"General, there is an informant that says they'll meet me in Takodana in four days," Poe tells Leia during a briefing. "He is willing to tell us the First Order's next few plans of travel. They are fractured right now and have unsteady leadership. This is our chance to get ahead rather than just keep running."

General Organa looks at Poe with a soft look. A shadow passes through her, and she shakes her head as she sinks back deeper into her seat.

"And somehow, you telling me this, makes you think I'll tell you this is a great idea and to go and save us all?" Leia snorts at him. "Too many losses Dameron. We'll keep running until we can regroup with our partners. We can't have another Crait."

Poe remains silent. He bows abruptly and excuses himself. He has at least learnt restraint moons ago. A ripple of guilt passes though him and the memory of Admiral Holdo makes him close his eyes.

Damnit! When will we ever stop running? I keep fucking up. Nothing I do is right.

He settles with Finn and Rose discussing options, alternatives, and crazy notions. Rey lingers, pressed comfortably against the wall. The group bicker back and forth. Sometimes agreeing, sometimes disagreeing. Poe slams his fists against the table. Finn and Rose flinch at the sudden movement. Rey's eye narrowed.

Ultimately, Poe decides he is going anyways, alone if he has to.

"Look, I'm going whether anyone wants to come with me or not. The informant is going to be there, it's probably just a stray stormtrooper that's been pushed around too many times and needs some extra credits to buy drinks at Maz's. It's just enough to pretend that with whatever he's going to tell me will keep us at least a step ahead of being pursued to the edges of the galaxy."

"That's dangerous," growls Rey. Everyone stops and looks at her. She had been silent the past few days. Her eyes lock with Poe. It's the longest he's held her gaze, but today is not the circumstance that he wants her to. He feels the line between his temper and longing licking him in on the inside. Is he brave enough to interpret this as concern for him?

"Yeah? Why don't you, the girl who willingly shipped herself practically wrapped as a present to the enemy, at least volunteer to come with me," Poe spat out before he could stop himself. God, this is not going the way he wanted it to. Way to blow an invitation. Picking a fight with Rey was the last thing he wanted to do.

"You escaped. What happened up there anyways? How'd you do it, I'll need all the pointers I can get," he pushes, gambling on her previous hostility as being stiff concern.

Rey's hair that she had started leaving down, started to twist and fan out behind her, the air tensing with an invisible crackle.

"Rey?" Finn asks gently.

"Yes, I escaped," she said finally, cutting the tension in the air. "And paid dearly for it," she finished, punctuating every word that hung precariously in the air.

The conversation died and she turned to retreat back to her quarters.

The horizon blushed with dawn before Rey broke from her meditation. A nightmare washed over her that night. It was not uncommon for her to not sleep anymore.

"Give me the treasure map to Naboo's crown jewels!" cries a young voice as its owner leaped off a rock tumbling on the grass.

"I've got you now! There is no escape princess!" he continues, this time pointing his twig at Rey.

"Escape? But you have not captured me you scoundrel. I am a space princess and I come and go as I please. I am not your prisoner, I am your guest! You cannot harm me," Rey chants back in an overly exaggerated regal voice, puffing out her chest a bit.

"Oh yeah? Watch me!" the other young child shouts, tackling Rey with tickles. "Monster! Sto-p-p," Rey gasps between giggles as she grasps out to tickle back.

"I'll take whatever I want princess!"

Hate is used by those that cannot solve problems; it is the failure to comprehend or compromise conflict. And she hated how she had never not wanted memories as much as she did right now.

Poe hesitated at Rey's door. He raised his knuckles and put them back down. He hadn't been so nervous since bringing her an obsidian crystal from D'Qar, and her accurately identifying it as a proposal custom. They had laughed it off to Poe's ignorance. Masked ignorance, he added.

Does she know I'm pacing like crazy out here? Hello, that is my stomach on the floor, presently not staying where it should.

He leaned his forehead against her door, deciding that he was going to chicken out and just see her when he got back. He rolled so his back was upon her door.

He briefly considered squashing this crush or whatever anyone wanted to call this burning affection he held onto. When was the last time he couldn't knock on a damn door? This was stupid and pointless.

She saw him as a friend, practically stormed off after their last interaction without so much a backwards glance. He bitterly told himself over and over that he was not jealous of Finn, who at least evoked effortless smiles from Rey.

Yeah? But at least Finn doesn't have to bring flowers or rocks to create an opening to even talk to her.

Poe sighs and walks down the hallway to hanger. He was going to have sneaky flight in front of him, and needed to focus on slipping out and slipping back in. He couldn't afford distractions right now.

Adrenaline hummed through him as he drew closer to his X-Wing. Nothing like impending possibilities of doom to shake off his nerves of not being able to knock on Rey's door. And for once, your sarcasm leans closer to truth than irony.

Shoving his helmet on and climbing in his ship, he finally felt confidence flooding him again. If there was one thing that he felt more comfortable than his own skin, was in his X-Wing. He flicked off the comm and silently disembarked, not taking BB-8 with him to avoid the risk of being tracked. This should take no longer than a few hours, and if anything, a few jugs of fire whiskey should satisfy the rebels and distract them from his absence.

Landing as comfortably as he took off, Poe climbed out and headed to Maz's cantina, crawling with patrons with varying levels of bounty on their heads.

He settles just outside her Castle, on the far-left post, like they had agreed. Impatience blooms within him as the sunset bleeds away like a forgotten sienna and amber promise. Did he get the time wrong?

Twilight was the last breath between daylight and darkness, and it was upon him. The last rays of sunlight painted the sky in pink bands reached out to the night.

Great, I'm being stood up. Two rejections in one day. You're really racking up the count today.

He started back to his X-Wing. He pushed his time as long as he felt comfortable with still being allowed to return back to General Organa. He inwardly winced as he thought about the tongue-lashing he was about to receive from her.

He paused and looked down at his feet. Daisies. He crouched down and loosened them from the ground. "Loyalty and innocence," he chuckled to himself.

He heard the whisper in his ear before he could see who spoke to him.

And then he was swept into darkness.