Task 8 - Field Day
Prompt: Star Wars (crossover)
Cabin Prompt: Annoyance (emotion)
WC: 1002
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"Oh!"
The slight exclamation, still so gentle, barely more than an exhalation, breaks Cody's focus. He takes a moment to blink, the scrawled handwriting dancing in front of his and his lids rasp over them as he shudders. He had been lost in his reading and the outside world began to press on him once more, a deep ache making itself known in his shoulders and the small of his back.
"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to disturb you."
"It's fine," Cody manages, raising his head to study the man who had stumbled across his sanctuary tucked in a far corner of the Hogwarts Library. The other man is beautiful in a crumpled academic way, but his smile is as beautiful as the sunrise over the Great Lake. He shifts under Cody's gaze, tucking his hands into the flowing sleeves of his robe but immediately shifting to catch the strap of his bag as it slipped off of his shoulder. "How can I help you?"
The man pauses, a strange look passing over his face before it is tucked away again. "I talked to Madame Jocasta and Madam Pince, and I believe we are both looking for the same book."
He is tantalisingly familiar, but Cody — for all that his own family numbers in the hundreds with his collection of cousins — can't remember where they have met before today. The Castle is empty of students in the last few weeks remaining before the new term starts, so he must be another teacher. Cody feels his back straighten reflexively with a crack that sounds like something shattering.
"I'm sorry. I didn't think anyone would be looking for it." When Cody had collected the book, it had been covered in a thick layer of dust that had coated the walls of his chest from the first moment he picked it up. Even now, he could taste the grit in the back of his throat and feel the rasp at the edge of every breath.
"It's my fault. Oh, I haven't introduced myself, have I?" The man laughs, shaking his head slightly, and Cody watches as a small plait swings free from behind his ear, swings free and brushes across his cheek. There's a coil of grey wound through it, dark against the bright bronze, and Cody aches to tuck it back behind his ear. He presses his hands into the table, feeling the sharp edge where his arms had rested and warmed the wood and the surrounding chill of the vast library.
"My name is Obi-Wan Kenobi." He concludes with a small bow, catching his bag once more as it slides from his shoulder, pulling it up with a wince.
Cody can empathise. His current position as a specialised duelist teacher meant that his work was practical rather than based on studying the current literature and theories, but he could remember the inconvenience of carrying books and scrolls well. He didn't attend Hogwarts as a student but travelling between relatives' houses and existing under their watchful gaze meant a heavy workload.
"Cody Fett." Cody holds his hand out and Obi-Wan takes it. He had been expecting soft skin beneath the darker splotches of ink that decorated the other man's hands, but he is surprised at the rough calluses that span Obi-Wan's palm and the ridges of his fingers. They're the hands of a fighter, and Cody feels the surge of biting discomfort when he reaches for where he knows the other man from and comes up empty.
"Any relation to Jango or Rex Fett?" Obi-Wan's voice is bright and Cody relaxes slightly. He loves his family, but they often go hand in hand with trouble.
"Father and brother respectively." Cody nudges the book to one side, gesturing for Obi-Wan to sit down on one of the free seats. "You can sit if you'd like. The bag looks heavy."
"It is. A Feather-Light charm will only go far and in this case—" Obi-Wan swings the bag from his shoulder with a groan, pressing his hand to the curve of his shoulder and digging his fingers into the likely sore muscle. "If I damage these books one of the librarians will have my head, and to tell you the truth, Madame Jocasta scares me far more than anything else."
"That seems like a smart choice." Cody sighs, and starts to close the book when Obi-Wan stretches out to stop him. He pauses at the warmth of the other man's skin, his gaze shifting to lock onto his eyes. Obi-Wan is grinning and at that moment, Cody feels something click into place in his chest. It's not attraction, Cody knows he isn't like that and accepted it years ago, but it's the possibility. Cody looks at Obi-Wan, watches his grin crinkle the corners of his eyes and feels the steadiness of his grip, and remembers the aftermath of a battle, blood and smoke filling his lungs, his vision dark and torn to shreds except for a grin of the man who continued to drag him free of the carnage. Cody had thought he had been dreaming as he lay recovering in St Mungos, bandages wrapped around one side of his face to cover the new curving scar that had nearly killed him.
"Would you mind sharing the book? I am only needing it for part of my lesson plan for the later years and there's no need for either one of us to leave, it is a good spot you've found." Obi-Wan tips his head towards the window where the distant lake shimmered just beyond the curve of the hills that layered the grounds, but his gaze never leaves Cody's.
Cody nods. Obi-Wan's hand is still on his arm and he doesn't want to break the contact, but he shifts the book closer, inviting Obi-Wan to move to the seat next to him with a tilt of his head. "You could possibly help me with some of this. My practical application is better than my knowledge."
"I'd be delighted to."