I Can Get It Back

Because a Part of Me Died and a Liveliness Was Lost When You Passed

Rose insisted that Rey couldn't go out in her current greasy, sandy outfit, no matter how comfortable it was. Rey protested but then Jannah and Kaydel agreed with her and they all went to get ready. Well, what they called getting ready, which differed greatly from Rey's experience of preparation. She had only once put this much attention into her wardrobe, and that was because she had to go out during a sandstorm. Well, there was one other time she had put thought into her appearance, but she preferred to avoid thinking of it.

In any case, she was eventually deemed ready, dressed in Kaydel's clothes, with her hair down and curled slightly. The others were wearing flimsier attire than she was willing to wear, and she also insisted on wearing trousers rather than skirts – though her friends had selected fancier ones than she would normally have chosen. Kaydel told her she could borrow her clothes any time, and that they should go shopping together. She tried not to be too skeptical about that idea, hoping her smile was at least polite if not warm, and was relieved when they bustled off to rejoin the others.

Poe had a lot of friends. By the time they had left the building, Rey knew less than half of their party by name and had conversed with even fewer. Some she recognized as Resistance fighters, but she had no idea how Poe knew the rest. It was something of a relief to share a ride with Finn and Rose. Jannah had disappeared into a group of friends – possibly her former company of defected stormtroopers.

The place Poe had chosen was loud and fully crammed with people. Rey couldn't imagine how all of them could fit into it, but somehow they did. Someone put a cup into her hands and she realized she was quite thirsty. The noise became less noisome after that, and she was soon grinning and dancing.

This went on for a while – keeping track of time was too confusing to do – and then the establishment was much less crowded. People had smiled at her and said nice things when they left. It wasn't as distressing as it had been with the crowd in the hangar but was still not a wholly pleasant sensation. Rey did her best to smile back or nod in thanks for the compliments, but her head felt fuzzy and she didn't know what the appropriate response was.

Eventually, she found herself back in the big building where they would sleep tonight and work tomorrow. Rey wasn't sure what kinds of names buildings had in places where there were so many of them – surely there must be some way to tell them apart? Not that she would get lost or go into the wrong one. She just didn't know the word.

"A toast!" Poe called, disrupting her scattered thoughts.

They still had drinks somehow, though she wasn't sure how that had happened. She hoped she hadn't accidentally stolen a cup from the watering hole. Poe's sentiment was echoed by the remaining members of her party and she flushed.

"A toast to our Jedi, the hero of the Galaxy!" he said.

"To our hero!" was the response and everyone drank. She had no idea if she was supposed to drink to herself, but she did. There were cheers and laughter. Things got fuzzy for a while and the next thing she knew, she was eating a plate of some delicious meat with the most amazing sauce on it. She felt like she hadn't eaten in days.

Someone was giggling next to her and she turned to find Rose sitting there. "What?" she asked with her mouth full.

"A lot better than rations, huh?" Rose teased.

"Definitely!"

She was startled by someone dropping into the seat on the other side of her. "What are you girls talking about?" Poe asked. "The boys you like?"

For some reason, Rey started gigging and was relieved that Rose did the same. "No, Poe, girls don't always talk about boys," Rose admonished between giggles.