Chapter Text
"Did you find him?" Rey asks him, with her arms still tight around Finn's neck.
He keeps his own around her middle - if anything she seems smaller, yet she still seems to fill his hold with an amazing reserve of strength. Finn nods.
"He's - well, he'll be okay, but he should be in a Bacta tank as fast as possible," Finn assures her.
"It's not as bad as all that," a voice croaks from behind them.
Rey leans back, taking in Poe standing at the top of the gangway and leaning somewhat less than casually against the bulkhead of the ship. To Finn's surprise she pulls away, intent on greeting Poe with as much enthusiasm. Poe tries to protest - some excuse about his unshaven and barely-washed state. She grabs him anyway, thumping him on the back hard enough to make Poe wince.
His good arm goes around her shoulders, too, and Finn realizes that between his time in the infirmary and losing Poe this last time, something's changed. For all three of them, maybe.
Rey, he notices, doesn't hang onto Poe for very long. A sonic shower had taken the edge off, but some things require real running water.
"Uh," Finn says, suddenly remembering there are other passengers. "I'm, uh - Finn."
But when he turns back to the beach, the Jedi master is already passing him, patting Rey companionably on the shoulder as he steps aboard the Mellcrawler II.
"Are you coming, Finn?" Rey calls from the top of the ramp, smiling at him. R2-D2 whistles cheerfully at Finn as he passes him too, rolling on board.
"Guess so," Finn says, taking one last look at the vast expanse of the oceans around them before he gets back onto the ship, knowing it's going to be a cramped but companionable journey back to the base.
Luke and R2-D2 head into the cockpit, and Finn thinks it's best to give them time to catch up with Nien Nunb - he has some catching up of his own he wants to do. There's no space anywhere except for the cramped crew quarters he's been assigned, but they all fit carefully inside.
"What's all the equipment?" Rey asks, seated on the floor in the small space between the end of the bunk and the clothes locker. Poe, exhausted even from the short walk to and from the gangplank, is stretched out on the bed. He looks out of place in Finn's oversized sweat pants and a hand-me-down sweater top, but his flight suit had been un-salvageable. There's a slightly better cast on his damaged - broken, but mending - arm.
Rey, on the other hand, looks just as radiant as she had before Kylo Ren had taken her.
"It's good to see both of you again," Finn says, honestly.
Poe smiles, though it's almost lost under his ragged beard.
"I missed you too," Rey confesses, but she beams brightly and pats the open space at the end of the bunk mattress for Finn to sit, where he'll be between them.
When he does, she leans against his knees. Finn is surprised by the contact, but he likes it.
"So how'd you find me, buddy?" Poe asks, shifting to press his own knees against Finn's back. Touching both of them, comfortable and safe for whatever moments they have, feels right.
"Well, we looked really hard - that's what all the equipment is for," Finn explains. "We guessed, in all honesty. Took our best shot based on how much fuel you had and where we knew you were last headed. So what I wanna know is how you knew where Poe was."
He directs the last at Rey.
"That's easy," she says. Then, mischievously, "Jedi trick."
Poe laughs. "BeeBee-Ate's signal couldn't get far, but Artoo could pick it up when the storms let up enough."
She tips her head, begrudgingly accepting the answer as the truth over her own more mystical explanation.
"The storms!" Finn realizes, catching both their attentions. "That's why BeeBee-Ate's signal was so infrequent."
It feels good to have that piece of the puzzle, even if it hardly matters now.
Rey nods. "I could only get through some of the time."
"Good thing you did," Poe adds. "Or I never would have made it long enough for Finn to come get me. I had to face down wild animals, you know."
"It was a pretty close call," Finn agrees, leaning back against Poe's legs. "He sure smelled like it was too late."
Poe groans, reaching for his cup of water as if even the memory is enough to make him thirsty again. It's alright, that's why Finn can joke about it. Poe's going to be okay this time. And, Finn realizes, next time. Any time Finn has anything to say about it.
That's the difference between the First Order and the Resistance. The ability to do what Finn's heart says is the right thing. Right now, he knows he has by the warm glow he feels to see both of his friends together.
-
Poe's nerves try to choke him as he showers - a real shower, back on base, the water running over his skin hot just shy of painful. He refuses to think of it as a waste. The desert is behind him, and Poe has spent enough time in a bacta tank that he's left the cast behind, too.
The habits are a little harder to set aside. He gulps water, covets it. Yesterday, when Rey had sipped from his cup as they'd all sat talking, he'd had to fight down the urge to pull it back to him protectively. She'd given him a knowing look, but drank anyway, asserting her dominance in a casual way. It made Poe's heart pound. At the time, it was a good thing, but now it's almost an anxious feeling.
He has to admit how he feels to Finn. The issue is that how he feels is complicated. He runs the scenario through his head over and over as he rinses the last of the slimy, persistent Bacta fluid out of his hair.
The electric razor has at least made short work of the ragged beard, leaving Poe more or less himself again. Clean - or he will be when he's done scouring himself - he thinks his - offer? proposition? - will at least have some chance of a good reception.
Really, his best chance.
So why does it feel like he has no hope?
"You have to come out of there sometime," a voice intrudes, startling Poe so he drops the bottle of shampoo.
He's used to the base's dorm-style shower, the stalls shut off in individual frosted glass boxes but still communal. He doesn't, at least, have to worry about his modesty. Too much.
"Ah," Poe says suddenly coldly nervous in spite of the hot water. "General, I-"
"Save it," she says, leaning in the entryway. He can see her form distorted through the waved glass. Leia's tone brooks no argument. "I came down to debrief you at our scheduled time, half an hour ago..."
Poe's blood runs colder still. He forgot! How could he have forgotten? How have I been in the shower that long?
"And Commander Finn told me you were still in the shower," Leia continues.
"Commander Finn?" Poe asks, surprised enough to interrupt her, forgetting his place.
"Not as quickly as you made Commander, I know," Leia reminds him. "But he was instrumental in one or two important missions, and the Resistance prides itself on recognizing its assets."
Poe gives up on the idea of properly washing his hair and turns off the water. Opening the stall door just enough to snake his hand through the opening, he grabs his towel from the nearby shelf.
Leia continues, unphased, "besides, this way you two are the same rank."
She lets that statement stand without further elaboration, before continuing, "Now, I know you're apologetic for nearly destroying a second X-Wing in less time than it takes most of my pilots to go through a set of coveralls..."
"I went through one of those too," Poe says apologetically, rubbing the towel vigorously through his hair while still behind the protective glass.
"Mmm-hmm," Leia agrees. "But that's not the sort of thing I expect Poe Dameron to try and drown himself in the shower over."
"No," Poe says, falling into the swing of the conversation. "It's not that. I mean, I am sorry about the X-Wing but..."
Leia waits while he ties the towel around his waist - a little higher and a lot more securely than he usually does, and swings the stall door open to face his General. It's easier to face her in his bath towel than it is to go admit what he wants to to his friends. He likes the distraction.
"I should be able to repair Black One," he promises, " with enough time."
"Mmm-hmm," she says. "I've got Bollie and his ground crew working on it already. Not that they need any more work."
"Yes ma'am," Poe says. "I take your point."
"You're grounded," Leia informs him cheerfully.
"What-"
Leia waves off the protest. "Controller Dand came directly to me. I can't make an exception and dismiss his concerns. You switched hyperspace lanes while you were in hyperspace?"
Poe tips his head, too proud of the achievement to bother trying to deny it - especially after describing it triumphantly in front of half a dozen squad-mates.
"Way outside protocol," Leia scolds him, smiling.
"Well, it worked," Poe says.
"Something tells me you're not much for protocol," she says, giving him a knowing look.
"How long have I lost my wings for, General?" Poe asks, finding it important to know for some reason.
"Fourteen standard cycles, or until Black One is repaired. Whichever comes first," Leia tells him.
Poe winces. "That long?"
Leia gives him a stern look, and Poe stops trying to charm his way out of his punishment while standing there in a bath towel. He's no match for her determination.
"Next time you deploy you are not to break one of my X-Wings. Is that clear, Commander Dameron?"
Poe nods, drawing up straight into a salute. He can't help but hold onto the top of his towel at the small of his back, just in case.
She softens, just a little. "Good job, Commander. It's good to have you back."
"You'll have to thank Rey and Finn - Commander Finn - for that, ma'am," Poe says, formally.
"I have," she says, in a flat tone. "And BeeBee-Ate, too."
Poe supposes that to mean she's done with him and that he's dismissed. He reaches for the pile of clean clothes, eager to be back in his own, but Leia doesn't go.
"So," she says. "What does have my best pilot hiding in the showers?"
He'd hoped she would forget that subject. It brings all his concerns right to the forefront again as he considers it.
"I want something," he says at last. "But I'm afraid of asking for it. What if I do it wrong, what if they don't understand..."
Leia snorts. "Is that all."
Poe could admit, it's a little silly. It still seems big. Like, the-rest-of-his-life big, and until now, Poe's avoided any such commitments. Then again, this one might be worth it.
"Look, Commander," Leia breaks into his thoughts. She corrects herself, speaking informally now, "Poe. Life is short. Don't make it kick down your door for something you want anyway."
Poe nods.
Leia turns to go, and then stops. She looks back over her shoulder. "I spoke to Kes and let him know we found you."
Poe meant to call his father soon. He's glad that Leia has broken the ice, if word about Poe's latest adventures has reached all the way back to Yavin-IV.
Leia measures time for effect, then adds. "From what he said, congratulations are in order."
Poe could hit himself. I told Dad about Finn! Leia grins at him then, wickedly, and leaves him to get dressed.
-
BB-8 rolls carefully up the stairs to the crew quarters, taking each elevation with a careful application of balance and pressure. It takes a lot of the droid's focus.
BB-8 has the final damage report for Black One, now that the X-Wing is recovered and returned to the hanger. It's talking gibberish at the moment - too many crossed wires and overheated connections inside, but BB-8 coaxed a full systems analysis out of it, and knows Poe will want the results right away.
He always wants to repair his ship as fast as possible, and just like when he repairs BB-8, he'll want to do it himself. BB-8 likes that about Poe, likes that he takes care of his droid and his X-Wing, rendering each unique.
BB-8 is happy to take care of Poe in return. At the top of the stairs, the droid glances either direction for anyone else, and then turns down the hall towards their quarters.
Strangely, Princess Leia exits the shower rooms at the end of the hall, with C-3PO shuffling after her.
"Oh, BeeBee-Ate," C-3PO greets. "We've just come from-"
Leia cuts in, "are you going to see Commander Dameron?"
BB-8 affirms politely.
"Skip it," she tells BB-8. "He's got a lot on his mind."
BB-8 protests - the damage reports! If repairs begin right away...
Leia stops BB-8. She actually crouches down and puts a hand on the droid's side. "Trust me, I think he has to finish a couple of things before you give him any more excuse to procrastinate."
BB-8 queries.
"Well, I think he's going to need to work out a few things," she says, "and if it goes anything like 'working things out' went for me, a little privacy is in order."
She stands up. "Why don't you come with me. I already got Bollie started on repairs but you can help me get a few more people involved."
BB-8 rolls after her, explaining.
"I know he likes to do things himself, but sometimes there are just too many things to do with your own two hands," she explains, leading BB-8 and C-3PO back the way they came. "It's easy, when you're caught up in the fervor of the Resistance, to prioritized repairs over yourself."
Repairs are important, BB-8 knows. They can make a lot of difference when things got tight.
"You're right," Leia explains, " but looking after himself is just as important. Let me tell you a few things."
BB-8 tries to focus on her words as well as navigate the delicate process of going back down the stairs.
-
"So?" Rey asks, sitting on Poe's bunk like she owns it, looking at him in clear expectation. "Are you ready?"
Poe had walked in ready, hair still wet from the shower, skin cool from evaporating water, but he flushes up hot. Nervous. Rey sees right through him, giving him an exasperated look.
"Ready for what?" Finn asks, from behind Poe.
He's surrounded.
"Ready," Rey says, forging on, and even though Poe isn't he resolves himself to it. "To tell you how we feel about you."
Finn looks curious when Poe turns around. He can't just let Rey do it for him. He's too old for the schoolyard version. He lifts his hands toward Finn, palms up, and without hesitation Finn puts both his own hands in Poe's. Brown fingers curl over his own, warm and reassuring.
Poe suddenly feels both calm and way more serious than he intended. A crazy moment of spinning vertigo.
"I really adore you," he says, without thinking about it.
He thinks Finn blushes. Rey's small hands appear at Finn's sides, then wrap around his middle. "I also adore you."
Finn doesn't seem to know what to say.
"Right," Poe agrees. "How we feel about you."
"We were thinking," Rey continues, "That we should both tell you together, because then we can work something out all three of us."
Finn looks over his shoulder at Rey, then back at Poe. Poe tries for an encouraging smile.
"Okay," Finn says at last. Poe can see him trying to work things through.
"Okay? Buddy," Poe says, with a nervous chuckle. "We need a little more than 'okay'."
Finn gives him a bright, beautiful smile and reaches back for Rey's hand. She steps around next to Poe, and her small hand takes his empty one and squeezes. Poe guesses this is a pretty good start. Finn hasn't said 'but I like Rey' or 'I don't feel that way'. Poe's next call to his father might get a little complicated.
"Okay," Finn repeats. "What do we do now?"
Rey laughs and reaches up to put her hands around his neck in a tight hug. She pulls Poe in and he wonders what he was ever afraid of.
Between the three of them, they can fly anything. The rest is just figuring out how to land.
-
The End.