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It couldn't be that hard.

At least, that's what Leia told herself when she sat cross legged on her bed, placed her hands on her knees, and closed her eyes.

Plenty of cultures had a form of meditation. Most, granted, weren't Force sensitive as far as she knew, but she was. And if Vader could reach Luke through meditation, then why couldn't she?

She just needed to figure out how to do it with a power she'd never actively tried to use.

First, she attempted to calm herself. That seemed rather crucial to meditation. But considering she was locked in a room provided by Darth Vader on an enemy ship, it wasn't easy. The stillness just made her think back to all the things that had gone wrong, things that were still out of her control.

When that didn't work, she simply focused all her thoughts on Luke. That wasn't as difficult; she could picture him clearly.

His sandy hair. Kind eyes. His soft features, especially when he smiled. His voice...his laugh…

It wasn't hard to think about Luke.

But how did she connect to him?

He'd done it on Bespin. He'd called her name, and she'd heard it as clearly as though he were standing next to her. She'd known where he was. She could feel the turbulent emotions rushing through him.

It was the same impression she sometimes got from Vader. Even behind that mask, she somehow could detect how he felt, and not just the obvious anger and frustration. The little emotions. Confusion, anguish, longing.

Loneliness.

Vader had said they were connected. Was this the Force? Was that what the connection was supposed to feel like?

She breathed in deeply, then slowly expelled it from her lungs.

In. Out. In. Out. In…

From the sitting room, she heard the blast door open, followed by Vader's mechanical breathing and purposeful footsteps.

She sighed and opened her eyes. So much for that idea.

Scooting to the edge of her bed, she stood just as Vader reached her door. She expected him to barge in, but he hesitated...then knocked.

Her brows rose in surprise. Interesting.

It was rather impatient and demanding, but...interesting.

"Come in," she said, crossing her arms over her chest.

She'd barely finished when the doors whisked open and in stormed Vader.

"I have a lead."

She instantly perked at that. "You got him to talk?" You answered his question? She'd honestly wondered, after the way he'd sulkily left her in her quarters with only a few grumbled words.

"I did." Though he didn't elaborate, those two words told her everything she needed to know. He'd acted as the father Luke needed. There was no way he would have gotten him to talk otherwise. "And he is gravely injured."

Her heart dropped like lead into her stomach, and she swallowed thickly. "I...it doesn't surprise me." And it didn't. She'd honestly felt like he was dead, back when she'd first lost contact with him. It made sense that he was injured. "How bad?"

Vader was silent for a few breathing cycles, and she was alarmed to feel panic coming from him. Since when did Darth Vader panic? He was known for single handedly taking impossible situations and turning them in his favor...with incredibly bloody results. If Luke was that hurt…

"Injured," was all Vader said, darkly.

She closed her eyes. Shit. She didn't know what that meant, exactly, but it sounded bad. "That is the last time he is allowed out alone."

"It would seem we agree."

"We apparently agree on a lot when it comes to Luke." It was an observation, one she wasn't sure she was comfortable with...but it was true, nonetheless.

"Evidently." He placed his hands on his hips. "He doesn't know where he is exactly. The ship he was on crashed, but there are two leads we can use to pinpoint his location. First, Taris. He went there to refuel and got captured by pirates while saving a Rodian family."

Of course he did.

Vader must have picked up on the thought. "You are not surprised."

"No. It's totally something he would do." And yet, she was grateful to know that even after all the trauma he'd gone through, he was still him. He was, at his very core, good. She wasn't sure even the Emperor could take that from him.

"We could find the family and find out what they know. And maybe someone else knows more about these pirates," Leia continued, beginning to formulate a plan in her head already.

"The pirates are Black Sun," Vader said. "And they are our second lead. We should go straight to the source."

She considered the information. "They're on relatively good terms with the Empire, aren't they? Could we just...ask?"

"We could." Yet Vader hesitated. "I would prefer to do so discreetly."

Leia lifted a brow. "You? Discreet?"

"I do not wish the Emperor to know that Luke is alive," Vader growled, and she was certain he was glaring at her behind his mask.

Now, that was interesting. Luke had been so certain Vader would turn him over to the Emperor, but now he seemed anxious to do anything but.

"Well. You're in luck. I have just the person who can help."

Silence. Then, the air plunged a few degrees. "Absolutely not."

"You said it yourself. Han has a questionable reputation, one that crime lords can't help but initially trust." She didn't mention how Han tended to draw the ire of those same crime lords shortly afterwards. But Vader probably already knew that, considering that Jabba had literally kept him as a frozen art piece on his wall.

"We would be better off alone."

"It would be faster if he went to Black Sun, and we went to Taris," she pushed. She was right, and she knew it, and she had a feeling Vader did too.

Deep, deep down.

"Look. You said it yourself. You showing up asking about a boy who looks somewhat like Luke would probably get back to the Emperor. Maybe if you let me go alone-"

"Absolutely not, I don't need two children in danger!"

She decided to ignore that comment. For now. "-they might give me the information, but a senior member of the Rebellion asking for that same information would probably also get back to the Emperor and raise questions."

"And Solo asking wouldn't?"

"Out of the three of us, he's least likely to, yeah." She waited, but Vader still seemed either uncertain, or unwilling to bend. "Look. Han just got released from Jabba the Hutt. He got into trouble because he was helping the Rebellion instead of paying off his debts."

"So why wouldn't Black Sun assume he's with the Rebellion still and go to the Emperor?"

"Because it's totally plausible that he only stayed with us because of me, and if we broke up-"

"Which you should-"

"-then it makes sense that a smuggler would decide to seek his fortunes elsewhere." She shot him an annoyed look, but he didn't seem apologetic. Not that he ever did. "Does the galaxy know who destroyed Jabba yet?"

"This is not happening-"

"Then Han can say he's now employed by the organization that took down Jabba. It may make Black Sun more forthcoming with information to know he's backed up by someone who can do that and escape unnoticed."

"Or I could do it myself." For some reason, as terrifying as Vader was, the argument felt a bit childish. Not that she'd ever admit that out loud.

"Then send Han to Taris. Either way, not getting him involved will just make it that more difficult to get to Luke in a timely manner. Or do you think he's okay enough to wait?"

By the way Vader's mood plunged even further, she knew she'd won. As she'd said before-when it came to Luke, she and Vader could agree. Even if they didn't necessarily like it.

He made a noise that through his mask sounded like a strangled growl or sigh, then he whirled, storming from the room. She took that as her sign to follow and did, trying to bury her triumph deep down where he wouldn't sense it.

She wasn't successful. "I am only doing this because Luke doesn't have time," Vader snarled as they entered the hallway and stormed towards the room Han was being kept in. "Don't get any funny ideas. He's a smuggler. The fact that he's a good candidate for dealing with Black Sun should show just how much he's not worth your attention."

"I feel like that's a bit hypocritical, coming from you."

"I am second in command to the Empire-"

"Which is far worse than being a smuggler."

Vader turned to shoot her an emotionless glare over his shoulder. "You'd rather I was a smuggler?"

"You wouldn't have been involved in destroying Alderaan."

He made that strange strangled noise again, and turned forward once more, just as they reached the doors.

The moment they were open, he jabbed a pointed finger at Han. "There will be no touching my daughter, do you understand, Solo?!"

Han was sitting on the sofa, hands behind his head, blinking in surprise at Vader...then her. His feet were propped up on the caf table. The Imperial uniform he'd been given was unbuttoned at the collar, and even with the rest of it pristine, he still managed to look scruffy.

Behind Vader's back, she threw him an apologetic look.

He recovered quickly, settling deeper into the couch. Please don't piss him off… She wanted to say, but it was futile. This was Han.

"Well," Han smirked, though it didn't touch his eyes, "glad to see Leia's still alive."

"Of course she's alive!"

Han shrugged. It was such a nonchalant gesture, and yet she doubted he felt anything but that. How the hell did he manage it? She was pretty sure she got away with pushing Vader's buttons simply because she was his daughter, but Han? His only protection was that she was in love with him. She didn't think Vader would be as patient. "Last time I saw her, she was about to tell you about Luke. Then I don't see her again and you don't feed me for twenty four hours. I wondered."

He was worried.

She should have found a way to convince Vader to let her see him sooner than this. But she'd fought so hard just to get him to agree to do what was necessary to find Luke. As much as she put up a tough front, she was exhausted, and there was only so much she could accomplish. Fighting Vader even verbally was like fighting a furious rancor.

"I did not come here to listen to your complaints, Solo. I came because my son has need of your services." Each word dripped with distaste. She had the feeling that any wrong word from Han and Vader might either storm out or strangle him, her feelings be damned.

Maybe this was a bad idea…

But Han straightened at the mention of Luke. "You found him?"

"No," Leia cut in. "But we have two leads that require us to split up-and discretion. Your knack for getting into trouble with Crime Lords just might help us find him faster."

Han's eyes narrowed. "I'm not about to get frozen in carbonite again, am I?" He glanced at Vader as though the Sith would grab him and throw him in a chamber at any moment.

"Hopefully not. Don't piss them off," Leia replied dryly.

"An impossible task for him," Vader added darkly.

"Hey," Han said, offended, "I'll have you know, I'm quite charming."

"As charming as a snake," Leia huffed.

Han grinned. "Worked on you, didn't it?"

"Cease your flirting!" She was certain Vader was both disgusted and horrified at the same time. He shot her a look. "We will discuss your relationship choices later."

She rolled her eyes. "No. We will not." Then before Vader could insist, she added to Han, "We need you to work your magic on Black Sun."

"Black Sun?" Now Han's expression turned serious. "Luke got involved with them?" Then, before either of them could reply, he answered his own question. "What am I saying, of course he did. See, this is why I can't leave either of you alone-"

"Is he usually so talkative?" Vader demanded.

"Usually." And despite everything, she couldn't help the small smile that tugged at her lips. "Can you get them to tell you about any of their downed ships?"

"Sweetheart, I can get information outta anyone." Even stuck on the Executor with Darth Vader glaring at him, Han was still as cocky as ever. She was torn between rolling her eyes and kissing him for the familiarity.

She doubted Vader would like that.

"Then now's your chance to prove it," she said instead.

"And you had best not screw it up," Vader added sourly. "If my son dies-"

"You'll strangle me?"

"You'll wish that is all I do to you."

It wasn't an empty threat, and as much as she wanted to argue and make clear he would under no circumstances harm Han, she wasn't an idiot. Vader...as much as she didn't want to admit it...cared for his children. In his own weird, twisted, dark, possessive way. And if something were to happen to one of them…

She felt the ghost of Vader's hands around her neck.

Even as his daughter, she wouldn't be able to stop him.

Maybe she shouldn't have involved Han.

"Alright." Even with the threat on his life, Han didn't seem too terribly perturbed. "What ship am I taking?"

When Luke opened his eyes, one thought echoed in his mind, over and over again.

My father is coming, and I'm going to make it.

At least, he would if he followed Vader's instructions. They went against everything he'd been taught in training, but they made sense given his situation.

That didn't mean it wasn't going to be incredibly difficult.

Above him, he could still see the sun's rays filtering in. He didn't know what time it was or how much time he had, but he had to move, even if he still wanted to go back to sleep.

He could sleep when Vader found him.

So he got to work.

First he closed his eyes and dove deep into the Force. It wrapped around him like a cocoon, spreading warmth and light through him as if it was happy to finally be actively used. He reveled in it for a moment, before he extended his senses out, searching for life forms.

The forest teemed with life. He felt everything from the tiniest insects crawling on tree trunks, to the horned dogs prowling in the distance. He pushed and pushed, spreading his awareness out over the land like a blanket.

He felt the icy coldness of the Creature to the northwest of him. He shuddered away, but he doubted it noticed him. It's presence was clouded-fast asleep.

Not that way, he decided firmly.

Then he veered South, and after a few moments he felt them. Bright lights in the Force. Duller than his own, but enough so that they left a significant imprint. If he concentrated hard enough, he could catch impressions and emotions from them. Intelligent, sentient life.

He wasn't alone, and he had a direction to go.

Hope and excitement surged through him, enough so that he pushed himself up and, ignoring aching muscles and a swimming head, he reached down, grabbed hold of the rebroken leg, and snapped it back into place.

Just as before, he blacked out. There was only so much pain he could withstand, but this time there was no Vader waiting to keep him down. Instead, the words repeated over and over again in his brain like a call to action.

My father is coming, and I'm going to make it.

It was enough that even in darkness, he knew he needed to open his eyes.

So he did. It felt like minutes, but it could have been hours. He didn't know, he didn't care. Sunlight was still above him. That was what mattered.

It took him longer to reset the splint, but once it was done, he pushed himself back to his feet, grasped the rungs of the ladder, and started hopping up. It was as exhausting as it was the last time, and he made sure to visually measure the jump before he made it, but he managed to crawl up into the hallway. He lay there for a moment, gulping in heaving breaths, drenched in sweat, his shoulder burning, but he was up. He'd conquered the stairs.

And there was still sunlight. Waning now, but it was there.

With little time to spare, he pushed himself back to his good leg. He hobbled through what little was left of the hallway, over deep gouges carved into the metal flooring, ducking to avoid scraps of torn metal that had fallen from the ruined ceiling.

Almost the entire shelter had been ripped apart.

All of his supplies were scattered. Most were either completely lost or destroyed, but there were some left. He found one bacta patch, which he promptly placed over the scratch on his chest. He found water containers, some slashed open, but a few still full. He gulped one down, then continued to search until he found the one with the filter and pocketed it. Then he gathered as many ration bars (many broken) and shoved them into his other pocket.

It wasn't going to last him long, but it was all he could carry. Water was the most important part. He could survive longer without food.

Hopefully his father would be there before that happened.

Taking a deep breath, Luke looked up at the sky. Still sunlight, though the clouds were stained a faint pink and orange.

He needed to go. Get as far as he possibly could, then considering his late start, he'd need to continue through the night. It was risky even leaving shelter, much less traveling in the dark, unable to use the Force to guide him. But he'd do it.

He had to.

So, finding his discarded blaster and shoving it back into his waistband, he began his slow hobble away from the crashed ship and into the thick of the forest.

My father is coming, and I'm going to make it.

Those words repeated in his head with each labored hop, with each dry breath.

My father is coming…

There were multiple places Luke could have landed on Taris; it had many ports, after all. But this one felt right.

So Vader transmitted codes that would ensure little trouble with air traffic control and maneuvered the shuttle towards it.

Behind him, Threepio gravely announced, "The chances of finding anyone who saw Master Luke are three million, five hundred and-"

"You were not brought here for probability calculations, droid," Vader snapped. "You are here to assist Princess Leia in translation if necessary."

After days of calling his daughter Leia, it was strange to refer to her by her title. But, upon waking the droid up to explain the situation, he hadn't used that title, Threepio had lectured him on referring to her properly.

Force, why had he not changed the droid's programming? It was far too nervous for a protocol droid...though he supposed most protocol droids hadn't seen as much action as Threepio had. If Leia was anyone but a wanted Rebel criminal, he'd use one of his own (less anxious) ones. But she was, and he didn't want a language barrier to keep him from the information they needed to find Luke, so…

Here Threepio was.

"I was merely pointing out that Taris is significantly populated. Master Luke is one person, and if he was in hiding-"

Artoo, who he'd activated to help assist him in finding Luke's ship, interrupted him. You never account for the Force.

"Nonsense, Artoo, even with the Force, the chances are still-"

"Threepio," Leia cut in. She sat in the copilot's seat, though he needed no copilot, wearing a nondescript black jumper and a leather jacket that was a few sizes too big for her. She stared out the port window, and though by all appearances she looked calm, he could feel her anticipation for what they might find. "Not now."

Threepio paused, as if debating on pressing the matter, but protocol to follow his lady's orders overrode any objections. "Yes, Princess."

Maybe he'd reprogram the droid when all of this was done.

By that point, they reached the port, and the Force rang again with the surety that his son had been there. As soon as he brought the shuttle in for a landing, Leia swiveled around expectantly.

She raised her brows. "Well?"

He gritted his teeth. This plan had not turned out as he would've liked. Not only was the smuggler off contacting Black Sun (or, he'd better be, he thought darkly), but Leia had managed to convince him it would be faster to split up to look for leads on Luke.

She was right, but he hated it anyway. The idea of her out of his sight, on a planet where there were multiple ways to escape, and with her smuggler boyfriend loose no less, was discomforting. Normally he wouldn't have allowed it, but then he remembered the list of Luke's injuries, as well as his circumstances and he'd been forced to agree with her.

He had to trust that her desire to find her brother was stronger than her hate for him.

That didn't mean that he didn't check his messages to see if Piett's analysts had found information on the dog creatures Luke had described before he answered her.

Nothing.

Damn. Maybe that was a good thing though. He'd asked Piett to be discrete, but the Emperor had ways of finding out it was really him who'd asked for the strange information.

Reluctantly he pulled a compact blaster from his belt and handed it to his daughter.

"Do not even think about running," he warned. Again.

"Or you'll have to hunt me down, and we might not find Luke in time, yes, yes. You made yourself clear." Leia rolled her eyes and took it from him, concealing it in her jacket before pulling a hood up over her head. "Has anyone ever told you that you have trust issues?"

"For good reason." Vader stood, and Artoo rolled closer. "Are you certain you don't want to look for the ship? I could interrogate much quicker."

"Yes, but why would Darth Vader be interrogating citizens on Taris? Why would he be asking about a man who looks like Luke except with dark hair and eyes?" She shook her head. "Yeah. The Emperor would definitely find out Luke's alive. I thought you wanted discretion? You aren't exactly…" she trailed off.

He scowled, hating the suit even more than usual. The fact that he was here on Taris at all was odd, but looking for a specific non-descript ship wouldn't necessarily raise concern if it got back to the Emperor. It wasn't like he didn't collect various models of ships anyway.

"Fine," he snapped, pointing his finger at his daughter. "Come back unharmed and alive."

"Your concern is touching," Leia drawled, turning away "Don't kill any innocent bystanders."

He glared at her retreating back. He'd do what was necessary, though he didn't say that. He needed her to focus, not only to find Luke but...to come back safely.

He didn't need both of his children harmed. At least here, he was close enough to protect her if she got into trouble.

"Oh, do come back in one piece, Artoo," Threepio chided, and Vader didn't miss the look the droid sent him.

I will be fine, Threepio. Protect the Princess, Artoo replied. As concerned as Threepio was about the whole situation, he had a feeling Artoo was rather anxious to get started.

Some things never changed.

It wasn't a comforting thought.

Definitely a set up chapter, but the next one is suuuuper long, so be ready!
The song for this chapter is Home by Vince Staples and Richie Kohan
Leave some love!
Love,
LadyVader23