Piett knew he shouldn't be there. Lord Vader explicitly told him to stay away…
But their caff was so damn good.
Actually, Piett had returned to The Screamin' Bean multiple times. Each time, he happened to luck out; Luke Lars was not on shift. So he was able to get his caff, enjoy some time reading, and leave before ever running into the boy.
He tried other caff shops, of course. But there had been a reason this place was rated so high on the holonet. It truly was the best place to get caff.
Vader had taken a lot of his personal freedom by setting up this scheme. He would not take Piett's taste in good caff. Over his dead body.
He...only mostly meant that.
But, naturally, his luck ran out. His first clue was the sign outside the shop. There was an arrow drawn pointing to the shop doors and next to it said "Nice Drinks." Then another arrow below that pointed the opposite way with the words "Dunno...Maybe rancors? Wouldn't risk it."
He hesitated. The only time there had been a creative sign, Lars was working. Every other time, it just showed their special of the day. This did not bode well, and he knew he should turn around and try again some other time.
But he was exhausted. And caff was calling his name.
Maybe...maybe he could just...get the cup to go…
Gulping, he opened the door and stepped in.
Naturally, Luke was standing at the register, filling something out on a datapad. When the door chime rang, he looked up...and beamed. "Firmus!"
Piett gave him a strained smile, and tried to act natural (or at least, Vader-Natural) as he walked up to the counter. "Hello, Luke. No more duck excursions, I hope?"
Was that something Vader would ask about? Crap, what if Vader asked a similar question the next time he saw the boy?
This was a bad idea. It wouldn't be weird of the Piett Luke knew if he just...turned around and walked out without another word.
But he wanted caff…
Luke grimaced. "It's a good thing you stopped me. My roommate told me in no uncertain terms that he'd throttle me in my sleep if I brought home an animal. Seems extreme, if you ask me."
Piett thought his roommate might get along with Lord Vader.
"Good. I am here to order caff." Yes. Yes, that was probably how Lord Vader would word it. Should he be worried that he was starting to figure out his Lordship's speech patterns? "In fact, make it a double espresso."
Luke lifted a brow, but he said nothing as he rang the order up. "Hey. Since the last time you were here, I got caff spilled on you, why don't I give this to you on the house?"
Piett winced. "I...have been here multiple times since. It isn't necessary."
"Really?" Luke tilted his head. The gesture made him look much younger than he was. "Well you haven't since I've been on shift. Let me at least give you an employee discount."
Internally, Piett groaned. This would only encourage him. "It is not necessary. I am not hurting for funds." He pulled out the appropriate amount of credits.
But Luke had already applied the discount. It took off over half the cost. "Don't worry about it. It's no trouble, really. Plus, I know my boss is glad you decided not to sue."
Piett doubted Lord Vader had time to sue a local caff shop on Eriadu for spilling hot caff on a mere captain. But Luke had already taken his money and completed the transaction, so Piett sighed and dropped the rest of it into the tip jar. They would get his credits one way or another.
"Well, lovely to see you, Luke, but I must be getting that espresso and going-"
"Oh wait! I've got a break. I wanted to talk to you."
Piett knew he should leave. Lord Vader would be furious if he found out about this interaction. In fact, he intended to take the espresso and run, but when it was done, Luke delivered it by taking off his apron, walking out from behind the counter, and motioning for him to follow him to one of the empty tables.
Kriff.
The boy was getting wise to his...or rather, Lord Vader's evasion tactics.
"Shouldn't you wait until Ellie mans the counter?" He asked, but nevertheless, he sat down.
Luke grinned then passed him the cup. "She's in the kitchen. Don't worry. We're not exactly busy at this hour."
It was true. The shop was almost completely empty. Piett sighed and resigned himself to his fate by grabbing the cup and taking a particularly long drink from it.
"Isn't that...hot?" Luke asked when he finished, frowning in concern.
"Very." His tongue burned, but he didn't care. He could already feel the effects. "So. What did you want to talk about?"
The concern over the temperature of his drink forgotten, Luke leaned forward, eyes flashing with intent. "I want to know more about you. You hear about me all the time, but I'm just a farm boy from Tatooine. You've experienced the galaxy, in the Imperial Navy, no less. You gotta have some interesting stories!"
Piett took another long sip. How old was this kid? He knew he was eighteen, but he would have guessed fifteen by the way he looked at him with that starry-eyed expression.
"I work in maintenance in the belly of a Star Destroyer. It's not exactly picturesque." As he said it, he had the horrible thought that Luke might start talking technical with him, and there was no way he'd be able to wing that on his own. He was definitely starting to sweat.
"Sure, but like-what's it like living on one?"
"On...a Star Destroyer?"
"Yes!"
Stars, the boy was exhausting. Was he constantly drinking caff on shift? Did that explain his boundless energy? At least this seemed to be a safe topic.
"It is a lot more cramped than you would think. The ship itself is huge and can take hours to walk from one end to the other, but living quarters are usually shared with one or more bunk mate, and depending on your rank, the rooms can be quite small."
"That makes sense." Luke nodded. "I mean, you gotta have room for the parts to make a ship that size work properly."
Yes...he wasn't wrong. But that seemed to be getting towards the technical aspect, so he switched gears. "There is rigid discipline, even for mechanics. You can go on leave, like I am now, but when we're in the middle of a war, it is not easy. Many of us do not get to call our families until an allotted time once a week, sometimes longer, if circumstances are dire enough."
"Wow, that must be hard. I call my family all the time." Luke frowned. "How did you convince your superior officer to give you the leave to come here?"
Piett snorted bitterly, taking another sip from his espresso. "Let's just say it wasn't difficult."
Luke's frown only deepened. "Is...is your superior officer…" he trailed off for a moment before starting again. "Okay Firmus, I've got a few questions for you. Don't stress about them, okay?"
"I would not stress-"
"Dude, no offense, but you kind of look like you eat stress for breakfast." Well. What was Piett supposed to say to that? "First question. Is your superior officer in constant contact with you? Is that part of your leave deal?"
He hesitated. He wasn't sure what was safe to say. Technically, he probably should keep his mouth shut about work completely, but… "Yes."
"Is that standard protocol in these situations?"
"Uh. No, I suppose not."
Luke nodded, as though he'd confirmed something. "Are you really that necessary that they have to talk to you all the time?"
"I...guess so." Could maintenance workers do consultation remotely?
"Do you think they don't trust you then?"
This...was a weird line of questioning. But Luke was...Luke. "I am certain my superior officer does not trust anyone."
Luke nodded, his expression looking more concerned than ever before. "Doesn't it make you question your sanity? I mean that's gotta be intense."
Piett thought the entire situation Vader threw him into was enough to question his sanity. "You have no idea. I question my sanity every day."
And he took yet another long sip of caff. Luke watched, cringing.
"Are they...overly critical? Of like...every small thing?"
Piett snorted. "That is part of military life, Luke."
"Yeah, but I mean like...overly critical? More than usual?"
Considering Vader tended to choke anyone who'd even slightly inconvenienced him… "I suppose you could say that."
Luke nodded again, as though what they were talking about made complete sense to him. Then, he leaned forward, and whispered with such kindness and gentleness, "...You know, if you ever need to talk to someone, you know I'm here, right? I'd be happy to listen."
Piett frowned. What was that supposed to mean? "Thanks...I guess…"
Then, a horrible, paranoid thought struck him.
What if….the reason Luke was asking so much about his superior officer, was because he suspected he worked for Vader? And though the situation Piett was in was not something he ever would have guessed in a million years, Luke was unnervingly smart.
What if he knew?
He needed to get out. He'd stayed far too long, and though he knew he was being paranoid and there wasn't a reason for Luke to know he was filling in as a stand-in for Darth Vader, he couldn't help but worry.
Quickly finishing the last of his espresso, he stood. "Well. I need to get going. This has been a...interesting conversation."
Luke still had that strange, concerned expression on his face, but he didn't say anything. Somehow the silence made Piett's paranoia increase.
He turned to leave...then paused. "Um. This is going to sound weird. But...uh. Don't ever mention that we talked about this. Don't even mention it to me in class. Pretend it never happened. Pretend we never met here."
Because Lord Vader would kill him if he found out about this conversation. He knew that if Luke suspected, he was probably damning himself, but what else could he do?
Luke gave him a look that half had him worried he would ask about his superior officer again, but instead he said, "Alright. Whatever you say, Firmus."
Luke had an annoying habit of interrupting him via private chat during lessons. Vader wished he wouldn't do it, but even after telling him a million times to stop, he still did it anyway. At least he'd begun waiting until the end of the lecture to do it.
Luke Lars: Hey! Do you have a job while on Eriadu?
Vader rolled his eyes.
Firmus Piett: How many times have I told you not to message me? We are in class. Have you no respect?
Luke Lars: Ah, you and I both know you know this anyway
Firmus Piett: Yes, but do you?
Luke Lars: Of course I do. I'm not that sheltered.
Firmus Piett: Theories of computer science does not have anything to do with whether you are sheltered or not. What is it that you want, since obviously you won't leave me alone until you speak your mind?
Luke Lars: That's a bit harsh, don't you think?
Firmus Piett: No. You are interrupting my learning. Get on with it.
He'd never attended school on Tatooine, but it wouldn't surprise him if their pathetic excuses for schools did not teach basic classroom etiquette.
Luke Lars: Fine. The mechanic shop I work at has an opening. I wondered if you wanted to apply?
Vader frowned. In a way, he was almost...tempted. He'd never had a job outside of being a Jedi, or a general, or a Sith. Having a real, normal job, especially in a field he'd probably find soothing, seemed like the definition of Not Boring. But he'd already committed himself to getting a degree, and spending more hours telling Piett what to do definitely did not fit with his schedule.
Firmus Piett: Unlike some people, I do not have time to waste on things not related to my school studies. This is precisely why I will rise to the top while others flounder.
There was a long pause, and Vader thought the conversation was done. He began focusing again on the information the professor was presenting (though indeed, he already knew most of it), when Luke replied.
Luke Lars: Did you get a full ride scholarship or something? Also, you don't need to be a jerk about it. Did I offend you earlier?
He had no idea what the boy was referring to now. Teenagers.
Firmus Piett: Of course I have no scholarship. I paid my way. I am simply stating the facts. And if you are referring to your ridiculous stunt with the duck, that was hardly offensive, just insane.
Another long pause. This time, Vader didn't fool himself into thinking Luke was done with him.
Luke Lars: Well, not all of us can afford school without scholarships...plus, aren't you maintenance? That can't pay that well, can it? And no, I wasn't referring to the duck. But okay.
Vader wasn't about to play a guessing game to figure out what it was Luke was referring to, so he decided to drop that comment. But before responding, he thought it would be best to make sure he even knew what someone in Piett's supposed position would make. He began pulling up the information, knowing it would be enough-
It wasn't.
In fact, looking over the financial records that he rarely ever looked at, maintenance was one of the lowest paying jobs in the entire military.
Well.
Firmus Piett: I saved for it. Like a responsible citizen.
Nevermind that he would have had to have no bills at all to pay one semester's worth...they really paid that low?
He was Darth Vader. Such things were below him. There were people in charge of things like this. It would be weird if he suddenly demanded an entire position get a significant pay raise just because he wanted to keep the ruse up in his predicament.
Luke Lars: Uh huh. And you're not from some wealthy family?
Yes. Yes, that was a good excuse. He didn't know if Piett was, and he suspected he wasn't, but…
Firmus Piett: Yes. But I earned my place.
Luke Lars: Hm. Must be nice. I'm going to go. Sorry I asked.
Vader was about to let out a breath of relief...but he paused. Read it again. Then…
Firmus Piett: You cannot be angry with me. I simply stated facts. It was no judgement against you.
The message marked as seen.
But Luke did not respond.
Vader stared at it for the rest of class, and when the lecture ended and Luke's profile marked itself offline, he still stared, wondering what the hell he'd done to finally break through the boy's sunshine attitude.
He wasn't sure he liked it.
