Chapter 2
Kylo Ren stared at the space in his quarters where Rey had been. She was gone. He clenched the rag in his hand, wishing he knew how to master the connection between them so he could visit her at will.
Or stop her.
She had already hurt him when she rejected him following Snoke's death. Why should he make himself vulnerable to her again?
He looked at the stained cloth in his hand and sniffed it on an impulse to see if it smelled of her. It didn't, really, and he growled and threw it on impulse. It floated gently down and he realized how absurd he was being.
Then something else growled. Kylo looked down to see a tiny winged creature with giant eyes pick up the cloth in its mouth and toss it half an inch. It chirped at him proudly afterward, as if asking whether it did it right.
"Where did you come from?" Kylo asked a half second before he realized that he had Rey's handkerchief, which likely meant that the creature had come from her ship too. Unexpected, both the force transfer and that she had such a creature. A cherished pet, perhaps? Kylo raised an eyebrow at the creature. "I suppose I'll have to care for you until we meet Rey again. Do you have a name?"
The creature growled at the cloth and attacked it again.
"Growlie, then. At least until Rey corrects me. Come here. I'll have to bring you to the research station to figure out what you are and what to feed you."
Kylo tried picking Growlie up, but it fluttered away. He tried once more, failed, and resorted to using the force, thankful that no one was there to witness the moment. He found a box to put the creature in and nearly left his quarters when he recalled Rey's cloth still on the ground.
He picked the cloth up with the force and tucked it into a pocket. He would have to do something about her lack of a proper handkerchief as well, since he would be returning her pet anyway, and she had his handkerchief as well.
It was a small effort to spare her future grief. It didn't mean he was planning to continue their relationship. The memory came to mind of how perfectly her small form had folded into his own, and he knew he was fooling himself. He would never give up until she asked him to, and she hadn't yet.
He headed directly for the research station. A number of people stared at him longer than usual, but it was only to be expected. He was their new Supreme Leader. He reached the station and pulled Growlie out for them to see. "I need as much information on this creature as possible without harming it. Then I want the creature returned to me intact with appropriate food when you are done."
"Well, well, Supreme Leader. Adopt a new pet? What happened to your face!?"
Kylo froze. Didn't he have his mask on? Then he remembered Rey had taken it off. Kriff. He looked at Growlie in the hands of a capable researcher and came up with an idea. "Found this creature with the girl. I believe it's her pet, and… I believe I am allergic to it. Whatever these creatures are, they're clearly abominable."
"Allergies?" Hux seemed surprised.
Kylo Ren stared Hux down, and Hux backed off the topic.
"When did you collect this pet from the girl?" Hux asked, leaning across the desk to study it as the research technician inspected the creature. "I have to say that I'm impressed. You don't normally resort to such vile means, despite how effective they have been for myself and Snoke."
Kylo narrowed his eyes at Hux. "What do you mean?"
"You plan to threaten the pet to get information about the Resistance, correct?" Kylo Ren said nothing, and Hux frowned at him. "Well if not that, why are you keeping it alive?"
"That is not your concern, Hux. Remember your place," Ben said.
They glared at each other, but after a moment Hux sighed. "At least wash your face. You make my job more difficult the more unhinged you seem, so whatever these allergies are, get them under control or keep the mask on."
Ben glared a few seconds longer, then walked away. Hux was, unfortunately, quite correct. Thankfully, he had several back-up masks already made. He went straight to his rooms to take a shower. When he got out, his eyes were still bloodshot and swollen, and so he put a mask on with his usual clothes. People would wonder, but he did not owe them explanations.
Now for the matter of the handkerchief.
He went to the ship's tailor directly. The uniforms were ordered in bulk from factories, but they kept the tailor, an old man named Wendo, for repairs, alterations, and custom requests.
Wendo was snoozing at his desk when Kylo Ren entered the tailoring office. Kylo frowned. "Wake up." The modulator in the mask warped his soft voice into a monster's, and the man jumped awake with an ashen face.
"Supreme Leader!" Wendo gasped. "How may I be of service today?"
"I require a handkerchief."
Wendo's mouth opened and shut a few times, as if working out what to say. "A particular handkerchief, Supreme Leader?"
Kylo Ren nodded. "A white handkerchief. I need it to be monogrammed. Gold thread. The name is Rey, spelled R, E, Y."
Wendo nodded. "A gift, then. Does this Rey have a last name to be included as well?"
Kylo started to shake his head, then held up a finger. "Actually, I do have a name in mind."
Kylo told Wendo, who gave a sharp glance at the Supreme Leader before nodding and writing down the order in full. "It will be done, Supreme Leader."
"Excellent. Have it delivered to my rooms. You will complete this order immediately and speak of it to no one. Once completed, you will forget it was done." Kylo added a force suggestion to his words. He did not need rumors spreading about.
"I will complete this order immediately and speak of it to no one, then forget about the order," Wendo echoed back to him.
Kylo Ren checked the written order for correctness and left the tailor to his work, smirking.
Rey Solo.
He almost chuckled for the dumbfounded reaction he imagined she would have. He would, of course, claim it was to honor her attachment to his father, but he knew she was perceptive and would wonder. His father's name was also the name she used for him, and he was making a promise.
Sooner or later, she would become his.
Yay, another chapter! Hope you enjoy it. Please review if you like it.
Also, I'm writing and editing this on my cell phone, which tends to have auto-correct from hell. I've read through it a couple times, but I may have still missed something. Please speak up if I have any errors, etc.
