A/N: I can't help but writing another short story. I just love and miss these Skywalkers so much. A big piece of TRoS that was missing for me (though also impossible due to the passing of Carrie) was the opportunity to have a reunion between Ben and Leia.
This is technically part of a collection of short stories I write for funsies where Ben Solo lived following Exegol, but it is not necessary to read the others to enjoy this fic. If you're interested, the first is Duality & Grace and the second is Children of War.
If you don't want to read either but this one specifically intrigues you because you're a Leia Stan, here's a short summary of them:
Condensed Prologue: Ben lives. He runs away for three years and lives in solitary on Ahch-To. Rey and he are reunited. They now live on Naboo where Rey and Finn have started a Jedi Academy at the Naberrie's summer home.
Naboo, 3 Years after the Battle of Exegol
"Ben, the cutting board!"
"Where is it?"
"The shelf to your left – no, your other left."
Ah. Ben snatched the board from the cupboard above with ease, handing it to a focused Rey who, without so much as a glance in his direction, immediately delved into the stacked ingredients to her side. Her cuts were a deliberate, steady rhythm that joined the current sounds of clinking pans and simmering pots.
The two of them had been assigned to hosting tonight's community dinner and it was going as smoothly as one would expect of these two Jedi. Both having little to no experience in the kitchen, one by privilege and the other by lack thereof, they held onto a small strand of hope that their efforts would be judged as acceptable by the hungry younglings who awaited them this evening.
Back-to-back, the pair was lost amongst a flurry of loose ingredients, appliances, and the occasional urgent order. The dyad had never faced such a challenge before.
Hair haphazardly tossed on top of her head and eyebrows drawn together in deep focus, Rey hummed an unfamiliar tune while she continued her concentrated preparation for the meal's topato stew. Ben was still growing accustomed to these unhindered, mundane moments. Though it had been over three years since Exegol, he still half expected himself to wake one morning onboard the cold quarters of a Star Destroyer but was instead pleasantly surprised day after day to wake up beside Rey's warm body in the bed they now shared.
"Try," she commanded with little warning, sticking a wooden spoon in his face. Ben gave slight pause to eye the light green substance clumped at the utensil's edge before obliging with a small tase. He raised his eyebrows at her. It was quite good. She smugly grinned at his impressed reaction.
"You know," Ben started while Rey turned back to the large pot on the stove. "My mother used to make this for us. It was one of my father's favorites." In spite of her full, and often hectic, schedule, Leia Organa sometimes found the time to prepare a family favorite for those rare occasions where all three were home. It once was a Bail Organa specialty and remained a way for his mother to experience a little bit of early life on Alderaan, even if just for a short while. Most times the task of preparing dinner fell upon their dutiful nanny droid T-2LC, fondly known as "Elsie", whose shrill barks at Ben to keep his elbows off the table would be forever etched in his memory. Despite the protocol droid's best efforts, however, she could never get it quite the way his mother did.
"She always used this one spice in particular, that really brought the dish together," Ben reminisced out loud. "Except I can't remember it for the life of me…"
Ben felt Rey unexpectedly stiffen besides him. Her stirring had stopped. He knew her question before it left her lips: "Have you seen her yet?"
"No," Ben admitted quietly.
Rey's use of yet in her questionrevealed a sense of optimism but he had difficulty sharing in it. He had been waiting for so long now that by now it was beginning to feel futile. Ben was not sure would be an appropriate time a mother would visit her redeemed son after he had lived a life dedicated to destroying everything she had stood against, but he was certain if there was no more of an opportune moment than during his three-year Barash Vow on Ahch-To. A vow of self-inflicted exile as a form of atonement, Ben had spent the days completing his oath by recentering himself in the Force after years of relying on the Dark for his abilities.
If not then, Ben wondered, when? Doubt began to gnaw at him. What if, despite his best efforts, no number of reparations would ever convince the former princess and Rebellion hero of her son's transformation.
What if there would never be a visit?
As if sensing his fears simmering over, Rey grounded him with a reassuring squeeze of his forearm.
"You will see her, in due time." She sounded so certain. Ben didn't have it in him to ask if Rey had seen his mother since she had returned to the Force. A small part of him predicted he would be gutted by her answer.
Before he could further spiral from these insecurities, a ryshcate caught Ben's attention. This freshly baked ryshcate in would not have been anything out of the ordinary if not for the fact the delectable pastry was currently floating in mid-air. He swiftly snatched the treat, preventing it from rounding the kitchen's entrance. Rey and his ears instantaneously met with a collection of giggles just out of view.
"What have we told you about snacks before dinner?!" Ben gave an exaggerated roar, doing little to mask his amusement of their clever antics. These younglings always kept him on his toes.
There was a delighted series of squeals and pattering feet as Ben chased the guilty party down the hall, all but leaving a bemused Rey to her own devices.
With shake of her head and a smirk escaping the corner of her mouth, she resumed her stirring.
A/N: I thrive off the validation of strangers and Star Wars fans. Drop a comment if you enjoy!
xox rose
(found the artist for the cover image! "With You I am Home" by Shorelle on Devianart)