Thirteen

Rey woke with a start.

Apart from sleeping in the most comfortable bed, surrounded by the scent of Ben, the Force had just jerked her from a most hopeful dream. It was the same feeling from Tralus when he had entered the atmosphere.

She jumped out of the bed and ran from the room. The house was large and a maze of corridors, but she knew each turn to make. Finally she was on the veranda at the back of the home. She only had a moment to take in the breathtaking view of the lake that stretched out in every direction.

Then she heard the whirling sound of the command shuttle's engines. The black ship appeared over the mountains across the lake and it came down low over the water.

Though the ship was moving quickly and it was only fifty feet over the surface, through the bond she could see him standing behind the red glazed glass of the bridge.

Ren had ordered his pilot to buzz his childhood home, flying as low as possible. He had felt it when she exited the structure and he strained his eyes to catch a glimpse of her.

There, on the stone deck stood his love. Her hair was down and wild from sleep. She wore one of his tunics, a light gray one that he had not seen in years. The shirt came to her mid thigh but otherwise her legs were bare. He had never seen her more beautiful and he wanted to bypass the formalities of his landing and go right to her.

But the galaxy and Hux were watching and he needed the next three weeks to finalize his plans without raising any suspicions from the First Order.

A few minutes later he was landing by the palace. He drew out a sigh and covered his head with his helmet.

It had been so freeing for those four days on Tralus, to not have to play the role of Kylo Ren. To not have to hide the Light that was now attempting to burst from him. But with holo cams waiting to capture his 'invasion' of Naboo, he needed to put on his best performance.

Stepping down into the main hold, his guard unit was back in their black trooper armor. Trinity was in her white armor with the purple shoulder plate in place. The other two troopers were instructed to stay with the ship and post guard.

Ren pulled on his gloves and adjusted his cloak. "How do I look?" He asked his Captain.

"Menacing as alway, sir," she quipped.

He was back in her mind and he saw her smirk. After they had left the First Order he has been out of Trinity's mind, not having any reason to keep their conversations private, but now, with prying eyes and ears about, he had asked her permission to once again access her thoughts.

The shuttle touched down and with puffs of steam from released pressure, the ramp was lowered. Kylo Ren walked out first, his gait lumbering, his fists tight at his sides.

"Hey, look who's on the holo," Finn called from the kitchen of the estate.

Rey entered the home and looked at the holo projector seeing Ben, dressed as Kylo Ren, exit his ship and walk towards a group of guards that looked much like the ones that accompanied the Queen the night before.

"I keep forgetting how creepy that guy looks with the mask on," Finn mused as he bit into a piece of fruit. His gaze finally turned to Rey. "Whoa! Rey, clothes!" He covered his eyes with the hand that wasn't holding the pear.

She looked down are her self and realized that she was only dressed in one of Ben's shirts. The thin grey material didn't leave much to the imagination, especially after being out in the cold morning air. Her legs were on full display and she tried to pull at the hem of the shirt.

Being torn between wanting to stay and watch the holo and wanting to run to her room and put on some pants, she didn't know what to do.

Taking one last look at the projection she saw that he was greeting the Queen and they were walking into the palace where the holo cam didn't follow. Sighing she turned from the room and went to find something clean to put on.

Kylo walked up the steps to the front of the palace where the Queen was waiting. He smiled under his mask, not missing this pomp and circumstance at all.

Arinlo wore her pale blonde hair down and it trailed past her hips. Her headdress was made of black velvet with red jewels and beading encrusting where it dipped at her forehead. Her dress came up tight around her neck, a ribbon of red with gold embroidery ran down the center. A deep red cloak with a high collar flowed out behind her.

Ren stood more than a half foot over her, but she only raised her eyes to him, keeping her expression steady and indifferent. Her face was painted white with dark brows. The traditional red dots sat on her cheeks and the single strip of red ran from her bottom lip all the way down her neck and seemed to connect to the ribbon that split her dress.

They stood before each other for a long moment before Arinlo finally inclined her head, giving a shallow curtsey. "Supreme Leader," her voice was monotone.

"Queen Arinlo," Ren answered through his modulator and dipped his head slightly.

She turned and held out her hand. Ren's training as a young man kicked in and he placed his gloved hand under hers and he guided her towards the palace. The crowds behind them cheered.

The Queen's guard followed along with Trinity and Alpha Team. The doors to the palace were shut behind them but they could still hear the roar from the onlookers.

Arinlo turned to Kylo, "Take that ridiculous thing off. You sound like an idiot."

Trinity tired to hide her laugh with a cough.

Kylo reached up, disengaging his helmet and removed it from his head. "Nice to see you too, cousin."

"When we heard that the feared Kylo Ren, the new Supreme Leader of the First Order, was going to be paying us a visit, many of my counselors were worried, but I always knew that it was little Ben Solo under all those drapes."

Trinity couldn't help herself this time and let out a snotting laugh, having to remove her helmet to get air.

Ren looked down at his outfit, "What? You don't like it?"

Arinlo looked on with awe. "It really is you…" She had expected Kylo to strike down his trooper for such behavior. She had even expected him to use the Force as punishment for her sharp tongue.

When he had sent her a holocomm a few days ago, she had never imagined that Ben Solo was truly back. The last time that Ren had come to Naboo it was to collect a Force sensitive boy and deliver him to Snoke. It had not been a pleasant visit.

Kylo motioned with his hand for his Captain to approach. "Trinity, this is my cousin Salk, Queen Arinlo of Naboo."

"Oh she has a name?" Arinlo asked in surprise. It was few and far between that a trooper was given a name.

"Rey named me, ma'am," Trinity answered and bowed out of respect.

The Queen hummed, "Yes, Rey…" she held out her hand again. Ren extended his and she laid hers atop and they started to walk.

He tucked his helmet under the arm that wasn't extended out to Arinlo and they ventured further into the palace.

"I met your little Rey of Light last night."

"And what are your thoughts on her?" Kylo asked with interest.

"What you have asked is doable," she stopped and turned to him. "Have you asked her yet? Is she even willing?"

Ren looked to the floor, "I have not."

"Coward," the Queen quipped with a smile and nudged her elbow into his arm.

"It is hard to accept rejection twice from the same person."

"But this time is different. You two are closer now?" Arinlo couldn't believe it when Kylo Ren actually blushed. "I'll take that as a yes."

"Yes," he confirmed.

"Well let's get through Leia's service and then we will work on getting your girl by your side."

Ren nodded, "Can you take me to her?"

"Of course," Arinlo gave a sympathetic smile and started to move towards a corridor to their left.

They came out of the back of the palace and across a perfectly manicured garden. The gravel in the pathways crunched under his boots and he was reminded of running through these gardens as a boy, chasing after Kaydel and Salk as they laughed and screamed at his pursuit.

Coming upon a ivy covered wall, Ren removed his hand from his cousin's and pulled back the greenery. An old wooden door lay behind and he pushed it open and allowed Arinlo to enter before him. A winding stone stair case led them to the tomb.

The grotto was dimly lit, but natural light did pour in through a blue toned stained glass pane that was centered to the burial vault that held his grandmother. He looked to the window and the depiction of Amidala had the same piercing brown eyes that were passed down to him.

His mother lie in an open casket, her graying hair was braided and wrapped around the crown of her head. White honeysuckle flowers were woven into the braid. The paleness of her face appeared almost rosy with what he presumed was makeup. Her lips were in a perfect pout with the corners just slightly upturned.

Leia almost looked like when she used to pretend to be asleep when Ben would come into his parent's room too early in the morning. A tear escaped as he thought back to those times but he quickly swiped it away.

Reaching down to touch his mother's hands, they were as cold as the stone in the room. He fished in his pocket and pulled out the gold dice that he had taken from the cockpit of the Falcon on Tralus. Slipping the ring from her right hand, he wove the gold chain between her fingers.

"We can't have a public funeral," Arinlo finally spoke.

"I know," Ben said with a sigh. His mother was known as the leader of the Resistance, if a procession was held it would raise questions from the First Order and he didn't want any trouble for himself or the people of Naboo.

"Her interment will be tomorrow, so I suggest that if there are any others that wish to say a final farewell it be done soon."

Ren nodded his head. "I think I would like to go home now."

"Of course, go be with your people." Arinlo made no move to leave as she planned to spend some time with the princess. "Oh, and Ben," she called as he was starting to ascend the stairs, "Your household will be entertaining the Queen for dinner tonight so please make sure the menu is fitting." She smiled as his head dropped and he laughed while starting to climb the stairs again.

He walked back across the gardens and into the palace. Trinity and his guard unit were waiting for him. He replaced his helmet and once again become Kylo Ren. Two of his guards opened the palace doors for him and Trinity exited first.

Walking back to his shuttle he looked around the crowds, wondering if there were others that once knew the timid and awkward Ben Solo. A few people shrank back under the gaze from behind the mask. Truthfully he hated the thing, hardly being able to see out of it and he often had to rely on the Force in battles.

Once back in his shuttle he removed his helmet and walked up to the bridge, moving towards the pilot's seat. "Up," he instructed and took the seat.

He was used to flying smaller vessels like his TIE Silencer, but he had learned to fly in the Falcon and figured that he could easily get the hang of the shuttle. Mostly though he just wanted to fly over the city like he had with his father so many times. He wanted to watch his home estate appear over the rolling hills. He wanted to be the one to fly home to her.

He set the shuttle down on the landing pad knowing that the Falcon was concealed in the hanger below. Ben stood and allowed the pilot to finish shutting down the engines. He could feel that she was close and he wanted to be infinitely closer.

Rey was aboard the shuttle just as the ramp lowered. She knew that she had been here once before when Kylo had taken her from Takodana, but she had been unconscious then. She looked around the main hold and saw Trinity picking up a few luggage cases. The trooper, still in her white armor but without her helmet just pointed to the doorway that led to the cockpit.

Just as she was entering the hall, Ben jumped down off the last few rungs of a ladder. His feet were just firmly planted before she was in his arms, leaping from a few feet away, he caught her around the waist.

He grunted out as the force of her body landed against his. "Did you miss me?" He asked with a chuckle.

"No, not one bit," Rey answered smiling up at him before bringing their lips together.

The vision of her from this morning, in just one of his shirts made him groan into the kiss and he tightened his grip around her.

Someone above them cleared their throat. The pilots were waiting to get down the ladder from the cockpit and Rey essentially had Ben pressed up against it. She released her arms from around his neck and slid down his body, which did nothing to ease Ben's wondering mind and aching body.

She then took his hand and pulled him from the shuttle. "Can you show them to rooms?" Ben called to C-3PO as he was being lugged past the droid and into the house.

Rey headed straight for Ben's room, wanting…no needing to be alone with him.

The door closed behind them and Rey still had his hand. She attempted to pull him to her but his attention was elsewhere. Following his line of sight, he was just eyeing the entire room. It was at this point that she dropped his hand, knowing that the moment had been lost.

"The last time I was here…" Ben started walking over to his desk and ran his hands over some of the parts that Rey had taken out the night before. "It seems like a life time ago."

He took this moment to look around the rest of the room. The bed sheets were still thrown back and looked well slept in. The image of her in his bed brought his focus back to her.

Rey walked over the bed and sat down where the covers were pulled back, "Tell me about your time here."

Ben went to the other side of the bed, sat down and started to unlace his boots. "We only stayed here when my mother was on official business…or when they would leaving me behind." His tone was somber.

"It was safer to leave me here with the droids or with Chewie than any other place. Other times we lived on the Falcon or in borrowed state rooms."

Thinking back to the other night, Rey decided to get some answers. "The Queen and Kaydel know each other, but they never said how."

He smiled and then kicked his legs up on the bed, propping himself up on the headboard. "You already know that Kaydel and myself grew up together, but then there was Salk."

Rey didn't say anything, just mimicked his position and pressed her shoulder up against his.

"Salk is actually my cousin, three or four times removed."

"Cousin?" Rey questioned. She thought that Ben didn't have any other family.

"Her great-grandmother was sister to Amidala's father."

Rey now tried to connect the lineage. Not even knowing her own parents, it was difficult for her to grasp the thought of going back three generations.

"So she spent a lot of time on Naboo and her parents were also involved in the Republic. They used to just throw all of us kids together and I was the oldest so I often got stuck on babysitting duty, or guard duty as I used to call it. Those girls were wild!" He said with a laugh and a long off look, remembering some of their antics.

"I'm trying to imagine you in charge of two little girls," Rey was laughing too. It felt like the most natural and normal thing to do in his presence.

"Oh, it never turned out well for me."

"I guess not," Rey sighed and rested her head on his shoulder, the one that she had stabbed with the lightsaber on Starkiller. She reached over and took his hands, pulling off the offensive gloves. Then she wove her right hand in his left.

"What are we going to do Ben?"

He leaned over, resting his cheek on her hair for just a moment before he turned his face and placed a kiss on the crown of her head. Rey was looking down at their jointed hands, tracing his large fingers with her left hand. They were both in thought about what as going to be the next step.

If Naboo was just another stop on his tour than he would be expected to move on within a few days and she started to question if she could be apart from him. But how could she leave behind her friends. The Resistance was not her fight, she knew that she could do a greater good to be by Ben's side, but the thought of never seeing Poe, Rose…Finn ever again hurt just as much.

Ben didn't answer because in the words of his cousin, he was a coward. So instead of asking her again to join him, laying out his elaborate plan, begging if he had to, he took his free hand and placed it on her cheek, moving her face up to meet his.

Their kiss was slow at first. The feelings of uncertainty and the fear of being without each other flowed between them. The dread that they both felt at being once again alone sank in and Rey dropped his hand, gripped the front of his coat and pulled herself up into his lap.

Just like on Tarlus when they had shared their first kiss, she straddled his tights in an attempt to get impossibly close to him. She wanted their very souls to merge. Their hearts seemed to beat in time, their breathing was shallow and wanting.

His hands were on her hips, at her back, in her hair. He wanted to touch every single last inch of her.

Rey's hands fumbled with the hidden buttons of his coat, needing to feel his skin. Ben sat forward some and allowed Rey to help push the thick quilted garment from his shoulders. She didn't waste time with pulling his tunic over his head and her hands were on his chest as soon as the material left her fingers.

Her touch felt like licking flames moving over both scars on each shoulder. She followed the long scar up to his face and threaded her fingers through his hair, pulling slightly to tilt his head back so she could expose and kiss along her mark.

Ben groaned and pulled at her hips, needing just a little friction. "Rey," he breathed. She hummed into his neck in response. "Be with me," he pleaded.

Rey now moved from her task, keeping her hands on either side of his neck, and looked into his eyes. "How?"

"Just say you will…" he almost seemed pained by the statement. "Please."

His lips were swollen from their kiss and he wore the same pout and desperation in his eyes as he did on the Supremacy. She knew now just how much she had broken him with her prior rejection. She also knew now how much she had been fractured to be apart from him.

"Yes," she whispered.

AN: I loved writing this chapter. What do y'all thing?

Poll: Would their first time together be serious like Fifty or fun like a RomCom?

Please leave me your thoughts, feelings, and answer the poll question before. 3