Chapter 3: Please read and review
He had flashes. Flashes of lights, spell fire being exchanged between adversaries. He could see death, the death of his friends. There were the corpses of Tonks, Remus, and Fred. He could see the Death Eaters closing in on Ron, Hermione, and Ginny, and them fighting till their last breaths left their bodies all the while wondering where Harry Potter had gone. They had failed. He had left the people he loved to their fates.
"You must not let these images invade your senses anymore," Harry heard Obi-Wan tell him once again. Harry was seated on a mat outside of Obi-Wan's hut, with the Jedi seated directly across from him. He had been making yet another attempt at meditation, but was finding difficulty in ignoring the possibility that his friends were dead. That first day on Tatooine he had been able to ignore things because the present situation had weighed heavier. Now, there was a lingering guilt that he couldn't shake and it was making any prospect of reconnecting with his magic that much more difficult.
"It's difficult not knowing," Harry replied. "I left them in the middle of a fight, and just disappeared."
"Remember what I told you Harry. You need to take control of your thoughts. You're dwelling on things that you have no way of knowing. For all you know your friends are perfectly fine wherever they are, and the case may be that you would never have been brought here otherwise. You need to focus on now, not on things that you can't change. Let go of your fears, and don't let them control you."
It had been two days so far of trying to reach his magic again with little success and growing frustration. He knew Obi-Wan was right; he had to start to let go. The chances were slim that he would ever be home again or ever see his friends again. Even if he did manage to get home, he had no idea whether the time would be the same. Did time in one galaxy move the same as in another? It was hard, but he would do it. His parents had not died for him to live his life in guilt and misery. He had a chance to start anew, something that he had dreamed about for a long time. He would miss his friends, but he could only hope that they had made it out ok and had each other to lean on.
He closed his eyes and pictured nothing. There was no Voldemort, and there was no Hogwarts, only himself and his magical ability. He tried to remember what it was like, casting a spell or even apparating. He focused on the desire to make what he wanted to happen, whether it was moving from one place to another in a matter of seconds, or making an object travel into his waiting hands. He pictured how he normally went about casting a spell, from his first day of classes at Hogwarts to his last moments in battle in the same location.
All of a sudden he could feel something. It was almost as if he could feel the blood pumping through his veins, but he knew it wasn't that. It was his magic. It wasn't a strong feeling, but it was definitely there, no doubt. As soon as he could feel where it was centered, right in his chest, he decided to try and manipulate it. Harry took his hands, which were resting on his thighs, and held his palms up towards the sunlight that was slowly starting to fade into the night. He focused on what he wanted and consciously pushed out with his magic. This time, instead of a gentle flow of magical energy, it felt more like a wave. It traveled from his chest through his shoulders and down his arms until it hit his waiting hands. As the magic reached his fingers, he snapped open his eyelids and focused on his target. The metal cylinder that had been hooked onto Obi-Wan's belt, which Harry now knew to be a lightsaber, flew from its unsuspecting owner into Harry's waiting hand.
Obi-Wan, who had been focused on his own meditation, looked down quickly when he noticed that the familiar weight at his side was being pulled and then removed completely. He looked up with a surprised expression and noticed that his young student was holding his most valuable piece of property. "Well, at least I know you were being truthful about your abilities," Obi-Wan exclaimed getting to his feet. "Although, it will take a little more than floating lightsabers to impress me." With that, he held out his own hand and within a second was once again holding his weapon, which he ignited and pointed playfully at Harry's chest. "It's a nice trick, but not unique."
Harry realized that he was once again staring down the long, blue glowing blade. Feeling elated that he had at least made a good first step in regaining control of his abilities, he decided to take it one step further. Focusing on his destination, he turned from his kneeling position and felt the familiar feeling of being sucked through a narrow tube. A second later he was staring at Obi-Wan's robed back. He felt full of himself for a second and considered tapping him on the back, but then considered that the Jedi might turn around and slice him in half and that was deterrent enough. Instead, he waited as Obi-Wan did a quick look from side to side before turning around, his weapon now held down at his side. Harry was glad to see the man looked a little more impressed at his second showing.
"The lightsaber trick is one thing, but I'm not sure many Jedi are capable of disappearing and reappearing on a whim," Obi-Wan noted. "It's a useful skill to have. It will keep your opponent uneasy. There's something even more curious about it though."
"Oh, what's that?" Harry asked.
Obi-Wan switched off his saber and reattached to its rightful place on his belt. "Those who are Force sensitive such as the Jedi, normally have precognitive visions through the Force. It enables us to sense things before they happen. It's obviously most important in a fight because we can anticipate the opponent's attack and counter it. But whatever you were doing with your power I wasn't able to sense. Not when you took my lightsaber, nor when you disappeared. It gave off no ripple through the Force, which is incredible."
"Does that mean the Force wouldn't be able to stop my magic either?"
"Hmm, if it didn't you would now be the most powerful force in the galaxy." Noting the impressed looking on Harry's face, Obi-Wan continued, "however, I'd like to think that the arts that I've been training to master since I was a child wouldn't be completely useless. The only way to know for sure would be a test. Do you have the ability to make an offensive attack?"
"Normally yes," Harry answered. "I'm only getting used to this method of casting though, so I'm not sure how effective I'll be"
"It's fine," Obi-Wan reassured. "Just back up a few steps and give it a shot. Oh, and nothing deadly if you wouldn't mind. I don't plan to become one with the Force in a training accident."
Harry took a few giant steps back until there were several meters in between him and his new teacher. He really had no idea what to expect with this new experiment, although he was already pretty pleased with what he had been able to accomplish that day. He set his feet in the ground and quickly tried to regain his focus that he had achieved earlier. He cleared his mind again until he could feel that subtle current running through his veins. This time instead of concentrating on summoning, he pushed his magic from his center with a stunning spell in mind. When the magic reached his hands, he threw them in Obi-Wan's direction, but was disappointed when only a small wisp of red light left his hands.
Harry watched as Obi-Wan's face took on a focused look and the Jedi threw his hands up quickly. Harry could feel a sudden wave of energy as if Obi-Wan was creating a wall between the two of them. Whatever it was, it was clearly effective as Harry's puny spell was absorbed until nothing was left. He was slightly irritated when he saw the satisfied look on Obi-Wan's face.
"You'll excuse me if I am slightly relieved, won't you. Even for a Jedi, we don't like to be completely overmatched." Obi-Wan stated.
Harry couldn't help but grin, not all together too bothered. "Just as long you understand that what I just tried to hit you with would only be considered powerful for an eleven year old."
"Oh," Obi-Wan replied, his smiled dropping slightly. "I guess you'll have to keep practicing to try and gain more power. Don't be discouraged though, for someone who was used to doing something one way his whole life, it seems you've made great progress in a short time. I'd say you've already conquered the hardest part."
"Thanks," Harry acknowledged, appreciative of the praise.
"Do you think you can try to attack me again?" Obi-Wan asked. "I have one more means of defense I'd like to test, then we'll call it a day."
"Yeah, sure," he answered, taking a step back. Harry threw his hands forward again, a little faster this time, and unleashed another relatively weak stunner. He watched as instead of trying to stop the light, Obi-Wan let it get close. Just before it was about to strike, Obi-Wan stuck his hand out and effortlessly called his lightsaber into his hand igniting in on contact. He directed the glowing blue blade, which caught the spell just in time to absorb it.
Nodding to himself as his curiosity was satisfied, Obi-Wan switched off his blade. "That's enough for tonight, we don't want to attract any tusken raiders or anything else unpleasant. I'd say we were extremely productive today," Obi-Wan noted, patting Harry on the back as he made his way over. "I'd advise you get a good night of sleep tonight. Tomorrow we'll be doing something a little different."
"What kind of different?" Harry asked curiously.
"How do you feel about manual labor?"
Harry just raised his brow at the question and continued inside into the hut.
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Harry figured out the next morning exactly what Obi-Wan meant by manual labor. The first thing they did after having a quick breakfast was walk down into the cellar beneath the hut. When they made it down, Harry immediately noticed numerous parts and machinery that were scattered around.
"So what exactly are we doing, you haven't explained?"
Obi-Wan began talking as he also began sorting through things. "If you haven't already noticed, Tatooine is an extremely dry planet. This means that water is extremely scarce and also extremely valuable. One of the main forms of income on the planet is through moisture farming."
"Moisture farming?" Harry repeated, not knowing exactly what it was, but from the name he could hazard a guess.
"The farmers extract the moisture that's in the air through a condensation process. They then collect it and sell it at the market. We have a system that's connected to the hut, which provides us with our own source of water. However, whoever used this place before I found it abandoned must have been prospective farmers, because they left all of this equipment down here."
"Do you know what happened to them?" Harry asked only a little interested.
"Hopefully they left on their own accord, but there are a number of things out here that would kill you if they had the chance. The sand people are especially accommodating," Obi-Wan noted darkly.
"Well, I hope I never have the pleasure of meeting them."
Obi-Wan laughed. "You can try to avoid them, but they tend to be pests who show up whether you like it or not. I have to spook them every few weeks when they get too close, so I'm sure you'll see them at some point. We'll properly introduce you."
"So you've described moisture farming," Harry began, "but what exactly does it have to do with us? Is moisture farming something that Jedi do in their spare time?"
"Spare time," Obi-Wan chuckled again. "Old Jedi masters may have had spare time to start moisture farms, but the term is one that wouldn't be very familiar to a Jedi Knight. No one had any spare time during the last days of the Republic."
"What was it like?"
"Tiresome. Confusing," Obi-Wan described wearily. "The Jedi spent their last days leading men who would ultimately betray them into battle, while also playing politics with a Sith Chancellor. Neither worked out well for any of us."
Harry had been somewhat confused about this. "Obi-Wan, when you describe the Force, you say that it gives the ability to see things ahead of time. I don't understand, but shouldn't the Jedi have been able to see some of it coming? I mean, I guess you would have had to work closely with the Chancellor."
"The Dark Side of the Force is a terrible thing," Obi-Wan explained almost angrily. "It clouded our ability to see things through the Force. The only one of us who had an inkling that this was going to happen was Master Windu, and he was the first victim of Anakin's betrayal. Even Master Yoda wasn't able to see it coming."
"Who was Master Yoda?"
"One of the greatest Jedi who has ever lived," Obi-Wan noted with great admiration and respect. "He was Grand Master of the Jedi Order, a title well deserved. I sat with him on the Jedi Council before its destruction and he's always been a mentor to me."
"Does he still live?" Harry asked tentatively.
"He lives, an exile just as myself. Master Yoda has managed almost 900 years now, and I believe the only thing that will kill him is his age. I know his inability to beat Darth Sideous in battle weighs heavily on him."
"900? 900 years?" Harry asked incredulously.
"He isn't human Harry. You better start getting used to the fact that there are plenty of other sentient beings out there."
"Why is that?"
"Well," Obi-Wan began, placing a piece of equipment into Harry's arms, "back to your original line of questioning, we are about to get into the moisture farming business."
"Are we? I thought you were training me."
"Oh, we'll still train-in fact you can consider it part of your training. The fact is that I'm still too recognizable to be seen in any of the markets or spaceports. The Empire has spies and agents everywhere, who would inform of my presence in a second. That's where you come in. The towns are bustling places full of all sorts of people, and I would like to keep abreast of what's happening outside of Tatooine if I can."
"So you want me to go spy." Harry stated more than asked.
"More like keep your ears open," Obi-Wan clarified. "It would look suspicious if you just kept showing up in town without any clear purpose. People would start to ask questions. So, we are going to turn you into a moisture farmer who shows up in town to sell his wares."
"You're going to turn me into a farmer?" Harry asked skeptically, picturing himself with a cow and chickens.
"Don't look so surly. It isn't that difficult, and I'll do most of the technical work. We're just going to have to teach you how to look and act like a local. And I won't send you anywhere until I'm sure you can protect yourself."
"Alright, I guess if it will help."
"It will," Obi-Wan stated confidently. "If we find that you're capable of using the Force, it will give you a good lesson in reading people, and possibly manipulating their thoughts. Oh, and it will also help us with buying supplies. I don't have enough here to keep me alive forever, let alone both of us."
"Yeah, that probably is a good idea. Whatever we ate this morning wasn't exactly my idea of good food."
"You get used to it," Obi-Wan commented, obviously speaking from experience. "Anyway, let's get to it," he finished, pointing Harry out of the cellar.
Harry started making his way out, still carrying the equipment, when he looked back and saw an empty handed Obi-Wan following him. "Something wrong with your arms?" he asked.
"Nothing wrong," Obi-Wan responded casually. "I told you I would be doing the technical work."
"Oh."
"Anyway, we need to make you look authentic. You're much too scrawny to pass as a moisture farmer at the moment. No one would believe you for a second."
Harry stopped moving for a second, deciding whether or not he should take offense at the statement. He decided quickly to save his energy though, because it seemed that it was going to be another long day.
