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Somehow, Rey knows that they’ve come for her and that they want to take her away. She doesn’t want to go; she can’t go. Where will her family find her if she goes away? No, she must stay here.
*******
The first time, it was only one man. He stood out to Rey because he was clearly an outsider, but still knew how to dress for the desert. The sandy tones of his clothing were familiar, but the fabric was of a different weave than she’d ever seen here on Jakku. It was finer and would bring her a higher price than normal gear if she ever got a chance to scavenge it from his body.
This offworlder was different from the others who came through Niima Outpost. Many merchants and travelers came and went every day, but this one was there for her. Rey just knew . She knew and she hid among all of the junk in Plutt’s shop. She didn’t dare breathe as she listened to Plutt disavow all knowledge of any small girl.
But she was able to watch the man’s silhouette leave as he took off, low on the horizon on some rattletrap speederbike.
*******
The same man came again, many marks later on Rey’s wall. This time, he came with another man, dressed incongruously in a vibrant green that stood out too much against the drab desert. The second man was not dressed for the climate, and Rey found humor in his complaints even as she cowered and hid once again. The two men left in a small ship that Rey traced with her eyes, squinting as she looked up.
*******
Marks and marks later, men came again for her. The same sand-clad one from the first and second times and the same green-clad one from the second. But with them was a much younger man. He was dressed all in black and didn’t complain, even as sweat poured off him. He didn’t really care about where he was or what he was doing. Rey didn’t know how she knew that, but decided she’d figured it out from his body language. She was now too big to hide herself behind any of Plutt’s junk, but, she reasoned, big enough to kick up a fuss at any sort of kidnapping attempt. She still knew that these people were here for her and wanted to take her from her home.
They sounded like they wanted to make an issue of it this time, when they talked to Plutt, but the young black-clad one threw a tantrum, so they left quickly once again.
*******
Again . Not that many marks after the last time, they showed up. Three again. The desert man and the green-clad one, who seemed to have gotten his green fabric in suitable desert weight this time. They seemed a little more urgent this time. The angry young man in black wasn’t with them this time. No, instead, they were with a woman dressed in grey desert-weight cloth that shimmered a little.
This time, they actually wanted to look for her. Plutt’s lumbering disavowals didn’t help her this time. She’d actually run away. She’d gotten as far away as she could, hiding in a cranny of a fallen Star Destroyer. She didn’t want to see the beings trying to find her, didn’t want their lonely eyes on her, seeking her out for whatever they wanted. They had to want something . Everyone did, didn’t they?
She had to stay here. She had to ignore the bone-deep restlessness she felt.
What if she gave in to it?
No. She had to stay here and wait. She’d been told she must wait, and wait, she would.
Time. She was so aware of time. Sometimes, she felt that time worked harder on her than on anything she saw around her.
But the desert did its work on everyone.
Plutt’s shop. Niima Outpost. Traders, merchants. Buyers, sellers. Travelers, bargainers. Swindlers. Cheaters.
So many beings came through the marketplace.
Hope landed with every ship. Dreams left with every departure.
But Rey’s destiny was her own. Her fate belonged to her, whatever it had to do with the ships that came in on the quiet or the vessels that left Jakku’s atmosphere loudly.
Her eyes were open and had been for some time--probably far too long.
How long could she wait for someone to swoop in and take her away?
How many fantasies had to die on her doorstep?
When would the little bewildered girl grow up?