Merriment
"But I really should be training!" Rey cried, stumbling along behind Fin and Poe as they pulled her through the door of a dusty saloon on the edge of some backwater planet. Loud, jovial music played throughout the room. The walls were cut from a natural outcrop of rock and the floors were tightly packed sand.
It reminded her of Jakku.
Bodies packed all around them. Loud voices chattered all around and disoriented the girl. From ahead, Fin's smiling face was visible. "You've been training non-stop for a month. We've all earned a break!"
Rey was hard-pressed to disagree. Her muscles ached and had swollen with new mass, her skin was covered with small cuts and burns. She followed her friends to a shoddy bar top towards the back of the room. The smell of alcohol was strong in the air, and dancing bodies undulated around them as Poe ordered three shots of some amber liquid. Fin and Rey saddled up next to him, each dutifully raising a glass.
"Leia Organa!" Called Poe.
"The resistance!" Fin offered.
Rey smiled. "The force!" ...and with that each downed their bittersweet drink and coughed and sniffed and straightened up.
Poe motioned to have the small glasses refilled immediately. Rey had begun to protest when the warm liquid in her stomach began to take effect and she felt her muscles relax. "Are we doing this?" Fin asked, grabbing the next drink with a large grin.
"Oh yeah," said Poe. The three took their shots eagerly and again the glasses were refilled.
Pop played happily overhead.
XXX
Kylo Ren, Ben Solo, sat alone in his quarters reading a heavy book. The room was cold, and quiet, and the turning of the heavy papyrus was the only sound except for the soft ever-present hum of the ventilation system. He felt a tingle on the back of his neck, but did not look up until he became aware of a soft upbeat sound in the air.
In the center of the room, with her back to him, was the last Jedi. Rey. It took Ren a long moment to understand what he was seeing. The girl was covered in dust and her arms waved fluidly around her body. Occasionally she stumbled from some unseen force. Her movements were almost awkward, but Ren recognized it as dancing. A glass appeared in her hand, having been handed to her, and Ren could smell the alcohol as if it were in his own grip.
She downed it, coughing and laughing. "Dance with me!" she called, pulling at unseen arms.
Ren watched without a sound. She was clearly unaware of his presence, and drunk. What a strange way to witness one's enemy. Rey danced around his room unknowingly, her movements becoming more ridiculous as the moments went by until at one point she appeared to be imitating a water-spout.
Apparently, the last Jedi was not a very smooth dancer.
A soft chuckle escaped Ren's throat. Across from him the girl went still, and whipped around. Her eyes fell on him. Her face was flushed and some of her hair had escaped its bun and stuck to the sweat on her forehead.
Rey looked confused for a moment, and then horrified, and then angry. The psychic link broke without warning, and then Ren was alone in his quarters.
He stood slowly, setting his book to the side. The man glared darkly at the spot where she had been dancing, before crossing the room to a small intercom by his door. A gloved thumb pressed the receiver.
"...bring me a whiskey."