A Star Wars Reylo AU: The Taming of the Professor

Thirty-Four

"I heard you are going to the new Mayor's swearing in ceremony," said Phasma. 

Rey was in her office, helping her stuff envelopes for perspective students. She nodded.

"And what are you wearing?" asked Phasma.

"Well, I have this super multi-purpose black dress," began Rey. 

Phasma held up her hand to stop her. "I have dresses. You will come to my house and pick one." 

"It's really OK if I wear my dress." 

"No, it is not OK," said Phasma. "The event is cravate noire."

"My dress is black."

When they finished the envelopes, Phasma took her to her house and had her try a dozen dresses. The woman was taller than Rey, but the dresses fit reasonably well otherwise.

"Something short on me," mused Phasma.

Rey wasn't completely sure if the woman knew she was even there, aside from a body to dress, re-dress and critique. 

"It's cold. I can't wear these dresses. I'll freeze to death." 

The widest strap she'd seen was as big around as her pinky finger. Most were low cut, some were very thin and flowing, and others were covered in heavy beads. All of them were bright colors, and while she told Phasma they were too loud, the woman just waved away her comment and continued to pull tiny, fancy dresses out of her walk in closet. Which was the size of Rey's room at Rose's apartment. 

"I will send you a proper coat. You'll need shoes. Heels, of course. Dr. Solo is tall." 

"The ground is covered in snow and ice. Heels will be dangerous, and I just got rid of the last round of bruises." 

"You can't wear boots with a nice dress. They'll have cleared the sidewalks. All of the women will be in fancy clothes. You will fit right in." 

Rey had agreed to go with Ben, and Maz had been more than happy to give her the night off. She didn't regret it, necessarily, but Phasma's fuss about her attire set her teeth on edge. She hoped no one would notice her or pay her any attention, certainly not enough attention that they would be interested in what she was wearing. 

"Where do you wear all of these dresses, anyway?" asked Rey.

"Oh, here and there," said Phasma absently, focused on a cerulean dress. "I think this is the one. Try it." 

"It's not all here," said Rey, scowling at the small dress in a full length mirror. 

The dress wasn't as short as some of the others, but it cut dangerously low between her breasts. She tugged, trying to move it over, but there wasn't any extra fabric to move. It was smooth and layered, with small, glittery sparkles stitched into starburst patterns. 

"Stop that," said Phasma, pushing her hands away. "This is perfect. Let me find jewelry. My feet are bigger than yours. I will message Rose. She'll find some silver heals." 

Rey had finally given up on objecting. She didn't like the dress, but she didn't have anything better to wear. It seemed to make Phasma happy to help her. The woman placed a necklace around her throat, and handed her a pair of earrings. 

"Take pictures, darling. I want to see the completed ensemble." 

Phasma wrapped up the dress, jewelry, and a short, black coat, and took her back to her apartment. 

"I got Phasma's message," said Rose when she walked through the door. "She said we might want to shorten the dress a little. Sarah does costuming for the theatre department, so she can help."

"Shorten it!? No! It barely covers me as it is. It's January! I'll be a nice blue color to match the fabric before the night is over."

"Well, I guess you'll have to stay close to your date for warmth. I'm sure he'll be more than happy to help you." 

"Rose, stop it. We're going to a boring political event." 

"The swearing in part will be as boring as you think, I'm sure. But the after party will be fabulous. Maz told me about one she attended years ago."

"It's at his mother's house!"

"So? I was in that house. It's huge. That party will be spread all over the place. And it will be fancy."

Rey didn't remember much of her time at Leia's house, only that she had been there. She certainly didn't remember what it looked like. 

"I'm so excited! I already have an idea for your hair. And I found shoes in Sarah's closet. Look at these heels." 

Rose pulled out a pair of three inch heels from a box on the table. 

"I'm starting to feel like a dress up doll at the whims of you and Phasma." 

"Good. We will make sure you look perfect." 

When Ben arrived late Saturday afternoon to pick her up, Rey stopped worrying about being overdressed. He was in a tux, and one of her dressers must have told him what color she was wearing, because his tie matched her dress. Rose made herself scarce when he arrived, shutting her bedroom door with a loud thud and turning on music they could hear through the door.

Rey forced herself not to fidget as she collected her coat. He still hadn't said anything to her, and it left her unsettled. He helped her into it, and fastened the four buttons down the front. His fingers moved in deft motions, without a hint of hesitation. 

"Are you nervous about your mom?" she asked, not sure what was going on with him.

He cleared his throat. "No. You look . . . " He looked bewildered.

Oh. Maybe this dress was as bad as she suspected. "It's the dress, isn't it. I have a black dress I can change into. It will only take a minute. Hold on." 

She turned away from him, but he grabbed her upper arm and stopped her. She turned to face him, surprised. 

"You look perfect," he said. "I'm sorry, I should have said that from the start. I think I'm ready to go now. I just wasn't prepared for that." 

She filed his weird behavior into the "looks totally calm but really isn't" category, and kissed his cheek.