprung the question about their clones on him.
Obi-Wan, curled up in a beanbag beside the couch, likely a habit carried from curling up in the troopers tent, raised an incredulous brow.
It had Anakin rolling his eyes. “Yes, I know they are literal clones of me and therefore should remind me of myself but I mean…” Anakin trailed off, frowning slightly before sighing, hugging Leia to his chest.
Obi-Wan paused, shifting so he could cradle Luke in one arm, resting his hand on Anakin’s knee.
The touch was warm, supportive and when Anakin looked at him, he could only see patience and concern in Obi-Wan’s eyes.
Huffing slightly, turning his eyes back to the ceiling, Anakin focused on Leia and the hand on his knee for a few moments, letting the calm fill him. “…They didn’t ask to be created, their lives were set to be someones else, to belong to… if Cody and the others hadn’t found them, they would have been slaves to someone else will. I never…” Anakin trailed off.
But Obi-Wan simply squeezed his knee, an understanding, sorrowful hum escaping him.
He understood, in ways no one else would.
Because Obi-Wan knew his history, knew where Anakin had come from and his complaints.
Anakin Skywalker had been born and raised a slave for nine years.
With the assistance of Qui-Gon Jinn, he had freed himself, become a Jedi, learned at Obi-Wan’s feet how to be powerful and free and… he learned what freedom tasted like.
Which was why he had decided, long before they were even a twinkle in his eyes, that no child of his should ever become a slave. He wouldn’t allow it.
The clones however…
They wouldn’t have belong to themselves, stuck on Kamino.
The Jedi had never been ignorant to the large scale hypocrisy of the clone army and its ‘conscription’ to the GAR, the Senate wide demand. They just hadn’t been able to do anything, much to many gentlebeings guilty conscience in the Order as they lead them to pain and death.
The GAR clones, Jango Fett’s clones, hadn’t been given the freedom they deserved, had been slaves at the whim of the Senate.
Anakin’s clones would have been equally unable to say no.
Sold to highest bidder maybe, been whatever it was the owner would have wanted.
They weren’t Anakin and yet still a part of him and Anakin’s emotions had been overwhelming in that moment as Rex had showed him the little lights.
He had not been the only Jedi either, to see the little other lights, to know the kaminoan’s had taken their samples and cloned them…
The fact that Obi-Wan understood was something Anakin couldn’t help but be grateful for.
Grateful that he had Obi-Wan and the 501st, Rex having sat with him for hours after, the others taking care of Leia and Luke, letting Anakin work through his emotions without upsetting the twins.
Pressing their foreheads together, Anakin wished he knew what to say, what to do as Obi-Wan shivered against him despite the warmth of their quarters wrapping around them.
Their quarters were always kept slightly warmer than the average temperature of the temple, Anakin’s desert upbringing leaving its mark to the point he preferred it warmer. Obi-Wan had never had an issue with it, wearing less layers inside their quarters if it got hot and therefore their quarters were kept nice and toasty for Anakin’s sake.
But now he was shivering, the two standing in the brightly lit living room together by the couch, pressed together for comfort since he was delivered to the temple by the commander.
You’d think after all these years, first as a padawan and then later as a knight and fellow victim, Anakin would know what to say to the other when things got bad.
But then again, no one really knew how to cope with how badly the Senators treated them, the truth of what was going on behind closed doors.
The Jedi order tried of course, they had healers and mind healers specializing in the trauma and aftermath of what was happening to them and continued happening and some Jedi saw those healers in particular more often than others.
There was a time period that Obi-Wan saw those healers in particular almost once a week, at the height of his popularity.
He didn’t see them now, mostly due to the war making it hard on Obi-Wan to keep appointments and talking through the issues.
Which was why Anakin simply kept his arms loosely wrapped around his master’s shoulders, their foreheads pressed together. Obi-Wan’s arms on the other hand was tightly wrapped around Anakin’s body, his fists clenched into the back of his tunic.
He hated this.
Being so helpless in the face of the pain all Jedi went through, from padawan’s to knights and to masters.
But especially Obi-Wan. Obi-Wan, who was so popular.
At the very least Ahsoka was a padawan, she couldn’t be requested, not yet and Anakin had done his best to shield her, though he had taken notice of several Senator watching her. Sentient that Anakin would make sure were gone before she became twenty.
Well, as long as the troopers didn’t beat him to the punch.
He’d been so worried when the other didn’t come home, had spent hours pacing, at his wits end when he remembered that Cody would help, Cody would be more than willing to help.
Every Jedi knew that the troopers were aware of what were going on, some less or more happy about it.
Anakin knew that many Jedi felt helpless and ashamed, weak in the eyes of those they were suppose to lead in war.
Others however were grateful as the troopers stepped in to help and protect them, telling lies to make them busy when they were requested.
It had not escaped the Order that certain Senate members were dying, some from ‘natural’ deaths seemingly and others the victim of a supposed serial killer, some of them very vicious deaths as this supposed serial killer seemed to be of a sadistic type.
The Coruscant Guards along with the Judaical were apparently investigating it but so far whoever was murdering Senate members were proving to be very clever about it.
Of course, seeing as it was murderers and not just one and they were internal to the case, it was no wonder that the Judaical weren’t making progress.
Anakin half suspected that any of the Judaical that did make progress were potentially silenced in some way.
They, the adults of the Jedi order that was, all knew the truth though, every time it got brought up, every Jedi exchanged knowing looks.
Kark, Anakin half suspected that even Ahsoka and a few of her friends had started figuring it out, mostly due to her knowing Obi-Wan’s schedule and knew he had been with some of those Senators prior to their death.
But they would never reveal the truth about what was really going on, not to the karking Senate, who sent them to Sith hells on the regular and many of them exposing them to it in their offices. No, the Jedi’s inability to say no didn’t mean that they had to be honest with the snakes in the Senate.
So, they kept the secret, leaned into the embraces of the troopers and trusted them where they couldn’t trust the majority of the Senate.
Only a few were willing to really stick up for a reformation on the way Jedi answered to the Senate and it wasn’t enough to make a true change, especially as many of those that were willing to stick up for them were often mid or outer core planets.
The core planets were unfortunately chalk full of Senators that felt quite content to abuse the Jedi’s inability to say no.
People like the one that had Obi-Wan this night.
The fact that there were still marks left on Obi-Wan, the faintest trace of swelling and a limp to his step…
It told Anakin everything he needed to know, that Obi-Wan’s night had been rough and difficult when even Helix couldn’t help him fully and Cody couldn’t deliver a wholly hale Obi-Wan back.
Rocking the two slowly from side to side, Anakin shifted his hands slowly to rub at the others back, feeling the other relax into the touch. “I-”
“No.” Obi-Wan shook his head as he interrupted, breath hitching a bit, the older man clenching his eyes shut as he tightened his grip almost painfully on Anakin.
The reaction made Anakin swallow thickly before he made a soft noise of agreement.
Obi-Wan didn’t want to talk about it, not now, maybe not in a long time and Anakin would respect that, sooner or later Obi-Wan might talk with him about it but for now, he needed more time to process what had happened.
‘My poor, poor master,’ Anakin’s eyes watered, swallowing thickly once more before closing his eyes too, simply standing with his arms around Obi-Wan, rocking slowly, the two wrapping each others in the safety of each others Force signature. ‘I can’t do this much more, please… someone, anyone… please. I can’t do this.’
SWpromptsandask 