A/N: Phew, that took a while! I worked in a couple more characters in this one. Hope you enjoy!
As the Falcon descended to the forest floor, a small group of rebels gathered, Rose, Zorii, and Beaumont among them. Poe stepped off the ship first, followed by Finn, then Rey, and Ben last of all. Guarded glances at Ben were mingled with heartfelt welcomes for Poe, Finn, and Rey. Rose stepped towards Finn and opened her mouth to say something, but Beaumont ushered Poe and Finn away before she could speak, leaving Rey to shake hands and greet people.
It struck Ben how deeply Rey's absence had been felt, even though she'd only left a few days ago. They welcomed her as a savior, a returning champion, a harbinger of hope. They encircled her as she pulled her lightsaber out, and they admired the yellow blade. Ben hung back in the shadows of the Falcon, his arms crossed. Rey glanced back at him, but made no motion to welcome him into the circle. He felt a pang. Even now, he was not one of them. And he could not blame them one bit.
Beaumont returned with Poe and Finn, all three looking serious. The rebels grew silent as their generals approached.
"Thank you for your continued efforts on the resistance's behalf," Poe said. "I know many of you have families and homes to return to, and I am grateful for your willingness to stay. Unfortunately, this fight is far from over." He looked to Finn to continue.
"On the way here, we were ambushed by three Star Destroyers," Finn said, his voice grave. "We may have taken out the Final Order, but the remains of the First Order are still out there."
Murmurs were heard among the rebels, and many of the upturned faces grew solemn.
"There is still much to do before the galaxy is at peace," Poe said. "We ask for your continued patience as we discuss how to move forward. I promise, we'll get you home."
Some cheers among the crowd as Ben looked out over them. They trusted Poe implicitly. They knew he could lead them to victory, that he could deliver on his promises. The rebels dispersed, returning to their daily tasks of keeping the base up and running. Rose stood still among the moving crowd, her eyes fixed on Finn, but when he didn't seem to notice her, her eyes dropped and she turned to follow the rest.
Rey walked straight to Poe and Finn, and the three turned to go to the makeshift council room that was little more than a pavilion of clay, wood, and canvas. Ben's heart sank as he watched them go. Everyone else had something to keep themselves occupied with except for him. He stood there awkwardly, his big fram feeling ungainly. He felt almost like a crecheling told to sit in the corner away from his playmates until his behavior improved.
Absentmindedly, he fingered the lightsaber at his side, his eyes following Rey as she walked off between Poe and Finn. Then his grip tightened on the hilt, and his brows furrowed. They're never going to accept me if I don't assert myself. His first instinct was to go after Rey, but he knew it was probably better not to push things with Poe and Finn. So he walked towards the part of the camp where all the others had gone. As he approached, a few heads turned, and then a few more. He was met by guarded and suspicious glances. Consciously, he released his lightsaber, realizing he probably looked threatening, and stopped where he stood. He looked around at their hostile faces, loneliness rising in his chest and threatening to choke him.
This was a stupid idea. I should just go back and wait for Rey. I don't know why I came over here. Most of the faces turned back to what they were doing, one by one, and the intense scrutiny eased. As he looked around, feeling more out of place than ever, his gaze caught on two women talking in hushed voices off to his right, their eyes still on him. One was tall and slender, fair-skinned with brown hair. She held a large, elongated helmet under her arm and was dressed practically but elegantly. If he had to guess, he would have pegged her for a bounty hunter. The other was clearly a mechanic of some sort, dressed in white worker's shirt and beige trousers. Short and stocky, her skin was darker than the other's, and her hair was short and black.
His eyes caught theirs, and the taller woman regarded him evenly, one eyebrow raised as though in a challenge. The other woman regarded him with hostility just as all the others did. Still, there was something about them. As the last few faces turned back to their work, he hesitantly moved towards the pair. Neither moved as he approached, their conversation falling silent.
"Hi, I'm, uh, Ben Solo," he said awkwardly, the words stumbling out of his dry mouth.
The taller woman-who had brown eyes lined with kohl, he could now see-smirked a little. The other woman's expression did not change.
"What are your names?" Ben asked as soon as it became clear they weren't going to speak.
The taller woman's amusement increased, and a glimmer of curiosity appeared in her eyes. "My name is Zorii," she said finally.
His eyes fell to the shorter, who was still glaring at him. "Rose," she said tersely.
"It's, uh, nice to meet you," he offered.
"Wish we could say the same," Rose replied acidly.
He sighed and ducked his head, pained by the remark.
"So, Ben Solo," Zorii said, weighing down his name as though with stones before dropping them into a river. "What brings you here? A chance to spy on us? A shot at redemption? Or perhaps a pair of pretty eyes?" She smirked again on the last question and tilted her head.
His jaw clenched at her pointed words, his fists tightening as the old anger flared in his chest. The urge to ignite his saber and wreck the whole camp flashed through him, hot and searing. His fingers grasped the hilt. And then he felt a new shape beneath his fingers. The blade was no longer red, it was white. So he forced himself to inhale, to exhale, to lower his shoulders, to relax his jaw. Deliberately, he let his arms fall to his sides. Zorii eyed him, intrigued but guarded.
"I'm here to help," he said at last, their gazes boring into each other.
"I must say, Ben Solo," she replied, his name lighter on her lips this time. "You are much different from what I expected."
He was caught off guard by that, his eyes widening slightly in surprise.
"Does it matter?" Rose said. "We still can't trust him."
Zorii didn't take her eyes off of Ben. "Who said anything about trust?"
Ben sighed. "I swear, I'm not here to hurt you. I want to help. I want to do what I can to fix everything I've done."
Rose snorted. "You can't fix anything."
He bowed his head, brows furrowed. "I know," he replied. "But I have to try."
Zorii cocked her head. "You actually might mean that," she said. He looked up to meet her eyes again. "So what changed? Why are you suddenly on our side?"
"The timing's awfully convenient," Rose spat.
"I know how it looks," he said, sighing. "But it's not what you think. I'm not here to spy on you."
"Then why are you here, Ben Solo?"
"I'm here because…" His words trailed off as he thought. "Because I want to help heal the galaxy. I want to make it better. That's what I thought I was doing before, but Rey helped me see how wrong I was."
"Ah, so you are here for a pair of pretty eyes," Zorii said archly, but there was a softness to her tone that told him she was teasing.
Rose's eyes were still narrowed, however. "You don't fool me," she said, then turned on her heel and walked off.
"I hope you're expecting that kind of response from most everyone," Zorii said as they both watched her go. "That's going to be pretty typical."
"I know," he replied.
"So whatever your reason for being here, it had better be really something, because otherwise you're never going to make it." She winked at him before heading off after Rose.
He stood there, triumph and disappointment mixing in his chest, puzzling over just who this Zorii was and what she really thought of him. At least she hadn't rejected him outright like Rose had. He might have even almost won her over. A wave of exhaustion washed over him as his eyes traveled over the rebels one more time and he realized how much of an uphill battle all of this was going to be. He would have to prove himself over and over and over again before any of them would even think about trusting him. He knew some of them might never trust him. In that moment, a large part of him wanted nothing more than to give up, to slip away and to hide in some forgotten corner of the galaxy before he could do any more harm.
But then he squared his shoulders. He couldn't turn back now. He had chosen this path. He had chosen to come here. No matter what it took, he would prove himself.