He was surprised by Rey's vehemence, and could only sit in wonder as she glared at him, unafraid and so, so certain of herself despite her voiced apprehension. He was surprised, too, by how many emotions the word Leia evoked. After all he'd done, all that had come about as a result of his insistence that he could teach the boy, yet she still sought him.

How could that be? How could anything make up for the disaster Luke had allowed under his watch? And how could he guide the person in front of him, when he could barely guide himself without the rut of his daily routine to keep him alive?

"Leia... is far too forgiving," he said, though one could barely claim that as an obvious fault of hers. But as he spoke, he was struck indelibly by the similarity between her and Rey. Not Leia now, old and careworn, but Leia as the fiery, independent warrior he'd first met. Rey had her spirit and drive. And Luke was no match. He'd made the decision already, and this, all this, had been merely dancing around the inevitable, just as he'd done when Artoo had first shown him that hologram. "But I won't turn you away." He took a deep breath. "Sit down. While you can't count on other people to save you, I know the... the importance of an anchor in the storm. If it means that much to you, I'll teach you how to find me."