Anakin goes to Hogwarts
Chapter 3: Waking Up In Heaven
He was floating, a sensation of complete well-being wrapped around him like a cloud. I must be dead. That was the only way to explain why he was free of the pain that had tormented him for so long, yet he felt no sluggishness, as he would if he had been drugged. The only pain he felt was the phantom pain of his missing limbs, which was strange. Why were they still missing if he was dead? Still, he felt so relaxed that he sighed in contentment.
With a gasp, he realized that the biggest change of all had escaped his notice: He was breathing! The natural flow of air was so normal, so easy, that it was as if he had never worn that hideous mask, never been burned in a lava pit, never fought to the death with his best friend...The taste of fresh, unprocessed air and the feel of wind rushing into his lungs was so heady that he simply opened his mouth and let it rush in, filling his nose and throat, opening his ear canals and turning the delicious breaths into a yawn. The feel of a yawn was overpowering, something he had not experienced in so long that he could only open his jaw as wide as it would go and give into the sensation.
As he savored the air, he smelled something that was certainly medicinal. He opened his eyes and saw that he was lying on a bed, surrounded by white curtains. Now certain that he was alive, he tried to move, and found to his shock that his prosthetic arms and legs had been removed! Who would dare-?
The good feelings wrapped around him again, soothing his anger before it could rise, and he lay back, closed his eyes, and stretched out with the Force.
The planet felt unfamiliar, yet the place more like home than anywhere he had lived since leaving his mother on Tatooine. It certainly wasn't a desert world, though. He sensed life teeming around him, including plants, animals, and many presences who were strong in the Force. He had not felt such a concentration of the Light side of the Force since the Jedi Temple before the Clone Wars. And strangely enough, it embraced him now as it never completely had then.
Anakin was overwhelmed by emotion as he realized that even after decades of following the Emperor and committing terrible crimes against everything he knew to be right, he had never been more firmly on the side of Light than he was now. Perhaps that's what it took for me to become a true Jedi, he pondered. I had to pass through the darkness to find the Light. A sound that was half chuckle and half groan escaped his lips.
Something rustled and Anakin felt a presence moving toward him. A strong presence, female, with the unmistakable feel of a Healer. She pulled the curtain aside and said something. he couldn't understand her words, but knew it was a question about his health. She seemed to be a middle-aged human, and wore a pointed white hat and a white robe. He smiled at her.
"Thank you for healing me," he said, his eyes filling with tears. He could tell that she didn't understand, so he reached out and touched her mind with the Force, conveying the meaning of his statement. "Thank you."
Taken aback, she stared at him. Then she smiled and uttered something polite in response, which he immediately filed away for the future, remembering one of Obi-Wan's admonitions from his youth: "Manners, not profanities, are the first thing to learn in any language, Anakin."
I wish you could see me now, Master. I'm finally following your advice.
The Healer turned away and went to a nearby fireplace, where she tossed something in the fire which made it flare and turn green. Anakin's curiosity turned to shock when she knelt down and stuck her head in the flames!
"Albus!" The Headmaster looked up as Poppy Pomfrey's head appeared in his fireplace.
"Ah, the mystery patient is awake, I presume. How is he feeling?"
"He seems to be in a good mood, but I'm afraid he doesn't speak English," the witch replied. "Could you come up and try talking to him? I'd like to ask him about re-growing his limbs, and I think that will require a more sophisticated form of communication than we have been using."
"I'll be right there, Poppy," he said. Stepping through the Floo, he brushed off his long purple robes and took stock of the mysterious patient. He was completely bald and very pale, and seemed to be about fifty years old, with light blue eyes that stared at Albus and then at the fireplace in awe.
"Hello, I'm Albus Dumbledore," he said, gesturing to himself, and then to Poppy. "Poppy Pomfrey," he said, repeated both names while gesturing, and then waved his hand toward the stranger questioningly.
The man seemed to ponder for a few seconds, and then smiled. "Anakin Skywalker", he said feelingly, as if he hadn't used the name in a long time.