The Force of the Dyad

~ Epilogue ~

It was a gorgeous Naboo morning. Rey, Ben, Rose, Finn and Chewy were crowded around the fireplace of Solo Farm, drinking a hot caffeinated beverage out of steaming mugs, laughing and chatting together in high glee. It was Galactic Day! A little girl of about three years, exhausted from opening presents, sat upon Chewy's lap, twining his rough brown fur around her chubby little fingers, a round rosy cheek resting against his chest. She had luxuriously thick, shining black hair that hung down to her waist in loose ringlets. Little Hana was beaming up at her Uncle Chewy, her bright blue eyes framed with dark curling lashes shining with delight as he cooed at her in Wookie tongue.

So much had happened in the past three years! Finn was now the Senator of Coruscant, and Rose was a General. Together they had done so much good for the galaxy. Their first task together had been freeing slaves from across the planets, outlawing the buying or selling of any living being. Their successful campaign had given them both intergalactic fame and admiration. They were a bonded couple now; their union ceremony had taken place just last month, on Naboo. They were visiting the Solos for a few days, at the end of their honeymoon, before their vacation was over and it was time to get back to their honorable work.

Finn and Ben were fast friends now. They sat across from each other excitedly discussing politics and Galactic gossip, every once in a while roaring in laughter over a shared joke. Rey looked at her husband as he laughed; he was almost unrecognizable from the man he used to be. His hair was cut shorter, and he had a sexy little stubbly mustache and goatee. He wore a dark grey shirt with a pair of navy pants and his old, enormous black boots. He looked a bit older, but wiser, happier, at peace.

Rey had also changed a bit herself; although she still looked much younger than her age, she had matured and blossomed in her joyful life. She usually wore her hair down now, loosely waving about her face, as Ben liked it. She had started to introduce some colors to her wardrobe, as Ben had, experimenting with the different fabrics and textiles famous on Naboo. Her face was sweeter, an utterly content expression living in her eyes; a woman thoroughly satisfied in all areas of her life. She had a devoted husband, a most cherished daughter, and wonderful friends!

Her old comrade Finn had done them quite a service recently. Worrying about the safety of his dear friends, now that Ben was healed and back to his old (but improved) self, he had tirelessly worked during the past three years to spread the rumor that the infamous Kylo Ren was dead and gone. He wrote a long article about it, and read speeches in front of the Galactic Senate, informing them that the rumor that Kylo Ren had been in any way related to General Princess Leia Organa had been a blatant lie and smear campaign against the rebels by the first order, as a poor attempt to weaken their support. No mention was made of the Solo name, or Han.

Finn also had pictures drawn up of Kylo Ren's "face"; they portrayed him as a deformed, battle blasted man, with features reminding one of Snoke, implying that his mask had been necessary to keeping him alive.

People not only believed it; they ate it up! No one wanted to believe Kylo Ren was still at large; no one had a REASON to believe it either. Anyone who knew the true identity of Kylo Ren/Ben Solo was either a very close, thoroughly trusted friend, or long dead and gone; no one high up in the first order (who could have identified Kylo Ren without his mask) had survived the final battle of Exogol.

There were still some rumors occasionally surfacing now and again that Leia had once had a son; but then some people insisted that no, she'd had a daughter... some even said it had been twins. Yet another rumor was that she and Han had split up before they'd ever had children, and the child she'd occasionally been reported to had been seen with had been her nephew. But as to those who believed in the rumor of Leia's son, they all assumed he had been killed early on in the wars, or else that he was in hiding, and the speculation over his identity and fate hadn't lasted longer than a few months, before people moved on to other things, and more exciting gossip.