Rey stared at the holo of Kylo Ren for a long moment and didn't say anything. The others were gone, having left the general's office.

Kylo was still staring back at her, but his earlier flirtatiousness had dissipated like a sudden sandstorm.

This may have had something to do with Rey's own attitude. Rey had no idea what Kylo was thinking and how much of what she saw from him was sincere at any given moment. As if understanding that, he had dropped all of his facades. The man didn't actually need a mask as far as she was concerned.

Rey held her head between her hands with her elbows resting on the desk before her. Her face was weary. She sounded lost. "What you need to understand is that I have no idea what I'm doing—"

Kylo's face gave away nothing of what he was thinking. He seemed unmoved at her plight. "You said you have questions—"

Rey's voice was measured, as if testing the impact of what she was saying. "Luke said that you killed his other students—that you tried to kill him too—"

Kylo's expression became angry. His voice was cutting. "That doesn't sound like a question— did he tell you why?"

The anger Rey saw in him, it was real in a way nothing else may have been. It was as reassuring as much as it was terrifying. Rey's tone matched the weariness on her face. "In Luke's world, struggling with the dark side is all the motivation one needs—"

Kylo glared through the holo at her, his anger still palpable. "Luke Skywalker is a fool. So, is that it then, Rey?" He leaned forward slightly with a sneer. "Did he send you to save my soul?"

Rey moved one hand to prop up her chin, while she dropped her other arm down to rest on the table. The very thought was ludicrous to her, because Rey was no-one's savior. She couldn't be one when she needed one herself. Rey scoffed at his stupidity. "Really? Do you think my master wants me to go anywhere near you? No—I'm not here for that—I'd be the goddess of utter ruin and destruction—you'll not find your salvation with me, Kylo Ren—" He looked as if was going to say more, but Rey stopped him. "Look. We both know that simply struggling with the dark side isn't a reason for anything—"

Somehow this was a truth Rey was certain of.

Kylo looked bitter and shook his head. "Would you even believe me if I did tell you—or would you doubt—don't deny it I can see it in your eyes. You don't trust me at all—"

«I trust your anger,» Rey wanted to say.

Kylo's eyes snapped to hers with more interest than before. He'd obviously heard Rey's thought. It was all the encouragement he needed. The man was literally seething. His hands were fisted tightly, all barely restrained violence. "If you want to know so badly, Rey—maybe I'll show you."

Rey gave a laugh of disbelief, dropping her casual stance from before. She shook her head. "What? No—"

Kylo's face took on a determined mien. "Let me show you, Rey—"

Jaw set stubbornly, Rey denied him. "No. You're delusional if you think—"

Kylo leaned forward and became even more demanding. "It won't be like last time. I can promise you that—"

Rey was incredulous. Last time he had pushed his way into her head. It was a short intrusion to be sure, but he had done it without her consent. Now he knew things he ought not to know. She laughed. "There's no way in Malachor I would ever let you—"

Kylo scoffed. "You don't know a thing about Malachor—and when did I say that I'd be the one doing it?"

That stopped Rey cold. "What do you mean?"

He looked at her in challenge. "Don't insult either of us by playing dumb. Take it from my head. Or, are you conveniently forgetting that you pushed back?"

His insinuation that she was to blame for breaching his mind when he had initiated said event was infuriating. Rey had to nearly swallow her rage at such at thing, her face red from the effort. It was only at the absolute feeling of frustration of someone accusing her and mentioning repeating an action so vague and ludicrous in the undertaking as if it was as easy as breathing that Rey simply reacted. Just how she did it she'd never know- but Kylo was suddenly looking like the man in the club- like he couldn't breathe.

Kylo put a hand up as if to ward her off.

Rey's own will superceded his for a brief moment- and her rage suddenly took focus from strangling the man to taking what he offered. The Force eagerly bent to her intention and plucked the memories straight from Kylo's mind.

Waking to find Luke Skywalker over him, lightsaber in hand.

Rey's lip lifted in a sneer, her concentration undaunted by Kylo Ren's struggle.

Knowing, knowing, the Force confirming it, that the man—his uncle— had meant to kill him in his sleep.

Rey narrowed her eyes in concentration as he started pushing back.

Seeing the other man's—Luke's— horror and guilt.

She was gritting her teeth, jaw locked.

The righteous anger that surfaced—the thought that he would destroy everything—kill them all—any that didn't side with him.

A trail of sweat—or was it a tear—was running down Rey's cheek.

The feeling of absolute betrayal—

The images were damning enough—however—the feelings were her undoing. With horror, Rey slumped back panting hard. She may as well have been the strangled one.

The look on Kylo's face was one of dark rage. His voice seethed in her head. «I. Burned. It. All. Down—»

What she'd seen was damning. However, what Rey found more damning—Kylo's actions or Luke's—was something she didn't want to dwell on. However, how could she condemn Kylo Ren when she could see herself doing exactly the same thing now that she'd been in his head? It was as if she had been him. Rey whispered, the words coming to her. "Jedi Killer—"

Kylo might have flinched if he were a better man. Rey had hardly sounded accusing though. Instead he gave her a dark smile and touched his throat with one hand. "Not that you need to worry—you're no Jedi—are you, Rey?"

The severity of her actions suddenly came crashing around her. Rey's conscience pricked, edging back towards her as if testing its welcome. The look she gave Kylo now had nothing to do with either his actions or his uncle's. She was horrified at her own actions. It was unsettling how easy it must truly be to become a monster. Whatever else she had wanted to know was now irrelevant to her. With a shaking hand, Rey reached out to the comm and cut the connection, the blue light of the holo fading into darkness.

Kylo Ren's memories were burned into her retinas. Rey stayed awake long into the night.

That morning Rey came to a decision, and when she had found Luke Skywalker she expressed what was on her mind. She'd double down on the Jedi Padawan thing. For all that Rey had meant this sincerely, at least she told herself that, it came out sounding like dry sarcasm. "I pledge myself to follow your teachings, master—"

Maybe it had something to do with the scowl on her face and her crossed arms. Perhaps it was her lingering anger at herself for acting as she had last night. She had engaged in one large mistake last night, hadn't she? Anyway, Luke Skywalker was not impressed with her.

Luke barely glanced at her, but his own voice matched hers. "Too bad I'm not a Sith Lord—you only forgot the falling to your knees part—" He turned away from her, picked up a bag, and threw it at her. "Change of plans today—we're going on a mission—"

Rey caught the bag deftly, hefting its weight in her hands cautiously. "Mission? No meditation?"

Luke smirked. "Oh, no. There will be meditation—you'll just be doing it on the ship—"

Rey huffed in frustration. Here she was trying to do the right thing and he was mocking her. Despite herself, she followed Luke as he went striding out towards some nondescript ship that looked like some kind of older civilian pleasure craft.

Luke called over his shoulder. "What? No- thank you- my master?"

Rey called back to him. "Oh- I don't know- Master Skywalker- I think you're doing a pretty good Sith impression right now—" She followed him up the ramp of the ship grudgingly. "What kind of mission is this anyway—"

She was confronted with Poe Dameron standing before her.

Poe Dameron winked at her. "We're going to Canto Bight. You feeling lucky, Rey?"

Whatever it was that Poe Dameron was insinuating was completely lost on Rey as she stared at him in confusion. She turned to look at Luke, but he was busy making sure that whatever supplies he'd brought were secured. However, it was the other occupants of the ship that garnered Rey's attention. Three women that had been part of Poe Dameron's group of friends were there; the Tico sisters and a girl called Jessika Pava. Well, this was going to be just great, she could tell already.

Jessika Pava, a pretty girl with dark hair and dark eyes, looked at Rey critically. "The casino city? You know on Cantonica?"

Rey shrugged. She didn't like the way the other girl looked at her. "Never heard of it—"

Pava gave her a smirk. "Luke didn't tell you?"

Rey just stared at her blankly. She really did not like this Jessika Pava at all.

Pava huffed and turned away, giving Poe her full attention. Rey didn't care.

Rose Tico piped up, her demeanor one of excitement. The girl was almost bouncing she was so happy. "We're finding another Jedi!"

Paige Tico shook her head in amusement. "Calm down, Rose! We've talked about this. It's not gonna be easy—"

Rose sobered up and nodded. "Right—it's Canto Bight—" She smiled again quickly. "But another Jedi—Paige!"

Instead of responding to their antics, Rey turned away and started exploring the ship.

As the rest of the crew went about their business, Luke called Rey over to sit in the common area. The seats were rather comfortable. If Rey had the right of it, it was a rather old and heavily modified Nubian cruiser. She'd love to know how the Resistance got hold of such a thing.

Luke answered her thoughts. "Leia—"

Rey scowled at him. She was beginning to not like anything to do with reading people's thoughts and feelings. It was too intrusive and entirely too easy. She glanced up at the cockpit, where Jessika and Poe were, with suspicion. "What are we going to be doing, master?"

Luke shook his head, obviously exasperated. "I wasn't lying about the meditation, Rey—"

What felt like hours later, Luke released her from her misery, and informed her to find the other women in order to get ready.

Rey had wondered what she was getting ready for. She fingered the blue lightsaber at her belt and felt the weight of the blaster Han had given her at the holster on her thigh. Rey was always ready for a fight. She'd had to be.

As it turned out, getting ready meant something entirely different than what Rey had imagined. Her horrified look at having to play dress up had sent Poe into hysterics and Luke only shook his head, his look one of restrained amusement.

Rey approached the cabin the other women were in with trepidation. She could hear them talking and laughing from the other side as she edged closer down the narrow corridor.

Pava's voice floated to Rey's ears. "—An odd one—don't you think?"

Rose responded. "Well, a little, but, I'm sure she's nice—"

Pava responded immediately. "Come on, Rose! You're the nice one. Sometimes, you're too nice—"

Paige spoke this time. "Jess is right, Rose—she's a little too—"

Pava supplied her own terms. "Dark? Intense? Unfriendly? Not like a Jedi? Likely a Centrist sympathizer?"

Paige agreed. "Yeah—all of that—"

Rose sounded doubtful. "I don't know—"

Pava responded again, her voice taking on a sage tone. "You're only saying that because you revere the Jedi, we all do, but it shouldn't be blind reverence. That, and you're afraid of what she can do to you—"

Rose spoke again, sounding half convinced. "Maybe—"

Rey hesitated a long time before she knocked on the door. It slid open with a hiss and Rey stood there awkwardly, looking at the others. She cleared her throat. "Master Skywalker told me to get ready."

Rose Tico looked extremely guilty, Paige Tico was standing close to Rose in a protective manner, and Jessika Pava looked defiant.

Jessika Pava picked up a bulk of fabric from the bunk she was standing next to and tossed it to Rey. "Here—"

For her part, Rey held it up questioningly. "What is it?"

Pava waved a hand airily at the fabric. Her face was sporting a look that said that Rey was stupid for even asking. "Your dress—" At Rey's blank look, Pava shook her head. "You're looking like you've never worn a dress before—"

Rey hadn't. She lifted her chin defiantly. The lie was out before she could stop it. "Don't be ludicrous—"

At Jessika Pava's distrustful look at this information, Rey merely lifted an eyebrow. Her stomach was in knots though. Lying about things wasn't like her in the least, but she had to wipe that horrible look off of Jessika Pava's perfect face. "Are there shoes?"

A box was tossed her way almost like Pava was aiming for her head. Unfortunately, for her, Rey used the Force to slow its ascent so that it rested on top of the dress she held in her hands.

Rose started forward slowly and timidly placed another bag on top of the shoebox. She sounded shy. "Makeup—"

That was obviously Rey's cue to leave. She nodded her head at them. "Thank you—"

Jessika Pava had already turned around, holding up her own dress for inspection. Her voice was one of dismissal, like Rey was an underling or something. "Thank General Organa—"

Soon enough, Rey found herself once again on the other side of the door. She heard them giggling almost immediately.

Pava's voice was a stage whisper. "I hope she does something about that hair—"

Rey was oddly self-conscious as she stood in front of the mirror in the fresher. Their opinions shouldn't matter to her, but she was, Force help her, hurt by their view of her. She was hurt, but she was even more resentful of them. Who were they to say anything about her? None of them would have lasted ten seconds on Jakku.

Rey knew nothing about dressing up. She had never had the luxury of even considering it. She lifted her chin. She could do this. Force help her, she would. They would regret their remarks. Rey lifted her hands and undid her buns.

Some time later, Rey strode into the common area where everyone else was already gathered. Ignoring them, she crossed her arms and looked at Luke. "Master—what is the objective here?"

For his part Luke Skywalker was reading a data pad and acting like he couldn't be bothered. However, Poe Dameron was staring at her with the oddest expression on his face. The rest were glaring at her even more, if that was possible.

Rey looked at Poe suspiciously. "What? Why are you staring at me like that?"

Jessika Pava snorted loudly. "Please—"

Rey turned a glare on the other woman. She was getting rather sick of Jessika Pava. She'd not had a lot of experience with other female Humans around her own age, but she was not impressed with her recent experience, over all.

Poe recovered from his ogling quickly. He flashed her another charming smile. "Wow, Rey! You look great."

Rey was not used to this kind of attention in the least and it made her uncomfortable. Well, Kylo Ren had certainly been interested, but she was not thinking about him anymore. He was history. The past. Rey was moving on. Despite herself, Rey blushed. "Um—thanks—"

It was then that Rey noticed that her dress, makeup, and hair were not like the others' in the least. Whereas, the rest had their hair up and their makeup was more sparkly and obvious, Rey's hair was down and curled at the ends, while her makeup was more understated. Where their dresses were short and colorful, Rey's was long and in a dark midnight blue. It was a halter style that was quite modest in the front and went up to tie at her neck, but went all the way to the floor, with a slit up one side, and it was completely backless, almost scandalously so to her own eyes. Even their shoes were different. The others had stilettos where Rey was wearing more sensible heels.

Luke Skywalker saved the situation. "All of you are going to be on the lookout for any threats while I find our Force sensitive. I'm fairly certain it's a youngling—"

Rey nodded. She was determined to be ready for any threats. She already had her blaster strapped to her thigh. She had tried to find a way to do the same with the blue lightsaber, but could not find a way to adequately conceal it. The red one was still hidden in her bag, for obvious reasons. Though, now that Rey was thinking about lightsabers and how to conceal them, it wouldn't hurt to ask. She turned to Jessika Pava. "Hey—did General Organa leave us any evening bags?"

Luke saw right through her. He narrowed his eyes. "The lightsaber stays here, Rey—"

Rey narrowed her eyes right back at him. "How are we to deal with any threats without weapons?"

"Distraction—"

This was, literally, the stupidest plan Rey had heard of yet. The others agreed with her assessment if their looks were anything to go by. She was sure that she saw Jessika and Paige share a look before surreptitiously adjusting their cleavage. Rey smirked. They had hidden blasters there, she was certain of it. Poe adjusted his own jacket and she was quite certain there was a blaster there too.

Luke rolled his eyes. "I'm dealing with children—" He rubbed his eyes tiredly. "They will check for weapons. They aren't allowed."

Rey was now determined. No matter what Luke Skywalker wanted, Rey would keep the blaster on her person. She'd use Jedi mind tricks, she'd figure it out, but she wasn't going anywhere without a weapon of some kind. She looked at Luke's garments. He was still in his Jedi robes. Rey raised an eyebrow. "What will you be doing?"

Luke raised an eyebrow right back. "You don't think this youngling is going to be out in the casino areas do you? While I'm looking- the rest of you will be looking for potential threats and distracting them—and I have no doubt there will be threats—If we know to look for a Force sensitive child, do not doubt for a second that the First Order won't also be looking—"

Apparently, it fell on Rey to be the voice of reason. "They could have blasters—"

Luke pursed his lips. "They won't. Canto Bight caters to everyone—and even the First Order isn't foolish enough to ruin that—"

This entire venture seemed ridiculously vague, to Rey. "How long are you expecting this to take, Master Skywalker?"

Luke gave a little shrug. "As long as it takes—Leia got rooms for us—"

Poe whistled. "No kidding! So—how are we doing this—do we split up—stay together—"

Paige Tico chimed in. "I think we'll cover more ground if we split up—"

Rose shook her head. "Well, I think we'll look less suspicious if some of us stay together—"

Pava nodded. "I agree with Rose. We need to split up, but we also should at least have a partner—I call dibs on Dameron—"

Poe waggled his eyebrows at her. "Damn, Jess—how can a guy say no to that?"

Rose immediately chimed in again. "I'm with Paige."

Poe turned back to Rey. "That just leaves Rey—she can come with us—"

Rey shook her head. There was no way she was going to spend more time in the company of Jessika Pava than absolutely necessary. "That's unnecessary. I'm accustomed to keeping my own company—"

She did not care for the suspicious looks this garnered from the other women. Nor did she particularly care for Poe's look of pity. Kriff them all, anyway.

Luke gave Rey a brief nod. "It should be fine—just don't leave the main casino unless there is an emergency—if you sense anything unusual—let me know right away—that goes for all of you—"

Nobody had told Rey that it was a desert planet. The thought of placing such a resort for the ridiculously wealthy in a desert seemed incongruous to Rey. Yet, the juxtaposition of the familiar with the exotic was a bit disorienting. Perhaps they meant it to be seen as an oasis, however, Rey had the sense that this place was more dangerous than it seemed at first glance. Yes, she was definitely taking her blaster.

As their ship landed deftly in the designated port, it was dusk. The lights of the casinos were bright and welcoming, drawing one in. Rey didn't trust it.

It was an older city of mostly stone construction and rounded edges, with the tech seamlessly woven in. Rey followed the rest, save Luke, into a rounded doorway. It was lit up around the edges, the glowing keypad a direct contrast to the fancy looking glass of the door itself. This was Rey's worry. It was likely that this was the security measure that would detect her hidden blaster.

While the others had abandoned their blasters at Luke's behest back on the ship, Rey had not. With intense concentration, Rey held out her hand and pushed with the Force. She had no idea if it was going to work, when the door itself suddenly shorted out. Luckily for her it did so after having been opened. Rey walked through and didn't look back, hoping to get lost in the crowd before she was ever suspected.

The inside of the casino was rather impressive, Rey had to admit. She spied Poe and Pava ahead of her, the other woman clinging to his arm, as they laughed and walked around. The Tico sisters had gone in the opposite direction, to what Rey could only assume were slot machines.

Rey had other ideas. Gingerly, she made her way down the stairs into the casino proper, carefully stepping so as not to step on the hem of her dress or to trip in her heels. She fisted one hand tightly in the fabric of her garment, as she tried not to outright gape at the scene in front of her. These beings were undeniably wealthy and it made her uncomfortable. She was not used to this and felt out of her element. Once she had descended into the main casino, which was a large domed room with an impressive window overlooking the city, she edged around the room, not quite knowing what to do with herself.

As Rey approached a side room, she veered inside, grateful to be out of the main casino. She still wasn't used to being around so many beings at once. The room in question was, obviously, a bar. Behind the bar was a semicircular stained glass window of green and yellow. The bar itself was obsidian and gilded which glamorously supported taps and flasks of various alcoholic substances, mostly of a red variety. On an adjoining wall was another stained glass window of red, green, and yellow, depicting fathiers racing. It was eye-catching.

Drawn in, Rey walked to the far end of the bar nearer to the eye-catching window, and leaned against the bar wondering exactly what she was meant to do here.

A man came to stand next to her and leaned on the bar in exactly the same way she did.

He looked at the green skinned Twi'lek male behind the bar and nodded his head towards Rey. "A Sith scorcher please—and a Dark Side Daiquiri for the girl—"

Rey narrowed her eyes and turned to face the man. "Not interested—"

He was wearing all black, with a jacket that was open over a shirt that was loose and showing quite a bit of skin on his chest. He was wearing boots that had laces that went all the way up to his knees. He had fingerless gloves, black lacquered nails, kohl around his eyes, and his hair was quite short and blond everywhere except for the fringe, which hung in his eyes and was dyed black.

He winked at Rey. "Don't worry, darling, you're not my type." He leaned in towards Rey and nodded his head to a man across the room. "He's my type—"

Rey looked over at the aristocrat on the other side of the room he had indicated and then back at him skeptically.

The man laughed. "What I need is a wingman, or woman, as the case may be. I figure that if they don't fall for you—then they would obviously go for me—"

Rey snorted. Truthfully, she didn't have a clue what a wingman was, but it was obvious that he wanted her help in finding someone for the night.

The man looked slightly affronted and waved a hand at himself. "What? Who wouldn't want a piece of this?"

Rey shook her head in amusement. He was definitely trouble, she could tell. "Anyone who can tell you're likely more trouble than you're worth—"

He placed a hand to his breast in mock concern. "Ooh—that hurt—so—what's a nice girl like you doing in a place like this?"

Rey couldn't help it, she laughed. "Do you often spout clichés to random strangers?"

Their drinks appeared in front of them and Rey picked hers up and took a sip of the red concoction. It was sweet. She rather liked it much more than the Corellian ale she had had before.

The man gave a little smile. "I knew you'd like it. I have a knack for this sort of thing—"

Rey could concede that. The daiquiri was good. "Other than needing help picking up men—what're you doing here?"

He clicked his tongue at her in disapproval. "I don't need help picking up men—I'm just passing the time while waiting for a friend of mine—"

She quickly responded in kind. "I'm doing the same—"

The man gave her a look. "Not to sound rude or anything- but you don't really seem like the type that has friends—"

Rey didn't know what to make of that statement. Surely it couldn't be that obvious? Rey had absolutely no idea what to say to that. However, she decided to go with the truth. "I'm waiting for my companions then—"

The man gave her a charming smile and pointed between the two of them. "We could be friends."

Rey gave him a dubious look. "Hmm—"

He took a sip of his own drink before waving at her. "Girl—I'm serious—I bet we have loads in common—"

Rey picked up her drink and moved away from the bar. "This is me leaving now—thanks for the drink—"

The man took his drink and followed her. "Come on then, let's take a turn around the promenade—"

He held an arm out to her expectantly.

Rey stared at him incredulously. Was he serious? This man was very pushy. For all of that, she couldn't help but like him though. He didn't feel like a threat. Coming to a quick decision, she sighed and took his arm as if put upon. Being on the move would give her a better vantage of the goings on around the casino anyway.

He waved his drink around with his free hand. "Like I said—I bet we have loads in common—For one—ooh—we're getting all kinds of admirers—" He stopped and preened shamelessly before turning back to Rey. "For one—we're both ridiculously good looking—"

Rey muttered under her breath. "You're delusional—"

It was obvious he heard her, but he ignored her. "Also—I bet you play sabacc—"

Rey snorted. She'd only ever seen sabacc being played. She had watched Unkar Plutt cheat at it often enough. "I've never played sabacc in my life—I do know the rules though—I used to watch sabacc tournaments all the time back home—"

He nodded along enthusiastically. "I knew it—I bet you'd be good at it—I'm pretty good at sabacc myself—in fact—why don't we play?"

Rey stopped walking, utterly flummoxed. "What? No—"

The man wheedled her and pulled her along. "Come on—it'll be fun—you can't come to Canto Bight without playing at least one game of sabacc—"

Rey shook her head. "I'm thinking I could—"

The man huffed dramatically. "If it's credits you're worried about—I'll front your fee—you don't even have to pay me back—"

Rey thought about it. If he was offering to pay her part of the pot, then she had nothing to lose, unless he had an ulterior motive, which was not out of the question. "Maybe—"

He flashed her a genuine smile. "Fantastic—you won't regret it—you don't even have to split the pot with me if you win—and thirdly—we're both wearing blasters—"

Rey scoffed. "How could you possibly know I'm wearing a blaster?"

A cheeky grin was her response. "I didn't—but you just told me—you look like the type anyway—so—"

Rey glared at him. "Are you kriffing me?"

He clicked his tongue at her again. "Language—and lastly—ah—we're at the sabacc table—"

They were in another room- much like the bar- but this one had doors that could close. Rey immediately felt on edge. Something was going to happen. She knew it. In the center of the room was a sabacc table with an automated sabacc dealer droid placed in the center. Two men were seated on the other side and they were wearing black—but it almost had a military look—a First Order look. Rey backed up a step and released the man's arm.

He nodded at the others at the table and took a sip of his drink before setting it down on the table and sitting at the armed chair nearest to him by throwing his legs over the side in a casual manner. He pointed at the chair next to him, indicating that Rey should sit there. "Everyone this is—" He stopped and looked at Rey questioningly.

Rey hissed through her teeth in annoyance. "Rey—"

He nodded at her approvingly before continuing on blithely. "Everyone this is Rey—Rey this is everyone—well—almost everyone—name's Bast by the way—pleasure to meet you—"

Rey wasn't feeling this at all now but didn't want to seem rude. She took a deliberate sip of her Dark Side Daiquiri and clenched her jaw. "Likewise—"

Bast looked like he loved the attention. "And she's going to play sabacc with us!"

The other two men exchanged long-suffering looks. It was obvious they knew Bast.

Bast waved a hand at them all. "Anyway—I was telling Rey—"

Rey stood there with a death grip on her Dark Side Daiquiri. She looked at the men across the table. "Is he always like this?"

One man nodded in affirmation.

The other muttered woefully. "Unfortunately—"

Bast was looking at his lacquered nails now. "Anyway—I was telling Rey here that she and I should be friends because we have a lot in common—"

Rey narrowed her eyes at him. Since when did people suddenly decide they were your friends? It didn't work that way, did it? "There is a lot we don't have in common—"

Bast pointed at her accusingly. "You can't take my friendship away—I won't let you—anyway—Rey—I was going to tell you that we know some of the same people—"

Rey raised a skeptical eyebrow. "Do we—"

Bast waved one lacquered nailed hand around dramatically. "It's like we were destined to be besties or something—"

The door hissed open behind her.

Suddenly, Rey felt him. His Force presence was unmistakable. From behind her, Rey, literally, felt his eyes roam over her figure appreciatively. Rey's body went rigid in anticipation. Her heart quickened and she felt pooling warmth deep inside.

Finally Rey's mind caught up with the rest of her. This response of hers was completely unacceptable. Distract, distract, distract. Rey didn't just need to be distracted from Kylo Ren and his affect on her; she needed to be the distraction here. This was bad. This was really bad. At this point, Rey needed to keep Kylo Ren away from Luke Skywalker and the Force sensitive youngling. Nothing else mattered. She'd be the good Jedi Padawan and follow Master Luke's orders if it was the last thing she did—and it just might be.

Luke wasn't wrong. The First Order was, apparently, after the Force sensitive youngling too. No matter how Rey felt about Luke Skywalker, or the Jedi, or even the Resistance, she didn't want any unnecessary violence or bloodshed tonight.

This was absolutely not how she anticipated this evening going. Rey briefly closed her eyes and then took a fortifying drink of her Dark Side Daiquiri. Then she slowly turned around and faced him, one arm crossed, whilst the other was holding up her drink, with her hip cocked to the side. Rey raised an eyebrow and slowly looked over Kylo the way she knew he had looked her over—and attempted to seem as if she was completely unaffected by his presence. Kylo Ren looked really good. His jacket was black, but it looked formal almost, with black on black brocade. It was an unnecessary extravagance, but a very effective one, to Rey's eyes. For all that she tried to channel her inner Jessika Pava, she wasn't sure she was all that successful. "Kylo—what a pleasant surprise—"

Kylo's look was fierce. Also, he was much closer than she had anticipated. He leaned in towards her, his voice a whisper. His voice was snide. "Still playing at being a Jedi, I see."

To Rey he sounded so smug, so self-assured, as if her being a Jedi was merely a phase or a game that she was playing. Her temper got the better of her. "That's right. I'm a veritable paragon of dispassionate compassion for the karking greater good—at one with the kriffing universe—"

Kylo's eyes- they looked so self-satisfied. Though his facial expression didn't change, it felt like he was smirking to Rey. "Keep telling yourself that."

He was so close she could feel his breath against her face. She wanted to scratch his face to take the smug look away. Rey lifted her chin defiantly. "I will—thanks—"

Kylo's eyes traveled over her face, even as he lazily demanded things of her. "Now that you're here—we can finish our conversation—"

Rey leaned forward to emphasize her displeasure with this particular topic. Her eyes flashed. "No. That conversation is over—I ended it—"

Kylo's own eyes flashed in anger, but then he shrugged nonchalantly. He was definitely smirking now. "If you say so—"

Rey took another fortifying sip of her Dark Side Daiquiri. The fact that he was showing self-control when she knew he wasn't the type to usually do so sent a chill down Rey's spine. He was up to something. "I do—"

Kylo leaned in closer to her. "What are you doing here—Rey?"

They were too close to each other now, as far as Rey was concerned. She spoke lightly, almost coquettishly. "Isn't it obvious? I'm here to play sabacc."

Before Kylo could respond, Rey flounced over to the chair Bast had saved for her and set her drink down. She looked at the glowing pyramid shaped droid in the middle of the table and then to Bast. He was holding a credit chip in his hands- and she snatched it out of his hands and quickly hit the button that would alert the droid to deal her in.

Bast raised his glass to her in a salute. "Told you we knew some of the same people—"

Rey turned towards Bast and then picked up her drink and downed the rest of it- forgoing the little straw altogether this time- and then waggled the empty glass in his direction before slamming it down on the table. "More of these, Bast. Keep them coming—"

Bast actually shot her a worried look. "Rey—"

When a karking Knight of Ren- and that's exactly what he was, Rey had no doubt- was warning her against doing something and was concerned for her well being, Rey had to be in an alternate universe. She would not be dissuaded however. She slapped the table. "Keep. Them. Coming."

She heard Kylo sit down in the empty chair on her other side. From the corner of her eye, Rey saw tall, dark, and dangerous deal himself in.

The suspension field on the table came to life.

Rey looked over at Kylo only to see him moving a pair of six-sided dice over and between his fingers repeatedly like he did it every day. He wasn't even using the Force. He was looking right at her. "Corellian Spike?"

Everyone else voiced their agreement to Kylo's suggestion.

Oh, stars! If Rey was going to do this, then she needed to be good and decidedly not sober. She braced herself. She knew it was coming. She didn't even need the Force to tell her.

Kylo's voice literally slid over her, sounding low and intimate. "Rey, how about we make this more interesting—raise the stakes—"

Rey couldn't bring herself to look away. She couldn't give up now. She leaned in closer, pitching her own voice low, and smirking at the look on her opponent's face, showing more bravado than she actually felt. "State your terms, Kylo Ren—"

It was just then that Rey remembered all the stories of Han Solo winning the Millennium Falcon in a game of sabacc- and how Leia Organa was also known for her skill in the game. The chance of Kylo Ren not knowing his way around this game was next to nil. She was kriffed.

As if sensing her apprehension, Kylo gave a dark smirk of his own.

Yep, Rey was definitely kriffed.


Bast Ren just happened. He wanted to be a thing.