•LEGACY - A Reylo Story•

EPISODE LXXXII - THE REFUGEES

Finn knows they have limited time to escape with their refugees, all of whom are about a hundred in total. It's not going to be easy to fit all of them on the Falcon and the quadjumper.

"Go!" Ben suddenly shouts, and Finn whirls around to see him freezing a blaster bolt. Rey freezes another.

"Move, kids!" Luke yells, pushing them ahead. Chewie leads them, carrying some of the smaller ones.

A blaster shot barely misses Ben's head. Finn thrusts his hands up.

The shot stops.

Ben's jaw drops. "Thanks."

"No problem, cuz." Finn grabs Ben's gloved hands and yanks him up. Several kids have stalled to watch. "Keep running!" He turns to jog after them. Rey slashes at a blast with her saber.

"We're flying the jumper!" Rey hollers at Finn. "Just get out as fast as you can and get to D'Qar!"

"Right!" Finn launches himself up the Millennium Falcon's ramp, checking to make sure no one's been left behind. All clear. He shuts the ramp and Poe instantly jerks it into flight.

"They made it!" Poe hollers. "I see the quadjumper behind us!"

"Yes!" Finn pumps his fists, and then looks around him at the dozens and dozens of children, some clutching each other, some with eyes wide, some crying, all confused.

I know, kids, Finn thinks. I know.

He peeks inside the cockpit just briefly, seeing Poe flying with Sini curled in the co-pilot's seat, asleep. Poe smiles at him.

Finn heads back out to find BB-8 flashing its fiery thumb and merrily chatting with several of the kids. Luke powers up the Dejarik board for several of them to play with.

"We did it," Finn breathes to his father. "For some of them, at least." A lump clogs his throat as he thinks of the ones who stayed. Did some of them want to leave, and stay from fear?

"If more want to leave, we can go back for them. We will," Luke insists.

"Thanks..." Finn swallows.

Luke throws his arms around Finn, hugging him. "I'm so proud of you."

Finn hesitates, and then embraces him back. "Thanks... Father."

Luke's eyes tear up.

Hours later, Poe allows some of the smaller kids to climb on him as the ship heads towards D'Qar. These kids won't have it easy back on the Resistance Base, Finn knows.

"Where will they go?" Finn asks Poe when he finally wiggle away, citing a desperate need for water.

"Leia might be able to arrange adoptions for them. We can help. Try to find people... we won't leave them abandoned."

"Some of them are gonna feel that way anyways," Finn warns. "Especially the older ones."

"Yeah, but..." Poe bites his lip as he watches Sini wrap her arms around a chubby-cheeked boy who looks like he's about three. "She was crying when we first got back to the ship. Said she wanted to go back."

"What'd you say?"

"That she could if she wanted to, but I didn't want her to," Poe says. "She started to leave, and then decided to say."

"There will be more meltdowns in the future," Finn comments. "For all of them." His heart aches. He so wants them to make it. Especially Sini. She pinches the boy's cheeks, and Finn thinks how there's so much childish goodness still in her. The First Order wasn't fully able to stamp it out.

"Are you thinking what I'm thinking?" Finn asks.

"About Sini? And maybe one or two more?"

"Yeah."

"Hey, I think it'd be cool for them to have a dad who knows what they're going through," Poe confirms.