Chapter Text
”Rey!” he cried out, his blue lightsaber leading his way through the blinding smoke. “Rey, where are you?”
He tried to reach out with the Force, desperately scrambling for any clue to where she might be. But his head was throbbing and suffocating fumes were battering his lungs, making each individual breath hell to earn.
But he had to find her. The fire was spreading so quickly the Temple could collapse at any minute.
Part of him feared she might already be gone, but he wouldn’t consider it. He knew she wasn’t; he would’ve felt her loss in the Force. There was no question she was still alive.
But if he didn’t get her out now, he could lose her forever.
”Reyyyyyy!!” he screamed, nearly losing his voice in his desperation. He did his best to listen for any noises she might make, but the tumult of the blaze was deafening. Concentration seemed almost hopeless.
But he would not stop! Either he’d find his only friend in the galaxy and get her to safety, or he’d let the whole kriffing building crumble on his head so he could join her in the Force.
”Ben! Beeeennnn!”
Was he hallucinating, or were faint cries coming from his left? Turning sharply, he raced ahead, shouting her name. Soon, he could discern the form of a little girl moving around rubble. Thank the Force. He pushed his way past burning wreckage and scooped her up in his arms.
Her small body was shaking uncontrollably in terror. ”Ben!” she shrieked. “You came back for me.”
”You know I always will, sweetheart,” he promised, holding her against his sweat-soaked shirt. “I’m getting you out of here.”
Without wasting another second, he rushed for the exit as quickly as his exhausted legs could carry him. Walls of flames were everywhere now, consuming the Temple as debris fell. Sensing imminent danger, he doubled his speed and darted outside just before the ceiling above the door collapsed in a raging heap.
Rey screamed, burying her face in his shirt. He grabbed the back of her head to keep it in place, shielding her from the corpses she didn’t know were littering the grass. No seven-year-old girl should ever have to live with the grisly images of fallen colleagues.
But they would haunt Ben’s dreams. And he deserved it.
When they were far enough away to be safe, something stopped him and made him look back. The Jedi Academy was disturbingly beautiful as it succumbed to its hellish fate. Ben waited anxiously for the remorse he was sure was coming. What he’d done was unforgivable.
Yet, to his surprise, as he watched the inferno, an odd sense of satisfaction settled over him. His life, as he knew it, was now gone. Forever. There could be no coming back from this.
But he honestly didn’t care.
The last decade flashed before his eyes. His parents, who’d feared the darkness in him and sent him away. His peers, who’d mocked him as the ‘spawn of Darth Vader’. His uncle, who, this very night, decided to rid the galaxy of the abomination that was his demonic nephew.
Anger latched onto Ben like a parasite and grew, gripping him in its jaws. Years of being feared, dreaded, unloved, reprimanded, and pushed away by those who were supposed to care for him were now choking him. At long last, he’d given everyone what they’d wanted.
He was finally a monster.
”Ben?”
He hardly registered Rey’s worried voice, until she put a small hand on his cheek and turned his head to face her. “Ben, why are your eyes yellow?”
He blinked, stunned. Yellow? When had his eyes turned yellow?
Her mouth hung open curiously as she studied him. Ice-cold horror began to cut through his anger. Horror for Rey and what she must think of him now. Watching her closely, he expected to see fear in her eyes. Everyone else feared him; was this the breaking point that would finally turn her against him, too?
No. As she gently stroked his cheek, her beautiful hazel eyes were full of concern. Concern for him, not because of him. It made his breath catch.
She was still his sweet little Rey. The one person in the whole galaxy who truly loved him. The only one who could ever look at him and see someone worthy of that love.
She smiled. “That’s better. Your eyes aren’t yellow anymore.”
He swallowed audibly, trying to compose himself as tears trickled down his cheeks. “I . . . I . . . Thank you, sweetheart,” he whispered.
”You saved me,” she sighed. “You’re like a prince from my books.”
He looked away, unable to respond to that. He was no prince. If he were, he wouldn’t have put her in danger. He’d always known he was powerful; yet he’d never imagined what could happen if he accidentally lost control. But tonight, when his uncle stood over his bed, ready to kill him with a lightsaber, his powers possessed him, culminating in Force-lightning that struck the Temple in malignant savagery.
And when the Force roared that Rey was inside the Temple, Ben’s heart almost stopped.
”W-we have to go, sweetheart,” he said, knowing he needed to get her to safety before anything else could happen to her. “We have to get off this planet; it isn’t safe here.”
”But what about Master Luke?” she asked. “Is he coming with us?”
He bit his lip, hard, trying to check the fury the traitor’s name invoked. “N-no, sweetheart, he’s not coming,” he grated.
”Why?” she cried, looking around. “Where is he?”
He turned and hurried for the docking bay, wondering how much to tell her. She was a ray of sunshine in a dark world, always thinking of those around her and ready to see the best in everyone. Was it fair to her to tell her the truth about their former master? That Skywalker was a murderous viper who tried to kill his nephew, but met his own end when Ben ran him through with a lightsaber? Or should he remain silent, let her think what she wanted and protect her from as much pain and loss as possible?
It wasn’t a hard decision. ”He’s, erm, he’s gone home,” Ben stammered. “And you and I are going home, too.”
”We are?” she asked. “Where’s home?”
He swallowed. ”It-it’s a surprise.” And with that, he dropped the subject and boarded a small ship. By the time they were deep in outer space, Rey was fast asleep in his lap, the trauma of the night having exhausted her. Ben held her tenderly in his arms, trying to find comfort in her presence as the weight of what he’d done finally hit him with a force he almost couldn’t withstand.
His conscience called him a beast. But what if he hadn’t killed his uncle? What might have happened? As strange as it was, when he’d awoken several hours ago to Luke’s hostile intrusion, only one fear had been at the forefront of his mind.
If Luke would kill his own nephew, what was he capable of doing to Rey?
With that petrifying thought, hell had broken loose.
”You should be proud of yourself,” said the ominous stranger in his head. ”You did well tonight. You finally took control of your destiny, and the best is yet to come.”
Ben rested his cheek on Rey’s head and closed his eyes, wondering if he was making the right decision. Maybe he and Rey should just run away from the world, drop off the map entirely. He was young, only seventeen. But he knew he could provide for her, raise her with all the love and attention he’d longed to get from his parents.
”But what kind of a life would that be for her?” asked the voice. ”Wandering around from planet to planet. No stability, no guarantees. Is that really the life you want for her?”
Ben didn’t answer.
The wraith cackled. ”And what if you lose control of your powers again? You could hurt her . . . or worse. You don’t want to be a danger to her, do you?”
”No,” he whispered under his breath, his tears wetting her mocha hair.
”Then come to me, and I will teach you how to control it. You’ll have more power than you could ever imagine. And in your strong hands, no harm will come to her, and she will want for nothing.”
Ben whimpered, knowing the voice was right. With the press of a button, he set course to take them to the next chapter of their lives. The Light side had failed him. Now it was the Dark side’s turn to prove itself. The future was uncertain; he had no idea what the years ahead would bring.
All he knew was that he was all Rey had left in the galaxy, and he would do anything it took to take care of her. Anything.
As long as he was a prince in her eyes, he could be a dragon to everyone else.
⚔️ Five years later . . . ⚔️
The dark-gray corridors seemed to stretch endlessly before him. Between the turbolift ride and the sheer mass of the Supremacy, he was growing more disgruntled by the moment. And yet he had only himself to blame for the inconvenience. Had he informed Rey of his early arrival, she would've been impatient to greet him when his ship docked.
But he’d decided to surprise her. He hated it when she saw him after combat, caked in blood and grime. So he’d cloaked his Force Signature to hide his presence from their bond and taken a quick shower in their quarters.
This past week, another planet had fallen to the glory of the First Order. The Siniun army’s reputation for being ruthless was well deserved; but the Order’s military might, under the leadership of Kylo and his Knights, was ever growing. Snoke was pleased and had commended his warriors on another triumphant raid.
But Kylo was just glad it was over. In the heat of battle, it was easy to give in to his hatred and let it steer him to victory. But once the fighting ended, he was left with nothing but loneliness and the desire to get home to his precious Rey.
These past five years had been more eventful than he could’ve ever predicted. Ben Solo was dead . . . Kylo Ren lived, brought to life when he first joined Snoke as his apprentice. The scarred alien had promised to give him everything Skywalker never could—power, control, belonging.
But Ben had made it clear he would submit only if he was allowed to keep Rey. If he couldn’t watch over her, there would be no deal. The greedy Snoke had agreed with pleasure. As long as he had access to Kylo’s raw, untamed power, his apprentice could have a ‘pet’ to do with as he wished. Kylo despised the demeaning comparison but remained silent, reminding himself that nothing mattered beyond Rey’s safety.
Officially, Rey was recognized in the First Order as Kylo Ren’s ward. The position afforded her all the respect and prestige due one under the protection of the Master of the Knights of Ren, himself. Nobody messed with her. At least, without consequence. Various fools had tried their luck over the years, hoping to challenge Kylo by threatening his cherished sidekick.
But each was sent to the Maker via Kylo’s blood-red crossguard.
Kylo’s protectiveness amused Snoke, who was elated to have two powerful Force-users under his thumb. The talented Rey was sure to make an invaluable addition to the Knights of Ren when she completed her training and reached maturity. But, for now, she was only twelve years old, still just a child. Kylo did all he could to nurture her growth. The last thing he wanted was for her to be forced to grow up too quickly. He’d been there; it was odious.
And he knew his pupil missed her old life at the Jedi Academy. The First Order was a militant autocracy, hardly an ideal setting for a little girl. So Kylo strove to make everything as bearable to her as possible. He trained her personally, encouraged her to be all she could be. And whenever he had to leave on a mission, he assigned a Knight to look after her until he could get back.
They even lived together. He’d offered, many times, to give her her own quarters. After all, she was almost a teenager; surely she’d need privacy in the coming years. But she was still his devoted shadow, wanting nothing more than to be near him whenever she could. And he’d be lying if he said it didn’t warm his heart.
Even if it meant their quarters were overrun with books. Rey’s addiction to stories was limitless. They were her refuge, her escape from the pressures of reality. Kylo had provided her with any storybooks he could find, until their quarters were inundated with her ever-growing collection. But he didn’t mind. As long as she was happy, he was content.
Even now, as he approached Training Room 8, the brown package in his hand was practically burning a hole through his glove, eager to be opened by its new mistress. She would love it!
The doors opened to reveal Rey in the middle of the training floor. She was blindfolded and using her red saberstaff to block surprise hits from Trudgen Ren. Kylo grinned, dropping the shields he’d erected around his Force Signature so Rey could finally sense him.
He saw the moment she felt the difference. With a gasp, she abruptly dropped her staff and ripped off her blindfold, no longer caring about Trudgen. “Kylo, you’re back!” she screamed, making a mad dash for her mentor. Kylo chuckled and opened his arms, catching her as she collided with his chest. “I missed you.”
”I know,” he said, burying his nose in her hair buns. “Were you good for Trudgen while I was gone?”
She nodded and eyed the surprise package with curious greed. “Yes, he said I’m getting better at focusing.”
”Hmm, excellent.” He looked over at Trudgen, eager to be rid of him. “Thank you for looking after my ward, Trudgen of Ren. You’re relieved of her training; report to your fellow Knights.”
”Yes, Master,” Trudgen said, saluting.
Now that they were alone, Kylo presented Rey with her gift as she beamed excitedly. Shards of brown paper littered the floor at their feet, carelessly ripped away in Rey’s haste. The gold lettering of her new book stood out elegantly against the black felt of the cover.
”Her Dark Prince,” she read aloud, lovingly tracing the words with a finger. “What’s it about?”
He hovered over her shoulder. “I heard it’s an adventure story,” he said. “Princes and castles and whatnot.”
She hugged it protectively against her chest and blinked at him with hopeful eyes. “Are we reading it tonight?”
He smiled with a reassuring nod. ”Of course, sweetheart,” he promised, petting her hair. “You’ve had enough training for today. Let’s go have dinner; then you can read to me for as long as you want.”
⚔️
”Ben . . . Ben, are you awake?”
When he didn’t answer her question, she looked him over. His eyes were closed peacefully and his head was resting against the back of the sofa, unmoving. All she could hear was the steady hum of his even breathing.
He was dead asleep.
”Kriff,” she whispered, disappointed. She wanted to find out what would happen to Daisy. The maiden had just been abducted by the evil Beast of Boyega, and Adam had set off on his trusty steed to rescue her.
But Rey knew she would have to wait for tomorrow; she couldn’t continue without her Ben.
With a resigned sigh, she marked her page and closed the book. What time was it? How long had she been reading to Ben? An hour? Four? She had no idea; she’d been too distracted by the exciting ventures of her new hero.
Adam was everything she loved. A tragic warrior with ebony hair, ivory skin, black armor, and a deadly sword. Pools of blood had been shed by him on many battlefields. He was a prince of the night, a champion of the darkness.
He was just like Ben.
Careful not to wake her sleeping guardian, Rey reached up and brushed a stray hair off his cheek. The poor thing. She couldn’t blame him for being so tired. She didn’t know what he’d been up to these past several days on his away mission, but she could imagine. She didn’t like Snoke; the ogre was always being mean to Ben and pushing him too hard. But Ben endured it all, despite the toll it took on his mind and body.
And all because of how much he loved her. She hated that she couldn’t do more to ease his burdens. But she was just a kid and he was always watching over her. He’d saved her more times than she could count, even once decapitating a jealous Knight who attacked her to hurt Ben when he became Master of Ren. He was so brave.
Resting her head against his arm, she wished she were older. If she were, she could help him so much more. But for now, she worked as hard as she could to be the best student he could ever have. She lived to make him proud. And when they were alone in their quarters, where he let her call him Ben instead of Kylo, she loved to read new books to him, hoping he would enjoy the escape as much as she did.
Propping her chin on his shoulder, she watched him sleep. She hoped he was having nice dreams. Part of her was tempted to peek inside his mind to check, but she couldn’t. Mental privacy was important between masters and their apprentices, and she didn’t want to betray his trust like that.
So all she could do was hope.
Hope he was dreaming about being far away from here, happy, with her. He was her prince. She wanted to be his princess one day.
His princess.
She bit her lip, thinking. What did princes and their princesses do? In her books, they always . . .
Her mouth opened, an idea emerging. What if she . . .
“Um, Ben?” she whispered once more, just in case. Sure enough, he didn’t budge. He was out cold. He wouldn’t know a thing.
So what could it hurt?
It would be her little secret.
She grinned. If she wanted to be his princess, now was her chance.
So, careful to move as little as possible, she held her breath and leaned up. With a soft prayer, she closed her eyes and pressed her lips to his. Just the lightest touch, hardly enough to feel. Then she quickly broke away before she could wake him.
When she was sure he was still sleeping soundly, she sighed in relief and snuggled against him. She couldn't stop giggling to herself.
She’d just kissed a prince.
⚔️
He blinked his eyes open, confused. Why were the lights set so low? What time was it?
He scrunched his face, trying to remember. He’d been so relaxed, listening to Rey’s soothing voice as she read her book. But then . . . well, he must’ve been more exhausted than he’d realized.
And now he felt awful. Poor Rey. He hadn’t meant to fall asleep.
And speaking of asleep, his ward was beside him, napping with her head propped against his shoulder. Her book was lying next to her, marked and closed.
He pursed his lips, wondering what to do. She was sleeping so peacefully he didn’t want to disturb her. But he was afraid she’d wake in the morning with a sore back if he didn’t put her to bed.
So he touched her forehead with his fingertips, using the Force to lull her into a deeper sleep. Then he lifted her in his arms and carried her to her bed. He laid her on her side so she’d be comfortable and draped her covers over her legs to keep her warm. Once he was satisfied, he instinctively bent to kiss her cheek . . . but stopped just before he touched her skin.
Faint memories came trickling forth. The softest brush of adolescent lips. The slightest hint of warm breath.
He stood and backed away, his stomach churning nervously.
Why would he have such a dream?
He picked up her book from the sofa and set it on the nightstand beside her bed. Could the book be responsible? His mind whirled, trying to rationalize the situation.
Had Rey read a kiss scene while he’d slept? If she had, it might’ve filtered into his subconscious mind. Prince Adam’s description resembled Kylo’s own appearance, after all. It would’ve been easy to dream about himself.
That didn’t necessarily explain Rey’s role in the dream. But the more he pondered, the more he decided it made enough sense. Rey was always calling him her prince; of course she would feature in a princely night fantasy. Dreams were funny that way.
Content, he slipped under his sheets and closed his eyes, trying to let his mind slip into the beginnings of sleep.
And if his eyes involuntarily opened and glanced toward Rey a few times, it was only to make sure she was all right. By tomorrow morning, the dream would be forgotten, lost to time with its discarded brothers.
At least, he hoped so. Dreams could be scary.