Ben didn't tell anyone, because he didn't want his mother to know - but he was going to have to tell someone if he was to get any help with finding out who the owner of the blade was. He had spent the rest of his then sleepless night looking it over, though for the life of him he couldn't remember ever seeing such a blade. He wrapped it in thick canvas and hid it in a place where he was confident it wouldn't be found. He had also drawn the banner from memory, and stashed it along with the knife. If he was to end up dead, he could at least make sure his mother got a hold of the items somehow.

He was torn about whether or not he wanted to tell Rey. Today was the day that they were to hand down the news that she would be taking over his training and his guard. He wondered, for just a moment, how Snoke would take it. He doubted that Rey would be as brutal as Snoke was, but he couldn't imagine that the man would give up the job easily. Ben intended to turn him from the court completely, eventually, but for the time his father had agreed to continue paying him. Sometimes it was as if his father was indebted to Snoke in some way.

Ben dressed in deep, midnight blue. It was functional garb, and he often chose his boots over anything else that might have been in fashion then. He looked suitable enough, even though he could see the dark circles under his eyes when he spotted himself in the mirror before exiting his chamber. His mother would notice them, and likely say something about them.

Ben realized he had no one he could trust with the information that he'd nearly been assassinated in his chamber the night prior.

There was a 'war room' with a heavy oak table, but when the heavy doors were opened for him, he found that his mother had not joined them. Rey was already there, with her hair down; dark, shiny, and straight. She had gotten her own clothing, and Ben noticed the three tiered, hematite chain that now decorated the leather breast-plate she wore. It had been dyed a deep red, and she looked well in it. She had chosen breeches instead of a skirt, which might gather comments. She didn't seem to care. She gave him a brief nod before he came to stand at the head of the table. He kept his eye on her skull, trying to decipher if she had a head wound. He settled with himself that she did not. His greeting from his father was more than chilly, they simply looked at one another. It occurred to Ben that he hadn't seen him in months. He didn't look well.

Snoke stood beside him with a snarling smirk that seemed to indicate that he might already know what was about to happen. He occasionally sized Rey up, and Ben could almost hear his train of thought. Still a boy, still making ridiculous decisions. How will this girl ever compare to me? It made him even more certain of what he was about to do. He would not miss Snoke's lashings; verbal or otherwise. Finn stood stalwart in the corner, a few of his best men behind him. They all carried the long, double bladed staffs of their homeland, each glinting dangerously even if they were colorfully decorated.

"Will the Queen be joining us?"

"No," His father was the first to respond. "She has taken ill this morning. She requested you visit her later on,"

"Fine," Ben said, dropping down into the tall, oaken chair that sat at the head of the table. Usually, it was his mother's place. His father looked angry that he had taken it. "I believe it's likely we all know why I've gathered you here today, but mayhaps not," He paused. "I might as well just come out and say it, Finn...I will be replacing you as Captain of my Guard. Of course, you can continue on underneath her. That also means that I will no longer be requiring your services in training, Snoke,"

He glanced at Rey, who kept her head high. Her lips were the color of crushed berries, again.

Snoke looked as if he'd once had a sweet treat from the fair and that someone had taken it from him. His face had the color and general appeal of mashed peas. His father looked unimpressed, and peeved. He wondered where Luke was, but he didn't expect his uncle to help him fight this battle. Luke was well aware of how Ben had been treated and was currently treated under Snoke's hand and had never before bothered to do anything about it. He felt relieved that he had finally told the man, but he knew it wasn't going to be that easy. Nor did the look on Snoke's face indicate that he was about to make it easy.

"M'lord," Finn said sharply in his deep tones. "If she will have us, we will remain with your guard,"

It surprised Ben. Rey only nodded, obviously in agreement. He couldn't imagine that Finn had any sort of ulterior motive, but he could see his mother demanding it of him. He wondered if he would ever really be free of her trying to look after him. Snoke finally stood up, so abruptly that his chair spun out behind him before completely upending itself. It was almost as if some unnatural force had driven it. Rey was the first to stand, and Ben shortly after. Everyone in the room remained completely still, unsure of what move the unstable mercenary was about to make next.

"You're not about to let him make this foolish decision," Snoke leered at his father, who leered right back.

"It is his decision to make,"

"I was brought into your employ to train the boy, what more can this insignificant girl do?"

"You will still be in my employ," Han said. "It will no longer require you provide these services. Ben isn't running you out of the palace," His father looked at him then. "Right, Ben?"

Ben wished that he could run him out of the palace, but if he was being honest with himself, he was too afraid to do so right then. He knew that Snoke would not leave easily, and he still feared what the man might do to him. There was likely to be bloodshed. It wasn't exactly a battle he was willing to pick right then. His father didn't exactly have a guard. He was of no royal blood, and he was only there because he'd married Leia, all those years ago. He kept a band of men, however, for his own protection - and they were all well paid. His father had his own funds, and his own business ventures, and he did not want for his mother's money often. Han Solo was not the type of man who would accept money unless he'd stolen it by way of smuggling or whatever other nefarious deeds he got up to. It was the only way that Ben could foresee him even becoming entangled with a man like Snoke.

At least Ben had come by his cruelty honestly.

"You are nothing but a pathetic animal," Snoke finally seethed out at him. "You never would have been enough of a fighter to stand up to my training," He pointed at his own chest, pressing his finger there a few times for emphasis. "I hope you are happy with your ridiculous captain of the guard. May you both rot well in your graves," He backed away from the table, leaving the room in an agitated huff.

Ben released a deep breath he hadn't realized he'd been holding. It had been a dire threat, but it wasn't the worst one Ben had ever heard him make.

There had been no grand ceremony with the changing of his guard. Once he had declared it, it was done. He thought it better not to draw anymore attention to the decision than already had been drawn. Rey would have duties, most of which came to palace security detail and news of the outlying kingdom beyond the palace. She would report to him, instead of his mother, who had often been the one to oversee the guard. She had decided a few months ago she would give the task over to her son. Rey would bring in others she saw fit to join up, and they would be archers, fighters, and healers, among other things.

Ben was not, at that moment, concerned about war, but it was better to have a strong guard in any case.

Ben had stood up and left the room with no further conversation after Snoke had gone. He half expected the man to be standing in the hallway with a long-sword ready to run him through. He found that the palace went on as it often did, even if it felt like a tectonic plate had moved underneath his feet. He had been so focused on his thoughts that he hadn't realized Rey had come up behind him. He barely heard her footsteps before turning to capture her within his view. She stopped, her cape rolling gloriously around her ankles.

"Are you well, Prince?" Ben could not tell if her concern was genuine.

"Well enough, captain," He murmured, before continuing his way down the stairs. He had to seek out his mother. Rey continued to follow him. He stopped again, looking back at her. "You are not my personal body guard, you are free to return to your duties,"

"Perhaps I ought to be, for a time," Snoke's threat had unsettled her, at least on his behalf. She moved to catch up with his long strides as he continued walking.

"That won't be necessary,"

"Will you take it under advisement?" She had that same sarcastic twitch of a smirk on her face. She reached out, pointing to the knife-point wound that he thought was well hidden on his neck. It was ugly, blackened, likely because of whatever the blade was poisoned with. "How did you come by that, m'lord?"

"It was an accident," He continued on his way. "I'm sure you're busy. I won't keep you any longer,"

He knew the walk to his mother's chambers and could probably do it in his sleep, but Rey kept her silent pace behind him. He didn't try to tell her to go away again, seeming to feel it might have been futile. Even if she was his guard, it was obvious she was going to do what she liked. Normally, he might have felt good about her concern, but he had to wonder if she'd been put in to play just to keep an eye on him.

His mother's chamber door stood partially open. He saw Luke sitting across from her in the parlor. She was wearing a flowing white gown that reminded him of blood on the snow, red stitching giving it the eerie effect. Rey stopped at the door, and stood outside of it, as if she truly was his body guard. They were drinking tea. His mother looked waxen and pale, and he could tell immediately that she wasn't feeling good. Luke stood up to give a short bow as Ben made his presence known.

"You look exhausted," Leia said, setting her teacup aside with a small clink on the saucer.

"Leave him be, Leia," Luke said. They were twins of sorts, and he wondered how much passed between them without him knowing. "Have you told them?"

"Yes," Ben said, sweeping his cloak away so that he could take a seat in the chair beside his mother's.

"From the looks of it, he didn't take it very well," Leia said, reaching for a small morsel of a biscuit with one glittering hand.

"He took it very well," Ben said. "He wished me a good rot in my grave. And Rey, too,"

"Luke," Leia said. "I have something to speak to my son about in private," It was the kindest way she could dismiss him.

"I will return later," He said, standing up again. Luke stopped briefly to greet Rey, but the conversation was too quiet, and he couldn't quite catch what they were saying to one another. Luke shut the door, and Ben could no longer hear them at all.

"Are you sure about this?"

"Yes, mother, I'm sure,"

"She seems no more inclined to be kind to you than Snoke was. I heard about what she did at the ball,"

"No, but I highly doubt she has his capacity for cruelty,"

"I worry for you Ben. That man is like creeping vine. He strangles everything in his path," She coughed, reaching again for her tea. Ben's eyes settled on it before he glanced at her.

"Who made the tea?"

"Luke did, of course," She finished off the cup. Ben watched her as she set it back down. "Ben, bring me my box," She said.

It was a game they had played when he had been a boy. She would hide small trinkets in there, and set the puzzle box to a simple puzzle so that he could open it. He stood up, finding it shoved among her things in her armoire. He retrieved it, and handed it to her. It had many different compartments and openings. He couldn't believe she was trying to rekindle the game, and had to assume she had something else in mind.

"Inside are your papers," She said. "Your birth certificate, the documents that confirm you as king of the realm," Ben had seen them once or twice during his boyhood, but his mother kept them very well under wraps. "The stone also resides inside,"

Ben knew what she was talking about - as it was the stone, and not the crown, that denoted royalty. There had been times during his boyhood where he had wanted to take it and chuck it into a nearby lake. He had been given it at a very young age as a test. It was said that if one was not of true blood, the stone would crack - and there were previous indications of such cracks. He had held it in his palm and it had not cracked, confirming that he had then already feared; that his life wasn't just some bad joke.

"I want you to take them with you," Leia said. "I'm not sure, but I sense something ill in the wind," She drew her cape around her for more warmth. "I believe it's time you had the stone in your possession,"

"Mother, there's no need for me to-," She didn't let him finish his sentence.

"Listen, Ben," She turned towards him, grasping his gloved hand which was so much larger than hers. "I am sorry for you, but I don't believe that your path in the next few years is going to be an easy one. If it were to come up, I don't want anyone to doubt who should be king,"

"Why would it come up?"

"I'm not entirely sure. I just have a feeling," His mother's feelings tended to be eerily correct, as proven many times in her past. "So take it with you, and hide it well, and remember who you are. Where you come from,"

Ben didn't like this line of thought. He knew that his mother had been feeling her mortality, lately. Her doctors had prescribed her as having a heart that was too big for her body, and her illnesses came more frequently these days. He wondered if it had something to do with Uncle Luke, as well. There had been rumors of a kind that Luke had sired his own children, who might also have a claim to the throne. Ben had yet to see evidence of such a thing, but the cogs in his mind were turning. He thought about Rey, though he couldn't honestly see anything of his uncle in her. \This was no grand coronation, but in name and in secret his mother had just abdicated her throne.

"The time will come when the rest of the realm must know," She admitted. "But for now, I want you to keep this between us,"

"Fine, mother. If you're sure,"

"I am,"

Ben knew the puzzle box well, but it was likely his mother had put a complicated hold on it. He would not try to decipher it that night, as it was probably better to leave it as it was. He took the secret passageway back to his room, box held underneath his arm. He had unbarred the door from the night before, and he found his rooms eerily silent and eerily untouched. He had to think about where he would hide it; in case his mother was right and someone should come looking for it. He wondered if he didn't want someone else to find it. To set him free from his obligation.

He could go out into the world and disappear. No poisoned prince, no past, no future. The wound where he'd been nicked was throbbing. He set the box into a dark place, resolving to put it in a better hiding spot that night. He undid his cloak and pulled down the high collar of his jacket, finding that the wound had ugly black veins running out from the point of entry. He knew what type of poison this was. It was a fairly common type that was often used by being burned onto blades. The reaction created a sort of gel-like layer, but only the tip of the blade had gotten him - and it was a poison that Ben had made sure he was resilient to. It hurt like hell, but it would clear up in a few days.

Ben put on the quietest boots he had, and undid all of his princely garb in favor of something that was more comfortable. He locked his chamber doors from the inside, in case Rey came looking for him. Unless she picked the lock, he was the only person who (as far as he knew), held the key. He grabbed the box and disappeared down the secret passageway.

Ben had gotten to know these passageways very well when he'd been a teenager. Sometimes they proved to be the only respite from Snoke, who had been extra brazen when he'd been a young boy. The man would sometimes terrorize him all the way to his bedroom. Ben had never really had a defender in this, but eventually he got strong enough to defend himself and Snoke had left the beatings for the training field only. Still, Ben used the passageways, and there were rooms in the Palace he was sure even his mother didn't know about.

It was one such room he found himself in that night. He'd lit up the dusty fire-pit. At some point he had pulled a cot down there, and he often went there when he was in desperate need of a good nights sleep. The walls were lined with books that he'd taken from the study or he'd found on his travels. Mostly they were books about fighting technique, and a good deal of them housed information about poison. There was an old desk that was older than he was, and in it he hid important documents or writings in his own hand. He set the box on the desk. He had also brought with him a candle, the wrapped up dagger, and the drawing of the banner he'd sketched out in the early morning hours.

It was freezing down here, even with the presence of a fire, so Ben had brought with him a fur lined cloak which he wrapped tightly around his body before sitting down at his desk. He unwrapped the dagger, poring over it much as he did the night before. It looked rather ordinary, but Ben had the feeling there was something more to it. Still, the more he looked it over, the more frustrated he got. There were no holes, no mechanisms, nothing. When it had grown late, Ben had laid himself down on the cot after pushing it closer to the fire. He felt safe there, he doubted that anyone would be able to find him there - so he slept without worry of being found. He woke many hours later, the night having passed by with no incident. He was thankful for it, but he realized he couldn't hide out down there all day.

The week passed without much incident. Rey's training schedule was less vigorous during that first week. He didn't say anything, considering it was likely she was still trying to settle into her new position. They kept her busy, and even though she had asked him about that night and the conversation that he and his mother had had, he had given her no information. Each night, however, he went down to his secret room, not thinking that Rey might have caught onto the fact that he wasn't in his chambers at night.

One morning, he had made the decision to join his parents for breakfast. He had gotten dressed in a deep heather gray - a finely constructed, finely made wool doublet which had no sleeves. It had the insignia of his court embroidered onto the breast; a wolf with ivy for a mane. He wore it over a white shirt, which had been freshly laundered the night prior. It buttoned at his wrists, falling loosely around his arms. It was the closest he got to frills. His father was not in the breakfast hall, and his mother kept her quiet court at the head of the table with tea and biscuits. Luke was nowhere to be found.

It was a fairly regular morning, though Ben felt unsettled, somehow. Rey joined them both, standing in the corner of the room. She had probably breakfasted with her counterparts, but she looked peeved. Ben had been doing a good job of shirking her for over a week, which likely meant that Uncle Luke wasn't happy with her. He had come to the decision that that was exactly what she was there for - which meant that he regretted his rash decision to put her in charge. Still, he hoped that she might at least make an effort to save his life if it came down to it.

Ben watched without interest as a maid handed his mother a platter of fruit. Berries, mostly, as they were in season. She ate a few without incident, taking another sip of her tea as she read something that she'd set beside her dishes. Ben watched his own tester take the food he'd been given, with no reaction. He ate a few bites of fowl that had been crisped with honey oil and slathered lemon curd over a piece of toast. His appetite had been little, but he found himself hungry that morning.

He found it strange when the maid who had deposited his mother's breakfast made eye contact with him. He was sure he saw her smirk. She disappeared a few moments later, and Ben looked up just in time to see his mother slump over her breakfast, upending her tea and sending berries rolling across the heavy oaken table.

"Mother!" He shouted, shooting up out of his seat.

Everything seemed to move in slow motion then. He got to her, realizing that there were deep blue berries hidden amid the other, less dangerous berries that were safe for eating. She must have gotten down at least three of them before she slumped over. Ben shouted some sort of command at Rey, who was quickly at his side, but even she looked panicked. He couldn't seem to make her understand.

"Stay with her," He said forcefully, knowing that the physician would have been fetched by that point.

He found himself running, trying to trace the steps of the maid. He stopped a good deal of them, forcing them to turn around and look at him. None of them were her. He kept running, knowing she couldn't have made it far. He found his way to the kitchen, and realized that there was one maid who was hurrying along quickly, trying to make it to the passageway that would send her out into the courtyard. Ben forced himself into a run, as fast as he could manage, and caught up with her. He spun her around, surprised at the utter hatred he found there in her expression. She fought him with everything she had, like a feral cat lashing out against it's captor. He kept asking her who she was, and who she worked for, but she wouldn't respond. It was too late before Ben realized that she'd drawn something out of her pocket and shoved it into her mouth, biting down quickly on whatever it was.

"No, no, no, no," Ben said through gritted teeth, trying to dig the compound out of her mouth before she had a chance to swallow it.

It was too late, she began convulsing, her lips stained with a strange green foam before her eyes rolled back into her head and she became limp. The wan coloring of her skin alerted Ben to the fact that she was already dead, but when he lowered her into the dirt and tested her pulse, it confirmed that she was. He stood up, brushing his gloved hands back through his mess of dark hair, blowing air out from his lips.

"Shit!" He shouted, kicking dust up onto the girl where it settled on her face. She wouldn't feel it. She wouldn't feel anything ever again.

By the time she had died there were servants that had joined him out in the courtyard, looking on in horror and confusion. Ben began barking orders, and they carried the girl into the church, where the dead were often taken. There was a monk who oversaw the process of ensuring that someone could pass into the 'force' with ease, but he was also good at telling how and why someone had died. He would look over the body, and let Ben know if he found anything.

By the time Ben had run back to the breakfast room, his father and his uncle had been roused from wherever it was they had been. Luke looked pale, and his father looked angry. Rey had followed in the footsteps of the physician, who had taken his mother to her chamber. She still lived, though she would not respond. Ben knew about the berries, and while it wasn't often instant death, they were called sleeping fruit for a reason. She had a small pulse, but even with her peaceful look - there with her plush and luxurious blankets, Ben felt unsure that she would live.

He was angry with himself, but he was too focused on her to have much time to beat up on himself. He imagined the machinations of the palace, moving around him after they had realized that someone has poisoned their queen. There would be an inquest, of course, and the girls' death would be heavily investigated. Ben kept going over the capsules in his mind. How had she gotten them? Who would have told her to do such a thing? He did not want his mother to die, and he sat by her side until his eyelids drooped heavy and he fell asleep with his hand over hers.

It was his father who shook him awake. Ben grumbled angrily and peered into the sunlight, his eyes landing first on his mother. She hadn't moved, and the strange nature of the fruit she'd eaten made it look like she was slowly being wrapped in a silky cocoon. Ben ripped them away as best he could, finding he felt like an angry boy all over again. Han pulled him away from his mother, though he had much less success in doing so than he would have had Ben still been a boy. Ben reeled back, and hit his father. He was lashing out too, much like the maid had before she'd killed herself. His father stumbled back, into a chair, holding his nose which was now bleeding.

"Where were you?" Ben seethed, flexing his knuckles.

"Ben," His father said firmly, standing up, moving closer. Ben stood back in a defensive position, but what his father did next surprised him. He wrapped his arms around him, forcing him into a hug. Ben tensed, though Han held him fast. "I'm sorry," He finally said, keeping his grip on his son.

Ben couldn't stand it, and he pushed his father aside.

He paused, realizing Luke was standing at the far end of the chamber - and he had seen the entire thing. Ben decided to shake it off, and exited the room, despite the overwhelming desire to stay with his mother - he realized that he couldn't stand another moment in a room with either of them.

Ben had a list in his mind. It started with Finn, whom he tracked down in the fighters' barracks. It was a task he didn't feel comfortable giving to Rey, but he knew Finn loved his mother as well as he did. Finn looked stormy, it was likely that he had heard about what had happened. He stopped his practice activity when he saw Ben lurking in the corner. Ben had no idea what he must have looked like, but he was sure he was a fright. Finn walked up to him, and Ben moved him off to the side.

"I want you to stay with my mother," He admitted. "I'll give you extra money, whatever it is you want,"

Finn shook his head.

"I will stay with her," He said brusquely. "You do not have to provide me anything but the pleasure of taking honor in the task,"

Ben was surprised, but he remembered that his mother was well loved. Well loved among her people, and her court.

"Thank you," It was about as mushy as either of them were going to get. "Keep an eye on my uncle. And my father. It's an order, if they give you trouble about it, tell them to come to me,"

Finn only nodded. He understood.

updates are quick because i'm having so much fun. hope you're enjoying it also! send me your thoughts and feels. share if you like!