Entirely Different

Chapter Nineteen : Fondness

Kylo had left his quarters early the next morning to make arrangements for the day's excursion. In the low light of his chilly bedroom, he watched you roll around the sheets and downy comforter for a time until he could work up the will to leave you. The will never came – but the understanding that he couldn't justify staying any longer did. He had set an alarm for you and messaged his knight to escort you from his quarters to limit room for error. Somewhere in the back of his mind, he wondered how he would arrange for you to stay with him long term. The realist in him shut down the thought before it could unfurl and poison his brain.

You woke a few minutes before the alarm, kneading your feet against the mattress and stretching your sleepy limbs. You were supposed to train with Kylo's knight that morning and you were increasingly anxious about it. Something about the horde of masked men made your stomach do somersaults. But then, the thought of the masked monster Kylo Ren had once terrified you too. You wondered if this would end up similarly, with a growing familiarity and (dare you say) fondness between yourself and those you were instructed to fear.

Something inside you sensed the impending alarm before it began; like a building wave, you could feel it rising before picking your blood up inside your body and the eb and flow carried you back. The alarm crashing against the shore of your skin and you went catapulting from the serenity of the bed. The alarm informed you that 'Cardo' would be arriving to collect you within the half hour. You dressed quickly to allow yourself some additional time to mentally prepare.

It appeared Kylo had taken the liberty of setting out some of the training clothes you packed and had set them on one of the bedside tables. Next to the neatly folded stack of black spandex rested the ridiculous nightgown you'd packed (just in case) and a note that read: "I like this. I want to see it on later." You rolled your eyes despite the silly grin that you found creeping onto your face. You tossed the silky scrap of fabric onto the bed and dressed in your training wear. After lacing your boots, you raided Kylo's restroom in search of his comb.

As the minutes ticked by, you found yourself waiting anxiously beside the door, waiting for the moment Kylo's knight would arrive. You had hoped you would sense him coming, even more startled when you hadn't, and the door whizzed open in front of you. The narrow slit in his filthy helmet fixed solely on you. You jumped back a bit and bit back a small yelp of surprise. You could sense smugness rolling off of him. His head cocked to once side, not unlike his master.

"Let's go, officer; while the hall is clear." His helmet wasn't as modified as Kylo's, the voice not entirely metal, but more yielding.

You hesitantly stepped forward, secretly pleased when he allowed you to pass him to enter the hall. You turned back to lock Kylo's quarters, feeling a flood of approval radiate from Cardo's presence. You looked to him through questioning eyes, taking in the similarities and difference between his appearance and the Commander's. His pants were significantly less fitted and his tunic much shorter – armor minimal around his midsection. He wasn't donning the jacket and harness you'd seen him in last.

As the two of you walked towards the training rooms, you could feel the tension rise and fall between your silence. You felt your brow knit together heavily over your eyes, wondering why the air felt that way between you both.

"You're resisting the influence." Cardo spoke suddenly.

You looked to him, lips parting in confusion as a breath loosed from your lungs.

"What?" You swallowed hard, stepping onto the elevator before him.

He was quiet for a few moments, not speaking again until the elevator doors reopened.

"I can alter feelings. It's one of my specialties." He explained somewhere between simply and genuinely. "You're detecting it and changing your course."