KYROUFO

The twin suns of Tatooine were setting, and from where I was standing at the top of the sand dune, I could see the faint silhouette of Mos Eisley. We had not been on the planet long, and Maul's explanation as to why was vague at best. 

These days there wasn’t much that we needed to deal with. Having spent the vast majority of the last ten years fighting to survive, we enjoyed the last year or so that we have been able to finally live.

I watched the suns set as I sat on the dune, treasuring the moments of peace. I looked up to see Maul coming back to the ship. 

We slowly made our way back to the ship, the sand slowing our steps. It was a silent walk back, the weight of whatever he had been doing seemed to weigh on him. I knew better than to ask—No, he would tell me when he was ready. 

That night we sat out on the open dock of the ship, Mos Eisley now lit up the horizon in a haze of twinkling lights. 

We shared tea; it had become a ritual for us. Simple, but something that brought us both great peace. I sipped the warm tea that Maul had poured for me and looked at him. He was always handsome, but as the years go by, and as the creases around his eyes soften, I find him more captivating than ever. “Old age looks good on you Maul.” I said with a smirk. 

He looked at me fiercely, “well…” he paused, taking a moment to refill my cup. “… in my experience, there is nothing good in this galaxy,” his gaze met my eyes once more, looking as if he was trying to memorize every inch of me, “you… are my one exception.” 

I smiled, I couldn’t help it. After all these years, he still looked to me as though I was the only light in an otherwise dark world. 

I scooted closer to him, leaning my head on his shoulder. It was only in moments like these, where we were truly all alone, that he would accept any type of affection. I sighed, “I still go to bed wondering if I have ever been good— if I will leave this universe having given more than I took.” 

“I will never apologize for doing what was necessary to survive— for you to survive.” I recalled all the times he had saved me from certain death, the way he always found a reason to throw himself in front of me. Perhaps that’s why I love him, why he has captured my soul so entirely. He had the strength to do what I could not, to make the hard choices; and I was right beside him, making choices that he could not. 

“There is honour in loyalty, protection, principle, relentlessness, all of which you carry in droves.” Maul said nothing back, but I knew by the he seemed to melt a bit closer into me, that he understood. 

My eyes began to flutter, and I could feel the waves of sleep drawing me down. Maul placed his hand on my head, his warm palm cupping my cheek. He kept his hand where it was as he touched his forehead to mine, before kissing me on my forehead. I reached up to cup his face in my hand, the both of us now holding each other in a delicate embrace. It was one of those rare moments that I had come to cherish over the last decade. 

He kissed me gently trailing from my lips to my jaw and then my neck. As the twin suns disappeared beyond the horizon, we were left with nothing but each other—and that was enough. 

~

When the air turned cold we finally headed in for the night. I sat on the edge of our bunk, watching as Maul put away the tea set from earlier. Finally, he made his way over to me, stopping right in front of where I was sitting. 

He looked down at me, his fiery eyes burning through my soul. His fingers traced the edge of my jaw, leaving a trail of electricity running through me. I felt heat rising to my cheeks, and turned my face in embarrassment. Even after all these years he still managed to make me blush. He grabbed my chin and turned my head so that I was once again looking at him.

He knelt before me, his head pressing against my chest. His hand found his way down my waist until they landed on my hips. I cupped his face and kissed him. Deeply. Passionately. As if it was the last time I would ever do so. 

As he returned the kiss, his hands began to wander my body. He slowly peeled back the layers of clothing on my body, until my entire torso was bare. 

He trailed his tongue upwards from my abdomen, slowly climbing his way up until I was on my back. His hands found my chest, and his kiss deepened as his calloused hands massaged my breasts. He kissed my neck, sending tingles down my body. 

I slowly peeled away his clothes, all while he remained focused on keeping my mouth busy. His hands traveled down my body, undressing me. I could feel his warm breath on my ears and neck, making me shiver in anticipation. 

His hand wandered down until his fingers were brushing over my clit. He rubbed my clit in gentle circles, causing me to gasp. His fingers trailed over the entrance of my pussy, dripping from arousal. He slowly pushed his fingers inside me, pinching my nipples as we went deeper. 

He fingered me and I rocked my hips towards him, moaning in pleasure as he found my g-spot.   As his fingers continued to pleasure me he grabbed my thigh and spread my legs farther apart.  With one hand fingering me he used his mouth to sucks on my clit. As soon as I felt his tongue I began to feel the pressure of arousal building in my body. My hips began to shake, and as he lightly nipped at my clit with his teeth, I moaned loudly. 

“M-Maul, I’m gonna come.” 

I writhed in pleasure underneath him, grabbing the sheets underneath me as I came. I was still shaking when he laid beside me and grabbed me by the hips, pulling me on top of him. He looked at me with sultry eyes, as if he was a wild animal about to devour his prey, and licked the fingers that had just been inside me. “I want to watch you fuck me,” he said, voice low. 

A smile crept up to my lips, and I kept eye contact as I lowered myself onto his cock. “F—Fuck,” I said with a trembling voice. I began to grind my hips, his cock hitting my g-spot and causing me to moan in pleasure. It felt so good that my eyes closed and my head fell backwards as I pleasured myself on his cock. He grabbed the side of my head, and pulled it back so that our eyes were once again locked. “Look at me,” he said, moaning softly, “I want to see your beautiful face.” I didn’t look away again, not until I was coming once again, this time, all over his cock. 

As I caught my breath he sat up, grabbed me by the waist, and flipped me onto my back. He kissed me on my neck and breasts, biting me gently as I scratched my nails down his back. He groaned into my neck, the scratching making him bite me harder. He held my hips and pushed his cock into my throbbing pussy. He held my face in his hands, putting his thumb in my mouth. With every thrust I moaned louder, until he could no longer stop himself. He moaned my name as he came inside me. My pussy was still throbbing as he pulled out, leaving me dripping with his come. 

Maul collapsed beside me, the two of us had become a sweaty and disheveled mess; the endorphins in my body threatening to pull me into a slumber. We turned to face each other, his warm hands finding their place in the dip of my waist. I placed my hand on his muscular chest, feeling his steady heart beat and allowing it to ground me in the moment. 

He ran his knuckles down the side of my face, then gently tucked the loose strands of my hair behind my ear. We held each other like that for a while, breathing each other in as if the only safe air left in the galaxy was between us. 

He pulled me into his chest, embracing me fully. “I would suffer a thousand lifetimes if it meant I could find you,” he said, into the crook of my neck. 

“And I would love you in every one.” 

He didn’t say anything else—he didn’t need to. We both understood what this was, what we were; and for once, it was enough. 

~

My eyes fluttered open, my body wrapped up in blankets. I turned around to Maul's side of the bed, but he was not there as he usually was. I put on my silk night dress and made my way to the cargo hold of our ship. Maul was sitting at the small table, preparing tea for himself. When he saw me he immediately reached for another cup, and set it across from where he was sitting. 

I walked around and stood behind him, resting my hands on his shoulders and bending down to place a gentle kiss on his cheek. “Good morning Maul,” I said as I began to gently massage the knots in his shoulders. His muscles relaxed and he turned his head ever so slightly towards me, “I made tea, sit with me.” I obliged, not that I didn’t want to, but because I knew Maul felt he did not deserve a second of care, no matter how badly he craved it. And so I sat with him, drinking tea while he listened to my musings until it was finally time to get on with our day. 

Maul occupied himself while I took a shower and got dressed. As I left the shower I felt my stomach drop, the feeling that I knew to be a warning. My mind flickered with visions, Maul trekking through the desert, the twin suns setting on the dunes, a small sandstone hut. I thought it was finally over when a final vision reverberated through my head—Obi-Wan, and he was here, on Tatooine. 

As I stumbled and sunk to the floor of the shower, the weight of the visions pushed me farther and farther down. I realized now the true reason for our stay on Tatooine, why Maul had been so cagey about his business. I had hoped that perhaps he had finally been able to let go of his need for revenge, but there are wounds which even the strongest of love could not reach. I decided not to say anything, not yet anyways. He hadn’t left and I decided that I’d rather spend my time beside him than mulling over what may be. 

~

It was noon when he left. Usually, he let me know that he would be leaving and that was that. Instead he called for me to come to him. He was in the front of the ship, preparing one of the speeders. If I had not seen the visions earlier this would not be anything out of the ordinary.   I was standing on the ramp of the, waiting for him to say something. Instead, he walked over to me and embraced me. I reciprocated, throwing my arms over his shoulders and nuzzling my face into his neck. Eventually I released my grip, and held his face in my palm, tracing the lines of his face tattoos with the pad of my thumb. 

“I know what you are doing, and you don’t have to go,” I said, tears welling in my eyes, “you can stay here. Stay with me… you don’t have to do this, Maul.” 

In his eyes, I saw that he knew that he could no longer shield me from the reality of what he was doing. He wiped away the tears now streaming down my face. “I can’t keep running…” he hesitated, “…I must face it.” 

He was right, and that was the worst part. I could not force him to stay, not when everything in his body was pulling him to his certain death. All I could do was be here with him. 

I ran my hands down his robes, straightening them as I went. My hand lingered over the lightsaber clipped to his belt. I looked into his eyes once more, taking in everything I could about him. 

He kissed me, deeply, with the heat of a thousand suns. “You are everything…” he said as he stroked the back of my hair, “…I love you.” 

I couldn’t stop the tears from welling in my eyes, and I couldn’t stop from breaking down into a sobbing mess. Maul held me tighter, and I grabbed onto his robes at his chest, burying my face into the crook of his neck. Through a mess of emotions and sharp breaths I managed one word, “Stay.” 

He said nothing for a while, just held me as my breakdown slowly subsided. When I had stopped crying he pulled away, his hands still holding my arms, and he rested his head against mine, “This was inevitable.” 

“I know,” I replied, “I love you.” 

He kissed me once more before getting on his speeder. I watched him so carefully, wanting to soak up every second I possibly could. His eyes held mine as he turned on the bike, and in the few seconds before he left, it was as if his gaze said more than words ever could. He looked sad, in the way that you look at something you love more than anything but have to let go of. 

He left then, speeding off into the desert, dragging my heart along with him and leaving me to bleed out. 

~

I spent the following 3 hours screaming at nobody and throwing things around. I felt like I was drowning, like there was hot molten lava pouring into my lungs and dragging me down. With nobody to watch me I allowed myself to descend into the darkest parts of my mind. I wailed until I couldn’t anymore, until my face was puffy and my eyes bloodshot. 

I laid on the floor of the ship, wrapped in blankets that smelled of leather and expensive incense. Blankets that smelled like him. I relived our life together, the ten years we spent exploring the galaxy, exploring each other. 

I thought back to the first time we met, when I was hiding from the empire on Nar Shaddaa. I hated him at first, hated what he represented. He was manipulative, and he wanted me as an apprentice.  He knew what I was, who I used to be. I should have run, should have stayed away from him. A former Jedi and former Sith, it was a recipe for disaster, but I followed him anyway. At some point we became something more, partners, equals, lovers, and then… what we were now. I saw his darkness, and in turn he saw mine, and neither of us cowered from it. There was peace in being understood. 

I tossed and turned, writhing on the floor once again as I relived him. That’s when I decided to follow him, I knew where he was going, knew how to get there, and I hoped I would reach him in time. 

I took the other speeder and sped after him through the night, not stopping for one second, racing against time and fate to reach the man I loved before his past could consume him. 

~

I finally reached him, and as I ran across the sand I knew I was too late. Obi-wan was there, and Maul was on the ground, his final moments playing out. I knew Obi-wan, knew he would have so many questions for me after all these years, but at that moment I did not care. I pushed him out of the way when I finally got to them. I kneeled in the sand and pulled Maul into my lap, holding his cheek in my palm as tears began flowing. 

“Please,” I begged, “I need you— you can’t leave.” I sobbed uncontrollably, the quiet desert now filled with my desperate wails. 

Maul held my hand that was holding his body, and he placed his other on my cheek. Using all the strength left in his body, he wiped away the tears in my eyes. 

“You came back for me,” Maul said smiling. 

“I could never leave you, Maul.” 

“I will—” he stuttered through his words, “—find you in the next lifetime.” 

I sobbed as I watched his eyes close for the final time, and I held him for a while, as his soul left his body. Finally, when the tears wouldn’t stop falling, a guttural scream emerged from the darkest parts of my heart. I was angry, so incredibly angry. I was angry at Maul for dying, at Obi-Wan for killing him, at the galaxy for causing him so much pain, but most of all I was angry at Sidious for breaking his mind when he was just a child. 

Obi-Wan sat in silence while I held his body, giving me the space to grieve, however momentarily.

Finally he spoke, “You loved him.” 

“I was alone for so many years after the fall of the Jedi. He was the only person to see me— really, truly see me.” I wiped a tear from my eye, “Now he’s gone forever.”

Obi-Wan frowned, “Love heals, and it destroys. It is perhaps the greatest contradiction in life.” 

“The worst part,” I said through gritted teeth, “is that I think we always knew it would end this way.” 

He frowned, “There are certain things in one’s life which you cannot possibly outrun, no matter how fast you go.” 

“He killed your master.” 

“Yes.” 

“And I loved him anyway.”  

“Yes.” 

“Do you hate me for that?”

He hesitated, as if he were trying to find the right thing to say to such a loaded question, “It is in a Jedi’s nature to see the light in everyone. Even those who have been trained since birth to eliminate it. I think loving Maul was perhaps the bravest thing you’ve ever done.”

“I didn’t love him because I thought I could fix him, I loved him despite knowing I couldn’t.” 

Obi-Wan paused for a while, both of us sitting in silence. He put his hand on my shoulder, despite him having been the one to deliver Maul's death, I felt comfort in his touch. Perhaps it was the knowledge that he too knew what it was like to love a profoundly broken person, to know that despite it all you still hold them in your heart. “I’m sorry for what has happened,” he said to me softly. 

“There is nothing to be sorry for, you did what you had to. Just as Maul did what he had to.” I was angry with Obi-Wan, of course I was, but I couldn’t blame him. Maul gave him no choice, and because of Sidious, Maul had no choice either. 

“You can lay him to rest at my home nearby. Giving him a peaceful resting spot is the only thing I can do for him now.” 

“Thank you,” I replied. 

I carried the body of the man I loved through the desert, towards his final destination. 

~

Kenobi stood in silence next to me as engraved Maul's name into the stone marker. When I was finished I stood next to him and watched the suns rise. Tears trickled down the slopes of my face, but my breathing remained steady. “He was made to suffer through so much Obi-Wan. I don’t think he was ever awarded a second of peace in this wretched galaxy,” I said as I wiped my eyes with my sleeves. 

Obi-Wan pulled me into an embrace, which I accepted in silence. “With you, I think he found it,” he said. 

When Obi-Wan pulled away, he reached for his belt, and placed Mauls Lightsabers in my hand. He didn’t have to say anything, everything important was already understood, “Thank you, Obi-Wan.” 

As I moved to leave, he said my name, and I turned back to him. “May the force be with you,” he spoke. I smiled, and walked back towards the rising suns. 

~ Epilogue ~

“It’s been a while since I’ve been back. I meant to come sooner but I just got busy I guess. I suppose that’s a good thing, what you would have wanted, for me to continue on with my life.”

I leaned my head against the warm stone marker, watching as the twin suns set. “I wish we had more time. There was so much left for us to do. I get bored now, I never used to get bored when you were around,” I chuckled. “It’s okay though, I don’t mind a little boredom.” 

I stood up and faced the marker, reading the text I had engraved a few years ago. 

Maul

May we find each other 

in every lifetime

As the wind picked up and the suns disappeared further past the horizon, I grabbed mauls lightsabers from my belt. Holding them out in front of me, I ignited them. They doused me in a brilliant white light, and for the first time in a long time, I felt warmth in my heart.