virginia-tradescant

[virginia-tradescant]

Many people in the general audience and critics have talked about TROS as a beginning and not an ending, like “Rey’s journey/adventure is just beginning,” and beside the obvious problem there that this was supposed to be her coming of age arc and she should’ve reached and fulfilled metaphorical adulthood in this movie which TROS took away, I realized *why* it felt this way. TROS was made with the principles of a superhero origin movie, down to her finally taking the “special title” at the end

My SWCU theory would hold that they did that on purpose, but as time has gone on I feel like maybe imagining they did anything at all on purpose with legitimate aforethought on a macro level is giving them too much credit. They’re probably just hacks doing hackery, Marvel films always make a shitzillion dollars, and they wanted the most crowd-pleasing possible finale. Hence cardboard cut-out characters, the death of nuance and thematic content, empty spectacle, empty ‘banter’, and never committing to a single narrative choice.

Terrio is under the impression he’s a smart person and certainly thinks he did something incredibly clever with his ‘original sin’ twincest shit because he has no fucking clue what he’s talking about on any level, but Chris’s quest to lodge the point of his head in the depths of his colon to better sniff his own farts is the closest this dumpster fire comes to having an ‘artistic vision’. He wanted to be told he was the bestest at mythic storytelling and he brought it ‘full circle’, illustrating he doesn’t understand either of those things, not that I needed more evidence.

Remember when I spent so much time talking about how SW protagonists are not superheroes and their storytelling architecture was completely different and fandom expectations of MCU style sequels to TFA about Super Rey and Friends!! was a fundamental misreading of what SW is?

(Open ended sequels to narratively complete, stand-alone films can more or less go anywhere within tonal and genre constraints (even that isn’t a hard and fast rule; MCU directors have certainly been allowed to shift tone considerably) because every film is its own thing, but their protagonists need to be somewhat static after the origin film. You get the one substantial character arc where they ‘come into power’, so to speak, and after that they face new external threats while remaining fundamentally the same; they are already a fully actualised person whose further growth will be minor rehashes of their original arc or fallout from it. Stability and continuity come from the hero, there’s no overall thesis outside the hero’s identity, it’s episodic. No one can reliably predict where the next one is going because there’s no framework and it’s just wherever a new writer wanted to take it.

But the Star Wars protagonists are were not superheroes and they don’t have an origin story followed by escalating episodic adventures, they have a three act crucible of maturation with a beginning middle and end. Which is thematically predictable because it is beholden to a structure, to an idea about what the entire story is supposed to say. They’ve barely started their development at the end of the first film and they are challenged as characters not as RPG heroes who need to level up. Fighting in SW is metaphorical and winning the fight is never about physical strength or physical training. Training is fucking irrelevant. Luke never becomes ~better at fighting~ than Vader, he never becomes ‘stronger’ than the Emperor- that is not the point and that is not the source of his victory. The only moral victor in the PT was Padmé- who doesn’t fight at all in RotS- and she will be vindicated in the OT. Everyone else fucked up. Luke fulfils the promise of his mother’s love and faith.)

Nope. Traditional storytelling is dead. It’s all serialised superheroes now. Hope you don’t want to see anyone morally struggle or grow or change. Hope you like that ubermensch propaganda. Idealism isn’t even for kids any more. No one is allowed to have it, it’s nihilism all the way down.

[virginia-tradescant]

the sexual tension between jon favreau trying to make a space western and dave filoni’s absolute obsession with arthurian legend and the mysticism of the Force that george talked to him about, creating the mandalorian, a show about a space cowboy who is supposed to be a criminal, but he wears a shining suit of literal armor, saves children, his name is literally palaDIN, and he is an unlikely king with a legendary sword WHO LITERALLY SLAYED A DRAGON ONCE

[virginia-tradescant]

Do you consider fanfiction legitimate writing?

I won the 2004 Hugo Award for Best Short Story for an H. P. Lovecraft /Arthur Conan Doyle mashup fiction, so fanfiction had better be legitimate, because I'm not giving the Hugo back.

Or the 20O5 Locus Award for Best Novelette. I'm not giving that back either.

[virginia-tradescant]

I am COMPLETELY OVERWHELMED by this rec. And this GORGEOUS moodboard!! ✨Feeling all the feelings right now. ✨

“Solo, think about it from my perspective. You want to be director of a field office one day, right? What would you do? Put a green agent with insufficient clearance on protection duty for a high value target? All because a more senior and experienced agent hates kids?!”

“Sir, with all due respect, I don’t hate kids”—actually, he’s pretty sure he does—“but I don’t think I’m the right fit for this job. Would you believe me as a preschool aide?”

Children and Other Wild Animals by Virginia_Tradescant | @silmarilliant @virginia-tradescant | Explicit | 90k | Complete | Modern AU | Multi POV | FBI | Witness Protection | Bodyguard | Organized Crime | Undercover agen!Ben Solo | Hitman!Kylo Ren | Teacher!Rey | Schools/Children | Forbidden relationship | Pining | Drama | Action/violence | Angst | All-aboard-the-pain-train | HEA | Multi POV | Ben Solo's return to field work should be easy, but a sting operation to draw out a mole within the FBI, disguised as Witness Protection will test his every resolve and push him to his limits. Caught in the crossfire is Rey Niima, a early childhood educator who is just trying to teach children and not fall in love with her very own special agent.

God I loved this fic. I read it, was blown away and then flipped back to the first page and started it again. It was that good!

Without a doubt this will be added to my all-time-favourite fics list.

The prose is engaging, the characterizations are great, the chemistry between all characters, really, is brilliant! But the simmering tension and pining between Ben and Rey is just *chef kiss*

The slow build is perfectly executed, and the payoff is explosive! The Multi POV really adds to the drama and angst.

Oh, and the angst. Never have I read a fic where almost every single chapter did I want to comment "it hurts so good!"

This fic is defintly a Pain Train, but it had a super satisfying HEA, so it's all worth it!

And OH MY GOD, I dont want to spoil anything, but chapter 29 had a scene in it unlike any I have ever read in all my fanfiction reading. It was so moving. It floored me.

You absolulty should give this fic a read. It is fucking phenomenal.

[virginia-tradescant]

Holy shit, I made the cut!!! 😱😱😱

In honour of my birthday this year I present to you...

Readingreylo's Absolute Favourite Reylo Fanfics

Jessie's be-all and end-all fic list. The fics that I have re-read multiple times. The fics I would pay money for. The first fics I reach for when I've had a shity day. The fics that I have downloaded and printed off and have in a secure place in case the internet ever goes down. Those fics.

(And because it's me, 90% of these are Modern AU. There are some incredible canonverse fics that I have enjoyed, but not many that I come back to again and again like these fics)

Janus by englishable | @englishable | Teen | 48k | Complete | Modern AU | Neighbors | strangers to friends to lovers | Slow burn | Recovering drug addict!Ben | Ben POV | She moves into the apartment beside his, with her flowers and her singing and her brisk optimism, and Ben Solo knows himself just well enough to realize that a person like him really shouldn't have anything to do with a person like her. His good friend Snoke, of course, has other plans, because he gets a certain enjoyment from watching Ben - Kylo Ren, rather, as he calls him - screw things up. Which Ben inevitably does: but that's not where he wants them to end, and maybe Rey doesn't either. | The story of a man facing down his demons and moving forward with his life. | Brillaint charcterization across the board (Snoke was a highlight!). Not just a regular romance, but episodes in Ben's life that culminates in a satisfying payoff. Loved the use of flashbacks. I can't get over all the little details the author pulled from canon to weave into the background! This was the first fic I printed out to keep for a rainy day.

Hanging by a Moment by crossingwinter | @shmisolo | Explicit | 44k | Complete | 2000s AU | Funerals/wakes | Dysfunctional Family Drama | Misunderstandings | Chronic illness | Angst with a HEA | Ben POV | There are many things that Ben could have tolerated about his parents’ divorce. That his mother had finally had it with his father’s borderline illegal—or rather, as he liked to put it, borderline legal—company, the shady activities it covered that would doubtlessly end her political career if a reporter got hold of them; that his father had finally had it with the way his mother nags, because sure, he’d thought it was hot twenty years ago, but he is in fact an adult who can actually keep his shit together—all that he would have gotten. He’d have been wrecked, but he’d have gotten it. His dad leaving his mom for a nineteen-year-old gold-digger though, and his mother not even putting up a fight—that had caught him by surprise. | Ben comes home after years away for his father's funeral to deal with his gold-digger step mother. But nothing is what it seems, and this week away will turn his life upsidedown. | The story, the tension, the emotion! It feels like a movie! Great characters and plot! Drama and romance and a touch of humor with a beautiful and satisfying ending!

between two lives by neonheartbeat | Explicit | 31k | complete | Modern AU | Strangers to lovers | Fashion Model!Rey | Mechanic!Ben Solo | PTSD | military backstory | sexual disfunction | psychological trauma | CW: graphic depiction of violence | Rey POV | Rey Niima, a model driving from Chicago to New York, finds herself broken down in the middle of nowhere, Indiana, without any way to fix her rented car. Ben Solo, the big, silent, resident jack-of-all-trades in Kirby, a town with almost two hundred people, happens to come across her on the road, and offers her a place to wait for a tow, but Ben has a secret he's not willing to share, and Rey is determined to find out what it is... | I cannot count how many times I have read this fic. There is just something about the characterizations, the raw-ness that keeps bringing me back. The story itself is deceptively simple, but sets the stage for multiple emotional punches. On the technical side it's so well crafted. Love the author's prose and the pacing and plotting are engaging. The smut is out-of-this-world hawt.

a place to go by delia-pavorum | @delia-pavorum | Explicit | 52k | Complete | Modern AU | Snowed in | Christmas | Strangers to lovers | Sharing a bed | Cabincore | Canada | Multi POV | Rey is a teacher trying to have some peace and quiet over the holidays. Ben is a writer trying to run from his problems. They both end up snowed in at Luke's cabin. | This feels like a hallmark christmas movie, you know where its gonna end up, but the chemistry and Charcterizations surprise you along the way. With beautifully written prose, an attention to detail that adds a richness and some *chef kiss* smut.

Flux & Solder by angharabbit | @angharabbit | No longer available | Explicit | 23k | Complete | Modern AU | Neighbors | Domestic Reylo | Retired RCMP!Ben Solo | Artisan!Rey | Angst PTSD | Sexual Disfuction | HEA | Multi POV | Rey’s established a quiet life in the suburbs. Working in her stained glass workshop and reading on the front porch may not be enough though, after a new neighbour makes her question her accepted loneliness. | Brilliant and beautiful! Soft and lovely with a healthy dose of emotional constipation and personal drama. It's not fast-paced, but it's by no means slow or boring. If you can't tell, I love haunted-by-demons Ben Solo, and this fic has that in many suprising details! One of the first fics I truly realized "That's my favourite!"

Cupcake Wars by crossingwinter | @shmisolo | Explicit | 36k | Complete | Modern AU | Enemies-to-lovers | Bakers | Rivals | Hate Sex | Rey POV | Entirely by accident, Rey ends up fucking someone who works for Snoke's Cupcakery. She's just blowing off steam. It doesn't mean anything at all. It certainly won't come back to bite her in the ass. | or Rey and Ben work at rival bakeries, and are hooking up for hate sex on the side. What starts as casual slowly becomes anything but. | Beautifully written, fleshed out with great steamy smut. Such a great realized story. Not what I was expecting AT ALL!

Children and Other Wild Animals by Virginia_Tradescant | @silmarilliant | Explicit | 90k | Complete | Modern AU | FBI | Witness Protection | Bodyguard | Organized Crime | Undercover agen!Ben Solo | Hitman!Kylo Ren | Teacher!Rey | Schools/Children | Forbidden relationship | Pining | Drama | Action/violence | Angst | All-aboard-the-pain-train | HEA | Multi POV | Ben Solo's return to field work should be easy, but a sting operation to draw out a mole within the FBI, disguised as Witness Protection will test his every resolve and push him to his limits. Caught in the crossfire is Rey Niima, a early childhood educator who is just trying to live her life.

Above us, stars. Beneath us, constellations. by crossingwinter | @shmisolo | Mature | 74k | Complete | Canonverse | TFA re-write | Strangers to friends to lovers | Action | Angst | Multi POV | Ben woke, but Luke’s saber wasn’t ignited. Instead, he saw a master who had shattered his trust, who thought he was a monster, and—worse—he was probably right. So he fled Yavin IV, to Skywalker’s dismay, and no one heard from him since. Years later, on a wasteland planet, a girl and a fugitive stormtrooper board a Corellian YT-1300 light freighter in desperation to find they are not the only ones trying to steal it. | or Ben Solo is on the run from the voices in his head, and gets caught up with a girl, a former stormtrooper and a droid carrying a map to luke skywalker | A brillaint exploration of the butterfly wing effect! You think you know where the story is going, because it's so familiar, but it veers off in suprising directions! Love the story!

Sip the Honey Sweet by dietplainlite | General | 14k | Complete | Historical AU | Edwardian | Prince Edwards Island | Romance | Strangers-to-lovers | Falling in love | Heartbreak | Angst | teacher!Rey | Jewish!Ben Solo | Reconciliation | story within a story | Rey POV | Spring, 1902. It's Rey's first day of teaching at Chandrila school on Prince Edward Island. Her perfectly planned morning starts off on the wrong foot, setting her on a completely unexpected path. | or Rey manages to catch the eye of a man no one has been able to entice before. Friendship blossoms into romance, but Ben's past haunts him. | Beautifully evocative and romantic! Well written, with a charming story. Loved the characterizations and backstories. So much packed into 15k.

At the Edge, Alone, and Burning by Ben_Solo_Good_Boy_Sweater_Emporium | Teen | 24k | Complete | Histroical AU | 1920s | Strangers to lovers | Orphan!Rey | Lighthouse Keeper!Ben Solo | Small town gossip | Marriage of convenience | Falling in love | Rey POV | Orphan Rey starts a new life for herself in a small coastal Maine town. There barely two weeks her life is thrown into turmoil when her benefactress dies unexpectedly. Faced with returning to the loneliness and poverty of the orphanage she instead accepts a marriage proposal from the equally lonely lighthouse keeper, Captain Solo. | Wonderfully romantic! I love the dynamic and budding romance between Rey and Ben. Just the right amount of angst and small town drama. The ending is tooth-rottingly sweet!

The Ballad of You, Me, and Everything in Between by bluetoast | @blue-toast17 | Explicit | 27k | Complete | 1960's AU | A/B/O | Strangers to lovers | Road trip | Porn with Plot | lactation kink | breeding kink | Domestic Fluff | Falling in love | HEA | Multi POV | "Alpha Ben Solo just wanted to get to his new job in Yellowstone National Park by the weekend. He'd had it planned out - get through the major cities outside of rush hours, be there and settled by Saturday. Pretty easy, considering most traffic was headed east, to Woodstock. That was before an omega named Rey Johnson tapped on the window of his Volkswagen bus in some spit in the dirt town in Ohio asking for a ride." | No drama, just fluff, romance and lots of smut! I am such a sucker for a good period peice and bluetoast writes them well!

Back Together by UnderTheCancerMoon | Explicit | 20k | Complete | Modern AU | Infidelity | Strangers to friends to lovers | Drama | Minor Rey/Poe & minor Ben/Bazine | Multi POV | Rey discovers her husband has been having an affair with a colleague. Ben's wife abruptly leaves him after telling him she's in love with someone else. An unusual relationship develops as two strangers try to figure out how to put back the pieces of their broken lives. | Deliciously angsty! A brilliant peice about hurting people finding love again. Every time I read this fic, I can't get over how 'real' these characters and the world they inhabit feel!

the man, the stallion, and the wind by voicedimplosives  | @voicedimplosives | Explicit | 17k | Oneshot | Modern AU | Roadtrip | Strangers to lovers | Snowed In | Multi POV | Weary and alone, Rey barrels west on the Trans-Canada Hwy in her old pickup truck. Weary and in need of a lift, Ben Solo stands by the side of the road with his thumb out, in the hopes of hitching a ride. One hell of a winter storm’s about to roll in, leaving them stranded. What ever shall they do? | it's a pretty predictable plot but the charcterizations feel so genuine that you don't mind at all. Well written with interesting backstory and steamy smut and delicious chemistry. And it's set in Canada too!

The Tenant of Theed Cottage by WaterlilyRose | @waterlilyrose | Explicit | 9k | Oneshot | Historical AU | Regency | Family Drama | PWP | Rey POV | Rey has been a ward of the Organa-Solo family since the age of six. Her memories of their only son Ben Solo are brief but powerful. Now, after a thirteen year absence, he has taken possession of a home within close range of his old family seat. Rey believes a reconciliation can come about. The man is not the boy she remembers and she could soon come to realise she longs for more than the return of a boy she knew so briefly but now recognises as a powerful man. | This feels like a Jane Austen movie adaptation! Steamy AF and Love the plot!

The Runners Up

More fics that I adore, have re-read many times, and you absolutley should read!

Canonverse

Pulling Apart the Coils by angharabbit | @angharabbit | Mature | 18k | Complete | Canonverse | Force Bond | Assasination attempts | Kylo POV | A series of visits while Rey tries to keep the Falcon flightworthy, and Kylo Ren tries to pretend his situation isn't even more precarious. | Great characterization! Love the plot! Why couldn't TROS be this good!?

by any other name by LovesBitca8 | @lovesbitca8 | Explicit | 5k | Oneshot | Canonverse | Multi POV | While out on a mission, Rey is taken by a bounty hunter who doesn’t know she’s the last Jedi, because Rey gives her last name as ‘Solo’. The new Supreme Leader is made aware, and is very curious to know why Rey’s giving his old last name as hers. | Well written and steamy. Way better than TROS.

Modern AUs

(won’t you let me) walk you home from school by somethingdifferent | Explicit | 130k | complete | Modern AU | Teachers | Co-workers | Enemies-to-lovers | Hate-to-love | slow burn | fuck buddies | idiots in love | Ben POV | Ben is an asshole. A former lawyer, turned high school councilor who works at the prestigious private school that he, himself, was expelled from. Rey is an adorable art teacher who is everything he despises and who does not take his shit. They clash to say the least. He hates her. Then he wants to fuck her. Then he falls in love with her. If he plays his cards right he might get everything he never knew he wanted. | Jessie's note: this might be the greatest enemies-to-lovers I have ever read! The prose is top notch, the characterization is fascinating, the slow transition from hate-to-attraction-to-love is so brilliantly done.

Almost Perfect by LadyReylo | Explicit | 97k | Complete | modern AU | Sex work | Sex therapy | Doctors | illness | Angst | Poverty | Drama | client/patient dynamic | fake/pretend relationship | Multi POV | After recovering from a life threatening brain tumour, Ben has lost his confidence in sex and relationships. So he gets in touch with Rey, a specialised sex worker, to help him get over his anxieties. Rey has always had to fight to survive and is still struggling to get by. But when she lets her carefully built walls down around her new client, things will get far more complicated than she ever could have imagined. | Masterfully crafted! So engaging and interesting! Brilliant story that packs an emotional punch (okay, multiple angsty punches) and is SO EFFING HOT! So much steamy smut. Great characterization and backstory for Rey! (And Ben too, and an interesting take on Han and Leia). SO ANGSTY AND DELICIOUS! My heart broke over and over again!

your boots beneath my bed by irridesca | @earstwo | Explicit | 11k | Oneshot | Modern AU | Ranching | Cowboys | Strangers to friends to lovers | hair braiding | smut | Rey POV | After the death of her former boss, Rey gets a job as a wrangler at Skywalker Ranch-- where she crosses paths with the prickly forman Ben Solo. | Despite the simmering tension this is so soft and romantic!

Something From Nothing by lifeofsnark | Explicit | 18k | Complete | Modern AU | Flashbacks | Growing up together | Friends to lovers | PTSD | Amputee!Ben Solo | Family Drama | Multi POV |  Ben returns from his naval service missing a hand and missing a purpose in life. While reclimatizing at his uncle's ranch he runs into childhood friend Rey who now builds tiny houses. | So much more than than just a romance! Brillaint story and characterization.

something beautiful but annihilating by SecretReyloTrash | @secretreylotrash | Explicit | 41k | complete | Modern AU | Strangers to lovers | boss/employee dynamic | Ben POV | Touch-starved, heartless Wall Street Exec Kylo Ren just wants a safe place to park his godson for an afternoon: desperately choosing a Toddler Time Story Hour at New York Public Library. What he doesn't anticipate is that an instantaneous connection has him trapped by the reader's voice; and the lengths he will go to hear it again. Rey reluctantly agrees to their arrangement: paid by the hour to read out loud to him. | Beautifully written with fantastic characterization. The complexity and emotional depth is just... staggering. (Like all of the author's works!) So compelling I had to finish reading it in one go. | House keeping: Chapters 1-5 are the main fic, and ch 6 is a sequel in Rey's POV that IS VERY DIFFERENT.

Birthday Present by Celia_and | Explicit | 12k | Complete | Modern AU | Texting | Epistolary | Angst | Abandonment Issues | Wealth inequality | Sexting | Long distance relationship | pining | light dom/sub | slight growing up together vibes | Rey and Poe are siblings | Rey POV | On the night of her 21st birthday, college student Rey drunkenly sexts her brother’s friend, Ben. | The first few chapters are deceptively light and funny and fluffy because this fic is packing major feels! So fucking good. Insanely hot smut. Insanely powerful emotions. So brilliantly written!

Let Go (Never Let Me Go) by crossingwinter | @shmisolo | Explicit | 14k | complete | Modern AU | Tinder | Getting to know each other | Rey POV | In which Rey swipes right on "Ben, 35. Probably too much of an asshole for you, but my therapist is trying to convince me that assholes deserve love too, so here’s me on Tinder," and it does not proceed as she expects. | Omg the emotional journey they go on is so satisfying. Love it. The characterization is top notch!

Come Full Circle by Denzer | @denzerwriter | Explicit | 3k | One shot | Modern AU | Established relationship | Break ups | Make up sex | Enagements | Ben POV | Ben hasn’t done this since he was seventeen and hanging out with the wrong crowd, with his fathers' car and a desperate need to prove himself. But he needs to prove something now and this is all he has. | or Rey is trying to break up with him, Ben is trying to propose. He needs to do something rash. | Fucking brilliant. Angsty and romantic with a rich level of depth despite the 3k length.

Bespoke by fettuccine_alfreylo | Explicit | 38k | Complete | Modern AU | Hollywood | Actor!Ben | Stylist!Rey | Pining | Posessive!Ben | HEA | Multi POV | Ben solo is an up and comming actor who is nominated for some big awards - and he needs to look the part. Enter stylist Rey. Sparks fly. They have undeniable chemistry but is Rey ready for a life in the spotlight? | Great story with a crazy chemistry, a tense build up, topped off with some steamy smut. Dramatic but not angsty.

Public Participation by angharabbit | @angharabbit | Explicit | 59k | Complete | Modern AU | Enemies to lovers | Hate Sex | DRAMA | Character death | Bendemption | Canada | Multi POV | Rey's a heritage planner, Kylo's the right-hand of a corrupt property developer trying to tear down The Falcon. Sparks fly, things get messy. | Brilliant re-imagining of canon in a modern setting! So. Much. Steamy. Smut!

Body of Work by amybeegood | Explicit | 58k | Complete | Modern AU | Serial killers | Dark!Fic | Murder | Graphic depiction of violence | dub/con | hate sex | kidnapping | Revenge | reference to past child abuse | Falling in love | Kindred Spirits | DRAMA/ACTION | Las Vegas | Mafia | Multi POV | He’s a serial killer who murders hitchhikers. She’s a serial killer who murders the people who pick her up. An unconventional love story. | Delicious! Love their chemistry and dynamic.

For Now by Celia_and | Explicit | 8k | Complete | Modern AU | Soulmates | Co-workers | Angst | HEA | Ben POV | Ben realizes that he and Rey are soulmates, but doesn't tell her because they both hate the whole concept. Instead they start a no-strings-attached thing. | So beautifully crafted, with brillaint backstories.

Modern AU - Comedy

Fool Me Once by KyloTrashForever | Explicit | 5k | Oneshot | Modern AU | Blind date | Prank | Comedy | Multi POV | Poe sets Rey up on a blind date with his friend. He tells Ben he's found him an ideal roommate who he just needs to interview. Misunderstandings commence. | Funny and cute- love the small details!

Revenge is a Dish Best Served Loud by andabatae | @andabatae-writes | Explicit | 10k | Complete | Modern AU | Neighbors | Revenge | Pranks | Comedy | Virgin!Ben Solo | Rey POV | “Rey is so done hearing her neighbor's sex life that when she sees him she gives him piece of her mind. Turns out, Ben, the neighbor, is not even in town during those sexcapades, it's his friend he asked to housesit. Together they plot revenge.” | Hilarious and cute

The Unfortunate Incident by LoveofEscapism | @loveofescapism | Explicit | 17k | Complete | PWP | Modern AU | Strangers to lovers | Prank War | Comedy | Multi POV | Rey recruits Ben's calligraphy skills to help her get revenge on her asshole neighbour Hux. And if she and Ben happen to have incredible chemistry? Even better. | Hilarious and steamy with great tension. Great characterization all around. Love the plot.

Give Thanks With A Grateful Heart by FoxesDance | Explicit | 40k | Complete | Modern AU | Comedy | Crack | Thanksgiving | Strangers to lovers | Pretend/fake relationship | Pretend(?) Daddy Kink | Family dynamic | Misunderstandings | Smut, so much smut | Multi POV | Ben Solo's parents wont stop pestering him to get a girlfriend, so he hires broke college student Rey to pretend to be his girlfriend over thanksgiving. Neither of them expected their own raw chemistry or how determined his mother is to have grandchildren. | Absolutley hilarious! Incredible charcterizations! (Luke, Leia and Poe were highlights!)

Modern AU - Smuty oneshots

59 Minutes by delia-pavorum | @delia-pavorum | Explicit | 9k | One shot | Modern AU | PWP | Movie star!kylo ren | Film festival | one-night-stand | Rey POV | Film Festival Volunteer Rey Johnson has an awkward run-in with famous movie star Kylo Ren. | Delicious! I absolutley love the ending!

Minus 1 by Ever-so-reylo | @ever-so-ali | Explicit | 5k | Oneshot | modern AU | Anonymous sexting | Boss/employee | PWP | Rey POV | Rey texts the wrong number, all she knows is that they work at the same company as her. They bond over 80s movies and sexting. It's not like it could be her boss right? | Funny and cute and steamy!

Saving Mr. Wanks by LovesBitca8 | @lovesbitca8 | Explicit | 7k | Oneshot | PWP | Modern AU | Office dynamic | Co-workers | Crack | Masturbation | Rey POV | Rey from HR has to attend a meeting to address "Mr. Wanks" an employee that jerks off on office time -- to Reys horror it's Ben Solo the coworker she has been fantasizing about. | Insanely funny, insanely steamy!

Tender Thing (Stay The Night) by vuas | Explicit | 4k | Oneshot | Modern AU | Boss/employee dynamic | Roomates | Nanny!Rey | Single dad!Ben Solo | Breeding kink | Rey POV | It makes sense: she’s there all the time anyway, so when her lease is up, Rey takes the spare room at the house. She’ll just ignore her burgeoning attraction to Mister Solo. Easy. | Love how organic their romance feels! So fucking hawt.

The Girl in Terminal B by nightsofreylo | @nightsofreylo | Explicit | 12k | Complete | Modern AU | Strangers to lovers | One-night-stand | Porn with Plot | open-ending | Multi POV | Ben and Rey meet serendipitously when their identical luggage gets mixed up at the airport. Sparks fly but Ben is only in town for a few nights. | Oh. My. God. This is just so much more than some exceptionally good smut. So well written, a beautifully crafted story.

Modern AU - A/B/O

just for tonight (and the rest of our lives) by ABeautifulBreakdown | Explicit | 49k | Complete | Modern AU | A/B/O | Alpha x Omega | Strangers to lovers | One Night Stand | Accidental Mating | Angst | Rough Sex | Unplanned Pregnancy | Headstrong!Rey | Soft!Ben Solo | Rey POV | "It's nothing more than attraction, two strangers at a bar who happen to be biologically compatible. It doesn't mean anything, it's just sex. People do it all the time, hook up, fool around, fuck... But what happens when biology is too hard to resist? All it takes is one bite, just one to change everything." | Delicious and emotional! Fascinating charcterizations! This hit all my kinks 🥵

Patient Zero by ProtonBeam | Mature | 69k | complete | Modern AU | A/B/O | Alpha  x Omega | House MD vibes | Venom vibes | Doctors and patients | "mysterious" symptoms | Alaska | wolf bites | mating habits of wolves | side gingerose | side stormpilot | doctor!Ben Solo | wildlife researcher!Rey | Falling in love | banter | Ben POV | "Dr. Benjamin Solo, Head of Diagnostic Medicine at Coruscant Memorial Teaching Hospital has his fancy tickled by a case. Rey Niima, female, 26, a month's worth of woefully underwhelming hospital charts. A series of inexplicably linked symptoms and no diagnosis in sight. That’s why her file arrives on his desk. He’s the most sought after diagnostician in the country. Prick extraordinaire. Mr. Dry-humour but only at the expense of others. He likes solving complex cases for the sheer thrill of unravelling what others can’t. And he’s finally met his match. If only she could stop saying “Alpha?” Clinical Note: How did the omegaverse start? Or shall we call it the alphaverse? Where did designations come from? It all started with one Patient Zero." | Engaging prose and witty dialogue. Love the dynamics of this fic. It's also a great introduction to the Omegaverse for new readers to a/b/o fics!

can't turn off what turns me on by audreyii_fic | @audreyii-fic | Explicit | 26k | Complete | Modern AU | A/B/O | Alpha x Omega | Hookup-app type dynamic | Strangers to lovers | Virgin!Ben Solo | Tragic-backstory type angst | Multi POV | Rey needs help with her heat, and retired mercenary Ben answers the call. He falls fast, but Rey has been hurt in the past and runs from a good thing. | Brilliant characterizations! The author's notes are hilarious and are worth reading alone.

An Unexpected Vacation by tigbit | Explicit | 61k | Complete | Modern AU | A/B/O | Alpha x Omega | Doctors/Scientists | Medical Exam | Strangers to lovers | Fucking for science! | Multi POV | "In which Rey attempts to bolster her bank account by volunteering to fuck an Alpha in a scientific study. Plans go pear-shaped when she accidentally triggers scientist!Ben’s first Rut." | So interesting and steamy! It has a delightful (and super romantic) sequel too!

Alpha's Conquest by Immortalpen | Explicit | 80k | Complete | Apocalyptic AU | Canonverse-ish (think star wars without lightsabers) | A/B/O | Alpha x Omega | Enemies to lovers | terrorist!Kylo Ren | War | Angst | Action/Drama | Tragic backstory | Bendemption | HEA | Rey POV | dark!fic | Content Warning: Rape/sexual assault (multiple), Death: terrorism/war casualties, executions | "In a dystopian world, far far away, a war between designations has left alpha's medicated and conditioned out of their instincts, and omegas fading out of existence. An escaped convict discovers a rare omega, hidden in plain sight, and he will not rest, until she is his." | This fic is fucking brilliant! It's been a while since I've read a fic that has been this engrossing! I couldnt stop reading and had to force myself to get some sleep. The author took an original premise, weaved in canon, and then gave it an ending that was satisfying to both canon and the unique world they created! (Way better than that TROS garbage). With fantastic characterization (especially Rey!) and dynamic, engaging prose and storytelling! Brilliant worldbuilding and setting.

Historical AUs

light carries on endlessly by lachesisgrimm | Mature | 6k | Oneshot | Hades/persephone | Strangers to lovers | Ben POV | The king of the Underworld is okay being alone. He thinks. Until he finds a runaway nymph in his bed . Rey is just the right kind of feisty he needs. | Wonderfully creative! the best adaptation of Hades and Persephone I've read!

go i know not whither and fetch i know not what by voicedimplosives | @voicedimplosives | Explicit | 119k | Complete | 1990s, | Russia | New York | Russian mafia/organized crime | Strangers to lovers | Roadtrip | Criminal!kylo | Drama |Graphic depiction of violence | Angst | Redemption | Witness Protection | Long-ass chapters | Multi POV | 1994, Rey travels to Russia to learn about her biological mother. She gets tangled up with Russian Mobster Kyril Ren. Sexy roadtrip ensure but ultimately ends in heart break as Rey returns to the US and Kyril and the Russia mob shorty follow -- to kill Rey's adoptive father Luke. | Engaging prose with dynamic chemistry. Fascinating characterization! Steamy AF. So detailed. Learn from my mistakes: do not binge in one night

Take Me by slipgoingunder | Explicit | 39k | complete | 1960s AU | Enemies to lovers | Fake relationship | Country music stars | Period typical sexism & racism | Huddled for warmth | multi POV | "On stage each night Rey and Ben are lovers singing to each other, off stage they hate each other's guts. Getting locked in a freezing tour bus overnight by their asshole band might just change everything" | All the research so paid off and it's such a great immersive period piece. Great enemies to loves. Well written, great chemistry. Poe is an asshole and I love it.

Near Kinsman by englishable | @englishable | Teen | 4k | Oneshot | Historical AU | late 1800s | Western | Mail order bride | Epistolary | Rey POV | Rey has her own personal reasons for answering that anonymous bachelor's advertisement in the heart-and-hand mail-order bride catalog, but the respectable Mr. Brigadier General Benjamin Solo needn't find out such trifling details. (The big fat pack of lies Rey has to tell him about herself is besides the point. Anything is better than being a nobody.) | so immersive and engaging! Love this Rey! The feelz this fic delivers....! *chef kiss* So well written (emulating the style of the time). Brilliant world building with weaving canon into it.

Homestead Fire by ladyofreylo | Explicit |4k | One shot | PWP | Historical AU | 1876 | Frontier | Homesteading | Developing relationship | Loss of virginity | Proposals | Ben POV | In this story, Ben Solo is a homesteader trying to court O. Kenobi's adopted daughter whilst on the prairie. He believes he will make Miss Rey a good husband. He shows her how when he stops by to chop wood and build up her fire. | Adorable and awkward and steamy AF!

Repairer of the Fences by englishable | @englishable | Teen | 38k | Complete | Historical AU | 1890's | strangers to friends to lovers | Farming/homesteading | Domesticity | SLOW BURN | lots of flashbacks | Rey POV | Rey inherits Luke's farm and properties upon his death; a complication arises when his long-thought-dead nephew returns to stake a claim. Rey isn't relinquishing what's hers... but winter is coming and an extra set of hands might be helpful. | Engaging prose with a delightful attention to detail that engishable excels at. The SLOW BURN...! so many beautiful and delightful 'episodes' that make for a rich changing dynamic between Ben and Rey... seriously there is so much crammed in here! And yeah, it's rated Teen and there is no smut, but the make-out session in the final chapter was surprisingly steamy!

Mr. Solo & Miss Wellfound by LinearA | @linearla | Explicit | 9k | Oneshot | Historial AU | Victorian | Enemies to lovers | Marriage | Rey POV |Rey accidentally exposes an ankle infront of Mr. Solo. No one else might have noticed it, but Rey soon realizes that Mr. Solo watches her so intently. She soon takes great delight by finding ways to torture him with her dress, or rather her lack of it. The only way for him to get back at her (of course) is to marry her. | Delicious tension and engaging prose! Their chemistry is delicious. Well written in the syle of the period. Steamy AF.

WIPs

These are in progress and they are captivating!

in want of a wife by AquaWolfGirl | @aquawolfgirl | Explicit | 61k | WIP | Last updated: 2021-05-26 | Histroical AU | Regency | Class difference | marriage of convenience | Strangers to friends to lovers | Multi POV | Lord Ben Solo has no interest in the ladies of his degree. After years of associating with them and corresponding with even more, he fails to find a potential partner in any of the women he's met. In need of (and desperately wanting for) a wife, someone to care for and adore, he publishes an advertisement in the paper. Miss Rey Jackson, a woman of low social standing and no family of her own, decides to take a chance and inquire. At the very least, if he refuses her for a wife, she can see if there's a scullery maid position, right? | So soft and romantic!

One Above All by AquaWolfGirl | @aquawolfgirl | Explicit | 131k | WIP | Last updated: 2021-05-20 | Historical AU | Conquerors/emperors | Forced marriage | Enemies to friends to lovers | Slow burn | Romance | Politics | Action/Drama | Mention of past abuse | no smut yet | Multi POV | Rey didn't expect her arranged union to Emperor Snoke to be happy, considering her parents sold her hand in marriage for a decent sum of gold, but she didn't expect it to end this soon, either. Married to a tyrant, Rey isn't surprised when the people of his empire come to see his blood spilled. But she is surprised when Kylo Ren, named 'king killer', becomes emperor and decides to not only keep her alive, but take her as his own empress. | Phenomenal world building! The slowest of slow burns!

Out of Water by AquaWolfGirl | @aquawolfgirl | Explicit | 33k | WIP | Last updated: 2021-05-02 | Modern AU | Mermaids | Enemies to friends to lovers | Food Porn | Ben POV | When ex-rocker Kylo Ren buys a lakehouse, he expected to relax near where he spent his summers as Ben Solo. He expected peace and quiet, with fresh fish and lazy days spent enjoying the sun. He most certainly didn't expect for a vicious mermaid to insist this part of the lake is hers, and to get the fuck out. | This fic makes me wanna go dip my toes in a lake and then cook a gourmet meal. Great characterizations and dynamic between Rey and Ben.

Transference by fear_of_being_bitten | @newer-fear | Explicit | 52k | WIP | Last updated: 2021-04-25 | modern AU | Therapist!Rey | Sex-addict!Ben | doctor/patient dynamic | therapy | taboo relationship | sexual tension | sloooow burn | Rey POV | Ben Solo has a problem with sex. He’s addicted to his power over women, to the dominance and control. He’s very good at it and at using sex to avoid real connection and emotional vulnerability. Dr. Rey Niima knows this because she’s the one treating him. | So frickin brilliant and fascinating. Utterly delicious with dyanmic banter!

Alpha & Omega: New Mating and Coupling Dynamics by ProtonBeam | Explicit | 87k | WIP | last update: 2021-03-21 | Modern AU | A/B/O | Alpha x Omega | House MD vibes | Venom vibes | Doctors and patients | Alaska | Budding Relationship | doctor!Ben Solo | wildlife researcher!Rey | Ben POV | The Sequel to Patient Zero, "What happens when you wake up and find yourself mated? Dr. Ben Solo's new mate is everything he never knew he needed. She's fierce, stubborn, and witty. Her file was dropped off on his desk merely a week ago. Now that he's unravelled the mystery of her condition and found himself a newly presented Alpha ... she's going into her first heat. Come along on Dr. Solo's first heat/rut adventure to Anchorage. Watch him fumble. Watch him knot. Watch him make an adorkable ass of himself." | It's like 60k of heat smut 🤤 Great prose and characterization so far. Utterly fascinating examination/exploration of A/B/O tropes.

The Games We Play by CaptainCabinets | @captaincabinetsao3 | Explicit | 66k | WIP | Last updated: 2021-03-09 | Modern AU | Missed connections | the-one-that-got-away | Infidelity | pining | poe/rey | ben/kaydal | Multi POV | After a chance meeting in college they reunite years later- both married to other people. They start an affair that both destroys and heals their lives. | *snorts this fic like cocaine* So angsty and delicious!

Just On This Island by RedParade | Explicit | 17k | WIP | Last updated: 2021-02-23 | Historical AU | 1900's | Shipwrecked | Desert Island | South Pacific | Strangers to friends to lovers | pining | Deaf!Ben Solo | Unhappy marriage(Rey/Poe) | infidelity | drama | multi POV | CW: noncon/rape elements (Rey's wedding night sucked) | "At nineteen, Rey Andor agrees to a marriage arranged by her uncle and guardian, Lord Kenobi. Soon after the wedding, Rey must travel to her new home across the Pacific, accompanied by her husband's deaf cousin, Ben Solo. After their ship is ravaged and the two are stranded on a deserted island, Rey and Ben must overcome language barriers, a lack of practical skills, secrets, and a burgeoning attraction in order to survive till help arrives." | This fic is something else. Brilliant premise with great worldbuilding and dynamics. Engaging prose, with a great flavour of historical authenticity. Fascinating characterizations! (I secretly love when Poe is cast as an antagonist).

In the In Between by simplyabbey | @simplyabbeycat | Explicit | 90k | WIP | last updated 2021-02-15 | Modern AU | A/B/O | Alpha x Omega | Strangers to lovers | One night stand | Rockstar!Kylo Ren | Music Industry | Accidental Mating | Long distance relationship | Angst | light dom/sub | Rey POV | "Alpha rockstars are like tissues. One time use. So why does Rey have such a hard time disposing of guitarist Kylo Ren after a night of indulgence? She’d blamed it on her omega pheromones and his alpha allure the first time. But the longer she dances with the devil, the more she sees the fire inside him isn’t as fearless as he wants her to believe." | Fantastic prose and excellent characterization so far! And the worldbuilding--! So well written! Lots of great details that make it very immersive. Lots of great a/b/o tropes too! Taking an angsty turn that is FANTASTIC!

baby, it will bury us by diasterisms @kylorenvevo | Explicit | 42k | WIP | Last updated: 2020-12-05 | Modern AU | Paris | Class difference | Sugar Daddy | Daddy kink | Ben POV | Businessman Ben meets waitress/college student Rey, and even though they have very different lives, sparks fly. Despite their powerful chemistry Ben is afraid of getting in too deep so he settles for an arrangement with Rey ... how long he can go without breaking his own rules remains to be seen. | Insanley hot 🥵

Just You by charcuterie | @chimichangasaredelicious | Explicit | 32k | WIP | Last updated: 2020-08-15 | Modern AU | Neighbours | texting | Strangers to friends to lovers | Banter | pianist!Ben | shitty-childhood-angst | multi POV | Rey and Ben are two strangers, across an alley way, who bond over Ben's piano playing. Their souls connect before they even see each other's faces. When they finally do meet face to face sparks fly! | Two imperfect people who fall in love over texting and piano music drifting across the alleyway. | THE BANTER. so well written with delicious chemistry - fascinating characterization -- incredible banter. Typical, dealing with shitty childhood, angst. Did I mention the dialouge and banter? Because its phenomenal. Rey and Ben are so damaged and so adorable togther and the author has just spun this incredible engaging way to tell it..

Mating Systems, Reproductive Success, and Sexual Selection in Secretive Species: A Case Study of the Wild Ahch-To Omega by NewerConstellations | @newer-fear | Explicit | 45k | WIP | Last update: 2020-02-22 | Modern AU | A/B/O | Beta x Omega | Alpha x Omega | Beta!Ben Solo | Scientist!Ben Solo | Feral Omega!Rey | Scientific Research | Ben POV | "For generations, Omegas have adapted to civilized environments, permanently impacting the expression of their DNA and pheromones. When a group of lost fisherman discovered an isolated population of feral Omegas on the remote island of Ahch-To, it offered a unique and precious opportunity to document their behavior in the wild. Research biologist Dr. Benjamin Solo spent a year living amongst the herd of Ahch-To Omegas and recorded his experiences, particularly his interactions with the Omega subject known as “Rey.” These are his findings." | Incredible world building! So fricken steamy and delicious!

No longer available

Incredible stories that for whatever reason are no longer available. I have downloads of these if anyone is interested.

Flux & Solder by angharabbit (Modern AU, neighbors)

The North Shore by strawberrycupcake_huckleberrypie (Modern AU, Notting Hill, meet-cute, falling in love, long distance relationship)

A Few Small Repairs by TourmalineGreen (Modern AU, enemies-to-lovers, neighbors, angst)

You should see the things we do by ever-so-reylo (Modern AU, roommates, enemies-to-lovers, non-linear storytelling)

Use your words by Yours_Truly_Commander_Shepard (Modern AU, office party, smuty oneshot)

The Food of Love by LovesBitca8 (Modern AU, Musicians)

lock the door, drop the key by strawberrycupcake_huckleberrypie (Modern AU, forbidden relationship, infidelity)

love it when you call me lover by KyloTrashForever (Modern AU, strangers to lovers, friends with benefits, banter)

*Whew*

That... that was a way bigger undertaking than I anticipated...

Happy Reading!

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The Gator Prince of Alderaan County

Chapter one now on ao3

https://archiveofourown.org/works/31608416/chapters/78214022

Rey needs something to keep her students busy. Her roommate’s boyfriend has “got a guy”. Only problem is the “guy” is the reclusive son of the local Gator King. Desperate place, desperate times, she guesses

…

Inspired by that gator AD photo and other Twitter shenanigans. I took a summer fever dream of mud, denim, and swamp gas and lit it up like an illegal firework.

There are texts. There are photos. There are adorable manips. There are songs. It's a full...experience...

(This is still a WIP on Twitter and you can find it here or through the hashtag #GatorPrince.)

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JOHN BOYEGA © Ricardo Rivera for HYPEBEAST 

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Din Djarin holding his son🥺💚

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To me, she’s royalty.

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Star Wars: Episode V - The Empire Strikes Back (1980) dir. Irvin Kershner

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Can’t stop thinking about this post by @dindjarindiaries​:

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Never not reblogging the OG hot prof

Harrison Ford as Indiana Jones (1981/1984)

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We’re a dyad in the Force, Rey. Two that are one.

REY & BEN SOLO in the Star Wars Sequel Trilogy (2015 - 2019)

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Adam Driver filming House of Gucci, 16th April 2021

Credit-Twitter/AdamDriverFiles

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Fleabag - This is a love story.

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Young Harrison Ford was a stone cold fox and I will defend that opinion to the grave