Lingchi

Why?

The way she woke wasn't anything abnormal, though what she saw when she opened her eyes, was rather surprising. Was this his talent or something? Did he enjoy it?

Just... why?

Hope's eyebrows scrunched together as she stared at him, he looked like he was asleep, with his one eye half closed, but she knew better than that. He was awake and he knew fully well that she was awake as well.

"Do you get off on watching people sleep?" She was a bit snappier than usual, which wasn't her aim. She just already felt the... weight... the darkness of everyone on board. And it was a horrible darkness that was trying to pull at her, but she was too focused on the light to move to the darkness. It was scary, which caused her to act defensive.

Only because she couldn't run anywhere, and if she ran, then it would catch up to her. If she fought it, then it would shrink away. But not him, not Kylo, he gladly approached her challenge.

His eye opened fully as he sat up straight, still staring and not bothering to move his lips to say something about the way she had snapped at him, but of course, he was going to say another thing that wasn't related to what they were talking about in the first place.

"You're so beautiful when you sleep." He sounded drowsy and in love, I suppose, in some way, this is related to what she had said. Beautiful things are often the reason behind lust...

But, yeah, it was another creepy thing she had heard coming from his mouth, maybe he did it intentionally. Maybe he liked the way she squirmed uncomfortably because of it.

Hope didn't dare to say anything, only for fear of provoking him further. She just turned her head away from him, so she could only see him from the corner of her eye. There was silence between them before Kylo shifted to lean forward, his eye now observing her closer.

He was acting like she was a piece of art, that he wasn't allowed to touch. But wants to so bad.

She didn't like the feeling of his eye on her, how cold they were... how... evil it was. How his whole body just seemed to say what he was thinking, and it was disturbing that she knew how to read him. He was an open book to her as she was to him.

It was to be expected, they grew up together. His mother was with her mother when she was born. Just as Hope's mother was there when Leia gave birth. She remembered when they would play together, when he would show her the world because he claimed he knew everything about it. And they would... pretend to- Hope remembered when they would train together, under Luke's guidance.

She remembered, when she was fifteen... she came home to her mother's slaughter... he had been seventeen at the time. Hope didn't know how he could do it, she didn't know why he did it. He comforted her, held her close to his chest and let her cry.

They had been best friends!

Hope ducked her head as she realised that tears were running down her cheeks and her hands were clenched into fists, she used her hand to wipe the tears away; Ben had seen her crying. Kylo didn't.

There was silence between them and his eyes were relentlessly staring at her, seeing through her soul, "I won't hurt you." He said, his voice was soft... tender... that wasn't Kylo, he wasn't...

"You already did once." She growled out, she was angry now. Hope was angry and she wanted him to know that she was upset with the way he toyed with her trust, how he played her with it, how he crushed her when he left.

Her blue eyes briefly flicked over to him and saw how he nearly recoiled, as if what she had said actually hurt him. It was the only way she could hurt him, there was really no other way to inflict pain.

"I didn't mean to hurt you then." He told her softly, his eye holding some kind of look she hadn't seen in a very long time. It was an apology if sorts, but she wasn't going on accept it, but she also wasn't going to refuse it. Hope only scoffed at the man as she turned her attention from him, deciding that her nails were more interesting to look at than he was.

Silence said a thousand words, she could hear his silence. She could feel him tearing himself apart in anger, sadness and regret for what he had done. She knew he deserved all of it, he deserved to be alone, in the darkness, for the rest of his life.

He deserved to starve, he deserved to watch every one scorn and laugh at him, he deserved to be humiliated... hated... beat, torn apart, he deserves to bleed. He deserves to be in pain...

But some how... Hope couldn't agree, she /knew/ him. Ben was still in there... he had to be... he had to be.

"Why did you do it?" She asked, her voice low. It was sad, she was sad. Just thinking about all the people who were his friends, how they were all killed, "All of it?" Everything he had done, she wanted to know why he did it, she need an answer. She needed the real answer from him.

"If I told you, you wouldn't believe me." He said honestly, his eye watched her every movement. As she stood, as she came close, but not close enough to touch... as she just watched him with an unblinking gaze, "Why did you kill my mom? Why did you kill your friends? Why do you want to kill Luke? Just..." Hope was on the verge of another break down, but she had to be strong... no crying, just the truth, "Why?"

Kylo parted his lips before he stood up, towering over Hope. But she wasn't afraid, she just tilted her chin to look up at him, "I asked your mother if she would allow me to marry you. And she said no..."

Shock and confusion took a hold of her body and she just took a step back, "I got angry... because she didn't know how much I loved you."

"And that's what drove you..? Did you even consider my feelings?" She asked him, her voice shaky with the effort it took to not start crying.

"Hope, I-"

"And what about the other Jedi? What about them? Why did you kill them?" She demanded, gaining her composure back as she glared up at the man, demanding answers with her eyes.

"They weren't my friends... they only pretended to be... and I had to stop them from growing numerous..."

"You started to turn when my mother told you no." Hope said, mainly to herself, but it was loud enough for Kylo to hear. That wasn't the only thing that was screwing with her mind... it was the fact that he said 'loved'. As in... he used to she knew that he did...

Well, they were just standing in silence, nearly chest to chest and he could tell what she was thinking, she was trying to sort her thoughts out. He knew the ones she was trying to sort.

He loved her, he loves her. Right now, as Kylo Ren... it was the one part of him that never disappeared... ever.

"Do you love me, Hope?" He asked her, his eye just locked onto hers. He was afraid of rejection, he was deeply afraid of it. But Kylo hated not knowing, he just hated it.

It was certainly a question the smaller girl wasn't expecting, because she didn't answer him right away, she just stared at his chest. Then tilted her head slowly to look him in the eye.

"No... I don't love you, Kylo. I love Ben."