A/Ns- Right so right away, I want to say sorry for the slight delay, I was hoping to have this out by the last week of October but events on my end didn't pan out as intended.
Another point I wish to address quickly is the recent... difficulties being experienced by the site and the app. The faults have been unfortunate as I have been unable to tell how many people have been able to read any of my stories and I am only seeing who's favouriting and/or following them when on the app. I am considering putting my fanfics on AO3 but I'll kick that decision down the road for now. I'll always continue to publish on this site, which was my first introduction to the worlds of fanfictions, for as long as it exists. Whilst the technical problems remain unresolved, I urge you to keep track as best as you can.
Finally, I have read the reviews regarding Mr X and the common comment regarding him is that he is too distracting to the plot. Whilst I understand that point of view, he is actually a key player in the A and B plots and will be seen more in the story, especially once we get past the events of the Phantom Menace.
With those things said, welcome to the latest chapter of this story.
Chapter Six – A World of Scum and Villainy (II)
Rey had woken up early as no one else was awake yet and the sky was still somewhat dark. Her mind was still reeling from thoughts about the previous day as her thoughts dwelt on the robberies she was made to perform as well as the encounter with her doppelganger. It had disturbed her greatly and the dark side leanings of her doppelganger only compounded that feeling. Furthermore, she was concerned about what her friends were thinking in the future. Were they thinking that she'd been kidnapped? Were they thinking that she'd left without saying goodbye? The answer to the last question was technically true but it was the portal that had appeared to her that had taken her without warning and deposited her in this time period.
She also found herself thinking about Harry. She was struggling with her thoughts and feelings about him. Rey certainly found him cute in his own way and she had certainly seen glimpses of his temper first hand. Even though she couldn't sense him in the force, she could feel his emotions and they were like a tempest or an all consuming sun. What she was feeling for Harry made her consider what she'd felt for Ben Solo. Ben had given his life to resurrect hers and, before then, had fought alongside her against her Grandfather and his servants. Rey was certain that Ben had been a good person but, as Kylo Ren, he'd committed terrible deeds and she couldn't have been sure if some of his actions were motivated by her in some way or by his own selfish desires. Harry, on the other hand, was undoubtedly selfless and was very protective of his friends, even if he hadn't known them for very long. A torrent of thoughts ran through her mind like rain in a storm. Unable to quell the thoughts going through her mind and her conflicted emotions, she decided to go outside to meditate before the day started proper.
About half an hour to forty minutes after she started meditating, she was sitting in mid-air when she was disturbed by the young man who'd entrenched himself in her thoughts. "Hey Rey. How's our very own thief?" Harry asked happily. Taken by surprise, Rey lost her focus and fell to the ground, landing on her bum. "Are you alright, Rey?"
"I'm fine, Harry. You just surprised me, that's all." Rey replied in reassurance before adding with a grumble, "You remember Jaina's doing the thieving too, right?"
"I know but I've decided that we have to make your jobs distinct so she's our robber." Harry said with a barely concealed smile.
"Should I be honoured or should I be insulted?" Rey asked dryly as she looked up at Harry.
"Make of it what you will. I'm just thinking that seeing as we're going to be here for a couple of days, we might as well as poke some fun at our situation." Harry replied.
"You do know our situation is very serious, right?" Rey asked him, not seeing the humour in the situation. "You, me, Jaina and Leia are being asked to do some unsavoury acts to ensure that we can get away by someone who can give us away at any time and Padmé, the Queen of Naboo and her entourage are hiding from people who want to subjugate them and their people and you're joking about our situation?" she then said angrily.
Harry took a deep breath and briefly spoke to himself, "Don't get mad, Harry. She's only frustrated by the whole situation." He then spoke to Rey, "On my world, about a year ago, I ended up being the winner of a tournament that I had no interest in entering, which later turned out to be trap set for me. I have these two friends, who are actually the twin older brothers of my best friend..."
"How does this trap of a tournament and these friends of yours relate to one another?" Rey interrupted as she questioned what she felt were two completely separate subjects.
"I'll explain if you let me finish." Harry replied. "So winning the tournament got me a cash prize and my friends had been wanting to open a joke shop. Therefore, I gave them all of my winnings. I think I said to them, some of it anyway, if I recall correctly, was 'We could all do with a few laughs. I've got a feeling that we're going to need them more than usual before long.' I wish they were here now because they'd know how to keep everyone's spirits up."
"What's the point?"
"It shows we're human. Even if the circumstances were apocalyptic, it shows our spirits will not be dragged down and that we won't give into anger or depression." Harry explained. Rey looked at the desert beneath her. She considered his words and Harry took the opportunity to continue talking, "Sometimes, I think people need reminding of why they're doing what they're doing. I know why Padmé, the Queen and the Queen's entourage are doing what they're doing. I also know why Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan do what they're doing."
"Why do you do what you're doing, Harry?" Rey questioned the young man.
"I doing what I am doing so I can find out what happened to my Godfather. My being here is just a detour to finding out the answer I need." Harry answered before firing off his own question, "Why are you doing what you're doing? You're definitely not on the same mission that Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan are on."
Rey hesitated to answer the question, both because she was unwilling to tell Harry about when she came from incase it affected her own time and because she was unsure of why she was doing what she was doing. "To be honest, I'm not sure. I think that I am looking for somewhere to belong. I thought I had found it but then I ended up on Naboo and now I'm not so sure again."
Harry pondered the response that Rey gave him. He instinctively knew that she was continuing to hide whatever it was that Leia, Jaina and herself were hiding from him but he decided it was an issue that could be handled later. "I'm going to assume that whatever you just said is linked in some way to what you haven't said but I will say this; maybe you've lost someone and, like me, you're trying to find them?"
"Maybe." Rey replied simply.
Harry then remembered the chat where the five of them had first introduced themselves to each other properly. "No, you're not trying to find them. You were orphaned at a very young age and those who you looked up to since have also gone."
"How do you think that you know so much about me?" Rey asked, bewildered by the accuracy of Harry's guess.
"Remember when we got away from Naboo and we introduced ourselves to each other? I told you what happened to my parents." Harry replied and Rey found herself looking deeply into his emerald green eyes. "It takes one to know one after all."
Rey found that he knew what she feeling very accurately. Suddenly, she found her stomach growling as she began to feel hungry. "We should get some breakfast." Rey said as she got up off the ground and began to make her way inside. She was stopped from entering the house by Harry, who grabbed her wrist. "What?"
"Why don't we go and get breakfast somewhere?" Harry suggested to the confused Rey.
"I thought that was where I was going." Rey commented.
"I meant that we should get breakfast somewhere else." Harry replied and Rey continued to be confused. She was not sure what Harry's problem with having breakfast at the Skywalker residence was, even though that she had an issue sticking around anywhere with Anakin near. It seemed like Harry had read her mind because he proceeded to explain why he wanted to get breakfast elsewhere. "I don't want to make Shmi feel obligated to provide for our every need whilst we're staying with her and Anakin. Also, as dangerous a place as this... town is, I wish to explore it and, sometimes, I think the best way to explore many places is through its culinary places like cafés and restaurants."
"How would you know about that?" Rey asked out of curiosity. She'd gotten the impression that Harry, from what he'd said, hadn't been to many places, even on his own planet.
"When I was in my third year at Hogwarts, the kids in my year and above got the opportunity to visit a nearby wizarding village, as long as they had a signed permission slip. Needless to say that I didn't have mine signed so that was a problem."
"I take it that little problem didn't stop you from going to this village, did it?" Rey asked, guessing that she knew where the story was going already.
"It would've if I didn't have twin pranksters for friends." Harry replied. Rey gave him a small smile and waited for Harry to continue his story. "They gave me a map that had been created by my Father, Godfather and their friends and the map showed me a path to the village which led through a sweet shop." Harry then became slightly sheepish, "I may have taken a few sweets without paying for them."
"Surely you were caught?" Rey asked in disbelief.
"No. I was wearing my invisibility cloak at the time." Harry explained. "If you don't want to be seen, it's a most handy thing."
"I think that was well demonstrated the other day when you managed to get Padmé and the Queen safety to the ship without any of the battle droids noticing." Rey pointed out, remembering what happened when she first met Harry. She then made a decision on what to do, "Okay, I'll join you for breakfast."
A short while later, Rey and Harry found themselves in some sort of café or restaurant waiting for their food to arrive at their table. "Thank you for translating the menu. And doing the ordering too." Harry said to Rey gratefully.
"No problem, Harry. You did say last night at dinner that you were going to cook tonight's dinner, right?" Rey replied.
Harry nodded. "I am. Padmé and Jaina are going to help me with it as I don't know about the foods of this part of the universe and I can't read the writing."
The food arrived almost as soon as Harry finished speaking and a waft of aromatic flavours filled their nostrils. "This smells amazing." Rey remarked aloud. "I've not had food this nice in a long time."
"When was the last time you had food like this?" Harry asked, hoping to find out more about the young woman in front of him.
"Well it wasn't exactly food like this but it was good food. I had all these fruits when I was at a castle once. They were..." Rey clarified but she struggled to finish her point.
"Fruity?" Harry offered cheekily and Rey couldn't help but laugh. Harry very quickly joined in with the laughter, no longer able to hold his own in. After a minute or two, they calmed themselves down and moved onto other topics. "How are you liking your new shirt?" Harry asked as he gestured towards the lace corset top that she was wearing.
Rey looked down at herself. "I think so. It probably shows more than I should," Rey said , gesturing to her somewhat exposed cleavage, "but, all the same, it feels nice and I think that I look good with it on."
"I think you look good regardless of whether you're wearing that top or not." Harry commented offhandedly as he began to dig into his breakfast. He looked up a moment later to realise that Rey was now looking at him intently. "What?" he asked in confusion. Rey just continued to look at him intently and Harry began to think about what he might have said. His eyes widened as he realised what he said, "I said that out loud, didn't I?" Rey nodded in confirmation. "I thought that I was just thinking that."
Rey smiled. "You weren't but it didn't offend me." She said in reassurance before adding, "Honestly, coming from you, it's very much appreciated."
"I'm glad." Harry said.
"You did call me stunning yesterday so..." Rey commented, leaving whatever she was going to say unsaid. Her comment also left Harry blushing as he was also reminded of the shared shower they had the day before. Without a further word to each other, the pair resumed eating their breakfasts.
About halfway through their breakfasts, a voice interrupted their meal, "Why the hell did you leave us three behind?" Harry and Rey looked up to see that Leia was speaking to them and that she was flanked by Padmé and Jaina. "Well?" Leia asked and Rey and Harry could tell that she was pissed off.
"You three were asleep." Rey replied.
"And I don't think that any of you three would've appreciated either of us waking you up early." Harry added.
"Harry, I'm a Handmaiden for the Queen; I'm expected to be up early." Padmé pointed out to him.
"I thought that you'd appreciate the extra sleep." Harry replied succinctly.
"What about you, Harry?" Jaina asked, her worry barely concealed.
"What do you mean?" Harry asked with some confusion.
"Well, according to you, you spent the better part of two days being awake non-stop. And you more or less collapsed onto that bed you conjured out of thin air after we got past the blockade." Padmé once more pointed to him.
Harry gave a shrug and acknowledged what Padmé said. "I probably could do with the rest but I am finding myself curious about this world, even though I have to be cautious about my surroundings. I'll try and sleep a bit longer tomorrow."
"Make sure you do. Otherwise, we'll have to make sure that you do." Padmé said warningly. Harry nodded, indicating that he took the warning seriously.
Leia looked at Rey and Harry's breakfasts with an expression akin to jealousy or envy. She then glanced at the two younger girls either side of her and came to a decision. "Seeing as these two got breakfast without us, why don't we get breakfast ourselves and make these two wait for us?" she suggested. She got looks of impishness in return from Padmé and Jaina and looks of frustrated amusement from Rey and Harry. "Well I think that we'll all be having some breakfast here then." Leia remarked aloud before refocusing her attention on Harry and Rey. "What's the food here like?"
"It's very good." Harry and Rey replied unintentionally simultaneously. They were aware that they wouldn't be leaving anytime soon.
Sometime later, Rey found herself dozing off in the speeder taking her and Jaina to their next job. Whilst she was dozing, she dreamt about her meeting yesterday with her doppelganger. 'Well, neither of you were expecting to see me, where you?... I'm you from another universe, dimension, reality, whatever you want to call it; it's all the same to me... I met my husband in my universe after he was hidden there... He was resurrected and people wanted to kill him... I've met other versions of the pair of you and of myself and they too have wanted to kill him... I'm no Jedi but I'm also no Sith. We are what we need to be... How ready are you?' Rey woke up from her dream, sweat pouring down her entire body, even seemingly dripping off her head. Rey looked around and saw Jaina looking at her with some concern.
"Are you okay, Rey?" Jaina asked demurely. She had shaded goggles covering her eyes as sand began kicking up off the desert ground. The wind was picking up pace but it didn't feel like it was going to be a full-blown sandstorm like the other day. She also held out a pair of shaded goggles for Rey to take. Rey wordlessly took the proffered goggles from Jaina and Jaina asked Rey another question. "You're thinking about yesterday, aren't you?"
Rey nodded. "It's been a bit of a shock." Rey replied softly.
Jaina let out a sarcastic snort. "Sorry but that's the most complete understatement I've heard yet. It seems that our encounter with this other you has given you a personal crisis." Jaina then looked thoughtful for a moment before continuing to talk, "It seems like you've been through a lot in a fairly short period of time. I sense that you've just been through one in the last few days for you."
"What makes you say that?" Rey asked cautiously.
"I can sense it through the force. Your emotions are swirling like a firestorm." Jaina replied. She seemed to know what Rey was thinking as she continued to speak, "I may only be about sixteen years old but I can tell you that you shouldn't worry about becoming anything like her. I could tell as soon as we found out her identity that whatever common history you had, I knew that you're the one that's more reluctant to kill people."
"I was fighting in a war for over a year." Rey told the younger girl. Jaina just shrugged.
"It doesn't matter. I can sense that, most of the time anyway, you were running into one personal crisis after another. The other you didn't have your struggles."
Rey gave Jaina a gentle smile. "You're very perceptive." Rey remarked thoughtfully. "Also not especially tactful." She then added with a slight laugh.
"I think that my lack of tactfulness, as you so kindly described it, is something I get from my father. As for the perceptiveness, I guess that comes from my Jedi heritage... maybe. I don't think that I've ever considered myself perceptive myself." Jaina replied; the more she spoke, the more wistful she became.
Before either of them could continue the conversation, the droid driving them to their destination made an announcement. "We are fast approaching the rendezvous point. Please make sure you have everything you need." Rey and Jaina looked ahead where they could see two silhouetted figures standing waiting for them in the distance. The speeder gradually came to a halt next to the two silhouetted figures and the droid driving the speeder made another announcement. "We have arrived. Get out!" Without wasting a second, Rey and Jaina gathered their belongings and jumped out of the speeder and found themselves face to face with the two wives of Mr X.
"Ready for another round of jobs?" The other Rey asked.
"It'll almost be like yesterday except that we'll be doing one or two more smaller jobs too." The other woman added.
"We're ready." Rey and Jaina replied after some hesitation. The grimaces on their faces told their 'employers' exactly what they thought about the jobs they were being asked to do.
"Think of it this way, Jabba and the other crime gangs don't need the money; you do. So stop looking like you're in a sea of rotten corpses and get on with it." The other Rey admonished them with a frown on her face.
Rey and Jaina felt that the admonishment was unwarranted. "Hey, we're not like you. It's in our nature to help people regardless of who they are, not steal and kill people." Jaina shot back at the other Rey angrily.
The other Rey's expression softened slightly. "You're right; neither of you are like us. You two are yet to witness the horrors that exist throughout all corners of creation."
"Man-bats, assassins who would murder children, men who become reptiles and people who could kill others by making them laugh. There are gods who will make people develop growths or give them their biggest desires but damn them for the rest of their days."
"Man-bats?" Rey asked uncertainly, her face a mask of confusion. She looked over at Jaina and she looked just as confused as she was.
"Men and women who've been mutated into creatures by experimental serums. They're freaks of nature and yet, they're not the most horrifying thing I've encountered." The other woman explained.
"We've seen all sorts of horrors between us. They make the worst atrocities committed by the Separatists, Republics, Empire and First Order seem like a children's bouncy castle." The other Rey added with a sarcastic tone.
"First Order? What the hell is this... First Order?" Jaina asked, confused as to what the darker acting Rey was talking about.
"The First Order was a military junta formed from remnants of the defeated and dissolved Galactic Empire. I'm not even sure if I should have told you that to be honest." Rey replied to the younger girl.
"The Empire dissolved? It was still around before I came to this time period." Jaina asked Rey, not sure as to what either Rey was talking about. After a moment of staring at each other, both Rey and Jaina looked at the other Rey and saw she was looking at them with a creepy, almost knowing, grin. "What is it?" Jaina asked the darker acting Rey, her wariness increasing. "You know something?" Jaina asked, seeming to already sense what the answer was going to be.
"I do." The other Rey confirmed. "My husband and I..." she then began before being briefly interrupted by the other woman.
"Our. Our husband." The other woman corrected the other Rey.
"Our husband and I..." The other Rey amended before continuing, "... know the information you seek but we'd much rather you found out for yourselves. We will not be telling you anything unless it is absolutely necessary to tell you."
"Come on, the spice train will be coming through the area soon. Our first job of the day is upon us." The other woman said as she began to walk towards the ambush point.
The two Reys and Jaina immediately moved to follow her and the darker acting Rey spoke to them, "Don't expect our conversation to be continued later. Just know this, our husband has shown us new perspectives, new ideas. Your boyfriend will most likely do the same for you and you and your companions for him."
The four of them stood at the top of a ridge and, after a few minutes, saw a long hover-train speeding through the desert, escorted by a pair of gunships and a few speeder bikes.
A long time later, Rey and Jaina found themselves in the back of a speeder returning to Mos Espa. They were exhausted both physically and emotionally but even more richer than they'd been at the end of the previous day. "Why are we doing these jobs for people who may not have our best interests at heart?" Jaina asked Rey.
"I absolutely hate what we've been doing but if it can help us get back to where we need to be, then, short of doing something that will hurt the people I care about, I will do it." Rey replied, sounding every bit as emotionally and physically drained as she felt.
"I understand what you mean but what if we're unable to get back? I want to get back to my brothers and my parents but I'm bracing myself for the possibility that I may be stuck in this time forever. It's been a thought that's been gnawing away at my mind ever since we met Mr X. Probably since Naboo even." Jaina said to Rey. Rey too had briefly considered the thought that she might not return to her own time but she squashed the thought down as she wished to reunite with Finn and Poe. "I just don't want my family to think that I ran away or that something worse happened to me." Jaina then added, her growing worries creeping into her voice.
"I'm sure they'll know on some level that you're doing alright." Rey said, attempting to reassure the younger girl.
"Would they?" Jaina asked dismissively. "I end up in not only a completely different location but I also end up in a completely different year. I somehow don't think that they're going to know."
"It does seem a bit farfetched that they'll know what has happened to you, doesn't it?" Rey sheepishly admitted. She then decided to switch topics, "So who's this Mara, who also happens to be your Aunt as I understand it?"
Jaina suddenly looked a bit happier, no longer completely focused on their peculiar predicament. "Well, I know that she was born a couple of years after the fall of the old Republic. She was taken by Palpatine at a young age and was taught by him in the ways of the force. I think officially that she was a dancer in the Imperial palace but, in reality, she was an assassin, an enforcer. After Palpatine's death on the second Death Star, she ran from the Empire after escaping some Imperial bitch by the name of... Isard, I think. I wasn't born at that time so I could be mistaken. Anyway, after that, she became part of a smuggling organisation and became a Jedi sometime later. That's the summary anyway." Jaina told the older Jedi.
"It sounds like she's had quite the story." Rey said, deciding not to tell Jaina about her connection to the late Emperor Palpatine just yet.
"It was, from what I know. It's just..." Jaina struggled to finish what she was saying and Rey could see it clearly written on her face. "It's just that over half of what I know or have heard about what she's done hasn't happened to her yet. Mr X even told us where in her life she was at."
"I'm sure it's a struggle for you but let's not forget that Leia as we know her has also not experienced many things that we know that she's done. I think that we both know that the first Death Star, for her, has just destroyed Alderaan. Like your aunt, she doesn't really know either of us yet either." Jaina acknowledged Rey's point with a slight nod of her head and a shrug of her shoulders but didn't say anything. "What do you think my other self or Mr X knows?"
Jaina frowned in thought. "I don't know yet but I wonder if they know of some kind of link that's brought us together in this time even though we've either never met or we're meeting in the wrong order?"
"I guess that makes sense considering before the other day on Naboo, neither of us have ever met as far as I'm aware and we're meeting Leia before she's met us." Rey replied before frowning slightly. "Wait, that explanation works for us two, Leia and your aunt but it still doesn't explain what's Harry's link is to all of this."
"You're right. Mr X did say that Harry was not supposed to end up here in this galaxy. Furthermore, if Mo- Leia was the common link between us, we'd be on the first Death Star, not ended up transported to Naboo during the Trade Federation invasion. I wonder if there's a bloodline connection somewhere?"
"That explanation doesn't work. I'm sure that I share no DNA with the late Darth Vader..."
"Or as he is now, Anakin Skywalker." Jaina interrupted, earning a wry smile from Rey.
"And it sounds like Mara married into the family rather than any actual blood connection." Rey pointed out, continuing as though Jaina hadn't interrupted her.
"Good point ." Jaina said. Jaina then heard her stomach rumble and she chuckled a bit. "Are you hungry Rey? I'm ready for some." She then asked the older Jedi.
"I'm a little famished." Rey admitted . "Last night was a comparative feast for me."
"Then, you should definitely look forward to tonight then." Jaina said without elaborating further.
The speeder continued driving through the desert at a fast speed until they got within the limits of Mos Espa and they slowed down until they stopped several streets away from the Skywalker residence. At approximately the same time, Harry, Leia and, to the surprise of Rey and Jaina, Padmé arrived in another Speeder only a few dozen meters away from them. Well, well, aren't you a sight for sore eyes." Harry said with a large smile on his face. "How was your day?"
"Shattering." Rey and Jaina replied simultaneously.
"Oh?" The smile slid off his face somewhat.
"Having to spend time with another version of myself is not exactly what I call a stress free time. In fact, she seems so unlike me that I wonder how we're even technically the same person." Rey commented with tone that Harry recognised as disbelief.
"The jobs we had to do never seemed to stop coming. There were only four of them but it felt like twelve and we didn't get any proper rest either." Jaina added with a grumble. "We don't exactly like what we've been doing either."
"Well, do you have to do any more of them?" Harry asked.
"No." Rey and Jaina replied simultaneously. Rey then added, "We have the option to do more though."
"That's good then. You two can have a rest tomorrow. I think that I'll go back to that casino bar place and earn a little more money for what we need." Harry replied, earning him looks of astonishment and disapproval. "Don't look at me like that. I literally know nothing about this part of the universe so I'm relying on my instincts a fair bit here. I couldn't tell you how much a ship costs or how much it costs to repair or replace parts. I just know that if someone wants or needs something, quite often, they're going to need money for those things. Either that or goods of a similar value." Rey, Jaina, Leia and Padmé couldn't argue with his reasoning.
"Well I wonder what's been happening here in this town?" Leia asked.
"I don't know but let's go and find out." Harry replied.
A little while later, Rey, Leia, Qui-Gon, Jar Jar, Anakin and Shmi were sat around the dining table waiting for Harry, Padmé and Jaina to finish making dinner. "I must say that I'm finding it odd and I'm also looking forward to not doing the dinner for once." Shmi remarked happily.
"How does Harry know how to cook all this food? I don't think he'd know how to cook from this galaxy, does he?" Leia asked out loud to no-one in particular.
"He doesn't. I don't think Jaina or Padmé would be with him in the kitchen if he did." Rey replied as she looked into the kitchen. Indeed, Harry was appearing like he was constantly asking questions to either Padmé or Jaina.
"Indeed, I think that he's having trouble with the stove." Qui-Gon added.
"It's not surprising really. Just before we met Mr X, Harry saw lots of stuff that had his language written on them but we didn't recognise the writing." Rey pointed out.
"He speaks basic though, doesn't he?" Anakin asked as he listened to the conversation. "I hear him speak Basic."
"He calls it English. Jaina theorised it was another type of evolution. Just like there might be highly similar animals for example, our spoken languages are almost identical." Rey replied.
A voice interrupted them and they turned to see Padmé addressing them. "Dinner's been cooked and will be served in a few minutes." She told them before heading back into the kitchen to assist Harry and Jaina.
"I'm looking forward to this. I don't think that I have ever had a steak of any kind before and, if I have, I certainly don't remember it." Rey said happily.
"I don't think we've ever had a steak before. Have we, mom?" Anakin said before asking his mother a question.
"No Ani, we've never had the opportunity to have these before. Make sure that you say thank you to Harry, Padmé and Jaina for getting all this food for us." Shmi replied to her son.
"Yes mom." Anakin said. Soon enough, Harry, Jaina and Padmé came into the dining room from the kitchen, each of them carrying a few plates in their hands. "This looks delicious Harry. Thank you." Anakin told Harry as he complimented the food that was given to him.
"Don't just thank me, Anakin. Thank Padmé and Jaina too. Without them, I wouldn't have been able to put this together. And you're welcome." Harry replied.
"Thank you Padmé. Thank you Jaina." Anakin said gratefully to the young Handmaiden and Jedi.
"You're welcome Anakin." Padmé replied with a soft smile on her face. Jaina merely nodded. Once Harry, Jaina and Padmé sat down, everyone began to dig into their meals.
"You've prepared this well Harry." Qui-Gon told Harry complimentarily.
"As I said, a good deal of the thanks should go to Padmé and Jaina. Without their help, we could've been waiting until the morning. Either that or I would've had to start a barbecue."
"Whatsa barbecuesa?" Jar Jar asked Harry.
"I'm not sure how to describe it best Jar Jar because I don't know what is used for cooking in these parts but a barbecue is food, mainly meats, that is cooked over a open flame outdoors. There's usually something to keep the food from going into the fire so it doesn't get too burnt or otherwise inedible."
"Sounds rather... primitive." Leia commented aloud.
"Hardly. It's incredibly popular on my world, although some call it grilling. I'm sure that if you were in the wilderness with no food on you and with no technology either, you'd have to do something similar. Besides, all food has to use heat in some way or another."
"He is correct there, Leia. We may tend to use the stove more in this galaxy but, even around here, there are worlds, civilisations and cultures that still rely or even prefer their food cooked over an open flame."
"Maybe I've not seen enough of those people then." Leia admitted.
"It's not always possible to see or experience everything." Rey pointed out. "I'm certain that I haven't experienced everything there is to experience. I'm sure that almost everyone in the galaxy has missed something that they probably didn't want to miss. Hell, there are probably people out there who have experienced things that they will never want to experience."
"That I can agree with." Harry said as he subconsciously rubbed his right arm, where Wormtail had cut into his arm during the ritual to resurrect Voldemort. It still haunted him a year on since that day.
"Are you alright, Harry?" Harry looked up and realised that Anakin had asked him that question. "Harry?"
Harry gave Anakin a half-hearted smile. "Yeah, I'm alright Anakin. It's just bad memories, nothing more." Anakin looked unconvinced by Harry's reply, as were everyone else, but didn't press further despite the urge to. They refocused their attention on to their meals and were impressed by how Harry managed to assemble a substantive and delicious meal despite a complete and total lack of experience with the food and cooking equipment in a galaxy he was still far from familiar with. Desert was a more simpler affair with Harry making a sort of fruit salad based around the Meiloorun and, unlike the main course, he didn't need the assistance of either Padmé or Jaina. Everyone enjoyed the simplicity and sweetness of the fruit salad Harry had made. The evening progressed and the occupants began to think about the upcoming Podrace. "Anakin, do you think you have enough time to prepare for the Podrace?" Harry asked the young boy.
"I think so. I think some final modifications and a new coat of paint are needed on the podracer and we'll be ready." Anakin replied confidently.
"That's good. I'll think that I'll be out for the morning but I'll be back in the afternoon and I'll try to help you out any way I can."
"You don't know anything about machinery in this galaxy though, do you?" Padmé pointed out.
"You're right, I don't. But as almost everyone around this table has seen that I can make things lighter, smaller, change them. I can also make things bigger, harder, make things stick to surfaces." To then demonstrate, Harry got his cup, placed it on the table before getting his wand out and muttering a spell. He then turned to Anakin once more. "Try and pick my cup up." He instructed the younger boy.
Anakin looked unsure but complied with Harry's instruction. He attempted to pick up Harry's cup but it remained glued to the table. "Woah!" Anakin exclaimed as he was amazed by how resistant the cup was at that moment to being moved. "Is this something you did that's done that?"
"Of course." Harry then waved his wand and undid the sticking charm. "The sticking charm enables me and other wizards to... well it's in the name of the spell really, it sticks objects to other objects and surfaces." Harry then thought back to the times he'd spent in Sirius's family home. "There's a variation of that spell that's permanent. Months ago, my Godfather showed me a portrait of his deceased mother and explained to me that no one had been able to take the portrait down. I'm sure she's still yelling at anything that dares to disturb her." His final sentence grabbed Jaina and Rey's attention as they were aware of the possibility of survival after death but were astounded by the apparent fact that, on Harry's world, there were more than just ghosts.
"You make it sound like this portrait you're talking about is alive?" Shmi questioned sceptically.
Harry gave a wry smile. "In some ways, I suppose it is. We've got lots of things on our world that some would consider supernatural. There are paintings that are not quite the embodiment of the person. It really depends on who's the painter and the charmer." Harry had a quick sip from his cup before continuing. "There are some paintings, and I should stress that these portraits are wizarding paintings, that capture the essence and the memories of the person well. And there's others that... don't."
"So you're saying that these... portraits are not exactly real?" Leia asked.
"Yes and no. They were real people once, very long ago. Magical portraits are only as real as the person or persons making the portrait can make it seem." Harry replied before pointing to Padmé, "Let's take Padmé for example. Anakin, you described Padmé as an Angel the other day, right?" Anakin and, to a lesser extent, Padmé blushed slightly at the reminder of their first encounter but Anakin nodded in confirmation. "If you'd been born a Wizard Anakin, you could have made a portrait of Padmé and the portrait would work as you believed her to be. However, if another wizard had been the one to make a portrait, and let's say for example that Padmé had been having a bad day and lashed out in some way, then the perception of the wizard making the portrait would be reflected in how the portrait version of Padmé acted." Harry explained to the intrigued audience around him.
"I think I get it." Rey said before summarising her understanding to Harry, "You're saying that these magical portraits made by wizards and witches on your world are only as accurate as a person's memories and thoughts about the subject."
"That's the summary of magical portraits, pretty much." Harry confirmed.
"Did you have to embarrass Anakin and Padmé to make that explanation?" Leia asked questioningly.
"I honestly wasn't trying to embarrass either of them. I was merely trying to come up with an example to better explain my point and that was the first thing that came into my head." Harry replied to Leia before turning to Padmé and Anakin. "I'm sorry if I embarrassed either of you. It was not my intent."
"I know." Padmé replied with a smile.
"At least you weren't going to say that there are ghosts on your world. Ghosts are myths and superstitions, aren't they?" Leia asked rhetorically. Harry looked at Leia deadpan. "They're real on your world, aren't they?" Harry nodded, his expression still deadpan.
"There's a lot of them. And they became ghosts for a number of reasons." Harry explained as simply as possible.
A knock at the door interrupted them before they could delve into the subject of the supernatural any further. Shmi stood up and walked to the door. There were hushed tones at the door before Shmi returned. She had a slightly grim expression on her face and looked at Harry, Jaina, Leia and Rey. "There's someone outside to see you. They were very insistent."
The four of them looked at each other and got up from the table swiftly. They walked to the door and saw Mr X standing just on the other side of the doorway. Their faces soured at the sight of him whilst he looked at them with quiet amusement plastered over his face. "We've done what you've asked us to do these last couple of days so what do you want now?"
"Why all this hostility? You have done jobs for me and dirty jobs at that, and you're more than welcome to do anymore that I send your way, but that's not why I'm here now. I'm here because of her." He replied, cocking his head in the direction of the speeder he arrived in. There, either in that speeder or around the other speeder behind it , were the other Rey, the other wife of Mr X, Jurzacka, several eclectic and odd looking droids and, more importantly, the still unconscious Mara Jade.
"Aunt Mara?!" Jaina asked in surprise.
"I thought that she'd be better off in your hands going forward. I'll provide some bits so you crazy kids can keep her out of trouble." Mr X said as he held out a small, open case filled with syringe versions of the drug that had been keeping Mara sedated. "These will help prevent accidents from occurring, especially as she regains consciousness."
"Will she have anymore outbursts like the other day?" Rey questioned the enigmatic man.
"Very likely, hence the drugs I'm giving you." Mr X said to Rey with a roll of his eyes. He then spoke to all four of them, "I'm giving you some equipment that'll keep her fed and watered whilst she's still unconscious. We'll also provide the necessary nutritional stuffs whilst"
"How long do you think it'll take for Jaina's aunt to wake up?" Harry asked.
"I don't know. Probably not much longer than a day or two." Mr X then stared into the night sky, looking away from Harry, Rey, Jaina and Leia for a few moments. "I'm sensing unusual activity taking place on this planet and in the nearby systems. Just be careful around here. Not that I think you needed much reminding."
"Remember, inject her as soon as one of those incidents starts. Otherwise, the consequences could be dire." Jurzacka reminded them as he and the other Rey walked towards the Skywalker house, holding Mara around their shoulders between them. The sight, had the situation been not so serious, would've looked comical as Jurzacka was far shorter than most of the people around him. Jurzacka and the other Rey handed Mara over to Harry and Rey. The other Rey then began to turn around but stopped herself and turned back to Jaina, "You'll probably want to keep hold of this. I'm sure she'll be needing it in the future." The other Rey handed Jaina Mara's lightsabre.
Jurzacka then walked towards Mr X and spoke into his ear. Harry, Rey, Jaina nor Leia could hear what was being said but Mr X frowned briefly before nodding and then resuming his amused expression. "Right... So we have to go now but we'll be in touch. Remember this, the responsible party who sent you here are the same people who I'm after." Mr X then waved his hand and Harry, Rey, Jaina and Leia saw several miniaturised large crates float over to next the Skywalker residence front door. "Harry, consider these a bonus of sorts. Think of them as a taste of home... although I am sure you may not have had much of your bonus before. I'm sure that you'll enjoy them though." Mr X told Harry before walking towards the speeder he'd arrived in. Jurzacka, the other Rey and the other woman had already jumped into the speeders.
"Aren't you going to tell us what's in the crates?" Leia called out to the retreating figure of Mr X.
Mr X paused and turned around to face Leia. "I'm not a quiz answer sheet, I will not give you answers to everything." Mr X turned back around and began walking towards the speeders. "I'll be seeing you."
Harry and Rey took Mara inside the Skywalker residence whilst Jaina and Leia followed behind. "What do you want to do with the crates?" Leia asked Harry.
"I'll sort them out shortly. Let's get Jaina's aunt sorted out first." Harry said. They carried her into the room where their makeshift beds were. They placed her in Harry's bed and then re-entered the dining area with Qui-Gon looking at them quizzically.
"Who is that young woman?"
Later that night, Harry sat in the dining room sipping at what turned out to be a bottle of Coca-Cola, which had been retrieved from the crates provided by Mr X. He'd never had one before but he realised that it was keeping him awake. He also had a packet of flavoured instant noodles on the dining room table and they too had been retrieved from the crates provided by Mr X. He thought back to when Qui-Gon had asked about Mara and Jaina replied to him, although Harry felt the answer omitted details. He also didn't know much about Mara other than she was Jaina's aunt and her abilities whilst comatose had caused him injuries. He had noticed that Jaina was roughly the same age as him but her aunt had to have been in her early twenties at most. He was soon joined by Rey and Jaina. He noticed that neither of them were exactly wearing a shirt but he couldn't bring himself to care at that moment. "Not exactly shy about what you're showing to the world at the moment, are you?"
"When you're drenched in sweat like we are, it feels better to be topless, I think." Rey replied.
"What's keeping you up, Harry?" Jaina asked with some concern.
"It's this drink I'm having." He replied, giving the bottle a little shake. "I'm on the verge of having a massive sugar rush, I think. Either that, or I'm already having it." He then thought about the latest person to join them, "You're worried about this... Mara, aren't you?"
"I know that I shouldn't be so worried about her but I am." Jaina replied.
"You're also a living, breathing person. It's what separates you from those emotionless machines back on Naboo. Without emotions, you could never truly care about or appreciate people or the things around you." Harry replied. He then let out a long yawn, "Okay, I think that I'm now experiencing a sugar crash."
"What's does that mean?" Rey asked.
"It means that I had too much energy but I've burnt it all off or just not used it. It probably means that I'll be falling asleep soon."
"Do you want us to go?" Jaina asked.
"Nah, you can stick around if you want. It's not like I'm going to go anywhere or forget what you two are like without your tops on." Harry replied, sleepiness creeping into his voice as the sugar rush wore off and tiredness began to set in.
"I'm fairly sure that you've seen me completely naked Harry and we know you've seen Jaina topless at least once already."
"Woah, when did Harry see you naked?" Jaina asked in shock.
"It was the other day when me and Harry had to go and get changed after the accident. And in all fairness to him, I also saw him naked... And we had to shower together in very close proximity." Rey replied, blushing as she did so.
"Lucky girl!" Jaina mouthed to the young woman.
"I guess that makes two women who you've seen naked and one who you've seen half naked." Rey commented.
"Do all Jedi talk about whether they've been naked in front of other people like you two?" Harry questioned with a smirk on his tired face.
Rey shook her head whilst Jaina responded. "No. I'm almost positive that no Jedi of Qui-Gon's type would be talking about it and, while I can't speak for Rey, I can say I haven't before despite my... sect being more open emotionally comparatively. I guess that the last few days have been amusing to a certain extent."
"Well, I think that any guy would be lucky to have even just a tiny glimpse of what I've seen the last few days as far as the female body is concerned. Any guy out there in the whole universe would be lucky to be with any one of you." Harry replied before he let out another yawn, louder than the previous one.
"Well then, you should consider yourself lucky that you're in the presence of more than one woman then, at least two of whom are currently topless and are in the same room as you."
Harry smiled as he began to fall asleep in his chair. "I guess my luck's changing in this galaxy maybe." He mumbled happily before finally falling asleep.
Rey and Jaina sat with him silently for a few minutes before standing up and making their way out of the dining room. Before they left however, they whispered to the sleeping young man. "Goodnight Harry." The two currently topless female Jedi then left the dining area, leaving Harry alone in the dining room.
"Goodnight Rey. Goodnight Jaina."
A/N- I'll try and get the next chapter ready for sometime next month but it may be more likely that it's not out until anywhere between mid-January and February. I'll post updates about ongoing and upcoming stories on my profile page.
Until next time, I hope you have enjoyed reading this and please review.