Kallus & Zeb’s Infinite Playlist

Bonus sketch at end!
This is a fun lil fic I've been working on off and on for a while and finally got to a place that seemed short and sweet. It is not rated E, pretty in the M range of things, if that at all. This isn't beta'd yet or edited, just so you know. 

~~~

By the time they arrived at Zeb 'spot' deep in the forest of Yavin IV, Kallus' nerves were sufficiently wracked.

To traverse the uneven terrain, the small, two-seated speeder had to ascend higher than normal, but that also meant they had to avoid the low canopy of tree branches and vines. Something Zeb had trouble doing, especially at the speeds he had been driving at.

So, when the air brakes were finally engaged and the whine of the engines died, Kallus let out a long held-in breath, and pried his hands from the seat and console. Holding on for one's life was imperative, after all.

A hearty chuckle came from somewhere at his side. Where, exactly, he couldn't be sure because his hair had flown into his face. He brushed the strands back with a sweaty hand, and glowered over at his companion for the evening; his... date.

Kallus felt other nerves churn in his gut, not just the ones from being tossed and turned at alarming speeds and angles.

"Green really is your color, but..." Zeb remarked and Kallus frowned in confusion.

Then a big purple hand was gently raking through his hair. It was so intimate a move that he was disappointed to see that Zeb had simply done that to pluck a leaf out of his hair.

“So, here we are. Best place on Yavin IV, all alone, like requested,” Zeb waved both hands out in front of him and Kallus took the moment to observe the landscape before him.

The forests that covered Yavin IV were dense, to the point of overcrowding in the lush environment, but it seemed Zeb had found a small pocket of clearing that overlooked a low valley where a large stream wound its way through the miles and miles of vegetation. The water reflected the setting gas giant from above, a myriad of reds and oranges sparkling across the surface. It was all a perfect compliment to the dark greens of the jungle forest.

For someone who had grown up on Coruscant, and spent most of his adult life on drab Imperial ships and outposts, the sight was enough to capture his attention and hold it. It was almost enough to distract from his turbulent nerves.

"How 'bout some music, eh?" Zeb said and fiddled with the speeder's control panel and turned on a connected device.

A jarring blast of instruments twanging out a dramatic ballad filled the area until Zeb quickly turned it down to a more subtle volume. It was actually quite tolerable, especially with the stunning view and a warm Lasat by his side.

"Sorry 'bout that, I'm a bit nervous," Zeb said and rubbed at the back of his neck. Kallus almost laughed out loud. He was nervous?

"If anyone is nervous, it's me," Kallus admitted, his hands trying to memorize the texture of his seat.

"You're the one who asked me here. Finally. Been wanting to be alone with you for a time, actually."

"You have?"

"Said yes didn't I?" Zeb gave him a kind and earnest look. "M'glad we're finally figuring this out."

"This," Kallus repeated. He hoped they were on the same page here.

"Yeah. Y'know… showing how we feel about each other. I'm pretty sure I know your intentions since you asked me out here so we could be 'all alone' and all."

Saying it out loud was harder than he thought it'd be, but Zeb seemed to be doing a better job than him. "Intentions? Tell me, what did you think we would be doing out here when I asked you?"

"I dunno. Humans have weird courtin' rituals. Was hoping we could -maybe talk? Touch-" Zeb hurried the awkward conversation along, "I been trying to show you I'm interested for a while. Took you long enough to ask me the human way."

"Human way? And how would one ask, the lasat way?"

"I dunno, there's a few things I s'pose…" Zeb looked out into the horizon. "Well, if you're a fighter, a warrior, being a dedicated sparring partner with each other is one thing to show your interest."

"Meaning you spar and practice solely with the one you intend to court?"

"Well, you can spar with others or in groups, but if you pair with someone, over and over, that's a symbol of a deeper commitment, an affection, really. You trust the other warrior completely. You're willing to reveal weaknesses in fighting with them. That sorta thing."

Kallus thought a moment about this. "We've been sparring exclusively these past few months, Garazeb. Does that mean…"

"Yeah, about that, I've been meaning to tell you what that meant. What it meant to me, that is," Zeb admitted, his words firm.

"So, by all accounts, by lasat warrior standard, are we -already dating?"

"Not officially."

"And what would make it official?"

"For us to pledge our bond, and to uh -y'know… rub our heads together?" Zeb said the last part hesitantly.

"Is that another word for -kissing?"

"What?" Zeb seemed confused, and Kallus panicked.

"You do kiss, right? I mean, lasats -kiss?"

"'Course we kiss! This is different, though. It's hard to explain. This is more like -kriff, just lemme show ya." Zeb turned more his way, but stopped his arm from fully reaching across the space separating them. "If it's alright?"

"Y-yes," Kallus stuttered, his breath catching already, even as he teased, "I want my intentions to be clear, after all."

Zeb leaned in and continued to bring a hand up to cup the side of his jaw, a clawed thumb tracing his cheek gently. Then the other digits tugged his head forward from their spot at the base of his skull.

Their foreheads met, the thick muscles of Zeb's brows relaxing against his own. Kallus closed his eyes and took in the humid air between them as their combined breaths mixed at the proximity.

"Bring your hand up like mine," Zeb instructed on a deep whisper.

He brought his hand up and mirrored the position of Zeb's. His fingers brushed across fine, delicate hairs at the base of the Lasat's ear, soothing the strands down. Zeb nudged his head heavier against his own and Kallus swore he heard a low rumble of sound; a contented hum.

Kallus tried to answer as best he could and let out a happy grunt of his own from the back of his throat. He firmly held back the need to bring their lips together when Zeb angled his head to the side and rested their cheeks against one another. A tickling but affectionate rubbing motion mingled their facial hair together.

Whatever this was, it was important, and he was determined not to ruin the mood, even if the new movement felt a bit foreign.

“M’gonna do the other side, that okay?” Zeb asked quietly above the shell of his ear. Kallus simply made an affirmative noise, not wanting to break the spell he found himself in. When the other side was rubbed just as thoroughly as the first, the Lasat finally pulled away.

Kallus observed the almost giddy smile tugging on Zeb’s lips and felt warmth pool in his belly. In a way he looked much younger, the furrows and wrinkles of experience and age hid beneath his proud stripes and twinkling green eyes. Stars, he was captivating.

“Thanks, it’s been a -been a while since I’ve done that. Hope it was okay for you?” Zeb looked downright embarrassed, the velvet hair at the base of his neck fluffing up.

"Quite okay, Zeb," Kallus said softly, his breath caught in his lungs, it seemed. "So we're official now?"

"Pretty much. How about you? Humans, I mean. Is there anything I need to say or do? What happens on normal human dates?"

Kallus almost laughed out loud at himself. "I have to admit, I'm a little out of my element. It was actually General Syndulla who suggested this rendezvous. For all I know, it's a Twi'lek thing. Maybe we should fall to Lasat courting customs. I… quite liked what we've been doing so far."

Zeb's ears twitched and perked forward. "Yeah?"

Kallus nodded, encouragingly.

Zeb rubbed the back of his neck again. "Well, eh, I didn't do much courtin' when I was younger, so I'm a bit out of my element too."

"There must have been some at least…"

"Well, sure, there were some, but I wouldn't say what we got up to was considered courtin'," he said with a deep chuckle and Kallus felt his cheeks flush.

Kallus thought of his own short lived trysts he had often found himself in, especially during his Academy years. Taking things slow and careful had never much been in his repertoire, especially when fraternization had such strict rules in the Empire. "I know what that was like myself."

"Oh? Perfect Imperial cadet Alexsandr Kallus runnin' 'round under his superior's noses while he kriffed in a utility closet?" Zeb teased and Kallus smiled fondly, elbowing his side in jest.

"I was never perfect. But I was never caught, either." Kallus raised a proud eyebrow at Zeb. "I'll have you know it wasn't the utility closet. Usually it was in the 'fresher. Or the showers."

Kallus noticed as Zeb's pupils dilated a bit more than they already were in the dimming light of the sunset. The Lasat purred, "I'd like to hear more 'bout naughty past Kallus sometime."

"I'm sure you would," Kallus laughed, gently shoving his elbow into the Lasat's side again. They both chuckled lightly until it died to a comfortable silence, the music so low he could barely make out the melody, let alone any words.

After a moment, Zeb let out an exaggerated yawn and raised his big arms above his head. One arm rested on the edge of the speeder, the other laid itself across the back of his seat, brushing against his neck and shoulders.

Kallus leaned his body back a bit, his head easing down to rest comfortably on Zeb's arm. They had come this far, he thought bravely, and decided to dive into it.

"So, lasats kiss?" Kallus asked, though it came out as more of a statement. He rested his chin on his own shoulder as he looked over at his companion.

"Yeah, we kiss," came Zeb's reply, a soft rumble of sound. Their faces were impossibly close, mere inches apart. They seemed to have drifted across the meager barrier in between their seats and into each other more than he had thought.

"Perhaps we should..." Kallus' voice felt pinched and dry and he involuntarily licked his bottom lip, his top teeth tugging slightly at the sensitive flesh there. His mouth was practically tingling with anticipation and want. Zeb let out a puff of hot breath and Kallus couldn't help but hold his breath as he leaned in closer.

The meeting of lips was soft and tentative, both letting out a hum of satisfaction. Zeb's lips were big, wide, so much different from a human's, but the Lasat seemed conscious of this and was keeping his movements and pressure light.

Tilting his head, Kallus tried to coax more from his partner's lips, but still held back in case it was too much. Already it was almost overwhelming for himself; it had been a long time since he had kissed anyone. It had been longer since he had kissed someone he cared about.

After a handful of blissful minutes, the angle was making his neck and back protest, so he remedied the position by sliding across the small console between the seats and straddling the Lasat. It was a bold move, but one he hoped was welcomed.

"K-karabast," Zeb cursed low and breathy against his parted lips as they both gasped for air.

"Is this-?" Kallus tentatively rocked in Zeb's lap, kissing him easier now that they were facing each other, "-alright?"

"It's- you-" Zeb sounded almost distressed, his voice higher than normal, "it's -more than alright."

Kallus smiled into a long kiss at the mangled eloquence, and felt as Zeb began to let his large hands roam. Kallus continued his gentle rocks against the solid, warm wall that was Zeb’s body.

Eager claws caught on his clothes as Zeb clung tight to his hips, back, neck; every part of him became enveloped in exploring four-fingered hands. Kallus himself kept his own to the broad, muscular chest heaving against him, and tangling in the sleek facial hair of the Lasat.

"Karabast, Alexsandr…" Zeb said with adoration, his big hands stroking his cheeks and hair for a heated moment before indulging in another full kiss.

"Say it again," Kallus begged when they broke for air next.

"Alexsandr, my Alexsandr."

"Yes, I'm yours." As far as love confessions went, Kallus was satisfied. He hoped Zeb was too.

With Zeb’s arms wrapped all the way around him, Kallus felt himself being hugged and guided around so that he lay prone on the double seat cushions. They both were writhing and shifting but all Kallus was concentrating on was kissing Zeb, their tongues meeting between gasps for needed air.

Kallus knew he wasn't comfortable, but at the same time he didn't really care. The small console between the seats felt much bigger than it actually was digging into his hip. His legs were bent and wrapped around the hulking Lasat, one heel hanging out the side of the speeder, boot scuffing the already chipped paint job.

Zeb was fully on top of him, heavy and radiating heat, but trying to be mindful of his weight. But he was still grinding deliciously against him, kissing him senseless. One of Zeb's arms supported himself, gripping the other end of the speeder above Kallus' head.

Kallus' fingers roamed and gripped all up Zeb's front, one arm knocking against the seat back but holding firm against the rippling muscles above him.

Zeb left his lips and growled into his neck instead, mouthing wetly onto his pulse point. The tongue that had so expertly stolen his breath away was now mingling with teeth and lips to mark his neck.

Kallus took that moment to speak, "Zeb, more…" But more of what he didn't really know. "Kriff, I want you."

"K-karabast," Zeb grunted hotly into his ear, and then a big arm wound under him, completely lifting his hips to slot fully against his.

Kallus then hooked his free leg around Zeb, desperate for the friction building so rapidly between them. He was also thankful his entire lower half was elevated from the seat and away from the blasted middle console.

Kallus was fairly certain they couldn't achieve climax as they were: fully clothed and (mostly) inside of a cramped speeder. But he was also keen to put in an effort and see if they could.

One of Zeb's knees shifted under his thigh, pushing his leg higher and out, his knee rattling against the console of the speeder with a sharp pang. Then his shirt was being hiked up in a rough tug towards his collar, and the jolt of pain was easily forgotten as Zeb dipped his head down.

He watched and felt as a large, rasping tongue licked against his chest, an eager mouth latching at one of his nipples, sharp teeth grazing across flesh, and oh -if that wasn't going to push him over the edge…

He let out a loud, pleading gasp to the night's sky, a hand steadying himself in the fur of Zeb's neck and ears. Above, the stars themselves seemed to be -moving? Were they -moving?

Kriff. Kriff!

They must have hit something in the speeder to cause the hover brakes to disengage and the engine to whine to life, because they were now creeping forward…

Towards the edge of the cliffside.

"Z-Zeb!" Kallus sputtered, now tugging at his ears in panic, pushing at his shoulders. Kallus tried to wriggle free from their embrace, or at least get his hand at the controls.

"Why are you -whoa! Karabast, we're moving!" Zeb looked around in a quick arc and then punched a clumsy hand back, twisting his arm to get at the wheel to try and steer them away from the steep cliff.

"Get the brakes, the button or lever there! Just -oh fu -aha -ah!" Kallus let out an undignified yelp as the speeder began to tip, now in a slow turn right at the very edge.

"I'm trying!" Zeb exclaimed, still trying to fumble over and around him to get at the controls properly.

Kallus was unintentionally dumped onto the floor of the speeder, a leg and arm pinned at an awkward angle. Then the speeder really began to tip over the edge.

Zeb was finally at the controls, but it was obviously too late because the horizon -beautiful as it was- flipped itself drastically across his vision and they were pitched upright.

Kallus felt his stomach drop and then something latched onto his leg painfully and the next thing he knew the speeder was careening away from him down the cliff. He was left behind, suspended at an awkward angle, swinging with the residual momentum.

Breathing quickly and trying to get his bearings, he looked ‘down’ to see his ankle wrapped tightly in one of Zeb’s digitigrade feet. Zeb himself was gripping onto a vine and a sharp looking rock at the cliff’s edge, wide-eyed and shaken.

This certainly brought back some memories for Kallus and he almost laughed out loud at the hysterical similarities to Bahryn and the last time the Lasat had him in a similar position. It was an odd sensation to also feel so close to injury and death, and yet also feel completely safe. Zeb had him. He was going to be alright.

Then Zeb eyed the edge intensely, and tightened his grip on his leg and said, “hold still!”

“Zeb!” Kallus yelped, knowing that look of foolhardy determination on the Lasat’s face. “Don’t you dare!”

“Worked before!” Zeb grunted and then began to swing him back and forth, building the momentum. The cliff face was curved, and it wasn’t even as far a toss as the one on Bahryn had been, but Kallus couldn’t stop the dread he felt as his surroundings began to blur. He trusted Zeb with his life, but it didn’t make the inevitable throw any less terrifying.

When a throaty roar signified Zeb was draining every last ounce of his energy to propel him through the air, Kallus tried not to let out any undignified screeches.

Of course he failed to do just that.

“Ahh-haa-oof!” The breath was knocked out of him and for a moment all he could taste was dirt. As he eased himself up to a sitting position, he was glad to find that he hadn't twisted or broken anything. He was a good two feet away from the cliff’s edge too. On nice solid ground.

He watched as Zeb hoisted himself up the edge and their eyes locked and he was given a big, toothy grin. “See, wasn’t so bad, now, was it?”

“The speeder. Is gone."

"Yeah… Hera's gonna kill me. 'Specially if she finds out we lost it makin' out like a couple of horny Hutts."

Kallus groaned and buried his face in his hands, the dread of future embarrassment already reddening his cheeks and churning his gut. Also the mental image Zeb just provided him with when he said 'horny Hutts' was enough to make him ill to his stomach.

Zeb shuffled his way over to him and wrapped an arm around his shoulders, mimicking the position they had been in minutes before in the speeder.

"If anyone finds out…" Kallus started, with no intention of finishing.

"C'mon, I'm sure it won't be that bad. People do stupid stuff all the time. Plus, since when did you let what people think bother you?"

Kallus frowned but leaned his head into the perfect spot on Zeb's shoulder. It was true that he had had to implement a certain level of tolerance and indifference for the harassment his Rebel peers would inflict upon him. To a certain degree, Kallus felt he deserved the treatment, especially after everything he had done in his past.

The rumor mill gossip around his and Zeb's relationship was the tougher thing to ignore; especially when he hadn't yet come to terms with what exactly his relationship was -at least, back then. Now, on the other hand…

"We could say we were chased by some giant jungle chickens and just barely escaped with our lives!" Zeb suggested and Kallus snorted out a laugh.

"We ended up ramming the speeder into them before we both jumped to safety," Kallus said with a flourish.

"Now you're getting into the spirit!" Zeb laughed warmly, before adding, "and then we made out with each other because we were high off the adrenaline."

"Oh, we did, did we?" Kallus leaned back to look at the playful smile on Zeb's face he knew was there. Sure enough, there it was, tooth sticking out and everything.

"Yeah, how else are we gonna explain the marks on your neck?"

Kallus faltered. "The what-?"

Then Zeb's mouth was on him, hungry and sharp. The kiss stole his breath away until he was left panting and moaning, pressed into the ground as Zeb began to suck and nip at the column of his neck. He could feel the mark being formed on the sensitive skin where Zeb was concentrating his attention on. Fire pooled deep inside him as the slide and tug of strong, dangerous teeth indeed made their mark upon him.

All at once the thrill of what was escalating before in the speeder came back to his body with a rush. If anything, the near-death experience added to the urgency, making every caress and touch on his body hyper-sensitive.

“Everyone will see -know,” Kallus breathed, arching his neck and grinding the back of his head into the dirt as Zeb continued to ravish his neck, now working on the other side, this mark higher up and near his jaw. Zeb let out a huff of breath through his nose that fanned across his ear, making him shiver.

“Uh-huh,” Zeb growled in affirmation.

“Kriff, Zeb, I want them all to know,” Kallus stated with reverence. He grabbed at Zeb’s head to bring the front back to his own so that he could kiss the lips he had fantasized about for far too long again. “Can I -how can I- do the same? For you?” He asked between kisses.

"Nothin'. M'pretty sure everyone knows we're a thing already, that I'm yours," Zeb said as they continued to kiss. Kallus felt a mix of affectionate and possessive emotions.

"Then I'm sure they also know that I am yours as well, Zeb," Kallus says earnestly, "and I have been, for some time. With or without the marks. Always."

Kallus felt a sudden tightness to his throat as Zeb pulled back to look down at him with amazed scrutiny. Kriff, did he say something wrong?

"You-you're…" Zeb began, blinking his large, luminous green eyes at him. "We better stop here."

Kallus felt his stomach drop, and panic took a trembling step right over his heart. Kriff, he had just opened himself up in error. He could only hope he could mend it somehow and save himself bigger embarrassment. "I'm sorry, Zeb, I overstepped."

His hands pulled away and, with nowhere else to go, rested in a surrendering position besides his own head. Zeb gave him a curious look as he propped himself into a position with a fraction more distance between them.

"We better stop," Zeb said again, with more heat, "because if we keep going, and you keep sayin' those sweet things like that, I think I might be tempted to kriff ya; here in the middle of nowhere, in the dirt, against a tree, anywhere, if you let me."

"And this is a bad thing?" Kallus asked, the sinking feeling from before vanishing upon hearing those words from Zeb.

"It is if you're tryin' to court like a gentleman," Zeb countered, but Kallus could already see his resolve wavering.

"What if I don't want a gentleman right now?" Kallus asked, his hands wandering back up to slide over Zeb's shoulders and neck in enticing caresses. "By lasat standards, we've all but been courting for months now."

"But by human standards?"

"By my standards," Kallus corrected since he honestly had no clue how 'regular' people dated and at this point he didn't care, "I would want nothing more than to show the man I've been enraptured with since that ice moon how much I've wanted him; how much I want him right now. Be that in the mud and dirt, in a speeder down a cliff, in his bunk against a wall, or anywhere else. So be a gentleman and kiss me, you fool."

Zeb let out a puff of air, sighing out a breathy karabast, before pulling Kallus up by the back of his neck and head to do just that.

Music swelled in a sweeping crescendo --from down the cliffside.

Obviously something had suddenly hit the volume controls to the speeder’s music player, because the faint echo of a rising ballad could be heard louder and louder from far below.

Kallus couldn’t help it. He pulled back from the kiss and began to laugh. It soon became loud and hysterical, until he had to grip his side and tears had gathered in his lashes. He leaned up into a sitting position and buried himself into Zeb’s side. He was laughing too, a wheezing rumble, so unlike his large, barrel-chested guffaws.

“This has been a great courtin’ so far, hasn’t it? Got a soundtrack and everything!" Zeb said between his dissolving laughs.

“Maybe the speeder is salvageable after all. It’s obviously still in some kind of working order,” Kallus said, still struggling to catch his breath after his laughing fit. Their eyes met before they both began to cackle again.

“Yeah, if anything it can be an oversized music player,” Zeb said and his ears twitched as the song ended but was quickly replaced with a new, more lively jig. “Oh, I like this one!”

Zeb took one of Kallus' hands and wrapped his other arm around his waist to sway him around as if they were dancing. It would have been a nice imitation of a classic pose --had they been upright on their feet.

"S-stop!" Kallus sputtered as he continued to chuckle, his cheeks hurting in a good way from overuse. His protests went unheeded, but he honestly didn't want them to be. Zeb was humming along, quite badly but quite charmingly, to the tune and soon swooped him around and into his lap in a mock dip. "Zeb!"

"Shut up, this is the good part!" Zeb said with the biggest, toothiest smile he had ever seen on the lasat.

So Kallus let himself be serenaded to while being swayed and moved in exaggerated poses, all while laid across Zeb’s lap on the ground where they sat. Zeb arced their joined hands in sweeping motions to the atrocious song and during a whirlwind of notes, Zeb wrapped his arms around him and ‘twirled’ them around, rolling them both through the grass and dirt of the forest floor.

Kallus was dizzy from the movement, but found he was smiling again, and they were both laughing softly when the music ended and the player started on another song. They had ended up with Kallus sprawled prone over Zeb, hands joined once again as he leaned down to kiss him once again.

He felt the smile still lingering on Zeb’s lips, but soon it melted away in favor of a deeper kiss, this one eliciting a purring moan from the lasat. Their hands separated only to be occupied with the other’s body. Kallus shivered as claws raked up his spine and into his hair, big hands gripped and squeezed and held. Zeb’s stroking fingers held his head as their kisses went into a frenzy, breathy sighs and gulps of air hot between them as things escalated.

Zeb let out a sultry gasp against his lips when Kallus dared to let his hand wander lower, between their pressing bodies, to explore between Zeb’s muscular thighs. The jumpsuit he wore was a thick material, but he could still feel the growing contours of all things Zeb beneath.

Perhaps it wasn’t the best idea to have sex in the middle of the wildnerness, especially when this would be the first time they discovered each other’s bodies. He knew some of the differences between them, and all in all, nothing was too different that would dissuade Kallus from taking the next step in their relationship. Still, the fleeting thought of doing this in a more comfortable, climate-controlled setting was only a small remorse among much louder convictions of the now.

Kallus took a moment to tear his lips from Zeb’s enough to look down at the growing bulge under his fingertips, and then glanced back up to watch the lasat’s eyes blink slowly, hooded and measured with building lust. Obviously, Zeb felt the same.

“We doin’ this?” Zeb asked simply, though it was clear he didn’t seem adverse to the concept; perhaps just confirming their mutual consent to the rising circumstance.

“We are,” Kallus answered, nodding enthusiastically and raising to his knees so he could undo his trousers. Zeb watched him and belatedly got to work on his own clothing by the time Kallus was completely unzipped. Kallus’ undone belt weighed down the top of his trousers so they hung open and rested just at the swell of his bottom, exposing his undergarments. The pressure continued to release as the exposure fueled him further and he pulled his shirt off next, eliciting a fiery curse from the lasat below him as he was appreciated.

Zeb was rolling down his jumpsuit to his waist hastily when a particularly bombastic part of the song playing, full of throaty vocals and spirited drums, chanted perfectly to the rhythm of their thundering heartbeats. Their ‘soundtrack’ continued in strength, almost as if it were urging them on, and their mouths met again in an intense collision.

At least Kallus could be certain that they would not be the only things new and loud in the forests of Yavin VI that night.

a sketch I did for this: