#in which vader doesnt know how to handle a teenager

[zoryany]

I’m piggybacking off the AU I hastily threw together for this prompt response to explore a concept that’s been lurking at the back of my brain for a while.

Luke had fled off-planet again.

He had done so once before, about a year earlier, and Vader had been fortunate to catch up to his son swiftly and without issue. This time, however, was markedly different than the last.

That first time, Luke had left no indication of where he had gone, had not wanted to be found, but was discovered through the will of the Force; this time, he had stated precisely where he planned to go.

This did not make Vader feel any better in the least.

His son had been spending less and less time at home, these days, claiming his studies as the primary reason he ventured into the depths of the capital, but his sour attitude as of late seemed to suggest otherwise. Often, he would return of his own volition, scowling and broody, but still mercifully present. More than once, however, Vader had to intervene.

Scum lurked amongst Coruscant's underworld, those who would take one look at Luke and, even without knowing his importance, seek to exploit him. When such creatures encountered Darth Vader, they very, very rarely survived. Far too often, however, they evaded him – a fact which did not seem to bother his son in the least.

If he had his way, Vader would secure Luke in his quarters and be done with it. The child was far too reckless for his own good, and seemed to insist on seeking trouble when at all possible. His master had decreed otherwise, however, insisting that the boy be allowed his freedom, likely as a trap or to taunt him, somehow, and Luke would never have accepted confinement as strict as Vader would have preferred.

So that left him in this predicament – his son far from home, his master unaware but likely amused, regardless, and himself worried beyond belief.

Dearest Father, the note had said. By the time you read this, I will be deep in hyperspace, or maybe at my destination already. That... had not boded well already. I know you will find me. You always do. So I'll save you the trouble. I've gone to Tatooine. I've gone home. And oh, how that had stung. Home. Luke's home was with his father, not some backwater, gangster-controlled hellscape. Yet Luke had the audacity to claim otherwise. I know you're going to come and get me, because I've been your son long enough to figure that out, but when you do, make sure you're ready to talk. Otherwise, I'll make our return flight as miserable as possible.

Insubordinate officers, rogue Jedi and Rebel fighters all facing him down side by side would be far simpler to deal with than his teenager. Luke had single handedly challenged Vader in more ways than the rest of his lifetime's trials combined. Forcing him to return to Tatooine, however, after vowing never to return following the retrieval of his son, was pulling him to the end of his rope.

Upon entering the system, Vader could sense precisely where Luke was, his presence shining like a beacon in the Force. It was little surprise, where the boy had headed, though that did nothing to mitigate Vader's rage.

"Luke," Vader rumbled, his irritation palpable even through the thick heat of the mid-afternoon air. "It is time to cease this childish behaviour and return home, where you will at last be taught some proper manners."

His son stiffened at the words, visibly angered or afraid – or, possibly, both – but he did not turn away from facing the grave stones he stood before.

"Father." These days, that word seemed to be spat at him with more and more bitterness. This time, it was loaded with enough venom to stab at his heart with a thin layer of ice. "I thought I told you to be ready to talk when you came here. Am I going to have to make this difficult?"

"Luke," Vader growled, barely containing the rage that roiled within him. "As it stands, you are fortunate that I do not keep you tethered in your rooms or find some other way to contain you in your quarters to prevent these foolish actions. You are coming with me. Now."

Luke whirled around, blowing up sand as he did, and shot his father a glare. It was strange, to Vader, the level of anger, resentment and hurt that expression contained, without dipping anywhere near the Dark.

"Oh, so that's how you're gonna play this?" Luke hissed. "You wanna cage me like an animal when I don't do precisely as you wish? What am I to you? A son? Or a possession?"

The level of vitriol his son was spewing was astonishing, and it took him a moment to register what was being said. It was with great effort that he contained his ire when he responded to the foolish child. "I am your father, and you will respect me as such."

Luke – foolish, stubborn Luke – answered that with a bark of bitter laughter. "I told you to only come here if you were ready to talk, but I should've said you better be ready to listen. You talk plenty. You don't listen. Just make demands. I'm not one of your soldiers, you know, I'm not some puppet you can just bark orders at." An odd blend of emotions flickered across the boy's face for a moment before he laughed again, sounding more hysterical this time. "You don't even know what day it is, do you? Why I came here?"

A few cycles of the respirator passed as Vader composed himself. He refused to lose patience with his son, but the boy was testing his limits. "You harbour some foolish attachment to this world, to this life you once led. You and I both spent our earliest years on this world, but those are lifetimes best left in the past."

Luke stared at him for a moment, dumbfounded, before letting out a noise of frustration, kicking a patch of sand and setting off pacing. "You don't get it!" he yelled, voice pitching up. "I hated this place growing up. This homestead... it felt like a prison, this world like a trap. But... eight years ago... eight years ago today..." His voice caught in his throat, his eyes glistening, and be refused to look anywhere but the coarse grains grinding beneath his feet. "I never did come back here after it happened. I was at Biggs'. Remember? You came to retrieve me, told me you were my father, that there had been an attack on my home, but everything would be alright because you would protect me..."

His feet settled and he turned a watery gaze towards his father, hurt glimmering in the depths of his bright blues. "I was a child. Only eight years old, how could I have known any better at the time?" As his voice broke, Luke paused, closed his eyes and took a deep breath. When he opened them again, he appeared completely composed. "I'd always believed it was Tuskens. You never did say. But it was you. Wasn't it? Those were lightsaber marks on the walls."

He had never wanted his son to find out. Perhaps he was a fool to imagine it would be as simple as eliminating his guardians and claiming the boy for his own, once and for all. Doing so had set things right, after all, and Luke was where he was meant to be. He should have known better. He should have planned for this.

"My connection to this world belongs to a man who no longer exists," Vader said, carefully controlling his tone and, for once, grateful for the vocoder's assistance in that regard. "As I said, that is a lifetime best left forgotten. You would do well to do the same."

"Stars!" Luke cried, throwing up his hands. "You really don't get it! What about my connection to this world? My aunt and uncle, my friends, my grandmother? And I just – I don't understand how you can stand there, look me in the eye and disconnect yourself from Anakin Skywalker. If you have no connection to him, or his past, or his memories, how can you claim any connection to me?"

"You are my son. I have no need to dredge up the past in order to recognize this fact. Or to form a connection with you."

To Vader, it was simple. The distinction was simple. The distance from his past did not change their blood, their bond or the truth.

To Luke, it seemed, things were not so simple, and for a moment, it seemed he would have another outburst. After a few seconds, however, the boy deflated with a sigh. He appeared exhausted and disappointed. "Let's... let's just go, Father. I'm done here."

Vader had no idea what had just happened between him and Luke. Someday, perhaps, he would untangle the knot of emotions that was his teenager. For now, however, he was satisfied to have his son back at his side.