Snippets of Ahch-To (AU) (discontinued)

#1: Reunion

Rey watched in confusion as the legendary Luke Skywalker flung his lightsaber backwards and walked away, shaking his bowed head. His face had been flat, but she had found a tinge of sadness in those eyes- the blue eyes that so desperately avoided contact and hid behind shaggy hair.

In just a few standard seconds, he had vanished.

Huffing, she strode to where the saber landed and picked it up. The ocean breeze of Ach-To washed into her face, and for a moment she decided to simply marvel at the vast, never-ceasing body of water that lay in front of her. She would find Skywalker later.

The fascinated woman closed her eyes and breathed in the salty air. The sound of the waves crashed into her ears.

Abruptly, there was a harsh wheeze. Then someone rasped, "Where did you find that lightsaber, Youngling?"

Disturbed, Rey turned around to find an ancient man leaning heavily on a wooden cane. His thin shoulders were sagged, his mechanical limbs tattered, and scars ravaged across his pale, mangled, wizened face, running down onto the shriveled skin of his neck, until clothes hid further injuries. His ears were nothing more than mere stubs, and he had no hair, not even eyelashes; the only intriguing detail that ran across his scalp was a long stretch of exposed flesh on his crown. The ancient man was panting, though the cane was sturdy on the ground. A hoverchair lingered behind the hunched form.

Overall, the sight, though rather foreign and therefore interesting, was not too pleasing for the former scavenger. With barely any manners taught from her years on the desolate Jakku, Rey couldn't help but gasp. Realizing her rude reaction, she apologetically cupped a hand over her mouth.

Yet when she looked again, this man - this stranger - reminded her of the generous, benevolent, aged man in her dreams from when she first arrived on Jakku. The one who scared her at first with his scars and ghostly voice but went on to comfort her in lonely, freezing nights. The one who sang her out-of-tune lullabies (she did not mind that there was rarely a correct pitch), the one who would cradle her body, and then her head as she grew up...

The one whose face she could only hazily remember, for after a few years on Jakku, memories of her former life began to fade away. She could vaguely remember how he used a cane, how there was a limp in his walk, how he always needed a cane to brace himself when he stood, how he acted around her, how much he told her that he loved her, that he was proud of her, that he would protect her until the end of time.

"It's okay, sweet one. Many have found my appearance to be relatively grotesque; I am accustomed to your sort of response." He paused, squinting at the young lady, but unable to vividly see her features. "May I come closer? My eyes are going blind." He let out a low chuckle. "My hearing is failing me, too."

Rey nodded warily, unsure if she could trust this elderly stranger. Still wheezing a little, the man tottered towards the former scavenger, his steps slow and shuffling, his humming hoverchair trailing behind. His arms were clumsy to move his cane forward, hindering his speed, and consequently, progress. Oh, dear; he must be reaching his 100th year.

Kind, benevolent, yet melancholy blue eyes - faded and unfocused, sunken into his skull - crinkled as they gazed upon the newcomer. Groaning, the man straightened his bent back, trying to catch his breath. Thin, grey, cracked lips curled into a benign smile as he studied her further. "Could she be...?" He seemed to mutter to himself, his voice portraying bliss and disbelief at the same time, but Rey ignored him, for she understood that he was in advanced age and perhaps considered her to be someone else.

That strange feeling that was evoked in her when she fought Ren on Starkiller Base... He amplified it by what felt like a tenfold. Around him, the air buzzed with a tranquil, pure energy. It felt exhilarating.