A/N - Welcome back to the story!

There was a sensation in her fingers that she often associated with warming up too fast after being out in the cold for too long. A sharp tingling that woke her from the darkness that had claimed her for an unknown amount of time. Her heart seemed sluggish, aching as it worked to pump blood through her body.

Rey was dying, she was certain of it.

She didn't want to die. For the first time in years she felt like a child, she felt every bit of her nineteen years, and she longed for more of them.

Mostly she wished she could have said goodbye to Ben and her friends.

Her tears were cool against her already icy flesh as they slid down her cheeks.

"She's awake."

She hadn't realized that there were others in the room. She was ashamed of herself for crying but she couldn't lift her hand to wipe them away. Rey didn't have it in her to face Hux right now. Even under Ben's protection she'd been fearful of the general, terrified of the cruelty he radiated, and now there was no one to save her from him.

"Bring her here."

Rey was so busy glaring at Hux as he hauled her to her feet that she didn't immediately notice who he was dragging her toward, and then her gaze traveled to the dais. Foreboding slammed into her when she saw the creature sitting in the large throne.

Snoke.

For a moment Rey's legs almost gave out on her. It was sheer will that kept her on her feet as Hux pulled her forward. She'd never seen him before, but she knew him instantly, simply for the absolute evil that he radiated. Though she knew just how merciless Ben could be when he was pushed to his limits, there was a depravity about this man that Ben could never possess.

She shuddered at the thought of what Ben was like now, without her.

Snoke rose to tower over her. His leisurely gaze raked her from head to toe and back up again. She felt exposed, judged, and found lacking.

"I sense your bond with Kylo Ren," He spoke. Rey remained still, uncertain what it was that he expected of her. If they planned on killing her, she felt she would already be dead. "Will he come for you?"

The lump in her throat had become uncomfortable.

"I…" she swallowed heavily. "No, he will not."

She wasn't sure if it was a lie. She knew Ben would be furious, devastated, he would blame himself, but she had to trust in the fact that he would do what was right.

No matter how badly she longed for Ben to storm in here and take her away from the foul creature across from her, she knew he couldn't be careless. Ben had to think this through, had to realize that he couldn't throw everything they had worked for away. He had to accept the fact that she was most likely a lost cause.

And so did he.

"You really don't think so?" There was a quirk in his eyebrow, a shifting in his eyes that caused alarm bells to start ringing in her head. Not only was he powerful and sadistic, but she was beginning to realize that there may also be a little insanity lurking within his twisted mind.

"No," she said forcefully. "I don't believe he will come for me."

"If that is true, then you are of no use to me. Maybe you should change your answer."

Her teeth clenched as she grated the single word.

"No."

"I think you should. There is a reason Kylo Ren left here, a reason he gave up everything he knows. What are you to him, and what do you know?"

"I'm nothing but an ex-prisoner and a rebel teenage girl. What could I possibly know?"

"I can sense your pulse racing."

"I'm frightened," she admitted.

"Like any normal teenage girl would be, I assume."

"Yes," she confirmed.

"Why is Kylo Ren with you?"

"I… I don't know."

His hand shot out in front of him and Rey felt the Force begin to constrict around her.

"You're lying."

A startled cry of pain escaped her as he ruthlessly invaded her mind. Sweat beaded her brow, her breath came in rapid pants as nausea swelled up her throat and tears burned her eyes. He tore relentlessly through her memories with Ben, remorselessly intruding upon their private moments.

Rey strained to stay upright, to keep him out, but he was far stronger than she was and was able to drive her to her knees.

She should be afraid, and she was, but there was also a righteous fury building within her chest, a self-respect that refused to allow her to cower before him. He had managed to force her to her knees, he had invaded her mind, and she was certain he would do far worse before he was finished, but she managed to tilt her chin up and glare defiantly back at him.

"You're far more than what you let on, and there is something between you and my former apprentice," Snoke recounted with a sick grin. "I know that you are lying to me, and I know that he will come for you."

The doors to the throne room opened and Captain Phasma entered.

"It's true then," she said flatly. "She has been recaptured."

"Obviously," Hux retorted dryly.

Phasma chose to ignore Hux.

"And Kylo Ren?"

"I have dispatched troopers to search the woods," Snoke responded. "I am sure he is close."

Dread pulsed through Rey, and it took everything she had to remain outwardly calm. Of course they would search the woods, and the town.

"Wonderful," Phasma replied. "And the girl?"

"She is to be returned to the dungeons for now," Snoke ordered, and Hux stepped forward to claim her.

Rey lifted her chin, appearing far more dignified than she felt as he practically dragged her from the throne room.

A/N - Big yikes.

As always, please leave a review with your thoughts, suggestions, and predictions, and I'll see you in the next chapter!

~ Elizabeth (FanOfDeliciousFlavour)