Harry woke up fully alert, almost on edge. Today was the day he was getting released from the hospital wing. That meant he was also free to try and get the Jedi back home. The truth of it was that he had no idea how he had done it in the first place, if indeed he was responsible. And yet, somehow, he just knew he could do it.
"That's the spirit," Ginny said sleepily, smirking.
Poking her nose just to see her squirm, Harry slid out of bed, landing softly on the cold stone floor. The first light of day was just now creeping down the far wall. He padded around to Ginny's end of the makeshift double bed and shook her by the shoulders.
"Get your lazy arse out of bed," said Harry.
Raising herself onto her elbows, Ginny blew the hair out of her face to give Harry the full force of her glare. "I'm going to murder you, Harry Potter. Slowly."
"Well, in the meantime, come and have breakfast," said Harry, grinning. "I know you're just as hungry as me."
Ginny muttered a few choice swear words, but soon stumbled out of bed herself. Harry had already slipped out of the hospital wing. It was a comforting thing to retread the same old secret passages after so long drifting in unconsciousness. They didn't run into anyone, it being too early for most to have left the comfort of their beds. But Harry had a mission, and he wasn't keen on confronting the whole school at once after yet another major incident.
'No smile this morning,' said Harry.
The headmaster was watching him with a measured, thoughtful sort of look.
'Some day he is going to get what's coming to him,' Ginny said, sliding onto the Gryffindor bench.
'Yeah,' Harry agreed. 'He is.'
Harry tore through his breakfast with a voracity that continued to amuse Ginny. Her own appetite had increased since the events of the Chamber, but not quite as much as Harry's. After two plates of bacon, eggs and sausages, an omelette and some beans on toast found their way to his stomach, Harry sighed with approval, scanned the table, and began to peel a banana.
Ginny had barely opened her mouth when Harry cut across her. "Not a word."
She smirked at him, but acquiesced. He'd heard the parallels she was drawing with Ron anyway.
They escaped the Great Hall just as the number of students started to pick up. A murmur rose among the crowd they passed, and a few people even called out. Ginny gave a brief wave, but they hurried on back to the infirmary, where they knew the Jedi would be waiting. They found more than just the Jedi.
"Professor Dumbledore believed you would need this," said Madam Pomfrey. On the table she indicated lay the Sword of Gryffindor, gleaming in the golden sunlight.
"I feel like I'm taking the weapon with me to a murder trial," said Harry, looking at the blade with some trepidation.
"No one will be accusing you of murder," said Master Jinn. "If you had not done what you did, you would not be standing here today."
Harry opened his mouth to argue, but Master Jinn carried on, "Whether you knew it or not at the time does not change that. The Force guided your hand in this."
This did not alleviate the weight upon Harry's heart, but he took up the blade all the same. "So when do we go?"
Naboo was a truly beautiful planet — a garden world unspoiled by engines of industry. Even its capital city of Theed was a glistening silver metropolis, merely an island of idyllic settlement in the vast ocean of green. Harry had been less able to appreciate its beauty in the midst of its blockade, but free as it now was, Harry drank in the sights.
"A pity we missed the celebrations," said Master Jinn. "Supposedly it was truly historic — the beginning of diplomatic relations between the two civilisations of this world."
"It's difficult to believe that a place like this could know conflict," said Ginny.
"The most beautiful things incite the bloodiest confrontations," said the Jedi.
They were led higher through the palace by a young lieutenant of the guard, Typho. Harry itched to ask the man what had happened to his eye, which was locked behind some form of metal guard cap. Every time he opened his mouth, however, Ginny would discretely pinch his hand. By the time they reached the Queen's audience chamber, Harry was quite ready to attempt a Force wedgie.
The space age doors slid open to reveal a moderately large hall. And sitting upon a throne at the far end, surrounded by handmaidens and attendants was a heavily made up but undeniably beautiful woman.
"Stop when I stop," muttered the lieutenant, leading them in. "And kneel when I kneel."
Apart from the guardsmen, everyone seemed to be wearing some form of ceremonial clothing. Robes were commonplace, though they were not the simple things Harry was used to. No, he was certainly in a royal court, though it was like none he had ever imagined.
Before long, they stood before Queen Amidala herself, who looked at them dispassionately for a moment before looking up at the Jedi.
"Master Jedi!" she said, a note of surprise colouring her features.
'I'm surprised her face can move at all under all that,' said Ginny.
Harry admonished her lightly, bending his knee with the guard.
"Your highness," said the Jedi, also kneeling.
Harry noted with a degree of curiosity that Obi-Wan's eyes flicked to one of the handmaidens as he said this. With greater curiosity, Harry noted that he had realised this without having looked around to see Obi-Wan's face.
"My friends, I had to see with my own eyes that it was truly you," said the Queen. "You have been presumed dead for some time."
Master Jinn smiled lightly. "That is to be expected, I suppose. We did disappear in combat with a Sith assassin, and for quite some time. But did you not have security footage?"
"You were in a nuclear facility," said the Queen drily. "The fact remains that you have been gone for three standard months."
Harry felt his jaw drop. If Naboo months were similar to Earth months, something had gone very wrong.
"This is very interesting," said Master Jinn. Unlike his apprentice, he seemed rather amused at the news. "Your highness, I hope that matters ran a smooth course after we left."
"Indeed," she nodded. "I must thank you for your part in it. Peace flourishes, the occupying force ousted, and the Trade Federation has almost completely escaped punishment."
"Unfortunately, your highness, money talks," said Master Jinn. "I am glad to hear that Naboo has emerged largely unscathed. What of the boy, Anakin Skywalker?"
"Ah, one of the less peaceful results of this conflict," said the Queen. "Please, be at ease."
Harry stood with the others, keeping his eyes aimed low. Anakin Skywalker. His ears hadn't been playing tricks on him. If he was truly in the room with Obi-Wan Kenobi, that boy would grow up to be one of the most famous villains never to walk the Earth...
"The Jedi High Council would not take the boy," the Queen said, and Harry could not be sure if she was amused. "As such, he has been enjoying our hospitality as my ward. I suppose you would not have heard, but he almost single-handedly defeated the Trade Federation army with a daring space manoeuvre."
"Surprise upon surprise," said Kenobi.
"Indeed," the Queen sighed. "The boy has been developing his piloting skills, but little else according to his tutors. Only Padme can keep him to heel."
The Jedi made noncommittal noises, though Harry felt Obi-Wan was a little more derogatory.
"Am I to presume that you are taking our young hero off our hands?" the Queen asked blandly.
"You are," Master Jinn smiled. "If you will only provide transport for us and the young Sith slayer here, we will be well on our way."
Queen Amidala stood. "What exactly are you saying, Master Jedi?"
"What I am saying is that this boy, Harry Potter, single-handedly slew the assassin we engaged here in your palace," said Qui-Gon. "With a sword."
The Queen's eyebrows rose. "This is true, Mr. Potter?"
"Every word, your highness," said Harry, looking up briefly. "I have brought the sword. Your guardsman is holding it for me."
With a gesture, the Queen summoned Lieutenant Typho, and she took the sword. Its blade gleamed, utterly free of imperfection.
"Gryffindor," said Queen Amidala. "A patron of yours?"
"The founder of my house, your majesty," said Harry, a warm feeling suffusing his chest.
"Kneel," she commanded.
Harry hastened to comply, unsure what exactly he had done wrong. It did not help that Ginny was laughing at him.
"Do you swear always to defend the poor and the helpless?" said the Queen.
"I do," said Harry, frowning in confusion. Was this some form of test?
"Do you swear always to be charitable to those less fortunate than yourself?" the Queen said, sword still aimed at the floor.
"I do, your majesty," said Harry. Why was everyone oohing and aahing so much? Had he not left that at Hogwarts?
"Do you swear always to be honest and true, not succumbing to fear or to cowardice?"
"I do," said Harry.
He couldn't deny a hint of fear as the sword was laid next to his neck. But there was no sense of danger. Even Ginny was quiet now, watching in contemplation.
"From this day onward, you shall be known to the Naboo as Sir Harry Potter, Defender of the Realm," said Queen Amidala, passing the sword to the other side of his neck. "May you leave peace and prosperity in your wake, and stand as a beacon of hope in the darkest of times."
Harry stared at the hem of the woman's robes. "Th-thank you, your majesty."
Harry kicked himself as his voice broke. If only it hadn't been sprung on him! 'Shut up, Ginny.'
The sword withdrew, and Queen Amidala offered him her hand. Taking it in his, Harry gently kissed the knuckles. He didn't know much about knighting ceremonies, but it seemed appropriate... right up until he heard the Queen's tinkling laughter.
"I mean for you to stand, Sir Potter, but I am flattered by the gesture."
His face burning, Harry stood with his head bowed, seeing Gryffindor's Sword offered to him upon the Queen's open hands.
"Take your weapon, Sir Potter," she said. "May it serve you well on your journeys."
"Thank you, your majesty," said Harry, taking the sword gingerly and replacing it in the scabbard Dumbledore had provided. It was not quite as ornate as the blade itself, but it too was silver, and always shone as though freshly polished.
One delicate finger took him under the chin, and as Harry looked up, he saw the first genuine smile on the young Queen's face. "You are a knight now, sir. You need not stare at your shoes."
Harry realised after a moment that he was gaping. "Yes, your majesty. I am at your disposal."
The Queen's smile turned slightly mischievous before she schooled her features back into that regal mask. "Excellent. I have no need of you today, Sir Harry Potter. But you should all stay this evening and explain properly what came to pass in the bowels of our palace."
Harry bowed, noticing only then that Ginny seemed a little sulky. Nudging her and grinning, Harry felt better to elicit a conspiratorial smile from her.
"Padme will show you around the castle," said Queen Amidala. "I have matters of state to attend to, but I will expect you all at dinner."
Lieutenant Typho led them from the hall, and Harry found that his head was lodged firmly in the clouds. He had never dreamed he might one day be a real knight. But his attentions were soon drawn back to reality as Master Jinn quietly addressed the girl, Padme.
"Your majesty," he said discretely, not even looking at the handmaiden.
Harry stared. Had the Queen been a decoy? A fake?
Ginny snorted at his expression, waving a hand in front of his face.
"Master Jinn," said the girl. "I assume you want to report to your council as quickly as possible."
"Yes," said Master Jinn. "Being dead could prove quite the inconvenience on Core Worlds."
"I can imagine," Padme smiled, pressing a fairly high number on the lift panel as they all squeezed in. "I'm not sure how Anakin would take it if the Jedi reject him outright."
"Not wonderfully well, I imagine," said Master Jinn. "Thankfully, he doesn't need to worry about it. I will see him trained."
"He's a sweet boy," Padme sighed. "He might make a good Jedi."
The lift doors opened to reveal a sandy-haired boy a little younger than Harry staring open mouthed at them.
"I knew you couldn't be dead," said Anakin Skywalker. "I knew it."
As one, Harry and Ginny calculated what they knew of the boy. Of what he was destined to become. The imposing figure of Darth Vader loomed large in their memories. But what were they to do? Kill the child? If they did, what would happen instead? If some other, greater evil replaced him, where would this world be without the children of Anakin Skywalker?
Just like that, the opportunity passed.
"Ani, why aren't you with Doctor Arneé?" said Padme sternly, guiding him down the corridor.
"I finished the work she set me," Anakin protested. "And I felt something, like I should be here."
"Curious how you never have the feeling that you should be in class," said Padme, hiding a smile.
"I know all about electronics," said Anakin, in a distinctly eight year old voice.
'I find your lack of faith disturbing,' Harry mocked.
Ginny giggled at him, shaking her head. 'Hard to imagine...'
"Are you not taking me back to Dr Arneé?" said Anakin, confused.
"The Jedi are taking you back to Coruscant, Ani," said Padme. "Remember?"
"The Jedi don't want me," said Anakin. "They think I'm too old."
Harry and Ginny frowned at each other. Yoda had said something about Luke Skywalker being too old for Jedi training, they remembered, but he had been almost a man grown. Anakin could not be ten years of age.
"You will be trained, Anakin," said Qui-Gon Jinn. "I will keep that promise."
Ginny gave Harry a sad smile at that. It had been one of their mother's conditions. For while Mrs Weasley saw the importance of Harry gaining a wider variety of defensive skills after the sheer amount of time Voldemort had kept him in hospital over the previous two years and the newly revealed threat of their own headmaster, she was not happy to lose both of her youngest to 'some romp through the stars'. Thus, when Master Jinn's blood tests showed Harry to have rather a great strength in the Force where Ginny seemed barely even to exist, Mrs Weasley had taken quite the sigh of relief. Ginny would be allowed to travel with Harry. She would be his comfort and his crutch, safe from the headmaster, while their parents watched the situation at Hogwarts. And when the Council reached a decision on Harry Potter's fate, she would come straight home.
"Where did you go?" said Anakin.
Harry felt like a knife had been driven into his chest, that mere seconds ago he had been considering killing this child. Anakin was no Tom Riddle. This boy was about as malevolent as a bunny rabbit. What could possibly have changed?
Harry found that becoming a knight had failed to make him any surer of himself. There were certainly a thousand protocols that he was brazenly flouting as he entered the royal dining chamber, but rather than feel assured that he wasn't expected to know them, he felt himself becoming cowed by the weight of it.
'Come on, Harry,' said Ginny. 'It's only dinner with the queen of a planet. What could possibly go wrong?'
'Thanks Ginny, big help,' Harry muttered. But he found an involuntary smile twitching his lips and suddenly it was that much easier to stand up straight.
"Welcome, my friends," said the queen.
Padme having excused herself from their group after giving a tour of the castle, Harry looked closely at the queen's face. They had indeed switched places. It was subtle, and the handmaidens had clearly been chosen at least partly for a resemblance to the queen, but it was there in the cheekbones, the jawline and the fullness of the lips if you were looking for it. The true queen might have been the youngest of the group.
Still following Typho's lead, Harry stopped about five paces from the table. He tried to stop, at any rate. Ginny discretely stomped on his toe, and he stumbled forwards in front of the Queen, her handmaidens, her guards and the whole party. Holding in a curse, Harry allowed himself to fall to one knee, slamming a fist to his heart and bowing his head.
"Your highness," said Harry, resolving to find some new and creative revenge. Ginny appeared to be whistling.
"You may rise, Sir Potter," said Queen Amidala.
Harry wondered if Queen Elizabeth had ever considered a holographic band for light entertainment. The soft jazz music seemed incredibly well reproduced — Harry would never have realised that it was not a live band if he had not seen the holographic projectors. Ginny was drinking in everything she saw and heard. Throughout the day it had amused Harry to listen to her mind frantically scramble to log and compare all the not-quite-familiar things that they encountered. He had drawn the parallel with Hermione, but Ginny chose to ignore the comment.
In contrast, Harry could have done with a little bit less in the way of new experiences. As he was led to his seat at the Queen's right hand, he noticed that one of the options for a starter dish seemed to still be moving.
Harry stood for a clear thirty seconds, waiting, while the Queen kept them standing. It was only when he was forced to take a sharp inhalation that he realised that nerves had driven him to holding his breath. And even without a Jedi's insight he could see the Queen smirk.
As they began to eat, Queen Amidala attempted small talk about the state of the galaxy. She had barely mentioned the word Coruscant when Harry realised he was well out of his depth. If the Queen did not already have all the clues she needed, his involuntary, desperate glance towards Master Jinn surely tipped the balance.
"So tell me, Sir Potter," said Queen Amidala. "Where do you hail from, that you do not recognise the seat of galactic government?"
"My planet is called Earth," said Harry. "Ginevra and I are both from there."
Ginevra put her heel on his ankle and pushed until Harry's grin felt drawn on with a knife.
'Totally worth it.'
Meanwhile, Ginny continued to discuss magic with Obi-Wan Kenobi as though nothing at all had changed.
"Earth?" said the Queen. She still sounded impassive, but Harry could feel her interest growing. "Perhaps it is not on any of the major trade routes."
"Or any of the trade routes, your highness," said Harry.
Queen Amidala stared at him for a moment, as if deciding whether or not he had dared to tease her.
'Five points to Gryffindor,' Ginny smirked, continuing her idle chatter with Kenobi.
"And the people of this Earth are practitioners of the magic your companion speaks of?" Queen Amidala asked.
Ginny, to her credit, did not glance around, though Harry could feel her surprise.
"Some of us, yes," said Harry. "Master Jinn says many people discovering the Force call it magic."
"Hmm," said Queen Amidala. Somehow, Harry felt that she knew there was more. They shared a slight smile. "Galactic government does not take kindly to mysteries, and if you wish to conduct business coreward of Eriadu you will encounter the Republic in some way."
"Are we already coreward of Eriadu, your highness?" said Harry.
Queen Amidala smiled. "We need to have a chat with the good Jedi master before you leave."
The Queen went on to tell him of her planet and its place in the galaxy at large. Master Jinn had spoken briefly of the Galactic Republic, but neither Harry nor any of his friends had pressed the issue for fear of accidentally telling the Jedi that his prized democracy was doomed. Still, Harry was taken to believe that the Jedi suspected that they were withholding information. It was in the glances, the slight frowns whenever they caught someone staring at Kenobi...
Obi-Wan Kenobi was far, far younger than the version Harry had seen. He had a definite handsomeness to his face, and a powerful, lean build that spoke of hard work and thorough physical conditioning. It might have brought a pang of jealousy to his heart to see Ginny in such rapturous conversation with the padawan, but he knew better. He only smiled at the slight flush to her cheeks, bringing her freckles into relief as she spoke of the variety of creatures to be found in Europe.
Over the next fifty minutes, Harry learned of Coruscant, the city-planet from which the Republic governed, the shipyards of Corellia and Kuat, and the trade routes that connected this small planet of Naboo to those Core Worlds and made it significant.
"There are hundreds of thousands of worlds in the Republic," said the Queen, standing with Harry, Ginny and the Jedi in a nigh-empty dining chamber. "Nobody will bat an eye at not recognising your homeworld. But should an official be unable to trace you, you may be presumed a fugitive, or worse."
"It is true," said Master Jinn, frowning. "My intention is to get Harry directly to the Jedi Temple on Coruscant, as his true home would become largely irrelevant if he were inducted to the order."
"What do you mean?" said Ginny.
"The records could list his origin as the temple itself," said the Jedi Master. "A cleaner, neater solution by far."
"Which rests solely on the Jedi High Council accepting a boy significantly older and more mature than Anakin Skywalker," said Obi-Wan.
'Mature...' Ginny snickered.
Harry responded by reaching out with his feelings, using his hazy memories of the Star Wars movies as an instruction manual. The Jedi glanced almost imperceptibly in his direction as the only indication that they had noticed, but left him to his devices.
"It is true that they may prove hesitant," said Master Jinn. "But an individual of Harry's power, with his set of abilities, would demand training. It would be too dangerous to risk him facing the lure of the dark side alone."
In the meantime, Harry decided that he was ready, and began to pull. At first there was no reaction. Moments later, Ginny's eyes widened, and she glanced incredulously over at Harry. He kept his eyes firmly on the Queen and Master Jinn. However, it could not escape her notice that his fingers were forming a definite hook. Turning slightly panicked eyes back to the adults, Ginny turned rather red and tried to subtly fix the Force wedgie, but she had no chance.
"Yes," said Obi-Wan. "The dark side."
The Queen's eyes slid over Ginny, and she seemed to turn redder still. "And if they should reject him?"
"I will think of something," said the Jedi Master. "Harry, know that no matter what happens, I will offer you any help that I can."
"Thank you, Master Jinn," said Harry, giving a final tug that made Ginny squeak under her breath. "I appreciate it."
Saying goodbye to Naboo was not difficult after the brief stay, but Harry was sure he would miss the temperate garden world and the measured grandeur of its palace. They walked now through its gleaming halls, open to the city and the vast ocean beyond. Unlike Hogwarts, Theed Palace seemed busy in spite of its scale, with nary a room to waste for someone's meeting or project. The people had a fervour to them. Still, none hesitated to bow as their Queen passed, before returning in earnest to whatever occupied them. Closing his eyes, Harry felt the whole building thrumming with life.
Ginny was thrumming with more than life as she walked beside him. Pulling her tight to his side, Harry grinned at her.
"Not to worry," said Harry. Gesturing grandly into the distance, Harry gave her a little shake. "There's a whole galaxy out there for me to show you, fair maiden."
"Oh good sir," said Ginny. "I don't know, I've never been gone far from my family's farm."
"Except Diagon Alley," said Harry.
"Yes, there is that..." said Ginny.
"And Hogwarts."
"And Hogwarts."
"Romania."
"But isn't space just so... so... dangerous?" Ginny said tremulously.
"Dragons," said Harry. "Romania had dragons."
Ginny pouted at him before shoving him unceremoniously away. "Well phooey, mister, maybe I don't need a big, strong man to protect me."
"Could've fooled me," Harry smirked.
Wands were drawn as one being, one movement in perfect synchrony.
"Orchideous," said Harry.
Ginny took the flowers from mid-air, sniffed airily and walked on ahead. Reaching out, Harry made a gesture as though grabbing at something intangible between thumb and forefinger. Ginny turned, her face a picture of shock if only she were not trying so hard not to laugh.
"Mr. Potter!" Ginny said.
Harry kept walking after the Jedi. "Alright, it'll be chocolate next time."
Danger.
Harry stepped idly to the side, catching the little burst of energy in his left hand. Raising it for inspection, Harry found a sizzling yellow ball. He turned on the spot and blew the charm back towards her in a little flurry of yellow sparks. His heart had never yet felt so light.
Ginny just grinned and shook her head at him, the Queen's handmaidens passing her by. Turning his attention to them, Harry noted that the queen-duty rotation had continued, and the decoy was currently acting as Her Royal Highness. Padme's lip quirked as he identified her. On reaching Harry, she leaned in slightly.
"Dormé plays her part well, does she not?" Padme murmured.
"As do you, your highness," said Harry.
"Astute," she said. "The best of luck, Sir Potter. It is a dangerous galaxy, and I wish to see you on Naboo again, someday."
"I will not disappoint you, your highness," said Harry.
He might have said something else, but his breath was momentarily stolen from him.
The ship that awaited them was a sleek, beautiful thing. It might have been Italian, in the year 3000. Exhaust drives that fit almost seamlessly to the smooth lines of its body gently breathed a waft of blue light as the engines idled. A space ship. It was reminiscent of the designs he had seen as he approached the planet amid its siege. Chrome plating shone brilliantly in the afternoon sun as a boarding ramp smoothly lowered.
"The previous monarch's vessel," said Padme. "The crew will take you as far as Coruscant, but then they must return."
"We understand," said Master Jinn. "You and the Queen have our utmost gratitude."
"The pleasure is all ours," Padme smiled.
Kneeling down, she gave Anakin a warm, fond goodbye. The boy suddenly seemed less eager to leave when he realised that she would not be coming with them.
Padme smiled slightly. "Until next time, Sir Potter."
Harry gritted his teeth slightly as he smiled and nodded in return. Now that the shock had passed, he couldn't help but feel disingenuous in accepting such an honour.
As they climbed aboard the starship, Ginny delivered a solid kick to his shin.
"Ow!" said Harry. "Jesus, Ginny, what?"
"You've been made a bloody knight," said Ginny flatly. "A knight at a royal court. For saving a planet's government from an assassin. I'm going to keep kicking you until you stop moping."
As if to prove her point, she kicked him in the ankle. Or she would have, had Harry not caught her foot.
"Maybe you haven't heard," said Harry. "They call me the youngest Seeker in a century."
"They call you many things, Sir Potter," Ginny grinned. "Hey!"
"It's two jumps to Coruscant," said the pilot. "An overnight journey."
"Thank you, Mister?" said Master Jinn.
"Geraaten, Master Jedi," said the pilot, shaking the Jedi Master's hand. "Andrin Geraaten."
Harry stared out of the window as the ship pulled almost silently out of dock. Such a picturesque vista he did not think he had ever seen. Maybe he could have his Jedi training here...
Harry woke up well rested on the second day of their journey. Ginny was still miles away in the bunk opposite, a few strands of her fiery hair fluttering rhythmically with her breathing.
Stretching as he slipped out of bed, Harry dressed quickly and hurried out into the corridor, eager to prove to himself exactly where he was. Outside the transparisteel windows, stars stretched out like brilliant gashes in the sky, testament to the bending of relativity around them.
"Beautiful, isn't it?" said Obi-Wan Kenobi.
Harry had spent the majority of his time gawking at this particular man. However, if he was truly to meet Master Yoda soon, perhaps now was the time to get comfortable.
"Yes," Harry admitted readily. "Do you fly much?"
"It is difficult to avoid as a Jedi Knight, even in training," Obi-Wan shrugged. "I understand you are mainly limited to atmosphere at home."
Harry nodded. "Do you think the pilot would show me what it's like?"
"Not you as well," Obi-Wan sighed good-naturedly. "I don't see why not."
Grinning, Harry was ready to race off to the cockpit when he remembered something that had been bothering both him and Ginny.
"Mister Kenobi..." Harry said. "What's this about Anakin being too old?"
A more tired sigh this time.
"Jedi do not train adults," said Kenobi. "Nor do we train youths. Younglings are taken in infancy for Jedi training to begin properly."
"You take them from their families?" said Harry, horrified.
"Yes," said Obi-Wan. "It is a necessary measure to begin the training this early."
"And you let them visit on weekends?" Harry asked. "For holidays?"
Somehow, he knew the answer before he had even asked.
"No," said Kenobi, staring out at the stars. "That would rather defeat the purpose."
Harry swallowed his indignation. No matter how he disagreed, the Jedi clearly believed in whatever he was saying, and unlike Dumbledore could most likely be trusted to speak candidly about it.
"People form emotional attachments to things, to people, as they grow up," said Kenobi. "This is especially true of family."
"And Jedi can't deal with that?" said Harry.
"It is an added problem we do not need," said Obi-Wan patiently. "We are arbiters, diplomats, peacekeepers... If we were emotionally bound up with someone it would be a liability to our judgement and our neutrality."
"That would be your failing as a Jedi," said Harry. "To tear families apart is your failing as a person."
"We do not tear anybody apart," said Obi-Wan, shocked. "Parents volunteer their children."
"And the ones who don't?" said Harry, annoyed at the idea that anyone could voluntarily give away their own flesh and blood.
"Many do not, I grant you," said Kenobi. "But it is a great honour to become a Jedi, and parents do not wish to deny their children such an opportunity."
"It's a choice you force on them," Harry pointed out.
"True," Obi-Wan conceded. "But such is life."
For a moment, Harry stared out through the window, digesting this information. It seemed highly unlikely that he would even want to be a Jedi. Clearly this had been what had helped to sell Mrs Weasley on letting Harry come to Coruscant, not that she had had a great deal of choice in the matter.
"Is it truly worth it?" said Harry. "Have you cured the problem of evil by trying to turn your knights into heartless robots?"
Kenobi gave him a sharp look. "That is not..."
Harry continued to look him in the eye.
"Perhaps it seems that way to you," said Kenobi. "But there are certainly fewer problems, yes."
"Is 'fewer problems' worth it?" said Harry.
"Fewer problems equates to trade disputes successfully resolved, thousands of lives saved and the survival of our order," said Kenobi.
"Maybe," said Harry. "Or maybe it has simply hidden the evil-leaning Jedi from your view."
"Hmm," said Kenobi. "Only for four millenia have we done it this way… But after twenty-five thousand years the wisest of Jedi have come up with nothing better."
'Well maybe that's why you lose.'
Harry left Obi-Wan cordially, a little less star-struck by the glamour of the Jedi Order. Flying was a far easier and less emotionally harrowing discipline.
On the final approach to Coruscant, Harry and Ginny were having the time of their life in the cockpit. Mr. Geraaten was devoted to his job and seemed to thoroughly enjoy teaching them about the workings of a starship.
"Where's your friend, anyway?" said the pilot. "He was mighty keen just like you but I haven't seen a hint of him today."
"Master Jinn is tutoring him," Ginny shrugged.
"Oh," said Geraaten. "Ah well, he's seen this bit already. Dropping out of light speed in 5... 3. 2. 1."
The streaks of brilliant white collapsed back into stars, and ahead of them one more dazzling than all the rest exploded into view, dominating the starscape.
"Welcome," the pilot smiled, "to Coruscant."
They stared, mouths agape, at the beating heart of the galaxy. A planet that never slept. Space stations surrounded it from every angle, while a veritable swarm of ships hung around the planet like specks of dust in the light of a cosmic window.
"Coruscant Security Station Esk-159 to Naboo transport vessel, state your business and destination."
"Hi control," said Mr. Geraaten. "Civilian transport, and two Jedi on board. We're headed for the Jedi temple."
"Head on through, transport," said the controller. "Details should be coming through now."
Harry and Ginny both watched, wide-eyed, as they passed by the little space station packed with men and women of various species with headsets and tired faces.
"If we were carrying any controlled materials that we hadn't declared," said the pilot, "munitions, most drugs, slaving equipment… Their little alarm would go off and we'd have a couple of fighters on our tail before you could wet your trousers."
Ginny snorted. "I don't know, Harry could probably beat them to it — hey!"
Ginny tried to grab him with a Levitation Charm, but Harry, single-minded in his purpose, simply shrugged it off and flung her over his shoulder.
"That's new," she muttered, before squealing as he drove his fingers mercilessly into her side. "No! Wait! Stop! Ahhaha! Stop it! Nooooo!"
"Beg for mercy!" Harry laughed. "Muahahahahaha!"
Master Jinn watched, unnoticed, from the doorway. A contemplative smile graced his lips as he watched the children, the ship's crew working in a state of quiet amusement and mild concern. By the time Harry was done, the Jedi Master was gone. But what Harry did see almost made him drop his girlfriend flat on her bottom.
The fiery aura of re-entry faded away to reveal a sci-fi metropolis, the likes of which Harry had never dreamed, stretching to every horizon. Skylanes choked on thousands of flying cars moving at speeds that would make his Nimbus shake with envy. And in the light of the Coruscanti sun, every impossibly tall building was a brilliant, shining beacon of glass and metal.
"How...?" said Harry, his eyes itching.
"It's incredible," said Ginny, earning the curiosity of the copilot for apparently commenting on the small of Harry's back.
The woman was distracted by the communications terminal, however.
"We are reading you, Jedi Tower," she said.
The reminder of the purpose of their visit broke the spell on the young sorcerers. Harry frowned as he settled Ginny back onto her feet. In triggering his memory, the conversation with Kenobi had been brought to the surface.
"Do you think they remember their parents?" said Ginny.
Harry shrugged. "I'm not sure which would be worse."
Coruscant was more than simply grand. Its crisp blue skies were filled with neat columns of air traffic, amongst whom few could possibly fathom the sense of wonder in the two young sorcerers. It was in one of those airspeeders that Harry and Ginny now sat, with their Jedi escort and the other young Force-sensitive, Anakin Skywalker.
Perhaps it had been the knowledge of what this boy would become, but Harry and Ginny had found themselves keeping their distance from him. The young Anakin was far more interested in the vehicles than the people who occupied them, regardless. Perhaps he would choose to turn himself into the cyborg Vader.
Their speeder climbed to what at first seemed a low sky lane. It seemed that way until Harry looked down.
"More than five thousand stories deep," said Obi-Wan. "All the way around the planet."
"I'll do my best not to fall," said Harry.
"See that you don't," Kenobi sighed.
"How many people live here?" said Ginny, peering over the side at the impenetrable dark between the monumental buildings below.
"Officially, four quadrillion," said Obi-Wan. "Unofficially, between birth records and immigration data, there's surely more than double that. But the bowels of this planet are derelict and lawless beyond the government's desire to intervene."
That titbit was more than enough to occupy their thoughts as they neared the temple building. It was not hard to identify it, being starkly unique with its five central spires and giant Jedi statues guarding the entrance, even looking past the fact that it stood head and shoulders above anything for miles around. It was only as they came close that the sheer scale of the building resolved itself. Noting that the little specks on the detailing were actually people on walkways and that the landing pad was already party to several shuttles and transports, boggled their minds utterly.
They were still trying to grasp the idea of quadrillions of people, or what even one of these infinite number of buildings would look like on English soil, as they were led up the walkway towards the temple entrance. The statues they had seen from the airspeeder weren't simply large. They towered overhead like warriors against the clouds themselves, each lightsaber blade long enough to cross a Quidditch pitch.
The inside of the temple was every bit as vast, with thousands of figures in Jedi robes parleying or walking through the halls. Harry tried to keep his face neutral as internally he began freaking out at the sheer variety of species, the number of Jedi Knights he was passing. Barely a one of them looked in his direction, but a few did look away from their own business to note their passing. Their attentions were directed more towards Anakin, the shining nexus of Force energy that he was. It was nice to be a secondary attraction for once.
A 'turbolift' propelled them up to the uppermost levels of the temple. There were so many floors that the lift couldn't even make do with a traditional control panel. The floor number had to be typed in on a digital screen. But the turbolift certainly made short work of the distance. Their only warning was a sharp 'brace yourself' from Master Jinn before Harry felt his stomach drop to somewhere around his knees.
He and Ginny left the turbolift taking slow, measured breaths to make sure they didn't dislodge any of their now precariously placed internal organs. This lasted for roughly eight seconds before they turned matching grins on each other.
Business was business, however, and once they reached the High Council's meeting chamber, they drew to a final stop. The metal doors slid open with a hiss-whoosh. Beyond, Harry saw a broken ring of seats occupied by a variety of species. In the centre was Jedi Master Yoda.
"Wait here," Master Jinn said.
The three children were left to stand in the corridor as their Jedi friends went inside.
"Finally returned to us, you have," said Yoda.
"Masters," said Master Jinn, bowing.
The doors snapped shut.
"Well, this has been interesting," Ginny muttered.
"They said you killed an assassin," said Anakin.
"By accident, really," Harry shrugged. "It was a bit of a mess. You, on the other hand, tore through a whole blockade."
"Yeah, that was amazing!" Anakin gushed. "I went right into the reactor chamber and blew up the control ship from the inside."
"Sounds impressive," said Ginny. "How did you pilot the ship?"
"Oh it wasn't so different from flying pods back home," Anakin said, proceeding to educate them on the finer points of pod racing. It seemed rather more crazy than the kinds of stunt flying Harry was used to, but they could understand his passion.
"And you fly this canyon how fast exactly?" Ginny said, excitement staining her concern.
"They'd like to see you, Harry," said Master Jinn warmly.
The room looked ominously dark from the outside, figures in oversized seats silhouetted against a blinding panorama of the Coruscant skyline. Harry felt a slight chill as he entered the chamber, Ginny close behind him.
"We wished to speak with you alone," said a dark-skinned, imposing looking man, reclining gently in a large seat.
"And your name is?" said Harry, smiling slightly in spite of himself at the idea that he was in a room full of Jedi.
Within this room were more species than Harry had ever encountered. Appearances varied from a slightly diminutive, human-looking man with bat-like ears that extended past his shoulders, to a clawed, reptilian man, who, if Harry was not mistaken, was sitting on a coiled tail. Most importantly, a little green man sat placidly in the middle of the council's semicircle, watching him with mild curiosity — Master Yoda.
The dark man turned to look him fully in the eye. "Master Windu."
"Well, Master Windu," said Harry. "Anything you have to say to me, you may most certainly say to Miss Weasley here."
Ginny smirked slightly at this, but refrained from saying anything herself.
"As you wish," said the Jedi, frowning.
"My name is Adi Gallia, Mr. Potter," said a woman with a remarkably soothing voice. She appeared to be human, one of three on the council of twelve. "Master Jinn tells us that you have manifested several abilities already. Perhaps you could describe them for us?"
"I'm pleased to meet you," said Harry, bowing. "All of you. But I'm not sure how to separate the Force from my native magic."
"Of this magic, Master Jinn spoke," said what appeared to be a woman of Master Yoda's species. "Yaddle, my name is... Of your prowess, examples, he gave."
Harry blinked. "He didn't explain it to me. Not really, anyway."
"You have some proficiency with the lightsaber," said Adi Gallia. "According to Master Jinn, you caught the assassin's blade in your bare hands."
"I don't know how I did it," said Harry. "I wasn't even trying to. It just sort of happened. Like I wasn't in control of my body."
"You hear the Force whispering to you," said the reptilian man. It wasn't truly a question, and Harry knew instinctively to what he was referring. "My name is Oppo Rancisis, young wizard, and though I sense the strange 'magical' presence Master Jinn mentioned, you are unquestionably strong in the Force."
"I was in a coma for weeks," said Harry. "But while I was out I was hearing this kind of... voice. It didn't use words, but it showed me Master Jinn dying."
Master Windu shared a look with Master Yoda. Their expressions were unreadable, but Harry did not need to see their emotions written on their faces.
"Speak to you now, the voice does?" said Master Yoda.
"Not really, Master Yoda" said Harry. "It seems that it only talks to me when I'm in danger. But I still hear things. You're all… worried."
A slight murmur.
"Curious this is…" said Master Yoda. "Hmm. Without training, powerful you have grown."
"He has had training," said Ginny. "Of a sort. For the past year or so we've been going from one fight to the next."
"So it would seem," said a gentle-voiced man who identified himself as Master Ki-Adi-Mundi. "And do you have experience with starting fights, as well?"
"Yes," said Harry, with only a hint of shame. He might have been cowed if Ginny hadn't been standing firm at his side. "I am not innocent. But that is a problem, isn't it?"
"Yes," said Master Windu, simply.
Master Yoda sat with his eyes closed for a moment. "Anger, I sense in you."
Harry merely watched Master Yoda.
"Anger and pain," said the old Jedi Master. "Close to the dark side, do you tread."
"The dark side?" said Harry. "You think I'm corrupt just because I feel emotions?"
"Your motivations would be coloured by more than the Jedi Code dictates," said Master Windu. "Your attachments and personal feelings might distract you from the will of the Force — the greater good."
"Forgive me, masters," said Harry. "But I've heard that phrase very few times and I'm already tired of it."
Master Windu leaned back, looking an almost dangerous shade of curious.
"Is it the will of the Force that you take children from their families?" said Harry.
"Youngling, it is hardly your place to be questioning…" began Master Rancisis.
Master Yoda stopped him with a look.
"Master Rancisis, I am not one of your students," said Harry. "You might be older than me, but I have no reason to bow to your will. I do have a reason to be annoyed that you think so much of yourselves as to take small children from their families in the name of this 'greater good'."
Silence for a moment.
"Is it the will of the Force?" said Harry. "Or is it the will of old men and women in large chairs who do not like being questioned?"
"If wish to debate, you do, no need there is for confrontation," said Master Yoda, who appeared to be smiling in the midst of quite varied reactions from his peers. "Mattering not how large our chairs may be."
"You're right, Master Yoda, I'm sorry," said Harry. "It's a… personal matter for me."
"Further proof of your vulnerability," said Master Windu.
"I would rather be vulnerable than what you're suggesting," said Harry. "Are you beyond emotion, Master Windu?"
"I am in control," said Master Windu. "There is a difference."
"At what cost?" said Harry. "And if you are calling yourselves guardians of justice, wouldn't it be better to spend more time teaching people that control than to take away their choices? To make them less of a person?"
The reactions were more vocal this time.
"Your reaction only proves my point," said Harry, noting with a warm feeling that a few members of the Council appeared pensive, including Master Yoda. "You get so upset about me being afraid or angry. What about yourselves?"
"Youngling, this is a farce!" said Master Rancisis.
Ginny stepped in front of Harry, who was feeling a warmth that settled through to his very soul. The Jedi were not his destiny. And somehow, he knew that Master Jinn had never expected them to be. Anakin was the 'Chosen One', not him.
Master Yoda looked up at her then and frowned.
"Face danger from us, Mr. Potter does not," said Master Yoda.
"Forgive me," said Ginny. "It wouldn't even be the first time this week."
"Known, this argument is," said Master Yoda. A few of his peers seemed taken aback at this response, but none spoke. "Seen much change, the Jedi Order has. I may not agree. But understand, I do."
"Let us talk about the weapon you carry," said Master Windu.
"I presume you don't mean the sword," said Harry.
"The lightsaber," Master Windu said placidly. "That of the Sith you killed."
Harry held it out for inspection. It seemed to wrench itself from his grasp, and Harry frowned. Ginny's hand went towards her wand. "You could have asked..."
Master Windu smiled thinly. "It does not bother you? That you killed a man?"
"Now?" said Harry. "Not so much. It wasn't the first time I'd seen death. But at the time I did lose my cool. I thought I was a murderer. Passed out, actually."
"So we have been told," said Master Windu. "But why did you keep the weapon?"
"Mister Kenobi said I would need it," said Harry, confused now and looking to Ginny for assurance. "And I did, to kill the basilisk I'd been fighting."
"You misunderstand," said Master Windu. "Master Jinn and his padawan Kenobi gave a full report. I am asking what the weapon means to you that you are still holding it to this day. Is it a trophy, perhaps?"
Harry felt his expression sour slightly. "The only memento I could want of that day is that I still have Ginny with me, breathing and healthy and happy."
Ginny glanced back at him, blushing slightly but unshaken.
"Interesting that you put it that way," said Windu. "Am I alone in this room in sensing the bond between the two younglings?"
Ginny turned redder still, but more than that, Harry could feel a seed of uncertainty in her heart.
"But do any of you sense the bonds the boy is forming amongst our number?" said Windu. He turned a dark eye on Harry as the rest of the High Council began to shift uneasily. "The bonds he has already formed with Jinn and Kenobi?"
"Even if what you're suggesting is true, there was little hostility in the youngling," said Adi Gallia. "There is no subterfuge here."
"Even if what you are saying is true," said Master Windu. "Our vision is clouded enough already, and he already is affecting you."
"Would someone like to explain what is going on?" said Harry. "Or are you just going to act on all this fear I'm feeling?"
"Come in," said Master Yoda quietly.
The doors slid open and Master Jinn led Kenobi into the chamber.
"You, Mr. Potter, are a cipher," said Master Windu. "Damaged in the Force, you form bonds with everyone around you, siphoning away their life energy and their will. Those who take issue with you become obsessed. Those who take kindly to you soon are ready to follow you to their doom."
Harry felt as though he had been punched.
"We understand, Master Windu," said Master Jinn. "Must you be so hard on the boy?"
"I... I'm sorry," Harry said. "I didn't... I'm killing my friends?!"
"Slowly, perhaps," Master Yoda frowned. "Strong is the bond between Miss Weasley and you, but little movement of life energies do I sense."
The commotion was rising around them. In the centre of it all, Windu and Yoda. Master Yoda frowned across the room at him, apparently thinking fast. Master Windu seemed more calm, twirling the Sith assassin's blade telekinetically above an open palm. The man was staring dispassionately at him. What was this Jedi's game?
Conversations were getting heated now, and through his own disquiet Harry could feel Ginny starting to despair. If only he had the words to help... But just then he felt he was barely holding on to himself.
"Surely we cannot allow this child to carry a Jedi weapon..." Harry heard Master Rancisis murmur.
"Excuse me?" said Harry. It would be so easy to vent his feelings. These Jedi who stole children from their cradles thought to judge him, to label him, and now to take his personal effects? So very easy...
Rancisis turned to him, and Harry felt the Jedi's apprehension. There was fear there. So much for their dearly bought control. And as he held the older man's eye, that fear grew.
"The council seems divided, master," said Master Windu. Master Yoda looked askance at his peer and nodded slightly.
"I find myself inclined to agree with Master Rancisis," said a horned man.
"Recall the treatment of Meetra Surik at this council's hands, you must," said Master Yoda. "Too often, allow fear to colour their decisions, the wise masters of the Jedi do, hmm?"
"Surik is but one example," said another master neutrally.
"Yes," said Master Yoda. "The one and only example she is. But twelve, a council is, hmm? Many examples I see. Foolish it is, at first glance to judge. Another time, debate this we will. His age, maturity, known concerns are these."
"You were happy to turn away young Skywalker on the same grounds, Master Yoda," said Master Ki-Adi-Mundi.
"Unmade, that decision remains," Master Yoda sighed. "Freedom, this boy wants, and freedom shall he have. No right, have we, to take this weapon from him."
"Nor does this council have the right to prevent me from training him," said Master Jinn. "I do not serve for the sake of a title or a comfortable seat." A couple of masters stiffened slightly. "I am a servant of the Force. Much centres upon this child, as is the case with the young Skywalker, and I will gladly surrender my lightsaber to see that both get the training they need."
"We may ask that of you," said Master Windu.
"So much for being above emotion," said Harry.
The man turned to stare at Harry. More than a few of his fellow masters turned to look at him.
"Are you presuming to judge my state of mind, youngling?" the man said.
"I don't need to judge anything," said Harry. "You've been getting slowly more irritated through this whole meeting, just like Master Rancisis has gotten more afraid. And I don't mean to make you more annoyed but I'd appreciate you giving the lightsaber back."
Harry sat silently with his back to the wall, idly spinning the lightsaber hilt over his hand. Ginny's mind was a storm as she sat beside him in the hallway. A surge of pain came through the bond, and the hilt clattered noisily on the metal floor.
Harry turned as if to say something, but Ginny had turned away, and the words died in his throat. Then he felt the Jedi approaching and shelved it.
"Anakin," said Master Jinn. "As soon as Obi-Wan has passed his trials, he will train you in the ways of the Force."
Anakin seemed overjoyed at first, before hesitating. "Why can't you train me?"
"I have been given the more unusual assignment," said Master Jinn.
"They agreed?" Harry said, uncertain. "You can train me?"
"Officially I'm more an observer," the Jedi Master smiled. "But yes, I fully intend to train you in the ways of the Force."
"Chin up, Anakin," said Harry. "You're going to be a Jedi. And I'm sure you'll see Master Jinn around."
"Yeah," said Anakin, glancing up at Obi-Wan.
"I may have my doubts," said Kenobi. "But Master Qui-Gon and the council agree that it would be of great benefit to the both of us. And besides, I won't be alone. I really don't think I could manage without Master Jinn's guidance."
Anakin smiled. "Well, okay."
Harry looked over at the brooding form of his girlfriend and felt his heart seize up a little. That was a conversation that would have to wait. She wouldn't want to open her heart in front of all these people.
"Well, our first port of call should be the Senate building," said Master Jinn. "We need to get you identification, and report on the assassin."
"Mr. Potter," said Master Yoda. The diminutive Jedi Master hobbled towards them with his little wooden walking stick for support.
"Master Yoda," said Harry, bowing.
"Old, these eyes now are," said Master Yoda. "Still see they do."
Harry was not stupid. Master Jinn's report must have alluded to the strange notion of Earth's people knowing of the Jedi. "I can't tell you what you want to know, Master Yoda."
Master Yoda hummed soberly. "Clouded, our vision has become. The dark side it is, as the Sith rise around us."
"And some of the masters are becoming afraid that they aren't as powerful as they thought," said Harry.
Master Yoda hummed again. "Keep your words. I need them not. Your feelings still I see. Dread, pity… A Jedi you will never be. Power you have, yes, and commitment to aid those who do not... A Jedi you will never be. Master Jinn, help you he will. Something else, you will become. Something we need. Something you need."
Reviews!
Dragon Man 180: I feel like a Jedi wouldn't be best placed to teach at Hogwarts, but it'd be cool :D And yes, you're right about the basilisk, but unfortunately there wouldn't be much left to save other than its life. Its mind was largely gone to ensure obedience. I appreciate the support :)
stars90: Thanks, I like to have some fun with it! That battle was written and rewritten so many times... Do PM me if your curiosity isn't satisfied, some things might be a little esoteric. I ended up doing a fair bit of reading to get a better feel for who they were at the point of TPM, so I'm glad that it came through! There are many adventures yet to come :)
Vangran: Haha! I was so happy to read this review, you went through all the struggles I did when planning this! I am with you. You might see that in this chapter. Different SW writers have shown the Jedi as various degrees of flawed, but their philosophy leads to a degree of hypocrisy no matter how you slice it.
Kris: Yeah.
HowInMadHowie: Yeah, Dumbledore might support muggle rights, but he doesn't necessarily keep fully abreast of popular culture. Although, it is amusing to think of him sitting in an Odeon. Good question :) We might see him again... Thanks for the review!
crossfire922: Hey, cheers! It really does take a long, long time if you're looking for characters. It's just a slow introduction of powers to begin with :)