"I'm so sorry," Padme said, her voice cracking.
Rey had her head buried in her arms. She was trying not to cry. She refused to give him the satisfaction of making her cry. He had already caused her so many tears. She was not going to give him more.
"Rey?" Padme asked. "Can I hug you?"
Rey wasn't sure how to respond. She couldn't remember a time when someone had asked to touch her. It had always been against her will. The only time she really was touched with her permission is when she offered him her hand...and he took it.
She nodded.
Padme wrapped an arm around her. Rey thought it would be cold. She always thought of death as cold. But it wasn't. It was like being wrapped around by a warm blanket.
She broke down crying, burying herself in Padme's arms.
"I was so scared!" Rey finally spoke, her words muffled by tears and soft blue fabric.
"I'm so sorry sweetheart." Padme whispered. "No one should have to go through that. I'm so sorry for putting you through that."
"It wasn't your fault." Rey said. "No one could have known he would try that."
"But we did." Padme said. "History repeats itself. I know there's light in him...but I always forget how strong the darkness is. I shouldn't have pushed so hard."
"I'm gonna slap that boy so hard." Leia said, taking Rey's hand. "Han might have been pushy, but he never threatened to hurt me."
"Don't worry, dearest." Padme assured her daughter, "I'll handle it."
…
"You messed up big time." Luke stated the obvious.
"That's enough, Luke," Obi Wan said.
Obi Wan had his hand on Anakin's back. Anakin had his head in his hands, pulling his hair and whispering to himself.
Han was silent.
Kylo hated feeling the presence of the ghosts around him. He just wanted to be alone.
He always said that he would never hurt her. He thought he would never hurt her. He was CERTAIN he would never hurt her. But he had been seconds away from strangling her. If he had done that...he wouldn't be able to live with himself.
"BENJAMIN CHEWBACCA SOLO!"
Kylo bolted up, having flashbacks to when his mom said his middle name. His instincts told him to pick up the dirty laundry on the floor and shove the soda cans underneath his bed.
"Oh no." Anakin and Obi Wan said, looking up in fear.
"What's the matter?" Luke asked.
"This is not going to end well." Anakin said, straightening his hair and sitting up straight, seeming to have the same fear as Kylo.
"Dad, what's wrong?" Luke said.
"Remember how you always wanted to meet your mom?" Anakin said, now turning to fix Luke's hair.
"Uh yeah?"
"Welp you here's your chance…"
"YOU'D BETTER IMPERIAL MARCH YOUR $$ BACK TO REY AND APOLOGIZE!"
And there she was, appearing in a blaze of glory and terror. If Kylo hadn't known better, he would have thought she was on fire. No nope she was on fire. And Kylo was sure that if he looked her in the eyes, his entire body would combust.
He felt his body rise off of his bed. Padme pulled Kylo close to her, dangling his body ten feet above the ground.
"Mom was a force user?" Luke asked his dad.
"No, she wasn't," Anakin said, hugging Luke tightly in fear. "The force is just afraid to disagree with her right now."
"I DID NOT SPEND 4 HOURS GETTING THAT YOUNG LADY INTO A DRESS AND SOME MAKE UP FOR YOU TO SCREW IT UP!"
She slammed Kylo against the wall.
Anakin, Obi and Han flinched hearing something crack. Luke didn't because he couldn't see or hear anything at the moment because Anakin had Luke's head buried somewhere in his robes.
"Ow." Kylo said.
"IF YOU MESS THIS THING UP ONE MORE TIME I SWEAR YOU'RE GOING TO WISH YOUR UNCLE KILLED YOU IN YOUR SLEEP!"
She let him drop to the floor. The flames died in an instant and the flowers reappeared back in her long brown hair.
"Anakin, is that Luke you're strangling?" Padme asked, her voice soft and gentle.
"Uh…" Anakin let go of Luke who was now gasping for air.
Padme glided to her son, instantly fixing his hair and smothering him.
"Hi mom." Luke said, his face smooshed against hers.
"Hi baby." Padme kissed his cheek, much to Luke's embarrassment.
Han laughed and Padme shot him a deadly glare causing him to take a step back.
Kylo then gave out a painful groan, reminding everyone who the main character was.
"Did I make myself clear?" Padme said, turning to her grandson.
"Yes." Every man in the room said.
"Good." Padme said, kissing Luke's cheek once more. "Because I have other tactics other than fear."
"Believe me," Anakin said, picking Kylo off the floor. "You do not want to see her other methods."
"I'm sorry." Kylo said. "I promise on my life the thought will never cross my mind again."
"You'd better go tell her that." Luke said, kinda getting used to be smoothed by his mom but pretending to not like it.
"And then what?" Kylo asked, his hands instinctively going to his hair. "How do I get her to give me a chance after I messed up so bad."
"I think you know."
And that was all Luke had to say.
…
Rey felt somewhat emotionally stable. She caught herself trying to justify his actions. He didn't do it. She knew that Anakin had strangled his wife and she had been violent with him on more than one occasion...She stopped herself. His actions, no his thoughts were wrong. They both knew it. She couldn't say or even think for a moment that it was alright. She knew exactly what he wanted to do in that moment- he wanted to strangle her until she was unconscious and then carry her off to his ship and force her to be by his side.
She couldn't justify that.
She heard the familiar buzz of the force bond sparking to life. She didn't turn to face him. She wasn't going to favor him with a glance.
He was silent for a few moments. The only way she was sure he was there was his steady breathing.
"Rey." Kylo said, his voice cracking.
'Don't fall for it.' Rey told herself. 'He's trying to seem sympathetic. He just wants you to put your guard down. You know his tricks. Don't fall for it again.'
"Rey." Kylo said, his hands fidgeting at his side. "I am so sorry."
She didn't move.
"I know what I always did was wrong." Kylo continued, not sure if he wanted her to look at him or not. "No...It was beyond wrong. It was vile. Sick. Twisted. Revolting. Unforgivable. I am so sorry that I put you through that fear."
She refused to cry.
"The truth is," Kylo's voice got quieter. "I can't be trusted around you. I would like to say that I would never hurt you...but we both know that's a lie. I have hurt you. I don't want to. If something were to happen to you that I knew that I could prevent…"
She hated that she could read his mind.
"That's...that's why." Kylo gulped. "That's why I'm going to stay away from you. I'm not going to actively seek out this bond. And if the force connects us, I'm going to ignore it. If you ever wish to talk to me again, I want it to be on your terms. Not mine. Not my family's. Not even the Force's."
She hated that she knew he wasn't lying.
"I'm so sorry." Kylo said, his voice barely above a whisper. "I'm going to try to be better. I promise. But only you can decide if you ever want me in your life again. You have my word."
She still didn't look back at him.
"I'm sorry."
When she finally turned her head, he was gone.