A/N: Hey, friends! Thank you for continuing to read! Please refer to the trigger warnings and disclaimers in the previous chapter's author's notes.
Enjoy!
Just a friendly reminder that I'm not necessarily looking for constructive criticism on my work- thank you to those who took the time to try to help me improve my writing, but I know my brain, and I'll fixate on it and feel really insecure for a while.
Thank you!
As expected, Vader found the boy leaning against the railing of his own balcony later that night, the weight of the entire galaxy seeming to press down upon his small form.
"You want a real answer?" Luke said, not even sparing a greeting nor a tossed glance behind his shoulder. Vader took the most tentative steps toward him, not straying far from the doorway.
"You know I already have it." Luke bowed his head, releasing a drawn out sigh.
"Well, are you here to corner me again?" he snapped, that Skywalker anger flaring in his Force presence. Vader took half a step backwards to give the boy a little more room and to disprove his remark, that guilty weight only pressing harder into the pit of his stomach. It was now Vader's turn to bow his own head.
"I...realize I could have handled that differently," he confessed, his words considered an apology if one turned their head and squinted.
"Or you could have just let me come to you," Luke volleyed back, the previous malice in his words dulling into something that tasted like defeat.
"Would you have?" Despite the guilt only pressing harder into his core as he heard the tone of his son's voice, Vader couldn't say he regretted bringing this up. The method of communicating it, a regretful mistake, but he knew full well the boy would not have shown his need for help.
"I did once, didn't I?" He asked, referring to their meeting on the forest moon, seeming almost a lifetime ago.
"When you were not the one in need, son."
"I don't need anything," he insisted bitterly. He released another heavy sigh, almost for a fresh start. "It's in my past, I've put it behind me. Just let it go." Vader tried taking another step, aching to stand closer to the boy's side.
"You know I cannot follow such a request." The boy angled his head away, visibly setting his jaw. A tense silence hung that almost put the howling infinite vacuum of space to shame.
"You didn't probe my mind," Luke finally pointed out, offering something besides mournful evening bird calls to the silence.
The boy had a point, but not only did Vader wish to avoid such methods in fear of whispering a beckoning call to his previous powers, but he wouldn't take that from Luke. He had already been violated far worse than Vader could ever comprehend.
"That is not something I would take from you, Luke." A scoff passed Luke's lips, followed by a head shake to complete the package of sarcastic disbelief.
"Then what would you call our last conversation?"
"Unfinished."
Another beat of heavy silence hung tense, and Vader could sense Luke reinforce his mental shields. Vader felt a pang of bitter irony echo in his core as he observed the boy, noting how such a small being could face such massive forces. Although this observation seemed worthy of pride, Vader only felt regret.
Finally, Luke shook his head, still having yet to look at Vader.
"There's nothing we can do, Father," he said, that awfully familiar tone of defeat seeming to weigh even heavier upon his words.
As Vader took another tentative step towards the boy, he noticed his small hand pressing vehemently against the rough stone of the balcony, the weight applied far too hard to be unintentional. He knew physically restraining the boy would only agitate him further (for, although loathe to admit it, Luke was very much his son in that aspect...and hers). Although it took all the extra energy Vader had to stop himself from seizing Luke's arm and putting an immediate halt to his pain, he opted for a more gentle action.
With careful movements that would lead onlookers to believe he feared the boy would shatter under his touch, Vader rested his gloved hand upon his son's now-bleeding, delicate flesh. If his respirator allowed, Vader would have held his breath in anticipation of the boy's reaction, but he released his tension as Luke didn't immediately recoil. Although the boy continued to pointedly avoid his gaze, this was a significant step.
"There still remain open wounds, son." He was surprised not to feel the boy tense immediately, but instead seemed to deflate, looking unbearably tired. Force, had the boy acquiesced? Of course Vader was grateful for his compliance, but this divergence of character was more than concerning, speaking to the amount of damage he had sustained. But he couldn't be certain yet.
"Luke, if you allow me this one occasion, I will never ask anything of you ever again," Vader said, his deep baritone reverberating through the air and seeming to slice through the dull background chatter of the woodland creatures.
"What?"
"Let me help you." Vader found himself almost relieved when Luke broke away from his touch, for it proved he still harbored some of that spiteful spirit. He shook his head.
"I...I can't."
"Yes, you can," Vader insisted. "You must understand that."
"But-"
"This is not a negotiation, Luke."
Luke shook his head, his eventual response escaping as a faint whisper.
"How?"
"Counseling, support groups, self-care techniques," Vader listed immediately, stepping closer. "Any support you desire." Luke was quiet for a long moment while Vader prayed to the Force the boy was considering his offer. He didn't need a clear connection with Luke's Force presence to know the boy would argue, citing how he had been doing "just fine" without assistance thus far.
"I once believed it was too late for me, son," Vader reminded him, daring to gently rest a hand on his shoulder. "Until the opportunities were presented to me by one who possessed faith in me." The reminder of what brought father and son together hung in the air, leaving the two silent.
"I need you to promise me something." Luke finally said, his tone leaving no room for argument.
"Anything," Vader responded instantly. The boy withdrew a deep breath, exhaled, and seemed to fight back tears as he finally looked at Vader.
"Keep this between us." Vader swore he could feel his heart physically ache just a touch more at the boy's delicate plea. He carefully ran his gloved thumb across Luke's shoulder.
"Anything you wish, Luke." The boy exhaled, almost in relief, as he reached up to push away a stray bit of moisture from his eye.
"I'm sorry," he said, fighting a quiver in his voice.
"What for, child?" Vader asked, although not surprised at Luke's infuriating disregard for himself.
"I...I lied to you," he said. The boy referred to their mutual agreement to avoid lying to one another, as Luke had been lied to far too often already in his short twenty-four years. Once the dust settled after Endor and Vader finally had the boy to himself, he promised him honesty in attempts to make up for what was lost, and Luke insisted on reciprocating.
"That does not apply to this situation, son."
"Yes, it-"
"Luke-"
"I should have just told you-"
"Luke-"
"How could I be so stupid?"
"Luke." The boy finally looked up after Vader halted his needless self-berating. "You cannot punish yourself like this."
"But I-"
"No, I will not allow it." Luke grew silent for a while.
"Please speak to me," Vader implored gently. Luke sighed, looking out into the unending night of the forest for something unreachable. After seeming to find his answer, he swallowed prominently, his shoulders drooping ever so slightly as if no longer willing, or perhaps no longer able, to carry the weight of this burden.
"I…" Vader recognized that slight lip quiver and offered the boy his hand, a whisper of support he remembered from his mother. Luke closed his eyes, then accepted Vader's offer and gently held his hand. They were silent for a long moment.
"I don't know what I'm going to do," Luke whispered as he dropped his gaze again, his voice husky with budding tears. Vader set a hand on Luke's shoulder, tentatively pulling him in close. The boy begrudgingly acquiesced to the support, leaning into Vader's armored shoulder.
"You are going to heal, Luke."
A/N: Thanks for continuing to read! Fun fact: I wrote this scene right after a science exam...sorry, Mr. Beall XP