Naboo

That night, after the sounds of the welcome feast had died and the whole palace slept, Rey slipped away in the darkness from the comfort of her chambers to more uncertain territory. She could hear the gentle cooing of doves and the happy chirping of love birds; sweet sounds that traveled with the light breeze across the courtyard where their golden cages hung on branches, as she hesitated for a few minutes outside Kylo Ren's rooms, hoping he was still awake before knocking on the heavy wooden door.

Once. Twice. Three times.

Was he asleep?

She pushed the door gently and was surprised when it cracked open, slowly.

Peering into the room, which was bathed in the soft orange glow of the flickering flames in the fireplace, she could make out silhouettes of the furniture and as she stepped forward, she was overcome with the crisp smell of burning sandalwood. Someone, probably a maid, had sprinkled sandalwood powder over the firewood.

"Your Majesty?" She called.

The chamber was a lot like hers; spacious and rich, with high ceilings and ornate carvings, with the exception of there being a few adjacent rooms connected to it. And as she walked past all of them, peering in to see if he was inside, she heard a rustling noise from the room furthest from the entrance. Walking over and looking in she froze on the spot, taking in the scene before her.

Kylo Ren was seated on the cold stone floor, naked above the waist, legs crossed, hands resting on his knees and eyes closed. His smooth, generously muscled chest, glistening with beads of sweat rose and fell in a slow rhythm. He had clearly been practicing his sword skills before she found him; his sword lay before him, the blade glinting in the dim light cast from the main chamber.

Rey gazed in wonder and amazement at the sight of him. This young, sheltered Princess of Jakku had never even seen a man in such a state of undress before. It was as though something inside her had been poked awake, as though she were seeing him for the first time in her life. But now that she had seen, she couldn't unsee…and she just had to keep looking.

Seeing him half uncovered, she could finally appreciate how attractive he was as her gaze traveled from his full, pink mouth, to his chest and stomach and then wandered lower…

"Can I help you, Princess?"

Rey jumped. Kylo Ren's eyes were now open and he was looking at her with an amused expression on his face.

She turned away so that her back was to him and stammered an apology.

"Um…yes…I wanted to see you. But maybe I'd rather not do this right now"

Kylo Ren shrugged his bare, impressive shoulders

"Me too" he said "I usually reserve this time of night for exercise and meditation"

He rose from the floor in a swift motion

"But since you came all this way just to see me"

He sauntered towards her

"You're welcome to look"

Rey shivered. He was so close, close enough that she could feel the heat radiating from him and the smell of fresh sweat. As much as she believed she disliked him, there was something primal and inappropriate about this encounter that sent a thrill through her and she basked in that feeling for just a moment before turning abruptly to face him. She was taken aback by how close he was standing, towering over her so his whole body was blocking her. His skin was pale and smooth so that as the firelight cast its glow on his face and body, he looked as though he were carved out of gold, like the golden statue of a God.

No!

A God? This enemy? This usurper of her kingdom? This man was no God,

But he was also her husband

And he was beautiful

"Do you…Do you have a cowl or something you could put on?" She asked, with as much politeness as she could muster.

Kylo Ren did not argue. He walked past her to his main chamber and plucked a black silk robe from the back of a chair and slung it around himself, just ass the flames in the fireplace began burning lower. The golden glow that surrounded him disappeared and Rey saw the Kylo Ren she was familiar with, swathed in darkness.

"About tonight" Rey began, now finding it easier to speak "I don't know what happened. But I can tell you for certain that it wasn't me or any of my family…"

"You don't have to convince me Princess" Kylo interrupted. He eyed Rey with some concern "I hope everything goes smoothly for the rest of your parents' stay. I'll make sure it does"

He poured wine into two goblets and gestured for her to sit at his small work table with him.

"I thought you should know that I believe this was a deliberate attempt to undermine me!" Rey blurted "whoever did it was counting on your bad temper to get the better of you"

"My bad temper?"

Rey blushed, looking down

"I've never lost my temper more than I've needed to" Kylo uttered defensively, taking a sip of wine "When you're the ruler of a massive Empire and have that much responsibility on your shoulders and even the smallest of things matters, you do lose your temper"

Rey set down her own goblet of wine

"Yes, but a good leader is also someone who knows how to keep their temper and emotions in check, st the worst and even at the best of times"

"But If you hide your emotions and aren't impassioned about a cause, how do you muster the will to fight for and protect what you believe in? Or even inspire those around you?" Kylo chimed in

"Of course! But only causes that are carried out in the name of love and the desire to preserve life and protect people's freedom!" Rey snapped back "not those inspired by vengeance, greed and anger!"

As she said this, she remembered the promise she had made to her Goddess. The promise that she would bring her Kylo Ren's head as payment for what he had done to their sacred shrine. Coldness washed over her at her own viciousness. She shook it off…

"That's exactly what I want to do" Kylo said, interrupting her thoughts "I want to preserve life by uniting the kingdoms under one peaceful Empire"

"What you want to do is impose your rule onto kingdoms that don't want it. What you want is power!" Rey raised her goblet again, getting herself together.

Perhaps it was her feelings of guilt or the wine or the heavy scent of the sandalwood that lingered in the air that was making her braver than usual. Not that she had ever shied away from speaking her mind about things that concerned her. Tonight she had only wanted to make sure that there were no more misunderstandings between them about the events of the day.

"Tell me, Princess, do you have any idea what it's like to live through a war? To lose all your family to conflict? To have to live in hiding through near starvation?" Kylo leaned forward "Because me and my people do. I want to end this never-ending cycle of wars!"

"By creating more wars?" Rey countered

"I'm only trying to finish what my grandfather started. This was his doing. My parents and my uncle were too weak to do what needed to be done, but I don't intend to leave a legacy of war for my own children" He answered, offering to pour Rey some more wine. She raised her hand in refusal.

"Just think, Princess" Kylo continued "Would your father and any of his allied kingdoms ever give up the chance to rule an empire if they were offered?"

"My father would never…"

"Are you sure?" Kylo queried "How do you think Kingdoms came to be created in the first place, if not by factions and families fighting over power and control?"

Rey watched him silently and when she said nothing, he continued to speak

"And your kingdoms have been at war for centuries over territory. Your own people, some of them are family through blood and marriage. None of them would be willing to give up their power, even for a greater cause"

"And you?" Rey asked eyes narrowed "You think you're the only one carrying out the greater cause?"

"Yes, I do"

Rey smiled at Kylo and at his belief of his own self-importance

"Then you should share your power. No one can carry such a burden alone"

"I don't trust anyone" He said, simply

"And that tells me everything I need to know about this Empire you have built" Rey said, draining her goblet and setting it down with a thud on the wooden surface of the table.

Kylo Ren rose from his seat, indicating to Rey that this discussion was over. It was impossible arguing with her.

"It's really getting late Princess. We both have busy days ahead of us so I suggest you get some sleep"

When Rey did not rise immediately, he added

"Unless you plan on spending the night with me"

Rey stood up, a little irritated, but a little relieved that the tension between them seemed somewhat lessened.

"I don't intend to. Good night, your majesty" She said

"Good night, Princess" Kylo called as Rey walked to the door.

But as she was about to reach for the great brass knob, the door suddenly swung forward, nearly hitting her in the face. She jumped back just in time to come face to face with Snoke, who looked just as surprised as she was.

"Your Majesty, forgive me…I never expected" Snoke began looking past Rey to Kylo "We can talk tomorrow if that's a more convenient time"

"It's quite alright, General. I was just leaving" Rey said, before walking past Snoke, out of the chamber.


Snoke watched Rey leave with some relief.

He was not planning on asking the Emperor what she was doing in his chambers in the dead of night anyway, even though he had been informed of some interesting things that had transpired at dinner time by his informants.

He had bigger more important things to discuss at this time. He had been away for the most part of two weeks, overseeing the conquest of Dantooine, a very crucial part of their plans on the road to securing Coruscant.

"The King of Dantooine is amenable to the conditions you set forth in our letter" Snoke began informing Kylo of the situation

"So, he had no mind to wage war" Kylo muttered "that is very fortunate. This should be an easy job"

"Yes, they are eager to sign trade agreements with our other principalities. You know Dantooine has the best timber in the land" Snoke stated

"I'm aware" Kylo murmured, lost in thought, his head still full of his conversation with Rey

Snoke noticed that he seemed distracted

"There's something else" Kylo said "The King of Dantooine shall be rewarded for his compliance"

"Very well" Snoke agreed

"He has a daughter, doesn't he?" Kylo asked

Snoke didn't like the sound of that

"Don't tell me you're thinking of marrying her as well" he sighed

"No, no" Kylo waved his hand "Not for me. But I have an idea. And with the King and Queen of Jakku here, it's perfect timing"

"Would you mind telling me what it is that you're thinking of doing?" Snoke enquired

And when Kylo told him, he bit back his anger and said nothing. He wasn't sure what had happened between Rey and Kylo in the weeks he had been gone, but he was not liking the sound of where things were headed. Had she managed to gain some political influence with him somehow? Was this really her idea? Is that what they had been talking about tonight before he came?

"I want you to present my offer to the King of Dantooine" Kylo ordered "And I shall approach the King and Queen of Jakku myself"

"Very well" Snoke said. And now was the perfect time to bring up the thing he had wanted to mention.

"I heard what happened at dinner tonight. Are you alright?"

Kylo raised his head from the roll of parchment he was reading

"What do you mean?"

Snoke raised his eyebrows

"The little incident with the food? You know it is treason"

Of course, Snoke had found out about the curry fiasco. He had spies everywhere. Spying on everyone, including the Emperor himself of which he was well aware.

"Imagine a Princess resorting to such methods of revenge!" Snoke exclaimed, almost testing him to see his reaction

Kylo's head snapped up again

"The Princess and I talked about it and as far as I'm concerned she is free of any guilt"

"Ah" Snoke said "I see"

Kylo was still looking at Snoke and Rey's words about him being unable to trust anyone in his own circle played in his head.

"Is there anything you wish to tell me that might be useful?" he asked

Snoke smiled before professing that he knew as much as Kylo did. Once all discussions were over, he exited Kylo's chamber pulling the door closed, letting out a curse.

Phasma and her damned tricks


The gardeners had put out the torches lining the stone walls just over an hour ago so the garden behind the harem was steeped in darkness. In the alcove beneath the grand staircase that led up to the garden, two men crouched in the shadows, waiting in anticipation. They seemed to be talking to each other, though it was hard to make out the words through the humming of the wind.

A few minutes later, a palace guard marched past and the men froze where they were. As the guard disappeared around a corner, another figure appeared at the head of the staircase, this figure was small and hooded and as they slowly and quietly descended the staircase, nearly tripping a few times over the lengthy robe covering their body, the figure turned it's head to scan the surroundings, clearly afraid of something or someone. No sooner had they reached the bottom of the stairs, the two men hiding beneath lurched forward and grabbed the figure, pinning them to the stone wall.

A short, sharp scream pierced the air for a moment, vibrating off the fortress of stone and then silence again.

Poe had covered the woman's mouth as soon as he and Finn had her in a secure grip against the wall. Khema's wide eyes were filled with terror above Poe's hand as she tried to make out her attackers through the darkness.

"We know it was you!" Finn hissed "What did you put in the food?"

Khema tried to shake her head, but Poe's grip was so strong she could barely even move her neck

"If you make a sound, I'll run you through with my sword!" Poe threatened her

Khema moaned

Poe removed his hand from around her mouth and she was silent.

"Alright, start talking!" He ordered in a low voice

"I don't know…what you mean" Khema stammered

"Oh you know what we mean!" Finn spat "One of the kitchen maids saw you sneaking into the kitchen before the taster went in"

Khema's heart sank

Those kitchen maids! They were so easy to ignore and overlook, she hadn't even noticed she was being watched. But it would be her word against a simple kitchen maid's and she was Phasma's most trusted servant.

"Me? In the kitchen?"Khema laughed nervously 'What business would I have in the kitchen?"

"Important business apparently!" Poe mocked. He turned to Finn "Come on, let's search her"

"No!" Khema cried, causing Poe to slap his hand back onto her mouth. As Poe held her, Finn dug into the pockets of her robes and then her skirt and when his hand came up he was holding a small, shiny box. Finn and Poe looked at each other while Khema stood frozen in horror.

She had completely forgotten to discard the box.

Finn opened it tentatively and then sniffed the contents. He let out a cough, scrunching his nose before handing it to Poe, who also investigated the contents with his free hand.

"Well" he smiled 'I'm sure the Emperor would be happy to find out what exactly was in his food"

He snapped the box shut and held it up to Khema's eyes

"We've got everything we need here. Tomorrow morning you're going to explain yourself to the Empress and you will apologize to her" Poe growled. He pulled Khema away from the wall and pinned both her hands behind her back. As he and Finn led her back up the stairs, Khema's brain worked, trying to figure out a way to avoid seeing the Emperor. She knew his nature and how he punished those who crossed him. She was terrified of being on the receiving end of his wrath.

Surely, Phasma would help her…..

Surely