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Everyone knew of your association with Kylo Ren. You have known him for as long as you ca remember, as he did you. Since he was nothing but young Ben Solo, he had had you by his side, the best of companions. You trained with Luke Skywalker together, caused mischief together, and played together in the days of your youth. He ascended into adolescence when you did, and had your support during his conversion to the Dark Side, which prompted your own as well. Your parents were devastated and betrayed by you, but you could not bring yourself to let Ben down.
Even when he ordered you to call him Kylo.
It felt strange for you at first, but the adjustment came to you quite naturally as you got used to his change of character.
It was no surprise to you that Ben Solo and Kylo Ren were totally different personalities. The Ben you had known years ago was a budding padawan full of hopes and dreams, until he became Kylo; a master of darkness with hatred and rebellion in his eyes. You watched him lead the Knights of Ren with a deadly ambition, and as he achieved a place in the First Order you vowed to assist him in fulfilling the legacy of his grandfather, the one you had heard about many times as children in stories of terror and the Sith Empire.
You watched him don his dark mask that sealed his fate until you rarely saw him without it. He became absorbed in his power and spent less time with you, rather using most of his time to practice his wielding of the Force. You could tell it was strong with him, and that Vader's blood ran prominently through his veins.
Sometimes he hurt himself practicing with his saber, which is where you came in to cleanse and tend to his minor scratches and bruises whenever you heard a grunt of pain emanating from within the training chamber. Then you would leave, and he would resume his training as if no prior injuries had been sustained.
Despite his growing slightly distant from you, there were no secrets that he did not share with you willingly whenever you cared for his wounds and brought him food after his meetings with Stoke, which you could tell were tense from his stiff movements after each encounter. He relied on you to calm him and distract him from the matters at hand, which you did by lightly caressing his shoulders and sharing your thoughts with him. He seemed to enjoy it, so you were pleased to give him all that you could. Pleasing him soon became your top priority.
It didn't take long for you to generate feelings for each other. It was inevitable, seeing as you were the only person he trusted and saw every single day who had stuck with him through his hardships.
"Sir." you said, holding a tray in your hands. The clad figure in black seemed to ignore your presence as he continued to effortlessly destroy the holograms of practice droids flying about the chamber. You cleared your throat, repeating yourself firmly, "Sir."
The last droid fell to the ground in pieces before the hologram flickered away, leaving the room silent with nothing but the sound of Kylo's warped breathing through his mask. He withdrew his lightsaber and moved his head slightly in your direction.
"What is it?" he asked softly.
"I've brought you refreshments and water."
"You may enter." The doors closed automatically as you made your way to the benches on the left side of the room normally used by spectators. He did the same as you sat and laid the tray in between you. You waited patiently for him to remove his mask, dark curls springing free from beneath it. Seeing that his pale skin was glazed with sweat, you immediately picked up the folded towel from the tray and brought it to his brow, dabbing gently along the line of his forehead to his temple.
You felt his eyes on your face and sucked in a sharp breath. You stopped and slowly averted your gaze from his toned brow to his dark eyes.
They were endless. You felt as if you were falling through a never-ending pit, the murk engulfing you, pouring through every crevice of your being until you felt, deep within your soul, the rush of emotions that ran through your blood that entrapped you both in a vice neither of you were capable of escaping. His eyes of rich mahogany held the depth of the deepest cesspool, the blackest night.
You were suddenly breathless when he brought his gloved hand slowly to envelope yours, holding it against his warm face that seemed to emanate a burning heat spreading through your cheeks against your will. His eyes never left yours as he leaned in to claim your lips. He did so with a passion that surged through you like a thousand suns while his other hand found the curve of your neck and pressed you against him with such tenderness you had never imagined he would be capable of. After what seemed like an eternity he pulled back, eyes glazed over with desire as they grew darker yet. Without allowing you to catch your breath he pushed your shoulder firmly down so that you were lying comfortably on the bench though slightly overwhelmed and flustered by the delicious sight of Kylo Ren on top of you.
The tray you had brought in earlier was about to fall to the floor when he stopped it with the force, its items hovering in midair before being set aside carefully with Kylo's precision. The both of you laughed for a while at how suddenly things had changed between you before his expression grew sincere once again. His body was flush against yours as he traced a soft finger against your cheek before pressing his lips to yours more ardently than before, hands frantically and impatiently removing your clothing as you did the same for him.
The searing intensity of your intertwined bodies and heavy breathing upon the aftermath of a sweet oblivion made you realize just how devoted you had become to Kylo Ren, as he was to you.
"What's going on?" you asked the stormtroopers that had come from around the corner.
"Madam Ren", one replied hesitantly, "A representative was sent to inform Lord Kylo Ren -"
Deafening crashes came from the control room at the end of the corridor causing you to push past the stormtroopers in worry. You arrived to see two other stormtroopers cautiously backing away from the control room that looked damaged beyond repair upon further inspection. A petrified representative was barely clinging to life in Kylo's deadly grip, clawing weakly at his neck while he pleaded for mercy through a series of barely audible gasps and choking.
"Sir!" you cried, horrified. You ran in the room and pulled the poor man away from the dark lord who released him with disdain. Without a word he scurried out of the room, thanking god again and again for his sparing. You turned to Kylo furiously.
"What the hell were you doing?!" you cried. Your eyes fell on the withdrawn lightsaber ready in his hand and the destroyed control panel behind him that spat steam and blue specks along with the stench of burnt metal lingering in the air. You noticed the erratic rise and fall of Kylo's chest and the way he recoiled from you as if he were afraid a single touch would hurt you. You attempted to place your hand on his forearm but he yanked it away, stumbling backwards as his breathing grew increasingly labored. Concerned and worried you quickly removed his mask to allow his breathing to slow. You placed your hands on both sides of his face forcing him to focus on nothing but you until the maddening rage in his eyes had dissolved into nothing, and he stopped resisting. Kylo pulled you into a deep embrace, in need of some sort of comfort after his furious episode. His heart beat fell gradually in sync with yours as you pushed the matted hair away from his face, cupping it lovingly in the process. "What happened, huh?" you whispered soothingly against his chest, "what happened, my love?"
"T-they escaped -"
"Shhhhhh..."
You held him while he held you, basking in the calming silence of the room. He then leaned back and kissed you carefully, as if he were afraid you'd crumble to dust beneath his mild touch.
"Promise me we'll always be like this", he murmured into your hair, planting a chaste kiss on the crook of your neck before nestling warmly in it. "Promise me you'll be there to hold me till the very end."
"I will be by your side until the last breath leaves my body, and even then my memory shall be with you, Kylo."
"Han Solo."
The man's eyes widen in surprise as he straightens his shirt and places his hands on his hips. The woolly creature next to him would have lunged at you with a growl, had its companion not placed a defensive hand before it.
"... It's you."
"Of course it's me, Solo", you spit with resentment, "who else would be here but I? Have you come to 'bring Kylo home'?"
"His name is Ben, and you know that."
In one swift motion you pull out two blaster rifles, aiming one between the man's solemn eyes and the other at the Wookiee. "Ben Solo is long gone. I should have known you would attempt to seduce him into turning to the Light. I am going to stop you, and enjoy capturing you in the process."
"But you're not going to kill me, are you?" he steps confidently forward as if testing out the waters. Your hands grow shaky as a bead of sweat rolls down your temple. He calls you by your name with a familiarity you recognize from all those years ago.
When you had first met him.
"Step. Back." you warn him through gritted teeth. He steps forward, ignoring you warning.
When you were friends.
He takes yet another step forward.
"Step back, Han Solo."
When he was Ben's father.
Tears start to leak from your eyes as the conflict raging in your mind claws at its walls and causes a pain you cannot describe.
"Step back, I tell you, please! Please, Han!"
By now you are trembling with sobs as the memories of Han's kindness hit you in a torrent of angst and confusion. You remember when Han taught you how to fix a basic household droid when you were nothing but a child. You remember Commander Leia Organa, tending to one of your bruises with such affection and care after you had accidentally injured yourself training. You remember the kind eyes of Luke Skywalker, the man who you'd looked up to more than anyone else in the world for his strength and dedication to training his apprentices. You remember your parents, the look of pride on their faces when you completed your first phase of Jedi combat training. But most of all, you remember little Ben and his eyes, full of innocence and radiant curiosity, always getting himself into trouble, always asking you for help. You realize with a silent cry that you miss the Light as it calls to you stronger than ever.
You feel Han Solo's comforting arms around you, and you give in. Your weapons slide limply to the floor, forgotten.
"Please, kid." he says, "Ben loves you. Maybe he'll listen to you."
You nod, determined to try and change Kylo into the Ben you know will help restore balance to the galaxy. This pains you, as you love Kylo with all your heart, but you would do anything to make him give in to the Light, even if it means betraying his trust.
Han slaps your shoulder with a sad yet fond smile.
"Bring him home." says Han.
You look on in horror as your old friend Han Solo is slain by the man you love. A searing pain tears at your heart as you witness the final moments of Han's life while he is ultimately thrown into the misty abyss below. None but Kylo Ren stands in front of you now on the walkway. Each footstep clanks against metal as you slowly make your way towards him.
"Ben!" you cry.
He turns to face you, eyes wide when he realizes what has happened. Tears threaten to spill from his eyes. You see nothing in them but hurt, betrayal and an unmistakable flame of anger present within their dark brown depths.
"The Light", he mutters bitterly, "I can see it in your eyes."
"Ben, please!" you plead, "come home with me."
"They've turned you against me."
"Please, Ben. We can start anew -"
"Just like they did my grandmother to my grandfather."
"We can run away, just you and I."
"I loved you."
"Do you see what the Dark Side has done to you? How it has made you slaughter your own blood?!"
"I would have done anything for you. I loved you."
"Then let us flee! Let us go far from here and never return! You don't need to kill all these people, Ben! They are innocent, and the First Order is using you!"
"You promised you'd be there for me till the very end."
"And I will be, Ben, my love." You cup his face lovingly in your hands, pressing your forehead to his. You embrace him tightly and feel his heart beating rapidly, furiously. "Just let me help you."
"I was never going to leave you. I loved you."
"Please, Ben."
"My name -"
"Please, my love, don't do this -"
"- IS KYLO REN!"
In a fit of rage he wraps his hands around your throat, squeezing with such force his nails dig painfully into your flesh. Your eyes nearly bulge out of their sockets as all air is sucked straight from your lungs, all the while keeping your eyes on his that seem to gleam a murderous crimson. Despite all this you do not struggle, holding your gaze with the man you still love and always will.
"B-Ben..." you manage to weakly choke out his name before your vision blurs into a haze of ebony and earth. You slip into panic, clinging on to him with all the strength you had left in your dying body. "S-s-stop..."
You reach up blindly to touch his pale cheek before your eyes close and darkness engulfs you one final time.
Kylo Ren understands what his anger has done to you when your lifeless form slumps against him. He catches you before you fall off the walkway, stroking your cheek with a finger.
You were still warm.
He jumped, choking with tears as images of you came flooding back to him. He felt as though he were suffocating with grief but refused to let go of you till your corpse slowly grew cold.
"You promised you'd be there for me till the very end." Kylo whispers, tears streaming down his cheeks and onto yours. He tilts your head to face him, vowing never to forget your features.
Then he slowly releases you, eyes hollow from grief as he watches you slide and fall gently down below until he sees you no longer.
"Nothing shall stop me now, Grandfather."