She sat alone in the corner of the space that had been designated as the new mess hall, trying to avoid most people as she ate her breakfast. Apparently there had been a lot of gossip about her screaming fit the other day, and when she hadn't shown up for the evening celebration; people assumed that she had not been well. Occasionally people would approach her and ask her if she was feeling better, clearly curious, but not openly brave enough to ask her what had happened. She would smile politely and tell them she was fine, that she appreciated their concern but that there was nothing for them to worry about, and then they would move on.

She was just finishing her coffee when Finn timidly approached her.

"Rey?"

"Hey Finn," she said, giving him her best welcoming smile. "I'm glad you're here. I've been wanting to talk to you. Can we go for a walk?"

"Sure, Rey."

She could feel him getting jealous again over the bond, but rather than retaliate she decided to put up a barrier.

Rey and Finn walked in silence out into a quiet and secluded patch of the forest where they found a ring of mossy boulders. "What happened yesterday, Rey?" he finally asked, not being able to handle the uncomfortable silence any longer.

She sighed and perched herself on one of the lower boulders. "Well, it has to do with the force. I don't know how much you know about it…"

"Not much," he quickly confessed.

She smiled. "Well, I thought about telling you, but I didn't want to worry you because there's really nothing that can be done about it you see."

She could both see and sense his confusion, so she was forced to break down and elaborate. "There's a very rare thing that can happen between two people who both have the force; it's called a force bond. It's when you can feel that other person's emotions, and sometimes their pain, almost all the time. It's like they live inside your head. Sometimes it can happen when two people are related, or between a padawan and their master, or if two people are in a very long and close relationship, but…mine's different."

She stopped suddenly and Finn watched as she seemed to internally struggle with something.

"Who…wait…that other person would have to have the force too right?"

She seemed to see the gears turning inside his head. He had seen her be rushed into a room with Luke Skywalker, Maz Kanata, and General Organa, and none of them had been screaming; it had only been her. Then she saw the horror of recognition creep across his face, and it was like a stab to her heart.

"Rey, is it him? Kylo Ren?"

Her eyes grew red with unshed tears; she inhaled sharply and tried to find her center of peace. "Yes. After he captured me…we sort of…ended up getting into each other's heads," she said trying to avoid more alarming words like 'interrogate.' "I've felt him ever since. And he can feel me too."

Finn suddenly grabbed Rey and nearly crushed her in his embrace. "Rey, why didn't you tell me? This is awful! I know I'm pretty useless about this force stuff, but you can tell me anything. Anything at all! You're my friend, Rey!"

She wrapped her arms around him and rested her chin on his shoulder. "Thank you."

He finally let go of her and took a step back, but kept one hand on her shoulder. She could remember when she didn't even like him holding her hand, but now she was so grateful that he was here. "He's been hurting you? That's what happened yesterday, wasn't it? Luke can't help you?"

"Well…it's not quite like that. He wasn't trying to hurt me; Snoke was hurting him, and I couldn't help but feel it. It was the worst pain I've felt from him yet. Master Luke can't help me. The only way to sever a bond is if one of us dies, and, well, you can imagine how easy that's going to be."

"It's a shame he didn't die yesterday in the battle. I heard you two were fighting. Some of the resistance soldiers who went into the facility with Luke said they saw you two having it out just before they all had to get out. We all missed you last night at the party. I almost went looking for you, but Luke Skywalker can be pretty intimidating, and he told me to give you some space."

"I'm sorry I worried you so much yesterday. I wasn't really in a good position to explain just then. I hope I didn't spoil the celebration for you."

"Well, you did! How can you think I'd have fun knowing my best friend wasn't well? Poe tried his best to get me to take my mind off things. I gotta admit, he's usually pretty good at lightening the mood. He kept entertaining everyone talking about how yesterday's battle went down. You should have seen how proud he was of you! Thanks to him, now everybody on this base knows what a bad-ass starfighter pilot you are. You're going to steal his spotlight if you keep that up."

She was finally feeling more relaxed and comfortable. Finn just seemed to know what to say to help her forget her troubles, if only for a little while. "Heard you weren't too shabby as a gunner."

He beamed at the compliment. "Well, that was the compromise I had to make with Poe. He said he'd beat me with my own cane if I stepped one foot off that ship. You don't need to walk or run to be a gunner, and there's probably no safer ship to be on than with Luke Skywalker…well…and you and Poe of course."

They stayed in that warm patch of the forest, where the sun filtered through the trees and sparkled over the surface of the mossy boulders, and just talked and laughed about all the antics that Rey had missed from the previous night's celebration. By the time they were done, both their sides hurt from laughter, and she had been made to feel genuinely sorry that she hadn't been able to attend that night.

Eventually Finn had to head back to the base, where Poe would be wondering where he had disappeared to all morning. She urged him to go on without her, explaining that she wanted to walk around the forest a bit more.

When she was finally alone she walked until she found a beautiful stream. She decided to sit down next to it and explore through the force. When she closed her eyes she entered a deep state of mediation, and suddenly the whole forest came alive. She could feel the lives of the birds in the trees, the small furry creatures the scurried across the forest floor, the insects, even down to the tiniest microbes. She could feel everything. Here was peace, and she breathed deeply of the sweet forest air. At last she opened her eyes, and was surprised to see she wasn't alone.

"It's you!" she stated the obvious.

The glowing blue force ghost of Anakin Skywalker gave a relaxed chuckle.

"I mean, I didn't feel you," she corrected.

"Well, I am dead," he said with a smile. "And I didn't want to disturb you."

Before she had wanted to ask Anakin Skywalker so many questions, but after last night's dream, she couldn't help but feel that something had changed.

"I wanted to talk to you about my grandson, if you don't mind."

"Can you tell me…what happened? I saw in his mind…he sees you as Darth Vader. Why doesn't he see you the way Master Luke does?"

"I'm afraid my grandson needs to step further into the light before I can appear to him as I can to you. I can't reach him, but you can, which is why I'm here."

"But I saw in his mind…"

"That he had heard the voice of Darth Vader, asking him to carry on my legacy? No…that was not me. My grandson was deceived."

"How?"

"Treacherous is the darkside. I know. You see you and Ben share a bond. It's an unusual bond, but it's a legitimate bond. When he was still a boy, a very young boy, he met a man that was on the same senate as his mother. That senator was a puppet for Snoke. The darkside can be very good at hiding itself sometimes, and she did not sense the danger, until it was too late. She took him with her on her diplomatic meetings quite often. Ben spent a lot of his very early life meeting galactic royalty and politicians. I don't know when or where, but somehow he must have physically encountered Snoke. It's the only way he could have placed a bond on Ben, but it was not natural like the one you and he share. It was one-sided. Snoke could get right into Ben's mind, but Ben couldn't get into Snokes."

"How do you know this?"

"Well, I was one hell of a Sith, ya know. I'm aware of some of the tricks…the deceptions. When Ben was a very young boy I would occasionally watch over him, but I kept my distance. You see, I didn't have the opportunity to make amends with Leia the way I had with Luke. On one hand she's grateful to me for having saved Luke's life, on the other she can never forgive me for having tortured her and destroying Alderan. She had only ever known me as Darth Vader. But I wanted to know my grandson. He is the continuation of my line. Imagine my sorrow to see what has become of him. I don't know exactly what Snoke said or did to turn my grandson from the light, but I know he believes that Darth Vader has come to him in the past, and I know that that is not true. I feel that he still calls out for Vader, but the illusion is over now. Snoke's deception could not last. The unnatural bond he placed on Ben when he was a boy wore off at some point."

She sat thoughtful for a moment before she spoke. "I never knew my family. I still don't know if he had a hand in their death or not. I may never know because even he's not certain. All I can do is imagine. Imagine what it must be like to have someone you love that much…to forgive. He's done such awful things. Such terrible monstrous things. I know even then, you love him. General Organa loves him. Luke still loves him. Hell, I think even Chewie still loves him! I don't know that I can ever know love so unconditionally, but I know there is still good in him. I've felt it. It's just so hard to forgive."

"Please, Rey. You may be the only one who can pull him back into the light. What he shares with you is his only tether to salvation. His crimes were acts of darkness. It can consume until you are left a mere wraith of your true self. It can make people do things that they would never do otherwise. He still has a chance to see the error in his ways. I know he can return, because I returned. Help me, Rey, please. Save my grandson."

If force ghosts could shed tears, he probably would have, and Rey knew that what he said was true. She could feel darkness even within herself, the other half of her force signature that raged like an inferno. No one could ever keep their soul intact if they only ever lived in the darkness. She saw all of his horrible deeds flash before her eyes, but then she also saw the way he looked when he pleaded with her to join him. There was so much loneliness there. It never stopped. It never went away.

I'm being torn apart. I want to be free of this pain. I know what I have to do, but I don't know if I have the strength to do it.

She sighed and gazed up at Anakin Skywalker with resignation. "I still need more answers before I can forgive him, if I can forgive him at all, but whether I forgive him or not is inconsequential. There is still light in him. I've felt it. If he can be brought back, if I can save him…then I will try."

"Rey, you're back. What have you been up to all day?" asked Luke, who seemed to be waiting for her just outside the fortress.

"Well, first I talked to an ex-stormtrooper and then I talked to an ex-sith."

He raised a curious eyebrow. "Oh?"

She sighed and placed her hands on her hips, and seemed to stare down past his feet. "I need to talk to him." When she looked up he could see that she was resolute. "I can't let my feelings get in the way of what needs to be done anymore…what needs to be said. I'm not saying I'm going to forgive him, not yet, maybe not ever, but there is good in him…as much as I hate to admit it. There are still things I need to know. I still need answers."

"Well you two hardly had an opportune time to talk."

She just nodded. "He asked me to save his grandson. I don't know if I can, but I'm going to try. I'll ask him to meet with me somewhere. Somewhere neutral – alone."

She could tell Luke was worried, but she could also sense relief from him. He had wanted to ask her to save his nephew since the moment he met her, but he could not. Not after what he had done to Han, not after the way he had treated her, and certainly not before she was strong enough with the force. He wanted to let it be her choice. He was secretly very grateful to his father for finally intervening. There was a deep, almost paternal instinct in him that could not help but worry for Rey. Kylo Ren was volatile, and had killed the last person who had tried to reach out to him. But, he also knew that she was strong with the force, that the silver light had completed her training as he never could. He had seen her fight against him and she could clearly hold her own. If anybody could save him, it would be her.

"I might suggest going to Dantooin. It's pretty much in the middle of nowhere. It's in the outer rim. It will take you time to get there. You realize once he knows you can speak to him through the force, you may be opening yourself to further harassment on his part."

She stifled a groan. "Why do you think I never tried asking him these questions over the bond? I'm going to reach out to him just enough so that he knows where to find me, and I'm absolutely not acknowledging any response he might give. If he shows up, he shows up…if not…well…I'll have tried."

"Rey…please be careful."

She softened a little. It felt nice to know that Master Luke cared about her enough to worry. She just wished she didn't have to cause him to worry quite so much. "I can't promise that I'll be able to bring him back. I can only try. But I will come back."

"You'll bring him back or you won't, there is no try."

It took her a couple days before she could leave the base. Luke told Leia about Rey's mission. At first Leia was actually against the idea, she didn't want Rey to suffer Han's fate, she was growing to care for Rey like a daughter and the idea of putting her in jeopardy seemed unacceptable at first. Eventually Luke was able to reassure her that Rey was secure enough in the force as a Grey Jedi to where she could hold her own against the likes of Kylo Ren. He also assured her that he did not believe Ren really wanted to harm Rey, that their connection through the bond would help them to understand one another. Eventually Leia was forced to relent, as many misgivings as she had, she also couldn't deny that any hope for her son, no matter how small, might be worth a shot.

Rey told Finn and Poe that she would be going on a top secret mission for Master Luke and the general, and that she would be going alone. She would not dare tell them the nature of the mission as she knew they would only protest. She would tell them when she returned…if she returned.

She would take the Grey Wolf to Dantooin as she could use R2 as her copilot and not have to endanger any other lives.

"Oh, do keep an eye on him. He is so prone to getting himself into disasters!" said C3PO as she loaded R2D2 into the Grey Wolf.

"Don't worry. I'm probably more likely to get him into trouble," she replied.

R2 gave a worried little coo.

"I'm just kidding," she reassured.

"And you mind your manners and don't cause any problems for Captain Rey. You should really be quite grateful anyone still bothers with you at your age."

R2 quipped a stinging insult about C3PO's own age, and eventually he waddled off in righteous indignation.

She decided it best not to intervene in the arguments of two droids who bickered like an old married couple.

Eventually she was ready to leave and wished all her friends goodbye and did her best to act like it would only be a short mission and that there really wouldn't be any danger.

Luke gave her a parting hug. "May the force be with you."

"And with you," she said as she turned and waved goodbye, hopefully not for the last time.

He had actually been avoiding her in her dreams for the past few nights, as he tried to sort out the turmoil in his own mind. If only for one moment, he thought he had actually known compassion from her, and it left a terrible ache in his heart. He tried to push it away, chiding himself that it would be weak to go to her again, until he was back in his right mind. He could not afford to be weak.

He still needed to capture her. The Supreme Leader would not tolerate another failure. To fail would not only be to lose his life, but hers as well. If she could not be brought to the darkside, he had no doubts that Snoke would kill her. He tried to tell himself that he didn't care. That it would serve her right for having denied her destiny by his side, but another part of him could not bear the thought of her suffering such a fate.

The thought of any of the other Knights of Ren cutting her down and stealing the light from her eyes filled him with boiling rage. He would let no one take her from him. Her destiny was with him.

He spent much of his time since the Battle of Jakku in deep meditation, desperately trying to reattune himself with the darkside, but he was struggling with his focus. It was becoming impossible for him to close his eyes and not see her face. Her blazing eyes as she had fought him. The power and strength of the force, radiating off her like a sun. And the way she had finally looked at him when she had spoken to him of the Grey path, like she truly wanted him to meet her halfway…if only in that moment. And he ached to go to her.

Come to me.

He heard her voice.

"Rey?" he asked.

Come to me.

Suddenly he was snatched into a vision. He could see her. She reached out her hand and beckoned to him. "Rey?" he called for her, but just as he reached for her she disappeared. Suddenly he was floating in space, looking down on a blue and green planet. He could see the constellations all around it. She was showing him a location.

Come to me.

She called again. This time behind him, and he turned to look for her. She appeared to him in an ethereal form, strong and beautiful. Her soft hair was down and it framed her face. Again she reached out for him. "Rey," he called again reaching for her. She was so close he could almost touch her. And then he felt her hand, warm and gentle in his own.

Meet me in the Grey.

And then the vision was gone. He was left alone in his room. He felt shaken, and in the palm of his hand he could still feel her warmth. She had come to him across the bond, and he would go to her.

A note from your humble author: Ugh I'm so disappointed. I wanted to make a longer chapter, but I caught my husband's flu and that sure took the wind out of my sails. :*( I'll have to practice a force choke on him for spreading his damn germs around.

The bad news is I'll post one more chapter on Friday and after that I'll be out of town visiting friends and family for the whole weekend and won't have any writing time, so the next update after that probably won't happen until Monday or Tuesday. I've actually been doing a chapter a day consistently since I started this story and I'm bummed to throw a wrench in the good creative streak I've had going. But don't worry it's only for a weekend and when I come back it'll be with a vengeance. Speaking of which, the good news. Next chapter these two are finally going to have some alone time. Before I disappear for the weekend I might leave you with some lemony goodness to hold you over until I get back

::wrings hands and grins evily:: mwahahahaha

P.S. Thanks to all my readers, favoriters, followers and reviewers. Please keep letting me know how you like the story so far because your support means the world to me!