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mercurydancer · 2 years

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An Unexpected Chance pt 15

Of Diners and Stories

_

Mace was sitting in Dex’s, Plo sitting across from him.

Plo had not initially been part of the plan, Mace did agree with letting him sleep, but Mace could not imagine that the other Jedi would not be wanted. Mace had seen him as he walked out of his room, looking a bit tired, but determined. Mace had told him of the invitation for breakfast and Plo had smiled, thanking him, and they had been sitting together at Dex’s the strongest coffee that they had in front of Mace, Plo content to merely enjoy the Diner, speaking quietly to Hermione and FLO whenever they came by, which was often.

Mace smiled to himself as he listened to them talking, letting it all wash over him. He still could not get Maul’s voice out of his head.

“I love you,” he had said, the smile on his face so broad, so utterly free in a way that Mace had never seen it.

It was like the little kid that Maul was supposed to be, the little six-year-old with all of those protective layers peeled back, and the joy in him, the utter warmth had been so much…

Mace wondered what had happened, wondered perhaps if being able to participate in a ritual that was obviously treasured and loved by the Brothers had been enough to push him, or if it was…everything. If everything had finally coalesced into the perfect formula for Maul to understand that he was safe.

Mace ultimately did not truly care all that much, he couldn’t, not in the face of such joy.

Mace’s attention turned to the door to the Diner as it chimed, and in came… Maul, pulling his brothers behind him, a wide grin on his face as he called to them. Mace’s eyes trailed from Maul to his brothers, who were forced to stoop almost double, both of them having given Maul a thumb to hold, the little boy unable to hold their full hands. There was the brightest glee on Feral and Savage’s faces, wide smiles prominent on their faces.

“Well!” Hermione called out then, and Mace turned his attention to the waitress, boots planted strongly on the ground, hands on her hips, her expression the purest form of delight, eyes sparkling brilliantly as she grinned. “Look who’s full of beans tonight, huh?”

Maul locked eyes with her then and his expression bloomed into the widest smile that Mace had ever seen on that face, utterly unrestrained joy, even as he let go of Feral and Savage who had frozen… Maul ran directly towards her and leapt, Hermione cackling gleefully as she caught him up in her arms, scooping him high in the air and then bringing him back down to cuddle against her chest, pressing a kiss to his nose.

“Jumping beans, huh, kitten?” she asked, beaming. “You gonna give me some of that energy?”

“No!” Maul laughed, shaking his head. “You can’t have any.”

“I can’t?” Hermione called out, her voice full of mock hurt. “That’s just cruel, kitten, wrong, terrible, leaving me all bereft.”

“Driiiink coffee!” Maul called out to her, before blinking, “Hermione, Hermione, those are my brothers, they’re my brothers! They’re mine! That’s Savage, and that’s Feral, Feral’s my twin!”

Hermione froze, finally staring past Maul to take in the two men that stood there, their expressions somewhere between shock and just… There was a joy there.

A joy of the deepest, most profound sort. The kind of joy that peeked its way through utter concern, through fear. Hermione hesitated for a moment as she took them in and then took a breath before walking Maul forward, holding him out towards Feral, who took him up in his arms carefully.

“Hello,” Hermione said, her voice choked, “it’s…it’s really good to meet you two. My name’s Hermione, I’m going to be your waitress. Your brother…he’s something really special, you know? You’re holding a damn good little kid. You both should be really proud, you know?”

“Yes,” Feral breathed, “yes we do know.” He paused. “Thank you…Hermione…what…what is a waitress?”

Hermione smiled, clicking her recorder pen, and leaning forward with a grin, “I’m going to take your order and make sure the boss gets it so he can take make your food.”

“Boss?” Savage repeated softly. “He?”

“Take…take our orders?” Feral managed.

Hermione beamed at them, “You’re not on Dathomir anymore, men,” she said, “this is Coruscant, and this is a Diner, and in a Diner you can order all sorts of food – provided it is on our lovely menu – and I will let our cook know, our cook who also so happens to be the Owner of this lovely establishment, male, and my boss. Gentlemen, meet Dexter Jettster.”

Mace watched as Dex leaned through the window, both Savage and Feral staring at the Besalisk with the wide-eyed wonder that was so utterly common in the ones that had never seen one before, taking in the sheer size and look of him.

Dex eyed Hermione for a moment, expression halfway between amused and incredulous, “Thank you, Hermione, for that absolutely…”

“DEX!” Maul yelled, and promptly ran directly towards that window, Dex’s attention locking onto him as he leapt, Dex immediately reaching a hand out through the window, catching hold of Maul as he leapt and holding him in that single hand, Maul shrieking with gleeful laughter as Dex pulled him through, tossed him up in the air and settled him upon his shoulder.

“Hey, little Mauler,” he said, “Hermione was right, huh, you are full of jumping beans.”

“I only have twelve beans, and they’re all on my feet, of course they’re for jumping,” Maul said, rolling his eyes and sticking his feet out very far, holding onto Dex’s crest as he did so, Dex laughing, ducking low to help him keep his balance. “Can we…can we have some of that melon, please? I would like to share it with my brothers.”

Dex stepped around the kitchen doorway, walking towards the group of them. “I think we can definitely make that happen,” Dex said, and then reached out with his right hands, Savage and Feral both taking hold of them timidly, watching in unmistakable glee as his left two were placed on his chest and on his hip respectively. “My name is Dexter Jettster, but you can call me Dex, I am the owner of this establishment as Hermione stated. I pay her bills and mine,” he finished with a wink. “It’s…damn good to meet ya. Hermione is right, your…your brother’s somethin’ special. He’s been comin’ to my Diner longer than he’s known any of these fine people here. He’s a good friend. And this little guy? He’s a good friend, too.” Dex plucked Maul from his shoulder again and held him out towards Savage, who took him in his arms. “Welcome to my Diner, if you all would like to take a seat Hermione has got some menus for you to look at.”

Maul turned towards them and Mace watched as his expression brightened, a smile spreading from ear to ear as he caught sight of both Plo and Mace himself. “You’re here!” he called out, “you’re both here! Plo, Plo! I love you!”

Plo made a sound in his ear that reminded him of a dying speeder, and Mace smiled.

“I love you, Mace, I love you!” he squirmed out of Savage’s hold and ran over, sliding underneath the table to sit between them and squished Plo into a hug, and then pulled Mace into one as well. “Thank you for coming, I did not expect to see you!”

“I was already awake,” Plo said softly, “I am…very grateful that I was. I…” he paused, “I love you, too.”

Maul beamed up at him and then looked to Mace, who finally, softly, “I love you, too.”

Maul beamed at them and crawled back over to sit between his brothers as they sat down across from them, the others crowding in with them, Hermione adding a table to the end of the booth so they could all sit together. “Alright, gents,” Hermione said, pulling out the menus. “Check ‘em out, see what looks good, if you have any questions your chef is right here and he can answer everything you need to know, or ask me, whichever you prefer.” She winked, and Mace found himself momentarily so grateful for her.

Giving them the opportunity to ask Dex and letting them know that they were able to do it if they were uncomfortable talking to her while not framing it like that at all. It was a kindness, and Mace was happy for them both.

“Thank you,” Savage said, Feral nodding silently, even as he pulled the menu closer. Maul immediately began pointing things out to the two of them, talking about what he liked to eat and what they should order.

“They have a really good pepper oil, too,” Maul said, “if you like it…do you like it spicy?”

“That is the best way to eat it,” Feral agreed with a grin. Maul’s eyes practically shone.

Mace was delighted.

They talked over the menu, asking questions of Dex and then eventually Hermione, listening to her explain her own personal taste and recommending things that she knew other Zabrak regulars had liked. Agen and Eeth chimed in there, and by the time they had figured everything out, Savage, and Feral both looked like they were truly relaxing into it, and also just relaxing around her as they finally made their orders.

It was good.

It was so needed.

But it also brought him back to staring at Maul, watching the little boy interact with the others. There was something so…freeing, and yet utterly strange about watching him like that. Maul had always been so guarded, had been so quick to shut himself down even when he seemed to want to reach. This…this was unexpected, nearly unprecedented. Mace supposed he could understand being with his brothers…his actual honest brothers, brothers that loved him, that thought the world of him would be something to push him towards happiness… But even so…

Even so.

“How are you doing, Maul?” Mace asked.

“Oh, I’m good!” Maul said, “I feel a bit funny, though. They said that I was…sun-drunk? I think?” he said. “I am not used to focused yellow sunlight, but I tried to bask with Tiq on Debbie.”

“What…who…”

“Debbie is a rock!” Maul called out, pointing to Tiq, “it is Tiq’s favorite rock. He named it tonight.”

“I did,” Tiq said, “It stands for Delightfully Excellent Basking Boulder Is Exceptional.”

“I thought it stood for Delightful Excellent Boulder Building Incredible Endurance?” Agen countered.

“That was the working acronym,” Tiq waved off even as they laughed aloud. “But…yes, Maul is a little…I think I’d call it something like tipsy. He has never been in direct sunlight like that for so long, but it…does make sense that Nightbrothers, who are already nocturnal are affected by direct yellow sunlight like that.” Tiq made a brief face, “which…I suppose, will have to put an end to our outdoor sessions. I do not like the idea that he could have been on the border of tipsy while he was talking to me about his mental health. There is a breach in that which is completely unacceptable.”

And there was a disappointment in that as much as there was a joy. If it truly…if it was just a lowering of inhabitations…the idea that Maul truly may be like other little boys… That underneath all of that fear, all of that pain, the happy and truly carefree little kitten remained.

It was a hope…

But it was also something that came with its own caveat. If this was not something that Maul was comfortable with falling into while sober, then that would be enough, and it would be good. Letting the boy hurt himself with too much direct sun exposure was utterly unacceptable. Mace did not care how adorable it made him. All Mace cared about was his health, and it seemed that they didn’t have a full understanding of what all could be affected.

Either way, Mace found himself grinning at the little boy that leaned into his brother and nuzzled close to him. Maul deserved to have moments like this, even if they were few and far between. Maul deserved happiness.

Dex came back with their food, Hermione helping him carry it over, as well as something that Savage and Feral both straightened up to peer at closely, their expressions frozen in a mixture of confusion and curiosity. FLO appeared to have finished her charging cycle and was approaching, a large serving tray balanced over her head.

“How you doin, hons?” she asked, wheeling over. “I’m sorry I wasn’t around to properly greet you all, I had to finish my charging cycle. But now I’m all charged up and ready to help. Name’s FLO if you’re new here~” she said and winked a single photoreceptor towards Savage and Feral, the two of them blinking, letting out quiet rumbles of interest, softly murmured words in their own language breathed under their breath. “What’s your names, darlings?” she asked, putting Savage’s and Feral’s food down in front of them.

“Savage,” he answered. “This is Feral.”

“Hello,” Feral said. “Are…are you a droid?”

“That’s me,” FLO chirped, “I’m a Wa-7 model waitress droid, at your service. You ever seen a droid before?”

“No,” Savage managed, “I…knew that they existed, but I have never seen one on Dathomir.”

“Oh, how exciting, you mean I get to be your first introduction?” she spun on her single wheel, spreading her arms out wide, “I’m doubly pleased to meet you both. You have any questions don’t hesitate to ask, hons, though you gotta tell me what you think?”

“Amazing…” Feral breathed softly. “Can…can I touch you?”

“Sure, hon, go right ahead,” she said holding her hand out, “I even shake hands if you’d like,” she winked.

Feral took her hand, making a softly pleased sound as he shook it, Savage following the motion as well as Feral let go and FLO held her hand out to him as well. “I’m pleased to meet you both, you’re gonna have to tell me how you like the food, yeah?”

“Yes…”

“Alright, don’t let it get too cold now,” she said, gesturing towards it, “it’s better hot and fresh.”

“Thank you,” they said, and FLO gave them a brief wave before rolling back to the kitchen.

“Glad you like FLO,” Dex said smiling, “so. Like she said, it’s better hot, so get to it,” he gestured to the spread before them. “Oh, yeah, here little Mauler,” he said putting a small bowl of extra pepper-oil before him. “An extra kick for you.”

“Thank you!” Maul chirped.

They all turned their attention to breakfast, happily munching. Maul offered his pepper oil to Savage and Feral and the funniest damn thing happened.

Feral and Savage both had enjoyed their breakfast spicier than the others, but when they dipped it in Maul’s oil, trying it rather thoughtlessly, this turned out to be a mistake. The two of them paused before immediately going for drinks or eating something else, finally putting a hand on Maul’s oil and pushing it towards him.

“You are crazy, kitten,” Feral managed, wiping his mouth, “where did you develop a taste for that?”

“It must be the coloration,” Savage mumbled around his glass of water. “Red Brothers were always the ones with the most pepper to them.”

Maul giggled aloud, holding his hands out, “I am red, and I do like pepper” he called. “OH! Have you seen Wither Sententious’ plays?”

“Wither…made plays?” Feral asked softly, lowering his napkin and staring at him.

“YEAH!” Maul called out, “and wrote a lot of poetry, it’s all very very good! I think…I think you would like it. He left a…message for me, I have some of his effigies, I don’t…I don’t know who they are, though. I don’t know a lot about him. Or…or you…” he paused. “Will you teach me about us? I tried…reading the plays, but they are hard…and he had to…he had to make it kinder for the rest of the Galaxy. Dathomir is too hard of a planet…so much of the universe is…it’s soft.” Maul paused. “Mustafar was hard,” he breathed. “There was lava…everywhere…I was surrounded by heat and by flame and by ash so thick it would choke you if you tried to go outside…” he paused, his voice so quiet, so quiet… “I don’t want to go back.”

“You won’t have to,” Mace said. “There’s nothing to go back to.”

“The base on Mustafar is destroyed,” Plo said. “You are free from it and from ever going back to Dathomir or Mustafar itself. You are free. You and your brothers are free and…I am sure…”

“We would love to teach you more, kitten,” Savage said, taking Maul’s head in his hands, lacing his fingers through his horns. “But…Wither Sententious…made plays?”

“Grace and Word lived up to its name, huh?” Feral asked, and he seemed very pleased.

“He did,” Mace said. “His plays are some of my favorite. I’ve performed them and…even taught Maul about them.”

“He did!” Maul pointed to him, “but he also mostly taught my older self about him. Apparently I wrote a play based on one of his works, but I’m too young to read about it yet.” Maul paused for a moment, “I’ve never been too young for anything before,” Maul said then looking to them and then to Mace. “I…I never had anyone tell me that I didn’t need to do something or force myself to watch something…” he trailed off, his voice soft, and finally, quietly, “thank you…I…I don’t want to see it if it’s scary…or if it’s sad. I’ve…I really think I’ve seen enough.”

There was a pause, before Savage and Feral both picked him up, squishing him tight between them, horns locking and pressing close, nuzzling up against his cheeks and rumbling purrs building as they just held him, and he held them. There wasn’t much more that needed to be said. A voiceless we have you that rang pure and true, Maul relaxing into their hold the longer they held tight.

The soft sound of Maul starting to weep was the only sound that split the silence and his brothers held him, and together they kept him safe. Together they would keep him safe.

Too much had been done already and for once in the entire Galaxy they had been given an opportunity to prevent it from happening again.

When Maul fell asleep in their arms it seemed that breakfast was over, and it was likely that when Maul woke up again this would be a far-off memory, depending on how much being sundrunk affected him.

But for now…for now his brothers were able to hold him, and if nothing else they knew that he was safe.

It was more than Mace had ever dreamed of.

_

Feral was carrying his little brother against his chest. They had finished breakfast and Maul was still dead to the world. They’d thanked Dex and his workers (and what an amazing thought that was). Dex had spoken to them about that, too, about the fact that they would have the opportunity to ply a trade here. That they could work here, own their own businesses, could work, and had even offered to have them work for him if they’d like to get used to it. A Diner gave a perfect opportunity to really get into the heart of a place, and Coruscant’s heart was complicated.

They had thanked him without any pressure to accept or decline weighing on their shoulders, instead the simple knowledge that they could think about it buzzing in their hearts. He was always looking for good nighttime help, and the Nightbrothers would be good for it.

Feral momentarily wondered if Maul would have been interested in doing something like that. Feral liked to cook and had often created meals with Savage, but his brother was still in some ways an unknown.

But Feral knew all that was important, and what he knew was that he loved him, and that Maul had loved them more than he could say. The Maul in his arms loved them all so much, and Feral loved him.

They took a taxi back to the Temple, one of the ones called in by Joric, a Rodian this time by the name of Iln, one that Tiq had immediately shaken the hand of, climbing into the front seat to talk to him in his native language. It was a fascinating tongue, and Feral wondered if he would be able to learn it, but ultimately his concern was with the child in his arms, and on his brother beside him.

Savage had that quietly sad look he sometimes got when he was thinking too much, and judging by the fact that his gaze had not shifted from Maul Feral knew what he was thinking about.

Feral nudged Savage gently, temporarily shaking him out of it. Savage looked up at him with a small smile and put a hand on Maul’s head, gentle… Maul nuzzled into it closer, closing his eyes with a soft hum, that purr building in his chest. Feral felt his hearts twist.

He loved this little boy.

It was…sometimes still so weird to think that this was not how it was supposed to be. It was sometimes still so painful to think about how this should not be possible.

Maul had seen too much pain already, he had been hurt again and again and again and to know that he had finally… Maul had finally said that he did not want anymore. Maul wanted to be protected in the way that he should have been protected.

He should have been allowed to grow up and know that he was loved instead of ground into dust.

Feral tightened his hold on his little brother, listening to the way that purr grew louder…listened and felt the way that Maul tried to comfort him even asleep.

Maul deserved better.

Feral was going to do his best to give it to him. He knew that Savage would as well and that was all that mattered. That decided Feral let out a brief sigh, before smiling at Savage.

It would be alright.

They all climbed out at the Temple, Tiq giving Iln a brief goodbye and a thank you, before they headed back inside.

“Thank you very much for coming,” Tiq said softly, smiling at them.

“Thank you all for inviting us,” Feral said.

“It was a very good time, and we appreciated your hospitality,” Savage said. “We…have not been able to do anything like that in a very long time.”

“We might as well make it a thing,” Eeth said with a shrug. “For now, though I think you have a little boy to put to bed.”

“We do,” Feral agreed with a smile, before pausing. “Do…” he hesitated, but when all of them simply looked at him with such honest interest he found the words slowly forming, “Do you think…that you could tell us more about Wither?”

“Of course,” Mace said. “I don’t know if Maul still has it but he had several posters in his room the last time I was in there…”

“He has some up now,” Savage said, “Macbeth was one of them, but… Maul said that he had not been allowed to listen to that one because it was more…intense?”

“Yes,” Mace said. “But you would be allowed to read it if you would like. I just…” he paused, “it is the one that was considered his vent play. If you would like further understanding of Wither and Kit as people…Yoda would be the one to talk to. He knew him personally. I think he would be happy to speak of them.”

“Thank you,” Savage said. “I believe it is time to get this one into an actual bed.”

“It’s been a busy day already,” Feral grinned. “Thank you all.”

“Of course,” Eeth said, bowing. “If you would like I can escort you back.”

“Please do,” Feral smiled.

“This place is huge.”

“It is that,” Eeth agreed smiling and led the way.

Feral carried Maul through the Temple back into the room that used to be Maul’s placing Maul in the bed they had been in, Savage pulling the blankets back and tucking him in carefully. Feral pressed a tiny kiss to Maul’s nose, mostly for the joy of seeing the way it scrunched and he burrowed deeper under the blankets. It made his hearts warm.

They left the door open just a little behind them as they left his room and stood there for a moment. They did not want to leave the small suite while Maul still slept, but it did limit them a bit on what they could do. Eeth paused briefly before offering the two of them a smile. “Did you have any questions about…anything, really?” Eeth asked. “Some of them I cannot answer, but I’m able to keep you company until he wakes. We could probably ask for Yoda to come and talk to you about Wither more if you would like? Or I could absolutely talk about anything… I have more stories about Maul.” He rolled his eyes up. “You would not believe the things that he got into. Honestly…if you would like, Maul, this one, would likely let you seem some of the Holocrons that were left for him. Maul has been teaching himself how to Sith, and I think that if you were interested he might be obliged to teach you as well.”

“That…that would be interesting,” Feral said. “But…if…if Yoda would not mind, and if you do not mind…”

“Sententious is someone we are interested in,” Savage said. “We were…curious as to how he fared. I am pleased to hear that he brought stories.”

“Stories are still sacred to the brothers then?” Eeth asked, and there was genuine delight in his voice and on his face.

“Yes,” Feral said, “stories are still sacred.”

“I think you’d enjoy a lot of the ones he told,” Eeth said. “Really…I think if I had a choice I would make you watch Taming of the Rancor.”

“Taming of the Rancor?” Feral repeated, “I definitely think that I would like that one.”

“It’s…quite funny,” Eeth said. “It was one of his first and I believe, from listening to Mace and also to Yoda, that it was the one that was most written to other Nightbrothers. Others like him.”

“I’m rather intrigued,” Savage said with a raised brow.

Eeth grinned, “good. You know…I don’t think that they’ve decided the next play to work on yet. I could ask if they would be willing to perform Taming of the Rancor live. That way you would get a full understanding of it. There are recordings of Wither Sententious’ version, and it is fantastic, but I do believe there is something to be said for watching a performance live.”

“If they would be interested I believe…I believe I would definitely like to see it,” Feral said. “Is there a chance we could get his actual plays?”

“Of course,” Eeth said, “I will get them to you soon.” He paused. “Admittedly…I am not someone to talk about Wither Sententious with. I find his plays fascinating and for what his works were able to bring to a young Nightbrother that knew nothing about himself, nothing about his race, nothing about the legends…I will never be more grateful. But I admittedly do not know as much as I should about the man himself. I do know that Maul found his will, and I do know that he found out more about him, but I admittedly was more focused on Maul himself. We had…a familial bond. It was something that was created late in his first year with us. I do not…wish to impose, and I had meant to tell you. Agen had one as well. There were a few that did…” Eeth was quiet for a moment, “they have all been severed. Maul was still getting used to us as a child, we have not attempted to reform them. None of us wish to impose in anything, I merely…”

Feral walked forward, Savage next to him, Eeth holding very still as they finally pulled him close in a hug, feeling as Eeth hugged them both close. It was a very Dathomirian Destruction, a very chaotic and yet organized lacing of horns and limbs. “Thank you, cousin,” Feral breathed, “for offering what we could not.”

“He deserves and needs that family,” Savage said softly, “I would not scorn your existence or what you are to him. You are still family, we are Brothers. He is our kin, but that is not the only thing that matters. There is much in blood, but there is much in what is chosen. He has chosen much, and I am grateful.”

“We did our best,” Eeth said, “in some ways it was not enough, and I can own that. In other ways it was.” Eeth smiled as they pulled back, looked towards the door that was open just a crack and softly, “So,” he asked, “what sort of stories would you like about your brother? The ones that make him look good, or the ones that he’d be very mad at me for telling?”

“Both?” Savage asked, beaming.

“Both,” Feral nodded.

“Then both it is,” Eeth grinned.

#star wars #star wars fanfic #darth maul #maul #savage opress #feral opress #healer tiq #eeth koth #mace windu #plo koon #agen kolar #dexter jettster #hermione bagwa #FLO #dex's diner #once again i am out here providing all the cute #once again you are all welcome #i had a lot of fun with this one #hermione bagwa is awesome and y'all are sleeping on it #there's too much fun to be had #tiny maul is a treasure #smaul for your reading pleasure #thank you for reading #an unexpected chance #twin sons

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