Summary: Rey, Luke, Finn, and Poe (and BB) head out to Niima Cove. It's obvious to everyone that Winter is Coming...It is a time for change.
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Eventually they remembered to eat. The chicken was still quite delicious cold, though Luke suspected that he wouldn't have noticed even if the opposite was true. His head was still swimming with the feeling of Rey's skin pressed to his, the warm, living weight of her in his arms. Thankfully, she put her shirt back on before they sat down.
"Shirts on at the table," she said, grinning as she tossed him his. "House rules."
"Very wise," said Luke, buttoning up halfway. "Too many distractions."
"Am I distracting?" Rey asked, adjusting his collar as she stepped around him, her fingers ghosting along his neck and shoulders.
"Not at all." Luke snagged the edge of her shirt and tugged her down into a chair. Rey smirked and scooted closer, pressing her thigh against him as she leaned into him.
"Eat your dinner," she said in his ear. "We've got an early day tomorrow."
Luke said goodnight after they cleared off the table, and stuck the leftovers in the fridge, Rey muttering with mock exasperation about getting a microwave. She walked him to the door, her hand on the small of his back.
They stopped in the hallway. Rey's hand lingered on his waist, a gentle weight that pulled at a lost, quiet place deep inside of him. He turned, and cupped her face in his hands. She smiled, her eyes bright, fingers knotting in his shirt as he kissed her chastely on the lips.
"Good night," he said, not moving. She shivered. Then she planted a quick kiss on his cheek, and let him go.
"Good night Luke. Wake me up at 7? My alarm can be…weird sometimes."
"Of course. Knock on my door if I'm not there."
"Ok…"
Rey stepped back quickly, and slipped into her apartment.
Luke slept better than he had in ages.
After a very cold shower, of course.
######
Between the whirl of thoughts in her mind and the fresh, bubbling glow that seemed to fill the living room, the kitchen, and that odd little dusty closet on the other side of the bookcase, Rey almost forgot about her new bed. She was halfway to the other closet, ready to haul out her air mattress when she stumbled across an open cardboard box, one of many that had arrived earlier that day.
Curtains. Rugs. Sheets and lampshades and bookends. Pieces of a home.
Rey sat down heavily on the couch, and leaned back into the cushions, trying to take it all in. She still needed to ask Luke how he'd strung up those lights, but…right now the soft glow of the reading lamp by the sofa, and the smaller lamp on the end table near the staircase just felt right. The bookcase stood in a pool of light, the shadows a gradual fade towards the brick wall.
The leather was still warm. Rey tucked her legs underneath her and let her eyelids flutter shut, her chest strangely tight as she curled up in the remains of Luke's body heat.
Don't fall asleep…Don't fall asleep…
The old pipes overhead creaked alarmingly. Rey jerked fully awake, almost falling off the sofa.
But it got her up. She set her alarms for 6:45, brushed her teeth, and collapsed into bed.
######
The sun woke Rey before her alarm. Just for a moment, Rey thought she was back in Luke's bed, wrapped up in a cocoon of warm, clean-smelling sheets, his arm across her waist, and his beard pricking the back of her neck. Her stomach flipped. She reached back, and –
It was a hairbrush. She'd been snuggling with a hairbrush.
Well, I was distracted last night, Rey thought, a little smile tugging at the corners of her mouth. She climbed out of bed, wincing as her feet touched the cold floor, and skipped quickly to her bureau for a pair of socks. Where the hell are my slippers…
She pulled on a bathrobe and texted 'I'm awake' to Luke. She got a response after two very long minutes - 'Ditto. Leave at 7:30?' She responded with a 'yes' and a smile.
Ok, where did I stash my winter clothes…
######
They took Rey's car, after a quick bite to eat at Luke's place. The windows were thoroughly frosted over, despite the fact that she was parked in the building garage. Fortunately, she kept a brush and window-scraper (and a shovel, and a bag of salt) in her trunk year-round, to Luke's amusement.
"You only have to get snowed in once," she said archly, her voice muffled through her scarf, and attacked the windshield with annoyed vigor. "At least this isn't ice."
"Give it a week," said Luke, brushing off the headlights. "It's almost Thanksgiving."
Winter tended to sneak up on Niima, and pounce in November after a somewhat mild Fall. One day you'd be walking around in a sweatshirt and jeans, and the next in more layers than an Arctic explorer. General consensus set the first day of Winter as the first time ice appeared on the edge of the Cove. Clearly it was almost there.
They huddled in the car until the inside de-fogged, and Rey could take off her ski gloves, though it was still less than ideal. She declined Luke's offer to sit in his lap, as the whole 'share the body heat' thing only worked with skin-to-skin contact, and there was no way she was taking off her coat, thank you very much.
"Something to remember," he deadpanned, his hands on the dashboard heat vents.
"Just be glad the heater works," said Rey, as they pulled into the Dunkin' Donuts drive-through. "Here we go…"
She ordered two extra-larges. Luke mumbled thanks and clasped his tight, humming contentedly as heat seeped back into his fingers. Rey rolled her eyes.
"Rub it in why don't y – Oh – "
She jumped a little as Luke set his coffee down and pressed her slightly numb fingers in between his newly-warm palms.
"Skin-to-skin contact," he said, with a smirk.
"…Ok, I can drive one-handed."
The car was a bit warmer, anyway.
######
Poe's pickup truck was idling in the parking lot when they got to the Cove. Rey grinned when she saw the fogged-up windows, and her two friends silhouetted inside, wrangling a very excited Labrador. She pulled up next to them and waved.
"I'm going to assume that's BB," said Luke, releasing her hand and passing over her gloves.
"Yeah…Ready to go?" she asked Luke, pulling them on, suddenly nervous. Luke leaned over and kissed her on the forehead.
"Onward," he said.
BB went for Luke as soon as they got out of the car. Finn gave her a lot of slack on the leash, and shot a careful look at Poe as the dog sniffed her way up Luke's legs, her tail wagging excitedly. Luke crouched down and offered BB his hand, sending her into wiggling glee. Finally, her barking dropped into a happy huff, and she settled, her tongue lolling, graciously accepting a vigorous ear-scratching from her new friend.
Rey grinned as Poe noticeably relaxed.
"Picked a good day," he said, leaning against his truck. "We've got the beach pretty much to ourselves."
"That's because it's freezing," said Rey, nudging him in the arm.
"Wimps. They don't know what they're missing, I -"
Rey winced as the howl of the wind swallowed the rest of his words.
"Says the man who won't do the Polar Bear swim," Finn stage-whispered to Luke.
"Really?" he said, arching an eyebrow.
"My toughness is unquestionable," said Poe archly. "Besides, I have no interest in getting my ass posted all over the internet."
"There are these things called Speedos these days, you know," said Rey.
"That's even worse. And banana hammocks are not how I roll. I have a reputation to protect!"
"So that thing in Aruba was just a – "
"Finn..." growled Poe.
"Very wise," said Luke. "I needed help getting back into my clothes, it was so cold."
Finn and Poe stared.
"Well, shit," said Poe. He unzipped his coat and fished out a twenty-dollar bill. "You win," he grumbled. Finn smirked and pocketed it.
"Is there anything you guys haven't bet on?" asked Rey. Then her eyes narrowed. "Did you – "
"Oh would you just look at the time?" said Poe, standing up and taking BB's leash. "We've got to move if we're going to get to the Teeth by 10…"
Finn winked at Rey, and headed after them.
######
Poe let BB off the leash when she'd calmed down a bit, and there weren't any strangers close by. The Lab knew the way, but wasn't entirely convinced that Luke did, and so spent most of the trip pacing and jumping around him, her breath steaming in the air, sometimes running a few yards ahead and patiently waiting, tail wagging up a storm.
"She's taking care of you," Rey said, the fifth time it happened.
"She reminds me of Artoo," said Luke, grinning. "Too smart for her own good."
Rey was walking between Luke and Poe, shielded from the worst of the wind coming off the water. They were mostly silent, instead listening to the roar of the waves and the wind howling plaintively in the crags, the occasional cry of a seagull. The sky was a light gray, the air stinging with the undefinable potential that meant snow.
"Last day of Fall. Probably," said Finn.
"Think it'll hold off until we get back?" Rey asked, huddling closer to Luke. At least we all dressed for it. Mostly. All four of them were outfitted with heavy, hooded coats, boots, gloves, and wool hats and scarves. Three minutes in Poe was grumbling about needing a ski mask, which meant that Luke just had to point out that he had quite a bit of extra facial insulation that was impossible to forget in the car.
Poe eyed him speculatively.
"Something to consider…Finn, how do you feel about beards?"
"How do you feel about no kissing until you can't give me stubble burn?"
"…Damn it."
"No patience. None at all," said Rey. "You and your permanent 5 o'clock shadow…"
"I'm a mechanic. It goes with the coveralls," said Poe archly.
"Everything worth doing requires time and effort," said Rey. She paused. "It's worth it."
"Reallllllly?" said Poe, shooting a sly glance at Luke.
"Really." She caught Luke's eye. He cocked an eyebrow and grinned broadly.
"I'll keep that in mind…"
######
It took some time to get to the Teeth, but it was worth it.
Just in time, thought Rey. It was nearly 10, and the temperature was already dropping. Fog horns sounded low and mournful over the water. The tide was rising fast –
'The Teeth' was a rock formation that spread out from the edge of the Cove in a rough line, projecting far out under the water and merging with an underwater reef. When the tide was low, the Teeth closer to the shore – and the cave system beneath - were popular with hikers during the summer, but as they were often the first part of the Cove to ice up as Winter drew near, they were usually deserted from September onwards.
The fact that half of the caves filled with water at high tide was another major deterrent.
Well…It's kind of a draw, too. Rey grinned. She'd played quite a few games of 'chicken' with the tide when she was younger. There was just something about waiting in the dark, ancient stone pressing in on all sides, water black as pitch welling up beneath you that sent the heart into overdrive. A delicious sting of danger…As long as you had a way out. Parks and Rec had rigged an iron rail at the end of the 'safe zone' in each cave – about 500 feet inside, a distance that (on average) a human that was able to get in there in the first place could walk in less than 5 minutes.
Because when the tide got to the mouth of the cave, the water rose fast. In some of them, the water line was far above Rey's head. And as Winter progressed, the cave floors froze solid when the tide was out – a recipe for broken bones if Rey had ever seen one.
It was a similar case for the offshore Teeth – the rocks and reef brimmed with bright life, and drew thousands of tourists from around the country. But when the weather grew rough, the Teeth earned their name, and lurked under dark water, waiting for reckless captains.
Every so often, the remains would wash up on shore.
Something occurred to her as they followed BB into the first cave. Finn and Poe clambered up after the Labrador and made a beeline for the back of the cave. Rey and Luke hung back a little, staying on the larger, slightly more stable rocks near the entrance.
"So, I'm about halfway through The Dark Cove, said Rey. She sat down carefully on a slab of quartzite with a good view of the ocean, out of reach of the wind, wincing a little as she felt the cold through her pants. "And I was thinking…Is it about this? From a certain point of view?" She leaned against the cave wall and pointed out to sea, then in a broad circle, encompassing everything she could see.
Luke nodded and sat down on her left.
"It's why I use a pen name," he said, reaching over and taking her hand. Rey scooted closer until they were shoulder-to-shoulder. She couldn't feel him through the heavy layers of clothing, but he was still a comforting, solid presence. "I'm pretty sure there's not a local in this town that wouldn't figure that one out. The ones that've been out here, anyway."
"It's beautiful," said Rey quietly. She pressed closer, lining up her leg with his, and squeezed his hand. Waves crashed against the rocks, towers of whitewater roaring high in the cold air. Her senses filled with the bite of wild, open air, and the deep, free breath of the sea. She laid her head on Luke's shoulder, and held him tight. Their eyes locked, sharp, fierce. Rey's heart thudded, deep and powerful. She couldn't close her eyes.
So she reached up, tugged on his collar, and kissed him.
Everything else fell away. There was just the hot, hard press of his mouth, pulling her in, and the pound of her blood in her ears and chest, so much louder than the waves, as she gripped his shoulder tight. Their breath steamed in the cold air, the pink sting of warming windburn spreading across her cheeks. Sweat beaded underneath her heavy clothing, trickling between her breasts, so sensitive - aching - from cold and excitement.
She was half in his lap when 60 pounds of panting dog jumped on him instead. BB huffed, breath puffing, tongue lolling, and wiggled between them, tail thumping on the rock.
"Are you getting cold, girl?" Rey asked, when she could speak again.
"Looks like," said Luke, his voice rough. He rubbed her vigorously, rumbling in sympathy as the dog shivered under his hands. She showed no signs of moving as she soaked up warmth from their laps.
"If we come out again, we're bringing her coat," said Poe, stepping up to them. "She'll be ok for a bit, but we need to head back. Come on, sweetie," he said, reaching down and scratching her neck. "You're not a puppy anymore, we can't carry you back."
"I carried her under my coat a few times," said Finn, sitting next to Luke. He grinned as he took in the quite unusual flush flooding Rey's cheeks. "You know baby carriers for hikers? Well, they have those for dogs…"
"It was adorable," said Rey. "A big fuzzball under his coat." She stood reluctantly, wincing as her joints twinged a little. "Yeesh, that rock was cold.
"Not surprised you didn't notice," Finn deadpanned. Luke grinned and shook his head, getting to his feet.
"I have no idea what you mean."
"Right," said Poe. He eyed the darkening sky. "We really should get back, though…This isn't good for humans, either."
######
They moved much faster on the return trip. It did, indeed, look like they had chosen a good time to head back. The tide was rising fast, the temperature was dropping faster, and Finn lost his hat to the wind about a mile before they got back to the parking lot. Him and Poe wound up sharing Poe's hat, switching back and forth every few minutes. Rey held onto Luke the entire way. The frantic heat had faded somewhat, thanks to the cold, but, well, she didn't' have to let go, did she?
They parted ways at the parking lot. Finn and Poe asked for a raincheck on their lunch, to take BB home and light up their fireplace - no double entendre intended, they'd been stockpiling wood for weeks, and their heating bill actually went down when they had a fire going. Rey and Luke readily agreed.
They didn't say much on the ride home, just a quiet assertion that, yes, it had been a very good idea to go out. Rey said that it'd been a good morning. Luke said that Finn and Poe were good people. They both agreed that it was almost winter.
Small talk that they hadn't needed for quite some time.
The silence grew thicker when they left the car, and heavy when they stepped out of the elevator onto their floor. The landlord had, apparently, finally gotten the boiler working. Heat emanated from the barely-insulated pipes running from the floor to the ceiling, the hot water humming under Rey's fingers when she tapped the pipe next to her door. She pressed her hands to the metal surface, waited for them to warm, and then unlocked her door.
Behind her, Luke sucked in a breath, ready to speak, but – he turned away, tugged off his gloves, and fumbled for his keys.
"Hey…"
Rey stepped up close, and tugged on his sleeve, nudging him, asking him to face her.
He did. Rey reached for him, took his icy fingers in her newly-warm hands.
"Would you like to come in?" she asked softly. "For coffee? And…" She swallowed and caught his eye.
Silence.
Rey's stomach lurched. She dropped his hand and took a step back.
"It's o – "
Luke closed the distance and pulled her in tight.
"Yes," he murmured into her hair, his voice going low and rough.
Rey let out a low, nearly silent cry. She pulled him inside.