Whoo, long time! But here is a new chapter. I had a bit of writer's block so I just kept thinking about how this would go. I came up with an idea and I hope it works. I think it will.

He was coming! His damn father was coming. Why couldn't he just die already? Why did he always have to ruin everything?! These were the thoughts running through Kylo Ren's mind as he destroyed yet another training bot in anger. Han Solo was going to ruin all of his carefully laid plans. It didn't help that Kylo's mother had basically told Solo where they were. Solo would be there soon, and Kylo was sure Skywalker and the girl would be following. They were all going to ruin everything. He hated them all.

Throwing down his lightsaber, Ren turns and leaves the room, stepping over another destroyed training droid smoldering near the door. He steps out into the hot midday sun and squints at the brightness of it. He feels a twinge of pain in his side and his hand moves to hold his side. Stupid wound. He still didn't understand why it hurt. But that was no matter at the moment. He had to go see his mother before the enemy arrived. Turning he walks along the dusty path towards another door leading into the mountain. He instantly feels the cold and darkness as he steps inside, like a blanket being placed over his shoulders. It was comforting, safe. He strides down the hall, his feet taking him to the door of the cell where his mother was being kept. He doesn't bother to knock. He just uses the palm reader to open the locked door and walks inside.

Leia was lying on the small cot in her cell, her eyes closed. Her whole body hurt, her head felt like it would explode at any moment. But that hurt didn't compare to the emotion she felt in her heart at the thought of her son and how far he'd fallen. He had been such a sweet boy, now, he was just a monster. And she couldn't bear to look at him. Not anymore. It just hurt too much.

Ren stood silently watching his mother for a moment. An unfamiliar and unwanted emotion rises inside of him. He felt sorry for his mother. She looked to be in pain, something he was used to seeing, used to inflicting on others. But his mother hurting like she was made him want to comfort her, make her feel better. A memory sweeps through his mind, one of his mother holding him when he'd fallen from a tree and broken his arm when he was five. She had been so gentle and kind and loving. He could even remember the sound of her voice as she used to Force to soothe him before his father came. They had taken him to the med center and soon he'd had a cast and no pain. His parents had been so worried about him and he'd had all their attention until his arm had healed completely a week later. Kylo frowns, the light side pulling at him, whispering that he could go home; he could still have his parents' love. He steels himself against the pull, wrapping the darkness around him, feeling the light receding. Still the memory lingered. He pushes it aside, focusing on the task at hand. "Are you in pain, Mother?"

Leia finally opens her eyes, her head slowly turning to look at the figure all clad in black standing near the door to her cell. He wasn't wearing that damn mask, so she could clearly see his face in the light of the room. He really did take after his father. Why couldn't he be saved? A tear leaks out the corner of her right eye, making a trail through the blood and grime on her face. She ignores it though and nods her head. Ben hadn't tried to help her before so she should be wary of his question, try to act strong in front of the enemy. But she just felt too much pain so anything he offered her she was going to take, at least for now.

Ren nods and turns, leaving the cell. He returns a few minutes later with a small box. Moving a chair next to her cot he sits down and places the box on the floor. He pulls out a small needle and loads it with some liquid from a medicine bottle. He then holds out his hand so his mother can give him her arm. When she hesitates he frowns. "You want the pain meds or not?" He waits for her to place her elbow against his hand then administers the shot. Once that was down he lets go of Leia's arm and places the needle back into the box with the medicine bottle. He then pulls out a container and opens it, pulling out a small cloth. He then begins cleaning the blood and grime from her face, as well as sanitizing her cuts and scrapes. Phasma sure did a number on his mother. He would have to teach her a lesson in restraint. His hand stills for a moment as he catches his mother's eyes on him. He wanted to defend her. Where had that feeling come from? He decides to ignore the feeling for now and instead concentrates on the task at hand. When the cloth is dirty he places it back in the container, allowing the liquid inside to clean the cloth before he pulls it out again and resumes his work.

Leia was in shock. Ben was being…gentle! Perhaps there was still hope for him. Or was this just a ploy? They had placed a device on her wrist that was dampening her connection with the Force, making it feel fuzzy and disconnected. It bothered her, but with Ben being this close, she didn't need the Force to read him. She could just study his face and eyes. He was…comfortable, but conflicted. She wondered if this was the look he'd given Han before Ben ran her husband through with his lightsaber. Her eyes move to the weapon attached to her son's belt and then back up to Ben's face when he chuckles.

"I know what you're thinking. And no, I'm not going to kill you. At least not right now." He smirks then finishes cleaning her face. He could see all the bruising now, and it made his stomach turn so he looks away, busying himself with washing the cloth again before he turns his attention to her hands. He lifts her hand gently and places it on his knee, carefully washing the burns on the back of the hand. He stops to place some healing salve on the burns, then after cleaning her fingers and palm, he wraps her hand in clean bandages. He places her hand back on the bed and takes her other hand, leaning over her to do so. He does the same, cleaning it carefully, putting salve on any burns or cuts before he bandages the hand and places it back on the bed. He sits back down and winces as his side protests the movement.

Leia catches the look of pain on her son's face and frowns. "You're hurt."

Kylo looks at his mother and glares at her for a moment. He hated that she'd seen his weakness. But then a thought hits him. Maybe she could fix it for him. She'd done so in the past when he'd been in pain or hurt. He tilts his head to the side for a moment, and then nods slowly. "Yes. Solo's Wookiee tried to kill me when I stabbed Solo through the chest with my lightsaber." He ignores the flinch of sadness that crosses his mother's face and continues. "He shot me in the side. It never healed right."

Leia watches Ben for a moment, tempted to tell him he could live with the pain as punishment for trying to kill his father. She still didn't understand his hatred for Han. But in the end she was still Ben's mother and when her baby boy was hurting, she wanted nothing more than to make him better. Sitting up slowly, mostly because of the pain in her body, she turns to sit on the edge of the cot. She tries to reach out with the Force, but the cuff on her wrist made it hard. After a few moments of trying to reach out to her son she sighs and gives up. "I can't help you." She holds up her wrist. "This is blocking the Force remember?"

"You promise not to contact Solo again?"

Leia sighs softly. "Your father and I are connected, Ben. You know this. I can't promise he won't know where I am. I can promise not to contact him intentionally though. Will that work for you?" She watches as her son slowly nods and finally removes the cuffs from her wrists. The Force rushes back in fully and Leia can't help the taking a deep breath, even if that made the pain flare in her ribs. With a now free hand she pats the bed beside her, waiting for Ben to sit down. When he hesitates, she smiles lovingly at him. "Ben, it works better if I can hold you. Come on. Scared?"

Kylo snorts in disgust at being called scared and finally he moves to sit on the bed beside his mother. He stiffens when she places her arms around him, the urge to lean against her and rest his head on her shoulder quite strong within him. But he resists and stays sitting stiffly beside her. He could feel the pull of the light and like always he pushes it away, not wanting it to taint him.

Leia could feel her son fighting her, could feel him rejecting the light she was using to try and ease his pain. This wasn't going to work if Ben fought her every step of the way. Lifting a hand she softly runs her fingers gently through Ben's unruly curls. "When was the last time you brushed your hair?" She was trying to calm him, soothe him, like she always had when he was a child. If it worked, if she could get him to relax and let his guard down, well…maybe she could work on him a little; get him to see things differently.

Kylo glances at Leia, looking confused for a moment before he shrugs one shoulder. "This morning, why is that important?"

With a smile, Leia nods. "You've got some knots." He was still stiff so she tightens her hold on him and uses her hand to guide his head to her shoulder, then resumes petting his hair. "Just relax, Ben. I need you to relax if this is going to work. You want it to work don't you?"

Kylo did, the pain he was in everyday was really starting to get to him. So, against his better judgement, he closes his eyes and allows his mother to connect with him. His first instinct is to bolt but the soothing feeling of Leia's hand stroking his hair, and the warmth of her light flowing through him was just too tempting. For the first time in a very long time, Ben Solo felt…loved. Until now he had felt anger and betrayal and guilt and any other negative emotion there was. Now he felt almost like something he'd been searching for for so long was finally within reach.

Leia herself could feel the change in her son as soon as it happened. And now that she was able to touch the Force fully again, she uses it not only to heal Ben's wound, but to shield him as well, to keep anyone else, like Snoke, from noticing the change as well. She was thankful that Luke had taught her the shielding technique. As long as Ben didn't notice anything was amiss, she should be able to shield him against Snoke and the dark side for as long as she wanted. Oh how she wished Luke had taught her this when Ben was a child and having those horrific nightmares. Maybe she could have stopped them then. The thought of Ben crying and refusing to sleep as a child because he was so scared brings a tear to her eye.

Ben could feel his mother's emotions turn sad and so he wraps his arms around her and snuggles against her much like he had as a child. Actually, he was reacting more like the happy child he had been before Snoke had tried, and succeeded in destroying his happiness. With his mother blocking the negative, Ben could only feel the light, the positive, and it was...overloading his mind, causing him to revert to an almost childlike mindset. "It's ok, Mama. I'm ok now."

Leia blinks in shock as Ben actually hugs her. Glancing at Ben she finally realizes what she's done. Rather than just shield him from Snoke, she had also shielded him from the dark side of the Force as well. Her mind works rapidly to formulate a way of using this to help Ben. With a smile she shifts her body so she was facing Ben more. "I know, Sweetie. Is your pain gone?" She smiles at Ben's nod and kisses his forehead softly. "Good. I'm glad. Benny, I want to ask you something. And I know it might be hard to answer. But why do you not like your father anymore?"

Ben was confused. Not like Daddy? He loved Daddy. Daddy was smart and funny and tough and he, Ben, wanted to be just like him when he grew up. Why would he not like him? "I…what? I like Daddy, Mama. Do you not like him?"

Leia smiles a soft, motherly smile. How to do this without confusing the boy too much? Plus she knew he would need to leave eventually, and she could still shield him but she knew that wasn't right. For one, this childlike Ben wasn't right. It was why she was slowly pulling back to light, trying to get it to a normal level within her son, without letting the dark side in. Balance. Everything required balance. "I love your father, Ben. You know that. Just like I love you. But you, Ben, what do you remember last?"

Ben frowns, still extremely confused. But something was nagging at him. For one, he didn't feel like a boy. He remembers suddenly he wasn't. Right. He was grown up now. But…no he was forgetting something. Suddenly it all comes screaming back in, all but the touch of the dark side. He pulls away from his mother, looking at her with shock. "What did you do?!" The anger was growing. She had tricked him! Betrayed him! Usually he would feel the lick of the dark side by now, like flames to a piece of wood. Only…there was no darkness. Gritting his teeth he grabs his mother by the shoulders and lifts her up, shaking her a little. "What did you do?!"

Leia winces at the rough way Ben was holding her. She looks into his eyes and sees the fear and anger, but also a bit of madness as well. Lifting her hands she grabs his face, making him look her in the eyes. "Ben, it's ok. Just calm down. I am shielding you. It was the only way to heal you properly. You were fighting me too much."

"Give it back! Give it back!" He screams in her face, his anger and rage mixing into a madness within him. It isn't until he actually throws his mother into a wall that he stops. He stares at her crumpled form on the floor in shock, his mind screaming at him that what he'd just done was wrong and horrible. Without the dark side to tell him his anger was justified, that the abuse was what she deserved, a great feeling of guilt fills him. He moves to kneel beside Leia, his hand resting softly on her back. "Mother? I'm sorry."

Leia was having trouble focusing; her mind was fuzzy after her head connected with the wall. It takes her a few minutes to clear her mind before she can actually look at Ben. She turns and leans back against the wall, now sitting on the floor facing Ben. There were tears in her eyes as she smiles sadly at him. "Why do you hate your father, Ben?"

Frowning with anger and guilt, Ben shakes his head at him mother, standing up. Why was it always about him? Why did he hate his father? What had his father done to make him so angry? Gods! Why couldn't she just get it through her head that Han Solo was a poison in their life that needed to be eradicated?! Ben starts to pace as these frustrating thoughts swirl through his head. He hated him because...but no answer came to complete the sentence. Han Solo was not his father! But even that sentence he knew in his heart was wrong. Suddenly the questions started to shift from his mother's voice to his own. Why did he hate Han Solo? Why did he want his father to die? More and more these questions swirled through his head. Soon they became overpowering and he runs out of the cell, his head in his hands. The second his mother stops the shielding he feels the darkness come rushing back in. There were the answers. He hated his father because Solo was nothing. Solo was weak and his blood made Ben weak. His father needed to die because…because…damnit! Why couldn't he figure that out?!

Rushing to his master, Ben skids to a halt and drops to his knees in front of Snoke's high throne. He dare not look at Snoke; instead he kept his head bowed and spoke to the floor. "I have been corrupted, Master."

Snoke was debating what to do with the stupid boy. He had told him NOT to visit Organa anymore. She was influencing him far too much. Maybe he should have turned the boy more against the mother rather than the father. Maybe he still could. With a look of disgust on his ugly face, Snoke looks down at Ben. "I have felt it. I can still feel it. You are feeling love for Solo again. I told you Organa would corrupt you. Yet you did not heed my warning. Perhaps you truly are too weak."

Looking up quickly, Ben shakes his head. "I am not, Master!"

"YOU ARE!" roars Snoke as he stands from his throne and looks down on the pitiful boy. "You let her manipulate you. You should be using that pain to fuel your anger, like your grandfather did. But no, you choice to rid yourself of it and in turn were corrupted by a light sider. You are weak!"

"Then make me strong again, Master! You did it once when you told me of my true childhood!"

Snoke almost smirks at Ben as the boy looks up at him with hope in his eyes. Still too trusting. But he would use it to his advantage. "I will give you one, last chance, Kylo Ren. One last chance to prove yourself. Your father is coming. I will help you to be strong. But in exchange, you will kill your family, all of them. Only once you have done that, will you truly be strong. Like your grandfather before you. Now, open your mind. Allow me to refresh your memories." And with that he feels Ben open his mind to him. He can see the light had done its work, refreshing Ben's memories to the truth. But just like how he had corrupted the boy in the past, he does it again. And when he is finished, he dismisses Kylo and then returns to his planning. The Jedi was coming. He was going to make sure that this would be the end of Skywalker.

But no matter how hard Ben tried to justify in his mind that his father was weak and evil, something kept him questioning his own memories. So when he had returned to his quarters, his mind was still a jumble of questions. Yeah he remembers Han never being there when he was a kid. He remembers his father yelling at him, even hitting him a few times. He was never allowed to touch anything in the house. Solo had even called him a burden before, multiple times. But…what was real? Was Snoke's version real, or was his mother's version real? Had all these negative things happened? Ben was so confused by it all. A part of him swore he knew the truth, and that Snoke's version wasn't it. But then the dark side whispered to him Snoke was the only one he could trust.

It was all causing him to feel drained and so he lies down on his bed and closes his eyes. Sleep. He just needed sleep. And with the pain in his side gone, he knew he would sleep better than he had in a while. Soon he is fast asleep, his mind blissfully emptying of thought for the moment.

Leia could feel Ben's struggle. She was still connected to him and though she wasn't shielding him from the dark side anymore, she was shielding herself from it. This was why Snoke couldn't feel her when he was inside Ben's mind. But she had seen it all, seen the way Snoke had poisoned Ben's own memories of Han. Of even herself. It broke her heart to have to see the damage being done to her son, knowing that even if she knew the truth and could feed it to him, Ben wouldn't trust her word over Snoke's. No. She needed someone else to help Ben. And…for the first time in…well ever, Leia opens her mind to the Force, and searches.

Surprisingly, she finds him easy. He was nearby, watching over her. Strange. She thought he'd be more connected to Luke. But there he was, Anakin Skywalker, Darth Vader, her father.

At first she doesn't know what to say. Neither of them spoke. They just contemplated each other. Then Anakin smiles and nods to her. "Leia."

And all Leia can think to do is one thing. "If you really are my father and if you ever cared about me one tiny bit, you will help my son." And with that she closes her connection to her father, not longer willing to look at him. Even after all these years, she still had a hard time with the thought that she was the daughter of Darth Vader. She figured she would never be comfortable with it. However, she thought maybe, now, if Vader could help her bring her son back to the light, maybe…maybe she could forgive him.

But only if he would help.

Ben was dreaming, something he did frequently. Only this wasn't a nightmare. Strange. He was just standing in fog. Nothing was around him but darkness…and fog, bluish white fog. Perhaps he'd died. A part of him felt that would be a relief.

"You're not dead."

Turning suddenly, Ben finds himself staring at a man he'd never seen before. He had longish curly hair like Ben, and was as tall as him. But…other than that he looked more like Uncle Luke than him. It dawns on him who it was then. He drops to one knee in respect. "Lord Vader! Grandfather." Looking up at the man in front of him, Ben stares at him in awe.

Anakin frowns as his own grandson refers to him by his Sith name. He shakes his head, moving over and taking hold of Ben's shoulders, lifting him into a standing position. "Ben. I am your grandfather, yes. But I am not Darth Vader. That was a mistake I made long ago."

Ben looks shocked, almost betrayed at the words that spill from Vader's mouth. He pulls out of the other man's grasp and backs away. "A mistake?! You are an imposter! Lord Vader was a strong man who took what he wanted! He made the Empire great! You speak of him as if he were weak and useless. That disgusts me!" Ben snarls the last words, glaring at the other man.

Anakin frowns and shakes his head. "Ben, you idolize me too much. I was weak. Vader was weak. He…I allowed myself to be manipulated by a man who wanted me to be his pawn, to be his…lackey in taking over the galaxy. Ben, listen to me. I was Vader, yes. And I realized too late that the dark side is the weakness. The light is what will save the galaxy."

Ben shakes his head. "No! I won't listen to your poison!"

"Ben, the light is what will stop your torment. My love for your mother and uncle is what saved me. Please, Ben."

"You should have destroyed them when you had the chance!" Ben snarls again as he glares at the form of his grandfather.

"Then you wouldn't be here."

Ben just shakes his head, not willing to acknowledge that. "You were weak to turn back to the light!"

"No, Ben. I was strong."

"You gave up everything to die! You were weak! You should have run your son through with your lightsaber and been done with it."

Now Anakin smiles slightly, raising an eye brow at his grandson. "You mean like you tried to with your father?"

Ben growls, hating to be reminded of his failure. "I didn't try. I succeeded."

"Yes you did. But you knew it wouldn't kill him." Before Ben can protest Anakin smiles. "You knew just where to stab to maybe kill him but most likely not. And you did that, because deep down inside Ben, you want to go home."

"You lie! Your words are poison. Just like my mother's! Solo should have died! He was no father to me!"

"No? He never tucked you in at night, read you stories, and held you after a nightmare?" Anakin sees Ben about to protest, but then stop. Ah…there it was. The nightmares. "I want to tell you why I followed Palpatine so blindly. Will you listen?"

"I suppose I must…since I apparently can't wake myself up from this…nightmare."

Anakin smiles and waves his hand. Suddenly they are standing in an apartment that Ben could see was on Coruscant. The place was furnished in the old fashioned way but it was definitely Coruscant. "This is where your grandmother and I lived. Well actually it was her apartment. You see back when I was a Jedi, attachments weren't allowed. It was against the Jedi code. However, I loved your grandmother very deeply and she loved me, so we married. In secret. Padme, your grandmother, she didn't mind keeping the secret. When She became pregnant with your mother and uncle, she hid it well. Even when it was discovered she was pregnant, she never revealed who the father was. She was protecting me, because she loved me and she knew how important being a Jedi was to me."

"You shouldn't have had to keep your love secret. That is wrong and the Jedi were wrong."

"They were, but things were different back then. The Jedi code was in place to keep Jedi from being manipulated by the dark side. Unfortunately for me, I see now why the Jedi were forbidden from having attachments. I didn't understand it back then."

Crossing his arms over his chest, Ben gives Anakin an impatient look. "It is still wrong."

"Yes it is. But it was apparently necessary. But as I said, back then I wasn't aware of why the code was important. It was because of my love for Padme and our child, I didn't know the baby was actually twins, that Palpatine could manipulate my mind so easily. It started with nightmares. I actually thought they were nightmares at first. But then as things started happening that I had seen in my nightmares, I started believing that I was actually having Force visions, which in a way I was. Only these visions were manufactured by Palpatine. So when I had the nightmare or Force vision of your grandmother dying and calling my name, I knew I had to do everything in my power to make sure that future didn't happen. Palpatine told me of how he could help me. He could help me save Padme and the baby by using the dark side." Anakin watches Ben's face, hoping the boy would see the similarities in their two stories. He smiles a little as he sees he truly had Ben's attention now.

"He told you the dark side could save them? But love is a weakness. Weakness is of the light. Why would he tell you that?"

"Ben, he was telling me what I wanted to hear. He was telling me he knew how to save Padme so that I wouldn't have to watch her die. He showed me how he could keep someone safe. I learned much later on that what he had showed me was simply a trick, a play to make me believe. I joined him then, Ben. I let him turn me, manipulate me like I was his puppet all along. I killed a Jedi council member for him. I…killed children for him." Anakin looks down, frowning, the pain of what he had done to the younglings still hurt him. They hadn't deserved that. They hadn't deserved to just die.

Ben smiles proudly at his grandfather. "You were strong. You did away with the weak."

Anakin, suddenly frustrated, growls and glares at his grandson. "NO! I was weak! I allowed a Sith to take control of me, to change my thoughts, to change my life. I allowed Palpatine to use me for his advantages! We didn't bring peace to the Universe, we didn't abolish slavery! We didn't stop the killing or the crimes or anything I had wanted to end when I was a boy! And worst of all, Ben, I was the one who killed Padme! My reason for living, my reason for falling to the dark side! I killed her!"

"That is what the Jedi want you to think! You did what you had to, Grandfather." Ben frowns, wondering why the other man was so upset. When Anakin lets out a frustrated sigh and throws his hand up, the world around them changes. They were now on a planet covered in molten rock and lava. Ben frowns, wondering what this place was. He is about to ask when he hears someone yelling.

"No! You brought him here! You have betrayed me!"

"Anakin please, you're breaking my heart!"

Anakin watches sadly as his former self starts to attack Padme, intent on killing her. He had been so wrong. And his grandson was going down the same path. Turning he looks at Ben as he watches. "You see. I killed her."

Ben frowns, looking back at Anakin. "Why? You were supposed to be saving her. And no…you couldn't have killed her. She had the babies. I remember Mom saying she had seen Grandmother's face when she was a baby."

"I killed her, Ben. She died during the childbirth, or soon after. Ben, the dark side, it is not the way. Balance is the way. The light, is what will save us all."

Ben snorts and shakes his head. "No. The light is what made me weak. If I hadn't been weak, I could have just killed my father when I was a kid, done away with the bastard and saved myself the trouble of killing him now."

Anakin tilts his head to the side, a questioning look on his face. "Your father? Your father had nothing to do with you falling to the dark side."

"No. He just keeps making me want to be weak. Like him."

"Weak? Han Solo may be a jackass at times, but weak is not something I would call him. Stupid and thoughtless, yeah." Anakin had actually met Solo when he was a boy. He hadn't changed much.

Ben stares at his grandfather like he had just grown a second head. "You…no. You're wrong. Han Solo is why I am weak! He was a terrible father and husband!"

Anakin sighs. "Those are Snoke's words in your head. You do realize why Snoke hates your father right? Han wasn't the only one to…admire your mother." He sees it dawn on Ben where Anakin was going with this and he smiles. "Ben…Snoke had been to Alderaan before. He was a senator. He used to work with Bail Organa. That was until he had developed a…unhealthy interest in your then 12 year old mother. He asked Bail to allow him to take her as his bride. Of course Bail had refused. She was 12 and he never really liked Snoke to begin with. Snoke tried to have her kidnapped and married to him. The Senate, including Palpatine, had him banished and sent to the Kessel Mines for trying to kidnap a child. Or so they said. In actuality, Palpatine put him in charge of weapons and development. Snoke was the one who had designed the Death Star. And it was Snoke, who had suggested testing it out on a home world of one of the Senate. His plan worked brilliantly, for him, when he got revenge on Bail Organa and destroyed Alderaan." Anakin could see Ben was processing this, working it over in his mind. So when the boy starts to protest, Anakin raises his hand to stop him. "It's true, Ben. I was in attendance for a few sessions of the Senate when Bail had brought Leia with him. Snoke never took his eyes off her. Ever. He is using you, turning you against your father, so he can get to your mother. And if he can't, well…at least your father won't have her. Ben…he is using you. You have to know that Snoke is using you, manipulating you like Palpatine did with me." Anakin steps towards his grandson, who now looked more confused than ever. "Ben…tell me what you remember of your childhood."

Ben shakes his head, wishing more than anything he could be woken up from whatever this was. It was making it all worse. "I…he was mean to me. He would hit me and run off on Mom, leave for months."

"He never hit you, or your mother, Ben. Han never laid a hand on either of you in anger. Not even to discipline you. He would leave for months yes, because that was his job. But he was always sure to contact you every night. And if you remember right, your mother would sometimes be gone for months as well. And who looked after you then?"

Ben thinks hard, for once wanting to know the truth of that question. And it hits him like a ton of bricks. He frowns and looks up at his grandfather. "Solo would."

Anakin smiles, patting Ben on the shoulder. "They always made sure at least one of them were with you. If your mother was away, it was your father who took care of you. If your father was away, it was your mother. They refused anything that conflicted with that. Ben, what else do you remember?"

"I remember…I…nightmares."

Anakin nods, frowning. "Right. And your father?"

Ben thinks for a moment, then looks at Anakin. "He's come into the room and sometimes spend all night with me, or he'd let me sleep in with him and Mom." Frowning, Ben shakes his head. "No. This is all wrong. How do I know you aren't trying to manipulate me, taint me with the light side? How do you know any of this?"

"As soon as I was one with the Force, I never left your mother's side. Luke didn't need me as much as I thought he would. And when you were born, Ben, I stayed with you. You were my first grandchild. And you were perfect. So happy. I wanted to see you grow up happy and free. I never had much of a childhood myself. And I never got to watch my own children grow up. So I thought I would watch my grandson grow up. I tried to protect you from Snoke, Ben. But there isn't much I can do from the Force. All I can do is guide you. Like your namesake guided your Uncle."

Ben still wasn't sure he could believe this man. Everything was just too confusing.

Anakin could see Ben was fighting what he knew was right. "Ben, I will give you the advice I wish I'd listened to when I was your age. Follow your heart, Ben. Your heart knows the truth, even if your mind tells you otherwise. Your Uncle tried to tell you that. He was right. He followed his heart when everyone else told him I couldn't be saved. And he was right. He saved me from myself, Ben. Let your heart save you from yourself. Don't believe what Snoke feeds you. He is using you to get what he wants. Be strong. Be stronger than I ever was. Turn back to the light and save your family."

Ben just shakes his head, looking down at the ground. "I don't think I can."

Anakin could see that he had done all he could. It was up to Ben now to make the choice. So he begins to disconnect from his grandson, slowly fading but not before he leaves him with a few final words. "Yes you can. You are a Skywalker mixed with a Solo. No one will ever be stronger. Or more stubborn."

And with those parting words ringing in his mind, Ben opens his eyes. He stares at the ceiling of his quarters before looking at the wall crono to see what time it was. He'd been asleep for almost half a day. Sitting up he rubs his hands over his face. He could feel the dark side washing through him. It was comforting, it numbed the questions running through his mind. What a weird dream. He knew he had to make a choice about his future. The time was drawing near. He hears Snoke's voice in his head. ~"They are here. Join me, and bring your mother."~ Reaching out with the Force, Ben could feel the mixed emotions going through his mother as she resists the urge to reach out to Solo. He could also feel Solo, his anger was palpable within the Force. They were indeed here. Smirking he rises from his bed, moving into the refresher for a moment before he leaves and retrieves his helmet, which someone had placed on the side table next to his bed. Donning the helmet he lets out a sigh of relief. They were coming. Soon this would all be over and he would be free of this decision forever. He would be free. His choice would be made. He could already feel the weight lift from his shoulders as he leaves his rooms and moves to join Captain Phasma and her soldiers who had been waiting for him outside his doors. Soon he would be free of it all and his future would begin. Yes, he had made his decision. Now he just had to see the battle finished.

Well I hope you liked the new chapter. More to come. Again I apologize for the length of time between chapters. Having writers block, plus school, depression, learning to drive, and work makes for little time, or ideas, for writing.