Halo
Disclaimer; all characters and copyright belong to their respective owners.
A/N-thank you very much to everyone who reviewed the last chapter.
Chapter Fifteen-Han's Promise
It had taken a lot of persuasion on Han's part to get Kylo to follow him back to the Resistance base. "You need to trust me, Ben. Let me help you. Let us help you." He emphasized the 'us' meaning Leia.
Kylo knew his father well enough now to tell when he was being sincere. Han was trying so hard to forge a connection, as for his mother, he didn't know what to believe. She was always going to prioritize the Resistance above the need to save one human girl. She had done the same thing with him countless times throughout his childhood for one cause or another. He remembered the deep aching loneliness he felt when he saw his family prioritizing other things over him, and when he had found out-at the same time as the rest of the galaxy-about his familial connection to Darth Vader, it had only served to exacerbate those feelings… feelings that a certain dark voice could manipulate.
Kylo shook his head to try and clear his morbid thoughts as he followed his father into the hangar. In the distance he could see his mother talking in a low voice with Dameron and the defected stormtrooper-Finn. They had gone on ahead to consult with their general, clearly not happy with his presence on the base now his true identity had been revealed. Dameron was making wild hand gestures at Leia, while the little astromech, BB-8, kept swiveling his dome head back and forth between the three of them in confusion.
Impatience overcame Kylo as he strode swiftly past Han and approached his mother. He was tired of waiting for Leia to be done talking. He was becoming increasingly frustrated with each passing minute. He needed to leave now to rescue Rey, and was exasperated at all the unnecessary delays. He barely heard his father mutter an oath under his breath as he forced his way past Dameron and Finn and demanded his mother's attention.
"Just give me a damn ship and I'll be on my way." He ordered.
"Hey!" Poe yelled as he stepped forward to intervene. He matched Kylo's infuriated glare, refusing to back down.
"Easy, Dameron." Leia said sternly as she motioned for him to stand aside.
"Are you really going to let him speak to you like that?" Poe exclaimed in disbelief.
Leia gave him a reprimanding look as she exerted her authority. "Go and take a break, Commander."
Poe looked on the verge of disobeying her command until Finn stepped in and persuaded him otherwise. "Fine." He said through gritted teeth as he turned and walked away. He glanced over his shoulder to check BB-8 was following him, but the little droid's whole focus seemed to be on Kylo. "Come on, BB-8." He yelled.
BB-8 turned his dome head frantically between Kylo and Poe. He let out a low whistle, stating his confusion, still clearly fixated on the fact that Kylo was Ben Solo and not the nemesis his master believed him to be. Dameron scowled when the normally faithful little astromech didn't immediately come at his bidding. Finn was forced to intercede again, pulling Poe along with him before he caused another scene.
Glad that the irritating Resistance pilot was finally out of earshot, Kylo faced his mother. "Well?" He questioned impatiently.
Leia stared at him penetratingly, feeling indignant at his harsh tone. "You can't just come in here demanding things, Ben."
Kylo was about to issue a retort when Han finally joined them. "Leia." He remarked gruffly.
Leia made eye-contact with Han briefly before emitting a weary sigh. "Han told me about the girl. I'm sorry."
"Your sorry?" Kylo said in disgust. "Is that it?" He turned his ire on Han, immediately blaming him for dragging him back to the Resistance base and giving him false hope and wasting precious time. "I knew this was a mistake." He accused.
"Just wait!" Han raised his forefinger at him, motioning for him to be quiet. "Just give her a chance…"
"I can speak for myself, Han." Leia cut in sharply, she softened her tone slightly when she saw the conflict in her husband's eyes. "Its okay." Han swallowed thickly and nodded as he backed off a little, allowing Leia to take over the conversation with their son. "I will try and help you in any way you can, but first you have to do something for me."
"Leia…" Han's face was filled with disappointment at her response.
"And there it is." Kylo sneered. "I should have known your 'help' would come at a price."
"What else did you expect, Ben?" Leia had to crane her neck to look up at him he was so tall. He hovered over her like a black shadow, his anger palpable. "It was incredibly brave what you did…. renouncing the First Order…" Her breath hitched slightly, the first sign of emotion that she had given that this unexpected reunion was affecting her at all. "I know you must be familiar with the weapon that destroyed the Hosnian System. If you want my help then you need to tell us all you know."
Her assumption that he had renounced the First Order of his own free will sent Kylo reeling. Of course, that was the only sensible conclusion she could come to. He had been posing as a member of the Resistance since leaving Jakku. It was what Rey had naturally assumed; he just hadn't corrected her. It was what his father believed. Hell, even the damn droid who was staring up at him like they were best friends, believed it.
"I just want a ship." He said again.
Leia looked at him penetratingly. "This girl must mean an awful lot to you for you to risk everything like this. Give me the information we need and you'll have more than a ship at your disposal."
Kylo saw a reflection of himself in his mother's warm brown eyes. He stared at himself, or at least the distorted image of himself. The image showed him the intimidating man the world saw, all they saw, somehow it didn't seem right. He wasn't that person anymore. Inside he was fireworks and rage, love and frustration, ambition and fear. Against his will, something indefinable inside him had changed. And all he knew was that the source of that change was in great danger and he needed to save her, by any means possible.
"Deal." He finally agreed.
Leia could feel Han's disappointment in her bleeding through his eyes. He had never been good at hiding his emotions, even if he believed otherwise. She focused on the star chart in front of her, trying to keep her own face composed.
"We lost our son. I thought it was forever. We have a proper chance of reconciliation and this is how you choose to handle it. By doing what I asked you not to do-putting your latest cause above the needs of our son."
Leia tensed, her hands tightening on the console in front of her. "Its not as simple as that and you know it." She retorted, hurt by his accusation. She forced her fingers, one by one, to let go of the console and moved away from it to face him. "I was so foolish to think I could find Luke and bring him home…instead it was Ben who came home. That has to mean something." Her voice trembled a little and she wiped a discreet tear away from the corner of her eye.
At the mention of Luke, Han's face darkened with anger. "Leia…" He began roughly, struggling to find the words to explain Skywalker's betrayal, but before he could continue, she cut him off.
"Don't do that!" She warned him as she walked away, shaking her head.
"Do what?" Han demanded.
"Anything."
"Will you listen to me! I am trying to be helpful."
"When did that ever help?" Leia said dismissively. "And don't say the death star."
Han's jaw tightened in frustration. She just wouldn't stop long enough to listen to him. He followed after her as they rejoined the others. Impatient to be gone, Kylo, along with the former stormtrooper Finn, had finished giving the other senior Resistance officers information about Starkiller base. They now had enough intel to plan a strategic attack on the superweapon.
As soon as Kylo laid eyes on his mother again he demanded she keep her end of the bargain. "I've done everything you've asked of me. Now you need to do the same. I want the X-wing."
"That's Poe's ship." Leia frowned. "You can have any other starfighter but that one."
"It's the fastest in your fleet." Kylo answered heatedly. "And the droid is familiar with it."
"You want to take Dameron's ship and his droid?" Leia rubbed her aching temples in disbelief as she stared down at BB-8, who seemed to have become just as attached to the scavenger girl as her son. It just made her even more intrigued to meet Rey than ever.
"You said I could take any ship in the fleet. Are you reneging on our deal?" Kylo demanded.
"No, she isn't. Take the ship." Han quickly intervened before the whole conversation descended into another battle of wills between mother and son.
"Fine." Leia muttered. She wasn't looking forward to Poe's reaction when he saw Ben taking off in his starfighter. The X-wing was like a second extension of himself. He had lovingly maintained it, adding all the modifications himself. It was built for accuracy and speed. She decided to put off telling Dameron the bad news until the last possible minute. "You can have the ship and the droid, but what are you planning to do when you get there?"
"That's my problem. Yours will be deactivating the planetary shields on the base." Kylo was desperate to leave. He had spent enough time talking. He didn't care about the Resistance; he didn't care if Snoke's precious superweapon was destroyed or not. Starkiller had always been Hux's baby. He had never been directly involved in its development.
"Actually, that's my job." Han revealed to Kylo's surprise. "Mine and Chewie's. We're taking the Falcon to the base and from there we'll make our way inside and blow it up."
"You don't know the way. You'll get lost." Kylo argued. "I haven't got time to babysit you."
"Hey, I've done this plenty of times before." Han protested. "That Finn guy has offered to show us the way."
"This is your grand plan?" Kylo failed to hide his sarcasm as he looked at his mother.
Amusement lit up Leia's brown eyes for a second. She gave a small a shrug, very reminiscent of Han. Kylo regarded his parents dubiously. "Unbelievable." He muttered as he marched off toward Dameron's X-wing without a second glance. BB-8 hastily rolled after him, doing his best to keep up with Kylo's long strides.
Han smirked as he watched his son disappear into the distance. "Just like his old man." He teased as he turned back to face his wife.
Leia moved closer to him, the amusement fading from her eyes as she regarded him sadly. "I'm trusting you to bring him back safe, Han." She said huskily, her true emotions shining through at last as she dropped her tough façade. "I can't lose him again."
"We won't, Leia. I'll make sure of it." Han promised. He reached out and drew her into the comforting circle of his arms.
"You know no matter how hard we fought. I always hated watching you leave." She whispered against his chest.
A tender smile crossed Han's face as he rested his hand on the back of her head, cradling it. "That's why I did it, so you'd miss me."
"I did miss you. I always have." Leia murmured as her fingers gripped his shirt. She dropped her composure for a minute and clung to him. "I never stopped loving you, Han Solo."
"I know, sweetheart." Han said softly as he kissed the top of her head. "I've always known."
A/N-thanks for reading. Please review.