#echo and fives fanfic

[the-echo-in-the-room]

I think that's an incredibly heartwarming story! Thank you, Chopper!

(@not-just-another-number is Fives' new account, BTW!)

ARCs at a Cost

Fives and Echo

Based on this post

Echo and Fives are painting their new ARC armor. They both know their squad would be proud of them but it's hard to know that their brothers can't see where they stand now.

Also, never leave the Domino Twins unsupervised with paint-

@same-heart-same-blood @the-echo-in-the-room down for a trip down memory lane? (Sorry for tagging you but I really want to know what you think😅)

There is a dash of sad and then a whole lot of fluff

--------------------

Fives carefully dragged the brush over his helmet, leaving a thin blue line behind as the Rishi eel began to take shape. He dipped the brush back in the paint, carefully adding detail after detail.

Across from him, Echo sat with his chest plate settled on his crossed legs, his eyes glued to the blank chest piece that seemed to be staring back at him.

Fives knew what his twin was thinking about without having to ask. The handprint that decorated his original armor was originally put there by Captain Rex, in the blood of the very eel Fives was painting onto his brand new helmet. The same eel that stole one of their brothers from them. The same day the rest of the Domino squad fell.

The twins had made it far since that day and the proof sat right in front of them. They were ARC troopers now. Part of the 501st under the very Captain that helped save their lives on Rishi moon.

Fives set his brush down, leaning it against the paint can so as to not dirty the floor too much. "Hey, Echo?"

Echo looked up from his armor, his eyes falling on his twin. "Hm? What's up?"

Fives stared down at his helmet, his eyes following each brushstrokes that made up the design of the eel. "Do you think they're proud of us?"

Echo was slightly surprised by the question but he didn't show it much. He just let his eyes glide back down to the bright white armor that sat in his lap. "Yeah," he let a small smile appear on his face. "I think they are."

Fives tightened his grip on the helmet in his hands, his eyes never leaving the eel. "I-" he took a deep breath, calming the emotions that threatened to spill over. "I wish they were here to see this." A thought popped into his head causing a laugh to escape his lips. "Though," he looked up towards his twin. "I don't think Rex would be able to handle all five of us."

This caused a laugh to escape Echo as well who looked up to meet his twin's gaze. "Rex would have probably marched all of us back to Kamino asking how to return our dumb asses."

Fives couldn't stop the amused laughs from coming out as he set his helmet in front of him. "Can you imagine, though? All five of us? We would be absolutely chaotic!" Fives exclaimed as he threw his hands out. "Everyone would know of the Domino Squad! No amount of clankers would have taken us down!"

Echo continued to laugh, reminiscing on the memories that started to surface from when they were only cadets. Cutup and Fives were always getting in some sort of trouble, Hevy just gave up trying to stop them. Droidbait would always call them di'kuts but would usually end up doing something stupid right beside them. Echo was always more of the rule follower but he had to admit, he got dragged into some stupid trouble by his twin on more than one occasion. To be honest, Echo was probably the reason they didn't get in more trouble than they did. Domino squad quickly learned that lying was something Echo was scarily good at and no one ever questions the one with the reg manuals memorized.

Fives noticed through his laughter that Echo was still staring at the blank chest piece, a small smile still plastered on his face. An idea popped into Fives' head and he held his hand out. "Hey Echo, hand it over!"

Echo look at his brother then to his outstretched hand in confusion. "Uh, ok?" He reluctantly handed the chest piece over, almost not letting go as his twin pulled out of his reach. To Echo’s complete surprise and utter confusion, Fives dunked his entire hand in the paint. "Fives! What are you-?"

Before Echo could finish, Fives pulled his hand out, shaking off a little access paint before pressing his hand down on the chest plate. Echo sat there, mouth agape as Fives removed his hand, wiping it on his already paint covered thigh. "There!" He exclaimed, handing the chest piece back. "Now you can stop staring at it like it offended you."

Echo took the armor, holding it out in front of him as he examined the blue handprint that now decorated it. He couldn't help the smile that worked its way back on his face. Echo turned back to his twin, about to thank him before bursting into uncontrolled laughter at the sight.

Fives looked at him confused, his head tilting to the side as Echo dropped the chest piece, grasping his sides as he doubled over in laughter. "What did I do??"

Echo attempted to take a breath to explain but it only made him laugh harder. "Did- did you forget you had paint on your hand?" Echo gasped out between giggles.

Fives looked at him confused before it clicked. Fives had just wiped his face with the hand still covered in paint. "Kriffing-" he sighed defeatedly which caused Echo to fall into another round of giggling.

Fives smirked, an idea popping into his head. Echo hadn't expected Fives to dunk his hand again and he also didn't expect his brother to suddenly lunge for him. Echo let out a high pitched squeal as Fives smeared the paint across Echo’s face and hair. Echo tried to push his twin away but Fives had him pinned down, continuing to smear paint across his face and chest.

Echo reached up, grabbing Fives' sides, beginning to tickle him. The reaction was instant as Fives immediately yelped, reaching for Echo’s wrist to attempt to halt his attack. Echo used this to his advantage, pushing his twin off of him and flipping to pin him to the floor. Echo continued to tickle him as Fives practically howled with laughter, attempting and failing to stop the bombardment.

"E-echo ple-please!" He managed to gasp out between his unending laughter.

"Nope!" Echo popped, continuing his attack on his twin, managing to pin one of his arms under his knee. Fives continued to squirm, laughter echoing through the room.

The hiss of the door behind them had Echo immediately freeze, looking over his shoulder to see who walked in. Fives was trying to catch his breath beneath him, not even attempting to look at the newcomer.

In the now open doorway stood Captain Rex followed closely by Commander Cody, both had an amused look on their faces.

"I see painting your armor is going nicely," Rex mused, crossing his arms over his chest. The Captain couldn't stop the laugh that escaped him at the sight of the two paint covered ARC troopers. One of which was still struggling to breathe and pinned underneath the other. "Don't let me stop you." He waved his hand in a dismissing manner. "Seems like Fives did something to deserve it,"

Fives started to squirm desperately beneath him again. "Echo! Don't you da-!" his plea was interrupted by the attempt to draw in a breath as Echo began to tickle him again.

A smirk was plastered on Echo’s face as he continued to tickle his twin. The laughter from his two commanding officers behind him only made him tickle his brother more.

Fives was gasping now, pleadling between breaths of laughter for some sort of mercy that Echo was not giving.

Unfortunately, Echo was unaware of the scheming that had begun behind him til strong arms suddenly grabbed him from behind. It only took Echo a second to realize it was his Captain who had grabbed him but he didn't expect him to wrap his legs around the younger clone's waist. "Sir-?!?" Was all he managed to get out before Rex began tickling the young ARC Trooper.

Echo immediately started to struggle to get free from his Captain's grasp as Fives sat up, howling with laughter as his twin's predicament. "Payback!" Fives yelled in victory.

The victory was short lived as Fives was totally unprepared for the Marshall Commander to suddenly pounce at the unsuspecting clone. Cody had Fives pinned within seconds, immediately starting to tickle the young trooper.

Both twins were now pinned by their commanding officers, being tickled with absolutely no mercy. All four clones were now laughing and gasping for air. Echo and Fives were at the complete mercy of their older brothers and there was nothing either could do about it.

Eventually Rex released Echo, pushing the young clone off as he gasped for breath, his arms wrapped protectively around his middle. Cody followed suit, releasing Fives to let the younger catch his breath. Fives sprawled out on the floor, his limbs laying limply out in a starfish position as he greedily sucked in air.

Echo slowly sat up, still giggling. He met Rex's gaze who had an extremely amused smile plastered on his face. He wrapped his arms around his knees, looking over at his twin who was still sprawled across the floor. Cody, who was still sitting behind him, slowly got to a standing position before offering a hand to Fives who quickly accepted.

Rex followed suit, standing up and offering Echo a hand, pulling the ARC to his feet. Rex slapped his hand firmly on Echo’s shoulder, squeezing it slightly. He turned so he was facing Fives as well who had Cody's hand on his shoulder as well. "Welcome to the 501st, boys!"

[chiliger]

Comic page commissioned by @the-bad-batch-baroness of her fanfic “Suckers”

This page was such a delight to draw and the fic is hilarious, so everyone go read it 🤩

Commission Info

[kometqh]

𝐂𝐥𝐨𝐬𝐞 𝐑𝐞𝐥𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬

501st x F!Jedi!Reader General Skywalker clearly wasn't a reliable source of intell, having pointed you and Rex's squad into the icy tumbra of a long deserted planet, however, it was due to his calculated mistake that the Clones were able to reveal your deeply hidden desires. Being stuck in a cave with numerous handsome, attractive men was not on your to-do list, yet you weren't complaining. Word Count: 3028

Warnings: Unedited, random brain rainbow vomit I had whilst practicing writing techniques <3 It's somewhat (quite) spicy towards the end. There is a lot of fluff throughout most of it! A/N: This is mostly just Tup, Rex and Fives x reader as this was a very spontaneous fic T_T pls forgive me.

"General Skywalker said this would be an easy mission," Fives hissed under his breath, the deep, reverbrating sound of his voice lost underneath the wolfish howling of the wind, clusters of snow beating at his helmet. This was supposed to be a quick and easy diplomatic trip, but where did he and the 501st Legion find themselves? Somewhere on a deserted, icy, snowy planet. "My toes are about to fall off!"

"Yeah, he promised us there'd be clear blue skies and hot weather. A beach even!" Echo added on, shrugging his shoulders in defeat. Rather than being on a hot, sandy beach, the brothers had found themselves treading through waist-deep snow, their fingers and toes turning into icicles, their blasters heavy in their grasps. 

"I thought this was supposed to be a diplomatic trip, Captain," Fives continued, his voice becoming white noise as Rex all but ignored his brother, gracing him with an occasional hum or grunt, to let him know he was listening. But he wasn't hearing. Rex was also unhappy with the circumstances, but it was his job to do this kind of thing. It's not like the clones could refuse not going on a mission, not going head-first into a battle, so he definitely would have appreciated General Skywalker's honesty, over trickery. 

The weather was only getting worse, the wind and snow beating at the men cruelly, the blue paint on their armour completely disappeared under the clusters of snow that had latched themselves onto the clones. 

He paused in his tracks, scanning the area through his optical goggles. He spotted something. Something dark, something round. His men stopped behind him, eerily silent as they anticipated their Captain's next words. 

Rex, turning to face his brothers, couldn't help the way his shoulders visibly relaxed as he relayed the news, "I see a cave entrance just a couple yards ahead, boys! We will seek shelter there!" He exclaimed, waving his arm, signalling for them to keep going, to keep following him. 

In the very back, just behind Tup and Jesse, a lone, female Jedi guarded their backs, one hand hovering protectively over her weapon, the other shielded away in the pocket of her coat. A backpack hung onto her shoulders, the leather material soaked and cold, receiving most of the onslaught of the weather. 

Her mind was wandering, body craving to feel the heat of a hot sun glazing against her bare skin, just as Anakin had hinted to. But instead, she was stuck walking through a blizzard, her body cold and tired.

She had also been excited to spend some quality time with the boys from the 501st, whom she had been recently often paired with for missions. The sight of them all relaxing and enjoying their time on the beach, with their tops exposed, tan skin glistening under the sunlight.. Yeah, that would have been a sight worth seeing.

A sudden, much harsher gust of wind jolted her from her thoughts, clumps of snow quickly settling against the icy skin on her face. 

Her robes, too, were soaked, struggling to maintain the warmth in her body as she did her best to follow the path created by the clones, snow crunching under her winter boots. 

She too wasn't made aware of the true conditions of the mission. She couldn't tap into the force either, to predict or to feel some kind of warning of the mission ahead. What was Skywalker thinking? He was lucky none of her men had fallen! The moment she'd get back, the moment her eyes would land on him, he would be wise to run for the hills. She could imagine the fear in his eyes as she comically choked him out, swaying the male back and forth in a fit of anger.

Relief flooded the squad as one by one, they made their way into the cave, it being cleared by their Captain and medic, Rex and Kix. 

Quickly setting camp, the clones hovered around their makeshift fire, some huddled close together, others snuggling under individual, soaked blankets. The snow had penetrated all of their supplies; food, water, tents and blankets. All they could do was hope that the fire would last long enough for the storm to pass, for their blankets to dry out and warm up. 

"What the hell was the General thinking?" Fives muttered, his eyebrows furrowed. He rubbed his bare hands together until they were warm enough, and then he shifted closer to the fire. 

His feet stung, the feeling just barely coming back to him after that gruelling tread. He was sure if his feet didn't fall off yet, then something else soon would. 

You exhaled a heavy sigh, a blanket resting over your shoulders as you extended your palms out towards the fire. Rex had been kind enough to lend you his blanket, noticing that your robes and skirt were practically drenched from the weather. Sure, you weren't dressed for the beach, but you also weren't dressed well enough for a blizzard. 

You were lucky to have been warned, or rather told, by Master Kenobi of the true conditions of your mission. If you hadn't been, your troops wouldn't have had enough time to prepare for the weather. 

Looking over your squad, you made eye contact with Tup. A worried frown ghosted over his rough features, the creases that you hated so much appearing on his forehead. 

Slowly, you made your way over to the trooper, one hand outstretched.

"Tup? Are you okay?" You asked, resting your hand over his shoulder. As if startled, the man looked to you, his brows quirked in surprise. 

"G-General? Why do you ask?" He questioned, gaze flickering down to your hand, before coming back up to stare into your eyes. A soft, pink hue dusted over his cheeks, and your heart fluttered at the sight. Sure, he was sweet and kind, he was the shyest of your men. He was almost like a puppy, his chocolatey brown eyes so deep, so sweet, you had lost yourself in them again. 

He was the only man who gazed into your eyes long enough for you to drown, a soft smile erupting on your face as you fought your best to not reach up and caress his cheek in your palm. 

"General? Are you listening?" He asked, his gloved hands reaching up to shake at your shoulders, gently. 

Your lashes fluttered over your eyes, taking in a deep exhale, you shrugged. Were you really okay? 

Taking a moment to respond, your gaze flickered up, noticing how wet his hair was. 

"Tup, d'you want me to dry your hair?" The words tumbled from your mouth before your brain could finish processing their meaning. Tup's eyes widened into saucers as he stood there, frozen. You had never been so caring to your men, at least, not like this. 

Remember that pink hue that dusted his cheeks just a moment ago? Yeah, now that's turned into a beetroot blush, the colour painting his ears, his face and neck in a deep shade of reddish-purple. Would it be okay for you to display such blatant acts of affection? Wouldn't that be against the rules and regulations of the Jedi council? Against the regulations of the GAR? If so, would his brothers snitch?

"S-Sorry, I didn't mean to-" You started, your mouth quickly dropping into the shape of an 'o' as Tup interrupted you.

"General, I would love for you to dry my hair." He said with a soft smile, scratching at the back of his nape.

Realising it was too late now to back out, you gave a small nod of your head before taking his gloved hand in yours, the leathery material scraping nicely against your soft skin, as you led him closer to the campfire. 

Motioning for Tup to sit down, you stood directly behind, and, above him, reaching to remove your dry blanket from your shoulders. You didn't have a towel, so a blanket should be a good enough substitute. Your hands reached to remove his hairtie, sliding it over your hand to rest on your wrist, your fingers quickly making their way to masssage Tup's scalp. 

As he leaned his head back into your soft hold, Tup couldn't help the relieved sigh that escaped his lips. Your fingernails grazed softly against his skin, tugging gently at his soft curls, sending eletric shivers down the male's spine. 

But it was when your hands slid from his scalp, over to his nape and shoulders, applying soft but firm pressure against his tired muscles that the involuntary groan escaped his lips, rumbling deep from within his chest. 

Your body stiffened, stopping your ministrations as a familiar spark shot through your heart, right down to your abdomen. 

Your eyes, wide and unblinking, stared into Tup's as the colour red flushed his cheeks once more. His eyes searched yours, a worried glint dancing across as he waited for your reaction. His lips stuttered as he was about to apologise, provide an excuse, tell you it was okay if you didn't want to continue. 

But the words fell short on his tongue as the corners of your lips tugged upwards, your hands applying the slightest bit more pressure to his sore muscles. 

A grunt was stiffled in his throat, his eye fighting hard to stay open, looking anywhere but at your face. He didn't want to make you uncomfortable, give you the wrong idea-

None of his brothers did. 

Though a lump formed in his throat as Tup looked around the cave, noticing the numerous lingering gazes of his brothers as they sat there, watching your movements. He could almost feel the jealousy vibrating off of Rex in waves, his gaze hardened as the corners of his lips fought to stay straight. 

A smirk tugged at Tup's lips, as he noticed Jesse squint his eyes at him. Deciding to add fuel to the fire, Tup groaned again when your hands pressed against a particularly tense muscle in his shoulder. 

"Woah, General, where did you learn this?" He asked, a familiar warmth blooming in his abdomen as your nimble fingers danced across his shoulders, tugging at the black suit he wore, exposed now as his armour rested beside a sleeping bag nearby. 

"Oh, you know, just learned bits here and there when I was stationed with Commander Wolffe," You chuckled, wetting your lips with the tip of your tongue, "That man was full of knots in his shoulders." You added, feeling Tup's shoulders relax more and more, until you had mentioned Wolffe. That's when his posture straightened, from a relaxed lean, to a pin-straight sitting up position. 

He tilted his head back to look at you, a curious yet worried glint in his golden eyes.

"Were you and Commander Wolffe close, by any chance?" He questioned, his breathing paused. 

If you were Wolffe's girl, then he knew the 501st couldn't, wouldn't pursue you. 

Or, if you weren't, then they knew at least they could ask the Commander of his previous.. Experiences, with you. 

Slowly, you caught onto Tup's drift, and your gaze travelled around the room. Some of the men were fully facing the two of you, legs spread, eyes laser-focused as they listened to your conversation, the cave suddenly, and eerily silent.

A shiver travelled down your spine, and a gentle smirk tugged at your lips.

"Oh, just you know, the occasional date here and there.." You said, shrugging your shoulders nonchalantly. Your smirk threatened to grow as you heard someone scoff, and you looked up to see Rex rolling his shoulders, a scowl on his face.

"Date? Isn't that, like, forbidden?" Fives questioned across from you, leaning over curiously, his eyebrows raised, resembling the blue markings on his helmet. 

A giggle escaped your lips as your hands returned to Tup's hair, suddenly remembering why you were giving him a random shoulder massage. You reached over to grab the blanket Rex had given you, placing soft curls between the two valleys of softness created by your hands, which were hidden underneath the soft cushion.

Your hands brushed through Tup's soft hair, gently dragging the strands through the dry, fuzzy material of your blanket. 

"I don't mean a romantic date, Fives, though I wouldn't be opposed to one." You mused, softly tugging at the locks. "I don't particulaly agree with the 'No Attachments' rule. But that doesn't make me less of a Jedi, or does it, do you think?" You questioned, your gaze softening, a small scowl now tugging at your lips. 

"Of course not, General," This time, it was Rex who spoke up, albeit too fast for his liking, "You're one of the most dedicated Jedi I've had the pleasure of working with," He stated, soft footsteps making their way closer and closer to you, "Plus, it is human to wish to form attachments." He whispered that last part, now standing directly above you as you twisted Tup's hair into the towel.

Your heart fluttered at the proximity, warmth enveloping your pinkening cheeks.

"Is it now, Rex?" You asked, looking up at him. Your heart palpitated at the close proximity, your hands gliding down to caress Tup's shoulders. Your gaze stayed unwavering, unbreaking as you looked into Rex's deep, honey-gold eyes. The Captain suddenly shifted, breaking eye contact as he stepped back a little. 

"I-I believe any of us s-should be able to form attachments," He paused, his gaze flickering from your eyes to your lips, and back to your eyes, "Romantic ones, especially." A chorus of 'Yeah's' and humms of agreement followed, catching your attention as you looked around.

The atmosphere in the cave seemed to have completely shifted, the sound of howling wind drowned out underneath the loud beat of your heart. You swallowed a forming lump, looking between Rex and his brothers, Tup now stood by your side, sandwiching your body between his and Rex's. 

Gloved hands came up to softly caress your shoulders, fingertips lightly tugging at the edge of your collar, grazing the skin underneath. 

"What do you think, Commander?" He whispered into your ear, hot breath fanning over your skin.

"Of?" You prompted, turning your head lightly to look at Tup. 

"Of close relations between Jedi and their Clones?"

Your eyes widened, feeling a familiar heat rush over your body, and you took inhaled a slow, deep, shaky breath. As you looked between Tup and Rex, the latter had made his way closer to your body, his hands making their way to your hips.

The sound of soft footsteps reached your ears, and you saw Echo, Fives, Jesse, Kix, Dogma and Hardcase making their way closer to the three of you, looking completely entranced by the conversation. You hadn't casted any spells on them, have you?

Your breath hitched in your throat, shivers overtaking your body as someone nuzzled their nose into the crook of your neck, inhaling deeply, exhaling with a shaky sigh. As they spoke, your heart fluttered with recognition. 

"General, answer the question." Fives whispered, his voice gravelly and deep, one gloved hand gently grasping your chin, twisting it to face him. His gaze flickered to your lips,  just mere inches from his own. He could almost feel the taste of you on his tongue. Oh how he wished to kiss you, right then and there. He was so sure you'd let him, too.

Sure, maybe you did fantasise about the men from time to time, when your thoughts weren't preoccupied by ongoing battles and Jedi duties. How you wished to be allowed to form a connection deeper than General and Trooper, but did they?

"I- I.. I don't k-know?" You questioned, a soft whimper escaping your opened mouth, before you knew it, his lips crashed against yours, his hands latching themselves into your hair, pulling you closer, if physically possible.

The kiss was, to simply put it, sweet. His goatee rubbed nicely against your chin, his lips melting together with yours, as if they were always meant to. His tongue prodded at your bottom lip, asking for permission. Slipping in, it danced with yours, hot breaths mingling together as you felt something press up against your front.

Rex.

You had almost forgotten you were trapped between Rex and Tup, too engulfed with the sudden kiss Fives had engaged you in.

The smell of pine and smoke invaded your nostrils, their scents overwhelming, flooding your senses as Fives became rougher, his hands tugging at the roots of your hair. With one hand, you grasped the side of his face, thumb rubbing soothing circles into his rough skin, your breath hitched as a groan escaped his lips.

"Okay, that's enough I think." Kix spoke, the kiss abruptly interrupted as he pulled Fives away by the scruff of his neck. 

"General? Are you okay?" Rex's voice was soft as he neared you, his breath fanning over the sensitive shell of your ear. 

Inhaling a shallow breath, you grasped his biceps with both hands.

"Call me Y/n.." You whispered, hazily meeting Rex's stare, his eyebrows raised, eyes wide.

"R-Right.. Y/n, d'you want us to continue?" He questioned, bringing a hand to gently clutch your chin. 

Your eyes widened as you took in the situation around you; eight men surrounded you, watching. Waiting. Ready to pounce, the moment they received your permission. 

And receive it, they did.

With a brisk nod, you allowed your eyes to flutter shut as Rex closed the gap between the two of you, his lips rough but warm as his body pushed roughly against yours, your back meeting Tup's chest in a close embrace. 

Your hands rested against Rex's chest, feeling the soft material of his shirt underneath your thumbs. His chest was warm and firm under your touch, the feeling of his heart racing beneath your hand had your own chest swelling with joy. A sigh left your lips as you felt a pair of lips press open-mouthed kisses against the expanse of your neck, a new pair of hands rubbing up and down your hips, encouraging you.

You weren't dreaming, were you? You weren't about to wake up, were you?

Your questions were answered as you felt Rex bite your bottom lip, his hands tugging at the roots of your hair.

No, this definitely wasn't a dream.

And if it was, it wasn't one you wished to wake from.

[the-bad-batch-baroness]

Suckers

Fives & Echo

Summary: Hilarity ensues when Fives spots a lollipop in the shape of a clone.

Pairing: None

Characters: Fives, Echo, Rex, Fox

Tags & Warnings: humor, crude humor, sexual humor, sexual innuendos, art comic at the end

Word Count: 337

Author's Note: I blame cursed clone wars merchandise on eBay, late-night Discord chats, and @kimiheartblade for this abomination 😂 It's pretty much just dialogue. I don't even know if I want to call this a fic, considering how thrown together it is. But sometimes you just have to write funny stuff. As always, please enjoy 💚

"Hey, Echo, look at this!" Fives yells. He grabs Echo's arm and pulls him towards the candy storefront.

"What?" Echo huffs, then yanks his arm back.

"It's us!" Fives exclaims.

Echo raises an eyebrow. "Huh?"

"They made us into suckers!" Fives smiles. He points to the clone-shaped lollipops nestled in a stand next to the candy store window.

"And you're excited about that, why?" Echo asks.

"We're famous!" Fives grins.

"Right," Echo rolls his eyes, "because minors and middle-aged single women sucking on us is peak fame."

"Aw, come on, Echo," Fives says. "It's a novelty!"

Echo crosses his arms. "It's disgusting."

"I'm gonna buy one," Fives says, then walks towards the door.

"Wait!" Echo yells, trying to stop him, but he can't.

Fives buys the lollipop and returns to Echo, who is waiting for him outside the shop.

Echo sighs. "Happy now?"

Fives smiles and then shoves the lollipop in Echo's face. "Here, have a lick."

Echo cringes away. "Ew, no way!"

"It's just a lollipop," Fives says.

"I don't care," Echo huffs.

"But don't you want to know what flavor they made you?" Fives asks.

"No!" Echo says. "I don't have a flavor."

"But it looks like you," Fives says.

"I'm not sucking on something that looks like me," Echo says.

"Then it looks like me," Fives says.

"I'm not sucking on something that looks like you either!" Echo exclaims.

"It's kriffing sugar!" Fives retorts.

Rex taps his foot against the pavement, his arms crossed, while staring at his two arc troopers who are currently sitting handcuffed on the edge of the curb.

"Does someone want to tell me why the Coruscant Guard got called out here?" Rex asks.

Fives and Echo look away from each other in embarrassment.

Fox clears his throat. "Several passersby complained of two men in an altercation with one of them repeatedly yelling, 'suck on it'."

Rex takes a deep breath and pinches the bridge of his nose.

"We can expl–"

"Don't," Rex interjects with a wave of his hand. "I don't want to know."

Comic by @chiliger

Masterlist

AO3

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[cc--2224]

My Thoughts Will Echo Your Name...

Pairing: Echo x F!Reader (eventually)

Summary: After a recent breakup, Fives attempts to get you to leave your house to get yourself back out there, and to meet his closest brother before they ship out, and unfortunately it's very hard to say no to your best friend

Warnings: Drunk clones being jerks, mentions of cheating/gaslighting, alcohol mentions, mostly all fluff, until there's angst

Notes: Happy Echo day!! This will be a two-parter, I'm still working on the second part but my goal is to have it out before long

Word Count: 5.4k

Masterlist

"Fives, I'm serious, I don't feel like going out tonight." Your protests clearly meant nothing to your dear friend who showed up at your door while you were in your sleep clothes, half a bottle of wine deep.

"That's too bad." He said as he invited himself in. "Because you are." 

You glared at him as he walked past you. "I'm staying home." 

He sighed dramatically, "I barely have any off time, and you know we ship out tomorrow, will you please just come out with me while I have today?"

It was hard to say no to him, not that you'd ever tell him that, but after all that had happened, you had no energy to go out. "Why don't you just stay here? We can watch a movie, have another bottle of wine." You suggested.

"Well, normally I'd love that... but I kind of promised Echo I'd introduce you to him." He grinned, sheepishly rubbing the back of his neck.

 "Fives..." You groaned. "I don't want to be introduced to anyone." 

"Isn't it time for you to get back out there? I mean, Echo is way better than that other guy, I know you'll love him. He's just like me, but not as handsome or funny." 

"He's like you? So I won't like him at all then," you deadpanned.

"You wound me." He said dramatically before miraculously changing his tone. "Now let's go."

"You aren't taking no for an answer, are you?"

"Nope." He grinned. "Tell you what, just come with me to 79's, if you don't like him, or if you're not having fun, I'll pay for your cab home."

"How generous." You rolled your eyes. "Fine. Only to shut you up, I will go with you. Just let me get changed."

"Wear something hot!" He yelled as you walked toward your room, a grin plastered on his face knowing that he won.

"Kriff off." You answered, slamming your door behind you.

You barely had the energy to go out, you definitely didn't feel like wearing something hot. But you also knew Fives was relentless and if you walked out wearing jeans and a simple shirt, he'd march you back into your room and pick something out for you.

But maybe it wasn't a bad idea to go all out. After all, you were certain your ex had immediately gotten back out there after your breakup, in fact you were certain he'd gotten back out there before your breakup.

You shook your head in anger, then rifled through your closet, trying to find something that remotely resembled a club outfit, before you stopped at a dress Fives had gotten you as a joke. It was a cocktail dress, a bit short for your tastes with a deep v-shaped neckline, and of course in "501st Blue" as he put it.

You held it up to yourself, looking at it in the mirror, debating if it was a good choice or not.

"Hey you still have it!" Fives said, standing in the doorway.

You startled at the sudden intrusion. "Privacy?"

"You're taking too long. That's perfect, now put it on and let's go!"

Before you could complain, he closed the door behind him as he went back to the front room to wait for you.

You sighed and quickly changed into the dress before brushing out your hair and wiping away any remnants of yesterday's eyeliner, foregoing a new layer of makeup.

As you walked out of your room, you tugged on the hem of the dress, definitely too short for you, but before you had a chance to regret your choice, you felt Fives' hand on your arm, dragging you to the door.

"Can I at least put shoes on?"

He rolled his eyes, "I guess."

After you had thrown on a pair of black strappy heels, he was once again dragging you by the arm. You didn't even have a chance to fasten the straps, but you resigned yourself to having to figure it out in the cab.

"What's the hurry anyway? It's not like you have to leave tonight."

"I know, but it's never a bad thing to give ourselves more time."

"It's barely even dark yet," You pointed out as you exited your apartment building.

"Well maybe I told Echo we'd get something to eat first."

"Fives!"

"What? We're still going to 79s, just before it gets crowded and too loud for you guys to speak."

"How do you even know Echo will like me?"

"I just know." He flashed you a grin before hailing a cab over to you.

Once inside, you got to work on buckling up your shoes.

"Look," Fives said, his tone more serious than before. "Echo's a good guy, I obviously would never force you to meet him if I thought he wasn't going to like you, or if I thought you wouldn't like him."

"I know that," You told him, looking down at your lap, "I just... With the breakup and everything–"

"It's hard to put yourself out there again. I get it, but just... humor me, okay? And I swear, the second you tell me you want to leave, I'll get you out of there."

When you didn't answer immediately, Fives turned to you. His eyes met yours, seeing your hesitation immediately.

"We can turn around, it's not too late." He offered, his voice gave away that it wasn't really what he wanted, but you knew he'd hold to his word if you asked.

"I'm already dressed." You said, rolling your eyes slightly.

He leaned over and wrapped his arms around you. "I love you, thank you!"

"I know, now get off me." You joked, despite sinking into the hug.

The taxi stopped at the landing pad in front of 79's. You had barely had enough time to scan the area before you heard someone calling Fives' name.

You looked in the direction the voice came from and you saw him bounding over to you. As expected, he looked exactly like Fives, aside from his clean-shaven, tattooless face, and the prominent blue handprint painted on his chest plate.

He stopped in front of you, greeting Fives with a firm hug before looking to you.

You had caught him subtly looking you over, and for a moment you began feeling self-conscious about your outfit choice once again, but that melted when he extended his hand to shake yours.

"You must be Fives' friend, I'm Echo."

You gave him your name with a polite smile, taking his hand. "It's nice to meet you."

"Likewise, Fives has told me a lot about you."

You turned to your friend as if to ask what exactly he had been saying about you, but he changed the subject.

"Let's go inside, I'm starving!" He announced as he began walking toward the bar, leaving you and Echo to follow him.

Fives led the two of you to a booth, and once he had slid in, he stretched obnoxiously, forcing you to slide in next to Echo.

You ensured to keep your distance, trying to avoid getting too close to him, but you also made sure to give Fives a quick glare. He shrugged and grinned in response.

Once your orders were placed, Echo glanced to you.

"Fives tells me that you're a writer?"

"Well, trying to be." You admit. "I'm a journalist, but I want to write more creatively."

"What would you write about?" His curiosity is genuine, he didn't think he had ever met someone who wanted to write books before.

"Me, obviously." Fives chimed in from across the table. "I'd make an excellent hero."

You rolled your eyes, it isn't the first time he has indicated being the protagonist in a story you wrote.

You looked back to Echo and shrugged slightly, "I haven't really decided yet."

"Well, I can't wait to read it, whatever it ends up being." His voice was soft, he seemed excited about the idea, which is more than you could say for others.

Feeling warmth spread across your face, you looked back to the table quickly, just in time for your food to arrive.

The conversations were on and off as the three of you ate. They were mostly between Echo and Fives and you observed the two of them together, but occasionally you joined in as well.

Before long, your meals were done, and drinks had begun to be delivered to your table.

After one or two, Echo looked back and forth between you and Fives, before his gaze rested on you.

"Fives always talks about how good of friends you two are, but I'm curious, you've never... gone beyond that?"

You coughed into your cup before your laughter mingled with your coughing from the drink you inhaled.

"No," Was all you could say, and even that was strained.

You looked to Fives, who was laughing too. "I mean, I can't lie, look at her; she's beautiful. But, not my type."

Shaking your head at his compliment, you had finally cleared the liquid from your windpipe.

You looked to Echo and clarified. "Fives and I have been friends since he came to Coruscant, he asked me out, yeah, but we learned very early on that we were compatible only as friends."

Fives took another swig of his drink before giving you a knowing look. You raised an eyebrow as his focus turned to Echo.

"She's a bit too serious for me, y'know? Like she's smart, maybe a bit of a bookworm, would rather stay in and watch a holofilm, maybe that's why we work as friends. But honestly, she's more the kind of girl you like, Echo."

And there it was.

Your eyes widen slightly at his comment, before you attempt to drown your embarrassment with the remainder of your drink.

You can feel Echo shift slightly in his seat, and you decide it's a great time to go track down refills for the three of you.

Quickly getting up from your seat, you made a bee-line for the bar counter. Pushing through the group of clones that had begun to amass there.

You could feel their gazes upon you but you ignored them as you ordered drinks for your table and waited patiently.

Out of the corner of your eye, you could see the same blue handprint you had noticed earlier, and you turned to face Echo. He looked just as embarrassed as you, but he gave you an apologetic smile.

"I'm... That was uncalled for. Sorry that Fives embarrassed you like that."

You shook your head, "No, it's okay. Truthfully I saw it coming. I'm sorry that he put you on the spot."

"Don't worry about it. I mean, if anything, he's right."

His words took a moment to sink in, and the realization became present on your face as soon as they had.

"What do you mean?" You asked, trying not to jump to conclusions.

"I mean that, if how he described you is accurate, which I suspect it is, I'm the same way. This kind of place, it's fun, and I like coming here with the boys after a mission, but I prefer relaxing in my barracks, catching up on some reading, that kind of thing."

Before you could respond, another clone sitting at the bar turned to the two of you.

"Get a load of this guy, spends his time reading!" He slurred. "What a loser, you could do way better, doll."

He wasn't subtle about the way his eyes trailed up your body. He paused, looking at the hem of your dress, then his eyes continued upward, stopping at the deep-v neckline as he stared pointedly at your breasts.

You immediately felt yourself shrink away from his gaze as you could see him ogling you, but before you could say anything, you felt yourself being pulled backwards.

Echo had grabbed your arm and pulled you into him, shielding you from view while stepping between you and the other clone. He gave him a glare, but said nothing.

"You can't be serious, all that eyecandy for you?" The clone complained loudly. "Whatever, take the dumb chaakar back to your bunk and read to her. I bet that's why she wore that outfit." His tone was laced with sarcasm, and it wasn't lost on you.

Before either of you could react, the bartender arrived with your drinks. Both of you visibly relaxed and brought them back to the table.

Fives could tell something was up when he saw you approach, but Echo just shook his head, knowing that if he knew, his brother would cause something he'd have to clean up.

Echo slid into the booth first, and you followed. Once you were seated, still maintaining some distance from him, he inched slightly closer to you, resting his thigh against yours as a way to comfort you.

You took a sip of your drink and looked away from the table, not sure what to say.

Fives looked between you and Echo before you felt him nudge your foot from under the table. When you met his eye, he subtly nudged his head toward the door, silently asking if you wanted to leave.

You shook your head with a genuine smile and he relaxed.

"So what'd you guys talk about?" Fives finally asked.

"Insulting you, mostly." You answered, not skipping a beat.

"Only mostly? I'm offended."

"Not everything is about you, believe it or not." You smirked.

Echo took another swig of his drink. "I keep telling him that."

"If I had known this night would end up with you two teaming up against me, I'd have never brought you." Fives says with fake indignance, crossing his arms.

"You couldn't have expected anything different," you pointed out. "The two people who know you best, I'd say we make a pretty good team, wouldn't you agree, Echo?"

You smiled at him and he shifted in his seat a bit. "Y-Yeah, we do!"

With the drinks flowing, the three of you were able to continue your conversation, opening up more and more as the night went on.

You learned more about Fives that you probably could have gone your whole life without learning, but you also slowly started to get to know Echo.

It was almost as if you were both working on chipping away each others' quiet, introverted demeanors, until eventually, Echo chipped a bit too much.

"Fives had mentioned you weren't seeing anyone, it's not really my business but is there a reason for that?"

Your stunned reaction made him start to regret his question and he quickly back-pedaled. "That was a dumb question, you don't have to answer that."

"No, no it's fine I just..." You looked at Fives for support then back at your drink, before looking to Echo again. "I guess to make a long story short, my last partner cheated on me."

"A lot." Fives added in, earning a glare from you.

"I caught him with someone else, he tried to tell me it was nothing, that I was crazy for being upset, that I should have seen it coming, and every excuse in the book. Even accused me of cheating with Fives. But then the truth came out about everyone else he had been with." Your finger circled idly around your glass as you stared at the remaining liquid.

Echo was silent. It took a minute of silence before you finally looked over at him. His expression was something between confusion and anger as he processed what you told him.

"I..." He looked at Fives, "Is this guy still living?"

"Unfortunately yes." Fives answered, "Though I did ask if I could do the honours and kill him myself, but she said no."

"He wasn't worth the jail time you would have gotten." You said, your tone indicating that this wasn't the first time you had said it.

"I'm sorry." Echo looked back at you. His hand reaching out, then hesitating, then finally resting it on your shoulder. "I may not know you well, but from what I've learned and seen, it truly is his loss. I couldn't even imagine anyone throwing away a relationship with you."

You could feel yourself blush at his words, his voice was so genuine, he meant what he was saying. The way he looked into your eyes; maybe Fives was right and you would end up with a crush.

Fives looked back and forth between the two of you before smirking to himself and drinking the last sip of his beverage.

"I'm gonna go get us some refills. Be back in a minute."

After a moment, Echo removed his hand from your shoulder, but you were very aware of how his fingertips brushed your arm when doing so.

"So, what about you?" You asked after a beat.

"What do you mean?"

"Why aren't you seeing anyone?"

He rubbed the back of his neck. "Ah, well... it's kind of against regulation."

"So I've heard, but most of the people I've talked to seem to ignore that rule."

"Yeah, I guess I've just always been a stickler for the rules. And, I mean," a faint blush crept across his cheeks, "That clone at the bar wasn't wrong. Women aren't exactly lining up to spend time with me when there are more fun people out there."

"I'm here, aren't I?" You blurted out.

Once you realized what you said, your eyes widened and your gaze quickly turned back to your empty glass.

Echo chuckled quietly beside you. "Yeah, I guess you are."

You looked around nervously, not knowing what to say. You glanced toward the bar before looking back at Echo. "Fives has been gone a while, I think I'll go check that he can handle the drinks."

"You sure? I could go if you want, I don't want anyone to bother you again."

You smiled, appreciative of his concern.  "I'll be alright."

"If you say so," He shrugged, "I'll be here."

You gently rested your hand on his before you got up from the bench. As soon as he couldn't see your face, your eyes widened in panic wondering why you did that. Echo only stared after you, smiling.

When you approached the bar, you found Fives right away, leaning against the counter and talking to another clone as he waited on your drinks.

The other clone turned to you as soon as he noticed you approach.

Of course he was the same one as earlier.

"Back already?" He asked, "What, did he finally bore you?"

You rolled your eyes, and without looking at him, you replied flatly. "Quite the opposite."

Fives raised an eyebrow at your exhange, "Did I miss something?"

"Just glad I get to admire the scenery again."

You visibly cringed, but you did your best to ignore him as you focused on Fives. "I just came up to see if you needed help with the drinks."

Fives, still confused, nodded. "Yeah, sure. You gonna tell me what's going on?"

"Just some jagyc thinking he can take me home." You explained as if he wasn't right beside you. Your Mando'a wasn't great, but you'd heard quite a few insults in the time you've spent with Fives.

"What, you already get bored of Booksmart? Moved onto someone else? Or are you just some barrack bunny trying to get as many clones as possible?"

"Ease up, maybe you've had a bit too much to drink." Fives said with an uncharacteristically serious voice. "She's not interested, and the next time you insult her, you'll be doing so without teeth."

Before he could say anything else, the bartender arrived with your drinks. You took yours while Fives grabbed the other two, but you hesitated as you were walking away.

"Everything okay?" Fives was concerned when you suddenly stopped.

"Actually I–" You stared down at your feet.

"You want to go home? I'd understand, that clone was out of line."

"No it's not that... I just, need to talk to you."

He raised an eyebrow, "What's up?"

"There's not really an ideal time to say this, and as much as it pains me to admit... You were right. While you were up here, Echo and I started talking and... I don't know, he's sweet."

Fives' confused face turned into a grin as soon as you said he was right. "So what are you saying? You like him?"

"I don't know..." You could feel heat flooding your cheeks. "I won't make any guarantees, but I want to get to know him better."

"That could be arranged, leave it to me!"

Before you could say anything, Fives turned around and started walking back to your table.

"Wait, Fives, no!" You trailed behind him, terrified of what he meant. What was he going to do?

When you got back to the table and slid into the booth, you eyed Fives cautiously.

"So, Echo," Fives started and you felt a pit grow in your stomach. "Got any plans for after the mission?"

He shrugged, "Nothing out of the ordinary."

"I think you should change up your routine. Why don't you two go on a date?" Fives said, gesturing to both of you.

Your eyes widened and your knew your face had to be beet red by now. You couldn't even turn your head to look at Echo.

"Oh, really? Why us?" He asked, genuine curiosity in his voice.

"Well I mean, you seem to get along pretty well, you have stuff in common, I think you'd really hit it off without me sitting across from you."

Echo paused before answering again. He looked over at you and noticed you wouldn't meet his gaze. "What do you think?"

Slowly, you turned your head to face him. "I mean... if you want to, I wouldn't mind." Your voice was quiet as you desperately tried to hide your nerves.

He gave you a sweet smile, "Then I guess it's a date, as soon as we're back."

Fives smiled between the two of you then gave you a wink when you finally looked back at him.

"Where are you guys shipping off to, anyway?"

Fives shrugged, "Lola Sayu, some kind of fortress or something. Shouldn't be too long, it's just a retrieval mission."

"Do you want me to head to the landing dock tomorrow morning as usual?"

"Usual?" Echo repeated.

"Yeah she normally sends us off, maybe you've never noticed." He turned back to you, "I don't think you'll be able to this time, the general said we have to take an alternate means of transport."

Your shoulders sank slightly, "Oh, I see. That sounds interesting though. I'll just have to send you luck when we're done here."

Fives smiled, downing the last of his drink. "We should probably get going soon, early start and all."

You and Echo finished your respective drinks after him and nodded, slowly shuffling out of the booth, heading toward the exit.

There were more clones gathered outside now, and the cool nighttime air on your skin made you shiver.

Fives hailed a taxi as you and Echo hung back, not really sure what to say to each other now.

Once the cab arrived, Fives let you go in first, followed by Echo and then himself.

"Two stops," you told the droid before giving it your address, but you were cut off by Fives before you could tell it the second stop.

"Just the one stop."

You looked at him with an eyebrow raised in confusion.

"We won't see you tomorrow, I'm not accepting a half-assed goodbye from the cab."

You rolled your eyes, "Fine."

Once the taxi arrived at the landing dock outside of your apartment, the three of you left the vehicle, one after the other.

Fives scooped you up into a big hug as soon as you exited the cab, holding you tight against his chest. You wrapped your arms around his shoulders.

"Try not to miss us too much, got it?" He said into your shoulder. You smiled and tightened your side of the hug.

"Try not to get blown up." You joked.

You could feel him smile before he broke the hug, looking into your eyes. You rested a hand against his cheek gently.

"Comm me as soon as you can. And stay safe." You looked at Echo then back to Fives. "Keep each other safe."

"Of course," Fives replied before giving you a soft kiss on your forehead then stepping away so you could talk to Echo.

The two of you exchanged a slightly more awkward albeit friendly hug.

"You don't get blown up either." You told him with a half-smile.

"I'll try not to. We've got a date when I get back." He reminded you.

"It was nice meeting you. I'm looking forward to getting to know you better."

He smiled as his cheeks and ears flushed slightly pink. "Likewise."

You took a step toward him before kissing his cheek. "Stay safe."

"Of-of course." His hand rested against his cheek where you kissed him. "I'll let you know when I get back."

You smiled at him. Fives approached the two of you again.

"We should get back to the barracks, Rex won't be happy if we're too late."

"I don't want to keep you. Just, be careful. I'll see you both when you get back!"

You watched as they hailed another taxi and boarded. Once the transport was out of sight, you walked into your apartment building, already looking forward to the day they returned.

– – –

One night, a couple of weeks following your night at 79s, you were woken up to the sound of a fist slamming on your door. You jolted upright, hesitating if you should answer it or not.

You sat in your bed, trying to stop yourself from trembling as you waited with bated breath if whoever was at your door would knock again.

They did, only softer this time.

Slowly, you crept out of your bedroom, trying to make as little sound as possible before you finally made it to the front door. You pressed your ear against it, hoping to hear who was on the other side, but they didn't make a sound between knocks.

"Wh-who's there?" You asked, shakily.

"Please open the door, it's Fives." You visibly relaxed before unlocking and opening the door for your friend.

Before you could say anything, he wrapped his arms around you, pulling you into his chest, just as he did the night before he left.

"I'm sorry." He said, barely a whisper.

You backed away from his embrace and you moved to close and lock your front door, turning the hall light on once it was closed.

"I didn't know you were back, you should have commed me!" You told him, assuming his apology was for his extended time away.

"We just got back, I sent you a message but I guess you were asleep. I..." He looked down and you could see his jaw clench as he balled his hands into fists. "I couldn't..."

He trailed off and your smile fell. "Is everything okay?"

He looked away, not meeting your gaze, until you placed your hand on his cheek, forcing him to look at you.

"Fives, what's wrong?"

"It's... it's Echo." His voice broke slightly and you could feel the pain in your chest caused by his sadness. "I tried to stop him but he–"

You could see his eyes start to water before he could get the words out, and he melted into your palm. You pulled him into another embrace, gently stroking his hair.

"Why don't you sit down and tell me what happened?" You suggested. It was strange to see Fives so upset, in all the time you've been friends, you couldn't think of a time where he's been angry in front of you, let alone crying. You took his hand and led him to the couch.

Once he was seated, he brought his hand to his face, trying to sneakily wipe away tears as if he didn't want you to see them.

"Echo's dead." He said after a long pause. "Droids blew up our ship, Echo tried to defend it."

"I see." You couldn't think of what to say.

Words of comfort usually came so naturally to you, but you were speechless. It's true you didn't know Echo very well, even after your night out, but the news made your heart ache. You had been looking forward to seeing him again, to going on your date, and all of that had been taken away, but more importantly, Fives just lost one of his brothers.

You looked over at Fives who was already looking at you. He didn't know how you'd take the news and he was worried.

"I'm sorry, Fives. I didn't know him well, but he didn't deserve that."

"Him and I were the last of our original squad and now I'm alone, I couldnt even retrieve his helmet." He sighed, "And you were supposed to go out with him after, I told you I'd keep him safe."

"Hey, don't worry about me. I'm sad that he's gone, believe me, but I just want to make sure you're okay."

"I've lost brothers before, it's what we were created for, but... It's not right. Echo deserved to live."

"You all do. Just because you were created for war doesn't mean you have to just accept your fate or anyone else's." You shook your head. "It's late, and I don't want you to be alone right now. Do you want to stay over?"

"Yeah, that would be nice. Thank you."

"Of course." You leaned over on the sofa, kissing his temple before wrapping your arms around him. "We can talk more about it in the morning, okay?"

"Sorry for waking you up."

"I'm glad you did."

You stood up from the couch to grabs Fives a pillow and some blankets you had stored nearby for this exact reason. 

"If you need anything, help yourself. Get some sleep, okay?"

"I'll do my best."

You walked back to your room and laid back down in your bed. Suddenly the full wave of everything he told you hit you and you could feel your eyes water.

You didn't feel it was right for you to cry over someone you barely knew, it felt selfish to mourn someone you wanted to get to know better. You couldn't shake the thought of what could have been.

Your chest ached with sadness and longing, wishing he could have made it through. Fives was right, Echo deserved to live.

While you were alone you allowed yourself to cry for him, but you knew you had to be strong for Fives. He wouldn't forgive himself if he saw you cry, and he didn't need that guilt. You could get through this. You just wished you could see him again.

As you lay, staring at the ceiling, you heard a gentle knock on your bedroom door. You hastily wiped any tears from your face and turned on the lamp beside your bed.

"Come in." You called out, before the door opened.

Fives looked as though he wanted to say something, but couldn't voice it. He shied away in embarrassment before you offered him a gentle smile.

"If you want to stay in here, that's okay."

"Thanks..." he muttered before walking around to the other side of your bed. "I'm sorry I just.."

"You don't want to be alone, I understand. Come here." You invited him toward you with open arms, and he moved closer to you, laying his head on your chest. You gently stroked his hair.

"I'm sorry."

"There's nothing you need to apologize for."

"I shouldn't have asked you to come out with us that night."

"I'm glad I did. It's true that I didn't get to know him well, but I'm glad that I met him. And I feel more equipped to help you now because I did."

"You're allowed to be upset too, you know. You don't have to comfort me. Echo wouldn't shut up about your date, it was actually getting pretty annoying, I'm just sorry he couldn't be here for it."

"Thank you for telling me that." In a weird way it did make you feel better, and it helped that Fives could still make fun of his brother despite the circumstances. "I'll be okay, though. And I'll be here for you whenever you need me."

Fives smiled slightly and closed his eyes, allowing himself to finally find sleep, and you followed shortly after.

[lonewolflupe]

Battle Scars (One-Shot)

This was inspired by @fea-warriorheart's recent post. Seeing how Echo reacted to the medbay in 'Aftermath' TBB S1E01 (after the food fight), it's only reasonable to think he would have a hard time coping with the procedure to remove his biochip. And of course I had to add some Fives, since there was only one mention of him in three seasons of TBB. I'm not bitter about that at all

Summary: when Captain Rex brings the Bad Batch aboard a Venator-class cruiser to extract their biochips inside the ship's decommissioned medical facility, Echo has a hard time dealing with memories from his past (or in short: TBB Echo's POV on their biochip removals (TBB S1E07)) Rating: Teen and up Tags: light angst, light triggering of PTSD, emotional hurt/comfort, SFW Words: 821 Characters: CT-1409 Echo, CT-7567 Captain Rex, CT-9901 Hunter, CT-9902 Tech, CT-9903 Wrecker, Omega; mentions of: ARC-5555 Fives Read this one-shot here on AO3

“Is it supposed to take this long?” Echo asked with concern, turning towards Rex. Wrecker was still inside the surgical pod, and Echo was becoming restless. Not only did he fear for his brother’s well-being after the procedure and his prior rampage, but he dreaded the moment it was his turn. “I’m not sure. I’ve never been on this end of it,” Rex replied slowly, averting his puzzled gaze from Echo.

The machine hummed as Tech’s fingers slid over the console’s various buttons, before he exclaimed: “The procedure’s complete.” With a whirring sound, the surgical bed with Wrecker on top of it slid out of the illuminated tube. Omega walked over to Wrecker expectantly, but he wouldn’t wake.

A nauseating feeling took a hold on Echo. The air was pushed from his lungs, and it felt like an invisible grasp took a hold of his throat, tightening it, making it hard to breathe. His chest started heaving, his eyes darting around the medbay. The humming of the pod, the whirring of the machinery, the blue illumination of the tube, the flickering of the lights around them. It brought him back to a place where his body and his mind hadn’t been his own.

He was shaken from his thoughts when Omega firmly insisted she would stay at Wrecker’s side until he would wake up. Rex turned around from his conversation with Hunter, which had been lost on Echo, and when he did, he noticed Echo’s shaken state. His face softened, and after a moment of silence in which he contemplated his next move, he gestured towards the ARC trooper. “Echo, with me,” Rex shot at him, in an urgent yet kind way. Echo nodded sharply before following the Captain outside the medbay.

As soon as he made it outside the room, every ounce of restraint crumbled down. “Rex, I-I-I.. I’m not sure if I can do this,” he confessed with a shaky voice, his widened eyes darting around as he tried catching his breath. Rex put a hand on Echo’s arm, trying to ease him, to snap him out of his panicking state. “Echo, it will be okay,” he started, his voice slow and comforting. “I know this is hard, but it is way more dangerous to keep it inside your head.”

Echo opened his mouth to reply, but it took a moment before the words came out. “I-I’m not sure, Rex. I survived long enough with dangerous matter in my head.” A faint smile appeared on Rex’s face, but there was pain behind the Captain’s eyes. “I’ve seen what it does to our brothers. I am not ready to bury any more of them,” he said softly, almost in a whisper, before continuing: “Please, do it for Fives. We.. I owe it to him.”

Fives. Echo swallowed when Rex mentioned him. Focusing on his lost brother helped him distract his thoughts from the imminent procedure. Rex averted his gaze from Echo, lost in his own thoughts. “He figured it out and I wasn’t there to save him. I can’t bear to lose you too - not again. Please, Echo.” He was almost begging him, and when Rex looked back at him, Echo couldn’t help but notice the Captain’s vulnerability. It was only for a moment before Rex regained himself.

“I-I should have been there. I-” Echo stammered, until Rex interrupted him. “Echo, please. You couldn’t, so don’t let the guilt consume you. He’d understand. If we knew you were alive earlier, he.. He’d been first in line to get you out.”

The words hit him like an elevated speeder train. He tried swallowing the lump in his throat. “Alright, I.. I’ll do it for Fives,” he said at last, granting the Captain another sharp nod. Rex smiled at him whilst briefly patting his shoulder piece. “Good man. Thank you, Echo,” he said softly. Echo took a deep breath and walked back into the medbay to check on Wrecker. Rex lingered for a moment longer, leaning against the medbay’s doorpost. He took his helmet between his hands and turned it around, deeply lost in thoughts.

---

The surgical bed felt cold against the back of his head as Echo tried laying still. The bright, blue illumination of the tube shone on him ominously, as the pod was ready to devour him. His chest started heaving again, his hand clenched in a fist as his widened eyes darted around. He wasn’t sure if he could make it through this procedure.

Just when Tech was ready to inject him with anaesthesia, Rex appeared on his other side. “Echo, we’re right here. If anything happens, we’ll pull you out. Understood?” Trying to focus on Rex’s calming voice, Echo nodded hesitantly, his lips parted to let out shaky breaths. But he knew Rex was right; he had to pull through. He had to get that chip out. For Fives. So his brother’s death wouldn’t be in vain.

Echo taglist: @welcometo79s @covert1ntrovert

[mermaid-of-the-woods]

Clones as Things I've Done At Work

So...I work at an interesting job. Here's things that have happened the past year at my job and which clone it relates to.

Hunter: Said something stupid not realizing it was an insult. 

Crosshair: Glared at Someone for saying something stupid for twenty minutes. 

Wrecker: Spilled Molasses down my shirt pouring it into mason jars to sell 

Tech: Info dumped on a visitor because they asked a question 

Echo: Sat in for twenty minutes on my bosses gossiping without them remembering I’m in the room 

Omega: Hid under a table for a day because it was blocking my desk and we had to wait to put stuff up until the next day 

Fives: Made faces at visitors asking stupid questions when they weren’t looking 

Rex: Complained about the weird questions I’ve got no matter how much I enjoyed them. 

Fox: Drank 4 energy drinks in one weekend because we had two paranormal investigations in a weekend, was working a database of every public media outlet in the state, and writing a paper for grad school during my breaks 

Cody: Locking myself in the back room, refusing to work to take a 7 hour long final exam (boss approval beforehand) 

Wolfe: Spinning in my chair attempting to understand the words on the document I’ve been reading for 3 hours straight, still on the first page. 

Gregor: Yelled at the ghosts that haunt the historic home for bullying new employees. 

[fallendomino99]

Domino Twins AO3 Appreciation Post

Here are some of my fave Domino Twins fics:

I'll Find You Again by Intjtaurus

Pick Up the Pieces by JGVFHL

repeat ad nauseam by WarriorHeart

I'm not a reg. Not anymore. Am I? by silvermoongirl10

A Fox's Bark Is Worse Than His Bite by GriffinStone

Basically just a variety of Echo and Fives reunions. Have a nice day!

[batchedzine]

🍪 Contributor Previews 🍪

Our first batch of contributor previews have been prepared for your sampling pleasure!

🥧 @jigget has cooked up a piece featuring Fives, Echo, Rex, Jesse, Kix, and Tup

🍨 @owliix has mixed up the command batch to bring us Cody, Wolffe, Fox, Bly, Ponds, and Alpha-17

🥨 shevek has baked a lovely story featuring Sister

Preorders for Batched are open now through October 31!

🧁Preorder here!🧁

[rendomski]

The Domino Effect

Summary: Shaak Ti was often tempted to save some clone kids. AU, where she finally goes for it. And the ties of siblinghood run strong among the clones.

An impromptu ficlet, ~1000 words. Enjoy 🙂.

Force acts in mysterious ways, thinks Shaak Ti when she walks by the cadet barracks late in their night cycle and overhears the argument. Apparently, someone who doesn’t want to be called Hevy decided to go AWOL, and 99 is trying to persuade him otherwise.

Supervising kids that are raised with a sole purpose—to fight and die for the Republic—is a morally challenging task. Shaak has been tempted multiple times just to take on board as many kids as she can and whisk them far from this madness. Something tips the scales, finally, as she steps into the vast barracks and speaks, “So, you want to get away, cadet?”

They both freeze in shock.

“No, General, sir. Hevy wasn’t going to—” 99 begins, but not-Hevy interrupts him, staring with a desperate defiance.

“Yes, sir. I was planning to go AWOL.”

Shaak stares him back, but the kid, almost a grown-up—or what goes as grown-up nowadays, the cadets are shipped away even at a younger age than at the beginning of the war—does not budge.

“Alright,” says Shaak. “Is this your stuff? Take it and let’s go to my ship.”

“Sir?”

“You want to go AWOL? I can take you off-world on my ship. No one would dare search for you there.”

Not-Hevy grabs the bag with whatever he can claim as his own, but then hesitates.

“Sir, with your permission. My brother, CT-4040. Trainer Bric has it against him. He would do anything so that CT-4040 doesn’t pass his final test.” His eyes go wider as it dawns upon him how implausible the chance Shaak is offering him and how close he might be to failure by asking even more of her. He finishes nonetheless. “May I… may you take him away, too?”

Shaak’s confidence that she is doing the right thing blooms.

“Yes. You may take your brother with you.”

***

“Sir?”

“Yes, CT-4040?”

“Cutup, sir. My name is Cutup,” he glances at CT-782, who is stubbornly not Hevy. “Since tonight. So… Droidbait. CT-782, we’re not leaving him behind, like we did during the simulation, do we?”

Leaving behind during the simulation, this sounds very familiar. “Cadets, what squad are you from?” Shaak asks and nods upon the name, knowing already what comes. “I understand. Go for your brother, and bring Fives and CT-1409 along, too.”

***

“99, I am not leaving without you. We all owe you.”

The aged clone shakes his head, “No, Hevy. You go with the General. As for me, there are a few other troubled brothers that need my support here.”

Of course, five pairs of near-identical eyes stare at Shaak hopefully at the words. “General? You have some more space on your ship, don’t you, sir?”

She sighs. “Just be quiet. It is getting serious, so from now on, let's make it a stealth mission.”

“You've heard the General. It is a stealth mission.”

Exasperated groans, “We're standing right here, Echo,” follow.

***

“Sir?” Fives tugs at her sleeve with suspicious shyness. “It may sound crazy, but… Well, there is a girl here.”

“Oh, not again!”

“Don’t listen to him, General. He is making it all up. He has never met a girl in his life.”

“Well, I did! I keep telling you, and you idiots, refuse to believe me!” Fives snaps. “Sir, there is a girl here, working in the hospital. I met her. I talked to her.”

***

There is a girl, indeed. Experimental Medical Researcher 003, EMR-003 for short, whom Shaak has never met and never seen in any official documents. Moreso, she has never even heard of the Jango female clone program. And this gets extremely suspicious now. Her hunting instincts and the Force both sing to her that she is on the trail of something bigger.

“I am not the only one here, sir. There is one more girl, at least. She is different, but she is also one of us. I can get her out of the lab, I know the way.”

***

Another girl is different, for sure. Shaak can't grasp what is different about this kid—a five-year-old cadet at the most. Not the blond hair, there is a number of blond cadets around. There is something else, something elusive.

“Oh, you want to take us all off-world?” Omega, not EMR-something, notes Shaak, looks at the gang of clones with contagious joy and amazement. Cutup winks at her, and she waves back at him enthusiastically. “We must take my brothers with us!”

“We are all your brothers,” says no-longer-CT-1409-but-still-rather-reluctant Echo serenely.

“I know! But those are… They are my little brothers! And,” she saddens, her childish voice dropping almost to a whisper. “There are only four of them left.”

Shaak sighs. Alright, four more little kids, not a big difference.

***

…they happen to be not quite little kids, and it is finally clear what is different about Omega. The list of questions and problems grows ever longer. Shaak has hunted down and bitten more than she can chew.

She needs to take someone into the partnership in crime—Plo, most likely. And Obi Wan, who found Kamino in the first place, may have some valuable insights…

But first things first. Her navicomputer is still calculating the hyperspace route when a fight erupts in the back of the ship. And Fives is proudly showing EMR-003 around the ship, despite being here for the first time himself. Half of his explanations are totally wrong. Lanky, bespectacled cadet who has confidently strapped himself in the copilot seat and already asked Shaak three questions in a row, turns around and begins to correct him. Someone is asking loudly over the clamour whether her Jedi ship is equipped with guns.

Only 99 gazes silently into the starry void, mesmerised. Looking in his wizened face, Shaak Ti realises that this is his first time in space, despite his long and respectable age of thirteen.

[oceansssblue]

might i request: with either tech or echo, the choice is yours

jedi f!reader- she gets fatally injured on a mission in order to protect the rest of the bad batch and dies in his arms

after her death, she appears to him as a force ghost while he is grieving, provides comfort

thanks!!!

Angsty one with Echo coming right up! Can life throw anything else to this poor man? 🥹💔

At least he got some healing&comfort at the end. Hope you like it!

Xx,

Sky.

"THE GHOST OF YOU"

ECHO/GHOST!F READER 📩💔(💖)

WARNINGS: DEATH OF MAIN CHARACTER (AKA YOU) AND APPEARING AS A FORCE GHOST, SADNESS, CRYING, HEARTACHE, MENTIONS OF WAR AND BEING TIRED AS IN BEING TIRED OF FIGHTING&LIFE, DEEP CONVERSATION, COMFORT.

Echo stared at the dried blood staining his hand. He could feel his emotions swirling restlessly inside of him; threatening to spill and destroy everything in its way in just a matter of seconds or minutes. He was alone in the barracks of Clone Force 99; Hunter reporting their disastrous mission to the Jedi while the rest swallowed their pain down and tried to let it drain in the shower.

Echo had done his best not to crumble in battle either. When his general had been on his arms back on the Marauder on their way back to Kamino, though, he's voice had being pannicked and desperate; he literally begged you not to leave him, to "please, please, stay with me". You had answered with a pained tired smile and fluttering eyes; a broken whisper of a "I'll always be with you, my Echo" the last words that left your lips.

You hadn't. You hadn't stayed; you had died on that next moment, your eyes shutting closed and your body growing limp, and all Echo could do was hold what was left of you in his trembling arms, his heart shattering in a million pieces while he fought not to let an ugly loud sob out, needing to be in private before he allowed himself to break down.

Tears blurred his vision again, his own body slumping down on the floor this time; and the tide of his emotions finally ripped his soul, body shaking uncontrollably with his broken cries and sobs. He closed his eyes shut, bending down on himself until his forehead pressed against the cold floor; trying to hold himself together through the heartache and pain.

Tears wet his cheeks. Flashes of his moments with you runned through his mind. Some happy, some soft and vulnerable, some sad and angry. All of his lost oportunities were relived too; all of his regrets of not having persued anything further with you. All of his childish hopes, dreams and desires washed away by the emptiness of your abscence.

His cries turned to small quiet whimpers and sounds when he pressed his jaw shut. He was so tired. He was so tired of fighting one time after another, of loved ones being taken away from him, of him always pushing through under the worst conditions only to be forced to live through this constant heartache. He just...

"Don't wanna do this anymore" he whinned to himself, shaking against the floor, eyes still closed. "Please..."

He didn't know who he was begging to; but he did know for what. He wanted the pain to go away. Wanted his loved ones to come back. Wanted to...

"Echo" a soft, gentle voice whispered at his side.

Recognising said voice, Echo quickly rightened himself to a sitting position, prosthetic knees scrapping against the floor; eyes shooting upwards.

"C-cyare?" his voice could barely be heard in the quietness of the room.

His breath hitched when you nodded and sadly smiled. It was you; the shape of your body and features perfectly recognisable even in this blue, translucent, wavering tone. Echo quickly understood; you were a Force ghost. He had heard it before.

"Cyare..." he called you, voice trembling, before breaking down into another cry again.

Echo felt your presence by his shoulder; almost as if you were touching him, even if he knew that that couldn't be possible like this.

"I'm sorry, Echo" you whispered, softly. "But I'm glad you're all okay".

Echo wanted to snap at you. Wanted to shout that they hadn't needed your help, that the Batch could defend themselves; but the truth was that they would have died without your sacrifice, and it wasn't fair to put it on you. Echo always knew of your devotion to helping others; he knew you would do it all over again.

He took a deep breath in and tried to calm himself. He stared at your Force ghost.

"You know I loved you, right?" He told you, voice unwavering, feelings vulnerable and completely exposed to you.

The raw emotions in his eyes and face would have made your heart ache if you could still feel one. You slowly sat down in front of him.

"I know" you smiled, a tiny fond thing.

Echo felt relieved upon hearing the answer; and confused as well. You could almost hear his question. Then why didn't you do anything about it?

"I had made an oath to the Order" you gently, patiently explained. "No attachments. You always made my promise start to crumble. Now... I wish I had forgotten about it and used my time better".

Echo closed his eyes and saved those words in his soul.

He opened then again and looked at you. He looked like a lost child, your beautiful Echo.

"I don't know how to carry on" he whispered, broken.

You tried to send a wave of the Force to comfort him.

"You have good brothers that will help you to move on" you soothed him, gentle.

Echo sighed and glanced down at the floor.

"I'm tired of this war".

You couldn't tell him much else.

"I know".

Silence reigned for a few seconds before Echo looked back at you.

"Have you... Fives?" He temptitavely asked, hope in his resignment.

You smiled.

"There's a process to become a Force ghost" you explained. "It's easier for the Jedi to complete. But I've felt his esence. He's here. I'll try to help him reach that state".

Echo nodded, smiling sadly.

"Good. Good" he mumbled, exhausted.

Sleep was tugging at the corners of his mind; his emotions draining the last of his energy. He didn't think he'd have strength to even move to the hammock on the other side of the room.

"Will you stay a bit longer?" He asked, blinking slowly, body dropping to one side.

You nodded softly.

"I can't stay permanently, but I'll stay now. And I'll be here in the future if you need me as well. I'll always keep an eye on you, Echo".

You caressed his cheek even if you couldn't feel the warmth of his skin like that.

Echo sighed pleasantly. He did feel a tingling sensation on his cheek. He wasn't totally alone. Never would be.

"Thank you" he whispered, eyes finally closing, body growing lax against the floor.

You smile and keep on comforting him.

"Just find strength in your new family, love. Fives and I will wait for you. You'll help me keep his Force ghost from terrorising shinnies" you joke, quietly.

Echo hums; the thought pulling a soft smile on his lips before sleep finally takes him away.

You stay until you hear the Batch's tired steps making his way back to their barracks, and you know they'll take care of him.

THE END.

••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

*Cries*

Back to main masterlist here:

[slotmachines-fearofgod]

babby ahsoka + twins

Please enjoy this not proofread not edited not ready WIP! we need more baby ahsoka & clones in the world

---

For the first time in his (relatively short) life Rex was at a loss. 

They were investigating some temple on behalf of the Jedi. Anakin had been sent because of his intense attunement to the Force and the 501st had happily followed his lead. Rex hadn’t gotten much out of the man, just that the Jedi would know what to do and all he needed to worry about was following their lead. 

Rex was going to kill him. 

When they first landed and entered nothing had seemed off. It was an old, crumbling structure built by neither Jedi nor Sith millenia ago. The Jedi wanted it investigated due to the strange flow of energy around it, an energy that had steadily been increasing over the past month until the signal reached Coruscant itself. Rex had braced himself for mental games or mind tricks but there had been nothing. 

In fact, there had been so little sign of anything that Anakin decided it would be best for them to split up. Coming as a surprise to no one Ahsoka took Fives, Echo, and Rex along with her down the side passageways, leading them through a winding maze Rex wasn’t sure he’d be able to figure out on his own. 

Which was what led them here. 

Rex stared down at the three children in front of him and felt the vague urge to cry.

Fives blinked up at him, his big eyes full of curiosity as he looked at Rex’s armor. Rex, still frozen from where he’d busted through the door that had trapped his compatriots, watched as his second waddled up to him and grabbed his kama. 

“Fives?” Rex croaked, incredibly out of his depth. 

Fives laughed brightly, “See Echo! I told you it would catch on.”

Echo, now half his original size, scowled, “No fair. Why do you get the fun name?”

Ahsoka, his little commander, his almost-sister, his charge, stuck her finger in her mouth and immediately jammed it into Echo’s ear. 

Echo yelped, scurrying away from the girl who was grinning with her fangs out, “Ew!”

“What’s your name?” Ahsoka asked, seemingly innocent. 

Echo grumbled quietly so they couldn’t hear, still trying to wipe the spit out of his ear. 

Fives ran over to him, laughing all the way, “It’s Echo! It’s ‘cause he only repeats what the trainers say!”

“Shut up!” Echo’s face lit up red as he smacked his brother, “I do not!”

“Ow!” Fives whined, rearing up to hit Echo back, “Don’t be such a tubie!”

“I hate you,” Echo growled, “Stop being so mean.”

“I’m Ahsoka!”

Both clone cadets momentarily paused to look at the togruta girl. 

“I’m a Jedi!”

And with that their feud was forgotten. Rex sighed and walked over, accepting that this was his life now, as Echo launched question after question at a giggling Ahsoka. Fives was trying to bodily drag her away to see her do “cool Force shit,” leaving Rex to wade in between the pack to pick up the little padawan. 

“Hey,” Fives complained, “Give her back.”

“Hush,” Rex fixed him with a look, “Give me a sitrep cadet.”

Fives rolled his eyes, a move that would’ve gotten him another hour of training at the least on Kamino, while Echo stiffened into a less than perfect parade rest. 

“Sir!” Echo started, his voice just a little too loud in the echoing chamber, “Myself and CT-5555 were enjoying our downtime in the bunks. We were taking the allotted rest period to sleep and woke up here in this…where are we? Sir.”

Rex sighed, rubbing his eyes with his free hand, “We are on the planet Erot in the Outer Rim. As for the name of this place, I was not granted access to that information.”

All three kids' eyes widened. 

“Outer Rim?” Ahsoka asked, “That’s so cool!”

Rex shifted her onto his hip so she’d be easier to carry. If he had to guess, they were all about five or six standard years. They could speak plainly and fluently and had little coordination issues, but they were much younger then they’d been a mere five minutes ago. 

“Ahsoka,” Rex started, “Do you remember what you were doing in this room?”

Ahsoka shook her head, now looking around the space, “No. I was in the creche with Uzaa and we were going to class with Master Che. I was late.” Ahsoka looked down sheepishly, a blush of her own on her face. 

Rex smiled weakly, “It’s alright. We’ll work it out.”

“Who are you?” Fives piped up, never content with being silent too long. 

“I’m Rex,” he could answer that at least, “Captain Rex.”

“Captain?” Echo looked up at him with something like admiration, “Wow. Does that mean the war has started?”

“What war?” Ahsoka asked, now alarmedly squirming in Rex’s arms, “Why do you all look the same?”

Rex winced, “It…may be best if we regroup before we talk about everything,” he said apologetically, “But I’ll explain.”

Ahsoka frowned, wiggling so much that Rex gave up and just set her down, “Okay. Are we going back home?”

That was a good question. Right now Rex wasn’t sure what to do with his sort-of soldiers. And there was no way he was getting back through the tunnel system without a guide to help. 

Rex looked around the room, searching for clues or hints of what did this to them. There were strange carvings on the floor in the center and metal piping running along the ceiling, but other than that the place seemed empty. Devoid of anything and everything except for the group of four at the door. 

Rex pinched his nose as he pulled up his comm, already dreading this call. 

“Skywalker here, what’s your status Rex?”

“Uh,” Rex looked down at three innocent and eager faces, “I need a rendezvous at my position ASAP.”

“What?” Skywalker’s voice changed, now startled and anxious instead of cool and collected, “What happened to Ahsoka? She can’t lead you?”

Ahsoka gasped, “He knows me?”

“...What was that?”

“That is my predicament sir,” Rex sighed again, “I believe your padawan activated something. ARC troopers Fives and Echo are down along with Tano.”

“ARC trooper?!” Fives cried in excitement, now bouncing on his toes, “We make ARC troopers?”

Rex gave all three of them a scolding look and pressed a finger to his lips. They all looked down at their feet, adequately shamed. 

“Riiight,” Skywalker drawled, “Sounds like I should see this myself. I’ll be there in a few minutes.”

“Bring Kix please,” Rex tiredly requested.

“Of course,” Skywalker sounded less upset now. It helped soothe some of Rex’s own nerves as he mentally cussed out stupid Force shit in every language he knew. “I look forward to seeing what this is about.”

Rex let out a breath of relief as the call ended. He sat heavily next to the kids, staring blankly at the wall in front of him. 

At least until Echo rounded in front of him. 

“Captain?” Echo asked in a small voice.

“Yeah?” 

“Are we in trouble?”

Rex softened a bit and shook his head, “No. It’s just been a long day.”

Echo hummed, “So is it true? Has the war started?”

Ah yes. The great war. The one they used to dream about as kids. Their strange light at the end of the tunnel. 

“Yeah,” Rex said hoarsely, staring into Echo’s eyes and suddenly being hit with the realization that this Echo’s brothers were still alive, “It’s started.”

Echo frowned, “But you’re not an A clone. Why are you deployed?”

Rex shook his head, “It’s complicated. We’ll explain later, I promise.”

Echo seemed unhappy with that answer, but he didn’t get another word in before Fives was bullying his way into Rex’s line of sight. 

“You said we’re ARC troopers,” Fives accused, “But we haven’t even graduated our base combat modules!”

Rex laughed softly, “You’ll get there someday. Trust me.”

Fives scowled, unsatisfied with Rex’s half answer but Rex wasn’t really sure how much to tell them. Telling them everything - Rishi, their batch’s destruction, their missions with Torrent - seemed unwise. They were still kids. They deserved to be kids. Just for a little bit. 

Rex startled as he felt a weight lean into his side, briefly reaching for his blaster before looking over and realizing it was Ahsoka. 

She looked up, her usually large eyes now seeming comically huge on her face, “‘M cold.”

Right. Togrutas were warm blooded. And she hadn’t gotten as lucky as Fives and Echo, whose blacks shrunk with them. She was still stuck with her skirt and stupid tube top. Rex wanted to rip that thing to shreds and replace it with armor. He’d had the instinct many times before but now…

Rex just opened his arms, allowing the girl to crawl into his lap with a happy sigh.

He glanced at Echo and Fives, unsurprised to find them bickering quietly off to the side. 

“Boys,” he called, his voice booming around the chamber, “Cut it out.”

Fives made a frustrated noise and stomped his foot, going off to sulk in the corner, while Echo stared after him with an angry look. Eventually the younger of the two made it over, subtly checking out of Ahsoka had left any room in Rex’s lap. 

Rex scooted backward against the wall so the three of them could sit more comfortably before he called out, “Fives. Come here.”

Fives turned around, stuck his tongue out, and turned back to the corner. 

“CT-5555,” Rex put a little more authority into his voice, “Now.”

Fives hesitated, fighting with himself a little bit, before groaning and stomping over. Rex gave him an appraising once over, finding nothing wrong with him other than the attitude. 

“What’s this about?” Rex tried his best to go for strict older brother but he was pretty sure the image was ruined by the two kids in his lap. 

“Don’t wanna be here,” Fives mumbled, crossing his arms and looking down, “I miss 4040.”

Ah. Cutup. Fives’ favorite of his old batch. 

Rex relaxed a bit, crooking his finger at Fives and watching the kid tentatively step toward him, “It’ll be alright. We’ll get you three fixed up in no time.”

“Fixed?” Echo craned his neck to look up at Rex. 

Rex winced, knowing where Echo probably jumped to, “Back home, I mean.”

Echo nodded, slumping against Rex as Fives tried, and mostly succeeded, to fit himself between his brother and his future commander. Rex held the three of them in his arms and tried to remember to breathe. 

He didn’t know what to do with this. They couldn’t fight and there was no way in hell Kamino would take Fives and Echo back. He didn’t have the first clue what to do with Ahsoka, hell he didn’t even know if they’d allow her back at the temple after this. Were the Jedi as strict as the Kaminoans? Certainly not except for the exceptional cases. The issue was this was most certainly an acceptable case. 

They sat in a tight anxious silence for the next few minutes. Rex was shielding as best he could, but his skills were rudimentary at best and he knew it was getting to Ahsoka. Adding on to that Fives and Echo kept poking each other and making faces when they thought Rex wasn’t looking. Eventually one of them was going to hit Ahsoka and he just knew that would start an all out war. 

Ahsoka perked up before the rest of them, her eyes going wide and her figure stilling. Rex let out a sigh of relief, well aware of what that meant by now. 

Sure enough, a few moments later they heard hurried footsteps and a few calls between troopers. Rex had them all stand, drawing his blasters and putting on his helmet as he walked to the door. 

Skywalker was the first in line, his face curious but not alarmed. Rex let the blasters fall when he saw him, nodding respectfully to his general. 

“Rex,” Anakin greeted him, “Mind showing me what this is about?”

Rex nodded, peeking over his shoulder to see Jesse, Kix, and Hardcase. That was good. The boys would love Hardcase. 

“Yeah,” Rex stepped aside and pointed at the trio of children, “Feel free to take a look.”

Anakin, it seemed, had the same reaction to children as Rex did. Which was freeze. 

Kix nudged him aside easily, sparing a curious glance at his general, before he too paused in the doorway. 

“Hi!” Ahsoka waved cheerily, one of her hands in Echo’s, “I’m Ahsoka!”

[just-here-with-my-thoughts]

"Stop touching me!" - "I'm not touching you!"

@summer-of-bad-batch week 13 main prompt

Fandom: The Bad Batch/The Clone Wars Characters: Echo, Fives Set after season 3 when everyone is living happily on Pabu and Fives is alive and reunited with Echo, obviously Word Count: ~1100 Read Here on AO3

Synopsis: After a lifetime fearing the roiling ocean dark of Kamino, Fives has his first encounter with the shallow, tropical sea of Pabu

I have put precisely zero thought into the questions 'How did Fives live?', 'How did Fives meet the Batch?' or 'How did Fives and Echo reunite?' These are unimportant considerations. What is important is that Fives and Echo are together again, happy on Pabu :)

“And you’re sure it’s safe?”

“It’s perfectly safe, Fives,” said Echo, a hum of amusement softening his usually gruff tone. “It’s just water.”

Fives looked at him askance, and then turned his sceptical gaze back to the gently lapping waves before them.

“We grew up on the same Kamino, right? What, Techno Union drill the ocean-safety lectures right out of your head?”

Echo only grinned good-naturedly, giving his brother a shove.

“If you’re afraid of this little… puddle,” he said, gesturing to the expanse of glittering sea stretching to the horizon, “you can stay on the beach. I’m sure no-one will be surprised that an Arc Trooper is too scared to go paddling with the little kids.”

Grumbling, Fives’ hand found Echo’s and clamped around it.

“Fine,” he muttered, taking a deep breath and then a deliberate step forwards. “But you’re coming with me!”

“I’m not the one who’s scared of the water, tubie,” Echo laughed, but squeezed Fives’ hand reassuringly all the same.

They ventured down to the water’s edge, Fives squealing and shuffling backwards as an unexpected wave rushed up and doused his toes. In moments Echo was pulling him further in, until he was up to his ankles, up to his shins, up to his knees, in warm, undulating water.

“There,” said Echo teasingly, “that’s not so bad, is it?”

Fives made a wordless, disparaging noise, swinging their hands gently between them.

“S’pose not,” he offered eventually, wriggling his toes to dig them into the damp sand that formed the seabed underfoot. “Didn’t expect it to be warm.”

“Want to go in a bit deeper?”

“Yeah… sure.”

They sloshed slowly through the waves, Echo giving a shudder when they reached a depth where the water finally lapped against his skin, above the join of his prostheses. Fives noticed and nudged their shoulders together, a single raised eyebrow asking the question for him, but Echo smiled his reassurance and carried on.

“I’m waterproof, you know. You don’t need to worry about me.”

“Always going to worry about you, Echo,” breathed Fives, eyes on the studded metal implants either side of his brother’s pale, knobbly spine.

Sensing the turn in his mood, Echo freed his hand and dashed a sweeping arm across the surface of the water, sending a cascade of droplets arcing in the sun. They spattered Fives’ chest, drawing an indignant squark from him.

By the time they were waist height in the water, Echo tipped to his front, swimming forwards a few feet and waving back over his shoulder with his scomp arm to encourage Fives to join him.

Fives shook his head firmly. “Nuh-uh. I am not going out of my depth.”

“It’s still shallow,” called Echo, tipping back to his feet. The water lapped against the metal plate that replaced his sternum. “The sea-bed here goes out on a very gentle slope.”

Under his feet, Fives felt the seabed change from sand to rock as he ventured further from the shore. He glanced back nervously at the island, moaning softly at how distant it seemed to be, before coming to stand beside Echo.

“Happy?” he said with a mock glare, letting his arms float atop the water whilst he bobbed on his toes.

“Happy,” confirmed Echo with a smile.

For a while they simply stood, waves bobbing against their chests, watching the whirl of seabirds and the track of wispy clouds across the horizon.

All of a sudden Fives flinched, convulsing and flailing at the water.

“Ugh! Echo, stop touching me! Your duraplast feet are cold and slimy!”

“Huh?” Echo looked nonplussed, brows knitting in a frown. “I’m not touching you.”

“Yes you are,” moaned Fives, standing on one leg to rub at his calf. “Running your foot down my leg, it feels weird. Leave me alone.”

Echo shook his head, and at his genuine puzzlement a look of horror dawned on Fives.

“What is touching me in the water?”

“I don’t know,” said Echo unhelpfully. Then, with a grin, “Duraplast legs, remember? Can’t feel anything.”

The brothers locked eyes, Fives’s dark brown searching Echo’s mischievously glinting amber for any hint of reassurance. Then he convulsed again, letting out an almighty shriek.

“It touched me again! Echo!”

In moments he had clawed his way into his brother’s arms, legs wrapped tightly round Echo’s waist and arms all but smothering his face. Echo staggered under his weight, even with the water to support them, trying to steady Fives with his left arm whilst he rubbed the side of his scomp along his side soothingly.

“Hey, Fives!” he said, unable to keep the laughter from his voice. “I’m sure it’s nothing. Kriff, let up before you choke me…”

“Take me back to shore, Echo!” howled Fives, and Echo could never tell how much was genuine and how much was drama in Fives’ penchant for overreacting. “I don’t like it out here!”

Echo peeled Fives’ limbs from his torso, shoving him away. Fives yelped as he ducked briefly under the waves, then bobbed back to the surface, treading water.

Taking a breath, Echo ducked under too, blinking back the salt-sting against his open eyes. When he surfaced again he was grinning, holding up a handful of long, leathery kelp.

“It’s just seaweed, Fives,” he crowed, gently mocking. “It can’t hurt you!”

“It felt gross,” lamented Fives, still frantically pedalling to keep himself afloat. “Let’s go back, Echo. I don’t want to be in the water any more!”

With a wicked grin, Echo slung the seaweed at Fives, laughing at the wet slap it made as it hit his skin. Fives groaned, flailing as he brushed it off, before he swam back towards Echo.

“Carry me back to shore,” he demanded, grabbing round his neck with both arms once more.

Echo linked his arms under Fives, scomp across his back, left arm hooked under his knees.

“You’re such a tubie,” he grinned affectionately, squeezing him tightly as he began to wade back to shallower water. “I can’t believe you’re scared of the seaweed.”

“You can’t feel it,” Fives moaned, lolling his head back dramatically. “It was horrible.”

“I’m gonna put it in your bed.”

“Do that, and I’ll disown you.”

“You’d never do that.”

Fives huffed an unimpressed noise. “Don’t be so sure.”

Echo held him close as the water dropped away from their bodies, sloshing round his thighs as Fives shivered in the air.

“We’ll see,” he murmured, lowering Fives to his feet when they were no more than knee deep once more.

Then, with a shove that sent Fives staggering into the waves, “Race you to the shore!”

[kometqh]

𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐕𝐢𝐬𝐜𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐭 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐌𝐚𝐢𝐝

Viscount!Captain Rex x Maid!F!Reader Pt. 2, Pt.3, Pt.4 The Viscount is a renowned bachelor, known for his kindness, his wits and his charm. Ladies from across the planet swoon over him, visit him, are denied by him. He is a respectable, well-known man. What nobody seems to know is his knack for venturing out into the night, returning home with treasures, jewels, drinks, and most of all, ladies of the night. What does one do when they are caught red-handed, by none other than a lowly maid? Word Count:3,474 Warnings: Descriptions of sexual activity, minor swearing, also halfway unedited (will work on that). If I missed anything (pls im not good with tags) please let me know! ^^ A/N: This Rex fanfic idea took over my brain and I already have the whole story planned out and I'm in love <33

The evening burned so hot; the arid August air grazed through your lungs like gravel. The usually rackety crickets were unusually quiet, except for the occasional croak. The steady drip, drip, drip of water filled the still evening. And then, as your hands wrenched the dirty water from the rag, a hushed groan trickled from around the corner. It was quickly suppressed, but you had heard it. Slowly, you stood up from your crouched position, you abandoned the rug on the concrete. As far as you were aware, all the residents of the Viscounts’ manor were asleep. You took a step forward, craning your head in the direction of where the sound came from. Nothing. Just the occasional hum of crickets and your steady breathing.

With a few more steps forward, your heart leaped to your throat. It wasn’t nothing. Someone was there. Hidden behind the arched wall and doorway that separated the manor from the extensive, plush green, mile-long fields. Were they intruders? But the manor was so far out into the countryside. It would take hours to get there by carriage, never mind by foot. Who would bother going that far? But it was a possibility. An unlikely one, but still a possibility.

The grass was soft beneath your bare feet, cold and tickling as you inched closer and closer. Your thoughts were racing, and your heart was punching vigorously on your ribcage. What were you going to do, if they were in fact, intruders?

As you reached the wooden doorway you noticed it was slightly ajar. Enough to fit an arm through it, enough to not be seen by anyone unless they were standing directly in it, watching. The wood was harsh against your palm as you leaned against it, scraping warningly on your fingertips.

Your heart dropped. Your throat dried. Your breath hitched in your throat as you looked up.

Breathy, desperate muffled moans, the ruffle of expensive silks and fine cotton, the rhythmic sound of skin against skin. It felt as though a bucket of cold water had been splashed in your face. This… You’d been hired as a House Maid. Previously you had worked in a number of different roles, so you had seen all the different kinds of dirty and awful in homes and manors alike. This wasn’t one of them. This was a situation you found yourself stunned at. Confused at. What were they doing?

The woman’s hair covered their faces, lending them some privacy in such an intimate, and yet such vulgar moment. Who were they? Servants? No. The clothing was too expensive, this place too hidden. All you knew was that this was deliberate. Whether you were meant to find them was a coincidence or not, you weren’t sure.

Unexpectedly, the woman leaned her head back. Her lips, coloured some finest shade of red, gaped openly at the sky above. You didn’t recognise her. But the male who had trapped her against the wall – you knew his face all too well.

He was your employer.

The Viscount.

A light gasp escaped you, realisation crashing into you like a carriage into a boulder. His head snapped in your direction.

Surprise gleamed in his eyes, but he continued his ministrations, his gaze locked onto you. As if he had casted a spell, you found yourself unable to move. Your feet were cemented to the ground, your lungs still as you held your breath. You were a mere statue, your gaze forever stuck on the pair before you. There was a glint of a warning in his irises, as if he was daring you to make a sound, daring you to interrupt him.

Your gaze wavered, straying to glance at the darkness behind.

The amber glow of a nearby lamp was the only source of light, the only thing that allowed you to comprehend what was truly happening. It flickered with each gentle breeze that passed, swaying alluringly on the burning wick. It burned warm, so warm you could almost feel the scalding, waxy trail of it across your skin. The fields behind were pushed away into the background, swallowed in complete and utter darkness, the forests looming in the far distance like a shadow. Whatever was lurking out there would have been a more welcome disturbance than what you were witnessing up close. You felt like a meagre, frightened insect tangled up and struggling in a sticky web you had no business soaring into.

The Viscounts’ voice snapped your attention back to him. No, it commanded you.

“Look at me.” He rasped out, and for a moment you faltered. You weren’t sure whether the command was directed at you, or the mystery woman. Were you beginning to get caught up in a fantasy you had no right to dream?

With another moan, she gripped the Viscount’s face, pulling it towards her. “Kiss me.” She uttered, looking up at him through a fan of thick, dark eyelashes. He was quick to oblige, leaning forward, pressing his lips against hers. His gaze slowly abandoned you, and so did the spell with it. Your feet no longer felt stuck, your hands no longer felt ice cold, and your breaths no longer felt suppressed.

Like a fawn, you scurried away, bunching your skirts in your hand. Your feet carried you as fast and as quiet as they could. Your sight landed on the wooden bucket you had abandoned, and with one hand, you reached for it. You couldn’t leave any traces behind. You couldn’t risk losing your job.

“What was I thinking?” You muttered to yourself as you entered the manor again, heading straight for the kitchens. How long had you spent staring and gaping at them? Surely long enough for the images to replay vividly in your mind, long enough for all the floors to dry up. The tiles sparkled like thousands of miniscule diamonds under the low glow of candles. Vases of ruby pink and white, carefully picked out roses littered the hallways, spaced exactly five metres apart until they stopped just before the kitchens.

One hand reached for the door, pushing on it with vigour.

In your hurry, you forgot one thing.

The doors creaked and protested loudly, the sound bouncing off the walls. You flinched, gripping the doors. You stopped them from moving, and warily glanced over your shoulder. Not a living soul in sight.

“Thank the lord.” You whispered, and silently slipped through the small space.

The door closed behind you with a soft thump, and you allowed yourself to take a deep breath. Through the nose, into the chest. You counted to three, holding your breath, before slowly exhaling. You repeated the motion as you emptied the bucket and hung the rags to dry. You continued it as you made your way to your small, closet-sized bedroom. Your steps were small, timid as you feared of walking past someone, anyone. Fear prickled at your skin; every sound of the manor caused goosebumps to flare up on your skin like a rash.

You couldn’t feel more relieved when the small, wooden door came into view. Gently, you twisted the doorknob, letting yourself in.

You let it stay open, just long enough to light a single candle.

The flame flickered as it grew, warmth extending from the wick to your fingertips. It engulfed the room in a fading orange glow as you closed and locked the door. The only sound in the room was your deep inhales and exhales, and the light creak of your bed as it dipped under your weight.

Your heart was pounding, blood thrumming deafeningly in your skull. Your stomach twisted in an unfamiliar knot, and a burning sensation settled at your core long ago. Your thoughts were quiet, replaying the sight like a melody on a gramophone.

You had stood there long enough to imprint the sight into your memory.

You could recount every second of the encounter, every drawn-out breath, every sound a scullery maid like you shouldn’t hear, as if you were a sinner in church.

“I’ll be lucky if I still have a job and a roof over my head in the morning.” You muttered to yourself as you stood up, readying for bed. You had a long day ahead tomorrow, to be sure.

But as you lay under the duvet, your mind couldn’t stop replaying the memory.

Those golden, dangerous eyes.

Morning rolled around faster than you had expected, your eyes snapping open when someone knocked loudly on your door. You scurried out of your bed, wrapping a stray blanket over your chest.

“Coming!” You shouted, searching for your shoes. You searched under your bed, and next to your small closet. They were nowhere to be found.

Two more knocks, and you moved towards the door. Screw it, you’d find your shoes later.

As the lock turned and the hinges swung, you were greeted with a surprising sight. The Housekeeper was at your door.

“Mrs Opal? What can I do for you?” You had asked, fighting hard to keep your surprise at bay.

The woman scorned you with a glare, her lips drawn into a thin line. She looked you up and down, her hands neatly folded behind her back. After a silent moment, she spoke up.

“The Viscount has requested your presence in his study… He says there is a matter he must discuss with you. Get dressed and make your way to the First Floor.” She said promptly, walking away before you had a chance to even think of a response. Confusion was clear on your features as you peered out, watching the Housekeeper disappear round the corner.

What did the Viscount himself want to do with you?

You shook your head, mumbling profanities under your breath. The door closed with a loud thud behind you as you began searching for your neatest piece of clothing. The best you could do was the violet petticoat given to every member of staff. Working as fast as you could, with practiced, experienced hands, you were dressed within minutes.

As your hand landed on the doorknob, your stomach churned. What could be so strangely important that the Viscount wished to speak to you?

Your footsteps were light and hurried as you made your way through the hallways, your voice soft as you greeted the other members of staff. The kitchens were already busy, with cooks and maids scrambling about to deliver breakfast to the family.

The footmen were at their stations, nodding lightly to you as you passed each one by. The rows of ruby pink and creamy white roses were a welcome sight, and a sense of calm washed over you. Whatever it was, it couldn’t have been so bad. Maybe, possibly, you were about to receive the opportunity of a lifetime.

Your thoughts didn’t stray even as you made your way up the stairwell, the soft thud of your footsteps the only sound coming from the lower floors.

And, as you reached the first floor, you were greeted with the sight of the Housekeeper and the Steward moving animatedly, deep in discussion. They seemed to be… Aggravated. No, perhaps quarrelling.

They stopped as you approached slowly, your hands entwined together at your front.

“There you are. You look presentable.” Was the highest appraisal Mrs Opal could lend out. You gave a curt nod, thanking her quietly. The steward remained silent; his bird brown eyes trained on you. “Now follow us. The Viscount shouldn’t be made to wait.” She continued, leading you down the hallways. More light flooded the upper floor, and you couldn’t help but admire the view of the windows from afar. The ground floor and basements lacked natural light or windows, and it was more common for you to be scrubbing something during daylight hours.

Mrs Opal and the Steward exchanged no more words in your presence, choosing to remain distant and silent. Their footsteps remained as light as a phantom’s, almost floating on the soft, teal carpet. They served their purpose; chilling you to the bone with anticipation and uneasiness.

The air felt cleaner up here, you noted. More windows had been opened, allowing fresh, countryside air to waft in. Along with it came the harmonious chirps of songbirds and insects alike. You rubbed the material of your skirt between your fingers, doing your best to wipe any sweat off as the doors to the Viscount’s study came into view. As the three of you came to a stop, Mrs Opal and the Steward exchanged glances, before turning to you. This time, the Steward spoke up

“When in the presence of the Viscount, you do not speak unless spoken to. You do not look at him, unless you are requested to do so. You do not sit unless you are permitted to. And last of all, we refer to the Viscount as ‘Lord’. Are we clear?” His voice was like a nail under a tool, sharp and unrelenting as he hammered the rules into your skull.

“Yessir.” You answered quietly, not looking up.

“Wonderful.” He responded, and inched closer to the door. He raised a gloved fist to the door, and knocked three, distinct and perfected knocks, as if the rhythm and consistency of a knock varied from situation to situation. The doors opened before him, the hinges silent, unlike the ones on the ground floor.

“Come in.” A soft voice instructed, and the three of you walked in in a single file. The Steward led at the front, Mrs Opal stationed in the middle, and you at the end. The doors were closed behind your figure, and you failed to hide your jitteriness as you jumped slightly. However, you did succeed in supressing the urge to look back. Your head remained tilted downwards, your sight focused on the diamond-patterned carpet beneath your feet. A short-lived relief surged through you as you remembered; you had lost your shoes. You were essentially barefoot on the Viscount’s expensive carpet. The morning had already had a rocky start, what was next?

“This is the House Maid you requested to see, my Lord. Is there anything else you need, my Lord?” The Stewards’ voice softened, his stern posture shrinking under the gaze of the Viscount.

He must have whispered or something, as you were caught by surprise when both the Steward and Mrs Opal stuttered in confusion, and you once again had to fight the urge to look up.

“Must I repeat myself?” The Viscount asked, his voice deep and gravelly. Someone must have had an early morning, you thought to yourself.

The Steward shook his head, gesturing for Mrs Opal to follow him.

The doors opened, the sound of a few pairs of footsteps retreating reached you, before they swung again.

Your heart thrummed in your chest, flapping wildly like the wings of a hummingbird. Were the two of you alone? If so… Why?

You swallowed the forming lump in your throat, rubbing the pads of your thumbs on the cotton material of your skirt. Why was he so quiet? Were you meant to look up? No. The Steward – you really should have asked for his name – was stern on telling you to avoid doing so.

So what was the Viscount waiting for?

“You may look up, little one.” His voice was coarse, finer than the most miniscule, smoothest grains of sand on Tattooine. Heat rushed to your face, and you questioned whether it was from the uneasiness you felt or embarrassment. As your eyes met his, recognition rushed through you.

Those golden eyes. Stern, solid and unrelenting. And yet… There was something else. Something you couldn’t quite decipher as your heart leaped into your throat.

“Recognise me?” He asked softly, his voice just barely above a whisper.

Should you lie? Should you be truthful? Which option would ensure you’d keep your job?

A soft laugh bubbled in his chest. Your gaze wavered, and you found solace in focusing on the cedarwood desk separating him from you. You decided on the latter.

“Y- Yes, my Lord. You’re the Viscount, my e- employer.” You stuttered out softly, wincing as you seemed to be doing everything but looking confident and calm. Surely, this was some cruel joke. You were sure you had dreamed up the events of last night after collapsing into your bed from exhaustion. It couldn’t be true. It couldn’t be real.

You allowed yourself to look up at him once more, and your chest tightened at his expression.

He seemed to be amused by all this.

“Let us not beat around the bush, and get straight to the point. I know what you saw, little one. But do you know what’ll happen to you now?” He questioned once more, challenging you to look away. He was relaxed and yet domineering, confident, his form leaning against the chair, his legs spread wide open. He was the one with all the power here, as much as you wished he wasn’t.

You took in a deep, shaky breath before replying.

“I’ll be removed from my position as House Maid immediately, my Lord.” Your voice was steady as you maintained eye contact, your breathing method calming you down.

He remained quiet, observing you like a hawk watching its next meal. His thumb caressed the plush softness of his bottom lip in slow, circular motions.

“If I may be dismissed, my Lord, I shall go and pack my belongings.” You tried again, before you paused. You broke Rule Number One. Do not speak unless spoken to. The Viscount betrayed none of his thoughts at your mishap, though he quirked a curious brow at you.

But what did it matter if you were about to lose your job anyway? And with that, you went against your better judgement once more.

“If I’m honest, though, you shouldn’t be so… Intimate with a strange woman at late hours of the night in your back garden, my Lord. At that point you are begging to be caught. So, technically speaking, it is not my fault,” You paused, pursing your lips, “If it were any other servant, the whole manor would know by now.”

Kriff. What were you thinking?

He gave a soft hum in response, his posture straightening up.

“You dare speak to your employer so… Callously?” He questioned, but you didn’t grace him with another smart-ass response. You had dug yourself a deep enough grave already, you might as well forget your headstone.

“To ease your confusion, I wasn’t aware that any servant would be working at such late hours of the night. I also own this manor, and do you know what the word ‘own’ means?” He questioned, quirking a brow at you, again. “It means it belongs to me, it means I can do as I please, with whomever I please, wherever I please. Does that aid you in your confusion?” He rounded his desk, his footsteps light and calculated right until his chest was inches from yours, his figure towering over you. Your breathing stopped completely, your eyes almost bulging out from their sockets as your heart raced faster than a horse. You had royally, majorly pissed him off, haven’t you?

Unexpectedly, a soft smile tugged at the corners of his lips. The crease between his brow eased up, and for once, the Viscount looked relaxed.

“I admire your confidence, little one. No one has ever spoken to me so… Plainly. Rudely, even. But I’d reign it in a little, for future reference. I’m not going to dispose of you, no.” He whispered, searching your eyes with his own, as if there was a lost treasure buried deep within the vibrant colours of your irises.

“You’re… Not?” You asked again, swallowing harshly. Clearly he wasn’t too bothered by your obvious disregard for the rules he imposed on the servants.

He shook his head, still smiling down at you.

“No. I’m instead promoting you. You’ll work as my personal servant, after all, I can’t have you be free to gossip about my nightly endeavours to anyone. Wouldn’t you agree, little one?” He cocked his head to the side, eyeing you up and down.

Heat rushed over your face like a flame, burning and scalding until you were left as nothing but ashes. Why was he so relaxed? So calm? What was going on?

You blinked once, then twice, before remembering to breathe. His scent flooded your senses, until all that you could think of and feel was the Viscount himself. He smelled like a warm, wet spring day, of pine needles and steady streams of water. Was this man anything but perfect?

His fingers gently cupped your chin, tilting your head upwards until he had your entire attention focused on him.

“What do you think?” He inquired again, dissatisfied with your lack of response.

You fought your way out of his touch, shaking your head.

“W- What?”

Tags: @actuallybarb <33

[kybercrystals94]

First Brothers

Read here on Ao3!

Angstpril 2024 | Day 6 | Prompt 6: This isn’t going to work. 

Rated: G | Words: 720 | Summary: Rex and Fives have a conversation about past brothers. | Character Focus: Rex, Fives, Echo 

“This isn’t going to work.” 

“Humor me.”

Fives sniffs at the steaming beverage and makes a face. “Ugh, why does it smell like that?” 

“Just drink it,” Rex says, patience wearing thin.

Fives takes a tiny sip. “It tastes worse than it smells!” 

“Maker, Fives! Drink it before I pour it down your throat myself!”

Fives glowers at the offending concoction a moment before he pushes it away, the glass bottom of the thick mug grating across the tabletop. “Captain, you can threaten me all you like, but I’m not drinking that. It’s disgusting.” 

“It’s kriffing Sapir Tea, Fives! It’s supposed to be soothing.”

“Well, I don’t feel very soothed with you yelling at me,” Fives grumbles. He pokes the mug of tea further in Rex’s direction. “You drink it. You seem to need it more than I do.” 

Rex glares at him, but takes the mug anyway, gripping it in both hands. The warmth against his palms reminds him of rainy nights on Kamino before he was deployed for active duty. A lifetime ago, sitting with his batchmates, speculating what the promised war might be like. He’d been so naive back then. All of them had. Flash training taught them everything and nothing. The stain of a brother’s blood on shiny, white armor was a lesson they’d not prepared for in the sterile environment of Kamino. 

Rex turns the mug in his hands. “I’m not yelling at you,” he mutters at Fives. 

Fives leans forward, folding his arms on the table. “I beg to differ,” he says, but Rex sees the mirth in the eyes identical to his own. “Did you call me down here just to bully me into drinking your weird boiled leaf brew?”

Rex sighs and decides to rip the bacta patch off. “When you mentioned you’ve been having trouble sleeping,” he admits, “I thought you might want to talk about it.” 

Fives groans, dropping his forehead to his arms. “Ah, c’mon, Rex. I’m fine. There’s nothing to talk about.”

“It’s been a year.” 

“I know.”

Rex brings the mug up and sips at the scalding tea, waiting. 

Fives doesn’t lift his head but a sigh sifts through the barrier like a hiss. “What do you want me to say, Rex? We lose brothers everyday. Good brothers. It’s the only sure thing in this war.” 

“It is,” Rex agrees. 

Fives sits up, rubs a heavy hand across his eyes. “Echo isn’t more important than any of them.” The ARC keeps his sharp gaze focused on the wall past Rex’s shoulder, not meeting his eye. 

“I never said he was.” Rex puts down his mug. “But he was one of your first brothers. That means something.” 

Fives’ expression softens at that. “I’m the last Domino,” he says, then chuckles bitterly and adds, “I always thought Echo would be.”

“Why?” Rex asks. 

Fives shrugs, but doesn’t explain further. He changes the subject instead, finally looking at Rex again. “I bet Echo would like your kriffing tea.” 

“That’s because Echo had taste,” Rex says. 

Fives barks out a laugh. “You’re talking about the man who read and memorized regulation manuals during his downtime.” 

Rex chuckles. “I didn’t know he memorized them.” 

Fives scoffs. “Oh, yeah. He was worse about it when we were cadets. Between parroting regulations and orders, he more than earned his name.” 

“That’s why his name was Echo?” 

“He tried to make us stop, but that just made the name more compelling.” 

The floodgates open, and Fives regales Rex with stories about his brothers, the ones Rex had and hadn’t met…and the one Rex had known well enough to feel his absence like a reverberating wound. Rex finishes his tea, but he and his little brother reminisce long into the night. 

|<<>>|<<>>|<<>>|<<>>|<<>>|<<>>|

“What’s this?” Echo asks.

Rex glances up from an intercepted report he’s been pouring over. Echo is examining Rex’s tin of Sapir Tea, turning it over in his hand. Echo doesn’t wait for an answer before he opens the lid and sniffs at the contents inside. “Smells good,” he comments, almost to himself. 

Rex grins. “Tastes better. Make us both a cup, will you?”

The last Domino smiles at him. “Sure thing, sir,” he says, even though Rex has told him repeatedly, like an echo, that he’s not a captain anymore. 

But old habits die hard. 

END

I can't believe we are already 6 days into April! I feel like it just started!! See below for links to all our stories thus far!

Prompts Completed:

@the-little-moment (1. Homesick / 4. Longing)

@just-here-with-my-thoughts (2. Frozen / 5. Self Surgery)

KyberCrystal94 (3. Broken Hearted / 6. This isn't going to work)

✨Let me know if you'd like to be added to my tag list!✨

Tag List: @followthepurrgil @isthereanechoinhere96 @amorfista @mooncommlink @arctrooper69 @nagyanna424 @proteatook @ezras-left-thumb

[rex-meshla]

Rex-Meshla's Masterlist ✨

Shadows of the Force

Captain Rex x F!OC

A/N | Prologue | Chapter 1 | Chapter 2 | Chapter 3 | Chapter 4 | Chapters 5-6

Steel Meets Silk

ARC Commander Colt x F!OC

Prologue | Chapter 1 | Chapter 2

Clone Drabbles

Commander Wolffe

Brat Summer

Testing Limits

Testing Limits —Part 2 (NSFW)

Commander Fox

An Unusual Assignment

Captain Howzer

Stolen Nights and Shared Dreams