Rey informed General Organa and the rest of the planning committee of the slight hiccup that Ben had warned her about the next morning.

"So, we move the time table up," the General sighed, "We can't back down now. Not when the end is so near."

"The odds of us finding another base and moving without being detected is slim. I agree with my sister," Luke nodded.

"It's got to be now or never," Poe added, "We can't keep running."

"So it's settled. We move in two weeks," General Organa said. A sense of finality entered the air. The silence was palpable. They had been waging this war in some form or another for decades. This was the beginning of the end.

"Now that our time table is pushed up, what are we going to have to change?" Finn asked.

"We'll have to send people on supply runs this week. At the beginning of next week we'll start stocking our ships. We'll need to shoot for having that done by mid week. It'll take us two days to get to their system. We'll leave the day after everything is stocked," the General declared. A firm resoluteness was on everyone's face as they nodded.

"Well, everyone should know what they need to do. Get to it," Poe ordered. The committee dispersed to go inform the rest of the base of the new time table, except for Rey and General Organa.

"General, might I ask you for a favor?" Rey asked tentatively as she pulled up a star map of the galaxy.

"Depends on the favor," The General smirked.

"Might I be able to leave ahead of everyone else?"

"You want to see Ben before the battle," the General said with a knowing smile.

"I just want to make sure he knows the whole plan and I also don't want the first time I see him to be in the middle of blaster fire," Rey sighed.

"And I'm sure no one wants their first kiss to be in the middle of imminent death, or to even worry that they may not get that kiss due to someone's imminent death," Leia teased, thinking back to her first kiss with Han. They always did have bad timing.

"You think someone's going to die?" Rey asked, suddenly worried.

"In my experience, the end always brings about terrible losses. Who's to say what will happen. However, I understand your position and I grant you permission to leave a day early. Take the Falcon with Chewwie and whoever else you think necessary. However, I expect you to get back to the fleet by the time the first shot is fired," General Organa replied. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I have to go make sure that Poe isn't harassing my troops."

"Thank you, General," Rey nodded, watching her leave. She took a moment to look back at the map of the galaxy. She had come a long way from Jakku, from the planet and from the girl she was. She had stopped wondering if she had made the right choice a long time ago. Getting off that sand trap had been the best thing to happen to her. She had gone from having no one to having friends, a family. She had a purpose and a plan, but she had to laugh at herself a bit. She was still a scavenger. Just like she had found all those parts on Jakku, she had found her family and her place in this world. She knew who she was now. She was Rey from Jakku, a sort of Jedi, a member of the resistance, a friend to Finn and Poe, and something more to Ben. She turned the map off with a small smile and went to go about her day. She had things to do, and dwelling on her past was not one of them.


Ben had spent the morning in his room, listening in on Hux. Hux had informed his chosen squadron of their new mission and even told them what comm channels to use to report back on their progress. Ben smirked at Hux's stupidity before taking a wrist comm and tuning it into that channel. Now he barely needed his mouse droid, but he would still keep him there to eavesdrop on Snoke.

Two weeks. Ben had to keep up his charade for two more weeks. He had been playing this part for years, but now it was suddenly such a challenge that he didn't know how he'd done it. Well, that wasn't entirely true. He was a different person back then. Restless, full of anger, and with no direction. He shook his head at himself. He really used to be a mess. It's no wonder people hated him. He would have hated him, too. Ben knew he had done terrible things. He also knew that this last act of helping the resistance and his mother would never be enough to wipe his slate clean. He had blood on his hands, so thick it was caked on. It would take more than a simple wash to cleanse him of it. He would have to spend the rest of his days making it up to the galaxy, or he might be sent to prison or exile. Whatever the resistance saw fit, he would do it, even if it meant losing Rey. As much as he loved her, he knew that their love wasn't enough to redeem him. He would have to do better than that. It was with that thought in mind that he made a list. Every single war crime he had ever committed. After the battle, he was going to hand this over to his mother and his fate would no longer be in his hands. His chest felt heavy as his list dragged on and on. Every murder, every kidnapping and where it occurred. It made his stomach sick. Looking back, in those moments he thought nothing of those acts of violence. Yet, here, seeing it all accumulate, he hated himself. He was a monster. He didn't even know how he would go about making any of this right. He sighed, dragging his hand through his hair.


Rey had just returned from her mission, a day trip to a near-by world to gather some extra medical supplies for the mission. She, Finn, and Poe had been successful and now they returned back to base to grab a quick meal before crashing for the night.

"You know, working with you wasn't that bad," Poe said, smirking at Rey.

"I've been telling you that, Poe," Finn said, playfully smacking Poe in the chest.

"Yeah, well. Up until now I hadn't exactly seen her in action," Poe shrugged.

"I shouldn't have to prove myself. Not to you, not to anyone else," Rey commented as she walked beside them.

Finn started to fake cry as he put his arm around Rey, "I'm so proud. Look at how far she's come."

Poe rolled his eyes," You're one to talk. You literally didn't have a name until we met."

Rey smirked, "Since when are you two my parents?"

"How do you figure?" Poe blinked.

"Oh, you know, super loving mother, fairly aloof father that I constantly disappoint and have to prove myself to," Rey said, waving them off.

Finn and Poe stopped in their tracks, letting Rey walk a bit ahead of them.

"Is that a normal family dynamic?" Finn whispered to Poe.

"Depends, really. Either way I guess we have a child now?" Poe joked.

"I always knew this day would come, but I had hoped it would be BB-8. I don't think I'm ready to give anyone the talk," Finn replied.

"Finn, I really don't think-"

"SHE'S MY DAUGHTER. I AM OBLIGATED TO IMPART KNOWLEDGE," Finn cut-off.

"Yes, but, do you really have any experience?" Poe countered.

"Well...no," Finn trailed off before adding, "I guess that just means you'll have to do it."

"Finn, we're not actually her parents. You do realize that, right?"

"You know I can hear the two of you, right?" Rey called back.

"I swear we're not going to ever discuss that with you," Poe said as they caught up to her, "But, just use protection."

"POE!" Finn exclaimed.

"What? You were talking about literally discussing the mechanics of sex with her, but I can't give her the only advice that really matters?" Poe responded.

"Yeah, but you could've been a little more delicate about it," Finn replied.

"Trust me, hon, if you think that was crude, you haven't seen enough of the world, yet," Poe chuckled.

Rey rolled her eyes at them. "Can we just get something to eat? I'm famished."