Star Wars: A Bond Awakens

Chapter Two: Finn and Rey

The transport landed roughly on the freight. She stayed in Jakku for a few more hours until it was light enough to see her way out of the atmosphere. Of course, she seemed to have stayed away from Han and Chewy moreso for recovering her state of mind than because she couldn't see in the dark.

When she stepped out, she saw Chewy there to greet her with his famous guttural groan.

Ora found herself able to let out a small smile, giving him a big hug.

"Well, let's go play some holochess yes?"

Han Solo walked up behind Chewy, his face was solemn. Ora didn't want to tell him, but it appeared he already knew why she went there.

"He was there, wasn't he?"

Ora nodded.

"That's why you had to go. The Force was pulling you to him."

She scrunched her brows ever so slightly in utter confusion. She didn't know if it was truly the Force or if the pull was specifically towards him. She didn't know too much of anything.

Han started to explain. "Luke gave me something when he handed you over at the temple. He said-well, I think you should read both letters for yourself. It's about time. You were old enough years ago, but I guess I just didn't know how to go about it all. Uh, here." He already had the letters in his hand, ready to give them to her.

She looked at them and then up at Han. "Luke wrote them?"

"Yes."

Ora took them and opened the first one that was addressed to Han. "You sure you want me to read yours?"

He nodded, standing there, waiting with a longing sadness in his eyes. She looked at the first one intently. Every jagged word written in a hurry. Some words harder to decipher than others.

Han,

I know giving you another child to raise, a Jedi child isn't what you asked for especially when entrusting your own to me, but as you see, I have failed. I only ask you take this one, she is special in ways I can't explain to you right now, but I believe with all the Force she is your son's redemption to the light.

Forgive me for leaving, but I must go.

Take good care of her if not for my sake or her own, then for your son.

Luke.

Ora looked up at Han in surprise. "You know about Ben and I then? That we weren't merely friends?"

"Yes, I've known since that day he turned wholly to the dark side. The second letter is specifically for you. I'll let you read it when you wish. Don't worry about my eyes reading it because I didn't."

She looked at the second letter, unsure if she did want to read it. For so long, she had taken up Han's way of not thinking and even running away from the past. To bring it up again after so long of numbness towards it, it opened up the wounds that hurt so before. She tucked it away in her tunic, definitely for a later day.

Han nodded at her decision.

"What did he say? What was he like? Is he alright?"

Ora wasn't sure what to answer first or if she should answer truthfully in that matter. No matter how much love was still in his eyes when they were one that night, it didn't change what he last said to her and who he had become and what parts of him he drove out.

"He said I should never go back. Not sure what he meant by that, but he wasn't happened when I mentioned you. I think he believes you abandoned him."

Han walked away right then as solemn as ever.

She probably shouldn't have said anything at all but it was hard to hide and lie from someone you dearly cared for.

The scanner on the freighter started beeping rapidly, signalling an incoming ship. Han and Chewy darted with Ora coming right behind them. They checked the scanner seeing there a smaller ship flying towards their way. Chewy looked out the window and groaned with excitement.

The Millennium Falcon!

xxx

Curious, Ora walked right behind Han with the wookie following up. Their strides were brisk, making their way to the dock of the ship. Before her very eyes, she knew from hearing so many stories, was in fact the Millennium Falcon. Ora smiled big, and this time it wasn't forced.

"It's stunning!" she said.

Han Solo stood tall. "Isn't it? Haven't seen her in years. Come on, Chewy."

All three of them ascended the Falcon; all three looking in such wonder. It looked almost just like it had. The holo table was still there surrounded by comfortable benches, the flooring was the same, the walls were just as dented and rugged as they once were. To Ora, it was even more grand than Han and Chewy's stories. It was old technology, but everything had so much character screaming out adventure.

A clanking sounded below them. Chewy walked over to the noise and lifted one of the metal floorboards. Han had his DL-44 out, ready to shoot whoever was below.

Ora stood next to him with her own blaster, pointing directly at the male. There was just one other person next to him, a girl of no more than eighteen years of age. They both looked up wide-eyed.

"You're from Jakku, then?" Ora asked her.

They bore masks. No doubt they were trying to leak some kind of gas to kill whoever was going to board the ship. Their plan was interrupted fortunate for the three smugglers.

"Yea, I reside there for now," she answered.

Han looked at Ora with a raised brow.

"Her clothing. Desert-like; like the village that..." she trailed off remembering how she did nothing.

The droid let out a beep.

"He saw you there," the girl translated. "You were at the village massacre." The droid continued bleeping. The girl looked at him like he was crazy for whatever he just said.

"What did he say?" Ora asked impatiently. She made sure that whenever she got the chance, she would make sure to learn how to speak droid.

"He said that you were with the man in the black helmet and you helped him massacre that village."

"I did no such thing!" Ora glared at the BB droid.

The man's eyes went wider. "Kylo Ren? You were with Kylo Ren? Are you with the First Order?"

Her blood began to boil. What is so curious is that before Ben, before they were together, before they were one, she had never had anger in her nature. Now it was like his anger flowed through her whenever it seemed appropriate for an emotional human being.

Han's jaw clenched. "We aren't part of the First Order, now get out of there. Come on."

Ora decided to walk off the Falcon before the rest of them, leaving them to their own conversation. Something wrong started to stir in her being. She ran off the ramp of the Falcon and looked out the window seeing a giant ship docking. She looked at the scanner and saw that Han and Chewy and the rest were coming to check as well.

Han sighed. "The Guavian Death Gang."

The man with dark skin looked at Ora, following Han and everyone else, saying "Did you know you were hauling Rathtars on this ship?" The man looked utterly at a loss and that made Ora laugh.

Solo spoke up from the front, "This Finn and that's Rey just so you haven't missed anything. Apparently BB-8 has a map to..." He paused.

They opened the doors to the rathtars' corridors and Han opened the floorboard. Great hiding spot it seems with this bunch.

"To what?" Ora pried.

"We'll talk about that later. You two get under than and don't make a sound. We will give you your droid back and send you on your way as soon as this is all over, but until then the droid stays with me," Han said.

Rey and Finn shimmied down to the bottom of the freighter and Chewy covered them up just in time for the Gang to waltz in.

"Han Solo." The name echoed in the room. "You're a dead man."

xxx

Thanks to Rey the rathtars ran loose, but now that the gangs were taken care of, Han, Chewy and Ora were able to make their way to the Falcon.

Once aboard, they waited on Finn and Rey and then they took off into the galaxy, safe from the loose rathtars.

Ora sat down on the bench still feeling the blood rushing through her veins from adrenaline.

Rey and Han went to the cockpit to control the flight of the Falcon. Ora then helped Finn patch up Chewy's wound but Chewy was restless every time Finn tried touching him.

"Oh, let me do it," Ora said irritatedly to Finn, grabbing the wrapping from him.

"He has tried to kill me six times already and-" Finn stopped when Chewy grabbed a hold of his neck. "Which is fine," Finn managed to say hoarsely.

Ora gave Chewy a look until he let him go. She continued to bandage him up and by the sounds of it from the cockpit, we were on autopilot and free from the chaos of what the death gang and the rathtar frenzied freighter. Han and Rey walked back into the lobby with the rest of the group, BB-8 rolling right behind.

"You did good, kid," Han said reassuring Finn.

Finn casually leaned against the holo table, "Thanks." It turned on and began to play. He panicked for a moment, trying to turn it off.

"So. Fugitives, huh?" Han smiled.

"The First Order wants the map," Rey explained. "Finn is with the Resistance."

Ora snorted. They all looked at her, and she forced her smile back.

"I'm just a scavenger," Rey continued.

"Let's see it, then."

Ora stood up from the bench as BB-8 rolled to the center and he projected a map, but it looked too simple as if it was missing so much. "What does this map lead to?"

Han looked at Ora, "Luke."

Ora's face dropped. "Anyone else? Anybody from the temple?"

Han slowly shook his head. She felt a pain again. The kind of pain that all hope for Ben was lost. How could he do such a thing? Their friends...all gone now.

"The map is incomplete. This is just a piece."

Rey looked at Han and then back at the map that expanded to fill the room.

"Ever since Luke left, people have been looking for him," Han began.

"Why did he leave?" Rey asked.

Han looked at Ora willing her to explain for it seemed more her place than his own. She didn't want to talk about, however. It wasn't as if it was any of this scavenger's business. She was on a need-to basis in her own opinion but Han seemed to take a liking to her, so she obliged.

"Luke was training a new generation of Jedi. One boy..." Ora began, but feeling her eyes water to the brim, she turned away so her feelings wouldn't betray her. "One boy destroyed it all, the temple, the planet...the people. I think Luke felt responsible, so he just...walked away. From everything."

"Do either of you know what happened to him?" Finn asked. He no longer had that humorous sparkle in his eyes. The tone went from light to dark in such a short notice, she wasn't sure if bringing this all up would keep her emotions intact.

Ora shrugged.

Han said, "There are a lot of rumors, but those closest to him believe he is searching for the very first Jedi Temple."

Rey walked closer to Han with amazement in her eyes. What a relief someone could bring such light to something so dark. Ora began to take a liking to the scavenger now as well.

"The Jedi were real," she said in absolute amazement.

"Are," Han smiled gently, "There is one right next to you."

Rey looked at Ora as if she was a goddess. "You're a Jedi? That's amazing! You were there with Luke? You've seen him? What's he like? What's the Force like?" Suddenly, she became solemn again, "How did you escape? Did you know the boy who destroyed the Jedi?"

Ora turned away again, feeling betrayed by her overwhelming emotions. If only she had trained herself that what happened had happened it should no longer have such a hold on her. But it was difficult to talk and think about what happened without thinking again how she had not only lost Ben to the darkness, but also Els, one of her closest friends and the rest of the young children so innocent, they wouldn't dare get angry at anything or even hurt the smallest most hideous creature. They were too pure, too kind. Yet, they were all gone now.

"I think that's a story for another time. We've set the destination to Maz's cantina, Ora, so we will be there in a few days. I am going to get some rest. I'm too old for drama with gangs and talk of Luke." Han made his way to a room and slid the door shut. Chewy was already fast asleep on the long bench while Finn and Rey turned the holo table on to watch the creatures battle.

Ora took the Marksman-H combat remote and moved it from one hand to the other over and over. She considered turning it on. Taking one glance at the two from Jakku, she couldn't help herself. She turned it on and stood up.

"Want to see something pretty cool?" Ora asked them. She knew it wasn't anything special, but it seemed like they (particularly Rey) haven't seen something like this before and would think it's such.

They both nodded, watching her every move. She took out her lightsaber, flipping the switch to reveal a green glowing ray of light. Rey stood up, barely containing herself with a big smile on her face.

The Marksman began spewing out bolts of red light and Ora combated every one, not missing a beat.

"I can't believe I'm standing before a real Jedi. This is amazing!"

Ora stopped and looked at her, "I think speaking droid is pretty amazing. Do you mind teaching me?"

"Me? Teaching a Jedi to do something."

The Jedi had to admit that the scavenger girl had brilliant smile that she found quite contagious.