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crmediagal · 5 years ago

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Update!!!

To those who may be interested: I’ve resumed posting my WIP fic, Seeds of Redemption, at my personal website: www.crmediagal.com. I had deleted the story on fanfiction.net and Archive of Our Own last year due to unnecessary negativity, so I’m happy to share that the story is BACK in full force (pun intended), being revised, and updates have resumed!

* * * If you would like to receive updates and access to the story, please fill out the form on the Contact page and you’ll be granted access! * * *

Story: Seeds of Redemption

Synopsis: The First Order may have fallen, but the Proclamation has risen in its stead. As the galaxy is threatened by the coming of a Second Darkness, Ben Solo must painstakingly navigate both sides, the Dark Side and the Light. Only he is no longer alone in this fight, with far more at stake to lose than he ever would have dreamed. Rated M, AU, Post-TFA.

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Chapter 11

Chapter 12

Chapter 13

Chapter 14

Chapter 15

Chapter 16 *NEW!*

Excerpt from Chapter 16:

Rey had had enough. She leapt from her rock to the ground in a flash. From below, she glared up into Ben’s hardened countenance, bright eyes burning with unresolved conflict. “Get over your hatred, Ben, and maybe you’ll learn something valuable from him before it’s too late; something that we both can use against Snoke when the time comes! Maybe you’ll be better because of his teachings, unlike in the past! You rejected everything he ever taught you and look where you wound up!” She stalked closer, craning her neck to stare into Ben’s eyes, perceiving how they curtained and protected him. “Maybe instead of fighting your uncle all the time, you’ll work on coming back to yourself and to those who care about you! That’s all your family has ever wanted for you—”

“Don’t speak of my family!” he barked, his voice unsteady. “You know nothing!”

“Well, the way I see it, if you fail this time, you’ll have no one but yourself to blame!”

“If I fail,” Ben rebuffed, with equal fervour, “it will be in not successfully helping you to defeat Snoke. It has nothing to do with my cursed family! That’s my only value for sticking around this wretched island!”

Rey felt the blood drain from her face. “I… I don’t believe that! That’s not it!”

Ben’s eyes were disturbingly frigid as he stared down his broad nose at her. “Yes, you do.”

“Quit speaking for me while you’re at it!” She threw up her hands. “I don’t believe you! I know there’s good in you, Ben! I’ve felt it; your uncle’s felt it; your mother’s felt it, even after what you did to your father—”

“I said, don’t speak of them!” Ben flailed backwards, as if Rey had physically struck him, but Rey was too wound up to yield.

“Why? You think not admitting to your past transgressions will somehow help you heal? By not facing what you did?”

Ben avoided Rey’s all-too-shrewd look over, and his voice was quieter than she had ever heard when he said, “I… I can’t go back.”

“You’re a deflector and a liar! To yourself most of all!” Rey dug a pointed finger into one of Ben’s bent knees. “Don’t treat your pull back to the Light as some sort of bloody failure! You never wore the Darkness as Snoke desired! You’d never have made him proud! You’re no Darth Vader!”

“Stop it, Rey,” Ben murmured, refusing to look at her. His expression was as cold as stone.

“You know why? Because he knows as well as I do that that’s not who you really are! You were never bred for Darkness. You’d like to think it—Snoke would have you believe that’s your purpose—but you repel it and that bloody paralyses you!”

“Enough,” Ben warned her, his tone still low, yet riled; but Rey wouldn’t yield.

“Snoke, Master Luke, me—we all have a better handle on you than you do! So stop fighting your uncle, Ben; stop fighting me! Accept who you are. And admit that you want the Light as badly as I want it for you!”

At last, Ben found reason to pause in having the last word. His head tilted towards Rey, no longer in indignation but in stumped curiosity. “You do?”

Abashed by her choice of words, Rey silenced her tongue. She was too hyped and too humiliated to answer back and, in turn, resorted to what had often worked before when faced with revelations she would much rather avoid: she ran. It didn’t take long for her fast-paced gait to morph into a maddening sprint across the top of the hill. She bounded down the other side, disappearing behind thick brush, trees, and walls of lined stone.

Ben never took his sights off of Rey’s receding silhouette until she vanished from view. He was stunned to the quick. He had received the clarity he had yearned for, and yet, the verdict was somewhat inconvenient: Rey wasn’t, in fact, offering him a helping hand out of some misplaced moral obligation; or, worse, pity, as he had feared might be the case ever since she had discovered him sobbing during the night two weeks ago. That was a relief, and yet…

She does care. Ben’s mouth sunk, wishing but unable to disguise the painful awareness that was draining his energy fast. And she’s rightfully horrified.

Available to read in its entirety at www.crmediagal.com

#reylo #reyben #reylo fanfic #kylo ren #ben solo #rey #star wars #crmediagal writes #seeds of redemption #feel free to PM me if you would like access to read this story #and/or others #happy star wars week #and if you need some ben solo redemption/reylo comfort #i hope my headcanon for them can nurse some of the wounds we're all feeling from the spoilers :/

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reylofanfictionanthology · 5 years ago

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Authors have now been revealed for For one is love and both are one in love!

Over 170 fics were posted to our Exchange this month and we are so excited to finally share the authors with you! Thank you so much to all of the writers who wrote for this event!

For one is love and both are one in love collection on AO3 | Gift Fic Master Post Part One | Treats Master Post

Gift Fic Master Post Part Two:

In Other Words, Hold My Hand by Cwenphy for MBlair

Stargazing and waltzing on the lake.

Meet Me in the Meadow by Miranda13 for MeadowHayle

Ben was not the typical Alpha. Rey was not the typical Omega. Utterly indifferent to other people, only in their fantasies or dreams would they experience desire. After many years of loneliness, they meet in a support group for struggling demi-humans, and everything changes. Ben and Rey embark together on a healing journey of self-discovery and self-acceptance. Maybe, they don’t need to be alone, anymore. Maybe, they were never alone, to begin with.

The Rise of Ren by Ayrith for Merixcil

For the last seat in the Knights of Ren, there are two candidates. The first, a powerful scion of a great Force legacy, formally trained by the last Jedi. The second, a force sensitive urchin with no past, nurtured by the cut-throat criminal underworld. Kylo or Kira. There can only be one.

Legion by Tiara_of_Sapphires for midwinterspring

The war was over. Across the galaxy, hundreds called out in one voice: “I need a teacher.” A fic for midwinterspring for the RFFA Valentine’s Day 2020 Exchange Prompt: Rey and Ben train new Force users and fix things

All That Glitters by PalenDrome for MintyCel

The Kingdom of Exegol holds the key to Kylo's future. All he needs to do is to get past the omega guarding it.

Thaw My Frozen Heart by DarkSideOfMe for Miranda13

“A bounty hunter decides that the former Supreme Leader would make an excellent prize and manages to get the jump on Ben while he is on a mission for the Resistance, encasing him in carbonite. Rey is quick to mount a solo rescue mission and helps Ben recover from the hibernation sickness when she eventually gets him back." - Reylo-Prompts

Good Boy by rissanox for MissCoppelia

Ben adopts a dog who needs some training. Thankfully, he gets help (and a little bit more) from Rey, a dog trainer.

the world's not perfect but by aNerdObsessed for misszeldasayre

What would happen in a galaxy where the New Republic never got off the ground and the First Order choked before it started? Maybe a scavenger girl would become a foundling under the care of a Mandalorian bounty hunter. Maybe a troubled child would shake off a burdensome legacy to follow his father's less-than-lawful profession. Maybe a cocky flyboy would find himself using his charm to win gigs delivering spice for the syndicates. Maybe a mechanically-minded girl would start taking off-the-books jobs for the occasional criminal. Maybe a boy with too many questions would leave his parents to learn about this thing called the Force. Turns out the galaxy is a lawless place with every sentient for themselves.

like roses and clover by notkellymarie for mrstater

" There is no comfortable position. No matter how he laid down on his cot, his bones feel brittle, his skin itching all over with the sensation of a thousand ants crawling all over his body. His stomach swirls like a maelstrom, and he blames it on the caf he had in order to stay awake through one of his lessons. Pathetic. You can’t even sleep right. He promises to skip the caf the next day, and his consciousness floats on the surface even as he wishes to be pulled under." -- Ben Solo has never had a single good night's sleep in his life. Rey of Jakku never wanted one. The Battle of Exegol rang and wants to know if this is still the case.

It never gets easier, you just get better. by PoliticalPadmé for MyJediLife

Ben is an addict working through his pain. Rey is a counselor assigned to his care. They weren't supposed to fall in love.

Dreamscape by cuddlesome for Nebulous Bounds (RainonyourBack)

Kylo mostly worsens and occasionally betters Rey's visions while she sleeps.

Why we can't be by MedowHayle for newseptembers

When old Maz forsaw a dyad, Rey never thought it would be a soulmate bond between her and the First Order coven member Kylo Ren. Desperately trying to undo her connection to the enemy, she seeks out ancient texts and meets Ben, a bookshop owner and crafter, who seems to catch her attention every time they meet.

Beside the Lake by elegygoldsmith for Ngoc12thefangirl

“Ben…” It’s half groan, half laugh, all ache — and he wants to reach out to her but he doesn’t trust himself to stop at only holding her hand. Rey’s gaze softens, and that grief she’s been feeling comes roiling out of her like a thunderstorm. It’s too much for him to take. “Tell me.” “I want kids.” She says the words so softly that he might not have known what she was saying if he hadn’t seen her lips moving and heard the syllables echoing in his mind. “Oh.” It’s stupid, but he doesn’t know what else to say. “I mean…” She fumbles again, but this time she doesn’t even bother finishing in words. I want kids now. A short, smutty one-shot in which Ben and Rey grapple with the next step in their life together.

You Need A Teacher by andabatae for ninecrimes

After the events of TROS, Rey returns to Ahch-To... and a healed Ben Solo. There, she plans to consummate their relationship. Too bad she has no idea what she's doing.... Luckily, Ben is happy to teach her everything he knows. ----- “Okay.” Rey took a deep breath, preparing herself for the strange, mortifying experience to come. “So what do I do?” “Well,” he said, “first you let me kiss you some more. Then, when you’re ready, you take your clothes off. Then you sit on my face.” “Just like that?” “Just like that.”

Grey Skies Ahead by Lightningpelt for NiriKeehan

She took his hand—not in the name of the Light, or the Dark. They were a dyad, the embodiment of balance—an Alliance of Grey.

Ever as before and ever just as sure as the sun will rise by Cairdiuil_Paiste for OccasionallyCreative

The war is over. On a peaceful estate in Naboo's Lake Country, Rey and Ben prepare for their wedding and think of how they got here. Using lyrics of title song of 'Beauty and the Beast'.

swish of the bumblebee by qotsisajakk for OptimisticBeth

She should get the sand - and gravel, and rocks - and run all the way home and make things right for him. Although, the fish had gotten her into this mess in the first place, however inadvertently, so maybe she should move him to Finn’s room where she wouldn’t have to look at his little fins swishing away ever again, reminding her of- Rey's betta fish needs an upgrade in living conditions. When she posts a question asking for help, she gets a little more than she bargained for.

Dissolver of Sugar by Apricot for optimus_pam

“Rey...what could anyone do, to make up for what Kylo Ren did?” Or: Redemption isn't supposed to be easy. A TROS fix-it fic, of sorts.

Delirium by TearoomSaloon for PalenDrome (nerdherderette)

That was the trouble with these things, wasn't it? Every once in a while the drugs backfired and they both got a dose of what was really, probably, very potent pheromones. Excerpt: He heard the edge of anger in her voice, the snarl she tried so desperately to conceal. The powder was getting to her. "You're jealous, aren't you?" "No!" "You are." Against his better judgement, he stalked to her, backing her to the wall. "You can't stand the fact that you're not my first partner." "I'm not your partner!" He leaned in, lips almost to her ear. "You want to be though, don't you?" She barreled into him with a scream, head connecting with his chest as she tackled him to the floor. Faster than he could react, she had his arms pinned over his head, knees firmly pressing into his breastbone. "I don't want to be anything to you. Not your friend, not your ally, and especially not your lover."

Renewed by DrPearlGatsby for patig_00

The world between worlds is neither hot nor cold. So when Ben feels his arms break into gooseflesh, when his shoulder aches with not a remembrance but an actual twinge of pain, when he tries to rouse himself from meditation and realizes that he’s fighting the need to fall back asleep, he opens his eyes—in a room on the Millennium Falcon. [[Something in the Force allows Ben Solo to be resurrected on the Millenium Falcon during a little Resistance mission. Expected hilarity ensues. Angst WITH A HAPPY ENDING.]]

a million miles (cross the ocean) by bittersnake for persimonne

in which the Force tries to pay back some of the debt it owes the Skywalkers.

All that's best of dark and bright by ArdeaJestin for persopilliankore

Rey had big plans for Valentine's Day: laundry, errands, and an evening of fantasizing over her impossibly sexy building manager, Ben Solo. That was before she found an anonymous love poem in her mailbox.

Wherever There is You, I Will be There Too by optimus_pam for politicalmamaduck

According to Greek mythology, Tartarus is the deep abyss used as a dungeon of torment and suffering for the wicked. Rey journeys there in search of a lost soul.

Laid To Rest by mrstater for PoliticalPadmé (magnetgirl)

Ben wants to show Rey the galaxy, to see it with her. First, they have business on Naboo.

What Was Lost Is Now Found by Ceallaigh for punkeraa

"Quick! Bring the best robe and put it on him. Put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet. Bring the fattened calf and kill it. Let's have a feast and celebrate. For this son of mine was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found." The Parable of the Prodigal Son, New International Version

Be With Me by tmwillson3 for qotsisajakk

TROS Fix-it. When Rey asks the Jedi of the past to be with her, the bond she shares with Kylo Ren also opens. He is forced to come to terms with his growing feelings for her, and together, they take down the greatest evil, those words continue to bring them together.

Always in Motion by maq_moon for QueenOfCarrotFlowers

Dr. Rey Jackson, archaeologist, is mistaken for a celebrity and given an upgrade to Business Class on her incredibly long flight. Unfortunately, she's been seated next to the douchebag who's been pestering her for the last two hours. More unfortunately, she finds a letter in her carry-on bag telling her that their plane is about to go down. The worst part? The letter was written by Luke Skywalker, a man who has been dead for years.

we might be the outsiders by UndergroundValentine for radioactivesaltghoul

As though, in a blink, the cavern becomes light, and he sees the pale cream and gold shimmer of the creature, with a dark brown pattern across the head and hood.

Between the Sun and the Moon by radioactivesaltghoul for redbelles

The Force demands that Rey and Ben pay a price for the power they gained in their preparation to take down Palpatine, but they don’t learn what they paid until it disturbs the peaceful life they’re trying to build together after the war is over.

Starless Sky, Black by dustoftheancients for RedPaladin465

“Why did you change your mind?” It takes a long time for her to answer. “I didn’t want to be alone.”

The Girl From The Tower by itsnotillegal for ReyloBrit

Prompt: "Quiet and obedient Rey lives a godly life with her grandfather, until the family hire a new gardener Ben, a mysterious and deeply attractive man. Sparks fly between the two."

The Falcon and the Wolf by ClockworkCrow for reylotrash711

On the fifth anniversary of the destruction of Starkiller Base the Senate is throwing a masked ball and invited members of the old Resistance. Still trying to rehabilitate his image, Senator Ben Solo has no choice but to attend. Written to fulfill this prompt: Ben and Rey dance at a masked ball, unaware of who they are dancing with. Until the masks are taken off at midnight. Romance and Sexual Tension ensue, will they be able to refrain their urges? Hell no. But I also mixed in a healthy dose of this prompt as well: Prompt 2 - What if Ben was unable to bring Rey back and had to call on the help of the Skywalkers that came before him? Is he ready to pay the price of losing his force sensitivity for the women he loves?

and we'll live a long life by LRRH17 for ReyloTrashCompactor (NextToSomething)

When Rey heals him on Kef Bir, Ben has a vision. He and Rey must work together to prevent it from coming true.

Found Belonging by apisa_b for rissanox

Rey joins her friends and former comrades in arms on Chandrila for the festivities around the anniversary of the battle of Exegol. To everyone’s surprise she is accompanied by two mysterious Mandalorians.

Loathe Thy Neighbor by ReyloTrashCompactor for SaintHeretical

Rey's neighbor is the worst. He listens to terrible music, he's impolitely large, and he smells incredible. She hates almost everything about him. Especially the smelling good bit.

Can You Feel The Love Tonight? By ElleRen31 for shiiera

Ben Solo travels to Takodana National Park in South Africa on a research mission where he meets fellow researcher, Rey. While they might get along as well as lions and hyenas at first, perhaps they have more in common with each other than they think.

He's Just Not That Into You(r) Scent by SaintHeretical for shipperofdarkness

Rey is a young and single Omega who hasn't had a lot of luck so far finding a nice Beta guy who isn't a total flake. They say they've had a great time with her, but seem to have a difficult time with calling her back. Ben is an Alpha bartender who is tired of hearing about her dating difficulties, and is ready to drop some truth bombs. An ABO He's Just Not That Into You AU

The Purest Love by MyJediLife for six4au

When a deeply scarred and traumatized Ben Solo is placed in a program to try and pair him with a canine helper, he finds that he gets more than he ever imagined with the therapist assigned to him.

The Monster in Skywalker Manner by datswatutink for solikerez

Rey marches up the walk, takes hold of the door knocker, and bangs it sharply three times. Nothing. She rattles the door handle. Nothing. Absurdly, she checks the address (is this the right creepy-and-probably-abandoned-Skywalker-Manner on Alderaan street?). It is. -Or- Rey takes a shady job to clean the old Skywalker Manner and discovers that there's something much scarier than dust and spiderwebs living there. But maybe that's not the whole story, because what kind of monster loves roses and books?

Stargazing by FangirlintheForest for SpaceWaffleHouseTM

“I wish they would go blind, stop whispering: he’s lying, he’ll leave. I hate that they know what I don’t want to hear. Their poison passes my lips, harmless. Call me Faith, not Medusa, no one need become stone.”

through the darkness to the dawn by redbelles for starfleetjedi

She couldn’t breathe. Spots danced in her vision, black as the nothingness yawning behind her breastbone. Ben was gone. No. The plea tore out of her, wild and broken, racing through the vastness of the Force, past stars and planets and distant moons to the far edges of the universe. There was only silence. She tried again. Ben. Ben, please. Answer me. Or: Rey, after.

Tabula Rasa by Chthonia for suchlostcreatures (godfmischief)

Ben survives the battle on Exegol. That was the easy part.

Intro to Love by abbytheatre08 for TheStolenQuill

Rey and Ben are music students, put together to work on a final that, surprise isn't in a music class. They hadn't really known each other much before that but will that change as they keep working together?

I met you once — ( In a dream ) by persopilliankore for thewayofthetrashcompactor (BriarLily)

He sucks in a deep breath and exhales, a pout forming on his plump lips and it's so distracting the way they- "Just Ben," He closes his eyes. "see me no more than that, 𝙥𝙡𝙚𝙖𝙨𝙚." Or Where Ben and Rey are soulmates and Ben is more than meets the eye

Supernova by LueurdeLaube for Tiara_of_Sapphires

“She loved him so much she was going to smother him with it until there wasn’t a molecule of doubt left in his heart.” After the war Rey and Ben settle into an uneasy life of peace, followed by judgment and resentment. Ben Solo may have decided to remain behind to atone for his sins, but the people won’t forget Kylo Ren so soon.

Happy Accident by crossingwinter for tmf

A baby. Her baby having a baby. She’d given up dreams of grandchildren when Ben was fourteen, and not even his having a steady girlfriend had let her change her mind about it. “So yeah, we need to talk,” Rey mumbles at last. Ben doesn’t say a word, and Leia can imagine him clearly, sitting there, staring off into space, dazed—like when she’d told Han that she was pregnant. One fun night at the Yub Nub Club and a little bit of carelessness with the condom... Not that she’d ever tell Ben that he’d been an accident. He’d guessed it for years, but she’d go to her grave asserting he hadn’t been. “You want to keep it,” Ben says at last—a statement, not a question. — Or: Leia watches her son and his girlfriend prepare to become parents.

Crafting A Connection by LostInQueue for tmwillson3

Rey and Ben have been friends forever, so much so that Ben never dreamed that it something as small as getting that manager's position he'd been gunning for would get in the way of it. Now that it has, Rey's been distant. So... so distant and he has no idea how to get her back. Rey has only been trying to be a good friend and not use him for his status, which means instead of accepting rides from him like she had, she hasn't. She isn't trying to push him away but things are different, and he's difficult now. What on earth can she do about it? Mother nature has something to say about these two, that's for sure. The snow storm of the year is coming, stranding the two together the Friday before Valentine's Day weekend to give them the time to work things out.

this tangled light by hxllosweetie33 for TolkienGirl

The war is over, but at what cost?

Welcome to the Fire by KitsuShel for trasharama

Rey is competing on the reality television show, First Order Inferno, for a chance to become Head Chef at Benjamin Solo's latest restaurant. What happens when the competition gets a little too hot in the kitchen?

as certain dark things are to be loved by politicalmamaduck for tropixo (ursaminors)

Lady Rey, Master of the Knights of Ren, makes a choice. She chooses Ben Solo.

Bend or Break by Biekewieke for tweis24

It's been six months since the Battle of Crait. Both sides of the war have been continuing down their path, both sides struggling with loss. For some, it's just business. But for others, it's personal. For Rey of Jakku and Kylo Ren... it most certainly is personal. Once again, the Supreme Leader of the First Order and the Jedi, Hope of the Resistance confront each other and clash. How will they react and what will transpire when Bonds are blocked and unexpected events are thrown their way? Will either of them bend? Or will they break?

Heaven, let me through by Crimson_Alchemistress for Twisted_Mirror

No matter how hard they try, they can't get each other out of their heads.

Osmosis by suchlostcreatures for viajeramyra

“I don’t need Ben Solo,” Rey states, rising from the throne. Her steps are slow and deliberate as she stalks towards him. “I need Kylo Ren.” Distantly, she notes the irony. And then she offers him her hand. ------ In which Ben doesn't reach Rey in time. (And the one time he does.)

Tell the World I'm Alive by Crysania for VirtualMadness

Rey returns to Exegol to retrieve all she has left of Ben Solo: his shirt. But what she finds there isn't at all what she expected to find. (Title comes from the song Who Will Save You Now by Les Friction. The lyrics are just so Reylo and it's a beautiful song.)

Sunset by reylotrash711 for Vivien

Rey has news. Ben has a question.

Good Morning, Mrs. Solo by Amy326 for walkingsaladshooter

Just a sweet one-shot about a really good morning for Ben and Rey. Modern AU.

After the End by ReyloBrit for witchsoup

Ambassador Organo-Solo is asked to attend a celebration to mark the anniversary of the end of the war, and is reunited with the woman whose life he saved. The woman he once loved.

getting the best of your opponent is easier if you smooch them first by persimonne for wombathos

A few months after the Battle of Crait, Supreme Leader Kylo Ren orders a ceasefire and asks to meet a delegation from the Resistance to negotiate the end of the war and the future of the Galaxy far, far away. But our heroes Finn and Rose notice straight away that their friend Rey is behaving strangely…

Borne Aloft by BensLostTookaCat (CJWritesAgain) for Xochiquetzl

A mysterious voice has called Rey to Tatooine after the death of Ben Solo and the defeat of the First/Final Order. Once she's there, a ghostly guide offers to take Rey through the Underworld to save Ben and return him to the world of the living.

You can view the other two masterposts for this exchange in this tag.

#reylo #reylo fanfiction anthology #rffa writers #for one is both and both are one in love #master post #mod post #moodboard

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ao3feed--reylo · 5 years ago

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From the Ruins

read it on the AO3 at https://ift.tt/3adrutW

by Aurora521

When Supreme Leader Snoke ordered Kylo Ren to buy a slave girl, he was confident it would pull his young apprentice deeper into the Dark. The girl Ren selects is far from ordinary, and though something inside Rey has been broken by a lifetime of slavery, something else is awakening. If the Force is with them, two Jedis may one day emerge from the ruins of Kylo Ren and the slave girl.

I realize the master/slave relationship is tricky to handle, and some people just don't like it. This is fiction. As the author, the challenge of this work is to create a healthy dynamic between two people with fragile mental states, and while I want to write this as realistically as possible, I realize elements of the story may not transfer to real life. I do NOT mean this to glorify human trafficking, slavery, etc. In fact, I hope you come away disgusted by those things and what it can do to victims mentally and physically. Rape, non-con, torture, etc. are mentioned and implied, but will NOT occur between Rey and Kylo. This story is intended to be about how they help each other heal, but it will explore some dark themes in Rey's past. If this isn't your type of fic, I respect that completely and ask you to choose not to read.

Words: 1749, Chapters: 1/?, Language: English

Fandoms: Star Wars Sequel Trilogy, Star Wars - All Media Types

Rating: Mature

Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Rape/Non-Con

Categories: F/M

Characters: Rey (Star Wars), Ben Solo | Kylo Ren, Kylo Ren

Relationships: Kylo Ren/Rey, Rey/Ben Solo | Kylo Ren, Rey & Ben Solo | Kylo Ren, Kylo Ren & Rey

Additional Tags: Dark, Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Master/Slave, Slave Trade, Dark Reylo, Protective Ben Solo, Ben Solo is a Mess, Kylo Ren Redemption, Kylo Ren is a Mess, Rey Needs A Hug, slave rey, Protective Kylo Ren, Psychological Trauma, Childhood Trauma, Implied/Referenced Rape/Non-con, Graphic Description, Jakku

read it on the AO3 at https://ift.tt/3adrutW

#IFTTT #ao3feed #fanfic #Star Wars #Reylo #Kylo Ren #Rey

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ceciliasheplin · 4 years ago

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Master post for all my fics so far

I’ve put here most of the tags but not all, so please read them. My recurring themes are: Reylo is madly in love, Happy ending, Redemption/Healing of some sort. Let me know what you guys think!

Morpho Menelaus

Rated M, 1189 words, One-shot

📎https://archiveofourown.org/works/24635509

🏷 Modern AU, Grief/Mourning, Pinned Insects, Swearing, Butterflies, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Fluff and Angst

Rey works at an insectarium and notices a recurring visitor at the butterfly exhibit.

This fic is the ao3 version of a twitter fic that I wrote for this prompt by @reylo_prompts:

"Ben and Rey work at a zoo Rey always finds Ben in the butterfly exhibit, he likes to go there when he’s sad."

Ever since the Roll-out came out, I’ve been in love with the butterflies, like many fellow Reylos, and couldn’t wait for them to show up in the fics. My headcanon is that the butterflies are a symbol of the love between father and son, so tragically broken apart (by cruel writers). I love this little fic. It makes me happy. It gives me closure and hope.

🦋🦋🦋

***

A Quick Death

Rated M, 2293 words, One-shot

📎https://archiveofourown.org/works/24563752

🏷 Canon Divergence, Post TLJ, Wounds, animal blood, Mention of death penalty, Forgiveness, Redemption

This is my contribution to a Prompt Gangbang event: “Rey finds Ben tied to a tree.”

I can’t write fix-it fics because TROS made canon so bad, there is no fixing it other than ignoring that piece of shit of a movie completely, in my opinion. So I divorced myself from that and live in denial ever since, never missing an opportunity of writing about what it should have been.

🌳🌳🌳

***

What Am I Here For?

Rated E, 25577 words, 16 chapters

📎https://archiveofourown.org/works/23903074/chapters/57471235

🏷 Modern AU, Breylo, Polyamory, Heavy Angst, Grief/Mourning, No Incest, Skywalker Family Drama, Loss of appetite, Consensual Infidelity, Internalized Prejudices, Domestic Fluff, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Threesome - F/M/M, Everyone Is Alive, No Pregnancy, No Kids

This is the Breylo version of this old prompt by @reylo_prompts: "When Ben is declared missing, and then presumed dead, his fiance, Rey, is heartbroken. He returns years later, only to find she didn't wait for him as she'd promised she would."

This is my favourite fic that I wrote. It features smut but it’s not a smut fic, I wanted to write something different this time. Also, I had a lot of grief to let out and needed to find a way for these characters to heal and find a happy ending, even after all they’ve been through. I poured my heart out writing this one. I’m still in love with my poly babies Rey, Ben and Kylo and always will be.

❤️💛💙

***

Smitten

Rated M, 16065 words, 8 Chapters

📎https://archiveofourown.org/works/23306047/chapters/55821535

🏷 Modern Setting, Angel Rey, Human Ben, Mild Smut, Loss of Virginity, Protected Sex, Family Drama, Fluff

Rey is an angel who falls to protect human Ben from demon Snoke. They fall in love while figuring out the truth about Ben's family.

Inspired by Diablo (the video game) mythos, but this fic is super fluffy. Listen, I just wanted a feral angel girl to protect SoftBoi Ben, okay? And fall in love and bone him along the way...

😇😇😇

***

Macrolepidoptera

Rated E, 3215 words, One-shot

📎https://archiveofourown.org/works/23588158

🏷 Modern, Mothlo, Porn with Feelings, Hurt/Comfort, Monsterfucking, Body Worship, Biting, Blood Play, Fluff and Angst, Cuddling & Snuggling, Dark fic

Rey runs after her Mothman to show him how much she loves him

MOTHLOOOO!!! I fell in love with Mothlo and had the urge to let the whole fandom know, haha. Really, this is about Kylo believing he’s worthy of love and Rey being true to herself. Another favourite, because I will always love those sweet monsters who are better than so many ‘nice guys’ we meet out there.

🖤🦋🖤

***

Ash & Blood

Rated E, 6596 words, One-shot

📎https://archiveofourown.org/works/22568317

🏷 Medieval, Dark fic, Murderous Lovers, Minor Character Death, Betrayal between friends, Violence, Kylo Ren is Not Nice, Rey is not nice, but they love each other

Bloodthirsty warrior Kylo Ren is betrayed by his men and must flee. He is helped by a mysterious woman and her friends. He joins forces with them to get his revenge.

My first dark fic. It was a gift for my wonderful friend. It was a lot of fun to write people being bad.

🗡🖤🔥

***

Heal

Rated T, 4379 words, One-shot

📎https://archiveofourown.org/works/22537060

🏷 Canon Divergence, Angst, Fluff, Kyber Crystals, Force Bond, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Nightmares, Sharing a Bed, Visions

A few weeks after the Battle of Crait, the Force connects Rey and Ben again on several occasions as she is trying to heal the legacy saber's Kyber crystal.

Another gift for a Valentine’s Day exchange. When my giftee asked for soft romance and Rey touching Ben’s hair I rubbed my hands together and gave an evil laugh because it’s what I do best, haha. This is my first T rated fic and it’s very soft and cute.

💎💎💎

***

High Seas

Rated E, 19923, 10 chapters

📎https://archiveofourown.org/works/21640174/chapters/51602203

🏷 Pirate AU, Porn With Plot, Mention of Reyux, Infidelity Kink, Praise Kink, Light Dom/sub, Dom Kylo Ren, Sub Rey, Betrayal, Angst and Fluff and Smut, Name-Calling, Dirty Talk, Rough Sex, Period-Typical Sexism, Slut Shaming, Revenge Sex, Pirate Rey, Lovers to enemies to lovers, Mention of pregnancy at the very end of the epilogue

Rey is stuck in a loveless and sexless marriage. So she turns to the alluring Commander Kylo Ren to quench her thirst.

This is my dirtiest fic and I love it to death. I’m not the best smut writer in the world, but this porn was liberating to write. Also, I wanted to write Ben as not a Softboi this time, and Rey as someone a little more flawed than what I usually do. Horny Reylo at their best.

🏴‍☠️ 🌊

***

The Tide

Rated E, 14949 words, 6 chapters

📎https://archiveofourown.org/works/20658665/chapters/49060343

🏷 Canon Divergence, Slow Burn, Hurt/Comfort, Domestic Fluff, Angst, Eventual Smut, Mention of abuse, Kylo Ren Needs a Hug, Gardening, Spoiler for Kylo Ren comic, No Pregnancy, No Kids

This fic was based on a prompt from @reylo_prompts: “The Resistance catches Supreme Leader and decides on his execution. Rey promises that if they do that, the Jedi won't support their cause any longer. Nevertheless, they proceed. She leaves. Several years later, Palpatine's return prompts the Resistance to seek Rey out. They are shocked to find her peacefully living with very much alive Kylo in a cute cottage on an outer rim planet.”

In sharp contrast to the latter, this is mostly plot driven. I wanted to write about them falling in love gradually, facing who they really are and what happened in canon (I wrote this before TROS came out so some of my lines sound kinda funny now). Also, Leia and Ben have a chance to make things right here, something that will forever be missing in my heart.

🏡🌻🌏

***

The Dark Prince

Rated E, 38471 words, 17 chapters

📎https://archiveofourown.org/works/20739284/chapters/49274468

🏷 Fantasy AU, Slow Burn, Curses, Demons, Angst, Fluff, Smut, Attempt Self-Sacrifice, Battles

In a fantasy land, Rey, a Jedi Monk, travels across the land in the winter to end the war the First Order has been waging. There, she finds their great power being challenged by a small but brave group of dissidents, the Resistance, and also by something else. A demon who haunts the woods nearby and attacks those who dare to cross the forest.

This was my RFFA fic. I tried to create a world where the heroes would be able to fight and win by not fighting what they hate but saving what they love.

***

Something Beautiful

Rated E, 6186 words, One-shot

📎https://archiveofourown.org/works/20263963

🏷 Medieval AU, Arranged Marriage, Fluff, Angst, Smut, Loss of Virginity, Virgin Rey, Virgin Ben Solo, Gentle Sex

Rey begrudgingly agrees to marry her greatest enemy and fears her wedding night.

This fic was inspired by a prompt from @reylo_prompts: “Lord Ren forces orphan Rey to marry him. On their wedding night he refuses to take her because he wants her to be willing. Rey is both enraged and frustrated. She may hate him but she isn’t exactly opposed to being ravished by her husband.”

This is my most successful fic. I loved the idea of a character being so sure of something and then be proven wrong. It’s basically two dumb virgins figuring it all out, connecting deeply in the process. And I could never have a fic where Rey is a passive onlooker in her own life. She knows what she wants and she’s going to get it.

🏰🌕💞

***

The Balance

Rated E, 70382 words, 21 chapters

📎https://archiveofourown.org/works/17664236/chapters/41660696

🏷 Canonverse, Slow Burn, Eventual Smut, The Force Ships It, Softboi Ben, Rey is confident, Lightsabers, Force Bond, Kylo Ren Redemption

It has been a few months since the battle of Crait. Both sides are rushing to rebuild. Rey is getting stronger as a Jedi. Ben, however, is feeling unsure. They cannot forget about each other as dreams haunt them both. A series of events brings them together again.

Okay, this is my first fic... It’s bad... Like, really bad... I’m not disowning it but this is cringeworthy, even if I still love it and stand by some of my ideas. We all gotta start somewhere, right? Also, it’s better than TROS... 😘

⭐️⭐️⭐️

Big thanks to @leofgyth, @reylotrash711, @thehobbem and starcrossreylo for the betas and moodboards. I love you guys!

#reylo #reylo fanfic #reylo au #breylo #reylo fic #reylo prompt

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save-ben-swolo · 5 years ago

Note

You know what bothers me? Many of the same fan boys talking down Bendemptionists and Reylos are also fans of Mara Jade. Sooooo, Ben can't be redeemed but Mara Jade can? If I wanted to stoop down to their level like they do when they say we must only believe in Ben Solo because he's handsome, I could claim that they only like Mara Jade because she has boobs,

I don’t know a whole lot about Mara Jade because I’ve only read one of the books she’s in so at risk of putting my foot in my mouth I’m not going to compare and contrast her character or character arc to that of Ben’s. BUT I do know that based on her past she was objectively “bad” but still ended up marrying and having children with Luke then everyone clapped I guess. So, yes I catch a definite whiff of hypocrisy there.

What I CAN speak to (somewhat) is the more general double standard where some people find it completely acceptable when the male!hero “saves” and/or “conquers” the female!villain through a romantic relationship while finding the reverse disturbing. Often when presented with the reverse people default to wanting to “protect” the heroine from her horribly poor taste in men. It takes away the heroine’s agency to make her own goddamn decisions about who she loves and why, that aren’t based around what is objectively “safe” or “comfortable” for the audience to accept. I’ve actually seen a lot of “TLJ was a cautionary tale for Rey” hot takes based around this view of her relationship with Ben.

On the flip side, if roles were reversed and Ben was a female character he would be MUCH more accepted as someone in need of compassion and eventual redemption. The abuse and manipulation he’s suffered from an early age by Snoke, which lead him down a dark path, would be SO easily read as something to sympathize with without the burden of horrible male gender expectations that don’t tend to recognize physical or mental abuse as being more than something to “man up” about.

Seriously, we would NOT have come across NEARLY as many “Crylo Ren” or “What a shitty villain” hot takes if Kylo was female, because people would have understood and accepted (see been more confortable with) the idea of a female!villain who is struggling emotionally and deserves compassion. You can bet your ass that people would have connected the dots in a SECOND if a female!villain started crying and said, “I’m being torn apart” while faced with the “evil” task of killing their father. Like?!? This is obviously a person who is in a position they DO NOT want to be in! They need HELP!

Unfortunately, this is the kind of double standard thinking we’re looking at: A MALE villain who was manipulated, abused, and is struggling with their EMOTIONS?!? How dare?!? They must be weak and stupid. What a shitty villain. I hope they die! A FEMALE villain in the same scenario?!? Well bless her heart. She just needs some guidance and support to get out of that mess. I hope a big strong male hero comes around to save her from her torment and perhaps heals her pain with some HOT SEX.

#fandom wank #long post #gender double standards #sorry for the rant but i had feelings #bendemption #anti discourse #kylo ren #ben solo #asks

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defiantbird · 5 years ago

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Proooooobably unpopular opinion but

I didn’t think it was as horrible as everyone is saying. I thought it was just ok.

There was stuff I loved but it was overshadowed a little by the stuff I didn’t like, so mostly I’m just sort of going back and forth, but I didn’t leave the theater angry. Just confused and not sure what to feel. A little more specific under the cut...actually a lot more, this is gonna be long and probs no one is gonna read it.

Sort of just to organize my thoughts-

Disliked:

- Way too packed

- Spent too much time on relatively superfluous things that could have been used for the more emotional scenes, which very much needed it

- On the above note; not enough slowing down. Too fast to feel things or let the emotional moments hit hard enough...there’s a lot of specific examples of this but I don’t wanna go on forever

- Added unnecessary characters that took time away from other characters

- On the above note; WHERE IS ROSE. Total bullshit. Rose was important and JJ just threw her away and replaced her with other rando characters who didn’t have an established emotional connection in the story

- Rey Palpatine, boring. Rey Nobody was way more interesting to me

- Palpatine in general, meh. I knew there was always going to be a Big Bad that wasn’t Kylo but I guess...you know, I think it’s because they revealed it in a trailer instead of letting you have that shock in the movie

- Mcguffins allllll over the fucking place

- Go to planet to find mcguffin, fight with the First Order, hop to another planet, repeat 3 times

- I wanted Rey to have more time than she did with redeemed Ben

- Ben’s death should have been handled more gently; people the theater laughed when he just plopped to the floor. Pretty sure they thought he just comically passed out...or they just thought it was goofy. It deserved more gravitas and, as mentioned above, was just passed over way too quickly for such an important character

- I obviously would have liked to have Ben live, but this one is weird for me because I kind of accepted beforehand that it was very unlikely

- Some corny word-for-word callbacks

- Kinda wished they recast Leia, no gonna lie. It just felt uncomfortable.

- Diad in the force? What does that mean?? I admit I kind of wanted a really out there moment where Kylo and Rey met in some other plane, or some other interesting use of the Force and their part in it

- Fanservice. “Remember that thing you didn’t get in TLJ? Here it is!!! It has nothing to do with anything but here it is!”

- Too safe, making it just ok rather than the emotional “YES” feeling I had after TLJ

- “Rey I have to tell you something” being there and never getting addressed felt like a vague way to try to make Finnreys happy without delivering. I have my problems with some Finnreys but I thought that was kind of...unnecessary and a little unintentionally cruel?

- Didn’t see the lesbian kiss. Missed it entirely.

- It wasn’t really super satisfying. I feel like JJ hyped it up as more than it turned out to be

- Not very creative. I think when picking up after another writer’s work, you’re supposed to take the threads they left and get imaginative to bring those threads together and make something of them

Liked:

(There’s gonna be a lot of Reylo things here, sorry)

- Reylo kiss/canon, obviously.

- Rey’s suppressed joy when she sensed him coming and knew he was Ben now

- Rey acknowledging that she did want to be with Ben

- Rey establishing that she would ONLY be with Ben, not Kylo, thus not sacrificing herself or her ideals for him

- Ben’s smile. I’ve wanted it from the beginning and it was just. So incredibly sweet. I can’t yet put into words how happy and emotional it made me.

- The kiss was timed very well. The way Rey looked at him and saw that this was Ben, the man she loved and was looking for, and her smile and his smile, and I’m crying again...

- If Ben had to die, I wanted it to be saving Rey

- Kylo came to his redemption with a push from his love for Rey, his mother’s death, and finally Han, but ultimately it was his decision that he came to out of a true realization, finally, that he was never going to be this person he was trying to be

- “Hey, Kid”. Cry forever.

- Everyone has found their established role and is comfortable; Finn is all in as a resistance fighter, Rey confident in her powers, etc.

- Rey’s confidence in general

- We had all these clips of Kylo and Rey fighting to make it seem like he was after her to kill her. But no. After the time they spent apart, Kylo is still obsessed with being with her, he’s not pissed off, he’s not full dark side, he’s just as desperate as he was before

- Finn got more action, more badassery, and generally just more confidence that was nice to see

- I did like some of the like ancient Sith lore stuff. That was neato

- Palpatine being all hooked up on that thingy

- After Ben turned, his body language became VERY Han Solo. I actually think that was a brilliant decision done with proper subtlety

- Poe and Rey fighting, because I knew they would

- Adam Driver, as always, is just so fucking good

- “Dew it.”

- Hux just coming right out and saying “I don’t care if you win, I just want Kylo Ren to lose”. I honestly loved that, it was just so him

- Finn shooting Hux in the leg instead of the shoulder

So. I have a lot to process and maybe my opinions will morph and solidify a bit as I have more time to think about it. At the moment I’m just...it’s like JJ gave me my favorite pastry--a cream puff--but he did so by stabbing it onto my chest.

#tros spoilers

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starwarshyperdrive · 5 years ago

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The Rise of Skywalker - adding my very important opinion to the internet.

Opinions are like **holes, everyone has one. Just that this isn’t true. People rarely substitute theirs with someoelse’s **hole.

Looking back at some of my predictions I was wrong about some major plot points. I always said that the Bendemption and Reylo would make me walk out of the cinema. I thought it would be the two things that would ruin Star Wars for me and quite arrogantly assumed it’s ‘too stupid for Star Wars’.

Now.. I stand corrected. To be honest, after the premiere I didn’t know what to think. Like everyone else I had this idea what the movie should be in my head. All the puzzle pieces I put together to a picture I liked. All the clues that lead my to my own personal conclusion. And like everyone else I saw the movie through this filter.

I have to divert a bit to explain what I mean.

A Zen master was asked about Zen by a critical guest. Instead of answering he filled the guest’s teacup but did not stop pouring when the cup was full and the tea spilled out and ran over the table.

"Stop! The cup is full!" said the guest.

"Exactly," said the Zen Master. "You are like this cup; you are full of ideas. You come and ask for teaching, but your cup is full; I can't put anything in. Before I can teach you, you'll have to empty your cup."

Letting go of our expectations is hard. Very hard. There is comfort in the familiar. There is stubbornness in wanting to be right. The unknown is scary and we want to be in control of our own narrative. So I watched the movie again and saw it for what it is. I’m gonna be honest. I am a ‘true believer’ and apologist. I will find goodness in every bit. If you want to find mistakes you will find them. Psychologically we mostly make up our minds whether or not we’ll like the movie before we see it subconsciously. Then we just look for proof we’re right. I didn’t really want to see Joker. I expected it to be a pretentious attempt to make a Scorsese 70ies movie while lacking substance. And that’s exactly what I’ve got. Knowing what to expect in the 2nd viewing I was able to appreciate it more. There is so much depth and love for Star Wars in it that’s not apparent if you walk out of the 1st screening snubbed about what you don’t understand. I sound like a broken record when I say Star Wars is not a Comic Book movie, not everything has to be explained or tie into everything perfectly. Just look at the Original Trilogy. Nothing is 100% clear. Obi Wan is twisting the truth and nothing aligns perfectly. Star Wars is like a Greek myth. WHY did Thetis dip Achilles in the river Styx? What was her motivation? How could she forget to dip his heel? That’s stupid. That’s RUINING Greek mythology.

I liked the movie, very much. I’m not even sure if it might not be my favorite sequel. Before I go into my thoughts here is what I didn’t like.

I liked it, yes, but that doesn’t keep me from agreeing that it seemed like a mash-up of fan-service. And with fan service I mean the kind of parents who have no idea would give their kids. ‘You like your Nintendos, right? The man at the shop said this is as good.’ It somehow felt like a panicked corporate decision to undo the backlash after The Last Jedi (a movie I have seen 13 times in the cinema and now consider to be the weakest installment since Attack of the Clones), so they mistook the loudest voices on the internet to be the most representative for all fans. So they had to include Bendemption and Reylo because ..fanfiction.. ?! And people have long asked for ‘bring back Legends’ so throw in a bit of that. And then we need Han Solo and the Emperor to save this trilogy after we made the mistake of not overseeing what these film makers actually do and have an overall idea for the trilogy and Rian Johnson wrote the story into a corner. The Last Jedi felt more like the 3rd movie of a trilogy, so what are we gonna do? Rey has to be SOMEONE, right? How about the emperor is suddenly interested in his bloodline for some reason despite the Sith never having cared about that (what is her midi-chlorian count?).

But I can live with all of that and I have my explanations for everything. Palpatines son who must’ve been born after his face got all f**ked up. So was he a clone? Some sort of attempt to create life like Anakin? An artificially created baby like the Nazis did to get a super soldier, just to be able to possess his body and when he ran off and fled he was more interested in his ‘granddaughter’ because her body was even younger? Did the force skip a generation like some diseases. Not everything has to be answered, but it’s fun to think about these things. I find this to be more Star Wars than the thought he had a wife all the time, which is absolutely not in character.

The one thing I didn’t like was the super cringy, cheap jump-scare with monster teeth during the Dark Rey scene. We have seen this too often. It’s not ‘worthy of Star Wars’. It didn’t even look good in IT or any other movie.

And the kiss? Would I have cut it out if I’d have something to say. YES DEFINITELY. Do I think it’s romantic and actually hints to romantic feelings? HELL NO! In my opinion their bond is different. Calling it romantic undermines their connection and ridicules something that could be very deep. Kylo/Ben even says it, they are a Dyad. Whatever that means, it surely doesn’t mean something straight-out of Twilight. I see the kiss as relief, burst of emotion. Not unlike a kiss a mother would give a child that has been missing or rescued from peril. Affection yes, romance no (aka ‘no tongue’). The beauty of it is that it’s ambiguous. If you want them to be in love, then you can think that for yourself, probably wondering why she is not really grieving.

I said I’d hate Bendemption and many people have stated that Ben should’ve survived. No offense but this is completely missing the point. The way his redemption is portrayed is absolutely beautiful. The shame and regret in Ben that leads him to the realization what he needs to do is what makes his who he is. He says it himself. He can’t go back to his mother. She sacrificed herself for him. He killed his father. Everything is lost for him. He made so many mistakes. But he can do the right thing for once by saving Rey. And this is why he disappears. This is why he became one with the force. If it he’d have survived there wouldn’t have been a redemption. Ben Solo was ‘weak and foolish’ which led him to the dark side. Ben Solo is flawed, the good in him understood that to kill the looming darkness he has to sacrifice himself. Like the Terminator at the end of Judgement day. This is what made the scene so powerful and mirrored Vader. Ironically you could say he finally became like Vader in the last moments of his life.

As for the emperor being alive. Why not. If you’re that sort of badass and considering that Maul and Vader both survived major injuries with the aid of the dark side of the force it’s not that unlikely. And here is something some people seem to miss. He is desperately looking for a new vessel to transfer his spirit into because he is a corpse. He is a corpse on life support. As hinted at in the movie and as explained in the visual dictionary he is being kept ‘alive’ by a mixture of medical aids and Sith alchemy. One might argue that ‘we never heard about Sith cultists and all that’ but that’s not entirely true. Even outside of the books, comics and what not there are things you can easily retcon to fit the narrative. Just look at the emperors advisors in Return of the Jedi. At the time of The Force Awakens there have been theories that Snoke is nothing but a puppet. I have used the Wizard of Oz comparison before. When we got to see him ‘in the flesh’ in The Last Jedi we were nothing the wiser. So that somehow adds up.

Chewie got a medal now? Well that just serves to show what I always say: no one in the cinematic universe cares a great deal about books and comics. A lot of fans are always so eager to see stuff from canon in the movies and get upset when there are contradictions (also see S-foil from Lukes X-wing being used as door) but I think it’s best to consider whatever is not in the movies as ‘soft canon’ and take it with a grain of salt. This might change in the future now that Star Wars is free of the shackles of the Skywalker saga and it;’s very likely they learned from the lack of consistency, but it also opens it up to mediocracy and weird stuff like the world between worlds and space whales.

If you only watched the movie once there are many things that might have slipped by you. Which is a shame. I think some f the outspoken critics will change their minds about the movie over time. A lot of the emotional backbone of the movie was in these tiny moments, such as the scene in which Rey feels that she won’t see Leia again and has to say good bye. It is in the open whether or not Leia feels it too and just taunts her by saying ‘tell me when you're back’.

Let me just say that Rose is absolutely cool in this. I always maintained the position that the backlash against her character was mostly based on the weak costume design that made her more like like a cosplayer. Now that she looked the part she was fantastic. It’s not about quantity. Her screen time was impactful. The argument that JJ cut her screen time in favor of his buddies is ridiculous and uninformed. Everyone had their specific parts to serve the story. According to the visual dictionary Dominic Monaghans character was a former teacher and served as the ‘Sith’ expert to explain why the Resistance wasn’t collectively going ‘umm wut?’ when they heard about Palpatine being back and all that. Greg Grunberg was the link to the fleet and Rose was at the heart of operations. I can't understand how this isn’t obvious.

And in conclusion let’s talk about the impossible task to end a 9 part saga, with the additional challenge of having lost Carrie Fisher. Can you even imagine being in that predicament? How did JJ Abrams say yes to this? Well knowing that he’d get shit from all sides. RESPECT! It is a miracle the movie turned out the way it did. I liked it and if we look at the numbers of things I didn’t like in the other movies despite liking them it might become my favorite or close 2nd of the sequel trilogy over time. Only this blade tells.

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reyloner · 7 years ago

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11 Question Meme

Thank you to @reylocalligraphy for the tag. It’s honestly an honour to answer these questions :)

1. When did you start shipping Reylo / what moment made you start shipping Reylo?

Ironically, it was a tumblr post on Treezie’s ‘fic’ bashing on the ship. I wasn’t even into SW and thought it was pretty lame (which is weird cuz I’m a huge nerd) so I thought the post was pretty funny at the time. I checked out the tag on Tumblr and stumbled upon a @gwendy85 art piece and absolutely fell in love with the beauty. It lead me to read a couple of fics, despite knowing no context of Star Wars, and suddenly I was inspired to watch all 7 movies in late 2016. After that, especially TFA, it’s safe to say I’m Star wars and Reylo trash.

2. Who talks to the other first in episode IX - Rey or Kylo?

Gosh, I wish I knew. I have a feeling it’ll be Rey but at the same time she’s mighty pissed at him and herself rn and already had major trust issues so... ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

3. What are some of your favorite Reylo fics you’ve read?

Too many to list, haha, but here goes:

I will always, always love and never not talk about @omegaling‘s Allez Cuisine (so underrated it physically angers me), Like_A_Dove’s we could plant a house, we could build a tree, and honestly anything by @waterlilyrose (especially Respite bc it is, honest to god, the best modern characterisation of Rey and Kylo ever!) on her Ao3 here.

Capture the Flag Can be Sexy (and other lessons) by @hyenahunny is brilliant and Touched by @reylorobyn2011 is so fluffy and adorable and a reylo dance fic is just too lovely.

Also, Engines Can Be Rose by bunnystealsyourcarrots is so great and lovely and lowkey inspired my own Of Particular Salience so that’s also a faveee.

There’s so much more that I hold dear to my heart, but this last one is extra special since it refers to Q1.

gallifrey_skies Better Lucky - the fic that got me into Reylo. Thank you and bless your soul. Literally the first bookmark on my Ao3, despite joining in 2015. It’s so good and wonderful an, uhhh, a horse Reylo au?

It had me at ‘May the Horse be with you’. Like honestly, top notch shit!

4. What is your favorite Reylo headcanon/trope?

They’re thirsty af VIRGINS.

yes. YeS. YES!

5. Besides Rey and Kylo, name your favorite Star Wars character!

It’s probably Leia. I just think she’s a really strong female character and that’s honestly my a e s e t h e t i c. She’s such a badass with a good heart. I adore her :)

That, or Jar Jar Binks.

Yeah nah, it’s 100% Jar Jar XD

6. Do you think any force ghosts will appear in episode IX? If so, who?

I think Luke will definitely appear to Kylo and maybe even Rey. But I feel like, besides Kylo himself, Luke’s ghost might be a big turning point in Ben Solo’s redemption arc. Bc Luke should also have a chance to redeem himself just as much as Kylo.

7. What do you do besides obsessing over Reylo/SW?

Obsess over Gendrya/ASoIaF, procrastinate by watching a gazillion tv shows and try to study.

Try being the key word there, lol.

8. In your opinion, the most underrated moment or scene in The Last Jedi is…?

Not a scene, but Luke’s character development was severely underrated. I just ... don’t understand ... how people can say he was ruined? Like, they made a character more complex after 30 years?

Gee, it’s almost like people don’t change over time? And it’s almost like people involved in war don’t have paranoia after years of fighting?

But each to their own, I guess.

9. If you had a lightsaber, what color would it be?

Black, like my soul.

That or organge. Bc if you’re a ginger, why not just go all out? :P

10. What do you think Kylo and Rey’s first meeting in episode IX will be like? How far into the movie do you think they will interact?

God, I imagine it’ll be pretty tense. I hope we get a ‘Why did you leave?’ from the both of them but, idk, I feel like their first meeting in IX will involve a lot of conflict from the two.

As for how far I’d like to think it’d happen pretty quickly -- at least before half-way, I think, if they’re to establish or elude to a relationship between the two.

We’ll just have to wait and see, won’t we?

11. What is your favourite Star Wars quote?

‘the Sacred Texts’

bc I appreciate a good meme.

But for real, it’s probably ‘You’re not alone.’ cuz’ I’m Reylo trash and Kylo comforting Rey is EVERYTHING!

Thank you again to @reylocalligraphy for the tag. Oh god, now I need to do my own questions.

1. Favourite Star Wars movie

2. Favourite Reylo scene, either from TFA or TLJ

3. What made you ship Reylo?

4. Favourite Reylo fics/works?

5. Favourite star wars ship, excluding Reylo lel?

6. Favourite Reylo artwork(s)? Link?

7. One thing you wish to happen in Ep IX?

8. One thing you wish had happened in Ep VIII

9. When did you first get into Star Wars?

10. Favourite franchise/movie/tv-show other than SW?

11. Favourite Reylo comparison? eg. Reylo -> Lizzy and Darcy.

There we have it. That was a lot harder than I thought.

As for tagging 11 people, it lowkey makes me nervous so I’ll do my best, haha:

@reybencentral, @omegaling, @natia-rebmik @reyloday, @reylorobyn2011, @shwtlee2reylo, @hyenahunny

Don’t feel obligated to answer these garbage questions. I’m just happy to be tagged and don’t ask for anything in return.

#reylo #reylo fic #11 questions meme #thank you so much for the tag #I love eveyone one and eveything in reylo fandom

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crmediagal · 5 years ago

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Update!!!

* * * If you would like to receive updates and access to the story, please fill out the form on the Contact page and you’ll be granted access! * * *

Story: Seeds of Redemption

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Chapter 11

Chapter 12

Chapter 13

Chapter 14

Chapter 15

Chapter 16

Chapter 17 *NEW!*

Excerpt from Chapter 17:

Ben’s next glare for Master Luke was enough to freeze a man’s heart. “I know your excuses. I’ve heard them time and time again. You may have my mother fooled about your actions that day; you may have softened my wife’s regards, even regained much of her sympathy and played successfully on her unfailing love for you; but you will not have my trust so easily.”

“Ben,” Master Luke beseeched, reaching out to him, “how can you say—?”

“You’ve abandoned me time and time again, uncle.” Master Luke recoiled, much like a wounded animal. “From me you have no right to expect anything more than tolerance, just as I expect nothing but the same from you.”

Master Luke’s mouth hung open, stuttering and mumbling as he tried to find his voice again. “I… I’m sorry that you see my actions as so…ill-reputable, Ben.” It was obvious that he was struggling to speak, each word causing him a great deal of anguish to utter. Steel blue eyes fluttered, turning to and from Ben, as he made to convey in a choked whisper, “I’m sorry. Truly sorry, Ben. I wish you knew…just how much… I would like to have your trust again; your love and your confidence in me. I… I will continue to hope that, one day, your faith in me will be wholly and deservedly restored.”

Ben didn’t reply but his glare softened marginally, as he, too, took a step back and lowered his hands from his hips.

“I must go. I…need time to meditate.” Master Luke shifted his weight from side to side. He paused to present Amidala with one last warm regard—she was still standing at a distance but closely monitoring their body language—and then bowed curtly to Ben before disappearing into his house.

Ben wasn’t aware of staring on at the empty spot where his uncle had been moments before until Amidala gave a sudden light tug on his arm. Startled, he peered down into her honest face and found her frowning in a manner that, again, seemed too wise for such a tender youngling.

“Should we go, Daddy?” she asked, timid and unsure of what was happening.

“Yes, my little star,” he concurred, wishing to sound reassuring. He smiled for her but it didn’t quite reach his eyes and, alas, she knew. He wrapped an arm around her small shoulders and hugged her to his side. “Let’s go home and see your mother, shall we?”

“Okay…” It was only once they had walked a short distance around the perimeter of Master Luke’s house that Amidala chanced speaking again. “Will I be back tomorrow, Daddy?”

Ben turned to her, gripped somewhat by the concern she openly displayed. “We shall see, Ami. Your mother and I need to talk first.”

Amidala pouted and lowered her eyes to the ground. “Why do you dislike each other so much?”

Ben started at that. “We don’t dislike each other, little star.” He caressed her by the chin. “We just…see things quite differently.”

Amidala’s eyes rose, peculiar. “And that’s bad?”

“Not…necessarily, no.”

“Then why can’t I come back tomorrow?”

“Ami—”

“I don’t know what Uncle Luke’s done to displease you, Daddy,” she pleaded, with earnestness, craning to look up at her father as they reached his ship that would transport them home, “but please give him one more chance. Please? For me?”

Ben stared down at his daughter, wrestling with the desire to oblige his daughter’s every whim or continue to harbour what he considered to be deserved resentment over the past. Her innocent, heartfelt plea reminded him all too sorely of what he had urged of his uncle only earlier, however: ‘It’s Ami who will suffer.’

Ben swallowed his enmity but for his little girl alone. “I have to converse with your mother, Ami, but I’ll consider your wish to continue training with him, all right?”

Amidala sprung into Ben’s arms to squeeze him with all her miniature might. An enlivened smile crossed her face and then she scurried onto the ship ahead of him, leaving Ben to curse himself under his breath before following after.

For Ami, he reminded himself, determined to keep his reservations under wraps for the reminder of their trip home—at least, until he saw Rey. Don’t force her to suffer for your own personal discontentment with your uncle.

And if he, too, disappoints her in the end? his conscience counselled.

Ben strapped himself into the cockpit, turned on the engine, and waited for Amidala to lock herself into her seat safely. She’ll finally understand her mother’s pain and mine…

That wouldn’t do for the eldest child of Ben and Rey Solo. Their ship soared to the skies, Ben’s mind refusing to think on how, perhaps, it was as the stars had supposedly preordained, if one believed in such divine interventions: if a Skywalker was made to suffer, so, too, would a Solo.

Available to read in its entirety at www.crmediagal.com

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reylofanfictionanthology · 5 years ago

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For one is love and both are one in love is now live!

Authors will be revealed next week! For now all fics are anonymous. Treats can be posted through author reveals on 2/21. We will post an updated masterpost at that time.

For one is love and both are one in love collection on AO3 | Gift Fic Master Post Part One | Treats Masterpost

Gift Fic Master Post Part Two:

In Other Words, Hold My Hand for MBlair

Stargazing and waltzing on the lake.

Meet Me in the Meadow for MeadowHayle

The Rise of Ren for Merixcil

Legion for midwinterspring

All That Glitters for MintyCel

The Kingdom of Exegol holds the key to Kylo's future. All he needs to do is to get past the omega guarding it.

Thaw My Frozen Heart for Miranda13

Good Boy for MissCoppelia

Ben adopts a dog who needs some training. Thankfully, he gets help (and a little bit more) from Rey, a dog trainer.

the world's not perfect but for misszeldasayre

like roses and clover for mrstater

It never gets easier, you just get better. for MyJediLife

Ben is an addict working through his pain. Rey is a counselor assigned to his care. They weren't supposed to fall in love.

Dreamscape for Nebulous Bounds (RainonyourBack)

Kylo mostly worsens and occasionally betters Rey's visions while she sleeps.

Why we can't be for newseptembers

Beside the Lake for Ngoc12thefangirl

You Need A Teacher for ninecrimes

Grey Skies Ahead for NiriKeehan

She took his hand—not in the name of the Light, or the Dark. They were a dyad, the embodiment of balance—an Alliance of Grey.

Ever as before and ever just as sure as the sun will rise for OccasionallyCreative

The war is over. On a peaceful estate in Naboo's Lake Country, Rey and Ben prepare for their wedding and think of how they got here. Using lyrics of title song of 'Beauty and the Beast'.

swish of the bumblebee for OptimisticBeth

Dissolver of Sugar for optimus_pam

“Rey...what could anyone do, to make up for what Kylo Ren did?” Or: Redemption isn't supposed to be easy. A TROS fix-it fic, of sorts.

Delirium for PalenDrome (nerdherderette)

Renewed for patig_00

a million miles (cross the ocean) for persimonne

in which the Force tries to pay back some of the debt it owes the Skywalkers.

All that's best of dark and bright for persopilliankore

Wherever There is You, I Will be There Too for politicalmamaduck

According to Greek mythology, Tartarus is the deep abyss used as a dungeon of torment and suffering for the wicked. Rey journeys there in search of a lost soul.

Laid To Rest for PoliticalPadmé (magnetgirl)

Ben wants to show Rey the galaxy, to see it with her. First, they have business on Naboo.

What Was Lost Is Now Found for punkeraa

Be With Me for qotsisajakk

Always in Motion for QueenOfCarrotFlowers

we might be the outsiders for radioactivesaltghoul

As though, in a blink, the cavern becomes light, and he sees the pale cream and gold shimmer of the creature, with a dark brown pattern across the head and hood.

Between the Sun and the Moon for redbelles

Starless Sky, Black for RedPaladin465

“Why did you change your mind?” It takes a long time for her to answer. “I didn’t want to be alone.”

The Girl From The Tower for ReyloBrit

Prompt: "Quiet and obedient Rey lives a godly life with her grandfather, until the family hire a new gardener Ben, a mysterious and deeply attractive man. Sparks fly between the two."

The Falcon and the Wolf for reylotrash711

and we'll live a long life for ReyloTrashCompactor (NextToSomething)

When Rey heals him on Kef Bir, Ben has a vision. He and Rey must work together to prevent it from coming true.

Found Belonging for rissanox

Loathe Thy Neighbor for SaintHeretical

Rey's neighbor is the worst. He listens to terrible music, he's impolitely large, and he smells incredible. She hates almost everything about him. Especially the smelling good bit.

Can You Feel The Love Tonight? for shiiera

He's Just Not That Into You(r) Scent for shipperofdarkness

The Purest Love for six4au

When a deeply scarred and traumatized Ben Solo is placed in a program to try and pair him with a canine helper, he finds that he gets more than he ever imagined with the therapist assigned to him.

The Monster in Skywalker Manner for solikerez

Stargazing for SpaceWaffleHouseTM

through the darkness to the dawn for starfleetjedi

Tabula Rasa for suchlostcreatures (godfmischief)

Ben survives the battle on Exegol. That was the easy part.

Intro to Love for TheStolenQuill

I met you once — ( In a dream ) for thewayofthetrashcompactor (BriarLily)

Supernova for Tiara_of_Sapphires

Happy Accident for tmf

Crafting A Connection for tmwillson3

this tangled light for TolkienGirl

The war is over, but at what cost?

Welcome to the Fire for trasharama

as certain dark things are to be loved for tropixo (ursaminors)

Lady Rey, Master of the Knights of Ren, makes a choice. She chooses Ben Solo.

Bend or Break for tweis24

Heaven, let me through for Twisted_Mirror

No matter how hard they try, they can't get each other out of their heads.

Osmosis for viajeramyra

Tell the World I'm Alive for VirtualMadness

Sunset for Vivien

Rey has news. Ben has a question.

Good Morning, Mrs. Solo for walkingsaladshooter

Just a sweet one-shot about a really good morning for Ben and Rey. Modern AU.

After the End for witchsoup

Ambassador Organo-Solo is asked to attend a celebration to mark the anniversary of the end of the war, and is reunited with the woman whose life he saved. The woman he once loved.

getting the best of your opponent is easier if you smooch them first for wombathos

Borne Aloft for Xochiquetzl

#reylo #reylo fanfiction anthology #rffa writers #for one is love and both are one in love #master post #mod post #moodboard

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ao3feed--reylo · 7 years ago

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It Doesn’t End Here

read it on the AO3 at https://ift.tt/2IhAQvG

by WhisperOfWarmth

This is the first chapter in Part 2 of my Dates with the Devil Series, or, alternative title, “Makes You Stronger”. This will also be a multi-chapter piece, updates once a week or so, and will focus on the married life of Kylo Ren and Rey. I also hope, in later chapters, to put some more focus on other relationships, like Finn and Poe, Hux and Rose, etc.

Words: 2175, Chapters: 1/1, Language: English

Series: Part 1 of Makes You Stronger

Fandoms: Star Wars Sequel Trilogy, Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Episode VIII: The Last Jedi (2017), Reylo - Fandom

Rating: General Audiences

Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings

Categories: F/M, Multi

Characters: Kylo Ren, Ben Solo | Kylo Ren, Rey (Star Wars), Armitage Hux, Finn (Star Wars), Poe Dameron, Rose Tico, Leia Organa, Han Solo, Chewbacca (Star Wars), Luke Skywalker, stormpilot - Character

Relationships: Kylo Ren/Rey

Additional Tags: Alternate Universe - Star Wars Setting, Force Bond (Star Wars), The Last Jedi - Freeform, Reylo - Freeform, Kylo Ren Redemption, Protective Kylo Ren, Established Kylo Ren/Rey, Rey/Kylo Ren Fluff, Fluff, Domestic Fluff, Fluff and Humor, Romantic Fluff, Fluff and Hurt/Comfort, Loving Marriage, Badass Rey, Friendship/Love, True Love, Children, Having Faith, Jedi Training, Gray Jedi, Kylo Ren Needs a Hug, Minor Leia Organa/Han Solo, Poe Dameron/Finn Fluff

read it on the AO3 at https://ift.tt/2IhAQvG

#IFTTT #ao3feed #fanfic #Star Wars #Reylo #Kylo Ren #Rey

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emperorren · 7 years ago

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My first impressions after seeing TLJ

major tlj spoilers after the cut

So do you know that John quote about how the movie addresses fandom theories or something?

I feel like it’s really spot on. It’s like the movie deliberately flirts with most of the major question marks that TFA left us---who are Rey’s parents? What happened to Luke? Did Snoke manipulate Ben? What’s the deal with Reylo? Who is Snoke, really? Will Kylo be redeemed?

and then kind of spits on them, either giving a bland/disappointing answer, or a non-answer at all, as if saying: THESE AREN’T THE QUESTIONS YOU SHOULD BE ASKING.

It’s VERY anticlimatic, to be honest. but anticlimatic in a clever, deliberate way. I can’t say if I really liked it---I think I need at least a second viewing---but I can see what Rian did here.

So let’s start with the obvious, and for a lot of reasons the most bewilderingly anticlimatic: Snoke. Who the fuck is Snoke?

NO ONE. it doesn’t matter. Maybe he’s an ancient being. maybe he’s just Leia’s former classmate in second grade that had a crush on her and was rejected. We don’t know. He's killed**, and it’s over before we get any real answer, JUST LIKE THAT. He’s always been a smokescreen, which in hindsight was what TFA was trying to convey by having him appear only as a giant hologram. He had a specific function in this story---providing a Palpatine stand-in that the audience could immediately latch on for reassurance, but actually ushering Kylo from a conflicted teenage-like apprenticeship into True Villainy (?)---he’s fulfilled it now, so he can go. Bye Snoke.

Next: Luke. What has Luke been doing? Milking sea brontosaurs and reading ancient books and angsting over Ben’s fall and shockingly enough NOT fathering any magical daughters, AS YOU SHOULD ALREADY KNOW IF YOU WATCHED TFA.

Next, who are Rey’s parents. Aw man. that feels like a punch in the guts, tbh. Because for a while the movie actually toys with your expectations about that and there’s a scene (one of my favs from a purely visual/conceptual/symbolic perspective) in which rey goes looking for answers and sees some ominous looking shadows that you interpret as being her “people”. But those shadows reveal to be just another image of Rey herself. And then comes Kylo who straight up says that her parents were nobodies, just scavenger scum who sold her for a meal, and you’re like. Okay. Why did I spend 2 years obsessing over this?***

Next, what’s the deal with Reylo. This one is strictly connected to the question about Kylo’s redemption, and to me is simultaneously this film’s crux AND real stroke of genius. Because the first half of the movie feels like it’s moving on an enjoyable but predictable railroad of romantic/byronic hero tropes. The force bond is REAL! Kylo and Rey have UST! Kylo looks vulnerable and conflicted! Rey learns about Ben’s backstory and vows to redeem him! Their love for each other will save Kylo from falling completely to the dark side!!!!

And then the movie suddenly... rotates on itself. The story makes a literal U turn the moment you realize that this is not going to go the way you think and that---no, Kylo’s won’t be redeemed (this way).

And maybe love (well, at this stage it’s mutual attraction and curiosity and longing for somewhere, someone, to belong) and good intentions aren’t enough to steer someone from his perceived path (not yet).

It’s not that Snoke wasn’t a malevolent figure manipulating Ben; he was. But Kylo’s agency is MUCH MORE IMPORTANT to his actions than what the average Kylo fan was willing to admit, and the movie is a brutal reminder of that. Kylo isn’t just lost and lonely and traumatized. He wants power. He sees his greatness as a mission. He’s focused, deliberate, and willing to sacrifice a LOT of things to get what he wants. Including his father (he didn’t kill han solo because he hated him---he didn’t hate him at all, as he tells Rey at one point. He killed him because he was a weakness, something that prevented him from fulfilling his true potential). Including Snoke, his mentor, his master, his leader. (perhaps not Rey, though. Not really, if his last scene indicates anything.)

I think we all saw the cracks in Kylo’s armor and his obvious conflict and took it as a guarantee that he’d start the movie more evil and unhinged than ever and then make a shift halfway through the movie towards redemption; TLJ spit in the face of this rather predictable headcanon by having Kylo go a bit darker, then teasing us with a possible redemption-by-force-bond, and then shockingly upgrading him to Ultimate Big Bad instead of Conflicted Anti Hero.

(which is not to say that Kylo’s layers are suddenly gone or that he’s Really Evil---he’s no more evil than he was in TFA, no more evil than he was when he laced his fingers with Rey’s in the hut. He’s just refusing to be put in that nice little box that we, me included, wanted him to fill at the end of this movie.)

(he also kills Snoke instead of Rey, but probably not to save Rey. Not exactly? I mean, also that, I’m sure. But this man’s motives are complex. It was part of his plan all along. He manipulated Snoke into thinking he was weak and foolish, “a boy in a mask” so that he could blindside him. It’s unclear how much of his touchy-feely force bonding moments with Rey was ALSO a manipulation, and how much they were something genuinely unexpected that coincidentally helped him fulfill his plan. When he asks Rey “why does the force keep connecting us”, it’s unclear if it’s a honest question on his part. I’d like to hear your opinions on this.)

This also doesn’t mean that it was all a bait and switch---at least, I hope it’s not. The force bond is real and no matter how and why it was created it’s something that both of them will have to deal with. I personally do believe it’s the Force who brought these two together and made their lives inextricably connected. There must be a reason. Their feelings for each other are also real, now made more violent by each other’s mutual (perceived?) betrayal. This is going to hurt, but at least we have now exited the “they don’t even know each other’s name!” limbo for good. They know that... and many other things about each other now. Probably more than they’re comfortable with.

I also don’t think this movie answered the question of Kylo’s redemption with a resounding no, on the contrary it just made it clear that everything can happen. Kylo’s future looks bleaker than ever now, true, because it seems like he was offered AGAIN an olive branch, a chance of redemption, and instead he doubled down on evil. Sure as fuck those who hated him will hate him even harder, and I guess a lot of neutral fans (perhaps also those Kylo fans who were flat out counting on him being revealed as an innocent victim of Snoke’s manipulation) will turn on him too.

I feel like I did in the aftermath of the Red Wedding: shocked, traumatized, but also insanely curious to see how the narrative rises again after such a low point.

... I can’t believe I wrote this already? I was going to talk about what I liked and what I did not (the movie is hardly flawless tbh), and the squee-worthy fanficcy scenes, and shirtless!Kylo and omg omg omg Luke and Leia (okay that deserves another post) and instead I went full boring analysis lmao. Sorry.

** not sure if Snoke is actually dead. Part of me really doesn’t want him to, because I like eldritch evil in this story and I wanted Snoke to be eldritch evil, a sort of Night’s King that humanity, I mean the galaxy, including the bad guys, unites to rally against. Kylo is many things, but last time I checked he’s still human, therefore still worthy of our empathy. The other part understands that this is how a Normal Narrative would function, and that sounded reasonable enough until a week ago, but now? lmao JJ Abrams good luck untangling this mess.

*** honestly I’m not sure Rey’s parents are just that, either. Maybe the answer we get in this movie is another red herring. I think we can definitely rule out Re/ywalker or Re/ysolo though, because awkward hand touching and asking your nemesis to put something, anything on that sexy naked chest while you’re casually peering into his room via force bond is not something that Cousins Would Do, thank you very much.

#tlj spoilers #sw spoilers #*

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iabsolutelyresentthiswebsite · 7 years ago

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The Redemption vs. The Excusal of Kylo Ren

Hi everybody, it's everyone's least favorite Star Wars fan back with more discourse!

Seeing as Star Wars: The Last Jedi is just over a month away now, it's time to talk yet again about Reylo.

Warning: This will be Anti-Reylo so please, be aware of what you’re getting into by reading any further.

I’ve seen an uptake in shipping Reylo because it would be “totally epic” and “just make sense”, using similar language that most Rey Skywalker believers use, which is disturbing to me considering I am definitely one, but not the other, for obvious reasons. By the way, in the last few weeks, I have learned shipping Reylo and believing in Rey Skywalker are not mutually exclusive concepts, which is disgusting because some of y’all are openly shipping incest. That ain’t cool.

I digress, however, to the main point of this post, which is what a canon Reylo would do to the arc of Kylo Ren.

Most fans are in agreement that Kylo Ren, rather Ben Solo, must and should be redeemed. There are, however, still hold-outs to that...people who, unfortunately, let their half-way justified hatred of a character blind them to what his redemption could do for the trilogy, cinematically and practically. There are also people who honestly believe that a fully!dark Kylo Ren would do the series a service, which is an interesting viewpoint. I hope they do come around to redemption eventually or, at least, understand why it happened once it does, which it likely will.

The intention of this post is not to debate the legitimacy of a Kylo Rendemption, although I will, based solely on the input of my brother, who has an interest in what I’m going to talk about this part.

Pros of a Redemption: It will make Leia happy, which is something we all desperately want to have happen. It would add quite a few possibilities for the development of various relationships between him and other characters. It also has a lot of potential in the numerous ways he could be redeemed, which adds a lot more storytelling to the saga, thus adding intrigue. It also gives Kylo the same opportunity that Anakin had, the opportunity to betray the person who really screwed up his entire life. Most of us are under the impression that Kylo Ren was abused, at least to some extent, so seeing an abuse victim- although he is not helpless- fight back would be empowering to some.

Cons of Redemption: It perpetuates the parallelism between Kylo/Ben and Vader/Anakin, which is not necessarily a bad thing (in my eyes). It may be predictable for that very reason, which may not be a good thing, but is not a bad thing considering redemption of a very prevalent theme in Star Wars.

Pros of No Redemption: It would be something that Star Wars has never done, making a pretty relatable antagonist completely unrelatable by making him shirk the opportunity to redeem himself by his own volition. It would be completely unexpected, which is also something that doesn’t happen every day. It would also give a different message that Star Wars has never given before, that some people cannot be redeemed. It very much differentiates the characters of Kylo Ren and Darth Vader, which is something people do have trouble understanding.

Cons of No Redemption: It would be a grave departure from the message set forth by the rest of the franchise that redemption is possible no matter what and good is stronger than evil, giving the feeling of further Star Wars sequels, of which there will likely be more, a very different vibe, one that fans may or may not lay in bed with. It eliminates any storytelling that would be possible for a Kylo Rendemption, which really is a shame because of all the possibilities that would be ousted from that choice.

The reason I am in favor of the Kylo Rendemption is because I see it as having more pros than cons and more pros than the possibility of having no redemption. I am also in favor of it because, to me, it makes sense to redeem him because Anakin was redeemed and he was just as far gone as Kylo is now and I find the parallelism not just “familiar and comforting”, but logical and emotional. I know, for a fact, that is just me, though. I will openly admit that I am also a big fan of Ren, mainly because of the potential his character has, and I feel like his potential is only truly revealed if he is redeemed...so, in a sense, I guess you could say, I wish to be “validated”. I also want to see Luke and Leia happy and SNOKE GET HIS ASS KICKED, which really can only come about, as I see it, by Ren’s betrayal. Also, I want there to be an understanding between Kylo and Rey

Now, we’re getting into where Reylo comes in and what it does the redemption of Kylo Ren.

As I’ve stated before, most fans are in agreement that Kylo Ren/Ben Solo must and should be redeemed. The true difference, I see, between Reylo shippers and Anti-Reylo shippers is the means by which he is redeemed. Most of us agree that Rey should definitely be involved, to an extent, but it really differs by how much she is going to be involved.

Anti-Shippers seem to like the idea of her just being there to help him a little by making him realize the error of his ways, y’know...if the particular Anti-shipper likes Kylo at all...*rolls eyes so hard eyes can bench 300lbs*

Reylo shippers have a range from she is the biggest reason he changes to she is the only reason he changes. *rolls eyes into a galaxy far, far away*

I mentioned in a prior post how Luke did not coerce, did not pressure, and did not even fully persuade Anakin Skywalker, as Darth Vader, to turn back to the Light. It was the choice of Anakin Skywalker to save his son from his master. When it was a choice between the life of his son and the life of his master/ even his own life, he chose his son’s life...selflessly...without coercion and with no regrets. It was his choice of his own free will to do the right thing and to turn back and that, in my opinion, is what made the redemption of Anakin Skywalker so powerful. That he began to realize, with the help of his son, that what he was doing was wrong over the course of one and half movies- from afar- and made a free choice, at the moment Luke needed him the most, to cast aside the person who messed his life up in the favor of the person who would save his life.

And that is what we would be missing if Rey was the only reason Kylo turned back. It is, factually, coercion. It is pressure. It is not of Kylo’s own free will, but of the promise of potential happiness that may never be.

I am so against Reylo becoming canon because of what it would degrade Kylo’s redemption arc to. It would become the biggest, most unconvincing, most insulting trope that exists and we all know which one I'm talking about. I’ve said it before, but I will not say it again.

But I am also very against Reylo becoming canon for another, very motivating reason and that reason is because if Kylo turns back to the Light because of Rey, he will not have been redeemed. It would be The Excusal of Kylo Ren.

I, for one, and I know I am definitely not the only one, believe that Kylo is fighting away from the Light, trying to stop feeling what he knows to be true, trying to fight off his true nature. He is not dark enough to convince me or even himself, which is why he prays and asks his Grandfather, misguidedly, for insight on the power of the Dark Side. He apologizes because he knows he’s not strong enough. He knows the truth that he was never meant to be what he is so desperately trying to be right now.

Because of that, he must fight back to the Light side. He must. He must struggle, he must work, he must put in more effort than he ever has into getting back to the Light after pushing himself into the Darkness, needlessly. (I do desire to know his motivation for falling to the darkness in the first place.) But he must want it more than he’s ever wanted anything. I encourage him to betray Snoke or the First Order and join the Resistance, maybe even pull a Kallus/Falrum from Rebels kind of thing for a while. But whatever he does, he must put in the effort...

NOT SIMPLY FALL IN LOVE AND ABANDON HIS WAYS.

THAT’S NOT REDEMPTION. THAT’S AN EXCUSE.

If he and Rey fall in love and Kylo just abandons his ways for love, where is the struggle? Where is the conflict? Where is the desire to do right? And where is the emotion the audience is desperately craving to feel in those moments?

Nowhere, nothing, not here, and non-existent.

When Anakin was redeemed, there was tension and uncertainty and anxiety, If this is how it plays out, there is nothing but *warm fuzzy feelings and butterflies* and then what the hell are we to really care about?

We are left unsatisfied. We are left with questions. We are left with the feeling nothing really happened there, except a gratuitous love story, which was so unneeded.

A redemption takes place when someone works to better themselves and changes themselves for the better. We saw that happen with Anakin!Darth Vader. We saw him gradually change little by little until he made his final choice to reclaim the name of Anakin Skywalker and cast aside his guise of Darth Vader.

The main point of this post is to show you that if Kylo is redeemed because he falls in love with Rey, it is just an excuse for him to turn back to the light. It eliminates his need for true redemption by giving him an “in” to the Resistance without having to put forth any effort into trying to better himself. Anakin had to slowly change his opinion and have his eyes gradually opened to the fact what he was doing was wrong and to decide of his own free will that he must change for himself and for his son. Kylo cannot be given an excuse because he will, as he now stands, not take responsibility for the millions of lives he took and not fight back from the Darkness, which he must to validate his redemption, because there is simply no need if he is in love with Rey and she with him. He simply does not need to fight back so the writers and directors will not do it. It’s the easy way out and the easy solution and we all know it to be true.

But what we would get with endgame Reylo is an excuse for why Kylo turned back to the Light as quickly as he did. From what is known about Kylo Ren in TLJ, he will be darker than TFA. The change he made was from edgy to dark to suddenly in love and embracing the Light?

No.

It doesn’t make sense.

Well, unless we throw away his characterization as set forth by TFA, fighting off the Light as hard as he can. Love is not going to change him that quickly and that drastically.

It does not make sense.

And we haven’t even spoken about the fact Rey is not the type of person to fall in love at first sight. She’s spent her whole life in a rough environment, guarding her heart and property. This edgelord, a term I use very affectionately for Kylo, is not going to tear down her walls that easily, especially after what he did to her in their first few interactions. She does not trust him and is likely to have difficulty trusting him in the future when they are likely on the same side.

I do hope, however, that she does forgive him. It would, in my view, prove her strength of character and what a wonderful person she is. It also would, in a sense, validate Kylo’s turn to the Light in an indirect way. That she was one person he really did wrong, in the short space of time that we are currently aware of inasmuch we have seen and she was able to forgive him and validate him as a good, redeemed person after all the bad things he’s done. It would be a small forgiveness considering all the lives he took, but it would be powerful to have Rey forgive him for what he did to her.

My favorite thing about several of the things I wrote is that it can be entirely platonic, many of the things Reylos want to have happen when/if they fall in love, can be even better if they happen because they’re reconciling their past as new friends because there is not nearly as much on the line and the pressure is off. Their relationship does not need to become romantic because it is needless. Everything that should happen can happen without romantic love and in my opinion, it is even more powerful that way.

And we didn’t even discuss how she is very likely a Skywalker. But we’re not going to talk about that.

#kylo ren #kylo rendemption #rey #star wars #anti reylo #Virginia speaks #star wars discourse

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