Hi! *waves* Long time, so see! Unless you've been reading my drabbles, in which case, thank you!

So, this one is a monster. It is officially the longest fanfic I've ever written (my X-File Fic 'Wambli' used to hold that title), and because of that, I doubled up my chapters so that I'm not posting this into next year. It takes place in the canonverse, but here's the deal: I set out to elaborate on something I'd already written (Chapter 9 of Planet X), and ended up inadvertently re-imagining the sequel trilogy.

This story starts about a year before the events of The Force Awakens, and while this story takes our beloved characters in places they never got to go in the movies, I do still use a great many of the events that occurred in the movies. If you haven't seen the sequel trilogy, or it's been a while, you might want to view them before reading, as I will reference certain events without writing them in detail (Poe's torture, Holdo's sacrifice, etc.). In between those events, however, it's a totally unique story that completely revolves around, you guessed it, Rey and Poe.

As tends to be the case in my long-fics, there will be sexual content, so I am rating it appropriately. However, most of these scenes are short and sweet, and I will give warnings before the chapters that contain them.

So, without further ado, let's get to it!

XXXXXX

Commander Poe Dameron wiped the sweat from his brow as he glanced around the cantina. While he had grown up on a warm planet, Jakku was a whole different environment, and he had a great deal of respect for the beings that lived here. Of course, looking around him, he wondered just how many of them would jump at the chance to leave if given the opportunity.

He, Snap, and Jess had come here this morning with the intent to find and recruit Jenkins Petty, a former pilot with the Rebel Alliance that General Organa had known years ago. According to her, the human male, who was originally from Corellia, had been an amazing pilot. He had served with the New Republic fleet for a short time after the war ended, but ended up leaving when the 'politics got a little too much' for him. "The same reason we both left, Poe," Leia had grinned. "Only he figured it out a lot sooner than I did."

For some strange reason, the man had settled here on Jakku, marrying and raising a passel of kids. He had the means to leave with his family if he wanted, but they seemed content here at Niima Outpost, where he worked as a mechanic and trader. By all accounts, he was fair in his dealings, and Unkar Plutt, the being in charge of most of the outpost who was not so fair, pretty much left Petty and his family alone.

When Poe and the others had found Petty and conveyed Leia's request for help to him, he had regretfully declined. "I'm old," he had told Poe. "My reflexes are not nearly what they used to be."

"While we need pilots," Poe had argued. "We need leaders more."

But the man had refused to budge. He and his wife had invited the Resistance members to stay for breakfast, but could do nothing more than that.

While sharing the meal, Poe learned that the reason Petty had ended up on Jakku was because of his wife, Cara, who was a native. "Her parents were farmers, believe it or not," he said. "After the battle all those years ago, my squadron and I landed to check for survivors. She and her family were already searching through the crashed ships. I joke that they were the first scavengers of Jakku." He laughed. "Cara was only sixteen, but I fell for her so fast. I left, of course, but never forgot her, and when I finally left the New Republic, I came back to find her. Just my luck, she had never forgotten about me, either. The rest is history." He gestured at the half dozen children around the table with them.

Towards the end of the meal, Petty had given Poe a bit of hope that this trip hadn't been wasted. "If you're looking for pilots, I've heard about a scavenger in the area that has shown more than a bit of talent. It's a human girl, no family that I know of, and I have no clue where she lives, but you might catch her trading in the Outpost if you're lucky."

"What's her name?" Poe had asked.

"Rey." Petty shrugged, "I don't think she has any other name. She's one of Plutt's, practically a slave, so I'm sure she'd be thrilled to get the hell off this planet."

So, Poe and the others had wandered back to the little village made of tents and sandstone buildings. They had asked a couple of vendors about the scavenger pilot named Rey and gotten distrustful looks and no answers. They had stopped at the one cantina, but the bartender there had no clue. Poe guessed this particular scavenger probably didn't frequent this business much, if at all.

The three of them had gotten drinks and sat for a while in the shade of the cantina's canvas tent.

"Wanna keep looking?" Snap asked.

Poe sighed. They weren't due back on D'Qar for a while, yet. "Let's ask around a bit more. Most of the scavengers don't come in to trade until evening, anyway. We might as well hang on until then."

After their beverages were drunk, they set out again, trying to find the friendliest faces to ask. Finally, as the sun was low in the sky, they found someone who knew something. A vendor named Floy immediately perked up when they asked about a 'scavenger who was a good pilot.' "Rey!" he said. "You're looking for Rey!"

"You know her?" Poe asked.

"Yeah, she's one of the best scavengers out here. Keeps to herself. Doesn't hang with a crew like some do. A lot of the people here are protective of her, which is why you probably haven't been getting any answers, but if you are looking for pilots, maybe you'll get her the hell out of here." He cocked his head. "She deserves more than this place has to offer, that's for sure."

"Do you know where we can find Rey?" Snap asked.

Floy shrugged. "Nobody knows where she holes up, but she comes into Niima most days to trade." He looked around, his sun-wrinkled eyes scanning the people around him. Suddenly, they widened. "There she is!" He pointed.

Poe turned to see a young woman with dark hair pulled back tightly watching them from a few meters away. She was dressed in clothing that matched the desert around them and carried a staff that was taller than her. She looked very young, her face smooth and freckled, and while she was skinny Poe could see a wiry strength about her. Her eyes widened when she realized they were looking at her, and she turned to quickly walk the other way.

Poe nodded and smiled at Floy. "Thank you," he said. Then he turned toward the girl, Snap and Jess following. He looked at them. "Keep on her," he told them, then he ducked around one of the other vendors, moving quickly to pass the girl, who he could see was still focused on Snap and Jess following her, and coming around in front of her.

She stopped suddenly, panic in her expression as she realized he was blocking her path, and she brought her staff forward to grab it with both hands.

Poe raised his own hands in a placating gesture. "Hey, it's okay." He gave her a reassuring smile. "We just want to ask you a question."

He saw her relax a bit, but wariness remained on her face as she glanced at Snap and Jess coming up slowly behind her.

Poe offered her his hand. "I'm Poe. Poe Dameron."

She looked down at his hand, then looked back up at him, confusion taking over the wariness in her eyes. She let go of her staff with one hand and reached out to take his. Her hand was calloused and her handshake firm. Now that he was closer to her, he realized she was older than he first thought. She was almost as tall as him, as well. Best not get her mad, he thought. She could take him out in a heartbeat with that staff.

"Rey," she said softly, her voice deeper than he expected.

"I know," he smiled gently, letting go of her hand. Her expression softened at his words. He motioned to the people behind her. "This is Snap and Jess," he told her, watching as she glanced back at his companions.

When she focused on him again, he continued. "We're here looking for pilots to recruit into the Resistance. More than one person pointed you out as the best pilot in Niima, maybe even all of Jakku." He gave her a half grin. "Do you have any interest in learning to fly combat spacecraft?"

The young woman's eyes widened and her mouth dropped open a bit. "Fly combat? Like an X-Wing?"

"Yep," Poe smiled bigger this time, recognizing her growing excitement. "X-Wings. A-Wings. Bombers. Whatever your talent fits with best."

"That would be wonderful!" she exclaimed, but almost immediately her face fell.

He felt his own excitement drop. "What's wrong?"

She licked her lips and took a deep breath. "I'm flattered by your offer, but I… I can't leave Jakku."

"Seriously?" Poe felt an abnormal amount of disappointment flood him. "Why can't you leave this dustball?"

She hesitated for a moment. "I'm waiting for someone."

"That's too bad," Poe said. Not only would he have loved bringing back a new recruit, but he would have liked to get to know this woman better, too. "We really need good pilots. Whoever you're waiting for is very fortunate to have someone so loyal on their side."

She blushed. This desert-tough scavenger who he felt could very much take care of herself in the worst of situations actually blushed.

He held out his hand once more, and this time she took it without hesitation. "If you change your mind, look me up. Jenkins Petty, the mechanic, will know how to reach me." She nodded sadly. He squeezed her hand, keeping hold of it longer than he really needed to, and she didn't seem to mind. Finally, he let go with a sad nod of his own, and turned away, heading back toward the landing zone on the far side of Niima where Black One awaited him. He heard Jess and Snap follow.

Once they reached their ships, he turned back to look at the outpost.

"Well, that was a bust," Snap moaned. "Should we just head back?"

Poe folded his arms and leaned his shoulder against Black One's wing. He glanced up at the astromech in the droid socket, suddenly missing BB-8 who had stayed on base for routine maintenance. Then he looked at Snap.

"Let's hang out here for a while," he said slowly. "Just until dusk."

Something, he's not sure what, told him he needed to wait just a little longer.

XXXXXX

Rey wandered back toward her speeder at a slow pace after her encounter with the X-Wing pilot, not really paying attention to her surroundings. Poe, she thought. Poe Dameron. The name had a certain heroic sound to it. Which only made sense, as he was an X-Wing pilot in the Resistance. And he had offered her a chance to be one, too.

She shook her head sharply, chasing away the ache that filled her as best she could. She couldn't leave, not when her parents were coming back. How could they find her if she left? She reached her speeder and slowly pulled herself up, swinging her leg over the saddle, thinking back to her arrival in Niima not even an hour ago. She had noticed the X-Wings almost immediately as she made her way to Plutt's tent. Though she had seen plenty of that model of fighter before, they had always been either old junkers barely able to fly or in pieces on the desert sands of Jakku. These three ships, though obviously not brand-new, were well taken care of and ready for action. Two were painted generically, but one had been an intense black with orange highlights. She assumed it was as deadly as it looked.

After trading for one measly ration, which had been one more than she had gotten yesterday, she had wandered through the outpost, looking for the occasional vendor that might be willing to trade with her for more food; she often found things other than ship salvage when she was out in the desert. Just last week she had found a beautiful Cartney bloodstone, it's dark pink color startling against the sand. Floy had traded with her that day: the bloodstone for a loaf of real bread.

As she looked toward Floy's stand, she noticed him talking to three strangers, two men and a woman. Though they were dressed casually, she instinctively knew they were the pilots of the X-Wings. The tall bearded man and the young dark-haired woman were standing back a bit as the third man talked to Floy. Though shorter than Floy, he was fit and carried himself with a confidence Rey envied. She was pretty sure she was looking at the pilot of the black X-Wing.

When she had realized they were talking about her, she had left as quickly as she could. Though she had had good dealings with Floy, she trusted no one in Niima, and she instinctively wanted to escape any notice by strangers. Unfortunately, the dark-haired pilot had gotten ahead of her.

Her distrust had turned into excitement during their short conversation, but the hope that had dared to surface was quickly shoved back down when she remembered she couldn't leave. The man's obvious disappointment hadn't helped, and she had left the trio feeling more depressed than she had been in a long time.

She sat quietly on her speeder, looking off in the direction of the X-Wings, as the sun began to set. She felt tears well in her eyes and she angrily wiped them away before they fell. Why? The question rang in her head. Why couldn't she do what she wanted to do? Why was she living this life she hated? She closed her eyes, trying to envision her mother. She couldn't see her face, but she could feel her love and the sense of belonging her memory gave her. But it had been so very long since she had gone away. She would have come back for Rey by now if she was able. Rey opened her eyes. If she were able.

She was never coming back.

Rey gasped out loud. It was an almost blasphemous thought, but it felt true. Honest. Real.

With a sudden spurt of energy, Rey threw herself off the speeder. She grabbed her staff and ran toward where she had seen the X-Wings. She began to panic. What if she was too late? What if they took off before she got there? She ran faster.

She heard the engines roaring as she ducked around the last tent and raced toward the fighters. No! She was too late! But the man in the black X-Wing looked right at her. She saw a smile light up his face, and she could tell he was talking in the comm attached to his helmet. The other two X-Wings began lifting off, but his powered down. The canopy opened and he pushed himself out, pulling off his helmet.

Panting, Rey stopped at the X-Wing, putting a hand on the smooth metal and looking up at the pilot, who was now sitting on the frame of the cockpit.

"Change your mind?" he asked, grinning down at her.

She nodded.

"Snap and Jess are heading back, but there's a shuttle already on the way for you. Unless you have a ship?" He tilted his head at her.

She huffed a laugh. "No."

"Didn't think so." He jumped down from the cockpit, thumbing a remote to close up the canopy. "Let's go get your stuff while we wait," he told her.

She shook her head. "I don't really have anything worth bringing," she told him.

He frowned. "No holos? No mementos?"

She thought back to the little X-Wing pilot doll she had made, and the tiny Tuanulberry bush she had been carefully cultivating for the last year. She shrugged. "Nothing I can't live without," she mumbled.

He looked at her for a long while, a slight tilt to his head, and she had the fanciful idea that he could see inside her soul.

"We have the time," he finally said. "Let's go get your stuff."

Rey suddenly didn't want this man to see where she lived. "I can go by myself," she said, her voice a bit desperate sounding.

He grinned and shook his head. "Nah, I don't think so."

"You don't trust me to come back, do you?"

"How long did you debate with yourself before you came this time?" he argued.

She took a deep breath and looked away, embarrassed.

"If it bothers you that much, I promise I won't go inside," he told her, his voice soft. Soothing.

Rey looked back at him for a moment, then finally nodded. "My speeder is over there," she said, nodding back toward Niima.

"Let's go!"

Rey led him back into the outpost. Most of the vendors had packed up for the day, but other businesses had opened for the night, their lights bright and gaudy. Rey rarely found herself still in Niima after nightfall, preferring the dangers of the desert night to the dangers of the outpost's nightlife. Beings selling alcohol, spice, and sex tended to be far more treacherous and threatening than the Jakku wildlife. But as she walked along next to this man she had just met, she felt unusually safe. Maybe it was the blaster he wore at his hip, or maybe it was the casual yet vigilant way he watched his surroundings. While they walked along, matching strides, she imagined they looked like a formidable pair.

They reached her speeder and Rey immediately tucked her staff into the netting on the side and mounted the machine. Poe pulled himself up behind her, and Rey realized for the first time she had never had a passenger before. She hadn't given a thought to how close they would have to be. She sat up as far as she could, but there was still barely room for the both of them in the saddle. As she started the engine and it sputtered and turned over, she was very aware of every inch of his body that touched hers. And yet, as she turned on her headlight and pulled out of Niima, she found that she wasn't at all uncomfortable with his closeness. That maybe she even liked it.

It was a good ten-minute ride to her home from Niima in daylight, and even longer at night as she had to go slower to avoid the rocky outcroppings and crashed ships, but Rey soon slipped over the last large dune that essentially hid the Imperial Walker from most who traveled in this part of the desert. She pulled up to the fallen war machine and turned off her engine.

"Wow," Poe said softly.

"Welcome to Hellhound Two," she told him as he slid off the speeder. He grinned at her as she followed him down. She paused a moment, watching as he pulled a glowstick off of his belt and turned it on. "You can come in if you want," she said softly. "This won't take long."

She walked into her home for the last several years, turning on the lantern she kept right inside the door. It was her only light source, other than the occasional fire she burned outside on chilly nights. Quickly, she set out to grab the few items she felt a connection to, snatching up the doll first, before he could see it, and putting it in her sling bag. A couple of data cards that held some audiobooks and music she had found during her scavenging, and her plant. She managed to wrap some flimsy around the top so she could place it in the bag, protecting it somewhat. She reached for the helmet, but realized that if she was to become a pilot, she would soon have her own. Best leave it here as a remembrance of the pilot that once wore it.

When she was done, she looked for Poe. He was standing at the far wall, his glowstick pointing at the hundreds of marks she had placed there through the years. She felt her face heat. She watched him swallow, then he turned to look at her. She couldn't see his eyes clearly in the dim light, but the emotion in them was powerful. Without saying a word, he nodded and headed for the door. She followed.

There were no words between them on the ride back to Niima, where the Resistance shuttle was waiting for them, ready to take Rey to her new life.

XXXXXX