Chapter 2

Rey sat motionless as she stared out the cockpit windows of the Millennium Falcon. She didn't hardly breathe, she just stared into the vast unknown of hyperspace. He was gone. Kylo had startled, breaking their connection briefly after his shock flew against her like ripples in a motionless pool. So much sadness. Anger. Suffering. It was just as Master Skywalker had said. Kylo had lost himself in the Dark Side, and it consumed him slowly like a disease. It was as if he stood in an unending fire, and in those brief moments Rey spent looking into his heart she could see him writhe from it.

Finn gazed at her for a moment, "Rey?"

She didn't answer.

"Rey!"

Jumping in her seat, Rey glanced at her friend and exhaled, "Yes?" She swallowed hard, bringing herself back into the present. She could smell the leather of the worn pilot chairs and the slight burning stink from the endlessly-tinkered-with electric system. She felt her lightsaber by her side, and tasted the memory rations on her lips. They had just eaten.

"What are you doing?" Finn sat at the co-pilot controls of the Falcon, leaning back in this rare moment of leisure.

Rey shook her head, "Nothing."

"I can see that," Finn muttered, "But I also know when nothing is something. Especially with you."

Rey met Finn's gaze, and let herself smile. How long had they been doing this now? Five years. Five years of secret missions, daring escapes, near misses while struggling against all odds to survive in this war-torn universe. Finn knew her better than anyone. Well, almost anyone. "You're right." She glanced over her shoulder at the small chatter from the rest of the strike team. Two dozen resistance members sat in the ship's lounge, talking quietly amongst themselves. Some sat quietly and didn't say anything, while others joked and laughed. It was always tense before a battle. All of the fighters dealt with the stress differently.

"It's him again, isn't it?" Finn's tone lowered and his lips turned into a firm line.

Rey knew it was useless to try to lie, so she simply nodded. "Yes. It was him. He thought I couldn't sense him when he looks for me."

Finn shook his head and glanced out at hyperspace, "Force-stalking. That's a new one."

Looking away, Rey sighed. Finn was her dearest friend, but he couldn't understand everything. After her training under Luke Skywalker, although brief, her life had changed. Everything was different. A type of different that Finn couldn't understand. "It's not like that," Rey replied.

Finn's expression soured further, "I don't know, it seems like stalking to me. And he has plenty of reason to."

Rey shook her head again, "It's not like that."

"Then what is it like?" Finn was a straightforward person, and Rey's tone made his body tense up like a tight spring, "Because it doesn't make any sense."

Frowning, Rey shrugged, "He's lonely, alright? He's lonely. And he looks up at the stars and he looks for me in them."

"That's stalking."

"No it's not."

"How not?" Finn's eyes widened. It was obvious that he was amazed at Rey's answers.

"I've done the same thing," Rey answered finally. "When I was a kid. I'd look up at the sky. I would just search the stars for hours. Looking for someone. An idea. A memory. Anything. That's what he's doing."

Finn's eyes softened. They both had rough childhoods. But even though his was a manipulation of freedom and mind control, he always had people with him. Classmates. Friends. He never had to deal with the cold isolation that Rey experienced at a very young age. "And he's looking for you?"

Rey nodded quietly, staring at her hands.

"Will it endanger the mission?"

"Not this time," Rey answered, "He can sense me. But he can't tell where I am exactly."

Finn nodded, "That's good."

An abrupt beeping sound came from the Falcon's hyperdrive readouts, interrupting the conversation. Rey sat up in the pilot's chair, and flipped a switch, "We're almost ready to drop out of hyperspace. Tell everyone to get ready."

Finn nodded, hesitating for a moment, "Are you ready?"

"I'm ready," Rey looked up at Finn, and took in a slow yet steady breath, "We end this now." She had to be strong now. She couldn't let her resolve weaken. For the Resistance. For her friends.