Rey was not sure how she was supposed to be feeling after her last encounter with Kylo Ren, or was it Ben now? She didn't want to get her hopes up that he had turned back to the light. He murdered Hux and many other Stormtroopers with almost no regret. Watching him move she could see that he was a skilled killer. It didn't scare her as much as it should.
She did have to face the fact that he was on his way to her right now however. Ever since their connection broke she was fidgety and nervous. The last time she saw him in person she had refused his outstretched hand and left him unconscious to join the Resistance.
She had no idea what his mood would be. He was so unpredictable and that both excited and terrified her. What did he want? Why had the Force connected them?
It was a question she had been asking herself from the first time they appeared to one another. How much had changed since their initial meeting in the forest of Takadona.
She remembered looking up and seeing all the ships, his ship included at the time so blissfully unaware of what was coming for her.
Then she saw it in real life right now. A dark ship appeared suddenly out of lightspeed, a stark contrast against the light sky. Her heart was beating wildly as she held her breath, waiting for him to land. Part of her was filled with panic as she was alone here on this island with nothing but her staff and a broken lightsaber.
Should he decide to overtake her, she was not confident that she would win. She was more vulnerable now than she had been even when he had her locked up for interrogation on Starkiller Base. Snoke claimed to have created their bond but she believes it happened when she entered his mind.
Back then she just wanted to kill him.
She had feelings now, complicated ones. The moment their fingers touched everything had changed. After such a long time spent away from him, she had realized she missed his presence.
Once on the ground and out of his ship it only took him a moment to find her and meet her eyes. He didn't hesitate as he walked straight over to her and came to a stop only a few feet away from her.
He was clad in all black as usual, but his cowl was absent and so she could see his large and muscular body in all its glory. His lightsaber hung on his waist and around his body he carried a black bag.
"Rey" he greeted simply
Hearing her name roll off his tongue is unfamiliar to her and she takes a moment before responding with "Kylo"
"Back to calling me that again are you?" he arched an eyebrow as he searched her face for an answer. Sometimes when he made a certain face he reminded her of Han and she remembered that this was his son.
"Isn't that who you are?"
"I suppose that's a name I gave myself, but to be honest Rey, I don't really know who I am or what my place is" he gestured to the island around him and continued "I've been asking myself the entire ride over, what am I doing here?"
She had a sinking feeling now that he had a change of heart and asked him just as much.
"No I haven't changed my heart. I know with certainty that I do not belong with the First Order anymore."
She relaxed a little hearing that and her heart actually leapt as she opened her mouth to speak but the words died on her tongue as he continued with "And no, I will not be joining the Resistance."
Did he just read her mind?
"Yes"
"Stop doing that!" she shouted at him.
"You're projecting your thoughts right into my mind" he insisted and then "I see Skywalker didn't bother to teach you the most basic skills" he scoffed
Rey didn't like the way he was talking about Master Luke "There's no need to be nasty" she shot back at him and he scowled at her
"Well, I am a monster aren't I?"
"Yes you are!" by now they were right in front of one another, only a few inches apart.
Suddenly aware of just how close they were she took a step back and turned away. She could feel the disappointment roll off him in waves. She was full of disappointment as well, for more than one reason she couldn't exactly put her finger on.
He remained silent staring off at the water and she realized it would be up to her to smooth things over.
"Look Kylo- Ben" his head turned to look at her when she spoke his given name and he regarded her curiously "I'm just really confused here"
He sighed heavily and said "I know"
She knew that there would be plenty of time to talk, probably more time than she would want having come from such a life of isolation. She wasn't used to sharing her feelings and now would be a great time for a distraction.
"Let's get you to your hut" she motioned for him to follow her and she began using her staff as a walking stick up to the top of the island. He followed her silently and she continued speaking
"We can catch some fish and build a fire and have some dinner, I bet you're hungry after such a long flight"
It felt so weird making small talk with the former Supreme Leader and not for the first time she felt like she was awake within a dream.
"I am actually, I've only got these ration packs" he pulled out very basic bland ration packs from his shoulder bag and made a face at her that looked so out of place on his face she burst out laughing.
"Yeah I know those, I lived on them for years!" She giggled and was surprised to see him trying to hold back a smirk on his own. It then turned to a frown inexplicably and she wondered what had caused his mood to shift so suddenly?
"You deserved better" he said simply, having read her thoughts again. She wanted to be upset at him for continuing to invade her privacy, but if what he said was true then she was broadcasting them loud and clear and he was actually concerned over her life filled with struggle.
"Living on Jakku made me who I am" she said as they reached the huts. He didn't reply but simply nodded.
She opened the door to an empty hut next to hers and gestured for him to step inside.
"Mine is right next door, I'm going to catch some dinner how about you build the fire?"
He nodded and she walked away to the cliff Master Luke had shown her when she was there convincing him to train her. She grabbed the large spear and copied what he had done to catch the large fish. It took a few tries but she eventually came out victorious.
She walked back to their huts and saw from a distance that Ben had a nice fire going. Seeing him doing something so normal was bizarre but she walked up to him with a huge grin on her face.
"Look what I've got!" she took the fish from over her shoulders and presented it proudly. Having come from a desert planet, it was her first time fishing and she was pleased with her catch.
He actually smiled back as she made herself busy setting the fish up over the fire. Once it was cooking she went to her hut to change out of her clothes. She had worked hard on her forms before he arrived and had already built up a sweat before she went fishing and got somewhat wet while the thing thrashed around.
She knew nights were cold here and she needed dry clothes. It wasn't because he was here. It wasn't like she owned anything other than practical gear anyhow. She shrugged everything off and put fresh clothes she had taken with her from the Resistance.
She let her hair down as well and wrapped a cloak around herself before walking back outside to the fire.
She took a seat next to him and allowed herself to warm up near the fire and turn the fish a little as it continued cooking. They sat in silence that was very rapidly turning awkward.
Her distraction was slowly fading and they were left with just one another.
"So, what is your plan here?" She looked at him unable to sit with the quiet any longer
He exhaled before speaking "I'm not quite sure, I didn't really think this far ahead" he chuckled a little and she returned it, able to relate.
"While I was getting the fire ready, I did have a thought though" he wasn't revealing exactly what that was though, waiting for her to give him some sign that she wanted him to continue
"What were you thinking?" she asked him genuinely interested
"Let me teach you" he said directly "We stay here on Ahch-to and you will be my apprentice, and I will teach you everything you ever wanted to know about the Force"
She was looking at him wide eyed. Whatever she thought he was going to say, it wasn't that. She met his dark eyes with her own and she imagined them together on this island as Master and Apprentice. He would be her Master. That gave her a little thrill she didn't quite understand.
Master Ben.
He raised an eyebrow at her and she mentally kicked herself. She knew that he had heard that and was currently turning five shades of red thinking about what must be going through his head.
His smirk grew and she wanted to punch him in the face.
"I'm scared" she admitted
He didn't look upset at this answer though and continued "I trained as a Jedi remember, I can teach you the basics and you can build a foundation at the very least, before deciding if you want to learn more advanced techniques"
It was everything she wanted. She craved the knowledge and skill he possessed more than she wanted to admit and she knew he would be able to sense it.
"I want to learn"
