Perspective
On the salt-and-blood streaked surface of Crait, Armitage Hux regards the broken, kneeling man before him with a mixture of disgust and cold calculation. Light streams into the fortress that has survived not one, but two galactic wars through a gaping maw that hangs permanently open, burned into the cliffside by First Order weaponry. The light does not enter Hux's eyes, cold and glassy, but reflects onto the subject of his contemplation. Maybe that is why when he sees Kylo Ren, he sees insanity and fanaticism- the very demons that loudly whisper plans- murder, a coup, the galaxy his for the taking- in the young general's ears.
Shift.
On Yavin IV, Poe Dameron glares through a dense canopy of vegetation, eyes fixed on the spot where the steam rising from the planet surface glows faintly red. Insects buzz and swirl but the young captain hears only the ghost of a strange hum, like a cat's purr, that takes him back to Starkiller Base and to a crime that, like most done against him, he finds impossible to forgive. It's no surprise that he sees his own blind rage staring right back at him in the eyes of the boy-turned-emperor.
Shift.
Onboard a Star Destroyer, FN-2187 grins as his brothers and sisters begin to chant with him, not just because he knows a Stormtrooper rebellion will turn the tide of the war, but because his heart can't help but swell as they, who never knew they had a choice, choose to fight for freedom rather than live in bondage. He notices Rey- or more accurately, her distinctive blue lightsaber- on the other side of the hangar, flanked by a black-clad man that he doesn't recognize until they, by chance, make eye contact. His mind pings with recognition, and he recoils at first, until Finn notices something that he first faced in a battle on Jakku, all those years ago, before he was Finn, and is well acquainted with by now. Conflict. Kylo Ren has a choice to make.
Shift.
O nboard the Falcon, Leia Organa kneels by her son's bedside and strokes his hair. It's grown to be longer than it was the last time she had a chance to really look at him, covering those silly, beautiful ears. Having sustained significant wounds confronting the Knights of Ren, he needed rest to heal, and had curled up on a bunk in the back of the ship, just like he did when he was a little boy. At that thought, tears sting at the corners of Leia's eyes, one straying down her cheek and dropping onto her son's forehead. Ben opens his eyes- so like his father's- and looks up at her. She sees hope.
Shift.
On Ach-To, years later, Rey wakes to strong arms around her waist, and turns sleepily, burying her face into a broad chest in a vain attempt to block out the sunlight that floods their little room. She groans in protest as her newfound pillow stirs, but looks up at him nonetheless, blinking into the light as he rains little kisses down on her cheek, her nose, her forehead. The world comes into focus and Rey wakes up to a scarred face set with warm, smiling eyes that shine with adoration and peace.
Ben looks back and is as shocked as he was the very first time, to see nothing but love.