Will of the Many~ Poe Dameron

Time to heal and grow

And so she moves forward, with a little more wisdom, a heart that is more open to love, and with a mind that welcomes deep healing...

-Yung Pueblo

Serena's left arm wove around the crease of Poe's elbow. It curled over as her hand grabbed on to his bicep and held it securely. Her right hand laid on Poe's palm as he played with the same loose threat of the bandage that she had earlier. 

Her slow exhales were a soothing lullaby for Poe. His own eyes began to droop as he sat with Serena cuddled against him. For such a small human being, she radiated off heat and made Poe even more exhausted from her warmth. His head dipped down as his breaths slowed to match her steady flow. His head lobbed off to the side until his cheek pressed against the top of her head. He unconsciously nuzzled his head to smooth down her baby hairs to stop them from attacking him. 

He had never felt more comfortable than with her arms wrapped around him. He turned his head into her hair and took in a breath of sweat and just a hint of shampoo. He never paid much attention to smell, but there was something intoxicating about the mix of floral and grime. It perfectly encompassed Serena, salty mixed with sweet, bad with good. She had both equally and never shied away from that. 

He started to fall asleep right as the Millennium Falcon rumbled underneath them. The soothing vibrations relaxed him even more, until he remembered why it was rumbling. He lifted his head up and looked around with droopy eyes to see the other officers gathering themselves up as the Falcon landed. He looked back down at Serena as she remained unmoving, even as the landing gear dropped down underneath their feet. 

Poe could have watched her sleep until the Falcon was empty and it was just him and her on board, but he heard someone clear their throat and looked up right as Finn and Rey moved towards them. 

Finn slowed down as he moved across the front of Poe and Serena. He looked over at the sleepy girl who had her silver hair over her face to block most of her feature. 

Finn sat down next to Poe carefully to keep from moving too much. "I bet she could sleep through anything right now, I have never seen anyone with bags under their eyes like her." He told Poe as he leaned across to get a slightly better view of Serena. 

Poe tried to blink the sleep from his eyes as he looked over at Finn. "I can't blame her, whenever I try to think of what they put her through there... I get tired." His voice croaked with misuse. 

"She was strong," Rey told him as she looked over Serena's sleeping, vulnerable state. Even with her head bowed against Poe's shoulder, she could see the deep purple that bruised under her eyes, and the faded pink of her dry lips. "She didn't know me, but she stood up for me against him. She told him in front of everyone that he ruined her. Even as he had her handcuffed and marked as a traitor she didn't back down from him." Rey's eyes sparked with admiration. "I was so scared going in there, but I looked at her and she was absolutely fearless..." Rey's eyes flicked over to Poe and Finn. She looked between them as she tried to do the image of Serena justice. "That amount of power... it has to be draining."

Poe looked down at Serena and cursed himself as he could only see the top of her forehead. But he didn't have to see her to know that what Rey said was true. He saw that same fearlessness in her every time he was around her. She was full of spitfire and yearning and a want for redemption. She was utterly and wholeheartedly fearless. 

Serena's shoulders tensed as she turned her head towards the couch. She let out a long, low groan that vibrated her chest against Poe's side. Then, as if she were a startled animal, she stiffened with her face tucked into Poe's shoulder and her hands locked around his arm. "Why do I feel like people are watching me?" Her muffled voice cracked over the question.