At this time of the evening, the only sound that could be heard in the Skywalker's home was the cackling of the fireplace and the measured breathing of Vader's respirator. Although at one point it had served as a catalyst of fear for Luke, he now found it comforting. The rhythmic kish kosh of the machine no longer meant a monster of the Dark was approaching to put himself and others in danger, but rather, his father was by his side, just as he'd dreamt of for so long as a child.

Luke glanced up from his book for just a moment, taking in the image of the very man on the couch adjacent to himself, simply scrolling through his datapad.

"Might I help you, young one?" Vader asked, humor that only Luke could read in his tone. A smile curled Luke's lips upward.

"Sorry," he said, still grinning. "Just observing."

"You could observe your book," Vader volleyed back, still good nature in his words.

"Hey, I've caught you staring at me plenty of times!" he argued, laughing. Vader brought his head up from his datapad and shook his head at him in bemusement.

Luke bowed his head as his smile grew all the more. After the humor settled around them, Luke closed his book and began to stand.

"I think I'll give this book a rest for awhile." He walked over to the tall bookshelf against the wall and reached on his tiptoes to replace the book, but as soon as he stretched his arm upward, pain tore through his shoulder. He bit his tongue on the small cry of pain that escaped his lips, hoping with all his might that his father wouldn't notice; they were having such a relaxing evening, and neither of them needed it ruined by Vader's fussing.

"Luke?" Sithspit. He cringed, not so much from the pain. He bit his lip, putting up his shields.

"Yes?"

"Come," he requested. "Now." Luke sighed.

"Father, I-"

"It was not a suggestion. Come here." Vader's tone grew sharper, leaving no room for argument. Luke bowed his head, setting his jaw.

"I'm not going to let you fuss over me."

"Would you like me to drag you to this couch?" Luke tightened his jaw, resisting the urge to clench his fists. He sighed noisily, turning around.

"Just for a moment, then you'll leave me be."

"That is not something I can guarantee, now sit." Vader accented his message with a stern finger pointing to the seat beside himself. Luke dragged his feet over to him and plopped himself on the cushion.

"Turn," Vader requested. Luke grudgingly obeyed, folding one leg under him and setting his other foot on the floor, ready for a quick exit. Two gloved hands carefully set themselves on his shoulders.

"The left shoulder?"

"Yes," Luke grumbled.

"And what did you do?"

"What did I do?" Luke challenged.

"Luke," Vader brought him down. "I am merely asking what is wrong."

"Well you didn't have to say it like that ," Luke shot back.

"You still have yet to answer my question." Luke released another noisy sigh.

"It's just a bad knot," he muttered. Vader's hand began to carefully prod the area, searching for the knotted muscle. Luke began to try to squirm out of his grasp, but his father gently restrained him.

"This must be treated, Luke, or it will become far worse."

"I don't need you worrying about me anymore, Father."

"That is not something you have the ability to control, young one." He continued to probe for a moment longer. "I will be gentle, but I still must find-"

"Ow!"

"I seem to have found it." Luke jerked away his shoulder.

"Gentle, huh?" He snapped, whipping around with agitation blazing in his blue eyes. Vader gently brought his hand back to his shoulder and tried to guide Luke back, but he jerked away once again.

"You must allow me to treat this, Luke. It will only harm you further in the future if you do not." Luke's gaze darted to the floor. He sucked in his cheek, biting it hard as he attempted to drain some of his anger.

"What are you going to do?"

"I will apply pressure to the affected muscle until it releases."

"How much is this gonna hurt?"

"Much less if you relax. I will be as gentle as possible," Vader promised. Luke brought his blue eyes up to his father, reigning in his temper. There was no question at all of whether he trusted the man in front of him or not, but he recognized the loathing he felt for that man worrying about him. He knew his father had been through an unspeakable amount of hardships, and he certainly didn't need to add to it, not to mention the list of things he would rather do than be the victim of his father's fussing. As Luke locked eyes with him through the mask, he released another breath he didn't realize he was withholding.

"Alright," Luke agreed. "But after you're done, I don't want you to worry about it anymore, okay?"

Vader held eye contact with him for a moment, then angled his head away.

"If I follow this condition, you will allow me to help you now?" Luke's frustration threatened to return as he heard his bargain of acquiescence repeated back to him, but he nodded. He knew the odd noise that emitted from his father's vocoder to be a slight sigh.

"I suppose that is reasonable, but I cannot promise I will not worry about you." Luke brought his gaze down once again.

"Just promise me you'll try. You've got so much to worry about, and I...I don't want to add to any of it." In a quick, slightly rough motion, Vader cupped Luke's chin and forced him to look at him.

"Luke, listen to me very carefully️ - you are not, and never will be, an obligation only to fret over. Do you understand?" Vader stated sternly.

"But-"

"Luke, do you understand?" The young man nodded as much as he could with his chin still cupped, but his blue eyes began to mist.

"But...but you've been through so much, and you're under so much stress already," Luke insisted, his voice growing just the slightest bit hoarse. He took in a shaky breath. "I...I don't want you to feel any worse." One stray tear slipped down Luke's face, but after a slight delay, Vader carefully brushed it away with his thumb.

"Son…" he began. Luke withheld a sob, and Vader stroked his cheek once again. "It seems you are the one worrying excessively about me." A short laugh broke though Luke's husky throat.

"I guess I am." Vader ran his thumb over his cheek one last time.

"You shouldn't be, young one. There is far too much you worry about as it is." Vader brushed his gloved hand over his shoulder, gesturing to the result of the stress.

"But so are you," Luke pointed out. "And worrying about me isn't going to change anything."

"The same can be said for your fretting over me, son." Luke dragged his eyes back to the ground, nodding slowly.

"Maybe this is something we could both work on?" Vader set his hand on his shoulder once again, bringing Luke's eyes back up.

"I suppose so." Luke's lips quirked into a little smile at his father, leaning into his hand on his shoulder, although he regretted it a second later after it stretched the affected muscle in his opposite shoulder.

"I believe we still have a task to address." Luke nodded carefully, his features still contracted.

"Alright," he agreed, allowing his father to guide him as he turned back around.

"Good, now take a deep breath, child," Vader said as gently as possible, resting his hands on his shoulders once again. "I will work quickly. All you must do is relax." Luke obeyed his father, expanding his chest as took a deep breath. Vader began to gently massage both shoulders, careful not to touch the knot just yet.

"Are you in any pain?" Vader asked him. Luke was still anticipating the discomfort, but he was much less anxious now with his muscles loosening.

"No," he said, leaning back into his father's hands. Vader continued to massage for a moment longer, then began to focus on his affected shoulder.

"Now I must find the knot, but just remain relaxed. It will not be as painful as you anticipate." Luke nodded just a little as he began to prepare himself. With an escaped hiss of pain, Vader found the knot.

"Yup, that's it," Luke confirmed between clenched teeth.

"Another deep breath, Luke," Vader requested of him. He obeyed, inhaling deeply once again, trying to release his nerves as he exhaled. "I must apply pressure to it for a moment to release it." Luke nodded. "Are you ready?"

"Yes." Vader placed his thumb over the knot and the rest of his fingers over Luke's shoulder, making it simple to pinch.

"If the pain becomes too much, we will stop." Luke nodded, closing his eyes.

"Okay."

"On the count of three: one, two, three." Vader slowly applied pressure, growing heavier the harder he dug into Luke's shoulder.

"How much pain are you in now?" Luke shook his head lightly, biting down on his tongue.

"It's not too bad," he bit out. "It's- ah!" A cry of pain escaped Luke's lips as his father pushed down harder, prompting him to wish he had tried harder to hold it back.

"You are doing well, young one," Vader praised. A short, mirthless laugh escaped Luke's lips as his father continued to press on his shoulder.

"This is ridiculous," Luke said.

"How so?"

"You've been through hell with all your pain and I'm just worried about a little- oh!" Vader rubbed the boy's other shoulder in a soothing manner.

"Child, that does not matter. You are in pain now, no matter how small, and I intend to alleviate it." Luke nodded, although still not convinced he wasn't being a baby. "Just relax," Vader tried to soothe. "I am almost finished."

After another moment of silence, Luke could feel the afflicted muscle in his shoulder release, creating a mildly uncomfortable, yet satisfying sensation.

"Wow."

"How does that feel?" Vader asked as he rubbed his hands over Luke's shoulders.

"A lot better," Luke said, mildly astonished as he turned around. He finally met Vader's eyes. "Thank you."

Luke could feel his father smile slightly under his mask, setting a hand on his upper arm.

"You do not need to thank me, my son. This is my duty."