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dystopicjumpsuit · 3 months

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Stars Beyond Number - Chapter 22

The Desire

Rating: M - Minors DNI

Pairings: Echo x Riyo Chuchi; Gregor x OFC Cerra Kilian

Wordcount: 3.3k

Warnings and tags: negative self-talk; Gregor having none of it; SMUT; it's finally happening; oral sex; fingering; body worship; PIV sex; I literally screamed and cried and threw my hands in the air when I typed the last line; I love them so much I can't even

Suggested Listening (strongly recommended, actually; I couldn't believe how perfectly this song fit the chapter when I heard it the first time):

Summary: 😏

A/N: This story shares continuity with Martyrs and Kings, "Double, Double Boil and Trouble" (part 2 here) and "Do It Again," but all the fics can be read as stand-alones.

Between the desire and the spasm

… falls the Shadow

—T. S. Eliot, “The Hollow Men”

“Are you all right?” Gregor asked, his soft eyes trained on Cerra’s.

She nodded. “Sorry.”

“For what?”

“Karking it up like I do everything,” she said.

His eyebrows snapped together. “Why would you say that?”

“Because you deserve better,” she said. “You should be with someone who—”

“I know what I want,” he interrupted before she could talk herself out of it. “It’s you.”

Her breath stilled. “It is?”

“Since the moment I met you.”

“Why didn’t you say anything?” she asked.

He giggled quietly. “Are you serious?”

“No need to be rude,” she said, affronted.

“I’m not trying to be,” he replied. “It’s just the truth. You weren’t ready to move on, and you didn’t need someone pressuring you. You needed a friend, and if you decide that you’re never ready for more than that, then I’ll still be the luckiest man in the karking galaxy to be the one who’s there for you.”

Her eyes burned. She dropped her forehead to rest against his neck, and he wrapped his arms gently around her back, rubbing comforting circles between her shoulder blades.

“I don’t deserve you,” she whispered.

“True,” Gregor agreed cordially, pulling a reluctant chuckle from her as she smacked his shoulder. “Sorry, were you done floggin’ yourself, or did I interrupt? I could come back later…”

“Gods, you’re the worst,” she laughed.

“You can keep going if you want. Or…” he paused and kissed her shoulder softly. “We could…” He kissed her again, closer to her neck. “Try something else.”

He licked along her skin until he reached the base of her throat. She tilted her head to the side, exposing her neck as she inhaled deeply.

“Gregor,” she sighed.

“Mmm,” he rumbled, working his way down her sternum.

His bare hand slipped up her waist and beneath her bra to cup her breast. She took in a soft, deep breath as she arched her body into his touch. The rough fabric of his glove scraped lightly across her tender skin as he slid his other hand under the band of her bra. He pulled his mouth away from her long enough to tug the garment over her head, and then his lips closed around her nipple as his tongue swirled over her.

“You taste amazing,” he whispered against her skin.

He dropped his hands to her hips to dip beneath the compression suit and coax it down her legs. She shifted in the seat to ease its progress, and Gregor took shameless advantage of her momentary helplessness to drag her to the edge of the seat and spread her thighs wide over his broad pauldrons as his mouth worked its way down her body, kissing, licking, biting, sucking.

He reached her pelvis at last, slowing his progress as he inched lower with aching deliberateness until at last his tongue dipped into her. Her reaction was electric. She convulsed with a cry, her body hypersensitive from years of denying her physical needs. Her thighs tightened around him as she practically levitated off the seat. He gripped her hips and pressed her back down, his strong fingers digging into her flesh. He swirled his tongue around her clit and into her cunt.

“Fuck!” she sobbed as her fists tightened in his hair. “Fuck, fuck, Gre—”

He groaned against her and murmured something indecipherable. His hand brushed over her knee, then drifted leisurely up the inside of her thigh, taking his time despite her desperation. By the time he finally reached his target and eased two fingers into her, she was shaking and writhing beneath him, and that delicious stretch was all it took to push her beyond the limits of her control.

In her deprived, overwrought state, her body took over and hurled her into an unexpected orgasm that shattered her vision and wrenched a broken scream from her throat. His thick, agile fingers dragged inside her, working to prolong her climax as he gazed up at her with an expression of utter bliss and adoration in his eyes.

He gentled his movements as she came down from her high. He kissed the soft skin of her abdomen, and she tugged ineffectually at his cuirass, trying vainly to pull him closer to her. He lifted her naked body off the chair and settled her on his lap. In his full armor, he wasn’t a particularly comfortable seat, but she snuggled her face against his neck through the soft black fabric of his undersuit as she shuddered and trembled in his embrace.

They sprawled on the floor of the cockpit, bathed in the gentle, warm glow of the nebula. Gregor cradled her in his arms, circling his thumbs slowly across her bare skin as he rested his cheek against her head. He stroked his fingers lightly over her short, velvety hair.

“Your hair is so soft,” he whispered. “I’ve never seen it this long.”

“Didn’t exactly have a way to keep it shaved while I was rotting in the Venator brig,” she replied with a low laugh.

“I like it,” he replied, pressing his lips against her head, and then again behind her ear, and a third time, along the side of her neck.

”Yeah?”

”Mm-hmm,” he hummed, his voice vibrating gently on her sensitive skin.

“Should I grow it back out?”

”Not unless you want to.” His warm breath sent a shiver through her as he whispered next to her ear. “You’re hot as fuck either way.”

She sighed happily and trailed her fingertips up his arm, looking for the small gaps between the plastoid where she could feel his body heat through the undersuit.

“You are wearing way too much armor,” she murmured.

He chuckled. “Have to admit the codpiece is feeling a little tight.”

She huffed quietly and unclipped his vambraces, tugging them off his forearms and setting them aside. She interlaced her fingers with his and slowly pulled off his remaining glove, allowing it to drop to the floor. Next, she fumbled with his rerebraces and grumbled under her breath.

“Why is this so karking hard to take off?” she asked as irritably as she could, considering that her brain was still flooded with a blissful post-orgasmic haze.

“Because the point is for it to stay on,” he said.

She arched an impatient brow at him, and he shot her a smug grin.

“A little help?” she asked.

He brushed his fingers beneath her jaw and tilted her face up so he could kiss her, then leaned back and began to pull off his upper body armor, stacking it one piece at a time as he did. As he worked, Cerra began to trace her fingers across the bare skin of his neck and the base of his skull. His eyes flicked to hers, and he smirked, continuing his task. Undaunted, she leaned close and licked the shell of his ear softly. He shivered, and she heard his breath catch, but his concentration didn’t break.

Once he was stripped down to his waist, though, he had his revenge. He wrapped his arms around her and flipped them over so she was lying on her back with his body between her thighs. The durasteel floor was hard and cold against her skin, and she was briefly, ridiculously relieved that she’d had the cleaning droid work over the freighter the day before she left for Daiyu. Gregor covered her body with kisses as he fumbled with his belt.

She wrapped her legs around his waist with a soft giggle, and he nipped at her skin in retaliation, rocking his codpiece against her. Her breath caught, and she moaned at the pressure.

“Kriff, don’t make those noises,” he rasped. “I can barely fit in this codpiece as it is.”

“Bragging?” she teased.

“Stating a fact,” he replied, grazing his lips lightly over her bruised shoulder. “You taste like bacta.”

“I thought you said I tasted amazing,” she said.

“You do,” he replied. “But this part of you also tastes like bacta.”

She heard a clatter of duraplast, and Gregor grunted in relief, having successfully freed himself from the codpiece while he distracted her.

“Maybe you should kiss me somewhere else, then,” she suggested, cupping her hand under his chin to bring his face toward hers. “Hey, soldier. My lips are up here.”

He gazed at her mouth. “I don't want to hurt you again.”

Her heart lurched.

“Please,” she whispered.

He swallowed. Raising his hand to her cheek, he caressed her with utmost tenderness, barely touching his thumb to her lower lip. He glanced uncertainly up at her eyes, and he leaned down slowly, pausing close to her face, but not quite making contact.

“Cerra…”

“I trust you,” she breathed.

The touch of his lips was so soft it was almost imperceptible. Her eyes fluttered closed as her lips parted, as though she could block out every distraction and only drift in the sensation of his kiss. She teased his lips with the tip of her tongue, encouraging him to kiss her more deeply, and he complied with incredible care, taking his cues from her, but pulling away far sooner than she would have preferred. Perhaps it was for the best; her judgment was not to be trusted when she wanted him to consume her.

He nuzzled her cheek gently. “Your lips taste like bacta, too. Worth it, though.”

She laughed quietly as he sat up. She smoothed her hands up his torso, slipping her fingertips into the magseal of his undersuit and easing it open. The suit gave way to reveal the broad expanse of his chest, and he shrugged out of the top of the suit. From her vantage point on the floor, Cerra stared up at him, admiring the way the soft golden light glazed his warm, smooth skin and reflected in his amber eyes. His chest rose and fell quickly, and she longed to touch him.

She traced her fingertips up his abdomen, then flattened her palms against him. Gods, it had been so long since she’d felt someone else’s skin against her own. She glided over his pectorals and up to his shoulders, then back down again to ease the undersuit further down his hips until his cock sprang free, fully erect. Closing her hand around him, she squeezed gently, and a glossy bead of precum appeared at the tip. She licked her lips at the sight and started to lean toward him.

“Don’t even think about it,” he said, pressing her back down to the floor.

She looked up at him, startled. “You don’t like—”

“Not until you’re healed,” he said firmly.

“Not even a taste?” she asked, giving him the softest tooka eyes she could muster.

“Absolutely not,” he replied. “Those big eyes don’t fool me. I know you, Cerra. You won’t stop until you get what you want, and we are not playing that game right now.”

“You’re no fun,” she pouted.

“Oh, I can think of plenty of other ways we can have fun,” he grinned.

“Do any of them start with moving to a bunk?” she asked. “This floor is ridiculously hard.”

“It’s not the only thing,” he laughed.

He stood, then pulled her to her feet. She seized the opportunity to wrap her fingers around his cock again, dragging her hand over it slowly. She brushed her thumb over the tip, and then raised it to her mouth, flicking her tongue out to taste the clear fluid as mischief danced in her eyes.

“Fuck,” Gregor groaned. “You are testing my limits.”

“Oh, no, anything but that,” she whispered.

“I should’ve known you’d be a brat,” he giggled, scooping her up and tossing her over his shoulder as she shrieked with delighted laughter.

He carried her down the corridor to the crew quarters and selected one at random, depositing Cerra on the bed carefully. She sat up to watch him with open admiration as he removed his remaining armor and undersuit.

Holy kriff, he was built. She’d spent months trying not to look at him too closely, trying to avoid the inevitable reminders of Fives. As he stripped, though, she finally let herself take a good look. He did resemble Fives—that was inescapable—but there were differences as well. The scars were different; the tattoos were different. Gregor was older than her husband had ever had a chance to be, and she could see it in his body. Between that and the commando’s genetically enhanced muscle density, he was broader and bigger than Fives, and she was quietly relieved. She wasn’t sure she would have been able to sort through her confusion if his body had been truly identical to Fives.

“Enjoying the view?” he teased, and she raked her gaze slowly up his body until she met his eyes.

“Very much,” she said, her voice low and husky.

He crawled onto the bed, caging her between his arms and legs. She reached up to stroke the side of his neck as he kissed her, and she could feel the pulse of his racing heartbeat beneath her fingertips. He pressed her back slowly until she lay on the bed. She slid her hands up his thighs as he straddled her hips, shifting beneath him to try to press herself closer to his body, but he held himself back from her.

She made an indignant little noise of protest and tried to pull him down, but he didn’t budge. He just kept kissing her with utmost gentleness when she wanted him to ruin her. She could feel his cock brushing against her abdomen, rock-hard, hot, and already slick with need.

She knew he wanted her just as badly as she wanted him. Reaching between their bodies, she wrapped her hands around his cock and stroked him languidly. He broke away from her mouth with a groan and rested his forehead against hers, eyes squeezed tightly shut.

“Fuck, I’m trying to be careful, but you’re not making it easy,” he rasped.

“I can take it, Gregor,” she whispered. “You don’t have to be careful.”

He pushed himself back, sinking down so his thighs rested on top of her hips, trapping her in place. He stared down at her, shaking his head slightly. He trailed his fingertips over her cheek.

“Kriff, you’re so beautiful,” he said. “All the times I imagined this, I never once thought it might actually happen.”

“You imagined it?” she asked.

He giggled. “All the time. That day that we went to the market, I almost came in the shower just from hearing the sounds you were making. Didn’t even have to touch myself.”

Her eyes widened. “You were so quiet! I thought you were mad at me.”

“I had the water as cold as it would go, and I was reciting all the components of a DC-17m in my head.”

She pondered for a moment. “Is that why you were so relaxed when you came out? Because you—”

“Took care of things,” he said with a shrug. “What else was I supposed to do? Walk around the garage with a raging hard on?”

She laughed and captured his wrist, pressing her lips into his palm, then kissing a trail up his forearm. “Maybe I would have gotten a clue sooner if you had.”

He smiled, but his eyes were troubled. “All the times I imagined it, I never thought it would be like this.”

“What do you mean?” she asked.

He barely touched his hand to her injured shoulder, and she flinched involuntarily.

“See?” he asked. “I can’t just… take you—as much as I want to. I’ve got to be careful with you. I’m still working out the best strategy.”

Her heart lurched. Of course. Even now, he was watching her back: protecting her, even from himself.

“It doesn’t have to be that complicated,” she whispered. “We can just… start. And if it feels good, we can keep going, and if it hurts, we can try something else.”

He moved his fingertips lower, skimming over her breasts and circling her nipples. “Is this all right? Does it feel good?”

“Yes,” she whispered. “So good.”

He made a pleased little hum and shifted, moving to sit behind her on the bed and drawing her back against his chest. He continued to play with her breasts as she leaned against him, feeling the rigid length of his cock press against her back. He kissed the side of her head, and then the shell of her ear, working his mouth slowly down her neck and onto her shoulder. Her eyes drifted closed, and she sighed softly.

Encouraged by her reaction, his hand stole down her body and in between her thighs, his fingers brushing over her clit with feather-light pressure, again and again, before slipping into her. She was beyond ready, and he met no resistance as he sank into her slick warmth. She heard his breath stutter harshly.

“Holy kriff,” he groaned. “You are so wet, my gods.”

He worked her open gently, and she couldn’t hold back her tiny, breathless sounds of pleasure.

“Kark, you drive me wild when you make those noises,” he whispered, grinding his cock against her lower back.

She squirmed against him, desperate to feel more. “Please, please—”

“What is it, love?”

“I need more,” she said. “I need you.”

He pressed his lips against her neck, just below her ear. “You can have me, then.”

He withdrew his fingers from her body and guided her around until she sat in his lap, facing him as he aligned his cock with her cunt and sank gradually into her. She tilted her hips to accommodate him, breathing hard, as he stretched her in ways she hadn’t felt in years. Lovely, strong, warm hands massaged across her back and shoulders, pulling her close to him as he gazed up into her eyes.

“Is this what you wanted?” he asked.

She nodded, unable to speak. He kissed her again, so gently, so carefully, as he began to move. She wrapped her arms around his shoulders, holding tightly as their bodies worked in perfect synchrony, their hips rolling together, their breath coalescing. He dropped his head to rest on her sternum, and she leaned her cheek against his hair as she slid her hands up the back of his head.

He shifted their angle slightly, his hands descending to grip her hips as he began to drive into her harder and faster, thrusting against a place deep inside her in a way that rapidly stoked the tension in her body until she felt as though every muscle and nerve had wound itself into an impossibly tight knot at the base of her spine.

He reached between their bodies and pressed his fingers against her clit, working in tiny, frantic circles, until all her muscles seized, arching her back and clamping her legs around his waist as she shattered. She barely heard his hoarse grunt as he thrust into her one last time, burying himself as deeply as she could take him, emptying into her as she sobbed with pleasure.

He whimpered quietly as his lips found hers, his tongue sweeping into her mouth as she rode out the last few moments, drawing out the pleasure until her muscles gave out and she collapsed against him. He held her close to him and leaned them back until they were lying on the bed. Her head rested against his chest, and she listened as the pounding of his heart began to slow and the deep, gasping breaths of his lungs gradually returned to normal.

Exhaustion pulled at her. Her entire body felt boneless and relaxed—safe for the first time in weeks. Gregor toyed aimlessly with the short hair at the nape of her neck, and her eyes drifted closed as she sank into oblivion. As she crossed the threshold into unconsciousness, she wasn’t sure whether she heard or imagined his quiet whisper.

”I love you, too.”

---

Next chapter

#echo tbb #captain gregor #captain rex #riyo chuchi #oc: cerra kilian #echo x riyo chuchi #gregor x oc #clone trooper nemec #clone trooper fireball #star wars #the bad batch #star wars fanfic #tbb fanfic #stars beyond number #dystopicjumpsuit writes #Spotify

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fandom-friday · 1 month

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Hello friend Karrde!

I hope that all here have been well and prosperous, or at least not buried in snow like me. I have more offerings again for the rec list! I apologize because this is gonna be a whopper of a list too, totally understand if it doesn't make it in this week.

On the Art side of things:

@pinkiemme has been rocking our world with both Commanders Wolffe and Mayday... such scrumptiousness. But then I saw this panel of Captain Rex and... (crying).

@rexxdjarin again with the thick and healthy series latest Echo and Gregor... the study of muscular anatomy is so on point!

@sunshinesdaydream has given us the adorable duo of Hardcase and Sparks

@spicyclones79s has gifted us Omega & Hunter, Commander Wolffe, and a very sweet Foxio

@ladykagewaki always has my heart with the Bebe batch snuggles But also Ms. Fangirl has shared how to summon Echo (May contain spoilers!)

@cloned-eyes made me smile with Wrecker and his little friends but then sob when I saw Jenot.

Comic Recs!:

@paperback-rascal is back with mercy and co with an interesting neurologic finding on Major 40

Fic Recs!:

@pickleprickle 's Newest fic features an injured Mace Windu in the wake of the Empire's rise in Shattered Sunrise. When I say I binged the first two chapters... go read!

if anyone is in need of a Howzer Fic after @the-rain-on-kamino has just reposted their Exigency series. I didn't get a chance to read it the first time and am making my way through it now and let me tell ya... the love, the longing, the CAPTAIN! oh and the build up to the SMUT!

Hopefully I'll have the other comic pieces gathered together for next week and a few more recs. Till then happy reading!

This is one HECK of a list that's got a little something for every TCW/TBB fan out there! I love all of the artwork, and the fics are phenomenal!!!

(Quick correction: the art of Hardcase and Sparks was a commission done by @cloned-eyes)

As always, THANK YOU for taking the time to pull all these together!!

Participate in Fandom Friday to show your favorite creators from this week some love! :)

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legendary-defender-of-fandoms · 3 months

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The Bad Batch & Shipping Fodder

Tech has Phee

Echo has Senator Chuchi

Hunter has Fennec (kind of)

#disney #star wars #the bad batch #tbb #hunter #wrecker #tech #echo #Crosshair #fennec shand #senator chuchi #phee genoa #tech x phee

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hyperesthesias · 1 year

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It is so funny to me that many, many moons ago -- before The Bad Batch ever came out -- I had a crack ship of Riyo & Echo because I thought they would be absolutely adorable. They'd never been on screen together and I figured they never, ever would be. But here we are. Years later. And my two sweetie pies are talking, touching each other's shoulders, plotting sedition together -- like all good couples should. I'm in awe. Who would've thought. Crack ships stay winning.

#i think aeons ago i tagged something as riyo and echo and i was the only one in said lonely tag #wheezes #bad batch #bad batch echo #tbb echo #ct 1409 #clone trooper echo #senator riyo chuchi #riyo chuchi #the clone wars #tcw #echo x riyo

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tired-night-owl · 1 year

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I’m so glad we got to see her again and fighting for clones rights was simply amazing !!!

But am I the only one that was slightly disturbed by her new look ? I haven’t watched the clone wars for a while but there was something bugging me everytime she appeared in a scene… Like I knew she didn’t look the same without being able to tell why XD

I don’t know if they changed her model to make her look older maybe because I didn’t think the bad batch animation style was different from the clone wars style :o

I just wanted to see if anyone else had noticed it but like I said : really good episodes with her and I hope we see more of senator chuchi in the other Star Wars shows as well !

#star wars bad batch #star wars the clone wars #senator chuchi #riyo chuchi #fox x riyo #tbb wrecker #tbb hunter #tbb omega #tbb #tbb tech #sw tbb #tbb echo #tbb spoilers #senator riyo chuchi

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wild-karrde · 8 months

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Welcome back, Karrde! Thank you, as always, for running Fandom Friday!

This week I want to shout out a couple fics:

Dancing with Wolves, a very smutty Wolffe x reader x OC trooper one-shot by @wizardofrozz that made me SWEAT! Rozz's OC Sawbones makes Wolffe look sweet here, which is quite the feat 👀 The writing is immersive, considerate, and SPICYYYY! Thank you to Rozz for releasing this incredible piece. 🫶

Stars Beyond Number, a longfic by @dystopicjumpsuit that will be releasing chapters weekly(!) featuring Rex, Echo, and Gregor as they endeavour to save their brothers from the clutches of the Empire! I've already gushed extensively in her AO3 comment section, but I'll say that DJ's writing is so clever and always treats characters with incredible depth! This story is something I'd kill to see in TBB, so I'm thrilled she's written it for us! 💖

Thanks again!

-Kira

Thank YOU for the submissions Kira! These are both WONDERFUL. I am on my KNEES for Sawbones HOLY HELL IN A HANDBASKET. Rozz crams SO MUCH spice into such a short little fic. And I LOOOOOVE the concept DJ's laying out in Stars Beyond Number. It's so difficult to balance so many characters at once, and DJ is doing a PHENOMENAL job in this fic! I've only checked out the first chapter and I am HOOKED. Thanks again for sending both of these in!

Participate in Fandom Friday to show your favorite creators from this week some love! :)

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ladykagewaki · 3 months

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Rex Comes to Yavin Part 5

Part 1. Part 2. Part 3. Part 4. Part 6. Part 7.

@zaya-mo @chrissywakingup @the-sith-in-the-sky-with-diamond @aintinacage @ladykatakuri @marierg @isthereanechoinhere96 @thecoffeelorian

#star wars #the bad batch #tbb #tbb echo #tbb crosshair #tbb rex #tbb tech #tbb phee #echiyo #echo x riyo chuchi #echo & chuchi #Techo x Phee #Tech & Phee #captain rex #sexy rexy #Phee Genoa #Yavin #jcmmw

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imarvelatthestars · 4 months

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Where I Fit

Pairings: Riyo Chuchi x Echo x f!Reader

Content: eventual polyamory; one-sided pining that turns mutual; reader is sapphic; nothing explicit beyond some kissing/making out; passing references to Echo having vitiligo

Notes: try as I might to come up with some approximation of a normal response to the prompt 'senate' & 'clone', this was all my mind could settle on.

“You work yourself too hard.”

One of Riyo’s eyes cracks open as she leans back in her chair. She does her best to fight it, but her weary, cheeky smile comes through in the end. “Says you.”

It’s another not so subtle jab at the fact that you definitely don’t get enough sleep, that you skip meals some days and eat too many on others, that you run yourself almost as ragged as she runs herself. Because wherever she goes, you go.

You shrug. “My work’s important, Ri.”

“As is mine.”

And so it goes. This conversation is nothing new, nor is your mutual exhaustion, and this isn’t the last time this will happen. It’s the sacrifice Riyo makes to be a senator and it’s the sacrifice you make to be by her side.

Her comm chirps then and even though you know she’s exhausted, she forces herself to sit up and check her messages. The light filters her skin into a soft, pale shade of periwinkle and when she smiles, Maker, you’re done for. Her cheek markings wrinkle a bit, the corners of her eyes crinkle, and she’s so breathtaking that for a moment you forget to be jealous.

She starts typing away soon after, eyes wide and cheeks flushed and her body language is completely different, and there it is. There’s that wicked green monster rearing its head, coiling around the base of your spine and huffing its fire into your lungs until they constrict and you forget how to breathe.

It hurts to see them together, even when it’s in little moments like this where they’re physically separated but their hearts are reaching for one another. Three years isn’t a terribly long time, but it’s long enough in love. Long enough for you to memorize how she takes her kaf (she always goes for the sweeter blends with extra cream) and the silent tells that tremble in her bones when she’s anxious, the songs she likes to sing (she’s fond of Pantoran folk songs and Chalactan holo tracks) and all her favorite hairstyles (side buns have long been out of style, but you miss the way she used to wear them all the same). Long enough for you to see the passion that burns like molten gold in her eyes and her fierce, cunning sense of justice and morality, and to fall head over heels for it because all of it points to the fact that she’s the most remarkable woman you’ve ever met.

You told yourself to push all those feelings away, to hide them deep inside yourself so they never saw the light of day because she was busy fighting a war and you were busy helping her fight it. She had meetings to attend and bills to rally for, and you had a never ending flow of paperwork, kaf runs, and other menial secretarial work to finish. Neither of you ever had a moment to spare for romance.

At least not until the clone showed up. You grimace at the insensitive wording of the thought. It’s just your jealousy talking, you know that, but it still makes you feel icky that you’re capable of stooping so low because Echo’s a good man. He’s brave and honest, and one of the most genuine people you know. He’s a true gentleman, a brilliant soldier, and he’s passionate about fighting the Empire and saving his brothers. You admire him. You want to hate him. But he makes Riyo smile and he remembers your name and he’s even saved both your lives on a couple of occasions. You could never hate him.

“Ri,” you sigh, and she finally looks up from her comm, “just go home, okay? I’ll clean up here.”

She shakes her head. “I still have work to do-”

“And it’ll still be here tomorrow. But it’s late and you need to rest. Please,” you add when it looks like she’s about to protest. “For me?”

You’d do anything for her and while you know she’d do a lot of things for you, maybe even anything if she were feeling generous, you know she wouldn’t mean it in the same way. And that’s okay. You’re content in your friendship. Maker knows you would never jeopardize it unless you knew for certain that your feelings were returned, but damn if your stomach doesn’t do a flip when she relents and agrees to take herself home. For you. Because you asked.

Things have been hard since Rampart’s arrest. More clones have gone AWOL, which is worth celebrating all on its own, but it comes at the cost of more anti-clone sentiments and a lot of it gets hurled at Riyo, within and beyond the senate walls. What flak she doesn’t get for her attempt at clone rights gets pushed onto 79’s, once a bustling haven for clones and now reduced to a soulless establishment where the lights never turn on and music never plays.

Echo and his brother Rex spend a lot of their time off world fighting the good fight and smuggling deserters to safety, but sometimes there are casualties. Sometimes a brother or two doesn’t make it, sometimes it’s a whole squad. And sometimes Riyo gets called out of bed in the middle of the night because Echo came home with blood on his armor and an emptiness in his eyes that she’s never been able to shake. That’s what she tells you when she can’t sleep and she stares up at her ceiling all night, recalling nightmares of glowing eyes under dark hoods and shadowed figures with blasters.

“Perhaps this war isn’t one we can win,” she says when the atmosphere is heavy with smog and her heart is sad.

“We just have to keep fighting,” you urge when you see the fire in her eyes go dim. “Echo’s counting on you, Ri, all the clones are. We can’t let them down.”

She rests her head on your shoulder and her hair spills down over your blouse like a lilac waterfall. She smells like cherry blossoms and Pantoran cinnamon. Your mouth tingles with the effort of biting back the desire to kiss all her worries away.

That’s what Echo walks in on: his lover’s cheek on your collarbone, your hand on her back, and the lights of her apartment dimmed enough so you're all little more than silhouettes. His name is like a prayer on her lips the moment she sees him, but everything from her heart to her head is tired and you can see she’s struggling to get off the sofa to properly greet him.

He doesn’t say anything. You wonder if he’s sizing you up in an attempt to determine whether or not you’re a threat. I’m not, you promise, I could never take her from you. But when you pass one another at the door, his hand catches on your elbow and the overhead light shines above him, illuminating all his sharp edges and casting long, deep shadows over the gaunt parts of his face.

He nods and when you look hard enough, you think you see a hint of a smile in the corner of his mouth. “Thank you.”

You nod dumbly. “Of course.”

You never noticed before just how beautiful his eyes are. The only reasoning you can come up with is that it’s love: love is what makes him beautiful. His love for his people, his love for the Republic and the Jedi, his love for Riyo. It practically radiates through his skin. He’s burning from the inside out with love and passion, but it never consumes him.

Now it’s all you can see. Every time you see him, a once rare encounter that’s quickly becoming more and more common, you see his beauty. Every story Riyo tells about him, you can feel it, you recognize it as a universal truth. When you look at Riyo, you see their devotion, and it shines brighter than a thousand suns.

And you realize that's why it hurts so much to see them together - you love them both and they're so busy orbiting each other that you swear they forget you exist.

Every time Echo thinks he has things figured out, the universe comes along and throws a wrench in his plans. When he was just a shiny, he thought he was going to spend the rest of his days fighting at Domino Squad’s side. He thought one day 99 would get to see him promoted to ARC trooper. He figured when he got out of Skako Minor, he’d find Fives waiting for him and it’d be like old times. And when he met Riyo, when he really got to know her and understand the person behind the senator, he thought he’d finally found ‘it’, whatever it was. His mission, his love, the things in life that he valued more than he was even able to express.

He’s heard stories of people falling for multiple partners at once, hell, he’s even witnessed it among brothers. He’s seen one clone with two lovers, two clones agreeing to share a lover, he’s read all the catchy headlines about politicians with harems and average citizens with three spouses, and while he’s never been one to judge, he’s never really understood it either. He always figured he’d be alone and he never really had time for anything beyond a quickie in the 79’s bathroom, let alone romance. He’d made peace with that long ago. But now he finds himself swaddled in rich Pantoran silks and he inhales the scent of cherry blossoms and while he presses a kiss to Riyo’s temple, he finds that his thoughts are drifting to you.

“You alright?”

It’s remarkable how immediately he reacts to her. Before he’s fully conscious of it, Echo can feel his attention snapping back to the present, to her, and with it comes an immense wave of guilt.

“Actually,” he sighs before he can stop himself, “there’s... something on my mind.”

And he wishes he could take those words back and shove them down his throat, pretend he never spoke them, but it’s too late. He may as well soldier on. It’s just that he’s not sure how to say it.

Riyo adjusts so that she’s laying more on his torso than on her side and this way she can see him better. A thrill runs through him when she rests a hand on his ribcage and it only serves to confuse him even more. “What is it?”

Echo drops his head onto the pillow. He starts and stops half a dozen times, mouth opening and closing as he tries to find the right words to explain exactly what’s going on inside his head, but nothing feels right. He doesn’t want to hurt her and he doesn’t want to break things off either, but these new feelings are strange and uncomfortable and he’s not sure she’ll be very welcoming to them.

Her fingers rub soothingly over the skin just below one of his implants. “Tell me, love.”

“Your friend,” he stammers out in a blind panic. “The secretary.” He’s too scared to say your name, scared it’ll make it more real.

Riyo brows pull together. “What about her?”

“She loves you.”

Dank farrik, of all the things he could possibly say, that was what his brain decided on?

“Echo, what are you talking about?”

Well. Since he’s gone and opened his big mouth, he ought to see it through. There’s no way he can back out now.

“I’ve seen the way she looks at you, when she thinks you can’t see or when she thinks I’m looking at you.” He doesn’t mean it in an accusatory way. Kriff, it’s not like he can blame you! He knows firsthand just how lovely Riyo is and what it means to love her.

But what he doesn’t expect is for Riyo to start laughing. How is she finding this funny? If he found out that his long time co-worker and close friend was potentially in love with him, he wouldn’t be laughing about it!

“Echo, we’re friends, nothing more.”

“Close friends,” he reminds her.

“Yes, but I don’t think I’m the one she’s in love with.”

He raises an eyebrow. “Who else?”

She grins like a lothcat as she settles her chin on the back of her hand, just atop his stomach. “It’s you.”

There’s a million things he could say, a million thoughts zipping from one end of his brain to the other, a handful of witty remarks and memories seared into his brain that he could recount as evidence for the exact opposite of her claim, but all he can muster is a startled and slightly strangled, “What?”

“She’s been asking about you recently. It’s quite sweet. And I’ve caught her watching us kiss more than a few times.”

Because she’s looking at you, he wants to say, except his tongue catches on the fact that you’ve been inquiring after him. What does that even mean? Do you inquire about his wellbeing the way he’s been biting his tongue about for the past few weeks? He shakes his head. He knows for a fact that you’re in love with Riyo. Why in the galaxy would you be focused on him in any capacity?

It’s a longshot and he knows it, but maybe you’re struggling with the same kind of thoughts that he is. Maybe somewhere along the way you stopped resenting him and somehow, by some miracle, you saw in him the same thing that Riyo did.

He jolts forward like he’s been electrocuted. The sheets pool around his hips and Riyo rolls onto her back to avoid getting crushed, and suddenly his head is spinning. He can feel his veins flooding with adrenaline.

“You know how I feel about you, don’t you?” She looks up at him from beneath her lashes, confused, and nods. “You know I’m committed t’ us, even with the resistance and the Empire?”

Her hands find his face in a heartbeat. “Of course I know, cyare.”

“She loves us both, ner kar’ta." It’s coming out all jumbled and Echo’s not sure how to fix it, he just knows he has to say it before he loses his courage. “Somehow. And I think I understand it because I think I love both of you, too.”

The most unbearable silence passes between them. He hates it. He can feel the weight of Riyo’s thoughts lingering in the air as she processes his confession and he can feel the heaviness of her coming rejection. It feels like he’s suffocating. He doesn’t want to rush her, but if she doesn’t at least look at him he thinks he might pass out.

“Say something,” he pleads. “Anything.”

She licks her lips. “What are you saying exactly? Do you still- Are we-”

Echo gathers her hands up in his and this time he doesn’t shy away from pressing his scomp link on top. “We are fine, Riyo. I still want you, I still love you. But something’s happened the last few weeks that’s made me see her in a completely different light. I can’t explain it.” He thinks for a moment and finds that actually, he can. “It was you. I saw the way she loved you. She took care of you when I was away, held you when I couldn’t, and she stepped back when I returned. Even though she loves you, she wants you to be happy. And I think I realized that you were just as safe with her as I try to make you with me.”

His forehead drops to rest against hers and there’s a moment where he can feel her breath stir in his lungs; it gives him focus and strength to know that she’s still with him.

“I understand if this is too much. I can’t say I understand it myself. I never thought I could fall in love with anyone, let alone two people, and I can’t help thinking about what this could become. But... if you say no, I’ll drop it. I promise.”

The cool brush of fingers at his neck urges him to open his eyes. He can see the uncertainty on her face, he knows she’s hesitant, but he’ll accept whatever outcome. He’s just glad she’s hearing him out.

“Tell me more about your theory,” she finally says.

“Theory?” he hums.

“Why do you think she loves me?”

Taungsdays are the worst. They’re always horribly long and horribly busy, the traffic is always torturous, and your favorite kaf shop closes early. You want nothing more than to go home and crawl into bed, maybe stuff your face with some comfort food, but Riyo’s invited you to her apartment and you think she knows you could never refuse her. You do take twice as long as necessary getting there, though, if only so that your brain has a chance to wind down and reset for a social setting.

And it's a good thing you do because the last thing you had expected to see upon entering the apartment is Echo. Yet there he stands, leaning over the stove with his good arm as he works at something. Riyo is setting up the table, her hair done up in those side buns you've missed so dearly, and for a moment, you wonder if you've greatly misunderstood your invitation.

Had Riyo forgotten you were coming? Gotten your evening mixed up with a late night date with Echo? Had he come in unexpectedly and she'd forgotten to tell you? Were you meant to sit there and watch them through the romantic haze of lit candles and your own envy?

Funny, then, how all those fears and all the hurt dissipate the moment she lays eyes on you. She turns and is, for a moment, framed by the gentle candlelight and the soft glow of the Coruscant skyline from the window beyond, and she looks more beautiful than you've ever known. She smiles.

"You're here."

"I, I let myself in," you stammer weakly. "I hope that's alright?"

You know it is. It always has been. But with Echo here and your stomach twisting itself into knots, you're suddenly second-guessing your judgment.

"Of course."

Echo has spotted you as well by now. Whatever he's working at in the kitchen, it's apparently no longer important because all his attention is focused on you, on the surprise and nervous joy etched so clearly into his face as he gazes at you.

You've not moved from the doorway since you entered, too frozen with uncertainty to take a single step. There's something going on here, you're sure of it. The atmosphere is different, the energy electrifying the air is different, everything is different tonight, and you can't fully grasp how or why.

You start to understand, or at least suspect, the reason once you are ushered inside. Riyo's hand on your arm, heavier than it's ever been, lingering, gentle. Echo's eyes, suddenly unable to meet yours, his posture rigid and his brows deeply furrowed. Both of them have donned new clothes that drift somewhere in the vague, empty space between date night formal and late night casual, and it hits you like a freighter - they know.

Of course they do. Kriff, you've probably let yourself slip, given yourself too many excuses to let your mind wander, your gaze soften, to take Riyo in your arms and comfort her, to seek Echo out when he returns home and offer your support. And they've asked you here, amidst their latest date, to tell you that they're simply not interested and could you please tone it down?

How could you have been so foolish? You ought to have been content with what you had. The whispers of could-be's late at night in this very apartment, of what might-have-been's at the office, the maybe's that dance about within in your skull before you drift off to sleep. Instead, you're losing your best friend, you're losing the best man you've ever known, and it's all because -

"Hey."

You startle from the flurry of your thoughts to find Echo at your side. His good arm is otherwise occupied with carrying a a rather impressive looking tray of food, but his scomp arm has rested gingerly on your shoulder, and you marvel at the lightness of its touch. You had thought with it being pure metal and machinery that it would weigh him down, but it doesn't. Cautiously, you trace the line of arm all the way up to his face.

His face, normally drawn tight and serious, has lost some of its severity. His eyebrows are tilted up a bit, his kaf brown eyes searching, searching - for what you cannot guess. "You alright?" he finally asks.

His kindness makes something inside you ache. It's one of the first things you noticed about him once you stopped feeling jealous and started actually seeing him for the man he always was.

"Yeah," you answer, but the word comes out haltingly, unsure, and your heart isn't really in it.

The food is quickly settled upon the table and the scomp is traded for a hand of flesh and blood, for a hand that is broad and warm, fingernails cut short and skin that is lightly flecked with lighter and darker spots of melanin. He doesn't say anything else - perhaps he doesn't know what to say - but you get the sense that he isn't judging you for your own uncertainty or discomfort. He lightly squeezes your shoulder before moving back toward the kitchen, and you're left to wonder now, more than you had a mere minute earlier, just what the hell is going on.

"There's something we'd like to ask you."

Shame and horror rise up the back of your throat in the form of bile, hot and bitter, and immediately souring the aftertaste of the wonderful dinner the pair had made for you. It's an awful confirmation of what you had already dreaded - that they know and this whole evening is a gentle termination of your friendship.

But still, you hate to see it end, no matter how certain that ending is, so you mask your panic with the most hard-won smile you've ever attempted.

A quick sip of bubbling cider serves as another way to distance yourself from this horrible uncertainty. "What's that?"

Riyo and Echo share a look, charged with meaning that you're incapable of translating. Oh Maker, no.

"We've been friends for some years now, you and I," Riyo starts, but there's no hint of upset, no poorly hidden disgust or frustration. It's a simple statement of fact. Cautious optimism settles below your sternum. "I would never wish to do anything that might jeopardize that, so please - understand that you can always say no."

Wait, what?

Before you have a chance to utter a single word in either protest or surprise, Riyo continues on. She doesn't have to reach far to find Echo and settle a hand upon his arm, to connect herself to him once more. "We believe there may be something more here, between all three of us, and Echo and I would like to explore that with you."

"Only if that's what you want," Echo adds quickly. He still can't quite look you in the eye, but you don't think it's because he's embarrassed or disturbed by the proposition. There's something else. "I realize you and I are still figuring out where we stand with each other. But I like you. You're, you're good to Riyo, and you're good to me. We trust you." His throat visibly bobs when he swallows then. "I trust you."

And you slump back in your seat.

There's so much to process and so little time. You can feel each second dragging by, dragging you down further and further until you're certain the gravity of the moment is going to propel down to the very core of the planet where you'll promptly burst into a ball of flames.

You can say no. To what, the most life-altering declaration of romantic interest you've ever encountered in your entire life? Something more. Something more! So you had been obvious about it. But they approve? They're interested? We trust you. I trust you.

Your mouth starts moving before you've fully formed a single thought. "I thought... Kark, I thought you brought me here to let me down easy!"

Riyo giggles, Echo looks vaguely amused. They're both so beautiful, radiant in the candlelight.

"If that's what you want," she starts, but she can hardly finish before you're violently shaking your head.

"NoIdon'twantthat!" And then, taking a moment to compose yourself, you try again. "What I mean is, yes, I'd like to try."

Sithspit, are you really saying that? You're ready to take that plunge? You hadn't realized just how willing you were until the question had been asked. It was a wish that lingered in your wildest dreams, the kind that could never be granted or come to fruition, the kind that made you feel a fool for ever imagining them. Yet now that wish is fulfilling itself without any effort on your part. You are, to say the least, stunned.

"I don't understand. I thought the two of you were... I mean, you're both so..." There's no delicate way of telling your best friend 'I thought you were straight and also, since when is your boyfriend into me?'. Instead, you settle on the much more tactful, "I didn't think either of you even noticed me."

There's a not-so-subtle squeezing of one periwinkle hand within another, larger one some faint shade of brown and pale peach.

"We do," says the woman you love.

"Have for a while," says the man who loves her.

The room is quiet for a spell. The only sounds are those of the city nightlife, but it's muted through the glass and steel of the apartment.

“Starlight,” Riyo sighs as her eyes flicker all over your face, “may I kiss you?”

You could live to be a thousand and in all that time, you would have never imagined that the woman of your dreams would ask such a thing. It’s so startling that you almost want to run away. After all, if you keep running, you never have to stop and wait for the other shoe to drop. You can just outrun the shoe. But the glimmer in her eyes is as real as the knot in your throat and this dream could very well become a reality if you only find the courage to chase it.

“You want to?” You still can’t quite believe it.

Her smile is sweet and soft, and Maker, you want her so bad. “Yes.”

So you nod. “Okay.” It’s about all you can manage.

Riyo scoots her chair back and stands. She starts a path that weaves around the table, and all the while Echo watches her. You're not sure if you're supposed to defer to him and his comfort level, or to her and the longing you've fostered for her these past years. What if he tells her to stop? What if she doesn't listen? What if she wants this as much as you do? What if Echo does, too?

When she finally stops beside your chair, all cautious wonderings and hesitations are gone. There is only Riyo standing tall and proud above you, her mouth curling into the sweetest smile, your heart about to beat right through your ribcage.

She leans in slowly, like she has all the time in the galaxy, and the cider from earlier starts tingling at the back of your throat again. “You’re sure?”

“Ri, I’ve wanted to kiss you for ages. Please.”

The only things that exist in the universe are you and her. Her hand reaching for your knee, grazing over the bone with the edge of her thumb, her gaze dropping from above your nose to the space right below it, the slight parting of her lips as she draws closer and closer. You’re overwhelmed by the sudden urge to cry just before her nose brushes your cheek and then – oh, stars above, she’s kissing you. Finally. Three years of longing and she’s finally claiming the one thing you never thought she’d want.

Her mouth tastes like cider and a little hint of lip balm. She’s wonderful. She’s cool and sweet and the smell of her is flooding your senses until all you can comprehend is a warm pressure, bubbly, and cherry blossoms. One of her hands cups the curve of your cheek, pulls you in a little closer, and then it’s all over and you’re blinking back into reality.

You wonder if you have stars in your eyes like in those pixelated children’s holos. You’re fighting every instinct in your body that’s screaming to chase after her, to wrap your fingers in her hair and let her take what she wants, or ask her what she might give you. You want to put your hands on her waist and feel the reality of her so that you know for sure this is no dream. You want... you want her, anything and everything she’ll give you, you want to know she means all of this, you want so much and it’s all right at your fingertips, and you’re praying she wants you even a fraction as much as you want her.

“I’ve never kissed a woman before,” she hums with a hand pressed to her lips. You can see her smile poking out from behind.

“D’you like it?” Echo asks and the steady rumble of his voice is enough to send a shiver down your spine.

Riyo eyes you sideways, considers you as her teeth dig into the flesh of her lower lip. A more foolish you might say she was teasing you. A wiser you says not to get your hopes up.

“I do.”

Between the height of your chair and her natural posture, she doesn’t stand much taller than your head and this gives her the perfect opportunity to take your face in her hands again and lean in close.

“I’d like to try something.”

You swallow. “Please.”

It’s not until she’s fully lowered herself into your lap that you realize the trouble you’re in. Your stomach has plummeted so low that you’re sure it’s catapulted itself through the other end of the planet and is now hurtling through space. Your mouth is dry and your ears are ringing from the force of your heartbeat thundering away and somewhere in the back of your head, you’re distantly aware of Echo watching and an annoying voice that’s telling you you’re in over your head, you’re not good enough for her, or him, but then her mouth is on yours again and you stop thinking.

Her tongue sweeps out across your lips in a gentle press and it’s on instinct that you open up for her. You eagerly rise up to meet her in every way possible and that voice in your head goes completely silent because all you can do is follow the instinct deep in your bones that compels you to run your hands up Riyo’s spine and into her hair. She squeaks at first, but settles down a moment later. Her own hands drop to your shoulders and then they wander, one along your collarbone to the hollow of your throat, one to the nape of your neck just above your hem. And then she moans and shifts her weight so she’s rubbing herself on the swell of your thighs, and you break apart with a tattered cry.

“Is this alright?”

Surely she can gauge the harsh angle of your neck as you throw your head back and squeeze your eyes shut, how your entire lower half responds to her by jolting back and forth, seeking her out, aching for her.

“Yes. You’re... You’re more than alright,” you stammer between jolts of simmering want lancing through your belly. “Just took me by surprise.”

Echo chuckles from his spot on the sofa. “Yeah, she tends t' do that.”

Riyo hums happily as her eyes flicker about you. She's not even trying to hide her smile, how pleased she is that you're reacting like this. "May I try something else?" she asks.

"Anything," is the desperate response that tears itself from your throat.

With her attention still fixed on you, she tilts her head ever so slightly toward her shoulder and calls, "Cyare?"

Echo's body goes still in response. At least, it does until she explicitly prompts him to approach. And it's only once your heart is in your throat and Riyo has him by the front of his shirt, dragging him down, down, pressing her lips to his ear and whispering something half Pantoran, half Mando'a, it's only once your eyes have about bulged out of your head because seeing them together like this no longer makes your chest tight and stomach shake with jealousy, it's only once Echo has turned to you, his eyes dark and lips parted, that you think you're in way over your head. That perhaps you stepped into this too blind and too hungry. That maybe-

Oh, he's soft. Softer than you thought. Soft like Riyo. You'd always assumed that since he was a soldier, since he came back from the brink of death with a body in pieces, since his cheeks are gaunt from years of neglect and his muscles are joined to bits of metal, that he would be all hard edges. Echo is anything but. His mouth is gentle on yours, his lips feather light and warm. His remaining hand comes to rest upon your cheek and tempt you closer, to let yourself fall into his warmth.

"Easy, cyar'ika," he breathes as he withdraws from you. The teasing is gentle, paired with a glimmer of mischief in his eyes. "Was that alright?"

You nod eagerly, breathlessly. "Yes. Yes, it was wonderful. You're wonderful."

Riyo laughs, and Echo does, too.

"Can I kiss you again?" you ask. There's no point in being shy now, not with one of them straddling your lap and the other tracing their thumb across your cheekbone. You don't think you could ever be shy again now that you know they care for you, want you, that they've made a place for you within their lives.

"You never have to ask."

prompt: senate ✔️

@clonexreaderbingo

#riyo chuchi x reader #riyo chuchi x echo #echo x reader #tbb echo x reader #tbb echo x you #riyo chuchi x you #riyo x echo x reader #cfb2023 #star wars #tbb #yes the title is taken from a track on the s2 soundtrack :)

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labrats-and-clonetroopers · 1 year

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(Please) Choose the Next Star Wars Drabble

Options:

Sabine Wren x Ezra Bridger

She wonders, wherever Ezra is, if his abilities in the Force are still growing. She wonders because the dreams she’s been having lately of him have been abnormal. He looks different, older, framed in dark, unfamiliar places. His eyes are dark too, and she hears him call her name as though it was a lifeline, as the light continues to dim, his features distorting…

Echo x Riyo Chuchi (Past Fox x Riyo Chuchi)

There were always the rare few senators who cared, who valued the clones’ lives, and vainly tried to bring up the issue of their rights before the Senate. But there’s something more behind her glimmering golden eyes, something desperate and wounded, fueling her determination for justice. She’s grieving something, someone maybe, and he wishes she’d share her burden with him.

Phee Genoa x Tech

She’d known if she were to ever have a real chance of catching his affection, she’d have to take it slow. And never once had that bothered her. The rarest treasures can take centuries to find. She never imagined that time would be cut so short.

Cinta Kaz x Vel Sartha

Vel just wants one night, one moment, where they can imagine a different world, a paradise, where love can blossom without loss. Cinta doesn’t have the heart to tell her that she can’t imagine a paradise, not even for a moment. All she can dream of is a red dawn.

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hyperfixated-fan · 1 year

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Warning: Spoilers for season 2!

WHY AREN’T MORE PEOPLE DISCUSSING THIS?!! Like yay, Tech whump, teen Omega, dad Hunter, new dead clone captain. I’m all for that, but THIS. This is the really good stuff. I am so happy Riyo is back! I love her so much!

Seeing Pantora back in season one without Riyo kinda dashed my hopes of ever seeing her ever again yet here she is. From what I gather, this is a leak and isn’t an edit. I’m sooo excited to see her again! She looks so good! Rex looks pretty good too. They’ve all grown up so much!

My mind started racing with so many scenarios when I first saw her. And I have concerns because while I am ecstatic to see her, I really don’t want her to die. (Such is the fate of many beloved Star Wars characters.) :’(

But I was also thinking, bear with me hear, it’s a longshot but what if, WHAT IF, the writers threw in a crumb of Foxiyo. Like, “Hello, I’m Senator Chuchi and I just escaped the Senate with the help of my good friend Fox.” Probably won’t ever happen, but we can all dream.

I love Foxiyo and there’s so many good works out there, but I find it so hilarious that there is really zero evidence for it besides the fact that they both reside in Coruscant. It would be so funny to see that the writers actually do pay attention to a tiny portion of the fandom and their wild imaginations.

#tbb spoilers #the bad batch #the bad batch season 2 #the bad batch spoilers #tbb tech #tbb hunter #tbb wrecker #tbb echo #tbb omega #fox x riyo #riyo chuchi #foxiyo #senator chuchi #I hoped I tagged the spoilers well enough

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dystopicjumpsuit · 3 months

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Stars Beyond Number - Chapter 23

Eyes I Dare Not Meet

Rating: M - Minors DNI

Pairings: Echo x Riyo Chuchi; Gregor x OFC Cerra Kilian

Wordcount: 2.5k

Warnings and tags: SMUT; unprotected PIV; a character is consensually pinned down during sex; discussion of blood, injury, violence, and character death; mentions of Plan 99; brief angst; fluff.

Suggested Listening:

Summary: Cerra and Gregor return to Coruscant.

A/N: This story shares continuity with Martyrs and Kings, "Double, Double Boil and Trouble" (part 2 here) and "Do It Again," but all the fics can be read as stand-alones.

Eyes I dare not meet in dreams

In death’s dream kingdom

—T. S. Eliot, “The Hollow Men”

Cerra woke gradually, surrounded by Gregor’s familiar warmth and scent. For once, no layers of blankets and clothing separated their bodies. He curled around her, his warm skin pressed against hers, his front against her back, his legs tucked behind her thighs, his arm wrapped around her waist, his breath soft against her neck.

She stretched luxuriously and arched her back, very intentionally rolling her ass against his hips. As she ground against him in leisurely, deliberate motions, she felt his cock harden rapidly.

“Good morning,” she whispered. “Are we in hyperspace?”

“Mm-hmm,” he murmured, stroking his hand lower down her belly. “How’s your shoulder?”

She rolled it experimentally, then glanced down to see that the bruise had already faded significantly thanks to the bacta. “Better. How’s my face?”

”Beautiful,” he replied.

She laughed. “I meant is the bruising better?”

He traced his fingers along her jaw and tilted her head so he could see her face. His thumb brushed over her lips. “The swelling is gone. Bruises are a little lighter.” He kissed her softly. “Did that hurt?”

”Not even a little bit,” she said. “But you should probably try again, just to be sure.”

He smiled and leaned in again, and her breath caught as she gazed into his eyes. Gods, he was so gorgeous. He hesitated before he kissed her, observing her closely.

”What’s on your mind?” he asked. “I recognize that expression.”

”I was just wishing I hadn’t wasted so much time when I could have spent it with you,” she replied.

”You did spend it with me,” he said, gliding his fingertips across her shoulder and down her arm.

”You know what I mean,” she said.

”Mm-hmm,” he said, kissing her cheek. “I just don’t think it was wasted time.”

”Still,” she said, “it feels like we have a lot of catching up to do.”

The corners of his eyes crinkled subtly as he smiled. “Well, it’s a hundred and six parsecs to Coruscant. Let’s make the most of it.”

He slipped his hand between her thighs and slowly dragged his fingers in circles around her clit. She breathed out a soft, contented sigh, tilting her head as his lips began to kiss a meandering path down her neck and shoulder. He shifted, and she felt the head of his cock drag along her ass and press between her thighs until it nudged against her cunt. She pushed back against him, and he slid into her languorously, moving with unhurried thrusts until he was seated fully inside her.

She was still sore from the previous night, and her body felt wonderfully drowsy and relaxed. Gregor’s stamina was mind-blowing. He’d fucked her for hours before they finally fell asleep, and even now she was too exhausted to move, but he touched her with gentle deftness as he rocked into her. Her pleasure gradually built with each slow, blissful drag of his cock, drawing hushed moans and sighs from her.

“I love the way you feel,” he whispered, his warm breath against her ear sending tingles racing down her neck. “So soft, so pretty. Do you like this?”

“Mmm,” she nodded. “Don’t stop.”

“Wouldn’t dream of it,” he chuckled.

He flattened his palm against her lower abdomen, pressing firmly to increase the stimulation of his cock, and she felt her orgasm building rapidly, her body tensing around him.

“Are you going to come for me, love? Will you give me one more?”

“Yes,” she gasped. “Yes, yes, fuck yes, oh gods, please—”

“Come on, then,” he coaxed. “Let me feel you.”

She yelped as her climax crashed into her, her muscles spasming uncontrollably, but Gregor didn’t slow his movements. His arms tightened around her, and he continued to thrust into her in a lazy, sensuous rhythm. He nuzzled his face against her short, velvety hair and kissed the soft skin just behind her ear.

“Can I have another?” he whispered.

She shook her head a little frantically. “I can’t.”

“I think you can,” he murmured. “One more, beautiful girl, and then you can have my cum.”

She shuddered.

“Mmm, did you like that?” he asked. “Do you like thinking about me filling this perfect little cunt until it drips out of you?”

She whimpered, her brain refusing to form words.

”I think you did. I could feel you tighten around me when I said it.”

”God,” she gasped.

“I’ll give you everything I have, sweetheart. All you have to do is come for me one more time. Will you do that for me?”

“I’ll try,” she panted.

“What do you need?” he asked. “Use your words, angel, tell me how you want me.”

“Harder,” she said raggedly.

“You want it harder?” he asked, thrusting deeply into her. “You want to feel what what I can do?”

“Yes, fuck yes!”

”You want me to fuck you like I wouldn’t do last night?”

”Please, gods,” she begged.

Still buried deep inside her, he gripped her hips and rolled her onto her stomach, straddling her thighs. He thrust hard and rough, and the additional pressure of her legs as he held them together made his cock feel impossibly thick. He took her hand in his, interlacing his fingers with hers as he pressed her into the mattress. The weight of his body on top of her, caging her in his arms and legs, made her feel utterly safe and protected, even as he forced the breath from her lungs with every punishing thrust.

“Is this what you wanted?” he rasped.

“Ye—yes,” she groaned. “Harder!”

He laughed quietly. “You asked for it.”

He increased his speed, setting a brutal pace that had her wailing and sobbing into the sheets, her words garbling into an endless stream of curses and pleading, until there were no words at all, only primal, unrestrained cries as she shattered into blinding ecstasy. Gregor followed her with a hoarse grunt, driving himself deep inside her as he flooded her with a rush of liquid heat.

He collapsed onto her, his breath coming in gusts. She reveled in the weight of him, the feel of his cock still lodged in her cunt as it slowly softened. When at last he raised himself from her body, she nearly begged him not to go, but he quickly pulled her into his arms as he pressed his lips to her forehead. Wrapped securely in his strong arms, she slept once again.

Cerra didn’t stir until Gregor cautiously began to extricate himself from the bed. She grumbled and latched onto him, prompting him to laugh quietly.

“I’m coming back,” he said. “I just need to check on navigation.”

“I’ll come with you,” she said.

He brushed his fingers across her cheek. “You need to sleep, love. I’ll be back soon.”

She wanted to protest, but he was already gone. She must have dozed off immediately, because she felt like she had only blinked by the time he returned and crawled back beneath the blankets to hold her.

“Two more hours in hyperspace,” he said as she settled her head on his shoulder. “All the time in the galaxy.”

“We could just drop into realspace now,” she mumbled as she pressed her face against him. “Stay like this forever.”

”I think someone might come looking for us,” he observed.

”We could hang up a sign that says ‘nobody home.’”

“Mmm.” He stroked his hand across her shoulders. “Might get a little hungry.”

“Stop poking holes in my plan,” she said. “Besides, I have something you could eat.”

“You’re insatiable,” he laughed.

“I have two years of celibacy to make up for,” she pointed out. “Maybe not right now, though. I don’t know if I can even walk right now.”

“That’s certainly one way to keep you in my bed,” he said.

She sighed deeply. “I suppose we have to go back to real life eventually.”

He pressed his lips to the top of her head with a quiet, contented sigh. “Not yet, though.”

They lay quietly, Gregor massaging her shoulders gently as Cerra drew tiny patterns on the bare skin of his torso with her fingertips. As tempting as it was to fake her death, kidnap Gregor, and disappear forever into Wild Space to find some lovely, remote moon where nobody would ever find them, Cerra knew that neither of them would ever seriously consider abandoning Rex and the others.

A thought occurred to her suddenly, and she felt a stab of guilt for not asking sooner. “Did anyone ever find out what happened to Nax?”

Gregor shook his head. “We looked for him, but we couldn’t find a trace. Rex put out the word to his network, but we haven’t heard anything yet. We’ll keep looking.”

“Even Echo couldn’t find anything?” she asked.

Gregor started to speak, then stopped.

“What is it?” she asked.

“Echo is gone,” he said.

Cerra’s heart lurched to a halt. Her mouth went dry, and her throat constricted suddenly.

“Wh-what?” she stammered. “How? When? Why didn’t you say something before?”

“Not like that!” he exclaimed. “He went back to the Batch. Oh, gods, Cerra, breathe!”

Relief flooded her, and she slapped his shoulder irritably. “Don’t scare me like that! I thought you meant—I thought—”

“He’s all right, Cerra,” Gregor soothed. “Big breath in.”

She inhaled obediently, held it for a few seconds, and then exhaled.

”Are you all right?” he asked.

She nodded, inhaling and exhaling at a slow, deliberate pace. “How long was I gone?”

He hesitated.

“How long?” she demanded.

“Over two weeks,” he admitted. “It took time to find you. We didn’t even know who’d taken you. By the time Rex’s contact—”

“Wolffe,” she interrupted.

“Eh?” Gregor looked startled.

“Rex’s inside man is Commander Wolffe,” she said. “I’m lucky he was able to get to me before Yularen’s pet sadist finished what he started.”

Gregor’s expression darkened. “Are you sure he’s dead?”

”Pretty kriffin’ sure,” she replied.

”Too bad. I’d have liked to tear him apart myself.”

She laughed quietly. “So bloodthirsty.”

”When the occasion calls for it.”

“You would have approved of the way I handled it, then. So much blood.” She shuddered. “Gross. I hope he didn’t give me anything nasty.”

”We’ll run a scan when we get back to the garage,” he said. “Pretty sure the senator can get us just about any meds we need.”

“Must be nice to have unlimited funds.”

Gregor hummed noncommittally, a pensive expression on his face. “There’s something I need to tell you, Cerra.”

Icy fear skittered down her spine at his somber tone. “What is it?”

“Echo might not be coming back.”

“What do you mean?” she demanded. “Why not?”

“His mission went bad. His team lost—a lot. Tech and Omega…” he trailed off.

“The kid is dead?” she asked, horrified.

“The Empire took her,” he replied.

“My gods,” she whispered.

“They’re going to get her back,” Gregor said firmly. “They’re not giving up, and neither are we.”

“Rex?” Cerra asked.

“He’s doing everything he can. For now, though, Echo is staying with the Batch. We might not see him for some time.”

“Kriff. Poor Echo,” she said. “What can we do to help?”

“I don’t know yet,” Gregor said, “but we’ll figure it out.”

“How?” she asked, feeling a wave of helplessness wash over her at the magnitude of their fight.

“The same way we always do,” Gregor said. “Together.”

The hectic swirl of Coruscant’s traffic was not nearly as relaxing to watch when Cerra was stuck in it. The airspeeder headlights were blinding; the crowded lanes were barely controlled chaos. Her brain—still in a haze of sex and exhaustion and stress and adrenaline—struggled to make sense of it all, and she was glad Gregor had offered to pilot the freighter.

It seemed to take hours before they made it through the frenzied upper level congestion and descended through the underworld portal. Level 1313 had many advantages, particularly for a group that relied on secrecy, but it undeniably had disadvantages, and one of them was the long kriffing commute.

“How am I supposed to rebel, resist, revolt under these conditions?” Cerra grumbled.

At last, the freighter docked on the landing platform, and Cerra hurried down the ramp. The garage seemed strangely full, though that might have been due to the way Fireball barrelled into her, pulling her into a crushing hug as Nemec and Rex crowded close, impatiently awaiting their turns. She buried her face against Fireball’s neck, and as she pulled away, she noticed a change.

“What’s this?” she asked, ruffling her fingers through his baby-pink hair that was noticeably longer than when she'd left.

“Nemec helped me dye it when we found out you were coming back,” Fireball grinned. “What do you think?”

“I think it suits you, just the way I said it would,” she laughed. “Pink is your color. Are you growing it out?”

He nodded. “Thought it might be a good idea to try to blend a little better.”

She laughed. “The pink will definitely help with that.”

“It’s temporary!” he exclaimed indignantly as he walked her to the bottom of the ramp, where Nemec clasped her forearm and gave her a quick hug, before she turned to Rex.

“Hey, Cap,” she said quietly.

He smiled as he pressed his forehead against hers, holding the back of her head gently. “You look like hell.”

“Should have seen her before the bacta,” Gregor said as he joined them.

“Barely knew it was me, right, Gregor?” she asked.

He shook his head. “I’ll know you forever.”

Rex glanced at him sharply, but Gregor merely shrugged and wandered over to the kitchenette, where he started to brew a cup of caf. Rex introduced Cerra to Howzer and his men, and by the time she’d learned their names, Gregor rejoined the group, brushing his thumb lightly over Cerra’s fingers as he handed her the mug.

She took a sip and let out an audible groan of pleasure. “How do you always make the best caf?”

“Not tellin’,” he grinned.

“Suit yourself,” she said flippantly. “You’re just volunteering to be my caf dealer for the rest of my life.”

“If you insist,” he replied with a giggle.

Cerra yawned. “Gods, I can’t wait to take a shower and then sleep for about ten years.”

Gregor drew a breath to reply, but before he could speak, another voice called out from the garage entrance, “Might want to hold off on that.”

Cerra turned to see a clone strolling casually into the shop, and for a moment, she simply stared at him in confusion, until she spotted the distinctive scar on his jaw. Her blaster was in her hand and trained on the clone before she even registered the pain of hot caf as it sloshed from the mug and burned her hand. She didn’t flinch, though, and her eyes were hard and icy as she glared at him.

“What the kriff are you doing here?” she demanded.

---

A/N: The Mando'a phrase meaning “I love you” is Ni kar'tayli gar darasuum: literally “I hold you in my heart forever,” usually translated as “I will know you forever.”

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