Happy Labor Day weekend!

Chapter 20

Ahch-To

Rey grinned to herself, listening to Poe and Ben argue over where the exact location of the Raven Starr was after it never made it back to the crew of the Rising Dawn.

"How can you lose a ship like that?" Ben demanded, though his posture was nothing close to suggest being offended as it had been in the past.

"How can you hide a ship like that?" Poe retorted. "I know it was you, Ren. I punched in those coordinates myself."

"Well congratulations, you lost a one-of-a-kind ship."

"We catch you flying that ship, we're shooting it down with or without crew."

"Gee, thanks!" Rose exclaimed, sidling passed them.

"Shut-up, Rose!" Poe and Ben barked.

"Come on," Rey told her, patting her shoulder in consolation. "Let's go get some oysters."

"It's like I don't count," Rose grumbled, trudging up the rock.

"Of course you do," Rey told her. "No one else could have deleted those surveillance streams that fast."

Rose shot Rey a half smile, and headed down to the oyster beds with an extra bounce in her step.

SWSWSW

Finn climbed the rockface of the class area, the call of low tide brewing below him, and the slow-moving figure of Rose navigated beside him, her breathing nonexistent as she climbed. At once, Finn stopped, halting Rose's movement as well. The Force told them to stop their movement, to wait and regain their strength. So Finn held on, watching a family of porgs build a burrow nest twig by brush, feeling their nerves fluctuate with the security of having a home against the wind and rain.

Suddenly, the Force dropped it's caution and Finn hoisted himself with all his might over the edge of the cliff, landing on shaky but determined feet, and thundered towards Master Ren as he waited, reading placidly.

Finn barely registered Rey's staff flying from it's resting position before he found it's butt shoved firmly into his stomach.

Master Ren looked over his shoulder at him with half-satisfaction. "You didn't think I was going to just give it to you, now?"

Finn parried the staff and still moved forward to Master Ren, but the big man had already scrambled to his feet. At the same time he jumped into position, Rose flitted across the grassy area, arm outstretched to cup his shoulder.

Master Ren wrenched the staff back to club Rose, but she moved out of it's way. Master Ren twirled both himself and the staff like a sweeping propeller, whacking Finn in the arm and almost offsetting Rose. He stepped back, eyeing both of them with an excited gleam. Suddenly, the staff shot up and nearly clipped his teeth as Rey strode up from out of nowhere, arm outstretched and eyes closed, the Force guiding her every step.

Master Ren outright grinned.

He swung the staff over his head, causing Rey's eyes to fly open, dodged an advance from Rose, dropped the staff, then exchanged fists with Finn. He had come a long way from using standard Stormtrooper training, Finn realized as he was able to land more solid punches to Master Ren's torso.

That was until Master Ren changed his fighting style, landing a sturdy kick in Finn's gut that left him on his back and gasping.

Rose came next, taken down by a swift elbow to the face and hair grab (Master Ren had warned her once about her little ponytails) and was vaulted onto Finn's body.

"You, alright?" Finn gasped, rolling her off him as delicately as possible.

She nodded, her ponytail sticking straight out over her left ear. "He's strong," She wheezed, pressing a hand to her nose.

The Force whipped around them, drawing their attention to the center of the grass where Master Ren stood hunched, his eyes locked on Rey as she picked up her staff with gentle, precise fingers. As one, Finn and Rose glanced at each other, then scrambled as quickly as they were able to the outer edges of the grass space.

Master Ren shot his hand out quickly, expelling Rey's staff from her hands. "No weapons," He commanded, his voice light, and his look determined.

Rey dropped her chin, then shot forward, swinging two wild punches, but Master Ren dodged them. He grabbed her arm, but Rey shot upwards in an almost impossible leap and kneed him in the chin. Master Ren staggered back, but recovered relatively quickly. Back and forth they went, jumping onto ancient pillars to better bounce off and attack, jabs, parries, kicks and their respective blocks. Back and forth they went, with Finn's and Rose's rapt attention in tow.

"Get him, Rey!" Rose shouted, leaning forward on her knees, her eyes wide.

If Rey heard her, she didn't show it. Master Ren leaned forward, his face still eager, and muttered something to her, something lost in the wind. Finn, still latched onto the Force, swallowed. A flash of loving emotion, voiced in a taunt and meant only for her.

Rey kept her cool, an impressive feat to Finn, and waited for Master Ren to lunge at her, parrying him with the Force. He shot out his arm, taut with protruding veins and muscle, the Force thick enough around Finn and Rose that Finn almost thought he could taste it. The wind whipped around them, the pebbles in front of Finn rolling backwards as if they could sense the tension among the two combatants.

"Woah!" Rose gasped, her fingers pressed to the grass and rock. "It's going to break!"

Finn opened his mouth to ask what was going to break, but he didn't have to. The grassy area groaned, and the cliff beneath them quaked. Oh, Finn thought, his smile fading and his eyes widening. The island was going to break beneath them.

"Guys, stop!" He screamed, reaching instinctively for Rose's hand.

Rey must have heard him, and Master Ren followed her feelings, but that didn't stop the earsplitting CRACK!

Finn's hands shot to his ears as did Rose's to hers, but his eyes found the ground, seeing a line rip around the small overhanging cliff where Rey stood. She looked down, seeing the tear for herself, but felt the ground shake long before Finn did.

"REY!" Finn screamed, jumping to his feet.

Master Ren said nothing, he merely moved quickly to the edge of the crack and held out his hand, palm upward, and caught Rey as she took a step and jumped toward him, falling into his arms as a chunk, three strides long, crumbled from the grass area and plummeted to the ocean with a massive splash!

Finn inhaled sharply, watching a pillar fall with the rock and grass, the movement sending a thousand porgs screeching and burping alarm all around the cove.

"Duck!" Rose shouted, throwing her arm over his neck and wrenching him to the ground as the foot long avians fluttered overhead, their motions filled with panic.

Finn turned his eyes to Rose, seeing her eyes filled with worry and terror, hearing her breathing come sharply in his ear. He reached up and wrapped his arms around her, pulling her under his body, protecting her from what excited excrement pattered over them.

SW

Ben covered Rey, folding her tight into his arms as the screaming wailed overhead. He panted, his body tired, but held firm. When the silence ensued as quickly as the chaos, he lifted his head and peered at Rey, seeing her panting and felt her bracing him as tightly as he held her.

He wanted to ask if she was alright, if she was frightened at the prospect of losing him as much as he was of losing her. He wanted to ask her a thousand questions, but none made it through his lips. They seemed so insignificant compared to her look of fear washed away by glittering amusement. Her eyes glittered like sand in sunlight, and her smile as warm as hot soup on a cold, rainy day.

"Well, I don't think we should do that again."

He couldn't stop the smile if he had a thousand years of trying.

"Class dismissed."

SWSWSW

"The Caretakers are not pleased," C-3PO declared, twitching his body towards Ben and his Padawans. "They say that so much of the original temple has been taken over the years, they are loath to let it go so quickly and so soon."

"Didn't do it on purpose, Threepio," Ben grunted, taking a spoonful of his mussel soup.

"You didn't, but they believe Captain Rey did."

Rey looked up from her soup, a flash of red hotter than her dinner searing through her. She leaned around Ben to peer at Finn and Rose, "Listen up, you two, don't ever shoot a hole into one of the huts, you'll never find forgiveness no matter how much laundry you do."

Rose snorted into her bowl and Finn sounded like he sucked up his spoon.

"For shame," Finn taunted pounding his chest and prompting Rose to lather it on as well until Rey chortled into her bowl.

"What do they want us to do about it?" Ben asked, his face light. "Can't bring the cliff back."

"I think they're simply content to it not happening again," C-3PO answered.

"Noted," Ben replied, shoving another spoonful of soup into his mouth.

"Was this how the Knights of Ren trained?" Rose asked, carefully sipping the bowl of her spoon.

Ben took his time swallowing before setting his empty bowl down. "Something like this." He answered, not looking at her. "We were… more competitive."

"What does that mean?" Finn asked, intrigued.

His feelings chilled Rey, so much so that she could see her hands shivering though they clutched the steaming bowl.

"Imagine a tank of sharks," Ben began. "Each shark swimming in it's own pattern, always looking, always waiting. Then imagine a bloody carcass being dropped into that tank." He peered at her, and inhaled. "I was the one they waited to bleed. But I was the one who stopped them from fighting each other for blood. No one could beat me, and so they were united in competition. But, they…" He trailed off, his feelings deeply unsettled.

"What is it, Ben?" Rey asked, setting her bowl aside.

He swallowed, unwilling to speak. "They might have found my blood."

"What, your relationship with Rey?" Finn asked, glancing quickly to her.

He shook his head, "No, they'd die for her already. She's their new mascot."

Rey wanted to reply with sharp sarcasm, but he continued:

"I've been shamed."

Silence echoed through the small space, each Padawan equally confused as the other, but at least Rey knew that this was not a good thing among such proud knights.

"What does that mean?" She asked, leaning forward to put her elbows on her knees.

He looked at her, his face cast into pure uncertainty, and parted his lips.

"The Knights of Ren operate on pure loyalty and trust. Honor your code, trust your brother, in these two things is absolution. If you cannot trust your brother, then you are to bring shame upon his name, saying he is untrustworthy. There is only one greater sin than this, and it is to murder your brother in cold blood. Such cannot be done without a class execution. That is to say that the class who gained their knighthood with him can only be responsible for his execution because they've seen him at his worst."

"What happens if you're shamed?" Rose asked, her soup abandoned in her hands.

SW

Koita Mathe stood before the four knights, hands at his side and legs held firm in an unmoving stance.

"Say it again," Fraja commanded, his voice filled with caution.

Koita Mathe lifted his chin, and swallowed, "I have no trust in Supreme Leader Kylo Ren."

"Say it a second time," Fraja growled, watching Brunfar and Maa'qui close off the rear escape.

"I have no trust in Supreme Leader Kylo Ren."

Fraja reached up and detatched his lightsaber. He ignited it, not a single soul shivering at the sight of the wicked crimson hissing at his side.

"A third time, if you dare."

Koita Mathe stared straight ahead, and parted his lips.

SW

"You must bring it to the head of your class, the second in command if you are the head, and your class will hold trial. Basically intimidate you into making sure you know what you're talking about.

"If you're not, then one of the brothers will mentor you into having trust again. But if you are, then…" He swallowed. "Then the Distrusting is whipped, ten times a day for as many as are in your class, dead included. So for me, my Distrusting would receive seventy total lashes."

SW

Koita Mathe panted, gripping the ropes that bound him, stripped as naked as the day he escaped his childhood prison. Above, in the Nest's living quarters, he could see the flaming hair of Rana as she peered down at him. Her father, coated in sweat and blood, and she could do nothing.

Fraja's boots echoed in the space, causing Koita Mathe's bottom lip to curl back into his mouth for something, anything, to stop his screams. He gripped the ropes tight and waited for Fraja to round his side and peer at him, dressed in cool, black robes with his dirty blond hair tied back. "Day four of seven, are you prepared for the punishment you are about to receive?"

Koita Mathe nodded, his chest heaving with anticipation. He couldn't see the whip, was it going to be Fraja or Brunfar today?

"Do you recant your distrust in our brother, Kylo Ren?"

This was a challenge. They knew he was committed to the cause set before him. Now was a test of endurance. Koita Mathe unclenched his jaw and spat, "No."

SW

"What happens from there?" Rey asked, longing to pull Ben into her arms.

"This is where it gets… complicated," Ben told them. "The Untrustworthy Knight must prove his worth to his brothers. They must see his acts and they must approve it as well. It's not a one time thing, like 'here is my act,' - although it could be if the knights agree to it - it's over a course of time. Trust is gradually restored, and then the Distrusting Knight must serve in humility until such time that it pleases his Master. The record is three years."

"Goodness, this has happened before?" C-3PO exclaimed, jolting Finn who seemed to forget he was there.

Ben nodded. "Twice in my class. Fraja never doubted me again."

"What happens if the knight's acts are not accepted?" Rose asked, "Or if the knight refuses to perform them?"

Ben was silent, staring at the ground for moments before answering quietly, "They die." He looked at Rose, his entire body seeming to shrink for a moment as he added slightly louder, "Shark tank, remember?"

"That's why you let the Ikher Two go," Finn breathed, realization blooming on his face. "You had to perform an act."

Ben nodded. "If I didn't, then I risk the Knights confronting me here," He looked up to the hills that gradually darkened, the clamor of the waves crashing over rocks calling out to them. "The Caretakers are too innocent to earn such a visit."

"Not because you didn't want us to get hurt?" Rose asked, lifting an eyebrow.

Ben shrugged, "You're being trained to get hurt. But if it's any consolation, you cannot take them on. Not yet. They'd be like fighting me, but with more landed punches."

"It's true," Rey told them. "I've seen them fight."

"How could you live with such jerks?" Rose scoffed, setting her bowl down.

"I knew what to expect from them," He answered immediately, "All I had to do was watch my back. That was easy with Snoke pushing me beyond my limits further and further. They didn't dare touch me. It became comfortable."

"And you didn't want to go home to Han and Leia?" Finn asked.

Ben's feelings flashed loudly, a cacophonous wail of sorrow and longing that the three of them shifted, Finn and Rose each cringing into themselves. Ben had wanted to go home each minute of his training. But his parents had given him to Luke who tried to kill him. They saw him as a danger, one they didn't have the time or patience to diffuse. He had no choice but to succeed.

"I wanted to be a little boy again," He muttered, loud enough for Rey to hear and for Finn and Rose to strain. "But that never happened, so I focused on becoming someone else. Someone who didn't fear his own family. Didn't fear a thing at all."

"Kylo Ren," Rey breathed.

He looked up at her, tired and worn as though the very act of opening himself up to his apprentices was equal to pushing rocks up mountains with his bare hands.

"Kylo Ren," He said.

SWSWSW

The Caretakers were hidden musicians. There had to be music to their monthly gatherings (the Padawans had always been too tired from training to attend a party, and no one dared to ask Master Ren), and that meant practice. The night was perfect with not too much wind, and rainless, so three of the reptile-like Caretakers pulled out long, wooden flutes, and began to whistle in the dim, surrounding a large, peat moss fire, tooting first quick, sharp whistles, then long, rhythmic hiccups.

At once, Finn and Rose moved closer to them, swaying to their quick and light tunes although they couldn't be doing more than simply warming up. Rey lifted in her seat to see them play, but stayed close to Ben, smiling as the notes floated through her like cool fingers.

"You don't want to join them?"

She turned and saw Ben reclining in his rocky seat, leaning close to her. She shook her head, and leaned back for him to hear her soft words. "I don't want you to be alone."

He glanced at Finn as he stood with his hand extended to Rose, encouraging her to dance with him. Rose grinned at Finn, shaking her head in meager protest but stood anyway, and took both his hands. Ben turned back to Rey, his eyes deep and inviting like a midnight tidepool, and whispered, "What if I want to be alone with you?"

Rey's body felt like a grenade in a field of electricity as his words sunk in. She looked over her shoulder to where C-3PO was twittering away with a Caretaker, watching the proceedings of the music lesson, then reached for Ben's hand. With one look, he was on his feet with her, and she began pulling him away from the village. There was a place, she knew it by heart now, where the sea cows left the island in favor of sleepless fishing grounds somewhere in the deep. A place she had long thought about going with Ben, when the time was right.

It was low tide by the time they got there, the swathe of tidepools that could have been large baths if one was lucky enough. They were outlined in the moonlight, like seashells placed with their curved backs upward, as though they too were hiding secrets. Rey turned back to Ben, wondering if he was thinking the same as she was. By the look of his grin and eyes that smoldered only for her, the message had been well received. They stopped near a particular pool, one that was neither too deep or too shallow, and dropped their hands. They knew the water would be cold, like nearly everything on this system, but that didn't matter.

Rey looked back at Ben, seeing the same nervous anticipation on his face as she felt throughout her core. She swallowed, then kicked off her shoes. Then pulled off her poncho that protected her from the cool night air. Then lifted her shirt over her head to reveal her flat stomach and wrapped breasts. Ben stared, wide eyed, at her boldness. He licked his lips, then reached up and removed his cloak, followed by his tunic and black undershirt, then his boots. His muscles bulged as they usually did, but this time he shivered. With excitement or cold, Rey couldn't tell.

They took a step up the sides of the pool, then another, then entered it, the water shocking Rey's system so much that she gasped and wanted to run, but Ben's gaze didn't let her. He reached for her, his hands gripping her upper arms so that she was both a captive, and a brake, desired and untouchable. She lifted her hands, smoothing his chest with moisture, the movement easing his grip and feeling his heart hammer like a stampede beneath her palm, racing against hers. He adjusted his hands to slide under her arms, his palms and thumbs touching the tender part of her sides, shivering as she touched his shoulders.

Then, he was kissing her, and she was kissing him back.

Oh, what was this fire that burned within her? How could such cold water not evaporate as they tilted their heads this way and that to better kiss the other? She slid her fingers into his hair, the feel reminding her of ruffled canvas, and let herself be squeezed tightly to his chest. With his arms, he lifted her off the bedrock, and sacrificed the strong embrace to guide her legs to wrap around his waist, his face now turned upward to catch her lively kisses. Her lips brushed his forehead, his cheekbones, even his eyes and nose. His moistened her jaw, her throat, under her ears, then back to her lips. What beast was this thing called love?

How was this possible, a part of Rey's brain asked, feeling his hands glide over her thighs back to her waist. How did they get this far? Nearly six years ago, they were mortal enemies, now they could not see beyond this moment of passion. This fervent kissing in a pool of water…

Rey wrenched her head back, just as she felt something solid brush against her lower back, thrusting her eyes open to see that he had moved them to the edge of the tidepool. "Ben," She breathed, prompting his eyes to flutter open.

"What?" He gasped, his lips still finding hers for quick, sweet spurts.

"Ben," She reached back, and used her hips to push him away for a moment to catch her breath. "Ben, our dreams."

He panted, thought obviously coming slower due to the cold water. "What?"

"Our dreams," Rey pressed, "The ones where we're kissing in a pool of water."

He paused, his chest halting it's movement as he thought. He shook his head, "I don't want to think of that, right now. I just want to be with you. Please? Just us two, not the Force."

Everything within her wanted to stop. To ponder the implications of this correct dream, but at the sight of his eyes, so beautiful as they smoldered and pleaded for her lips, she pushed her caution aside and brought her face to his.

He pressed his hand to the back of her head, forcing her to make up for her interruption. Caught in the cradle of his elbow, Rey had no choice but to let him lean her back onto the cold rock that seared her spine, and peered up at him as he kissed once, twice, then lifted her neck to plant kisses onto her throat, then her breastbone. She gasped, an involuntary response to his great hands smoothing over her breasts and lingered there for a moment, before continuing to kiss her stomach. Rey placed her hands on either side of her temples, gasping and inhaling at the feel of his lips pressing and tickling her bare flesh, her knees unable to keep still, coaxing from her feelings she never knew existed. She arched her back as he moved to return to her lips, offering him more, yearning for more, willing him to go further.

Suddenly, his hands left her and splashing vaulted all around her, frigid laps flowing to her sides and stealing her arousal from her. She sat up, her mind devoid of all thought, eyes wide. Ben had flown from her body, his own eyes impossibly wide as he stared at her, hands gripping the ledge of the pool behind him, his chest heaving.

"I can't," He breathed, mussed hair in his face. "I can't. I can't."

Rey righted herself and slid back into the pool, her head and shoulders the only things above the water. "Ben," She cooed, "I want you to."

She lifted her body so that the beginning curves of her wrapped breasts could be seen, and reached up where the knot keeping them secured was.

"Stop!" He gasped, looking from her hands, to her face. "Stop, please!"

She looked at him, seeing his lust replaced with sheer terror. Him, of all people. But, she realized as she dropped her hands, that he wasn't an ordinary person. He was a Knight of Ren, a keeper of strict rules that included abstinence from "fraternizing" with women. Whatever fraternizing meant to the Knights of Ren, she could guess that he was uncomfortably close to breaking that rule if she so much as touched him any further.

Rey crossed her arms in front of her, taking a shoulder in each palm. "I'm cold," She said sheepishly.

His eyes deflated, though a large part of his lust remained. "You get out first. I, ugh, need a minute."

She had a strong urge to ask, "a minute to do what?" But thought against it. Instead, she turned and pulled herself from the pool, hearing him exhale deeply, "Oh man."

SWSWSW

It took three days for Ben to feel he could look Rey in the eye again. What was this feeling?! This powerlessness to feel life continue until he saw her in the morning, this gasping for air when she walked passed, almost prancing as she smiled at him. He used to be the Terror of the Galaxy but now? Now she had awakened within him a deep feeling that he never knew was there, and would probably never go away again. Though, in all reality it wasn't entirely her fault. He had felt it coming, felt it wearing him down for years since the first time Snoke bridged their minds.

It wasn't enough, though. Being in love wasn't enough. He wanted to possess her, keep her safe like a pen in his pocket, (though the thought of a pen wasn't the right word, he kept imagining it would turn into a lightsaber rather than write). But how? He had offered a sort of union to her once, and she denied him. The second time she accepted, could there be a third? And how would that third…

He lifted his chin, feeling the answer smack him in the forehead like the suicidal porg that whacked into Rose's chest as she climbed a walkway carrying oysters.

Marriage.

He could marry Rey. Or, she could marry him. Get married, that was the proper term. Two people becoming one flesh. He smiled to himself at that prospect. Being able to see Rey, to touch her, without fear or hesitation to the lengths that she wanted him to touch her. Like when he ran his finger down her back when he took off her black gown, and when she was ready to expose herself completely to him… He looked to the grass beside him, noting the color of the blades, then at the porg feathers that fluttered near but not touching him, then to the ocean with lapping waves, willing his heart to stop bothering him.

What was more, he could be there for her, openly. He could provide for her, spoil her. His queen, with all the privileges she should have had as a child given to her now as his…

He looked at her, watching as she twirled a long stick that served as their practice swords, showing Finn a technique that he had been struggling with. What Ben would have given to be able to run up to her, snatch her into his arms, and twirl her around before begging her to marry him. He inhaled, dousing his fire with a smirk. He would have to be patient. Just as he had waited to invite her to come away with him, he would wait to propose. He did require a ring, after all.

Rey cast Ben a look, a loving look with a small, tight smile, that she hid quickly in favor of looking at Finn. Her discretion needs significant work, Ben thought because Finn turned to look at him, then at her. The wind whipped around them, a reaction to strong emotion uncontrolled. Finn would be a force to be reckoned with when he had years more training. Perhaps as strong then as Rey was now.

Finn stiffly followed Rey's instruction for about ten more minutes, before feigning some excuse and sauntered off. Rey sighed, watching him place the practice sword on the supply stand that was really a tall, flat rock. She had lost her best friend and nothing she could do would bring him back.

The wind continued to whip around them, and Ben stood suddenly, his ears perked for it to call again. From her spot, Rey turned towards him, her features focused on the horizon, her body rigid. She felt it, too.

From the corner, still picking porg feathers from her top robe, Rose moved towards them, "Did you guys hear that?"

But they said nothing. This call wasn't heard, it was felt. Something was going to happen, something to the three of them.

SWSWSW

Ben flew from his pillow, chest heaving and cold air nearly freezing the sweat upon his neck. He blinked, seeing nothing for moments but rather allowing his sense of awareness recapture him. He was on Ach-To, he was in his bed alone. It was even raining outside. He inhaled deeply, his eyes focusing on the stone wall directly in front of him. The porgs were not screeching alarm, they probably were not even awake yet. Something to his right moved and he gasped, hand shooting out for his lightsaber.

"Master Ren?" The timid, female voice whispered.

It was Rose. He exhaled deeply, shoulders sagging. "What is it?" He demanded.

Rose's figure in the dim shifted, and her voice was not any better. "Master, forgive me. But it's Rey,"

Ben looked sharply to her voice, "Rey?"

Something moved, a nod. "She's… she's screaming. I think she's having a nightmare but when I went inside to wake her…"

She trailed off as Ben flung the blankets off him and strode to his cloak hanging by the door frame. The village and it's stone pathway he could walk blindfolded, especially when it came to Rey's hut. In the darkness, he might as well have been blind, seeing dark skies with stars and even darker mounds against them. Rey's hut was two stone mounds away from his, and his stride was so quick that he had barely shouldered his cloak when he was at her door, listening for life within.

She was there, he could feel her presence. But that was not what frightened him about this encounter. Inside, she was whimpering, perhaps even moaning, but she was definitely crying. Ben made no attempt to announce himself, he simply used the Force to open her door and walked in.

Rey was still sleeping. Or tossing, rather, upon her pallet, knees pressed tightly into her chest and hair tangled upon her face. She rolled facing Ben, biting her lip as she whimpered in deep pain.

"Rey," Ben breathed, crossing the distance towards her, seating himself on her pallet and taking her into his arms. Rey's skin was warm to the touch though her sweat was as frigid as the sea around them. Ben looked over his shoulder as Rose's figure swayed nervously from side to side.

"Rose, build us a fire." He commanded, then turned back to Rey. "Rey," He breathed, placing his hands on both her shoulders. "Rey, baby wake up! Wake up for me!" He shook her, moving against her nightmarish jolts so that within seconds, she was gasping and blinking in his arms.

Her chest heaved and her eyes were wide, her face pointed away from him as she came to grips with her reality. Suddenly, she looked at him, "My mother."

Ben nodded, immediately recalling the sight of an older woman with Rey's brown hair, Rey's button nose, gasping and crawling over dunes and dunes of scalding sand.

"I had the same nightmare, Rey. Your mother was looking for you."

She shook her head, bottom lip quivering, "My mother! She died… she died looking for me! Calling for me! She was coming back to where she sold me! She was coming back,"

She trailed off, her tears making her shoulders shudder violently. Ben's chest constricted as he moved her frail body to better hold her, the Force generously giving to him the same heartbreak she felt.

"Rey, look at me," Ben urged, moving to face her. "Rey, baby look at me. Look at me!"

She would not be still. Rey whimpered and cried, repeating the nightmare of her mother, a lonely, worn out woman, dragging herself through the desert and vowing to come back to her lost daughter.

Ben gave a short exhale and swooped forward, his lips connecting with hers. Rey recoiled, but she stopped fighting him, allowing her breathing to soften for a moment. Ben pulled away, eyes connecting with Rey's, really connecting, for the first time that night.

He seized the moment, "Rey, your mother, died, trying to reconcile her mistake."

She flinched, but her hands curled around his, hanging on to his every word.

"Your mother, is buried on Jakku. We will never know exactly why she and your father sold you," He released his right hand and pulled her close, "But you're here now. You're safe; you're not a scavenger anymore." He pulled her head to rest upon his chest, her hand releasing his to latch onto his shoulder. He continued, "Most importantly, your family is here, on this island. Surrounded by water."

Rey shuddered, her tears coming warm onto his bare chest, but she was at peace. Ben rested his cheek onto her tangled hair, using his free arm to wrap around her and stroke her side with his thumb.

A flash of light pulsed in the night, reminding Ben that Rose was still in the room trying to make up a fire. He smirked, not needing the Force to tell him that she was deeply uncomfortable with this intimacy between her master and his best student. Perhaps Rey had truly kept the mystery of their relationship to Rose and Finn as just that: a mystery. Fire caught the straw beneath rare kindling and Rose blew on it gently, nurturing a flame until it caught, providing the blackened hut with flickering orange.

Rey shifted and she pulled away from Ben, showing him a face wet with pain, but her overall demeanor was relaxed. "I'm sorry I woke you," She muttered.

Ben shrugged, "I would have awakened the same time you did."

She inhaled, holding her breath for a second before blowing it out. "I wish for the other dream…" Her eyes locked onto his.

He cupped her face, thumbing away the trail of moisture from her eyelashes. He leaned in, his heart sputtering. She was so lovely in the firelight-

"Master Ren, I'm going to go, now!"

They flinched away from each other, Ben dropping his hand to grip his knees. He looked to Rose and nodded, "Thank you for waking me, Rose."

"Yes, thank you." Rey told her, hardly making eye contact with her.

Rose scampered out, her figure smothered by the night as soon as she stepped out the door. Ben turned back to Rey, seeing her shiver once more.

"I can stay,"

She shook her head, "I don't want you to." She flicked her eyes to him, "Not tonight, at least."

"You shouldn't dream any more tonight, Rey."

She nodded, "I know. I won't."

He studied her, she was plotting something, he could tell. He stood, "Good night, Rey. I'll see you in the morning."

Rey nodded, "Goodnight, Ben."

SWSWSW

Rey waited for an hour, holding herself as she replayed over and over again the sight of her mother panting and dehydrating in the Jakku sun. Had she succumbed to the Walk? Was she delusional and clinging on to the only semblance of living, something greater than water? As she waited, one thing became clear: her mother had wanted her. Her mother was trying to find her.

An hour passed, and she could wait no more. She reached around her palette and grabbed her bag, packed with items that were of no use here on such a chilly system as Ach-To. Quickly, she stuffed her spare set of robes and broken lightsaber into it. Before leaving her hut, she thrust out her hand above her head, moving through the village until she felt her staff slap into her open palm.

Unthinking, she reached a ledge that overlooked the broiling sea, a wriggling grey mat in the early hours. She swallowed, and set down her bag and staff. Her eyes fluttered closed as her arm stretched outwards, feeling for it, that very obvious new addition that had the Padawans gasping for breath as soon as they realized what it was. Their private joke with their master, an escape. She would imagine that there would have been a great crashing sound, a deafening roar at the breach of the surface, but there was hardly a sound. She opened her eyes and saw the beautiful, sleek Raven Starr hovering, dripping sheets of salt water off it's touching triangular wings. It moved slowly, landing perfectly on the flat landing surface where she and Poe had parked spacecraft before, and dropped her hand.

She inhaled, and looked over her shoulder, "Good bye Ben. Take care of Finn and Rose, please."

Then she stooped to gather her things, and walked down the path towards the ship.

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