Luke stood overlooking Trora on the station above the planet, a hollowness within him. He thought of Leia on the planet below, too frail to even eat. She was bedridden, IVs in her at all times just to keep her functioning. It made him feel sick inside, to think of all that she had lost. It amazed him how even now Leia still yearned for her son.

Her grief had turned to physical sickness, and now that Rey was gone, Luke wondered if he too may be headed towards the same fate.

Rey, the shining ray of light. The hope she had filled in him had made him believe that the light side of the Force could still persist. But now that she had apparently gone to seek tutelage from Ben, Luke had lost all hope. Rey was strong, but Luke hadn't taught her enough for her to be able to defend herself against someone like Ben, someone who had been trained by the Sith Lord returned from the dead, Darth Plagueis himself.

Luke sensed a presence behind him, and he stiffened.

"You must believe that she will find her path, Luke," Maz said from behind him. "Even if that brings her to Ben Solo. Perhaps they may help each other. He is still your nephew, Luke."

Luke tensed. "I feel responsible for what has happened, everything. It is my fault that Ben went to the Dark in the first place, my fault that Rey will fall down the same path," he said, his voice shaking. He turned to face Maz. "Even if it was you that led her to that fate."

"Luke, as I have said before, I am no Jedi, but I know the Force. I know what it is telling me, and it is not what you think. None of this was your fault. If you want to blame me, fine, but you must trust in the Force," Maz said, her small eyes raising.

"I no longer listen to the Force, it is misguiding. It has led you to believe that Rey belongs in the hands of someone violent, unstable, someone who has the nerve to kill his own father…" Luke trailed. His eyes moistened with tears as he thought of Han. He looked back to Maz, his brows lowering. "And you will answer for your treachery to the council of the Order of Organa, for sending Rey into the clutches of Death himself."

Maz opened her mouth to speak, but reading Luke's angry expression, she knew that she would not be able to persuade him otherwise.

….

"It's been a long time, Kylo Ren," the man said, moving forward as Ben entered the main floor of the large ship orbiting Drecenia. The man extended his hand out to Ben, who hesitantly took it to shake it.

"Nodin," Ben said, nodding once and releasing his hand back to his side. Ben nodded at the two other men standing behind Nodin, who nodded in greeting back. It was a stiff reunion.

"I sense another Force-sensitive is near," Nodin said, cocking his head. "Who is it?"

Ben frowned, shifting his gaze to the side, hesitating. "You remember the girl," he said, looking back at Nodin.

"You've managed to find her?" Nodin asked, genuinely surprised. "I thought she is a senator now, of the Azalea system?"

"Yes," Ben said, his mind racing. Nodin looked at him expectantly, but he didn't continue.

"Well, what is she doing with you?" Nodin asked, raising an eyebrow. "Will she be joining us?"

Ben shook his head quickly. "No."

"Why waste another user of the Force? I mean, what are you plan—"

"It is not your concern," Ben interjected, giving Nodin a sharp look.

Nodin nodded and sighed. "Alright. A man of few words still, I see," he said, beginning to pace in front of Ben, his arms folded behind his back. He glanced back at Ben. "Just as when we were just kids. You remember. Sometimes I wish I could go back," he said, stopping before Ben. "Simpler times."

Ben nodded, sensing that Nodin was attempting to lighten the situation, but he couldn't help reflecting on when he and Nodin had been close friends as children.

"And your uncle," Nodin continued, releasing a bitter chuckle. "It's a shame, really, he was so blinded by the light. So ignorant of the power of the dark, unwilling to teach us the full spectrum of the Force."

Ben furrowed his brows, remembering when Luke had been training him and Nodin as young Jedi.

"I've always been so glad that you weren't fooled like the rest of them," Nodin said, looking earnestly at Ben. "You've always been like a younger brother to me, you know."

Ben looked at Nodin, realizing the sincerity in his statement. When they were younger, Ben used to look up to Nodin as a sort of older brother, a guiding friend. In a small sense, perhaps he still did.

"Yet it was you that Supreme Leader Snoke chose as his apprentice. And a wise decision it was. I would have been a joke as a student of the Sith," Nodin said, cracking a smile, but there was a darkness to his face.

"Where are the others?" Ben asked Nodin, gesturing to the two other Knights behind him.

"They're on another ship of the same kind, not far from here. We like to stay mobile, you know. As I'm sure you do, as well," Nodin said, raising an eyebrow.

"I came across Snoke, not too long ago," Ben said, rubbing his arm.

Surprise spread across Nodin and the other's faces. "And?"

"I barely made it out alive," Ben said, and Nodin nodded quickly.

"That was lucky," he said in a tone that was almost stern. "I trust that you haven't changed your mind?" Nodin asked, looking at him seriously. "Because there is still a way, you can return to Snoke, it's not too la—"

"Trust me," Ben growled, "my mind has been made."

"I just wanted to make sure, since...well, as you know, Snoke has had the entire First Order hunting you for the past two years. But, now it seems that he's moved on to other things, focusing on taking down the Order of Organa," Nodin said. His expression suddenly grew sullen. "Speaking of which—I'm sure you're aware of your mother."

Ben opened his mouth to speak but bit back his words, shifting his gaze in clear despondence.

"I am sorry, Brother," Nodin said, "but once she has passed, it will all become easier. I know this is what holds you back, this one remaining ray of light."

Ben felt a growing sense of repugnance towards the conversation, towards Nodin. He felt antsy, wanting to leave, to return to Rey.

Nodin clearly noticed Ben's unease. "Well, I'm not sure what your plans are for now, but when you figure all of this out—when you're done with this scavenger of yours, we look forward to welcoming you back."

Ben twitched at Nodin's insult, but he knew that lashing out at him would be pointless. He composed himself. "Until we meet again," Ben said, nodding towards Nodin and the others.

Nodin did a half-bow, gesturing towards Ben. "Until we meet again, Master Ren," he said, and Ben thought his tone sounded somewhat derisive. Ben turned to leave, but Nodin spoke again. "One more thing."

Ben turned around as one of the two men behind Nodin, Hector, stepped forward, a familiar black object in his hands. Ben stared at it a moment, his eyes flickering from the helmet to Nodin and the others.

"Take it. It's a token of our friendship, our brotherhood, a reminder of our mission...in case you have gotten sidetracked," Nodin said, and Ben stepped forward, reluctantly taking his helmet back into his hands.

….

Ben descended his ship back down in the same spot on Drecenia, watching the white tendrils of snow swirl up into the air as the shuttle made contact with the ground. The bluish light of the planet's rising sun had only just begun to light the dim landscape.

Ben wrapped his scarf around his neck as he headed to the ship's side door. He paused, staring back at his metal helmet that sat atop a chair at the back wall of the ship. He decided to leave it there.

As he stepped down from the ship into the snow, he sensed Rey nearing. He looked up towards the circle of low buildings, surprised to see Rey running towards him through the snow.

He stared at her in consternation as she stopped abruptly before him a few yards away. She was panting, her face red and her cheeks slick with tears.

"You—you left me," she choked, her shoulders rising and falling with each wracking breath. "Why did you leave?"

Ben was taken aback at her distress. "I—I was gone barely two hours, you were asleep," he shrugged.

"Were you planning on leaving me here?" Rey exclaimed, stepping towards him.

Ben shook his head quickly. "No, why would—I wouldn't—I wouldn't just leave you here," he stammered, suddenly realizing the source of her panic. She must have believed that he was deserting her on this desolate planet, just as Luke had dumped her off on Jakku. "I wouldn't abandon you here," Ben said calmly.

A sob choked out of Rey's throat, and she looked down, shaking her head slowly. "Rey, I—" but he didn't know what to say to console her. Ben watched her distraughtly as she stood crying and shivering in the snow. A wave of painful guilt washed over him at her obvious trauma. He was compelled to comfort her.

Ben moved forward, breaching the gap between them, and slid his arms around her. She fell into him, ducking her head into his chest as she cried, her sobs wracking her body. He instinctively pulled her closer into his arms, wanting to give her a sense of security, warmth.

"I should have told you, I didn't think you'd wake up," Ben said, lowering his head. "I'm sorry."

Rey's sobs began to subside, and she breathed shakily against his chest. She leaned back and looked up at him, her eyebrows knitting together. "Where did you go?"

Ben frowned, slowly sliding his arms from around her, taking an awkward step backwards. "I—I had to get fuel, for the ship," he said quickly, his heart pounding in his chest. "There's a station nearby."

Rey opened her mouth in surprise, then shifted her gaze. "Now I feel ridiculous," she said bitterly.

"No, it's my fault," Ben said, stepping towards her again. "I shouldn't have left without telling you."

Rey gazed up into his eyes, her eyebrows lifting slightly. Ben couldn't bring himself to break his eyes from hers, a familiar warmth flooding through him, his heart beating hard in his chest.

Rey abruptly turned her face, her cheeks flushing red, perhaps from the cold. But Ben couldn't help but think that it was the result of something else.

"Let's go inside," Ben said, and together they trudged through the snow back towards the building. As they walked, Ben saw that Rey still appeared sullen. He wanted to lift her spirits. "You know why I couldn't leave you," he said, looking over at her.

Rey looked up at him in puzzlement. She blinked, appearing to blush. "What?"

"You haven't even finished your training," he said, giving her a small smile. He looked ahead of him again as they continued through the snow, but out of the corner of his eyes he thought he saw Rey biting back a smile.

Ben seems to be facing a bit of a dilemma with his Knights. It also seems that Rey brings out the Han in him. Take that as you will. Thanks for reading!