~ Love Lives On ~ TRoS Alternate Ending

Chapter Two: Old Endings

Rey laid her hand over the Skywalker sabers, wrapped in cloth, ready to be buried. Ben covered her hand with his own. They looked at each other. Ben nodded. Rey picked up the sabers with one hand and slipped her free arm around Ben's waist. They walked out of Luke's old home on Tatooine and knelt down on the sand a few feet away from the door. Rey handed the sabers to Ben. "You do the honors," she said. He knew that she could easily sense the hurt within him; how much he missed his mom, his uncle, his dad - everyone. The darkness that had tormented him for so long was gone, but the shadows lingered. They both hoped that this final act of respect to the Skywalker bloodline would bring them some closure.

Putting her hand on Ben's face, Rey rubbed her thumb against his cheek. "Let the past die, Ben." Funny, she seemed to be quoting him a lot these days. He reached out and tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear. Bending over he lay the sabers on the sand and they both watched as a small sinkhole opened up, slowly taking the sabers down into the earth. After a reverential silence, they both stood. Ben watched as Rey removed her new saber from her belt loop and turned it on. Aside from the "whoosh" of the kyber crystal igniting, the pale yellow blade made no sound. Unlike sabers made with light or dark crystals, this one no longer had any tension on it, pulling it to one side of the force or the other. The force was at balance, so the saber was stable. Removing his new saber from his belt loop, Ben turned it on and looked it over. The blade had the same yellow glow as Rey's. They looked at each other, smiling, peace resonating within them for the first time since, well, since forever. And not just within them, but throughout the galaxy.

The sound of footsteps drew their attention away from each other. An elderly woman stood in front of a large animal, looking at the couple with bewilderment. "There's been no one here for so long," she said. "Who are you?"

Turning off their sabers, they looked at the woman and then at each other.

"I'm Ben, and this is Rey," Ben answered, motioning to himself and then to her.

"Ben? Rey? Ben and Rey who?" the woman asked, confused. "First names don't mean much here."

Looking up at Ben, Rey answered, a broad smile across her face. "Solo. Ben and Rey Solo." Fingers intertwined, they walked over to the woman. "It's nice to meet you," Rey said.