Chewie patted Rose on the back and headed inside the Falcon to begin the pre-flight preparations. She rubbed her hands on her pants as if they were dirty, she was a tad nervous.

She'd never been on Dantooine before, but according to the holos it was nice. Green fields, tall trees and soon it'll also feature Rey's Force user academy.

Hux returned with Aidan and gave her a peck on the lips. "I take it we will depart soon?"

She nodded. "Chewie said that everything is loaded in the cargo bay. We can depart on time."

He smiled nervously. "Have you checked if we have enough Nx-chips for the first few weeks? I checked our list but perhaps we should reconsider the amount."

It seemed that she wasn't the only one feeling anxious about the change. She put her hand on his upper arm and pulled him down for another kiss. "We have everything we need."

Aidan said loudly "ip!".

She took Aidan from Hux and gave him a kiss too. "See, he agrees."

"I think he might just be excited to see the Falcon up close," replied Hux.

Rose noticed that her mother was approaching them. She cleared her throat. "I need to talk to my mother for a bit."

He glanced over his shoulder and watched her come closer. "I need to take care of something too. Can I leave Aidan with you?"

"Of course, you know how much my mom adores him."

Hux gave Thanya a nod and headed out of the hangar.

Her mother beamed at Aidan. "My sweet boy! I swear you've grown even more handsome since I last saw you!" Rose gave him to her mother who took him and started to rock him slightly.

"So, I know that I could've handled our last talk better," began Rose and leaned against a supply crate. She crossed her arms. "I've given it a great deal of thought and I apologize for not telling you earlier that we would move to Dantooine. I'm sorry, okay? It's just- it happened so fast and when the opportunity presented itself we decided to take it."

Thanya sighed. "I know, Ro-Ro. I just thought we could stay together - as a family."

"I get it, but mom… you know that we just would keep on fighting, right?"

Her mother sighed. "I try not to fight, but I'm your mother and I think I'm allowed to tell you-"

"-tell me that I should make sure to lose some weight after having a child?" Rose pinched her nose. "You don't get to say mean stuff just because you're my mother."

"It's not mean. I want to help you."

Stars! It was as if she liked talking in circles. "Look, we have been over this. Either way we're leaving for Dantooine." She exhaled. "We're driving each other crazy. But that's alright, you know. I love you. And you love me. We're just not good at showing it sometimes."

Her mother blinked and straightened her back. "I'm trying, Ro-Ro. I really am."

Rose hugged her mother. "I know, mom. I know."

"Just promise to call me. And call me if you need help. You know I would jump on the next ship and fly over." Thanya rubbed Rose's back. "I love you so so much." Her hand clenched Rose's shirt.

Rose sniffled. "I know mom, should another powerful Sith show up I'll call you right away."

Thanya laughed and sniffled too. Aidan started to whine, apparently he didn't like the hugging.

Thanya let go of Rose and lifted Aidan up in the air. "What is it, little one?"

Aidan started to wiggle and she put him down on the floor. As fast as his little legs carried him he marched towards the fighter he had admired before.

Rose wiped over her eyes. "I bet he is going to be a pilot, just like Paige."

Her mother smiled. "Or perhaps he will become an engineer just like you and Armitage."

They followed Aidan, watching him as he looked up at the wing in awe.

"Have you thought about a sibling for Aidan?" asked Thanya.

"It's too early. Armitage needs to get used to everything first and-" Rose hesitated for a moment. "Did you know that he killed his own father?"

Thanya crossed her arms. "Yes, I heard about it from Leia."

Rose crooked her eyebrow. "She told you?"

"Truth be told… I asked her what she thought about him." She looked Rose straight in the eye. "It was even before you told me that you were with him. I just wanted to know what kind of man was working with my daughter."

"I wasn't aware that Leia knew."

Thanya pulled the corners of her mouth down. "She told me that she sensed conflict from him, that he was sharp and soft at the same time. I didn't understand it back then but now I think I do." She went to Aidan and lifted him up so that he could trace the hydraulics of the landing gear.

"A double-edged sword," said Rose in a low voice. "Perhaps everyone is like that. I mean… we can all do horrible deeds and at the same time we are capable of so much good."

Thanya put Aidan back down and turned to face Rose. "Sometimes doing something can be both." She put her hands on her hips. "I haven't properly talked to Leia since… since I killed Ren… since I killed her son."

"Can you imagine that? Waging war against your own child?"

Thanya gave her a sad smile. "I'm pretty sure that it was he who was waging a war against her, not the other way around. Either way - she loved him until the end. That's why she couldn't kill him herself."

"I think you should talk to her."

Thanya shook her head. "I don't need to be Force sensitive to know that she doesn't want to see me. She's grieving, as would I were I in her place."

Rose sat on a nearby fuel canister, rubbing her hands against her trousers. "I think she's grieving for the son she lost to Snoke years ago, not the thing that lies buried in the dirt of this planet." She cleared her throat. "I don't know what happened to Ben Solo, but it had to end one way or another and I think she knew that too. That's why she called the Operation 'Skyfall'. She wanted to bring an end to the people that walked in the sky, thinking that they were more valuable than other beings in the galaxy."

"Huh, never thought about that."

"It makes sense, doesn't it? The Empire, the Order and their ilk think that they and their opinions are more important than others, that they have a right to conquer the galaxy. Maybe this was Ben Solo's downfall, he thought that only he was special. That everybody else was supposed to be the supporting character to his grand drama."

"What grand drama would that be?" asked her mother, still watching Aidan as he sat down on the floor and touched the landing clamps next to the ship.

Rose shrugged. "I don't know. I just got this feeling that it was all about him, that nobody was allowed to be more than what he wanted. Rey was supposed to be his love but all he did was forcing her to come to him, expecting her to bow to him. Just as Armitage was supposed to be his subordinate, so he used mind tricks to revert him back into somebody he didn't want to be anymore."

"Maybe you're right, but we'll never know. He's dead and Leia is the last of her family now." She scoffed. "Huh, we really are alike. If I hadn't killed her son you wouldn't be here anymore, and so would Aidan."

"Go talk to her," said Rose. "She has so few friends left. And if she really doesn't want to see you she will tell you."

Thanya crooked her eyebrow. Rose noticed that in that moment she looked a lot like Rose herself. "My my my, you really have grown, Ro-Ro. Giving advice to your old mother."

Rose grimaced. "It took me a while to understand that people need to talk, I guess I inherited your social skills."

"And my charms."

"If you mean being unable to tell the man I love that I like him 'charms'... then yeah."

Thanya smiled. "Your father had to ask me twice to be his girlfriend. The first time I didn't understand his meaning when he invited me to a concert. I thought he just wanted company."

Rose sighed. "Are all Tico women this dense?"

"No, we're just a little pig-headed sometimes. And are singularly focussed on one thing at a time. And a bit selfish."

"Stars, we're quite horrible, aren't we?"

Her mother nodded. "The worst."

.

-o-

.

General Organa was still where Hux had last seen her. The holo was off and she sat in her office, apparently reading something on her pad.

He knocked softly at the door frame. "General Organa, may I have another word with you?"

She looked up, he noticed that she looked tired, her face seemed paler than before. She managed to smile. "Of course. What is it?"

He realised that he hadn't thought of what he actually wanted to say. "I- uh, I wanted to apologize to you." He came in and sat down in front of her. "I lied when I said that I forgave Ren."

Not a muscle in her face moved, she just looked at him. At first he didn't recognize the expression or rather the non-existing expression but then he remembered. It was the expression people wore on the worlds the Order had occupied. It was defeat.

She exhaled. "You're an exceptional liar. I didn't even sense deceit."

"I'm afraid I picked up that habit when I started to work with Force users."

"Why even tell me? About the lie I mean?"

"Because I realised that you deserve more than a lie." He sat up straighter. "I thought that telling a lie would be… kinder than telling the truth. But telling lies isn't kind, it's insulting for a woman like you."

Her eyes went wide. "A woman like me?"

"Back in the Order we had extensive files on every known Rebel. Our intelligence agency marked every file with A, B or C depending on the danger the person posed. Your file was the only one marked with A++, even Master Skywalker had only an A+." He leaned forward in his chair. "According to your file you're highly intelligent, cunning and charismatic. The analysts also noted your exceptional mental strength. That's what I meant by 'a woman like you'."

Her lips curled up to a thin smile. "I imagine there were also less flattering reports about me."

"There weren't. Even Snoke had to admit that you were a formidable opponent, the most dangerous enemy of the Order."

"That's what our secret service said about you," a spark came back in her eyes. She sat up a bit straighter. "That you were highly intelligent, ruthless and one of the most dangerous officers in the Order. After Starkiller and the hyper-space tracker they changed that to the most dangerous officer in the First Order."

Hux suppressed the urge to tell her that the reports were probably imprecise in their assessment of his intelligence. But it wasn't important now. "I imagine that you asked me to forgive Ren because that's what's proper and right, isn't it?" He paused for a moment, trying to find the right words. "Well, I don't expect forgiveness for my crimes and neither can Ren. Redemption isn't something to be handed out, it's something to be earned through a lifetime. And Ren never asked for forgiveness because he didn't want redemption, he wanted revenge for something beyond my understanding."

He paused again before he continued. "It's not your place to ask forgiveness for Ren. You should be angry at him for killing your husband, for the countless lives he has taken. And you should call him Kylo Ren because that is who he was."

General Organa got up and grabbed her crane. Her lips were set in a thin line. "How dare you? Of course it's my place to ask forgiveness for the deeds of Ben! He is- was my son!"

"His decisions were his own," rebutted Hux. "I thought the Republic doesn't believe in clan custody, so how can you be responsible for him?"

"He's my boy! I brought him into this world and I failed him!" she pressed out.

"Was it then Han Solo's own fault that he was killed?" asked Hux calmly.

Organa frowned. "Han died because I asked him to try to get Ben back. Of course it wasn't his fault!"

"But it's yours?" asked Hux, voice clipped.

"Spare me your Imperial sneer!" hissed Organa. "I'm his mother! A man wouldn't understand - the bond between a child and his mother." She pressed her hand against her chest. "I carried him for nine months, he was a part of me and he will always be."

Hux felt a stab in his chest at the mention of the special bond between mother and child but he steeled himself and continued. "So if my mother could come before you, you would think she is responsible for Starkiller?"

Organa's anger vanished from her face. "What?"

"You heard me. Do you think my mother is responsible for Starkiller? Isn't that the logic here?"

She gulped. and gripped her craned so hard that her knuckles turned white. "That's different."

"How?"

She licked her lips, opened her mouth to speak and closed it again. Finally she opened her mouth again and said, "Your mother didn't have a choice with the First Order, I did - I gave Ben to the Jedi Order willingly."

"So Ren and I were both part of an Order that takes young children from their parents and raised them according to their principles. Then why am I sitting here and not Ren?"

Again she seemed at a loss for words. "I- you decided…" she broke off and her grip on her crane weakened. Then she looked up. "It seems that your file was incomplete, they forgot to add your way with words."

"It's not about rhetoric, it's about logic." He got up from his chair and reached inside his grey bag, pulling out a sheath with his monocellular blade and put it on her desk. "You won, you defeated the Order so I thought you should have this."

She took the sheath and turned it around, looking at it from different angles. "What is it?"

"It's the blade I used to wear in the Order. I bought it after I had killed my father. I killed fellow officers with it and used it too when I helped Rose and the others to escape. I thought I had lost it but Ren gave it back to me with the new uniform when he tried to manipulate me."

"A symbolic gift then."

"I wanted to leave it behind with the uniform but I thought it was a fitting metaphor for ties one has to cut or even ties that have been cut off by someone else." He clasped his hands behind his back. "I suspect you don't collect trophies, otherwise it could also serve as one."

She looked at him, a thin, sad smile spreading on her lips. "Thank you - for being candid."

"Good-bye General Organa," he said with a slight nod of his head.

When he returned to the hangar he noticed with surprise that Finn and Poe were standing in front of Rose and her mother. They had probably come to say their goodbyes to Rose once again.

Hux stepped behind Rose and brushed her fingertips with his.

"Ah, Hugs, there you are," said Poe with a lopsided grin. "We missed you at the farewell party, so we thought we could say our goodbyes now."

Hux blinked. "Ah, I- I wasn't aware that you were looking for me." A long time ago he would have thought that Poe was joking but now he knew that he was serious.

"Of course," he stepped forward and pulled Hux into a tight hug and slapped his hand a few times on his back. "Take care, Hugs."

"Uh, thank you - you too… Poe."

Poe beamed at Finn. "Did you hear that? Awww, he finally used my first name."

Finn smiled. "You're a dork, you know that?" Then he turned to Hux and offered him his hand.

Hux took it and shook it. "Thank you, Finn. I appreciate you being here."

"Of course, you saved the man I love twice. It's the least I can do."

Rey and Chewie, who was holding Aidan, walked down the ramp of the Falcon.

Rey pulled Finn in an embrace. "I'm gonna miss you guys so much!"

Finn laughed and lifted her up in the air. "Don't worry, we'll come visit. And remember not to be too strict on your students."

"It'll be a while until the first one's can even attend - we need to build everything first."

He put her down on her feet. "I thought Kaydel had already everything prepared?"

"She bought a piece of land near the capital with old farmhouses on it. I imagine we need to renovate them first."

"Don't worry," said Rose, "Armitage and I already have plans to remodel droids to help us."

Rey put her arm on Rose's shoulder. "Thank you!"

They all said their goodbyes and to his surprise Thanya Tico gave him a box. "It's sliced fruit," she said. "You need to eat more. And don't forget to take regular breaks from work."

He smiled and gave her an awkward hug. "Thank you, Thanya. I really appreciate it."

She lifted her chin. "And don't forget to prepare rolls for Ro, the way I showed you!" She blinked, her eyes seemed moist. "And don't forget to add enough soya sauce."

They boarded the Falcon, Finn, Poe and Thanya waved as they took off.

Hux sat behind Rey in the cockpit and watched the stars fly by, Rose was holding Aidan in her lap and explained to him the meaning of the colourful lights around him. "And that's the auxiliary power converter." She leaned down and whispered in his ear, making him giggle. "Mommy updated it yesterday, yes she did! It took her only an hour and three WR-augments."

Aidan cooed.

Hux looked at them and couldn't help but smile. His heart was filled with pride and love. They were on their way to a new life, and the woman he loved was with him.

He hadn't to face the galaxy alone. Not anymore.