Summary: Lord Vader had discovered his son was alive and living on Tatooine. He orders the boy brought to him.
"I've brought the boy, my lord," the officer said.
"Good. Leave us," Darth Vader replied. He stood by his desk with his hand clasped behind his back as he looked down at the small boy.
There he was.
The boy, his son, appeared uncomfortable as the officer let go of his hand and left. The child stared at the closed door for a moment before those big eyes turned to him. Vader tensed. How was the child going to react?
He didn't do much. He looked around the room, looked at Vader, looked around the room again, and then back at Vader.
"Who you?" the boy finally asked.
Vader hesitated, but only for a moment. "I am your father," he said.
The boy didn't really react. He blinked and looked confused. Did he not comprehend what Vader had said? Was there no weight to this at all to him? Perhaps he was too young to truly understand.
But then we walked right up to him. He placed a small hand on his leg and looked up.
"You my father?"
"Yes," the big man said.
A father was like a daddy. Luke didn't have one of those. He had an uncle and an aunt. No daddy and no mommy.
But he guess he had one now?
Where were his aunt and uncle? Were they at home? Luke had wanted to go home. He asked all the big scary men to take him home, but they never said anything at all! Though he had been taken on a ship, which was really really cool!, he couldn't enjoy it. He had cried the entire time! Why couldn't his aunt and uncle come with him on the ship?
The big man leaned over and picked him up. He had really big hands. The big man sat down in a chair behind a big desk. A big desk for a big man! Luke sat down on the man– his daddy's?– lap.
The man looked funny. He had a black box on his chest with blinking lights and buttons. What did those buttons do? He sounded funny too.
"What's that?" Luke asked.
"What is what?" the man asked. He had a big deep voice.
"That sound."
"My . . . breathing?"
Is that what that was?
"It's loud," Luke said.
" . . . yes, it is."
He looked up at the man's face. It was funny looking too. He reached up and touched it.
"This your nose?" he asked. He wasn't completely sure. "You breathe here?"
" . . . yes."
Luke smiled. He was glad he had got it right.
"It's hard," he said touching the black shiny skin on the face. "Why? Are you a droid?"
"No, little one. This is a mask."
A mask?
Luke stood up on the man's legs. He had big legs. It was easy to stand up. He put his hands on the man's shoulders and leaned in real close.
"I see you!" Luke laughed.
He could see the man's eyes! It was a mask! He touched the eyes. They were hard.
"You take it off?" he asked.
Vader stiffened.
Where did this boy get the audacity to ask him such a question?
The child had no fear. He climbed all over him, touching and prodding at him, asking whatever silly question came into his head.
"I see?" the boy asked impatiently.
Vader should just take the child to the room he had prepared for him. He was not going entertain every whimsical wish of this child. He–
"I see daddy?"
Vader froze.
What had he called him?
Daddy?
So he did understand who Vader was.
"Please?" Luke asked.
"Very well," Vader said.
He didn't know why he had agreed. He loathed his face. It was scarred and deformed. It held nothing of what it had once had been. It was a dreadful sight, but perhaps that would finally teach this boy some fear. Let him see the consequences of curiosity.
He slowly took the helmet off and placed it on the desk. Then he pulled the mask away. At once his breathing started to become ragged. He put the mask down and looked at his son with his own eyes.
He looked too much like Anakin Skywalker. Blonde hair, sun-kissed skin, desert tunics, and blue fearless eyes.
Fearless.
There was no fear.
The boy was staring at him intently. His head was cocked to the side.
And then he smiled. He smiled!
"There you are!" he said.