Chapter Text
“Last day.” Obi-Wan commented as he enjoyed his morning tea.
Cody grunted at him as he grabbed his cup of caff. “Yeah, and tomorrow morning we're shipping out. How's collecting the food going?”
“I have almost everything I'm taking with packed. We just need to go pick some fresh before we leave.” Obi-Wan explained.
“Which means you also want to do some last minute work in tending to the plants, then right?”
“Precisely.”
Cody nodded and started in on his breakfast. It was still a new experience, being so full. Rations, while nutritious, didn't kill the hunger. Didn't fill them up. It had taken a while to get his stomach to adjust to such full proper meals but it was worth it. And now they could ensure everyone in the 212th had the chance that most did not with food. Obi-Wan really was the best Jedi.
“So, after breakfast?”
“If that works. I have a meeting after lunch.”
“It works for me. I have nothing better to do. I should check on the men, but that doesn't take too long and morning is too soon before deployment to check on them.”
“Good.”
Cody fidgeted nervously as he cleared his dishes and got another cup of caff. He had grown comfortable with Obi-Wan but he still couldn't get a read on his feelings. If he had any chance at all of being with the General. It wasn't something he should want, but he did. He didn't care about how it looked. He didn't care that he was at a greater disadvantage. He just wanted... to love someone freely and receive it in turn.
“Cody, something is on your mind. Would you mind sharing?” Obi-Wan asked with a concerned look.
Cody took a deep breath, and steeled himself. Obi-Wan was a Jedi, and while he knew that things weren't as black as white when it came to relationships, he also had not even heard fo a Jedi who was in a relationship openly. So he had no clue how confessing his feelings would go.
He shook his head and looked up at Obi-Wan as he drank half of his caff in one go. “I love you.” He winced. Okay, bad opening. “I... I just wanted you to know how I felt so... so we could work things out from here. I cannot pretend that I just see you as a friend anymore, I cannot try to hide my feelings. At least if... if you reject me I can have closure and work on getting over it.” He stopped when a hand covered his. He focused back on Obi-Wan's face wondering when he had started staring elsewhere.
Obi-Wan smiled tenderly. “Cody, I love you too. I want to work things out too. I am not sure what the end result will be, but the important thing is that we figure it out together.”
Cody turned his hand over to grasp Obi-Wan's. “That is the best news you could have given me today. But with your council meeting... maybe we should postpone until dinner? I don't think anyone else is planning to show up, if they are even on Coruscant.”
Obi-Wan nodded. “I think that is the best plan.”
“Then let's start the day so it ends faster.” Cody impulsively lifted Obi-Wan's hand and kissed it before standing. Obi-Wan looked surprised as a light pink blush appeared on his cheeks. Cody blushed as well before helping Obi-Wan clear the plates before they went on to follow their plans.
Later that day, Cody sighed when he checked the time to see that it was getting close to dinner and Obi-Wan was not back from his meeting yet. He got started on making dinner, as Obi-Wan had left out instructions and the recipe . He could at least get going on the prep, if nothing else. He just wasn't sure he could handle the actual cooking part.
He had just finished slicing the last of the tubers when Obi-Wan finally walked in. Obi-Wan looked exhausted though he perked up when he saw that everything was already prepped. He gave Cody a quick hug, a nice warm thing that did not last nearly long enough for either.
“Anything you can tell me about that meeting?” Cody asked, mostly to be supportive.
Obi-Wan grumbled. “I might as well spill everything because the enemy is going to know soon enough.”
“So a leak is confirmed then?”
“It's more than just a leak. If we share a detail with the Chancellor, about 75% of the time the Separatists know the detail-whoever it is, maybe even the Chancellor, apparently knows better than to share everything to avoid suspicion. And that's details we don't talk about in our Council meetings. The ones we do? They know every time. We've tried experimenting with every master not being involved at all, which is why I had a week off, we've tried sweeping the room, we've tried looking for eavesdroppers. We've tried holograms, all of us. We've tried all of us in person. No matter how we conduct our meetings, the Separatists always know, and they don't always try to hide it. The only solution that seems to work, is not having any over holocall and to not have it in the Council room. And that's without getting into the fact that Anakin has no sense of security and all the clones that are around- after Slick, we know any of them can be turned, even if we do trust all clones we know personally.” Obi-Wan shook his head as he started putting things on to cook properly.
Cody made a face and pulled up a recipe he had found and desperately wanted to try. It looked delicious, and seemed like it would be something Obi-Wan would like from what he knew of Obi-Wan's tastes. It looked difficult, but doable. Better than the cheesecake he wanted to try sometime, which apparently took hours to be ready to eat.
“So... there's not much you can do. No wonder it took you all months to figure it out. I had been wondering. What is the plan going forward?”
“We're unfortunately going to have to have every member of the Council in and out of the Temple frequently. We will also be sending whoever is going to the same area to drop off messages for other masters and knights as necessary. We're going to allow all units more freedom for their strategies, so that we don't have to talk about them where the leak can find out. To the best of our abilities, we're going to share the mission parameters, any requests, and clarify who is making the requests. We're all very suspicious of Palpatine now.”
Cody hummed as he worked. “Because he is the most protected person on Coruscant and I know Fox and his men sweep his office daily? He is kind of suspicious. No brother who's met him seems to like him, even Rex, and considering how Skywalker feels about the guy...” He shook his head.
Obi-Wan grimaced. “I haven't gotten the best... vibes, as Ahsoka would say, off of Palpatine in the past. He's too nice, and generally in a performative way, not like Bail who still acts like he does in the Senate even when he's being nice, but Palpatine seems to have different personas. Kindly old man, compassionate Senator, strong military leader... It doesn't seem like something is off if you just meet one of them, but when you've seen all three it's.... weird. A lot of politicians are like that, but it just makes me more suspicious of his motives when he seems to be kind and understanding to Anakin before turning around and ordering the Jedi around like we have no say in anything.”
The longer cooking things were set up to cook so he leaned against the counter and looked up with a sigh. “And I've suspected him almost since I met him. Former Chancellor Valorum was the one who sent Qui-Gon and I to Naboo, but during our first meeting, he took credit. It wouldn't have been very diplomatic to call him out for it in the moment, though I did let Padme know later. I just wonder why he kept maneuvering himself into the position of being the person people owed. It is... unsettling.”
“You're dancing around something.” Cody pointed out as he poured batter out into pans.
“You're right you're right...” Obi-Wan sighed. “I nearly accused him of pedophilia when Anakin was fifteen.” Cody nearly dropped the bowl. Obi-Wan's mouth twisted wryly.
“That was when he started pushing to see Anakin more. He had struck up a weird sort of... mentor/friendship with Anakin after Naboo, since Anakin did play a part in rescuing Naboo. At first, I let it slide because Palpatine had only seemed off once, and that was something normal politicians do. I thought since Anakin had been a slave it would do him good to have other connections besides the Jedi. I also thought that while Anakin did need to be trained in the Force before it got out of control or it attracted a Sith, he might not actually make it as a Jedi thanks to his upbringing.”
“And the Chancellor showed an interest, so you let him.”
“Yes, that. It wasn't often, and they usually did holocalls, and I was present much of the time if I could. But they were at most once a month at first, sometimes as much as once every three months. I had to reassure Anakin about it, I recall. Then around when Anakin turned fifteen... Palpatine wanted to see him more. Wanted to take him places instead of just staying in his office or his apartment.
“I was suspicious, especially when I saw the sort of affectionate gestures Palpatine used on Anakin. I know what grooming gestures molesters and rapists do. I kept my head and talked to Anakin, who blew up on me, and I knew he wouldn't be lying about it. He did bring up a good point: he was very vocal about being mistreated, he saw what happened to people when he was a slave. He would never let that happen to himself.”
“I can see how you would be alarmed though. Very reasonable concern, honestly.” Cody stuck the pans in the oven. “I wonder why he likes Anakin so much. Anakin is so different from any of his personalities.”
“And that's where the other part of my concern came from. Why? What was Palpatine's goal? It's definitely apparent that Palpatine is just using him, but to what end?” Obi-Wan checked his food. “But for now that's way off topic, even if it is worth revisiting because I'm starting to wonder if Palpatine is a traitor or maybe even the Sith himself.” He shook his head. “So, the meeting today started off in the Council room, talking about troop movements, and then we moved elsewhere for a few more hours trying to figure out how to proceed, and where our investigation should begin on the deeper roots of the war. If someone is spying on us so thoroughly, they won't be defeated just by taking out the heads of the Separatists. We need to figure out who wants this war to occur, and why. What is the end goal here?”
“I'd say that knowing that Palpatine is likely a traitor or the Sith, which does make an odd sort of sense does help. I'd focus on Palpatine and the Sith separately though, just in case.” Cody took his hand just to be supportive as Obi-Wan took on a contemplative look.
“I think they have more similarities than we might think. But... let's go through it anyways. Both don't want the war to end. The Sith probably wants to subjugate the galaxy and get rid of the Jedi, while Palpatine, if he is not the Sith, just wants more power. Just look at all the emergency powers he has, look at how he subtly encourages all the war while telling people what they want to hear. He hasn't even made any moves towards looking for peace since Geonosis. Not proper ones, anyways.”
“Haven't you said that sometimes you just need to fight back, though?”
“Well yes, but this isn't just a smaller scale conflict that just affects one planet or two. This is a galaxy wide war. If we have a good amount of Senators that want peace, surely those on the side of the Separatists want peace too and would be open to negotiations if we opened it up. That's why I and many others have been focusing on the leadership, because if we get them, the others are more likely to want peace, but with the Sith... not likely.”
“So that's one similarity with possibly different reasons.”
Obi-Wan nodded. “Anakin is the next. We encountered a Sith on Tatooine when we had crashed there, and ended up taking Anakin with us. There was no way for the Sith to know we would crash on Tatooine, as we hadn't been able to let anyone know where we were going. So he had to be there for another reason. Anakin is the brightest Force presence I have ever felt. He would be a good bonus to the Sith, if he Fell. I would not be surprised if the Sith dropped Dooku in favor of Anakin. As for Palpatine, I don't know what his end goal is with Anakin. I think he is where Anakin gets all his bad interpretations from, as he was often more short with me after meeting with him. And I know I've explained attachments to him many times, I know I've explained many things to him, but he always claims the Jedi believes different. I've about given up at this point, I'm afraid.”
“What is the Chancellor's end game then...?” Cody mused. “I see why you think he might be the Sith, because if he wants to get Anakin on his side, of course he would be telling lies about the Jedi and spending as much time with Anakin as he can, hoping to make the Fall come faster. But outside of that? What use is Anakin to the Chancellor, as a Jedi Knight who technically shouldn't even have a padawan yet. He may, now, be one of the best Jedi in the war, but the Chancellor didn't know that...”
“Precisely.” Obi-Wan nodded. “The only thought I have is that the Chancellor is looking to use Anakin as a way to get his hands on the Jedi and restrict us so that we can't do anything without Senate approval.” He grimaced. “And with the war keeping us so busy, it has been hard to fight back against the control he does have. We do have plans, at least.”
“...I'll address that later. Anything else you can think of?”
Obi-Wan shrugged. “Well... There seems to be groundwork laid out for some sort of dictator to be in charge, despite the Chancellor seemingly working for the other side- which means this is at least ten years in the making- and there also seems to be no contact between him and a Sith. Something is also up with the Coruscant Guard. They're nothing like you and our men. They feel scared, they seem constantly tired and on edge. And there's more to it I can't really put into words. They just don't act the way I would expect for clones stuck dealing with the idiots of Coruscant. None of our men who get assigned here temporarily ever come back acting like that.”
Cody was quiet for a moment then sighed. “Fox hasn't been the same since we were both assigned. He... has been harsher, meaner. He's also been clingier and sadder. It seems like every time we try to meet up when I'm on leave, he has or had a meeting with the Chancellor. I... am alarmed that he meets with the Chancellor seemingly every day. The times I see him within hours after his meeting with the Chancellor, he is more out of it, more vacant... closer to what brothers are like when they get sent in for reconditioning. But I don't know how the Chancellor is accomplishing that here, day after day.” He looked up at Obi-Wan who had gone pale.
“Do you know we still don't know much about your origin beyond supposedly Master Sifo-Dyas placed the order?” Obi-Wan asked. “And that it's very possible that the Sith is actually behind it, though to what end we have no clue? It's not an avenue we've enjoyed pursuing but...”
“But if we put things in context it makes a scary amount of sense?” Cody offered gently.
Obi-Wan nodded. “There must be something, beyond what you know that gives the effects of reconditioning without the process hat you know of. But then, that's just more supporting evidence for the Chancellor being the Sith if he knows how to do that. Which is alarming.”
Cody took a deep breath. “You're right. It is. But we have dinner to finish eating, the nice dessert I made, and a conversation to have. Why don't we shelve it for now, and after we're on our way to our next mission, we go talk to the healers about possibilities. Because while you've talked about Sith manipulations, I doubt that the Sith is able to place them on every one of us, at any time, especially since there are so many of us who are very young, and the younger they are, the more that was decanted at once. It just seems like a big job for a Sith.”
Obi-Wan blinked. “You're right. If they were doing something like that, it would have to have some sort of anchor point. Which would be something we can find and figure out. We'll do that, then. You're right, no use worrying about it.” He took another bite of the delicious dinner that had somehow made it onto the table and been half eaten while they talked. “And that conversation... let's have it over dessert, so we can both clear out our minds in order to be in a better mindset.”
Cody smiled. “I would like that.” They returned to eating their dinner idly, both happy with the conclusion of that rather heavy conversation.
Once he finished, Cody cleared his dishes and went to finish off the cake. It was nearly ready. He layered the base 'plain' layer, then the layer soaked in alcohol, then the layer soaked in blue milk. Then he added the very thick cream he had made with ground caff. To top it off, he dropped on Obi-Wan's favorite berries. It had three of his favorites in total, the berries, the alcohol, and the caff. Obi-Wan was a sucker for any desserts with those flavors, Cody had learned. And when he saw this recipe, well, he thought it would be worth a try. It certainly looked like it would taste good.
Then he brought it out to see that Obi-Wan had gotten out the plates and forks for dessert and cleared the mess. He grinned and set the plate down and grabbed the knife to cut it. It looked pretty good, close to the picture in the recipe.
But then it was time for the tasting. Cody took a bite and groaned. “Oh my gosh this is so good. New favorite.”
Obi-Wan hummed in appreciation. “You got the flavors right, good job. This is also one of my favorites.”
“You've had it before?”
“Dex offers it when he has the ingredients, which isn't very often.”
“Ah...” Cody made a mental note to drag others to try it sometime.
“Well, this is much appreciated, you got my favorites in one delicious dessert which is my favorite, without knowing this three layer cake is actually my favorite.”
Cody blushed. “I like trying new things, so why not a recipe that has your favorites?”
“Not many people in my life know that much. Anakin thinks the only thing I like is tea. He knows I eat the most when I go to Dex's but he still hasn't figured out that Dex makes some of my favorite food. Some don't care enough to notice, others are too busy to keep up.” Obi-wan sighed. “And... I haven't had anyone make such an effort to help me in the kitchen and not only that make me something in years.” Obi-Wan took a bite and closed his eyes to savor it. “I... I do not know what it is to be in a relationship, any kind of relationship where it is completely equal. I am used to being the one that loves but is not loved in return.”
Cody frowned. “But why?”
Obi-Wan shrugged. “I don't know. Anakin would've preferred Qui-Gon Jinn, the man who trained me and rescued him, and died days later. Qui-Gon didn't want to train me, only agreed to do so after I volunteered as a sacrifice at the age of thirteen, and immediately threw me away upon discovering Anakin. My friends care but...” he half shrugged.
“It's hard to connect with them anymore because I took on a padawan as soon as I was a Knight. I never had a solo knight career, and with Anakin so far behind well, I didn't really have time for them, and they didn't force themselves into my life like they would've growing up.”
He took another few bites before saying anything more. Cody could tell that Obi-Wan needed to get this off his chest, and decided to wait patiently. This might explain some of the trepidation he had seen any time Obi-Wan got close with any of the clones, how he didn't seem to understand that they all cared about them.
“Master Yoda was the one to encourage Qui-Gon to take me on, and considering some... oddities around my aging out and being sent to the AgriCorps namely that it happened a few months early and that AgriCorps was the last on the list between my actual interest and my aptitude, I wonder if Yoda had a hand in that. The rest of the Council as they were before the First battle of Geonosis... well, they made it much harder to raise Anakin, especially in the first five to six years. Any whiff of too much attachment, according to whatever measurement they used at the time, any sign that I wasn't teaching Anakin properly, and I would've lost him.
“There was a lot of pressure on me to get it right because I had to go against Master Yoda to take Anakin as my padawan. I would've left the Order in order to train him. They didn't approve because I wasn't experienced enough and they didn't think Anakin could be a Jedi because he had too much fear and anger in him as a nine year old newly freed slave.” Obi-Wan scoffed and angrily shoved a rather big bite of cake into his mouth. He made a muffled noise of appreciation and chewed out his frustration before swallowing.
“The healers... well, none of them let me do anything, even though I find it more restful not to be stressed and anxious about not doing my work, I'd even concede to doing ten minutes every hour if they would let me and read the rest of the time, but honestly they don't seem to allow much by way of entertainment when I'm stuck in the healers wing, and I don't know where I was going with this honestly.” Obi-Wan chuckled nervously.
“You were talking about how people don't really have equal relationships to you then suddenly got on a tangent about healers,” Cody told him.
“Ah right. Bant was probably my angle, one of my closest friends growing up who has decided that that is the right way to deal with me in the healing wings even though she knows exactly how I feel about being stuck in bed with nothing to do. I seriously could get bored to death and I swear I end up in a depressive bout eery time I get stuck in bed.” Obi-Wan grumbled, shoveling more into his mouth then looking put out that that was the last of his slice. Then he cut another one.
Cody grinned at the fact that Obi-Wan was voluntarily eating more while making a mental note to talk to Helix and Bones, the ones in charge of the medics in the 212th. Bored Obi-Wan was a bad thing, if they kept him from being bored, he might actually stay put. Good to know. Really good to know considering how often he tried to skip out.
“I guess that covers most of my relationships... oh, well there was that fling with Satine and she would've muzzled me now that I can look back and see with clearer eyes and no hormones clouding my vision. Not to mention what she's done to Mandalore in the meantime. I would not have survived even if I would've left the order for her. Thankfully she didn't love me enough to ask me to stay, though that shouldn't be a surprise seeing as she never loved me enough to respect my views or my position as a Jedi and what that meant for me fighting and how I can't afford to just be a pacifist.
“Padme only has eyes for Anakin these days even though we had been pen pals up until they got married, and I think it's because Anakin doesn't want me to know and she wants to spill it but still, not only does she not see me as a good friend, but once again, Anakin gets the loyalty and friendship I don't.”
Obi-Wan shifted and shoveled another bite into his mouth, trying not to think too hard. But... in the interest of letting Cody know what he was in for... He sighed. “I just... Anakin takes everything. Everything. Some of the friends that did stick around couldn't stand to be around him. Couldn't even make new friends with him around. Especially once he got to his teenager stage. Something interfered again and he got the apprentice that was supposed to be mine and I adore Ahsoka but she will always see Anakin above me and I don't blame her and they work together wonderfully but I had requested her for myself she was supposed to be me training another padawan without the pressure of the Council, one that reminded me of myself because she had a temper holding her back just like I did.”
Cody snagged another slice of cake and then put it away, deciding it was in their best interest not to have the temptation in front of them. He waited to speak, wanting to ensure Obi-Wan got everything off of his chest before he started speaking, though it was getting harder to hold his tongue.
“Anakin wasn't ready to have a padawan, but the Council thought it would help him mature better to have one. He hadn't even been ready to be a Knight. And apparently they don't trust that I can raise a padawan without attachment issues, and yet all of them have their own attachment issues. Maybe not to people, but to ideas and traditions. They don't always listen to the Force when it tells them something they don't want to hear. And they don't always get that attachment doesn't mean we can't love. How can we be Jedi if we aren't compassionate?” Obi-Wan dropped his fork and covered his face as the tears started falling. “I don't know how much longer I can keep it together,” he whispered.
Cody immediately moved to warp an arm around him, then moved to rubbing his back. “You're not alone. You have me and the rest of the 212th, we do care. The shinies adore you. How can we not, considering what you spent your whole leave doing. You spent the whole leave getting spices together just so that we could have something nice when we're not here. Even though that meant a lot of gathering up spices and dehydrating and whatever else it was.”
He took a deep breath and lifted Obi-Wan's head. He hurt at the look of fearful hope in those tear-filled eyes. He wiped the tears away. “I love you, and nothing is going to change that. We can't be each other's priorities right now. I won't ever be mad at you for doing your duty because I know you always do your best to fight for what is right. I know you will do your best for everyone's sake, not just me or anyone else.
“The only way I'll ever be mad is if you're not taking care of yourself because I don't want to lose you to something that can be prevented, unlike in battle. I don't care what we are to each other right now, if we become official or if we wait until the end of the war. I don't care if you want to stay with the Order and make it work, stay with the order but not with me, or stay with me and leave the Order. I just want to see you happy, and knowing your feelings and having a friendship will be enough for me.” He pulled Obi-Wan in for a hug, hugging as tightly as he dared.
Obi-Wan hesitated, then returned it, slowly melting into it. “I... I want to believe you.”
“But right now you can't.” Cody nodded. “I understand. It is hard to trust someone's words when you have been burned so many times before.”
Obi-Wan pulled away reluctantly. “Let's take our cake and settle in on the couch, you can't be comfortable half crouched like that.”
Cody shrugged. “It was worth it,” he replied sincerely before standing and offering his hand. Obi-Wan took it then grabbed their plates.
It took a few moments to get settled, but soon they were finishing off their cakes while drawing comfort from each other. Even if they didn't get together, Cody knew he would be able to live off of moments like this for the rest of the war, at least. It was nice. He loved his Jedi so much.
Obi-Wan sighed after setting down his empty plate and the fork. “I suppose we should continue the discussion then, Cody.”
Cody straightened and nodded, setting his plate aside as well. “We should. For my part...” Cody shrugged. “I don't know much about the wider world. The only relationships I really have even ever saw were those my brothers get into, and that's... a little different than what we get into.” Cody shifted to be slightly more comfortable now that he didn't have to worry about eating.
“I want to learn though. I want this chance, no matter what is separating us. But, I will work with what is comfortable for you, and we can draw up boundaries.”
“Alright... alright.” Obi-Wan took a breath. “I think... I think I want to date. I am undecided about leaving the Order or not. It is my life, you understand. I... all my difficulties in life have been me trying to be the perfect Jedi because that was what was expected of me. If... if I don't have those rules to abide by, I'm not sure I'm going to know what to do with myself.” Obi-Wan looked more thoughtful.
“Although... if the Order, the Council doesn't want to change their on attachments being love, I'm not sure I will have much of a reason to stay. Because that doesn't just affect me, it effects your brothers, it effects Master Plo Koon, it effects so many others who love their troops. The ones I might stay for either will become people I don't know as they attempt to live up to expectations, and sever ties, or they will be leaving anyways. It's not like the Order has been good to me.
“If I could be a Jedi without their judgement when I struggle, without following the whims of the Senate, I'd much prefer that. More than that, we've been compromising our values ever since the war began, and we're making more and more ruthless decisions. I'm not comfortable with it, and I'm not happy that I get to be the one to pass on any decision, even when I heavily argued against it. I don't think Anakin even believes me when I tell him it wasn't my decision.” Obi-Wan made a noise of despair. “But that's back off topic.”
He took a deep breath. “To summarize, I would love to be with you now, and I'll figure out if that means I have to leave the Order or not later on. I certainly have less ties to it than I did with Satine it feels like sometimes. You don't even need to ask because you're far more worth it.”
Cody smiled at him. “I'm glad to hear you say that. I take it we need to be discreet then?”
“Unfortunately, until I know better where things stand with attachment, it would be best. I'm not risking placing you and your brothers in the hands of anyone else. They're able to justify leaving you in charge when I have to do more Jedi like missions, even if it is often with the 501st instead, but if they find out and kick me out... I can't do that to you.”
“I understand.” Cody nodded. “We'll figure something out. I'll lay the groundwork with our men about the attachment issue. Then once we're sure they understand we can let them know, even if we still need to keep it secret. Can anyone else know?”
Obi-Wan considered. “I think I will tell Plo, I know he has adopted Wolffe and the rest of the Wolfpack, so that is not an issue. I will also probably tell Quinlan Vos because he is somehow the only one I consider a friend for all that he drives me nuts sometimes. I might confide in Bail but that depends on how talks with him play out. You can tell any of your brothers you trust, so long as they understand what's at stake.”
“I understand.” Cody nodded. “Now... can we talk about ideals for a bit? I think discussing further boundaries can wait until we're back on duty, but I would like to know idealistically, where do you see this going, in a scenario where everything works out and it is sunshine and rainbows for all.”
Obi-Wan snickered at that description. “That's fair. Ideally, we'll end this war with minimal additional fuss, we won't lose anyone else, and we clear everyone of Sithly influence. The Order will allow attachments, or rather redefine what that means for us, to say that attachments is possessive and obsessive love. Unhealthy love. As it should always have been.
“Love on it's own is fine, so long as we can put our duty first when necessary, but we're allowed the downtime with those we love anyways. Then we'll get the kark out of Coruscant because we need to separate ourselves from the Republic to bring us back to being peacekeepers, to allow us to better serve the galaxy and its needs rather than being stretched thin on things that aren't even completely necessary.”
He rested his head on Cody's shoulder. “Once we have a new place to live, we'll invite all the clones to join us and join the Order, as we work on other reforms to bring our numbers up. We'll change how we handle missions, with so many extra hands. We'll change how we're taught, and we'll allow Force nulls to be Knights, just of a different type. One reform can be allowing masters to train two padawans at once- a junior padawan and a senior padawan. Maybe more, but not sure how well that would work. We will say our vows, the Mandalorian ones preferably as they work well with my vows to the Order when we feel the time is right in private, maybe even a few months from now.
“But we'll wait to do it in front of people for a proper celebration. We will raise warriors, that is, I'll be taking on padawans because I do so love teaching, and I hope we can find some Force Nulls to adopt for our own. Eventually... We will grow old together, because of course we will have found a cure for the accelerated aging. When we're too old for missions, and I'm tired of the Council, I hope... I would like to be a crechemaster, and I hope you would join me in that, to raise future generations, and maybe your brothers will also have children in the creche we get to have a hand in raising. But we have peace in our corner of the galaxy and take steps forward all the time to bring peace elsewhere.”
Obi-Wan closed his eyes, picturing what he had said, how lovely that would be. Cody hummed. “I can see that future. I want to raise warriors with you, padawans. I wish we could have had Ahsoka, she would have been a good addition to the 212th, and I think you and I could potentially be better for her. We will be mission partners so I can always be there to bail you out of trouble, and I suppose I would be in charge of my brothers. Or we'll form our own council. And it would turn eventually from being a council for clones to being a council for the Force Nulls.
“So that everything stays in line. I can see us enjoying peace, but wanting a good fight once in a while. I see us rescuing slaves, I see us ransacking Kamino for the littlest of my brothers. I see us adopting one or two, and I see us adopting children elsewhere. And maybe, maybe we'll find a way to have our own blood children we can raise all the way from infancy myself. I would enjoy that, I think, even if the idea of being in charge of an infant terrifies me. Yes, I think our ideal futures are pretty well in alignment.”
They snuggled together for a while, neither feeling the need to add more. They were content as is. After a while though, Obi-Wan lifted his head.
“We should make sure everything is packed for tomorrow. I don't want to have to find things in the morning. Better to just grab and go rather than scramble around and hope we found everything.”
Cody groaned. “You're right. Then bed and more cuddling?”
Obi-Wan brought their foreheads together. “I wouldn't have it any other way.”
“I love you.”
“I love you too.”