This is the chapter that will help you all connect the title to the story. I hope you all are enjoying this, and hold on tight. Things are about to get pretty interesting from here on out for the story.
Thank you to those of you who've been reading this story and/or leaving reviews. I love hearing back from my readers.
Also, give a big round of applause to Darksidefan5 for their awesome Beta skills. Without them, I'd be lost on making sure you all receive the best chapters I can produce.
Disclaimer: I don't own Star Wars, Disney and George Lucas do. I just play in the sandbox and wreak havoc and chaos within it.
Sullust…
For the past six weeks the Resistance has enjoyed a relative peace. So far, the First Order has yet to discover that the Sullustian government is offering refuge to Leia and her slow growing movement. Not only have they been gaining more troops and pilots, but they've also gained a Corellian Cruiser and a Mon Cal transport ship. Deep underground is a large, cavernous port which the Sullustian government has allowed the Resistance to occupy. Several of their ships are being housed here, as well as being worked on. One ship, in particular, is receiving particular care from its new owner.
With a torc-wrench in hand, Poe and BB-8 have spent most of the day retro-fitting the U-Wing that Maz had given him.
"Try it now." Poe calls out, and waits patiently for his droid to run a diagnostic test on the newly added ion gun.
It doesn't take BB-8 long and he gives Poe the results, which doesn't bode well for him.
"Kriff." Poe reaches for the connection ports for the gun and begins pulling out the wires. "Great Dameron, you just had to mess up on the wiring. Though it's not my fault that smugglers would find it hilarious to change the color codes for the positive and negative ports."
"Smugglers don't like to make it easy for others to sabotage their ships." A voice says from the open side-door of the ship.
Jumping back and away from where he is working, while also throwing the torc-wrench at the owner of the voice, Poe trips and lands on his backside. From his place on the polished floor, he sees a glowing image of Luke Skywalker sitting at the U-Wing's entrance.
Rubbing at his eyes, Poe remarks. "It's official. I must be losing my mind."
Luke chuckles at Poe's remarks. "Close, but not quite."
"Look," Poe says, his cheeks flushing in embarrassment at what would happen if someone were to walk by to see him talking to himself. "I saw you on Crait, which thanks for that, and Rey told us that you died. So, just how the hell are you here and why are you all… ghost-like? Am I being haunted right now?"
"The Force, and yes." Luke replies with a sad smile. "It's been a while since I last saw you. Has anyone ever told you that you look a lot like your mother."
"So I've been told."
"Yet you have some of your father in you as well. I didn't know Kes as well as Han did, but I did know Shara."
"Why are you here?" Poe asks, wanting to get off the subject of his parents. He hasn't heard from Kes in over a month and he's a bit worried.
"Just like your mother. Straight to the point." Luke chuckles out before answering Poe's question with one of his own. "How long do you plan on staying with Rey?"
This question takes Poe by surprise. "Why?"
"Just answer the question, Poe."
"Till she tells me to leave her."
"See, not that difficult; was it?"
"Is there a point to this? Kinda feels like you're treating me as a father would vet his daughter's boyfriends. Wait. You're not her father, are you?"
"Yes, there is a point to all this. No, Rey is not my daughter." Luke says, staring directly into Poe's eyes. "However, she's going to be needing you in the years to come. You have to stay by her side and help her."
"What do you mean?" Poe asks.
Before Luke can give the pilot a response, a loud voice echoes throughout the whole port.
"Poe!"
Turing towards the familiar voice, Poe gets up from the floor. Looking back, he isn't surprised to see that Luke's image has disappeared and that BB-8 is now there instead.
"Poe!"
"Over here, buddy!" Poe calls out. Knowing that Finn will find him, Poe continues messing with the electrical wires for the ion gun.
"There you are." Finn huffs, coming to an abrupt stop. "It's Rey."
Hearing the name, Poe quickly drops what he is doing and looks directly at Finn.
"What-"
"She's in medical-," is all Finn is able to say before Poe turns and darts toward the closest exit.
BB-8 takes off after his master and quickly surpasses him with a flurry of beeps.
"Go on and let 'em know I'm coming." Poe calls out to the droid.
BB-8 doesn't hesitate and rolls as fast as he can towards closest medical facility to their make-shift base.
As Finn catches up, Poe calls out, "What happened? How bad is she hurt?"
"No one is sure what happened. One minute she was practicing with the lightsaber, the next anyone knew she was on the floor." Finn explains, following after the orange and white droid.
It's a long, winding run, but the two make it to the medical wing within minutes. Turning a few corners, they see Rose, who standing halfway down a hallway. She's leaning against the wall, opposite from a door. Rolling back and forth, in front of the woman, is BB-8.
"Rose?" Poe calls out, slowing his run down till he comes to a stop.
"Leia is in there with Rey right now. So is Doctor Kalonia and one of the Sullustian doctors."
"Is there any news on what happened to her?" Finn asks, looking towards the door.
"Not yet." Rose answers back, crossing her arms.
"Why's Leia in there?" Poe asks Rose.
"She came with Doctor Kalonia after the Sullustian requested a human doctor for Rey." Rose can see that Poe is becoming anxious, so she tries her best to offer him some words of comfort. "I'm sure Rey is alright."
Poe doesn't say a word in reply, but his mind buzzes with many different circumstances as to what caused Rey to go to medical. With these thoughts running through his mind, Poe loses track of time and eventually finds himself pacing in the middle of the hallway.
Finn and Rose, however, have taken up residence on the floor, their backs against the wall. The two of them waiting patiently for someone to come out of Rey's room.
Over an hour later, Doctor Kalonia and the other doctor come out. Doctor Kalonia bids the other doctor a good evening before turning to address a silently waiting Poe and company. She looks at Poe, then Finn, and finally Rose before speaking.
"I'm sure you all want to see her." Doctor Kalonia looks directly at Rose and Finn. "But I suggest the two of you wait till tomorrow morning. The only one Leia is allowing access to is Poe."
"What?!" Rose and Finn exclaim, standing up from their spot on the floor.
"Why just me?" Poe asks.
"You haven't been completely honest with the general, and she'll be wanting to speak with you about it." Doctor Kalonia gives Poe a stern look.
Doctor Kalonia begins ushering Finn and Rose down the hallway, encouraging them to return in the morning and that they should go to the mess hall for dinner.
Poe and BB-8 are left standing there, not sure as to what they should do next. However, BB-8 lets out a trill before heading to the door. He lets out a beep and roll through the open door. Poe follows after his droid. Once inside, Poe comes to a stop at the sight of Leia holding Rey, like a mother would to a crying child. When Leia takes note of his arrival, she places a gentle kiss against Rey's temple and carefully removes herself from Rey.
"You should try to relax, Rey. We'll only be a moment." Leia whispers to young woman.
She helps Rey lay down and quickly tucks the shining silver blanket over Rey's body.
"Follow me, Commander." Any tenderness Leia had extended to Rey was gone the moment she spoke to Poe. Growing even more concerned now, it was all he could do to just dutifully follow the General outside
Hearing the soft click of the door close, Rey curls herself into a tight ball. Her thoughts are whirling and she can't quite stop herself from shaking.
She's pregnant.
Both doctors confirmed it.
They said her fainting was caused by low electrolytes and not getting enough nutrients to help support the pregnancy. But that wasn't all that caused her to drop to the floor while training in a spare workout room. She'd had an unwelcome visitor thanks to the Force-bond.
~~~SW~~~
Rey moves through one of the more complex forms, following the brief images of the new technique from images of the lightsaber's former owner. Never before had Rey thought that the imprints of a person could be so helpful during training.
The world around her goes quiet and she can feel the beginning buzz of the bond grow around her.
"Your elbow shouldn't be out so far." A familiar voice says from off to her right.
"Leave me alone." Rey mutters out, keeping her eyes firmly closed.
"It wasn't me who initiated." Kylo replies. "You feel different, somehow…"
"Perhaps it is because I am getting stronger. Now go away." Rey growls out.
"There is something…"
It finally dawns on Kylo as to what it is that is different about Rey. With this sudden revelation, he needs to know, for sure, if Rey truly doesn't know.
"Just leave." Rey firmly tells him, refocusing herself on working through another set of drills with her lightsaber.
"Don't you feel it?" Kylo asks, circling around Rey as he studies her more closely. He doesn't understand how she can miss this within the Force, or about herself.
"What is it that I'm supposed to feel?"
With his suspicion confirmed, Kylo decides to reveal what he knows. "You should know that it's mine."
"What is?"
"The child you're carrying."
"Wha-" Eyes flying open, Rey turns to face Kylo after deactivating her lightsaber.
"I wasn't sure if it'd work or not, but I guess now I know that it was successful." Kylo Ren taunts with a smirk growing on his face at Rey's shock. He's taken her fully by surprise, which is what he wants.
"I can't be." Rey whispers out, reaching into the Force and discovering that Kylo is indeed correct about her new health status.
"You are, Rey." Kylo says, moving to stand directly in front of her.
"How?" Rey asks, still having a hard believing this new bit of information.
"Think, Rey. Think back to Hapes. Those darts. Feeling a lost sense of time, even though they're only meant to last for a short duration." Kylo replies, raising a hand to gently brush it against her cheek. "Come and join me. We can be together ruling the galaxy. As a family."
"NO!" Rey screams out, stepping away from Kylo.
"You'd deny me my right as a father?"
"You're lying! You're not-"
"But I am, Rey, and you know it. Search your feelings." He says, once again raising a hand towards her face.
"NO!" Rey screams out again before using the Force to break the connection between them. Then her world had turned black.
~~SW~~
Out in the hallway, and with the door closed, Leia reaches out and cuffs Poe across the back of his head.
"Oww."
"I believe there was something you forgot to mention in your debrief from Hapes." Leia accuses, giving Poe a very stern look.
"I told you everything, Leia. Nothing was left out and that's the truth." Poe gripes, rubbing the back of his head.
Leia lets out a heavy sigh, shaking her head. "Then we have a problem, Poe."
Poe gives Leia a confused look at what she could possibly be alluding to. He remains silent as Leia lets out another sigh before continuing to speak.
"Rey's pregnant," Leia states, watching Poe's face for any sign of recognition. Then she drops an even larger bomb on him. "and if my son is to be believed, it's his child that she's carrying."
Hearing this news rocks Poe to the core of his very being. Yet he tries to speak through it.
"How…When… Are you sure?"
"The information that Kalonia could gather from Rey's scan, it would have happened on Hapes. And no, we aren't sure if Isolder could be the father or not. Though Rey has already stated that he never fully forced himself upon her. However, if she was incapacitated at the time, it's possible. However, I highly doubt that Isolder would stoop that low and set aside his morals to do something like this. Now, as to how my son would be able to pull off such a feat without actually being there? I don't know."
Seeing Poe go from shock to distressed, Leia places a gentle hand on his shoulder and gives it a squeeze. She's watched the pair become closer since Hapes, and she'd be lying if she wasn't thrilled to see them together. Yet, part of her wonders what will happen to them now. If her son is telling the truth, then he'll never stop looking for Rey and the child. And what about Rey?
After a moment, Poe steps away from Leia's comforting hand, and heads towards the door. But he stops.
There's a long, drawn out moment of silence as Poe tries to work through his emotions. He takes several deep breaths to help calm himself down, but it doesn't work on his anger. Dropping his head, Poe slowly clenches his fists.
Leia opens her mouth to speak, but Poe moves at the same time. His fist flies at the rock wall. There is an audible crunch, and Leia suspects it's from his hand rather than the stone. If he's in physical pain, he doesn't show it.
"Poe," she says softly, but he doesn't acknowledge her. Feeling the anger rolling off of him, Leia quietly leaves, knowing it may be best for him to be alone for now.
Having let out his anger in the form of physical violence against a wall, Poe takes a deep breath and steps inside of the medical room. He's greeted by BB-8, who lets out a morose sounding beep before rolling away from Rey's beside and stopping in front of his master.
"Hey buddy." Poe says softly, dropping down to speak to the droid. He places a hand on BB-8's head. "Thanks for looking after her, but I'll take over from here."
BB-8 lets out a disgruntled whirl at being dismissed, and refuses to leave the room.
"Alright. How about you keep guard during the night for us then?" Poe suggests, giving his droid a soft pat.
Standing up, he watches as BB-8 takes up a protective post right in front of the door. Then, he slowly makes his way to Rey's bedside. Even with the lights having been dimmed from when he first stepped in, he can make out that Rey is curled up with her back facing the door. He makes his way over to the bed, and carefully climbs into the available small space between Rey's back and the edge of the bed. Being as gentle as possible, Poe curves his body around hers in a protective manner. He allows his left arm to drape over Rey's side, but places the hand over her abdomen.
Rey flinches at the contact from Poe's hand, and it takes her a minute to relax before placing one of her own over his. She lets them lay there in silence for a couple more minutes till she decides to speak.
"I'd understand if you'd want to walk away." She says softly, fighting hard to keep the building tears at bay.
"Not a chance." Poe presses a kiss into her hair. "I told you before that I would always be there to catch you. That hasn't changed because of this."
"I don't want to believe him." Rey says, letting a watery smile appear on her face when Poe squeezes her hand. Then she shifts so that she's face-to-face with Poe. "But I don't know how else to explain all this. His preoccupation with me, his constant searching for me, his manipulating me back on Ahch-To. What if this was his plan all along?"
"Well I don't know about you, but from my understanding of Biology, is that you need to have sex to create an offspring. I don't care if they're a Force user or not. It's just not possible without having sex. And there is no way that just looking at someone, or focusing heavily on a person, can cause spontaneous conception. Trust me. If that was possible then they're be a line-up of women outside my door trying to claim that I'm the father of their child. And so far, there has yet to be one."
Rey lets out a snort, but it's quickly levied by the seriousness of the situation.
"I can't dispute Kylo's claim, Poe. And I don't know what to do." Rey confesses, shifting slightly when Poe tucks her against him. "Doctor Kalonia says I have options, but none of them feel right within the Force. The only thing that does feel right is to keep it. But how can I bring a child into the galaxy right now? Let alone raise it on my own."
"You just do, Rey." Poe replies, placing his left hand back against Rey's lower belly.
"But what about me being the guiding light for the Resistance? How can I be what the Resistance needs with a baby in tow?"
"Well I am sure Leia would be thrilled at the prospect of babysitting, and if she isn't, I know Finn, Chewie, and Rose would be more than thrilled to do so."
"And you?" Rey shyly asks, looking down at an oil smudge on Poe's shirt.
Poe brings his left hand up to gently lift her chin. "I'll be there, right beside you. Raising our kid, together."
"Our-?"
"Yes. Our kid, Rey."
"But Poe, Kylo said-"
"Look, I don't believe he's the father. No matter what he says." Poe states with some frustration in his voice. "Rey, Kylo Ren is good at manipulating people to get what he wants, and I refuse to let him claim that our kid is his when the two of you have never had sex. And you've told me, plenty of times now, that you've never experienced sex before. As far as anyone in the galaxy is concerned, that's my kid in there. And I promise you, Kylo Ren isn't getting anywhere close to either of you without having to go through me first."
"You'd do that? Raise someone else's child as your own? To claim it as your own?"
"If it was yours, yes. Besides, who would know the difference if this child is or isn't mine?" With that being said, Poe pulls Rey closer to him and gives her a passionate kiss. "Now, I suggest you get some sleep."
"Stay with me?"
"Count on it."
Rey snuggles as close as she can to Poe, and he doesn't have to wait long for her to fall asleep. He has to stifle a chuckle as she clings to him, barely allowing his body to move from where it is. Being careful, Poe tries to shift into a more comfortable position when a sharp pain flies up his right arm. Moving the arm, Poe can see that nearly all of his right hand is swollen and turning an awful blue and purple color.
"Kriff." Poe groans out as he tries to move the fingers.
"Damaged yourself again, Dameron?" Doctor Kalonia asks, standing at the foot of Rey's bed.
"When did you get here?" Poe asks softly, having been slightly startled by the doctor's sudden presence.
"Your droid let me in."
"When?"
"Around the time you claimed that the child is yours." Doctor Kalonia says while pulling a bacta patch, medical wrap, and tape out from a nearby drawer. "Very noble of you, Dameron. I never thought you had it in you."
"Seriously, Doc?"
"Oh yes," the doctor states, gesturing for Poe to hold his injured hand out for her. "Never thought I'd live to see the day when Poe Dameron takes responsibility for something that he didn't do."
"And who says that the child isn't mine?" Poe lets out a grunt as the doctor tugs hard on the wrapping going around the bacta patch and his hand.
"The scans and calculated date of conception don't lie, Dameron."
With her task complete, the doctor heads for the door, leaving Poe to his contemplation about a very uncertain future.
In the middle of the night, Leia enters the room and a small smile immediately lights her face. Poe and Rey sleep soundly, wrapped around each other like a pair of cozy loth-kittens. A small trill alerts Leia to BB-8's presence, having undocked himself from a charging port.
"I take it they worked things out?" she quietly asks the droid. His affirmative is almost cheery.
There is a small tremor in the Force which draws her attention. "You can stop hiding, brother."
A soft glow of blue lights up a small portion of the room, but not enough to wake the pilot and woman in the bed.
"What is the Force playing at, Luke?" Leia asks, not allowing her dead twin brother to greet her first.
"It's doing what it needs to do, Leia. And hello to you too." Luke states, shifting his gaze away from Poe and Rey so that he can look at Leia instead.
"He's going to have nearly all of the First Order out searching for her. Never thought I'd become a grandmother like this. I was hoping that he'd meet a nice girl, fall in love, and bring her home. But this, Luke, this is cruel." Leia whispers out.
"The child isn't Ben's, Leia." Luke replies.
"Then whose is it? That poor girl was besides herself trying to figure out how she ended up pregnant."
"I can't tell you that. Though it would appear that perhaps your pilot has it all figured out. Just leave it alone, and trust that the Force knows what it's doing, Leia." Luke states.
The siblings go silent for several minutes, watching the sleeping couple on the bed. The siblings find it fascinating to watch the pair as they sleep. When one moves, the other follows after. Neither leaving any part of the other alone.
Leia breaks the silence between her and Luke. "I was hoping to train Poe to be my second-in-command before my time ends, Luke. Now, I'm not so sure."
"Poe will make a great leader, someday. Even with his newfound responsibilities."
"Is that what you see for his future?"
"Leia, you know that the future is always in motion. No one can truly know what is or isn't going to happen. Have faith that the Force knows what it's doing where it concerns Poe and Rey. The Force chose well for him to step up." Luke says before fading away.
"Why do the Jedi have to be so damn cryptic?" Leia mutters at the place where Luke's Force ghost had been standing. Then she turns to look at Rey and attempts to do something she hasn't done since she'd been pregnant with her own children.
Reaching out with the Force, Leia can feel both Poe and Rey and their calm emotions from their sleeping state. As she reaches even farther out, something brushes against her within the Force. At first, Leia can only sense hesitation. Then it flares brightly towards Leia before sneaking back to hide itself beneath Rey's own Force signature.
"Hello, little one." Leia whispers both aloud as well as within the quietness of the Force. She wipes at her eyes before tears could actually fall and silently leaves the room.
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Selene