Solo's Jedi ~Poe Dameron/Star Wars ~

Chapter Twenty Nine: Ceremony

I'd never been so nervous my whole life for something, not even Jedi training. In fact, even leaving the resistance three years ago to fine my father seemed like a walk in the park compared to how I felt about becoming a General and leading the memorial for the lost rebels.

I dressed in a long, dark grey dress, the skirts flowing out like waves of the sea. The top of it came to the top of my neck, though it was sleeveless. The lack of sleeves showed off my scar, but I didn't care. In fact, although my mother didn't approve, I attached my weapons belt around myself, my lightsaber and blaster hanging off proudly.

My mother did my hair, plaiting it into two long braids then twisting it into two buns at the back of my head. With a small smile, she threaded through tiny blue forget me knot flowers through the buns. She always used to love it when I wore flowers in my hair, and we both knew my dad did too. It was almost like saying he was still with us, although we both knew with heavy hearts that he wasn't.

"You look like him, Lucinda," she spoke as she took a step back to look at me properly. I felt tears pricking but forced them away, offering her a sad smile. "He was so proud of you, Luce, he loved you more than anything else in the galaxy,"

"More than the Falcon?" I joked, though my voice was thick from holding back tears.

"Even more than the Falcon," she let out a single laugh, reaching into her pocket to pull out a small ring box. "That reminds me... a long time ago, I think you must have been about twelve at least, when he tried his hand and racing with the Falcon, your father won a large sum of money. Instead of wasting it, he invested in something special for each of his children. He didn't want to give you this until you turned twenty five, but when he left five years ago, he left me this to give to you, and I know he'd want you to have it know,"

Frowning, I watched as my mother extended her shaking hand to me, offering the pearlescent ring box. I took it carefully, looking at her warily, unsure as to what would be in the box. She gave me a nod, and with a deep breath I carefully opened the box. Inside I saw a chain with a ring threaded onto it. I left out a small gasp as I took it out with shaky fingers, lifting it up to see. On the chain, right next to the ring was a small charm resembling a dice, exactly the same as the ones which hung up in the Falcon. The ring was thick and silver, featuring a large pearl which had been shaped into the silhouette of the Millennium Falcon, details carved into it and embossed with tiny crystals. Looking at the band, I saw the inscription: 'LOS, My Luck, My Fortune, My Greatest Achievement'.

I felt my heart grow heavy and the tears were harder to fight but I still tried to stop them from falling, except I felt Mum pull me into a hug of support.

"I know," Mum sighed, placing her hand on my head gently. "I miss him too, both of them,"

She was talking about Ben. My brother was lost, I'd managed to accept that but clearly my mother hadn't. Maybe she'd just lost so much in her life that she refused to count my brother as dead. I considered offering some sort of comment on my brother but before I could begin to speak, Mum continued.

"We're going to make this right though," she continued, and I sensed that this was her speaking to me as a general to a peer, not as a mother to daughter. "You're going to be a great leader and a wonderful general, you were born for this position,"

I nodded, sniffing. I wanted to see my uncle, but my place was at the Resistance, with my mother, with Poe. This was where I belonged, and this was where I was needed to make a difference. I had spent so many years struggling with myself, trying to find where I fit in the universe, but my place had always been at the Resistance.

***

Poe looked hot.

There was no other way to describe him than hot. He'd combed his curly hair back, looking neat for once and had dressed himself in a black shirt buttoned all the way up and a new black leather flying jacket. The jacket reminded me of Finn, and my heart ached ever so slightly at the thought of my injured friend, but I pushed the feelings away to focus on Poe and the ceremony about to happen.