Rey

She didn't know why, but he had done it. He had stopped those children from being forced to hurt each other. Now, he was angry, most likely because of how that general had mocked him. She knew he hated to be viewed or even think of himself as weak. Maybe there was something more to him. Perhaps, she could convince him that his…kindness…was not weakness.

He led her to his apartment, where the wall still bore marks of his last fit. Her chain was released as the door closed, and she swiftly pressed against a wall as he picked up a chair and threw it.

"Stop it!" She yelled. Before, she had been so afraid of him and his rage. Now he just seemed like a child throwing a tantrum.

He tore off his helmet and threw it, causing it to bounce off the wall where he had burnt it last time.

"Silence!" He yelled as he drew up close to her, causing her to press even more towards the wall. "You have manipulated me with your mind and humiliated me. No more! I am the one in control here, I am your superior! You are nothing but a desert rat! I see what's in your mind, I see how you seek to overpower me with your plays of emotion!"

"You're wrong!" She shouted right back. "I didn't make you stop those children, you did!"

He was breathing heavy, seething. His hand came to grab her chin and forced her to look at him, a threat. His breath was hot on her cheek and his dark hair swept in front of his wild eyes. His other hand pinned her arm firmly, not painfully, but held her from escape. "You think I would let myself be swayed? You think I am so weak as to feel sorry for a few brats?"

Her eyes narrowed. "I felt you enter my mind, I know what you saw."

He laughed in her face. "I have no sympathy for your sad little childhood. If you used your pain and harnessed it, you would actually be of some use," he snarled.

She reached up and grabbed onto his arm with her free hand, glaring. "It was no trick. You felt something for a reason. You cared."

They stood equal, one hand on each others arm, both glaring and tense. It felt as if they were hard, stubborn walls that just kept clashing into each other again and again, trying to see who would crumble first. His hand tightened for a moment in anger on her jaw. "I did not."

"Admit it," Rey managed, almost gasping as pain shot up her flushed cheeks. "You cannot deny your feelings. You are drawn to the light." Her hand tightened on his arm as she struggled, but suddenly his hand drew back and formed a fist. A moment later, it crashed into the wall beside her.

"I am not drawn to the light!" He screamed, and then there was silence.

Rey had sucked in a sharp breath, and stood with teeth bared and muscles tense ad poised to fight. Kylo stared silently at where he had dented the wall. She laid a hand to her throat and moved away from him in one quick moment, wondering if this was just the calm before another storm.

After a moment, he flew out of the room, locking it behind him. She sank to the floor, grateful that he was gone.

Rey had felt a moment of fear that he would kill her in his anger, but she had seen the conflict in his eyes. Had felt it through his skin. She knew she should take the opportunity of his absence to work on her escape, but she was drained. She was unsettled by what she had seen-really, just unsettled by him in general. He confused her, and she kept finding herself feeling pity or compassion for the angry man.

Unwilling to sleep on the floor, she crawled onto the couch and fell asleep there, praying she wouldn't be tormented by memories in her dreams. Or by the image of him.

Kylo

When he returned, he did not bother removing her from the couch. Somehow, he just didn't care to torture her anymore. It was pointless, and was more uncomfortable than anything since they were constantly in each other's presence. Killing was swift, easy, and almost painless. But he had almost always left the actual torture to others. There was simply no desire to torment those he cared nothing about. Although he had never been "right" as a child according to his parents, it was not his nature to do as some did, killing pets and taking them apart. Kylo was more apt to deliver cruel and harmful punishments to those who had wronged him rather than to pointlessly slay. They only brought him in to extract information the interrorgators could not glean from their torture. Like with that pilot. He was beaten bloody, but none could get anything out of him. Except for Kylo. As for Rey though, Kylo had not let any of them touch her. Only he had dealt with her. And he had only harmed her when she had successfully resisted him. And part of that torture had been out of spite for her rejection of him from her mind.

Now he had sat for hours, staring at his grandfather's mask. Thinking forever about the dark and the light. The way he somehow was drawn to the light, like he was unconsciously wired to fight back against the dark. Even when he sought so hard to embrace it.

He had to return the galaxy to its rightful state, fulfill the dream his grandfather had. All would know the power of the force. But the mask gave him no answers, and he would not admit his weakness to his master again, although Hux had probably already informed him, the snake.

Rey frustrated him. If he was drawn to the light, it must be because it emulated from her. Her stubbornness and blind belief was the characteristics of a fool, just like his parents and Luke. Yet he would not call her that. As she tempted him into the light, it was as if she did hold a power over him, yet it was a force he could not dispel. However she had done it, he hated her for making him so pathetic.

For now, she could feel his wrath. She would see the power of the dark. He did not sleep that night, only gazed into the darkness of his room, listening to the silence of space.

Rey

How she hated this "training." Although so far she had not been forced into anything that seemed malicious, she hated how she was attacked again and again in order to "hone her skills." She had thought that training would focus more on her mind, not her reflexes.

The day after the disgusting display of the First Order's cruelty and her altercation with Kylo, he had appeared calm when he emerged to take her to train. But something was off, she could feel it. And it appeared so when he took her to a new place to train instead of the small room they usually used. She sometimes sparred with a storm trooper or two, but the room couldn't hold any more than them, her, and Kylo.

Kylo seemed to love watching. He would circle her and her attackers as if he was a predator waiting for her to weaken enough so he could go for the kill. She was never allowed to use a real weapon so there would be no chance of escape, instead she was given a rod that was shorter than her old one. It was more difficult, but not by much. She theorized that it was supposed to act as a makeshift lightsaber.

Luckily for Rey, she was well practiced in holding her own, even against the stormtroopers. Within a week, she could fight off a good number of them with the rod alone. Sweat dripped down her temple and her lungs would burn, but she knew it was a success. She had been able to hold her own against a number of attackers with her old staff on Jakku, and now she was even better. It was a thrill and an accomplishment, being stronger. She even found herself smiling after the latest bout. She thought that this would satisfy Kylo, but instead that day he took it further.

"Blindfold her."

Standing in the large room he had taken her to, which was already filled with Stormtroopers, she stared at him with shock. How would she be able to fight? Was he merely looking for her to be slaughtered?

Noticing her alarm, his voice remarked snidely, "No blows to the head, of course."

She shook her head wildly in disbelief, gripping her practice rod a little tighter. Maker, did he want her dead, or was he just a few starships short of a fleet?

"You're crazy."

Kylo tilted his head at her. "You will use the force to detect your opponent and their movements."

A trooper took a step towards her and she reflexively swung her rod before being frozen by Kylo's power, one his most annoying features.

"Put it on."

Aghast and frozen, she was blinded, cruelly robbed of her sight and still immobile. Kylo's voice came, closer than ever.

"Tear the blindfold off and I will deal with you using my own weapon. Now, defend yourself."

She was released and she gasped in both surprise and fear. "You're a monster-" she managed before her arm was hit, hard. She swung her rod blindly, only making contact a few times. She was hit again and again, each blow hard enough to bruise. She struggled and bit her lip from crying out, but found herself unable to concentrate past that.

"Use the force. Feel their presence." Kylo called, but she might as well have been deaf as well as blind to his words. She felt angrier with each blow, and after a particularly hard hit, she lost hold of her rod.

The beating continued, and she fell to the ground in an attempt to retrieve her only weapon and to defend herself. She reached around, but it was gone. Out of desperation she reached out with both her mind and her body, and was startled to find that she knew where it was, as if she had seen it without her eyes. She reached out again experimentally, still trying to shield herself with her arms, and felt it roll ever so slightly.

With this discovery she thrust out her energy properly, and within a moment it was back into her grasp. Using her new "sight" she blocked more than a few blows and regained her stance. She began to strike back and could tell when she was about to be hit. It was like driving a new machine without knowing the controls, but she still managed to keep herself upright. her entire body was damp from exertion and her chest heaved with every breath and blow, but she felt the change in her ability like she had before when she had reached into Kylo's mind.

In pain, she grit her teeth into a small smile. She'd show Kylo he could never beat her down and destroy her will. She would triumph.

Kylo

She learned so quickly. He had thought she was done for when she lost her rod, but she had used the force to regain it; and, it seemed, opened up new skills since she was now holding her own. He felt something like admiration as he watched her fight. Rey was strong with the force, just like he was. She was rough, unpolished and unpracticed, but her power was as raw and potent as his. It thrilled him even though a part of him was conflicted and envious. She was a threat if she became more powerful than he. But if she stayed here, where he could watch and control her…

He stood still and watched the scene unfold as these thoughts flipped through his mind, so much so that he was almost too distracted to notice what was happening. A particularly aggressive trooper was battling hard with Rey, swinging wider, harder. For a moment Kylo was merely interested; would she be able to continue and block him? But then, a moment before it happened, he realized that the trooper's swing was too wide, too high. She managed to block a few close blows, but eventually his weapon fell straight onto her temple. Exactly where Kylo had instructed the soldiers not to do.

She crumpled to the floor and everyone paused, confused and fearful. Kylo's heart seemed to stop, and for a moment he felt like he would be sick. A surge of absolute terror ran through him, followed by rage. The people around tensed. Kylo's animosity could be felt even before he roared, pushing past them all to Rey's lifeless body.

"Call a medic immediately," he hissed to the crowd before drawing out his lightsaber. It sputtered to life and the red flashed as he cut off the aggressive trooper's head in one swipe. The helmet and head spun away as the trooper's body became the second to hit the floor, and the rest of them backed away, two running to find a medic.

Kylo stood over Rey, lightsaber in hand and shoulder's heaving. Emotion swirled and rage consumed him. He managed to redraw his saber and put it back before clutching his head with his hands.

"Grandfather…" he mumbled, the sound barely audible from the mask. He couldn't control himself or make sense of the situation. No clarity or calm came to him, only pain. He glanced back to Rey only to feel a sharp surge as he saw her, still and bleeding. Without thinking, he scooped her up into his arms off the cold, metal floor and strode fast towards his own chambers.

Rey

Rey dreamed for a long time. Running through darkness, trying to reach the light. Being caught there, unable to continue. She heard children's voices, both a girl and a boy. Both cried out as if in pain. There was an island, and the taste of salt. She felt as if she was swimming through a blur of memories, feeling the rock of a mother's arms and the hot sun of Jakku. Three children, running down a sunlit path. Searing hot pain as well as love so strong it brought tears. She never thought she was asleep, forgetting the reality of wakefulness.

When she did finally wake, it was because her head hurt. It throbbed badly and her vision swam. The light hurt her eyes and head badly, so she groaned and turned her head.

It was then that she realized she was surrounded by softness. The bed that she was on was warm and she was swathed in a large blanket that felt so soft it was almost silky. She couldn't remember the last time she laid on something like this, if ever. But her body ached and felt strange, as if she had been sleeping a long time. Remembering the blur of dreams, the thought occurred to her that she probably had been.

She eased her eyes to the light gradually, and when she could see better she looked around. It was startling to realize that she recognized the place that she was in: Kylo Ren's apartment-in his bedroom. In his bed. She was in his bed.

Luckily, she was alone in this bed. But near the wall opposite the bed was the man himself, sans helmet, dozing in a chair. Staring in disbelief, Rey tried to make sense of this scene. Perhaps Kylo sat there to guard, in fear that she would wake up and take advantage of the situation to escape. Seeing Kylo brought back what had happened while she was "training," or at least what she remembered. She had been struck on her head, she thought, and this was proved by the bandages she felt on her forehead.

She tried to sit up and groaned unwillingly, which woke up the only other person in the room. Seeing her awake, Kylo hurried to his feet.

"You're awake," he said, staring at her intensely. She managed a small nod. "How do you feel?"

"My head hurts, thanks to you," she retorted weakly.

"I had nothing to do with it," he told her, eyes narrowing. "I clearly instructed them not to go for your head. That trooper disobeyed."

"It was quite a barbaric method of training and you know it," she snapped weakly.

"If you had used your abilities correctly it wouldn't have happened!" He barked.

"You're impossible," Rey countered and glared at him. "Leave me alone, you're hurting my head."

He immediately drew back, brow furrowed and emotion checked. A moment of silence passed as she leaned her head back against the pillow.

"Now that you're awake, the medic will want to examine you," he said quietly, turning quickly and leaving. Left in the quiet bedroom, Rey exhaled a held breath.

Kylo had left her alone, just as she had wanted. Had something shifted? She sank back into the pillows and stared off blankly. She was in Kylo's bed, with Kylo watching over her, and he had listened to her. As if he cared. But that was the most irreconcilable idea she had ever thought. She turned over and closed her eyes to shut off the light and her mind.

After a through exam with Kylo hovering the entire time, the medic turned to him.

"A concussion, moderate to severe."

"How long will it take to recover?"

"Could be days or even a couple of weeks. She-"

Rey gripped the blanket between her hands tightly. "I'm the one with the concussion. Why don't you tell me, not him?"

The medic looked at her swiftly then nervously cleared his throat. Kylo raised an eyebrow. "Ignore her. She has forgotten exactly where she is."

She understood perfectly. Under his thumb, on his leash. Ass.

"She should be monitored…No amnesia, but could lapse into sleep again if not woken up regularly…susceptible to further injury…" Rey could only catch pieces because the doctor had lowered his voice. His hands had been gentle but his eyes were cold and methodical. She wasn't a person, just a broken being that needed fixing, like a machine. It seemed that no one here had a bit of kindness in them.

The doctor soon left and Kylo returned to his chair, staring at her like he always did.

"No more training for you for a while."

"What a pity."

"It will take a while for you to recover. We must treat you gently," he said, a sarcastic edge in his voice.

"I'm sure you will, just like before."

His look could kill a Bantha.

"Do you feel like eating?"

"No."

"You should eat."

"I don't want anything except for you to leave me alone."

She was harsh, but she refused for him to take advantage of her physical weakness. Rot her concussion! She had never let anything stop her before. Always she would push herself further, doing what she could until she was back to normal.

"I can play nice. I am a good host after all," Kylo replied. He got up and returned with a glass of water and set it down by the bed.

"Drink."

It seemed like a surrender, but Rey wasn't stupid. Water was essential and on Jakku, precious. She picked it up and drank it rather swiftly, which for her was not unusual. She set the glass back down and lay back, refusing to look at him.

"Are you in pain?"

He actually sounded a little human this time.

"You're the biggest pain here," she retorted.

He got up and began to pace around the bed, clearly stinging from her barb. "You are not made out of steel, I see. Certainly that depresses your ego, since you like to appear so tough. But you're just a little scavenger, and with your claws removed you don't have much left."

Rey closed her eyes and let her head fall back again. All she could do was try and use her small amount of control she had over him. "I'll never recover if I am forced to get up and strangle you. Stop. Talking."

She was starting to feel sick just hearing his hateful words. Or rather, the water was hitting her empty stomach and was making her nauseous. Very nauseous.

Kylo was saying something, but she wasn't focused on him at all. In fact, she was trying very hard not to vomit. But slowly the realization hit her that it was going to happen, so she pushed herself up and slowly slid her feet to the floor.

"What are you doing?" Kylo sounded a little amused, as if he thought she really was going to try and fight him. Rey didn't answer him, instead trying to focus her dizzied vision on the refresher door. So far…if only her feet would work properly!

She had made it around the corner of the bed and was rounding the other when she stepped right into it and fell forward. Lucky for her poor bruised head, Kylo's leather clad arms caught her.

"Where are you going?" He asked, a little more concerned. She shook her head and clamped a hand over her mouth, which Kylo immediately understood.

"Shit," he cursed, and dragged her straight into the refresher. She pushed him away then and went directly for the toilet, retching up the little that was in her stomach. Becoming aware that Kylo's boot was touching her foot, she kicked it. Could he not give her a second of privacy?

If he felt it, he didn't acknowledge it. Instead there was the sound of water running and she suddenly felt something cool touch her brow. She had nothing left in her stomach, but felt so terrible that she didn't even glance up until she heard his voice.

"Damn you," he muttered. He was holding a wet cloth across her forehead and frowning as if concerned. Seeing her watching him, his face changed to a hard expression and he grabbed her arm.

"Come on." When she tried to shrug him off, he only clutched her closer. "As if you could walk perfectly fine on your own."

As he did, she became aware that she was wearing some kind of absurd nightdress. Mid thigh, soft, and sleeveless. But it was not something she felt comfortable wearing. She hadn't worn a dress in many, many years. It was hard to kick someone in the face without giving them a show as well.

Kylo actually helped her back into bed and made sure her water glass was refilled. She took a small sip of it and then laid back, frustrated and exhausted. She let her eyes loll to the side and was again surprised to see a worried expression on Kylo's face.

"Vomiting…is normal," she told him. He frowned again.

"Go to sleep," he ordered. She rolled her eyes.

"I can't. I've been sleeping for ages."

"Try."

"No."

The pair stared at each other, unwilling to bow. Kylo crossed his arms and leaned back, as if he had no care. They sat in silence for a long time which felt even longer to Rey.

"Why must you watch me like that? Am I too dangerous to be left alone, even like this?"

He scoffed. "I can do what I want, this is my dwelling."

She narrowed her eyes. "You are incorrigible. Leave me be."

"Sorry little desert rat, but I do not take orders from the likes of you."

She pushed herself up and felt his eyes inspect her. "Then talk if you insist on being here. I cannot stand your silent scrutiny."

He gave a short laugh. "I'd rather hear you talk. I want answers."

"You know I won't."

His head tilted. "Come now, is a pleasant conversation so difficult?"

She lifted an eyebrow. "Answer one of my questions, and maybe I'll answer yours."

He leaned forward, black hair rushing his high cheekbones, his expression exposing his interest. "All right. Begin, little rat."

"It's Rey, and nothing else," she said sharply. "Why do you wear that mask?"

His eyes bored into hers. "To honor someone and to incite fear." He paused, scanning her blank expression for any sign of reaction. "How long have you known Han Solo?"

"Not long at all. Only a few days."

Kylo couldn't keep the surprise off his face, and she grinned.

"Then how-"

"It's my turn," Rey taunted. "Where do you come from?"

Kylo's face turned dark even at the slightest inquiry to his past. "Nowhere."

"Liar."

"I'm not lying. I was born on a ship and raised in many different locations."

This at least was interesting. Not all mothers would fly far while heavily pregnant. Most wanted their child born on their home planet, or at least a space station. But Rey knew better than to ask another question so soon.

"Where did you get the droid?"

"On Jakku. I found it."

He nodded slowly.

"Why do you want to find Luke Skywalker?" She asked.

Kylo's eyes narrowed and his gaze left her. He seemed to look beyond her. "To eradicate him. All Jedi must be disposed of."

"And what of me?"

His eyes shifted, and to her surprise he answered.

"You could be trained. But if not…"

She suppressed a shiver.

"Where is your family?" He suddenly asked. She blinked, confused at the personal question.

"I don't know." She replied. He said nothing, as if waiting. "They…they left. They are gone. I don't know where, if they even are still alive."

She swallowed another sip of water to avoid thinking. She wanted so badly to be in a family, in a home again. Almost all she could remember was loneliness.

"Will you get me some pants?"

He leaned back, complete surprise over his features that made her want to laugh.

"You want pants?"

"Is that your question? Because you didn't answer mine."

He shook his head as if trying to dispel whatever emotion he had stumbled upon. "Yes, I'll order you some pants." His eyes slid to her with curiosity. "Do you dislike skirts?"

She rolled her eyes. That definitely counted as his question. "They aren't practical, and I don't need to share anything of mine with anyone I don't want to."

"Like your legs?"

She grit her teeth."My turn to ask," she growled. Luckily, she knew how to change the subject.

"Where is your family?" She asked.

Displeased, Kylo hesitated. "I don't know either. My mother is surely on some base somewhere, and my father is probably still running around the outer rim, hiding among the filth of the galaxy."

"But they're still alive?" This was even more interesting.

Kylo ignored her second question. "Who else was with you when you saw the map?"

What a stupid question. He knew she wouldn't answer. "How did you turn to the dark side?" She countered. Both stared.

Finally, she asked a different question. "Is your father Luke Skywalker?"

Kylo laughed bitterly. "No."

She brushed her hair back behind her ears and leaned forward. "But your grandfather…He was Darth Vader. Then Leia is…?"

Kylo did not reply, only stared at her. "Who are your parents?" He asked.

Her head began to hurt and she grit her teeth into a frown. "I…I don't remember. It was…" She couldn't continue. Did she even have their faces in her mind? All she could remember were voices, and feelings.

"Your family is still alive," she said. "What did they do that would make you abandon them this way?"

He gazed past her at the dark, star studded view. "They held me back…They don't understand the legacy of my grandfather. They try to destroy it."

His eyes refocused on her. "I would like to know who your parents are. Surely someone so force sensitive…"

"What?"

"Nothing. Who knew that a small pest from the outer rim would possess so much potential."

Her brow furrowed and she turned her head away from him. "My parents weren't even from Jakku. I don't remember them much…only small flashes. I don't know them, but…I'm sure they would be parents I'd be proud of. That I am proud of."

His features intensified as he gazed upon her. "They abandoned you, and you still love them?"

Her eyes flashed and her head whipped around to stare at him. "They didn't abandon me!"

"You don't know that. You don't even remember them."

Her hands clutched the blanket. "They were coming back for me. And you abandoned yours to worship the mask of a dead man."

He stood, chair clattering against the wall from his sudden stand. "You know nothing of him!"

"And you know nothing of my parents!" She hissed. "Darth Vader returned to the light because of Luke, yet you refuse to acknowledge this!"

Kylo's veins stood out in his temple and his gloved hand made a fist. "He built a legacy of power that I will inherit!" He yelled gutturally, his deep voice breaking. "Luke Skywalker used his power to influence his mind into abandoning it!"

She sat up on her knees and pointed at him. "You will never be as powerful because Darth Vader, no, Anakin Skywalker, walked back to the path of the light! He didn't let himself be controlled by his anger!"

Suddenly her throat seized and she grasped it, choking. Kylo's hand was reached out, but he dropped it after a second. She gasped for air and cried out as she was released, her head screaming with pain from the fright. She looked up at him through loose pieces of her hair, chest heaving as she regained her breath.

"You're a monster," she said hoarsely. An odd expression came across his face, and he looked down at his hand.

"I'm sorry," he replied, his voice strange. She reached out tentatively with the force, trying to understand the conflict that seemed to make up his every cell.

She watched as his eyes traveled up to hers, then his hand reached out. She flinched, eyes closing, expecting to feel the force of his powers once again. But instead there was a simple touch on her cheek, and her eyes flew open, shocked at the warmth of his skin.

"I wish you didn't exist," he said quietly. "All you do is complicate things."

He moved away and left the room quickly, too quickly for her to fully comprehend what had happened.

She let herself fall into a deep sleep soon after to relieve the pain she felt and to avoid thinking about him.

A/N

Hey guys! thanks so much for the reviews and the support! i posted an extra long chapter today just because I adore y'all. I'll probably be updating again on Wednesday next week.

liraelthelibrarian~ Thank you! You are very sweet. I've got big, big plans for this fic.

purplestar613~ Thank you, I hope I live up to my potential ;)

hickystrayts~ I'm glad you're enjoying it! Also, your username makes me curious, lol

PurrfectlyWordy~ You live up to your username, thank you! I need to get a beta, I just haven't gotten around to it. Thank you so much!

Gwinny~ Thank you, I hope you like this one!