(Before Kylo Ren) (Ben is nine)

Sometimes being an ace pilot and having a ring of daredevil friends was as hazardous as dealing with a cantankerous Ben. Ben, at least, could be handled – one slip of distraction and he would forget why he was angry in the first place. Poe's mates, on the other hand, wouldn't let him be until he agreed to try a triple-twist maneuver that hadn't been attempted since the last pilot lost his wings to a (now long dead and toppled) sycamore.

It was a stupid decision – that much Poe acknowledged before the thrill of success escalated into premonition as his wing canons dipped too close to the ground. The tip of his wing snagged the earth, the commander shouted in Poe's com, and he felt a calm sense of 'oh no…' before his X-wing flipped and the clouds spiraled with green. His head thunked the seat rest and the side panes of the cockpit. Dread swelled in his chest and he flung his arms in front of his face as the X-wing nose-dived into the ground.

He anticipated fire; an explosion; the brief flash of pain.

He opened his eyes, reveling in his battered and unbelievably alive state, only to hear the screech of a fusioncutter above him.

"Keep your head down, Dameron!" one of the commanders yelled.

Instinctively Poe curled down and wrapped his arms around his neck. The fineness of the fusioncutter would assure he most likely wouldn't lose his head, but not all crash-related injuries were due to a smashed hunk of metal. Don't move, don't even breathe, Poe warned himself as the tool grated through the sealant beside him.

A clamp wrenched beneath the jagged metal and heaved. Sheepishly Poe raised his head, prepared to be thoroughly censured by his flight commander.

Femenine hands planted on a general's uniform and a tapping, durasteel-toed boot made Poe duck under his arms again.

"Dameron. Get out of there."

Shamefaced, bruised, and oh so repentant of his foolishness, Poe wriggled beneath the half-open cockpit and staggered against his crashed ship. He offered a shaky salute. Leia jabbed towards the academy.

"Inside."

Poe scampered.

Kriff and Sith, he was dead. He was sentenced, canned, ejected from the academy, doomed without an argument. Snap offered a wavering apology and inquired after his wellbeing, but Poe trotted past him without a glance. Stupid dare. Stupid instincts that told him – yeah, he could handle any flight technique because he knew his X-wing inside and out.

I'm on ground patrol until I'm eighteen, Poe thought remorsefully. He probably wouldn't be that lucky.

"Poe Dameron!" General Solo barked as soon as she entered the hangar. Swallowing, Poe snapped to attention and fought the urge to brush off his filthy jumpsuit. Leia stalked up to him and assessed him briskly before castigating, "Dameron, I knew your mother and I knew your father and don't you think I haven't seen such talent reflected in their son. What in the blazes were you doing out there?"

"I – "

"It was a rhetorical question! You broke formation, endangered Cadet Maahk, conducted an illegal maneuver and disobeyed your flight commander. I have a mind to dismiss you right now and send you to a moisturizer farm. Do you have any idea how asinine that was?"

"Mother, it wasn't his fault!" Pattering footsteps distracted Leia as Ben skittered up and tugged on her sleeve. "I sensed it all – it was a trick, I swear! Someone rigged his X-wing." He looked determinedly at Poe. "Tell her about the sabotage, Dameron. It's true, isn't it?"

Folding her arms, Leia fixed a stern glare on Poe, who squirmed.

"I … uh…" Sighing, he told her the truth. "I flipped an illegal maneuver. It was my fault."

"But – !" Ben started to object.

"That's exactly what I wanted to hear," Leia snapped. "Sanitation detail for the next three months – on top of your training."

She stalked away and Ben glanced helplessly at Poe before following his mother. "But it wasn't his fault! I know Ech'ban was fiddling with the wires…."

Sure he was – and Poe had the slimy blue glop on his hands to prove it. Who knew that cleaning bacta off his controls would be so messy. It wasn't Ech'ban's fault he had crashed, though. General Solo was right; he could have killed someone.

At least she hadn't fired him.

"Cadet Dameron."

Wheeling around, Poe saluted as the flight commander approached. His expression was livid.

"You're grounded for two months. I want every ship in the hangar scrubbed, from the engines to the hull. I see a maneuver like that again and you're out!"

"Understood, sir," Poe responded. He swayed and the commander jabbed towards the hall.

"Report to the medcenter. Do you need an escort?"

"I'll see to myself," Poe assured. The commander nodded, and Poe limped away.

When he arrived at the medcenter, Ben was already waiting for him.

"You're lucky you're only on sanitation detail," the nine year old chirped when Poe surrendered to the medical droid. "If I had tried that, Father would have made me scrub the Falcon plates."

"I am scrubbing the Falcon," Poe said tersely.

Ben's face lit up. "Really? Then I'll be done in half the time!"

Poe glanced up skeptically and Ben averted his eyes. "I might have broken my father's holochess table," he muttered. "It was in the way of my lightsaber."

Huffing, Poe ducked his head so that the droid could tend the swelling whiplash. At least I'm not the only one in trouble. A small part of him felt marginally unjustified at his punishment. After all, before his miscalculations the twisting flight maneuver must have looked awesome.

(Aftermath)

Birthdays had been quiet since Ben's departure. After the decimation of Starkiller Base, Poe didn't even remember he had one. Everything was too close together. So many families were mourning.

His only indication that he was a year older today was that his room had been raided.

Snap relayed the news to Poe as soon as he swung out of his X-wing. "We don't know how the intruder slipped past security," he explained, leading pilot and droid from the hangar. "General Organna says there might be a breach."

A spy. Tapping BB-8's dome, Poe nodded. "How bad is the damage?"

"It was only… your room," Snap said reluctantly.

"My room?" Perplexed, Poe halted mid-stride. "What, did Norm remember an old grudge or something?"

"Actually…" Snap stretched his gloves and shrugged. "Jess says it's something 'the kid' would have done."

The kid. The kid. Swallowing down a lump he couldn't understand, Poe hastened past his friend. He shoved through the crowded halls, hurriedly begging pardon, and stopped only when he saw General Organa in front of his door.

"General?" Poe asked softly.

Leia looked away from the open room and haphazardly wiped her eye. "Some things never change."

Poe strode passed her and promptly dropped his helmet.

"I tried to warn you," Snap called after him.

"BB-8, check security," Poe ordered as he stepped over a shredded brown jacket. That was his new jacket. So it didn't have the red lines or the casual, worn look from his father's previous missions. Someone was going to answer for this particular carnage.

"Snap, did you let Bones into my room?" Poe accused. There wasn't much to destroy – pilots were transferred often and the same furniture was standard for every room – but what little he had was everywhere. Cautiously Poe stepped over the shattered glass from his mirror.

"I told you, Mister Bones had nothing to do with it," Snap refuted. "Whoever did this, they scratched the cameras. We're sweeping all the entrances."

Clothing littered the bunk, floor and table. Each storage compartment had been forced open and left hanging. Pieces from BB-8's repair kit were scattered from the bunk to the 'fresher.

"Someone was looking for something," Snap figured.

"And they found it," Poe said. He knelt beside one drawer, where his box of personal possessions had been dumped in a surprisingly orderly manner. His mother's jade pendant was unbroken, and the hologram of his father was nestled on a puddled shirt. There was an ancient coin from Alderaan, given to him by Leia, and a fizzy soda cap that held some unremembered significance. One item was missing.

"They took my knife," Poe said thickly. He didn't know why that hurt. "There was a vibroblade here."

"You mean that old broken thing?" Snap knelt beside him, wrapping the torn jacket around a leaking oil canister. "The one with the black handle?"

"Yeah…" He remembered… something about a fight with Norm. A kid was screaming. There was a note left on his bunk.

Quickly Poe searched the floor until he saw a slip of aged, crinkled paper. Shifting particles of glass, Poe shook the note free and squinted at the scrawled handwriting.

'In case you need to save yourself again.'

"I'm guessing that was from the kid," Snap ventured. "I wasn't there when it happened, but Jess told me a little about –"

"Ben," Poe said hoarsely. He remembered it now. Angry brown eyes. A child who was eager to help his … friend? We were friends? He remembered an Adneren shouting, and being held captive. Ben was involved again. Was it because – ?

The wall in his mind returned and Poe rubbed his temple, wishing the memory would rebuild itself. Nostalgically he placed the note amongst his treasures. "I had a knife…." Four inches of blade with a sturdy rubber grip. The electric components were long rusted, but the sentiment had never faded with time. Ben gave it to me.

BB-8 whirred in question. Snapping from his daze, Poe cast the droid an apologetic glance.

"I'll send for a cleaning droid," Snap offered, clapping his friend's shoulder. "The general will have ordered another room to be readied for you by now."

Ever more bewildered, Poe lifted the shirt with his personal belongings and set it on his bunk. "Yeah… shouldn't be a problem…."

The demolisher couldn't have been Kylo Ren himself. They would have known. There was no way the First Order could have….

"When was the last time we checked for First Order interlopers?" Poe wondered aloud.

"That's just what I was saying," Snap said. "General Organa thinks someone may have defected."

And given Kylo Ren the comlink frequency for FN-2187, Poe realized. He claimed he had his sources…

Whirling around, Poe looked to the only unaccountable item in the room. He strode to the shattered mirror and yanked a crate free of the shards.

"Watch out!" Snap called. "Poe, you're not wearing gloves!"

He had already flung the top aside and burrowed through the protective black fabric. Breathing out shallowly, Poe lifted the parcel free.

"Hey, didn't you leave that on Jakku?" Snap murmured.

Turning the scarred, white helmet in his hands, Poe found the mark inside the rim. A signature written by a thin, Force-imbued hand. A child's handwriting from a birthday many years ago.

"I think we're in trouble."

Son or none, Leia did not ignore the security breach. Holorecordings of every hall were scrutinized for intruders. Poe's room was searched, swept, and analyzed. Officers were questioned and droid memory banks were searched. Security was tripled at every entrance. Evacuation seemed inevitable.

"Poe!" General Organa's shout alerted the pilot as a string of officers filed past him. Plucking his arm, Leia steered him towards the communications room. "It's Ben. He wants to speak with you."

He can give you answers, Poe read into her words. Leia glanced urgently from the console to Poe, and he nodded.

"Go ahead, 3-PO," Leia ordered. She took her position on the opposite side of the room and leaned against the wall, arms folded.

Poe braced his hands against the hub, irritated when the transmission flickered to life and Kylo Ren appeared without his helmet.

"Is it too much to hope that you'll randomly injure yourself the next time you trash my room?" Poe snapped. His conscience kicked him and he shifted awkwardly. That sounded mean.

Kylo Ren bristled. "I intercepted your security and you resort to childish complaints." It was like he was trying to take pride in his 'great accomplishment' and was equally frustrated that Poe wasn't trembling before him. "Where's Mother?"

"She isn't your mother as long as you aren't speaking to her," Poe rebuked smoothly.

"And that makes her yours?" Kylo Ren scoffed. He glanced to the side, tapped his lightsaber uneasily, and interjected with a sneer, "I left you a gift. Happy birthday, Dameron."

"Next time send the X-wing," Poe retorted. "I made personal modifications to the hyperdrive, you know."

Leia tapped her chin indicatively. Shuffling his feet, Poe asked, "How did you find us?"

"I have my sources," Kylo Ren answered snidely. "You're a fool not to recognize that."

"You have a spy," Poe translated. "What are you waiting for? Why not blow us out of the galaxy?"

"In case you failed to notice, you destroyed my weapon," Kylo Ren enunciated, nostrils flaring.

"Yeah, Ech'ban told me all about it," Poe responded breezily. "So why my room? Why not take out the shields, or the shipyard, or the communications outpost?"

"It was your birthday." The excuse was as lame as Kylo Ren's pout. "Why do you always have to question my motives?"

"Let's go back to the first question." Leaning his elbows against the console, and fighting a sense of déjà vu where he was supposed to be afraid of Kylo Ren, Poe drummed his fingers methodically and posed, "How did you get in here?"

Kylo Ren rolled his eyes. "Sources."

"Which entrance?" Poe directed.

"I could have waltzed through the hangar and you never would have known. All I needed was a blond wig and a covert identity. Your security is ridiculous."

Poe calculated the likelihood of a blond newbie sneaking into his room. "Pilot's uniform?" he guessed dryly.

"Radar technician." Kylo Ren curled his nose with a sour expression.

"Ouch." Poe made a mental note to check up with the maintenance crew afterwards. Some of them might need therapy. "And you randomly traipsed into my room, murdered my new jacket, and stole a rusty vibroblade."

"Don't be sentimental," Kylo Ren scoffed. "I don't need anything of yours."

"You still have my knife," Poe accused.

"The stormtroopers confiscated it," was the too-ready reply. "It doesn't matter. The point is, I can enter any time I wish and next time it will be more than your room that I destroy. … Your new jacket was hideous, by the way. Why the Force did you replace it?"

"I have my reasons…." Poe decided it was better not to mention Finn. "Why does it matter?"

"Just be aware that next time, your life is forfeit." Poor kid was scrambling for excuses.

"You're not really cut out for this 'dark killer' life, are you?" Poe mused.

Wrong thing to say. Leia went rigid and Poe closed his eyes, wishing he could take back the flimsy retort. Kylo Ren had murdered hundreds since his creation. Han was only his most recent victim. Poe had to stop confusing the enemy with Ben.

"3-PO let me in," Kylo Ren said quietly. Poe looked up in time to glimpse unhappiness in shielded brandy eyes, before the transmission ended.

"What did he say?" Leia breathed out.

Baffled, Poe straightened and tried to reactivate the transmission. Of course he was ignored.

"3-PO!" Leia accused.

"I must insist, I am not to blame in this matter!" the golden droid defended himself. "I merely directed a radar technician when he said there was a room with a bad circuit. Oh dear."

"3-PO," Leia repeated. She shook her head and approached the console. "I can't believe it."

"We need to start regulating all recruits," Poe determined. If Kylo Ren himself had snuck into the base, what more did the First Order have waiting for them?

"He didn't bring any others."

Poe glanced down in confusion. Leia stood with her eyes closed, sensing that which even Rey never seemed to notice. "He came alone," Leia repeated. "He hasn't jeopardized the Resistance."

"Why not?" It wasn't rational. The scourge of the galaxy had paid a social call, decimated a pilot's quarters, strolled back to the First Order, and checked up to ensure his vandalism had been noticed.

A ghost of hope flickered in Leia's eyes. "Maybe you're getting through to him."

Poe stared.

"I always knew you would hold him back where Han and I failed," Leia said softly. "You showed him the value of the light."

"He was influenced by me?" Raking a hand through his hair, Poe invoked the memories. Canron and Y-wings and furious dark eyes. "I know we argued…."

"Yes, but everyone quarrels," Leia dismissed. "There was more to Ben than you remember. You were his only friend."

"You think… you think I could change him." The idea was preposterous. Kylo Ren had dragged him off Jakku; left him to the torture of the stormtroopers; devastated his mind. "That isn't possible."

"He called you," Leia reminded. "Something changed when Han died – I felt it." She gripped Poe's arm, a first smile lighting her weary eyes. "You can bring him back."

"He created the First Order," Poe argued sensibly.

"He wants to be redeemed."

Peace flooded a general wrecked by war, and Poe could not refuse her. He blew out slowly and tapped the console.

"So how do I find the kid?"

.

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Whoo-hoo! Tentatively I have pre-written the last chapter! (Just in time, because I have a new job and very little writing time.) Now I can try and weave in a few more prompts for lil' Ben and make sure the plot is flowing smoothly. Still another 10+ chapters in the future, so hang on tight!

Thank you to feelthatfire, Time2read, Lazerkat, CrazedFangirl13, Queenie23, FoxfaceFan1, hellraiserphoenix, Miss Corrine, Replica Velocity aka x5 714, Brieval, JunJunyil, and BAD WOLF1221 for reviewing!

For the record, Ben Solo now has brown eyes in this fic.