"I've been thinking it might be time that we start seeing if we can do all the things that Kaine told Eir about." Rey spoke up awhile later, once again using him as a pillow, her back resting against his chest. "She mentions how Kaine and her partner were always able to find out each other's location solely through their bond." She reached a hand out, using the force to bring the aforementioned book to her and opening to specific page. "It would be a good thing to learn if we ever end up get separated again."
"Honestly if I had known how to do that when you were with Luke, I would have run to you and wouldn't have let anyone stop me."
"I know you would have." Ben could feel her grinning, imagining the sight of him running to defend her. It was an alternative he would have preferred, and he briefly entertained the thought that maybe, just maybe, if he had gone to her that perhaps he would've turned then, and they could've gotten to their current place sooner.
But that didn't happen. Instead, you took her right to the enemy
"What did happen there?" He asked, trying to distract himself from darker thoughts, "Our connection had been cut off so abruptly, that I was afraid Luke had done something to you, besides destroying the hut you were in. After all, he had punished me for going even a little into the dark; I was worried that the same would happen to you."
Rey shook her head. "He didn't do anything to me; instead it was the opposite. I confronted him about what had happened with you and he admitted that it was a mistake that he regretted."
'I failed you Ben; I am sorry'
The more he thought about it with a level head, the more he realized what Luke's appearance to him had really meant. It wasn't just the old Jedi trying to stall for time so that the resistance could escape; he had come to apologize for what had happened, even though it would lead to his end. It had been cathartic in a way, going against the old man as he had, but he hadn't been ready to accept it at the time. Honestly, he wasn't sure if he was even ready to accept it now.
He sighed heavily, leaning forward against her with his arms wrapped around her waist and resting his forehead on her shoulder. Even after the events at Crait, he still couldn't think about Luke without feeling angry. About what could have been if only Luke had left him alone and hadn't been such a coward.
Can we...I don't want to think about this right now.
He felt her reach up and place a hand softly on top of his head, warmth radiating from her touch.
Alright, Ben. Just know that I am here when you are ready to talk about it.
"Thank you." He whispered against her softly.
"It says here that Kaine mentioned that she was able to see some sort of thread tied around her wrist," Rey began after a moment, turning back to the book and creating the distraction that Ben needed, "but I don't think I've ever seen anything like that, have you?"
"I don't think so." Ben said, finally looking up again so that he could see the entry in question for himself.
Today when I saw Kaine I thought that she had become even more unwell, as at first, she had seemed to be gripping her chest tightly. But looking closer she was actually gripping something tightly in her hand. I asked her what it was and she held out her hand to me, but I didn't see anything. Still Kaine continued to stare at her hands, and whispered "It's broken." She collapsed into sobs then, and I could not bring myself to question her further.
Finally, this morning Kaine explained to me what it was that she had looked to be holding the other day. She described it as if there was a thread wrapped around her wrist, but even after hearing that try as I might I still could not see anything. She told me that the other end used to connect to her partner, but now that it just hangs loosely, no longer attached to anything. They used to be able to find each other with it, but now...Kaine never did finish the thought, and I wasn't about to make her.
"It would've been nice if Eir was more specific. The thread that she mentions – was Kaine and her partner always able to see it? Or did they have to do something specific for it to appear?" While Ben was glad that they had the ability to learn more about being a Dyad, he wasn't so thrilled that Eir's book read more like a diary and less of a research journal.
"We're lucky we have this at all." Rey spoke up softly, lightly running her fingers over the letters on the page. "Kaine was in a lot of pain in the end, and it was hard to talk about. She didn't have to tell Eir anything, but she did. She fought through the pain because knew there would be another Dyad pair some day and wanted her knowledge to be shared."
"...That was from your vision from before, wasn't it?"
"Kaine said that she wanted those who came after to be prepared. She didn't say exactly what for, but probably for everything that having such a bond entailed. To be ready for everything; the good and the bad."
"And we will be."
Rey nodded firmly. "We will. Nothing is going to separate us ever again, right?"
"It's a promise."
/
They sat there in silence for a bit, just enjoying each other's company. Even if there was a part of Rey's mind that was sure that this moment of peace couldn't last forever, she was determined to enjoy it nonetheless. After all the suffering and nights spent so alone, they deserved this. They deserved to be left alone, free to be no one but themselves.
"Are you alright to talk about your vision now? What else did you see?" Ben was the first one to break the silence, and Rey couldn't help the small smile that crept its way onto her face. She knew he had been curious since she had first touched Eir's book, but was only now that she had brought it up again that he had allowed his interest in it take hold. It was adorable, and she loved every second of it.
"After Kaine died, Eir traveled a lot," Rey began, "she went looking to find a balance like Kaine had mentioned. I didn't see if she found it, because rather abruptly I saw her back here, on Ekair. There was fire everywhere and it looked like it was during when the empire was here. She – oh." She cut herself off then, things suddenly clicking into place.
She couldn't see much from her vantage point within the TIE fighter, but she could see Eir on the ground, face a mask of pure fury. Rey couldn't hear what Eir was screaming, but she could feel the raw, unfiltered anger. Eir was controlling the plant life around them, pulling up roots from the ground and using them as weapons, providing cover for her small band of warriors to charge forward.
"Rey?" It was only when she heard Ben's worried tone and felt his hand on her shoulder was Rey pulled her thoughts.
"Ben," Rey began, looking up at him and placing her hand on top of the one he had on her shoulder, "when I first touched Eir's book the last thing I saw was her sitting in front of a ship watching the occupation of the village, and then later when we were at the ruins I saw her leading an army against the imperial base. I hadn't realized it at the time, but now I'm sure the two events are connected."
"And you believe that she's the one who changed the logs."
She nodded. "I can tell Eir is very protective of this place. She looked devastated when she saw the destruction here, and it must have taken a lot of work to get it to the point where she can honestly say that Ekair is a safe haven for people. Wither she changed the logs herself or got someone else to do it, I don't know. But now I understand why she did it and continues with the ruse. It gave us a much more pleasant place to live, didn't it?"
"I suppose you have a point, even if I can't say I'm exactly thrilled about being lied to."
"I know. It probably wouldn't hurt to still ask her for more details later, just to make sure we have the facts straight."
"After you're done with your lazy day, right?"
"Don't deny that you aren't enjoying this." She said with a grin.
"Alright, you've got me there."
They stayed that way the rest of the day, just talking, laughing and enjoying each other's company, only getting up long enough to get food.
The next day Ben awoke to the sound of rain and distant thunder. He looked down to find Rey still fast asleep and pulled her closer, placing a soft kiss in her hair. She smiled but didn't wake, instead snuggling closer into him. He closed his eyes again, knowing that he wouldn't be able to get back to sleep, but instead choosing to enjoy the moment. Night had never been his favorite, but he was quickly growing to love the quiet, peaceful stillness of morning.
It was awhile later when he felt her finally begin to stir, and she looked up at him with a gentle smile. "Good morning, Ben."
"Good morning, sweetheart." He leaned forward again, this time placing a kiss on her forehead. If nothing else, being able to greet her like this every morning was worth surviving all the years that came before.
They were mostly through eating breakfast when, although muffled through the rain, the unmistakable sound of a speeder was approaching them.
"Who could that be?" Rey wondered out loud, setting down her plate and going to stand at the mouth of the cave, with Ben following behind her.
"I don't know. There isn't any reason anyone would be in a hurry to see us, unless they found -"
No, that isn't going to happen.
Rey grabbed his hand, cutting him off before he could jump to far into conclusions. "It's going to be fine. I'm sure it's something else."
But it's raining, Rey. Who would bother to come see us through that if it were nothing?
Hey, some of us like the rain.
She gripped his hand tighter and he sighed, latching on to her confidence that everything would be fine.
They didn't have to wait much longer for an old, beat up speeder to come into view, with Vikki riding it. She stopped just inside the cave, face worried and lacking the bubbly aura that had bothered Ben so much the last time they had met. "Is Squeak here?" She asked in a rush before either of them could ask what she was there for.
Confused, Rey was the one to speak up for the both of them. "No, we haven't seen her. Did something happen?"
Vikki's frown deepened. "I wasn't there when it happened, but from what I was told the other village kids were trying to get her to play with them but she refused. They kept bothering her and eventually Squeak just…threw them away. I think it was that force stuff that Eir goes on about sometimes, but that's besides the point. Squeak ran away after that and no one can find her anywhere!"
Ben looked over at Rey, sharing a look with her.
Squeak is force sensitive-
-and terrified of it.
"We'll help you look for her."
They had hurried inside after that, Vikki agreeing to wait for them to get dressed and give them a ride to the village.
Rey had dressed in the outfit that he had seen her wear on Ahch-To, with her hair put up into one simple, messy bun, while the rest of it fell over her shoulders. Despite the gravity of the situation, Ben couldn't resist reaching out to touch her hair softly.
"This always was my favorite hairstyle of yours."
"I had a feeling it might be."
Once they were done, they rejoined with Vikki and the three of them headed to the village.
"Any news?" Vikki asked once they had met up with Eir.
The older woman shook her head. "I'm afraid that she may have strayed past the village borders and gone into the dark woods."
"We can't just leave her out there." Rey said firmly.
Eir nodded. "Indeed. I've gathered those who are willing and able to form a search party to go looking for her. If the two of you would like to help, it would be much appreciated."
"We'd be happy to." Rey said as Ben nodded next to her.
"...I should go too." Vikki's voice was just above a whisper, barely able to be heard over the pouring rain. "Squeak's my responsibility and I failed to keep an eye on her. I should be there to help." The woman was shaking, and it wasn't just from the cold; all it took was one look and Ben knew that it was more in part due to fear of going somewhere dangerous.
"My dear, that's why you should be staying here." Eir took Vikki's hands gently in hers as she spoke, "If Squeak should find her way back here, she will want a friendly face to come back to. It's a very important job that someone needs to stay behind for, and I think you are just the person for it."
"Thank you." Vikki said with a nod, some of the fear draining out of her.
"Of course. Now why don't you go get warmed up? I'm also sure that the wait will be more bearable with company; Ranulf will met you at the tavern."
"I will." Vikki turned to Rey and Ben, flashing them her trademark grin, even if it did feel a little forced. "I'll be waiting with food and warm blankets so you better hurry back safe!" She turned and ran off after that, not waiting for an answer.
"Remember to tread carefully through the dark woods," Eir began once the search party, consisting of only a handful of other people, had gathered at the edge of the of the village, "this territory belongs to the forest creatures and if you encounter one, only kill it if absolutely necessary. On the off chance that you do, I expect that you will treat it with the utmost respect."
The small crowd around them nodded, a few of them muttering their agreement.
"Did everyone get a flare? If and when you find Squeak, send it up and everyone will meet back here. If no flare is seen by true nightfall we shall meet back at the village." Eir took a deep breath, before looking at each person in the gathered crowd. "I wish you all luck, and above all, I bid you to be safe." They split into groups of three after that, each heading in different directions, with Eir leading her own group forwards into the deepest part.
The dark woods were aptly named; the trees here were denser and taller than the rest, blocking out most of the sun and making it appear as if night had come early.
"If we split up further, we could cover more ground," Amir began after a bit, the sole other person that Rey and Ben had in their group, "which means that we can find Squeak quicker and get her back to safety."
"Are you sure it's not because of something Ranulf told you?" Ben asked.
"And why would you think that?"
"Just a feeling." Ben had sensed an unease from Amir ever since the three of them had been paired together, and hadn't been able to resist the urge to skim the older man's thoughts to find out why.
Amir shot him a look. "Whether or not I believe what Ranulf says has nothing to do with the current situation. I still maintain that splitting up individually will be more effective." He turned away from them, heading off in a different direction.
Once Amir was out of earshot, Rey sighed next to him. "I thought you weren't going to do that anymore."
"You can't tell me that you don't know he wasn't happy when we got paired together."
"That may be true, but I don't think it was the right way to go about handling it. For all we know, you could just be fueling whatever it was that Ranulf told him."
"You have a point there." He said with a sigh of his own. "Maybe one of these days I'll manage to make it through without messing up."
"But you're trying, and that's what matters." Rey smiled at him, placing a light hand on his cheek. "He does have a point though; we would cover more ground if we spilt up, at least physically."
He nodded slowly, taking her hand in his. "Just make sure you keep in contact."
She grinned. "Of course, you're not getting rid of me that easily."
"True, you're too stubborn for that."
"You're one to talk."
He chuckled, placing a light kiss on her hand before they parted.
Good luck, be safe
/
Rey didn't know how long she had been looking, but she didn't mind. The rain had lightened to a light drizzle at this point, and even though the situation wasn't the greatest, she still found herself marveling at the sheer size of the trees around her. She slid her had across one of the trees as she passed, wondering at how it was that it could have reached such a massive size.
So distracted was she by observing the dark wood's plant life, that she was taken by surprise when a hot, searing pain struck her. She jumped slightly, reaching up to her cheek and whirling around to try and find the source of the attack, only to realize a moment later that the pain wasn't coming from her.
"Ben..." She whispered, swallowing hard and trying to ignore the knot that was beginning to form in her stomach.
Are you alright?!
She held her breath, waiting with growing unease for his answer.
...A little busy here!
That isn't an answer!
Her eyes widened and she tried to see him, but whatever it was left him too distracted to answer. The knot in her stomach continued to grow worse as she tried frantically to figure out which direction his voice had come from. She could pick a random direction and hope for the best, but that also left her with the very real chance of ending up further away, instead of closer. She didn't have much time to deliberate, she had to get moving, had to get to him before something worse happened, she couldn't lose him again -
Suddenly, something red and vibrant caught her eye. At first, she was terrified that it would be blood – Ben's blood – but instead it turned out to be a ribbon, snaking through the forest floor and shining like a bacon through the gloom. Confused, she looked to where it began, finding that the end was neatly tied in a bow on her wrist.
This is the thread that Kaine mentioned
She ran forward as fast as she could, following the ribbon, knowing that she would find Ben on the other side.
