Animagus AU Little Rex and Bells
Rex was there now, and the long necks seem to have fully given up on putting him anywhere but in with Cody and Bells and their batchmates. Forty-Five called him an infiltrator spy, but Rex had to ask trainer Juels what that meant.
It meant he was sneaky and his ori’vod was upset about it. Good. Rex could be very sneaky.
He has his own bunk, but he never used it. That’s boring, why would he use a bunk all to himself when he could sleep with someone else? He would have to be stupid. Very stupid.
Cody tended to squirm when Rex was in his human form, like he wasn’t used to it, wasn’t sure how to handle himself, but he would settle down and sleep right away when Rex was in his rabbit form. Rex loved sleeping on his neck in that form. It’s where he felt warm and cozy.
Bells, on the other hand, was good to sleep on when he was human. He was perpetually grumpy and ill mannered, but he’d latch onto Rex with a tight grip and tug him close until Rex was snug in his arms. He likely would have squished Rex in his bunny form, but as a human, they could curl up into each other and it was the most comfortable way to sleep Rex had found in that form.
It didn’t occur to Rex that he’d never heard Bells laugh till now.
He gave a dreamy little sigh, sitting next to Cody on his bunk, while Bells laughed at a joke one of their unnamed brothers had made. “Is that why he’s named Bells?” His laugh was like a bell ringing so soft and light. Rex wanted to live in it.
Cody was looking at him like he might be a little slow from over the edge of his data pad. It was one of the trainers books, and Rex was fairly sure Cody wasn’t supposed to have it, but Cody was sneaky like Rex was.
“I think he’s called that because the trainers tried to use... they were experimenting with bells. And he liked them. So he stole the bells. I think.”
Rex’s next sigh was utterly besotted. He wondered if he could make Bells laugh like that all the time.
Cody was still looking at him like he might be dumb, but that’s okay. Cody looked at most people like they’re a little slow. Rex knows that Cody likes him, whether or not he thinks Rex is stupid.
He also knows that Bells liked him too, even if he grumped and huffed at him the whole time when Rex climbed into bed with him, because in the end, he’d always settle down and pull Rex into a confining hug that squeezed Rex tight, and made him feel like he was home.
Rex was just past eleven, the first time the 501st met up with the 625th before a travel time together so General’s Skywalker and Hillta could work together to take down a barricade in the mid rim.
Rex had his bucket in hand as he watched them disembark from the transport, and he’d almost considered ditching the uniform entirely so he could shift. He doesn’t get to be in his other skin nearly as much as he would wish. The Jedi tried to be understanding of the sensitive clones shifting, but even they had to admit, that fighting was preferable in one form to the other.
Rex was only eleven, and his rabbit form was still so little. The healers said he was entering adolescence in that form, and his fur was getting thicker. Cody said he was nicer to pet now that he wasn’t a naked little baby, but that had started a fight because even when Rex had less fur, he was still insistent that he /wasn’t/ naked.
But none of that matters right now. What matters, what lights a smile on his face that he couldn’t hide if he wanted to, was the /grumpiest/ looking clone commanded he’s ever seen in his life, getting off the transport behind General Hillta, looking annoyed with everything. He wasn’t wearing a bucket either, and was glaring at a data pad.
Just the sight of him and Rex wanted to melt a little.
The clone looked up from his pad and his eyes scanned the room for a second before landing on Rex, and his lips twitched, until he was less grumpy, almost a flat line instead of that perpetual scowl. Rex couldn’t imagine anything more beautiful.
Rex didn’t even care that he was a commanding officer. The chain of command was soft on the shifters in the GAR, and he knew he could get away with more than most of them could. He didn’t take advantage of that unless a situation was dire, to be honest. He refused to even let Skywalker train him with a lightsaber, saying that it would never feel completely right anyways. He tried not to take advantage where most of his brothers couldn’t.
But he let out one of those dreamy sighs that /still/ to this day, made Cody look at him like he was a moron (as if that asshole wasn’t getting sappy over his own General whenever he thought no one was looking) and instead of a greeting with clasped hands, like he’d give most his brothers, leaning in and pressed a dry kiss to his mate’s cheek.
Bells was just about smiling at that, looking at him all soft and kind like he only really ever gave Rex. A few of the shinies looked on in shock and horror (at their captain being so blatant with his affections even in face of the chain of command) and Rex couldn’t bring himself to care. He’s pretty sure Skywalker is giving him that ‘I’m going to tease you and ask a million invasive questions later’ look, and he doesn’t know Hillta enough to read the older Wookie, but he’s fairly sure the woman was amused.
Rex didn’t care about that. This is what he needed, his mate nearby. Alive and healthy. As soon as this damn war was over, Rex is demanding they run off to some world where they can be together without fear of separation again. Rabbits couldn’t be separated from their soulmates.
