They had seconds to live.

Jyn had resigned herself to death long ago. Before they even landed on Scarif, she had accepted the knowledge that she would, in all likelihood, not return. That was all right. She wasn't afraid of death. What's more, she was not facing it alone.

Cassian wrapped his arms around her and she held him tightly, burying her face in his shoulder. There it was. Her one pang of regret. The hanging realization, the regret that the unspoken bond between them would never be fully known. That hurt more than the knowledge of her death. But it was all right. They were together, facing the end.

A roar enveloped them and Jyn felt sure it was the end. But instead, Cassian jerked away from her, shouting something. She stared at him in shock and gasped.

Rogue 1 was hovering above them. Hauling Cassian upwards, she dragged him towards the cargo bay, which had opened partway. Adrenaline coursing through her veins, she pulled with all her might, Cassian clinging to her, guiding them both onto the ship. The cargo bay shut behind her and they collapsed to the ground, strength spent.

Cassian had fallen unconscious. She swallowed, staring at his handsome face. Even unconscious, he had no peace, his brow furrowed, perpetual frown lines marking his forehead. She exhaled, struggling upwards, looking around wildly.

They weren't out of the woods yet. She could feel the ship churning underneath her—Bodhi was having a hard time escaping this planet. She exhaled and it came out a half-sob—surely they would not have gotten this far only to be blasted out of the sky?

The ship rattled dangerously. Blinding light flashed all around them and Jyn fell to her feet once more. The ship turned sideways and she slid across the floor, landing on Cassian, perhaps bruising his ribs. She opened her arms and held him, burying her face in his shoulder once more. She almost wished they were on the beach. Facing their end stalwart, unflinching…it was better than breaking apart in the middle of the cosmos.

Something struck her in the head and she blacked out.

XXXX

A warm breeze caressed her cheek. Jyn smiled, her eyes closed, the aroma of sea and green filling her senses. She must be dead. She could hear an ocean hushing the wind, smell sweet blossoms.

Her eyes flicked open. She jerked in fright—she was outside. Where was the ship…?

"Oh, good," She heard Bodhi's voice. "You're all right!"

Jyn tried to reply, but her voice cracked. She coughed and felt someone tilt a canteen towards her. She drank thirstily, flushing in relief.

"Where…where are we?" She rubbed her eyes. "Are we dead?"

Bodhi shook his head. She smiled—it was a comfort to see his friendly expression, his kind eyes. She lifted herself up slowly, wincing in pain. Something had struck her head hard.

"You might have a concussion," Bodhi said worriedly. "The ship was falling apart. I put us into hyperspace and hoped for the best—we crash-landed on this planet. Thank God there was oxygen, otherwise I don't know what we'd do."

Jyn coughed. "Is—is everyone—?"

"Everyone's all right," He assured her. "Well, for the most part. Baze got hit with shrapnel pretty badly and I have no idea how Chirrut survived—he walked almost literally in front of a firing squad. Barely has a scratch on him, though, I guess the Force really is with him…"

"And Cassian?" Jyn whispered.

"He was wounded pretty badly," Bodhi responded anxiously. "Looks like a direct hit from a blaster. I'd feel more comfortable if K2 were here…but if we're lucky, we can take care of him. As long as it doesn't get infected."

"Let me see him," Jyn struggled to stand.

"Slow down," Bodhi gently pushed her down. "Look—everyone's a little banged up right now. But we weren't followed and by all accounts, this planet looks abandoned. So let's rest and recuperate."

"Good," Jyn took another long drink of water. "We need to get back to the rebel base as soon as possible."

The expression on Bodhi's face flickered. He nodded shortly and turned away from her quickly. He was keeping something from her—something distressing. But never mind that. She finished her canteen of water and rose to her feet shakily, surveying her surroundings.

So much green. They were on what seemed to be a cliff-side, overlooking a series of small islands in a vast ocean. She could hear the waves crashing against the cliff-side and exhaled slowly. Beautiful. Serenity. A quiet sanctuary amidst the galactic war.

Bodhi had carefully laid out each passenger in the grass. He'd bandaged the bleeding wounds as best he could and even managed a tourniquet for Baze, who seemed to have gotten the brunt of the damage. But Baze barely seemed to notice, halfway on his elbow, watching Chirrut carefully. Chirrut's breaths were steady and even, which filled Jyn with relief.

She stumbled forward. Gently passing Chirrut and Baze, she knelt next to Cassian. He was still unconscious…she bit her lip. Her hand brushed against his chin. At her touch, his eyes shot open and he jerked upwards.

"Calm down," Jyn pushed him, just as Bodhi had pushed her. "You're hurt."

"We have to go," Cassian hissed. "Back to the base. The Death Star…"

"We did it," Jyn told him. "We transmitted the plans. The rebellion has it. They can defeat the Death Star."

His expression relaxed a fraction. He still remained stiff, his body tense, ready for the next move—ever the soldier. Jyn sighed.

"Where are we?" Cassian asked, his eyes narrowing. Like her, he probably thought they were dead upon awakening.

"Some planet Bodhi found," Jyn glanced about her. "I don't know what star system—it seems as though Bodhi just punched in something random and hoped for the best. But there's water and oxygen. Climate's temperate—for now."

"For now," Cassian agreed sourly. He pushed himself up, examining his wounds. They were wrapped efficiently and cleanly. He raised his eyebrows.

"Not me," Jyn told him. "Bodhi. Bodhi saved us all."

As if on cue, Bodhi appeared towards them, his arms full of what appeared to be weeds. His eyes were gleaming in excitement and he spoke quickly.

"I found a temple," His words were disjointed. "A temple—it looks like an old Jedi temple, but I can't be sure—but there was an apothecary. Some of these plants aren't from this world—they're healing herbs. My mother taught me them—I don't know what the hell they're doing here, but—"

"The Force is with us," Chirrut said suddenly, raising himself up on his elbows.

Baze groaned in response, but whether in relief or annoyance, Jyn couldn't say. His burly arms wrapped around Chirrut tightly, shaking slightly. Chirrut coughed twice and embraced Baze back, exhaling slowly.

"Bodhi was with us," Jyn corrected him, smiling gratefully at the pilot. Bodhi colored a little and knelt next to her, busily applying herbs to Cassian's wounds. Once he finished, he moved on to Chirrut and Baze, sharply telling Baze to shove it when the man complained. There would be a long path to healing.

XXXX

Two nights later, Bodhi told her the truth.

He'd prefaced it well—showing her trees that grew ripe fruit, pointing out the edible fish the ocean provided, the fresh water sources. They could survive there. It was unfamiliar, but had enough support for life that they could live, if careful. They would be on this planet for a while.

"I can't fix the ship," Bodhi shook his head, looking at the wreckage. "Too much was lost in hyper drive—not to mention the various mechanical failures we had plummeting through the atmosphere. Nearly half the ship fell into the ocean and I was barely able to direct the heap towards land. I've searched everywhere to see if there are any kind of spare parts, any spare ships—but this planet has been abandoned for years. If there were Jedi here…well, they left no trace. Except their temple."

He nodded towards the building, located at the top of the cliff. It wasn't much, just an open-air building, a few columns holding the small roof. Jyn had felt funny standing in the middle of platform and the air fairly vibrated at her presence. She hadn't lingered.

Jyn sighed. "Cassian won't like that."

"I'm not fond of it myself," Bodhi replied, crossing his arms. "I don't much fancy being stuck on some planet while the Rebel Alliance battles on without us. But there's not much else we can do."

Her lips twisted. "It's a big planet—surely—"

"It's a small planet," Bodhi undercut her. "Hardly the size of one of Naboo's moons. We can look…but I don't hold out much hope."

"Rebellions are built on hope," Jyn said automatically. They shared a small smile of amusement. Hope…hope for what? Hope that the transmission went through? Hope the rebels were able to destroy the Death Star? Hope that it was enough to defeat the Empire?

That was all they had.

"I'm going to check on Cassian," Jyn sighed. "Please, Bodhi…keep it to yourself for a while. We'll talk to the rest of them soon. As soon as they've healed more…"

The words were hollow in her throat. They were going to be furious either way. Cassian would start demanding ways off the planet, immediately come up with strategies to escape—and allowing his wounds to heal and resting quietly would not be among them. Baze would shrug off the shrapnel in his chest and back, and agree with Cassian's demands. Chirrut would follow her lead, telling them to trust the Force. Surely there was a reason they were on this planet. The Force meant them to be there.

Jyn wished she had that sort of faith. She liked the idea of the Force, liked the hope it represented. But in practicality? She shook her head ruefully, striding up the hill.

Cassian was sitting on the hilltop, staring at the ocean. She was pleased to see more color in his cheeks and a more serene expression. His expression relaxed further when he noticed her presence, and she quietly sat down next to him.

"How are you feeling?" Jyn asked.

He shrugged, his expression neutral. She interpreted that as "painful, but I've had worse".

She exhaled slowly. "We may be here a while."

There was a long pause. "I figured as much," Cassian's voice was low. Unhappy. But resigned.

"How so?" Jyn inquired.

He glanced below, towards the beach, where the wreckage and fuselage was scattered. She followed his gaze—so he'd presumed that the ship was irreparable. Smart man. Perhaps he had spent the last few days processing this. Pain and recovery had a way of inducing reflection.

They sat in silence for a long moment, watching the waves crash against the shoreline. They could see Baze and Chirrut walking along the beach. Baze had found a staff somewhere in the temple and Chirrut was testing it between his fingers. He missed his old staff.

"I don't hold you to it," Cassian said suddenly.

Jyn blinked at him. "Hold me to what?"

He fixed his intense stare at her. "The elevator. I don't hold you to it."

She studied him carefully. The elevator. Everything had happened so quickly, in such a terrifying blur, she'd almost wondered if she'd hallucinated their final moments. She had held him up in that elevator chute, their world crashing all around them and for a moment, she'd thought the tower would collapse above them, crushing them before reaching the ground. In that frantic terrible moment, he'd kissed her roughly. It had been a respite in the midst of chaos, a moment of hope in bedlam. The kiss had hurt, because she'd been certain there would be no other chance for kisses, no other moment for togetherness. This was all they would have.

And so they had clung to each other on the beach, ready for death. Jyn had been thankful—so thankful that he was with her at the end of all things. And now he would not hold her to it?

Jyn's eyes narrowed. She promptly reached towards him and kissed him hard on the mouth, a defiant, angry kiss, just as rough as their first. He had not responded initially—too shocked, she supposed.

She sat back on her heels and retorted, "Will you hold me to that?"

Cassian stared at her. Without warning, his face broke into a warm smile. She felt heat in her cheeks at her boldness, but didn't regret the brash action a bit, glaring at him, too annoyed to smile back. God, his smile wasn't fair. It was like a sunset, golden and beautiful, the very feeling of home.

He leaned towards her, brushing his lips against her. This time the kiss was gentle, heartbreakingly tender. He tasted spicy-sweet, like cinnamon or cloves. His palm cupped her cheek, taking his time, giving her small, sipping kisses. The gentility surprised her, but reminded her that there was hope. They had a chance to be together. They had done all they could for the rebellion. Thanks to them…there was a future.

Jyn kissed him more deeply, pushing him against the grass until he was supine. He grunted at this but did not protest, allowing her to gently sidle against him, exploring his whiskey-sweet taste. That was it. Whiskey, cinnamon, sweetness and bitterness, cloves and rye, homey, comforting tastes. His breath hitched and she reveled in the fact that she affected him so. She felt his hand tangle in her hair and she shivered at the sensation.

They were interrupted by a loud cough. Jyn rolled off of Cassian immediately, flushing, whilst Cassian seemed more irritated than anything else.

"Food's ready," Bodhi was staring at the sky, the ocean, anything but his two allies on the ground. Message delivered, he scampered off, possibly more embarrassed than the two of them.

Jyn snickered to herself and sat up on her knees, looking at Cassian squarely. "Hungry?"

"Yes," He growled at her, pulling her down again, slanting his mouth to hers. She worried briefly that she'd landed haphazardly on some of his wounds, but he didn't seem to care about that.

There would be time for dinner. Later.