For genprompt_bingo
Aug. 23rd, 2020 09:08 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
ladyofleithianTitle: Between These Pages
Summary: A bit of detective work on Rey’s part leads her to the truth.
Prompt: Following the Tracks/Clues
Disclaimer: I own nothing.
Author’s Notes: Because I thought the original scene in TLJ really wasn’t believable. At all.
It was rude to be snooping through Master Skywalker’s journal. Rey knew that now. But she had to find proof, at least somehow, that Kylo wasn’t just trying to turn her against Master Skywalker. There had to be something. It was near the end she found it.
More than she bargained for. Good as a confession. Rey’s heart raced and her breathing became shallow even as she took it in. Luke had tried to kill Kylo that night — but he hadn’t been doing it of his own free will.
He hadn’t created Kylo Ren of his own free will.
Snoke. So Snoke had been watching Luke, and younger Kylo — younger Ben. Rey winced thinking about it; Kylo was a monster, but even that idea of having something watching you and hunting you from the time you were small...
Had Kylo even had a chance to not have that thing watching him? Had Leia known? Had Han known? Had they — but of course they cared, right?
But Snoke had mind-controlled Luke. Mind-controlled him...
“So you know now.”
Luke’s voice, behind her. Rey spun around, staff in hand — old habits died hard, she was afraid.
“Why did you lie to me?” Rey said.
“It was shameful,” Luke said. “But I mostly did it because I was ashamed. I thought that if you knew that my mind had been hijacked, you’d think less of me somehow.”
“For a Jedi Master, you really are a fool,” Rey said. “I don’t...you didn’t do it willingly. Saying otherwise would be wrong, right?”
“I suppose.” Luke paused. “I don’t know if he can be redeemed, Rey. I don’t know if he’ll be open to talking about it. He killed Han, after all. And Han was trying to save him.”
“I know." Rey took a deep breath. “Luke...Master Skywalker...he’s been talking to me.”
“How?”
“I don’t know what happened, but we’re Bonded. I don’t like it either.”
Luke looked taken aback. Wondering. Then, “Force Bonds are difficult to break. It is possible, if one of you dies or your feelings for the other change, but even then, it would be empty. A wound.”
“So...we’re both doomed to be chained to each other?”
Luke sighed. “I’ll have to meditate on this.”
Rey supposed that was Jedi Master speak for “I really don’t know”.
***
“Did you find what you came for?”
Rey nodded. It felt odd to be in a strange sort of alliance with Kylo Ren, but she supposed that times really were odd right now. Bonding her to this man — it was a feeling that she doubted she actually liked. If she was to be perfectly honest with herself.
“What do you think?”
“There’s a detail you missed,” Rey said. “Something about your uncle being...mind-controlled that night.”
“Mind-controlled?”
Rey supposed she could give herself credit for actually seeming to catch Kylo off-guard, at least in that moment.
“So Snoke — no, it can’t be. He couldn’t have possibly...”
Kylo was muttering to himself now. Rey could pick up other things from his mind too, shadows and hands and that man, writhing on the rack. Killing his own father. Hunting for Luke, all these years.
“It was for nothing,” Kylo said. “I should have known. I should have known all along. You want to know why I killed my father. I did it because I thought it would make me stronger. Half of what I did in Snoke’s service was...duty.”
“Duty.” Of course. Didn’t people rationalize the most awful things by saying that they were just following orders?
“And another part was my training. Part of what was needed to make me complete. It’s not like your training. It remakes me. It allows me to detach from what I love. What I value.”
“Why?”
“Only mercy is worse than love.”
“I don’t believe that.”
“Of course not," Kylo said. “But Snoke...does."
Rey paused.
“Rey,” Kylo said, “If you joined me...”
“I can’t do that.” Rey said. “I’m still going to be taking down Snoke. It’ll just be on my own terms.”
Kylo didn’t flinch, but Rey could tell that he was wounded. He didn’t love her. Not enough to want to cut her out. But he had found a sort of respect for her, the first Jedi in a long while to stand against him.
“Just...be free of him. Kylo. If you can’t come back, at least be free of him,” Rey said. “You can be free, at least.”
“It’s — ”
“If your father believed in you even while you killed him,” Rey said, “There’s still hope for you, Kylo. You don’t have to be a dejarik pawn forever.”
The seeds were planted. What they would grow into...well, Rey shuddered to think. It could be something beautiful, or something horrific.
"Be free of him,” Rey said, before the Bond cut off.
Summary: A bit of detective work on Rey’s part leads her to the truth.
Prompt: Following the Tracks/Clues
Disclaimer: I own nothing.
Author’s Notes: Because I thought the original scene in TLJ really wasn’t believable. At all.
It was rude to be snooping through Master Skywalker’s journal. Rey knew that now. But she had to find proof, at least somehow, that Kylo wasn’t just trying to turn her against Master Skywalker. There had to be something. It was near the end she found it.
More than she bargained for. Good as a confession. Rey’s heart raced and her breathing became shallow even as she took it in. Luke had tried to kill Kylo that night — but he hadn’t been doing it of his own free will.
He hadn’t created Kylo Ren of his own free will.
Snoke. So Snoke had been watching Luke, and younger Kylo — younger Ben. Rey winced thinking about it; Kylo was a monster, but even that idea of having something watching you and hunting you from the time you were small...
Had Kylo even had a chance to not have that thing watching him? Had Leia known? Had Han known? Had they — but of course they cared, right?
But Snoke had mind-controlled Luke. Mind-controlled him...
“So you know now.”
Luke’s voice, behind her. Rey spun around, staff in hand — old habits died hard, she was afraid.
“Why did you lie to me?” Rey said.
“It was shameful,” Luke said. “But I mostly did it because I was ashamed. I thought that if you knew that my mind had been hijacked, you’d think less of me somehow.”
“For a Jedi Master, you really are a fool,” Rey said. “I don’t...you didn’t do it willingly. Saying otherwise would be wrong, right?”
“I suppose.” Luke paused. “I don’t know if he can be redeemed, Rey. I don’t know if he’ll be open to talking about it. He killed Han, after all. And Han was trying to save him.”
“I know." Rey took a deep breath. “Luke...Master Skywalker...he’s been talking to me.”
“How?”
“I don’t know what happened, but we’re Bonded. I don’t like it either.”
Luke looked taken aback. Wondering. Then, “Force Bonds are difficult to break. It is possible, if one of you dies or your feelings for the other change, but even then, it would be empty. A wound.”
“So...we’re both doomed to be chained to each other?”
Luke sighed. “I’ll have to meditate on this.”
Rey supposed that was Jedi Master speak for “I really don’t know”.
***
“Did you find what you came for?”
Rey nodded. It felt odd to be in a strange sort of alliance with Kylo Ren, but she supposed that times really were odd right now. Bonding her to this man — it was a feeling that she doubted she actually liked. If she was to be perfectly honest with herself.
“What do you think?”
“There’s a detail you missed,” Rey said. “Something about your uncle being...mind-controlled that night.”
“Mind-controlled?”
Rey supposed she could give herself credit for actually seeming to catch Kylo off-guard, at least in that moment.
“So Snoke — no, it can’t be. He couldn’t have possibly...”
Kylo was muttering to himself now. Rey could pick up other things from his mind too, shadows and hands and that man, writhing on the rack. Killing his own father. Hunting for Luke, all these years.
“It was for nothing,” Kylo said. “I should have known. I should have known all along. You want to know why I killed my father. I did it because I thought it would make me stronger. Half of what I did in Snoke’s service was...duty.”
“Duty.” Of course. Didn’t people rationalize the most awful things by saying that they were just following orders?
“And another part was my training. Part of what was needed to make me complete. It’s not like your training. It remakes me. It allows me to detach from what I love. What I value.”
“Why?”
“Only mercy is worse than love.”
“I don’t believe that.”
“Of course not," Kylo said. “But Snoke...does."
Rey paused.
“Rey,” Kylo said, “If you joined me...”
“I can’t do that.” Rey said. “I’m still going to be taking down Snoke. It’ll just be on my own terms.”
Kylo didn’t flinch, but Rey could tell that he was wounded. He didn’t love her. Not enough to want to cut her out. But he had found a sort of respect for her, the first Jedi in a long while to stand against him.
“Just...be free of him. Kylo. If you can’t come back, at least be free of him,” Rey said. “You can be free, at least.”
“It’s — ”
“If your father believed in you even while you killed him,” Rey said, “There’s still hope for you, Kylo. You don’t have to be a dejarik pawn forever.”
The seeds were planted. What they would grow into...well, Rey shuddered to think. It could be something beautiful, or something horrific.
"Be free of him,” Rey said, before the Bond cut off.
