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Finn has his arms wrapped around Poe and Rey’s necks while they flank him. The two of them have their arms locked behind their best friend. The three of them are the picture of courage and strength even as they cry into one another’s arms. Eventually their huddle starts to break and Poe is the first one to talk, “Guys, I have some stuff I need to go take care of.” He starts to walk away but Finn grabs his wrist with a strong grip and pulls him back into a hug.
Finn puts his lips to Poe’s ear and whispers so only he can hear, “I know you are going through a lot but I hope you know I’m here if or when you need to talk.” Poe is so grateful for Finn and his subtle support, he can’t help but weakly smile as he pulls away and his mother’s ring on Finn’s chest comes into view. Poe grabs the younger man’s hand and gives it a quick but reassuring squeeze before heading off. I guess we will have to talk later about everything , he thinks to himself, he doesn’t have time right now to think of his ever changing relationship with Finn.
After the reunion, Poe heads to the Millennium Falcon. There is someone he needs to talk to.
As he approached it 2 figures came into view, one was the legendary rebellion general, Lando Calrissian and the other? Well, that would be his old flight instructor from his days in the New Republic Navy and the father of his closest friend.
“Poe!” The second Wedge Antilles sees him the Rebellion veteran’s face lights up and he comes over to greet him. “Hope you aren’t too banged up.” Wedge says this while pointing to Poe’s arm which is in a loose sling.
“Oh, me? No, no. I’m fine. I’ve been through way worse. Wedge, I need to-” Poe’s thought stream is cut off by Wedge interjecting.
“I hope you know how proud of you I am. Leia would be too, you know. She always talked about trying to find someone else to lead the fight and I don’t think there would have been a better choice than you. I can’t wait to hear how old Kes reacts to-” Tears start streaming down Poe’s face, not for the reason Wedge thinks though.
“Wedge, can you please just come with me. I need to talk to you.” The veteran is silent now, whatever is going on must be important, he’s never seen Poe all worked up like this. He follows the young, newly appointed general into the Falcon and they both sat down at the holochess table.
“He’s gone.” Poe is sniffling even more than before, “Snap is gone. I couldn’t save him. I saw his ship get hit and go down and I just-” That was as far as he could go before the sobs came. At first Wedge just stares in shock, Snap was gone just like that? He was instantly pulled out of it by Poe’s sobs though.
He scoots over and wraps his arms around the grieving pilot, much like how a father would hold his son, “Poe, listen to me. This was not your fault. Snap knew the risks but he knew what we could accomplish would outweigh any loses we might take in the process. Kid, I’ve lost a lot good pilots over the years and I know how the weight of their loses can feel but you can’t take that all on. This isn’t the same as what happened with the Dreadnaught, you need to forgive yourself.”
Poe just looks at him with tears in his now, bright red eyes, “He deserved better.”
Wedge sighs, “Yeah, he did but Poe, you know as well as I do no one fighting up there today was doing it for themselves. They were doing it for a galaxy full of innocent people and fighting for a future where people like Lando don’t have to worry about their kids being stolen away to fight as faceless soldiers. Snap grew up just like you with a mother who would risk her life in order to save anyone, and he knew better than most that pilots have casket-less funerals more often than not. He was okay with that because the ideals he was fighting for were more important, and in you heart, you know that.”
By the time he was done Poe’s sobs had subsided and while he could still see the tears and the redness in his face, he was looking better. “Thank you, I’m just-I’m so-”
“For kriff’s sake kid if you say sorry I might hit you, there is no need. Right now, I need you to compose yourself and go out there and put on a brave face because the galaxy is going to be watching you just like they watched Leia after Endor. The Resistance needs to prove that even after her death, they have a strong enough leader to finish wiping out the First Order in the coming weeks. Leia believed that was you, I believe it, hell this whole base believes it. Now it’s your turn to.” Wedge is pretty proud of himself by the end of this because while his heart is breaking on the inside, he knows the most important thing is getting Poe back out there. He can deal with his own emotions and how to tell Norra after Poe was gone.
The young general just looks at his old instructor, his eyes full of gratitude and grief as Chewbacca walks in. He tells Poe that he is needed in the command center right away and as quick as a pin drop his eyes are steeled and he is in complete focus. He leaves after a quick goodbye to Wedge and a nod to Chewbacca. The Wookie then asks Wedge what was wrong, his reply probably came a little too quick, “It’s nothing really Chewie, just lost a lot of good people today.” There was a roar of agreement before Chewbacca left to go find Rey. Now, Wedge was left to himself and his grief.
He did the only thing he knew to do, he calls Norra. He wasn’t sure she would answer right away because she was out gathering allies to attack the leftover First Order bases in towards the core worlds because everyone knew that was their next needed step. But she does answer, “Hey Norra, looks like the day is won.” He lets out a tiny laugh, “Now, Poe just needs to figure out how to you know, build a government from scratch.” He is only half joking really, it would be up to the Resistance to rebuild structure in the galaxy, but that’s a problem for another day.
“That’s great hun, I can’t wait to get to the base and check it out. Seeing you and Snap won’t be too bad either.” She winks after that last part but instantly knows something is wrong because Wedge hardly reacts, “Is there something wrong?”
Wedge didn’t know how to even begin. How do you tell a mother that her son is just gone? Sure, he’s had to make these calls before but it was different it wasn’t his family then. His eyes were filled with sadness as he spoke, “Norra, I’m so sorry Snap-he didn’t make it.”
Norra stood on the other side of the holo in pure shock. She had always known this might eventually happen to her or to Wedge, but Snap? He was so young and had so much life ahead of him. And Karé, poor Karé. She and Snap had only been married a little over a year, their shared future ripped to shreds. She felt the tears coming down but she didn’t care, “Wedge please find Karé-she needs to know. Tell her I love her too?” Wedge nodded and felt the tears coming out of his own eyes.
Norra had just lost her one and only son and her focus wasn’t on her own grief but on someone else’s. He doubts there is a more selfless person in the galaxy, “Nor, stay strong. I know you will but just...just call me if you need anything okay?”
She put on the tiniest of smiles, “Yeah, I’ll see you soon. Love you.” Just like that, the holo faded and Wedge was left alone again.
Poe is sitting at the table in his and Finn’s, now shared, quarters. He is in his nicest uniform because he had just gotten back from a ceremony honoring the lives lost at the Battle of Exegol. Currently he is looking over pictures on a holopad of Black Squadron. He is crying and smiling and laughing and mourning. A multitude of emotions comes at him with every new picture.
Before he knows it Finn’s arms are wrapped around him, he was so caught up with himself he hadn’t even noticed his boyfriend had come back. They just stayed there for a while, Poe crying in Finn’s arms but after a while the younger man moved to sit next to Poe and reached out to hold his hands. “Poe, I know you are dealing with a lot of pain and lose right now but I really need you to know you aren’t alone and you don’t have to go through this by yourself. I will always be here for you, to listen to you or to be a shoulder to cry on. Whatever you need, I'm already here babe.”Finn puts on a small smile as he takes one of his hands and cups the pilot’s tear stained cheek, Poe leans into the gentle touch.
In that moment Poe realizes that while his grief is necessary and he is allowed to miss his friends, Snap most of all, he also needs to be grateful. He lost a lot but he gained so much more, he leans over and kisses Finn softly before putting their foreheads together, “thank you for everything. I love you.”
Finn smiles, teasing Poe with a lick of his lips, “I know.”