What She's Worth (Reylo)

Chapter 9

"Wake up, sleepy head! Your turn to use the 'fresher!"

Ben groaned with every blow from the pillow. It didn't hurt of course, but he was hoping he could at least get five more minutes of sleep but Rey was relentless in her self-appointed duty of human alarm clock. "Ugh, okay, Rey, I'm up. I'm up."

He sat up and scowled at her, and she responded with a gap-toothed grin. At age six, she had lost her two front teeth but instead of feeling ashamed, she used it to be cute with him. It never failed.

His scowl turned into a grin. Had it really been a year since he first came to the academy? He hadn't even believed he could survive here for more than a month, yet here he was, doing quite well with his trials (except for the teamwork aspect, as he wasn't exactly the most sociable person), enjoying himself, and sharing quarters with the best friend—or rather, the best little sister—a boy could ask for. Sure, most padawans still found it weird. Herron Casthre and his lackeys certainly didn't run out of crude jokes whenever he and Rey happened to be around them but he'd since grown a thicker skin. All that was left was for him to make sure Rey was protected from the Dwang Gang, just as she continued to protect him from his nightmares.

That was another thing he still had a hard time believing—that he was free of that monster, and if it took a lifetime of rude awakenings from Rey as recompense, he'd gladly subject himself to it.

He headed for the 'fresher, taking care to check his face in the mirror for any suspicious markings. He'd had the misfortune of discovering a more mischievous side of Rey the other week, when she apparently decided that while he was asleep, it would be fun to make constellations on his face by connecting his moles with a black marker. He had to spend a good portion of that week with geometric shapes on his face, though to be fair, Rey was apologetic enough to allow him to do the same with her freckles. Boy, did they raise a lot of eyebrows.

Satisfied that Rey had not pulled another prank, he proceeded with his morning rituals but he'd barely stepped out of the 'fresher when she unexpectedly jumped on his back, fingers clutching the lapel of his padawan robes for purchase, legs hooked around his torso. "R-Rey!"

"Rey, I am not," she affected in a high-pitched, guttural accent. "Master Yoda, I am. Mmm!"

Ben had to laugh. "You're spending way too much time listening to Uncle Luke's stories, sweetheart."

"Sweetheart, to me you should not say," she continued with a playful tug of his still damp hair. "Respect, to your master, you shall give."

"Alright, Master Yoda." He rolled his eyes, his mouth still set in a grin as he hooked both his arms under Rey's knees. "To breakfast, we shall go?"

"Good, breakfast is. Eat, we shall!"

He carried and ran with her that way to the mess hall and even to the classroom, not caring about the looks the other padawans gave them, and stopping only to exchange a few pleasantries with Lennett Mha. He had since become good friends with her, although he could never manage to talk to her for long, especially around Rey. The girl had a habit of growing either sullen or even a bit violent towards him whenever Lennett was around, and this time, it came via a tug to his ears. "Ow, ow, okay, Rey, we're going!"

He made a mental note to talk to Rey about her little attitude problem. Again.

It never stopped her though.

"Wake up, dum dum!"

"I'm up, I'm up," Ben grumbled and dragged himself off of bed while Rey headed to one of his desk drawers to retrieve an electronic measuring device. She had since taken to recording her height ever since she experienced an unexpected growth spurt, though she certainly wasn't the only one. He himself had had to get new pants twice the past year alone, and he was beginning to tower over almost everyone in class.