Welcome back to the story! This is the second to last chapter!

Rey fiddled anxiously with the sleeves of her shirt. Ben quirked an eyebrow as he grabbed hold of her hands and held them within his own.

"It will be fine."

Rey managed a small nod as Ben opened the door to their palace apartment, which had been refurnished while they had spent time at the orphanage. The furniture was a deep forest green now, and the carpet had been replaced with a gleaming wood floor. The place had been beautiful before, but more madculine. It was more feminine now, and she suspected that Leia had a hand in picking out the furniture and the colors.

"I thought you would like to pick out the paintings," Ben told her.

She nodded as she glanced around the bare walls. She hadn't put much thought into what the apartment would look like, or how it should be decorated. Those were things she had never worried about on Jakku in her toppled AT-AT.

A subtle knock on the door reminded her of what she'd been so nervous about just moments ago. Ben opened the door to Poe, Finn, and Rose. Even though she knew they had offered their approval, she was still worried of incurring their anger or resentment when she broke the news.

"Well?" Poe prompted with a knowing look. "What did you want to tell us?"

Rey rolled her eyes, stepping over to her friends and shoving her hand towards them. Three pairs of eyes simultaneously landed on the ring she was wearing.

Rose was the first to react, squealing with delight and giving her a crushing hug. Poe was next, embracing her before seizing her hand and examining her new accessory.

"Nice ring," he noted.

"I'm glad you approve," Ben commented dryly.

Rey's gaze nervously drifted over to Finn. Her friend stared in shock for a moment, before breaking into a grin, charging at her and lifting her into the air with a laugh.

"Congratulations, Rey," He whispered as he set her down giggling.

Another knock on the door drew her apart from. Leia poked her head in the room, eyes immediately zeroing in on Rey's hand. She flung the door open and bounded across the floor to them. Free from the cloak of First Order oppression, Leia had turned into a lively woman.

Finn shot her a disgruntled look as Leia elbowed him out of the way, seized hold of Rey's hand and jerked it toward her. Rey's eyes widened as Leia's eyes began to fill with tears.

"My boy… getting married." The general quickly wiped away the tears before they could fall. Luke had entered behind her and now stood beside Ben, grinning in amusement as Leia began to prattle on. "We have so much to do, so much to plan."

"I'd really like a small ceremony," Rey told her hesitantly, and Leia raised an eyebrow.

"The wedding of the Emperor and Empress cannot be small."

Rey cast Ben a pleading look as his mother began to propel her toward the sofa. He jumped forward, smiling pleasantly at Leia as he extricated Rey's arm from his mother's death grip.

"We can do both," Ben placated.

She knew that arguing would be pointless. Besides, Leia was right about the need for a public wedding. As long as she got to have the small ceremony she wanted, she didn't see what difference it made.

As long as she got to marry Ben, she would be happy.

Over the next few days, Leia kept her occupied with endless details, most of which she never would have thought of. It was overwhelming on top of trying to adjust to her new position as Empress. She was constantly being educated and tutored on different subjects that made her head spin.

Even though she felt overwhelmed, she'd also never felt this secure and happy. She fell asleep in Ben's arms every night and woke to find him beside her every morning. And that made all of the painful wedding planning worth it.

Leia continued to bombard her with endless details each day, and Rey was reaching her breaking point when Rose strolled into the apartment with an armload of dresses.

Rey broke into a smile upon seeing her friend, one which Rose eagerly returned as she placed the dresses on the arm of the sofa.

"You didn't have to bring those up for me, Rose," Rey insisted, but her friend brushed it off.

"Oh please, every Empress needs a lady in waiting!" Rose chirped. Rey rolled her eyes, and her friend sat back and watched in amusement as Leia held dresses up to Rey, shook her head, and tossed them aside with rapid precision.

They were almost to the end of the pile when Leia seized hold of one that caused Rey to lurch forward. She pulled it closer to her as she gazed at the beautiful dress in awe.

"This one. This is the one."

Leia's eyes twinkled as she smiled fondly at her.

"I knew you'd like it. Didn't I tell you this would be the one she chose?" She demanded of Rose.

"You did," Rose agreed.

"Let's get it on you before my son decides to snoop."

Rey helped them to maneuver her into the striking dress. Standing before the mirror, she was unable to believe it was actually her as she gazed at herself in amazement. It was the only dress she'd actually loved, and not only could she not wait to wear it, she didn't want to ever take it off.

Leia fluffed out the bottom of it and took a step back as she and Rose examined it carefully. The two nodded approvingly.

"You're not the most conventional Empress, but you sure can pull off a dress when necessary," Rose teased.

Rey laughed as she twirled in front of the large mirror. She was amazed by the drastic change her life had taken. As a parentless scavenger child, she never would have dreamed that she would one day be standing here, surrounded by more loved ones than she could count, and marrying an Emperor.

Leia clapped her hands enthusiastically as she eyed Rey with approval.

"Are you ready to get married?"

"More than ready."

"Good. The wedding is tomorrow." Rey gaped at her as Leia smiled mischievously and shared a pointed look with Rose. "I've told Ben to stay away for the night, as we have a lot of plans to make, and also because I just like to torment him sometimes."

"It's too soon for such a big wedding," Rey protested.

"Not the big one, Rey. Tomorrow will be your wedding, the one that you dreamed of. That other one can wait until the end of the month."

Tears burned her throat and eyes as she threw her arms around Leia. She couldn't believe she was lucky enough that this woman in front of her was her future mother-in-law. She hugged Rose afterwards, grateful to have such an amazing friend by her side.

Rey had never been so nervous in her life. But she couldn't wait to be an Empress.

A/N - Only one more chapter to go!

As always, please leave a review with your thoughts, suggestions, and predictions, and I'll see you in the next (and final) chapter!

~ Elizabeth (FanOfDeliciousFlavour)