Author's Note: Update! Okay so this particular arc is proving to be a bit bigger than what I had anticipated so it's still being broken down into parts. I just want to say a huge THANK YOU to everyone who has given me a review. I have over 70 and I am so grateful for your support!
Disclaimer: I do not nor have I ever owned Star Wars. I simply play in their world.
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Once upon a time in a galaxy far, far away...
Rey
The late morning air hits me and I suck in a sharp breath, swearing I could see steam coming off my skin.
I thought that time in the cave with Ren would have prepared me for the reality of him but nothing could be farther from the truth.
My hand against my chest, feeling as though my heart was trying to break free, it was still pounding from our exchange.
I lean back against the wall, just a little ways from the entrance, trying to get the bones back into my legs.
Praksis had mentioned a seventh bell...I was going to have to find a local and figure out when that was. I bite my lip as I stared at the entrance.
Ren had told me, not asked me, to wait for him. The logical part of my brain that was just barely functioning was telling me to get the hell out of here before he came up those stairs and hide in my ship until I needed to get to the warehouse district.
My heart, that infernal thing, was whispering for me to stay.
To be with him.
To continue this dance of words between us and see where it led next.
My fingers touch my lips and I can still feel the heat of his mouth on mine.
Sounds of footsteps on the stairs and my time is up.
I cross my ankles and quickly lift the scarf back over my hair, the dark shadows from the neighboring building doing much to hide my presence.
I stare at my nails as though I have nothing better to do and peek out of the corner of my eye to see who emerges.
I could be wrong. It could just be another patron leaving the bar.
"Remember my words."
I close my eyes at the sound. Darkness with a caress of violence, the low thrum of his voice once more setting wings of fire through my blood.
I turn my head just enough to see Praksis stumble over the top step, the tan of his skin bleached out. There is a sheen of fear in his gold eyes that was not there before.
Ren is a dark shadow behind him, a strange light in his gaze.
I wondered what he had wanted with Praksis that he didn't want me knowing about.
"I...yes, of course."
"You were right," Ren turns his head in the direction of my voice and despite the shadows, I have no doubt he can see me, "that didn't take long."
Praksis is also staring at me, the charm of his smile missing, and I see him shudder softly.
Curious reaction but Ren is already moving to me and Praksis slinks off.
He isn't my concern now.
"You didn't leave."
A touch of wonder in his voice as I glance up from my nails and give him a faint, amused smile despite the fact that I was trying desperately to conceal my trembling body.
"Well since you asked me so nicely to stay..."
I don't get to finish. His mouth is on me, his body pinning me to the wall and all I can feel is him.
His arms wrap around me and I yield to his silent demands, opening my mouth as I burn for him.
Tongue and teeth, his leg sliding between mine and my fingers are in his hair.
Breath for breath, the taste of him all I need.
"Mmm," I gasp as he pulls his mouth from mine, "Re..." his mouth back on mine, stealing the words from my very lips.
His leg between mine, a delicious heat that is driving me to madness. I twist my foot and grab hold of his vest and reverse our positions, his back now slamming against the wall.
Our bodies part and I take in a gasping breath, a soft growl leaving his lips.
"As much as I am," I pant out using my weight to keep him pinned, shoving my leg between his, "enjoying this we need to talk."
Dark fire in his eyes, lust sharpening his features as I feel his hands curve around my hips, keeping our bodies close together.
I swallow hard as heat pools low in my body where I can feel him pressed against me.
I'm holding onto the rational side of my brain by bare inches.
We stare at each other, he and I, a silent battle of wills between us.
Slowly, he leans his head back against the wall, his eyes never leaving my face.
"So talk."
"What are you doing here?"
The words come out harsher than I wanted but I don't take them back.
Cool amusement creeps back into his gaze but he doesn't loosen his hold on me.
"On a world that has sworn fealty to the First Order? Do I need a reason to be here?"
I blow out a soft breath, okay he had a point there. He was the Supreme Leader and all...which makes me narrow my eyes at him.
"So why is the Sup-mmmh!"
Two of his fingers pressed against my lips before I can finish.
"Don't," soft, purring darkness in his voice, "say that title. Not here. Nor the name that goes with it."
Well, wasn't that interesting. Why would Kylo Ren tell me not to use his title or his chosen name?
I pull my head back, freeing his fingers from my lips.
"Fine. I won't say it, Ben. Were you looking for Praksis? Is that why you're here?"
His silence is my answer and I shake my head at him.
"Fine, keep your secrets. You obviously got what you came for."
Which meant there was no reason for him to stay...and the thought of him leaving is like knives through my heart.
My tight grip on him loosens and in that moment he uses my own trick against me.
"Ben!"
His fingers pin my hips against the wall, he's using his height over me to his advantage as he once more traps me beneath him.
"I know why you're here but I want to know this; are you alone?"
"Why?"
The press of his leg between mine, desire sparking along my nerves at the intimacy between us and I feel one of his hands move away from my hip.
He cups the side of my face, exasperation on his face.
"Do you always have to argue with me?"
"Yes," I reply before I can censure my words, "it's fun."
Disbelief on his face now but quickly slides into amusement.
His head dips down and he presses his mouth softly against mine.
Just a brief taste he gives me before pulling back.
This time I'm the one growling at him.
"Rey, just answer me. Are you alone?"
I sigh and lean my head back, closing my eyes.
"Yes. I came here alone."
"Good."
I snap them back open and he is looking at me with a curious light in his eyes.
I let go of his vest and slide my arms around his neck.
"What about you," I murmur, still amazed that he hasn't left, "are you alone?"
"For the time being, yes."
So many questions that begged for answers. I could either ask them and possibly drive him away...or I could take this opportunity and just be with him for how ever long it lasted.
It was almost frightening how easily I came to that decision.
"So...what now?"
I didn't know fire could burn black but that is what I see in his eyes.
"You still have time before you need to collect your item."
"Yeah, about that. I don't suppose you can tell me when exactly is the seventh bell?"
A twitch of his mouth and I swear he's laughing at me. I pull my arms from his neck and thump him on the chest.
"Ben! Don't tease me, tell me!"
Both of his hands capture mine and he presses his lips to my fingers.
"How could I refuse such an order?" He lifts his eyes to me and tugs me off of the wall. "Seventh bell comes at nightfall. You won't be able to mistake it."
I look up between the buildings, the patch of sky visible.
It was barely passed mid-morning. I had hours to kill.
"Great," I mutter, "so what do I do in the meantime?"
"I might have a solution for that."
I look back at the man who still holds my hands captive in his.
That fluttery feeling comes back with a vengeance.
"Oh," only a hint of wobble in the word, "what's that?"
If he was going to suggest that...part of me desperately wanted to say yes, to finally quell this tension that existed between us.
But another part me, the part that I kept hidden so I didn't get hurt by others, trembled with hesitation.
"Have you ever toured an open market in a city?"
It was a good thing he was holding onto me, because that was not what I was expecting and it left me off-balance.
"W-what?"
That glint in his eyes and I swear he's laughing at me again. I mentally shake myself and strap some steel to my spine.
"No I haven't...why?"
He releases one of my hands but keeps the other in his.
"Would you like to?"
I look at our clasped hands and wonder, yet again, why it feels so right.
"With you?"
"Yes, with me."
Open amusement in his voice and I have never seen this side of him.
Somehow lighter...playful even.
I cannot keep the grin from my face.
"Lead the way then."
"Wow...it really is a market."
I can't keep the astonishment out of my voice as Ben leads me out of the alley and through the twists and turns of the city until we came to his 'open market'. The streets had been cleared, the buildings so far apart that colorful tents had sprung up and there were people everywhere.
Talking, laughing, even a few raised voices here and there.
His hand was still clasped in mine but he seemed content to let me drag him along to every thing that caught my eye.
"Where do we start?"
"Anywhere you want."
"I..." whatever I was going to say was drowned out by a rather loud growl.
That came from my stomach.
I looked up at Ben, who blinked at the sound I just made, and I feel the blister of heat across my face.
"When was the last time you ate?"
Smug amusement in his voice and I just wanted the ground to open up on me right there and then.
"I..."
Another growl, this one even louder...and it wasn't from me.
This time I was the one blinking at Ben...and I see the slash of heat cut across his face.
The grin spreading on my face only darkened the shade on his.
"About the same time as you."
This time I was the one who felt smug superiority.
I opened my mouth to tease him some more, who knew he could blush like that, when the breeze shifted and a tantalizing smell drifted on it.
"Mmm...where is that coming from?"
A tug on my hand and I look back at Ben, who has his face turned from mine.
"This way. We should get some food first."
Laughter is bubbling up in me but I manage to choke it back, I don't want him to think I'm laughing at him and spoil the mood.
"Sure. Let's go."
We followed our noses to a small vendor who was selling some kind of meat on a stick in a dark sauce that made my mouth water just smelling it.
"What is that?"
We were standing in line behind some other people who obviously had food on their minds as well.
"Some local dish I would imagine."
"Ever eaten it before?"
"No."
His dubious tone made me laugh and tug him forward.
"Come one, where's your sense of adventure? If you don't like it we'll find something else."
A soft sigh, but he doesn't release my hand and I ordered a helping for both of us.
I was digging for some money when I saw Ben lean over and drop some credits into the vendor's outstretched hand.
"Hey! I can pay."
"Not when you're with me."
The look he gave me made me roll my eyes before I took a large bite into the meat.
"Oh...mmm..."
It was sweet the sauce, at first, but then I felt the bite of heat soon afterward.
I was already half-way through my stick when I stopped to look at Ben.
He was staring at me, a wry look on his face.
"What?" I asked, the stick in my hand partially raised.
He reached over and wiped the corner of my mouth, his thumb covered in sauce.
"You missed a spot."
"Oh," I leaned over and sucked the sauce from his thumb, the spice and salt from his skin a delicious combination, "there, all clean."
He hasn't moved and I glance up at him.
The breath halts in my lungs.
"You can't look at me like that."
The words are a strangled whisper in my throat.
"Then don't tempt me."
His voice rough with desire and I have to remember we're in a public place.
A sigh from him as he lifts his food to his mouth.
"Eat Rey. I'm not going to ravish you here on the street."
I nearly choke on my food, his cool tone disguising the meaning behind his words.
"Ben!"
He cocks an eyebrow at me and I glare at him, finishing my food in three bites.
"Still hungry?"
I toss my stick into a nearby receptacle.
"Yes, thirsty too. That sauce was spicy."
"You considered that spicy?"
"Well," I mutter, dragging him with me as I look for someone selling something to drink, "when you live off of field rations for a month, anything tastes spicy in comparison."
There, another vendor selling some kind of liquid in different colors. Considering the Tammorian juice was a lime green, I'm a little hesitant on drinking anything with color.
"Lose your sense of adventure?"
I look back at Ben and give him a sour look. "Oh, ha ha. Since I chose the food, you can choose the drink."
A shake of his head and he approaches the vendor, picking up two cups with a dark, red liquid in them.
I give it a faint sniff, smells like some kind of fruit, and give a mental shrug.
Couldn't be worse than the juice from the bar.
I take a cautious sip...and then I gulp down the contents in seconds.
A sweetness of berries on my tongue as the liquid fizzes in my mouth.
"That was great," I lick my lips and sigh over my empty cup, "what was that?"
The vendor rattles of something in a language I don't understand.
"He said its a mixture of local fruit that is soaked in spring water."
I look up at Ben, who is already replacing my empty cup with a new one.
"You understand him? How?"
"He's speaking Tuu'lukin. An off-shoot branch from Naboo."
A pause and he glances at me, his eyes a slight, far away look. "My mother taught me the language."
Leia taught him...and he still remembered.
I squeeze his hand and he finishes off the drink.
"Come on, there's more to see."
Mild words that belie the shadows I saw just now...but then he squeezed my hand and the shadows disappear.
I let him lead this time, not questioning the happiness I feel being here at his side.
"This is beautiful..."
I caught a glint from a table and moved over to look. There were metal cuffs with intricate details carved into them. Silver, platinum, gold and zinc copper. I could only name a few of the metals.
Next to them were leather cuffs, equally detailed, and just as expensive.
"The lady has a keen eye."
I look up at the trader, an old man with a weather beaten face and twinkling eyes. I liked him immediately and returned his smile.
"Did you make these?"
"I did. The cold months leave little else to do."
"Are they worn on the wrist?"
Some of them looked to be a bit large for wrists, even male ones.
The scent of rain and frost and I feel Ben's hand on my hip resting there as his shadow falls over me.
"What have you found Rey?"
I look up at him, watching the way the lazy sun plays off of his hair, a tender emotion I cannot name welling up in me.
"Ahh, to be young again."
I blink and turn away from Ben, looking at the old man who spoke.
He gives us both a genial smile and he turns his attention to the man at my side.
"Your lady was admiring the cuffs I make."
He picked up the silver one with geometric patterns on it.
"The larger ones are made to be worn on the upper arm, not the wrist."
I take the cuff from his proffered hands and study it.
It really was beautifully crafted but I couldn't figure out how it worked. I saw no clasps, no way to open it.
"Like this. Hold out your arm."
Ben takes the cuff from my hands and I do as he asked. His fingers slide up my arm, surrounded by the metal, a sensuous caress that makes me skin pebble in reaction.
He moves the cuff until it covers up the scar on my arm...a memento from Snoke's praetorian guard where they had cut me.
It was heavier than it looked.
Ben was frowning.
"What, doesn't suit me?" I teased him lightly knowing I couldn't afford something so beautiful.
He removes the silver cuff without a word and I feel a jolt of disappointment.
I guess he really did think something that beautiful wasn't meant for someone like me.
But before I can move away, or even lower my arm, his is already sliding one of the leather cuffs on my arm.
It was a soft sable, simple but elegant. I look closer and see faintly the trace of vines and leave intertwining that had been worked into it.
"The silver is too flashy," he tells me his fingers lingering on my skin, "this has a natural beauty, like the woman before me."
Pleasure, deep and abiding, steals through me and I look at the cuff with longing.
It really was lovely...and practical. With this on my arm, covering my scar, I had one less identifiable mark for someone to find me with.
I sigh and with regret I begin to slide it off. His fingers clamp down on me.
"You don't like it."
Hard words and I look up, startled, by the chips of black ice that are his eyes.
"I love it," the truth spilling from my lips, "it's beautiful...but I can't afford it."
Ice melts away and some of the light returns to his eyes.
He turns back to the vendor and was asking about the price.
"Ben stop...please." I grab his wrist, "I told you, I can't afford it no matter what the price is."
"I don't remember asking you to pay."
Exasperation giving way to mild anger and I want to shake him.
"Look," I tell him sharply and finally he turns back to me, "I don't need your charity."
"Why would you think-"
"AHEM."
Both Ben and I turn to the vendor, his eyes regarding us with merry amusement.
I wasn't feeling so amused and from the look on Ben's face neither was he.
"Forgive me for the interruption, but it seems you two are still in the beginning stages of courtship."
Courtship? What was he talking about?
"I don't think..."
"Young man, you intend the cuff to be a gift correct? For your lady?"
I look back at Ben, my anger slowly giving way to puzzlement.
He gives the vendor a narrow gaze, who is smiling openly at him.
I hear the sigh in his voice as he turns his attention back to me.
"You were smiling, when you were wearing it," he tells me softly, "since it made you...happy, I wanted to give it to you."
"You did? You really want to buy it for me?"
No one had ever given me anything just because it made me happy. I was so used to fighting for what I wanted...I just assumed Ben was cruelly teasing me, showing me something I couldn't have.
"Yes, I really want to buy it for you. Now let me pay for it."
I can't say anything else because he is already pressing the credits into the vendors outstretched hand.
I let my fingers touch the cuff, knowing that I would never take it off again.
A gift from Ben that he picked out just for me.
I can feel the silly grin on my face and I entwine my fingers with his, lifting my hand to the vendor as he pulls me away.
A chuckling laugh as he lifts his hand in return.
We walk, hand in hand, through the stalls.
"Ben!" I laugh, pulling the sparkling beads from his fingers and setting them back down on the table, "you don't have to buy me everything I look at."
"But I want to."
I shake my head at him. "You bought me the cuff, that's enough. I just...I just like looking. Doesn't mean I want to own it."
He gives me a dubious look and I laugh some more pushing him away from the vendors.
I pull him to different stalls, just so I can see his reactions. He's different, somehow.
I could get addicted to seeing this side of him he only shows me.
"Do you want this one?"
"No! Put that down!"
I move towards another stall, this one selling clothing. I wasn't looking for me...but I picked up a shirt with long sleeves.
Black.
It was light but as I pulled it in my hands, I felt its durability.
I thought of the armor he always wore, at least until today, and wondered if maybe he would like this to wear beneath it.
I looked around to see him fingering some pendants hanging on a chain.
"Ben!"
His head snaps instantly in my direction and I smile and wave him over to me.
"Hold out your arms."
"Why?"
"Don't argue, just do it."
I feel, more than hear, his long-suffering sigh as he holds out his arms for me.
I quickly press the shirt against his body, noting the length of the arms.
"What are you doing?"
I pull the shirt away and fold it over my arm. I hate to admit it, but black really is a good color on him.
"Hi," I go over to the female vendor, "I'd like to buy this."
He's already at my side, his hand sliding around my waist. I no longer jump at his touch. In fact, I've come to anticipate it.
I hand over the few credits and let Ben pull me from the shop after she wraps it and hands it back to me.
"What was that about? You don't normally wear black."
"It wasn't for me," I tuck my hair behind my ear, my scarf having long since fallen off my hair, "it's for you."
I duck my head as I offer him the package, feel the creeping heat on my face. Why didn't Ben look this awkward when he bought me the cuff?
"I...I know its not much but I thought-"
"You...bought this for me? A gift?"
I look up, his hands holding the small, brown wrapping with a dazed look in his eyes.
"I did," I take a breath, "do you like it? I thought...you could wear it beneath...you know...your other clothing."
His hand is still holding the gift, even as I feel his other arm wrap around my waist, pulling me to him.
His head is already lowering I lift mine to meet his lips.
His mouth is soft, gentle and so sweetly tender I forget about everything around us.
Until a ragged scream cuts through the air.
I pull my mouth away from his, already turning to that painful cry.
There, I see a pair of legs kicking as several figures duck into the narrow strip between buildings.
"Rey..."
A warning in Ben's voice, but I'm already running, determined to help whoever had made that scream.
"Please...please don't...I just want to g-go home-..."
"Don't worry, little girl, you'll go home...as soon as we're done playing with you."
I hear the sound of cloth tearing and the sobs of a young, frightened girl.
"Hey! You want to play?" Five pairs of eyes turn in my direction, "Play with me."
"Well look what the gods just dropped before us boys. A chirpy thinking she's a Bount."
The world goes to hell right after that.
to be continued...
