Disclaimer: Harry Potter is owned by JK Rowling. Star Wars is owned by Disney. I am neither a British woman nor an animated mouse. Thus I do not own nor do I claim ownership of either Harry Potter or Star Wars, and I am not profiting in any way through the writing and publication of this story.
Holocron
IV
Wednesday, July 24, 1991
Harry was awakened early in the morning by a strange feeling. He didn't know what it was exactly. The world just felt… off. He sat up into his familiar position for mediation and stretched his feelings out into the Force. The Energy that swirled around him and flowed through him felt agitated. It wasn't really a bad thing, just something different, something new.
He tilted his head to the side and the loose floorboard flew up from under the window. It was immediately followed by the Holocron which came to float in front of Harry. Soon he was gazing at the tiny form of a Jedi Master from long ago.
"Master Isu."
Young Harry.
"Something feels off today."
How so?
"Can't you feel it?"
The little figure actually smiled.
Harry, must I remind you that I am not really Jedi Master Isu Sotr? I am a Holocron. My access to the Force is limited. I am not truly alive and I cannot feel the Force as you do.
"Oh. Right. Well, err… I just woke up and the Force feels… strange. Agitated. But I can't sense a reason for it."
Ah. What you describe was generally known as a 'Disturbance in the Force' by most Jedi. A portent of unknown origin. It could be a warning, a consequence of something that has already taken place, the presence of another Force-user nearby, or any number of other things. But unless the Force reveals more to you, I am afraid that there is little that you can do about it. I would recommend that you go about your day as normal, but be aware of your surroundings and keep your focus on the Force.
"Yes, Master."
Harry guided the Holocron back to its hiding place and pulled the floorboard over to cover the opening. He also pulled his chair and one of his old school books out of their orbits around him and settled them back into their places.
His longer meditation sessions tended to leave him with a rather messy room.
Harry got up and went about getting ready for the day, which soon found him at the kitchen table eating breakfast with his relatives. Dudley glared hatefully at him as he chewed the bacon that Harry had prepared. Uncle Vernon and Aunt Petunia simply ignored him. He'd settled into an unspoken truce with his aunt and uncle over the past few years – he did his chores as expected and caused as little disturbance around the house as possible, and they largely pretended that he wasn't there.
It was highly preferable to the days of constant yelling and being roughly tossed about. He knew that their change of heart was motivated somewhat by his subtle use of the Force to influence a few of their decisions in some very minor ways, but they acted as they did mostly out of fear. They were afraid of him. He tried to hide his Jedi training from them, but it was impossible for them not to notice something over the years. And what they had seen made them afraid.
Harry was fine with that.
He had just taken his plate to the sink when he heard the mail fall through the slot in the front door, so he went over to collect it. When he bent down to pick up the pile of letters, he felt the disturbance in the Force grow stronger. He hesitated, but then continued. He looked through the pile and found a strange envelope addressed to him personally.
He brought the rest of the mail into the kitchen and placed it on the table next to his aunt, all the while studying his odd letter and the momentous disruption it caused in the Force. He flipped it over and saw that the flap was sealed with purple wax bearing the faint impression of a coat of arms.
"Mum!" Dudley shouted. "The freak's got a letter!"
Harry looked up to see his aunt go rigid and his uncle grow red in the face. Although neither said a word or moved to take the letter from him.
Dudley looked sorely disappointed at his parents' lack of more dramatic reactions.
Harry went back to the envelope and quickly tore it open. There were two pieces of strange paper inside, the first was what looked like a form letter written in bright green ink and addressed to him.
HOGWARTS SCHOOL of WITCHCRAFT and WIZARDRY
Headmaster: Albus Dumbledore
(Order of Merlin, First Class, Grand Sorc., Chf. Warlock,
Supreme Mugwump, International Confed. of Wizards)
Dear Mr/Ms. Potter,
We are pleased to inform you that you have been accepted at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Please find enclosed a list of all necessary books and equipment.
Term begins on 1 September. We await your owl by no later than 31 July.
Yours sincerely,
Minerva McGonagall
Deputy Headmistress
Odd. Witchcraft and wizardry? That… kind of made sense. Master Isu had said that many people on isolated worlds thought that the Force was magic until they made contact with the wider galaxy and learned otherwise. Maybe he wasn't the only Jedi on earth after all.
The second page was a list of needed books and school supplies that he was supposed to get at someplace called 'Diagon Alley.'
Harry looked up at his relatives again. They hadn't moved an inch and were all staring at him.
"Aunt Petunia, do you know anything about a school called Hogwarts?"
Uncle Vernon looked like he wanted to explode, but he kept his jaw tightly clamped shut. Aunt Petunia turned a little green and looked like she swallowed something particularly nasty, but she eventually answered the question.
"I knew we'd never rid you of that unnatural freakishness! So it's come then. Good. We'll be glad to be rid of you. You can go off with your own horrid kind!"
With that she stood from the table and marched out of the kitchen. Uncle Vernon quickly followed her.
Harry shrugged and left as well, heading up to his room. The disturbance in the Force had to be about him going to Hogwarts. It was trying to tell him that this was really important. And if it truly was his chance to meet other Jedi, he couldn't pass it up. Maybe he could even meet some other kids like him. Maybe even make some friends…
He sat down at the rickety old desk in his room and pulled out a sheet of lined notebook paper and a ballpoint pen.
Dear Mrs. McGonagall, he wrote.
But then he stopped.
How do I know she's a 'Mrs.'? he asked himself.
He looked back at his letter. Her title was Deputy Headmistress. Maybe he should address her as 'Mistress'? Was that weird? He looked to the top of the letter – it was addressed to him as 'Mr/Ms. Potter'. Maybe he'd go with that just to be safe. He pulled out a new sheet of paper and started again.
Dear Mr/Ms. McGonagall,
Thank you for your letter about going to school at Hogwarts. It sounds like fun and I will be happy to attend.
He tapped his chin with his pen as he thought about what to write next. This was the first time he'd ever written a letter after all, he wanted to do it right. Then he remembered the shopping list.
I was wondering if you could tell me where Diagon Alley is? I've never heard of it before and my relatives don't want anything to do with magic.
He thought for a while longer, but couldn't come up with anything else to say. So much for being impressive with his first letter.
I look forward to meeting you on 1 September.
Yours,
Harry Potter
He looked back at the letter for a mailing address, but didn't find anything. Nor was there a return address on the envelope.
"How'm I supposed to mail this to them without an address?" he asked aloud. He looked back at the letter.
We await your owl by no later than 31 July.
"My owl?" He was supposed to reply by bird? Where was he supposed to get an owl?
Just then there was a tap at his window. He looked over to see a large, brown owl perched on the window sill.
"Huh."
He went over and opened the window. The owl stared at him and he stared right back. The bird felt strange in the Force, unlike any other animal that he'd ever come across.
"Err… I guess you're here to take my letter?"
The owl clicked its beak in response.
"I don't suppose you have an envelope I could use?"
It just looked at him.
"Right."
He went back to his desk and folded his newly drafted letter in thirds before using a piece of tape to seal it closed. Then he wrote 'Minerva McGonagall' on the outside. He turned back to the owl that was waiting at his window and held out the letter.
"Here you go."
The bird clicked again, but carefully grasped the paper with its beak. It then took off into the sky without further ceremony. As soon as the owl left the disturbance in the Force that he had been feeling all morning quieted down. He watched the bird fly away until it disappeared in the distance.
"And people think I'm weird…"
OoOoO
OoOoO
Thursday, July 25, 1991
Harry was sitting on the grass in the park, quietly resting after going through a few of the Jedi katas he had learned. He felt a presence coming toward him and reached out in search of his cousin, wondering if the boy had another attack planned. Dudley would never learn…
But the presence didn't feel like Dudley. Or like anyone else he knew. The mystery was solved a moment later when an owl landed next to him. It was different from the one that came the day before, but it had a rolled-up piece of paper tied to its leg.
"Er… That's for me, I guess?"
The bird just blinked at him.
He reached out and untied the string. As soon as he had removed the roll of paper, the owl took off and flew away. Harry shrugged and turned to his new letter.
Dear Mr. Potter,
I'm afraid that I must apologize for my oversight in your regard. I should have remembered that you were being raised by your Muggle relatives who would not be able to get you to Diagon Alley. However, I have the shopping excursion for our new Muggle-born students scheduled for this coming Saturday, and I would be happy to add you to the list. Besides, this might be a good opportunity for you to meet some of your future classmates.
I shall arrive at your house promptly at ten in the morning. Please be ready to depart.
Yours Sincerely,
Prof. McGonagall.
"Well, I guess that takes care of that."
OoOoO
OoOoO
Saturday, July 27, 1991
Harry was sitting on the front steps of Number Four as he patiently waited for ten o'clock to arrive. He thought it would be best if Professor McGonagall (as he now knew to be her correct title) had as little interaction with his relatives as possible. If the Force was with him, she'd be willing to leave without introductions.
Harry was curious as to exactly how a magic professor would arrive at his house. Would she drive a car? Fly on a broomstick? Swoop in on the back of a giant owl? Walk? The possibilities were endless in his mind.
Suddenly the Force exploded in agitation around him. His eyes widened and he vaulted to his feet, his muscles tense and ready to fight or flee from whatever was happening.
An instant later, a loud crack resounded, and a woman appeared out of thin air. She was wearing a skirt that fell almost to the ground as well as a matching suit jacket, both patterned in tartan plaid. A pair of glasses were perched on her nose, and her dark hair was pulled back into a severe bun. A look of stern authority was seemingly etched onto her face. She regarded him with a quick nod of her head.
"Mr. Potter, I presume?"
"Yes, ma'am."
"It is good to see that you are punctual. Shall we speak with your relatives?"
"Err… do we have to?"
"Do they not wish to accompany you today?"
"Umm… I think they want as little to do with magic as possible. They say it's unnatural."
"I see. Well, pay that sentiment no mind, Mr. Potter. Magic is perfectly normal."
"Okay."
"Now then, grab a hold of my arm, and I shall Apparate us to the others."
"Apparate?"
"The act of disappearing from one place and instantly reappearing in another. It is how I just arrived here."
"Oh."
"Although I must warn you, the sensation is quite… uncomfortable. But you will grow used to it."
Harry shrugged and reached out for her arm. The Force cried out again, but then he was being squeezed through a tiny tube… and then it was over. And he was somewhere else.
The Force felt all jumbled around for a moment, and it made him nauseous and a bit dizzy. He bent over with his hands on his knees and sucked in huge gulps of air as he fought to keep his breakfast down.
He decided then and there that he did not like Apparating.
"Are you alright, Mr. Potter?" McGonagall asked. "I know that most people find Apparition to be less than pleasant the first time around, but your reaction is stronger than most. Do you need to lie down?"
"Just give me a minute," he replied as he slowly regained his bearings.
He eventually grew aware of a great number of people nearby, and many of them had presences that shone strongly in the Force. He looked around to see that he was standing in a dark and dingy pub if some sort. The professor quickly led him over to a corner where there was already a small gathering of people.
There were four boys that were near Harry's age all staring wide-eyed at the strangely dressed patrons of the pub. Behind them were a few cautious-looking adults that did not seem to share in the children's sense of wonder.
McGonagall cleared her throat before speaking to the group.
"Might I introduce Mr. Harry Potter? Mr. Potter, these are some of your classmates. Messrs. Terry Boot, Kevin Entwistle, Just Finch-Fetchley, and Dean Thomas. Please wait here for just one more moment, as I have one final student to collect."
Again there was another crack and McGonagall disappeared.
Harry shuddered.
"That wasn't very fun," he said.
"No it wasn't," the dark-skinned boy named Dean replied.
"Felt like I was being squeezed through a bloody garden hose!" Kevin something-or-other said.
"Kevin!" the tall woman behind the boy admonished with a less-than-gentle tap to his head. "Mind that filthy mouth of yours!"
Their brief attempt at small talk was interrupted by several of the pub's patrons wandering over.
"Did I hear correctly? Is this really Harry Potter?"
"Blimey, Gill, I think it is!"
"Well bless my soul!"
"It's a pleasure to meet you, Mr. Potter, a pleasure and an honor!"
Harry had no idea what was going on and it was making him nervous. He'd never been treated like this in his life. People tended to avoid him if anything, not fight over each other to shake his hand. But here they were, crowding around him, all trying to say something or even reach out and touch him.
Things were starting to get a bit out of hand when Harry felt the Force stir in agitation once again. He sighed in relief.
Another crack resounded and McGonagall was soon pushing her way through the crowd, followed by a girl and a woman, both of whom had the same bushy brown hair.
"I should have thought that something like this would happen. Back away if you please! All of you! Mr. Potter is certainly not here to sign autographs! Leave the boy be!"
McGonagall's stern demeanor and commanding voice soon scattered the crowd.
"Now then," she continued, "May I introduce Miss Hermione Granger? Miss Granger, these are Messrs. Boot, Entwhistle, Finch-Fetchley, Potter, and Thomas. Together, you are the new Muggle-born and Muggle-raised students of Hogwarts."
"What's a Muggle?" Harry asked.
"A person without the use of magic, of course," the girl named Hermione answered. "It was in the information packet."
"That is correct, Miss Granger. However, due to an oversight, Mr. Potter did not receive a copy of the orientation packet." McGonagall turned to Harry. "Feel free to ask any questions you would like, Mr. Potter. That goes for everyone else as well."
Harry saw the bushy-haired woman lean down to admonish Hermione.
"Don't preempt your professors like that, Hermione."
"I was just being helpful," the girl replied.
"The other students won't see it that way. They'll think you're a know-it-all."
"No they won't. This is a fresh start."
"Just mind your behavior, Hermione."
Harry felt kind of bad that the girl had gotten in trouble just for answering a question. He glanced over at the professor again. When he saw that she was giving a few final directions to the adults, he decided to introduce himself to her.
"Hi, I'm Harry," he said.
"Hermione," she replied while shaking his offered hand. "Did you really not get a copy of the orientation packet?"
"I guess not."
"That's just not fair. I suppose I could mail you mine if you'd like. I've already read through it ten times. Besides, we're likely to stop at a bookshop today. I'm sure I'll find some much more thorough sources of information there."
"Err… sure. That'd be great. If you're sure you don't need it anymore…"
The girl smiled brightly at him.
"Not at all! I'm happy to help!"
They chatted for a few moments, but Harry's attention was only partially on the conversation. The rest of his awareness was reaching out with his senses to get a feel for those around him in the Force. The parents in their little group felt just like everyone else that Harry had ever come across. But the children, as well as Professor McGonagall, all shone brightly in the Force. A smile slowly spread across his face.
He knew it. He couldn't wait to start at a school filled with so many Jedi!
AN: Next stop: Hogwarts!
What do you think?
After responding to some reviews and private messages, I've decided to create a forum for Holocron in much the same vein as I did for HP & KoRH. Every once in a while I'll probably post something that might be of interest to you if you're following the story, or if you care about my head-canon regarding Star Wars or Harry Potter in general. I've already posted two things - some of my thoughts about Jedi philosophy that you might find interesting, and a few ruminations about the Dursleys and the manner in which JKR wrote the Harry Potter series. There's a link in my profile. Check it out! Or don't. You're free to do as you like after all.
Fun Fact: did you know that 'dark side' as in 'the dark side of the Force' is not capitalized? Apparently the official sources went back and forth on whether it was the 'dark side' or the 'Dark Side' in the 80's and 90's until they eventually settled on lowercase in 1996. So I went back through everything I've written and hopefully corrected that.
After some suggestions, I've also gone back and tweaked the story summary a bit. Summaries might be the most difficult thing about writing fanfiction. Your story might be pure gold, but if you can't write a good summary that gets people to read it, it's all for naught. If you have any suggestions for the summary, let me know in a review.
Special thanks goes to wacct3 on the HPfanfiction subreddit who both pointed out the above-mentioned capitalization error AND helped in revising the summary. You get an Internet-Force-cookie.
Thanks for your reviews, and thanks for reading!