Us Against the World

6

Meditation had always been my escape. Through meditation, I could forget everything and just feel the flow of the force that runs through everything, that by some twist of fate had allowed me the ability to channel it. Some people imagined it to be like wind, an invisible force that binds us together. I saw it, when in a deeper meditation, as a white energy, on neither the light side or the dark side, just a blank canvas ready to be painted red or blue, manipulated for whichever purpose is decided.

"Lowla?" I heard a nervous voice break through my mind, and I knew it belonged to Rey. Feeling myself sit back on the floor I opened my eyes to see Rey sitting directly in front of me. She apologised initially, then told me that Han had set our course. Her eyes revealed that wasn't the full extent of her waking me, but now all her confidence had gone. Looking at her, I then thought of how the First Order knew of her as a fugitive, but I knew Ben sensed her power. Him knowing, him feeling the change in the force that this girl had brought about made me nervous. Someone as unknowing as her could be swayed.

"Rey, I'd like to tell you something." I said. Rey nodded for me to continue. A tapping on my shoulder, the tapping feeling that came with Ben rolled up my back. I clenched my teeth, fighting it off, fighting it back and telling myself to not let him in. Rey seemed to notice, and raised her eyebrow, asking the question mentaly, not brave enough to voice it through words. "The dark side can try to fill your mind with poison. They try to submerge you in hatred and anger so you are easily manipulated. You have to block them out, Rey. Some Jedi image locking thoughts away so they can't be corrupted, I imagine a wall blocking them out, and my mind going blank to disguise everything. Then I push back to fight them out." It was clear Rey didn't fully understand, but I felt like she would soon, I felt like the time was coming for her to understand both sides of the force. She had seen mine, the pure innocence of my loyalty to the light side.
"Why are you telling me this?"
"Because if you are ever face to face with the dark side, you need to push back. Show them you aren't just a girl from a junkyard. You are powerful, Rey, in ways you don't understand yet. But you will. And when you're ready, I'll be here to help you." I told her, then stood up, hearing Han say that we had arrived. We were going to see Maz, and the time for Rey to understand and fully step into this fight was upon us.

Sitting in the cockpit, all of us witnessed the green planet come into view. Takodana was beautiful, and for Rey, who commented on the green, it was a sight she didn't know existed. I saw Han look at her with pity. I knew he saw in her a similar thing that he saw in me all the years before.

When we all exited the ship, I took the time to soak in the planet. I couldn't remember the last time I had come here, but it seemed that everything was the same. I saw Han hand Rey a small blaster. There was a look in his eyes that was similar to when he found me. After their interaction, as we made our way to the cantena, I fell into step with Rey.
"How did you meet Han Solo?" Rey asked her.
"He saved me from Stewjon when I was younger. It's a small planet, mostly farmers, but I spent all my time hiding. He saved me from some local bully. Everything I am now, I owe to Han Solo."

I spent all my time hiding. For as long as I remember, I had been on my own. In fact, the only thing I remembered was watching a ship fly off in the middle of the night before a few of the townspeople came to find me. I didn't know how old I was, not very old, but even then, as I looked out my window as the guys coming to the house, blasters in their hands, I knew I had to run. I heard a whisper in my ear to hide as I made it to the forest, an old man's voice. Without questioning it I jumped into the nearest bush and watched the men running to find me. In the dark, I felt a comfort, like someone was looking after me, watching over me as I hid. Protecting me.

It would be months before I met Han and Chewie. They had landed their ship, got out to stretch their legs and restock supplies. As Han walked, he tripped over my sleeping form. I hand woken up immediately and tried to run away, fearing the worst. Chewie blocked my path. Han then knelt down, held my arm so I wouldn't run away. He had brown hair then, and less wrinkles.
"Please don't kill me." I had cried. It wasn't until I heard a laugh that I looked around properly. The two men had no weapons drawn and no malice in their eyes.
"What in the galaxy makes you think we're here to hurt you?" He asked, smiling, not believing that this tiny girl was afraid of him. Han was used to most people recognising him, not trying to run from him fearing for their life.
"Bad men are trying to kill me." It was those words, the frightened confession from the small girl, shaking in his arms, that made his decision that day. If he went back and kept from Leia that he found the girl, and the state he found her in and the power even he felt from such a small being, then he would be sleeping on the falcon for the next year. As Lowla looked back at him, he couldn't help but compare her to Ben, her innocence, her curiosity.
"What's your name?"
"Lowla." He found it funny she didn't mention her last name. He asked where her parents were, and she pointed to the sky. Han and Leia would later discover she had no idea what her last name was, or who her parents were, or why she was alone, or why her parents had left. It was like she had lost the memory, or blocked it out.
"Well Lowla, I'm Han Solo, and that big furry lump is Chewie. We're gonna take you away from here, okay. The bad men can't get you then."