It was like waking from a deep but dreamless sleep. Ree had to blink away the dark spots from her sight, most of all she wanted to rub her eyes but she didn't have that possibility, her hands being in cuffs that were connected to the table. Some strong magnet, she figured. The spots slowly disappeared from her sight and haziness in her mind was replaced with that sharp mind that she was used to. Keelor was sat in her chair, she tried to stand up, finding her ankles strapped to the legs of the chair with ankle cuffs. She ground, being shackled wasn't that comfortable really. "Comfortable?" It was as if the person had read her mind. Ree hadn't even noticed the person standing to her slight right.
"Not really." It was the pilot, his black locks were to the side. He was wearing a grey shirt, brown pants and a grey scarf. Ree was still in her Commander's outfit with its First Order insignia, something she really wanted to get out of.
"Good." His voice dripped with a distaste for the blonde, understandable, Ree figured, she had tried to kill him before, but it also went the other way around. She tried to blow away a strand of hair that was annoyingly in her face but it had gotten stuck in some dried blood in her eyebrow. Wounds that need tending, great, Ree thought, they really seem to keep it sanitized in the jungle base. What would be a fancy metal room with an even fancier interrogation chair back on the Star Destroyer was instead two metal chairs at a table in a cave under a cliff. It was clear the Resistance didn't have the same resources, maybe that's why the pilot was wearing a scarf because why would anyone else willingly wear that?
"I need to speak with your General." Ree ignored the invitation for a verbal battle.
"You know, if I had my ways," he walked up to the table and leaned down, invading her personal space. If he thought it would make her look away, make her uncomfortable, he was very wrong, "you wouldn't even be sitting here."
"And that's why you're not the General, sweetie." Keelor put on an ironic smile, "a General would know that it would be better to interrogate me, torture me for information, before killing me."
"Didn't seem like that when it was the other way around." the Pilot's eyes became two narrow lines. He remembered how eager the woman in front of him had been to kill him. A favour he would happily return. Ree swallowed hard and looked down in shame, that version of her seemed to be lightyears away, yet, to everyone else, she still was that person.
"No, it didn't, did it? But aren't you supposed to be the good guys?" She tilted her head to the side, now, the Pilot stepped away and instead just crossed his arms over his chest.
"We are." He answered with determination.
"So naive, thinking everything is black and white. Let me tell you something, pilot. The world is a lousy grey where good and bad is a concept decided by the ruling power." Before Dameron could answer back something about a spark that will ignite a fire, an old woman walked up to the secluded part of the grotto.
"It may be grey but there is still light and darkness." The old woman, even though Ree had never seen her before she knew instantly who she was, the Force was radiating off of her, "and I believe you're very familiar with the latter."
"General," Ree didn't speak with detest as someone like the pilot would expect her to, instead her voice was filled with... hope? But that quickly went away, left was the sadness inside of Ree. "Congratulations," she sounded, "you're gonna be a grandma." All three looked down at the rounded stomach. the pilot realized that he had just been willing to kill a pregnant woman. The General had a pained expression.
"How far?" Organa asked as she sat down t the chair opposite.
"Seven months, give or take a week."
"I remember when I was pregnant with Ben," at the mention of Kylo's first name, Ree flinched, felt guilt, like she had been the reason Ben wasn't here with the General, "I craved Kabatha guts and Bantha milk."
"Kabatha guts?" Ree was astonished, "it feels like swallowing wet concrete!"
"I know!" A smile spread on Leia's lips, "I haven't eaten a bite of it since." They both went silent for a moment, the General became nostalgic as she thought about Ben's first years, so happy and joyful. She couldn't fathom how that little boy was now Kylo Ren. "Ree," it felt weird to hear Leia say her name, "why are you here?" The smile on the blonde's lips disappeared, that small moment of shared happiness was quickly gone.
"I won't talk with him here." Ree darted her eyes in the direction of the crossed-arm pilot.
"General, she'll kill you!" He exclaimed, the pilot knew that this was just a trick, an assassination on the General.
"Poe," so that was the pilot's name, Ree thought, "go. If she didn't want to be here then she would have already been out of these cuffs and holding your blaster."
"She's right." Ree nodded in agreement. The General knew the powers of the Force and a simple mind trick would have been enough to control Poe into releasing her. He sighed, not liking the idea of leaving his General alone with this enemy. But he had to obey his General.
"General." He quickly turned on his heel.
With a simple movement of the hand, Leia had opened the restraints on Ree's wrists and ankles. The former Commander rubbed her sore wrists, "you really trust me." Keelor's statement sounded more like a question.
"As I said, if you wanted me dead, I wouldn't still be breathing." A grimace painted the Commander's face. Was she really known as this killing machine? "It wasn't a pleasant landing. I'll have our medic take a look at you later."
"Thank you," Ree nodded, she didn't really care what state she was in, she was far more interested in how her baby was doing.
"How did you find us, Ree?" The General leaned back in her chair, dark purple dress with a high-collar navy vest on top. Ree's black gowns felt out of place, they were dusty and torn after the crash. "If you don't mind me calling you that," Leia added.
"I think you're entitled to calling me whatever you want, General." The pain in the blue eyes was as present as the humidity in the air. "The black case I carried. It's a machine I invented, it can read Force-activity in the galaxy. You stood out."
"And do the rest of the First Order know about this machine? Should we expect an attack?"
"No, I didn't tell anyone about the machine. Not even Ky."
"Who's Ky?" The General's eyebrows were knit together.
"Oh," she realized her mistake, "I mean Kylo. Or Ben. Or whatever I'm supposed to say." Leia nodded, even though her son had done terrible things, she was still happy that he had managed to find love. A shame that they weren't together anymore. But maybe if Ben turned too, maybe the two could be together. As always, Leia was hopeful.
"Why are you here? What made you change?" Leia hoped that maybe she could learn what had turned Ree and use that to turn her son too.
"It's a long story. One that I'm not proud of." It was going to be harder than Ree thought, "there's a lot of factors. The fact I'm a Kenobi, Kylo treating me like garbage, the Emperor. Power has gotten to Ky's head, he' not who he used to be-"
"Wait," Leia had put a hand up as to make Ree stop talking, "you're a Kenobi?"
"Apparently. I talked to the ghost of Obi-Wan, my grandfather, and he told me everything. How my parents didn't hate me, that they protect me with their last breath." Tears were starting to form in Ree's eyes.
"I understand," The Princess couldn't imagine Uncle Ben having any offspring, he didn't seem like the one to break the codex, but after all, we were all just human. "Did that have anything to do with you coming here?"
"I guess," she shrugged, "he was the one to convince me. But like I said, it's a million reasons but it all boils down to one thing. I was wrong. Everything I thought I knew, wrong."
"Even what you thought about him?"
"I-I don't know. If he can go back to who I thought he was, then yes, but he's far down the rabbit hole. He can't even see that the Emperor is using him. It's just a matter of time before Palpatine turns on him. I mean, why would he give Kylo the galaxy when he could have it himself? It doesn't make any sense!" Ree had risen from her seat, her cheeks were all flustered.
"Breath." Leia could feel the Force vibrating the angrier the young woman got. The dark side of the Force drew power from emotions like anger. The Commander did as she was told and sunk back down into her seat. "If you want to walk away from that side of the Force, then you'll have to learn to harness power from something else."
"Anger, hate, and fear. That's what I've felt for the past years." The only moments when Ree didn't feel that was when she was with Ky, alone in their chambers, "that's how they kept you there. They tell you that the rest of the world is scary and dangerous and the only way to protect yourself and the ones you love is to keep being angry."
"I know," Leia was so understanding and calm, unlike the pilot who just saw hatred for the blonde, "that's why the Dark side is so tempting. And we must all learn to resist it."
"Has she learned?" It was clear to both women who Ree was talking about. "it's in her blood."
"I know," Leia looked down in shame. She hadn't told the girl, afraid that her heritage might turn her as it had done with Kylo, "and I'm still not sure."
"She must resist. Because otherwise, we're all doomed."
---
The rubbing alcohol made Ree hiss in pain, "almost done," the female medic assured as she dabbed the cotton pad one last time on the wound in her eyebrow. So far, Keelor hadn't seen more of the Resistance than its General, the pilot and now the medic. She was an older dainty woman with blonde curly hair that made it just past her ears. "This will do instead of stitches." She said and put on two thin strips of white translucent medical tape.
"And the baby?" Ree was nearly afraid of speaking, that if she opened her mouth the friendliness the medic showed towards her would be gone.
"She's looking healthy." The medic assured and smile, "how far gone are you?"
"About seven months," Ree answered and looked down shyly. At the moment, her eyes were turned down, she once again noticed her clothes. The former Commander had been too afraid to ask before but maybe the Medic would be nice. "You don't know if the Resistance has some spare clothes? I feel like the cape and boots might get me some unwanted attention." Ree tried her best to joke, hoping that it would fly.
"Wait here," the Medic mused before disappearing behind some white screens. The provisional infirmary they had put up in the grotto consisted of four white screens in a rectangle, some basic machines like an EKG, a full-body mirror and an examination table which Ree was currently sitting on.
When the older woman came back, she had a pile of clothes in her hands. "This is some leftover clothes from previous patients. See if anything fits."
"Thank you." She tried to sound as sincere as possible but Ree feared that she might have gone just a bit overboard.
"I'll leave you to change, I'll want you back for a check-up in a week."
"Yes, doctor," the pregnant woman answered and the medic left her alone. The pile of clothes went in the same colour schemes as the rest of the Resistance, earth colours. It was quite the contrast from being dressed head-to-toe in black.
After rummaging through the pile for clothes that would suit, she ended up with a mismatch of an outfit. Keelor took a look at herself in the mirror, she wore a light grey sleeveless halterneck top. Over that was a dark grey vest with a high-neck collar. The cargo pants were light brown with darker brown pockets. The pants were tucked into knee-high boots that were the same dark brown as the pockets and a belt around her waist. It had a holster for a blaster but Ree figured that she would have to remake it to fit a lightsaber. Speaking, of, where was her lightsaber?
She was about the leave the infirmary but as she caught a final look of herself she saw something that needed a quick fixing. Her platinum blonde hair was frizzy from the humid climate and some strands had dried blood in them. The only thing she could do to tame the frizziness was to braid it. Keelor made two braids going from the front of her head and connecting in a low bun, it was rather messy but it would do.
These were her first steps as a 'free' person in the Resistance. Hopefully, the rest of the Resistance would take it as well as their General did. The former Commander started striding around the grotto base. People didn't seem to notice her. Thanks to the 'new' clothes she blended in a lot more effortlessly. Rebels were running between computer screens, comparing data and almost always in a hurry. While Ree walked around, observing everything, she had found herself getting stuck in her own world, that's why she didn't notice the tall man coming straight towards her. The impact made her stumble backwards. "Watch yourself!" The man she had collided with called out.
"Sorry," the pregnant woman mumbled and kept her head down before he pushed past her. He didn't even have time to notice that he had just bumped into his former enemy. If that would have happened on the Star Destroyer, Ree could swear that the officer would have gotten down on their knees and prayed for his life. But now, the Commander was reduced to nothing but scum. She was a traitor to Kylo. And she had always been the Resistance's enemy but now she was just a spineless coward switching sides.
Ree kept searching for the General, hoping that she had an answer to where Ree's lightsaber had gone, she had some adjustments to do to it. Whispers could be heard as the pregnant woman passed different crowds. Words like 'traitor', 'scum', 'disugsting', were heard. But Ree's salvation came in the form of the short old woman. "General!" She sounded and rushed up to Leia before she could hear any more whispers about herself. Organa was talking to an officer, a small female with black hair, they got quiet as soon as their former enemy came up to them.
"I see you've found some new clothing." Organa nodded towards Ree's new outfit, "we may not have the same standard that you're used to."
"It's fine," Ree assured, not wanting to seem ungrateful, though the boots were one size too big.
"What can I help you with?"
"My lightsaber, where is it?" She lowered her voice, "and the case?" Not wanting the case to get into the wrong hands.
"I have it safely stored in my own personal quarters," Leia explained, "you can go and retrieve it."
"You're gonna give her a weapon, General?" The female officer asked. Her almond eyes had been formed into two fines lines as she suspiciously eyed Ree up and down. "She's the enemy."
"That's enough, Commander Tico," the General warned.
"I'm not your enemy." Ree tried to remain civil, to not get angry and instead take the higher road. She knew that they wanted to draw her in, make her expose her true 'evil' nature.
"You know," Tico started, she didn't take the General's warning "my sister died fighting you guys. And now, you expect us to welcome you with open arms?"
"I don't expect anything from you." Keelor looked deep into Tico's brown eyes.
"If it were up to me-"
"You'd kill me?" Ree filled in, Tico was just like the pilot, "clearly, there will be a line." Before either the General or the Commander could respond Keelor left but not without treating them with the respect they were entitled to, "General. Commander." And with a nod in each direction, she left hasty. Tears were threatening to fall. Though the former Commander would never let herself cry in front of the Resistance. Because then they would think her both evil and weak, the worst possible combination.