For whatever reason—whether it's the will of the Force or just Snoke controlling the bond to manipulate them—every day the bond opens up. True to his word, Ben makes time to hold Rey tight and lift her spirits. He walks over to the wall in his quarters so she can see behind him the latest slash mark from his sword. He keeps the calendar and he keeps the faith for both of them.

Rey, the would-be Jedi, accepts the mystery of the Force bond as is. But Ben the proto-Sith spends time trying to to control it. He has little success. From the very beginning, she and Ben have been able to touch through the bond. Their sense of each other's physical surroundings has grown stronger over time. But otherwise, nothing changes about the bond except the frequency of their visits. Ben keeps theorizing that eventually the bond will operate as a portal. He thinks that in time he might be able to pull Rey through to his side on the Finalizer so she can escape her cell. They do some experimentation, but the portal idea doesn't seem to work. I don't think the Force can be controlled this way, Rey decides. That's not how the Force works. The Force isn't hyperspace. Ben disagrees, quoting his Master's wisdom that all things are possible in the Force. If Snoke can resurrect himself, then I can do this, Ben commits. But Rey remains a skeptic. She's not optimistic about how any of this will turn out.

Once a week, a medic arrives and the cell lights flash on to temporarily blind Rey. The medic scans her to check on the baby. Next, Rey gets a shower and a fresh set of clothes. After that, she's back in her dark cell. The weekly checkup would be the time to escape except there are far too many stormtroopers present with guns drawn. After Snoke had declined to hurt her in that ugly scene with Ben, Rey knows that Snoke won't kill her while she's pregnant. He doesn't want to risk his precious Skywalker baby, she figures. That means the blasters those troopers brandish are probably set to stun. But there are far too many of them to elude at once even with the Force. So Rey bides her time waiting for a better opportunity to escape.

Rey is polite, even friendly at times, with the young medic who checks on her weekly. She is careful to be very docile and cooperative with all of her jailers to put them at ease around her. Rey wants their vigilance to relax over time. Even now, they seem far less concerned about Rey breaking out than they are about someone breaking her out. And that stands to reason, given Ben's prior attempt. It's also clear that everyone feels sorry for her. From their comments, everyone seems to know that Rey is the unlucky pregnant prisoner girlfriend of Kylo Ren. They know that she got caught masquerading as a junior officer so they could live together in secret on his flagship. If anyone knows of Rey's Resistance past, they don't let on.

All this time alone gives Rey plenty of time to think. She obsesses over two things: Ben and the baby.

Ben's devotion touches her deeply. Rey remembers him stomping in to confront Snoke, hollering and shooting lightning like the angry young Skywalker prince he is. Then it all culminated in Ben dramatically vowing to die for their love. In that moment, he was everything this abandoned, scorned girl had ever wanted in a man. He was brave, strong, loyal, and determined. He had come back for her, no matter the cost. Rey has long known Ben as a zealot for the First Order, but that day he had been a zealot for her. She had never felt so wanted. Here was all the love and belonging Rey has craved for so long.

Ben is a violent man given to extremes, and yet he is surprisingly tender with her. Nightly he holds Rey tight across the bond. Some nights he strokes her hair. Some nights he coaxes her to eat. But just like on the Finalizer, behind closed doors Ben Solo is a quiet, sensitive, and reflective man. He is the furthest thing from the fearsome monster in the mask who slashed through fifty people in a conference room. Still, both of those men are Ben, Rey knows. And though that dichotomy is hard to reconcile, it is a truth she cannot ignore. Perhaps there is a murdering monster in all of us, she rationalizes. And with the right trigger, it comes out.

More and more, Rey thinks she could take the good with the bad, that she and Ben could be together again, were it not for Snoke. But Snoke is a definite dealbreaker. Rey refuses to live a life controlled by the constant threat of Ben's Master. And that means she and Ben have no hope for a future together. For now that it is clear that Snoke cannot die, Ben will be the forever Apprentice his whole life. And so, even if this baby turns out to be Ben's son, Rey would be unwilling to raise him in the First Order with his father.

But that's not a topic she and Ben have discussed. They don't talk specifically about the future. It's almost like a tacit understanding between them that there is no future to discuss. Every now and then, Ben wonders aloud if that's his baby son she is carrying, but Rey shuts those conversations down. She doesn't want to talk about the baby. Endless conversations of 'is that my kid?' are pointless as far as she's concerned. If she stays in jail long enough to have the baby, then she will find out the truth eventually. Honestly, she's in no rush. Because if this is Ben's baby, that just makes things worse down the line. The child will be one more tool for Snoke to use to control them both. And Ben's desire to know his son will make his Master's manipulation all the more potent.

Once, all Rey had wanted in life was a family to love and to love her back. So maybe this surprise baby is that wish fulfilled, just in a roundabout way. But the circumstances make it hard for Rey to feel any joy. All she feels is dread. Terrible dread.

Physically, she doesn't feel much different. Rey is tired all the time, but that could be from just sitting around all day in a cell. And she's anxious a lot, but that's understandable given the situation. She doesn't have a baby bump either yet. And so, pregnancy is not that bad so far.

Does she want this kid? No, not really. But unless she gets out of this cell soon, she may not have a choice. What will happen if she births this baby as a captive? She doesn't know. So Rey reverts back to her Jakku mindset and she takes things day by day. That's the mental rigor that enabled her to survive years on her own in the desert. Because if your only future is today, then your concerns are immediate. That helps to stave off the hopelessness that comes from longing for change that will never come.

In the best case scenario, one day Rey escapes, digs out the tracker tag, ditches the Force, and then decides how to deal with the baby. She starts a new life alone and never sees Ben again. She won't get a chance to even say goodbye, since that seems risky to communicate through the bond. And the worst case scenario? Well, Rey tries not to dwell on that. But it goes something like this: Rey gives birth to her Skywalker baby in custody and then is promptly killed since her utility is through. Snoke won't need her around to use to control Ben since he will have Ben's mother and the baby too. There are lots of intermediate scenarios, of course. Those permutations are endless. But they all come down to a version of different privileges granted by Snoke that Snoke can take away at whim. And that's something Rey cannot tolerate. The survivor in her wants to stay alive at all costs but the scavenger in her yearns to be free to conduct her own life. As Rey weighs those values against one another, she decides that she wants to live free or not at all. It's the same cost benefit analysis she went through quickly on the Starkiller before she made a run for it.

When there are about thirty marks on Ben's wall, things start to improve. It's all thanks to Leia Organa. Ben's mother is a formidable woman who makes her presence felt.

The lights come on suddenly in Rey's cell. Blinking into the painful brightness, Rey sees Ben's mother with General Hux in tow. While Leia Organa surveys her cell and leans over to inspect Rey huddled in the corner on the floor, her First Order counterpart starts talking fast.

"We have some questions for you," Hux announces. He's all business straightaway. "There is no one else left to ask about the evolution of the peace deal since Ren killed the entire negotiating team. Ergo we are here to consult with you on select matters. You will cooperate or face consequences. Do you understand?"

Leia Organa completely ignores this speech, making it obvious that Hux's questions are a pretext. "Rey, how are you?" she asks worriedly as Rey stands to her feet. "You look awful. Are they feeding you?" Before Rey can answer, the princess barks at the jailers standing outside the open cell door. "She's pregnant. Did you know she is pregnant? You need to feed this girl for the sake of the baby at least."

"They know," Rey explains. "A medic comes to scan me once a week."

"This is not acceptable!" Ben's mother takes charge. "She needs at least a pillow and a blanket. And these lights should be left on permanently."

"We have our orders," the lead jailer replies, looking at Hux nervously. It's clear that the man is not keen on discussing anything with the former leader of the Resistance who through a strange turn of events is Snoke's improbable houseguest.

"We'll see about that," Leia Organa snaps. She turns back to Rey. "Solitary isn't fun, I know. Over the years, I spent more time in Imperial custody than I liked. Hang in there Rey, we'll get you out."

"We are here to discuss the peace deal she and Ren cooked up. Not to discuss her living arrangements," General Hux sniffs, sounding perturbed.

Ben's mother turns to the general and, in a very Ben move, curtly orders, "Shut up!" Then, she turns her attention back to Rey. "You look awful."

"Yeah, well, I'm in jail," Rey gripes. "It's not fun."

"Do they ever let you out?" Leia Organa asks.

"Once a week, I get a shower and new clothes when the medic comes."

"But what about a chance to walk around some?" The princess looks about Rey's small space. "There's not much room to move in here."

Rey shakes her head. "No. Not yet, at least."

The older woman frowns. "We'll see about that."

"Ben is here in the bond every day. For a few minutes at least," Rey volunteers.

"Yes? That's good. At least you get some company each day. How is he?" Leia Organa asks this with a purposeful nonchalance that is clearly feigned. She meets Rey's eyes. "That lightning looked pretty bad even if he was able to walk away."

"He's recovered from that. Ben's . . . Ben's . . . well, he's about how you would expect," Rey finishes lamely. For how do you describe the current mental state of Kylo Ren? He's very pissed off crossed with depressed. It's a more extreme version of his usual extreme self.

"You mean he's angry?" Leia Organa guesses.

"That's Ren's default setting," General Hux smirks.

Ignoring him, the older woman instructs Rey, "Tell Ben I asked about him." Leia Organa again casts troubled eyes over Rey. "I'm worried about you both. This is not a good situation for anyone."

Rey agrees. "No. It's not."

"Are you feeling alright? How's the baby?"

"They tell me everything is normal."

"Rey, I'm sorry about this."

"Yeah, me too."

"We are here to ask the prisoner questions," the impatient General Hux interrupts once again. "Can we get on with it?"

The irritated princess fixes Hux with a hard look. "Have you ever been in custody?" she demands.

"Of course, not." Hux looks offended by the suggestion.

"That's too bad," the older woman observes. "A little humbling time in a jail cell might teach you a few things about the humane treatment of prisoners of war. And that might make you a better leader in the end. Plus, having some empathy for your enemy's situation can do wonders for the peace process."

Hux looks none too pleased to be schooled by his Resistance counterpart. "We are here to ask the prisoner questions," he reminds everyone yet again.

"Fine. Get to it then."

Hux has lots of detailed questions about what was intended by the peace deal. Did they consider this, what did they think of that, what was meant by this phrasing, and why didn't they do this? Partway through the discussion, Leia Organa abruptly cuts him off. "That's enough."

"But we're not finished yet. We have more to cover," Hux objects. "I haven't even gotten to the most important parts."

"We'll cover those items tomorrow, General," Leia Organa announces firmly. "We must not overtax the prisoner. She's pregnant, remember? We'll come back." Ben's mother shoots Rey a covert wink as she says this. Then, the princess and the general are hustled out. The cell door closes and the lights once again turn off.

A moment later the lights turn back on.

The door opens again and a jailer looks around inside. "Who did that?" He demands an explanation as the subordinates behind him quickly disclaim responsibility.

"No one did that. It was the Force. That's Kylo Ren's girlfriend in there," Leia Organa announces ominously from the far doorway. "Do not deny the Force and tempt bad luck," she warns before she grandly sweeps out.

And now, whether Snoke knows it or not, the lights in Rey's cell stay on. And every few days, Leia Organa wrangles a quick visit to check on Rey with a pressing question that only she can answer. It's a thinly veiled excuse but Rey is grateful for her meddling. She's also grateful for the mothering, for Leia Organa marches in and immediately starts expressing concern. The very harassed looking Armitage Hux tags along to participate in the pretext of questions but mostly remains silent now.

In some ways, Rey sees, Leia Organa is very similar to her son. She can be just as demanding and provoking when she wants to be. And she has that same steely air of command about her. On Ben, this mostly comes off as arrogant. But his mother appears effortlessly confident. Like there is nothing this princess can't handle in life. And, really, that's not far from the truth for this woman has seen and done it all. She has gravitas in spades. She also has a temper like her son and she's impatient too. But, as Rey remembers from her time at the Resistance, among her colleagues Leia Organa is universally beloved. She inspired loyalty even in those she was known to be critical of. That charisma stands in sharp contrast to her son who is distrusted and feared by his own men. If mother and son can't get along, perhaps it is because they are too alike, Rey realizes. But in leadership, Rey thinks Leia Organa could give her son some pointers. Not that he would listen, of course.

It's still a mystery to Rey why old Snoke arrested his enemy granddaughter only to hand her over the keys to his new galactic Senate. For the optics of having the two opposing generals Hux and Organa craft the specifics of the peacetime legislature sure are strange. Or, maybe, they are just very Snoke. Because the former-Jedi, former-Sith who now eschews any label can't be bothered to care about optics. Or perhaps it's just that Leia Organa is a Skywalker and ruling the galaxy is the family business. So naturally, she gets a place of prominence even if she fought for the losing side.

Rey has the Skywalker family legacy on her mind late one night as she lounges in Ben's arms. The bond is open and they are cuddled up as best they can. "Would you ever want to be normal?" Rey asks out of the blue. She has been wondering this. She's curious whether Ben could ever be happy in obscurity or whether he would miss the position and power of being Kylo Ren.

"Normal?" Ben smirks. "What's that? Nothing about my life is normal."

"I always wanted to be normal," Rey confesses wistfully. Growing up, she used to spend hours admiring and mimicking the everyday people on the holonet. People with respectable jobs and happy families and real credits and running water. Normal was everything the orphan scavenger girl living in an AT-AT ever aspired to be. For never once did Rey ever imagine her life would turn out like it has. Remembering those simpler times now, Rey gushes, "Normal looks so nice."

Ben is cynical. "Normal isn't what you watch on the holonet. Normal is a lot less perfect and far less exciting than that."

"Yeah, I guess. But I always wanted to be normal." Rey still does, in fact.

"That's because normal was an improvement over Jakku. Normal is a comedown if you're a Skywalker."

"So you've never thought of it?" Rey presses.

"No." Ben is characteristically blunt. "You mean normal like average, right? Like the typical middle-class mom, dad, some kids, and a house somewhere with a secondhand speeder and a couple of household droids?"

"Yeah, that sounds good," Rey muses.

"You mean normal like you and I live in the Mid Rim working two dead end jobs that don't pay enough? With maxed out credit cards and no savings to speak of? And you get bitchy when I lay on the couch all weekend watching podracing and drinking beer instead of helping around the house? Normal like that sort of normal?"

Rey smiles at the thought of this hypothetical life with run-of-the-mill problems. A life where no one talks about how to gerrymander the galactic Senate and argues about the proper ranking of Darth Vader in the hierarchy of the Sith. "We'd have each other," Rey says softly. "That counts for something."

"Not enough to offset the anonymous tedium of it all," Alderaan's erstwhile crown prince sniffs. "Why would I want that? I've got lots of junior officers who have that. And trust me, they are all striving for more. No one is content with average, Rey. Everyone wants better than that."

"I guess maybe it's not having what you want, it's wanting what you have that matters," Rey realizes. "I never had many possessions. Material things don't mean that much to me. They never have. It was always people that I wanted. I wanted my family back."

"I understand," Ben nods thoughtfully. "I wanted people too. I needed more attention as a kid. I probably needed different people as my parents. But you can't change your family," he sighs. "I'm stuck with mine."

"I'm stuck with them too," Rey grumbles. She completely agrees that Ben's family is awful. Well, except for Han Solo. She had really liked Han Solo. And Leia Organa is a good person too, even if she's very highhanded at times. Rey half smiles now. "So, whatever happened to all that talk about leaving the past behind?"

"That worked until the past came back to life and threw you in a cell," Ben gripes. He looks dejected now. "I guess I was foolish to think that I could leave the past behind. The past never goes away in my family. You always have to deal with it."

"But if you could leave it all behind would you do it?" Rey asks. "If you could safely flee Snoke and the First Order forever, would you leave?"

Ben looks askance at her and blinks. "You mean walk away from power?" His pejorative tone says it all.

"Yes."

"Of course, not," Ben scoffs. And that's the answer Rey expects. "I've been working for this since I was a kid, Rey. The things that make my life so different and so difficult are the things that define me."

"You mean your family and the Force?" she suggests.

"Yes. I'm a Skywalker," Ben says proudly. "I'm a Chosen One. Born to rule the galaxy and to bring balance to the Force." He shrugs a bit. "That's the point of being me, whether I like it or not." Ben now sternly lectures her on responsibility. "You cannot escape your destiny. Only fools attempt to defy fate."

And those are not the words Rey wants to hear. Not when she's hoping to first escape Snoke and then escape the Force. Escaping destiny and defying fate are her life goals right now.

"But how do you know it's destiny and not just Snoke?" she wonders. "How do you know it's not just a series of decisions that in hindsight end up looking like destiny, but they're not?"

"The Force," Ben answers solemnly. "The Force picks its favorites, and you are one of them. It means you will have a life of significance, whether you like it or not. Welcome to my world, Rey," he smirks.

Yes, it always comes back to the Force, she thinks. And that's why Rey needs to get away from the Force. She doesn't want to end up another woman who gives birth to a Skywalker baby before she tragically dies. There are far too many dead mothers and mother-figures in Ben's family tree for Rey's liking.

"I never wanted the Force," she complains. "I just wanted to be normal and have a family."

"I know," he commiserates. "But you don't get a choice. The Force will always draw you into the fight in the end. It's our lot in life as Force users. Even my uncle couldn't stay away in exile forever."

Yes, but Luke was a Skywalker, Rey thinks. The Force is everything to his family. Not like her. She's a nobody from nowhere who doesn't matter much. Still, she hazards the ultimate question now. Rey can't help herself. She needs to know this. "Could you ever walk away from the Force?"

Ben laughs at the very suggestion. "That's impossible."

"But if you could, would you do it?" she persists.

"Why would anyone want to do that?"

"Because the Force causes a lot of problems," the ever practical Rey points out. "I think I hate the Force."

That comment makes him chuckle. "Don't let Snoke hear you say that. That's blasphemy. It's grounds for lightning." And Ben is only half joking, Rey thinks.

But Ben is getting the gist of her questions, so he confronts them head on. "Rey, I don't like this situation any more than you do. But you don't get to quit being a Skywalker and you don't resign from being Supreme Leader Kylo Ren. Those are not options. And besides, you know that I believe in the goals of the First Order. With your help, I have brought peace and order to the galaxy. Next, we will bring progress for the galaxy as a whole, not just the Core. In time, places like Jakku will be better. You'll see. The war is over but the real work is just beginning." Ben makes a face. "I wish Snoke would let you out. I'm convening a cabinet. If I could, I would make you my advisor. I could use your perspective on cleaning up the Rim. You have a lot to contribute beyond just the Force."

That's a pipedream, Rey thinks. She looks down. "Snoke is never letting me out."

"You don't know that."

Rey swallows her rejoinder and abandons their argument before it begins. A lot of their conversations get abandoned because they lead directions that go nowhere. Because so many topics, really so much of life, touches on the future. And she and Ben have no future together. Ben refuses to admit that, but Rey is a realist when it comes to things like this. She didn't survive Jakku with wishful thinking. She is clear eyed as always in the face of danger and uncertainty. But their time together is too precious to waste bickering, so Rey just lets it go.

They both sense the bond closing now. "Kiss me," Ben whispers. "Kiss me and say it." This is their habit. A kiss and words of love in case they don't get another chance again tomorrow. Because that could happen. One day the bond might not open. One day she might try to escape and die trying. Or one day she might escape only to leave the Force and Ben behind forever. And so, it is bittersweet as Rey now says the words that mean so much.

"I love you, Ben." She thinks a moment and then adds the ancient blessing. "May the Force be with you." For this Dark prince of the galaxy's most notorious clan loves her, but he loves his Force too.