Black Honey- Chapter 16
A Kylo Ren/OC fanfiction
Jeyna is a scholar whose obsessed with the legend of Revan, a famous Jedi and Sith from millennia ago. She has found the first of many star maps, clues to something Revan left hidden, but her studies catch the First Orderâs attention. Captured and interrogated, she is expecting to be killed once she has no more information to give. Instead, she finds herself working for Kylo Ren.
Chapter 16
They arrive on the Finalizer, Aleck taking Jeyna straight to her quarters. It is late into the night cycle of the ship, which suits her fine. She immediately falls into an exhausted sleep, though it is riddled with nightmares.
Aleck brings her a replacement datapad in the morning, since her old one was left on the jungle moon. Her work is already reloaded, backed up through Renâs device. She spends most of her day researching Nar Shaddaa from the time of the Old Republic, hoping to find a connection to Revan that will inform a search area.
She fails to make any headway, and it is quickly turning late at night when she gives in to the protesting grumbles of her stomach. She considers ordering food to be brought to her quarters, reluctant to spend time anywhere else on the Finalizer. But she also feels stir crazy from being in the same space for so long.
Jeyna uses the comm panel to call for Aleck, apologizing for the late hour. He waves it off with a small smile, appearing outside her door a few minutes later.
The walk to the dining hall is silent, neither of them speaking. Jeyna doesnât mind, somehow the silence feels amicable instead of awkward. When they arrive, the large space is mostly deserted, save for a table of technicians. They stare at her as she passes, and she dares to glare back.
When they sit at the table farthest from them, Aleck is grinning. âWhat?â she asks.
âThey anger you,â he remarks simply, before adding, âThey canât help themselves, the rumors are bound to spread.â
âRumors?â She takes a bite of food, to stop the persistent growling of her stomach.
âThere are very few women on board this ship,â Aleck says. âApologies if this is bold of me, but you are beautiful. And the Commander moved you into an executive suite, and made it known you are off limits.â
âSo they assume Iâm his whore,â she spits out the word, anger spiking at Aleckâs words.
He winces. âMistress, would be the more appropriate conclusion.â
Jeyna narrows her eyes at him. âSame difference.â The food tastes bland, or perhaps that is her sudden poor attitude coloring it.
âMost of them think Commander Ren is not even human. That he is in some way supernatural. One entertaining rumor was that the helmet was the only thing keeping him alive,â Aleck shares quietly. âYou are proof he is very much a man.â
She swallows down a sarcastic reply. âSurely a few of them have seen him without his mask, over the years?â
âA few, perhaps. Strangely the ones who do always seem to forget.â Aleckâs tone suggests it is not a simple matter of forgetting.
âBut youâve seen him without the mask, havenât you?â Jeyna presses. He hadnât been wearing it for part of the flight back from Dxun.
âOnly because Iâve known him a long time,â he concedes. âI remember when he first came to the First Order. It wasnât long after that he started hiding his face.â
Her curiosity is peaked, and she sits her fork down. âWhy? Did he start hiding it, I mean?â
He hesitates, seeming to consider his words carefully, before he answers. âHe was very young. It was necessary, for his orders to be followed.â
âHow young?â
âYoung enough to not be a man, yet,â Aleck says dismissively, his gaze wandering the room. The technicians have left, leaving the two of them alone.
She tries to imagine Renâs life in this place, before he was an adult. How isolated he must have felt, a teenager trying to play at being mature enough to handle whatever they asked of him. Why had they even allowed him to join so young? Because of his abilities with the force? Had he joined willingly, or had no choice?
Jeyna doesnât venture to ask any of those questions, unwilling to push further in case Ren is listening. She flinches as she realizes he might not have liked what Aleckâs already told her. âWill this get you in trouble?â she asks suddenly. âTelling me about him, I mean.â
The older man smiles slowly. âYou donât need to worry about that right now. The Commander is far from the ship, which will make it harder for him to hear your thoughts. Heâs also likely too focused to bother.â
She frowns. âWhere is he? I didnât realize heâd left.â
âHe is meeting with the Supreme Leader, aboard the Supremacy.â
Her heart thuds in her chest at the mention of their leader. Jeyna tries to reassure herself. If the touch of the force Nadd managed to awaken inside her is as weak as Kylo said, surely it wonât be enough to attract his attention.
She attempts to return her attention to her food, to distract herself from the anxiety. Aleck is silent while she eats, waiting until she is done to speak again.
âWhat would you be doing, Miss Torre, if not serving the First Order?â he asks.
She is surprised by his question, searching his eyes for his intention. They give away nothing. âWhy does it matter? Iâm here.â
âBut if you werenât?â he presses. She feels suspicion, though she canât place what itâs regarding.
âIâm not sureâŚâ Truly, Jeyna canât answer the question. Doubtless, she wouldâve pursued the leads on Revan on her own, and perhaps she wouldnât have made it this far. She might have been forced to give up, or been delayed getting assistance with an expedition to Kashyyyk. If sheâd tried to foolishly go it alone, like sheâd been known to in the past when support fell through, she might have even ended up dead.
The line of thinking only serves to make her feel bitter. Renâs helped her with her own goals, even while that wasnât his intention.
âSometimes I like to think about if I had a different life. Where would I go? What would I do?â Aleck muses, his voice turning self-deprecating. âIf I werenât who I am, what would I want to be?â
âAnd what do you come up with?â she asks.
âNothing.â He looks peaceful in his answer. âI have been what I am for so long, I canât seriously imagine anything different. I know my course.â
Jeyna swallows, feeling a strange emotion she canât identify. She realizes even before she was apprehended on Dantooine, she hadnât known her course. Her next step was always to follow a question, pursue a lead. Sheâd dedicated her time to studying, not taking action.
âIf I werenât here, Iâd just be doing what Iâve always done,â she admits. He nods.
âWould you like that better?â
His questions have a way of shaking her, making her scramble to form a sensible answer. She dislikes the direction the conversation has taken, even as she admits to herself she wouldnât like it better. The thought of returning to her former life suddenly seems pale, even though she doesnât prefer the current situation either.
âNo. IâŚâ she trails off, unable to bring herself to say the words. Her life had been spent barely even existing, by her own choice. Sheâd avoided settling in any one place, avoided lasting relationships. Sheâd never done anything to make an impact, to affect anyone. Even what she published of her research, it was from such a long ago time that only the most scattered of her fellow scholars took notice. It mattered only to her, in an obsessive way, to learn about Revan. She clung to it in the absence of anything else. âI donât think anything Iâve done has mattered. I donât think I have mattered.â
Aleckâs calm expression studies her, letting her words linger too long for her comfort. Finally, he says, âYou are searching for a cause.â
A chilling feeling settles over her, at his astute observation. Heâs pinpointed something sheâs been running from since childhood. That, alone in the galaxy, sheâs felt the absolute lack of a real purpose to her life. She fights the tears that spring to her eyes, chewing her lip as she looks away from him.
âIâm sorry to have upset you, Miss Torre,â he apologizes, sounding genuine. She shakes her head.
âCan we drop it?â she asks, fighting to regain control of her emotions. She dislikes how scattered and intense theyâve been lately, more emotion crammed into a few weeks of her life than the last decade.
âOf course.â She can feel him still watching her, studying her. The suspicion returns.
The Next Day
Itâs the middle of the day on the Finalizer, and Jeyna is frustrated at her lack of progress. She has not found a single lead regarding Nar Shaddaa, and has already exhausted her back up plan. She searched through the list of known allies of Revanâs, seeing if any of them were tied to the planet. She had turned up nothing.
Sheâs sprawled on the couch, the datapad settled uselessly on her lap, when her door slides open. It surprises her, and she jumps up to see Ren storm in.
Heâs in full combat gear, helmet on to hide his face. She can feel the energy rolling off of him, turbulent waves of something negative and barely repressed. His hands are clenched tightly into fists.
Jeyna stands hesitantly, unsure what to say. The metal and black void of a face stares at her, giving no clues. The silence stretches on until she canât stand it any longer. âI havenât been able to narrow down where we should look on Nar Shaddaa-â
âYour sole purpose here, and you are failing at it.â
Her mouth falls open at the cruelty of his tone, twisted deeper by the mask. âIâll keep trying, but I donât know what you want from me if I canât find anything,â she says, voice coming out weak. She hates herself for it, wishes she could stand up to his anger instead of always shrinking from it.
âIf you canât do your job, then I shouldnât bother keeping you.â
The logical part of her wants to argue with him. He might still need her, to unlock the holocrons. He is overlooking the facts to threaten her. But there is also a part of her that is hurt by his comment, by what it implies. The way it ignores everything else that has happened between them.
Jeyna steps back, as if physical distance can prevent the hurt heâs causing her. She hears the hiss of anger from the helmet at her motion.
âIs that what you want? To flee?â Ren stalks forward, ranting, âDo you think if you fail to provide information, Iâll let you go? That you can escape me?â
He reaches her as she runs out of space to escape backward, and she is pinned into the wall by the size of him, the barrier that is his rage. âI canât find anything, Iâm trying!â she insists.
Heâs breathing heavily, the mask filtering the pants into static. She remembers what Aleck had said, that he had been meeting with Snoke. She clings onto understanding, and ventures, âIs that whatâs wrong with you? What happened, with the Supreme Leader?â
Ren growls, the sound reverberating mechanically. âThat is none of your business.â
âIs that why youâre being so cruel to me? Did he upset you?â Jeyna asks, searching the blackness that hides his eyes from hers. He recoils at her words, stepping back. The action gives her courage, it fuels her as she realizes she is on the right track.
âTake off your mask,â she says, surprisingly bold.
âYou donât give me orders,â Kylo snarls back. But she notices as he takes another step away from her.
âTake off your mask!â she demands, loudly. Her heart is beating wildly, panicking at the danger of shouting at him. But she doesnât care, recklessness taking over.
He steps back again, and again. When he rips the helmet from his head, he hurls it into the wall. The crack of its impact implies he might have broken the horrible thing again. His eyes are wild, his hair hanging into them, as he glares at her. His face is newly marked with a horrible, red welt. It crisscrosses over his cheek and onto his forehead, resembling a burn.
Jeyna stares at his eyes, and they remind her of a trapped animal. She dares to take a step forward.
âDonât,â he warns, his chest heaving as he contains himself.
She ignores him, taking another small step. âWhat happened? He hurt you?â
âItâs his way,â he says tonelessly.
Her eyes sting, welling with tears as she understands. Another step brings her in front of him as she asks, âWhy?â
His face breaks, the muscles twitching at the release of his hold over them. She sees pain fill his eyes. âYou.â
Jeyna canât stop herself, her hand rising to his jawline. She is careful to avoid the injury, stroking along his other cheek, pausing to rest her hand against his skin. His eyes search hers desperately. âYou make me weak. When this is doneâŚâ
Renâs voice is more timid than sheâs ever heard it. She understands what he means, and despite the self-preservation that surges in her, she is oddly calm. She realizes she does trust him. And she trusts herself, passionately, in a way she never has before.
She doesnât overthink it, or obsess over it in her brain like she always has. She listens to the advice sheâs been given, lets the intention lie in her heart.
âItâs okay,â she tells him, resting her other hand on his shoulder.
The last trace of anger dies from his eyes, even as he searches her face in disbelief. She stands on her tiptoes, reaching up to press her lips to his softly. Itâs a chaste, gentle kiss. When she breaks away, she strokes his cheek once more. âItâs okay, Kylo.â
Chapter 1 of this story:
https://bramadian0336.tumblr.com/post/646406961804492800/black-honey-chapter-1
Chapter Index:
https://bramadian0336.tumblr.com/post/646403464799404032/black-honey
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Black Honey- Chapter 15
A Kylo Ren/OC fanfiction
Jeyna is a scholar whose obsessed with the legend of Revan, a famous Jedi and Sith from millennia ago. She has found the first of many star maps, clues to something Revan left hidden, but her studies catch the First Orderâs attention. Captured and interrogated, she is expecting to be killed once she has no more information to give. Instead, she finds herself working for Kylo Ren.
Warning(s): Sexual Content
Chapter 15
Jeyna feels better the moment she stops trying to push away the pent-up emotions of the last few weeks. Itâs an intense, but short display, and when her breathing starts to even out she feels calmer.
The tears are drying into salty tracks on her cheeks, and her eyes feel puffy as she watches the door to the dormitory open. Ren enters, and Jeyna looks over him. Heâs dressed in casuals, his hair still wet as if heâs just come from the other refresher. But something else about him is different, she thinks, as he hesitantly approaches her.
He stops next to her, sliding down the wall to sit. He drops a commlink onto the floor, near her towel.
Renâs eyes stay fixated on his hands, propped on his knees. She canât place it, but his energy feels changed from the last time they had been alone together. Heâs less volatile, he doesnât immediately overwhelm her like he has in the past.
Sheâs reminded of the morning sheâd woken up with him on Kashyyyk, how calm his presence had made her feel. Until heâd roused fully and pulled away, turning cold.
They sit in silence for several moments, and though Jeynaâs heart responds to his closeness, she is able to keep her wits about her. He finally takes a breath as if heâs about to speak, but holds it for a beat before exhaling.
âDo you know what those were?â she asks to break the silence. She had researched the creatures of Dxun, and never came across anything remotely similar.
âI think they were devourers,â he says uncertainly. âI remember reading about them. Places with strong ties to the dark side can warp the natural wildlife.â
Sheâs intrigued. âWhere did you read that?â
When he looks at her finally, she notices his face is somehow more relaxed, his eyes almost vulnerable. âIn a Jedi text.â
The answer catches her off guard, as she wonders where he would have accessed such a record. But she doesnât press him to explain. Something about the moment makes her unwilling to push, content instead to settle with the much more relaxed chemistry between them.
âBy the time I would have gotten to them, theyâd have been dead,â he says suddenly. âAssuming I could have reached them. More were waking up in the tomb, the ship could have been overrun.â
She understands he is justifying himself, and searches for the right response. His decision had been logical, and she doesnât fault him for it.
Jeyna sees his hands from the corner of her eye, and realizes they are trembling slightly. She turns to face him, searching his face in surprise. Is he upset?
Renâs staring at his hands again, and he clenches them to stop the shake. Jeynaâs pensive as she remembers when theyâd spoken about his powers, the implication of them. How does someone elseâs death feel to him? If he can feel their emotions, hear their thoughts⌠He must sense their fear, their despair. What does it feel like to him when their heart stops, their brain shuts down?
Does he have to feel that, every time he kills for the First Orderâs cause? Every time heâs around death, does he have to experience it intimately? Did he feel it as every single one of the men on Dxun were torn apart?
She canât begin to imagine. It must happen often, judging by her little time with him. How does he cope with feeling so much of the suffering and death that heâs constantly surrounded by? How can he bring himself to inflict it on anyone or anything, when he has to feel the results in such a way?
Horrified, she finds herself reaching for one of his hands on impulse. She takes it in both of hers, still failing to encompass it fully.
âKyloâŚâ she says softly, unsure what else to say. Nothing she can say will truly console him, or change what he has to endure. His power seems more like a curse to her in this moment. She wishes she could comfort him, pull him closer. But sheâs hesitant to do more, already feeling the muscles of his hand tense at her grip.
âSince I was a child, people have only ever wanted to get farther away from me,â he says, slowly. âWhy do you want to be closer?â
She meets his eyes, the familiar magnetism trapping her gaze in his. She doesnât know how to answer him. How can she explain the overriding instinct she feels, drawing her towards him? That her whole life, sheâs been able to tell when something valuable has been buried, deep out of sight, and sheâs felt a relentless need to surface it?
He turns, leaning down closer to her face. His free hand pushes a strand of her hair, still damp, back from her eyes. âIâm not buried treasure, Jeyna. Itâs nothing so pretty.â
âI donât care,â she says defiantly. Her body, which was slow to warm to his presence, is heating up at the open expression of his face. How unguarded he is in the moment thrills her, jittery impulses racing along her skin.
âYou donât?â Kylo presses, voice low. She doesnât miss the way his eyes dart to her lips, and the twitch of excitement is causes in her stomach. âThere is no good to unearth in me.â
Despite his words, she hears the doubt in his voice. It breaks through clearly, shattering the last bit of self control sheâd been hanging onto. Jeyna closes the distance that separates them, brushing her lips against his hesitantly. âPlease,â she breathes again, knowing now what she is begging for.
His own control breaks, he turns her head so he can access her fully. The kiss isnât as bruising as the last, his lips lingering on hers, tender. Elation blooms in her chest at how sweetly he holds her face, the tentative way he deepens the kiss. Everything about this is different than their last encounter, less rushed, but more exposed.
All too soon, he breaks away, edging back from her lips. She searches his face, the dark lashes resting against pale skin. The hand she still holds moves, winding fingers through hers, while he breathes as if struggling to steady himself.
âYou donât understand what youâre doing,â he says quietly, frustration lacing his words.
His eyes open, and she can see the shadow of emotion cross them, like watching a storm roll in. âWhat do you mean?â
âYouâre a bird, choosing the cage,â he answers.
âDid I ever have a choice?â she asks, confused. Jeyna hadnât been given one, when the First Order took her. Or did he mean there would be one, eventually?
Kylo pulls his hand from hers, to trace his thumb over her cheekbone and down, to her chin. She can see the transformation come over him, the way his face hardens over the vulnerability. She feels the energy turn thick, the tension returning. âIt doesnât matter now,â he says, and it sounds final.
His hand trails downward, a single finger tracing the line of her neck until it hooks onto the neckline of the oversized shirt sheâs wearing. âWhat is this?â
She drops her gaze to it, licking her lips nervously. âThe ship is only stocked with menâs clothing.â
âHow ridiculous,â he remarks, distracted. He grabs her hips suddenly, lifting and pulling her until she straddles him. Her knees are forced wide by how broad he is, and a shiver shoots up her spine as she settles down against him.
Jeyna hears the commlink go off, but he ignores it. Sheâs studying his face, trying to read what emotion is warring underneath it. But with the openness gone, his eyes have turned hungry. It makes her heart speed up, fear returning with lust as if they belong together. His hands rise from her hips, moving under her shirt to trail fingertips up her bare sides.
They reach her bottom rib and stop. âIs this alright?â he asks, eyes flickering between hers. When she nods, he licks his bottom lip. âGood girl,â he breathes.
A shock of pleasure shoots through her at the praise, causing her breath to come out like a gasp. His hands trace the sides of her breasts, exposed under the shirt, before his thumbs brush across her nipples.
The commlink goes off again, and she flinches as it goes flying into the wall, shattering into pieces that rain down on the metal floor of the dormitory. Jeyna wants to ask if that was important, but his thumbs continue swirling around and brushing over the sensitive parts of her chest, making the words vanish. Her breathing turns shallow, and she longs to touch him too. But everything about him warns her not to, and she stays frozen where heâs placed her.
He reaches around her back, placing a palm along her spine to push her, upward and towards him. She follows his lead, rising up onto her knees.
âHands on the wall,â Kylo orders.
She obeys, placing them flat against the cool metal above his shoulders. She breathes in sharply when he bends his head to bite her neck, before kissing and licking at the tender spot. His hands roam the skin under her shirt, restless. Her mind quickly becomes dizzy with his touches, as he works his way up and down her neck. Rough bites mixed with apologetic kisses until he finds a spot that makes a desperate moan leave her.
His hands grip her hips, roughly pulling her down to grind against him. She bites her lip, strangling the noise of pleasure, her body reacting too strongly. Everything in her is screaming for more, and sheâs lost. The world has become him.
Kyloâs mouth finds hers again, and his kiss is dominating. She gives in on instinct, the growl that comes from his chest rewarding her when she opens her mouth for him. His arm pulls her hips tightly against him, a hand tangling in her hair. He bites her lower lip, before his own lips lock over it so he can run his tongue across the swollen skin. When his mouth covers hers fully again, sheâs drunk on the feeling of it.
Panic worms its way into her chest, interrupting the flood of heat. Jeynaâs overcome by the intensity, the rough demands of his hunger and her own desperation that rises to meet it. Her hands drop to cling onto him, a whimper of fear and need leaving her.
He breaks his hold, leaning back. Itâs just enough space for her to catch back onto reality. He gives her time, lets her focus on breathing, on calming her racing heart. She feels his presence in her mind before he says, gently, âYouâre afraid.â
âNot of you,â she assures automatically, avoiding his gaze in embarrassment. She shifts off his lap, moving to sit beside him. How to explain, that she feels lost in the tidal wave of lust? That she fears she wonât find her way back if she gives in?
Does she even need to explain? Nothing in her is private, he sees and takes it all.
He reaches to turn her face, lifting her eyes to his. âDo you trust me?â
The question stuns her, and she falters. Her instincts, and her traitorous body, want to say yes immediately. But can she really trust someone whose given her no free will over her life? Renâs forced her to do what he wants, used her to further his goals.
âIâm not patient,â Kylo says, voice turning cold. âDecide soon.â
He stands, striding to the door of the dormitory. âWeâll be docking on the Finalizer soon.â
She doesnât answer, and he leaves her in silence. Her hand rises to her neck, running over the flesh his attention has made tender. She winces as she realizes it might have left marks, pulling her hair closer to the skin.
What would become of her life, after she helped him find whatever the map led to? Youâre a bird, choosing the cage. Would he let her choose freedom? Did she trust him, to offer her that? Or did she trust the hunger in his gaze, that would keep her a prisoner?
Jeyna pulls herself upright, walking to one of the lower bunks of the dormitory. She curls up on it, wrapping her arms around herself and wishing her life could be the simple pursuit of her studies again. Sheâd avoided men for the most part up until now, content to settle for one lackluster experience in her youth.
Was this what it was supposed to feel like? Was this love, or passion, or pure animalistic drive? It was consuming, and sheâd never imagined anything as terrifying.
Or was it Kylo Ren? Was it his power that made it this way? It wasnât just how he used the force, it was more than that⌠She thinks of the holocron from her childhood. Of how the image of Revan speaking to her had captivated her young mind. She had felt the importance radiating even from the holorecording.
Is this how it was for all strong force users? Did they drive the galaxy, twist fate in their hands? Or was it the force itself, using them as tools, pushing them along predetermined routes? Were they all just prisoners, to one another, and the endless will of the force?
Her head aches, and she closes her eyes. Jeyna wishes she could block it all out, but her mind reaches out in newfound awareness. She can feel Kylo, his agitation, his tension. She focuses, unsure if the connection is real or not. But there, beneath the anger, she feels it. Regret. Longing.
Next Chapter:
https://bramadian0336.tumblr.com/post/650766002783666176/black-honey-chapter-16
Chapter 1 of this story:
https://bramadian0336.tumblr.com/post/646406961804492800/black-honey-chapter-1
Chapter Index:
https://bramadian0336.tumblr.com/post/646403464799404032/black-honey
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Black Honey- Chapter 14
A Kylo Ren/OC fanfiction
Jeyna is a scholar whose obsessed with the legend of Revan, a famous Jedi and Sith from millennia ago. She has found the first of many star maps, clues to something Revan left hidden, but her studies catch the First Orderâs attention. Captured and interrogated, she is expecting to be killed once she has no more information to give. Instead, she finds herself working for Kylo Ren.
Chapter 14
When they emerge from the tomb, Dxun is in the midst of an intense storm. Rain is coming down in sheets, whipped sideways by blasts of wind. Lightning is criss-crossing the sky above the clearing of their camp, lighting up the jungle in flashes.
Ren surprises her, by dismissing Aleck and asking her to accompany him back to the shuttle. Jeyna doesnât know why he needs her company, but she pulls her hood up, holding it against the wind. They hurry across camp to get to the landing site, but her face is already soaked by the time they get there. Luckily the rain gear helped keep the rest of her dry.
She trails him into the communications room of the ship, watching as he sets his datapad to transmit the newest part of the star map.
When heâs done, he turns to her. âIt will take them some time to extract the holocrons for shipping. With the storm, I doubt we could take off anyway. We might end up spending another night on Dxun.â
Jeyna shrugs, careful to keep her distance from him in the small space. âGood. I hate being on that ship.â
Renâs mask tilts slowly off center as he surveys her. âThere is something different about you. I felt it back in the cave, also.â
âThe ghost of a dead Sith Lord just played mind games with me,â she replies defensively. âIâm feeling a little shaken.â
âThatâs not it.â
She stares at the mask, confused. He reaches his hands up, to either side of the helmet, pulling it from his head. Jeyna wishes he wouldnât, itâs so much easier to handle herself when she canât see his face or hear his voice. The dark hair spills out, and his eyes are on hers. Theyâre suspicious as he closes the distance between them to search her gaze. Her heart beats faster at his closeness, her palms damp with nerves.
She feels his presence in her mind, light and testing. Itâs only there for a moment before he is gone again. His lips press together, face holding back a wave of anger.
âI can feel the force in you,â he says, fuming. âHeâs woken you to it.â
Jeynaâs mouth falls open in shock. âWhat? Freedon Nadd?â
Renâs jaw clenches, she sees the black gloves curl into fists. She does not understand his fury. âWaitâŚwas he telling the truth? Did you lie about my blood test?â she asks.
His anger falters. âDid he tell you that?â
âWhat were my results?â she presses.
Renâs face remains stubbornly blank, though his eyes look to be torn. âElevated, but not to a significant level⌠Inconclusive.â
âHux said they were average,â she argues.
âHux saw a fake report.â
She stares at him, but his face is unreadable. âWhy did you fake the report?â
He turns his back on her, walking away as if to check the progress on the data transfer, his attention on the computer. âIf the Supreme Leader feels the force in you⌠I donât know what he will do.â
Her heart feels as if it has dropped into her stomach. âBut Iâm not like you. Iâm nothing like you. I canât do the things that you do,â she insists, trying to be reasonable.
He turns to give her a glare. âIâve been trained.â
âNo amount of training would make me as powerful as you,â she bites back stubbornly. Jeyna has seen too much of his skill, and she knows power like that will never reside within her. She suspects even the taste of power sheâd felt in the tomb, with the knife in her hand, had come from Freedon Nadd. Not her.
Ren sighs, nodding once. âThat is true. It is weak, what I feel. Itâs possible youâd never be able to use it for anything of substance, even with training.â
Jeyna swallows, wishing he would say something more to reassure her. He doesnât, staying silent. She can feel the turbulence of his mood in the air, and it almost makes her stop before the question leaves her. But she speculates over what else the ghost said. If the part about her blood had been truth, perhaps other parts had been as well.
âDid you leave me in the interrogation room for a week? Or was that Hux?â
âI was told they had failed to recover anyone from Dantooine. I only discovered you when I found a medical droid being dispatched to interrogation, while no prisoners were on record,â Ren answers.
She leans against the doorframe, tearing her eyes away from him. How long would Hux have tortured her for? How many other prisoners has he done this to, dragging out their pain just to spite Ren?
âWhat else did Freedon Nadd tell you?â He approaches her slowly, searching her face as he comes to a stop in front of her once more.
âNothing I didnât already know,â she answers quickly, leaving her eyes somewhere on the floor of the ship. He lingers, watching her. She doesnât want to talk about what else happened in the tomb, so she skates over it in her mind and tries to focus elsewhere.
Heâs too close, itâs causing tension to build in her body. She doesnât want to look at him, doesnât want to acknowledge the magnetic pull she feels when he is this near.
He steps even closer and she flinches, her pulse racing as she remembers his mouth against hers. Just being alone with him is enough to send her mind back into that delirious place, craving more. She has to get away from him. She wants to go, back to her little room, or even back to her quarters on the Finalizer. She thinks of both, wanting to escape her own thoughts.
âWhat are you doing?â he asks quietly.
Jeyna keeps her eyes down as she moves one shoulder in a half-hearted shrug. She pictures the storm outside, the rumbling thunder and soaking rain. Sheâd have better luck feeling in control standing in the midst of that.
âAre you trying to hide your thoughts from me?â Ren tilts her face up sharply, his hand holding her there.
His honey eyes lock onto hers, and she recalls how wild and black theyâd been in the dark, before heâd let her taste him. She canât stop the rush of pleasure she feels at the memory, the desire surging forward from where sheâd pathetically tried to wall it up.
âThatâs better,â he says softly, his hold of her cheek turning gentle.
She struggles to drag in a breath, his chaotic energy is surrounding her. âPlease.â She breathes the word before she realizes itâs left her lips.
âPlease what?â Ren leans closer, freezing her in place.
Jeyna canât answer him, she is torn between wanting to flee and wanting more. She canât think straight. Why had she been trying to fight this? Her brain manages to string together her thoughts, and she hesitantly answers him. âYou told me to be good. I was trying.â
His gaze turns predatory, and simultaneously calculating. âIs that what you want? You want to be good for me?â His hand slips down, covering her throat. Her body responds in the same, twisted way as the last time, arousal curling.
She struggles to reply, confused by his conflicting words and actions, her brain fogged with lust and intimidation. âIâŚIâm notâŚâ She gives up, giving him a desperate look. âKyloâŚâ
He moves back a bit, dropping his hold of her, even as his eyes narrow. âDonât try to hide your thoughts from me again.â
She nods at his order, and when he steps back further, she hurries from the ship.
Night on Dxun
Jeynaâs deep in sleep when the hand clamps over her mouth, jerking her into startled awareness. She flails, but a second hand catches her arm before it can strike whoeverâs assailing her.
Her sleep-blurred eyes clear, and she sees Aleckâs face, his expression tense.
âWe need to leave, now,â he whispers urgently, his voice barely audible. âSomethingâs come out of the tomb, thereâs no time. Be quiet and stay close with me. If you lose me, get to the ship.â
Her eyes widen in terror at the implication, wondering what he is referring to. Some sort of creature? It must be very dangerous for him to be acting this way. Before she can think further, he removes his hand from her face to pull her from her bed, thrusting the blaster pistol into her hand. He motions for her to follow. She moves on autopilot, fear and shock setting in.
They creep into the hallway, edging near the door of the small dormitory. There is no sign of Ren. Aleck pushes the door open slowly, his blaster trained on the exterior. Somewhere in the camp, Jeyna hears a shot go off. Itâs quickly followed by a man screaming.
Her guard is undeterred, stepping out into the dark to slink along the building. His head is moving silently back and forth, scanning the area as he leads her towards the landing area. She tries to step as quietly as possible, crouching as he does to minimize their appearance.
They turn a corner, and Jeyna is confronted by the sight of one of the troopers. The telltale white armor is torn off, his chest shredded open. She feels bile rise, hot and sour, up her throat at the sight of his broken ribs snapped off. The cavity of his sternum is dark with blood, but it looks like something has eaten parts of him. Her mind reels as she understands the situation she's woken up to.
She feels Aleckâs hand on her arm, and realizes sheâs stopped for too long. She tears her eyes from the sight of the dead man, and gives him a nod to continue. She needs to stay present if sheâs going to survive whatever is loose in the base. She tries to push away the fear, to be brave. She's failing.
He stops them at the edge, peering out to clear the space between them and the supply building. His hand raises, giving her a small wave and Jeyna joins him as they quickly sprint across the gap. They slow again when they have a wall to their back, and she attempts to strengthen her grip on the pistol. Her hands are shaking badly.
Theyâre almost to the end of the supply building when blaster fire erupts somewhere nearby. Jeyna can hear a second, alien noise. But she canât tell what it is or where it is coming from. Aleckâs head whips around, before he shoves her, away from the wall and behind a stack of crates. He drags her further into the shelter the piles of supplies provide.
The noise sounds louder, like a rough, reverberating snarling. Itâs deep, Jeyna feels like itâs shaking her chest. Whatever it is must be close.
There are more shots from blasters as Aleck presses her tighter into the hiding place, his weapon held ready. There is a pair of screams, and then, she hears it.
Relief floods her body at the sound, the unmistakable crackling of Renâs lightsaber. The snarling noise grows into a deep roar, the sound loud enough to hurt her eardrums, before it is cut off.
Has he killed it? Jeynaâs eyes are darting about in the dark, searching, waiting to hear or see something. She startles when Ren appears without warning, the red glow of his saber giving enough light to make out his completely black-cloaked shape.
âGet her to the ship. The way is cleared,â he orders.
Aleck is already jerking her upright before Ren finishes speaking, and he pulls her from their hiding place as they resume the path forward. Jeynaâs feet are dragging despite herself, as she looks back in concern for Ren. Why isn't he following them? Didn't he kill whatever it was?
Aleck doesnât humor her slow pace, pulling her along more firmly until she complies, running with him for the ship. They clear the last few tents quickly, and are almost there when he drops her arm.
âRun, Jeyna!â
She obeys,picking her pace up to as fast as she can push herself. She hears as he begins firing, understanding there must be more of whatever the threat is. Sheâs almost to the ship when she hears the deep, garbled snarling, of whatever nightmare has come pouring from the tomb. Jeyna falters, her mind on Ren, knowing somehow that he is in danger. Looking back, she see that Aleck is firing at three hideous beasts. And they are surrounding Ren.
His lightsaber is a blur, whipping around him in a hazy red swirl as he holds them off. Sheâs never seen anything like them before. They are as tall as a man, but roped in coarse muscle and standing on all four legs. Their skin is covered in reptilian scales, the light low enough to make them appear black, and her eyes catch sight of something protruding from the lower jaw of each one. Itâs like a long, wicked spike that stabs downward.
As they lunge towards Ren, they seem to be attempting to impale him with it. He manages to catch one finally with the saber, it stumbles back from the blow across its chest. Aleck picks it off with a shot to the head.
Jeyna watches as, with the odds improved, Ren efficiently takes out the last two.
Aleck runs to catch up to her, hauling her backwards to the ship. He drags her up the ramp, opening the hatch. Sheâs staring, dazed, as she sees the swarm appear. At least a dozen more monsters are moving, deeper in the camp, crawling over the ground as if feeling their way. Theyâre coming straight for them.
Blaster fire erupts somewhere distant, on the far side of the base. Ren ignores it as he climbs the ramp. âWhat are you staring at, get on the ship!â he snarls, snatching her as he approaches to manhandle her into the hatch. He slams his hand on the controls, the door shutting against the sight of the beasts, now sprinting towards the receding ramp.
Ren shoves her at Aleck, striding towards the cockpit. She stutters after him. âThere was shooting-what if there are men left, someone might be alive-â
âThey wonât be alive long,â he snaps, the mask making the cruelty in his voice more pronounced as he disappears from view.
Aleck pulls her back from the slamming noise of something impacting the hatch door. The shipâs engines jump to life, growing louder.
The sound of the shuttle priming for takeoff is combated by the banging against the door, as the monstrous creatures throw themselves into the metal. The ship lurches suddenly, lifting in a hurry. Aleck steadies her so she doesnât go toppling onto the ground, moving her to a seat.
Jeyna sits, holding on as they accelerate. Where had those things come from? They hadnât seen anything like them in the tomb, but there must have been dozens of them lurking in there. Why hadnât they attacked before? Why now?
âThe holocrons,â she says suddenly, to no one in particular. She swears she can feel the buzzing they produce, somewhere on the ship.
Jeyna looks around, seeing Aleck has sat across from her. Heâs watching her, a concerned expression on his marred face. âDid we get the Sith holocrons out?â
âThey were just finishing up, loading them into the cargo hold,â he says. âYou look pale. You might need to lay down.â
She feels like laughing hysterically at his suggestion. They have abandoned camp, leaving possible survivors to be hunted down by the swarm of whatever type of animal that was. An entire squad of troopers, and a team of technicians and workers have just been slaughtered, and by the looks of it, eaten by hideous monsters. Surely laying down wouldnât help that?
The shipâs flight evens out as they exit the atmosphere, reaching a steady cruising speed. She looks down at herself. She hadnât even put boots on, her socks are soaked with mud. Luckily sheâd fallen asleep in her pants, but her torso is clothed only in her undershirt. She stumbles up from the chair, rising clumsily.
Aleck moves as if to stand with her, but she waves him off. âIâm going to the refresher.â
Jeynaâs relieved he doesnât follow her as she makes her way to the small port side dormitory. She tugs open supply lockers, searching. She finds only menâs clothing, settling for the too-large shirt. The boots are a size too big, but they and the clean socks will do.
Jeyna carries the items into the refresher, stripping and turning the lukewarm water on. At first, she attempts to scrub diligently, intent on being clean. But she ends up washing quickly, racing to turn the water off before her emotions catch up to her. She leans against the wall of the shower, sliding down to sit. The tears leak out of her eyes, and she tries to calm herself.
This is more than sheâs ever had to contend with before. She doesnât know how to handle such stress, the repeated brushes with danger or death. Her nerves are frayed as she focuses on slowing her breathing, fighting hysterics. She tries to block out the image of the dead stormtrooper's remains, to not imagine the fate of all the others.
She forces herself to her feet, drying off roughly and jerking clothes onto her body. But she doesnât make it far, just into the dormitory, before the sobs come back. She feels pathetic as she sits again, the wet towel crumpled on the floor besides her. She canât stop the crying, so she muffles it with a fist over her mouth, and lets it out.
Dxun- Jungle Sounds & Ambience
Next Chapter:
https://bramadian0336.tumblr.com/post/649582486376103936/black-honey-chapter-15
Chapter 1 of this story:
https://bramadian0336.tumblr.com/post/646406961804492800/black-honey-chapter-1
Chapter Index:
https://bramadian0336.tumblr.com/post/646403464799404032/black-honey
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Black Honey- Chapter 13
A Kylo Ren/OC fanfiction
Jeyna is a scholar whose obsessed with the legend of Revan, a famous Jedi and Sith from millennia ago. She has found the first of many star maps, clues to something Revan left hidden, but her studies catch the First Orderâs attention. Captured and interrogated, she is expecting to be killed once she has no more information to give. Instead, she finds herself working for Kylo Ren.
Chapter 13
The sound of men screaming grows louder from outside, as well as blaster fire. Jeyna emerges from Renâs room, alarmed and uncertain what she should do. Aleck is waiting in the little hallway, outside her open door. If he is surprised to see her come from the commanderâs quarters, he doesnât show it.
âWhatâs going on?â she asks, flinching a little when she realizes she still hasnât put on proper clothing.
He keeps his gaze respectfully on her face. âA creature has broken through the forcefield and is rampaging through camp.â
Jeyna shifts awkwardly, attempting to cover herself with her arms. âShouldnât we do something?â
âItâs best for you to stay in here, doubtless theyâll be handling it as we speak,â he reassures.
âIs it a zakkeg?â she ventures, curious.
âIâm not sure. If that is what Commander Ren said, then it seems likely,â Aleck answers before taking a step closer, his eyes focusing on hers intently. âYou have to be careful with cornered animals. They tend to react unpredictably.â
Jeyna searches his face, confused at the cryptic way he has spoken. She nods, retreating from him into her room.
Has she backed Ren into a corner? She feels certain itâs been the other way around. Heâs given her no choices in helping him. If anyone should feel cornered, its her.
And yet his words, and his troubled expression, from a few minutes before come back to her. Their meaning just now registers. Why are you doing this to me? You fill my head with these thoughts.
What if he is trying to fight it? What if this is not what he wants?
She decides, then, for both of their sakesâŚshe needs to control her thoughts better. Itâs a ridiculous notion, that she will have to police her own brain. But clearly he canât keep himself in his own head, so she will have to handle it for them both. She needs to focus on the job, and to resist the pull she feels towards Ren. She already feels more in control, the logic of her choice appealing to her.
The noises from outside have long since died down, and she supposes the zakkeg has been killed. She lays in the dark, her mind empty. Sleep evades her for a long while, but when it does come, the nightmares return with it.
The Next Day
They return to the tomb early the next day, moving quickly through camp as a light drizzle falls. They pass technicians who are desperately trying to repair barriers the jungle keeps ripping down. Jeyna can see some of the damage the previous nightâs zakkeg attack wrought, to the trooper barracks and supply crates.
Ren leads them in an impatient march as they retrace their prior steps to the opening of the ruins. The same energy is in the air as they head into the tomb, making it feel thick and ominous as it licks at the nerves in Jeynaâs skin. If this is what the dark side feels like, she doesnât like it.
Ren hasnât spoken to her more than necessary, hiding behind his mask and completely ignoring whatever had occurred between them the night before. She returns the favor, attempting to force a more professional feeling towards him. They pass through the hall they had reached the day before, but this time the path forward is cleared. Itâs been reinforced with durasteel bracings, and the trio follow it as it slopes downwards into the earth.
The path seems endless, the tunnel curving and continuing multiple times. After what feels like the fourth or fifth change in direction, they reach a large, open chamber.
Itâs lined with holocrons. But unlike those found on Kashyyyk and Dantooine, these donât resemble the one Jeyna remembers from her childhood. They have three sides, instead of four, and are made of a metal that resembles gold. Each one emits a strange, glowing light.
âSith holocrons. They probably belonged to Freedon Nadd,â she says quietly. The thought of opening one of them unnerves her, as she hopes Ren isnât distracted from their main mission. He surveys the rows of devices, his mask sweeping the room, before speaking.
âOnce weâve cleared the ruins, the workers will remove them,â he says. âTheyâll be sent to the Supreme Leader.â
Jeyna is relieved she wonât need to be around when they are opened. The sight of them gives her a creeping sensation along her spine. They seem to be buzzing, vibrating. But instead of the intriguing energy she had felt as a child touching the first holocron sheâd ever seen, the energy from these holocrons feels like a warning. They are toxic, and she has to fight the urge to physically recoil from them as she passes them, following Ren.
Their path continues, digging even deeper underground. The air grows cold, and Jeyna wonders just how far down they have traversed. Itâs when they reach the end of the last tunnel that the breeze brushes Jeynaâs face, fluttering her hair back. Itâs a musty wind, smelling damp and stale.
She follows Ren and Aleck, stepping out into what is an enormous underground cave. It is large enough to park a cargo ship in, and the wind releases occasional, distant howls and shrieks as it moves through the space.
There are a few openings in the arching rock bed over their heads, just enough to send mere peaks of light down to the ground. But it allows her to process the sheer size of the area theyâve entered. She canât see the ends of the cavern, but she can make out red eyes in the distance, flickering and fading fast enough for her to doubt if sheâd really spotted them.
The structure in the middle of the cave is the most impressive part of the space. Ren is already starting towards it, and she can see why as his light helps to illuminate more detail.
Itâs a pyramid, of sorts, built up out of the natural bed of the cave. Jeyna follows Ren, Aleck close on her heels, stepping over the trickling streams of water that cross the floor and around the large stalagmites. There are hunks of stone cut into steps, leading up the side of the ancient structure. Jeyna begins climbing, and as she nears the top can see it is a flattened surface.
She hesitates on the last few steps, noting what the structure holds at its crest. The familiar looking holocron is there, as well as an old computer terminal.
Her guess had been correct, Revan had chosen this place to hide the next piece of the map. But the thrill of success eludes her, overshadowed by the bad feeling creeping up her neck. Her eyes flit past the holocron, to a stone sarcophagus mounted on a slab of black rock. Her gaze turns wary, focused on the final resting place of Freedon Nadd.
Renâs approached the computer terminal, acutely focused on his goal. But the terminal refuses to boot up despite whatever he is trying. She catches sight out of the corner of her eye as he turns from it in frustration.
Jeyna is still staring at the sarcophagus when a rumble comes from inside of it. She staggers backwards in alarm, blind to where the edge of the pyramid is until Aleck catches her arm, jerking her away from the edge she had nearly tumbled off.
Renâs already whirled to face the stone casket, his lightsaber ignited in hand. The red glares off the metal that lines the eyes of his mask, the broken kyber crystal hissing into the massive chamber.
She flinches as a second rumble jerks the sarcophagus, causing it to jump a few inches across the stone slab. Jeyna watches in horror as the top of the coffin slides, inch by grating inch. Her eyes are blown wide at the thought that the dark force user inside is somehow still alive, waiting in his death bed, even as she knows it is impossible.
Ren drops his lightsaber without warning, collapsing suddenly to the ground, his head in his hands. Jeyna barely has time to register a shout of alarm from Aleck behind her before she hears it.
The sound of the bombs falling.
âJeyna! JEYNA!â She falls to her knees at the unexpected sound of her motherâs voice, wincing her eyes tight. âGet down, Jeyna!â
The explosion rocks her, even as she scrapes her fingernails into the ground beneath her, trying to anchor herself to the real world. She clenches her eyes closed, her breath coming in jagged gasps as the flashback plays itself out. The smoke burns her nostrils, curls inside her throat. She canât breathe.
Sheâs coughing, choking, her face feels the heat of flames not far from her. When she opens her eyes again, she can see her mother. Sheâs pinned. Sheâs hurt. Fear and helplessness war in Jeyna at the sight.
The sob of pain tears itself free as sheâs confronted by the memories she pushes away every day. What is this? This isnât real, she realizes. She curls into herself, recognizing the cold stone beneath her body. Sheâs still physically in the tomb, this is all in her mind. How is this happening?
As soon as the thought occurs to her, the memory dies. When she opens her eyes again, she is in the interrogation room. Hux stands before her, immaculately dressed, face tinged by stress. But no, thatâs not right. She had never seen Hux in the torture room.
It doesnât matter. He activates the device strapped to her temples, and the electricity jerks through her body. The restraints pull taut as her muscles jerk of their own accord, her jaw clamping tight enough that if the pain werenât so intense sheâd be worried about shattering her own teeth.
But is the pain intense? It feels odd. She can remember the pain. But even as she knows it should be agonizing, it doesnât hurt now, does it?
Hux turns it off, and she hears him laughing. She raises her head to meet his gaze.
âIâm the one who kept the torture going for a week. I was supposed to bring in Ren when a prisoner failed to break new information. But I didnât care how much you suffered. I wanted to be the one to get what the Supreme Leader needed,â Hux confesses, his lips twisting in manic glee.
Jeynaâs hands are free, she realizes. No longer confined to the metal board, she feels the dagger in her hand. Where had the dagger come from?
Hux steps closer. âI would have killed you a dozen different ways,â he says, laughing. âBut Snoke wanted what was in your head. You. A nobody. The last of your name.â
Jeyna feels the anger surge in her chest, the familiar hatred for Hux, whose tried twice now to kill her. She knows Ren wonât do it, but canât she? What is stopping her? Heâs right in front of her, the knife is in her hand.
She feels powerful. Itâs a sensation sheâs never experienced before, it rises in her hand that holds the weapon, spreads up her arm and into her chest. Itâs steady, a current that runs inside her veins, circulating her body until she is encompassed by it.
âWhen Ren tires of using you for a plaything, when there is nothing more he needs of you, Iâll be there,â the redheaded officerâs voice is grating her nerves. She doesnât want to hear him anymore. âIâll be the only one there, you pathetic orphan. Iâll end it.â
The power is surging, and it feels amazing. She doesnât want it to stop. It doesnât matter what he says, as long as this feeling stays with her.
âYouâll like the incinerator. It will remind you of how your mother died.â Huxâs voice is a whisper, but it is enough to tip something inside her off balance.
She drives the knife into his chest, without thinking. It goes in easily, like his body isnât even there.
Jeynaâs mind catches up with her. This isnât real. Hux isnât here. Sheâs in the tomb.
He fades, the knife with him. The feeling vanishes, leaving her veins aching and empty. The power is gone, she shakes at its absence.
The room falls away like a wisp of smoke. There is only the sarcophagus in front of her. The lid grates open, the gray, armored hand emerging to shove it back. It clatters down, shattering into two large pieces. Where is Ren? She darts her eyes around, but he is nowhere to be seen.
âHeâs left you. You are alone, you know this.â The cruel voice comes from the thing appearing in front of her.
She closes her eyes to the sight of Freedon Nadd, dragging his corpse from its coffin.
She wants to tell herself it isnât real, but her senses tell her otherwise. She can feel the energy in the air, the pressure on her skull, the almost painful slamming of her heart against her rib cage. The fear has returned in the absence of the strange power that had made her drive a knife into the mirage of Hux.
His voice draws closer as he approaches her, but she refuses to look. âHe lied. To protect you from his master. Your blood is not average. Diluted by time, yes. But you can sense the force, canât you?â
Jeynaâs confused what he is speaking about, until her eyes open in surprise at the prick of pain in her fingertip. She looks down to see the red dot of blood appear on her skin, beading up before it trickles a crimson trail, dropping off to splash onto the dirty stone beneath her.
She looks up, and she wishes she didnât. He is tall, formidable. He is cloaked entirely in armor, spikes rising from his shoulders to well above his head. The bones of his face are strong, but the tissue around them has collapsed and shrunken. He looks like a skeleton, gray skin stretched over the gaps. And his eyesâŚthey are the yellow of sickness.
He gives her a scathing look where she lays, kneeling at his feet. âIf you can feel the force, you cannot escape from it. I wonât let you. You belong to my tomb now.â
Jeyna grits her teeth, tears her eyes away from the very real looking Freedon Nadd. This isnât possible, he canât be real. He must be a ghost, a hallucination, anything but the reanimated corpse of a man whose been dead for thousands of years.
Nadd lunges forward, his bloodshot yellow eyes drilling into hers, somehow catching her and taking hold. She recoils, splaying herself backwards on the floor to avoid his wrath. âYou will end it, here and now. You will spill your blood, to give me life.â
His words pound into her brain, his presence forcing itself into her thoughts, dominating her being. She resists, wishes she could close her eyes against the yellow, and the pain intensifies. Her head feels like it is being ripped in two. She screams, Kyloâs name leaving her mouth in a pitiful wail of pleading.
The pain stops.
Freedon Nadd looks down, to where a crimson glow has appeared in his chest. His mouth falls open in surprise, but the wound spreads. His body begins to collapse, but before he can finish his fall, he disappears.
Jeyna is left staring at the space he had previously occupied, when she realizes she can see the glow of Renâs lightsaber beyond. Heâs driven it into the open sarcophagus, to where she assumes Naddâs actual remains lay.
She watches as he jerks it back out, deactivating it. He drops to a seat on the floor, she can hear the heavy breathing coming through his helmet.
Aleck hesitantly asks, âMiss Torre?â
She sits up, pushing off the cold stone to turn to him. Heâs visibly shaken looking as he pulls himself from the ground as well. âIâmâŚfine,â she lies. She feels far from fine, her head in the throes of a splitting headache. Sheâs shaken by the assault on her mind. âDid he mess with your head, too?â she asks. Aleck nods, once.
Itâs then she notices the computer terminal. Somehow, it has turned itself on and booted up what they need. The star map is projecting there, apparently having been activated.
âThe star map,â she calls to Ren, who is still sitting by the sarcophagus. His mask moves slightly towards the computer, before he shakes it as if breaking himself from thought.
He rises, approaching it. Before her curiosity can take hold, Jeyna puzzles its appearance. Why did Revan leave the map here, by the clearly haunted remains of Freedon Nadd? Did killing his ghost somehow unlock the map?
If so, Jeyna is sure Ren wouldnât have needed her for that. Why had the console on Kashyyyk required her blood, while this one required something so different? Jeyna allows herself to make the tentative assumption that she is somehow distantly related to Revan. Had he been assuming his descendents would be strong with the force?
The thought almost makes her snort in laughter. What a disappointment she would be to him, then.
Renâs copied the map to his datapad, and he surveys her where she is still sitting on the ground. âAre you alright?â
She pushes herself to standing, attempting to seem more collected than she is. Itâs impossible for her to read his voice with the mask on, whether it is concern or impatience coloring his tone. âIâll be fine,â she answers.
The holocron sits, waiting. She approaches it, laying her fingertips on it. She doesnât know what to expect, but it unfurls to project the dizzying lights of the smugglerâs moon. The last place she would have guessed for Revan to hide something important to him.
âNar Shaddaa.â Renâs surprise is apparent. âDid Revan have ties to it?â
âNot that I knew of,â Jeyna admits. The mystery has grown even more bizarre to her, and she finds herself disliking each new development. But she canât stop, nor would she even without Ren to push her onwards. She has to pull on the thread, regardless of how much it unwinds.
Dxun- Tomb of Freedon Nadd Ambience
Next Chapter:
https://bramadian0336.tumblr.com/post/649491603524894721/black-honey-chapter-14
Chapter 1 of this story:
https://bramadian0336.tumblr.com/post/646406961804492800/black-honey-chapter-1
Chapter Index:
https://bramadian0336.tumblr.com/post/646403464799404032/black-honey
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Black Honey- Chapter 12
A Kylo Ren/OC fanfiction
Jeyna is a scholar whose obsessed with the legend of Revan, a famous Jedi and Sith from millennia ago. She has found the first of many star maps, clues to something Revan left hidden, but her studies catch the First Orderâs attention. Captured and interrogated, she is expecting to be killed once she has no more information to give. Instead, she finds herself working for Kylo Ren.
Warning(s): Sexual Content
Chapter 12
They leave for Dxun late the next day, scheduled to arrive shortly before nightfall. Jeyna has already adjusted somewhat to Aleckâs near constant presence. He has a calm energy, and a way of fading into the background so she hardly notices him while sheâs working.
She attempts to make conversation with him during the flight to the jungle moon, since they are alone in the main hold. Ren had immediately stalked into the cockpit for the flight, and the troopers were already on site to set up a base camp.
Aleck seems willing to humor her questions, so she indulges her curiosity. She asks about his training, and his home planet, before getting to what sheâs truly been wondering about.
âWhat was the Resistance like?â Jeyna asks.
Aleck considers the question. âIdealisticâŚStubborn,â he answers. âA scattered mess, what is left of them.â
âWhat was your mission with them? Before your cover was blown?â
âI probably shouldnât say much.â His eyes dart towards the cockpit. âBut I was intended to get close to their leadership.â
Jeyna nods, intrigued but not wanting to push it. Aleck seems to consider her for a moment before he speaks again.
âIâm surprised they havenât approached you yet.â
She frowns, taken aback by his statement. âWhat would they want with me?â
Aleckâs careful eyes linger on hers, one hazel, one a pale, damaged gray. âYouâve worked closely with Commander Ren. You would be a valuable source of intel. Doubtless theyâre curious about the goal of his latest actions.â
âI supposeâŚbut how would they even approach me? The only time Iâve been away from the Finalizer was on Kashyyyk,â Jeyna says uncertainly.
He smiles that slow, small smile she is already becoming familiar with. âThe First Order is filled with moles. You would find them in the most surprising of places.â
She wonders if this has become an interrogation of sorts. Is he suspicious of her? Does he think sheâs lying? âRenâs always reading my mind,â she points out. âHeâd know if someone approached me, and theyâd be outed.â
âIf that is true, it would seem heâs developed a very close tie to your mind,â Aleck concedes, his eyes resuming their tireless roving of the empty hold. âPerhaps that is why they havenât tried.â
Jeyna feels the ship drop out of hyperspace, and begin its descent towards the moon.
She doesnât know what to make of her discussion with Aleck, dropping it. She also doesnât know what she would do if the Resistance did come to her now. To help them would mean betraying Ren, which she was sure wouldnât end well. But could it mean freedom from the First Order? Would they let her go, if she gave them something valuable?
Sheâs uncomfortable thinking about it, knowing Renâs spying habits of her mind. She tries to stop, preoccupying her thoughts with theories about the structure they will be investigating instead.
When they set down, the boarding hatch opens and the ramp descends down into mud. Itâs raining, which is unsurprising. Dxun is usually wracked with week long rainstorms, but Jeyna doesnât mind. They havenât lost most of their supplies in a crash landing and fire this time, and instead have the appropriate rain gear. Dxun is also warm, the air foggy with humidity. She doubts theyâll have the problem of cold nights here like they had on Kashyyyk.
She stands on the ramp, surveying the site that has been set up. Aleck has already disembarked to survey the new location, and though she canât see him, sheâs sure he is nearby.
Camp is ahead of the landing spot, a clustering of temporary buildings and tents. The perimeter is marked by electromagnetic force fields, most likely intended to keep the large predators of the jungle out. She can see the trooper patrols pacing these borders, blasters on hand.
On the far side of camp, her eyes spot the sight of unusual earthen mounds. There is large excavation equipment blocking any further view of the structure from her vantage point.
Ren appears, pausing beside her. âThe lead engineer assured me theyâll be done digging out the entrance by morning,â he states, voice deep beneath the helmet.
Jeyna glances at his tall form curiously. âWhy did you change your mind about my coming?â
Ren doesnât answer immediately, letting the noise of rain falling surround them for a moment. âI understood Iâd be more distracted leaving you on the Finalizer, than bringing you with me.â
Her heart feels lighter at hearing his admission. Almost as if he can feel her lift in mood, he huffs through his mask. âBe good, Jeyna.â He stalks down the ramp, leaving her to ponder the meaning of his order.
Nightfall on Dxun
Jeynaâs sleeping area consists of a small cot, trunk for supplies, and a lantern. She, Ren, and Aleck have a small structure to themselves, with semi private rooms. The nearby makeshift refresher allows her to get a quick shower, but the water is frigid.
Their quarters are separate from the larger barracks the storm troopers are staying in, to her relief. She distrusts anyone with the white soldier uniform, whether it is a fair grudge to hold or not.
She had been able to observe the excavation proceeding from a distance before the light failed her, but even now she can hear it. The workers are digging earth from the buried building, trying to make passages usable again. The machinery makes a droning noise as progress carries on into the dark. It is enough noise that she struggles to fall asleep, moving restlessly under the thin blanket instead.
Her bored mind refuses to rest just yet, instead travelling to thoughts she knows she should resist. But part of her canât help but to remember Ren embracing her, his body firm and warm and so large compared to hers.
Her cheeks grow hot as she thinks what it would be like to touch him freely. To explore him, with her hands and her mouth. Itâs a bold line of thinking, and its foreign to her. Sheâs been with a man once before, but it feels like an empty memory now in contrast to the heat that surges through her as she fantasizes about Ren.
Its tinged with embarrassment. She doesnât understand what it is about him that brings her to this place, where all she can think of is being closer to him. Getting access to more of him. She longs to sink her fingers into his dark hair, to nuzzle her face under his jaw and bite at the freckles of his neck.
Jeyna fists her hands in the blanket in frustration.
Sheâs always prided herself on being a logical, sensible person. Sheâs never been one to get carried away by such base desires. And here she is, getting lost in lust in a very inappropriate way.
She rolls over, trying to get more comfortable. The night is still humid on Dxun, and she feels feverish. She kicks the blanket down to her feet.
She imagines Renâs large, pale hands running over her body. The shiver that races through her has nothing to do with cold. She can practically see his hands on her flesh, can imagine his lips drifting from hers, lower, lowerâŚ
Jeyna attempts to stop herself for the second time. The heat is building in her, and she wonât allow herself to lose her composure any further. She focuses on the sounds of Dxun, the unearthing of the ancient structure still carrying on, the machines droning, the distant shouts of workers trying to be heard over the din.
She reviews what she already knows about the moon, going over it like a chant in her brain. Until finally, she bores herself enough that sleep can crawl in and claim her.
Morning
Ren seems to be in a terrible mood the next morning, and so she gives him space. Instead she watches as the few technicians in the camp attempt to repair parts of the forcefield. It looks like something large has been battering the equipment that supports the field, and she spots hands being flung into the air in frustration more than once.
âBoma beasts,â Aleck observes from nearby. âThe predators here are unusually aggressive.â
âIâve read a study about that, yes,â Jeyna agrees.
âI suppose youâve read a study about most things,â Aleck replies, the gentle teasing apparent in his voice. She canât help but smile at him. He is likeable, and she enjoys having someone to talk to. She can imagine him with the Rebels, his easygoing presence giving them a false sense of security. She wonders how his true identity was revealed, ruining his work.
âI dislike the feeling of not understanding something,â she admits.
âThe galaxy is large. I fear youâll never run out of things to need to understand,â he muses.
She realizes that is the point of her pursuits. As long as there is another question to answer, she will never need to settle. And if she doesnât need to settle, she wonât notice the lack of a place to settle. She wonât notice that she is alone. She can pursue her questions and their answers for years, occupy her lifetime with the drive for knowledge. Jeyna doesnât bring herself to say this aloud, especially as she sees Ren appear nearby.
His foul mood seems to have not improved. âTheyâve cleared the entrance. Come with me,â he orders, sweeping past without pause.
Jeyna jumps up, followed by Aleck, to follow the temperamental commander.
At the Entrance of the Ruins
The excavation equipment has been moved off to the side, the mouth of the earthen tunnel sits open and yawning at them. Itâs dark inside, and Jeyna gratefully accepts the lantern Aleck hands her.
âHow far in have the scouts searched?â Ren interrogates the lead engineer.
âThey went as far as the stairs inside, Commander,â the man explains, his voice sounding regretful. âThey were scared to go farther. They say it is haunted.â
Jeyna can see the scouts, their lanterns strapped to helmets on their head. They are huddled together by the heavy machinery, darting terrified glances over at their boss and Ren. Theyâre filthy, likely from working through the night to clear the path.
âCowards,â Ren spits the word, but seems content nonetheless to leave them be. âLeave the comm channel open.â
âOf course, Commander.â
Ren dismisses him with a wave of his hand before approaching the opening of the site. Jeyna follows, feeling Aleck trail behind her. But her excitement at the impending find is suddenly dampened when she feels it.
The closer she gets to the ruins, the worse she feels. There is energy in the air, and the only thing she can compare it to is the crackling of tension that surrounds Ren when his anger is surging. The static tingles her nerve endings, like sparks dancing over her skin. She feels the roots of her hair tense, as goosebumps cover her flesh. Her body is on alert to an extreme degree.
Renâs stopped ahead of her, just inside the opening to the tunnel. His mask turns towards her. âYou feel it?â
âYes,â she gasps, before collecting herself to sound calmer. âWhat is it?â
âThe dark side,â he says.
Her eyes widen in alarmed understanding. Her theory must have been correct. Dxun is where Revan turned to the dark side. She imagines him here, standing in her place. Feeling the surge of it wash over him. What would it feel like to a force sensitive person like Revan, like Ren? If Jeyna could feel it so strongly, surely it must be as irresistible as gravity to someone like them.
âKeep close to her, Aleck,â Ren orders before striding forward.
âOf course, Commander.â Aleck replies, ushering Jeyna to follow the sweeping black cloak of their leader.
She does, her footsteps muffled by the dirty floor of the tunnel. As they get farther in, she sees the shape of walls form, then a clearly distinguished ceiling. The floor becomes less dirty, dark stone appearing underfoot through the dust.
They are in a hallway, broad and endless. She doesnât think sheâs imagining Renâs pace is picking up. He is practically racing forward. Is he that drawn to the dark side of the force? Canât he feel how wrong it is, how oppressive the space feels as they go further?
Jeynaâs dragging in ragged breaths as she follows him, switching on her lantern when she sees Aleck turn his on. Ren pauses at the sight of glowing red eyes ahead of them. The eyes blink, and are gone.
A moment later, Ren reaches the place where the eyes had been, it is an intersection. Jeyna and Aleck join him a moment later. To their left and right, tunnels lead off into the dark. Jeyna can make out the walls of dirt, it looks like theyâve collapsed years or even centuries ago. There is no sign of the creature with the red eyes.
Ahead of them, massive stone steps lead downwards. Jeyna gulps as Ren starts down them, following him obediently. She tries to reassure herself. Whatever things have infested the ruins, Ren will be capable of handling them.
But the energy is pulling at her, she can feel it even more now. Itâs tugging at her senses, insistent. It feelsâŚravenous.
Jeyna tells herself it is her imagination, a lie that fails to comfort.
She has to descend the stairs carefully, each stone step dropping down a great distance to the next. Their lights bounce off the walls, and she can make out what looks like sconces far up, near the sloping ceiling. Was this place once kept lit? What purpose did it serve? A center of worship, perhaps? A temple built for the dark side?
Jeyna realizes, with a feeling of unease settling into the pit of her stomach, that she might know what they are walking into.
They reach the bottom, and emerge into a large hall. There is a massive statue standing, on guard, and Ren approaches it. It towers above them, its face cast with the meager light of their lanterns.
Jeyna can make out the spikes that jolt upwards from its torso, surrounding it in a violent looking halo. The statueâs torso is covered in armor, robes sweeping the floor where its feet are fixed. The wall behind it has writing carved on it, each stroke dug deep into the stone.
She approaches, hoisting her lantern as high as she can to make out the markings. They are in an ancient alphabet, but it is similar enough to modern day characters of Iziz and Onderon.
âFreedon Nadd,â she says, confirming her suspicions. âWeâre in the tomb of Freedon Nadd.â
Aleck is silent, so much so that Jeyna glances in alarm before realizing he is right beside her. Ren is still staring at the statue, but he acknowledges her.
âI didnât know the former King of Onderon was laid to rest on Dxun,â Ren states.
âI didnât either,â Jeyna admits. âBut it makes sense. The Jedi were known to have intervened in the politics of Iziz. They most likely moved his tomb here, to keep it from influencing the royal court.â She doesn't add that Nadd was a known dark force user, assuming Ren understands her implication. The Jedi would have preferred any opposing influences to be far from the planet of Onderon.
Ren turns slowly, taking in the rest of the hall. Jeyna follows suit, and they both seem to see the problem at the same time. Their only path forward, a massive doorway marked by two large, black carved pillars, is filled with earth. Hunks of rock and boulder, what appears to be part of the ceiling, are collapsed in amongst the earth.
Renâs voice sounds angry and impatient through the mask. âThat will need to be blasted out, and the way through reinforced. They would know that, if theyâd had the spine to come this far.â
Jeyna feels a strange urge to defend the men. She canât blame them for being scared, if they feel what she feels in this place. But she doesnât speak, afraid of testing Ren when heâs furious.
Later
The men have been put back to work, forced down into the ruins by the option of doing as they were told, or death. They unsurprisingly all chose to follow orders, the flaring up of Renâs lightsaber an unnecessary encouragement.
Jeyna has avoided Ren for the later part of the day, as heâs sequestered himself into the shipâs communication room before retreating to his quarters. She wonders what he was doing in there. Was he talking to the Supreme Leader? Informing him of the tomb and its long-deceased occupant?
Aleck has offered to teach her Pazaak, and she attempts to learn the rules. Occasionally the rumble of sonic charges going off underground shakes the rickety table they play at.
âI donât think Iâm very good at this,â Jeyna sighs, after losing another round.
âYou display everything on your face,â Aleck chides. âYou need to be better at hiding your thoughts.â
âI wouldnât know where to start.â She tosses her cards down in frustration. The rules are simple enough, why canât she get the hang of the game?
âYou think intensely on the task at hand. It is admirable, but for something like this, you must be sly,â he explains. âLet your true intentions lie in your heart. You do not have to cling to them in your mind for them to exist. Calm yourself, enjoy the game. Let your thoughts run to mundane things.â
Jeyna frowns. âThat sounds too easy.â
âFor someone like you, passionate as you are, it will probably be a challenge,â he retorts. He smiles that small grin of his. âI mean that as a compliment, of course.â
âOf course,â she repeated, smiling in return. âBut youâll understand if I give up on the game, for the time being.â
He nods, collecting the cards back into a neat deck. A rumble of thunder echoes overhead, and Jeyna glances up. The clouds are building quickly, dark and swirling against a sickly green sky. She realizes they will quickly be rained on.
âI think Iâm calling it a night,â she sighs, heading towards their temporary dormitory. Aleck follows, and they barely make it into the door before the downpour starts. It is deafeningly loud, pelting off everything in its path.
Jeyna shuts herself in her small compartment, hearing the rain on the thin roof above her. She relaxes on the cot, attempting to let herself doze.
Like a bad habit forming, her mind runs to Kylo Ren. Why had he been in such a terrible mood?
His anger unsteadies her. It is such a harsh opposite to the other side of him sheâs seen. The part of him that had comforted her after she was nearly killed, tucking her into his bed to sleep. Itâs an unhealthy dichotomy, but one she finds oddly addictive.
Jeyna lets her mind carry itself away, thinking of him. The familiar warmth rushes back into her skin as the thoughts turn dirty, arousal making itself known between her thighs. She longs to touch herself, to relieve some of the energy thatâs been building. Itâs not something she does often, and that makes her uncertain as her hand drifts lower over her own abdomen.
She shouldnât be doing this, she thinks. What if Ren is listening to her thoughts? The thrill that shoots through her is stopped, cold, by his voice inside her mind.
Come to me.
Her eyes snap open at the order, realizing sheâs been caught. She should have expected, knowing full well he paid careful attention to her thoughts. She had been carried away, not thinking rationally. Panicking, Jeyna doesnât move from her cot.
Now.
She isnât imagining the anger in his voice, somehow she feels it as well as hears it when he speaks directly to her mind. She jerks the blanket back, hesitantly rising from the bed. She looks down at herself, the thin white undershirt and panties. It occurs to her to dress, but defiantly she remembers the way his eyes had fixated on her when she had been in a similar state of undress before. She leaves her small space as she is, and steps quietly through the narrow corridor to his room.
Jeyna opens the door, heart pounding with anxiety. She steps into his territory hesitantly, searching the dark. She doesnât see him, but she feels him as he catches her around the waist with one arm. He pulls her back, until she collides with his body.
One of his hands roughly pulls her hair from her neck, grabbing the strands and forcing her head to tilt to the side. His breath lands on the exposed skin as his face nuzzles against her neck, his nose tracing a slow line down to the crook of her shoulder.
âWhy are you doing this to me?â he asks, his voice accusatory. The sound of it sends a shock of pleasure through her, and she bites her lip, unwilling to answer him. He growls quietly with frustration, but the sound is animalistic. She gasps as he bites her neck, hard, before his tongue and lips cover the spot.
âI told you to be good,â he says, unsteady. His hand flattens on her lower stomach, pushing her back against him harder.
Jeynaâs mind is spinning with lust and confusion. His anger throws her off balance, even as she realizes he must desire her too. âKyloâŚ?â she dares to whisper his first name, but it comes out like a question.
âYou fill my head with these thoughts.â His hand trails up, higher and higher. He wraps it around her throat, and she is strangely thrilled by the sensation. It covers her neck completely, but he doesnât squeeze hard enough to choke her. It makes her feel helpless, vulnerable, and her body responds with excitement. She is wet, she can feel it as her core throbs with need again.
A choked noise, like a repressed moan, tears from Renâs chest, and suddenly she can feel the foreign presence in her mind. Itâs not nearly as intrusive as when heâd read her memories, but she is still aware of it lingering there. In her aroused state, she finds herself welcoming it. Let him feel what she feels, the way heâs created an intense need in her body sheâs never felt before. Let him understand, she thinks, and maybe he wonât be angry with her.
He moves her suddenly, turning her and practically flinging her onto his bed. She crawls back a bit as he joins her, and Jeyna finally sees him. She can barely make out his face, but his eyes are feral, glinting in the low light.
She reaches for him, wanting to touch him, to pull him onto her. He doesnât like that.
Ren grabs her wrists, and roughly slams them into the blanket above her head. âDonât move your hands,â he orders. Her mouth falls open slightly at the command, but she nods. She breathes, shaking, as he lets his eyes run down her body, slowly, before they trail back up to her face.
He plants one knee between her thighs, as he reaches up to trace his fingers over her face, his eyes burning into hers. She licks her lips nervously, and his eyes flick to them. He pauses, then runs his thumb over her moist lower lip. She kisses it, then dares to take it into her mouth. She runs her tongue over his skin, tasting him, before sucking gently.
His lower lip falls, his eyes are black and raging. She wants more, she wants to taste all of him. Her own mind turns into nothing but hunger even as she can feel his presence still lingering at the outskirts of her thoughts.
Ren descends on her, his mouth catching hers. His kisses are demanding, messy, and she is just as wild. She kisses back fervently, parting her lips for him and letting his tongue clash with hers. She moans at the feeling of his mouth claiming her, her hips bucking up on their own against his knee.
He pulls back, letting his lips run over hers more gently before he deepens the kiss again. Jeyna almost moves her hands, wanting to hold onto him, to grab his hair or stroke his face. She wants to touch him, badly, but her desire to obey him is even stronger. She tangles her hands together into the sheets, trying to anchor them in place.
There is a sound, like sizzling electricity surging louder and louder through the air. It takes Jeyna a moment to realize it is coming from outside her and Ren, that something could even exist apart from them. He realizes it at the same time, tearing from her mouth and sitting back, looking dazed.
There is the noise of something exploding, and then shouting from outside fills the air. It sounds like chaos is breaking loose in the camp. Jeyna frowns, still panting to catch her breath, and hears Ren swear. She looks at him questioningly.
âZakkeg,â he says by way of explanation, standing suddenly. He hesitates, his eyes roving over her body slowly before landing on her own. He tears his gaze away with a growl. She watches him shove his boots on, and his hand extends. The lightsaber flies into his grip from where it had rested on the trunk by the door. He storms from the room without looking at her again.
Jeyna stares after him, heart pounding. The thrill of knowing he desires her too is dampened by her intuition, which flares up as soon as the arousal dies down enough to hear it. It whispers her a warning: This is dangerous. Kylo Renâs desire is dangerous.
Dxun-Jungle Sounds & Ambiance
Next Chapter:
https://bramadian0336.tumblr.com/post/649095464108556288/black-honey-chapter-13
Chapter 1 of this story:
https://bramadian0336.tumblr.com/post/646406961804492800/black-honey-chapter-1
Chapter Index:
https://bramadian0336.tumblr.com/post/646403464799404032/black-honey
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Black Honey- Chapter 11
A Kylo Ren/OC fanfiction
Jeyna is a scholar whose obsessed with the legend of Revan, a famous Jedi and Sith from millennia ago. She has found the first of many star maps, clues to something Revan left hidden, but her studies catch the First Orderâs attention. Captured and interrogated, she is expecting to be killed once she has no more information to give. Instead, she finds herself working for Kylo Ren.
Chapter 11
Jeyna barely pays attention to where Ren is walking her, she is so disoriented. Sheâs still horrified by how close she came to being killed in the worst way she can imagine. Furthermore, the images of the troopersâ blank faces, unseeing eyes swirling in their sockets, are stuck in her mind. She had no idea Ren could do that to someone. It was like he had murdered their souls while leaving the hearts still beating.
She realizes he hasnât taken her to her room when she sees the door belonging to his quarters slide open. He guides her in, towards the couch in the living area. She sits wordlessly, wrapping her arms protectively around herself.
Ren kneels in front of her, and she watches as he removes the helmet to sit it on the floor. She feels distant as his eyes lock on to survey her, transmitting things she canât begin to read. Sheâs too overwhelmed, her brain is trying to check out.
He lifts his hand, moving to touch her cheek the trooper had struck. He hesitates, and she feels the barest ghost of his fingers brushing over the skin.
âThey were going to burn me to death,â Jeyna says suddenly, in a matter of fact tone. His hand cups her cheek gently, his long fingers reaching back to rest against the sensitive skin behind her ear. She closes her eyes slowly, allowing a moment to wish the material of his glove wasnât between their skin.
âI know,â he whispers.
âIf it wasnât you, how did you know?â She opens her eyes after the question leaves her to search his gaze.
âI heard your thoughts,â he says. âYou were screaming at me.â
âYou could hear them? I didnât know if it would work.â
âI always hear your thoughts,â he admits, his hand drops from her face as he breaks his stare. She realizes what heâs confessed. For him to always hear her thoughts, he must be focusing on her a great deal. Her heart beats a little faster, but she refuses to think more on it. She canât take any other conflicting emotions at the moment.
âWas it Hux?â she asks.
âProbably. But heâs smart. A droid delivered the orders to them, the directive came from an anonymous source. I will place a search on the droid, but most likely itâs already been destroyed,â Ren explains. He stands, and begins pacing the room. The movements resemble a caged predator, all drive and no outlet.
Jeyna feels the tears stinging at her eyes again, even as she tries to blink them back. She is stuck on a ship with someone who is trying to kill her. He will likely not stop until he succeeds. And she feels like there is nothing she can do.
âI canât kill him,â Ren spits out suddenly. Whether heâs speaking to himself or her, Jeyna isnât sure, as her eyes follow his strides. Back and forth.
âWhy not?â she asks timidly. The idea sounds plenty reasonable to her, she thinks, as spiteful hatred for Hux fills her. She prefers the anger over the despondent shock of a few minutes ago.
âThe Supreme Leader forbid it,â he says, stopping his pacing to clench his fists before ripping the gloves off, throwing them at a wall at random. His energy seems to be rising, turbulence in the air around him. âI have to fight him another wayâŚâ
âHe forbid you to kill Hux, even though Hux tried to have you killed on Kashyyyk?â Jeyna repeats, her brow furrowing. âHow is that fair?â
Renâs eyes dig into hers, dark with an intensity he's trying to withhold. âHe views it as a challenge for me. Itâs his way.â
Jeyna frowns. She doesnât say what she wants to say. That it sounds like the Supreme Leader is tormenting Ren, making him play an unfair game. And the game might very well get her killed. âIs he coming after me to interfere with you finding the rest of the map? Does he know what it leads to?â She wonders. Why else would Hux be so determined?
Ren shakes his head. âDoubtful. I believe heâs out for my failure, nothing more.â
She sighs, her eyes feeling heavy and sore. Her brain tries to work the problem over, but itâs running slowly from lack of sleep and an overload of emotions.
âYouâll stay here, until I can arrange higher security accommodations for you. It shouldnât take long,â Ren says, his pacing resuming at a slower rate. âYouâll also have a security detail, around the clock.â
Jeyna nods tiredly, closing her eyes for a moment to pinch the bridge of her nose, rubbing small circles. It doesnât do much to relieve the dull ache setting into her head, still sore from being struck.
âYou should get some sleep. You seem tiredâŚâ Ren suggests. She doesnât move from her seat, opening her eyes to see heâs paused in front of her. She holds his gaze, feeling the tears stubbornly pooling at her lashes. She has a sudden urge to touch him, to press herself into his chest and fill all of her senses with him.
His eyes flick away, she sees his jaw clench. He turns away from her, breathing in sharply. She wonders if heâs still angry, unable to read his body language.
Suddenly he turns back, pulling her from the couch. Sheâs in his arms, they wrap around her and pull her tight. She immediately remembers the scent of him from Kashyyyk, and she buries her face into his chest to try to memorize it again. The tears fall suddenly, but it feels like relief. She clings to him, fingers clenching the rough material of his shirt, shocked at how badly her body had been craving this closeness.
Her mind is running in a thousand different directions, but she soothes it with him. The thoughts fall away, leaving her sleepy, but content at his embrace.
She feels him shift, his arm moving down to behind her thighs. He picks her up, similar to how he had on Kashyyyk. When he lays her down, itâs on his bed. Jeyna watches as he unties her boots, pulling them off her feet one at a time. It feels oddly intimate, her breath catching as she watches his features, half obscured by the unruly dark hair that falls over them.
He tucks her in, as she fights sleep to keep looking at him. His dark, honey toned eyes are beautiful, she decides. They show everything he keeps locked off the rest of his face, and she never wants to look away.
He bends down, his lips hover at her ear. âSleep,â he whispers, and she hears the command echoed in her head. She falls instantly into the peaceful black void.
Much Later
Jeyna wakes up, having managed to sleep without nightmares for a long time. Checking the bed, she notices it looks like Ren never joined her. She wonders where he slept, or if he had slept.
She slides her boots back on, making his bed. Then, she emerges from the sleeping quarters, hoping to find him in the living space. But instead, sheâs met by a stranger.
The blonde man is sitting on the couch until he spots her. His face can only be described as rough, with a fresh-looking scar marring one eye, discoloring it. An older scar trails from the corner of his mouth across his jaw. He rises, giving her a small smile.
âMiss Torre? Donât be alarmed. Iâm Aleck, your new security detail,â he introduces himself.
âWhereâs Ren?â she asks, fumbling sleepily at the unexpected interaction.
âHeâs been gone for a few hours. Iâm to show you to your new living area,â he explains. He has a slow, careful way of speaking. âMight you be hungry? We could stop for lunch first.â
âAlrightâŚâ she agrees, dragging her fingers through her mussed hair in an attempt to look less rumpled.
They walk without speaking to the dining area, and Jeyna pretends to not notice the silence that falls over the large space while she gathers her food. She sits, taking the corner where the tables have been left empty. Aleck has also taken food, and she finds herself grateful to not be eating alone. Eventually a quiet murmur fills the room again, though nowhere near the raucous it had been before her entrance. Sheâs reminded of her first time coming to the hall, and it makes her tense.
She surveys Aleck while they eat, noticing the way his eyes move. He looks calm, but his eyes have a way of constantly searching. She takes in his clothes, unable to place them as any occupation sheâs seen so far on the ship.
âWhat are you?â she asks, unable to help her curiosity. âI mean, you donât look like a trooper or officerâŚâ
Aleck looks amused, smiling at her slightly. âNo. I amâŚwell, I was an operative for the First Order.â
âAn operative?â she echoes, confused.
âYes. I was trained to infiltrate and handle threats,â he replies. âBut that is no longer my purpose.â
Jeyna canât help but interpet âinfiltrate and handle threatsâ to mean the man was an assassin. She chews her lip, wondering if he resents the job heâs been given with her. âNo longer your purpose, because youâve been assigned to me, you mean?â she clarifies.
âCorrect,â he confirms with an incline of his head. âQuite a lucky reassignment, I might add.â
When he sees the confusion intensify on her face, he smiles again, but it seems almost like a wry twisting of his mouth as opposed to a genuine grin. âI was a spy, you see. But my cover with the Resistance was blown. I was no longer a useful operative. Usually in my field, that means retirement.â
âRetirement?â Jeyna repeats, not liking the way he says it.
His eyes rove the tables restlessly. âYes. But Commander Ren spared me. Iâm grateful for the second chance.â
She understands suddenly. The First Order kills their operatives who can no longer serve in the field. It upsets her, how people can be treated so disposably. She abandons the hopes of finishing her meal, but she had probably taken too much food for that to be done anyway. Dropping her fork, she lets herself finally look further into the room. She can see the faces staring at her.
Aleck seems to sense her discomfort. âDonât worry about them. Not many of them will be brave enough to follow an order regarding you.â
Jeyna disagrees with a frown. âThe two that tried to kill me last night were fairly brave.â
âYes. But now the others have seen their former associates, lying broken in the medlab. They know what becomes of a man that comes after you,â he says. His words make Jeyna realize Ren had chosen not to kill the troopers, in favor of making them living examples to the rest. It makes her sick to her stomach, remembering the noises they made as their minds shattered.
âCan we go now? I donât feel well,â she asks in a rush, standing.
âOf course, Miss Torre.â Aleck agrees, gesturing for her to lead the way. She wants to correct him, tell him to call her Jeyna. But she is unwilling to speak again as they navigate through the crowd of lunch time diners.
Itâs only when they reach the elevator that she feels she can breathe properly again. Aleck stops them on a different floor than usual for her, leading her down a narrow, immaculately polished hallway. They stop outside a door with a scanner on the outside.
âThis door will only unlock for yourself or the Commander,â Aleck explains. âPlace your palm on the screen.â
Jeyna obeys, setting her hand on the lock and watching it process. It is similar to the scan they did when she arrived on the ship, searching her prints to confirm her identity. The door unlocks, and she sees the new space is a similar layout to Renâs quarters. It is much more spacious than anything sheâs used to living in, even before the First Order took her.
She hesitates inside the door, taken aback, but Aleck joins her. As the door slides shut, he gestures to the wall mounted comm device.
âUse this to contact me should you want to leave your quarters after hours. Iâm stationed directly across the hall, and I am on call at all times. Do not hesitate,â he insists. âYou can also use it to order meals, a serving droid will deliver. Again, if it is after hours please notify me before opening the door, even for a droid.â
Jeyna nods. âYou mean I couldâve avoided lunch with all of them today?â she attempts to joke, but must admit she wouldâve preferred it.
Aleck gives her a reassuring look. âYes, but I felt it was important to show yourself.â
âOh.â she looks away, noting her datapad has been brought to the new quarters. Itâs sitting on the table by the couch, and she is comforted by that small device. She would be exceedingly bored without it, confined to her quarters with only Aleck as a companion. âI suppose it will just be us while Ren is on Dxun,â she says, with a bit of rue.
âI believe he has changed his mind. I was told to prepare to accompany you on the mission,â Aleck corrects her.
Jeyna blinks in surprise, before allowing herself a small, victorious smile. At the very least, sheâd be allowed to continue her own work. And that was something.
Next Chapter:
https://bramadian0336.tumblr.com/post/648679614102798336/black-honey-chapter-12
Chapter 1 of this story:
https://bramadian0336.tumblr.com/post/646406961804492800/black-honey-chapter-1
Chapter Index:
https://bramadian0336.tumblr.com/post/646403464799404032/black-honey
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Black Honey- Chapter 10
A Kylo Ren/OC fanfiction
Jeyna is a scholar whose obsessed with the legend of Revan, a famous Jedi and Sith from millennia ago. She has found the first of many star maps, clues to something Revan left hidden, but her studies catch the First Orderâs attention. Captured and interrogated, she is expecting to be killed once she has no more information to give. Instead, she finds herself working for Kylo Ren.
Chapter 10
Two days pass, without a word from Ren. Jeyna tries to adjust to life on the ship to keep herself busy. Sheâs thankful for the hot shower, and the privacy of the small room sheâs been given. She keeps herself busy updating her logs, creating the reports Renâs requested, as well as trying to establish a search location on the jungle moon.
She struggles with pinning it down, finding several locations Revan most likely visited. Dxun is a historically significant world, orbiting the planet of Onderon. It's where the last ground battle of the Mandalorian Wars took place, before Revan and his followers won in a crushing blow. Jeyna has to settle with outlining the three most likely locations for the next part of the star map, hoping Ren is content with that.
She leaves her room only for food, and only at odd times to minimize interactions with the First Order staff. No one speaks to her in the dining hall, though she catches the occasional furtive glance or whispers in her direction.
It doesnât take long before she starts hating being on the ship. She dislikes the cold, sterile appearance of the place. And she still feels keenly aware of the fact that she is a glorified prisoner.
The sudden lack of natural day and night cycles, after getting used to them on Kashyyyk, throws her off. And so Jeyna finds herself tossing and turning, unable to sleep despite it being her second night back on the ship.
She wonders what Ren is doing. He must be busy, she reasons. Or he simply does not want to see her. He had been so standoffish as they left Kashyyyk, barely wasting a look in her direction. It was a stark contrast to the last night they had been on the planet, when his arm had curled around her back, his hand resting on her hip.
Had he felt the way she relaxed at his touch, sensed her wanting more? Had her reaction to the closeness of his body driven him off?
She buries her face in her pillow, groaning. She needed to be rational, to see the situation for what it was. Ren was using her to get what he needed. Her hormonal feelings did not need to factor in.
Jeyna was surprised to hear the knock at her door, at such a late hour. She freezes for a moment before jumping up, struggling to find her pants and shirt as the lights brighten slightly in the space.
âJust a minute!â she calls as she tugs the pants over her ankles. The last thing she needs is Hux bursting in on her partially dressed.
When sheâs decent, she approaches the door to let it slide open. For a moment, she is both surprised and relieved to see that it is Ren instead of Hux. But then she realizes his mask is back on, apparently having been repaired. She steps back, allowing him to enter the room.
He does, placing himself as far from her as possible in the close quarters. Jeynaâs expecting him to remove the mask once the door slides shut, but he doesnât. He leaves it, like a barrier between them.
âYou listed multiple search sites as equally likely. I need for you to choose one,â he states. She hates what the drone of the helmet does to his natural voice.
âI canât choose one, that is the point. All had some significance to Revan,â she replies, frowning.
âWhat does your intuition tell you?â Ren pushes, crossing his arms.
Jeyna considers his question, biting her lip nervously. She had felt something, nagging her, when searching the ground mapping scans done of the moon from space. Sheâd spotted the remains of a large, old structure underneath a part of the jungle, and noted it as one of the sites on a hunch.
âThe buried remains of a structure, the one that turned up on ground scans. I listed it as Site #3,â she says hesitantly. âRevan turned to the Sith at the close of the Mandalorian Wars. I think itâs possible he found something to prompt the change. Something on Dxun.â
âWhat do you think the structure could be?â Ren asks.
Jeyna shrugs. âWhatever it was, it might hold the secret of why he became a Dark Lord of the Sith. Or at the very least, provide a good hiding place for a map.â
Ren nods once. âVery well. If I need you to unlock the map on site, Iâll send for you to be brought planetside. Otherwise, you will open the holocron when I return with it.â
He makes as if to stride to the door, but Jeyna makes an indignant noise when she realizes he intends to go to Dxun alone. âWait! Youâre not taking me with you?â
The mask stares at her coldly. âNo. You will stay here, unless I need you.â
âWhy?â She asks, hearing the rejection in her voice and hating it.
âItâs safer for you here.â
She snorts. âDxun is First Order controlled. What danger does the moon pose to me? It would be much safer than Kashyyyk, and you didnât hesitate to drag me there!â
âThis is not a discussion. You are staying.â Renâs order sounds aggressive, even with the mask evening out his deep voice.
âBut I could help-â
âHelp with what? Distracting my men?â
Jeynaâs mouth falls open at the insinuation. Since when had she been a distraction to his men? Realization dawns on her. âIâm fairly certain the only man Iâve distracted is you,â she says venomously.
Ren stares at her. She can feel it, the burn of his gaze. She stares back defiantly at the mask, hating it. She wishes she could tear it off, break it again if she had to, just to be able to see his turbulent eyes with her own.
Without a word, he turns, striding quickly from her room. The door shuts behind him, and a second later the table and chair rattle against the floor. It is a brief shake, reminding Jeyna of a tremor from within the core of a planet. She gulps, sitting onto her bed.
Hours Later
Jeynaâs long since given up on sleep, assuming sheâll have plenty of time for that when sheâs left to rot on the ship while Ren continues her investigation for her. She ends up researching known terraforming projects in the galaxy, to be able to compare to her observations of Kashyyyk.
She records information on the datapad, no longer caring about keeping it pertinent to what Ren wants to know. Let him wade through her musings to find what he needs.
Sheâs busy reading an interesting study when the door slides open to her quarters with no warning.
Jeyna flinches, dropping the datapad, as two stormtroopers enter her room. Their blasters are drawn instead of holstered, which is not a good sign.
âGet up. Youâre coming with us,â one orders her.
âWhere?â she asks stupidly, her mind realizing that there is nowhere good they could possibly be escorting her at this time. Itâs the equivalent to very early morning, only a skeleton crew working last shift should be operating on the ship.
They donât answer her, one striding forward to grab her arm and wrench her off the bed.
âWait, please-â Her pleas are ignored as sheâs jerked out of her room into the abandoned corridor. Sheâs desperately trying to understand. Had she pushed Ren too far, past his tolerance? Has he found a way around needing her help?
As they drag her to the elevator, she realizes the answer must be yes. These troopers have most likely been sent to dispose of her.
Tears fall from her eyes at the hurt and betrayal she feels, realizing he is doing this to her. She allows her mind to linger in the memory of waking up in his arms. The hurt turns to anger, and she doesnât want to go quietly. But she doesnât want to scream for the troopers, no. She wants Ren to hear her.
If he said her thoughts were loud before, they must be deafening now. She has no idea how his power works, but she screams inside her own brain. Jeyna hopes he can hear her from whatever corner heâs in of this damn, ugly ship. She calls him every vile word she can think of, fills her mind with so much rage that she can practically tune out the numbers on the elevator as they sink lower into the bowels of the ship.
How dare he send troopers to do this. If heâs going to kill her, he should at least have the decency to do it himself. Most of all, she curses him for not killing her immediately. He had given her hope, the smallest glimmer of it, that she might be okay.
The troopers drag her out of the elevator, and she sees theyâre on one of the last floors of the ship. The floor here is metal scaffolding, the walls an angry red where they arenât covered in black metal. The lighting is dim, flashing from somewhere distant.
Itâs hot, and grows hotter as the troopers march her onward. Hallway after hallway, the temperature climbing as they force her on silently.
At an intersection, they pass a cleaning droid heading the same way as them. Jeyna sees its trash receptacle is full, it can compact no more. She understands suddenly.
Theyâre marching her towards the incinerator.
âNo, please!â Jeyna jerks, ripping away from the troopersâ hold of her arm. The second one immediately raises his blaster on her.
âFine! Fine, shoot me here!â She concedes, raising her hands. âIâm not getting shoved in there, still alive, to burn!â
The second trooper keeps his blaster on her while the first attempts to capture her arm again. âCome on,â he growls, his grip bruising as he digs the fingers of his black and white gloves into her upper arm.
âNo!â She shrieks, struggling. Her mind is filled with horror imagining the death awaiting her, and she sobs, choking.
He backhands her, hard across the face. He doesnât allow her to fall, yanking her arm and attempting to drag her once more along the corridor. She resists with all her weight, dragging backwards against him and down.
âMove!â he orders. âThis is happening, you stupid bitch!â
He moves to hit her again, but is stopped when he is flung against the metal wall, and frozen pinned to it. The second trooper moves his blaster, but joins the first pinned to the side of the hallway. Jeyna allows herself to fall to her knees, dragging air in through shaky breaths, as she stares at them.
She knows it must be Ren, but she doesnât understand. A moment later, he comes into view next to her. She looks up to him, confused, her vision hazy with tears. Heâs fixated on the troopers, the fingers of his hands curled into claws. Had he changed his mind?
She watches as he steps closer to the troopers, jerking his hands. The helmets fly from their heads, revealing two men that look to be older. These are experienced soldiers, and their faces look terrified. Twin looks of panic as they are held, powerless, in position.
âI wonât bother asking who sent you,â Ren says quietly, the helmet buzzing after he speaks with the sound of his heaving breaths.
His hands raise, and Jeyna is shaken by the sounds that come from the two men. Animalistic screams are ripped from them, their eyes bulging in agony. Her mouth falls open in horror, but she canât tear her gaze away as she realizes Ren is inside their heads. She understands now just how gentle he had been when heâd looked at her memories.
The menâs faces are almost purple, their screams dying into gibberish garbles of pain. As their eyes roll, Ren lets them drop to the floor. Jeyna scoots back on instinct, but they donât pose a threat any longer. Their eyes are open, but they roll nonsensically. They are alive, and theoretically conscious, but Jeyna can see their minds are far from present.
Ren steps near her, extending a hand. âCome,â he orders.
She takes his hand without thinking, despite having minutes ago believed he had ordered her death. He pulls her to her feet, and begins to walk her away from the fallen troopers.
âWait,â she hesitates, turning to look at her would-be murderers. âWhat about them?â
âTheyâll be found eventually,â Ren says, unconcerned.
âBut will theyâŚrecover?â she asks.
His mask tilts as he looks down at her, silence stretching on before he answers. âNo.â
Next Chapter:
https://bramadian0336.tumblr.com/post/647957127834583040/black-honey-chapter-11
Chapter 1 of this story:
https://bramadian0336.tumblr.com/post/646406961804492800/black-honey-chapter-1
Chapter Index:
https://bramadian0336.tumblr.com/post/646403464799404032/black-honey
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Black Honey- Chapter 9
A Kylo Ren/OC fanfiction
Jeyna is a scholar whose obsessed with the legend of Revan, a famous Jedi and Sith from millennia ago. She has found the first of many star maps, clues to something Revan left hidden, but her studies catch the First Orderâs attention. Captured and interrogated, she is expecting to be killed once she has no more information to give. Instead, she finds herself working for Kylo Ren.
Chapter 9
Jeyna collapses to her knees once theyâve cleared the web covered section of forest, gasping for her breath. Ren drops into a seated position not far from her, deactivating his saber and breathing almost as heavily.
She wishes she could force herself to forget the sizzling, popping noises of the arachnidâs eggs being destroyed by the explosion. Or being chased through the forest by the âbig oneâ, as Ren had called it, which had awoken when its entire brood of young were incinerated. She especially could do without seeing a spider larger than a rancor sliced open by a lightsaber ever again.
Yes, her curiosity regarding the planet had about run out. Jeyna was done with Kashyyyk. It had provided enough nightmare fuel for her to be content never returning.
Ren seems to be on the same mental wavelength as her, pulling the commlink from his pack. He gives up after a moment though, tossing it back in.
âWeâll need to try from higher up. The canopy must be too thick here,â he explains, standing. âWeâll try again back at the village.â
Jeyna nods, joining him as he begins their retreat to the Wookie elevator. She doesnât bother making conversation as they walk, still nursing a grudge against him. Sheâs also lost in her own thoughts, about Revan and Dxun. Sheâll need to do quite a bit of research to be able to suggest where to begin a search on the jungle moon.
And then there are still the lingering thoughts: What does the final map lead to? Why is Ren so interested in it? What purpose will it possibly serve the First Order?
And does Jeyna really want to benefit the First Order, even indirectly, with her work?
Of course, she doesnât really have a choice. She knows if she attempts to refuse, he will simply force her. Heâd likely not even need to resort to hurting her to accomplish it, just his intimidation seemed to be enough to make her cave. She feels weak at her inability to stand up to him, frustrated with her lack of options.
And then, thereâs the concern about what will become of her once sheâs provided everything Ren needs from her. Once sheâs no longer useful to the First Order, what reason would there be to keep her alive? Would Ren kill her, or let her be killed, once she was done serving a purpose?
She clenches her hands into fists to try to dispel some of her emotion, her fingernails biting into the palms of her hands. Sheâs been foolish lately, caught up in exploring this foreign world. She hasnât grasped the reality of her situation. Itâs no better than when she was in the interrogation room of their ship, with a shock band strapped to her skull.
If Ren is listening to her thoughts now, he says nothing. At least she can be thankful to him for that.
Nearing the Village
They learn a very quick lesson about weather on Kashyyyk: When it rains, it pours. At first, the rainfall is scattered enough by the canopy to hardly be noticeable. Itâs almost pleasant, the noise of it hitting so many leaves, the fresh smell it leaves in the air.
But as they ascend on the old, rickety elevator, it starts raining harder, and breaking through the tree cover. By the time they reach the top, they are soaked. It doesnât help that night is also setting, plunging the temperature deeper.
They break into one of the larger cabins along the walkway at random to get some shelter, Jeyna wringing her hair out as best she can by the door. Her limbs feel frozen and numb, and she watches in surprise as Ren hacks apart the oversized wooden table and chairs in the room to throw into the old fireplace. Heâs never bothered with a fire before, she thinks. Then again, sheâs never been this desperately cold before either. The shivers have turned into jarring jerks, her teeth rattling inside her jaw.
Jeyna realizes she can see him shivering, as well, as he searches through his pack in the nearly dark room. She sees the flash of the firestarter, but it takes a while to catch on the old wood. The fire starts small, but it's something.
She inches closer to it, settling on the rough floor of the shelter. The space is dimly lit, but thereâs just enough light from the fire that she sees as he strips the top of his combat suit off. Heâs left in only an undershirt as he throws the top onto the floor in front of the fire, presumably to dry.
Jeyna rips her eyes away from the muscles in his arms, mortified at her bodyâs response. She rubs her hands up and down the wet sleeves of her own top, desperately wishing for it to dry faster. The damp material clings to her, prolonging the cold.
She ignores the sound of him pulling his boots off, the thump they make on the floor. Theyâre followed a moment later by his pants, and she pointedly avoids looking at him in his underclothes. The fire is growing larger, she notices, jerking with cold. Eventually sheâll warm up.
âGet over your modesty, before youâre hypothermic,â Ren orders, sitting down.
Jeyna jerks her head back towards him to give him a withering look. He returns it, his gaze once again challenging, reflecting the firelight. Sheâs indignant, and yes, sheâs modest, but most of all sheâs furious. Furious about the stupid rain, and this terrible planet that tries to kill her every other day, and sheâs mad at being stuck on it, with him!
âYouâre thinking loudly again,â he observes, bored.
Without even thinking, she rips her shirt off, balls it up, and whips it at his head. He catches it easily, his lips jerking in a way that suggests he finds her behavior entertaining.
She crosses her arms over her chest, the thin material of the white undershirt making her feel exposed. But now that her skin on her arms can dry, she can actually feel the heat of the fire warming her substantially. Jeyna sighs, jerking her own boots off. She tries to ignore that she can feel Ren staring at her as she tosses the boots away.
She lays down, lifting her hips to wriggle the soaking wet pants off. The undershorts are tight on her, and sheâs painfully self-conscious. Heâs still watching her, making her entire body feel covered in a blush. She resumes her seated position, her pants laid out to dry near his own.
âAre you going to just stare at me?â She snaps, wishing heâd give her an ounce of privacy back.
âWhere else am I supposed to look?â
When she glances at him, unsure how to read his tone, he raises his eyebrows slightly as if genuinely asking. âAnywhere else. Itâs not polite to stare at a woman whose half dressed,â she informs him.
âI wouldnât know,â he replies, finally looking away and towards the fire. She furrows her brow at his response.
Something about it leeches away her anger. Instead she just feels nervous, and tired. Her teeth are at least able to stop their incessant chattering, and her jaw muscles feel worn from the strain. The warmer she feels, the more she wants to lay down and go to sleep.
âIâll try comms in the morning. With any luck, weâll be out of here soon,â he says.
âGood.â She doesnât know what else to say. She hears him sigh, and finally lets herself break her own gaze from the flames. His long hair is drying in slight curls, pushed back from his face. The bruising on his face looks much better, and if she had more energy she might inquire if his power had anything to do with that. But mostly she finds herself giving in to her earlier desires to study his features. She lets her eyes rove over him, unable to deny that she finds him magnetically attractive.
His volatile eyes snap to hers, catching her. They narrow, and she feels her stomach drop in the sudden knowledge that he knows what she was just admitting to herself.
Jeyna stands suddenly, grabbing her pack to pull the blanket from it. She retreats from the fire, already missing the heat it throws. The bed is the only intact furniture left, and she crawls onto it and covers herself up, intent on going to sleep before she thinks any other stupid thoughts.
But the blanket is a poor substitute for the heat of the flames, and she finds herself shivering once more. Of course she could just go back to the fire. But she stubbornly stays put, knowing eventually it will heat the whole space. Her hands are still icy. She tucks them into the blanket, closing her eyes and wishing for sleep. It doesnât come, her brain still running over thoughts repetitively, her body still too chilled.
After a while, she feels the bed move as Ren lays down. She acts like she doesnât feel it, tries to not remember the night before and how warm he had been. How comfortable sheâd actually found it against him. Her thoughts are quickly turning to something they shouldnât, and she bites her lip in frustration.
âCome here.â
His voice is quietly demanding. She wishes she could roll over, turn her back to him. But she finds herself, once again, caving to his will. She scoots hesitantly across the bed, barely making him out in the flickering shadows. When sheâs close enough, he pulls her against his side. Her heart is beating rapidly, her breathing feels faint.
Why is he affecting her this much? Sheâs never let a man affect her like this before.
She lets her head rest where his shoulder meets his chest, feels the welcome heat of his body. She can hear the thrum of his heart beating, and she focuses on that to drown out her own overactive brain.
âYou donât have to worry about what happens when this is done,â he says, quietly. She closes her eyes, realizing heâd been listening to her thoughts earlier. When she had pondered if heâd keep her alive once she was no longer useful.
She turns her face into the material of his shirt, wishing she could believe him.
The Next Day
They donât talk much as they leave the village. Their hike to the arranged pick up location is nearly silent. Ren seems tightly wound, reluctant to speak. Jeyna doesnât push it. Sheâs perfectly content to not discuss how they woke up that morning, entangled together. She doesnât understand why heâd immediately pulled himself away, his face turning stony and closed off as soon as the last traces of sleep faded from his eyes. But she tells herself she doesnât need to understand.
She can reason that itâs better to act like it hadnât happened. And so she lets the silence be, even as they wait for their ride. And when the shuttle drops down to collect them, Ren barely glances at her.
âWhen we get back, prepare a background report on Dxun, as well as search areas,â he orders. âIâd also like a report on the last known locations and mission of Revan.â
âOf course,â she agrees, trying to make her voice sound neutral.
They donât speak again during the flight, Ren going directly to the cockpit and leaving her to strap into a chair in the main hold. Thereâs only a few troopers accompanying the pick up, and they ignore her. She doesnât mind, closing her eyes and enjoying the much more peaceful return trip.
When they arrive at the hangar bay, she exits the ship on her own, determined to quickly make her way to her small quarters and away from Ren.
She doesnât make it far, however, when she hears the mocking tone of Hux.
âAh, little pet. Youâve survived!â
She freezes and turns, seeing him striding up to the shuttle as its engines are still winding down. He looks smug as he adds, âIâd heard there was some trouble on Kashyyyk.â
âYes. It would appear some traitorous weasel in your midst thought leaking intel would be enough to get Commander Ren killed,â Jeyna goads him, ignoring the voice of reason telling her itâs a bad idea. The manâs already tried to have her killed, there isnât much she can do to make their relationship more hostile at this point. âSeems they underestimated his powers, however,â she adds.
Huxâs pleasant façade falls immediately, as he scowls at her. âBe careful what you say to me, girl.â
âI apologize, I didnât mean to imply anything offensive towards you, Sir,â she replies, her voice so devoid of sincerity that it is downright mocking. She stares at him, enjoying the way he struggles to repress his anger.
Jeyna notices when the troopers behind him snap their helmets to look at the top of the loading ramp, and she turns to see Ren is finally emerging. He stomps down to their level, his gaze never leaving Hux.
âI believe we have a meeting with the Supreme Leader,â he says in way of greeting. Hux nods. Jeyna canât help but notice both men are clenching their hands into fists, their aggression towards one another barely held in check. She drops her gaze from their staring contest, wishing sheâd been able to just flee to her room.
Hux apparently flinches first, sighing. âI suppose we should get on with it, Ren.â He turns away, snapping a hand at his trooper escorts to follow. Jeyna notices that Ren doesnât even glance at her as he follows Hux from the hangar.
It shouldnât bother her, but it does.
Next Chapter:
https://bramadian0336.tumblr.com/post/647660874799202304/black-honey-chapter-10
Chapter 1 of this story:
https://bramadian0336.tumblr.com/post/646406961804492800/black-honey-chapter-1
Chapter Index:
https://bramadian0336.tumblr.com/post/646403464799404032/black-honey
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Black Honey- Chapter 8
A Kylo Ren/OC fanfiction
Jeyna is a scholar whose obsessed with the legend of Revan, a famous Jedi and Sith from millennia ago. She has found the first of many star maps, clues to something Revan left hidden, but her studies catch the First Orderâs attention. Captured and interrogated, she is expecting to be killed once she has no more information to give. Instead, she finds herself working for Kylo Ren.
Chapter 8
The next morning, Jeyna feels a rush of familiar excitement. It usually accompanies an impending discovery. Sheâs downright jittery in her energy, and she has to force herself to ignore the urges to explore the abandoned Wookie village as they cross it. No, she has to focus on the big picture here. Theyâve come for the star map, not to do archaeology.
Sheâs relieved that Ren suggested crossing through the village, and using the last elevator to descend. It cuts out time walking through the Shadowlands, which is fine by her.
As they walk, she tries to observe as much of the village as possible while staying to their path, intrigued. It also helps her to avoid looking at Kylo Ren. She finds herself wanting to examine his face again, to search his eyes, for what she doesnât know. Itâs much safer to look anywhere but him.
She is drawn out of her thoughts when he stops ahead of her. There is an elevator on a pulley system, and beyond the walkway is completely destroyed. Though it looks like the village might continue on, they are going to be forced to descend here.
âI suppose our choice is made for us,â Ren says, testing out the wooden platform before gesturing for her to join him. The descent is slow, the chill growing as they sink further into darkness.
When they finally reach the ground, she notices his lightsaber is in hand. Itâs not glowing, but very much at standby. âStay close, and be on the lookout,â he orders. She chances a glance at him, and sees his face is stern. She nods obediently.
Deeper Into the Shadowlands
They havenât been walking for long when they see it. An earthen hut, built into the roots of the largest wroshyr tree Jeynaâs seen yet. She canât contain her excitement at the sight of it, practically sprinting ahead of Ren to examine it.
âWhat part of stay close didnât you understand?â he mutters, catching up with her at the door of the dwelling.
âIf this is what I think it is, weâre going the right way!â she exclaims, testing the door. It opens begrudgingly, catching on the uneven ground. She steps forward, examining the inside. Itâs less impressive than she had perhaps imagined.
Ren follows, sounding confused as he asks, âWhat is this? It wasnât in your report.â
âWell itâs not actually pertinent to the star map, but I believe this is where Jolee Bindo lived during his exile on Kashyyyk,â she explains. There are broken, rusting parts of an old bowcaster on the slab of wood that serves as a table, and she ghosts her hand over them in curiosity.
âWho?â
âJolee Bindo. He was a Jedi who chose to exile himself from the Order, and lived out most of his older years here,â Jeyna explains. âHe was a known ally of Revanâs.â There is a grime covered garment hanging from the wall, and she speculates it might be a Jedi robe. Sheâs shocked it held up so well over the years. Doubtless if she tried to remove it, it would probably fall apart.
âWhy did he choose to exile himself?â Ren sounds disgruntled by the distraction, but curious nonetheless.
âHe disagreed with some of the Orderâs teachings. A lot of Jedi ended up doing similar back in the day. Itâs actually easier to find information about exiles than the order itself,â she explains. âBindo also married, which was expressly forbidden.â
Ren is silent, so she turns to look back at his face. Itâs hard to see him in the darkened interior of the hut, but he is gazing around, his face unreadable. Finally, he returns her stare. The dark makes his eyes look as black as his hair, striking against his pale skin. The word beautiful wants to cross her mind again, but Jeyna brushes it away. She worries she might be angering him by stopping for this long.
âWe can get going, Iâm sorry. Iâve just always been intrigued by Bindo,â she apologizes.
âWhy? Because he was a Jedi?â Ren asks. Jeyna doesnât miss the way he says Jedi, as if it is a swear word.
She swallows hard. âNo, not thatâŚâ She struggles to find words to explain as Ren takes a step closer, his eyes narrowing at her.
âBecause he knew Revan?â he guesses, closer to the truth. âWhat drives your obsession with Revan?â Jeyna knows she isnât imagining that his tone has grown aggressive. She wonders if perhaps the mention of Jedi has set him off.
âIâm not obsessed with Revan,â she says, knowing as the words leave her mouth that itâs a lie. She attempts to correct herself, squirming under Renâs glare. âIâm⌠heâs impressive, is all.â
âFrom what Iâve read, he betrayed every allegiance he ever had. Yes, impressive.â
His voice is acidic, argumentative. She wants to drop the discussion. But she also canât help but disagree with what Renâs said. Still, she bites her tongue, taken aback by his rapidly changing mood. He steps closer still, forcing her to tilt her head to maintain eye contact with him looming above her. His gaze is far more intimidating than the soulless black mask that lies, broken, in his bag.
âDonât hold back from me. If you think something, say it,â he orders. Her mouth falls open in surprise. She tries to drop her eyes submissively, but finds herself looking at his lips instead, which is vastly worse. Embarrassment colors her face for what feels like the hundredth time as she gathers her thoughts.
âRevan might not have been loyal to the Jedi, or the Sith⌠but not many force users in history were able to walk a middle path. He recognized that both teachings were inherently flawed. That ignoring a part of yourself wasnât a path to mastering a connection to the force. He went his own way. He was brave for doing that,â She blurts out her thoughts so rapidly, she wouldnât be surprised if he didnât catch half of them. Itâs not until she stops that she realizes she might have offended Ren further with her explanation.
But his face actually relaxes slightly, as much as can be noticed with how rigidly he holds it. Something about her answer has defused his temper, surprising her.
âI didnât realize you were also a philosopher of the force, Jeyna.â
Her eyes widen, unable to discern if he is cruelly mocking her or merely teasing her. âYou asked why I found him impressive, and that is my answer,â she retorts defensively.
âAn interesting answer,â he replies. He finally looks away from her, and she feels like she is physically deflating as the tension leaves her muscles. He has set her on edge, his energy intense and chaotic. How had she fallen asleep so quickly against this man just the previous night? She had even found the closeness comforting. Now she feels like an exposed nerve to him.
âWe should move on, if youâre quite done examining for signs of your hero. Before you dragged us in here, I felt something interesting ahead,â Ren says, voice regaining an unemotional quality. Jeyna nods tiredly, and follows him back out into the fog of the Shadowlands.
Later
The something interesting Renâs felt turns out to be a nightmare of spider webs. Theyâve colonized the forest floor, draping their webbing over everything. It turns the already creepy environment into a horror show for Jeyna, as she attempts to follow Renâs path he slices with his saber.
Every so often, the gauzy material of a sliced web grazes her and she jumps, her heart slamming in her chest. She knows what made these webs, and she does not want to come across its species. But it seems inevitable as he leads her further into her personal hell.
âYouâre positive what you feel is this way?â She asks again, desperately.
âFor the third time, yes,â Ren grounds out. âDonât let insects scare you.â
âThey arenât insects, theyâre arachnids,â Jeyna corrects automatically. âInsects have three body segments, spiders only have two.â
âWhat a fascinating lecture you provide, Professor.â Renâs sarcasm is thick, before he proceeds to hack at a clump of webbing that obscures their path forward.
Jeyna pauses to glance behind them while he works, only to catch sight of the glistening, bulbous end of one of the wyyyschokk spiders disappearing behind a branch. Itâs massive, even from the small part sheâs seen. She has to force strangled breaths in and out of her lungs, tears prickling her eyes.
âCome on,â Ren calls. When Jeyna turns, he does a double take at her face. âAre you crying?â
She shakes her head in denial, rubbing angrily at her eyes. For the first time since sheâs seen him unmasked, his facial muscles seem to unlock fully. His eyebrows raise, mouth twisting up at one corner. She realizes heâs amused at her emotions. It makes her want to slap him, right across his handsome face. She sees his lips twitch as he forces them straight again.
âYou didnât even cry over the terentatek,â he says curiously. âBut you sob at spiders?â
âJust leave me alone,â Jeyna suggests, trudging forward and past him.
âWeâll be fine. As long as we donât wake the big one,â Ren says dismissively, perhaps thinking such a statement would be a comfort. But she doesnât find it comforting when she processes what heâs said.
She whirls back to face him, fresh tears springing to her eyes as she gasps out, âThe big one?â
âYes?â
She swears, using the most colorful language she can muster. She doesnât care that he can hear her, she doesnât even care that her meltdown is making her look weak to him. Ren gives her an unimpressed glance as he brushes past her to continue their trek.
As they walk, the wyyyschokk spiders become easier to spot. Theyâre overhead, in the junctures of multiple webs strung between the trees. Jeynaâs neck begins cramping from walking with her head held back, her mind supplying images of one of the enormous creatures dropping onto her. At one point a particularly pale and large specimen is blocking their path.
Ren cocks his head to the side, before raising his hand. The spider, which is the size of a child, goes flying into a trunk. Itâs abdomen splits with the impact, spilling bodily fluid onto the forest floor. Itâs legs curl up where it lands, shriveling into a freakishly large husk of its former self.
Jeyna feels nauseous at the sight, covering her mouth with a hand. âDid you have to explode it?â she half whispers, half groans in disgust.
âOf course not. Feel free to remove the next one from our path yourself,â Ren orders.
âWith what? Do you have an unusually large shoe I could borrow?â Jeyna attempts to joke, knowing she is grinding on his nerves. Predictably, he doesnât smile at the humor.
âUse the blaster. You need the target practice,â he suggests instead.
Jeyna is about to point out that she managed to hit the terentatek in one of its eyes. A lucky shot perhaps, but still a good one. But its then she notices what Ren has already locked eyes on.
Through the trees, there is definitely an unnatural structure ahead. He takes off at a determined pace, not even pausing as he swirls the lightsaber to take down the suffocating amounts of webbing. Jeyna flinches back as he slices through a hovering spider, and it drops in two singed pieces to the forest floor.
She steps carefully around it, its legs still twitching, to approach the building. Itâs definitely a building, even as it is compressed on all sides by wroshyr trees growing into it. But thatâs not the most interesting feature of the structure. Itâs coated, completely covered, by odd transparent sacs.
Surely, those arenâtâŚ
âEggs,â Ren confirms her thoughts. âWe should try to not disturb them.â
She nods. âI think Iâd prefer that, yes.â Her eyes find the holocron. Its perched in front of the building, on the forest floor about a dozen feet in front of an ancient computer terminal. Ren immediately strides to the terminal, booting it up. Jeyna looks uncertainly at his back before kneeling by the holocron. She wants to see the next planet in the sequence. She has her suspicions for what it will be.
She reaches out a hand, but before she can touch it, she hears the computer: âNeural pattern rejected.â
âCome here,â Ren demands.
She stands, joining him at the terminal. Sheâs surprised it even works, the metal housing to the unit looks so corroded. âLook into the retinal scanner,â he says, gently turning her chin up and towards the screen with two fingertips. She freezes as a beam of light transverses her sight.
âNeural pattern accepted. Provide a sequence.â The computer juts out a device that looks like something off a medical droid. Jeyna canât help but notice the rather sharp looking needle that unfurls from within it.
She shares a look with Kylo Ren. His eyes are turbulent, as ever, but unreadable as he surveys her. She is suddenly, painfully uncomfortable. âIt has to be you. It wonât accept mine,â he states, taking her wrist in one of his large hands.
She jerks away, pulling her arm from his grasp. Sheâs surprised he lets her, even going so far as to hold his hand up in a pacifying gesture. She is still bothered by her lack of understanding, as to why the holocrons only open for her. And now the computer terminal too seems to prefer her.
âThis isnât like Dantooine,â he says slowly, with forced patience. âThe star map here is locked. I need you to unlock it.â
âWhy me?â Jeyna asks, searching his eyes. She canât help but feel he knows more than heâs letting on.
âI know nothing more than you. I think weâre both smart enough to take a guess, however,â Ren replies, his full lips in a terse line. âIâm not asking again, Jeyna. Unlock it.â
Her mind spins at this, trying to deny what heâs suggesting. Unwilling to let her think, he growls with frustration. He lunges to grab her arm again, towing her back to where the needle waits. She expects him to shove her skin onto it, but he doesnât. He forces her hand over it, poised a few inches from the metal tip, but goes no farther.
She gives him a dirty look, infusing it with as much frustration as sheâs felt in the last week and a half. His face is fixed, emotionless, as he stares her down.
She presses her index finger down, feeling the needle jab upwards in response. She breathes in sharply, and Ren drops his hold on her wrist. As she pulls her hand back, she sees the single drop of red blood roll down the thin piece of metal.
âAnalyzingâŚâ
Jeyna returns to the holocron as the computer processes what itâs taken from her. She doesnât hesitate this time, dropping to her knees and laying her whole palm on one of the sides.
It blooms open, buzzing to life. Where she was expecting to see the planet of Korriban, or perhaps Tatooine, she instead sees a jungle moon.
âDxun?â Ren asks from behind her. She doesnât confirm, though he is correct about it showing the closest moon of Onderon. Instead, she childishly chooses to ignore him.
The moon rotates slowly, as she studies it in confusion. Dxun was not one of the original star forge map locations, further complicating her theories. Though it did hold significance to Revan, she realizes, recalling the Battle of Dxun near the end of the Mandalorian Wars.
âSequence recognized. Access granted: Terraforming Project Main Terminal. Loading: Terminal Interface.â
Jeyna stands again, curiosity outweighing her lingering anger at Ren. The mention of terraforming thrills her brain, suddenly making sense of her observations of Kashyyyk. Everything on the planet seems so oversized, so extreme and predatory. Could it be a terraforming attempt gone wrong?
She has half a mind to ask Ren to investigate the computer for further reference to the project, but the computer speaks before she can. Of course Renâs of one mind, going solely after what theyâve come for.
âLoading: Star Map.â
And there it is, on the screen. Another section of coordinates she canât recognize from any star system sheâs studied. Ren wastes no time pulling out his datapad, and copying the map. Its when he puts his datapad away, and attempts to navigate the computer once more, that their luck runs out.
âStar Map Program: Activated. Sequence Prompted: Self Destruct.â
Ren gives her a single, startled look before issuing the command, âRun.â
Kashyyyk-Shadowlands Sounds & Ambience
Next Chapter:
https://bramadian0336.tumblr.com/post/647595602870468608/black-honey-chapter-9
Chapter 1 of this story:
https://bramadian0336.tumblr.com/post/646406961804492800/black-honey-chapter-1
Chapter Index:
https://bramadian0336.tumblr.com/post/646403464799404032/black-honey
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Black Honey- Chapter 7
A Kylo Ren/OC fanfiction
Jeyna is a scholar whose obsessed with the legend of Revan, a famous Jedi and Sith from millennia ago. She has found the first of many star maps, clues to something Revan left hidden, but her studies catch the First Orderâs attention. Captured and interrogated, she is expecting to be killed once she has no more information to give. Instead, she finds herself working for Kylo Ren.
Chapter 7
Itâs late afternoon, but it might as well be minutes from nightfall. The canopy overhead has grown so incredibly dense, that sunlight doesnât seem to be reaching the ground at all. It plunges the temperature lower than average, a deep chill that makes her shiver endlessly. Jeynaâs eyes have adjusted enough to stop tripping every other step, but she doesnât like the change in conditions.
Theyâve reached the area the Wookies refer to as the Shadowlands, for obvious reason. Everything is cast in shadows down here, and a fog seems to hover permanently in the lower pockets of land. Luckily, according to the pilfered map, they arenât far from one of the elevators the Wookies used to descend into the region. Hopefully itâs still in working order, so they wonât have to hike to the next one.
Jeynaâs been keeping a lot closer to Ren, trying to ignore the hairs on the back of her neck prickling. So when he stops, raising his left fist into the air, she notices immediately and freezes.
âSomething is stalking us,â he says lowly.
She had already noticed it too, somehow. The feeling of eyes on her. Something watching. Goosebumps erupt on her already cold skin, as her eyes dart around her surroundings. But she canât make out anything but shadows and plant life, fog and earth.
Kylo Renâs right arm extends, and Jeyna flinches as his lightsaber ignites. It hisses and flares, an unstable red beam. Jeynaâs read about the uses of kyber crystals, and suspects she knows whatâs happened to Renâs. In boosting the crystalâs power output to maximum levels, heâs fractured it. The broken thing is barely containing itself.
She recalls reading that the lightsaber reflected the wielder, and as she stares at Ren and his saber, both crackling the air around her with energyâŚshe believes it.
Even the mask canât disguise the animalistic growl that leaves him suddenly. She feels her feet sliding across the dirt, pushed by an unseen force. As Ren turns, she finds herself behind him, the lightsaber spitting close in front of her.
She searches the shadows ahead, and swears she sees something move against the leaves of an oversized fern. But as soon as her eyes focus there, she sees nothing. Another flicker, there and gone, near a sapling. Her eyes are dancing, trying to pick up on something they canât discern. The sensation of eyes on her grows stronger, her fight or flight response leaning heavily towards flight. Adrenaline floods her system as her muscles twitch, longing to flee.
Suddenly, it appears from crackling air, as it is already lunging at them. Itâs massive, nearly twice Renâs height.
Jeyna is thrown by that same invisible force sideways, as Ren lunges back out of the way of its stampede. He brings his lightsaber down on it as it passes, but the beam glances off the armored spikes covering its entire back.
It slams an enormous clawed hand deep into the dirt, dragging itself to a stop. Horns protrude above small red eyes that are literally glowing in the dark, casting a demonic light to it. Wicked, hooked mandibles jut out from around its mouth. As it slams its fists into the ground, bellowing a snarl, Jeyna realizes what it is.
âTerentatek!â she shrieks, hoping Ren understands everything that one word represents.
It is immune to direct force attacks, and its favored prey are those that use the force. Historical records suggest it was bred for this one purpose. To hunt and devour force sensitives.
It lunges at Ren at the same time he brings his lightsaber towards it, slashing and dodging blows from its deadly claws. Its armoring is too effective for him to cause real damage, however, and he canât seem to reach any vulnerable spots. Heâs too busy blocking and evading to be able to hit it somewhere effective.
The monster has him cornered, and she watches helplessly as his lightsaber deflects one blow, and he attempts to use the force to stop the other fist sailing at him. It connects despite his attempt, and he is sent flying into a trunk. The sound of the impact is so forceful she gasps.
Jeyna scrambles to pull the blaster from her bag, making sure itâs switched on. She knows it wonât be very effective. A cowardly part of her doesnât want to do what sheâs about to do. But she has to draw the thing off Ren, if only to give him a moment to recover. Itâs already advancing on him where he lays, and she attempts to aim at its body. She knows she isnât going to be a good shot, and simply wants to catch its attention.
She fires. The blaster bolts hardly singe it, but they do seem to irritate it. It turns, snarling, to dig its claws into the ground once more. Then, it lunges itself at her. She screams, scrambling backward across the dirt.
âREN!â His name leaves her throat in terror, as she aims the blaster at its face.
One shot hits, surprisingly lucky, in one of its terrible glowing red eyes. The thing flinches, hurling itself sideways in pain. One of its monstrous clawed hands digs at its face, as if it could tear out the thing that has damaged it.
Before Jeyna can think, itâs on her already, snarling ferally. It swipes at her even as she shoves herself backwards, and she throws an arm up to try to protect her face. She feels the flesh rip open where one claw catches her arm. She screams again, as she tries to burrow between the roots of one of the trees, desperate to escape from it.
The earth underneath her gives a shudder, and she catches sight of one of the massive boulders nearby suddenly go airborne. It crashes into the beast, throwing it far away from her. She can see Ren is on his feet now, and can barely hear the deep scream of rage from his helmet over the ripping noise of roots tearing themselves free from dirt.
One of the trees nearby is uprooted, dirt thrown into the air as the heavy trunk slams down onto the creature, pinning it. The impact shakes the earth beneath them, tremoring powerfully as it comes to rest.
The demonic monster flails, its torso crushed into the hard ground by the weight of the wroshyr tree. Ren climbs onto the trunk, and his saber ignites. Jeyna watches as he drives it into the thingâs head, entering the base of the skull and emerging below its eyes and above the row of terrible teeth in its mouth.
It stops moving.
She feels numb as she lets her head fall back onto whatever is in back of her. She canât tell if its rock or root. Sheâs panting hard, out of terror as she canât yet feel the pain in her arm. Adrenaline sizzles uselessly in her veins.
Ren is in front of her, ripping through his pack. âWe need to get you off the forest floor,â he orders.
Jeyna climbs to her feet, pushing up with her uninjured arm. Ren grabs her, and she watches as he ties something around her wound. He takes her hand and pushes it, hard, against her arm.
âApply pressure. The less blood they smell, the better,â he commands. âCome on.â
She starts walking only because his arm is pushing her forward. Her brain feels fuzzy, but she knows she hasnât lost enough blood for it to be causing this.
She wants to ask what heâs talking about, what would be smelling her blood. But she can feel it. More eyes on her. Her skin crawls, but her body canât seem to produce anymore adrenaline to counteract the numbness in her thoughts. Her brain has been reduced to a useless mass inside her skull.
Renâs lightsaber is not ignited, but still held in his right hand. His left is pressing into the small of her back, urging her forward. She sees the structure theyâre heading to now, a primitive elevator. Theyâre almost there.
Relief floods her at the sight of the thing, even as her knees start to wobble. She tries to force her legs to work, but they feel disconnected from her control.
Ren stops, hooking an arm underneath her legs and easing her up into his arms. She swallows, even that movement manages to feel clumsy, as her body settles against his chest. She lets her head fall against his shoulder, feeling the heat from his body warm her chilled skin.
Her brain gives a feeble attempt at functioning, suggesting an idea. Could the terentatekâs claws be venomous? Is that whatâs happening to her?
âYes. But youâre going to be alright,â Ren tells her as her eyes slide shut.
She wishes she could hear his real voice tell her that. Everything goes dark.
Not Long After
When Jeyna wakes up, sheâs in an unfamiliar space. It looks like the inside of a cottage or cabin, and its clearly late enough for night to be setting soon. The bed sheâs on is massive, made out of huge slabs of wood. Thereâs an odd looking lantern burning on a low table, casting enough light for her to take in the room and realize sheâs alone.
She pushes the blanket down to survey her arm. Thereâs a bacta patch over it, but itâs not stained with blood. Curiously, she peels it up to take a peek.
The flesh is clean, and almost completely healed. Thereâs no way bacta would act that fast. Can Ren do something like that, she wonders? Does the force allow for accelerated healing?
She doesnât recall reading anything about it, but perhaps itâs possible. Still, it seems like something a Jedi would do. Not a dark force user, like Ren. She hasnât been able to read as much about Jediâs powers. A lot of their records have been lost to time, or intentionally destroyed.
She hesitantly sits up, her head throbbing. She searches the space around her for her pack, wanting water. Her bagâs there, on a roughly made bench by the door. And sitting beside it, the fractured remains of Renâs helmet.
Her mouth falls open in shock. She walks on unsteady feet to the bench, dropping down to sit on it. Her movements still feel uncoordinated, but itâs definitely improving. She picks up the helmet gingerly, as if afraid her touch could further break it. Itâs dented in, she realizes, probably from the impact with the tree. It looks like heâs literally had to tear the thing in half to get it off his head.
Her eyes shoot towards the door, wondering where he is. If heâs badly wounded, he shouldnât be out wandering around.
She sits it down, searching her pack but finding her canteen missing. She stands back up, wondering if she should look for him. Theyâve clearly made it to the Wookie village, heâs probably somewhere near.
The door opens as if on cue, revealing the blackness of night outside.
Ren enters, glancing quickly at her and back away again. âHere,â he holds out her missing canteen, which heâs apparently refilled. âYou need to drink, it will help flush the toxin.â
She doesnât take it immediately. She canât stop herself from staring, her mouth hanging partly open in shock.
His hair is shockingly dark, almost black. Half his face is covered in an ugly purple bruise, tracing from his jaw up over his cheekbone, and coloring in one eye socket. But that isnât what has her so stunned. Heâs young, probably around her age. And heâs absolutely beautiful.
Ren sighs, sitting the canteen down on the bench when she still doesnât take it. âYouâre thinking loudly again,â he accuses, his eyes catching hers.
Theyâre honey brown, and Jeyna is stunned by the intensity of them. His eyes look like they are holding back a storm of emotion, and she feels captivated by the maelstrom.
âIâm sorry,â she breathes. She drops her gaze, feeling the flush of embarrassment creep up her neck into her cheeks.
He steps back from her noticeably. âHow are you feeling?â
âBetter. How are you?â she asks, letting her eyes dart up to survey the damage to his face before flicking her gaze away again.
âIâll be fine.â He steps away again, before leaning tiredly against the door. âThat was a stupid thing you did.â
The rush of indignation she feels fights away her embarrassment, as she looks back to assess his face. He coolly returns her gaze, eyes locking onto hers. His face, even with the helmet removed, is still mask-like. He doesnât show anything, anywhere, except for his eyes. And now theyâre challenging her, confrontational.
âI was trying to help you,â she argues.
âYou could have been killed. It was not a smart decision to draw its attention to you,â he says. She struggles to hear what emotion is in his voice. Itâs turbulent sounding, and she canât decipher if it is anger or concern.
âAnd if I didnât, and it killed you, Iâd be the dessert to your main course anyway,â she retorts. Her pride is wounded slightly at his chiding.
âI could have handled it,â Ren insists.
Jeyna fights the urge to snipe back at him. âOf course. You did handle it. Next time I wonât intervene.â
âGood,â Ren spits out the word. He stalks over to the lantern, extinguishing it. The room is plunged into darkness. âGo to sleep.â
Jeyna doesnât stop herself from rolling her eyes at his attitude in the dark. She shuffles herself back to the bed, settling down onto it. Itâs already grown cold from her absence, and the blanket does little to help warm her.
âWhere are you sleeping?â she asks.
âThe floor,â he says, irritation plain in his voice. She grits her teeth together in anger, fighting back the shivers that threaten to make her teeth chatter instead. All sheâd done was to try to help him, and herself, survive. And now she has to deal with his surly temper again. The man might be able to rip trees from the ground and hurl boulders, but he was childish.
âCan you stop thinking so loudly!?â He snarls from somewhere near the door, where heâs apparently laid on the floor.
âSTOP LISTENING!â She shrieks back angrily. Her teeth begin chattering despite her best attempts to fight it. Her feet and hands feel like ice in the chill of the cabin.
Jeyna hears a sigh, and then feels the bed depress next to her. Her eyes widen as she realizes heâs laid beside her. Breath jerks out of her chest in surprise when his arm loops over her waist, pulling her to him. Her back is flush against his chest, his arm locking her in position there.
âWhat are you doing, RenâŚâ she wonders, her voice coming out meek.
âI canât sleep with you thinking. And youâre not going to stop thinking if youâre too cold to sleep.â His voice is so close to her ear, it sends shivers down her spine. They linger, not unpleasantly, deep in her belly.
She licks her lips nervously, but she canât deny heâs warm. Already the shivers are abating. His breath stirs her hair slightly, and makes her picture his lips. Lips that are so close to her neckâŚ
Her face is downright hot with shame, knowing he could be hearing her thoughts. She desperately tries to stop the train of thought. She does her best to empty her brain, to welcome sleep into it. Sheâs warm now, his body throwing off so much heat that she barely needs the blanket. She curls her legs back against his, a contented sigh leaving her before she can stop herself.
Sleep.
She does.
Kashyyyk- Shadowlands Sounds & Ambience
Next Chapter:
https://bramadian0336.tumblr.com/post/647311279279816704/black-honey-chapter-8
Chapter 1 of this story:
https://bramadian0336.tumblr.com/post/646406961804492800/black-honey-chapter-1
Chapter Index:
https://bramadian0336.tumblr.com/post/646403464799404032/black-honey
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Black Honey- Chapter 6
A Kylo Ren/OC fanfiction
Jeyna is a scholar whose obsessed with the legend of Revan, a famous Jedi and Sith from millennia ago. She has found the first of many star maps, clues to something Revan left hidden, but her studies catch the First Orderâs attention. Captured and interrogated, she is expecting to be killed once she has no more information to give. Instead, she finds herself working for Kylo Ren.
Chapter 6
When Jeyna wakes the next morning, she feels terrible. Her muscles are sore from sleeping on the floor, and she was cold most of the night. Sleep came in small bits and pieces, but was always punctuated by frequent, loud noises from outside. She attempts to stretch her back out, standing up and tucking the blanket and canteen into her pack.
Kylo Ren has already left the old shack, but she finds him on the platform outside. Heâs sitting, perfectly still, his legs crossed and his hands on his knees. Itâs an odd sight to see such a large man posed so gracefully.
Jeyna feels a bit disappointed to see the mask is back on. She had a small hope that perhaps he would forego it, with it being just the two of them in the forest. She fidgets uncertainly, not wanting to disturb him. She attempts to look around, but the view from so high up is mostly branches of wroshyr trees.
That is, until she notices the large dragonfly-like insect sunning itself in a single beam of sunlight, on a branch not far from their shelter. It is massive, longer than her forearm. Its set of double wings slowly beat up, and down, at a languid pace. She steps carefully to the end of the platform to see it better. Sheâs close enough to examine the freakishly large compound eyes. Each part of them reflects a slightly different color as it suns itself.
Jeyna wonders how an insect so large can possibly diffuse gases rapidly enough across its exoskeleton to be alive. She doesnât remember the composition of the atmosphere on Kashyyyk, but finds herself wanting to check. It clearly isnât extreme enough to require a breathing apparatus for humans, but it still must be fairly unique to support large insects such as this.
Her brain canât help itself, and soon sheâs wondering if anyone has done a large-scale study of the evolution of life on Kashyyyk. Surely someoneâs analyzed what conditions would lead to the unique flora and fauna-
âMust you think so loudly,â Ren complains, suddenly dropping his pose. He rises, grabbing for his pack so he can toss her an emergency ration of food.
She opens it uncertainly. âI donât think I think loudly,â she replies. His mood seems considerably more grumpy than the previous night, and sheâs uncertain whatâs caused the change.
âWell, you do,â he snaps, the mask making his childish statement sound almost comical. He begins descending down the narrow steps they had climbed the previous night. Jeyna is forced to shove her half-eaten food into her pocket to follow him.
âThe forest is plenty peaceful now, why donât you tune in to that, instead of shaming me for daring to think inside my own brain,â she snaps as she struggles to match his pace descending the tree.
The steps are narrow and sheâs struggling to focus on them and not the dizzying heights. Somewhere in her, self preservation reminds her that she shouldnât be talking like this to Kylo Ren. Someone who can literally choke people with his mind. But sheâd always had a feisty personality, and it seems to be surfacing the longer sheâs away from the First Order. Still, best not to push her luck.
She tries to backtrack. âIâm sorry, I didnât mean to-â
âI liked you better when you were acting the part of a timid mouse,â Renâs mask makes the annoyance in his deep voice transform into a threat.
Jeyna bites back before she can think better of it. âThen maybe you should have left me in the torture room a bit longer! Another week would have done the trick!â
Her brain is all alarms screaming, she knows she is pushing her luck. Sheâs seen what happened when Hux backtalked Ren, she doesnât know why sheâs being so argumentative. Somehow their relationship has gone from distant but cordial to this childish, bizarre bickering and she has no idea what spurred the change.
Before Ren can retort, or simply choke her into silence, her foot slips. Panic grips her for one terrifying second as her hand grabs for the higher steps, but she misses them.
She slams down onto Ren, toppling him into the ground with her weight.
Luckily the drop wasnât that far, Ren had already reached the forest floor when she dropped. But she can feel that crackling energy again as she stares down at the mask, mere inches beneath her face. Her eyes widen in terror, and she gulps.
âIâm sorry, I slipped!â
âGet. Off. Of. Me.â Each word is spoken clipped, quiet, as if heâs pushing them through a clenched jaw inside that cursed helmet.
She scrambles to obey, righting herself and offering a hand to help him up in an attempt at a truce. He ignores it, standing to step into her space. She canât help but step back, feeling his rage. His hands are clenched at his sides, as he stalks forward again. She retreats, and they do this dance until she runs into the unyielding base of a tree at her back.
His arms come up to either side of her head as he cages her in, his gloved fists pushing into the bark. His mask dips to stare at her face. She feels the fear that has been lacking around him creep back in at his intimidation. Heâs physically imposing, towering down into her space, and she feels a slight shake in her hands. âWeâre making it to the outpost by nightfall. Keep up. Or donât.â
He says nothing more, none of the threats sheâd been filling her own head with. He turns his back to her and sets off at a rapid pace, as if he can speed walk away from his anger. She catches her breath in an attempt to calm her hammering heart, before following.
Later
The rest of the day passes in a marathon of hiking through the undergrowth, which is somehow becoming even more dense. Jeyna catches sight of more oversized invertebrate life, ignoring her itching desires to sketch them and describe them in detail. Pill bugs as big as her boots crawling on a rotting log, a snail almost her size oozing its way down a trunk. Everything on Kashyyyk is oversized, and she doesnât attempt to stop herself from theorizing on the cause. Spitefully, she hopes her thoughts are driving Ren insane from where he is marching a dozen steps ahead of her. Serves him right for not giving her any privacy.
They donât speak, and Jeyna periodically goes over the previous day in her head. Had she said something wrong to anger him? Or did lack of proper sleep set the Commander of the First Order into childish fits of irritation?
They finally make it to the old Czerka outpost as night is beginning to creep in, the light of day dimming. The ramp and stairs upwards is much easier to ascend than their last nightâs accommodation, and Jeyna follows Ren away from the forest floor. Her legs are sore from exertion, her mood sour.
The outpost is a series of buildings connected by walkways through the trees. Some of them are in bad disrepair, and in some places the structures or walkway have been torn apart or collapsed. Still, they find what must have been a former dormitory, and Jeyna practically weeps at the sight of a cot. Itâs old, and dirty, but so much better than nothing.
Jeyna wordlessly accepts another ration of dry, flavorless emergency food from Ren. The light fades in the room as she eats, forcing it down with water and noting that he doesnât eat anything himself. Surely he must have eaten in the past twenty four hours. Perhaps he did before she woke up. Still, she surveys the dark outline of him on the other side of the dormitory in curiosity.
Why does he insist on wearing the mask around her? What does it serve to hide?
âStop studying me like some creature you find fascinating,â he orders.
She frowns, dropping her gaze. âI donât study you like a creature. But you can hardly blame me for finding you fascinatingâŚâ
âIs that why you werenât afraid, when I walked into the room?â
Night has almost fallen completely, Jeyna can barely make out the darkened shape of him. She finds herself hoping he removes the mask again tonight. She has a weird craving to hear his voice once more, free from the mask. âThe interrogation room?â she clarifies.
âYes.â
âIâŚdonât know. I just knew it would be the end,â she shrugs, not wanting to revisit the mental place she had been in. The one where thoughts of death had been a relief. She pulls the blanket from her bag as a distraction, settling it over herself.
âItâs been a long time since anyone has met me, and felt something other than fear,â Ren observes, voice slow and barely audible to her.
âDonât worry. I still fear you, sometimes,â Jeyna says, meaning it to come out jokingly. She wants to lighten the mood, to bring things back to a somewhat harmonious place. But it comes out flat, more scared admission than a joke.
Ren is silent for a long time. The cot is shockingly comfortable, or maybe that is the exhaustion catching up to her. She barely hears him as he replies, âYou should.â
Morning on Kashyyyk
The next morning, she finds Ren repairing the commlink. She is going to leave him to it and explore a bit, when he informs her the outpost has a rain filtration system for rudimentary showers. Heâs apparently already tested it out while she slept, and the filtration is still effective.
Jeyna is happy to follow his suggestion, disliking the amount of crud she feels in her hair and coating her skin. While the filtration is working, the collected rainwater is still cold and so she hurries. She scrubs the grit from her hair, while trying to not imagine Kylo Ren doing similarly just a little while before. Her cheeks flush as she runs her hands over her skin, ensuring it is smooth and dirt free.
Surely he wouldnât be wearing his helmet in a shower. That would just be silly. The mental image almost makes her chuckle before she berates herself for picturing such inappropriate things.
She wonders what color his hair is. Is it pale, like his skin, or dark? She pictures the pale skin of his hand, the only part of him sheâs truly seen so far. Pictures it underneath the black he wears from head to toe.
The flush makes her face hot despite the cold water as she turns it off, pulling her clothes back on. Surely, she reasons, its natural to wonder about such a thing. The mask presents a mystery, and her brain gets hooked on mysteries. Thatâs all.
Still, Jeyna desperately hopes he hasnât âtuned inâ to her thoughts while heâs working on the commlink. She avoids returning to him immediately, instead scouting out a couple more buildings. It looks like Czerka had pulled out of Kashyyyk in a hurry, leaving a lot of equipment. A lot of it isnât useful, and the technology is long since defunct. But she finds a few useful items.
Jeyna comes up with a medpac, a worn map of the area, and a hunting dagger. The map clearly shows the ancient Wookie settlement theyâll be hiking to next, which reassures her. Something about having a map at a site always makes her feel more prepared. She tucks everything into her pack before finally returning to Ren.
Heâs finishing up as she approaches. âWe should be able to arrange transport, once we have what we came for,â he informs her. She nods, pleasantly surprised with his repair skills.
âHave you used one of these before?â In his hand is a blaster pistol, and he holds it out to her.
She takes it tentatively, shaking her head. âNo. I mean, I know how it works. But Iâve neverâŚâ
âItâs off. See, here,â he points the safety switch out to her. âDonât use it unless itâs life or death. Iâd rather not see you shoot yourself.â
She sighs at the lack of faith he seems to have in her. âAlright,â she agrees.
âWe should head out. Are you ready?â
Jeyna examines his mask, pleased that his mood has returned to what passes as normal for Ren. And though it frustrates her to not understand the cause of their tension, she much prefers it this way. âYes. Letâs go.â
Kashyyyk- Forest Sounds & Ambience
Next Chapter:
https://bramadian0336.tumblr.com/post/647082194753486848/black-honey-chapter-7
Chapter 1 of this story:
https://bramadian0336.tumblr.com/post/646406961804492800/black-honey-chapter-1
Chapter Index:
https://bramadian0336.tumblr.com/post/646403464799404032/black-honey
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Black Honey- Chapter 5
A Kylo Ren/OC fanfiction
Jeyna is a scholar whose obsessed with the legend of Revan, a famous Jedi and Sith from millennia ago. She has found the first of many star maps, clues to something Revan left hidden, but her studies catch the First Orderâs attention. Captured and interrogated, she is expecting to be killed once she has no more information to give. Instead, she finds herself working for Kylo Ren.
Chapter 5
Jeyna hides as she was instructed, beneath the gnarled roots of one of the larger trees. The dirt of Kashyyyk is dark and damp, and cools her legs where they are folded against the ground. She wonders how far they crashed from the intended landing zone, and if any of the comms systems are salvageable from the fire. Theyâre undoubtedly going to need a new ride off the planet.
Sheâs in disbelief over what has happened, remembering Ren stating the mission would be low visibility. There was nothing about a crash landing and fire fight in the jungle of Kashyyyk, with a village worth of Wookies, that seemed âlow visibilityâ. But how did they even notice the ship? With how small it was, and the radar shieldingâŚ
They had to have been actively looking for it, and known where it would be entering the atmosphere.
âYou can come out now, scholar,â Renâs mechanical voice startles her from her thoughts, and she jerks, thumping her already painful head on the root above her.
She crawls out, surprised to see that he is right outside her hiding place. Either she wasnât paying attention to the sounds around her, or he had crept up nearly silently. She is willing to bet the latter is the better explanation.
Heâs ditched his dark robes at some point, instead wearing only a black, ribbed combat suit and boots. Heâs got a pack on, which she is relieved to see looks like it might have supplies in it. Hers is empty, save for her datapad. She had never gotten a chance to load it up with anything.
âThe others?â she asks hesitantly, straightening to her full height. The mask stares back at her silently. ââŚTheyâreâŚTheyâre all dead?â
âYes,â he confirms simply.
Jeyna thinks of the charming pilot who gave her the tracker bracelet, the first person to smile at her since she left Dantooine. She pushes away the accompanying sadness. She canât deal with it right now, and her life has trained her to push away the things she cannot handle for another time.
âThere were too many of them. I donât even know how I got away. I think the pair chasing me just stopped following,â she says, rambling to fill the silence.
âI put the suggestion in their head that they saw you run the other way,â Ren explains. âWe need to move, we crashed far from the landing site. And there are still a lot of hostiles not far from here.â
âThey knew we were coming,â Jeyna blurts out.
âIt would appear they did,â Ren agrees, turning from her.
She follows his lead for a few moments, trying to walk as quietly as he does through the trees, but canât help her curiosity from running rampant. Someone leaked information to get them killed. And though Jeyna doesnât know many people in the First Order, she canât help the suspicion in her gut that Hux might be to blame. His poor relationship with Ren is obvious, providing motive, and something about the man just seemsâŚweaselly.
Jeyna decides if he is to blame for all this, sheâd really like to stomp her boot into his face. She can practically see the way his features would smoosh underfoot-
âYou haveâŚamusing thoughts,â Ren says from ahead of her.
Jeyna hesitates, stumbling a bit on the uneven ground. âYou saw that?â
âYes.â He continues on, not stopping. She picks up her pace to not fall behind.
âDo you always know my thoughts?â she asks, suddenly feeling a little alarmed over what he might have picked up on already.
âNo. Only if IâveâŚtuned in,â Ren says. Her cheeks burn as she contemplates the lack of privacy inside her own brain. âI was curious what you were thinking. You are right, it was most likely Hux.â
âDoes he usually try to kill you?â Jeyna presses.
âNever so obviously,â Ren replies.
Jeyna finds it odd he is so calm, considering their best theory is that his associate just tried to manipulate their deaths. Then again, perhaps rampaging through a clan of Wookies helped to dispel some of his anger. Or perhaps, like her, heâs burying it down for the time being.
Several Hours Later
They stop by a stream, and Ren pulls two filtration canteens from the pack. While he is filling them, Jeyna sits on a root. Her head hurts, a dull throbbing ache, and she lightly touches her skull to feel the bump there. The light filtering through the trees is dim by now, the canopy having become too dense for any direct sunlight to pass through. Itâs like a perpetual dreary twilight on the ground in this part of the forest.
Ren kneels in front of her, surprising her when he reaches out to turn her face up towards his mask with the fingertips of one gloved hand. She swallows a little heavier than usual, her heart beating faster at his closeness. âYou may have a mild concussion,â he observes after a moment, letting his hand fall from her cheek. âTell me if you feel dizzy or nauseous, before it becomes dangerous.â
She nods wordlessly, watching as he sits a few feet away. He immediately pulls a comlink from the bag, examining it. She suspects it must be broken, judging by the way heâs handling it. If they could get it repaired, they could arrange a pick up. Assuming Hux didnât attempt to block their communications and strand them.
âIâll bypass Hux,â Ren answers her as if sheâs spoken aloud. âIâll need tools to repair it. We might find what I need at the outpost you mentioned in your report.â
His reading her thoughts is getting very old, very quick for Jeyna.
âIâll try to stop,â he says quietly, and she hears a buzz from the mask. It sounds like itâs filtered out a noise, perhaps a sigh? She finds it odd he offers to stop. She had assumed he would tell her to grow used to it, claiming ownership of her thoughts as he'd already done with her theories in her datapad.
She scuffs her foot in the dirt for a moment, thinking. âDo we even know how far we are from the old Czerka outpost? The search area was on the east side of it, past the abandoned village.â
âWe crashed on the west side, unfortunately. Weâre at least a days walk from the outpost,â he answers. She heaves a sigh. This is not a good situation. They are in the wilderness without cover or back up, with limited supplies, without a working communication device. Glancing at the commander as he stands, sheâs at least glad he is her company. Despite how intimidating he can be, he will be useful when it comes to the predators of this world.
Speaking of which⌠âWe should find shelter soon, right? Everything comes out at night on Kashyyyk,â Jeyna suggests.
âYes,â he confirms. âAre you well to travel again?â
She ignores the aching in her head. âYes.â
As the Sun Sets
âDo you think thatâs our best option?â Jeyna asks, craning her neck to survey what is barely more than a treehouse shack far up one of the wroshyr trees. Narrow steps nailed to the bark circle the trunk in a spiraling pattern.
âUnless youâd prefer to stay on the ground?â Ren asks, and she doesnât think sheâs imagining the irritation that leaks through the mask.
âFine,â Jeyna shrugs, pulling herself carefully up onto the first step. She is trying not to show her fear at the situation, but it is far from anything sheâs handled before. The planets sheâs travelled to before have always been more civilized, sheâs never been in a place with so many dangers and so little preparation.
She senses more than she hears Ren following up the steps, and she focuses on her own exerted breathing as they climb. She tries to not look down, not enjoying the heights they are reaching rapidly.
The light fades fast as they approach the top, and Jeyna hesitantly pulls herself onto the platform. The shelter is old, she can tell no one has occupied it for a long while. All the same, it has walls and a door, which is more than she can say about anything else theyâd come across during their hike. She makes room for Ren, watching as he moves forward to open the door and disappears inside.
She wanders as close to the edge as she dares, peering down at the forest floor. She can barely make it out, it is almost entirely black beneath the platform. The forest is waking up, strange noises issuing from all around. It feels so much more alive than it did just an hour before, as animal life begins making itself known.
âYou should stay away from the edge,â Renâs voice advises her, and she obeys, backing up. Heâs watching her from the doorway, practically blending into the night quickly falling on them.
âWhy did you want me to come?â she asks suddenly.
âI had a feeling I would need you,â he says dismissively, turning and disappearing into the structure. She follows, not wanting to be exposed outside anymore. The space is small, dusty with age. It is empty, abandoned. The door protests as she pulls it back shut against the planet outside.
She sits against the side of the tree that constitutes the back wall, drinking from the canteen Ren gave her. It is growing chilly already, and sheâs relieved when he tosses her a blanket from the pack.
âYou should try to get some sleep, scholar.â She frowns at the informal title.
âYou can just call me Jeyna,â she suggests quietly.
âNot Torre?â
She frowns in his direction, assuming it to be the slightly darker mass in the shadows just a few feet away. âI donât like going by my last name,â she explains.
âWhy?â
Jeyna wants to snap at him suddenly, feeling interrogated. Their conversations thus far have been brief, related to what he needs from her and not much more. But she realizes she is not tired yet, and the only alternative to answering his questions is sitting in uncomfortable silence.
So she finally explains, âIâm the last of my name. I donât have any other family left.â
Heâs silent for a minute, then two. She wonders if heâs bored of her already. She supposes she probably is boring to someone like him. But then she hears a hissing noise, and something mechanical like moving gears.
When he speaks again, his voice is different. She immediately recognizes it as the voice in her head from earlier in the day. Still deep, but human and emotional as opposed to the machine induced drone of the mask. âAnd that bothers you?â
She squints in the dark, wishing she could see what he looks like beneath the mask now that heâs taken it off. What would a man with so much power within the force look like? But she canât see anything, the darkness is so complete. Heâs lost in the black, just a voice that she finds surprisingly pleasant sounding.
âI guess,â she says uncertainly. She canât bring herself to voice her real thoughts. That being the last of her family line feels like a burden. Oppressive in its finality.
âI understand,â he says quietly. She can hear the sincerity in his tone. It is much easier to read the emotions in his voice without the mask, and she prefers it immensely.
âYou said youâd try to stop reading my thoughts,â Jeyna replied, choosing to deflect to a topic less personal.
âIâm sorryâŚThe forest is very⌠distracting right now. It is easier for me to focus on you than all the life swarming beneath,â he explains. She frowns at his unexpected apology, imagining what that must feel like. How does he sense the creatures below them? Does he hear their heartbeats, sense their footsteps, feel their instincts as they hunt?
âYes.â His single word confirms her thoughts, and she tries to imagine a world where there is so much sensory input. If animals are that distracting to him, to be surrounded by people must be exhausting. All of their emotions and thoughts and urges, constantly bombarding him. She can hardly blame him for trying to tune it out.
âThat must be overwhelming,â she says softly. He doesnât answer, and they fall into a surprisingly companionable silence. She pulls the blanket over herself, seeking some warmth before shivers set in. It is hard to get comfortable on the floor of the roughly built shelter, but she curls up on her side.
Sleep evades her for a while, as she listens to the sound of Kashyyykâs night. Jeyna tries not to picture the animals she read about in her research, hoping with any luck to avoid them during her stay on the planet. However, she must admit luck has not been on her side so far.
Kashyyyk- Forest Sounds & Ambience
Next Chapter:
https://bramadian0336.tumblr.com/post/647049654180167680/black-honey-chapter-6
Chapter 1 of this story:
https://bramadian0336.tumblr.com/post/646406961804492800/black-honey-chapter-1
Chapter Index:
https://bramadian0336.tumblr.com/post/646403464799404032/black-honey
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Black Honey- Chapter 4
A Kylo Ren/OC fanfiction
Jeyna is a scholar whose obsessed with the legend of Revan, a famous Jedi and Sith from millennia ago. She has found the first of many star maps, clues to something Revan left hidden, but her studies catch the First Orderâs attention. Captured and interrogated, she is expecting to be killed once she has no more information to give. Instead, she finds herself working for Kylo Ren.
Chapter 4
For the first time in her life, Jeynaâs nightmares change. Sheâs back in the interrogation room, strapped to the board. She canât move anything, not even her head. The electricity jolts through her body and she hears her scream like it is coming from a distant place. It stops, and silence fills the room. But then the noise comes, and the first explosion hits.
She jerks awake to someone knocking loudly at the door to her quarters. Dressing quickly, she opens it to find Hux, the redheaded officer from the prior day, standing in the hallway. He looks tired, his eyes sunken with dark circles beneath them. She stares at him, disoriented from being pulled awake suddenly.
âWell, come on then,â he snaps in way of a greeting, gesturing to the hallway. âYour Master demanded I pick you up for our meeting.â
Grabbing her datapad, she follows Hux into the hallway. Did she miss something? She didnât remember a meeting being scheduled. Was this a last-minute thing? Her brain feels foggy as she tries to process, following the officer and his typical dual stormtrooper escort as he barges down the hallway to the elevator.
Several floors away, Jeyna finds herself in a large meeting room with several officers. Kylo Ren is nowhere to be seen. Most of them are seated at an enormous table, but Hux simply paces instead of sitting down. Jeyna shrinks into a corner, hoping to not be noticed. This seems to be way over her head. Her whole life has been spent surrounded by like-minded academics. The First Order is foreign to her, and she finds herself retreating inward.
For the first several minutes of waiting, everyone ignores her. But then Huxâs irritation seems to hit poisonous levels. He stops his pacing to fix her a glare.
âI saw your blood results, you know,â He shares. âEntirely average.â
Jeyna feels her eyebrows rise in confusion. âWhat exactly was the test for?â
âHe didnât tell you?â Hux sneers, his lips curling into a mocking grin. âMidichlorians,â he spat, and resumed pacing the room. One of the troopers flanking the door follows him with his helmet, back and forth, back and forth, before the second trooper elbows him to stop.
Jeyna turns herself further into the corner, mind working over what heâs said. She has read about Midichlorians, and supposedly elevated levels can be used to predict force sensitivity. Why would Ren think sheâs force sensitive? Nothing about her life thus far has suggested such a thing. If he thought it related to the holocron opening, that would have been easily disputed by the fact it did not open for him.
Just as Jeynaâs sleepy brain seemed to be content with abandoning her current train of thought, the door slid open. Ren barely had time to enter before Hux pounced on him.
âThis is foolish, Ren!â He declares. âWe cannot be dividing our forces at a time like this!â
âWe wonât be,â Ren rebuts, and the mask makes his voice come out even in contrast to Huxâs stressed tones. âIâm taking a dozen troopers and a stealth cruiser. This should be low visibility.â
Hux splutters, apparently at a loss for a comeback. Jeyna watches as Ren turns his helmet to one of the officers at the table. They had all jumped up at his entrance and were now standing uncertainly. âGet the flight scheduled for today. As soon as possible,â he orders. The officer nods and gives an affirmative, immediately getting to work on his datapad.
Hux finally interjects, âI canât believe you have the clearance to take off on a treasure hunt.â
Ren turns back to the redheaded man, and Jeyna can feel the energy shift in the room. He takes a step closer, then another. âYou doubt the judgment of our leader?â he asks finally. It sounds like a threat to Jeynaâs ears. She finds herself weirdly enjoying the way Huxâs mouth opens and closes, like a fish out of water, in response.
âOf course not,â Hux spits out.
âThen make arrangements. I want experienced men, not fresh recruits. Mobile emergency comms relay. Radar shielding,â Ren lists off angrily.
Hux looks close to having a fit, his face turning a shade that matches his hair. Jeyna finds amusement in the sight of a large vein pulsing in his forehead, having already decided she dislikes the antagonistic officer. Almost as if he hears her thoughts, Ren turns towards her for the first time since heâs entered the room.
âAre you prepared to travel?â he asks. Her brow furrows in confusion. Sheâs managed to fill in from their conversation that Ren is going on a mission somewhere, but is alarmed at the assumption she is going too.
âTravel where?â she asks quietly.
Ren is silent as he stares back at her, the mask betraying nothing. When he finally speaks again, it is clearly directed to Hux though he is still facing Jeyna. âI gave you a simple order. Bring her here, and brief her before I arrive. Why can you not follow a simple order?â
âI donât answer to you, R-â Hux snarls, but is cut off suddenly. Jeyna watches, her eyes widening, as the officerâs feet are lifted from the shiny floor until just the excessively clean toes of his boots brush against it.
As she looks from Huxâs contorted face, gasping and groaning noises emitting from his throat, to Renâs clenched hand, shaped as if it is around an invisible throat, she understands. The rumors are true, and then some. Kylo Ren is powerful enough to kill a man with his mind.
The thought sends a shudder of fear through her body, especially when she realizes just hours before sheâd been considering defying him and the Order. If he looked into her head again, heâd see her reluctance, her thoughts of refusing to cooperate. But she canât help but feel curiosity at his power. Sheâs used to that persistent, nagging feeling of curiosity when she finds a particularly entrancing mystery she wants to investigate further.
Hux splutters a moment longer, face painfully purple, before he collapses into a heap on the floor. Ren still hasnât even looked at the man he just took to the brink of death, still facing Jeyna. She can feel his eyes on her, and she forces herself to look back at the cold black mask.
âI am going after the next part of the map. You are coming with me,â Ren orders. Even with the mask, she can hear that his breathing is heavier. She wonders if itâs from anger or using his power.
She nods. âOf course, Sir.â The Sir sounds odd on her tongue, but she doesnât know how else to address him and is suddenly very aware of the officers all around them watching.
âPrepare a background report on the planet. Someone will collect you when it is time,â Ren says, before adding, âDismissed.â
Jeyna practically scurries from the room.
Hours Later
She barely had time to compile a background report on Kashyyyk before being taken to the hangar. The ship they load her onto is small, and covered in radar shielding. She takes a seat out of the way, reviewing the information sheâs entered into her newest records. The troopers ignore her, instead choosing to check their weapons and double check the cargo containers for supplies.
When the pilot boards, he hesitates by her before holding out what appears to be a small wrist band. âHere, itâs a tracker,â He explains.
Jeyna looks at it questionably after taking it. âDo they think Iâm going to run off by myself on a planet like Kashyyyk?â she asks dubiously.
He smiles slightly before shaking his head. âI donât know, I just fly the plane. Commander ordered you to wear it, so for my sake, can you put it on?â He gives her a hopeful smile and she finds herself returning it, before looking away shyly. Why are pilots always attractive and charming, she wonders.
The tracker fits snugly on her wrist when she tightens it, a small red dot flashing intermittently on the corner.
Kylo Ren finally enters, the troopers snapping to attention at his presence. He doesnât acknowledge them, or Jeyna, heading straight into the cockpit. She only knows theyâre on their way when she hears the engines firing. She fumbles to put on her harness as the ship rises to exit the bay.
Approaching Kashyyyk
Jeyna knows they are almost there because she feels the shudder as they drop out of hyperspace. There are no viewports in the main holding area of a shuttle this small, but that is fine with her. Her nerves have steadily increased over the trip, as she knows Kashyyyk isnât exactly a hospitable planet. There are a lot of dangerous predators on the forest floor, and relations between the Wookies and First Order are plainly hostile.
The search area she narrowed down is nowhere near First Order controlled territories, either. Itâs in the Black Forest, a particular dense and dangerous region of the planet. The Wookies themselves avoid it, believing it to be haunted.
Jeyna isnât sure why Ren wanted her to come along. If it were as simple as needing her to open a holocron, he could have removed it from the site as he did with the one from Dantooine.
Sheâs frowning, lost in thought, when the ship is suddenly and violently jarred from its path. There is a loud noise of impact, a powerful explosion. Thrown sideways, the harness keeps her from flying around the hold like several of the troopers who didnât bother buckling themselves to seats. However, its constriction on her chest steals her breath away, and she can barely gasp in air.
She can hear one of the engines staggering, a dying noise, before the entire vessel begins spinning. Jeyna hangs onto the edges of the seat, nausea overtaking her. The troopers are shouting, trying to right themselves. Just as the ship begins to steady, a second impact happens. Chaos breaks loose. The ship is careening wildly in every direction, and she can smell the smoke from a fire somewhere. The only remaining engine is making a terrible screeching, thudding noise that she knows canât be good.
Suddenly, the ship feels as though it is slammed into something solid. Several men and any unsecured cargo goes flying. Jeyna feels as if she sees the crate in slow motion before it slams into her shoulders and head, whipping her head back into the wall in a second impact. Her sight goes gray and staticky.
Minutes Later
The smoke is burning her nose and throat, it feels too real to be a nightmare. She wants to cough, but her body doesnât obey her. She feels like she is suffocating. Her vision fades, and then rushes back.
Itâs then Jeyna realizes sheâs being dragged, the dirt scraping at the bare skin of her lower back where her uniform has ridden up. Flinching, she finds her hands are trapped and being pulled.
Her senses all return at once, as suddenly she can hear the sound of blaster shots and another weapon Jeyna couldnât recognize by sound alone. She sees tree cover overhead, and twisting her head around realizes she is being dragged by a Wookie. Sheâd never met a Wookie before, but the sight was terrifying. He is huge, impossibly tall and broad. Both of her wrists are in one of his furry hands as he tugs her along the ground.
For the first time since the crash began, Jeyna screams. Itâs lost in the sound of battle, so loud is the firing, shouting, and roaring of the Wookies. She attempts to pull on her wrists, but that only causes the Wookie to yank her up by her arms and throw her over his shoulder. She flails, but she can see more from this angle.
The smoking wreckage of the shuttle is behind her. There are two huge wounds in the exterior from where it was hit, and itâs still burning in some places. The troopers are arranged around it, attempting to use it as some sort of cover as they fire off shot after shot from their blasters. Kylo Ren is out farther from the ship, and heâs surrounded. She can make out flashes of red, against the black of his uniform. But once her eyes take in the sheer number of Wookies, she realizes they are impossibly outnumbered.
Jeyna stops flailing for a moment, letting herself fall limp against the back of the Wookie. Heâs carrying her further from Ren and the troopers, and she canât let that happen. She wonât make it on her own, and she doesnât want to find out why heâs carrying her off instead of killing her.
She searches the belt that is slung around him, eyes spotting a knife. Itâs small, but it might work. She grabs it quickly and stabs it into his shoulder without a second thought. He howls in pain, his grip loosening, and Jeyna takes the opportunity to kick again.
It works, but only in that he allows her to drop over his shoulder onto the ground. Itâs a far drop, and something twinges painfully in her shoulder. But she forces herself across the ground away from him.
Heâs already advancing on her again, jerking the knife from his own shoulder and dropping it onto the ground as he comes at her. His approach is halted unexpectedly, however, when a blaster bolt collides with his chest. He staggers backward, collapsing.
Jeyna spins her head to stare back at the crash site, but none of the troopers are even firing her way.
RUN.
The voice in her head is so commanding, she is already staggering to her feet despite her confusion.
GO, NOW!
She obeys, running as fast as she can away from the fighting. She is staggering, her head dizzy from the crate slamming into her and smoke inhalation, but she throws herself forward. She hears noises behind her as the trees begin to look closer together, the forest growing more crowded. A couple more Wookies have noticed her escape attempt and are pursuing her.
She squeezes between trees, trips over roots. Jeyna attempts to use the forest as cover, hoping to lose them. Minutes pass by as she struggles on through the quickly thickening plant life, shoving herself through thickets of trees that are almost too densely packed for her to pass through. She hopes it will force the Wookies to fall back if they canât track her directly.
She canât hear them as well, they sound farther away. The sounds of fighting fade, replaced by her own panting for air and footfalls on the damp forest floor. She keeps pushing herself, further on, trying to be as quiet as she can now.
Eventually she doesnât hear her pursuers anymore. She doesnât hear anything but herself. The trees are massive, their trunks several times wider than her armspan. The roots form complex, arching structures off the ground in some places. She picks her way through, still pushing onward, until she hears it again. The voice in her mind, one she doesnât recognize.
Hide, and stay put.
âRen?â she whispers aloud to the trees.
Yes. Iâm coming for you.
Next Chapter:
https://bramadian0336.tumblr.com/post/647025875633717248/black-honey-chapter-5
Chapter 1 of this story:
https://bramadian0336.tumblr.com/post/646406961804492800/black-honey-chapter-1
Chapter Index:
https://bramadian0336.tumblr.com/post/646403464799404032/black-honey
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Black Honey- Chapter 3
A Kylo Ren/OC fanfiction
Jeyna is a scholar whose obsessed with the legend of Revan, a famous Jedi and Sith from millennia ago. She has found the first of many star maps, clues to something Revan left hidden, but her studies catch the First Orderâs attention. Captured and interrogated, she is expecting to be killed once she has no more information to give. Instead, she finds herself working for Kylo Ren.
Chapter 3
Jeyna watches as officers in the path of Kylo Ren scatter before him, making themselves as small or scarce as possible. She is practically running to keep up with him, his black robes sweeping behind him as he storms down a busier hallway than she had seen so far.
When they arrive at an open elevator, already occupied by two troopers, he growls, âGet out.â The troopers throw themselves out of the space, and Jeyna squeezes into a corner farthest from Ren. This elevator is smaller, and somehow fancier, than the one she had taken from her quarters.
She self consciously tucks her hair behind her ear, staring pointedly at the reflective floor instead of the dark figure besides her. She wonders, as the lift began to move, what he wants with her. Would he fill her in more on his expectations for her new job?
Jeyna chances a glance at the metal portion of his mask that conceals his eyes, only to feel the chilling sensation that he is returning her gaze.
âYouâre wounded still,â he observes. The device on his mask makes his voice sound so deep and chilling, it is hard to read into his statement.
She gives a nervous shrug, fingers lightly brushing over the burn on her temple as she pulls her hair forward again to hide it. The repeated use of the torture device had left identical, angry marks on her temples. âIt will heal,â she finally says dismissively.
âHux was told to bring a med droid with him,â Ren replies.
Jeyna notices his hands are still clenched into fists that have yet to relax. His anger makes her nervous, makes her think of the rumors she had heard regarding his temper. She tries to dismiss them and stay calm. âHux? Is that the officer who brought me the datapad?â
He slowly inclines the mask into a nod. She ends up babbling nervously at his silent response. âOh. He didnât introduce himself. He just said heâd throw me out an airlock when I messed up.â She rolls her eyes at the memory before realizing she shouldnât show disrespect outwardly, clamping her mouth back shut to avoid saying anything else.
She hears an odd noise from the mask, almost like a huff. His hands relax visibly as the elevator shudders to a halt. She follows him out and down a narrower, empty hallway.
At a wave of his hand, one of the doors opens like magic. He gestures for her to enter the room first, so she does, hearing the door slide shut behind Ren. The lights begin brightening in the space, illuminating what is clearly living quarters. Looking around, Jeyna sees doorways to what looks like a refresher and sleeping quarters.
Her heart starts pounding.
Are you Commander Renâs whore, then?
Surely, that isnât what is happening, she tells herself. Her panic is without cause. Still, she finds herself freezing up in fear, staring at Renâs mask.
He brushes past her impatiently, continuing into what she assumes are his quarters. She follows hesitantly, noting with some relief when he passes the sleeping quarters to stop before a closed door that looks like it was built for security. Jeyna watches as he tugs the black glove off his right hand, holding it up to a security screen on the wall. His hand is large, pale, but very much human. It is a strangely comforting sight, and she feels much less apprehensive as she follows him through the security door.
Her eyes immediately land on the holocron. Of course, theyâd brought it from Dantooine.
âIn your memories, it opened. Iâd like you to try to open it again,â he explains.
Jeyna nods, stepping past him to kneel by the ancient device. She holds her hand out, just like she had on Dantooine. When her fingertips connect, the sides fold down, projecting a detailed image of a planet she had identified on sight the first time she saw it.
âInteresting,â he remarks, stepping slowly around the opposite side of the holocron.
âKashyyyk,â Jeyna says softly, before correcting herself. âG5-623. If I had some time, I could suggest a search area. I believe somewhere on this planet-â
âIs the next part of the map, yes,â Ren interrupts her to complete her sentence. She sits back, glancing up at him where he towers above both her and the holocron. âYour datapad is linked to mine,â he informs her.
Her cheeks burn hot as she realizes he mustâve read everything sheâd logged earlier. While there was nothing in it sheâd have kept secret, she feels indignation at the violation of privacy. She has never allowed anyone to fully access her private records before. Of course, she shouldâve assumed the device would be monitored. It was foolish to not think of that before, and now she feels shame add in to the color of her cheeks and clench in her jaw.
âYou dislike this,â Ren notes in that toneless mechanical voice, still staring down at her from beyond the slowly rotating planet of Kashyyyk.
âIâve just never shared access to my personal records before. Iâm sorry,â she apologizes, hoping to move on.
âYou donât have personal records anymore. Your theories are mine,â Ren corrects her.
Jeyna swallows hard, nodding. âI understand.â What more could she say? This was the only thing keeping her alive. If Kylo Ren wants dominion over her intellectual property, she could hardly refuse him.
âUpdate your log with the suggested search area when youâve narrowed it down,â he orders.
Jeyna nods again, standing. As anxious as sheâd been to get information from Ren, she now is just as anxious to retreat from him. âOf course. Is that all?â she asks, forcing her voice to be neutral. There is still a small part of her that is raging at the thought of him perusing her journaled thoughts, it seems to anger her even more than when heâd literally forced himself into her mind.
âNo.â He steps around the holocron, which began to close itself up again, folding back together like a flower blooming in reverse. He stops in front of her, cocking his head slightly to the side in a way that reminded her of their first meeting.
His sudden proximity steals the rest of the anger from her, indignation slipping away and leaving trepidation in its place. This close, she can feel that strange energy from him again, like electric current in the air. Jeyna wouldnât be surprised to feel a static jolt if heâd touched her.
âThis holocron hasnât opened for anyone else whose tried,â he says slowly.
Jeyna's eyebrows furrow in confusion. âWhat do you mean? It doesnât open when you touch it?â she asks quickly, futilely searching his mask. He shakes his head, just as slowly as he had spoken. âThat makes no senseâŚâ
She trails off, looking back down at the device. There is no reason it should be locked to anyone but her specifically. She is nobody. And it was thousands of years old. And yet sheâd seen one just like it beforeâŚAs if he heard her thoughts, Ren speaks. âIt reminds you of another holocron. From your childhood.â
Jeynaâs mouth falls open slightly at his prompting, realizing heâs seen more of her memories than she had thought. âIf you know that, then you know I just touched that one too. I didnât doâŚanything⌠I didnât lock it orâŚâ
âIâm not suggesting you did,â he clarifies. âBut do you know anything else about the holocron from your childhood home? Why was it there?â
Jeyna shakes her head in denial. âNo. No, my mother never told me about it. I wasnât even supposed to go in that room,â she says, her voice coming out shaky with fear at the line of questioning. âI never got to see the rest of the recording. I never got to ask her about itâŚâ Jeyna doesnât finish her thought aloud. Her mother had died that day, and that recording of Revan had been lost in the burning rubble of her home.
Itâs silent for several moments, as she struggles to stop thinking about the memories. The only way she has ever coped is by not thinking about them. They pay her back for her negligence every night, but she canât stop pushing them away in her waking hours.
Eventually, he speaks. âYou knew it was important, even as a child. It is what drove you, and what brought you here.â
Jeyna lifts her chin to search the mask again, wishing she could see his face for some clue. She knows now this isnât as simple as working for Ren as a historian. There is something messy and complicated here, and she knows he isnât telling her everything. The worst part is she suspects what is keeping her alive isnât her knowledge. Itâs the simple fact that the holocrons open for her touch alone, for some bizarre reason.
âI will send the med droid to your quarters. I request you allow it to take a small blood sample,â Ren says, and though he uses the word request, Jeyna understands it is anything but. âUpdate the log with the search area, as well as any theories you have regarding the mapâs final destination.â
She nods mutely, turning to flee his overpowering presence and the holocron that suddenly feels like a curse.
Many Hours Later
It is what passes as night time on the ship, though there is no true day or night. Still, according to the time keeping system, it is late and she should be sleeping. But Jeynaâs mind wonât rest. She physically feels better, having watched as the med droid applied treatments to her burns, cuts, and scrapes. It took the small blood sample, barely more than a few drops. She doesnât know what Ren expects to find in the sample, but she feels disgruntled by it all the same.
Her datapad is open on her lap, but sheâs been laying on her bed staring at its screen as she rereads her report. Sheâs written it as if presenting it to Ren, rather than a journal of her own musings. She canât bring herself to pretend itâs private, so she tries to make it as direct and helpful as possible.
While she made some headway with a search area for the next part of the map, she still has no good ideas on what the map itself leads to. She theorizes that at some point Revan or an ally of his must have switched out the maps to lead to a different destination.
But whyâŚor whereâŚit eludes her.
Jeyna sighs before tossing the datapad down and stretching. Her stomach is screaming in hunger again, and sheâs been ignoring it again. Her last experience in the dining hall makes her reluctant to go back.
She hopes the late hour might mean it is less populated as she gives in to her bodily needs and shuffles out of the small crew quarters. She doesnât pass anyone in the hallways or elevator, and considers herself lucky when the dining area only holds a handful of men.
Again, only men. As she picks up her food, she muses over that. Surely there must be some women other than her on this entire ship?
Jeyna sits back at the same table she occupied earlier in the day, back to the corner again. She notices the few men donât dare to look at her, which suits her just fine. The food is bland, but she shovels it down to lessen the ache in her belly. Sheâs about done, and contemplating if there is something she can snag to take back to her room for the next morning, when she feels the ship suddenly shudder.
Itâs changing velocity, she realizes, about the time an alarm blares briefly from somewhere else on the ship. The men in the dining hall donât move, not seeming bothered by anything.
For Jeyna, however, it makes her nervous. Sheâs not used to being on a military vessel, especially one built for combat. She decides to head back to her quarters so sheâll be out of the way if anything is going down.
She doesnât quite make it, however, as a brilliant flash of light catches her attention from further up the hall. She passes the elevator, continuing on until she finds more flashes of light coming in from a viewport. As she searches the space outside, she finds that the flashes of light are coming from another ship in the distance. Itâs firing on the First Order, but all of the blasts are ricocheting off the shielding.
Jeyna watches, transfixed, wondering if the other ship is Resistance or something else. She doesnât get to wonder long, however. She feels another shudder, and the ship is obliterated by a massive shot. It didnât even stand a chance. Debris is thrown before it begins drifting into a widening circle, and Jeyna canât make out more details from her location.
The sight of the destruction makes her hesitate, however. Sheâs been worried about only herself since the Order grabbed her off Dantooine. But that guilty feeling in the pit of her stomach is stirring up the bland food and making her feel nauseous. Sheâs never taken sides, wanting to stay removed from the fighting to focus on her studies. But sheâs heard about the Order, the rumors of what they do to entire planets. The atrocities theyâve supposedly committed. She still doesnât know who to blame for the horror she witnessed herself, early in life.
Perhaps she shouldnât be helping the First Order in any regards, not even to save her own life.
If what Kylo Ren is after is really that important to the Order⌠Jeyna thinks maybe she shouldnât help him find it.
Next Chapter:
https://bramadian0336.tumblr.com/post/646592439913742336/black-honey-chapter-4
Chapter 1 of this story:
https://bramadian0336.tumblr.com/post/646406961804492800/black-honey-chapter-1
Chapter Index:
https://bramadian0336.tumblr.com/post/646403464799404032/black-honey
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Black Honey- Chapter 2
A Kylo Ren/OC fanfiction
Jeyna is a scholar whose obsessed with the legend of Revan, a famous Jedi and Sith from millennia ago. She has found the first of many star maps, clues to something Revan left hidden, but her studies catch the First Order's attention. Captured and interrogated, she is expecting to be killed once she has no more information to give. Instead, she finds herself working for Kylo Ren.
Chapter 2
Several moments pass, and Jeyna stares at the empty metal chair across from her that had previously held the intimidating presence of Kylo Ren. She still cannot make sense of his statement. He wants her to work for him? Surely the First Order has people he could put to task on continuing her research?
From outside of her cell she hears a scream and a loud thud, jerking her from her thoughts. The door slides open a moment later, and two stormtroopers enter. One is limping noticeably.
âGet up, youâre coming with us,â the one who isnât injured orders her. He gestures impatiently at the open door.
She stumbles to her feet once again, muscles protesting at any exertion. From there she has to stagger to keep up with the grueling pace the troopers set, reaching for energy reserves that donât exist as they prod her along the sterile, endless halls of the ship.
Jeyna isnât sure which ship sheâs even on. Judging by how much of it sheâs seeing now, its massive. If she had been more alert, less on the verge of collapse, she might have taken an interest in her surroundings. She probably would have had a dozen or more questions, always intrigued by the unknown. But as it is, it takes all of her brainâs effort to continue dragging one foot in front of the other as she is marched along. The troopers they pass say nothing, exchanging small nods with the pair escorting her.
Vaguely, she wonders if Ren had changed his mind, and they are taking her to her death. Just as that thought crosses her mind, they come to an elevator. The injured trooper shoves her shoulder roughly when Jeyna doesnât automatically jump into it, as soon as the doors slide open. Numbers blur past as Jeyna works to hold herself upright in the cramped space, and then it stops.
âCome on,â one of them grabs her arm, dragging her from the elevator. Her legs are barely cooperating by now, and she almost trips as he tightens his grip painfully on her arm.
They stop before a plain door, a series of numbers in black metallic font on the front. It slides open, and Jeyna is unceremoniously shoved into the new room. She turns in surprise as she hears the door shut behind herself, realizing the troopers are leaving her alone.
Turning back around, Jeyna takes in her new surroundings⌠and realizes it isnât a cell. She is in staff quarters. They are small, basic quarters, but nonetheless an improvement over a prison cell. It is then that her eyes catch the small table in the corner, opposite the bed. There is a meal, and water. Glorious water.
She has to force herself to drink slowly, despite her instincts screaming at her to guzzle down as much as she can. Eventually, she even chances eating some of the food. It immediately reignites her hunger, but she has to battle an odd nausea that comes over her as well. Eventually, she hits a point where she can force no more into her shrunken stomach without risking being sick. Jeyna finally looks around at the room again, now that she isn't solely fixated on hunger.
The bed looks so inviting. Glancing down at herself, she realizes she is absolutely disgusting in the amount of filth on her. Dirt and mud from her time exploring the caves of Dantooine, finding the vault that contained the star map and holocron, cake her clothes. Blood from cuts and scrapes stains her skin.
There is a small refresher in the corner of the room, and she pulls open the only metal locker she finds. It is stocked with basic uniform clothing, and boots. On the top shelf are two towels. Sighing in relief, she pulls one down before taking a long, painful shower. Her skin stings wherever an open, untreated wound is met with soap and water. She has to basically rip her hair out to work through the knots and snarls. But eventually, Jeyna finds herself clean, and collapses onto the first real bed sheâd seen in over a week. The sleep that overtakes her is a black void, but sweet and welcome.
The Next Morning
Jeyna wakes after hours of heavy sleep to her heart pounding, the sensation that thick, acrid smoke is choking her airways. Her head is thudding with the imagined sound of explosions.
She lays still for a moment, allowing the panic to seep out of her limbs. It was only a nightmare. The same nightmare, as always. It came to her anytime she slept, the memories of destruction morphing into something that haunted her brain nightly.
Eventually, she kicks the blanket back and sits up on the narrow bed. The lights in the room must sense her motion, gradually brightening. Her stomach gives a ridiculously loud groan and her eyes fly to the table, spotting the leftover food from the night before. She doesnât hesitate to sit at the table and grab the fruit off the tray to scarf down, barely tasting it.
She has just finished when the door slides open. The chair squeaks as she pushes it back clumsily to stand. Outside in the hall are two troopers, flanking a man in a very fancy, dark uniform. He strides into the room without bothering to greet her, his hair a reddish orange shade and slicked heavily down with grease. Jeyna swallows nervously, surveying the pins on his suit. She doesnât know the First Orderâs rankings, but she assumes he must be high up.
He stares down his nose at her, face condescending. âSo, you're Renâs pet academic,â he sneers, eyes narrowing as he examines her.
Jeyna stays silent, not knowing what to say. She barely even understood why she was still alive, let alone how to justify it to this officer.
âOf course you are young and pretty. Doubtless heâs just keeping you around to look at,â he says offhandedly, holding up a datapad in his hand as if examining it. He flicks off an imaginary bit of dust from its screen before his eyes return to hers, and he huffs impatiently. âDonât you speak?â he snaps.
âYes,â Jeyna forces out.
âYour master is a fool,â The man continues angrily, spitting out the word master as if it were venomous. âWhen you mess up, as I am sure you will... be assured that unlike Ren, I will not hesitate to throw you out of an airlock.â
Jeyna grits her teeth. âUnderstood,â she grinds out. She had been contemplating such a fate just hours ago without it bothering her. But something about the man before her threatening her with it makes her temper, a temper that had vanished days ago on the interrogation table, flare.
âIâm to give you this,â he says with a roll of the eyes. The datapad is thrust into her hand. âIt is connected to our databases. A terrible idea, really.â
He waits, eyes flickering about the room as if he is bored while waiting for a response. He doesnât get one. He sighs. âYou are quite a boring one, arenât you? Very well. Youâve been granted access to common areas of the ship, but anything that requires security access is barred to you. The elevator will take you to the dining hall, itâs 3 levels down. Otherwise Iâd suggest you keep to yourself.â
The redheaded officer turns neatly on his shiny black boots and strides back to the door. He pauses before leaving. âGood luck, little pet,â he says, voice full of contempt. She cringes at the nickname and is relieved when the door closes behind him.
Jeyna straightens her uniform, rumpled from having been slept in, and hesitantly sits back down on the bed. The man didnât even bother to introduce himself, apparently deeming her beneath even that. Despite Renâs order that she was now working for the First Order, she has a sneaking suspicion that the ship is far from a safe place for her.
Eyes darting down to the datapad, she sighs. Might as well begin a new journal on the device. It was her habit to keep daily logs of discoveries, new theories, evidenceâŚanything she could connect to her topic of interest. She has no idea where her previous device is, but this one would do as a substitute.
Hours Later
Jeyna had spent a ridiculously long time summarizing the information that had been on her previous deviceâs records as a form of organizing her mind. Then, she proceeded to record her discoveries on Dantooine. The ancient chamber she had stumbled into, the droid that didnât speak Basic or any language she had recognized. And most importantly, the holocron and star map. The star map is what confused her.
She had been expecting part of the coordinates to Rakata Prime, a planet alluded to in historical records regarding Revanâs involvement in the Jedi Civil War. But the small section of space she had glimpsed did not match up with the star maps she had studied of the Lehon system.
Something is off with the star map, it is wrong. Jeyna pulls up all known star maps and hyperspace routes on the new datapad, studying them until her eyes have difficulty focusing. There are so many, she will never be able to truly check them all. Still, she cannot place the map from her memory on any part of the known star systems she can access. She wonders hopefully if Ren will allow her to study the map from Dantooine again.
Surely, if he is serious about her working for him, heâd give her access to it?
She finds herself full of doubt, and chasing close behind it, anxiety. Her stomach gurgles, making her aware of how painfully hungry she is. Sheâs lost herself in her studies, again, ignoring the need for food. That is a familiar habit of hers, perhaps the only familiar thing in her life currently.
Jeyna reluctantly drops the datapad, standing up and stretching. Her back protests from being hunched over the screen for so long. She realizes sheâll have to venture to the dining hall for food.
Hesitantly, she approaches the door of her quarters, only for it to slide open for her. She is surprised by her sudden freedom, despite what the rude redheaded officer had told her. Steeling herself, she pushes out into the hallway, only passing a cleaning droid on her way to the elevator.
It quickly brings her three floors down, and she easily finds her way to the loud dining area. She forces herself to march forward, entering the racket of the spacious cafeteria, despite wishing she could retreat somewhere less intimidating. A quick scan of the room, and she finds the long serving bar, approaching it quickly. Jeyna does her best to avoid looking at the occupied tables of First Order workers. She can see it is a mix of uniforms, from troopers to technicians and servants.
She mindlessly shoves food onto a tray before retreating to an open table, sitting with her back to the corner like a defensive animal. She has every intention of shoveling food into her face as quickly as possible, before retreating back to her small quarters.
However, the noise level had noticeably lowered after her entrance. Regretfully, she becomes aware of the glances, and some full out stares, being leveled her way.
Jeyna allows herself a small study of the people in the room, before coming to the surprising conclusion that her company is entirely male. She drops her gaze back to her own tray, eating quickly. Why is the entire room men? Was this ship only staffed by men?
She knows the First Order has plenty of women serving. She had even seen female stormtroopers before on Order controlled planets. So why did this massive ship seem to lean so heavily towards one gender?
The table nearest hers catches Jeynaâs attention as she stops in her hurried attempts to eat. It holds four troopers, their shiny white helmets sitting on the benches beside them as they eat. Three of them drop their gazes from her as she looks at them, but one seems intent on catching her eye. He grins at her, turning around more fully on his bench to face her.
âAre you Commander Renâs whore, then?â
An unpleasant chill shoots down her spine at the comment. Her mouth falls open slightly, shocked and speechless as to what to say. She has never been called something like that before, keeping to her studies and avoiding fraternizing with the opposite gender as much as she could. Even when she traveled for her work, she kept to herself or fellow scholars unless she needed information from locals.
Finally, she manages to retort pathetically, âLeave me alone.â
His grin breaks into a large smile. The man sitting beside him elbows him, whispering something urgently. The outspoken one shakes him off, however. âHave you seen under the mask yet? Or does he keep it on while heâs on top of you?â
Jeyna stands suddenly, intent on fleeing the hall. He stands too, as if intending to continue the confrontation.
Until he goes flying, backward. The room becomes deadly silent but for the crash of the man into the wall, hard. He crumples to the floor, unmoving. Jeyna stares, mouth open, shocked and confused. All around the dining hall, heads are dropped as the men stare down at their laps. She sees the man, who was sitting beside the one now unconscious on the floor, dart his eyes to the entrance of the dining hall.
Turning, Jeyna realizes with relief that Kylo Ren is standing there. His outstretched hand slowly lowers to his side. âCome with me.â
The robotic sounding order is not that loud, but in the completely silent room she hears it clearly. She doesnât even hesitate, following him as he practically stomps out of the door.
Next Chapter:
https://bramadian0336.tumblr.com/post/646502602504323072/black-honey-chapter-3
Chapter 1 of this story: https://bramadian0336.tumblr.com/post/646406961804492800/black-honey-chapter-1
Chapter Index:
https://bramadian0336.tumblr.com/post/646403464799404032/black-honey
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Black Honey- Chapter 1
A Kylo Ren/OC fanfiction
Jeyna is a scholar whose obsessed with the legend of Revan, a famous Jedi and Sith from millennia ago. She has found the first of many star maps, clues to something Revan left hidden, but her studies catch the First Order's attention. Captured and interrogated, she is expecting to be killed once she has no more information to give. Instead, she finds herself working for Kylo Ren.
Warnings: Eventual Smut/Explicit Sexual Content, Language, Mild Violence
Chapter 1
The little girl knew better than to be in this room. For the entirety of her brief life so far, she had been forbidden from entering it. Her mother had sternly enforced the rule, not even permitting her to peek beyond the doorway.
But her mother wasnât home, having left in a hurry but promising to come back as soon as she could. The little girl had tried to behave, to play and to avoid that room that called to her. But inevitably she had been drawn to the door, her hand extending to the knob. Like magic, it turned and creaked open a few inches before she could even lay a finger on it.
And now here she stood, in the small room that was barely more than a closet. It was almost disappointing, if not for the strange object she found her gaze settling upon. It was taller than her, exotic looking.
She crept closer before giving a childish, worried glance behind her. She would be in so much trouble if her mother caught her. She should leave the room and go back to playing, she decided. Despite this thought, however, her feet stayed firmly planted. Her ears pricked as she realized she heard a light humming. Eyes widening, she instinctively knew it was coming from the object. It was shaped like a square pyramid, dark, reflective. She stretched her hand out, suddenly wanting to feel it. Would it be hot, or cold to the touch?
The instant the skin of her fingertips connected with the side, it split open, the sides folding down. She jerked backwards, dropping her hand as guilt spread through her. Now her mother would know what she had done.
Before she could process the utter terror her immature mind associated with disappointing her mother, an image was projected above the base of the object.
It was a holorecording of a man. He had dark, thick hair and intense eyes. A thin scar ran from his left eye down to his mouth, but somehow it didnât mar his handsome face.
He looked too tired, but began speaking. The little girl listened in awe, wondering how a recorded image of a man could seem to look right at her.
âRevan. Day 134. Still nothing to show for my search,â he begins, sounding dejected.
âIâve had nothing to do out here but contemplate my lifeâs decisions. Far away from the hyperspace routes, from even the most remote outer rim planetâŚI sometimes question how anything can exist. I fear the silent dark of the unknown regions might very well drive me insaneâŚâ The man shakes his head, his eyes stormy. The little girl wants to look away but finds she canât tear her gaze from his. Something about him is compelling, something in her knows this is important. âEverything I have done, Iâve done to protect our civilization. The threat I have seen from outside is greater than any war we have ever faced amongst ourselves.â
The little girl hears the door to her home, and she knows her mother is back. But she doesnât know how to stop the recording. She doesnât want it to stop. What is the man talking about?
âJeyna! JEYNA!?â Her motherâs panicked voice is screaming suddenly throughout the home. The girl startles and turns, confused. It is then she hears the noise, one that she cannot yet place. One day the sound of it will haunt her nightmares, almost every night.
The sound of the first bomb falling on her small village.
18 Years Later
The little girl grew into a young woman, and that young woman threw herself into her studies. Research, archives, archaeological expeditionsâŚit allowed Jeyna to fixate on something purposeful, something that she found fascinating. It should be little surprise that her chosen area of research was Revan. The prodigal Jedi Knight, and Dark Lord of the Sith, from thousands of years before her time.
She still remembers the manâs face, the somber timbre of his voice, as if she had seen the recording just yesterday. She remembers his vague reference to a search, to some threat from outside the known galaxy. Itâs a mystery sheâs been working on, sponsored by various universities, for most of her adolescent and adult life. And now it has brought her here.
Dantooine - Now
Jeyna races through the cave system, stumbling on chunks of rock and narrowly avoiding hitting her head as she has to run hunched over to fit through the passage. Sheâs unfamiliar with her path, as itâs not the same way she had entered the ancient vault. However, it's now her only way out.
Her breath comes in ragged gasps as she forces herself to go as fast as she can through the dark maze, hoping it's leading her to light and freedom. Behind her the stormtroopersâ shouts are echoing, reverberating off the rocks and surging towards her. Her heart hammers in her chest as her mind struggles to catch up with the current situation.
The First Order is here, on the peaceful farming planet. And theyâre coming after her.
Jeyna pushes herself faster when she realizes she sees daylight, the path becoming uphill quickly. The muscles of her legs burn as she climbs, eventually having to use her hands to grab at the jagged rock. It scrapes and cuts into the flesh of her palms as she scrambles upwards, the light growing stronger. She can see beams of light now ahead, coming around a corner. Sheâs nearly out of the cave when the stormtroopers erupt into the space behind her.
âFREEZE! STOP WHERE YOU ARE!â
The shouts of the many identical uniforms blur together, and Jeyna ignores them not out of defiance but terror. As she reaches the top of the incline, a blaster shot rips through the air and impacts a large boulder near her shoulder, showering her with fragments of stone.
She staggers, almost falling in surprise, before righting herself and lurching forward. Around the corner, and she can see it. The mouth of the cave system, dead ahead. Jeyna pushes her sore muscles to move as she sprints forward, only to falter.
The sunlight dims as stormtroopers step in front of the opening, blocking any hope of escape.
One Week Later
Are you working for the Resistance?âŚWhat does the Resistance want with the Holocron?...How did you get the Holocron to open?...What does the map lead to?... Where are the other pieces of the map?... What do you know of the Ritual of Nathema?... Who is your contact with the Resistance?...What are you trying to find?
The questions theyâve bombarded her with for days blur together in Jeynaâs mind, as sleep deprived and stressed as it is. Sheâs answered their questions, time and time again. She hasnât bothered to hide anything. She isnât a Resistance operative, after all, sheâs merely a scholar. Their war doesnât concern her.
It doesnât matter. Still, they hurt her. They wake her from her sleep, strap her onto the cold metal board. They ask her the same questions, over and over again, as if her answers could suddenly change. They donât bring her food, and her stomach is past grumbling. It feels hollow, burning, pained. They donât bring water, either, allowing a med droid to supply her with IV fluids to rehydrate her. It keeps her alive but leaves her mouth and throat parched and painful from her screams.
Jeyna twitches her limbs, restricted by the cold metal cuffs. This is the worst part of it. At least when they are done with her for a few hours, she can lay on the floor and curl into herself. But here, strapped to the board, even her head restricted into place, she canât block out her situation or escape from the terror and pain.
The door slides open, and she is expecting more of the same men to appear. What she isnât expecting is Kylo Ren, second in command behind only the Supreme Leader of the First Order.
A wave of relief crashes through her at his recognizable mask and dark robes.
Jeyna knows the rumors about Kylo Ren. That he is violent and ruthless, prone to literally slicing through his enemies on the battlefield and even those that anger him within the order. She doesnât care about those rumors, though. The ones Jeyna cares about are regarding his abilities with the force.
Supposedly, he can enter someoneâs mind and see everything they are trying to hold back. He can read memories and secrets like a book.
And so she doesnât tremble in fear at his approach, but rather she feels the sweet relief that perhaps her nightmare is almost over. Of course, the logical part of her brain that is still hanging on knows that once he sees she has nothing more to offer in her mind, she will likely be killed. But at least, Jeyna reasons, this marathon of sleep deprivation, starvation, and torture can be over.
His approach, which had started with a purposeful stride, hesitates for a moment. That strange mask he wears tilts to the side, as he contemplates her. She wonders what he is thinking, if he is curious about something, as the door behind him slides shut again and he seems to just be staring at her from behind the metal.
Jeyna draws in a painful breath, waiting. He is huge, she realizes, tall and broad. There is an energy around him that even she can pick up on, heavy and thrumming. Finally, he moves again, coming to a stop in front of her. He is too tall, she attempts to crane her neck to look up at the mask. The back of her skull presses into the hard table, aching. She sees his hand twitch, and suddenly the metal holding her to the interrogation device releases. Her legs barely catch her, almost giving way when she lands on them. She has to grab on to the sides of the table behind her to steady herself on weak, strained muscles.
He turns and strides across the room, to where the metal table and chairs sit. She hasnât even approached it during her confinement. All of her time has been spent trapped on the interrogation device or on the floor, exhausted and wishing for sleep.
To her surprise, Kylo Ren sits in one of the chairs. His mask fixes onto her face again, and he gestures slowly at the table.
âSit,â he commands. The mask strips his voice of humanity, of emotion, making it mechanical and unkind.
She stumbles forward obediently, pulling out the chair and practically falling into it.
âI find myself interested in your studies, scholar,â he says idly, as if making pleasant conversation. âIâm going to look inside your mind to check the veracity of your prior statements.â
Jeyna nods slightly, having expected this. The feeling of relief returns, accompanied by sadness. Heâll see sheâs told everything she can, and heâll have the stormtroopers come for her. Will they give her a blaster shot to the head? Or just shove her out of an airlock?
Ren reaches forward a hand, low, hovering above the table. The palm of his black glove is up, as if waiting. âTry to not resist me. It will hurt less,â his mechanical voice says quietly.
Her eyes widen slightly in surprise at his advice, before the pressure starts in her skull. Itâs like the atmosphere is suddenly too heavy, pressing down on her head from all sides. And then she feels it, she feels him. Itâs as if something is inside her brain, crawling around, sliding through her thoughts.
Jeyna instantly resists on instinct, willing away the intrusion. She is met with blinding pain, throbbing and shooting and making her eyes see nothing but static.
âDonât resist,â he orders, but she can barely hear him. She tries to obey, to give in. She accepts the pressure, the uncomfortable sense of wrongness that his presence in her mind causes. She feels tears leak out of her eyes at the sensations, but the pain dulls gradually.
When her vision comes back to her, it is swimming. The room is rotating nonsensically, and she grips the edges of the table and fights waves of nausea. Her fingers hurt from the pressure she applied trying to dig them into the metal, and she consciously releases her grip. Slowly, her vision stops spinning and she can focus her eyes again.
Kylo Ren sits across from her, silent. Waiting. She raises her eyes to his mask, and bizarrely wishes she could see his face. Even if it was hideous, even if he was twisted by the dark side like the rumors said⌠Jeyna would like to see one last face before her death, instead of masks.
He cocks his head slightly to the side again. âYou do not work for the resistance,â he states finally.
âNo. Like I told them, I donât work for anyone,â she says, her voice coming out hoarse and frustrated.
âYou are wrong,â Ren says, suddenly standing. âYou work for me now.â
Jeyna is left staring after his imposing form as he strides to the door. It slides open for him to exit, and she is left alone to process what he has said.
Next chapter: https://bramadian0336.tumblr.com/post/646500010079485952/black-honey-chapter-2
Chapter Index:
https://bramadian0336.tumblr.com/post/646403464799404032/black-honey
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Black Honey-Chapter Index
A Kylo Ren/OC fanfiction.
Jeyna is a scholar whose obsessed with the legend of Revan, a famous Jedi and Sith from millennia ago. She has found the first of many star maps, clues to something Revan left hidden, but her studies catch the First Order's attention. Captured and interrogated, she is expecting to be killed once she has no more information to give. Instead, she finds herself working for Kylo Ren.
Warnings: Eventual Smut/Explicit Sexual Content, Language, Mild Violence
Chapter Index
Chapter 1:
https://bramadian0336.tumblr.com/post/646406961804492800/black-honey-chapter-1
Chapter 2:
https://bramadian0336.tumblr.com/post/646500010079485952/black-honey-chapter-2
Chapter 3:
https://bramadian0336.tumblr.com/post/646502602504323072/black-honey-chapter-3
Chapter 4:
https://bramadian0336.tumblr.com/post/646592439913742336/black-honey-chapter-4
Chapter 5:
https://bramadian0336.tumblr.com/post/647025875633717248/black-honey-chapter-5
Chapter 6:
https://bramadian0336.tumblr.com/post/647049654180167680/black-honey-chapter-6
Chapter 7:
https://bramadian0336.tumblr.com/post/647082194753486848/black-honey-chapter-7
Chapter 8:
https://bramadian0336.tumblr.com/post/647311279279816704/black-honey-chapter-8
Chapter 9:
https://bramadian0336.tumblr.com/post/647595602870468608/black-honey-chapter-9
Chapter 10:
https://bramadian0336.tumblr.com/post/647660874799202304/black-honey-chapter-10
Chapter 11:
https://bramadian0336.tumblr.com/post/647957127834583040/black-honey-chapter-11
Chapter 12:
https://bramadian0336.tumblr.com/post/648679614102798336/black-honey-chapter-12
Chapter 13:
https://bramadian0336.tumblr.com/post/649095464108556288/black-honey-chapter-13
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