I recently gave a real life friend access to my fanfiction profile for the first time. Super nervous. Hope you like it hon!

I don't own Star Wars. Consider yourselves disclaimed.

YAVIN-4

11 YEARS OLD

"Why do we have to go to school? Why can't we stay home and learn from Tali like we've been doing?"

Poe had burst through the front door of the Keen house with his father at his heels during breakfast, plopping himself into the chair next to Rymer's and stealing a piece of toast from her plate. Rymer only rolled her eyes, having prepared an extra slice for just that purpose.

"Because you've already gone through everything I'm licensed to teach," Tali said as she cut pancakes into small pieces for Davlon. "And I'm sick of your ugly faces and want you both out of my hair."

Poe and Rymer grinned at each other as Kes poured himself a cup of tea. "I'm still not sure how Tali's stayed home with you all these years without murdering you both out of sheer frustration."

"Oh I tried - alas, my calling is not that of an assassin."

There were chuckles around the table before Kes leaned forward over his tea.

"You guys will like it, trust me. Maybe you'll even make some new friends."

Both children looked at each other, brows furrowed, then back at their parents. "Why would we do that?" they asked in unison.

Delu rolled her eyes. "Why, indeed. Alright, little starfighters, I hear the transport shuttle. Time for school!"

"This is school?" Rymer said as she and Poe stepped from the school shuttle. The colony was still growing, and there was only one school for the scattered children living in the area. They could see a few children close to their age and maybe twenty more ranging to eighteen or so.

"Looks like it," Poe said, squeezing the hand she had slipped into his. "Come on." They walked across the yard to the school building, seeing that it was one large room inside set up to define clearly separate areas. One of the teachers greeted them and showed them where they could put their schoolbags before ushering them back outside to play until it was time for class to start.

They were quickly approached by two of the children that looked to be their age, both boys. They stopped in front of Poe, smiling and out of breath.

"Wanna come play tag?"

"Sure!" Poe returned with a smile, moving to follow them. "Come on, Ry!"

Both of the other boys laughed. "She can't play!" one of them said.

Poe stopped in his tracks, frowning. "Why not?"

"Because she's just a girl!" the other one said, as though it were a disease. Poe's frown deepened.

"Oh. Nevermind then."

The two boys were surprised. "But you can still play with us, just no girls allowed."

"That's dumb. She's my friend, I don't want to play if she's not allowed. See you later." He took a confused Rymer by the hand and led her away, back into the school.

"What's wrong with me being a girl?" she asked, looking back over her shoulder as the boys ran off.

Poe shrugged. "Nothing, I think."

"Is everything alright?"

They looked up in surprise to see one of the teachers looking over at them from her class space. She smiled at them and apologized for startling them.

"You're Poe Dameron and Rymer Keen, right? I'm Miss Hargrin, I'm going to be your teacher for the next two years. It sounded like something happened outside?"

Rymer nodded. "Two boys said Poe could play with them, but I couldn't since I'm a girl. Why does that matter?"

Miss Hargrin pursed her lips. "Sometimes, Rymer, little boys are raised to think that little girls can't do all the same things they can - that they're not smart enough or strong enough. Poe, what did you say when they told you Rymer couldn't play with them?"

"I said nevermind 'cuz that's dumb. Rymer's smarter and stronger than anybody! She's almost as good a pilot as me, we're gonna be the best pilots in the galaxy!"

"Is that right?" Miss Hargrin looked between the two of them, beginning to recognize the bond she was seeing.

"Yeah! We fly my mom's A-Wing almost every day, soon we can start target practice with it too!" Rymer was nodding along enthusiastically.

Miss Hargrin laughed lightly at the two. "Sounds like you two are a couple of budding adventurers! You're exactly right, Poe - Rymer is just as smart and strong as anyone else, no matter if she's a girl. You two are very special to understand that at such a young age. Maybe you can even teach the other kids around here a little something."

A few weeks into school, nothing had changed about Poe and Rymer's friendship or their relationship with their classmates. The boys still refused to let Rymer play with them, and as such Poe refused to play with them either.

The students were playing in the yard as they usually did while waiting for the afternoon shuttle to take them home, but Rymer had run back inside to use the 'fresher, so Poe was the only one Delu could see as she pulled up on her speeder.

"Hey little starfighter! Where's Ry?"

"She'll be back outside in a second. How come you're picking us up today?"

"I left work a little early and thought we'd go for a ride around the colony," Delu grinned, showing him the sidecar she'd attached for the two of them with their helmets resting inside. Poe's grin split his face. Riding in the speeder was almost as fun as flying.

"Whoa! Poe, is that your mom's speeder?"

"It's so cool, can we ride it?"

The boys from their class had crowded close to the speeder, and Poe shook his head. "No, this is Ry's mom, it's her speeder. You don't want to play with her, remember?" The boys were both surprised and clearly a little dejected, shuffling away with slumped shoulders. Rymer didn't even see them as she left the school building.

"Mama Delu! What are you doing here?"

Delu, who had frowned at Poe's exchange with the two boys, smiled brightly for her daughter. "Thought the three of us could go for a little joyride!"

Poe and Rymer both cheered as they put on their helmets and climbed into the sidecar. Delu glanced around, taking a perverse motherly pride in the longing looks of the two boys' faces as they sped away.

Delu decided to drop them off the next morning as well, and this time Rymer spotted their classmates looking on with obvious jealousy. She seemed to debate internally for a moment, then sighed.

"Wanna come look?" she called over to them. They looked at each other, then back at her, shocked. She smiled a little. "Come on!"

They dashed over, huge grins on their faces, and began asking Rymer questions about the speeder. Delu was swelling with pride at her daughter's inclusive attitude, and she glanced over at Poe where he stood just behind the girl.

He was smiling just a little bit as he watched his best friend. When Rymer had exhausted her knowledge of the speeder the boys turned to Delu, who answered them even as she watched her daughter and quasi-son carefully. When the two boys had turned their attention away from her, Poe had stepped forward and slipped his hand easily into hers and the two had shared a secret smile.

Other friends be damned, Delu couldn't help but think to herself. Those two will never need anything except each other and a starship.