#rex lease

[weirdlookindog]

The Monster Walks (1932)

[stellabystarlight12]

Rex Lease (1903-1966)

[vodika-vibes]

Worth The Cost

Summary: Fives is dead. Killed at the hands of one of his own brothers. And you've decided that this just won't stand. But Revenge isn't your style. No. You'd really rather just being him back.

Pairing: ARC Trooper Fives x Reader

Word Count: 793

Warnings: Angst, Also the reader is arguably not a good person here

Tagging: @trixie2023 @n0vqni

A/N: This is an idea I'm half toying with. (I wanted to write Fives fluff and this is not Fives fluff, curse my brain-)

The first time you met Fives, you thought he was the galaxy's biggest idiot. You were at 79s with your friends, and your friends ditched you, and left you alone with a man with a grin that was too wide, and a laugh that was too loud, and had a five tattooed on his forehead, and, honestly, you hadn’t been impressed.

He felt fake. From his smile to his laugh and you knew that you couldn’t trust a word out of his mouth.

Not until several drinks in, and that loud boisterous facade faded into something a little quieter, a little more genuine. The smile became more real, the laughter more genuine-

And you realized that you could love him, if you gave him the chance.

You spent the night dancing with Fives, with his clutching you close, as though terrified that you might slip away if he loosened his grasp even a little. You danced with him until the bar closed…and then you took him home with you, and danced with him until the sun came up.

It wasn’t love, not then. Not yet.

It wasn’t love until later.

It wasn’t love until you woke up early one morning, with Fives’ arm snug around your waist, and you watched the sun glide across muscles and scars, easing him into wakefulness.

It wasn’t love until he flashed that sleepy little smile at you first thing in the morning, and he mumbled your name in his raspy sleep thickened voice.

It wasn’t love until suddenly, one day, it was.

And you favored him with a blinding smile, and a warm kiss and a whisper of love, of affection, of adoration-

And you watched as awe slid across his face. And you watched as awe turned into adoration. And you laughed, warm and breathless, as he kissed you over and over and over-

It had been the start of a whirlwind romance.

The love was real. It was real and it was yours.

And then it was gone.

Not the love. No, that would linger. The love sank into the deepest parts of your heart and soul, and would remain until the day you breathed your last. No. The love remained.

But Fives was gone.

Killed.

Murdered.

“He attempted to assassinate the Chancellor,” Captain Rex says hesitantly, sounding about as hollow as you felt, “I’m sorry.” And then he leaves. 

He leaves, as though that explanation is enough.

He leaves, as though he hasn’t just ripped your heart out and stomped it into dust.

You sit silently in your apartment after you get the news. Hollow. Empty. Apathetic. 

And then you stand up and you move into your bedroom.

Fives is dead.

Game over. The end. Fin.

Only. Not so much.

There are certain truths in the galaxy. The Force exists, it flows between all people and all objects. It’s a quantifiable entity. It exists, though you cannot feel it acting on you.

Because the Force exists, then so do Force entities. Jedi encounter them. Interact with them. 

And if Force entities exist, then it stands to reason that other entities exist too.

You reach into your jewelry box and pull out a simple purple pendant. 

Once upon a time, a lifetime ago, you committed a crime. A horrible, horrendous crime. You wiped out entire civilizations to save someone you loved. Because of your hubris and your ego, you thought you knew better than anyone else, and an entire galaxy paid the price for it. And your punishment was to serve as a guide to the dead, for as long as it took to make up for all the lives you stole.

You finished your punishment, thousands of years of punishment, and were granted a new lease on life here on Coruscant. And you’ve been good. You haven’t hurt anyone. You got a job and you paid taxes and you followed the rules-

And you took a chance on happiness. Only for it to get ripped away from you.

It’s not right. It’s not fair. 

You lift the pendant so it’s hanging eye level, “I once sentenced a galaxy to death to save the life of my best friend,” You say, calmly and clearly to the pendant, “What do you think I’ll do to bring back the man I love more than my own life?”

Turns out you hadn’t learned much from your thousands of years of punishment after all.

You close your hand around the deep purple stone, and step closer to the wall. Slowly, painfully, you use the sharp edge of the stone to cut a tear between the barrier between the living and the dead. And then you step through the hole you created.

You will bring Fives back. Nothing else matters.

[deniigi]

Qui-Gon & Obi-Wan Fic Recs

Star Wars: Jedi Apprentice -The Rising Force - Dave Wolverton

Free link above (archive.org) to read the first adventure that Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon have together.

It’s Legends canon. If folks would like to see how Qui-Gon Legends-canonically interacts with 12 year old Obi-Wan and how Obi-Wan drives him up a fucking wall, please read this. It is hysterical to me.

 A Patrician with Mud on His Boots - davaia

Two decades after Qui-Gon Jinn left Initiate Kenobi to his fate in the AgriCorps, the two are reunited on Bandomeer and must forge a new relationship.

When the world gets too heavy put it on my back - nematoda

Obi-Wan is different when it comes to relationships. Not in a bad way, just... different.

Studies of platonic love in the life of Obi-Wan Kenobi, exploring the master/padawan relationship with Qui-Gon and eventually with Anakin.

Circles. - outpastthemoat

Qui-Gon's gaze is drawn to a corner of the tunnel, where the boy is waiting, arms wrapped loosely around his knees.   Obi-Wan is still outfitted in the miner’s thermosuit he had been given to wear on the deep sea mining platform, his face still streaked black with oil and days of built-up grime.  

And he notices, again, the pale white collar around the boy’s neck.

I have failed him. I should have been there.

New growth. - outpastthemoat

When Qui-Gon returns to his quarters in the Temple, he is not surprised to find that the plants in the window have dried out and wilted.  

He had not expected to be away from the Temple for so long, and therefore he had made no effort to ensure that his small collection of greenery would be cared for.  He had boarded a freighter bound for Bandomeer, anticipating a swift return, never once suspecting the events that would follow, keeping him from returning to his home.  

Qui-Gon has thought of nothing but his new padawan since then.  He had not given his plants a second thought.  

Now it has been months since Qui-Gon has stepped foot in his own rooms.  He surveys the dead and dying plants and considers the effects his neglect has wrought.

This is not how it should be, he realizes with dismay.  I was supposed to bring him home.

Recovery - Firondoiel, happygiraffe, LuvEwan, sanerontheinside

Qui-Gon survives on Naboo, but Obi-Wan is left seriously injured by Darth Maul. This series follows the impact the long and difficult recovery has on their lives.

mouth moving in the shape of your name - Petrichor (Mythmaker)

 "What are you doing?"

 "Learning about ghosts," was the curt response.

It was such a strange thing to say. Rex leaned back. "What?"

Cody pushed the 'pad over. It was an article. No - an obituary. An extensive one, published to one of the more popular news outlets out of Coruscant. Just about ten, ah, thirteen years ago. Funny coincidence.

 "Who is this?" Rex asked before further inquiry died on this tongue. A headshot of the man in question showed up when he scrolled. Long, greying hair, partially tied back. A surprisingly calm expression, crow’s feet and a beard.

 "Qui-Gon Jinn." [...]

That was a familiar face. He knew that face. ==

In which the war Rex was born for ends early, his brothers get a new lease on life, he starts seeing dead people, and he gets married to his former general.

Not necessarily in that order.

*Some of my own fics (shamelessly)

a town called stagnation - deniigiq

“When the cottage is done, if you want to go home, we will tell the Council that you want to,” Qui-Gon says at the inn's ceiling. “But you have to promise me that you will try some Stewjoni things. They will want to see that you’ve tried to participate in the culture, Obi-Wan.”

“I don’t want to," Obi-Wan snaps.

(As part of their mutual probation period after Melida/Daan, the council sends Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan to the town of Coan-Connach on Stewjon, so that Obi-Wan can decide if he wants to continue with on the path to become a jedi or if he would like to return to his family. Coan-Connach, however, is a small town struggling to keep up its idyllic facade).

poisoned chalice - qigiined

“Hello, padawan Kenobi,” Master Dooku says, kneeling down and offering Obi-Wan a hand to shake.

Obi-Wan’s eyes follow him. He says nothing even as he lowers his head and takes Master Dooku’s hand. Master doesn’t let on, but Qui feels a little blip of intrigue at Obi-Wan’s size, or rather, his lack thereof.

“My name is Yan Dooku,” Master explains, “I am the master of your master. I sent your master an invitation for you and him to join the rest of our lineage for a meal. How does that sound to you?”

“No,” Obi-Wan says.

(Dooku organizes a dinner party for his lineage. Qui-Gon struggles the the fallout of putting his youngest apprentice's welfare before his master's demands.)

pines and needles - qigiined

“He is an owlet,” Qui-Gon corrects. “A Stewjoni. They are tawny with spots. His genes are quite affected, even more than it appears on the surface.”

Feemor loves his master, but he does not care. He would like to hold the chick now, please.

“Owlet, Feemor.”

Chick chick chick chick chick chick chick, please.

(Prequel to to take flight wherein Obi-Wan is an owl-person who requires enrichment.)

[phoenixyfriend]

Rex/Ventress for that ship meme!

Put a ship in my ask and I will tell you a bit about how each of the following scenarios would go down for them:

Fake dating I think the best way for this to go down is that the two of them run into each other while on unrelated undercover missions at the same event. They are very Not Subtle about noticing and recognizing each other, and people can tell, and they stumble their way into claiming they're a couple when trying to explain. They have to run with it, which involves getting in each others' way a lot because their respective missions aren't actually compatible.

Bodyswap A primary conflict here would be "Ventress no longer has access to the Force, and thus feels as though she's lost an entire sense, and is kind of freaking out about it" and "Rex now has the Force, and is wearing a body that is addicted to the dark side, and he has precisely zero experience in controlling it." They're stuck trying to find/relocate the other person in order to switch back, and the whole situation is Not Helped by the Force situation.

Sexpollen/fuck or die/aliens made them do it Eeeeeeeeh classic plot format, captured by Zygerrian Slavers who want them To Breed to see if they can get some Strong And Durable babies out of these new holdings.

Dark!fic [buries face in hands] Ventress (threatens to) torture Rex for information. He's unwillingly and unreasonably into it. Things spiral, and it gets worse before it gets better.

Secret kinks I think Ventress wants Rex to tie her up. I have malleable headcanons as far as kink goes for most characters, including Ventress, but with Rex, I think she's a bondage bottom.

Their first kiss Definitely a rough and bloody and "covered in ash and dirt" mid-battle sort of thing.

Meeting the parents [stares at keyboard] I think the closest thing either of them has left to a parent is Dooku? Jango and Ky are dead, and Ventress doesn't know really know her bio mom or Talzin, so uh. I guess. I guess Rex has to beg Obi-Wan for lessons on The Right Spoons For The Eight Course Meal so he can go meet Ventress's grump grandpa in a setting that isn't attempted murder.

Moving in together I am not convinced either of them knows how to go about finding an apartment. They've both lived either With An Adult or In Military Housing for most of their lives. I mean, Ventress probably did something between leaving Ratattak and finding Dooku, but I doubt it was legally signing a lease, you know? I think they move into a wing of Dooku's castle for about five weeks before they're looking for a way out and move to Coruscant or something and just temporarily end up in a Jedi Temple apartment while searching for housing because living with Dooku is suffocating, even with an entire castle to avoid each other in.

A crossover of my choice Okay I know this is a little stupid but please imagine them dressed up as MCU Hawkeye and Black Widow thank you

An au of my choice Some kind of fairy tale AU where Rex is a brave knight in shining armor and Ventress is the Intimidating Witch that he needs to confront and defeat in order to Gain A Useful Object for whatever fairy tale plot he's following, but he somehow ends up dating the witch by the end? She's not a good witch yet, but she's not attempting murder, so it's fine.

[desimonewayland]

Cecil Beaton at home in Ashcombe Park where he lived for 15 years until his lease expired in 1945. Interior paintings by Rex Whistler.

[pbaintthetb]

Invincible s2e8

spoilers ahead

angstrom's anger with being "just some guy" makes perfect sense but also for him to be just some guy to mark

oliver crying :-( he so little, does he even know what's going on?

I really thought mark was going to circumvent levy's expectations and instead of going for him drag his family out of there but now mark is in a whole new dimension

DINOSAURS???

okay so like oliver's ages and develops wayyy quicker than mark so like... are his powers gonna come through?

too many memories

Yellow and black suit? damn damn dang very ominous- and the tone and the lines, feels eviller than s2e1 evil mark although

heh it was the walking dead dimension

go debbie!?!

debbie joins up sometimes too? firstly damn but scondly debbie's character aside- Nolan lets her?

"Not me, I raised the boy who defied his father and saved this planet" YES you tell him Debbie!

feck Debbie's arm

mad max world? and why he shirtless

oh jeez louise mark

"You have no idea what I've been through! How much I am holding. back!" -> again, gret line but JEEZ LOUISE mark

mark omg no pls stop you're beating him to death lease noo (and other than I feel you may regret this even though yo've been heading for a snap, if you do this you also can't get home)

holy fucking shit

I thought you were stronger.

the rationalisation, that's not gonna help you sleep any better at night Mark

oh, ok the evolution of mark's desert rambles are fantastic

oh so they are mark's guardians- interesting there is no Rex then,

was half way through a thought about eve's new look when robot took his helmet off and REX? (or is it just rudy aged and with his hair styled to look like rex, sounds like rex though (and i know they have the same vocal chords but like it soudns like rex but also the tech reads robot)

it is rex??????????

debbie hugging mark :-(

bad guys, good guys... indeed mark, how do you tell, and if breaking an arm is bad what is beating someone to death. Mark and Cecil have different... views

You weren't there.

dang there is a kate prime

guyyyyyyys ladies look perhaps it is sexist but maybe just take it as a win that you won't be posessed today and don't argue about it

just noticed the episode title llol adhfakdjfalskdfj

"I wanna do what you do! I want to be just like you." -> "You will be son." feels uh more like a threat than a promise now, the looming cliff over head oH GOD. Dont like the music though

Amber!!! :-((((((

I love the Debbie and Mark roof scenes

also yeah, thought mark was gonna quit college after the amber scene and he probably does need the break- but also the "why would i do any of that" please mark please don't do a dick grayson, have a life outside of heroics

Allen time

anyway overall really really incredible episode, but of course, end of season sadness cos now long time, but it was great and I shall have thoguhts for a while

[norabrice1701]

Coincidence - Ch. 2

Dr. Alan Grant x Predoctoral Student Fem!Reader

Series Main List

Ch. 2 Warnings: Explicit language; inappropriate crush; minor Alan Grant/Ellie Sattler references; dinosaur PTSD

DINOSAURS AMONG US??

Astonishing reports are surfacing out of Costa Rica about creatures that have been extinct since the Jurassic period. Several local sources are coming forward to say that not only have they worked at a facility that supposedly breeds dinosaurs, but they have also personally seen the large reptiles. 

“Those eyes,” one man told reporters. “I’ll never forget those eyes. Cold… like the worst winter ever. Cold and utterly without remorse.” 

“I worked there for the money. Why else do you think?” Another man claimed. “I guess there was hazard pay in there – I heard at least one man died at the facility, mauled and eaten, so I heard.” 

“I saw them when they were little – kind of cute, in a reptilian sort of way with their little screeches.” Yet another man reported. “But within six months, they towered over us with zero restraint or control. Deadly in every way – even the herbivores. Though, the triceratops and brontosauruses were more likely to step on us than eat us.” 

All the interviewed individuals referred to an island off the Costa Rican coast, though none have named it. In total, Costa Rica has approximately 80 small islands and authorities are weighing whether or not to open an official investigation. 

Immediate suspicion has fallen to Isla Nublar, under lease from the government to InGen. Perhaps it’s coincidental that the former CEO of InGen, John Hammond, has just been terminated and replaced by Peter Ludlow. Perhaps this change in power will reveal more of the biotech company’s undertakings on the island or lead to further investigation of the surrounding areas. 

“Fucking reporters.” April grumbles next to you, distracting you from the newspaper article. “They can’t even get it right. Dinosaurs have been extinct since the Cretaceous period, not the Jurassic.” 

You chew a bite of your sandwich, glaring over at her in the shade of the mess tent. “Seriously? Of all the ludicrous claims in this article, you’re calling it out for a factual error?” 

She shrugs as she sips her water. “I like my journalists to at least have some integrity.” 

You snort around a mouthful of food. “And you say that about an article that seriously implies that dinosaurs are alive in our world today… unbelievable.” You glance back down at the article as the paper’s edge catches in the midday breeze. “They make it sound like some corporate cover-up operation – or like a James Bond villain. Recreating dinosaurs on some tropical island…” 

April offers an incredulous laugh of her own as she lifts her sandwich. “How would they ever even go about such a thing? Even the intact eggs with fossilized embryos on Dr. Grant’s ‘Egg Island’ didn’t offer enough clues about their DNA.” 

Re-folding the newspaper, you shake your head. “That makes it sound more like a sci-fi fantasy film than anything that a respectable scientist would actually endorse.” 

“The thought is incredible, though.” April muses with a wide smile. “I mean – to actually see a T-Rex… or a stegosaurus! Are they as big as we imagined? As ferocious? As gentle? As fast or slow? God, the questions are endless.” 

“I think I would be too busy arguing with myself whether to stay or run away if I ever saw one… not that it really matters because these are all completely hypothetical questions.” 

Hypothetical, maybe, but the dig site has been buzzing for at least the last hour. Ever since the two-day old newspaper arrived this morning with a food restock, everyone’s been speculating and whispering. Of course, the small mention of the InGen CEO also raised some eyebrows. It’s no secret that InGen is one of the department’s most generous donors and largely responsible for funding this year’s dig, and maybe... well, like the paper said, it’s just coincidental. But it's still curious that an article stirring up rumors of dinosaurs in the modern world just happens to discuss a company that funds dinosaur fossil excavations. 

You take another bite of your sandwich even as your stomach sours with the impossible implications. It doesn’t make sense… how could it? Even the thought of bringing prehistoric animals into the modern world just seems horrifically ill-advised. 

The din in the mess tent falls silent around you, and you glance around with confused curiosity. Over your shoulder, you notice Dr. Grant coming to a stop in the center of the tent. Despite his evident exhaustion, his eyes hold thunderous frustration and bitter disappointment. His mouth pinches to a tight line as he surveys the assembled crowd of increasingly interested people. 

He braces a hand on his hip, drawing a sharp breath. “By now, I’m sure that you’ve all read the newspaper from two days ago.” His sharp gaze lands on you before darting down to the newspaper resting in front of you. “And I’m sure that you’ve all figured out that the InGen discussed in that inflammatory article is the same InGen who so graciously funds our department. Or, rather…” The muscles of his jaw visibly tighten as a swallow works down his throat. “They used to. Our dean was just informed that with the change in leadership comes a new change in direction.” 

Your stomach drops to your feet, heavy with dread. 

Dr. Grant exhales a deep sigh. “We’re told to expect significant cutbacks effective immediately. And until the department can reassess impacts and proper funding allocation,” his voice tightens with choked emotion. “I’m afraid to say that we… we’ve been shut down.”

Gasps and groans of disbelief echo around you as your face falls. 

He raises a hand in an attempt to placate. “I know how disappointing, heartbreaking and absolutely frustrating this is.” If he tries to strike a positive, supportive tone, he fails as he continues. “Especially after all the progress we’ve made. Especially when we have such a prime specimen within our grasp….” The tension in his voice shows on his face, aging him ten years older - and you want to give him the biggest hug. “But, that should just be all the more motivation for us to secure more funding, get back out here, and get back to digging.” 

“Dr. Grant,” one of your fellow students pipes up. “You said effective immediately… so, how long until we have to leave?” 

He sighs with heavy reluctance as he scans over the group. “Unfortunately, we’ve been directed to start making immediate preparations and teardowns.” Another wave of groans echo in the tent, intermixed with cries of protest and scoffs of disbelief. Exhaustion weighs heavy on Dr. Grant’s shoulders as he nods and continues. “I completely understand - trust me, I didn’t just take this lying down.” He darts a glance over at Dr. Sattler who stands silently on the tent’s periphery with her arms crossed and a carefully neutral expression. “We told the dean exactly what we think of this order to disband, and we were still shot down. So now,” his tone sharpens with an acerbic edge. “After lunch, we must each start doing our part to return to campus before we all lose our privilege to work and study at this esteemed university.” 

He winces in the wake of his words, as if he just realizes what he said. As if he realizes he’s supposed to set some sort of example but just epicly failed instead. Another heavy sigh leaves him and he shakes his head - and goodness, you honestly don’t know how Dr. Alan Grant’s day could get any worse. 

Or yours, for that matter. 

A bead of sweat rolled down the side of your face as you worked. Between the sweat and sunscreen, dust and sand clung to every inch of exposed skin as you guided the brush over the carefully preserved skeleton. 

Pursing your lips, you continued working away at the rock matrix surrounding the fibula bone, flaking the rock away with a paintbrush in one hand and dental pick in the other. Quiet, easy conversation floated around you as others also laid prone in the dirt with their own tools, excitement building as the skeleton yielded more of its secrets with each layer of removed sediment. 

The rock continued to flake away, and surely, you must be close. The plane of weakness always revealed itself when least expected, and finally, your pick chipped through the invisible plane. Your brush swept the rest of the loose sediment away, finally revealing aged, brown bone. Satisfaction welled in your chest and a smile brightened your face as you continued to separate the final layers of rock and bone, revealing the long, tapered, thin leg bone. 

Or, perhaps… it was too thin. Or, no…? You stared quizzically down at the fractured bone embedded in the earth, at the two snapped fragments that shoot phantom pain down your own leg. You blew gently to dispel some loose sand granules as you brushed over the brittle ends and licked your top lip. “Dr. Grant?” 

He lifted his head at the sound of his name, searching your voice out with aviator-shaded eyes. You met his gaze, motioning him over. Giving you a quick nod, he looked back down to his own work, carefully setting his tools aside before rising to his feet. Sand coated the front of his clothing as he stepped around other team members to walk towards you. As much as you enjoyed the sight of him in a lecture hall, this was easily your favorite version of him - bedecked in his signature straw hat, aviators, and perpetual layer of dirt. 

“Is something wrong?” He asked, crouching down beside you for a closer look. His shadow offered some temporary relief from the sun as you motioned with your brush towards the broken bone. 

“The fibula, just here.” You said before turning to glance up at him. “I think this one might have been injured.” 

His face creased with open curiosity as he lowered himself to the dirt alongside you for a closer look. “Brush, please?” He held out a hand, and you didn't hesitate to pass it over.

His skilled hands at work never failed to mesmerize you. The delicate brushstrokes, the deliberately careful touches of his fingers, the tandem dance they wove together as the sediment yielded its treasure to him. A gust of hot wind washed over you, bringing his scent with it - exertion, earth, and plain soap. It heated your blood on a primal level, and the arousal stirring in your belly snapped you back to yourself. 

Goodness, this was hardly the time or place for your body to run away with you. 

“This bone is too fragile to move.” He said, lifting his head to look up the length of bone. “It’s clear something happened here - was this a fracture that caused the animal’s demise? Or did it occur after death? Perhaps from a stampede?” He rolled onto his right arm, glancing out over you and the surrounding dig site. “From the other specimens retrieved so far,” he paused to wet his top lip in thought. “It stands to reason that maybe they were on the move - possibly, even on the run - but yet, this one was able to keep up even with a broken leg.”  

A smile came to your face as you listened - and God, this was exactly why you’re out here. “I think the clean break would suggest injury,” you said, leaning back in towards the bone. “If it were an impact - like from a stampede or other heavy weight, I think the bone would be more splintered.” You looked up at him before scanning ahead and behind him. “We also don’t know how much larger this group - herd? Pack? - was. With time, we might discover that these three specimens were outliers or outcasts… just natural selection still at work even among global catastrophe.” 

He regarded you for a long moment, and eventually the corner of his mouth lifted with a smirk. In the shadow of his hat and the tint of his aviators, you couldn’t tell if he was proud, amused, or… something else. The heat simmering in your blood favored the latter, wanting him to see you as more than just his student, as his intellectual equal, as someone who could - 

“It’s certainly an intriguing discovery you made.” Your name rolled off his tongue, and your heart fluttered as he turned back to the skeleton. “But the bone is still too fragile to move. We’ll have to reinforce it.” He shifted again to reach into the side pouch of his belt and withdrew a small bottle. “This won’t be enough, but it’s a start. Now, we need to be careful - this resin sticks to sand and sediment just as easily as bone.” He handed back your brush, motioning you forward as he leaned in. “We’ll start with this end and work inwards, before we reinforce the other end.” He paused, glancing up at you with an encouraging lift in the corner of his mouth as he uncapped the bottle and hovered close to the bone’s surface. “Now, if you can keep the sand and dust away, we’ll have her ready in no time.” 

The fond memory nearly brings tears to your eyes. Out of all your days in the dust, it’s easily your favorite and easily the closest proximity that you’ve ever worked one-on-one with your mentor. Even now, you can still see his face so clearly, hear his voice, and recall that smirk directed only at you. If you’re perfectly honest with yourself, you have hoped to get one last chance for a similar moment with him - or, rather… you were hoping. But if the dig is well and truly disbanded, then this is it. 

Your last dig with the department ends like this. 

“One more thing,” Dr. Grant’s voice cuts through your disappointment and you glance back up at him with a heavy gaze. “Over the coming days, weeks or even months - if any of you are contacted by the media or requested to give any public statements, say nothing and direct whoever asks to the university public relations office.” 

An immediate flurry of curious questions erupt - and you can’t blame your fellow students. It’s such an odd thing to say, such an odd request, and it stirs questions of your own as you watch Dr. Grant deflect incoming questions with increasing frustration. 

Just what does he know? 

Just what else isn’t he saying? 

Series Main List

[weirdlookindog]

Mischa Auer, Rex Lease, Sheldon Lewis, and Martha Mattox in The Monster Walks (1932).

[bumble-lee3]

you can see the crew over rex’s shoulder in his video lol

(at lease i assume its the crew considering he’s supposed to have snuck into this secure area of the overflow camp)

[thewarmestplacetohide]

Dread by the Decade: The Monster Walks

👻 You can support me on Ko-fi ❤️

½

Plot: After her scientist father dies, an heiress returns to her childhood home, terrified of the chimp he kept in the basement.

Review: Without any memorable plot points, performances, or scares, nothing could have been done to save this painfully boring disaster.

Year: 1932 Genre: Creature Feature Country: United States Language: English Runtime: 1 hour 30 minutes

Director: Frank R. Strayer Writer: Robert Ellis Cinematographer: Jules Cronjager Editor: Byron Robinson Composers: Jean de la Roche, Charles Dunworth Cast: Rex Lease, Vera Reynolds, Sheldon Lewis, Mischa Auer, Martha Mattox, Sidney Bracey, Sleep n' Eat

------

Story: 0/5 - Words cannot describe how awful this story is. Barely anything happens beyond characters standing around and fretting in circles. There’s also a “comedic” racist caricature.

Performances: 2/5 - Ranging from serviceable to awful. Some of the line delivery is baffling.

Cinematography: 2/5 - Flat and uncreative.

Editing: 2/5 - Dull and repetitive.

Music: 2/5

Sets: 3/5 - The most decent part of the film.

Costumes, Hair, & Make-Up: 2/5 - A lot of shapeless, black outfits.

Trigger Warnings:

Mild violence

Animal abuse

Misogyny (uncritical)

Antiblack caricature

[chounaifu]

Your boy has a lease for his new place waiting to be reviewed once he gets home. 🎉

New character storyline unlocked: Rex moves to Crab Cult State. 🦀

[docgold13]

365 Marvel Comics Paper Cut-Out SuperHeroes - One Hero, Every Day, All Year…

October 6th - Daredevil

Mathew Murdock was raised by his father in the Hell’s Kitchen neighborhood of New York City.  Matt’s father was a semi-professional boxer known as ‘Battling Jack’ Murdock.  He wanted better things for his son and impressed unto him the importance of studying and staying out of trouble.  The cautiousness this instilled in young Matt earned him the teasing nickname of ‘Daredevil’ amongst his peers.  

When he was an adolescent, Matt saw a blind man walking towards an oncoming truck. Matt pushed the man out of the way. The truck crashed and a radioactive isotope spilled out, striking Matt across the face and blinding him. While recovering in the hospital, Matt discovered his hearing, smell, taste, and touch were amplified to superhuman degrees. He also developed a ‘radar sense’ that formed a mental picture of his surroundings.

Matt came to realize that his augmented senses and radar sense more than compensated for his lack of sight; that it enabled him to performing incredible gymnastic feats.   Matt was sought out by the ninja master known as Stick.  Stick became Matt’s sensei and trained him to use his powers to become  a near-peerless martial artist, acrobat and combatant.  

Not long thereafter, Matt’s father was killed by mobsters after he refused to participate in a fixed boxing match.  An enraged Matt used his powers to track down his father’s killers.  The man responsible ended up suffering from a fatal heart attack.  

Matt went on to college and then law school.  He befriended Foggy Nelson and became romantically involved with the mysterious Elektra Nachos.   At the same time, Matt continued to patrol the city as Daredevil, a costumed crime fighter who protected the innocent from criminals.

After graduation from law school, Matt and Foggy opened up the own practice providing legal council to the underserved populations of the city.  An early client was The Fantastic Four who asked Murdock and Nelson to represent them in renegotiating the lease for The Baxter Building.  

Matt’s activities as Daredevil led to his encountering numerous heroes and villains, including The Sub-Mariner, Spider-Man, Dr. Doom and Ka-Zar.  He has had many enemies but perhaps known greater than Wilson Fisk, thyself-appointed ‘Kingpin of Crime.’  Daredevil and The Kingpin would match wits on countless occasions and the villain has been Daredevil’s most persistent arch nemesis.  

Just as perilous as his adventures as Daredevil has been Matt’s love life.  His college sweetheart, Elektra, would resurface as a ninja assassin working for The Hand.  He has had romances with Karen Page, Heather Glenn, Natasha Romanova, Maya Lopez, Dakota North, Milla Donovan and many others.  Many of these affairs have ended tragically as Matt’s enemies have often sought to use his loved ones as a weapon against him.  

Along with his many foes Matt has also made powerful allies.  He has been a member of both The Defenders and The Avengers and has had longstanding friendships with Spider-Man, The Black Widow, Luke Cage, Dr. Strange and fellow lawyer, Jennifer Walter (The Savage She-Hulk). 

Actor Rex Smith portrayed the hero in the television move, The Trial of The Incredible Hulk; actor Ben Affleck also played the hero in the 20th Century Fox movie, Daredevil; and actor Charlie Cox has portrayed the character int he Marvel Cinematic Universe, debuting in the Netflix series, Daredevil.  The hero fist appeared in Daredevil Vol. 1 #1 (1964).  

[kit-fisto-obsessive]

Captain Rex Is In Trouble

Chapter 5: Bacta Tank Blues

AO3

[previous] [fic masterpost] [next]

Summary

“Why isn’t he getting better? What’s wrong with-”

“-infection spread to the blood-”

“-transfusion-”

“-getting worse-”

Notes

Hello everyone. Sorry not sorry for the cliffhanger uwu

Rating: T

Warnings

Medical Stuff, Medical Procedures, Angst.

“-aptain? Captain, can you hear me?”

“C’mon Rex’ika, don’t die, you can’t die.”

“We need to get them to the ship. General can you-”

“-careful Wolffe!”

“-nother landslide-”

“-vere head trauma-”

“-needs bacta-”

“-kywalker is coding again! Get the paddles!”

“Stay with us Rex. We need you.”

“Why isn’t he getting better? What’s wrong with-”

“-infection spread to the blood-”

“-transfusion-”

“-getting worse-”

“C’mon Rex’ika. You gotta keep fighting. We know you can.”

“We’re waiting on you ARC trooper.”

“-wait. It’s up to him no-”

“-Rex, vod’ika, wake u-”

“-lease, we need you. Don’t know what I’ll do if-”

“-Rex-”

“-vod’ika-”

“-Captain-”

Rex woke up choking. He was drowning, he was- 

Bacta. He was in a bacta tank.

Why was he in a bacta tank?

There was a mask over his nose and mouth and a tube down his throat. He could breathe just fine. He was fine. He was-

“Let’s get you out of there Captain.”

The straps keeping him afloat tightened around his chest and under his arms as he started to rise, his head breaking the surface and the noise of a medical wing flooded his ears. Machines beeping, humming electronics, the sound of someone being scanned. His feet hit the floor and he realised it was him that was being scanned, trying desperately to blink fluid out of his eyes.

Rex’s knees crumpled, his legs shaking, but as the hoist slackened two firm bodies fit themselves under his arms to keep him upright. He began to cough, his throat constricting around the feeding tube. 

"Just try and relax Captain. We're going to take that out right away for you."

The mask covering his nose and mouth was removed and then came the revolting feeling of a nasal cannula being removed. He could feel the thin plastic tube slide up the back of his throat, through his brain and out through his nose with horrible clarity, and as soon as it was clear of his mouth he was bending double, vomiting bile and half-digested and foul smelling liquid nutrients into a metal bowl someone had hastily shoved in front of him. He blinked bacta and tears out of his eyes when he was finally finished, spitting the last of the vomit left in his mouth into the metal bowl, and then someone was cleaning his face with a soft cloth.

“It’s okay Rex, we’ve got you.”

That was a familiar voice, someone he knew but… fuck he couldn’t figure out who. What the fuck happened? The last thing he remembered was… what was the last thing he remembered?

Fire and lava and sulphur and then… blaster fire. Thunder. Darkness. 

What the fuck had happened to him?

He blinked dazedly when the cloth was removed, the white light of whichever medical wing he was in stinging his eyes. Directly in front of him was a jedi healer he didn’t recognise, a deep brown mon calamari with wide kind eyes.

“How’re you feeling Captain?” the healer asked.

“Like shit,” Rex slurred, leaning sideways into whoever the hell was holding him up. The grip shifted and two familiar laughs filled his ears.

The healer chuckled too, and Rex struggled to focus on him. After a few seconds he swam back into view.

“A little disorientation is plenty normal, as is the dizziness and nausea,” he was saying. “But no pain? No headache?”

Rex thought for a moment, doing a mental catalogue of his extremities. His limbs felt heavy and his head full of fog, but nothing actually hurt. Not even the tube he could feel running from his cock and down his thigh under the tight medical shorts he was wearing. That was a problem for later though.

“No,” he said. “I’m- I’m okay.”

“I wouldn’t go that far, not yet,” the healer said, smiling ruefully.

“We warned you he reacts badly to bacta tanks,” Cody said.

Cody. It was Cody holding him up. Cody and… Wolffe? Rex remembered his voice, or maybe that had been a dream.

“You did,” the healer chuckled, as Rex tried to figure out where the hell he was. When he was. This room had no windows, and Rex couldn’t see any clocks. Well, Rex couldn’t see much of anything, his vision swimming in and out of focus as his head span.

“Alright. I’m going to leave you to get cleaned up. If anything starts to hurt, have Commander Fox or Commander Cody send for me. I’ll be back in a bit to see how you’re doing with that nausea and dizziness. I’ll send a cleaning droid for the floor.”

Rex tried to nod, but fell sideways into Cody as the dizziness became overwhelming and his stomach turned.

“Thanks Healer Vebb.” It was Fox on his other side, not Wolffe. That probably meant he was somewhere on Coruscant then. “We’ve got it from here.”

“Okay, just let me disconnect your catheter. I’ll take it out when I come back.”

Healer Vebb ducked down and then there was the cool sensation of a hand just above his knee and a light tugging sensation in a place he really didn’t enjoy feeling it, and then he was standing up and walking away.

Rex leaned forwards and closed his eyes, praying that his stomach and head and possibly the room too would stop spinning. Someone's hand, Cody’s he thought, smoothed up and down his back. He dimly heard the door close and tried to blink his eyes open, staring down at the floor. It was covered in bacta and- yup- some vomit that hadn’t made it into the bowl. 

“C’mon Rex’ika,” Fox murmured. “Let’s get you cleaned up.”

They shuffled him towards a little adjoining fresher slash wetroom. There was a little privacy curtain and- thank gods- a stool, so he wouldn't have to suffer the indignity of his brothers holding him up in the shower and helping to clean bacta from every singular crevice on his body. They plopped him on the little shower chair and started trying to help him take his clothes off, retreating with a huff when he slapped them away.

“Fine,” Cody sighed, catching Fox by the elbow. “We’ll be just out here if you need us.”

Fox scowled but followed after him, pulling the curtain closed so that Rex was left alone. It took a while to peel the tight fitting vest off, specially cushioned to stop pressure sores where the restraints had held him suspended in the tank. After he peeled it over his head, stopping to catch his breath when it was halfway off, he made a start on his shorts. That was even more difficult, what with the catheter sticking out of his dick and taped down the inside of his thigh.

He managed to get them off though, and then contemplated the catheter itself. He could wait for the healer to come back and take it out, or…

He twisted the valve and waited for the small stream of water to stop, then grit his teeth for the next part. He breathed in deeply and exhaled slowly, easing the tube out as he did. His toes curled in discomfort, but it was over quickly.

Cody sighed as Rex tossed the catheter onto the floor, and Rex ignored him. It wasn’t his dick, he could keep his dumb opinions to himself. 

He reached up and slapped the wall a few times, his eyes closed. After a few tries he found the shower controls and turned them on, breathing out in relief as a heavy stream of water started to beat down on his head and shoulders. He leaned back against the wall and exhaled, letting the heat soak into his exhausted body. 

Water showers were a rare luxury for Rex. He mustn’t be in any clone facility, and that coupled with the jedi healer in his distinctive blue uniform meant he was probably… huh. He was probably in the temple healing wing which… the only other time he’d been aware of a clone being taken to the jedi healers was Ponds after that run in with Aurra Singh.

So either he’d been very nearly dead or… 

Oh. 

Mustafar. 

The kids. 

The lava.

Anakin. 

Rex’s tears mingled with the water streaming down his cheeks. 

“How long was I out?” he asked, his voice raspy with disuse and overwhelming emotion.

“Two weeks,” Fox said softly, just loud enough for Rex to hear him over the rush of water.

Rex closed his eyes.

“The kids? Torrent?” 

“All fine,” Cody replied. “Torrent and the rest of the 501st are in the barracks. Kid’s are all happily in the creche.”

“And… Anakin?”

“Alive,” was the only thing Cody said.

“What- what happened?”

Silence.

“Finish your shower,” Fox replied eventually, his voice tired and sounding so, so drained. “We’ll talk after.”

Rex swallowed.

After a few seconds, he scrubbed his fingers through his- ugh he needed a haircut. His roots were probably showing too. Not that it mattered, not now.

He cleaned the last of the bacta from his skin, leaning hard against the wall when he had to get off the chair to clean his ass crack. Man, that shit got everywhere. 

Once his head stopped spinning, Rex hit the controls again.

“Towel?” 

“Here.”

“Clothes?”

“Here.”

Fox’s hand passed a set of white patient’s robes through the curtain and Rex took them. A long sleeved shirt, boxers and leggings with a lighter version of the traditional jedi robe. Rex pulled on the underthings and left the robes loose, realising it was a dressing gown and not some fluffy cotton version of the Jedi uniform. As he swept the curtain back the room span again, and then Cody was sliding an arm around his waist and helping him shuffle back into the other room. 

The floor was clean, the bacta tank draining steadily and there was a bed in the middle of the room. Rex hadn’t even noticed it before. Cody helped him onto it, and he leaned back into the pillows with a pained groan. 

“How you feeling?” Fox asked, swiping his hand over Rex’s forehead. Rex slapped his hand away, grumbling under his breath.

“Little better,” he said. “Not quite as dizzy.”

“Right,” Cody snorted. His hand rested on Rex’s shoulder, holding him firmly. Fox seemed to want to touch him too, the hand Rex had slapped away twitching periodically towards him. Rex sighed and grabbed it, squeezing gently. He’d been unconscious for two whole weeks, apparently, so he could cut the two of them a little slack. 

He knew how it felt. He remembered how neither he or Fives could really let go of Echo when he woke up after the injury that led him to lose his legs. They’d needed that reassurance- the physical evidence that his skin was still warm, that his heart was still beating.

And it was nice, to have them holding him. To know that he was still here, with them. 

There were two chairs in the room. Fox squeezed his hand briefly before letting go and dragging one over. Cody clambered straight onto the bed beside him, the pecking order of ‘who gets to cuddle Rex first’ had been set in beskar years and years ago. Rex tried to smother the sigh of relief as he leaned into Cody’s side, his warmth seeping into Rex’s aching muscles. Once Fox was situated in his chair Rex reached for his hand again. His calloused palm fit snugly around Rex’s, fractionally smaller, hand, and his thumb brushed comfortably over Rex’s knuckles.

Rex took a deep breath. 

"What happened?” he asked, failing to hide the tremor and the fear in his voice completely.

Cody and Fox glanced at each other, both their gazes loaded with concern.

“What do you remember?” Cody asked. “You had a really bad head wound.”

 “I remember the cliff, Anakin falling and- and his legs. Then being buried but…” Rex swallowed, “after that, it's all black."

Fox nodded.

"You managed to get caught in this little air pocket between two big chunks, protected you both from the worst of it,” he said quietly.

"You were lucky,” Cody murmured, “so lucky."

Rex bowed his head, blinking tears out of his eyes as he suddenly remembered the last thought that had flashed through his brain before he’d finally blacked out. That his luck had finally run out. Seems he’d been wrong about that, for better or worse.

“Anyway,” Fox continued as Cody’s arm tightened around Rex’s shoulders. “Hardcase, Jesse and Fives got the kids to the extraction point while… while Kix and Echo stayed behind. They doubled back with Wolffe and Plo, a few others.”

“I- I remember!” Rex said, “I remember their voices.”

“Yeah, Wolffe said you were fading in and out of consciousness,” Cody said. “Saying stuff but not really making any sense. They got you both out of there, thankfully. Wouldn’t have been able to do it without Plo though.”

Rex nodded. He steadied himself before asking his next question.

“Anakin? Is he- how is he?”

“Not great,” Fox said softly. “He’s still unconscious too. They still don’t know if he’ll wake up.”

"What's the damage?"

"He lost both legs below the knee,” Cody said, rubbing Rex’s shoulder. “Third degree burns to most of his body… not too many broken bones, you shielded him from that. It’s probably what saved his life."

“Took quite the hit to the back of your head though,” Fox added. “A few hits, actually. There's a duralite plate in the back of your skull now. It was too pulverised to be fixable.”

“Nice,” Rex murmured. He felt the back of his head gingerly. There was no scar of course, but he could feel the edges of the metal plate and a few of the pins. Weird. 

“Not nice,” Fox said. “Really bad, actually.”

“Really really bad,” Cody added. “It took ages for the swelling in your brain to go down.” 

“When the hospital ship brought you back to Coruscant, it turned out your lungs were damaged from all the volcanic gases. Anakin’s too but… yours were really bad. You stopped breathing and…” Fox swallowed, wiping away tears with the back of his hand. “It turned out there was a chunk of rock in your lungs, you managed to breath it in somehow. It got infected and it spread to the bloodstream and…”

“We nearly lost you,” Cody whispered. “You only started to get better a few days ago. When your lungs started working by themselves again they could finally put you in the bacta tank, and you’ve been improving steadily ever since. It was- we- fuck-”

“It’s been a rough few weeks,” Fox finished for him as Cody pressed his face to the side of Rex’s head, his tears hot on Rex’s cheek. “Wolffe was here up until two days ago, barely left your side through the whole thing. But the pack was needed to go dig ‘Cara and his boys out of a siege situation.”

“Mundi again?” Rex muttered, “what is that dick doing?” 

“Beats us,” Fox muttered. “Incompetent prick. Anyway, I sent Wolffe a message telling him you woke up. He says it's about time, you lazy bastard.”

“Of course he did,” Rex said, smiling despite everything. “Asshole.”

Cody laughed wetly against his hair, then leaned over to kiss his cheek. Rex squeezed his hand as Cody composed himself, wiping his eyes on the sleeve of his off duty reds.

“And Torrent?” he asked, leaning against Cody’s side.

“They’re all fine. Tired and worried about their captain, but fine,” Fox said. “I sent Kix a message too, and he passed it on. He and Sophi are going to come and see you later. You’ll have to wait a bit longer to see the rest of them though.”

Rex nodded, smiling a little.

“I want to see him,” he said, “I want to see Anakin.”

“We can take you to him-” Rex started to shift his legs over the edge of the bed, “-after healer Vebb clears you.”

He looked up, about to protest, but then he met Fox’s firm gaze. He noted Fox’s slightly bloodshot eyes, the puffy dark skin under his eyes and the stubble that covered his jaw. Rex also noted how his own head was starting to spin again, and so he swung his legs back onto the bed and flopped back into the pillows. Cody squeezed his shoulder comforting and, after a little more glaring, Fox’s lips twitched up into an amused smile. 

Rex settled back against Cody, wriggling down so he could rest his head on his big brother’s shoulder. He yawned and Cody started to rub up and down his arm. He snuggled into Cody’s warmth and his eyes fluttered closed, suddenly and quite completely exhausted. One moment, he was listening to Fox’s quiet typing on his com and the next, he was startling awake as the door to his room slid open. 

“Sorry to wake you, Captain,” Healer Vebb said as he strode in, smiling widely. He was mon calamari, Rex was pretty sure he couldn’t not smile, but the cheerfulness was reflected in his eyes too so he probably was genuinely happy. “How are we feeling? Has the dizziness faded?”

It took Rex a few seconds to blink the last of his nap from his eyes and process his thoughts enough to decide that yes, the dizziness was a lot better, as was the nausea.

“Yeah, thanks,” he said, yawning as he shuffled upright. 

“No headache? Any pain at all?” 

Rex shook his head and for the first time since he got lifted out of the bacta tank, it didn’t cause the room to spin, nor a wave of nausea to rise up his throat. Healer Vebb nodded, and started scanning Rex. That done, he nodded to himself and shone a light in Rex’s eyes, then gently felt the back of his head where the metal plate was.

“Alright. You’re doing really well. Do you have any questions for me?”

“I want to see General Skywalker.”

At the mention of Anakin, a little of the light faded from the healer’s eyes. His lips twitched into a bittersweet smile. 

“Of course you do,” he said kindly, “we’ve already set up a bed for you next to the General. As long as you promise to use it when you need to, that’s fine. But you’re still healing so it’s completely normal to feel weak and easily tired. When you get tired again, and it’s going to happen a lot over the next few days, you need to lie down and let yourself sleep. Okay?”

“Okay,” Rex said.

“Now, if the commanders wouldn’t mind stepping outside for a few moments, I can take out your catheter.”

“I already did that,” Rex said. 

“Of course you did,” Vebb sighed, “I’m going to start stapling those things in, I swear. What if you’d needed to go back into the bacta tank? What if you’d hurt yourself? You humans are so precious about your genitals, but you’ll rip plastic tubes out of them without a second thought!”

It sounded like a rant that the healer had gone through many times before, and Rex fought off a blush as both Fox and Cody laughed at him. He didn’t know why, he knew both of them were guilty of the exact same thing.

"What if you'd needed to go back in the tank?" Vebb continued. "You wanted to be awake through me sticking it back in? Or had you planned on swimming in your own piss for a few days?" 

Rex blinked. 

"I hadn't thought of that,"  he admitted.

Healer Vebb stared at him, then sighed. 

“And I'm guessing you won’t accept a hoverchair either?” he grumbled.

“Sorry,” Rex apologised, a little meekly.

“But not sorry enough to take the damn hoverchair?”

This time Rex couldn’t help the flush that heated his cheeks as both his big brothers laughed again.

Healer Vebb took a final reading with his scanner and then sighed.

“Fine. The commanders know the way, just know that we see a lot of stubborn Jedi and people who pass out in the corridors for not following the recommendations of their healer aren’t treated with much sympathy.” Vebb glanced knowingly at Cody. “Master Kenobi is a repeat offender. There’s a blackmail book of holos somewhere in Healer Che’s office. Don’t let yourself be added to it, Captain.”

“I’ll try my best,” he said. Healer Vebb smiled at him, and Rex was maybe imagining the fraction of approval in his eyes. He hoped he wasn't though.

Vebb left and Rex was finally able to shuffle off the edge of the bed. His knees wobbled as he stood, keeping his hand resting on the edge of the bed just in case. Fox was there too, hovering protectively, and Rex used him for balance as he took a few experimental steps. 

Healer Vebb hadn't been joking about feeling weak, but Rex had expected it. One of the downsides of the advanced healing caused by their rapid cell recycling, all clones' muscles atrophied much quicker than baseline humans too. It was by and large his least favourite bit of being in a bacta tank, not including the permanent drowning sensation. Bacta worked by causing rapid cell regeneration, and while that was fine for normal humans, for clones it just meant the muscle atrophy was even worse.

Rex had been unconscious and bed bound for two whole weeks, and in a bacta tank for a few days on top of that. He felt as weak as a newborn tooka kit as he tried to stand under his own strength. You know, the ones that are still blind and can't even shit without their mothers licking their assholes for them. 

As much as he probably could have used the hoverchair, Rex knew that the more he used his already overexerted muscles the quicker he would get back to normal. The upside of having such rapid cell recycling, he could build muscle just as quickly as he could lose it. Plus he knew that he could lean on Cody as Fox as much as he needed too. 

Cody slotted himself under Rex’s arm and Fox the other, and together they slowly made their way out of the room and out into the corridors of the temple healing wing. Once out of the small room Rex could see through the windows that it was night time on Coruscant. The hallways of the healing win were lit, dimly so as not to disturb the sleeping patients, but it was still easy to see. They had lights low to the floor, just like they did on hospital ships, so that people could walk around easily but hardly any light was getting through the windows that looked in on the wards. 

Rex found himself leaning more and more heavily on Fox and Cody both as they walked. Well- Rex shuffled, Fox and Cody walked. Sweat started to bead on his brow and eventually, much sooner than he’d thought, one of his legs folded beneath him as he tried to put weight on it.

Fox and Cody caught him, moving in easy sync to take almost all of his weight.

“Stubborn shabuir,” Cody muttered, as fond as he was exasperated. 

“I've not moved in two weeks,” Rex grumbled, “let me use my legs.”

“You're using our legs right now, idiot,” Fox said, but Rex could hear his smile. 

With Fox and Cody basically carrying him, their trio began to move a lot quicker. It wasn't long before they began to move from the larger wards to where the smaller, more private rooms were located. Soon they were at the door to Anakin’s room. Just as Fox was about to tap the access pad the door slid open, and two healers walked out. Another mon calamari, this time pale pink, followed closely by a blue twi-lek.

They paused slightly upon almost running into Rex, Fox and Cody, but recovered quickly. They nodded at Rex as they moved past, the mon calamari smiling softly. There were pale purple bags under their eyes, Rex noticed, and they looked sad. 

“It’s good to see you awake, Captain,” the twi-lek said. The ghost of a smile graced her lips, and then the two of them were walking down the corridor away from them, conferring quietly over a datapad. 

“Who…?”

“Healer Eerin and Head Healer Che,” Fox answered.

“Ready?” Cody asked.

Rex swallowed, suddenly nervous. He didn’t really know why, he knew whatever was inside the room would be bad.

Something about crossing the threshold would make it real though. What if it was worse than he was imagining? Would Anakin even look like Anakin anymore? The fire- fuck, the fire.

He took a deep breath and allowed Cody and Fox to carry him through the doorway and into the room. Right in front of the door was an empty cot, presumably for him. His eyes continued to sweep around the room until they found the second bed.

Anakin’s face was partially covered by a breathing mask, and a bacta patch swathed across his right cheekbone, but other than that he didn't look… awful. Pale sure, and his hair was patchy and odd looking where it was growing back. Rex had been expecting worse.

It didn't make it any better, actually. It made it worse. Rex had seen Anakin in much worse states before, more times than he cared to count, and on each of those occasions he remembered Anakin's smile, his laugh, the way he'd kept going despite everything. Now, Anakin looked almost healthy, and yet he was so still. He could be asleep, but he wasn't. He was in a coma.

Rex's eyes moved from Anakin's face and down his body, over the sheets and to his lower legs. Or the space where his lower legs should've been. Instead the sheets were conspicuously flat just after where Anakin's knees were. Even below the covers, his thighs looked oddly bulbous from all the bandages and presumably the swelling.

Behind that, crammed into three chairs tucked away in the corner where they wouldn't get in the way of the healers, were Ahsoka, Obi-Wan and even Padme. Ahsoka looked thin, and Rex longed to reach out and sweep his hand over her montrals and cup her sallow cheek. Judging from the dark bags under her eyes she needed her sleep, so he left her be. Obi-Wan and Padme had matching bruises under their eyes. Both of them were usually so well put together, even in the heat of battle Obi-Wan barely had a hair out of place, but his beard was unkempt and his hair tangled. 

Padme was similarly disheveled, and it broke his fucking heart. Even in her sleep she looked to be in pain, tucked under Obi-Wan’s arm and Ahsoka curled against her chest.

“Can I-” Rex swallowed back tears and started again. “Can I sit with him? Is there- is there another chair?”

“Yeah,” Fox murmured, squeezing his waist, “let me go get one.”

Rex leaned all his weight on Cody as Fox ducked out from under his other arm. Suddenly something was wrapping tight around his midsection with a strangled sobbing noise, squeezing all the breath from his body. So much for not waking Ahsoka.

“Rex, you’re awake,” she said into his chest. 

“Hey kiddo,” he whispered, pressing his face between her montrals and breathing her in.

“Careful ‘Soka,” Cody murmured, “he’s still delicate.”

As her arms slackened a little around his chest, Rex tried not to miss it too much. It helped that she stayed, pressing her tears to his shirt and her shoulders shaking.

“I’m here, it’s okay,” he mumbled, and the tears he’d been holding back since he woke up finally overwhelmed him. He didn’t care. 

After a few long seconds, and still much too soon, Ahsoka pulled back with a sniffle. He barely had time to thumb the tears from her cheek before she was being replaced by Padmé. Even smaller than Ahsoka, she somehow hugged him even tighter. She reached up on her tiptoes to kiss his cheek, tears streaming down her exhausted face.

“It’s so good to see you awake again,” she whispered, her voice cracking in the middle.

Rex folded forwards to press his forehead to hers, something he’d never shared with her before. She seemed to understand the meaning of the keldabe though, because she let out a half stifled sob and cupped both of his cheeks, holding his head against hers until their tears mingled. Another kiss to his cheek, more firmly this time, and she was replaced by Obi-Wan.

Another first. Rex had never hugged, or been hugged by Obi-Wan. After everything they’d been through together, they weren’t particularly physical with one another. A clasped hand here and there, but they tended to show their affection for one another through shared looks, rolled eyes and teasing Anakin together.

Anakin, Obi-Wan’s little brother and Rex’s best friend, who was unconscious in the bed they were embracing beside. Anakin, who Rex had given his all to save and still, he might never wake up again.

Obi-Wan pulled back, and it was him who pulled Rex into the keldabe. 

"Thank you," he whispered into the space between them, "for giving him a chance. Kix told me what you did."

Rex wanted to protest. To say he should've been faster, he should've gotten moving again quicker after pulling Echo up, he should've been able to stop it all together. But that wouldn't help anyone, and he knew it wasn't true all the same. Instead he shared breath with Obi-Wan, Cody still holding him up with an arm around his waist.

Obi-Wan pulled away when Fox came shuffling back in, a stack of chairs in his arms. Three, because all three of them were staying. Ahsoka took them from him and started to arrange them around Anakin's bed, still careful to give the healers access. 

His arms free, Fox wound his arms around Padmé's back and tugged her into his chest. She settled against him with a kind of familiarity she hadn't had with Rex, and Fox rested his head on top of hers. Rex watched them for a moment, aching for her, and then Cody and Obi-Wan were easing him into a chair by Anakin's bed. 

Ahsoka settled in the chair next to him, grabbing his hand tightly and sniffling. Cody and Obi-Wan sat next to each other so that Obi-Wan could lean against his partner, tears streaming down his cheeks as he stared at Anakin. Fox eased Padmé into a chair, opposite Rex on the other side of Anakin's bed, then eased down next to her. Like Rex and Ahsoka, they were clutching each others hands. 

The six of them sat around Anakin's bed, all staring at his face as if he might wake at any moment. Together in silence, they waited– all of them knowing that the moment they hoped so desperately for might never come.

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[rexismycopilot]

Hi Rex!!! Just wanted to share that I absolutely love your FS fics and all the rest of them. Their relationship is so sweet across all the fics and I love the communication and them working on their relationship together. One question as someone trying to go into academia.... how does Qui Gon have time to do anything else within the academic life?!?! 😝😭🤪 Just kidding, love you and all that you write!

LMAO Fifty Shades is a fantasy fic but not in the way you would expect:

Qui-Gon has time outside of his life as an academic

Anakin doesn't feel guilty when he calls in sick or takes off of work

Obi-Wan finds a therapist for Anakin in one fucking week AND gets him an appointment right away

Anakin was able to give up his apartment without paying a penalty for breaking his lease

I'm sure there is more haha

Anyway, thank you, Anon!! <3