Rex’s Guide to Dealing With the Afterlife
Summary:
Upon arrival, one must:
1) Find someone you know.
2) Hug them.
3) The bubbling guilt and unbearable pain are unleashed and everyone who’s anyone within range is begging to be redeemed by the people they love.
4) Hug them some more.
the clone wars. star wars: rebels. rex pov. afterlife. reconciliations. rated T. 7.4k+ words.
WARNING: Major Character Death
“I remember this.”
Something inside him’s getting dimmer.
Like a flickering beam of the Resolute’s hangar. He’s pretty sure he’s on light-saving mode now, if someone wants to pry him open.
Rex hums in response. He doesn’t have to turn his head to know what she’s talking about; it’s been on his bedside since he first moved into this house. “You took that.”
Shouts of joys trails through his opened bedroom window; he can pick out Jacen if he strains his hearing hard enough, Zeb growling playfully with him. There’s a scatter of feet, the obvious slide of soles against grass, and there’s another shout, followed by laughter when Ezra, Sabine and Kallus join in on the fun, Chopper whomping along with them.
Sunday lunch. A sleepover over the weekend. Rex’s place, everyone. We’re barbecuing.
They’ll be going off soon, once Hera has to take Jacen back to school.
They won’t be the only ones.
But, it’s great, because for all the work they have to do, his cottage is even more lively whenever they decide to drop by. The walls seem to sing, and his rooms look even brighter than when he’s usually alone with Eemy.
Wolffe and Gregor’s helmets sit old and dusty beside his own in his wardrobe, tucked inside the crates of their old armour. Rex knows the pieces won’t be as shiny as they used to be when he’s stopped polishing them.
It bothers him the first time he can’t do it, because it used to be the norm, because this is what his hands are familiar with when they slide over plastoid with memories that could have filled up a whole Jedi Cruiser.
Anguish lingers above its scratches like oil submerged in water. Rex has already accepted this as part of his life a long time ago.
“I did,” Ahsoka agrees, and the holograph gets moved when she reaches for it. The small transmitter rests in her palm, and four people smile back at her from where they’re frozen in time. “Fives and Echo just got promoted to ARC at that time. They were pretty excited.”
“Insufferable,” Rex corrects her, trying to maintain some level of severity. He points at Fives. “A pain in the ass.” Then, he directs his finger to Echo. “And he thinks he’s hotshit.”
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hiii could you do prompt 29 with with cody?
requests masterlist
from this prompt list
prompt: (29) Not accepting that it’s time to start the day, and pinning them onto the mattress with either your whole body, a leg, or more risque touches.
cw/tw: fluff, slight innuendo, spicy kisses, sleepy cody
word count: 2k
note: i realize now that i write until my brain turns to dust because i have no self-control when it comes to word count. that being said, i loved writing this so much because i don't usually write for cody so i love any chance to get to write him. enjoy fluffy morning cody <3 (banner by me!)
morning knight - cody x female!AFAB reader
HE almost didn’t come home.
You were afraid — too afraid to admit it to him. Too afraid to admit that you had sat in front of the door every single hour on the days he didn’t show up. You cried; threw a tantrum; angrily talked on your comm-link to whoever lent an ear… You grew more and more uncertain, more and more afraid that the person behind the door would be Rex with a grieving look in his eyes.
Then he showed up.
Tired, beaten, bruised beyond comparison — alive. Cody found you asleep on the couch, nightgown underneath an extra black t-shirt from his barracks. He smiled when he bowed and greeted you with a kiss on your tear-stained cheek.
You woke. You cried. You took him to your bed where you showed him how much you missed him. He ate, washed, and like a setting sun, he retired to the bed where he slept peacefully.
Soundless, motionless, like a rock thrown into the ocean. He hardly moved, hardly shuffled, but you stayed awake. If you really closed your eyes and tried to rest, you felt fear nip at your chest, warding you awake with nightmares that Cody would be gone when you opened your eyes.
The hours clocked by and you remained watchful, stifled by the fear that he would leave; soothed by the fact that he was there. As he slept, shirtless and in a pair of black shorts, you traced every spot of bare skin, reminding yourself that his warmth wasn’t a trick of your mind.
The blanket shifted when you’d move, exposing his arms and the broad expanse of his back, scarred and bruised, indented with the creases of his armor. His face twitched with the slightest expressions of sleepy discomfort; lips parting to suck in a breath before exhaling slowly.
As the hours ebbed into the morning, you shifted until Cody’s head laid comfortably on your stomach. Your leg was thrown over his hip, holding him close enough for you to feel every breath, every sigh, every twitch, and sleepy murmur.
You couldn’t help but run your open hands across his broad back. He smelled more like himself than he did with his armor on — a blend of fresh linen and citrus. Large, calloused hands palmed your body, seeking comfort in the warmth of your heated skin. Soft, deep breaths showed you his peace; his sense of belonging in your arms.
You fit together like two perfect pieces of chiseled marble — two bodies shaped by the same hands and placed together to make a magnificent sculpture. A knight in yellow and white armor with his sleeping beauty.
But your knight, your brave and selfless soldier, slept contently in your arms as if he fought every battle just to spend the night right there. Like every breath that left his battle-worn lungs was dedicated to you; the touches that you graced his battle-worn skin; the kisses that you peppered onto his cracked and bloodied lips; the soft eyes that soothed the tension from the battlefield.
On nights like these, it seemed as if he would wipe his mind clear of everything but you — every scar, bruise, and mark that reminded him of the war; every memory that haunted him at night. It was your touch that comforted him to sleep in safety; the smell of your skin that replaced sour blaster smoke. You warded away his nightmares with a simple whisper of love, a dedicated kiss against his lips.
But even the most tender moments can come to an end.
The brain-jarring buzz of an alarm was your loud and condemning sign of your ended dream. Cody, still wrapped in your arms and lying his head on your stomach, twitched as you stretched towards the nightstand and shut off the flashing chrono. The room went silent but the damage was done.
Cody slowly shifted off of your stomach and onto his side of the bed. Golden eyes flickered open, hazy with sleep and fatigue as they dart across the ceiling before settling on you. As every other morning, his lips curled in the softest smile the moment he saw you.
His voice was husky and coarse with sleep as he said, “G’morning, beautiful.”
“Hey, sleepyhead,” you murmured, turning onto your side to face him. You scooched closer, enough to rub the tip of your nose against his jawline. The comforting scent of his skin mingled with your shared sheets made you shut your eyes and inhale contently. “You slept like a rock last night. Consider me impressed.”
He huffed a breathy laugh, rubbing his fingertips into his eyes. “Our last tour was our longest. I’ve got nothing but reports to fill out today — K.I.A’s, M.I.A’s, evaluation logs…”
He shut his eyes and exhaled through puffed lips. Softly frowning, you ran your fingertips up his arm, nails leaving goosebumps as you reached the back of his neck and began to play with his hair — a sensation that immediately relieved his tension and made his shoulders sag.
“I need to go,” he begrudgingly sighed, “Before you make me fall back asleep.”
You hooked your leg over his hip, pulling him in closer. “Is that so bad? C’mon, when was the last time you called in sick?”
He gave you a curious look and you flushed, dropping your forehead against his chest. “That was stupid. Sorry.”
You felt his hand snake up your neck, cupping the side of your face to arch it upwards. He lowered his head, surprising you with a delicate, lingering morning kiss. You dissolved into his touch, sighing into his mouth when he pulled away just far enough to rest his forehead against your own.
“If I could spend the rest of my life in this bed with you, I would…but I have to go fill out those reports, princess.”
You huffed in disappointment. With a swing of your hips, you flipped Cody onto his back, settling comfortably on his waist. Fingers locked around his wrists, pinning them into the pillows. You lowered your face close to his, lips hovering over his own as you murmured with a touch of playful bitterness, “It’s not fair. How come the GAR gets you more than I do? Let me file a complaint — call it a concerned citizen’s statement. Think Fox’ll slip it to Senator Amidala?”
Cody smiled lazily, eyes flickering across your face before settling on your lips. He licked his own, chuckled, and kissed you with the fervency of a man in love. You giggled into his lips as they smashed against yours, hands leaving his wrists to comb through his hair while his freed fingers snaked up your bare thighs, teasing their path up to the hem of your nightgown. He smiled when you laughed and chuckled when you twitched at the ticklish fingers against your ribs.
Just as his hands reached for the hem of your gown, the com-link on the nightstand began to buzz.
Cody immediately grabbed your hips and swung you to your side of the mattress. You hit the pillows, yelping in surprise. With a dramatic wave, he tossed the blankets off of himself and over your own body, effortlessly moving to the edge of the bed as he answered the call.
“I’m here,” he said gruffly, brows furrowed as if he hadn’t looked years earlier while giggling at your ticklish spasms.
The change made you frown — a look that didn’t last long as you devised a playful plan in your head. Creeping onto your hands and knees, you inched towards his back and stood up to your knees, looping an arm over his shoulder while the other hooked underneath his armpit.
He sighed, eyes rolling as you began to playfully bite and kiss him. First on his neck then on his shoulder and down to his bicep. A shake of his arm was his only sign of bother as he continued talking, but he made no effort to shoo you away. You even caught the twitch of his lip as he tried to hide his smirk.
The comm crackled, catching his silence. “Cody?”
“I agree with the plans, General Kenobi,” he said absentmindedly, huffing when you crawled over his lap. Silently warning you with a pointed look, you sat on his thighs and sagged against him, cheek against his shoulder.
His fingers slowly caressed up and down your back. Soothing goosebumps trickled down your arms as a warm comfort ignited in your chest. The sleep that you had avoided came barrelling back for revenge. You tried to fight it away by forcing your eyes open but Cody’s fingertips were making your eyelids heavier with each passing moment.
“Right away,” he concluded, pausing his movements on your spine to run his fingers through your hair. Apologetic eyes met your own and you nodded in understanding. He smiled, noting the lethargic haze of sleep, and gently kissed your forehead. “I’ll have those reports for you by tonight, sir.”
“Ah, before I forget — hello there, darling,” a smooth voice said through the comm.
Cody’s chest vibrated with an amused hum as you bashfully hid your face against his chest, murmuring, “Good morning, Master Kenobi. I hope the Force has kept you alive and well.”
“As well as it can, my dear. My apologies for intruding so early in the morning. Commander, I will see you soon.”
Cody bid his farewell and set the com on the nightstand. Wide arms wrapped around you, caging you to his chest as he craned his neck to kiss your forehead. Lips lingered as he mumbled in a questioning tone, “A kiss before I go, princess?”
You tilted your head and with a teasing smile, sighed dramatically. “If I must—”
Every word was lost to a muffled hum when he interrupted you with his lips. The kiss was fierce, joyful and full of a young love that left your toes curling and your cheeks flushing pink. Hands palmed your thighs, keeping you up as he turned and placed your back against the mattress. Temptation drove your fingers through his hair, drawing a breathy noise from his lips as he fisted the mattress on both sides of your head.
“Sweetheart…” he warned lowly, eyes flickering up to the nightstand. You cupped his face, thumbing his bottom lip as you turned his attention back towards you.
“I know," you muttered. “I know. Try to stop by for dinner? I don’t want to eat alone now that you’re back.”
He nodded, kissing your forehead.
“I love you,” you whispered softly, tracing the scar on his temple.
His eyes softened, filling with a gentle pride that returned each time you said those three words. It was as if he’d forget that you loved him enough to say it aloud. That somewhere within your big heart, a special part was dedicated just to him — a part of you that loved, cared, and worried every morning and night; a part that avoided the moments lost in sleep just to feel the warmth of the scarred body that he had dragged through hell and back.
With a bow of his head, Cody nestled his nose along your cheekbone and breathed deeply. You couldn’t help but smile, arching your chin as he dragged his nose over your jawline and down your neck. After a second of silence, he pressed his forehead to yours before pecking your lips softly.
“I love you too,” he said just as gently, lifting his head to give you a heart-stopping gaze of adoration.
You watched, hiding your sadness as he stood from the bed and picked up the pieces of armor discarded on the ground, clipping them on one by one. When it came to his helmet, he looked at it, paused, then looked back up, offering you a gentle smile. Instead of putting it on, he hooked it underneath his arm.
Pressing your fingertips to your lips, you blew him a kiss, giggling when he bowed at the waist — your departing knight.
“I’ll see you tonight, princess,” he promised, eyes warm and bright like the sunburst on his armor.
You bit your lip, nodding.
“I’ll be waiting.”
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taglist! (+ friends)
@a-c-lee @eloquentmoon @frietiemeloen @misogirl828 @leotatombs @littlemousedroid @jedipoodoo @twinkofthedink
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