A/N: In this, Finn and Rose were never caught and succeeded in disabling the tracking device. And well, some other changes.

Redemption

Rey watched, confused and out of breath, as the last of the Praetorian Guard fell before her.

If she said she understood what had happened, she would be lying. One moment she went from being held captive by the force, in front of Kylo Ren, certain that he was going to cut through her with his lightsaber at the command of Snoke, and the next thing she knew Snoke had fallen to the ground, cut down by Kylo as he used the force without them knowing. She was sure she was going to die, just as he had killed his father.

Even when she was fighting for her life, against the Guard, she never stopped to think about what had happened, what it would mean for them all. Or more specifically for her and for Ben.

"It's over," she breathed, looking up at him. She changed the screen, and saw Finn and a girl she didn't recognize sneak onto the pod. She was curious as to who she was, and what the two of them were doing, but the time for questions was not now. Now was the time for her and Ben to get out of there, before any of the rest of the First Order showed up and tried to kill them. And if they were lucky, they might just both survive. "We need to go, now."

Instead, he turned to face her, breathing heavily. "It's time to let old things die. Snoke, Luke, the Sith, the Jedi. The rebels. Let it all die. Rey, I want you to join me. We can rule together, and bring a new order to the galaxy."

She felt panic fill her, dread, knowing why he had done it now. Wondering if this was his plan all along. She swallowed, "Don't do this, Ben. Don't go this way." She had to believe there was still good in him, that what she had felt was real.

"No! No, you're still holding on!" Kylo shouted. "Do you want to know to know the truth about your parents, or have you always known? You know the truth. Say it."

She felt tears fill her eyes.

"Say it."

"They were nobody," Rey said, pain filling her chest. "Don't, Ben. Don't talk about them."

"Admit the truth," he challenged her again.

"Why don't you?" she said, wiping her eyes furiously. "Why don't you admit the truth that you've been trying to ignore. I maybe holding on, but so are you. I know you feel your mother on that ship. Do you think she doesn't grieve every day? Do you think she doesn't miss you? That she's not filled with pain at every thought of having lost you? What about Luke? Yes, he told me the truth. He secluded himself off on that island, so ashamed of what he had done, so heartbroken. He regrets it with every fibre of his being, and you know it too. That he made a mistake. Don't do this, Ben. There's still time to come back from this, to go home to your mother, to come home with me. Please."

His eyes darkened. "Did they tell you this? That they missed me?" he spat out at her. "You have no place in this story. You came from nothing, you are nothing. But not to me. Join me," he said, holding his hand out to her. "Please," he said, the last word a whisper, filled with desperation.

"No," she said, backing away. "Come with me, Ben. You're right, they didn't tell me. Not in words. But they say it every day in their actions. They say it when Leia hesitates to attack a ship because she worries you might be on it. When she stares off into spaces, filled with pain and sorrow for hours on end. When her entire mind is consumed with grief. I can feel it in her. All she wants is for you to come home, back to her. And Luke; well it eats at him alive. I saw the way he was living, so ashamed of how things had turned out. Ashamed that he had failed you, ashamed that he had tried to kill you. Anything that could be a reminder he pushes out of his mind. Come back with me, please. And be redeemed. Your grandfather did it."

"My grandfather was weak," Kylo scoffed. "He made the wrong choice."

"Did he?" Rey questioned, moving closer to him, putting her hand in his outstretched one. "He made the choice that saved him. Why can't you? If the galaxy could forgive Darth Vadar, they can forgive you."

"They won't," he said looking at her intently. "I killed my father."

"But you saved us all. The first order will fall without Snoke to lead them. Hux is many things, but he's not strong enough to command them with the force he has. We'll attack as soon as we replenish our supplies. It will be over soon. But you need to come with me."

"So you can redeem me?" he asked. "I didn't kill him out of the goodness of my heart. I did it because I was tired of being a puppet. Because I wanted to be in control. To rule the galaxy."

"No. You did it because you were tired of being out of control. Leia told me, Snoke's been filling your head with doubts since you were a child. Filling you with fear and pain, separating you from your family. You wanted that control back. You wanted your life back. You and I both know ruling the galaxy is a secondary goal. Something you came up with now to justify the fact that you acted out of reflex. You didn't want to kill me. You wanted Snoke to stop. Come back with me, Ben. Please."

She placed his hand over her heart, so he could sense her feelings, her genuineness.

She could feel the conflict within him, the struggle between light and dark. And she prayed that the light would win.

"It wouldn't be easy," he sighed. "The Resistance would hate me. They wouldn't trust me. They would lock me up, sure that it's some sort of trap. Do you think any of them will forgive me for what happened? I've hurt too many of them. Killed too many of them."

"It won't be easy," she agreed. "But doing the right thing rarely is."

He looked in her eyes, conflicted, "You would be there for me?"

"Every step of the way," she said, cupping his face softly, running her hand over the scar she had given him. "I'll tell them what you did. How you saved us all. Please, Ben. Come back with me. Come home."

He sighed, before he nodded. "Okay. Let's go. Before your traitor and his friend make their way back to the ship. They disabled the tracker on this ship, and it'll not be long before the Rebels are gone."

She felt herself smile, knowing the light had won out. That Ben Solo would be coming home.