A/N: A big thanks to SirenBanshee. You are one amazing beta!

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Later that evening, Kylo grinned as Rey laughed after having seen Shadow's almost exuberant joy at the prospect of beating up his Guard.

"She seems a bit skittish, though," Rey eventually commented. "Isn't she the one that your Guard keeps losing sight of?"

Kylo sighed. "Yes, she's the one. I wanted to confront her about it, but it seems like a bad time now that she's started to engage a little."

Rey hummed in agreement. "Maybe have Ember tell her?"

"Too blunt. Plus, the chatter annoys Ember."

"Which of them doesn't annoy Ember?"

He barked a laugh. "I think she gets along well enough with Dot."

"The woman with the bow? The surly one?"

"Yes, that one."

"Why am I not surprised?"

They looked at each other for a moment before both burst out in laughter.

"So, you'll have them train your Guard," Rey half asked, half stated when her giggles subsided.

"Yes. They felt inadequate compared to them so this was the only solution to it." He shrugged. "I hope the Knights will take it serious."

"It's your command so they should, no?"

Kylo shrugged again. He was uncertain of what they thought of him. He had absolutely no idea if they were inclined to follow his orders, or merely to do the bare minimum to make it look like they did.

"There was another thing I've been meaning to ask you," he said, changing the topic slightly.

"Oh?"

"How would you fight me if you didn't have the Force?"

Rey stared at him. "What?"

"If you didn't have the Force," he repeated, "how would you fight me?"

"What type of question is that? In case you don't remember—which I sincerely doubt—I ran away from you the first time you wanted to fight me and you caught me nonetheless. The second time, you were injured and not using the Force."

"But still," he pressed. "If it were to happen again, what would you do?"

Rey kept on staring at him, utterly confused. "It's impossible," she finally answered. "Fighting you when you're using the Force is impossible." She stepped closer to him, touching his cheek and looking worried. "Why are you asking this?"

"They asked and I couldn't answer."

"They? The Guard?"

"Yes." He sighed. "I can't blame them. If the Knights agree to being reconnected and one of them turns against me, my Guard will be facing off against an impossible foe. They can train to become better fighters, but what about the Force?" Kylo shook his head. "I don't want them to feel helpless."

Rey wrapped her arms around him, hugging him tight. "Let me think," she murmured.

Kylo returned her hug. Her mere presence made him feel calmer, more secure. He knew he could turn to her no matter what and she would do her best to help him. Although he had known this for some time already, it was still an odd feeling.

"Is it true that there used to be cages that could contain Force users?"

"Yes. Yes it is," he answered. "Snoke destroyed as many as he could find, though. Why do you ask?"

"Could you use that?"

"Build one? Well, we would need to capture the Force user first. Afterwards, yes, we could put them in a prison like that, but it's the capturing that's the problem."

"I know. I was just thinking… Could you use the principle in a different way? Turn it into something that can protect your Guard against Force attacks?"

"You mean incorporate it into their suits?"

Rey shrugged, looking up at him. "Something like that."

"That would require a lot of energy," Kylo murmured. "And I'm afraid it would end up shocking everything they touched."

"That has its up- and downsides," Rey answered with a short laugh.

Kylo shook his head with mirth. "They're bound to take out any electronics they touch."

Rey blinked at him, then laughed, carefree. Kylo grinned. He still felt pleased whenever he managed to make her laugh like that.

"Not a good idea then," Rey finally managed to say.

"I don't know. It's worth looking into. Maybe just the helmet to protect against mind control." He worried his lips. "I'll have a research team look into it." He kissed her forehead. "Any other ideas?"

Humming, Rey buried her face against his chest again. She stayed silent for so long that he feared she may have fallen asleep.

"How many people can you keep track of?" she eventually asked.

"What do you mean?"

"When you're fighting, how many people's movements can you keep track of with the Force?"

Kylo huffed, taken off guard by the question. He let his mind wander to previous fights, trying to count how many people he'd followed at the time.

"Three, I guess," he answered, doubt clear in his voice. "Additional to the ones I can actually see." He frowned in concentration. "It depends on how they move." His words tapered off, realisation hitting him hard. "It depends on how they move," he repeated to himself. "Huh."

Rey took a step back, beaming up at him. "You can train them to move in a confusing manner?"

He tilted his head in thought. "It will take some experimenting," he muttered, "but it should be possible."

He looked down at Rey. In a wave of gratitude, he picked her up and spun her around. Her giggles sounded clear in his ear, making his heart swell. He put her down again and buried his face in her neck.

"I love you," he murmured.

With a shock, he realised what he'd just said. A blur of emotions rushed through him. He only vaguely registered that some of them weren't his. Overwhelmed, he all but stumbled backwards, fighting his urge to flee. Since when did he flee? He should charge forward, face the situation head on and with force. But it was Rey standing in front of him. He couldn't charge her, wouldn't snap at her. Panic started building in his chest. He didn't know what to do now that his emotions were so out in the open.

His breath violently left him when something smashed into him. On instinct, he braced himself and held on tight.

"I love you too!" Rey exclaimed, almost giddy, pressing herself as close to him as she could. "I love you too, Ben."

He breathed in, focusing on her warmth in his arms. His mind was still reeling. Slowly, he calmed down, enveloping her in his arms as if he would never let go. She was rubbing her cheek against his chest in a most cat-like manner.

"Do you-" He swallowed. "Do you really?" he ventured carefully.

She stilled and his head snapped down to look at her. Immediately, panic settled again. What if she didn't? What if he'd misheard? What if he was pushing her? Why was he pushing her?

He watched as Rey ducked her head slightly.

"Yes, I do," she answered, sounding shy. "I do love you."

Joy like he'd never known flowed through him, filling him up. He grinned widely, unable to help himself. Needing to share how happy she made him, even though she could probably notice over their bond, he cupped her cheeks and kissed her.

He poured everything into the kiss. It seemed that, now that the gate to his emotions was open, everything just needed to come out. Rey kissed him back with equal enthusiasm. He picked her up and she wrapped her legs around him.

They kissed for the longest of times, switching between wild, deep, and sensual. Eventually, Kylo dropped them both on the bed. Rey snuggled into him, her arms and legs still wrapped around him, occasionally kissing his neck.

Kylo hummed with contentment. He was equally disinclined to let go of her. His mind was still a jumbled mess but one thing stood out clearly from all the chaos: She loved him. He doubted he could ever feel happier than he did right at that moment.

They stayed cuddled like that for the rest of the evening, hands softly caressing and gentle kisses shared. Eventually, they drifted off to sleep.

When Kylo woke the next morning, Rey was already gone from his arms. He felt a pang of regret, then remembered the events of the evening before. That same sense of joy infused him. Grinning like a loon, he took a shower before getting dressed.

Only once he was about to step out of his quarters did he attempt to school his features. He must not have fully succeeded as Phasma stared at him as he emerged. She seemed like she was about to say something, then decided against it.

Kylo raised an eyebrow at her, then noticed that she was carrying her baton again.

"Favouring your baton lately?" he asked, trying to divert her attention.

"It's still the weapon I'm most comfortable with, sir," she answered.

"You really don't trust them, do you?"

"No, sir."

He chuckled lightly and left for his office. Ever since he'd arrived, he'd been taking his meals separate, trying not to disturb anyone. With so many people crammed into a Base that wasn't made for it, the mealtimes were carefully timed events. He didn't care to think about what disturbance he would cause if he were to suddenly show up. Maybe later, if things had settled a bit, he could join the Knights.

He ate at his desk, waiting for Derek to arrive after his own breakfast. There were a couple of papers laid out in case he wanted to get started without his administrator, but they both knew that day would never come.

"Good morning, sir," Derek greeted once he arrived. "We don't have much time today, I'm afraid. There's a construction meeting in 45 minutes. I know you dislike them, sir, but there seems to be-"

"Okay."

Derek stumbled. "Sir?" he asked, completely dumbfounded.

"Okay," Kylo repeated.

Normally, he would sigh, curse and complain about the construction meetings. After all, they'd already decided on everything. Couldn't they figure out the rest on their own? But today, he couldn't find it within himself to feel annoyed. After all, Rey loved him. She'd told him so.

It took Derek a minute to compose himself. He didn't comment on the construction meeting anymore and simply took on the next task at hand.

The morning passed relatively easy. Kylo got Derek to put a research team on Rey's idea for blocking the Force. The construction meeting was its usual bore—a slight change in design due to an unforeseen crack in the rock. Right before lunch, he found the time for some training and after his lunch and a shower, he found himself once more in the training hall with the Knights.

"We're going to do the same today as we did yesterday," Kylo said, sitting down on a cushion. As before, Ember had already closed her eyes. "Remember the techniques I mentioned. Close your eyes and control your breathing. Both Phasma and I will guard."

He watched as the Knights settled down. Their reluctance to close their eyes was still glaringly obvious. Kylo itched to correct their postures and give them individual pointers. Yet, he knew that him walking around would only serve to stress them, so he stayed seated and watched them for a bit before joining them. He was tempted to reach out with the Force in an attempt to gauge their mental states. This, too, he decided not to do. If they noticed, he would damage what little trust he'd built.

Once the ten minutes were past, he softly called them back to the present. "That's it for today. You may open your eyes. We'll do this for about a week before we lengthen the sessions. I know I've had this relayed to you before, but any questions are always welcome. My Guard usually knows where I'm at."

He nodded at the group and stood. He was about to leave when Ember stopped him with a soft 'sir'. With a questioning look, he turned to look at her. She shook her head minutely so he waited for everyone to leave. Much to his surprise, Burman lingered while the others left in silence. Finally, with a nod, Ember left as well.

"Knight Burman?" Kylo asked.

"Sir," he greeted in return. "I have a question."

"Go ahead."

The Knight seemed to hesitate, his shift from one foot to the other looking almost comical for a man his size.

"How can it help me?" Burman asked.

"Meditation?" Kylo asked, uncertain of Burman's meaning.

"No. The Force." Burman sighed. "Daze and Dot will obviously be able to aim even better or maybe shoot faster. Shadow and Quicksilver will be able to hide better, I guess. But what will it give me? I'm brute strength, as Ember likes to remind me. I doubt more strength would do me much good."

Kylo couldn't help the small smile that curled his lips. That Burman was asking that question meant that he was sincerely considering the option.

"Prediction," he answered the Knight. "It will help you predict your opponent, as well as better keep track of those around you."

Burman gave him a blank look. "Sir?"