In the time that followed the Resistance changed by necessity. Now, with control of most of the core worlds and mid-rim, it was no longer a mere ragtag group of resistance fighters; Rather, it had become a large cooperative governing body. Discussions in regards to the reformation of the Galactic Alliance, Senate, and trade agreements were carried out in public, broadcasted on the Holonet for everyone to see. Lando headed most of the discussions, now dubbed interim Chancellor, he strived for transparency and fairness. They'd decided upon a democratic system in which each planet would elect their own senator and each senator would have equal standing, much like it had been with the previous Republic. Poe and others often grumbled about repeating old mistakes but in reality how else could things be done? Lando worked closely with ethicists in making sure to include anti-corruption bills as well as power checks and balances, to prevent a repeat of the events Chancellor Palpatine had precipitated all those years ago.
It had been decided that all military actions would be overseen by the senators but handled by a newly formed militia that consisted primarily of former resistance fighters. Poe and Finn remained Generals, Rose had been promoted to commander of the base on Ajan Kloss.
The First Order had retreated. Most of the remaining Generals had come to an understanding, forging alliances out of necessity to hold on to what power they could. Reports showed that conditions on these planets remained oppressive and cruel, however it had been decided that further aggression was not palatable and the new Galactic Senate would only react if attacked first.
Parnadee ruled over the Unknown Regions, intel had been hard to come by, ships who ventured into her space disappeared. They knew she had the help of the Chiss, though how far that help went was still unknown. Upon her withdrawl from the mid-rim they had discovered many other facilities like the one on Bracca. All had been wiped clean, only dead bodies left as evidence of what had been done there. Hundreds of bodies.
The children who'd been experimented on were all examined closely and kept in suspended animation on Nakadia; Too dangerous to be allowed to awaken until they could figure out what had been done to them. The data Rey and Ben had managed to download pointed to Kaminoan technology being used. The children were not clones but something had been done to their brains and so far scans showed no abnormalities. Unfortunately, since Kamino was now in the control of Parnadee, answers remained elusive.
The younglings they'd rescued, who'd not yet been experimented on, were all returned to their families with the offer of training in the future if they wanted it. No one should be taken from their family, their loved ones, against their will. They would not repeat the mistakes of Jedi past.
Ben was still haunted by Voe and the children on Bracca, he meditated on it regularly and checked in with the researchers daily regarding findings. He felt guilty for what had happened to them, he felt responsible, and he was desperate to set things right… Well as right as he could.
He was frustrated, the only thing keeping him from stealing a ship and going after Voe himself was Rey. She kept him grounded, soothed his anger when it spiked, comforted him when he cried. It was something he'd never had before. He idly wondered if someone had always been there for him like this if he would have ever fallen for Snoke's tricks.
After Bracca Rey and Ben were not returned to Ajan Kloss, rather they were taken to Nakadia, a mid-rim planet chosen as the interim capital for their new Galactic Alliance. They were provided with an apartment in the senate building in Quarrow, Nakadia's capital city. Ben's actions on Bracca had earned him more freedom and now it was only required that Rey was with him wherever he went; an arrangement they both found satisfactory.
She stood across the room from him now, speaking politely with a delegation from Jaaku. They had elected her to be their Senator and were gently pushing her to accept. Ben knew that she didn't want to be Senator but also that she felt she might be able to help the desperate people of Jaaku improve their lives. He could feel the conflict brewing within her, between her duty to train new Grey Jedi, and helping the people of Jaaku. He had already told her that he felt she could do both and that he'd help her; But she remained undecided.
He wanted to hold her then, just tuck her in his arms and keep her all to himself. Watching her from a distance only ever made him want to close said distance, so he walked up behind her, offering the delegation a friendly smile while placing a hand in the small of her back.
Rey glanced up at him over her shoulder, "Hey Ben," she smiled warmly and introduced him to the three men before her.
"Ben Solo? Leia Organa's son? We had heard you died." said the man on Rey's left, peering up at Ben curiously.
"Well I sort of did…" he paused awkwardly, trying to decide how to explain it to people who were not familiar with the force, "Lucky for me Rey figured out how to heal me."
"Is that so? Well the Alderaanian ambassador will be delighted by this news. They've been trying to decide on who is next to succeed to the throne, but if the Prince is alive they have nothing more to worry about." another in the group said.
"Oh well, No.. I am not a prince…" Ben protested, silently wishing he'd just stayed where he was instead of following his urge to touch Rey.
"But you are! You are also the only living relative of Luke Skywalker. Royalty is in your blood boy!" The man on the left said.
Ben scratched the back of his head uncomfortably, "I am a Jedi, not a prince."
"So is Mistress Rey here and she is considering our offer of a seat on the senate." the other man said.
Rey raised her hands, "I haven't agreed to anything."
"Well you will agree to at least come to the Senate dinner tomorrow night? It would mean so much if both of you could make an appearance, let the galaxy know that the Jedi stand with them." The man on the left said, a hopeful look upon his face.
Rey sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose, Ben rubbed her back soothingly and said, "We would love to b.."
"You have to! We won't take no for an answer! I will discuss it with Chancellor Calrissian, I am sure he will agree." the other man said excitedly.
It was Ben's turn to sigh. They were backed into a corner and it took all of his self control to not just jedi mind trick his way out of this. He could tell from the look Rey gave him she felt the same.
"Alright, I'll speak with Lando and look into the possibility of making an appearance," Rey said, ushering them towards the door, "Thank you so much for stopping by, I will consider the offer."
Ben sat on the arm of their couch, arms crossed, watching as Rey politely maneuvered the delegation out of their sitting room. When she returned she heaved a heavy sigh, "I guess I need to find something to wear…"
He opened his arms, taking her by the hips and pulling her towards him, eye to eye now, "That will be the easy part. Have you ever been to a state dinner before?"
"A state what now?" she said, placing her hands on his shoulders.
"That's what I thought," he said with a smirk, "never fear I shall help guide you through the quagmire that is political dinners."
She snorted, "How about we just steal that ship you were eyeing yesterday and make a break for the unknown regions?"
He pretended to gasp scandalously, "And miss out on a chance to see you in a dress?" he squeezed her hips, his hands nearly encircled them completely, "It will be fine, we will make an appearance, pose for the holonet and escape back here where I can rip that dress off you and make you forget all about it."
She blushed and wiggled in his grip, "All right, now it doesn't sound so bad."
He leaned forward, his lips brushing hers, "Or I could just make you forget all about it right now…"
Rey smirked this time, backing out of his grasp teasingly, "Oh no, you got me into this mess, now you're going to have to wait until after. If I have to suffer so do you."
He frowned and held his hands out to her, "This was not my fault!" he protested, "You are a cruel Senator!"
Rey laughed lightly and continued to back up, "and you're a spoiled little Prince."
"Oh, that is it!" He said with a grin, chasing after her. He tossed her over his shoulder and carried her laughing back towards their bedroom, and he was right, he did make her forget about it for the rest of that afternoon.
Later that evening Rey and Ben made their way to Lando's office, it was a plain white imperial style room with a window that overlooked the city. There was a large desk with a few chairs in front of it and not much else in the room. This office had definitely been designed more for business than comfort. Lando sat behind the desk, dwarfed by it and the stacks of datapads. He gestured for them to come in and have a seat across from him, "I hear you will be coming to dinner tomorrow?"
Rey and Ben both shot him apologetic looks and Rey said, "We didn't mean to invite ourselves, the Jakku delegation…"
Lando raised his hand to stop her there, "No, I planned on asking you two to attend anyways, they just beat me to the punch. I was going to have you both play a… Quieter…. role in all of this but now that you are 'officially' attending you will have to be announced and sit with me. This means everyone, and I mean everyone, in the Galactic Alliance will be watching you two…"
His gaze shifted between the two of them before resting upon Rey, "Do you understand what that means?"
Rey shook her head.
Lando sucked in a breath and leaned back in his chair, "I know Ben understands… His parents went through it. You are about to become two of the most famous faces in the Galaxy. Until now your names have been fairly well known but not your faces. Most still think Ben is dead, not many even knew that Ben Solo and Kylo Ren were the same person. You Rey are known as the mysterious Jedi who saved us from Emperor Palpatine once more. Think of what it was like on Ajan Kloss and multiply that by 1000. More." He leaned forwards, placing his clasped hands upon the desk before him, "Everyone will know your faces, will know who you are. Will want a piece of you. Does that make sense?"
Rey sat stock still, frozen with terror at the thought.
Lando's face softened, "Rey, this was inevitable. I have had people asking about you daily since Exegol. I couldn't shield you from it forever. Luke, Leia, Han, myself, we all had to deal with this. I was also hoping that the Alderaanians would choose a successor before they learned of Ben's survival." Lando shot Ben a sympathetic look, "I know playing Prince is the last thing you want after everything that has happened…"
Ben chewed on the inside of his cheek, arms crossed, eyes downcast.
"Neither of you has to do anything you don't want to do. However, I do believe it is important for the galaxy to see you, to know who saved them from the brink of destruction. After the dinner if you so choose you can settle somewhere else and lay low. I won't force anything upon you. But I want you both to consider all the good you could to in helping to rebuild after everything that has happened…" Lando rose from his seat and rounded his desk, looking down at Rey, "Now as for what you can wear, I had a thought on that."
Lando called in his assistant, "Will you bring the gifts I've been holding on to for Mistress Rey?"
The assistant disappeared returning shortly after with a clothing cart in tow, "Now I know you aren't the type to dress up but Leia bought these for you before she passed. Leia knew you'd play a big part in this Galaxy and that eventually you'd need something less practical to wear." Lando gestured to the cart, "Have a look?"
Rey rose from her seat to unzip the cover that was draped over the clothing cart, the sight of what lay inside made her gasp and step back. Ben caught her by the small of her back, peeking in himself, "Well my mother always was fashionable."
Rey shook her head, "I can't accept this, it must have cost a fortune…"
Lando shrugged, "Leia bought it, it wasn't my money, and she bought it for you Rey. You'd really refuse her last gift to you?"
Rey was close to tears, had Leia really known that she was destined for dinners like the one to be held tomorrow? Had she had so much faith in her success even in their darkest hours? It was hard for her to believe but what laid before her was undeniable. She looked closer, hands running over some of the luxurious fabrics. Tucked on a shelf near the bottom was a box, she bent over and fished it out, turning to set it on Lando's desk before opening it.
Ben let out a sharp breath behind her. It was his mother's jewels. Necklaces, rings, and the tiara of Alderaan. They all glittered up at them and Ben couldn't help but reach out and gently touch the large sapphire on one of the rings, "That was one of her favourites when I was little…" His voice cracked with the memory of his mother's hand upon his forehead, the ring catching in his hair.
Lando placed a comforting hand on Ben's shoulder, "These belong with the two of you. I'll have everything brought to your apartment. I'll also have clothes sent for you Ben."
He released Ben's shoulder and moved back around to the other side of his desk, "Now, how should we have you two announced? I don't think Rey Palpatine is a wise choice…"