The following morning, Kylo Ren woke to the harsh sun beating down on his skin, his black clothing giving no help to the heat. With a frustrated sigh, he slowly opened his eyes, finding himself surrounded by sand that also scattered over the fire that had blazed the night before.
Sitting up, he glanced around his surroundings and found no trace of Rey, having to briefly channel the Force to find her signature, which was very easy since she stood out so much with her raw, undiscovered power.
Kylo got to his feet and arched his back, cursing every grain of sand his eyes fell upon as he slowly made his way to Rey, who was at least three miles away and currently tucked into a cavern.
Begrudgingly, he walked as he thought to himself.
Since arriving on Tatooine, a number of things had crossed his mind.
One, Rey's powers with the Force were growing out of his own reach, and he was unsure of the outcome if he were not able to help her tame them. Her Force signature alone called to him so vibrantly, and Kylo was sure that it would do the same with other Force sensitives as well.
Second, Rey has seemed to have done well so far, but he could not deny the worry that plagued his mind and nerves knowing that she was so lost in her own mind, battling these visions she claims to have.
It would only take one person...
One person to catch her off guard as she meditated, or while she watched her vision...
With a hard gulp, Kylo brushed the thought away.
He couldn't remember the exact time he discovered to have had cared so much for what happened to the Scavenger...
Even now, as he suffered the heat of two suns to find the way to the girl, it still baffled him.
They were still technically enemies, and even then, they were bound to one another in life and in death, a magnetic pull that fated them to each other's sides, and he, Kylo Ren, was lost in it.
He had spent months after months looking for answers as to why this happened, and even deeper, how to break it when he himself knew he wouldn't be able to.
The answers still came to the same conclusion that his heart struggled with: Fate.
Snoke had once tried to take ownership of the act, of the pure bond that the Force had created, but it was truly evident that not even he could create such a thing.
Again, as he had so many times since Crait, Kylo cursed the Force.
Part of him used to blame Rey for the whole ordeal, his own thoughts attempting to convince his mind that she actually knew of her abilities and powers, and had been using them to gain Kylo's favor and destroy the First Order through him.
However, after so many months of an empty bond and silent hum, he knew it couldn't be true.
Though they may be enemies in war, there was more that lay beneath it, a longing that he had never experienced with anyone else, a line of honesty he hadn't come close to sharing with anyone but her.
In only a short amount of time, she had in turn convinced him that he was a monster – One that could be worthy of redemption, that had the possibility of doing and being good.
The thought alone made Kylo Ren sneer as he neared the cavern he was led to.
With a clenched jaw, Kylo resisted the urge to spit away that uncomfortable confusion that soared in his indecisive soul.
Pausing near the entrance, Kylo looked back towards his ship, a hard tug pulling at him as his mind ordered him to return to his Order, to command rule and take charge in seeing the destruction of Palpatine...
But he knew...
He knew he stood no chance without the girl that wreaked so much chaos within him.
Now inside of the deep cave, Kylo slowly turned the corner, surprised to hear the sound of water as he glanced down and saw the moisture in the ground around his boots.
His brow creased as he continued walking hesitantly.
Rounding another corner, his boots splashed against the water as it grew around each step, pooling more and more until he stepped up onto a rocky area, his head cocking around one last corner to see a pool of blue water.
The roof of the cave sunk in to expose the sun just enough to light up the walls of the cavern, the large pool of water shimmering in its light as rocks and stones, small and large, scattered throughout the cave, creating shadows of light and dark water.
Kylo's eyes wandered over the water before setting on Rey, who sat on a large boulder that was submerged in the blue, though it was high enough to hold Rey's upper body nearly out of the water.
Freezing mid-step, his mind stuttered over his last few thoughts as his eyes traveled down her naked body, greedily taking in the view; Her damp hair slicked back behind her shoulders, her tanned skin peaking perfectly out of the blue water, scarred flesh meeting freckles and tan lines, and the swell of her breasts hardening him instantly.
Feeling a presence near her, Rey's eyes shot open as she quickly whipped her head to Kylo, her hands flying to cover what she could, though the last sight he stole was of her bare midriff beneath the water that led to a small, beautiful patch of dark curls between her thighs.
Kylo felt his own face and ears burn quickly as he turned, catching Rey's gaze briefly and tried his best to even out his breathing as his jaw clenched.
"Have you no shame?" Rey exclaimed as she dove into the water to conceal her body, gripping the edge of the boulder to keep her afloat.
"I..." Kylo trailed off, unable to form a solid, coherent response as his eyes blinked furiously, trying to focus on the ground, the wall, his hands... anything.
"No! I forgot. You can take whatever you want...and that includes ogling at naked women!" Rey growled at him, mimicking his own words from the time he interrogated her after Takodana.
Her choice in words made his mouth quirk with a smile, hidden since he had his back to her.
From the sound of water dripping, Kylo knew she was out of the water now and fumbling with her clothing.
Finally, he set his hard gaze on the ceiling of the cave, choosing to remain quiet in order to save his own head... Though surprisingly, he was both amused and aroused at this very moment.
For a long moment, Rey grumbled and cursed at him from behind as she struggled to find the opening of her attire, her wet hands matting down the fabrics and making it frustratingly impossible to operate.
She froze in her place when she heard him audibly smirk, followed by a small mumble, "Don't flatter yourself, Scavenger."
From within their bond, Rey felt his amusement, growing even more angrier at the sight of it.
He thought this was funny?
Rey growled at him again as she stomped over to him, standing in front of him with her arms crossed around her breasts, uncaring to her appearance, eager to both show him up and shut him up.
She peered up at him as he stared blankly at the ceiling of the cavern, the red in his cheeks returning as she stood nude before him, his eye twitching as he forced himself to stay still and keep his eyes away from the prize before him.
Still, his gaze did not budge.
Narrowing her eyes, she lowered her arms to her sides.
"Joke all you want, Solo." Rey scolded him, satisfied as his jaw tensed at the name. "I know the look and feel when a man wants a woman."
Her tone challenged him confidently, and she was sure that he was too embarrassed to meet her gaze...
Until she watched as he swallowed and rolled his eyes down to hers, his eyes hooded and dark with his own test.
Her parted lips quickly shut as she blinked, suddenly feeling her confidence waiver.
Again, as he did often, he never took his eyes off of her, even lowering himself to meet her gaze head on.
She huffed at him as her chin rose in the air, her heart beating fast as she brushed past him and went straight for her clothes once more.
Both Rey and Kylo looked to their sides, trying to see out of the corner of their eye if the other was watching.
With a sharp inhale, Kylo returned his gaze to the walls of the cave, carefully etching the memory of her wet, toned body into his mind.
After dressing, Rey straightened herself before returning to his side, trying her best to fan the heat away from her face as she replayed the same events over and over.
Nudity on Jakku was never a big deal, in fact it was pretty normal due to the heat and harsh sand. However, she herself had never took part in it, instead she chose to go for light colors to keep cool, and took comfort in the fact that no one would be able to see her imperfect flesh beneath the wispy material.
No one had ever gotten the chance to look at her nude... And now, Ben Solo – Kylo Ren of the First Order – had been the first person to ever see the parts of her she had barely discovered herself.
The way he had stood and looked at her, though...
The sight alone made her breath grow heavy, and her abdomen filled with warmth.
Shaking her head, Rey brushed past him once more to lead the way outside, trying to break the very uncomfortable silence with Kylo, who was trying to walk off his sudden and annoying arousal.
"So, what now?" She asked with a bored tone.
He sighed behind her. "You need more training... And I need your help..."
"Right, because there's something bad in the Force?" Rey finished, irritation still strong in her voice.
"Someone." He corrected. "I am no match for his power. Not even with my men."
The comment made Rey stop and turn to him. "Your troops, or the Knights of Ren?"
Kylo's eyes narrowed at her briefly. "Both."
It took Rey a moment, but she finally responded, crossing her arms as her gaze traveled from the ground and up to his eyes.
"But... You defeated Snoke." She pointed out.
"This is bigger than Snoke."
She had a feeling that he was going to say it before his mouth even formed the words. Her mind raced to find a solution, her voice coming out small and unsure.
"The Resistance..."
"Will still be no match, even combined with my own resources."
The look he gave her conveyed the plea and seriousness he needed to. Kylo felt her reach through the bond, searching for a lie, for any exaggeration.
There was none.
If anything, his emotions betrayed him and extended forth an even louder shout for her help, and in her mind crept another whisper, harsher than Kylo could ever sound.
'Help the boy...' a dark, sinister voice called to her mind. 'Help me...'
Rey jumped at the sound, and Kylo searched her face and mind for answers to what happened, for what she saw.
Rey quickly put up a mental block, shutting him out... Keeping the voices in...
"Rey..." Kylo called to her, his voice soothing but begging.
Her eyes met his, and together they shared a wide, frightened look.
A flash of the vision she had yesterday flew through her mind... The small boy sharing her tears as they were left alone... Kylo nowhere in sight...
"The future will always change. Your visions are not concrete."
Rey glanced away from him, her heart breaking at the sight in her mind. His words echoed in the distance, but it was not enough to ease her nerves.
He was right. The future would always change...
But why was this one vision so real, so vivid?
No matter the answer, Rey swore to not allow it to come true.
Squaring her shoulders, her eyes narrowed and grew hard as she looked up to him.
"Where do we begin?" she asked, a fierce determination taking pride across her features.
He absolutely adored her for it.
But still, he was eager to get down to the center of her visions, and whatever darkness loomed within her.
Kylo's goal was not to snuff out the dark that he believed came naturally to her, but to help grow into it, to guide it into a useful power that she would be able to channel at any given moment, to be his equal and so much more.
He wondered if he would ever get the chance to see it, if they were to survive this...
Inhaling deeply, Kylo looked to the sky above. "We need to spar. A real, true session to test your strengths and weaknesses. My Knights can be of help in this. They can be trusted. Six of the strongest men out there, and I have them on my side."
Rey watched him, her arms still crossed over her chest.
She looked at him with a single eyebrow raised.
"Five."
Kylo reached into his pocket to pull out his gloves, slowly putting them on as he waited for her to continue.
"Five?" His brow creased as he asked her, an uninterested tone coating over his voice.
"Yes, five. As in you have five Knights of Ren."
His hands froze their dressing as he looked at her, meeting her bored gaze as she pushed past him.
"I killed one of them the day before you arrived."
Rey walked off, leaving Kylo Ren to watch after her, absolutely dumbfounded for the first time in all his life.
( X )
Author's Notes:
Woo! Another chapter. More soon, I'm actually liking where I'm going with this, and I thank you all sooo much for your feedback. I love it and appreciate every word!
My other story "Steady On." will be updated later tonight, possibly tomorrow, so jump over there and catch up on that 62 chapter thang!
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