i got some bad new for u if u r trying to avoid RoS spoilers

[vaderstan]

Kylo Ren Ben Solo text / audio / video / action / force time / force ghost ig
hmd / visuals / info&permissions naima. 32. pst. nainai#8088. billnaisciguy code credit

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If you direct your attention to my conspiracy theory madness below about the original intended ("true") ending for Rise of Skywalker, it's a bit obvious that I'd like to play out scenarios where Ben does, in fact, survive the movie. The awkwardness around the Resistance and the entirety of space, Rey having to struggle with her desire to keep him safe at all costs vs her want to be open with her friends. And the both of them having to deal with the weight of the fact that Leia, Luke, and Han all sacrificed themselves for Ben. And the residual C-PTSD from this entire goddamn trilogy. also what color is ur lightsaber ben Okay seriously tho. How pissed would poe be to find out leia gave her life to that piece of shit Kylo Ren? Also every time Rey or Ben thinks "oh we can just go talk to Le---" and then that sad piano music from scrubs plays. Sad Lonely Housewife Ben Solo. With a black frilly Apron. I'm only partially joking I'd actually dig something where he remains dead/gone for longer than just a few seconds. Like. Leia takes a bit to reboot into "Second Birth Of My Child" metaphor. It could take a few hours or even a few days and in the mean time Rey's just collapsing in on herself about everything away from all her friends. Isolating herself and "Oh wait. what the fuck. HE'S BACK" Planet hopping with Ben and Rey on the "how the fuck do we even restart the Jedi Order" bus!!! Maybe they steal the falcon from Lando. Unsure how to justify it. Just know I want Han's son to swoop in and take the ship back because can Lando be all that mad about it tho? Speaking of, how the fuck would Chewbacca and Lando feel about Leia's final sacrifice? Would they help Rey smuggle Ben while the galaxy celebrates his death? Would there be time limits or stipulations? Or maybe they're the first ones to figure out what Rey is hiding and what is that confrontation like? For scenarios which follow along with the 'theatrical'/canon ending as it were. Rey absolutely losing her shit over Ben's death and he attempts to comfort her. Unsure that will work well, but that's the fun of RP. Her questioning whether it was him or a product of her imagination. And just her absolute inability to cope with the other half of her dead. Rey goes Dark to get Ben back. Possibly against his wishes. He wants her to move on, she can't, she refuses. Time travel is always an option for this shit. And if she's successful, would Ben realize something's wrong? And if he figured out what she did.... would he actually care? Alternate universe theories. Like not traditional AU, but through some Force fuckery a rift between the movie's canon and the intended ending occur. Rey finds Ben in this rift and just the absolute emotional meltdown that will occur from there. Forcebond shenanigans, ofc. Forbidden relationship bullshit is just part of the package ig Arranged marriage is also just A++ Also now that we know how the fuck close Ben was to turning nearly the entire fucking time finding any other canon point and just fucking the entire timeline up Ben actually HELPING the Resistance take down Palps before yeeting himself at Rey. Ben having to wait awkwardly 15 ft away as Finn and Poe screech at Rey about her Supreme Leader Secret and Rose is just trying to do her best for everyone No seriously. Can we kill off C3P0 for real????? 👌👀👌👀👌👀👌👀👌👀 good shit go౦ԁ sHit👌 thats ✔ some good👌👌shit right👌👌there👌👌👌 right✔there ✔✔if i do ƽaү so my self 💯 i say so 💯 thats what im talking about right there right there (chorus: ʳᶦᵍʰᵗ ᵗʰᵉʳᵉ) mMMMMᎷМ💯 👌👌 👌НO0ОଠOOOOOОଠଠOoooᵒᵒᵒᵒᵒᵒᵒᵒᵒ👌 👌👌 👌 💯 👌 👀 👀 👀 👌👌Good shit

✨ The True Ending ✨

Welcome one. Welcome all. I have brought all of you here today to say that YOU WERE LIED AND DECEIVED BY THE FORCES OF HOLLYWOOD AND UNCHECKED CAPITALISM. 'How?' You ask. And yes. I shall answer. It is simple: The ending of the Rise of Skywalker was wrong Wait. Excuse me. WHAT THE FUCK? You read correctly, dear friends. Someone fucked with the editing of Rise of Skywalker and it changed the entire ending of the movie. It changed the characterization of three key characters and it's clear this was against the creator's wishes. I'll be breaking this down into a few key sections. What were the changes, Why I believe these changes were made (and made last minute), and do I consider this ending more or less canon then the theatrical ending. So. JOIN ME ON THIS ADVENTURE FRIEND The plot changes/editing change It's fairly simple. They changed Leia's role in the plot, this changed the entire direction of the last few minutes of the movie. Let me break the timeline down — Deathstar fight on the ocean still happens, Ben is distracted by Leia reaching out to him. She either still enters her "disappointment son" coma here, or perhaps simply just reaches out to him. — From here, the plot continues as normal. Ben and Rey both get to the sith rave separately. — Rey Dies — Ben Revives her and dies. — Leia chooses THIS MOMENT to die and give her life to her son — Ben is revived. He and Rey kiss. — Move to conclusion WHAT EVIDENCE DO I HAVE THESE CHANGES WERE MADE (and at the last moment) Take in note, my evidence is circumstantial, but circumstantial evidence still counts as proof — Leia's final role in the movie is insanely unclear. She also takes 12 hours to actually die or something. Again. Confusing — Ben's final words, as of this moment, are "OW". Adam Driver said he was nervous about his final dialogue in the movie to the point he stressed about it on the flight over. And. Man. IDK about you but OW seems a little unstressful to say — There was no Force Ghost Ben, a decision that is baffling story wise. It would take any competent VFX team hardly any effort to throw a ghostly adam driver next to Leia and Luke. And this would be advantageous to add to the plot if Ben was going to die, give that final bit of closure to the Skywalker fam. — Rey's near LACK of emotion over his death. Go watch her realize she has to leave Ben behind in TLJ and tell me that the difference isn't noticeable. It's completely against her character. — The weird beats of Leia going into her disappointment son coma and the other strange beats of Ben's death. Especially the fact that you only see him disappear in like. one shot. — None of the cast thought he was going to die — Wow I wonder why Adam Driver is adamant about never wanting to do star wars at this point? — Wow, why does disney keep resetting the character poll of who is the most anticipated character of this movie???? — The prophecy about Ben's death is completely unnecessary at this point. If it was brought up during TFA, it's understandable to put that thread there. Instead it's in the last movie when his death seems to be a foregone conclusion??? — So Rey's fine for Luke and Leia even tho she's palpatines kid, but Luke and Leia don't seem all that bothered by Ben's death?????? — This was supposed to be Leia's film and complete her arc. And while I understand that there was a lack of footage to use for her, it's odd that she ended up not playing much of a role beyond "Distract Ben so he gets stabbed ig" — Every single hole in characterization for Luke, Leia, and Rey, every strange beat that didn't really make sense in Ben and Rey's fight on the ocean and during their ??? Mutual deaths???? and the some how rushed and dragged on ending can be solved by a simple solution. Occam's razor, Ben was never meant to die permanently. — The fact that there was no final dialogue for Ben after his talk with his father suggests he had something significant to say after his resurrection — The fact that they didn't have a cut of Rey absolutely LOSING HER MIND over losing to, what amounts to, the other half of her soul suggests that she was never supposed to lose him permanently — The fact that there is no Ben Ghost means that they didn't have the time to slip that in before pushing it out to theaters — The way the final scenes with Rey are shot and edited are, again, weird, off balance. It seems like it ends WAY TOO QUICKLY and far too on the nose. — no but really guys. His final words are "OW" — As for WHO changed it, because of the fact that this is clearly an edit job done at the last minute? I'm putting my money on a CEO that is above Kathleen Kennedy and JJ Abrhrams. I think their hands are tied ATM. This is the ending that had been planned for, this is the ending they wanted, otherwise there would not be such big holes that felt weird and dishonest to the characters. And, like, Kylo Ren/Ben Solo was JJ's child, he wouldn't have done him dirty like this.\ THEATRICAL ENDING/TRUE ENDING I'm sure opinions would be divided on which ending is canon depending on the person. The theatrical ending will be what's considered canon in the universe of star wars at large. For myself, I find it hard to deny the creators and filmmakers the right to present the story they wanted to tell. So, in that way, both endings are true for me. Though, I am biased-- both as someone who is an artist myself and someone who adores Kylo Ren's/Ben Solo's character-- I like the story the film team were trying to tell over the agenda that whoever pushed for these changes had. Personally, I believe it pushes Star Wars as a universe forward into new territory rather than keep it stagnant in the same old same old that it's always been. Plus. this maintains the integrity of Luke, Leia, and Rey's characters, Ben was never forgotten, far too gone, or unloved. Leia gave him one final gift, a second chance. That said, I'm not pushing this ending on anyone. I won't be playing it by default. I would rather ask permission or have someone else bring it up.

Sin Bin aka triggery bullshit

So no surprise. Kylo Ren/Ben Solo comes with a pile of situations that are. Questionable. this is just a short heads up section for anyone curious about what I'm willing to delve into: - I'm a-okay playing out non/dubcon. However, this has to be discussed beforehand, especially if Kylo will be the aggressor. He's shown no sexual interest in anyone besides, Rey. He's not gonna be the weird Shoujo trope of "The troubled dude who just goes around molesting gals because he's got an itch to scratch". That ain't his MO. Rey is different because.... forcebond. However, depending on his canon point he will be more or less willing to ignore her consent. And after a certain point? He'd probably be rendered completely incapable of ignoring her consent. I imagine ForceBonds do not like when one half just kinda takes advantage of the other. - On that note. I consider Kylo an abuse survivor. The abuse inflicted upon him was physical, emotional, and spiritual. I don't play or think of this as he was physically violated in a sexual capcity, but that his soul was constantly from the time he was even conceived until Palpatine's death. His thoughts and his desires truly were not his own, sexual desire was another way of control over him. - I'm cool with him being taken advantage of. But expect not great results unless you some how get him to not force choke you as soon as you touch him okay - Oh and this also means that he is prone to getting a little panicked when someone takes the reigns from him suddenly. So. JusT BE AWARE. - if this shit ain't G for you? Please tell me and I can try to work with you.

Comments

⟹ Nᴇssᴀ ⟹ ᴡᴇᴇᴋᴇɴᴅ ᴀᴛ Bᴇɴɴʏ's

[vaderstan]

[ Leia had thought she was prepared. She should have been, truthfully. She knew this moment was coming. She watched as Rey ran off and heard every beat of the war raging on. And she knew. She knew. It ached in her bones and she'd asked Luke and Han for their strength.

She'd wanted to see him one last time. Hold him. Tell him it's alright. That she could forgive him. Forgive the hurt, the pain, everything. This wasn't all his to bear. They all had their own part to play and she had wanted-- So much more than what his family had given him.

The last hug with Chewbacca. The last time she'd chastise Poe.

It was odd knowing it would be the day you died.

Worse yet, it was awful knowing it would be the day your son died.

So she lays down, and everyone knows. They know this is it. Not many know what she actually intends to do. Luke, of course. Lando knows. Chewbacca hasn't been directly informed (because he may have leaked that shit to Han way too early and that woulda Not been good), but she's sure he'll know. Maz knows as well.

She feels his last breath, she takes hers.






I'm sure rey is fine. ]

[instinction]

[Rey is the exact opposite of fine. Rendered numb by the abrupt sever of her bond through the force with Ben, the pain of his loss is too great to begin to process. The cut of feeling the loss of Leia creates a hole within her that threatens to make her sick. It's only because of shock that she's able to pick herself up and drag him to Luke's X-wing. It takes exactly two tries before the shock subsides just enough that it sinks in there's no room for his body. There isn't room for cargo.

But she isn't going to leave the last of the Skywalkers or who she feels is half of her spirit behind. With the shock still numbing her, she contacts the Falcon. It's home to her as much as anywhere else is now.

She barely manages to send her exact coordinates before giving in to the weight that's baring in over her. It makes her drop to her knees and stare at the lifeless body of the man who had sacrificed everything in order to bend to her will and turn to the light he was so terrified of embracing. Her stomach twisted into nervous knots, leading up to her leaning forward and vomiting. That was the exact moment Lando and Chewie showed up in the Falcon, to Rey breaking down near the body of one ex-surpreme leader.

She's definitely going to be fine. This is all ok and not at all traumatizing.]

[vaderstan]

[ Yeah Lando got a call about Leia. His stomach dropped, victory was at hand and yet.

Losing Leia, it was losing a part of himself. Han, Luke, Leia-- all of them hadn't been entirely at the center of his world, but were like gravitational forces he couldn't escape.

After Ben... he'd distanced himself. Kept away because he'd been so angry and disappointed. But Leia... she'd found him. And he couldn't help but aid her.

A deep breath as Chewie comes by to squeeze him

'I know,' what more was there to say?

So, when Rey lights up on his comm. He isn't surprised. He's trying to steel himself for this along with Chewbacca who seems. Wary. Neither of them knew if this could even work? Sure, Leia wasn't to be underestimated, but... it just seemed far-fetched. Like a storybook.

But when had the Skywalkers been anything less?

Chewbacca is the first to rush forward. Over bearing and large-- it's hard to know where to go first. Ben? Or Rey?

Rey takes precedent for the moment. Chewie wraps her up and tries to comfort her and...


Yeah.

yeah Lando wasn't really prepared to see his best friend's kid dead. He looks so much like Han and Leia... He's not even sure the last time he saw him. He's remaining a bit further back because, well. His grief is a little more private, his heart is dropping because did Leia give her life for nothing?

They can't tell Rey.

He'll give her some space as they all just... try to figure out what to do. ]

[instinction]

[Rey wants to crumple into Chewie and let him comfort her. But the emotions swirling within her only allow her to hug him briefly while she tries to hold in tears. They need her to be strong. She ends up shouting and begging for help anyway, because pride isn't necessary when you've reached rock bottom.

All the losses stack up to create a haze that makes Rey want to give in to the darkness she feels within her. She doesn't, of course. She's found the balance. She can maintain that balance. It's her focus on keeping the balance that helps with the numbness she feels, and enables her to board the Falcon while Chewie and Lando take care of the rest.

She doesn't tell them where to put the body. She can't bring herself to look at him yet. She busies herself with unnecessary ship repairs in the cockpit. When they rejoin her she's ready to pilot herself, engines started and Rey in the pilot's seat. They let her fly, and she feels an eerie sense of calm that enables her to ignore the emptiness inside her head.

On autopilot at that point, she heads for the resistance. She needs to see Finn for herself, to ensure that her friend is safe and alive. It's an impatient anxiety that eats at her until finally she passes the reins over to Lando. Rey withdraws and breaks down in peace in a dark corner of the Falcon.

When they arrive, the others are celebrating. Forcibly numb at that point, Rey leaves the Falcon with no mention to the others on what to do with Ben. She has absolutely no idea what she's doing at this point. She finds Finn and Poe and after ensuring their safety, she's grateful for the opportunity to retreat with BB-8.

It's with the darkness of late night to cloak her movements that she enlists the droids to help her with Ben's body. He's been gone for hours at that point, and she knows that something must be done. And given that all her hope feels gone at the moment, she knows she needs to do the next right thing and ensure Ben is at rest before Finn or Poe ever find out he's there. Still ompletely oblivious to Leia's master plan (thanks Lando), she figures that carrying him to the forest and using a fire is the best solution. No matter how painful it may be.]

[vaderstan]

[ Poe and Finn and Rose are all so overcome by the victory that they nearly don't notice it. But Rose points it out quietly as she'd watched their interaction from a distance (A respectful distance not an enforced one). She hadn't been with their group from the start, she knows they are the core of this cause at the moment. So they deserve this, she thinks. A moment they can let loose and be relieved.

But that's not how Rey looks.

'Something's wrong,' is how she starts the conversation with Finn and Poe. And it devolves from there.

First they want to say she was fine. Because they are dumb and drunk on success. And then they say that maybe what she saw hurt her. But Rose points out they've gone through some SHIT and nothing has shaken Rey to her core like that. Leia's death? A fear that they'll leave her?

They all have to make the concerted decision to discuss it later as Poe gets asked to take another shot of whatever battery acid they are passing off as alcohol.

Finn tries several times to find Rey and drag her back to the crowd. It fails. BB-8 tries to twirl around her to get her to smile... that doesn't work. And Rose tries being straight forward and asking if she's okay. Rey just gives her a smile that doesn't reach her eyes and says she's fine.

Lando and Chewie are off as well. But that makes more sense, at least. Leia had been such a pivotal part of their life, they wanted to stick to the sidelines and confide in one another. It didn't explain why they refused to let anyone go into the Falcon, but it would have to do.

Chewie is the first to wake after Rey's run off with Ben's corpse. He trills in alarm (That wakes a few porgs) and he and Lando are scrambling. They assume it has to be someone found the body. Or maybe he disappeared??? Force users do that, right? And they're caught in this strange place of wanting to raise the alarm, but also realizing that action would be a bad idea given they have no way of explaining why they had Kylo Ren's body.

There's just a whole lot of panic going on right now. They aren't really equipped to figure out what to do.

But around Rey, there's a thick haze of grief. It's blinding her, clear as day to see when you're a part of the Force-- but no less aggravating for the twins.

'Rey,' Luke or Leia's voice? It's hard to tell. But there's no real manifestation of them quite yet. Just a quiet whisper. ]

[instinction]

[It's only the sound of Leia's voice in her head that gets her to stop. She idolized Han Solo, thought highly of Luke, but Leia was the closest thing to a maternal figure she could remember. She had a mother, of course. Now she knew that her mother gave her up to keep her safe. She valued that. But Leia was part of Rey's heart, someone she loved dearly. Hearing her voice made Rey stop in her tracks. It was a last second remembrance of the Force that had her extending a hand to prevent Ben's body from falling gracelessly to the ground. ]

I don't know how to take care of this.

[It's a very broad response, and comes out flat.]

Your loss, Ben's. Luke's. The people that are left behind.

[She's terrified of ending up alone. What if she isn't enough to bring hope to them all? What if Finn and Poe leave? What if she's left with nothing after the remains of the resistance scatter?]

I can't do this alone.

[Her voice cracks, numb armor chipping away and breaking. Tears build in her eyes and finally she allows them to fall openly. That whisper was meant to calm her. It's only brought out her emotions to make her face them. Luke would tell her that makes her brave. She feels like a coward, running off with Ben Solo's body well past midnight.]

[vaderstan]

[ It's hard to gather into anything solid like this. Trying to grasp at the remnants of hope and light within Rey. Luke pushes Leia to move forward, he had played his role. Leia needed to end this.

Leia wants to apologize to Rey... to her son. To the entirety of the galaxy. She'd been assured that it wasn't her fault, that there was nothing she could have done to prevent it. But Leia isn't a fool. She had chances, she had many. She was just so absorbed in her own ego and legacy that she hadn't taken the chance to look back at her son in the times he needed her most.

'You're not alone,' She says.

She wants to comfort her, try to bring her more peace. Even in this half formed haunting she wants to break through. ]

[vaderstan]

♥ hey hun, hope ur okay. I'm just going through some stupid ooc bullshit and i was missin u hope to talk soon

time for a teeny fast forward

[instinction]

[Ben invites her into the shower, and she makes a feeble excuse and runs. It's not that she's afraid of being close to him. She's terrified of doing something wrong or making a fool out of herself. Beyond that, the ship is close quarters. Enough so that she feels awkward attempting to navigate their relationship in front of others. It's their business, and they need complete privacy before she feels comfortable attempting to do things like join him in the shower.

She carefully avoids any aspect of intimacy for the remainder of their time on the Falcon. She remains close to Ben, talks in hushed voices with him. Promises him things will become easier. They share slight, brief touches when she's certain no one can see.

It's days before they're dropped off on Ahch-To. Rey feels ready to crawl out of her skin and is more than eager to say goodbye to Lando and Chewie for the time being. She's even more eager to lead Ben past herds of porgs and nuns that look at her like she's trouble waiting to happen and straight to their new living quarters.

It's probably more than a little awkward to try and stay where his uncle once lived as a reclusive hermit, but they've both navigated through far worse. It's only when she's certain that they're finally alone and left to figure things out by themselves that Rey can feel the weight of the past week lifting off her shoulders. ]

I know being here isn't ideal, but it's only temporary.

[vaderstan]

[ The truest miracle: Rey doesn't immediately just hop on that dick. But really. Ben Solo is someone who has a reactive Libido and he isn't going to push the matter. The only thing which happens that could even be considered questionable is that when it comes time to divide bunk space he attempts to slip into the one that's in the main hold and Chewbacca gives him and Rey a withering look before forcing them into the captains quarters together. He's not endorsing them having sex, he just does not want to walk into any canoodling. Of any sort. Lando doesn't even get a say. Really. Rey is the best person to watch him along with the locking door. So. There you have it.

But beyond that? Ben is truly exhausted the first few days anyway. He's beat up, still recovering from ... being dead and then revived. And he's repeatedly getting hit with the overwhelming emotion of the fact that his mother is gone. This will be the last time he is on this ship with Lando and Chewbacca and allowed any iota of the sleeping in and resting he does.

There is one check point where he's Forced to hide under some grating for a few minutes, but otherwise he's generally found in the bunk. Out of trouble and under the covers. Rey is put to work. A lot of work. That is most definitely Chewbacca attempting to keep them from devolving into debauchery.

Also Jannah is questioning everything about you and your sexual preferences Rey. But you know. Whatever. It's fine. She saw him shirtless at least once and maybe is starting to understand. A LITTLE. Maybe.

But one day hes thrown a sack full of clothes and a couple of data pads for him and Rey to share and then he's being led out on to and island in the middle of no where with.......... a bunch of tiny birds which resembles the ones that Chewbacca seems to have grown fond of and oh stars. Save him.

Okay. It's not that bad. Rather. It's fine except for the fact that the caretakers seem to be judging him rather harshly at the moment. This being the island his uncle inhabited isn't nearly as bad as their rather stern stares.



And once they arrive into their new "living" quarters he realizes those weren't the worst things. ]

How did you manage to sleep on a dirt floor?

[ Like. Sure. Bunks in a freighter like the Falcon are thin and not super deluxe. But they're manageable. From what he can see here this is just

Like maybe some straw and dirt. Is someone gonna bring in a mattress? PLEASE. HOW DID HIS UNCLE MANAGE TO LIVE LIKE THIS FOR YEARS? ]

[instinction]

[Rey looks confused for a moment before giving him a scathing glance.]

That's what you're worried about?

[She doesn't get him sometimes. It's with a soft huff that she turns away to fiddle with one of the datapads. He might quickly pick up on the fact that she's incredibly defensive.]

I grew up with less. This is nothing.

[She eventually answers him in a quiet tone, looking up from the screen and over to him. She isn't actually mad at him as much as she is uncertain of what they're going to do in this place. It is dirty and unimpressive, and she has no idea if it's appropriate to just tell him to man up until they can build something better.]

[vaderstan]

[ He's a very spoilt child from a well to do family, gosh Rey. But seriously. Living with Leia most of his life had given him certain standards and maybe that's why he joined the First Order-- ]

It looks to be in slightly better shape than the sleeping space I used when training with Luke.

[ He's nearly certain that the stone slab and near inedible food was all a part of the training he received. And also some part of some festering resentment his uncle had held towards him. ]

It's fine.

[ He can sense her defensive tone and-- honestly. He's trying not to fuck this up? He's feeling like he could fuck this up pretty easily. Despite the time that had had together recently on the Falcon, they hadn't really spent time together. Quiet exchanges, glancing touches, and, if they dared under the threat of chewbacca walking in and screaming at them-- occasionally holding each other. It was all very illicit, but still held some of the separation that they had before. As though they were still attempting to keep the fact that they may like one another a secret.

So he's a sour puss. But it's hard to vocalize that like "Yes I am aware I am a sour puss but I am fine. Please do not take my sour puss personally. It is just the only way I know how to be. You are beautiful perfection whom I could only wish to aspire to".

He'll attempt to soften the sharp edges of his being by sorting out what there is in this tiny hut.

The fire pit is obviously frequently used, he imagines the caretakers must use these spaces for others on these islands. Those who visit from the nearby or gremlin freeloaders like his uncle. There's a few areas which look to be benches and a thin scrap that seems to be masquerading as a blanket. He gathers that on to his arm as he tries to arrange the sleeping area into something more... contained.

He can rough it. He's done it before. Worse than his uncle's temple but-- It's hard to make the leap from "lets chase around some porgs and laugh at how tiny this hut is" to "So here are some nightmare-ish stories from my time as a monster where I would be stranded on planets after being injured and have to fight for my life until hopefully Snoke would send rescue. And he always made it clear that if I messed up enough he wouldn't :)" in conversation. And they're still vibrating between the energy of "how to even be" around one another.

He's found a place to stow the bags of supplies they have for their stay here and is just thinking that "man it sure is good we don't need to worry about the cold until later"-- when it starts to rain.


:) Because I'm a dick like that. ]

[instinction]

Fine.

[Rey counters, just as quietly as she had spoken before. The weight of the datapad is heavy in her hands, and she sets it aside with a deep frown on her face. She doesn't want to argue, doesn't want to make something out of an innocent comment about their living conditions.

She glances his way to take notice of how he's making a bed. It's cute in a way, almost like he's attempting to build a home. Or maybe he's just fashioning himself a bed, she really isn't sure. What she does know is it's now raining, and that makes things seem a lot more inconvenient.]

At least we'll be able to keep each other warm.

[She tries lightening the mood. If they're going to be stuck in a semi-romantic situation together, she might as well stop acting like he just insulted her entire childhood. It doesn't feel right being sour right now anyway. It should be a time of happiness.

She reaches out to touch at his wrist, to signal to him that he doesn't have to try and make up a bed out of nothing. It also may be an attempt to make a move on him. They're alone now, it's okay that she tries.]

desert gremlin 2: return of desert gremlin

[jedied]

[Rey has been on Tattooine for -- she’s not sure how long, honestly. A week? Two? She’s not marking the days like she did back on Jakku because there’s no reason. No one’s going to come looking for her. She was very firm about needing some time, so much so that Poe had refused to vacate her ship until she’d agreed to take BB-8 with her and Finn had given her a searching look that almost caused her to fly into the million pieces she was barely holding together as they said their farewells.

She’d wanted to confess everything then and there.

Her connection to Palpatine.

The Force Dyad that had bound her to Ben Solo.

How he’d kissed her and then slipped out of her arms before she could cry out for him to wait, to stay, not to leave her like this in this gods-forsaken hole at the end of the galaxy. She’d been so certain, for that brief moment, so sure of bringing him home, that the failure had left behind a hollow, cold, sick feeling at the very center of her that she felt sure would be visible to anyone who looked at her in even the most cursory manner.

No one’s looking at her out here in the sand-swept remnants of the Lars moisture farm.

But if they were, they’d see a Rey who is barely succeeding at keeping it together. Her hair slipping from its messy buns more often than she can be bothered to re-tie them; her eyes deeply shadowed, her face already starting to take on some of the sharp angular look it had held during particularly lean times on Jakku. She’s working herself too hard and sleeping too little, an above all consistently ignoring the temptation to search the Force for too long or too deeply, for fear that she will fail to find him even there.]

My desert gremlins. Also I'm sure you know, but i still apologize for the slow tags.

[vaderstan]

[ The Force works in really odd ways. Like. Aggressively odd. Like. WOW REYS THE GOLDEN CHILD AND BEN SOLO IS THE MEAT SHIELD ODD. This is all to preface me saying: "ig we're just gonna make this shit up as we go"

Lando had dropped Rey off on Tattooine and honestly? It had felt wrong. Leia dying had left a gaping hole within him-- especially once he realized Ben Solo was no where to be found.

He wasn't sure of what connected Rey and Ben, beyond the whole "force users" thing (which freaked him the hell out at times)... but Leia had this look on her face when she spoke of Rey. A tone of voice and this odd sense of serenity, something he hadn't seen within her for a while. And-- hell. He didn't need to be Force Sensitive to understand that.

So watching Rey grow further and further away had been ... out of place. Like some deep burrowed wrong that had to be fixed.


It wasn't until weeks later that something odd popped up on his radar.

Jannah is not enjoying the idea of going back to Tattooine and... Well. Frankly? Force User Bullshit is NOT Lando's strong suit, nor is it his place to go meddling. So, he opts to send Rey a short message.

Not sure if this would interest you. Check this audio channel. - L

Honestly, he's going to have to check in later because if he just sent Rey on a wild Bantha chase for nothing he is gonna have to send her some nice Probably stolen Goods to make up for it.

Whenever Rey does decide to check out that channel-- what's normally filled with silence is filled with static.... And something that sounds like a voice? It's hard to make out, hard to tell if it's male or female. But definitely something HiJinxy going on. ]

( Oh and let me add the quick preface of "I HAVE NO PLAN. LETS JUST ROLL WITH THIS AND FEEL FREE TO ASK QUESTIONS OR GO SOMEWHERE DIFFERENW HOT KNOWS THATS HALF THE FUN OF COOPERATIVE STORY TELLING" )

no apologies necessary but consider them accepted forever~

[jedied]

[Rey practically jumps at the chance to do something that qualifies as interesting, particularly as she's become slightly better acquainted with Lando's definition of the word. He's not family to her, not yet -- but he's connected to Leia, and Luke, and Han, and...

Maybe one day she'll bear the thought of asking Lando what Ben Solo had been like as a child.

Right now, however, she clamps down hard on that thought before it can even half-form itself and goes to check out the channel Lando had sent.

Static. Rey double and triple-checks the message Lando had sent, then the radio antenna just in case there's a loose connection somewhere.

Honestly, something as mundane as fixing a broken antenna is Rey's comfort zone, and she's grateful for the distraction. She goes rummaging through a box of spare parts she's rounded up and kept on hand, old scavenger habits dying hard.

She's just about to take the entire contraption apart when the static resolves into a voice, only for a moment, but enough to make her stop tinkering and listen for it to come again.

( rey )

It's nothing. It's nothing it's nothing it's too little sleep and too much solitude and--

The static begins feels like it's a part of her, somehow, resonating with that same electric buzz that she sometimes feels in the Force. It's undoubtedly nothing, but.]

Hello? Is someone there?

[vaderstan]

[ It's not his voice... not entirely. It's an echo, a tug. A combination of different energies--

'Help me--'

That's Leia. Younger, but her cadence is distinct.

'--millions voices cried out in terror, and were suddenly silenced--'

Wrong Ben.

But, the voices don't stop there. They all trickle through speaking at once. Speaking over one another and in circles. It's cacophonous, over-bearing-- if she takes a moment to try and tap into it she'll be dragged into memories.

She'll see Luke attacking his father angrily as her grandfather laughs in the background, Padme's life slipping from her, and a spark of light and dark at war with one another, spinning around until a sudden resolution--

'Rey!'

That-- that is Luke's voice. The clearest of them all yet. Not his younger self, but the Luke Rey knew. The one who had paid his penance and left this realm at peace. If anyone could claw through this noise it should be him.

But even he's struggling. He's struggling to even fully form in front of her. Trying to rip himself from the static on her comm to the plane she currently resides in.

'Something's wrong--' ]

[jedied]

[The comlink falls, forgotten, from her hand as she reaches out to the Force for clarity and is immediately assaulted by the waves of memory that cause her to stumble and nearly fall.

It's too much, too small a space for this energy, too crowded. She has to breathe. She has to be outside. She can't make any sense of it without room to breathe.

And then she's outside and there's Luke's voice and a flicker-- just for a second -- of his form and then nothing, more noise, more static, more cries for help across the generations. Like the whole Force is out of balance such that the entire galaxy should be able to feel it.

There's a sound like the wind rushing in her head and she reaches for the thread of the Force that carries the message and pulls--

--- and it feels like the sky's cracked open inside her head and she feels a crack like the Force Lightning she's never tried to wield again, and everything goes blinding white and then dark again.

When she comes back to herself she's on her knees some distance from the house. She opens her eyes against sun that is suddenly far too bright for the hour and sits blinking into the sudden unnatural calm as a figure tries again to resolve before her.]

[vaderstan]

[ He feels that desperate tug and takes it. Gripping on, bolstered by the others behind him, within her, the centuries of history and imbalance.

It's not easy, in fact, it's pretty frackin' painful. Like one of the worst hangovers he's ever had combined with Han hitting him in the face with a hydrospanner. But he has to do this, for his sister, for himself. The pain is nothing compared to what they've done.

'Rey,' There's a hint of disbelief within him. He can't believe he made the leap, 'I've been trying to contact you.'

That's earnest. Him and Leia both had. Emotion grips his heart as he thinks to his twin. That fact alone makes him give off more quiet desperation than he had ever shown Rey.

'She's stuck,' Something dark grips at him, he clings to the light. 'Everything's stuck.'

WATCH NAI MAKE SHIT UP AS SHE GOES HOUR ]

so about that WTF HE'S NOT DEAD??? idea

[yellowsaber]

Rey has spent the past few days in a fog. She had spent an inordinate amount of time in that cave, and she's still not sure why. She felt like she was waiting for something, like maybe there was still some life in the increasingly cold, lifeless body in front of her. She even tried to give some of it back, but it could never be enough, not without giving him everything she had and she couldn't guarantee it would do anything, even then. She knew better than to waste his sacrifice.

When she had finally started to come to terms with the thought that he wasn't coming back... she still didn't know what to do. She couldn't leave him there on Exegol. After everything he had done that day, he deserved better than to be left where he died on a horrible Sith planet in the middle of nowhere. In the end, she had contacted Lando and Chewie for help. They were the closest thing left that he had to family; they would have a better idea of where to take his body. How to bring him home, whatever that might mean. She didn't know, even now. Once she had gotten a promise out of them to figure out something respectful to do with him, she had walked away. She couldn't handle thinking about it anymore, and trusting them to keep that promise was really all she could do.

The Resistance celebrated. She barely remembers it. She knows she was incredibly relieved to see Finn and Poe alive and well, and that she was happy for the victory and for every person who did come back alive. She remembers hugging people and having some conversations. She remembers a lot of people congratulating her and calling her a hero and not having any idea how to respond to that. Specifics are a bit more elusive; her mind was elsewhere.

It's not until she's alone, sitting out under the night sky of a remote moon she'd landed on while aimlessly trying to get away from everything that the emotions really catch up with her. She doesn't know how long she spends crying, only that she runs out of tears long before she runs out of feelings and maybe it will never be enough.

SLAMS BACK IN HERE AFTER TEN YEARS

[vaderstan]

How in the kriff are Jedi so hard to track down? It's obnoxious really. What's more obnoxious is Chewbacca being a mother hen over his shoulder as he works his magic on the Falcon, trying to oh so helpfully add his insight into what Lando should be looking for. Like Chewbacca knows how to track Jedi any better than he does.

It's not the first time he's wished Leia was here, but it being the millionth time doesn't lessen the want any more.

So, Lando made a few calls. Okay no. A lot of calls. Asked around, maybe paid some shifty people some credits to help him get the right tech-- and even then he can't even get a location to find Rey on but a frequency. At the very least that as more then anyone could find of Luke. So, when it connects to something other than static Lando is really hopeful that this is the right channel.

"Miss Jedi, do you copy?" He's honestly saying that more like a prayer than a call.

[yellowsaber]

This Jedi (is she a Jedi? She doesn't really feel much like a Jedi...) is currently hard to track because she wants to be. She needed time alone to process everything. To figure out both what it means to inherit the will of all the previous Jedi and to try to understand how to even live when you've just realised another person is so deeply tied into your soul and then immediately had the other person ripped away. Mostly the latter, really. The first is a question she can get to when she's done grieving, if she ever is.

She's not expecting the call from Lando. Maybe... Maybe it's reporting back to her, that they found something to do with the body. That's all she can think. She answers in a haze, but she answers. "I copy."

[vaderstan]

"Oh thank the stars," He is honestly, truly, relieved and it's easy to hear in his voice. Chewbacca howls from behind him and he has to begrudgingly add,"Chewie says 'Hi', too."

Which, this seems awfully chipper for someone who just went through as much as he did. This nervous prattling should be a sign to anyone who knows Lando well enough that something is off and strange. But there's not many that can claim that and it's notable that Jannah's voice isn't on the line as well.

"So we've been following your wishes," Because no one here can say 'try to find out to do with my best friend's son's corpse', it just makes a hole in his gut burn wider and seem even more endless,"But there's an issue."

Another notable pause as he's trying to formulate how he's going to say the next thing. Long enough that Chewbacca shoves him and trills at him to spit it out. The Wookiee's always been rude as hell.

"He's not dead," He'll just see how that lands before he continues.

[yellowsaber]

It seems like she was right about what this call would be about. An issue. What kind of an issue? Something complicated enough that Lando can't seem to figure out how to say it, and that puts a sinking feeling in her stomach until she hears the words that follow.

"What?" There's barely any expression in her voice when she says it. She couldn't have heard that right. She had seen him die. She had held his lifeless body. She had tried and failed to bring him back! He's... he's not... dead? "What?" she repeats, except this time maybe it's stunned excitement and hope. She reaches out with the Force in a way she's been avoiding doing recently for fear of finding nothing there, and then she knows for certain it's still true. She can still feel him there, buzzing with life on the other side of the link they share. "How?" she breathes. "Is he there? Can I talk to him?" She probably could, anyway, regardless of where he was, but she's not quite thinking enough to consider that and also she still has Lando on the line.

[vaderstan]

"Whoa whoa whoa!" Lando can hardly keep up with the barrage of questions, and he's trying not to sound too excited because there is a caveat to all this. "I don't know how or why."

And this is where Chewbacca trills softly as ... they both kind of shuffle on their feet. Gestures Rey won't be able to see, but she will be able to hear the hesitancy in their voices.

"He just started breathing sometime late last cycle, heart is beating, but very slow," Kinda like... he's in hibernation??? Which just furthers the next part of this whole thing, "But here's the issue, we can't get him to wake up. We've tried everything."

Saying his name...s. Yelling at him. Waving tasty food in his face??? Shooting a blaster near him. Banging pots and pans. Chewie nearly threw a bucket of ice water on him but Lando Vetoed that immediately. But Ben Solo is literally sleeping beauty right now. It's so dumb.

"I've got him hidden in one of the holds, right now, but I've got no clue what to do with him."

Which is silently asking Rey if she would please come and deal with her Space Husband.