She's laying on the bed in the captain's quarters catching up on some 'light reading' when she feels the familiar hum of his presence. She hardly needs to look away from the sacred text in front of her to know that he's hunched over, facing away from her on the far edge of the bed.
"Hi," he begins softly, running his hands through his raven hair. When she doesn't reply he turns to face her on the bed and begins again. "I-I've…been doing some thinking."
Only then does she shut the dusty tome and look him in the eye, "You've been doing some…thinking?"
He turns his head away again, avoiding her gaze, but she doesn't miss the way he licks his lips and swallows before choking out, "Yes."
"And?" She bites the inside of her cheek, waiting for him to speak up. They've made up, of course, they did when Leia died, but she isn't planning on making this easy. They're still on opposing sides, and the ball is in his court.
"I've received some…visitors."
She already knows this. He knows she already knows this. He saw something, she felt it. He just hasn't been able to bring himself to talk about it.
He takes a deep breath, his bottom lip quivering ever so slightly. "What I saw…what I know now, it's changed everything."
Slowly, he reaches out to her with a tremoring hand, his palm outstretched, silently begging her to touch him, to let him show her what he saw. When she finally puts her hand in his, the bond sings, and she's flooded with visions of ghosts, visions of the past, and visions of the future- of what is yet to come.
When she comes back to herself, her heart is hammering in her chest. A thousand thoughts, a thousand feelings race through her mind, through the bond, and she doesn't even know who they belong to. Shock, fear, grief, shame, loneliness, regret, remorse, apprehension, dread. And yet, even still, there's hope, hope blooming in her chest, or maybe it's his, growing stronger and stronger by the second. There's hope, determination, and something else, something she's too afraid to name, radiating from both of them, for each other.
She hears Luke's words, and Anakin's, and she knows that neither of them can do this alone. This is their fight; it's their destiny. She knows what they have to do.
"We have to finish what he started."
He inhales sharply, his dark eyes search hers desperately, glistening with unshed tears. She feels him through the bond, wondering if she means what he thinks she does. He opens his mouth to speak but she cuts him off before he can say anything else.
"Will you join me?"
He nods, a stray tear trickling down his cheek. "I'm sorry, Rey," he says, his voice shaky, "I'm so, so sorry. For everything."
She launches herself at him, then, wrapping her arms around his neck, her legs around his waist. She buries her face into his neck and only then does she break. He holds her tightly as her body wracks with sobs, his hand weaving up into her hair, cradling her head. Tears fall on the back of her neck and she knows he's crying too.
"We can make it right, we can bring balance to the force" his whispers, and she knows at this moment she is exactly where she's supposed to be. She's afraid, terrified, to face an enemy more powerful than they've ever known, but she knows that with this man by her side, they can face anything.
This isn't the Kylo Ren of her past. This is the Ben Solo of her future.
He pulls away from her slightly, wiping the tears from her cheeks. In all the time she's known him, she's never seen him look so sure, so at peace. She tries her best to ignore the fluttering in her heart, but it's no use. To love him is her destiny, after all.
Where there once was conflict, there is now resolve. Resolve to finish what his grandfather started, to end this once and for all, to bring balance to the force, with her. Resolve to rise, as a Solo, as a Skywalker, as a son, as a grandson, as her bonded, her future, as whatever the force wills him to be.
She places her hand gently on his cheek and channels as much pride as she possibly can, willing him to feel just how proud she is of him, of how far he has come. She feels his gratitude and his awe of her pulsing through the bond, and she finally knows what it feels like to be valued, to belong, to be whole. Of course, she loves Finn and Poe, and Rose, and BB-8, and Chewie as her own family, but this is something else. This is meant for her.
"I know where you are," he says suddenly, pulling her from her thoughts, and she almost laughs. How did she ever think she could keep her location a secret from him? "I'm coming to get you."
"First, we fix the lightsaber. Then, we train."
"Yes, we train," he heartily agrees, and she wonders what exactly he's planning on teaching her. "We train, and then we fight."
"And what about after," she asks, although she already knows the answer.
His lips quirk into a small smile, his eyes shining with mirth, and she doesn't think she'll ever forget how he looked in that moment. "Then, we have forever."
She laces her fingers with his and returns his smile.
Yes, forever. After all, no one's ever really gone.