Creeping into the village was much less difficult than crawling through the forest. Jannah knew exactly where to go to sneak past the guards, and quickly ushered them into a dark hut. Ben showed no curiosity, only wary caution, while Rey was full of questions. The first of which was making sure of exactly who Jannah was.

Before she could ask, though, Jannah ordered them into a corner and peered out a crack in the curtains to make sure nobody had marked their arrival. Seemingly satisfied after several tense minutes, she closed the curtains again and faced them.

"You're going to have a nice job sneaking out again once it's light," she said.

"When will that be?" Ben asked sharply.

"Four, five hours."

It was that late? No wonder exhaustion was hitting Rey so heavily as her body relaxed.

"You - lady -" Jannah spoke to her.

"Kira," Ben answered for Rey, and in her fatigue, she forgot to not react to the false name.

Jannah lifted an eyebrow. "Kira, then. You'll have an easier time avoiding the troops, I'd bet. You're both in good enough shape that should the guard see you, you'll both be targeted for recruitment, but if they were forced to choose between the pair of you," she rounded on Ben, "they'll go after you. They'll salivate at the thought of snapping you up." She snapped her fingers to emphasize her point.

"We have no plans to be snapped up," Ben said darkly, letting his cloak drape to the side to reveal his sword.

"Clearly."

"Your name is Jannah?" Rey interjected, and Jannah's head swiveled toward her.

"What of it?"

"Your brother is -"

"Finn," Jannah finished for her, her shadowy face hard to read. "The cause of all my troubles, apparently."

Rey's heart filled with dread. "What do you mean?"

"I mean that what happens to anyone who crosses Snoke - or to anyone related to anyone who crosses Snoke - happened to me," Jannah answered dryly. "They came for me not long after he took off, and when I wouldn't tell them anything - not that I knew anything to tell - they burned my home to cinders."

Horrified, Rey was afraid to ask what happened next. Jannah obliged her by going on, anyway, her voice bitter and terse. "They tried to lock me up, punish me, what have you. They thought in their stupidity that would benefit them somehow. But Zorii and Babu got me out, and hid me here. And we've been in and out of here ever since."

"In and out of prison?" Rey clarified.

"In and out to different places," Jannah answered shortly.

"You call it the Resistance?" Ben asked.

Jannah gave a brisk nod. "Here and there we've got people, doing what we can for others who've got the same treatment as me and are looking to defeat Snoke from the inside. Like you, at least if our mutual friend was telling the truth."

Rey looked over at Ben, who returned her gaze momentarily before turning back to Jannah. "Do you want to know what your brother is doing?" she asked tentatively.

Jannah's eyes narrowed. "What do you think?" Her voice was decidedly unfriendly. "Best to just keep quiet. We already know too much about each other."

"And we'll make sure it stays that way," Ben responded. "We'll be out of here at first light."

"Good. Make yourselves comfortable, then." Jannah rose and passed into the neighboring room, leaving Ben and Rey alone to shift for themselves and hope for rest.

Rey did manage to doze in the chair she chose, but it was a long time coming. Jannah's reception didn't inspire a lot of confidence. She had supposed that if she ever met Finn's sister, she would have been just as quick to befriend as Finn. But this woman with the sharp eyes and snappish answers was as prickly as the brambles in the woods had been. She couldn't blame her, given her experiences, but she wished she'd been allowed to give her news of her brother. Although, it was questionable of how exactly Jannah felt about Finn.

Rey was broken out of her restless doze by the door opening and slamming shut, and she blearily opened her eyes to see a short, wrinkled man rushing into the next room without a glance at her or Ben. Both of them had shot to their feet, and Rey realized that the hut was not nearly as dark. "Jannah!" the man wheezed. "They're coming!"

A loud rustle of bedclothes and a thud of feet on the floor were the responding sounds, and in a flash, Jannah emerged from the room. The pair of them pushed aside the table Ben had spent the night resting his head on, and Jannah knelt, scrabbling at the floor. Rey shared a quick, panicked look with Ben before Jannah's fingers found a crack, dug in, and lifted a square of wood to reveal a pit underneath the floor.

Jannah looked up. "Get in!" she hissed, and Rey didn't have to be told twice. Immediately she was down on the floor, swinging her legs through the hole and jumping in. She didn't look to see how far down she might fall, and her knees buckled under her when the cold ground met her feet before she was ready. Ben followed silently, immediately backing up to the earth-packed wall, the floor above barely clearing his head. Jannah jumped next, landing lithely and with practiced ease.

The floor closed above them, and Rey heard scraping as the table was pushed back into place. Tiny shafts of light poked through warped slits in the boards, and a cold fear insisted that whoever was coming, would easily see those same slits as they inspected the hut. Jannah crouched into the opposite wall, folding herself into a tiny ball, but Rey stood up straight, her eyes trained on those cracks.

The door opened again, and Rey's throat went dry as her breathing grew thin.

"You can't blame him," a feminine voice said. "He gets nervous in tight quarters; you know that."

"Right, Zorii," another voice answered. "But protocol dictates -"

"Yeah, yeah, protocol. I get it. Go ahead. Nothing you haven't seen before." The woman above almost sounded bored.

Steps resounded above them, and Rey willed her lungs to operate normally, but they were in no mood to obey. The air was getting thinner by the minute. And then, a small, furry something skittered over her foot. She managed not to gasp, but she was startled into movement, and she backed right up into Ben's front.

She wasn't in danger of falling, but he reacted as though she might, his arm wrapping around her as though to grasp her arm. He didn't take hold, but she felt his touch as his hand grazed along her sleeve, making certain she stayed upright. His hand moved across hers, and settled at her waist. The need to breathe became even more imperative, and even less likely of taking place when his fingers curled at her side. Rey told herself he was only keeping her steady, but her heart hammered so loud she was sure it would give them away.

"All right," the voice above barely cut into the drumming in her ears, "just keep a better eye on him. Don't want to have to put you in the lock-up again. These are not the times to be pushing back, Zorii."

"I hear you. Idiot cousins, what are you going to do?" The door opened and shut again, and there was silence.

Rey thought it best for her health to move forward and get themselves out, but Ben's hand slid across her waist, quick as lightning, and, spreading his fingers wide on her stomach, he pressed her back even closer to his chest. Now there was no chance that the rapid beat of her heart and volatile rise and fall of her breast would go undetected. His head was bent, his hair tickling her ear, and she could feel his hot breath skim over her neck. It would be either his breath or his hand, its span large enough that her entire belly was covered by it, that was the culprit behind her sudden death. She didn't know how long she could take being held so close, as lightheaded as she felt. There was one obvious solution her body was suggesting so she might have some relief, but it was hardly appropriate under the circumstances. Rey was desperate to regain equilibrium.

At long last, the table grated above them, and their temporary roof was lifted. Ben relinquished his hold on her. A woman with sandy hair and mysterious eyes squatted down, giving them all a wry smirk. "All clear."

Jannah was up in a shot, but Rey moved a little slower, requiring a helping hand to lift herself back up to the floor. Once Ben had hefted himself up, the woman - Zorii, Rey assumed - looked him over appreciatively. Rey looked away; seeing another woman ogle Ben was not something she'd been prepared for.

"If I had known what we'd be risking our necks for, I'd have made Jannah stage that fight with Babu. I would have been glad to keep you company waiting for daylight," she said, her voice silky smooth. Rey tried to control the scowl on her face, but she was afraid she did a poor job of hiding her expression, because Jannah caught her eye and snickered quietly.

Ben didn't respond to the blatant flirtation, and took out the money sack. "Your cut," he said, his voice strained. He held out the coins for Zorii to take, which she did with a quick hand, stepping in closer to him.

"Thanks," was all she said, but it was practically a purr, and Rey had restrain her urge to punch that inviting expression off her face.

Ben glanced around. "We'll be going, then."

"Wait," the little man appeared in the doorway, his voice still wheezy. Rey realized that this was not just due to panic, but his natural voice. "Give it a few more minutes; Francis has been hanging around longer lately."

Zorri rolled her eyes and sat down, stretching her legs out in front of her. Her seeming nonchalance was a further aggravation to Rey's nerves. "Oh, he's all right. Just looking for someone to notice him. He's no more suspicious than he usually might be. But, if he is hanging around, you two had better wait, like Babu says." She raked her eyes over Ben's frame again. "You're welcome to stay as long as you like."

Ben continued not to react to Zorii's less-than-veiled insinuations, which was the only thing keeping Rey from throttling the woman. She was surprised, however, when Zorii's face, eyes still determinedly fixed on Ben, shifted from interested to conspiratorial. "Likely you'd be interested in knowing what we heard in lock-up."

Her voice had changed, too, a furtiveness that belied her casual posture. "What is it?" Rey asked, warily stepping forward. Jannah hadn't been overly forthcoming, and she'd take whatever information she could get.

Zorii glanced at her, a strange smile passing over her features. "Oh, just that none of the army, loyal or not, are going to be happy if the rumors I heard are true about what's coming. And Snoke," she snickered, "he's going to go madder than ever."

"Mad?" Ben inquired. That word had caught Rey's attention, too. In all the time she'd known Snoke, he'd been vicious, dismissive, and cruel. But however mangled his body was, his mind had always been intact.

Zorii shrugged a shoulder, looking bored again. "The devil's probably been run off his feet, scarpering from one end of the country to the other, trying to inflict as much fear as he can so his troops will still fight for him. All that power he's held for so long, and he can't keep it much longer. All his damage is just driving more people to turn against him at last." This wasn't a shock to Rey, exactly, from what Maz and Ben had told her, but the additional information that Snoke was attending to possible insurrection in person was a new wrinkle.

Zorii shook her head with an indication of wonder. "If that missing princess knew what she set in motion . . ." Rey pressed her lips together in discomfort, feeling Jannah's sharp eyes on her.

"What about the rumors?" Ben pressed, more interested in hearing what new rumor was spreading rather than let anybody ruminate on the missing princess in her very presence.

Zorii lifted her eyebrows at him, a suppressed excitement dancing in her eyes. "Oh, it's said that an old war hero has resurfaced. And is on his way with the rest of the Realms."

Rey took in a quick breath, her chest suddenly tense with incredulous suspicion. "Who do you mean?" she asked, keeping her voice low. "An old war hero" was a term that could apply to many people, after all.

Zorii smiled secretively, and Rey wanted to shake her. She knew exactly what she was doing by keeping them in suspense, but maybe Rey could wrestle the information out of her faster.

It was Babu that answered. "The hero. The Emperor's Vanquisher." Ben snorted, and Rey had to keep her eyes from bulging. That was a title she had never heard, and she imagined that the man it referred to would despise it. But that didn't change the shock and hope that sprang up within her, and she exchanged a look with Ben, whose expression was frustratingly enigmatic.

"You mean Skywalker," he confirmed, turning back to Zorii.

"I mean Skywalker," she echoed, her secretive smile turning playful. "He was sighted in Aldera a couple weeks ago, and is said to be on the move with Queen Leia. Imagine what desperation that'll drive Snoke to now."

It would certainly draw his eyes away from the north country they were heading to, Rey thought privately. She chewed her lip ferociously. "And you're certain it's him?" she asked. "I mean, what you heard. You're sure they mean Luke Skywalker?"

"You can't fake that kind of fear," Zorii said seriously. "Or hope." She sat back, resuming her casual posture. "So if you're in the mood for more excitement, I'd suggest you head south. You might catch a glimpse of legend. Wouldn't that be something?"

"It really could be the final blow we've needed," Babu spoke up quietly. He looked around at them. "Snoke's grip is slipping, but without major steps like this, it would be months before the army would collapse in on itself."

"And the first step was Princess Rey escaping and thumbing her nose at Snoke in the process," Jannah supplied, a barbed look in Rey's direction. Rey averted her eyes, trying not to look suspicious. Jannah saw too much, in her opinion.

"Yeah, it would be nice to know if she's coming back, though," Zorii replied with a hint of disapproval.

"Do you want her to?" Rey asked before she could stop herself. She didn't look his way, but she could imagine that Ben was restraining himself from clapping a hand over her mouth again.

"Maybe," Zorii said noncommittally.

"She's proved she's no friend of Snoke or his plans," Babu reasoned. "Her escape started everybody talking, and we hoped that the news we heard of her meant that change was coming."

"But it might be a little more reassuring if we knew for certain she didn't take off just to save her own skin," Zorii continued. "She set off all this - the country wanting to follow her example and escape oppression, the war and Realms coming to help us fight, everyone rallying to her banner - and there's no telling where she is. We can't be sure she knows or even cares what's happening to us in her absence."

"Maybe she's got her mission, same as us," Jannah speculated aloud. "And we won't know until it's done."

Zorii looked at Jannah sharply, and even Babu turned to her in surprise. "That's a change in tune, coming from you."

Jannah jerked her head dismissively. "Just a thought. Rumors about Skywalker returning are unbelievable, but we'd like to think they're true. What if it's the same for her?"

Jannah knew. Somehow, she knew. Rey kept her eyes firmly on the floor, hoping against hope that her averted gaze would be attributed to deep thought by the others.

Ben finally spoke up again. "Thanks for your help, but we need to get going. We've stayed too long."

Zorii stood, and Rey looked up just in time to see her sidle up to Ben once more. "You sure? You could stay and help us out." Rey's nostrils flared; it was as though she wasn't even there.

Ben peered down at Zorii levelly. "Thanks, but we've got our business to take care of."

"Pity," Zorii said, backing up. "We could have used a good man."

"I'm sure you'll manage," Rey said tightly, and immediately her neck and cheeks heated up traitorously.

Zorii didn't bat an eye at Rey's response, but continued to back away toward the door. "I'll lead you out."

"I'll take them," Jannah broke in quickly. "Francis could come back, and I'm not in the mood to go back into the pit today. Wasn't a great way to wake up. I'd rather get out there."

"If you like," Zorii said.

After gathering their things that had been hurriedly tossed aside and hidden by Babu during his hasty entrance, and with a suggestive "Keep in touch" from Zorii, they were ready to leave. Jannah opened the door, and quickly bade them follow her around the side and back of the hut. They cut into the woods, and huddled behind a cluster of trees that were just beginning to bud.

From this vantage point, Rey had a clear view of the village. A cursory glance showed little out of place, but there was a strangely large number of people already out. A longer perusal, and she realized that most of the people walking around were in uniform, and they were making stops at every dwelling on the road, pounding loudly at the doors. Were they searching because last night made them especially wary, or was this a regular occurrence? She could also see more clearly that in the odd spaces between a few buildings were the blackened, charred remains of former homes. Had one of those places been Jannah's? And what was the fate of the others whose homes were lost to such destruction?

"Not pretty, is it?' Jannah murmured.

"We staying here much longer?" Ben asked impatiently, and Rey threw him a dirty look. Jannah was clearly supposed to remain in hiding herself, and was risking her safety again so they might find a way out. He might show a little sensitivity.

But Jannah didn't seem bothered by the question, and nodded her head in another direction, and they snuck their way along quietly until she stopped them again at the border of the town, sitting at the edge of a shallow dip in the forest floor.

"Which way are you headed?" she whispered.

Ben threw her a suspicious glance, but answered. "Northwest."

Jannah nodded. "Then I'd suggest you follow the hills a little longer before you come back toward the main road. The patrols keep a good number on the road for another few miles outside the town." Despite her hushed tones, her manner wasn't as brusque as the previous evening, and Rey felt safe venturing her own question.

"What about in the woods?"

Jannah shrugged. "Not sure. Zorii and Babu keep me pretty hidden when we go anywhere, so I don't see much. I'm supposed to be in prison; they're the faces of the operation."

"How have they escaped being imprisoned?" Rey ignored Ben's exasperated expression; he could wait another minute.

"Zorii's sneaky, and too valuable to the troops - she's able to get things for them on the black market that they otherwise couldn't get - so they often look the other way when they know she's involved in something. But that could change any minute, if a new unit commander shows up that's a stickler for the rules, if she crosses the wrong line, whatever. She works both sides and so far hasn't been tossed in jail for longer than about a day. Even when they search the house, they go through the motions. But if they actually saw me in there, that'd be a definite crossed line." Jannah locked eyes with Rey. "Same goes if they saw you."

"So we need to go," Ben hissed at her.

Rey made to follow him, but Jannah grabbed her arm before she moved. "I am proud of my brother," Jannah said unexpectedly. "I want him to be well. I just wish he'd given his actions more thought and how they would affect me."

Rey nodded. "He should have. We both should -"

"You need to go before your friend there explodes," Jannah interrupted. Rey looked to see Ben outright glaring now.

"Thank you," she whispered once more to Jannah, moving to join Ben, who was standing a few feet away, hunched over and livid.

"Good luck," Jannah nodded back at her.

"Good of you to join me," Ben muttered sarcastically when Rey did walk over to him.

The next few miles reminded Rey greatly of her escape with Finn, and not only because she was so close to where she had actually been with him. Ben's eyes were constantly on the move, their gait was slower and meandering, and to be seen now would be disastrous, whereas in Alderaan it was either a necessary evil or an inconvenience. They also wouldn't be able to speak along the way as she had grown accustomed to, although for the entirety of that morning, she was grateful for the excuse not to talk. Ben didn't bother to hide how irate he was, and Rey was annoyed with him for being annoyed by a delay of not much more than a minute or two. She also couldn't shake the image of Zorii making eyes at him; she wished she could slap away the memory like a bothersome fly.

They refilled their water skins at a small creek, and as Ben took a long swig, Rey thought back on what Zorii and Babu had said.

"Do you think Luke has really joined the fight? Or is it just rumor?"

Ben swallowed. "I think it's possible. There are more pieces in place than even I thought would be. That's thanks to you."

"Me?" Rey exclaimed.

"Didn't you hear them? All the ways you've inspired the people, and how they hope for your return. I only placed my knights in the army; I didn't know there was some nation-wide underground movement that involved civilians. It's got to be extensive, reading between the lines."

"But you set up the job to get us out of the canyon," she pointed out. "What kind of people did you expect to meet?"

He shrugged. "I just figured Alek would contract out some criminals or mercenaries, something like that."

"Sounds to me like they still are criminals," Rey replied thoughtfully.

"Depends on your definition. They could just be defying laws that Snoke has set up to keep the people in check."

"That's true." Rey looked at him closely. He hadn't reacted to Zorii's flirtatious behavior, but was it possible that, were circumstances not so tense, he would have returned her interest? "Zorii was friendly," she observed a little too casually.

Ben shot her a look. "No more than you were to Jannah."

"What does that mean?" she asked, bewildered. Nothing she had said to Jannah could possibly have been construed as flirtatious.

"It means you made it incredibly obvious exactly who you were," he declared with a return of his former irritation.

Rey could feel her face flame up. She suspected Jannah had guessed her identity, but she had hoped the suspicion had escaped Ben.

"You may as well have said, 'Oh, by the way, I'm your missing princess,'" Ben mocked with a roll of his eyes. "Any longer in that hut and you would have given it away with those big hazel eyes of yours while they were speculating about you. I thought you were more clever than that."

"And it was clever of you to call me Kira, the name of a famous mythical queen?" Rey retorted.

"Plenty of women are named after her," Ben argued. "And usually they don't react like a frightened deer when they hear it."

"That's not what I did," Rey muttered.

"And if you're going to point fingers as to who gave you away, how about your mention of your guard friend? And asking her if she wanted to know what he was doing?" Ben cocked his head in disbelief. "Examine yourself before you cast stones, there, Highness."

"I don't think she'll give me away," Rey replied quietly.

"That's not the point," Ben sighed. "It would have been one thing for you to slip up in Alderaan; here, it's a different story, and you know that."

"It could have been worse," Rey asserted. "At least they're on my side, in case you hadn't noticed. Or did you only notice Zorii and how friendly she was?"

"Excuse me?"

"'You're welcome to stay as long as you like,'" Rey imitated in a high voice. "Please."

Ben shook his head. "Clearly I didn't take her up on it."

"You didn't put her off, either."

His brow furrowed. "Wait, is this why you're upset at me? Because that woman was putting on some act?"

"Some act!" Rey scoffed. "That wasn't an act."

"Whether it was or not, I didn't ask for it, so you have no reason to be upset at me for it."

"And you don't need to get so angry just because I make you wait one measly minute to leave," Rey shot back.

"I wasn't angry about waiting. I was angry because you wouldn't stop confirming your identity to a woman we don't know!" Ben remonstrated, throwing his hands in the air. "It doesn't matter if she's on your side, and it doesn't matter whose sister she is. We're not in a position to stop being careful! And she knew it, too. She stopped you before you said even more to incriminate yourself."

"I'm sorry, all right? I made a mistake!" Rey cried out furiously, and Ben jolted, his eyes wide. Rey exhaled through her nose. "I'm sorry," she repeated, softer. Ben did have a point, and if that was why he had been so irritated, his behavior as they separated from Jannah wasn't so unreasonable. "Finn is my friend, and I only heard about his sister once, and I was happy to think that I could offer her some comfort, and it . . . I didn't think."

Ben walked closer to her, his face a little less thunderous. "You've got some remarkable qualities, Highness. Wanting to offer comfort to someone you don't know is one of them. But you've got to use your head."

Rey averted her eyes. "All right," she muttered.

Ben sighed, and she looked up in time to see him running his fingers through his hair. Oh, that was just unfair. When he spoke again, all trace of anger was gone. "Look, I shouldn't berate you for every mistake. We all make them."

"But you're right; this isn't the time to stop being careful."

"So you'll be more careful next time," he stated matter-of-factly. "And if you're not, I'll do a better job of stopping you."

Rey nodded. "And if I need a cover, could we make it a different name? I still think 'Kira' is too obvious."

Ben huffed out a breathy laugh. "Fair enough. You come up with something. And hope we don't have to use it."

He walked away a short distance, then turned back to her. "Do I need to apologize for that Zorii woman?" He sounded truly curious.

That cursed heat began crawling up Rey's neck again. If only she'd kept her mouth shut about that. "No. If you don't think she was sincere, she wasn't sincere."

His face scrunched in confusion. "And if she had been? Then I would have owed you an apology?"

"You really don't think she was genuinely attracted to you?" Rey asked, avoiding answering him. It would have been irrational to expect an apology when he didn't do a thing, yet somehow she still wanted it.

He shrugged. The idea seemed wholly foreign to him. "Women don't exactly find me irresistible. And if they did, it would be a mistake."

Hasn't stopped me. "Oh, really?" she asked skeptically.

"I spent five years hiding under a helmet and being Snoke's enforcer," he said gravely. "No woman should want me."