Chapter I

THE RETURN

As dramatic as it seemed, the Falcon's main door opened with a hiss as it descended onto to ground to act as a wide ramp for everyone onboard to finally come back to Yavin IV. People, including their friends and family, waited nearby to watch as they walk down the ramp.

First came out Chewbacca, who roared in delight as he saw the bright sunlight that greeted him. As he stepped onto the concrete, he grabbed the nearest thing that he could find and embraced it with his might. That thing just turned out to be the golden droid with the red arm.

"Oh, goodness, Chewie! You might cost me another limb! Or a head!" He complained before the wookie abruptly let go of him, nearly toppling him to the ground.

R2-D2 came out next, beeping along the way. He stopped rolling midway and turned to look behind him, before turning around once again to continue his journey down.

Leia's heart beat fast against the vest she wore. After 15 long years, her brother is finally home. She could not even decide if she felt excited to see him for she missed him so much, or if she was angry at him for leaving her to deal with the galaxy. She sighed, knowing her brother went through a lot. And all she could do now is make sure he was all right, and that he was welcome in their home.

When they saw two pairs of feet touch the sunlight up in the ramp, everything seemed like it was in slow motion. There, walking towards them was Rey… and the Luke Skywalker himself.

Leia smiled. Her brother was back.

The duo were synchronized in their steps, Rey on the left side while Luke was on her right, the old man following the young girl's pace. Rey had a look of satisfaction on her face as she looked at the people who greeted them. Luke had the same look on his face, only milder and more serene.

But Leia could see in his eyes that he hesitated to look at them. She could sense his guilt the moment that he stepped out.

At last, they stepped out onto the concrete. Almost immediately, a shout was heard.

"Rey!"

Rey turned to her left to see Finn running essentially limping because his crutches were in the way, towards her. Her face brightened as a smile appeared. She jogged towards him to meet him halfway and opened her arms to greet him with a hug.

"Finn!" she called, enveloping him in a hug.

He let go of one crutch, letting it fall onto the ground, and returned the hug with one arm, while the other held on to the one crutch that was keeping him from falling.

"You're back! You've been gone for, like, a month," he said, excitement lacing his voice.

Rey's smile widened as she pulled away and replied, "Well, it's good to be back."

"Finn, careful now. You haven't healed completely yet," a voice called behind Finn. Poe jogged towards them to appear behind the injured ex-stormtrooper.

"Hey, Rey. Have you met this guy yet?" Finn asked, pointing the guy who crouched down to get his fallen crutch. "He's the one who helped me escape the First Order."

"Yes, I've met her before. I ran into her while she was keeping watch on you while you were still sleeping, my friend," the pilot informed Finn, not taking his eyes off Rey.

"Oh, cool!" Finn said, happy that his two friends know each other already. "Hey, Rey, you changed your hair."

Rey laughed, touching her short wavy locks. They were only kept away from her face by braiding a small part of her hair from both sides and tying the two braids at the back of her head.

"Yes, well, my ponytail got caught in something while I was training. I thought I might as well cut it off."

"Well, it suits you very well, Rey," Poe said, obviously appreciating her new look.

Finn nodded, before realizing what she just said. "Training? Train for what?

Meanwhile, Luke stood a meter from his sister, looking at her with mixed emotions that she expertly read. Leia smiled at him gently, and took a step towards him.

"You know, brother, you forgive others so easily. But never yourself," she said, lacing a bit of amusement in her voice.

Luke let out a bitter chuckle before he replied, "I hope you will never learn of how it feels to make a grave mistake that will cost your whole world, sister. You'll find out that it does not feel very nice."

Leia laughed a little, "I'm sure."

They looked at each other for a moment before Luke smiled and Leia opened her arms for him to come closer to her. He immediately returned the warm hug she gave him, feeling the familiarity of his sister's embrace.

"I missed you, Luke," she said, sighing in relief.

Luke buried his nose in her hair for a while before he whispered, "I missed you, too."

They stayed in that position for a moment, basking in the feeling of the same blood finally close to them again. Leia then pulled away but still kept him close.

"You grew a beard," she commented.

"You changed your hair," he commented back.

Feeling a sense of dèjá vu run over her, she said, "That is also what Han said to me the last time he arrived here."

Luke's smile disappeared, and was replaced with an expression of remorse and guilt. Leia shook her head and lifted his chin to make him look at her.

"He wouldn't have wanted us to mourn for him," she reassured him. As Luke opened his mouth to say something, probably to blame himself again, Leia interrupted him.

"He would have wanted us to kick some First Order asses."

With that, Luke's smile reappeared. When the two of them heard a burst of laughter from the other reunion near them, namely Rey, Poe and Finn, they turned to look at them.

Luke sighed as he turned his vision to shorthaired girl of the group. A wave of guilt filled him once again.

"No wonder I liked her the moment I saw her. She very much resembles our grandmother," Leia said before turning to Luke.

"And you, Brother."

Luke quickly turned to her, telling her all of the guilt that he felt about what happened to Rey many years ago.

"The galaxy is very vast, and I concluded it was only a coincidence that she bears the same name as your Rey," she continued when he did not say anything else.

Luke turned to look at his young padawan, as she smiled at her friends, again. Leia followed suit.

"Have you told her?"

Luke once again turned to his sister and finally replied, "I don't think it's time yet."

"Oh? What are you so afraid of, Luke?"

Before Luke could answer, a familiar face, however aged by time, came up beside them.

"Luke Skywalker."

The siblings turned to the voice.

"Lando," Leia greeted before the said man took her hand and kissed it.

"You act as if we did not see each other yesterday," she said jokingly.

"My sister is still off-limits for you, Lando. Just so you know," Luke joked before the dark-skinned man leaned in to hug him and pat his back.

"It's good to see you again, Skywalker. How long has it been," Lando said, smiling widely.

"It's good to see you, too, Old Friend," Luke said.

"You know, I actually miss having some action with you, Skywalker. The Resistance definitely felt much stronger with you around."

Luke chuckled bitterly, "Well, you did just fine without me, that I can tell." He pointed the base around them.

They chatted for a while, doing a little bit of catching up before the trio of the-relatively-young went up to them.

"Why, Rey, it's very nice to see you again," Lando greeted her. Rey smiled back.

"It's nice to see you too, Sir Calrissian," she replied before turning to Leia and bowing her head a little. "And you, General Organa."

Leia went a little closer and hugged the younger girl, "Welcome back, my Dear." She pulled away and commented, "Your new hairstyle looks very good on you."

Rey could not help but smile bashfully at the kind woman in front of her. "Thank you, General."

Getting over the flush of the older woman's complement, she proceeded to what she dragged the two boys to them.

"Oh, Master Skywalker, let me introduce my friends. They were the ones I told you about who fought with me," Rey told Luke, a little more formal than how she usually treated him.

Luke examined the two males before him. One was in a pilot's uniform, something very similar to what he wore back in his younger days. The other wore casual clothing, and bore crutches. Yes, he remembered them. Rey mentioned them in their many conversations back in his planet. The pilot, he had no problem with. But he did not even completely hide his suspicion over the injured man who he knew the background.

"This is Poe Dameron, an X-Wing Pilot. He lead the destruction of the Starkiller Base," Rey said, pointing Poe.

"He is our most skilled pilot in the Resistance," Leia added.

Poe extended his hand to the old Jedi, who shook his hand in return. "It's a pleasure to meet you, Sir."

"It's a pleasure to meet you, too."

"Oh, and this is Finn," Rey said, pointing her injured friend this time. "He helped BB-8 and I escape Jakku and fight Kylo Ren."

Obviously very nervous, Finn shakily extended his hand to the Jedi Master. "Hello—uhm. It is—uh. It is an honor to meet you," he stammered. "Sir."

Luke shook his hand, but his look of suspicion only intensified, which agitated both Finn and Rey. "You're an ex-Stormtrooper?"

Finn gulped in nervousness, while both Rey and Poe held their breaths as Luke continued to look at Finn as if he was about to pluck everyone from Finn's side.

"I can assure you, Brother. Finn has helped us tremendously in the effort to destroy the Starkiller Base," Leia butted in, noticing the tension between them.

After a few moments, Luke's expression changed abruptly that held a grateful smile. Rey and Poe let out silent breaths they held and Finn felt utterly relieved. Luke chuckled, sensing the anxiety in the three of them.

"Well, I'd like to thank you, Finn. Despite what everyone in the First Order made you believe, you still found it in you to see the Light, and ultimately helping my young Padawan, Rey," Luke smiled at her, and continued, "and the whole Resistance."

Finn stared at him, not believing his ears. 'Did… did Luke Skywalker just thank him?' he thought, his mouth slightly agape with all the amazement that he felt.

"Uhm. Finn," Poe elbowed him gently, noticing that his friend was in a daze.

Finn snapped out of his daze and stammered, "It was—it was my pleasure, Sir."

Rey and Poe looked at each other, shrugging at what just happened. Leia giggled gently at the dazed boy, and proceeded to point the entrance to the building near them.

"Come," she said, sounding inviting. "Let us get ourselves some lunch. I'm sure my brother and Rey have had a very long trip. And we have all been here for a while. Let's get to the mess hall before Chewie eats everything."

With that, they all started walking. Along the way, Leia could be heard telling Luke, "Oh, Luke, have you not been feeding Rey? She clearly lost some weight. She was already skinny to begin with!"

"That is the way of the Jedi, sister. And all of the stars know I cannot cook well."

"You've been gone for 15 years and you never learned how to cook?"

"I was merely feeding myself, I just got used to it."

"Well, you must have at least tried a little harder when Rey arrived. I can't believe she stayed with you for two months!"

The rest of the group just smiled, enjoying the sibling bicker they witnessed. The young ones were very amused with General Organa for she was usually very diplomatic, and Lando felt a sense of familiarity with what was happening. Rey also marvelled at how her master just let himself be himself for a while.

A/N: This is just my take on how Luke returns to the Resistance after his disappearance. And like Leia said, he has been gone for 15 years before this happened.