Ɓen made his way to the castle gate. As he approached, he found Rey waiting for him. He stared at her as he walked towards her. She had changed out of her elegant gown into a simple blue dress. But even in the simple dress, she more beautiful than anything he had ever seen. He still couldn't believe that she was his wife. He certainly didn't deserve to be married to such a kind, beautiful girl.

He swallowed hard before speaking. "I'm sorry that I kept you waiting, my lady. I was talking to Finn. I wanted to make sure that he and Rose were invited to the celebration."

Rey nodded. "It's okay." She offered him the faintest of smiles.

Ben nodded, then continued to stare at her. He scanned her from head to toe, admiring her as if he had never seen her before. He looked at her as if he was trying to engrave the image of her in his mind forever.

"Should we go?" Rey asked, wondering why he was just standing there looking at her. She could feel her cheeks reddening. It wasn't the first time a man had stared at her, but no one had ever looked at her the way he did. When he looked at her, it wasn't just with admiration but also with affection. He always looked at her as if she meant more to him than anything else in the world.

Ben nodded, then they went through the open gates and walked into the city that stood only meters from the castle. They quickly arrived in the bustling city and began making their way through the crowded streets.

Ben looked around, to see young couples walking through the streets together. They were laughing and smiling together. He wished that he and Rey could be like that, but he was afraid that they never would. He didn't deserve to be that happy.

He noticed that many of the couples were holding hands as they walked, he had never noticed that before. Of course, he had never been in love before either.

He looked over at Rey who was walking ahead of him now as he had lagged behind slightly. His eyes trailed down her arm to her hand which dangled loosely at her side. He wished that he could hold her hand, but he wasn't sure that she would want him to. Not after what he had done, the pain he'd caused her. He wasn't even sure if she would feel comfortable with him walking next to her. But he couldn't let his past stop him from letting her know that he loved her. That would only rob her of the happiness she deserved. He knew that she didn't love him, and he couldn't expect her to. But how would she ever be happy if she felt unloved by her husband?

He walked up to stand next to her, then he reached down and gently brushed his fingers against hers. He intended the gesture to be simply to remind her that he was there, that he cared about her. But as his fingers brushed gently across hers, it felt like more than that. His heart raced at the feeling of closeness to her he felt.

She inhaled sharply at his gentle touch. She felt that strange tingling feeling climbing up her arm again. Only this time it was a thousand times stronger. She couldn't describe the feeling, it was almost like magic.

She looked over at him and he quickly moved his hand away from hers. She looked up at him, he seemed to be distracted by the people walking down the street. Perhaps his hand had just accidentally brushed against hers as he walked.

No one had ever touched her like that before. It was soft and gentle, but also full of affection. It had made his hand seem so warm and inviting, that she almost wanted to place her hand in his. As they walked side by side, she was filled with a strange desire to take his hand. To intertwine her fingers with his. She folded her hands in front of her to keep herself from doing so. But she found herself imagining what it might feel like if he held her hand in his as they walked... how warm her hand would feel. How comforted and protected she would feel.

She didn't need anyone to protect her. But for a change, it would be nice to have someone who cared about her enough to protect her. She'd spent most of her life alone. She didn't need anyone to take care of her ...but at the same time, that was what she needed more than anything.

꧁❀꧂

Finally, they arrived at the bakery.

"How are you Rey?" the baker asked as Rey walked into the bakery. She and the baker had met several times over the past few years, as Rey went to pick up baked goods for the castle.

"Good, how are you, George?" She smiled sweetly.

"I am well," he replied. Then he noticed Ben standing behind her. "Greetings your majesty."

Ben nodded.

"To what do I owe this pleasure? I am not accustomed to royalty coming to my bakery."

"I just wanted to take a walk in the city, and get out of the castle for a little while," Ben said. It was true... he was essentially a prisoner and he longed to be free for just a few hours. But the truth was he just wanted to spend time with Rey. It didn't matter what they did, or where they went as long as they could be together. "And I wanted to spend some time with my wife," he added quietly.

Rey looked at him a little shyly and he couldn't seem to stop himself from blushing.

The baker looked at Ben, then at Rey. "Oh, where are my manners?" He bowed at the waist in her direction. "Please forgive me, your majesty."

"It's alright George, you don't have to be so formal with me," she replied.

"No, my lady," he answered. "One day you shall be queen, you should get used to it now."

"I suppose so, but none of this has been easy for me to get used to. It isn't easy to change everything so quickly," she said.

"I understand, Rey," Ben replied. "But, even if what you are has changed, who you are hasn't. And because of that Alderaan will have a great queen one day."

"Thank you, your majesty," she replied a little shyly. She hadn't expected him to compliment her in such a way. And even though they were married, she still saw him as a prince and herself as a servant.

Ben looked into her eyes. "Rey..." he began in a low voice.

"I meant Ben," she corrected before he could finish.

He offered her a small smile and she blushed even more.

"It was a beautiful wedding," said George, interrupting their moment.

"Thank you," Ben answered. "And the wedding cake you brought was delicious."

"Thank you, your majesty," George replied.

"It was the first time I've ever had chocolate cake," said Rey.

"What?" Ben asked surprised.

She nodded. Then she handed a list of baked goods to George. "We came to give you this order for the celebration tomorrow evening," she said.

The baker scanned the list. "I will have it delivered tomorrow afternoon, your majesties."

"Thank you, George," Rey answered. "Have a nice day."

"And you, your highness," he replied.

Rey nodded with a smile, then turned to leave.

Ben watched until she had left the bakery, then he came over to the counter. He decided to buy a treat for Rey. He'd brought some gold to buy something for her, but he thought that she seemed to like food better than jewels. Especially the kind of treats that she hadn't got to enjoy as a child.

꧁❀꧂

Moments later, he left the bakery and found Rey looking at some carts of food and other goods across the street. He came over to her.

"Where were you?" she asked.

"I got something for you," he answered.

She turned to look at him and he offered her a chocolate muffin.

She smiled at him, surprised by the kind gesture. "Thank you, Ben," she said, happily.

He smiled warmly in return. "I know that you didn't get to enjoy things like this as a child, so I wanted you to enjoy it now," he said.

She smiled, then they enjoyed their muffins as they walked down the street together. They looked in the shops and booths that lined the streets.

"Rey..."

"Yes, Ben?" she asked.

He took a deep breath, nervous. "Are we... are we friends?" He couldn't expect her to love him after what he had done to her father...to her. But he hoped that they could at least have companionship with one another. He wanted to make sure that she wasn't bothered by his company. He was afraid that being around him would bring up too many bad memories for her.

She stopped walking and looked at him. She thought for a long moment, she had forgiven him and she was trying to forget the past. Deep down, she knew that her father would want her to be a friend to Ben. She knew that he needed friendship and love more than anything else. And if she was completely honest; those were the things that she needed most too. She wasn't in love with him, but maybe she could be his friend, his companion. Maybe they both needed each other's friendship.

She had discovered that there was so much more to him than she had expected. She had never imagined him to be a kind person. But he had never shown her anything but kindness. There was something about him that was different from any of her other friends. She could say that she didn't want to be his friend, but it would be a lie. Now that she had removed the hate she felt for him, it was quickly being replaced by compassion. But nothing else was strong enough to block out the hatred.

Now that she wasn't angry with him anymore, she actually enjoyed his company.

"Of course, Ben," she said gently.

He looked surprised, but a small smile touched his lips. It was a genuine, warm smile and it caused her heart to flutter.

Rey tried to think about something else to distract herself from how wonderful he looked when he smiled. A small smirk appeared on her face. "I've always considered people who buy treats for me to be my friends," she teased him.

He laughed, and her heart fluttered even more. She had never heard him laugh before. Something about the sound of it made her feel happy on the inside. Perhaps it was because he had always been so solemn... the kind of solemness that wasn't natural to someone's personality. The kind of solemness that was caused by deep pain. It prevented him from being happy, from smiling or laughing... little things that she had taken for granted until she lost her father and they didn't seem to come as easily.

But she had never realized how valuable a simple laugh could be until she heard him laugh for the first time. She wanted to make him laugh more often. Suddenly she had a strange longing to make him happy. She wanted him to keep laughing and smiling.

She tried to think of something to say to keep the mood happy between them, but something was weighing on her. She had forgiven Ben, but she hadn't apologized for everything that she had said to him. She couldn't help but feel guilty for her words.

Ben noticed that she had fallen silent and that she seemed to have something on her mind. Something seemed to be troubling her. He didn't want to make her feel uncomfortable by touching her, but it was his instinct to comfort her. He reached over and gently touched her shoulder to get her attention.

She turned and looked at him again and quickly removed his hand from her shoulder.

"Is something troubling you?" he asked her, in a gentle voice.

"Yes," she answered softly.

He felt guilty, he knew that it was probably hard for her to be around him after what he had done. He was pulled from his thoughts as he felt her take his hand. He couldn't stop the deep sigh that escaped him at her touch. Holding her hand felt even more wonderful than he had imagined.

"I never got to tell you that I'm sorry," she said squeezing his hand gently.

He took a deep breath as he felt her hand gripping his. "For what?" he whispered.

"For the things I said to you... I shouldn't have said any of those things, none of them are true."

"They are," he answered softly.

"No, Ben I was wrong. You're not a monster, you're one of the most wonderful people I've ever met. And I don't hate you...not anymore."

Ben wasn't sure how to respond, he couldn't help but feel that he deserved every word she'd spoken and more.

She stopped and turned to face him. She timidly moved a stray strand of his hair that had fallen into his eyes. "Can you forgive me?"

The tender gesture took him by such surprise that he could barely breathe, let alone speak. "I already have," he whispered at last.

She smiled, knowing that he had. She knew that he had forgiven her moments after the cruel words had left her lips, but she still needed to apologize. "Thank you," she said in a soft voice, then she released his hand and continued to walk down the street.

Ben felt his heart sink slightly as she pulled her hand from his, and his hopes of walking hand in hand with her through the city were crushed. Perhaps he could have asked her to hold his hand...or he could have simply slipped his hand into hers. But he didn't think that she wasn't ready for that. At least she didn't mind him walking at her side.

He couldn't help but think about the one thing that she had said but not taken back. That she didn't love him and that she never would, it still haunted him. If she didn't love him she certainly wouldn't want to hold his hand as they walked.

He felt like his heart had been imprisoned. He loved her so much and he wanted to give her his affection, but he couldn't because he was sure that she didn't want it. He had made a promise not to kiss her unless she wanted him to. He wished there was some other way he could show her that he loved her, words didn't seem to truly express how he felt. Perhaps he could show her by how he treated her.

(Edit by LadyArwenEvenStar)