Rey and Ben ran up the stairs, still holding hands.
The humidity made them sweat. Having their fingers intertwined felt reckless: that way the Force bridged their minds constantly, so that they were going through an adrenalinic rush of identical thoughts.
"We need to hypnotise the guards."
The guards knew Rey and when they first saw her run towards the jail they didn't stop her. Now that Ben was with her, something had to be done and it wasn't nice.
Rey just assumed Ben had already hypnotised the guards, before coming to the pond. Sensing her thoughts, he shamefully confirmed it. Of course no harm was done to them. No harm would be done to anyone, ever.
Ben didn't want Rey to feel like she had to betray people she knew, so he hypnotised them himself again. Rey sensed just how much it cost him.
It was just a moment. He distracted them as such and they ran towards the exit of the base. It wasn't near, but they both knew a shortcut.
As they saw the light of day again, they prayed that they didn't meet Rey's friends. Suddenly, she felt immensely disgusted with herself.
They stopped.
She looked at Ben, as she knew she didn't need to talk to communicate that: their Force bond was now so strong that even a hint or a twinge of uneasiness could be felt by the other. Rey's feeling was very powerful, and Ben winced, replying with his even more powerful regret.
Somehow, they knew they were going to leave anyway and that terrified them.
"I know the ship we need" she told him in her thought.
He immediately replied:
"We both know where we need to go."
But right there, outside, there were people waiting for them.
Their feverish distraction proved to be their doom.
There were more than a few combatants: there was an entire platoon. They all had their guns pointed to Ben. Poe and Finn were with them.
Rey and Ben looked at each other.
It was over.
"Let him go, Rey."
Poe's voice didn't quite reach her ears.
A different one was whispering things to her instead.
There was no Snoke to blame, though.
It belonged to no one but herself.
"It's like Finn said. They're powerless against you. They will let you go."
Rey recoiled at that.
Ben quickly glanced at her, trying to reassure her.
"Listen, Rey, I'm not stupid. I know damn well that if you intend to leave with him, you will. Maybe not now, but later. I'm just…"
Poe shook his head, staring at her.
"I'm bewildered by you. How can you look everyone in the eye and just…"
Rey stared back at him.
"Forget it. I don't even know anymore. I don't know!"
"So you're threatening me."
"You? No. Are you threatening us? Because that's what we don't get."
Finn seemed put off by that.
"She's not threatening us, Poe. I told you already."
"Which part of he doesn't deserve to die don't you get?"
"The part in which he doesn't deserve to die."
"We can't discuss this forever, Rey" Finn intervened "You're not going to change your mind on this. I don't understand why, but it doesn't matter."
He put himself between the platoon and them.
"Poe, just let them go."
The soldiers squirmed.
"... what?"
Poe was stunned.
Everyone exchanged glances and started to audibly protest.
"It's the only solution."
"Did you hypnotise him?" a soldier asked Rey.
"N-no, I didn't!"
Somehow, she stuttered.
She knew it wasn't true, but she couldn't bring herself to deny it to her. Ben had distracted the guards just moments before.
"Rey did not hypnotise me. I'm just saying, as an acting general, that this can't be solved any other way. You don't have to like it to believe me, but… I think, somehow, somewhat, I understand bits and pieces of the Force, and I think that the Force prevents them from separating."
"He has the Force?" someone screamed.
Poe seemed resigned to the fact he didn't get any of this.
"What do you know about the Force now?"
"I'm not crazy, Poe. I think… I think I can feel it. Since I held that lightsaber I… I started to notice some stuff. I'm able to notice this… aura around them simply because it's impossible not to. It's like a glaring truth in front of my eyes."
Rey and Ben looked at each other.
"Denying it would be like denying the existence of the Force itself. There is a pull of… something, all around them."
He didn't betray her.
She could trust him. She always could.
"Poe… I think I will go with them. Wherever they're going. If they feel what I'm feeling… I want to know about it."
Rey felt infinite things at once.
Most of all she felt relief, resolve, calmness and love.
She smiled.
"We will teach you all that we know."
Poe hesitated. Clearly there was something in what he said that he couldn't contest.
The others felt it too.
"I think everyone agrees on the fact that, if you do this, you won't be an acting general anymore."
"I accept it. It was overdue anyway."
Poe snorted and signed to the platoon to head back.
"What's this all about?" a group of soldiers protested.
"You just have to believe in it."
Finn's words seemed to stick with them.
"We will keep in contact, Finn."
"Of course. Every day."
Poe closed his eyes and hugged his friend. He patted his back and stroked his cheeks.
"Don't disappoint me."
"Never will."
They hugged again. This time, Poe kissed his forehead, tearing up.
"If it's true… that you know something about that… it couldn't be in better hands."
"I really want to see it all. Rey will finally show me what she sees. We will be together."
"Yes, we will."
Rey's struggle with her emotions didn't bother her anymore.
She knew she had both of them at her side now.
She was never going to be alone again.
—
After spending some more time discussing the last things with Poe, Finn was ready to go.
He looked eager and a bit dazed.
Rey and Ben's Force bond was slowly but surely strengthening as they went. They now knew he felt that and regarded it with dismay.
He still wouldn't talk to Ben, of course. His choice of trusting Rey didn't entail that.
"Where were you thinking of going?" he asked her.
"We were headed to the planet Luke used to hide in."
Ahch-To.
It'd been their first thought when they decided to flee. Rey didn't want to offer Finn further explanations as to why. He would have found out, in due time.
The embarrassment she felt in having him come with them didn't overshadow her joy in teaching him the ways of the Force. She was embarrassed nevertheless.
Ben was embarrassed too. Even if Rey's encouragement dampened the shame he felt regarding their past "work" relations, he'd sensed that Finn had previously been interested in her. He'd also sensed that those feelings still influenced his fondness of her, even though now he probably liked the pilot. With his newfound clarity of mind, he knew he could fully trust both of them: but it was embarrassing. Even more when he thought that, with him out of the picture, he would have been a better match for Rey.
Rey gave him a sideways glance.
"That's not true" she communicated to him through her mind.
"Sorry."
Feeling each other's thoughts all the time was becoming a bit much.
The fact that Finn sensed something was up didn't help.
"Perhaps if we get away from each other for a little while, this'll stop" Ben proposed "I'll leave you two alone as soon as we get on the ship."
Rey didn't want to use a ship the New Republic could need. She chose one of the most unassuming ones that had room for three people. It wasn't the same one they'd thought of initially, but they were fine with it.
Ben got on first.
Rey smiled to Finn: she wanted to do something.
She gave him the Skywalkers' lightsaber.
It was the only one they had. Ben didn't have any, of course.
A bit confused, he accepted it.
"You can keep it as long as we're on Ahch-To."
"You know I trust you, Rey. You don't need to-"
"I want to, Finn. Let me, alright?"
"... yeah, sure. Thank you."
Finally, it was time.
She could hug him again.
She was overjoyed. The terrifying feeling she had by the pond served a purpose. Soon, he would have no more questions.
-
Guys, I promise you, smut is coming. But. This development was necessary.
They couldn't be allowed to leave alone... could they?
What will Finn understand about and through the Force? Will he ever speak to Ben? Will he be... a problem?
Find out... soon.