Rey felt nothing for a long time. She slipped deep into a restorative state. A gentle hum flowed in and around her. Suddenly she felt weight underneath her. She was sitting in her meditative pose. Legs crossed underneath her, hands resting on her knees. "Must've been a deep session." she thought to herself as she began to take control of her breathing and bring her senses back.

She took one final breath and opened her eyes to softly focus on the room in front of her, but found nothing but white mist. She was shocked to find two familiar brown eyes gazing back at hers, urgently flitting around as if he was unsure if she was real or not.

Rey's memories of the day before crashed back into her mind. Her brow furrowed and eyes widened in shock of who was before her. She felt like the wind had been knocked out of her, but managed to breathe out "Am I dreaming, or is it really you?" she said barely above a whisper.

"It's really me." Ben said slowly, his breathing started to quicken as he reached for her hand. She didn't react when his cool hand met hers. She felt his soft skin as he ran his thumb over the back of her hand.

She looked down at their joined hands. "Why can't I sense you like before?" Rey managed to breathe through her tight chest. She hadn't fully accepted that this hadn't been a delirious attempt for her psyche to try to make her feel better after the crushing blow of emotions erupted when her walls had broken down.

"Well I think technically because I'm dead." He responded calmly as he placed his other hand under her chin to draw her eyes back to his. "But you're very much alive" his mouth curved back into that beloved smile she had seen oh so briefly once before. He was proud of himself, she could tell, and she both loved and hated him for saving her life at the expense of his own.

"Ben I don't know what to say." she said, dropping her gaze down once more. She felt ashamed and honored, but could he feel the gravity of the loss of their bond like she did? Had he grieved it the way she had been? Ben's hand rose to cup her face as tenderly as she had his before. His thumb brushed away a small tear she hadn't noticed has escaped. "Don't say anything, I wouldn't have had it any other way." He gave a small laugh and shook his head. His eyes had a lightness in them she had never seen before. He seemed so relaxed and care-free.

Rey's senses snapped back once more. "Wait but you're dead? Why are we still connecting then even if we can't sense the bond anymore? This isn't what death felt like for me." She questioned and watched his face wince when she brought up her own near death experience.

She watched his brows furrow with concentration before he spoke to her again. "We still have the connection Rey, it wasn't fully severed because I haven't fully died yet. Neither did you since I saved you." He mentioned casually before taking a breath to continue. "Luke appeared to me after I died. He wouldn't say much about my current situation, although he mentioned the Force was not finished with us yet. That I wouldn't be allowed to become one with the Force. Damn man didn't offer any answers, just told me to try to figure it out myself. So for the time being I'm just here. Wherever this is. I was told to wait here until you showed up and you can help me get back." he finished and pulled back from their embrace. .

Rey stood in silence for a few momence as she processed the information before her. All of the intense grief she had felt evaporated. Her heart fluttered, the Force was giving them another chance? Or was all of this a fever dream? She bit her lip and looked down to her feet.

Everything she had seen and heard certainly felt real. She'd either gone completely mental or this was actually happening.

"Where is here then?" She looked out to the faded mist around them, unable to sense anything that would explain what she was seeing. Ben followed her gaze. "Somewhere between life and death. Purgatory maybe. I don't know, and Luke wouldn't give me a straight answer." He turned to motion to the endless mist around them. "I've only really seen it like this with Luke and now with you. When I'm alone it's like I'm lost in my own memories, meditating."

"Hmm." Rey contemplated. " Well then, where do we start?" she raised an eyebrow and she watched the features of his face fully relax. He had sensed her hesitation to believe him, even if he couldn't feel it through their bond. He took a moment to survey her soft features for one more second. He hadn't known how long it had been since he had died, but it felt like an eternity without her. He steadied his mind and switched to the task on hand, recalling the difficult conversation he had with his uncle.

"From the small amount he would share, Luke said we need to get a soul stone. There is very little information on them, and unfortunately I've never heard of them, but we're assured that some exist." He shook his head with irritation. "That's all the details he would give me. I don't know how long you'll be here" He grasped her hand tighter in his. "But I'll try to tell you anything I think may be of help."

They sat cross legged in the misty fog for some time together trying to think of places for Rey to start. Old Jedi temples, libraries, people, anything that could be able to recognize the gem. Rey felt her eyelids begin to droop as she sat across from Ben. She placed her head in her hands and rubbed her eyes.

"You need to rest." he said. It wasn't a question. Ben knew how to speak with authority even when he didn't mean to. Her head shot up and she looked at him with concern. "I'll be ok, I just need to remember all of these places." she shook her head and began to list off the names they had mentioned before.

Ben just sighed and scooted beside her before patting his legs in offering. "It'll be okay Rey, but we aren't going to get anywhere while you're like this. You look like you haven't slept since you got back. Please."

She stopped at that word and looked deeply at him. She could swear she could still feel everything he hid behind his dark eyes. He was worried for her, and he wasn't going to take no for an answer. She finally took note of the fatigue in her body and wouldn't begin to pretend she wouldn't like to lie down on Ben Solo's lap.

Rey gave a sigh and laid down. Resting her head on Ben's lap, she could smell his familiar scent of leather and embers once again. Her mind balanced and shut down. She melted when she felt his hand tentatively reach up and begin stroking her hair gently away from her face. She remembered a hand on her head like this once. A mother's loving caress, a feeling she had truly forgotten in the cold nights on Jakku. She sank down farther into the darkness. The emptiness settled around her and they faded away.