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When Cody was informed that his General was alive, that his death had been faked to save the Chancellor, the soldier in him was proud.
The other part of him wanted to rage against the Senate, the Jedi Council, kriff, against the Republic for making him believe Obi-Wan was dead. The news of his General’s survival did not make the pill of the 212th being denied return to Coruscant for the funeral any less bitter to swallow. The weeks of mourning his men had gone through, that his men had gone through.
But Cody was a soldier. He and Obi-Wan fit together so well because they both instinctually knew that their duties came before their relationship, no matter how painful that felt sometimes. Obi-Wan had made vows to both the Jedi Order and the Republic, and this…this fiasco was him fulfilling those vows. Cody couldn’t help that little seed of pride that it was his General who had been chosen for such an important task, that Obi-Wan hadn’t given them any reason to suspect his death had been faked. His General had played his role perfectly.
None of this, however, prepared him for the sight of Obi-Wan when the General boarded The Negotiator.
Cody knew that at the very beginning of the Clone Wars, whilst Generals, Commanders, Captains, and battalions settled, that Obi-Wan had long hair. Alpha-17 had briefly sniped about the General’s non-regulation hair length, but by the time Cody was assigned to him, Obi-Wan had sported regulation length hair and a neatly trimmed beard, and hadn’t deviated from the style.
So why was his General bald? And beardless?
To be honest with himself, Cody would’ve been less taken aback if Boil started cartwheeling across the bridge than seeing the General without a beard.
Nevertheless, Cody smoothed his face, straightened his back, and saluted his General.
“Sir!”
“At ease, Commander. It is very good to see you, Cody.” His General smiled.
It was…odd to see so much of his General’s face move while he spoke. Cody hadn’t realised how much the beard had been hiding, and he found himself staring at Obi-Wan’s jawline, his chin, the slight smile lines around his mouth.
“It’s good to see you too, Sir. Though, I think some of the vode are gonna be disappointed that they’ve lost such a prominent member of their beard club.” Cody replied.
Obi-Wan let out a startled laugh and brought his hand up to his chin, where he would normally stroke his beard. It was true he and a few of the men who had grown beards had an agreement of sorts that when they were on-planet, at least one of them would hunt for beard oil. Beard care was important! Without communication, they began to walk towards the General’s quarters, both silently eager for a more private reunion.
“Hopefully not for long, my dear. Ahsoka was very clear that she requires me to grow back the hair and beard so that her Grandmaster doesn’t look, as she phrased it: ‘weird.’” He explained as he unlocked the door to his quarters. “Besides, The Negotiator is quite chilly. I need some insulation on my face."
As soon as they were safely inside, Cody cupped Obi-Wan’s face and kissed him deeply. It was war. It was a bloody and endless war, where Cody knew every single say could be the day he lost Obi-Wan, but that still hadn’t prepared him for the stinging pain in his chest when General Windu had commed him with the news. Every day he lost his brothers, some days it was a weight that settled on his shoulders, other days the thought of even getting out of bed to send more of his brothers to their deaths seemed like an unescapable torment. But Cody had been trained since before he could remember to protect his General at all costs. Falling in love with his General had only made this desire to protect him stronger. That Obi-Wan had ‘died’ whilst on Coruscant, where he should’ve been safe, without the need for Cody as backup? The guilt and despair had settled like a lead weight on Cody’s chest.
Now he had Obi-Wan back, and he wasn’t going to waste a second of it.
They stumbled over to the tiny sofa, Cody letting his back hit the flat pillows as Obi-Wan straddled him. Cody reached up to tug at the copper hair as he always did, and suddenly started sniggering.
“What?” Obi-Wan asked, pulling away. “Cody, what?” playfully hitting his giggling boyfriend with a pillow.
“I went to pull your hair. It was very spiky.” He confessed, brushing his finger over the small strands of hair on Obi-Wan’s hair, barely visible unless you were close enough.
Obi-Wan flopped dramatically onto the Commander’s chest, his head between Cody’s shoulder and jaw.
“Oh I am bereft! My Grandpadawan had disowned me, and now my beloved has admitted he was only with me for my golden locks and beard. My heart weeps!”
Cody huffed a laugh, and hooked his finger under Obi-Wan’s chin, guiding the other man to look him in the eyes. Absentmindedly, he ran his thumb along Obi-Wan’s jaw, feeling the softness of the skin rather than the pleasant scratch of the beard he was used to.
“I love you, Obi-Wan Kenobi. Even bald and without your beard.”
“I love you too, Cody.” Obi-Wan breathlessly replied, before kissing his Commander, much more tenderly than the desperate kisses from when they first entered the room.
Cody pulled back again, running his hand along Obi-Wan’s cheek.
“You are growing your hair and beard back though, right?”
Obi-Wan rolled his eyes as though Cody had offended him, though his smile betrayed him.
“Yes Cody I’m growing them back.”