The second their lips touched, Feral could feel something exploded inside him. He closed his eyes and savoured the moment. The moment his body and everything felt so right. He felt so warm, in a very good way. He could feel Savage tightening his embraced, so he tightened his grip on Savage's shoulder, and then the larger male was kissing him back.
This was the first time Feral had kissed someone, so he let his instinct lead him. They, Dathomirian Zabraks, were taught to listen to their instinct anyway - especially when they did not know what to do with the situation at hand.
Savage's tongued slipped out and touched his lower lip. Licking. Teasing. Silently asking for permission to enter. Feral subconsciously opened his mouth for Savage, and that tongue swapped in. Feral felt it lick his inner lips slowly and gently, then going to lick at the tip of his tongue. The smaller Zabrak let his instinct roamed free as he did not know what to do; his tongue pushed itself up to meet Savage's immediately. He didn't push Savage away, just licking, inviting Savage in.
The larger male's tongue dragged itself to taste Feral's wet cave freely then, dancing around his tongue, swirling and pulling at his lower lip with teeth. Then the tongue was back again, this time it was as if Savage was eating him, drinking him up, and savouring him. His knees buckled slightly, and Feral felt Savage catching him before he fell to the ground. He whimpered and Savage sucked his lower lip gently before letting their lips parted.
"Are you alright?"
Soft and gentle, yet a bit breathless, voice asked him. Feral, still with his eyes closed, nodded. He could feel his cheeks heated up to the point that he would be very embarrassed right now, so he avoided meeting Savage's eyes. He was not ready, not yet.
"I'm… I'm fine." Feral finally perked his head up, smiled weakly at Savage. Savage was looking at him with such care in those eyes, making Feral felt he needed to say something. And he blurred out "well, um… that's probably my first…" the smaller Zabark stuttered. "My…first… first… yeah…" he didn't know what to say. And then he decided in the middle of the sentence that this might not be the best thing to talk about at this situation. However, Savage did not seem to mind.
"I know." Savage said, massaging Feral's back in such suiting way that had the smaller Zabrak relaxed. "And it wasn't bad at all." He added, smiling.
Feral gulped at Savage's reply. He entirely hadn't expected Savage to say something like that. Something that had him felt both proud and embarrassed at the same time. Also, Feral was slightly curious if Savage had ever kissed someone before. His brother probably had, Feral had heard that there was even a brothel ship traveling from place to place, to offer travellers its service. Yeah, thinking about Savage banging others made Feral felt a bit jealous. However, he pushed his feeling and his thought away quickly. There aren't mates! I cannot feel like that toward him! He mentally grunted at himself.
"Thanks… I guess…" Feral replied slowly, wanting to make sure he would not embarrass himself with his stupidity this time. "…should…. Shouldn't you be guarding the ship and repairing those canons? I um… I will be quiet now, I guess I had interrupted your work and distracted you… yeah…" He trailed off, mentally sighing that he ended up stuttering and embarrassed himself again.
"Oh, I will get back to it immediately." Savage nodded; a smile was on his face liked he knew something Feral did not know. However, Savage let him stand on his own, and now his body was missing the heat from Savage's body already.
True to his words, Savage went back to work. So Feral sat down and watched his brother working. He could still feel Savage's touch on his skin, and it somehow made Feral smiled.
Feral still did not understand why he kissed Savage in the first place. He just did what he felt right. Kissing Savage seemed to be a right thing to do at that time. But right now, he wasn't much sure.
"Don't be afraid brother," Savage suddenly spoke, nearly making Feral jump. "The Force has always chosen the rightest match for every force-sensitive beings. You just have to listen to it. Listen to your instinct, listen to your heart." His brother was still at the same place, but Feral had a feeling that Savage did want to move closer to him.
"I…" Feral sighed. "Savage… I don't even know what you are talking about." He lied, yes, and he knew Savage know. However, his brother just grunted and went back to work. It surprised Feral. Savage wasn't known to be patient when someone was lying.
"Feral, I know you haven't had much experiences with the Force." Savage suddenly said, his voice was firm and smooth. His yellow eyes met Feral's eyes, and the smaller Zabrak could see that they were showing something, probably a feeling that he could not decipher. "Trust me, you better listen to it. It might be hard, at first, then you will get a hang of it. And you will be able to sense me, and what I'm feeling - just likes how I sense you."
Savage then paused and waited for the information to sink in. It did not take long.
"You…you know what I'm thinking?" Feral gasped, a little panicked. He didn't feel like having anyone reading his thought was a good idea.
"No, Feral. I can read only your emotions." Savage shook his head, an amused smile appeared on his face. "I can tell when you're unhappy, afraid, or delighted. I can sense your emotion, and you will be able to sense mine soon." He added, and Feral gulped because he wasn't sure he would be able to do that. "The Force is everywhere. It is the most ancient power that ties everything together. The Force never lies." Savage ended his sentence with another smile.
"I will… try." Feral nodded, leaning against the rock nearby. This was too much for him to take in at a time. First he kissed Savage, then the larger Zabrak said they could read each other thought. No, Savage could read his thought, but he couldn't read Savage's, not yet he guessed.
Feral sighed and turned to his brother. He knew his confusion showed on his face, also the need to gather himself together. He hoped Savage would understand, and he smiled when Savage didn't say anything more, just turning back to the canons.
Feral watched Savage worked, also listening to his surroundings. He didn't sense anything out of particular. There was no one paying attention to their ship or them. That's good.
Feral didn't know how long he had been out there, watching Savage worked. He felt his eyelids became heavy, and kept getting heavier every minutes pass. He tried to force his eyes to stay open, but it's no use. So Feral let them closed, deciding that a little nap would not hurt.
Feral woke up again to find himself in his bed, wrapped comfortably in a blanket. No wonder why he was inside. Savage must had carried him in after he dozed off.
The smaller Zabrak felt his cheeks reddened up. Right now he didn't feel sleepy at all, so Feral blinked and got up. He looked around and saw that Jeret and Janeta were still sleeping. However, they weren't be sleeping for long, as Jeret slowly waking up and yawn.
Feral watched the male Nautolan stumbled out of his bed, nearly falling face-first to the floor. Jeret yawned again, looking at his watch, before he made his way toward the door. Feral guessed that Savage's shift had ended.
The door slid open and Jeret walked out. Seconds after, the door opened again and Savage walked in. Feral pretended to be asleep as Savage walked toward the bathroom. His brother's expression was neutral, but Feral had a feeling that Savage have already known that he was awaked.
His brother didn't spend his time in the bathroom more than ten minutes. Feral pretended to be asleep as Savage walked out, too afraid and nervous to say anything. He had a feeling Savage knew he was awake, but for some reasons, Savage just climbed up to his bunk without saying a word.
That's weird. Normally he would be asking me why I don't go to sleep by now.
Feral thought, sitting up. He sighed, before deciding to go out. Jeret might want someone to talk to.
He ended up staying with Jeret until it was time for Janeta's shift. The female Nautolan shooed both of them back to bed before she claimed that she wanted some 'girl's time' alone. So Feral and Jeret left her to her post and went back to bed. Savage appeared to be asleep by the time Jeret and Feral got in. They both yawned and went back to their beds.
Feral did not know how he managed to fall asleep again after so many hours he had spent sleeping. But when he woke up again, the sun had already arrived. Jeret and Janeta were in front of the stove, cooking something. Savage was outside, probably repairing the canons.
"Rise and shine!" Jeret smiled, landed a plate on the table with graceful movement of the novice dancer, which earned him a sigh from Janeta. "Good day Feral. I think we might be able to take off tonight."
"Oh, that's quick." Feral gulped. "Where are we going to?" He asked, slightly feeling uncomfortable. He wasn't ready to get back to Dathomir, not yet.
"I don't know." Jeret shrugged. "We have no plan, and we still have enough credits for 2-3 months."
"We agree to ask you and your brother." Janeta continued, placing more plates on the table. "The breakfast is almost ready, call your brother in."
"Alright." Feral nodded, relieved that they were not heading to Dathomir soon.
Savage was putting all of the tools back into the box when Feral got out of the ship. It seemed like Savage had just finished repairing all of the canons.
"Savage." Feral called, walking down the stairs to where Savage was standing. "The siblings said that breakfast is almost ready. Let's go."
The larger Zabrak turned toward him and nodded, before picking the boxes up. They then made their way back to the ship. Feral felt Savage stared at him all the way up.
"What's wrong?" He decided to ask before they entered the ship. Savage blinked at him, before he smiled.
"We are getting new clothes today." He said, walking passed Feral as the door slid open. "You are getting new clothes today." He added, and immediately made his way to the back of the ship before Feral had time to protest.
Feral tried to say that he is not going to get new clothes anytime soon when Savage told the Nautolans he and Feral are going to the town today. Well, let's say that no one listened to his protest. Janeta even said that Feral should get a new coat and new shoes.
So, in the end Feral ended up on a speeder, sitting behind Savage while his brother made way to the town. And after that they were at the market in no time.
"Whoa, Savage, don't you think this is too expensive?" Feral gulped, looking at the price tag on the coat Savage handed him. "I don't think…"
"Just put it on Feral." Savage grunted, moving around, grabbing more clothes from the shelves around them. "Or I'm getting more clothes for you to try." He smirked, and Feral sighed before putting the coat on. It's very comfortable though, but the price just too insane.
At first Feral thought they were going to visit any random clothes shop at the market. But it turned out that Savage wanted to bring him to the largest shop at the end of the market, which located in a large building. The shop that mostly sold clothes to the noble people and the riches who ruled this cities and its economy.
"Alright." Feral put the coat off, handing it back to Savage. "It's comfortable, but the price is insane. I'm not buying it. We're not buying it." He said, hoping that Savage would listen.
"Credits are for spending, Feral." Savage just shook his head and handed the clothes to the Twi'lek receptionist who followed them around from the distance. Her duty was to assist them when needed. However, most of her job right now was to holding the clothes for them.
"But this is too much." Feral sighed. "Look, we have already picked five shirts, three trousers, and two coats. I don't think we need anything more." He said, crossing his hands in front of his chest. Savage just grinned at him.
In the end they walked out of the shop with two bags filled with clothes. Feral murmuring about they spending too much credits on his clothes, and Savage just shrugged and told him to enjoy his life.
They got back to the ship in no time. Jeret was so glad to announce that the engines were almost ready.
"We can take off tonight." Janeta confirmed her brother's words. "Where should we go? Jeret and I don't have any plans in mind."
Feral looked at Savage, he hoped that his brother would not say they wish to get back to Dathomir immediately.
"There is a waterfall in the other hemisphere of this planet. It's called 'Londora'. I've read about its beauty, but never have a chance to see it by my own eyes." Savage said. "I wish to visit that place, if you all agree."
"Londora waterfall?" Jeret smiled. "I agree! I've heard that there are best pubs of this planet around it too. Let's go as soon as the ship is ready!"
"Alright." Janeta nodded before getting back to the engines. Feral sighed, feeling a lot better knowing that they were not heading to his hometown tonight.
The smaller Zabrak turned to load the clothes he had just brought, forced to buy, by Savage. Well, actually Savage was the one buying, but Feral was too tired to care about the details. He was tired from arguing with Savage, something he should had known that it's he wasn't going to win. Behind them, the door slid open and close, telling that the Nautolans were out working on the engines.
"Feral." Savage said, putting one of the bag down near where Feral was trying to put his clothes into his own bag. "Are you okay?"
Feral wanted to say that he is not, but that's going to be too childish. Besides, it's a stupid thing to angry with your brother, when all he did was taking care of you. Feral sighed, smiling instead.
"I'm alright Savage." He said, folded each cloth neatly, before putting it into the bag. "I just… I'm not sure when will I be ready to go back to Dathomir."
"I'm scheduled to be back there in nine days." Savage suddenly said, which had Feral abruptly turning back. "Actually, it might be seven days - since we have to spend at least three days travelling back to Dathomir."
"I…um…" Feral sighed, sitting on his bed. "I'm not ready Savage. I trust you but I don't trust myself." He shook his head, putting it in his hands. "I'm afraid I will hyperventilate and break down."
"Do not worry." Savage said, and Feral felt the larger Zabrak lowered himself down. He perked up and saw that Savage was sitting on his heels, so now their eyes were at the same level. "You are stronger than you though, Feral. You can get through this. I really want you there, with me, with us."
"I…" Feral opened his mouth and closed it again. "I will think about it."
As if I have a choice.
He pouted mentally, but he was not a child anymore - so Feral didn't let his distress showed. Savage titled his head, and Feral had a feeling his brother knew what he was feeling, again.
"Feral." Savage sighed, "I know it's hard. But please, tell me what can I do to make you trust me?"
Feral felt his eyes widened. His heart quickened its beat at Savage's words. What Savage can do to make me trust him? Whoa, wait a sec. How should I know? I don't even know why I kissed him last night!
Wait… that's it. I do know how.
"Make me believe you will not snap my neck again." Feral replied, voice slightly shaken. He was trying his best to hold himself together as he spoke. Savage was staring at him now. "Make me believe you don't touch me because you are going to kill me." He whispered, suddenly too afraid and too exhausted to talk any louder. His throat ached, as if there were invisible hands gripping it.
Last night I kissed Savage. Last night I felt like he could fully trust Savage. Maybe, just maybe, if I felt like trusting Savage to touch him without harming me again, I might be able to trust Savage in everything. Feral thought, looking at Savage with hope in his eyes. And now he was waiting for Savage to make a move.
"Feral…" Savage stepped closer, his voice trailing off. Feral backed up, before holding himself in place. He gave Savage a chance, now he must let Savage proved himself. The smaller Zabrak could feel himself shaking again.
"Feral, I'm not going to hurt you." The larger Zabrak said, before slowly touching Feral's left forearm. Feral did not flinch. He felt as if there was electrical sparking on his skin. His eyes never left Savage's face.
Savage's left hand was on his right forearm and Feral felt himself relaxed. Savage's hands were large and a bit cooler than he expected. However, Feral liked them. He felt safe in these hands.
"I…can I?" Savage gulped, and Feral suddenly knew what Savage was asking for his permission. So he nodded, and Savaged pulled him into a hug.
It's not lungs crushing hug, just a simple comfortable one. Feral let his hands travelled to rest on Savage's back. He felt Savage's arms tightened and sighed, sinking into the body in front of him.
Yes, this is not so bad. I can trust him like this.
He smiled to his thought before resting his cheek against the broad shoulder. Feral could feel Savage rumbled in his throat. And then one of Savage's hands was on his lower back, pulling him in even closer.
"Hmmm…" Feral hummed and turned let Savage held him. He felt safe. Yes, this was his brother. A brother who would never hurt him.
"….okay." Feral sighed, decided that it's time to make a decision. "I trust you."
Savage was stiffened the moment that sentence went out of his mouth. Feral gulped. Did he say something wrong?
But then his brother was laughing, a joyful laugh, before he was kissing Feral's forehead and his cheeks. Mumbling 'thank you' over and over before letting Feral out of his embrace.
"Alright big guy." Feral shook his head. He felt like nothing have changed after all. Savage always be like this when he was extremely thankful or jubilant. "You say we have nine days? Let's plan where we are going to go before we have to go Dathomir. I guess there will be a lot of works to do, which you can't guarantee when another vacation will arrive, right?"
Savage's grin told Feral that he was more than delighted.
Obi-Wan had never thought that this day would come.
The day he went out looking for Darth Maul, no… just Maul now, alright… the day he went looking for Maul because he had been feeling so restless lately. He had tried to meditate, to keep all of the irritations out, but it's no use.
So here he was, on planet called Dyress. A small neutral planet that were inherited by peaceful farmer colonies. Dyress was not far from Dathomir. He didn't have the courage to go there yes. Also, he had a feeling that Maul would be here in a day or two.
After booking a room for himself at a small inn, Obi-Wan went to meditate. He would like to clear his mind before he had to face Maul. Something had been nagging him since the Sith showed up at the temple with his brother in a medical-tank. He could not believe his ears when the former Sith lord offered them his service, as long as the Jedi would save his brother.
At that time Obi-Wan did not know what made Maul so desperate that he seek help from the Jedi. Against Master Windu's concern, Master Yoda said that the Jedi welcomed them in. He then revealed to Obi-Wan later that there was still hope in Maul.
Obi-Wan didn't instantly believe Master Yoda, so he decided to see for himself. Maul was in the medical bay, under the watchful eyes of Master Fisto and Master Plo Koon all the time, watching the medic trying to save his brother. Obi-Wan visited them, and the instant Maul turned to look at him, he saw it in Maul's eyes.
Care, toward his brother. And something unidentified for Obi-Wan.
But he knew right then and there that Maul was not going to back-stab them, if they did not do it to him first.
Obi-Wan remembered himself going to sit on the same bench as Maul, but in the different side. They stayed like that for nearly an hour, before he decided to speak up.
"I've never expected you to help us." He said, glancing Maul's way. Even sitting on the same bench, Obi-Wan knew they both were not comfortable enough to sit any nearer. "To be honest, I have never thought we will meet without fighting each other."
"The situation has changed." Maul replied. His voice was smooth and emotionless. There was that unidentified shadow in Maul's eyes again. And it disappeared before Obi-Wan could take a good look.
There was no more conversation between them that day. Obi-Wan left in the evening to attend another meeting with the Jedi council. They all agreed to keep Maul and his brother's arrival as a secret.
The next day Maul revealed everything he knew about the Sith to them, also about who was the greatest Sith at this time. This news shocked many of them, also Yoda. But after the Jedi masters had spending days meditated, they all agreed to Maul's words. Maul also revealed the plan of Order66. Captain Rex, the only clone who knew about Maul in Coruscant volunteered for the doctor at the temple to check his brain. And after a careful examining, they found the small implants that would turn the clones against the Jedis.
Obi-Wan remembered Anakin, Master Yoda, Master Windu, and he spent hours talking to Senator Amidala and Senator Organa. They must revealed the Darth Sidious's plan before everything was too late. And they had to move quickly. An operation was secretly giving to the clones in each legions. Once they knew where the implants were, it's easy to put them out. Master Shaak Ti and Master Plo Koon, along with some of the officers they trusted most, went to Kamino to secretly sorting things out.
Maul told them all he knew about Sidious. After that it's up to the Jedi to confront the dark lord. They choose to confront him at the Factory District of Coruscant, where Sidious held meeting with Count Dooku. The battle was bloody and chaos. Maul joined them and nearly got himself killed by Sidious. Some of the Jedi also died trying to kill Sidious before the dark lord was taken care of by Master Yoda. However, the oldest Jedi had to sacrifice one of his arms before he could kill Sidious.
Dooku escaped but that's not their concern as they were too weak after the battle. Master Windu and Master Luminara spent weeks in the tank in the medical bay, while Obi-Wan and Anakin spent two weeks there. Maul, who was injured from the battle but was still able to walk, visited them sometimes. The red Zabrak always came to watch them sleep and went on with his business. That's when Obi-Wan started to feel a warmness in his heart. Strange warmness that had him smiled.
While most of the Jedis were still in the medical bay, Senator Amidala and Senator Organa, along with their allied senators, showed the Galactic council and everyone in the Galactic Empire about Order66.
They blamed everything on the Separatist, especially count Dooku, and also saying that Chancellor Palpatine's death was by Dooku's hand. They made the council believed that many Jedis were injured trying to protect the chancellor, and that Dooku was to blame for everything. They also dragged all his allies in the council out in front with proves Maul and the Jedi council gave them. [Of course they never said about Maul, that's going to bring more confusions and complications to the council and their people.]
Obi-Wan didn't know how long until it took the council to vote what they were going to do next. But Senator Organa eventually became the new Chancellor. His first order was to make sure there was no Order66 implants on each clones anymore. After that, Kamino was swamped with Jedis who could still operate and the authorities they could trust. The Sith's allies in Kamino, who responsible in planting Order66 into the clones' heads, were all revealed and thrown to jail. Obi-Wan didn't keep track of time after that. He knew Senator Organa would be a good Chancellor.
He kept thinking more and more about the red Zabrak instead. Anakin always teased him about his solemn face when he tried to think about Maul and the strange feeling nagging at him from the inside. Master Fisto had come to tell him to relax. The Nautplan Jedi had talked to Maul a lot. Maybe he was the only Jedi comfortable with keeping his eyes on Maul and keeping the red Zabrak company at the same time.
According to Fisto, the place Maul would like to visit most was the garden. The former Sith was forbidden to enter the higher floor, nor the library. He got his room near the medical bay, and only had accessed to the medical bay level and the lower floor of it. Different Jedis accompanied Maul for each days, except for the days Maul spent in the Medical bay after the attack on Sidious.
Obi-Wan tried to talk to Maul after he could walk around by himself. His first attempt to talk to Maul was to say 'Good afternoon' to the Sith who was sitting in front of his brother's bed. Savage was allowed out of the tank and was now on recovering program.
He remembered Maul turned to glare at him, before the glare disappeared. The former Sith lord just replied his greeting and turned his gaze back to Savage.
"Well, may I ask what will you do next?" Obi-Wan asked, feeling awkward to stand silently in front of a bed. He knew this was not the best thing to ask.
"Going to the Outer Rim, of course." Maul replied, his eyes never left his brother. "I believe you have heard my agreement and your terms of our deal."
"I've heard of it." Obi-Wan nodded. He was there when Maul bargained with them, at the hanger bay with the tank that contained his brother.
They stayed silent for a while before Obi-Wan asked Maul about his training. It's not that he wanted to pry on Maul's business. But given that Maul killed his Master, Obi-Wan could not help wanting to know the thing or two anyway.
Maul did tell him about his childhood, about planet Mustafar, and about his training. Obi-Wan listened with neutral expression on his face. He could sense Maul's anger and pain hiding deep inside. Raising up one child with no love and care resulted in a killing machine. He hoped no one would have to suffer the same fate as Maul. Actually, he thought Savage should take the credit of bring Maul back to the light. If not for Savage, Maul would be completely lost.
Maul didn't ask him about him about the Jedi's training, which made Obi-Wan felt so relieved. They talked about battles, about strategy, and sometimes just nothing at all. Obi-Wan would be lying if he said he did not appreciate Maul's company, and he knew Maul was feeling the same.
They met every day after that. Some day they just sitting side by side, watching the wind made all the leaves in the garden danced. Obi-Wan felt something nagging at his side. The Force had something to tell him, to which he hadn't figured it out yet. He felt the need to feel more of Maul. He felt the need to interact with Maul in such closeness that all Jedis were taught to be careful of. He felt the dark edge of Maul's mind dancing against his sometimes. Maul wasn't going to lure him into the dark, he just wanted Obi-Wan to feel it sometimes, and Obi-Wan was cool with that.
The more they spending time together, the more Obi-Wan felt their connection building. It's both terrifying and fascinating at the same time, as how he manage to be attached to Maul - and Maul to him – in such short period of time. They both said nothing about it though.
The day of Maul and Savage's departing was the first day Obi-Wan ever experienced such pain. It slipped through his vain without warning, gripping at his heart, tearing it apart. The pain was even greater than which he felt when Maul killed Satine.
The pain lessened after two days. But Obi-Wan could still feel it sometimes, especially when he was alone, but overall it was getting better. However, without his knowing, it was slowly replaced with restlessness.
Obi-Wan pushed them aside of course, and continued his duty as a Jedi for months, until he finally could not bear it. He needed answers. And he knew where to find it.
Obi-Wan sighed as he got up from the floor. He could sense the light presence of Maul, even that he wasn't on the same planet yet. He wasn't sure if Maul would get a massage, but he had a feeling the Zabrak would.
"I really need to talk to you." Obi-Wan sighed, walking to watch the city from the window in his room. A normal day for people in Dyress. He hoped this peaceful time of this planet would last forever.
In the back of his mind, he felt Maul's rumbling deep from a far.
The Zabrak had got his massage.
And he is coming.