"Wait.. what?!" My head jerks up, eyes following the inky black of his cloak as he sweeps out the door. "Can he do that?"
The glare fixed on my brothers face is answer enough. Of course he can. He's the Supreme Leader now. "I'm certain it was just a slip of the tongue." Hux corrects, absentmindedly adjusting his uniform jacket. "You're hardly qualified for such a promotion."
"Are you jealous, Ari?" A wide grin spreads across my cheeks.
He snorts in response, focusing a bit too intensely on the map projected in the middle of the area. "Set a course for Arkanis. If the Supreme Leader requests we remain in the outer territories, we will at least go somewhere with a base prepared."
The silent-until-now crew hurries to follow their General's order to reroute the Supremacy to our former home planet as I follow Kylo Ren's path out the door. I drag my feet through the ship, feeling a sudden exhaustion wash over me. The pull of finally getting some sleep is only broken by the sound of muffled voices from the living quarters next to mine. Kylo Ren...
As I step closer to the door, leaning forward to press my ear against and listen, it opens with a rush of air. My curiosity gets the better of me and I slip over the threshold, keeping my back pressed to the wall.
"You're doing that wrong." Kylo Ren states nonchalantly. I come to a sudden stop, holding my breath in embarrassment at being caught sneaking through his suite.
Shit. I think, cringing.
"Go away, Ben." The voice of the girl rings out in response to him. I exhale softly. He wasn't talking to me.
"Accept my offer and I'll show you how to fix it." I peer into his bedroom just as he removes a glove and extends his bare hand out, genuine concern etched in his eyes. An image, clear as day, of the girl seated on the floor surrounded by a shattered lightsaber comes into view. "Tell me where you are, Rey."
I couldn't see her before.. I think, inching closer.
"Snoke told us that he forged this connection." She inhales sharply, jerking away from his hand. A flicker of regret and heartache crosses his features, quickly replaced by a harsh emotionless stare. "He's dead. Why is this still happening?"
Kylo simply shrugs, rubbing his hand over the back of his neck. Rey pounds her fist against the floor beneath her, cracking a piece of the already broken weapon. "You'll need that piece if you intend to fix my lightsaber." He grumbles, crouching down to her level. "My apprentice was able to assemble her own from scratch in only two days time. And you, the one who Snoke believed to be my equal, you can't even fix one that you've broken." His voice is just above a whisper as he leans toward her trembling figure. "You really are nobody."
The corners of my lips twitch upwards, muscles moving on their own despite every attempt I make to stop them. Not the best line to be grinning at, Jira! I mentally scold, pressing my palm against my forehead.
"You're not as evil as you want everyone to believe, Ben." Rey croaks, voice cracking with emotion as she shrinks away from him.
"No. I'm much worse." He growls darkly. In a matter of seconds the air shifts and she is gone. His shoulders slump forward as he stands and curses under his breath. Dragging a hand through his thick mess of hair, he turns in my direction. "Are you going to just lurk out there in the darkness all night?"
I sheepishly step into the yellow light of his bedroom, a red flush painting my cheeks. "You left your door unlocked." I rub a hand over the soft fabric covering my upper arm, suddenly unsure of what to do with myself. "I could see her."
His forehead creases, brows dipping together in confusion as he sits on the edge of his bed. "None of this makes any sense.." He leans forward, resting his elbows against his thighs. "It all should have died with Snoke."
Silence falls between us. I delicately crawl across the mattress to kneel behind him and place my hands on his broad shoulders. Pressing gently against them, I knead at the endless knots and tension. "She is right you know." I lean against his back, whispering directly into his ear. "You aren't really the bad guy."
His head drops into his hands, softly shaking. "I killed my father. I'm a murderer. That sounds like a 'bad guy' to me." His voice is muffled by his palms.
"Yeah, well Armitage had a hand in killing our father. And he destroyed the entire Hosnian system. Hell, he even has tried to kill you." I lean back on my heels, tracing circles across his back with my fingertips, a wry chuckle escaping my lips. "I've never thought of him as a villain."
"All I'm hearing is that you have terrible judgement." Kylo Ren flops backwards, a tight lipped smile fixed on his face as his head hits my lap. "You should really stop surrounding yourself with such dangerous men."
"Cute." I snort a laugh, stroking his hair. The constant hum of the force between us is dizzying, and it only intensifies as we touch. "Wha-" I stop myself, quickly snapping my mouth shut. My eyes close, mentally slapping myself for ruining our one peaceful moment.
"What?" He questions, adjusting his head against me.
"What did you mean when you said 'accept my offer'?"
"Oh." Kylo sighs, propping himself up on his elbows. I scoot back against the headboard of the bed, stretching my legs out in front of me and carefully watch his every movement. His gaze fixes across the room, glazing over in thought. "I offered to train her. To teach her to use the force."
"To replace me." I finish for him, wrapping my arms around myself.
"No!" His neck cracks with the severity of his twists to face me. "She believes she can save me. Ironically, I believed I could save her too. She's nothing. Nobody." He crawls up the mattress until our faces are just inches apart. "She could never replace you." His darkly musky scent fills my lungs as his lips cover mine in a passionate kiss. "Never." His voice radiates through my mind, chilling me to the bone. I smile against his lips. Good answer.
A/N... I had the literal best idea for this story last night. Rewriting everything I had prepared to post because it's such a killer idea. Stay tuned!