"You're Not Alone"

By EsmeAmelia

Chapter 2

For the next few days, Ben neither saw nor sensed any sign of Rey. More attempted meditation sessions revealed nothing and only caused Ben to scream in impatience, slamming his fists on the stone floor of the Temple's meditation room. Was this it? Had the bond between them, whatever it was, gotten severed somehow? Would he spend the rest of his life never knowing what happened to her?

Maybe the voice in his head would know what to do . . . but again he restrained himself from calling on it. The voice didn't know about Rey – at least he didn't think it did – and he could keep so few secrets from the voice. The voice already knew that the nightmares still plagued him, that he silently counted days until his parents could visit him, that he could sense his fellow students saw him as a freak. Revealing one of the few secrets he had left might not be a good idea.

"Little Master Ben?"

Ben looked up and there was 3PO in the doorway, using the nickname that had stuck ever since Ben was a baby. "What is it?"

"Master Luke wishes to see you," said 3PO.

Ben couldn't help but let out a groan – he did not need Luke scolding him about how poorly he was doing at meditation or how he was letting his anger overcome him during training now. "What about?"

"He did not say."

. . .

3PO led Ben to Luke's personal meditation chamber. Like the meditation chamber the students used, it was circular, with tall windows lighting up the room, but it was much smaller, meant for private use. Luke sat on the floor in the center, leaving little room for Ben to sit across from him.

"You wanted to see me?" Ben asked, struggling to keep his voice neutral.

His uncle looked him straight in the eye. "Something's troubling you."

It wasn't a question – in fact, it sounded almost like an accusatory statement. Ben gripped his knees in order to keep his hands still. "I'm fine," he said, still struggling to keep his voice neutral.

Luke shook his head. "You're not fine. You've been agitated for days and I want to help you."

"You can't help me," Ben muttered.

"You're right, I can't," said Luke. "I can't if you don't tell me what's going on."

Ben gulped. Don't trust him, the voice was always saying. Be wary of him. As soon as he learns how strong you are in the Force, he'll see you as a threat to his power.

Ben didn't believe it – not really, not exactly – but the way his uncle's eyes seemed to be boring into him made his muscles tense up. If – if – the voice was right, would he be putting Rey in danger if he told Luke about her. She had to be strong in the Force in order for the bond between them to exist . . . what if Luke saw her as a threat to his power?

"I'm . . . I'm tired," Ben finally said, concentrating on shielding his mind in case Luke tried to read it. "And frustrated that I can't seem to get the hang of meditation." This was true from a certain point of view. "Every time I try to meditate I just get a headache." There, he didn't lie – he just didn't tell the full truth.

Luke gave a small smile as he reached over to pat his nephew's shoulder. "Meditation takes practice," he said in a gentle voice. "We could have some private sessions together if you'd like."

"No, no, I don't think that's necessary. Thank you, though." Before his uncle could say anything more, he rose to his feet and left the room, not daring to exhale until he was sure Luke wasn't following him. Luke probably didn't believe his feeble excuse, but at least Rey was safe from him.

For now.

. . .

That night, Rey finally appeared again.

She was lying on her side, hugging her knees, but once she saw Ben she once again fell into his arms. "Ben," she said in a small, croaky voice, "I thought you were gone like Mommy and Daddy."

"I was worried too," said Ben, squeezing her trembling body. "Are you okay?"

Rey shook her head. "I'm hungry and thirsty and . . . and it hurts!"

"What hurts?"

"Everything."

Ben pulled out of the embrace and turned on the light to get a good look at her. Her skin was red, with white lines peeling off at various spots. "You're sunburned!" he exclaimed. "Damn, it looks really bad."

"It hurts," she repeated.

Ben swallowed. "Look, my uncle probably has something to treat that, but it would be in the Temple. I don't know what will happen if I try to go in there without you." If she vanished while he was in the Temple, who knew when she'd appear again? "But, I have an idea. Do you trust me?"

Rey nodded.

"All right." With one sweeping motion, Ben scooped the child into his arms and pushed himself to his feet. "Now, I don't know if this means I'll bump into something in your space, but in my space, I'm going to the Temple, even though you won't be able to see it."

The girl just rested her head on his shoulder as he made his way out into the chilly night, the damp grass soaking his bare feet. "It will just be a short walk," he said. "Are you okay? Are you feeling anything weird?"

"No," she said. "You're comfy."

During the walk to the Temple, feeling her weight in his arms and on his shoulder, Ben could almost believe that Rey was actually here, that she wasn't in danger of vanishing at any moment, that he could rescue her from her terrible situation simply by holding on to her.

The Temple was dark and quiet as he made his way to the nearest refresher, hoping Luke was asleep and wouldn't sense Rey's presence – but could he sense her presence when she wasn't really here? He didn't want to find out.

"Okay," he said, putting Rey down and flicking on the lights, blinking away the spots. "Let's see what we can find." He pushed the button to open the medicine cabinet behind the mirror and after a bit of rummaging, he found a cream to treat sunburn. "Thank the Force," he murmured.

"Is it gonna hurt more?" Rey asked, her lips pursed.

"No, I don't think so," Ben said as he uncapped the cream and knelt down by her side. "It will just feel a little cold. You ready?"

Rey nodded and Ben started applying the cream on her face and her exposed arms, praying that she wouldn't disappear until he was finished. Some of her peeled skin rubbed off as he was applying the cream, making her flinch and bringing an ache to his stomach. Who would be so cruel as to make a small child work in the sun all day with no protection?

Her stomach growled as he finished applying the cream. "Are you hungry?" he asked, then immediately felt like slapping himself since she'd already said she was hungry and thirsty. "Come on," he said, taking her hand. "I'll get you some food and water."

"Thanks," said Rey, smiling up at him. "You're a good friend, Ben."

Ben didn't know how to respond to that. Putting cream on Rey's face and giving her food wasn't rescuing her.

When they reached the kitchen, Ben took a bottle of water out of the fridge and once he had the cap off, she grabbed the bottle and started gulping the water down as if she hadn't had anything to drink all day, drips of water dribbling down her face.

Maybe she hadn't had anything to drink all day.

"Don't choke," said Ben. "You can have more if you're still thirsty after you're done. What would you like to eat?"

But before Rey could answer, she disappeared.

"No!" Ben stared at the spot where she had been as if that would bring her back. "No no NO! Rey!" His fist slammed against the fridge door as a frustrated cry escaped his mouth. How long would it be before she appeared again? Two days, three days, but what could happen to her in that time? She could be injured from whatever kind of work she was being forced to do, beaten for not doing her job right, deprived of food and water to the point of sickness.

She could die!

Ben slumped down against the fridge, sinking to the floor, never taking his eyes off that spot where Rey was just moments before, remembering his father's horror stories about growing up as Lady Proxima's scumrat, of being beaten to a bloody mess or forced to go for days without food because he hadn't stolen enough to satisfy her.

"I'll find you, Rey," he whispered, his voice shaking. "Someday I'll find where you are and I'll rescue you. And if whoever's doing this to you tries to stop me, I'll kill him!"