Poe traced the veins on my hands for a long time. He was entranced in my existence. I watched him lovingly. It brought me unspeakable amounts of joy to be in his presence alone. No words had to be said. Sharing the same space was enough. 

Then, out of nowhere, he lifted his head. "Can I take you somewhere?"

"I'm not sure it's a good idea to have me around people," I said.

"I've got you. I promise."

And the look in his eyes swayed me in the right direction, although everything inside of me said I shouldn't fall for it. I ignored it. We entered the hall, my hands engulfing his right hand. He whispered words of encouragement to me as we walked.

"Poe!" shouted a man. Finn. He stopped when he saw me, keeping distance between him and I. "Oh, uh..."

"For what it's worth, I apologize," I called.

Finn shrugged his shoulders. He had more important things on his mind than my actions against him. He spoke to Poe, almost begging, "I need your help. The girl we traveled with, Rey, she was taken by Kylo Ren. I need your help getting her back. Please."

"We were already on our way to see the General. Follow us," said Poe.

"The General?" I repeated. "Oh, I don't know if--"

"General!" called Poe instead. "I'm sorry to interrupt. This is Finn. He needs to talk to you."

"And I need to talk to him," said General Organa. "That was incredibly brave what you did: renouncing the First Order, saving this man's life."

"Thank you, ma'am, but a friend of ours was taken prisoner," said Finn.

"Han told me about the girl," said the General. She peered around Poe, raising her eyebrows at my hidden figure. "He also had some good things to say about you."

Poe stepped in front of me, concealing me from her view one more. He felt my hand tighten. "Finn's familiar with the weapon that destroyed the Hosnian System. He worked on the base," he explained.

"We're desperate for anything you can tell us," said the General. She ignored me for the time being.

"I've got to get there fast," said Finn urgently.

"And I will do everything I can to help, but you need to tell us about what you know," she ordered.

"I can do that," agreed Finn.

"But first, a word with you two, if I may," said the General. Poe and I joined her on a walk outside of the base. "I need to know your history with your... Outbursts."

"She needs to know you're safe for this base," whispered Poe.

"I was safe on my own base," I told her.

"Is that so?"

Poe frowned at her tone. Desperate for her to understand, he explained,
"We thought we had it under control. She was good, General. I could get her to fight without unnecessary hits on her part, I had her happy, she was set on joining the Resistance, helping people..."

"And then?"

He avoided both of our questioning gazes. "I left her."

"Separation does things to the heart," sighed the General. "You must have done a hell of a job setting her on a right path. I never heard any reports about dangerous incidents with her."

"That's because my squadron leader ensured that never happened," I said. I peered over Poe's shoulder, not comfortable enough to step out on my way. "I've been fighting since I was ten years old. I breezed through training like it was nothing."

"The other recruits must not have been happy with that," said the General.

Poe frowned. "Enna--"

"It was nothing serious," I tried to assure.

"Enna," he said again.

I avoided his eye. "All I know is I woke up in the middle of the night to see them standing over me with weapons. When I was me again, all four boys were injured on the floor..."

"I never heard of this," said the General.

"It was swept under the rug. My leader was the only one who knew the real reason they were all banned from base. She said she saw potential within me for training purposes. Said that I didn't have to struggle anymore, if..."

"If?" asked Poe.

"I stayed her second in command and didn't join the actual fight."

"Enna, why did you never tell me about this?" he whispered, brow furrowed with disappointment. 

"I couldn't bother you with my struggle anymore. You'd watched me for so long. You were free," I told him quietly.

He lifted my head. "I never found you to be a burden. I never will."

"This power you speak of," interrupted the General, a small smile on her lips as she watched our exchange. "It's the Force."

"I know," I said. 

"You never received the proper training to balance the force, that's why you're experiencing such outbursts."

"But the lightning, it's... That's never happened before," said Poe.

"There are some things that I can't explain. However, I know someone who might."

I perked up. "Your brother."

"We find him, we ask him to train you, we end this fight inside of you forever," suggested the General.

"I convert Jedi for good," I said, looking to Poe.

"And for real this time," he agreed. For the first time in a long while, smiles lifted our lips. "We have to find him," we demanded. 

"First, we have to take down the First Order," said the General. 

Han joined the circle, a golden robot with a red arm trudging after him. "I think I know a way to start," he said.

"3-PO?" asked General hopefully.

"I regret to inform you, General, but this map recovered from BB-8 is only partially completed. And even worse, it matches no charted system on record. We simply do not have enough information to find Master Luke," said 3-PO.

The General frowned. "Can't believe I was so foolish to think I could find Luke..."

"Leia," sighed Han.

"Don't do that," she sassed, wiggling a finger in his face.

"Do what?" he asked. 

"Anything!" said the General. She spun on her heel to distance herself from Han.

He followed, knowing exactly the reason she walked away. "I'm trying to be helpful," he insisted. 

"When did that ever help? And don't say the Death Star," said the General.

Poe turned to me. I frowned when I saw his smile. He nodded after the arguing elder couple. "That'll be us," he promised. 

"Arguing?"

"Together, in old age," he said. I inhaled a sigh. He thought he knew exactly what I was going to say. "I know, I know... You told me long ago you never thought you could settle."

I shrugged ever so slightly. "That doesn't mean that if the chance came, I wouldn't settle with you."

"See? I call that progress," he said happily.

Familiar chirping from our droid rolling past us broke our physical hold. BB-8 came to a stop in front of a powered down blue and white droid. "BB-8," I chorused with 3-PO on accident. I continued, "Don't touch it."

"You're wasting your time," said 3-PO sadly.

BB-8 beeped.

"It is doubtful R2 would have the rest of the map in his backup data," doubted 3-PO.

BB-8 beeped once more, even nudged his body into the droid.

"I am afraid not. R2-D2 has been in low-power mode ever since Master Luke went away. Sadly, he may never be his old self again."

BB-8 bowed his head, shaking it shamefully.

"You think..." started Poe. He paused. "No, forget it."

"What?" I asked.

"Do you think you could wake him?" asked Poe. He looked to a few of the curious pilot onlookers. "My girl is force-sensitive," he said proudly.

"Thought you told me you were a Jedi," said Finn.

"Never said Jedi," I corrected. "Besides, after what I did to you, I'm not sure Jedi would be the word you use."

"The Jedi were being hunted. Isn't that dangerous? Posing as a Jedi?" asked Finn.

"It's good for being overseen. Associating means the chance of being killed yourself. That's a chance no one takes," explained Poe. 

"How do you know someone won't rat you out?" he asked.

"It's a game of chance," I admitted.

Finn pointed to the lightsaber hanging from my thigh. "Where'd you get that?"

"She won that saber in a poker game when we were kids. Used the excuse ever since," said Poe.

"So, you lied to us this entire time," said Finn.

"For protection purposes, yeah, I did," I said, standing taller. "Just as you kept your former stormtrooper life to yourself."

Finn shrugged. "You got me there," he said. 

A smirk took over his lips. I returned it.

Poe kissed my head. "That's my girl."