Rey (force_awakens) wrote in madisonvalley, @ 2020-02-28 21:35:00 |
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Entry tags: | !completed gdoc, !log, rey (force_awakens), ~2020 february, ~~poe dameron (snarkyflyboy) |
Who: Rey and Poe
What: Rey’s come some ‘splaining to do
Where: Poe’s house
When: Feb 8
Rating: Low, spoilers
Rey had been mauling over what to tell Poe and when. The more she meditated on it, the more she knew what she had to do - she had to tell him everything. He was her friend and he deserved it. She wasn’t necessarily worried he wouldn’t want her to be around anymore, but she was worried about trust issues. Either way, Rey knew in her heart it was time.
She asked Poe if she could come over and even brought something called Chinese Food - she hadn’t gotten around to trying it yet herself. She knocked on the door holding the paper bag filled with what the man at the restaurant assured her were the most popular items and waited. She exhaled a little, nervous despite knowing she had to do what she had to do.
--
The whole going home thing had been a lot and Poe was trying to sort through his own feelings about everything that happened. That process was made more difficult by the mass disappearance of people from the town though he was grateful he hadn’t lost anyone close. He and Phoebe were still on track to move in together with Leo and Nico and he was looking forward to that.
When Rey asked if she could come over, he said yes immediately. He was hoping that she would also move in with them when the time came. Part of him wanted to ask Leia too, but that might be hard since there was so much about the future that he didn’t want to tell her.
“Hey,” he said, giving her a smile as he let her in. “The boys are out somewhere at the moment.” Which meant they had the place to themselves.
***
She nodded as she stepped in. Being alone was probably for the best. Though as she stepped inside she realized how much she missed seeing Poe often. "You've settled in again?" She turned her head to look at Poe. "I've finally gotten used to this place. Met Anakin and Padme." He had been nothing like she had imagined and neither had Padme. It was actually kind of nice.
--
“Yeah, it wasn’t as tough as I thought it’d be,” Poe said. It could have been a lot worse, at least. “Though I haven’t seen Leia yet.” That was something he needed to do sooner rather than later and kept putting off because he didn’t want to inadvertently give anything way when he did see her.
He really needed to do that before she got suspicious about why he was avoiding her.
BB-8 rolled into the room and bumped into Rey’s legs with a series of excited beeps.
***
Rey knelt at BB-8s side, placing a hand on its head. "I've missed you too." She looked up from where she was to look at Poe. "I did. It was….hard. But I didn't tell her… but I wouldn't be surprised if she didn't suspect something." Rey felt a little guilty about that, but how did you explain to someone you considered a mother figure that she was dead?
She rose to her feet slowly. "Back home is why I came to talk, actually… I know you haven't asked, and I appreciate it, but I do owe you some explanation."
--
Poe nodded. Leia was intuitive, likely thanks to the Force, and she could probably sense that there was something they were keeping from her. He hoped that they could maintain the polite fiction of ignorance though since it was a conversation he was not keen on having.
“Sure, come on in,” he said, showing her into the living room. “Want me to make tea or something?”
***
"Tea would be great." She moved to sit down, hands resting in her lap. She was thankful when BB-8 came to stay by her. The familiarity was nice. Tea would also be a good distraction.
Rey waited until Poe came back to speak again. Even with all this time to think she wasn't sure how to say it. She paused and then shook her head with a bit of a laugh. "I'm not even sure where to start or how to say everything." But she was stubborn. "I found out who my parents were. Or, rather, who my grandfather was."
--
While he was in the kitchen heating up the water, he shot a quick text to the boys to let them know that he had a guest and asking for a heads up before they came home. He didn’t know exactly what Rey was going to share, but he didn’t want them to be interrupted during the conversation.
When he returned to the living room, he was carrying a large platter with two cups of tea, sugar, and cream. “Here, wasn’t sure how you take it,” he said.
Once they were settled, he took a sip of his tea, his eyebrows furrowing at her words. “I have a feeling I’m not going to like this.”
***
She took the cup and looked down in the dark, hot liquid with a small thank you. The heat coming from the cup was comforting, especially with the cool weather outside. She let the heat press into the tips of her figures before she took a sip and let it warm her chest too. Then Rey gave Poe a small nod. “You probably won’t. I’ve only just really come to terms with it.” On bad days it still really bothered her, too, but she tried not to dwell on something she couldn’t fix. The only thing she could do was not let her bloodline define her.
“Palpatine is my grandfather.” She exhaled a little and shrugged a little while shaking her head. “My parents hid me to try and keep me away from him. He had them killed when they wouldn’t give me up.” That he’d kill blood didn’t surprise her after meeting the Sith Lord.
--
If Poe hadn’t been sitting, he probably would have fallen over. As it was, he did manage to slosh some of his tea all over his lap when she spoke. “Holy shit,” he managed, setting the cup down and grabbing a tissue to wipe up the mess.
“What did he want with you?” he asked. “I mean, he doesn’t exactly strike me as a family man.”
***
Rey winced a little when he spilled his drink. “Sorry.” She moved to grab a few more napkins and held them out to him. Maybe she should have told him to brace himself first. Rey was pretty sure that part was the most shocking part for people to hear, even if it wasn’t the part that troubled her the most.
“He wanted me to take over. Become Empress of the Sith.” She tried not to look entirely disgusted by that, but it was hard. Rey shook her head again. “When I refused, he decided he should continue to rule then, sucking the life force from me and Ben.” She paused. “Ben Solo showed up. He tried to stop Palpatine with me.” She glanced down at the cup again, watching the water slightly slosh back and forth.
--
That was another bit of unexpected information and Poe felt like his brain shorted out for a moment as he wiped up the tea he’d sloshed already. He’d never actually met Ben Solo, had only heard stories from Leia, and he knew how much she hoped that she could bring her son back from the dark side. On one hand, it was nice to hear that it happened, though it was hard knowing Leia wouldn’t ever know about it.
“I suppose it helped,” Poe said. Since they had managed to defeat him and his followers.
***
She nodded a little and looked down at her tea. "Not without great cost." Rey couldn't find the words for a moment and she busied herself by taking a sip of the tea. It might be a little silly to someone else if they learned how she felt. It was hard to explain the bond she had had with Ben.
"I died, Poe." She looked at him after a moment. "I was able to stop Palpatine, but it took everything to do it." Obviously she wasn't dead now though. Rey pressed her lips together and managed not to cry though her eyes went a little glossy. "He gave me his Life Force. He had to give me all of it." She had finally been able to see Ben for himself and not Kylo Ren and then he had died. She looked back down at her tea.
--
Poe decided to put his mug down. Apparently this was going to be one of those conversations and he figured it was safer that way. “Shit, Rey, I’m glad you’re okay.” He couldn’t say he was disappointed that Kylo Ren was gone, though he was surprised to hear the young man had sacrificed himself for someone else.
“You are okay, right?” he asked, moving closer to her and resting a hand on her leg. “Is there anything you need?”
***
She nodded to Poe and then shook her head. “I’m alright. To be honest, it’s a little hard here. Back home I could feel Luke and even Leia after she…” She paused, not wanting to finish the thought out loud, but knowing that Poe would understand. “If I’m telling the truth, I had been hoping to feel Ben too, eventually, but here there’s not a lot of connection to the Force. Not in the same way, at any rate. I can feel Anakin and that’s about it.” She sighed as she put her own mug down too. “I’m sorry. I did mean to tell you and Finn this early, I just couldn’t find the words.” And she had been worried that they would look at her differently.
--
They had been a little busy saving the galaxy and all, so Poe couldn’t fault her for not sharing that information sooner. He missed Finn and wished the young man was here with them. “You don’t need to apologize,” he assured her. “It’s not like it’s your fault. And you didn’t go to the Dark Side, so that’s all that really matters.”
***
She hadn’t, but she had been tempted. She glanced down at the tea and wondered what that made her. It seemed she had more in common with Anakin than she had previously thought. It was hard to explain the lure of it. She wondered if Leia ever had that struggle. If she had, she never mentioned it.
When she looked back up, she offered Poe a genuine, warm smile. “I’m really glad you’re here, Poe. I’m glad I don’t have to be here alone.”