Harry Potter and All the Skywalker Chicks

by samjordon08

Padmé Amidala was experiencing the worst part of her reign as Queen of Naboo. Meanwhile, three women mysteriously appear, unsure of how they got there and a boy who wants to find his Godfather falls from the sky.

8. Ch7- Once Upon a Time On Tatooine

A/N- Who's been looking forward to this chapter? I know I have.

So this chapter is being released on the later end of when I anticipated it to be released and there's a couple of reasons why that is. Firstly, there was Christmas and new year and then I got ill which also resulted in my going to hospital for several hours and left me largely bed bound for most of a week. Anyway I'm much better (not 100 percent mind you) and I have been able finish this chapter roughly in the timeframe I aimed for.

Now, there's one review I will quickly address. Regarding the pairings, I couldn't put down all the pairings I wanted to put down when I first published the story, so yeah, Harry's definitely going to be paired up with more than three girls. Feel free to guess at Mr X's identity, I will give more hints in the story and occasionally in the author's notes as the story progresses. And I'm glad you're finding this interesting, I hope to keep it that way.

Anyway, let's begin the chapter, shall we?

Chapter Seven – Once Upon a Time On Tatooine

It was mid-afternoon on Tatooine and Harry had returned to the Skywalker residence, having walked through the streets of the dusty, sandy settlement. His mood was not great. He returned to see Anakin working hard on his podracer, with assistance from Padmé, Artoo, C-3PO and Jar Jar. On the roof of the Skywalker residence was Jaina and Rey and Harry noticed that they appeared to be meditating. On the walkway above the ground, outside the Skywalker house, stood Qui-Gon who was observing the activity going on, on the ground outside the Skywalker residence. Harry decided to join him. "Welcome back Harry. I trust no harm came to you?"

"None whatsoever, Qui-Gon. What's been happening here?" Harry replied, gesturing his head towards the activity going on on the ground.

"They've been working on Anakin's podracer..." Qui-Gon told Harry. "...Rey and Jaina have meditating on the roof and Leia's been helping Shmi with the refreshments. Another lot of drinks should be coming soon."

"That'll be much needed. I could really do with something that isn't alcoholic."

"You've been drinking alcohol whilst we've been here?" Qui-Gon asked in surprise.

"It's very hard to get away from the stuff. This planet seems designed to part people from their money one way or another." Harry remarked. "It seems like water is at such a premium on this planet that the main substitutes are blue milk, which the people on my world would think would be unhealthy or flavoured funnily or something to be found in science fiction or fantasy, and alcohol which, whilst alright depending on the drink, is a very bad and not very healthy substitute for water. Really shouldn't be the having the stuff at all but it seems that not a lot rules are followed here." He then quickly cast a cooling charm on himself. "Thank Merlin for liquid luck." Harry muttered to himself.

"I can't exactly disagree with your observations, Harry. All sorts of people gather on this planet. I'd recommend that if you're with unsavoury company, you should keep an eye on what drinking." Qui-Gon said to Harry.

"Duly noted." Harry said.

Shmi joined Harry and Qui-Gon on the porch above the ground. She looked in Anakin's direction with concern, apprehension and sadness above all. "You should be proud of your son. He gives without any thought of reward."

"Well, he knows nothing of greed. He has a..." Shmi replied, trailing off as Qui-Gon spoke about what he'd noticed.

"He has special powers." Qui-Gon pointed out.

"Yes..."

"He can see things before they happen. That's why he appears to have such quick reflexes. It's a Jedi trait."

"He deserves better than a slave's life."

"You both do. No one in this part of the universe should be a slave." Harry interjected.

"You're certainly right about that Harry." Qui-Gon said in agreement before focusing on Shmi. "Had Anakin been born in the Republic, we would have identified him early. He is unusually strong in the force, that much is clear." Qui-Gon told Shmi and, by extension, Harry. Qui-Gon then thought about something that he thought might be important. "Who is his father?"

Shmi shook her head slightly. "There was no father." This took Harry and Qui-Gon by surprise although Qui-Gon was able to better conceal his surprise. "I carried him, I gave birth, I raised him. I can't explain what happened." Qui-Gon nodded.

Harry responded a bit more sarcastically although he knew that the sight of endless desert and the never-ending heat and the fact that he was missing Sirius and his friends back home was beginning to get the better of him plus what Shmi told them reminded him of certain religions on his world. "Oh great! I'm with the virgin mother Mary and the baby Jesus!" Harry was immediately apologetic as soon as he finished speaking. "I'm sorry. I think that I'm very grumpy today. I'm missing my friends, my Godfather. I'm no longer enjoying the sight of sand and, even with cooling charms, the heat is becoming completely unbearable to me."

"No apologies are needed, Harry. I too wish to be off this planet so I can give Anakin and myself a better life than we do here." Shmi told the young man with compassionate understanding. Shmi then turned to Qui-Gon, "Can you help him?" It was clear she was referring to Anakin.

"I don't know." Qui-Gon replied before adding, "We didn't come here to free slaves."

"I don't think that should matter Qui-Gon." Harry said to the long haired and bearded Jedi firmly. "I think that we're in a position to help people, even if it's just one person, even if they're rich or poor, even if they're a friend, an enemy or some stranger, then I think we have a duty, a responsibility to help." Qui-Gon nodded in acknowledgement.

"You're back Harry?" Harry heard from above him to see that Jaina and Rey had finished their meditation.

"Yeah. I'm not sure about money around these parts but I think that we've got a lot." Harry replied. "I'm not sure what the exchange rates would be like but I am almost certain that what I've got alone here dwarfs what the prize money I got after winning the Triwizard tournament." His tone became bitter as soon as he began to even say the name of the nightmare tournament.

"That must've been an honour to win." Rey commented, unaware that she was bringing up a very sore point as far as Harry was concerned.

"Yeah, a real honour." Harry initially said calmly. Then his anger and grief began to emerge clear as day. "An honour to win a tournament that I shouldn't have been in in the first place! A tournament that was an exceedingly complex trap to capture me! A trap that got someone else killed, all because I was too honourable to win by myself!"

Rey was immediately apologetic, "I'm sorry Harry, I didn't know."

Harry calmed down slightly and replied to Rey, "I'm sorry for blowing up on you like that." Harry then noticed that Rey and Jaina were still on the roof, "Are you two coming down from there?"

"Yeah, why?" Jaina answered.

"Because I still need to do some blowing up and I don't want anyone else in the way." Harry told Jaina and Rey and Jaina immediately took the hint that they should get off the roof and jumped down. Harry then climbed up and conjured several dummies out of thin air. Harry took a deep breath and began letting out his anger and grief. He used all manner of spells as he cut, sliced, blasted and knocked down the dummies he had conjured up.

One of the cut up and knocked down dummies landed on the walkway below, just missing Rey and Jaina. "I think he needs this." Jaina said sympathetically.

"I didn't realise that he had such a bad time." Rey commented apologetically.

"There's probably stuff we've still not heard about yet." Jaina replied as she looked up at the roof, unable to see Harry. "I think that we just let him come to us about it in his own time if he wants to."

"That's very mature thinking. Don't force him to talk about it if he's not ready to talk about it." Shmi told Jaina.

A few minutes later, Harry had stopped taking his frustrations out on the conjured dummies and returned to the walkway below. "That felt good."

"That will not lead you to the dark side, will it? I only ask because were it another Jedi from my order would almost certainly assume that your actions would." Qui-Gon asked Harry.

"I don't think so." Harry replied. He was trying to think of what Sirius would say but nothing came to mind.

"Let's not forget that Harry's not a Jedi and not from anywhere around here." Jaina pointed out.

"Well pointed out young Jaina." Qui-Gon said to the young woman. Jaina acknowledged him with a slight nod of her head.

"Is he alright down there?" Harry asked, gesturing towards Anakin.

"I'll go and check on him." Qui-Gon said before heading down the sandy stairs

Harry turned to Shmi, "He's a good kid. I think that he'll grow up to be someone everyone wants or needs in their life for one reason or another."

"I hope so. He doesn't deserve this life. He definitely shouldn't have been born into it." Shmi replied. "I sometimes think that I should've given him a brother or sister but, as I've already said, his conception was a mystery. There was no father for Anakin, my sweet boy. I bore him and birthed him and he shouldn't have been raised here but I couldn't raise him anywhere else otherwise we wouldn't be having this conversation now."

Harry nodded silently in acknowledgement then a minute or so passed before he spoke. "You know, his circumstances are unfortunate but he still has one thing that I would give up everything for."

"What's that?" Shmi asked, curiosity evident in her voice.

"He still has a parent." Harry answered. "My parents were killed by a madman obsessed with power and who believes himself to be superior to everyone else. I have fought him several times but he seems impossible to get rid of."

"I'm sorry to hear that, Harry."

"Don't apologise. It's not your fault; you weren't the one who made me an orphan." At that moment, Leia came out carrying a tray of drinks and Harry's attention turned to her. "Are these for us?"

"Yes. We all need to drink on this planet and water isn't exactly easy to find or get around here. I know you could conjure up lots of water but I remember what you said about it being potentially not permanent." Leia replied.

"That's right. Theoretically, I could flood this planet in water but it takes a lot of magic and concentration to even maintain it for a long time." Harry said before pondering the topographical features of the planet as well as remembering what Qui-Gon had said when they first arrived. "Tatooine can't have always been like this, can it? I'm not sure if it rains around here but I heard about something called... moisture farms, was it?" Shmi, Jaina, Rey and Leia nodded. "Then, Tatooine must've had rivers, oceans and streams before it became like this."

"You're probably right. I don't know who would know for certain though." Shmi replied.

"I think that there is one group of people who would." Rey remarked. Harry, Leia, Jaina and Shmi looked at her expectantly and Rey elaborated. "I learned that there was a bounty hunter who was once captured by a tribe of the Tusken Raiders. If anyone were to know this planet's history, I reckon they would know."

"I'm sure that will be interesting to find out but we don't have the time, right now." Leia pointed out. "Maybe when we're not helping to liberate a planet and have got plenty of time to spare."

The group of Harry, Leia, Rey, Jaina and Shmi stopped their conversation as they heard the roar of engines being ignited. Everyone who could see Anakin in his Podracer and they smiled. Harry noticed that Shmi was radiating sadness behind her smile although he couldn't tell why.

---

A long time later, the sun had long since set and night had fallen, and Anakin, Qui-Gon and Harry were on the walkway outside the Skywalker residence. Qui-Gon was cleaning a cut Anakin had got on his arm and Harry and Anakin were looking up at the stars in the sky. "Stay still Ani. Let me clean this cut." Qui-Gon instructed Anakin as the young boy fidgeted where he was sat.

"There are so many of them!" Anakin said in amazement as he continued to look up at the night sky. "Do they all have a system of planets?"

"Most of them." Qui-Gon replied. Harry stared at the stars, trying to figure out where his solar system was or, more accurately, where Earth was.

"Has anyone been to them all?" Anakin asked Qui-Gon as he wondered aloud.

Qui-Gon laughed briefly before answering Anakin's question. "Not likely."

"I want to be the first one to see them all." Anakin told Qui-Gon very enthusiastically. Anakin then noticed Harry looking up at the stars and saw a look on his face that he thought was sadness or something like it. "Are you okay Harry? What are you looking at?"

Harry shook his head as he realised he'd been asked a question. "Yeah, I'm fine Anakin. I'm just trying to see if I can see my solar system and I can't find it. Mind you, I don't think anyone actually knows what our solar system looks like exactly." Harry then remembered about the space race. "As far as I know, the people on my world have never gotten much further than our own moon on manned missions and I know plenty of satellites have been launched to take pictures of outer space."

"If the people on your world have never got past their moon, how come you're here?" Anakin asked, his curiosity showing clearly.

"That's a good question, one I'm don't think I have the entire answer to yet." Harry replied to Anakin. "What I do know is that my Godfather had fallen through this... archway and disappeared. I followed him, hoping to get him back and the next thing I know, I'm falling through the sky and land on Naboo in front of Qui-Gon, Jar Jar and Obi-Wan."

"Who's Obi-Wan?" Anakin asked. He'd never met this Obi-Wan before.

"Obi-Wan is my padawan apprentice. He is on our ship at the moment." Qui-Gon replied to Anakin. He then continued to clean Anakin's cut.

"Ouch!" Anakin exclaimed as Qui-Gon wiped another patch of blood on him.

"Anakin, bedtime." Shmi called out to Anakin.

"There we are, good as new." Qui-Gon said to Anakin as he scraped some of Anakin's blood on to a comlink chip.

"What are you doing?" Anakin asked with some curiosity and uncertainty.

"Checking your blood for infections." Qui-Gon answered. Harry looked at Qui-Gon uneasily as he looked away from the stars and pondered what Qui-Gon could want with Anakin's blood.

"Ani, I'm not going to tell you again." Shmi called out from the hovel authoritatively.

"Go on, you have a big day tomorrow. Goodnight Anakin." Qui-Gon said, patting Anakin on the shoulder as Anakin stood up.

Anakin rolled his eyes and spoke to Harry, "Goodnight Harry."

"Goodnight Anakin." Harry replied. Anakin ran into the house. Qui-Gon inserted the chip into his communication device and Harry immediately but quietly questioned him. "What are you going to do with his blood?"

"I want Obi-Wan to check the midi-chlorian count in Anakin's blood." Qui-Gon answered.

Harry was immediately confused by the answer. Or more accurately, one word in Qui-Gon's answer. "Midi-what now?"

"Midi-chlorians. They're a microscopic bacteria that reside in all life forms in the galaxy. They allow force users like myself to use the force, commune with it."

"Okay..." Harry accepted hesitantly. "It's just that, on my world, wizards and witches can use blood in certain rituals." He then pulled up a sleeve and showed Qui-Gon a scar on his right arm and directed Qui-Gon's attention to it. "My blood was used to help restore the body of the person who murdered my parents. I relive that entire night every single night. The nightmares never leave me alone."

"I'm sorry." Qui-Gon said sympathetically. "Have you considered trying meditation? Have you heard of it? That could help with your nightmares."

"Yes, I have. I'm sure it'd be helpful if I knew anything about it." Harry remarked with just a tiny hint of sarcasm. "I wish I picked up a book about the subject at some point."

"If you want, you can come to me or Obi-Wan to learn about it." Qui-Gon offered. "I'm sure that even Rey or Jaina could teach you how to do it."

Harry considered what Qui-Gon said for about a minute. "Do you mind if I sleep on it? It sounds like a good idea but I'm not sure if it'll suit me."

Qui-Gon nodded. "Take all the time you need, Harry. Now, I need to contact Obi-Wan about this midi-chlorian count." Harry nodded silently. Qui-Gon then spoke into his communicator, "Obi-Wan..."

"Yes master." Replied the voice of Obi-Wan through the communicator.

"I need an analysis of this blood sample I'm sending you." Qui-Gon instructed his apprentice.

"Wait a moment."

"I need a midi-chlorian count." Qui-Gon specified further.

It was about a few minutes before Obi-Wan could provide any information to Qui-Gon. "The reading's off the chart... over twenty thousand. Even Master Yoda doesn't have a midi-chlorian count that high."

"No Jedi has." Qui-Gon looked uncertain as to what the results meant and Harry saw that.

"What does that mean?"

"I don't know." Qui-Gon looked up and saw that Shmi had been looking at him in the doorway. Embarrassed that she'd been caught eavesdropping, she moved out of sight.

"I take it that, by whatever measurement you go by, Anakin's got massive potential to use the force?" Harry asked. Qui-Gon nodded. "And you think he's special, even when compared to other Jedi including this Master... Yoda, was it?" Qui-Gon once again nodded. "I'm no expert by any means but if you're intending to recruit him into your... group, I think that there's two ways of approaching the situation."

"Do you mind explaining, Harry?" Qui-Gon asked the young man.

"Now bearing in mind I know little about your fellow Jedi, you could either treat him as just another Jedi... or you allow him certain liberties." Harry then proceeded to explain his reasoning. "When I was reintroduced to the Wizarding world on my planet, I was treated as a celebrity for doing something I could barely remember although I would've preferred it if I'd just been treated normally. I get the feeling that, if it were to happen to Anakin, the opposite might be true. I would need to know more about the Jedi order though."

"When we get to Coruscant, I'm sure that we could arrange for someone to go through a basic look around the Jedi temple with you." Qui-Gon replied. "Anyway, I am going to bed now. I'm meeting Watto before the race to finalise the terms of the bet we've arranged."

"Do you mind if I join you then? I feel like that we should have some kind of insurance if things go wrong." Harry then elaborated on what he meant. "Between Leia, Jaina, Rey and myself, we might very well have more than enough to buy our way out of trouble."

"I think that is a wise idea Harry. I think Jar Jar Binks is coming along as well." Qui-Gon then made his way inside. He turned to see Harry still standing outside, "Don't be too late in going to bed, Harry."

"I'll try not to be. But I think that I still need to be out here for now. I think that I might appreciate the cool night air and the opportunity to be by myself for the time being." Harry replied to the Jedi master. "Goodnight Qui-Gon."

"Goodnight Harry." Qui-Gon said before going out of sight and leaving Harry alone by himself.

Left by himself, Harry conjured a small soft ball out of thin air and activated the Idroid, flicking through the menus until he found its music selection and played the first song in the first selection of music. "Thompson Twins huh? I don't think I've heard that particular song of theirs since long before Hogwarts." Harry then listened to the song, pocketed the wand and began to bounce the conjured ball off the floor and the walls, playing catch with himself.

He was still playing with the ball and listening to the music on the Idroid when Padmé came out. "What are you still doing up Harry? And what's that music?"

"I can't sleep. Not yet. As for the music, that's music from my planet." Harry replied. "That song came out twelve-ish years ago, give or take about a few months or a year."

"What's the song called?" Padmé asked Harry, showing interest in what his planet was like.

"It's a song called Hold Me Now. It's by a group called the Thompson Twins." Harry answered.

"So they're a group of two then? Why not just call them a duo?" Padmé questioned with bemusement and confusion.

"No, they're not a duo but a trio. I think that the name came from a pair of characters in a comic strip." Harry explained to the young handmaiden. A thought then occurred to him, "I'm not even sure it's the Thompson Twins now. I think that they perform under a different name now."

"What's a comic strip?" Padmé asked him.

"It's... it's a series of pictures as well as text to tell a story. They're usually printed in newspapers or magazines." Harry explained.

Padmé shook her head slightly. "I don't think they exist here. We have books from many millennia ago but given your description of these... comic strips, I suppose the closest we have is holo-novels but I don't think that compares to what you're talking about, I think."

"I think that'd be a fair assessment. I think that this just reminds me that I don't know anything about Naboo or Tatooine or this part of the universe. I don't even know where my world is in relation to this place."

"You know I'll help you find where your planet is." Padmé said reassuringly as she took Harry in her arms and hugged him comfortingly. They sat down on the walkway together, very close to each other.

Harry leaned his head on Padmé's chest, taking comfort from her touch. "When this is all over, where would you like to go?" Harry asked her, attempting to avoid any talk about Earth in case he broke down in front of her.

"Well, after helping to get things back to the way they were, I was thinking of spending a nice weekend at my family's house in the Lake Country. When I was in level three schooling, me and some of my friends would swim from there to a nearby island. There was this jeweller, he was elderly but he crafted the most beautiful vases and necklaces out of glass."

"Sounds like quite a place." Harry remarked with a wan smile on his face . "On my world, in my country, I guess we have something similar called the Lake District."

"Have you ever been there?" Padmé asked.

"No. I do hear it's meant to be very beautiful though."

"I wonder if it's anything like Naboo's Lake Country?"

"Maybe I'll take you there one day and we can compare notes." Harry said with a smile brighter than it had been a few moments earlier. Several songs came and went which even Harry didn't recognise but he and Padmé enjoyed, especially one called Calling to the Night. Then another started to play.

"What's this song called Harry?" Padmé asked.

"I don't know; let me check." Harry replied. He then grabbed the Idroid and looked at the song listing before answering Padmé. "It's a song called Heavens Divide. I've not heard of it before."

"It sounds like a good song." Padmé stood up and held her hand out to Harry, who raised an eyebrow. "We're all not where we want to be right now and we're certainly not in a position to do anything about it right now but I remember either overhearing or being told once that, even in our darkest moments, we should enjoy the little things that make life better."

Harry smiled a bit as he listened to Padmé, "Those are wise words from whoever said it." Harry then reminded himself that Padmé was still holding her hand out and that he hadn't had a good time dancing previously. "I'm not exactly a great dancer. I had to dance in this ball almost a couple of years ago and I don't think that it went well in the slightest." He told her reluctantly.

"Well, good thing this isn't a ball of any kind and is just some fun." Padmé replied with a smile on her face. Unable to argue with her, Harry smiled back, took her hand and stood up. As soon as Harry had stood up, Padmé let go of his hand and wrapped her arms around his neck began to sway to the music.

"Is this the kind of song that we can just sway to?" Harry asked Padmé amusedly as he wrapped his arms around her waist.

"I don't know. I don't think you know either." Padmé replied, equally amused. They swayed to the music and just held each other as they inwardly considered their current circumstances, outwardly trying to conceal their own fears and insecurities.

"You'd be right about that. I've never heard this song before and I don't know the singer either." Harry said. "I just know that it's a song that was on this device that Mr X gave to me, Leia, Rey and Jaina."

"Who is Mr X?" Padmé asked, a moment after Harry had finished speaking.

"I don't know. I think that if he truly wanted to hand us over to this 'Trade Federation', he would've done so. All I can really say about him is that he'll probably help us as long as our interests line up with his. That and he's from a different version of my world, he said as much."

"I guess that we've got to hope that his interests don't suddenly line up with those of the Trade Federation." Padmé said cautiously. The song that they had been swaying to finished and another one began to play. "What's this song? It sounds more suitable for slow dancing."

"This is a song called Penny Lover." Harry answered, subsequently adding with a slight smile, "That I don't need to look up." Harry then decided to tap somewhat into his Gryffindor instincts and whispered in Padmé's ear. "Do you trust me?"

Padmé was confused by his question and clearly expressed her confusion. "Of course I trust you. You helped us get away from the Trade Federation."

Harry chuckled slightly. "Not what I meant. Just for a few minutes, let's not worry about Mr X or the Trade Federation or the planet we're on. Let's just float away from our troubles." Harry had discreetly taken his wand out and said something so quietly that Padmé missed what he said.

Within seconds, Padmé suddenly found herself floating in the air and let out a beautiful laugh of surprise. "Wow! I didn't know you were going to do that!" Padmé said to him in quiet, pleasant surprise.

"Neither did I until you asked me about this song." Harry replied as he concentrated on making her float. After about half a minute, Harry gently took the levitation charm off of Padmé and held her up so she didn't fall hard on the floor or otherwise become unbalanced. "How was your first time feeling magic?"

Padmé was unsure what to think. She only knew that she enjoyed that surprise action. "Enjoyable. Surprising..." Padmé trailed off, trying but failing to come up with more words to describe the experience.

"Magic can do a lot more than just that as you've seen already."

"I know. Your invisible robe protected us remarkably well."

"Just remember that it can only keep you out of sight. If we're ever in a situation where we need to use it, we must be as quiet as possible and it doesn't stop objects colliding with us." Harry said warningly. "It can also be used for cheap tricks."

"Like pretending there are spirits in a room or something?" Padmé asked questioningly and humorously.

"Possibly. If you were to ever meet some of my friends, they'd absolutely want to prank someone, especially one who didn't know about magic, in that way." Harry replied with a laugh.

Padmé laughed too, then refocused her attention to the song playing on Harry's Idroid. "This is a wonderful song, Harry."

"We have a lot of good songs on my planet and music in general is something I think we have going for us. I don't think that I'll be able to play everything from my world though because I don't have access to it all and I'm sure some of it has been lost over many millennia." Harry told her.

"I wonder how similar your planet is to Naboo?" Padmé asked Harry.

"In some ways, it's similar. In other ways, it's more like this place." Harry replied. "My world is very unevenly developed. It wouldn't surprise me if that helps cause a multitude of problems down the line."

"Well maybe we can help find a solution?" Padmé pondered. Harry raised an eyebrow and Padmé elaborated. "I was volunteered to help the Refugee Relief movement and then I entered the Legislative Youth Program. I'm sure that between myself and the Queen, we could help your planet."

"It's easier said than done. The various governments on my world generally don't cooperate with each other for sometimes very petty reasons." Harry replied. The song ended soon after Harry finished talking and they realised that it was getting quite late. "Maybe we should get some sleep?"

"Yeah, we should. Hopefully tomorrow, we can win the money for the parts the ship needs." Padmé remarked.

"Or we can just pay for them." Harry commented offhandedly.

"That's right, you, Leia, Rey and Jaina have been making money whilst we've been here."

"It's not necessarily the nicest or safest or most satisfying work I'm sure any of us have done but it paid well." Harry said as he thought back to the last few days. In fact, he almost definitely understated it as far as he and especially Leia had been concerned.

The pair of them entered the hovel that was the Skywalker House and they went to check on Mara. They entered the room where she'd been left to sleep and noticed that she was wide awake. "Who are you? Where am I?" The now fully awake Mara asked.

"You're on a planet called Tatooine and we're in the place of some people who are kind and willing to put up with us. Thankfully, your niece is with us and she recognised you." Harry answered the attractive young red haired woman.

Mara suddenly looked surprised. "Niece?! I don't have a niece! I was on a mission when I felt my Emperor's, my Master's death through the force." Mara replied angrily.

Harry turned away from Mara and towards Padmé. "Can you get Jaina up? We'll need her help here."

Padmé nodded. "No problem. She's probably better suited to help with her than either of us." Padmé then went to get Jaina whilst Harry kept an eye on Mara.

"So what's this about an Emperor?" Harry asked Mara inquisitively whilst he and Mara were alone.

Mara didn't immediately respond to Harry's question. Instead, she looked at him with a frown. She eventually replied to Harry, frowning as she answered him. "He's the ruler of the Galactic Empire and he taught me everything I know about the force. I saw his death, I felt it." She continued to frown as she couldn't sense him with the force. "No, I must be dreaming of having a nightmare! Why can't I sense you? Who are you?"

"No, you're not dreaming, having a nightmare or hallucinating. I seem to have that effect on people who use this 'force', really throws them for a loop. As for who I am, my name is Harry Potter."

"How are you eluding the force? What trickery of the senses is this?" Mara pressed irritably.

"To be honest, I'm not completely sure. It might be something to do with where I'm from... maybe." Harry answered honestly. He then heard some footsteps and saw that Padmé re-entered the room, now accompanied by Jaina. "I'm guessing the two of you will have much to discuss. Anyway, good night and get a good night's sleep yourselves when you're done." Padmé and Harry left the room, leaving Jaina and Mara by themselves.

"Who are you?" Mara said, feeling her wakefulness being sapped away. "Are you the one claiming to be my niece?"

"My name is Jaina Solo. And I am your niece but our situation is... unusual." Jaina replied to Mara.

"How could I have a niece?" Mara scoffed.

"Well, remember that I said that our situation is unusual?" Jaina asked, receiving a cautious nod from Mara. "I shouldn't really tell you anything but I am your niece but I'm not your niece yet." Mara looked confused but gestured for Jaina to continue. "You've just experienced the death of the Emperor, right?" Again, Mara nodded. "For you, I haven't been born yet. For me, you're yet to marry my uncle."

"Who is your uncle? Not some rebel scum relation of Han Solo, is it?" Mara asked inquisitively, immediately seizing on what the girl in front of her said. She was curious as to who this person Jaina was talking about was. She'd be disappointed by the response.

"You shouldn't worry about that now because, as I said, our situation is unusual. Extremely unusual even."

"Explain and elaborate. Or should I find a way of making you talk?"

"We're away from our own time periods. Furthermore, there are others here who shouldn't be."

"Don't be so dramatic girl. Tell me what I need to know so that I can get myself out of this mess." Mara demanded impatiently.

"Stop interrupting me and I'll tell you." Jaina snapped back. Taking a deep breath, Jaina continued. "We're here with Leia Organa as well."

"The traitor Leia Organa? Oh I should kill her where she stands." Mara sounded like she was looking forward to killing one of the leaders of the rebellion, especially given the recent killing of the Emperor and the numerous humiliations inflicted on the Empire.

"No you really shouldn't! Besides, some of what you've experienced hasn't happened to her yet." Mara cocked her head slightly, continuing to frown as she listened. "She was still on the first Death Star when she turned up in this time period. What's happened for you and what's happened for me hasn't happened for her yet. Furthermore us three and a couple of others are not where we're supposed to be."

"Tell me."

"We're back at the time of the Trade Federation invasion of Naboo, long before the Clone Wars."

"Impossible!"

Jaina sighed. She knew she was in for a long night, filled with impossible explanations, unexplainable events and instructions on what to say and do and what not to say and do.

---

The following morning, Harry, Qui-Gon and Jar Jar entered the hangar where all the podracers and their pilots and mechanics were gathered or gathering. There were people from various races running around the hangar as they made final checks and adjustments to the podracers to make sure that they were as ready as they could be for the coming race. "This is reminding me of a bunch of sports back on my world. Probably faster and possibly more lethal than my world though."

The trio were then greeted by Watto and they followed him through the hanger. Harry marvelled at everything around the hangar. "Yousa okay Harry?" Jar Jar asked as the Gungan looked at the young man.

"Oh, I'm fine Jar Jar. I just sometimes forget that I'm not on my world anymore. The technology is far beyond what's on my world. Even your people, from what I've seen, are more advanced in some ways." Harry replied.

"Really?" Jar Jar asked in surprise.

"Yeah. We don't have underwater cities that are inhabitable and our submersible vehicles are nowhere near that fast or manoeuvrable." Harry told Jar Jar.

Their attention then turned to Qui-Gon and the flying bug person in front of them. "...I wanta see your spaceship the moment the race is over." Watto said to Qui-Gon, causing Harry to realise that he had missed part of Qui-Gon and Watto's conversation.

'What?!' Harry thought to himself questioningly.

"Patience, my good friend. You'll have your winnings before the suns set, and we'll be far away from here." Qui-Gon calmly replied to Watto.

'He has bet the ship, hasn't he?! Watto wasn't just being overly confident!' Harry thought to himself in alarm. As far as Harry was concerned, this turned a risk into a true gamble.

"Not if your ship belongs to me, I think. I warn you, no funny business." Watto said to Qui-Gon with a mix of warning and overconfidence.

"You don't think Anakin can win?" Qui-Gon asked Watto questioningly. The group came to a halt next to a large orange podracer.

"Don't get me wrongo. I have great faith in the boy. He is a credit to your race, but Sebulba there is going to win, I think." Watto answered Qui-Gon in a tone that Harry felt was arrogant.

"Why do you think that?" Qui-Gon inquired.

"He always wins. I'm betting heavily on Sebulba." Watto replied confidently.

"Just because he has always won before doesn't mean that he always will. He's gonna have a defeat sooner or later." Harry interjected. To Harry, whilst it seemed like history was on Sebulba's side, especially as he'd never seen a podrace before, he felt that Sebulba was due to have a loss at some point. Watto looked at Harry and Harry couldn't be sure if Watto was sneering at him or looking at him dismissively. Watto then began laughing at them, almost mockingly.

"I'll take that bet." Qui-Gon said to Watto. This took the flying bug person by surprise as he stopped laughing.

"You'll what?!"

"I'll wager my new racing pod against... say... the boy and his mother." Qui-Gon said with fake hesitancy.

"No pod is worth two slaves... not by a long shot!" Watto replied angrily.

"The boy then." Qui-Gon said to Watto calmly.

Watto thought deeply. Harry knew that Qui-Gon had a fixation on Anakin, hoping to recruit him into the Jedi order and felt that Anakin needed his mother around. He decided to speak up so that Watto could make a decision in their favour, no matter how much of a longshot the outcome was. "Well, how about I sweeten the bet for you?"

Watto looked at him, intrigued. "Go on boy. What is your idea."

"If we win, Qui-Gon wins Anakin and I'll pay for his mother." Harry said to him.

Watto thoughtfully contemplated what Harry said to him. After what seemed like an eternity, Watto calmly replied to Harry. "Very well, we have a bet." His tone became somewhat more angrier, whilst Jar Jar smiled. "You won't win the race tho outlanders, so it makes little difference." Watto then began to fly away from them.

Harry turned to see Padmé, Shmi, Anakin and another boy who Harry presumed was one of Anakin's friends arriving in the hanger on some animals that Harry thought were a cross between a camel and an anteater and perhaps even an elephant. Walking either side of them were Leia, Rey and Jaina and behind them was C-3PO, who was closely followed by R2 as he pulled Anakin's podracer into the hangar. Watto passed by the group as he made his way to leave and said something to Anakin. Harry could hear but not understand what was being said and soon Watto was on his way. "What'd he mean by that?" Anakin asked.

Harry held his arms up in a way as to direct the question towards Qui-Gon. "I don't know, ask him. Remember, I really know nothing about this place or what anyone is saying that isn't remotely like my language."

Anakin then repeated his question, this time directing it specifically at Qui-Gon, "What'd he mean by that?"

"I'll tell you later." Qui-Gon replied to the young boy before addressing his mother. "Good morning." He then walked over to Shmi and helped her off of the animal that Harry didn't recognise.

"Get here alright?" Harry asked Padmé as he helped her off of the strange looking animal.

"Yes, we did." Padmé replied as her feet touched the ground. "I think we were fortunate to get these two." She said to him, gesturing towards the creatures that Anakin, Shmi, Anakin's friend and herself had ridden on.

"I guess that you couldn't get one or two more so that they could ride here?" Harry asked.

"We're fine Harry." Rey interjected.

"Yeah, I think that we can survive walking across a desert town." Jaina added with a humorous tone.

"Should we leave your aunt by herself, especially as she only just woke up last night from her little coma?" Harry asked Jaina with concern.

"I'm not particularly worried about her." Jaina replied confidently.

"You're sure you should be that confident? She was talking about a 'Galactic Empire' and something about an Emperor. Do you know what she meant?"

Jaina subtly and suddenly became a bit more cautious and less confident. "Very vivid dreams, I imagine. Probably forgot what was fact and what was fiction and lines between them blurred."

Harry sensed she wasn't being entirely truthful about the matter. He gave her a doubtful nod. "Uh huh..." He then turned his attention back to the strange looking animals. "What are these things?"

"They're called Eopie. They're native to this planet." Anakin told Harry.

"We've heard that they can be found on other planets though." Shmi added.

Harry heard C-3PO talking about space travel with presumably R2 but he didn't hear the exact words. Then his attention was drawn towards Anakin and his friend. "This is so wizard, Ani! I'm sure you'll do it this time."

"Do what?" Padmé asked quizzically.

"Finish the race, of course!" Anakin's friend replied, replying in a way that suggested he thought she should've known about what he had said.

"You've never won a race?!" Padmé asked Anakin in dismay.

Anakin was understandably hesitant. "Well... not exactly..."

"Not even finished?!"

Anakin looked sheepish but put on a show of confidence. "... Kitster's right, I will this time."

"Of course you will." Qui-Gon told Anakin confidently. Qui-Gon then looked at Padmé and they looked at each other.

Padmé looked concerned and Harry recognised the look. "I know that look when I see it and I know what it means." Harry remarked aloud. He almost seemed to be reminiscing.

"How would you know?" Leia asked.

"It's a look I've had directed at me before or it's a look that's been directed at my friends. It's a look that says either 'I think you're completely insane' 'You're not serious, are you?' or 'I really hope this works out for us because I don't know what's going to happen if it doesn't.' Hermione and sometimes Ginny have shot that look at me and Ron before." Harry saw Anakin and his friend Kitster shoot him questioning looks, wondering who he was talking about. "I'm talking about some friends of mine back home. They're wizards like myself." His eyes then looked up briefly as he remembered something. "I saw that look directed at Ron by Ginny once although I also think that was a mix of concern, derision and disbelief. I'll explain why when we've got more time."

"Aren't you going a little off topic there, Harry?" Leia asked, amused as Harry seemingly began to ramble about his life on his home planet.

"Maybe ever so slightly but..." Harry replied to Leia, turning his head towards her briefly before turning back to face Padmé. "... my point is that while it's good to be concerned about something, especially a long-shot plan such as this, it's sometimes better to take a risky chance than no chance at all. And at the moment, we should take whatever chances come out way because we can't afford to sit on our hands waiting for a better chance to come in case these Trade Federation guys find us and hunt us down."

Jaina looked on with a wry smile as she stood thinking to herself. 'We probably didn't need to go through this podrace because we could most likely afford the parts now but these events need to happen. I won't mention it just in case.'

"I don't like this plan although you're correct. We need to take the chances presented to us." Padmé conceded reluctantly. "I don't want anyone to get hurt because of us."

"None of us do. Hell, I've felt that way before. Just remember that Anakin volunteered to do this and this was his idea in the first place. And besides, I can help keep him safe whilst he's racing." Harry said to Padmé as reassuringly as possible.

"How?"

"You've seen me shrink a whole lot of stuff or hide myself in plain sight?" Harry asked rhetorically. He then pulled out his wand and muttered a few words, which caused the tip of his wand to light up briefly before the light disappeared just as quickly. Harry then put his wand away and turned towards Anakin, "I've just made your podracer machine move resistant to bad or harsh weather and I've just made the bodywork of it a lot more resistant to damage. I just warn you now that those protections are time limited and will wear off after a few hours tops."

Padmé looked more reassured and Anakin looked grateful. "Thank you Harry." He then looked a bit concerned, "This won't stop me making any last minute changes, will it?"

Harry shook his head. "It shouldn't do. If I was going to stop you from making any changes, I would've put a sticking charm on this thing."

"Thank you."

"No problem Anakin. Besides, there's a lot riding on you and this race and I have faith that you'll win it." Anakin smiled at the encouragement Harry gave him. Harry then turned to Padmé, "Better?"

"I am. I'm still not happy about this entire plan though. It just feels like too much of a risk."

"I think that this is the definition of 'high risk, high reward' and we need to go for it. And if we win, I can do something on Coruscant especially for you." Harry told Padmé.

Padmé blushed slightly. "What if we lose?" She asked him.

"Then I think your Queen will put my head on a pike and toss the rest of me into one of those twin suns." Harry replied in a deadpan manner. Harry then thought back to the previous few days where he'd been gambling and thought of another risky idea, separate from the bet with Watto. "I'll join you shortly. I want to look for something before the race starts. Rey, Jaina, do you mind coming with me?"

Rey and Jaina looked startled but nodded their heads. "No, we don't."

"Sure." The trio of Harry, Rey and Jaina walked out of the hangar and Jaina asked Harry a question. "What are you up to, Harry?"

"I just thought that we should try to maximise our current income. We need to ensure that we have enough money to get off this planet." Harry answered and received baffled looks in return. "Now, where's a bookie?"

---

A while later, the trio re-joined their friends at some sort of pod. "What did you go and do?" Leia asked questioningly.

"He went to place a few extra bets on the race." Jaina answered before Harry could get a word in. Leia and Padmé looked at him in disbelief.

"The bookmakers he went to looked at him like he was insane and laughed as he placed his bets."

"Really Harry?" Padmé said exasperatedly.

"Yes, I did. I know that doing something like that is risky but I consider what I did to be a sign of confidence in Anakin and the outcome of this race." Harry replied moodily. Harry looked at where the podracers were lining up and looked back in front of him. "I'll be back in a few moments." He then walked towards the podracers, much to Padmé's annoyance and towards where Anakin and Qui-Gon were. As he got closer, he thought he saw Sebulba do something to Anakin's podracer but he was uncertain of what he'd actually seen happen. As he moved closer, he could see that Qui-Gon had led Anakin's friend Kitster and another kid, who was also of a different species, off to one side. He could also see that Anakin and Sebulba had gotten into a tense discussion, although he didn't know what was being said. He chose to intervene in the heated chat. "Oi! Why are you trying to unnerve Anakin eh? He's just a kid and your a grown up guy who's at least three times his age. Stop being a knobhead and go back to your podracer." Anakin shot Harry a grateful smile whilst Sebulba looked surprised by Harry and his intervention in the conversation. Sebulba's look of surprise quickly shifted to one of contempt and he said some angry words to Harry, who just dismissed the arrogant podracer pilot with a sarcastic response, "Meh, meh, meh, can't hear ya mate. I don't understand your language. Now off with you." Sebulba understood Harry and knew that he was being told to get lost. With a snarl, Sebulba skulked back to his podracer. Making sure that Sebulba was now nowhere nearby, Harry turned his attention to Anakin, "Are you alright, Anakin?"

"Yeah, I'm alright. I like how you handled him although I'm sure that I had it handled all the same. He definitely doesn't like you." Anakin replied.

"I'm sure he doesn't." Harry commented with a wry smile. He then frowned momentarily, "Anakin, just check your podracer quick."

"Why?" Anakin asked, his frown from his confrontation with Sebulba returning .

"I thought I saw that wretch do something to it while you weren't looking." The teen wizard told the younger boy.

Anakin quickly moved to check on his podracer and groaned. "You're right, Harry. He did something to the left engine. I can't do anything about it now because we're not allowed to work on the podracers anymore unless we come in for a pit stop."

"Hang on a moment." Harry then got his wand out and waved it quickly, muttering a single word, "Reparo.". "Hopefully, I've repaired it for the moment. Not sure how long it'll last though. I wasn't sure of the damage and I had to do it quickly."

Qui-Gon returned almost as soon as Harry finished speaking. "You all set, Ani?"

"Yep. Harry just helped with some last minute repairs." Anakin told Qui-Gon.

"Oh?"

"Sebulba did something to the pod's left engine."

"I did a quick reparo. It might not hold for long though." Harry added.

"Reparo?" Qui-Gon asked.

"Mending charm. It does exactly what it says it does, with some exceptions." Harry explained to the elder Jedi. "The temporary repair may not last the whole race though."

Qui-Gon nodded and turned to Anakin. "Let's get you in, shall we?" Qui-Gon lifted Anakin up and set him down in the racing machine. "Remember, concentrate on the moment. Feel. Don't think. Use your instincts."

"I will." Anakin replied, grateful for the advice.

"May the force be with you." Qui-Gon said to Anakin before stepping away and returning to the others.

Harry saw Qui-Gon leave and then spoke to Anakin briefly once more. "I don't think I've got much else to add except follow Qui-Gon's advice. If you can try, try and roll with whatever comes your way. And... good luck out there."

"Thank you Harry." Anakin told Harry before putting his helmet and goggles on.

Harry walked back to the viewing pod or platform; he wasn't quite sure how to describe it but it was used for viewing. As he got close to the viewing pod, his Idroid began beeping rapidly. Unsure of what the beeping meant, he pulled the device out and activated the holographic display on it. What showed up startled him. It was a message marked urgent and appeared to be sent by Mr X. 'Meet me in the hangar after the race begins. I would be quick about it too! Bring someone along if you wish.'

Harry was concerned by what this meant. He slowed down as he approached the pod, focusing on the message in front of him. "Everything alright, Harry?" Rey asked him, concerned by the expression on his face.

Harry looked up at her and his expression was uncertain. "Something's apparently wrong. Mr X has asked me to meet him in the hangar."

"Do you want me to come with you?" Rey asked him.

"You might as well. He did mention that I could bring people along with me to meet him." Harry said with a curt nod of his head. "He said to wait until the start of the race though."

Rey nodded. She turned to the others and spoke to them, "Harry and I will be gone for a little while. Just do what you got to do. We should be back before the end of the race." Qui-Gon nodded whilst Padmé, Leia and Jaina looked at Harry worriedly as the viewing platform began to rise.

"Did he tell you what was so important that he wanted to meet up with you?" Rey asked Harry.

"No. I reckon whatever he's wanting to talk about is something that he doesn't want others knowing... Or... it's simply something he needs to tell us in person." Harry theorised cautiously. Harry then looked up to see a slug-like creature at a balcony, with a half-naked woman next to it, attached to a chain. "Two questions. One, what the hell is that slug thing. And two, is she wearing the same kind of bikini as Leia?"

"The slug thing is Jabba the Hutt. He's a massive crime lord. As for the slave girl, I imagine it's the same make as Leia's, yeah. Some slight differences though." Rey replied.

"I'm glad I'm not imagining it. Seriously, I don't think that I'll be able to get the sight of Leia in one of those things out of my mind anytime soon." Harry said, shaking his head as he was still processing what he had seen over the course of the previous few days. A few moments later, Harry looked down from where this Jabba the Hutt was and he could see Mr X on the other side of the track. Mr X was masked and covered up, only the upper part of his head visible to Harry. The enigmatic figure gave Harry a slight nod and began walking towards the hangar.

Soon enough, the mass roar of powerful engines began coming to life and tension began to mount amongst the crowd and the racers. Harry looked up at the creature known as Jabba and he saw him bite the head off a frog or frog-like creature and spat it at a gong. The sound of the gong ringing out signalled that the race had begun. The many racers shot off their starting positions, their engines screaming. However, Anakin barely moved a few feet forward before coming to a standstill. Elsewhere on the starting grid, another racer hadn't even moved off his position but Harry and Rey's attention was focused on Anakin and their now imminent meeting with Mr X. "Anakin's not moving!" Rey said with some alarm.

"Not everyone has a great start. Sometimes, a great start can result in a loss in the end. Put it this way, if a laps gone by and he hasn't moved any further, then you can start panicking." Harry replied. "Shall we?" He then asked her.

"Might as well. Better see what he wants." Rey then frowned. "She's here as well."

"You sensed her with the force, didn't you?"

"Was it that obvious?" Rey said as she turned her head to give him a wry smile.

Harry returned the smile but didn't confirm her thoughts. Instead, he began walking and Rey, caught slightly off guard, quickly walked to catch up with him.

Within minutes, Harry and Rey arrived back at the hangar where the podracers had gotten ready for the race. Where it had been bustling with activity earlier, the only people who were in the hangar were uninterested race crews and Mr X and some of his lot. "I would welcome you two with pleasantries but time is of the essence." Mr X said as Harry and Rey approached him, his wives, Jurzacka and a few green skinned soldiers.

"What is it that you want? We were about to watch a race." Harry asked grumpily as he got straight to business.

"There's several gangs in the area who are hunting someone around here. I need you to dismantle one of those gangs and bring them to me so I can find out who hired them." Mr X told Harry and Rey gravely.

"And do you know who they're hunting? I'm not sure if you have remembered but I don't know anyone around here." Harry said sardonically.

"This person you almost certainly will know." Mr X replied equally sardonically. "It's you! They're coming after you!"

Harry and Rey looked at Mr X in shock. Harry was rendered speechless. When he could finally think of something to say, he was indignant. "Me? What have I done that several gangs feel the need to come after me?" Rey wrapped a comforting arm round his shoulders.

"It's not so much as what you've done. It's more... what you are." Mr X said.

Rey's alternate self spoke up and expanded upon what Mr X meant. "These gangs were hired as bounty hunters. Whoever gets you are the ones that get the reward. Because of your... unique attributes in this part of the universe, they want you alive. For what, purpose we don't know yet."

"Bloody hell!" groaned Harry.

"There's more." Mr X told Harry and Rey warningly.

"This gets worse...?!" Rey asked in shock.

The other Rey nodded before launching into an explanation. "We also suspect that the Sith know about you Harry. How much they know, we're unsure about. We suspect that they've been offered a different deal to the gangs."

The other wife of Mr X spoke up, "We discovered traces of a communication sent to Coruscant from an unknown location. A subsequent trace was detected coming from Coruscant to this planet."

"They're here for the Queen of Naboo but they will not hesitate if they think they can claim you as a prize. You're running out of time!" Mr X added.

"When do we start tracking a gang down and bring them to you?" Harry asked, putting on a brave face as he attempted to calm his nerves.

"About five, ten minutes ago." Mr X said deadpan. "Considering that this was going to concern you one way or another, I decided not to wait for you to accept this job and considered your involvement to be a given." Harry nodded grimly.

"Where are these gangs?" Rey asked.

"The data of known gang members have been sent to your Idroids. There are probably more that we haven't got marked so be careful. If there's more information whilst you're doing your thing, I'll pass it on asap." Harry and Rey took this as a signal to leave and begin pursuing the gangs. Before they left, Mr X said one more thing, "Oh, and happy hunting." Taking this as their cue to leave, Harry and Rey nodded and left the hanger.

---

Barely a few minutes later, Rey and Harry were traveling through the desert on a speeder bike. Rey was piloting the speeder bike whilst Harry held on to Rey's waist for dear life. "Why do I get the feeling that this thing is a bloody death trap?" Harry said to Rey, having to speak loudly over the screaming of the engine.

"I don't think this model was built with comfort in mind. I think that I've heard the phrase 'engine on a steering vane' used before." Rey replied to Harry over the unbearable noise.

"That explains why there's practically no seating. How fast are we going anyway?"

"About two hundred miles per hour."

"Just a little faster than my broom back home then." Harry said pleasantly surprised.

"Did you just say broom?" Rey asked once Harry's words had registered with her.

"Yeah. The wizarding community has many modes of transport that most on my world would consider to be... fairy tales."

"It sounds like your world is a bit odd." Rey remarked off-handedly.

"I or my world much rather could say the same back to you about this place." Harry replied.

"I'm sure you would." Rey said sarcastically. She then briefly turned her head to face Harry and the two shared an amused smile before she resumed concentrating on where she was going. The two sped through the desert in the searing heat looking out for the gangs that were apparently hunting Harry. The pair separately mused that the situation was almost a case of the hunted hunting the hunters. Harry pulled out his Idroid whilst still holding on to Rey and checked its holographic map to see where the identified members of the various gangs were. "Where are the nearest gangsters Harry?" Rey asked.

"According to this thing, the closest gang is about six or seven miles away from us." Harry replied almost immediately

Rey sensed something was off about the situation. "Are you positive about that? What about the gangs further away from us?"

"They're about eighteen miles away heading back towards Mos Espa. The closest two anyway." Harry answered and Rey glanced at their surroundings in concern. The terrain had become much more rocky and there were some canyons and there were plenty of potential hiding spots for ambushers. Her concern was heightened when Harry spoke about spoke again. "Wait... those gangs that were heading towards Mos Espa have suddenly changed direction."

"Where are they heading?!" Rey asked Harry urgently.

Harry took a moment to figure out the direction that the gangs were moving in. "They're coming this way... And fast." Harry then let out a groan of frustration. "Oh great, even the gang ahead of us is heading this way fast. They'll be on us in a matter of moments I reckon." Harry then put the Idroid away.

Before Rey could bring them to a halt or turn around, a pair of blaster shots rang out and blaster bolts struck the speeder bike. The speeder bike began to whine and groan as it shuddered and jerked. "JUMP!" Rey instructed Harry. Harry and Rey jumped off the speeder bike and a few seconds later, it collided with a large rock and exploded, the frame of the machine crumpling as it burnt and crashed. Rey glimpsed the wrecked speeder bike and then looked around to see a number of people emerging from the rocks and canyons. "Harry, get up, their crawling all around us!" Rey instructed Harry, only to receive a harsh groan. "Harry?!" Rey saw that he was face first on the ground and moved to check on him. Rey prodded his shoulder, "Harry?!" She turned him over and saw he was unconscious and had a large, bloody cut on his head. "Great!" She said in frustration. She grabbed him, holding him up around the shoulders. She looked to see that many gangsters swarming amongst the sandy rocks and canyons. Then, Rey glanced behind them and saw a small cave, little more than an alcove, behind them. It looked like it could fit maybe one or two people in there and she wasn't going to double check if her guess was correct, instead just dragging Harry into it whilst redirecting blaster bolts away from them using the force.

"There's the kid! Capture him alive!" One of the gang leaders shouted to his underlings.

"What about the Jedi?" one of the gang members replied questioningly.

"Don't care, you sack of bantha shit. Kill her, capture her, just take her out." The gang leader replied.

Rey managed to get Harry into the tiny cave and attempted to figure out how to get out of this situation. She had three lightsabres on her but she could only wield two of them at a time and she had only used two lightsabres at once only once; when she killed her own grandfather by deflecting his own force lightning back at him. Still, she knew that she had to use every tool in her arsenal to just have a chance of holding out and winning against their numerous attackers. She held two of the lightsabres in her hands but didn't ignite them. She waited for a moment as she heard the distinct rumbles of engines and felt vibrations in the ground. The various gangs vehicles had arrived and were being kept on standby, almost as though they were waiting for a target or that they weren't sure of what kind of rounds to use. Rey went to kneel by Harry, who was still unconscious and spoke to him, "Harry, I'm going to go and try to get us something to get us away from here. I'm not sure if you can hear me at the moment but wish me luck, okay." Rey then kissed Harry's forehead, letting the kiss linger for slightly longer than she'd thought. She then got up and walked out of the small desert cave, not yet igniting her lightsabres still.

Rey saw that there were dozens of gangsters and almost a dozen vehicles of various kinds were guarding any potential exits away from the area. They all had their guns trained on her. "Lay down your weapons and no one gets hurt!" A gang leader demanded through a speaker. "All we want is the boy!"

"You know I'm not going to do that right?" Rey asked, her lightsabres ready to be ignited. "Besides, he's injured because of your actions."

"You asked for it." The same gang leader replied calmly before turning to his underlings and compatriots. "Take her down and snatch the boy!" A hail of stun bolts raced towards Rey but she held her nerve and ignited her lightsabres at the last possible second. She blocked the majority of the stun bolts precisely with her lightsabres and used the force to throw more back at the gangsters. She threw a small rock at a sniper using the force and knocked him out. "Are you afraid of one Jedi? Close up on her, take her down, restrain her, just take her out of the fight!" As Rey fought against overwhelming odds, she realised that not all of the gangsters were organics. Some were in fact HK or IG series assassin droids and they were being held back by the various gang leaders; for what reason, Rey didn't know but she had a theory. Rey force pulled a gang leader towards herself, disarmed and restrained him and watched for the response of the assassin droids. As soon as they registered that one of their leaders had been taken hostage by the Jedi, the assassin droids lost all pretence of trying to stun Rey and began shooting to kill, beginning to close the distance on her as they did so. She chose that moment to knock her impromptu captive out, elbowing him in the face and force pushing him to the entrance of the tiny cave. As the fight dragged on, Rey found it increasingly difficult to fight off the horde of enemies coming for her and especially Harry. She was forced to take lives in order to protect herself and Harry, even though she had very little appetite to do so. The various armed vehicles the gangs had brought with them were equipped with heavy cannons and they forced Rey to keep moving constantly so they couldn't pin her down. She realised as she came to a halt that they were forcing her away from Harry. Indeed, several gangsters took the opportunity to rush to the cave in order to retrieve their prize. Rey force threw a few of them into a rocky wall, knocking them out instantly and giving them nasty bruises in the process. As she was focused on Harry, she was tackled to the ground by a trio of gangsters and her back hit a rock, causing her to wince in pain. Rey also lost her grip on one of her lightsabres and it rolled away from her. She was not out of the fight however. She reacted quickly to her precarious situation and sliced off the legs of one of the gangsters who'd tackled her to the ground. She was about to take on the other two gangsters who'd tackled her but one of the gangsters kicked the other lightsabre out of her hand, punched her in the face and restrained her arms by kneeling on them. Worse yet, a pair of assassin droids approached her, almost as if they were about to perform an execution. They were almost on top of her when the two gangsters restraining her suddenly collapsed and rolled to the side and one of the two assassin droids became dismembered. The other assassin droid was then suddenly no longer there, suddenly replaced by a giant toy bird of some description. Rey quickly got up in spite of the pain she was feeling in her back and retrieved her lightsabres with the force. She looked back to the small cave and saw Harry was now moving and joining the fight, albeit with much more staggered movement and hesitant responses considering his head injury.

Rey jumped over to Harry and the pair of them stood back to back. "We're screwed, aren't we?" Harry asked her as they deflected and dissipated the blaster and stunning bolts fired their way.

"We're not exactly in a good spot. Even with our combined abilities, there's only so much we can do before we're overwhelmed." Rey replied pessimistically. Just to emphasize her point, almost as soon as she finished speaking, Rey was struck by a blaster bolt to her left leg and Harry was hit in the shoulder by a blaster bolt aimed at Rey's back and barely blocked a stunning shot actually aimed at himself.

"I never thought I'd die fighting on an alien world. Never thought I'd die on an alien world in general." Harry admitted as they were now kneeling back to back, shuffling towards the small cave gradually.

"I have died before. I never thought I was going to die again so soon." Rey likewise admitted.

"If we make it out of this alive, I'll take you out and I'd like to hear that story. If you don't mind telling me it, that is." Harry said to Rey as stunning bolts struck his shield and dissipated in mid-air.

"Is that how you get all the ladies then, Harry?" Rey asked mischievously.

"That sounds like the kind of joke that Jaina would make." Harry remarked.

"Oh it almost certainly is. I just thought one of us had to make it since she's not here." Rey remarked in turn as one gangster found themselves impaled on one of Rey's lightsabres and another gang leader was taken out by Rey force pulling him into a punch and subsequently stunned by Harry. Nevertheless, the situation seemed quite hopeless and it almost seemed inevitable that Harry and Rey would be victims of the gangs around them.

Everyone was stunned when explosions suddenly rang out a little distance away from them. 'What the hell is going on?!" A gang leader asked in anger. This gang leader was an alien unlike the other gang leaders, who were human, and had leathery skin, horns around the jaw and long black hair. "Oof!" He said as he collapsed, falling unconscious.

Rey glanced at Harry, who shrugged and spoke. "I wanted to take him off guard." Rey nodded in acknowledgement and kept her guard up.

"There's another Jedi cutting through us." Came a shout from a gangster running away from where the explosions were heard.

"Another Jedi?" Harry asked Rey questioningly.

"None of the others know, so I don't know who it could be." Rey replied. The gangsters who'd been taken by surprise were divided on what to do. Some ran away before anything could happen to them. Others turned to face the new threat and the rest resumed their efforts to capture Harry and subdue Rey. Rey and Harry, despite their injuries, were much better able to fend off the now unfocused blaster and stun fire which came their way. Rey and Harry's question regarding the identity of their potential saviour was answered several moments later as the pair saw a magenta bladed lightsabre expertly carve a path through the gangsters. A gangster attempted to catch Harry and Rey off guard as his comrades retreated from the fight in disarray, some of the vehicles they'd arrived in or on abandoned but Rey knocked him out painfully with a quick and sudden burst of force lightning. With the fight virtually over, Harry and Rey saw that their saviour was none other than Jaina's aunt Mara. "We're grateful to see you but why are you here and how did you manage to get here." Rey said to the red-golden haired woman.

"I was heading to watch the podrace when I sensed fighting taking place through the force. The force, as well as a spare speeder bike that was just stationary when I liberated it, brought me here to you two." Mara explained to the pair. She was also immensely curious. "What are you two doing all the way out here? I doubt it's to get a better view of the race."

"We were informed by Mr X that several gangs were coming after Harry and we went to take out one of the gangs and capture several members to take to Mr X for interrogation." Rey explained to the reddish-golden haired woman.

Harry nodded. "As it so happened, they were waiting for us and ambushed us." He elaborated. "We were virtually goners until you showed up."

"Well, they may have run away for now but we shouldn't stick around for too long. I think that they'll return once they've regrouped." Mara advised warningly. She then eyed up the various abandoned vehicles littered around the area, "Good thing they weren't thinking rationally. We can use one of these to return to Mos Espa."

"We also need to transport these dudes to Mr X. He said he wanted to get information from them." Harry told Mara.

"Did he give either of you any specifics as to which ones were to be brought to him?" Mara questioned the pair.

"No. He implied... more or less told us that whoever we caught alive were to be taken to him." Rey replied to the slightly older woman. "We caught some of the gangs' leaders. I can't say whether they were the absolute leaders of their gangs or just members of their various leadership circles."

"If that's the case, then the gangs you two took on may start imploding in their own time. It'll potentially make friends rivals and strongmen into weaklings." Mara looked around and saw that there were over two dozen knocked out gangsters and their leaders lying on the ground. "I'm seeing some skiffs around here. Let's get them on them and take them back." Mara then frowned as she noticed that their prisoners would occupy more space than what could be accommodated by the vehicles. "Do you see anything we can use to drag more of these skiffs along with us?"

Rey shook her head but Harry responded somewhat enthusiastically. "I might be able to come up with something." Harry looked at the unconscious bodies that were lying across the rocky terrain and thought back to Naboo. He wondered if there were any resistance movements forming on Naboo and what kind of people were going to be in them. He wasn't sure about the Gungans but he assumed that they were probably in a better position than the human population. "Just get those gangsters on the... skiffs, were they? Anyway, get them on those things, I'm just going to do what I did after I saved yours and Jaina's pretty arses on Naboo." He then quickly walked far away from them, leaving Mara confused.

"What happened on Naboo?" The Red haired woman asked Rey.

"Jaina and I were running from Battle Droids and Droidekas, we ran into a courtyard and he intervened to save us both. After we were done fighting there, Harry tidied up in a fashion and shrank down a number of their guns and one of their tanks. It was very bewildering and astonishing to see." Rey replied.

"Is that what he's doing now?"

"I imagine so." Rey and Mara then began gathering the unconscious bodies of the gangsters and assembled whatever intact droid heads and droid processors they could get their hands on. They also had to assemble the skiffs, which was a pain to do when they also had many prisoners to keep an eye on and the fact they were spread out but they managed.

Then, whilst waiting for Harry, Mara looked at Rey and felt her presence in the force. She felt it was familiar but she couldn't pin down why it was so familiar. The more she stood near the young woman, the more familiar with it she became. It was different but she eventually figured out why Rey's force signature was so familiar. "You've got his power. It feels familiar... and yet, it feels different. Why? I cannot say." Mara told Rey, who turned to her in alarm. However, Mara was not asking, merely stating and she wasn't being accusatory, merely surprised and curious. Mara saw the worried look on Rey's face, "Don't worry. I won't say anything. You will do that in your own time."

"How do you know?"

"Did Jaina say anything about who I worked for and what I did? We did have a long chat last night."

"No. She just identified you as her aunt. Mr X gave a smattering of details about you though including how you had to be put in a coma." Rey replied to the red-golden haired woman. Mara said nothing but prodded Rey to continue speaking. So Rey did. "He didn't say anything about your profession under him. Just a mix of fact and theory as to how you came to be here and how you ended up with him."

"How come I don't remember this Mr X? If I've been with him for a few days at least, then why don't I remember anything about it."

"The way Mr X told us, although I don't think he took memory loss into account, it sounded like you had been through a lot. The loss of... him, being flung back in time. Said you'd probably been driven insane."

Mara contemplated what she'd been told. "To tell you the truth, I can't say that he's incorrect." It was now Rey's turn to say nothing whilst prodding Mara to continue. "All that time when I was not awake, during the night and every waking moment, I can hear him giving me his last instructions to me. I can hear his death. I can almost see it. The urge to carry out his instructions is, to me, of prime importance." She and Rey then looked each other in the face and Rey could almost see the desperation in her eyes. "To know that I might not be able to carry out one instruction, let alone his last instruction, it's maddening to think about." Mara sighed and took a deep breath. "I was his operative, his assassin, his tool. His word, his praise was all I ever needed. His will was, and still is, my guide."

"Should I be worried about you turning against us?" Rey questioned the slightly older woman. Her tone was calm and cold.

"I may kill people but I still have a moral code. If I think that you're a good person, then I will spare you. I don't kill just for the sake of killing." Mara replied, almost offended by the suggestion that she'd turn on the people looking after her so easily. "If you don't mind me asking but what is your connection to him? I'm the only Emperor's Hand there is so you can't be one. It feels like your power was inherited from him."

"He was my grandfather. He had an assassin try to take me to him and had my parents killed when they wouldn't give me up." Rey replied bitterly. "He may have had power and a great intellect but he was a miserable excuse for a leader and a person. Did you ever consider that he lied to you? Because he probably did."

"Never. He always told me everything that I needed to know about my missions and everything that he knew about my targets. What he did not know, I found out anyway I could." Mara shot back.

Rey wanted to reply to Mara but she saw Harry approaching in the distance, collecting whatever weapons and vehicles he could. "What's your opinion of him?"

"The kid?"

Rey nodded. "His name's Harry. I've already said it a few times already. I'm sure Jaina mentioned his name too." Mara nodded in confirmation. "I've only spent a few days with him but he's protective of those he cares about, he's perceptive and... unique."

"You sound like you've fallen for him." Mara commented neutrally. "It sounds like Jaina has as well from our chat yesterday. From what I know of him so far, he's very wary of people. I think he's had cause to. I can't say for certain, only he can confirm my suspicions, but I think that he's been let down by those who were meant to look after him."

The pair halted their conversation as Harry approached. "Everything okay here?"

"It was tedious but we were finished fairly quickly and we've just been finding out about each other." Rey replied.

"You said that you might be able to get some of these skiffs to move with us?" Mara questioned the young man.

"I do." Harry answered simply. "They're all running, right?" Rey and Mara nodded. "In that case, get ready to drive them away." Harry then conjured several towing cables whilst Rey and Mara got into the pilots positions of the skiffs. Harry got the cables on to the guard rails of the skiffs, making sure that they were secure. "Right, we can head off now."

With Harry's announcement that they could leave, Rey and Mara wasted no time in doing so.

---

Mr X, Jurzacka, the other Rey and Mr X's other wife as well as several green skinned soldiers and a few droids awaited the trio on the outskirts of Mos Espa. They had changed the rendezvous from the podracer hangar to an abandoned building at the very edge of the settlement. "My, my, you look worse for wear. What happened?"

"We ran into an ambush. It seems that three of the gangs formed some kind of alliance or pact." Rey replied. She sounded exhausted and it showed.

"You wouldn't happen to know anything about it, would you?" Harry asked Mr X. Harry was on edge after the vicious fighting in the desert.

"From my calculations, I have no reason to withhold information about such developments from you. If I'd known that you were going to run into an ambush, don't you think I would've told you about it?" Mr X replied pointedly. "Another thing; I may hold incredible amounts of knowledge but I am not a god, I am not all knowing. Good thing too. I've killed many gods and injured many, many more. This is either an oversight on our part or..." Mr X looked at the sky and around himself contemplatively. "... Or we're being spied on. All of us. Possibly even by multiple parties."

"Do you want to begin evacuations from this place, this planet?" Jurzacka asked Mr X tentatively. Harry, Rey and Mara observed the interaction with keen interest.

"Not yet. Maybe... we should consider sending more people out into the wider galaxy to seek out new safe havens. At the moment, only the Time Strategist is out there in this galaxy, monitoring events."

"Who's this Time Strategist? And I assume you're Mr X?" Mara interrupted.

"Yes I'm Mr X and as for the Time Strategist, he is one of my most important agents. I'm sure you'll encounter him at some point. I'm also not surprised that you don't recognise me, Mara Jade. You were in a bad way when we found you. Nice to see you looking much better but I should caution you on going anywhere without your meds for the time being." Mr X replied at length.

"Meds? What meds? What are you talking about?" Mara asked in concern. Harry and Rey shifted uncomfortably. It seemed to them that Jaina had forgotten to inform her of a fairly major detail.

"At the moment, your condition is such that you're a walking force bomb. You've been experiencing... episodes for lack of a better term. One of them almost could've killed Harry here." Mr X explained to the red haired woman.

Mara looked like she wanted to say something but Jurzacka spoke first. "I'm sure that you'd like to rest and recover but that's not going to be possible now until you all get away from here."

"He's right. Do what you need to do and head to your next destination. You're on a time limit now and even I'm not sure what the time limit is." Mr X confirmed, nodding grimly. "Go now, we'll take those prisoners off your hands."

"What about these skiffs? Don't you want them?" Rey asked the group opposite. Some of the green skinned soldiers and the droids began dragging the captive gangsters off the skiffs, not caring about their comfort.

"You'll treat them well, right?" Harry asked in concern for the gangsters' wellbeing. He would be disappointed by the response.

"That'll depend on what happens." Mr X replied coldly. Harry looked at him with disgust but Mr X was scathing in response to the look he was getting. "Don't judge me. Every civilisation at some point in their history has committed a war crime. The destruction of the Aztecs, the shooting of prisoners in world war two, the many holocausts in the history of Earth and this galaxy, forced relocations, the Mandalorian Excision... I could go on but I think you get the point. Every race, every civilisation, regardless of what they're like now, will always have a black mark somewhere in their history, whether they remember it or not. I'm not a good person, I'm just honest about the possible outcomes of what I do with these lowlifes. Now, off you go, you're on a time limit after all." Harry departed with Rey and Mara on the skiffs, reluctantly leaving the defeated gangsters to an uncertain fate.

---

Harry, Rey and Mara returned to the podracer hangar and saw Qui-Gon, Padmé, Leia, Jaina, Shmi, Anakin and his friend huddled together with R2 and C-3PO standing off to one side. "How long were we gone?" Harry asked his two companions, not really caring who answered the question.

"About fifty minutes. The race was done in just over fifteen minutes. At least, that's what the screens around us are saying." Rey said, looking around at the screens scattered around the area.

"Thank Merlin that you can read this writing. I think we've well established that I can't." Harry replied gratefully. "It's a pity that we missed the race. I hope there's footage of it so I can watch it later."

"What do you mean, you can't read the writing? Are you illiterate?" Mara asked in a disbelieving tone of voice.

"No, he's not illiterate. His home world is not in this galaxy as far as we can tell so it's like a foreign language to him." Rey replied.

"But he's speaking Galactic Basic, isn't he?" Mara asked startled.

"You'd think so but no. No, he's not." Rey answered once more. "It seems that our spoken language and his are coincidentally similar. Why that is, we can only guess at." Mara frowned, trying to process everything she had learnt over the course of the last half a day or so as she walked with Harry and Rey. Rey quietly spoke into Harry's ear, "What do we do about the Sith problem breathing down our necks?"

"My knowledge of the Sith is limited by what I read at Mr X's hideout but if we jump the gun, I doubt any good could come of it." Harry replied cautiously.

"I suppose that we just react as the situation dictates then?" Rey asked, Harry nodding slightly. "I might see about getting a backup ship or two then in case we need them."

"I guess that's a plan then. Just don't take too long. We know that the situation can change at any moment." Harry replied in agreement.

"I'll take Jaina with me. I'm sure that between us we can buy some decent stuff." Rey told him and Harry once again nodded. He winced as the pain in his head began to catch up with him.

"Hey guys, what happened in the race?" Harry called to the others ahead of himself, Rey and Mara.

Everyone turned to see Harry, Rey and Mara approach them. Anakin was the first to speak to them. "I won the race, Harry. Where did you go? You missed the race."

Harry held a hand up, gesturing for forgiveness. "I'm sorry Anakin. I was dragged away by an urgent message. Rey volunteered to come with me."

"What could be so important that you had to miss the entire race?" Padmé asked, annoyed by Harry's absence for the entire race. Her expression turned to concern and horror as the states of Harry and Rey became clearer the closer they approached. Indeed, Rey began to limp and stagger as they were metres away from the group, causing Harry to catch her even though he was in bad shape and possibly in a worse state than her. It became clear that Harry's head had been bleeding. "What happened?" Padmé asked softly.

"A lot." Harry replied a bit more aggressively than he meant to. "Our 'friend' Mr X called me back here just after the race began. He sent us to take down a gang but we ended up being ambushed by a few of them." There was a blazing, almost crazed look on Harry's face as he explained the situation. "Those gangs had been hired to come after me."

"Why would a bunch of small time gangs go after you?" Leia asked.

"When Harry and I asked about it, Mr X was uncertain but he theorised that it was because of what Harry was." Rey replied grimly. "In the end, Mara came and saved us."

"It's good that you're back with us Harry but we should go and collect our winnings from Watto. I know you'd probably like to rest but we should get this sorted out as soon as possible. The sooner we can repair the ship, the sooner we can leave." Qui-Gon said to Harry.

"Somehow, I think that I knew that was coming." Harry replied before shaking his head. "It's fine though. I have other winnings to collect as well."

"I'll come with you, Harry. Someone needs to make sure that you're getting what you're owed." Rey said to the young wizard.

"Cheers Rey, I suppose we could do with a hand... possibly." Harry said to her gratefully.

---

Several minutes later, Harry, Qui-Gon and Rey found themselves in front of Watto on a sheltered balcony in the spectator stands. He had just paid a couple of other people winnings he evidently owed them in the wake of Anakin's unexpected victory and Sebulba's unexpected defeat. He turned to see them in the doorway and he looked miserable. "You! You swindled me! You knew the boy was going to win! Somehow you knew it! I lost everything..."

Harry was unsure whether he should have any sympathy for the bug person. He was aware of the pitfalls of gambling, he'd seen it before with Ludo Bagman. He'd even felt the allure of gambling and winning over the last few days, culminating in his risky decision earlier, some time before the podrace. Harry listened to Qui-Gon as the older man had Watto fly right up to his face. "Whenever you gamble, my friend, eventually you'll lose. Bring the parts to the main hangar. I'll come by your shop later so you can release the boy." Qui-Gon told Watto with a small smile on his face.

"And his mother..." Harry added hastily. Harry and Rey quickly had to sit down on whatever they could sit on as the events of the day began to take their toll on them.

"You can't have them! It wasn't a fair bet!" Watto said to them grumpily. Harry scoffed but said nothing in response yet.

"Would you like to discuss it with the Hutts? I'm sure they can settle this." Qui-Gon said to Watto, not so subtly intimidating the bug like person.

"Take them!" Watto said dejectedly.

Qui-Gon nodded and made to leave when he noticed that neither Harry or Rey were moving to follow him. "Are you two not coming?"

"Give us just a minute or two, we'll be right behind you." Harry replied and Qui-Gon nodded, finally leaving. "Do you want to know something, Watto?" Harry asked the bug person.

"What?" The flying bug person replied testily.

"I knew someone back on my world who was like you in some ways." Watto looked like he wanted to interrupt or simply ask a question but Harry pressed on. "He was a gambler. Unlike you, I'm reasonably sure that he's lost far more than he's won. His gambling cost him a fortune and he resorted to paying people off with fake money. The last I heard of him, he was on the run. As much as I find you... disagreeable to put it politely, I'd hate for gambling to ruin your life and livelihood." Again, Watto looked like he was going to say something but Harry pressed on. "Ultimately, I can't tell you what to do with your money or your life but you should know the risks by now. You've lost way more than just money. You were so sure that Anakin was going to lose and Sebulba was going to win that you couldn't foresee any other possible outcome. Gambling's like any other addiction. It's like a thrill, a rush, that you have to experience again and again until you get tunnel vision and the only thing you can focus on is the winning and the money. It doesn't matter if you're a winner or a loser, you just end up being a loser regardless. Appreciate what you've got, I'll be at your shop later along with my friend so you can free the mother as well as the kid." Harry then departed, followed closely by Rey.

---

A little under an hour later, Harry found himself in a building, a cross between a bar and a café, sitting at a table whilst drinking a bottle of some drink that he was unfamiliar with. In a building opposite the one he was currently sitting in were Rey and Jaina. Having seen his abilities first hand, especially with the tank on Naboo, Rey and Jaina agreed to bring Harry along with them so that when they purchased a ship or two, he could shrink them down for them. He had made a lot of money from the last few days being on this planet but he couldn't tell how much the coins were worth or even which coin was which. All he knew was that when he paid for his current drink, the waitress looked like she, and her colleagues, were going to have a big payday. It seemed like there was a mini party going on across the room and Harry saw that there was a group of people of various species that were taking part in a drinking game. He couldn't quite tell what was being said but it seemed that some of the group was good-naturedly mocking the other members of the group for placing bad bets at the podrace, implying to Harry that those doing the mocking had made good bets. Harry smiled wryly to himself. He had enjoyed learning about the planet and enjoyed trying new things but the experience was marred by the ridiculous situations he found himself plunged into. He had also enjoyed getting to know more about his new friends but he sensed that he only knew what was on the surface. He had just finished his drink when he felt a tap on his shoulder. "Not getting too relaxed, I hope?" A familiar voice asked Harry and he turned to see Jaina standing over him.

"For a second, I actually was. Then you turned up." Harry replied jokingly. Jaina gave Harry a mock expression of shock and indignation. "I've been here for a little while now and it's funny how familiar everything is like and how different everything is at the same time. Across the room, there's party going on." He said, then pointing to the party he'd been observing. "I couldn't tell you the first thing about who those people are or where they came from or even where they live but I think that they were here for the podrace earlier and they're now here having a good time, even though not all of them won. It makes a change from constantly moving to avoid fights or inadvertently getting involved in them, that's for sure."

"Well, I don't know about you but I actually quite enjoyed it back on Naboo and we got very creative in dealing with the battle droids in the hangar. I'm not one for hanging around personally. I prefer to confront a problem head on." Jaina told Harry.

"Sometimes, just confronting a problem head on is not the best way of going about a situation and, sometimes it's simply not possible. Then, I think you know that, even if you don't know that you know that." Harry said with a look that she couldn't discern. "Mind you, you didn't come and get me for a chit chat. Lead the way, Miss Solo." Harry then said to her, somewhat cheekily. "What have you two decided to get? I somehow doubt that they're going to be as nice as the Queen's ship."

"From what I remember from my teachings, Naboo generally prefers their ships to be elegant. Rey and I went for a couple of ships that are customisable and not necessarily... elegant." Jaina replied. "Besides, it's easier to move around when you're on something that doesn't stand out so much."

"Now that's the kind of talk that someone I know back on my world would appreciate. Mind you, he was very paranoid about everything and everyone." Harry commented. "Didn't stop a murderer and torturer from impersonating him though."

The pair walked into the second hand ship dealer and met up with Rey. "He didn't get too relaxed, did he?" Rey asked Jaina.

"I wish I was." Harry replied. "If have to do anymore fighting any time soon, or even much more of anything else, just know that I won't be happy about it."

"Of that, I have no doubt." Rey replied.

"So what have you two got for me to shrink?" Harry asked the pair of them.

"We've got a pair of Y T thirteen hundred's for you to do your thing on. They're not exactly in the best conditions but given your abilities and what we intend to do with them, we're sure that they're going to be amazing once we're done working on them." Jaina told Harry and they led Harry to a large pair of ships. They were scuffed up, clearly well used and had some evident scorch marks sporadically dotted around the hulls.

"Woah...!" Harry said as he saw the ships. They were evidently bulkier than the Queen's ship and looked more durable too.

"There are ships bigger than these. Don't get too impressed by them." Rey told Harry.

"It isn't the size that counts but what you do with it." Harry quipped. He wasn't looking but his offhand remark had Rey and Jaina momentarily blushing and he was unaware of the innuendo he'd just said. "I remember when I was eleven, I had to fight off a teacher in an effort to protect a powerful artefact. I don't know if it was skill or luck, I'm pretty sure that it was pure luck, but I won."

"Come on, let's shrink these things and get ready to leave." Rey said before they could distract themselves any further. Harry got his wand out and within moments, the two ships were shrunk down until they were the size where they could be held by a finger or two and a thumb. However...

"Why can't I pick these up?" Jaina asked as she was failing and straining to pick up the two miniaturised spaceships.

She looked at Harry. He looked at her, knowing that she'd forgotten something. "You forgot about one crucial detail. I did it on Naboo." He gave her a chance to remember what she had forgotten but she couldn't remember. There had been so much going on in the last few days that she simply forgot what else Harry had done to the tank. "I also have to lighten up the ships considerably. Just like I did with the tank."

"Oh yeah..." Jaina replied. "I could probably use the force to achieve the same effect but I wouldn't risk our escape by having everything else be too heavy. I think you've got the better skillset here Harry."

"If you say so." Harry then cast a spell on the two ships. "There you are, two ships, shrunk down and as light as feathers." Harry received appreciative nods from Rey and Jaina as they picked up the two now shrunken ships.

The trio began to leave the building and one of the workers called out to them. "Do you want to fly your ships away from here or do you want us to fly them to a destination of your choice?"

"No need. We're taking them with us." Harry replied. Rey and Jaina quickly showed the worker the shrunken and lightened ships. The worker looked at the objects in Rey and Jaina's hands with complete and utter bewilderment, pointing vaguely at them. He then ran to where the ships had been and saw that the ships had gone. With a small, disbelieving laugh, the worker collapsed like a jelly to the ground. At least he was paid handsomely before he collapsed.

---

The trio split up with Rey and Jaina returning to the Queen's ship and Harry re-joining Qui-Gon at Watto's shop. There Watto freed Anakin and his mother, giving custody of them to Qui-Gon and Harry respectively as well as control of the explosive transmitters that resided in their bodies. Harry paid Watto a lot of money for Shmi but felt it was worth it, especially for Anakin's sake. Harry and Qui-Gon immediately deactivated the explosives but set about removing them properly later as they didn't have the time or resources to locate and remove them there and then. Once that was done, Harry and Qui-Gon returned to the Skywalker residence. Anakin and Qui-Gon went away to sell Anakin's podracer whilst Harry and Shmi packed up hers and Anakin's belongings. Anakin was reluctant to lose his podracer and Harry could sympathise with Anakin's feelings but Anakin agreed that he and his mother could do with the money.

"How does it feel to be free?" Harry asked Shmi a little while after Anakin and Qui-Gon had left.

Shmi looked at Harry in complete surprise. She was certainly hoping that Anakin would be freed but held little hope that she herself would ever be free again. "What did you say?" She asked, not believing what he had said.

"I asked you how does it feel to be free?" Harry replied. "Qui-Gon and I freed you and Anakin. You were right when you said that gambling was a weakness around here."

Shmi went up to Harry and tearfully gave him a hug. Harry stood there like a deer in headlights for a brief moment before slowly returning the hug. He heard her speak tearily and gratefully, "Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!"

"It's not a problem... really. You're welcome though." Harry responded.

"Why would you free us though?"

"Because you and Anakin are kind people. No one should be a slave. I can't speak about Qui-Gon's reasoning but I grew up without my mum and dad. She was murdered trying to protect and I wound up growing up with relatives who treated me like Watto and whoever your master was before him treated you. I don't want Anakin to be like me... an orphan with lingering authority issues."

Qui-Gon and Anakin came through the front door of the hovel and Anakin seemed amazed at the money he was now holding in his hands. "Mom, we sold the pod. Look at all the money we have."

"That's wonderful Ani."

"You've both been freed." Qui-Gon announced. Anakin was stunned whilst Shmi knew already because of Harry.

"What?!" Anakin asked Qui-Gon in shock.

"You're no longer slaves." Qui-Gon told Anakin.

Anakin turned to his mother. "Did you hear that?"

Shmi smiled at her son. "Now you can make your dreams come true, Ani. You're free." She said to him. She then turned to Qui-Gon, "Will you take him with you? Is he to become a Jedi?"

"Yes. Our meeting was not a coincidence. Nothing happens by accident." Qui-Gon told her.

"You mean I get to come with you in your starship?" Anakin asked in amazement. He was still trying to take in everything he was being told.

"So does your mother." Harry interrupted.

Anakin and Qui-Gon looked at Harry momentarily before Qui-Gon knelt down before Anakin. "Anakin, training to become a Jedi is not an easy challenge. And if you succeed, it's a hard life." He told the young boy warningly.

Anakin's eyes and face shone with determination. "But I want to go and do it. It's what I've always dreamed of doing." Anakin turned to his mother. "Can I go, Mom?"

"Anakin, this path has been placed before you; the choice is yours alone."

Anakin thought about what he'd been told as he looked at his mother. "I want to do it." He said with complete nervousness and determination.

"Then pack your things. We haven't much time." Qui-Gon said to Anakin.

"Yippee!" Anakin said in celebration.

"Don't worry about packing up your stuff Anakin, me and your mum have already done that. There's actually just one thing we have to sort out." Harry informed Anakin and, by extension, Qui-Gon.

"What's that?" Anakin asked the older boy.

"Your droid, robot thing. See Threepio, right?"

"Yes. Is Mom coming with us?"

"Of course she is. That is unless she really wants to stay here?" Harry said, taking a knowing look at Shmi.

"No, no. I'm definitely coming along on this starship of yours." Shmi replied instantly.

"Good. Now, shall we go and sort out Threepio?" Harry asked the younger boy. Anakin nodded enthusiastically and the pair quickly walked into Anakin's room.

Anakin's bedroom was now largely empty with only a deactivated C-3PO standing up on some kind of device that Harry presumed helped Threepio keep himself powered up. "Did you want me to activate him, Harry?"

"I think that is a good idea. I've got an idea on how to transport him to the ship but I want him to know what the idea is first." Harry replied.

"You know that whatever you think you need to do with him, you could just go ahead and do it." Anakin pointed out

"If he's capable of thinking by himself, then he's capable of giving me his opinion." Harry commented. He then added, "And from what I've heard from him, he's very capable of giving his opinion at anytime."

Anakin turned Threepio on. Threepio woke up, seeming startled, "Oh! Oh my, oh. Hello Master Anakin, hello Master Harry."

Harry shivered and commented aloud to himself, "Me being called a master feels completely wrong."

Anakin heard the comment but ignored it and focused on the protocol droid. "Threepio, we're all going away on a starship."

C-3PO interrupted Anakin before he finished speaking, "I wish you and Mistress Shmi well but I would prefer it if I were a little more... completed. I'd also wish to know what will become of me once you're gone?"

Anakin snickered for a moment before replying to his protocol droid. "Threepio, when I say we're all going on a starship, I mean all of us. You're coming with us."

"Oh thank the maker! I'm glad to join you on your travels, Master Anakin but I worry about how I will find space travel..."

"Threepio. I need you to stop speaking for a moment. Harry wants your opinion on something." Anakin told Threepio firmly. Threepio promptly shut up and looked at Harry. Anakin nodded at Harry, wordlessly telling him to go ahead.

"Threepio, I know you aren't completed yet but I've got a way for transporting to our ship. I'd like your permission to do it before I do it though."

"What is it that you want to do, Master Harry?" C-3PO asked the young wizard.

"I'm going to shrink you down and when we reach the ship, I'll restore you to normal size. We'll deactivate you so you can preserve your power and so you don't get freaked out during the whole process." Harry explained to the protocol droid.

"How is that possible?" Threepio asked Harry confusedly.

"Remind me to tell you about my world and wizards at some point. Also, I think that I'd love to see your face if your face could actually express your emotions. Anyway, we're kind of on a timer and I need answer like... right now." Harry replied to Threepio.

"Yes you may shrink me, Master Harry." Threepio said after a quick moment or two of thinking.

"Thank you Threepio." Anakin told his loyal protocol droid gratefully.

"We'll see you at the final destination Threepio." Harry told C-3PO before nodding to Anakin. Anakin then pressed the same switch or button that had activated the half completed droid and C-3PO became lifeless again. Harry then pulled his wand out and gestured for Anakin to move out of the way. Anakin complied with Harry's instruction and once Anakin was out of the way, Harry cast the necessary spell, "Reducio." C-3PO shrank until he was the size of a tiny figurine.

"Woah!" Anakin exclaimed as Harry pocketed his wand.

"There... that should do it." Harry remarked to himself before turning to the other boy. "I'll undo what I did when we're on the ship."

"Do you think that Jedi can do what you just did?" Anakin asked Harry out of curiosity.

"I've only known Qui-Gon and about the Jedi for a few days so I couldn't say for certain. However, I imagine that if they could do what I can do, they'd have shown it by now." Harry answered. He was sure that the Jedi had abilities that were similar to some spells or served the same function as other spells but he'd not seen any evidence that they had abilities that could do the exact same things that he or other wizards could do, even if he still didn't know everything about the Jedi.

Anakin nodded. He was somewhat disappointed by the answer but he could accept it. He placed C-3PO in a rucksack made from a cloth material of some kind and looked around the room to see if anything else needed to be packed. "I think that everything in here that I want or need to take has been packed. Let's go back and join my mom and Qui-Gon."

As the pair went to regroup with Qui-Gon and Shmi, Harry noticed an envelope on the table in the kitchen. Harry slowly walked up to it and called to Shmi. "Shmi? Who left this envelope here?"

"You mean that thing made from that papery material? That horrid thing from the other night delivered it here while everyone else was out. I don't recognise the writing on it though." Shmi replied.

Harry understood that she was talking about Jurzacka. "Don't worry about the writing. I recognise the language on it." Indeed, the language on the envelope was English. He didn't recognise the handwriting but he could have a reasonable guess as to who wrote the words on the envelope. 'From me to me (or whoever needs it, I guess)' Harry was curious as to what the other Rey had placed inside the envelope. It felt like it had weight to it but was not ridiculously heavy and it felt like it could be held in even a child's hand. Other than that, Harry had no clue what was inside it. He pocketed the envelope and re-joined Anakin, Qui-Gon and Shmi, almost ready to depart.

---

Harry found himself standing with Qui-Gon about quarter of an hour later whilst Anakin and Shmi said goodbye to Kitster and the old woman who they'd encountered when they first entered the settlement. Qui-Gon patiently waited for Anakin and Shmi while Harry was more on edge. Quite understandably, Harry did not want a repeat of what happened earlier in the day. Nevertheless , Harry was feeling inquisitive and wanted to learn more about the Jedi order. "Qui-Gon?" Harry asked.

"Yes, Harry?" The Jedi master replied.

"Where do the Jedi come from?"

"Are you asking about the order as a whole or just about Jedi individually?"

Harry was uncertain of what answer he wanted to hear. "Both... I guess."

"Well I couldn't say exactly where the Jedi first came to be. There are a number of planets that scholars and Jedi contend to be the original birth place of our order. And the current generation of the Jedi is so many generations removed from the first Jedi that we could give you an definitive answer and still be entirely wrong about it. As for individual members of the order, they come from all over the galaxy. I think I was born on Coruscant but I'm not entirely sure. I know that when I was less than a year old, I was brought to the Jedi temple on Coruscant."

"You never knew your parents?" Harry asked, taken by surprise by what Qui-Gon told him.

"All Jedi are taught to forgo all familial attachments and attachments more generally. We're taught about the dangers that such attachments can bring." Harry really wanted to say something in disagreement but Qui-Gon beat him to the punch. "Even though I cannot sense you in the force Harry, I can sense that you disagree with that teaching of ours. I'd be interested in debating this with you at some point but I'm afraid that will have to wait."

Harry was confused by what he meant until he saw Anakin and Shmi approach them. "We're done with the goodbyes. Should we get to your ship?" Shmi said to the pair.

Anakin looked morose and looked like he was going to shed a tear as they began to walk out of the settlement. "Are you alright, Anakin?" Harry asked the younger boy.

"Yes." Anakin replied unconvincingly.

Harry looked at Anakin sympathetically. "You know, it's not goodbye. Not really. It's just... a fond farewell until the next time."

"You think so?"

"I get the feeling that you'll be back one day and end the slavery on this planet, once and for all. One day." Harry replied as he looked on to the horizon. Tatooine was a fascinating place but Harry was glad to be leaving it very soon. It had become a very trying experience at the end of their time there. As they made their way further out of Mos Espa, Harry got the nasty feeling that they were being watched by someone who they didn't want to find them. He was also hearing a repeating noise behind them. "Qui-Gon... I'm not sure if I'm being paranoid or not but I'm getting the feeling that we're being followed and not very subtly either."

"I think your senses are doing you credit, Harry. I'm sensing it as well." Qui-Gon replied darkly. Barely a moment later, Qui-Gon and Harry sprung into action with Harry immobilising the stalker in mid-air and Qui-Gon splitting it down the middle with his lightsabre.

"What is it?" Anakin and Harry asked Qui-Gon simultaneously.

"A probe droid. Very unusual." Qui-Gon replied. He then knelt down and quickly analysed the design of it. "It's not like anything I've seen before. Come on." He then began running in the direction of the ship, prompting Harry, Shmi and Anakin to follow suit.

"I'm really not liking my day!" Harry said angrily as they ran into the vast desert. Harry, and Anakin and Shmi, were grateful that he decided to lighten the bags and the loads within them that they were carrying before they left.

---

The four of them approached the ship, running as fast as they could. They'd been running for miles however and Anakin and Shmi were beginning to lag and stumble. Further more, the sound of a fast approaching vehicle grew closer and closer although it was unclear how close it was. "Qui-Gon, sir, wait, we're tired." Anakin called out.

Harry turned around first to check on the Skywalkers but was horrified to see some dark cloaked figure on a speeder bike rapidly approaching. "Fuck!" Harry exclaimed loudly.

Qui-Gon had also noticed the figure quickly bearing down on them on his speeder bike. "Drop down!" He called to Shmi and Anakin and they did as he told them. It was just in time too for the speeder bike swept over them and the dark cloaked figure jumped off the bike and ignited what appeared to be its own lightsabre in mid-air, attempting to cut down Qui-Gon before even touching the ground and only just narrowly failing to cut down the Jedi Master. Harry also had to dodge the speeder bike and dove to the side, grazing his cheek, one of his hands and one of his knees in the process. Quickly getting back up, Harry spat out some sand that had entered his mouth and sought out Anakin and Shmi who had also gotten back up but were bewildered by the fight taking place and were almost like deer caught in headlights. "Get to the ship, tell them to take off!" The fight Qui-Gon was in was a fierce one and it was kicking up sand and destroying the rocks around them.

"Come on, you heard Qui-Gon, let's get the hell out of here." Harry said to Anakin and Shmi as he shoved them towards the ship. The dark cloaked figure was evidently on the offensive and Qui-Gon was struggling to defend himself.

"Can't you do something Harry?" Anakin asked as they ran towards the ship.

Harry had considered firing a few spells at the dark cloaked figure but he was seeing how fast the duel was being fought and it was going at such a pace that it would've been risky. Too risky for Harry's liking. "I could but I run the risk of hitting Qui-Gon instead of the beast he's fighting and it could make things worse for all of us. Just run to the ship!" The dark cloaked figure was eventually caught in a sabre lock with Qui-Gon and noticed the lack of force presence in the raven haired boy that was running towards the ship. His master had told him about a boy with unique abilities. Even as he fought the Jedi, he wondered if this lack of presence in the force was a natural ability of the boy, therefore justifying his master's orders to capture the boy. He weighed up his options in a split second and decided to bend his master's instructions. He got out a pair of knife-like weapons with one hand while maintaining the sabre lock with the other and threw them at the raven haired boy, throwing them seconds apart from each other. The first one thrown struck Harry in the back around the abdominal area. The other one thrown struck Harry in the calf, just below the back of his knee. Harry cried out in pain and swore angrily. "Oh fucking hell! You've got to be kidding me!" He collapsed on the ground as the new injuries accumulated with the injuries from earlier. Anakin and Shmi moved to assist him but he waved them off, "Don't worry about me, just get to the fucking ship! I'm right behind you!" Sensing he was in no mood to argue, Shmi and Anakin did as he instructed. He got himself off the ground despite the pain he was in and the weapons embedded in his leg and back and quickly limped towards the ship. The dark cloaked figure was back to focusing almost his full attention on Qui-Gon, both hands on his lightsabre, but he could see that the raven haired boy had been injured but was still moving. Unfortunately for the dark cloaked figure, his entire attention now had to be focused on the Jedi master, lest the Jedi master suddenly gain the upper hand. Anakin and Shmi made it on to the ship and passed on Qui-Gon's order. The ship began to lift off but Harry was not on board yet. Harry rushed as best he could to the ship but he recognised that simply walking on was impossible. "Bloody hell!" Harry exclaimed loudly as he jumped on to the ramp of the ship and pain shot through him. He landed on the ramp somewhat awkwardly, his trailing foot clipping the edge of the ramp and causing him to land on his chest. Harry felt himself slipping down the ramp so he grabbed hold of part of the door mechanism and held on for dear life. The ship got higher and the ship got closer to the fight between Qui-Gon and the dark cloaked warrior. The two warriors could hear the ship fly over them, several feet off the ground. Before the dark cloaked assassin knew it, Qui-Gon had disengaged and jumped on to the ramp of the ship, helping Harry get into the distinctively shiny ship. The ship began to go higher in the air and build up speed but the dark cloaked warrior was relentless and determined. He ran fast across the desert ground and leapt high into the air. The dark cloaked warrior immediately initiated another sabre lock on Qui-Gon and Qui-Gon was forced down, kneeling on one knee. Harry, still lying on his stomach, managed to turn around and face in the direction of the two fighters. He aimed his wand at the dark cloaked figure, prepared to fire off a spell. "Oh no you don't. Depulso!" Harry fired off a banishing charm at the dark cloaked warrior and it caught him by surprise when the spell connected. The dark cloaked assassin was sent flying off the ramp although he managed to land well on his two feet. The dark cloaked warrior watched angrily as the ship flew away and he deactivated his lightsabre. With the immediate threat now removed, Qui-Gon entered the ship proper and he closed the ramp before collapsing to the floor. Qui-Gon was breathing hard and he was covered in sweat and dirt. Harry was much worse off than him though for he was also breathing hard and caked in dirt, sweat and blood with a pair of knife-like weapons in his back and leg and the blaster bolt wound from earlier just for good measure. "I just wanted one day where I could experience something new in peace. Instead, I get shot at, get knife things thrown at me and get my head bashed by some rocks." Harry ranted angrily to himself. "It's really quite a miracle that my glasses survived intact through all of that."

Anakin, Obi-Wan, Jaina and Leia rushed into the room and saw the exhausted and collapsed duo of Harry and Qui-Gon on the floor. "Are you alright?" Anakin asked with concern.

"I think so." Qui-Gon replied reassuringly.

Harry, on the other hand, was virtually a complete wreck from the young man that had started the day and the tone in his voice showed this plain and clearly. "I'm bloody not. I've still got two knives in the back of my body."

Leia immediately took charge of Harry's care, "Jaina, stay with Harry and get those weapons out of his back and leg. I'm going to go and ask Padmé if it would be okay for us to borrow the Queen's bed while we take care of Harry. It might be more comfy for him and we'll have to put up with the hard floor for the time being." Leia then rushed to find Padmé and inform her about the situation.

Meanwhile, Obi-Wan was questioning his master about the fight that had just taken place. "What was it?" There was definitely an edge of concern in Obi-Wan's voice.

"I'm not sure..." Qui-Gon took in a few big gulps of air, "...but he was well trained in the Jedi arts. My guess is that he was after the Queen..."

"I wonder if I was also on his bucket list then?" Harry asked sourly.

"What do you mean, Harry?" Jaina and Qui-Gon asked at the same time.

"When Rey and I went to see Mr X and get roped into hunting down some gangs, who were hunting me down by the way, he mentioned that other parties had been told about me. He said that he and his group suspected that the Sith had found out about me."

All the Jedi in the hallway widened their eyes in alarm. "Are you sure that he said Sith, Harry? It's been believed that the Sith have been extinct for a millennia."

Harry nodded as best as he could. "Positive. He spoke about them as though they were alive and well. I think that he also implied that they were operating in the shadows."

Qui-Gon turned to his apprentice, "You said that you sensed that there was something elusive on the Trade Federation ship, Obi-Wan. I apologise to you for dismissing your worries then, my young apprentice. However, if Harry is correct, then that would explain the elusive presence you felt and the dark warrior who was after us just now."

Anakin looked worried. He had only heard tales of the Sith but knew that they were no good. "What are we going to do about it?"

Obi-Wan looked at Anakin, giving him a 'Who are you' look. Qui-Gon considered their options but was uncertain of the correct course of action. There was only one thing that he could think of at the present moment, "We will be patient." Qui-Gon then realised that Obi-Wan and Anakin hadn't been formally introduced due to the prior crisis. "Anakin Skywalker, meet Obi-Wan Kenobi."

Anakin smiled, Obi-Wan smiling a moment later. "You're a Jedi too? Pleased to meet you." Anakin and Obi-Wan then shook hands and Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon smiled at each other.

Harry groaned in pain, ending the somewhat positive moment. "Now I'm glad to be back on this thing and we're out of immediate danger but I need to get somewhere more comfortable because I'm in agony and I'm not in the best of moods right now." He was struggling get up again. He felt weak and drained of energy.

Leia came back into the hallway and immediately saw Harry trying and failing to get up. "Good news. The Queen has allowed us to use her bed on the ship for a few hours at least. That should give us time to patch up yours and Rey's injuries and clean them too."

"Do you want to move him there now?" Jaina asked Leia.

"I am here you know." Harry said grumpily. He was ignored. It had also become apparent that he was beyond exhausted.

"Yes. Can you help me get him there?" Leia answered Jaina. Instead of speaking, Jaina nodded vigorously. The pair of them then grabbed Harry by the shoulders, lifted him up and dragged him towards the Queen's bedroom, where he finally, pretty much, passed out.

---

Harry knew that he was lying flat on his face on the Queen's bed but he was still very drained of energy and incredibly tired. He thought he could hear voices speaking in hushed tones however he couldn't make out who was speaking to who in his tired state. He could hear some of what was being said though.

"How is he...?"

"He's somehow fine. I'm no medical expert but I think that most of these injuries are minor at worst... some of it is superficial..."

"The boy seems familiar... no, not him, the younger one..."

"In your time... let's say that he's much more familiar than you realise."

"What are your thoughts about...?"

"Vader stood by as my world was destroyed. It hasn't happened yet...I could stop it if I knew anything about him."

"Who was that...?"

"I think that our hist... Maul."

"What about Anak...?"

"It's like being in the presence of a legend at the start of..."

Harry wasn't sure if he was imagining what he was hearing but his thoughts about what he was hearing triggered memories from towards the end of his third year at Hogwarts. The year he found out about his father's friends and the year he found out the truth about his Godfather.

'Don't you see? Professor McGonagall told me what awful things have happened when wizards have meddled with time... There's nothing we can do! We came back to help Sirius. We're not supposed to be doing anything else!'

'I saw me but I thought I was my dad! It's OK!... I knew I could do it this time because I'd already done it... Does that make sense?'

'We'll see each other again. You are – truly your father's son, Harry...'

Harry looked around the room. It was just a blur to him although he could tell well enough that he'd been flipped over in his sleep and was still lying on the Queen's bed. His glasses had been removed and were somewhere although he couldn't tell where. Harry could hear a song playing in the room and hear a couple of people shuffling around the room. His mouth was dry from a recent lack of drink. He could see a blur of someone leaning over him but he couldn't tell who it was. He couldn't be sure but they must've assumed that he was still in a state of unconsciousness for it didn't look like the person who'd leant over him was wearing a top. The person leaning over him gave his forehead a wipe with a damp cloth or something; Harry just knew it was damp and it was a fabric material of some kind. "He'll be fine Padmé. I'm sure he's tougher than he looks." He heard a voice say.

"This is worse than his injuries on Naboo, Sabé. There, he looked like he could heal them by himself." The person who was leaning over him moved away and out of his sight. Harry could guess that one of the people in the room was Padmé. He was confused as to who Sabé was though. Was she another handmaiden? Was that the Queen's first name? "Here, he looks completely helpless. If I could hug him better or produce healing tears to heal him, then I would."

"Unfortunately, you are not such a creature or person. I'm sure he just needs rest and some time to heal. It's a shame that I don't think we have a Bacta tank on board that we can quickly drop him into." This Sabé person replied. Harry could hear some rustling nearby and assumed that Padmé and whoever this Sabé person was were getting dressed.

Harry suddenly found his head was pounding. "Ugh, oh my head!"

"Harry!" Padmé said in surprise. She rushed over to him and hugged him like her life depended on it. Harry groaned in pain and Padmé let go of him. "Sorry."

"Don't worry about it. Could you get me my glasses and a drink though? I'm parched and I can't see where I'm looking."

"Of course." Padmé replied. She scrambled to find Harry's glasses and passed them and a cup of water or juice to him. Meanwhile, Sabé assisted Harry in getting into a sitting position.

Harry, once he could sit up, grabbed the glasses from Padmé. He put on the glasses and grabbed the cup from Padmé, gulping down its contents without a care for how he presented himself. "Thank you." He said gratefully.

"How are you, Harry?" Sabé asked the young wizard.

"Like I've been run-over and bitten by a hippogriff." Padmé and Sabé looked at each other in confusion and Harry explained what a hippogriff was, "They're animals on my world. Think of them as a cross between a predatory bird and a horse. You have horses, right? Got four legs, can be used for racing, farming, transportation..." Padmé and Sabé nodded. "Okay, that's good. I wonder if this is another coincidence of evolution, I wonder? Anyway, hippogriffs are very proud creatures and they can fly." Harry then looked at Sabé, wondering why she seemed familiar to him. "Have we met before?"

Sabé looked slightly amused. "In a matter of speaking." Sabé replied, refusing to elaborate any further.

"Are you Padmé's twin sister or something? You two look remarkably alike." Harry asked after noticing a distinctive similarity between them.

"You'll get the answer in due time, Harry." Sabé replied, not giving away any information to Harry. Harry was unhappy that he wasn't being told something. Even something that may or may not have been trivial. Harry had been sick of secrets, ever since the summer before his fifth year at Hogwarts.

"There is something that we would like to tell you, Leia, Rey Jaina and Mara. If you can go into the other room, we can tell you there as they're in there too." Padmé told him. He nodded and gingerly got off the bed, making his way into the next room.

"You're up." Mara said to him as he entered the room. She wasn't asking a question; merely stating the obvious.

"Obviously." Harry responded grumpily.

"Is everything okay, Harry?" Jaina asked.

"I'm not sure. I had some thoughts run through my head whilst I was out of it and wanted to ask you four about them." Harry told her stoically.

"What makes you think we can help you with it?" Leia asked. Padmé and Sabé entered the room and immediately caught on that the mood in the room was...tense.

Harry continued, unaware that Padmé and Sabé were now in the room. "I'm sure that you four are familiar with what I'm going to ask you. And I'd like an honest answer." Rey, Jaina, Leia and Mara looked at each other wondering what Harry was going to ask, hoping that he hadn't caught any of what they'd said in their different, hushed up conversations. The question they got from Harry was one they'd been dreading.

"Who is Darth Vader?"

A/N- I like a little cliff-hanger, do you? I don't think that the next chapter will be as long as this one and it definitely won't be action packed. Hopefully, I'll have it done in about one or two months, three tops.

I also enjoyed writing the Prisoner of Azkaban flashback dialogue. I may or may not be leaning on Prisoner of Azkaban more in future. Keep reading to find out.

A/A/N- When I approached the writing of chapter four or five, I also came up with a music playlist that the characters would or could play when they needed a moment to decompress or express their emotions without expressing them or simply enjoy when they felt like it. When I came up with the list, I composed the playlist as though I were Mr X coming up with it. I might list the full playlist of songs at the start of the next chapter in that chapter's author's notes so that those who want to know what the tracks on the playlist are may know.

On the playlist, featured in this chapter are the following: Hold Me Now (By The Thompson Twins), Calling to the Night (by Natasha Farrow), Heavens Divide (by Donna Burke), Penny Lover (by Lionel Richie) and although I didn't expressly mention it in the story itself (which might get some complaints about that, I can almost hear them) The Man Who Sold The World (Midge Ure version) These are songs that I really enjoy, I hope you enjoy them too (or at the very least respect my music choices)

I hope you have enjoyed this and please review. I'll be back.