Halo

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A/N-thank you very much for the kind reviews on the last chapter.

Chapter Fifty-Two-What the Heart Knows

"Zorii's crew did a good job." Han said, impressed with the all the improvements and modifications that had been done to the Falcon in such a short space of time. The old Junker hadn't had this much of an overhaul in…well never.

Ben was enjoying witnessing his father's delight at all the enhancements that Zorii had made to his beloved ship. She had gone above and beyond what they had originally asked of her. It was clear she treasured Han in the same way she treasured memories of her late father, Harry. He had spent some pleasant hours in Zorii's company as they reminisced about Han, Harry and Lando's youthful exploits. There were some stories Ben had never actually heard before. It saddened him in a way, that his father had never felt able to share those same stories with him, like Harry had with Zorii. He was so grateful that he was finally getting to experience that same closeness with Han that Zorii once had with her father. He may be an adult now but it was never too late.

"Zorii's team upgraded the armament, hull, and shields." Ben explained as they continued on their tour of the ship. "And you should see what they've done to the quad laser canons- "

"The kid knows." Han cut in abruptly.

His guilt and remorse had been chipping away at him ever since Ben and Chewie had returned with Falcon. It was like ice in his guts. He felt like he had betrayed Ben in some way because he had dared to interfere. Rey had been very frosty with his son upon his return and had taken great pains to avoid him. Han felt responsible for that even though he hadn't directly said anything to Rey about Jakku. He was surprised that Ben was being so calm about everything, He had fully expected him to chase after Rey and demand answers from her about why she was avoiding him.

Han cleared his throat while he looked at the floor instead of Ben as he forged ahead with his confession. "I didn't tell her what you were planning. I promise. I just had a little talk with her…. she'd had another bad dream…and I thought…talking is supposed to help." He fumbled around for the right words to explain his innocent little chat with Rey the night before. "So, we talked." He began to get defensive, even though Ben had not said one word in response either way. "And you know what? It helped. It did." Han raised his head and his forefinger as he held it in front of Ben's face, expecting him to explode at any moment. "She already knew, Ben. She came out with it herself."

Ben wasn't ruffled at all. "Of course, she knew." He said.

Han's eyes registered confusion. "You knew she knew?"

"Yeah." Ben shrugged as if it was no big deal.

"But she's mad at you?" Han was totally bewildered.

"Not at me." Ben corrected him. "She's mad that I'm right. She'll come around."

Han scratched the back of his head. "How is it that you know so much about what goes on in a woman's mind all of a sudden? They've always been a complete mystery to me." He said wonderingly.

"Just Rey's mind." Ben smiled to himself. That was a conversation best left for another day. "Come on, let's finish the tour." He said, grabbing his father by the shoulders and propelling him forward before Han could ask anymore probing questions.

Call it old fashioned instinct or the fact that there had already been two assassination attempts on his life already, but as soon as Armitage raised the small cup of Vine Coffee to his lips, something made him pause. The meeting room was eerily silent. Through narrowed eyes, Hux looked at the men and women who made up the Supreme Council. The Council was a cabinet of top military leaders drawn from the ranks of First Order High Command. Founded by Hux himself, the Council's purpose was to carry out his orders and to plan a future for the galaxy under the absolute rule of the First Order. Its creation was also meant to introduce teamwork and greater coordination to a regime in which most high-ranking officers had little knowledge of the First Order's capabilities and goals. Cooperation was new to the proud men and women who led the First Order, however. As such, many of their meetings were marred by sniping and turf wars. But today animosities seemed to have been put to one side as they regarded their leader through wary eyes. It was like they were collectively holding their breath.

Hux lowered the cup and placed it carefully back in its saucer. His piercing stare immediately travelled to Allegiant General Enric Pryde. Pryde was the highest-ranking officer on the Council, second only to the Supreme Leader himself. In fact, the Council's headquarters were located on Pryde's ship, the Steadfast. The Allegiant General stared back at Hux with his lizard like eyes. "I hope everything is to your satisfaction, Supreme Leader." Enric murmured deferentially.

Armitage wasn't fooled. He knew that Pryde had been the catalyst behind the last two assassination attempts on his life. He just couldn't prove it. The Allegiant General was good at covering his tracks. Or maybe Captain Phasma was deliberately being too slow to gather the damming evidence he'd requested as a matter of urgency. He trusted her as much as he trusted Pryde. Hux had considered the possibility that the two had joined forces in an attempt to depose him but decided that Phasma loathed the oily Pryde just like he did.

"Everything is far from my satisfaction, Allegiant General." Armitage retorted as his gaze left Pryde and wandered around the long table where all the other officers were situated. "Who made the coffee?" He demanded suddenly.

General Bellava Parnadee, whose job it was to oversee the occupation of contested worlds, directing the First Order army on occupied Kijimi, Torost, and Odynnia Gavo, raised her hand. "You did, Supreme Leader." She pointed out calmly. "At least I saw you pour it."

"Mmmm." Hux pressed his lips together until the edges turned white from the pressure. His eyes left Bellava and landed on the person sitting next to her, Amret Engell. The older woman stiffened slightly when she realised that she was under Hux's scrutiny. Amret Engell worked closely with Captain Phasma on the stormtrooper programme. "I believe it was actually you who made the coffee." He continued, his tone turning reasonable.

Engell tugged slightly at the collar of her tight-fitting uniform jacket. She let out a nervous laugh. "I can assure you it was made from the highest quality coffee beans grown on Belsavis, Supreme Leader."

"I demand only the very best." Hux's voice was too gentle, too agreeable. Engell began to perspire. The beads of sweat on her forehead glinted dangerously underneath the bright lights of the meeting room. Armitage rose from his chair at the head of the long table. He picked up the delicate cup of Vine Coffee and walked over to the agitated General. "I also know that you are a lover of Vine Coffee and yet you don't seem to be partaking of any today. Why don't you try some of mine?" He offered the cup to her.

Amret Engell emitted another nervous laugh. She looked around at the others, hoping for one of them to back her up and distract Hux from his mission. Instead she was faced with a resounding silence. "I have been trying to cut down on my intake of late, Supreme Leader." She said by way of an excuse.

"That wasn't a request, General. It was an order." Hux raised his voice, making the already nervous woman jump in her seat. He watched the colour drain from Engell's face as he forced the cup into her shaking hand. "Drink it." He commanded. "Before it gets cold."

The tepid coffee slopped over the edges of the small cup as Amret Engell raised it to her mouth. When it reached her lips, she took a delicate sip, barely imbibing any of the liquid. "There." She said, hastily putting it away from her.

"Drink. All. Of. It." Hux spat, enunciating each word slowly.

"Supreme Leader…." Engell was shaking in her seat as she looked up at him pleadingly. "I would rather not."

Hux grabbed the older woman's short hair and yanked her head back. Her lips parted as she let out an agonised moan. Hux used the opportunity to tip the rest of the coffee into her opened mouth. Amret choked, some of the liquid escaping down her throat despite her best attempt to stop it. Armitage released her, watching impassively as Engell's body began to convulse as the quick acting poison began to take effect.

Armitage didn't bother to wait for her to die. Let the others clear up the mess. Engell's death would be a warning to all of them not to cross him. He left the meeting room in search of the one person he knew who used poison as their weapon of choice. Hadn't she once helped him kill his own father in the exact same way she had tried to kill him now? She must have recruited the hapless Engell to her cause thinking that using a third party would throw him off the scent. "Guards." He yelled at two passing stormtroopers. "Find Captain Phasma and tell her to meet me at my quarters right now."

Ben was in the cockpit, piloting the Falcon alone, when Rey came to find him. She had been deliberately avoiding him while she sorted through her conflicted feelings about going back to Jakku. She had wasted so many years of her life on that godforsaken planet, clinging on to the faint hope that her parents would one day return for her. She had matured a lot since then, leaving had opened her eyes to her childish naivete. It was so hard to put into words how her parent's abandonment had affected her. She had learned to bury the pain deep down inside the recesses of her soul. She might smile on the outside, but on the inside, she was bleeding. The pain never went away. It hurt. It hurt every day until the only way she could cope was to stop her brain yearning for love... because there was always a part of her that would always remember how it felt to be so abandoned.

Ben coming into her life had raised the stakes and transformed her life. And she sometimes struggled with this transformation, and her sensitive heart stubbornly fought it, because she was scared of losing everything. Rey knew Ben. She knew he would never abandon her, that he would weather any storm to remain true, that he would rather die than abandon her because he fully comprehended the deep pain that would cause. Delving into her past was going to be confronting, but she had to remember she wasn't alone. She had Ben. She had Han. Chewie. Little BB-8. They were all there. Willing to go on the journey with her, no matter what the cost. As she sat down in the co-pilots seat next to Ben, she looked at him, immediately reassured by the love in his eyes.

"Let's do this." She said, reaching for his hand.

Ben smiled at her, lacing his fingers with hers. Rey could see how it came from deep inside to light his eyes and spread into every part of him. It was beautiful. He knew what she was thinking without her having to say a word. Rey knew then, that even if the world around her started collapsing, that her heart would not get crushed as long as she was looking at him.

A/N-thanks for reading! Please review.