The former emperor, the ever present voice in his head, was dead. What remained of the Sith Lord was little more than a smoking heap of rags and a desiccating heap that had been his body. They had fought him together though he had tried to divide them, attempted to wound one so it might infuriate the other. All he needed was to be struck down in hate and Palpatine would ascend to his replacement, to the new Sith Lord. He had underestimated them and he had failed. The walls around them began to crumble and the ground shook but he had sat on the floor unable to move, paralyzed as the darkness lifted, a cage he’d been trapped in for too long. His knees wouldn’t obey, his ribs might be broken and there was a good chance he had a concussion but none of those things had mattered. None of them mattered because Rey was alive, she was okay, and they did it. She eventually pulled him from his thoughts (or maybe it was his lack of thoughts, an inability to process anything) with a laugh and a smile. Reality had come crashing down around them with the next tremor; the structure was unstable and outside the Resistance was still engaged with the remnants of Palpatine’s and the First Order’s troops.
They had exited hand in hand, his fingers twined around Rey’s; she was his lifeline and in that moment the only thing that kept him from disassociating entirely. His heart was ready to burst out of his chest it was beating so quickly and with every insistent beat a trill of fear and hesitation whispered this isn’t real, like it was a dream waiting to turn into a night terror at any moment. But they did it. They had stopped Palpatine. Rey was alive. Rey was light and good and smiling and she looked up at him with… well, Ben wasn’t sure, but it flooded him with warmth. He had held her hand more tightly.
And then they got to the part he knew would eventually happen– the part that maybe Rey hadn’t entirely thought through or preempted: where they reunited with the Resistance in their victory. Ben knew, even as she landed the X-wing, that the moment the others saw him that he would be apprehended, but he said nothing. She smiled so bright, so warm like the sun, she was hard to look at, even as she had unfastened her harness. Ben had done the same and followed after her, limping. He hadn’t protested when they had taken him into custody; whatever part he might have played in putting a stop to Palpatine didn’t undo everything else that had transpired.
“I’ll be okay.” Had been the last thing he’d said to Rey as Poe and a number of Resistance guards had led him away. That had been a few days ago. There wasn’t a prison, not really, but they had managed to turn part of the cargo hold on the Falcon into a sort of holding cell. Maybe they thought it was poetic justice to lock him up in the belly of his father’s ship. It felt like him. Ben sat on the floor, legs folded and hands in his lap, eyes closed just as he had the majority of the past three days, in silent meditation.
Rey had been caught up in everything that had happened, her mind still trying to come to terms with what they’d managed to achieve. Together. It had only seemed like a moment since they had been fighting to death. And now, now they were revelling in the thought that they’d actually put an end to the Sith. Palpatine was dead. Of course there had been a moment between the two, Rey and Ben finally feeling the pure connection they shared but now they had to return to the others. The Galaxy didn’t stop, time wouldn’t stand still and they all had so much to handle beyond the war. Not to mention the celebrations but but that didn’t seem important as they arrived back to the resistance base, Ben being taken away in custody almost instantly. That had been difficult to witness but, deep down, Rey knew it was the only real option. Nobody would openly accept the return of Ben Solo, not when Kylo Ren had done so many terrible things to them all.
Naturally, Rey spent a little time with her friends. She was happy to celebrate with them, glad to know that they had all made it back in one piece. There had been many losses over the time it took them to take down the first order. Too many losses to really consider but the majority of those who mattered were there, ready to take on the clean up and move forward with a more balanced Galaxy.
The celebrations continued through the hours, everything seeming unreal for Rey until she finally pardoned herself to go check on the prisoner. Not that she could bring herself to call him that, he really wasn’t one. He was just being held in a place of safety, safety for them and him. So many were likely to want revenge upon him. STILL, Rey grabbed a few treats from the celebrations and headed into the hold, well, the section they were pretending was a hold. “I thought you might be hungry ... it’s not much, just a few treats we’ve been handed by the many who are thanking us for bringing and end to the war. I feel as though you deserve a little of that,” a smile tugged her lips as she moved to sit opposite him, placing the food down for him. “How do you feel? I know it isn’t easy facing all of those who you may have.... wronged but i do believe there is a place for you here. I truly believe that.”
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