Authors Note: Reached 400 views! Can't thank you guys enough. ♡ This one is a bit longer than the others, with good reason. Mascara alert!
*partially inspired by 'Never Enough' from The Greatest Showman sung by Loren Allred*
Ben awoke the next morning back in his own bed on the cruiser. He got up and went to shower. While he was eating breakfast, the trooper on guard knocked on his door.
"Supreme Leader, urgent news from the command deck." the trooper told him. Ben abandoned his meal and headed off to the bridge where Hux and Captain Herrera were waiting.
"What's so important?" Ben barked.
"Supreme Leader, we intercepted the trade of a star ship we believe was meant for the Resistance." Hux announced.
"Supreme Leader, the troops you have stationed on Tattooine were witness to a Rodian attempting to trade a J-type 327 Nubian star ship." Herrera informed him.
"A Rodian? You can't trust those green freaks." Ben spat. "How do you know it was for the Resistance?"
"Only the Resistance would be after a ship that rare." Hux said angrily.
"Who were they trying to trade it to?" Ben questioned.
"We aren't quite sure. They got away. We are trying to track them down." Herrera reported.
"Supreme Leader, this is just the lead we need to find those traitors." Hux told Ben, stepping forward.
"Then move the troop to Rodia and see if they know where one of them could have gotten one of those ships" Ben ordered.
"Yes, Supreme Leader." Herrera said. Hux turned to look at Ben.
"We are getting closer each day to finding them. I just know it." He said.
Ben looked out at the galaxy from the bridge of the command deck. Yes, it did seem like they were getting closer to finding the Resistance. Which meant he was running out of time.
He left the deck and went to leave a note for Rey to continue their training the following evening.
XXX
The next day, Rey arrived for training with her saber in hand. She set her bag down on the floor and approached Ben where he stood at the center of the room.
Ben held his hand out to her. She smiled and went to put her hand in his. Ben shook his head.
"Your saber." He said, motioning with his hand. Rey pursed her lips in disappointment and handed her saber to Ben. He examined it, turning it over in his hands as Rey watched on. After a few minutes, he handed it back to her.
"You will follow my techniques. Understood?" He said, grabbing his saber off his belt.
Rey nodded. Ben reached into a black box that had been sitting on the floor and brought out a combat remote and activated it. He ignited his saber He dipped and dived, turning and spinning the saber as he deflected the shots from the drone.
"That looks easy." Rey said.
"Oh really?" Ben said, stepping back. He flipped a switch on the back of the drone. "You try it then."
Rey stepped up and held her saber in the position Ben had taught. The first few blasts she easily deflected, but she was soon stung in the hand by one of them. She shook her hand. She blocked another combo of shots before being stung again, this time on her forearm.
"How is fighting a drone ---" She dodged another two shots. "Supposed to help in real life?"
She deflected a third shot to the drone, sending it spiraling. Rey smiled.
"Don't get cocky." Ben said with a smirk. He went and picked up the drone.
"Shots are going to come at you rapidly in battle. You need to be able to quickly deflect them. Or else...." he trailed off.
"Or I'll get hit?" Rey finished for him. Ben ran a hand through his hair, a glimpse of frustration on his face as he quickly recalled the dream of her being injured.
"We'll just make sure that doesn't happen." He told her. "Want to try some real combat?"
Rey nodded and got into position.
"I don't need another scar this time." He reminded her.
"I'll keep that in mind." She said.
They battled around the room, the hum of their sabers loud as they clashed and sparked. Ben lunged at Rey and she jumped back, his saber coming close to burning her.
They were in perfect sync as they continued their training. Every move he made she met with a counter strike. It was powerful and Rey felt stronger than ever. She dove towards Ben and he blocked her attack, their sabers inches from their faces as they stared at each other through the bright lights. Ben's eyes were filled with intensity. She stared back, trying to read his emotions. He drew back his saber and turned it off.
"Well done." He told her. Rey turned her saber off as well. He walked up to her and gave her a soft kiss on her forehead.
"I'm proud of you." He whispered to her. Rey gave him a small smile. She hugged him lightly around the waist as they stood there in the training room.
"Will you stay the night again?" He asked, running a hand through her hair. She nodded.
Back at Ben's room, they laid in each others arms. Ben was running a hand through Rey's hair as she lay her head on his chest.
"Your friends are slipping up." He told her.
"What do you mean?" She asked.
"Someone was trying to trade a Naboo Royal Starship to one of your fleet."
"How do you know it was for the Resistance?"
Ben snorted.
"It's a Naboo ship. They're on Naboo. Makes sense they'd want to have one."
"So what does this mean?" Rey asked.
"It means your time with your friends is coming to an end."
Rey clung tighter to Ben as he spoke the words. He continued to stroke her hair until she fell asleep, arms tight around his waist.
Early in the morning, Ben's alarm went off. He got out of bed and started to get ready for the day.
"Has anyone told you, you get up absurdly early?" Rey moaned sleepily to him.
"No. Then again, I never used to have an audience." He said to her.
"Come back to bed." She said, turning over in the bed, letting her hair fall across his pillow.
"I'm a very busy man." He said as he perused his closet.
"Is everything you have black?" She continued to pester.
"Would you rather I wear brown?" He shot back.
"I don't always wear brown." Rey defended. "Why does everybody say that?"
"Oh, excuse me. Brown or gray?" He replied sarcastically. She playfully threw a pillow at him. He picked out a jacket, sliding it off the hanger.
"We need to expedite your training." Ben told her as he shrugged on his jacket.
"I know, I know. The Resistance keeps slipping up. We need to be prepared."
"That's right." Ben said, striding to the kitchen, grabbing for a mug. Rey turned over in the bed, but before she could shut her eyes, the shattering of ceramic on the floor startled her.
"Ben?" She asked. She looked towards the kitchenette, his hands gripping the countertop.
"Ben?" She asked again. She got out of the bed and hurried over to him.
"Are you all right? What's wrong?" She asked. She touched his hand and she felt the pain. He looked at her and all he could say was "My mother...."
XXX
Rey raced down the hill towards the hanger, her heart racing. Her hair whipping behind her as she ran faster than she ever had before. She slid a couple times down the hill, scrambling against the wet grass to gain her footing.
She pulled open the door to the dormitories. The dining hall was empty save for a handful of Resistance fighters and one familiar face.
"Rey!" Poe said cheerfully. "You're up early."
"Poe, where is Leia?" Rey nearly screamed. She needn't say anything more. He whipped around, his plate of food clattering to the ground. He raced out of the hall and down towards the rooms, Rey at his heels. Rey slid in her muddy boots as she turned a corner, pushing back against it with the Force to keep from falling over.
Poe punched a button on the side of a door at the end of a hallway and he raced inside, falling to his knees.
Leia was slumped over on the floor next to her bed. Her knees were curled and an arm outstretched as if she had been reaching for help.
"Get the medical staff!" Poe yelled. Some of the other awake Resistance members had seen them running and one of them ran off to get help.
"Is she breathing?" Rey asked, as Poe turned Leia over.
"I.... I don't know." Poe said, his hands trembling.
"I NEED MEDICAL NOW!" Poe screamed. He placed a hand against Leia's neck, positioning her head so he could perform mouth to mouth resuscitation. BB-8 zipped into the room, spewing an alarming series of beeps.
"BB-8, go get Finn and Rose." Rey ordered.
Connix showed up in the room, a hand clamping to her mouth.
"What happened?" She asked Rey. Rey just shook her head.
A medical staff member got there at the same time that Finn and Rose did. Rose burst out crying.
"FINN, HELP ME GET HER ON THE STRETCHER!" Poe yelled. As the medical staff wedged a stretcher into the room, Poe took Leia's shoulders and Finn took her feet as they hoisted her onto the stretcher. The doctor placed a clear tube over Leia's mouth to get her oxygen and she was whisked away down the hall.
XXX
Rose and Rey held each other in the hallway with BB-8 next to them as Finn paced back and forth in front of the door leading to the makeshift medical wing.
"How did you know Rey?" Rose whispered to Rey as she continued to sniffle.
She couldn't tell them the truth. Not now. Maybe not ever.
"Rey?" Rose asked again.
"I..... I can't explain...." Was all Rey could choke out. Rose started crying again. BB-8 gave a sad, slow beep.
After several hours, Connix emerged from the medical room. Her eyes were puffy from crying.
"Well?" Finn asked.
"She needs assistance to breathe." Connix told them, her voice wavering.
"Do they know what happened?" asked Rose.
"They think a heart attack." She said, referring to the medical staff.
"Is she going to be okay?"
Connix just burst into tears. Rose left Rey's side to go and console Connix, the women hugging tightly. Finn headed towards the door.
"Wait, Finn." Rey told him. He stopped, and gave her an understanding nod. Instead he went back to Rose, rubbing her back as she continued to sob.
Rey entered the medical wing. Poe was sitting on a stool at Leia's side, holding one of her hands. The clear tube was still placed over Leia's mouth. She was hooked up to a large white machine that beeped every so often.
"Rey! Oh dear what a horrible day it is!" C3-PO said to her from the corner of the room. R2-D2 was in there as well, his blue light slowly flashing in a sad fashion.
"Shut up C3-PO." Poe told the droid.
"Could we have a moment?" Rey asked the protocol droid.
"Certainly. Excuse me." C3-PO said, exiting the room stiffly. R2-D2 gave a sad whistle.
Rey laid a hand on Poe's shoulder. He continued to stroke Leia's hand with his thumb, his other hand resting on his chin, his eyes red.
"Poe....." She said. "Poe, you need to go take a rest. Let Finn and I take watch for a while." She told him.
He vehemently shook his head.
"No. I can't leave her." He said.
"Poe. Please." Rey said. Finn came in the room.
"Come on buddy." Finn told Poe.
"No, I'm not leaving." Poe said angrily. Rey and Finn exchanged worried looks.
"Poe, you need to rest." Finn told Poe, putting his hands on his friends shoulders.
"No." Poe said again.
"You can lie down out in the hall. I can get you a blanket. Just please." Finn encouraged. Poe's lower lip was trembling.
"We will be right here. I will be right here. I won't leave her." Rey told Poe. He hung his head and began to sob into Finn's shoulder. Rey's heart broke as she watched his pain. Finn patted Poe's back, almost struggling with Poe's weight as he cried. Finn led Poe out into the hallway. Rose there with a blanket, draping it over his shoulders as the medical doors closed.
Rey sighed and took a seat on the stool Poe had occupied earlier. R2-D2 continued to slowly blink blue in the corner. She reached out with both hands and took Leia's cold soft hand into her own. She rubbed her thumb across the back of Leia's hand. The machine in the corner still beeped. Rey felt tears begin to flow from her eyes as she stared at Leia. Her face and lips were pale.
R2's light sequence changed from blue to red and he curiously beeped at Rey. She slightly jumped as she felt a looming presence behind her. She turned her head to look behind her.
"Ben?" She whispered.
Ben looked sick. He stared down at his mother with such pain in his brown eyes, her eyes. Rey could feel his aura radiate around him and it made her stomach knot. He didn't say anything to Rey, he just slowly approached the bed. He continued to stare down at Leia. He took her hand out of Rey's hand and stood there for a few moments, holding it gently.
Ben used the Force to show his mother all the good memories he had of her. A young Ben gifting his mother the perfume he had purchased from Naboo. Han standing back from them, watching and smiling. Leia bidding goodbye to Ben as he was leaving for training with Luke. Her small frame having to reach up to kiss him on the cheek.
Ben showed her the guilt he felt for killing Han. How he had been promised by Snoke this was who he was meant to be, how it would end all his confusion. How it only resulted in Ben feeling confused more than ever. How he hadn't pulled the trigger during the attack on the Resistance's capital ship. He showed her how he had been the one to kill Snoke in an attempt to gain control back of his own life.
He showed her Rey and how he had kissed her in the field on the hills of Naboo. How Rey made him happy. How he wished she would be happy for him. He showed her what life could be like, the two of them. He showed her Rey in his arms, her smiling up at him as she cradled a growing belly which he gently touched in return. And most of all, he showed his mother what she always knew. That there was still light in him.
He let go of her hand and turned away from her.
"Are you going to say anything?" Rey quietly asked Ben, not looking up at him.
"I said all I needed to." He told her, and with that he was gone.
Rey blinked back tears. R2's light sequence turned back to blinking blue.
There was skip in the monitor and Leia's hand twitched. Rey hurriedly grabbed for it.
"Leia?"
Leia weakly moved her head to the side, her eyes searching the room.
"Ben...." She whispered under the breathing device. "He..... He was here....." She whispered to Rey.
Rey kind of laughed as tears dripped from her lashes.
"Yes! Yes, Leia. He was here." Rey told her, gripping at her hand. Leia moved her other hand to lay on top of Rey's.
"He loves you." Leia told her. Rey looked down and smiled.
"I kind of figured." Rey said.
"Thank you." Leia whispered.
"For what?" Rey asked.
"For bringing back my son." Leia said. She closed her eyes and the machine in the corner began to loudly beep. R2's light sequence flashed to red.
"Leia? LEIA?" Rey cried.
Everything seemed to happen in slow motion.
Rey turned and screamed for Poe and Finn. They burst into the room. Poe grabbed Leia's hand out of Rey's hand and laid his torso on the bed. He gripped at Leia's hand, his body wracking with sobs. Finn had one arm around Rose, the other around Rey, as they stood together and watched their beloved General and Princess leave the galaxy forever.