This takes place, eh, ten hours after the end of TLJ when Rey and everyone escapes and Ben is left on Crait. It's been a rough few… days? It's been a rough time for Rey, considering how much of the rebellion is left. (Only those who can fit on the Millennium Falcon. :-/)

Rey was tired.

After so much anger and so much grief, and still more when she found out how much they had lost, Rey was… a tired that can only be described as soul-weary.

They were on the run (again) and she had found a small, tiny, out of the way room on the Millennium Falcon. It barely had room for her. She doubted anyone else would think of it as a room.

The cot was too soft, too suffocating, so she was curled on the floor with her back pressed to the wall, the darkness around her soothing in its silence.

Luke was gone. Her last chance at receiving true training, true answers, at not being alone in the world as a Force wielder of Light — gone. Her last chance had swept in and saved the day and was now gone. And all she had to show for it was a new knowledge of the Dark Side that pulled at her gently.

Part of her anger at Kylo Ren, she knew now, had been a hidden panic that maybe she was just as potentially Dark as him. Maybe Kylo Ren, at one time, had been exactly as she was now.

You didn't become a monster overnight.

Rey breathed in deeply and exhaled slowly, trying loosen tense muscles. Trying to find peace.

The rebels left fit on the Millennium Falcon. All of them could fit on the Millennium Falcon. The day had been unforgiving. The last true hope of the rebellion had died to let them escape.

She curled tighter into a ball on the floor.

She felt swept of emotion. And so she closed her eyes to the wide emptiness of it all.

Time passed. In the darkness, she didn't know or care how much had passed. But at some point, she felt it like a hum under her skin, an awareness tingling in her mind.

"Please," was all she managed.

Please, I can't do this right now.

There was nothing she could do. Even now. They escaped, but for all intents and purposes, they had lost —

The room was small, yet somehow he sat on the floor with her. She was so aware of him there. He wasn't touching her in any way, but his presence filled the air around her, comforting and she wasn't alone.

This was a kinship she didn't want, but couldn't survive without.

He said nothing, knowing her better than anyone had bothered to in the past. He said not a word. He did not gloat or laugh. He sat in silent vigil.

Rey drifted off into an anguished sleep, finding solace in the touch stroking her hair. She would never admit to just how grounding that touch was that night.

Before going further, this story wouldn't be here without the following tumblr users:

forcebondedreylo— for listening to me when I said I was writing a fic and being supportive and chill and having random "writing is so hard" conversations. :)

lokitapendragon— she listened to me complain about writing while I was writing and was supportive. There's a specific Force ghost cameo just for her here. It also happened to make more sense that that Force ghost is the one to appear, but hey. Worked out for her. ;)

brambleberrycottage— she freaking read this mess of a story before anyone else saw it. Also, I wanted to write a fic, but got stumped with what I wanted them to address when Rey and Ben finally talked. She went off on how such and such wasn't addressed and I was like, "… I can try and address that!" In general, she made this fic happen. And made the characters in character. And put up with my love affair with commas. And, again, read this story before it was what you see here. She's amazing.

Let me know what you think! This is a short, five chapter thing.

~SS