Chapter Four

Rey, Chewie and Poe sat around the gaming table on the Falcon trying to decide what their next move should be. Finn would not leave Rose's side and Leia was asleep. Everyone agreed that the General needed her rest more than anything right now. They could handle keeping the Rebels alive for a few hours.

"I don't think we can count on any of our allies to give us shelter right now," Poe stated. "They left us to die on Crait."

Bitterness was evident in his tone. Rey sat back in her seat while observing the young Captain. He seemed to be the second in command after Leia. Aside from their earlier introduction, Rey knew little about the young Captain. Finn had shared a few stories about him and it was obvious Finn held Poe in high regard, but Rey wanted to wait to reserve judgement. Recent events had warned her against trusting too easily.

If Rey was being honest with herself, she was shocked that she had let her guard down so easily. She wasn't a naturally closed off person, but a lifetime of living on Jakku, where every day was a struggle to stay alive, had taught her that most people were only looking out for themselves. More often than not, it was dangerous to let people get too close.

Finn and Leia proved that not everyone was bad, but she had to admit she was horribly wrong about Ben. No, she stopped herself. He isn't Ben, he chose to be Kylo. A person's actions were the truest test of their character and in the end Kylo had embraced the dark. It stung. She had been so convinced that she could turn him. That he would return to the light and stand by her.

After he killed Snoke, he had looked at her with such conviction. She felt the rightness of it all. That fighting by his side was her destiny and she had taken the right path. Despite Snoke's words, the bond between them had only grown stronger after his death. When they battled Snoke's guard together, Rey could feel the connection binding and strengthening them both. It was as if together, they were more than the sum of their parts.

Rey had desperately wanted to be right about him. That there was still good in him. That he would return to the light. She had been so horribly naïve. Again, she was shocked at herself. Where had the self-reliant Jakku scavenger gone? Master Skywalker even warned her. His last words an ominous warning that "this will not go the way you think."

Pulling her mind away from self-recriminations she focused on the conversation at hand.

"Chewie is right," she stated. "We don't need to figure out a permanent base of operations right now. What we need is someplace safe to refuel and restock our provisions. Also, Rose is stable, but the Falcon doesn't have the medical supplies she needs to get better."

Their recent activities had reduced the fuel and food stores on the Falcon and unless they wanted to be caught in the same position that the rebellion had just escaped, running out of fuel with the First Order hunting them down, they at least needed to land someplace soon. The trouble was, there were not many places in the galaxy that were safe.

"The First Order will be disorganized with the loss of Snoke, but I don't think we can count on that lasting long," said Poe.

"No, we can't," agreed Rey. "We saw on Crait how determined they are to exterminate every one of us."

Chewie then growled out the best suggestion Rey had heard all day.

"Kashyyyk is perfect" agreed Rey.

"I am not so sure," countered Poe. "Kylo Ren knows that Chewie is with us. Kashyyyk is a fairly obvious choice of safe harbor."

"I agree that we can't stay there permanently, but we will be safe there long enough to refuel and resupply."

"Alright, but we will need to be fast. I don't think there are any guarantees right now."

Chewie growled out this feelings regarding Poe's doubts of the safety of his home world. Rey suppressed a smile and decided it was probably a good thing that not everyone spoke Wookie.

…

Rey turned in a slow circle as she took in Chewie's home world. It was like something out a child's fantasy. Enormous trees dominated the planet. The entire Wookie society lived among the treetops. The décor was an enchanting combination of rustic elegance and advanced technology.

The lush treetops provided shade but there was a lot of space between trees. The sunlight streaming down looked golden and warm, illuminating the walking paths built to connect each of the trees.

Rey stopped her silent revere when she felt Leia beside her.

"Chewie is settling the others. You and I have been asked to stay with his family."

"I didn't know that Chewie had a family," Rey stated.

"Chewie never formed a pair bond, but he still has extended family. Many Wookies died during the slave era and most families were divided. When Han saved Chewie's life, he was still young for their race. The life debt that Chewie felt he owed Han prevented him from ever forming a family of his own."

"Do you think that Chewie will remain here?"

Leia sighed and looked down as she replied. "I don't know. Han was the only reason that Chewie stayed away for so long. Now that he is gone…" Leia's words trailed off at the end.

"Hey, let's go get settled in ourselves. I don't know about you, but I could do with a bath and a very large meal."

Leia laughed. "You should be careful what you wish for. Most Wookie meals could feed a family of eight."

"Sound perfect." Rey linked her arm with Leia's and set out in search of Chewie.