Author's Notes: Hi, readers. Here's chapter thirteen of "Not So Far." This chapter features some Ben/Rey. FN-2187 will meet Poe in the next chapter. I cannot wait to do that. Stay tuned for chapter fourteen.
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Chapter 13: Just Quiet
Rey stood on the hut's porch ten minutes later. She had her hands on the railing and her eye on the sky. A gentle wind went through her hair, moving it back a tiny bit. The clouds seemed to move in slow motion. It appeared they would freeze in place any second. She rubbed her nose, followed by her elbow and neck. She pressed her lips together.
Rey looked down at her stomach and laid her hands on it. She smiled when the baby moved and kicked against them. She ran them over it so slowly that it seemed she was not even moving them. She rested them on top of it. Squawking caught her attention. She looked up to see eight gray macaws flying overhead. They flapped their wings in almost perfect unison.
The baby moved against Rey's hands once more. This caused her smile to grow even wider. She patted her stomach in a very gentle manner. Just then, another pair of hands touched her shoulders. The owner rubbed deep circles into them with his thumbs. She looked over her shoulder at Ben, who had a smile on his face. She sighed in much content.
"That feels really good, Ben," she said.
"I'm glad it does," he responded. "Everyone knows pregnancy brings its own aches and pains."
"Sometimes, men experience pregnancy symptoms. They include food cravings and morning sickness," Rey pointed out truthfully.
"It is said it is the result of an empathic connection to a pregnant partner," Ben commented, increasing the pressure on her.
"You would think being part of a dyad would cause you to experience symptoms," Rey said, giving a shrug.
"No two couples are the same when it comes to children," Ben replied and ran his tongue all over the inside of his mouth.
"No two women have the same pregnancy either," Rey added.
"I know. Some women have lots of morning sickness. Some have little to none at all," Ben said, chuckling softly.
"I had morning sickness a lot during the early part of my pregnancy, but it was completely gone by the fourth month," Rey murmured in relief. "When it first started, I was rushing outside to throw up almost every morning. You gave me herbs to control it. They worked most of the time."
"Sometimes, you got sick while we were swimming and bathing," Ben said and cleared his throat.
"It was embarrassing, but I got through it," Rey whispered in much warmth.
"Mom ate a type of mushroom to control her morning sickness during her pregnancy. It worked almost all the time," Ben said and sighed softly. "I miss her and the rest of my family so much."
"I miss my parents every day," Rey said and wiped a tear from her eye. "I have always wondered why they left me on Jakku. I was so little and could not have done much harm to anyone or anything."
"Did they ever know you were Force-sensitive?" Ben wondered with much curiosity.
"I do not know, but I always knew there was something inside of me. I realized it was awake when I saw you that night in the downed Imperial walker I lived in," Rey explained.
"I did not want you to fall prey to Snoke, so I came and got you. He would be unstoppable if he had you in his grasp," Ben whispered in fear. His body shook a bit. "I hate him for trying to turn me against my family."
Rey swallowed hard. She did not blame Ben for hating Snoke at all. She was glad he never let his hate gain control of him as she knew it would have made him do terrible things. She saw it as a strong emotion that could be channeled into something positive with the right kind of work. He finished massaging her shoulders and went to her side.
"Thanks for the massage. I really appreciate it," Rey whispered in sweetness. "You are so good at it."
"You are welcome," Ben said, giving her forehead a kiss. "Maybe I should give up being a Jedi to become a masseur."
"No," Rey commented, shaking her head. She flicked his chin three times before tapping it with her finger. "It would not suit you at all."
He nodded in agreement. "You are likely right. I really do not want to deal with customers complaining about me not massaging them just right."
She snorted. "No customer dared to be rude to Unkar. They knew he would stop dealing with them if they did."
Ben touched his wife's shoulder and rubbed it in a very gentle way. He believed Unkar was still running his junk trading business on Jakku. He could not understand why an aquatic humanoid like him would station himself there. He felt the reason was Unkar had far greater control over the residents of Jakku than he would have had of those on Crul.
"Uncle Luke took me to see the Tatooine homestead he lived on a couple of times during my Jedi training. I was astounded at anyone could make a living on such a dry world," he said with raised eyebrows.
"I wasn't sure if I could survive on Jakku myself, but I figured things out eventually. When I felt Vari fall to the dark side, I asked Unkar if he did and that it was cold. He admitted he did not," she explained.
"I do not understand why the Force does what it does sometimes," Ben admitted and bit his lip. "Even Uncle Luke admitted he was uncertain about it at times."
"No Jedi will ever fully understand the Force, but it is important to embrace its aspects," Rey pointed out matter-of-factly.
"If my uncle had joined the dark side when my grandfather offered his hand to him, I would not be here. My parents would have become prisoners of the Empire," Ben muttered, cringing badly.
She swallowed hard. "I do not know if I would be here either."
"There are so many what-ifs," Ben murmured. "While we should be mindful of the future, we must keep our minds on the here and now. My uncle's biggest weakness was his constant looking to the horizon. He stopped doing that after he started training my mother."
"It is good to know he is back with the Resistance and working with them to end the terror of the First Order," Rey said and frowned a bit. "At the same time, it boggles my mind that he tried to kill you."
"I still don't understand it myself," Ben mumbled with a heavy sigh. He felt a tear slide down his cheek. "I never wanted to destroy his temple, but it happened. I cannot do anything to change it."
"I truly believe you have redeemed yourself by taking me on as a padawan. You are the best teacher I could have asked for. The Jedi will live on through us and our baby," Rey assured.
He smiled. "Thank you."
He kissed the top of her head while putting his arms around her. He pulled her close to him. He rocked her from side to side, a content sigh leaving his mouth. She brought her hands up to his arm. She pressed her lips together.
"I can never forget Unkar's reaction when you ignited your lightsaber and pointed it at him. He looked like he was about to dry up to the point where he looked like a prune," Rey said with a snicker.
"He also looked like he was about to piss his pants," Ben responded and smirked in a wide way. He stifled a laugh. "I would have laughed my head off if that happened."
"Me too," Rey agreed. "He was rude to me a lot of the time and would tell me a part was worth less than the week before. He could be polite and would say it was worth more than the day before."
"You once told me he hid the actual amount of his business profits somewhere," Ben answered, suppressing a yawn. "I wonder where he would hide it on a planet like Jakku. It does not have many settlements or spaceports like Tatooine does."
"My guess is he hid it on a world that has lots of settlements," Rey suggested. "It could be in the Outer Rim or even Unknown Regions."
"Not too many settlements are in either area. They would be perfect places to hide just about anything," Ben admitted while releasing his hold on her.
"It is no wonder Yoda suggested Obi-Wan give Luke to Owen and Beru. No one would suspect the son of a Jedi would be living on an Outer Rim world like Tatooine," Rey added.
"Uncle Luke did return to Tatooine to bury his uncle and aunt after the Battle of Yavin. Mom helped with the burial. He told me Owen removed the headstones of his step-grandfather and grandmother, so he would not known of his true connection to the Skywalkers. It was a clever move, but it would not have worked forever," Ben explained, shaking his head in disbelief.
"I will find out why my parents left me on Jakku someday," Rey whispered in much hopefulness.
"I hope you do," Ben said, cupping his chin in her hand. "I will support you, no matter what you find out about them."
Ben kissed the tip of Rey's nose before doing the same to each of her cheeks. He let go of her and ran his hand over hair three times. He played with a strand of it.
"It was nice of Beru to stick up for Luke. She wanted him to be happy, though she understood Owen's determination to protect him from going down a potential dark path," she said and emitted a long yawn.
"Yoda told me it was of upmost importance that I protect my child at all costs," Ben said seriously.
"Obi-Wan told me you and I must never underestimate the powers of Vari and Snoke, or we would suffer Anakin's fate," Rey whispered in some fear.
"Like Yoda told Uncle Luke to never underestimate the powers of Emperor Palpatine," Ben commented.
Rey nodded in agreement. "Exactly."
"I have always laughed at people who say women are not dangerous," Ben muttered with a roll of his eyes. "The old Jedi Order had female members. They were among some of the most powerful Jedi in existence."
"No denying that," Rey said, nodding in a slow manner.
"For the longest time, women were considered the weaker sex incapable of doing any harm. Now, it is known they can be just as dangerous as men are," Ben said, shuddering a bit.
"Female murderers usually use poison or blasters to kill their victims. They tend to get away with their crimes longer than male murderers do," Rey mumbled with a painful wince. "I dread Vari coming after us, especially our child."
"I will protect both of you with my life," Ben said, rubbing her stomach. He felt the baby kick and move against his hand. "I promise."
"I will protect both of you with my life too," Rey whispered lovingly. "I love you."
He smiled. "I love you too."
Ben and Rey shared three kisses before rubbing noses. They looked toward the sky, seeing a green parrot fly overhead.