This has been my first piece of fanfic I've written since I was 15 ages ago. I used to write as a way to pass the time in the classes I had little interest in such as algebra 2 and geometry. I think I wrote an entire 200 page novel about Ewoks terrorizing various cantinas in the galaxy my 7th grade in computer lab. This is a canon divergence #Reylo romance which will start with a slow burn and T for teen rating but eventually move to a higher rating later. I do not own the rights to these characters nor do I expect any monetary gain from their likenesses.

Enjoy and may the force be with you!

Kylo Ren:

The flight was turbulent and could have made the most seasoned space traveler motion sick. He tried hard to push the memories from his mind. Seeing his father again, one last time then his fight with the girl had blown tight lid on that time of his life he wished to keep secret wide open. And Chewie too. Oh Force, Chewie had shot and wounded him! The girl and the traitor had given him a fair share of well landed blows as well. Had he not been already injured by the bowcaster there was a chance things would be different. The traitor would be dead, the girl however. It was her. He was certain now, it was her all grown up and returned to him. He could not kill her, he fought to disarm her but her fury had been something marvelous to behold. She fought with a rage and aggression that a cool headed Jedi would not use. Even practically overwhelmed by her, laying on the snow bank he saw in her there was no peace only passion. This girl although fighting for what she felt was righteous, she was not entirely the light. And then the rift physically separated them- forcing the fight to end in a draw. They will meet again and settle their differences at another time. Then the delirious feelings set in, he was injured in the snow and knew the doom was coming. He just laid back, his wounds now throbbing. Her words echoed in his mind, "You're afraid that you will never be as strong as Darth Vader!"

Now he barely knew where he was, Hux had found him just in time. It was lucky his belt contained a tracker that was always let The First Order know of his location. They may not like each other or see eye to eye but the ginger haired officer knew that had he let anything happen to the Master of the Knights of Ren, his career and life were both over. A vision of Snoke choking the life force from his thin body made him shiver. Yes, saving the ominous man in black had been the correct choice. Kylo was mumbling incoherently in the back of the shuttle while the med droid tended to his wounds.

"Give him something to make him shut up!" Hux called back. He needed to concentrate on navigating the debris field. "That's an order!" Had the Knight of Ren been full conscious and aware of what was said, Hux might not have lived to get the shuttle to safety. As the droid injected a sedative into Kylo Ren a hallucinogenic effect occurred pushing the knight deep into his mind and repressed memories.

Ben Solo:

"Why are you so cross?" The little girl's big hazel eyes were lit up with an intelligence and presence much older than her limited years. She squinted her eyes, as if she was unaccustomed to sunlight on her face and heat in general. There's no denying she where she had come from she had been under fed. Under cared for as well. Her lack of baby fat and when she arrived how unkept her hair had been said more than words ever could. He had never known what it was like to be either under fed or under cared for. Ben had felt a pang of regret for ignoring her all morning but he was sure she had been having a good time with her droids. It was the old way but he just wasn't too sure about a mewling like her practicing lightsaber arcs or being in the same space where he was trying to. Could her tiny hands even safely hold a lightsaber? She had found him in the dining hall when he had his lunch. Subsequently she had been following him ever since. After finishing his meal he tried to shake her but she kept stalking him, popping out playfully whenever he would stop and look to see where she was exactly. Ben always felt her force signature trailing not far after his. He was never too sure if he liked the attention or despised it. Possibly a little of both. He strode across the courtyard to the training room, which was entirely his for the afternoon. She followed, so he felt compelled to answer her.

"I'm not cross. You're annoying." Huffed Ben, the girl just laughed like he had told her the best joke in the universe.

He had grown a full foot taller that summer but was lanky as ever. He felt a little unnerved by the way she looked at him but Master Luke had said to be nice to this young one. Treat her with gentle firmness and be sensitive to her for she will one day be of great importance to you, had been Luke's exact words. He sighed. She was right, he was cross. His parents had shipped him off here five years ago. Master Luke listened but Ben never felt like he was heard. Ever since the sparing incident a month ago he had been stuck doing menial tasks around the academy. Babysitting the girl who for the entire week had been the bane of his teenage existence was just insult to injury. He wasn't sure if Luke was trying to teach him or punish him by making him watch over her. She had arrived less than two weeks ago. For the first maybe 5 days she would not leave Master Luke's side. She was hiding behind his legs in the folds of his brown robes, which Luke didn't seem to mind. He was very patient with this girl, more so than he had been with any others her age he had brought back from his travels.

Then she saw Ben. Her eyes had widened and she just looked took in his tall form. A smile spread across her lips and the apprehension written all over her face faded. It was as if she knew something about him no one else did. Ben rolled his eyes, silly girl. If she only knew about me! The other students tended to whisper about him behind his back and avoid him, which was most agreeable. The consensus was he was a spoilt little prince who was dumped on his uncle because his parents couldn't deal with him anymore. He had been gruff or just indifferent to everyone else. Almost looking down on them, not just due to his height. But there was her. The girl couldn't be more than 5 but here she was constantly on his tail like she was his shadow. For the first few days she didn't really speak. Her emotions and thoughts were conveyed through her giggles and written all across her face. He sensed a change in her force signature, since she had started stalking him. The light inside, it was pulsating and bright. Brighter than all the others, even Luke. The girl was no longer afraid of anything when he was near and had never been afraid of him.

And then she started talking. Force, did she ever start talking! Endless questioning, poor Ben had decided for certain she was placed under his watch as a test- of what however he wasn't entirely sure yet. The girl had an accent of someone who came from a Core world. Possibly Imperialistic or just high born. He shook the final thought from his mind. Master Luke had said she was so shabbily cared for it was had to tell at first if she was a little girl or a Jawa who knew the basic tongue. She wasn't so bad when she quieted herself or found something to keep occupied. She discovered the droids and if she hadn't been following Ben, she was talking with them. Ben had a sneaking feeling she was talking about him to them.

Her hazel eyes shined when they gazed upon him, he shook his head in defeat. She was a ray light when she realized he was letting her stay close to him. He had to admit, nuisance as it might be nobody ever looked at him like she did. Like she was thankful he was in her life. He suddenly felt too mushy inside for his own liking. He was a warrior, not a nursemaid. May as well put her to work for something useful.

"Come on, help me get stronger. I'm going to do some push ups, climb on my back and give me some extra weight to lift." She lit up, gave an excited giggle and clapped her hands excitedly. When she did the lighting in the room flickered off and back on a few times. Good luck with this one, Master Luke- he thought to himself.

She was good and sat still for him, legs crossed and he raise up and down at an even pace. She giggled just a little when she first climbed on his back, he sensed this was a new sensation for her. Ben realized for a moment that this girl had come from nothing and had not been traveling in space ships her entire life like him. At least if she came from nothing, no one could disappoint her. He was not yet a man but definitely not a boy. At 15 he was the eldest of Luke's students and was often forced to spar with boys who were only 12 or 13. He had always held himself back because inside he knew there was no equal for him to fight. Luke was getting so grey he wasn't sure if Luke was any match for his agility and energy level. How he hated being held back. He wanted to spar at full strength and test himself. He was the best and he knew it.

Oh look at you, how adorable. You're being her beast of burden. You're carrying her around as if you were her lackey. You're so weak and pathetic. Pretending to be good. Hurt her. End her. Make her your first kill. If you do not she will be your rival one day. Even the great Skywalker knows she will be your rival and your undoing if you do not eliminate her.

"No!" He cried out. Ben pushed the sinister hissing voice out of his mind. And collapsed on the floor. The little girl climbed off his back and looked at him alarmed. Did she hear all that? She couldn't have, Snoke only spoke to him. He rose to his knees. Before he had a chance to get up, her arms were around him hugging him. He felt a buzz all over when she did. It had been a long time since anyone had hugged him, let alone touch him outside of sparing. Ben searched his mind and thought long and hard. Chewie. Chewie had hugged him last. In true Wookiee style he had held him longest and hardest. It was five years ago when his father had dropped him off at the academy to start training with Luke. Chewie gave the best hugs. He resigned and folded his arms around her. He felt a pang of sadness for this little girl. She grew up without a Wookiee. And she grew up without space travel. Ben then found himself wondering when the last time was anyone had hugged her too. He held her tighter and smiled to himself, she may be annoying but she still needs to be hugged like this. Playfully growling a little he gave the little brunette girl a hug Chewie would give.

Rey:

She couldn't think. She had to pilot the Millennium Falcon with the big mourning Wookiee. She was high on adrenaline and hardly careful as she evaded the debris hurdling through space around her. She didn't stop to fully breathe until she was through hyperdrive. She felt a tinge of something in her consciousness. Incoherent moaning as if someone was finally feeling all of their battle wounds. He had lived somehow. Rey was sure of it and the thought made her angry. Kylo Ren lives to fight another day, she should have finished him. Han was gone, Finn was injured and unconscious, not to mention the poor Wookiee who's heart was broken. Rey stopped and thought a minute. He was definitely strong both physically and in the force- injured for certain, he had the upper hand and yet she could have killed him. She could have ended him. She had heard a voice inside telling her to she felt her rage bubbling up as look at him beneath her. He looked so pathetic and weak. And yet he had the nerve to tell her he would teach her. She had wounded him good. She smiled, a sense of pride for at least doing that. She wanted him to suffer for what he had done. She wanted him to hurt. She wanted him to know the pain he had caused her. The ground had opened up in time to save him from her. They would meet again for sure next time would be the last. She feared for Finn's condition and hoped they could reach the base in time. She had lost Han, she couldn't afford to lose her friend too. The thought caused her anger to cool into sadness. Chewie roared a little commiserating. Even though the mission had been a success, they both felt like they had lost.

KR:

The sedative was wearing off. Kylo was in the Finalizer's med bay in a bacta tank with a mask over his face. He panicked and fought in the tank until the computer recognized he was struggling and gassed him with a powerful sedative. His final thoughts as he slipped back into his mind were that Chewie shot him. The one who would pick him up and carry him away from the sounds of his mother and father fighting as a child had wounded him. It was for killing his father. The act should have let him give in fully to the dark and yet it didn't. There was no light, there was no dark only a void. He failed, just like his foolish father would have. He finally let what had been left of his ever blackening heart harden until brittle then fall to pieces. And then, it was her. She had escaped to safety as well. He could feel it. They would see one another again, he knew it was her for sure now. That last piece of his heart seemed to turn gold and glow bright.

BS:

The girl had been growing stronger every day. Just today she got hold of Ben's lightsaber and turned it on by herself. Holding it just as she had watched Ben do. He wasn't sure how she had unhooked it from his belt, she must have levitated it. She couldn't have called it to her. It was impossible but there she was, smiling and in a stance ready to fight. Laughing she made a few stabbing strike motions, something Luke had never taught his students but she seemed to know how to do this instinctively. First he tried calling the weapon back to himself to no avail. His vain attempts at the Jedi Mind Trick had been useless on her. It took him quite a bit of bribing to get her to drop it. Something about him letting her have his stash of sweets seemed to work. He decided it was time to talk to Master Luke about her. While she was worn out from a hike around the surrounding grounds with him (through most of which he carried her on his back like a tauntaun) and dozed on her bedding Ben located Luke in the meditation courtyard.

"Uncle, who is she?" Asked Ben. Whenever he said anything to Luke and called him Uncle rather than Master, it was always his way of saying please this is important. He could feel Luke's trepidation in revealing the girl's past. Ben may be growing into the body of a man but Luke sensing the turbulence in him that Leia was uncomfortable with still spoke to him as if he were a boy. His uncle hid things in half truths, omitting details. Unsure of what the dark presence was he sometimes felt when Ben was close by, Luke often wondered had he named Ben his Padawan too soon. He collected his thoughts and decided now was not the time and Ben needed to know everything about this little girl. After all, he saw them shaping each other's futures in more ways than one. They had both taken to calling her Rey although neither could decide who started calling her that first. She laughed at first whenever hearing her name, her eyes would shine. The sight melted Ben's angsty teenage heart. She had been helping him train every day now, ever since he had discovered she already had mastered using the force to levitate and move items. She would launch spheres for him to deflect. Sometimes she would change directions and he'd be struck before he could react. That was a bit annoying and her laughing at him didn't seem too nice but it just made him work harder. One thing was sure, she was learning fast.

"I had hoped there was no truth to the rumors. This girl has two roads before her. One that can lead to great good. Another that could lead to a darkness greater than anyone has known before. This is why it is imperative that this girl learn peace, patience and the greater good." Ben's face dropped, the girl was attached to him and he knew it. Whether he liked admitting it or not he was attached to her presence in his life as well. He could feel a dark rage growing in him but somehow she seemed to calm it and keep him focused. He knew attachment led to the dark side. He didn't want to lose his only friend and shadow. He also didn't want her to grow up to be like him. To feel the two sides battling for control. More than one time the voice inside had called for him to hurt her. He quickly hid his thoughts hoping his uncle wouldn't see that he truly cared for little Rey. Luke was luckily distracted in his own thoughts as if trying to make sense of the whole story. Ben didn't know how his uncle could do it. He was surrounded by young ones but kept his distance. How could he not be attached to any particular one?

"When you asked me to look after her, you said she would be of importance to me later in life. What did you mean?" He asked. He had wondered, half of him thought maybe it was Master Luke's way of manipulating him to being kinder to her than he was of the other students. She was not too much younger than him, he guessed she would not be selecting the home he would convalesce in should he live to that age. Was she meant to one day be his first Padawan? Would he be the one watching her become a true Jedi Knight? Or was the voice right, she would be his rival? He could barely contain his own emotions, how was he ever to show her how to control hers?

"It is fitting that she is under your wing, Ben. As someone of her blood once did the same to me. Your namesake, in fact. She is of the bloodline of Obi Wan Kenobi." It took great difficulty for Luke to say it.

"He sired a child? But you said this was a life of celibacy?" Ben looked puzzled, his teenage hormones had overshadowed his better judgement. He had urges and pretty frequently but was always successful of transmuting the energy into his lightsaber practice. A wry thought crossed his mind pretty frequently when he was doing that. He wished for a beautiful young woman who would match his ferocity and skill. One who would make him best her and give quite a good fight with their weapons, minds and spirits engaged. That might be the closest he could ever get to feeling what seemed a natural desire. He dragged his mind back to the present.

"Obi Wan, well Ben Kenobi had been tempted by a beautiful woman whom he cared deeply. She was royalty and he was tasked with protecting her. However he could not bring himself to break his vows. It would be untrue of me to say I have never been tempted with such a test. Alas she did not love me that way so I never had the exact same dilemma but I too craved the soft feminine touch. However such attachments lead to feeling which can lead down a path directly to the dark side." Ben looked down as Luke spoke. It seemed so bleak, so lonely. On this path he would never take a bride. The thought of multiple females was never appealing to him. Ben just wanted one. One who would see into his cold solitary heart and light it on fire. One who would match him as his equal. One who would be his home. One who's energies would counter his. Anakin had his Padmè after all. He looked around at the modest dwelling that was home to Luke's Jedi Academy. It is true he was raised somewhat with great status yet what would he have to offer a woman anyway? His worldly possessions could be fit in a small sack and had been brought with him here. Luke changed the subject from himself, which Ben was thankful for. Something about his master in love was just a topic he had a bad feeling about.

"The details are hazy but this much is true. He was unaware his niece, a young woman had been taken for as concubine for the Emperor. Her family had believer her dead. She was Force sensitive however not attune enough to use it. The Emperor must have either rather enjoyed her company or cared about something other than domination of the galaxy because he kept her quite some time until her death five years prior to the battle for Yavin. She died in childbirth, bringing into the world a girl who was a mixture of both Kenobi and Palpatine blood yet had no connection to the Force at all." Ben stepped back from his uncle and had a seat on the stone bench. He hoped Rey hadn't stirred from her nap and was close to hear any of this.

"With the death of his favorite concubine and the birth of a daughter he lacked any interest in, the Emperor had the child taken to a well to do sympathizer family in Coruscant. The instructions left were for her to be raised as one of their own and they were given a generous stipend but she was not. She was barely given what she needed to survive and made to serve the house. When she was barely a woman the man of the house took her as his bedwarmer as his wife had let their bed grow cold since bearing his legitimate children. It had not taken long for her young fertile body to be with his child. Her condition could no longer be hidden and her health was effecting her performance with duties. It was then the lady of the house turned her out on to the streets. She was near death when the abbess found her and brought her to the sanctuary. She lived long enough to bring our Rey into this world. The minute she was born her cries made the lights flicker and buzz. It only stopped when she calmed. Her mother never got to hold her in her arms, she was gone."

Ben's heart sunk. The poor girl. He looked down at his feet and had the sudden urge to go find her and pull her into his arms to give her a big Chewie worthy hug. He was sorry for telling her she was annoying. Sorry for being so cross with her. She must know none of this tale. He had to keep this secret from her even if it burnt him alive. He had often felt lonely and abandoned as a child but stars, he never experienced half of what she did in her short life. He was ashamed of the thoughts Snoke had poured into his head. This girl was born into pure suffering. He wouldn't hurt her intentionally. He wouldn't let anyone else either. If she someday became his rival, so be it but he refused to be her end. Luke looked at his Padawan and cocked his head in curiosity. Since arriving Ben had always seemed so cold and selfish. So indifferent to everything and everyone. Was this a flash of compassion he was picking up in his nephew? Luke continued.

"She grew up in the sanctuary. Nobody thought she would make it. When she was old enough to walk she let no one near her. It was as if she distrusted everyone. The people in charge have nothing but good intentions but they were still the poorest of the poor, living off donations and having to do whatever possible to make the credits brought in last. I had been contacted prior about her but…" Luke's voice trailed off. What he had to say next was hard to get out. "I was afraid, she is of the Emperor's blood line. She is also so force sensitive I feared I was too late and she had already attuned herself to the dark side. But she is a child who does not know better. Where you and I see suffering in her life, she has only seen her normal life. Ben, I asked you to guide her because you are both lonely and it's perfectly natural to need friends. Another soul for care for other than yourself. I also thought maybe in her you will find someone who will grow to be your equal. Guide her, show her what you know. Teach her. Show her how to use the force." What Luke said next sat on Ben like a boulder. "I trust you, Ben."

Thank you to Auraki for the pointers and being my person to talk Reylo with, my two beta readers who are Star Wars fans extraordinaire and my great boyfriend for being supportive while hearing me drool over Kylo Ren. I promise, Kylo means nothing to me. 3

When I first saw SW TFA I thought for sure our heroine's identity would be Han and Leia's daughter (sort of a Jaina Solo replacement) or Luke's daughter. I also believed the romance angle in Episode 8 when we got around to it would be Finn/Rey. It wasn't until halfway through the viewing watching Kylo Ren interact with his "guest" that I just said HANG ON! NO! I can't be seeing this right, there's something going on here that's more than meets the eye. As the film went on I realized a lot didn't add up with my original thoughts. I went home and talked to friends most in the Skywalker/Solo Camp. So I had to venture online to find others who saw beyond that. It seemed our villainous prince knew more about the girl than she knew about herself. It also seemed things in her past she remembered didn't add up. This story came about when I was reading various theories and possibilities. The only thing I'm sure of is, this isn't over for those two. Thank you for reading! Follow me for updates!