*AN: The chapters with strategy and action scenes might be a bit shorter than my others. I like writing the character development but I also wanted a plot outside of that.**
Last time on WO: Feelings are spoken aloud and are mutual. Our favorite space couple also shared their first kiss.
"So, we have some information about the layout and guards at the Onderon temple," Leia said, sitting in the chair that Ben had shoved aside. She chose to ignore the flush in their faces, and hoped that meant that they had a good talk and had worked things out. She could feel less guilty now, if everything was back to normal and even happier if it had spurred on them talking about or acting on their feelings.
"There are two parts to the Sith temple, it was only guarded on one of the sections, unfortunately the larger one. We couldn't see much as far as entryways, but they were concentrated on one corner so we are guessing that is it. There were about 100 Aki Aki patrolling around, with a camp about two miles away near the water source, where the backups were stationed. The guard is slightly reduced at night, but not sure if it's the best or worse time for ambush. The moon is dark, and any light source would stick out. And there is fog. Lots of it. It breaks in the morning but not before that, and it hits full force once the sun sets," Han explained.
"We could make a diversion. Chewie could gently crash the Falcon, and several of us could go ask for help. Luke, you and Ben could set off an explosion on the other side of the temple, and that should thin the guards out even more. Then you can sneak in. I could come with you, I might be able to help," Leia said.
"I think that you'd do best staying with Chewie and Han to get 'help' for the Falcon," Luke said quietly. "If we go with this plan in particular."
"The biggest problem I see is that we will need extraction. Mom, Dan and Chewie can have the help, draw a number of them away from the temple. And once they finish the assist, you can get away that way," Ben added.
"How do we know that they will leave their posts to come and help?" Rey asked. "Also, where do I fit into this? I can help blow things up and go in with Ben and Luke."
"No!" Ben and Luke answered at the same time. Rey frowned, almost pouting.
"You are still healing. And while you are strong in the force, you have only trained for a couple months and not even full training because of your physical strength," Luke answered.
Rey didn't like it, but Luke definitely had a point.
"So, what do we know about these Aki Aki?" Leia asked. "The only thing I really know is they have the Festival of Ancestors on Passana."
"From what I've read, Aki Aki are peaceful, welcoming people. I think they would be a good choice for guards since they respect duality-respecting the balance of light and dark. They wouldn't want either to rise to power through the artifacts, creating a disturbance in that balance. If they don't pick a side then they would be less likely to succumb to bribery from either side. And being immune to mind tricks, they cannot be influenced in that way," Luke said.
"So, that is another hurdle. And the easiest plan eliminated for getting in after the distraction," Ben added.
"You would use the force that way?" Rey asked, not necessarily condemningly.
"Sometimes the greater good calls for measures that aren't ideal," Leia said, the diplomat in her shining through. Rey considered and nodded. It was off the table for this mission, but it only highlighted to her how little she really knew about the Force.
"I thought of a way I can be helpful even if I can't actually enter the temple. If they are caring people in general, if there were someone injured on the Falcon, wouldn't that be an incentive for them to come? I could even cause some trouble while I'm waiting. The ship has longer range guns, right?" Rey contributed.
"That could work. How do we know they won't call reinforcements from the camp though?" Han asked.
"We'll have to crash in the opposite direction. And use some convincing acting skills at how injured Rey is," Ben said. "And as far as extraction, do you think Poe and Shara would be down for some fancy flying between friends?"
"I will contact them but I don't know when they will receive the message or be free to help. But they would probably be an ideal choice," Leia said.
"We have time," Luke said. "I haven't found much about what sort of force traps and shields they might have used. Or rather, there are way too many possibilities. Though most of them are for minor jobs, or they wear off fairly quickly. Ben, I could use some more help with the Jedi texts. I know that ultimately we will have to rely on gut instinct and the Force guiding us, but I can't go in completely blind."
"You're right. Rey should help too. If you want?" Ben asked, giving Rey a smile. "I know that we've been through some of them, but there is actually some good information in between the mind numbingly dry and dull parts."
"Yes. I would like that. Can we do the readings somewhere else? I am so tired of this room," Rey said excitedly.
Luke gave an indulging smile. "I think that can be arranged. Let's work on that tomorrow after lunch? For now, I have some students to attend to."
"And I am going to go join Chewie, he's making some mods on the ship," Han said, shooting Ben a wink. "Maybe we could stop by my room for some parts, Lei?"
"Ugh. Right, parts. Gross," Ben exclaimed, miming gagging.
Han laughed but still pulled Leia out the door with him.
"Parts?" Rey asked, raising an eyebrow.
"You don't want to know, trust me," Ben answered, chuckling as he pulled Rey into his lap. She looked so tired, and she'd been sitting up for quite a while and it was still so new to her. Besides, he just wanted her in his arms.
She rested her head against his shoulder and placed a light kiss to his jaw. He did the little half smile she loved and brushed her hair away from her neck. He traced his fingers from her cheek, over the slope of her jaw and down over her pulse point, and she shivered. His smile became mischievous and placed her head further down his arm so he could bend over her to suck lightly there. She shifted in his lap and moaned quietly. Ben shifted her on his legs so that she wasn't pressed against his growing erection, and pressed a closed mouthed kiss there before raising his head to meet her eyes.
Rey's eyes were dark and stared right back up at him. She looked hungry. This time it was Ben's turn to shiver. She leaned up and grabbed either side of his neck, and pulled him down to her mouth. When she opened her mouth to suck on his lower lip, this time he met her with his tongue, putting gentle pressure, requesting entrance. She hesitated, but opened her mouth too. They tilted their head and suddenly their lips and tongues were connected in the age old dance. Ben didn't know what he was doing, just acting on instinct and what felt good to him. He wasn't sure, but he didn't think that Rey had experience either. If she was a skin slave then she wouldn't have been working so hard doing physical labor. He would love her either way, of course but it just flitted through his mind as he considered his own level of experience.
She hummed into his mouth and it sent lightning through his veins and straight to his lower half. She shifted again, and this time Ben was too wrapped up in sensation and the open bond giving a sort of feedback loop of desire, and the contentment of the bond being whole with both shields dropped. She broke away gasping for breath and wiggled a bit, shifting her weight. When she did it again, Ben's eyes nearly rolled back in his head. She was now positioned directly over his hardness. Force, Rey. Get still. He moved his hands to grip her hips but she still moved again. He hissed and she jumped a bit, this time she slid off his lap and hid her face in his neck.
"Um. Did I hurt you? I'm sorry." She mumbled into his neck.
He took her face in his hands and waited until she met his gaze. He felt guilt and embarrassment in the bond. "No, Rey, you didn't hurt me."
"I… I felt you. And then you made that noise so I wasn't sure."
"That noise was pure pleasure. I didn't mean for you to feel that, I just got caught up in the moment, I'm sorry."
Rey blushed and looked away. "Well, I know boys are different. So, it's just natural, right? I just never felt it before when you were holding me."
Oh Force. "Um, yes. Guys are different. Do you… Do you know what that means?" Ben croaked out. He'd only had sex talks from Han, and Chewie if he has a specific questions, but that was usually just awkward. Like this might be.
"Well. I know that on Jakku women in the pleasure tents usually didn't end up round or with a baby. But other couples did have a baby if they went home with each other. I've seen them kissing," Rey paused. "But I know that you have to do more than kiss to have a baby. One man kissed me when I was a bit younger. It was disgusting. His breath was horrible and he was so much older than me."
Ben growled softly, wishing he could go to Jakku and punch this nerf herder straight in his disgusting mouth.
"He was the first and last. I broke his nose with my staff, and he didn't really even meet my eyes after that. But it's nothing like kissing you. I could do that all day, and it makes me feel good, more alive, more connected to you. But I also know that relieving yourself works differently from me."
Ben cleared his throat and shifted uncomfortably. His hardness was effectively squelched by Rey's mention of her first kiss, as unwilling as it was. And at the prospect of having to explain sexuality to Rey. He had half a mind to go interrupt his parents and drag Leia back to have this conversation. But at least she knew the physical differences.
"Ben? Why does it feel different now?"
Oh stars, strike me down now. "Have you ever touched yourself, Rey?"
Her face colored. "Yes, sometimes. It was alright but it wasn't what I expected. So I didn't do it much. Do you?"
Sithspit. "Yes," Ben answered, hiding his face in Rey's hair.
"Do you like it?" She continued, ignoring or oblivious to his discomfort.
"Yes," Ben answered, his voice cracking a bit. He almost left it at that, but he wasn't sure that Rey would, so he decided that could help with his explanation. "When I touch myself, or when I like something we are doing, like kissing, that is when my… manhood gets harder. Normally it isn't. That's why it feels different."
Luckily Rey left it at that as far as the awkward questions went. "So, it feels good? Does that mean that we can keep kissing?"
"Yes, definitely."
And they did just that until Rey could barely hold her eyes open. Ben cradled her in his arms, inhaled her sweet scent and he buried his face in her hair, and drifted off to sleep.
He just hoped that his dreams were under control. He didn't want to explain that to Rey if he lost control while sleeping.
**AN: From what I have read-Aki Aki seemed to be a good choice-though there are limited sources I thought we'd go with 'rule of cool' that they are resistant to mind tricks and the force.
the Quote from databank/aki-aki
"The native Aki-Aki of Pasaana revere the duality of life, both tenacious and fragile."
-Also, on to the fun part. I didn't imagine that any of the holos she'd find on destroyed ships would give her any depth of knowledge about sex. And I found it funny to make Ben embarrassed that way. He's so self conscious all the way. And Rey likes to learn, after all. So let's just go with it so that I can make fun, awkward scenes like this, unless you hate it?**
