Darth Vader Goes to School

Missing

Where was Luke?!

Where did he go?!

Kriff, how was he gone so quickly?!

These questions and more plagued Piett as he raced around his apartment complex and the streets surrounding it, looking everywhere for the boy.

Vader was definitely going to kill him for this, but Vader wasn't here. He still hadn't called Piett back, and he was terrified to make yet another call to inform him that he'd lost his precious son.

Had Luke been taken?

No. He would have heard the commotion.

Had Luke...listened in on his conversation?

No. He was certain Luke hadn't heard him. Even if he had tried to eavesdrop, he'd made sure to keep his voice low. Unless the Force had weird super hearing powers, or mind reading, like the rumors suggested, Piett didn't think that was the case. Besides, if it was, then he would have found out the many times Piett had been listening to Lord Vader thunder in his ear.

So he had to have run. But why? Was he that distressed? That didn't bode well...people made stupid decisions when they were under immense pressure, and Luke most certainly was. The poor kid had been evicted, investigated for murder, and now he was filthy rich with little explanation. Piett was a champion at handling the intense stress Vader put him under, but Luke?

Luke was the kindest, most gentle soul he'd ever met in his entire life. He didn't know how that even made sense, considering who his father was, but it was true. And now he was lost, out of his mind with terror, and his father was going to murder him the moment he told him--

Piett ignored the burning in his lungs, running like a mad man. It was obvious at this point that Luke was long gone, away from his apartment. Where else would the boy go?

Unfortunately, Piett only knew three places: The Screamin' Bean, the repair shop, and his apartment.

The Screamin' Bean would be closed by now, but Piett raced there anyway. What if Luke had a key? He frequently opened shop, right? So maybe that meant he had access to hide out there? And maybe he was stuffing himself with a million rainbow frappes--

He wasn't at the Screamin' Bean.

Next stop: the repair shop.

Piett had only known the place by its address. He hadn't actually been there, but Vader had looked up the address and made him memorize it anyway after he'd learned about his relation to the boy. By the time he got there, he could hardly breathe, and the guy working on a speeder stopped to look at him like he was concerned he was going to drop dead that moment.

"Uh. You okay, dude?" The man asked. He was covered in grease.

"L--Lu--- Luke!" He managed to wheeze.

The man frowned. "You lookin for Luke?" Piett nodded vigorously. "He's not here at the moment...strange. He was supposed to work tonight but he never showed. Not like him..."

"Tell--tell--- Piett looking--"

"You want me to tell him you're looking for him?" Piett again nodded enthusiastically. "Your name is Piett? The...ah...Imperial?"

Apparently Luke had talked about him. He wasn't sure if that was a good or bad thing. It probably wasn't too much on the good side, since Luke had apparently started suspecting he was lying about who he was. That and, well, Vader didn't exactly make conversation with the poor boy normal. "Yes."