"This offer from Supreme Leader Snoke will never be made available to you after this meeting has ended." Kylo Ren spoke evenly from beneath his mask as he addressed the leaders of the resistance. He was unsure as to the point of this farce of a meeting, the resistance would never agree to disband and swear loyalty to the First Order and he was well aware of that. Why Snoke had specifically selected him for this pointless venture was a little more clear as Ren avoided the one gaze in the room which had been truly focused on him since the moment he entered with his small escort.
His mother.
Although it was impossible for anyone to tell where his own gaze was directed he still could not bring himself to look in his mothers direction as he finished delivering the terms of the ultimatum which Snoke had issued him with. "You were allowed to select the area of this meeting as a sign of goodwill from the Supreme Leader but as soon as we are finished all hostilities will restart if our terms are rejected."
"These terms are rid-" One of the resistance officers started to shout after Ren finished but before he could finish his sentence he was cut off by a sharp hand on his shoulder and he turned to see his General making a motion for him to be silent.
"I want a word alone with our guest." General Organa commanded. At her words a few of the other members of the resistance started to raise their voice in protest, concerned at leaving their beloved general with such a noted monster. "I was not asking. Give us privacy and we can further discuss these terms."
The men continued to grumble as they stood from their seats and at their movement, Ren waved off his own guard to stand outside. His casual gesture belying the utter turmoil which was rocketing through his system. He did not want to be alone with her, but to suggest otherwise would make him appear weak.
As the last of the delegates left the room, there were a few moments of heavy silence before Leia opened her mouth. "How long has it been?" She asked quietly, her voice strong with only an undercurrent of sadness. "How long has it been since I last saw my son?"
"Your son is dead." Ren answered immediately, his mask giving his voice the strength it needed as it hissed from the sides. "Your son died many years ago. A fact you seem to be deliberately ignorant of."
"Remove your mask and face me then. If what you say is true and my son is truly dead then it should be no issue." She reasoned calmly but her voice held a hint of steel. A challenge. And as Ren picked up on it his eyes narrowed behind his mask as he silently cursed, he could not back down from such an obvious challenge to his person.
Raising his hands to his helmet, he released the sides and slowly removed it. Placing it on the hard wooden table he steeled his thoughts as he brought his eyes up and fully met his mothers gaze for the first time in years.
Her voice catching slightly as she drank in the view of her son, Leia felt her fingers itching to reach out and touch him but she was unsure how he would react so she willed the feeling away. Instead she settled on pursing her lips as she took in his dark hair, which sat in disarray. "Your hair is far too long and you should really consider cutting it. Stop hiding away that handsome face."
Feeling a little surreal, Ren glossed over her comments. "Will you agree to the terms General Organa?"
"General Organa huh?" Leia narrowed her eyes in anger. "Well then 'Kylo Ren', I should inform you that the resistance will never give in to the First Order and its evils." At her use of his new name, Ren felt a small lash of pain inside his heart. She had always staunchly refused to use anything but his birth name and what should have been a victory him felt somewhat hollow.
"The First Order will not fall victim to your lies and meager resistance." He argued hotly.
"You keep telling yourself that but I have a suspicion that you are don't fully believe the words you speak." Leia offered softly. "You can always come home and start to make things right before they go too far."
"You dare to presume anything about me?" Ren hissed, losing his composure somewhat as his mothers' words rang in his ears. "I could kill you now where you stand." He threatened harshly, hoping to get a reaction.
"You could." Leia nodded in agreement. Moving slowly she walked towards her son, who stood as still as marble at her approach, and gently raised his arm until it was level with her own throat. "Do it then. Show me how dedicated you are to the dark side. Kill me now and prove yourself to Snoke." She fixed him with a passive gaze as she waited his response.
Various snapshot memories flashed through his mind as he listened to her and felt her warm hand gently resting underneath his forearm. He had killed many, too many to count, with this exact same movement and position. It would almost be to easy to kill her, their respective guards would not be able to enter in time to prevent her death. Besides, he could snap her neck at a seconds notice.
But as his arm hung limply in her grasp he realised that he could not.
Not his mother.
She had aged in the time they had been separated but as he stared dumbly at her all he could see was his mother as she had been. Young, full of life and always there for him. His father, Han Solo, had been in and out of his young life but his mother was always there. She had tried to shield him from the dark side for so long, never understanding that Snoke was also there with him, telling him the truth and not the weak lessons of love and compassion which she tried to make him believe.
He would not kill his mother. The very notion filled him with a deep emptiness as he even contemplated the action and he knew he could not will his limbs to harm her directly. Snatching his arm from her grip as though she had scalded him, he took a step backwards, putting some distance between them. "Supreme Leader Snoke was very clear that this was to remain a final warning, a last chance for you and your people. I was given very strict instructions not to harm anyone present until hostilities resumed. I will not break his trust." He lied.
Still disturbed by his mothers attempt to force him to kill her, he covered up his internal torment by forcing an air of bravado. "You will all fall at the hands of the First Order. You, your troops, the traitor Solo and everyone else who stands against us." He snarled, ashamed at being unable to raise a hand against the woman before him. "And when that happens you will regret not accepting this very generous deal!"
"Perhaps we will." Leia shrugged in resignation. "Regardless, I will tell your father you said hello when he next drops in." At her words, Ren growled in mild frustration as he snatched up his mask, forced it back over his head and stormed from the room in a whirl of black.
As the door slammed in her face, Leia blinked away the sudden wetness in her eyes as she watched her only child walk away from her again. But even through her sadness a small smile curled at the corner of her lips. She had seen the momentary panic in his eyes as she asked him to end her. She may not have been as trained in the force as Luke or her son but she was skilled in detecting the emotions of those around her. Empathy was her talent. She had felt his horror, his desire for her to live on, his rage at the position he had been placed in.
But Ben still had not killed her. He had not even considered raising his hand to her.
Her son could still be saved.