STAR WARS SHORT STORIES

#1; we'll see each other again. i believe that.

1.5k words; basically the ramblings of someone who wanted finnrey to be canon at the end of tros but was let down once again

/ / /

Rey had felt defeated before. The emotion had consumed her in different instances throughout her life. Waiting for parents to return to her on the desert planet of Jakku, sobbing against Finn's still body as Starkiller fell apart around them, pleading desperately to Luke to help her understand the things she was capable of. Defeat was constant in her life --- but this was a different kind.

The lightsabers dropped from her hands. Luke and Leia's weapons had protected and guided her through the battle against the Emperor. Luke's voice still echoed in her mind as she turned slowly on her heels, defeated and relieved all at once as the walls fell around her and the disciples of the Sith died with their master.

She'd done it. By some miracle, she was strong enough for this. The Sith were defeated, the Resistance given a final chance to crush the First Order for good. Her job was done and her mission completed. She could finally rest.

Blinking slowly, she took a glimpse upward at the stars and decided that she didn't want to rest. Her body was weakening by the second and she knew she only had moments left, but there was so much left to say. So much to say to the presence she wanted near her the most. She swallowed hard and felt for him, but she didn't have to go far. He was right there, always searching for her, no matter how often she pushed him away to keep him safe.

He was so bright in her mind; as warm and constant as a never-setting sun. Even here, in the crumbling temple, he was with her. She only had to reach. Finn.

Finn.

Her soft and broken voice reached him at the same moment he realized. It stopped him; paralyzed him. He could feel her slipping away. "No," he whispered, as if his plea could be heard by her. His heart beat one more time before he felt it. A tear through the galaxy, a rip through his chest. She was gone. "No, Rey."

The grief striking him should have brought him to his knees. He slumped against the wall of the Falcon, mouth slightly agape. With the eyes of Jannah and Chewie on him, he knew they needed to know what had happened to her, but he couldn't bring himself to speak it into existence.

It couldn't be real. Rey was strong --- stronger than anyone he had ever known in his life. He had to be wrong about this. For just a moment he tried to convince himself, but there really wasn't any doubt in his mind, as desperately as he longed there to be. Rey was gone and there was nothing he could do about it.

He knew the mission she was so set on was risky. He knew there was a reason she didn't want him to follow her. She must have known she wouldn't make it out of there alive, and he must have known, too. He just didn't want to accept that she wasn't strong enough to make it. She could do anything she set her mind to, so why couldn't she survive this?

Now all he was left with was the guilt and grief inside of him. Nothing would ever be the same in the universe. Not for him, anyway. He had failed her. She was his first friend and first family and he couldn't protect her. He always knew he would die for her, as unspoken as that was even inside of his own heart. He would die for Rey because he loved her.

But he wasn't even given the chance.

Rey!

Breath filled her lungs once again. With a flash, she could see once again. She blinked once and for a moment, her only thought was: Finn.

It took a second for the realization to set in, for her memories to return and the shocking acknowledgement of someone holding her. She didn't expect to wake up in the arms of Ben Solo. She didn't expect to wake up at all, but to open her eyes and see the face of Han and Leia's son was a surprise in itself. She still couldn't believe that he had turned. It was a dream of hers that she had made herself try to forget.

She sat up, her hand gripping his tightly. Just as she had saved him on the ruins of the Death Star, he had saved her. He had given her a second chance, just as she had by bringing him back from the Dark.

"Ben," she whispered, a smile growing across her face.

She let go of his hand to touch his cheek. The two didn't need words to convey the thankfulness they had for one another. As much as it surprised her, she was happy to be with him in this moment, to know that it was him that saved her. She could only imagine the happiness Leia was probably feeling, wherever she was.

She could sense that he didn't feel like he was enough. He didn't feel like he had done enough to redeem himself, even by bringing her back to life. She leaned forward and kissed him, still smiling, her heart full and grateful. He had given her back to the galaxy, back to Finn. Back to her family.

As she pulled away from him, he grinned, and she knew that the heart of Ben Solo was fully restored. Kylo Ren was gone. For a single moment, Ben Solo was back.

The moment ended when his smile faded. He grew cold in her arms and she reached forward to hold him as he fell backwards towards the ground. Shocked and confused, she looked down on his face. His eyes closed and his final breath slipped away. As quickly as she had come back to life in his arms, his life ended in hers.

He had redeemed himself. Selflessly, he had given his life for hers. She looked around, knowing in her heart that he would always be with her just as Luke and Leia were. She should feel alone. Trapped under the debris of fallen evil, she should feel terrified. But she wasn't. Beyond what she knew in her heart, she could sense Finn again.

Finn, there is so much I need to tell you.

His voice came back to her, clear and fast and real, as if he had been waiting for her. Rey.

For the first time, Ajan Kloss was full of happiness and relief. Finn and Poe wandered through the crowd together, watching the tearful reunions between friends and family. The humidity in the air felt like an embrace in itself; Finn had never been happier to be on this moon. It felt different now, knowing that they no longer had to hide.

His eyes scanned the sea of people surrounding them, desperate to catch a glimpse of her. He could sense that she was closer and the reality of them reuniting stirred something inside of him.

"There," Poe said, nodding towards a break in the crowd.

Finn's eyes followed where he was staring, and there she was. Bruised and bloody but looking stronger than ever, she stood across an empty patch of green underbrush. Her hands were closed in tight fists at her sides and tears fell down her face, leaving streaks in the layers of dirt on her cheeks. A shaky cry left her lips as she smiled wide at him.

"Rey," he whispered, and he was moving without Poe. He sprinted across the space that separated them and she was ready, opening her arms for him and stepping forward. He collided against her and wrapped his arms around her, pulling her tight against him. "Rey---"

"I'm here," she said, glancing up at the sky. She was smiling so wide as she felt the heat of the sun on her face and the tightness of his arms around her. Her fingers gripped the back of his vest and she let her eyes close. She was safe here.

"I thought I would never see you again." He turned his face to look at her, his hands moving to hold her upper arms. Her brown eyes opened and they were on his, still swimming with tears. There were so many things he wanted to say. So many words he could say to her in this moment together. "Rey..."

"I know," she said, moving her hand to the back of his head. She guided him to her until their foreheads touched.

Of course she knew. She knew him better than anyone else did, just as he knew her. They didn't need to speak any of it out loud. Not yet. This moment was enough. Just to be with her was enough. He closed his eyes and smiled.

"Um, guys? Hate to break up the moment, but I hate just standing over there waiting."

Finn and Rey broke away as Poe approached, grinning from ear to ear. Although Finn shook his head, he was too relieved to have both of them by his side again to care. For the first time, he was able to look at both of them and not think about them being torn from him. The war was over and their lives could finally start.

"C'mon, Dameron," Finn said. Laughing, the couple happily pulled Poe into their embrace. They held one another as closely as possible as their laughter mixed with their tears and they thought of the promising future set ahead of them.