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#I never knew Hardcase's tattoos went all the way around his head
imagineyourworld · 3 years
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Peer Pressure
Kix x Fem!Princess!Reader 
Summary: Kix finds himself giving the princess medical assistance, and even though the two of them hit it off, no one else seems to like the two of them together
Warnings: Mention of blood, mention of a bombing (happened prior to the story), people being a-holes towards the clones 
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The first time Kix sa you he could have sworn time stopped for a moment. All his bleeding brothers, the destroyed droids and remains of the palace faded into the background the second he laid eyes on you. And when you ended up walking straight towards him his heart skipped a beat. Though he soon scolded himself for this when he saw that you weren’t exactly walking, but rather jumping on one leg, trying your best not to put any pressure on the other. Kix hurried over to you and without either of you having to say a single word he put his arm around your waist and guided you over to one of the makeshift beds along the tent walls.  “Thank you”, you said.  Those two words made Kix turn his attention away from your leg and to your eyes. Even though they haven’t been on this planet for very long, everyone in the 501st could tell that the inhabitants were not big fans of clones, most of them ignored them altogether while others were nothing but mean and cold. Your words might have been the first friendly ones he had heard since their arrival that didn’t come from one of his brothers.  “You’re welcome”, he replied, trying his best to focus on your leg again and not your gorgeous eyes. “What seems to be the problem?”  You shrugged. “I’m not quite sure. I was with my family, trying to escape the palace as soon as the alarms went off, but then there was this loud noise and next thing I knew I was all alone and the walls around me were nothing more than dust and pebbles.  Kix nodded along while you talked.  “Do you mind lifting your dress so I can have a closer look at your leg?” You did as you were told, lifting the hem of your dress inch by inch until Kix told you to stop. He could now see that your knee was at a weird angle and there was a long cut along your calf, which was still bleeding. He studied the dark fabric of your dress for a moment to see if there was any indication as to how much blood you’ve lost, but all he noticed that the dress, though now dirty and torn in some places, seemed incredibly expensive. You must be a very high up servant, or maybe even some kind of noble woman.  “Your knee is dislocated and you have a cut on your calf. It’s bleeding a lot, but not deep, so you should be on your feet in no time”, he explained as he began to disinfect your wound before wrapping it up. “Try not to put too much weight on this leg the next couple of days, a day or two of bedrest would help as well, if that’s possible. And the bandages should be changed once a day until the wound is closed. As for your knee, this will hurt for just a second, you can squeeze my arm, it might help with the pain.”  Once again you were a model patient and did as told while Kix tried not to let your warm hand on his arm affect him. He had put off parts of his armour a while earlier due to the hot climate and now there was only a thin layer of fabric between your skin and his.  “What’s your name?”, you asked as Kix put his hands on your knee, whether because you were really interested or to distract you Kix didn’t know, but he found that it didn’t really matter to him. You had asked for his name, not his number as the few other people he had spoken to on this planet, one of whom had only asked so he could report him for daring to touch him while placing a bacta patch on him.  “Kix. My name’s Kix”, he said and quickly followed up by asking for your name.  “I’m (Y/N)”, you said, though you rather screamed the last syllable in the short moment it took Kix to relocate your knee. “It’s very nice to meet you, Kix. And thank you so much for your help. What can I do to repay you?”  Kix, now finished with his work, looked at you in shock. Surely you had to be joking.  “I... “, he began, not sure what to say. In all his time as a medic, this was a question he had never heard.  “Maybe we could meet again for dinner and you could tell me what you’ve thought of”, you suggested with a bright smile on your lips that made Kix’s mouth dry. Did you just ask him on a date? Were you flirting with him?  “I’d like that. Especially after the day I’ve had”, he finally admitted.  Still smiling you leaned forward, placing your elbows on your legs and your head in your hands until your face was only inches way from Kix, who was still kneeling in front of you.  “Go on, tell me about your day.”  Kix scanned your face, looking for any trace of irony or cruelty, but when he didn’t find anything that might lead him to believe that you weren’t sincere he began.  “Well, it was a long day and a short night. Jesse, that’s one of the brothers I’m closest with, woke me at the crack of dawn because Hardcase had dropped his caf and cut himself on the broken cup trying to pick up the pieces. Once his hand was bandaged Echo and Fives came running through the medbay, trying to hide from Dogma, who they had pulled some sort of prank on. And before that could be settled Rex commed us to get us over here because the palace was under attack.”  Kix surprised himself with how much he had told you, how easy it was for him to talk to you and that you were smiling and laughing as he told his story.  “That sounds like an eventful day, much better than mine. Maybe I’ll get to meet your brothers one day”, you said wistfully.  Before Kix could reply to that he heard voices from the other side of the tent. As he looked over he saw you rolling your eyes out of the corner of his eyes.  “Where is she? Where is our daughter? I demand you bring us to her?”  He saw Rex trying to calm the screaming man down, but the woman next to him then began to yell at the Captain. Luckily just a moment later General Skywalker intervened and much to Kix’s dismay lead the couple over to him.  “Kix, the King and Queen say that their daughter was admitted to the medical tent. Have you by any chance seen the princess?”  Kix shook his head. He was pretty sure he would have noticed if anyone like the two monarchs in front of him would have been anywhere near the tent.  “There you are! (Y/N), we were so worried. What are you doing here? You should be with our own doctors, not this... clone”, the Queen exclaimed while, to Kix’s surprise, put both her hands on your cheeks. Though he didn’t hear your reply, since his attention was now captured by the King who had picked up his wife’s yelling.  “What do you think you were doing with my daughter? Were you trying to kidnap her? You better hope for your own good that you didn’t touch her, or else-”, he began before being interrupted by both you and Anakin.  “Dad!”, you yelled while Anakin told him not to speak to his men like that.  Though neither the King nor the Queen paid any attention to either of you. Instead they both took one of your arms and basically lifted you off the bed. All you could to before they all but carried out the tent was to turn around to look at Kix and mouth a single word.  “Sorry.”  All Kix could do was stare after you, standing completely still and not registering anything around him until he suddenly felt Jesse’s hand on his shoulder.  “Well done, vod. That’s the princess you were just flirting with.” 
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A short while later you were sitting in an armchair in the one part of the palace that, by some miracle, was still mostly intact.  The room was smaller than what you were used to, and the clothes you were wearing were a lot less elaborate than your usual dresses, and yet it wasn’t uncomfortable. Instead it felt rather like you weren’t yourself at all, like you could do things you usually couldn’t. The thought brought an idea to your mind. You looked very different in this simple black dress, with no makeup and unstyled hair, if you were to leave the palace no one would stop you, they wouldn’t even recognize you.  Without thinking further about your idea you jerked into action, packing the small dinner on the table next to you in a basket you had found earlier and making your way out of the room and through the halls.  No one stopped you, no one even bothered to look at you until you arrived at your destination.  “Who are you? What do you want?”, a clone with the number five tattooed on his forehead asked. Though his voice was similar to Kix’s, he sounded a lot less friendly.  “I’m looking for a medic. His name is Kix. We met earlier today and I-”  “What? You’re gonna yell at him some more?”, another clone, this one without visible tattoos asked.  You shook your head and lifted the basket in your hands.  “I’m bringing him dinner as a thank you for helping me. And an apology for my parent’s behaviour.”  It seemed to dawn on the clones who you were once you mentioned your parents.  “You’re the princess!”, the tattooed clone exclaimed, though the other elbowed him in the side a moment later.  “Kix should be in the mess. That’s the third door to the right”, the other clone said, his voice a lot friendlier now, before the two of them let you pass onto the ship.  You soon found your way to the mess, though only once you stepped inside did it occur to you that finding Kix amongst all the other clones might be a bit more difficult than anticipated. As you began to look around the room you realized that one after the other all the clones had stopped eating and were now looking at you. You felt heat rising to your cheeks. Maybe you should have thought this through instead of assuming Kix would be around, waiting for you.  Finally, after what felt like an eternity of you looking around the room and every single men inside staring at you, one of the clones walked up to you. He obviously wasn’t Kix, but introduced himself as Jesse, a name you were at least familiar with.  “You must be the princess. If you’re looking for Kix, he just left for the barracks. Down the corridor, then left. If you might still catch him before he hits the ‘fresher.”  Relief flooded through your body.  “Thank you”, you called over your shoulder as you headed out the door to finally find Kix.  You saw him just as he was rounding the corner and called his name. Though you hadn’t expected him to stop dead in his track because as soon as you ran around the corner you ran right into him. Luckily Kix had quick reflexes and caught you before you could fall down.  “You weren’t just running, were you? What part of ‘don’t put weight on your leg’ didn’t you understand?”, he sighed, though there was a grin on his lips.  You shook your head as you tried your best to catch your breath. How dare he talk about your leg now instead of appreciating your grand gesture?  “I know, I’m sorry”, you said, even though you weren’t really, not if running was your way of catching Kix. “And I’m sorry for earlier. My parents... they’re... they can be... I’m sorry. I’m nothing like them, I promise. And look, I even brought the dinner I promised you as proof.”  Without hesitation you thrust the basket in Kix’s hands. He looked inside before turning back to you.  “That’s very kind of you, but I don’t think it’s a good idea for us to have dinner. Clearly there are a million reasons you should stay away from me.”  You shook your head. How could he say that? Didn’t he notice how much you’ve grown to like him after spending just a few minutes with him and how that could easily turn into something more if he’d just agree to have dinner with you? Hadn’t he felt the sparks earlier?  “Maybe I don’t want to stay away. Maybe I want to have dinner with you, no matter what anyone may say or think.”  Kix simply handed you the basket, but before he could say anything else you tossed it to the side and stepped closer.  “Tell me you don’t want to spend time with me and I’ll leave, but don’t blame it on other people. This isn’t about what my parents think, what your brothers may think, this is about you and me and the fact that I’ve never felt about anyone like I feel about you.”  A loud sigh left Kix’s lips. He reached to take your hands in his and gently stroked along your knuckles.  “You don’t even know me, mesh’la.”  You spoke enough Mando’a for that little word to give you a bit of hope.  “We can change that. We can take it slow, no pressure, no expectations. Just one question: Will you have dinner with me?”  Kix looked deep into your eyes as his answer, one single word, left his lips. 
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I might write two seperate part twos to this story, one in which Kix agrees to dinner and one in which he doesn’t, if that’s something you’d like to read. 
As always, I’d love to hear some thoughts and feedback <3
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eyayah-oya · 3 years
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For the 200 Follower, Dogma/Hardcase and either Platonic/QPR or Tattoos, depending on what is or isn't available.
I hope you like this because I had no idea what I was doing lol. I rarely write Dogma and Hardcase, so this was definitely pushing me out of my comfort characters and letting me try something new. Thank you so much @persephoneofhades I had a lot of fun writing this.
200 Follower Bingo | Platonic/QPR | Hardcase/Dogma Cloneshipweek Sept. Bingo | Dogma | Hardcase | @cloneshipweek Rating: G Pairing: Dogma/Hardcase Warnings: none Ao3 Bingo Cards under cut
Dogma didn’t bother to look up when the door to the barracks opened since so many other troops walked in and out. That was his first mistake. His second was to ignore the ruckus. He didn’t get a chance to make a third.
A piercing war cry startled Dogma, but before he could even look up from his datapad, a heavy weight crashed into his body and nearly knocked him off the other side of his bunk. His datapad disappeared in the ruckus as arms burrowed under him and around him until he was held firmly around his stomach. Dogma wheezed as he tried to get his heart rate to settle—it wasn’t every day he got body-slammed while on his bunk.
It wasn’t difficult to figure out who his attacker was. Only two people really would jump on him like that, and Tup usually asked before sliding onto his bunk with him. Dogma sighed and ran a hand over the freshly shaved scalp, smiling a little as Hardcase hummed and nuzzled against Dogma’s stomach. Really, he should have expected Hardcase to come for cuddles; he loved getting his head scratched after a shave and he always claimed that Dogma gave the best scratches. Dogma didn’t really believe him, but he also wasn’t going to complain. Too much.
“You are too heavy to jump on me like that,” Dogma grumbled.
“And here I thought you liked cuddling with me,” Hardcase pouted. He shifted and propped his chin on Dogma’s stomach so he could attempt his tooka-face again. No matter how many times Dogma, Jesse, Fives, Tup, even Rex told him that he just looked like a constipated bantha when he tried the Kicked Tooka Look, Hardcase did it anyway. He was absolutely convinced that everyone was just messing with him.
To be fair to Hardcase, Fives and Echo had managed to convince him that his back tattoos had been done in hot pink for a full ten day before he’d finally been able to go to 79’s and use their mirror to check his own back. There was a precedence of messing with Hardcase, just a little. In this case, however, Dogma knew that not a single one of them was joking. Hardcase could not look cute and innocently sad like Tup or the one Ghost ARC trooper could.
Dogma shoved Hardcase’s face and couldn’t help the small smile at his enthusiastic giggles. Hardcase spread enthusiasm and joy everywhere he went, and Dogma was certainly not immune to his infectious laugh. That did not stop him from flicking Hardcase’s ear or jabbing his knee into his side on principle. Dogma had a reputation, after all.
“Alright, alright,” Hardcase laughed. “I give!” He settled back down and grinned up at Dogma. “What were you reading this time?”
“Some kind of Mandalorian/Jedi romance thing. It’s ridiculous, but it’s nice learning more mando’a phrases than we already know,” Dogma said. “The plot is weird though?”
Hardcase hummed. One of his arms shifted and Dogma’s datapad reappeared on his chest from somewhere. He didn’t even want to know how Hardcase had managed that one. “Tell me about it? It sounds interesting.”
Dogma couldn’t help but snort. “Interesting is one way to put it, I guess. It honestly kind of reminds me of General Kenobi and Commander Cody if they were in a completely different universe.”
“Or General Secura and Commander Bly?”
He conceded that addition with a nod. “I suppose so. Either way, it’s about a Jedi that gets stranded and a Mandalorian that needs some help.” Dogma talked quietly, telling Hardcase all about this novel he’d found on the holonet and even reading a few of his favorite passages. Throughout the entire explanation, up to the point where he was at in the novel, Hardcase remained attentive, asking questions or making lewd comments about the Jedi’s “lightsaber” that Dogma nearly pushed him off the bunk for. It was nice to have someone listen to him so attentively. Others did too, but with Hardcase it was special. Something that just the two of them shared in the quiet moments when they found themselves sharing a bunk.
It was Dogma’s favorite post-campaign ritual, and one that he would never get tired of.
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[Image ID: Bingo Card. Row 1: Platonic/QPR, Overwhelm, Omegaverse, Mer AU, Sleepy Cuddles. Row 2: Celebrations, Childhood Friends to Lovers, Scars, Tattoos, Exhaustion/Insomnia. Row 3: Competency Kink TM, Reunion, Free, Self-Sacrifice, Friends to Lovers. Row 4: Pirates, Animal Transformation, Enemies to Lovers, Cadets, No Order 66. Row 5: Major Character Death, Meet Cute, Post Order 66, Force Artifact, Dragons. Dragons and Platonic/QPR squares have a pink squiggle crossing it off. End ID]
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[Image ID: Cloneshipweekbingo Clones Card. Row 1: Keeli, Oddball, Dogma, Bly, and Tup. Row 2: CT-0000/1010 Sergeant Fox, Blackout, Thire, Doom, and Grey. Row 3: Commander Keller, Wooley, Free/Free, Colt, and Wrecker. Row 4: Hound, Longshot, Neyo, Spar, and Crys. Row 5: Vaughn, Bacara, Fox, Hardcase, and Cut. Dogma and Hardcase squares are highlighted in pink. End ID]
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wanderinginksplot · 3 years
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Warriors in Red Armor
Next | Masterlist
Chapter One
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Hound I
"So, are we going to 79's tonight?" Hound asked. He had meant to be subtle about it, but the question burst out of him the moment his well-worn boots crossed the threshold of the small break space allotted to members of the Coruscant Guard.
As break spaces went, the one designated for the Coruscant Guard's clone troopers was an embarrassment. Some determined being had managed to cram a table and a handful of chairs inside, but it was a tight fit. If more than a few fully armored troopers went inside at the same time, none of them would get back out without removing some armor to clear the traffic jam. The lights flickered, the faucet leaked, the floor was always sticky, and the stuffy air held a hint of the chemicals that had been stored there years ago. Since then, the previous break space had been renovated into an office for one of the few nat-born commanding officers and this one had been created for the clone troopers.
Still, the smell of caf was stronger than the smell of chemicals most days and the light from a nearby advertisement screen lit the room so brightly that the flickering lights didn't give any of the troopers a migraine anymore. Hound always was a man who liked to see the glass as half-full. Maybe even a little more than half, if that glass was sitting under the dripping faucet.
Thire snorted at Hound's question, leaning back in his chair until gravity threatened to topple him. "Well, boys? Hound wants to know if we're going to 79's this lovely Friday evening. What do we think?"
Thorn glanced around the room, looking unamused by his brother's antics. "We think I'm the only other one here, di'kut."
"Exactly!" Thire said in triumph, obviously determined to ignore his fellow commander. "It's the weekend! Why wouldn't we go to 79's?"
"Because you've finally realized that it's a glorified zoo?" Thorn snapped, tone venomous. "79's is where civvies go to stare at clone troopers so they can feel like they're being daring. In reality, they're being irritating."
Having spoken his piece, Thorn tossed back the last of his cup of caf, always consumed as dark as his mood. Hound shuddered at the thought. Corrie Guard caf was brewed at the approximate concentration of speeder fuel and could eat through duracrete. Only a trooper who hated himself would drink it black.
Thorn always drank it black.
"So you don't want to go?" Hound asked again, sounding heartbroken.
"No, I'll go," Thorn told him. "Zoo or not, 79's still has the cheapest booze on Coruscant that doesn't use poison as a mixer."
"Well, that's the most excited I've heard Thorn get about anything for a week, at least," Thire smirked. "Commander Fox, you want in on this?"
The Head Commander of the Coruscant Guard, having just stepped into the break room to fill his mug with caf, shook his head. "No, I'm on duty tonight. The Clone Rights group has been cleared to march and the Chancellor wants an extra Guard presence. Stone will be stuck here as well, monitoring any new arrivals."
"Ugh," Hound said, summarizing everyone else's point of view. "Well, we'll be thinking of you both, Commander."
Fox lowered the datapad in his hand to shoot a look in Hound's direction. "Sergeant, don't you have that ARF PR stunt tomorrow at 0800?"
Hound shrugged. "Yeah, but I can do both."
"Make sure you don't miss it," Fox ordered sternly. "The last thing I need is to have to report to the Chancellor that you missed a chance to give the GAR a boost in civil opinion."
Hound saluted and Fox turned his attention to the other break room occupants. "Thorn, if you let your stubble get any longer, it'll be considered a beard and subject to facial hair regulations. Thire, sit on the chair like a normal being, would you?"
Thorn nodded and Thire grinned as he let the chair's legs slam onto the floor. Fox rolled his eyes at their antics, refilled his cup of caf, and left the break area. Hound idly wondered how many of the gray hairs appearing at the Head Commander's temples were due to the commanding officer team. Still, the Chancellor had let Fox choose his own team of COs, so there was no one to blame but himself.
"Meet at 2100?" Thire asked. "That's prime time for 79's and there'll be plenty of talent. I'll go ahead and apologize, vode. When you look this good, you automatically get your pick of the females."
Thire brushed a hand back across his hair - meticulously trimmed to maintain the subtle horizontal lines shaved into the otherwise regulation cut - and grinned at the other two. Hound and Thire rolled their eyes, but agreed anyway.
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Kai I
"Hey, do you guys want to go to 79's tonight?" Kai asked, perched on the desk she was supposed to be sitting behind. She was always restless and neither of the other women blamed her for the odd choice of seat - even though it made inter-desk communication a bit of a pain.
Arkularia - who, for the sake of Kai's sanity, allowed the others to call her 'Ark' - was the first to respond. "79's? The clone bar?"
"Do you want to drink, dance, or find a one-night stand?" Ransom asked from behind her expansive tech setup. "Because there are better places for any of those. Closer, too."
"No, I want to go to 79's," Kai said, kicking up her chin. "And as for what I want… I want all of them. All three options, please and thank you."
"Did you just try to order a night out? Like from a menu?" Ransom asked. From the tone of her voice, Kai had managed to earn a rare smile from her boss. Of course, that was only a guess since Ransom didn't emerge from her den so Kai could verify the expression.
"No… but can you imagine how much easier that would be?" Kai asked in her own defense.
"It would take some of the fun out of it, I think," Ark said slowly.
Kai chucked a wad of flimsi at her friend and co-worker's head, cheering to herself as it connected and bounced off of Ark's white-blonde hair. "I know that, Ark! C'mon guys, do you want to come to 79's with me or not?"
"I'm out," Ransom said immediately, shutting down the projector option on her desk. She was still illuminated by the ambient light from the schematics on her datapad. The cybernetic implants in Ransom's arm gleamed in the blue glow as she dragged a hand over her shaved head. "I have to work late if we have any hope of finishing our next job on time."
"Ark?" Kai asked, not too proud to sound like she was begging.
Ark sighed, pale eyes hopeless in the face of Kai's wheedling. "Fine, I'll go along."
"Yes!"
"Ransom, are you sure you can't come, too?" Ark asked, her voice a bit desperate.
"I really do have to stay and work on this," Ransom apologized, gesturing at her assortment of datapads. "My condolences."
"We're going to a club, not facing a firing squad!" Kai admonished. "Besides, I just want to find someone fun."
"Like that last guy?" Ark asked, squinting a bit as she applied her prodigious memory to her own question. "What was his name?"
"Not sure," Kai admitted. "But he was so much fun! Great tattoos."
"So you are looking for a hookup! I knew it," Ransom crowed.
Ark frowned. "Why a clone trooper? They're never on-planet for long before they have to leave."
"Exactly," Kai said with a wink. "Love 'em and leave 'em."
"Didn't the last one stick around for a while? I thought I remembered seeing him more than a few times…" Ark pondered.
"Hardcase! His name was Hardcase," Ransom remembered. "He came by every day of his leave."
"Strange name," Ark commented.
"Strange guy," Ransom said with a shrug.
"But he was hot," Kai countered, folding a piece of flimsi to look like a tooka. At least it did in her imagination. "And so much fun. I need another someone like him."
"What happened to him?" Ark asked curiously.
Kai would have blushed if she had any shame - too bad for Coruscant that she didn't. Instead, she pouted. "He moved on with a Zeltron who works at GAR headquarters. That's the best place to meet troopers, but they don't give access to civilians unless they have official business."
"Hardcase didn't seem like the type to ghost you out of nowhere," Ransom mused.
"I… may have freaked out about him asking me to be his girlfriend," Kai admitted. "I don't want anything serious, you know? Besides, I'm the one who introduced him to the new girl. She's a sweetheart. He adores her and she's the same about him. Can't be too upset with that."
Ark and Ransom exchanged loaded glances, but Kai had no interest in a therapy session. "Right! So, Ransom, you're still out?"
"I have no interest in coming along and I have work to do here."
"Well, that was almost nice," Kai congratulated. "Ark, it's you and me. When should we go?"
Ark shrugged. "Why don't we just stop there on the way home from work?"
"Are you kidding?" Kai asked, aghast at the idea. "We aren't exactly wearing Senatorial dress, but we're still too professional for a club! No, we need to go home, change, and meet there. How long do you need?"
"I don't know… half an hour?"
"How long do you need to find an outfit that makes sense in a club setting?" Kai rephrased her question.
"Two hours," Ark corrected herself, sounding sheepish.
"That's more like it," Kai said, satisfied. Her look turned wicked as she said, "Now, let's talk about makeup…"
"Are you sure you don't need any help here, Ransom?" Ark asked their boss, her eyes widening with hidden significance.
"No, it's too late!" Kai denied. "Meet me at my apartment and I'll help you. Let's say eight."
Ark glanced back at Ransom, who gave a sympathetic shrug. Ark sighed. "Fine, eight."
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A/N - Hello, and welcome to yet another Clone Wars-based story! I can't leave these poor guys alone. They deserve so much more than they got! So, you may have noticed that some of the characters are a bit different from the way they are normally portrayed in fan fiction. The first fic I read with the Coruscant Guard had Thire as a happy joking guy and Thorn as a serious doom-and-gloom trooper. I'm coming to realize that is not typical for fanon interpretations, but those characterizations are embedded in my mind. I hope you didn't find this too jarring!
I'm experimenting with a new Game of Thrones-style POV tracking format. Hopefully that will keep things from getting too confusing as we bounce back and forth across eight different POVs! I apologize for the short length of this chapter, but it's just a simple introduction of (most of) the characters.
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tanyawritesstories · 4 years
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Jesse's Girl | Jesse x Reader
I had this fic idea and wrote it, only finding out after that the actual song goes with perfectly (at least from Fives' perspective) so I threw in the last couple lines to seal the deal.
Also, thank you to @simping-for-fives for being the only and unanimous answer to which fic I should post next.
Warnings: fluff, secret relationships, Jesse is v protective, adorable ending, Fives is oblivious
•••
The crowd at 79s was buzzing tonight, everyone anticipating their main form of entertainment this evening. A small group of dancers were set to do a dance routine and hang around for the rest of the night.
This particular group of dancers were very talented and always drew many excited cantina-goers, including the men of the 501st. Jesse, Fives, Kix, and Hardcase sat in their booth close to the dance floor waiting and watching for it to start.
Kix and Hardcase were discussing which dancer they thought they could buy a drink for while Fives and Jesse stared into the distance impatiently. Finally, the usual music stopped and the dance floor was cleared. Everyone quieted down and drew their attention to the dance floor. New music started to play and six dancers sauntered out from the crowd, taking their places. Two of the dancers were Twi’leks, there were Zabraki twins, one human, and one Chiss. All beautiful. They started their routine, moving gracefully with and around each other, sending winks and smirks to the soldiers.
As Jesse watched, one dancer stood out to him. While all the dancers wore skimpy clothing, the human woman was wearing the most. She was wearing a skirt that hugged her waist and hips but it was long enough to cover everything when she moved and bent over. Her wrap top covered her chest completely and went around her neck, which left her arms, legs, and stomach exposed. Her hair was let down, the (h/c) locks falling perfectly around her face. Jesse was star struck and he stared at her with what she would call ‘lovey dovey eyes’. She made eye contact with him and smiled brightly, exaggerating her moves and keeping in sync perfectly without breaking eye contact with him.
He loved how she could pick him out of a crowd of people, most of whom he shared the same face with, and he knew it wasn’t because of the republic insignia tattooed on his face. She had told him it was because of the way he looked at her, she could feel his eyes whenever he looked at her. That was a good thing because most of the time the only thing they could afford was stares, glances, and occasional hand holding.
Jesse knew well enough that none of them were allowed to have relationships other than quick hook ups. That’s why his relationship with you was a secret. He was pretty good at hiding it, as were you. Whenever he was on Coruscant he made sure to see you no matter what excuse he had to use, or who he had to bribe.
Your routine ended and the room erupted in applause. All the dancers bowed and, as the normal music and chatter resumed, they scattered throughout the establishment. Most of the other dancers moved through the soldiers, hanging on their arms and talking, hoping for drinks or tips and generally providing good company for the war-worn men.
You walked slowly around the room winking and waving at anyone who looked your way, taking your time to get to the table where your boyfriend sat. 
You saw one of the Zabrack twins pull an officer towards one of the rooms in the back and you shook your head with a smile. Undoubtedly he had paid her for a private dance. Technically, none of you were supposed to accept their offers for a personal experience. But sometimes they offered large amounts of credits that some of the girls couldn’t turn down, whatever happened was up to the dancers. Which is probably why said certain Zabrack twin was always coming back with red marks all over her neck. You were never like that, you never accepted any money no matter how much, you were loyal to Jesse.
Little did you know, one ARC trooper had his eye on you the entire night and wanted you to himself.
Fives threw back the rest of his drink and set it down sharply on the table, he looked over his shoulder and noticed you coming towards their table. He leaned over to the rest of the boys. “Wish me luck,” he said. “Maker knows you need it, but why specifically this time?” Kix asked. “You remember all those credits I won at the sabacc tournament against the 212th?” The three other men nodded, “Well, I just found the perfect way to way spend them.” Fives motioned to you where you were talking with a couple members of the Coruscant Guard.
“You want to buy a dance from her?” Hardcase questioned, eyebrow raised in curiosity. Fives nodded and Jesse’s heart just about stopped. “You know they don’t accept private dances, right?” Jesse said, trying to dissuade his determined brother.
“They do for the right price,” Fives added before sliding out of the booth and heading towards you. You had just bid a good night to the two guards you had been talking to when an ARC trooper bearing the signature blue of the 501st approached you. He had a number five tattooed on his left temple and a suave smile on his face. You guessed this was Fives, one of Jesse’s brothers. Jesse had mentioned him before and said he was quite the charmer.
You returned the smile and greeted him, “Hello soldier.”
“Evening, doll. That was quite the performance,” he said, “Glad I could see it.”
“Why thank you, umm..”
“Fives,” he told you, a smug smirk on his face. “Thank you, Fives," you smiled, "ARC trooper right?” He nodded, “Yes ma’am, for the 501st.”
“Impressive,” you smiled, there was no harm in talking to him just as long as he didn’t try anything else. You glanced behind him and saw your boyfriend glaring daggers at the back of Fives’ head. “I did want to ask you one thing,” Fives said, he reached forward and gently laid a hand on your bicep.
Jesse was unable to pay attention to anything Hardcase or Kix were saying, his eyes were glued to you and Fives as you talked. He observed your body language, making sure you weren’t uncomfortable or that Fives didn’t cross a line. The interaction was completely normal until Fives put his hand on you.
Jesse jumped out of his seat and walked towards you. “Fives what are you doing?” He said, coming to stand beside you and his brother. “I was asking for a dance before you so rudely interrupted,” Fives glared at his brother. “We’re not allowed to ask for private dances,” Jesse scolded. “Yes, we are!” Fives argued back. “No, we are not!” Jesse said sternly, “Besides she probably doesn’t even want to give you a dance anyway.” “Well let’s ask her,” Fives proposed, “Would you mind giving me a dance, darling. I can pay you.”
Fives took a pouch off his belt and was going to hand it to you when Jesse stepped in between you both. “She doesn’t want your money, she’s not a sex worker. Have some decency, Fives!” You watched the two men argue and rolled your eyes.
You hadn’t planned on accepting Fives’ offer but you were going to let him down slow. Instead, Jesse barged in and shut him down without giving you a chance to speak. They would go on forever if you didn’t interrupt. You began coughing quite loud, catching the attention of both troopers.
"Are you alright?" They both asked at the same time, glaring at each other afterwards.
"Yes, I just think I need some water. Excuse me gentlemen," you made your way to the bar, Fives tried to follow you but Jesse pushed him back. "C'mon Fives, she's not feeling well, just leave her alone," Jesse pleaded. Fives sighed and put his hands up in surrender, "Fine." Jesse patted his brother on the shoulder and headed off to the refresher.
You drank two glasses of water just to sell your act and was sitting at the bar waiting until you thought it might be safe. You turned when a hand was placed on your shoulder, it was Fives.
"Are you feeling better?" 
"Yes, much, thank you," you replied. "Look, I don't wanna pressure you but, I can pay you." He took the pouch off his belt and opened it, showing its contents to you. Your eyes widened at the amount of credits inside. "How much-"
"500 credits," he answered before you could ask. 
That was the most anyone had ever offered you, how had he acquired so many! "Where did you get all these?" Fives smirked proudly, "Evidently, I'm the best sabacc player in the GAR." You were speechless. "It's yours," Fives placed the pouch in your hands, "I just want to watch you dance again. I won't even touch."
"Fives! Leave her alone!" 
You saw Jesse running to you from across the room. You smirked deviously and clutched the bag of credits in your hand. Jesse reached you both, obviously about to dig into Fives about you again, but you cut him off.
"Well, that's awfully nice of you to buy a dance for your brother, Fives," you said, "What do you say Jesse?"
Your boyfriend thought for a minute trying to figure out what was going on before he smiled devilishly. "I would love a dance," he said. Jesse put his arm around you and led you to the back of the building.
Fives stood there stunned, mouth agape as he watched you walk off with Jesse and his credits. He growled to himself and went back to sit with Kix and Hardcase. He slid into the booth and found Kix laughing so hard he was clutching his stomach and Hardcase had rested his head on the table, laughing into it. 
"What's so funny?" He asked.
"You just got bested by Jesse and his girl," Kix said between laughs. Hardcase lifted his head up, "Oh they are one hell of a couple." 
"Couple?" Fives questioned.
"Are you kidding me, you haven't noticed them before?" Hardcase said in disbelief.
"He's always with her when he's here. And you've heard the dumb excuses he comes up with whenever we're on leave," Kix added.
One could see the gears working in Fives' head as he thought it through, everything starting to make sense to him now. He looked in the direction Jesse and you had gone before looking at the table. "I wish I had a woman like that."
Kix clapped his brother on the back. "Face it, Fives. You're not going to get Jesse's girl."
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imagineyourworld · 3 years
Text
The Plan
Echo x Fem!Reader
Summary: Your boyfriend just broke up with you, but you have the perfect plan to get him back (Set before Citadel)
Warnings: Alcohol/drinking, slight allusion to sex, teeny tiny bit smutty towards the end
Check out more of my work here and what’s coming soon
——-
Sure, maybe you were being petty. Maybe you should have spent the evening on your couch with a romantic holo and a bowl full of ice cream. Maybe this plan would backfire and you’d regret it for the rest of your days. But you had to try, not just for yourself, but also for Echo. Echo, who less than twenty four standard hours ago had broken up with you and who you knew would be spending his last night on Coruscant before being deployed again at 79s. And even if he wouldn’t realise that he’d made a mistake by breaking up with you, you could at least spend an evening out with your best friend and her girlfriend while wearing your new fabulous dress. Though you were sure of your plan just a few moments ago, and it had sounded even better coming from your friends mouth, you were no longer certain. As soon as you entered the bar a couple of eyes fell on you and your companions, and though you knew both your friend and her girlfriend looked fabulous, you couldn’t help but feel like they followed you on your way to the bar. “You need to relax”, your friend whispered to you after ordering your drinks. All you managed to do was a shaky nod, and luckily you were saved from having to answer her by someone you weren’t sure you really wanted to see. “You clean up nicely, mesh’la”, someone behind you said and made you turn around. “Thanks, Fives.” Your voice was not as smooth as you wanted it to be. If Fives was here, talking to you, that could only mean that Echo was not far. “I suppose you’re not just here for a drink, are you?” At first you wanted to lie and tell him that that’s exactly why you were at 79s, then you considered telling him that you wanted to forget about Echo by looking for someone else, but you knew that Fives would be able to see through any lie, he could read you almost as well as Echo could. “I suspect Echo told you everything?” Fives didn’t even need to confirm your suspicion, his expression told you everything. “Listen, mesh’la”, he started. This time there was a sad ring to the familiar nickname, that had almost become an inside joke between the two of you. “I understand why Echo did it. I don’t think it was the right choice, but I understand and I know you do too.” You took a moment to answer. First you reached for your drink first, using the movement to glance at your friend, who was in deep conversation with her girlfriend and wouldn’t be any help. “Whose side are you on anyways?”, you asked Fives. He just shrugged, his eyes fixated on something, or someone, behind you, but your pride told you not to turn around. Instead you tried to focus on the familiar warmth of Fives’ hand as he held onto yours and the words you knew would be coming out of his mouth. “You’re one of my best friends, but Echo’s my brother, my vod. But I suppose if everything goes according to your plan there won’t be sides to choose from after tonight.” He didn’t give you time to reply before he placed a gentle kiss on the top of your head and disappeared in the crowd. But for a few more moments you could feel a familiar pair of eyes on you, a pair of eyes that had been watching your entire interaction. “I think Echo saw all of that”, your friend whispered in your ear, confirming your suspicion.
——-
It took you about half an hour to realize that your plan had to change. You knew your dress would catch Echo’s attention, his eyes would be drawn to you and every now and then you caught him staring from the other end of the bar. The blue and white dress mirrored the 501st’s amour, both in colour and in style, was tight at the top and came loose around your knees, which, combined with a sparkling necklace that rested where your breasts began, drew attention to what you knew was Echo’s favourite body part of yours, your boobs. And your eyes, he would always insists. And though you believed him from the countless times he had gotten lost in your eyes, you knew that deep down he was a boobs man through and through, so of course the dress for the night had been strategically chosen. The downside, however, was the second part of your plan. You had been hoping to catch Echo’s attention with your dress and then make him realize what he was missing by flirting with as many of his brothers as possible, because even though he wasn’t possessive, he wasn’t the biggest fan of his brothers getting more of your attention that him. But to really get to him it had to be one of the brothers he was close to, preferably someone from the 501st. Though it seemed as if Echo had warned all of them not to approach you, because every time you caught someone’s eye you saw them looking at Echo before nodding at you and disappearing in the crowd. Only Fives had actually talked to you, but since Echo knew that he was almost like a brother to you that was no use. The next step in your plan would have been to find someone else to flirt with, maybe someone from the 212th or 104th, only this time it wasn’t Echo, but your dress, that ruined your plan. The dress that seemed to be made for you, that made you feel beautiful and confident, also told every clone that you belonged with the 501st, or rather someone in the 501st. So here you were, sipping on your third drink of the night while your friend and her girlfriend were having the time of their lives on the dancefloor. That is until a voice pulled you out of your depressing thoughts. “Since when do you drink alone?” You jumped up from your chair to hug the blond clone. “Rex! It’s good to see you.” You felt rather than heard his low chuckle from how tight you were hugging him. “What are you doing all alone at the bar? The others have a booth in the back and I was just about to join them, why don’t you come with?” You knew that if he set his mind to it, Rex could be quite a good actor, which is why you weren’t sure whether he even knew that Echo had broken up with you. “Rex-”, you began, but before you could protest he slung an arm around your shoulder and pulled you along with him. By the time you reached the booth you still hadn’t come up with a good excuse, which is why you found yourself sitting next to Kix at a table with a few members of the 501st, but no Echo. It was quite awkward at first, but after a few minutes of idle conversation with the boys it was as if you had been there with them all evening, as if nothing had happened. “I really like your dress, by the way. The colours are really-”, Jesse said with a smirk, but he was interrupted by a familiar voice behind you. Yes, most people said that the clones all sounded the same, but you could have told Echo apart by just his breathing, there was no way anyone else would ever say your name like that. “(Y/N), you’re in my seat.” You could tell that Echo was really trying to be casual, to pretend you were acquaintances, maybe even friends, and had never been anything else, just from the way he said your name. But you had heard him say and scream and whisper and moan your name often enough to tell every single emotion he must be feeling right now. And despite the anger, that was practically radiating off of him, it was the love that made you turn around. “Echo.” That’s all you said. Other than him you didn’t even try to hide your emotions, the quiver in your voice or the love in your eyes. There was no point in trying, you knew he could read you just as well as you could read him. “You should leave.” Echo’s tone was harder now that he’d had a moment to conceal his feelings. But there was no way you’d leave now. You finally had his attention, his full attention, and he was actually talking to you. You didn’t say anything, just looked at Echo, who was staring back at you. You knew it would only take a few more seconds, maybe a bit more sadness in your expression, and he’d relent. But then Hardcase, sweet, clueless Hardcase, just had to break the spell. “Don’t be like that, Echo. You can sit next to me, there’s no need to make (Y/N) get up.” What choice did Echo have but to agree? So there he was, almost across from you at the same table, with Kix on your right talking to Fives and Rex and your left putting a reassuring hand on the small of your back. But no matter how much you stared, how much you tried to force Echo to look at you with pure willpower, he ignored you. As time went on he talked to his brothers, laughed with them and pretended you weren’t even there. Even ‘accidentally’ kicking him underneath the table or ‘fixing’ the top of your dress didn’t make him as much as glance in your direction. You were almost ready to give up, to ask Fives or Rex to walk you home, since your friend had found you at the table and asked if it was alright if she and her girlfriend left a while ago, when a clone you didn’t know walked up to you. His amour was a light, almost pastel, green, his hair styled almost exactly the same as Echo’s and a tattoo of some sort of flower ran up the side of his neck. “Sorry to bother you”, he started. Though his words didn’t catch everyone’s attention, they caught yours, and apparently also that of Echo, Fives and Rex. “I was just wondering… Are you with anyone or would you care to dance with me?” He was looking at you with a hopeful expression in his eyes. And even though you had been ready to admit defeat for tonight and just go home, you couldn’t deny his puppy dog eyes and the sweet smile. But it wasn’t just that, the moment the other clone spoke up Echo’s eyes had finally drifted over to you and all of the sudden it seemed as if your plan might work after all. You gently nudged Rex so he’d stand up and let you out of the booth. It wasn’t until you were standing in front of the clone that you answered. “I’d love to dance with you. And no, I’m not with anyone.” You could hear Echo’s sharp intake of breath, which only caused your smile to widen. “Great! That’s great. I just thought that maybe, because your dress is the same colour as their amour that you were in a relationship and I wouldn’t want to come between that. My name is Primrose, by the way.” As you linked your arm with his and looked up at him you noticed that the flowers on his neck were in fact primroses.
——-
“You know, it’s your fault.” “Shut up, Fives”, Echo growled at his brother. “Not only were you the one who broke up with her, you’re also the one who’s been ignoring her all night long.” “Shut up, Fives”, Echo repeated, this time accompanied by a slight kick against his brother’s leg. Echo felt his brothers’ eyes on him as he finished his drink while watching you dance with Primrose. The two of you were closer than you needed to be, your smile was wider than it needed to be and his hands were on your body more than they needed to be. “He’s right”, Jesse said with a nod in your direction. This finally made Echo tear his eyes away from you. “Not you too���, he sighed, wishing he’d either have another drink nearby or that the song would end and you’d return without Primrose. “But Fives is right”, Kix insisted. For just a brief second Echo considered murdering his brothers. The moment passed as soon as it had come, but the desire to make them shut up remained. “Why did you even break up with her? You’re clearly still in love with her”, Rex asked. By the time even his Captain opened his mouth, probably even earlier when Rex had dragged you along with him, Echo knew the entire universe had to be against him. “She deserves better.” That’s all he said. All he had said when he had broken up with you, all he’d tell his brothers. “That’s banthashit and you know i-”, Fives was interrupted by your return to the table. The moment your arse hit the worn out cushion you downed the drink in front of you, not caring that it wasn’t yours, but Rex’s, who stared at you in dismay. “Wow there, mesh’la, was he that bad of a dancer?”, Fives laughed. You shook your head with a smirk. “Quite the opposite, actually. But I’m thirsty and he had to leave because his company is being send on a mission early tomorrow. Speaking of leaving, I think I’d better get home, it’s getting late. Would one of you boys walk me home?” Before anyone could say or do anything Echo shot up from his seat, almost upsetting the table with the rapid movement. “I’ll do it.”
——-
Though you had been happy when Echo first announced he’d walk you home, the happiness didn’t last long. The entire way he didn’t say a word, even to your questions he only nodded or shook his head instead of an actual answer. “You didn’t have to walk me home, you know. One of the others could have done it, or I could have walked alone.” You hadn’t expected Echo to your annoyed statement since he hadn’t said anything to things you had hoped would force him to talk to you. “You know I’d never let you walk home alone in the dark, cyar’ika.” You could tell from the way he tensed up next to you that he hadn’t meant to say that, hadn’t meant to call you by the nickname he knew you loved so much. It was more of a force of habit than anything else. “It speaks”, was your sarcastic reply. You refused to look at Echo, but you had a feeling he was biting his lips to keep himself from saying anything else. Lucky for him you stopped in front of your building just then and there was no need for him to say anything other than goodbye. You walked over to the door, shifting your small purse before looking at Echo over your shoulder. “I guess I’ll see you around.” Quickly you turned back around so he wouldn’t see the tears welling up in your eyes. The evening, the plan, had been a disaster. You were now a hundred percent certain that Echo didn’t want you back, didn’t have feelings for you anymore, and had only walked you home due to… what? A sense of obligation? To not be an even bigger dick? It wasn’t until you had already punched in half of your access code into the keypad next to the door that Echo spoke up. “Can I walk you to your apartment?” You finished typing in your code before you turned around, hoping Echo wouldn’t be able to see how much his words affected you. But all worries, all reasons not to let him into your flat, into your life, again, vanished the second you looked at him. There was no way you could ever say no to him, no way you could deny him anything when he was looking at you with so much hope and fear and… love… in his eyes. “Okay”, you whispered. A weak answer, but the only one you managed without your voice breaking. “Okay”, he repeated, a smile brightening his handsome face. In the blink of an eye he was next to you, holding the door open for you, then guiding you towards the lift. He was standing closer than before, you could feel his body heat through your dress and his amour on the ride to your flat. Once you arrived on your floor you hurried to your door, typing in the code before Echo could see it, but you should have known the ARC trooper would catch the numbers you pressed. “You still have my CT number as your code?” You let him into your flat before following and closing the door behind you. “I didn’t have time to change it yet.” The small smile on his lips vanished at your words. For once it seemed that he had bought your lie. “So you wanted to change it?”, he asked. His voice was quieter than before, his eyes went from you to his shoes and back to you. “Did you come up here to talk about my acess code?” You couldn’t hide the annoyance in your voice. All night Echo had been either ignoring you or glaring at you, then all of the sudden he was being nice and calling you “cyar’ika” again and then all he wanted to talk about was the stupid code for your stupid door? “I… No, that’s not why I wanted to come up. I… Can we sit down?” You nodded and lead Echo over to your small couch, where the two of you sat down, but this time a bit farther apart. Though still close enough that you could touch him if you reached out. “Cya- (Y/N), you need to stop whatever it is you’re doing. Wearing that dress you know I adore, flirting and dancing with my brothers and drawing my eyes to you every waking moment.” He took a deep breath, not meeting your eyes but instead focusing on your nose, your lips, your breasts, your hands. Though he didn’t look into your eyes, his never left your body. “We’re not together anymore.” If it wasn’t for the way his voice shook as he said the last words, the way a single tear threatened to slip out of his left eye, the way he looked at you as if wanting to commit every detail to memory, you would have believed him. But you couldn’t. Maybe it was wishful thinking, but you couldn’t believe he actually meant what he said. “But why? You never gave me a reason for breaking up with me. Maybe, if you told me why, I could accept it, maybe even understand it.” His fingers twitched. Your hands were laying so close together on the couch, it would only take a few millimeters for the to touch. “Echo, why did you break up with me? Why did you break my heart?” Finally he looked at you. Really looked at you and saw you. More tears were welling up in his eyes, though none of them escaped. “I never meant to break your heart, I wanted to save it.” His words were a soft whisper, so soft you could have sworn you had imagined them, but before you could ask him to repeat himself, Echo continued. “I had to break up with you, don’t you understand? I had to make sure you wouldn’t get attached, because if we’re not together, if you don’t love me, your heart won’t get broken when I eventually die in this war.” You opened and closed your mouth a few times, but no words came out. Finally, after what felt like hours of silence, hours of Echo just looking at you, you managed to answer. “Is that the only reason?” It seemed as if he was at a similar loss for words, because Echo simply nodded. You shook your head. You couldn’t believe it. Of course you knew there had to be some sort of reason for Echo to break up with you, the two of you had been happy after all, but you wouldn’t have thought that that could be the reason, though it did explain his hot and cold behaviour. It wasn’t that Echo didn’t want to be with you, didn’t love you, he simply wanted to protect you. Slowly and gently you reached out until your hand cupped Echo’s cheek. You shifted closer to him and held his hand in your other hand. “I’m not even gonna discuss the fact that you think it’s inevitable that you’ll die in this war, that’s a conversation for another day. But Echo, my love, how could you think I wouldn’t be heartbroken if anything were to happen to you just because we’re not together? I love you. I have loved you before we started dating and I didn’t stop when you broke up with me, I don’t think I’ll ever stop. I’ve never felt this way before and of course I don’t want to imagine the heartbreak of losing you, but my heart breaks a little every time you leave, with every single scratch you get and everything you’re forced to endure in this war. And whether or not we’re together doesn’t change that, doesn’t change my love for you.” It wasn’t until you felt Echo’s thumb gently brushing across your cheek that you realized you had started crying. And so did he. Softly you placed your lips on his cheeks and kissed a few tears away, the salty taste speaking of love and hope and heartbreak. “I guess I’m pretty stupid, aren’t I?”, Echo tried to joke. But you shook your head. “No, never. You tried to protect me, even if it was the worst plan in the history of planning, that’s not stupid, that’s brave and selfless and I love you even more for it.” Echo nodded. He nodded and he cried and you cried until you started laughing and couldn’t stop. And when Echo joined in on your laughter you could have sworn your heart was soaring right out of your chest. “So, we’re together again?”, you asked. Instead of answering Echo leaned in until his lips were only inches away from yours and with a small sigh you closed the gap. Kissing him was familiar, but that didn’t make it any less loving and exciting. The kiss started out slow and careful, but soon you gently bit down on Echo’s bottom lip before soothing it with your tongue. Only when both of you needed to catch your breath did you part. “Do you love me again?”, you whispered against Echo’s lips just a second later. You felt, rather than saw, his grin. “I never stopped.” A chuckle made his way past your kiss swollen lips. “Me neither. And I never will.” He hummed in something you interpreted as both agreement and content before he touched your lips with his again. “One more thing, though”, he said between pressing pecks to your lips, his hands winding into your hair. “I hope you’ll wear that dress again soon.” You laughed. That you could do. It was a pretty dress and solely based on the looks he had shot you all night it had quickly become your favourite garment. “Sure. But how about I take it off for now?” Echo didn’t answer. Instead he started kissing, biting and sucking on your neck. You supposed that was a yes.
——-
Honestly, I don’t know what this fic even is! The original idea was smutty with a but of fluff, now it ended up being a fluffy and slightly angsty mess with just a sprinkle of suggested smut. But maybe it was enjoyable nonetheless, let me know! <3
83 notes · View notes
eyayah-oya · 3 years
Text
Carry You With Me Always
Buckle up everyone, because I have three prompts today!
Cloneship Week 2021 - Tattoos - @cloneshipweek
Rex/Echo
Rating: G
Warnings: very vague references to something bad happening to Tup and Dogma in the past
Ao3 link--Ao3 has some world building notes about Tup, Dogma, and Mom Echo if you want to check those out!
           Lazy days were Echo’s favorite.  They always had been.  Especially the days when Rex didn’t have to be a commander masquerading as a captain.  (Echo still didn’t understand how hard it was to sign off on a promotion for Rex. Skywalker knew how to sign his own name.)  It was the third day of leave on Coruscant, just when the duties required of the commanding officers tapered off to allow them time off just like their men.
           Rex entered the officer barracks with two cups of caf and a datapad tucked under his arm.  He must have recently taken a water shower, as he looked cleaner than the sonics were able to achieve.  For a moment, Echo mourned the opportunity to shower with Rex but they figured there would be plenty of opportunities in the future.
           “Morning,” Echo called, their voice deep and raspy from sleep.
           He looked up, though Echo noted he didn’t actual startle. Rex only got that jumpy when he hadn’t been sleeping, so he at least got some rest since the 501st arrived on Coruscant.  That was good.  Echo had been worried when Rex hadn’t shown up the past two nights to the bunk they shared when not on the Resolute.
           A warm smile, reserved just for Echo, softened Rex’s face and filled Echo with happiness.  “Morning, Echo,” he responded.  With ease, he set the two caf cups down on his desk without spilling a drop, the datapad following immediately after.  Then, with slumped shoulders and tired eyes, he fell onto the bed beside Echo and nuzzled their shoulder.
           “Meetings go badly?” they mused as ran their fingers across the closely cropped blonde hair.
           “Eh, not too bad.  Just long.  General Mundi preached about the value of life again and Gree got into an argument with General Fisto over some obscure plant the 41st found on their last campaign.  I think if they’d been in the same room, it would have become a physical fight.”
           Echo snorted.  “That would definitely be interesting to watch.  What did General Unduli do?”
           “I’m 90% sure she was either sleeping standing up, or talking to General Kenobi telepathically.  Kenobi kept snickering every once in a while, so I wouldn’t put it past them.”  Rex shook his head as best as he could from where his face was smooshed against Echo’s shoulder.  “Anything big happen with the boys?”
           “Denal and Attie got arrested again.  I’m pretty sure they’re trying to court the intake officer in the Corrie’s brig.  I escorted Dogma and Tup around the city the first day and ended up taking them to Tatta. You know, the vod who gives the best tattoos?”
           Rex hummed in acknowledgment.  “Can’t say I’ve ever had the pleasure, but I’ve heard he’s one of the best on Coruscant.  Did Tup and Dogma end up getting any tattoos?”
           “Tup got a little tear below his eye and Dogma got a really cool one over his face.  Kix is gonna have a conniption when he sees that; you know how he is with large facial tattoos,” Echo said with amusement.  “Dogma struggled a bit at first, but Tup talked him through his anxiety and held his hand.”
           “That’s good.  I’ll make sure to pair them up on campaigns.  Aren’t they twins?”
           Echo nodded.  While not numerous, there were several sets of twins in the GAR.  Commanders Thire and Thorn in the Corrie Guard, Kix and Captain Keeli, Tup and Dogma, Lupis and Canis in the Wolfpack, and of course Echo and their twin Fives. Commanding officers tried to keep twins together as much as possible, though it doesn’t always happen, like with Kix and Keeli.
           “You could have warned me they were former Corries,” Echo grumbled.  “Technically I was escorting them, but it was mostly them dragging me all over the city. Although, they did take me to this diner with the most amazing nerf burgers.  I’ll have to take you sometime.  They’re sweet kids, but they also could use a lot more support than the average vod. Something happened to them when they were with the Guard.”
           Rex sighed.  “I know. Fox briefed me on their situation. I won’t tell you what happened exactly—they should do that themselves—but it was bad.  We’ll take care of them, I promise.”
           “Good.”  Echo nodded once and wrapped their left arm around Rex’s shoulder and pulled him in closer. Rex flung his own arm back over Echo. Immediately they hissed as their right pec flared with a stinging pain.
           Immediately, Rex sat up in concern.  “Echo?  What’s wrong?”
           Echo grinned sheepishly.  “Well, Tup and Dogma were really nervous to get tattoos since the Guard isn’t allowed to have tattoos.  And I might have gotten a tattoo to help them be more comfortable.”
           “Really?” Rex grinned.  Without hesitation, he gently placed his hand over Echo’s pec, exactly in the same spot he had left a handprint on their first set of armor. He didn’t have to guess what tattoo they had decided to get.  Echo arched into the touch, the sting sharp and pointed and somehow exactly perfect.  “Can I see it?” Rex asked softly.
           “Help me get the shirt off, and yes,” Echo answered. They surged upwards, ignoring the pain from his tattoo, so they could press a heated and soft kiss to Rex’s lips.
With far more reverence than they usually have time for, Rex slid his fingers under the hem of their loose shirt, trailing over the firm muscles and warm skin. Echo shivered deliciously and lightly sucked on his lower lip, rather than help their boyfriend in any way. Inch by inch, more skin was revealed until Rex pulled away to tug the shirt over Echo’s head.  They helped, lifting their arms over their head to allow the shirt to slide free.
           In the exact same placement as their armor, a handprint had been tattooed completely in a darker blue than they used for their armor. The dark blue color the Rishi eel’s blood had been.  The permanent mark on their skin was a bold proclamation of who Echo belonged to.  A way to inform everyone who they went home to and who they would always go back for.  That day on Rishi was life-changing for both of them for more than one reason. It was the day Echo had lost their batchmates, save for Fives, and the day they had both joined the 501st. It was the day Echo had first met Rex, a young shiny who was in awe of the legendary captain.  And it was the day that began Echo’s journey of falling completely in love with the man behind the legend.
           Rex traced the edges of the tattoo gently, barely ghosting over the skin.  It was still swollen and red from the needle, but that would go away in a couple more days. Echo didn’t mind a little bit of pain if it meant they could wear Rex’s mark in his skin as well as their armor.
           “Do you like it?” they asked cheekily, already knowing the answer.
           “I love it.  They did a really good job.  Does it hurt a lot?” Rex asked.
           Echo wobbled his head from side to side.  “A little, but it’s not bad.  Barely noticeable, really.”
           “Good.”  And with that, Rex pressed his hand against the mark and pushed Echo back onto the bed until he was leaning directly over them.  “Because I need to show you exactly how much I like it.”
           They eagerly reached up and wrapped their arms around Rex’s neck, pulling him down against them, though they both were careful not to dislodge his hand from its place on Echo’s chest.  Echo pressed their forehead against Rex’s, letting them bask in the peaceful moment instead of the hurried seconds they only managed to snatch while out on the front.  Eventually, the keldabe shifted to the more traditional type of kissing, their tongues tangling together languidly.  They had all day and the rest of the tenday to relax and enjoy.  They could take their time, and Echo couldn’t be happier.
           “I love you,” they whispered between kisses.
           “I love you, my eyayah.  My Echo with my mark,” Rex answered before diving back into their mouth and showing them exactly how much he needed and loved them.
           Echo shivered with delight, the intimacy of the moment barricading everything else from the Captain’s quarters.  For a time, they existed in a bubble, cut off from the galaxy and perfectly at peace together.
           Then, the bubble popped.
           “Does the Captain really have to know?  I mean, it’s not like he’d be surprised.”
           “Fives, don’t be an idiot.  You know he always needs to know when we brawl with the Wolfpack so he can keep Commander Wolffe from killing us.”
           “But if we go in there, Echo will kill us.”
           “I’d rather die by Echo’s hand than by Commander Wolffe’s! He’s scary!”
           “Oh, lighten up, Jesse!  I wouldn’t mind fighting with the Commander!”
           “ . . . Hardcase . . . “
           “What?  It’s true!”
           “I’m gonna tell him!”
           “Fives, don’t you dare!”
           With matching, heavy sighs, Echo and Rex broke apart and turned to the door.  Yes, Echo loved lazy days.  But those days never lasted long, and they loved their brothers just as much.
           “I’ll go deal with Hardcase’s unacknowledged romantic feelings for Commander Wolffe.  You need to get some sleep,” Echo said, giving Rex a soft kiss on the cheek as they grabbed their t-shirt.  “Think I can make Jesse prefer he’d faced the Commander?”
           Rex smirked and flopped down by Echo’s side instead of on top of them.  “I know you will.  I’ll be here when they’re all suitably punished.  Come back and we can finish what we started.”  His eyes were dark with hunger and love, sending a shiver through Echo.  That was a promise they wouldn’t pass up for anything.
           “I’ll be back after I finish wrangling the children.  I’ll probably drag Dogma and Tup along so they can laugh at Fives, Jesse, and Hardcase,” Echo said with a grin.  They pulled their shirt over their head and climbed over Rex to stand up.  “They could use the enrichment.”
           Rex only laughed.  Lazy days really were the best.
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