The storm had passed during the night, leaving dawn tinged with pinkish hues as the early light filtered into the alcove. Poe could feel Hux's chest rising and falling beneath him, his breaths short and shallow. The pilot's dark curls fanned out against his bare chest as the two lay on their makeshift bed together inside of the alcove. The pilot relished in the quiet simplicity of the moment, of just the two of them together.

Poe pressed a light kiss against Hux's chest before looking up at the General. Resting his chin against his pale skin, the pilot reached up and pushed away a few strands of ginger hair that had fallen into his eyes during the night. Hux's arm was wrapped around Poe, holding him close as he traced a lazy pattern with the tips of his fingers against Poe's side. There were a smattering of long scars against the pilot's ribcage. He had felt them before. He silently wondered to himself how the pilot earned such marks, but didn't raise questions for the story behind them. The answer he knew was one he might not want to hear.

Poe picked his head up from Hux's chest. At first, the pilot wasn't sure if he was imagining the sound, a figment of his imagination playing tricks on him.

No.

He knew that sound. It was as familiar to him as his own heartbeat.

"What?" Hux asked curiously. His fingers against the pilot's skin stilled as he lifted his head up to look at Poe.

The ground shook beneath them as the distant roar grew louder, echoing through the air.

"They found us!" Poe exclaimed as he jumped up, grabbing his bright flight suit from the spot it had sat in for days and pulled it over his legs as quickly as possible.

Hux knew that sound too, one that once had elicited fear of an attack. The roar of Resistance fighter engines. He scrambled to his feet, his heartbeat pounding in his ears as he pulled his own shirt on. He knew the days they had spent together on the planet had been on borrowed time, a false sense that the galaxy and the war somehow had stopped, or at least forgotten about them. He hadn't expected for reality to come back so abruptly, roaring across the morning sky in a noisy blaze.

Poe jumped down from the alcove and hurried down the shoreline into a clear area, his head tilted skyward. The sound of engines was practically deafening as a lone X Wing flew over the lake. Poe stood with his arms raised, waving his hands back and forth, hoping that the pilot would see him. The water ripped and eddied as the ship passed over the lake, the wind kicking up around him. The ship had showed no signs of slowing down as it continued on.

Hux scrambled down the gravel towards Poe.

"Did they see you?" Hux asked as he reached the pilot.

Poe lowered his arm, pressing his hand against Hux's chest.

"Shush" Poe instructed as he scanned the horizon line.

The noise was a distant rumble once again, muffled by the thick forest. Poe listened intently, studying the sound. He could hear the engine's rumble change from a low growl to a higher pitch. Even from the ground, Poe seemed to be attuned to exactly what the ship was doing in flight. Every click and whir a second language to him, even if he wasn't behind the controls.

"They're coming back around".

In a matter of seconds, the gray and red ship appeared back into view. It slowed in speed this pass as it rounded the lake in a wide circle. Hux watched as Poe raised his arms again, crossing his wrists above his head in a pattern of threes. It was a silent signal, one that the General did not understand, but clearly the Resistance pilot did.

Landing along the shoreline, the X wing kicked up a gushing swirl of dirt and air as it bumped against the uneven ground. The top hatch opened as the ship's engines shut down, the once deafening noise cooling to a subtle hum. Poe skipped a few steps as he made his way towards the ship. A pilot emerged, swinging his legs over the edge and dropping down to the gravel below.

"Dameron, you son of a bitch! Am I happy to see you!" the pilot exclaimed as he pulled Poe into a tight embrace. "Saw the wreckage back there. Leave it to you to somehow walk away from that".

Poe laughed as the pilot let go of him.

"You know I've always had good luck" Poe said, clapping the pilot against the shoulder.

"Where is the prisoner?" the pilot asked, his tone quickly turning serious.

Before Poe could say anything, the pilot noticed Hux standing further down the shoreline from them.

"What the kriff?" the pilot exclaimed as he stepped around Poe. He drew his blaster, aiming it squarely on Hux's chest as he began walking towards the General.

"You! On your knees! Now!" he ordered sharply.

Hux complied, dropping to his knees on the rocky shoreline and placing his hands behind his head. He intertwined his fingers together as the pilot approached him. He could feel the dampness of the shoreline soaking through the fabric of his pants as he knelt on the jagged gravel. The pilot's blaster never wavered from the center of his chest and Hux made no attempt to fight or flee. He was cornered, patiently waiting as the pilot approached him. There was nowhere, or reason, to try and escape his fate.

Hux felt the pilot wrap his hand around his wrists, fingernails cutting into his skin as he took hold of him. The end of his blaster pressed against his neck. The cold metal against his skin a sharp reminder that this man would put a bolt into him without a second thought.

"Dameron! You got restraints?" the pilot called down the shore.

Poe nodded. He pulled the binders that had been around Hux's wrists during the crash from a pocket on his flight suit as he crossed the distance between them before handing them over to the pilot. His dark eyes met Hux's for moment before the General dropped his gaze to the ground. There was no fear in them, not even for a fleeting second. Hux knew this was the end.

The pilot yanked back Hux's arms, fastening the cuffs around his wrists, double and triple checking he had secured them properly with forceful pulls. The pilot stepped back, taking a long look at the General bound and helpless on his knees on the muddy rocks before him.

"Kriffin' filth" the pilot snarled with a low growl. "Can't wait to see you pay for what you've done". He raised his foot and pressed his boot into Hux's back, pushing the General forward into the dirt. Without his hands free to catch his fall, Hux fell forward. He landed with a thud, his cheek pressed against the gravel.

"Hey!" Poe exclaimed, clearly shocked at the pilot's action towards Hux.

Poe stepped closer, grabbing onto Hux's elbow before pulling him back to his knees. He held his grip as Hux fumbled to his feet. He kept a loose hold on the crook of his elbow. Poe gave Hux's arm a gentle squeeze, a silent gesture of reassurance.

"Don't tell me you feel sorry for him, Dameron" the pilot spat.

Poe shot the pilot a dark look. No matter who their prisoner might be, that was no way to treat another human being. He kept his hold on Hux, wishing he could brush away the dirt from his face.

The trees swirled again as another roar of engine noise came overhead. This time, a transport ship much like the one Poe and Hux had crashed in came into view. As the ship set down along the lakeshore, the boarding ramp lowered and two Resistance soldiers trotted down the ramp, both securely holding weapons in front of them, fingers hovering over the triggers.

"Report back both are alive. Prisoner is unharmed and detained" one the soldiers murmured into a comlink as they approached.

"Commander Dameron. Are you hurt?" a soldier asked as he stopped before Poe. His stance was rigid as he addressed him.

"No, sir" Poe answered honestly.

The soldier's brow ticked up slightly in an expression of doubt as he stared at Poe's bruised nose but did not press the issue any further.

"Collect any personal artifacts and we will be on our way" the soldier instructed to him as he took hold of Hux.

Poe watched as the soldiers led Hux towards the transport ship before turning and making his way back to the alcove. He straightened out his flight suit, pulling his jacket over it and collected the metal survival boxes. Scanning the area, Poe looked for anything they might have left behind. He noticed Hux's great coat in a rumpled pile on the floor. Picking it up, he folded the heavy fabric trying his best to match the careful way Hux would have if it was still in his possession. He tucked the coat beneath his own, disguising it from view as he made his way back to the ship.

Poe settled into a mesh seat along the edge of the cargo area. He could hear the ship's crew rustling around in the cockpit. Distant radio chatter and footfalls of combat boots against durasteel floor grating echoed around him as the the ship's engines whined. He leaned back, his arm resting protectively against his side, securing Hux's coat in its hiding place. His thoughts began to race at the item. What would he say if someone was to find the item on him? It would raise questions. Why would one of the Resistance's most loyal pilots want a piece of a First Order uniform? Could he pass it off as a spoil of war, a memory of his survival alongside one of the galaxy's most feared men? If so, would anyone actually believe his story? He wished he had just left the coat behind in the alcove, forgotten along with everything that had transpired on the planet. His stomach lurched as the ship entered into a hyperspace jump.

Hux was lead in a small windowless bunk. The room had been cleared of any items except for a low metal platform that in other circumstances would serve as a bed frame. There was no mattress on it. It was clear to him that the Resistance did not have ships fitted with actual cells for prisoners and made due with what they had. Two soldiers stood at the doorway, silently watching with their fingers over blaster triggers as a third man stepped forward.

"I will remove your restraints so you can change" the man said as he pointed to a folded gray shirt and pant set that rested on the bunk platform. "My men have shoot to kill orders if you try anything. Do you understand?"

"Seems like your men would love to put a blaster bolt through me" Hux replied coolly as he glanced over at the soldiers guarding the door. Their faces were expressionless, but he could see the disdain for him in their eyes, watching his every move.

The man let out a long breath, as if he was gathering courage as he took hold of Hux's wrists to unfasten the binders. He took a step back as he freed the General, waiting for him to try something.

Instead, Hux silently obeyed. Unbuttoning his shirt, he removed the satin fabric and reached for the faded gray prisoner uniform. He could feel the men's stares boring into his back as he pulled the scratchy linen over his head.

"Should I put on a little show? Really give you gentleman something to stare at?" Hux chided as he turned to face the soldiers. He could see them tense at his unexpected movement.

"We don't have all day. Boots...pants….off...let's go" the man ordered firmly, unfazed by Hux's comments as he pointed to the remaining Order uniform he still wore.

Obliging to the man's wishes, Hux divested himself of the rest of his former clothing, replacing it without any further snarky comments with the Resistance prison garb. The man stepped forward again, ordering his hands behind his back before replacing the binders on his wrists. Hux watched as the man picked up his clothing from the floor with a look of disgust on his face as he balled up the tattered black fabric in his arms before turning to leave the room. The soldiers followed as the door whooshed closed behind them, whirring and clicking as the locking mechanism was activated.

Hux sat on the edge of the bed frame, rolling his shoulders to relieve his aching joints of the pressure the binders placed on them before using his feet to push himself back towards the wall. The room was cold. He'd been detained without his coat and the thin material of the baggy fabric that hung around his lanky frame did little to ward off the chill.

My coat.

Hux thought back to the shelter, remembering how his great coat had been draped over their bodies as a makeshift blanket just a few hours before. He recalled Poe's weight against him as they lay beneath it, how his dark curls fanned out against his pale chest as the pilot lay against him.

What does it matter anymore?

Leaning back against the wall, Hux tried to make himself as comfortable as he could be in his current situation. He had no idea how long the journey to the Resistance base would be. He'd felt the ship jump to hyperspace shortly after the soldiers had left him, but had no idea if it was a journey that would take hours or days. He was a prisoner again. The freedom an unexpected crash landing provided was only a brief interruption to a course of events that had already been set into motion. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath as he rested his head against the cold wall. Between the humming of the ship's hyperdrive and internal systems, he could hear muffled voices through the durasteel. Adjusting his body slightly, he listened intently, trying to make out the conversation taking place on the other side of the wall. There seemed to be two men and a woman chatting, their words muffled but distinguishable.

"Leave it to Dameron to be stranded with a kriffing murderer and somehow make it out alive"

"I heard Commander Droma landed andfound him unrestrained. Just walking around like they were on vacation or something".

"What?" another voice exclaimed with audible shock in it. "Just strolling around?"

"Yeah".

"Did you get a look at the bastard's face when they brought him on board? I heard Dameron did a number on it".

"I've give fifty credits to find out what happened while they were stuck out there".

"Dameron should have killed him when he got the chance".

The group's voices faded out as if they had gotten up and moved elsewhere to continue their gossiping. It was no surprise to Hux that everyone on board the ship shared a mutual hatred of him. Hux wondered where Poe was while his comrades rattled on about him. He'd never witnessed the pilot surrounded by his own, but he couldn't imagine Poe to be the type to participate in idle chatter. He let out a long breath as he leaned his head back against the wall once again. The ship's systems whirred and clicked, echoing through the durasteel.

There was nothing more to do than wait.

Hux had almost fallen asleep as he heard the door to the bunk whoosh open. With a jerk, he picked his head up. He curiously looked towards the doorway as a shadowy figure entered the room. The dim light made it difficult at first to distinguish any of the man's features. Hux figured it was probably a soldier checking on him as he sat up and the man stepped into the light.

Instead of nameless soldier, he saw Poe.

Quickly shutting the door behind him, the pilot worked a piece of stiff copper wire into the locking mechanism, overriding the control panel. Poe turned and looked at Hux. He'd shaved, his sharp jawline now smooth and his hair looked freshly washed. The dusty shirt and stained cargo pants Hux had grown familiar seeing him in were gone, replaced by a clean outfit. A simple tan shirt tucked into a fresh pair of brown cargo pants. He still wore his nerf leather jacket, zipped halfway up over his chest.

"What are you doing here?" Hux asked, slightly surprised. It was a daring move on the pilot's part to seek him out aboard the ship, surrounded by his own comrades.

"Making sure you are okay" Poe replied casually.

"I suppose the best I can be in the situation". Hux paused for a moment. "Your soldiers are quite the gossips" Hux said, nodding his head in the direction of the wall behind him. "And your ship's walls are quite thin".

The corners of Poe's mouth ticked up in a slight smile. He could only imagine what the soldiers aboard the ship had been saying in the lounge area on the opposite side of the wall. "I'm sure yours are the same".

"I wouldn't know" Hux said flatly. He never spent time fraternizing with his troops, considering it unnecessary to spend any considerable amount of time with them. Idle gossip was even more of an unneeded and purposeless expenditure that could be used in wiser, and more productive ways.

Poe noticed Hux no longer wore his signature Order uniform as he sat huddled on the bench. He looked defeated. The man that Poe had lay beside that morning had faded into something else. Strands of ginger hair hung around his face and his eyes seemed dull in the faint light of the bunk. His pale cheek was still smeared with dirt and his jawline was still thick with a wiry ginger beard.

"What happened to your uniform?" Poe asked.

"Your friends came in and forced me to change into this ridiculous ensemble" Hux replied solemnly. "At least it's not that offensive orange color you all seem to love so much".

"It's not that bad" Poe offered. He couldn't change the situation Hux was in, but ever the optimist, the least he could do was try to lighten the mood some. He took a few steps across the room and sat besides Hux. Reaching up to the side of the General's face, he pushed back the errant strands of hair that had fallen into his eyes before trying to scrub away some of the dirt from his cheek with his thumb.

Hux's gaze dropped to the ground for a moment, studying the pattern of the metal grating before glancing back up at the pilot next to him. "How much longer until we return to your base?"

"I can't tell you" Poe responded coolly. "You know that".

Hux nodded silently. Despite opening up to him on a personal level, the pilot had remained steadfast on staying tight lipped on any matters concerning the Resistance.

"I managed to grab something before we left though" Poe said as he began unzipping his coat. Pulling Hux's greatcoat from beneath his own, he set the hastily folded heap of heavy fabric onto Hux's lap.

Hux looked down at his lap. He was unable to reach for it, but even in the crumpled mess, he knew what Poe had salvaged. The item had once meant so much to him. It exuded power and prestige, a symbol of greatness. Now it was nothing besides a worthless bit of fabric.

"Thank you" Hux said quietly "But I don't want it back".

With a puzzled expression, Poe reached over and ran his hand over the fraying fabric. Hux had once been so protective of the coat. His dismissal of it surprised him.

"My life is not one of grandeur anymore. I'm nothing now, aside from a prisoner of war".

"You still believe in the Order though?" Poe asked curiously.

"Of course. I can be stripped of my uniform, but I will hold the values to my grave" Hux replied steadfastly.

Poe grit his teeth. He never expected Hux to renounce his principles, much as he refused to back down from his own. The fading bruises on each other's faces were a stark reminder of that fact.

"Aside from my former life" Hux continued, his tone softening "If I kept it, it would only remind me of you".

Poe grabbed the fabric with his fingers and balled the coat up. Shoving it back underneath his own jacket, he gave Hux a sympathetic smile.

"I have to go. I've been here too long already" Poe said as he re-zipped his coat, almost ready to stand from the edge of the bench.

"This is goodbye then" Hux interjected flatly, stopping the pilot in his tracks.

Poe didn't know what to say as he looked at Hux. He had already taken a huge risk to see Hux here on the ship and knew the General's fate once they returned to base. While his death was not imminent, it was the ultimate end for Hux and both men knew it. Grasping Hux, Poe pulled the General close to him into a deep kiss. The pilot ran his hand through Hux's hair, memorizing how the silken ginger strands felt as they fell between his calloused fingers.

Hux wished his wrists were not bound behind him. Unable for one last opportunity to touch the pilot, his fingers clenched into tight fists as he kissed Poe back. He instead tried to remember every other detail of Poe. How he smelled clean like soap yet still had an underlying hint of engine grease that could never be scrubbed away. How soft his lips were against his own. The playful nip of teeth from him against his bottom lip as the pilot broke from the kiss and stepped back from him.

"I never liked goodbyes. It always meant you weren't coming back" Poe said, his voice low and despondent.

Hux gave the pilot a half smile. There was a certain sadness in his eyes, but also understanding as he watched Poe turn and work the wire free that had jammed the locking system before disappearing down the corridor from the bunk. The door slid shut behind him, leaving Hux in the cold, dim room alone again.

Turning a corner, Poe checked over both shoulders, listening for any oncoming footsteps before continuing on. Reaching the airlock, he glanced up and down the hall, double checking to ensure he was alone. He pulled Hux's coat from his own and stuffed the fabric into the compartment before closing the door and securing the handle. He took a deep breath as he brought his palm over a button that would space the General's coat for good. None of this between them was suppose to happen. It defied all odds that a General of the First Order and a Resistance pilot would survive a crash landing that should have gravely injured them both, let alone find solace in one another while stranded on a strange planet. He wasn't suppose to feel an ache in his heart as he walked away from a man who had committed so many crimes against the galaxy and stood for every ideal he had fought so hard against. Poe's hand hovered for a moment longer before coming down firmly against the button. A loud whoosh echoed down the corridor as their secrets evaporated into the blackness of space.

Poe stepped back as he watched the swirl of gray dust float away from the ship.

With that, it was all over.

Goodbye.