Discerning readers will recognize the Hestv as having popped in from another universe entirely. Go, read Diane Duane's superlative Spock's World. It's so good.

The New Republic was the largest ship Rey had seen outside of a Star Destroyer. It just kept getting bigger as the Falcon zeroed in on her assigned landing bay, and the back of Rey's mind couldn't help a running calculation of just how much a wreck of so huge a ship might be worth. She still hadn't got used to not having to scavenge to survive.

Granted, the supplies remaining at the Resistance base would run out eventually, and then she and Finn and Poe and Chewie would have to find some other source of income. Lando had made noises about funding for a Jedi temple, but Rey pushed the consideration to the back of her mind, storing next to the estimates about wiring and scrap. It wasn't why they were here.

A nervous exhale behind her heralded Finn's arrival in the cockpit. "How do I look?" he demanded.

BB-8 whistled admiringly from behind the co-pilot's chair. Adequate, Chewbacca said with the boredom of a species who found clothing unnecessary. Rey elbowed him gently and turned to look.

Finn was wearing the new clothes Lando had insisted on, dark blue trousers and jacket over a crisp white shirt. The lines were simple, but much more elegant than his previous, somewhat haphazard outfits. Embroidered on the jacket's breast, shimmering slightly, was the symbol of the New Republic.

"Brilliant," Rey told him, grinning. "How's Poe look?"

Finn rolled his eyes. "He's still primping, hasn't come out yet. How about you, when are you going to change?"

"As soon as we're down." Rey swiveled back around to look out the viewport. The Falcon was just passing from the black of space to the lights of the enormous hangar bay, and Chewbacca touched a few controls, guiding them down towards their designated spot. "...Why are there so many people there?"

An honor guard, Chewbacca said. And admirers.

Rey exchanged a glance with Finn, and knew - without the Force - that they were thinking the same thing.

We are in way over our heads.

Go, Chewie said, jerking his thumb back towards the crew quarters. I have this.

Rey went.

The bundle of cloth Lando had handed her shook out to reveal slim, cream-colored trousers and a close-fitting top, sleeveless and much like her usual clothes; but these were new and unstained, needing no mending. She skinned out of her familiar outfit and pulled them on, then added the last bit - a long wide-sleeved cloak in dusty brown that evoked Jedi robes.

Rey felt the Falcon touch down just as she refastened her belt, and she checked automatically for both sabers, then bent swiftly to her discarded shirt. The little dice found a new home within her new top, and Rey laid a hand on them for an instant before opening the door.

It always hurt, to be reminded. But she didn't ever want to forget.

"Nice," D-O told her as she stepped out into the corridor, and Rey smiled at him.

"Thank you. Are you ready?"

"Ready for d-d-democracy," D-O replied, wheeling along next to her, though he didn't sound convinced.

"You look fine," Finn was saying soothingly as Rey reached the hatch. "Doesn't he look fine, Rey?"

Poe swung around to face her. He was wearing a worried expression, dark trousers similar to Finn's but topped with a loose white shirt, and a dark blue vest, which also bore the embroidered symbol. Rey grinned. "Perfect. You two are practically a set."

"I feel like a cantina dancer," Poe grumbled, tugging at the vest. Rey couldn't see why he was worried; it wasn't that far off from other things she'd seen him wear.

"Come on, Generals. It's time to go." Mustering a confidence she didn't really feel, Rey hit the ramp switch.

As she watched, Finn and Poe exchanged glances, and their nerves disappeared - or were hidden. They started down the ramp together, matching their paces, and Rey's grin widened at the spate of applause that greeted them.

She schooled her face back to solemnity and drew up the cowl of the cloak, draping it over her head. A huge hand on her arm stopped her step forward.

Go last, Chewbacca said. Jedi work best with drama.

He chuckled at her snort and followed Finn and Poe, the droids rolling along beside him. Rey rolled her eyes, but - He's right.

So she gave him three long beats to get to the end of the ramp, another for the cheer to die, and strode forward.

The crowd's excitement was smothered by a sudden hush. Rey could feel the eyes on her, awed and respectful - and, some of them, afraid. It sent a pang through her, but she kept her chin up and her posture calm, trying to emulate Leia at her most regal.

This is ridiculous, some part of her said, the part that knew she was scarcely more than an apprentice, but it wasn't Luke's lessons that helped her now. She joined her friends at the bottom of the ramp; Finn looked torn between sternness and laughter, and Poe's eyes gleamed for an instant before he turned to the crowd. "Who talks first? Do I talk first?"

The tension was broken with a ripple of laughter, and a tall Hestv stepped forward, bowing slightly. "Welcome to the New Republic, Generals, Master Jedi, respected Pilot. We can escort you to the Council chamber."

Poe opened both hands. "Lead on."

The two ranks of honor guard opened to let them through, then reformed behind them. They were wearing a uniform Rey didn't recognize, but she noticed that they all looked very young, or too old to be soldiers. She had to swallow, because she could guess what had happened to the others, but she didn't let the sorrow show.

The Hestv led them out of the hangar bay and down several corridors so wide that they looked as if they belonged on a planet. They were plushly carpeted, with creamy walls and the occasional abstract mural, and Rey felt more out of place with every step. Judging from the growing stiffness of Finn's spine, he felt the same way, though Poe was unreadable and the droids spun along as if they took in luxury every day.

It doesn't matter, Rey told herself. What's important is the rebuilding, not where it's discussed. But it still made her feel small and insignificant, nothing but the scruffy scavenger girl she'd been just a year or two prior.

A shriek of absolute joy jerked Rey out of her reflections, and she looked up in time to see a small figure dash past the startled honor guard to leap into Chewbacca's extended arms. Gone were the baggy coveralls; Rose was wearing something clinging in a blue-green that reminded Rey of the lake on Takodana.

"Jannah!" Finn was saying, laughing out loud, and Poe whooped and grabbed Jannah up in a hug before passing her to Finn. Her outfit was a blinding white that set off her familiar headband, and Rey knew that Lando had gotten to her as well.

And then it was hugs all around, and a babble of excited voices, and the honor guard looking a little taken aback as they watched the reunion.

"We were going to wait until the first session was over," Rose explained a bit breathlessly, her arms slung around Poe and Finn's waists. "But then we spotted you going by and…" She shrugged.

"You should come with us," Finn said. "You had just as much to do with the Battle of Exegol as we did."

"Perhaps not quite as much," Jannah said, eyeing Rey thoughtfully. "But...why not?"

So it was a slightly larger group that paused outside the doors of the Council room. "Where's General Calrissian?" Rey asked the Hestv in a low voice.

"I believe he's already inside, respected," their guide replied. "If you will permit?"

The guards at the doors - real ones, to judge by the blasters they wore - waited for her nod before they pulled the doors wide. Rey had one moment to wonder who put me in charge before stepping through.

The voices echoing through the room fell silent. All eyes were on her; some were on stalks. Rey didn't stop, moving forward so the others could follow, and tried to see where Lando was without looking directly at anyone, for fear they could see how nervous she was.

Her ears told her when her friends were beside her; Rey halted, and lowered her cowl.

The silence was filled with a soft rush of sound as the entire Council rose to their feet.

Only a lifetime's training of keeping her mouth shut when necessary saved Rey from gaping at the tribute; and she could hear Rose's gasp and feel Finn's prickle of shock. It took her a long moment to remember to press her hand to her heart in salute. "Councilmembers."

The being at the head of the long table stepped forward, returning the gesture. They were a species Rey didn't recognise, round and blue-skinned and dressed in silvery robes. "Welcome, Master Rey," they said in a voice that sounded like chimes. "Welcome, Generals and heroes of the Resistance...our saviors."

Murmurs rose from the others around the table, which ran the length of the large room. Down one side, a stronger voice spoke up.

"Come and take your seats, gentlefolk," Lando called, and Rey could hear the smile in his voice. "We've been waiting for you."

Rey swallowed, took her courage in both hands, and obeyed.

By the end of the first day, Finn was exhausted.

It was funny, he thought, as their little Resistance party gathered in the big dining hall on the New Republic. The day hadn't involved anything more strenuous than the walk from the Falcon to the Council hall. But his head buzzed with names, faces, and agendas, and even BB-8's promise to help him keep track of all the new people he'd met wasn't enough to reassure him.

Now they all huddled together, trying to look brave - Poe and Rey, Jannah and Rose; only Lando and Chewbacca looked at ease, and Finn suspected that Chewie just didn't care that much about what people thought.

They'd all claimed a table; Finn had just made his first pass at the buffet, dazzled by the variety of food available, and judging by the way Rey was staring at her heaped plate, he wasn't the only one.

"It's wasteful," Jannah said, picking at her own choices. "How much of this will just go into the disposer afterwards?"

Lando shrugged easily. "It's all part of the show."

Poe didn't say anything; his mouth was full.

"A ship this size has recyclers," Rose pointed out, nibbling at a fruit Finn had never seen before. "I agree it's a waste, but it won't just get thrown away."

Finn glanced at Chewbacca, but he was working his way through a pile of something purple and didn't comment.

Rey muttered something indistinguishable, then swallowed her bite. "Are we pulling it off?"

Lando laughed. "You're doing fine. Most of these people learned on the job, you know. You'll pick it up as you go."

"Yeah, but how many of them started at the top?" Finn asked, then tried not to moan at his first taste of the cake he'd chosen. Food in the First Order had been more basic than palatable, and the Resistance rations had tended towards whatever they could scrape together; this was something else.

"In a way, that makes it easier." Lando stirred his soup idly. "You have the ears and eyes of the galaxy. You can say what needs to be heard."

Finn wasn't sure that the galaxy needed to hear his opinion about anything, but - It's only the first day. He tried to do justice to the food he'd chosen, and listened to the others discuss what they'd learned.

And watched Poe out of the corner of his eye.

In the whirlwind of preparing for departure, he and Rey had never finished their discussion. Poe hadn't been avoiding him any longer, exactly, but somehow Poe was always too busy to have a real conversation, and he wouldn't meet Finn's gaze.

You're wrong, Finn thought at him. You're still wrong.

It hurt, this weird separation between them. Ever since they'd met, Finn had felt he could lean on Poe, and despite a few arguments along the way, that feeling had never faded.

I want my friend back. Something in Finn grumbled, dissatisfied with the thought, but it was still true. He considered himself wealthy beyond any dream he might have had in the First Order - he had freedom, he had friends, and he had the honor of having taken down Captain Phasma - and Finn counted all of those things precious. He didn't intend to lose any of them.

But he didn't know how to fix things. I still need to talk to Rey.

He bided his time as they ate, and watched Poe and Chewie leave with a frown. "Can we talk?" he asked Rey in an undertone as she scraped the last of some pink sauce from her plate.

"Oh - yes. We sort of got interrupted, didn't we?" She laid down her utensil and regarded him. "Why don't we go back to the Falcon?"

"Sounds good." Finn almost felt as if he should be offering her a hand up as they rose, though he couldn't say why, exactly. She looked as fierce and capable as ever, with the edge of authority that her new clothes provided.

They picked up a droid escort just outside the dining hall, and Finn suspected that BB-8 had been lying in wait for them. "Have you seen Artoo or Threepio yet?" he asked.

BB-8 informed him that both of them were on board but undergoing some cosmetic maintenance, since C-3PO apparently wanted to look his best for his upcoming duties. Finn was impressed by how well the droid managed to convey sarcasm.

"What, no oil bath for you?" Rey asked, amused, and BB-8 squeaked something very rude. Finn snickered.

The hangar bay where the Falcon was berthed had a wonderful view of the local stars, and Finn and Rey ended up in the cockpit just to take advantage of it. "What's on your mind?" Rey asked softly as they settled in.

Finn blew out a breath. "It's Poe," he said after a minute. "He says we can't be friends any more if I keep training as a Jedi. That he's too ordinary."

Rey snorted, and said something in Crolute that made BB-8's comment sound like high courtesy. Finn had to grin a little. "I know. But...that's why I was asking what we're doing. We had plans, you know, and I..." He shrugged.

"That makes sense." Rey tilted back in the pilot's chair, putting her feet carefully on the panel in front of her. "Finn, what I said before is true. I'm happy to train you, but you have to do what you want."

"But...you'll need help." Finn bit his lip. "You can't do it all on your own."

Rey gave him an amused look. "I can train other apprentices. In theory."

He fidgeted for a moment, trying to phrase what he wanted to say. "The texts...they talk about how a Jedi isn't supposed to get attached. That if you do, you aren't a Jedi any longer."

She made a scoffing noise. "Master Luke never mentioned that, and neither did Master Leia. Look, Finn, if I'm the last Jedi, then I get to choose which rules we follow, and if the Jedi of the past don't like it, they can go fish for starfin."

Rey stared down at her closed fist, and opened it slowly. The little dice that had once hung in the cockpit sat in her palm. "As far as I can tell, the rule about cutting people off from their attachments only led to trouble. So...we won't keep it."

Her expression was still, but Finn sensed a deep wave of grief flowing out of her, and it made his breath catch. Nonetheless, he knew when to keep his mouth shut.

"Okay then," he said instead. "What about training here, though? I mean, I'd like to at least until I figure out what I'm doing."

Rey's expression lightened. "I'm sure we can find someplace they're not using."

Rebuilding.

It was strange, to watch the business of politics supplant the business of war. Rey had lost count of the sessions she'd attended, and had more committees asking for her presence than she had time to give; but they were all in the same situation.

"It's not that I'm not flattered," Rose said as she and Rey left the massive dining hall. "But I'm a mechanic. What do I know about parliamentary voting systems?"

Rey shrugged, pocketing the fruit she'd lifted from the buffet; the sight of so much food never failed to make her a little dizzy, and it made her feel better to have some stashed.

Just in case.

"What do I know about any of this? I was a scavenger. I'd be more useful stripping this thing for parts than sitting in on the latest discussion of trade routes." She fastened her pocket closed.

"Right there with you." Rose popped a last sweet into her mouth, sighing a little. "But Lando's right. They do need our perspective."

She grinned. "And you can't beat the accommodations."

Rey smiled back, but she couldn't quite mean it. Rose swore under her breath. "I'm about to be late for another meeting - see you at dinner?"

At Rey's nod she dashed off, vanishing down a side corridor. Rey watched her disappear, then kept walking. She had nothing scheduled that afternoon, for a change, and having so little physical work to do made her restless. Sometimes it felt like she'd paced off a lightyear's worth of distance up and down the wide halls of the ship.

They had all been assigned quarters, of course, but Rey found the plush suite she'd been assigned more oppressive than comfortable. It's strange; I dreamed of comfort when I lived in an old AT-AT, but...it's too much.

She hadn't yet given into the temptation to join Chewie on board the Falcon - he'd refused the rooms with brusque Wookiee courtesy that forbore asking why - but Rey did wonder every night, curled up in an overlarge bed, whether she wouldn't be more comfortable in the cramped cot behind the galley.

It was interesting, though, to watch the many, many beings who came and went on the New Republic. People of more species than Rey had known existed, droid models she'd never heard of, languages familiar and totally strange - it was fascinating. Rey had never seen so many people at once before; Niima Outpost was not known for its large population, and while the Resistance had been a mixed group, they had never been all in the same place at the same time, barring the disaster of Crait.

And people recognised her. Rey knew it was the cloak, mostly, which she wore more because the ship was constantly chilly than because she wanted to be known. But eyes went wide when they saw her; crests rose, lights flashed, breath whistled or hissed or gasped.

She never felt easy with it, the whispers or the bows or the salutes. But she returned grave nods, because she was a Jedi now, and that demanded dignity.

What Rey hated was the fear in some of the faces - not so many in the halls, but more than a few at the big council table. It was hidden there, under smooth manners and polite words, but she could sense it all the same, and it made her feel colder than even the ship's air.

She understood it. Rey had walked into the hands of the Sith, and survived, and the Sith had not. To the career diplomats, who had stayed far from war, she was now a threat.

It would have made her laugh, except she supposed she really was one. She could control the Force - and there was no one left who could counter her.

No one left…

The buzzing voices in the ship's wide corridor were abruptly too much. Rey dodged two Jawas and a passing ambassadorial party and ducked down a service corridor, checking the access panels until she found one that led into the maintenance ducts. She didn't need the Force to do it; she'd spent her childhood exploring old wrecks for just such entrances.

She offered a strained smile to the serving droid who was rolling past, and cracked open the panel to slip inside.

The duct was wide, befitting such a large ship, dim with only the service lights on. The only droids she might encounter here would be simple-minded maintenance rollers, who might report the intrusion to Security but wouldn't try to talk to her.

The hero of Exegol, the last of the Jedi, reduced to hiding in the pipes. It was amusing, but she couldn't muster a smile. Rey folded herself up and buried her head in her arms. Ben.

He was never a Jedi, she reminded herself, again. He's not coming.

She did not cry.

The burn at the bottom of her soul flared up, gnawing at her. If it weren't such a temptation, Rey thought, she could deal with it more easily. Pain she could handle; no scavenger made it through life without scrapes, cuts, burns, breaks.

It was the promise that made it so seductive.

Let go, and see him again.

Maybe if we'd had more time. When she tallied up how long they'd been united, truly of one will, it was less than five minutes. Not counting the part where I was dead.

To have the merest taste of what could be, then to have it ripped away…

It would have been easier if Ben had never turned. Rey might have regretted, then, but she wouldn't have known.

But that would have been worse. Easier, but worse.

It was strange. Rey stared into the shadows of the duct, seeing nothing. If she'd never met Leia or Luke, if she'd just been an orphan girl from a poor planet on the backside of the galaxy when she and Kylo Ren had met, would she have taken his hand? She thought not, but Luke had instilled enough of the Jedi self-reflection routines in her for Rey to know she couldn't be sure.

On the other hand, she thought dryly, even if I had he wouldn't have had it all his own way.

Sand and rock, what would she give just to be able to argue with him again?

Rey put her head down on her knees again, rocking a little, throat and chest a mass of pain that had no easing. It was only the sound of tiny wheels that made her look up once more.

It was just a little vacuum droid passing by, sucking up whatever dust might have gathered; it didn't even seem to notice her. Rey watched it go, shaken from her musings by one question.

Why does it have a knife taped to its chassis?

The third time he tried to reach her -

Darkness turned to fuzzy gray, and then voices spoke in the distance, smeared to nonsense by echoes. Ben followed them, heard them roll towards him, come clear.

"I don't like it." The traitor's voice - what did Rey call him? Finn. You have no right to call anyone traitor. "She just - fell over."

A calmer voice, an older one, weary and sad. It's not unexpected.

"She keeps saying nothing's wrong, but look at her. Chewie, we have to make her rest!"

The gray did not focus or lighten, but Ben didn't care, as long as he could listen. He seemed to have limbs, at least, but they were leaden and unmovable.

If you think you can do that, you're welcome to, Chewbacca replied. But the only thing more stubborn than a Solo is a Jedi.

The sound of his voice gave Ben's heart a little lift - it was good to know that Chewie was alive - but he was far more concerned about the rest of the conversation. They must be talking about Rey. Where is she?

A spasm of pain shot through his head, startling him so badly that Ben lost his concentration. Opening his eyes, he found himself back where he'd started, alone in the light.

He raised a hand to his head, but the pain had dissipated. Of course. It was hers.

He'd been in Rey's body. Or at least sensing it. And from what he could tell by what he'd heard, she hadn't been conscious.

And she was definitely not okay.

Ben set his jaw, and drew the spark back into himself with exquisite care. And then he stood, and went looking for Luke.

He didn't find Luke. What found him was another figure coalescing out of the light - taller, broader, one who carried shadows within him much like Ben's. His face was a stranger...but Ben knew him instantly.

He swallowed. "Grandfather."

"Ben." The man in brilliant Jedi robes quirked a small smile, rueful and sympathetic. He didn't look young at all; more like a middle-aged man in the prime of life. Ben had seen one or two holos of a young Anakin Skywalker, but the resemblance was faint. "It's good to meet you at last."

Ben felt his shoulders rising towards his ears, a childhood reflex he'd eradicated long ago. "Uh. Should...should I apologize to you too?"

It was sheer embarrassment. He'd idolized this man for so long - no, idolized the monster Anakin had become - and now that Ben had acknowledged how wrong he'd been, the entire thing seemed stupid and childish. And insulting.

Anakin shook his head, still smiling. "No, no. You were set up for it from the very beginning. And while I admit your keeping my head in a box was a little disturbing - "

Ben winced.

" - Being on this side of things does give one a wider point of view." He sighed, rubbing the fingers of one hand together, and Ben remembered that Anakin had lost more than just one limb.

The embarrassment ebbed slightly, and was overturned by a sudden rush of anger. "Why didn't you stop me? If you had come - if you had come…"

Ben trailed off, taken by the bitter vision. If Anakin had appeared to him, spoken to him out loud - would he have turned back?

"Would you have listened?" Anakin's expression was sympathetic, but his voice was firm. "And in any case, we don't interfere in people's lives, even those we love. You have to make your own choices."

The argument was specious, Ben knew it, but his anger collapsed all the same, because Anakin had the right of it. He wouldn't have listened, too convinced he had burned all his bridges to accept a new one built in front of him. "Sorry," he muttered, and rubbed his nose.

"I wish I could have," Anakin added. "But you did very well at the end, and I'm proud of you."

The words took him in the gut like a blaster bolt. Proud -

"You know what I've done," Ben croaked through a tight throat. "How can you be - " He couldn't even say the word.

Anakin regarded him steadily. "Because I know exactly how hard it was."

His ears were ringing. Ben ground the heels of his hands into his eyes, trying to steady himself. He'd tried so long to be this man's monster that the praise seemed impossible, absurd. And he definitely didn't deserve it.

"It's not absolution, mind you," Anakin continued gently. "You'll carry that guilt with you just as I do. Atonement can be a fine tool for learning, I've found."

Ben dropped his hands, blinking away the sparkles. All this compassion heaped on him felt like deserving a beating and getting handed gifts instead, and he began to see what Luke had been telling him - that he wanted to work to be worthy of it, even if it was an impossible goal.

I've had plenty of impossible goals. This is just one more.

"That's reassuring. In a strange way."

"It's meant to be." Anakin gave him a one-sided smile. "Death isn't the end of things, grandson. It's just the next step."

"I haven't…" Ben blinked again, trying to focus. "I haven't really had time to think about it."

Anakin chuckled. "And you were doing something when I interrupted you. I'll let you get back to it," he said, and vanished as neatly as Luke had.

Ben, who had started to reply, found himself looking at nothing with a certain exasperation. The disappearing trick was nifty, but -

He started walking again, then stopped. Looking for Luke this way hadn't produced the man, and Ben realized he was deathly afraid of who he might run into next.

"Uncle Luke." It felt extremely awkward to just stand there and say it, but Ben didn't know what else to do. "Can we…"

"Talk?" said someone behind him, and Ben whirled, striking out automatically.

"Whoa!" The blow went right through Luke's torso as if he weren't there at all, and he held up both hands, wide and open. "Sorry, Ben. I forgot how some things take a while to fade."

Ben unclenched his teeth and pinched the bridge of his nose, trying to calm himself. Training with Snoke had meant that sounds behind one were never a good thing. "You always had a vile sense of humor."

"I still do," Luke said cheerfully, and Ben snorted.

"Rey isn't well," he said without preamble. "I...felt her…" He didn't know how to describe what he'd done, but Luke didn't ask for an explanation. "She's weakening. She's having fainting spells. I don't know what's going on, but she needs help."

Luke's smile faded. "Ben, I already told you. We can't help her until she asks for it."

Ben opened his mouth, then closed it. Part of him, the angry, frightened, imperious part with the very bad temper, was screaming for a weapon. The rest of him knew that it wouldn't help any.

He blew out a breath. Looking at Luke, he could tell without words that arguing was going to be useless. The Jedi had agreed; the Jedi would keep their word. "I had no idea that being dead would be this frustrating."

Luke smirked. "It's an experience." He sobered. "Believe me, we are all worried about Rey. But we can't violate her trust."

He stopped there, but the comparison was obvious, and Ben tried not to flinch. Because that's what the Sith did. Power and control; the only choice that mattered to them was the choice that corrupted.

"I get it." Ben bit his lip, then nodded. If the Jedi couldn't help her, there was still the avenue he'd found.

Luke nodded back. "We'll wait. We're all waiting."

Ben wasn't a Jedi. He would try again.

For as long as it takes.