#yeah this is that picture of rex again. someone asked me if it was the count from gankutsuou and i was like. no but you have my interest

[oozeandgoo-art]

[zoeykallus]

The Bad Batch/ Mayday/Rex x Reader Prompts – Confessions

Part 5/7 - Wrecker

Warnings: Hurt/Angst/Comfort/Fluff/Love Confessions

Masterlist

Ko-Fi (If you feel like giving me some coffee)

This is a continuation of this request :

The Bad Batch/ Mayday/Rex x Reader Prompts – Confessions

Wrecker

Wrecker is actually very open and easy to talk to. He is neither particularly reserved nor aloof. Nevertheless, you haven't yet dared to tell him openly how much you like him. You feel that he might like you as much as you like him, but you're not sure. The thought that you could open up to him and be wrong keeps you from confessing your deep affection for him. You are startled out of your thoughts when you hear a familiar, beloved sound; Wrecker's rumbling laughter. Apparently he's been playing a trick on Crosshair again, because the Sniper runs past you, jaws grinding, curses coming from between clenched teeth. Wrecker appears on the ramp, laughing and calling after his brother, “Come on, it was just a harmless joke” Crosshair keeps walking and growls, “Go to hell” You giggle and ask, “Oh Wrecker, what have you done again?” Your heart skips a beat as his attention turns to you, and you see his mischievous smile. “Can't you smell that?”

You blink in confusion and draw your brows together critically, but then you smell it, a very intense floral scent suddenly seems to be in the air, a scent that Crosshair seems to be dragging behind him. You laugh softly, “You've replaced his aftershave with what seems to me to be a very intense, rather feminine scent” Wrecker grins from ear to ear. You sigh softly and say gently reprovingly, “Wrecker, Cross has a date today, as far as I know he really likes the person he's going out with and if he doesn't want to be late, he won't have time to get rid of the wrong scent” “Oh,” says Wrecker a little sheepishly, “that's why he's so angry” You think this could be a brilliant segue, and with your heart suddenly racing, you ask, “Speaking of dates, how about the two of us?” The moment you say the words, you want to sink into the ground. That was far too blunt, too direct, and you actually wanted to say something completely different. But it just slipped out of you. Wrecker's reaction doesn't really help. At first, he just stares at you, perplexed; it's a long, uncomfortably silent moment, and you feel like you're frozen in motion, unable to even change your expression, which is terrible, because you feel like there's a stupid, nervous grin on your lips.

Suddenly, Wrecker bursts out laughing, pats you on the back and continues on his way. “That was a good one!” he says with a rumbling laugh. A humorless little laugh escapes your lips: “Hahaha, yeah, hilarious” You watch Wrecker disappear around the corner. You let your shoulders slump with a sigh. This is not at all what you had in mind. Discouraged, you hang your head. It's not a nice feeling that's spreading through your chest right now. Tech's voice suddenly snaps you out of your gloomy thoughts. “Judging by your body language, you're either very tired or very unhappy” You turn to him, startled, and pull your shoulders back up. With raised eyebrows, Tech comments, “Now you're trying to pretend. You were probably about to tell me you were just a bit tired. Am I right?” Tech had started to learn more about posture some time ago, to read between the lines. However, he still did this in his very direct way every time. When you don't answer him, he asks, “Is there anything I can do to help?”

You shrug your shoulders. You would actually like to talk to someone about it, but you're not sure if Tech is the right person to talk to. Nevertheless, you put him in the picture, explaining that Wrecker has either misunderstood you or is not interested in you or a date with you. “It's easy to find out,” says Tech almost cheerfully with a small, satisfied smile, because he's sure he has the solution to your problem. “Oh yeah?” you ask cautiously. The next moment your heart almost stops, because Wrecker is back outside on the landing platform and Tech calls him over to you, “Wrecker, why don't you come and join us for a moment?” You don't have time to object or to make a hasty escape without making a fuss, so you stand rooted to the spot. “What's up?” Wrecker asks happily, glancing from one to the other. Tech says before you can think of anything appropriate to say, “There's been a misunderstanding between you two that needs to be resolved” Wrecker looks at you, puzzled. “Oh yeah?”

You clear your throat and want to say something, but Tech beats you to it again. “When you were asked for a date earlier, it was a serious question” You feel like your heart is going to stop at any moment. Wrecker looks so surprised and confused that you can't even guess where this is going. “Really?” he asks, looking at you. You're so nervous that you don't trust your own voice and just nod. Tech, pleased with himself, pushes his goggles up the bridge of his nose with his index finger and says, “I think my work here is done. You're welcome.” Wrecker and you watch Tech for a moment as he goes his way. It takes you a while to look nervously at each other. He grins cautiously at you, scratches the back of his head nervously and stammers, “The night's supposed to be starry tonight, we could have a picnic on the mountain, look at the stars.” “Is that an invitation to a date?” you ask with a slowly widening smile. Wrecker shrugs his shoulders a little helplessly, “Yeah, sure. Do you like that sort of thing?”

“I like everything I can do with you,” you say, beaming. Wrecker beams back and says enthusiastically, “Then we'll do the picnic tonight, take candles and stuff. And on the weekend we could go to the fair!”

@rintheemolion

@andyoufollowyourheart @clone-whore-99

@brynhildrmimi @kaliel2310

@misogirl828 @tech-deck

@meshla-madalene

@chxpsi

@thebahdbitch

@nahoney22 @ladykatakuri

@darkangel4121

@ttzamara

@arctrooper69

@padawancat97

@agenteliix

@allsystemsblue

@palliateclaw

@either-madness-or-brilliance

@ortizshinkaroff

@andy-solo1

@hunterssecretrecipe

@heyitsaloy

@greaser-wolf

@extrahotpixels

@hated-by-me

@hunterxcrosshair

@malicemercy

@bebopsworld

@echos-girlfriend

@cpnt616

@dangraccoon

@jediknightjana

@pb-jellybeans

@antishadow2021

@sleepycreativewriter

@projectdreamwalker

@1vlouds

@clonelovr

@ivyyyyy

[dukeoftheblackstar]

Let’s get some fun recommendations goin around here! What’s a piece of clone content (art, fic, etc) that has stuck with you as being notably excellent? Tag it in your answer so we can all find some new fun to read! If you want, of course; feel free to ignore! 💕

Oooh, this is fun! Yes ♥ I'm an absolute whore for art ♥

Starting off with a beautiful take on my favorite shit boy from the 104th, my babylove, Warthog by @omaano. I know there's no need for an explanation but I'm just so overly proud and touched because this was a tribute to a fallen comrade who happens to be Warthog's bestiecakes, Tracer.

Read more here ♥ And yes, Warthog is my favorite ♥ I will pick him again and again and again and again and again over Commander Wolffe ♥

Second would be Big Boy Wrecker ♥ As much as I am crazy for soft Wrecker with pink beach shorts with Omega, it's the Mischief Energy for me ♥ Love me some unhinged, chaotic, bulldozer baby girl of a man ♥ Also, everything @amorfista is a fave ♥

[WIP] "Shenanigans at the beach"

Another Wrecker by @lornaka because omg, he has truly captivated my heart ♥

Miss these kids sm

Darth Fett by @eyecandyeoz ♥ Candy outdid themselves here and I cannot emphasize that enough because (1) that fic is absolutely filthy, (2) it's a fic and art for one of my hidden/small otps, and (3) that art is as absolutely filthy as the fic.

Vader × Fett😈

This beautiful Crosshair happening that blesses my dash from time to time made by @ditztitz because goddamn, look at those unf-things and them unf-lines.

Very Toned Crosshair

This beautiful Crosshair happening that blesses my dash from time to time made by @ditztitz because goddamn, look at those unf-things and them unf-lines.

House of Fett | Family Picture

House of Fett, of course by @baufraus who I am obsessed with in terms of their art style and sticker vibe.

Thicc Fox & Thicc Wolffe ♥

@patchmates thicc twin love because jfc, Wolffe and Fox being hella fine is such a vibe. I've reblogged this so many damn times, I'm still giddy over it ♥

Bly in booty shorts

Need no explanation than the fact that someone better steal his blacks from time to time for the good of the galaxy. Delicious art by @thatfunkyopossum

Croissants being actual croissants ♥

Anything Fox and Corrie boys related by @amikoroyaiart because they so precious and so much foolishness happening ♥

That one Commander Fox Art that serves so much cunt I feel insecure as a cunt-bearing organism ♥.

This to me is s.ex on the eyes. It's the judgmental tilt of the head, that eyebrow raise, that look of disapproval that can also be seen as 'yeah, I'd hit that... but after work cause I got so much fucking work' — it's the bad boy ciggue for me, that puff of smoke in the background, that turtleneck blacks, that thiccness, that scar, that jfc-i would like to get railed by this man on his desk while he works vibe. ;//////;

Amazing art by @calamity-aims

Need something on your wall? Check them out ♥

Two from @idontgetanysleep that I would love to see on a wall:

Black and white Info Panel feature Wolffe, Rex, Cody, and Gregor ♥♥♥

Vibrant & Groovy Wallpapers featuring Wolffe, Rex, Cody, Howzer, Gregor ♥♥♥

..••°°°°••..°°••....••°°..••°°°°••..°°••....••°

And lastly, every single fucking panel in this post resonates to me in an astronomical level that I feel more closer to being Fox than being in love with Fox. This is essentially Fox and Me in photos as one. And I'm so pleased that @that-one-egomaniac gave me permission to use this bit because I am obsessed with this that I will post the photo itself — behold, my most favorite thing in the entire galaxy:

Thank you for this very interesting ask ♥

Note: I also don't know why some of the links didn't work as I was getting an error when posting so the rest came out as hyperlinks.

[wanderinginksplot-writes]

Clone Trooper Rambles

Journaling meets imaginary friends meets clone troopers.

Warnings: minor road rage, minor language, some grumpiness, vague mentions of objectification

---

Alpha Comic Book

I swore loudly as a car pulled out in front of me, easily drive ten miles an hour under what I had been going before. I braked, grumbling at how unfair it all was. 

“Are you in that big a hurry?” Echo asked. “I thought you didn’t have much to do tonight.” 

“I don’t,” I agreed, “but I got an email a couple of hours ago. My package was delivered!”

An uncomfortable silence fell at that, leaving Hardcase’s cackle loud and mischievous. “What is it this time? No - wait! Don’t tell me! I want it to be a surprise.” 

“Isn’t it always?” Stone’s dry tone made me grin. 

It seemed that Hardcase was the only one who appreciated my… eclectic sense of things to order online. Sometimes, I got useful things, like clothes. Other times, I bought something that caught my eye, like the set of miniature paintings of objects in space. As long as I could afford it and it made me happy, I reasoned, there was no reason not to indulge in an occasional purchase.

“I wasn’t going to tell you anyway,” I said loftily. “This one definitely needs to be a surprise.” 

Someone groaned, and I couldn’t quite tell who it was. 

We got home and I rushed to my front door, mildly panicked when I didn’t see anything waiting outside. I pulled out my phone to text my roommates and saw that I had a message from Cole: Hey, something was delivered for you right before I left for work. I took it inside. It’s on the counter. 

That relief made me relax as I unlocked the door and walked inside. 

The brown paper envelope on the counter looked like a present waiting to be opened, and I couldn’t wait until after my shower to open it. I was careful as I slipped the scissors between the flap of the envelope and the main body of it, then tipped it to let the object slide out without risking a wrinkle.

Star Wars Republic: On Hostile Ground, the cover proclaimed. The people shown on the front were overshadowed by the hands holding lightsabers in the foreground, and I started to get a little nervous. I had done a ton of research to find comics featuring Alpha-17 and all of them had said this was one, but why were there a bunch of Jedi and mercenaries on the cover?

With shaking fingers, I peeled up the sticky edge of the protective cover for the comic book and let it slide out into my hands. When I opened it to a random page, I was greeted by a picture of Alpha. He wasn’t wearing his armor there, but it was clearly him. I relaxed again. 

“Oh,” Echo said, peering over my shoulder. “Oh, no.”

Rex glanced over and shook his head, a grim look on his face. “Does anyone know when he’s supposed to be here?” 

“A few hours,” Stone reported. “He’s taking the late night to early morning guard shift tonight.” 

I carefully put the comic book back in the original package and went to take a shower. 

Reading it took far less time than I had expected, but I wasn’t used to reading comic books. I would have to read it again later, when I could remember to focus as much on the illustrations as on the dialogue bubbles. 

But as I was finishing my first read-through, a massive figure settled beside me. “Is that me.” 

He hadn’t phrased it as a question, but I nodded at Alpha anyway. “Yeah, it’s you. You’re pretty badass here.” I turned to the last page and pointed to a new panel. “And look at this one! You look so… stoic.” 

“I look like I’m done taking Kenobi’s shit,” Alpha corrected. “At least that’s accurate.”

“Better this picture than some of the earlier ones,” I muttered. 

“And that means?” I didn’t answer and Alpha nudged me with his shoulder. “What are you talking about?” 

“I meant that you spent a lot of time shirtless in this issue.” I flipped back a few pages and held it up. “These are the panels I thought you’d object to.”

Alpha was quiet as he studied the pictures in question. The comic book version of him was wearing a vest and holding two giant blasters, but everything else above the waist was left visible for the viewer.

“I think they left out some of my muscles,” he commented and I could only sputter a laugh as he walked away.

---

Previous | Next | Masterlist

Author's Note - I love that comic book. My poor roommates had to listen to me talk about it and show off all the panels with Alpha... Good times!

Reminder that there is no longer a taglist for any of my works! They'll all be posted here and tagged with the story name. Feel free to blacklist any tags you don't want to see, and thanks for reading!

[hirokiyuu]

so i've been writing a looooot of exocolonist fic that probably won't get published as like. longer stuff? but some of it is really fun so i wanted to throw it at least on here for some people's viewing pleasure wwwww

so have this dys+sol/nomi! a little bit of dys>sol but this is mostly just abt kids being stupid and also friends! please enjoy >:) mild spoilers for nomi's romance route

i like to dance real fast; 650 words

“Dys.”

Sol’s face is deathly serious, which means whatever this is about is going to be stupid as shit. He always looks delighted whenever he’s talking about the Gardeners or the Array -- seriousness is reserved solely for bullshit colony drama. “Dys, I’m going to ask you a question, and I need you to not laugh at me, okay?”

“Fine,” says Dys. In his heart he’s out on the Ridges, sitting with Sym under the stars as they talk about anything and everything. In reality, unfortunately, he’s here. “What.”

Sol whips out his holopalm. “Okay, so you saw Nomi’s post, right?” He’s whispering, leaning his head in, and despite himself the crush Dys has been trying to bury for years wiggles a little from under the dirt. “Do you think…. Did the other person in it look like me?”

Dys very heroically does not roll his eyes as Sol dumps a shovelful of dirt on Dys’s feelings himself. It’s not so hard to get over someone who's this obviously in love with someone else. Still, in the spirit of friendship and also getting Sol to leave faster, Dys dutifully opens his own holopalm up to squint at the picture again.

The photo Nomi took of the drawing isn’t great. The lightning's off and the angle’s weird, which means Dys can only make out two figures: clearly-not-Sol and maybe-Sol-maybe-not. “I dunno,” he says, but at Sol’s pleading look gives it another closer squint. “If it’s not you, who else would it be?”

“Rex,” says Sol, instantly, face falling a little. “And I get it, y’know? He’s nice and cool and they’ve been friends forever, but… maybe I have a chance anyways, right? I mean, they, y’know, danced with me on my birthday and everything…?”

In the most embarrassing display Dys has ever seen in his life, yeah. Both Sol and Nomi had seemed happy, though, grinning at each other as they did their weird noodley wiggles. Another shovel of dirt, there: if Sol expected him to do that Dys would just die instead. He gives the picture another squint. “I’d say it’s more like you than him.”

“Really?” Ugh. Dys needs more dirt; the smile Sol gives him is small and unsure and brilliant despite that, red dusting his cheeks. “That’s… that’s good. Okay. Yeah. Yeah! Alright, I’ll, um… I’ll talk to them about it, I guess? Thanks, Dys.”

Sol reaches out and squeezes his hand. Dys really needs more dirt. “Okay,” says Sol, and then stands up, punching his hands in the air. “Okay! I’m gonna… I’m gonna do it! Okay!”

Stars above. This is kind of embarrassing to watch, which is good for burying his feelings and bad for his mental health. “Good luck,” says Dys, who means it mostly earnestly but also a little because he’d like this whole thing to be over as soon as possible.

“Thanks!” says Sol, without looking over, still red as he looks down towards where Nomi’s no doubt standing with Rex. “I’ll see you later, Dys, thank you for the help!”

With that he’s off, striding back down into the colony with a determined look on his face. Cute, Dys thinks, but not in the way that hurts. It’s just sort of… nice. To think that Sol and Nomi might date. That they might make each other smile like they did last Quiet, two idiots together who he does, despite himself, care about.

Well… maybe it's a little lonely, too. Dys sighs, flips open his notebook again until he finds a blank page. Too bad he's not on expedition for another few days: he wants to be out there again, walking with Sym through the wilderness. For now, though, he'll have to content himself with memory. 

He clicks his pen and presses it to the paper. Nomi’s kind of nuts but he can agree about one thing: there's something sort of cathartic about drawing your feelings, and so alone on the hill, as below him Sol finds his happy ending, he contents himself with sketching Sym’s face.

[thatamatuerauthor]

My Fair Luna

Chapter 8

If Emma had known the sheer amount of work that was waiting for her at this new job, she would've thought twice.

But she still would have taken it, if she was honest.

So the grounds needed work, and tasks needed delegating…and room assignments completed and gardening to oversee and meal planning to go over and a new row of houses needed to go up so supplies needed to be ordered and patches of trees felled and kids activities to plan and…

Oh boy

A lot of work needed to be done. It had Emma wondering just what was so important that the boss man and his family had to leave. Because she was starting to feel like they had left all these people high and dry.

Or they had more faith in Rex and Luke than was appropriate. Sorry guys.

Either way, by the time Sunday had rolled around, the time for her to phone in to her parents, Emma was surprised to find herself smack dab in the middle of a construction site as people began directing all their questions towards her about what to do.

It was Luna this and Luna that. Honestly she didn't know what to think about that nickname at first. It didn't really seem to fit in with the whole wolf theme. Until she realized it meant moon, and wolves howl at the moon, and right now all these people were 'howling' at her expecting her to know and/or fix everything.

And here I thought it was because I was pasty white…she grumbled internally.

The first time someone had called her that, she can't quite remember who now that everyone does it, Faye and Jade had practically glared holes into the poor soul's head. She wasn't sure what the big deal was. After all, having a nickname means she's one of them now, right?

When she said it was ok to call her that, everyone relaxed and seemed so happy about it. Further making her feel like she was missing some vital peice if the puzzle that was Camp Lobo. But Jade and Faye seemed particularly thrilled and called her Luna often. She was coming to really enjoy their company.

A tune began playing softly from her pocket, catching several people's attention. Emma pulled her phone from her jeans and answered it without looking. She knew who it was based on the song.

"Hey dad," She greeted, unknowingly perking interest around her as sensitive ears listened in. "What's up?"

"Nothing much, Jo and I were just waiting on your call."

Emma paused. "Right, sorry." She blew out a breath and motioned to the foreman that she was stepping away. "Everything's been so hectic since day one I haven't had a chance to do much but eat and sleep."

"So I take it you got the job?"

"Yeah, that very day in fact." Emma figured her dad would pick up on the oddities like she had. Only he'd understand them better.

"That day?"

"On the spot." Emma smiled as a few workers carrying insulation passed her. "You could tell he was in over his head."

"Bossman was that desperate?"

"He's actually acting boss." That was the kicker, and she knew her dad was thinking the same thing she has because he let out a long hum.

"Did he get permission from Bossman?"

Emma blew out a breath. "Not that I know of."

Her dad hummed again. "You do realize that could make you temporary hire."

"Yeah, I know."

"Do you like it there?"

"I love it, it's absolutely gorgeous. I'll take some pictures of the grounds when I get the chance. You and mom would love it here." She gushed, not realizing the people around her were smiling.

"Ok, camp rat. How's the food? Is it as good as your mom's?"

"Some is, some isn't. But I don't think anyone's gonna top her homemade bread."

"True-"

"Luna can you-" Just as the worker interrupt her a few of the workers around her shushed him.

"Someone calling you?" Her dad asked.

"Yeah, I'm literally in the middle of putting up the inner walls of the new building."

"Oh?"

"Hey man, I'm only overseeing the project and helping the foreman stay on task. Everybody already knows what they're doing."

"Alright, if you need any help give me a call."

"I will. Love you dad." She had already thought of calling him since he was a painter/contractor but the workers here had everything handled.

"Love you too-"

"LOVE YOU BABY!" Her mom yelled into her dad's ear. Not that it bothered him, he's half deaf. But it blared across her phone speaker.

"Love you too mom." Emma lightly rolled her eyes.

"Hey, before you go just…be careful and try not to step on any toes."

"That's the plan." She sighed again.

"Alright, love you baby."

"Love you too, bye."

"Bye."

Line Break

Fay and Jade stood aside and watched as Luna Emma spoke to her parents. The week had gone a lot smoother than they could've hoped. Except for the fact that everyone knows…

Faye was not the only one to apparently recognize her for what she is. On one hand, this made her transition into the pack rather smooth, on the other…they were never going to hear the end of it from Matt when he gets back.

"I think it happened this way for reason." Jade, like Faye, didn't take her eyes off of their Luna.

"And why is that?" Faye asked.

"Think about it. Not only did she come when we needed her the most, but do you think if Alpha Matt had met her earlier that Alpha and Luna would have accepted her?"

Faye frowned. "Why wouldn't they? She is our next Luna. Everyone can tell."

"Strange isn't it?" Jade continued. "That we would be able to recognize her?" Faye glanced at Jade. "You knowing is understandable. But the rest of us should just see a human. So why are we connecting with her so easily?"

Fay had no answers. Now that she thought about it too…it was more than odd. It was unheard of. But there had to be a reason.

"And then there's the timing." Jade pointed out. "She came when we needed her. Almost as if she's proving herself without the pressure of being ridiculed by those in power because she is the highest rank among us."

"You think Alpha Derek and Luna Mae would have rejected her." Faye swallowed thickly, she didn't like the thought.

"Undoubtedly." Jade didn't hesitate to answer.

[local-neko-girl]

Chapter Four:

Rex stared at the figure a long time, wondering who it was. The more he stared, the more he had a feeling he knew who.

“Arvanna? Is that you?” Rex asked aloud.

She froze, terrified he already knew. She just wanted to disappear. She didn’t want to see him again. She sighed, then removed the hood of the cloak, and turned to see him.

“Yes Rex, it’s me,” she softly said as she looked at him.

Sato gasped as did others at her red eyes, assuming she was a Sith. Her hair was still fiery red from that day on Korriban. A lot of things changed that day.

“You brought a Sith here?” Sato asked.

“She’s not a Sith,” Rex said, then turned to her again. “What happened to your eyes?”

“I don’t know. When we went to Malachor, the temple got activated. Once it did, I had this odd feeling and ended up passing out.”

“She had weird black markings around her eyes, and was mumbling something,” Ezra added.

“Just like that one time,” Rex said.

“You mean… when we went to Korriban?” She softly asked.

“Yeah, your eyes were black and red, and had these weird markings around them. Well, amongst other things. Like your hair. It still never went back to normal?”

“No, it’s stayed red since.. that day. Maybe it’s a reaction to the place?”

“It could be, you did go back to mostly normal after we left Korriban.”

“Why were you on Korriban?” Kanan was surprised.

“Visiting family,” she chuckled painfully.

Kanan had a confused look on his face. Arvanna and Rex stared at each other a long time.

“I could take you to a ship, if you wouldn’t mind me escorting you,” he smiles.

His voice was soft and tender to her the whole time. Not his usual louder personality around everyone else. He held out his arm for her to link hers through. She took off the cloak and handed it back to Kanan.

“Thank you for letting me use this.”

“Not a problem. Hopefully we’ll see you again.”

“We’ll see. The force works in mysterious ways.”

She linked her arm through his, and they walked out of the command center.

“Was that weird?” Ezra asked. “They acted so weird with each other.”

Kanan chuckled slightly.

“That’s because they used to be lovers.”

“Lovers? Really? I thought Jedi couldn’t form attachments?” Ezra asked.

“She was… a special case.”

“Because of being a Sanguine?”

“Sort of. It was extremely complicated.”

As Rex and Arvanna walked through the halls, Arvanna stared at the ground, not sure what to say. It has been so long since she saw him.

“You’re looking good,” he said as they walked.

“You’re not so bad yourself. Never pictured you with facial hair,” she smiled.

“I’m trying a new look, like it?” he smiled back.

“I liked your baby face more,” she chuckled. “But you’re still so handsome like this too.”

They come up to a ship similar to the Phantom, called The Poltergeist. There was someone standing outside of it and walked up to them.

“So you’re paying for the ship right?” the man asked.

“Yes, do you have the sale pad?” she asked.

“Yes, right here,” he handed it over to her.

She looked it over, seeing the price was a little high, but fair for the fact they were losing a ship. She put in a code so that credits could be transferred and she paid. The man bowed and walked away.

“So, this is it,” Rex said solemnly.

“Until we meet again,” she smiled sadly.

There was a moment of silence as they stared at each other again. She could feel the words at the tip of his tongue, but he was too nervous to say it. Even though it had been so long since she fed on him, she could still read his feelings and thoughts.

“I still love you too,” she said and started to cry. “I never stopped caring about you.”

There was a pained look on his face before he drew her in close in a tight embrace. She was shocked at first, not having flesh and bone contact in a long time. It felt like a weight was lifted from her chest, and she held him tightly.

“I…” Rex started to say.

“You don’t have to tell me Rex, it’s okay. I know.”

They were still holding each other. She knew every word he wanted to tell her but couldn’t figure out how to say it. How he cared for her, missed her terribly, hoped she was alright, wished she would stay, wished he could help her.

“I wish this moment could last forever,” Rex mumbled softly into her ear. “I miss you so much.”

She continued to cry.

“I feel the same way. I’m sorry. I’m just… I’m on a different path now. Everything is so dark. After… after Korriban and then the Order… I don’t know who I am anymore. I’m in so much pain.”

“I wish I could just take that pain away for you,” he softly said as he held her close.

“I know. Truly you are an amazing man Rex. Never forget that. And I’ll never forget you.”

“I’ll never forget you either, Arvanna.”

They end their hug, and she wipes her tears away to see Rex wipe his own. She touches his chest a moment, then leans in and kisses his lips. She knew how much he wanted one last kiss. As did she. When she pulled back and looked into his eyes again, he gasped softly.

“Your eyes, they’ve returned to normal. There’s no markings, and they are blue again.”

“You always knew how to heal me,” she softly smiled.

“Just be safe, okay?” Rex said.

“I will be, thank you. For everything you’ve ever done for me.”

She starts to tear up again, but turns and gets into the ship. Once it takes off, Rex walks back inside.

The others see how sad he looks, and Kanan walks up to him.

“You alright?” Kanan asked.

“I just… I didn’t want her to go.”

Ezra see’s how upset Rex is, and feels bad for him.

“I know. But she’s on her own path now.”

“I know… it doesn’t make it hurt any less though,” Rex sighed and walked off.

As she left the planet, she had no idea where to go, or what to do. She slinked down and began crying hard. Everything came bubbling back to the surface and she couldn’t take it. The emotions choked her and she just started screaming. In anguish and pain, she let it all out. Losing so many created a black hole in her chest. And it felt like it was getting bigger and bigger. She didn’t know where to go or what to do. She just sat there, alone on the ship.

I should have just stayed. Rex was always the best part of me. He brought out the good in me, and kept me from doing anything rash. What am I doing? Should I go back?

Then her thoughts went to Maul.

Should I find him? Should I seek him out and follow him? He knows all about this kind of pain. I… I don’t know what to do…

The sorrow overtook her as she decided to set a course for the nearest system. After that, she went to her quarters and decided to sleep. There wasn’t anything else to do, and dwelling on her past was only causing more pain.

She lay there, in the bed, lonely and wondering what was going to happen. She had been wandering for so long she didn’t know what to do anymore. As time went on, she slowly started to fade into slumber.

[chemicalbrew]

choose violence ask game 6 bc we both know where this is headed (cough all of them cough)

YEAH YEAH YEAH YIPPEE [immediately turns reblogs off]

6. which ship fans are the most annoying? [interpreting as romantic ship]

so. let's start with what we both know

Katana ZERO

As I said in DMs earlier, I think the only worthwhile KZ ship is Zero x the receptionist (preferably one-sided, but I think someone really smart could make it mutual. I certainly wouldn't be mad if it was confirmed mutual in canon, but I seriously doubt it - one-sided is way funnier, anyway.). I also kind of sort of in theory respect the hustle of people trying to write V and Snow (rarepairs... been there), but I think I could never see it that way; what we have in game of them is barely good enough for anything, which is what makes it hilarious. That said, the most annoying shit here is, as we know...

150 150 150 150 150 !!!!!!

Even their stupid ship name cracks me up. Like, I understand, you can't have a good portmanteau or anything when your ship has numbers, but half the ship is literally Zero (hehe another reason Zerocep[tionist] wins), however... the way you read it is not even conducive to a shipping read. One fifty? One hundred and fifty? Even the number doesn't want them together <3

There was a post somewhere in my KZ tag that actually puts my feelings better than I myself can, but I'll try anyway. Due to the way this game's plot\timeline is framed, all their past interaction is basically implied. They don't really get to exchange any words, no matter how awkward (compare this to the receptionist having the tiniest of character arcs, but still an arc, between the hotel and bunker stages) - Fifteen just shows up, confirms he's the real Dragon, kills the shit out of V, and leaves, and that right there is the closest we get to an interaction (surely you won't say Zero walking in on a conversation later counts?).

How the fuck can you wrangle a ship out of that?

'But muh implications' that's all they are, implications. Not a very fertile ground to build upon. And even then, what they imply is far more like camaraderie than anything, which, while a solid and even necessary (in real life, at least) foundation for a relationship, doesn't MEAN it has to be romantic!! Give me traumatized war buddies that aren't making out with each other, pleeeeeeease...

'But you're reblogging art with them together' YEAH BECAUSE THEY LOOK HANDSOME TOGETHER AND THEIR DESIGNS ARE PERFECTLY COMPLEMENTARY. THAT'S THE ONLY REASON. I'M LITERALLY OBSESSED WITH HOW WELL THEY MATCH IN THIS ASPECT. This is why they should just be fighting together and nothing else <3

Xenoblade (gonna try and be a bit more rapid-fire about the rest of this post, unless the wrathful mood strikes me again)

Shulk and Fiora do not make sense romantically at all to me. They're family, ffs. Same for Shulk and Reyn, if not doubly same. But the fans keep insisting otherwise and often. (Libra, if you're reading this, this doesn't apply to you or other friends of mine that like Shiora. You're the only ones I trust with these two, I just want no part of it myself)

Shulk and Alvis are amazing, but need to be viewed through a lens more complex than typical shipping to be fully appreciated (something I'm still somewhat guilty of and recovering from. Jesus, wider XB1 fandom can be the worst sometimes).

Shulk and Melia as a ship by itself does not offend me, but the fans that weep about how Melia never had any good shit happen to her, and say Shulk not returning her feelings makes it worse... can die in a fire :)

I don't understand how people can take Reyn and Sharla seriously together tbh... but I guess it's more acceptable than the stuff above?

Rex and Nia (on their own, without Aegis in picture) never needed to be anything more than friends. The way Nia gets over being ''''friendzoned''' (hate that word) canonically is better than anything fans have come up with regarding this matter.

Lora and Jin have barely been interpreted by anyone in the wider fandom correctly (that I know of - key word 'barely'). Just stop at this point <3

...I won't be talking about XB3 ships because I heavily dislike XB3 and haven't read anything shippy for it, not even for NoahMio.

PS. Morag and Zeke should get more attention (personally I'm still guilty of somewhat ignoring this as a ship, but if I ever replay\rewatch, I'll be sure to analyze their interactions more, especially bc they're fun no matter how you look)

misc.

I have seen people interpret Ares and Dela (Brandish series) as a romantic ship, and I'd like to see just how much their brain has rotted.

Olivier and Mueller (Trails in the Sky) are very fun as a ship! I'd just like to see people view their relationship through a more neutral lens sometimes. However, the fact that Estelle x Kevin fics exist is the real mind-bender here. HOW? It's called being playful and keeping up a front!! (Also, Estelle x Anelace is slept on the same way as Zerocep and Moragzeke <333)

Frog x Magus and Lucca x Magus (Chrono Trigger) make equally little sense, and yet seem to be popular. Ew. Not even mentioning my personal beef with Frog x Lucca. Don't.

Midna x Link and Malon x Link (Zelda series) were actually my first NOTPs, largely because of annoying fans. I see now I was in the wrong and am largely 'thog dont caaare' about it, but still, important.

Ace Attorney series... tbh its fandom is weird about ships as a whole, but I'm guilty of falling into the Blackmadhi trap, so I can't speak. Almost everything other than Blackmadhi, though, is a tough sell largely bc of fandom.

Any ship involving Stocke from Radiant Historia has to be included in here. I am by and large respectful of most popular stuff with him (especially Stocke x Rosch and the Stocke x Sonja x Rosch OT3), I just think it's more fun to have him not into any of it. Very similar situation to Zero KZ, honestly.

[bluejaysandblackbats]

If There’s Nothing Missing In My Life…

Fandom: DC Comics, Superfam

Summary: Newly-emancipated popstar and child actor, Conner (screen name: Lucky) navigates high school and stardom on his own.

Chapters: 13/?

Characters: Conner Kent, Lois Lane, Roxy Leech, Rex Leech, Lois Lane, Clark Kent, Hillary Chang

Additional Tags: Highschool AU, Celebrity AU, Conner Kent Needs a Hug, Conner Luthor, Lex Luthor is Conner’s Parent, Teen Angst, Angst, POV First Person, No Powers AU, Conner Kent-centric, Bisexual Conner Kent, POV Conner Kent, Protective Lex Luthor, Child Celebrity AU

Chapter Thirteen: Homecoming

When we arrived, Hillary reached for my hand. I smiled and leaned toward her to break the silence. “This is my first real date,” I confessed. Hillary blinked hard and frowned.

“It’ll be fun,” Hillary whispered, “Come on. Let’s get something to drink.”

I let her lead. I bought two cans of soda, and we sat on the bleachers. “When do I have to take you home?” I questioned.

“My brothers know the dance ends at midnight. I told them I’d be home around twelve-thirty and I’d call if we stopped to eat,” Hillary answered. We sat in silence for a while, watching as the other kids mingled and danced with each other, and I wondered when we’d join them. “I’ll dance with you after I drink this soda. You don’t have to wait for me, though”

I nodded. “It’s not—? It’s not rude?” I asked. She shook her head.

I hesitated, but she gestured for me to go ahead. I felt painfully self-conscious as I joined the other kids. I glanced at her, and she gave me a thumbs-up. “Did you know you’re on the ballot for junior year homecoming king?” someone shouted. I turned, looking for the source of the voice, and pointed to myself. “Yeah! I voted for you!”

I didn’t even vote for myself. I voted for a kid named Percy, who helped me study for my history midterm. I didn’t want that kind of attention. “Thanks! I voted for Percy!” I replied. They cocked their head, and Percy smiled and waved at me. I waved back and walked toward him. We danced and talked for a while, and he asked me if it was anything like I imagined it would be. “Nope!”

“It always feels awkward when you first arrive! Don’t worry!” Percy reassured me.

I danced for two or three songs before I joined Hillary on the bleachers. “Lucky, are you okay?” Hillary asked.

“Do you want to take a picture?” I questioned. Hillary nodded.

Hillary took my hand and led me to the line for the paper moon. She let go of my hand and shook her arms and legs out. I laughed at how weird it looked. “Loosen up,” Hillary laughed, “This is supposed to be fun.” She shook her limbs out again, and I joined her.

I laughed with her as we moved up in line, but the closer we got to the moon, the more nervous I felt. When we were first in line, I turned to walk away, and she grabbed my arms, talking me down without words. She made eye contact and nodded until I calmed down. “Hey,” Hillary whispered, “Hey… It’s okay.”

I took a deep breath, followed her to the paper moon, and we took a picture. She laid her head on my shoulder, and I smiled at my feet. The DJ announced the first slow song, and Hillary stood on her tiptoes. “Do you want to dance? Or is that—?”

“Sure!” Hillary smiled.

I took her to the dancefloor, and it hit me with the notion that she’d danced with other people before. “Have you ever dated?” I questioned. “Not asking in a—. I’m purely curious. I want to know what it’s like for you.”

“Well, yeah… It’s different for everybody,” Hillary replied.

“I don’t—. I’m so nervous, and I know you’re not judging me, but I’m doing everything wrong,” I explained.

“You’re not doing anything wrong. You’re figuring it out, and that’s fine. You’ll probably look back on this night and laugh because there was nothing to worry about,” Hillary reassured me. I relaxed and let myself breathe.

The music transitioned out of the slow song, and I excused myself to go to the bathroom. With everyone in the bathroom, I took a stall. I don’t think anyone noticed me go in because they talked about me. “It’s crazy. If Lucky Luthor could pull Hillary Chang—.”

“What do you mean?” the other guy asked.

“Don’t you remember all that crap she said about how bubbleheaded and dense kid celebrities are? She was so against him coming to our school, and he showed up, and now she’s his girlfriend! That’s nuts,” the first boy replied.

“Maybe there’s hope for all of us,” the second boy replied.

“Yeah… Or she’s using him—.”

“Not her… Come on. Everybody knows Hillary’s willing to give everybody a chance—.”

I left the stall and washed my hands. I felt sick to my stomach, and I wanted out, but I couldn’t leave Hillary at the dance. My dad would’ve been so disappointed if I did something so rude. So, I found her on the dancefloor and tried to discreetly excuse myself. “Hil, I don’t feel well,” I whispered in her ear. She shook her head as if she couldn’t hear me.

“What?” Hillary shouted.

“I feel sick,” I shouted. Hillary’s smile faded, and she took me aside, but I flinched away from her touch.

“What’s wrong?” Hillary asked.

I shrugged. “I don’t feel well. I think I’m gonna be sick,” I repeated.

“Oh, do you want to go home? I can—.”

“No. You should stay and have fun… I’ll have Roxy take you home at midnight. I can walk—.”

“Lucky, I can come with you—.”

“No, I um—. I just want to soak in the bath and go to bed,” I interrupted. I didn’t want to ruin her night, but I was angry with her. Our friendship felt false.

“Okay… I hope you feel better,” Hillary replied. I nodded and slipped away.

The second the cold air hit my face, I burst into tears. It hurt me. I took off the stupid tie and texted Roxy to tell her I went home and needed her to drop Hillary off after the dance.

*

I took a personal week before returning to school and didn’t answer anyone’s calls. I finished writing the last handful of songs for the album on Wednesday and rotted on my couch the rest of the week. I received a house call from Jake. I wanted to hide from him, but he knew I was home. I unlocked the door and let him in. “I know you’re not sick,” Jake stated, “What’s going on? Are you mad at my sister?”

“I don’t want to put you in the middle of—.”

“I’m not here to be in the middle. Hillary’s convinced that you’re sick. I won’t tell her differently, but you’ll have to face her eventually. Whatever it is, you should practice explaining now,” Jake interrupted as he plopped on my couch.

“Why didn’t she tell me she didn’t want me to go to her school? Why’d she let me think we were friends?” I asked.

“She didn’t know you… And then, she got to know you. Simple as that,” Jake replied like it was nothing.

“So you would’ve been cool with that?” I questioned.

“It’s not about how I feel… I can tell you that my sister isn’t pretending to like you. She gave you a fair chance because that’s who she is. Hillary might’ve said some hurtful things about you as a celebrity, but she’s had nothing but kind words to say since she met you,” Jake replied.

“Do you want something to eat?” I mumbled.

“No, thanks… Lucky, I’m sorry my sister hurt your feelings. I mean that,” Jake replied as he stood and touched my shoulder. I kept quiet about what happened and pretended nothing was wrong between Hillary and me when we saw each other again at school.

[somanysurprises]

Drew, I thought it was funny at the time even when you would say certain weird things after I asked you not to say weird things again because it caused me to be paranoid so then of course you picked up speed and start saying weird days more regularly and redundantly knowing that I was going to go search them but you were ready and waiting for me and you had shit there for me to find you know what I noticed and none of that had been there before you know cause I’ve been searching every day every night all night for years, because of all this torture desperately trying to help myself why surrounded by liars and crooks and I didn’t notice any of it up then .. so I knew it was all fucking bullshit and I kept my mouth shut and kept putting up with your nagging and begging and all of your fucking tricks and exploits but that Walmart one, bro, you can’t get past that you will not pass go you will not collect $200. You will not collect shit least of all my Amazon mail anymore. Or Fingerhut. no I still have pictures of some of those little gadgets you were putting together in your room because you know I want to look up the serial numbers on them I’ve known since way back then since I seen that you had remote arms for a remote cameras, robotic ones I mean since you gave me a Phillips speaker that was really an IHH on the inside since you also have a both speaker and a château key... dirty ass solar panel fix.. yeah, you were scrapping Drew, but you were scrapping for metal. You were fucking data, scraping my shit while torturing me while doing all this shit and filling it with fake bitcoin information to scare me and then listen to me with false sympathy. oh my God I’ve got to calm down. I am so mad. I am beyond mad Scott you’re gonna wish you never copyrighted all my shit. I verified that one for myself too or someone did for me, but I already knew it because I seen it when you were taking a nap today I found the NPG. Server hack shit on your phone.  little did I know everything is a hack. From fucking oracles SQL to every goddamn thing Rex send text what was that website you wanted me to go to Scott and put in John’s credit card information so he could get paid back for the solar panels?? you fucking scam, artist, dude ..

[cyberfeather]

This one takes place in the same AU as yesterday’s drabble

Yaypril Day 11 - Children, with Fives and Echo

Echo can barely believe the sight in front of him; it’s almost too good to be true. He never expected to see Fives again, not after hearing about his death from Rex, and yet here he is, carrying a small tubie in his arms, while two more sleep in cradles right beside him. It’s such a peaceful picture that it brings tears to his eyes. His brother is so focused on the child in his arms that he doesn’t even notice his presence, not until Echo lightly knocks on the open door.

“You could have warned your twin you were planning on making him an uncle, you know. Basic decency and all that.”

He barely manages to get the joke out, his throat tight with emotion. The moment he spots him, Fives’ eyes fill with joy.

“Echo!” He shouts, then rushes towards him, only to suddenly stop in his track. “Look, I really, really want to hug the hell out of you right now, I promise, but I can’t squeeze the little one. Kriff, I’m so happy to see you again, you have no idea. To think that all this time, I believed you were…”

“I know, Fives, trust me I know. I feel the same.” Echo replies, his voice stammering.

Since he can’t take his brother in his arms, not while he’s holding the kid, he settles for lightly pressing his forehead against Fives’, hoping it’ll be enough to convey how much he’s missed him. It’s enough for them both to start crying, feeling beyond happy to be reunited again.

However, they get distracted as the tubie in Fives’ arms starts wriggling around, intrigued by all the commotion. Echo chuckles as the kid obviously tries to reach for him with his tiny fingers.

“Now, I think some introductions might be in order.” He points out.

Fives nods, his expression immediately softening as he starts talking about the tubies.

“Yeah, I guess so. These three… The Kaminoans used my DNA to create them, just like they used Prime’s to make us. I’m not sure if that makes me their father the way natborns would see it, but… Someone has to be there for them, and I was the one who got them out of their tubes, so… I guess they’re mine to watch over now.”

“Small copies of you, uh? Something tells me these kids are going to be a menace.”

As they talk, the child starts grabbing at Echo’s metal arm with his small hands, which makes Fives smile.

“Would you look at that, someone seems to like you already.”

“It does seem this way, huh?” Echo smiles, although he tucks his artificial limb close to his body and away from the tubie, in favor of letting him grab his flesh one instead. “I’m not letting him play with this though, not until I’ve checked with Tech that no part can come loose. Wouldn’t want him to choke.”

“Tech? Who’s that?”

“Oh, he’s part of my batch. I mean, not in the way you are, but… Let’s just say it’s a long story, and that you’re not the only one who found a new family. I’m afraid my brothers aren’t as cute as this one, though.”

“Well, in their defense, no one can be as cute as him. I mean, he was created after me. But don’t worry, I’m sure I’ll love them anyway.”

“You haven’t changed; still as full of yourself as the day I left you.” Echo snickers, but his laughter quickly dies out, and then he whispers in a soft tone: “It’s you. It’s really you.”

“Yeah, it’s me, and I’m not going anywhere, I swear.” His twin promises.

However, the heartfelt moment is suddenly disturbed when the tubie tries to squirm his way out of Fives’ arms and towards Echo.

“Hey, easy there!” Fives tries to calm him down, but that’s not enough to deter the child from his goal. “Uh, say, Echo, would you like to carry him? He seems to like you.”

“I don’t see why not.” He agrees with a smile.

Fives hands him the still wriggling tubie and Echo carefully wraps his good arm around him, making sure he won’t drop him. Once settled comfortably against his chest, it barely takes a minute for the child to doze off, to Fives’ stupefaction.

“I can’t believe this.”

“What?” Echo asks, puzzled by his reaction.

“It always takes me ages to get him to sleep. This isn’t fair, you have to give me your secret.”

“Well, I do have some experience with kids, just not ones this young.” He admits. “It’s kind of a long story.”

“Then it’s a good thing we have all the time we want now that the war is over, isn’t it?”

“I guess so,” Echo admits, although he still struggles to realize that it’s real.

They’re at peace. The tubie in his arms won’t be thrown into battle, won’t have to face clankers, won’t lose his brothers one after the other. It’s a soothing thought, one that makes Echo smile softly as he starts telling Fives about his adventures with the Bad Batch.

[elthadriel]

Codex Week Day 5: You've Got My Love And Dedication

“You’ve never been with someone with my equipment before?” Cody asked and Rex visibly relaxed.

“Yeah.” He moved his hand again — finally — dragging one down the seam along Cody’s crotch, over the fold of his labia. Cody shuddered. “I did some research. Looked some stuff up on the holonet, but you’ll tell me what you like? Or if I’m doing anything wrong?”

Rex was still rubbing over his labia, sending a gentle, coiling warmth up Cody’s spine. So far he was doing just fine.

Rating: E

Tags: Trans Cody, First Time, First Time Together, Cunnilingus, Multiple Orgasms, Light Dom/sub, Vaginal Fingering, Overstimulation, Vaginal Sex, They are so into each other that it's embarrassing

Read on ao3 for the full spicy art from @nottonyharrison

For @codex-week​ day 5: First Times

“I need to tell you something,” Rex said, and then immediately distracted himself by sucking on Cody’s neck. It had a similar effect on Cody’s attention.

After almost a month of dancing around the inevitable, a month of interruptions and bad timing, things were finally moving in the direction Cody wanted.

Rex sat in his lap, a thigh on either side of his hips, hands and mouth exploring every bare inch of Cody they could find, and when they ran out of that, baring even more. Cody was quite happy where his hands were, slipped into Rex’s pants, fingers digging into the firm muscle of Rex’s ass. He’d been eyeing it up for long enough, he intended to enjoy it now he had it.

Rex was teasing the hem of his lower blacks now too, he slid a hand between them, stroking over Cody’s crotch through his underwear. He stopped and pulled back. He wasn’t quite biting his lip, but it looked like a close thing, gears turning obviously in his head.

Cody raised an eyebrow.

“Oh, right. That’s what I needed to say. I’ve never been with someone with uh…” Rex swallowed. “I obviously don’t mind — fuck — I mean I’m excited, but I wanted you to know that I haven’t…”

Cody was almost tempted to let him flail for a little longer, but there was a throbbing between Cody’s legs that Rex’s hand was so very close to touching, and that had to take priority.

“You’ve never been with someone with my equipment before?” Cody asked and Rex visibly relaxed.

“Yeah.” He moved his hand again — finally — dragging one down the seam along Cody’s crotch, over the fold of his labia. Cody shuddered. “I did some research. Looked some stuff up on the holonet, but you’ll tell me what you like? Or if I’m doing anything wrong?”

Rex was still rubbing over his labia, sending a gentle, coiling warmth up Cody’s spine. So far he was doing just fine.

“You know, captain, it’s against regs to look at porn on GAR servers,” Cody drawled.

Rex punched his shoulder and then kissed him again.

“I’ve been thinking about this for months,” Rex confessed, and he slid off Cody’s lap, something Cody only allowed because he immediately started pulling off Cody’s pants. “I want to do this right.”

Cody lifted his hips, helping Rex get him out of his pants and underwear in one go, his pulse as obvious between his legs as it was in his chest. There was a dark patch on the crotch of Cody’s underwear, but if Rex noticed he didn’t comment, too busy spreading Cody’s legs and taking in what he was working with.

He started for longer than was polite, hands tightening fraction at a time on Cody’s thighs.

“It’s not going to bite you,” Cody said, but smiled to make sure Rex knew he wasn’t particularly concerned with the reaction. He was more than used to it considering most of his partners had never even seen a dick that didn’t look exactly like their own before, never mind something this different.

Rex rolled his eyes but it was enough of a push to have him reaching forward, spreading Cody’s folds and dipping a finger between them. He hadn’t been lying about his research — he went straight for Cody’s entrance and ran his finger through the slick there.

“I looked at some pictures,” Rex said, finger almost but not quite pushing into him. “Yours is prettier.”

Cody laughed, and kicked Rex with his heel.

“It’s a cunt, Rex. It’s not pretty.”

“Yours is,” Rex said stubbornly and before Cody could argue or deal with the heat rising on his checks continued, “can I taste you?”

Cody was struggling not to squirm, but it was hard with Rex’s hand between his leg teasing him so effectively, and Cody couldn’t decide if it was by accident or something he had read. And well, at the end of the day, the idea wasn’t all that different to a cock.

“You don’t have to,” Cody said, because he’d been down that road before. He’d teach Rex to eat him out, but he’d rather their first time not involve that much fumbling as Rex figured it out. “You can fuck me if you like?”

“I’d like to eat you out,” Rex said. “What would you like me to do?”

Cody laughed, unable to help himself in the face of Rex’s need to meet a challenge in this of all things.

“It’s been a while since someone sucked me off,” Cody admitted.

Rex smiled, flashing a hint of teeth and then his face was replacing his fingers between Cody’s thighs, licking a line up Cody’s cunt. Cody’s thighs tightened and he propped himself up on his elbows to watch.

Rex peeked up at him, licking Cody’s slick off his lips. “I thought you’d taste the same. It’s nice.”

Keeping and hand on each of Cody’s legs, encouraging him to keep them spread open, Rex put his mouth back between Cody’s legs, this time with more of a plan. He lapped at Cody’s entrance and up the side of his labia. Cody sighed. Rex’s mouth was warm and attentive, no hesitation in getting deep between Cody’s folds. A familiar need made Cody aware his clit would be swollen and obvious but Rex seemed intent on exploring the rest of him first, putting his mouth everywhere he could.

“Rex,” Cody said and Rex twisted to nip the inside of Cody’s thigh before returning to his task.

Cody squirmed, his body wanting far more than Rex was giving him, his whole vulva throbbing demandingly. It was hard not to be aroused with Rex’s head between his legs like that.

Rex paused, mouth tauntingly close to what Cody wanted.

“Tell me what to do,” Rex said, breathing over Cody’s clit and Cody was positive Rex was doing it on purpose now. He was also positive Rex was willing to commit to this game and refuse to do anything until Cody told him to. Cody’s heart was hammering with anticipation.

“My clit,” Cody said around attempts to keep his breathing even.

Rex let go of one of Cody’s thighs to run a finger up the underside of Cody’s clit, flicking the head of it with the end of his finger. Cody gasped.

“This?” Rex asked.

“I thought you said you’d done your homework,” Cody said and if Rex didn’t do something very soon Cody was going to do something for the both of them.

Rex kissed the end of Cody’s clit. It felt fine — nice — but it was sweet in a way that made it almost overwhelming.

“What do you want me to do with it?” Rex asked. “The holonet gave me a lot of choices, but it was clear I should ask my partner as they’ll know best.”

“Fuck you,” Cody said but couldn’t find the heat to be convincing. Rex was firmly rubbing at his labia, fingers sometimes drifting close to where he wanted them.

“Tell me what you want, Cody,” Rex repeated, and granted a little mercy, running his tongue along the side of Cody’s clit.

“Anything, lick at it, suck it, just please touch it.”

Rex kissed it again, this time flicking his tongue over it before he set himself to the task at hand. He swirled his tongue around Cody’s clit, spreading Cody open with his hands, massaging his labia between his fingers. Cody let his eyes slip closed, head dropping back.

Rex licked and sucked around Cody’s vulva, lapping occasionally at his clit, not quite enough to satisfy the heat between Cody’s legs but enough to keep it simmering and to have Cody gasping and shifting under his mouth.

“Rex, suck me off,” Cody said, aiming for authoritative, but there was a strain to his voice he could get under control.

Rex kissed the inside of Cody’s thigh, where it met his groin, dragging his teeth over soft skin, and then finally — finally —  took Cody into his mouth and sucked. Cody groaned, pushing his hips up into Rex’s mouth while his shoulder slumped back into the bed.

“Rex,” he groaned, and fumbled for Rex’s head. Rex had no hair for him to grab, fingers slipping over his buzzed head. Rex didn’t need any encouragement to stay exactly where he was however, sucking and licking at Cody’s swollen clit with unwavering enthusiasm, seemingly only spurred on by how Cody had lost all control over himself.

Rex moved his tongue repeatedly over Cody’s clit without breaking the seal he’d made around it. Something hot and consuming grew under Rex’s mouth and clawed up Cody’s spine. He was gasping and panting, tensing in anticipation of something he wasn’t quite at the edge of yet. It built rapidly under Rex’s efforts, peaking up into overwhelming before it got there. Cody fisted the sheet with his free hand, but Rex gave no sign he was going to let up.

“Rex, stop,” Cody gasped and the tension slipped from his muscles as Rex did exactly that, and Cody sank deep back into the bed in relief and frustrated denial.

Rex looked at him, mouth glistening with Cody’s slick. He looked far too concerned.

“It gets too much.” Cody pulled in a rasping breath. He needed Rex’s mouth back on him even though he was the one that stopped it.

“You need me to go slower?” Rex asked, and he was still right, there, and Cody’s cunt clenched without his permission.

Cody shook his head, not sure how to explain. “Not slower. You need to ease off, just for a second ever so often. Until I get close.”

Rex nodded, and put his mouth back where Cody wanted it, wrapping his lips around Cody’s clit again. Cody let out a shuddering breath. Rex’s mouth was so hot.

Rex wasted no time in returning to his efforts. It wouldn’t take much longer, Cody had been worked into a state almost the moment Rex had shot him a heavy lidded glace from between his legs. Rex found the pattern he wanted again almost immediately, and all that lost tension slammed back into Cody, even more intense for the brief respite. But far too soon Rex slowed.

It took Cody as second to get his thoughts in order. “Not that soon,” he said. “I don’t know how to expla—”

Rex hummed, low in his throat and the rest of Cody’s sentence was swallowed by a curse and a groan. For a second, the hands keeping him spread open were uncomfortably tight, making it very clear Rex had noticed. With his new found knowledge, Rex set back to work, the adding vibrations pushing Cody cleanly over the edge.

Cody vocalised wordlessly, arching up off the bed, toes curling, shattering under Rex, who had apparently read enough to keep his mouth exactly where it was as Cody bucked under him, unable to think of a single thing beyond the pulsing pleasure each pass of Rex’s tongue was sending crashing through him.

His own voice caught him by surprise, somehow making the shape of Rex’s name and punching it out between one needy breath and the next. It was more than Cody could bear, and not enough by half, and Rex sucked him through all of it.

——

Cody’s chest was heaving, heels dragging on the bed as he stopped spasming under Rex’s mouth and Rex pulled back a little to let Cody catch his breath. He didn’t stop touching entirely though, still too captivated by Cody’s cunt. The outside was pleasingly soft and when he rubbed at it Cody let out soft, happy sounds, and between those folds was wet and apparently so very sensitive. Rex slid a finger down between Cody’s labia, careful to avoid his clit but rubbing at less overstimulated parts.

Above him Cody went back up onto one elbow, glaring accusingly down at Rex.

“You’ve really never done that before?” Cody asked, around gasping breaths.

Rex grinned letting smugness hide a more sincere delight at having made Cody feel so good. It was important to him that he got this right.

“Was it you or Seventeen that wrote I was a fast learner on my performance review?” he asked. Cody groaned and knocked his knee against Rex’s side, an unconvincing attempt at kicking him. Rex twisted and kissed the knee in response and then trailed a line of kisses up the inside of Cody’s thigh stopping just before his goal, close enough that he knew Cody would be able to feel Rex’s breath on his most sensitive parts. Cody’s cunt twitched.

“Again?” Rex asked. The smell was different from the rest of the clones, tangy like the way Cody tasted and Rex inhaled deeply, letting it coat his nose and throat.

Please,” Cody said.

Rex put his mouth to Cody’s thigh, sucking blood up to the surface, until it was satisfyingly dark. He moved higher, closer to Cody’s cunt and repeated the action. Cody shifted under him, cunt glistening with slick, muscles clenching with need. He moved even higher for the next mark.

“Rex,” Cody groaned, and Rex jumped over to the other thigh, nipping hard enough to leave a neat indent of his teeth. He kissed the teeth marks softly and then moved to a new spot to suck at again.

“ Please,” Cody gasped. Rex looked over his handiwork, a handful of bruises littering the inside of Cody’s legs. It was beautiful. Cody was so handsome it made something in his chest ache.

Parting Cody with his hands, Rex mouthed at the fold of skin by Cody’s clit, licking across the underside. He waited until he pulled the first sound from Cody before lifting his mouth.

“What I did last time was okay?” he asked.

Cody laughed, breathless and on the edge of hysterical. “You couldn’t tell?”

“Anything I could improve on,” Rex asked and after a second of hesitation added, “please. I want to do this right.”

Cody was quiet for a moment but he also pulled his heels up closer to his ass, spreading his legs wider, giving Rex even more room to work with. So Rex gave him the time he needed to get his thoughts straight.

“Put something in me,” Cody asked.

“My tongue?”  Rex asked, hopeful.

“To start wi— Ah!” Rex buried his face back between Cody’s legs, finding Cody’s hole with his tongue and tracing around the edge. Cody shuddered, flopping back to the mattress.

Rex pushed his tip of his tongue against Cody’s hole, and slipped just that little inside of him. Cody let out a punched out sound pushing his cunt needly against Rex’s mouth.

“You taste so good, Cody,” Rex groaned.

Cody slid his hand between Rex’s forehead and himself and when Rex looked up he was met with the almost unbearably sight of Cody rubbing his clit between his fingers. For a second Rex was frozen by the sight, his cock jumping between his stomach and the bed, reminding him of his own need. Cody was handsome and needy and perfect and it made Rex dizzy to see.

“Rex,” Cody whined, and Rex jolted back to the task he’d set himself, pressing his mouth into Cody’s cunt, running his tongue between Cody’s folds and then doing his very best to fuck Cody with his tongue. If Cody was trying to keep still he was doing a poor job, scrambling at the sheets with hand not rubbing at his clit, legs twitching, hips jumping under Rex’s hands.

It barely took a minute before Cody was shuddering and crying out, cunt clenching around Rex tongue. Cody arched dramatically off the bed before dropping back down just as dramatically, panting as he tried to catch his breath.

Rex hauled himself up the bed, catching Cody in a kiss, slipping his tongue into Cody’s mouth, sharing the taste of him between them. His cock rubbed up against Cody’s groin, torturous even through his lower blacks, and for a second he considered abandoning his plan and just pushing down his pants enough to sink into the heat of Cody.

He leaked at the thought, a paltry amount in comparison to the slick covering Cody's thighs and Rex’s face.

“I’ve made a mess of you,” Cody mumbled, cupping Rex’s jaw, running his thumb through the slick.

“Yeah,” Rex agreed. “Think you can make even more?”

Rex didn’t wait for an answer, slipping back down to his new favourite spot between Cody’s open legs.

“I read about squirting,” he said, aiming for conversational, but very aware that he missed by a click.

Cody laughed but the sound was lost to a groan as Rex took Cody’s clit between his fingers, mimicking the motion he’d seen from Cody as best he could considering he was coming from the wrong direction.

“Other side,” Cody gasped.

Rex looked up. Cody had a hand buried in his own hair, pulling it hard away from the scalp.

“What?” Rex asked the instructions he’d just been giving completely abandoning him in the face of how wrecked Cody looked.

“It feels better if you rub at the left side of my clit.”

Rex shifted his grip and was rewarded with a full body shudder.

“I don’t squirt,” Cody said, jumping back. That was a shame. Rex thought he would like that all over his face. Still, he was plenty happy with what he was getting. Rex put his mouth back to Cody’s cunt, sucking on his labia while he rubbed at Cody’s clit with his fingers.

“Let me get you off,” Cody said, but he brought one leg up, curling it around the back of Rex’s neck, holding him in place.

“Two more,” Rex bargained, even while he cock pulsed painfully in disagreement. He wanted to know how Cody would feel around him, but he wanted Cody blissed out and boneless even more. Cody wound himself so tightly, seeing him like this was good enough that Rex could ignore his own gratification for now.

“One,” Cody said and then keened. “Put your fingers in me. Please.”

Rex shifted on the bed, redistributing his weight to fully free up one arm, leaving Cody’s clit for the time being. He placed two fingers up against Cody and slowly pushed into him. They went in with almost no resistance, Cody’s walls hot and tight and so slick from Cody’s own lubrication.

“You’re so wet,” Rex said, awed and then he lapped at where his fingers were sinking into Cody. “Are you always this wet?”

He was going to carry the phantom taste of Cody for days after this and by the time it faded maybe he’d get a chance to refresh it anyway. He felt light headed. He would be able to do this whenever he wanted.

“Depends,” Cody said.

Rex felt around inside Cody. He’d seen diagrams, he knew what he was looking for but while Cody was twitching around his fingers he didn’t seem to have found what he was looking for.

“On?” Rex asked.

“On how hot the man between my legs is,” Cody said, and Rex didn't quite manage a laugh, blushing instead. He curled his fingers up against the top of Cody’s passage to no real response.

“Not quite as deep as that,” Cody said, taking mercy on Rex’s fumbling and then exhaled. “Yeah, just there.”

The texture was a little different from the rest of Cody’s insides and now he knew what he was looking for Rex was certain he’d be able to find it again. He curled his fingers up against it, rubbing with increasing pressure as Cody cunt tightened around his fingers and Cody’s thighs trembled on either side of him.

If Cody asked him Rex would be happy to stay between his legs forever.

He ground his own hips into the bed, sending sparks up his spine.

“Can you come from this?” Rex asked.

Cody shook his head, and Rex heard it more than he saw it, the scraping of Cody’s hair against the pillow.

“But it feels good? I can feel you clenching around me.” He could only imagine how good it would feel to have Cody’s cunt around his cock.

“Yeah, it feels good. Please, Rex.”

“Please, what?” Rex asked, and the only downside to this position was that he didn't have a good angle on Cody’s face. Next time Rex would prop him up against some pillows first.

“Your mouth! Please!” Cody cried out, that leg around Rex’s neck tightening.

Rex licked over Cody’s clit, just the once but it was enough to have Cody clutching at his head again, fingers slipping over his buzzed hair, wanting to push Rex’s face into his cunt, but trying to be polite about it. Rex didn’t make him fight his desires for long. He’d teased Cody plenty for the night.

He put his mouth back around Cody’s swollen clit and sucked, flicking his tongue back and forth over the head, matching the pace with how his fingers were stroking inside Cody’s cunt. His instinct was to change things up but he forced himself to be consistent, to lap and suck and finger as Cody writhed.

Cody’s hips found a rhythm, rolling up against Rex’s mouth in time to some need from his body Rex wasn’t privy to. It squashed Rex’s nose into the hair above Cody’s groin and he pushed his mouth more formally against Cody’s cunt. His jaw was starting to protest the work, but he could feel Cody shaking, his orgasm close.

He arched right off the bed as he came, balancing himself on his shoulders and the one foot he still had on the mattress. His cunt clenched around Rex’s fingers and it was almost, but not quite, enough to distract Rex from the sounds Cody was making. Desperate, unrestrained things as he came again under Rex’s mouth.

——

Cody humped Rex’s mouth desperately, unable to even consider keeping still. Dopamine flooded his system, consuming him with waves of pleasure. He was vaguely aware that he was yelling, he could feel it in the roughness at the back of his throat, far too loud for someone who had grown up without a lick of privacy. Fire burned in his veins and he wasn’t ever going to let Rex out of his bed. It had been too long since he’d had this, and he wanted it selfishly and desperately.

The peaks started to drop, each one a little less impossible than the last. He’d brought up his other leg, one around Rex’s neck, the other across his back, both hands on the back of Rex’s head as if Rex would even consider lifting his mouth from Cody’s cunt before he was finished. Cody whined, high and needy, and far too honest but Rex was still sucking at his clit, still rubbing his fingers over Cody’s insides, and between one fading wave and the next pulled Cody back over that edge again.

Another orgasm swept through him, overtaking the last, and he cried out, voice hoarse from the effort of it, withing between Rex’s mouth and fingers.

He might be in love.

Cody was drained when he dropped boneless back to the bed, chest heaving, and body heavy. He also felt good. Satisfied in a way he hadn’t been for a while. He stared at the ceiling, mind drifting off anything he tried to focus on.

“Heck,” he said, tongue thick in his mouth.

Rex laughed, and it was enough to have Cody pull his gaze down and squint down the bed.

Rex was still between his legs. He’d pulled his fingers out of Cody, holding them up in front of his mouth, licking at them obscenely before sucking them into his mouth. Cody’s cunt throbbed in a way the rest of him wouldn’t get on board with.

“Come up here,” he said instead, voice thin.

Rex raised his eyebrows and flicked his eyes down to Cody’s cunt, mouth still wrapped around his fingers, sucking off Cody’s slick.

Cody laughed with what little air he had to spare. “No, I’m done. I don’t think I’m going to ever move again as it is.”

Rex looked at him and then pulled his fingers from his mouth. He pressed a kiss to the inside of Cody’s thigh and then crawled up the bed to drop down beside him. His erection dug briefly into Cody’s hip but he repositioned quickly. Cody twisted to kiss him and tasted only himself all over Rex’s lips and tongue.

I think you killed me,” He said and kissed Rex again, licking his own slick out of Rex’s mouth. It tasted nicer coming from Rex.

“That was my plan all along. I’m after your job. This was just taking care of the competition.” Rex settled on his side, propped up on one elbow.

“You can fucking have it if you’ll do that on demand.” Cody made to gesture at his crotch but his arm was heavy and clumsy and he gave up halfway through. It wasn’t like there was a lot of ‘that’ he could be referring to anyway.

Rex smiled, eyes bright.

The slick all over Cody’s cunt was starting to cool and he finally closed his legs. His slit was still swollen, and it felt strange between his labia.

He looked up at the ceiling again, waiting for his heart to stop pounding in his chest.

“I’m going to ride you,” Cody said after a moment. He ran a hand through his hair, pushing it off where it was sticking to his forehead from sweat. He was sweating all over; Rex had fucking wrecked him.

“I thought you were done,” Rex said, but couldn’t quite keep the hopefulness out of his tone.

“I’m not going to come again. I possibly could, if we really worked at it,” Cody said, shooting Rex a look in time to see Rex’s eyes glint dangerously. “ But it would be a venture that would be more frustration that it’s worth.”

Rex hummed and kissed Cody again.

“I have no idea how you did that,” Cody admitted. It wasn’t the first time someone had fucked him stupid — Trauma had very talented fingers — but they usually had practice.

“I have a confession,” Rex said, his fingers trailing over Cody’s ribs.

“You’ve done it before?” Cody asked. He wouldn’t be surprised, but maybe a little disappointed. There was something that made his chest tight about Rex going through the effort to figure out how to make it good just for him.

“No,” Rex said. “And I did do some research on by own but I might have uh—

Cody went to sit up and realised his muscles still weren’t ready for that sort of effort so settled for fixing Rex with a glare instead. “What did you do?”

“I asked Bly for pointers.” And even Rex’s hand tracing a circle around Cody’s nipple wasn’t enough to distract from the weight of such a confession.

Cody groaned, covering his face with his arm. Bly was going to be unbearable.

“You are very lucky, Captain, that I am enough orgasms deep that I don’t have the energy to kill you right now,” he said into the crook of his elbow.

“The holonet was being too vague,” Rex said. “Or contradictory. I wanted to get this right.”

Rex had been nervous, Cody realised. He sighed, and dropped his arm to tug Rex into another kiss to make sure it was clear that his annoyance was put on. Mostly. Bly was going to act like every orgasm Cody had for the rest of his life was personally because of Bly’s advice.

Worse, he’d be painfully sweet and sincere about it.

Bastard.

“Get your pants off, Captain,” Cody said, breaking the kiss. “Bly’s advice or not, I’ve been fucking trooper’s brains out through their cocks for years. I’d like a little turn around.”

Rex laughed, and bumped their foreheads together and then sat up.

“I can tell Bly his advice was useless if that helps,” he said failing to hide how eagerly he was pulling off his lower blacks. “That you were dry as a fucking desert down there until I begged you for pointers.”

“He wouldn’t believe you,” Cody said. “He knows what I like.”

“I’ll tell him anyway. I’ll tell him you told me you faked it with him,” Rex said, and allowed Cody rearrange them, sitting back against the wall, while Cody settled into his lap, rubbing his cunt over Rex’s cock. Rex had flagged a little while Cody caught his breath, but he hardened quickly as Cody ground against him. Rex’s hands came up to his waist and then slid down to his hips, helping Cody torment him. Cody appreciated the help. Rex had thoroughly worn him out, so this was going to be a slow affair. Cody held steady eye-contact as teased Rex, letting Rex’s cock slide between his folds, brush up against his hole but never giving him the angle to push inside.

He was plenty sated; he could wait.

“Please,” Rex whispered into the space between them and Cody claimed him in a biting kiss. He was already soaked form Rex’s efforts and he sank down in one smooth motion. He let out a long sigh, Rex filling him in ways that his fingers hadn’t. Cody put his hands on Rex’s shoulders to steady himself, breathing deeply around the heat stretching him open.

——

“Fuck,” Rex breathed and buried his face in Cody’s neck with a groan. Cody was so wet. His cunt around Rex’s cock wasn’t at all what he was expecting. He’d hadn’t imagined it would feel all that different from an ass, but it was all sorts of different and it was Cody .

“Fuck, Cody,” Rex said. Cody rolled his hips and without even looking Rex knew Cody would be looking unbearable smug. He supposed he deserved it. “You feel amazing. Fuck .”

Cody pulled Rex from his shoulder, kissing him gently before nipping at Rex’s mouth, threatening to draw blood. Rex couldn’t say he would mind if Cody did.

“Next time,” Cody said, and he lifted himself up out of Rex’s lap just to sink back down again. The way Cody had clenched around Rex’s fingers had been a tease and one Cody was delivering on. “You’re going to fuck me before you wear me out.” Cody was doing a convincing job at sounding calm, but the state Rex had wound him into was still on the edge of his tone, and his breath hitched whenever he dropped back onto Rex’s cock. “And then you can clean up the mess you make.”

“Yes,” Rex gasped. “Anything.”

He would do it tonight if Cody would let him, lick his come out of Cody’s cunt, see how they tasted all mixed together. Kiss Cody so he could taste it too.

Cody set a torturous pace, and Rex could only grip at Cody’s hips and push his hips up to meet Cody each time.

“How does it feel?” Rex asked, because if he thought too hard about how it felt for him he would come on the spot and he wanted this to last.

Cody sank deep into Rex’s lap and ground his hips down, tightening around Rex’s cock. Rex swore.

“Full,” Cody said, and for all his attempts to take charge, he still wore the evidence of Rex’s mouth all over his face. Rex realised he might have played himself, and wondered  what kind of pace Cody would set if they had opened with this. “It’s good. Wonderful.”

“Yeah?” Rex asked. Cody was so hot, round his cock, under his hands, where he kissed Rex’s neck.

“Yeah,” Cody said. Rex used his hands on Cody’s hips to try insist on a fast pace and mercifully Cody allowed it. “Your fingers weren’t enough. Next time I’m going to come with your cock filling me up.”

Rex remembered the way Cody’s cunt had twitched around his fingers as Cody came and moaned.

Cody kissed him, cutting off Rex’s sounds, and Rex kissed back eagerly though with less finesse, distracted by other parts of Cody on him. Cody had found the coordination to ride Rex like he meant it, all teasing abandoned, bouncing in Rex’s lap in a way that made Rex’s brain switch off, unable to think of much beyond his cock’s pulsing need.

Cody felt so good around him, and was looking at him with warmth and tenderness and a half faded smug smile and Rex wanted Cody to look at him like that forever.

He was tumbling helplessly to the point of no return far too fast, but unable to do anything about it. He didn’t think Cody would want him to.

“Cody,” he groaned, Cody took it as the warning it was and dropped firmly down into his lap, clenching around Rex’s cock. He came deep inside Cody, arms wrapped around Cody’s back, gasping into Cody’s shoulder. Cody returned the favour Rex had paid during Cody’s orgasms, and held himself tight around Rex until he’d milked everything from Rex that he had to give.

Heat, and pleasure, and bone-deep satisfaction claimed Rex, and he groaned too honest things into Cody’s skin. Cody kissed the sides of Rex’s face he could reach and then as Rex finally stilled, pulled Rex from his shoulder to kiss him properly.

Cody pulled himself off Rex’s slowly softening cock, with a wet sound that was almost enough to have Rex ask if they could go again that very second.

“Fuck,” Rex said and Cody laughed.

They lay on the sticky sheets for a long moment, Cody ending up pressed up against Rex’s back, kissing the back of his neck and over his shoulders.

“Bly said you should piss after,” Rex said, breaking the silence, because he felt like should say something, and apparently Cody’s cunt had sucked his brain out through his dick.

Cody snorted and pinched at the inside of Rex’s thigh, up near his cock. “Tell me how to manage my parts again and this’ll be the last time you touch them.”

Rex winced, more for show than because of any real pain. “Sorry.”

Cody pressed his forehead against the back of Rex’s neck. “You’re very luck that your mouth has other uses.

Rex laughed and slid a hand behind him to run his index finger over the centre of Cody’s folds.

Cody hummed, satisfied, but he did slip off the bed, using the wall to balance on unsteady legs. Cody paused in the doorway of the fresher. “Were you planning on staying?”

“Are you kicking me out?” Rex asked, teasing rather than worried.  His come was dribbling down the inside of Cody’s thighs and as rude as it was, Rex couldn’t look away from it to meet Cody’s eye.

“No, but if you’re still here in an hour, I think I could stand to go again,” Cody said.

Rex’s cock twitched hopefully against his thigh. “Sir, yes, sir.”

[captainpains]

New Year’s Eve (Captain Rex x reader)

I live! Happy New Year🎊🎉✨Enjoy some fluff for rex.

Warnings: Modern AU, Mentions of food and alcohol consumption, gn! reader, swearing, kisses

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Rex doesn't know why he agreed to come to the city's New Year's Eve party.

When Cody had bought the tickets, he was planning on going with his boyfriend. But then he'd found him in bed with his secretary. So instead of going alone, he asked his brother. Rex only said yes because who in their right mind would turn down free food and champagne.

Rex stood by the bar, regretting his decision greatly. The party was full of people who Rex didn't really like, and the food that was served was overcooked and under seasoned. He took a sip of his rum and coke before pulling at the coller of his suit. It was also uncomfortably warm in the ballroom.

He spied a door on the otherside of the room that lead to the cold outside. It was snowing but it was better than sweating his ass off inside.

When he made it outside onto the venue's patio, he noticed a handful of cocktail tables with a few couples standing around them talking. There were heaters at the corners of the square patio to keep the guests warm with chairs next to them. That's when Rex noticed you.

You were sitting in a chair alone, sipping on wine. You had a forlorn look on your face as you checked your phone and sighed a little. You were also familiar, although he couldn't put a finger as to why. Rex watched you for a moment more before he realized he was probably being creepy. He didn't often talk to strangers unless they initiated it. He didn't like feeling like he was impeding on someone's conversation or private time. But you looked really sad and in need of a friend.

He was about to go talk to you when Cody found him. He placed a hand on Rex's shoulder to get his attention, startling his brother slightly. Cody gave him a funny look before following his brother's gaze to you.

"You should socialize instead of staring," he suggested, taking a drink of his whiskey.

"I was about to when you interrupted me," Rex hissed in reply.

"You were overthinking," he snorted. "Go make some small talk."

Cody pushed his brother towards you. Rex glared at him as he fixed his suit jacket and moved to you, trying to think of something to say.

Meanwhile, you nervously checked your phone again. You really shouldn't have gone to the party. Your sister invited you only to ditch you a few minutes in. You went outside to escape all the people milling around in the overheated ballroom. Then you'd started checking your phone and answering emails from work to pass the time. Your sister would scold you for working at a party, too bad she left you.

A hand tapped you on the shoulder. You looked up, only to see a pair of warm brown eyes meeting yours. You let your eyes move around his face. He was handsome and somehow familiar.

"Mind if I sit here?" He asked.

"N-no," you informed.

He sat down. He leaned back, resting his arms on the armrests. You looked at him a moment longer then returned to the emails on your phone.

"You're not one for parties either?" He asked. You smiled a little and tilted your head towards him.

"Yeah... I just came because of my sister," you told the stranger.

"I understand," he nodded.

You looked back towards your phone, the drank some wine.

As you went through your email you stumbled upon one announcement of the employee of the month. There was a picture of said employee and when you glanced at it, you noticed that they looked like the man that was sitting next to you. Same hair and everything.

"Is the wine good?"

"Yeah, but then again I'm kinda biased. They are serving my favorite," you put your phone away as you akwardly replied.

"Then I'm sure it's good if it's your favorite," he grinned.

That little conversation is all it took for you two talk all night. You found that his name was Rex (the same name as the employee of the month). You also found out that his favorite restaurant is a sushi bar in downtown Naboo and he only came to the party because his brother promised him food and drinks. You decided that he was adorable when flustered and made it your mission to kiss him before he left.

Rex found out that you preferred spicy over sweet and read often. He liked listening to you talk about your passions and interests. He was infatuated with your wit and kindness. And while he knew you would part ways at the end of the night, he made it his mission to get your number. When Cody had intercepted him as he got more food, he'd suggested perhaps kissing you at midnight but Rex shot it down. He wanted to at least take you to dinner first.

"My favorite book is actually called Endless New Year," you confessed.

The two of you had moved inside when the bite of the cold became too much. You occupied a table on the outskirts of the room, far from the dance floor but closer to the bar. An older couple sat with you, enthusing about their recent vacation to Alderaan.

"What's it about?" The old man asked.

"It's about these people who are forever cursed to be outcasts until one of them finds a special watch and returns it to the original owner," you enthused.

"Oh, that sounds like a lovely story. I should read it sometime," the old woman delighted.

"It is good-" You were cut off by a person speaking into the microphone on stage.

"Alright everyone, our staff are passing out the champagne for the toast. It is 11:45 and we can't wait to bring in the New Year with you!"

"Oh, it's almost time the for the kiss, love," The woman purred to her husband.

"My favorite thing about every New Year with you," he agreed, smiling at his wife.

The two got up to join everyone on the dance floor as they gathered for the count down. A server came up to your table, offering the champagne. You both gladly took it.

"Ya know, I had fun tonight. We should do this again," Rex enquired hopefully.

"Get ditched by our siblings and spend the night chatting with strangers?" You snarked.

"No," he chuckled. " But I was wondering if maybe..."

"You could kiss me?" You joked.

"Yes–No! I mean I wanted to ask for your number," he stammered.

"Ah well, I'll give it to you if you kiss me," you remarked.

The last person on stage finished their speech. The crowd in the center of the ballroom began to count down.

"10!"

You and Rex stand up.

"9!"

You walk to the dance floor.

"8!"

You look at him.

"7!"

He looks at you.

"6!"

Rex started learning in.

"5!"

You do the same.

"4!"

"You promise?"

"3!"

"Of course!"

"2!"

"Good."

"1!"

"Happy New Year's!!"

Then he kissed you.

[smhalltheurlsaretaken]

Sorry but what exactly is up with the bad batch arc? I've heard people talk about the issues with echo's white skin but I haven't heard that many bad things about the arc itself? (ik you said you don't want to be negative on your blog so I would absolutely understand if you didn't answer this ask)

Oooooooooooh boy. Well I just had a long, long, LONG rant about it with someone, but I guess I’ve got an excuse to put all of my points onto a post and talk about it publicly now that I got an ask x) I’ll keep it under the cut so I don’t throw my salt in people’s face. I really don’t want to upset people who love that arc - it has redeeming qualities, but overall it pisses me off so much for so many reasons. So here:

The first issue is obviously two members of the Bad Batch (minus Echo) being being just about the furthest thing from maori no matter how much you're willing to stretch it. 

Like... yeah, nah. I wouldn’t even accept Crosshair and Tech (grey haired guy and goggles guy) as Jango’s natural biological sons, nevermind as his clones. 

The problem is that their different appearances are justified by them being described simply as clones with desirable mutations (i.e superpowers). But why the hell did the creators have to change their appearances for that to be a thing? How does that correlate? Sure, the concept of clones with different faces is interesting, except... no, no it’s not, and I’m gonna rant about it in a few secs. But basically it's like they thought giving them different faces would be a good substitute for having different personalities (another thing I’ll come back to). If they really wanted to have buff clones with super eyesight or whatnot they could have just done that, without making them lose what little melanin the lighting of the show had allowed the other Clones to keep. 

But the gigantic problem is... showing that the "regular" clones have VERY distinct identities despite their identical faces has been one of the themes of the show from episode 1. Literally, the first episode of TCW has Yoda taking time out of a mission with galactic stakes to tell the three clones he’s with (who tell him they’re all the same because they have the same faces) that they’re wrong, and that they’re very different in the Force, that their appearance doesn’t matter, that they’re all equally unique and important, and he lists all of their individual skills, strengths and weaknesses. 

And it’s not just me being bothered by that, here’s a post by @cacodaemonia​ saying the same thing. 

Introducing the Bad Batch as "unique" clones who are "different" and "not like their brothers" because they have different faces and skills completely breaks that theme of the show!! Because the entire point of the Clones in TCW is that their faces don't matter, they ARE unique! 

(Plus the Bad Batch’s character designs are so cliche and uninspired it’s just laughable to try and justify bleaching their freaking skin for the sake of visual diversity. 

This took like 10 seconds. I found the first guy by literally googling “soldier movies,” and the other two are Team Fortress characters that look a LOT like Wrecker and Crosshair. One is “Heavy” and one is “Sniper” lmao.

And behold:

The above picture is a Team Fortress reference that I found just by looking up “bad batch clone wars,” so I’m not the only person who sees it.) 

And the batchers don't even have personalities to justify calling them unique! They have no character traits beyond the most cliché american soldier tropes ever. We have a token loner sniper, a token "smart tech guy" who knows everything from xenoanthropology to biology to Separatist computers to sound waves to encryption, a token Badass Brooding Leader and a token “dumb muscle guy.”

I dare anyone to find more about their personalities than this: - Crosshair is the perpetually grumpy sniper who looks down on "regs,” - Wrecker likes to blow up stuff and doesn't like heights, - Hunter is the leader and is friends with Cody, - Tech is smart doesn't trust Echo. 

That’s it, that’s literally it. Four episodes about them and that's all we get. These character tropes are literally the least inventive ever. FFS, Hunter even has a freaking KNIFE! Not a vibroblade, mind you, like in kriffing Star Wars. A knife. Against metal droids. Why. They couldn’t make this more of an american-war-movies cliché fest if they tried. (And sure, he can feel electromagnetic waves so maybe it does make sense for him not to carry a vibroblade and maybe this is nitpicking, but he looks like a ripoff of a Predator character and it pisses me off).

Another thing is that when you introduce characters you have to make them likable - and them despising the normal Clones is a terrible way to do that! And they don't even grow from that because at the end of the 4 episodes arc they just see Rex as not bad "for a reg" and they see Echo as no longer a reg, and both of these things are infuriating! 

The worst thing imo is that Echo then becomes part of them (and irreparably loses his melanin in the process, uuuuuuuuugh) when there is nothing to justify this. 

The dialogue goes like this: 

ECHO: You coming? TECH: Not really our thing. CROSSHAIR: Accolades. WRECKER: Yeah, we're just in it for the thrill. Yo! HUNTER: You sure it's your thing? ECHO: What do you mean? HUNTER: Your path is different. Like ours. If you ever feel like you don't fit in with them, well, find us. (they leave) REX: Those are some of the finest troopers I've ever fought alongside. Echo. You and I go way back. If that's where you feel your place is, then that's where you belong.

Echo doesn't feel like he belongs anymore, okay, but why would he feel like he belongs with the assholes who up to the last five minutes of the mission thought he was probably a traitor, and also verbally expressed that he was not worth saving?? In all of the arc, Echo himself never voices that he feels he’s not ‘like the other Clones’ anymore and that he feels it’s a problem. His relationship with Rex immediately picks up where they left things off - the first thing he does upon being lucid again for the first in over a year is cracking a joke for Rex’s benefit. 

Why would Echo feel like he doesn’t belong in the 501st anymore, when we don't even see him interacting with anyone from his past life except for Rex and Anakin (who are both extremely very supportive of him)?? If there had been one scene of a “regular” Clone (ugh) looking at him with horror and disgust or something, or just Kix and Jesse cracking jokes with Echo awkwardly standing by the side not getting it, I could forgive the show trying to make it feel like he has an identity crisis, but this was so shallow!

The only thing that makes Echo and the Bad Batch’s experiences similar is that they *look* different. It’s so against the themes of the Clones I’m seething just from thinking about it. And what the hell? Echo ALREADY didn’t fit in. That was the WHOLE POINT of Domino Squad. They didn’t fit in because they thought they were better than anyone else because they had trouble getting along with their brothers, so obviously it had to be their brothers’ fault (ahem, Bad Batch?). And you know what happened? Domino Squad OVERCAME that. And Echo and Fives still didn’t “fit in” because their personalities were unique and creative, and they became ARC Troopers because Cody, Rex and the Jedi VALUED THEM FOR PRECISELY THAT. Echo having new and unique skills and a modified appearance is the most bs justification for him feeling like he doesn’t belong!! 

And that brings me to my biggest issue: Rex telling Echo the bad batch are some of the best troopers he's ever met. I'm sorry, based on WHAT? What Rex values above everything is loyalty and brotherhood, and the Bad Batch DOESN'T DISPLAY ANY OF THAT. We never see them even expressing concern for each other! Wrecker treats saving Cody’s life like a trivial issue, because it’s just ‘sO eAsY’ for him, and beyond that we never see them supporting each other or genuinely expressing affection for each other beyond boasting about each other’s skills... 

Sure they can destroy a lot of droids, but they're dismissive of Rex's brothers, and the entire Umbara arc and this arc showed what he thought of that. They keep saying things like "not bad for a reg,” don't show any trust in Rex's skills or experience (even though they can't have been fighting in the war for more than a year and a half when he’s been there from the beginning, and he outranks all of them), they are essentially guerilla fighters which has only minimal value in a galactic war, and they never grow beyond their views of what regs are, and can and can’t do. 

None of that should make them good troopers in Rex's book. Going back to Echo not fitting in, remember who taught the Domino Squad the importance of seeing all of your brothers as important and equally valuable? Shaak Ti, true, but more importantly? 99! The guy the Bad Batch are named after. He did have value and was important and was no less of a trooper than his brothers, even though his mutations made him LESS powerful, not more. (And btw, just from a writing standpoint, the batchers don’t have any weaknesses, which is shit.) Cody and Rex mourned 99 as a true soldier even though it wasn’t his sacrifice that brought them victory (which would have implied that he had value as a soldier and a brother because he saved them, as opposed to him having that value intrinsically), because that’s what a fine trooper is to them. A BROTHER first a foremost, someone altruistic, brave and loyal. The Bad Batch distort the meaning of 99's character with their behavior. They’re not altruistic, their bravery is mitigated by the fact that they’re freaking invincible, so of course they take risks (again, see Wrecker saving Cody without a care because it’s easy to him, as opposed to Rex being ready to run into a burning ship about to explode because his brother is in there, and having to be physically dragged away). The Bad Batch denigrate their brothers for being less skilled, thinking their own abilities make them unique somehow, when 99 could barely fight and was still the one who taught Hevy about being a good soldier. 

And again the batchers don't grow from that. Which is all the more frustrating because the original ending didn’t have Echo joining them, from what I remember of the unfinished episodes, and the arc actually ended with them receiving their medals in front of regular troopers who cheer for them, as opposed to them smugly ostracizing themselves and dismissing the ceremony as trivial and meaningless. (original ending vs s7 ending: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ab1eCfzKamw) 

It’s so annoying. Do you know what characters never had an entire arc dedicated to them and still have far more personality and more interesting designs and more symbolic weight?? 

Jesse, for starters. Kix. Dogma. Cut. Slick. Keeli. Ponds. Rys, Jek and Thire. Commander Doom. Commander Fox. Wolffe. Hevy. Hardcase. 

Cody was a more interesting character just in his RotS appearances. 

Waxer and Boil had one episode about them and then only two cameos plus Waxer’s death, and they’re still some of the most memorable, beloved Clones of the whole show. And Boil was grouchy and prejudiced like Crosshair, but he has so much growth that we could make a whole thread about it. 

I'd say the last problem with the Bad Batch is that it has cash grabbing money hungry vibes. Different faces are more marketable, cliché personalities are more toy-friendly, and it's basically a big ad for the Bad Batch series. And they throw Echo in the Batch at the end for bs reasons (again, it wasn’t in the original ep from what I remember) and they tease Cody in the show to make sure fans will still watch even if they notice the lack of soul. And less melanin sells more at Disney apparently. 

So that’s my whole pissed rant. 

[irrlicht-writes]

of Rex Lapis and a young boy

“Do you love her?” “What do you want me to say?”

Say yes. Say yes so I can tell myself to stop. If you love her still, then there is no way that there’s place for me in you. Say yes so I can stop thinking, stop pretending. Say yes so I know that you don’t care for me. Say yes so that I know, once and for all, that mortals and gods are not supposed to be next to each other. Say yes so I can try to forget that you are my friend. Say yes so I can forget that you are my only friend. Say yes so I can slap myself and laugh and make a joke about how stupid I am. Say yes so I know that anytime you looked at me, you didn’t look at me at all. Say yes so I know that I’ll never be curious or kind enough. Say yes, so that I know I never mattered at all. | Zhongli would never love him. Zhongli could only love things that were long past, and Childe walked ever toward the future.

Ao3

*

Azhdaha.

Zhongli-xiansheng and the Traveller had left the Harbour for a while to go look at some stones – or something, Childe didn’t ask – and now they’ve returned.

It had stung, just a little bit, when he realised Xiansheng had just dumped him for their meal but that was okay. That was perfectly, absolutely fine. He hadn’t sat there for hours upon end, waiting for him and then heading to the Funeral Parlour just to learn that Zhongli had left the Harbour entirely. That was cool. It wasn’t like they told each other everything, right?

It’s not like Zhongli knew everything Childe was up to in Liyue.

But now they were back, sitting at the Storyteller’s. Zhongli-xiansheng looked great, even. Like he hadn’t missed Childe at all. Yeah. That was cool. Perfectly cool.

He wasn’t even interested in rocks, so no wonder they didn’t ask him to come along. Yeah. Right.

Zhongli told him about Azhdaha in a quiet tone, and Childe knew he wasn’t getting the whole story. The Traveller sat beside them, silent as ever. It was cool. Childe got the picture. He wasn’t stupid. He wasn’t as dumb as they thought him to be. Childe had heard that tone in Zhongli’s voice many times. For some reason, that tone had always struck him, but he had never been sure why.

He thought he knew, now.

It sounded like Zhongli was talking about something incredibly dear to him.

Not long after, Zhongli left, the Traveller close behind. They barely said good-bye and Childe smiled at them. He was acutely aware of the fact that they left without paying their tab. Yeah. That was fine, he’d just cover it.

“Storyteller,” he requested as he ordered himself the strongest drink this bar had, “can you tell me of Rex Lapis and the Mountain-Dragon?”

And so the Storyteller did.

*

The next day, Childe ventured into Nantianmen. He had seen the tree there before, but had thought little of it. Now, it was different. This is where Azhdaha had been sealed away, right beneath his feet. Zhongli’s friend.

Zhongli’s lover, even.

Back then, hearing about the Goddess of Dust had felt weird, like a mortal Zhongli pining for a Goddess dead way before his time. Now, after everything, it made more sense. When he talked about Azhdaha, Zhongli-xiansheng had the same look in his eyes. A soft, far-away look in his eyes that had always made Childe feel small and unimportant. Which was why, whenever he’d catch that look, he’d crack a joke, or point out a merchant stall.

He stepped closer to the tree and put his hand on the bark.

Did Zhongli come here, to be close to his old friend?

Zhongli never came to him, just to get him.

Always, it had been a matter Childe would have to settle with Mora somehow.

Had he ever been Zhongli’s friend, at all?

“What makes you so special?”

The tree, and the dragon hereby-under, don’t answer.

“Zhongli-xiansheng is rather busy, I apologise.”

To her credit, the Ferry lady did actually look sorry. It did little to stifle Childe’s mood, but he appreciated the gesture nonetheless. He wondered, idly, why it’s always him that reached out to Zhongli. Why was he the one clinging to a God that lied to him?

Well, maybe he was stupid after all.

He smiled at the Ferry lady and left her. He didn’t tell her to inform Zhongli that he’d been here. Somehow, he doubted that Zhongli would care either way. He pretended it didn’t hurt something in his chest, and returned to Northland Bank.

At least Ekaterina and the others there were forced to care about him. Oh, the luxury of being a Harbinger.

*

Despite him talking about her all the time, Childe knew next to nothing about Guizhong. There also wasn’t that much to find in books. Despite what people might think, Childe actually was a vivid reader. Granted, it tended to be adventure stories, not dry history, but he could expand.

But she had been Morax’ best friend.

And while the dry history books didn’t say it outright, it was clear as day: they all suspected the two to have been lovers in some capacity. The all-powerful Morax, and the sweet, gentle-hearted Guizhong. The perfect pair, even. He was strong where she was weak, and she was wise where he was not.

Childe wasn’t a romantic where it counted, but even he could see the potential in writing stories about a couple like that.

And she died, leaving Rex Lapis behind.

Childe looked out the window.

To be fair, he wasn’t sure why he read about Guizhong in the first place. What was he hoping to achieve? All the books he consumed about Rex Lapis have had a clear goal in mind: stealing the God’s Gnosis.

Not that that had worked, but semantics. Maybe Childe just wasn’t meant to steal someone’s heart.

He went to Guili Plains the next chance he got. He wasn’t sure why, but this place had been named after Guizhong and Zhongli. For all its historic worth, it look desolate. Rationally, Childe knew that a war has taken place here, but still, he had expected more, somehow. He had expected Rex Lapis to try and restore this place that he and his lost lover shared.

He was also a bit disappointed that there were no Glaze Lilies here. The books hadn’t shut up about Guizhong and Glaze Lilies. So much in fact that Childe had had his doubts on whether or not she’d really been the Goddess of Dust or Glaze Lilies.

He wondered what kind of man Zhongli would be today if Guizhong had not died. What kind of man he’d be if he hadn’t needed to seal the dragon away.

If that had been the case, then he probably wouldn’t have cared about Childe at all.

The hole in his chest hurt and he didn’t like it.

With his past dead, Zhongli’s eyes would glance across Childe.

If they had been alive, he wouldn’t have looked at Childe at all.

Wanting to stop, he killed the abyss mages.

*

There were Glaze Lilies blooming in the Harbour. He’s heard that they were cultured there artificially, because they were dying out. Zhongli must hate that fact. But that also meant that Childe of all people would probably not be able to actually approach the stupid flowers.

It had been days since they’ve last met, and Zhongli hadn’t come to him.

Childe felt like a broken tool. He wondered how long it would take him to get used to that feeling.

He wanted to see the flowers, so he snuck out at night. He knew there were some blooming behind the house on the Terrace, so he hoped he wouldn’t be spotted by the Millelith. It’d be hard to explain himself to Lady Ningguang for this, so he’d rather not.

Childe climbed the wall easily and quietly and sure enough, there they were – two Glaze Lilies, blooming under the moonlight. Truth be told, he wasn’t sure what he had been expecting. Did he want to pick them to present them to Zhongli? Probably not.

He reached out with one finger, gently touching one of the petals. Somehow, he was afraid they’d wilt under his touch and die. But nothing happened. Childe sighed and lied down beside the flowers. The sky was clear and bright. When he closed his eyes, he could hear a soft humming in his ears and it filled him with longing for... something. Not a fight, not a victory, not even a loss, just – something. Something he couldn’t have.

“How did you do it?” He asked the flowers.

How did you make Zhongli fall in love with you? How did you make him look at you proper? How did you make him see you? How do you put that tone in his voice and how do you put that look in his eyes?

Childe sighed.

The flowers didn’t respond.

He thought of Azhdaha, who had looked upon the world with curiosity and had learned to love it through Morax.

He thought of Guizhong, who had looked upon her people with endless kindness and had taught Rex Lapis to do the same.

He was neither curious nor kind.

No wonder that Zhongli didn’t care to look at him.

*

Why had the Tsaritsa sent him here? Why couldn’t he have been in on the plan? He could’ve caused a havoc even knowing where Morax was. Why couldn’t he have taken the Gnosis after a done deed? Why did it have to be Signora?

He was Her Majesty’s vanguard, was he not?

Didn’t she think him capable enough?

Why couldn’t Signora have wrecked the city?

Why him?

Was he really only good for front-line mayhem, and nothing else?

The God he had spent so much time with hadn’t even looked at him when he handed his heart away.

The God Childe had believed to be his friend.

He had no friends, now.

Childe put his report away and left the Bank.

It was late, and everything in him yearned for his home.

His home, where his parents would watch him with wary eyes.

Maybe he shouldn’t have come back, when he’d fallen.

When will he hurt Tonia? When will he take Anthon and Teucer, and turn them into monsters too? When will he reveal that our son has never come back at all? How long will this facade last?

He would smile at them, and pretend he didn’t know. He’d pretend that these months had never happened and that they still loved him unconditionally.

He reached the pier and sat down. He wanted to go fishing again.

The water gently dipped at the stone and Childe sighed. He wondered, did Morax laugh at him? Each time Childe had thought he’d been sleek, getting more information from Zhongli, had the God laughed at his ignorance?

But Zhongli had seemed so content, so willing to answer all of Childe’s questions.

It’s an important part of Liyuean’s cuisine, Childe. Please use the chopsticks.

Had Morax been making fun of him?

He’d never hear the end of it, back home in Snezhnaya. He could already hear Scaramouche’s snicker in his ear.

His mark had been right there next to him, ever-correcting the Harbinger’s grip on the chopsticks, and Childe had never known.

A one-way tool of war was probably the best thing he could ever be.

He could neither be curious or kind.

How would a guy like him ever gain the affection of the divine?

“You cannot sleep?”

Childe didn’t turn around.

What did it matter, anyway?

Zhongli sat down beside him with a small sound, reminding Childe how old this man truly was. He’d been a fool. How could Zhongli ever be his friend, with all their differences?

“Tell me a story.”

“What do you want to hear?”

Childe was silent for a moment.

Tell me how I can make you look at me. How can I be kind, or curious enough for you to gain your affection? Tell me how I can make myself significant to you. Tell me how I can be a friend that you’ll remember. Tell me, please. Tell me how to be important to you.

“I don’t know.”

Childe was staring at the water down below. Zhongli’s contract was fulfilled. There was nothing more they had to talk about. Why did Zhongli even acknowledge him? He should’ve just kept walking.

“You have gone to Guili Plains.”

“...yes.”

“Why?”

“I wanted to see,” Childe replied in a hushed voice.

Truth was, he didn’t know. Maybe he had expected the ghost of Guizhong to descend upon him and tell him everything he’d need to know. A stupid, childish thought. She hadn’t come, and his questions have been left unanswered. A god would never descend for him, anyway.

“What did you find?”

“Nothing,” Childe said. “Why didn’t you restore the Plains?”

“Why would I?”

“Because of Guizhong.”

“It’s the place I lost her in. It is difficult to go there, even after all these centuries.”

What did it feel like, making such an impact on an immortal being?

Every time he returned home, he ventured out into the woods again. Some part of him wanted to find the crack in the earth again, where he lost himself and found himself at the same time. Maybe he also hoped he’d find a little Ajax lost in the woods. He didn’t know.

“Do you love her?”

“What do you want me to say?”

Say yes. Say yes so I can tell myself to stop. If you love her still, then there is no way that there’s place for me in you. Say yes so I can stop thinking, stop pretending. Say yes so I know that you don’t care for me. Say yes so that I know, once and for all, that mortals and gods are not supposed to be next to each other. Say yes so I can try to forget that you are my friend. Say yes so I can forget that you are my only friend. Say yes so I can slap myself and laugh and make a joke about how stupid I am. Say yes so I know that anytime you looked at me, you didn’t look at me at all. Say yes so I know that I’ll never be curious or kind enough.

Say yes, so that I know I never mattered at all.

“...say yes, then.”

Childe didn’t remember when he drew his legs in and hugged his knees. He felt smaller and younger than he had in years. Skirk would kill him for this position but she’d never know.

“You’re in pain,” Zhongli said instead and Childe almost wanted to laugh.

“No,” he responded, “I haven’t been in a fight in days.”

“Not all pain is physical, Childe.”

What did he care? Childe wished he’d stop. It was these sorts of talks that put Childe in this situation. If Zhongli would just stop pretending he cared, it’d be all so much easier.

“Kun Jun gave this to me,” Zhongli said and held out his hand, a pretty rock upon it.

For the first time, Childe turned his head. It was a pretty thing, he thought.

“Kun Jun?”

“One aspect of Azhdaha.”

Ah. Yes, the other lost lover. Childe tensed his jaw. Why was Zhongli showing this to him? Was he mocking Childe?

Look, all these pretty things you bought me, and still I value the rock my old lover gave to me more.

There it was again, the pang in his chest. Zhongli never carried around the things he made Childe buy. And now here he was, carrying around some rocks this Kun Jun picked up from the ground?

“It’s pretty,” Childe said then. He didn’t know what else to say and Zhongli clearly cherished this rock.

Mora couldn’t buy someone’s affection. It could buy him any favour he’d ever wanted, but he could never buy genuine feelings. Their friendship had been a farce from the start. Zhongli had used him, just like Her Majesty and Signora had used him.

“It was good, seeing him again,” Zhongli sat, gently holding the stone in his hand. “But it hurt, as well, knowing I’d have to seal him away once more.”

“I’m sorry,” Childe said and he wanted to take the rock and throw it in the ocean.

He bought Zhongli so many things, and he valued none of them. For all he knew, Zhongli had thrown them aside the second Childe had turned his back. He’d never be important enough to Zhongli, so why did he even try? Why did he ever bother? He had wanted to invite Zhongli to his home, to meet his family. He had wanted to show his parents that he was still good, still their son, and that he made a genuine friend.

He couldn’t do that now. At best, Zhongli was a former business associate. Not his friend. Never his friend.

Zhongli didn’t say anything and Childe suspected he was deep in memories. He wanted to stand up and leave but he couldn’t.

“Liyue Harbour exists today because of Guizhong,” he said then and Childe curled up in himself. Just rub it in. How would Childe ever compete?

A curious dragon with pretty eyes and pretty rocks, and a gentle soul of a Goddess with beautiful, humming flowers next to her, an entire city dedicated to her?

What was he against them?

A reckless, arrogant toy soldier. The only thing he was good at was fighting and even then, Morax would be able to beat him blind-folded.

“Without her, I would have never been able to appreciate humans. To me, they were barely a duty, a responsibility, not something worthy of love. But she walked among them, empathised with them and through her and for her, I was able to do the same.”

Childe was a human. But he wasn’t part of the humans Zhongli spoke about. He wished he could take that part out of himself; the part that made his chest hurt. He’d rather endure the pain of his transformation.

“When she died, I was devastated and I wrecked havoc on my enemies. They had killed the gentlest soul I would ever know and they did not deserve mercy for it. But I knew, I knew that that wasn’t what she’d want. She’d want me to protect our people, to become the leader she never got the chance to be. So I taught them to build houses, I taught them to make stoves. And these days, I believe she would be proud of what I achieved.”

He was saying yes, and it hurt. Everything Zhongli had done had been for her. But maybe – maybe that was a good thing. He could let go now, right? He knew know, he had audible confirmation that Zhongli would never look at him, would never care for him. He wasn’t good enough. Nobody would ever build a city for him.

He had to go. He had to leave. He couldn’t see Zhongli again. His feet itched, but he couldn’t move. Zhongli would never love him. Zhongli could only love things that were long past, and Childe walked ever toward the future.

“Why are there no Glaze Lilies in Guili Plains?”

“They are a delicate flower, and Guili Plains turning desolate was too much for them to handle. But if you want to get poetic, then Guizhong’s demise surely had something to do with it.”

Childe wondered. If he died, would – would something wither for him? The seashells he was so fond of, would they crack?

“You miss her.”

“Yes.”

Will you miss me is a question left unasked.

Childe took a deep breath. He would fill the gaping hole inside his chest with blood and glory.

“I have something for you.”

Childe blinked. He didn’t remember buying something. He looked over to Zhongli, who held a sword out to him.

“I have been meaning to give it to you for a while but ah, things got in the way.”

Childe reached for the handle and held the sword up against the moonlight. The blade was green. He’d never seen a weapon like that before.

“I crafted it myself long ago. The blade is cut from the purest jade. I made it for a friend, but sadly, they never got to use it.”

“I...” Childe didn’t know what to say. He didn’t use a sword much these days, but he could appreciate good craftsmanship. And really, he could never have enough weapons.

“Thank you,” was what he settled on and Zhongli smiled at him.

“You wished to hear a story,” Rex Lapis said and Childe nodded, holding his new gift close.

“Once, a long time ago, Rex Lapis encountered a boy. The boy would never learn to fear the God he met and instead, would always smile brightly at him. Some might say the boy was ignorant of who he met, but Rex Lapis greatly enjoyed the company of the boy, unburdened by the past. It’s the tale of Rex Lapis, a god feared for his wrath, and a young boy with kind eyes and a gentle soul, ever ready to overtake the world and unafraid to walk in front of a god he ought to fear.

Once, a long time ago, Rex Lapis encountered a young boy who showed him the light of the sun again.”

Perhaps this was alright. Maybe Rex Lapis would always be stuck in the past and Childe would always walk ahead into the future. As Childe listened to Rex Lapis tell him an ancient tale, he fell asleep next to his friend Zhongli, a green sword tightly hugged to his chest.

He dreamed of a field full of flowers and a god and a boy, holding hands, walking towards the gentle brushing of the sea at the shore.

[13uswntimagines]

Secret Santa (Alex Morgan x Reader)

Reader is in the military and surprises her wife and daughter (with a little help from Preath). Merry Christmas from @literaryhedgehog and Me!!!

“Little bit still hasn’t told you what she wants for Christmas yet?” Kelley asked, munching on some pretzels and hummus.  

Alex rolled her eyes sliding into a seat next to her. “No, she utterly convinced that it won’t come true if she tells anyone but Santa.” 

“Didn't she write a letter? Why didn’t you just take a peek?” Tobin interjected, sitting on Kelley’s other side. Her fiancé had been so excited to have her niece for the day. 

“She mailed it to god knows where with Christen before I could,” Alex sighed, shaking her head. She had been fine with the whole mailing letters thing (actually watching your four-year old try to write out something heartfelt in blue crayon was kinda adorable), but then Camren had insisted on mailing it herself. Alex felt a little bad for the person in Antarctica who was getting the random letter. 

“Damn,” Kelley huffed, blowing her cheeks out, trying to drum up ideas. 

“Yeah, apparently it’s a Press family tradition or whatever, and Chris did it because Y/n isn’t here to. If she was she at least could have curbed some of her enthusiasm long enough to take a picture of the letter.” Alex grumbled, chewing thoughtfully on a pretzel. Your big sister had been picking up a lot of slack while you were away with the SEALs, but it just wasn’t the same as having you there. 

“We hired a Santa, so just listen to whatever she tells him,” Tobin shrugged, a look that Alex didn’t recognize crossing her features. 

“And pray to god it gets here overnight,” Kelley snorted. Hopefully whatever Camren wanted could be found at a local Walmart. 

 *****

The holiday party was in full bustle. There were benefits to doing training in Florida, so while Camren still had her heart set on snow for christmas, the adults had strung the outdoor tent with string lights and decorated it with holly and mistletoe. Camren had promised to eat at least two bites of every food there -- even the healthy ones that looked weird (her words not Alex’s) -- before she ate too many of Emily’s double chocolate chunk brownies, and so Alex was feeling rather proud of herself. She and her daughter were both there, dressed up, and only 15 minutes late for the party-- not bad for single parenting skills. Maybe after Camren was done talking to Santa, Carlie or Lindsey could be persuaded to babysit for a bit so Alex could go introduce herself to that lovely bottle of merlot she saw hiding in the corner. 

Alex was surprised with how comfortable her daughter seemed on Santa’s lap. Camren was a bit nervous walking over, but it was nothing compared to her fear last year, when she had bawled until you eventually gave up and held her behind the poor man. Perhaps it had to do with how tenderly the poor suited person seemed to hold the small child, and the little glimmer in their eyes. . 

Santa’s eyes met Alex’s for a split second, and the sense of security the slight contact brought her was slightly alarming. They looked so familiar and sent warm tingles through her chest. 

“Did you get my letter?” The little girl asked, drawing the bearded one’s attention back to her. Alex bit her lip, there was no way this random stranger got the letter addressed to Rudolph at the North Pole. 

The Santa nodded, their features softening. “I did. It seems you were very concerned about your mama getting her gift?”

The little girl nodded rapidly. “How do you know where to take it, if she’s on top secret missions all da time?” Her brow furrowed, “what if she doesn’t have a chimney to hang her stocking on?”

“I just know. Remember I know if you’ve been good or bad, or if you move. I promise she’ll get everything she wants. Now back to you. What do you want for Christmas?” Santa tried to explain. 

The little girl thought for a moment, her finger tapping on her chin, before she leaned up to cup the person’s ear. She whispered a few words, leaned back to look the bearded person in the eye. The (very fake) white beard at the top of the red coat bobbed up and down in a nod, and Alex saw a sparkle in their eye as their lips twitched above it. 

“Well that’s quite the order.” 

“Pwease? Its not that tall, and It’s the only thing I really want,” Camren pouted, pulling the puppy dog eyes that never ceased to make her parents melt. This was important, and if she only got one real chance to talk to the person who could make it happen, she wanted them to know just how much she wanted it. 

“I’ll see what I can do,” the Santa said, nodding seriously and stroking the beard as Camren jumped up and ran back to Alex. 

“What did you ask for?” Alex whispered. Good grief, wasn’t the whole point of hiring a Santa to hear what the munchkin wanted?

“Can’t say. Want it to happen,” Camren whispered back, twirling slightly as she buried herself in the hem of her mom’s skirt. This was going to be the best Christmas ever. 

****

Alex smiled widely as the Santa pulled another wrapped present from the gaudy red bag. It was a nice spin on their usual tradition, and she just hoped Pino didn’t get her for a secret Santa. That woman forgot every year, and Alex’s name hadn’t come up yet and that bag looked suspiciously empty. No wait, there was one- nope, that was Beckey’s present from Alyssa. Maybe there was a gift card in there somewhere? Alex looked down at Camren, who despite practically nodding off in Sonnet’s arms an hour ago, had woken up during the secret santa exchange. She was now sitting on the ground playing with the toy horses, blind to her surroundings.

“Hey, um Kelley? Who was running the secret santa exchange again?” Alex whispered, grabbing her arm. “I think my person forgot to get me a present.”

“What?” Kelley, turned to her shocked. “I think maybe Tobin was in charge this year, we’ll ask her if someone wrote down who your person was.”

“Oh that’s not necessary,” Christen’s voice broke in. Alex and Kelley turned to look at her and Tobin, who were standing with a very confused Emily.  “I’m really sorry, we just didn’t get a chance to wrap your gift. You’ll get it at the end of the party.” 

“Isn’t it like against the rules for Christen to get Alex since they actually spend Christmas together every year?” Sonnett whined. If she couldn’t buy presents for Lindsey, and Sam couldn’t do it for Kristie then that totally wasn’t fair.Sister-in-law and fiance-of-sister-in-law definitely had an unfair advantage on the ”knowing what presents to buy” front. She had to buy Jullie’s gift, and had just settled on some tea-rex patterned socks and a starbucks gift card. 

Lindsey glared in her direction. “Can it disonny,” she wasn’t about to let her girlfriend mess up a surprise that had been 6 months in the making. 

“It’s fine Chris, you didn’t have to get me anything,” Alex smiled sadly. 

“I mean that would have been cruel since Camren has been campaigning pretty hard for your present,” Christen snorted. It was all your daughter could talk about. She had even harassed every Santa she saw while they went Christmas shopping, and wrote several letters (that she forwarded to you) about the issue. 

“She told you what she wants, and you didn’t tell me?” Alex asked exasperated. She had been fighting with your daughter for a month to know what she actually wanted. Why on earth would she tell her aunt but not her mom? She was going to have to have a conversation with Camren about how Santa had different rules from wishing on a star or a birthday candle. Namely that she should tell her mom what she wanted!

Christen shrugged, a smile pulling at her lips, though Alex didn’t know what she was so amused about. “Well, it was for you, so I get a pass,”

“I for one think that Christen’s present is totally on point, even if it’s wrapped in ugly, sweaty red velvet,” A new voice joined the conversation, just as arms wrapped snugly around Alex’s waist. 

Alex froze, her eyes going wide and her mouth opening and closing several times. 

You chucked from behind her, spinning her around so you were face to face for the first time in almost a year. 

“Hi love.”

“Holy shit,” Alex breathed. Her hands reached up to touch your cheeks, the sense of touch confirming what she couldn’t trust her eyes to see. 

“Surprise,” You mumbled, leaning in and finally connecting your lips. You sighed into the kiss, thoroughly enjoying the way they moved together, and the taste of your wife. She impatiently pulled down the beard when you paused to breathe, and your hands found her hips, pulling her closer, while her fingers tangled in that baby hairs at the base of your neck. “Let’s do that again,” you said, your breath fanning against her lips before she pulled you back in. You had an awful lot of time to make up for. 

“Why is mommy kissing Santa Claus,” Camren asked from somewhere below your feet. You were fairly certain you heard one of your wife’s teammates explaining in the background that Santa left a little while ago, and Mama had just dressed like him to surprise Mommy. You were a tad busy to explain anything right now.