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Rey had been feeling off ever since she had finished her training and returned to the Resistance base. This place was so different to her home, in a good way, but, it made her feel uneasy. There was more food than she could hope to eat, and it tasted good which was amazing after the rations she had spent her life eating. The people were happy, they joked and laughed and talked to each other. There was a sense of community, belonging, that she had never seen on Jakku. Each person had a job, a purpose, everyone contributed in their own way. It was nice to be somewhere that was so welcoming, but it was strange to be away from everything she knew.
She and Luke had flown to some other planets on their way back to the base, Rey wanted to see the universe she had been missing out on while waiting eternally on Jakku. She had seen ice and snow, entire planets of water, forests, jungles, meadows. She had seen the stars, and planets of every color, she had flown all over, taking everything, making notes and drawing. When she had finally returned and settled at the base, she felt restless.
She constantly felt the need to do things with her hands, she took up knitting, she read a lot, she braided her hair while walking around, and carried a small sketchpad with her wherever she went. One day she was wandering around just outside the base, exploring the planet that was to be her home for a while. She stumbled upon a small, abandoned greenhouse. Pots had been knocked over, soil in piles on the ground. The plants had grown wild, covering the ground, the walls, and the roof. She didn't want to touch anything, just in case, but she couldn't keep it out of her mind for the next few days.
Eventually she broke and decided to go back. She spent the day sitting there, looking at all the different plants, some colorful, some dull, some thriving despite being forgotten about long ago while some had died and withered away. She wondered what had made some continue to grow while others had given up. She supposed it must have been similar to her retaining hope after so long of being left alone. She had her sketch pad with her and decided to draw the scene around her. She found the plants so beautiful, curving and climbing to the sky.
Halfway through the day she started cleaning up. There was an old broom in a corner she used to sweep all the fallen dirt. She discarded all of the broken pots and replanted the surviving plants in pots with only small chips or cracks. The sun started to set and she made her way back, proud of what she had accomplished, feeling like she had finally done something new and useful after all these years of searching and taking.
The next few weeks consisted of meetings and training and food, lots of food. But Rey managed to get to the greenhouse every day. It was her new home. She had asked if she could get some new pots, some new species, and some new paint. She repainted all of the walls white in between the glass and painted little designs on each of the pots in pretty pastels. The flowers she had managed to save were growing well, all sorts of colors were blooming.
She started picking some of the flowers that reminded her of people or she thought would make people smile. Finn was having trouble with his back so she picked him a wonderful yellow flower that she had only seen on one other planet, she had always wondered how it had gotten here. Poe was leaving for a mission so the day before she picked a vibrant orange flower that matched his suit. The General had a few bad days and while she pushed through, Rey could always tell when she wasn't feeling the best and left a small pink flower near her when she had the chance.
Flowers started showing up all over the base, anyone Rey spoke to got a flower at some point. Rey hung planters from the walls in the cafeteria, hoping to bring some of the beauty she found in her greenhouse to everyone's day. If you ever need to find Rey just follow the trail of crumpled flowers that have fallen out of her pockets on her rounds.