The Spark of the Rebellion

Kelly Marie Tran // have you met ROSE TICO yet? SHE is a 24 year old CIS FEMALE HUMAN. they’re originally from HAYS MINOR and now show loyalty to THE REBELLION. they are best known for being a MECHANIC, and i hear they’re pretty COURAGEOUS yet also STUBBORN at times; i hope they survive the galactic civil war. 

a light, friendly chuckle slipped past her lip as the other went on to thank her again –– not intending to make fun or make light of the other in the slightest, but merely to keep the flow of things light and easy between the two of them. padmé had a natural way with people ever since she’d become a senator. that wouldn’t change now.

“oh, i’m not sure that i’d be the right person to ask about the rebellion.” it was a lie. as she moved her way back toward an official position with naboo, padmé knew that her association had to be with the alliance to the new republic. she had to stay on the legal side of things to be effective. “perhaps general skywalker or organa would be able to give you a more complete answer. my work is more toward building the new republic.”

So far, Senator Amidala appeared to be humouring Rose in the best way. The Senator was coming across as so friendly and warm, which, if anything, only elevated her in Rose’s estimations. Rose could see the similarities between the Senator and her daughter, General Organa, both women already heroes in Rose’s mind.

As such, knowing the General as much as she did, she suspected that the Senator was telling a white lie by claiming she didn’t know what was next for the Rebellion. Rose didn’t like it when people lied but she wasn’t about to call the Senator out, not like she would Finn or Poe for example. Mainly because the Senator clearly knew things and was clearly working a particular angle that would be for the good of the Rebellion and the galaxy, and Rose was choosing to respect that.

Rose didn’t believe in fate but the fact that so many of her friends had also been pulled through time to be here made her suspect something bigger than she could ever understand was at work. Was it fate? Maybe, Rose was no longer willing to count that out. And it felt selfish to wish that fate, or whatever was pulling people to be in this time together, would pull just one more person just for Rose. So she tried her best not to think too much about the fact Kaydel Ko Connix was ‘missing’. But she kept looking out for her around the base, hoping to see her face again and only being disappointed. It was a kind of a relief to be sent away from the base to get more supplies; maybe a change of scenery would help.

.

rey’s lip quirked up every so slightly, “she certainly could use some more love, you are one of the best in the resistance,” she teased a bit, setting the helmet she had worn aside, letting out a breath. it… wasn’t the same here. but there was, still some good. rose was one of those. a connection was something rey hadn’t had for so long on jakku and… and she hadn’t realized how much she wanted that.

      though the conversation moving back to finn was… something she hadn’t wanted to think about. she worried finn wasn’t here– he would have found his way off jakku by now, surely. she nodded, smiling ever so slightly, “maybe– but … wouldn’t he have found us by now?” 

~8~

Rose reached inside of the ship and pulled out a stray bit of wire. It offered no resistance at being yanked and came away in Rose’s hand. Rose handed the bit of wire to Rey before turning her attention back to the innards of the ship.

“Maybe he’ll turn up any second. He’ll pop round that corner over there and be like ‘oh hey you two, what’s going on?’ like he hasn’t been missing or whatever he is right now.” That was the overly optimistic way of looking at the situation. However, that way was unlikely, no matter how much Rose wanted it to be true.

With Poe and Rey away from the base at the Fete week races, Rose felt at a loss with what to do with herself. The rest of the Rebels were perfectly amicable and Rose was certain she’d make friends with them soon but that didn’t stop her missing her friends. For now, she would have to keep herself busy with work, which wasn’t a problem with the Rebel Alliance’s fleet of ships always needing repairs. But even Rose needed to take a break from working occasionally.

With a huge yawn, Rose made herself put down her tools and made herself head towards the small cafeteria at the centre of the base. Just a quick break to get some caf and then back to work before her brain started to remind her how much she missed Rey, Poe, Kaydel, and Finn.

Speaking of Finn, that guy over there looked a lot like him, huh? Wait. Wait. 

THAT WAS FINN!

“Finn!”

iden had always been unrelenting and straightforward even in impossible hesitations, yet the soldier still had a moment of hesitation when the young woman asked what her expectations for the rebellion had been. she was a true child of the empire. everything that she had learned had been because it was what they wanted. her mother, a literal propaganda artist, had put her on artwork and made her see everything the empire wanted.

“i was told that rebellions were built on hate.” hate existed, that much was certain, but it wasn’t the root of rebellion. “i figured you’d all throw del and me into sunspot prison before we could even give you any information. i never thought this would be a second chance.”

Rose was surprised by how she wasn’t horrified to learn how the Empire had misrepresented the Rebellion. From what Rose had experienced, the Empire only knew one thing: hate. Therefore it assumed everyone else was motivated by the same thing. Sure there were some rebels motivated by hate but there was one difference between the rebels and the Empire: hope.

Rose was beginning to understand why Finn had such a terrible opinion of Jakku. It was hot and the people she had been dealing with since her arrival had been less than pleasant. She had to repeatedly remind herself that she was here on a mission for the Rebellion. She was to salvage much needed parts to enable repairs on the Rebellion’s fleet from Jakku’s junkers, following a tip from Rey on which junkers to deal with.

She had just finished dealing with a particularly frustrating junker who was willing to drive for the hardest of bargains so she was heading back towards her ship. That was when she saw Armitage Hux.

her head nodded in understanding. everyone had their own roles to play to make sure that things sailed smoothly, even the brightest minds of the rebellion had their parts. “it’s okay, i trust your judgment.” she picked up on things fast, usually by watching others work. the technology wasn’t that different than what she knew, mostly superficial differences.

when the young woman spoke again, padmé’s eyebrows formed a gentle arch as she seemed to struggle to articulate herself. her expression remained warm and kind as the other got out what she was trying to say, and nodded her head in understanding. “you’re not making things awkward,” she reassured her quickly. “i appreciate the sentiment, i do. thank you. people like you are the ones who are doing all of the real work for the rebellion.”

This situation reminded Rose of the first time she had met General Organa. Rose had stuttered and stumbled her way through the introductions and then rambled about how much she admired Organa. Organa had fixed Rose with a warm but firm look and told Rose to treat her like she would a friend, a friend who was also her commanding officer. The way Senator Amidala held herself reminded Rose so much of Leia. Must be something to do with being in charge of the Rebellion.

the other managed their composure, but the distanced reaction to the simple statement about iden being one of the best imperial pilots meant that she didn’t know exactly where in the empire she had come from. inferno squad had a stellar reputation in the empire, and a terrifying one in the rebellion. they were deadly and efficient. she wouldn’t lie about it, but the fewer people that actively knew… the better.

“yeah, i’ve noticed they’re in rough condition.” that was being polite about it. iden was used to flying the best of the best, but her skill hadn’t disappeared just because she was flying a different ship. “it’s the least i can do. i’m glad that people are willing to listen. i didn’t exactly come in with that expectation.”

Rose experienced a brief moment of pride when she heard about how her fellow rebels were willing to listen to Iden’s advice. Yes, the rebels were the Empire’s enemy and yes, there were so rebels who would refuse to be in the same room as the enemy, let alone listen to them, but it was heartening to know that wasn’t always the case. It made Rose proud to be a rebel because it was doubtful the Empire would ever want to listen to a rebel.

she let out a breath, chuckling some, “definitely miss the falcon, though, it’s not as if she was in the best of repair,” she mused. rey had grown up seeing the falcon, it had always been in disrepair, the fact that it flew was a miracle, frankly. though, the memories it had, rey had quickly become incredibly fond of the ship. 

and to say she missed it was an understatement– it was just a thought of what else she had lost in this new time.

with a breath she looked at the ship, “i’m surprised she made it though hyperspace, frankly. at least she runs.” 

arms moving to rest on her hips, she watched rose, a small smile on her face, moving to see what she was looking at, “just needs some love, I think.” 

~8~

“Well, I’m here now and I’ll give this ship some much needed love,” Rose said as she turned her attention back to the inner workings of Rey’s ship. Although she wasn’t going to be able to fix it up as much as she’d like as she only had a limited pool of supplies with her, but it should be enough to make flying a little easier for Rey. “Not that you weren’t giving it some love before I arrived, but you know what I mean, right?”

he gave her a slight, warm smile, gaze open & approachable & so very human in a way the stories around his name wouldn’t suggest. trust was doing its best to come harder to him, these days, but he was doing his best to hold onto it with everything he could manage. on his better days, he had a good feeling about who was winning. better days were trying to get away, too.

“well, it’s good to have you here with us now, rose. we can always use more volunteers.” he offered her his hand to shake, friendly. “i’m luke skywalker, i’m pleased to meet you, too.” a moment later, he wished he hadn’t said his last name, hoped for a casual conversation without any tension about who he was, but — maybe she would surprise him. he tried not to assume, even as reactions slowly became more predictable. he didn’t want to be arrogant.

Rose had heard about what Luke did on Crait that had enabled the remains of the Resistance escape the First Order, which had only elevated the legend of Luke Skywalker in her mind. She had wished she had witnessed that feat first-hand but she had been more than appreciative of the opportunity to survive and fight for freedom another day. 

Meeting him now was a huge moment for Rose. Huge. Massive. Overwhelming. But she had learned to not let how overwhelming it was to the person prompting that feeling. Or at least try to contain it. So she grinned as they shook her hands but she hadn’t (yet) let loose the urge to ramble about how much she looked up to him and his sister, Leia, for everything they had done for the galaxy. She also tried her best to ignore the urge to state how young he looked. Because of course he looked young. This was 4ABY after all. 

it was hard not to think about the old war that padmé had already lived through, to draw comparisons where it perhaps wasn’t necessary. months of not hearing from anakin, or the rumors that she had heard of him being dead –– those had been painful. now, she did not know what she wanted to hear about him. his presence on endor had not been as an ally to the budding new republic, or the rebellion. the two went hand-in-hand, as far as she could currently see. she would fight for both.

“well, it’s a pleasure to meet you, rose,” padmé beamed. “you look like you’re much more familiar with all of this than i am. not that i’m that outdated, but…” after all, for public appearances, she hadn’t been dead. just away. hiding.

“Well, it’s my job to be familiar with all of this so that makes sense,” Rose said, conscious of the prospect of her rambling away about the technical specifications of the equipment at Senator Amidala was never far away. “If you have any questions, please just ask. I’d be happy to help where I can.”

a smile cracked away at the corner of her mouth, but it failed to meet her eyes. rose was friendly enough, that much was immediately obvious, but the warmth of the rebellion was still jarring compared the cold imperialism that she had spent her entire life attempting to fit inside of. she never quite had. but she didn’t yet know how to fit in here, either.

“right,” she breathed out with a nod of her head. “i don’t know if it’s a matter of settling, or trust, but…” the other clearly didn’t know her track record, and that was for the best. lying about her past was advisable by any means, but there was no need to open up old wounds, either. “i was one of the empire’s best pilots.” among other things. “i’ve been working with some of the pilots here to help sharpen and hone their skills. the x-wings don’t help, but there’s no reason we can’t get around that.”

The news that Iden used to be one of the Empire’s best pilots sent a chill down Rose’s spine. That meant Iden had probably killed rebels and innocents alike. Not that the Rebel Alliance didn’t have blood on its hands too. Both sides were guilty but so far, only the Rebels appeared to be remorseful for the lives it had taken; well, the Rebels and those who chose to leave the Empire, like Iden.

.

rose made it difficult for rey to stay upset at their friends absence, or at least, she certainly was able to keep rey distracted enough to lift her spirits. a smile grew back on the scavengers face at the hope of seeing their lost friend. 

the hope of them creating a stronger friendship. 

a small nod followed, ”you’re right about that. if anyone can find him–” she hoped it was them, at least and not a member of the first order still bitter about his departure. finding him worse off than before, the thought scared rey. 

“well, ship’s definitely a little worse for wear, she could use a tune up,” rey was still getting used to the small freighter. she had become so entuned with the falcon in a short time, the new ship was a bit awkward to maneuver. that didn’t mention the thrown together nature of the ship. 

~8~

Rose couldn’t afford the brain space to consider the consequences of the First Order finding Finn before them. So she decided not to think about that dreadful possibility and focused instead on Rey’s ship.

“Wow, this thing has more gripes than I’ve ever seen,” Rose said as she began to closely inspect the state of Rey’s current ship. “I guess you must miss the Falcon, huh?”