Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Their luck had just run out.

Cody couldn’t breathe.

Even though his brain was screaming that his lungs needed oxygen and his heart was racing out of his chest to get it and he could feel his mouth trying to work, trying to gulp in air, trying to scream, trying to -

“Cody!” 

The world slowed down around them as Cody felt Obi-Wan squeezing him, his arms wrapped tightly around Cody and refusing to let go. Obi-Wan had been there for Cody through panic attacks before, and while this situation was far more dire, it was no different in his response. Time felt like hours crawled by as Cody attempted to get his body to breathe in sync with Obi-Wan, though truly it was only minutes. A few precious minutes to get Cody’s mind functioning enough for him to not pass out.

Slowly, he uncurled his fingers from where he had Obi-Wan’s shirt in a vice grip. They tingled in the same way his cheeks did as the blood in his body all fought to oxygenate his capillaries once more. The wetness on his cheeks felt secondary to the air finally filling his lungs and the fog clearing from his mind.

Obi-Wan loosened his grip only marginally, his breath hot on Cody’s cheek as he spoke, “What year is it?”

If this wasn’t happening, Cody would think it was a dream that Obi-Wan was such a catch for handling his panic attacks so calmly. Maybe it was a dream. Maybe when he had that ‘accident’ a few years ago he had never woken up and the world had never been lost, this was all just a coma dream and someone would pull the plug soon. Maybe someone did pull the plug and that’s why - 

“2004.” Cody answered, only knowing that they had made it through fall and winter and spring was blossoming around them. It could be just about April, he wasn’t sure exactly.

“Where are we?” Obi-Wan’s hands shifted to rubbing comforting circles on Cody’s back.

Not in heaven. Was the first thought he could gather.

“Hell, do you even know the answer to that?” Cody finally looked up, finding Obi-Wan’s crystal blue eyes staring back at him.

For a moment, all he could imagine was those blue eyes glazed over with white, mindless and numb. But then the corners crinkled with a soft laugh followed by Obi-Wan kissing his forehead.

“No, I suppose I don’t quite know where we are either… Perhaps somewhere in Kentucky by now.” Obi-Wan slowly released him, making sure Cody was steady on his feet before letting go entirely. “We need a map.”

“Yeah, we…” Cody shook his head, “No, no we don’t. We’ll - we’re never going to need a map, we don’t - there’s no time for that.”

“We have all the time in the world, my love.” Obi-Wan insisted, “If you think I’m going to die in Kentucky of all places you’re poorly mistaken.”

But Cody knew he wasn’t mistaken. He knew that just before they had made it into the hotel building they were in now, Obi-Wan had thrown up his arm to prevent Cody from being bit. And Cody, in all of his shock, had watched as the infected had sunk their teeth into Obi-Wan’s flesh just before Cody was able to put a knife through their temple. He knew that the mark was red and angry, purple and raised around the edges, with blood dripping down Obi-Wan’s arm onto the floor beside them. He knew that that same blood was crusting as it dried along the back of Cody’s shirt, a chilling reminder that while he was having a panic attack his boyfriend was bleeding out.

“You’re cracked.” Cody announced, bringing his hands up to Obi-Wan’s cheeks, running his thumbs across them. “You’ve gone mad. You know you won’t survive this.”

No one had survived a bite, no one they had seen at least. One bite. That’s all it took to destroy their lives.

“Hope springs eternal.” Obi-Wan responded, a tear rolling down his cheek, over Cody’s hands to where it joined the blood on the tile floor.

*****

The campus bars had become a regular place for Obi-Wan to retreat to, especially the week post midterms when everything around him was just too quiet. He didn’t actually drink that often, maybe a few shots or a nursed beer here and there; though he did indulge in the food at least once a week.

But lately, Obi-Wan hadn’t been coming for the food or the atmosphere. No, he had been coming for the eye candy. A strikingly handsome undergrad that he had seen around campus, who had just started coming out to the bar. He knew the man was at least in his third year, given the books he had seen him carrying, but he hadn’t yet had a chance to speak to him - let alone try to gauge if he were even interested in other men.

After all, they weren’t in a gay bar. This was nothing more than a college dive bar. It had good food and tolerable drinks, a staff that only really cared if you tipped them, and drunk’s choice between uneven billiards tables or dart boards. Music played constantly and loud and Obi-Wan was honestly unsure if the jukebox was actually connected to the system or not, as it never seemed to play the right song.

In the few weeks he had seen the other man at the bar, he had always been with friends, which Obi-Wan had never wanted to interrupt. He knew time with friends was limited during the semester, he had been through his own woes of never seeing Quinlan and Luminara during busy semesters, save for the few and far between study sessions. So instead he had taken to admiring him from a distance, daydreaming of a day he could work himself up to actually speak to him.

Though, he didn’t know that he wouldn’t get the chance.

Tonight, Obi-Wan was busy nursing a beer and flipping through a book he had been too invested in to leave at home. Usually the thought of someone bringing a book to a bar was frowned at, but Obi-Wan had found he preferred the atmosphere here to any coffee shop or library he had been in. Plus, though mediocre and often a few degrees shy of cold, the beer was like a taste of the home he once knew.

So, Obi-Wan had been rather distracted when the man approached him, and didn’t look up until he felt the booth bench dip to accommodate him sliding right in next to Obi-Wan. He glanced up expecting someone he knew, as it wasn’t uncommon for a friend or classmate to pull him from his books at the bar, only to be met with earthen brown eyes and locks of softly curled hair peering at him from over two perfectly poured and chilled pints, stuff that Obi-Wan knew was the highest price at the tap, and likely the only one they actually kept cold.

“I sure hope you’re reading Whitman.” He said simply as he set the glasses down before them.

Now that was a pick up line Obi-Wan had not heard before. He knew the reference, both from the teasing of his adoptive family and from a book he’d read before. But to hear someone actually say it out loud took him off guard.

Obi-Wan flushed, his mouth running dry for a moment, “Not currently, but I do often. ”

That wasn’t a lie, he did tend to read Whitman, just like he did tend to swing towards men. Most recently he had been in a long term relationship with a woman, but that wasn’t here nor there at the moment. This man was in front of him and this man made his mouth water.

The man grinned and held out his hand, “Cody Fett, nice to meet you.”

The name Fett was vaguely familiar to him, in a way Obi-Wan couldn’t place.

“Hello there,” Obi-Wan saw the opportunity and took it, raising Cody’s knuckles to his lips to lay a tentative kiss there. “Obi-Wan Kenobi, and the pleasure is mine by far. What brings you to my booth, Cody?”

As Cody dropped his hand back down, Obi-Wan caught the blush on his cheeks, even if it simmered down quickly. “Well, hope springs eternal, I guess.”

*****

As Cody poured the rubbing alcohol he found across Obi-Wan’s arm, he shook his head. Obi-Wan recounting how they met had been heartfelt, but it felt like the tragic tale it was now. Here he was, tending to a wound to a man bound for death anyway. Reliving a happy story that would end in only misfortune.

“You were so smooth until I kissed your knuckles. That confidence just shaken right off of you.” Obi-Wan teased, then winced and hissed when Cody prodded at the wound.

“Shut up, I didn’t know I was walking up to the campus flirt. ” Cody snorted, though his momentary happiness wavered again into worry. “I uh… I should get the bandages.”

Before Obi-Wan could speak, Cody stood from his seat and crossed the hotel room, going back into the bathroom to get the first aid kit out once more. The mirror caught his eyes for a moment, and though the light filtering into the room was limited, he could see how tired he looked. They were only months into this. They were supposed to make it further, last longer, and get through it together. They swore at the start they would be in this until the end.

Until the end.

Cody wiped the tears on his cheeks and grabbed the bandages, barely willing himself back into the main room. The hotel suite was probably once expensive, with a jacuzzi in one corner and a giant balcony to overlook the city - Paducah, Kentucky, evidently, according to the papers Cody had found while searching rooms. Home of the National Quilt Museum! The pamphlets had announced in patchwork lettering. The dark circles under Cody’s eyes told him that maybe it was good for them to spend the night locked up tight in a room with a king sized bed.

But the heaviness in his heart as he walked back towards Obi-Wan made him regret bringing them south to begin with. He sat down and started wrapping the bandage around Obi-Wan’s forearm.

“You shouldn’t have done this.” Cody finally spoke after a long silence between them. He ran his fingers over the ridges of the bandage, feeling Obi-Wan’s piercing blue eyes on him.

“You would have done the same for me, my love.” Obi-Wan clasped Cody’s hand and brought it up to his lips, laying a kiss across his knuckles like he always did.

The truth in his words didn’t help Cody relax at all. He was right, Cody would have taken the bite for Obi-Wan in a heartbeat. Especially since they both knew how it would end either way. Neither of them were sacrificial lambs. This was not a soldier falling for his duty. They had started this together, they would end it together.

But he didn’t even dare glance at the pistol on the bedside table.

“You know I would, in an instant. But that’s not… That doesn’t matter. What matters is: you did.” Cody felt the whimper in his throat, threatening to bring him to tears once again. “I shouldn’t have pushed for us to go south.”

“Neither of us wanted to be stuck in that hellscape of a ‘safe zone’… And we needed to find your family.” Obi-Wan was gentle, but Cody wasn’t truly listening to his comfort.

The idea to go south was Cody’s, the pressure had been from Cody, he had pushed it on Obi-Wan with hopes that they could find some of his family. If they could find his brothers, or even his nephew, especially his nephew, they could find Mandalorian safe houses and ride this out with proper weapons. They would have a whole network at their exposal, or at least what was left of it. The ability to take on the government or raiders or the undead all laid in the hands of family. Cody’s family, his clan.

Obi-Wan leaned forward, Cody assumed due to his silence, and pressed a hand to his cheek, “I know what your family means to you.”

*****

“Why are you so jittery?” Obi-Wan asked, placing a hand on Cody’s steadily bouncing leg.

They had been the first ones to arrive at the - well, Obi-Wan wanted to call it a party or a reunion, but Cody insisted it was neither of those things. A gathering. As simple as that. Except it did not seem that simple because Cody explained there was a lot of weight on Obi-Wan’s first impression with his family. Which he could understand, given that he had been coaxed into going to a family gathering at a beach house in California. The opposite end of the country that they lived on, flew there in a practically empty plane, and Obi-Wan had even been encouraged to bring guests.

So now he got to watch Anakin and Padme, who had just gotten engaged and were still buzzing with excitement, chat up the only brother of Cody’s that Obi-Wan had previously met, Rex. Rex was an interesting man who Obi-Wan hadn’t quite pinned down yet. He was barely younger than Cody, making him nearly exactly Anakin’s age. Which meant he was out of high school as well, though Cody had never mentioned Rex being in college or what he did for a job. All he knew was that Rex traveled, and when he was in Chicago he usually stayed with Cody just so they could catch up, as they didn’t talk much over the phone. He was like a ghost that came and went, with no attachments other than a few mentions of a friend who lived in the mountains.

Now, the confusion in him only grew as he watched Rex sit on Anakin’s lap and lean in close to speak to him. Anakin turned about every possible shade of red, and Padme just looked unbothered, even happy about whatever was transpiring.

He noticed that Cody hadn’t answered him, so he softly squeezed his boyfriend’s knee and turned his attention away from his adoptive brother and whatever was happening down the beach. “Cody?”

“Hm?” Cody finally responded, then he calmed the bouncing of his leg, “Oh. Uh… Just nerves. I want this to go well.”

“Why is it this important?” Obi-Wan asked, frowning slightly, “I mean, I understand wanting your family’s approval, but you’ve told me you’re already out of the closet with them. What more could you need their approval for?”

“It’s… Complicated.” Cody avoided explaining, though his face was dark, and a bit grim.

In the 8 months they had been dating so far, Obi-Wan had not seen Cody look so grim. He hadn’t even been convinced they would make it for the last month or so, since he wanted them to be more serious, to go further, and Cody was hesitant. Obi-Wan was patient, he always had been, but he just had a feeling that Cody was the one. So when Cody brought up meeting his family, Obi-Wan jumped at the chance.

“How complicated, Cody?” Obi-Wan asked, moving to interlock their fingers, to give Cody that feeling of support.

There was probably very little that Cody could say that would put Obi-Wan off. He hadn’t told him yet, but he was sure he was in love with him. They could get through anything his family threw at them. Though if the rest of his brothers were anything like Rex, he didn’t doubt he could win them over pretty easily. They had a certain kind of intimidation to them, but overall they more reminded Obi-Wan of Satine’s family than anything else.

Though he considered the likelihood of landing in a family like that again felt very improbable. Unless he was just a magnet for crime and danger. The more he thought about it, however, the more the idea of Cody’s family being Mandalorian started to make sense. But he pushed that anxiety, and the deep seeded heartache that came with it, off to the wayside.

Part of him pushing aside those feelings was because Cody had stood up at another man, an older man, approaching. He was probably in his later twenties, like Obi-Wan, or in his early thirties. He couldn’t exactly recall how old Cody had said his brothers were, just that his eldest brother was gone. This man, however, had to be related to him. The resemblance was uncanny among the siblings. Obi-Wan quickly noticed that a younger man was trudging through the sand behind him, his hair a mess of long semi-curls, bleach damaged and dyed in a fading blue.

It seemed like Cody hadn’t been anticipating the second man, because just as he was about to speak to the first, he ducked around him to practically tackle the second in a hug. The embrace was so sudden, practically explosive with Cody’s unfiltered excitement, that Obi-Wan felt his heart skip a beat in his chest. Yes, he did love this man. And seeing how much his family meant to him only made him love him more.

“Fox.” The older man offered his hand to Obi-Wan, who didn’t bat an eye when they shook by grasping forearms. “And that’s Boba. He’s our nephew.”

“Obi-Wan Kenobi. A pleasure to meet you, Fox.” Obi-Wan glanced back at Boba, and the confusion must have been evident in his face. After all, Boba looked nearly old enough to be their sibling, given the age differences at hand.

“Our eldest brother, Jango, had him at 18.” Fox answered the unasked question, before he turned towards the other two, “Cody, don’t suffocate the boy, we do have to return him at the end of the week.”

Something about the way Fox said that phrase made Obi-Wan frown. It sounded like he didn’t want Boba going back to wherever he was at. That had to be hard, if they hadn’t gotten a legal right to their own nephew. That made Obi-Wan turn his attention back to Cody and notice him grab Boba’s head and rest their foreheads together. It was a touching move, and made Boba seem to relax immediately. If Obi-Wan were close to the boy, he would offer him a tissue for the tears that welled up under his lashes.

“Are we at this safe house for you, Boba?” Cody asked as he straightened up, his hands still on Boba’s shoulders.

That question made Obi-Wan tilt his head ever so slightly, wondering what Cody meant. That was odd wording, and seemed to hold more meaning to it. But he watched Boba shake his head before the young man pulled back and seemed to notice Obi-Wan’s existence at that moment. “Who’re you?”

“Obi-Wan Kenobi.” He extended his hand, but Boba didn’t take it, instead just staring at Obi-Wan until Fox cleared his throat. He didn’t need to look back at Fox to feel the glare the older man was giving Boba.

Cody stepped back, placing himself just slightly between Boba and Obi-Wan, which Obi-Wan found both endearing and maybe a tad overprotective. “Boba, this is my boyfriend. Obi-Wan, this is my nephew, Boba Fett.”

Obi-Wan noticed the way Boba’s lip curled in disdain when Cody said ‘Fett’, but he didn’t bring it up. The kid seemed like he was already going through a lot. There was no need to add to that, especially when they had just met.

“You look too old for Cody.” Boba said.

Okay, maybe there could be some reason to add to that.

“ Cheeky. ” 

“Boba!”

“He is old.”

The last comment came from Cody with an affectionate inflection. Though Obi-Wan still grumbled to himself, because yes, he was older than Cody, but that didn’t change how they felt about each other. Or at least how he felt about Cody, since he wasn’t sure where the other man stood at the moment. Plus, they weren’t that far apart. Cody’s own brothers looked older than him.

“You’re only mad because I’m right.” Boba glared back at Fox before he turned back to Cody and Obi-Wan, “How’d you even meet? Are you his professor?”

Obi-Wan rolled his eyes and stepped forward, sliding his hand into Cody’s so that he wasn’t tempted to punch his nephew. “We’re both students at the same college, I’m simply a post-grad. We met at a pub just before last Christmas.”

“Cody’s only 20.” Boba pointed out, looking at his uncle, “Did you tell him that, or just let him believe in your fake ID?”

“He guessed that, Boba, mind your business. Do you really think he’d be here if he didn’t know that truth at least?” Cody asked, and again, the wording made Obi-Wan take pause. There was something there, under the surface. He had an aching feeling he knew what it was.

“Oh and that. You’ve only been together for 8 months and you’re already tagging along? Wow, Cody.” Boba glanced towards Fox, “My father would’ve put his foot down harder.”

“ You little - “ Fox clenched his teeth, obviously trying to keep his cool, “Cody, take Boba inside to set up for a family meeting. I’d like to talk to Obi-Wan before we go in.”

Obi-Wan had a feeling the man had been dealing with the boy’s attitude all day and needed a break, he thought nothing of it, even after seeing Cody’s face of unease. The worst he could get, at least he figured, was the age old shovel talk from Cody’s big brother.

“But, Fox…” Cody started to say, but he stopped at his brother’s stern expression. Fox struck Obi-Wan as someone who had to deal with a lot and was just tired of it all. He’d had to keep Quinlan far from him, lest his friend fall for someone the opposite of himself all over again.

Cody leaned closer and kissed Obi-Wan’s cheek, curiously not saying a word before he turned away to usher Boba towards the house. That left Obi-Wan alone with Fox, the nearest witnesses being halfway down the beach and far too distracted at the moment to notice if Obi-Wan were to suddenly go missing for whatever reason.

“Who did you decide to bring with you?” Fox asked, and Obi-Wan realized the man had turned to follow his gaze down the beach.

“Oh, just Anakin, my adoptive brother, and his girlfriend, Padme. They’ve been chatting with Rex since we all got on the plane last night.” Obi-Wan gave Fox his best grin, but that didn’t seem to melt the man’s stern look at all.

“Hm. Rex isn’t normally like that…” Fox trailed though, then added, “They seem younger?”

“They are. Our adoptive father was an envoy, we got to travel many places with him. Padme’s second name is Amidala. They met young and have been in touch ever since. After they both turned 18, they chose to come live here, near where I was going to college, to be together.”

“An Amidala, hm. Is she entering political circles?” Fox seemed genuinely curious, in a way that a cop taking a statement after a murder did.

The momentary comparison made Obi-Wan dizzy before he was able to shake it off. “Ah, yes. She already has. But she has a long way to go until she’ll be truly taken seriously beyond just her bloodline. Anakin is her head of security.”

“He doesn’t seem very worried about security here.” Fox noted.

“Should he be?” Obi-Wan asked, inclining his head just a tad.

“No. Not unless one of you threatens the family, which I doubt you will. Otherwise, you’re in one of the safest places right now.” Fox made a motion and started down the beach, “Let’s talk.”

Obi-Wan felt the anxiety in his throat, but he pushed it aside to follow Fox down the beach. “Dare I ask if this is going to be a shovel talk that ends in a grave?”

That actually made Fox snort out a laugh, “Unless you’re a spy, then we’ll take a long walk off a short pier.”

“A spy? I could never. I have far too many classes to worry about, I have no time in my day. Besides, I’ve been around much more secretive people than Cody.” Obi-Wan just shrugged, watching the waves lap at the shore as they walked, keeping their pace slow.

“Oh, I know you have.” Fox’s tone made Obi-Wan tense, “We don’t just invite anyone around without doing background checks, Obi-Wan. Cody gave me your name months ago. It took a while to find you though - Ben.”

The old name would have made Obi-Wan flinch if he didn’t already have some suspicions.

“Huh… Usually, people are a lot more discreet about their distrust of others. Not generally the first topic of conversation, yes?” Keeping his cool had practically been built into his personality between being raised by Qui-Gon and half raising Anakin. But Fox sure did shake him a bit.

“No, but Cody has been begging me for my opinion of you and it’s important to get down to the grit of it before we go into that house for a family meeting.” Fox paused only feet from the tide. They were far enough down the beach now that even if Obi-Wan made a run for it, it was unlikely he would make it to the house before Fox caught him.

“Most… Normal people don’t do background checks on others.” Obi-Wan pointed out, then he sighed, “Which part of my history is this about?”

“Duchess Kryze.”

“Satine.” The name stung the back of his throat as tears threatened his eyes. He was still surprised at how raw it was, the whirlwind of everything that had happened and all of the emotions that came along with it.

“You were there when she was murdered.” Fox continued.

All Obi-Wan could do now was nod, the movement weak and barely projected. He remembered the look on her face clearly as he had struggled against his captors. He’d made all the noise he possibly could, but no one heard. No one came. Not until it was far too late. Not until he was covered in her blood and his voice had gone hoarse. He still had the scars from that night, but he had been lucky to escape with just that.

Fox seemed to study him for a moment, but Obi-Wan was too focused on the memories in his mind to pay too much attention. Not until he spoke again, “Satine was a good person. She wanted to change the way our people work. Not everyone agreed with that. But our family didn't see a threat there. She didn’t deserve what became of her.”

That finally kick started Obi-Wan’s brain again, and he blinked away the past to take in the new information. “You are Mandalorians.”

“We are.” Fox confirmed, utterly casual in his confirmation. “Of a sort. We’re less ‘ killer, hunter’ and far more family oriented. Some of the brothers follow the family business, while others, like Cody, are simply trained for protection. But our family is close knit. We love each other immensely. Growing up we were practically inseparable. That’s why we still protect our unit, each other, and our secrets.”

“Why are you telling me this?” Obi-Wan watched as the water got closer, just licking their feet and shoes. “Mandalorians are secretive.”

“Because, I knew the moment I read about your past that you were already a part of the world. You already know what it’s like. There's no reason to ease you in.” Fox turned to him, placing a hand on Obi-Wan’s shoulder, “And Cody - he loves you. No doubt. Don’t tell him I said that, but I see it. He’ll protect you with his life. I want to make sure you’re worth it.”

“Well,” Obi-Wan felt the nervous laugh bubble up before it even escaped, “Well, uh… As long as it doesn’t end in blood, I’ll be rather happy. And do my best to make it all worth it.”

Fox grinned, “Good to have you here, Obi-Wan.”

*****

“They mean a whole lot to you.” Obi-Wan’s voice was quiet, as if he were thinking something over.

Cody knew what he was going to say next. He knew and the taste of the words was already bitter in his throat. Because sometimes, just sometimes, Obi-Wan’s selflessness made Cody want to wring his neck. He would never in a whole lifetime hurt Obi-Wan, but he couldn’t help considering it, knowing Obi-Wan was going to tell him to - tell him to - 

“You need to go on without me.”

The words still hit like a punch straight to the gut. There was no way he would move on after Obi-Wan died, especially not because of him. But he knew that if he didn’t at least entertain Obi-Wan’s thoughts, then they would just end up in an argument for the last few hours of their time together.

“Why?” Cody asked, then quickly added, “We promised each other. Swore we would be in this together, until the end.”

“My dear,” Obi-Wan didn’t reach out this time, and by the look on his face Cody could tell Obi-Wan knew he was asking a lot, “I have family out there too. My niece and nephew weren’t even together with Anakin and Padme when this all started. And who knows where they all ended up. I can’t go find them now. But I know you can. And with your training, I know you truly can find them. You must try, at least… You have to go.”

Cody shook his head almost violently, standing up from his chair so fast it simply fell backwards, hitting the floor with a loud crack. He started pacing, because that was about all he could do at this point. Obi-Wan was a master negotiator, he had been on the debate team for years and then kept his skills sharp after that. He could talk the stripes off a zebra. Cody had bested him a few times, but that required more focus than he had at the moment. 

If there was anything Cody could get Obi-Wan to do though, it was to compromise. On days the man didn’t eat, he could encourage him to snack. When he was dehydrated, he could at least get juice in his system. If they disagreed enough to argue, Cody could usually sit him down and at least explain his side of the matter calmly so they could talk over a solution instead of Obi-Wan snaking his way to one.

“No. No, I won’t leave you.” Cody shuffled over and dropped down to his knees in front of Obi-Wan’s chair, looking up at him and just letting his emotions fill his face. This was a reversal from the role they usually played. “Please, Obi-Wan. You’re the most important thing in my entire life. I would go to war for you. I swear to you, I will leave right after you turn. But no sooner. I can’t let you turn alone and be stuck like that until someone comes along and puts you out of your misery.”

This time, it was Obi-Wan’s eyes that wandered to the bedside table, where the pistol lay on top of the old, scratched up wood. “I don’t have to turn.”

That drove a stake right through Cody’s heart, and he shook his head, grabbing at Obi-Wan’s hands so he would look back down at him, “You do. You do have to turn because if you - well, you - I don’t know, what if you don’t? What if your time passes and nothing spreads and you’re still you? ”

Letting go of hope in the world they lived in now would be a death sentence to all of humanity. 

“But what if I do turn and you get hurt?” There was a grave fear in his voice, and Cody knew it was because Obi-Wan would never want to hurt him, even as a mindless monster.

Cody shook his head, “At most, it’ll be 24 hours before you turn. I’ve spent far longer hours on high alert during my training. I can do that for you.”

That seemed to relax Obi-Wan marginally, who nodded ever so subtly. He added more quietly, “Okay… Okay, we can wait this out.”

“Together. Like we’ve always promised.” Cody did let his voice edge into a whimper that time, knowing Obi-Wan would take him seriously over it.

“Together.”

*****

The moment Cody heard the home phone go off, he was fully alert and moving. They had been waiting for news for days. They knew Padme’s pregnancy was having problems and that the twins would be here sooner than later. Anakin was always a mess, but this was making it far worse. And they would have a four hour drive to even get to them, so it was go time in an instant. Before Obi-Wan was even off the phone, Cody was already dressed and grabbing clothing out for Obi-Wan to wear so he didn’t have to fuss around in the low light.

“There’s so many complications-” Obi-Wan fumbled with the receiver, barely getting it back on the hook. “There’s just - if Anakin loses Padme, it will crush him. If he loses the twins, it, I-”

“Hey, hey,” Cody placed a kiss on the corner of Obi-Wan’s mouth, “Breathe, they’ve got this. The bags are in the car, packed and ready to go. We’ll get through this together, all of us together.”

Obi-Wan blew out a slow breath and nodded, standing from the bed to get dressed, “Oh, could you-”

“Already calling Rex, he’ll beat us to the hospital by two hours at least.” Cody said, his nokia pressed to his ear as he sat down to pull his shoes on with one hand.

The look on Obi-Wan’s face was one of pure relief before he shifted back into stress and started getting dressed. That momentary relief was worth the whole process of Rex and Anakin becoming practically conjoined at the hip. Even if it had meant putting up with a lot of their shenanigans and teasing. Because now Rex could be there, just in case anything happened, while Cody and Obi-Wan made their way.

Twenty minutes later they had closed up the apartment and hopped in Cody’s truck to start their journey. An hour and a half later Rex called them to say he was there, and everyone was doing great. They didn’t need to rush, it would be some time. Four hours later they arrived at the hospital just as Padme was taken back for surgery. Obi-Wan and Rex sat with Anakin while Cody, with his loose claims of having a medical degree, got to scrub up and join them.

It was just past midnight when they were born. While the whole world lost their mind over Y2K, Cody watched Anakin welcome a beautiful set of twins into the world. It didn’t matter if they could never actually be family, Anakin felt like a brother-in-law anyway.

“And…?” Anakin prompted Cody, as he handed the second child, the girl, over to Obi-Wan in the NICU.

For a moment, he had almost forgotten he’d been the only one in that room. “They stopped the bleeding. She’s going to be just fine, Anakin.”

Anakin stumbled slightly, and Cody stepped in to take the boy from him as Rex stepped in to lower Anakin into a chair as the man started bawling in relief. Cody stepped back, holding the boy, now next to Obi-Wan.

“They’re gorgeous.” Obi-Wan also had tears in his eyes of pure relief.

“Padme named them earlier.” Rex piped in, even as he was rubbing Anakin’s back and his shirt was being soaked. “Luke and Leia.”

“You’re going to do great things, Luke. Welcome to the family.” Cody hummed.

“Hello there, Leia. You’re going to be a little rebel.” Obi-Wan chuckled, holding the little one closer to himself now.

An orderly stepped into the room with a bright smile on her face, “Skywalker family?”

“Yes, that’s us.” Rex responded for them all.

“Excellent. Mom is in recovery, in room 66. I can take you there now, but only two at a time.” She looked at Anakin, her voice gentle, “Would you like to go see your wife, sir?”

“He would love to.” Rex answered for him, slipping an arm around Anakin’s waist to get him to his feet. “Lead the way, ma’am.”

Once the two of them slipped out of the room, Obi-Wan nudged Cody with his hip, “Thank you for being so collected this whole time, sunshine.”

“You know I don’t panic.” Cody teased, then tilted his head back down towards Luke. “Obi-Wan, do you ever think…?”

“Yes.” Obi-Wan answered without an ounce of hesitation. “Yes, I would like that very much.”

“Together?” Cody asked, “You and I, raising some little hellraisers together?”

“I would have it no other way.”

Chapter Text

Obi-Wan found himself pacing the room for quite some time when Cody first left. Even though he had sent Cody off to find food and supplies, he still felt strange not going with him. Sitting in a room in an empty hotel while the horde passed by outside just felt numbing. Isolating.

He could easily become one of the masses just outside the building soon. Though he was holding onto some modicum of hope. Afterall, they were already a couple hours in and the bite on his arm didn’t seem to be noticeable. It hurt, but no more than a normal wound would ache after being poked, cleaned and bandaged. He kept lifting the edge of the bandage to check the progress, which he had seen first hand in plenty of others so far. But there was no progress. The infection wasn’t spreading.

Usually they could watch it move by the minute. Watch the ridges of the bite swell and expand, watch it spread upward underneath the skin, watch it slowly kill the person that was bitten. But this time, Obi-Wan was reduced to just checking and checking and checking. Because there was no way that he could have gotten that lucky. No way at all. He spent all the luck he had accumulated in his life finding Cody, he was sure of it.

Or maybe it was sheer determination. Or perhaps the bite hadn’t been deep enough. Or even just an absolute fluke of the infection not taking. What if it had to be saliva? Or what if his body just took longer to be infected? Or what if - or maybe - or perhaps – there were far too many hypotheticals, especially in a situation they knew very little about to begin with. History had been filled with plagues, but none quite like this. None that brought the dead back to chase the living. It was unheard of, unprecedented, unpredicted.

Much like unpredicted elements in history, not being foreseen also left it unpredictable moving forward. Perhaps if they didn’t turn to immediate panic, they could give those bitten a chance to see if they did turn or not. Everyone Obi-Wan had seen so far turned - or they were killed before even given the chance. But as with all parts of nature, there had to be immunity. Humans who could not contract the flu or chickenpox were not unheard of. Or those that lacked the allergen to poison ivy. Perhaps it had to do with antigens or diet or blood type - there could be so many factors, so many unknowns. No one exactly had a lab to study this in. Not anymore.

Then again, Obi-Wan could be ahead of himself, and he knew it. He could be on the longer end of the spectrum, taking closer to a whole day to turn. They had not seen anyone retain their mind past 24 hours, but he had to hope.  

“If you only had a few hours left to live, how would you spend it?” Obi-Wan pondered out loud into the silence, as he took a tentative look out the window. It seemed like the horde had moved on for now. This town seemed empty as it was - most likely cleared out by the government already. They knew the government had been rounding people up to put them in ‘safe zones’, but Cody had gotten warning on day one from the other Mandalorians not to listen to their promises. They were corrupt, and the state of emergency only gave them the power they needed to kill and purge the population at will.

“Well, I certainly shouldn’t spend it contemplating the oh so shocking corruption of government and military forces.” He chuckled because, well, he could be dying so it was only right to get in a few laughs at his own poor jokes.

After a few more moments of staring out the window and just letting time wash past him, Obi-Wan moved to sit on the bed. Cody had taken the handgun with him though he wouldn’t be brave enough to use it anyway. On an infected, sure. But the way Cody had thought - no. While he loathed the idea of Cody having to face him down with over glazed eyes, he couldn’t imagine it any other way. It helped, perhaps, knowing that Cody was trained to be disconnected. To be able to set aside reality and who a person was in order to press a gun to their skin and pull the trigger. Mandalorians were like that. Even if Cody had not followed in his father and eldest brother’s footsteps, Obi-Wan knew a few of his other brothers had. The rest had taken the vows and chose to be on the more casual side.

That kinship still ran deep, even if Cody weren’t part of the criminal side. He had always been willing to lie for someone, or do total strangers a favor if they flashed the skull tattoo. Obi-Wan hadn’t gotten to see his actual skills until the world fell. Until he saw Cody fight off an infected with his bare hands, something that seemed nearly inhuman. His accuracy with weapons was also startling, but helped them on far more than one occasion. The world couldn’t afford to lose survivors like Cody. 

But it could lose people like Obi-Wan, he supposed. That was why he had put his arm up. To save Cody, to spare him so he could help take back the world. But now - now, he stared at the bandage on his arm and wondered if there was a place in this world for someone like him. A chance to find a way to fight back. He was getting ahead of himself again though.

Saving him from his own thoughts, Cody knocked on the door to alert Obi-Wan it was him, before the door opened. Cody slid inside with a full duffel bag, dropping it on the table before turning around to lock the door and jam a chair under the knob. Obi-Wan watched as he triple checked the door before deeming it satisfactory. Cody had always been like that, always just shy of paranoid and just left of protective. He knew that Obi-Wan was capable, had taken plenty of courses in various fighting styles and grew up around quite a few foster siblings as it was, but Cody only cared about making sure those he loved stayed safe.

For a moment, Obi-Wan just stared at the pistol on Cody’s hip. He’d seen the man quick draw before. He was fast, he wouldn’t miss. If he changed right now, right this moment, Cody could -

“What’s my second eldest brother’s name?” Cody asked then, turning around slowly to face Obi-Wan.

For a moment, Obi-Wan couldn’t understand why he was asking. But Cody looked dead serious, so he relented, “Well, that’s a bit of a trick question and depends on who you ask, truly. Fox is rather adamant he is the second eldest but Wolffe often argues with him. Your father never told them truthfully who was born first simply because he had not been in the room.”

The relief seemed to flood Cody’s system, making him relax his shoulders and cross the room to step into Obi-Wan’s space. Cody rested his head just under his chin, wrapping his arms around him. And Obi-Wan, in turn, buried one hand in Cody’s curls and gripped the middle of his back with the other. He felt Cody’s vest under his shirt, and his heart ached knowing he had never wanted to have to wear his Mandalorian garb again. That part of his life had been long past. But it seemed to come back with a vengeance the moment the world fell.

“I love you.” Obi-Wan whispered into Cody’s hair. “I love you. I’ll always love you.”

Cody crying into his shirt was inevitable, which they both knew. They both knew Cody would have to grieve before they could let go of one another.

*****

The day they returned home from their first time in California, Cody felt like he should be exhausted, but he wasn’t. He felt energized , excited to have the permission to move forward in life with Obi-Wan. If that’s what Obi-Wan did want at least. They would have to talk about it, but maybe the following year Cody could move off campus, out of the dorms and share an apartment with Obi-Wan. They hadn’t been together all that long, but it felt so natural that he would like to start making plans to - 

“Move in with me.”

Cody nearly dropped the hot tea kettle, and instead accidentally slammed it back down onto the stove, jumping back to avoid the steam. Obi-Wan hadn’t even made it a question, or it hadn’t sounded like a question. Just a statement, hanging in the air. The largest elephant in the room Cody had ever been part of.

“What?” He managed, through the shock.

“If you wish to, you should move in with me. Half of your clothes are already here, you help cook dinners and wash dishes, you’ve slept beside me. I find when you’re not here, it’s rather lonely. And you wouldn’t have to live in the dorms or ever worry about forgetting a book on study nights.” Obi-Wan rubbed at his beard, which Cody noticed was a bit of a habit for him, and he found it endearing in this moment in particular.

“Obi-Wan, we haven’t even…”

“I know why you wanted to wait. Fox told me.” Obi-Wan leaned against the counter with his hip, watching Cody for his reaction, “You didn’t want to explain your tattoo. You don’t have to. You don’t have to explain anything, Cody. You just have to let me love you. Through every bodega run, through every burnt meal and bitter cup of tea, through every family meeting and every time you have to put on that vest and a gun on your hip - yes, I can see that face you’re making, and yes, I know about that, too.”

Cody could feel his mouth hanging slightly open but he couldn’t get himself to think enough to really care. Obi-Wan was so blunt, it truly sent him through a loop.

“I’ve killed people, Obi-Wan.” Cody admitted, the words acrid in his throat. He wasn’t particularly proud of his accomplishments, but he had done what he had to for his family. For his clan. “That’s what putting on that vest means. It means killing people.”

“I know.” Obi-Wan didn’t flinch, didn’t run. He didn’t make for the phone to call the police or grab for a knife to threaten Cody. Instead, he made Cody’s heart race. “I got revenge on the man who killed my first love. With some help, at least. ‘ Let he who is without sin’ , and so on.”

Cody had never been in this position before. He wasn’t particularly sure how to react. His mind was having trouble catching up to itself and he stuttered out something like a question, though he would never grasp what he asked, even looking back on the conversation.

But whatever he had managed had made Obi-Wan chuckle and smile, “I’ve been among Mandalorians before. And while I don’t particularly condone the violence that some sects fall to, I can’t say much when you compare them to mafias and politics of this side of the world. You’re doing what must be done to survive, and to show the world a bit of justice. Honestly, I saw far worse tagging along with Qui-Gon on political trips. Those deaths tend to be bloody and poorly orchestrated just to gain an upper hand. I don’t particularly know how they get away -”

Then Cody realized what Obi-Wan had said that had made his mind turn to absolute mush inside of his skull. He would be surprised if he didn’t find it oozing out of his ears next. “You said love.”

Obi-Wan paused his rambling, scratching the beard on his chin for a half second, “Hm. I suppose I did let that slip.”

Cody stared at him, his heart racing in his chest. The rest of the conversation felt distant, unimportant. A problem, a story for a different day. Especially as he took three quick steps to close the distance between them. “Say it again.”

Obi-Wan raised his hand to Cody’s cheek, and Cody nearly lost all the breath in his body. All the worry and anxiety of the last few months faded instantly as Obi-Wan barely whispered, as if they got to share a secret the world would never know or understand. “I love you, Cody.”

There was no stopping the overwhelming urge to kiss Obi-Wan at that moment. To crash their bodies together in a way that was no doubt to leave bruises on their lips. They collided in a sea of fire and sparks, and it didn’t take long at all before they were moving away from the kitchen towards Obi-Wan’s bedroom. Years later perhaps one of them would remember who took the first step that way, but just then they couldn’t be bothered to think about it. It just felt right.

Waking up beside Obi-Wan the next morning, Cody’s body sore in such a good way also felt right. He worried Obi-Wan would be even more sore, and made a mental note to pick up far more supplies for the next time.

How they had ended up with Obi-Wan sleeping on Cody’s chest, he would never quite know. Though he supposed they both moved around quite a bit in their sleep anyway. He took the moment to run his fingers through Obi-Wan’s auburn hair, softly untangling a few knots as the man slept soundly. Or, at least he assumed the man was sound asleep.

Then Obi-Wan shifted and his fingers dragged slowly across Cody’s chest, tracing the lines of his tattoo. His fingers splayed out across the sunburst behind the Mandalorian symbol, then circled the bruise of a bite mark Obi-Wan had left just beside it. Cody watched him, sucking air in through his teeth when he touched the tender spot.

“We waited this long… Because of this?” Obi-Wan asked, his voice still a morning rumble.

“I didn’t want you to see my tattoo, yeah.” Cody muttered, “Not before… Well, I don’t know how to say it. I follow tradition.”

“Mandalorians had a marriage code.” Obi-Wan kissed Cody’s chest before laying his head back down. “Don’t show anything, don’t talk about the family, until you know… Because the secrets go to the grave.”

“Except you know Mandalorian secrets… And you’re not one.” Cody noted, “Last I checked you’re not married to one either… Your first love, who were they?”

“Satine Kryze.”

The pieces fell into place on the back of two lonely words. Two cold words, a name in the wind. Duchess Kryze had been part of an interesting family. A fractured clan that was walking two different sides of the old and new world. While also playing their hands in politics. They had walked a dangerous line for generations. And when someone played with matches, they were bound to get burned.

She had died around the same time Jango had.

“What’s the symbol behind this?” Obi-Wan asked, his voice soft. He didn’t want to talk about the past. Cody could respect that. After all, he felt like they had a whole future ahead of them.

“When you get your mythosaur, your family chooses something to represent you too. Bly suggested mine. Sun rays in gold and orange. A lust for life, you know. I wanted something so different than… Well, I didn’t want to end up like Jango.” Cody felt his voice drop to a whisper. Talking about death so early in the morning felt only right at a whisper.

“Whatever you choose, I'll be here.” Obi-Wan promised.

“You’re only saying that so Fox doesn’t skin you.” Cody teased, then ruffled Obi-Wan’s hair.

“Well…”

Cody laughed and shifted to sit up over Obi-Wan, pulling him into deep and loving kisses. They smiled and held each other between them, and after a few kisses Cody sat back, one arm wrapped around Obi-Wan’s head as their bodies lay together.

“I love you too, Obi-Wan.”

*****

The bag was filled with good finds. Cody had broken open a couple vending machines and brought back all kinds of snacks, candy bars, trail mixes, and more - the works. He’d even found some jerky that was still good. On top of that, there were cans of soup that had been left in rooms. New clothes that would fit them. A lot of water bottles. Boots in Obi-Wan’s size. Several new knives and another handgun with a few boxes of ammo. One of the best finds was a tent that was supposedly tear proof and a small camp stove that fit in the duffel bag-backpack.

“These are wonderful finds, Cody.” Obi-Wan hummed as he finished off a chocolate bar, mostly because he couldn’t help himself. He watched Cody with a warm gaze, hoping to ease his grief with what he could offer, if nothing else.

“I thought you may like these snacks. You know, nights like we had so often.” The camp stove was a fuss to get working, but once it started to heat up, Cody beamed at his accomplishment.

“Ah yes, 3 AM runs to the bodega for study sessions. Though I do seem to recall picking up other items in our runs too.” There was probably no reason for Obi-Wan to think of sleeping with Cody right now. After all - what a horrible way to change into an infected.

“I uh,” Cody reached for a can of soup, popping the top before placing it on the camp stove, “I may have found something if you want to spend your night the exact same.”

“Cody Fett, you dog.” That drew a laugh from Cody, which was music to Obi-Wan’s ears. He could listen to Cody laugh for every remaining moment of his life and be at complete peace in the end. “Though perhaps I could go without the studying part of the night, hm?”

“We already have the degrees, no need for more studying now.” Cody went quiet for a minute as he stirred the soup, before he turned his head towards Obi-Wan. “How do you feel?”

“Nervous, a tad sore as well. But really, nothing else.” A quick check of his watch showed that it had now been over four hours. “I certainly don’t feel like I’ve been bitten four hours ago, not like other people we’ve seen.”

“No, other people have been pretty quiet at this point.” Cody admitted, then set a can in front of Obi-Wan, along with a spoon he had found, before starting to heat his own can.

Neither of them really felt like eating, they didn’t need to announce that. But they also hadn’t eaten a solid amount of food in days. Dying on an empty stomach felt like an insult to the amount of food Cody had managed to find. 

“So…” Obi-Wan started, as he stirred the soup to cool it, “Did you find a map?”

“A local map. I can get to a general store with it, then find a map there.” Cody nearly sounded like he had rehearsed this answer. As if he did not actually plan to follow through.

“Cody, look at me.” Obi-Wan urged, his voice once again gentle, “You swore to a code. You took an oath to protect your family. That is why you have to move forward. To find them, and protect them.”

“I didn’t protect you, though.” Cody commented, barely audibly.

“No, my love. I protected you.”

*****

Being welcomed into the circle was a whole clan affair.

Meaning, Obi-Wan was surrounded by a surprising amount of people within the confines of the safe house. Everyone, that was, besides Cody himself. He wanted to surprise the man he loved. Unfortunately, he could not surprise the rest of the family. News spread fast among a close clan like them.

“ Courage is rightly considered the foremost of the virtues, for upon it, all others depend. ” Boba tossed the quote out at Obi-Wan, not even glancing up from the book he was devouring with fervor.

“Sir Winston Churchill.” Obi-Wan answered, still tapping his fingers on the arm of the chair.

“ Whatever our souls are made of, his and mine are the same. ” Boba flipped the page, his eyes practically scanning the words with incredible speed.

“Wuthering Heights - Bronte.” That one was far too easy, “Give me something I have to think about, Boba. Please.”

“Why? Do you really need the distraction? It’s not like my uncles are whispering in the corner about whether or not you’re allowed to join the clan and decide your whole future with Cody-”

“ Boba Fett. ” Fox warned from the other side of the room, his voice harsh and grave.

They weren’t usually very hard on Boba as he was, after all, still a teen. And clan affairs like this were not usually discussed with anyone under 21. But Boba was a rare exception and thus welcomed into the room, even if his job was just to keep Obi-Wan company at the moment.

After a stare down with Fox, Boba huffed and glanced at Obi-Wan before looking back to his book, “ This is the way the world ends; not with a bang, but with a whimper. ”

The sudden, though only momentary, silence of the brothers when he read that quote made Obi-Wan curious, but he didn’t ask anything further. They were already grumbling about their nephew being a bit of a tosser today. They definitely had not been anticipating his attitude on his visit.

“Oh that one…” Obi-Wan knew the answer, but pretended to hm and haw, giving Boba a few pages in his book before he answered, “T.S. Eliot, yes?”

“ Death is just another path. One that we must all take. ” Boba responded, as good of an answer as Obi-Wan was going to get.

Then he paused, actually thinking that one over. He wasn’t sure he had heard it before, which made him shake his head. “Huh… I don’t -”

“Obi-Wan.” Wolffe interrupted as he walked over beside Fox, folding his arms across his chest. “You understand what you’re signing up for, correct?”

“It’s as close to a marriage as we can get.” Obi-Wan responded, nodding his head. “I know the tenants. I know what could be asked of me.”

Bly sat down in front of Obi-Wan, starting to set up the small station of tattoo supplies. The room they were in was used exclusively for this purpose and it was kept incredibly sterile. Well, maybe it wasn’t just for this purpose. This room had also, supposedly, seen its fair share of stitches, bullet wounds and setting of broken bones. But all of those thoughts felt like parts of Cody and his family. They were Mandalorians. They had existed for longer than the history books and would continue to outlive the rest of society if the entire world collapsed based on their preparedness and community alone. A group of people from all walks and factions of life who would put aside absolutely anything to protect and care for one another.

“Once you join the family, you’re part of the family forever. It runs deeper than marriage.” Bly reiterated what Obi-Wan already knew.

“A Fett for life, even if only in pact and not name.” Rex chimed.

“That means doing anything in your power to protect your family. Even if you have to put yourself in harm's way.” Fox insisted that Obi-Wan understand that.

“You’re all wasting your breath if you think he’s not going to go through with this.” Boba piped in as he turned a page in his book.

Obi-Wan took a moment to look around at the brothers, taking in their varying appearances. Rex’s tattoo was visible, taking up a neat portion of his forearm with intimidating eyes in blue just above it. Though it barely stood out among the many others he had as well. Bly’s was mostly hidden, though Obi-Wan had seen it before, and could see the cascade of wildflowers that ran all the way down his arm from it. Wolffe and Fox’s were both hidden, though Obi-Wan knew that they had both gotten them with a wolf and fox to symbolize their twin bond. And Boba had refused to get the mythosaur, instead showing his dedication to their family by getting a tattoo that his grandfather had carried in honor of those before him as well.

“I promise you all, I will not let you down. I will protect Cody at all costs.” Obi-Wan felt the shake in his voice, “I couldn’t go on without him.”

There was a moment of silence before Fox nodded at Bly, who in turn grinned and looked at Obi-Wan, “Let’s get started.”

*****

Obi-Wan felt the tears on his face as he sat and stared out the window while Cody was in the restroom. They just needed a few minutes apart. Their conversation had very nearly turned into an argument and neither of them wanted to spend their precious time left like that.

Though they had both said their apologies, something still hung in the air. There was no doubt it was what Obi-Wan had requested. That Cody goes on without him. But they shouldn’t argue about it. At the end of the day, they both took vows. Obi-Wan did his job, he protected Cody. Now, it was Cody’s job to find and protect the rest of the family.

Obi-Wan had always been made for tragedy. The scars on his back reminded him of this constantly.

*****

The recipient didn’t get to choose a place or even how it looked, that’s how this worked. So with little warning, Obi-Wan had been urged to lay on his front and relax while Bly got to work on his back. Though he expected it to hurt far worse there due to his scars, Obi-Wan was surprised to find it didn’t hurt any worse than it should have. He focused on keeping his breathing steady while they had all spoken to him in turn. They came and went from the room, all but Bly and Boba.

Boba, who could pretend he was a hardass all he wanted, but Obi-Wan knew there was a certain softness to him that he could have only gotten from his family. His real family. Not the killers that his father had willed him to for whatever reason. He stayed and occasionally read out well written passages in his book, though he left out any context clues that would let Obi-Wan know what he was reading. He was pretty sure it was Les Misérables but the pain of the tattoo had truly set in, making it hard for Obi-Wan to focus.

Once they were done, they bandaged Obi-Wan up without giving him a single chance to see the design and sent him back off to the hotel he and Cody had decided to stay at for this visit. He stood outside of the door for a long minute, trying to get the courage up to show Cody.

They could not get married. Same sex marriage wasn’t legal, and they doubted it would ever be legal. But to the Mandalorians, joining the clan was more important than marriage would ever be. That was nothing more than a piece of paper. Taking the vows was life or death commitment. 

When he opened the door, he was greeted with Cody in a robe, getting ready for a shower. The sight alone made his heart soar.

“Oh, hey! Welcome back! Survive the day with my brothers?” Cody laughed and held up a chocolate bar he had evidently been prepared to greet Obi-Wan with.

Obi-Wan groaned at the thoughtfulness, snagging the chocolate and a kiss while he leaned in close. “I had an excellent day with your brothers. We went to lunch, Boba quizzed me on any subject he could think of, and I got to experience Bly’s work.”

Cody tilted his head slightly, “Bly tattooed today? Who? Quinlan?”

“Quinlan, Aayla and Anakin were all with you, all day, my love.” Obi-Wan teased him, stealing another kiss.

“One of my brothers?” Cody made the weak guess, though his hands were already groping at Obi-Wan’s shirt, yanking the buttons open. He sent a couple flying, which made Obi-Wan laugh at Cody’s eagerness.

The question hung in the air as Cody ran his fingers across the bandages on Obi-Wan’s chest. There was a fire in his eyes that lit one in Obi-Wan’s gut, making him stop Cody just long enough to pull him into a kiss. A kiss that became tongue and teeth, lip bruising and a hint of metallic taste. Before Obi-Wan knew it, he’d lost the shirt and Cody was tugging at the bandages. All they were there for was to hold a gauze pad in place across the center of Obi-Wan’s back.

Once Cody tugged the edge of the bandage and let them fall away, they parted long enough for him to check over Obi-Wan’s chest. The lack of ink there made him pout, but then he put his hands on Obi-Wan’s shoulders and applied some force to turn him around. Obi-Wan went, his heart racing in his chest. He winced when Cody pulled at the gauze pad, but then he heard the gasp. A sound of pure shock and joy. 

“Obi-Wan…” Cody barely whispered, his fingers brushing his skin so lightly that he jumped slightly.

“I haven’t seen it.” He admitted, “What does it look like?”

“It looks perfect.”

Chapter Text

There was so much more in the world that Cody had wanted to experience with Obi-Wan. To buy a home, to raise children, to grow old together - as old as most men in his position made it, anyway. But then the world had gone to hell, in so many ways. He’d lost contact with all of his siblings, Obi-Wan had lost contact with his own as well. No family, nowhere safe to be, and certainly no luck.

Not until now, with one of them dying and the other walking a knife's edge. Cody figured he could follow a classic, playing Romeo to Obi-Wan’s Juliet. They’d come from other sides of society to begin with, though no one had really tried to stop them from loving one another. The most terrifying part was the thought of Obi-Wan coming back from the near dead, like Juliet. Except it would be far different than some fake poison.

No wonder he’d never liked mushrooms before.

But still, their luck had turned after the bite. They found a plethora of supplies, new weapons, new clothes . Though nothing compared to the sudden excitement Cody felt when he bumped the bathroom sink and water flowed out. Flowed. Not just residual in the pipes. The hotel didn’t have power, but it still had water.

“Obi-Wan!” Cody called out as he whipped around to push the shower door open, turning it on immediately. The water seemed lukewarm at best, but Cody wasn’t going to complain. They’d gotten all their bathing for the last few months done in rivers and rain.

He could cry, he was so excited to get to take a shower and get all the remaining muck and grime off of themselves. There was soap in the pumps and water in the pipes and cold or not they would take advantage of this opportunity.

“Cody - do I hear the shower?” Obi-Wan inquired from the main room as he rounded the corner to the bathroom, his eyes wide.

Cody had set up some candles on the counter before so that they could both utilize the bathroom properly in the dark of the windowless room. The flames from them just flickered against the cool, now wet glass of the shower stall, casting shadows of droplets all over the walls. For a moment, Cody was mesmerized by the dancing shadows. Something so simple, so newly foreign, yet so beautiful to see.

“Out of all of the conveniences of the world before the fall, I didn’t think it would be running water I missed the most.” Cody admitted, then reached out for Obi-Wan. “It’s probably going to be cold in there.”

“It could be arctic waters and I would still get in there and condition my hair.” Obi-Wan took off the old, raggedy shirt he had been wearing for weeks now and tossed it into a corner.

They hadn’t changed into the new clothes Cody had found yet, as if they had both silently agreed to do that after stripping each other down later. Though the stripping down part had now come a lot earlier and was going to be followed with being a lot cleaner. For now. Well, they could always take another shower in the morning.

If they got a morning together.

“I wonder if there’s any of the complimentary razors around here.” Cody wondered, trying to take his mind off of the hourglass above Obi-Wan’s head. 

It only took him a few seconds to find one, which he left on the counter for later. He hadn’t gotten to shave in ages, and unlike Obi-Wan, he didn’t personally enjoy having a bush on his face. When he stood back up, Obi-Wan had unwrapped the bandage on his arm and was staring at it in silence. The only sound around them was the shower and the nearly imperceptible crackle of the candles. 

There was no doubt to Cody what Obi-Wan was thinking. It had to be spreading by now. The disease would consume his arm first, traveling beneath the skin until it reached somewhere more major, the heart to kill and reanimate, then the brain to take control of it all. They had seen it happen so many times that Cody wasn’t sure he even wanted to look at Obi-Wan’s arm.

But Cody stepped closer anyway, “Obi-Wan?”

“I took it off so we don’t get the bandage wet.” He explained, though his voice was a tad cracked. “But…”

Cody was now standing in Obi-Wan’s space, and he lifted his arm to look it over. The bite was still there, and starting to scab over. But Obi-Wan’s skin was as smooth as ever, save for some bubbling right around the edge of the bite. Cody ran his fingers around it carefully, then slowly up and across Obi-Wan’s arm. Smooth. No spread, no peaks and valleys, not even any pockmarks. 

“It’s been six and a half hours.” Cody could feel himself speaking but the words came out without thought, “You should have fungus all the way up your arm by now.”

“I should be non-verbal by now. Or worse. Cody, we’ve never seen an upper bite go longer than eight hours.” Obi-Wan flexed his arm, then glanced at the mirror, “Well, I would look to see if I look worse for wear, but the mirror is fogged right up.”

Turning around, Cody stared at the mirror for a moment before his brain realized what was happening. “Obi-Wan, do you realize what that means?”

That made him let go of Obi-Wan and strip off his shirt in far more of a rush, leaving it in the pile with Obi-Wan’s before he started the process of taking off the Mandalorian vest. The buckles on the sides popped off easily, followed by the under velcro. The shoulder pieces unsnapped with a bit of force, they were getting a little rusted. The upper arm bands had the same buckle and velcro system that the main vest had. But Cody had gotten used to the vest at a very young age, the same time he had gotten used to the mask that he still kept in his backpack.

Behind him, Obi-Wan stepped closer to lift the vest up over his head, examining it in his arms. “If that water is hot like you think it is, you should hang this on the handrail in there.”

The look on Obi-Wan’s face meant that the vest really did stink, which didn’t surprise Cody. The last time it had gotten close to being washed was when they bathed in a river and it got caught up by the current. Back then, they had both laughed after Cody went diving after the vest and ended up soaked through. Not even an hour later they weren’t laughing when the vest took the brunt force of what would have been a kill shot.

As Cody took the vest from Obi-Wan’s hands, he rolled this thumb over the clan insignia embossed on the right chest. His chest tightened at the thought of abandoning his family. Maybe - maybe Obi-Wan was right. Maybe he needed to stay alive.

He glanced at the shower, his heart aching as he remembered the first moment he let Obi-Wan see into his world.

There had been times that Cody did regret moving in with Obi-Wan. Not because he didn’t love him, but because he didn’t want to hurt him. He didn’t want Obi-Wan seeing into the life he had to live, even if he understood it. Even if he had once been on the precipice of it anyway.

That day had been one of those days. When he limped home at 3 AM, drenched in blood and smelling of death and regret. He’d briefly thought about getting a hotel room to wash off, but he would have never been able to get past the front desk.

Especially when he didn’t even have the energy to take off his mask.

*****

The smell of blood was unforgettable to Obi-Wan.

It had been engraved in him since Satine’s murder. Sure, he had smelt blood before, in small quantities. But nothing was quite like smelling a blood bath. Knowing there was so much in the air that someone had none in their body. Some people assumed it would smell like raw meat, but that wasn’t the case. Instead it smelled like iron, metal or copper. Any metallic element one could think of.

The scars along his back ached as the memory washed over him, eventually dragging him out of bed when he heard the shower running. The clock read just past 3 AM before he yawned and padded his way towards their bathroom to knock on the door.

“Cody?” He called, waiting a moment before he knocked once more. When there was still silence, he spoke once more, “I’m coming in, my love.”

There wasn’t a single part of him that was worried about a possible break in. They lived in a good neighborhood, their apartment was multiple stories off the ground, and Cody had installed several locks on the door just in case. So when he stepped into their bathroom, he anticipated Cody being in there.

He hadn’t been anticipating seeing him standing under the water still fully clothed all the way from his mask to his boots.

“Oh, Cody.” Obi-Wan himself was in only sleep shorts, which he was willing to sacrifice at the moment as he pushed the shower door open and stepped inside. He was suddenly extra grateful they had both pushed to find an apartment with a decent bathroom. Or else this would have been too cramped to offer any support to Cody.

First, Obi-Wan reached for the mask, and Cody flinched back, shrinking in on himself slightly. That made Obi-Wan sigh, but he understood. Cody didn’t want to be seen like this. With blood being pulled from his clothes as the water cascaded around him. Most of the spray was blocked by Cody’s body, but Obi-Wan could tell by the air alone how hot the water was turned up to.

The second approach went easier. The jacket had to go, since its only use was covering the vest anyway. Black denim did look good on Cody, but Obi-Wan scrunched his nose at how it smelled and tossed it onto the shower bench. Maybe sitting through the hot water would help it out a bit. Next, the vest. Cody had rarely worn the vest around Obi-Wan, and so far only for family affairs. Though he had shown Obi-Wan how it clasped just once, in case he ever truly needed to know.

Luckily, Obi-Wan was a quick learner. The buckles on the sides popped off easily, followed by the under velcro. Cody didn’t flinch as Obi-Wan reached around him to double check he had no weapons on his belt. Next, the shoulder pieces unsnapped with barely any force, they looked brand new. The upper arm bands had the same buckle and velcro system that the main vest had. Those were the final pieces to freeing Cody from the pressure on his upper body, then Obi-Wan scooped his fingers beneath the vest and heaved it off of Cody, stunned by how heavy it was between the normal weight and the added water.

Once the vest was off and joined the jacket on the shower bench, Obi-Wan returned to his ministrations. He got Cody out of his undershirt, and coaxed him from his boots and pants with a little prodding. Every piece, the holsters, the clothes, the boots, the arm guards, they all joined the rest on the bench until Cody was down to just his boxers and mask. 

The whole time, they hadn’t spoken besides the occasional instruction from Obi-Wan. By now, they were both soaked through what clothes they had on and the water had cooled to a more comfortable heat. Without prompting, Obi-Wan grabbed the soap and loofah, getting to work on washing the blood stains off of Cody. He wasn’t going to ask what happened or who the blood belonged to, quite frankly he didn’t feel like he needed to know. He just wanted to get Cody cleaned up.

Once again, he reached for the mask, and this time wasn’t met with resistance. He tucked his hands behind Cody’s head and undid the belt like straps, then lifted the mask away and set it on the bench as well.

“Some of the blood is Rex’s.” Cody finally spoke, and the words dropped Obi-Wan’s heart to his stomach.

“Is he okay?” The question came out before his brain could even process the statement.

“Yeah. Our medic, he… Yeah, he’s okay. I dropped him off.” Cody blinked a few times, seemingly shaking off the worst of it.

“With Anakin?” Obi-Wan prompted before touching Cody’s face, gently washing his skin there too.

“Yeah. Padme says hi.” The fact that Cody even remembered to tell him made Obi-Wan chuckle, even if briefly.

“Turn around and I’ll wash your hair.” Obi-Wan instructed, going for the shampoo. “But is everyone okay otherwise? Who went?”

“It was just Rex and I, since it was in this area…” Cody turned around, and his voice dropped, “I don’t - you have to know I don’t really do this, Obi-Wan. Not how my brothers do. Certainly not to the extent Jango did. But this was important, it was family business…”

It seemed once Cody’s thoughts caught up, the floor gates opened.

“Wolffe would have gone with Rex if he wasn’t so far away for something else. But this was a Watch problem. They’re - it’s like they’re hoarding children. Raising them into something - worse than Mandalorian. We’re not good guys , but we don’t do bad things to good people, we do bad things to bad people. Not them. They’re - hitmen. Assassins. They do the dirty work the mafias don’t even want to do. Political strikes and all that. And they leave it messy. They flash their masks and their shiny vests and use them for intimidation, not protection. Then they call themselves Mandalorians and people with the mythosaur tattoo take the brunt of the repercussions.” Cody let out a shaky breath, then added, “They give us the bad name that got the duchess killed.”

That made Obi-Wan swallow a lump in his throat before he spoke, “Cody, I told you when we moved in together a year ago that I don’t care what you’ve done. Mandalorians handle the world with more dignity than the legal politicians. What I do care about is making sure you’re taken care of, and that these moments don’t kill you or anyone in your family.”

Obi-Wan gently tilted Cody forward to help him rinse his hair, then stood him up straight and laid a kiss on the back of his neck. “Now, finish up here, rinse your vest again and meet me in the kitchen for some dessert. I made a strawberry trifle earlier.”

That made Cody groan and the faintest smile appear on his face, “You’re too good to me, Obi-Wan.”

*****

Cody absolutely adored the way that Obi-Wan squirmed when he got to wash the man’s hair for him. Though they had a rather back and forth relationship in their bedroom, the simpler things Obi-Wan often insisted on doing. He was always the one wanting to care for Cody, unless he was incapable of doing so. Sure, they made each other meals and did the dishes in a pattern but Cody was usually the one getting his hair washed, receiving massages, being driven around, etc. Obi-Wan longed to provide what he could, it was his love language. And Cody would never take that from him.

But - now Cody could lose Obi-Wan.

Which led to him washing Obi-Wan’s hair, then letting his hands dip down to scrub at his back, fingers tracing over the scars and the tattoo. The mythosaur skull with a blue line straight down his spine and wings rising up around it. Obi-Wan was like a phoenix, he had risen from the ashes of a horrible night and been stronger than ever after he did so. Bly had expertly slid the design in to compliment Obi-Wan’s scars. That blue line started at the base of his neck and traveled all the way under the skull, only ending within the black ink. Reliable the color screamed, just like the hawk eyes on Rex’s did. A far cry from Cody’s lust for adventure, but they fit together like pieces made for one another.

The thought twisted in Cody’s gut as he laid his forehead against Obi-Wan’s back, hands roaming around his sides and around the front to his chest. He stood there and hugged him under the rushing water for a long, long time. They stood that way until Cody noticed that Obi-Wan hadn’t said anything for just as long as they had been there.

“Obi-Wan?” Cody prompted.

For a moment he still didn’t speak, which made Cody start to panic.

“Obi-Wan, how did my eldest brother die?” Cody asked, his mind swirling only towards death now. Obviously Obi-Wan hadn’t turned yet, or he wouldn’t be standing under the water with him. They would be a naked heap on the ground as Cody tried to fight off the love of his life.

They always went non-verbal first. Lacking the synapses in their brain to form thoughts back into words. He’d seen it so many times so far. And, if he continued on after this, there was no doubt he would see it many more -

Obi-Wan sniffled and raised his hands to his cheeks, wiping off what Cody could only assume was tears.

“Depends on who you ask.” Obi-Wan finally spoke, making Cody exhale with sudden relief. His voice was raw, the voice he always had after he’d been crying. “Everyone said he died of cancer, that’s what you told Boba too. But it was a slow poisoning.”

“You’re still with me.” Cody squeezed him from behind, before he pulled his hand back and playfully slapped Obi-Wan’s shoulder. “You asshole, making me worry for a minute there.”

“I didn’t mean to, my love. I was just - reminiscing.” Obi-Wan sighed, then Cody watched as he shivered because Cody ran his fingers over the scars that spanned his whole back.

“Yeah? I was, too.” Cody admitted, “Do you remember that time I came home, and you helped me come down from shock by working me out of the vest while in the shower?”

“Cody, it took us weeks to get that blood out of the porcelain tub.” Obi-Wan countered, but he still snorted, “But… I would do it again. If I could.”

They both were quiet for a moment, as Cody continued washing off Obi-Wan, using as much of the hotel soap as they wanted to. They switched spots so Obi-Wan could rinse off, then he turned his attention to doing the same for Cody. They had all the hot water they wanted, it seemed. They weren’t going to waste it. They would shower in complete darkness if they had to.

“I know why you wanted to protect me, Obi-Wan.” Cody said as he leaned his head into Obi-Wan’s touch.

Curiosity must have gotten the best of him, because he actually asked, “Why?”

“Satine… You didn’t protect her, but you tried. You wanted to.” Cody hummed, his heart aching as he thought about the things he would miss the most about Obi-Wan if he was gone. Times like these would be one of them. Pampering one another as much as they could.

“She was my first love, and you are my true love. I would do anything for you.” Obi-Wan tilted Cody’s head back, leaning over him to kiss his forehead softly. “Though to this day I am mildly offended that Anakin told you that story instead of me.”

“He’s an awful story teller, your version made far more sense.” He wasn’t lying, though Anakin had told him a pretty good version of the story too.

*****

The second time Obi-Wan and Cody went on a Fett family trip was for Christmas just months after they had moved in together. Just a year into their full relationship. Cody wasn’t surprised he was still learning new things about Obi-Wan, and still teaching him new things about himself.

“ Damn, Cody, does your family always go all out for vacations?” Anakin asked as he stretched out in his pool chair, obviously content with the sun and heat they were dealing with here.

What Cody hadn’t told any of them was that the only reason they went to Colombia for Christmas was because Wolffe and Fox had a problem to deal with here that they chose to make everyone’s problem. Well, everyone in the family. Their guests got to enjoy the rest of their days like this, lounging and swimming and generally just relaxed. Cody was glad they weren’t getting fully decked out and weren’t killing people, but they were - aggressively negotiating, to say the least.

“Often. We enjoy the occasional splurge.” Again, Cody didn’t mention that the money came from their protection services and from the life insurance policies all of their clan were required to carry. Carry on the legacy, even in death.

“I could so get used to this. Keep Obi-Wan around and make sure he keeps inviting us!” Anakin grinned, and the grin was just as stupid as Obi-Wan’s always was. It was endearing from both of them, though a little dorkish on Anakin and a little more sporting on Obi-Wan.

“I’m the one that invited you, stupid.” Rex muttered from where he lay in the next chair over, shifting to wrap his arms further around Padme as he grumbled and attempted to go back to sleep.

Anakin just rolled his eyes, “Okay, whatever, as long as someone invites us.”

Cody stared at them for a few minutes, wondering what in seven hells the three of them were. But they all looked happy and no one in the family complained about whatever was going on. So Cody left them alone to be whatever they wanted to be.

Beside him, Obi-Wan stood and stretched, peeling off his shirt as he did so. “Would anyone care to join me in the pool?”

Cody groaned, content in the sun. “In a bit, babe.”

“Can’t.” Anakin held up his injured arm, then plopped it back in his lap. He was only able to sunbathe by the pool. 

“We’ll join you!” Padme grinned as she slid off of Rex’s lap, urging him awake and to follow her. She paused just long enough to kiss Anakin, while Obi-Wan dropped a kiss on Cody as well, before they were off to the pool.

Cody couldn’t help staring at Obi-Wan’s scars as he went by. They had spoken about a lot of topics both before and after moving in together. But the scars hadn’t been a conversation yet. Though Cody hadn’t tried exceedingly hard, since he didn’t want to make Obi-Wan uncomfortable by asking. Scars were hard to talk about sometimes. He would be the one to know.

“Has he told you about those yet?” Anakin asked bluntly, leaning way too close to Cody, who jumped at the sudden intrusion of space.

“Anakin, what the fuck! ” He growled, pushing the man back into his pool chair.

Anakin, to his credit, just laughed at Cody. “I wanted to see what you were staring at! And I got my answer. Obi-Wan’s scars.”

“Yeah? How do you know I wasn’t staring at his ass? ” Cody snipped back, trying to keep a flat face about it.

“Because I don’t think of my brother that way, perv.” Anakin teased in return before he shifted to get comfortable again. “Anyway, you want to know?”

“I am curious.” Cody barely admitted, feeling uncomfortable even saying it. This felt like something he should hear from Obi-Wan himself.

“It was because of someone he was in love with. I think she was uh… A princess, maybe? I know her name was Satine.” Anakin sat up just a bit, like he remembered this conversation was serious. “She was murdered in front of him.”

“ In front of him? ” Cody asked, because while he knew some of this story, it was obvious he didn’t know it all.

“Yeah. Oh man, it was bad. I guess Satine had some kind of shaky claim to power and they wanted it instead. They tried to get her to just sign it away, and they decided to tie up Obi-Wan and torture him to get her to sign it.” The man beside him frowned for a split second, “But Obi-Wan told her not to do it, and she listened. So they took it up to lashing him instead.”

The very thought made Cody cringe and want to vomit. They had done their fair share of torture, sure. But they normally didn’t have to go to extreme lengths. And never on a bystander. “They whipped him for her not signing over her title?”

“Something more like… Obi-Wan put up a fight that ended in him grabbing one of their guns and shooting one of them in the stomach, but they shot him in the leg in return. They would have tortured Satine, but Obi-Wan’s hero complex made him struggle and fight back, so they did everything to him.” Anakin paused for a second, then added, “They told him they would’ve shot him as a warning to her, but decided killing her was both more worth the intimidation and the punishment for Obi-Wan shooting one of them.”

“Bastards.” Cody growled.

“Yeah, when he was in the hospital, it was horrible. They couldn’t lay him on his back.” Anakin stared up at the sky, his voice getting uncharacteristically quiet, “I didn’t have contact with him while he was in recovery, though. They put him in WitSec.”

Cody blinked at that, a fuzzy memory in his mind regarding Satine’s case. His family hadn’t been directly involved, but they didn’t just stand by either. They had tried to figure out where the witness was to run their own investigation, but the state of the witness had put even their best informants on edge. No one wanted to draw more harm to the man, and no one wanted to be that snitch.

All they had managed to figure out was that the witness was named Ben.

No, they had found out more. They knew who did it, after the fact. After Maul and Savage Oppress had mysteriously disappeared. They had forgotten all about the witness at that point, and Cody would have never guessed he went back to his normal life.

He certainly would have never guessed he would end up in his arms.

“One day Obi-Wan called me and just said he was excused from the program. I can’t say for sure what happened to the people that did it, but…” The way Anakin trailed was even more bait, and Anakin made it so painfully obvious.

Cody shifted his attention completely over to Anakin, scrutinizing his body language more than anything. Anakin was remarkably easy to read for someone who was supposedly in security for a living. His face was conflicted, like he both wanted to stoke a fire and put it out. He didn’t want to rat out Obi-Wan, and he was baiting Cody to find out what he knew all at once. On one hand, Cody could give him an inch to gain a mile. On the other, he wasn’t sure how much Rex had told Anakin about their lifestyle. It hadn’t been very long since they met, about six months, but they all seemed inseparable in that time.

“Skywalker, have you ever killed someone?” Cody asked, to which he got a slightly shocked expression in return, “It’s a real question. You’re in security for a political figure, and your adoptive father was an envoy who died in that line of work. It stands to reason you’ve been in the firing line before.”

That made Anakin flinch a little and look away, guilt shadowing his face. “Yeah, I have.”

“Do you regret it?”

They were silent for a long minute before Anakin just shook his head.

“I don’t think Obi-Wan does either. Sometimes… People deserve to die.” Cody reached up and touched the scar on his temple, a movement that hopefully went unnoticed by Anakin.

Though Cody wasn’t sure who deserved to die that day. All he knew was he was the one who survived.

“So you know, then? That Obi-Wan…?” Anakin made a motion across his neck, which made Cody snort.

“Yeah. He mentioned that to me once.” Cody shrugged, then he moved to sit up and lean in closer to Anakin, dropping his voice, “Just know. Nothing like that will happen to Obi-Wan again. Ever.”

Anakin turned his head towards Cody, and chuckled, “You sound like Rex when he asked me about my scar.”

“We’re protective over our people.” That wasn’t a lie, though he knew he would have to have a conversation with Fox about Rex. He didn’t want his youngest brother jumping down that rabbit hole.

Revenge was certainly a dish best served as a cold corpse, but they weren’t entirely about that life anymore. They kept the peace where they could, especially since Jango died. Rex and Wolffe did do most of the dirty business, but Jango had been the one who was for hire. He’d been the one to run cold calls for revenge.

He’d been the one to leave his son to someone outside of the family because they had gone soft. Cody thought they didn’t go soft, they just went smart. The world was changing and they had to change with it, like Satine had been preaching to all Mandalorians.

“I’m going to join Obi-Wan in the pool. And you and I are going to pretend this conversation didn’t happen until Obi-Wan feels comfortable enough to tell me himself. Got it?” Cody stood and strode off back towards the pool, not waiting for a response from Anakin.

There was only one thought in his mind. That no one would get the chance to hurt Obi-Wan again.

*****

“Is it a ridiculous luxury to be laid out in bed in a silk robe while the dead walk the world outside?” Obi-Wan asked idly as he did just that: lounged on the bed in nothing but the silk robe Cody had brought back with all the clothes he had found.

In turn, Cody was dressed in only a soft pair of shorts, never having been a robe person to begin with. “I would say no, but only on the grounds that you were bit by one of them.”

The shower had been a nice escape for a while. An excuse to get clean, to get dirty, and to get clean again by each other's hands. But the hot water had started to dwindle, and Cody had insisted on getting out so he could shave for once. Which Obi-Wan would not argue with because Cody looked much, much better with a clean shave.

There was a stretch of long silence as Cody walked over to him and crawled across the bed into his lap. Obi-Wan made a noise that even he couldn’t place in the back of his throat and ran his fingers through Cody’s hair. It was soft and clean now, for the first time in months. For the last time in months to come.

“It’s been nine hours.” Cody mumbled into his leg.

“Eight hours and forty seven minutes, but yes.” Obi-Wan continued running his fingers through Cody’s hair, watching the curls bounce back after each movement.

He loved this man. With every beat of his heart, with every molecule in his body, with each breath that filled his chest. Obi-Wan loved Cody. He would walk through fire for him, he would go to war for him, he would die for him. There was very little that Obi-Wan wouldn’t do for Cody. As if their very souls had circled around one another for a long time through many lives. 

He felt loved by him in return. All encompassing, in a way that he would never tire of. In a way that made him know he was loved. A love that based his skin and muscle and tissue and bone, to the very core of himself. Right down to the synapses in his mind. Obi-Wan would die for Cody, but Cody would kill for him.

Cody had killed for him.

“How do you think Luke and Leia are holding up?” Cody asked suddenly as he tilted his head to the side in Obi-Wan’s lap.

In the low light, light given only from the full moon outside the open windows and the candles on the side table, Cody’s face was half illuminated but full of worry. That thought put a whole new blossom of warmth in Obi-Wan’s heart. Cody was genuinely worried about his family.

“Luke was with his Aunt Beru and Uncle Lars for the fair season, he wanted to show that little calf he raised all summer… Leia was with Padme and Anakin in the - the capital.” Obi-Wan felt his voice break at the mere thought. Luke likely had a far better chance at survival. There was no doubt the capital was destroyed.

“They would go towards the ranch, then.” Cody shifted his arms up, flexing his shoulders in a way he couldn’t with that vest on. There was some part of Obi-Wan that assumed it had to feel good to stretch, but another part of him that idly wondered if the position Cody was laying in was even comfortable.

He certainly did not try to think about the hope Cody gave him that they would still be alive.

“Yes. Will you be able to get there?” Obi-Wan asked, trying to keep his own hope neutral.

“ We will be able to get there.” Cody corrected, though there wasn’t any bite in his voice. “We’ll get to a safehouse, get in contact with anyone left, and then we’ll have the supplies and routes to get there.”

“ Cody… ” Obi-Wan muttered.

“Nine hours, Obi-Wan.” Cody whispered in return. Then, without giving Obi-Wan the slightest chance to respond, “What would we have named them?”

Obi-Wan’s hand stilled for a second before he found it in him to ask, “Named who?”

There was less light now, as clouds passed the moon outside. They didn’t get forecasts anymore - each day was simply a different one than the last.

“Kids. If we had been able to adopt.” That was the answer Obi-Wan expected, but it still wrapped around his heart.

“Do you name adopted children?” Obi-Wan snorted, “I don’t think you do, my dear.”

“It’s a hypothetical!” Cody protested, though not hard enough to sit up.

“Okay, okay… Maybe - Christian? Or… Robin. I quite like that name.” Obi-Wan played along, stopping only to yawn. It was late. But neither of them seemed to want to sleep currently. Which was rational, they could fall asleep and Obi-Wan could turn and attack Cody before Cody had his eyes properly open.

Cody grunted, taking a moment for himself to think before he added, “I would go with Ben… Or Hope.”

“Hope.” Obi-Wan repeated, sighing softly before he tugged at Cody’s curls. “Come here and kiss me, my love.”

Outside, raindrops fell on the window.

Chapter Text

It was only their second date, but a bystander would have never guessed that by how long they had sat and talked during dinner or how easy their conversation had melted from one topic to the next. Cody found himself hanging onto Obi-Wan’s every word, absolutely mystified by him. He had never felt this way about someone before.

After the restaurant closed down, they found themselves walking down the streets aimlessly, just reveling in the time they got to spend together. Winter was just getting into swing now, and the weather was trying to squirm its way there, making them bundle up close to one another while they walked. At some point, Obi-Wan had stolen Cody’s hand to shove into his big pocket, entwined with his own.

They probably would have kept on forever if the cold hadn’t gotten to them. Though Obi-Wan did not seem to get cold very easily, he was still shivering and his voice was stuttering in time with his teeth clacking. At some point, their feet had redirected towards Obi-Wan’s apartment building, where Cody had also left his truck so they could walk to the restaurant earlier. There they stood in the alleyway that went to the main entrance, continuing their conversation about the scientific impossibility of intergalactic space travel and how the movies have it wrong. Not like they were particularly experts, but the topic had been landed on and Cody had a passion for the cosmos. 

The whole conversation died to a short silence when they both noticed snowflakes falling between them.

Cody held his hand up, watching a few flakes land on his sleeve, melting moments later. He loved the first snow of the year. It was beautiful, no matter how many times he saw the snowfall in his lifetime. There was nothing like waiting over half a year just to see the snow once again.

“Cody,” Obi-Wan practically breathed in his ear.

It was then that Cody realized he was leaning forward into Obi-Wan’s personal space, and at some point Obi-Wan must have put his hand on Cody’s hip. He looked up and they made eye contact in a way that answered any question Obi-Wan could have asked. Cody rocked forward slightly to his toes, meeting Obi-Wan halfway.

First kisses were not normally good. They were awkward and a dance of getting to know one another. A first kiss with Obi-Wan wasn’t good either - it was stupendous. They slot together perfectly, both of Obi-Wan’s hands on his hips to steady himself and keep Cody close. It wasn’t a long kiss by any means, made short partially due to the cold making their lips numb. But the kiss told Cody everything he needed to know about his future, if he got that say in it. He would also say it was the most perfect first kiss he would ever have with someone.

They pressed closer together for a second kiss. Around them, the snow continued to fall.

*****

The sunlight coming in through the windows made Cody groan and shift, burying his face in Obi-Wan’s chest. He vaguely thought it might be Saturday, which meant he could sleep in. But something about that didn’t feel right anyway. Maybe it was Sunday, which meant he should have been up already for their yoga class. One week off wouldn’t kill them though, he was sure Obi-Wan wanted to sleep with all the work he’d been doing lately. Cody certainly wanted to sleep, his whole body felt heavy and bone deep tired. He needed to pull back on the gym days. Maybe he was getting too old for kickboxing.

As he half cracked open his eyes, an unfamiliar feeling passed through him. This wasn’t their apartment. He was sleeping on Obi-Wan’s chest, but he didn’t recall them -

Underneath him, Obi-Wan made a sound like a growl low in his throat.

Less than a heartbeat passed before Cody was jumping backwards, scrambling off the bed as fast as he could possibly move. He awkwardly scrambled for his gun as he did, trying not to lose the sleep shorts he had been wearing too. He remembered very quickly that he was not back home dodging his classes, he was here in a random hotel they didn’t book a room at, waiting for his boyfriend to turn into a monster. He was here, dodging monsters in the halls and starving for days at a time. He was here, his ass on the floor and a gun in his trembling fingers that he didn’t have the heart to aim at Obi-Wan.

The noise Cody thought was a growl turned into Obi-Wan stretching himself out and yawning before blinking himself awake. He tilted his head towards Cody, sitting up on one elbow while rubbing the sleep from his eyes. “Cody?”

That made Cody pause, staring at Obi-Wan for a moment. He could still talk , he wasn’t jumping at Cody and trying to rip him to shreds. There were no signs of being infected, except the bite mark on his arm that Cody knew was there despite the robe covering it. They must have fallen asleep as they talked last night, something Cody didn’t think could happen with all his life training screaming at him to be awake and alert.

But Obi-Wan had always made Cody feel safe, even now. With a gun in Cody’s hand and a bullet intended to kill him, Obi-Wan still managed to smile like the world wasn’t ending and tilt his head like a puppy would.

Cody swallowed the anxiety in his throat, feeling his jaw tremble as he did, “What were we doing when all hell broke loose?”

“September 26th, last year…” Obi-Wan looked down, frowning, “We were fighting.”

*****

“All I’m saying is that if you would slow down while we’re out sometimes then maybe issues like this would not occur!” Obi-Wan barked at Cody, even as he wrapped ice in a towel.

“And all I’m saying is if someone doesn’t want their jaw broken then maybe they shouldn’t throw punches in a pub!” Cody sneered back, glaring across the room at the problem they were dealing with.

Obi-Wan huffed and lifted Cody’s chin, pressing the ice to the forming bruise on his eye socket. While he thought Cody could be a brutish idiot at times, he did love him, and would therefore always care for him. Even if he did so with grit teeth and some extra sass.

“You know flashing your tattoo at the cops won’t work forever. One day they’re going to haul you off and I’m going to have to call your brothers.” Obi-Wan warned, knowing that was far more of a threat than he could otherwise give him.

“Then call them! Don’t treat me like I should be afraid of my brothers just because you joined the clan now, Obi-Wan.” Cody snapped.

That made Obi-Wan blink a bit, then he pressed the ice harder to Cody’s face, “Don’t be a glaikit, Cody. I’ll lock you out the house faster than you can pull your head out your arse.”

He let his old accent lay on thick in the threat, voice rolling deep. That seemed to make Cody straighten up, and they locked eyes for just a moment. Something softened in Cody, or maybe he sobered up just a bit as he realized exactly what he had said.

“‘M sorry.” Cody muttered, deflating along with his ego.

“Mina, grab that order for table 66 in the window! Aye, you two loverboys,” The bartender hollered, getting Cody and Obi-Wan’s attention, “Cops ain’t comin, said they got too much goin’ on to deal with a bar fight.”

Obi-Wan furrowed his brow, “What?”

“Yeah, dunno. But you’re off the hook. An keep the towel, don’t want no blood on my bar rags.” He waved towards the other guy, “An’ you, go get yourself to the hospital and outta my bar, jackass.”

“You’re lucky this time.” Obi-Wan lifted Cody’s hand to the makeshift ice pack, making him hold it.

“Mina!” The bartender yelled again, looking around everywhere.

“And your apology will be accepted once-”

“Where is that girl?” The bartender went around the edge of the bar, towards the restrooms.

“-you clean the kitchen and make dinner tomor-”

Obi-Wan was cut off by a sudden screaming of the bartender from the restroom. They both jumped to their foot, but before they could take another step, the waitress they had seen earlier came stumbling out of the restrooms, her entire body moving wrong , as if she weren’t entirely in control. Cody stood protectively in front of Obi-Wan, both of them knowing something wasn’t right. The rest of the pub had come to a sudden silence, all eyes on Mina.

Then she moved, fast, lurching towards the nearest patron, who was unable to fight her off before she ripped into the person’s flesh.

“What the hell-” Cody said aloud before he turned to Obi-Wan and shoved him, “Get to the truck, my gear is in there. Go!”

Obi-Wan turned, grabbing Cody’s hand in the same movement to keep them together as they rushed towards the door before other patrons were even out of the shock enough to move.

Outside was no better.

*****

“That was the bar we had met in.” Obi-Wan finished recounting, a sad yet fond smile on his face. “And I couldn’t even tell you the bartender’s name.”

“I don’t remember. We usually dealt with Mina.” Cody lowered the gun, grunting as he got himself up off the floor and disentangled from the blankets. As he did, he looked out the windows at the sun high in the sky before he got his watch off the table. “We must have fallen asleep, and really needed the sleep… It’s been 19 hours, Obi-Wan.”

That seemed to wipe Obi-Wan’s mind blank for just a second. He examined his own arm before Cody walked over to inspect it as well, being gentle as he twisted his arm to make sure there was no growth or spread. Nothing but a scab, a bruise and the raised edges of the bite mark. 

Obi-Wan managed to speak after a stunned silence, “What do we do?”

“We keep moving.” Cody responded, then hesitated, glancing outside again. This was a safe place. They had found a lot of supplies and working water. They could take another shower, fill as many containers as they could find, and get another night’s rest before getting back to the road. “Or… We could take a night off. Recharge.”

“A night off.” Obi-Wan half scoffed and half laughed at his wording, though he smiled either way, “Recharging sounds excellent. But should we… Should we talk about this, Cody?”

That made Cody look towards his watch again, “Let’s get to 24 hours then we can - discuss what it could mean.”

“That’s fine, my love.” Obi-Wan stood from the bed and kissed Cody’s cheek, pulling him in close.

Cody sighed and melted into the hug, snaking his arms around Obi-Wan, gripping the loose robe as hard as he could without squeezing him too much. The seeds of hope were there, in his chest, sprouting. But he didn’t want to give them room to bloom until they were past the full 24 hour period. They only had five hours to go. Five more hours of waiting with trembling fingers and bated breath.

In return, Obi-Wan was cradling him like he was precious and kissing the top of his head, running a hand up and down his back in a gentle caress. The whole moment was tender, a much needed break from the stress and fear they had been living in not just for the past day but for the last few months. They could forget, if only for a night, a few hours, a moment that they were constantly on the run from the world around them.

“Do you know what I miss?” Obi-Wan asked as he turned his head sideways on Cody’s head.

“Hm?”

“Deodorant. We smell so good and clean and in three days time we’ll be unbearable.”

Cody blinked, thinking for just a second that he heard Obi-Wan wrong. Then he felt the laugh rise up in the depths of his chest, unable to stop it before he started fully laughing from his core. It was truly ridiculous that Obi-Wan missed deodorant of all things, when they could miss food or safety or even convenience stores. Deodorant. Which Obi-Wan must have realized was equally funny because he laughed as well, not letting go of Cody for even a moment.

Their breakfast consisted of chocolate bars and very stale chips, a breakfast only for a silent celebration of life. Plus, Cody could never deny Obi-Wan chocolate when he gave him big, sad eyes. Afterwards, they lounged and read through some old magazine articles, talking about the stupid things everyone used to be interested in. Who cared what celebrities dated who? They were probably mostly dead now anyway.

That passed only a couple hours before Cody found himself restless. Usually they checked their surroundings every morning. But usually they were not multiple stories up in a hotel, either. Still, he found himself retrieving his, now dry, vest from the shower to get dressed for going out.

“What do we need?” He asked when he noticed Obi-Wan in the edge of his vision, leaning on the doorframe to the dimly lit bathroom.

“Reusable bottles. We can fill as many as possible with the running water. should fill as many as possible with the running water. You found a lot of food, and I doubt you will find too much ammo.” Obi-Wan hesitated, then added, “And we’re still on the lookout for a road atlas, or a large map. The local is helpful, but we need more.”

“I’ll be on the lookout for weapons, like always.” Cody pulled on the new flannel he had found the day before, then made a sound in the back of his throat when Obi-Wan was suddenly in front of him.

“Are you sure you want to go alone?” Obi-Wan asked as his deft fingers worked on the buttons, bringing the shirt together over the Mandalorian vest.

“I’m going to stay in the hotel, Obi-Wan. I only explored a few floors yesterday.” Cody placed his hands over his partner’s, stilling them on the last button, “I love you. I want to protect you. So let me go find some supplies and come back to you.”

“I love you too.” Obi-Wan kissed his cheek, then his jawline before nosing his neck and tickling his now bare face with his beard.

“Hey!” Cody laughed, batting Obi-Wan away with the laugh still on his lips, “Stop that, you goof.”

They turned to step into the main room together, where Obi-Wan went to his book bag that was getting pretty destroyed at this point. Cody took a mental note to try to find another nice duffel like he had the day before. Then he watched as Obi-Wan started pulling out all of the contents of his bag, adding them to their collection on the table. He was cataloging their possessions again, something Cody found endearing as well as extremely helpful.

Before he got caught up in just watching Obi-Wan do normal tasks, he trudged himself over to the bed so he could sit and get his boots on and laced up. They were still in decent condition, which they should be for the price they had originally been. Not that money seemed to matter anymore except to the oddball traveler who thought the end of the world was a government ploy to take all the money back. His vest was also holding up just fine despite the few spots of rust on the clasps. He hoped to get Obi-Wan one that would fit if they found a safehouse. When they found a safehouse, he corrected himself quickly.

As soon as he stood up, Obi-Wan pointed at the now empty duffel bag, “Take that with you, you’ll want to carry as much as possible. We can consolidate later.”

Dutifully, Cody picked up the bag and slung it over his shoulders. “Will you be okay here?”

“We haven’t been the slightest bit disturbed yet, and I still have a knife on me. I was fine yesterday, too.” Obi-Wan reminded him before he took the few steps to close the gap and pull Cody into a quick but deep kiss. When they parted he smiled and touched Cody’s cheek with one hand, “Be careful. You better make it back to me soon.”

“When have I ever let you down?” Cody hummed, then glanced down at the map Obi-Wan had fished out and sprawled on the table. The second side had a decent map of Kentucky, labeled ‘ See the Scenic Route! ’ in the cheesiest possible font.

He broke out of their embrace, though he didn’t get far before Obi-Wan had his arms wrapped around Cody’s torso, his chin on Cody’s shoulder. “See something?”

“Do you remember that place Rex piled us all in his truck for, where we went trail riding?” Cody asked, rummaging through the bottom of the duffle bag for a pen. He leaned slightly down and circled a city on the map. Harlan.

“Where you practically proposed to me?” Obi-Wan chuckled, then settled his chin back once Cody straightened up. “That town was so small it didn’t even have a sign.”

“It was Harlan. A tiny holler, but we went there to check in on a safehouse and clean up some problems. The Hutts were drug running through our safehouse network.” Cody shrugged lightly, far less bothered by what his past had entailed now that the whole world had some form of questionably moral killing on their hands.

“You - that was Mandalorian business? Cody! We almost took two babies with us!” Obi-Wan sounded equally impressed and shocked, “Though I didn’t even know that’s why we were there.”

“That’s usually the idea. We don’t like drawing attention. And hey, Rex made sure Padme took the twins to her parents’ home for that week, Anakin insisted on coming with us.” Cody pointed at the map again, “We shut down the Harlan safehouse that week, but it’s still technically part of the network. And there’s always either others or someone capable that’s been let in to some of this. We can see what we can find there.”

“Where’s the safehouse there, exactly?” Obi-Wan asked as he watched Cody map out the distance.

“Well… It may have been the ranch we stayed on.”

*****

The sun was still just rising in the sky when they got to the first ride of the day. Though Obi-Wan felt more steady in the saddle, he was sore beyond belief. The sad part was the only thing he had ridden thus far this week had been the horse, but it had taken a lot out of him. He wished he had Cody’s unending stamina some days. Others, he was content to just get to enjoy each day as they came, such as now.

“So they let you take the horses out on your own?” Obi-Wan asked, realizing he hadn’t questioned that earlier. “Usually dude ranches like this frown on that, don’t they?”

“Well,” Cody hesitated, “We’ve come here before. A few times, actually. It’s been a while, but I know Bly has brought Aayla here before, a few times. I think Fox has brought Quinlan, recently.”

“So now you brought me and Rex brought Anakin? Is this a rite of passage?” Obi-Wan teased, grinning at Cody as they continued down the trail, towards a creek they hadn’t crossed in their groups yet.

“Well, not really, but we could pretend it is? It’s just quiet here. A nice escape from - well, from what our family normally deals with, you know.” Cody relaxed, dropping the reins down onto his horse’s neck and stretching out his arms and back. “We all were taught how to ride here. It’s one of our basic lessons in the clan. Even Boba’s been here a few times.”

“How is he doing?” Obi-Wan wondered, since it had been some time since he had seen Boba.

“Eh, how well do sort-of teenagers ever really do?” Cody responded, though he seemed like something more was on his mind.

“Talk about it, or be distracted by it?” They always had their own choice, which helped them both depending on what was bothering them.

“Distracted.” Cody answered as their horses trudged through the water.

As they crossed the creek, Obi-Wan looked around and thought of what to say. They talked about many things all the time, but he really needed to distract Cody this time.

“I think that ranch hand was flirting with you.” Obi-Wan settled on, and grinned afterwards at the face that Cody made.

“Vanth? He’s a kid , there’s no way he’s older than Boba!” Cody laughed, shaking his head.

“Boba is legally an adult now, my dear.” That felt like a very strange thing to say after watching the teen grow up for the last few years.

Cody grumbled for a second, “That’s a loose way of putting it, yeah. But age doesn’t always make an adult, and he just graduated.”

This wasn’t helping Cody be distracted from the problem at hand, Obi-Wan knew, so he backtracked. “Well, the ranch hand may legally be an adult too. And he was flirting so hard I thought his hat would fall off.”

Cody snorted at Obi-Wan’s attempt at a joke, “Maybe he just has that southern hospitality. ”

“Southern? Sunshine, we’re in Kentucky, not Texas.” Obi-Wan snorted, getting a good look at the field they had crossed over to, where they were heading towards some tall hills in the near distance.

“We’re south of where we live, it counts.” Cody responded with a huff.

“Either way. Perhaps you could introduce him to Boba. A little time on a ranch in the ‘ south ’ could do him some good.” Obi-Wan said with a smile as they started up the ridge of the hill.

“I’d rather not.” Cody’s voice was suddenly cold, a weight to it that Obi-Wan couldn’t, and wouldn’t, describe.

He could tell that something was eating at Cody, but he wasn’t sure what. He also knew Cody was particular about talking about his feelings. He had been getting better in the years they had been together, but still often kept to himself. Obi-Wan was the opposite and would go on for hours about the simplest feelings. They went well together that way. Cody never told Obi-Wan he was too much and Obi-Wan never told Cody he was too little. Because they weren’t. Both of them were perfectly themselves. As imperfect as they were at times.

“Cody?” Obi-Wan prompted. He wasn’t nitpicking, but leaving a space open for Cody to talk.

They rode on for a few hundred more feet in silence, the only sound coming from the horses and nature around them. Obi-Wan just watched the scenery, silent, waiting for Cody to decide if he wanted to talk or wanted to change the subject.

Much to his relief, Cody decided to talk about it. “It’s just not fair, you know. I know all of us have always been raised to be accepting, to love who we want and that our clan will stand behind us. But that’s not how the world sees it, still. It doesn’t matter how many rallies and protests and parades we have, we’re not allowed to stand in front of a judge and swear ourselves to each other. When Boba came out a few months ago I just…”

“I would guess you were a bit heart broken, correct?” Obi-Wan supplied in the silence that followed.

“Boba has talked about having children of his own since he came up to my knee.” Cody admitted, and his voice cracked with emotion. “And I… And we know he won’t be allowed to have them.”

Their own applications to be adoptive parents had been repeatedly denied. Even after both of them pulled all the strings they could. It didn’t matter that they were both college graduates with stable jobs and good housing. Their income was marvelous, their records were spotless (even if both of those records had been tampered with), and still they got denied.

The reasons for denial had been all over the place. Single parent income is too low. Roommates are not permitted to live with adoptive parents. Perverted lifestyle. Unstable home condition. The list went on and on but they all came down to: how dare the unmarried queers try to adopt.

“I’m happy for him, I’m happy for all of us. I’m happy I met you and I love you but god fucking damn is it hard to be denied basic aspects of life.” Cody shook his head, obviously forcing himself not to tear up in frustration. Then he added, quieter, “I would, you know. If we could.” 

“You would…?” Obi-Wan tilted his head, trying to grasp what Cody was referring to. He knew he would adopt a child together, they had already been trying to do that.

They created the top of the hill, their horses automatically coming to a stop there, as if they had been trained to let their riders enjoy the view that went on for miles and miles in every direction of rolling greens and forests stretched out below. Obi-Wan was so mystified by the beauty he nearly missed what Cody said next.

“I would marry you.”

The world slowed so suddenly around Obi-Wan that for a moment he got dizzy. It seemed ridiculous, really. They lived together, they loved one another, they wanted to raise children together - but the prospect of Cody actually, really, truly proposing to Obi-Wan still made his heart flutter and his brain go to mush.

His silence made Cody backtrack on the thought, “I mean - well, I would ask you to marry me. Not just… Tell you.”

Obi-Wan managed to clear his throat, taking the opportunity to look over at Cody, his gaze glued to his face despite Cody looking out at the horizon. “How would you ask?”

Cody reached out and picked up the reins now, just to give his hands something to do. As he watched Cody fidget, Obi-Wan could feel the blush rise on his cheeks. Cody was nervous, it was both a shock and exceedingly sweet.

“I… Would do something cheesy, I think, to start. Take you somewhere that I know you would like.” Cody fidgeted more, and the pieces started falling into place.

“You mean… Like a vacation in the country, with views for miles?” Obi-Wan asked, his heart in his throat.

“Something like that.” Cody’s face cracked a little, his smirk a bit of a giveaway, “Then I would tell you how much I love you. Like telling you that I can’t stand not being around you and I’m starting to despise family business that takes me away from you. There are some days I want to be so close to you I feel like I could crawl inside of your ribs and make a home beside your heart. Moments where I look at you, since the day we met, and I feel like I’ve known you in other lifetimes. I used to think there was no sight more breathtaking than the sun rising or no feeling better than pure freedom but the moment I met you, Obi-Wan Kenobi, I knew all of that was going right out the window.”

Obi-Wan felt his mouth fall open and his heart in his throat. Listening to Cody spill his heart from his mouth wasn’t something he generally anticipated. They had their moments, they had their conversations but nothing ever so raw. He completely missed Cody making his horse side step until they were right up next to each other, their knees brushing as Cody reached out to touch Obi-Wan’s arm.

“I love you, and if I could, I would marry you. Would you do me that honor, Obi-Wan?”

The words felt so far away, the meaning even further. They would still be denied adopting a child, they would be denied declaring their love in court, they would be denied the basic tenets of equal rights but Obi-Wan didn’t care anymore.

“Yes.” He responded instantly, reaching out to Cody in an attempt to take his hand while also attempting not to move his horse. Thankfully, the horse was better trained than to react to his jostling or the closeness of the other. “Yes, yes, a hundred times over yes I would in an instant.”

“I’ll keep that in mind.” Cody teased, squeezing Obi-Wan’s hand and grinning so wide it looked like it hurt.

That was the moment Obi-Wan knew he needed to push Cody’s brothers to allow him to join the family officially. Marriage or not. They should be joined at least by the Mandalorian way.

*****

Sentiment will always get you killed.

At least, that’s what Jango had always warned them. What Jaster and Kal had always warned him. What their fathers had warned them and so on and so forth. That when they were faced with a dangerous situation, they needed to act accordingly . To put their feelings aside and focus on survival, not emotions. Not sentiment.

But when Cody had spotted the jewelry store, seemingly untouched, from the hotel window after he and Obi-Wan had talked about their trip to the ranch, he couldn’t help himself. He had sworn to not go outside of the hotel. But this felt important. Like a call from fate.

It had been 21 hours since Obi-Wan had been bit when he left to go explore the hotel and gather supplies. His ammo was limited, but he had otherwise found quite a bit more in the hour he had been exploring the more dangerous floors - the bottom few floors. Where most people would have hidden when the world went to hell, too scared of being trapped in the higher levels. Which meant he ran into the occasional infected, but most he could avoid and move on. So far, so good.

Until he decided to go outside. 

Well, going outside wasn’t the problem. The horde had moved on already. The problem came when he knocked the handle off the backdoor of the store and promptly set off an alarm system that he assumed wouldn’t have had power to begin with. But he found out very quickly that the store did have power, probably from solar panels on the roof in a place like this. That was one way to keep a store safe in a power outage.

Within an instant he located the alarm system on the wall and ripped it down, cutting down the shrill noise as the wires were shredded. It was still going off, probably from another unit, though much quieter now. But he turned and listened, immediately hearing the rasping growl of an infected nearby, but unable to locate it. The gun in his fingers didn’t shake, as steady as ever as he rounded the corner from the backroom to the main room.

The air was filled with spores, which made Cody even more thankful he had decided to wear his mask. Other than the fact that someone couldn’t shoot him in the face unless they had spectacular aim, it also had a filter around the nose and mouth. Though the filter didn’t stop the smell of rot from permeating the air. There were several bodies on the floor, laying in sleeping bags. It was possible the shop owner had brought his family here because of the power. Or that they were once survivors who had put up the fight for as long as they could.

What actually happened didn’t matter, not anymore. Cody took a deep breath to center himself, focus bearing down on the other end of the room, where an office door shook as something on the other side threw itself at it. Cody could see from here that the door opened outside, so it was only a matter of time before the wood or hinges gave way. As he got closer, the sound of an infected went wild with blood lust. Not wanting to open the door, he raised his gun and -

Something grabbed his boot -

Sent off a shot in wild surprise -

The glass half of the door shattered between the bullet hole and the pounding as Cody struggled to get his boot dislodged from the grasp of another infected. He tried to take a shot at the one coming through the door’s window but his gun decided this was the best time to jam.

He really, really hated handguns.

Five minutes ago he had one goal in mind. To grab a set of rings and offer one to Obi-Wan. Some kind of post-apocolyptic fuck you to the government that refused to let them get married to begin with. Now, he mind shifted to just getting back to Obi-Wan, because this whole trip was stupid and sentimental and not a priority.

Practically growling, Cody set the gun aside and grabbed for the knife on his hip. The infected holding his foot was stuck on something and unable to get up, making sinking his knife into the man’s skull up to the hilt as easy as stabbing someone through bone could be. Though as he was bent over, the woman in the door finally barreled out of it, jumping at Cody fast enough for him to be pinned to the floor while still scrambling for his knife with one hand, using the other as leverage to keep the infected’s mouth away from him around her throat.

The angle he was at didn’t let him get a good grip on the knife -

His hand slid against the rot and fungus on the woman -

He cursed every god that ever did, would or could exist -

Then a gunshot rang through the room before the infected dropped over him.

Cody froze, both feeling his adrenaline die and spike at the same time. The immediate threat was over - but a gunshot meant a whole new threat had just entered.

“Get to your feet, survivor.” A man’s voice called, an achingly familiar voice.

Cody paused in his attempt to move the body off of him, blinking, “R… Rex?”

“Cody?” A voice he hadn’t heard in months echoed through the room.

Blinking back the tears that suddenly sprang to his face, Cody shoved the body all the way off of him and got to his feet as fast as he could possibly manage. “Rex! What are - how in the hell?”

Rex could have looked worse, but he also could have looked a whole lot better. He had lost some weight, made evident by the very fresh shave on his face. He had new scars on his arms, and his hair had grown out. If anyone didn’t believe his little brother was a natural blonde they would now. Though the blonde tight curls framing his face looked absolutely awful on him, even with the mask on.

Though Cody didn’t have a moment to think about that before Rex was grabbing at him and pulling him into as tight of a hug as their vests allowed. They hugged for far too long, but Cody didn’t care. He didn’t want to let go of his brother. He didn’t want to let go of the hope that this was real and not all some delusion he had moments before dying.

“You saved my life! Are you alone?” Cody finally asked as they parted, “What are you doing here? Are you hurt? Where’s everyone else?”

Rex snorted and held his hand up, “Woah, woah, slow down. I should be asking you all of this too. And what’re you doing breaking into a jewelry store?”

“Ah… Long story. We were hiding out in the hotel across the street but I saw this store and…” Cody glanced down, happy that his mask covered his blush.

“Ooh, I’m guessing you still have Obi-Wan, huh?” Rex asked before he turned to one of the glass cases, taking a peak before he raised his rifle and shattered the glass with the butt of it. “I don’t think anyone’s going to miss a couple of these.”

You still have Obi-Wan, the wording echoed in Cody’s head as he knelt to retrieve his knife first, then grabbed his gun to clear the jam. He would always make sure he was armed before indulging in simple wants.

“‘Still have’? Rex… Are you alone?” Cody asked again, though he felt his voice drop to a softer tone.

He wished they weren’t wearing their masks at the moment.

“No. Not… Not entirely.” Rex focused himself on making sure his rifle was fully loaded, his voice flat. Cody knew his voice being flat meant he was heartbroken. “Padme was lost on outbreak day. I was at the Shenandoah safehouse with Wolffe when it all went to shit. When the phones still worked those first few days I kept calling Anakin. Wolffe told me to go find him, he would wait for us. I… Haven’t seen Wolffe since.”

“Fuck.” Cody muttered, “I’m sorry about Padme. Wolffe - we can’t give up hope. So is it you and Anakin? Obi-Wan will-”

“No.” Rex cut him off, “It’s Leia and I. Listen, Cody, before you see Leia - you have to know. Anakin and Leia got bit. And they - they didn’t turn, Codes. Leia has a scar but I swear she’s not going to rip your face off.”

Cody felt his heart soften, some relief mixing with the anxiety of his next question, “If they didn’t turn… What happened to Anakin?”

Rex’s fingers faltered where he was fiddling with his rifle, his voice barely audible, but still level, “Being immune doesn’t make you impossible to tear to shreds. I - we lost him to a horde. Sacrificed himself.”

Cody reached out and placed a hand on Rex’s shoulder. “I’m sorry, little brother.”

Rex just shook his head, “I saved Leia. I was on my way towards Chicago, hoping that maybe you had stayed or got pulled into one of those government safezones they’re setting up. Then I thought we’d go south to find Owen and Beru. Leave Leia with them if they’re safe before trying to find our brothers and Boba.”

“We left Chicago as soon as the bombs started falling. Started making our way this way, it was slow going. No maps that were helpful. We just realized today we’re close to that old safehouse, the one in Harlan. We were… We’ve spent the last 22 and a half hours here… Obi-Wan was bit.” Cody reached down into the case, taking a look at various rings.

Maybe he should be sad, maybe he should mourn the losses. But right now didn’t seem like a good place or time. He was covered in spores and fresh rot, and would need another shower before they went to bed. Right now seemed like the time to enjoy what they had together. To praise the little things. To be happy that four of them were still alive.

Obi-Wan would be over the moon to see his niece.

“Almost 24 hours ago?” Rex asked before Cody saw him kneeling down and checking around the belongings of the corpses. “Has it spread?”

“No.” Cody fished out a ring he liked, and knew was in Obi-Wan’s size. Something he was a little shocked he remembered from sizing him secretly over a year prior. “It hasn’t spread, he hasn’t gone catatonic, he’s just - his normal self, really.”

“Immune.” Rex confirmed, “Well, we’ve been calling it after 24 hours at least. Haven’t seen anyone make it past then.”

“Us either. At first it was - I was scared, Rex. Terrified. But Obi-Wan is so damn optimistic about it all. So we held on.” Cody plucked a second ring out and took the opportunity to open his shirt enough to slide them into a pocket on his vest, hidden and secure.

“Yeah. Anakin did too.” Rex muttered, and Cody swore he could hear his brother’s heart breaking. “Let’s go back together.”

“I’m not letting you out of my sight again, baby brother.”

*****

Cody tilted towards Rex, eyeing the cup in his hand with increased suspicion.

So far this trip into Canada had been nothing but odd. Border patrol had been hesitant to let them in, even with Cody, Rex and Obi-Wan having special papers, Padme’s A-visa, and Anakin’s - well, Cody didn’t actually know what Anakin had. But they were here, in the eyes of the government, on nothing more than a road trip. Since crossing over, things had only gone weird. Like some impending sense of doom was settling in the air.

“Rex, what’re you drinking? And why is it an ungodly orange ?” Truly, it looked like a traffic cone.

Rex just snorted, “It’s an iced pumpkin spice latte. It’s all the rage in DC, wicked good. Can’t believe they have it in Vancouver.”

“That sounds disgusting.” Cody leaned forward, snagging it from his brother to taste it before handing it back in absolute disgust, “That is disgusting. How can you drink that?”

“Not all of us are black coffee people, pal.” Rex stuck his tongue, his orange stained tongue, out at Cody.

That made Cody recoil more and pick up his own, admittedly hot and black, coffee. The burn helped get rid of the taste of the pumpkin. He opened his mouth to say something before his mind wrapped around what Rex had just said, and instead blurted out, “Did you just ‘ pal ’ me?”

“What else am I supposed to say? Dude? Man? Brother, dear brother. Oh captain, my captain!” Rex got progressively more flourishing with his hands as he spoke.

In return, Cody just pinched the bridge of his nose. “First of all, you’re a captain, I’m a commander. Second of all, have you learned the ability to just keep talking from Skywalker?”

“Anakin is - such a bad influence. ” Rex practically sighed out, and Cody knew his brother was done for.

“Has it taken you like, what, six years? To realize you’re smitten with them?” Cody asked, then added, “Are you going to upgrade from whatever this weird situation is to something presentable to the clan?”

“Absolutely not, our brothers do not need to know that I am-”

“A whore? They already know. Hell, they already approve. Be a whore. But do it by Mandalorian standards, maybe?” Cody looked at Rex, who looked greatly offended.

“Cody, how dare you suggest that I don’t do anything by clan standards. You’re the one living a cushy life in a high rise with your college professor partner. Some of us are out here doing dirty work.” Rex grinned a bit, the face he made whenever he knew he was about to be torn apart with logic but still spewed his salt anyway.

“Rex, I’m quite literally on a business trip with you and, and , a higher rank on this trip.” Cody took another sip of his coffee, because that was all he could do at the moment to keep himself from going on a rant.

In return, Rex pouted for a moment before he spoke again, “I’m going to outrank you before you know it.”

“I put just about as much money on that as I put on Boba getting out from under the Hutt’s clutches.” Cody sneered the last part out.

Mostly because that's why they were in Canada to begin with. And why they had been in Kentucky a year prior. The Hutts were using Boba’s knowledge to their advantage and the kid didn’t see it. He wouldn’t see it until someone got hurt. Cody just hoped it wouldn’t be any of them.

“I’m going to see him in October, after I get back from Shenandoah with Wolffe.” Rex announced, making Cody look his way again.

“When do you leave for Shenandoah? As soon as we get back?”

“We’ll be getting home on the 15th, I leave on the 20th. Though I’m making a big arc, taking Luke to the Lars ranch before flying back up here. Anakin and Padme are going to DC that week with Leia, too. You could come, if you want. To Shenandoah, or go to DC with them.” Rex offered, though he didn’t sound confident Cody would say yes even before he rejected.

Cody sighed, glancing around the park they were sitting at. Obi-Wan, Anakin and Padme were playing with the twins on the playground while Rex and Cody got a chance to scope out the area and talk. They would be busy that night, their vests already on under their clothes. For now, they were just the boring uncles that would rather drink coffee than try to fit their rears in swings.

Cody disliked the family business, but it was his duty to do it when he was asked to. Or rather, his duty to keep an eye on Rex when sensitive jobs came up. He had a life and a job outside of this. Rex had a life, sure, but this was his job. He was paid far more than enough to live from this alone, and he traveled more than settling down was worth. In turn, Leia and Luke got spoiled. Before Cody had met Obi-Wan, Rex had crashed at his place more often than not. He hated hotels, which Cody wasn’t surprised about. After Rex met Anakin and Padme though, he would always stay with them in his off time. Especially after the twins were born.

He just wished they would all admit to whatever the hell they had going on.

Luckily, Cody didn’t have to answer and turn Rex down, because the ever-needy Anakin Skywalker showed up at just the right time. Draping his arms around Rex’s shoulders from behind and whining into the hood of his coat, “Reeeeeeeex!”

“Anakin, the adults are talking.” Rex responded, keeping himself completely monotone. Cody had to resist the urge to laugh at the comment.

“You’re so awful.” Anakin groaned out, then he shifted himself and leaned in close to Rex’s ear, whispering something. Rex’s cheeks turned red from the bridge of his nose to the tips of his ears before he cleared his throat and stood up. “Codes, sounds like you and Obi-Wan are taking Luke and Leia to dinner.”

Cody did chuckle this time and he smiled, “Okay. Don’t get into too much trouble, pal. ”

“I would pour my pumpkin on you but you aren’t worth the loss.” Rex responded, rolling his eyes before he went to step away, then looked back at Cody, “We’ll meet up after dinner.”

“We’ll take our time.” Cody winked.

*****

“I hadn’t realized that was the last time we would all be together.” Rex muttered as they walked through the hotel hallways, approaching the floor Rex and Leia had been hiding out on. It was in a different wing of the hotel all together.

Cody hadn’t bothered coming over here since it required crawling through the collapsed remains of a hallway and smelled badly of rot. It was a far more dangerous journey, but also meant Rex and Leia were more protected from potential harm. Since a four year old couldn’t use a weapon, Rex could use all the advantages he could get. Cody was proud of him, far more than he could put into words. Keeping a child, one that wasn’t even his own, alive in a world like this was a miracle. Cody could barely keep Obi-Wan alive. Only 23 hours ago he thought he had failed him.

“I don’t think any of us realized that, Rex.” Cody sighed, climbing over a beam as carefully as he could. “Or we wouldn’t have been split up to four separate states. And that’s just us - who knows where everyone else is.”

“I would say everyone would go to our family home, but I don’t think we were focused on hopping planes and boats to Aotearoa.” Rex thought for a moment, “ Maybe Colorado? Jango’s old house that became a safehouse? Or… I don’t know, Codes. We were all over the place. My goal is to find you guys, then get to Luke. Then… Survive, I guess?”

Cody leaned on the wall as Rex fished around his bag for the key to the room. “Our goal was to find you too, then swing down to Luke. But first, stopping at the nearest safehouse to get what we can.”

“I’m guessing you guys weren’t lucky enough to save your truck?” Rex asked, hopeful as he got the key out. They both took the opportunity to slip their masks off, putting them in their respective bags.

“Lost it within the first couple weeks. Once the bombs started. I was lucky my things weren’t in it, minus my rifle.” Cody swore he had mourned the loss of that rifle. Their custom weapons were their babies. He would accept no other standing for them.

The door swung open before he could lament more, and Rex called in with a gentle, actually soothing voice, “Hey princess, I brought someone to see you.”

There was a moment of silence as Rex walked into the room, Cody on his heels. The room looked empty and had no trace of a child in it at all, which drew concern from Cody. Either Leia had left, or Rex had cracked.

Until a little hand poked out from under the bed, followed by the rest of her as she squirmed out from under the bed, dragging her stuffed kiwi with her. Watching her, Cody felt some knot in his heart he hadn’t even known was there start to unravel. Seeing Rex had been one thing. His brother was an adult, a trained Mandalorian who had been learning to fight since he was Leia’s age.

But Leia was a child. A sweet, and sometimes rambunctious, but innocent child who hadn’t even thought of having to run from danger a day in her life. A child who had been born adjacent to their clan and they had all vowed to protect. Children were the future. Every Mandalorian clan, even those in the Watch believed in that one basic tenet. Even Boba would protect a child and that was saying something about that little sh-

“Unc’ Cody!” Leia gasped, taking two of her biggest possible steps forward to meet Cody’s arms, jumping into them to be lifted up and spun around.

“Oh my little rebel, I’m-” Cody felt the sob in his throat before he managed to finish his words, “I’m so happy to see you.”

They were expected to be the strong ones, Cody and Rex. Always. So falling to his knees because he got to hug his niece was out of the question, but he felt his knees go weak for a second anyway. He managed to hold back the flood of relief but only barely, while clutching onto Leia like she was the last hope in the world.

“Unc’ Cody you’re squishing me!” She complained after a moment, squirming in his arms enough to make him laugh.

He shifted her onto his side, resting her on his hip. “Sorry kiddo, I’m just - it’s really great to find you, you know? And what’s this - is this a kiwi?” He went to pick up the dropped stuffed animal, but was beaten to it by Rex.

Rex snorted and held it up. “This is a kiwi,” then he pointed to Cody, “That’s also a Kiwi. Who should definitely know what a kiwi is.”

“Oh, brother. ” Cody rolled his eyes, and Rex was lucky he had a child in his arms.

Leia reached out and made grabby fingers for her kiwi, then giggled and held it close to her chest. She looked up at Cody with a grin, proudly announcing, “Kiwis can live to be 50!”

“Yeah, let’s hope we do.” Cody muttered, drawing an eye roll from Rex this time as he played on their oh so nice nickname from the public. “Did you know the kiwi is the national bird of our home?”

“Tea-row?” Leia guessed, and the attempt made Cody’s heart light.

“Aotearoa.” Cody spoke slowly, though he didn’t expect a child who couldn’t pronounce ‘uncle’ to be able to say that word. “But you’re from here, from America.”

“But that’s where Papa Rex is from?” Leia asked.

The name change from Uncle Rex to Papa Rex made Cody quirk a brow and flash a look at his brother, who shrugged. It was a I’ll tell you later face, which Cody noticed came with a flash of pain. There was more to Anakin’s story than he had been told was the sense he got suddenly.

“Yeah, it is.” Cody conceded to a short answer.

“What about Unc’ Ben?” Leia asked. Cody had almost forgotten she hadn’t been able to pronounce Obi-Wan, the old fake name making a comeback for the twins to use.

Cody smiled, “Would you like to ask him yourself, kiddo?”

Leia lit up immediately and nodded her head faster than she probably should have, making her go a little cross eyed in the process. Then she settled securely into his arms, her stuffed kiwi cuddled to her chest like a piece of armor. Cody rocked her as he watched Rex gather their gear. He must have been just as busy picking over this half of the hotel as Cody had been on the other half.

“You don’t have a lot of water.” Cody noted, “Do you have some bottles saved?”

“Yeah, but finding a clean water source is a joke anymore.” Rex responded, opening up one partition of his large bag to show multiple empty canteens and metal bottles.

“The other side of the hotel has running water. Hot running water. We’ll get you both cleaned up and the bottles filled.” Cody shifted Leia, wondering how his brother had managed so much gear and a child.

Where there’s a will, there’s a way.

“Seriously? Well I’ll be damned.” Rex scoffed, “I only chose this side-”

“Because it’s less likely to be raided or attacked due to the hallway collapses. Yeah. That’s good thinking, Rex.” Though he was happy to be around family, he was getting anxious to get back to Obi-Wan.

“Thanks.” Rex grinned, before he hoisted the bag onto his back and grabbed his rifle once more. The small backpack of Leia’s, which sounded to have at least some crayons and a couple plastic toys in it, got handed off to Cody, who slung it over one shoulder without budging Leia at all.

Then they started the careful trek back across the large hotel. Carrying a child made Cody even more alert, perhaps even a bit jumpy, to every single sound in the strange liminal space they found themselves in. He understood why Rex looked so tired. At least Obi-Wan and Cody had each other to stay safe.

As they walked, Cody noticed the bite scar on the little hand that gripped the kiwi.

Though he was excited and ready to just throw the door open when they got to the room, Cody still followed their protocol. He tapped three times, waited, and tapped twice more. For a moment there was no sound from the otherside, then he heard Obi-Wan at the door.

“Please tell me this is the last question I must answer, it’s nearly been 24 hours!” He called from the otherside, sounding not so much annoyed as he did both worried and tired.

“Last question. What is your niece’s full name, and why?” Cody asked, holding up a finger to hush Leia and Rex.

“That, my dear, is two questions.” Obi-Wan huffed, “Her name is Leia Organa Skywalker. Padme picked her first name because it means lioness in Latin and she had a feeling she would be strong. Organa is from a dear friend and mentor of Padme’s. Do I pass? Can I come off quarantine now?”

“Would you like to see your grand prize?” Cody asked, trying to hold back an excited bubbling in his chest. “Open up Obi-Wan, my hands are full.”

There was a noise of shuffling, which must have been Obi-Wan moving the chair away from the door. 

“Hurry up, Unc’ Ben!” Leia hollered, which made both Cody and Rex laugh.

The movement inside paused for a second, and Cody could imagine the look of disbelief on Obi-Wan’s face. Within a heartbeat, the door was flung open so hard Cody worried it would be torn directly from its hinges.

Obi-Wan’s face could shatter the hearts of even the toughest people out there.

He looked somewhere between shock and disbelief and awe and wonder. Tears welled up in the creases of his eyes, spilling down his cheeks immediately. They all barely got a chance to step inside before Obi-Wan was scooping his niece from Cody’s arms and hugging her. He was trembling so bad that Cody backed him up to the edge of the bed and encouraged him to sit, while Leia just buried her face in his chest. She was quiet, but Cody noticed the tears on Obi-Wan’s shirt even from a distance.

Cody helped Rex with the bags he had, and they worked on getting his supplies and the new supplies Cody had found laid out with the rest of it. Even for four people, they were doing very well on supplies now. The horde must have prevented a lot of people from coming anywhere near this city or hotel, and those who had come got to stay permanently. But they would be leaving, more put together than they had been before.

After they had everything laid out, Cody grabbed some clothes for Rex from the various bags they had found and held them out to his brother, “These should be your sizes. Go snag a shower then Obi-Wan can help you with your hair.”

Rex took the new clothes from Cody, the relief washing over his face, “Oh man, I’ve never been happier to let someone by my face with scissors.”

“That’s exactly how I felt about getting to finally shave.” Cody smirked and glanced towards Obi-Wan and Leia, who were talking very quietly now. Not like they didn’t want to be heard, but just because they could have a quiet conversation together that still involved occasional sniffles and bittersweet smiles.

Cody left their supplies laid out and took to the window, taking a good look outside. If he didn’t know any better, he would say it looked peaceful outside. Just a nice evening in the spring, surrounded by parts of his family. An evening he had enjoyed so many times before.

The rings in his hidden pocket felt like a ray of hope to hang onto.

*****

“I’ve noticed you around campus.” Cody continued to answer Obi-Wan’s question of what brought him over to his booth, as if they hadn’t just been speaking for - oh, a few hours, now.

“What a funny thing, I’ve noticed you as well.” Obi-Wan hummed, then he tilted his head towards the bar as the bartender rang the bell for last call.

“Damn, it’s getting late.” Cody had a moment of thought, of putting all care to the wind and going back to Obi-Wan’s home with him. If the other man wanted that too.

But he already knew the hell that would get him in if his brother’s ever found out. They had rules for a reason. And if some random man he had met a few hours ago saw his tattoo and was with the Hutts or the Watch or practically any government organization - bye, bye birdy. But that didn’t mean Cody couldn’t offer to be a gentleman.

“Could I walk you back to your place?” Cody offered, feeling his voice audibly edge on hopeful. He didn’t want to part from Obi-Wan just yet. But he didn’t want to sound desperate, either. Especially when he didn’t have the implied intent.

He’d offer to drive him, but they were both several beers in and he was not about to be that guy.

“We’re just walking?” Obi-Wan asked as he scooted to the end of the booth anyway, getting up to put his jacket on.

“Chivalry isn’t dead.” Cody responded, standing to pull his own coat on before he picked up Obi-Wan’s books.

They were off after a snort of a laugh from Obi-Wan, heading out into the cool, near winter weather. It was late, and the streets were darker than Cody was used to seeing them. As they walked, they kept up their chat. Shifting to lighter subjects, like their class schedules and good times they were both available. A lot of their schedule seemed to overlap, leaving them with a lot of time to see each other.

That discovery led Obi-Wan to sliding his arm into Cody’s, leaning into him as they walked in no particular hurry. Obi-Wan told Cody about his adoptive family, about his brother who was really the only one he had left now, too. Though Cody felt far more hesitant, he let himself open up, sharing about his brothers. He had a lot of them, afterall.

“Family - is probably the most important thing to me, really. It’s sort of how we were all raised.” Cody admitted as they turned onto what Obi-Wan said was his street.

It was a street of pretty high end apartments, giving Cody some clue that Obi-Wan must have either come from money or he had truly lost people, and gotten insurance payouts afterwards. He didn’t care, he knew his family was loaded with blood money too.

“Anakin and I have stuck together through everything. I’ve always wished to be part of a bigger family, but Qui-Gon stopped taking fosters after we got older and started traveling with him. So it was just us.” Obi-Wan led them up to a buzzer door, pulling his keys out of his pocket. “Would you… Like to come upstairs for a nightcap?”

An ember burned low in Cody’s gut, but he managed to shake his head no, “No, I think we’ve drank enough tonight…”

He tried to ignore the disappointment on Obi-Wan’s face, and added, “But - Wednesday we both have a free morning if I recall. Can I swing by and pick you up for breakfast?”

“Absolutely.” Obi-Wan stepped closer to Cody, and leaned forward to kiss his cheek. “Good night, sunshine. It’s been lovely to meet you.”

Cody felt every inch of his face blush at the nickname, and he barely found his words then, “Good night, Obi-Wan. I’ll call you.”

The piece of paper with Obi-Wan’s number on it was going to burn a hole in his pocket if he didn’t call him. They didn’t lean in for a real kiss, both of them just exchanging one more long, mystified look before Obi-Wan slid inside. The door clicked shut behind him, leaving Cody alone to watch nothing but his breath in the air. Maybe he liked the feeling that came over him just then. The feeling of being young, maybe even being in love.

That led Cody to just one thought: they didn’t need to rush anything, they had the rest of their lives ahead of them.

And Cody wanted to spend every moment of his with Obi-Wan at his side.

*****

Obi-Wan slid his fingers through Rex’s curls, planning his attack against the untamed hair before him. They didn’t particularly care about leaving a mess on the floor, but Obi-Wan still dropped the chunks into a trash can beside him as he snipped away.

“You haven’t asked yet…” Rex muttered, and the thought seemed to be weighing on him from his tone.

“About Anakin?” Obi-Wan responded quietly, not wanting Leia to overhear them from her bathtime with Cody. “I… I know no matter what happened, you would’ve protected him to the end. And he probably did something - stupid and self sacrificing. Because Anakin always wanted to be the hero.”

Rex snorted, though the sound was slightly remorseful. “He did have a hero complex… But we made it because of him. And Padme - I never got to see her, she was lost on day one.”

“But here you are, protecting a child all alone in a world where its hard enough for two adults to protect each other.” Obi-Wan squeezed his shoulder, “Rex, there’s loss everywhere. It’s not just from the infection. But from others turning on the living, from the loss of medical care, from the weather. The moment I saw only you and Leia, I knew. Leia said her parents were gone, and while I know it’s a hard concept for a four year old to grasp, I knew she meant they weren’t coming back.”

He took a shaky breath, cutting away more hair as he gathered his thoughts. There was so much in the world to mourn. They had gotten wins, they should be happy for them. Though the grief hung heavy, and one day they would have to allow themselves to mourn, they could not do it right this moment.

“I must take solace in knowing that Anakin and Padme do not have to live only to survive.” Obi-Wan reconciled.

“We don’t have to live just to survive.” Rex stated, letting Obi-Wan tilt his head back, “Do you know what Leia does every day? She lives. She knows the world is dangerous, knows she has to stay close and quiet and hide. But she still draws on the walls and looks for stuffed animals. She makes me replace the books we have every so often, because she gets bored with them. She jumps in puddles. Leia doesn’t just survive. She learns and grows and lives. ”

That made Obi-Wan pause as he stared down at Rex, processing what he had said. If a child could thrive in a world like this, then it was possible they could too. Outside of the restrictions of the government and the looming past. They all still had a future. And now, that future was ungoverned. They could do as they pleased with the right muscle and brains on their side.

“We need to find our family. And then… We need to figure out how to thrive.” Obi-Wan spoke firmly, then got back to cutting Rex’s hair.

He didn’t miss the way Rex smiled at him when he said our . They both knew they were family for life by now.

“Look who’s as clean as a princess should be!” Cody announced as he ‘flew’ Leia through the air as she laid on both his arms, her own arms out like plane wings. She was giggling and beaming from ear to ear.

Cody had also braided her hair and put it into two buns for her, so it was well out of the way and more protected from future dirt and grime. The whole image made Obi-Wan smile from where he was now sitting on one of the beds, meticulously cleaning one of the new handguns Cody had found.

Cody plopped Leia down on the opposite bed next to Rex, who barely budged. He’d fallen asleep right after getting his haircut and Obi-Wan didn’t have the heart to wake him. He must have been skipping sleep more often than not. Even Cody’s shouting hadn’t made him move.

“Wow, he is out. ” Cody noted, just further confirming what Obi-Wan had been thinking.

“Traveling with just a child will do that to you.” Sliding the pieces back together, Obi-Wan admired the way the handgun had cleaned up before he held it out to Cody, wanting it to be put up away from Leia.

Though in a perfect world, he wouldn’t be doing that anywhere near Leia at four to begin with. But that wouldn’t have happened before the infection anyway, given her proximity to Mandalorians.

“What do you think about dinner?” Cody asked as he took the gun, adding it to a few more they had put up on a shelf out of Leia’s reach. Rex’s rifle was laid on the main table, but no one was concerned with her being able to work that one, even on accident.

“Food sounds lovely.” Obi-Wan stated, watching Leia busy herself with getting out her little backpack, then retrieving her crayons and a coloring book before sitting on the other bed again. “Cody, do you realize it has been well over 24 hours now? And that I’m not the only one? ”

“I do realize that.” Cody tried to sound level about it, as if he hadn’t been worried - but his smile said it all. His relief was electricity in the air.

“Do you know what this means, my love?” He asked as he watched Cody choose some ramen packets, then steal the pot from the coffee maker so he could heat water on the campstove.

“That you’re alive and I don’t have to turn this into a Romeo and Juliet situation?” Cody asked in response as he returned from the bathroom, pot now full to be heated.

“I meant to say that you’re stuck with me, but that is true as well.” Talking about Cody’s alternative plan would come at a much later date, there was no reason to stir him up about it right now.

“And how do you feel?” Cody asked as he turned towards him, barely illuminated in the mostly set sun.

Obi-Wan took one last look down at his arm, examining every peak of the bite wound, every scale of the scab. Nothing had spread, even after a full twenty four hours. He glanced over towards Leia, where one bite mark was visible on her little hand. Her’s was well healed, the only scar from the initial teeth print. She seemed entirely unbothered by it.

Beside her, Rex slept away. He looked decently like himself again with his hair cut back. Maybe by the time they got up in the morning he would be free of the dark circles under his eyes. He didn’t ask what had happened to bring them all together, because quite frankly it couldn’t be anything short of fate for them to end up in the same town together at the same time.

Or maybe it was that family was just bound to be together.

“I feel happy.” Obi-Wan said, and honestly meant, for the first time in months.

“Yeah?” Cody’s smile was contagious, even as he turned to get the noodle packets in the pot. “I am, too.”

They lapsed into a comfortable quiet for a time, just enjoying the peace they had for now. They could stay here for a while if they wanted, probably. Their supplies had only been found inside of the hotel, who knew what could be in the houses around the city. But time wasted could mean never seeing family again, so there was no doubt they needed to get moving as soon as possible.

“What’s the plan for leaving, my love?” Obi-Wan asked as he saw Cody remove the noodles from the heat, carefully, using a rag as a potholder.

“We’ll stay here another night. Then tomorrow we’ll start towards Harlan, see if we can manage to get a working truck, or even horses.” Cody worked out the plan as he once again heated them up old cans of food.

“Just tonight?” Obi-Wan asked, a bit hopeful.

There was a split second where Cody went to speak, before he glanced towards Rex sound asleep on the bed. Then he looked back down and shrugged, “Maybe two nights. Then Harlan.”

“That is a perfect plan… Do you think the safehouse will still have supplies?” The question hung in the air for a minute, though they both knew it was one that couldn’t be answered.

“Maybe we’ll get lucky.” Cody reasoned, tossing a look over his shoulder towards Obi-Wan. 

Obi-Wan hummed, nodding along as his own thoughts ran loose. Maybe they had used all their luck on this one thing, on Obi-Wan being bitten and surviving. Or used it all up on the supplies they had found. Or, most importantly, on getting Rex and Leia back in their lives.

Or maybe it wasn’t luck at all. Maybe there were people who were immune. Maybe he was one of them, as was Leia. That thought was enough to light a flame of hope in his heart.

“In my experience, there’s no such thing as luck.”