When Light Meets Dark - A Reylo Romance

The Element of Surprise

"Bran thought about it. 'Can a man still be brave if he's afraid?'

'That is the only time a man can be brave,' his father told him."

~George R.R. Martin, A Game of Thrones

Rey

It was early in the morning, so early that the doors of the cafeteria were still locked and the smallest sound echoed down the empty hallway. Kylo walked beside me, his steps heavy and his mind consumed with thoughts that were beyond my reach. Unlike him, my brain refused to process anything that was happening, and instead chose to focus on the white lights that passed over our heads.

As we stepped outside the crisp air cut through my uniform and I shivered. Against the background of a dark and empty sky stood the ship that we were going to take. I stopped, but Kylo walked on ahead. When I'd woken up that morning he'd been fast asleep and it was then that I had realised that I'd never seen Kylo sleep before. His lips had been slightly parted and I'd stroked down his chaotic hair before going back to sleep. It seemed strange that on that very morning I'd find him asleep, as if he was oblivious to the fact that we were headed to face his greatest enemy.

"Rey?"

Finn was standing there when I turned around. For the first time in a while he wasn't wearing his uniform, but a white shirt which stood out against the darkness of the morning. He took a few steps towards me.

"Were you really going to leave without telling me?" he said in a low voice, and the corner of his lips twitched up in a smile. I sensed Kylo pause at the base of the steps.

I shook my head and smiled back. We stared at each other for a while and suddenly I felt terrified and exhilarated all at once. Behind Finn loomed the North Wing of the Resistance Base, with it's high walls and tinted windows that reflected the pale glow of the outside lights, and for a second I wished that I could go back to when things were so much simpler.

"So, do you know how to get to Hoth?" he asked.

I shook my head. "No, but Kylo does." I replied.

Finn nodded. "Are you guys...good?" he asked, glancing briefly in Kylo's direction. Images of the previous night flashed through my mind and I felt my cheeks heating up.

"Yeah, we're good." I answered. Finn nodded again. He seemed to be struggling for what to say, but the truth was I didn't want him to say anything. I didn't want it to feel like a goodbye.

"Well, we better set off." I said quickly "It's a long trip."

Finn suddenly looked at me, his eyes lighting up with a fiery vengeance. "Make him pay." he said. I nodded back solemnly and then he suddenly pulled me in for a hug. For a split second I felt like pushing him away but then I buried my face deep into his chest and hugged him back. He smelt different, but in the end he was still the same Finn that I knew, that I'd always known.

"I wish I could go with you." he said as he pulled away, then he glanced up again towards the ship. "But I know that Kylo will keep you safe." I turned my attention back to Kylo who was still hovering patiently by the bottom of the stairs. His expression was passive.

Giving Finn's hand a final squeeze I turned and walked away slowly. It felt like the ground beneath me was moving while my legs remained stationary. I started to climb the stairs of the ship and as I passed Kylo I heard him mutter "I'll just be a second." Then he strode over to where Finn was still standing, arms folded behind his back. By then the sun had started to rise and the sky was glowing with faint oranges and pinks. I strained my ears to try and hear what they were saying, but it was no use. From their movements I could tell that they weren't arguing, although I still felt nervous when I saw the two of them in the same place. After a couple of minutes Kylo started coming back and I looked anxiously at Finn. His face gave away nothing.

"What did you guys talk about?" I asked Kylo as the doors began to close slowly.

"Nothing for you to worry about." he said. As the ship took off I stared out of the window and watched the misty surface of Umbara shrink and then disappear.

***

"So what's the plan?" I asked, tapping lightly on the control panel. The air in the ship was cool and filled with a low humming noise that seemed to come from the engines. Kylo, who still had a firm grip on the steering even though the ship was already on autopilot, looked at me and then looked away. He exhaled and said "I'm...not sure." then added, "But I have a feeling Snoke will be expecting us."

"So much for the element of surprise." I replied. "But then again it doesn't really matter, all we have to do is get to him."

"And then what?" he asked.

"And then we end this."

Kylo's hands dropped off the steering onto his knees. "Rey, I'm not sure if I can do this." he said, his voice unusually quiet.

I stared at him in surprise, he'd seemed so eager to see the end of Snoke that at a point I feared that his vendetta might consume him. But now it seemed that there was nothing left of it. Rising from my seat I walked over to him and looked down into his eyes.

"What are you afraid of Kylo?" I asked.

He swallowed and hesitated a while before he replied. "When I was on Sullust I had a vision and...I saw Darth Vader."

"Your grandfather?"

He nodded and continued, "He told me that I have to balance the light and dark within me if I want to defeat Snoke."

"And you're afraid that you don't have enough light inside you?" I asked, taking his hands in mine. He stared down at our hands and stroked my knuckles absent-mindedly with his thumbs. Then he muttered, more to himself than to me, "I'm just afraid that there's too much darkness."

I understood what he meant, all the pain and anger, all the hurt Snoke had caused him, it had to go somewhere. I wondered why he hadn't told me about Darth sooner, but as our ship sailed through the stars towards Hoth, nothing else really seemed to matter. The fate of the galaxy now rested in our hands.

"Don't worry." I said "I'm here, I'll steady you."

His ever sombre face finally stretched into a smile and he gave my hands a thankful squeeze. He looked like he was about to say something else when the panel on the ship gave three loud beeps and everything suddenly shut down. For a second I panicked, before I remembered that we were on a stealth ship. Kylo let go of my hands and from the darkness of the ship we peered out at the ivory surface of Hoth. I drew a deep breath and felt my heart begin to thud, each beat louder than the last.

***

When we landed the ship was instantly swallowed up by a swirling cloud of snow. I strapped on a winter coat which I'd borrowed from the armoury. It wasn't my size but somehow as it enveloped me I felt shielded from more than just the weather. When I turned around to look for Kylo I almost jumped as without the lights I could just about make out the silver lines that ran along his mask. I couldn't remember the last time I'd seen him wearing it. He looked strange and his voice came out deeper than usual. But I relaxed when he took my hand again and I felt the warmth of his skin through his gloves.

"Ready?" I asked. He nodded silently.

And so we ventured out into the storm that awaited us.

***

Hey guys! Hope you're enjoying the story, it seems we're getting nearer and nearer to the end of it :(. Anyway thank you all for your votes and let me know what you thought of this chapter.

Padme