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Rey watches as Han throws Kylo Ren’s lightsaber into the oscillator below them. It disappears into the red-hued smoke without a sound.
Finn’s grip on her arm tightens. “What just happened?” he murmurs, his disbelief mirroring Rey’s.
“I don’t know,” she answers, equally as hushed—but Ren’s head lifts as if he has heard her, his gaze locking on hers. Rey takes in a surprised breath. Just as earlier, something strange and electric crackles between them when their eyes meet. It’s unsettling.
Han grasps Ren’s shoulder, and Ren’s gaze returns to his father. His father. His words in the interrogation room make sense now.
The planet shakes beneath their feet. Rey tears her gaze away from the strange scene below. “Finn, we have to go.”
He nods, but looks back as they leave. Rey forces herself to keep her eyes ahead. Together, she and Finn run for the Falcon.
The Resistance base on D’Qar is chaotic in the wake of their victory. The moment the Falcon lands, Finn rushes to an x-wing pilot with a mischievous smile and a head full of dark curls. Rey turns back to Han, but he has his arm around Ren, who is frowning as they weave through the crowd. Their destination is clear. A regal-looking woman with Ren’s eyes stands just off to the side of the Falcon, a smile on her face and tears in her eyes. Surely this is Leia Organa, Ren’s mother, Han’s wife.
Rey is alone. Once again, she feels she has no place in this story.
She has never been surrounded by so many people before. Now that the Force—if it really is the Force, like Maz said—has awakened within her, she can feel each life on the planet. It’s beautiful, but deeply overwhelming. And it certainly makes navigating a crowd this size extremely difficult.
Taking a deep breath, Rey does her best to block out this new awareness. She’ll follow Finn. His friend will know what’s going on, and then—
Someone grabs her arm in an iron grip, pulling her to an abrupt halt. She whirls to face them, staff already in hand, her teeth bared.
It’s Ren.
Rey doesn’t lower her staff. “You.”
She can’t tell if he is scowling, or if he always looks this angry. “Come with me.”
Rey scoffs. “Absolutely not.”
Now he is scowling. “There’s no need to be difficult, scavenger.”
“I’m not being difficult, Ren. I’m being practical. He might trust you,” she says, nodding toward Han over Ren’s shoulder, “but I don’t. Let go of me.”
He narrows his eyes in response.
Rey grits her teeth. “Let. Go.”
“No.”
Around them, the crowd begins to thin, Resistance members making their way indoors. Those who are still outside give Rey and Ren a wide berth. Rey doesn’t blame them. She, too, would like to be as far away from Ren as possible.
“Come on, kids,” Han calls. “Let’s not make a scene. Rey, just come over here, will ya?”
Glaring at Ren, Rey pulls her arm from his grip and begins to make her way to Han and Leia. Han smirks as she approaches, Ren—unfortunately—at her side. “Ben is a little intense. Cut him some slack. He hasn’t talked to a girl since he was ten years old.”
“Dad.”
Rey lets out a startled laugh, but it dies quickly. Dad. How did two of the galaxy’s greatest heroes create someone like Kylo Ren? It doesn’t make sense. More than that, it only reminds her of her worst truth: she has no family, no one to tease her or remind her of her past.
Whomever you’re waiting for on Jakku, Maz had said, they’re never coming back.
“What do you want?” Rey demands, a bit harsher than she’d intended. Han raises an eyebrow. “Sorry,” she mumbles, gaze darting to Leia. Great. There’s one first impression she’ll regret for the rest of her life.
“We’ve got a problem,” Han says. He points to Ren. “I don’t know much about this Force stuff, but it seems like his evil master can still poke around in his head. So we’re gonna need you to…” He pauses to make a very vague gesture at Ren’s head with his hands. “…stop that from happening.”
Rey frowns. “What?”
Leia sighs. She reaches for Rey’s hand, clasping it between both of hers. “I’m sorry, dear. This must be a lot to take in. But time is not on our side. The longer Snoke has access to Ben’s thoughts, the easier it will be for him to track us.” She smiles kindly at Rey. “Rey, is it?”
“Yes, ma’am.”
Her smile widens. “Leia will do, dear. Now, Ben has told us that you are incredibly strong with the Force. Stronger than anyone he has met.”
Rey can’t hide her surprise. She looks at Ren, her brow furrowed. He returns her gaze impassively and says nothing.
“Under Ben’s direction,” Leia continues, “we think you’ll be able to divert Snoke’s attention from the location of our base here on D’Qar. I know it’s a lot to ask, but would you be willing to try that for us?”
What can she say? If helping Kylo Ren means helping the Resistance, she’ll do it—no matter how she feels about Ren himself.
“Of course,” Rey says. She returns Leia’s smile.
“All right,” Han says, clapping his hands together once. He grins. “Go for it, kids.”
This was not what Rey had in mind when she agreed to help Ren.
He leads her far to the south of the Resistance base. They walk until even the last revelers are out of earshot, and the only sound is that of the birds high in the trees. At last, he comes to a stop in a deserted clearing. Rey’s hands itch to grab her staff—she doesn’t like being alone with Kylo Ren—but she leaves it on her shoulder. She doesn’t want him to know how uncomfortable he makes her.
Although, judging by the look he gives her now, he already knows.
“Sit.” His voice is soft as he gestures to the grass between them. Rey frowns, only sitting after he has settled there himself. She lays her staff on the ground beside her. Ren reaches out and grasps her right hand in his left, uncurling it from the fist she’d had it in.
Rey snatches her hand back before he can do more than that. “What are you doing?”
“Trying to teach you,” he replies calmly. “You’re untrained, and stronger than you know. This should not be difficult for you.”
“How can I be strong in something I’ve never even used before?”
“You stumbled upon valuable scrap days after a wreck was picked clean. You convinced Unkar Plutt to give you an extra portion the week you nearly starved as a child. You pushed me out of your thoughts and forced your way into mine.” The corner of his mouth shifts, as if he is thinking about smiling but can’t. “You’ve used it before.”
Rey crosses her arms. “You stole those memories from my head.”
“I did.” Ren pauses. He swallows hard, and his next words come haltingly, uncertainly. “I…should not have hurt you.”
It’s the last thing she expected him to say. His honesty—his apology, really—lowers her defenses, if only a little. Slowly, Rey uncrosses her arms, placing her hand on the grass close to Ren’s knee. “I guess you were doing your job,” she admits quietly. “I understand.”
Now it’s Ren’s turn to be surprised. Rey likes the way it softens his expression and makes him look younger—and less evil. Although, if he is here with the Resistance, she supposes he’s not as evil as she thought.
This time, when Ren reaches for her hand, Rey allows him to take it. He brings it to his forehead, splaying her fingers there and closing his eyes. Rey closes hers, too. That strange electricity between them is even stronger, now that they are touching.
“We’ll replicate how it happened before,” Ren says. “Once I reach out to you, reach back for me, and I will not resist.”
Rey takes in a deep breath and lets it out slowly. This time, Ren’s presence in her mind is gentle, a barely-there touch that invites her to follow. She does, and after only a moment, she finds herself in Ren’s thoughts.
It’s easy to find Snoke’s presence. He feels like a nightmare brought to life—a monster made of shadow and tar that pollutes Ren’s mind. How much of this darkness is Ren’s own, Rey wonders, and how much was placed there by Snoke?
Aloud, Ren says, “Create a shield over my knowledge. Not my whole self; just what I know. It can take any form you want. But you must make it a shield.”
Rey imagines a canvas tarp, like the ones that hang over Niima Outpost. Large, familiar, able to offer relief on the hottest days—protective, yet not oppressive. She imagines placing that tarp over Ren’s knowledge, hiding all he knows from Snoke’s awareness. In moments, she is done.
Rey opens her eyes to find Ren already looking back at her. Releasing her hand, he says, “I knew you were capable of it. You defy logic, Rey. It’s fascinating to witness.”
She blushes, which annoys her more than anything else. She doesn’t want to like Ren. He might be here with the Resistance, but that doesn’t change who he was.
Then she thinks of the moment he shared with Han on Starkiller Base. She’d had this awful feeling, looking down at them, because it seemed like Ren was going to—
Rey gasps. “You were supposed to kill your father, weren’t you? Snoke ordered you to.”
“Yes.”
“But you didn’t. You…couldn’t.”
“No. I couldn’t.”
“Why?”
Ren looks down, away from Rey’s searching gaze. “You’ve been in my mind. You must have felt it—my weakness.”
“Your light,” Rey corrects. “It was tangled up in all that darkness, but yes, I felt it.” She pauses, the truth slowly revealing itself the more they talk. “No matter what you did, you couldn’t get that light to go out. That’s why you’re here.”
Ren stands abruptly. “Now you know all of it,” he says bitterly. “Just be done with me, then, and leave. You saved my mother’s precious Resistance. Go back to the traitor and forget about all this. Forget me.”
Rey scrambles to her feet. “I—I don’t want to.”
Ren scoffs. “I don’t want your pity, scavenger.”
“Good. Because you won’t get it.” She grabs his arm when he tries to brush past her, pulling him to a stop. “You’re not a good person, Kylo Ren. You don’t deserve a second chance, and you don’t deserve the love your parents offer you.” Rey takes a breath, fortifying herself for her next words. “But Ben Solo does.”
Ren’s eyes widen. Before Rey can second-guess herself, she ploughs on. “I don’t want anything to do with Kylo Ren. But I’d like to know Ben Solo, if you’ll let me.”
She releases his arm and offers him her hand. He looks down at it, brow furrowed, as if he can’t quite believe what is happening. Yet, after that moment of hesitation, he takes it.
“Hi,” she says. “My name is Rey.”
“Hello, Rey.” He pauses. Then, softly: “I’m Ben.”