Rey shot up from bed with a cry. Breathing heavily, her eyes zipped around the room. Relief surged throughout her body as she tried to steady her breathing. She raked a hand through her now-wet hair in an effort to get it out of her face. Just a dream, Rey. Relax. She took a deep breath through her nose and after holding it for a moment she let it out through her mouth. She closed her eyes and the feelings from the dream engulfed her. She felt closed in, alone. Everything was too close and it had, and still did, scare her. Her eyes flew open again and she pulled her legs over the side of the bed. She stood and walked to the replicator in the dim room.

"Computer, lights." They turned on, and she winced in the bright light.

"Computer, lights to 50%."

They dimmed, and she relaxed. She requested herbal tea from the replicator. When it arrived, she took the hot beverage and headed to her sofa. She sat down and put her tea on the small table in front of her and picked up the special PADD that lay there. She turned it on and froze.

"Computer, what time is it?"

"It is 0437 hours."

Rey nodded to herself and looked back at her PADD. A fresh, electronic, unconquered page lay before her, and she picked up the special pen and began artfully placing lines that would soon fill this new landscape and become a beautiful, victorious artwork.

Pavel was at his con. He'd been punctual, as always, but after a few minutes of waiting for Rey to arrive, he'd begun to wonder when she'd grace them with her presence at last. He glanced up from his station to watch the lift doors. They opened, and a groggier than usual Rey walked onto the bridge. He smiled. She noticed him and smiled back.

"Well, there she is," Kirk said in a mock chastising tone.

"Sorry, sir," she responded, attempting to hide the nerves in her voice.

"What took you so long? You're usually nice and on time."

"I woke up last night at about 4:30 and couldn't get back to sleep, so I started drawing and the time slipped up on me. I won't let it happen again sir," she said as she sat down at her station.

"It's alright, Lieutenant. I hope you sleep better tomorrow night."

"Thank you, sir, me too."

Nyota smiled at her friend once she'd sat down.

"You ok, really?" she asked.

"Yeah," Rey smiled warily, "just...tired."

"Whenever that happens to me I'll drink hot milk. It usually helps me quite a bit."

"I've never heard that before! I'll try it."

Nyota smiled and looked back to her con. Rey did the same.

"Wait, you said drawing, right? I didn't know you were an artist!" Kirk said after a moment of silence.

"Yeah, I draw a little here and there. Nothing much, though."

"It's probably more than I could do," he said, turning his mind back to his duties.

Nyota smiled at her again.

"Will I be able to see?"

"Uh-well if you want I suppose I could sh-"

"Great!" Nyota cut her off playfully. "Can I come over today?"

"I-if you'd like."

Nyota turned back to her con.

"Yes!" She cheered to herself under her breath.

Much later that day, when most of the bridge crew got off work, Nyota went home with Rey. They entered her quarters and Rey immediately headed for the PADD, Nyota in tow. Rey picked it up and after turning it on she found last night's drawing. She presented her art to Nyota, who saw a beautiful, lifelike rose on the page.

"What in the galaxy did you mean by 'not good'? I could have sworn I was looking at a picture. Are you sure I wasn't?!" Nyota exclaimed incredulously.

Rey's eyes were wide open in surprise at Nyota's compliments.

"Uh-umm-" she paused, "well I did say I drew it, didn't I?" she said to herself. "I- I mean, yeah, I drew it. You like it?" she asked her friend.

"Um, yeah I love it! It's the best rose I've ever seen!"

"It can't be that. And besides," Rey added playfully, "you're biased."

Nyota smiled and hugged Rey. The two spent the rest of the evening together before Nyota realized how late it was and excused herself.

Pavel had wanted to see Rey's art as well, but over his lunch break, he received a message from his family saying that they had news for him and wanted to speak to him after his shift was over. He agreed excitedly but regretted the fact that he couldn't spend his evening with Rey. Later that day when he finished working, he went home, anxiously opened his computer terminal, and contacted his father. Andrei Chekov, a rugged, bearded Russian man with graying hair appeared on the screen.

"Pasha!" he exclaimed, his gentle baritone voice almost singing in Russian, "So good to see you! I assume you got my message?"

"Yes," Pavel responded, also speaking in his native tongue, "It's good to see you too, Papa! You said you had news for me?"

"Yes. Well, less from me and more from your sister." Andrei smiled anxiously and stepped aside. In the moment he was gone, Pavel's excitement mounted. His heart was pounding and he could feel himself smiling. He laughed at himself for not noticing. Next, a fire-haired, freckled young woman appeared on the screen. Her excitement was palpable, even to Pavel, who was lightyears away.

"Nadya!" he exclaimed, "How are you? I haven't seen you and Ivan in forever!"

Her face was graced with her signature smile, but this time it seemed grander than usual.

"My, you're so big, Pasha! You look like an actual adult!" she teased. "You're what, twenty-three now?"

He nodded, albeit a little too excitedly. She continued.

"Anyway, I'm doing amazing. I trust you're doing well, on your little starship," she said, her smile turning mischievous, "I hope you haven't caused too much trouble."

He laughed. "I could say the same for you, Nadya Andreivna," he said, his own smile turning mischievous, "please tell me you haven't dyed Demir's hair pink too."

"Pff, Pavel Andrievich!" she assured him playfully, feigning offense, "Why would you accuse me of such a thing?"

He responded with equal playfulness. "I'd like Demir's opinion."

"I thought," he continued, "that since my sister is getting older, maybe she'll stop pulling so many pranks!' But no, you had to dye Isaak's hair pink, and Demir's next in line."

She giggled. "On a serious note, Pasha, there's someone I'd like you to meet."

Rey again shot awake with a cry. She was panting as her eyes scanned the room. Another dream. She managed to scoff at herself. I told the captain I would sleep well, I guess I didn't mean it. She tried to calm herself and recollect her thoughts, this time being sure to keep her eyes open. Don't want last night to happen again. As she did, the feelings from this dream overwhelmed her. Loss. She felt like she had that day on Jakku, so many years ago. Her parents had left her without reason, at least to her young mind, and she had felt an overwhelming emptiness consume her. She thought no one else would ever love her. But this time, she felt almost worse than the first time. She felt completely abandoned and forsaken, and she didn't know how to explain it. She was thankful that she didn't have to. She didn't want to experience the pain of that day—or this dream—again.

Pain. She, for a brief moment, felt a sharp pain in her neck. She rubbed it, not entirely sure that that would help. It didn't. This physical pain added a whole new level to her emotional pain from the memories and dream. For a moment she felt like no one wanted her, and her head spun. Then all these feelings stopped as abruptly as they had started. She took a deep breath and closed her eyes.

"Computer, what time?" she asked groggily.

"It is 2357 hours."

"Thank you."

"Computer, lights, 50%."

The lights turned on, only this time they didn't nearly blind her. She got out of bed and headed for the replicator. She lost her balance along the way and her hip hit the side of a table. She quietly coped with the pain and after a moment continued toward the replicator. When she arrived she tried Nyota's tip:

"Computer, hot milk."

The requested beverage appeared before her. She took it and returned to bed, being sure to avoid the pesky table.

She strode onto the bridge that morning, only this time she looked more rested. Pavel smiled at her again, but she didn't notice. She made her way towards her station and took her place by Nyota.

"Welcome to the bridge, Lieutenant. Sleep well?" the captain asked.

She didn't hear, so after a moment, Nyota tapped her.

"Rey," she whispered, "he asked you a question."

"Wha-oh. Yes, sir, I did. Thank you."

"Rey, are you ok? You seem preoccupied."

"It's nothing, Nyota. Thank you."

"No," Nyota said, looking her friend in the eyes, "what's wrong? What happened?"

"Nothing!" Rey snapped, which caused Nyota to recoil. Rey realized her mistake and took a breath. "I'm sorry, Nyota. I would just rather not talk about it. Not now, anyway."

"Okay," Nyota said, assuming a motherly tone, "It'll be okay. Just tell me when you want. If you want. If you don't want to I'll still be there for you, alright?"

Rey nodded, thankful for her friend's willingness to simply be there, even without either of them saying a word.

"Thank you," Rey whispered.

When the day shift for that day was complete, Rey went home alone. Nyota had said that she would come later if she wished, but first, she had some things to do at home. Rey had agreed and said that she'd love her friend's presence as she dealt with this. When she reached home, a ring at her doorbell startled her out of her reverie. She opened the door to find Spock standing there, hands clasped behind his back.

"Hello, Lieutenant. I hope I am not interrupting anything?"

"No," she shook her head, "Come on in!"

"I merely wanted to present my findings and return this," he said, handing her the lightsaber.

"What did you find?"

"The weapon is powered by a crystal of an extremely powerful nature. Upon conducting tests, I discovered that the weapon is able to cut through metal at least six centimeters in width. I assumed that, in the proper circumstances, that it may be able to cut through metal much thicker than that. I had wanted to study the crystal, but I found that the only way to reach it was to disassemble the entire piece. However, since I know very little about the construction of the weapon I decided it would be in your best interests not to."

"That's fine. Thank you, Commander," She took the lightsaber from his outstretched hands and hooked it onto her belt. He turned to leave, but she stopped him.

"C-commander. Wait."

He stopped and turned back to her.

"Nothing...strange...happened to you when you touched it, right?"

"Correct. Why do you ask, lieutenant?"

"Oh, no reason. Just curious," she said, smiling.

"Well, in that case, lieutenant, I suppose I shall see you tomorrow."

"Okay. Goodbye and thanks again."

The Vulcan gave her a single nod and turned away again. She shut the door behind him and after placing the weapon on a table she collapsed onto her sofa. She sighed, tossed her head back, and closed her eyes. After a moment her doorbell rang once more.

"Enter," she said tiredly.

Nyota entered, spotted Rey on the sofa, and then went and plopped down beside her. "Hi. Have you had dinner yet?"

"Nope," Rey said, her eyes still closed.

"Ok. What do you want?"

"I don't know, and at this point, I don't really care."

Nyota got up and went to the replicator and ordered . . . something. Nyota returned with two bowls and two drinks. She set the drinks down on the coffee table, and Rey sat up to see what they were. The drink was clear; it was either water or alcohol. Next Nyota set the bowls down. They were filled with a colorful, steaming stew.

"What's that?"

"It's called githeri. My mom made it all the time for us growing up."

"Huh. Well, I love trying earth food so," she shrugged, "let's do it!"

Nyota smiled and picked up her bowl.

"Wait, so what drink did you give us?"

"Just water."

Rey nodded and took her own plate.

"This is nowhere near as good as my mom's," Nyota remarked distastefully after taking a bite.

Rey took a bite of hers. She froze and her eyes flew open in surprise.

"Okay, this is really good," she exclaimed through a mouthful of food. She realized her mistake and swallowed before continuing, "I can't imagine how your mother's tastes."

"Better than this," Nyota said under her breath.

Rey laughed and took a sip of water.

Kirk was motionless and his head was thrown back. Uhura's face was on her con, and she wasn't moving either. Spock was on the floor, his eyes closed. The other normally standing crewmembers were down, as well. Sulu—and Chekov—were on their cons, lifeless. Motionless. A sense of fear overwhelmed her...

"NOOOO!" Rey screamed, shooting up from the bed. Gasping for breath, she raked her hand through her once again damp hair. Her breaths were short, quick, and forced.

"Computer, lights."

The lights once again nearly blinded her, but this time she didn't mind.

"Computer, time." This time it was more of a command than anything.

"It is 0315 hours."

She sighed and headed for her sofa again, and once she reached it she collapsed.

"Computer, give me music."

"Please specify."

"I don't know, is anyone else listening to music?" she snapped.

"Ensign Crowder is listening to classic rock music."

"Okay, let's not do th— y'know, give me that too."

A vintage-sounding synthesized piano began to play.

"Computer, when is this from?"

"The early 1980's on Earth."

When the singer began to sing, it definitely wasn't what Rey was expecting. She paused for a moment in surprise to enjoy it.

Just a small-town girl

Livin' in a lonely world

Took the midnight train goin' anywhere...

She closed her eyes and listened. She hadn't expected to enjoy it, because all of the other rock music she had heard had been modern and - annoying, to say the least. She remembered at the academy, when her second roommate had listened to all sorts of music while studying, and hadn't given a thought to if Rey needed to study in peace. Usually, she'd just go to the library, or wait to study or do homework until her roommate had gone off to spend time with her friends, but sometimes that wasn't exactly possible and Rey had been forced to hear the music. She'd learned to tune it out, but it still annoyed her. This, however, was different. It actually sounded good, and she quite enjoyed it.

She woke up with a start to a beeping communicator, nearly falling off the sofa.

"Computer, time."

"It is 0832 hours."

Rey's heart began to pound as she tried to gather her thoughts. Saturday. She relaxed as she remembered she was off today, and she took a deep breath. Her communicator kept beeping. She remembered it, took it, and answered.

"Lieutenant Rey here," she said in a calculated tone.

"Relax, Rey! It's just me."

She knew that voice.

"Pavel! Good morning!"

"Good morning, Rey! Did you sleep vell last night?"

"More or less, yes."

"How could- ah, newer mind. Anyvay I vas going to ask you if- well if you- you vanted to eat lunch together." After a moment he added hurriedly, "T-today, I mean. I-if not I-"

She cut him off before he could finish. "I'd love that."

"Yay! I mean, sank you. See you at tvelve hundred hours in ze lounge, zen?"

"Of course. See you then, Pavel."

She turned off her communicator with a smile on her face. After a moment the question began to lay on her mind: should I tell him about my dreams and vision?

When lunchtime came, she met him at the lounge. He was right at the door to greet her, and they walked in together and sat down. After ordering food they began to talk.

"So, vat did you mean by 'more or less'?"

"Oh, nothing. I've just had bad dreams at odd hours the last three nights and haven't been able to sleep very well."

He nodded and scrutinized her.

"I can tell zey really bozered you. If you need to talk, I'll listen.

"Thanks."

After a little bit of mental debating, she decided it might be good to tell someone, and that he's as good as anyone. So, she took a breath and gathered her thoughts.

"Well, the first two dreams were just feelings, but scary ones. The first, I just felt claustrophobic. It was the least frightening."

"H-hold on a second. Vat does zat mean, 'claustrophobic'?" He struggled with the pronunciation of the unfamiliar word. "I've newer heard zat one before."

"Just like, closed in and scared."

"Ah. Sank you. Go on."

"The next one gave me feelings of loss, abandonment, emptiness, pain. Just feeling like nobody cared about me."

He had been watching her intently, and after she said the last, his face turned to one of worried sadness. He looked her in the eyes and was struck by their beautiful hazel color. He forced his eyes to leave hers and spoke.

"It vas only a dream Rey. And I-" he froze for a second before continuing, "I vant you to know zat I care about you. A-and so does Nyota, " he added quickly, "And ze keptin."

She smiled. "Thank you, Pavel."

After a few moments of silence, she continued.

"It's like the lightsaber is what's doing this. After I got it, I just sort of felt... well different. It's hard to explain, but it's like...something...inside me has always been there, but now it's awake, and giving me these dreams. And it's frightening. I don't really know what to do. And-" She paused, not sure if she wanted to confide this part in him.

"And, well, I had one more dream. I saw everyone on the bridge, but all of them were out. And the worst part is that I don't know if they were dead, or simply unconscious. That's the one that really scared me."

"They were all just dreams. It is scary, but just remember zat, okay? And if you have more, you can tell me. I von't tell anybody. I'm here for you, okay?"

She smiled, trying to keep back the tears that were building in her eyes. "I will. Thank you."

Drawing in a steadying breath, she continued. "Now, enough from me. How have you been lately?"

"Pretty vell. My family called me yesterday and I spoke to my sister Nadya! It vas good to see her because it's been quite a while. Anyvay, her daughter was born a few days ago! She vas nice and healthy, if a leettle small, but ewerysing vent smoothly! Her name is Viktoria, and she has bright, red hair just like her mom."

Rey smiled. "That's great! I bet she's cute."

"Oh," Pavel said admiringly, "she's adorable! I can't vait to meet her in person, but by ze time I do, she'll be like, five! Zat's ze bad sing about zis mission, ze duration of it. And by ze time I get home, she von't know me." He sighed. "Ah, vell."

"Well, maybe we'll get to go home at some point and you can see her."

"I hope so."

Suddenly the emotion overcame her and she turned away.

"You ok?"

"Yeah. I'm sorry."

He spoke again with a certain urgency. "Vat's the matter, Rey?"

"It's just that... I-" her voice was shaking as she tried to continue. Her tone quietened significantly, " I would give anything to have a family. I don't mean to-"

He cut her off. "But you do hef family!" He put his hand on hers before continuing. In the moment, he took note of how it felt. Most of it was soft, except for her knuckles, which were quite rough. He forced his mind back to the subject at hand. "H-here, on ze enterprise! Your family here von't leave you behind, ewer. I know you veren't zere, but on Altamid, just before you came, most of ze ship vas captured by Krall. Ve vent through all sorts of mess to save ewery single person ve lost. Nobody vas left. And now zat you're here, on ze bridge, you're part of zat family. No one will leave you. I promise."

The two stayed and talked for well over an hour before they finally decided to leave. He walked her home as usual. When they reached her quarters, she spoke to him again in parting.

"I'm glad to have you through all of this. It may seem a bit, well, small, in comparison to things, but they've really messed with me. I'm glad that you understand."

He smiled. "Of course."

She looked up at him and hugged him. In his shock, it took him a moment to return it.

"Thank you," she said, barely above a whisper. She backed away, then turned and went inside. The door shut and Pavel was left there, eyes wide, wondering what just happened.

A/N: WOW! I DID ANOTHER CHAPTER! It took so long and I'm sorry, but school, and no motivation, is at fault here. This one took me the longest, I think. Probably about like 5 days, idk. Didn't keep count this time. Also, that was REALLY LONG. Also I love how she listened to Don't Stop Believin'. That was a fun bit to put in there. Anyways I hope you guys enjoyed!

A/N part two: much older me here! I'm editing this after a WHILE lol. Please pardon past cringy author me. I wrote this quite a while ago, then I wrote the rest of the story later, now I'm editing and posting it all even further after that. I am a totally different human lol. Anyway, I still hope you enjoyed! :D