Chapter 9
Leia's eyes glanced at the clock by the side of her bed – 03:47 – before returning to staring at the ceiling. She knew she wasn't going to get to sleep tonight. Her mind was too distracted by the pulses of angst, anger and pain that originated from her daughter. The General tried to close her eyes but all she could see was Breha pacing backwards and forwards, hands tangled in her mess of black curls. Leia knew the punishment she dealt to Breha was harsher than it needed to be. Her daughter's offense warranted nothing more than a strong verbal scolding; she didn't deserve to currently be looked in a spare sleeping quarters for 24 hours. But from the moment Breha asked Leia if she could go instead of Poe, Leia had to ensure that Breha was safe for the night. Her daughter was far too much like her father for her own good. She was impulsive, just like he was, and Leia wouldn't put it past her daughter to make a stupid snap decision and abscond to the Tessler races alone and unprepared to save her friend from going. So Leia had used the excuse of her acting out to throw the book at her and give her daughter the time and space she needed to calm down.
24 hours confined to a basic sleeping quarters didn't do Breha any good. Most of the time she was pacing the small space like an agitated animal. Sleep hadn't been easy for her either, her mind was restless with thoughts of Poe and the Tessler Races. There were times when she stared at the door, begging it to open so she could head to the hanger, take a ship and save Poe the torment of the Tessler races. But the door never opened and she found herself stuck on D'Qar. The longer she was stuck in the room the more Breha relinquished the idea of stealing a ship.
In the morning when she heard the door being unlocked her heart sored with relief. The young mechanic was on her feet and waiting at the door for it to open in a matter of seconds. The door finally opened, but the sight of who was waiting for her outside glued her feet to the floor in surprise.
"Ben." She breathed out. The younger Solo was stood facing the door, arms crossed over his chest.
"I felt your distress all night." Ben frowned at his sister. Honey eyes roamed over her brother's face and she could see the tell-tale signs of fatigue. The underneath of his eyes were slightly puffy and his hair hung limper around his face.
"Sorry," She apologised as her eyes fell to the floor. Ben ran his eyes up and down his sister carefully, she didn't look like she'd slept any better than he had. A sigh from between his lips caused her to look up at him.
"It's okay Breha." He forced a small smile to his face.
"No, it's not." She said simply. "But you're kind enough to pretend it is." She added as she finally stepped towards her brother. The door to the sleeping quarters hissed shut behind her. "It's also not okay that I upset you yesterday." She added. Ben shifted his weight on his feet.
"You didn't upset me." He brushed it off.
"If you lie to me I can't help," Breha said as she tilted her head to catch her brother's gaze. Ben's dark eyes met her honey ones as she could see the ache behind his gaze. She could see he was torn whether to tell her.
"I just feel like I'm losing my family." Ben admitted quietly. "We haven't seen dad in 4 years, mum is always so busy and then you-" He stopped himself and looked back down at the floor.
"-and then I've been ignoring you as well." Breha finished for him. Ben nodded but didn't raise his gaze from the floor. Guilt wracked through Breha and she was sure Ben could feel it. So when she pulled him into an apologetic hug the youngest Solo could feel the sincerity behind her actions. "It won't happen again Ben. I promise." She mumbled into the black curls on his head. The boy was growing quickly, he was almost the same height as her now. "I will always be there for you."
At 17:00 that evening Poe turned the corner of the corridor and the doors to Hanger 9 came into sight. Breha looked up at the sound of approaching footfalls and tried to muster a small smile for Poe. Her mind was obsessing too much over what they were about to do for the smile to appear anything other than forced.
"How was your night in solitude?" Poe asked as he reached her.
"Quiet." Breha replied bluntly. Poe was looking over her shoulder into the hanger. "Come on, we're not going in there." She motioned with her head further down the corridor.
"Then why meet there?" Poe asked as he fell into step next to her.
"Not everyone knows the place we're going to exists." She replied. Poe raised a brow as he looked down at the mechanic next to him, his curiosity peaked. A sharp turned down a corridor and the pair found themselves outside of a thick, coded-entry hanger door.
"What's behind the doors?" Poe asked grinning like a child expecting a grand present. Breha glanced up at Poe from her position in front of the keypad. Poe tried not to be put off by the lack of the usual playful glint in Breha's eyes.
"The Storage unit." She replied as she punched in a long sequence into the pad. The door hissed open and Poe's lips parted in surprise. The storage unit was a large hanger – larger than any the X-wings were stored in - filled with a various assortment of vessels. For the most part the ships were designs that were unidentifiable with the resistance, and some were even unidentifiable with the republic itself. Although there were a couple of T-70s that Poe spotted. "You can stop drooling now." Breha rolled her eyes as she slipped by the side of Poe and entered the hanger. She entered the hanger and walked through the collection of ships with a familiar ease, heading straight down the middle. Poe decided to take his time before following after Breha, appreciating the ships around him. He found it hard to tear his eyes away from admiring a set of three well-kept Z-95 headhunters. "Poe!" Breha's voice echoed from further down the hanger. Poe eventually managed to tear himself away from admiring the Z-95s and followed the sound of Breha's voice.
Poe followed the noise and stopped in surprise as he reached a Corellian VCX-100 light freighter. The ship had otherwise been hidden by large hanger partition slides. Although it wasn't the ship that surprised him. It was Breha as she exited the ship. Poe had seen how comfortable Breha looked in her workshop building his BB unit. But that was nothing compared to how at home she was right in that moment. Completely void of any mechanic attire, wearing simply a pair of black trousers and a grey fitted top, she looked at home with the freighter. Her honey eyes met his darker ones and he felt an all too familiar twinge in his gut. He swallowed thickly as she walked towards him, forcing himself to take a few strides to meet her half way.
"There are some occasions when the resistance needs to not look like the resistance." Breha began. "So over the years we've acquired vessels that aren't the iconic X-wing series."
"It's an impressive collection." Poe admitted. Breha made an absentminded hum sound.
"Enough about the storage unit though. We're here to prepare you for Tessler." Breha said and was unable to keep the distaste from her voice. Poe down at Breha and was unnerved to see her looking him up and down as if he was a piece of machinery. "Don't shave for the next couple of days." She ordered bluntly. Poe furrowed his brow. "You look too Republic. You need to look more like smuggler." His brow only partially relaxed as he tried to work out if she'd just insulted him or not. "How are you at lying?" Breha asked next.
"I can lie perfectly fine." Poe replied.
"For the love of- You can't even lie about being able to lie." She pinched the bridge of her nose. "Why the hell were you chosen for this?" She mumbled under her breath. Poe's jaw tightened as he heard her.
"Breha." He said lowly. Honey eyes snapped to meet his. "When you're done analysing my facial hair status and chances at gambling, why don't you tell me about the Tessler racer I'm going to be flying?" Breha let out a huff of air and had to repeat her mother's words in her head to calm herself down. Poe needed her to do this.
"Poe meet the Nexus," She motioned to the Corellian VCX-100 behind her.
"This is the ship I'm racing in the Tessler Races?" Poe asked sceptically. He'd expected something smaller and more acrobatic than the lightweight freighter.
"You're going undercover as a smuggler Poe, you kind of need a ship large enough to smuggle things." Breha shook her head in disbelief. The more Poe spoke the less she wanted him to go. Poe's eyes narrowed on Breha. The more she spoke the more she bristled him the wrong way. "You're racer is this way." Breha motioned with her head to follow him as she walked away from the Nexus and towards the outside hanger doors.
Poe had to shield his eyes against the glare of the sun as the pair stepped outside. His eyes slowly adjusted and as he lowered his arm two vessels came into sight, waiting patiently for them on the tarmac. On the left stood the familiar shape of an X-Wing T-70. But it wasn't a T-70 that he recognised as belonging to one of the other pilots. Sat next to the T-70 was a vessel that Poe didn't recognise from a distance. It was only as they got close enough that he realised it was a drastically modified Z-95 Headhunter.
"This is what you'll be flying in the races." She explained. Her hand motioned to the Z-95. "Weapons have been removed and the shielding stripped to a bare minimum to save the weight to fuel ratio and a new engine has been refitted." She briefed as Poe moved around the ship. Poe's eyes glanced up at her. She stood, frowning as she explained the ship. The pilot would have found it comical if her behaviour wasn't so annoying. "It makes it feel like you're flying something flimsy."
"Why don't we just take her up and let me see?" Poe asked with a forced sweetness to his voice. Breha's eyes narrowed but she nodded her agreement and headed towards the T-70.
Breha was breathing heavily with frustration as she stalked over to the T-70, easily scaling the ladder to climb into the cock-pit, pulling the hatch closed over her head. Angry fingers snapped at the controls as she started the ignition sequence. Glancing up she saw Poe doing the same in the Z-95.
"After you Dameron," She called over the communication link between the T-70 and the Z-95. Poe rolled his eyes but continued to fire up the Z-95. The smaller headhunter rose from the ground in a low hover. "Word of warning, she's quick off of the mark" Breha spoke as Poe cleared her X-wing.
"I think I can handle it." Poe grumbled back. He wondered if she was this frustrating with every pilot she briefed or if Poe was getting a special treatment. Either way he was going to blow up at her soon if she didn't stop.
"You're aware the comm link in an open one?" Breha raised at brow at the pilot's retort.
"Yes I am." Poe punctuated each word as he gripped the throttle of the Z-95 and pulled back. Breha's frown quickly turned into a smirk as she heard the surprised grunt from Poe as the Z-95 took off.
"Told you so." Breha said simply as she initiated the final controls of the T-70 and rose smoothly from the ground. She met up with Poe again once the pair were both out of D'Qar's atmosphere and cruising towards the ring that surrounded the planet. Breha had a front row seat as Poe demonstrated his acrobatic flying skills in the Z-95.
The Z-95 had been terrifying for the first few moments of flight as it responded to even the slightest movement from Poe and launched rapidly out of the atmosphere. Breha had been right in saying the vessel felt flimsy, like there was no protection, but Poe had never loved anything more. His natural ability to pilot let him adjust to the sensitive controls quickly and he found himself experimenting with the handling of the racer. Poe was finding it hard to fight the smile on his face. He had flown Z-95s before, but this was a whole other beast.
"Having fun Poe?" Breha asked with a raised brow as Poe barrel rolled his vessel over the top of her T-70.
"Not in the slightest." He lied but the grin had claimed his face.
"You're a terrible liar Poe, we've established this." Breha shook her head. "So are you going to fly through those rocks or are you going to mess around all day?" Poe sighed and grit his teeth to refrain from snapping at Breha.
"Rocks it is." Poe levelled the Z-95 and set off towards the ring of the planet.
"So if you start off slow and then gradually take the-." Breha lectured over the comm.
"Last time I checked there was one pilot seat in the Z-95. No space for a backseat driver." Poe quipped back at Breha. Breha cocked her head to the side and ran her tongue over her bottom lip in agitation. Poe set off into the planet's ring and began the drills Breha ordered across to him. The tension slowly grew between the pair until their cock-pits were almost unable to contain the frustration. By the time they set their vessels back down on the tarmac Breha's hands were gripping the controls of the T-70 so tightly her skin had turned white over her knuckles.
Poe stood next to the Z-95 as he watched Breha jump down from the T-70. He waited for her to turn around and look at him. No matter how bossy she'd been up there, she had to have been impressed with how he flew. It wasn't egotistical for Poe to say he flew excellently, it was a fact – it was the one thing he was good at. She had to recognise that. Breha turned and looked over at him, shaking her head and looking to the ground. Poe's jaw dropped. She was disappointed?
"Breha!" Poe bellowed. His temper finally blew as she turned to walk away from him. The young mechanic froze at the shout, her shoulders tensing defensively. She slowly turned around to see Poe stalking towards her angrily. "You've been on my ass all day. What the hell is up with you?"
"You're not good enough Poe." Breha's voice was low. Poe's eyes narrowed at her words.
"I flew every drill you set up there flawlessly and you know it." He growled. Breha shook her head.
"Tomorrow 07:00 we're running them again." She declared turning on her heel and walking away. She got as far as one step.
"What the hell is your problem Breha?" Poe exclaimed, raising his arms wildly. Breha whipped back around to see the angriest version of Poe she'd ever seen. "I can fly through an asteroid field." Poe yelled. "I'm the best pilot in the Galaxy."
"I don't care how good you think you are." Breha narrowed her eyes. "You need to practise in the racer. You're not ready."
"Why do you doubt me so much?" Poe narrowed his stare, leaning slightly towards Breha. "You've seen me fly the racer perfectly. You know I'm the best pilot you've seen. So why do you still doubt me?" Poe's gaze remained harsh as he watched anger flicker dangerously in Breha's eyes.
"You're not ready for Tessler, Poe." She repeated her words snapping angrily.
"Bullshit." Poe called. "This isn't about how I fly. You have a problem with me." He leant in closer still. "Do you blame me for your punishment last night? Is that what this is?" He asked incredulously. Breha could feel her chest tightening as he leant in closer and thoughts fired through her mind without care. "Why am I suddenly such an issue for you?" He yelled.
"I don't want you to go." Breha yelled in response. All the rage dropped from Poe's expression as he stared at her in bewilderment. His dark eyes found hers and being this close to her he could see the fear she held in her honey eyes. Her eyes ran across his face, taking in every detail until she found his eyes again. Fear was consumed by pain and Breha struggled to formulate words. Her mouth opened and closed with no sound being made.
"You don't?" Poe asked his voice suddenly hoarse. Almost as if he was choking on the emotion he saw in Breha's eyes.
"Of course I don't Poe." Breha's voice was soft again. "The Tessler Races are brutal; they destroy people." Her voice was quiet, almost pleading with him when she finally managed to make a sound. Poe studied her face, watching her as she spoke of the races and a cold realisation washed over him.
"You're the operative they sent four years ago." He stared at her wide eyed. She didn't verbally confirm his statement, but Poe could tell by her reaction that he was right. He suddenly felt disgusted. Four years ago Breha would have been in her mid-teens – still a kid. "You were so young."
"I was a part of the resistance. They needed a mechanic to go - I volunteered." Breha explained simply but Poe had never seen her eyes look so sad. Her eyes closed, brow furrowed and a look of shame that Poe wasn't expecting passed over Breha's face. "And they aren't even the reasons I went." She admitted. "I was being selfish. I thought I could find my father there." Poe raised a warm hand to cup the side of her jaw, long fingers splaying along her jaw bone and neck. She leant towards his touch and opened her eyes.
"Breha." Poe whispered her name. A bitter smile pulled at her lips.
"Now you understand why I don't want you to go." She replied. Poe's brow creased. He was in pain at the thought that Breha had been at the Tessler races four years ago; if what she was feeling was anything like that he wasn't sure he knew how she was holding herself together. Her smaller hand rose and partially covered the hand he had on her cheek, partially holding his wrist. "I've seen more pilots die during the races than I have pilots make it across the finish line." Poe's gaze softened at her admission. One went around her shoulders and the other held the back of her head to his chest. Breha inhaled deeply as she embraced the warmth and comfort of Poe. She could hear his firm heart beat through his jumpsuit and placed her hand on his chest over his heart.
"I'll finish the race." He promised. His mouth was pressed the top of her head, her soft black curls tickling his cheek. "I'll come back." Her grip on his shirt tightened at his promise.
…
To the Guest from the 5th Feb: Thank you for your review and I'm soooo happy you like the idea of the Tessler Races… I'm always a bit apprehensive when I introduce new concepts away from the canon so I'm glad it's gone down well with you.
To ShigureAyameHatoriFanClub: yeah… Leia was definitely a 'Bad cop' parent in the last chapter. I hope this chapter has helped elaborate why she acted the way she did? I think Leia more than anyone understands what Breha is struggling through and is just trying to help guide Bree through this as best she can - but like everyone even Leia makes mistakes and perhaps doesn't always deal with things the best way. And you'll be happy to see Ben! I enjou writing Breha/Ben too much to send him away 8 chapters in :D
To MichelleJoy: Thank you for your review! So glad to hear that you're enjoying the story so far.
To heroherondaletotherescue: Glad you appreciated the plot twist! I have to admit I'm having great fun writing this section of the fic :D and it wasn't the best day for Bree – she's not having a lot of those actually. But I am glad that you're enjoying the story!
To JunJunyil: Wow! I think my ego just exceeded the size of the room! That it massive praise! There are some incredible PoeXSolo's kids fanfics out there. I'm so glad you're excited for the Tessler Races! I've had so much fun developing the concept of them so I can't wait for you guys to read about it! And I hope to keep surprising you!
To Deserah: It's really good to hear you're enjoying the fic and that you find Breha well-rounded. It's so easy to slip into Mary-sue territory with universes like Star Wars. I've deleted whole chapters before after re-reading them and realising I've turned her into a Mary-Sue. And a VERY big thank you for complimenting my writing style and plot!
To engineerwenlock: A big thank you for your multiple reviews! It's lovely to hear that you like Breha :D and incredible to hear that you think I portray the Star Wars universe well :D
To the Guest who reviewed on the 6th Feb: Thank you so much for your review! It was the extra boost of encouragement I needed! :D
