A/N:

Gilyflower: Hehe, thanks so much for your review! Hopefully their encounter turns out as you'd hoped - this chapter won't be the last time she runs into Kylo Ren! Enjoy! :)


Chapter 4

Ros entered the elevator, barely registering the other presence near her until she leaned her back against the wide handle on the side of the lift and lifted her head to look forward. Instead of flinching in surprise like he probably expected her to, she tilted her head to the side slightly and regarded him with genuine curiosity in her aquamarine eyes, staring at the emotionless hooded mask as he stood there, arms at his sides and hands clenched into fists. The alcohol had begun to drain from her system as she'd talked with Opan, her fast metabolism making quick work of the strong drinks and being at fault for her having such a high tolerance, not to mention helping Lei to her room and getting her situated had assisted in removing that particular feeling in her body she allowed herself to indulge in every two weeks. Although she wasn't sober, she definitely wasn't drunk and could easily pass for being completely so, minus the smell of alcohol on her clothes from the cantina.

Without dropping her gaze, she lifted herself just slightly to rest her bottom on the railing as well as her palms, leaning her weight against it as she smiled at him. She couldn't tell if he was looking at her or not, but she guessed that he was and was proven correct when the distorted voice spoke to her through the mask.

"You're not afraid."

Ros let out a soft laugh, reaching up and tucking that same stray hair behind her ear as she usually did, giving him a tiny shrug, "No, I'm not. Why should I be?" She replied, watching as he took a few steps towards her and closed half the distance between them before responding.

"Do you know who I am?"

She quirked an eyebrow in response, motioning to him with a wave of her hand before replying, "You're Kylo Ren, right? Or, I guess I should say, Commander Kylo Ren," She added the last part with a grin, remembering how pissed Hux had been at her informality when she'd addressed him, "I've heard a lot about you. Mostly bad things, truthfully, but I don't know you, so I'm not going to judge on other people's opinions," She added with another wave of her hand, expecting him to say something but never taking her eyes off of his mask as he closed the distance and stood directly in front of her, inches from her face.

She was now looking up into his visor, his height a few inches taller than her and her eyebrows furrowed slightly as she waited for him to say something, yet nothing came. "Quiet type, huh?" She spoke quietly, curiosity surging when she saw her reflection in his mask. She noticed the way her aqua-green eyes shone against the dull metal and, against all sensible judgement and giving in to her inquisitive spurt, she reached up with her right hand and traced around the edge of his visor, wondering if he was going to pull away. When he didn't, she moved her eyes upwards to the silver lines above where his eyes were probably staring holes into her and she lightly traced them with her fingers, just before moving them back down around the side of the mask and stopping where his cheek probably was behind tit. She was in such a trance she didn't even register the elevator door opening, parting her lips to speak but a sudden familiar voice stopping her in her tracks.

"Captain Guerran," Hux began, stepping into the elevator and grabbing the wrist of the hand whose fingertips were still on Kylo Ren's mask, suppressing the urge to yell at her for letting Ren get so close but instead took the opportunity of her being surprised for once and tugged on her before turning and pulling her out into the corridor.

Ros didn't have time to register her surprise as she was pulled in the direction of the exit, accidentally grazing her body and free hand against Kylo Ren since they were so close to each other as she was moved. Her heels clicked on the ground as she tried to keep pace with the taller male that was General Hux, ignoring the feeling of eyes boring into her back as she yelled out.

"Hey! Let go of me, asshole!" She exclaimed, pulling her hand away and out of Hux's grasp, stopping in her tracks and glaring at him as he turned around to face her, "What the fuck is wrong with you?"

Hux didn't reply as he looked past her to Kylo Ren, who exited the elevator and walked past the two without saying anything else, yet not having to. He heard the Captain yell 'Nice to meet you, bro!' in Ren's direction and Hux scowled, knowing she'd probably done it just to get under his skin after seeing the way he'd looked at the temperamental Commander. He knew that Ren had seen it all, and would easily use the way Captain Guerran had spoken to and acted towards him to the General's disadvantage – an example of undermining his authority. Hux felt his blood boil at the thought and before he could answer her earlier question, Captain Guerran was already heading back to the elevator in fury, with Hux's longer strides quickly catching up to her. The door closed behind them and Hux pushed in the elevator lock button before putting in the code that would freeze the security footage in place, stopping them from recording the conversation he was about to have with her.

He walked up to the angry chocolate-haired beauty that had pressed herself against the railing on the back wall of the lift, hands on her hips as she stared him down with a look that spoke of pure venom. Standing directly in front of her but a few further inches apart than Kylo Ren had been, he held his fists tight at his sides as he returned the stare, ego bruised and rank disregarded by the younger woman before him.

"What the hell was that for?" She finally spat, tired of simply staring at the handsome General before her without either of them saying a word.

"He could've killed you, you know that? Kylo Ren is not someone to be played with," Hux replied icily, the irritated roll of her eyes grating at his patience as much as her insolence.

"I'm pretty sure if he wanted to kill me he would've done so already, yet here I am," She replied, using her hands to motion to herself and the rest of her body, "But if it makes you feel better, I called him Commander Kylo Ren when he asked me if I knew who he was."

Hux stared at her, momentarily speechless as he tried to figure out why Ren would ask her such a thing. He clenched his jaw and took a step forward at her obvious ridicule of the ranks in the First Order, closing the distance between them even further to show her he meant business. "You…" He began, pointing an ungloved (for once) finger at her and lowering his face slightly towards hers, "He can and he will kill you, Captain. You have no idea what he is capable of, you haven't seen what I've seen," He continued, too drunk to realize that he was pressing the tip of said finger against her skin.

"Why do you care?" She replied warily, watching the fleeting look of resentment and jealousy pass his pale features, obviously unable to fully control them. A sudden wave of realization hit her and her eyes widened slightly, reaching up to grab his wrist with her hand and turn the tables on him this time. She knew he wasn't expecting her to do so, so she used that temporary moment of surprise to pull him gently towards her, watching him stumble before she placed her free hand on his chest and stared straight up into his eyes. Her features softened long enough for him to notice, moving her face towards his before shifting slightly and taking a deep breath near his jaw, her breath tickling the side of his cheek as she spoke.

"You're drunk, aren't you?"

Hux recoiled away from her as if he'd just been bitten by a snake, taking a step back and involuntarily stumbling gently, the Whyren's he'd downed too quickly taking its toll on him. He glared at her as if she'd just insulted him, pressing his back against the elevator doors to keep from showing her any other signs that what she said were true.

"Have you been drinking by yourself?" She asked suddenly, taking this chance as her turn to close the distance between them, crossing her arms in front of her chest and looking at him like he was a child who'd just been caught with his hand in the cookie jar, "You know that's not good for you."

Hux coiled his hands into fists, completely confused by the woman who stood before him, the only one to genuine catch his interest for the first time in his life. The others had been mere bedwarmers, something to relieve some tension briefly before he sent them back to the other side of Finalizer, where he'd never have to see them again. He took a dry swallow before parting his lips to speak, ignoring the fact that he felt like he was being suffocated inside his uniform from the sudden heat he hadn't noticed before. "Why do you care?" He retorted, pointing at her accusingly, "You've been drinking just as well!"

Ros froze momentarily, eyes widening as she relaxed her arms to be at her sides. "How do you know that?" She replied, almost missing the brief guilty look in his eyes before continuing, "How did you even know I was in here with Kylo Ren?" She whispered, a whirlwind of emotions suddenly stirring up within her as she looked at him, taking in his slightly disheveled appearance. She let out a soft sigh before running a hand through her hair, unsure what to think of the General who'd just yelled at her earlier that day. Before second-guessing herself, she grabbed his arm gently and pulled him away from the door, pushing the lock button before putting in the code that he'd placed earlier.

"You can't do that!" Hux spoke up suddenly, pointing at the control panel, "How'd you know my code? That's against regulations!"

Ros couldn't help but laugh and roll her eyes at him, watching the door open to reveal the same corridor they'd just been in, thankfully empty. "I watched you put it in and memorized the numbers, obviously," She added, motioning to the hallway, "Now do you want me to walk you or do you think you've got it the rest of the way?"

Hux gave her an affronted look before stepping outside, suddenly full of composure and regality. He didn't look back as he walked to his quarters, not missing a step and appearing completely sober to anyone walking by. As he approached the entrance to his rooms, he chanced a sideways glance back towards the elevator, thankful the Captain wasn't looking in his direction, but instead seemed to be thinking deeply about something as she stared at the floor, back resting against the lift's wall and ankles crossed while one of her hand's fingertips were pressed against her lips. As he stepped inside, he walked over to the chair he'd been sitting in earlier, letting out a loud sigh as he sat and placed his face in his hands, cradling it somberly. "Hux, get ahold of yourself. What the hell have you just done?"

Ros awoke early the next cycle to work on her ship, but not before stopping by Lei's quarters to check in on her again. She'd come by with some clear-broth soup and Rx tea for her, which the blonde had accepted graciously. Ros had yet to tell her what happened, but she figured it'd be better if she waited until Lei actually felt normal again – she really didn't want to clean up any more puke.

Wearing her favorite outfit to work in, a black form-fitting (but not tight) sleeveless short jumpsuit to keep from catching it on anything, as well as a pair of light black boots, she made her way to the docking bay where her baby was waiting for her, toolbox in hand. Her hair was pulled up into a messy bun to keep it out of her way while she worked, and as she walked into the docking bay, she ignored the wolf-whistles coming from the opposite side of where her squadron's TIEs were docked, choosing instead to lift her middle finger in the direction they were coming from – always from Omega.

She could feel a few sets of eyes watching her but she ignored them and everyone else around her, assuming she was being watched by the usual suspects who'd just cat-called her as she made her way to her ship, a small smile framing her face when she saw the parts already there and waiting for her. She walked up to the large ship, her figure almost caricature-like standing next to it as she let out a soft sigh and placed what she considered the galaxy's smallest earbuds into her ears, pressing a button on the side of the one in her right ear to begin the music before turning it up so she couldn't hear anything else.

"I'm sorry baby girl, blame it on Rhade," She began, trailing her fingers along the side of the Silencer as she took in the damage for the first time. She knew one of the forks was broken, but she wasn't sure if there was damage anywhere else, mainly on the inside part of the left wing and possibly underneath the hull where she'd heard the broken part of the fork scrape and bump hard against the ship. She stepped next to the docked TIE, slowly walking along its length and every so often running her fingers against a section that looked scratched, thankful it wasn't (yet) worse. She crawled underneath to reach the underbelly of the ship, finally getting to the middle section beneath the cabin and freezing in place, eyes widening.

"Shit," She grumbled, pulling a specialized wrench tool out of her toolbox she'd dragged along with her and removing the bolts to gain access underneath the panel, "I'm sure if the power cell array was messed up I probably might not have even made it back here, so hopefully it's nothing…" she added, removing the panel itself and setting it aside before grabbing her light tool out of the box, shining it inside and taking a peek around, pursing her lips to the side. "Okay, power cells are good, now let's take a look at the trunk lines over here…" She mumbled to herself, wiggling in the almost too-tight space to get a good look, using the light to assist her.

"Well, fuck me sideways," She spat angrily, her voice reverberating in the hull of the ship, "Of course one of the damn converter coils is broken. Just my luck. Rhade, when I see you I'm going to kick your ass," She muttered, crawling back out of the confined area and out from underneath the ship, grease already on her face and arms from where she'd unwittingly rubbed against various internal parts of it. She was too immersed in her thoughts and music to notice the three pairs of eyes watching her from a distance, one set further away (for the time being) than the other two that belonged to two people standing next to each other.

She walked up the steps of the dock, humming along to the lyrics of the Heavy-Isotope music genre that she undeniably called her favorite, every so often throwing in a head bob to match the beat of the electric quetarras, drums, and bass before walking across the top section of the ship to gain access to the cabin, pressing her hand against a control panel to be allowed entry. The hatch opened and she peeked in, smiling when she saw what she was looking for and reaching the upper half of her body in to grab it, pulling herself back out when she had the datapad in hand. She stood and pulled up the parts order, typing in the number she'd already memorized for the coil as well as the panel before grinning triumphantly when the order was sent. She then walked to the uppermost part of the left wing, setting the datapad down a little ways away before reaching out and grabbing one of the solar panels, using it to pull herself over into the space between the two forks and treading carefully along the wing, using the upper fork for support just in case. When she arrived at the ideal spot to asses any possible damage, she slowly crouched to face the dock where her ship sat still, reaching a hand out to feel for anything loose.

"Well, laser cannon is fine, at least. Got some scratches, but I can fix that right up with the paint I have left over," She spoke aloud, unaware that anyone was actually listening to her, "That fork is another story, but for now…" she continued rambling to herself, standing back up in the wing before cautiously making her way back to the main section of the ship and jumping onto it. She then picked up the datapad and made her way back towards the steps, looking at the quick response on her order before setting it down next to the large, heavy parts on the floor. "Now how the fuck am I going to get you up there?" She muttered to herself, twirling the specialized wrench in her hand before feeling the earbuds suddenly dislodge themselves from her ears as if on their own, causing her to freeze momentarily in confusion.

"I didn't realize technicians could hold the rank of Captain," the distorted voice spoke suddenly, the brown pair of eyes watching her hidden behind the usual mask.

Ros whirled around to face Kylo Ren, who stood in his usual black attire with his arms folded in front of his chest. She blinked once before letting out a soft laugh, grabbing the earbuds that were floating in front of her face and turning them off, placing them in one of her front pockets before setting her hands on her hips. "Ah, it's you again. And that's because I'm not a technician, I'm a pilot," She corrected him, noticing the horrified looks and suddenly stiff postures of the people working nearby.

"And what's a pilot doing working on a ship?" He replied, uncrossing his arms and looking her up and down briefly, noticing the streaks of grease on her face and arms.

"I work on my own ship, thank you," She replied, looking back towards the Silencer with fondness before continuing, "I don't trust anyone else to do it right, so I do it myself. It's better that way, I think," She added, slowly turning back to face him and giving him a small shrug.

Kylo Ren closed the distance between them, the hood over his mask giving him an ominous look as he stared down at her, trying to intimidate. "And where'd you learn how to work on ships?"

Ros kinked an eyebrow, standing her ground and raising her face to never break eye contact with his vizor, where she assumed his eyes to be, "I don't give away my secrets, Mr. Ren. And please don't try to get into my head, it won't work," She added, gently tapping the side of her face at her temple before placing her hand back on her hip, "Speaking of, you're a Force user, yes? Can I bug you to help me lift some heavy shit?"

Ren stared at her quizzically, his emotions thankfully hidden behind his helmet. The more he spoke to the woman, the more confused and intrigued she made him, and even more, he was still unsure why he hadn't killed her yet. He should've as soon as she'd touched him the night previous, but even now he was holding himself back at her blatant defiance, though he didn't know the reasons why. He crossed his arms in front of his chest again, choosing to bargain with her and see if it would work, even if what he really wanted to do was to invade the privacy of her mind anyway. "Answer my earlier question."

Ros sighed and scratched the back of her neck, giving him a shrug, "Fine. But you better help me, you hear?" She paused, giving him a contemplative look, "I learned it from my father, he built ships for a living and taught me everything I know," She said the last sentence quietly, a sad smile on her lips before she shook herself out of her stupor and began heading for the dock's stairs, "Now keep your end of the deal, okay?" She called out behind her, making her way back over to the wing she'd been on and using the same method to get on it as earlier, this time heading all the way to the broken end of the fork before looking down at him to see he was still there. He was, so she reached up and began unscrewing the broken section of the heavy cannon and, just as she was about to let it fall to the floor with a loud 'thud,' she watched as the part seemed to float in the air before landing on the ground near Ren's feet. She smiled over her shoulder at him and pointed at a piece that looked the same except this one was longer, and watched as it floated over to her and perfectly into the spot she was about to screw it into.

"Man, I never get tired of seeing that shit," She mumbled, making her way further to the tip of the wing before pointing at another part and helping it into place above the cannon where it belonged once it reached her. She then pointed to the last remaining part, which she placed under the cannon and snapped it into place once it had reached her, as well. She glanced over her shoulder and grinned at Kylo Ren before beginning her trek back towards the main section of the ship, letting out a soft yelp when she felt herself being pulled off the wing and placed on the ground, directly before the same man she'd just grinned at.

"What do you mean you never get tired of it?" He spoke lowly, almost menacingly as he glowered down at her, even though she was unable to see it. The woman wasn't a Force user as far as he could tell, but she must've at least known some in order to be familiar with it, and he'd enter her brain forcefully to get some answers if he had to. Normally he would've just done so, but the fact she wasn't afraid of him, at all it seemed, made him curious to understand how her mind worked, which was something he wouldn't get by simply barging into it.

Ros gave him a knowing look, and just as she opened her mouth to answer him she was interrupted by the all-too-familiar voice of Colonel Kahn, making her peel her cyan gaze from the mask before her to the greying Colonel and red-headed General standing before her. Before she could do or say anything else, she felt the gentle wind from Kylo Ren's cape caress her cheek as he turned on his heel and left without uttering a single word.

"We'll continue this." The thought was shoved forcibly into her brain, causing her to look back in the direction Kylo Ren was walking in and narrowing her eyes in suspicion, pursing her lips in distaste. She shook her head gently as if trying to clear it, a movement not unnoticed by Hux, before turning her body to face her superiors and placing her hands on her hips. "What can I do for you, General? Colonel?" She asked, looking between her direct higher-in-command to his own, noticing Hux's taciturn stare and his hands clasped behind his back, calculating eyes watching her every move.

"I was just telling the General here that you're the only pilot that works on their own ship," The Colonel praised, motioning towards her before glancing at the General next to him.

Ros let out an embarrassed laugh, placing a hand on her neck before using the other to motion to him, "Well, that's probably because I'm the only one who knows how, to be honest. Speaking of," She moved her eyes above her and pointed up, "I fixed up the fork Officer Rhade messed up last Sim, with a little help," She gave the briefest of glances in the direction of the docking bay exit before continuing, "But one of the converter coils got messed up, I'm guessing by the broken piece hitting the underbelly of the ship, there's a big dent in the panel. I put in the order but I might need some assistance getting it here faster than three cycles," She looked back at the Colonel, knowing assistance really meant yelling at the parts technicians to get it here faster once the approval went through.

The Colonel gave her a brief smile before giving a sideways glance to the General, who merely took a few steps forward with his hands still clasped tightly behind his back, surveying the Silencer in silent recognition. Hux began to move around the ship, being acquainted with the schematics of it but having no idea how to pilot it and much less fix it, but all the while making sure none of that showed in his stare. He emerged from the side opposite where Ros was standing and walked towards her, not looking at her but keeping his eyes on the TIE as he made his way around the entire ship. It wasn't until he arrived at the spot nearest Ros that he noticed HBIC written in large, black cursive letters, their shine standing out against the matte black of the ship yet also blending in without much effort; he hadn't noticed them the entire time he'd been watching her work.

"What does that stand for?" He asked quietly, eyes fixed on the lettering without so much as a glance in her direction, his peripheral vision showing him that the Colonel had been called away to another squadron in the docking bay.

"Head Bitch In Charge, of course," She replied, waiting until he swiveled around to face her to give him a smirk she knew would probably aggravate him. She almost didn't notice the corners of his lips tilt into a frown, and she placed a hand on her hip after she closed the distance between them, which was only a few feet, "Sir."

Hux's eye twitched in anger at the female before him who had so easily made a mockery of what he'd demanded of her only a few cycles ago. "And does the Colonel know this is on your ship, Captain?"

Ros' smirk grew as she gave him an uncaring shrug of her shoulders, hand never leaving its nestled spot at her hip, "He either doesn't know, or doesn't care," she replied simply, noticing the brief flicker of frustration in his features before they returned to their usual unfeeling state, "Now if you don't mind, General, I was just about to finish up—"

"Is it true your quarters aren't on the bridge level, with the rest of your crew?" Hux interrupted her, making sure the Colonel and nobody else was within earshot of this conversation.

Ros' expression went from haughty to confused in record time, and she crossed her arms in front of her chest before tilting her head curiously in the same way she'd done to Kylo Ren, her aqua-green eyes never leaving the General's blue ones before her. "Yes…why?"

"It is against regulations for not only a member of the Special Forces, but especially one of such high rank as yourself to have quarters anywhere except on the bridge floor," He replied, breaking their gaze before turning his head to look at the approaching Colonel towards them, "I will send someone to remedy it immediately." And with that, he didn't bother to even look at her as he walked away, pulling out his com mid-stride and typing a message to his Lieutenant before putting it away and meeting up with the Colonel, who began taking him over to the opposite side of the hangar, remembering he only had a few minutes before he'd get back to the bridge.

Ros watched him as he walked away, wondering why he bothered to do such a thing but then remembered his words, 'It's against regulations.' She rolled her eyes, half of her wanting to stay in her quarters just to irk him and the other half knowing that this meant her rooms would be bigger, better, and best of all – have their own bathroom. She decided to let the latter half win out and she hurried to gather her tools, grabbing the box before setting a hurried pace back to her place – from what she knew of Hux, someone was probably already there and waiting for her.

Sure enough, as she arrived she observed a man not much taller than her knocking on her door, and she jogged over to him while waving her hand in the air, "Hey, looking for me?"

The black-haired male looked at her in blatant confusion before glancing down at his com, then back at her. "C-Captain…Guerran?"

Ros let out a soft laugh at the way he regarded her before opening the door to her quarters using her code, "Yep, that's me. I'm a pilot, in case you were wondering, you're not the first to assume I was a technician today," She continued, stepping into the room as the lights flickered on and she began to gather up her most important belongings, trying to keep the engine grease off of them, "I have a lot of stuff, so this might take me a few trips."

"I can s-send a droid to gather the r-rest of your belongings for you," the man replied, his flustered nerves at encountering such an unexpectedly beautiful woman getting the best of him.

"Oh, that'd be sweet, thanks!" She added, walking back towards him with an armful of tech and parts as well as some holo frames and clothes in her arms, "Who are you, by the way? My name's Ros."

"L-Lieutenant Mitaka," He replied, wanting to offer some help but able to tell that she was more than capable of handling herself, "Please follow m-me."

So she did, up two floors and directly to the room she'd been assigned, noticing how spaced apart the different entrance doors were from each other – these quarters were definitely bigger than her last. She watched the Lieutenant motion for her to put in her usual code into the control panel and did so, eyes widening and jaw dropping when the doors hissed open to reveal a living space that was almost as big as her entire quarters downstairs. She took a few hesitant steps forward, dropping all her things on one of the large, black-leather chairs without peeling her eyes from wandering around her. She barely heard Mitaka telling her a droid would be up with her belongings shortly, mumbling a soft 'thank you' as the doors closed behind her.

These quarters were obviously various pay grades higher, and now she actually felt like she was recognized as a Captain. Willing or not to originally join, she'd earned the rank she had and now her efforts were paying off, complete with separate rooms that each housed a bedroom, large and spacious refresher, and kitchenette – everything she'd wanted for a long time. There was even a large holoscreen across the two leather armchairs, complete with caf table and an unstocked bar to her left, which would quickly be remedied as soon as she bought the proper liquor to celebrate her 'promotion.'

"Holy shit…Lei is not gonna believe this."