--

“I definitely hit him first!”

“There’s no way! You can’t aim for even a credits worth.”

“You’re smack talk needs work.”

“Hey!”

“Enough, you two,” Master Menka sighs. “We’re entering the atmosphere soon.”

Baekhyun relaxes back into his seat with a haughty grin plastered on his face. He is strapped in next to Jongdae who sports a sour look as the ship jerks down in the rough atmosphere of the planet. They argue over trivial things like getting the first hit on the enemy and getting compliments on their fighting by their Master’s. It is only a friendly competition between the two Padawans. They have to think of something to do when they’ve been succeeding.

It’s been six years since Baekhyun began training under Master Menka. He’s learned a lot during those years. Physically, he’s trained more in his agility rather than his fighting. His Master has always said that internally he has strength that no one can compare to, but it can only be harnessed if he has the will to.

Mentally, his Master is still training him even harder. It’s an ongoing process. At first, Baekhyun is apprehensive to the idea of patiently waiting for the right opportunities, but he soon learns that patience is the key to General Menka’s advances in the War. Baekhyun has read all there is on his Master, and he knows it will be hard to match the success and reach his Master’s standards. But, through mental perseverance, the young teen becomes more comfortable in the Order and his personality shines through.

Jongdae is undoubtedly his best friend. The two teens are inseparable, and even if they do get separated, they always find a way back to each other. It is almost mystical in the sense. Sometimes, Baekhyun will just be thinking about the other, and Jongdae will appear in the next second with the visioned smile on his face.

They are a great team and often go on missions together with their Master’s. Recently, they’ve been fighting bounty hunters who are hired by enemies of the Government. They call themselves Eko Regime (Baekhyun almost snorts when he found the intentional misspelling). They’ve captured over tens of bounty hunters and sent them away for interrogation. So far, all their missions have been successful.

Baekhyun gently kicks Jongdae with his boot to grab the others attention. He flashes Jongdae a grin and reaches his outstretched hand. Inside is a tiny balled up chocolate. It is the same flavor as the ones that Jongdae gave to him years ago. Baekhyun isn’t ashamed of the sweet tooth he’s acquired.

Jongdae stares at the chocolate and snorts, “Really? All you think about is sweets.”

“Take it,” Baekhyun dangles it in front of Jongdae. He singsongs, “I’ll only offer once.”

“Or else, what? You’ll eat them all?” Jongdae barks out his sharp laugh. He roughly grabs the wrapped chocolate and pops it into his mouth. He mumbles around the chocolate goo, “You really don’t have self-control.”

The team is settling on the ground as Jonghyun lands their cargo ship on the planet. It’s dusty and dry, so they cover themselves with goggles and turbans around their heads. The planets giant sun beats down on the desert and its inhabitants.

Master Menka finally offloads the droid and two speeders onto the desert sand. On one of the speeders, he activates a holographic map. He lets the others gather around him. With a thick finger, he points to the highlighted coordinates, “Here is where the village is. We shall investigate there to get the information we need about whose been hired by the Eko Regime.”

Jonghyun nods along to the older Master, “You know where to get the best information?”

Jongdae’s eyes light up, “Ooh! I know! I know, it’s the ba—“

“--The bars!” Baekhyun beats him with a grin on his face. Jongdae hums in annoyance.

Master Menka is expressionless, but Baekhyun has picked up on most of his Master’s clever ticks over the years. Like when he approves of something, his jaw adorned with claws swells outward and he hums. And when he’s disapproving, which is most of the time, he scrunches his forehead until it wrinkles. Like he’s doing right now.

“Let’s move,” Master Menka orders and mounts his already dusty speeder. Baekhyun climbs onto the backside of it and holds onto his Master’s robes. They speed off into the dusty ridges of Ambria. Baekhyun can barely see beyond the dust wall that they create when they sped past ridges. All Baekhyun can think about is how different Ambria and Kamar looked. They both are desert planets, but they are like distant cousins. Ambria has ridges and dust, whereas Kamar just has sand forever.

The ride isn’t terribly long, Baekhyun notices as his Master pulls up to the village on the map. There are similar canvas tarped stands with smoking food and goods, but the people of the village rely on the Earth’s architecture rather than the scrap metal fields that Baekhyun is used to. The people are also completely different species than the ones on Kamar.

Baekhyun can hear the whirl of the other speeder entering the village. He smirks when Jongdae shakes his head and a puff of dust flies from his turban.

“We beat you,” Baekhyun taunts. He digs a finger into Jongdae’s skin before he shrugs the feeling off. Jongdae’s got the tiniest smirk on before he snaps to playfully take a bite of Baekhyun’s finger.

“Well, looks like there’s two pubs.” Jonghyun squints as he takes a step forward into the dusty bazaar. He grins down to the Padawans, “You know what that means.”

Baekhyun’s eyes light up, “Split up! Ooh, can we switch it up this time? Pretty please~! I’m a team player—“

“Baekhyun, you’re with me,” Master Menka wraps his leathery fingers around Baekhyun’s shoulders. Baekhyun deflates, but Jongdae flashes him a soft smile. There is something about that smile that always makes Baekhyun feel better afterward.

Master and Padawan walk into the pub together. It’s not as dusty as the outside, but the air is very thick and stale. The building is built out of rocks from the ridges and the only light sources are the sun and twinkling sprites trapped underneath overturned glasses. The pub is filled with many different lifeforms, much like at the restaurant in Kamar. Baekhyun is getting an uneasy feeling when some patrons turn to the turban wearing strangers. Baekhyun just grasps his Master’s robes tightly and follows him into the crowd.

Menka leans against the bar and crooks a finger. The bar tender, an Ithorian, stumbles over and grunts in his language. Baekhyun is a little rusty on his Ithorian, but he is pretty sure the bartender is just greeting his Master.

“Do you know where I can get someone for hire?” Menka’s voice is low to not attract himself in the wrong crowd. The Ithorian scoffs and starts chattering while cleaning a glass with his stubby hands. Baekhyun’s Master is always looking too rigid in these situations, but it is as if no one else cared for his emotionless appearance. Baekhyun would rather just obtain the information with a few winks and a charming smile and call it a day.

“Pleasure doing business,” Master Menka bows his head before ducking out of the tiny bar table. Baekhyun follows him around the bar to a corner where a patron is sitting alone, drinking an ale. Baekhyun watches as his Master approaches the reptilian hunter.

“I’ve heard you’re looking for work,” Menka speaks confidently without any shake. Baekhyun figures it’s because of his experience. Baekhyun stays at a bit of a distance but keeps his eyes open for an ambush.

The reptilian slips his tongue out before sipping his drink, “Who’s asking?”

“Me. I need good work done.”

Baekhyun flicks his eyes to the patch on the reptile’s jacket. It looks like a symbol of the Eko Regime. His Master probably has made note of it even before he’s started talking.

Baekhyun watches as his Master is as still as a board with no hesitation heard within his voice. He breathes in his respirator, “You’ll be rewarded handsomely.”

The reptile hisses with delight, “How much?”

Baekhyun sees his Master turn slightly. He can feel his Master presence press into him, a question he always poses when they are covering for each other. Baekhyun nods, and his Master continues, “We should take this outside.”

The reptile laughs and downs his drink, “I don’t negotiate outside.”

Baekhyun is sure his Master would be frowning, but his expression and tone is always the same, “Looks like we’re both stuck, because I don’t negotiate.”

“Fine,” The reptile grumbles and steps out of his rocky booth. Master Menka strides beside him while Baekhyun takes lead in front of them. He can hear the reptile hiss, “Who is this?”

“My associate.”

Baekhyun wants to laugh, but he knows that his Master will scold him if he does.

“He’s a tiny thing, isn’t he?” The reptile is laughing outrageously.

His Master shrugs, “Don’t underestimate him. He is very strong.”

Baekhyun turns slightly and wiggles his fingers at the reptile, “Boo!”

The reptile doesn’t take kindly to the gesture and hisses at Baekhyun. They walk into the dusty outside. Baekhyun is glad he has his turban and goggles to protect him because he doesn’t know how he would survive without them. Ambria has more dust storms than Kamar – that is for sure.

 All of a sudden, Baekhyun can feel claws clutching the back of his turban and pulling him back forcefully. His goggles and turban are flying off his face as he’s getting spun around. He feels himself choking on air when his chest is being crushed by outstretched claws. When he’s opening his eyes, he is facing his Master wrapped in his turban, and green claws from the reptilian hold him in place. Baekhyun just loves being the hostage.

“You tell me what you’re employing me for, or he gets the bite,” the reptile hisses. Baekhyun can see his Master stand still and calm. He doesn’t want the other to act irrationally.

“We can settle this calmly. Just let him –“

“No,” the reptile presses a blaster end roughly into Baekhyun’s temple. Baekhyun has to grit his teeth from how much the gun is pressing into his skin. He flashes his eyes open to his Master to see him nod at him. Baekhyun has learned the art of patience in any situation from his Master, and this is testing his patience.

“I told you not to underestimate him,” Baekhyun’s Masters’ voice is low, cueing Baekhyun to work. Baekhyun instantly flicks his wrist and the blaster pistol is thrown hundreds of meters. When the reptile is hissing in shock, Baekhyun grips tightly on the arm across his chest. With the help of the Force, Baekhyun hunches over and throws the giant reptile over his shoulder. It’s quite impressive when the reptile lands with a loud thud on his back in the dust. He’s barely conscious when Master and Padawan stand over him.

Not a moment later, the other Master and Padawan pair run out of their tavern with shock and impressed faces. Jongdae immediately assesses the work and finally asks, “What happened? We heard a commotion outside.”

“I took down a croc bounty hunter!” Baekhyun grins proudly.

“Only after getting taken hostage,” His Master adds. Jonghyun and Jongdae start laughing loudly when a deep blush takes over Baekhyun’s uncovered face. Even with being embarrassed, the team adds another success to the takedown of the bounty hunters underneath Eko Regime.

-

Baekhyun and Jongdae with their Masters come back from yet another successful raid of bounty hunters. They apprehend them during one of their own days out on a fully loaded job. They were to kill the King of Tynna, but the Jedi came just in time to stop their attack.

When the King, a furry creature with beady black eyes, thanked the Jedi for their selfless act of kindness, Baekhyun may have overstayed his welcome.

“I just don’t understand how they have hearts. Who would want to kill you? You’re adorable!”

He squeezed the King in a hug. On instinct, the King bit the poor Padawan. It caused galactic controversy.

Baekhyun purses his lips when they return to the ship. Jongdae is still cackling about it when he pokes Baekhyun’s red skin where the Kings teeth grazed. Baekhyun huffs pitifully, “How was I supposed to know that physical touch was forbidden? Who even decides that?”

Jongdae is wiping tears from his face, “Maybe if you actually paid attention when we were studying about the Tynnan people, you would have not even thought about hugging their King.”

“Whatever,” Baekhyun shrugs as they exited the ship that just landed on Tython. “At least I got to arm wrestle one of those bounty hunters.”

Jongdae looks at him with pity, “You almost broke his arm.”

“Oh, never!” Baekhyun screeches. “He was such a baby about it. I barely even twisted it. You think for a guy named Swaggy T that he’d be a pretty tough bounty hunter. He’s a fighting specialist for crying out loud! He flipped Master Jonghyun almost out of the sky.”

Jongdae snorts, “Swaggy T. What a legacy.”

They continue laughing as they walk down the halls of the temple. They stride together in easy steps, like they’ve been doing it since they were born. Sometimes, their laughs would mix together and their individuality would get lost in their cackles. They just fit so well.

They go up into the library to settle down from their adventures. As soon as they step into their usual spot, they see Kyungsoo sitting with his head in his hands. Chanyeol is right beside him, talking crazily without regard for Kyungsoo’s obvious misery. Baekhyun almost barks out a laugh when Chanyeol comically whips his head to the approaching Padawans.

“You’re back in one piece!” Chanyeol says across the room. It sounds like a shout, but that’s just Chanyeol’s voice. It’s almost comical the way that Kyungsoo lifts his head and stares at them wide eyed.

“Oh, thank God,” he breathes. “I’ve been with doofus all day.”

“We had so much fun today. We ran errands in the city, Kyungsoo called me an idiot 52 times, and I showed him the wonders of the Intergalactic Space-Puppy forums.” Chanyeol grins so wide, it expands across the whole of his face. Baekhyun thinks the friendship is cute, even if Kyungsoo doesn’t necessarily match Chanyeol’s enthusiasm. The Senators son pats Kyungsoo’s back with a cheeky grin. “I was just keeping you company.”

“Touch me again,” Kyungsoo says lowly, glaring at Chanyeol. He doesn’t even need a threat to trail after the warning since his voice is already low and steady. Plus, Chanyeol has probably already heard of all the threats that Kyungsoo could make up. Baekhyun snickers at the thought of Kyungsoo threatening to cut off Chanyeol’s toes.

And suddenly Kyungsoo’s gives Baekhyun his famous death glare, and Baekhyun feels pins on him. “You think it’s funny too? No one ever takes me seriously. I could literally Force choke you guys to death, and you guys just laugh.”

“Well, 1- it’s not the Jedi way, 2- you’re not a Sith lord,” Baekhyun presses on his fingers. “And 3- you’re our friend, so it’s okay?”

Jongdae gently laughs and curls Baekhyun’s outstretched fingers into his own fist, “What he means is that we know if you’re actually going to hurt us.”

“Oh, okay. Just as long as you know,” Kyungsoo hums. In the next second, he swiftly punches Chanyeol in his upper arm. Chanyeol let’s out a growl in pain and winces when he’s barely touching the affected skin.

When Jongdae gapes, Kyungsoo acts faux surprised. He shrugs, “What? You said you guys knew.”

-

“Wow, this place is beautiful,” Jongdae is gasping, looking at the expanse of the tube. The deep blue of the water is swirling past them, beyond the encapsulating tube.

Baekhyun grumbles, “I think you meant to say a death trap.”

Jongdae turns back with a faux sympathetic face, “It’s just a little bit of water.”

He kicks at the tiny slick platform they walk across, and it splashes some water near Baekhyun. He freezes in his walk and tenses up. Honestly, he forgets to breathe when he becomes hyperaware of the deep water surrounding the walkway.

“It’s not funny,” Baekhyun huffs, acting tough for his own sake. He doesn’t know when he would take another breath if he doesn’t tense up.

“Sorry. Just teasing,” Jongdae pats him softly before continuing down the platform toward their Master’s. They land on Velusia. It’s a totally aquatic planet, but it has some sections for oxygen prone species, like the walkway they tread on. The Jedi Council got a tip that a group on non-aquatic bounty hunters made surface on Velusia and were confiding in a Government spy planted on that planet. It is the teams’ job to apprehend the bounty hunters.

Baekhyun hates this planet. He’d rather be on the driest desert known to the Galaxy than to step on this one. The deep blue waters make Baekhyun anxious if he is hyperaware of them. The cold rifts in the moving water make his stomach squeeze hard. Even the tube is making him feel unsafe. It was about 10 meters above his head and supported by metal bonds, but Baekhyun’s thoughts warp it. In any minute, Baekhyun feels as if the waters own force would crash into the supports or tubes and crack it open. Water would rush in and hit him directly. He’d plunge into the deep, cold darkness. He wouldn’t know which way is up. His Masters and Jongdae would be lost. He’d be alone, suffocating on his own desperate attempts for air.

Baekhyun really wanted to get off this planet.

He trudged on, though, for the sake of the plan. He locks his eyes in tunnel vision. Small chatter on the communication link had them all perking up.

“Say that again?” He hears his Master say.

“We’ve apprehended them, sir.”

Jonghyun frowns, “What do you mean by that?”

“Uh … we’ve got them tied up.”

“Huh,” Jonghyun hums. He turns back toward the Padawans and gives them a shrug. “I guess our job here is done.”

“We still need to transport them,” Master Menka reminds the team. He turns his wrist and speaks into the communication link. “We’ll be at the coordinates to pick them up.”

Sure enough, when the team arrives to the safe house, four bounty hunters are bound by their wrists and sit pensively on the floor. Master Menka thanks the Government spy and assists with the credit transaction. Then, the bound bounty hunters are carried off, one in each team members watch. They walk on the platform once again.

Baekhyun has a funny feeling about all of this. It seems fishy (no pun intended, he swears it). It just seems too easy for them to apprehend bounty hunters. This team has countless records for killing many prime ministers and leading riots across the galaxy. They wouldn’t be stupid enough to actually confide in a Government spy and get themselves caught.

Baekhyun makes sure that he has a tight grip on his bounty hunter. She’s a smaller species, so it’s not physically demanding. He can see clear above her. Master Jonghyun is just entering the ship and placing his prisoner in back. Jongdae is right behind him with a smaller species, and his own Master is behind him. Everything still feels surreal and quiet. Baekhyun is watching carefully.

Baekhyun’s eyes perk to Jongdae’s stopped tread a little further up the platform. Suddenly, and very unexpectedly, he sees Jongdae’s body stiffen, wobble slightly, and then drop down hard onto the platform. It feels like Baekhyun is paused in the moment. All he can do is just stare at Jongdae’s lifeless body against the slick black platform, eyes distant. Baekhyun’s breath is tightened against his chest, and he can barely hear his prisoner cry when he tightens his grip on her wrists. Baekhyun watches as Jongdae’s own prisoner looks back and grins with dirty teeth before diving into the deep waters.

“Jongdae!”

He lets go. He loses it. He’s suddenly running down the platform with his prisoner left behind. He rushes down on his knees, hands and eyes scrambling at Jongdae’s form. He looks like he’s breathing, but it looks like he’s barely doing so when his eyes are shut and accepting death. His arm is cradled around his waist and he’s taking shallow breaths. Baekhyun is in full on panic mode, and unsure where to start first because his friend is dying.

Jongdae’s fluttering his eyes open, and his head is lolling on each side. He takes some small breaths until his head swivels into a position where he steadies his vision to see Baekhyun. He breaks out into a little smile and Baekhyun’s heart is slowly calming.

His eyes are trying hard to stay on Baekhyun’s face, but he’s smiling nicely, “Oh, hey there.”

“Oh, thank God,” Baekhyun gasps, and holds Jongdae a little closer.

His friend squeezes his eyes shut and groans, “This isn’t the prison.”

Baekhyun scrunches his face and snaps, “What?”

He lolls his head, eyes swimming around as he draws out a nice smile. “Hey, Baek. What’s your mom’s potato salad recipe?”

“What? Jongdae, you don’t say things like that – I think you’re dying!”

Baekhyun can barely register whatever the hell just spit out of his friends mouth when Jongdae is suddenly trying to pull himself into an upright position. His glazed over expression is soon slipping full on unconsciousness as he mumbles something unintelligible and slumps over. Baekhyun reacts a little quicker and catches Jongdae’s falling body. He notices that Jongdae’s hand is actually crutching his side. Baekhyun peers underneath the hand and gasps when there’s a stretch of deep red-black in Jongdae’s white uniform. Jongdae winces.

“Oh. You’re bleeding bad, Jongdae.”

Baekhyun is breathing hard as he settles Jongdae back down on the platform. Jongdae is now crying in pain, seething when Baekhyun lifts his hand to inspect it again. His face is scrunched in unbearable pain and he swipes his hand back into its position to cradle the wound.

“Your Padawan is injured.” Baekhyun hears his Master as the world outside them becomes a little clearer. Baekhyun feels a hand settle on his shoulder and sees his Master’s thick claws pressing down on Jongdae’s kicking leg. His voice is a lot clearer, “What happened?”

Baekhyun is trying not to get frustrated because Jongdae needs medical attention badly. He in a breath and hammers out, “All I saw was him dropping down hard. But he’s bleeding on his lower right on his torso.”

Baekhyun points to Jongdae’s now bloody and shaking left hand. His hand is desperately clenching on his wound, and Baekhyun hears the little grunts coming between quick breaths. Baekhyun feels so helpless as he watches his friend die. He’s about to burst into a fit of rage before his Master’s hand on his shoulder squeezes a little. He can always sense Baekhyun’s frustration before he can even fester it.

His Master tears the hood off of his robes and hands it to his Padawan. He instructs, “Apply pressure on Jongdae’s wounds with this.”

Baekhyun takes the piece and goes to grab Jongdae’s clenched hand. Jongdae gives all his might into fighting off Baekhyun. He’s probably in so much pain that he doesn’t even realize the other is trying to help. Baekhyun is hesitating. He doesn’t want to hurt his friend any further.

Behind him, his Master gives another squeeze on his shoulder and it’s comforting in this anxious situation. His other leathery hand is lifted and positioned like he’s holding an invisible ball. It bends at the wrist, and Jongdae’s clenched arm is lifted off his body like it’s on puppet strings.

“Quickly!” Baekhyun’s Master shouts. Baekhyun practically pounces on Jongdae and presses hard into the wound. Jongdae howls in pain and his restrained hands are clenching and unclenching as Master Menka holds them with his Force. He can hear a little strain within the respirator, “Good, very good. Keep it like that. He might struggle a little, but at least he won’t lose so much blood.”

Jongdae’s arms flop down after Master Menka leaves, and the other Padawan’s breathing slows down to much calmer speeds. Jongdae’s eyes are closed and he’s probably focusing on breathing. Baekhyun hopes his pain isn’t too severe.

Baekhyun can see Master Jonghyun’s hands come to lift Jongdae’s body. He nods for Baekhyun to release the cloth so Jongdae can be moved into the ship. Jongdae cries a little from being lifted, but it’s tired and not forceful. Baekhyun doesn’t know whether he should be hopeful or worried. He knows Jongdae won’t give up, but the thought does cross his mind.

Once on board the ship, Jonghyun places his Padawan down into the back of the ship onto a table. Jongdae is a little dazed, and Baekhyun can see fresh seeping blood running down the expanse of his white clothes.

“Just remember to keep the pressure on him until we get back to a medical center,” Jonghyun instructs the young Padawan. Baekhyun presses the cloth into Jongdae’s side again.

“Please, whatever you do, don’t die,” Baekhyun whispers to his dazed friend. He knows the guy is bleeding on the table, but he can’t die. Baekhyun will do anything to make sure of it.

Baekhyun sees his Master come back onto the ship with another prisoner and they are both sopping wet. Baekhyun makes eye contact with the prisoner as they pass and recognition hits Baekhyun like a freight train. That is Jongdae’s bounty hunter.

Rage swells within him. He stares at the bounty hunter who is locked beside his three other associates. The sopping wet one has a nasty grin on his face when he looks at Baekhyun, and the one Padawan can’t help but flare up in anger.

“Don’t,” His Master commands him, sensing his immediate anger. His comforting touch only knocks down his anger a few notches. But Jongdae groans, and Baekhyun is back to putting pressure on Jongdae’s wound again.

Their ship isn’t too far from a medical base. A little bit of travel through hyperspace will put them back into Government territory where Jongdae can get treated. Baekhyun can see medical workers with a stretcher casually walking toward the ship. Baekhyun is itching to just yell at them to move faster because Jongdae is dying!

Jongdae is safely transported onto the stretcher and is getting pretty dazed when his head is lolling over. Baekhyun goes to get off the platform to follow them into the white medical bay, but his Master is pulling him back in.

“We have a mission, Baekhyun,” his Master says, emotionless as always.

Baekhyun lights up in anger, “We can’t just leave him!”

“And we can’t leave dangerous criminals on our ship,” Master Menka pushes Baekhyun back into the ship. Baekhyun huffs as he sits in the seats behind Master Jonghyun. When his Master is out in the back of the ship with the bounty hunters, Baekhyun looks up to Jonghyun who is piloting the ship out of the medical base.

“He’s bleeding out and we’re just leaving him,” Baekhyun is shaking his head at the unbelievable situation. He can see Jonghyun’s slight tug of conflict in his face. “You think it’s wrong, don’t you? I mean, he’s your Padawan. He’s practically a brother.”

Jonghyun gives Baekhyun a side glance and frowns, “I trust Master Menka’s decisions.”

-

Jongdae is transferred to the Temple of Tython shortly after his stay at the medical base in the Outer Rim. From what Baekhyun hears from Kyungsoo, Jongdae is ordered to rest for weeks in order for his injury to him. When Jongdae finally returns, Baekhyun is anxious to see him. Of course, Kyungsoo is always in the way.

“Hey,” Baekhyun says a little breathless as he catches Kyungsoo coming out the room. It’s not like he’s been waiting there all day. “What’s up?”

Kyungsoo isn’t too amused when the other is in his way, but he caves, “I’m going to train.”

“Not going to see Chanyeol? You guys have been with pretty buddy-buddy with each other. It’s kind of cute.” Baekhyun wiggles his eye brows to charm his way through. “It’d be a shame if some rumors spread about you sneaking out to see a Senators son.”

Kyungsoo narrows his eyes like a shark. “You’re going to have to do better than that to threaten me. What do you want?"

“Nothing,” Baekhyun says defensively, raising his arms in surrender. He side steps Kyungsoo and innocently mentions, “I’m just going to check on Jongdae.”

“I just did,” Kyungsoo voice is pointed and stern. He grabs Baekhyun’s arm and wrenches him back to his place. “He’s sleeping.”

“Kyungsoo, come on. We’re all friends. Just let me go and see him. It’s been a week,” Baekhyun is almost pleading.

Kyungsoo narrows his eyes, “It’s been 2 days. And no, you’re just going to wake him—“

“I am not going to wake him up, I promise. I give my unborn child to you if I do.”

“Please spare me the image.” Kyungsoo repulses, letting go of Baekhyun’s arm. They stare at each other for a little before Kyungsoo sighs with irritation, “Just let him be.”

Baekhyun stands a little firmer. It does little to intimidate, they are the same size. “No.”

“Oh well, that’s a solid argument. Go right ahead,” Kyungsoo sarcastically quips, but doesn’t budge. He frowns deeply, “I’m not letting you mess up his progress. He’s tired. He practically bled out. You’ll just hinder his recovery. Now, I have to go to train.”

Kyungsoo goes to move around Baekhyun, but he steps in front of Kyungsoo. They both do another side step, and another, before Kyungsoo notices that they are intentional. He sighs, “Really? You’re going to be like this?”

Baekhyun puffs out his chest, “Let me see him.”

“No.”

“I haven’t seen him since our mission.”

“I don’t care.”

Baekhyun stomps when Kyungsoo tries to step away, “He’s my friend!”

“And he’s mine too!” Kyungsoo matches Baekhyun’s frustration with his own. But he backs off with a softer blow, but equally furious eyes, “And when he comes back from a mission at the brink of death, of course I’m going to be mad. I don’t care if it was your fault or not. I just don’t want you near him and killing him again.”

Baekhyun shrinks. He whispers, “Don’t make me feel any worse about it.”

Kyungsoo’s anger is simmering down slightly. Baekhyun can see his face relaxing. And in a rare moment, he sighs, “Fine, go.”

Baekhyun’s heart is lifted. As he steps forward, Kyungsoo presses his finger into Baekhyun’s chest. He warns, “But if you hurt him again, you should stay clear of me.”

“Noted,” Baekhyun nods. His heart is swelling once he’s near the door. It’s been 2 days, but it feels so much longer. Baekhyun’s been thinking day and night about Jongdae’s injuries, the blood gushing out, and his screams. He feels so determined when he enters the door, but he quickly relaxes and finally swallows his excitement.

Jongdae is settled in his bed, corners tucked in like a hospital bed. He’s sleeping peacefully with a hand on top of the blankets, ghosting over his injury. He looks drained through the little bit of light coming into the room. Baekhyun slides in to the room quickly and sits in the chair next to Jongdae’s bed. He stares pensively at Jongdae’s body.

The more he stares at Jongdae, the more the memories flood back. He’s brought back to the scene where his chest is clenched at the sight of his friend dropping. Sudden panic and waves of anger flow out Baekhyun. He sees flashes of blood and his friend shaking. And that bounty hunter smirking flashed in front of him. It is mocking him. It is testing him.

“Baekhyun?”

Baekhyun blinks out of his memory to see Jongdae’s lips moistened and his throat squeezing as he swallows. He doesn’t know how long he’s stared at Jongdae, but he hopes it’s been long because he doesn’t want Kyungsoo killing him for waking Jongdae immediately.

“Did I wake you?” Baekhyun whispers. He sees Jongdae his lips.

“I can sense you,” Jongdae chuckles, but doesn’t open his eyes just yet. Baekhyun goes to reach out and he pats Jongdae’s shoulder. Jongdae smiles. “Ah, it is you. Not just a dream.”

“Hm?”

“I had a weird dream,” Jongdae explains, but his voice is hoarse so he has to pause to swallow. “We were in a kitchen and I asked you for your mom’s recipe.”

Baekhyun laughs, “Potato salad.”

Baekhyun can see Jongdae scrunch his face, “What’s potato salad?”

“I don’t know,” Baekhyun chuckles lightly. “You just said it when you were out of it.”

“Oh,” Jongdae says a little sadly. His face softens, and there’s an odd silence in the room. Jongdae is always the brightest of the bunch. Baekhyun is just loud and clever. He could light a room, but Jongdae can always make a person feel as special as a star. Hearing him so quiet and sad is just heart wrenching for him.

Baekhyun clears his throat, “Do you know what happened?”

“Yeah,” Jongdae’s voice is a whisper. “I remember bringing the bounty hunter to the ship. And then just pain.”

Baekhyun is quiet. He’s not quite sure what to say. Jongdae doesn’t remember most of what happened when he was bleeding out on the Velusian platform.

“The doctors said that I got stabbed,” Jongdae breathes out an easy laugh. “Makes sense, I guess. They hated our guts. Might as well spill them.”

Baekhyun’s hands clench again unconsciously. Those scum intentionally hurt his friend, and it just makes Baekhyun feel deep pain in his stomach. Baekhyun doesn’t say anything, especially with his jaw clenched tight.

Jongdae finally peels his eyes open. They are tired, but concerned as they eye Baekhyun, “What’s wrong?”

“Nothing,” Baekhyun says quickly. He’s just swelling with more anger. It’s warm and lets his thoughts run wild.

Jongdae hardens his stare, “It’s not nothing.”

Baekhyun’s eyes are trained onto Jongdae’s dressed wound that’s underneath the blanket. He breathes hard, “They hurt you.”

Jongdae scoffs, “It’s okay, I’ll be fine. I just need time to recover.”

“It’s not okay,” Baekhyun says a little louder and a little angrier. “It’s not okay for them to injury you like that. They need to know that.”

Baekhyun feels like his whole body is itchy, and he stands to eliminate the sensation. Jongdae sends up a gasp, “You’re not talking about revenge, are you?”

Baekhyun can see Jongdae’s face in a panic, but his body is rested perfectly flat. Baekhyun flares up in anger at the site, it’s only fueling his hatred for that bounty hunter. Baekhyun says sternly, “I’m going to talk to him.”

“Please. Please, don’t,” Jongdae is begging, but Baekhyun can’t fight that itchy feeling all over his body. Out of frustration, he steps outside Jongdae’s room and blocks out Jongdae’s pleas.

Baekhyun is stomping off to the prisoner’s hold that he’s very familiar with. In fact, he was a prisoner in the Temple when he was first here. He knows the walls very well and knows how to get past security. He even knows how to make the room’s sound proof. That way, Baekhyun can do as he pleases without warning anyone.

He rounds the corner of the prisoners hold and sees his target plain as day. He’s behind the orange shield, but soon Baekhyun would be able to see his skin turn grey. This itchy feeling is burning Baekhyun alive.

Before he can get a step closer, a body stops his process. It’s his tall Master with his arms crossed and his emotionless stare penetrating Baekhyun. He knows that his emotions are written on his sleeve at this point, but he’s so itchy.

“Why are you here, Padawan?”

Baekhyun glares beyond his Master, “I want to interrogate him.”

Master Menka doesn’t even need to look over his shoulder to know who Baekhyun is talking about. He hums, “Eager, aren’t you? I sense a lot of anger in you.”

Baekhyun doesn’t need to answer. He feels the itchiness spreading like wild fire. His throat is closing and he’s breathing harshly through his nose. He wants to this bounty hunter to feel the same pain as Jongdae did. He wants him to hurt all over. It’s only fair.

Baekhyun tries to push past his Master, but the tall Jedi Master physically pushes Baekhyun back. Frustration bubbles at the surface and the fire spreads to his arms. Baekhyun is half way through to punching his Master, but the Jedi stops the blow with his Force. Baekhyun is struggling with the powerful invisible force blocking him, and with a few more tired s, he gives up with a sob stuck in his throat.

His Master takes him out of the prisoners hold and takes him to somewhere more secluded. They sit facing each other. Baekhyun can feel a powerful wave of his emotions within him, and he’s trying to hide the hiccup in his mouth.

“Anger and revenge can skew your judgement. This is why Jedi do not use these to make decisions. This is the path of the Sith. So why, as a Jedi in training, did you want to interrogate a prisoner with so much anger in your heart?”

He’s emotionless again. His expression is always still. But Baekhyun knows how his Master ticks. He’s pretty good at reading his Master’s inner emotions. They are slight, because he is a very good General, but they are there. This doesn’t feel like his scoldings. It feels like a parent. It feels like authority and patience.

Baekhyun sniffs, “He needs to know that he did wrong.”

He knows his Master would be frowning. Baekhyun feels like a disappointment, yet again. He sighs, “It’s how I feel. I’m sorry. I can’t help it. He just hurt Jongdae so much that… I don’t know.”

After a couple beats of silence, his Master speaks, “Would it make you feel better if you hurt the bounty hunter?”

Baekhyun bites his lip, “Maybe. I don’t know. I just felt so bad for Jongdae.”

He looks up at his Master finally and grimaces, “You’re going to send me to training, aren’t you? So that I can grow up.”

“No,” his Master says slowly. Baekhyun is practically dry at the mouth and awaits any more. “More training will not fix the problem. You must defeat it at the source.”

Baekhyun pauses to think, “I don’t understand.”

His Master hums, “Perhaps it would be best for your Jedi training to not be paired with Jongdae. You seem to have a strong emotional attachment to him.”

“I-I,” but the protests die in his throat. He wants to deny it, but it’s true. Jongdae is one of his best friends. He’s one of the only people that actually believed that he would become a Padawan, and sometimes he actually made it happen. Baekhyun just feels so carefree and himself when he’s with Jongdae. Jongdae was his comfort zone.

Perhaps that was holding him back. It’s only a small voice in Baekhyun’s head, but it’s a passing thought.

His Master places a hand on his shoulder. Baekhyun feels it to be comforting. “I’ll discuss it with the Grand Master.”

a/n: This is just an into the chaotic life of Chinguline. We've got a new enemy Eko, we've got angsty teen chingus, and just a glimpse into Baekhyun's perspective. What did you think? Did you like the change into Baekhyun's mind? 

*Also, the Swaggy T will date this chapter so bad. It was literally a year ago when I wrote this T_T