Chapter 11 - Nightingale

Jakku

Anchorite Ridge

He was dead. Poe was certain of this. After all, there was a bright light, just as the stories told. Surely then, he would be greeted by beautiful Angels and be taken to the comforting arms of equally beautiful women. Perhaps he would find his mother there, waiting with a smile.

Then he felt a sharp pain in his head, in his throat… and generally everywhere else. That wasn't right. If he was dead, then why was he in pain? A sudden fear took hold of him then. What if he wasn't where he thought he was, but somewhere else on the other side of spectrum. Surely seducing his fair share of women hadn't been enough to send him to that place.

Something came into his vision. Something blurry. The damn light, if it could just buzz off for a couple of seconds… it started to become clearer. His mind began playing tricks on him. The figure had horns, then wings, then… hair.

He blinked a few times, letting the image come into focus. He groaned softly, his voice sounding chapped.

"Who are you?" he asked. A feminine voice, slightly gruff but with all the right textures of the opposite sex answered:

"My name is Rey."

He opened his eyes, and he smiled with all the charm he could manage.

"I take it back. I am in Heaven."

Before him was indeed a woman. A very fair one, to be sure. A heart shaped face with tanned skin, though not around the eyes where her pale skin remained: a trademark goggles tan… which he strangely found attractive. A few slight scars lined her high cheekbones, white against the tan. Her hair was chestnut brown, bound in a long braid that ran over her shoulders. It was a bit messy, strands of it loose against her forehead and tangled over her ears, but it generally got the job done.

"If you consider Jakku to be Heaven," she smiled with a flash of her hazel eyes, "then you have very low standards."

"Oh," Poe's smile deepened, "in my experience, you take what you can get."

"A real charmer," she chuckled softly as she turned away from him, doing something he couldn't quite see. He took a moment to look around, noticing the steel walls and carapace superstructure.

"Where am I exactly?"

"Safe," she replied without turning, "for now."

"Are you being intentionally vague?"

She turned around and shot him a careful glance.

"Possibly."

"Heh," Poe sighed as he laid down on his cot, "not the first time I've woken up in a strange place with a strange woman."

"I could certainly say the same for you."

He looked around again, seeing the small creature comforts dotting the large expanse. Most prominent however were parts. Machining parts, starcraft parts, engines and exhausts. A great many of lay on a long work bench were a number of power tools were tucked away safely in leather jerkins and safety catches.

"Are you a mechanic of some kind?" he asked.

"Ah, observant, are we? I'll add that to the rest of your rather positive traits."

He then realized he was undressed. His flight suit was gone, and he was wearing a medical gown. His leg was bound in a kind of splint, bags of blue viscous fluid strapped to it. A sudden feeling of vulnerability washed over Poe, but he subverted it and grinned slyly.

"Was there anything you particularly liked, by chance?"

Rey glanced at him, smiling at him dismissively.

"You can turn off the charm. I'm immune."

"Very well," his face grew hard and serious, "where am I, exactly? How long have I been here? Where's Finn?"

"I'm not going to say," she turned around, her arms crossed over and for the first time, he got a look at what she was wearing. They were tan robes, outlining trousers tucked into working boots, the arms exposed at the shoulders with the rest covered over by cloth sleeves. Her body was slim, but the muscles in her arms looked honed and her eyes had the glint of someone who knew how to fight. Strangely, it just made her more attractive to him.

"And why's that?" he shot back, rising on his elbows.

"Well, I don't know you," she deadpanned with raised eyebrow, "and I don't trust what I don't know."

"Well, why don't you come over here," he smiled slightly, "and get to know me?"

She tutted him, shaking her head:

"Oh, I don't think so," she smiled slyly at him, "as I said, your charm is wasted on me."

"Give me some credit. I'm crippled here."

"Yes, you are," she nodded, "I was afraid you were going to lose that leg."

"Oh? So, it was worse than I thought. I'm guessing it was you who found us?"

"No it was the other person staying here," she deadpanned.

"You just like playing hard to get, don't you?"

She didn't answer, and he sighed.

"What do you want?"

"Your attention," she replied, "I have a few questions for you. If you don't answer them correctly, well…" she produced a remote which was attached by some sort of cabling which in turn ran to his… leg, "I'm not sure what would get you first. The desert or the infection. The choice is yours, but if I were you, I wouldn't try to test my patience."

Poe looked at her, his eyes slightly wide:

"You are one strange lady, y'know that?"

"So everyone keeps saying. Oh, and I'll know if you're lying."

"How?" he asked incredulously, "You got some kinda lie detector lying about?"

"Yes," she smiled, "me. Shall we begin?"

He sighed, and nodded.

"Who are you?"

"Kes," Poe lied, "Kes Bey."

"You're lying."

"No I'm not!"

She pressed the button, and the blue fluid started to drain from the pouches attached to his leg. A burning pain took hold him then, and he screamed.

"Tell me the truth."

"I AM TELLING YOU THE TRUTH!" he screamed as he clutched at his knee.

"No, you're not. Why are you lying?"

"Because…" he gasped, "people are looking for me!"

She pressed the button again, and the fluid began to seep back into the pouches. The pain eased as a cooling sensation washed over him. He sighed in relief and laid back down on his cot.

"Why are they looking for you?" she asked.

"Because I stumbled into something I shouldn't have. Now they're trying to kill me."

"What sort of people are they?"

"Dangerous people."

"Do you think I'm one of these dangerous people?"

Poe looked at her, shaking his head softly.

"No… but I don't know who you are, or if I should actually trust you."

Her face softened, and she put the remote down on the bench behind her.

"What's your name?" she asked again. Poe sighed, and answered truthfully.

"Poe. My name is Poe Dameron."

She smiled at him. It was an unreadable smile, her emotions shrouded. As she turned and began walking towards something, he asked in panic:

"Hey! Where you going? Why are you smiling?"

"Someone wants to see you."

She then opened a hatch, and he expected to see Stormtroopers storming in. Instead, it was the last thing he ever expected.

"BUDDY!" he cried, and out of the desert came screaming BB-8. He tackled into Poe, his arms holding him in an embrace as he danced around his human partner. A babble of incomprehensible binary roared from the droid as he asked Poe a million questions. Poe did the same, asking things along the lines of where he'd been and if he was alright.

"Seriously man," Poe sighed as he held BB-8 at arms length, "I did not expect to see you again… um, is it safe?" he asked with a whisper. BB-8 merely nodded. The pair of them then heard Rey chuckling at them.

What are you laughing at? BB-8 asked. Rey stifled a laugh with her hand, but couldn't hold herself back. She even cried a little.

"Oh I'm sorry. I just think this is adorable."

"Um, thanks. Hey wait a minute!" he pushed BB-8 for a moment as he glared at her on raised elbows, "If you had BB-8 all this time, then why'd you do this whole song and dance and torturing thing?"

"I had to be sure it was really you, Poe, and not some actor playing the role."

"Why? You got experience with that?"

He didn't get a response. Save a for a look he didn't quite understand, but he let the matter drop as BB-8 came in to hug him again.

It turned out they were in an AT-AT. Finn almost immediately identified it when he woke sometime later.

"Poe?!" he called out, looking around to see where the man he had spent the past half week dragging through the desert had gotten to. His eyes passed over a figure dressed in the garb of the Tusken Raiders of Tatooine, which put Finn on high alert. "Who are you?" Finn growled, "what have you done to Poe?"

The figure tilted their head, "He's safe," a woman's voice answered, "I'm not so sure about you, though."

Finn narrowed his eyes, "What medication am I on? What is a Tusken doing on Jakku? Am I delirious?"

"You don't sound it!" the 'Tusken' laughed, and removed her mask, "I'm just messing with you. I use this to keep the sun off me. And to answer your first question: a filtered line bacta I mixed in with your water supply, plus one or two pain suppressants, just to be sure."

"Just to be sure? I don't have spinal damage, do I?"

She smiled, "I don't usually believe in luck, but you seem to have it like an Idiot's Array."

Finn stared at her for a moment, looking her up and down before returning to her face… and to her hair. It was… she, was different. All the women he had known had all been more like men than women. Their hair shaven, bodies lined with muscle. There hadn't been much in the way of actual feminality, and in truth, command had viewed them exactly the same as their male counterparts: instruments of war. This woman was different, and though he didn't show it, she make him feel uncomfortable.

In a way, she reminded him of the stories he'd heard about from Colonies. Of beautiful women meant for soldiers of the First Order, and to bear the next generation of soldiers. Finn wondered if that was where he would've been sent if things hadn't turned out the way they did… but he quickly let the matter drop.

"Did you pull us out of the desert?" he asked her bluntly, his eyes working around the room looking for… something.

"Mmm hmm," she nodded simply.

"Why?"

"Why wouldn't I?" she shot back, matching his tone, "Because you're a Stormtrooper?"

"Why are you living alone?"

"What gives you that impression?"

"This cot is uncomfortable," he stated, "I doubt you would sleep on it."

"Well aren't you perceptive." she remarked humorously.

"The Captain demanded the best from us, and being perceptive meant the difference between life and death on Parnassos."

The woman tilted her head and rose an eyebrow, "Is that some kind of death world?"

Finn nodded, "That certainly fits it. Where's Poe?"

"Did he charm you, too?" She asked him with a laugh. Finn however didn't laugh and looked at her slightly bewildered. Rey simply shrugged as she headed out the drap covered entrance, "He's outside. I'll check on him."

"What an unusual woman," Finn sighed as he tried to sit up. His back screamed at him and he fell back to the bed, deciding that he would give himself a little bit more recovery before he attempted that again. He panted, fighting to control his breath and mentally fighting back the pain until it became a tolerable throb. As he laid there, he began taking stock of the situation. He was alive, and so was apparently Poe.

What confused him however was the woman. She knew he was a Stormtrooper. In any given situation, that was a death sentence. And yet, he was alive. Why?

He looked around more, noticing the sparse creature comforts and furniture around the compartment. This woman had only what she needed, telling him that she was poor as dirt or was a pragmatist. He doubted the former as the woman seemed well educated. Though that could mean she'd lost everything if she was here on the edge of known space. Maybe she did. Maybe she didn't want to be found.

Still, his first priority at the moment was he need to find his weapons. Even if she was taking care of them and the calculated risk she posed to him was minimal, he didn't know how long that was going to last. He thought for a moment, noting that his gear had been magnetically strapped to either of thighs. So, where was his armor? He looked around again, and decided in that moment that safety was more important than comfort.

Slowly, he turned to his side, and began to rise. He bore the pain, judging the bluntness of it to be little more than muscle sores. If it had been sharp, it would've been a tear or worse. But if it was worse, he wouldn't have been able to move in the first place. Besides her earlier statement, his head and neck hadn't been given special attention, which added to his point.

Carefully, he stabilized himself, holding the IV bags attached by his wrist to his chest as he looked around again. As he looked, he began identifying everything of note. Exits, weapons, hard surfaces he could use as cover. Then he saw something: a box with a wool cover. He looked around, and noticed that nothing else was like that, so he stealthy made his over to it.

He took every step carefully, avoiding things that he knew would make noise, though the sand helped greatly in muffling his approach. He pulled the box open, and there it was: his armor. He pulled the pieces out one by one before eventually coming across the back plate. A giant outward hole had expanded from its center, and he instinctively felt for his spine. He felt an odd sense in pride by the fact that even an internal explosion hadn't been enough to kill him.

Musing aside, he quickly found the thighs…

"Don't bother. They're not there."

He spun around, his body falling into a fighting stance. The woman stood at the doorway with her arms crossed, watching him.

"What did you do with them?" he growled at her, his impressive physical bulk making him fairly intimidating to look at, "Speak!"

When she didn't, he prepared himself for the possibility of pouncing her. His muscles tensed despite the sudden pain he was feeling. In reality, it helped. It made him all the more willing to fight.

"Don't," and in that moment, she drew his SE-44c sidearm and held him at blaster-point. Finn's eyes narrowed as he relaxed a bit, but his intensity only grew.

"You know how to use that?" he challenged.

"Do you really want to test me?"

"Why am I alive?" he snarled, "Why'd you save me?"

"You? You're asking why I saved you?"

"Drop the act. You know what I am. You know where I come from and you know what I can do."

"Yes, I do."

"Why'd you save me, then?"

She looked at him for a moment, pondering. Then she chuckled softly, and lowered the blaster.

"Would you believe me if I said just because?"

Finn's expression hardened, "Am I supposed to believe you did it out of the kindness of your heart?"

"I dunno," she shrugged, "is that so hard to believe?"

"In my experience, there's no such thing as good intentions."

"Oh, so everyone's got an angle, huh?"

"Yes. They do."

"Well… I don't."

Finn tilted his head in bewilderment, and she sighed, shaking her head as she rubbed the back of her head.

"Look," she began, stepping closer to Finn, "if I wanted to kill you, I would've just left you out in the desert to die. You're safe here."

"How do you know?"

"Because no one knows I'm here. I've made sure of that."

Finn nodded in approval. She was truly a pragmatist, and he respected that. Then she stepped closer again, and he tensed slightly, but relaxed when she held up a hand.

"Easy," she soothed, "I'm gonna do something my gut's telling me not to."

She held out the blaster, barrel pointing her way. Finn looked at her suspiciously, and slowly took it, his finger off the trigger and the barrel pointed down at the floor. She then stepped back, and smiled slightly.

"Just don't shoot me in the back, please? Your friend's outside."

And with that, she was out the door. Finn watched her go, noting her impressive physique as he did. He admitted to himself that in his presumably weakened state, she might've actually been able to take him, and a part of him was glad that it didn't go that way. That did make him wonder how she kept in shape, but he let the matter drop. He looked at the door, and down at his weapon.

He sighed, and put it away. Right now, he couldn't afford to put himself into an even worse position than he already was. With that, he went out the door; his hand shielding his eyes from the blaring sun above.

"Finn!" he heard Poe's voice ahead, "Good to see you awake!"

His vision cleared, and Poe was standing! Actually standing. Then he saw the bacta bags strapped to his leg.

"Where'd you get those? Wait, how long have we've been out?"

"Traded for them," the woman answered, "well, technically it was part of a little reward package I got for opening the access routes to a certain Star Destroyer. It's where I met this little pyro-maniac!" she laughed as she patted the droid everyone seemed to be looking for, "and for about a week. Well, a little less, but yeah about a week."

"Huh."

The pair of them being rescued by a friendly, yet dangerous woman who had Poe's droid. He didn't know if it was all coincidence… or something else. Speaking of which, said droid was now circling him, babbling out questions he couldn't understand before it came face to face with him, staring him down with its beady little eye.

"Don't worry about him, BB-8," Poe chuckled softly, "he's a bit rough around the edges, but he's a good guy! Wouldn't be here without him."

"Thanks," was all Finn had to say to that before BB-8 jutted one of his mechanical claws out, pointed up to its eye and then jutted it right into Finn's chest.

"I don't blame you," Finn shrugged, "I'd do the same. Actually, I'd just shoot you and be done with it."

BB-8 scoffed at him, and took off to go do… something else. Poe and Rey were holding down long metal pipes, one ten feet long and another pair twenty to thirty, while BB-8 was welding them into place.

"What are you doing anyway?"

The sudden crack of lightning brought his eyes skyward, where stormclouds were fast approaching. He understood.

"Raincatchers."

"Mmm hmm," Rey nodded, "that's the thing about deserts. It does rain, and often. Only problem is that it evaporates before it hits the ground."

"So, put the catcher up higher before it does," he nodded his approval, remembering the Navѐ tribes of Parnassos, distinctive with their white body paint and attachment for fast motorized vehicles and flamethrowers, erected whole cities worth of catchers which were in turn connected to carefully maintained filter systems. More than once Finn and his men would infiltrate these facilities and destroy them, forcing the tribes from their mountain fortresses to engage their opponents in the open. Though they fought with fervor and fanaticism, they were always hopelessly outmatched in weapons technology.

"Alright, Poe? Grab that end and lift up. We'll put it in the post holes-"

"Allow me," and Finn quickly scurried past Poe to take his place.

"Hey!" but Finn would have none of it. He positioned his body to put the weight of the effort on his biceps and shoulders rather than his back. When he was ready, he nodded at Rey, and the pair of them lifted the platform up and dragged into position where the heavy stones there would keep it in place.

"Alright, BB! Up to you now!"

With that, BB-8 floated over a rig up net made up of patch together pieces of fabric, which in turn was ringed by steel braces which then came together like an umbrella. Eight separate reins where connected at these points, and BB-8 took them in his mechanical arms. He ascended, taking the material up with him. Though he wobbled, he was careful enough to give himself enough purchase, and with an effort, he hooked it onto the platform and the center rod went through its porthole.

In minutes, the rain came. All around them, they could only feel the faintest of moisture, but above, the platform began to fill.

"Won't last long," Rey sighed, "maybe a couple of minutes, ten at the most. But still-"

"Water is water," Finn finished, and Rey nodded, smiling.

"You would've done well on Tatooine."

"You would've done well on Parnassos."

"Well how about we don't end up on a desert planet for a change?" Poe called out to them, "I could go for a beach planet!"

"Is that actually for the weather..." Rey started.

"Or the women?" Finn finished.

"How about both?"

And at this, Finn shook his head and Rey burst out laughing.

"Well, we haven't been properly introduced yet," Rey smiled at him, and offered her hand, "I'm Rey."

Finn looked at her for a long moment, but sigh and took it, noting the strength in the grip.

"Poe calls me Finn, so you can call me that, too."

"Okay Finn. Good to meet you."

"Hey, look at that!" Poe laughed as he hobbled over, embracing them both with open arms, "We're getting along so well! I wager this is the start of a beautiful friendship!"

"Well," Rey chuckled back, "I dunno know about that-"

"Ah, perish the thought! So, what's next?"

Rey looked skyward, the clouds slowly marching across mid afternoon like an advancing army.

"Well, inside for now. This storm's gonna last a while. We'll come out and check it once it's night."

Finn frowned momentarily before suppressing the look. His questions could wait until then.

The fire crackled in the moonlight, and Poe was laughing harder than he'd ever before.

"You were a damsel in distress!?"

BB-8 just seemed to sulk further and further into the darkness of the background. Poe just couldn't stop laughing and Finn quickly realized it was a release.

"Well, give him some credit, flyboy," Rey smirked across at him, pointing to himself, "he happened to save this damsel in distress!"

"Yeah, and that's like an Ewok saving a Gungan-Ow!" Poe messaged his shoulder as Rey glared at him.

"That's an unfair comparison, and you know it. Besides, you haven't had an Ewok or a Gungan try to kill you!"

"Actually, I have!" Poe scoffed at her, "Twice! The little teddy bears tried to cook me over a fire while the fishmen danced to my doom!"

"Vee-beet-boob!" BB-8 cursed at him. Poe just shrugged.

"Okay, fine. So I did happen to crash their party because of that one lady… but it wasn't on purpose!"

"Vee-deep-boo," BB-8 shook his head at him and Rey sniggered at him.

"Hey! That's not fair!" Poe growled, and Finn finally posed the obvious question bluntly. Rey provided the answer.

"Apparently, he wandered in half-naked, completely drunk, calling the Ewoks in question 'little teddies' and he tried to punt one!"

Poe buried his face in his hands, moaning, "We agreed never to talk about this!"

Hey, you don't get to call me Damsel in Distress and expect to get away with it, BB-8 laughed at him.

"He's got a point, you know," Rey smirked at his displeasure, and Poe narrowed his eyes at her.

"Oh excuse me, Ms. Snippy-Tusken-Lady, but you made a little mistranslation there. I wasn't drunk! I was drugged!"

"Oh…" Rey feigned mock realization sarcastically, "and that's make it better, huh?"

"I… um, well… Finn, back me up here!"

"Hey, don't drag me into this."

"Buddy, you've been dragging me for days! It's only fair!"

"Very well…" then he cracked an artic smile, "as soon as I receive a substantial injury, I'll ensure that you'll need to drag me everywhere I please. That sound fair?"

"No!" Poe squealed as his face grew redder and redder amidst all the mocking laughter. He jutted a finger at his droid, "You did this! You turned them against me!"

You've done that yourself!

"Why you-!" and sand was now being flung at floating ball of mischief. Rey laughed and laughed, but Poe wasn't quite finished yet, "Hey, don't think I've forgotten about you!"

"Hey!" Rey squeaked in dismay, "Don't do that! This stuff gets everywhere!"

"Too bad!" and now a war of sand was being waged! Neither side gave quarter, and neither side was spared their expense of crimson sand. And by the end of it, Finn was just struggling to keep their fire going.

"Children," he shook his head, "I'm surrounded by children."

"Who you calling kid?" and now Rey had drawn in a third party to their desert warfare. BB-8 just 'stood' in the background, laughing maniacally in mid-air at the mischief he had caused.

"That's it," and Finn stormed off up the hill.

"Aw, what's the matter?" Poe called after him, laughing all the while, "Can't shove when push comes?!"

"Um, Poe?" Rey suddenly rose to his feet, "I don't think he's running away."

"Oh please! What is he gonna do? Go get a bucket and- oh carabast!"

And like that, the pair were submerged as an avalanche attacked them from up the hill. Buried in sand, they crawled out the mire of their defeat to find Finn sitting there cross legged, BB-8 starting a new fire. He looked at them, and smiled slightly.

"I win."

Rey looked at Poe and smiled, "I like him. Now get me out of here!"

"Why do you think she saved us?"

"Huh?" Poe had been looking up at the stars. It had been a long time since he had a clear overcast with most of the planets blotting them out with light pollution, "oh. I dunno."

"How much did you tell her?"

"Enough. Who I am, who you are, and why we're in this mess."

"I don't suppose you-"

"No," he shook his head, "only me, you, and BB-8 know about that."

"Good."

Finn looked out the expanse of desert stretching for miles, the moon casted full overhead.

"Tomorrow… we need to get move on."

"You kiddin'?"

"Shh," Finn whispered, looking over at Rey who was doing something in the AT-AT, which turned out to have been half buried in the sand. Satisfied, he turned back to Poe, "we can't stay here. The longer we do, the more danger we're in."

"Buddy, I can barely stand!" Poe urged, his tone lowered sufficiently, "And you? You couldn't hack ten miles out there the way you are."

"Yes, I can," Finn growled, but Poe shook his head.

"No, you can't. You can put on a show all you like, but we'll die out there if we leave now!"

"We'll die if we stay."

"Really? Buddy, think about it. She's had the chance to turn us in long before now. And on top of that, BB-8 trusts her."

"You're going to trust a stranger all because of a droid's judgement?"

He was answered with a jab to the arm and Poe jutted a finger in his face.

"Don't you dare. Me and BB-8 been through a hellova lot together, and normally thems be fightin' words. But I owe you, so I'm gonna let it slide."

"You act like that droid's alive."

"He is," Poe growled, "and I don't wanna hear another word about it."

"Poe… I don't trust this woman."

"I get that. I do. But we ain't got a choice in the matter. We need to rest. Take a moment, plan! We still gotta get off this planet, and that means we need a ship! Now I don't know about you, but I sure as heck don't know who or where to get one on this blasted junk heap."

"Still…" he looked back at her, who herself was bent over in the doorway, "this woman makes me uneasy."

"Oh?" Poe grinned slyly, "Well, what kind of uneasy is that?"

"Pardon?"

"Well, I ain't gonna lie. Take away all the grime and machine oil, and she's one hellova good looking woman."

"That's... That's not it," Finn replied, slightly flustered.

"C'mon, ain't no shame in that! I saw the way you been looking at her. 'Sides, who am I gonna tell?"

"Um…" Finn just shook his head, "that's… I mean, you're clearly attracted to her."

"'Course I am! I am attracted to a great many of the finer side of the opposite sex. I mean, I can sit here all day talking about the finest ladies I've been with. Hell, I can probably write a book about my exploits!"

"Oh really?"

They both turned around to see Rey standing behind them, a sly smile stretching wide on her face, steaming cases of something balanced on either hand. Poe smiled winningly at her.

"Trust me, darling. I have loved enough for a thousand men! Probably more!"

"With that bravado, I don't doubt it," Rey smirked as she handed them each of a case of quick-meal before sitting across from them.

"Bravado?" Poe smirked, "Well, what makes you think it's all bravado, huh?"

"Oh, I think you've got everything good where it counts," that earned a bewildered look from Finn, to which Poe shrugged, "but with exploits like that, I could imagine all the jealous suitors… and their equally jealous husbands looking to hang you up and… well, you boys have an imagination for that."

"What makes you think I've got jealous husbands on my tail?"

"You look the type."

"And what type is that?"

"Your typical flyboy," she said matter-of-factly, "all charm, all adventure, all very dashing. I'd imagine all sort of women would want you to take them by the arm. And probably more, in your case."

"Darling, I have a rule against sleeping with married women."

"But only if you know they're married."

"Did BB-8 tell you that?"

"No, and thank you," she said as the thing of interest came in to hand her a quick-meal, "I just know the type."

"You're speaking from experience," Finn noted. She laughed.

"Believe me, I practically grew up with flyboys! All the same, really. Daring, dashing… of course, they often dive head first into danger. But hey, they're never boring."

"Charged as guilty," Poe shrugged, "we pilots practically wear bodacious like we wear our flight jackets."

"Like I said," she chuckled, "never boring."

"So how does someone like you end up in a place like this, then?" Finn asked, and she shrugged.

"Oh you know, family trouble and the like."

"You'd come to a place like this for 'family troubles'?"

"Well, why else would I be here?"

"Because you're hiding."

She looked at him blankly.

"So what if I am?"

"What are you hiding from?"

"Finn, c'mon! This ain't Twenty Questions! Look, I'm hungry. So let's just dig into… whatever this is, okay?"

However, just as he was about to, the smell immediately put him off.

"What is this anyway?"

"Nutritious," Rey replied, putting a spoon into the yellow and white goob, "dig in and-"

"What the-" Poe said suddenly.

"What?" she looked up, and Finn was devouring the stuff! A bite was replaced with another, and in seconds, he was halfway done.

"Hey, slow down!" Poe gasped, "You're gonna choke on the stuff!"

"Sorry," he replied, slowing a moment, "haven't had anything tastier than field rations in a very long while."

Rey burst out laughing, almost dropping her case into the fire. Then she saw Finn was completely straight face.

"Stars… you're serious."

"Why wouldn't I be?"

"You frickin' kidding me with that?" Poe scoffed, "This stuff? Please. You haven't had real food until you tried one of Antilles' pot pies! Made with real Rancor!"

"Antilles?" Rey asked, "As in Wedge Antilles, the flight instructor?"

"Yes…" Poe replied suspiciously, "how do you know Old Man Antilles?"

"I grew up on Yavin. My dad knew him."

"Huh. That's funny. I grew up on Yavin, too. Never seen you there, before."

"Oh? Heh, well that's funny. After all, it's like we lived on a planet sized moon," she deadpanned.

Poe and Finn traded looks with each other.

"Point taken," Poe replied, sounding unconvinced.

"Well look, we're leaving in the next few days. Do you know where the nearest space port is?" Finn asked.

Rey grinned, "You're in luck. I have a ship."

"Great," he replied, "where is it?"

"Well, not here. It's back at Niima Outpost," she then shot a sudden glare at them, "under lock and key, meaning it's not going anywhere without me."

"Hey, who said anything about you not going with us?" Poe asked with an honest smile. She however looked them hard in the eyes, and shook her head.

"You want to know why I saved you, is that it?"

"That would be a start," Finn replied.

"Because it's time for me to get off this planet, and you two… ahem, you three are my ticket out of here."

"So, you're intentions weren't benevolent after all," Finn remarked coldly, crossing his arms as he did, "just like I thought."

"What is that suppose to mean?"

"What are you really after, Rey? What's your angle here?"

"Finn…"

"I'm done being lied to."

She glared at Finn for a long moment before she growled, "I didn't lie, buckethead," stormed off back to her shelter.

"What was that?" Poe asked, annoyance stretched across his face.

"Poe, my mission is to get you off this planet. I can't do that if I keep checking my six for a complete stranger I know nothing about."

"Well, you could've worded it better. And besides, we ain't going anywhere without her."

"Why not?"

"Cause I think her ship's broke. BB-8 told me she went into that Star Destroyer to get her hands on sections of its hyperdrive before anybody else could scrap it."

"So you're saying… she's been stranded here."

"Yeah," Poe deadpanned, his voice escalating into a yell, "I do. And I think you should go apologize to our host who also happens to be the lady who frickin' saved our butts back there!"

And with that, he too rose to his feet and left the Stormtrooper alone with his thoughts. He sighed, wrapping his hands around his head. He stared out into the shiftless, endless deserts, and whispered to himself:

"I don't know what to do."