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Cody hated the rain.
Sure, it made a pleasant sound when it fell and the smells it left were mostly comforting, but it was wet, cold, and it could get anywhere.
What he meant by anywhere was really ‘’into the most unthinkable places’’. It always made its way into the collar of his blacks and the bottom of his boots and it made everything stick to his armour.
That’s what Cody thought as he tried to scrub away splatters of mud and very sticky leaves from his bucket. Kashyyyk’s damp and hot air had already got to him before they even had set foot on the planet, so why did it also have to rain?
When they had been assigned on this mission, which was humanitarian aid, not a battlefront, the general had sent them all a small memo on the planet’s wildlife and climate, just to make sure everyone knew which snakes not to touch (Wooley was still in the medbay) and which plants to avoid, yes, even if they’re pretty Kos.
Everything would have gone well if it hadn’t been for that kriffing rain. It wasn’t a heavy one, but it made the ground muddy and Cody’s grip often threatened to slip from what he was carrying. The Wookies didn’t seem to mind the weather though and they worked smoothly and quickly. Cody had later learned their fur (hair?) had water-shedding properties so they weren’t weighted down by it accumulating in it, which, made sense.
The one Cody had worked with the most, Chewbacca, seemed to have a hatred for rain as strong as Cody’s. He had complained about it multiple times, or so his general had told him, and kept saying it ruined the hair (fur?) of his feet. Their exchanges had been awkward, seeing as Cody did not speak shyriiwook, but they somehow understood each other’s displeasure towards the grey weather of the day. They had worked easily together and what needed to be done that day had been completed when the rain started beating down on them. Work had been abandoned and left to be picked back up as the weather only worsened. The troops had made their way to their camp and everyone hurried inside their tents when the wind picked up.
At the moment, Cody was sitting cross-legged on the (thankfully) dry ground in his and the general’s tent. There was a particularly stubborn stain of dried mud on the left side of his helmet that he was viciously scrubbing at, but it simply refused to disappear. All that was starting to fade was the paint still visible around it. It was starting to get really frustrating when Cody’s com pinged.
When he answered it, Rex’s panicked face stared back at him.
‘’Codes, help!’’ Rex said as he glanced outside the frame.
The commander rolled his eyes.
‘’Hello to you too, Rex. What’s going on?’’
Rex turned back towards him and his eyes were probably the roundest Cody had ever seen.
‘’He’s doing it again, vod. And others are joining in!’’
Ah, Cody thought. That.
He shook his head when Rex yelled ‘’Hardcase, that’s poisonous!’’ to the trooper who was probably trying to put something he shouldn’t in his mouth. Cody swore he heard someone give him another one with a ‘’Here’’ when his vod’ika’s face fell. Rex put his face in his hand not holding the com moments later as he groaned.
Cody did not take a holoshot to send to their chat later.
‘’So,’’ he started, and Rex glanced at him between his fingers. Someone yelled to ‘’try this one’’ in the back. ‘’Did you try talking to him?’’
Rex lifted his head to glare at him.
‘’Do you really think I didn’t? After the first time I did!’’ he huffed in frustration. ‘’You know what he told me?’’ Cody shook his head. ‘’’If it crunch, it’s lunch, Captain.’ as if it was a logical answer!’’
Oh, that was something.
‘’And he just ate a kriffing beetle while staring at me!’’
That was definitely something. Cody did not laugh. Rex glared at him.
‘’Sorry, sorry.’’ Cody wheezed between two laughs. He really needed to stop.
As he was trying to take back control of his breathing, his brother sighed and tried to look behind Cody. His face had this long-suffering expression he often wore when talking about General Skywalker.
‘’Is General Kenobi with you? Maybe he could actually help me out instead of laughing at my expense.’’
As if he had been summoned, said General Kenobi passed through the tent flaps hastily before closing them in the same hurried manner to keep the icy rain and wind out. He was soaked from head to toe, just like that day on Kamino. His robes were darkened by the water and his hair stuck to his forehead in messy brown-ish strands, but he still radiated warmth and comfort.
At least to Cody. Even as he swore he’d fight whatever karking - his words, not Cody’s - entity was controlling the weather of Kashyyyk. Cody saw Rex’s eyes widen almost imperceptibly at the words used and Cody had to remind himself he was one of the only people who had ever heard Obi-Wan talk crudely before. After all, the Negotiator had the reputation of a perfect jedi, didn’t he?
Obi-Wan tossed his cloak in an unused corner of the tent, which made a wet squelch as it hit the floor, and turned toward Cody with a sigh on his lips. His hands were cupping his neck, just where the shoulder muscles met it and his head was hung back.
‘’Cody, how did you survive Kam-’’ He froze when his eyes met the translucent blue of Rex’s back on the holo.
Obi-Wan cleared his throat and straightened up. Cody gave him a smile.
‘’Must have been the Kaminoans doing.’’ he shrugged.
Cody got up from the floor, his helmet held in his hand that didn’t have Rex’s holo (Who was making a face at him), and walked towards his general. He angled his arm so Obi-Wan could get in the frame, where Rex could see him. Their shoulders brushed.
‘’Rex’ika here needed your help with something.’’
Hearing his name, Rex turned back from the trooper (Fives, if Cody had heard well) he was threatening with latrine duty if he ‘’ate one more kriffing bug in his face’’ and smoothed his face in a more relaxed expression.
‘’Don’t call me that.’’ he told Cody. ‘‘General Kenobi.’’ he greeted the other man.
Obi-Wan glanced at Cody out of the corner of his eye but he returned the formality.
‘’Captain Rex. I hear you are in a bit a situation?’’ Curiosity tainted his voice faintly.
‘’Yes, sir. It’s- General Skywalker is eating unknown bugs, sir, and my men have started to imitate him. Nothing I did has worked so far and I’m concerned for their health. Kix looks like he’s going to start shooting if he has to tell someone else not to eat something because it’s poisonous. Or has got a stinger.’’
Next to him, Cody saw his general nod sagely, hand to his chin, but Cody knew it was just a façade. That man was laughing his arse off in his head.
‘’Well, Captain, I’m afraid there’s nothing I can do. Anakin has always had this, particuliarity about him. My best guess is it has something to do with growing up on a desert planet, and I’ve tried to dissuade him many times, without success. The best thing to do now is make sure no one ingests anything bad for their health, like you and Kix have been doing.’’
Cody could see Rex’s face pale, even through holo call, and his faux calm fell to leave space for open panic. He stayed speechless for an instant before closing his mouth and nodding as if everything was fine.
‘’I- Thank you, General Kenobi. We’ll, well, we’ll do our best.’’
‘’I really am sorry that I can’t help you, Captain Rex, but this is out of my control. I do trust in Kix and you, though. Com me if one of the men or Anakin gets in the medbay, I’ll have a word with them.’’ He looked seconds away from breaking down into a laughing mess.
‘’Kix’s got the scolding, General. I’m sure he’s got a speech written in his head. The general will probably get one too.’’
Obi-Wan did chuckle at that, but he was still holding back on the full laugh. He nodded again when he answered.
‘’If Anakin gets sick, then. A double reprimand will hardly be too many.’’ he smiled.
Rex nodded back and promised to let them know if - when, Cody told himself - Skywalker ended up in the medbay. He ended the transmission with a barely concealed eye roll when Cody wished him good luck. Rex disappeared with a soft click.
A moment passed. Cody and Obi-Wan blinked at each other.
The silence was pierced and popped like a balloon when the first giggle broke out of one of them. Giggling rapidly morphed into laughter and soon, commander and general had to cling to each other to avoid folding or falling to the ground. Cody’s helmet fell with a soft clunk at their feet when he grabbed Obi-Wan’s forearm.
It took them a minute, but they gained back control of themselves and the laughter slowly subsided just to be replaced by silent amusement. The rain was still beating heavily against the fabric of the tent, the wind hadn’t stopped howling, but all they could hear was the other’s small chuckles and quiet breathless laughs. Cody was engulfed by his general’s warmth and Obi-Wan basked in his commander’s light.
Amber eyes met blue ones for a brief instant before they got away from one another once again.
Cody cleared his throat and straightened up first. He released Obi-Wan’s forearms and the latter did the same, following the action.
The silence was comfortable and Cody found his general smiling at him. He couldn’t not smile back.
‘’So,’’ he said after Obi-Wan had handed him back his bucket. ‘’Not a fan of the rain?’’
He remembered what Kenobi had muttered before he had noticed Rex’s figure above Cody’s vambrace.
Obi-Wan gave him another small smile as he sat down near Cody with a datapad. Cody picked back up the rag he had been using to clean up his armour. They got to work.
‘’It’s not that I dislike the rain, my dear. I absolutely love how it sounds and that cleansing feeling it brings, but that’s only from a distance. Getting soaked by it is another story. My robes always end up stained and my hair tangles because of how it dries. It’s a hassle to take care of, and don’t get me started on how long getting new robes takes.’’ Obi-Wan shook his head with a huff. He was lucky his cloak had been the only one of his garments to be ruined by Kashyyyk’s weather; cloaks were easy to pass up on and they were not absolutely needed. Unlike robes, if you weren’t Master Fisto.
Just as he opened the first requisition form to fill, he felt Cody’s eyes on him. His surprise and amusement were also ringing loudly in the Force.
Obi-Wan turned to look at him.
‘’What is it, Cody?’’
Cody smirked. ‘’Nothing. I just didn’t know the Negotiator was the type to worry about his hair. I thought that was General Skywalker’s thing.’’
Obi-Wan gaped at him. Cody counted it as a win.
‘’You- I do not worry! I simply don’t want to have to detangle it.’’
‘’Mhm. Keep telling yourself that, General.’’
‘’I am serious, Cody.’’
Said Cody just shrugged and hummed as he scrubbed his helmet. Karking mud.
Obi-Wan opened his mouth to retort again, but closed it once he realised he was not going to win this one. Instead, he got up and powered a hotplate on which he placed a small kettle. Cody just continued to scrub with his smirk still on his lips. He knew his general’s retreats from banters like those and he always took small pleasure in winning. War did not let you have many of those friendly moments, so Cody basked in those he could have. He also knew the general was not really hurt. Spending a lot of time with your commanding officer had its perks: you learned to recognize their feelings and states of mind by giving them one look. It also worked with physical states, like when Kenobi had that small pinch between his eyebrows or the way his jaw was set a little too perfectly. Cody knew them all. What Kenobi was feeling right now was a mix of friendly annoyance and embarrassment, but Cody was used to this one. It was the expression Obi-Wan often wore around other jettiise and some natborn officers. Kos had been granted it once, but Cody was the one to feel its weight the most often.
So when Obi-Wan gave him The Stare from his spot behind the slowly warming kettle, Cody just stared back. As usual, they both broke easily and gave each other a warm smile before returning to their own activities. They knew they were alright and no line had been crossed. Of course, arguments had broken between them in the past and more will break in the future, but they always worked it out.
The kettle whistled and teacups clattered.
A cup of steaming caf appeared under his nose and Cody took it eagerly.
‘’Thank the Ka’ra for your existence.’’ he almost moaned as he took a sip.
Obi-Wan took back his seat next to him with a cup of tea. It smelled of something herbal and rich.
‘’You only have to thank my parents.’’ he said with a chuckle.
‘’I was talking about the caf, but sure.’’ Cody said blankly, face still buried in his drink.
The comment earned him a light slap on the shoulder. He laughed.
‘’Here, for the stain.’’ Obi-Wan gave him a piece of fabric soaked in warm water.
Cody took it and when he scrubbed the karking mud stain he had been working on for more than ten minutes and it came off, Cody felt a gush of happiness.
‘’Now, I thank the Ka’ra for you, Obi-Wan Kenobi.’’ he turned his head slightly to look at the latter before starting to clean the rest of his kit. He saw the small smile his companion gave him though.
What he did not see was the pink that dusted Obi-Wan’s cheeks when Cody ducked his head down toward a nasty splotch of dirt on his left vambrace. His eyes lingered on Cody’s face for a beat before he mentally pinched himself. Obi-Wan took his tea cup instead and inhaled the scent of raspberries and rosehips.
Nothing beats the feeling of a good cup of tea after a hard day of work, he told himself.
They lapsed into a companionable silence, which was only broken by the occasional scrape of plastoid against plastoid when Cody stacked his armour pieces next to him after removing the filth from them. It lasted a while, maybe close to a standard hour, until a deep rumble resounded above their heads. The sound was akin to that of a large beast’s growl, or Wooley’s stomach after a campaign. The two did not have many differences.
Even as the thought made Cody want to laugh, he froze. His hands tightened on the greave he had just removed from his leg and was about to start cleaning and his spine shot up, as if a string tied to it had been pulled. He waited, tense, for the next echo to ring out. When it did not come, Cody forced his shoulders to drop back down and turned his focus back on his work. He took a deep breath through the nose and let it out through his mouth, just like he and Wolffe had always done on Kamino. He repeated the action four other times, and soon enough his heartbeat went back down.
Cody didn’t feel the general’s eyes on him, nor the concern they held. He only looked up when his name was called.
‘’Cody, are you alright?’’ Obi-Wan’s voice was gentle and soothing, but concern was laced through it.
Cody just nodded before turning his eyes back down on his task. There was no need to bother Obi-Wan with this, he could control it. He and Wolffe had spent hours together back on Kamino piecing together methods to calm down when the storm season hit. They worked, they always worked. The breaths had been one of them. Sometimes, they would tell each other stories Prime or other vode had told them or make shadows with their hands on the barracks’ walls. They were always calmer after those moments and Cody still used them.
So, there was no reason to worry his general.
Cody startled when a hand settled on his forearm, devoid of armour. It was warm. He looked back up.
Amber met blue again.
In the dim lightning of their tent, Obi-Wan’s face was open and warm, shadows dancing gently over his features. His hair was still wet and some unruly dry curls were sticking out, making a mess of the usually picture perfect jedi, and Cody had to stop himself from reaching out and smoothing them out.
When Cody looked back at the other man’s face, Obi-Wan gave him a smile, but it did not reach his eyes. It was warm and reassuring, but Cody knew it was also nudging, telling him to voice his worries. Cody knew nothing would happen to him if he opened up, he trusted his general, but to admit this part of himself would be like putting down his blaster when victory was still possible: laying your weaknesses down for everyone to see only gave those people a weapon while it stripped you of your armour, your walls.
But right there, in this moment, when Obi-Wan, someone he had faith in, someone who cared as equally for him as Cody did, was staring at him like that, in their small tent away from any battlefield, Cody found himself wanting to open up. He wanted someone to understand, and that someone was his general, the person who put his life in danger to protect his brothers. The person who ran away from medbays but always came back to talk with the wounded and know how they were recovering. The person who, behind closed doors, allowed himself to grieve the losts properly, who sent them marching with Cody and the vod’e. Cody knew that telling this man his worries would not cost him or the 212th anything.
So, when Obi-Wan put his teacup on the ground and tilted his head, Cody looked away and spoke.
‘’I- thunderstorms scare me.’’ he shrugged. ‘’I know it may sound weird, since I grew up on Kamino, but- yeah.’’ he didn’t know what more there was to say.
The silence that settled over them after his confession made Cody’s hands sweat. Had he said something wrong? Obi-Wan never stayed silent when Cody’s brothers told him, well, anything. He always had an answer or advice to give and when he didn’t, his negotiator side came out and words of reassurance were shared. Silence was never an answer with High General Kenobi.
The hand on his forearm disappeared, its warmth leaving with it, and Cody’s breath stuttered.
The air around him was heavy. His hands did not shake, but he clasped them together nonetheless. He didn’t risk a glance beside him, but he knew Obi-Wan had shifted to sit with his front facing him.
‘’Cody-’’ he started, but Cody did not let him finish.
‘’I apologise, Sir.’’ he said, slipping back into the commander’s skin. ‘’It was inappropriate of me to mention such an unimportant matter.’’ Cody’s voice was clipped and he was about to get up to exit the tent (to go where? He was sure his brothers would not say no to sharing with one more person.) when a hand settled on his clasped ones. It was of course Obi-Wan’s. The warmth seeped back through his gloves to settle on his skin as light as the brush of a feather.
‘’Cody, there’s no need for apologies. I shouldn’t have stayed silent for as long as I did.’’ Obi-Wan’s voice was loud enough to be heard by them only over the roaring of the wind and rain outside. ‘’I don’t think it’s unimportant, on the contrary. I am glad you told me.’’
Cody’s shoulders fell back down a bit at that, some of the tension leaving his body. His relief coloured the Force around him a bright tinge of green. Obi-Wan spoke up again.
‘’Though, if I may ask, aren’t thunderstorms common on Kamino?’’
Cody’s Force signature uncurled and brightened as he relaxed again and unclenched his hands. Obi-Wan took it as a cue and took back his, tucking it away between his knees.
‘’They’re not.’’ Cody shook his head. ‘’Most of the time, it’s only heavy rain. There are sunny days too, but those are more uncommon than thunderstorms.’’ a shrug. ‘’Storm season is when the thunder part hits. It can last up to the entire season, but the majority are three to five days long with a rain day between.’’
Next to him, Obi-Wan hummed, but he looked hesitant, as if he was keeping himself from asking something. Cody may not be force sensitive, but he could sense there was a question on the tip of his friend’s tongue. He chuckled even if nothing was funny.
Cody batted a hand toward Obi-Wan. ‘’Come on, ask away, General.’’ he said with a smile in his voice. The tension had not entirely left the tent, but it was dissolving slowly into their usual late night atmosphere.
Obi-Wan hesitated, he didn’t want to cross a line, but Cody was open and his curiosity mirrored his own, only not for the same subject. In the end, inquisitiveness won and Obi-Wan asked.
‘’What-’’ not like that. ‘’How did you manage, back on Kamino? I know the Kaminoans are not the kind to tolerate what they qualify as ‘’defective’’’ he cringed a bit at the word used, but he couldn’t think of another way to say it. Captain Rex’s hair had been seen as ‘’defective’’ back on Kamino and had risked him being decommissioned more than once if his scores had not been as high, so Obi-Wan could only understand fears would have cost the men as much.
Cody didn’t seem offended by his choice of words, though, so Obi-Wan counted it as a win.
Cody shifted around and wiggled his fingers toward an image only he could see.
‘’Well, another vod and I found ways to ground us, I guess. Commander Tano once said she sometimes gets overwhelmed by sounds because of her montrals and the Force, so she taps her fingertips together in a repetitive pattern.’’ Obi-Wan knew this and Cody knew Obi-Wan knew this, so he felt no shame in talking about the commander’s coping mechanism. He didn’t disclose Wolffe’s name, though, because Wolffe had asked to keep it a secret when they got assigned to their generals. Cody continued. ‘’It’s a bit the same concept, only I use breath patterns or outsider distraction. Telling stories has always kept my mind at bay.’’ he shrugged. Story-telling was not uncommon in the 212th. Almost every time they got some downtime, someone would ask for or start retelling one everyone knew already. Obi-Wan joined in, sometimes, with tales from Stewjon or local legends. It was their thing and not one brother disliked lounging around to listen to some senseless story spun from popular lore and personal experiences.
Obi-Wan picked up on Cody’s memory in the Force and smiled. Those times were rather peaceful and relaxing, mostly after long unsuccessful campaigns. Obi-Wan always looked forward to them.
Just as he was about to talk again, thunder rolled in overhead with a loud crack. Cody shuddered and looked down at his armour. He still needed to finish cleaning it. The rag Obi-Wan had given him earlier had started to dry up, so Cody got up and fetched the kettle. He could feel the general’s eyes on him as he poured the smallest amount of water on the rag.
‘’What?’’ Well, that came out way harsher than he intended. ‘’Sorry.’’ he put down the kettle and sat back down just as a flash of light illuminated the tent.
Great, he thought when he took the greave he had been scrubbing before the first beat of thunder had rung out. The sound of a new one sounded above again, just as it always did after lighting. You can’t separate the two.
From behind his datapad, which still showed an incomplete requisition form, Obi-Wan stared.
‘’Why don’t you tell me a story from Kamino, my dear? I heard you used to get up to some trouble during your training.’’ he smirked as he added the last part, because seeing the Marshall Commander of the 3rd System Army splutter with a blush on his cheeks was always a sight. The glare he received was so worth it.
‘’I’ll let you know’’ a finger jabbed toward Obi-Wan’s face. ‘’that only some of these situations were initially my fault. Fox is to blame for most though.’’ a smirk.
‘’Oh? Well then, I guess Quinlan was right.’’ If Quinlan ever found out about it, Obi-Wan would have a valid reason for murder.
Cody rolled his eyes. ‘’General Vos is ten times worse. I still can’t believe Fox puts up with him.’’
‘’Well, we should compare stories to make sure this is true, don’t you think so, Commander?’’
The latter seemed to think about it for a second when lightning flashed once again. He nodded and turned so he and Obi-Wan were seated face-to-face. They smiled at each other.
Cody cleared his throat and began.
‘’So, we were 4 or 5, around 10 standard, and Prime was on his way back with Bob’ika…’’
-✻-
‘’ -to which he replied ‘a headache, you all are’ and he left! I don’t think I’ll ever see Mace and Depa the same way again!’’
Cody bursted into a fit of laughter from his space on the ground and his head shook against Obi-Wan’s shoulder. He stored this newfound information in his ‘’Commander’s dirt on their Jedi’’ brain file to give to Ponds later.
In the midst of their conversation, the commander and jedi had drifted closer and had ended up laying down on the earth. Cody had his right leg bent over Obi-Wan’s straight one and his head was pillowed on Obi-Wan’s shoulder, just close enough so his hair tickled the other’s neck. They both had their arms folded over their stomach and their elbows brushed at any little movement. Cody’s caf and Obi-Wan’s tea were cold at the bottom of the cups.
The thunderstorm outside was moving away from their location and the loud drums of thunder sounded like the low growl of Grizzer’s stomach when Hound gets her food out. They couldn’t see the lightning anymore and the strong winds had given way to still, humid air. It smelled of ozone and petrichor and Obi-Wan hummed in satisfaction. When he had said he liked the rain, he had been talking about exactly that.
Next to him (more like on him), Cody’s laughter subsided, he settled a bit more on his side and burrowed his head in the crook of Obi-Wan’s neck. He let out a little sigh and Obi-Wan shivered. It was getting late, Cody’s lack of sleep was getting to him and the adrenaline from earlier had completely disappeared from his system.
And Obi-Wan was warm.
Cody’s eyes were growing heavier and heavier by the second and each blink distorted the world around him into a more unrecognizable, blurry mess of colours.
He felt his leg fall on top of his general’s and the tension leave him while fatigue washed over his entire body.
Obi-Wan smiled sweetly when Cody’s breath slowed down. His commander had worked hard for days on end, for his whole life, he deserved those silent moments and restful nights. Obi-Wan felt more than he saw Cody’s body relaxing, his shoulders slumped and his arms went slack, his fingers opened slightly and his head fell slightly forward. Dark curls tickled Obi-Wan’s nose and he had to resist the urge to sneeze. Instead, he moved his head up and pressed his chin to Cody’s own. It wasn’t hard to do seeing as he was taller and Cody was asleep on his shoulder.
In a bold movement, Obi-Wan lifted his head and pressed a kiss to Cody’s forehead. The latter hummed sleepily and snuggled closer to his human pillow.
Obi-Wan had been aware of the feelings he felt for his commander. It wasn’t just trust and admiration, no. Sure, those feelings had started as such, but the more time they spent together, the more they learned about each other and the deeper Obi-Wan fell in love. They had talked about this attraction they felt towards one another and had decided to not define it, just to let it be. Sometimes, they called each other by ranks, friends and other times, partners. They were each other’s lighthouse and anchor, one of many in this war. Every relationship was crucial to one’s health, both mental and physical, in time of war and they knew it.
They were suns, warm and bright.
Cody stirred when Obi-Wan wrapped his arms around him and pulled them close.
‘’Thank you.’’ he murmured in the silence.
Maybe Cody was thanking him for the stories, possibly for a lot more, but Obi-Wan would answer the same thing either way.
‘’Thank you, my dear.’’ he whispered in his partner’s hair.
Thank yous could not begin to cover everything they had done for one another, but here, in a tent on hard ground in the other’s arms, it was enough.
In the morning, Kashyyyk woke up slowly, for it had seen the most beautiful things. There really was something about the calm after the storm.