Disclaimer: I don't own these characters.

Luke barely touched his food. He had a medical appointment with Dr. Kenobi that very afternoon, and cringed at what his former neighbor would say to his Aunt Beru about his weight, which had probably dipped down into the double digits by now.

But Luke didn't care at this point. Maybe something to increase his appetite would be good for him; he sure wasn't getting nutrients by eating.

Next, Aunt Beru went into the bathroom and ran Luke a bath; Luke agreed that baths were easier than showers to relax in, and plus, he was glad he wasn't at Alderaan. He had seen Leia's bathroom there: she bathed in a Jacuzzi tub with puffy pink curtains, and was pampered with a bath pillow, candles, one of those loofah things, and endless bottles of pink gels, creams, and bath beads that she probably never used. It was enough to make a person go insane and hate pink.

Aunt Beru simply handed him a washcloth, bar of soap, and bottle of shampoo, and took a fresh towel out of the linen closet. "And surely you don't need me to bathe you, Luke?"

Luke shook his head. "No, I'm okay."

"All right, well, I'll be downstairs doing the dishes. I'll be up in a little while."

Brrrrr. The water wasn't freezing, but it was cold enough. At least the bath water jolted Luke out of his fatigue; hurriedly, he struggled to soap up and rinse off before the water got any colder.

Luke scooted over to the tap and turned the hot water on, because he wasn't about to dunk his head in the chilly tub. As he ran his blonde head underneath the warm water, his brain suddenly received a very loud message.

LUUUUUUKE!

Luke sat bolt upright, bumping his head on the tap. He turned off the tap and sourly rubbed his sore head. Owww, Leia! he complained silently to his sister, then sent her the mind message back. Do you have to scream? I just bumped my head on the bath tap!

I'm sorry, Luke, but you haven't spoken to me in weeks!

I haven't been getting your messages. I'm on three different types of medications, and they're clouding my brain. You're lucky that Aunt Beru ran me a cool bath to wake me up, or else I would still be foggy.

That's what I figured. Just check your e-mail. We'll communicate that way.

Okay.

Luke shampooed his head and rinsed. He got out of the tub, drained it, and wrapped a towel around his slender body, which was growing more and more slender by the day. In the bathroom mirror, he saw that his forehead was bleeding.

He went over to the linen closet and reached for another washcloth. How was he going to explain this to Aunt Beru without her thinking that it was another suicide attempt?

Dear Leia,

As I explained to you earlier, I'm on three different types of medications: two antidepressants and sleeping pills. My mind isn't very clear at all. I'm shuffled to the bathroom to wash and then back to bed, where I spend most of my day. I've been craving some playtime with Aunt Beru, but she's busy helping Uncle Owen with the farm's budget. (And no, I don't have any chores.)

I don't want to talk about me a whole lot. Just know that I'm safe and I'm okay.

How's Alderaan? What do you do there all day?

Hug,

Luke

C3PO still worked at RebelCorp, in Yoh Da's office. Da dropped him off at the Skywalkers' house once a day, usually after work, where he could check on things, to make sure that the place was still in order.

Last evening, on a routine visit, Threepio had discovered that someone else had been visiting the Skywalkers'. On their front lawn, rose petals had been formed into the shape of a heart, and inside the heart, a message had been spelled out with small stones: COME BACK LEIA.

Threepio had chuckled to himself. It was obviously the work of young Solo, still helplessly in love with young mistress Leia.

Threepio missed the young humans. He had gone so far as to stock the pantry with Sugar-Frosted Intergalactic Space-O's, Master Luke's favorite, in the hopes that he would be home soon. Threepio's heart had broken when he learned that Master Luke had been in the hospital for a suicide attempt; he knew that Master Luke was with the Larses, but he didn't know how to get out there to visit him.

And Master Vader? Master Vader had always treated him well, although learning that he had killed another human for job advancement wasn't all that surprising. Threepio was estimating that someone would pay off some kind of judge or lawyer, and Master Vader would be out on the streets again in no time.

But the young humans... Threepio had to make sure that they were safe and well taken care of, one way or another.

"Oh, Luke, what did you do to yourself now? Can't you even take a bath anymore?"

No, that wasn't what Aunt Beru had said, but she might as well have. What she really said was, "What happened, Luke?" in a disappointed tone.

"I bumped my head on the tap. I was trying to rinse my hair."

"Does it hurt? Don't tell me you have a concussion."

"No, it doesn't hurt. I'm okay."

Aunt Beru cleansed and wiped his wound- in a soft manner that only Aunt Beru would- and applied a bandage. "There."

Luke reached for his aunt's hand and squeezed it. She had to know that all of her efforts to help him were being taken well. "Thanks," he whispered, his blue eyes welling with tears.

"Sweetheart, are you all right? Do you need anything? Do you want to talk about anything?" his aunt asked him, concerned.

Luke, despondent, shook his head. He needed love, but how was he going to tell her that?

Luckily, she understood. "Let's get you out of that bathrobe and into some clothes, and I'll teach you how to play chess. How does that sound?"

Luke smiled. "Sounds great."

Up Next: Bail Organa's Surprising E-mail