It takes us a couple of months, but with every day that passes, we get closer to completing the map to find Luke. Kashyyyk turned out to be one of the planets where Luke sent part of the map and when Poe and I arrived, the Wookies invited us to stay for a few more days. We couldn't help but accept. It was a nice getaway from the crowdedness of the settlement.
But that isn't really important. What matters is that we are getting close to finding Luke. Two pieces are left and they have been really hard to find. Any planets we tried turned out to be a dead end.
"I hate waiting," I huff, resting my chin in my palm.
"Isn't that all you did when you were with Luke?" Dad asks with a chuckle.
"That was meditating. There's a difference," I say.
"Okay, Miss Jedi," he says, shaking his head at me. "Anyway, we should hear from them soon. Dameron never stays radio-silent for long. He needs to talk to someone even if they're not listening."
I chuckle softly. "I mean, you're not wrong."
A beep sounds and the next second, Poe's voice sounds through the intercom. "This is Poe Dameron, we got the piece! We're heading back now!"
A round of applause sounds through the base and I smile broadly. He did it. Just one more piece and we've found Luke.
"Good work, Poe. I expect to see you back here soon," I reply.
"You bet ya! See you later, Shortie," he jokes and I can't help but laugh. I look to my right and see my father wiggling his eyebrows at me.
"Very funny," I say, rolling my eyes.
"I didn't say anything!" he defends himself.
"Your eyebrows did," I point out and push myself up. "Don't start imagining things. You know the rules."
He scoffs, following me. "Those rules are ancient! You and Luke are the last of the Jedi so why not reinvent those rules a little?"
I roll my eyes and pinch the bridge of my nose. "You are impossible."
***
"This is ridiculous," I say.
"What? Why would you say that?" Poe asks, looking up.
"We're wasting time. Every day Luke is not around is a day closer to the First Order finding and defeating us," I say, crossing my arms.
"Hey, gloom and doom. Lighten up," he says, passing me his drink. "We only need one more piece of the map and so far, the First Order has done nothing to stop us. Let's just take this one night."
I sigh before taking a sip, instantly coughing at how horribly strong it is. Poe lets out an amused laugh and I lightly punch his arm. "Not funny," I say.
He scrunches his nose shortly. "It kinda is," he says, chuckling. "Here." He stands up, takes the drink from my hand and puts it aside. He then holds out his own hand to me and I raise a brow. "You trust me, right?"
I roll my eyes playfully before placing my hand in his. He pulls me up and jokingly starts swaying around to the music that is playing. I am reluctant to join him at first, but I realise quickly he's not going to stop until I dance with him. I smile before I make him twirl around. He laughs joyfully and spins, but his foot hooks behind my own and he tackles himself to the ground. He grabs onto my arm but I'm not steady enough to hold him up, so I go down with him.
We lie on the ground, laughing uncontrollably and probably looking like maniacs, but I don't care. I haven't laughed like this since... Since Jaz died.
My laughter dies suddenly and I sit up.
Poe notices my abrupt silence and he pushes himself up. "Hey, you okay?" he asks softly, placing a hand on my back.
I nod, standing up. "Yeah, I'm fine," I lie, adding a smile to make it more believable. "I'm gonna find my dad. I have to ask him something."
I leave without another word and try to control my breathing. My mind is spinning and I have trouble thinking clearly. I find my father and Chewie near the Millenium Falcon. "Hey, Dad," I say, plastering a smile on my face.
"Hey, kid," he says, putting the lid on one of the boxes he's packing.
"Where are you going?" I ask with a frown.
He lets out a breath. "I've been meaning to talk to you." He motions for me to sit down but I choose to stay standing. "Chewie and I are leaving."
I stare at him with wide eyes. "L-Leaving?" I whisper. "Why?"
He softly shakes his head. "I can't stay here, Raven. Your mother, she can't look at me without seeing your brother and if I'm completely honest, I have the same issue when I look at you," he says, avoiding my eyes. "I'm not doing this to hurt you but I need some time away. I'll come back eventually."
Tears well in my eyes but I bite them back. "So you're just going to leave me like Ben did?" I say coldly.
"I'm not leaving y-"
"Yes, you are. You're leaving me behind," I say. I point at the boxes. "Be honest, Dad. We're you going to leave without saying goodbye?"
He sighs.
"Yeah, that's what I thought," I say bitterly before turning around. Dad grabs my arm and pulls me in a tight hug. Only because he can't see my face, I allow my tears to flow.
"I'm sorry," Dad says softly before he pulls back. "See you around, kid."
I turn to Chewie, who holds a sad look in his eyes. "Take care of him, won't you, Chewie?" I ask softly and he roars quietly before wrapping his large arms around me. "I'm gonna miss you guys," I say after pulling back, forcing a smile.
They mount the Falcon and the engine ignites. I wave until they've gone into Hyperspace. A cold wind pulls up and I shiver, wrapping my arms around me.
"Raven," my brother's voice says in my head and I whip around, but he's nowhere to be seen. Instead, Anakin sits on a fallen log.
"Fight it," he tells me. "When you let your emotions get the best of you, Ben can get through to you more easily."
"Raven, help me," Ben pleads and I shut my eyes, blocking out everything. "Please."
"Stop!" I grumble angrily, balling my hands into tight fists.
"Rave? Raven! Hey, what's wrong?" A pair of hands grips my arms and I open my eyes, finding Poe looking at me with great concern in his eyes.
"It's fine. I'm fine," I say.
"Raven, you have to fight it," Anakin urges.
"Shut up!" I shout, startling Poe. Realisation dawns in his eyes.
"It's your brother, isn't it?" he asks and I nod.
"Make it stop, please," I plead.
"Okay, okay. What do you need to do? Talk to me," he says.
"I close my eyes and I drown out everything except the sounds," I tell him through ragged breaths.
"Okay, so shut those eyes and just listen to my voice. Ben's not here and he's never going to be here." I do as he says and he continues talking. "Remember that one time when you and I made those stick people by taping together a bunch of twigs?" I nod. "Do you remember what we called them?"
"Mr and Mrs Stick," I say.
"And their kids?"
"Twig, Sprig and Branch."
"And their pet?"
"Pinecone," I say, a soft smile appearing on my lips. I open my eyes. "I'm okay," I say. "Thank you."
He smiles back at me. "You're welcome," he says. He holds out a hand. "Want to finish that dance?"
"There's no music playing," I point out.
He shrugs. "Doesn't matter to me. Come on," he says and I place my hand in his. We start swaying around and happiness fills my chest. I don't have to be a Jedi right now. I can just be Raven, and that feels good.