multitype | Open Post: Leia Organa

[Well, no one ever said Solo men were quick on the uptake with certain things. In the end, she's just glad he eventually did come around to the right side of things.]

But you did figure it out.

[Late or not, it counts for something in her eyes.]

"Kylo Ren" is gone for good?

[As in, he's happy to be just Ben Solo. She just... has to check here.]

[The certainty behind his gaze as he looks to her again would probably be enough of an answer, but he offers a verbal one anyway.]

He's dead as long as I have anything to say about it.

[But it's not as simple as that, either. Kylo Ren is dead, long live Ben Solo? Even if he had lived to tell the tale, cutting himself off from those last several years of his life would be unfair to everyone who suffered thanks to his actions. He's not just Ben Solo, or just Kylo Ren.]

But I can't just forget. Act like I'm not responsible for everything I did.

[She nods, agreeing with his view on this. As glad as she is that he's come around and realized who he really is, he can't just pretend Kylo Ren never happened. Even she can't forget it, and her experience with Ben as Kylo was limited to only their time here. She can only imagine it would have been stranger for anyone here from his own time if he had acted if Kylo never existed.]

No, you can't. It would be a disservice.

[Because his mother or not, she won't sit here and argue that it's all fine and he can just be Ben now.]

But you can't forget to find what you enjoy now, too.

[He huffs a breath through his nose, eyelids drooping with something other than fatigue. What he enjoys, huh. Even if he did fully agree with that, seven years of violent asceticism preceded by thirteen years of a slightly less violent less strict asceticism meant enjoyment was rarely a priority. He leans forward, propping his chin against his palm.]

Easier said than done.

[She gives a small, knowing little smile at that. There's an entire part of Ben's life that she would have known in his time but has no idea of here. What she knows is only what he let her see, or she heard about from others, in their time here. Which, as always, is not as much as she would like. But the feeling of not knowing what he himself enjoys? That's something she knows very well herself.

She wants to give suggestions or advice or anything that might help, but at the same time, she doesn't want to fall back on things that might come off as "Han liked this, so maybe you will."]

You built that droid you used to own here, didn't you?

[But she doesn't know if that was out of enjoyment, or if he had a need for it.]

[He supposes he's had a few "hobbies" in a vague sense of the word, pursuits that were both useful and satisfying—history, flying, tinkering sorts of things. It's not as if he couldn't continue along those lines in some way, but the other side of the issue from not knowing he enjoys is whether he really deserves to indulge in that.

His shoulders slump with a quiet sigh through his nose. The mention of the droid brings up other things he doesn't want to tackle right now, but instead of the no response he wants to give, he at least makes a noise of agreement, even if it's not very enthusiastic.]

[Unfortunately for his wishes, that less than enthusiastic sound doesn't escape Leia's attention. And rather than continuing to come up with suggestions he might be interested in pursuing, Leia's most pressing pursuit now is that sound.]

Is there something else?

[There's definitely a lot more to it, but he doesn't want to focus on what he's lost—Hux leaving and taking the droid he'd grown fond of is what he probably deserved, anyway. More selfishly, thinking about himself is depressing, and he'd rather consider what little good he might be able to do.]

I need to do more.

[He should have done more. There's not much he can change about that now, but...]

I don't know where to start.

Then let me help.

[Not that she hadn't been trying, that she didn't always want to help. But there's a difference now in that she has a feeling he's more likely to accept that help. If he's Ben now, not Kylo Ren, there's a chance, she thinks.]

We can probably find something for you here.

[Ben lets out a huff through his nose that's almost a laugh, raising his eyebrows at her in a tired way.]

You can never ignore a hopeless cause, can you?

It seems like that's a trait all Solo men have.

[Han's a different sort of hopeless, though. And in the end, being a hopeless dork with an obvious massive crush worked out for him.]

If only we had Chewie's help here.

[Because if anyone other than Leia is a Solo expert, it's Chewie. Han would be dead 5000 times over without Chewie.]

[Yeah... speaking of Chewie fighting for Han's sake...]

Maybe it's better we don't. He shot me the last time I saw him.

[~~As far as I know until some comic proves me otherwise.~~ He doesn't sound bitter, though; he definitely deserved it at the time.]

[Well. At least he didn't rip his arms out.

But regardless, Leia winces.]

If it helps any, I know your father can say that about more than a few people in his life.

[There's a pause as Ben considers this with a furrow in his brow.]

I don't know that it does. [As much as he looked up to his dad, emulating what a disaster he was when he was young... was not really on his list of priorities.]

But thanks.

[It's not a funny situation at all, honestly. None of what Ben has told her, what he's been through, none of it is in any way amusing. But his response just now, that somehow cuts the tension she's been feeling since seeing Ben sitting there, on the verge of tears.

Leia lets out a short, breathy sort of laugh, shaking her head.]

We'll figure something out, Ben. It's... difficult, finding something you like for your own sake, but it might be easier here.

[Without all the baggage of their galaxy here.]

[Eh, it's not like he'll blame her for taking what joy she can out of the situation. Being laughed at is the least he deserves anyway.]

Maybe.

[It's hard for him to feel any decent amount of hope for his future here, but... it's something. He's lived here for so long that he's still a part of this community, even if he doesn't know if it feels like home. It's all he has, now.]

Open Post: Leia Organa

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