I

Rey had a project. While Poe and Finn were taking the lead in finding a planet for the three of them to settle down on, Rey was busy. She had travelled to Tatooine with a plan about what to fix and how to do it.

She first fixed the Lars moisture farm. Clear out the sand, patch up the weak spots, repair the damage caused by fire. Over the course of thirty years, so much sand had piled into the farm that Rey needed to use the Force to uncover the lower levels. Once she had cleared the way, she got to making repairs. A scavenger like Rey had no trouble finding bits and pieces scattered in the sand and figuring out where they had once belonged. BB-8 was also a great help, and it turned out that he enjoyed tidying up with Rey.

The Skywalker family had made a life here. Three generations had lived on the Lars moisture farm and it showed once Rey uncovered handmade blankets, clothes waiting to be folded, and models of Rebellion ships. The water system still worked in the home, and Rey poured herself a large glass to drink while she sat in the sand and stared at the sunset.

It felt the same as Jakku. It all felt different.

The first night, she curled up on what must've been Luke's old bed and slipped into a dreamless sleep. She hadn't dreamed since Exegol.

The second night, she simply fell asleep on a couch when she became too tired looking at old holos. Again, she didn't dream.

By the third night, Rey laid in Luke's old bed, throwing her mind out into the Force in an attempt to dream something, anything. There were no visions, no memories, not even a lighthearted dream of Finn or Rose arm-wresting C-3PO.

Rey was trying to fix her mind. Or maybe her soul.

She was having trouble with both those days.

Hence the exile to Tatooine.

Poe and Finn tried to join her. Rose had privately offered to keep her company. Even Chewie insisted she not go alone. Ultimately, she settled for taking BB-8 under the condition she bring him back without a single bent antennae. There was a collective sigh of relief when everyone realized Rey would have some sort of companionship.

Rey didn't know how to convey to him that she had always felt alone since Exegol. No matter how full the room, no matter how much love surrounded her, Rey felt like she was hollow. Like something was missing.

She hoped to fix that, too.

II

Rey didn't mind sand. She had grown up with a healthy layer of it on her at all points in the day. Water was scarce on Jakku, so she learned to take sand baths. As a child, she drew in the sand when she couldn't find anything else. She could build with sand, and she frequently needed to fix her former home as the AT-AT began to rot.

But as she stared out over the endless sea of sand that was Tatooine, she realized how much she would hate to live out her life there. It was no wonder that Luke had left, just like his father before him. There was so much more to the galaxy than sand, and once the purpose of this exile was over, she was ready to settle down somewhere with water and rain and then travel to every corner of the galaxy with her friends.

She couldn't do that without fixing everything, though.

Rey sat at the kitchen table and skimmed through one of the sacred texts as she ate a dinner from her ship. The text was old and rotting from being confined to their tree on Ahch-To. Even if the pages were pristine, she would still have to contend with the scrawled handwriting and bits that were scratched out and scribbled over.

It didn't help that the book was Sith. While written in Basic, the entire text felt wrong. Reading it made Rey remember Exegol, how cold and unnatural it all felt. She shoved aside that feeling, because she needed unnatural. She needed what the Jedi couldn't give her.

While she was the legacy of all Jedi, she had also killed Palpatine. He had wanted that, yes, but it hadn't gone according to his plan. Rey didn't share a body or a mind with him, but she had inherited the Sith. She felt balanced having two legacies in her. So, with that, Rey felt it was entirely appropriate to flirt with one legacy in order to honor the other.

She also didn't entirely care if she upset the Jedi. Or the Sith. Or the entirety of the Force.

Rey was going to bring Ben home.

The idea had come to her a few nights after Exegol. Rey had spent the day celebrating with the Resistance and planning a future with Poe and Finn, and she had been truly happy. The joy she felt wasn't faked at all, and she desperately wanted to run away with her friends and enjoy a life as normal as she could find.

But the moment she returned to her chambers, she collapsed to the floor, same as she had done every night before. Sobs racked her chest as she crawled into her bed and slipped Ben's shirt over herself. She was hurt in a way that went deeper than a physical pain. Something was wrong with her. Something was wrong with the Force.

As she sobbed and held her pillow close to her chest, the same thought ran through her mind, just as it had since the moment Ben had died.

How dare the Force take him?

The Force had taken him when they had only been given such a small time together. They only ever had duels or stolen, tender moments through the Force. They deserved more. She deserved more.

And so, when Rey spotted the Sith texts in the moonlight, seemingly perfectly placed to catch her attention when she needed an answer, she understood what she needed to do.

Rey knew she and Ben had been more than Jedi, more than Sith. She wouldn't let herself be bound by their laws.

"You can't keep him," Rey hissed through her tears.

The idea quickly took hold, and it took a week to plan it. Where would she perform such a ritual? How would she explain her absence? What could she do to protect herself and Ben's soul? What would she do in case something went wrong?

What would she do in case it all went right?

She told her plan to no one. When she announced she was leaving for Tatooine, everyone assumed she was privately paying her respects to Luke and Leia. Which, admittedly, was part of it. Burying lightsabers was a lovely memorial, but saving Ben Solo once and for all would be much better.

Rey hadn't told anyone in the Resistance about what happened on Exegol. Finn and Poe were under the belief that Ben had drowned in the ruins of the Death Star. Rose, who Rey always knew was more clever than anyone in the Resistance gave credit, had approached Rey in a much more private matter.

"What happened to Kylo?" Rose asked one night as she sat on the corner of Rey's bed. Rey's heart hammered. Had she seen Ben's shirt? His cloak? Maybe she had just put everything together. Maybe she was about to unload the shame of the entire Resistance onto Rey. How could she have fallen for Kylo Ren, a monster?

"I just remember how you spoke about your bond. How hurt you sounded when he betrayed you. And I figured… you know…" Rose said, trying to be delicate.

And then, Rey realized that Rose was just being a good friend.

"I'm not… I'm not sure I'm ready to talk about it," Rey admitted. Rose smiled and took her hand. Her smile spoke volumes toward her understanding of grief.

"That's okay. I'm here if you ever are."

Rey vowed that after her exile, she would become better friends with Rose. If everything worked, Rose could be the only friend who would listen to Rey.

She still remembered the way Finn had recoiled when she told him about their connection through the Force. His disgust was so clear that she hadn't begun to explain what exactly those moments of connection meant to her. Really, she couldn't blame him. Finn and Poe and Rose all only knew him as Kylo Ren or, even worse, Supreme Leader Ren.

Rey knew Ben Solo. She loved Ben Solo. And he was who Rey was bringing back.

III

At dawn on the fourth morning of her exile, Rey meditated. Mediation was always a difficult task for Rey, but that morning she was determined.

On Exegol, she had finally heard every Jedi who came before her.

She needed to feel their presence again.

Rey stepped into the center of the farm and settled into a comfortable position. Morning on Tatooine was cool, which was radically different from the constant heat of Jakku. Ben's cape was draped over her shoulders. She had discovered it on the ship he'd used to find her on Exegol. It was difficult for her to go through the ship and realize that the only things she had of Ben's were his clothes he left behind and his cape. But it was enough. It would have to be enough.

Rey unspooled her mind and reached out into the Force. There was a balance to her now that she had killed Palpatine, but that wasn't enough to bring her peace. Not when Ben was dead.

"Be with me."

As her consciousness expanded through the Force, she felt the energy of every Jedi ever born brush against her. Their touch felt like a comforting hand on the shoulder, helping her through her grief. They didn't say anything, but they let her know they were there. She didn't want to talk to any of them, anyways. They might know what she was up to and try to stop her.

There was one particular presence she was looking for. Rey didn't know what she would do if she found Ben and managed to communicate with him. Every morning she would seek him out and every morning she would find every Jedi she didn't care to talk to. It didn't matter, really. She was going to bring him back regardless of if she found him or not.

Be with me, Ben.

Rey just wanted desperately to talk to Ben, even if for a moment. There was so much she hadn't been able to say, and there was a chance that the ritual might not work.

She reached out as far as she could, asking a question over and over.

Where are you, Ben?

Rey sat there for almost an hour, searching the cosmos for Ben Solo. It was hard for her to give up when Ben hadn't given up. He had dragged himself, broken and bleeding, back to Rey. He had brought her back from the dead.

The least she could do was return the favor.

Rey didn't remember much about being dead. All she remembered was a pain and then relief, like she'd never hurt again. She remembered nothing of what came after. And yet, even as she slipped away, she had been screaming Ben's name into the Force.

Then she was back and Ben was there, alive and perfect, holding her close.

Rey sighed and ended her mediation session. Keeping Ben's cloak wrapped tight around her, she went to finish setting up for the ritual.

There was nothing in the Sith texts to lead her in this ritual. The texts had explained two things. First, there was a way to bring him back, a way to find him in the Force. The second was that the emotions of the Dark side like love and passion were a way to hone her power into a weapon.

With that weapon, Rey would tear open the universe to get Ben back. And then she would shape that weapon into a tether and guide Ben back home.

She didn't exactly know what she was doing, but she hoped it would work. If Palpatine could come back from a pathway of hatred and fear, then she could bring Ben back through love and hope.

BB-8 chirped curiously around her legs as Rey hunted through the Lars farm for rocks and gems she could use for the ritual. When she let him know the general size she was looking for, he returned only a few moments later with dozens of options for her to pick and choose from.

He was truly the best droid.

Rey arranged the rocks and gems into a wide circle and set Ben's clothes into the center. She had taken everything from Exegol and stacked them neatly, but not before burying her face in his shirt. If this worked, she wouldn't have to cling to a memory so tightly. Once again, Rey draped his cloak over her shoulders.

BB-8 made a concerned noise.

"I'm going to try and find Ben," Rey said, shifting her position.

BB-8 made a distressed noise.

"I can explain everything that happened afterwards, but I need you to trust me."

The noise that came from BB-8 at that was somewhere between confused and disbelieving.

"Even if I can't find him, I'm sure I'll be fine. I need you to guard the perimeter, though. If anyone, anyone shows up, you need to hold them back until I return back to my body. Even if it's Poe and Finn. Especially if it's an enemy. Just please do that for me, okay?"

BB-8 sounded like he wanted to blow a circuit, but instead, he rolled across the courtyard and watched.

Rey took a deep breath. This was it. This was the moment of truth.

Ben, I'm coming for you.

And then Rey

left her

body

b

e

h

i

n

d

IV

Rey was floating. She was infinite and formless, as she moved among the stars, she felt the power of the Force become her very self. It was nothing she had ever felt before, nothing any Jedi before her had ever felt.

She thought briefly of Luke, dying by moving across the Galaxy to speak to Ben. Part of her wondered if she would meet the same fate.

Maybe she and Ben were doomed to keep dying for each other over and over again.

She let her consciousness expand, reaching out into every part of the Force. She was searching, leaving no part untouched.

Now, when she felt the presence of the Jedi of the past, they were trying to grab her. Trying to stop her. But she was too determined to stop. She couldn't.

Not until she got Ben back.

She dove deeper into the Force she'd ever gone before. Part of her was aware of her body, sprawled on the floor of the Lars farm. But she was nowhere near there. She was moving closer and closer to the furthest parts of the Force. Life pulsed around her. She was everywhere and nowhere. Everything that ever was and everything that would ever be was moving through her.

Or maybe she was moving through it. She wasn't a physical being. It was hard to tell.

The longer she stayed away from her body, the harder it would be to return. That rule was written in every text about both the Light and Dark side of the Force. Rey didn't care about that risk. She wouldn't leave until she found him.

Ben

Ben

Ben

Ben, where are you?

Rey thought of him. Of everything they had experienced. She remembered their bond, the one she had only reached out to him through once. Being connected to Ben was so natural, so seamless.

Palapatine had said they were a dyad. One soul. Two bodies.

She didn't know how long she had been away from hers. Maybe ten minutes, maybe ten years. Time seemed to stop as she moved through the Force.

But she and Ben were one. She could find him. All she needed to do was reach.

So she went deeper again.

The Jedi had stopped grabbing her. She was moving freely, but it was all so overwhelming. She had come to look for Ben, but she was becoming swallowed by the Force.

Ben was part of her soul. He had died to save her.

Ben

Where was her body? Where had she come from?

Where was Ben?

Ben

Be with me, Ben.

Rey was drowning. This hadn't been a mistake, she wouldn't ever regret chasing Ben to the edge of existence, but she hadn't realized it would be like this. She didn't know she could become nothing.

Nothing.

Ben had once told her she wasn't nothing to him.

She reached out through their bond, screaming his name.

They were bonded in a way the Galaxy hadn't seen in recorded history. They had saved each other.

Was this what it had felt like when she was dead? Had Ben pulled her back from this?

She would pull both of them back from this.

She would find him.

If she could remember.

Who was she?

Who-

Rey.

V

Ben's presence shot through Rey, and she remembered who she was.

Ben, she cried into the Force. She couldn't speak, not really. Her body was so far away.

How did you find me? How did you get here? Ben asked, and Rey latched onto him like he was an oasis in an endless desert.

I don't remember. I don't know, she admitted.

I'm dead, Rey, Ben said, and it hurt Rey to hear.

Maybe I am too.

Not if you leave this place, Ben said. And you can. I know you're strong enough.

Rey could only see stars, and she tried desperately to find Ben. Surely he must have a form. Luke and Leia had appeared in a form. She wanted to see him.

Where are we? Rey asked.

I'm not sure. Somewhere between every layer of existence. Somewhere for the dead. Which is why you need to leave, Ben begged, voice becoming frantic.

I won't leave without you, Rey insisted. I came to find you. I came to bring you home.

That isn't possible, Ben said.

Trust me, Ben. We can do it.

Ben didn't say anything for a moment, but Rey knew he was still with her. She could feel him. That is what had been missing from her mind, that is what had been paining her soul this entire time. Ben was a part of her. And all this time he had always been with her.

Okay, Ben said. I trust you.

Where are you? I can't see you, Rey said, again looking into the Force. She was met only with stars.

I'm with you. Just go and I'll follow. I promise, Ben said.

I'm not sure I remember how to get back, Rey said. I can't remember where I came from.

Just reach out. Like like you did to find me.

And you'll follow me?

I will follow you anywhere.

So Rey reached. She felt her mind brush against Ben's as she threw it as far as it could go, searching for something to connect her to the world of the living. She was so far from where she had come, but being with Ben seemed to amplify her reach.

Further and further, Rey searched for a thread of connection. She was so close. She had come so far. She had found Ben.

All that was left to do was to bring him home.

Rey felt something: the barest connection in the Force. It was a crack that had almost been closed after she had gone to this deep and lost place.

Let's go, Rey said.

She took hold of that connection and pulled herself toward it, even though it seemed like the entirety of the Force was holding her back. But she had to lead Ben. They had to go home.

I'm here. Just keep going.

Rey pushed at the end of the deepest part of the Force. She could see the path back home but couldn't reach it.

So she did what every text had told her she could do: turned the Force into a weapon. Rey concentrated on their love and combined her power with Ben's and imagined it as a lightsaber, a blaster, any weapon at all.

And she used it against the Force itself.

There was a disturbance through the Force that rattled Rey to the core of her existence. Like it had been broken and ripped wide open just for her and Ben.

They rose together, right before the Force fused shut behind them.

Don't look back, just keep going, Ben said.

And she did.

They kept climbing, dragging themselves closer and closer to where Rey had come from. As Rey rose with Ben behind her, she remembered where she had left her body. She remembered that she even had a body.

She felt like she was reforming, like she was becoming more and more real as she brought Ben back. This was the most real she had ever felt.

She was Rey. Just Rey. And she had saved the Galaxy. He was Ben Solo. Kyo Ren. And he had saved her.

They were a dyad. The Force had made them as one.

And in one liberating moment, they were reborn as one.

VI

Rey awoke gasping. She was cold despite setting suns and trembling all over. BB-8 was screaming nearby, and Rey wanted to tell him she was alright, but she couldn't find her voice.

Someone squeezed her hand, holding on for dear life.

Ben.

Ben was next to her, looking just as he did the last time they were together. He was in shock, staring at Rey with disbelief clear on his face.

"Rey," he said, and Rey burst into tears. She rolled over to him and held him tight, never wanting to let go. Because he was real and alive and in her arms.

"Rey," he said again. Rey could hear he was crying, too.

They were alive.

They were alive and together.

VII

BB-8 had rolled off in a huff and was somewhere deep in the Lars home. She was sure that he was grappling with the programming dilemma if he should contact Poe about this or shock Ben and deal with it himself. Rey gave it a fifty-fifty choice for either option.

Ben and Rey made love under the setting suns. They were both inexperienced, but they were together and alive and couldn't stop smiling.

Rey had once been told that belonging lay ahead of her, not behind.

She found that belonging in Ben's arms.

Once it became too cold, they went inside and found a long-unused bed to climb into.

"I never imagined you coming for me," Ben said as he ran a hand through Rey's hair. It had been so long since she had last worn her hair down, but it felt perfect. Like she was finally happy and free.

"No one had ever come back for me," Rey said. "Except for you."

"So it was to get even?" Ben asked, and, before Rey could contradict him, he smiled.

That smile stopped Rey's heart, and she had to kiss him again.

"What do we do now?" Rey asked a few moments later.

"Do you want to stay here?" Ben asked. Rey shook her head.

"No. No, we're going to explore the Galaxy together. Poe and Finn are looking for a planet we can all settle down on. And then I'll take the Falcon and we can roam as we please," Rey said.

"'All'?" Ben asked. His voice was small, fragile.

"I can't imagine a life without you. We'll go back together, and we can figure it all out. They'll warm up to you. I know it," Rey said.

Ben didn't look convinced, but he nodded. Up close, Rey could finally appreciate how beautiful he was.

"They'll love you, Ben. Just like I do," Rey said, and Ben couldn't hide his shock.

"What did you-?"

"I tore apart half of reality to find you. Of course I love you," Rey said. Ben's eyes welled up with tears, and Rey thought of how lovely it was to share her soul with Ben Solo, someone who cried with joy.

"I've loved you since Starkiller Base," Ben admitted in a rush, and Rey smiled.

"Invading each other's minds and cutting your face cut open. Very romantic," she said, and Ben laughed through his tears. And then she added, "You know I've loved you since that night in the cave. Maybe since before then. I'm not sure."

"It was messy," Ben said.

"Very."

For the first time in her life, Rey fell asleep in someone's arms. Ben didn't have to tell her, but she knew it was a first for him, too.

They fit like they were made to be together.

VII

There were some complications, though.

Over the next few days, Rey and ben both realized that Ben being dead for more than a few minutes meant that he had come back just a little different.

Ben was always cold. Regardless of how hot it was on Tatooine, his body never warmed. This concerned Rey until they both realized that it didn't affect him at all. He was just cold.

"This means we could move to a hot planet, now. I could personally keep you comfortable," Ben said, with a tone suggesting he had tried to make a joke somewhere. Rey laughed all the same, because she loved him. She also vowed to make sure he hung out with Poe and Finn so he could relearn how to make a joke.

Then they discovered that Ben could slip into the Force far too easily. Usually, one would need to meditate and find a calm before reaching out, but Ben could do it on command, regardless of what he was doing.

"I don't like this," Ben said. He was shaking as Rey helped him sit on a couch. BB-8 hissed in a corner but didn't leave the room, which was an improvement.

"I'm sure it's fine. You're just more in tune with the Force now," Rey said, pouring him some water.

"It makes me feel like I have one foot still in the grave," Ben said, and Rey sat down next to him and waited while he drank some water.

"Whatever it is, we can figure it out. And I won't let the Force take you back," Rey vowed. "I broke it once to get you back. I'll happily do it again."

She kissed his hand after that, and Ben couldn't help but smile and lean into her side. BB-8 made a rude comment and Rey just rolled her eyes and kissed Ben's cheek.

They would need to leave soon. Rey had commed Finn one morning and he announced that he and Poe wanted her to come look at the countryside of Naboo. Ben was hiding in the hallway and almost let out a snort, which Rey couldn't even be mad about, because she loved to know Ben was able to laugh.

"It's so nice here. It's a core world, so we won't be isolated, but we'll have some privacy here. We can have a normal life, just the four of us," Finn said.

"Four?" Rey asked, nervous. There was no way he could've seen Ben. And if he did, there was no way he'd be so ready to accept Ben living with them. Out of everyone in the Resistance, Rey figured either Finn or Poe would be the coldest to Ben.

"I, uh… I convinced Rose to come with us. She was so determined to stay and help pick up the pieces, but we talked about it and we all need some time. Especially me and her," Finn said. Rey beamed and clapped her hands.

"That's so wonderful, Finn! Honestly the best news you could've given me," Rey said, and Finn made a gesture to say it was no big deal.

"Come soon, okay? I'll send you the coordinates," Finn said. Rey bit the inside of her lip, and pulled on her hair nervously.

"I'll come tomorrow."

"That's perfect. I can't wait," Finn said, pumping his fist in victory. Before he ended the comm, he added, "Your hair looks nice when it's down. You seem really at peace."

He had no idea.

Ben stepped into the room once Finn had disappeared. He looked exactly how Rey felt.

"You're leaving tomorrow," Ben said.

"We're leaving tomorrow," Rey responded without having to think. "Nothing can separate us. Not even being afraid of what will happen when everyone sees you," Rey said. Ben sat next to her on the bed and took her hand.

"It'll be okay. I'm sure it won't be easy right away, but it has to happen," Rey said.

"They hate me. I just don't want them to hate you," Ben said, and Rey bumped him with her shoulder.

"They won't. I promise. We had a nice week here, but it's time to move on. We have a whole life to live together, and figuring out what to do with the legacy of Kylo Ren is part of it," Rey said, and she frowned when she saw how Ben flinched at his old name.

"Maybe there isn't a place for me in the Galaxy," Ben said.

"Of course there is. No matter what happens, we'll be together. And, besides, your legacy doesn't have to be Kylo Ren. It could be Ben Solo, the man who helped save the Galaxy. Ben Solo, who ended a war his mother started. Ben Solo, a kind man," Rey said.

"I like that last one."

"It's my favorite, too."

"Maybe: Ben Solo, the undead," Ben said, and then he waited for Rey to laugh. Which she did, because he was Ben, half of her soul, and he was trying so hard to be funny, just for her.

It was a good start.

VIII

The last thing they did on Tatooine before they left the next morning was pay respects to the Skywalkers.

Ben knew that there were three Skywalkers and Lars laid to rest on the farm, and with Leia and Luke's lightsabers buried in the ground, that made a total of five to honor.

Owen and Beru, Ben's great-uncle and great-aunt, had never been properly buried. Their bodies just rotted away to dust in the desert. So Ben hunted through the farm until he found a slab of stone large enough for his idea.

Rey held her breath as he knelt next to BB-8.

"Would you be able to carve, 'Owen and Beru Lars, Together in this World and the Next'?" he asked. BB-8 looked at him for a few seconds before making a gentle noise of agreement and getting to work.

Rey wanted to cheer. If BB-8 could warm to him, that meant that everyone else could, too.

Shmi Skywalker had a proper grave on the farm, so Rey and Ben knew where to visit her. They debated over how to honor her before deciding to pour water over her grave.

"It's a tradition on Jakku, because water is so scarce. Giving some up for the dead is the ultimate sign of respect," Rey explained as she filled up a pitcher.

"How did you ever survive?" Ben asked, frowning.

"It wasn't easy. But somehow I made it," Rey said.

After they honored Shmi, BB-8 announced he was done engraving. They fixed the slab in the center of the courtyard, where it would be safest eroding in the desert.

Then came the hardest for Ben.

Luke and Leia.

"It feels like robbing a grave," Ben said as he and Rey knelt in the sand.

"Don't think of it like that. Think of it as receiving some heirlooms," Rey said, and made a dubious face at her.

"If you think they'd want me to have them, why bury them at all?"

"It was a nice gesture. And I wasn't completely sure I'd be able to bring you back. Which I did. So, now let's get you two family lightsabers," Rey said, pressing her hands into the sand. It began to part and shift, bringing to the surface both Luke and Leia's lightsabers.

Ben picked up his mother's first.

"So this is what it looked like," he said, admiring it in the early morning light.

"I think it's pretty," Rey said.

"My mom always made sure she was the best dressed person in the room. Everyone told me she got it from her mother."

Then he picked up Luke's saber, testing the balance.

"You looked good fighting with it," Rey said, and Ben couldn't stop the dorky smile that came over his face.

"I think I'll make this one my primary one. And then hold onto my mother's," Ben said, putting both in a bag he'd found inside the farm.

"I'm sure they're happy. Maybe they'll get to tell you that," Rey suggested, and Ben shrugged.

"Maybe the Force is going to blacklist both of us because we cheated it," Ben said.

"If it does that, I'd still think saving you was worth it."

IX

"I think the best plan is that you get off the ship first and warn them," Ben said, and Rey snorted from the pilot's chair.

"Why? Are you afraid they'll shoot you?"

"Yes. That's exactly what I'm worried about," Ben said, completely deadpan.

"Fine. Then I'll get out first. But I don't think warning them is going to help the situation at all," Rey said, adjusting her legs from their position over Ben's.

"Then what do think will?" Ben asked.

"Nothing. We just have to let them freak out and then I give them the full story. Starting with me admitting that I wanted to take your hand in the throne room," Rey said.

"I'm sure they'll hate that," Ben said.

"They will. But they'll get over it. And then they'll realize you're not Kylo Ren," Rey said, pulling her legs back from Ben and sitting properly. They were approaching Naboo and she took their ship out of hyperspace.

"This is it," Ben said as they cut through the atmosphere. They had put on the ship's automated landing sequence and were landing near the bay door. BB-8 was in front of them, though he had promised to let Rey explain everything before he could.

"We're going to be okay, Ben. We saved a Galaxy. We both died. You meeting my friends is hardly a challenge at this point," Rey said, even though Ben looked a little queasy.

"Speak for yourself," he mumbled, and Rey pulled him down to press their foreheads together.

"I love you, Ben. So much," Rey said, and she was met again with Ben's smile.

"I love you, too."

The ship landed and the bay door began opening.

Rey gave Ben a light kiss, and she was ready.

A/N: I feel like I need to start by saying I actually had a lot of fun with TROS. Genuinely. But, as is tradition, the urge to write a fic overcame me moments after the leaving the theatre.

This time it felt like a bit of a responsibility.

Rey deserved to find a happy ending and be loved by Ben Solo. So I'll give it to her.