Mess Hall
Empire Day
Mayday sat watching the Emperor's speech; it was only made bearable because Zak recorded it, then speeded it up so that he looked and sounded like some kind of Holonet cartoon. Zak could probably be executed for doing that.
He looked around; his squad were letting their hair down. They deserved to, the last op had been difficult and they were lucky not to lose anyone. There had been a few injuries. He rotated his shoulder; the blaster burn was still sore but it would heal. He grudgingly admitted to himself that the odd stormtrooper could aim.
He leaned back watched them enjoying themselves, some dancing and there was much drinking. Others sat just as he did remembering the lost ones. The ones who had given their lives for the Republic or simply disappeared under the Empire's rule.
He raised his glass in a silent salute.
Mayday sank his shot, over his glass he saw Hela walk in and lean over the bar, laughing with the pilot serving the drinks. He sat watching her. She'd changed into a dress; it was split up to her thigh with leggings and boots not dissimilar to what she sometimes wore on Coruscant; her hair was back to its natural colour and it had grown long. She tied it up in some kind of tail, which swung when she walked. It suited her.
Kriff! She could wear a sack he wouldn't care.
He put his shot glass down and with it the urge to rush over. She had to come to him. It was her decision.
Finor said she was a good mechanic, Bil confirmed that. She looked more settled.
He remembered what they had said before his mission; he'd only been back a few hours and he had not seen her until now.
It was still her decision.
He resisted the temptation to make it for her, feeling that would be a mistake.
Their eyes met; he hadn't noticed the moment she turned to look at him. She was leaning against the makeshift bar looking at him. Staring.
He looked back, sensing this was a turning point.
Now she was thinking, he remembered her mannerisms, her tells. He saw the moment she made up her mind; she downed the shot, slammed the glass on the bar, pushed herself away and walked determinedly towards him.
He made to rise as she reached him; she pushed him back down, then her mouth reached him, soft but firm and all his wants exploded at once. He opened his knees, grabbed her by the waist and pulled her closer to him, never wanting to let her go ever again.
There were murmurings from those watching and they finally pulled apart, a few centimetres.
"I'll take that as it's time."
"It is. If you still want me."
He pulled her into his lap, holding her there. "I thought we had a date?"
"We do." She replied.
"Good. You can't believe how much I want you." He whispered into her ear, has stubble brushing against her cheek. More memories came back.
She squirmed on his lap, holding onto his broad shoulders; they felt the same as they did years ago.
"Oh yes I can." And she kissed him again.
His brain stopped functioning on a certain level until she finally stopped kissing him and then he heard the shouting and applause. A whoop, from Zak he thought, a snort from Bil.
She pulled slowly away, "Everyone's watching us."
"Is that a problem?" asked Mayday getting his breath back.
"Not yet."
He pulled her tightly to him.
Bil wandered over with drinks; his own special brew. Various cheers rose as the party resumed, their actions became old news.
He knew they liked her, Zak had said as much; somehow if felt important his squad liked her, he couldn't explain why. She had fitted in well and was as good a mechanic as any of them; some even preferred her work.
That surprised him.
Bil stood with his Special bottle and two shot glasses. He filled them to the top.
She picked up the two glasses and gave Mayday one and they drank a whole shot each. He swallowed it down, the burning in his throat was no surprise, he was used to the Ugnaught's moonshine. He watched Hela swallow hers; she did the same.
Bil slapped her on the back, "She drinks Ugnaught tea everyday like a native, a true mechanic. I have spoken."
"Apparently," she whispered in Mayday's ear, "If you can stomach ugnaught tea you can stomach the moonshine."
She was perched on his knee and they laughed, just like they used to do.
They watched as others paired off or even into threesomes, until there were only a few hardened drinkers left or the ones who had lost the most in the War and the rise of the Empire.
Hela briefly wondered what their stories were, as everyone on the base knew Mayday and hers, or thought they did.
She stood up slowly and held out her hand.
Now it was time to act.
He grabbed it and followed her.
As soon as they were alone, she stopped, leaned back against the wall and pulled him down to her. He pushed her back against the wall with his chest, his hands cradling her face, as he kissed her until neither had any breath left.
They had to part.
They had slowed it down by the time they reached her quarters, they were smaller than his but her smell permeated the space. A waft of her perfume hit him. They stood looking at each other, almost afraid to take the next step, it gas been so long. Finally he dropped on the bed and pulled her to him, settling her between his knees, as close as he could get her.
He got no further, as something hard jabbed into his behind. He reached under where he sat and removed a set of hydro spanners, a cordless drill and a black lace bra.
He had never seen all those when they had been together before, not with Hela.
"Bil said I needed them."
He raised an eyebrow.
"The hydro spanners and drill."
"Good!" He growled.
"My own set. My hands are smaller." She held up her hand and spread her fingers. He took it and kissed her palm; looking at her he saw the shudder of a breath as she exhaled at his touch. He placed another one on her wrist and looked back at her. Her mouth was open slightly. He ignored it and worked his way up her arm, to her mouth, holding her tighter as she leaned into him.
Her arms clamped tight behind his head and she kissed him like she would die if she ever stopped.
He knew then she hadn't ever been with Vos.
Mayday pulled back, his eyes wild with passion and he moved his hands around her finding the fastening to her dress; he pulled it down slowly despite his increased arousal. He slid it off her shoulders and it dropped to the floor; she undid her bra and it followed the dress.
He smiled at her and she pulled at his shirt, dragging it out of his trousers; he pulled it over his head and their bare skin finally met as they kissed. Mayday leaned back pulling her with him.
They pulled apart, as Mayday found her breast and kneaded it. Taking the other in his mouth, he sucked hard. He heard her familiar whimper of pleasure and she reached down undoing his trousers to wrap her fingers around his erection. Mayday stifled a groan before leaning up to kiss her.
He opened his eyes, as she stopped, pulling his trousers off and he kicked the remnants away.
He returned the favour dragging her pants slowly down, over the swell if her backside and to the floor; he felt her step out if them.
She crawled back up his body and sat back; his hands reached up to have unfettered access to her breasts and rubbed the erect nipples with his thumb. She let out a ragged sigh at the sensation. He smiled as she bit her lip, then she moved forward, lifting her buttocks she positioned him inside her, sliding slowly down.
Mayday closed his eyes and exhaled slowly. The coil in his abdomen turned tighter.
She sat still for a few seconds, hands on his chest, holding his gaze, watching the concentration on his face, as he dragged his hands down to her hips, holding her while she rocked against him and when he felt the time was right, he lifted his hips, then the memory came back and he found the rhythm that worked for them both; Hela smiled and continued rocking against him, allowing him access to her breasts, which he made full use of.
His breath was hot against her chest, both had a sheen of sweat on their skin as they worked on their pleasure. The tempo had become frenetic, each concentrating on their individual climax until that moment, when they knew it was inevitable. She moaned into his neck as she came. Seizing his chance Mayday twisted them both over, once on her back, he threw one boneless leg over his shoulder and with a new position, he thrust in hard and fast. One hand on her hip and the other around her thigh. It didn't take long, as his rhythm faltered and he came with a grunt, before collapsing on top of her.
He lay there, engulfing her.
Now they could talk.
.
Hela lay in Mayday's arms, their breathing finally subsided and she was feeling this is where she should be. She used her fingertips to trace a long slow inventory of the body she had known so well in Coruscant, where she had mapped the scars after each mission. There were always new ones. Everyone hurt her just as much. It had changed in the few years they were apart; a consequence of the war and his accelerated aging.
They had both changed both physically and mentally. No one stays the same.
The Mayday she had known on Coruscant had been younger, made leaner by the continuous training and battles in the war. Now he was heavier, a broad chest with knotted muscles as hard as old Veshok wood. The old scars she remembered had smoothed out and faded and were replaced by newer ones; these appeared more severe. There were lines on his forehead. Lines around his eyes. But his nose was still broad and strong. His front teeth were still there, like trophies, smiling at her, as he watched her.
She slid her hand down his arm, feeling the raised scars that criss crossed it, the tattoos were still there. The 212th sunburst and the blue Plom flower, then she felt his hand. They were still large, strong and hard, with raised scar tissue, from fights and blasters he used from a child.
He had been bred to fight and he continued to do that.
She slipped her hand in his. He squeezed gently.
People said the clones knew nothing else but war; she knew they did. They had been brought up together, not in isolation. They treated their squad or batch mates as brothers, and grieved at their deaths. That meant they did. He did. He loved her, just like any other man could, perhaps more so and she loved him all the more for that.
She moved up to his chest. He had more scars there, more blaster burns. He stopped her hand, holding it gently, as if it were something precious.
"Satisfied?"
"Very. You?"
"More than I could hope for."
"Will you stay with me? The whole night?" She asked, not wanting this to end.
"Of course. I'll be here in the morning. Besides, I have unfinished business." He reached around her and rolled her over, kissing her hard and pushing her down into the mattress.
"Again?"she asked breathlessly, when they finally pulled apart.
He kissed her shoulder, "So many missed fucks to make up for."
She giggled, shaking, this was so much better than she had hoped for and reached down to his half hard erection. He sighed.
"Need some help?" She asked, beginning to stroke him.
"I'm not going to say no."
.
Mayday lay there, the light from the early morning just breaking through; there had been times when he had despaired of ever getting back to this stage but it was bitter sweet on this particular day.
He moved closer to Hela and traced his finger down from her cheek over her lips, slowly moving down her neck. She sighed, sleepily, and stretched out. He kissed her cheek, waited but she didn't wake and rose from the bed. He would be back before she woke.
It was that day.
Carefully pulling on his clothes, he checked again before gently opening the door. There was a pang of regret as he left her alone in her bed and hurried to the place he knew that was silent and where he could be alone for what he needed to do.
He should do this every night but there were so many names committed to his memory now; some hadn't even got names just numbers but he remembered them all. They all deserved to be remembered, no matter how long they lived or what they did.
"Zak!"
He had almost reached his destination.
"All clear Boss."
Mayday nodded his reply. Zak knew.
He walked out.
Standing at the edge of the base, he stared at the night sky; it was cold and there were no clouds, he could see the stars. It always seemed so much worse when he could see the stars.
His brothers had fought around the galaxy.
.
Hela woke and turned over reaching out for Mayday, the Ugnaught brew finally reaching her bladder. She needed the fresher. She blinked to get her bearings, remembering last night when they both finally came to their senses and then lost them again. She remembered the rest of the gang nudging each other and grinning as they kissed. They retreated before it got too heated and they gave them a free show.
But now the space in the bed next to her was cold and empty. Mayday had gone; he had said he was staying. She wandered to the fresher, the sticky reminder of last night trickling down her legs. She quickly jumped into the shower, deciding she would look for him. If he had changed his mind, she needed thus to work.
She didn't want to lose him now.
Wandering through the base, there were still people on watch and a few making their way back to their own quarters; some happy, some with morning after regrets but she hadn't seen Mayday and he hadn't answered her knock at his door.
She wandered through the base and saw Zak had drawn the short straw; he was on watch in the hangar.
He looked up as she approached him.
"Have you seen Mayday?"
He pointed to the entrance.
She saw him standing there, just outside, not quite at attention and wondered what he was doing. There hadn't been any alarm.
"Mayday?"
His head moved a fraction but he continued, whatever he was doing When she eventually neared him, she heard him mumbling, she thought it was Mandoa by the inflection, from what she remembered of it from before the Empire.
Then she remembered the date.
It was Mandoa.
She recalled the words he had said before.
Of Remembrance.
He stopped for a second, when he heard her steps approaching, then resumed. She hesitated, but she was here for him now, slipped her arms around his waist; he had thickened slightly but was still muscular. He had never lost that.
"Sorry." She murmured, as she leaned against his back, feeling his chest rise and fall with his breathing. He stopped for a few seconds again then continued reciting it. There were names she didn't know but she knew they were his brothers who had died. She knew what he was saying. She waited until he finished.
He stood silent for about twenty seconds.
Then he turned around and pulled her into a hard long kiss. They had so much time to make up. She responded just as she had years ago.
He finally let her go.
"I don't remember some of those names. Jam? Crosshair?"
"Brothers I met later, but still brothers, still good men."
She pulled his head down to her, resting it in the crook of her neck, her arms around him. She stroked his hair as he stood there. She understood.
"I included Zur."
"I heard, thank you. You must tell me all about them, your new brothers, where you met them, what they were like. We'll remember them, they will never be forgotten."
It wasn't light outside yet and he held her pressed close to him.
"Later. I have other plans." His hands slid down her back and rested lightly on her back side.
"You have a meeting with Donca and Fulcrum at 08:00."
"Yeah?" He questioned her, with that crooked smile a lot of the clones had; it was disarming and distracting in ways she had never realised before and now he had dimples. She touched one. How had she not noticed that years ago?
She slid her arms around his neck and smiled; he lifted her up and carried her back into the hangar in a few long strides, dropping her down in front of Zak.
"'Night boss." He said, smiling at the pair.
"'Night Zak. I owe you one."
"Anytime Boss, you know that."
.
Later she lay on the bed smiling, looking up at him, her eyes bright, alive. That light had gone out of them when he found her with Vos; it had taken months for it to return.
He leaned down to kiss her; he was never letting anyone hurt her, or letting her go again.