A Lesson to Learn

Chapter 21

"Oh my gosh. And you- you kept this from me!? Could you imagine what we could have done by now? Where we could have gone?" Rey exclaimed in somewhat mock outrage, thinking about all of the possibilities that were open to them now as she whirled to face Kylo. "Kylo Ren! This might be your worst offense!"

Kylo flushed a bit at her chastising, hunching down apologetically. "I- what?"

"You heard me! We could have gone to Europe! To Antartica! I don't know - anywhere!"

"That's what you're choosing to be angry about now?"

"Would you rather I be angry about everything else instead?" Rey warned, narrowing her eyes as she pointed a finger at him. Kylo quickly shook his head 'no', preferring that Rey focus on this instead.

"N-no. This is good. Focus on this," he affirmed, giving her a little smile as he gathered Rey back in his arms again, finding it hard to let go now that he had her again. "I promise I'll take you wherever you want after this, sweetheart. We can go for lunch in Italy or spend a night looking at the Northern Lights in Alaska."

"That sounds amazing, Kylo," Rey gushed, leaning her back against Kylo's chest. "But before all of that we still have a lot to talk about."

"Right," Kylo answered, kissing her cheek. "No more distractions. Tell me what you want to know."

***

Rey let herself be led to the couch by Kylo, letting him keep a hold of her hand as they sat, happy to have her cuddly giant back despite their separation. They both sat forward, leaning on their knees as they faced each other, unconsciously mirroring each other as Kylo started explaining whatever Rey asked.

She reminded herself to keep an open mind, to remember that she had just basically transported to her apartment, that anything was possible. Kylo explained everything she had been too flustered to fully listen to when he had first revealed himself, letting Rey ask for clarification along the way.

Kylo explained about the bond, about how he could feel her emotions but couldn't always decipher them, how he could choose to look into her mind but never did. He admitted how he had concealed clothes and items throughout the apartment, leading to an amusing little tour of the apartment where Kylo revealed the inventive places he had hidden things so she didn't accidentally find them.

When Rey asked about the braiding custom, she was surprised to see Kylo blush from his cheeks to the tips of his ears. He sheepishly detailed their complicated meaning, and promised to tell her what each one meant next time he plaited her hair, even telling her he'd teach her so she could braid his hair, too, earning an excited squeal from Rey that only made him flush harder.

After getting a thorough run through of everything, there was still one thing that had been bothering Rey. "Why are you bound to a ring instead of back wherever you're supposed to be, ruling over souls or whatever it is you do?"

Kylo ran his hand through his hair, rolling his lips as he thought about how to answer the question. "Um. Well, it's kind of a funny story, sweetheart. Do you... Have you, uh, ever heard of the Black Plague?"

"Kylo. You didn't."

"I did," Kylo replied sheepishly, hand working its way through his hair again nervously. "I was experimenting and bored... and didn't realize it would spread so quickly and it all got so out of control... Well, turns out that Leia... mom... God... whatever, did not take kindly to me destroying so many of her beloved creatures, and so I've been stuck ever since."

Rey stared at him scoffing in disbelief, not believing what she was hearing, torn between wanting to laugh and cry. "B-but... millions of people..."

"Died? Yeah, I know," Kylo finished, biting his lip and looking away. "I swear I'm not a mass murderer or anything... maybe just shouldn't be left bored and unattended with my powers for too long. But I learned my lesson!"

He looked back at Rey before adding, squeezing her hand, "I promise. And I won't go doing weird scientific experiments or testing the limits of nature anymore. I am more than happy with what I have now - you."

Rey nodded at his promises, mouth still open in shock from the news but pleased at his last comment, warmth spreading through her body.

As Rey thought about everything she had been told, she put her head in her hands, feeling crazy and overloaded with information. She tried to not think about the massive impact Kylo had had on history and the lives lost, trying to understand how an event like that would look differently to someone who was immortal and had powers beyond her wildest imagination. Rey closed her eyes for a moment, head aching with the amount of information she was asked to process. Maybe sometimes ignorance really was bliss.

Kylo moved closer to her, scooting over and scooping her up onto his lap as he encouraged her head to lay on his chest. "Are you okay, Little One? I know this is overwhelming. Is there anything I can do to help?"

Rey allowed herself to be held, to be wrapped up in the comfort of Kylo's arms, something she had missed more than she had let herself think about during their separation. "No - it's just a lot. It'll take time to sort through and think about," Rey started, feeling Kylo tense under her, his arms tightening around her.

"Not apart! But it will take time and repetition and understanding," Rey clarified, feeling Kylo relax at her assurance that they wouldn't be separated again, a long breath leaving his body.

"That's okay, Little One. I expected that. So what do we do now? Is there anything else you want to know?"

"I suppose the last thing to know is... how do we break the bond?"

***

Kylo felt himself tense again at the question, having dreaded this inquiry more than the one concerning how he had landed himself in this predicament in the first place. "Well, that's the thing, sweetheart. I don't know. Leia was very cryptic when she bound me and I don't know how to break it."

Rey pulled back, angling herself on his lap so as to be able to look into his eyes better, to be able to portray the seriousness of her next words. "Kylo, I don't want you to be bound to me. I don't want you to feel like you have to stay with me if you want to leave down the road."

Seeing how Kylo prepared himself to protest, Rey put a finger up, cutting him off. "I know you love me now but people change and things happen. I want you to have freedom in this relationship. I wouldn't feel like you had that if you were bound to me by the ring."

Kylo pouted slightly, but nodded, understanding her concerns. "There's only one thing that we can do then," he mumbled, already dreading what he was about to say.

"What's that?"

"It's time to talk to Leia. Tell me Rey, have you ever wanted to meet God?"