Star Wars Episode VII: The Search For Skywalker

The Truth

Rey hurried away so that her friends wouldn't see her crying. She didn't know where she was going, only that she had to be alone. As she passed a narrow hallway that led beneath the palace, she heard a voice calling her.

"Rey," it was quite and distant. It came from somewhere down the hall.

She creased her brow and looked down the long hallway. No one was there.

"Rey!" the voice came again. It was louder this time.

Curious, she stepped into the hallway and began following the sound of the voice.

Poe went to sit down at the table with Han and Leia. He looked around and noticed that Maz was gone. "Where's Maz?" he asked.

"She went to get a piece of the map to Luke," Leia explained.

"Where's my son, and my Rey?" Han asked.

Poe gave him a questioning look as he called her "my Rey," but as far as Han was concerned, if Rey's parents didn't want her and she had no one who cared about her. No one who she could look up to who would take care of her, then he would become that person. And he knew that his wife agreed with him. As far as they were concerned, it was their responsibility to look after her and be there for her. After they had learned that Rey's parents had died, they had talked about it. They had decided that from now on they would love and care for Rey as if she was their own daughter.

"Rey got upset, because Finn is leaving. So she left to be alone. Ben said that she is afraid that we are all going to leave her, just like her parents did. Now Ben has left to go look for her," Poe explained.

Han and Leia exchanged worried glances. They wanted Rey to know that they wouldn't leave her. And they knew Ben wouldn't leave her either. Leia knew that he had always cared about her, even before he met her. He had always dreamt about her and felt her presence, even though she was far away from him. The Force had linked them together across time and space.

"I told Ben that she might need to be alone for a moment. But he said that he promised that she would never be alone. He said that she needed him to prove that he wouldn't leave her. That she needs to know that she is not alone."

"He's right. If Rey is afraid that we are going to abandon her, she needs someone to show her that we won't," said Leia.

"I just hope he can find her," said Han.

"Don't worry," said Poe. "I'm sure Ben will find her."

"He's right," Leia told Han. "He will be able to feel her presence in the Force. They are bound together by the Force. He has always felt her presence, even when he was young. Even before he met her."

"Is that why he knew what was troubling her, even though she didn't tell anyone?" Poe asked.

Leia nodded. "Their connection must be growing stronger now that they have actually seen each other face to face."

Han looked at Leia. "Is this something like how Luke was connected to Darth Vader through the Force? Somehow he knew Darth Vader was on that ship."

Leia nodded. "They had a connection. That is why Luke was able to reach Darth Vader when no one else could."

"Does Ben know...?" Han asked, wondering if his son knew the truth about his grandfather.

Leia shook her head. "Luke and I wanted to protect him from the truth," she said. "Luke never understood why Obi Wan Kenobi hid the truth from him... until Ben was born. Then he understood. We had to protect him from the truth."

"And you never told him that I was his father either?" Han asked, a little disappointed that she had hidden that from him.

"I wanted to tell him, but if anyone found out, the bounty hunters would have come after him," she explained.

"I understand. They weren't just looking for me, to get revenge me alone, but everyone I cared about. I worried every day that they would find out that you were my wife and take you too," he said.

"That's why I went by Organa. I would have told everyone that you were my husband and let them take me so that we could be together, but I had to take care of Ben. I tried to look for you. Luke and I searched the galaxy for years, looking for you. But then the First Order rose from the ashes of the Empire. I had to form the Resistance or everything me, you and Luke fought for would have been lost," she said. "Then there was Snoke. He was torturing our son, trying to pull him to the Dark Side. It took all of my strength to keep Snoke from taking him. If not for Luke our son would be lost. He would belong to Snoke now. And..."

"Shh. Sweetheart, it's okay," Han said, he could tell that she was getting upset. He wrapped his arms around her and pulled her into a tight hug. "You did the right thing. And we're together now. That's all that matters."

Poe smiled as he watched the two of them together. Leia had always seemed so sad and lonely, like she was missing something. Now he knew what she had been missing, Han.

Han stroked Leia's hair gently, to soothe her. He gently lifted her head to look into her eyes. "I have always admired your strength and courage. Ben is lucky to have you...and so am I," he told her.

"Thank you, Han," she whispered.

When Leia seemed to have calmed down, Han said: "I think we should tell Ben the truth, about his grandfather."

"Are you sure that's a good idea?" she asked.

"Leia, he's not a child anymore. He deserves to know the truth. Besides, if we don't tell him someone else might. And I think that this is something that we should tell him," said Han.

"You're right," she agreed.