|| Conflicted || Armitage Hux x Reader

Chapter 2

Time skip : 6 years

"Y/n! Come here!" Lieutenant L/n yelled. Y/n came rushing down from her room to meet him. She stared at him through her long eyelashes, waiting for him to continue.

"As you know, it's time for you to go to Arkanis Academy. Do you need me to explain why?" Y/n shook her head. It was planned, from the start, that when Y/n was of age, she would go to Arkanis Academy. Her name was down in the records from the moment she was born. She was going to be an Imperial officer, whether she wanted to or not. "Get ready to go. Pack only what you need, sustenance would be provided there." Y/n simply nodded, her face grim. She threw her clothes inside her luggage and brought it downstairs. Her mother held her in a tight embrace before she left.

When the Lieutenant dropped her off, she took the chance to admire the Academy. It was built around an ancient fortress, and consisted of three buildings surrounding an open area. It overlooked a jagged cliff that faced dangerous waters. Even though she was forced to attend this institution, she couldn't help but feel excited. The halls were bare except for the statues that stood at attention as she walked past, amazed at the amount of work it would have taken to construct them. She was lost for words until she was snapped out of her incessant gaping, her eyes landing on the officer that towered above her, like an angry cloud. She shouted, "Get in line, now! Dormitory arrangements are on the list!" Her tone commanded respect, and Y/n scrambled to the end of the queue with her luggage, and waited patiently for her turn.

She finally reached the list, and when her eyes scanned the piece of thin paper, her face scrunched up in a mix of confusion and recognition. They were in dormitories of four, and there was someone in her dormitory was strangely familiar.

"Armitage Hux......" Y/n mumbled as she stepped out of the line in order for the others to check the list. She swore she's heard that name before. Y/n had hoped that Armitage would visit again, but he did not. She had waited in front of the door for a while after their meeting, slowly growing more and more impatient. She had given up when it was obvious he wouldn't return, and sulked for the rest of the time. She had no company, and it wasn't fun. She wasn't even sure whether he had ever existed. Maybe Armitage was just a figment of her imagination and nothing more. She was 15 this year, and it had been a long time since her meeting with him, if she even had one.

She walked up the flight of marble stairs, and walked to the residence hall, her trunk still on hand. When she finally reached her dormitory, every breath she took was strained, exhausted from the amount of energy she exerted, huffing and puffing. She placed her trembling hands on the doorknob and swung the door open. She placed her belongings on the floor, and climbed up to her assigned bed before plopping down on the mattress. There were two double-decker bunk beds, opposite one another.

"You know, you're going to have to be fitter than that. You just walked up a flight of stairs." Y/n was startled and turned around. A girl her age, maybe slightly older, said to Y/n. Her face was one of a terribly bored person. "Why are you picking on me?" Y/n questioned. "I'm not picking on you. I'm telling you the truth." The girl answered. Y/n assumed she was Marrose Leargou, as there were two girls in their dormitory. Y/n continued lying on her bed, silently wishing Marrose would go away.

Even though her wish wasn't granted, Marrose did leave her alone after that, at least, for now. Y/n rested her chin on her palms as she lay on her stomach, reading a book she bought with her allowance contentedly. She was disrupted by the door opening - It did so with a click. - and she glanced up at the newcomer.

His fiery red hair fell to his ears, and his piercing green eyes took in the room, moving from the double-decker bunks on the right, to the ones on the left, along with the occupants. His gaze lingered on Y/n, and she swore she saw a flash of recognition cross his face, before he walked to the bunk below hers, and settled down.

They managed to stay in their dormitories for a short while more before they were summoned by an officer to dinner. It took place in the mess hall.

The cadets lined up in a neat, single-filed line. Y/n held on to her tray as the server robot slapped on a pile of mushy substance. Y/n wanted to ask the nearby officer what the substance was, but seeing as he was glaring at her, she walked to one of the free tables. There were many tables and chairs, but Y/n selected the one closest to the door.

As she used her fork to stab the foreign goop, she felt a presence beside her. She glanced up and saw the same boy from before. She smiled and continued picking at her dinner.

"Aren't you going to say anything?" The boy questioned. "Nope." Y/n replied. "Alright, Y/n." He said smugly. Y/n frowned in confusion. "How did you-" "You don't remember me? Seriously?" "You look familiar, but otherwise, I really don't. Can you please leave me alone?" "As you wish." The boy huffed.

After Y/n assaulted her food for the last time, she started eating the weird lump. It wasn't bad, but it wasn't good either. It just tasted bland. However, she had to eat. Otherwise, she'll just starve. She quickly stuffed the food into her mouth, and got up to leave the dishes on a specified table, for the dishwasher to collect. Luckily, she wasn't on dishwashing duty tonight, so she went back to the dormitory.

The boy followed her around the room like a lost puppy, until Y/n had enough. "What do you want?" She asked desperately. "Can we be friends? I meet you before." " I don't recall meeting you." "My name is Armitage Hux. We talked in your room?" He pressed on, trying to get Y/n to remember. "I still don't- Armitage?" Y/n's eyes widen as she stared at him, fully taking in his appearance. His slim body was fitted into a loose cadets' uniform. It was grey, along with a pair of carefully polished boots. His face was not as cherubic as last time. Even then, it wasn't the slightest bit chubby. Faint eye bags formed underneath his mesmerising seafoam green eyes. He looked malnourished, and overworked.

"What happened to you?" Y/n asked, concerned for his well-being. "It's nothing." He dismissed. "Well, did you choose to come here?" Y/n asked the first question that came to her mind. "No. Not really."

They chatted for a while, reminiscing about their first meeting, until the officer patrolling the residence hall announced, " Lights out! Anyone caught talking or sneaking around will be punished severely!"

As Y/n pulled the stiff blanket on her body, she smiled to herself. They really did meet again.

A/n - I know the timeline is a bit messed up, but this is an AU, so please don't mind the changes.