#uncle cody

Cody had missed Alderaan. Everything was quieter there and life moved slower. The people lived like there was no threat bearing down on them, like they had forever to move through the markets, make their way home, see their loved ones. It was a welcome change from the life Cody had lived. He had long grown tired of urgency and the war had worn him to the bone. Years on the run had treated him no better. Even after escaping the Empire, he knew the fight had just begun. Cody was never in one place for very long.

He had a recognizable face, that much was for sure. Because of that, he often found himself running from one end of the galaxy to the other, stopping only briefly in places like Dantooine or Tatooine. The war had been difficult, but the Rebellion was aging him in ways he had never expected.

Cody didn’t always recognize the man he saw in the mirror anymore, but he supposed a lot of the vode would look like that now. The lines on his face were deeper and his eyes were more shadowed. His hands were sore, and his knuckles were often swollen and tender. Much like his knees, his fingers cracked and popped when he stretched them.

So, the years had worn hard on Cody, and that wasn’t even to mention the ache in his chest when he thought about all the faces that matched his own, all of the ones he couldn’t save.

The galaxy was better in a lot of ways too though. Because Obi-Wan was alive, not dead at the bottom of a lake on some desolate, Empire-stricken world. He was older too and the sun hadn’t been kind to his fair complexion, but he was safe and Cody slept better at night knowing the war couldn’t touch him anymore. Rex was safe and so was Ahsoka and there were people that still believed they could resist the great jaws of the beast that sought to consume him.

Cody was content knowing that there was a little boy with Padmé’s smile hidden far away from anyone that could ever hurt him.

That was all to say, Alderaan wasn’t Cody’s home. He’d never had one of those before. But it was one of the places left in the entire galaxy that truly made him happy.

Bail and Breha were lovely people, and while Cody knew he would spend the rest of his life fighting for the Rebellion, they weren’t why he was there. Not even the data stick shoved deep in his bag was that important to him.

No, one of the brightest lights in the entire galaxy was there; little Leia Organa.

No one ever told Cody who she was, truthfully they didn’t need to. Because she had her mother’s eyes and her father’s temper and Cody would recognize that stubborn Skywalker tilt to her mouth anywhere.

Cody twirled his glass against the edge of the railing on the balcony he was on, watching as the water swirled dangerously towards the lip of it. There were bright slices of fruit floating around in it and Cody huffed a little exasperated at the slightly sweet taste of it.

“Uncle Cody!”

Cody turned on his heel to face the doors to the balcony as Leia ran through them. He set his glass to the side and dropped down to the ground to catch her right before she knocked him off balance entirely. She wrapped her little arms around his neck and Cody lifted her from the ground, his knees screaming in protest as he did.

Leia adjusted her grip around Cody’s neck and Cody wrapped his arms more securely around her as she did.

“Well, hello to you too, your highness,” Cody replied, smiling kindly at her.

Leia giggled a little, pulling at a loose string on the hood of Cody’s cloak. “You’ve been gone a long time, Uncle Cody,” she said, looking away from him.

Cody sighed long and low, then moved to sit in one of the chairs on the balcony, settling Leia to sit in his lap more comfortably. He opened his mouth to speak again when the balcony doors opened wider, Leia’s frantic nanny running through.

“Leia!” She exclaimed. “We’ve talked about this. You can’t just go running off whenever you please!”

“I needed to see Uncle Cody!” Leia replied, crossing her arms.

Cody snorted despite the ache in his heart at the stubborn set to her brow. “It’s alright,” he said. “I’ve got her for now.”

Her nanny nodded once and turned to leave. “Dinner is in ten minutes, so make sure she washes up beforehand. There’s no telling what she’s gotten into today.”

Leia looked up at Cody and smiled conspiratorially, holding back her hysterical little giggles.

“Have you been getting into trouble, Leia?” Cody asked when her nanny disappeared down the corridor again.

Leia looked over at the empty doorway then reached up to force Cody closer to her. “It’s more fun that way.”