Grab a snack, your drink of choice, and take a look at what I've got to offer 🏵 Not all my works are on Tumblr as of writing this masterlist, so be sure to check out my A03 for a more 🏵
This is a multi-fandom blog, so I have divided my works into either their respective fandom, or generalised them by an actor if there are not many works for the character, or if I have not yet written anything else from their respective film/ series, etc. ♥
If you any requests for a fic you'd like to see - a certain trope, pairing, scenario; you name it! - my inbox is always open ❤💻 I'm always open to exploring new topics, characters, and fandoms!
My works are often 18+, but each fic comes with its own warnings and tags. Minors, please DNI ♥
Please enjoy, and come back regularly to see what's new!
Bess xx
Current Series: Fallout (Jack Daniels/Agent Whiskey x F!Reader) ONGOING
Current Mini-Series: The Depth of Our Exploration (Darth Maul x F!Reader) ONGOING
Recent One-Shot: Acta, Non Verba (General Acacius x F!Reader)
✨Star Wars ✨
🥃Kingsman🥃
🌲The Last of Us 🌲
♥ Pedro Pascal Characters ♥
Jack Daniels | Joel Miller | Frankie Morales | Javier Peña | Javi Gutierrez | Marcus Pike | Max Phillips | Tim Rockford | Agent Ortega | Plus more to come!
Boss told me yesterday that I (and the rest of the team) could be redundant in a week, so I'm finding the motivation hard to want to go into work today. Man I love hospitality
Jack Daniels x F!Reader
Explicit/18+ (Minors DNI please!)
Current Word Count: 101.2k - ✨ Updated After Each Chapter ✨
Series Tags: Second Chances; Angst; Canon-Typical Violence; Description of Injuries; Fluff; Enemies to Lovers; Enemies to Friends to Lovers; Depictions of Grief, Trauma, PTSD, and Depression; Explicit Sexual Content; Explicit Language.
(Each chapter will have more specific tags)
Work is currently unfinished 💙
"Fallout [noun] - the adverse side effects or results of a situation”.
After being seriously injured during the Golden Circle mission, Jack Daniels must atone for his crimes. Placed on house arrest on Statesman grounds, he must prove to Champ and the rest of the team that he deserves a second chance. But when that day comes, he finds a thorn in his side: Agent Mimosa.
Chapter 15 is cooking on gas, and depending on how work goes these next two days, I should have it out by the end of the weekend!
Here's a little preview for the next chapter 😋 Paging my dear @avastrasposts for this one, who has been one of my biggest supporters since day 1 with this series! Kisses for you 😘
"Can you complete the mission, or do you need to withdraw?” you asked. Jack nodded in response, his hands still resting on your waist.
“I can continue,” he smiled faintly, before whispering, “Thank you.”
Dawn had broken by the time you’d wrapped up the issue, and with how awake you now both were, it made no sense to try and go back to sleep.
“Come on, let’s get ready for the day. If nothing else it means we’ll be first in line for breakfast!” you said, giggling as you grabbed some belongings and headed into the en-suite to shower.
Jack smiled back at you, relief washing over him. He’d opened up to you in the last few months more than he had to a lot of his coworkers in the last decade. And when it came to a secret he had sworn he’d take to the grave, not let anybody in on again? You accepted it and continued on like nothing had changed.
Because, for you, that was the case; nothing had changed.
But for Jack, it changed everything.
And with how he felt towards you, he was well and truly fucked.
Imagine a scenario where Maul didn't die because Obi-wan didn't hit the second heart (I'm delusional) and Maul just Minecraft-style revives and wanders around a little bit, because I'd think that after all that, you'd kind of need some time to yourself to think, and then he hears from someone that Emperor Palpatine is dead, and when he asks who killed him, he says that Palpatine was in a room with Darth Vader and Luke Skywalker and Luke was the only one to make it out alive, and Maul makes it his mission to find Luke
And then Maul starts to have this whole, awesome image of who Luke Skywalker must be, only to see it's a moisture farming blonde twink and he just kinda stares for a minute, like, "this child killed Sidious???"
And then he's finally told it was actually Vader who killed Sidious, and he's given this whole lore drop before he pretty much adopts Luke and becomes his self-proclaimed bodyguard
Dude would be so mad, he'd probably assume "I finally get an apprentice figure!" And then he learns this kid was already trained by his enemy, and in that moment, he's struggling to keep up this redemption streak
Thinking about... how Maul would draw small circles on your thighs under the table to distract himself from boredom if he ever found himself in a meeting, his short nails leaving faint marks in your skin.
Thinking about... how the pressure of his fingertips would change if someone made him angry, and his grip would increase, leaving deeper marks in your skin, sometimes drawing blood.
Thinking about... how he'd immediately soften his grip once he heard your muffled whimper of discomfort next to him, not wanting to alert everyone else at the table what was happening.
Thinking about... how, in the privacy of your apartment later that night, he'd kiss your thighs all over by means of apology, leaving soft marks in his wake instead as he vowed to never hurt you again (unless you wanted him to).
Could I get a little one shot with a Pedro boy in the Tardis with the Doctor? Maybe Din? Imagine Din trying to understand the Tardis! 😆 I'm also pretty sure Captain Jack and Oberyn would get on like a house on fire!
A/N: Mel, my dear, this ask has had me listening to Murray Gold's soundtrack all evening. Specifically the track "Tooth and Claw" for some reason! That being said, it has resulted in a short (by my standards, anyway) one-shot, as requested! Also, the mind races at the thought of Captain Jack and Oberyn. Consider that one pencilled in...Enjoy!
Bess xx
Dancing at the Edge of Disaster
11th Doctor x Din Djarin x F!Reader
Teen & Up / T+ / 13 + (Some swearing, mild affection)
Wc: 2.8k
Tags: Ship breakdown, canon-typical silly behaviour from The Doctor, reader insert, non-sexual but we still fancy Din Djarin in this house, helmetless Din.
Landing inside the Razor Crest, Din enlists your help to get his ship moving through hyperspace again.
A03 Link | Masterlist
The TARDIS shook as The Doctor landed it, but you clung to the railings for a beat longer out of slight fear.
“What the hell happened? Where are we?” you asked. The Doctor straightened up, heading over to the panel above the controls to get a reading.
“It…it doesn’t say,” was all he said, running a hand through his hair, panic setting in. “It looks like we’ve been forced to land, though.”
“That explains the rough landing,” you said, finally letting go and heading over to him to read the panel yourself. But all the information you were used to reading was absent, and in its place was a dark screen.
“Can we take off?” you asked. The Doctor reached out and flicked a few switches, frantically pulled levers, but alas it was to no avail. He shook his head before loosening his bowtie; a telltale sign that he was stressed, and in way over his head.
“No, she-,” he caressed the console, “she’s locked herself down”.
“So we have no choice but to find out where we are?” you asked, slightly giddy. The last time the TARDIS had needed to make an emergency landing like this you’d ended up in an entirely new pocket universe, and had spent four days on some of the most beautiful planets you’d ever seen in your time travelling.
The Doctor, usually ever enthusiastic, pressed his lips together firmly, then pointed at you.
“You,” he began, walking up to you, “should not be this happy about what is potentially a massive cock up,” he said. You giggled, closing the gap and re-tying his bowtie, trying to calm him down.
“Relax, Doctor. It will be fine,” you said, “Come on, let’s-”.
A loud bang at the door changed your tune rather swiftly, and you found yourself grasping his hand on instinct. He took yours in his, before guiding you behind him, further away from the door.
“Nothing can get through that…right?” you asked. The Doctor gulped, then shook his head.
“It’s rare, but…some things can. It all depends on what’s on the other side of that door”.
But your questions were soon answered as the TARDIS doors flew open. With a loud bang, they smashed against the walls behind them, and you flinched as a cloud of smoke billowed in through the open door. Evidently someone had been using something externally to break into the doors, and you’d only heard the bang once they’d deactivated the shield.
Tensing his hand in yours, The Doctor removed his sonic screwdriver from his jacket and activated it, trying to get a reading on anything that might be approaching. You didn’t fully understand the technology at hand, but you knew enough to ascertain that it certainly wasn’t about to act as a weapon. Your eyes darted around the control room for anything that could be useful for self defence, but with the exception of a fire extinguisher on the lower deck, there was nothing. Being a pacifist was a very attractive quality in The Doctor, but it did rather metaphorically shoot you in the foot when it came to things like this.
The screwdriver came back with a reading, but not in a language either of you had a hope of understanding. The Doctor hit the shaft of the tool on the console, hoping it would recalibrate itself, but to no avail. You were trapped in your own ship, unable to leave, not knowing what was coming next.
“I’m sorry,” he whispered, turning to face you, “This is my fault”.
“Save the apologies for later, Doctor,” your heart pounded as you watched a figure enter the TARDIS in your peripheral vision, “We’ve got company”.
The Doctor turned his head and watched as a man entirely in silver entered the TARDIS; heavy boots clanging against the metal floor as he walked in. He held some kind of gun in his hand, and his entire body was covered in a dark material, adorned with metal plates acting like armour. If you had indeed fallen into another universe, you assumed that before you was a warrior, whom you didn’t even know if you’d be able to communicate with.
Fantastic.
The man walked a few paces in, but soon that nervousness you felt in their presence dissipated. The familiar confusion of someone unaware of the TARDIS mechanics walking in for the first time, and desperately trying to piece together how a ship could possibly be bigger on the inside than the outside.
You couldn’t help but chuckle as the man pivoted on his axis, turning in all directions to gaze at the interior, his lack of understanding evident even without seeing his face. The Doctor grinned with you, noticing how your grip on his hand lessened with each passing second. He was just glad you were alright…
“What the Kriff,” came a modulated voice from the mystery man before you. Now, it was The Doctor’s time to shine.
“She’s a beauty, isn’t she?” he said. The metal man’s head whipped back in your direction, almost startled that he knew how to speak. You wondered, depending on where he was from, if he wasn’t expecting the two of you to sound so similar to him.
“Oh, good, you speak Basic,” was all he said as he holstered his weapon, before tentatively walking over towards you.
“Basic?” you queried to yourself in a whisper, before realisation dawned that ‘Basic’ would just be this man’s language. At least the TARDIS’ translation system was still up and running, even if nothing else was.
“Listen, I’m sorry to intrude, but I need your he- wow how big is this vessel?” the man replied as he stepped up to the console, his helmeted head still gazing around.
“I believe we may need your assistance as well,” The Doctor said, before outstretching his free hand, “I’m The Doctor, captain of this ship. This one behind me is my companion,” he said, introducing you to the man by name. You smiled over at him and watched as the two men shook hands, thankful that was a universally recognised gesture for friendliness and introduction.
“I’m Din. Din Djarin,” he said, “What is this place?”.
“Well, before I answer that, I’d like to ask where we landed. And, more importantly, why you’ve grounded my ship,” The Doctor said, finally releasing your hand from his and turning his attention to the console, “And, while you’re in my house, it’s rather rude to not take your hat off,” he joked, leaning forward and tapping the man’s helmet.
“I took a vow. I shall not show my face,” Din explained.
“Why’s that?” you asked, feeling braver, and intrigued by this man.
“I’m a bounty hunter by trade. Never revealing my identity keeps me safe.”
“Can’t argue with that,” you shrugged.
“Very well,” The Doctor smiled, “So, back to my question. Where are we?”.
Din gave some co-ordinates that seemed unfamiliar to you both - their format was entirely different to anything you’d ever seen, which made you see that you were in fact in another universe entirely.
“Your ship landed in mine. I locked it down with carbonite clasps and then worked on getting inside, assuming you were pirates trying to rob me. Figured I’d get to you first,” Din explained.
“Well, I can safely say we are not that at all. Just two travellers who have somehow crossed over the space-time continuum barrier…again,” you said, throwing subtle shade at The Doctor who simply rolled his eyes.
“Will you shut up,” he teased back, leaning over to ruffle your hair. Din coughed softly, not wishing to intrude but being a man of efficiency he had very little time for pleasantries.
“Yes, my good man! So, what can we help you with?” The Doctor asked.
“My ship; she’s compromised. Now I am satisfied that neither of us are intending to harm the other, I am curious if there may be anything aboard your vessel which could get mine back up and running?” he asked.
“What’s the problem with it?” you asked.
“My shields. They got damaged recently, and until they’re fixed I cannot go into hyperspace. Without that function, I don’t have enough fuel to make it to the next engineer's port. In a way you two arriving on board was somewhat of a miracle - if you can help me?”
The TARDIS had always been good at getting you where you were needed; even if that wasn’t where you necessarily wanted to be. The Doctor smiled at Din’s explanations, knowing that his own ship had done just that once again, including breaking some serious rules of time travel to do so. Whoever this man was was clearly destined for so much more if the universe - any universe - knew him staying alive was of paramount importance.
“I’m sure we can. Show me to your ship!”.
Din led you both out of the TARDIS and into his own ship - The Razor Crest. Inside felt like an aircraft carrier with how large it was. It was hard to believe that he piloted this ship on his own. You remained downstairs while Din showed The Doctor upstairs to the cockpit and to show him what repairs he needed.
Within minutes a flash of tweed ran past you, The Doctor’s excitable and child-like charm taking over. It wasn’t often he was tasked with fixing anything as complex as the Razor Crest, with maintenance to his own ship seemingly not being as interesting anymore. Then again, after 1100 years of looking after the same piece of equipment, you imagined that it must all feel routine nowadays.
You and Din stepped back inside and watched from the sidelines as The Doctor rifled through boxes of parts, determined to find something so specific.
“Is he always like this?” Din asked, his arms folded and body leaning against the wall of the TARDIS. You chuckled, nodding.
“More often than not,” you said.
“Aha!” The Doctor exclaimed, pulling a mass of wires and parts out of the box.
“Got what you need?” you asked, to which he excitedly hurried over with a grin on his face.
“Yep! Din, are you happy for me to go ahead and make a start on repairs?” he asked.
“Of course. Thank you, kind sir,” Din said.
“Don’t mention it, seriously. I’ll leave you in my companion’s capable hands here. Don’t worry, she doesn’t bite!” The Doctor teased, too excited to even consider waiting for anyone to join him before he’d bolted out the door.
“I’m sorry about him. He does rather love the maintenance aspect of piloting a ship. And yours is new, and different. I’ll probably be hearing about this for weeks,” you chuckled, heading into the main hub of the TARDIS now that The Doctor had gone.
“Then I’m sorry too,” Din said, and you could have sworn that you heard a faint chuckle beneath that helmet.
“So, while we wait, what do you say? A tour of the place?” you offered.
“There’s more?!”
You guided Din through the halls of the TARDIS, showing him anything you think he may find interesting or unique - everything from control rooms, the mechanics beneath the main control room, right down to the library. Of course, the one with the swimming pool.
He stood bewildered at everything you showed him, unable to comprehend the technology that went into this ship. He asked about it, how it came to be, and while you weren’t the most clued up on the hows and the whys, you were able to give him enough information about Time Lord technology that it seemed to satisfy his curiosity. Clearly extra-terrestrial life was less of an unfamiliar concept to him as it was to you, a human, as he seemed not the slightest bit phased at the concept of a man from another world.
“Living out in space would certainly be a damn sight more comfortable in a ship like this,” Din said as you returned to the main console room. You smiled, then leant on the control panels to face him.
“It’s not bad, especially considering we can be gone for real-life weeks at a time,” you said, watching Din as he began admiring the main console’s many buttons and levers.
“Try months,” he chuckled, “What does this do?” he said, pointing to a lever. You chuckled to yourself.
“That’s just the parking sensor,” you said.
“Seriously?,” you nodded, “Okay, what about…this?” he pointed to another switch.
“That one’s labelled! Read it yourself!” you teased. Din cleared his throat.
“Ah, so it is. Apologies, my visor…not the easiest thing to see out of.”
“So, take it off? Just while you’re in here,” you said, “We’ve already established I’m not even from your universe. Surely that’s a loophole in itself?”. Din laughed to himself, then shrugged.
“You actually make a good point. Besides, it would be so good to see what that beautiful face of yours actually looks like properly,” he said, and you felt yourself burning with embarrassment at the same time.
“Din!” you laughed, “Do they teach you to be so cheeky with women where you’re from?” you asked. Din shook his head, before lifting his hands to the rim of his helmet. It hissed faintly as he pushed upwards, removing it entirely, revealing the man beneath.
Oh, my stars.
“I don’t know,” came his unmodulated voice, “Did they teach you to be so gorgeous where you’re from?”.
“Good genes,” you winked, smiling as you observed him. Distinct jawline, a slight bit of scruffy facial hair, dark brown curls, and a nose you could only compare to that of a Roman God’s. It was a shame he spent his life hiding, to be fair.
Din resumed looking over every aspect of the control panel, tentatively sliding levers and pushing buttons (with your guidance, of course) to get a feel for the ship and trying desperately to understand its technology. You admired his amazement with every explanation of what each element did, and for a brief moment he appeared to be shades of your Doctor. That wonderment, the child-like fascination; you wondered if it was in all male, humanoid species, or if you’d just been lucky enough to find two men so similar in their interest, yet polar opposites in every other way.
Soon, The Doctor returned. Bounding up the stairs to the control panel, he greeted you with a soft kiss to the cheek, his arm snaking around your waist - a small affection which had become more prevalent as of late. You smiled at his touch, then laughed as he paused, pointing towards a now helmetless Din.
“What changed your tune?” he asked.
“Your companion here,” Din nodded towards The Doctor’s arm wrapped around you, “made the argument that as we’ll never cross paths again, there was no real harm. That, and I wanted to be able to read and understand as much of this ship as possible. This really is such an amazing vessel you have. Part of me wishes I were a pirate so that I might take some parts for my own use…,” he joked.
“She’s the best. I trust you’ve been given a guided tour?” The Doctor asked. Din nodded, grinning.
“I gotta find a way to get a swimming pool in my ship,” he chuckled, “Speaking of, were you successful in your repairs?”.
“Yes! She’s all up and running, your shield systems are back online!”.
“That’s brilliant, thank you. I’ll be on my way then - not before unclasping you, though,” Din said, reaching for his helmet, “Is there anything I can do to repay you for your kindness?” he asked.
You both shook your heads. This is what you did; and it’s why you travelled together. Making a difference, one place at a time.
“There’s no need, Din,” you said, “Just take care of yourself?”.
Din nodded, taking one last look around the TARDIS before putting his helmet back on, and heading towards the door. The two of you waved over at him as he stepped outside, closing the door behind him.
As Din deactivated the carbonite clips from the TARDIS exterior, the ship wobbled inside, clearly trying to take off. The Doctor practically fell on top of you as it did, his gangly legs doing nothing to stop himself from stumbling.
“Sorry!” he said, moving himself from pressing into you on the console, watching as all you managed was to laugh at him.
With the TARDIS free, you managed to set off back towards your own universe. However you’d fallen through into this galaxy, you figured the ride back out into your own was going to be a rocky one.
“I’d hold onto something,” The Doctor cautioned you, clinging himself to the control panel as he steadied the TARDIS in preparation to punch through out into deep space.
“A bit rich coming from you, no?” you teased given his earlier fall, but heeding his warning.
“Shut up!” he laughed, before pushing the main control lever up and setting in motion a violent descent back to your own universe. The TARDIS hummed into action, the familiar sound of her dematerialising whirring in your ears before the engines fired up and began forcing their way out of this galaxy.
Oh Bess this was so cute! Thank you for writing it! I can just imagine Din on the TARDIS trying to comprehend how it works. And I can totallys see Grogu getting lost inside it :D
May I add you to my Kingsman writers list and do you have any rules? Also do you write for Harry hart?
Hi you! I don't have any hard and fast rules, I assess fics on more a case by case basis. The only request I've turned down is from someone who wanted to see Ginger as a hostage and was more concerned with how she'd be tied up and what she was wearing than anything else...the vibes weren't there for me personally!
And yes I would LOVE the write for Harry! I've flirted with ideas from him in the past but nothing has stuck 😫
Obi-Wan tenderly kissing Satine's hand and being too devastated by her death to fight back is everything to me.
I'm so glad he was the one who kill Maul... He didn't do it for vengeance for Qui Gon and Satine, but he could at last, in his own words to Ezra, "mend this old wound". I think that it (along with seeing Luke escape and ready to fulfill his destiny of course) helped him die in peace when the moment came.
(Also, idk if it was intentional but he killed him as fast as Maul killed Satine... While getting inspiration for Maul's fight with Qui Gon. Poetry.)
The Mandalorian and Grogu was a movie-length Clone Wars episode with the grittiness/violence of The Mandalorian and the whimsy/wholesomeness/goofiness of Rebels and I am 110% here for it
Being a fanfic writer essentially boils down to doing nothing for weeks and then suddenly finding two very opposing characters bouncing around your head simultaneously and not knowing which to pay attention to first
They're like two toddlers constantly nagging their mother (me) for me to look at the new cool thing they learnt (spoiler alert, it isn't all that cool. Put the trauma down, Jack. You too, Maul. I can't have you both act out).
So yeah, I'm now sitting here like this, asking for a FUCKING BREAK.
Darth Maul x F!Reader
Explicit / E / 18+. (Minors DNI please)
WC: 7.8k
Mini-series WC: Currently 10.2k. (Estimated 20-25k)
Tags (this chapter only): Reuniting, pet names, possessive Maul, soft Maul, Maul being in love and not realising it yet duh, meeting Devon, frisky kissing, i.e. Maul can't keep his mouth off yours, promises, this got soppy and emotional fast, Maul cries a little.
You arrive on Dathomir and reunite with Maul after months of agonising and pining. Getting used to your new surroundings, he introduces you to his new padawan, before making you an offer you were hard pressed to refuse.
Tag List (based off last chapter and comments!): @maulsdear , @the-blind-assassin-12 , @darth-grogu , @blackdreamwarmachine , @dathomirdarling , @saturnw0rld , @aniskywalker501 , @sweetlittlehawke , @bloodmoon-bites , @cr1tfaill , @solanawritestbb , @mollylou12 , @ux-l3ee , eyesinmymindinmay , @bloodmoon-bites , @inkybyl , @anisslutttt
<- Prologue | A03 Link | Mini-Series Masterlist | Main Masterlist
A/N: Well, I took my sweet time on this one, but it got to be a lot more than I anticipated setting up Dathomir! I still have much more to come with that part of it, but I was eager to let reader and Maul finally reunite. Chapter 2 is already underway, so fingers crossed that shouldn't take too long! Spoiler alert: It's where we finally get it on with our Zabrak 😝 If you haven't been tagged and would like to for the subsequent parts, let me know!
Pulling yourself out of hyperspace sent a jolt of electricity through your body; something you hadn’t felt in a long while. You’d flown intergalactically with the Jedi in times past, but given everything that had happened in the last few solar cycles, it rather felt like a whole other universe away now. Sometimes the memory felt so distant you wondered if it had ever happened in the first place.
You caught your breath as the ship stabilised itself in the new part of the outer-rim, all the new modified tech on board doing its part to scan the surrounding area and get a sense for what you were heading into. For as much research as you’d tried to do during your time away from Maul, there had been little useful information you could find about Dathomir. All you really had which was concrete was the co-ordinate you were given; everything else was a mystery.
You arrived on Dathomir three day cycles after leaving Janix, if your count was accurate. Time fell into a bit of a flux in hyperspace, especially in a ship where you didn’t have a whole lot of room to manoeuvre, and so nothing to do. The best you could manage was sliding out of the cockpit into a small holding beneath the controls to try and lay down, allowing the autopilot to steady you during your flight. But how much you’d actually managed to sleep since leaving, you were unsure. Between the sheer boredom, the anxiety bubbling up for your impending arrival, plus an…awkard, way of using a toilet (aiming into a receptacle wasn’t your favourite thing, but needs must…), you were itching to depart the ship.
Steadying the ship, you took her out of autopilot, and slowly began to take back control. Minute by minute, you began to descend on the red planet below you, the hairs on the back of your neck prickling in anticipation - almost like you could feel Maul’s presence again.
It didn’t appear to be nighttime, according to your on-board navigation system which could analyse the local time of any world, but even so the planet seemed dark and uninviting, with deep red clouds surrounding your ship as you descended onto the planet. You wondered if under normal circumstances you’d fear the planet you were descending on - the dark, looming atmosphere, faint lightning strikes in the upper ozone layer, and the noticeable chill you felt running down your spine as you navigated the changing air pressure on entry to the planet. But this was different, and there was nothing that would stop you; not even the darkest pits of hell would hold you back from getting here.
Following the last of the coordinates down to a T, you slowly dipped in through Dathomir’s atmosphere, your ship rumbling as you entered the ozone on entry. Nothing you couldn’t handle, but with how simultaneously excited and nervous you were about seeing Maul, it was enough to almost send your stomach to doing backflips. You gripped the relevant controls as you steadied your ship’s descent, stabilising the aircraft and eventually guiding yourself down through the clouds, beyond the vast red forest of the planet and heading over towards a clearing.
The coordinates took you through the overgrown landscape, across the red waste, and towards a small area which appeared to have signs of life. Small buildings, scattered lights, and a few smoke trails from small fires; all of which appeared controlled, so you assumed they were for food or warmth. By the side of the village was a small patch of land with rudimentary markings on the ground, clearly designed for some kind of vehicle. You wondered if this was a permanent addition, or if it was something Maul had constructed for your arrival. Smiling faintly to yourself at the thought, even as absurd as it was, you inputted your final calculations and began your landing.
The force of your ship whipped the wind up around you, resulting in one of the open fires out by a building to be entirely extinguished. There was an element of guilt from causing that, but if the option for a smaller spacecraft had come up you knew you’d have taken it. At the end of the day you were working with what you could.
The hydraulics in the craft hissed below you as the landing gears retracted from their holsters, lowering with the ship’s speed, readying themselves for the weight of the vessel to be bestowed upon them. With a small bite of your lip, an unintentional marker of your concentration, you prayed that the adjustments you’d done to the landing gear would be sufficient. This ship had been beaten up badly when you got your hands on it, and there were a lot of parts that were getting tested for the first time today. Not your finest idea, but there had been no time like the present to head off Janix…
Finishing the landing, you braced yourself for final impact, but not needing it as the ship landed with relative ease. You were amazed you’d executed it so flawlessly, especially given how long it had been since you’d needed to land something of this size. Exhaling sharply, you felt all the tension you had built up inside you from the journey dissipate in one single go. You were here. You were safe. And as you looked out of the cockpit onto the ground below, a single figure seated nearby made you realise that you were also home.
Maul.
There was no mistaking him, even from this distance. The flashes of his red skin shone out at you from beneath the billowing black cloak he donned, hiding the signature v-neck of his outer clothing, a piece you admittedly found far more attractive than you’d ever let him know about.
You wondered if he’d sensed your arrival, or instead had he been sitting waiting for weeks for you to show up? Either way, seeing Maul for the first time made your heart thud in your chest and hairs stand on end.
Disabling the cockpit roof, a hiss of air sounded as the pressure restabilised itself with the new planet you found yourself on, and the lid of the ship came off above you. Eager to get down to Maul, you left your belongings for the time being, opting to come back later to retrieve them. You slipped off the side of the ship, grabbing onto a ladder which dropped down to the ground upon the ship steadying itself on flat ground, and landed with a small thud.
You felt his presence shift behind you as you released your hands from the ladder, and it was hard to conceal the small smile which had adorned your face. You turned slowly to see him walking towards you, donned in his signature outfit, but with a longer black cloak than usual, and a staff for walking. Two things you hadn’t immediately noticed, which made concern pang in your stomach at the sight of him using a walking aide, but you figured he’d tell you his reasoning all in good time. Right now you just needed to be with him.
He’d waited so long. Agonising every moment where his communication link with you didn’t sound - he knew why you had delayed, that it was for his safety, and you would very likely call any day. But he cursed himself for making the one-way device be dictated by you and your decision, rather than his own. Then again, would he have needed it if the decision was his? He’d have swept you up and brought you along had you said that you were willing - risk everything to have you by his side. But with what he’d been through, there was a large part of Maul that was glad he didn’t listen to his lustful side at that moment. Had you gotten hurt…he would never be able to enact enough revenge to make up for your death.
He watched you descend the ladder, a sense of pride filling him. You had procured your own means of getting here, without any assistance, by the looks of things. He always knew you were smart and capable, but even he was coloured impressed. Maul smiled as he watched you climb down, taking some agonising steps over toward you to close the gap, ignoring the searing pain he felt with each movement. The pain he felt was replaced with how proud he was, and something else, far more unfamiliar to the former Sith…
But what that was? That was a question for another day.
“Hello stranger,” you said as you turned around, playfully grinning over at Maul. Had someone told you while you worked in the Jedi temple that one day you would be so besotted with a Sith that you would go to such lengths to be by his side, and that you would greet such a man with a wide smile, you’d have told them to shut their mouth and stop being ridiculous. And yet, here you were.
Maul bridged the gap between the two of you, getting close enough that you could see familiar scars across his cheek and neck which you’d tended to in the months gone by. Close enough that you could smell his deliciously masculine musk, a scent you’d learned wasn’t artificial in any way, it was just how he smelt. Maker, have mercy.
“I’m impressed,” Maul said as he nodded his head in the direction of your ship, his deliciously smooth voice seeping into your very core as he spoke, “I was wagering with my brothers as to which individual would owe you a favour big enough to bring you out here. But, no. My girl brings her own Delta-7.”
Your stomach flipped at the term “my girl” Maul used so effortlessly with you - like it was second nature, he didn’t even have to contemplate it, it was fact. Maybe it was? You weren’t entirely sure how many romantic interests he might have had during his life, but you knew from working with him what a possessive nature he had. It wouldn’t surprise you if he had already made up his mind about the two of you in your absence.
Another question for later.
“She’s a beaut, ain’t she?” you said, diverting attention to the ship. You wanted nothing more than to completely close that gap, a small one which now felt like a chasm, and to have him wrap you up in his arms. But you’d restrain, being so used to only seeing him in private, it somehow didn’t feel right to make such a public display right now - not that there seemed to be many people around.
Maul chuckled to himself, grasping his staff firmly as he moved ever so closer to you, nodding softly beneath his hood.
“Are we still talking about the ship?” Maul spoke softly, and with such a genuine smile you could be forgiven for thinking this man had never done anything wrong in his entire life. He then leaned down to whisper in your ear, his free hand landing on your hip to stabilise himself against you; “I missed you”.
You gasped softly at his words, your faces now so agonisingly close that your nose brushed against the side of his cheek, and there was nothing more that you wanted than to lock his lips with yours and drown in his very being. You never expected Maul of all people to be so forward with his advances - perhaps this separation had affected you both more than what you expected. While you had pined in silence, working yourself to the bone to make sure that you could one day be at his side, you wondered what the distance had done for him. Driven him mad? Made him crave you? Need you?
These questions were beginning to pile up…
“I missed you too,” you said softly, and watched as the corners of his mouth turned upwards at the exchange of mutual feelings. His fingers dug into your hip softly, his hand flexing in instinct with his smile, and he had to resist the urge to pull your body into his.
“Come on, let me show you around,” he said, removing his hold from your body and instead outstretching one gloved hand, the other still grasping the staff. You took it without hesitation, and allowed Maul to lead you away from the ship and towards the settlement.
There were far more homes here than there were lives, by the looks of things. A few women wandered around, but there was no real community feel here. You wondered what could have happened here to result in so few members, but in the wake of Order 66 you figured that whatever that answer was wasn’t going to be a positive one. This wouldn’t be the only corner of the galaxy to be ravaged by the Empire’s cruel deeds.
“I’ll introduce you properly to everyone soon. I imagine you’re tired, yes?” Maul said, gently squeezing your hand as you walked. You nodded, feeling slightly guilty that your interest didn’t lie remotely in getting to meet people; you were just glad to be back by his side again. There were only a few faces you’d seen so far, but none seemed all that interested in whatever the two of you were doing. Your guess was that they knew who you were already from Maul, and were giving you a grace period to settle in.
“If that’s alright?” you asked, and Maul nodded in response.
“Of course. Follow me,” he said, leading you both towards a home on the outskirts of the small village you wandered through.
Maul pushed the door open with one of his feet, seemingly refusing to let go of you now that you were back by his side. The metal door creaked and opened out into a small house, probably no more than three rooms in size. But in spite of its small space, it was still a lot larger than what you had back on Janix.
The main room appeared to be set up as a living quarter, with a small kitchenette aside a seating area, plus cabinets for storage. The other two rooms which jettisoned off the side of the right hand wall appeared to be a fresher, and therefore you assumed the other would be a bedroom.
There was very little in the way of furnishings, giving the property not a lot of character. You wondered what it might have once looked like - was this how Dathomirians lived, or had this place been ransacked recently? Either was possible.
Maul spoke, interrupting the tangent your mind was wandering down with millions of questions as to the details of the building. You often did fixate on the strangest of things.
“It’s yours,” Maul said.
“Mine?” you queried, furrowing your brow as you turned to look up at him.
“Yes,” he chuckled, “Figured I best get you someplace to live as you’d managed to get all the way out here,” he said, squeezing your hand in his.
You spent a moment looking around, even daring to let go of Maul’s hand to do so. It certainly would be an ample home for you, and to say he was just giving it to you there was a part of you that didn’t want to question it - surely that would be ungrateful? But there was a niggling question you had, and you couldn’t stop yourself from asking it even if you tried.
“Where do you live, then?” you asked.
“In the next village over. Dathomirians often separate villages by gender; Nightbrothers and Nightsisters in two separate camps, but close by. Walking distance, even by my standards,” Maul chuckled, tapping one of his metal legs with his staff, making a clanking noise. You laughed through your nostril at the noise, sensing he was absolutely using humour to deter you from sensing what damage likely laid beneath the clothing on those legs.
“Oh, I see,” you said. It wasn’t intentional that it came out sounding so disappointed, but you couldn’t help it. Months of being apart to now find the two of you would be separated, even if it was due to tradition?
“Is that…okay?” Maul asked. You forced a smile, shaking your head quickly, then nodded.
“I mean, of course. I’m very grateful, Maul, really. But… I’m not a nightsister. And I have missed you,” you chuckled, a little cheeky and absolutely pushing your luck here. Maul smirked, and that glint in his eyes was something you’d only ever seen when the two of you were last together - moments before he ripped your trousers off and dived into your cunt tongue first.
“My clever girl, I’d never say no to more of your presence,” he smiled, “Okay, how about this. Did you bring the equipment I asked for?” he asked.
“Yes”.
“Perfect. Then this,” he gestured around the room, with his staff, “can be your new workshop”.
“And all the rest of the time, I’m…?” you wondered, not wanting to assume.
“With me. If you want it. I don’t wish to impose…,” he grinned, “but fuck tradition. I respect the upbringing I had here, but it’s been a long time since I lived here full time. Our numbers dwindle every year, too. Perhaps it is time for a new way of living. The old ways are stifling, and I’ll be the first to admit I had hoped you would potentially oppose the separated living arrangement”.
Something akin to relief washed over you at his words. Even with all the small touches, the odd pet name, Maul’s defiance in the face of tradition which intended to keep you apart spoke volumes for how he actually felt. For the first time since you arrived, your boldness seared through your body and erupted at the surface, giving you the strength to ask for something you’d longed for since arriving.
“Maul?”.
“Yes?” he replied softly.
“Kiss me,” you whispered, bravery surging through you. Maul grinned at the request, and took the hood of his cloak down. For the first time in months you gazed upon his signature horns, and memories surged through your mind of your fingers weaving between them as Maul devoured you on his knees. You felt your face erupt with a heat at the thought as you watched Maul walk over to you, making up the gap you created since exploring the room.
The hues of the lights outside shone through the window, making his normally red and black skin seem even more crimson. He almost seemed to glow, his eyes now piercing through the shrouded dark room, finding yours and fixating on holding your gaze. With every step he took, your breath quickened, anticipation sending jolts of excitement through your limbs.
Maul caressed one of your cheeks once he reached your side, his hand cupping your jaw, and then leant forward. His lips caught yours in a tender kiss, one of longing and yearning all wrapped into one. You placed your hands on his chest as the two of you stood embracing one another, fused by your lips and drinking in every morsel of each other. You forgot how soft he could kiss, how gentle a man fuelled by rage and hate could be - with you, he was a new man entirely, focused less on revenge and more on making every part of you feel like it was alive with pleasure.
The two of you exchanged soft moans between your lips as you deepened the kiss, Maul’s tongue sliding past your parted lips and exploring your mouth. Every time he kissed you it was as if he was committing the shape, feel, and taste of you to memory - almost worried that one day you would be gone, and his chances would be over.
The kiss may have started out tender and gentle, but soon it became a struggle for dominance - teeth and lips clattered together, your bodies pushed against each other, desperately trying to get closer. In all the commotion, Maul dropped his staff, letting it crash down onto the ground as he wrapped his arm around you. You felt his balance briefly destabilise as he let go of it, but you never stopped the assault on one another. You simply wrapped your own arms around his body now, using yourself as a support for him, while Maul clung to your jaw and waist like you were his lifeline.
A low growl came from Maul as he took a few staggered steps forward, pressing your body into the nearby wall. Suddenly months of tension were being teased out of their prisons, and with each subtle roll of his hips into yours, a shudder of pleasure surged through your body. You let him do whatever he wanted, not one to ever get in the way of Maul and his desires in the first place, but not wanting to either. With each small thrust came a grunt against your lips, Maul clearly holding back a little and getting himself frustrated in the process.
You moaned softly between kisses as you felt Maul press himself into you, his hardening length becoming more obvious with each roll of his hips. You couldn’t help but have a lightbulb moment that Maul still possessed something in which he could use for pleasure, and immediately you wanted nothing more than to find out whether it was cybernetic or biological. Whichever it was, it did nothing to quell your desire to have him take you here with all his force you knew he possessed…
Eventually your lips broke, both of you gasping for air after depriving yourselves of it for much longer than you’d needed to for months. The two of you stayed fused to one another, your eyes boring into one another’s, drinking in each other’s presence.
“I missed that,” you said softly, breaking the silence. Maul chuckled lowly, reaching back in to give you one final kiss, before pulling away. You watched as he limped away, leaning down to grab his discarded staff, soft moans of pain coming from his lips.
“As did I, my love,” he said as he stood back up, exacerbated. “Before we head home, I’ve just got one person I need you to meet, and then we can be on our way. Is that alright?” he asked.
“On one condition,” you said, standing rooted to the spot and still leaning against the wall, your curiosity getting the better of you.
“Name it,” Maul asked.
“What’s happened to your leg?” you asked, nodding your head in the direction of his right leg - the same one you treated last time. Maul pressed his lips together, a soft sigh leaving his nostrils - not one of annoyance at you, but more at disappointment at his own weakness.
“Can I show you later, when we’re home? It might be easier to understand what’s going on if I do,” he asked.
“Of course,” you nodded in agreement, pushing yourself off the wall, “Come on, then. Let’s go”.
Maul guided you out of the house and towards the rest of the village. There were even fewer women milling around than there had been earlier in the day, so your initial guilt at not wanting to meet with many new people while you were this exhausted soon gave way. The two of you walked a few minutes away from your new workshop towards another home, this one a little further out the way of the village. It was a similar size to yours, and appeared stylistically identical on the outside. Maul approached the door first, knocking on it with the tip of his staff.
“Come in,” came a female voice from the other side of the door. Nodding once, Maul pushed open the door and led you inside, his hand finding its way to clasp yours again.
“There’s someone I would like you to meet,” Maul spoke out into the room. From the shadows of one of the adjoining rooms, a young Twi’Lek girl showed herself, obviously who Maul had been addressing when he spoke. She nodded at Maul, before turning to face you, saying nothing to introduce herself.
You couldn’t put your finger on it, but something about her seemed familiar. Like you might have bumped into her before…but the piercing eyes, red and orange in colour, distracted you from figuring it out.
“This is my apprentice, Devon,” Maul said, introducing you to the young padawan by name. It started clicking into place - Maul had mentioned while the two of you worked together on Janix that there was a former Jedi whom he might be able to take under his wing, if the circumstances allowed for it. Evidently it had, but you did wonder what events had led to Devon even finding herself here in the first place.
“It’s nice to meet you,” you said, smiling softly. Devon just nodded, stoic. You could tell she was already shades of her master. Her eyes quickly darted down to where yours and Maul’s hands connected with another, and you thought there was a flicker of confusion there for a second. Perhaps she didn’t know about you yet? Or perhaps seeing her master like this with someone was just as jarring for her as the concept had been for you after your first kiss, all those moons ago. But no sooner did you think you saw it, the stoicism returned.
“You too,” was all the Twi’Lek could muster. Then again, she was a teenager, so you tried not to think much of her reaction.
“Devon here unfortunately lost her master back on Janix. After I had a plan in place to flee, I brought her along with me, promising to train her so that she too could get revenge on those who have wronged her. Just as I have been wronged my whole life,” Maul explained, his fingers flexing slightly in your hand as he spoke, reflecting on his own tormented past.
That was when it started clicking. Not only was this one of the accomplices that you’d seen in the wanted posters across Janix, but you knew her. Or, specifically, you’d worked with her master.
You released your hold from Maul and took a step towards Devon. She flinched slightly, clearly very wary and likely somewhat traumatised if she had witnessed her master die. You’d missed most of the initial outburst of Order 66, but you hadn’t been entirely spared from witnessing the relentless slaughter that had happened all around you. Men and women you worked with every day, struck down.
“I’m sorry for your loss, Devon. Master Daki was a good man,” you sympathised, remembering the day he had been assigned his padawan. His excitement had been so palpable you were amazed that the council didn’t intervene and accuse him of being too emotionally invested in the process.
“You deserve it, Daki. You’re a good man, and no doubt any padawan beneath your guidance will be one fine Jedi someday,” you’d said to him, fiddling under the bonnet of one of his speeders. Daki chuckled, too proud to admit you were possible right.
“You’re very kind to say so. I just hope I can keep them on the right path. The Dark Side grows ever stronger…,” he said.
You winced slightly at the memory. While you sided with Maul and his cause, it was a little painful to know that Daki had essentially failed in his mission to keep Devon from wandering astray. But, then again, every choice all three of you had made up to now led you all to be in this same room. A former Jedi, a former Sith, and a Jedi Temple Mechanic. Three very different lives, now conversed into one single home. Perhaps her turning was always an inevitability; as was yours.
Devon’s eyes widened at the mention of Daki, shock at the name mixed with the blindsightedness at you knowing who he even was to begin with. Her face softened for the first time since you set foot in this room, her brows no longer hardened and eyes slightly sparkling, even with the yellow scattered through what was once white.
“You…you knew my master?” she asked, and you nodded.
“I did. I once worked with the Jedi, as their mechanic. Sorted out a number of slightly dented speeders your master once had a go with,” you chuckled, and Devon smiled. For the first time, she seemed to relax.
Maul stood back and watched as the two of you chatted as if you had known each other your entire life. He’d had a hard time getting Devon to fully open up and trust him - not that he could blame her. Every lesson he taught her she was reluctant, and he figured that while she likely wanted revenge on all those who had wronged her, she likely still didn’t want to take it from him.
But then here you came, and like a beacon of hope he actually saw Devon smile for the first time ever. It was like you had shone a light and brightened up her darkness, shown her that there was still something worth fighting for. He smiled to himself as he watched the two of you talk, embrace, and Devon show you her lightsaber. One had sustained damage in her training, but Maul had no doubt that you would be able to fix it.
Selfishly, while he hadn’t known there was an existing connection between the two of you, he did now hope that Devon’s openness to you would help her to eventually warm up to him. He didn’t need Devon to like him, no more than anyone else anyway, but to be treated with respect would be all he asked. Perhaps your presence, and more so Maul’s association with you, would help thaw the ice in her heart that she had towards her new master.
Perhaps, if it did, he would finally have what he craved. In a twisted way as it was, he might finally have all the pieces together.
A family.
“Where did you find this one then, Maul?” Devon half-joked as you headed back to his side. You’d picked up on the palpable tension between the two of them and, sensing Devon still didn’t entirely trust Maul, you stood next to him and snaked your arm around his back. He turned to you, a faint smile on his face, as he reciprocated the affection. Wrapping his free arm around your shoulders, he couldn’t resist leaning in and placing a kiss atop your head.
“That, my dear padawan, is a story for another day. She’s tired. But I couldn’t not introduce the two of you,” he said. Devon smiled at him, a proper one this time, then nodded.
“Then I shall let you go back and rest,” she said, before turning to you, “Get the old man to bed, yeah?” she chuckled. You laughed, patting Maul on the back.
“I’ll get him back to the old people’s home,” you teased. Maul rolled his eyes as the two of you sniggered amongst yourselves. He was happy that you’d found common ground, and that perhaps a positive influence from you would help Devon to become her true self. But in that moment he cursed himself for ever thinking introducing you two was ever a good idea.
“Dank Farrik, I’m not even forty!” he said, squeezing you tighter.
“Sure, sure, whatever you say my love,” you said, not really thinking about the words that had just slipped from your lips. You coughed lowly, trying to hide it, “Come on, let’s go”.
The two of you left Devon and walked the short journey back towards where Maul lived. He was right, the distance wasn’t a lot, even for Maul and his obvious limp to get through. You continued to hold onto him, feigning it just being affectionate but secretly acting like another pillar of support for him. Whether he noticed or not you didn’t know, but he never once let go of you the whole journey back.
Maul’s village was almost as barren as the nightsister’s, with only a few other of Maul’s nightbrothers walking around. One or two stared at you for a few seconds longer than Maul liked, but in his state all he could do was grunt to himself and cling onto you tighter. You felt their eyes burn into the back of your head as you both headed down the winding roads, but you chose not to pay any heed to it. If tradition was anything to go by, you were likely the first female some of these men had ever seen outside of their immediate family.
Eventually you reached Maul’s home. It appeared the same as any of the houses nearby, nothing distinguishing it from your own or Devon’s. You weren’t sure what you expected his home to be, but you never expected something so rudimentary and simple. He opened the door with his shoulder, staggering at this point as the door moved out your way, and the two of you headed inside.
Only when the door shut behind you did Maul release you from what had become a very tight hold, evidenced by the finger marks he’d undoubtedly left in your shoulder. You rubbed it gently to stimulate blood flow as you watched Maul head into his home, pain evident with each step.
“I suppose you’re wanting me to keep up my end of the bargain now,” Maul said, removing his cloak upon entering his home. He also swapped out the larger walking staff to a shorter walking stick for helping him round the home.
“That was the deal,” you reminded him, removing your own cloak as you watched him head over towards the edge of his bed. Unlike your abode, Maul’s appeared to be three rooms but with a different layout. A living quarter combined with a bedroom was what you walked into, and then the two side rooms were the fresher and kitchenette. You followed him, sitting next to him on the edge of the mattress as your eyes transfixed on Maul as he half laid back, propped up by his arms, as he peeled back a layer of fabric over his leg.
What was laid bare before you was the previous work you had done to his leg utterly obliterated. A gash no shallower than four inches long, and half the width of his leg, burned itself into his upper thigh, exposing wires and metal with nothing covering it. Your heart broke for Maul, recognising again that this was an injury from the hands of a lightsaber. But whoever wielded it packed a serious punch. To be honest you weren’t really sure how he’d walked today alone, let alone lived for over half a year with this.
But the reveal of his injury had you reeling in your mind as to your purpose here. That’s when things started to click into place. The resources he asked you to bring weren’t so that you could continue your business; they were for him. You couldn’t help it. For as sympathetic as you were, you had to ask.
“So, when were you going to reveal to me that the equipment I brought is for a new set of legs for you?” you asked.
“You’re more observant than I give you credit for. What gave it away?” he asked, flexing his leg at the hip slightly, clearly trying to alleviate some pain - and failing, too, if the look on his face was anything to go by. He breathed through it, but eventually gave up, opting to lay flat on his back. You remained seated.
“You’re in the place you were when you got your original legs, no? Which begs the question of why you haven't asked for new ones?” you said, not really posing it as a question he could get out of, more stating facts. He’d opened up to you about his first version of legs, after his brother had saved him and brought him to Dathomir. The identity of who did the second pair you were unsure, but you knew enough to know that he was in the right place to get some kind of help.
“Because I only trust you with that part of me now. After last time you fixed me…I don’t know, it began feeling far more intimate. I couldn’t bring myself to get anyone else to fix me - not even my own family. I may still need them for actually putting it together, but you’re the brains behind it all,” he explained.
It would be so easy to leave his reasoning at that, accept it and move on. Take it as a compliment that he had hung onto the vain hope that one day you would return by his side, and only then would he consider asking for any kind of help. But for as brilliant as Maul was, you also knew first hand that manipulation came so easy to him. You still needed to make sure of something…
There was a beat of silence for a moment longer than you realised, snapping back into reality only when Maul spoke again.
“Is that alright?” he asked.
“Is that all you wanted me here for, Maul?” you said, your voice laced with a bit of venom as you stood up. You knew that realistically this wouldn’t be the case, but putting him in such a position would get the truth out of him more efficiently than any other way you could imagine.
Maul’s head snapped up, turning to you as he pushed himself back up to sitting.
“No,” he said sternly, shades of the Dark Side leeching into his voice, a tone you’d not heard in nearly a year; “Never”.
“I wouldn’t be offended if it was. I would just appreciate it if you told me now,” you said, shrugging. Maul forced himself to sit up properly, then stand. You allowed him to suffer through the obvious pain, watching as he clamoured for the stick he relied on to rest his weight, no matter how much it pained you to see it. Maul was always a man of action, so his choice here to put himself in discomfort just to reassure you spoke far more than anything he could say.
Acta, non verba. Actions, not words.
“That isn’t the case; I promise. Don’t forget, my sweet, I gave you a way of contacting me. If I thought so little of you that I just saw you as a mechanic, after all this time, I’d have made sure I could have got in touch with you immediately. Or, better yet, I’d have taken you with me against your will,” he said, and you knew he was sincere. In spite of the vocal inflection he’d displayed moments before, his eyes seemed more gentle than you’d ever known them.
“I wouldn’t have minded,” you joked, trying to lighten the mood, happy with his answer. Maul shook his head.
“I know,” he chuckled, then cupped your cheek as he spoke, “But the truth is, I do think so much more of you. This relationship may have started out as a mutually beneficial arrangement; I got work done discreetly, you got my credits. But as time progressed, I began to feel as though you and I were destined to be so much more. It’s why I was so bold last time, and risked kissing you,” he smirked, “Amongst other things”.
“Still thinking about that then?” you teased - not like you weren’t thinking about it…
“You’re one to talk. Don’t forget I can sense a lot of what goes on in that head of yours,” he said, and you confirmed his suspicions with no protest, but an eye-roll; “But yes, I do. Every day until your call I thought of very little other than you”.
“Me too. It was torture being away, not knowing if you were alright,” you said, and Maul smiled taut, “...are you alright?” you asked, turning your head briefly to kiss his open palm.
“I’ve been better. I’ve been significantly worse,” he said, his hand dropping now to your waist.
“What happened?” you asked. Maul winced as he stood again, so you motioned to the bed. He didn’t even protest at your suggestion, and so the two of you sat on the edge of the bed.
You just let him speak. Maul was never going to be a man of many emotions, so you took any opening up as a huge win. As the night fell in, and the light of the room dimmed, you sat and listened to him explain everything. How he met Devon and Daki to begin with, Detective Lawson and his son Riley, who he’d at least had the honour to deliver to his mother along with the droid that accompanied them. His companions, including Rook Kast, dying one by one in his journey to leave Janix. How he was now head of Crimson Dawn, a far greater criminal enterprise than the Shadow Collective he had once been the head of. Everything, including how the Dark Lord himself had beaten Maul almost to death; him being the reason he had his injury in the first place.
“So now I’m laying low, controlling the syndicate from the shadows. Where I belong…,” he lamented. You slipped your hand into his, and Maul took it without hesitation.
“You don’t belong in the shadows, though. You’re powerful, a genius, and command respect like nobody I’ve ever met before. Why don’t you come forward?” you asked.
“I’m too weak,” he said, a sigh in his voice, “If Sidious found me as I am now, I hate to admit it but I’d be a dead man in minutes. I wouldn’t stand a chance.”
“You mean because of your legs?” you queried.
“In part. But also the knock on effect it has on everything. I’ve spent more instances coming to terms with my own mortality in this last half a year than I ever thought I would in my entire life. But with every spark of my leg, every shard of metal that came loose, it just reminded me that I wasn’t built to last - quite literally”.
“What do you mean?” you asked, squeezing his hand a little tighter.
“When Devon and I fought against the Dark Lord, I noticed he was similar to me. More metal than man - except he was even more. Both his legs, at least from the knees down, were completely cybernetic. His arms, too. But even behind his mask, I sensed that whatever man who laid in that body was now barely even a soul beneath that metal. The difference though was that he was built more like a machine, well maintained and powerful. Every hit with his saber was no match for mine. Meanwhile, I was bolted together by a group of rag-tag Mandalorians who didn’t give me more than a year to live when they made my legs. I was no match for him, ever. I was built to die”.
You could have sworn Maul’s voice cracked at that word: die. Death, and his own mortality, was something he’d never been far from his entire adult life. But, if you had to surmise, he’d perhaps not had to consider it quite so closely as since he was left to rot in a pile of nothing but trash, using the force and his own hatred to keep himself sustained.
Not wishing to put him through anymore, you grasped his face and turned his head towards your own, before meeting his lips with a soft kiss. He instantly kissed you back, one gloved hand caressing your hair as he deepened it, still somewhat unable to believe that you were back by his side.
Softly, your lips parted, and you rested your forehead against his.
“Tomorrow morning, I’ll start on your new legs. If my purpose here is to get you back where you should be, then I’ll be damned if I delay that another day”.
Maul screwed his eyes up, fighting back a few rogue tears that threatened to release themselves. He had never allowed himself to be so emotional around anyone, and a huge part of him wanted to not give in and to start that now. He had always been so strong, stoic, and unwavering in the face of anything difficult. But you threatened to break each and every wall he had put up around his heart, just by simply being.
He almost felt like he had no control around you. The way in which you had inserted yourself into his twin hearts would normally give him cause for concern - until you, the only thing he had ever been passionate about was spearing Sidious onto one end of his lightsaber. But with every passing moment, your presence began to take over those urges, and he finally yearned for something aside from revenge.
Love.
Maul softly rubbed the tip of his nose against yours, reaching forward to hold your body close to his, before speaking softly.
“Your purpose here can be so much more. I mean it when I say you’re not just a mechanic. By all means, that skill of yours will be exceptionally useful, and I will have no shortage of work for you both with my own maintenance but also work for Crimson Dawn. That I’ll never deny. But I want you by my side running the syndicate…if, you’ll have me?”.
Your heart thudded in your chest at his request, and you wondered if you might be getting in a little over your head here. Doing shady work for mob bosses was one thing, but publicly being seen as running something similar alongside Maul was never on the cards.
But then you remembered your vow you made to yourself; to get back to Maul, and to be by his side. If to be there meant to run a syndicate of your own with the intention to rival the Galactic Empire, then so be it. The connection you shared ran so much deeper than a simple mutually beneficial arrangement; that could no longer be denied. And for Maul to trust you so much now to even ask…how could you say no?
“I’ll have you, Maul,” you whispered, “You but only need to ask”.
Night fell, and as fatigue washed over you both after months of merely surviving, you fell asleep embracing one another, now finally able to start living. You revelled in the sensation of having Maul so close to you, a strange feeling to have his body wrapped around your own, but one you welcomed. His arms cradled you against his chest all night, and you wondered if he believed you wouldn’t be there come sunrise if he ever let go.
But with soft kisses, silent vows and promises were shared in the night - both of you committing yourself wholly to the other. Now, and always.
And for once, you felt an unfamiliar sensation.
The feeling of home.
<- Prologue | A03 Link | Mini-Series Masterlist | Main Masterlist | Next Part (COMING SOON) ->
