The next morning, Vader went into the boy's room with a bowl of sweetened porridge and a pair of newly tailored gray outfits. He was disheartened to find that it was as if no progress had been made.
The boy hissed and growled at the sight of him, recoiling and whining, "I will be good!"
Vader put the bowl down on the ground and stepped further away from it than he had before. As he watched, the boy crawled forward, his eyes resting unblinkingly on Vader. The boy took the bowl, backed up with it, and began to eat it quickly.
Vader forced himself to turn away and walk over to the closet, where he hung up the clothes with slow movements.
"You can wear these clothes when you are ready," Vader said, moving to look at the boy. "I will not force you to do it."
Watching him warily, the boy hissed.
"There may be quite a few relapses along the way, Lord Vader. You need not take them to heart. It could be a long time before you see any genuine progress. In a case such as this, it is to be expected. You cannot expect a miracle overnight."
"I know, Dr. Akeso. I am simply not accustomed to feeling so . . . helpless."
"I'm sure you aren't. But if you're going to stick with this plan of action for Luke, then you may feel that way a lot."
"I have some concerns about . . . locking the boy away like this. Is there not something else that I could do that would not necessarily assault his senses?"
"Well . . . I suppose you might start by showing him a hologram of the stars. It's something of interest that might not seem too threatening. And then, one day, when he is ready, you could take him off planet—you know, go somewhere else."
The psychiatrist seemed to speak so matter-of-factly, yet Vader could not help but wonder if there was a hidden meaning to her words. Did she mean that he should abnegate his responsibilities and run away with the boy? He should have been appalled by the very idea, yet for some reason, that was not the case.
Dr. Akeso began speaking further, but Vader found it difficult to concentrate on her words. His mind was too filled with confusion.
At lunchtime, Vader brought the boy more food, but he also took Artoo-Detoo with him. Weeks before, Vader had captured Captain Antilles and come across both of his old droids. Antilles had proven himself to be resistant to interrogation, and Vader had been planning further methods to persuade him to give up information when he had received an insistent message from Xizor necessitating a visit from him. Now, the Rebellion was the last thing on Vader's mind. Antilles could rot in the Imperial prison for all he cared. Suddenly, interrogating Rebels seemed so childish, like attempting to rip the wings off insignificant insects.
Vader still was not certain whether coming across the two droids had been a stroke of good fortune or bad. Threepio obviously did not remember him, and Vader had seen to it that he be put to work in the Imperial Palace (though with the instruction that he be well treated). Artoo, on the other hand, remained in Vader's quarters at Vader's own insistence.
Vader was not sure whether the droid remembered him or not, but he certainly could never forget Artoo. He could easily have ordered the astromech's programming wiped or sent him to the scrap heap, but he could not bring himself to do it. Perhaps it was strange, but he felt as if the droid were the only thing in the galaxy that he could trust. He wanted the droid with him, though he was not sure why.
Yet he was glad for it, for he felt that the droid was ingrained with his own fate. They had experienced a lot together, and it made him remember when he was younger. Perhaps, somehow, Artoo could help him connect with his son. If any droid could, it was Artoo.
When the boy saw the R2 unit, however, he cried out, "I will be good!"
"This is Artoo," Vader said softly, gesturing at the droid. "Neither he nor I intend to hurt you. I will give you this bowl of food, but first I would like to show you something. Artoo?"
With a muted whistle, the astromech droid began to project a hologram of stars. The hologram floated in the air around him, little white dots of varying sizes spinning around. The lighting was dim enough that the stars were just visible.
The boy's brow furrowed, and he cocked his head, looking at the hologram with some interest. For a handful of breaths, he did not seem afraid.
"Do you remember the stars?" Vader asked.
The boy cringed at the sound of his voice.
Though saddened by the sight, Vader continued, "When you are ready, I will take you to see them."
The boy did not respond; he merely continued to look up at the stars, one hand rising slightly, as if he wanted to touch them.
That night, Vader received a holo-transmission call from the Emperor.
Palpatine's displeasure would have been obvious even without the large image of his frowning face looming over Vader. For several minutes, he waited to speak, and Vader continued to kneel, forcing himself to seem as contrite as possible. Finally, however, the Emperor spoke.
"Why did you deliberately disobey my orders concerning the Falleen?" he asked, his voice laced with anger.
"I have a reason, my master," Vader said, "and I shall disclose it to you when you return."
The surprise on Palpatine's face was obvious. He was unaccustomed to having to wait for information, and he had likely not expected Vader to have any excuse in hand for his actions but his infamous temper. He peered at Vader for a moment, likely trying to decide whether to probe further or attempt to force more explicit contriteness. At last, however, he gave a slow nod of acceptance.
Vader felt like breathing a sigh of relief. No holo transmission was completely secure, and this information was not something that he wanted the wrong person to have. Yet it had certainly been possible that his master would insist on being given information immediately.
"Very well," said Palpatine. "It will likely be a week or two before I return. You had better have a good excuse, Lord Vader, or else you shall certainly face the full brunt of my displeasure."
"Yes, my master."
They only spoke a little longer before the holo transmission was cut off, yet Vader found himself hard-pressed to keep his emotions in control. Why did he feel as if his meeting with Palpatine was going to change everything?