Resistance members let off some steam by playing in the snow, but Rey just can’t stay warm enough to enjoy it.
Damerey Challenge Short Fic Post The Last Jedi
Prompt: Do you want to build a snowman?
Rey hated the cold. And Zotis was cold. Rey’s only consolation was that it was a temporary stop for the Resistance, not a place they planned to stay for long.
It had snowed overnight, and everyone seemed to be excited about it. Rey didn’t understand why. She had seen snow once and it was not a happy memory.
Around mid-morning, as she sat bundled up in front of a small space heater flipping through one of the Jedi texts, she noticed Poe and Leia discussing something avidly across the way. With a huge grin, Poe turned away from Leia and clapped his hands. “Let’s do this!” he spoke to the hanger at large, and several other members excitedly grabbed their outerwear and headed for the outside. Rey shook her head and went back to her reading.
About forty-five minutes later, Leia came up to her, dressed in her parka. “Grab your coat, Rey,” she said. “And come with me.”
With a sigh, Rey did as she was told. She bundled herself up and followed her Master out into the cold.
What she saw surprised her. Several members of the Resistance were playing in the snow. Only, they weren’t just playing in the snow, they were playing with the snow. They were making sculptures out of it!
“It’s a snowcreature building contest,” Leia informed Rey. “And I get to be the judge.”
Rey smiled at her mentor and followed her out onto the open plain. They stopped at each and every sculpture. Some were very well done, others were barely distinguishable as anything, even after their creators let Leia know what it was supposed to be. Rey saw several humanoids, and she saw a Dug, a Gree, a Kushiban, and an IG-88 Assassin Droid. However, the two best snow molds were Snap and Karè’s Wampa, and Poe and Finn’s BB Unit. Leia seemed to think they were the best, too.
She looked back and forth between them. “I don’t know. I’m not sure which I like best.” She looked back at Rey. “I think you should be the tie-breaker, Rey. Which one should win?”
Immediately, Rey felt her face heat, but she knew no one would be able to tell, as it was already red from the cold. “Uhm…” she uttered. She looked back and forth between her choices. “I love the BB one, for obvious reasons.” BB-8 trilled in response. “But if I have to be honest, the Wampa had to have been much more difficult to make. So, I have to pick the Wampa.”
“The Wampa it is!” Leia announced. Snap and Karè jumped up and down and hugged each other while Poe and Finn groaned. Soon everyone was grouped together laughing and talking and admiring and/or giggling over everyone else’s handiwork. Rey watched them all for a while, laughing along with them, but all too soon her body started tremoring. Shivers made her shudder, and her teeth started chattering.
And arm suddenly came around her shoulders, and she instinctively turned into the warm body attached to it. Surprise raced through her as her eyes met Poe’s.
“Come on,” he told her, directing her back toward the temporary hanger. “Let’s get you warmed up.”
She allowed him to guide her back inside. He kept his arm around her as they walked together toward the far side of the building where the mess was.
Rey glanced at him. “Why aren’t you cold?” she asked. “You must come from a cold planet.”
“Actually, no,” Poe answered. “Yavin is pretty mild. It can get chilly during the rainy season, but not snow cold, and the rest of the year it’s hot and humid.” He smiled at her, and Rey became fascinated by the crinkles that formed around his eyes. “I’ve just been to plenty of cold places. You get used to it.”
Rey shook her head. “I don’t think I’ll ever get used to it.”
Poe laughed, then stopped with her in front of the drink counter. He reached for a carafe.
“Oh, I don’t drink caf,” she told him.
Poe shook his head. “This isn’t caf.” He poured what appeared to be hot water into two cups. He grabbed a couple of small packets from a basket and poured powder from them into the water. “It’s hot chocolate.”
Rey was confused. “How? Doesn’t chocolate just melt?”
Another soft laugh. “Just try it,” he told her. “Oh!” He grabbed a handful of small white cubes. “Can’t drink it without these.” He sprinkled them over the drinks, then handed her a cup. “Careful. It’s hot.”
Rey looked at him askance, but then took a sip. She felt her eyes widen at the taste.
Poe smiled, then took a small sip of his own cup.
Rey continued to carefully drink, feeling her insides warm up as she did so. “This is good.”
Poe nodded. “Now you have something hot to drink, since you don’t drink caf.”
Rey tilted her head. “Come to think of it, I didn’t think you drank anything but caf?”
He huffed. “Yeah, well, maybe I shouldn’t drink it so much. This is probably a lot better for me.”
They stood together, quietly drinking their hot chocolate, and Rey realized she felt safe and content. It wasn’t the first time she had felt that way in the presence of Poe Dameron.
Loud voices could be heard coming from the other side of the hanger, and Rey turned her head to see the others finally coming back in from the cold. The peace and quiet she had been enjoying was over.
She looked at her companion, who also seemed a little disappointed by the interruption. “Thank you, Poe,” she said softly.
He focused on her, and she was startled to realize that his eyes were the same color as the chocolate they had been drinking, and almost as warm. “Anytime, Rey.” His voice was deep and gentle. Rey felt another shiver shoot up her spine, yet she didn’t feel cold at all.
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