riverview | text; un: ren

I’m not buying that, Ren.

I'm only upset insofar as stupidity makes me upset.

Then you must be upset with the First Order all the time.

[..yes, she's making a joke.]

[ Biting his tongue (fingers?) so that he doesn't respond with a comment at General Hux's expense. BECAUSE IT WOULDN'T DO TO MAKE FUN OF ANY PART OF THE FIRST ORDER, EVEN A WORM LIKE HUX. ]

Funny.

I thought as much.

Not bad for a scavenger.

[Just pointing it out, not like an insult, but as a way to get him to talk more...if he wants to.]

[ Oh. He's actually smiling a little, reading that message. NO. STOP SMILING.

Pause pause pause.

He switches to video. ]

I don't like all the... text communication.

[...Well, Rey wasn't expecting him to reply back with video. She was at the Perimeter Guard, going over a few things, and when his message came through, she moves away to a more private area.]

Would've guessed you preferred it. Gives you more time to craft a witty or sarcastic response.

[Not speaking from experience, but she would've figured his insults or teasing (could he actually tease someone?) would be better in the written word rather than simply saying it out loud.]

[ ON THE CONTRARY: the veil of relative anonymity makes it easier for him to drop all semblance of impulse control and fly off the handle. With video or audio... it's a good reminder to quiet his temper and try to maintain a measured mask. ]

Do you think that's all I'd bring to a conversation?

I don't know..

[She's being honest with him. Completely honest and hoping he is too.]

We haven't spoken much aside from...you know. [The Force, him wanting to be her teacher and other things.]

You are a puzzle, you know that?

I can say much the same about you.

[ There's no bite to it; he doesn't mean it as a snappy retort. Just an honest response. ]

Are you... interested? In speaking more? [ The way he broaches it is a bit stilted, awkward, and more than a little hesitant, like he's not sure how to just have a normal getting to know you conversation anymore. Like merely putting himself out there, to Rey, is a challenge. ]

Edited 2017-12-20 17:30 (UTC)

[She wants to snap back that at least she's honest, but that is a childish remark. Instead, she lets it go, but she is biting down, hard on her tongue.

..And that question wasn't one she was expecting.

Is this a trap or...is he trying to show he is human?]

I would be interested...as long as it remains peaceful.

[She pauses for a moment, trying to think of something clever or witty to say. Instead, she finds herself asking another honest question.]

Do you want to talk in person or is this the preferred method of communicating?

[ He regards her for a moment, considering the question. ]

This is fine.

[ Normally, he'd say they should do it in person. Then he could read her feelings, nudge the conversation in his preferred direction... subtly. But right now, the space between them is comfortable. Like a shield. ]

Easier to keep things peaceful.

[He has a point. Easier for them to keep things peaceful and instead of harming something, or each other, they could just hang up and not bother speaking to each other for hours or days.]

Agreed.

[See? They can agree on something. Though now, she's wondering what they should talk about. She wants to ask again why he hates his family so much. Why he wanted to throw all of it away, but that's...that's more for in person conversation rather than this.]

Have you been...adjusting well?

[Just a question that came to mind. She isn't exactly sure how to carry a conversation without feeling like she's giving away information, or trying to pry into his past.]

As well as can be expected.

[ Look: he hates it here. But Ren goes quiet for a moment, before he... starts to open up a little more. No, it isn't ideal, but Rey is the only person here he feels he can relate to, at least a bit, and things are confusing enough without anybody to speak to.

Normally, he may seek out guidance from the Force, or from his master, but the former isn't yielding answers, and the latter isn't here. ]

I can't stop thinking about him. [ Han Solo, he means. The admission comes out slowly, hesitation lacing every word. ]

[ Translation, he hates it too. Neither of them like being stuck on this rock, but there was little they could do. Not just her and him, but Poe and Finn too. A single thread of commonality between the four of them. Though, she wondered if she brought that up, if that’ll spark a fit of anger in him.

So instead, she focuses on herself. On what things she can tell him that won’t be used against her. However, that plan is thrown away when he opens up first and....it’s about Han.

She looks at him, anger briefly flashing through her eyes, but it dissolved as quickly as it was born. Instead, sadness replaces it. ]

Yeah?

[ Rey takes a moment to collect herself and choose her words. ]

You may not see him as important or worth remembering, but....he was your father. He gave a damn about you. Losing him...losing any parent changes you. [ Regardless if Han had died in battle or of natural causes, the pain would still be there.

She blinks rapidly for a moment, holding back the tears gathering in her eyes. ]

May not have been a great father or person, but, he still went back for you.

[ Ah, that anger. That's familiar. But then he sees grief in her eyes, mirroring what he feels but can't allow himself to express. At least one of them can.

Ren looks away when she says it: losing a parent changes you. It's true. It is, after all, why he did it. But losing Han was supposed to make him better, stronger, not... fragmented.

When he looks at the comm device again, he sees the tears in Rey's eyes. For Han, or for her own absent parents? ]

You think I don't see him as important?

I think what you did is gnawing at you. I don't know why you hated him so much, why you had to.. [She pauses, taking a deep breath to get control of her emotions and to keep herself from raising her voice at him. The tears are stinging in her eyes and she can't stop them from falling.]

I think you saw what you did as a stepping stone for more power. [And she can honestly say she wouldn't do anything of the sort.

If that's what it took for her to achieve greatness, power, or even a better life, she wouldn't have done it.]

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