Chapter Text
Poe Dameron wakes up with a huge headache and no kriffing idea where he is.
It's dark and cold, ridiculously cold, like only a desert planet could be - confirmed by the sand that's seeping into his clothes - and he wonders why he's there when it all suddenly comes back: the map, the First Order killing everyone in the village, the torture (he glosses over that bit, no point in thinking about it too deeply), his rescue, Finn, then getting hit and -
Finn.
Poe sits up quickly and looks around, but even through the pale moonlight, he can see nothing. Not his ship, not his jacket, not Finn. He was a brave kid to have gone against the First Order like that, all on his own, after years and years of being trained as a Stormtrooper. Giving up everything he’d been taught just like that to help a Resistance pilot – that was commendable.
I won’t forget you, he thinks to himself, and slowly gets up.
It’s a long walk to, well, whatever civilization that’s here on Jakku.
He remembers the first time he saw Han Solo.
He was young, very young, and his father let him tag along on one of his missions – It’s nothing serious, he’s not even going to leave the base, he’d told Poe’s mother, who had vehemently disapproved of the whole thing, until Dad added, We’ve got to show him we’re not leaving him for nothing – and Poe had wandered off to explore.
He doesn’t remember much about getting lost, except running into a giant hairy leg (Chewbacca’s), being held by strong, secure arms (also Chewbacca’s), and someone smirking at him (not Chewbacca – Han Solo).
He’d said something to Poe, and while he couldn’t remember what, he did remember it was the best moment of his life for years to come.
Hell, it still is.
He doesn’t know how long he’s been walking when he sees the TIE fighters come in, and he’s looking for a place he can hide when the unthinkable happens.
He spots the Millennium Falcon flying away.
The Millennium Falcon.The actual ship, not the model he’d bought at a tiny store in Coruscant for a ridiculous amount of credits (but it was worth every one). The one he’d seen once and heard rumors of ever since he joined the Resistance, legends passed down by those who’d fought against the Galactic Empire in its final years.
It’s actually here, on this forsaken desert rock.
Which means that Han Solo is here.
He breaks into a run, sliding down the sand dunes and into the junk settlement, already in chaos. People push past him, trying to escape the wreckage, and it doesn’t take him long to find a ship.
It’s almost in pieces and precariously close to the burning settlement, but he’s flown worse. Probably. Hopefully.
He’s starting the ship and sees the Falcon ahead, fighters on its tail, and he’s just about ready to get in the air when he stops.
What is he doing? He’s supposed to be looking for BB-8, trying to get to him before the First Order does (if they haven’t already), and not chasing after Han Solo in the Millennium Falcon. Even if it would be his dream come true.
He shakes his head and climbs out of the ship, find the nearest fleeing local and asks, politely, “Have you seen a BB unit with a white-and-orange body?”
The local gives him a look, scoffing. If it were anyone else, they might’ve been punched or ignored after asking such a question – or any question, for that matter – but he’s Poe Dameron, so the local responds, “Last I saw, some girl flew out of here with that thing. You don’t wanna go looking for it – First Order’s got its eyes on that thing.”
Well, that cleared things up nicely, Poe thinks, and he thanks the local and lets him get back to fleeing as he walks back to the ship. If BB-8 was travelling with someone, and they were being chased by the First Order, then obviously that person was trustworthy and he should have nothing to worry about.
He climbs back into the cockpit and, kriff, the Falcon is long gone. He licks his lips with a sigh and hopes the ship has a functioning form of hyperdrive.
It doesn’t, but Resistance fighters spot him and take him aboard their ship. Just in time, too – dehydration was starting to catch up with him too.
He doesn’t remember meeting Luke Skywalker, but he does remember his gift – the twig of a Force-Sensitive tree. He remembers as the years went on and the tree slowly grew, and slowly began to flourish.
He remembers acting out the Battle of Endor with his friends, and how it was undisputed as to who got to be Han Solo.
Poe doesn’t know which is better – seeing BB-8 intact or seeing Finn alive (and wearing his jacket!).
They hug, tightly, because that’s what you do when you’ve formed a bond with someone after surviving life-threatening situations together, and they pull apart much too soon to Poe’s liking.
Finn asks if he wants the jacket back and Poe shakes his head.
It looks better on him, anyway.
Han Solo died in battle, and he watches from afar as General Organa mourns him.
He doesn’t know what he could say to her, to make any of it okay, because it’s far from okay. It is definitely not okay.
He sits beside her in companionable silence. Eventually, she turns to him with a sad smile and says, "He would've liked you."
He meets Rey as she leaves Finn’s side, and he’s too enamored by her and the fact that he’s meeting his very first Jedi ever (!!!) to pay too close attention to the fact that she’d been awfully close to Finn's face.
She walks up to him first and says, “You’re Poe Dameron, right? BB-8 told me all about you.”
Poe’s lips quirk as he responds, “And Finn told me all about you, Rey. You two seem… close.”
She looks away at that, and he thinks he can see the faintest blush on her cheeks. “We’ve – we’ve been through a lot together.” She takes a moment to look back at his sleeping body before turning to Poe again. “Take care of him while I’m gone.”
“Of course I will – he saved my life,” Poe assures her. “And you – make sure you take care of yourself. He’d want that.”
She nods and walks away, and BB-8 quickly follows her. He was right - BB-8 likes her because she's good.
He hesitates a moment before calling out to her. "Rey!"
She turns, brow arched.
"You know that's the Millennium Falcon you're piloting, right? Be sure to treat her right. She's been through a lot."
Rey looks at him for a moment before breaking into a smile. "Little too late for that. Finn and I already gave it an go against TIE fighters on Jakku." She laughs at his gaping expression and adds, "Ask him about it."
"I - I will," he says as he watches her go. Scratch what he said earlier - he was dead wrong. She's not good. She's extraordinary.
Poe’s not there when Finn wakes up, but he’s one of his first visitors afterward, and he rubs his shoulder and says, "So when were you going to tell me about the Falcon?"
Finn lets out a chuckle, back still sore and carefully propped up against a couple of pillows, and starts talking.
Poe hangs on to every word. And if his hand casually drifts and places itself on Finn's knee, well, neither of them say anything about it.