Ʀey's dreams.... nightmares more like were filled with the most terrible images she'd seen since she had watched her father die as a young girl. Images of Ben being tortured by Snoke, the cracking sound of his whip and the crimson liquid flowing across Ben's pale skin. Only her mind had made it much worse than it actually had been. In her sleep her mind played tricks on her, showing her images of blood everywhere.

"Ben!" she screamed as she awoke, breathing heavily. She tried to sit up but there was something heavy laying on top of her.

Ben opened his eyes, sitting up to look down at her. "Rey?" he whispered concerned.

"Ben," she answered in a soft voice, hugging him. She cries on his shoulder, trying to pull herself back together.

"What's wrong?" he breathed.

"Nothing..."

Ben smiled affectionately at her. "You can't lie to me, Rey. I heard you crying, I felt you trembling." He gently wiped a tear from her cheek.

"It was a nightmare," she whispered.

Ben felt his heart sink. "Was it about...."

"No," Rey interrupted, trying to spare him the pain of speaking the words aloud. "It was about you.... I saw Snoke torturing you." Another crystal droplet slid down her cheek. He gently brushed it away with his thumb.

"Rey, I'm safe now... safe in your arms," he whispered, echoing the words that she had spoken to him.

She sighed, pulling him closer to her. She wrapped her arms around him protectively. She wanted to hold him so tightly, but she was gentle as she touched his back knowing that he was still in pain.

Ben nuzzled against her neck and she giggled softly. "None of this is your fault Rey... it's something I've had to bear for over half of my life. The wounds go deeper than flesh and those are the kind of wounds that can never fully be healed, like a scar on my heart. It will fade, but never heal. But now I don't want my scars to heal, they make us who we are."

Rey nodded. "When I lived on the streets I would turn old broken things into new things. Maybe we're broken so that we can become what we were truly created to be."

He nodded. "And I've thought of it often... if none of this had happened, would I have ever met you? Would we be married? I would relive it all if it meant that we could be together."

"So would I," she whispered. "I'm sorry I woke you. Go back to sleep, beloved." It was almost morning, but she knew that he was exhausted. Besides there was nothing else they could do and she wanted to hold him as long as she could before Snoke took him away. She knew that he would eventually, and that was why she was afraid... what if he hurt him again? She couldn't bear the thought.

She couldn't go back to sleep, not with that thought lingering in her mind. She found herself wondering how she had ever hated him, she loved him so much she couldn't even comprehend the thought of hating him. But she knew that it wasn't long ago that she would have felt the same way about loving him. On their wedding day, she had thought that she would never know the love that the king and queen shared, but now she did and it was even more wonderful than she had imagined.

She closed her eyes and slowly drifted back to sleep. But this time, her dreams were filled with images of what their future might one day be, of finally being free both of this cell and of the nobles watching them judgmentally... of having a family together.

She saw images of Ben playing in the meadow with their children. She saw a little girl who looked a lot like Ben run towards her with a bouquet of wildflowers. She knelt down and pulled the girl into her arms, just as Ben came up next to her with a small boy in his arms. He hugged her, placing his hand on her swollen stomach.

꧁❀꧂

Rey jolted awake as a loud pounding sound banged on the door.

"Food for the prisoners," a gentle voice called through the small hole at the top of the door.

Ben sat up, looking around groggily.

Rey got up and went over to the door just as it swung open. One of Snoke's knights was standing there with a small tray of food. Without a helmet on, she could see how young he was, no older than fifteen. It broke her heart, she didn't doubt that he was experiencing similar circumstances to what Ben had experienced. He passed the tray to Rey without a word, then moved to close the door.

"Wait," Rey said, and he stopped. "Can we please have some clean water, and some bandages, and healing ointments?"

The knight looked into the room, past Rey at Ben sitting on the bed. He could see the blood stained cloth around his torso. He hung his head in shame. "I have orders from Snoke not to give you any aid beyond food and water."

"Please..." she pleaded in a whisper. "He's in no condition to do Snoke's bidding."

The boy looked at her, and she noticed the conflict in his eyes. "Ben is my leader. Snoke took me to his order when I was only four. As a young boy I made a lot of mistakes, and he always took the fall for me... at great expense. He practically raised me, to me he will always be my brother."

"Ben?" she whispered, feeling pride and affection welling up in her chest.

The boy nodded, and spoke in a low voice. "It's time I did something in return, I'll do everything I can. Just don't tell anyone that I helped you."

She nodded gratefully, then he turned to leave, closing the door.

Rey went over to Ben, sitting next to him on the bed. She sat the tray between them.

Ben looked at the meager portions, two slices of bread not nearly enough food for two. "You can have it... I'm not hungry," he lied not wanting her to go hungry.

"Ben, you need your strength. You've lost a lot of blood, you need to rebuild your energy," she answered.

"Rey...it's my job to take care of you."

"And it's my job to take care of you, it's our job to take care of each other. Which is why we're going to split the food evenly," she replied.

"But..." he began.

"No buts, if you don't eat then neither will I," she cut him off stubbornly.

"Fine," he gave in. "I'll say the blessing."

She bowed her head, then reached and held his hand as he blessed the food.