Progress
Now that their relationship is revealed, Luke and Rey take their time getting to know each other.
When they finally felt the first overwhelming surge of emotion ebbing, Luke led his daughter to the warmest seat, nearest the hearth. It was a time for quietly drinking in each other's presence. They said little for a while, just sitting close and sipping their tea. Occasionally, one looked curiously into the face of the other to try to measure mood and stability. Although there was a world of unknowns between them, they were both beyond happy to share this space and these minutes, taking their time to explore and discover what it meant to be together again and what they might be to each other in the future.
They were uncertain of so much, but neither seemed in a hurry to go delving through their separate pasts. The joy they felt just then was too priceless to spoil with mundane or, worse, painful revelations. Luke's biggest worry was how Rey would react to learning of his failure to keep Ben from the Dark, and the resulting massacre of innocent people, including her mother and brother. He was in no rush to reveal this information to her. Unlike her, he'd had 15 years to come to terms with his loss and he had his memories to treasure. She would have none of this grace.
Courageous as ever, Rey initiated a conversation. "You weren't expecting me, were you?"
"No. I knew someone was coming, but I've become disillusioned. I've neglected the Force for some time. I should have known it was you," he admitted, "though you feel so different: so powerful, now."
"All this time, I waited for my family," she said, "but Maz was right. In the end, I had to leave Jakku to come and find you." She sipped her drink, wanting to ask why he had stayed here for so long and not come to get her, but he had such a look of remorse on his face. It wasn't the right time. They were too new to each other. His mind had drifted, so she tried again to draw him out. "You looked so sad, up there. What were you thinking?" She watched him frame his reply, wondering what he might look like when he smiled.
"I was thinking about you. And about Han. I felt his death." He replied, knowing he must be as honest as he could.
She reached for his hand and squeezed it in shared sympathy. He gave her a look of appreciation. "Were you close?" She asked.
"Very, even though we were so different."
A sudden realisation made Rey jump to her feet in horror, hand to her mouth. "Kylo is my cousin!" Luke watched in concern as she began to pace around the small room. "He – it was him! He killed his own father!" She whirled on Luke in distress. "How could he? What is it that the Dark Side does to you?"
Her words sank in heavily and his heart lurched at her news that Han had been killed by Ben. He took a minute to try to process this knowledge and shoulder the additional burden of guilt that it gave him. Then her last question registered and he saw her restless agitation and sensed her anger and fear. Luke realised how very little Rey knew about the Force and how much they would have to face, address and build together. There were massive issues from their past that would have to be dealt with sooner or later, so he gathered his courage to attempt the beginning of a catharsis. "Rachel… what do you remember from… when we lost touch?"
She stopped pacing and stood very still, thinking. She'd thought about this many times over the years, but there was a fog obscuring her memories. "Rain. Fire. Someone hurt my arm." She said with certainty.
"Who hurt you?" He asked.
"I don't know. Someone tall. I was angry."
Head on one side in entreaty, Luke patted the seat she had vacated and, responding to his simple, sweet gesture, she began to calm. She returned to sit beside him and listened as, in faltering words, he told her about that awful time when everything began to go wrong with his training of Ben – leaving out, for now, any mention of Sami or Owen. Her eyes were full of empathy as he told her honestly of his guilt concerning Ben's Dark leanings. "The Dark is in all of us," he explained. "A Jedi has to be mindful of negative feelings. For some people, it's hard to shut out negativity. Those of us born with the Force's gifts have to recognise and manage our Dark traits: contain them and reach for the Light. Ben couldn't; the pull of the Dark was too strong and I couldn't help him."
She'd been listening attentively and, after a moment's pause, found a small smile. "Are you teaching me?" She asked. His left hand reached up to scratch his beard thoughtfully.
"I never got chance when you were a child. You were too young. Now, you're the same age I was when I started training. Yoda thought I was too old."
"Am I too old?" She questioned.
Luke tentatively reached out to her with the Force, communicating his pride and confidence in her. In return, she opened up, clumsily, and he felt the full force of her joy, uncertainty, determination and awe of him. He was humbled by his daughter's fierce, bright spirit and suddenly wanted to somehow ease their reservations and show her his humanity. He did something he had almost forgotten how to do. He took a risk.
"Too old? You're a crone," he muttered, then attempted the best eye-twinkle he could remember how to do. "Not a hope." He shook his head slowly.
Rey opened her mouth in a split second reaction of shock and disappointment before noticing that his eyes held a glint. Humour? She'd experienced so little of it herself that she was unsure. Searching his face and realising that he was gently teasing, she smiled at him. Then he smiled back – an expression that flooded his face in light and love.
"We'll be ok, won't we?" She asked hopefully.
"Yes," he continued to smile, "I think we will."