deercountry | Few Regrets (Open)

Entry tags:

Few Regrets (Open)

Who: Reaper (

no_reload) & Open
What: Post-death recovery & November catch-all
When: Month of November
Where: In & Around Disaster House

Content Warnings: Will add as they come up.

I. Squid Games

The remains of his body had fully inked and become crystallized. Then the smoke filled crystals cracked, shattered and broke apart to reveal a palm-sized squid that shook off bits of crystal and remaining ink. The black bloody ink did begin to resorb into the squid which seemed momentarily disoriented.

Then it lifted four tentacles and gave a soft hissing squeak to whomever happened to be close by. Another squeak and wiggling tentacles that clearly meant to be indication for picking up.

While he couldn’t communicate with words, Reaper was small enough and determined enough to be close to anyone. He would attempt to cling to feet or legs, and sometimes that meant the risk of getting under foot.

At other times, he would somehow clamber onto raised parts of furniture whether it was a table leg, couch arm or even a shoe and lift two tentacles to the air and wait for someone to pass by before trying to attach himself for a free ride to leg or hand.

II. Bedrest

Since leaving the squid state, Reaper had had a hell of a time adjusting back to his body. He had mostly confined himself to his bedroom, a place he hardly used as anything other than storage previously. Now he was there most of the time, sequestered to the bed as he didn’t have the available energy yet to perform his usual household activities.

After all, breathing was a laboured effort; that’s probably what was supposed to happen when one’s lungs had been vaporized. He could be found in his bedroom, sitting up to make breathing easier and clad in black track pants and a oversized black hoodie where the hood was constantly pulled up over his head, obscuring his bare and scarred face with shadow. The white of his goatee was the most obvious aspect of him to be seen.

"…death has always provided a reset, but you haven’t invested time to knowing how blood effects your abilities either. That was stupid of you…"

Reaper grunted softly as if replying to the scolding and exasperated Irish female voice that happened to be coming from a small laptop-sized device next to him on his bed. His bare hand with its blackened dead looking fingers reached out and patted the device as if he were trying to pat the Irish voice on the shoulder.

"I have this pain again." His voice was strained, nearly breathless.

"Expected. You died, Reyes. You will cope as you did before," the voice said with a touch of exasperation.

"Analysis on point, as always," he remarked with a soft nearly whimsical sigh that turned to a wheeze.

The voice was quiet, a reminder that the person behind it wasn’t actually here in Trench. That old friend had returned to their world and had never returned. He turned the medical device off with press of a button and leaned his head back against the headboard, shifting his weight as if unable to find a comfortable spot to sit in.

Then his chin tipped his head down again. "I know you’re out there."

III. Slow and Steady

Thankfully, the month so far had seemed calm and with little to no effects. He was slow to move around the house, less willing to take up some of his normal activities. He technically was the only adult in the house and that came with certain responsibilities he hadn’t been able to get back into. For one, he tired far too easily, like he was far older than he actually was. Or maybe this was how those of the SEP went out… tired, alone and shuffling around.

He spent much of his time in the house, but sometimes he wanted a chance of scenery. He was ease his way out of the house and seat himself on the ground or on a step. If he was having a particularly good day, he could get himself up to one of the edges of roof and seat himself there, legs dangling.

As soon as he went outside, his Omen, Wraith, would immediately appear. The black peacock would make a show of preening and walking around, shuffling long detailed tail feathers and issuing a low mournful swan song that was not normal for peacocks. Always, the Omen would be on high alert, never staying particularly close to him but clearly on guard to anyone who might know what to look for.

"Careful, his bite is as pathetic as his bark," he rumbled softly to anyone that might stop by to have a look or even appear from the house.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Maul was tempted to hit Reaper again but he knew it wouldn't do any good, not helping to assuage his feelings of rage and hurt any less. Besides, Reaper still seemed to already be in a lot of pain given all that he had been through, so Maul's temper began to fizzle out.

The physical contact helped immensely as Reaper curled up beside him. He closed his eyes for a moment at the feeling of having his mate back by his side. "I don't plan on making it a habit. Three and a half times was enough for me." He counted getting sliced by Kenobi as the half given how close of a call that one had been. Anyone besides Maul would have been dead from it and he'd still come within an inch of death.

Then he opened his eyes back up and poked Reaper hard on the back of one of his hands with a claw. "Don't you make it a habit either. I can only tear down so many sections of this city down in pursuit of revenge before there won't be much left." Then he leaned in and kissed him gently on the lips. "I'm still quite vexed that idiot was still standing despite my best efforts to kill him again."

Maul acting out against him and others was something he had come to accept as part of life with the Zabrak. He personally had always found it endearing on some level, the ability to just lash out based on emotions when he always had to be thinking of a plan, carrying it out to gather specific information or complete a particular task. The impulsiveness that Maul usually displayed was exciting, even when it was directed at him.

"Agreed," he remarked roughly, issuing a cough soon after. "But some missteps can happen to even the best of us, and I need you to be careful." While actually feeling like he had died for once was great, it was so short-lived it returned to him the sensation of his curse creeping back on him. "You would be an adorable little squid though. It's hard to make squid people repulsive."

He grunted in discomfort at the poke, tightening his arm around Maul's waist and lifting his head from where it was on the Zabrak's shoulder. Dark bruising was already blossoming on his cheek where Maul had punched him. "I heard you went off your nut in a quest for revenge for me. You understand that's both endearing and unnecessary? I wouldn't leave you for too long." His eyes closed at the kiss, and that close, he was certain Maul could hear the wheeze to his lungs and throat. "I usually go for killing their friends and family personally, but it's not necessary. My death was my own fault."

"I'll do my utter best not to keel over and die anytime soon." He really was going to try hard not to end up dead here. The Zabrak couldn't be certain of what the consequences would be given how small of a sample size of Sleepers had already died. Reaper seemed mostly fine but what if there was lasting side effects they just weren't aware of yet? Maul chuckled just a little at the thought of Reaper finding him an adorable squid. It was true. "That would probably be the only time anyone in my life has ever called me adorable."

He turned to look at his lover, yellow eyes meeting the red ones there in the shadows of the hood. "Reaper, I'm never going to accept the death of people I care about quietly and without making a fuss." It just wasn't in Maul's personality. Hate and anger were done with the full force of his being and love was the same way for him as well. "As I told that buffoon that killed you, I don't care whose fault it was or how this started. He killed you and so I retaliated. It's all that I know how to do."

One of Maul's hands came up and cupped the side of Reaper's face gently. This reminder of how fragile things could be for the two of them here had given Maul the impetus to act on something else that had been on his mind for quite some time. His heartbeats quickened as he made his confession. "I don't know when or how it happened but I think I've fallen in love with you." There, now it was out in the open, the feelings which had crept up on Maul for over the course of a year. It had honestly been harder to say them than it had been to fight Lance. Frankly, he would have rather fought the paladin for three more days then ever have said them aloud but now at least they were out in the open between the two of them. Maul wasn't going to take them back and at least he already knew that Reaper loved him in return. He'd said as much when they came to their ending in Deerington.

"Good. You dying is very inconvenient and it crimps my style," he teased lightly, pausing to cough into a hand. He was hoping that effect would dissipate quickly, but time would tell. He related it to the damage that he had taken, which had taken out his chest cavity completely. "Do you want me to call you adorable? Because I can, squid or no." That wasn't really how he was describe Maul normally, but if it could troll the Zabrak, he would.

Oh he knew that look, and already the corner of his lips were tugging into a rueful smile. He knew that Maul would take no death of someone close sitting down, but he felt that he should say that his lover should slow his roll when it came to death. "I know," he murmured. "You are who you are, and I appreciate that about you. That passion of yours will push you to defend those important to you." Never could he fault that kind of loyalty.

He closed his eyes after a moment of feeling that warm palm against his cheek, leaning his head into it. That gesture came with a soft sigh before he inhaled sharply at the confession, slowly opening one eye and then the other. Then he fluttered his eyelashes prettily. "You think, hmm? So you're not one-hundred percent certain, is that it?" No one would fight for three days then lay face down on the floor to sleep in the house he was recovering in without some very serious strong emotions. He still leaned in, kissing Maul sweetly on the lips. "I saw that you called me your mate on the network. The most serious commitment."

"Only behind closed doors. Doing it in public would mean I'd have to go on another killing rampage to keep my reputation intact." Not that it wasn't already in tatters at this point anyway. Far too many people were aware he had a soft side even if the majority of Sleepers seemed to still think he was the local monster Maul claimed he was.

"I was alone in my life for a long, long time. Now that I have people to care about, I intend to fight with all I have to keep them close to me for as long as I can." If that meant he had to go off and duel someone for three days straight every time one of his nearest and dearest were murdered, so be it. He was just glad Reaper understood him well enough so he didn't have to defend his reasoning or try to explain it. For the two of them, their motivations made perfect sense to one another already.

Maul scowled and punched Reaper in the arm lightly when he was teased about his love confession. Way to kill the mood. "Alright. Resounding affirmative this time. I am in love with you, you enormous idiot, though I'm hard pressed to remember why just at the moment." That was a lie. Maul knew very well why he was in love with Reaper but at least he knew he didn't have to list them. Reaper was well aware of them already.

He felt his face grow warm, the green undertone easy to see when up against the red-and-black skin, when Reaper mentioned that he'd called him his mate in a public forum. Maul had completely forgotten he'd said that in the heat of the moment. "Oh, you saw that?"

He traced a pattern lightly on the back of one of Reaper's hand, snuggling up closer into his mate's side. "Well, I didn't know what else to call you. Boyfriend is a word for mooney seventeen year olds batting eyes at one another." He jerked his head towards the door indicating Fern and Varian. "And lover is a bit personal. Mate is the closest equivalent I could think of." But he knew Reaper was well aware of the connotations of the word given all that Maul had talked about Dathomir and his culture, how being a mate was more than simply being in love with someone. He slipped both his hands around Reaper's cold ones, letting his natural warmth seep into them before bringing them up to his lips and gently kissing them each in turn. "I'm in this for the long haul." Maul never would have thought he'd ever have cause to say that to anyone in his entire life but here he was. "For however long you'll have me, I'm staying by your side."

"I have my own version of affectionate name calling in public that shouldn't hamper your reputation too much." He preferred to call Maul his 'space wizard' because he knew that it upset the Zabrak, and it was a name that stuck. Plus, anyone looking at the nickname would see Reaper poking the bear so to speak and not dare to make moves against Maul in reply.

He hummed, understanding Maul completely in that regard. Gaining something that had long been denied was likely to cultivate a protective attitude. He didn't think that Maul would do well alone and isolated, and he personally found the unhealthy obsessive nature to be endearing where others would find it troubling. "I will keep that in mind for the next time I accidentally lose a fight. Just know that you won't be without me for long. Not now, not ever."

The punch earned a soft genuine laugh out of him, and he hugged Maul closer to him in reply. "You said the l-word twice now," he confirmed. "That's more than even I have. Look at your personal development," he said, leaning in so he could plant an obnoxious raspberry on Maul's neck. Too bad he was too tired for much of anything but teasing and snuggling. "I love you too." It felt weird to say it.

He raised an eyebrow as if to ask Maul silently why he wouldn't have seen it. He had been stuck in bed for the last few days, and he had nothing better to do than review the network and sleep. "I would call mate rather personal as well, what with the undertone of long-term dedication it usually brings in human society." He knew a few facts about Maul's species, that the females dictated who was a mate and who wasn't. "Well, considering so far I can't die permanently, you're going to be by my side for a very long time. I don't intend to be rid of you at any point. We've only just began to build something great with each other." They could talk about their feelings, which was a big step.

"I'm going to need to figure out something call you as well." Though Reaper definitely didn't get as riled up as much by things as Maul did so the chances of giving him a nickname that would stick weren't as great as they might otherwise be.

"Good," Maul said decisively and a little gruffy. Hearing that reassurance was something he definitely needed from Reaper. They'd both already lost the memories of one another once in Deerington, and while that hadn't turned out completely bad for them, Maul would have much preferred for them to keep the status quo as it stood. To know Reaper promised he wouldn't leave him was just what he needed to hear right now in the moment. Well, that and hearing Reaper saying he loved him too. That made Maul start purring just like a little kitten.

"I can stop using it if you want," he rumbled out, the purr continuing in his voice. But Maul hoped Reaper wouldn't ask. He felt proud to call the man his mate, to let everyone know they were together and that they were bonded in a way they had with no one else here in Trench. Maul could definitely be possessive of the people he cared about and he wanted all those around them to know Reaper was his and anything that happened to him meant Maul would eventually retaliate threefold.

He laid down on the bed, gently pulling Reaper down with him. He gazed at his mate with a soft expression in his eyes, the kind he reserved for no one else. He scooted over and kissed him again on the lips before moving down and kissing him on the neck, though the hoodie prevented him from reaching too much skin there. "Good. I've lost so much in my life but having you near helps to keep me stable." Strange how someone who was just as psychotic and enjoyed killing as much as he did would be the one to keep Maul level but here they were.

"Oh I welcome all adorable nicknames that you might come up with for me," he purred in reply, aware that if he gave rise of his displeasure that Maul was guaranteed to settle on something. If it was all water under the bridge, then he probably wouldn't be stuck too much with a public nickname he would have to set fire to.

He stroked a hand down Maul's back to assure the Zabrak that he didn't plan on going anywhere any time soon. It helped that currently he was mostly stuck in bed as even walking around the room tended to strain his breath. With his lungs healing from the blast, he expected to be here bored out of his mind for awhile longer. Lesson learned, right?

"You could, but you won't," he assured his lover. They had both said it now, so it was basically common phrases of their vocabulary as far as he was concerned. And in these intimate quiet moments, it was more likely to come out. The word 'mate' was very old school, and he found that he liked it. "Who would have thought that two broken men like us would get to this point together, hmm?" It was a touch mind boggling.

There was no resistance in being pulled down to the bed again, and he actually grunted and wheezed a little with the change of position as he adjusted himself comfortably. That meant snuggling closer to Maul, an arm curled tight around the Zabrak's waist. He rumbled softly at the kisses, shoving his hood back since he was with someone he trusted implicitly. "I know the feeling. Having someone close to me in my orbit focuses my attentions and... dare I say it, softens me up some."

"I'm sure I'll think up something eventually. Probably with the word 'old' attached to it," Maul said with a smirk. There wasn't much that he could do which would get under Reaper's skin but occasionally he did get a little irked when Maul pointed out his age. He was just going to have to wait around and see what Maul would do when he officially turned sixty. He was going to deliberately try to invoke a late-life crisis in the older man because the Sith Lord was an ass to everyone in his life and even his mate didn't get a free pass on that front.

"You're right. I won't," he said, nuzzling Reaper along the jaw playfully. "People will always question the relationship between us and calling you my mate is one way to get them to stop asking the stupid ones." Namely how the hell either of them had managed to find such a suitable individual to date. Like would find like as the saying went and Maul had found someone who fit his mercurial, unstable temperament perfectly. "I never would have believed it when I first came to Deerington. Had I seen it in a vision I would have thought the Force was lying to me." Now here they were over a year late and still going strong.

Maul looked pleased at that assessment, continuing to softly purr, the rumbling vibrations something that Reaper could feel all the way through his body with how close Maul was to him. One clawed finger, currently painted with orange polish that was only just beginning to chip off, gently traced some of the scars on Reaper's face. He'd never cared one bit Gabriel had them. In his eyes, it just made his mate all the more handsome, showing the story of previous battles he'd fought and won. "I help drag you out of your desire to slink away from society. Without me, you'd just lurk in back alleys until you needed to go shoot someone." It would have been astounding for those who didn't know Reaper to realize Maul in all his snarling, growling psychopathic personality was actually the social one of the pair but there they were.

His tense muscles began to relax. "And you accept me for the way I am." Much as he loved and cared for many of his friends, Maul got very tired sometimes with what he felt as them being unsatisfied with him unless he changed to a degree that was suitable for them. Sometimes, it was too much for him, and he needed someone to turn to who liked him just the way he was no matter what.

He grunted and wrinkled his nose, aware that Maul was able and willing to tap into a small and usually unspoken discomfort of his. It was less his age - he had been getting old for years - and more the fact that he had such a significant age difference with Maul that was bothersome. He kept up just fine with the Zabrak thanks to the SEP and other genetic tampering, but he was still mindful of the fact that Maul was decades younger than him and thus could be considered well within rights to wander to a younger and less worldly relationship. "I might be old, but I can still give you a run for your money. And you'd be bored with someone younger." Or so he told himself.

As far as he was concerned, let them question. Most that knew he and Maul were in a relationship either questioned one or both of their sanities, or said it made perfect sense that they were together. The more obnoxious were more curious how they made intimacy work given he could be smoke and Maul lacked flesh below the navel. "It gives them something to be weirded out about and shows their narrow-mindedness." He shrugged and stroked his fingers over the ridges of Maul's ear. "I haven't been in a serious relationship in decades," he murmured softly. "I never thought I would ever again. But you kicked down the door all aggressive-like and we decided to take the risk apparently."

The rumbling purr forced him to relax, and he was perfectly pliable to anything that Maul might want to do to him. His breath still came with some difficulty, but it too seemed less hurried or strained because he knew he was safe and cared for. "Who painted your nails?" That was the important question here. Maul probably didn't realize how much nail polish he had. "I do better in the shadows; I have little time for the political and proper anymore, and you're the only one with ambition I would rouse myself to assist." Also, the assessment about his perchance to shoot people wasn't wrong. "To be fair, there are a lot of people deserving a bullet."

He hummed in agreement. Maul was perfect just the way that the Zabrak was now. To ask Maul to change was to alter their relationship, and he saw no reason to do that. Maul, for all of his explosive and volatile personality, was also highly intelligent, highly motivated, curious and deeply flawed. Just like him. "Why would I accept anything less? I'm attracted to who you are, not who you or anyone else may want you to be. You're Darth Maul, my space wizard... and my mate." Fine, he'd try the word out himself.

Maul could tell by Reaper’s expression that he’d hit a sore spot. "We'll have to celebrate in fine form when you finally turns sixty. That's quite the momentous age for a human being."

He met the other man’s eyes, the tone in his voice earnest now that he was done teasing the old man. “I’m sure I would. There’s no one quite like you in this city and anyone else would just leave me dissatisfied in so many ways.” Where else would he have found a like-minded psychopath that would love him with his whole heart?

Maul closed his eyes at Reaper’s touch for a brief second. It was the little moments like this that made him realize what a good thing they had going on here. He didn’t want to mess that up for anything. “I’ve never been in a relationship like this. After the life I led, I thought no one would ever want to be with someone like me or that I’d ever find anyone that I wanted to be with so badly. But then a certain old soldier came into a burning building and saved my life and that was that.” Maul had been infatuated right from the very start. It had been like being struck by lightning and he’d never experienced anything similar before.

He glanced at his nails for a moment, looking almost a little embarrassed as he admitted who had done them. “Usagi. We have a standing weekly appointment. She paints my nails and I tell her of everything that is going on with me.” Which mostly just involved Maul bitching and complaining about whoever was most annoying him that week but it kept both of them happy, so he had his claws filed down and painted on a regular basis now.

Maul smiled happily when Reaper used the word mate. It warmed his hearts to hear Reaper using it in the same way he did, even if he did have to attach that silly nickname as well. To know Reaper felt the same way about this, that they were in this for the long haul no matter what, it helped to quell some of the tightness that was always in Maul’s gut, afraid to get close to anyone for fear that they would just up and disappear one day.

He lay there for a few minutes in happy silence, purring the whole time as he played around with Reaper’s hair. He ran his fingers through it and had idly begun to braid part of it when he spoke again. “Did you see that post on the network that strange little being called a troll posted recently?” The one that had made Maul lie down for half a day as he reconsidered everything in his life and all the relationships he had with people around him. “The way he described different ways their culture approaches love gave me much to think about.”

Despite himself, he found his expression and mood mollified by Maul's assurances and apparent willful gravitas for the idea of his birthday. "It's retirement age," he groused just to be dramatic. "Soon enough you're going to have to carry me everywhere and change my diapers... or just smother me with a pillow and end my shame."

His fingers continued to stroke Maul's ear before moving along the Zabrak's temple so that he could stroke the flesh around the first horn that he found. It amused him to think he was Maul's first when it came to a relationship and despite the lack of experience, they still made it work. "I'm all about the first impressions as most people in Deerington will tell you." Maul had been intriguing and shyly bold for one for such confidence yet lack of experience. "It is amazing that we who were rather convinced it was doomed to fail have made it work this long." He planned on keeping Maul his own for a good long time to come too.

Ah, the sun-shine woman. He interacted with her as little as possible, especially after she had killed Maul and admitted it. He knew she was important to Maul and that was enough for him. If Maul called him to action saving her, he probably would even do so. "So you have a paint and bitch session once a week," he remarked with amusement. "Orange isn't the best colour for you though. A fine dark blue or purple would be better."

Mate was generally not a word that humans used to refer to one another, except in conjunction with soul. He was far more used to the terms 'partner', 'husband', 'boyfriend' as descriptors. Still, mate had a ring of finality to it, didn't it?

He had closed his eyes by this point, listening to Maul purring and almost letting it pull him to sleep. Yet, he cracked an eye open a sliver at the topic change and grunted in acknowledgement. "I did. It was interesting to put relationships into those descriptors, but it seemed a bit too... rigid at times." He stroked his fingers up the back of Maul's head. "Let me guess... you're deeply in love with a lot of people you hate and care about."

"Oh, I will definitely smother you with a pillow before I let you suffer the indignity of old age too long," Maul said in a tone that was far too cheery. He'd never let anyone he loved end up as a broken shell of their former selves. Better to go out on a good note long before then.

"You thought it was doomed to failure. I had no idea what might happen and was just curious to see how long we could keep such a thing going on. And here we are, so clearly we're as insane as everyone else seems to think we are." Maul's eyes closed as Reaper's fingers stroked around the sensitive bit of skin around his temple horn. Those spots could definitely be an erogenous zone when it came to pleasure for Zabrak. Not that he was too interested in doing anything with Reaper right now. He was still exhausted and was sure Reaper also needed rest given he'd come back from the dead and all.

"Of course you'd put it in such terms," Maul said with a wry twist of his lips, smacking Reaper lightly on the arm. Not that it would do much given the angle he was at lying down but it was the principle of the matter and all. He glanced at his nails again. "I'll be sure to let her know. Next time I'm sure she'll have some wonderful sparkly purple polish for me."

Maul relaxed and nearly melted as Reaper's cold fingers stroked the back of his head. He stifled a yawn, not quite ready to drift off when he wanted to talk. "Of course. But you know me. I need things laid out and explained in plain language for me to really understand what it all means in my mind." Maul was the master of denial and blocking off certain sections of himself so he didn't have to examine his own emotions or those of others all that much. "It put into terms what spots you and Usagi have in my life..." He paused for a moment. "....And Kenobi as well." Not that all of them hadn't been a shock but that one had almost physically knocked Maul for a loop with how shocking it had been to realize what Obi-Wan had meant to him for over half his life now.

"I know I can trust you for that," he agreed a tad too seriously. If anyone was going to dedicate some time to learning how to kill him well and proper, it would be Maul. While he had aged well, he knew it would be a matter of time before things would break down. How long could this flux of decay and regeneration last?

"You know me... the cynic of the relationship," he murmured with a smirk. "You were like a wide-eyed fawn tottering into this, and I suppose your enthusiasm has made me realize much of what I had been missing." It was difficult to trust someone to the level that he had come to trust Maul, and he doubted that he would allow anyone else that close to him. His fingers stroked affectionately and slowly, in no hurry to build anything up between them. This quiet intimacy and show of trust was what he wanted. Besides, he doubted he could wheeze his way through sex right now.

He snorted at the smack, even if it didn't hurt him at all. "Quality time doesn't encompass what you two are doing. Paint and bitch is much better, and you know it." He smirked and tilted his head to nuzzle his nose tip against Maul's cheek. "If you need a nice colour, let me know. I have plenty that will look good on you."

It was true that Maul liked to better understand things, and neat almost logical boxes for emotional concepts were easier for the Zabrak to understand. It was clearly from a life where only certain emotions were welcomed and all others had a lifetime of repression. "I wasn't worried about her usurping my position as the most fuckable person in your life," he drawl, being his usual troll self. "You mean the black love, hmm? I assumed we all have individuals who slot in there for each other." Obi-Wan for Maul; 76 for him.

"Very well. The moment I think you have fallen into your dotage, I will find a way to kill you for good." But he figured they had at least another ten years or so before he had to deal with such a conundrum so they were good.

Maul laughed softly. "You are the only person in this entire city and my entire galaxy who would ever describe me as a wide-eyed fawn." And the only one Maul would have ever allowed to get away with describing him as such. Anyone else would have gotten a lightsaber blade through the gut but Reaper was allowed to rile him up and tease him.

"Oh? You have some nail polish lying about?" Maul questioned. "I never would have guessed." But at the same time it made perfect sense given Reaper's fashion sense, which was far more developed than Maul's had ever been. This is why he let his mate plan out things like their outfits during the month of October.

"You already know Kenobi is mine, though I never really allowed myself to think of him in such terms until I was able to admit he wasn't the sole cause of all the miseries in my life." Which hadn't happened until they'd both ended up in Trench together, so this had been a very recent development for him. "Who is yours?" Maul asked curiously. Despite being together for so long, Maul hadn't asked too many questions about Reaper's past. For one, he didn't seem to want to talk about it all that much, and Maul didn't want to push him away by being nosy. There was also the fact that Maul could be incredibly self-centered and barely ask anything about the lives of people even when he cared about them a lot.

"Excellent. I believe in your abilities to kill me," he replied, smirk pulling at his lips briefly. He did not expect to be so broken that he would need Maul to step in for a few decades yet, but it was positive to know his lover would.

"And I'm also the only one in this entire city and the whole galaxy that you would let get away with it too," he replied, nuzzling Maul's cheek with his nose. Then he offered a contented sigh too. "To be fair, the day you asked me out to the movies was amazing. I made you work for it."

He huffed as if Maul had just insulted him. Did he have nail polish? What kind of edgelord did the Zabrak take him for? "There are at least seventeen different tones of black."

He lifted his head from the pillow at the answer surrounding Kenobi. He considered it a great sign of his lover's personal development to be able to admit that not all problems stemmed from the one who had cut Maul in half. He personally would blame that Master of Maul's more. "He was the easiest to focus your rage upon," he agreed as he settled back in cuddled up against Maul. "He goes by the code name Soldier: 76. A building, including our careers, fell on top of us both, killing me and severely injuring him. He's been hunting me since then."

"I am glad someone around here believes that. It seems like far too many think I am some harmless pussycat and keep on pushing me until I prove to them why I am still to be feared." Besides, the challenge of how to permanently kill someone who was proven to be unkillable would occupy Maul for a great deal of time.

He turned his head and bit down very gently on Reaper's ear with his teeth, just hard enough to leave some teeth marks, mumbling his answer around the cartilage in his mouth. "I never lack for courage when I am on a quest to get what I want." One of his better qualities really. Maul feared very little and so went after whatever was his goal with a tenacious and stubborn attitude, which had included Reaper when he became infatuated with him.

He chuckled deeply, finally releasing his mate's ear. "We'll have to apply some to each other's nails while you're healing up." A nice little at-home date that was lowkey and just allowed the two of them some quality time together.

"Exactly. I will never be strong enough to defeat Sidious and so my attention turned towards someone that was still within my grasp. I finally learned to let go of some of what I felt towards him now that I know it doesn't matter at all either now or at the end of my life."

He snuggled "Your first death, I take it?" Maul put one arm under his head to keep from tearing up any of the pillows on Reaper's bed. Horns weren't always a good thing when it came to sleeping with his mate, though so often he just ended up using Reaper's chest as a pillow anyway, which he started doing as he snuggled down in next to Reaper. "It sounds like there is a long history between the two of you there." He wasn't surprised. People that filled in that category for people always seemed to have had a long presence in the other people's lives, such as with the example of Obi-Wan and himself. "Was he ever your lover?"

"I've seen you when you have been on a rampage, and I understand what you are capable of. I also have the benefit to seeing how determine you are to see things through," he remarked with a tired sigh. He knew that Maul would be as determined as Moira to see an end to his condition if it actually became that bad. "People seem to take your outbursts and outrage to be something to underrate. Their future demise."

He shivered in response to the bite, his hand tightening on Maul, and it was not a denial at all. Maul's determination was a quality he happened to like very much. "I don't think you actually knew what you wanted, since I'm your first stable relationships, am I not? I know we had doubts about it working, but we have made it. This is secure." And he needed Maul even if he might not voice that often.

He held up his hand to examine his blackened finger nails. "That will spruce them up. I'll even let you pick the colour," he remarked. Then he expected that he would complain about it good naturedly. He needed more time to rest and that was a good activity.

"I actually don't believe that," he said as his eyes closed. "I believe with the right plan, the right people, and the right set up, you could kill your old Master. He isn't immortal, and he has to have his back turned at some point." Even still, it was good that Maul was growing when it came to this Kenobi fellow. That sort of obsession was probably distracting from a better end goal. "If you need me to move aside so you can have your time in the sun with them... oh, do let me know." He was smirking, not at all believing it to happen.

There was a grunt and a bit of a silence as he thought about it. "I survived the building collapse, but there were agents in play sent to end survivors. I was one of them," he said with a little shrug as his fingers stroked Maul's head on his chest. There was comfort in that simple action. "We've known each other most of our lives, so yes, quite the history." Reaper snorted softly at the final question. "No, though we were attracted I expect. Our careers ruled our lives, so we kept it professional and friends-only."

"I may not enjoy being underestimated by the populace at large but it does come with some benefits on occasion." He lightly scratched at Reaper's scalp. "They don't seem to do that nearly as much with you. Perhaps I should go back to working from the shadows and not spend as nearly as much time in the spotlight." Of course, Reaper was also just one scary fuck, so that might have had something to do with people being consistently intimidated by him.

Maul propped himself up using his arms and pinned Reaper for a few moments beneath him in a show of playful domination, knowing he wasn't likely to resist right now. He leaned down, kissing and biting a little as he spoke. "I wanted you, of that I was certain enough. I just wasn't sure if you liked me back or even cared enough about me to want the same thing." Maul didn't voice his insecurities often but that had definitely been one of them at the start. He felt at first that Reaper obviously didn't find him interesting or cared about him beyond his novelty factor of being alien and a Sith. That clearly hadn't been the case and he was so grateful for it.

Then he shifted and laid down next to Reaper again, taking his blackened fingernails into his own hands to examine them. They felt cold and Maul let some of his warmth leech a little into them. "Perhaps a nice red to match your eyes," he said with a grin.

Maul laid his head back down on Reaper's chest, gently so as not to stab him too hard with any of his horns. The perils that always came with being involved with a Zabrak. "Well, if ever there is a moment where this place brings him forth for whatever hellish reason...don't hesitate on my account." Maul wasn't sure he could kill Sidious but he knew for certain the old bastard had never met anyone like Reaper before. He'd have no contingency plans in place to deal with a man who just couldn't die and simply turned to smoke when he was temporarily destroyed. It would be the perfect opportunity to finally gain revenge.

Maul began to get drowsy and thought falling asleep sounded like a good idea to him. He was still exhausted from his fight with Lance. Really, he was getting a bit old for endurance tests in the way of a marathon fight session. "Always the solider then your entire life?" He asked, eyes closing as he listened to Reaper talk about his past. There was definitely a firm 'before' and 'after' with him when he'd been Gabriel and when he'd been reborn (redied?) as Reaper. "Was he the one you went home to take revenge upon?"

"If they underestimate you and paint you with a particular brush then you can turn their expectations on their head when the time is right," he remarked, a hum leaving him at the nails against his scalp. That felt good, better than it had any right to. "Oh, that's because my first public act was to shoot the most popular person in the head for all to see." And after that, he used his violence very sparingly so that when it came, people knew it would be bad. "Those of my world talked up my reputation and it stuck. Now word of mouth is all I need to keep those I interact with wary."

He made a noise of protest to being pinned down, not certain he had the strength or energy for any playful times with Maul. He only flexed his shoulders and arms but otherwise didn't fight back. He sighed against the press of lips, eyes closing. "You wanted me even if you had never seen my face," he said, bemused. He leaned his head up to kiss Maul on his lips. "You were fascinating to me back then and such a delightful dramatic bitch, just like I was. I definitely was attracted." He had no issue assuring Maul of their mutual attraction now that they were so deep in a relationship.

He wiggled his fingers in Maul's grasp, humming at the idea of red. "I have enough shades of red that you should be able to find one to match your desire." Red was extremely classic, so he could definitely get behind it.

He was used to working around the press of Maul's horns, and it didn't bother him at all to feel the one from his lover's temple pressing to his chest. His fingers stroked around the base of the crown of horns one by one. "Oh, once I identify my target, there is nothing stopping me from ending him. I'll bring you his head as a gift." Even if it took him multiple deaths to achieve it, he would succeed. For Maul.

He was also teetering on the verge of sleep, his breathing coming heavily from him from the specific destruction of his body at the time of his death. "Yes, I was a career soldier. My skill set was valuable and I enjoyed tactics in particular. He was the same as I was, though he had far more charisma than I did." He sighed and stretched his legs as he wiggled to find that peak comfortable spot to fall asleep in. "No. We technically had the same goal but different methods. I was... I suppose, doing what I could to keep him alive. He wouldn't know it though."

"Ah yes, the value of a good reputation. I fear mine is being shredded to pieces in this place," Maul groused. But for all that he liked to grumble people no longer feared him as they once did, there was still a great number of Sleepers who found the Sith Lord terrifying. As long as no one ever thought Maul was rendered into a fluffy, cuddly little bunny rabbit, he felt that he'd never truly lose the fearsome reputation he'd entered Deerington with.

"What you looked like was of the least importance to me, Gabriel," Maul said. "I've slept with stunningly beautiful beings before but it never meant anything. Sex was just a way to release stress and find what little pleasure I could. But there was no emotions attached to it." To find an emotional connection where he just clicked with someone the way he had with Reaper was something that Maul hadn't ever had before. It had been a heady, intoxicating feeling and he'd been determined not to let this strange undead man go if he would have him as a lover. Knowing Reaper had just been interested in him as well warmed Maul's hearts.

"I shall find a suitable color so that our nails can match." Maul grinned. "Alright. It's a date then."

He didn't move his head but his fingers tightened around Reaper's. "That might be the nicest thing anyone has ever offered to do for me," Maul said happily, secure in the knowledge that Reaper would have killed Sidious in as slow and agonizing a way as possible just to bring Maul the satisfaction and happiness he'd been denied his whole life. It truly was an act of love for someone to offer to do that just so Maul could experience what he'd never get in his own galaxy.

"A fighter your whole life then. Just like me." Maul snorted at the mention of having more charisma. Of the two of them, Maul had a lot more than Reaper, but that was just because he was more open about it during the (rare) occasions when he tried to get along with people. "I think Crouton has more charisma than you do," Maul said snarkily. "Sounds like me and Obi-Wan the way you speak of him. Two moons circling around the same planet but never quite within each other's orbits," Maul explained, feeling drowsy and content now that he was ready to fall asleep.

"It does seem that yours is being pulled apart with all of those that you associate with. One might almost claim that they are taming your wild spirit," he remarked with a soft snort from his nose. He preferred to keep his reputation intact as much as possible, but he knew it was tarnished by some of those that he associated with as well.

He stroked his fingers over the back of Maul's head, pausing to pet around the crown of horns. "So the sex between us is mind blowing," he remarked with a tug on his lips. "Because we have such an emotional connection as well as a physical one." His fingers stroked the dark tattooed skin at the back of Maul's head, turning his head so he could nuzzle his nose against the top.

"A good date, yes," he remarked, pleased.

It was a commitment that he had no issue of making for Maul. Anything to keep his lover happy and safe. "Well, I suppose I'm just such a nice person. But only to you." He understood that taking on Maul's master would be dangerous and require considerable planning and set up to accomplish. The first attempt would be the one where he could have the highest success because as soon as he was a known entity, guards would be put in place.

He swatted Maul lightly at the charisma comment. "I have charisma, but I don't use it. One day you'll see how charming I can be if I set my mind to it." He just happened to like the moody edgelord feel and always had. When he was a teenager, he had been far more charismatic. "Yes well, unlike you and this Obi-Wan, Jack and I were best friends to start." He yawned and closed his eyes, fighting to stay awake and likely to lose that battle very soon.

"Me? Tamed? Never." He chuckled darkly. "Anyone who thinks otherwise will soon find that I am not a neutered puppy-dog the way that they might think." There had been one or two instances of someone challenging him that way and Maul had been quick to put them in their place.

"I never knew it could be like that before between two people," Maul admitted. His upbringing had left him with a very stunted understanding of love in general, and while the familial kind was easier for Maul to grasp, the kind of sexual love that could happen between two people who were in love was a bit harder for him to understand. But he'd gotten more of an idea over the past year and a half in his relationship with Reaper.

"And that's the way I think we both like it," Maul confirmed. It was rather nice that Reaper could show his vulnerable side only to a few select people just like he did. It made him feel special. Not just anyone would have offered to permanently put his master down just to make him happy.

Maul snickered when Reaper smacked him. "That'll be the day," he said sarcastically. "Ah, a tale of best friends to enemies to a complicated mess? Sounds like a Shakespearean tragedy." Maul had read all of the bard's classics while he'd been in Deerington and had rather liked the tales that all ended sadly rather than the ones that ended in happiness.

Reaper snorted, not about to mention that technically Maul was neutered by the physiologic definition. No, that was asking for a fight he was not interested in having. He was much too comfortable snuggling and being snuggled. "I look forward to you putting them in their place for that."

He chuckled, dragging his nails over the back of Maul's head. One-night stands were great for simple release, but he had always known an emotional connection made such intimacy so much more. "It's good I was able to open your mind to all the possibilities that comes with having an emotional attachment to a person. Blowing your mind is one of the enjoyable aspects of touching you." He added an affectionate kiss for his trouble too.

"Just you wait." Now he was going to have to commit to that, which seemed like an awful lot of effort. Still, to prove Maul wrong, he would muster himself for it. "Oh, it is. Too bad we are so hard to kill, but it means that we can focus on our revenge for the time being. He'll kill me one day, perhaps."

Good thing Reaper had tact. Maul would have bitten an ear off if he had been mean enough to mention he was missing quite a bit more below the waist than simply his legs. He was well-aware but anyone who pointed it out was going to be missing their dick by the end of the conversation. "You do so love to watch me work." Sometimes Maul thought Reaper got a little turned on when he was filled with violence and doling it out on the population of Trench.

"Sith aren't supposed to have attachment, not the kind where they love someone the way I love you." He thought for a moment. "But love can be a dark emotion too. It's not all on the side of light the way some people think it is." Maul began to purr a little in the back of his throat, feeling warm, happy, and content. He was going to stay here with Reaper as long as his lover allowed him to, though he was certain eventually he'd be shooed out of the house either at the end of a broom or a shotgun. The two of them did like their space after all.

"I shall," Maul said with just a hint of a challenge in his tone. He was so used to seeing Reaper be the Hot Topic murder hobo that he couldn't wait to see him turning the charm on. That would be quite the sight. "Perhaps. But not for a long, long time," Maul said assuredly. He was going to keep Reaper here with him as long as it was possible for both of them.

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