Ray didn't move.
The glow from the laptop flickered across the cabin walls while the movie continued playing, but he barely noticed anything around him anymore.
His eyes stayed locked on the screen.
On Mustafar, Anakin lay on the black volcanic slope where he had fallen. His body struggled against the burning ground, trying to crawl upward while the lava rivers glowed behind him.
Ray slowly leaned forward.
"What the hell…" he murmured quietly.
On the screen, Obi-Wan stood above him, breathing heavily after the duel.
For a moment he just watched.
Watched the man who had once been his student.
His brother.
Anakin's body slid closer to the lava as the heat began to rise around him.
Then the screaming started.
Ray winced slightly at the sound.
The fire caught Anakin's clothes first.
Flames spread quickly across his body as he cried out in agony.
Ray swallowed.
"Jesus…" he whispered under his breath.
Beside him, Kate stayed completely silent.
She didn't explain anything this time.
She didn't even glance at him.
Her eyes stayed on the screen as the scene continued.
Obi-Wan's expression broke.
"I hate you!" Anakin screamed through the flames.
The words echoed through the small cabin.
Obi-Wan stepped closer.
His voice shook.
"You were the Chosen One!"
Ray froze.
"It was said that you would destroy the Sith, not join them!"
The fire roared louder as Anakin's body burned against the black rock.
"Bring balance to the Force… not leave it in darkness!"
Ray stared at the screen, completely absorbed.
"You were my brother, Anakin."
Obi-Wan's voice cracked.
"I loved you."
The scene faded slowly as the lava continued to burn behind them.
For a moment the cabin was completely quiet.
Ray didn't speak.
He just sat there, staring at the laptop screen, trying to process everything he had just watched.
And that's when it happened.
A small tear formed in the corner of Ray's eye.
He didn't even realize it at first.
The movie had finally done it.
All the betrayal, the fall, the duel, the speech—everything had slowly built up to this moment.
And now it had broken him.
Beside him, Kate noticed immediately.
Her eyes drifted from the laptop screen to Ray's face.
For a second she just stared.
Then a small, victorious smile slowly appeared.
She had done it.
The movies had broken him.
The pace slowed after the chaos on Mustafar, but the scenes that followed somehow made everything feel even heavier.
Ray stayed glued to the screen.
On it, Padmé lay weak and pale, her voice barely more than a whisper.
"Obi-Wan… there's good in him. I know… I know there's still…"
Her words faded.
The machines beside her let out a long, steady tone.
Ray sat up straight.
"You really think this fucker still has good in him?!" he shouted at the screen.
Before anyone could answer, the movie cut to another scene.
Darkness.
The operating table.
The mechanical arms moved slowly as the armor sealed around Anakin's burned body.
Ray watched, still breathing unevenly from the last scene.
The mask lowered.
The machines locked everything into place.
Then—
Anakin rose.
Now fully encased in the black armor.
The mechanical breathing filled the cabin.
Ray frowned.
On the screen, Vader turned toward the Emperor.
"Is she safe?" he asked.
"Is she alright?"
Sidious looked at him calmly.
"It seems… in your anger… you killed her."
Ray blinked.
On the screen, Vader froze.
"I…?"
His voice sounded broken.
"I couldn't have. She was alive. I felt it!"
The rage exploded.
The room around Vader shook violently as machines lifted into the air and crashed against the walls. Robots were crushed, metal bending and snapping under the invisible force of his anger.
Ray stared at the screen.
"…Damn."
The destruction inside the medical chamber slowly faded as the movie moved toward its final scenes.
Ray sat quietly now.
The anger, the shock, the disbelief—everything had slowly settled into something heavier.
The screen shifted again.
Padmé's funeral.
A quiet procession through the city, people dressed in dark robes as they carried her through the streets. Flowers surrounded her body as she lay peacefully, her hands resting over her stomach.
Ray watched without saying anything.
The music was soft now.
Almost mournful.
The movie continued.
Yoda, Obi-Wan, and Senator Organa stood together, speaking quietly about what would happen next.
About the twins.
About who would take them.
Ray leaned forward slightly as the story began tying itself together.
The children were separated.
Leia.
Luke.
One sent to Alderaan.
The other…
Before Ray fully realized what was happening, the scene shifted again.
A small house stood alone beneath a fading sky.
Two figures stood on a hill, holding a baby.
Ray watched as Obi-Wan handed the child over.
The man and woman looked down at the baby in their arms.
Then they turned toward the horizon.
The twin suns slowly rose over the desert.
The music swelled.
Ray blinked.
And then—
The screen faded to black.
The end.
"I… move."
Ray said it simply.
Kate blinked at him.
For a moment she wasn't sure what he meant.
Then Ray pushed himself off the bed.
He walked slowly, like the weight of the last three movies was still sitting somewhere inside his chest. He stepped across the small cabin and grabbed a pack of cigarettes from his bag.
Kate stood up as well, setting the laptop down carefully on Ray's bed.
The screen was still glowing faintly with the final credits.
Ray didn't look back.
He slipped the cigarette pack into his hand and headed toward the door.
The wooden floor creaked softly under his steps.
Then he opened the cabin door and stepped outside into the cool night air.
Ray stepped a few paces away from the cabin before stopping.
The night air was cool against his skin, a faint breeze moving through the tall pines around the camp. In the distance, the fire pit was still alive with low laughter and the quiet strumming of a guitar.
He pulled a cigarette from the pack and placed it between his lips.
The lighter clicked once.
A small flame appeared.
Ray lit the cigarette and took a long drag, the tip glowing orange in the dark.
He exhaled slowly, watching the smoke drift upward into the night.
For a moment he just stood there.
Trying to process what the fuck had just happened.
Behind him, the cabin door had been left slightly open.
From inside, Kate could see him standing there in the dim light outside, the faint glow of the cigarette lighting his face every few seconds as he took another drag.
She watched him quietly for a moment.
Then a slow smile spread across her face.
Not a small one.
A full, satisfied grin stretching from one side to the other.
His reaction had been exactly what she wanted.
Kate leaned slightly against the doorway, still inside the cabin, watching him stand there in the night while he tried to recover from the emotional destruction she had just subjected him to.
Yeah.
She had him now.
"So…"
Kate began as she stepped out of the cabin.
The wooden porch creaked softly under her feet as she walked toward him. The night air was cooler now, carrying the smell of smoke from the fire pit somewhere deeper in camp.
Ray was still standing there with the cigarette between his fingers, staring out into the dark forest like he had just witnessed something that fundamentally changed him.
Kate stopped beside him.
She folded her arms lightly and looked up at his face, still wearing that small, victorious smile.
"So," she repeated.
"What do you think?"
Ray took another slow drag from his cigarette.
The ember glowed briefly in the dark before he exhaled, watching the smoke drift upward into the cool night air.
"You were right," he said at last.
Kate raised an eyebrow slightly.
"They're amazing."
He shook his head slowly, still staring out toward the trees.
"I lived my whole life without Star Wars."
Ray paused for a moment, then spoke again with dramatic seriousness.
"It was a shallow life."
Kate couldn't help it.
She laughed.
Kate stepped a little closer to him.
Without saying anything, she gently took the cigarette from his mouth.
Ray blinked in mild surprise as she held it between her fingers, bringing it to her own lips. She took a slow puff, the orange tip glowing brightly for a moment in the dark.
Then she looked up at him.
Right into his eyes.
A small, triumphant smile spread across her face as she exhaled the smoke into the night air.
"See?" she said.
"Now you've become a man of culture."
Ray watched the smoke drift away into the night.
Then he looked back at her.
"Tell me there's more… please," he said.
His voice wasn't joking this time.
Kate lifted an eyebrow slightly, still holding the cigarette between her fingers.
The corner of her mouth curled into a slow, knowing smile.
"Oh, there's more," she said.
"Three more movies after that… and a few shows too."
She took another small puff before handing the cigarette back to him.
Ray stared at her for a second.
"You're telling me this story keeps going?"
Kate nodded, clearly enjoying his reaction.
Ray rubbed his face with one hand and let out a quiet laugh.
"Alright," he muttered.
"I'm in."
They stood there for a while.
The night around Camp Willow Creek had grown quiet, the distant fire pit now reduced to soft laughter and the occasional crackle of burning wood.
Ray leaned against the railing, cigarette between his fingers, still staring out into the dark forest like his brain was trying to reorganize itself after everything he had just watched.
Kate stood beside him.
She looked much more satisfied.
Ray had discovered something amazing tonight.
And Kate had accomplished something just as important.
She had just gotten herself a new friend.
Not hooked on crack.
Not heroin.
Not alcohol.
But on Star Wars.