Month One
Rey, Poe, Finn and Rose gathered in the stronghold's center. Leia elected to rest. They arrived to find the Queen and few of her advisors. The thirteen year old girl stood plainly without all the pomp of her station.
"Hey pilot!" Young Anakin pulled Poe out of the crowd, and walked over to him away from his school group.
"Heyy Ani." Poe smiled searching behind him, "Where's your mother?"
"Home, she never comes to these things." The boy shrugged.
"What is 'this thing'?" Finn asked.
Anakin looked at the group like they were dull, and as a child he didn't consider their lack of cultural knowledge until Rose gently pointed it out to him.
"Oh yeah…" he started, "Well, Queen Sabe's term is ending so this is a nomination gathering."
Sabe cleared her throat causing a slow hush to take over the enormous crowd. She took a step forward away from the advisors.
"As you all know my term will be at an end as this month closes. I have found my time in office to be peaceful with limited events to concern us. However, my term does not end thusly. The FIrst Order has attacked our former capital in their long stampede to bring chaos to this galaxy." Sabe fractionally bit her lip, "As per tradition I am to recommend to you my successor."
There was a calmness in the crowd the people full of curiosity. "There will be hard times ahead, and we must decide if we wish to remain in this mountain merely to survive, or if we dare to live again in the Nubian sunshine in defiance of the galactic evils. If you wish to survive I have no recommendations for you. Naboo… if you wish to live again, fight again, thrive again then you know to whom we must ask. Calliope Soruna."
Shouting came from the Naboo-;
"Bout time!" a younger man yelled.
"She's too old!" an elderly lady screed.
"For fucks sake woman she's risked her life time and again for us who cares about that tradition anymore!" a man bellowed in reply.
"Tradition is all we have!"
"Not if we can get out of this forsaken mountain!"
Poe pushed his way out of the crowd leaving his friends behind confused. It took him a few tries to find the right corridors for Calliope's home. He burst through the makeshift door
"Calliop-." the pilot's voice cracked.
A towel lay on the floor used and discarded. Her body a peach from the heat of a shower and the scars against like pale gems of flesh. She had full pear shaped figure, that of a grown woman. He prayed to the maker she wasn't reading his mind because he wanted to kiss each and everyone of those scars. Calliope reached for her black robe pulling it over her drenched shoulders,
"I know you're new here Commander but it's common knowledge throughout the galaxy to announce oneself before entering, usually a knock."
She pivoted slightly after securing the robe. Poe took a deep breath shaking the embarrassment from him,
"Why aren't you down there? They're calling out your name."
Her violet eyes met his brown. They were harsh eyes that of person who'd made up their mind,
"I will never be Queen of Naboo. I just can't."
Poe met her eyes with determination,
"You still think the dark side can consume you, but you've proven that it won't," he stepped further in the room, "You have compassion for these people? You'd die for these people?"
"Of course, but that doesn't mean I should be leading them. I'm their guardian. I'm used when needed, when threats come about."
"They need you now. The threat is More than just a few units passing by. These people want to live. They want a galaxy they can live in without fear."
Calliope folded her arms thinking to herself. "This would be the ultimate test." Anakin's voice echoed through her ears. Did she want to take that temptation? Images of her malicious self parading around the First Order barking orders. She stuttered at the thought, a foolish and vain girl.
"Just come and listen to them." Poe rather demanded.
"I'm sure some of them are saying great things, as well as I know that others are dredging up my past." She replied.
"Does that matter? You chose to change didn't you? Are you going to punish yourself for the rest of your life?" A righteous temper grew in his tone.
He felt the urge to comfort her as his words drove her nails into her arms. Her eyes now cast the the floor away from him wrought with indecision and self doubt. Poe hesitantly closed the gap between them; he had just seen her stark naked after all. She turned into him without his arms even fully open, and laid her head under his. He adjusted to hold her, and the smell of lavender and vanilla filled his nose. They stood there until her heart rate scaled down to a normal rate.
"Thank you." Calliope's voice was soft and warm.
Rey approached her teacher who was meditating peaceably by the edge of the river. Nubian sun was barely cresting the horizon but the day was already comfortable as usual. She said nothing and merely swooped down next to Calliope and mediated the same.
A violet eye peered at the scavenger after awhile, "Rey, what makes you angry?"
She could feel the girl become flustered like it was a trick question. Calliope put a hand on her shoulder, "It is okay to be angry."
"But the books." Rey started.
Calliope shook her head while standing. She summoned her kyber crystal from its metal pod nearby. It ignited upon her request and it formed steadily.
"Do you think I learned how to do this from those books? Didn't you tell me Master Luke wanted the order to end?"
Rey stood now, "The galaxy still needs jedi!"
"Am I Jedi? Are you?"
"Well we use the force for good, for the light."
Calliope nodded, "True but if you'd read the hierarchy of the Jedi-; How becoming an apprentice then a Jedi knight then a master works you would know that to that rigid code we are but apprentices. More so you a padawan learner. So no Rey we are not Jedi. We are people who are force sensitive who want to make the world a better place."
"Why does it matter?"
"Because we are not limited to their narrow view of the universe. That everything must be as they said."
Rey's face furrowed, "You sound like Ben."
"Oh so we're calling him Ben again?" Calliope raised a questioning eyebrow. Rey clutched her staff her nose flaring. The crystal deactivated putting itself away. Calliope held out a hand summoning a sparring sword from her pack, and without words lunged toward Rey. The scavenger stumbled as Calliope's fighting style was relentless with quick forward thrusts and strong practiced side strikes. Rey's only advantage was the staff being able to catch any attack even at the last second, but she fell again and again.
"Do you know why your not beating me?" Calliope asked extending hand to the frustrated girl on her backside.
"Your more trained than I am." She breathed.
"Kylo Ren has more training than you and you beat him." Calliope replied.
"He was injured."
"And Snoke's guards?"
Rey had no reply other than taking Calliope's hand.
"You beat Kylo Ren because of your emotions. Emotions aren't a bad thing Rey. You just have to know right from wrong. It's when those are imbalanced or screwed that emotions turn you to the darkness."
"You said today we'd close the bridge between me and B-...Kylo."
Calliope nodded, "We will after we get something to eat. Don't want you fainting because this will take a lot of energy."
