As they ate cake, they discussed the wedding. Ben turned to his father and said,
"Dad, there is someone I want to invite to the wedding."
"Who?" Kylo asked. Ben gave him a look.
"No!" the Supreme Leader stated emphatically. "She will not come. Not after..."
"Kylo, we should at least ask her," Tessa argued. "After all, she did give your grandfather's lightsaber to Ben."
A year later, Ben and Rey got married on the Finalizer. Along with their parents, their guests included the crew, and one Resistance leader.
"It is good to see you again, after all these years," Leia Organa said to Poe.
"Likewise, General," the pilot teased. Leia raised her eyebrow.
"It's too late to start following orders, Commander," she lightly responded back. Her eyes focused on the bride.
"Rey," she began. "What a strong and beautiful woman you have become. I can't believe the little newborn I held in my arms is now a married woman!" The two ladies embraced.
"Ben," Leia gasped, doing her best to not break down and cry. "I hope you are not angry with me."
"No," Ben replied, with a smile on his face. "I wanted to contact you. But my father..."
"I know." She hugged her grandson.
"I love you, Ben. I always have, and I always will!" Leia vowed, the tears falling down her face.
"I love you, too!" Ben told her. After a couple of minutes, Leia broke the embrace and wondered,
"Where are your parents?"
"I'm here!" Tessa exclaimed, as she walked over to her mother-in-law. She couldn't say anything. She was ashamed over the years she spent being angry at Poe.
"Tessa, being a good parent is learning from your mistakes and not repeating them," Leia encouraged her. Tessa nodded her head in understanding. "Or, you could always learn from my mistakes."
"Leia, it's time. Go to him," Tessa softly pleaded.
"He will not see me."
"He wants to see you. He feels you don't want to see him, after everything."
BB-8 rolled over and beeped at Leia. The general smiled at the droid.
"Yes, I missed you, too," she told him. He said to come and follow him. She raised her eyebrow in confusion.
"Go ahead," Ben insisted. BB-8 led Leia to Kylo's private quarters. With her heart racing, she slowly opened the door.
Her son was sitting on a couch. He looked the same, just older and very nervous.
"Don't be afraid, I feel it too," she reassured Kylo as she drew close to him.
"Thank you for inviting me to the wedding," Leia began. "Ben and Rey make a beautiful couple."
Kylo could only stare at his mother. He wanted to ask for forgiveness, but he thought it was too late.
Leia knew his thought. She whispered to BB-8. He played a video from the battle of Crait.
"I know now my son is gone," a younger version of Leia commented. Kylo's eyes widened when he heard his uncle Luke reply back,
"No one is ever truly gone."
BB-8 stopped the scene. Leia looked at Kylo and told him,
"He said this before your confrontation." She sighed and added,
"I'm sorry, Ben. For everything that happened."
"You have nothing to be sorry for," Kylo confessed. "I was the one who destroyed our family, by killing..."
He could not say the words. He closed his eyes, ashamed of what he had done. Leia bravely sat down next to him.
"I know. But you are my son. Even though I failed you, even though you failed, I never stopped loving you!" Leia reminded him.
Kylo could not hold it anymore. He broke down weeping. Leia took him in her arms and hugged him, just like she did when he was a little boy.
It was a long time before they rejoined the party. Tessa ran to Kylo and embraced him, while Leia walked over to Poe and said,
"I made peace today."
"That's wonderful," Poe replied. She smiled coyly and added,
"Not just personally, Poe. The war is over."
Poe, Ben and Rey were shocked by Leia's announcement. Then Ben felt nervous. Leia knew his concern and explained,
"They are going into exile. It was the only way I could keep them alive."
"Thank you," Ben stated, understanding the tough predicament his grandmother was in.
Leia left after the reception was over. She promised to keep in contact with everyone.
"We are going to settle on Ahch-to," Kylo explained to Ben, Rey and Poe. "We will miss you terribly. Please come visit us when you can."
Ben glanced at his wife, who gave him a nod. He cleared his throat and said,
"If you are going to Ahch-to, then we will go with you."
"No, Ben," Tessa tried to dissuade him. "It's time for you and Rey to live your own lives. And Poe..."
"I will be wherever my daughter is at," Poe vowed. Rey gave him a surprised look. He winked and uttered, "That is, if she wants me there."
"Of course I want you there, Dad!" Rey cried, as father and daughter embraced. He whispered in her ear,
"Say what is in your heart."
Rey turned to face her family and stated,
"I do not know where the Force will lead Ben and I. But we do want a place that we can come home to." She began to cry. Her husband came to her side and held her hand.
"Then it's settled. We are going to Ahch-to," Ben exclaimed.
Kylo and Tessa were full of joy. They did not deserve the love their family was showing them, but they graciously agreed.
"So then the five of us will go," Poe said. BB-8 beeped in annoyance.
"Sorry, buddy! Of course, you are coming with us!" He rubbed the droid's head.
"Then it's five humans and one droid making the trip," Ben stated with a smile.
"It's six humans, not five," Tessa corrected him. Everyone gave her a puzzled look.
"Who's the sixth person?" Poe asked curiously. The newlyweds realized what Tessa was saying.
"May we?" they asked. Tessa nodded her head. Rey and Ben came over, placed their hands on her stomach, and answered,
"Our baby sister."
Kylo turned to face Tessa. Tears were in his eyes. He placed his hand on her belly, and was speechless. He felt the Force signature of his daughter. His daughter with Tessa.
"Your vision was correct," she gently reminded him. "It just took a little while for it to come to pass."
Kylo took her in his arms and kissed her sweetly on her forehead.
"We both got what we wanted," Tessa told him. "A family to love us, despite our faults!"
"Thank you" Kylo replied, as he gently touched her face.
"For what?"
"For not failing me."
"But I did fail you, with my hatred towards Poe."
"No. That's not what I meant. You stayed with me, when everyone else left. You could have left, you were strong enough to. But you didn't. You stayed by my side, and I could never repay you for that."
"Kylo, your love and faith in me, even when I was at my darkest, is payment enough." Tessa kissed her husband, knowing that it was time to leave the hurts of the past behind and look forward to spending time with their children.