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The first time Cody sees his general’s nest, it is one month into the war and he has no idea what it is.
They are both exhausted, as it has been a very full, very long day, and Cody would like nothing more than to head down to the mess and eat his first meal in two rotations.
But, as soon as he makes to leave the bridge, almost swaying in his exhaustion, the General smiles over at him brightly and asks if he’d like a cup of real caff. The brewed kind.
So, naturally, he finds himself walking to the General’s quarters alongside the man instead of headed to the cafeteria.
The General hums lightly as he punches in the code to his quarters. The door slides up a second later with a slight woosh and a rush of a lovely, sweet scent from the omega’s room.
It is only on account of Cody’s self control that he does not do something embarrassing like openly sniff at the air, just to get a proper reading on it. While this is not the first time that Cody has smelled him, it is the first time in such clarity .
Like most humans these days, Kenobi tends to wear blockers heavy enough that only the barest hint of omega slips through, entirely undetectable with the filters on helmets. But, given the General spent a lot of his free time in his quarters, it isn’t surprising that his natural scent has blanketed the room.
Not that it matters- Cody, like the great majority of humanoids these days, could not possibly give less of a shit about secondary gender. The only thing he was taught about them back on Kamino was to, in the ever wise words of Jango Fett, ‘ Keep your nose out of necks, your knot to yourself, and mind your own damn business because none of the Jetti care about osik like that. ‘
Prime had been wrong about many, many things, but Cody is pretty sure that advice is sound, considering this topic of conversation has come up between him and his General exactly zero times.
“Ah, apologies about the mess- come in,” Kenobi says, waving a hand towards where he has a cloak hung over a chair and a few dishes stacked on a table. He pulls two well loved mugs down from a cabinet- one green, one orange- and turns back to Cody with a glint of happiness in his eyes. “Do you like biscuits?”
“I’m going to be entirely honest, sir. I’ve never had one,” Cody tells him.
The glint in the General’s eyes turns slightly mischievous. “We can fix that,” he says, and then steps into the extremely tiny kitchen. “Take a seat wherever you like- I’ll be done in just a second.”
And, well. Cody stands awkwardly in the room for a second, then turns to sit at the tiny table for two in the corner.
And then stops.
The General does not appear to have a bunk in his quarters. Rather, there is a circular mattress with- and it cannot be emphasized enough- an explosion of weaved together blankets, clothes, sheets, and other soft items.
That being said, the weavings are intricate and on purpose. There has clearly been much care and thought put into… whatever it is. The edges are slightly built up, as if to create a little barrier from the rest of the world, and there is a small dip in the center, where an old blanket in remarkable shape seems to be holding everything else together.
It looks very comfortable, to say the least, but it is not any standard GAR bed that Cody has ever seen, or even heard of, for that matter.
It must be a Jedi thing, then. Maybe for meditation?
He stares at it for a second longer, and then turns to sit at the table. It’s not like it’s a problem, and it isn’t his business, anyway.
A minute later, Kenobi pushes the kitchen door open with his hip, holding two plates of some kind of pastry and two steaming mugs.
“Here you go, dear,” he says, putting one of the plates and the orange mug down in front of Cody. “Are you ready for your life to be changed?”
Cody rolls his eyes, but doesn’t suppress a small smile and finally, finally, eats some fucking food.
Suffice to say, his life was indeed changed.
—
When Cody eventually does find out what a nest is, it is three months into the war and his general is sick.
So very sick, and so very, very sad about this.
General Kenobi runs cold. This is common knowledge.
General Kenobi does not like rain. This is, also, common knowledge.
So, when General Kenobi spends a week straight in freezing cold rain while fighting on Donovia, he does not take it in stride like the troopers, who are all children of Kamino.
He instead catches a vicious cold that leaves him bedridden in the Medbay, much to everyone’s displeasure.
Except for maybe Bones- he has, finally, managed to pin the General down, and he is delighted about it. Cody caught the bastard humming earlier.
The General himself is the exact opposite of this, ailing and uncomfortable and absolutely demanding to know why he isn’t allowed into his quarters. Cody simply sighs and tells him that he has to attend a meeting on the bridge and no, General, you cannot come with me. You are on medical leave. Sit your ass back down or I’m calling Bones in and telling him I recommend sedation.
He is still throwing his bitchfest when Cody returns an hour later.
“Bones, this is ridiculous . We all know I’m getting worse, and you won’t let me just go to my quarters so I can rest properly !” Kenobi exclaims, his nose all red and his eyes fever-bright. His usually sweet TeaBookColonge scent has gone off and sour in a way that sets Cody’s teeth on edge and makes his hands itchy. It is wrong .
“And why is that? So you can overexert yourself to heal your dumbass self with the Force? And then restart the cycle all over again? Yeah, right, not happening,” Bones snaps back, not looking up from his datapad.
Kenobi groans, miserable, but it’s not just a sickness thing. “I swear , Bones, we both know you aren’t this obtuse! You know why I want my room, and it’s not that! Are you making me say it out loud as some kind of punishment for being a horrible patient?”
“Again, sir, I have no idea what you’re talking about, and, frankly, I don’t really care.” Bones turns to face Cody, eyebrows raised as if to say, ‘ can you get this idiot under control? ’
Cody ignores him, and turns to Obi-Wan, who has dropped his face into his hands. He mutters something too low to hear, and then glares up at both Cody and Bones.
“My nest , Bones. I’d like to go to my nest.” Looking between the twin blank stares of Cody and Bones, the General adds on a mildly pathetic “Please.”
Cody blinks. ‘Nest’ is a word he has heard maybe once before, but has never thought about in any deep sense. A trainer had yelled, once, to ‘ stop nesting and start moving! ’, when Bly had been too slow getting up one morning, but that is the only bell the word rings.
It is, as far as he is aware, a way to describe an animal’s bed, commonly made of leaves and sticks and mud. Cody has been in the General’s quarters multiple times, and he does not remember seeing any grass nor any sticks. He looks to Bones for help.
Unfortunately, Bones is just as clueless as he is. “Your nest?” he says, flat.
Obi-Wan’s brows furrow. “Yes? My nest, you know, the thing greatly connected to lowering my stress levels, and evens out my hormones, and…” The General trails off, his face turning somehow paler. “Oh, dear. You two truly have no idea what that is, do you?”
He throws a hand out, calling his datapad to him and begins typing more frantically than Cody thought possible. “Read this,” he says, shoving it at Bones.
Bones raises an eyebrow, but takes it from him and starts reading. Cody watches his eyes as he reads, which slowly go from a normal, regular speed, to an inhumanely fast pace that is only possible through the medic’s frankly insane amount of spite. His knuckles turn white with how tight he is gripping the datapad.
He finishes whatever article he was reading obscenely quick, looking back to Kenobi with an unreadable expression, and an equally unreadable scent. “Sir,” he says, voice carefully steady in a way that Cody recognizes as ‘ I am going to blow up this entire fucking building in five seconds if you don’t tell me the truth immediately ’, “Is this real?”
Which… is a bizarre question, in Cody’s humble opinion. The General simply nods, once, eyes still desperate and fever-bright.
The datapad snaps cleanly in half in Bones’ hands. “Noted.” He turns to Cody. “Commander, if you would please take the General back to his quarters, I will be by to check on him in an hour. I have some work to finish up.” Then, he disappears into his office, slamming the door so hard it rattles the wall.
A second later, the muffled thud of a chair being thrown against the wall echoes loudly from the room. Kenobi flinches, but the other medic nearby- Bookworm- just rolls their eyes and walks away, shaking their head as if this is a regular occurrence.
Cody stares down at the General. “Sir. Mind explaining what just happened?”
Kenobi averts eye contact, his cheeks regaining some of their color with what Cody suspects is a blush. “It appears you all have missed out on a… rather personal part of omega biology. And behavior. Which, of course, I cannot blame you for, considering your extremely unorthodox upbringing, but I also cannot believe not even medics know about it. There are thousands of medical articles about the importance of nests, one of which I showed to Bones. All of that is extremely common knowledge.” Then, the General frowns deeper, bringing up a hand to rub at his beard. “Though, I suppose it does make sense if the Kaminoans had simply missed out on that, being both a species without secondary gender and extremely isolated from the rest of the Galaxy.”
“Again, sir, all due respect, but I really don’t know what you’re talking about,” Cody tells him, and even though a small part of his hindbrain itches to keep Kenobi in the medbay where he is safe and protected, he makes no move to stop the man when he swings his legs over the bed and stands up.
“I know you’ve seen it before, but, well. I suppose it’s better if I show you,” the General says, swaddling himself in a blanket and looking at Cody expectantly.
Cody frowns because, once again, he is certain there are no mud cakes or leaf piles in the General’s quarters, only the strange Jedi meditation thing, but follows him anyway, because Kenobi is his General and Cody would follow him to the ends of the Galaxy.
-
As soon as they step into Kenobi’s quarters, the General shoves his boots off, then flops directly onto his mattress-blanket-thing, curling into it like he’d been missing it, craving it, and ohhhhhh .
“Ah,” Cody says, extremely intelligently, “ that’s your nest?”
The General pulls his head up from where he’d buried it into a pillow. “Yes? What did you think this was?”
He shrugs. “I assumed it was a Jedi thing. A meditation mat, maybe.”
“That’s a fair assessment, I suppose. You really haven’t heard of a nest?” And, maybe it’s just Cody’s imagination, but the General’s face already looks better. Huh.
Cody levels him with A Look. “General, I did not know what a sandwich was until a week ago. No, I have not heard of a nest.”
Kenobi ducks his head. “Ah, right.”
Cody leans over to drop the General’s comm on the ground near him, but as soon as he takes a step towards him, Kenobi snaps his head up, staring at him with an intensity that clearly says ‘ stay far, far away .’
Cody wonders, briefly, if he should be offended, but then his own comm beeps with a message from Bones.
The General’s eyes follow him until he is a safe distance back, and then the omega dives into his sea of blankets, and Cody could swear Obi-Wan was purring, just a bit.
“Bones is asking for me back in medbay, but I’ll message you later tonight with an updated itinerary for tomorrow,” Cody says, ostensibly to Obi-Wan, but he gets the feeling he is more talking to himself at this point.
He sees himself out, and cannot quite stop himself from smiling at the rumble he gets in reply when he wishes the General a goodnight.
-
Bones is pacing and snarling and fucking furious when Cody gets back to the medbay.
“I’m going to fucking kill the longnecks,” he hisses, nostrils flaring, as if he’s choking on his own sharp scent of anger.
“That bad, huh?” Cody asks, and it is only his extremely fast reflexes that stop him from getting slapped in the face with the datapad Bones chucks at him.
“Fucking read that, Cody! They told us the only important difference between secondaries is the slight change in organs and the hormonal differences and the stupid fucking-” Bones pauses to kick a chair, “reproductive cycles, not that omegas have a literal dependence on their beds . He could’ve died , Cody, if he was kept from it for too long, because omegas can’t properly relax without their nests. It’s a safety mechanism, or some bullshit like that, but that’s why his hormones were out of control. That’s why his adrenaline levels were climbing so bad.” Bones shudders once, all over. “He could’ve died, and it would’ve been my fault.”
Cody almost growls at that. “No, it wouldn’t have been, and he wouldn’t have died, anyway. He didn’t. He was purring when I left. He’s fine.”
Bones doesn’t stop frowning. “Still. I should-”
“You should go check his vitals. Now.” Cody interrupts. “Or I’ll have Gizmo do it, and we both know all he’d do is find a way to piss the General off. Don’t make me make it an order.”
Finally, Bones rolls his eyes and makes to grab his kit. “Get the Hell out of my office before you try and pull rank on me.”
And Cody does, going back to his own quarters and only staying awake for long enough to vaguely wonder if this whole nest thing has anything to do with the General’s infuriating tendency of leaving his shit everywhere.
—
It is not until six months into the war, on a miserably cold planet called Kijimi, that Cody discovers what the General calls his ‘ perfect blanket ’.
Cody is only introduced to this blanket because his tent gets torched by a couple of droids an hour into the campaign, and sleeping outside is not an option here.
“Oh, Commander, you can share with me. It’s plenty large enough for two,” Obi-Wan says, staring down at the ashes of Cody’s old tent with an air of not-quite-amusement.
“Are you sure, sir? I wouldn’t want to overstep,” Cody starts, but Obi-Wan puts a hand on his shoulder and smiles.
“Nonsense. I trust you. And, it’s not like I can have you freezing to death, now, can I?”
Well. Cody can’t say he’s wrong , so he moves what little remains of his things to the General’s tent, and very pointedly does not stare at the makeshift nest Obi-Wan has made for while he is on-planet. (Cody has done research . It is, according to the holonet, extremely rude to stare at someone’s nest, unless you are pack. Cody is not sure if the Jedi even have pack, so he decides it will be best to simply never bring it up.)
Even though he doesn’t look at his nest, Obi-Wan still flushes when Cody glances in that general direction, as if he is horribly embarrassed of his handiwork.
“Oh, this is a complete mess, I’m terribly sorry,” Obi-Wan says, wringing his hands, “I haven’t had time to properly make it up, please just, ignore all this.”
And, Cody is by no means an expert on beds, but the pile Obi-Wan has made looks a million times more comfortable than his bunk, even if Obi-Wan doesn’t agree, so he shakes his head. “You’re completely fine, sir. Don’t worry about it.”
Obi-Wan doesn’t seem entirely convinced, but some of the tension drops out of his body, anyway.
If he got any comfort from Cody’s words, it is not enough to stop him from remaking the nest entirely before they get to sleep.
He clicks his tongue and wrinkles his nose as he works, grumbling unhappily at his imperfect creations.
Each attempt is vastly different from the previous one in every way except for one blanket that Cody recognizes, which always seems to be the very center. He handles it with a level of care that he does not save for the rest of his nest, easily casting each piece aside when he decides it is not doing its job well.
After nearly half an hour of the fascinating entertainment that is the General nesting, Cody decides it is time to very gently remind the omega that they both have to be up in 5 hours, and Cody would very, very much appreciate it if he could sleep without hearing the constant shuffling of Obi-Wan’s things.
“I’m very sorry, Cody, this is taking longer than normal tonight,” The General has the grace to look embarrassed, but he doesn’t stop rearranging his nest.
Cody rolls over onto his side to properly watch him. Obi-Wan is still basing everything around that one blanket, so he doesn’t stop himself from asking, “Is that one your favorite?”
Obi-Wan smiles over at him, smoothing his hands out over his blanket. “This one? Yes, she’s simply perfect.”
The corner of Cody’s mouth is pulled into an amused smile. “She?”
“Oh, yes. She doesn’t have a name, because she is a blanket, but she is definitely a girl.” The General starts, and then tells Cody her background, which is something like this:
The General has had her since before he was taken to the Temple as a mere youngling. This is, unsurprisingly, a common thread between almost all omegas in the Temple- in pretty much every culture with secondary gender, a blanket is given to omegas as soon as they are born, which ends up being a part of their nest for as long as the blanket lasts.
This blanket is Obi-Wan’s example of this ritual- his people are no exception to the tradition, even if they later tried to drown him in a river upon realizing he was touched by the Force.
Details, details.
She is made of the General’s favorite material, and has only gotten softer with age. She has also gotten better at holding scents, so when the General goes on missions that end up lasting longer than anticipated, she is still just as comforting as she was before.
While the other pieces of his nest have all failed him in some way or another, she never has, and thus Cody decides to mentally dub the blanket as “ the exception ”.
He calls her his “ beloved ”, his “ adored ”, his “ darling ”.
Anakin, whenever he lived with Obi-Wan, had always called her “ ol reliable ”, which the General is decidedly not a fan of.
Obi-Wan has finally, finally assembled a nest to his liking by the time he wraps up his little story. He sits back on his knees and admires his creation, a small but happy rumble reverberating from his chest.
Cody can’t stop himself from looking the nest up and down and telling the General, very softly, “That looks incredible, sir. You did a very good job.”
The General looks up at him with wide eyes and flushed cheeks, and says, equally soft, “Thank you, Commander.”
Cody would be more concerned that he said something offensive if Obi-Wan didn’t smell so intensely pleased by the compliment, but he still comms Wolffe later and asks if he thinks the comment was out of line.
Unfortunately, the bastard that Cody calls his batchmate does not help him at all. Instead, he just laughs, and laughs, and laughs, and tells Cody that he’s proud he isn’t fumbling his General like Bly is.
Cody does not block Wolffe’s comm code, but it is a close thing. He does promise to beat his ass in a spar the next time they see each other, but he goes to sleep smiling, anyway.
—
One year into the war, there are things Cody has learned about his General that range from ‘ incredibly useful information for a battlefield ’, to ‘ things he will never share with anyone else ’.
One of the things about Obi-Wan that falls in between those is his reaction to new smells in relation to his beddings.
Cody’s General is sensitive to scents- more so than most. This increases 20 fold when it comes to his nest.
He will tolerate another being standing near it on a good day, but come Hell or high water, absolutely no one is allowed to so much as lay a finger on it, lest their awful stench be imprinted onto his holy place, violating it in such a way that has him stripping the entire roost to be deep cleaned and washed, free from the terrible fate of carrying another’s scent.
The exception to all of this is, of course, Cody.
Anytime the General has to move his clean blankets around, it is Cody who he requests for help. He will go out of his way to make sure the only person touching his precious belongings is Cody, despite the fact that each of the Clones smell almost the exact same. Obi-Wan knows the difference, however, and he will have everything washed again if they smell like anything that is not fabric softener, himself, or Cody.
Cody himself is unsure whether the General has chosen him in specific because of how much time they spend together, how close they are, or simply because he’s used to Cody’s scent near his nest now that they’ve been sharing the same tent since Kijimi, or if it’s because of something else entirely, but he will be caught dead before he complains about his nest-wrangling-duties. Most of the time.
Either way, he can’t say he’s exactly surprised about this development; one of the things he remembers reading about was that an omega’s sense of safety is extremely tied to scent. This is one of the main reasons for the nest in the first place- to give a soft, safe smelling place to rest when the world was so, so stressful. Because nests are tied to safety, they often welcome the scent of their close ones, particularly alphas, to add an entire extra layer of safety.
Considering he and the General have been living on top of each other for the past year, it makes complete sense that he’s come to associate Cody with safety and home.
What does surprise him is how the General reacts to Skywalker’s scent, now that they no longer live on top of each other.
On the day that he first sees this, Cody is so, so tired.
So very tired, in fact, that it will be nigh impossible for anything to keep him from collapsing into bed and conking out for the next rotation. There is not one thing that will be able to keep him from his bunk, and so help the fool who even tries .
That is, until he sees said fool who will be keeping him from his bunk is, in fact, his General.
The 212th command tent is propped open, absolutely reeking of Obi-Wan’s displeasure.
General Skywalker stands off to the side, looking properly disciplined, a safe distance away from Bones, who is hovering and irritated, leaking worry all over the camp.
He doesn’t stop fretting even as Cody comes up beside him and asks, very eloquent in his exhaustion, “What the fuck did I miss?”
Before his loyal CMO can answer, the General himself pops out of the tent, scowling, and hurls a blanket- which Cody recognizes as one from his nest- out with such a velocity that it sends a cloud of dust into the air when it lands, near a pile of similarly discarded quilts and bedclothes.
Skywalker winces, rubbing the back of his neck.
Cody decides, abruptly, that he is too tired for this and will be spending the night in the medical tent.
“Nevermind, don’t tell me, I don’t wanna know,” He says to Bones, already headed to the other side of camp.
He is not quiet enough, obviously, because the General calls out, “Ah, Commander, you’re back! Apologies for all this,” he pauses to send another glare at his former Padawan, who looks less like a decorated war hero and more like a pup in timeout, “I’ll be finished ridding the tent of foreign stench in a second, and the space will be all yours.”
It is then that Cody realizes his entire life is a fucking joke .
“General,” he says, “care to explain what’s going on?”
“My dear, former Padawan here,” Obi-Wan begins grandly, “decided that he was too tired to walk the extra eighty feet to his own tent, and thought it would be a marvelous idea to take a nap in our tent,” he pauses for dramatic effect, but Cody already knows where this is going. “in my nest .”
Skywalker finally decides to stand up for himself. “I’m sorry, Master! I didn’t think it would be a big deal! I was really, really tired. And besides, you never used to mind me sleeping in your nest!”
Obi-Wan’s nostrils flare. “I didn’t mind when you slept in my nest as a pup, Anakin, but I do mind when you drag your muddy, dirty clothes into my bed, all while you smell like another omega!”
Skywalker rears back, like he’s been hit, like he thinks no one can smell Amidala on him all the fucking time , but Obi-Wan barrels on. “Honestly, Anakin, I don’t care what you do in your free time! I’m glad you have the ability to see your friends in this awful time! But, I don’t need that smeared all over my nest, especially since we don’t spend all day, everyday together anymore! You can’t just assume I’m ok with you sleeping in my bed anymore! You’ve grown into your Knighthood, and that’s good, but I’ve also grown used to not having you around- I need a heads up before you go and change what I’ve grown accustomed to because you feel like it!”
It is only Cody’s professionalism that keeps him from lauging at the way Skywalker deflates pathetically. “I know, Master. I’m really, really sorry. I won’t do it again.”
Obi-Wan softens. “I know. It’s fine, Anakin, I forgive you.”
Bones sniffs indignantly. “It is not fine. Do you know how much fucking laundry I already have to do without this?” He turns to Skywalker, glowering. “If you do this shit again, I will be dunking your di’kut ass in bacta for the fun of it. Both of you moronic Jedi, actually. Straight in the fucking tank.” He does not stop muttering insults even as he gathers the discarded remains of the General’s nest of into his arms and stalks across camp, disappearing into the medical tent with one last withering glare. Skywalker stares after him like a kicked strill.
“As touching as this has all been,” Cody says, bone dry, “I am going to sleep before I become a witness to your murders by our dear CMO. Goodnight.”
“I will join you, Commander. This has all been properly exhausting. Goodnight, Anakin.”
Skywalker manages to look even sadder, meekly wishing both of them a goodnight before he slinks off to his own camp, where Rex and Tano will undoubtedly tease him relentlessly.
Cody chuckles, turning to look at his Jedi. “Little brothers, huh?”
The General smiles tiredly, shaking his head. “Little brothers.”
-
Cody takes one look at the General’s poor, poor, ransacked nest- which consists entirely of a cloak, a sheet, and his favorite, exception blanket- and sighs, grabbing his own spare blanket and chucking it at the omega.
Obi-Wan stares at it for a second, then looks at Cody with pink dusting his cheeks.
“Oh, Cody, really, you don’t have to-“ The General starts, but his fingers have closed tightly around the blanket, as though he can’t bear to let it go.
Cody hardly resists a snort. “All due respect General, just take it and go the fuck to sleep. I don’t need it, and you clearly do. I don’t mind at all. I’d rather you be happy and comfy than have a second blanket I will barely use.”
Obi-Wan’s cheeks go a tad bit redder, but his scent subtly takes on a note of being terribly pleased, so Cody considers it a win, anyway.
“Well, alright. Thank you, Cody, I… very much appreciate it.” The General looks up at Cody with an expression he can’t quite place, all soft and happy and beautiful. It makes Cody’s traitorous heart skip a beat in his chest.
“Anytime, sir,” Cody tells him, and he means it, too.
And, just when Cody thinks he can’t feel any better, Obi-Wan carefully nudges his exception blanket aside, tucking Cody’s spare in next to it, right where he rests his head, like he wants to breathe in Cody’s smell, rather than just tolerating it.
Cody turns over, onto his side, and feels overfull of warmth in a way he didn’t think he ever would.
—
Cody carries that warmth with him for months. It does not fade, not entirely, until Kadavo.
He knows the mission is risky, but Rex and Obi-Wan are more than capable, so he does not fret. He does not even worry.
Not until they miss a check in.
And then another.
And then another.
Then, the sunny feeling the General always leaves in him is gone, replaced with the cold feeling of dread . Of helplessness .
It grows as the weeks drag on, spreading like icicles up his spine and down his legs, increasing ten fold when they eventually hear from Skywalker again, only to find out that Obi-Wan and Rex are not with him.
Rather, they’ve been sent to a “ conditioning facility ” with the rest of the Togruta.
Cody’s heart beats all off and loud in his ears as he considers that he could lose both his General and his little brother here if they don’t play their cards right.
His hand doesn’t shake as he orders the jump to hyperspace to rondeavux with the 104th, but it is a close thing.
He doesn’t stop almost-but-not-quite trembling until he gets a comm from Wolffe that says “ got rex’ika and your general. we’re all good. ping again when you’re within range. ”
He doesn’t stop feeling cold inside until Rex and Obi-Wan stumble onto the Negotiator, bruised and beaten to Hell, but alive and safe and here .
There is a new kind of fury that burns in his chest when he sees the electro-prod scars that curl down their necks, but he tucks that away to deal with later because Rex throws himself into his arms and there isn’t anything for Cody to do other than hold him close and thank the stars for not letting Rex march away too early.
“Hello, Commander. It is marvelous to see you again,” Obi-Wan says, smiling so tiredly, and it takes all of Cody’s self control to not tuck the omega into his chest right there, to not fold him into his body where he will be safe from the horrors of the Galaxy until this damn war is over.
Bones comes and intercepts the General and Rex before Cody can really talk to them, but Cody isn’t going to stop him. Force knows they need the care.
He lets his feet carry him to the General’s quarters, where he carefully pulls some of Obi-Wan’s things out of his nest so he can carry them down to the medbay before the omega inevitably tries to sneak away, longing for the comfort of his bed.
The General is, predictably, squirming and unhappy when Cody walks in, but his eyes light up wonderfully when he sees him.
“Here you are, General. I figured you were probably missing her,” Cody tells him, holding the favorite blanket out.
Obi-Wan grins, bright and genuine, and pulls her into his arms, smelling happy and relaxed for, undoubtedly, the first time in weeks.
It is only when the General grabs his hand and says “Oh, Cody, you beautiful , wonderful man, thank you ,” that Cody lets himself relax.
It is only later, when Obi-Wan is bandaged up and comfortable and asleep, rumbling happily, that the warmth returns to Cody’s chest. But, return it does, and for Cody, that is enough.
—
As much as Cody is allowed to touch the General’s nest, he is not allowed to sleep in it. This is a line that cannot be crossed- it is too personal, too close to things that Cody wants, but is not allowed to have.
Obi-Wan is a Jedi, and Cody is a clone. They are close, absurdly so, but they cannot cross that line. Not yet. Not while there is a war on.
Or, that is what Cody thinks, until a random day six months after Kadavo.
They are in the General’s quarters, and it is hours past when they should’ve gone to sleep.
They’re making fun of one senator or another, and Obi-Wan laughs, bright even in his exhaustion, but it turns into a yawn halfway through.
He stretches his arms above his head, rubbing at his eyes. “I don’t know about you, dearest, but I am extremely tired. Would you like to go to bed?”
Part of Cody wants to argue that, yes, he’s tired, but he really, really doesn’t want to leave, but the more rational part of him wins out, so he nods a yes, and stands up to leave.
The General stands as well, but he does not move to walk Cody to the door, like he always does.
He instead collapses into his nest, just like that, rolling over and purring. He only stops when he notices Cody staring at him dumbly.
Obi-Wan cocks his head, scooting over. “Are you going to join me?”
And, fuck , Cody wants to, but-
“General,” he starts, helplessly, every buried emotion trying to make itself known immediately . “I- can’t.”
Obi-Wan sits up properly at that. “What?”
Cody shakes his head. “Obi-Wan, I can’t- share this with you, not. I can’t have it halfway. I don’t-“
“Cody?”
“I want you,” Cody spits out. “So badly. I want to hold you and kiss you and share everything with you, and this- I can’t just have half of this, knowing you don’t want me the same way.”
Obi-Wan stares at him, looking so confused. “Cody-“
“I’m so sorry, I shouldn’t have-“
“ Cody , please, stop for a second,” Obi-Wan says, and Cody’s jaw snaps shut on its own account.
“First of all- I do want you the same way. Very much so.” And Cody knows Obi-Wan, enough to see it in his eyes that he’s telling the truth. “I want all of that. More than anything. But,” The General pauses, smiling just a tiny bit, “I thought you were… already courting me?”
Every single one of Cody’s thoughts- of disbelief, of happiness, of fear- come to a screeching halt.
“What?” he asks.
Obi-Wan tilts his head to the side. “You… gave me nesting material?”
Cody blinks. “Yes?”
Obi-Wan lays back down. “And I accepted. That is… almost always a courting ritual, darling.”
“Oh. Oh, fuck , I forgot about that.” Cody buries his face in his hands, mortified.
Obi-Wan laughs, loud and sweet, but he rolls onto his side, making space for Cody to join him in his nest- in his heart .
And, really, there isn’t anything for Cody to do except lean down and kiss the laugh right out of Obi-Wan’s mouth.