Chapter Four
An Assistant in Need
Try as she might, there was no way Rey could dislodge those words from her psyche, no thanks to Ben Solo: "Surely there are one or two fantasies of your own..."
And three hours had gone by since that conversation, but those damned words haunted her no matter what she did, whether it was reorganizing the equipment, giving the speeder bikes and the speeder cars final touches before covering them up for the next day, or even doing a simple errand for old man Anakin. Fantasies, fantasies...simply a comfortable bed. What the hell is wrong with being practical?! Excuse me for that, Solo, but I spent too much of my life dealing with my mother's failed dreams and my grandmother's annoyance while she acted as the real parent; I don't need any of that for myself.
Speaking of which, she intended on speaking with them and asking whether or not Lilé had any luck gaining something during unemployment, or what retirement fun Grandma Sabé intended next.
Next thing she knew, she accidentally knocked over a laser drill, and it clattered loudly to the floor. She cursed; that was what she got for dwelling on wishful thinking. But when she set it back on the counter where a few other remaining tools were, she was so startled by the garage door - not the one where she often exited to take the vehicles for test rides before they were given back to their owners - that she almost repeated it, and there HE stood, staring at her with a tense expression.
"I need a drink. Come with me."
The demand took her off a little, but before she knew what was going on, Rey found her elbow caught and herself pulled out of the garage. "What -"
"Heading down the street corner for the Tranquility. We both could use it."
She blinked; he actually planned to have a drink with her?! "Wait, we? But I'm working -" Well, at least you were nice to ask me.
"Last I checked, the active hours were over one hour ago, Miss Kenobi." She was more than ready to say that the day was over for him, but she still had the fuel to check, since she had her hands full as it was before she noted the tension in his jaw and realized something happened between him and his grandfather, so she thought better of it. His skin was also paler than before and his eyes dulled since earlier.
He was warier, making her wonder further what caused this sudden change. Which brought on the urge to reach out and take his hand, but she didn't.
The Tranquility was here in the Spacer Quarter within Aldera, where the Skywalker mechanic workshop was also located, and it was a neighborhood catered for outsiders' desires for the most part. Namely, bars were here, a couple of hotels, the pawnbroker's shop, the travel port, and the public park. Anakin's shop was right between the Tranquility and the gambling hall on the same street, across the beautiful public park. It was a jewel of the corner as much as said park and anywhere in the country. It was a haven for both the simple folk as well as higher-ups alike. Ben told her that when he hit legal age, his grandfather and uncle took him to have his first drink, so it'd been his favorite spot since.
Here, they were surrounded by snowy synthstone glory, joined with paneled colorful glass windows. No one gave them a second look, since no one cared about the dress code, as long as you didn't come in half-naked or scandalous. But Rey couldn't help but feel a bit self-conscious as she knew she looked like she came out of a room surrounded by tech and gears, which she had. Ben, on the other hand, crossed with more ease than she did. He led them both over to a steel table near a window with portions of glass being clear to offer a splendid view of Aldera City. No sooner did they get comfortable were they approached by a young waitress with blue eyes and red hair shoulder-length and in a high tail, wearing a fitted dress colored like her eyes.
She gave Rey an indifferent look before turning it into a smile for Ben. "Evening. Will you be having dinner and cocktail, or one of them?" He snorted and straightened in his seat.
"Just an Alderaanian brandy straight up," he said in a clipped tone. "And Miss Kenobi?"
"Just a mocoa," she answered. "Extra foamy cream." However, that woman might have ignored her while taking the order and continued to be flirty with Ben.
"Both will be ready in a bit. Manager just needs to get a bottle of the finest brandy from the reserve." He nodded, though gave Rey a rather disappointed look.
"Mocoa, honestly? You're missing out on not just seriously good brandy, but the finest liquor around."
"Even if I'm off the clock now," she countered, "I still have to be alert and aware. Too much can lead to trouble." Which happens in other places, less safe than here. What she wasn't ready to mention was that she used to have a few with Poe and Finn before they went off to Bespin, and she'd hit the legal age mark at that time, keeping the word responsible in her mind.
And now that the waitress was gone, he had to press. "I know you answered - somewhat - but do you always do everything Anakin Skywalker asks you to do, besides what's required inside the shop?"
"I have to listen to my boss because it's part of my job," she answered, leaving out the personal part in which it was kind of like being around her own grandfather who died when she was just a child of nine.
"Doesn't mean jumping when he says it."
He'd been away too long, so he had no idea what it was really like to be at Anakin's beck and call. He might as well wanted to make sure you didn't get away unscathed, whatever the hell happened. "What am I supposed to do, just slack like a fool?" Rey retorted. "You asked me if I'd been told I was too serious; the answer is really that I take my job seriously. Maybe it comes with the territory."
Sarcasm at its finest. "Never would have guessed." That was enough to make her snap. Not everyone was cut out to be a Skywalker or a Solo, never mind it was nowhere near being up there with the elite; entitlement just as soon as existed on his end, if not with the rest of his family. And when she said those words, she felt her cheeks cool as she must have blanched. It made her wish she could take those words back because there were shadows over his eyes.
"Damn it, I shouldn't have said that. I should go -" Rey quickly stood up, but he halted her, reaching out.
"No, don't go. Please sit, Miss Kenobi."
She did, sliding back onto the cushioned bench. "I would have thought you wanted to be alone now."
"If that were true, I never would have dragged you here," Ben pointed out wryly.
It was then that the waitress arrived with his brandy and her mocoa. She placed them down in front of the guests, but it was then that Rey noticed how the top of that dress was pulled down a little lower than before; the woman even leaned forward more than usual. "If you need anything else, my name is Omua. We're all happy to...accommodate you." Rey suppressed a snort and unintentionally looked at that mostly exposed chest, swallowing the thick lump as she knew she stood no chance at competing with the well-shaped and sized twins. But Ben Solo didn't seem to pay heed to that, or he just pretended not to notice like a real man with a controlled libido. She gave him credit if it was the latter.
He hadn't said much of anything since asking her to remain, just stared at the amber contents of the sculpted glass in his hand. Somehow, that bothered her, so she decided to do something about this newfound withdrawal. "Is there anything I can do for you, Master Solo?"
He hummed, finger now swirling the brandy. "I couldn't help but notice you were trying to...compete with our hostess," he answered smoothly, making the heat rise to her pores.
"Hardly of the sort! But she would rather have the upper hand in terms of your attention."
He chuckled. "This is another word I'd like to call you: diligent." His eyes sparkled, overlapping the previous dullness, and he changed the subject. "So, how long have you worked for Grandfather?"
She answered with a proud beam, stirring the cream with the sweet, roasted fluid. "Almost two years. I really like it and the man himself. R2 and 3PO are also joys." Especially when they get at each other over stupid little things. It's like a comedy holofilm.
"They have their moments." There was that sparkle when he thought of the droids. He then took the brandy and drained it all in two gulps, his throat visibly bobbing. Setting the now-empty glass down, he continued. "Tell me something: did you really dislike the SoroSuub 3000 design?"
Rey blinked, mocoa starting to become lukewarm after only a few sips of previous lava heat. "I never said I disliked it. Just that your mother Leia is more qualified than I am to make these choices."
"Right. All you care about is a comfortable bed." There he went again with the sarcasm. That just made her squirm a little; why did it make her feel so small, with the hint she might have given a wrong answer? What was wrong, again? She found herself once again dwelling on his pry as to whether or not she had fantasies of her own...
Ben's voice surprised her, making her aware of the fact that she had begun washing and then pooling in a VERY inappropriate spot. "Perhaps we should put that to the test, Miss Kenobi." He leaned in closer, staying less than a foot away from her because of the table length, and a crushing smirk in place. "How would you like to travel to Coruscant with me?"
"C-Coruscant?!" Rey almost spat her mocoa after taking a heavy sip, managing to swallow it down without choking and letting a river down her chin.
"Unless the skyline buildings belong elsewhere, exactly. The core and capital of Lah'mu."
"Are you serious? Why would you ask me of all people to go there of all places?" If this kept up, she might have a heart attack after breathing too shallowly. This sounded too good to be true; no one ever handed a trip ticket to the Core of the Continent just like that.
Ben shrugged. "I have to go there and could use an assistant of my own. Grandfather wouldn't mind." Should have known. That's all you could have asked for. And this trip was all Anakin's idea, right? Would explain how sour you looked when you hijacked me here. "He wants me to meet with Cos Palpatine." Oh, I see...I recall that name from correspondence. He is the Skywalker family shareholder, his family going back to his grandfather's day predating the Clone Wars...but that ended in bad blood on Sheev Palpatine's end.
"...why isn't he sending your uncle or your mother?" Rey blurted out, which happened to be the sixty-thousand-credit question of the day. Why summon his grandson back and send him to Coruscant? Ben's answer: Anakin expected him to go, and that was it.
Now she understood why he was so sour earlier because everything his grandfather wanted had to be obeyed. But still, why take her along when there were other assistants and guides in Coruscant? When she asked this, he simply answered that he didn't want one of those women in the capital, but HER. And his grandfather wouldn't die without her help, since he had 3PO and R2 to look after things.
Rey had to laugh when she joked about comparing this to stealing away Anakin's beloved pod racing program. Anything to avoid the flattery she tried not to feel. He was right when he said the old man would make it without her for a day or two.
"We leave tomorrow afternoon."
Now it was as if an electrical wire had stricken her. "T-tomorrow afternoon? Why so soon?"
He was serious again. "The sooner I do this 'errand', the quicker I can come back. I'd rather return to my own life. Would you object to accompanying me on my ship with GG attending?"
She struggled to answer this because her head was spinning like the planet's axis. I'm going...I'm going to the capital of Coruscant tomorrow. Never has this happened in my entire life, aside from moving from one place to another when I was a child. We get dealerships outside the country, but I've never imagined I would...
Rey had never felt so excited as she did with any new models of ships and speeder bikes she was commissioned to renovate.
Before she left the bar that evening for home, Ben told her to not work too hard and informed her that they were staying at one of the finest places offered since they were going to be "honored guests" - and that he looked forward to hearing how she'd like the bed she'd sleep in. That last part made her toes curl in her boots, failing to stop the tingling.
When she got home, she told her mother and grandmother.
Sabé Kenobi sat on the lounge of their apartment in Aldera, near the Spacer Quarter and magnificently overlooking the great lake, tea mug in both fragile-looking but strong hands. She was rather gaunt now that she was in her late seventies, approaching her eighth decade, and her dark brown hair had faded to light sand and silver. As well, there were lines across her forehead and around her lips. When her granddaughter finished speaking, she put the lukewarm mug on the glass coffee table. "He wants you to go to Coruscant with him," she stated, freshly manicured fingers closing into each other. "There are plenty of aides for him to have in his visit, so why would he ask you of all people, Rey?"
Rey had no idea what to do except to shrug as she set down the plates at the dinner table. "Just that he wouldn't have that. He's going on a business trip for his grandfather, so maybe he'd feel more comfortable taking someone from his comfort zone with him." Can't think of any other reason which makes sense. "Plus, so far, I'm the only one he knows." She'd asked herself that question over and over until the response she arrived at was satisfactory enough. But her mother didn't seem to buy it any more than her irritated grandmother did; Sabé scowled and shook her head at her daughter who shared the same brunette hair and eyes as she did.
"Or," Lilé said with widening eyes as she came in with the roasted nerf steak to carve for the three of them, "he might be interested in more than just business." And why was the daughter herself not surprised to hear that?
"Girl, you watch too many holofilms," Sabé snapped, standing up to join them at the table for four, and one person was absent from their lives forever, though it was enough for his presence to be felt among them. "I still feel like I have to tell you after all these years, but it's not like you'd ever listen to me like you never listened when your father was alive."
"But you never know, Mother," Lilé countered back, "and you keep going until HE arrives." She then turned her attention back to Rey and smirked, eyes twinkling. "Is he good-looking, sweetie?"
"He's...attractive, and that's all." And in answer, Mom, I know very well. All those times Grandma stepped in while you left me alone and found "true love" time and time again...only to be heartbroken all over again.
Rey knew she had to change the subject before things burst between her mother and grandmother again. "Job hunting, Mom, and Grandma, next adventure?"
Lilé's face fell when she answered there was nothing that interested her, which made the elderly Kenobi exhale as she wondered where she went wrong with this girl of hers, and then announced with a forced smile that she could take her with her on a luxury yacht to any casino town of their choosing, which led to another declaration of a dream from Lilé - a winning so that she didn't have to worry about work again - which would no doubt lead to disappointment as usual. And Ben Solo wondered why all she could care about was a comfortable bed and nothing else.
Someone should just drill it into him that life was much safer that way because desiring so much cost you in the long term.
Rey's mother's name is Lilé (from Irish LÍLE, "lily"). She isn't named in canon, so I took the liberties, the choices of real-life names being Irish, Scottish, or Celtic. The name of the waitress is a short version of the Native American Omusa, which means "misses with arrows". XD Like when she failed to get Ben with that cleavage-baring act of hers.
The Spacer Quarter is located in Aldera, having those exact locations, but added Anakin's shop to the square. Take a look at it on Wookieepedia, and there is a map. The Tranquility bar is number 3, and I placed the Skywalker mechanic shop between that and number 5 (the gambling hall Spacer's Luck).
Mocoa is an Alderaanian beverage (which could be found in other places) with foamy cream, and a few years before the planet's destruction, Princess Leia and her group on a hike in the mountains enjoyed this.
Cos Palpatine - I don't remember if it was Legends canon or not, but in that biography I found, Palpatine's father was named Cosinga. "Cos" was also the actual first name of the man we know, in another fic I read a long time ago but forgot the name and author...yet I never forgot. Thought Cos - which is also the first name of several other characters in the SW universe - was a fitting name for this Palpatine in particular as he's the descendent of SHEEV Palpatine/Darth Sidious.
If someone remembers what fic I was talking about, could you let me know?
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