Hey guys!
I apologize, I know it's been almost a month since I've updated. I've been carving out the rest of the story, and now I should be updating more frequently. I am hoping every week, but realistically it will probably be every 2 weeks.
Please enjoy this short chapter! From here, I have the chance to be even more creative with the story, so I'm excited.
I also want to give a shoutout to my good friend who helped me edit this chapter. You're awesome! Thank you!
After Rey slid down the hill of sand filling the atrium with her makeshift sled, she began to look around. This is where Luke was raised. She thought.
She closed her eyes and took a deep breath in. She meditated awhile, and finally began to connect with the place.
She felt fear, sadness… grief. But also, happiness and light and laughter.
It was a home. Rey could recognize that easily. It's easy to understand something when all you've known is its opposite. Rey had gone so long without a true home. Now that she was with Ben and all her friends she knew what home felt like.
Venturing further in, Rey explored the abandoned moisture farm some more. As she took in the details of the abandoned homestead, she searched for the ghosts who used to live there. She had only heard a portion of Luke's story here; she wanted to know more.
As she walked into Luke's old workshop, she spotted something buried in the sand. She walked over to it and fished it out. As the sand dripped off the object, Rey saw it was a miniature T-16 skyhopper. It was a toy, she realized.
Her thoughts then took her to her many years on Jakku, where she would make her own toys to provide solace. It let her imagination run wild and gave her hope when nothing else did.
She wondered if it was like that for Luke too. Even when he had a family, he was still looking for something more. He was meant for something more. Was she?
Feeling overwhelmed with a sense of peace, Rey's thoughts drifted back to the lightsabers she held close and the mission she'd come to fulfill.
She took the Skywalker sabers out of her satchel and placed them gingerly within a layer of cloth. She folded the fabric over the lightsabers, covered them, and then took some strips of leather and tied the fabric in place.
With a deep breath, she used the force to cave the sand in, burying the lightsabers far into the planet's depths.
When she had finished, Rey pulled out her own lightsaber and lit it again to admire it.
It was time to truly write her own story. She had no idea what was coming next, but she knew it was all in her hands now. Just as this lightsaber was. It was a symbol of who she was, and who she was going to be.
A sound broke her from her thoughts. She looked up to see an old woman approach, a shawl crowning her head to protect her from the desert weather. In one hand, she held the reins of an eopie offshoot creature, and with the other, an old walking stick. The woman was staring at her in curiosity.
Rey deactivated her lightsaber and stood up to address the woman.
"There's been no one for so long…" said the woman. She tilted her head wearily. "Who are you?"
The accusing tone in the woman's voice took Rey off guard for a moment. It was as if the woman thought Rey was trouble.
Rey's confused look quickly turned to confidence as she firmly identified herself, "I'm Rey."
The creature beside the old woman made a guttural sound and dipped its head just as the woman asked a follow-up question, "Rey who?"
Rey turned her face to the right, looking for the answer as if it would appear out of thin air.
And it did…
Slowly, the force ghosts of Luke and Leia appeared next to each other, gentle smiles on their faces. Rey smiled back at them. They were her people. Still, she felt she had a long way to go before she was truly part of the Skywalker family. For now, Rey thought
"I'm just Rey." She answered the woman.
"Well, just Re…." The woman moved slightly closer as if to tell a secret, "There are strange winds today. Watch yourself." With that Rey nodded and the old woman continued to make her way back into the desert.
Rey then made her way over to the Skywalker twins. The excitement at seeing them was very evident on her face. "Master Skywalker! General Leia!" She beamed.
"Please Rey, just call me Leia." She then turned to Luke.
"Don't look at me, I like the title 'Master'."
Everyone chuckled.
"Where is my son?" Leia was quick to ask.
Rey gave Leia a sorrowful smile. "He's on the Falcon. He wasn't ready to see you yet."
Leia nodded her head in understanding.
"I think he wasn't ready to see me," Luke responded.
"Oh, it's always about you isn't it, Luke?" Leia snarked.
Luke put up his hands defensively, "We all know Ben is a momma's boy. He would be out here at this point."
Rey looked at Leia, "I'm afraid Master Skywalker might be right."
Leia looked down and nodded her head again. "To forgive others, we must first forgive ourselves, " she whispered.
"It sounds like you speak from experience. Would you like me to tell Ben anything for you?" Rey asked.
"Only that I know what that's like." Leia glanced into Rey's eyes, "When I found out Darth Vader was my father I was furious. I was even more furious when that fact became public knowledge and I got kicked out of the Senate. I was so hurt that for years I didn't forgive my father for all he had done." Leia looked back at Luke. "I soon started to regret letting Luke go off to fight our father alone. I started to wish I had been there. Maybe things would have been different."
"You know I wouldn't have let you," Luke argued. "Besides, we don't know what would have happened."
"We don't know everything." Leia responded, "That's the point. We can't tell the future. We don't always understand the past. But we know what we've done, which influences what we do."
Leia walked up to Rey and placed her translucent hand on the young woman's hand. Rey could barely feel it in the physical world, but the power of the force itself was electrifying. The love radiating from Leia was palpable.
"Help Ben understand, that we have all made mistakes but what matters is what we learn from those mistakes." Leia moved her hand to Rey's face. "And tell him I love him. I love you both."
Rey's eyes filled with tears. She wished to stay in this moment longer. She looked towards Luke for any parting wisdom.
"Tell Ben… I'm sorry." Luke said, "In time, he will come to forgive me, and eventually he will forgive himself. You are a good friend, Rey. You saw the good in him and never stopped encouraging him to acknowledge it. Even when we stopped, to our shame."
"There is no more room for shame here." Leia let go of Rey's face, "Only room for growth." She paused for a moment, then, "Please tell my son that when he is ready, I'll be there."
Rey inclined her head. "Of course."
Leia stepped back beside Luke. "May the Force be with you, Rey."
Rey held back her tears, "May the Force be with you, always."
And with that Luke and Leia faded away. Memories return to their place within the universe.
Rey stood still, letting her thoughts and feelings fill the silence of the moment. A moment of peace, when even the harsh planet conditions seemed to quiet themselves. But then, just like that, the wind once again became loud and boisterous.
Rey finally turned to head back to the Falcon. As she neared, she looked up to see the boarding ramp had been shut. Confused, she stopped in her tracks.
Something was off…
Suddenly, the Falcon drive units lit up, and the ship roared to life. Rey stepped back in surprise, her mouth agape. What was happening?
The Falcon rose into the air and began to soar into the atmosphere.
Why are they taking off without me? Rey thought.
In sheer panic, Rey lifted her hand and focused heavily on the ship, her brow furrowed in concentration and frustration. She conjured as much of her force connection as was possible.
The ship halted in mid-air. Rey breathed out, seeing that she succeeded in stopping the ship. She then began to pull it backward. Beads of sweat began to trickle down her face as she continued to retract the Falcon.
To her dismay, the drive units burned brighter, indicating that more fuel and thrust were being used.
Desperate, Rey lifted her other hand, but suddenly without warning, her force abilities failed her. The ship launched forward and into space. Rey withdrew her hands and fell backward onto her bottom.
Startled, she looked at the hand which had held the ship in place and then the other. She shook them out, and then looked up into the sky. The ship was gone… along with Ben and Chewie.
Rey rushed back onto her feet, flustered and distraught.
"NO!" Rey felt distress surge within her. "BEN!" She begged to the sky. "COME BAAAACK!"
I wrote the next part, but it was so short I decided to add it to this chapter. Enjoy!
Ben's POV
Ben awkwardly sat next to Chewie at the dejarik table booth, unsure of what to say. Ben had never been the greatest at starting casual conversations. He was so used to either yelling orders or taking them.
Chewie, however, wasn't the kind to pass up on the opportunity to start a "friendly" game of dejarik with whoever was in his company.
That made it easy for Ben. Once the game began, the awkward silence became a quiet focus.
Ben was quick to move his creatures, while Chewie took his time. It had been a long time since Ben played this game. He would have been more engaged if he wasn't so anxious about how it was going for Rey on the Lars's farm.
Chewie quickly sensed Ben's anxiety. When Ben made his next move, Chewie paused the game.
"rrrrAAARRRgh?" Chewie trilled as if to ask Ben to share what was on his mind.
"Should I have followed her?" asked Ben abruptly, letting his inside thoughts invade the stillness and the whirring of the large and old Corellian ship.
Chewie raised his arms and shoulders in a shrug. He figured Ben already knew the answer to his question and thought any further input would just confuse the boy. Chewie was glad to spend some time with his old friend and felt solace from his presence. To him, it was like Han was back with him.
Even Ben's reluctance to follow Rey and his yearning to be with her felt like Han's constant ranting about whether he should follow after Leia.
The Solo's were always chasing after brunettes. Chewie laughed on the inside.
As if in response Ben chuckled, "Of all the planets she could have buried those lightsabers on, why choose Tatooine?"
Chewie put a furry hand on Ben's shoulder. "ARRRRRgh," he muttered.
Ben pinched the bridge of his nose in frustration, "I know this is where Luke was raised Chewie, but it's also the same sandy wasteland my parents and grandfather were enslaved on. It doesn't make any sense to me. Bad things always happen here."
Chewbacca trilled again in response, he let go of Ben's shoulder and resumed the dejarik game.
"Thanks for the optimism." Ben dryly replied and followed Chewie's lead with the match.
After a few minutes of Ben losing on purpose, he heard the sound of the boarding ramp closing. Thinking Rey had returned, Ben swiftly got out of the booth and headed for the main corridor.
Chewie grumbled about being interrupted, but he got up and followed after Ben.
The sharp sound of quick heavy footsteps over the hollow secret compartments in the hallway reverberated throughout the metal ship. Young Solo sensed the urgency and became worried.
"Rey?" Ben asked as he rounded the curve towards the cockpit.
All Ben managed to see was the bright blue ring of a stun blast.
Before he could react, everything went dark and he fell hard and fast to the floor, unconscious…