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stellarbit · 23 days

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Shadows of the Order

the sad batch x reader

5.5k words themes hurt and comfort

You were separated from the Batch when Order 66 was executed on Kaller. Even as a Jedi dropout you weren't safe. Left behind, you have to recover and restart in the world after the Republic. You'd hoped to never run into Clone Force 99 again, but that hope ran out one day. featuring: a b1 battle droid

You know who deserved better? The clones. You know who else? The B1 battle droids. So I stuck a clanker in here for funsies. Had a ton of fun writing this. Hope y'all enjoy a little anguish. I'll be doin a spicy one next.

You fought alongside Clone Force 99 for a long time before the Battle of Kaller. Before Order 66. After meeting the padawan, Caleb, at the rendezvous point, you’d split off from the group to assist a team of troopers on the mountain while the boys joined General Bilaba.

The troopers you encountered recognized you from your days with the 501st. Despite your repeated efforts to clarify that you were no longer a Jedi, they seemed unconvinced. Fortunately, after dispatching a group of droids, the remaining Separatist forces were routed towards the main front, allowing your group to do the same.

As you neared the midway point down you noticed the troopers falling back. Sliding to a stop in the snow, you turned back. There were about 10 of them, all standing around one holding a holocomm of a hooded figure. Half of them looked at you in sync, fixing the grip on their guns, the rest followed a heartbeat later.

The hairs on the back of your neck stood on end. Somewhere far down the mountain you heard screaming and blaster fire at the same moment the troopers turned their guns on you. You took off away from the troopers before the first shot rang out.

“Get the Jedi!” A lone trooper pierced through the chaos.

Quick thinking led you to drop a stun grenade, followed by another, as you sprinted onward. The explosions managed to incapacitate some of the troopers, but not enough. Switching your blaster to stun mode, you sought cover behind a nearby tree, emerging only to neutralize the nearest clones before a shot hit your right shoulder, propelling you into a desperate sprint away from them.

With escape and evasion as your only viable options, the Marauder seemed too distant to reach in time. Instead you aimed for a waterfall you spotted while landing. It was a slim chance, but your best hope for losing the troopers.

As you fled, you deliberately dug your fingers into the wound on your shoulder, leaving a trail of blood in your wake. It was a risky move, but if you had any hope of evading capture, they needed to track you. When you saw the water through the trees you wasted no time in ripping away your chest plate. As soon as you got to the crest of the waterfall you launched your chest plate over the edge.

With one glance over the cliff, you gritted your teeth, pressing into your injured shoulder, crouched, and lowered yourself over the ledge. You grabbed high over the ledge and drug your bloody hand back down over. One more look below to ensure a safe landing spot and let go. Relying on the Force to guide your descent into an alcove leading behind the cascading water.

Once there, you swiftly shed the remaining pieces of armor, discarding them into the rushing stream as you shifted farther into the veil of the waterfall.

When you finally heard the troopers at the cliff edge, all you could do was listen, wait, and hope they fell for it.

“Looks like she tried to scale down,” one of them remarked, his voice carrying over the sound of rushing water.

“There! In the water, I see her armor!” Another trooper's voice rang out, sending a jolt of panic through you as you desperately sought cover. Their voices dropped too low to hear before you caught the tail end of the conversation.

“Confirmed, Commander Grey. The Jedi has been neutralized. Visual confirmation obtained,” a trooper reported, the cold finality of his words chilling you.

The clone trooper paused, most likely receiving transmission. “Yes sir. Alright boys, we are to rejoin Commander Grey and head out. His forces eliminated Bilaba and Clone Force 99 took care of the padawan. Gather the stunned troops and let’s move out.” That was the last thing you heard before the troopers left.

Your heart stopped. The blood in your veins froze. You lurched for something - anything - to steady yourself on. One moment everything was normal and the next you were being gunned down by clones you risked everything for. Clone Force 99 took care of the padawan.

There wasn’t enough air in the tiny alcove to think, the waterfall was too loud, the water hitting your face too cold. Desperately, you gripped the slippery rocks as your legs gave out.

Nothing made sense. Questions raced through you, each more unsettling than the last. Had all of the clones turned on the Republic? Why were they targeting Jedi specifically? Clones that served with General Bilaba for years suddenly gunned her down.

Nothing added up. If the orders affected all clones, there was a good possibility that the Bad Batch was also following them. Despite their independent streak, they were still clones, some orders had to be followed. It was a sobering realization - one that left you feeling vulnerable and nauseous. You weren’t going to be safe until they left. If they left.

The thought of aiming a weapon on the members of Clone Force 99 cracked something inside you. Besides, it was foolish to think you had a chance against all of them. With an entire army of reinforcements, attempting to take them on would be nothing short of suicidal.

Survival became your sole focus. There was no time to dwell on what went wrong or how to escape the planet's unforgiving terrain. For now, all you could do was stay hidden, biding your time until the coast was clear.

One by one, you discarded your armor and any identifiable markers into the water. It wasn’t about shedding your identity; it was a practical decision, one you could handle. Not long after, the sound of footsteps echoed from above. You pressed yourself against the rock again, your senses on high alert.

An eternity seemed to passed before the person moved. “The Jedi target was neutralized. If she’s not already dead, she’s as good as it.” It was Crosshair’s voice, cold and detached.

There was another moment of silence before you heard Tech’s voice, “Affirmative. Blood stains indicate she attempted to scale down the cliff and subsequently fell.” His tone was as clinical as ever but you almost fooled yourself into thinking there was something else to it. “Pieces of her armor are wedged in the rocks below. Crosshair is correct, if she did not perish on impact the likelihood of her survival is negligible. We need to leave.”

They weren't out there to rescue you; they were there to confirm you were dead.

It was all too much to process. Every muscle, every bone, every nerve in your body seemed to fail, leaving you a trembling mess. When the two men finally left, you didn’t know.

“We don’t leave our own behind.” You heard Hunter’s voice and heard his lie.

They left you. You fought for them, yet they hunted you down and abandoned you.

Long after night had fallen, you mustered the strength to climb out of the alcove, your injured shoulder protesting every movement. Descending into the battlefield, you searched for a salvageable ship and supplies. Amidst the wreckage, you stumbled upon the one thing you weren’t looking for.

General Bilaba’s lightsaber. She must’ve lost it in the struggle. Such a valuable thing lost to the snow and wreckage, not even retrieved. Disposable. You held the cold metal in your hand before tucking it away.

You found one ship that might manage to get off the ground. Nearby, you spotted a partially disabled battle droid, still in remarkably good condition despite its current state. It appeared to have been incapacitated by a stun grenade. As you examined it, Tech's lessons on droid maintenance flooded your mind, particularly the techniques for reprogramming them for combat purposes.

Kneeling beside the droid you flipped it onto its back to access programming. You’d pulled it off before, reprogramming battle droids to counter attack. You just never thought you’d need the skills like this.

The process was far from seamless. You electrocuted yourself on the power supply, nearly damaged a circuit board while removing the restraining bolt, and the rewiring process dragged on longer than expected, especially under the cover of darkness.

Eventually, the battle droid sprung to life, clutching its head as it sat up. You lowered yourself onto one knee as the droid adjusted itself. "Where am I?" its questioning began, its metallic voice filled with confusion. "Is the battle over? Did we win?"

Hearing the droid address you instead of immediately engaging in combat felt oddly surreal, but given the day's events, it was perhaps the least strange thing. "What is your primary directive?" you asked, trying to gauge its functionality.

It clunked a hand against its head. "Huh, that's odd. I don't seem to have one."

That was a start.

You rose to your feet and offered your hand. "In that case, how about we team up and find a way off this rock?"

Its head swiveled from side to side as it processed the proposal. "You mean, I get to choose?"

You let out a small scoff and maintained your outstretched hand. "Your options are coming with me or staying here to rust."

"Fair point," the droid responded, almost cheerfully, as it reached for your hand. "So, what's the plan for getting off this dump?"

You gestured toward the ship you hoped to salvage. "Can you handle starship repairs?"

“Sure thing, boss. Want me to clean it up?”

You threw it a puzzled look, “Why would I-” You shook your head, “No, we need to repair it enough to get it off this planet.

“Well, that doesn’t make sense.” The B1 unit pointed at the ship. “That ship doesn’t need repairs, we just crashed it.”

Maybe picking a battle droid for an assistant wasn’t the best choice. “Was it your group that crashed it?”

“Yep!” It said too proudly. “Happens all the time. But I told you, this one doesn’t need repairs to fly.” The droid paused for a second, tapping a metal digit to the tip of its face, then added. “Yet.”

That didn’t bode well for survival. You waved for it to follow you, “Let’s see if you’re right.” Over your shoulder you asked. “What can I call you?”

“My identifier is OOM-672.”

Walking amongst dozens of disabled B1 units you mused, “Looks like you’re about to be one of the last OOM models in the galaxy. So why don’t we cut that down to O2?”

“Wow!” The way it vocalized almost added syllables to the word. “Yeah, O2 sounds much better! What do I call you? Master?”

You cringed at the sound of that. “I’m not your master, O2. We’re going to have to settle with being friends or buddies.”

“You got it, Buddy!”

Thankfully, O2 was right. The ship could fly and it had enough fuel to get you far from Kaller. Enough to get you all the way to the Outer Rim if you wanted. It was risky, but following the pattern of the day, it was your only chance at survival. You just didn’t let O2 pilot.

After the rise of the Galactic Empire, you and O2 settled on a planet in the Mid Rim. You scavenged and sold enough equipment from Kaller for a comfortable amount of credits to start off with. You pieced together a new identity, often concealing your face beneath a helmet and relying on a voice modulator. Being dead in the eyes of the Empire had its advantages.

The best way to stay hidden, you figured, was to stay in plain sight.

You wormed your way into ownership of a small inn. Although, your background as a Jedi and a soldier left you ill-prepared for running a business, and you struggled to turn a profit.

“O2!” You shouted from the lobby.

The battle droid sauntered in from the dining area. “Yes, Buddy?” The droid’s nickname for you always worked a smile out of you.

You tossed them a rusted-out metal part, which they scrambled to catch, their movements clumsy and uncoordinated. After a few failed attempts, they finally managed to grasp it securely. “The circulator for our boiler is busted. Can you head to the market and fetch a replacement? The parts dealer should have one available.”

“Roger, roger!” O2 chimed enthusiastically, ready to depart.

You yanked them by the shoulder. “O2,” You warned. “Do you remember how to pay?”

They rolled their head in an exaggerated display of weariness. “I know, I know - ‘charge it to the tab.’”

Raising an eyebrow, you waited for more. “And?”

O2 tapped a compartment on their chest, revealing a few credits inside. A result of some previous tinkering done by you. “And I have the extra credits.”

“And what’re they for?” You pressed.

“For ‘just in case.’” They replied

Stepping forward, you pushed the compartment closed. “In case of trouble, O2,” you reminded them firmly. Giving them a light knock with the back of your knuckles, you added, “Give me a call if you find yourself staring down the barrel of a blaster.”

As far as O2 was concerned, they had it easy. You rescued them from decommissioning and in return, all you asked for were simple tasks and the opportunity to tinker with their hardware. The tinkering, more often than not, turned out for the better - at least most of the time.

When you and O2 first arrived, the presence of a battle droid initially unnerved the townsfolk. However, they grew accustomed to O2's quirky demeanor. O2 was more goofy than intimidating almost by design. Plus, after a few instances of O2 causing trouble with the neighbors, they quickly learned to keep their hands off the droid. Often with a not so subtle reminder of a vibroblade at their throats.

O2 ambled through the town, exchanging waves with the occasional vendor. Stalls and shops lined the narrow, winding streets, colorful canopies providing shelter from the sun for the patrons below. Amidst the hustle and bustle, droids weaved through the crowds, delivering goods and providing services to customers.

As O2 approached the parts dealer, raised voices caught their attention. Nearby, at a fruit stand, a vendor held a pear just out of reach of a young girl. "That's not fair!" the girl protested, reaching for the fruit. "I already paid you!"

Deviating from their path, O2 made their way toward the girl. She appeared to be a young human with light hair, a visitor to the town.

"Hey, stop that!" O2 called out in their attempt at an authoritative tone. They reached the girl and bent slightly to address her. "Are you in trouble, young human?"

The girl turned to O2, visibly puzzled. After a moment of assessing the situation, she nodded slowly. "Uh, yeah," she replied, more confidently this time. "Yes. He's taking my money but insisting I still owe him more." She pointed a finger accusingly at the vendor.

O2 looked between the vendor and the little girl several times. When they finally grasped the situation, they exclaimed, “Ohh! You’re in trouble and need more credits. That’s perfect!” They poked open the compartment on their chest, revealing the credits.

The girl shook her head in disbelief. "N-no, I've already paid," she insisted, casting a disdainful glance at the vendor. "He's just trying to cheat me."

Raising a finger in a gesture of understanding, O2 interjected, "You're in trouble and these credits are for 'in case of trouble.'" They plucked out a few credits and pivoted at the hip to offer them to the vendor.

From behind the booth, the vendor's expression shifted to one of quiet annoyance, yet he begrudgingly began packing a bag with pears. "There's no trouble, O2," he retorted curtly, dropping the bag into the girl's arms. "Now, move along, kid."

The girl frowned at the man but did turn away. She looked up at O2 with a smile. “Thanks,” She pulled a curious face and stepped back from the droid for a better look. “You’re a B1 battle droid. What are you doing here?”

“I’m purchasing a new part.” O2 held up the broken circulator as proof.

She held back a smile. “No, no. I meant, weren’t all battle droids supposed to be decommissioned.” She gestured around her, “So what are you doing out here alone?”

O2 didn’t have time to respond when a man yelled, “Omega! Get away from that thing!” A male with a face tattoo shoved through the crowd and slammed the battle droid in the chest with the hilt of a blade.

“Whoa!” O2 yelled, stumbling backward into the fruit stand.

The little girl squeezed between O2 and the man. “Don’t hurt them, Hunter!” She threw her arms out to shield O2. “They were just helping !” Three other men arrived behind Hunter while O2 righted themself.

One of the men, with a socket for a hand, pushed to the front of the group and pointed his prosthetic at the droid. “Omega, you don’t know what that clanker is capable of.”

“Hey!” O2 whined in protest and shook a fist at him. “You can’t call me that!”

“Says who?” Growled the largest man of the group.

“Says my buddy!” O2 started reaching for its head to send out a comm when the fruit vendor grabbed his hand.

“O2!” He laughed nervously and patted the droid harshly, “There’s no trouble.” The vendor pointed a finger at the men. “I’m not dealing with their friend today, so move out.”

“Friend?” The big guy repeated incredulously.

The cyborg hovered his hand over the blaster at his hip. “Where’s your master, droid?”

O2 thrusted their head in a sassy manner, “I don’t have a master.”

Hunter moved Omega to the side and put his knife just below O2’s head. “Why don’t you take us to this friend of yours?”

“That depends.” O2 said skeptically. “Are you looking for an inn?”

Hunter passed a look to the men behind him. “An inn?”

“Only customers can come to the inn. So - are you looking for an inn?”

Hunter lowered the knife and jerked his head to say ‘get going’, “Sure thing. Now, let’s go.”

“Roger, roger.” The droid said with a little salute and then tapped his fingers to the tip of his face. “Say, do I know you guys?

“Move it, clanker.” The cyborg ordered again.

Back at the inn, you waited in the lobby reading through bank statements. The front door was open to the street, allowing you to hear O2’s distinctive footsteps approaching. You pushed away from and around the desk to greet them. “That may have been your fastest run yet. How much - oh!” You stopped mid sentence when a young girl trailed in behind the droid. Behind your headgear you smiled, “Did you make a friend?”

The little blonde waved up at you, “Hello.”

A dent in O2’s chest plate caught your eye. You motioned for the droid. “O2, what did you do to your chest plate?”

“Well, I didn’t do it.” The droid sassed, but moved forward and leaned down for you to inspect. You reached up, held their head, and moved it side to side for inspection. Other than the dent they were fine. You patted their face in relief when, from the corner of your eye four figures filed in.

You went stock-still at the sound of a familiar voice, Hunter’s voice. “You own this clanker?”

This was it. This was the day you died.

Giving O2 one last pat, you turned to face the Bad Batch standing in your doorway, as formidable as ever. Hunter led the group, with Echo on his left, Tech on his right, and Wrecker flanking Echo. Crosshair was conspicuously absent. Their mismatched armor was newly painted in vibrant colors.

Silently assessing them, you took a moment to compose yourself, shoving your fear and anger as deep as you could. Their demeanor said they didn't recognize you and you needed them gone before they did.

"Sure," you replied vaguely, your voice muffled by the voice modulator. Keeping your gaze fixed on the clones, you instructed O2, "O2, grab my satchels from the back." Without hesitation, the droid complied.

"What are you doing with a separatist battle droid?" Echo's voice bristled as he stepped forward. "Do you realize how dangerous that thing is?"

Images of Echo tending to your wounds flooded in, abruptly interrupted by the recollection of red blaster shots narrowly missing your head.

"OOM-672 has been reprogrammed," you replied, waving your hand dismissively. "They no longer pose a threat and wartime objectives have been nullified."

"Incorrect," Tech said as he tapped the side of his helmet to move his visor. "If the droid's reprogramming is faulty, it could revert to its original directives at any moment. Depending on the data stored in its memory, that could prove dangerous should it fall into the wrong hands." He advanced toward O2, pointing a finger. "Allow me to examine it—"

“Their programming is fine.” You instinctively took a step back, bumping into O2 with the bags you requested. One had spare credits for bribing them out of your parlor and, in case that didn’t work, the other contained a blaster and Bilaba’s lightsaber.

As you sorted through the first bag for credits, you spat, “No one lays a hand on the droid except me. Especially not a bunch of clones." With a flick of your wrist, you tossed a handful of credits at Hunter. "Now get out of my lobby.” You made the mistake of addressing them as clones and hoped the odd comment passed over them. They obviously didn’t look like other clones to the untrained eye.

"Oh!" O2's voice chimed in recognition, but you swiftly raised a hand to silence the droid.

“Do we look like we work for the Empire?” Wrecker asked, almost growled, with hands on Omega’s shoulders.

Hunter glanced at the credits before tossing them back. “Just let us look at the droid,” he urged.

Without missing a beat you caught the credits, brandished the blaster, and aimed it at the leader. Immediately, the other brothers aimed their blasters at you. "Got a malfunction in those helmets?" You gestured toward the exit with your weapon. "I said leave. No stranger gets their hands on my droid."

“Strangers?” O2 stepped to your side and pointed at the group of clones. “They’re not strangers. We know them.”

Your blaster dipped for a moment, frustration nipping at you before you firmed up your grip. “O2, knowing someone for five minutes doesn’t mean you know them.”

“Just calm down.” Hunter said slowly.

“Five minutes?” The battle droid shook their head in confusion. “We go waaay back.” They hummed a thoughtful sound. “Although they did stun me on Kaller.” A chill gripped your spine at the mention of Kaller.

"Kaller?" Omega's gaze flitted between the men around her. "Where's that?" The rustle of shifting armor filled the lobby as the four men exchanged glances, their blasters trained still on you.

“Who are you and how did you get that droid?” Echo's voice carried a forceful edge as he pushed you.

“Get out.” You repeated with more venom. “Clones follow orders. That’s an order.”

Hunter slowly raised his hands, removing his helmet and revealing his tattooed face. The sight of him made it hard to breathe through.

"We're not with the Empire," Hunter declared. "And we're not big on following orders, either."

"Liar!" Your scream reverberated through the room, the voice modulator straining against your volume. Something flickered in Hunter's expression.

For someone with no skin in the war, you were proving to be awfully reactive.

"Hunter," Tech intervened firmly, prompting you to swing your blaster in his direction. "Look at that blaster." You glanced down at your weapon, seeing nothing out of the ordinary.

“What about it, Tech?” Hunter asked.

“That blaster has nonstandard modifications. Only five like it exist.” Tech explained, his tone serious.

“Not the time to be admiring blasters.” Echo snapped.

“The issue is,” Tech shot an annoyed look at his brother. “They are my modifications.” His grip relaxed slightly. “We have four of them and the other was - ”

You fired a shot at Tech before he could finish and attempted to fire another when Hunter lunged at you. He knocked the blaster from your hand and swung for your head. Wrecker shoved the kid behind him while you and Hunter exchanged blows, his hitting much harder than you remembered.

You saw Tech activating a stun grenade as O2 reached for your blaster. Yanking a vibroblade from your hip, you rammed the hilt of it into the side of Hunter’s head, causing him to stumble back. Swiftly, you lurched in the way of the stun grenade, intercepted it, and threw as far as you could behind you.

Echo took no time in disarming and disabling O2 while Hunter regained his senses and grabbed for you. His touch was a breath away when you thrust out your hands and blew him back with the Force. Before Hunter could register what happened, Wrecker grabbed you by the neck, and yanked you from the ground.

You clawed at his hand but couldn’t stop the giant crushing your windpipe and ripping off your headgear.

Seeing your bare face, livid and unable to breathe, shook Wrecker and gave you the chance to slam your feet into his stomach. He dropped you to the ground where you writhed and gasped for air. Your dropped blaster was nowhere in sight, but the other satchel was.

Still retching for air, you threw a hand out and the lightsaber flew to you. Green light blasted out of the hilt, parallel to the ground and putting a thrumming barrier between you and the clones.

“A Jedi?” Omega said in wonder, poking her head around Wrecker. Wrecker, notably, didn’t push her back behind him.

They all lowered their weapons and Tech, Echo, and Wrecker removed their helmets. Different shades of shock on all of them. “Sarad?” Tech spoke softly.

“Stay away from me.” You growled from the ground. Slowly, you repositioned yourself, strengthening your stance to pounce or run.

“We thought you were-”

“Dead?” You cut Wrecker off and cut a look at Tech. “Guess you aren’t as thorough as you think.” At that, Tech’s eyebrows hit his hairline.

“We didn’t follow that order.” Hunter interjected.

“Liar!” You lashed out. “I heard the troopers. ‘Clone Force 99 took care of the padawan.’”

Hunter started lowering himself to your eye level. “We let him escape.”

Echo stepped forward, his eyes avoiding yours. “We thought you were dead,” he admitted. He closed his eyes for a moment before finally meeting your gaze. “We thought the other troopers got to you, but we came looking for you as soon as we could.”

You didn’t dignify him with a response, in your eyes the only thing they deserved were holes through their chests.

Out of all of them, Tech stood the straightest, his demeanor showing no sign of shame in their handling of the situation. Still, he thought carefully on how to say what he needed, his hands clenching and unclenching as he processed it.

When he locked eyes with you, it was clear he’d considered his words meticulously, repeating the process in his mind multiple times before coming to the same conclusion

“With your blood and broken armor, there were two plausible outcomes,” he began, counting them out with his fingers. “First, that you perished either by the troopers or the falls. The second, that you…” His gaze momentarily shifted away, seeing your armor in the rocks. “... that you escaped.” Returning his gaze to yours, he continued, “In both scenarios, our intervention would have only made things worse. And Crosshair-”

You jumped to your feet in a challenge, Hunter quickly positioning himself between you and the others. “I don’t believe you,” you hissed, swinging the saber to the side before snapping it back in front of you. “So finish what you started.”

Hunter maintained his steady gaze as his brothers holstered their blasters. “We won’t fight you,” he assured, his tone resolute. Your eyes darted between them, searching for any sign of aggression. Seconds stretched on but the men held their ground.

“He’s telling the truth,” Omega whispered, joining Hunter at his side. "All clones were programmed to follow that order." She cast a meaningful glance at the men surrounding her. "But their altered states made them immune to the order."

For months, anger had been your constant companion, fueling you through each passing rotation. Anger at the Jedi Purge, at the failures of the Republic, and most of all, the seething rage at the Bad Batch for leaving you behind to bear the weight of it all alone. Months of grief and pain don’t just disappear.

The room seemed to warp and blur around you, your grip on the saber beginning to falter. Clinging to it tightly, you gritted your teeth, fighting to maintain your composure. The world snapped back into focus when tears finally breached your resolve, slipping down your cheeks unchecked.

“Then….” your arm dipped before falling limply at your side. “You left me for dead.” Your voice cracked and the words came out in a sob. “You left me behind.”

You thought the pain of them hunting you was the worst thing you could experience. The realization of abandonment was worse. A tight knot formed in your stomach, threatening to make you sick.

Driven by months of simmering anger, you shook your head through your tears. , “I survived without you, and I’ll keep surviving without you.” You let the green light of the saber fade. “So just leave.” The last words came out less like the command you wanted it to be and more like plea.

Wrecker ‘s eyes went wide, “You think after all this time,” he gestured toward you, “when we just got you back, we’d just leave?” A defiant look passed over him. “Sorry, not happening.”

“Sarad,” Tech spoke like it was just the two of you. YoYou closed your eyes briefly, savoring the familiarity of his tone. For a moment, you thought they might all disappear, as if they were never there. “Leaving you was a choice we never wanted to make. But it was the choice that led us here and ensured your survival. Keeping you alive was more important than keeping you by our sides.” He nodded, standing firm in his choices. “Your survival was the only acceptable outcome.”

The lightsaber grew heavy in your hand.

Wrecker reached out with a pleading gesture. "The regs would've— we couldn't..." He faltered, searching for the right words, but Omega touched his forearm and urged him forward.

Wrecker stepped through his brothers and although you flinched like you might run he reached out and touched your face. First with one hand and then a second when you tried to turn away. Holding you like that, seeing you safe in his hands, made it hard for Wrecker to ever imagine letting go.

Tears continued to flow down your cheeks, falling over his hands. Wrecker swept them away with his thumbs before pulling you into his arms. "Sorry, Sarad. We're sorry."

Your hands hovered on either side of you, it was the first time you’d truly touched another organic lifeform since Kaller. The lightsaber hit the ground and you fell into Wrecker.

You’d let yourself feel angry at them all those months alone, but, in an instant, it was overshadowed by the grief of having been without them.

Pulling just out of Wrecker’s embrace you rubbed away the remaining tears. “I’ve missed you.”

“We missed you too.” Echo answered for the group.

Looking between them all, you felt like the world was a little safer. There were a few things standing out to you though. First being the little girl with them and Crosshair’s absence.

Immediately reading you, Hunter touched Omega’s shoulder. “A lot has changed.”

"I can see that," the girl smiled warmly at you, her expression oddly familiar despite never having met before.

Tech breezed past you, heading straight for O2. He knelt beside the droid, adjusting his goggles before turning to you. "So, you really salvaged this droid from Kaller?" You affirmed with a nod, prompting a look of mild disturbance from Tech. "And it's proven to be useful?" Another nod from you. "Well, that's just as surprising as your survival," he remarked, his tone tinged with genuine curiosity.

"Be kind to O2," you interjected, joining Tech by O2's side to rouse the droid. "They're my friend."

Echo scratched the back of his head, a sheepish expression crossing his features. "That's... going to take some getting used to."

Omega joined you and Tech, her eyes wide with fascination as Tech began to point out various features of the battle droid. A smile tugged at your lips as you watched the interaction unfold. The inn you had purchased never truly felt like home, much like Coruscant and the Jedi Order before it.

But here, amidst the Bad Batch, you finally felt a sense of belonging. You were home.

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dragonrider9905 · 13 days

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Infectious Love

Summery: After a failed, almost confession of love, you and Hunter's relationship is skating on thin ice...that is, until someone falls through (or gets stabbed in the gut), so to speak.

Warnings: Angst, lots of it, but comfort too. Lots of emotions. Mentions of blood and sickness.

Hellooooooooo @imaginesfordifferentfandoms tis I, your Secret Santa in the @cloneficgiftexchange!!!!! I really, really, hope you like it. I worked really hard on it ;D So I hope it turned out the way I imagined it in my head ;D Enjoy this kinda longish drabble XD Hehehehe now you understand all the questions I asked. I hope you don't mind I went with Hunter. You seemed to not mind any of them; he's my favorite so I know I can get carried away :D and I wanted to make sure the story was nice! Also, I gave Hunter's scarf a destiny. A fate. A sense of purpose. We now know what happened to it. I have spoken.

Furthermore, I'd like to throw a huge shout out to some people who deserve it. Firstly, @ghostofskywalker. Thank you so much for organizing this event and all the other ones like it. They are always so much fun and I enjoy them immensely. It is safe to say the others who join feel the same way. Thank you for all the hard work you put into it all! Also, thank you to @photogirl894 for being an awesome beta reader and supportive friend. I don't know if I would have finished this fic on time if she hadn't helped me through all the rough spots by her encouraging words. Bestie, you read everything but the ending...I hope you like it <3

The decree is written, now, let the story unfold.

“As a father, you couldn’t ask for a better place to raise a child.”

You’d heard Shep say these words to Hunter your first day on Pabu, and you had to admit, it made your heart flutter a little bit. You’d fallen hard for Hunter a long time ago but duty always got in the way. At first, you hadn’t realized just how much you cared for him during the Clone War, serving as their medic, until Hunter received a shot in the chest. It was then that you realized, or rather were honest with yourself, that your friendship was always more than just a friendship. Almost losing him gave you a clarity and an honesty with yourself that you needed, but that didn’t make things easy. In fact, they made them harder.

Because now you knew how YOU felt, but you had NO IDEA how he felt. Every day, you’d face a new challenge, a new battle, overcome insurmountable odds against the Separatists on top secret missions and won. Every night, you’d have a heart to heart with Hunter, talking about things that made him laugh, made you laugh, things that made you cry, or things that upset him.

But never unburying that heavy secret locked away in your heart.

You considered yourself brave in many aspects but not when it came to problems with the heart. You could tell Hunter anything and everything, except how you felt about him. Instead, you’d find little things every day to show him you loved him. You’d fix his caf the way he liked it, you’d make sure the others were considerate of his sense, you listened to him when he wanted to rant, you showed him you trusted him. You were his shoulder to lean on, his unofficial right hand man. Technically, Crosshair filled those shoes but not always. You tried to be the head of reason when the boys fought and patched them up when they were done arguing.

Then the Clone War ended with fateful Order 66. Your world turned upside down and even though circumstances were different, your situation was the same.

That secret would have to be pried out of your cold dead hands.

You’d been on the run, constantly in fear for your lives and that of the child in your care. You’d started to love her as your own daughter, and you could see Hunter did too. You’d seen Hunter with Cut and Suu’s children before, but somehow, this was different. He’d cared for her as a father would. And that made your heart melt more than you ever thought it could.

Now, here on Pabu, having something that resembled peace and a chance at a life, was it time? Could you actually have the dream you despaired of. The dream which was a nightly comfort but in the morning seemed unreachable as something you thought you couldn’t hope for?

Shep’s words teased you. Taunted you. Pried at you.

Perhaps, perhaps it was time to open your heart?

“So have you reconsidered staying?”

“For soldiers, putting down roots is an occupational hazard.”

“Is that all you are? Soldiers?”

You’d seen the thoughtful look on Hunter’s face. It was the one he made when he was considering something. There was no contention, just thoughtful pondering.

Somehow, some way, that moment spurred you and you worked up the courage.

Hunter sat in the cockpit, swirling his knife. You approached and leaned against the door. You’d love to sit there and watch that for hours. You smiled a little to yourself, waiting for him to recognize your presence so as to not scare him into a mistake (not that he’d ever but…better be safe than sorry.)

“Echo said he’s on his way. Will be here in a few rotations.” he said without looking up. “Omega will be glad to see him.”

“Yeah, she misses him, the poor kid.”

Sheaving his knife, he turned to you.

“So, what can I help you with?”

“Oh, you know, just checking in on my Sargeant. You’ve been in here all day.” You placed some fruit native to Pabu in front of him. You never could remember the name, but you’d noticed he liked them.

“Thanks,” he gave half a smile while you took the seat next to him. “What kind of trouble are Wrecker and Omega getting into?”

“Ohhhh probably best not to know right now. Just enjoy the few moments of peace while you can.”

He chuckled and cut into the fruit.

“Soooooo” your heart pounded. You were actually going to do it. You got this…just had to breathe and remain steady, it’d be ok.

Hunter gave you a side eye, silently offering you a piece of the fruit. Kriff, he can tell. You tried to slow your heart best you could.

“So.” He prompted you.

You laughed. “I heard Shep the other day. Something about settling down…ever think about it?”

He sighed. “More than you know. I honestly don’t know what to do about it. I’d like to but… It’s … complicated.”

“Ever think about marrying a pretty woman and having a family? Raising Omega somewhere safe where she’d be happy…”

He huffed a little.

“Who’d I marry? Please don’t suggest the woman Wrecker’s friend was trying to set me up with.”

At the words, the muscles in your face felt heavy and turned sour. The twinkle in your eye went out and the joy in your demeanor dissolved.

An empty smile remained on your face. No indication to the outsider that anything had changed. But Hunter wasn’t an outsider. He knew you inside and out.

Who’d I marry? You weren’t even a consideration. You weren’t on the list. Of course you wouldn’t be. It’d be foolish for you to think that. Why’d you hope in the first place? You should have known better.

Swallowing hard, you bit back tears and forced a laugh.

You had Hunter’s full attention now. He sat up straight and leaned forward a bit.

He immediately sensed the change of demeanor. Your heart rate plummeted but beat hard. Your focus was gone, staring into nothing. Even if it was just for a millisecond, he’d have noticed it, but it lasted longer than that.

Your hollow laugh filled the cabin.

He knew he messed up.

Hunter moved to speak again but it was too late. You’d gotten up and moved toward the door.

“Well um, I should go check on Omega and Wrecker and see what they’re up to before they do too much damage. Yeah, yeah…”

The next moment you were out of the cabin and down the ramp without a second look behind you.

Kriff. He had to fix this.

He almost went after you. He almost made it out the ship, but an incoming transmission stopped him. This could be the one he was waiting for. He looked longingly out to where he saw you hugging yourself, making your way slowly across the shipyard, and went back inside the ship.

Kark it all. This’d better be important, Echo.

Tech was gone. Omega was taken. Crosshair a prisoner. Echo abandoned them, again. It was just you, Wrecker and Hunter now. A ship once filled to bursting with life and light, warm with the love and laughter shared between its walls, was now cold with an emptiness, a magnanimous devoid maw that the ship had never known before.

Tech was dead. Crosshair was gone. Omega was taken.

He was lost.

Hunter might as well have added you to the list of lost as well, because even though you were physically on the ship, you weren’t with him. You were distant. Gone. In every way possible other than physical. You’d done your best to keep Wrecker and himself together. You’d been the same insurmountable strength you’d always been for them to lean on. You were being the strong one for them because you knew they couldn’t right now. He was angry, frustrated, focused and lost all in one but didn’t know where to direct that energy. As always, you came through. You acted the same as how you did throughout the entire Clone War, except not. The actions were all there, but there was a lost life to it.

A lost love.

And it was his fault.

Though you were strong, you weren’t invincible.

During the day you’d serve them. Got them food, made sure they rested, used every resource imaginable to find the little lost loved one. You tried to make them laugh and smile if you could or focus on the task at hand. Completing small missions to get by was his bane, because all Hunter wanted to do was find Omega, but you brought him back to the present, reeled in his reckless side when it got to be too much. You kept track of the inventory and how and when to push on.

But every night he’d hear you silently cry yourself to sleep.

You’d go and comfort Wrecker, then you’d offer the best gesture you could to him to encourage him, then you’d retire to your bed, broken down by the day. Tired, exhausted, empty.

He saw it. And he caused it.

And he hated himself for it.

He’d lost you in a hasty, foolish sentence. One he’d said without much forethought. One he said because he was afraid if he’d said too much, or given any indication of the deeper feelings he had for you, you’d have rejected him and he’d lose you entirely. He thought he could be your friend. You deserved so much more. So much more than himself and what he could offer. He’d wanted to stay your friend so that way, even though he couldn’t have you, you’d be happy. He’d make sure that whoever he was, the man you’d marry would give you all the love he couldn’t.

Turns out he was wrong.

You did return his feelings and he broke you.

He should have gone after you, but he didn’t. He thought he’d have time. He thought he could do it when you’d return to the ship and he could sit down with you uninterrupted but he was wrong, so wrong. Echo arrived and in moments, though he didn’t know it, his life turned upside down. When the mission was declared, his focus turned to that.

He should have talked to you. He should have let you know how he felt.

But the manner of your hurt shifted. You were no longer hurt, but cold.

Perhaps you didn’t want him to love you anymore. He didn’t know what to do. So much was wrong. So much that shouldn’t have been, was now his reality.

In truth, you DID deserve more than him. Perhaps this was for the best. This hurt would pass and you’d meet the one you were supposed to be with. You could get over this fancy for him and live an actual life with someone else.

The thought made his stomach churn and threatened to vomit, but perhaps, that’s what was meant to be.

After all, sometimes to love someone you had to let them go. And Omega, she needed him right now, fully focused on nothing else but finding her.

It was late in the night watch, Hunter sat alone staring at the broken pair of goggles and a plush toy that belonged to the child of the ship. His child, not by blood but by choice.

Taken from him in a cruel twist of fate.

He closed his eyes and leaned back in the chair. Hunter wasn’t normally one for crying but he felt close to it now. He didn’t know what to do, but he knew Omega took priority over himself. He HAD to find her. Bring her home. Oh Force, what was Hemlock doing to her?

He felt his head start to pound and his brow furrowed.

It hurt so much to love. This was love, wasn’t it? After all, what would he know? All he knew of it was what was in the novels and holofilms…

Something cold touched his head and he jumped in surprise. Opening his eyes, he found you had taken a few steps back surprised, with a blanket and an ice pack in hand.

It didn’t go unnoticed you’d had the scent of fresh tears on your hands.

“I’m sorry, I thought you were in one of your uncomfortable sleep cycles.” You offered gently. “You looked like you had a headache so I brought you this.” You shook the ice pack.

Hunter sat up and rubbed his head. “I…can’t sleep.”

He looked down. It was so hard to keep your gaze. His throat tightened and tears sprung against his will. All he could do was sigh, long and heavy.

Hunter was silent, not knowing what to say. He tried opening his mouth a few times but closed it at every attempt, frustrated.

You slowly drew near him, considerate as you always were. Giving him a chance to stop you if he wanted or needed, but he didn’t. You crouched down in front of him and took his hands.

A shock of surprise sprung his head up immediately and sent a shiver through his body. His brain registered your hands were cold and instinctively he moved to warm them, covering them completely with his own. But his mind was fully focused on your face.

Your eyes glittered with unshed tears and your mouth had a half, crooked smile. A ghost of the one you’d had before. But there was something in your gaze he’d missed, he’d longed for.

It was ‘that’ look.

You hadn't looked at him like that in a long time.

There was a warmth and a love aflame. A gentleness that hadn’t been there these long past few weeks.

If eyes were truly the window to the soul, he’d seen that the embers were dying, but not gone.

You squeezed his hand.

“We’ll find her. I promise.”

There was such a conviction in your voice, determination. A rawness that almost freighted him. A testament to the power you had. The power of your will and spirit. The power of your determination. One of the reasons he loved you so much. One of the elements in your looks that he yearned to see again after missing it for so long.

He squeezed your hands.

“Thank you for everything.” He swallowed hard, voice now scratchy and sore.

You nodded and stood, pulling your hands from his. You placed the pack on his forehead and placed the blanket on him in two swift motions and made to go. You were fast, but not too fast for him. You’d tried to retreat, but Hunter jumped and grabbed your arms, centering you to himself.

A surprised look crossed your face and he saw you searching him, wondering.

“We need to talk.”

You looked away, tears starting to gather again, a breath catching in your throat wanting to break free.

Hunter cupped your face with his hand and slowly, softly turned your gaze back to him.

“Please.”

You nodded, but then looked away again.

“Ok, but not now.” Your voice was heavy and empty. That void look entered your eyes, extinguishing the flame that was there before.

“No, you should get some sleep, you look exhausted. You’re always looking after us. Tonight, take care of yourself, yeah?” He rubbed his thumb against your cheek, whipping away a tear that escaped. “Tomorrow.”

You nodded. “Tomorrow.”

Lifting the blanket you’d brought for him, Hunter placed it over your shoulders with a reassuring squeeze then turned back to his chair, cradling the ice pack to his forehead.

Tomorrow came, but started off all wrong. Emergency lights flashed and sirens blared. The Marauder made an emergency landing on the treacherous mountainous planet below. The hyperdrive malfunctioned and threw you out of hyperspace. It was a tumultuous, uncontrolled landing but Hunter managed with minimal damage to the exterior of the ship. The haul was a little banged up, but other than that, the smoking hyperdrive was the focus of your concern.

There was no Tech to fix the ship now. You were on your own.

“Do you think you can fix it?” Hunter looked at you worriedly. You’d helped Tech plenty of times in the past. You considered yourself pretty capable with all the training you received from him.

Taking a look around, you carefully considered.

“I think so, but it’s going to take time. This superficial stuff I’m not too worried about. We’ll have to make port somewhere soon anyway for supplies. We’re low on everything.” You’d been looking at the inventory the last few days and the lists were concerning. “I think we have enough credits to get by until we can do a job and earn more.” You rubbed your forehead. “I’ve been running numbers on how to keep ourselves sustained without needing to distract ourselves from our mission with a whole bunch of side missions anymore. I think it’ll work but you’re going to have to trust me. But I digress. I’ll patch up the hyperdrive which seems to be the main problem. I’ve got a weird feeling about this place, I don’t want to be here too long. Weather might not hold out for extensive repairs either.”

“Alright, we’ll discuss this when I get back. I’ll scout the area and see what we’re dealing with.” Hunter turned to leave, then paused. Half looking back he spoke: “And, I do. Trust you, I mean.”

With that he put his helmet on and shouted to Wrecker.

“Keep her safe. I’ll be right back.”

It’d been an hour. And Hunter wasn’t back.

Whipping the sweat from your forehead you heaved a big breath.

“I think that’ll do it Wreck. Where’s Hunt?”

Wrecker looked nervous. “Not back yet.”

You looked at your wrist chrono and raised your eyebrows in surprise. Highly unusual.

“Ok, I’ll go look for him. Protect the ship.”

“We should stay together.” Wrecker added quickly, “I’ll come with you.”

“I would like that too but at this moment that’s a luxury we can’t afford. We have to split up.”

Wrecker groaned. “Bad things ALWAYS happen when we split up.”

You softened and patted his shoulder comfortingly.

“I know, big guy, I know. But the less we argue, the sooner we get Hunt back.”

Wrecker paused and nodded. “Ok.” He sighed and took his place by the ramp of the ship. “And…..it’s good to hear you call Hunter, Hunt again…”he trailed off uncertainly, “but it’s kinda making me scared. You think he’s….?”

Your heart clenched in realization. You didn’t think how your hurt would shed and affect others. “Oh Wrecker….” You started but he stopped you.

“Aw Doc, I am just worried about ya. You two always meshed together, you know? So when you didn’t, and now get soft again…” He shook his head. “Get Hunter back, and everything will be ok, yeah?”

“Yeah, it will. I promise.” You started off your sentence quaking but with every word you found your conviction. It was time to go.

“I hope you two can work things out. I always liked it that way, ya know?”

You smiled, “Yeah I do actually, and I did too.”

“Well, do you think that … whatever happened…you two can fix it?”

Your smile faltered a little bit but Wrecker didn’t see that. Really, only Hunter would have been the one to notice.

“I’ll do my best.”

With one last nod to Wrecker, you set out.

You weren’t exceptional at tracking but Hunter taught you a thing or two.

It was time to bring Hunter home.

Hunter skirted the edge of the cliff carefully. His foot set a few loose rocks tumbling into the unknown. Knife unsheathed and corned against the endless void beneath him, he glared at his enemy. Hunter met these villains almost as soon as he left the ship. It didn’t take him long to realize their harmful intentions and led them away from the ship, hoping to buy you as much time as he could to fix the ship. He’d taken out ten of these bandits already, but this one was of a higher status, he could tell by the large hat he wore and more expensive weapons he possessed. He’d be more of a challenge but that would only make it more fun.

Hunter growled and lifted his knife in the ready. Blood and sweat dripped from his face from the few scratches and scrapes he had.

He was prepared for anything.

“Get away from him!” An agonized voice filled with terror screamed.

Your voice.

Hunter’s heart dropped to his stomach and for the first time since the crash, terror entered his veins. He was prepared for everything, except that.

Garnishing your blade, you swiped the air to show the mysterious stranger you were serious. “Leave him alone!”

Hunter’s throat closed up. You didn’t have your blaster, and while still decent with the blade, you weren’t ready for this yet. He hadn’t finished your training.

“Meshla, no!”

Hunter reached out, distracted only for a moment but a moment is all it took. In the second he tried to get in between you and the enemy, a kick to his stomach sent Hunter over the side

“Hunter!” You screamed after him in terror.

What you didn’t see was the flip he made or how he grappled onto the rock. If only you had the enhanced senses he did, you might have heard his hard breathing, the uneven sob, and the continuous prayer that somehow you could live long enough for him to get to you.

His heart pounded. He wanted to call for you but that’d only make things worse for you. He grunted as silently as he could. He had to get to you.

He heard your angry grunts, the slices of knives through the air, missing their marks. He heard you yelling unintelligibly and savagely. The man’s gleeful laughter.

Your painful cry.

Those were some of the longest seconds of his life. What happened? He tried to climb faster but the rock was so slippery.

Watching Hunter get shot. Finding him shot again in the same place all this time later by Cad Bane, and now seeing Hunter tumble over the edge was more than you could handle. Anger like you’d never felt it bubbling all over you, tingling your fingers and guiding your blade’s every movement with hardened focus.

No, you couldn’t lose him like this. You wouldn’t. The man was quick, practiced. But you’d had a good teacher. Now wasn’t the time to doubt. Sure, you wished your blaster had survived the raid on Ord Mantel but there was nothing you could do about that except replace it when you made port.

You tumbled, dived, parried. This demon wouldn’t win. He made a hit on your arm and you cried out. The evil, smug smile he had was enough to refocus you instantly. Jumping for him unexpectedly, you caught him by surprise. You pushed your entire body against his in a close roll.

And your blade found a home in his heart.

Breathing hard, it took you a moment to realize…you’d won. You defeated him! Hunter would be so proud.

Hunter!

Diving for the cliff, you slid toward the edge.

“Hunter? Hunter!”

Hunter looked up at you, face hidden behind his visor but all the emotions were spilling from his mouth. “Are you ok? Mesh’la, what the karking hells?”

“Grab my hand!” Ignoring him, you reached down. “I’ll pull you up.”

Hunter clasped your hand but you let out a cry of agony. Collapsing in a heaping pile. You were shaking but your grip held firm.

“Mesh’la…”

“Don’t you dare let go. Don’t you dare.” Your demand was dry and forceful, but fear spilled from every word. “Please.” Your plea was soft, broken.

“Alright.” He tightened his grip.

Tears streamed down your face as you panted, hulling him up. Hunter seemed so heavy. You’d done exercises like this before and it was a lot easier. Hunter seemed to notice your lack of strength too.

You pulled and heaved and scooted and rolled until you managed to get his body over the lump. Immediately, Hunter started his barrage on you in between heaving breaths of his own.

“What were you thinking? Don’t you know you could have gotten yourself killed?”

You got to your feet and brushed yourself off, head dizzy with emotion and adrenaline.

“Do you,” you panted, “have any idea what you did to me? Don’t start with me…”

“Oh honey, just wait until I get started—“

You turned to look at Hunter who also had gotten to his feet, the words registering, but sounding quite distant. Was he yelling? You weren't sure. Suddenly, your breath was knocked from your lungs and a sharp pain invaded your entire body.

Falling to your knees, you clutched your side to find it wet and sticky, and warm. You didn't need to pull your hand away to look at it to know there was blood, yet that's what you did, and you were shocked nevertheless to find the red, sticky substance on your hands. Gasping with wide eyes, you missed Hunter’s cry of alarm.

“You’re bleeding!”

Hunter ran over to you and caught you as you crumpled to the ground in pain. Gathering you to himself, he rested your body against his.

Tearing off his scarf from around his neck, Hunter pressed it to your wound.

“You’re losing so much blood.”

“Nah, I know exactly where it is. Here, there, and a little over there.”

“Not funny.”

“I thought it was.” you faintly chuckled.

With a dark look, he cut the red fabric into strips and bound your abdomen tightly.

“I’ll get you back to the ship as soon as I can, just hold on for me ok?”

You nodded but your eyes now felt so heavy. You just wanted to sleep.

Scooping you up, Hunter started at a full run.

The bouncing hurt. Every pounding bounce sent fire mixed with ice through your body. Your head rolled back and your eyes shut.

“Hey, hey, cyare, look at me. Look at me! Don’t give up on me yet, please.”

Hunter came in running.

“Wrecker! Wrecker! Get the ship started, we’re leaving NOW!”

Wrecker didn’t miss a beat. He saw you dangling limpless in Hunter’s arms and dashed up the walkway. Wrecker tore through the room, doing the start up sequences as fast as he could then meeting Hunter in the gangway, he threw the med kit at him.

Back in the cockpit, Wrecker took the controls.

Placing you in his bed, Hunter slapped your face.

“I know you’re in there, wake up! Wake up! Don’t leave me now, I need you. I can’t do this without you. Omega is depending on you. You’re stronger than this, come on!”

Injecting you quickly with a stim and re-wrapping your wounds, Hunter frantically chaffed your wrists until your eyes fluttered open.

“Hunter?” You were looking around, trying to sit up.

“Hey, hey don’t get up.” He placed a hand on your forehead, then your pulse points. He felt you slowly but surely starting to equalize. “Just rest for a bit, ok? I’m going to stay right here if you need anything.” He pulled up a chair next to you.

“I’m ok,” you smiled weakly, “I was so scared when I saw those tracks. I thought I’d lost you again. But you’re ok, and that’s all that matters to me.” You squeezed his hand, then let the darkness take you.

All was still and dark. The Marauder gently rocked in what would pass for the early hours of the morning, if there really could be a morning or night in space.

All was still and quiet inside the Marauder. Wrecker was by the controls watching the ship’s course and motion beacons, Hunter was fast asleep, leaned over the bed and holding your hand.

You on the other hand were restless. Buckets of sweat fell from your forehead. Dizzy and disoriented, even laying down, a nauseous feeling crept up your stomach into your throat.

You wormed your hand out of Hunters, not wanting to wake him. It’d been too long since he’d gotten any sleep at all and at last the complete and utter exhaustion took him over. You pushed on the bed, attempting and failing to drag yourself up.

You glanced at Hunter, considering only for a moment, then resurfaced your determination. No, you’d let him rest. You could do this. Grasping the blanket’s cocooning you, you attempted to untangle the heavy sheet entwining you. It was so heavy, suffocating.

With a heaving breath, you pushed your feet off the bed and lunged your body forward.

You were standing.

But as soon as you got up, you realized your mistake. The ship spun and the dull aches over your body were awakened. Your stomach’s pain blew its trumpet and your ears felt like balloons that were going to pop. You must have swallowed marbles because there was barely any room in your throat.

Oh well, you could only push forward.

Stumbling into the bathroom, you turned on the cold water. Perhaps that would help.

The first thing Hunter noticed was his hand was cold and clammy. The lack of warmth left a devoid and empty feeling embedded with a nervous foreboding.

Next came the darkness, which became a haze, and that haze turned into a bubble as he fought he was to consciousness. The bed in front of him was empty and Hunter could vaguely make out the things around him, noises indecipherable. He thought he heard trudging of feet scraping against the floor, the turning of a facet with the gush of water, then a loud crash, and thud with a BAM!

Instantly his body was alert. Dashing toward the source of the sound, he knew subconsciously what he’d find. Your body on the floor, sprawled out and drained. Your face was pale as death, eyes hollow. You didn’t look like this a few hours ago?

“Mesh’la? mesh’la! what happened? Did you hit your head? Why are you up?” A thousand questions spilled from his mouth in worry.

Worming his body behind yours, he gathered you up gently. You mumbled something that was lost even to his hearing.

Concerned, Hunter removed his gloves, and placed them on your face.

You leaned into his warmth, shivering, unable to get warm, yet your skin felt like fire to him. You were burning. Beads of sweat danced on your forehead as large as the tears that fell from your eyes.

“Why didn’t you wake me?” Cradling you now, he carefully wrapped himself around your body. This allowed you to curl in on yourself and tuck yourself in further to his chest.

“‘M sry.”

Kriff, you could barely speak.

“Don’t be sorry. I got you now.”

“Hunter, I-I can’t hear you too well.”

A wall of realization hit him hard. Kark it, he knew what happened.

The fever, the swelling, the loss of balance and your voice, not to mention your hearing?

You had an infection.

Fear invaded Hunter’s senses. He’d never been sick like this, having super immune genetics (one thing to thank the long necks for he supposed). But now, how could he help if he didn’t know what you were going through exactly?

This wasn’t the first time you were sick like this. He remembered the story you told of your childhood, and how one winter, you fell through the ice which resulted in something like this. The incident left you vulnerable and weakened, and he worried about you.

You were tough and fought it out. But what if you couldn’t fight this one off? Would your second brush with death be enough to claim you?

Tears swelled your eyes and poured onto your cheeks. Small sobs started to wrack your body as emotion overtook you.

“I…sorry…don’t burnden…’Mega, gotta find…”

“Hey, hey, it’s ok, I got you, I got you. You’re not a burden. We’ll get you better then we’ll find her. Hey, I got you, it’s ok.” Hunter had no idea how he managed to sound so calm. He’d never seen you like this before and it terrified him. Your small sniffles and hiccups reminded him of a small child. Every nerve and essence of his being screamed at him to protect you.

“I’ll get you some water, I’ll be back. You have to stay hydrated.”

“Stay, I’ll get it.”

Hunter looked up to find Wrecker looking down at the two of you with a sad look in his eyes. “You should be with her.” He disappeared then returned a few minutes later with a full flask of cold water.

Hunter brought it to your lips, but you barely swallowed any before relinquishing your strength to an empty sleep, exhausted by the struggle.

Silence bore down on the three of you as Hunter and Wrecker looked on while you slept an uncomfortable sleep.

“I knew we should have stuck together.” Wrecker said sadly at last, not looking at Hunter. “I told her I’d come with her…”

“It’s not your fault, Wreck.”

“Bad things happen when we split up, I told her that….”

“This is all my fault.” Hunter hung his head. “I—”

“That kind of talk isn’t going to help her, Hunt. Don’t even think that. She made up her own mind. She was scared for ya, Hunt. She even started calling you ‘Hunt’ again.”

Hunter looked up surprised, then back down towards you. You’d stopped that since that morning on Pabu. You’d been formal with him afterward. It was either Sargeant or Hunter.

He shifted then lifted you in his arms, bringing you back to the bed. He set you down then ran his fingers through your damp hair, worry evident in his eyes.

“We need to get her to a hospital, Wreck. I don’t know what to do…Without Tech…I’m really scared right now.”

Wrecker placed a large, comforting hand on Hunter’s shoulder. “Then we go. We’ll get her better, Hunt. Don’t worry. I think we have a few of those fake IDs left Tech made. We’ll make something work.”

Swallowing hard, Hunter nodded.

Instead of letting go, Wrecker’s grip tightened. In one swift motion, Hunter was enveloped in a hug. If he was being honest, he didn’t mind in the least.

Hunter sat by you in silence as the ship flew through hyperspace toward the hospital, watching your fitful sleep. Your forehead was creased in pain and your mouth turned into a pout. One hand carefully stroked your sweat soaked hair, the other intertwined with yours.

The waiting was the worst part. Not being able to do anything to help or accept, fate could only take its course and he could only stand by and watch. The worst enemies were the ones he couldn’t protect you from and he hated that. He couldn’t fight the infection with his blade, or take away your pain by shooting the cause with a blaster bolt.

He leaned his forehead against yours and swallowed a sigh. Was this agony what you'd felt when he'd been shot? He remembered what delicate care you took of him. You'd been more than thoughtful, and tried not to show your concerns but he saw them anyway; just as he could always see you. But there was something else there that at the time he hadn't realized. And now he hoped he hadn't realized it too late.

“You asked me before if I’d settle down like Shep asked……………and in my dreams, yes. I always wanted to, even before he asked, with you. It was you, it was always and only you.”

Silence was your response.

“Please, don’t leave me now. I already lost the others, I can’t lose you too.”

The steady rhythm of your heart was promise enough for him right now, he had to hold onto hope.

“We can take it slow. Take our time. We don’t have to rush into anything but please, please stay with me and I’ll be yours for the rest of our lives. That’s my promise to you. I–I love you. Always have, always will.”

Perhaps if he’d hadn’t been so tired, he would have noticed the slight squeeze of his hand you have him.

Hunter walked into the hospital carrying you wearing civilian clothing hoping he looked more inconspicuous than he felt. He approached the nurse at the front desk.

“Excuse me, my wife needs help. She had an accident…”

“Chain codes.” the nurse said flatly without looking up but holding out her hand.

Hunter fished them out and gave them to her.

“It’s urgent, she needs to see a doctor ri–”

“Just sit down over there and the nurse will be with you shortly.”

“But she needs a doctor NOW!”

The nurse glanced up annoyed.

“Keep that up and she’ll have to wait a full rotation, buddy.”

Hunter glared but didn’t say a word. Normally he would have fought back harder but with your life on the line, he couldn’t find it in himself to do it. So he did as he was bid, and took a seat in the waiting area.

You blinked your eyes open with a smile.

“Hey Handsome.”

You reached up for his face, and he took your hand in his and gave it a quick kiss.

“Hey,” Hunter kept his voice low, giving you a quick smile before making a quick survey of the area, “to catch you up real quick, we’re married. You’re my wife and we took you here after an accident on our farm. You’re going to be ok, ok?”

His eyes darted across your face, looking, searching, for any indication that his words would come true. Even here and now on the brink of being saved, he felt like you’d suddenly vanish and be taken from him.

He didn’t know what he expected from you, a nod of recognition maybe? But he didn’t get that. Instead, you chuckled.

“Married? Already? So much for wanting to take it slow, Hunter.”

To his surprise, a laugh burst from his lips, a smile replacing the worry for a second. He shook his head. Even now, you were trying to look out for him, making him laugh while you were the one who needed help.

“Always looking out for me, aren’t you?” His voice was warm and full. The deepness of his voice like chocolate on your sore ears, not that he’d know that of course. All he could hope for was that you could hear the depth of love and gratitude he had in such a few words.

You smiled, “always have, always will, I promise you that.”

Hunter heard the nurse approach and looked up, only to be faced with a jaw dropping phenomenon.

“How can I help you today? Wait…Hunter?”

It was Nala, your old classmate.

“Nala?” Hunter repeated, stunned. “You work here?”

“Yes…” her eyes drifted down to you.

An unsettled feeling came over Hunter. You hadn’t been in touch with anyone since Order 66. Whose side was Nala on?

He didn’t have to wonder long when her face went white and she dropped down on one knee to be at your level.

“What do you need? Let me assess her and see what I can do.”

Nala came running up carrying various vials and all but shoved them in Hunter’s pockets.

“Give her this as soon as possible. It’s safer for all of you if you just take it and administer it on your ship. I got word of Imperials coming here shortly. I’ve listed instructions on how to give it to her safely. You should go before someone recognizes you and hands you over. Goodbye, and good luck. Take good care of my friend. When she gets better, tell her to give me a call!”

With that, Nala turned and left, trying her hardest not to give an impression of concern.

Back on the ship, Hunter did as instructed. After making sure you were carefully placed in bed and made as comfortable as possible, he enlisted Wrecker’s help as soon as they’d jumped to hyperspace. Hunter knew Wrecker wasn’t going to like it, but there wasn’t another way.

You’ll want to give this one to her first. It’ll regulate her body so she can take the following medications. It’ll help her breathe easier and adjust to what’s coming…it won’t appear so right away so don’t worry. You’re going to need to give this to her in quick succession so don’t wait to see the effects.

Hunter injected the hypo into your arm.

This one is the IV with the antibiotics. Get her hooked up quickly and make sure the bag is drained before you take it out.

He rubbed your arm and inserted the needle.

This one, inject into her chest near her heart. This one will hurt the most.

This one, he couldn’t do.

“This…is going to hurt.”

“I know.” You stared at the ceiling, trying to catch your breath and collect your courage. “It’s ok.”

Of course you knew, you were a medic. He would have cringed at his own words, but he couldn’t help it. His own fear mocked him and he wasn’t ashamed of it. Pain was pain, and nothing could make him like it or want that for you. All he could do was prepare you in any way he could.

Your breathing was labored, huffing your breaths, greedy for air, gluttonously swallowing in as much as your lungs would let you.

“Tell me.” You looked into his eyes, trying to focus, “tell me about it? I can’t seem to remember anything from our big day. What happened? Who was there? How did it go….How did I look?” You huffed a little laugh at the last question, “nevermind, don’t answer that.” Your laugh caused a coughing fit to follow.

Hunter gripped you firmer as your body racked, fear unmasked in his eyes.

Shutting your own, you tried to center yourself.

“Crosshair probably made trouble, didn't he. He and Wreck competed to see who could eat the most cake and got sick, right?” Your voice was nothing other than a whisper, but Hunter could still pick up the dream-like tilt in your voice. The little smile as if it was a real memory, breaking across your lips.

“Of course, would you expect anything less?”

Another chuckle turned into a gasp of air.

Hunter kept his gaze on you as he spoke, his hand on your cheek facing him so you wouldn’t have to see what was to come. Rubbing gentle circles in your cheek and wiping away tears, he tried to speak without a shake in his voice. He didn’t know if he succeeded, but ever after that, he’d remember the images burned in his mind both, of the story he was telling and the raw reality of your pain.

“Tech filmed the entire thing; we’ll have to rewatch it; would you believe Echo had more champagne to drink than anyone? He was so happy the entire night. He was also the only one next to Wrecker to cry.”

You smiled through gritted teeth.

“Yeah?”

“Yeah. You looked beautiful all dressed in white…” he stumbled over his words now as Wrecker garnished the needle, “your dress dazzled with little jewel thingies and you liked spinning in it because it reminded you of a waterfall or a butterfly’s wing. I couldn’t keep my eyes off you. And when you walked toward me, I was a mess, because I knew I was the luckiest man in the world, and I couldn’t ever have imagined you more beautiful.”

You swallowed hard.

“Omega couldn’t stop smiling or singing; and when the music at the Pabu sunsets starts and the orange sun starts setting in the sky, it hit you just right and…”

You screamed as muffled of a scream as you could, but it rang in Hunter’s head so loud it bounced around until he felt like he was going to be sick.

“Aaand, and, when the sun set, we resaid our vows under the stars, just you and me. Always, just you and me. I’ve got you, it’s ok.”

Your eyes rolled back and all went dark.

Breathing never felt so sweet. You smiled, feeling like you could laugh and cry at the same time. The pain was gone and you felt great! Energy was surging, and life felt beautiful again. Despite the illness, you remembered everything that happened with vivid accuracy. Though your eyes were closed, your mind was very awake and registered everything in perfect memory.

Not just the pain, but the sweet moments too. Hunter taking such good care of you, his poor fear and concern, the thoughts he confessed because he thought you couldn't hear.

You felt the urge to stretch but couldn't move. Opening your eyes and looking around, the sight made your heart melt. Hunter was curled up half beside and half behind you. His body was curled in around yours, holding you as if he feared when he woke, you wouldn't be there.

Your heart was gripped by the softness of the gesture and you didn't want it to end.

You reached your hand up, running your fingers down his face and neck. The touch was enough to wake him. He stirred, then jolted with realization.

“You're awake!!!” Tears gathered in his eyes as he cupped your face with both his hands. “You're ok.” He smiled and swallowed so hard you could hear it. You embraced him, burying your face in his neck.

“I love you.”

You froze. You didn't expect him to actually confess to you while you were awake. Hunter sensed your hesitancy and started to pull away, but before he could move an inch, you were grabbing him toward yourself again.

“I love you, too. So much.”

“Can…we talk? I can't wait anymore.”

“Of course.”

Hunter turned shy. He found his hands extremely interesting as he fiddled with the blanket rim. His face turned red and he tripped over his words.

“I only said what I did because besides you….I wouldn't want to marry any other woman. Who would I even marry…if it wasn't you?”

He paused briefly before continuing.

“I always felt like you deserved way better than me…I can't offer you anything but myself and that's not much of a gift.”

“Hunter! No! You—”

He gave you a sheepish look and cut you off.

“And I'm so sorry for everything that happened, for how I hurt you. I should have gone to you sooner, I should have…”

Now it was your turn to cut him off, but instead of with words, you captured his mouth with yours in a kiss

You felt his shock, which made you smile, and soon he joined and returned your soft show of love, holding you even closer than before.

“You scared me.” Hunter said, kisses becoming needier.

“You scared me first!” You countered, meeting his veracity. “More than once!”

When you both stopped for breath, you settled back in his embrace.

“Hunter, you're all I could ever need or want. The gift of yourself is more precious than anything or anyone in the galaxy, and that's more than I deserve. All I've ever wanted was the war to end so we could have a family of our own, your brothers all be near us if they're not with us while we raise Omega and children of our own.”

Hunter's face darkened.

“I wasn't strong enough to protect you or keep this family together. I lost Omega.”

“You didn't lose her, Hunter. She made a choice. She didn't want to lose you, and neither did I. You don't control the galaxy or have some responsibility for everything that happens. It's ok to breathe, Hunt, and let go. All we can do is move onward and face the galaxy together, just like we always do.”

Hunter nodded, the shadow slowly falling from his face, replaced with something gentler.

“And that story I told before, about you in the white dress?”

“Yeah?” You blushed sheepishly, recalling with a bubbling laugh trapped inside your chest.

“What do you say we make that real?” Leaning closer, he whispered in your ear, “I want to see you all in white, for real. I want to be yours, only yours, forever. I want to have a family, with you and only you. My brothers can all live close by and we can all be together. We can raise Omega the way she deserves to be raised…and I can love you, the way you deserve to be loved.”

“Yes! Oh yes! My sergeant, I am yours and only yours, now and forever!”

Filled with new determination, you smiled even wider, gripped his hand and got out of bed.

“Come on, now, love, let's go get our kid. Time to bring our family home. Time to start healing and growing.”

"The Empire be warned, we're coming."

Dividers by @stars-n-spice @ve-ti-ver and @djarrex

#I gave Hunter's scarf a fate #We now know what happened to it #It deserved a story #Hunter's scarf is important and we recognize that here #sergeant hunter x you #hunter x you #hunter x reader #hunter #the bad batch #tbb hunter #star wars #tbb wrecker #tbb crosshair #tbb tech #tbb omega #tbb echo #star wars the bad batch #clone fic gift exchange #TBBE24

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geekforhorror · 7 months

Note

Hi!! Could you write something where after Anakin turns to the dark side fem!reader (who he’s in a relationship with) goes with him. She doesn’t necessarily agree with it but doesn’t want to leave him so she follows him. She begins feeling depressed because Anakin stops paying attention to her and practically emotionally abandons her. They eventually get into a fight where she plans to leave him because nothing has changed but he promises ge will change back for her.

ghost of you

pairing: sith!anakin x fem!reader

warning(s): mental health issues, emotional abandonment, mention of dark side, fighting, sadness, kissing, and fluff at the end.

word count: 1.3k

a/n: did i base the title off the song “ghost of you”? yes i did.

————

He promised things would be different.

After Order 66, You and Anakin had fled to your hometown of Naboo where you guys would hide from the Republic and whatever was left of the almost extinct Jedi order. To say the thought of being discovered didn’t scare you would be a complete lie. You had gone with him for one sole reason— you didn’t want to leave him. He was the love of your life, the only person who understood you, and the only one who sacrificed everything to have a better life with you.

But recently, you had been plagued with uneasy feelings about the entire situation. See, you were never on board with abandoning everything and everyone in your old life, but once Anakin had carried out Order 66, he made it very clear that the two of you couldn’t remain on Coruscant when there was a warrant for his arrest. You could see the difference in his eyes when he first told you about what would happen if you stayed. Agreeingly, you went along with him and now you were stuck with the harsh reality of what he did. He had promised you that the two of you would rule the galaxy, but you didn’t want that. You didn’t want that at all. All you wanted was his love and nothing more, but he seemed to forget about your needs and wants.

He used to touch you whether it was hugging you or making love to you all hours of the night. Now he barely even kissed you. The romantic date nights had been replaced with him working on his plans for his new empire while shutting you out. He didn’t even ask how your day was anymore.

There was no denying your state of mind had been a sliver of what it used to be. You were once filled with joy, hope, and most importantly— love. But now you were filled with feelings of hopelessness. It was because of Anakin. He had been so focused on building his new empire that he had left you behind at home for hours before returning home late at night. Unbeknownst to him, you had spent those hours crying in despair. You wanted your old husband back. The one you fell in love with back on Coruscant.

Tonight had been like every other night. All alone in the living room with no one to talk to besides yourself. It was really depressing to say the least. This was what your life had come to. Despite not being the biggest fan about all this, the thought of him being gone for countless hours scared you to death. You still loved him after everything he did. You didn’t know how you could still be with him, but here you were.

All of a sudden, you heard the door open and you knew he was home. You looked over at your husband with sad eyes, only to see that he wasn’t doing the same. In that moment, you felt yourself reach rock bottom. You could take everything else, but this? This was a new low for you. It hurt you enough knowing he didn’t touch you or talk to you anymore, but not even being met with his eyes? That hurt you more than anything ever did. You don’t know if you were feeling anger or sadness in this moment. Maybe it was both, but it was enough for you to finally say something.

“Maker, Anakin! Just look at me!” you shout with a crack in your voice.

You almost miss the way he looked at you in disbelief, but not quite. It takes him a second to gather his thoughts and words, trying to figure out what the hell this was about. “What the hell?!” he replies, still taken aback by your harsh tone.

“Don’t play dumb with me, Anakin! You know damn well what this is about!” you reply, the anger overlapping any feelings of sadness you previously had.

“Do I?” he replies sarcastically.

“You better know, for your sake,” you say.

“How am I supposed to know?” he asks, sounding annoyed.

“That’s exactly my point, Anakin! You don’t know where I’m coming from because you never talk to me anymore! I’m your wife, for makers sake!” you say, tears now protruding from your swollen eyes.

“I do talk to you!” he counters.

“You’re so ignorant it hurts,” you say with a scoff.

“Oh really? Go on and tell me what I’m so ignorant about,” he says.

“You’re ignorant about the fact that you don’t talk to me, touch me, or even look at me anymore,” you say.

“That’s not true,” he says defensively.

“It isn’t, huh? Then tell me what I did in the past week,” you say. You can see him struggling to come up with a sufficient answer that’s also honest and true, but he has nothing.

“That’s what I thought,” you retort.

“Listen I’m sorry about that. I’ve just been busy,” he says.

“Busy?! That’s what you call busy? You haven’t given me one ounce of love since we came here!”

“You’re overthinking this, angel,” he says.

“Don’t ‘angel’ me. You gave me a half assed apology and you expect me to be ok with that? God damn it Anakin! I deserve better than this!” you say with tears starting to form from how angry you were.

“What are you saying?” he says with a bit of fear in his voice.

“We’re done,” you say harshly before you start to walk away from him. Anakin’s heart sank with sadness as reality came back to him. It had taken you threatening to leave him to finally come out of a trance. He couldn’t lose you. You were the only person in his life that mattered and it had been that way for a long time. Not even the emperor mattered that much. You were the only reason he stayed alive. You were too special.

Before you can get far, you feel your dress being dragged harshly. You looked behind you only to see Anakin on his knees, tugging at the skirt of your dress.

“Please, angel. Don’t leave me!” he said with a shaky voice.

“Give me one good reason why I shouldn’t,” you say with a scoff.

“I’ll kill the emperor!” he says abruptly which makes you stop in your tracks.

“I don’t believe you,” you counter.

“I would do anything for you, love. Just tell me what and I will!” he begs.

“I want you to turn back into the man I loved and married,” you say with a trembling voice. “You’re a sith lord, for makers sake! Has it ever occurred to you that I don’t want to live this life? I want my husband back,”

“I promise I will. Just give me one more chance, baby,” he asks of you.

You were conflicted. You hated the way this new man made you feel recently, but he was still your husband and you loved him. The new man had died when you broke through his barriers and spoke to him in a way neither of you knew was possible. All that mattered was that it worked. You wanted nothing more than to give him room to grow and learn from his many mistakes if he loved you so much. The only thing worse than being in this situation was living your life without him. The love of your life.

“Get up, Ani,” you say, now cupping his face. He does as you say and is finally back on your level. Once he is, you tenderly kiss him on his lips. It’s a rather foreign feeling after all of these months of being touch starved. The two of you find harmony in the kiss and you feel the galaxy become so little around you guys.

“Maker, I’m such a fool for you, Ani,” you mumble against his lips.

“So am I, darling,” he says back.

Things finally felt right.

#anakin skywalker #anakin imagine #anakin fic #anakin fanfiction #anakin x reader #anakin skywalker x reader #anakin smut #anakin skywalker smut #anakin star wars #hayden christensen #the clone wars #revenge of the sith #ahsoka series #star wars #star wars fandom #star wars fanart #star wars fanfiction

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vodika-vibes · 2 months

Text

The Seer

Summary: With the Fall of the Republic, and the destruction of the Jedi, your specific talents have made you a target. Luckily for you, with the right ambience, you can make even the most determined Inquisitor think that you’re a fraud. Unluckily for you, your fraud has caught the attention of some very dangerous spirits, and they will stop at nothing to see you punished.

Pairing: Future TBB Hunter x F!Reader

Word Count: 1743

Warnings: Mentions of Order 66, Reader is literally haunted

Tagging: @trixie2023 @n0vqni @imabeautifulbutterfly @clonethirstingisreal (since you like hunter ^-^)

A/N: I had an idea, so I decided to run with it. (My husband and friends are making onigiri for dinner with pork and I'm already sick so I'm not having dinner, I guess)

One year ago today, you were a Jedi.

Well, okay, you were a Jedi Padawan who had been sentenced to a year in the EduCorps due to something that you may, or may not, have done.

It had been a slog. So many books, so many papers, so many people lording their intelligence over you simply because they were assigned to the “smart” corps.

You hated it at the time, and even now, a year later, the memory is still enough to make you grumbly. Just, not as much as you used to be.

It’s hard to hate people who were wiped out to the last, after all.

Sometimes, late at night, you wonder how different things would have been if your nightmares and visions had been taken seriously. Would the Order have survived the Purge? Would the Clones have not turned on them? Would the Council have foreseen the betrayal?

And, like, sure. You know that visions don’t always come true. And you know that sometimes, in the process of trying to make something not come true you can make it happen faster. But! You’d been having the same nightmare since the start of the war.

Surely that had to have meant something?!

Your Master…disagreed.

He disagreed with you about a lot of things.

Not that he’s around to disagree with you on things anymore. He died in the purge…just like everyone else.

You only survived because the night before the purge, the Force practically screamed a warning for you to move, to go, and to never look back. And so you did.

You heard about the Purge 16 hours after it happened. And ever since that moment, you’ve been running.

Bouncing from planet to planet, jumping from job to job, trying to stay one step ahead of the Inquisitors and the Imperial soldiers who would absolutely execute you if they caught you.

That was until you, while working an odd job for a pirate, stumbled across a woman being harassed by Imperial Soldiers. She was an odd looking woman, draped in long skirts and long shawls, with large earrings and intricate paint decorating her pale blue skin.

The woman claimed to be a seer blessed by the spirits, and could foresee the future and allow the Imperials to speak with their deceased family. She waxed poetic about lucky charms and tarot readings, and, to your genuine shock, they left, calling her a lunatic.

You stare at the woman, your jaw dropped, and she winked at you, before she went back to hawking her lucky charms.

It’s the stupidest thing you’ve ever seen in your life.

Foolishness.

Ridiculous.

And yet…

And yet, if it’s stupid and it works, then is it really stupid?

Two months later, you open a little shop on Pabu, selling lucky charms, tarot readings, and love readings to anyone who wants to pay you. And a lot of people want to pay you.

You clad yourself in long skirts and loose shawls, and you let your hair hang freely around your head, tied out of your eyes by a ribbon that matches your outfit.

And not a single person pegs you as an actual Jedi.

Con-artist and miracle worker, but not Jedi.

It’s not really how you foresaw your life going, but really, being called a con-artist is better than being a Jedi any day of the week. Especially since Jedi means dead.

And that is how your days go…right up until Phee brought clones to your shop.

You love Phee, absolutely adore her, but the moment you see clones standing in your shop you are wondering how quickly you can kill her and dispose of her body without anyone missing her.

Still, you’re no fool. So you plaster your most vapid smile on your face and swish around them offering free tarot readings since they are friends of Phee.

You are almost offended when the one in glasses tells you that your tarot readings are a load of hogwash.

Almost.

After all, it’s not like you actually believe this nonsense either.

But, since Phee is a friend and she considers the clones her friends, you decide to tolerate them. After all, they seem very reasonable, not at all like the men you had nightmares of for three years.

And slowly, over time, you end up becoming friends with them.

Wrecker is always good for laughs, and he is more than happy to come around and help you move heavy objects. Tech takes one look at your electrical panel and nearly has a heart attack on the spot. In fact, aside from Omega, who thinks you’re a little weird and likes to keep her distance, the only one you don’t spend a large amount of time with is Hunter.

Echo quietly tells you that the incense that you use around your shop, incense you use to keep force spirits from harassing you, gives him a migraine, and you feel guilty enough that you put them away and air out the shop.

Which brings you to today.

Today you’re wearing shorts and a tank top, and you’ve abandoned your mystical look in favor of more practical ‘running for your life’ attire.

The Empire didn’t find you. No. That would have been easy.

You can kill Imperial Soldiers.

You can’t kill Force Ghosts.

In your defense, you don’t mean to get Hunter involved.

And you definitely don’t mean to crash into him at full speed.

Hunter catches you before you hit the ground, which is probably a good thing because running into plastoid armor at full speed is not something that you recommend.

He looks…surprised as he sets you back on your feet.

“I don’t think I’ve ever seen you not wearing miles of fabric.” He says slowly, and then his eyes narrow, “What are you running from?”

“Nothing! Don’t worry about it!” You blurt, your eyes darting one way and then the other.

He opens his mouth to say something and then he stills, his nostrils flaring, “What is that?”

“What?” you ask, alarmed.

And then the sensation washes over you. Cold, like ice nipping at your fingers and the tip of your nose. Followed by the whispers, barely words, yet radiating malice.

“I…have to go. Now. I have to go now.” You blurt as you try to twist out of his grip, only for Hunter to grab your shoulders and jerk you to the side.

A sensation, like that of a hand grabbing for you, brushes passed your arm, causing an immediate bruise to form on your arm.

Hunter stares at the red bruise on your arm, “Time to go.”

“Yep.” You agree immediately, “Away from people, preferably.”

Hunter takes your hand and starts pulling you away from the spirits…things…that are hunting you.

Luckily he seems to be able to sense them better than you can.

Half an hour later, you’re on the outskirts of the city and you, who haven't worked out properly since well before the Purge, are panting for air as you run after him.

“What did you do to make invisible enemies? And what are they?” Hunter demands as he jerks you to one side and then twists you so that two different spirits aren’t able to touch you.

“Um…no comment, and I think they’re spirits.”

“Please tell me that’s a joke?”

“Uh…no.”

“You’re telling me that ghosts are real?” Hunter demands as he jumps down into a stream and then lifts you up onto the other ledge.

“Well-”

Hunter just sighs, and drops the subject. He stops for a moment, his hand on your shoulder, and he listens. “Okay, I think we’re safe for now. I can’t hear them.”

You collapse onto a rock with a sigh of relief, “I haven’t run so much in ages,” You mumble. And then you straighten and glance at him, “You know, the spirits are very displeased with you.” You say, “They’re mad that you’re helping me.”

“Yeah?” Hunter scowls, “Feeling’s mutual. Little shits.”

You release a slightly hysterical little laugh, and you clamp your hand over your mouth when Hunter looks at you in concern. “Sorry.” You whisper, and you’re surprised to feel tears on your cheeks.

He looks deeply, deeply uncomfortable but he still kneels in front of you and places his hand on your shoulder, “You’re doing a great job.” He says, “There’s no need for tears.”

“I don’t even know why I’m crying-”

“It’s a lot, being hunted by things. Especially invisible things.” Hunter says, trying so hard to be gentle with you, and it’s obvious it doesn’t come naturally to him, “Do you have any idea why they’re coming after you?”

“I don’t know if you noticed this,” You say dryly, “But, like, all of the Jedi were killed.”

“...o…kay?”

You sigh and pick up a stick and draw some stick figures on the ground, “Jedi.” You say, and then you draw some more, “Sith.” You draw little angry lines around the sith. “When the Jedi died, the Force made a sharp turn towards the Dark.”

“Meaning-”

“Meaning the galaxy’s gone to shit.”

“Well, you’re not wrong.” Hunter agrees, and then he looks at you, “Follow up question.”

“Hm?”

“How do you know anything about the force?” Hunter asks.

“Uh…”

“Are you a Jedi?”

“...ummm…”

“You are. Why the kriff is a Jedi pretending to be a fake psychic?”

“Oh, come on. Because everyone knows that I’m a fake psychic.” You roll your eyes, “You know,” You adopt the wispy voice you use when you’re working, “If you make a healthy change then your soulmate will appear-”

“...you’re conning the Empire.” He says slowly.

“Better a con-artist than dead.” You point out logically.

“You’re not wrong, but I can’t believe that that works.”

“They’re not very smart, and they have a specific mental image as to what Jedi look like, so-”

“Huh…You know, I thought Jedi were supposed to be in better shape.”

“Hey! I’ll have you know that I have been pretending to be a fake psychic for the last year and the year before that I was…not at the temple.”

“Where were you?”

“I was at the EdiCorps Campus. As punishment. For punching a racist senator.”

Hunter smirks, “That right?”

You open your mouth to reply but then both of your heads snap to the side, “They found us.” You say as you scramble to your feet.

“So it seems.” He grabs your hand and tugs you, “Time to run.”

#star wars #tbb #tbb hunter x reader #hunter x reader #star wars fanfiction #x reader fanfiction #f!reader fic

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questforgalas · 9 months

Text

Passing the Time

Notes: a quick little diddy I wrote inspired by this art created by @zaana that I couldn't get out of my head and I also need pre-order 66 moments with the Batch like I need air. Just Crosshair and Hunter being soft bros and reminiscing

WC: 900

Tay's Masterlist

Read on AO3

Staring up at the night sky, Crosshair counts 7 different constellations laying within his vision. The midnight air still carried the day’s humidity, causing a thin layer of sweat to coat his skin underneath his armor even as he relaxes against the boulder he settled against at the beginning of his watch shift. A breeze rustles the palm fronds hanging above them, softly grazing his face, and in the distance, waves are heard softly rolling onto the beach on the other side of the grove.

Hard to believe just hours ago they were knee deep in Separatist territory doing what they do best. Especially what Wrecker does best with explosives.

Checking his vambrace’s chrono, they aren’t due to leave for Kamino for another 5 hours. Finally returning home after nearly 5 months of missions. Giving a content hum, he crosses his legs in front of him, leaning further into the boulder and settling in for the remainder of the night. The only noise disturbing the soft jungle symphony coming from the GNK droid keeping him company.

A thud from behind catches his attention, causing him to glance over his shoulder back at the Marauder. The gate was left open, letting the soft interior light spill onto the jungle floor and illuminate the figure walking towards him. Turning back to the jungle, Crosshair reaches into his belt taking out a toothpick to place between his lips as he waits for his sergeant to join him.

“Can’t sleep?” he asks when Hunter settles in next to him, using the GNK as an improvised chair.

“Can’t shut it down tonight,” Hunter replies. Crosshair gives a hum, understanding. As they grew older, the nights Hunter couldn’t shut his senses down became more rare, but occasionally, after a string of tiring missions, they could prove too much for his exhausted mind.

“Echo and Wrecker out?”

“Like lights.”

“Tech?”

“Doing something to the Marauder. As always.”

Crosshair huffs a sigh. “He’s going to work himself to death.”

“When did you become a mother hen?” Hunter jokes, playfully jabbing an elbow into the sniper’s arm. That earns him a grumble that loses its bite when Crosshair can’t help the smile tugging on his lips.

“Simply keeping the efficiency of the squad in mind,” Crosshair counters.

“Uh huh. Don’t worry, Cross. Your secret’s safe with me. Can’t let anyone think you’re not a prickly asshole,” Hunter teases.

The sniper rolls his eyes and flicks the toothpick to the other side of his mouth as he looks back up to the sky, letting the comfortable silence between him and Hunter settle around them. Mind on the brother likely buried in wires, he smiles up at the stars as his thoughts bring up memories previously forgotten.

“Remember when we were younglings,” Crosshair starts, “and he was determined to build his own battle droid? Wanted it to go on missions with us.”

Hunter groans, “Convinced Wrecker to break into the training lab with him to scrap and carry parts back to our barracks. Was set on having it ready for our next simulator. Stayed awake for days to finish it. He was so tired, he accidentally mis-wired the activation so it came alive in the barracks. Started firing everywhere.”

“A bolt went right by my head! Hit my favorite target card!” Crosshair exclaims as he pushes himself off of the boulder, turning his body towards Hunter.

“I’ve never seen Wrecker move so quickly when he flipped the table and took cover,” Hunter continues. “I had to tackle Tech down since he was still in a stupor, just staring at the droid wildly firing. It finally ran out of juice after a minute, but the damage to the barracks…”

“Can’t believe Nala Se’s check up was scheduled for that day. Remember the look on her face when she opened the door?” Crosshair says with a laugh.

“Still not as good as Lama Su’s when I had to explain to him what happened after being called to his office,” Hunter snickers. “Only the second time that week too. Pretty sure that was a record for us.”

“What was the most?”

“In one week? Nine. Became more frequent after Echo joined. Who knew an ARC would be such a troublemaker,” Hunter chuckled.

“He’s not so bad. For a reg.”

Hunter flicked his gaze up to Crosshair and smiled at the fondness he found in his eyes. No one was more protective of their squad than the ARC, and no one was more protective of the ARC than their sniper.

Turns out, Echo has as much patience for bullies as he does for Separatists, and the Batch learned quickly that something as small as a snide look sent their way resulted in it being punched off the reg’s face by a scomp. Naturally, Echo’s fierce loyalty and no hesitation to knock down regs earned him a high spot in Crosshair’s regard.

“Pretty sure he gets it from that Fives he’s always talking about,” Crosshair says.

“Can’t really picture Rex having a bunch of rowdy ARCs,” Hunter mutters.

“I think Skywalker required all of his attention. Let the others get away with it,” Crosshair chuckles.

Hunter matches his chuckle with his own. “Remember when…”

Surrounded by the quiet of the jungle, the brothers swap stories until the dark hours of night soften with the first rays of the sun crawling up to the horizon. The quiet is interrupted by Wrecker’s laugh inside the ship, and the sergeant and the sniper join their squad as they prepare to return home.

#tay writes #divider by samspenandsword #star wars #the bad batch #hunter #crosshair #echo #tech #the bad batch tech #the bad batch echo #the bad batch crosshair #the bad batch hunter #pre order 66 bad batch #soft bros

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grievedeeply · 1 year

Note

I saw you want requests after playing Survivor

👁👄👁

One shot of Cal running across fem reader that he knew when he was a padiwan (assumed dead)? And realizing why he was always so flustered and agitated by her 🤭🤭

this is so cute i loooove these reunion prompts i'm getting!!

fem!reader (no pronouns used) | tws/tags: death, sorta in depth order 66, use of y/n

JOIN MY NEW TAGLIST!!

they never left — cal kestis

you remembered the day clear in your mind as though it had happened yesterday. the purge. the clones tore through your master as though they were never even there. their last words to you ring true in your mind even ten years later, "run," and you did. you ran, using the force to reach into places they couldn't. you snuck past those who used to be your friends. you thought they cared for you. why had they all had a sudden change of heart? whatever the reason was, you knew you couldn't dwell. it wouldn't do you any good to be miserable.. even if that's all you wanted to do, sometimes.

over the years, you hid your abilities and tucked away your lightsaber for good. you swore to never use the force ever again. your family was gone. the order was gone, your master was gone.. and you couldn't reach out into the force to attempt to sense anyone. it was too risky.

cal. was he gone, too? he was another padawan under the tutelage of jedi master jaro tapal, a kind but intimidating lasat who you had met a few times. but cal.. cal was warm. he was inviting, he was friendly. he was everything an introverted child like yourself needed in a friend. the two of you quickly became rule breakers, sneaking out past curfews and past the temple guards who— looking back on it now— definitely saw you. you snuck out so often to spend time together, knowing that the likelihood of being assigned together on a mission was slim to none, it was the next best thing. maybe even better. at least there wasn't a risk of death, now.

you managed to get on each others nerves often, too. disagreeing and arguing and avoiding each other until you both forgot what happened. though, as you grew older, cal found himself getting more and more.. flustered.. when you were around. his face was constantly red, his palms were sweaty, his chest so tight it practically hurt to breath, and it irritated him. you irritated him. was it your fault? he didn't know. it only happened around you, so it had to be your fault, so he tried to avoid you.

it wasn't as though he treated you poorly. he could never do that. his heart and soul were too kind, too gentle. he didn't have a mean bone in his body.. but he wished you would just go away sometimes, to get that sinking feeling in his stomach to fade as it always did when you left.

now, cal knows what that feeling was. it was the beginnings of a crush. attachment and relationships were forbidden in the order. attachment made you selfish. it lead to jealousy, anger and resentment. a path to the dark side of the force. but now.. the jedi order was no more. it was destroyed years ago, but you hadn't lived to see it.

he heard your name. whispered in hushed voices by people on every planet he visited. your name, and the names of plenty of other jedi. plo koon, aayla secura.. anakin skywalker. but he focused on solely on you. you were killed alongside your master during the purge. you died, and he wasn't there to protect you. he reached into the force over and over, desperately trying to find a trace of you throughout it as time went on, but he found nothing. your death was confirmed, and there was nothing he could do about it.

you were glad word of your death spread fast. it was much easier to hide, and you had to move less often. your life proved more relaxed.. or as relaxed as it could be. despite your supposed death, your world would never be safe as long as you were force sensitive.

this time, kohbo was the world of choice. it was a nice, relatively backwater world in the outer rim. imperial presence, but as long as you kept your head down, you would fit in well. people from all sorts of backgrounds flocked to it. it wasn't like you would be out of place, and that fact was a relief. you'd stick to yourself as you always did, and everything would be well.

you stood, back pressed against the cold stone of the wall as you stared up towards the landing platform. a ship, a S-161 'stinger' XL, sat on the dock. you'd heard that it'd crashed out in the gorge a little ways away from rambler's reach. whoever piloted it knew greez in some way or another, and he'd managed to fix it, along with someone else you didn't know the name of. you didn't much care for their name, anyway. keeping your head down, staying out of trouble, that was the main goal.

until turgle fell off of the platform, screaming as he hurtled towards the ground. before you could even think, you reached out your hand and looked deep into the force, watching as he floated to the ground. his eyes were still closed and he yelped as you caught him, but other than that, he looked confused until his eyes landed on you, your hand extended out in his direction. he might be clumsy, but he wasn't exactly stupid.

you cringed, awkwardly sinking in on yourself as you turned around, ready to go back to your ship and leave koboh and everyone else on this planet behind.. until you heard turgle's voice call out your name.

"you," you heard him come up behind you, out of breath and looking red in the face, "you saved me!" he exclaimed, "with your.. your force magic." he said, eyes wide in disbelief. he stared you down, and you pursed your lips as you stared right back at him. "you're a jedi, aren't you?" he spoke up again, and all you could do was roll your eyes. "ha, of course not. you're just seeing things." you insisted to him with a simple shrug of your shoulders, turning on your heel to leave once again. by now, greez was hot on turgle's tail, his expression wide eyed and excited.

"oh, come on! i saw you," he retorted, "you saved me from imminent death.. and i am in your debt." he told you with a nod of his head, and you sighed. "you don't owe me anything, okay? just keep this quiet and we're even." you responded, and he nodded once again, eagerly. he stood there for a few moments until you raised your eyebrows, waiting for him to leave. finally taking the hint, he skipped away from you and into the cantina.

you let out a groan. turgle could barely be trusted. he would blabber about you eventually, and you didn't want to be around when he did. this place wasn't safe anymore. once more, you turned to leave, but heard the sound of greez clearing his throat. you weren't out of the woods, yet.

you shut your eyes, but glanced over your shoulder at him. his arms were crossed over his chest, but he wore a smile.

"there's someone i think you should meet, kid."

you furrowed your brow. you couldn't exactly say no, could you?

greez led you into the cantina through the back entrance, clambering up the steps through heavy breaths. who could he possibly want you to meet? a million questions ran through your mind as you came out into the main area of the cantina, and he gestured for you to take a seat next to him at the bar. you did so after a moment's hesitation, and you sat there, hunched over in your seat, feeling completely exposed. still, no one looked at you any differently as they did before.

"what am i doing here?" you asked, letting your elbow rest uncomfortably against the bar. greez spared you a glance, but kept at his drink. "someone i want you to meet, s'all." he reassured you, finally turning his chair to face you. you blinked a few times. his words did nothing to reassure you, for all you knew, he could be turning you in to the raiders or even the empire. you sighed, but decided to keep your mouth shut.

you watched the door as people entered and exited, waving goodbye to moran as he left for the night. over the few months you'd been staying on koboh, he was the only one you spoke to regularly. he came off as prickly, but the truth was, he was a sad, lonely man who needed a friend. even if making connections, getting attached, wad a bad idea.. moran was there for you when you needed someone, even if he didn't know it. he returned your wave with a smile, and the door slid shut behind him.

"it's been hours, who am i waiting for?" you spoke up again for the first time since you'd arrived. "any minute now," he reassured you, a knowing grin spread across his lips. what was he even talking abou-

the door slid open.. red hair. you froze in your seat, your hands suddenly felt sweaty and your heart fell into your stomach. the boy you once knew was now a man, but you would recognize his face anywhere. cal. he was alive. you practically jumped out of your seat and rushed into him without thinking, arms wrapped around his midsection in a tight hug. "cal.." you muttered his name under your breath, finally finding your voice as you pulled away to get a better look at him.

he had matured, grown into his features. he carried a newly fashioned saber on his belt, and on his shoulders was a cute BD unit. his cheeks were covered in freckles, his eyes still that same beautiful green, splattered with specks of blue.

"i thought.. i thought you were-" cal said, his voice barely a whisper. "i'm sorry," you told him, "i.. wish i knew you were alive." you continued after a pause, still taking in his new look. he looked.. handsome.

"i tried to find you," he swallowed, "through the force."

that feeling was back. the feeling from ten years ago. his palms were sweaty, and his heart pounded against his ribcage. a crush that never faded, that only grew once he saw how you'd grown. you were incredible then.. but now? you were stunning. his breath hitched in his throat, but he lifted his hand to your face. "i.. i'm so glad you're okay." he whispered to you, and you nodded, a small smile on your lips.

"okay, kids. break it up. you can.. make out later, or whatever." greez cut into the moment, his grating voice ringing unpleasantly in cal's ears. he chuckled awkwardly under his breath but took a few steps away from you. still, his eyes never left your face.

"we aren't.. we weren't-" you said, cheeks flushed in embarrassment at his suggestion. "uhuh.. whatever." he responded, eyes flickering back and forth between the two of you, and you felt as though he saw right through you. for a man as strange as he was, he read people incredibly well. "figured you'd get along. glad i was right." he continued before you had the chance to dig yourself further into the hole in your mind you were forming.

"i'll leave you two alone," he laughed, glancing knowingly between you and cal, a smirk on his face. still, he stayed true to his word and climbed out of his chair, walking out of the front entrance with a skip in his step.

you watched as he left, only turning back to cal once the door closed behind him. your mouth felt dry, and you licked your lips. "you.. um, you have a new lightsaber?" you asked, glancing down at the weapon hanging from his hip. he nodded, "my.. my first one, i lost it during the purge." you didn't reply to his words verbally, but sat your hand on his shoulder, giving it a gentle squeeze.

"and who's this?" you asked, a smile on your features as you glanced at the BD unit. "oh," cal said, matching your expression even though it seemed as though he forgot the droid was there at all. "this is BD-1," he told you, and you directed your grin at him, "you've been taking care of cal while i've been gone?" you teased, but the droid replied in completely serious beeps, much to his dismay.

"how long have you been here?" cal asked you after a pause, and you glanced around at your surroundings. the cantina needed some work.. and a deep cleaning. you turned your attention back to him, but a sigh fell from your lips. "a couple of months now." his gaze was soft as he stared into your eyes, and he took your hands into his own, grounding himself into this moment. "i heard you were dead, y/n." he muttered. "i.. i know." you spoke, your heart aching at the thought of him mourning for you. "the force.. i couldn't.. i couldn't feel you." he told you, and you said nothing in response, averting your gaze to his hands in your own.

this.. this moment reminded you of your childhood, running around the gardens of the temple with your hands entwined, completely ignoring your assigned training to play for awhile. except now, cal's hands were rough, and so were yours.

"i cut myself off from the force." you explained to him, "i had to hide. i've been hiding.. up until today." you could hear his breathing through the silence of the empty cantina, and he didn't say anything else. instead, he dropped your hands and wrapped his arms around you, pulling you into his chest.

"i love you." cal whispered into your neck, and you swore your breathing stopped. "what?" your arms fell to your sides, but he didn't pull away. "i love you." he repeated himself, pulling away to look into your eyes. his face was red, but the expression he wore was serious. "how could you.. how could you say that?" you asked, brows furrowed. his hands gripped your shoulders, and he let out a breathless chuckle.

"i've known it for years. when we were kids.. i had the biggest crush on you, and it bothered me. it bothered me how flustered i'd get around you even when you did.. absolutely nothing but smile." he explained, a growing smile forming across his face. "and irritated me. so i stayed away from you, thinking you were the one who bothered me all along." he said.

"but now the order doesn't exist anymore. the code is gone. but my.. my feelings for you- they never left." cal's voice fell to a whisper, "and seeing you now, it just makes me realize it all.. all over again." he took in a deep breath, but kept his eyes trained on your face. "so.."

"cal," you shut your eyes, shaking your head, "you actually felt that way that entire time when i thought you just started hating me for no reason?" you sighed, his lack of response telling you everything you needed to know.

you took a step closer to him, pressing your lips to his for a few seconds before pulling away. to cal, it wasn't nearly long enough. he leaned after your lips, eyes already completely closed as he'd relaxed into your touch. "i love you too. i always have." you told him, the feeling of his lips burned into your memory. they were chapped and dry.. but they fit against yours perfectly.

"really?"

"really."

he grinned, and kissed you again.

tags: @starwalkerwriting @war-in-time

#star wars #star wars x reader #star wars x reader headcanons #star wars x y/n #star wars x reader imagines #star wars x you #reader x cal kestis #cal kestis #cal kestis x y/n #cal kestis x reader #cal kestis x you

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estrellami-1 · 1 month

Text

If I Should Stay

Part 1 | . . . | Part 65 | Part 66 | Part 67

Joyce never thought getting sucked into whatever the hell this crazy Upside-Down world is meant she’d still have to deal with teenagers and their hormones, but it does make a certain kind of sense, considering teenagers are the ones leading this whole thing.

When all this is over, she’s taking so much Valium and not getting out of bed for a week. She owes it to herself.

Vecna’s dead. That’s great. She hadn’t known he was an issue until about an hour before she helped kill him, but it’s one less psycho in the world, so she doesn’t really care.

But now there’s Papa, and apparently he’s all but abused El, and as soon as he’s dealt with, Joyce is going to take up knitting and firmly ignore any problems that can’t be solved with yarn or knitting needles.

Until then, though, she’s got a teenager who thinks the world is ending—a common occurrence, at seventeen—and who knows a secret that could hurt a couple of very good people.

Not to mention apparently her son is involved in all this mayhem, too, and she does her best to be a good mom, and a good mom would get involved and listen and find solutions.

But when this is over? Knitting and Valium. Not necessarily in that order.

She finds Nancy and Jonathan sitting at the end of the driveway, tucked behind a car. Jonathan’s a little awkward, but he’s got a good heart, so he’s angled toward her, listening.

Joyce can tell, from Nancy’s body language, what she really wants is someone to hug her, to tell her it’ll be alright, that what just happened didn’t actually happen.

Joyce can do two of the three, so she sits down next to Nancy and does her best to smile encouragingly. “Sucks, doesn’t it?”

Nancy scoffs. “That’s an understatement.” Tears well in her eyes. “I thought he loved me. I know he said he didn’t but just a week ago he was all over me, it was almost stifling, but now that it’s gone I just want it back.”

Joyce sighs and carefully wraps an arm around Nancy’s shoulders. She leans into it, so Joyce tugs her in more securely. “Did he explain why he broke it off this time around?”

Nancy sniffs. “Some bullshit about me not feeling the same as him.”

Joyce hums. “I think that’s the same word he used when describing what happened at the party, dear. The same night you implied you didn’t love him. I’m not saying either of you are in the right or the wrong. Breakups are tricky things, and they hurt both people in the relationship.”

Nancy sneers at the ground. “Didn’t hurt him.”

“It actually sounds like it did,” Joyce says softly. “The first time around. Think about it this way, right? He’s got some inside knowledge because he’s been through this already. He knew breaking it off, instead of pretending to have feelings for you, would end up better in the long run. And he knew you don’t feel the same way for him as he did for you.”

“Says who,” Nancy asks, “no one bothered to ask me this time around-”

“Nancy, honey,” Joyce carefully says, “I haven’t heard you once say you love him.”

Nancy opens her mouth to answer, then hesitates and shuts it as she sniffles. A tear drops down her cheek, and she roughly wipes it away. “So- so just because I can’t say it-”

“It doesn’t really matter if you can say it or not. What matters is how you feel.” Joyce sighs. “Did he tell you the whole story? Why he really broke up with you this time around?”

Nancy sighs. “Yeah, but I didn’t this time! I would never-”

“I thought the same,” Joyce says. “I was in love with a boy once, I thought he was perfect, but he wouldn’t give me what the boys’ dad did.”

Nancy frowns. “So you- with their dad?”

Joyce nods. “Now, if I could go back and change it, I don’t know if I would. It got me my boys, and I would do anything for them. But if I could get them and not have gotten with Lonnie in the first place, I would’ve in a heartbeat. You can appreciate what you had, or what you got from something, and still wish it hadn’t happened that way. Does that make sense?”

“I think so.”

“And as for you cheating on him… I don’t know, honey. I know that’s why my boyfriend at the time broke up with me. For that reason, I can’t really fault Steve. Can you?”

Nancy tucks her chin on her knees. “I guess not. But it still hurts.”

“And it’s allowed to,” Joyce tells her. “But I need you to know, honey, you can’t tell anyone who he’s with.”

“I wouldn’t!” Nancy turns so quickly Joyce worries she gave herself whiplash. “I know exactly what would happen. My dad’s like that. I’m upset, but I don’t want Steve dead, and that’s what would happen if my dad found out.”

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#stranger things #steve harrington #eddie munson #steddie #if I should stay #joyce byers #mama Joyce to the rescue #jonathan byers #el hopper #fix it #fix it fic #time travel #time travel fic #time travel fix it #time travel fix it fic #starambles

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choppersconfirmedkills · 1 year

Text

Family

Pairing: Bad Batch x Platonic! Former Jedi! Reader

Word Count: 645

Genre: Absolute fluff, pure goodness

Warnings: Bad Batch antics

Day 4 of the New Years Drabble Series! Randomly timed in celebration of the premier of the new season!

“Alright, let’s go ‘Mega, got to do your hair,” you called out, patting the spot in front of you.

“Can you do it just like yours?” Omega asked, eyes twinkling.

“We can see. Your hair is a bit short, but I’ll try my best.” Across the ship, you heard a loud thud, causing both you and the young one in front of you to freeze. You didn’t bother to look up knowing that it was just normal chaos, and continued brushing Omega’s hair

“Wrecker!” Echo yelled. “You keep swinging your big head around like that and you’ll destroy the ship!

“My ship,” Tech pointed, never tearing his view away from in front of him.

“Come on Echo. My head’s not that big,” Wrecker pouted.

“It is significantly larger than any of our heads. At least an inch large in circumference.” Tech added.

“Why do you use such big words, nobody understands them,” Wrecker said.

“I think everyone understood that. There’s no need to be so emphatic about it.”

“See again! Did any of you understand that? Hunter? Y/N?” Wrecker whipped around to ask.

“No comment,” you responded. Hunter just rolled his eyes. The argument continued, you zoned it out and went back to Omega’s hair.

“Y/N?”

“Hmm?” You looked down at the little girl in front of you.

“What was your family like?” Omega asked.

“Why do you ask?” You continued, starting a braid in her hair.

“Well, it’s just that I have my brothers, they’re my family, and I wonder what yours must have been like.”

“As you know, I was a Jedi. The Jedi are taken when they are very young to learn the ways of the force. So I never knew my family, all I knew were the Jedi. At times it could be very lonely. We were told not to form attachments. All we had was the Force. I thought about looking for my family, but I never did. And then once upon a time, I was assigned to this rag-tag group of clones. They were loud and rambunctious. They never really cared for rules which was the opposite of what I was used to, but it was refreshing. They were strong and they moved concisely, never failing in completing a mission. They claimed it was because of their abilities but the truth was, it was because of how close they were. They could communicate, even if most of the time it was to scream at one another.” Omega laughed. Looking up at the argument that was still going on, now including Hunter. “I stayed because there was something about the group. And they took me in. We fought together, laughed together, and cared for one another. They protected me when Order 66 happened. And then I realized I didn’t need to look for my family, it was right in front of me.”

“But how are they your family if you don’t share blood?” Omega asked, looking up at you.

“Something I learned from them. Family has nothing to do with relation but is instead all about the love and care you have for one another.” You paused looking down at Omega’s finished hair. “All done!” You patted her shoulder. Omega bolted up and ran straight toward the chaos, desperate to show off her new hair.

“Guys! Look at my hair! Y/N did it! And they told me all about their family!” You smiled at her antics.

“Family?” Echo called out.

“Jedi don’t have family,” Tech answered.

“You never told us about your family!” Wrecker again pouted.

“Well clearly it was not pertinent at the time, so they didn’t need to tell us nor did they want to,” Tech added.

“Didn’t we just talk about you using big words nobody understands?” Wrecker cried out, and another argument ensued and Omega just turned around to you and winked.

Your family.

#bad batch imagines #bad batch x reader #hunter x reader #tech x reader #echo x reader #wrecker x reader #crosshair x reader #bad batch fluff #star wars fanfiction

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badbatchsprincess · 13 days

Text

Heated ~ pt. 1

Pt.1 ~ Pt.2 ~ Pt.3 ~ Pt.4 ~ Pt.5 ~ Pt.6

Masterlist

This is an ABO Bad batch!Poly x Omega Reader smut with a plot. This takes place as an AU before order 66. Y/N previously served under the 501st before being transferred to Special Forces 99. This is her adventure with these rowdy Alphas in a quickly changing universe.

No warnings for this, just world building.

─ ⋅ ⋅ ⋅ ──── ♡ ─── ⋅ ⋅ ⋅ ──

After approximately 90 rotations aboard the Marauder, give or take a few days, you were ready to disembark.

Tech, of course, calculated the accurate amount of time, but you were running on inner planetary standard time. You were exhausted. Truly and totally exhausted. The battles along the outer rim were beginning to overtake every waking thought, and the war only seemed to be escalating. Even though you were just a medical technician, it seemed like you never had a moment to breathe.

The boys had been sent on one mission after another to the most backwater planets you’d never even heard of. In the beginning of working with Clone Force 99, you were thrilled.

Tired of being on the front lines with Captain Rex and General Skywalker, you thought this would have been a cakewalk compared to tending to the 501st. (Or as you liked to call them, the most reckless GAR unit in history.) Boy, were you wrong…

Rex assigning you to Clone Force 99 had been one of the most challenging places you think a young medic like yourself could have gone.

These men, in particular, were a unique kind of reckless, and they always seemed to end up in the craziest situations.

That didn’t mean you didn’t come to grow fond of them, but as GAR procedure demands, they must return to Coruscant for their quarterly medical examinations, and you were relieved.

While you didn’t particularly care for the bustle of the high-density planet, you could appreciate not being shot at, chased, or bombed at any given second.

The Marauder also didn’t offer the same level of comfort as the Venator Attack Cruisers you’d become accustomed to staying on for months at a time. But it’s alright, you’ve come to enjoy your time with special force 99.

For a bunch of chaotic Alphas, they were pleasant company.

Sergeant Hunter was the leader and a remarkable tracker. You couldn’t help but marvel at his heightened abilities; it was really interesting from a medical standpoint. Tech had the brain capacity of a supercomputer and his ex-arc trooper friend, Echo. You actually had known Echo from your early days serving under the 501st.

It was nice having him around; he seemed to keep the peace and offered some much-needed familiarity. Then there was Wrecker, the sweetest man-child you’d ever met. He had a love for blowing things up, which you found hilarious, and finally, there was Crosshair. You never really knew where you stood with the man. Echo told you it’s because he’s not used to strangers hanging out with his brothers, but you weren’t quite sure. The Alpha was quiet and calculated. He didn’t miss a thing, not with his heightened reflexes. He never said much to you; he often operated in silence unless it was to piss off Hunter, which seemed to be more often than you realized.

He, however, treated you indifferently. It was just odd for an Alpha to not acknowledge an Omega. Not to say you needed his attention, it was just different. You speculated it had to do with his genetic mutations; maybe he was too good at focusing on his objective. Omegas hardly phased him.

“You ready, Pip?” Wrecker gave your shoulders a gentle shake.

You smiled at the nickname. “Yeah Wreck, ugh I just really want a real shower.” You sighed, getting a little impatient.

The Marauder was waiting for landing clearance while you made quick work stowing away the last few stray supplies. You made notes of all the supplies that had been depleted, which was most of it. You shook your head; you’d be raiding the GAR supply facility before deployment for certain.

“You and me both,” Hunter snorted and settled down in one of the chairs in the cockpit.

Poor guy, you realized, probably had the worst of it all. Living amongst five sweaty dirty men and one medic had his scent on overdrive. Not to mention the dulled pheromones. Being surrounded by so many alphas, the stench was probably awful for him.

You, however, being an omega on the smaller side, couldn’t smell much, not with your implant which was due for replacement this quarter. Hunter never mentioned anything to you about smell. You just hoped it wasn’t too much for him with all of your implants thankfully. It never seemed like an issue for him.

“We’re clear for landing,” Echo chirped from the copilot seat. Everyone came up to the front to strap into the jump seats. Crosshair brought your packed bag up with him and placed it gently under your feet before he took the seat next to you and strapped in. You thanked him, and he gave you a silent nod still chewing on his toothpick.

Echo and Tech gently landed the Marauder in the GAR main hangar bay and finished up the last cross check before disembarking. Wrecker was kind and offered to carry your duffle filled with your civvies and toiletries. You thanked him and followed him out of the Marauder. Taking a deep breath of fresh air, you smiled at the feeling of real sun on your skin.

Looking down the steps, you squealed, noticing all of the white and blue plastoid on the other side of the hangar bay. Running at full speed, you nearly tripped over your own feet, flinging yourself at Kix.

He noticed you last minute and swooped you up into his arms, “Hey Tiny! I didn’t know you were on rotation already?” He picked you up and spun you around before putting you down. Your excitement to see your old unit was overwhelming; you couldn’t help but smile as more of your friends on the 501st ran over to give you a hug or a playful shove.

You missed the way Wrecker gawked at your reaction to the Regs. “Well, she certainly doesn’t do that with us,” Tech noted, watching you rub up against the alphas in a comforting manner, purring under their affection.

“Fucking Regs,” Crosshair groused.

Echo remembered how fond you are of the 501st. He remembered when you were a newbie just starting your medical field days bonding with General Tano as teens. He felt a little nostalgic watching you with his vod. He laughed remembering how Ahsoka would scent you before sending you out into the field. They loved you so much.

Tech noted how comfortable you were with their touch and scenting. Something no one in their unit ever attempted with you. Of course, they were aware of your designation, but they tried their hardest to be respectful. Hunter had made it extremely clear no one was supposed to touch you unless necessary. It had been six months of your service on their unit, and no one has ever gotten this close with you except Wrecker, but it wasn’t anything like that.

The alpha in Tech was a little upset by this. Why didn’t the omega feel comfortable with them?

Hunter listened to the way you preened under their attention, and his chest pained a bit hearing your purrs. Was he… jealous? No. That’s his medic, that's all. He had read your file; you’d been with them for most of the war. Of course, that would make you closer. He could smell the happy pheromones you spread from where they were. You were happy with the 501st’s attention; it wasn’t something he knew you craved.

“I’m here for quarterlies,” you tapped your shoulder, “And I’m due for replacement.” You sighed. “Ahh,” Kix smirked, “Difficult enough dealing with us reg alphas huh? Gotta deal with defects now too huh? Got that implant working overtime.”

You rolled your eyes and shoved him.

A cough behind you caught your attention. You spun around to see your unit catching up, looking a little perturbed, especially Crosshair. He’s never warmed up to the Regs and didn’t particularly like you sharing your fond stories about them. You usually keep to yourself in his presence or else he’d get a little hostile.

“Sarge,” Kix greeted with a head tilt.

“Kix,” Hunter gave him a polite nod, “Captain.” He looked beyond you.

You spun around, “Rex!” You ran at him, wrapping yourself around your old captain. “Hey kid,” he laughed, giving you a pat on the head looking down at you.

“I’m older than you, Captain,” you rolled your eyes with a smile.

“So you like to remind me,” he laughed, suddenly realizing how much he had missed you.

You stepped back with a huge smile. Suddenly everything was starting to feel good again. 90 rotations didn’t seem so terrible anymore. You giggled as they all filed in demanding to know how you’ve been.

“We’re heading to 79’s later,” Jesse smiled, “You gotta come Y/N. I wanna hear about your adventures to the outer rim.”

“Especially me,” Fives trotted forwards shoving you playfully aside before embracing his brother Echo, “Vod!” He hugged Echo tight. Echo relaxed into his hug and gave him a curt smile. “How you doing?” Fives asked, wrapping his arm around Echo’s shoulder before walking off with him towards the barracks to no doubt catch up.

“I got a replacement due,” you sighed, “I can’t drink but I’ll stop by for a bit to catch up!”

They all seemed to light up at that, “See you there, kid!” Captain Rex gave you a nod and turned on his heel to get back to work and make sure the General’s Venator was getting proper maintenance.

“C’mon, Pip,” Hunter was leading the others towards the medical campus for their quarterlies.

You huffed, “Coming, Sarge.”

“Pip?” You heard the others laugh a bit at your new nickname when you trailed off behind your new unit. Damn their long legs you were struggling to hold pace with them.

Crosshair gave you an incredulous look watching you try to catch up. You gave it right back to him.

“Miss your precious Regs?” He sneered. You didn’t miss the way Tech’s shoulders stiffened. Wrecker and Hunter pretended not to hear, but you knew they did. You suddenly missed having Echo as your defense.

“What?” You looked at him.

“You heard me,” he growled.

“Of course I missed my old unit. I haven’t seen them in six standard months, Crosshair.”

“That all?” He was cold.

“What is that supposed to mean?” You stopped and crossed your arms forcing him to stop walking.

Crosshair pointed his toothpick at you, “Throwing yourself at a bunch of alphas like a bitch in hea-”

“Enough!” Hunter growled.

Your cheeks burned red. How dare he. You looked to Wrecker and then Tech but the looks on their faces didn’t exactly show any support for you. Did they agree?…Maker. Wrecker lowered his gaze which surprised you the most.

Crosshair never really said much to you besides if you asked him an immediate question about his health or an injury. He usually somewhat avoided you. But you never thought he disliked you, at least up until now. The disgust was obvious on his face.

You just shook your head and continued stalking towards the medical campus, ignoring Hunter’s call. Your shore-leave was becoming more and more desirable by the second. You wanted space especially from Mr. dark and gloomy.

Deciding you’ve had enough of them, you detoured for your department entrance leaving them to go into the main medical campus alone. You knew Tech had all of your reports stowed on his datapad records. They would survive without you at least for now. You thought you heard Wrecker whimper behind you, but the sound of ion engines priming drowned out the rest before you stepped inside the medic clinic. Fuck Crosshair. What a dickhead.

You shook your head knowing you had other things to focus on besides his stupid little attitude.

Passing through multiple security clearances, you stepped into the sterile clinic’s main lobby.

“Medic Y/L/N?” You heard a familiar soft voice.

“Hi Layla.” You smiled sweetly at the nurse who you came to know during your training program. Being an omega, she opted to stay on base instead of venturing out into the battle fronts she was definitely more gentle mannered than yourself. You preferred some action and excitement.

“In for your quarterly’s?”

"Yeah, and I need a new replacement implant," you muttered as you trailed behind Layla toward one of the deserted exam rooms. The clinical white walls felt suffocating, a stark contrast to the chaotic memories you shared here. You reminisced about your early days serving the GAR, where Layla and you tended to wounded soldiers and even brushed shoulders with the occasional Jedi. But that was before you were transferred to General Skywalker’s unit, thrust into the heart of battle and endless repairs for him and his Padawan. You missed the simplicity of those days, the camaraderie with Layla.

”How’s the 501st treating you?" Layla's voice broke through your reverie as she handed you a crumpled paper gown.

"I got transferred to Special Forces 99," you replied, shedding your uniform behind the flimsy curtain. "They’re a different breed, that's for sure."

"Clone Force 99?" Layla's eyebrows rose in curiosity.

“Yeah.” you confirmed, feeling a flicker of amusement at her reaction.

As Layla chewed on her pen, a mischievous glint danced in her eyes. "The Sergeant’s pretty hot."

Your cheeks flushed, and you nearly stumbled over your words before recovering. “Layla…” You gawked.

She giggled and sat down on her roller stool. "Don’t lie and say you’ve never thought about it."

Well, obviously you’ve thought about it. They’re all honestly pretty hot, but you’d never admit that out loud.

"Now where have you seen Hunter like that?" you giggled at her cheekiness.

"I watch the holonet streams every once in a while. Especially after the retrieval on Skako Minor, General Skywalker and Sergeant CT-9901 were all over the holonet for weeks," she mused. "An omega’s wet dream."

You screamed and threw your boot at her. You two looked at each other momentarily before bursting out into a fit of laughter. Man, you missed Layla. Honestly, you just missed having another girl to talk to. This was such a refresher from the overwhelming amount of Alpha.

You hopped up on the table, lying down, trying to get comfortable.

"What’s he like?" her tone shifted into mischief.

You hesitated, memories of Hunter flooding your mind. "He’s… different. Polite, I guess."

Layla raised an eyebrow, her expression demanding the truth. “Girl…” she slapped your shoulder, grabbing her scanner to document your entire system from head to toe.

"Well, I don’t know!" you put your hands up in defense. "He’s quite the gentleman. None of them so much as look, Layla, I swear."

She just looked at you with a raised brow while she continued her work, “Yeah right.”

"But…" you smirked, watching her work, "I do know the tattoos go to his feet…" you bit your lip.

Now it was her turn to choke. "You’re lying…" Her interest was piqued.

You shook your head. "Full skeleton all the way down his arm, ribs, thigh…"

You two sighed.

She finished her scan and input the data before sliding her roller chair right next to you. "Everywhere?"

You raised a brow. "Everywhere," you confirmed with a nod.

She put her hand over her chest in a dramatic manner before prepping the numbing agent for your implant.

You remembered the day you found out this information about your Sergeant. Up until this point, you’d only seen maybe an arm or some knuckles in your medical repairs, but this time Hunter had taken a pretty bad hit to his side and thigh. Multiple blaster wounds had torn him up, and Tech had helped him limp back to the ship before they both collapsed on the floor. You had flung yourself out of your bunk at the commotion only to realize what had happened.

Tech helped you tear off Hunter’s armor and helmet, trying to figure out where the wounds were. Luckily, they hadn’t gone through, and it was mostly just surface wounds, but you still had to cut through his blacks to get to it, leaving his entire left side exposed. He had growled at you, but Tech had set him straight. He was just in pain.

That’s when you realized his entire left side was tattooed like his face, all the way down to his feet. You mumbled a quick apology before starting your cleaning process and bacta application.

The wounds had healed up nicely, but he had to re-tattoo the fresh skin the next time they had shore-leave. You had also stowed away the information of how muscular he was. The man was truly a work of art.

A sharp jab snapped you out of your memories when Layla removed the old suppressor implant. You yelped when the new one went in, making you a bit dizzy with pain. You hissed when she retracted the mechanism.

"There we go," she beamed. "Good as new."

"Thanks, Layla," you said, sitting up, letting her bandage the small incision wound with a bacta patch. The soothing coldness was immediate. You sighed in relief as the pain dulled.

"I told Rex I’d be at 79’s later, if you want to come?" you offered, slipping from the table to give her a hug.

"As much as I’d love to play with the captain, I have so much work to catch up on for quarterly's. I better stay here," she sighed, pushing her chair back into place. "But you have fun, and enjoy your time off. Come back to visit if you get bored."

You giggled. "I will." And with that, she left you to change back into your uniform before leaving the medic’s clinic. The hangar bay was significantly more empty now as you made your way over to civilian transport. After exiting the security checkpoint, you made your way over to the clone transport. "Can you take me to residential?" you asked the officer in the pilot’s seat. He gave you a nod, and you settled back into the transport’s seats. With a sigh, you were finally starting to relax a bit. You knew the boys were probably already back at their barracks after their examinations, so you knew they wouldn’t be bothering you for at least a few rotations.

When you finally arrived to the GAR residential building you gave the driver a thanks before hoping out and skipping over to the front door. You couldn’t wait to get to your quarters and enjoy a long hot shower. Swiping your clearance card, you dashed into the elevator to your floor and into your room. It smelled like you needed to open a window but other then that is was just as you left it. Knowing you’d have to get some food delivered, you gave a dramatic sigh while kicking off your regulation boots. You went to unzip your uniform top when you heard the swish of clothing and a familiar scoff.

You turned suddenly seeing Crosshair standing in your kitchen in his civvies looking tall and menacing.

“Maker! Crosshair!” You put a hand on your chest, “You scared me!”

“Sorry little one.” He didn’t sound sorry at all.

You looked around suddenly remembering you’re in YOUR apartment.

“What the hell are you doing here Crosshair?” You narrowed your gaze at him getting mad all over again.

“Hunter is making me apologize for earlier.” He grumbled around his toothpick.

You hummed, “How did you get in here?”

He held up the Sergeant’s entry card. Of course… dammit Hunter.

“Here.” He slid your duffle across the floor to you. A peace offering. You were grateful for that at least.

A deep pang in your shoulder made you grimace “Thanks.” You unzipped your uniform top leaving you in your bindings not caring if he looked. He didn’t seem phased anyways. The bacta patch stained red with your blood. He narrowed his eyes to the incision. You knelt down to your duffle and pulled out your field kit. You grabbed a dose of pain killer and brought the injector up to the wound site. You pressed the mechanism and the needle stabbed you quickly injecting the medicine. You rolled your shoulder and replaced the bacta patch seeing the wound turning to a simple line. Soon it would be gone in a few hours.

“So?” You looked at the tall sniper.

He lifted a brow.

You crossed your arms, “Your apology?”

He snorted and stood up straight before walking past you.

“Sorry.” He mumbled before stepping back out into the hallway and disappearing.

You sighed knowing that was all you’re going to get from the grumpy soldier. Whatever, you’d take it.

~~~

The shower that followed was worth it. You had never felt so clean in your few years in this universe. The piping hot water cleansed you of three standard months of sweat, bomb residue, and blood. You scrubbed and scrubbed until your skin flared red before you stepped out of the shower to get ready. Throwing on your favorite civvies and some makeup, you quickly dried your hair before throwing on your regulation boots. Grabbing your com and a few credits. You practically skipped out of your apartment making a beeline for 79’s. You couldn’t wait to catch up with your old friends.

When you arrived, you heard an uproar of men yelling your name. You looked over to see Fives, Jesse, Kix, and the others wave you over.

“Tiny!” You got tackled by Fives. He put you in a headlock and ruffled your hair despite your cries. You shoved him off of you knowing he must have scented you in the process.

“Ugh! Fives you reek.” You scrunched your nose smelling the alpha on him it was stronger then usual.

“Sorry tiny.” He laughed rubbing the back of his neck, “We gotta get our implants replaced too.”

You shook your head and plopped down in the booth next to Kix with a laugh. He shoved the snack plate in your face continuing his conversation with another soldier to his right. You were starving and started munching down on the mantell mix.

“Hope that wont be a problem kid.” Rex smiled at you.

You just yanked your collar down to show them the patch, “All good captain.”

That made them relax. The 501st is many things, but they were always chivalrous towards you. Being their favorite omega and all, they had always taken a very protective stance with you. None of them tried anything and they had always kept away the creeps. You were thankful for their protection.

Your current hoard of alphas though, you didn’t really know where you stood with them. They kind of pretended like you weren’t there. You quickly realized they weren’t used to working with strangers, and an omega of all things. At first they treated you like a fragile little thing. Like they were worried they’d step on you. They couldn’t help but stare. You didn’t really blame them. Eventually it wore off and they seemed to become a bit more comfortable with your presence. Until it became normal. Except Crosshair, he never seemed to warm up to you and kept you at arms length.

“So how’s your new unit?” Fives asked sounding a bit jealous.

You giggled, “They’re.. nice.”

They all looked at you.

“What?” You shrunk under their looks. Even Rex stared.

“Nice?” Jesse laughed.

“That’s not exactly the word I’d use.” Rex raised a brow, “You’re okay, right kid?”

You opened your mouth in shock, “Guys I’m okay. I swear.”

They visibly relaxed.

“Look, it took some getting used to. I don’t think they’ve ever been around strangers before they’re very close. Clearly. Eventually they warmed up. Except the sniper. I think he might actually not like me.”

Fives just scoffed, “It’s because your’e hot cyar’ika”

Jesse punched him in the stomach. Fives doubled over and everyone at the table grumbled at him. You just felt your cheeks burn up and you hid behind Kix’s shoulder.

“Fives…” Rex sighed.

“What?” He choked out, “I’m just saying. I don’t think those defects have been anywhere near a woman much less an omega. Aye!” He blocked Jesse’s punch again.

“What omega?” You heard a gruff voice approach.

It was Commander Wolffe and the pack still in uniform. Rex got up and clapped him on the shoulder getting him settled in. He placed his helmet on the table and peered over at you.

“I don’t think we’ve met cyar’ika.” He grinned at you showing off his scar and grey iris.

You felt your heart rate increase under his intense stare. You could tell this alpha was seasoned, first generation from the looks of him. You were certain that if you didn’t have your implant, you'd be keening for his attention. Instead, you submissively lowered your gaze and leaned into Kix a bit. He wrapped an arm around you and looked up at the Commander, saying, “This is Y/N; we call her Tiny.” He shook you playfully, adding, “She used to be our medic. Now she’s with the 99’s.”

Wolffe let out a low whistle. “The 99’s? Must be exciting. Nice to meet you, Y/N,” he said, extending a hand, which you took, giving it a good shake. His calloused fingers lingered a bit as he ran them over your soft knuckles.

Looking up at him from beneath your lashes, you said, “Nice to meet you, Commander,” giving him a polite smile.

He smiled back, clearly pleased with your attention. Oh, he liked you, you thought to yourself. He then gently released your hand and turned to his men. “Let’s get a round of drinks. We’re off for quarterly’s!”

His men let out a whooping shout, and the waitress took down their orders. The pack quickly became rowdy, opting for roughhousing with each other and the shinies. After a long while of dodging his gaze and eating the food Kix placed in front of you, you decided you needed a cold glass of water and squeezed out from under Kix’s arm. The stench of so many alphas was starting to become too much, even with the implant. You were praying they couldn’t smell the nervousness on you.

Walking up to the bar, the woman smiled at you. She recognized you, as you usually spent your time with the boys when you were off. She gave you a little wave and bounced over, asking what you wanted.

“Just water for me,” you smiled. She smiled back and went to fill up your glass.

“What’s a pretty little omega doing in a place like this?” a shiny walked up to you, placing himself uncomfortably close to your back. You turned, facing him square on. Despite all clones being created as alphas, this one was young and stupid. Your omega instincts told you he’d be a weak mate. You noticed the lack of markings and scratches on his armor. He’s barely seen anything, you realized.

“I’m here with my friends,” you replied curtly, taking the glass of ice water from the bartender with a nod. You went to move away, but he caught your arm in a tight grip. Not tight enough to hurt, but tight enough to assert his dominance and stop you from leaving. You just looked at his hand and then up to his face.

“I wasn’t done with you… omega,” he leered, leaning forward to run his nose closer to your scent glands. Your heart rate increased for all the wrong reasons. Fear started to creep up inside you the longer he had his hands on you. Now you wished Fives had scented you for real.

“Why are you messing with my medic?”

You stiffened.

Hunter’s smokey voice cut through the music of the club making your entire spine tingle. Hunter had used his Alpha tone making you tremble in spot. The shiny suddenly looked up eyes going wide. He quickly released you and saluted Hunter.“Sorry Seargant. I didn’t know she was yours.”

“Hmm” Hunter dismissed him and grabbed you by the same arm the shiny had just moments ago, except this time the touch didn’t feel dangerous. Instead it made your stomach flip. He’d never touched you unless it was for medical purposes. You couldn’t help the little preen inside you bubbling up. Alpha Protects. He lead you past the shiny and over to an empty booth in the back of the club. You could hear Layla’s voice ringing in your head. She’d be eating this up right now. You prayed your pheromones didn’t give you away.

He finally let you go when you reached the booth waiting for you to slide in. You immediately missed the warmth of his bare hand. You realized they were all in their civvies, well except tech, he still had his helmet near by. The rest of them slid into the booth following suit.

“She’s smells like Regs.” Wrecker crinkled his nose. Between, Fives, Kix, and the shiny you knew you reeked.

“Sorry.” You mumbled taking a sip of your water still a little pissed with them.

“You okay pip?” Hunter asked looking you in the eyes. You suddenly shied away from his gaze looking down at his shirt collar nodding. His eyes were too intense. You usually didn’t have a problem, but you were still trebling from the effects of his voice lingering.

“Did something happen?” Tech asked from around Hunter’s shoulder.

“I’m alright. Just a dumb shiny.” You felt like you were being suffocated by their stares.

They laughed a bit at that.

“Okay, I can’t take it anymore.” Wrecker shoved you under his arm and rubbed his scent all over you. You coughed and sputtered trying to shove him away but it was no use. Crosshair rolled his eyes.

“Alright Wrecker enough.” Hunter sighed looking down at you drowning in alpha, “She’s covered.”

“Ugh.” You tried to straightening out your hair and top a bit, “Easy next time big guy. I think every alpha for a mile can smell me now.”

He just gleamed. You couldn’t help but be a bit grateful. It seems like everyone was due for an updated implant. The smells were getting to be out of control. No one would come near you now. Even the rough housing seemed to be a little aggressive than usual. They had asked you about the wolf pack but you just shrugged watching their rough housing turn into full on brawls.

The boys continued talking about something random that Tech had info dumped about and Wrecker of course was confused. You continued to sip on your ice water before you heard your name being called. You popped your head up from the booth to find Fives looking for you. You sighed and put your cup down. Part of you didn’t want to go back because of the attention the commander was giving you, but the other part of you wanted to spend some time with Rex and the boys. Damn these alphas.

Opting to stay where you were, Fives and the boys decided to come over towards you. Knowing this was probably going to go badly, you shrunk into the booth. Hunter eyed you before he heard Crosshair snarl. A large group of Regs came trotting over to come socialize like a bunch of drunk pups. They all pulled up chairs and surrounded the booth with their rambunctiousness.

“Where’d you go Tiny?” Jesse was sloshed. Leaning over Fives who was barely holding himself together.

“Tiny, did you see the way the commander was looking at you?” Fives shoved Jesse off of him, “I think he’s trying to-” he jiggled his brows suggestively at you and you just shook your head and wanted to melt into the table. Please not this. Not with my commanding officer present. Not my very hot commanding officer present. You wanted to slap Layla why did she have to start putting these thoughts into your head.

“Commander Wolffe?” Tech asked for clarification.

Fives just nodded taking another big sip from his cup.

“Someone shoot me.” You covered your face you were too sober for this conversation. You could feel Crosshairs smirk from across the table.

“Awh pip.” Wrecker just grabbed you again and shook you around, “The Commander thinks you’re prettyyyy.”

Fives and Jesse giggled. Hunter and the others just looked uncomfortable. Obviously they weren’t the most social, nor playful. This was just embarrassing. Your only comfort was Wrecker. He was always the nicest anyways. You just tucked yourself into his side forgetting his betrayal earlier.

“The Commander wants to rut with Y/N?” Tech asked.

“Maker.” You wanted to dissipate into thin air.

“Mhmm.” Jesse and Fives nodded with cheesy grins, “she gave him the eyes.”

You scoffed, “I did not!”

“Yeah you did!” Fives giggles. He then looked at Jesse and re-enacted the whole scene dramatically, “It’s nice to meet you commander.” He fluttered his eyelashes at Jesse and held his hand. You groaned and put your head down on the table.

“I need a drink.” You whimpered not able to take the teasing.

“Is that wise?” Tech chimed in, “You just had your implant replaced. It’s advised to not drink for the first 24 hours or else it may be ineffective.”

“Kriff.” You sighed.

“And that’s my cue to come rescue Tiny.” Kix interjected and yanked you up from the booth taking you far away from this painfully awkward conversation. You thanked him profusely letting him guide you.

“You’re nervous when you’re sober.” He laughed walking over to the dance floor with you.

“I’m nervous because of my Sergeant.” You whisper in his ear. He just gives you a questionable look. You laugh and shake your head, “A friend of mine said something today and I can’t get it out of my stupid omega head.”

“Oh?” He raised a brow dancing to the beat.

“Shut up.” You laughed praying Hunter couldn’t hear you over the yelling and music, “They also don’t like the “Regs,” you shook your head.

“Well I know why.” He replied spinning you around.

“Why?” You asked swaying to the beat.

“Everyone was so mean to them growing up. Kids are horrible you know. But because they’re different they definitely dealt with a lot during training days.” Kix informed you. Suddenly everything made sense. Especially why Crosshair can’t seem to socialize with Regs to save his life.

“Plus, the Captain decked the sniper on Skako Minor.” Kix said cheekily.

You dropped your jaw, “Rex?” You couldn’t believe it. There’s no way level headed Rex lost it with Crosshair.

“Oh yeah.” He laughed, “They got into it while trying to find Echo.”

“No way.” You couldn’t believe it. While dancing you peered over at the table to find the four 99’s watching you completely ignoring the drunk shenanigans from the 501st boys. The only one interacting was Echo. You could tell there was a part of him that missed his brothers. They continued to drink and talk amongst themselves while you and Kix danced on the floor. Some of the other 501st boys joined you before linking up with pretty omegas vying for their attention. Clearly their interests were else where.

You definitely didn’t miss the way the Commander seemed to be unable to take his eyes off of you from his chair. You chose to ignore him.

An alpha like that could send you into heat with or without an implant. You however had a job to do, and being stuck in his bed for a week wouldn’t suffice. The mortification of even thinking about returning to the Marauder after that. You couldn’t even go there. Crosshair would literally never let you hear the end of it. He might shove you out of the airlock when you weren’t expecting it.

Kix seemed to be reading your mind and elected to giggle. You slapped him on the arm and he feigned injury. Just then, you noticed the Commander stand and seemingly decide to come your way. Feeling there to flee, you quickly hugged Kix and made a dart for the door. Grabbing your comm you let the boys know you’d be returning to your apartment but to your dismay, Hunter replied…

“Don’t bother we just got special orders. We’re shipping out tonight.” He sounded tired. So much for shore-leave.

“Ugh.” You whined turning to the taxi waiting by the club entrance. You put your comm away in your pocket and fished around for a few credits ignoring the way the cool evening air chilled your skin.

“Something wrong Cyar’ika?” The gruff voice you were dreading came from behind you. Damn your omega tendencies. You turned keeping your eyes lowered.

“Everything is alright Commander.” You replied sweetly, “I just got informed my break has been cut short. We ship out again tonight.”

He sighed stepping forwards and placed his pointer finger under your chin to tilt your head up. You nearly whimpered looking into his scarred eye. Alpha’s strong. Alpha likes you. Alpha smells good. Really good. You wanted to whine when his eye zeroed in on yours. He wanted your eyes on him that was for certain. Maybe a breakout heat with the Commander wouldn’t be too bad…

“Well if you ever need anything you let me know, yeah?” The Commander smiled wolfishly at you and released you. You took a deep breath and took a step back and nodded your head.

“Y/N?” You heard Tech’s call come to your rescue, “Do you need a ride?”

You grabbed your comm and quickly responded with shaking hands, “Yeah that would be nice thank you Tech.”

It wasn’t long until their speeder arrived and you turned back to the Commander who had no issue walking you over to your unit. You could tell by Hunter skeptical glance that he was trying to figure out the situation. The Commander passed you over to your men and have you a nod before putting his helmet back on and walking back into the club.

“What was that about?” Hunter asked with a raised brow.

“I really don’t want to talk about it.” You shook your head and practically dove into the speeder.

“Did the Commander proposition you?” Tech asked pushing his glasses back up.

You squeaked and hid in the backseat.

“Stop bothering her.” Echo shook his head. Thank the maker for Echo.

“It was a harmless question.” Tech justified, “As we were talking about his strange attentions earlier and Y/N’s even more unordinary response according to the Regs.”

You looked out the window of the speeder at the endless city below, “I’m going to jump.” You half joked.

“Tech please drop it.” Echo implored, “You’re making her uncomfortable… and me.”

“It’s just biological responses.” Tech grumbled into his data pad, “Nothing to be embarrassed about.”

You sighed. This was going to be another long mission, and then you were going to take it upon yourself to insure you got a vacation. Hopefully there was something Rex could do to get you some time off for real this time far away from all of these men.

─ ⋅ ⋅ ⋅ ──── ♡ ─── ⋅ ⋅ ⋅ ──

This part one, I'll be posting regularly to this story, I hope y'all enjoy!

#bad batch #abo #abobadbatch #smut #fanfic #hunter #crosshair #wrecker #tech #echo #501st #cloneforce99 #79's #star wars #clonewars

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hesthermay · 2 months

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𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐆𝐑𝐄𝐀𝐓 𝐅𝐈𝐆𝐇𝐓 (𝐏𝐓 𝟏)

PAIRING: sergeant hunter x fem!oc reader

SUMMARY: the assignment of miri rocksled to clone force 99 brought an even higher success rate than the two groups presented on their own; in the times of the clone wars a well working and formidable team was necessary for the republic, but little did it know that the decision would become the biggest thorn in the empires side. master rocksled had never been like other jedi, and the bad batch had never been like other clones, and as they navigate the end of everything they had known and the beginning of something dark those traits are put to the test. rules no longer exist, lines are blurred, and forbidden waters are tread as the bad batch fight the great fight for everything they deserve.

WORD COUNT: 3.1k

RATINGS + WARNINGS: general audiences, mature themes, angst. female oc, use of she/her, mentions of death and order 66. eventual series. follows the bad batch timeline.

NOTES: bada bing bada boom another one?! what?! im just fuckin good like that (im really not this has taken me a bit but im done and now im ready for you all to see it)

STAR WARS MASTERLIST THE GREAT FIGHT MASTERLIST

The scene that Clone Force 99 and their General walked into was familiar to them at this point.

Chaos, in its entirety, had consumed Kaller as Republic forces fought off Separatist battle droids coming from every direction. The ground, covered with snow, was black with ash from the repeated firing of weapons; this battle had been long, and it was not over yet.

Depa Billaba had requested backup, and though these were not the fighters she had wanted, they were all she was going to get. The Republic was stretched thin, it had seemed they had reached the climax of the Clone Wars and though it was only an inkling, it felt as if something was just over the hill.

“Master Rocksled!” Someone called from the treeline. The young Caleb Dunne, sent to retrieve said backup, watched in awe as the stories he had heard came true right in front of him.

Miri Rocksled was not like other Jedi, and in very fitting fashion, her troopers were not like other clones. Master Billaba had told him that was why she was assigned to them, and together they were the odd ones out of the GAR.

Caleb’s words had been lost in the noise, but eventually the last droid had been smashed and all attention was on him. “Master Rocksled,” he repeated, breathing slightly heavy.

“Commander Dunne, it looks like we’re your reinforcements,” she replied, grinning slightly as she walked closer towards him, the clones following suit. “What’s it looking like down there?”

After a plan was devised, the padawan was sent back to his master with the promise that they were right behind him. There was doubt, and a lot of it, upon his return. It did not look promising, him showing up empty handed with talks of five clones and one Jedi, but he asked for trust anyways. And it was not in vain, as the giant boulder that had caught the attention of the droids came crashing into view, making for a grand entrance.

Clone Force 99 made quick work of things with detonators, blasters, their very skilled sniper, brute force, strategic maneuvers, and one orange bladed lightsaber.

“I don’t believe it,” Captain Grey started, lowering the binocs as he watched. “That’s Clone Force 99.”

The two Jedi turn their heads to glance at him, and then one another. “And that’s Miri Rocksled,” Caleb whispered to his master, eyes blown wide.

……..

“Master Billaba,” Miri greeted, sheathing her lightsaber and clipping it to her waist. For a split second she gave thought to the second saber she was set to receive soon and the excitement to have an addition to her signature handle.

“If you’re done hiding down there, I suggest you launch a counterattack,” Hunter interjected, helmet under his arm. “Another droid battalion’s approaching.”

Grey stepped forward, on attack mode in the presence of clones who regarded the protocol he was held to as merely a suggestion. It was even evident in the way they had just addressed a Jedi General, someone who outranked them all as an army. “The General is the one who gives the orders around here.”

Billaba held out her hand, an effort to ease the clone's frustrations as they were not needed, nor helpful.“He’s right, Captain. This is our chance,” she nodded her head slightly, sure of her words. “Launch the counterattack.”

With that, the men were sent on their way and Master and Padawan came out into the open. “There you are little Jedi,” Wrecker stated, pushing his way to the front. “You missed all the fun.”

Caleb, who pulled his hood off, grinned. “Watching your team in action was all the fun.” Miri was reminded of being a padawan and being in awe of some of the Masters when she watched them spar, or went on assignments with them.

Billaba stepped forward, placing a hand on the young boy's shoulder. “Care to introduce your new friends, Caleb?”

“Yes, Master. This is Wrecker,” he gestured to each one as he named them off. “Hunter, Echo, Tech, and Crosshair.” He turned back to her when there was only one left. “And, you know Master Rocksled, don’t you?”

“Yes, I do,” she affirmed with a slight smile before turning her head back to the rest. “While I’m not sure ‘fun’ is the sentiment I would express, I agree with my Padawan. Your exploits were quite impressive. The Council was right when we assigned you to them,” she directed at Miri, who only shrugged one shoulder.

“Exploits?” Wrecker questioned, confusion written all over him as he looked around.

Behind him, Crosshair walked by with his rifle propped on his shoulder. “Don’t overthink it, Wrecker,” he commented, as snide as ever. Crosshair had been an acquired taste, but his attitude was tolerable with some time.

“Thank you, General,” Echo stepped up, almost as straightlaced as ever. As a reg, Echo expressed different traits than that of the experimental unit when it came to working with others, but that was not a testament to his place within the Batch. Echo had found a home in Clone Force 99, one that he had not thought he would get a chance at after the Citadel.

Master Billaba’s inquisitive eyes were once again on her fellow Jedi. “Would you care to explain where my actual reinforcement are, Master Rocksled?”

Miri sighed ever so slightly, for her answer to that question was not a good one, nor a helpful one. “Rerouted to the capital. I’m afraid we’re all you’re getting, my friend,” she replied lowly.

“Ha! We’re all you need,” Wrecker boasted, hands on his hips. And for almost the first time since this interaction had started, Tech looked up from his device.

“Actually,” he held up a finger, a signature pose for the brainiac of the group. “If my intel is correct, the General will not need any of us. The Clone War may soon be over.”

Intrigue trickled down from the crown of Miri’s head at his words. Her feeling, the one that had been nagging and nagging, that something was to come entered the forefront of her mind. She did not hear the responses to Tech’s statement, but she did hear him begin once again, more information to unload. “I am referring to the encrypted comm chatter. Clone intelligence is reporting that Jedi General Obi-Wan Kenobi has found and engaged General Grievous on Utapau.”

“No way,” Miri whispered. This had been something her, Obi-Wan, and Anakin had been trying to chase for ages now, and it would seem one of her friends had finally reached their goal. General Grievous was the answer to ending the droid army that upheld the Separatist’s defenses.

“If he captures or kills Grievous, the Separatist command structure will collapse,” Echo affirmed her thoughts.

“And most likely the droid armies along with them.”

“A fascinating theory,” Master Billaba cut in, “yet unfortunately not something we can control from here. I suggest we focus on the task at hand.”

Hunter glanced at Miri before looking back at Billaba. With a shrug of his shoulders, he stepped forward. “Any orders? Or shall we do what we do?” Helmets were placed on heads, and Wrecker cheered, boisterous voice filling the space around them.

“Let’s blow something up. Yeah!”

Caleb had watched them this entire time with a smile on his face, and it made Miri feel giddy. She always got a kick out of impressing the younglings and padawans. “Well, Caleb, shall we let them do what they do?” Master Billaba questioned, as if she had seen the same thing. It was nice, to see her Padawan smile in these trying times he was forced to grow up in; a welcome change when circumstances permitted.

“Only if I can go with them,” he countered eagerly, looking up at his mentor.

She glanced over at Miri, who only nodded before the woman grinned. “Very well,” she conceded.

“Hey, kid, you ready for this? We move fast,” Hunter emphasized, deep voice coming out gravelly through the modulator.

“Good,” Caleb shot back with a quirked brow, “that’s the only way I know.” He earned a laugh from Wrecker before they started to dart off, but Miri remained where she was. It was Hunter who shot her a look over his shoulder, a silent question.

“I’m going to speak with Master Billaba for a second,” Miri answered, playing off the heaviness on her shoulders. “Go on, Sergeant. I’ll catch up,” she smiled, hoping it would be enough to send him off. She was his general, and technically she had given him an order that he could not go against, but things were different in the Batch.

Things were different between Miri and Hunter.

As inappropriate and forbidden as it was, the pair had found themselves harboring something of a romance. It was not spoken of, it couldn’t be spoken of; but it did not need to be. Miri knew she was special to Hunter, and he knew he was special to her. It was as simple as that, for the Jedi Order would only let it be so.

It had worked, however she knew she would be questioned later. The pause before he nodded told her he had picked up on whatever it was she was trying to keep at bay, and even though he ran off after one final salute she still felt his presence as she turned to her colleague.

“What is it, Master Rocksled?” Billaba questioned, eyes still trained on her padawan in the distance.

“Do—” she started, but had to rethink her wording once again. “Do you feel like something is about to happen?” She asked, sincerity written on her face because she was desperate to know why she had grown heavier by the minute. Billaba’s focus had now moved to her, squinted eyes watching the young woman as her question hung in the air. “Like…like we're at the top of the hill, but what’s on the other side isn’t what we’ve been expecting?”

“Miri…” She whispered, shaking her head ever so slightly as her mind registered and her thoughts raced. She never got to continue, however, as behind her Captain Grey received a message through the commlink in his helmet. As Miri’s eyes watched him turn away from them, she grew ominously cold. Dread poured over her body, and in her peripheral she saw Master Billaba cautiously look over her shoulder, as a hologram activated.

A cloaked figure, hunched over with a voice almost familiar to them, spoke directly to the clones. “Execute Order 66.”

Captain Grey did not respond verbally, but he did comply by putting the holo device back on his belt and staring at the Generals before him for a moment longer, before drawing his weapon and firing two shots off, both aimed at their heads. Lightsabers were drawn as the pair dodged the blaster fire, but more troopers were closing in.

Depa Billaba and Miri Rocksled found the same weapons their soldiers used against their enemies aimed at them instead. In the back of her mind, Miri knew this was it. The crest of the hill they’d been climbing for three years, the cause of the sick and twisted feeling in her stomach, and the ultimate demise of the Jedi Order as a whole.

In the distance, it would seem that the same feeling had reached Caleb; the dread had stretched through the air and clouded around him through the Force, and he slowed his pace until he was still. The hairs on the back of his neck stood on end as he heard the sounds of saber blades deflecting blaster shots, and he slowly turned.

Troopers, his troopers, drawing in on the two Masters, shots aimed to kill. His ears began to ring and he sprinted toward them, drawing his own saber. “Master!” He shouted, a desperation in his voice he knew would raise brows, but he didn’t care. Horror filled his body Billaba and Rocksled were separated, and the distance between the troopers and the Jedi was growing smaller and smaller. He stopped in his tracks as his master risked a look at him.

“You must run!” She screamed, hand held out in a desperation she knew would be frowned upon, but she didn’t care. As his feet remained glued to the ground, her eyes remained on him. With her back exposed, a shot landed on her shoulder that rendered her arm almost useless as she tried to defend herself. “Run, Caleb!” She cried out, words echoing as her padawan turned and followed her orders.

Miri had been pushed far enough away that the Bad Batch couldn't see her when they turned and watched the kid run towards the brutal scene, but she was close enough to still see the fall of Jedi Master Depa Billaba, and every emotion that she had been warned about filled her to the brim. Fear, horror, anger, grief, they washed over her until her limbs felt like they were made of stone. Sweat covered her face despite the snowy climate of Kaller, and she felt every burn from a grazed blaster shot, every bruise from trying to fight them off, and when the first successful shot landed on her left thigh, she fell to the scarlett stained snow. As they drew in closer, like predator hunting prey, one hand reached out on instinct. The Force, a power not to be trifled with yet one she was not even sure one would come to her, pushed them back but did little to stop them.

One opportunity, that she was lucky enough to have given herself, to escape. To where, she did not know. With whom, well, she knew it would be nobody. She was on her own, and she deliberately pushed the existence of Clone Force 99 out of her mind. She could not afford to think of them participating in this betrayal, could not afford to feel the debilitating heartbreak of her boys turning on her. Instead, she grunted as she struggled to rise from the ground, the cold seeping through the gaps between the bits of armor she wore as she held a hand out towards where her friend lay. Depa’s lightsaber flew to her and smacked against her palm, and she grasped it with a tight fist as she retreated. Pain radiated from the wound on her leg, and her skin stung as it rubbed against the fabric of her clothes, but she used it to push her forward, to fuel her escape as she attempted to form a plan in her hazy mind.

The treeline was the obvious choice, more things to hide behind, more things to block their view as they aimed at her. She skirted through the woods, not caring for the prints she left behind; she was too weak to hide in the treetops to avoid the snow so she did the best she could to make up for the trail leading them right to her. Trickery.

They would find her, and they would shoot at her, and to them they would succeed. Miri Rocksled would fall at the hands of the Cone Army, and it would be logged somewhere for someone to keep track of.

But this would not be so, as the drop off before her filled in the gaps of her plan. She would need to pull out some theatrics, rather unconventional for a Jedi but she never claimed to follow the grain, and perhaps she could pull off this scheme.

And so, when the shots started firing in her direction once again, she did not dodge them. She ran towards the drop off, feeling the heat from the blaster fire as it got closer and closer, and once the edge was in sight she drew Depa’s saber, turning as if she was cornered and this was her last chance to fight. Convincing, as the troopers took her bait and opened fire directly on her, and she only put up as much of a fight as she needed before the real test began. Her focus drifted from the men before her, and the outside noise drowned itself out. The Force, as present as ever, was all around. It was one with her, and it was always with her.

Her heart slowed in her chest, and it seemed as if things moved in slow motion as she let Captain Grey shoot her in the abdomen, the pain harsh but dulled with the rest of her senses as she used the Force to put her body in a state of comatose. She dropped the lightsaber, using the momentum from the shot to send herself over the edge. She let herself plummet towards the snowy abyss below, slowing herself slightly. When her body collided with the ground, clouds of powdery snow erupted around her, almost shrouding her as the clones looked over the edge.

Her eyes weren’t quite shut, lashes touching as she lay with her head rolled to the side, arms splayed out. Her heart was barely beating, her body mimicking all signs of death in the very name of preservation. In her mind, she thought of her own clones as the ones above confirmed that they had taken out both Jedi Generals. They scooped up the lightsaber before retreating, the presumed dead woman left to freeze on Kaller only a small blip in their minds.

Memories of her squad replayed in her mind as time passed, the coast long since clear as she remained stuck in the icy hold of the world around her. Memories of Hunter, of how beautiful he really was to her, how much he wanted to protect her.

If you don’t move, you’ll die.

His voice, just a whisper of him, echoed in her ears when all noises had been blocked out by the ringing silence.

You are going to freeze. You are bleeding out.

Wake up, Miri. Wake up.

It was with the last snap of his words that all her senses rushed back to her at once, jolting her from her stupor. She gasped, eyes wide as her body worked to resume its normal functions after such a pause. Pain seeped in as much as the cold, and she reminded herself that she was fighting the great fight; she did not have time to dwell on such things. Escape was imperative, and time was dwindling. She had been trained for this, her whole life had been learning how to survive against all odds with the gift she had been given, and this was not going to stop her.

all works on this blog belong to hesthermay.tumblr.com: do not copy, repost onto other sites, or claim my content as your own.

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beckbucket · 1 year

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♦ just following orders ♦ (jedi! reader x wrecker)

summary: when wrecker's chip activates on bracca, he lunges for you instead of one of his brothers

warnings/tags: angst, order 66, inhibitor chip activation, choking, crying, pain all around, jedi! reader, no use of y/n, gender neutral reader

author's note: this was heavily inspired by this post by @zoeykalluss ! i haven't written in a very, very long time... but i couldn't find any satisfactory wrecker whump, so i guess i had no choice but to write it myself ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ un-beta'd, so be kind!

Ever since the painful day that your squad of troopers turned on you, you hadn’t truly felt safe. Constantly looking over your shoulder and constantly moving forward had become the routine- until you met the boys of Clone Force 99.

You barely escaped your ship after Order 66 with your life. After a lifetime of living on Coruscant with the Jedi Order, you found yourself on shady Ord Mantell with no credits and extensive injuries. In exchange for a discreet place to sleep, you’d agreed to research missions for Cid to pursue. Your whole body constantly ached, but it was better than having to fight for scraps in the street. She never asked you to be involved in the action. That is, until Cid suggested one day that you should travel as backup with her “team”. Funnily enough, she never actually mentioned that the team was made up of clone troopers...

When you were first introduced, you nearly bolted from Cid’s bar on the spot. Somehow, the unexpectedly kind words of their largest member somehow convinced you to stay. You honestly never thought you’d ever be able to look another clone in the eyes, let alone work a mission with them. Over time, though, you came to appreciate the many quirks of the team- especially of one batcher in particular.

Though he looked brutish, Wrecker was the most caring soul you’d ever met. He didn’t have the exceptional intellect or enhanced senses of his brothers, but Wrecker had a special gift for reading people. If you didn’t know any better, you’d think that he had a midichlorian count off the charts! His joy bled over to everyone around him. After your life as a Jedi had crumbled, you finally felt hopeful. Falling in love with him followed easily. You’d agreed to join them permanently, which led to your latest mission.

You and the other batchers tried to get some rest, while Tech piloted the Marauder down to the surface of the junk planet. You could feel Wrecker’s large form behind you in your shared bunk, strong arms curled around you. Something in the air felt off, but it wasn’t worth disturbing anyone’s sleep over. You cracked a bleary eye, and through your blurry morning vision, you could see the other batchers safely sleeping. You nuzzled back against your partner, enjoying the few quiet moments you had before the team had to move out. After all the pain that had happened in your life, Wrecker was the one person you felt truly safe with.

Wrecker’s force signature was bright and warm, a constant anchor in the back of your mind. But since you dropped into Bracca's orbit… something felt strange in your connection. While Tech had done extensive research on the Jedi order, none of the boys really understood what it meant for you to be connected with the Force. You didn’t want to panic the team based on a hunch, so you tried to keep your feelings to yourself. Those days, with all the suffering throughout the galaxy, something always felt wrong in the Force.

Hunter and Rex led your team down the dim hallways of the ship’s wreckage, Omega and Echo following close behind them. Wrecker followed up the rear of the formation due to his larger stature. Ever the gentleman, he always insisted that you stay safely in front of him.

The sounds of your feet hitting the metal flooring was the only noise to be heard on the abandoned starcraft. Rex’s insistence that the chips needed to be removed created a tension that the group couldn’t seem to shake. The knowledge of the inhibitor chips loomed like a dark shadow over the team, just like the dark shadows obscuring the path to the ship’s medbay.

A quiet grunt broke the silence, coming from the large man behind you.

Every head whipped around to look at him, and Wrecker paused, rubbing the side of his head.

“-’ts just a headache”, he awkwardly chuckled. His attempt to break the tension didn’t set anyone at ease. He’d never been much of a liar; it was clearly bothering him more than he was letting on.

The rest of the group continued moving forward, but you paused to look back at your lover’s face. He met your eyes and tried to smile, but it was more like a grimace. Looking at his tanned face, you felt a disturbance in the Force.

You started to speak, but the feeling was gone as quickly as it came. You wanted to wonder if it had anything to do with the inhibitor chips… but you quickly shoved that thought to the back of your mind.

"There’s no reason why the chips would suddenly engage for no reason", you thought to yourself, shaking your head. Trusting too heavily in Force visions and hunches was foolish. Wrecker’s eyebrow crooked in confusion as you hesitated, but you tried to give him a reassuring look.

Rex’s muffled voice broke your thoughts, calling you both to move forward. The rest of the team had already ventured forward to the next room. As you walked forward to cross the threshold, a cool shiver ran up your back. You tried to shake it off, and continued to rejoin the group.

The faint red emergency lights around the floor provided just enough illumination to make out the layout of the large room. Clinical furniture and medical equipment had been toppled and cast around the room haphazardly. In the center of the room was an older med chamber, dusty but largely undisturbed. Despite the room’s eerie appearance,

Rex stopped and nodded at the group- that dusty equipment could do the job. Hunter spoke up first, his gruff voice addressing the group.

“Which one of you wants to go first?”. A sea of awkward and anxious expressions looked around at each other. After a moment, the smallest batcher stepped forward.

“How do we know that this surgery is safe?”, doubted Omega.

“Just because Rex’s surgery went well doesn’t mean that you all will be okay”, she added, the worry clear in her voice. Her eyes flickered to Rex, but he didn’t provide any reassurance.

Tech started to speak, but a low grunt interrupted him.

All eyes were on Wrecker, who was again holding the side of his head. Unlike earlier, he remained silent, his closed eyes slightly twitching.

You could feel the pain start to roll off him through the Force, as he held a tight grip on his head.

“Wrecker?”, you worried, nerves creeping up into your throat.

You took a step towards him without thinking, reaching for his face, but he didn’t move. Something was very wrong for him to be so quiet.

You cradled the smooth curve of his jaw in your hand, running a thumb across the side of his cheek. He let out a low moan, clenching his jaw but otherwise remaining motionless.

Suddenly, another cold chill ran up your skin. A deep sense of danger surged through the Force. It startled you into drawing your hand back, your heart jumping up into your throat.

Louder, you tried to coax an answer out of the larger clone.

“Wrecker…,” you ask, concern shaking your voice, “What’s wrong?”.

Wrecker’s warm presence in the back of your mind was gone in a split second, replaced with a null, dark void. Sharp panic ran through your veins as another disturbance rippled through the Force. You stepped back, watching how Wrecker’s form became even more still.

His vode around him tensed, watching your reactions with caution. From the corner of your eye, you could see Hunter step in front of Omega to shield her. Your clouded brain didn’t understand- what would he shield her from?

Wrecker’s arms dropped lifelessly to his side as his eyes slid open. You could sense the other troopers starting to move, but you couldn’t bring yourself to look away. Those deep brown eyes that you loved had glazed over, no sign of the laughter they usually carried.

Like a droid powering up, Wrecker straightened to his full height while looking around the room. You were reminded of just how imposing he really is, towering over you and the other clones. His gaze finally fell on you. You both stood at a standstill, a few seconds seeming like an eternity.

Without warning, Wrecker suddenly reached for his blaster. Your breath caught in your throat, fear bubbling up in your chest. Hunter was one step ahead of him, rushing forward to pull the weapon from his hands before he could wield it against you.

His deep voice was gruff when he grunted out against his brother, but his gaze didn’t leave you.

“Jedi are traitors”, Wrecker growled.

He lunged for you, but you were able to jump back just in time. Hunter called out before Wrecker could reach for you again.

“Wrecker, stand down!”. The leader brandished his blaster, stepping forward to provide you some cover.

“This isn’t you,” he protested.

“That’s just the chip talking. You don’t really believe that”. The large clone hesitated at the sound of his brother’s voice. For a moment, you could feel a small flicker of Wrecker’s Force signature in the back of your mind.

You froze, searching for any sign of the man you loved behind those dark eyes. A deep snarl cut that hope short as a warning left his mouth.

“Good soldiers follow orders”.

another chapter soon to follow! please enjoy and share your thoughts :) i will finish posting this work here, then clean up the final product for ao3 :3

#wrecker x reader #the bad batch fanfiction #tbb wrecker #the bad batch #star wars #jedi!reader x wrecker #jedi!reader #my sweet baby boi #time to crush his feelings >:)

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thejediscrolls · 1 year

Text

You Drew Stars

Tech x Jedi reader

Unrequited love is a real bantha

Angst - Slowburn - Fluff

Pt 2 of You Drew Stars

“Hm… Well hello brown eyes.”

That one line had the blood in my body boiling as I repeated it over and over in my head.

“Brown eyes…” I scoffed as I helped Echo load some supplies, “That is the most ridiculous nickname I have ever heard.”

And yet so effective…

“Don’t look too much into it General.” Echo dismissed my pacing as I walked up and down the ramp.

“How can I not?” I sighed at the obvious attraction the two have between each other, “He adjusted his glasses!”

“Okay?” Echo looked at his General with confusion trying to figure her out.

“He adjusts his glasses all the time.” Hunter mused as he walked up the ramp, “Wrap it up you two, it’s time to move.”

“Not like that.” I muttered as I followed behind the two.

The mission was more or less successful given Phee’s constant flirting. Tech didn’t doing anything to dismiss her, but it’s not like he didn’t have the right too. He’s a free man after all.

Things seemed to get worse after a treasure mission of hers. One that she almost had us all killed mind you, but she was funny and helped when she was needed…

“Do you have an interest in Phee?” I remember asking him one night.

“No, of course not.” He said it so easily and I wondered then if he meant it.

After that, Phee began to show up constantly always taking up his attention when she was in the room. More often then not, I would have to leave the bar before I brought it crumbling down.

Even Omega seemed to take a liking towards her and our usual game of Sabaac and story telling turned to me sitting at a back table as she focused all of her attention on Phee’s pirating adventure.

Makes sense since my stories were usually grim with so much loss…

I still tried to get my affections towards Tech across. I would compliment him more.

“You look nice today.”

“I think you are really kind Tech, you care a lot about others… I just hope you know I care a lot about you too.”

“I like spending time with you the most.”

Everything passed by him like my words were made of air.

“Thank you.”

“I’m glad that at least you think so. If you could so kindly tell my brothers that, it would be highly appreciated.”

“I… Interesting.”

Simple thank you’s and easy replies, moving past it as if it never happened.

I know my eratic nerves seemed surprising to the others as I began to take more note in my appearance or in the way I carried myself.

Everything felt so forced now that I was no longer a Jedi. I couldn’t look to my master Secura for wisdom about what it was like to love a clone or Yoda’s wise words could no longer comfort me.

I bet if master Obi wan were here right now he would tell me that a Jedi should not hold such a strong connection to someone for it would lead to weakness and to the dark side… But look where love got master Skywalker, he was married to a senator… Or were… May they rest in peace.

I missed Ahsoka the most for our friendship was stronger than any order. Sometimes Hunter reminds me of her, kind, strong, and always pushing me to go after my dreams. I hope she made it out of order 66 just like I had.

Hope… it seems that’s all I can do nowadays.

To put it simply I had trouble expressing my feelings so freely and to have to hide who I really am to the world forever… Everything felt unbalanced.

It just seemed like my time was running thin with Tech yet those moments when it was just the two of us… Together on the marauder, going over mindless upgrades that the ship would need. It make seem dumb to the others, but for me… Everything felt right like it was meant to be.

Despite the fears slowly making a home in my heart, I focused on the good of the force, letting it guide me through my emotions.

I decided the best course of action was to do small things that would make him happy. It was what I remember Commander Bly would do for Master Secura and vice versa. A warm feeling filled my heart remembering how much they loved and protected one another. If only Order 66 didn’t happen then maybe they would be married somewhere by now.

I would make sure the ship was in order, he would always have home cooked meals, Omega was taken care of and that his brothers wouldn’t pester him so much.

I liked making recipes that were popular from my home world the most. The ones I remember my mother making and of course made enough for the rest of our little family or else they would be heartbroken. But I would always make sure Tech would eat instead of fixing something like right now for instance.

I placed one of my hands on my hips as I held a bowl of folio herb stew in my other hand, “Tech I swear if you don’t eat, I’m going to erase all the data you have on your holopad.”

“Mock threats isn’t going to stop me from finishing this task woman.” He commented and proceeded to tighten another bolt on the control panel.

“Fine.” I huffed as I sat beside him, where he was lying under the control panel.

I took a spoon full of stew, blowing on it before pressing it to his lips, “Open.” I said as his eyes widened in surprise.

He cautiously took a bite as if it were made of poison. He stared at me as he chewed, a low hum emoting from him at the taste.

I smiled back at him as I took spoon back to get more, “You work. I’ll feed you. Or else I’ll use the force and make you stop working.” I teased.

“You wouldn’t.” He squinted at me.

I raised a brow at him, “You wanna bet racer boy?”

“Yes General.” He replied with a playful roll of his eyes.

Our night ended up in laughs, the empty bowl paced off to the side and the two of us resting against a wall. Sleep was the furthest thing from our minds as we told stories about the good old days.

The next morning, a package that I have been waiting four days for arrived, placed in my hands by Echo. I was quick to thank the sec trooper before rushing to my room to wrap the small gift.

“You sure he said this was the part he needed for the transmitter?” I asked Hunter one last time as we stood outside of Sid’s cantina.

I held the gift nervously in my hand. Hunters small smirk didn’t help my nerves as he nodded his head.

“I’m sure. He told me himself if that helps.” Hunter answered with a wave of his hand.

“It doesn’t.” I spoke, my voice taking a solemn tone before I glanced back up at him, “I’m sorry for asking again. Usually he tells me these things. Thank you… For letting me know.” I said gratefully.

“Of course, I’m rooting for you General.” He placed his hand on my shoulder, “You deserve to be happy to and so does he.” He said before heading off, “Let me know how it goes.”

I smiled a bit when I entered the cantina to find Tech sitting at the bar alone. Now’s the perfect chance.

“Hey.” I greeted as I placed the small present on the bar counter beside him, “I got you something.”

“You did?” Tech’s eyebrow raised in surprise, “You know, this sudden display of gifts is interesting. What for?”

“Because…” I chuckled nervously, “You deserve something as simple as a gift and… You deserve so much more…”

“Well… Thank you.” He nodded and his eyes went back to the gift, opening it like a kid during Winters Day.

“Tech, there’s actually some thing I’ve been wanting to tell you. For a while actually.” I rubbed my arm nervously, “It was hard before because of the council and specific codes a Jedi must follow but now…”

His eyes widened as he pulled the part out of the box, “This is… I don’t remember telling you about this.”

“You didn’t, ah Hunter did actually. That’s the part he said you were looking for.” I squeaked out as my cheeks tinted pink, “It took a bit to find, but I asked around and heard it was at a shop off world so I had it shipped in.” I explained as he inspected the part closely.

“That was… Kind of you.” His voice trailed off as if he was unsure of how to say what he had to next, “But I’m afraid I have already obtained this part.”

“You did?” My brows furrowed in confusion, “But how?”

“I got it for him.” Phee stated as she walked in.

I watched at she took to his side like a loth cat. Tech accepting her presence as easy as the sky accepts the sun.

I felt my heart drop at the sight knowing that once again I was too late, “Oh…”

“Yes.” Tech nodded, his body shifting towards the pirate.

I cursed myself at not getting it fast enough. For not telling him how I felt… If only he would have just listened. I was a Jedi and yet I was being such a coward.

I put a smile on my face to hide my jealousy, “I’ll just put in the supply bin. You know- Just in case we need it for the ship or something else. I- yeah.”

“Great.” Phee shrugged before turning her attention to Tech, “What are you up to today brown eyes?”

I quickly grabbed the part and rushed out of the cantina from sheer embarrassment.

How did she find out? Did Tech tell her instead of me? He always told me the ins and outs of his experiments. Why did he tell her…

My brows furrowed as I stopped walking.

Why did he tell her?

“What’s wrong?” Echo asked as soon as I stepped off the ramp and onto the marauder, “You look… Angrh and unsettled. Is everything alright?”

“I am a Jedi, an embodiment of light and good and peace and calm… I’m calm! I’m…” I had to hold my breath to keep my breathing in control, but it did nothing to help.

“You don’t look good General.” Echo insisted, “Maybe Tech should-”

Just hearing his name triggered such a rage in me that before Echo could finish a crate went flying out of the ship.

“Nothing is wrong!” I seethed as I stormed towards the back of the ship and shoving the part into one of the junk bins.

“I see it didn’t go well then.” Hunter stated as he stepped into the small space.

“I…” I gripped the shelving trying to gain control of my emotions, “I was going to tell him.”

It seems lately these days, I’ve been slipping. My heart curling into the dark and I had to climb endlessly to keep myself from falling.

“He told Phee about his project and he didn’t even tell me. He always tells me and… And I had to hear about it from you. But what hurts the most is she got him the part and it was like our thing became there thing.” I sniffed, “He barely acknowledges me when she walks in the room and now she’s just always around and...” I squeezed my eyes shut, “I don’t think I have a chance Hunter.”

“Hey…” He stepped forward and pulled me into a hug, one that he would give Omega when she was feeling down, “Don’t think like that. She’s just new and they’re becoming friends which frankly he needs more of.” He chuckled, “Listen to me and just ask him out to dinner. You need to tell him you love him before it consumes you.”

“That is not the Jedi way.” I murmured jokingly.

“You’re not a Jedi anymore.” He spoke my earlier words back at me.

I sighed, “You’re right.” I pushed him away with a smile, “I should go apologize to Echo.”

“You did give him a start.” Hunter laughed, “It’s been a while since you used the force. I think you sent him back to the clone war days.”

I ran my hand over my face, “Oh poor Echo… I feel so bad now.” I sighed, “Where’s Omega by the way? I promised to take her out shopping.”

“She’s with Wrecker, but she should be back soon.” He said.

I nodded as we walked to the ramp of the ship, “Hey Echo!” I called out to him, “I’m sorry about earlier…”

Echo simply shook his head with a soft smile on his lips, “Don’t worry about it.”

There was only one thing was on my mind as I helped Echo with the rest of his tasks.

Tonight when Tech returns… I’ll ask him out on a date before I end up throwing something more than a crate.

Taglist

@brynhildrmimi @that-one-potato-girl @arctrooper69

#star wars #star wars imagine #starwars #clone wars #bad batch #bad batch imagine #bad batch x reader #star wars x reader #tech #tech angst #tech x you #bad batch tech #tech x y/n #tech x reader #tech x phee #clone trooper tech #starwars imagines #bad batch angst

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queenofspades6 · 1 year

Text

A Sergeant and his General. Hunter x Jedi reader. The Bad Batch

Summary: You, a Jedi who escaped Order 66, decide to surprise Hunter, but it doesn’t really go as planned. Omega, Tech, Wrecker and Echo decide to spy on you two. Tech teaches Omega what is sex.

Warnings: Fluff. Kissing. Mentions of sex. Spoilers from season 2 episode 4 and 5.

Author’s note: Hellooo! Today is my birthday, so I decided to finally share this x reader I was working on for weeks! I am so in love with Hunter, i couldn’t not write for him. I hope you enjoy! Don’t hesitate to like, reblog and tell me what you thought of it!

—————

You’re a Jedi, and the former General of Clone Force 99. Since Order 66, you’ve been hiding with the Bad Batch at Cid’s, completing missions together.

It was just after going on a treasure hunt with Omega and Phee that you noticed how exhausted Hunter was. Always glancing at you or Echo to help him decide. Hunter had told you about this peculiar mission with Echo where they needed to deliver 50 nerf nuggets as fast as possible. Truth was told, Cid never said who it was for. So, when Echo and Hunter arrived, they didn’t expect to see eye to eye with Hondo Ohnaka who had in fact, stolen the nerf nuggets from a Hutt. In order to get paid, Echo and Hunter needed to deliver the nuggets to Hondo, who had already sold the nerf nuggets to someone else. It was supposed to be a simple mission, but Hondo promised to offer them a huge reward if they delivered the 50 nerf nuggets to his client. Hunter and Echo had accepted and almost got killed by the Hutts to deliver the nerf nuggets. The Sergeant of Clone Force 99 had told you everything while rubbing his eyes. This man desperately needed rest.

After that, you noticed how Hunter sighed time to time, or how his eyes were closing when Tech was flying the ship. He always took care of the squad, but you knew it was weighing him. You could even sense in the Force how tired and scared he was. So, one day, you decided to plan something special for him.

“Hunter, I am taking you on a mission.” His eyes crinkled in wonder.

“Cid didn’t tell us we had a new mission.” He retorted, eyebrows furrowed, and a hand on his hip.

“It’s because she doesn’t want all the team involved. It’s just the two of us.”

His eyes widened, and he was looking for the truth in your eyes, knowing you weren’t telling him everything. He sighed and nodded, defeated. How was he supposed to say ‘no’?

“Alright. I’ll look for my equipment.”

Following him closely, you tried to hide the small smile on your lips. Hunter didn’t need a blaster or his vibroknife for this ”secret” mission, but it was so sweet of him to accept to go with you, even if he had enough of everything.

“Hunter! Hunter!” You heard Omega yell. “Where are you going?”

“I am going on a mission with Y/N” He replied, avoiding Omega’s gaze.

“Can I go with you? I made progress with my bow, you’ll see!”

Hunter looked at you, vulnerability glowing in his eyes, almost begging you to say something first.

“Cid asked us two to recover something for her. It’ll be quick, Omega, I promise we are coming back soon!” You told her and gave her a discreet wink, as if to tell her not to insist more.

“That’s not fun!”

“What is not fun?” Wrecker questioned, who had only heard snippets of information. “Hunter and Y/N are going on a secret mission without us! That’s not fair!”

You mentally swore, and almost regretted not telling Omega what you had planned. All this to keep it secret, and now, they all knew something was up.

”What?“ Wrecker yelled in disappointment. “No fight for us today?“

“Why can’t we go with you?” Tech asked suspiciously, looking up from his data pad. “You’ll probably need Wrecker’s force too, Echo’s skills, my knowledge, and Omega’s... tininess.

“Hey! I am not so tiny, Tech!” Omega responded.

“Where we are going, we don’t need you guys. Don’t worry, we’ll come back soon!” You exclaimed, taking Hunter by the hand without letting them talk further.

“What was that all about?“ Hunter questioned dubiously. You didn’t answer, and he groaned at your stubbornness.

“That’s not the way to the ship.” Hunter murmured, looking for your eyes.

“That’s not where we are going.”

Hunter’s eyes plunged into yours, almost asking what was going on. You couldn’t stare at him too long; he already knew something was off. In that whole universe, there was only one person that could read you like an open book, and that was certainly Hunter.

”Trust me.“ You whispered, caressing his hand, and taking it in yours.

Hunter was confused. A special mission with you, a Jedi, and him, a defective clone. What was going on? You didn’t need the Havoc Marauder, nor the whole squad. And now, you were holding his hand, guiding him towards? Towards where? Nowhere?

Holding his hand tightly, you traveled through the crowd of the village market not too far from the ship. You could sense how lost Hunter was feeling, but you didn’t want to break the surprise.

“We are almost here.” You let him know and squeezed his hand.

You looked at the horizon, noticing the cliff you had found a few days earlier with the sea below and its bed of waves. Furthermore, you spotted the blanket you brought, and all the fresh food bought this morning at the market to organize this picnic.

You walked, hand in hand with Hunter. When you arrived close enough to the cliff, Hunter noticed a blanket laid on the grass with fresh food and small things gathered on it. Was it a picnic? For him? He was surprised. He thought that maybe you wanted him to help you rescue another Jedi or anything else to fight the Empire. But he wasn’t planning this.

Seeing him wordless, you smiled slightly.

“This is the ”special” mission I told you about.”

He didn’t reply. You were beginning to doubt. What if he doesn’t want to rest, and especially with you? What if you’re being too straightforward about what you really feel? Attachments were forbidden in the Jedi Code, you were aware of that, but the Jedi Order didn’t exist anymore, and there were probably only a few Jedi who survived Order 66, so you chose only not to care for once. After all, we’re you still a Jedi if there wasn’t any Order anymore? The Jedi Order and all the Jedi wanted to protect the people of all the galaxy, but at what cost? Especially now that they couldn’t protect themselves. How were you and the Jedi supposed to protect others when you couldn’t even protect yourselves?

”It’s alright if you don’t like it. Just say so, and I’ll take everything off. I just wanted you to have a relaxing moment with no thinking, no decision making, no Empire, no Crosshair...“

After what felt like an eternity, Hunter looked at you. “That’s... That’s really kind. Thank you.”

He sat on the blanket and hold out his hand to you.

“You scared me, Y/N, you know?” You titled your head in wonder.

“I thought you wanted us to rescue a Jedi taken captive by the Empire, and that you didn’t want to involve the others.”

You nodded.

“I just wanted you to rest for once.”

He smiled, almost sadly at you, and you could see gratefulness in his eyes. Without a single word, he gestured you to sit next to him. You did, and your thighs brushed his, sending you shivers in all your body.

”I can’t do this anymore, Y/N. I am so tired.” He finally declared, avoiding your gaze.

”I know you are. I am here you know, and the squad is too. You can rely on them.“

”I know, but I am supposed to guide them, to make the right decisions, to protect them, that’s what a leader is for, right?”

“That’s what the Empire taught you, Hunter. You may be the leader of Clone Force 99; because at the time, the Republic chose you to lead the squad, but now, Hunter, the Republic is dead, you are all more than just clones. You are not replaceable. Clone Force 99 is your family now, they are all your brothers, Hunter, they’re here to carry you on when you are not at your best. Trust them.”

Hunter nodded and forced a smile. You offered him berries from the wicker basket you bought earlier. He took it in his hand, thankful, and tasted a few of them.

”I feel like one day I am going to get you all killed.” He confessed, almost ashamed, his eyes focusing on the berries still in his hand.

“We’re adults, Hunter, we follow you. We chose you. We all want what’s best for Omega.”

“I am terrified of losing her, Y/N.”

“Me too, Hunter.”

He looked for your hand, and locked his with yours, eyes lost in the color of yours, saying everything he couldn’t tell you with words.

”I am scared of losing you, Cyar’ika.“

You didn’t leave his gaze, a genuine smile growing on your lips.

”Me too, Hunter.”

—————

“What are they doing?” Wrecker asked, hiding behind a rock not big enough to hide him well.

“It seems they are eating... together.“ Tech replied, examining your form and Hunter’s. ”and... holding hands?“

“It’s a date!“ Omega screamed.

“Shhh. Shhhh Omega! They’re going to hear us.“ Echo murmured.

—————

“What was that?” Hunter questioned at the sound he heard.

”Probably a bird. A weird one.”

Hunter closed his eyes and allowed himself to rest with you. Even if he was confined he heard Omega’s voice.

“Do you see how beautiful it is?” You gestured at the waves crashing against the cliff. It had been years you had not seen the sea.

“It is.” Hunter replied, admiring you watching the sea with stars dancing in the endless green of your eyes.

You focused on Hunter again and caught him looking at you with esteem and respect.

“How do you do that, Y/N?” He questioned.

“Do what?”

“You always see the best in everyone, even Crosshair when everyone thought all hope was lost. You always bring joy to people you are with, even if we are on the run with a kid, you always know how to raise everyone’s spirits.”

You were going to retort that it was because you were a Jedi, and Jedi needed to protect others, and bring them hope, but Hunter cut you off, brushing your hand, almost accidentally.

“No, don’t say that. That’s not because you’re a Jedi. It’s your nature, Y/N, you’ve become indispensable to Clone Force 99.”

You repressed a grin, too shy to accept the praise, and when you looked up at Hunter, he said with passion reflecting in the color of his eyes:

“It’s impossible not to love you, Y/N.”

You couldn’t avoid his gaze, and he couldn’t either. You were entranced by each other, pulled by mysterious forces and strings in the universe. Maybe it was the Force itself that was at work here. Though, you were not done with being a Jedi. Not entirely. You were always reluctant to follow the Jedi Code strictly, you preferred to trust your guts and principles to lead your path. Maybe it was being around Anakin Skywalker and Ahsoka Tano that made you like that. Reckless when needed, but always fair. However, accepting you were not a Jedi anymore was more than meet the eye, it was letting go of every moment passed with each Jedi you admired, it was forgetting instants spent with senator Padmé Amidala trying to remake the senate with ‘what if’ and fantasies, it was accepting not to seek help and advice anymore from Obi Wan Kenobi and Master Yoda, it was almost like forgetting who you were before, and finding what and who you were without this title that was assigned to you some years after your birth. And of course, not being a Jedi anymore was acknowledging your feelings for a certain Sergeant of Clone Force 99. Even before Order 66, you were attracted by Hunter, but you knew that such attachments were forbidden by the Jedi Code. It wasn’t just physical, there was something more. And if the Jedi Order knew you had such feelings towards the Sergeant of your squad, only the Force knows what they would have done to you.

You remained silent, conflicted by your deep affection for Hunter, and who you were before Order 66.

Hunter smiled. He didn’t think you would reciprocate what he felt for you. After all, you were and will always be his General.

A shadow of disappointment and sadness passed through his face.

“Hunter.” You whispered.

He looked up. You approached a hand towards his tattooed cheek and caressed the rough skin within your delicate touch. He locked eyes with yours and allowed himself to relax. You were so tempted to lean in and put your lips to his, forgetting all about the old Jedi Code. But was this what he wanted?

And just for now, you didn’t care anymore. There was no rules, no interdiction, just you, a broken Jedi trying to escape Order 66, and Hunter, a defective clone and the leader of Clone Force 99.

You leaned in towards Hunter, and murmured:

“I want to kiss you.”

“Do it.” He answered softly but imperiously, almost sounding like an order from your Sergeant.

Of course, you complied, and your lips touched tenderly. Hunter stroked your hair, and put his hand under your shirt on one of your hips, caressing the sensitive skin, and sending shivers down your spine. It was a shy kiss at first, but then you both needed more. You put your hands in his hair, fondling the fabric of his bandana at the same time. You finally removed it from his hair, and he kissed you again roughly and desperately, hands on your back to keep you pressed against him. His hair was so soft. You heard Hunter chuckle when he realized you were playing with his hair. You kissed his lips again, desire and adrenaline rushing through you and Hunter. If it was supposed to be forbidden by the Jedi Code, why was it so good?

—————

“What are they doing now?” Wrecker asked, not daring to look at you and Hunter.

“Hmmm. It seems they are enjoying berries together, and... sharing a kiss!” Tech replied, removing his goggles to see if he wasn’t mistaken.

“You are not dreaming, Tech.” Echo said, taking a glance at you and Hunter’s form next to the cliff. ”We should have seen it coming, Y/N and Hunter were quite close.”

“I knew it!” Omega whispered, smirking. ”Do you see that? They are kissing!”

“It seems they are doing more than kissing now, Hunter is kissing her neck.”

“I see that! I think I’ll have nightmares about it for months!” Wrecker exclaimed.

Echo tapped Tech’s shoulder, forcing him to keep quiet.

“Tech, Omega’s here.” Echo stared at Tech.

“Sorry Omega.” Tech whispered.

Omega looked at Tech and Echo curiously.

“Tech, Echo, I am curious! Tell me, what are they doing? I can't see anymore.”

“Oh no, not that.” Echo sighed almost inaudibly.

Tech took that as a sign to explain it to her, even if he was quite embarrassed. “When two people love each other, they can have sex and...”

Omega made a face at the sound of the word, and the expressions of Echo, Wrecker and Tech.

”What? Is sex that bad?” She questioned; her head tilted in curiosity.

Tech shook his head in embarrassment and told her to go with him. Echo shrugged and patted his shoulder with a grin.

“Let’s go somewhere else. Hunter and Y/N may need some privacy.“ He said, glancing one last time at you and Hunter.

Tech, Wrecker and Omega all followed Echo to the ship.

—————

You finally broke the kiss, and watched Hunter catch his breath.

What happened? Did you just kiss? Did Hunter kissed your neck?

Hunter scratched the back of his head in discomfort. You stared at the ground quite uneasy. How was it so hard to just tell him you’ve had feelings for him for so long?

“Hunter.”

“Y/N.“

”Hunter, I- I...”

He saw an ounce of sadness passing through your eyes. “I know.”

He took your hand in his, caressing the palm with his calloused hand.

”I am sorry.”

You chuckled.

”For what? I was the one who wanted to kiss you for months. It’s me who should apologize.”

A small smile appeared on the corner of his lips.

”I’ve wanted it for long too.“ He confessed, squeezing your hand.

You’ve wanted to tell him for months, and now that you had the opportunity, no words came. But deep down in his eyes, you knew he understood.

“I care about you too, Y/N.”

”Oh Sergeant, are you falling for your General?” You questioned, smirking.

“If only I was just falling.“ He murmured to himself.

”I am falling for you, Hunter.” You admitted.

He nodded in acknowledgment.

“But... I was supposed to be a Jedi, and attachments are forbidden.“

“I shouldn’t either.” He confessed. “You are my superior, and I am a clone.”

” A Jedi and a clone. Quite ironic given Order 66.“

”Jedi or not. I would never hurt you, Y/N. Not intentionally.”

You kissed him again, without warnings, and with a certain sense of urgency.

“I don’t think we need words to express what we feel.” You murmured in his ear.

“For now.” Hunter replied.

”For now.“ You whispered like a pact sealing your fates together for how long the Force knows.

You put your head on his shoulder and closed your eyes. You looked for Hunter in the Force, and sensed a feeling of safety, rest and vulnerability. You felt a hand stroking your hair, and you smiled to yourself.

Hunter loved you too.

—————

When Hunter and Y/N came back, Omega ran to them against the protests of Echo.

“Y/N! Hunter!”

You hugged her, and Hunter smiled at your embrace with Omega.

“How was the sex?“ Omega questioned, impatient to know your answer.

“What?“ The Sergeant exclaimed.

His eyes widened, and his eyebrows furrowed. He gave a death glare to Wrecker, Tech, and finally Echo, asking with his eyes ‘what happened?’.

“We followed you to the cliff because we wanted to be part of this ‘secret’ mission, but you guys were kissing!” Omega confessed, giggling.

You had an embarrassed smile on your face, and Hunter was rubbing his bandana.

“Echo didn’t want me to see what you guys were doing, so Tech explained it to me.”

“Tech.” Hunter exclaimed dangerously.

“Yes, Sarge?”

Tech knew he was in trouble.

“It’s nothing, Hunter! Tech explained to me that when two people love each other, they have sex, and there is nothing to be ashamed of!” Omega acknowledged, smiling.

Hunter rubbed his head in discomfort and crouched down to her level.

“Omega.”

She looked at him, and then at you. You smiled at her.

“When two people love each other, they do not have sex automatically. It can happen, but it’s not systematic. Y/N and I didn't have sex.” Hunter told her.

He looked at Echo and Tech to agree with him, but they didn't seem to believe him. Hunter groaned, and you chuckled silently.

“Alright.” She sighed, still not convinced. ”But you and Y/N love each other!”

Quite defeated, she went to her bedroom on the ship.

Leaning against the metal of the ship with arms crossed, you didn’t say anything, but grinning.

Hunter watched Omega go, and then, he turned to Tech, Wrecker, and Echo. “For your information, Y/N and I didn’t have sex.”

—————

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ghostofskywalker · 10 months

Text

weep not for what you've done, but rather who you've lost along the way

Commander Cody/Fem!Jedi!Reader

Words: 3,345

Summary: It wasn't supposed to happen like this, the man you loved wasn't supposed to be the one to end your life. And to make matters worse, you had to keep reliving it, over, and over, with no end in sight and no clear reason why you were subjected to a torture worse than your darkest nightmare.

yearofcreation2023 flower and meaning: june: marigold || despair and grief over the loss of love

@clonexreaderbingo square: heartache

Warnings: ANGST, character death (in a time loop), slightly graphic description of violence

Author's Note: i don't do angst often, but when i do, i make myself cry while writing apparently. half of the fact this even exists is because of the lovely @homie-one-kenobi, who ages ago encouraged me to embrace the angst in my soul and lent me her roll of "time loop" and "order 66" from the roll for clone prompt list i made.

Year of Flowers Masterlist • Clone Troopers Masterlist

From across the holotable, you caught Commander Cody’s eye. The smile on his face was meant only for you, a secret code that no one else had the privilege of understanding. You tried to pay attention what the holos of Obi-Wan and Anakin were saying, but it was hard when you could be staring into the commander’s eyes instead. You were rarely assigned to assist the 212th with their campaigns, so every chance you got was taken with an enthusiasm that you were sure must have worried Master Yoda.

You loved him, there was no mistaking this feeling.

And while you weren’t sure if he felt as strongly about you, the kiss you had shared in the booth at 79’s the last time you were on leave was an indication that he was certainly willing to see where your relationship went.

Once the briefing was over and you were alone with him, you couldn’t help but smile and stare into his eyes. He must have noticed your pensive expression, because he caught your attention by softly saying your name. “Is everything alright?”

“Do you think this war will ever be over?”

He paused, clearly not having expected that question to come out of your mouth. But you couldn’t help it, this conflict had been nothing but an pain-filled toil with no end in sight, and the tax it was taking on both you and many of your fellow Jedi was something you feared would never be removed from your lives. “I don’t know,” was his response, and you appreciated that he was telling the truth, rather than simply sugar-coating a dream you weren’t sure would ever come to pass. “I think all we can do is hope that the tide shifts soon.”

He was right; you had just heard Obi-Wan talk about his plan to corner General Grievous on the other side of the planet, and you were to work with the rest of the troops to provide back-up when necessary,

War was like the crashing waves on a windy beach. There were brief times like this where you could take a step back and breathe, daydream about kisses to come and take the time to meticulously plan out your next moves, but they were few and far between. A vast majority of the time you were being pulled in every direction, forced to do whatever it took to keep yourself afloat as chaos raged all through the galaxy. And of course, every moment of serenity is ripped away far too quickly by the calloused and unforgiving hands of bloodshed, stealing the what-ifs and future tomorrows of the men you had grown close to.

With no warning, the droids came. Thousands of them marched across the surface of the planet and you could hear the distant scream of transport ships, meaning more were certainly on their way. The clones jumped into action, and you pushed into the crowd yourself, the beam of your lightsaber twirling gracefully through the air as you severed heads and limbs from the bumbling Separatist infantry.

With Cody beside you, the droids were no match for the unstoppable force you became. The sound of blaster fire all around you began to dull in your mind as you pushed forward, as more and more of this platoon fell to the ground. For a moment, you couldn’t see if there were any more on the way, and you were about to kill the last droid standing when a shot came from behind you.

You couldn’t see Cody’s face when you turned to look at him, but you knew he was wearing a smirk under his helmet. “I was going to get him you know,” you said, a playful expression on your face.

He shrugged and answered with a nonchalant tone. “Well General, maybe next time you need to be quicker.” Stars, you wanted to kiss him right now.

“Is that challenge, commander?”

Before he could say anything in response, his communication device started to beep. “Do you think that’s General Kenobi?” he asked.

“I hope so,” you said. “He’s a fool for taking on Grievous alone, so I hope he’s okay.”

As Cody stepped away to answer, the sound of another transport ship filled the air, and you turned to watch a small speck of gray whizz through the sky. Motioning to your droid, you called out to Cody that you were going to investigate whatever that was and asking him to let you know whatever he was told. Not wanting to let this ship disappear, you didn’t wait for a response before getting into your ship and taking off, your trusty R3 nestled in the droid port.

A feeling of dread washed over you instantly, and you could feel some kind of disturbance in the Force. Your ship was climbing through the air without issue though, so you just brushed it off.

Until you felt something hit just below you.

There was no time to wonder what was happening, you were under fire and you had to escape it. You turned the controls, intending to land back down and see if any of the men noticed where in the planet’s rocky cliffs the droids had hidden their cannon, but your heart clenched when you noticed another blast barreling towards you, and you were struck with a terrifying realization, that this shot had unmistakably come from Republic artillery.

Too startled to truly react with enough time, you pulled the controls to the left. The shot clipped one of the wings, the sound of its impact echoing through your mind. Now horribly off balance, your ship rocked through the sky and spiraled at the height in which you had gotten hit. “R3, what’s going on?” you said, heartbeat quickening as you tried to ignore the nagging feeling that you were truly being targeted by your own troops. The droid started to beep something, but the next blast came too quickly for him to finish.

Before you began hurtling towards the ground, you tried to make sense of what was happening, how your own troops had seemingly turned on you without warning. But it was no use, and the inevitable descent began.

You were dead before you hit the ground, and even if you hadn’t been, the explosion on impact took care of everything in a few flagrant moments.

***

From across the holotable, you caught Commander Cody’s eye. The smile on his face was meant only for you, a secret code that no one else had the privilege of understanding.

Wait.

Something was wrong here. You discreetly looked around the room, desperately trying to figure out why your body was so on edge at this moment. And to make matters more confusing, you seemed to be able to know everything that Obi-Wan and Anakin were saying on the holotable in front of you. Their plans, their updates, even their mannerisms seemed wholly predictable, as if this was not the first time you had attended this meeting.

Cody was standing next to you now, and his hand found yours, a gesture that was not visible by anyone else. It was comforting for a fleeing moment, but you felt the overwhelming desire to pull away from him. To your fellow Jedi watching from their own holotables, the commander’s expression did not betray the pain behind his eyes at your simple action, but you saw it to be there, a cocktail of confusion and hurt that made your heart squeeze for a moment.

He cared for you, that much was obvious. And you cared for him in a way that the Jedi Code would never allow, to the point where you had considered running away from the Order the moment the war was over, starting a new life with the kind and loving commander by your side.

Soon the meeting was over.

And then the droids arrived.

Once again, this moment of tranquility was cut short as you had to become the leader, shoving the peacekeeper inside your heart aside to instead embrace the violent apathy that your rank in this conflict required of you.

As you cut down the approaching droids in your path, blaster fire echoed through the space as the 212th helped you hold the line. You never worried for yourself in these situations, and these droid in particular were not the most advanced of the bunch. But you seemed to know their attack patterns, and it was in record time that the last of them fell to the ground.

It seemed like things were going well, but you couldn’t shake that feeling of worry and fear that was slowly taking hold in your stomach. And it only grew when the sound of Cody’s communicator went off not far behind you, signaling that someone was trying to contact him.

It was then that you started to realize what these feelings meant, that somehow you had lived this day before. Was your force sensitivity the reason you were seeing these signals, or did the rest of the troops realize that something was different too? You turned to where Cody was standing a few paces away, his back to you as he spoke to whoever had commed in, most likely Obi-Wan letting everyone know what happened with Grievous. He had taken his helmet off this time, and you noticed it resting on the ground a few paces away.

“Cody?” you asked as he turned around. “What’s the verdict?”

When he raised his blaster in your direction, you knew without a doubt that something was wrong.

You dodged the shot when it came, mind racing. “Cody?” you called out again as you ignited your lightsaber. “What’s going on?”

“You’re a traitor to the Republic.” Even his voice was different now, with a sharpness and a coldness to it that you had never heard before, not even when giving orders in a stressful situation. “You need to be eliminated.”

The second shot came, and you deflected the blast. The other troopers just stood there and watched as their commander turned on his general, acting as if everything was fine. “What are you talking about?” you called out, tears starting to well in your eyes. Out of all the combat you expected to engage in during this war, one with your own troops was not on that list.

“You’re a traitor to the Republic,” he said, as if you had not heard him the first time.

Hearing those words once more cemented your impending fate in your mind, that whatever had happened, you were now under fire. Your survival instincts kicked in, and you took off towards the labyrinth of caves that characterized the landscape of this planet. Blasts echoed all around you, but you deflected what you could and tried to tap into the Force as you ran.

You heard one of the other men ask what they should do, and the moment your heart truly shattered was when you heard Cody tell them not to do anything, that this was his kill. Once you were far enough away from the rest of the troops, you paused for a moment.

His kill?

Last time he called you his anything, it was his General. There were other things you’d hoped he would call you, but this was not one of them. The wave of dread that crashed over your body only grew as you heard footsteps echo at some point behind you.

You were fast, but clones were genetically engineered to be faster. He threw his body over yours with a flying leap, knocking your lightsaber out of your hands and pushing you to the ground. For a fleeting moment, you got a good look at his face, and the daggers he glared changed everything for you. This was no longer the man you cared about, this was someone desperate to kill.

And you refused to let that happen.

Kicking upward, you managed to surprise him enough to wrestle the blaster from his hands, sending it flying across the ground and coming to rest near your saber. But that only gave you a second of advantage, because he pulled a vibroblade from his belt and immediately continued his attack. He hadn’t yet landed a hit on you but it still hurt, because you didn’t want to fight him. This wasn’t the man you had grown to care so much for, but as you dodged, kicked, and wrestled with him, you could feel your resolve growing thin.

So when you felt the blade pierce your midsection, you had almost made peace with your fate.

This death was much slower than the last, something you realized as you laid on the ground, acutely aware of the way that blood was staining your robes as it seeped from the wound. Your memories were much clearer now, and you didn’t know if it was a blessing or a curse.

Maybe you were completely delusional, or maybe the pain and the blood was causing you to see things that weren’t there, but you could have sworn you saw a flash of regret in Cody’s eyes as he pulled the vibroblade out of your abdomen and stood above you, watching and waiting for your next move.

But if that regret was ever truly there, that emotion was gone from his face just as quickly as it formed, and the pain became too much for you to bear.

With a final breath, you closed your eyes and prepared to become one with the Force.

***

Something was wrong, you knew that now. As innocent as the smile on Cody’s face was, all you could think about as the two of you stood at the holotable was what you knew to be coming. There was no pretending anymore, you remembered everything. And not only were you desperate to find away out of this trap, you wanted to find the one reality, the one set of choices, that would allow you to walk away from this experience.

You had no idea what was happening to the rest of your fellow Jedi, whether or not they were trapped in this same torturous cycle of betrayal and pain. You were afraid of what you’d find if you ever did escape this, afraid of what the galaxy had turned into. But most of all, you were afraid of what you might have to do in order to truly escape. Could you still call yourself a Jedi if you killed the man you loved, even if he was dead set on killing you first? Could you live with the choices you made, even if they were the only option?

Countering the droid attack was easy by now, and you relished the simplicity of it. You beheaded and dismembered the platoon as they attempted to march forward, watching as their parts fell to the ground beside you and almost dancing as you twirled your saber. The clones hadn’t yet turned on you, and you could still trust them to come to your aid.

Part of you wanted to get in your ship now, to run away before whatever switch they had was flicked, but you couldn’t bring yourself to do that. Besides, who knew what you would find if you were to return to the Jedi temple and try to warn the others, and they would probably think you were full of bantha shit. So you stayed, and you once again had to watch as the battle finished and Cody received a communication from parties unknown.

That must be the moment that things all go wrong, you decided, and you covertly used the Force to lift the commander’s blaster from the ground next to him, sending it flying away from both him and the other troops. You received odd looks, but it didn’t matter.

This time, you could hear what Cody was saying before he fixed his steely gaze on you and declared you a traitor to the Republic. “Execute Order 66.”

“Cody,” you pleaded, hopelessly wishing that this time would be different, clinging onto the desperate desire that he wouldn’t try to kill you in the next few moments. “Don’t do this.”

It was a useless effort.

You already knew that, but it took hearing the word “traitor” from his mouth for you to actually believe it. All noise was dulled in your ears as your mind took over, and once again your survival instinct won over your affections for the man standing in front of you.

This time was similar to the last version of this day you had lived, where you took off running and tried to escape the fate that Cody had in store for you. And once again you found yourself far away from the rest of the troops by the time he caught up.

His helmet was on this time, which a part of you appreciated, because you weren’t sure if you could take the pain of seeing his face while you fought. But his vibroblade was out, and you had no intentions of repeating your previous fate. When you used the Force to send his weapon skittering across the floor, an audible growl escaped his mouth, and you pretty much knew what was coming next.

You had spent your free time sparring with some of the clones before, but never before had you considered that you’d be drawing on those experiences in a bitter fight for your life. It was your unwavering desire to survive that truly kept you going as you swung and kicked at the man who you had kissed in one of the booths at 79’s, who you had dreamed about running away with when the war was over. You doubted he remembered any of that now, but it didn’t make fighting him any easier.

You threw your arm out in a burst of emotion, harnessing the Force to send the commander flying backwards. The crack of his armor hitting the stone of the cliff made your heart clench, but it was the chance you so desperately needed to get away. It took every ounce of resolve to just leave him there, slumped over on the ground, but you did not want to risk your life once more.

He stirred once and let out a pitiful groan as you looked back for the last time, and that was enough for you to absolve yourself of this crime. Maybe one day you would be able to see him again, and things could be different, but a delusional fantasy like that one was no use to you now.

It was something of an immense relief to find your ship completely deserted, the other troopers nowhere to be found. R3 wasn’t there, but you didn’t know if you had the time to wait for him, and you didn’t question this development as you quickly took off, throwing the tiny starship into hyperspace the moment you were far enough away from the painful choices and suffocating memories of the planet.

The fact that you were now completely alone hit first. There was a raw and ragged wave of darkness that washed over you, what you realized must have been the pain and suffering of every other Jedi as they died at the hands of those they trusted the most, their commanders and troops. What were you to do with your life now? Was your escape from this infinite nightmare truly a victory, or did you simply just throw yourself into a new hell?

The blue streaks of hyperspace used to be a comfort, a testament to the power and sprawling vastness of the galaxy, but now they were just another reminder of what you had done, and what you still had to face.

There was no stopping the tears that rolled down your face as you screamed to no one in particular, a ugly, guttural noise that communicated every emotion that you couldn’t articulate. But unlike what had happened every instance before, time didn’t reset. No, you were forced to move forward from here.

There was no other choice.

- the end -

#CFB2023 #commander cody #commander cody x reader #commander cody fanfiction #commander cody x you #commander cody x female reader #clone trooper x reader #clone wars fanfiction

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