"What do you mean, we can't go back to Leia? Why can't we go back to Leia?"
Finn could not believe the words coming out of Poe's mouth. It made no sense that they were not going to return to the Rebellion. It was where they could regroup and plan their next move. As far as Finn was concerned, it was the only safe course of action but for the last 30 minutes he had been arguing with his friend about it.
"Going back to the rebellion gives the First Order cause to discredit us. They can't be seen to be involved in a jailbreak until we can prove my innocence. I want to go back to the general more than anyone but going back would play right into their hands."
"I can hide you." It was the first thing that the woman Zorii had said since their meeting in the sewers. For some reason, it only seemed to infuriate Finn more. He didn't know who she was or her connection with Poe and the situation was already dangerous enough without throwing in some giant unknown into the equation. Poe however, seemed more than agreeable with her suggestion.
"That could work."
"Uh, excuse me. Who exactly are you?" Finn was unable to keep the irritation out of his voice. He knew it wasn't entirely fair of him to take it out on the woman but he was reaching the limits of his patience.
"Zorii was my partner back on Kijimi. We have known each other for years." Poe volunteered.
"Former partner, or did you forget about leaving us," she countered.
"I asked you to come with me."
Clearly the pair had a lot of history and it wasn't all great. Finn didn't know if he could trust her and right now, that was unacceptable.
"You know why I left Zorii. This fight is bigger than any one person. All of the years that we struggled would mean nothing if we lived under the yoke of the First Order."
"First Order, Republic, Empire, what is the difference?"
Instead of firing off a sharp retort, Poe just looked exhausted. Changing his focus away from Zorii and back onto Finn, Poe implored them to listen to him.
"Zorii and I were partners for years in a spice smuggling operation. If anyone can keep us under the radar it is her. I know that this is a lot to ask, but I need you to trust me right now."
Finn could hardly believe his ears. Spice? He could not believe that the friend who he trusted was part of selling that poison. If he had not heard it from Poe himself, he would not have believed it. Feeling angry and disgusted by the situation, Poe left to find Rose.
He found Rose in the cockpit. With a bone weary sigh, he slumped into the copilot seat beside her.
"Everything okay back there?"
"Not remotely," Finn replied.
"Do you want to talk about it?"
"Yes, no...I don't know. I thought that the prison break would be the hard part but now everything seems so much more complicated. Poe refuses to rejoin the rebellion because he is worried that the First Order will use it against us and now he wants us to hide out with a bunch of spice runners. Oh and surprise surprise, Poe used to run spice."
Rose listened to it all in silence, letting Finn get it all out of his system. She was proving to be an excellent listener because she took it all in without judgement. Once it was clear that Finn had said his piece, she weighed in.
"Poe isn't wrong that the First Order would latch on to any opportunity that they could to discredit the Rebellion. Something seems to have changed in their approach. They aren't attacking us outright anymore. It feels like they are playing a shadow game now and we need to be a lot more careful about how we approach things."
Before Finn could interject Rose continued.
"It isn't to say that we won't find some way to reconnect with Leia but we need to be smart about this. This fight is bigger than any one of us."
At that, Finn snorted.
"What?"
"Poe said exactly the same thing."
"Well for a flyboy who always has his head in the cockpit, Poe can be a smart person on occasion."
"Smart spice runner apparently."
Casting Finn a sympathetic gaze Rose replied, "Don't judge him too harshly. You more than anyone know how cruel the universe can be. Very few of us had the luxury of choosing our own path. I can only imagine the desperation that must have caused someone like Poe into that life."
Finn felt a growing sense of shame at Rose's words. She was right. Poe had not cared that he had been a stormtrooper. He accepted that Finn had been forced into that life and had never judged him for it. He owed his friend more than that.
After a few moments of silence Finn replied.
"You are right."
Flashing him a cheeky smile, Rose responded. "Of course I am right dummy. I am always right."
…
Landing on Kijimi did not help Finn's mood. He reminded himself that he needed to keep an open mind but this place was just plain shaddy.
After they departed the ship, they entered a district that Poe affectionately referred to as the "thieves den." The entire populace looked shifty to Finn and he wanted to get off of the street. It didn't help that he had no idea where the Zorii person was taking them. She could be leading them into a trap for all Finn knew.
A thin layer of snow covered everything outside but it was clear that Kijimi was not a wealthy planet. Buildings were in every state of disrepair and everything looked run down and tattered. Clearly this area had seen hard times for a while. They followed Zorii down one winding alleyway to another until Finn was sure that they were lost. Finally, Zorii knocked on a dilapidated door.
A TT-8L security droid popped out of the wall next to the door that Zorii had knocked on. The droid resembled a giant eye on the end of a long stick and they always gave Finn the willies. Clearly, this one was well acquainted with the female smuggler because it did no more than blink twice at her before opening the door.
They descended down a long flight of stairs before entering what looked to be a mechanic's shop. Like everything on Kijimi, it looked like it had seen better days but it was warm. Just as Finn was getting ready to ask what they were doing there, Poe pushed forward and exclaimed "Babu!"
A tiny Anzellan male raised his arms in welcome while shouting "Poe!"
"Finn, Rose, I would like you to meet Babu Frik. He is the best droidsmith in the entire system."
"Nice to meet you Babu." Finn tried to keep his tone as pleasant as possible but it was hard. Rose gave his hand a reassuring squeeze before moving forward to introduce herself to the droidsmith.
"This is quite an impressive shop you have Babu. I have not seen an EV-9D9 model in years. Are you close to repairing it?"
As Rose made nice, Finn moved closer to the mysterious Zorii.
"So is this your base of operations or something?"
"Or something," the woman cryptically replied. "It is a safe space for you guys to lie low until you figure out your next move."
Before Finn could reply, Poe joined them.
"Thanks for letting us stay here Zorii."
Finn watched as the woman tensed up at Poe's words. While she appeared to be on their side, it was clear that she was not 100% comfortable with Poe. Finn didn't know what her motivations were and that unsettled him.
"It is what good partners do," she replied angrily before walking away.
Finn raised an eyebrow at Poe. Clearly there was a lot of history between the two. Poe watched Zorii leave with an expression that was equal parts pain and longing. Sighing heavily he clapped Finn on the shoulder.
"Come on. Let's grab something to eat and I will fill you in."
…..
Later that night, Finn found himself alone in a tiny room with Rose. There was not a lot of available space at the Babu's workshop and it looked like he and Rose would be sharing a cot. There was nothing else in the room besides the dusty mattress.
"I really can't believe that Poe used to smuggle spice," Rose stated. "I guess that is how he became such an amazing pilot. He would have to be to avoid other criminals and the authorities."
Finn murmured an agreement but his mind was currently glitching over the fact that they would be sleeping next to each other. Finn had never shared a bed with someone. Sure he had slept in the barracks along with all of the other members of his battalion but this was way different.
Rose however appeared unfazed. She started stripping down until she was only wearing her tank top and underwear. She didn't even glance at him as she continued on the conversation while folding up the rest of her clothes and setting them neatly beside the mattress.
Sitting down on the cot, she looked up at him quizzically. "What are you doing? Aren't you going to get ready for bed?"
Finn didn't know how to respond. His brain had stopped working the moment she unbuckled her pants and slid the fabric down her toned legs. She had great legs.
"Planet to Finn. Are you there?"
Snapping out of it, Finn blushed before turning around and unbuttoning his shirt. He could barely pay attention to what Rose was saying as he mechanically stripped down. Finally, when he could face away from her any longer without it getting even more weird, he turned around.
Rose had scooted back to make room for him on the bed. Even with her pressed up against the wall, there was still not a lot of room for him. It was only a twin sized mattress after all. Trying not to make it weird, Finn sat down on the bed before awkwardly laying down as stiff as an arrow. There was no way that the two of them could sleep together without touching.
Rose did not seem to mind. She adjusted herself until half of her laid over him and rested her head on his shoulder.
"Is this fine? Are you comfortable?"
Finn had never been more and less comfortable in his life. Rose felt amazing pressed up next to him but this is not the way that he had envisioned sharing a bed with her. He had thought about what this moment would be like a lot and a dusty cot in a dark and tiny room was not what he had pictured. Rose deserved silk sheets and fluffy pillows. Still, she didn't seem to mind.
Rose gently ran a finger up and down his arm while she continued to talk. Her breath was soft and warm on his neck. Finn could not contain the slight shiver of pleasure the sensation gave him.
"Honestly, I can't believe we pulled it off," she said.
That statement shocked Finn enough to get out of his head and rejoin the conversation.
"What are you talking about? You were always so confident that everything would work."
Rose gave a little giggle before lightly pressing a kiss on his shoulder.
"Well one of us had to believe in the plan."
"Hey, I believed in the plan. We went through with it didn't we?"
At that Rose propped herself up to smile down at him.
"You were practically panicking the entire time. I thought you were going to vomit in the elevator."
"I wanted to vomit in the elevator," Finn admitted.
Rose laughed at that before leaning down to press a kiss to Finn's mouth. Her lips were soft and Finn couldn't hold back a groan as her mouth slanted over his and she deepened the kiss. Finn pulled her close until she was practically laying on top of him. It felt so good to have her in his arms.
Rose broke the kiss momentarily to straddle his hips. Her eyes danced over him before she tugged at the edge of his shirt. Finn hastily grabbed on to the hem and wretched it off as fast as he could before pulling Rose back down on top of him for a searing kiss.
The fire between them only grew the longer that they kissed and Finn could not stop touching her. Every inch of her was perfect. Her skin was so soft and smooth. It drove him insane every time she would wiggle her hips. He could feel the heat of her through their clothes and nothing had ever felt so good before.
Breaking the kiss, Rose reached for the hem of her tank top and pulled it over her head before tossing the garment to the floor. Finn literally forgot to breathe as he took in sight of her. Rising up to her, he ran his fingers lightly down her back while pressing open mouthed kisses to her collar bones.
Rose dug her fingers into his hair and wiggled her hips on his lap. The delicious friction that erupted between them caused them both to gasp. Emboldened by her actions, Finn kissed his way down until he drew one dusky nipple into his mouth. Rose keened in response before gasping out "Finn, I want you."
Rose reached down in between them and stroked his shaft. He was rock hard and the touch of her hand caused him to arch up into her. "Rose," was all Finn was capable of saying in response. His every nerve ending was on fire but that was nothing compared to when she delved into his underwear and grasped his bare flesh before starting to stroke up and down.
Finn could not get enough of her. He had to kiss her, had to touch her. He had to bring her pleasure. So he nearly choked when she suddenly jumped off of the bed and stripped off her underwear before commanding him to do the same.
Finn rushed to obey her, not even managing to throw his underwear to the side before Rose climbed back on top of him and kissed him for all that she was worth. He felt like his head was spinning. Rose was like electricity, everywhere she touched filled him with charge. He could not get enough.
Gently, he ran his fingers up her inner thighs until they met at the apex. She was hot and wet and she keened when he pushed a finger inside of her. She didn't let him continue for long before she pushed his hand away only to grasp his shaft before lowering herself down slowly onto him. Nothing in the universe could compare to the feeling of being surrounded by Rose's heat.
She continued to kiss him deeply as she found her rhythm. Finn helped to guide her hips in a pace that quickly had them both panting. It was incredible, she was incredible. Faster and faster, Rose moved until she clenched down tight around him and wailed his name. Her climax triggered his own and nothing had ever been more perfect.
Rose lay boneless against him and Finn pushed her hair away from her forehead in order to press a deep kiss to it. She cuddled closer into his arms before they both fell into a deep and dreamless sleep.