Author's Note: Here's a really long chapter for you guys because I'm off today and my mind is freaking blown that we are 22 reviews away from 400 and I'm flipping out. This story was never meant to be anything extraordinary. It was just something I started out of boredom and you guys shaped this story to make it what it is. So thank you. I know I say thank you a lot in these notes, but I'm serious. This story is only great because I have the best readers who love, support, review, follow, favorite; whatever it is! You guys are the best. Seriously.

This chapter has the confrontation between the Wookie and the Commander. Also...

I think I should just say trigger warning just to be safe. There are a lot of trigger words in this chapter. The title isn't too spoilery for what I mean, I guess. But, if you're not cool with certain words that kind-of describe being violated in some sense. I apologize, skip that part, it's in italics and towards the beginning so you can skip it.

Anyway, let me know what you think. Love it or hate it. I'm going to go clean my apartment now... or at least pretend to and write more chapters.

Kylo Ren's side was feeling much better that morning, which he was very happy about considering Ash was practically on top of him as she slept. The stupid Porg was also sleeping on him again, this was not going to be an everyday occurrence. Of that, he was determined. The red haired girl, fine, but the Porg had to go.

Ash grumbled as she woke up, wishing she could sleep a little longer but having been woken up by her own internal alarm clock, oh and the fact that he was up. She could feel his annoyance with the Porg. "Now I know why you're always so angry with me when I panic in the mornings."

He chuckled. "Annoying, right?"

Ash lifted her head to look at him, her hair a mess from sleep. "Quite." She realized she had been lying on his bad side. "Am I hurting you?"

"You're fine." He said dismissively as a knock came on their door.

"Please don't be naked." They heard from outside their hut as the door opened. Rey walked in, followed by the overly protective Chewbacca. "Well-" She noted. "Could be worse."

Kylo Ren glared as Ash sat up, taking the warmth with her now that she was no longer lying on him. "What's going on?"

"Master Skywalker wants to speak with us about the prophecy and the stones." Rey informed them. "He says he might be able to point us in the right direction."

"Really?" Ash asked excitedly, things were starting to look up for the trio. She looked back at the very unimpressed Kylo Ren, noticing he didn't care before she returned her attention to Rey. "When do we start?"

"The sooner the better." Kylo mumbled as he sat up now, the Porg squawking and hopping off the bed. He didn't want to spend any more time on this island than he had to. Especially if he had to be around Luke, Chewie and the scavenger.

"We'll wait for you outside, we can walk up to the temple together." Rey offered; she was at least trying to be diplomatic in the situation.

Ash smiled as Rey and Chewie left the hut; she got off the bed to get ready for the day. Kylo Ren was less enthusiastic about the whole thing as he followed in getting off the bed. The Porg was hopping around on the floor still. He was so very tempted to punt it, but didn't thanks to the red haired girl who would be more than pissed at him if he did. "I wonder what made Luke change his mind." Ash asked.

"Guilt over being a failed Master." Ash narrowed her eyes at the man as he dressed.

She reminded him dutifully. "You promised you'd behave."

"No, I promised to work with the scavenger. I never agreed to working with or being nice to Luke." He grinned wickedly as Ash rolled her eyes. Kylo Ren wrapped his arm around her back, pulling her to his chest. He had a way of making her just a little less angry with him; rendering her will practically useless when he kissed her. The way they both seemed to melt into one another; mold and mesh to become one within all of this chaos. At least, if everything went to hell, they still had each other… right?

The group began to climb up the mountain and towards the temple that Rey had mentioned. Chewie still clutched his bowcaster blaster tightly, ready to shoot Kylo Ren at a moment's notice. "Does the walking carpet really need to come with us?"

Rey frowned as Chewie roared. "We don't trust you."

"Clearly." Ren mumbled as they continued to hike.

"You haven't made it easy." Rey retorted.

Ash could sense the tension between the two other Force Users, a fight was beginning to brew, and quickly she tried to squash it. "So, this island isn't really that big."

Kylo smirked. "Perhaps you're simply not a trusting person."

Rey glared. "Or maybe it's because you're a monster."

"Are there other islands on this planet?" Ash tried again to distract the conversation.

"Still playing the 'monster' card." Kylo simpered. "I would have hoped you'd come up with something better by now."

"... or other animals?" Ash was losing this battle, she could feel it.

Rey stopped walking now as she sharply turned to face Kylo Ren. "You are single handedly the worst human in the existence of this entire-"

They got in each other's faces then, standing close enough that if one decided to unleash their saber, the other would have a wonderful hole in their body. Rey continued to scream at Kylo Ren as he simply continued to egg her on. Ash rolled her eyes, looking to the Wookie that shrugged in reply.

In her aggravation, Ash took a deep breath as she threw her arms forward, not really knowing what could happen when she did. The arguing Force Users were knocked over, landing on the ground with a thud before quickly sitting up to process what had happened. The two looked at each other before looking at the angry red haired girl and Wookie. "Can you two please knock it off? We have a galaxy to save and we can't do it if you're both going to rip each other's faces off." She noticed they were both staring at her still. "What?" She asked in exasperation.

"You're um-" Rey started, pointing to her nose.

Kylo rolled his eyes at her hesitation. "Your nose is bleeding."

Ash's hand immediately found her face, wiping the suddenly liquid that pooled under her nose. Yep, she was definitely experiencing a nose bleed. "Fantastic." She glared at the two Force Users on the ground. "Just great! I exerted too much energy and now my nose is bleeding. You guys gave me a nosebleed. Thanks for that." She was holding the bridge of her nose now as she stomped up the mountain, mumbling to herself as she did. Chewbacca roared, shaking his head at the two Force Users and followed after Ash.

Rey, immediately felt awful, it showed on her face. While Kylo Ren felt pretty bad about it as well, it wasn't as obvious externally. Before Rey could say anything, Kylo Ren was already on his feet and offering his hand to help her. "I promised her I'd work with you." He said flatly as Rey reluctantly took his hand and stood up with his help. "That doesn't mean I have to like you; in fact, I hate you." The brutal honesty coming in to play. "But we have a job to do, and part of my job is also keeping her happy. So, let's just suck it up and do what we have to do."

Rey was still glaring at him. "I really, really hate you."

Kylo Ren grinned brightly. "Good. Glad we agree." He said, gesturing to the mountain. "Shall we?" The two silently continued their way up; the overall guilt in what happened to Ash mixing with their hatred for one another was quite the confusing wall of negativity that neither Ash nor Luke were prepared to deal with.

Luke stared at Ash incredulously as she stomped into the cavern at the top of the mountain, holding her nose with dried blood still caked just under it. "What happened?" He asked, fearing the worst. Rey and Ben weren't dead, at least he knew that much.

Ash groaned. "They were fighting and probably going to kill each other; I did the only thing I could to separate them and I Force pushed them apart." Her words slowly processed in Luke's mind before he laughed, Ash groaned once more as she walked over to the center of the room where an emblem sat. The circular emblem was something unfamiliar to her. "I tried to help them, okay? It didn't work." She plopped down next to the raised emblem on the ground, looking at it a little more now. The symbol looks like half a circle with a long piece in the middle, pointing to what looked like a star at the end. The symbol on one side was white and black on the other. In the middle was another star, a grey star. "The balance?" She asked absentmindedly as she wiped as much of the dry blood off her face as possible.

Luke's lips quirked upward as he sat down next to her, the two staring at the symbol. "While Grey isn't always an existing factor, it's an important one. It holds them together, binds the Dark and Light to create the balance of it all. Everything creates and destroys; chaos and peace, life and death, it is always held together by balance."

"What happens if balance doesn't happen?"

"Then it all falls apart." He explained. "Balance is always there, you need to find how that resonates within you."

Chewbacca walked into the cave, followed by two silent Force Users. To Ash's relief, no limbs were missing on either of them. "Oh good, they made it." Ash commented dryly as she looked back to the symbol on the floor.

"Ash, I'm sorry." Rey began, taking the lead in apologizing. Something Kylo Ren really needed work on. "We both are." She side-eyed Ren, who said nothing. "We need to work together, there's so much at stake and we can't spend our time arguing. We need to find the stones."

Ash smiled then, looking at the other Force Users. "Well, stop standing around and let's figure out what we need to do. Master Luke?"

Luke stood up. "The stones have been scattered across the galaxy; previous owners traveled with them, their final resting place is where we'll find them."

"They've been used before?" Rey asked.

"As I keep saying, balance must always exist. That means in order for there to be Light, there must be Dark; always. Sometimes, one gets a little too powerful and needs to be put back in its place." Luke explained. "The archives on Naboo should have some old texts that could prove useful. The capital, Theed; I'd start there."

Kylo Ren folded his arms over his chest. "Even if we find the stones, you said we can't use them until we're worthy."

"Each stone has a different property, the Eye of the Sun; forged in darkness; it holds true power and strength. The Heart of the Universe; the Light. Created to guide those throughout the dark, a piece of hope and truth." He looked to Ash then. "And then the Heart of the Guardian; the Grey. The stone that protects and brings balance." He explained. "The stones reflects the one who would wield it. If you cannot be the power and strength, the hope and truth, or even the protector… you cannot wield the stone."

"How do we become worthy?" Ash asked.

"You must find that answer within yourself." Luke informed her. "This is something that cannot be simply taught, it's something you were created with, something the Force instilled within you."

Rey, Ash and Kylo Ren exchanged glances, a similar expression hidden on their faces as they realized this wasn't going to be easy in any sense. They all shared in their uncertainty. If they were going to pull this off, they needed to start moving. Time was running out.

The Raddus had emerged from hyperspace, followed by the remaining X-wings, Bombers and a few other transport units that managed to escape the attack. The Resistance, while fewer in numbers after the attack on D'Qar, were still in high spirits. At least, high enough spirits to keep them moving forward.

Poe Dameron wasted no time in docking his X-wing onto the Raddus and walked with a fierce determination towards the bridge. While exciting to see other forces in the galaxy coming to their aid, there was still a dangerous question to be asked. Who were the Ascension and what was their play?

Sure, they helped the Resistance escape and promptly disappeared to some other part of the galaxy, but where did they come from? This was the first time anyone had heard of them, in direct mention or even in passing. The Resistance was now up in arms over who this new group claimed to be.

"General Organa." Poe began as he marched into the bridge, followed by the rolling BB unit. The General was standing around the main hub, her expression saying as though she had expected the intrusion from her Commander. "General Organa, we need to talk about what happened outside D'Qar."

"Commander Dameron, your concerns are also my concerns." She said, nodding back to the holo-screen before them. "We are trying to reach out to the Ascension, while also trying to track them. We need to know who they are and if they truly want to help out our cause." Poe wanted to protest, but he also didn't really know what he was protesting. Personally, he wanted to go after them himself, but Leia had a point. They didn't know anything, which was more than frustrating. "Have you heard from Ashlyn?"

Poe's face said it all; no, he hadn't heard from Ash. She had disappeared and her location was still unknown. She hadn't checked in. She was a ghost as far as everyone was concerned. And they were definitely concerned. Her speedy exit raised some flags among other Resistance members, particularly in her panic. It also didn't help that not much after her swift exit the First Order was on their doorstep. Did Ash know? If she did, why didn't she say anything? Poe couldn't believe that; he wouldn't believe that. Ash wouldn't do that to them. "I'm going to try reaching out again. If she heads back to D'Qar she could be in trouble. Same with Rey, they both need to know what's happened. I'll contact both of them."

Leia nodded. "And we will continue to try and reach the Ascension."

The droid beeped frantically next to him, Poe's face contorted to a more confused expression as he looked down at BB-8. "What? Finn's walking around naked and wet?" Then it clicked. "Finn's awake?" Poe looked to Leia, who was just a little more relieved at the good news.

That's what they needed; good news. While a small blip of good news, it was something. Contacting the girls would have to wait as Poe Dameron raced around the Raddus, trying to find the naked and wet ex-Storm Trooper.

Rey and Ash sat on one of the many grassy fields of Ahch-To, near the cliffside that had one of the best views of the vast ocean surrounding the island. A view Ash could never forget even if she tried.

They needed to figure out how to harness the power within the stones. Luke had stated that they weren't ready to wield the power of them just yet. So… how did they get ready? While Kylo Ren had disappeared in an attempt to, in his own words, 'actually do something rather than meditate on things no one understood'. The girls tried their luck on meditation. If anything, it would at least rebalance their focus. They didn't see a losing side to any of it. Their concentration, however, was a little shaky as the sound of Porgs were a constant reminder in the background. "I take it back." Ash groaned. "I hate Porgs now."

Rey laughed. "I told you they're vermin."

"Yeah, but don't tell Kylo I said that, he's never going to let me live that one down."

"You don't have to worry about that. I'd rather not talk to him if I don't have to." Rey's tone was light, but she was also very serious.

"He's not as awful as everyone thinks." Ash tried to explain. "Sure, he hasn't really done much to say otherwise, but… he's-"

"He's a different person when you're involved. I get that, you two… for whatever reason I'll never try to understand, have something." Rey finished her thought. "But that doesn't change the fact that he's dangerous and unpredictable."

Ash nodded. "I know, but I trust him."

"And I trust you to do the right thing." Rey's tone was slightly reluctant as she smiled, trying to be as supportive as she could, even if what she was being supportive about wasn't exactly a good idea. "Let's try to focus again." Rey offered, attempting to turn the conversation off the man in black.

Ash smiled, closing her eyes once more as she tried to find her center in the Force. The girls were trying to maybe channel their purpose, or at least get a better sense of it. What did they have to lose in trying?

At first, Ash could only sense the island and the Force that lied within it. The balance of life, death; peace and chaos. Then, there was darkness. A sudden and chilling darkness that was pulling at her. Pain; she could feel pain. There was pain, but it wasn't hers. It was Rey's. She could feel Rey suddenly writhing in discomfort; unable to shake it as it came down swiftly on the girl next to her.

Ash kept trying to pull herself back; she felt nauseous as she tried to rip herself out of it. However, she was suddenly in an unfamiliar room. A black throne sitting at the center with the creature sitting upon it; Snoke.

"The Grey." His voice in a low growl. "I know what it is you are after, what you are planning to do. It won't work. You and your friends will die. You know this; I can feel you know this." Ash's jaw clenched; she couldn't move. "Show me everything."

He began pulling everything from her as Rey began to scream next to her. He was torturing her, she could feel it. Her body began to jerk forward, no matter how hard she tried to pull herself back, she kept moving closer and closer to the deformed creature in front of her. The man who was ripping into her thoughts; defiling her mind, her safety gone. There was nothing left of her as he greedily grabbed whatever he could from her memories.

Her body struggled; begging to get away. She needed to run and find a way back to the island.

"An island." He hissed; seeing the image of the green island surrounded by water. "Show me." His voice filled with pure malice as he tried to get that from her. Hearing her thoughts about the island, his fingers clawing at her brain as they tried to pry any knowledge about the island from her.

"NO!" She fought, her jaw clenching tightly as Rey's screams stopped in the distance.

'ASH' Echoed in her entire being as her body was now mere inches from Snoke. 'ASH!' It called again. Snoke lunged forward, reaching out for her, missing here by milliseconds as she was forcefully pulled back.

She snapped back; she was lying against his broad chest, her eyes looked around frantically trying to place where she was. She was safe; she was on Ahch-To, and she was in Kylo Ren's arms. "What the hell just happened?" His tone harsh, but a harshness that didn't say he was angry with her. Not exactly. "You almost walked off the cliff!"

Ash sat up fully, the blood rushing to her head and making her dizzy for a moment as she looked at just how close she had gotten to the cliff. Her breathing staggered as she looked back to see Luke, crouched down by Rey. She was just as shaken; tears streaming down her cheeks as she tried to explain what had happened to her.

"Ash-" That voice again, it was his. She knew without a doubt he was the one that had called to her in whatever state she was in. She looked back at him; the worry was spelled out on his face as she lunged forward, her arms wrapping tightly around his neck. It didn't take him long to wrap his arms around her, holding her just as tight. "You're okay." He whispered. "You're both okay."

"It was Snoke." Ash managed to say, her voice cracking. "He got into our heads; he wanted to know where we were."

Kylo pulled back, looking into her scared eyes. "Did you tell him?" She didn't answer at first. "Ash-" He snapped. "Did you tell him?"

Regaining some composure, she shook her head. "No." She stammered. "I don't think so. Just the island; that's all he saw. He didn't see exactly where we were."

Kylo Ren nodded, pulling her close to his chest again and holding her. He had been with Ash for a while now; he had felt her suffer through the death of Sid, through their short-lived break up. Nothing compared to what he felt then. While Ash wouldn't admit it, he felt the fear than ran through her. Fear for the safety of Rey, fear of giving away anything valuable to Snoke, and fear of losing everything. Losing him. He never wanted to feel that again, it resonated within him. What made it worse was seeing her walk towards the cliff side without so much as a struggle.

Kylo Ren always strived to be level headed and yet in that moment, he lost it. He simply lost any and all composure as he sprinted down the hill, his heart thudding in his chest. What if he had been too late? What if he and Luke did not feel such a drastic shift? The sudden realization that he could very well lose Ash forever by the end of this washed over him like a tidal wave.

However, Kylo Ren also started to realize something. Snoke was becoming desperate and in that desperation he tried to attack the girls only to come up empty handed. Time was running short for both sides, but now Kylo Ren had the upper hand in knowing that Snoke was beginning to fear the potential of the trio.

Ash sat on the bed as her legs dangled off the side, her body hunched over as far it could naturally go. Her fiery red locks falling in front of her face as she closed her eyes. She felt violated from the earlier incident. She felt completely and utterly out of control. They weren't expecting an attack like that, hell, they weren't expecting any sort of attack at all. Unlike Kylo Ren, they had a more care-free mindset, which only made Rey and Ash easy targets.

That wasn't all; Ash felt helpless. If they weren't able to fight off Snoke then, how could they fight him off later. Maybe there was some weight to his words; maybe they were destined to fail?

The panic set in as Ash began to feel sick; her midsection cramping as the need to expel whatever was in her stomach becoming overwhelming. She dry-heaved for a moment, a cold sweat pooling on her forehead as she tried to regain some semblance of her composure. It didn't work, and soon Ash was on her feet, racing towards a nearby (and probably sacred) pot in the hut as she emptied the contents of her stomach. The caretakers were going to hate her even more when they found this mess.

"Shit-" His voice was soft; gentle even, as Ash felt his concern engulf the room. Kylo Ren walked over to her, his hand on her back as she gagged a few more times; nothing coming up with it.

"I'm fine." She managed to say, hot tears in her eyes from throwing up in the first place. Tears of embarrassment; pain.

He saw right through her. "No, you're not."

She frowned, which unfortunately only allowed the tears in her eyes to fall as she stood up straight, wiping at her mouth. "Okay, I'm not. You're right. I'm not okay." The frustration in her voice coming forward as she walked away from him and back over to the bed. "I feel violated." She admitted, the panic only getting worse. "I feel like we're going to lose this; lose everything."

"Ash-" He tried.

"No." She snapped; losing all control of her shaken sanity then. "Don't stand there and lie to me about how everything is going to be okay."

His body tensed. "It's not going to be okay. It never was going to be okay." Kylo Ren let it out. "Do you want to run now? We can go right now, get in the silencer and go somewhere far away and never look back." Now he was being cruel. He had to be. "Start the family the Force showed us, play ignorance to everything else. That's what you wanted, right? To stay out of it; to be grey." Her throat tightened as she tried to swallow. "Just say the word and we'll go."

That's right, the child. The child she wanted to fight for, the life she desperately wanted. A life she was so harshly reminded of by Kylo Ren. What if her vision was just that? Them on the run forever, feigning ignorance to it all? Or maybe, it was the aftermath of succeeding, of winning this battle?

He thought he had gone too far when she didn't respond; he had been too cruel while Ash was at her most vulnerable. But, no. Ashlyn Novafall was stronger than that. At least, she'd fake it until she couldn't. For them, she knew she had to. Right now, she couldn't. "I'm scared. I know what we have to do… and I'm terrified that we won't be able to do it." Exhaling sharply, Kylo Ren walked over to her, wrapping his arms around her and holding her close. He really wasn't very good at comforting people, which was something he'd have to get better at. "And I know we have to try. We can't just get up and run; even if we wanted to. We are part of something so much bigger than we could have ever imagined. We could save the galaxy from all of this bad stuff..." She was crying now, her head against his chest as they stood there. "But that doesn't mean I can't be afraid."

"I would be concerned if you weren't scared." He tried to joke; his sarcasm falling flat as he tried to comfort her. "I'm going to do everything in my power to keep you safe." It was a promise; a promise that should have scared her then, but didn't. She didn't know better.

"When this is over, I don't want to hear any more talk on politics, Supreme Beings or even the Force." She was only half-joking as she wiped her eyes. Stars, she hated crying and yet she found herself doing it more and more lately. Everything was on edge. "I just want to be Ashlyn Novafall again, and I want to be with you, whatever that means."

He snorted. "You will never be 'just Ashlyn Novafall', you will always be something more. Whatever happens for us, it'll be for the best." Ren tried his best to assure her of that. "But, I agree that maybe a vacation of sorts is in order." He made a face then. "Stars, I'm sounding like Hux."

Ash unwillingly laughed, pulling back from Kylo Ren as she looked up at him, her smile fading as she realized he had lost his smile all-together. "What happened to them?"

His lips formed a thin line. "I'm not sure. They helped me escape the Finalizer when everything went down." Kylo Ren didn't have friends, but if he did, it would be Hux and Phasma. They were the closest thing he had to companionship. Now, their fates were up in the air.

Ash quickly wrapped her arms around his waist again, hugging him tightly. She was definitely better at comforting people than he was. That was blatantly obvious. "I'm sorry." She mumbled. "Everything is so stressful and I'm sorry." She inhaled deeply, letting go of him again as she wiped any remaining remnants of tears from her eyes. "My moment of vulnerability is over." She said, forcing a smile. Ash had to be strong, she knew she did. She wasn't doing it for herself, but for him too. She was the shield that protected her loved ones, she knew that and it became abundantly clear then. "We're going to do this; for Hux, for Phasma… for Rey, for Luke; for the Resistance, for you-" His hands cupped her cheeks; his lips crashing to hers. She welcomed him; hungrily, greedily, in every sense.

They both needed the comfort from one another; their uncertainties lingering in the air, but neither one wanted to voice them any further. They needed to be strong for each other because in the end, being together and the promise of tomorrow was really all they had.

'He stared at him with the eyes of a child looking at his father for the first time in a long time. A scared, little boy that had to do something he could never dream of. But, here they were. "I have to fulfill my destiny… I need to be completely within the darkness otherwise I can't. I'm being torn apart and I need clarity."

As any father would be, he looked concerned; fearful for the state of his son. While he was never the perfect father, he still was a good father and at the end of the day, he would do anything he could for his son. "Then come home, we can help you."

He shook his head. "No, it's not that simple. I need to rid myself of the Light. I need to, for her, for all of this. Don't you understand? I need to do this to end all the suffering."

"How do you rid yourself from the light?"

"I need to destroy something that pulls me to it." They both understood then that only one of them would be leaving the bridge. "Will you help me?"

Han, feeling the weight of life and death weighing down on him, it was different than any other scenario he had ever been in. Hell, he was in so many of those situations before. This one was far different; his son needed him. "Yes, of course."

He held the lightsaber in his hands, looking at it before back at Han. His father smiled slightly, a quick nod that only Kylo Ren could see, a nod that said it was going to be okay. And as the lightsaber went off, piercing through his chest, he knew he was doing it for his son.'

Kylo Ren woke with a start, the night still calm around the hut as his eyes focused to the darkness as best they could. Ash was curled up into his side, their naked bodies keeping warm from the contact considering their very thin sheet wasn't really doing the trick. He was restless, his mind lost in thought, but he'd keep it internal as much as possible. The girl next to him needed rest, especially after the day she had. They released their frustrations, their uncertainties and fears for most of the night. A much needed night spent in each other's arms as the rest of the world disappeared for a while.

But now he was overcome with those thoughts of uncertainty. Slowly, Ren crept out of the bed, careful to not wake the sleeping red haired girl as he did. He dressed quickly, and made his way out of the hut. The rest of the island was fast asleep, no Porgs squawking in the distance; no caretakers grunting and groaning at him for simply existing. Nothing.

With reluctance, and a need for answers, Kylo Ren snuck out of the village and towards where the ships were docked. Once he made it there, he stood unmoving as he stared at the ugly piece of junk for what felt like an eternity.

The Wookie bellowed as he came closer, of course he followed him. He didn't trust him. Kylo Ren rolled his eyes. "Relax, I'm not stealing this piece of junk. It's useless to me." His expression softening again as he stared at it. The ramp came down without much celebration as Kylo Ren walked forward and up the ramp, followed by the walking carpet.

It looked exactly how he remembered it; a total piece of crap. But it was his father's piece of crap. A ship he always felt that Han Solo had loved more than him. He was away enough to warrant those feelings. Yet, there was still a fondness in his eyes as he began walking through the ship. He remembered being a young boy, running up and down the halls of the Millennium Falcon, being chased by his father or Chewbacca. The adventures they went on, so few, but they meant something then. Even when they ended in his father be scolded by his mother upon their return.

He walked to the cockpit, staring at the seat; his seat, before sitting down in it. Chewie stood in the doorway of the cockpit, staring at Ren intently before growling. "Yeah, I know. You don't need to keep reminding me. I am perfectly capable of self-loathing over killing him." Chewie's groan was a mix of reluctance and anger then. "I didn't hate him. Sure, there were times I wish the great Han Solo would stop being himself and be a family man. For her sake; for mine." He exhaled sharply. "He could never be anything but himself. You knew that, you were with him on every trip, every adventure. While we were left home, waiting." Chewie roared, as Kylo Ren scoffed. "He had a really shitty way of showing he loved us."

Chewie bellowed once more, causing Kylo Ren to frown as he stared out the cockpit windshield and to the night sky. The moon illuminating the entire island just enough to see the bare minimum. Not that there really was much to look at in the first place.

The Wookie wanted to know why he had come here; Kylo Ren didn't really have an answer, except for one. "There's a child-" Chewbacca roared in shock and anger. "Relax, she's not pregnant right now. I didn't carelessly knock her up." He rolled his eyes at the tone Chewbacca had taken; scolding him as though he were a teenager again. "Anyway, we've both seen it; a son. We have a son sometime in the future. I guess that's the reason I came on the ship. The idea of being a father when mine wasn't exactly father-of-the-year." Chewie snorted in reply. "Loving someone doesn't make up for not being around." Chewie's next roar only made Kylo Ren grow snarkier. "Hey, maybe I'll get what's coming to me and my son can kill me too."

Chewbacca did not like that and showed it as he stomped forward, roaring with distaste. Kylo Ren stiffened, standing up from his seat and challenged the well over seven-foot Wookie. "He was my father! You were just as at fault, if not more so for taking him away on these stupid adventures. You could have made him stay home; be with his family!" It became clear then who Kylo Ren really resented. Sure, he loved Chewbacca, he always had, whether he wanted to admit it or not. Chewbacca loved him back all the same. However, he blamed the Wookie for his disappearing father, even though the blame wasn't his to have. He knew that too, some part of him knew that. "He wouldn't have listened to you anyway." Ren said in defeat, plopping back down in the chair. "If he didn't go on adventures with you, he would have found someone else."

Chewbacca joined him now in sitting in the co-pilot seat. The two staring out at the moonlit sea in front of them. Silence overtaking them as old wounds slowly healed. There was a conflict within the Wookie; he wanted so much to hate the man next to him. What he had become, what he chose to be. Yet, there was something he couldn't let go of. That monster in the seat next to him; that was still Ben Solo. The only living piece of his late best friend. The child he had sworn to help protect, help raise… Ben Solo was still in there somewhere. He had to be. And while he hated everything Kylo Ren chose to be, he still made that promise to Han Solo, and a Wookie never breaks their promise.

The Wookie howled then, looking at Kylo Ren knowingly; a hint of a playful smirk on his lips. Kylo Ren smirked as well, rolling his eyes. "Yeah, imagine me, a father someday." The Wookie groaned again. "I doubt Ash will let you take him to climb trees on Kashyyyk, she's more like my mother than I care to admit. Very strong headed." Chewie snorted. "Well, it was your fault my arm broke." The Wookie roared unhappily as he argued back, Kylo Ren actually chuckling at the uproar. "It's been well over twenty years and that's still a sore subject."

Chewie glared before looking back out at the ocean. His expression softening as he roared one last time. Kylo Ren's smirk fading instantly at his comment. "That's the second time someone has told me I have too much of my father in me." The first had been Snoke. Their conversation ended there as the two continued to silently stare out the cockpit windshield. Neither one moving as the air cleared as much as it could between the two. A hostile relationship, built from the murder of a friend; a father. It was a lot on both of them, but a bridge could always be rebuilt.

Ash woke in the middle of the night to an empty bed. She didn't want to be alone, she couldn't be alone. She was scared, although she would never admit to it. She removed herself from the bed and dressed. Maybe he was only outside the hut? She knew the answer to that, she couldn't feel him close by.

Ash walked outside, bathing in the moonlight as she stared at the quiet village, noticing the light in Rey's hut was on. Biting her lip, she walked over to the hut and knocked on the door before entering.

Rey was sitting up in bed, her legs to her chest as she looked at Ash. "Can't sleep either?" She asked knowingly.

Ash stood perfectly still. "I'm afraid to. I'm afraid to be alone, I'm afraid of what's going to happen..."

Rey understood; they both knew what the other was feeling. Their minds had been violated by one of the purest evils in the galaxy. They felt helpless and no one else, not Luke or Kylo Ren, could understand what they had gone through. "Ash… if I asked you to…" She didn't have to finish her sentence, Ash was already across the room and climbing into her bed with her. Rey laughed. "I guess you don't want to sleep alone either?"

"Not at all." She admitted with a nervous laugh of her own.

"What about Kylo Ren?" Rey asked. "Won't he be mad you're in here?"

Ash shrugged. "I'm not sure where he went." Rey looked concerned before Ash dismissed her fears. "Don't worry, he's still on the island, I can feel him. He's just… he's got his own stuff to sort out. We all do."

"Do you think we can do this?" Rey immediately asked. That similar question coming back like a haunting reminder. "Do you think we can fight Snoke and win?"

Ash brushed her red locks behind her ears; her nervous trait coming forward. "I've been thinking about that too. After what happened earlier; after everything that's happened. Is this something we can do? Can we succeed and change the galaxy for the better?" She thought for a moment. Ash needed to bring Kylo Ren and Rey together, the three of them were in this together. It was then she decided she had to do what she was always meant to do; protect the ones she loved. With a reassured smile, even though a little shaky in that moment, she nodded. "We can." She said. "We can and we will."

Rey smiled slightly as she chose to believe her. "Mind staying with me for a while?"

Ash's smile grew a little more. "I think we both could use that right now." Ash couldn't remember if she had ever had a friend like Rey. Sure, she had people she was close with; the maintenance crew from StarKiller being a few faces that came to mind. But, Ash never really had a friend. Neither did Rey. Sure, she had Finn, but she didn't have a friend she felt she could tell everything to.

The girls lied down on the bed, staring up at the ceiling and continued to make small talk. Sometimes, they even found a brief moment of laughter within it. They needed it; desperately. They had something special. A friendship that neither one had realized would be one of the most important friendships of their lives. For just one moment, they simply existed as two friends and not two Force Users destined to change the fate of the galaxy.

Final Thoughts: Everyone got some sort of comfort this chapter! Well, almost everyone. No clue what Luke was doing. Anyway, remember to review and see y'all next time!