Again, the HP kids (and teacher) aren't mine. Neither are the folks from
Star Wars.
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We're Not in Kansas Anymore
The council members studied the three children closely. They were nervous. This was understandable. They were close. This was quite interesting. A Force bond existed between the three of them, binding them more tightly than any three siblings could have managed.
The boy called Harry stood in front. He kept his shoulders back and stood straight. He was trying to put forth a good face by concentrating on keeping his jaw from shaking, unaware that the beings surrounding them could read his thoughts as easily as his text books.
The other two, the boy called Ron and the girl they called Hermione, stood close to their friend. The Jedi healers had repaired the bruises and scratches, though there was still dirt and dust the trio had somehow managed to get on themselves during their journey here.
Yoda rested his chin atop his hands as they sat folded on the top of his gimmer stick. "Who are you?"
The central child blinked at the diminutive creature, then nodded slightly to himself. "I'm Harry Potter. These are my friends, Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger." The other two children mumbled quiet greetings. Ron was looking around at all the non-human members of the council. Hermione seemed to be more interested in the light sabers, though she refrained from asking for a closer inspection of one.
Master Windu seemed to be measuring the children in his mind before speaking. "Where do you come from?"
"Hogwarts. That's the name of our school, anyway. Our world is known as Earth."
"Earth." The Master Jedi rolled the word over on his tongue. Mentally, he took a quiet poll of every member of the council. "We are not familiar with this world. What system is it in?"
Harry looked over his shoulder at Ron. Ron shrugged and offered an idea. "Let Hermione explain. She probably knows anyway."
Before Harry could ask the girl for her point of view, she stepped forward. "Right, then. All right." She took a breath in preparation and the boys braced themselves for the lecture. "We're from Earth, in the Sol star system, in the Milky Way Galaxy." The paused and looked around the council chambers. "Am I correct in assuming we're not anywhere near there now?"
The council members did not respond, only looked at one another enigmatically before Mace nodded once. The girl arched one brow in a decidedly less than pleased fashion before resuming. "Well, as to whom we are, we're students at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. A very old institution with very old customs. The man your healers took away was Severus Snape, the potions master. Usually we can't stand him, but he seems to have saved our lives."
"Young Harry's life most of all." Yoda trained his eyes back to the central child. Very strong in the Force, that one was. All three were, but he was exceptionally powerful. "Tell us, who sent the lightening?"
Ron shivered. Harry set his jaw in a perturbed manner. Hermione sniffed as though she remembered something unpleasant, and continued. "That was Lord Voldemort, a wizard. Sadly, not all wizard and witches are good. Some are bad, and *he* is as bad as they come. Unfortunately, he despises Harry more than anyone else in existence."
Several pairs of eyes focused on the boy in glasses. He did his best to pretend he didn't notice. Hermione continued as if she found nothing amiss.
"You see, Voldemort wanted to be in power. He wanted to control *everything* and he gathered followers to help him. We were just babies then, but everyone knows the story. If you went against him, you died. Harry's parents decided to defy him, and he came to their home to kill them." She paused and looked over her shoulder at the boy in question for a long moment. He took a breath and nodded to her, forcing a smile.
"It's all right, Hermione. I've learned to live with it."
The girl bit her bottom lip for a moment, then nodded before turning back to the council. "Voldemort killed James Potter, then went upstairs to finish off Lily and baby Harry. Only, Harry's mother sacrificed herself to try and protect her son. It worked, oddly enough. When Voldemort turned his magic on Harry, it backfired on him and… well… broke him."
She stopped, as though everything was explained. The council members communicated in their silent way again, the Force sending messages through their shared thoughts. Finally, it was Qui-Gon, apart from the council but still standing in the back of the room, who spoke. "How was he 'broken'?"
Ron turned around and looked at the large man. "Just that. He was broken. His body was gone, and what was left of him had to stick itself to other people to survive. It was really creepy. But then, last year, he did a spell that gave him back his body."
"And cancelled the protection Harry's mother gave him."
The two speakers fell silent, unsure of how to continue. It was Harry who finally spoke. "He was trying to kill us when Snape sent us here. Well, trying to kill me. Ron and Hermione wouldn't go on like I asked them to."
"Good and loyal friends are a treasure, young wizard. You should not be so eager to part from them." The Jedi stepped forward. "I am Qui-Gon Jin. This is my Padawan Obi-Wan Kenobi." He proceeded to introduce the council members by name, putting the children on slightly more equal footing than they had been. "It seems as though the four of you are in need of shelter."
"Agreed." Mace leaned to one side in his usual pose of resting against one arm. The council had been debating in silence as Qui-Gon lulled the children into calmness with his gentle voice. In truth, he had always envied the Jedi Master that skill. Mace had always been found too harsh and intimidating by most of the young Padawans. In contrast, the learners all hoped that they could be the next apprentice for Master Qui-Gon. If his friend would just adhere to the Code more closely, he would be on the council by now. But when the Council rarely left the temple, the Jedi would be losing an extremely valuable agent. Perhaps Qui-Gon's rebellious nature was a blessing.
"Master Qui-Gon, two rooms near yours there are." Yoda's ears perked up with the idea. "Look over these young ones, you and your Padawan will."
The two Jedi bowed slightly in acceptance. "We would be honored, Master Yoda."
Obi-Wan smiled at the children as he straightened back up. "I don't suppose you're hungry? I'm afraid we got called in here before I could manage anything for breakfast."
As if answering of its own accord, Ron's stomach rumbled loudly. He managed a less than comfortable smile as Hermione rolled her eyes towards the ceiling and muttered something that sounded suspiciously like "boys".
/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/
"That lightening was of the Dark Side of the Force."
Yoda nodded in response to Master Windu. "Powerful, it was, full of hate. A powerful enemy Young Potter has. And powerful allies."
"The Force is strong with all three of them, though if this 'professor' is any sign, they do not connect with it as we do."
"Speak with him, we will, when he is awakened. Much we can learn from these visitors."
/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/
Severus Snape, Potions Master for Hogwarts, was playing opossum. He was old enough and wise enough to know that the people tending to his injuries were most likely aware he was playing opossum. Still, he continued to lay there, eyes closed, as he pondered what he had done.
He had remembered the incantation *exactly* the way Dumbledore had told it to him. He could still remember what the wizened man had told him. 'It is a safe place, a secure place. But it is also a place of adventure and danger. Go there only if you have no other choice, Severus. Go there only if life is at stake.'
Life *had* been at stake.
He called up the image of Harry Potter into his mind and felt the knife twist in his heart as it always did. So much like James, that boy. The hair that refused to lay flat. The stubborn chin. The slight build that made him such an outstanding Seeker. If he could concentrate on the things that were so much like James, he could keep it in his mind that he was supposed to be cold to the boy.
But then he'd see those eyes. Those brilliant, too green eyes. He couldn't keep up his dislike for the boy for long when he locked gazes with him.
*Lily.*
He had been a fool, of course, all those years ago. She had been a natural talent, born of Muggles but a promising witch. If she had been willing to choose a life beside a Slytherin student, she could have ruled the world. If she had only fallen in love with him instead of Potter. But she hadn't loved him, and she had loved Potter. He had felt his whole world crumble about him when he learned they were to be married. He had felt as if someone had stabbed him through with a sword when he learned she was to have a child.
Potter's child. Little Harry. But also Lily's child. That was why he couldn't hate the boy. He could never hate Lily, and he was part of her as well.
Lily was gone, and James with her. Harry, however, lived on. As long as there was breath in his body, there was something of Lily remaining as well. Snape knew that he would tear down the walls of Azkaban with his bare hands to keep that part of her alive.
'I will protect him, Lily. I'll keep your son safe. I can never call him mine, but I will always watch over him because he is yours.'
The wizard drew a deep breath and opened his eyes. It was time to learn of this place he had brought his students to.
/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\
We're Not in Kansas Anymore
The council members studied the three children closely. They were nervous. This was understandable. They were close. This was quite interesting. A Force bond existed between the three of them, binding them more tightly than any three siblings could have managed.
The boy called Harry stood in front. He kept his shoulders back and stood straight. He was trying to put forth a good face by concentrating on keeping his jaw from shaking, unaware that the beings surrounding them could read his thoughts as easily as his text books.
The other two, the boy called Ron and the girl they called Hermione, stood close to their friend. The Jedi healers had repaired the bruises and scratches, though there was still dirt and dust the trio had somehow managed to get on themselves during their journey here.
Yoda rested his chin atop his hands as they sat folded on the top of his gimmer stick. "Who are you?"
The central child blinked at the diminutive creature, then nodded slightly to himself. "I'm Harry Potter. These are my friends, Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger." The other two children mumbled quiet greetings. Ron was looking around at all the non-human members of the council. Hermione seemed to be more interested in the light sabers, though she refrained from asking for a closer inspection of one.
Master Windu seemed to be measuring the children in his mind before speaking. "Where do you come from?"
"Hogwarts. That's the name of our school, anyway. Our world is known as Earth."
"Earth." The Master Jedi rolled the word over on his tongue. Mentally, he took a quiet poll of every member of the council. "We are not familiar with this world. What system is it in?"
Harry looked over his shoulder at Ron. Ron shrugged and offered an idea. "Let Hermione explain. She probably knows anyway."
Before Harry could ask the girl for her point of view, she stepped forward. "Right, then. All right." She took a breath in preparation and the boys braced themselves for the lecture. "We're from Earth, in the Sol star system, in the Milky Way Galaxy." The paused and looked around the council chambers. "Am I correct in assuming we're not anywhere near there now?"
The council members did not respond, only looked at one another enigmatically before Mace nodded once. The girl arched one brow in a decidedly less than pleased fashion before resuming. "Well, as to whom we are, we're students at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. A very old institution with very old customs. The man your healers took away was Severus Snape, the potions master. Usually we can't stand him, but he seems to have saved our lives."
"Young Harry's life most of all." Yoda trained his eyes back to the central child. Very strong in the Force, that one was. All three were, but he was exceptionally powerful. "Tell us, who sent the lightening?"
Ron shivered. Harry set his jaw in a perturbed manner. Hermione sniffed as though she remembered something unpleasant, and continued. "That was Lord Voldemort, a wizard. Sadly, not all wizard and witches are good. Some are bad, and *he* is as bad as they come. Unfortunately, he despises Harry more than anyone else in existence."
Several pairs of eyes focused on the boy in glasses. He did his best to pretend he didn't notice. Hermione continued as if she found nothing amiss.
"You see, Voldemort wanted to be in power. He wanted to control *everything* and he gathered followers to help him. We were just babies then, but everyone knows the story. If you went against him, you died. Harry's parents decided to defy him, and he came to their home to kill them." She paused and looked over her shoulder at the boy in question for a long moment. He took a breath and nodded to her, forcing a smile.
"It's all right, Hermione. I've learned to live with it."
The girl bit her bottom lip for a moment, then nodded before turning back to the council. "Voldemort killed James Potter, then went upstairs to finish off Lily and baby Harry. Only, Harry's mother sacrificed herself to try and protect her son. It worked, oddly enough. When Voldemort turned his magic on Harry, it backfired on him and… well… broke him."
She stopped, as though everything was explained. The council members communicated in their silent way again, the Force sending messages through their shared thoughts. Finally, it was Qui-Gon, apart from the council but still standing in the back of the room, who spoke. "How was he 'broken'?"
Ron turned around and looked at the large man. "Just that. He was broken. His body was gone, and what was left of him had to stick itself to other people to survive. It was really creepy. But then, last year, he did a spell that gave him back his body."
"And cancelled the protection Harry's mother gave him."
The two speakers fell silent, unsure of how to continue. It was Harry who finally spoke. "He was trying to kill us when Snape sent us here. Well, trying to kill me. Ron and Hermione wouldn't go on like I asked them to."
"Good and loyal friends are a treasure, young wizard. You should not be so eager to part from them." The Jedi stepped forward. "I am Qui-Gon Jin. This is my Padawan Obi-Wan Kenobi." He proceeded to introduce the council members by name, putting the children on slightly more equal footing than they had been. "It seems as though the four of you are in need of shelter."
"Agreed." Mace leaned to one side in his usual pose of resting against one arm. The council had been debating in silence as Qui-Gon lulled the children into calmness with his gentle voice. In truth, he had always envied the Jedi Master that skill. Mace had always been found too harsh and intimidating by most of the young Padawans. In contrast, the learners all hoped that they could be the next apprentice for Master Qui-Gon. If his friend would just adhere to the Code more closely, he would be on the council by now. But when the Council rarely left the temple, the Jedi would be losing an extremely valuable agent. Perhaps Qui-Gon's rebellious nature was a blessing.
"Master Qui-Gon, two rooms near yours there are." Yoda's ears perked up with the idea. "Look over these young ones, you and your Padawan will."
The two Jedi bowed slightly in acceptance. "We would be honored, Master Yoda."
Obi-Wan smiled at the children as he straightened back up. "I don't suppose you're hungry? I'm afraid we got called in here before I could manage anything for breakfast."
As if answering of its own accord, Ron's stomach rumbled loudly. He managed a less than comfortable smile as Hermione rolled her eyes towards the ceiling and muttered something that sounded suspiciously like "boys".
/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/
"That lightening was of the Dark Side of the Force."
Yoda nodded in response to Master Windu. "Powerful, it was, full of hate. A powerful enemy Young Potter has. And powerful allies."
"The Force is strong with all three of them, though if this 'professor' is any sign, they do not connect with it as we do."
"Speak with him, we will, when he is awakened. Much we can learn from these visitors."
/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/
Severus Snape, Potions Master for Hogwarts, was playing opossum. He was old enough and wise enough to know that the people tending to his injuries were most likely aware he was playing opossum. Still, he continued to lay there, eyes closed, as he pondered what he had done.
He had remembered the incantation *exactly* the way Dumbledore had told it to him. He could still remember what the wizened man had told him. 'It is a safe place, a secure place. But it is also a place of adventure and danger. Go there only if you have no other choice, Severus. Go there only if life is at stake.'
Life *had* been at stake.
He called up the image of Harry Potter into his mind and felt the knife twist in his heart as it always did. So much like James, that boy. The hair that refused to lay flat. The stubborn chin. The slight build that made him such an outstanding Seeker. If he could concentrate on the things that were so much like James, he could keep it in his mind that he was supposed to be cold to the boy.
But then he'd see those eyes. Those brilliant, too green eyes. He couldn't keep up his dislike for the boy for long when he locked gazes with him.
*Lily.*
He had been a fool, of course, all those years ago. She had been a natural talent, born of Muggles but a promising witch. If she had been willing to choose a life beside a Slytherin student, she could have ruled the world. If she had only fallen in love with him instead of Potter. But she hadn't loved him, and she had loved Potter. He had felt his whole world crumble about him when he learned they were to be married. He had felt as if someone had stabbed him through with a sword when he learned she was to have a child.
Potter's child. Little Harry. But also Lily's child. That was why he couldn't hate the boy. He could never hate Lily, and he was part of her as well.
Lily was gone, and James with her. Harry, however, lived on. As long as there was breath in his body, there was something of Lily remaining as well. Snape knew that he would tear down the walls of Azkaban with his bare hands to keep that part of her alive.
'I will protect him, Lily. I'll keep your son safe. I can never call him mine, but I will always watch over him because he is yours.'
The wizard drew a deep breath and opened his eyes. It was time to learn of this place he had brought his students to.