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

VII

Saturday, November 2, 1991

"Right," Harry said as he looked at his two new friends.

They had been virtually inseparable for the past day and a half. Some things just forged bonds between people unlike anything else, and apparently facing down a twelve-foot troll together happened to be one of those things. It helped that Harry and Hermione had a lot in common, especially their diligent work ethics. But while Hermione loved learning for its own sake, Harry just seemed to have a great sense of personal responsibility that extended to his studies. Ron was not really interested in schoolwork, but he brought a lot of fun and humor to their little group, and always seemed to be able to make them smile.

They were currently seated together on the floor of an unused classroom just down the hall from Gryffindor Tower. Hermione and Ron were anxiously waiting for Harry to make good on his promise and teach them about the Force.

"So how do we begin?" Hermione asked.

"Um..." Harry began, "I guess we should start with the code."

"The code?" Ron asked.

"Yeah. There is no emotion, there is peace. There is no ignorance, there is knowledge. There is no passion, there is serenity. There is no chaos, there is harmony. There is no death, there is the Force."

"Okay," Hermione said, the words likely already committed to memory. "Now what?"

"Err… I'm not sure," Harry answered. "I've never taught anyone before."

"Well, how did you first learn?"

"I got lost in an underground cave system and I panicked so much that I eventually just kind of reached out to the Force to find my way out again."

Ron glanced around the room with a smirk.

"Don't see any caves, mate. That's not gonna work."

Hermione rolled her eyes at him.

"So desperation is the key?" she asked.

"No," Harry answered. "Far from it actually. The Force comes easier when you're calm. At peace."

"So how did you do it while you were panicking in the caves, then?"

"Err… well, I… Okay, maybe my first experience isn't the best example to go with then."

"Nope!" Ron happily added.

"My second lesson was probably more 'normal,'" Harry added. "Not that I really know what 'normal' Jedi training was like…"

"Why not?" Ron asked.

"Because the Jedi lived thousands and thousands of years ago in a completely different galaxy."

"What?!" Hermione exclaimed.

"Didn't I tell you that before?" Harry asked.

"No you certainly did not!" Hermione said as she started to work herself up. "Are you telling me that what we're going to be learning is actually extraterrestrial knowledge?! That this is actually proof that aliens exist?!"

"I never thought of it like that," Harry replied. "But yeah, I guess so."

"Blimey," Ron remarked.

"So you're telling me," Hermione started after a moment, "that we'll be learning something here, with you, that no one else on the entire planet knows?"

"As far as I know, yeah. Well, maybe. I'm not really sure to be honest. I mean, I kinda thought that someone at Hogwarts would know about the Force. But no one does. And if they don't know about it here…"

Harry watched as a fierce light came into Hermione's eyes.

"Right," she said, "let's do this."

"Okay," Harry said, "so, close your eyes," they did as instructed, "and breathe…"

"Already doing that, mate," Ron smirked.

Harry couldn't help but laugh a little bit.

"Yes you are, but focus on it. Breathe. Just breathe. Don't do anything else. Just breathe."

Harry stayed silent for several minutes as he watched Ron and Hermione simply sitting there, cross-legged on the floor, slowly breathing in and out.

"Now listen."

"Listen to what?" Ron asked.

"Stop asking questions, Ron!" Hermione snapped. "We'll never get anywhere if you keep interrupting!"

"Look who wants me to stop asking the teacher questions!" Ron laughed.

"Very funny," Hermione replied.

"Okay, stop," Harry said. "It's okay to ask questions. But right now, just follow what I say, okay? We'll do questions later. When I say, 'listen,' you're not really listening for anything in particular. You're just gonna listen. Got it?"

"Okay," Hermione answered.

"Sounds good," Ron agreed.

"Right. Let's start again. Now, breathe…"

A few minutes later, they were once again calmly breathing in and out.

"Now listen. Reach out with your hearing. Send it out to hear even the tiniest sound."

Hermione's face was scrunched up in concentration. Ron looked completely relaxed.

"Don't try to force it too hard. Gently send it out."

Harry watched again for a few more minutes before giving his next instruction.

"Now, reach out with all your senses. Not just your hearing, but reach out with your feelings, with your awareness…"

Watching his friends simply sitting there with their eyes closed was getting pretty boring. Harry nearly slapped himself when he realized that he'd get a much better picture of what was going on if his own senses were stretched out around him in the Force.

He reached into the flowing Energy around him and focused his awareness on his two friends.

Ron was utterly calm. Maybe even too calm. Harry was afraid that the boy might be close to falling asleep.

Hermione, on the other hand, was a storm of anxiousness. Her thoughts were constantly in motion as she stubbornly focused herself on the task at hand.

This wasn't working.

Okay, time for something different.

Carefully, he sent out a trickle of awareness and inched it through the currents of the living Force toward Hermione. As he got closer, he could feel her struggling to push her senses out of herself, but she wasn't doing it right. She was too demanding. She expected her senses to obey simply because she told them to, like telling a dog to sit.

He reached out to her and gently brushed against her presence with his own. It felt warm and comfortable and intimate, and it lasted for less than an instant.

She recoiled in shock.

"What was that?!" Hermione asked as her eyes flew open.

"What was what?" Ron added with a yawn.

"That was me," Harry answered. "You were struggling to hard, expecting your senses to obey your demands instead of inviting them to follow where you wanted to go. I used the Force to brush against your presence with my own."

"Oh," Hermione said as realization flashed in her eyes. "Oh! I… it just… it just felt so… so…" Her checks flushed pink as she rambled.

"I'm going to do it again—"

"You're going to do it again?" she squeaked as her face went even redder.

"Yes, I'm going to do it again. And this time, don't recoil. Follow me and I'll try to lead you out."

"Okay."

"What about me?" Ron asked.

"Just keep breathing and reaching out with your senses," Harry said. "I don't think I can do this with more than one of you at a time. You'll go next."

"Fine," Ron grumbled.

They settled down again, and a few minutes later, Harry was gently sending his awareness toward Hermione. His senses touched her presence in the Force. It was warm and soft, but also hesitant. Unsure. Harry extended an invitation.

Follow me.

She hesitated.

Harry could feel her steeling herself, stirring up the courage that had landed her in Gryffindor.

Then she accepted, and he took hold of her presence with his own.

It didn't seem so much like taking her by the hand as it did… flowing through her, while she flowed through him, and the Force flowed through them both. Harry paused for a moment in wonder at the sheer intensity of the sensation. He'd never been so close to someone else before. He never knew you could be so close to someone else before. It was almost impossible to tell where he ended and where she began. She was so warm and comfortable, and feelings were starting to stir within him that he'd never known or felt before…

But soon enough he remembered what he was supposed to be doing, and he started to guide her out and into the current of the living Force that swirled all around them.

He basked in the feeling of being so caught up in her presence for another moment, but then brought his mind back to the purpose at hand.

Now I'm going to let you go.

No! her thoughts reverberated through him. Don't leave me alone!

You're not alone. You cannot be alone. Do not be afraid. There is no fear. There is the Force.

He pulled his presence out of the embrace, but didn't move too far away. His senses shivered at the lack of her presence, but he held himself back from reaching for her again like he was tempted to do. He could sense Hermione's awareness floating and swirling in the Force, and he felt the change from within her as she realized what she was doing.

Harry opened his eyes. Hermione was sitting there with her eyes closed, smiling in pure bliss. A moment later her eyes slowly opened, and sharp brown met bright green.

"I felt it," she finally said.

"I know," he answered.

"Felt what?" Ron asked.

Harry and Hermione both blushed and quickly looked away from each other.

"The Force," she answered him. "It's here, all around us. It's… I don't know how to describe it…"

"Err… Now that you've sensed it, hopefully you'll be able to reach out into it without my help," Harry said. She glanced at him with a deep intensity in her eyes, but Harry had no idea what it was she was trying to say. He felt part of himself stir in reaction, however, as he remembered the intimacy of their embrace in the Force. "Try it on your own while I help Ron."

"Okay," she quietly said before closing her eyes.

"Ready, Ron?"

Ron quickly looked back and forth between Harry and Hermione before responding.

"I guess."

Soon Harry was once again reaching out into the Force, but this time sending his awareness toward Ron. As he traversed the… distance, as if the concept of distance held any meaning in the Force, he could feel Hermione nearby, already stretching her senses out into the Energy of life itself. But then she wobbled, and her feelings snapped back to her body. It was going to take a lot of practice before she could maintain an embrace of the Force on her own.

Harry focused back on Ron. He brushed his awareness up against is friend's. Unlike Hermione, Ron was hot and stiff and… brittle. So very different. Harry briefly wondered how he felt to his friends. He reached out in invitation, but Ron was closed off, and he felt him close himself off even further as a metaphysical door slammed in Harry's face.

He opened his eyes.

"Ron, you have to let me in."

The other boy grimaced.

"It didn't feel right," he said.

"How so?" Harry asked.

"Dunno. Just weird. I don't know. Let me try on my own a bit longer."

"You sure?"

"Yeah."

"Okay."

Several hours later, Hermione was still struggling to maintain her connection to the Force, but each time she managed to hold on a little bit longer. Harry watched her progress from his own position floating in the Force.

Suddenly he felt another presence reach out into the current around them before it quickly disappeared.

"I did it!" Ron cheered as he leapt up to his feet. "I really did it!"

"Yes you did," Harry agreed.

"I can't believe it!"

"Maybe that's why it took you so long," Harry offered. "You need to be confident in your ability. You simply need to do it, it's not enough to merely try."

Ron smirked.

"Yeah, well, I still did it."

"Yeah, you did. Now do it again."

Ron was about to respond, but was interrupted by a loud growl from his stomach.

"Or maybe we could wait until after lunch?" he asked hopefully.

Harry laughed.

"Not a bad idea. Come on, Hermione. Hermione!"

"Hmm?" she asked, blinking herself back into awareness.

"Time for lunch. You might be able to feel your connection to the Force now, but your stomach still needs food."

"Now that's true wisdom!" Ron cheered.

OoOoO

OoOoO

Thursday, November 21, 1991

Hermione stared down at the broom lying on the ground with dread. She really didn't want to be here. She hated flying. She had always been afraid of heights and she didn't understand why flying around on a broomstick so dangerously high in the air was part of their curriculum. It made no sense! It was like attaching a grade to gym class - utterly preposterous!

She felt Harry's presence approaching her without lifting her eyes from the ground. It had been like that since their first lesson, part of her was now simply always aware of Harry Potter in a way that she'd never been aware of anything before. She blushed as she couldn't help but remember the experience of intertwining, of merging with his presence. Did he even know what that had felt like to her? What the mere memory still felt like for her?

The green-eyed boy slowed his broom to a stop and then hopped down to the ground.

"Hermione?" he asked. "What's wrong? I can feel your fear all over the place."

"I just hate flying, Harry," she whispered in response. "I'm afraid of heights, and flying certainly doesn't help. I wish we didn't have this stupid class and that I could be practicing with the Force instead!"

"Who says you can't be?" Harry asked with a smile.

"What?"

"Look, you need to overcome this. You can't let your fear control you. That's actually really dangerous for a Jedi. Fear, anger, aggression, feelings like those can lead to some bad things. So you can't hold on to your fear of flying."

"Now you tell me this?"

"Err… should I have told you earlier?"

"YES!"

"Oh. Sorry."

Hermione sighed.

"It's not your fault, Harry. You're doing your best as a teacher. And honestly, you're doing wonderfully. I just don't know if I can do this…"

"Sure you can. Fear is dangerous for Jedi, but the Force also helps us deal with it. You just need to gather up your fears and other harmful emotions when they show up, and release them into the Force."

"What? Now?"

"No time like the present," Harry grinned at her.

"Okay. How do I do this?"

"Concentrate on your own presence and find your fear, then gather it up, and reach out, taking the fear with you into the Force, and then just… let it go. Let the Force wash it away."

"You make it sound so easy."

"It kind of is, actually."

"Fine."

Hermione closed her eyes and concentrated. She couldn't drop down into a more meditative position with so many people around, but she'd make do. She reached out into the Force, it was so magnificent, so wonderful each time she let herself be embraced by that living Energy… She turned her senses back on herself, and was surprised at how easily she saw her fear and her dread. She gathered them up and stretched them out into the strong current of the Force, and like Harry said, she just let them go and watched them wash away.

Immediately, she felt as if a weight had been lifted from her shoulders. She opened her eyes and looked down at the broom. She still had some trepidation, but it wasn't anything like the fear she had felt before.

"Good," Harry said. "Now, try embracing the Force as you're flying. Let it guide your movements and your reactions. It's amazing, believe me."

He then hopped onto his broom and sped off into the sky.

Hermione looked back down at the broomstick lying on the grass.

She could do this.

The Force was with her, and she could do this.

"Up!" she ordered and the length of wood slapped against her palm. She swung her leg over it, and then gently pushed off to hover a foot above the ground. Without the fear assaulting her, it was… actually a bit boring.

Alright then, she thought, let's see what this thing can do...

She steeled herself, gathering her courage, and then she reached out and invited the Force to fill her. It flooded into her and flooded her with exhilaration.

Hermione blasted off into the sky, rocketing up and through her classmates who were lazily circling around the grounds. She felt no anxiety or dread, because she knew the Force was with her, subtly guiding her every movement.

She banked to her right and rolled, allowing gravity to capture her for a brief moment before she pushed past it and dove toward the ground. She pulled up when the Force bid her, and raced along the sea of bright green grass, relishing the wind that whipped through her hair.

She sensed Harry and Ron pull up on either side of her, laughing all the while. Together they raced off toward the Forbidden Forest. They stayed just on the edges of the trees, but together they darted through the branches, bobbing and weaving in all directions, their movements in sync with each other. Harry and Ron whooped and cheered for pure joy, and Hermione found herself joining in.

Again they rocketed up into the sky and then flipped over in tight loops before speeding back toward the castle.

Hermione could see the faces of their classmates turned toward them, gaping in disbelief at their display of aerobatics. Malfoy actually looked rather ill as he stared at her.

"Well, I say!" Madam Hooch declared as she approached the trio just after they landed. "Miss Granger, it certainly looks like you've overcome your aversion to flying!"

"Yes, ma'am!" Hermione happily replied.

"And if the three of you manage to keep that up," the instructor continued while eyeing each of them in turn, "I have a feeling that the Quidditch Cup is going to be safely resting in Professor McGonagall's office for years to come."

"Hear that, Harry?" Ron asked. "I told you this was going to be brilliant!"

OoOoO

OoOoO

Wednesday, December 25, 1991

"Oi! Harry! Where are you?!" Ron shouted in the empty Gryffindor common room.

Most of the students, including Hermione, had gone home for the holidays. But he, Harry, and a handful of others had stuck around in the castle.

Christmas at Hogwarts had been brilliant so far. Ron had woken up to lots of presents and sweets at the foot of his bed, and the hours-long feast had been absolutely delicious – Ron had stuffed himself with more roast goose, potatoes, Yorkshire puddings, stuffing, Brussels sprouts, and Christmas pudding than he'd ever thought possible. The platters of food just never seemed to go empty. Sure, the pudding wasn't quite as good as his mum's, but it was a close thing.

Now he was looking to close out the day with the perfect thing – a nice game of chess with his best mate.

Except for the fact that the bloody prat had gone missing.

"Harry! Come on, mate! Where are you?!"

"Boo!" Someone screamed behind him.

"Gah!" Ron shrieked and spun around. There he saw Harry's floating head, sporting an ear-to-ear grin.

"Bloody hell mate! Don't do that to a bloke!"

"You're lucky Hermione's not here to hear you talk like that," Harry laughed.

"Yeah, well, she isn't. And when I mentioned using your new cloak for pranks this morning, I was talking about pranking other people, not me."

"If you can't prank your friends, who can you?" Harry asked.

Ron just smiled and shook his head.

"Fancy a game of chess?" he asked

"Sounds good," Harry responded, "Just a moment, I'll get my new set!"

Harry ran up the stairs only to return a few seconds later carrying the wizarding chess set he'd gotten out of one of the Christmas crackers at dinner. They quickly set up the board in front of the fire and soon they were well into the game.

Harry was pretty good. Not as good as Ron normally was, but good enough that he needed to really concentrate.

Harry moved his knight and took one of Ron's pawns.

"Check."

Crap, Ron thought, I bloody well didn't see that coming…

He could take the knight with his rook, but that would leave his bishop open. Or he could just move the king, but he didn't want to get boxed in later on…

Ron concentrated for a moment and embraced the Force, asking for guidance as to what his next move should be. It was difficult, Ron always struggled to maintain a hold on the Force and merely ask for help instead of simply demanding what he wanted. Harry was adamant about letting the Force do the leading instead of trying to take control himself. Ron didn't see what the big deal was, but he figured that Harry probably knew better.

A vision started to form and the moves of the game started to flow through his mind, possibilities unfolding. He could almost see it…

"Hey!" Harry shouted, snapping Ron out of his tenuous, semi-meditation.

"What?" Ron tried to innocently ask, but he couldn't help the bright red color that spread through his face and even to his ears.

"No using the Force to cheat at chess! We've gone over this!"

"I wasn't!"

Harry just stared at him.

"Fine. I was. But just a bit."

"And that's why I sneak up on you with the cloak."

Ron smiled as a thought struck him.

"We totally need to use your cloak to scare Hermione when she gets back," he said.

Harry grinned at him.

"Absolutely. Never heard of a more noble pursuit!"

"I bet we scare her so bad she actually uses a swear word!"

Yeah, Ron thought as they continued their game and made plans for pranking their other best friend. Christmas at Hogwarts is the best!

OoOoO

OoOoO

Sunday, April 26, 1992

Harry, Hermione, and Ron were taking advantage of the beautiful, early spring afternoon to practice their katas. Earlier in the school year, Hagrid had provided them each with a three-foot long staff of smooth, solid wood with no questions asked. Harry had no idea what the kindly gamekeeper might have thought they were doing with them, but he was sure that the notion of using them to practice Jedi Force katas never entered into the man's mind.

They had gone to the far side of the lake, where they were now gracefully flowing through the movements together, almost perfectly in sync.

Harry kept his eyes closed, but was acutely aware of everything around him, including Ron and Hermione as they followed his lead.

Then an idea struck him and he smiled.

"Keep going without me," he told his students. They obeyed without responding.

Harry wandered over to the edge of the forest and quickly found what he was looking for. It only took him a moment to gather up a handful. He walked back to his students and watched them flow from one position to the next, their staffs a constant blur of motion, and their every movement guided by the Force.

Harry reached out and invited the Force to flood his muscles. He took careful aim, and then threw one of his acorns directly at Hermione, as hard and fast as the Force would let him.

He watched as his friend's next swing adjusted ever so slightly so that the wood perfectly deflected the little nut away from her.

Harry smiled.

Hermione seemed like she had barely noticed that it even happened.

Harry took aim again, and launched an acorn at Ron.

Apparently his other friend's awareness of the world around him wasn't quite as good.

"Bloody hell, Harry!" he cried as he rubbed his sore shoulder. "What was that for?!"

"Language!" Hermione admonished without ceasing her kata.

"Training," Harry answered. "My cousin used to try and sneak up on me while I was practicing my katas in the park. He and his friends would shoot stones at me with their slingshots."

That brought Hermione's motions to a halt.

"Harry, that's terrible!"

"It was worse for them than it was for me. Trust me. Besides, it made for good practice."

"What? How?" Ron asked.

"Hermione, did you even notice when I threw an acorn at you?"

"You did?" she seemed surprised. "No I… well maybe. I felt the urge to alter the fourth move of the kata just a tiny bit, but I wasn't sure why…"

"That's because you moved your staff into the perfect position to deflect what I threw at you."

"Really?"

"Really."

"So what," Ron asked, "Now you're gonna pelt us with stuff as we practice?"

"That was the basic idea, yes," Harry answered.

"Great."

"You'll need to stretch out with your awareness of the world around you a bit more. It'll probably be harder for you than it was for me with my cousin. He was really trying to hurt me, so the Force was… louder in its warnings. I'm not actually trying to hurt you, so the feeling won't be as noticeable. Ready?"

Ron groaned and rubbed his shoulder one last time before moving back into his kata. Hermione merely nodded and did likewise.

Soon the clatter of acorns bouncing off wooden poles filled the air, interspersed with a few cries of "Bloody hell!" from Ron and "Language!" from Hermione.

OoOoO

OoOoO

Monday, June 8, 1992

The Great Hall was festively decorated in red and gold for the end-of-year feast. Gryffindor had easily won the House Cup, thanks, in no small part, to Harry, Hermione, and Ron, whose growing aptitude in mental Force techniques gave them an advantage in the classroom.

Harry was happily chatting with his friends and enjoying the delicious food when the Headmaster stood up to make an announcement.

"If I could have your attention for just a moment? Another year gone already. And good riddance too, I say!" That brought about a few chuckles from the students. "Congratulations to our Gryffindors, who put on a good show and won the House Cup this year!"

The Gryffindor table went wild with cheers, led mainly by Fred and George, while the other houses clapped politely. Except for Slytherin, of course.

"You now have a few more days to enjoy with your friends before you must return to the realities of life outside of school, permanently this time for our graduating seventh-years. I suggest you take advantage of these carefree days while you can."

That sounded a little ominous.

"I'm afraid, however, that I have some sad news to relate. A few evenings ago, Professor Quirrell, our Defense Against the Dark Arts instructor, passed away due to a previously unnoticed condition."

Whispers started to spread at the news of the professor's death, but Dumbledore went on speaking, and most of the murmurs quieted.

"We shall always remember the wizard that Quirinus Quirrell was before such a dark and unfortunate fate took him from us."

Harry bowed his head and recalled one of the lines he'd learned from the Holocron, There is no death, there is the Force.

"But let us not mourn overmuch," the old Headmaster continued, "for after all, to the well-organized mind, death is but the next great adventure."

Dumbledore sat back down and Harry turned to his friends.

"Poor Professor Quirrell," Hermione said.

"Guy kind of gave me the creeps," Ron said. "There was something off about him."

"Ronald!" Hermione admonished. "That's terrible!"

"You know it's true."

"But still! It doesn't do well to speak ill of the dead!"

"So, err…" Harry began as he stood from the table, "exams are finished, so I was thinking that maybe we could put in some extra time with… you know…"

"That's a wonderful idea, Harry!" Hermione responded.

Ron groaned.

"Can't we just take it easy for a bit?" he asked.

"Don't be such a lazybones, Ron," Hermione scolded him.

"I've got to make sure you're prepared to train all summer on your own, you know" Harry added.

"Fine."

"Let's go then!" Hermione said.

Ron grumbled before grabbing one last biscuit from the table and following his friends out of the hall.

AN: And thus ends first year! Rather uneventful, wasn't it? The way I see it, the trio was focused on their Jedi training, (and to a lesser extent, their schoolwork) and so didn't have time to run around worrying about mysteries in the castle. Quirrell gets stopped by the Mirror, Voldemort's shade eventually abandons him, and the poor guy drops dead. So sad.

On a side note, please know that I always try to respond to your reviews. There are exceptions of course, mainly when it's impossible to do so, such as for guest reviews and when users have PMs turned off. FFN also occasionally has some glitches on the site which can cause some problems. But other than that, you can pretty much always expect me to respond.

Thoughts?

Thanks for your reviews, and thanks for reading!