As much as she frustrated me, Laraya was quick. She already had a wheelchair ready for me and whisked me away the moment I sat down. We worked out way down hallways and to my surprise we didn't run into anyone. The hallways became dirtier and darker until we finally made it to a room that she punched a number into. Once we made it inside, she promptly locked the door and looked around.

"It needs to be cleaned up a bit, but it won't take me long."

"Why are we in this dumpy room?"

She turned to look at me with her hands on her hips.

"The General wants us to hang out for a while until she can safely get you out of here."

"And then what? Send me to a new base? I'm going to be hated no matter where I go."

"She didn't tell me. I trust her though. We will be safe here until she figures out something. As long as there is hope, it will be okay!"

I groaned and rolled my eyes. I hated the whole idea of hope.

"You are insufferable. Are you staying with me the entire time?"

"Yep! You still really should be in the medical bay still. I'm going to stay with you to make sure you're okay."

"Got anyone less cheerful?"

She smiled at me and shook her head.

"It's either me or someone that will kill you."

"If you start singing, I'll trade out with someone who will kill me."

She let out a cheerful laugh as she started to pick the room up. To my dismay, she started humming but thankfully didn't full out sing. I took in the rest of the room and wondered what it looked like back when the base was taken care of. It was a relic of an old war but still housed the same ideals.

"What were the First Order ships like?"

Laraya walked over and helped me stand, guiding me towards the bed in the back corner. Once she sat me down, she went back to cleaning.

"Tidy. There is no way that any of the ship would ever look like this."

"This used to be one of the best bases we had. We just.. lose a lot of people all the time. We don't have a need for this whole wing, so it doesn't get cleaned."

I nodded. I thought of all the stormtroopers that died during the last fight I was in. Kylo had fought by my side but he didn't understand that I had cared about the men inside the armor. I looked down at my leg and sighed. They had counted on me to lead them. I failed.

"You look sad, Aurora."

"Did they tell you how I was captured?"

"No. Just that the General wanted you safe and taken care of."

I motioned for her to pull a chair up and sit. I wasn't sure why I wanted to actually talk about what happened, but I did. None of it actually mattered. I couldn't change it nor would talking about it make me suddenly feel better. Maybe it was the fact the small medic actually cared about what I was saying. It was easier to chalk it up to being exhausted though.

"Instead of jumping on the transport ship with Kylo I-"

"Kylo Ren!?"

I chuckled and raised my eyebrows at her surprise.

"Yes. Kylo Ren. You do remember I am a Commander, yes?"

"Yes. Oh, I'm so sorry for interrupting you. Please, go ahead."

I sighed and sat back, getting more comfortable.

"Like I was saying, I ran back to help my men. If I hadn't, I doubt any of them would have made it out of there. We were overrun."

"Is that when you got taken?"

I shook my head and sighed again.

"I was in an.. understanding with General Hux. We.. I thought we had something, but I was wrong. He helped me up onto his transport shuttle, but he lost it when he saw I had a saber. He felt like I betrayed him."

"How? You're a force user!"

"He doesn't like the force. He hates it actually. I think it's just one piece of power he can never control. That and Kylo uses it against him often."

"They don't get along?"

I shook my head and smiled.

"No. Not at all. It was an.. issue when I started working with General Hux and stopped being.. around Kylo."

I realized that I felt ashamed of the fact I had slept with both men. Both situations were my choice, but it just felt cheap. There was no way anyone would understand what each time meant to me or how they shaped me. I wasn't going to get into it with anyone, especially someone in the Resistance.

"That sounds really complicated. Did he try to shoot you or something?"

"He shoved me off the transport. I barely grabbed onto my saber before I fell. I trusted him and believed that he cared about me more than I think he's capable of doing. That's why I don't believe in hope or any of that shit. I've been let down by everyone I've ever loved."

"You shouldn't give up on hope. You will find your place in the galaxy."

"I used to have hope like you. I used to think that love and light would save the galaxy. Now I know the truth. Hope gets people killed, little mouse."

She frown and stood, helping me get comfortable in the bed.

"I know you've been through a lot, but I hope you know I won't do anything to hurt you. You can sleep and rest up. I'm sure you're exhausted."

I grumbled but pulled the old blanket up, curling up into a ball. It had been days since I had slept well after the attack. As much as Laraya was weak I knew she was telling the truth. She would never do anything to purposely hurt me and that was more care than I had been given in a very long time.

I spent the next two days in relative silence. Laraya spent the day taking care of me and cleaning more of the room. I was glad that she was picking up on the fact that I didn't want to talk.

After I had fallen asleep, I was plagued by nightmares. I had always suspected that Snoke was helping if not causing them, but I was cut off from the force. I would wake up screaming and covered in sweat. The little medic never said anything just helped me up on my feet so I could walk around for a few minutes. Once I was tired again, she helped me into bed and let me go back to sleep without an explanation.

It made for long nights and even longer days. There was little to do other than watch Laraya work around the room and get lost in my thoughts. Neither one was comfortable for me to do.

I quickly realized that I was learning to care for the annoying girl put in charge of keeping me safe. I was noticing her little ticks like how she would hum when she got working. Once she was done, she would stand up and put her hands on her hips, smiling at her work. I caught myself smiling a few times when she would be proud of what she had accomplished.

I worried about what would happen to her when the First Order would eventually attack. Snoke and Hux were ruthless. They wouldn't end their hunt until everyone was dead, and that included the girl. I wondered if I could sneak her away with me but quickly squashed the idea.

I was going back to Snoke and he would kill her.

He would make me kill her.

"Hey, Aurora?"

I looked up at her and swallowed the pit in my throat. She would be just like every other Resistance member that I had killed in the throne room. I cleared my throat and hummed, hoping she would take it as a sign to talk.

"I was thinking about how you said you've been betrayed by everyone you loved."

I groaned and nodded.

"Well, if they were so willing to betray you.. I don't think they loved you."

"Oh, and how much experience in love do you have, little mouse?"

Her face turned a light pink and she looked at her feet.

"Well, not much, I guess. But I have felt love. I've loved people that would do anything to protect me."

"Yet here you are, on a dingy ass base guarding me."

"I'm not.. I'm not guarding you, Aurora. I'm helping you."

"You think keeping me captive here is helping me? The General feels the same way. It's a death sentence. You joined a cause for what? To help people?"

I scoffed and crossed my arms, glaring at her.

"I joined because the First Order killed my family. I had a good life, you know? Loving family. I got to go to school. I was going to be a teacher. I loved kids so much."

I relaxed slightly and felt my heart ache.

"I came home for the weekend since my school was so far away. The First Order had thought someone was there that they wanted for questioning. My house was in pieces and.. there was nothing I could do. That's why I became a medic. I figured if I could save one person then I could make up for my parents dying."

"And here you are, trying to save someone who very well could have made the order to kill your family."

"I know that. My mom would want this though. She wouldn't want you dead. She would want you to have a chance."

I understood what she meant, and I felt sympathy for her pain. It was astounding to me how open and understanding she could be when she was feeling so much hurt. She was a sweet girl that the war ripped everything from. She only wanted to help and love those around her. I chewed on my bottom lip as I watched her.

It didn't matter though.

This war was going to get her killed. Her innocence was nothing but a burden. Her love was a target. Everyone would abandon her when it was convenient for them.

She was no different than me.

"The only three people on this base that aren't stupid are the ones that hurt me, although they should have finished the job."

"Don't say that!"

"Listen to me! I either called that order or I was sleeping with the one who did. How can you sit there and look a monster in the eyes and call it anything but that?"

"Because I believe in the good in people!"

"There is nothing good left in me, little mouse. It's been beaten, shot, fucked and twisted out of me. If you had met me years ago, I would have agreed with you. I used to want to scream that the light would always win. But it doesn't. It will never win. The light is pain and anguish. It's a saber through the chest and being shoved to your death."

She wiped at her eyes quickly and set her jaw.

"You can't hide it from me. Sometimes when we sit here, I can see your humanity shining through. I see the good in you and feel the warmth coming from you. You aren't lost. I can't pretend to know what you've been through or what you've done, but don't tell me that there is nothing left of you."

"When push comes to shove, I'll kill you just to keep living."

"Then so be it. But I think that when it comes to that decision, you'll let me live because a part of you cares about those around you."

I scoffed and turned my back, no longer wanting to continue the conversation. She would be wrong. I was going to do anything I could to get back to Snoke, no matter who was in my way.

I hopped out of bed, wincing in pain, as soon I heard the door close. Laraya was slamming in the code locking the door and panting. She ran past me and started tossing stuff in a bag.

"What is going on?"

"They figured out where you are. We need to go. Now."

I could hear angry voices outside of the door asking Laraya to unlock it. They started pounding and I deflated.

"Just let them in. Don't let them think that you're willing to die for me, or you'll meet the same fate."

"No. The General gave me my orders and I will do them for as long as I can."

"You're a fool."

Once she packed the bag, she came over to me and huffed out a quick sigh.

"I need you to sit down. The bracers need to come off."

"What?"

She gently pushed me, so I was sitting, and she quickly dropped down and undid the binders on my ankles. She moved just as quickly and took them off my wrists. I was immediately hit by the darkness that was always following me, forcing me to take a sharp intake of breath. She looked at me with fear before forcing the bag onto my lap.

"You need to go. If you go up through the ceiling tiles you can get out of here without them knowing."

"They will kill you."

"I'm following my orders."

"If you die now, you won't have saved anyone. You're going to need to atone for this."

"Why do you care? You keep saying you don't care about anyone or anything."

"I don't. But.. I hope I'm wrong, little mouse. I'm sorry."

"Oh it's-"

I slammed my fist into her jaw then caught her before she could fall to the ground. I pulled the pain from her quickly as I laid her down.

"What? Why did you hit me? Why doesn't it hurt?"

"I'm pulling the pain from you right now with the force, so listen carefully. I overpowered you with a punch and took the key to the binders. I grabbed what materials you had and ran out the door. There was nothing you could do. I would have killed you in a heartbeat, especially with the force."

"Why are you doing this?"

"Prove me wrong, okay? Keep doing what you feel is right deep in your chest no matter what anyone else thinks is right. Save people in honor of your family. Just promise me that if things get too rough, you'll run. The cause wouldn't die for you, so don't die for it. Do you promise me that?"

She nodded slowly and looked at me with wide eyes.

"It's going to hurt a lot when I let go."

"Okay."

"Laraya, you'll believe every bit of the story I told you. You won't remember me helping you after, just the promise you made me."

"You overpowered me and escaped. I was knocked out."

"I proved to you that I am the monster I always claimed to be. I would have killed you if you fought back."

"You were too strong. You attacked when the time was right."

Her voice was monotone and her eyes empty. I hated using the force on her, but she was so gullible, I didn't want them realizing she had helped me. I smiled at her and gently rubbed the bruise forming on her face.

"Good girl, little mouse. Now sleep."

Her eyes fluttered shut and I let go. She was going to have a hell of a headache when she woke up, but for the time being she was safe. I slung the bag over my shoulder with one more look at the small medic on the floor. I prayed to the force that she would in fact be safe as I used the force to fling the door open. Either way, she was safer thinking I was nothing but a monster.

I used the force to help me run faster, dodging blaster shots as I made my way down the hallways. I had thrown them off guard when the door flew out of the track and smashed into them. I bit back anger realizing they were all chasing me instead of checking on Laraya. I forced her out of my mind and focused on getting out of the base.

I wasn't even sure what planet I was on; let alone how I was going to escape it. I took a left turn and skid to a stop when I realized the hallway ended. I cursed under my breath and looked around. There was no way I was going to get out of the hallway without getting shot or having to kill every single person running after me.

"Aurora, here!"

I turned around to see a false door and Leia poking her head out. I slipped past her just as the footsteps and shouting got closer. She slid the door shut with the force and grabbed my wrist, guiding me through the dark.

"Leia, what are you doing?"

"Getting you out of here. I called in a special favor."

"You knew they were coming after me?"

"Obviously."

We got to another door that she easily flung open with the force. I looked around and realized it was another bedroom. I immediately saw all the drawings and poems written in beautiful script. I walked over and touched them gently, forgetting that I had people hunting me.

"You still have these."

"Of course, I do."

On the paper was a girl with light hair running across a field with a boy with raven hair. Both of them were smiling and I could feel the warmth and light coming off the paper.

"Everyone always loved Bens drawings, but they forget he learned it from me."

"He loved drawing. He would stay up late drawing and writing. Master Skywalker always-"

I took my hand from the picture like it had burned me and stepped backwards. Leia watched me with concerned eyes but said nothing.

"I need to leave here."

"I know. It's nighttime so I'll be able to sneak you out of here. I have some black robes in my closet for you."

She walked swiftly over and pulled out a stack of black clothes. She handed them to me as I set the backpack down and started pulling myself out of the orange Resistance clothes, I had been wearing. I paused for a second and shakily ran my fingers across the branding on my chest.

"I'll find who did that to you."

"It doesn't matter, Leia."

I started pulling on the clothes she had and realized that they were Jedi robes. I frown but crossed them and wrapped the belt around me like I had been putting them on every day.

"Where did you even get these?"

"We don't really have money to buy new stuff. We've learned to hold onto what we have."

I slipped on the cloak and pulled the hood up, hiding my hair under it.

"Alright, let's go. There are more tunnels we can use until we can get to the ground. We need to be quiet and quick. I'll get you safely to the ship and then you have to go."

I nodded and followed her down the maze of hallways. I was surprised that we never got lost, but Leia wasn't one to accept failure. I could hear everyone talking loudly outside of the walkway and they were in a fury trying to find me. I found the irony that their General was the one harboring me amusing but didn't think it was the right time to say anything.

Once we reached the ground we moved swiftly through the trees around the base until we reached a clearing. I was focused on not tripping so intently that I almost ran into Leia when she stopped moving. I put my hands on her shoulders to steady myself and looked where she was glaring.

"Hey, kiddo."

"Han?!"

He gave me a sideways smile but looked back at Leia.

"You're early. For once."

"Yeah well there isn't many times that the General of the Resistance calls me for a personal favor."

"Oh, there have been plenty of times that I've called you."

"Oh, don't start, Princess. You know that I will help when I can."

"Do I? Seems to me like when I needed you the most you just took off."

Han went to argue back but she turned and looked up at me.

"Aurora, please stay safe. I still don't know exactly what happened to you but.. I hope someday you can forgive me for the part I played in Ben turning to the dark."

I wanted to tell her that I couldn't, but it wasn't the time. I just nodded slightly, and she pulled me in for a bone crushing hug. I hugged her back and stopped myself from breathing, knowing that I would end up crying if I didn't keep myself in check. I held so much resentment towards her, but she was still the only mother I ever knew. She pulled away and took my face in her hands.

"Do you feel it, yet?"

"Feel what?"

She gave me a sad smile and kissed my forehead.

"Nevermind, for now. Stay safe. Han will take you wherever you need to go."

She stepped back and pulled my lightsaber from under her cloak and handed it to me. I took it in my hands and gave her the first genuine smile I was able to muster for her. I nodded once and walked towards Han, fighting back a smile for him.

"Come on, kid. Let's get out of here before the Resistance decides to shoot my ship down."

Leia sighed but neither of us turned to look at her until we made our way up the ramp. She gave me a small wave as the ramp closed. I tightened my hand on my saber, focusing on the power coming from it.

"Where are we going, kid?"

"Right now, anywhere but here."

I hope I was able to show the conflict within Aurora. She could have easily killed Laraya the moment those binders came off. I wanted her to see a lot of herself within the girl and it obviously rocked how she was feeling.

I promise there will be more Kylo/Hux soon.

As always, your comments and follows are very much so appreciated. Love always!