Ben wandered through a maze of corridors, the dizzying turns making it difficult to track where he had been.
Out of the darkness, a path of twinkling stars appeared, emitting small rays of light.
Hope swelled in his chest.
He had found his way home.
An angry crash sounded as their sabers clashed. The gold and blue light contrasted sharply on their sweating faces. With a flourish, she disarmed him and his saber slid across the forest floor.
With a grin, Ben yielded.
The score was in Rey's favor again.
After the emperor's defeat, the celebration lasted long into the night, but she felt numbed.
How could she participate in the festivities when her other half was gone?
"I only wish Ben were here," she voiced at last.
She would find a way to return him.
Rey squealed excitedly as she made the speeder go even faster and Ben maintained his death grip on his seat.
He turned his head to avoid the glare shining from the ring on Rey's finger, his mother's ring. There was nowhere he'd rather be.
Married bliss.
"I don't want a loth cat. I'm allergic."
"No you're not."
"I wear too much black for cat hair."
"We'll get a lint roller."
The damn loth cat blinked at Ben smugly, his legs hanging off of Rey's lap. It was kind of... cute. Maybe a pet wouldn't be so bad.
It was Rey's first time baking bread from scratch... well, first time cooking anything.
Flour, water, salt, sugar, yeast. The molecules of the dough vibrating into a cooked loaf.
Her heart walked into their hut and inhaled deeply. "Smells great, sweetheart."
"One of the crystals will call to you." Leia's voice echoed in Rey's thoughts.
One Kyber crystal for the one saber she assembled.
But when she had stepped into the cave, she distinctly heard dual voices harmonizing together, coming from two Kybers. Mates.
The celebration of the end of the Final Order carried on for days. The Rebels drank and danced to a new era.
Few noticed the scavenger's departure.
Rey was restless and couldn't laze about. She had to bring Ben Solo back. How much time did she even have left?
The bond connected them again, unexpectedly, as always.
Rey was covered in grime from her training.
Kylo was eating ginger snaps and practicing calligraphy.
Somehow, they spent the rest of the afternoon perfecting Rey's signature without too much bloodshed.
She wasn't expecting to find a gift on her bunk. Rey hadn't told anyone it was her birthday, but still there was a silver box with a red bow.
Inside was a part she needed to fix Luke's lightsaber.
There was also a note.
"Happy birthday, scavenger.
-KR"
She slipped through the portal to find Ben but lost herself.
She woke up in a small apartment in a large city. Instinctively, she showered and went to work, where a tall man dropped a stack of papers at her desk.
"I need these signed, Rey."
"Yes, Mr. Solo."
When Ben build his second saber, he was expecting the blue light of a Jedi Guardian to appear.
His mouth opened in soft awe at the orange glow emitted from his saber. A different color, like Rey's gold light saber.
They were not traditional Jedi, after all.
Decades flew by, and the galaxy's denizens told stories of the Jedi's epic battle against the emperor, speaking of her as a distant character.
But no one recalled the Jedi's love's sacrifice, whose ghost remained at her side, solemnly watching over her.
Their escape was a narrow one. After running for eons, they collapsed on the ground, keeping their hands clasped as an unspoken rule.
Panting, they stared at the night sky, the stars hardly in focus.
Ben couldn't believe he was with Rey again. He was home.
The washing machine shifted into spin cycle and her clothes blurred together, masked by soap.
Rey was bored; she was losing her mind with a dead phone in this laundromat.
Maybe she'd talk to the tall, brooding man on his laptop. He couldn't be that busy.
The quarantine for the rakghoul plague had been in place for a month. Fear lurked in the village as they awaited another attack.
Rey was restless, waiting didn't suit her. Ben prepared for their journey outside the gates. They would find a cure and save them.
The foam dart hit the back of Ben's head and he whipped around to see his girlfriend pointing a Nerf gun at him.
"Defend yourself!" Rey shouted, tossing him a sword of neon glowsticks taped sturdily together.
He brandished his saber and charged.
To love Ben was loving Kylo as well.
There would always be a duality to him.
Light and Dark.
Uncertainty and determination.
Looking forward to the future and lingering in the past.
She would help him blend these binaries to become whole.
"OVER!"
"UNDER!"
"OVER!"
They had only lived together for three hours and war erupted over how to hang the toilet paper.
trapped but moving
arms are tired
like swimming through
(my uncle Luke's)
stale oatmeal
can't see through this
(void)
(blackness)
i heard stories
(world between worlds)
("use the Force, Ben")
can only wait
(for you)
(always you)
Rey couldn't keep her eyes off Ben. Her heart frequently skipped a beat just from conversing with him.
A problem.
Neither of them knew how to approach the kiss they shared on Exegol.
But she was feeling brave tonight.
"Ben, I'm so sorry I'm late! I was making adjustments to BB-8 and I lost track of time and I had to get all the oil off of me but Rose took the degreaser out of the refresher and-"
Ben lurched forward and silenced Rey's rigmarole with a firm kiss.
"Before the Republic fell, there were Jedi subclasses. Within the Jedi Consulars were the Jedi Sages-"
Ben stopped droning when movement caught his eye. Rey was wiggling her butt again.
Her Jedi training progressed slowly, unlike her other training...
With every planet they visited, there was one tradition Rey adhered to.
"You'll break your neck, sweetheart."
"I have to do it, Ben. It's fun!"
He shook his head, exasperated.
Rey shrugged her shoulders, and bolted towards the pyramid, sled in hand.
Months passed and Ben's presence faded away.
Her resolve to find him only grew stronger. The more she read and researched, the less abstract and intangible the idea of bringing him back become.
One day, she would hear his voice again, and not in her head.
He struggled to grasp the needle delicately, his thick fingers obstructing most of it from view.
He needed to stitch this sweater, the most comfortable one he owned now that he and Rey were on the run from, well, everyone.
It was them against the galaxy.
Multi-tweet today y'all. Here's steamy!
Rey hadn't gotten a massage before; she was only here after Rose threw a gift card at her.
"You've been working too hard, you should steam up in the sauna or get a massage."
After she arrived for her appointment, the receptionist took her to a private room which was pleasantly warm. Soothing piano and flute notes floated on the air.
"Come in!"
"Hello Rey, I'm Ben and I'll be your massage therapist today."
His voice was low and deep and smooth and... good.
Was it okay for her to get a massage from someone this attractive? Should she asked for someone else?
"Yes," she responded in a small voice.
He pulled back the sheet from her back and oh, his hands felt like heaven, working every cramp out from her muscles.
Rey let out a low moan and chided herself for it when she heard Ben chucked in response.
"I never knew messages could feel this great."
He ran his thumbs along her spine, hands pushing the muscle up along her back. With every pass, she shuddered from the sensation and involuntary moaned again.
"You're, ah, really enjoying this."
"Who wouldn't like to be massaged by a hot guy?"
He didn't respond and Rey tensed up when she realized what she said.
"Oh, no worries."
The rest of the massage passed in silence. Somehow, despite nearly dying from embarrassment, Rey was able to just enjoy the movement of his hands on her body.
"Ben, I'm sorry about before."
"It's okay." He leaned in over her ear. "Who wouldn't like to massage a beautiful client?"
Rey stopped breathing, not daring to move again until Ben left the room.
It wasn't until that night that Rey found Ben's business card tucked into the pocket of her jeans with a cell phone number written neatly on the back.
Rey felt the music move her like never before. When it was over, she applauded loudly with the audience.
"This was an original composition by Ben Solo."
The handsome conductor turned and bowed demurely.
Maybe she could pick his brain over coffee.
The first sip of her pina colada tasted like heaven. Ben was too fond of sweet things, yet Rey was glad he had talked her out of ordering her usual IPA.
It was the perfect start to their tropical adventure together, relaxing on an island for their honeymoon.
Rey felt the music move her like never before. When it was over, she applauded loudly with the audience.
"This was an original composition by Ben Solo."
The handsome conductor turned and bowed demurely.
Maybe she could pick his brain over coffee.
The first sip of her pina colada tasted like heaven. Ben was too fond of sweet things, yet Rey was glad he had talked her out of ordering her usual IPA.
It was the perfect start to their tropical adventure together, relaxing on an island for their honeymoon.
Ben had never been one for concerts, but when Rey invited him, he jumped on the chance for an evening with his hopeless crush.
When the lights darkened, her small hand slipped into his, and his heart pounded in time with the rhythm. He never felt so alive.
She had saved him after he disappeared, and he would spend the rest of his life saving her when she needed him.
He looked into her eyes again, studying her face like he did on Exegol.
They were finally together. Forever. And not even death could stop them.
My #reylomicrofic collection is now posted on ao3! Thank you everyone for a wonderful month! I loved reading all of your microfics💕