Hello everyone! I just wanted to thank you for reading this story and thanks SaintsFan1 and major-fangirl-in-here17 for your reviews! Glad you enjoyed how the dream ties into the story. And to the guest who left the first review, I just saw that the review was cut off in the middle. Not sure how that happened. I'm sorry! But I am planning on making Ren more tough in this story. And just a fyi, there are things from The Force Awakens novelization and the new Star Wars Bloodline book that will be tied into this story. If you haven't read either of those books, events in here might not make a lot of sense. So go and read them! It is way worth it! But read this chapter first. :)

I do not own Star Wars

Chapter Four

"Ben!"

Rey shot up in the bed, hands searching for purchase, knuckles white as she grabbed onto soft pieces of clothing. Her breathing was erratic when she looked up to see Luke's concerned face, not even caring why he was there with her.

She frantically looked around the room, searching for...

"I was falling," Rey whispered, taking in big gulps of oxygen. "He tried to save me." Her voice was hoarse and scratchy, like she'd been screaming for hours on end. She looked to Luke desperately, grip becoming tighter. "How did he find me?" she nearly yelled the question at him. He held both sides of her arms, trying to ease her tense body and spinning mind.

"Rey." His voice was gentle, but his stare still held an intense worry that made Rey panic. "Rey, it was all just a dream. I need you to take deep breaths. You're on the Falcon. This is reality."

Rey concentrated on Luke's robes knotted in her fists, realizing just then how bad she was trembling. She closed her eyes and immediately saw his face. The way he stared at her.

It looked like as if he cared about me. She took a deep breath, brows furrowing. That can't be right.

"Aaaaaaaagh?" Rey opened her eyes, glancing to the opened entryway. Chewie was standing there, staring and shifting his gaze between her and Luke.

A bead of sweat slowly descended down her temple.

"I'm–" she coughed to clear the lump in her throat. "I'll be fine. No need to be worried, Chewie." The Wookie remained in the doorway, not seeming to believe Rey's poor attempt at lying.

Luke's head turned to acknowledge the Wookie. "Can you give Rey and I a moment?" Luke lowered his hands from Rey's arms and placed them on the edge of the bed. "Oh, and my sister might still be on the holoscreen. Can you tell her I'll comm her back as soon as I can?" Chewbacca nodded and turned to leave, the door closing in his wake.

Rey hugged her legs up against her chest, placing her chin atop her knees. Embarrassment started to blossom from deep within, crawling up to her face, making her flush a crimson red. The last time she'd experienced such a vivid, almost realistic dream was during an intense sand storm that left her stranded in her AT-AT for four enduring days. Her water supply had depleted, and her food had been close to being gone, but running out of the water affected her the most. She was only eleven years of age and learned a valuable lesson that day: to hoard all the necessities she could possibly get her hands on.

And there were no boundaries when it came to survival.

None.

Her eyes shifted to Luke's concerned face, making her come back to the present.

"Your shaking has subsided," he observed. "You don't have to be so tense. You should try to relax." Slowly, she placed her back against the metal wall and crossed her legs on the lumpy bed. Her hands rested on her thighs as she tried to piece together her thoughts.

"Why did you come in here?" she asked in a soft whisper.

"When I was talking to my sister, I felt the force emanating from the direction of your room. I could feel your immense fear and dread. It was almost suffocating, making it hard to breathe." Rey kept her eyes on Luke's demeanor as he went on. He wasn't trying to hide his anxiety. What does he know? "The feeling was so sudden, I thought you were in danger. So I ran here and saw your were asleep, but you were... it looked like you were having a nightmare. I tried waking you, but you wouldn't respond to my voice. I even shook you, but didn't get anywhere." His eyes studied her, waiting to see her reaction to his next statement. "Then you woke, startled, yelling out for my nephew."

Rey let out a long, rattled breath. She'd been hoping yelling out for Ben had been exclusive to just the dream, but Luke confirmed her suspicion that it wasn't.

"You were dreaming of him," Luke stated it as a fact rather than a question. Rey felt herself shudder, whether it was from the cold metal she was leaning against or from hearing Kylo Ren's birth name, she didn't know.

She didn't want to know.

"It wasn't a dream," she muttered. Luke grimaced. "I mean, the whole setting was a dream, but Kylo was real. He was really there." She knew saying it out loud sounded crazy, but Luke didn't look at her like she was losing her mind. He seemed to be analyzing.

"How do you know?"

"I just do," she snapped at him out of annoyance, but immediately regretted the outburst. Luke arched a brow as he patiently waited for her to expand further. Rey lifted a hand to her neck and gently massaged the tension away, relaxing her shoulders.

"Somehow, I could feel his presence and his emotions. I've had plenty of dreams before, but none of them had such a feel of realism." She brought her hand down to eye level and looked at the fingers of her right hand. She rubbed them against her thumb, thoughtfully. "I can still feel his skin on my fingertips." Luke glanced at her fingers, then back up to her face.

By the stagnant look in her eyes, her mind was somewhere else.

"May I see the dream?" he asked. Her eyes pinched at him apprehensively. "It won't be painful like it was for you before, and I'll stick to just seeing the dream," Luke promised. "It would help me to understand what you saw. But if you don't want to show me, you don't have to. You can always just describe the dream to me instead, if you're more comfortable with that option."

She thought about the two options, leaning more towards one.

"You can see it," she responded after a moment.

Luke raised his hands to either side of her head and gently pressed his fingers against her temples, closing his eyes to concentrate. Rey felt a pressure start to accumulate beneath her scalp, but it didn't hurt. It almost felt like a gentle massage, like the ones she would give herself when she would get dehydration headaches while scavenging for far too long.

After what seemed like a few minutes, Luke yanked his arms away and abruptly stood. He turned his back on Rey, his stare darting across the walls. Rey was shocked at his sudden reaction.

Oh no. It must be bad.

She waited for him to say something, not knowing what to do and too scared to hear what Luke thought of her encounter with Kylo.

When the suspense became too long to bear, Rey finally spoke. "Luke?"

He hesitated before pivoting back around, his face pale and grief stricken. Rey felt uneasy.

"I'm sorry. I just haven't seen my nephew for a very long time. It – it affected me more than I thought it would." He took a deep breath, composing himself. "I haven't seen him look so… caring since he was a young boy. He looked like the Ben I used to be so fond of, just more grown up." Luke actually let himself smile, probably thinking back to the times when Ben was a happy, carefree boy.

Rey wondered just how long ago that was.

She didn't know what to say to Luke; she was not used to comforting others. She settled on silence. Waiting. Luke came to sit back down on the edge of the bed, his hands clasped in his lap, gazing straight ahead at the door.

"The Ben in your shared dream seemed to care about you," he began to say slowly, choosing his words with careful consideration. "He seemed horrified at losing you when you fell off the cliff's edge." She didn't have to be a Jedi to know what emotion plagued the man before her: Confusion.

"Can you tell me about him?" Rey gently asked. "What Ben used to be like, before Kylo Ren?"

It struck Rey that asking such a question might come off as rude and insensitive. But before she could take it back, Luke began to speak, all the while his body remaining still.

"I didn't spend a lot of time with him when he was very young, but I would come visit on occasion. Or Leia would have him sit with her when we talked on the holoscreen." He chuckled to himself, glancing at Rey. "You might be surprised by this, but he was a lot like his father. Not in the sense of being fascinated with ships and flying, like Han was, but more of his personality." That indeed surprised her. She couldn't picture the man who hurled her into a tree acting like Han Solo.

She kept her opinions to herself as she placidly listened to Luke's words.

"Ben would love to tell me all about the 'adventures' him and his friends would go on... how they loved playing stormtroopers and rebels. He was also a very mischievous boy, always trying to pull pranks on anyone he could find. Nothing too serious, though," he assured her. "And he got really good at mastering the art of sarcasm." Luke's face lit up before he went on. "I remember when I came to visit for one of Han's life day parties – I was helping Leia and Ben with some last minute preparations when Han yelled from the bathroom. He ran out, his hair as green as Rodian scales."

"No," Rey gasped, actually becoming enthralled with the tale. "He must've been livid!" Rey found herself starting to laugh as she pictured a younger Han with green hair. She put a hand up to her mouth to try and compose herself.

"Oh, Han was furious." Luke gradually became more animated as he continued. "Turned out, his hair had been thinning for a few years and he'd been doing everything he could to slow it down. He was using this new cream that seemed promising at the time. You needed to leave it in your hair for about an hour and wrap it in this plastic cap to get maximum results. Well, Ben somehow got ahold of some green dye and put it into the bottle, thinking that Han would notice and just not use it." Luke smiled, shaking his head at the memory. "You should've seen Ben's reaction when Han walked into that living area. He was laughing so hard that tears were coming out of his eyes. Leia and I tried not to laugh right along with him, but we couldn't help it. Han was of course Han about it, shouting and yelling at Ben, but Leia got him to eventually calm down."

"Wait. Han went to the party with green hair?" Rey asked incredulously.

"Oh, no. Leia immediately called up her assistant to try and get Han's hair back to its natural shade. But the color turned his hair a dark brown, making it obvious he'd done something to it. What's ironic is all that hair dye made him lose a lot of his hair. He tried to get out of going to the party, but Leia basically dragged him to it. You could just tell how embarrassed he was. Everyone noticed that he looked borderline bald. It eventually started growing back, though."

"What happened to Ben?"

"They took away his privilege of the HoloNet, confiscated all his virtual games. The punishment only lasted a few days, and Ben seemed willing to pay for what he'd done. He was really understanding for being only nine." Luke looked at Rey's astonished face and they both started laughing. It felt good to let go of the current stress of her life and to just sit there, listening to an amusing story.

But soon, the laughter died down and the smiles faded from their lips, the atmosphere once again growing serious.

"That young boy no longer exists," Luke stated, eyes glossing over and filling with the regret. Rey felt pity for the old Jedi.

"You need to be careful, Rey," he warned. "Whatever is going on between you and Ben, it could very well ruin you. If this is some sort of connection between the two of you, he could try to use it to sway you to the dark side or use it to find you. He wants to be fully immersed in the darkness and will kill anything that stands in his way." They both thought about Han. "If he somehow cares for you, even if it's buried deep within, he'll want to rid himself of those feelings." Luke let the implication of his words float in the silence between them.

Rey's hands felt clammy, and she found it increasingly hard to swallow. Luke stared at her intensely, trying to convey the danger she was in.

"You mean... he'll try to kill me."

"Yes," he stated.

Her mind raced with the memories of fighting him on Starkiller. She could still feel the heat from both their sabers on her face, just as he asked to be her teacher. Through her continuing to fight him, she made it clear she would never be his apprentice.

If there was one thing Rey learned from living so long on Jakku, it was that she needed to adapt to situations quickly in order to survive. This might be the most dangerous situation she'd ever been in, but surviving this long without help had to count for something.

She straightened her posture and clenched her hands into fists. "Well, it wouldn't be the first time he's tried to kill me. Besides, when he comes at me again, I'll be ready. Right?" This was it. This was the moment Luke needed to make up his mind about training her. She wasn't going to let him leave without giving her an answer.

And Luke knew that.

Rey waited with baited breath, only letting it go when Luke finally nodded his head solemnly. "If you want to learn the ways of the Jedi, I'll teach you."

"The code–"

"No longer exists," he reassured her as he went to the door. "Get some rest. We'll start your training in the morning."

()()()()()

Kylo Ren panted heavily in his dueling chambers as he swung the lightsaber at the incoming holo-projections. One by one, he sliced them in two and blocked their artificially generated blaster bolts. He let his anger and aggression seep into every blow. Sweat dripped down his nose and chin, drenching his black, long sleeved dueling shirt and pants all the way through. He'd been at it for three hours now, but refused to acknowledge the exhaustion that dragged at his feet.

Being tired is for the weak.

He heard the door slide open and, without thinking, glanced at the stormtrooper standing in the entrance. Distracted, one of the holo-bolts slipped passed his notice, hitting its mark. Pain flared throughout his elbow, shooting up his arm and making it seize. He Force pushed the button on the silver plated wall, the projections flickering before disappearing.

"I'm not to be disturbed while dueling," he growled as he turned to face the idiotic trooper. The urge to snap his neck was overwhelming, but if he killed one more of Hux's subordinates, Hux would go tattle to the Supreme Leader about how 'unfair' Kylo was being. Even though he knew his master wouldn't punish him, he was not in the mood for another lecture on how he should work with Hux and view him as an equal.

It was nauseating just thinking of that sniveling worm being on even ground with him.

Maybe I should kill this trooper to get the Supreme Leader's attention. The last time Kylo had talked to Snoke was on Starkiller. He couldn't figure out what was currently going on that his master would ignore him. Kylo hated being ignored. Reminded him too much of the past, when he was a nobody with no power and no respect.

Instead of giving into the temptation of killing, he gave the stormtrooper a venomous glower and relished in the fear radiating into the room.

"General Hux demands your presence on the bridge, Lord Ren."

Demands? That red headed bastard.

"I'll be there when I can." The stormtrooper didn't move. "Is there something else?" The muscles in Kylo's neck tightened and the grip on his saber was so severe, he was surprised it didn't break under the pressure.

"The general wants you there as soon as possible." Kylo's hand extended, Force pushing the stormtrooper out of the room and against the hallway wall, the armor audibly cracking. The door closed after no longer sensing the trooper's presence. Kylo lowered his arm, trying to control his inner rage. He looked down at his grip on the saber hilt and managed to loosen it, noticing the crack on the left plasma vent that had been welded closed a few days ago. That scavenger scum had almost ruined it beyond repair.

He made his way to the refresher and went through the motions of washing the morning grime and sweat away. When he caught his reflection in the mirror, he stopped to examine the light pink scar running from above his right eyebrow, down his cheek, and all the way down to the top of his shoulder. He ran his fingers along the blemish, touching it lightly. Reverently.

The bacta tank had healed his wounds the best it could, but time had worked against him. He had received treatment too late to be fully healed.

He massaged his right shoulder, feeling a tinge of pain. The bone didn't heal right and he knew it would bother him for the rest of his life. The rest of the wounds, his upper right and left arm, along with his left thigh, would all bear scars from his duel on Starkiller base. Constant reminders of how the scavenger defeated him. Humiliated him.

And had robbed him of his focus. He'd had no desire to see her dead; he never landed a killing blow. He could have. But he didn't. What he'd seen in her was the potential for a true equal... a partner that matched him in the Force.

She denied him.

Just like everyone in his family had tossed him aside, she had looked upon him and had been disgusted – which was ironic since she collected and lived among trash for a living.

With the pad of his thumb he touched his hip, running it over the ridges and jagged edges, the shiny paleness of the scar standing out against his already white skin. He fought the nervous swirls that braided in his empty stomach, his ears ringing as he heard the distant roar of a Wookie, remembering. His hip still ached, like the ghostly echo of the metal quarrel that ripped through the skin not long ago. He knew the pain was not physical. If it had been, he would've known how to treat it.

The mending of mental scars always evaded him.

He couldn't undo the sensations and images that were embedded deeply within his conflicted mind. They followed him everywhere, taunting and sneering at him, having him hear Han Solo shout his birth name, followed by a familiar feral bellow. The dreams didn't help with his sanity, either. If anything, it was making him worse.

But he had to move on. Put it all behind him. Only then could he become stronger, reach his full potential of power.

The past held no quarter for him.

Kylo changed into his proper battle attire and helmet, thankful that the device covered his despondent face. It offered him comfort, making him feel strong and capable. He thought of how annoyed and impatient Hux would be by now, and a little smile played along his lips. He walked to the bridge with no sense of urgency.

Not one trooper outwardly paid him any heed as they passed him, but he could feel them cower under his officious authority. In a way, their fear was the ultimate show of respect.

The main door whistled open as he entered. He started to scan the room when he heard Hux call out to him from his left.

"Ah, Ren. You finally decided to bask us with your presence." Hux strode up to him, hands clasped behind his back. Kylo didn't move as he watched Hux's skinny frame attempt to look domineering. Pride was spilling off of him, which bothered Kylo. Hux was the one person he'd encountered that was not afraid of him.

One day he'll be put in his rightful place. Preferably in an unmarked grave.

"Supreme Leader Snoke wanted me to convey a message to you."

Supreme Leader is talking to Hux?!

Kylo was thankful that his mask hid his shock. "You are to hunt down the scavenger girl and kill her. On your own. No aid. Whatever you must do to complete this mission, do it. The Supreme Leader will not accept failure this time." Hux paused to look Kylo over. "If I were you, I would take this opportunity to get some much needed R&R for a bit. You seem to be rather sluggish since that little girl bested you." Hux put on a face of fake pity.

"As I recall, that 'little girl' helped blow up you precious weapon." The general's face turned red, his temples protruding as he clenched his teeth together. Ren turned and left the station before Hux could come up with some sort of petty response.

That cretin was already taking up too much of my time that he doesn't deserve.

Figuring out how to find the scavenger, on the other hand, was much more worthy of Kylo's thoughts.

On the way back to his living quarters, he couldn't help but feel uneasy that the Supreme Leader seemed to be ignoring him on purpose.

Is he really that disappointed in me? I did what he said, I killed Han Solo, he internally raged. He should be angrier with Hux after he lost the First Order's most powerful weapon. Hux is the one who should be left in the shadows, not me!

Kylo swore he'd get back into his master's good graces, prove to Snoke that he was a worthy apprentice. Because without Snoke, without the Dark side, what did he have?