Meet Me in the Grey (Reylo fanfiction) (COMPLETED)

Chapter 23: Life and Death

A note from your humble author: Look, let's not beat around the brush. Them dead-eyed little teady bear people are man-eaters. They were trying to cook Han and Luke when they first caught them, and you just know they were feasting on stormtroopers after the empire fell. I'm just keepin it real!

Also for the sake of the story I'm just going to pretend those horrible Ewok movie's never happened. I doubt I'm not alone on that one.

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Every victory the resistance had ever known was also tinged with the bitterness of loss and death. There were no battles won that did not cost in the lives of those who fought. It was important to celebrate every victory, it fostered morale and hope amongst the men and women of the resistance, but it was also a time to grieve for those who had made the ultimate sacrifice.

That night the Ewoks were making their strange music all throughout their tree-top villages, celebrating their liberation with wild abandon. Though due to respect for their liberators, most of whom being human, they had opted not to feast on the corpses of the slain stormtoopers, at least until after the resistance vacated their world.

The disturbing omnivorous scavenger traits of the Ewoks had always been off-putting to General Organa, but she had to reconcile herself in her first encounters with these indigenous life forms, that theirs was a harsh world of survival and that wastefulness was tantamount to sin. Thankfully, she was still good friends with Chief Wicket, who had grown slightly grey since the fall of the Empire, but was considered wise and revered amongst his people. He had promised General Organa that they would not eat any of the resistance's dead and would respect their mourning rituals.

Luke Skywalker stood near the funeral pyre, torch in hand, and delivered the Eulogy for Lando Calrissian, as all who knew and loved him stood near and wept.

Rando shed silent tears as he wrapped one arm around his sobbing mother for comfort. She was several inches taller than him, and had been given a change of clothes to fit in with the resistance mourners. No one knew just yet what to make of the revelation that Ashani Calrissian was indeed alive, and had survived as a Knight of Ren, but for now she seemed to be a non-threat, though Ben kept a close watch on her until they had time to figure out where she really stood.

Rando had not spoken a word to anyone since he watched his father fall. He could barely raise his eyes to anyone even when they tried to offer him comfort for his loss.

Rey felt particularly guilty. She had been too distracted with the revelation of Rando's mother, and had let her guard down. She could not help but feel that if she had been more attuned to the force in that moment, as she should have been, she could have done something to save Lando's life. She felt as if she had failed both Lando and Rando completely.

Ben could sense her pain and guilt, but also her fear at having let herself fall too quickly into the darkness of vengeance that had taken over her. He wrapped her in his arms in front of him and did his best to send comfort through their bond.

Ben couldn't help but feel sadness and pain at the loss of Lando Calrissian. He had known the man since he was a boy. Lando had been kind to him, but also he felt the remembrance of his own pain, of his own loss. He knew what it was to lose a father, even if it had been by his own hand; it was a loss too close to home. All those who possessed the force and stood there around the funeral pyre could feel the pain of Rando, his voice silent, but his soul shouting out in anguish. He too, knew that pain. He genuinely felt sorry for Rando's loss.

General Organa stood with Chewbacca and held his furry hand for comfort, as he let out his occasional keening roars in Skyriiwook. Lando had been their friend for many years. He had fought beside them and had been as family to them.