And yes...This will be KyloxReytprimarily ;)
The Jedi Academy was the most prestigious school in all of the galaxies. Once a youngling finished their primary education, their guardian could choose to send them to the Jedi Academy if they had the money for it and if their child was able to pass the rigorous entrance exams. One young Jedi had faced many complications while attempting to enroll. Her name was Rey.
For starters, Rey didn't even have a last name. So she struggled with the very first section of the application packet.
[LAST NAME, MI, FIRST NAME]
The bold letters seemed to sneer at her from where she sat in General Organa's private dining room. Not knowing who her parents were, never having a family, and growing up as a scavenger, a last name had never been necessary or possible.
Sensing the young Jedi's stress, General Organa swept gracefully into the room, taking a seat beside her. Rey rubbed at her brow.
"General Organa, I don't think I can just leave this section blank," she sighed, stabbing her finger at 'LAST NAME'. The general laughed and gave Rey's arm a comforting squeeze.
"How many times must I tell you to call me Leia? Rey, I give you permission to use the Organa name."
"I - I couldn't possibly -"
"You can and you will. I look forward to watching you succeed in the Jedi Academy," Leia said with a gentle smile. Before Rey could splutter a reply, the general left the room, leaving the young Jedi blushing and flattered.
It took a lot of research and fabrication for Rey to complete and submit the application, but to her shock she was accepted a month later. The Skywalker twins, with whom she lived, celebrated by hosting a large dinner party. All of her friends came, along with many political allies and family friends of the Skywalker twins. Poe Dameron, handsome and charming as usual, Finn with his new girlfriend, Rose, Chewie - who crushed her in one of his massive hugs as soon as he saw her - R2, BB-8, and C-3PO.
"I am seriously so excited for the academy," Finn declared once their group took their seats at the long table laden with food and drinks.
"You're excited? You have no idea. I'm an instructor for weapons training this year! Do you even know what that means? I finally get to play out my fantasy of being a sexy professor. Think there'll be any -" Poe's eager thought process was interrupted by a reproachful cough. They all looked up to see Leia standing behind Poe, whose ears immediately burned red.
"I mean…I'm looking forward to influencing the young minds of my pupils with interesting and important knowledge on the usage of weapons. I will radiate with good-intentions and chastity," Poe said hastily. Rey and Finn smirked at him, hiding their chuckles behind wine goblets. Meanwhile, Leia rolled her eyes and gave Poe's shoulder a painful squeeze.
"Do not make me regret my decision to recommend you for the position, Commander," Leia warned. Poe winced at her strength.
"Of course not, General Organa," he promised with a sullen undertone. She left to speak with newly arriving guests and Poe let out a sigh of both relief and disappointment. But when he looked up, there was a mischievous glint in his eyes.
"I'm a little nervous. I barely passed the entrance exams on the Force…I'm not strong at all," Rose said timidly, picking at her vegetables. Rey gave her a reassuring pat on the back. Before she could offer any positive words, C-3PO's chipper voice rang out.
"General Organa, will Kylo Ren be attending the academy?"
Silence immediately swept across the table as everyone stared at Leia with interest. She stood at the head of the table, her pink lips parted in surprise. A look of sadness flickered briefly over her features before she regained composure and cleared her throat.
"Yes. He has been accepted as well," she said. She did not offer anything more and instead sat down to begin her meal. Rose and Finn looked at Rey with matching looks of confusion.
"Who is Kylo Ren?" Finn asked. Rey licked her lips and glanced at Poe, who gave a slight nod.
"I don't know much because General Organa does not like to talk about him. But he's…her son," Rey started. Rose gasped.
"The general has a son?" Rose exclaimed. Poe hushed her, shooting a furtive glance down the table, but nobody heard them.
"Yes. But he's - ah - troubled, I suppose you could say. As a child, he never liked the attention his famous family was always receiving. He preferred solitude and had quite the temper. He was quick to lash out against his nannies and teachers. General Organa and Han Solo were always away on missions or in battle, so he rarely saw them. Master Luke practically raised him, but they had their differences and did not always get along. When Han Solo was killed in battle, Ben - that's his real name, he refuses to go by it because he wants nothing to do with his family - sunk into a deep depression and got into a lot of trouble all the time. Finally, Luke and Ben got into a huge fight. Ben - Kylo - actually pulled out his lightsaber. It didn't end until Luke ended up slicing him across his face, leaving him with a nasty scar. Leia came home the next week to discover that Kylo had run away from home. Nobody knows where he lives and he hasn't spoken to any of us since. We only know he's going to be attending the academy because General Organa is childhood friends with the Headmistress, and she told the general about his acceptance."
When Poe finished the quiet story, the young Jedis sat in shock. Rey had only known his name and that he had run away from home at a very young age. She drained her goblet and re-filled it, trying to focus on the warm buzz entering her head rather than the sad and uncomfortable tale.
"How old is he? Is he our age? Is he strong? What's he like?" Rose eagerly asked. Finn looked almost jealous as he bit into a forkful of meat with a sour expression. Poe looked up in thought.
"He's 23, so he's three years older than you lot. I don't really know what he's like because whenever I was around, he was always sulking or studying or training. But I know for certain that he is very strong and very smart. He's been in the academy ever since he was old enough to join, but nobody thought he'd go back this year because he took last year off," the Commander explained.
Those training to become a Jedi stayed in the academy until they were usually around the age of 24. Then they would be tested to see if they passed. Rose, Finn, and Rey had all turned twenty earlier that year, which was the minimum age to go into the Jedi Academy for advanced learning and training.
"Let's change the topic," Finn spoke up, clapping his hands together. Rose smiled at him knowingly and gave his cheek a chaste peck. Rey listened to her friends chatter about what they were most excited for in the academy, their expectations and worries, and politics. The galaxy was at hesitant peace currently. They had just earned a victory at the Starkiller Base. But nobody knew for sure how long that peace would last for. As young and training Jedis, they were kept out of the confidential affairs to prevent meddling.
"Rey?" Rose said, poking her friend's arm. Rey looked at her, startled out of her thoughts.
"We were just talking about our living arrangements and how nice it is that you and I get to be roommates in the dorms," Rose said. The timid girl was more interested in mechanics and behind-the-scenes work than the Force, but her parents wanted her to at least give the academy a try. Rey wasn't sure how well it would work out for her, but she liked Rose enough to agree to living with her. It was better than a random roommate.
"Yes. Finn, do you know who your roommate is yet?" Rey asked. Finn shook his head and began to talk, but Rey didn't hear his words. All noise disappeared from the room, except for a dull ringing in her ears. She stared at her friend in confusion. He seemed to still be talking as if nothing had changed. She looked at Rose and saw that the girl was grinning at Finn. Rey looked around the room, fear flooding her body. Nobody was experiencing the silence except her. Suddenly, the entire room melted away, leaving her in empty darkness. Rey gasped; the noise echoed into eternity. She whirled around, desperate to find a clue as to what was happening but there was nothing but darkness. Rey closed her eyes and focused on breathing, willing her heart to slow down. After six deep breaths, she opened her eyes. This time, she was not alone in the dark. A young man stood shirtless a few yards away, wearing nothing but black loose-fitting pants. His body was strong and taut with muscle, littered with scars, some deep and some shallow. His skin was pale, but his long, wavy hair that framed his long face was almost darker than the nothingness she stood in. Rey stared at him, knowing she should be terrified but instead feeling calm and confused. He seemed familiar. He was sharpening a knife, unaware of her presence. But then he looked up, and Rey saw the scar across his face.
"Kylo?" she asked, her voice sounding strange as it drifted across the darkness. The young man looked her straight in the eyes, thick eyebrows furrowing in concentration. His dark eyes glittered with anger.
"Who are you and how did you get past my mental barriers?" he asked. His voice was deep and warm but held a sharp edge, demanding an answer.
"My name is Rey…I don't know how I got here," she replied, astonished. This was the most insane thing that had ever happened to her. Mental barriers? Was she in his mind? She'd never even met him.
"Get out!" Kylo shouted. Suddenly, she felt a heavy force slam into her, throwing her back into the darkness, knocking the air from her lungs.
"Rey!"
Rey gasped for air, shaking all over, drenched in a cold sweat. Her eyes flew open to find Poe hovering over her, worry clear on his face. Finn and Rose came running back with Luke and Leia, all of them looking concerned. She realized she was lying on the ground, blood streaming from her nose. Every guest was leaning over to look at her.
"Rey, are you alright?" Luke asked as Poe lifted her off the ground. Rey tugged away, her pride wounded, and wiped the blood from her nose.
"I'm fine, what happened?" she said, forcing her voice to come out steady. Finn licked his lips nervously and looked at Poe before responding.
"You…You just sat there with your eyes closed and nobody could wake you up. And then…And then you started convulsing and fell out of your chair, but as soon as you hit the ground you woke up," Finn said. Everyone looked at her expectantly.
"This has been lovely, I really do appreciate everything, but I am feeling unwell. I think I'm going to lie down in my room to get some sleep. I'm sorry for worrying everyone," Rey finally said. Nobody responded, but nobody tried to stop her when she hurried from the room.
What the hell had happened? She practically ran to her bedroom. Why and how was she in Kylo Ren's head? How did he throw her out? Rey burst into her room and immediately went to the wash basin. She rinsed her face to clean it of the sweat and blood before changing into a sleeping gown. The young Jedi sat on her plush bed, gazing out the window at the expanse of stars and planets. She really was treated like royalty on Leia's ship. It was almost hard to imagine that she'd once been struggling to survive in Jakku. It was only a year ago that Leia had discovered her during a visit to feed the poor. She'd been impressed by Rey's mechanic and survival skills. She was even more impressed when she'd discovered that Rey had the Force within her. So, Leia had taken her in to be trained.
Rey was eternally grateful, which was why when Leia and Luke knocked at her door, she granted them permission to enter and told them what she'd seen. They stood before her as she described the darkness and the sight of Kylo.
"You believe me…right?" Rey asked when they said nothing.
"Of course. I just…Don't understand how this happened," Leia said, looking at Luke. He seemed deep in thought.
"I will look into it," he finally said before leaving the room. Rey felt almost guilty, despite knowing that it wasn't her fault and technically she hadn't done anything wrong. But she knew that the mention of Kylo pained Leia, who felt as though she had failed as a parent. Leia dropped a kiss on Rey's forehead.
"I am very proud of you. And…I hope that when you go into the academy…You could tell me how my son is doing," she said. Rey nodded, biting her lower lip. She wasn't sure she wanted to meet him after feeling and seeing how angry he'd been by her intrusion, but she owed her life to General Organa. Leia smiled and bid her a pleasant sleep before leaving the room.
Rey laid back on the bed and continued to gaze out the window. The academy would begin tomorrow and she was already all packed up. And though she knew she should rest up, she also knew that sleep would most likely not come. Rey closed her eyes, unable to stop seeing Kylo's scarred face in the darkness.
[Hope you enjoyed this first chapter, please review to let me know what you think of the idea!]