Conflicted: A Reylo Fanfic

Negotiations

"Rey. Can I...?"

Rey looked up, the broad grin Ben had just fixed upon her face still there as she turned to find Finn lingering awkwardly in the doorway. Sobering quickly, she turned to exchange a glance with Ben, who nodded subtly, clearly understanding he couldn't monopolize all her time, much though she might want him to. Climbing to her feet and smoothing out her clothes, Rey braced herself for what she sensed would not be an entirely pleasant conversation, a suspicion that was confirmed when Finn led her to the control room where Poe and Rose already waited. Settling herself into a chair that had clearly been set aside for her and suddenly feeling as though she were on trial, Rey watched as the three of them exchanged meaningful glances that she couldn't help but notice excluded her.

"What happened?" Finn asked abruptly once he had received the not-so-subtle go ahead from Poe and Rose.

Rey sighed, mildly annoyed that she was being asked to explain something she didn't entirely understand herself. In fact, she became distinctly more annoyed once she realized there was someone else they could ask who could explain what had happened.

"You should ask Ben. He understands it better than I do."

"You mean Kylo Ren," Poe interjected firmly.

Rey slowly and deliberately fixed Poe with a determined and unwavering gaze. "I mean Ben Solo."

"Don't be naive, Rey," Finn objected hotly.

"Don't be thick, Finn!" she countered snidely, her own heat rising instantly to meet his. "You saw! He saved my life!"

"We saw him sitting on the floor and rocking you in his arms."

"Oh, you didn't notice the whole 'I was unconscious' and then 'I wasn't' bit?" Rey threw back, matching Finn's temper measure for measure.

"For all we know he caused the whole thing—"

Rey stood abruptly, prompting first Finn then Poe to gain their feet. She didn't know what she intended to do, whether to attack her friend for his attack on Ben or simply to walk out. She only knew she couldn't abide him denying what Ben had done for her, the fact that he'd almost given his life to save hers. She wouldn't allow him to diminish that, not for anything.

"We don't know what we saw," Rose intervened quickly into the midst of the rapidly escalating tension, bringing it back to a calmer level.

With a quick, hurt glance at first Finn then Poe, Rey turned her attention to Rose, immediately sensing that she would provide the voice of reason in this whole matter.

"It's clear he helped—"

"He saved my life," Rey insisted firmly, to which Rose swiftly capitulated.

"Yes, obviously he did. We wouldn't have known how to help you and I'm certain you would have died if he hadn't intervened. In fact, I think maybe you did die and he brought you back." She shook her head, awestruck. "I don't understand these things, Rey. I'd never seen anything of the Force before we were last here on Crait, and I don't know how to make sense of all of it. But we also clearly don't know...Ben the way you do. To us, he is Kylo Ren. All I have are stories, but both Poe and Finn have encountered him before. Do you see how difficult it is for them to accept what's going on now?"

Rey bowed her head, riveting her gaze upon her hands clenched into fists in front of her. She knew everything Rose was saying, had known how difficult it would be for both Finn and Poe to accept that Ben meant her no harm, but she hadn't considered that she couldn't exactly guarantee that he didn't mean them any harm. Both had suffered as his hands in the past. And, while Rey may be inclined to give context to those events that would explain his actions, she also recognized such attempts would land in Finn and Poe's minds as just excuses, faulty rationales for evil acts. And she couldn't fault them for that either. Sitting slowly back into her chair, Rey took a deep, fortifying breath.