She's asleep again. Three strong cups of caf today and a good night's sleep last night and Rey still falls asleep. It must be the hypnotic monotony of hyperspace. But at least Rey gets this familiar dream to spice up the flight. For, once again, she's back in bed with Kylo Ren. Lying on her side facing him.

This time he is fully dressed. Like he might have dropped whatever he was doing on the bridge of his great ship and strode here just to see her. His mask is off, but there is no muscled bare chest for her hands to explore. No late night dark shadow of stubble to scratch at her face. No pale long fingered hands to stroke at her body. He lies on his side next to her. Watching her closely as one gloved hand possessively lays claim to her hip.

"Lady Rey," his voice has an intimate, husky character. "I have missed you." And Jakku trash that she is, Rey loves it when he calls her Lady Rey. As if she were someone with an important family, and not an orphan without a last name.

Rey smiles back at him. She can't help it. She loves the attention. The male attention she received back home was usually derogatory or threatening in nature. In real life, Kylo Ren might be a scary Sith, but in her languid sleep state he is unfailingly gentle.

His hand shifts now to brush hair back from her face. Her hair is always loose in these dreams. Dream Kylo Ren likes long hair, she has realized. So, of course, now she's never going to cut it.

This is a short jump and any moment now the ship will wake her up and this fantasy will fade from her memory. So Rey is going to enjoy herself while she can. "Kiss me," she tells him, feeling rather daring. For if dream Kylo can look at her with worship in his eyes, then dream Rey can lose her insecurities when it comes to men and be unabashedly bold. "Kiss me."

He needs no further invitation. He nudges her closer and she scoots over and his lips find hers. And here again is the spark of passion that is missing from her life that Rey only finds in dreams. She's a young woman who has lived life alone for so long and even now still on Ahch-To she is very much alone. A student to a sad, old and introverted Master whose experiences she cannot relate to and has given up trying. And all this zen Jedi meditation does nothing to calm the natural desires of a young woman who has known very little affection in her life. And even less physical touch.

And, oh Gods, kissing dream Kylo Ren is everything. If this were real, she would ditch Jedi training immediately and run away to join the First Order. Because that's how good this feels. Dream Kylo Ren has soft lips and an amazing tongue and hands that just now are grabbing her ass in a way that excites her.

This is forbidden on multiple levels. He is Sith, she will be Jedi. He commands the First Order and she fights for the Resistance. Her taboo flights of fancy surely do not rise to the level of an attachment—this is more like a secret celebrity crush. But even so, this mental pleasure of the flesh does not seem like noble Jedi behavior. For a Jedi must have the most serious mind, she has been taught. But even so, Master Luke says that ultimately in life you must face your fears. And Kylo Ren is definitely one of Rey's fears. So maybe these fantasies are just one way she is preparing herself for their inevitable confrontation.

But whatever it is, Rey loves it.

He rolls over atop her now and she feels his weight press her into the mattress. It's so male and so dominant, but in a good way. In a way that makes her feel feminine and desirable. Dream Kylo is raining kisses down her neck now and his hands are buried in her hair. "Yes, Rey, yes," he exhales. "Oh, how I want you. Be mine, Rey, be mine." And this is the true crux of the fantasy. For the throwaway orphan from Jakku has never been wanted. There are no sweeter words for her ears.

Rey feels the slight shudder as the ship exits hyperspace. And that's funny because normally the X-wing beeps a warning a few minutes in advance. But anyway, it's time to wake up, she knows. "Goodbye, Kylo," Rey whispers. "Time to wake up." And then she wills herself awake.

Only she's awake. She's already awake and this is real.

"You're- You're-" Rey is horrified. Instantly, she starts to struggle. And that is a mistake because he just grabs her arms and pins her beneath him.

"Easy, baby," he tells her. "Don't be afraid. I won't hurt you."

But of course, she is afraid. And the Force never fails Rey when she is cornered by this man. Reflexively, she summons a mighty Force push that Master Luke would be proud of. The push hurls the Sith clear across the room. Rey simultaneously skitters off the bed and runs for the door.

It's locked. Desperate, Rey yanks off the instrument panel to do a quick hotwire but there is no time. The Sith bounds across the room and looms over her. He doesn't bother stopping her. Instead, he informs her, "It's locked with the Force. An old Sith trick. You can't undo it mechanically."

But Rey keeps trying. The words of Master Luke echoing in her head to never trust a Sith.

Kylo Ren looks exasperated as he sighs and repeats himself. "It's locked with the Force, Rey. You can try, but it won't work. Don't bother."

Rey feels the truth behind his words this time. She drops the door panel in disgust and it hangs by wires. Then she whirls to survey the room. Yes, she's been here before. She's on his star destroyer in that same room again. His room, she is beginning to suspect.

And now Rey is starting to feel trapped. More trapped then when she was strapped to that torture rig on the Starkiller. Because she was just in bed with the real Kylo Ren and now she's locked in his room and there's no way Jedi mind tricks are going to get her out of this jam. She's trembling now with a mixture of fear, outrage and disbelief. Don't cry, she tells herself sternly. Jedi do not cry.

"Rey-"

"How do you do this?" she demands hotly. Once more, the last thing Rey recalls is tumbling through hyperspace in Master Luke's X-wing. "That was a short jump back and-"

"If I told you that would ruin the surprise." Kylo gives her an annoying smirk and it's entirely too smug for her taste right now. It's very irritating to see how amused he seems by this whole situation. How could she have been so foolish as to believe herself asleep.

"I don't like waking up in strange rooms with you!" she snaps. Rey is indignant to find herself in this position yet again. And if she doesn't know why or how this happens, there's no way to prevent it from happening again. "How do you do this?" Rey demands once more.

"I knocked you out with the Force."

Okay. That's sort of an explanation. But how did he find her in the first place. "How?"

"I located your mind. You're easy for me to find, Rey."

Huh? "Why?"

He smiles broadly at this question and something about his look makes her blush. "You know why. I wanted to see you again." He's acting unnervingly casual about this whole situation. Probably because he's in control. "Relax, Rey. I'm not going to hurt you."

"Don't you dare do this again!" she rails at him.

And this just makes him flash a cocky grin and drawl, "We Sith dare anything, Rey. Remember that." In the moment, his swagger reminds her eerily of Han Solo.

"Well, I'd like to leave now," she informs him coldly.

"We're not done yet," he fires back.

And Rey openly scowls at him now. "How come I can't sense you in the Force?" she complains. She has been wondering this for some time. How come she can never sense this man's presence the way she can other people, especially Force-users like General Organa and Master Luke.

"Sith cloak their Force imprint," he explains. "It's the first lesson of being a Sith."

"But Master Luke could sense Vader in the Force," she objects.

"Then Darth Vader didn't cloak his imprint. He probably didn't need to. He'd already killed all the Jedi. And he was Darth Vader," Kylo adds, as if that explains everything.

Rey eyes him suspiciously. "Don't even think about getting in my head. It won't work—not this time."

The Sith does not dispute the point. He just stands there looking almost . . . friendly? Like this is a social visit and they are friends and not enemies. Like she truly is his guest and not his prisoner. And he's happy she's here and what's the big deal?

"I wanted to see you, Rey. And I could hardly go visiting you and Uncle Luke, now could I?" Kylo is giving her that same teasing smile again. It is lopsided, and again Rey sees a resemblance to his father. "Was this another supply run, or are you visiting friends in the Resistance to plot more treason?"

Rey doesn't answer. She's too busy trying to decide if Kylo Ren is flirting with her. Because he doesn't seem like the flirtatious type. And, well, aren't Sith supposed to be evil guys who try and kill you? Not men who try to flirt with you? But then again, Rey has very little experience with these type social interactions so she probably has this all wrong.

"You don't go off-world much, Rey," he tries again.

"I've been busy," Rey shoots back.

"Levitating rocks and swinging sabers around? Listening to endless lectures on the Living Force?" He is teasing her again. No, he's definitely flirting with her. She thinks.

Nevertheless, she bristles at his words. "Master Luke is a great teacher."

"Evidently. See how well he did with me." Rey glares at him and he chuckles. Kylo Ren's laugh is so utterly unexpected that it startles her. Clearly, there are many moods to this man. Right now, he seems very pleased with himself. And with her.

"So, are you going to tell me where you are off to?" he prods again.

Rey considers how to reply and settles on the truth. "Supplies." She doesn't want to give him any reason to start messing with her head. Because despite her earlier bravado, Rey's experience last time makes her very wary.

"So this is a recurring thing?" he asks. "Does this mean I have to wait another month to see you?"

"This is the last time you are doing this to me!" Rey practically growls at him.

"Does that mean kidnapping you or kissing you?"

"Both!"

And incredibly, he looks genuinely hurt. "Don't be like that, Rey."

Rey just gives him a look. Just what exactly does this Sith stalker think this is? "We are enemies, remember?"

"We don't have to be," he retorts softly.

And that response is slightly disarming. It takes some of the wind from her sails. "Yes, yes we do," Rey mutters.

"Why?" he challenges and now she's on the defensive.

"Because you are a Sith. You're a selfish killer obsessed with power."

"That's my uncle talking. Give me a real reason. Look past his dogma."

"Because you're in the fascist First Order."

Again, he is unimpressed. "You're a girl from the Rim. You probably understand better than most at the Resistance where the First Order gets its appeal." He shrugs now. "That's just politics. There is room for debate on politics."

Rey blinks at the unexpected response. Normally, the First Order isn't exactly tolerant of dissenting viewpoints.

"Go on. Give me a real reason."

So she does. "Because you killed Han Solo." Her voice drops to a whisper, but accusation is clear in her tone. "You killed your own father." And this is something she will never understand. If Rey were lucky enough to have a family—even just one person to call family—she would be loyal to them until the end.

Kylo Ren averts his eyes. Now it's his turn to mutter. "Han Solo meant nothing to me."

And that's not an satisfactory explanation as far as Rey is concerned. Watching Kylo's face now, Rey can't be sure if she detects anger or sadness or both. "Then why kill him?" she demands. She isn't letting up.

Ren crosses his arms over his chest and levels her a warning look. For the first time, he looks hostile. "You mean why other than that he was setting charges to blow up the oscillator? Other than that he was a traitor and a Resistance fighter?"

"Yes." It is a deliberate provocation, but Rey wants to hear him say the words. If she doesn't press this issue, there will be no one else to call this man to account for his patricide. And she owes this to Han Solo. "Why?"

Abruptly he whirls away from her, running a hand through his hair. "Because he was weak! You didn't know the real Han Solo—you were blinded by his lines, just like everyone else. Women never could see through that guy . . . " Kylo is pacing now with clenched fists and stiff arms. His words pour forth in a torrent of pent-up decades old rage. "Han Solo was little more than a criminal! My father conned his way around the galaxy for years. He could lie, cheat and steal better than anyone, but those aren't skills I admire. He was a Rebellion General only when it suited him, when it made him credits or impressed my mother. Otherwise, he was unreliable. Don't be fooled," Kylo stops to wave a gloved finger before her face, his voice hoarse with emotion. "Han Solo didn't believe in any cause other than himself."

Rey says nothing to this defensive outburst. After a long moment, his shoulders slump and his posture relaxes. Kylo Ren's rage has crested and is now spent.

Sudden insight flares up at Rey through the Force. "Killing him didn't make things better for you, did it?"

"It had some benefits," he mutters, unwilling to meet her eyes.

Rey is blinking away tears now. Are these tears for Han Solo or tears for his petulant son? Rey knows now that that it was sadness that she had seen in Kylo's face earlier. Kylo Ren is remorseful, of that she is certain. And he appears utterly confused by the emotion. Could General Leia be right? Rey remembers Kylo's mother crying bitter tears over Han Solo while still maintaining her hope for her lost son. At the time, it had confounded Rey. But now she understands.

Here, then, is the legacy of the bitter family conflict she had glimpsed before in his mind. The little boy who had felt rejected time and again grew into a man who had the satisfaction of rejecting his father once and for all. By killing him.

"Your mother would forgive you," Rey dares to whisper. "She would welcome you home in an instant. She believes—"

"Believes what?" Kylo's tone is harsh, but at odds with the glittering wetness about his eyes.

"That there is still Light in you," Rey finishes softly.

"I am immune to the Light." Kylo Ren steps forward to grasp her shoulders and shake her roughly. His hands are trembling, and she rears back to pull away from his unwelcome touch. She could swear that his dark eyes flash pure yellow for a moment as he holds her gaze. She hears his words in her ears and through the Force. "I am Sith and I am immune to the Light. Never forget that, Rey." It is a declaration of sorts, a commitment to Darkness, and it is chilling. This wild-eyed man is the unstable, crazy Kylo Ren her Master has warned her about.

Then abruptly the Sith drops his hands and steps back.

"But you're not all Dark. Are you?" Rey asks. And she can't help but notice the hopeful tone to her voice.

He shakes his head. "No one is, Rey. Not even Snoke. Each of us is a mix of Light and Dark, Good and Bad. Nothing is as clear cut as the Jedi would like it to be."

And now Kylo Ren recovers some of his equilibrium and he seems more in control. He slants a resentful glance her way. "Do you want to save my soul, Rey? Is that how you will complete your training one day? Will you be sent to wheedle me back to the Light? Because that sounds very Uncle Luke to me."

"I don't know," she admits. For she and Master Luke have never spoken about how and when she will complete her training.

"That will only get you killed, Rey," he warns. "And it won't work. I know all of my uncle's best lines. I've heard them all before. He always leads with 'Let go of your hate.' Next, you'll tell me that you feel the good in me, the conflict. It sort of devolves from there." He waves his hand in frustration. "You can't have a disagreement with my uncle about the Force or with my mother about politics without being accused of hating. They are very dogmatic in their liberal orthodoxy. If you're not with them, you're their enemy."

"So you don't hate people?" Rey asks softly, more to understand this Sith than to challenge him.

He looks annoyed by her perception. "The only people I truly hate are my uncle and my father. I killed my father. And one day I will kill my uncle." Beneath those words, Rey hears the unspoken subtext that violence is the only solution Kylo Ren knows for his own hurt. And maybe that helps to explain some of what happened at the New Republic Jedi Academy years ago.

Master Luke might be surprised to learn it, but Rey understands violence somewhat. She grew up on harsh Jakku where violence was an everyday occurrence. It was the habitual solution to any conflict—personal, business or otherwise. And that's how it is on most of the underdeveloped Rim Worlds. Which is why the law and order fascist First Order resonates so strongly in that part of the galaxy. For these are people who respect a strong-man leader who is willing to resort to violence. Because in the absence of decent government and economic opportunity, they themselves are willing to resort to violence. It's something the elite of the Core Worlds with their blaster control laws and civil rights initiatives will never understand.

And looking at Kylo Ren just now, Rey isn't surprised that he and her Master never understood one another either. "Master Luke told me that he tried twice with you," she whispers.

"He did." Kylo Ren confirms. Bitterness coats his words. "Tell me, Rey, when does one small sliver of humanity save your soul from Darkness?" Kylo Ren rolls his eyes. "My uncle probably swears to this day that he redeemed Darth Vader in the end. He didn't. Vader got himself killed for trying to save his son. Because Vader needed Luke Skywalker to overthrow the Emperor. And because Vader had plotted with Snoke to put our family back together. Vader was Sith to the end. If his interests were aligned with saving his son, that's why he did it. It wasn't some deathbed repudiation of his accomplishments."

Rey is confused. "But Master Luke saw his father in the Force—"

"No, he didn't. Luke Skywalker was drunk from partying on Endor with the rest of the Rebels. He could have seen womp rats and called them a Force ghost."

Rey finds it hard to imagine Master Luke drunk. She finds it even harder to imagine Master Luke partying.

"Hasn't the Jedi told you the ugly truth yet?"

"The t-truth? What truth?"

"That we're all Skywalkers. Myself, my uncle, Darth Vader and Snoke. We are a family of Sith. Created in the Force out of Darkness. Uncle Luke is the prodigal son who went rogue and ended up Jedi." Kylo Ren looks her squarely in the eye now. "Rey, I am who I am supposed to be. I am Sith."

"But—"

"Rey, don't be a pawn of my uncle. He will use you and you will end up dead."

"But—"

"Rey," Kylo steps closer now. "You didn't struggle to survive all those years on Jakku only to end up sacrificing yourself for the Jedi. For someone else's vendetta."

And again, Rey struggles to get a word in edgewise. "I-I—"

But Kylo's eyes are searching hers and Rey sees genuine concern reflected there. "You don't have to be Jedi, Rey. Regardless of what my uncle and my mother tell you. You don't have to be Jedi to learn the ways of the Force. And you don't have to be Jedi to live in the Light." And then Kylo repeats his earlier confounding statement, "We don't have to be enemies, Rey. We should not be enemies."

And she is so confused now. "What? I don't understand."

But Kylo has turned away. He's pulled a beeping commlink out of his pocket and he reads a text. "It's Hux," he tells her, and Rey recognizes the dismissal in his tone. "I've been summoned."

"Oh."

"This is bad timing, but I've got to go, Rey. I have been summoned."

He must be referring to the Supreme Leader, Rey thinks. She just nods.

"I'll walk you back to your ship. It's not safe for you here on your own in that uniform. If Hux finds you, he'll kill you. Here," he produces her missing lightsaber from somewhere in his robes. Then he places his hands on her shoulders and looks down at her. "Come back to me. There are things you need to know. Things you will want to know. Contact me and I'll find you."

"Contact you? How?" She is genuinely confused.

"Search your feelings. You already know how." His eyes break from hers and wander down to her lips. He's not going to- Yes, he is. Kylo Ren steps forward and she gasps as he crushes her to his chest and his lips come down on hers. This is an open-mouthed, searing kiss. As passionate as it is unexpected. And just when she can't breathe, he wrenches himself back. "Until tonight, Lady Rey," he nods at her. And then grabs her hand to tug her forward. "Now, let's go. You need to get off this ship."