Author's Note: Events from Attack of the Clones start to come in. Enjoy!
"Your people are not usually this slow to age, are they?" Obi-Wan asked suspiciously.
Harry grinned. "We are longer lived than humans, and as such do age slower, but no," he answered honestly.
"Any changes would be more subtle, than they have been in Anakin, but you have not changed at all since you appeared before us."
Harry lifted a shoulder. "Perhaps it is because I do not belong in this world." His head tilted. "Or perhaps it is because not much time has passed in my own world."
"It would not do to return a decade older in your own world when only a year has passed for your peers," Obi-Wan remarked.
"Exactly."
"Are you prepared to face the Trials?"
"I still can't believe they're making me do them, when they know I won't remain here. What's the point in making me a Knight?"
"Because you have earnt the right to hold the title, or you will have done once you pass the trials. And just because you will not ultimately remain within our world, does not mean that you will not have years, if not another decade with us," he added.
"I suppose you have a point," he remarked. "Anakin is all right that I'm facing the trials before him, isn't he?"
"He holds no jealousy or resentment," he stated. "Nor has he experienced any. He knows that your abilities are different than his own, and you received training in those before you came to us. It is only natural that you would advance through your training quicker than he his."
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"Highly irregular this is," Yoda stated, his expression somewhat disgruntled as he perched on his council chair.
Harry met his gaze squarely, his senses open to the Council's mood as a whole. "I've been irregular from the start," he answered easily.
"Be that as it may," Mace Windu remarked. "You have only recently attained the title of Knight, and you have had no recent missions, what could possibly be of such importance that you had to summon the council?"
"I petition the council for Anakin and Padme to be allowed to marry," he spoke, voice strong and certain. He sensed the ripples through each member of the Council.
"Why make this request do you?" Yoda asked solemnly.
He opened his mouth, then blew out a breath. "I could give you a number of reasons and arguments in defence of my petition," he remarked. "But really, I only need to say that the bond they share is obvious, and it is the right thing to allow them to openly acknowledge it."
He went quiet, his chin up as he sensed the silent conference through those on the council. Mace met his gaze. "We agree, with certain conditions," he spoke gravely.
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Anakin met Harry a short distance from the council chambers. The brunet set up a force-shield and silencing charm for good measure. "How did it go?" Anakin asked, nervously flicking his padawan braid over his shoulder.
Harry had to suppress his smile at seeing his own gesture. "They gave their permission," he stated.
"Thank you!" he cried, hugging the smaller teen tight.
"Hold on," Harry spoke, pulling back so that he could meet Ani's gaze. "There are a couple of conditions," he added seriously. Anakin nodded. "You need to wait until you've finished your training as a padawan."
"I don't have that long before I face the trials," he murmured.
Harry acknowledged that with a tilt of his head. "And they ask that if they have need of you-"
"Of course I would come to their aid," he replied instantly. "Anything else?" Harry shook his head and found himself pulled into another hug. "Thank you again, I do not know if I could have gathered the courage to face the council to make the request."
"I'm sure you would have done," he replied softly, giving the taller teen a tight squeeze. "But sometimes you just need someone to be in your corner."
He pulled back with a grin. "I'm going to go tell Padme," he spoke brightly. "And then I had better tell Master Obi-Wan." He took a few steps backward, aware of Harry dissolving the Force-shield. "Thank you again!"
Harry smiled as the young man ran off. "Yes?" he asked, aware that his former Master was behind him.
Qui-Gon set up a force-shield. "There is more to your motivations than what you told Anakin."
Harry set up a silencing charm for good measure and leant against a column. "When I first arrived at Coruscant I had a dream, an immersive one; it was as if I was there, watching events unfold but unable to change anything." Qui-Gon nodded his understanding. "I saw what would have happened if I had not arrived, mostly to Anakin, but also to Obi-wan too," he stated. "At first, I thought it was to show me how right I was to interfere. Then, I saw the little events that sent Ani over to the Dark Side."
His former Master stilled. "What?"
"That is why I was glad you only received my memories before I came here. I did not want you to gain the knowledge, and treat him differently."
"You think I would have done so?"
"I could not say for certain," he answered honestly.
"How were you certain that you would not?"
"You saw what I learnt of Tom. He never stood a chance." He paused and licked his lips. "I had a dream, one that I would have dismissed if not for how it detailed it was, of a young boy, powerful and a bright light, manipulated by evil at crucial points, and lose himself to the darkness. I could not stand to do nothing."
"I take it in your dream Anakin and Padme did not have permission to marry?"
"No, but they did it anyway." He lifted a shoulder. "It was a different world, one where Obi-Wan lost a great deal of his cheeky side. He was solemn, with only odd traces of his humour."
"And Anakin suffered for it," the older brunet spoke sadly.
"He chafed under it at times, but he had Palpatine whispering in his ear."
"Seeming to help when really luring him to the Dark Side." Harry nodded. "Is that why you freed Shmi?"
"In my dream – although, bear in mind, different aspects of it might not have come to be – she switched master. Her new master freed and married her. When Anakin was about this age, he kept having dreams of her in pain. With Padme's encouragement, he tracked her down and discovered she had been kidnapped over a month ago. He found and freed her, and she died."
"I take it, he did not react well."
"He killed them all," he stated. He blinked. "Why am I telling you this? Shmi is safe, Anakin has permission to marry Padme-" he cut and took a deep breath.
"And a had a happier Obi-wan, you and myself to watch over him," Qui-Gon finished. "Why did you not tell me of your dream in relation to Palpatine?"
"I did not want to accuse a man because of something so nebulous," he spoke softly. "I thought it better to wait until I met him, to see if he set off my instincts."
Qui-Gon's lips quirked. "It is good that you are no longer my padawan, for I might have had to reprimand you for withholding such information."
"Only might?" he retorted with a grin and dropped his silencing charm.
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"Hello Cody," Harry greeted the clone general as he poked his head around a door.
"Hello Si-Harry," he corrected himself, gesturing for the younger man to enter. Harry grinned. "You know it is a sign of respect, don't you?" he asked as Harry settled in a chair opposite him.
Harry nodded. "I was never bothered about such things," he stated. "I hope they never consider me for Master," he added with a put-on shudder.
The darker-skinned man chuckled. "Did you want to talk to me about something?"
Harry nodded slowly. "Would you ever defy an order?" he asked curiously.
"I cannot," he answered immediately.
"If you lived in a world where you could defy orders, would you?" he asked earnestly.
His companion's expression turned pensive. "There is one order that I would defy, if I lived in such a world," he answered honestly.
"Order 66," Harry stated. His companion startled. "I'm the only one who knows about it," he informed firmly.
"I would prefer it stay that way," the general spoke solemnly. "Better that the betrayal come as a surprise."
"What if there doesn't have to be one?"
"Even Jedi mind tricks cannot remove the order," he spoke firmly.
"It's not Jedi mind tricks," Harry replied easily. "What if I told you that I could change the order?" he asked casually.
Cody smiled, seeing through the pretence. "I would say, that it matters little, for the rest of the troops would follow it."
"I won't force my will on anyone else's mind," he stated. "But if you were willing, to let me in and make the change, then it would take far less energy leaving me enough to say…do the same for the rest of the troops."
Cody blinked. "Truly?"
Harry nodded. "I would need to take precautions; make sure I had plenty of food to have at intervals, as well as snatching whatever rest I can in between groups," he answered honestly. "I would want to fit in everyone anyway, but it's probably best to start with those set to be deployed first."
"And?" he prompted, knowing there was more.
"And I'll have to crash for a day or two afterwards," he conceded. "But I count that as a small cost, for the long-term benefits."
"How will you sway the Council?"
"I'll get my former Master to do it, he can be very persuasive, and stubborn," he added with a grin. "He'll sort it out. But how about we start with you, so you know it doesn't hurt, and I have no designs to do more than I spoke. Then make arrangements?"
"I trust you not to do more than you say," he answered firmly. "But I would still prefer to go first, so I can honestly tell the rest of the troops what it feels like. Do you need food first?"
"The energy required is negligible," he answered honestly. "I'll stock up after," he added to the general's concerned look. "Let's do this shall we?"