Epilogue part two:

Ben took her hand, and together they walked up the landing bay of the North Wind. It had been three months since they'd been together last, and as Rey gazed about the ship, her eyes boggled. It was almost unrecognizable.

Relay panels had been replaced, the inner hull had been sealed, and all of the lights were updated and cleaned. The ship had been given a complete overhaul. It felt polished and clean. As Rey looked around, she felt herself gasp. Ben had done all of this. When she had left, it had been a sad wreck of a glorious time long forgotten. Now, it was a ship of a new life. It was beautiful.

Ben stared at her, his dark eyes softening and a half smile pulling at his lips. "You like it?"

Rey nodded, walking over to the cockpit, dragging him behind her as he held onto her hand, "It's amazing. I can't believe it." Rey touched the scrubbed consoles, noting how clean and carefully repaired they were. Gently, she placed her palm against the pilot's chair, feeling the worn leather. "You worked so hard."

Slowly, Ben pulled her away and brought her close in a tight embrace, wrapping his arms around her waist, "The hyperdrive can still use some work though."

Rey glanced over her shoulder toward the inner hull, where the bulky engine sat beneath the internal compartments. She moved to go toward the rear of the ship, "I can fix that-"

Ben held her fast, not letting her budge an inch. A deep chuckle came up from his chest, "Later."

Looking up to Ben, Rey felt her heart jump in her chest as she stood silent. There he was. It was as if, over all the eons of time, the Light Side, and the Dark Side, they were always meant to be together. Together was the only way they could bring balance. Together, they were the balance.

Rey smiled, feeling the world still around her as she wrapped her arms around Ben's neck. He had gotten healthier than when she had seen him last. His eyes had less circles around them, and he had gotten even stronger in his shoulders. He was eating properly, and he had been out in the sun, his skin now held a healthy glow. For the first time ever, Rey saw him for what he could be when he wasn't tearing himself apart. He was so strong.

She was about to say something, she opened her mouth to say something.

Ben stopped her with a kiss.

Rey forgot what she was about to say, closing her eyes and letting her mind lose itself in the kiss. She felt him pick her up, carrying her back to the captain's cabin. Rey smiled, relishing his closeness. He smelled like the lakes and engine oil. But he tasted like home.

Forty Minutes Later…

Rey propped her head up against her palm as she lay naked amid the rumpled sheets and blankets in the captain's bunk. With her other hand, she drew slow lazy circles on Ben's exposed chest with her fingertips. The mid afternoon sun fell on them from a port-side window, its yellow glow flowing over them in a warm light.

"Where are we going to go, Ben?" Rey asked quietly, her fingertips circling on his skin slowly, "Have you thought about it?"

"I have," Ben answered, his voice quiet in the stillness, "We go wherever we can find work. Wherever is out of the reach of the New Republic. It doesn't matter."

Rey nodded, silently. Her fingertips found a white scar that was evident on his chest, and she traced it absently. The scar was etched in his skin like a lightning bolt in the sky.

"Do you care?" Ben asked, concern rippling off him.

Rey lay back against the pillows of the bed, "I've been wandering for the past eight years," she whispered, letting out a deep breath in a sigh, "My home is with you."

Ben turned on his side, edging closer to her, "Rey?"

Rey continued to trace the scar on his chest, "Yeah?"

"I'm not a good man, Rey," he whispered, "I've done things. I know this. I know I will never be…"

Rey's gaze flickered up to him, meeting his in a silent acceptance.

"I will never be right. I won't be normal," he muttered, his dark eyes taking on the haunted look of his past, "I'm lost out here. I don't know what's wrong anymore. Or what's right. I'm broken."

Letting out a sigh, Rey reached up and placed her palm against his cheek, "Do you trust me?"

A hint of a smile pulled at Ben's mouth, and his eyes softened, "You. And only you."

"I won't let you be lost," Rey answered, "We can make it through anything. As long as we stay together."

A smile came to Ben's lips, and he kissed the inside of Rey's palm and let out a sigh as he closed his eyes in sleepy contentment.

Rey sighed as well, her fingers moving down his neck and onto his shoulder, "So many scars," she muttered, wincing as she came to a familiar white burn scar down his left side. She had given him that one. She had nearly run out of bacta, and it showed in the scar as it was rough and uneven in a tight sort of way. The white scar was at least a dozen inches long, and it ran down his side in an angry memory that Rey would just as soon forget. "You know you could get these removed?"

Ben's eyes opened half way, "I know," he muttered, his voice rough, "But they are who I am. They remind me of what I've done. What I had to do. The price I've paid."

"I only wish that the price you paid for me was not so steep," Rey whispered, running her hand up and down the angry scar, her fingers brushing against the rough skin. As she did, she remembered that fateful night when she was so terribly tempted to turn to the darkness in anger. She had hurt him. Badly. It was a memory they both shared. While it was his redemption, it was her shame.

"You were worth it," Ben answered, obviously feeling her regret. He reached up, threading her hair through his fingers, "You were always worth it." He pulled her closer then, burying his face in her hair, and holding her tight.

Rey felt his warm skin against hers, and she swallowed hard. "Ben?"

"Yeah?"

"Ben, I," She closed her eyes, wrapping her arm around him and holding him close, "I'm pregnant."

A wave of shock went through him, and she felt him take in a deep breath, "Pregnant?" His deep voice sounded so quiet then, almost unbelieving.

"Yes," Rey answered, "We're going to have a family. You and me."

I don't deserve this, Ben's mind whispered. I don't deserve you. I don't deserve any happiness. I don't deserve a family.

Rey listened to this, and opened her eyes. She moved her head back to meet Ben's gaze.

She saw the heartbreak in his eyes. She felt the pain that he kept with him. Some things he would never let go of. She knew it was true. Slowly, Rey brushed his black hair away from his face, "I love you, Ben Solo. You saved me when nobody else could have. And you love me. I know it."

Ben closed his eyes, silent tears holding themselves in check only by sheer will.

"We will love our baby. We will try to give it a good life. Together." Rey kissed him softly on the lips, "Just us. We will make our own happiness."

Ben held her closer then. He held her so tight, she could feel him trying to overcome his fear. She felt it in him. His muscles tensed and his breaths were so slow that he hardly breathed at all.

I love you, Rey whispered, closing her eyes. I will always love you. In that moment, their minds intertwined, and she felt him like she felt herself. She felt his loneliness. Sadness. But deep down, there was a tiny flicker. Hope. A new hope. She, and this new hope, was all that kept him alive. All that kept him from turning back to the anger and suffering of the Dark Side.

Ben breathed a sigh of relief. He knew that she could see everything that he was. The fact that she didn't recoil in doubt and fear left him dizzy in relief.

It was then that a ship dropped into the atmosphere above them. Rey's eyes snapped open as she felt a familiar presence. Together, Ben and Rey sat up in bed, "They've found us," Rey muttered, making to get out of bed, "I can throw the ship into sub space engines, we need to get out of here."

Ben grabbed her hand, staying her. "No."

Rey's mouth dropped open as she stared at him, "What? They will capture you. You could be put to death."

"They're too close," Ben answered, glancing up to the ceiling of the ship, "I can't risk it." I can't risk them hurting you. Either of you.

Rey froze, "Ben. No."

He let go of her hand, and reached down to the floor to retrieve his shirt and pants. Throwing on his shirt, he reached across the bed, kissing her again, "I love you."

She felt her heart start to ache, "I know."

To be continued

(A.N. I'm sorry it's been a while since I uploaded. Believe it or not…I just wasn't ready to say goodbye.)