[Hux]

He was in a sour mood now. The trees weren't trees. The ground might be alive. And the Jedi had laughed at him for checking to see if she'd been poisoned by the tree sap. She had been harmed and she was a valuable asset nominally under his command, so why she would think his concern was laughable was beyond him. Or so he told himself.

The ramp came down and with it, the Wookiee. Or 'Chewbacca', he supposed. Following him were four stormtroopers. The hairy beast turned to growl something menacing at them. The two in front raised their shoulders in a tense posture. After a pause, Chewbacca yipped something as though he understood the body language and moved out of the way. Hux walked over to the staff sergeant as denoted by the black pauldron with white barring on the edge. "Report."

"Physical inventory complete, sir. Ship is stocked with standard gear for four-person crew, ten cycles. Cargo compartments are empty. Life support, water reclamation, and air recycling systems all functional. No communications."

"No comm capability, or no signal?"

"Unknown."

"Weapons?"

"Full standard complement. Starboard guns lost with the wing."

"Spread out and pair up for perimeter guard. Stay close."

"Yes sir." She gave orders to the other three troopers. Each of them went to reinforce the existing four, putting two on each axis. It meant the two who had been guarding him specifically were now assigned to a direction rather than him. Hux walked around the ship to where Poe was examining the intact wing. There was what he assumed to be vegetative material jammed into the joint.

Poe said over his shoulder, "I think the frame is good, but we can't articulate the wing with all this junk in here."

"It's durasteel," Hux said dismissively. "The frame should be tougher than these trees. It took a direct hit to weaken the other enough that it could be torn free and it still remained intact until we crashed."

"Uh, yeah." He tossed a few small, fleshy chunks to the side, but he wasn't making much progress without proper tools. "Rey was just over here. She said that little ground quake was from when she cut it, like it reacted to getting hurt. I heard a noise, too."

Hux looked around. He saw the lower part of her legs next to the shaggy pillars of the Wookiee and the black-clad legs of Ren, all on the other side of the ship. He couldn't hear them, so assumed they couldn't hear him, either. "That's the same conclusion I drew. Did she think it was intelligent?"

"I asked the same thing. She couldn't tell." Poe went back to digging at the compacted woody material. "This stuff's really jammed in here."

"Why can't she tell? Wouldn't the Force reveal that sort of thing?"

Poe shrugged unhelpfully.

Hux huffed. Force users were such selfish, self-centered pain in the asses, though it was comforting to hear the ones in the Resistance were no better. "Ren said getting me from the Finalizer was part of the plan. You arrived there … to abduct me?"

Poe stopped trying to pry on the blockage, but he still faced away. He was quiet for a moment. Hux waited patiently. Poe said, "Our plan was to get as much information on Sidious as we could. Kylo had holocrons and stuff in his quarters. He said he was certain he'd be able to find them. The others were going to go to the main computers and download everything they could on the fleet. So we knew what we were dealing with."

"And me? Why would I be important in this?" Armitage thought a lot of himself, sure, but he knew he was just another general. Even if he was nominally in charge after Kylo's exit, the First Order was likely already in the process of replacing him. Or just erasing him. And there was the no-small-matter of the capability of this 'Sidious' person, whom Hux had severely underestimated and dismissed as a charlatan or perhaps a psy-ops attack. If he was truly who he'd claimed to be, then would there be any First Order to return to?

Poe turned to look at him, then shot a pointed glance at the two stormtroopers stationed not far away. They were watching the forest, but were easily close enough to hear the conversation. That was their job – keep watch, but be able to turn their guns on the Resistance as needed. Hux looked at them, too, then arched a brow at Poe.

Poe took a few steps to him, raised one hand to his shoulder, and started to come closer. Hux took a quick step back. "What are you doing?" He kept his voice low.

As did Poe. "I was going to put my arms around you and whisper really bad things in your ear. Which sounds sexy, but considering what I have to say, isn't. It's still a hug. I could whisper it from here, if you don't think the audio ports in those helmets will pick it up."

Hux looked up and down him (Poe looked as he had before – basically clean, armed, and disorderly), then over at the stormtroopers (who were watching the forest like they were supposed to), upward (those in the cockpit had no line of sight on him), and around (no one else was where they could see them, either). "A hug?" he said skeptically.

Poe smiled softly. "I do good hugs. Trust me." Hux did not trust him, but when Poe took another step forward, he didn't back away. He wanted to hear what Poe had to say and he allowed that it may well not be something he wanted the troopers to know. Poe slid a hand under his arm and the other around his waist. He pulled them together and rested his head on Hux's shoulder. Hux carefully closed his arms around the man in turn. He turned his head where he could watch the stormtroopers and breathed out slowly.

It felt good. It felt very good – the press of a body against his in a firm, steady line. Arms held him securely but not in a manner that made him feel he was being grappled or restrained. He could feel Poe's breathing through his chest and arms. It felt oddly right – a thrill of human contact he'd never experienced. He wasn't being sagged into or pulled off balance. They were just standing very, very close. Poe's upper hand began moving back and forth slowly on his back. It was soothing. Mesmerizing.

He'd lost the Finalizer today. It came to him unbidden with a shiver, making his fingers twitch on Poe's back. He'd lost his ship and unknown numbers of crew whom he'd been responsible for. On top of that, he wasn't there to stop the progress of the reborn emperor or whatever he was. Pryde had believed him well enough to mutiny. He should have died before being disloyal, but the loyalties of the old imperials were more inconstant than those raised in the Order. Would others believe him in Hux's absence or would he return to find the Order headed by another horror like Snoke?

He probably wouldn't even be allowed back. That meant there was nothing and nowhere for him, because unlike Ren, he had no mother leading up a private military operation he could run to. He was stranded on an unknown planet with nothing to his name but the clothes on his back, the wits in his head, and the residual loyalty of less than a dozen stormtroopers who had yet to realize he had no institution behind him to enforce their obedience. And, apparently, he had the obnoxious attention of a flirty Resistance pilot. Who did do good hugs.

Which had gone on longer than necessary. Hux dropped his chin so his words were spoken into Poe's ear. "You had something to tell me?"

"Ah, I love the sound of your voice like that," Poe purred seductively. "But you're not going to like what I have to say."

"Tell me anyway. I'm putting up with this. It might as well be for a reason." But his hands roamed a little over Poe's back – thin cloth over smooth skin and firm muscle. It made him want to take his gloves off for a better feel – wrong as that was.

"Okay, here goes." Poe straightened and stretched up on his toes to get his lips to Hux's ear. "Brendol Hux was a Force-neutered clone of Emperor Palpatine, otherwise known as Darth Sidious, created about the same time as the clone army of the Republic. You were unexpected, but you're still technically his son."

"Palpatine's son, you mean."

"Yes. Or nephew, depending on interpretation. Brendol was the only clone he made; that makes you the only flesh and blood tie Sidious has left in the galaxy. You're important to him." Poe went back to being flat-footed.

"Obviously not very. He's tried to destroy the ship I was on twice now."

"I think it's more a 'join me or die' situation, but I have to confess I'm not completely sure."

Hux pulled back, holding Poe at arm's length as his overtaxed brain tried to process all the implications of that. One of the stormtroopers glanced over, then kept watching them. They were close enough to count as the sort of odd situation the troopers were supposed to monitor. Come to think of it, they'd had to have heard them discussing the hug. "What do you think I'm going to do? I'm no Luke Skywalker. I've heard the stories and I know the truth."

Poe shrugged. "No. But you're the Starkiller. It's something. The others don't know. Just me, Kylo, and Rey do. Or I assume Rey does. Not sure about that, either. In any case, you have a right to know and they agreed with that, we've just … kind of been in a rush until this moment."

Hux let go. "I'm sure I'm supposed to have some reaction to this, but I've always known my father was a monster. This doesn't change anything." If anything, it made it worse. It made everything in his life worse. He tried not to think about it, but it felt like his head was buzzing on overdrive.

Poe's face sobered, then crumpled a little around the edges. "I … I guess I hadn't thought of that. That Brendol would be the same personality, just without the Force."

"Ruling over an empire of one. As I said, there is no familial love here. I do not believe I am capable of forgiving him, no matter what incarnation he is in. You think I could re-enact Skywalker confronting …" He shook his head. There was only so much he could say with the troopers listening. Poe had been right – this wasn't something he wanted publicized until he had thought it through on his own.

"That's okay," Poe said. "We're still figuring this thing out." He took a step back and waved at the wreck they had as a ship. "And who knows? None of it matters if we can't get this thing back into space."