Disclaimer: I don't really need to put one here. Honestly, by the time JKR's and GL's lawyers find this piece, argue about who gets to sue me for what parts and for how much, I'll be pushing up the daisies for a long time already! Nah…Actually I've made so much money on both HP and SW merchandise over the years that this one is for free - enjoy it, kids!
A/N: Ok, this plot bunny has been bugging me since the time I read JKR's response to comments that the stories of HP and Star Wars were quite similar in many aspects (can't find where it was now, but I'm certain I've read it). JKR laughed it off. That made me think that: a) she's either never seen the movies, or b) she has no clue anymore what she's writing about. This isn't flame towards her, I'm just wondering out loud.
Btw, hope the formatting won't screw up the starting crawl…
Don't hate me, hate the typos!
at the same time in a dream very, very close...
Harry Potter: A New Hope
I was a dark time for every peace-loving
being in the galaxy. After Lord Voldemort
had all but destroyed the Order of the Phoenix,
no-one able to oppose him was left. Voldemort,
through his ruthless Death Eaters, held the galaxy
by the throat with an iron fist with the dreaded
Darth Severus, Lord Voldemort's right hand,
carrying out the most important missions and
most severe punishments.
But unknown to the Dark Lord, a new hope had
been born on the outskirts of the known space
in the form of a child - now a young man. Living
with his aunt and uncle, young Harry Potter had
no idea what the past, future and fate had in store for him...
'Great! Just bloody great!' the young woman was raging inside her little cell aboard the Death Star. 'Well, Granger, this just topped the list of your great ideas, big time!'
Hermione Granger, or rather, herself as the incarnation of Princess Mione, was quite angry with herself - again. The reason was pretty much the same as before, too, but now with the added realization that it was never a good idea to go visit a boy in his dream world. Of course, the idea of using a magical potion to put Harry in a deep, enchanted sleep and then take the second potion herself had seemed like another of her brilliant ideas at the time.
'I mean, that's what the Dreamer and the Watcher potions were intended for - to help understand what goes on in another persons head. How should I have known this would happen?' she asked the universe at large.
There had, naturally, been a warning about it in the Moste Potente Potions book. If one would read carefully through the ancient gibberish, it would go something like... 'But one must be careful with the Watcher - for should the one who has taken the Dreamer think of that person, he would be drawn and trapped in whatever form the dreamer currently envisions him in.' 'Or her, as it happens to be,' Hermione thought bitterly. She gave a sigh of frustration and decided to do what she could. At the moment that seemed to be limited to checking out her cell and checking out...herself. She was pleased to see that she herself looked exactly like she was in the normal world - nothing out of shape or, thank Merlin, enlarged. Harry seemed to like her just fine like she was. The clothes were a bit of a problem, though.
'When the Hell did Leia ever wear anything so...revealing? Wait, right - Jabba's palace. Crap. This looks like nothing more than a stylish silk bra, knickers and a cloak! Am I expected to appear in front of others like this? People will think I'm either the princess of Persia 3 or a model from the Victoria sector!' she wondered. 'Well, at least I'm a princess!' she thought happily. 'One fantasy down, several thousand more to go!' Then, 'A princess who's home world is about to be blown into a thousand pieces...CRAP! I mean, make up your mind, already, Harry! What is this going to be? A normal dream, a nightmare or a sexual fantasy?!'
Without receiving any replies she decided to just sit down for a while, maybe take a nap and wait for a young man who's 'a bit short to be an imperial stormtrooper' to rescue her. Unfortunately at that moment the cell door hissed open and a tall man in dark clothes accompanied by two Death Eaters walked in. Hermione looked with fear and surprise at the tall man - his black robes and swirling cloak, pale face and dark, greasy hair. 'SNAPE?! Shouldn't he be out torturing some poor people somewhere, or Harry, for that matter? What the hell is he doing here? It's supposed to be his nightmare, not mine!' She got the right answer immediately after thinking of the scene in the movie. 'Oh, goodie! I get to be tortured by Darth Snape! Seems that we're following the script to a degree here,' she had time to think, before the man opened his mouth.
"And now, Your Highness, we will discuss the location of your hidden rebel base...Legilimens!"
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In the remotest corner of the dream a young man was gazing longingly at the twin sunset of Tatooine, imagining what a life full of adventure and excitement would be like. Being forced to endure this monotonous life of a Tatooine moisture farmer was about as fascinating as watching the paint dry - on planet Tatooine that had two suns one never knew it was going to dry up or just vaporize from the heat.
The ground started to vibrate slightly and he heard the distant rumble of some gargantuan vehicle roaming across the desert towards them. 'Finally, the junk dealers showed up at last,' he though. He pushed away his dreams and went to fetch his uncle. He returned shortly with a fat, mustached man and together they watched the gigantic machine roll to their desert home and come to a stop.
"I want you to keep your eyes on our droids that are roaming around, boy," the fat older man ordered the other. "Every time those bloody goblins show up one of them just seems to disappear without a trace. Let's get the new droids quickly so they can wheel off our property ASAP!" he continued, as they approached the "Grim Goods" as the local farmers had christened the rusting transport that acted as both a stronghold and a shop for the goblins.
"Doesn't seem like we got much of a choice this time," the young said.
"Harry! HARRY!" he heard a woman yell for him. He ran to the edge of the small crater that housed the small desert dwelling and leaned forward to peer over the edge. He saw his aunt stand in the middle of the small courtyard.
"What is it, aunt Petunia?" he called.
"Harry, tell your uncle, when he buys the translator to make sure it speaks mermese!"
"Ok, I'll remind him!" he called back. 'Mermese? On a desert planet? Crazy old bat," he thought to himself when he joined his uncle. The droid lineup wasn't usually something to get excited about, but sometimes there were quite a few interesting finds among the usual junk. Like today, for example. Luke was about as surprised as his uncle when they found what seemed to be a young girl - about 16 years old - among the droids. She was about 5'4 tall with tanned skin, red long hair and bright blue eyes. By human standards, that meant she was quite an eye-candy. She was wearing a tight fitting flight-suit that didn't quite conceal her beautiful…"curves".
"What's this? Have the goblins taken to slave-trading now? What're you doing with those freaks, girl?" uncle Vernon demanded.
"You're mistaken, good sir - I'm not a human, but a high-tech cybernetic being - a human replica, if you like. That still qualifies me as a droid, sir. I'm GN-NE, or Ginny as some organic species find it more comfortable to pronounce," the - Harry found it hard to think about her as a droid - being said in a melodic, totally human voice that fit her perfectly.
"So what programming do you have?" Vernon asked suspiciously, gazing at the droid-replica-girl.
"I'm programmed with a wide range of skills, sir, and can learn anything that is needed. My primary function is understanding humans and their psychology," GN-NE recited quickly.
"I don't need a shrink!" Vernon scoffed and was about to move on. 'Well, that's what you think,' Harry thought bitterly for a moment before GN-NE continued.
"Of course, sir. But I'm also a very capable bodyguard, should the situation call for it - defensive abilities are another of my strongest abilities, as are my linguistic skills. I can understand and speak approximately six million different languages."
"Can you speak mermese?" Vernon seemed interested for the first time.
"Of course, sir, it's like a second language to me!" Ginny, as Harry now thought of her, replied instantly.
"Good." He turned to the goblin leader. "We'll take this one - now we only need a utility droid, preferably 'house-elf' class. Got any?"
"Excuse me, sir," Ginny interrupted. "If I may make a suggestion - that droid over there is in excellent condition. I have worked with him for a long time," she pointed at a short, round droid with a domed head. "He's D0-BE, or Dobby if you like." Meanwhile the little droid started to emit beeps and whistles in an excited tone.
"What's he saying?" Harry asked.
"Well, sir," Ginny replied in a thoughtful tone. "His current behavior can be described with one word - brownnosing."
"Oh."
"Ok, we're done here! Luke, take those two to the garage. I want them cleaned up before dinner!" Vernon gave him an order.
Cursing his uncle under his breath, he led the two new additions to the farms work-force to a small underground garage. The garage held all the necessary equipment to keep the droids in working condition in Tatooine's harsh environment - tools, spare parts, workbenches and even an oil bath. The small hangar in here also held a landspeeder and a currently in less than working condition small civilian aircraft.
"Ok, let's get you two cleaned up!" Suddenly he found himself before a dilemma. Though Ginny was an artificial being, she still looked every bit like a human girl. That made the current situation rather complicated. Luckily for him Ginny noticed his hesitation and correctly deducted the cause for it.
"Don't worry, sir, I'm perfectly capable of maintaining myself. I'll take care of myself later - let me help you go over Dobby for now," she said with an easy smile.
"Er, thanks," Harry managed. He turned to D0-BE - Dobby and started to check the little droid out. "Seems like you guys have seen a lot of action."
"With all we've been through, sometimes I'm amazed we're in as good a condition as we are, what with the Rebellion and all," Ginny sighed.
"You know about the Rebellion against the Empire?" Harry's interest in the two droids had peaked instantly.
"Yes, sir. That's how we came to be here, if you take my meaning, sir."
Harry had found a piece of something stuck in Dobby's datacard reader. He reached for one of the tools and started to dig it out.
"Well, my little friend, seems you got something jammed in there real good…" Harry used his weight to get the stubborn piece out of there - the piece suddenly came free and…
A small holographic image of the most beautiful girl Harry had ever seen appeared in front of him. A cloak that only left her face revealed covered her but it was enough to start his head spinning. The blue hologram didn't show what color her eyes, hair or skin were but Harry was certain he'd love them the moment he saw them. His heart was pulling him towards the image like a capital-ship grade tractor beam. Then…
"Help me, Albus Dumbledore, you're my only hope!" the small image said in a voice that knocked Harry's breath away. It sounded so familiar, so beautiful, so desperate.
"Who is she?" he whispered. "She's beautiful!"
"I believe she was a passenger aboard the ship we left as the imperials boarded it. I suppose she's been captured by now," Ginny said.
"Is there more to this?" Harry asked.
Dobby warbled out a long series of beeps.
"Hmm, he says that it's a part of a longer message to one Albus Dumbledore, a resident of these parts," Ginny translated.
"Albus Dumbledore?" Harry asked. "Haven't heard of him before, but there's a Brian Dumbledore - an old hermit who lives alone near the outskirts of the desert not that far from here. Maybe he knows of this Albus Dumbledore?"
Harry gazed longingly at the small figure repeating the phrase over and over. Somehow the fact that this beautiful stranger was calling someone else and not him her last hope made him feel very sad.
"Dobby, could you play the entire message for me?" he asked the small droid.
"I'm sorry, sir, but he says that he's been given a direct order to only show the full recording to this Albus Dumbledore. Droids of 'house-elf' model are known for their unwavering loyalty when carrying out such orders - I'm afraid he might self-destruct if he would be unable to fulfill those orders or forced to reveal the message to anyone but the intended receiver. I'm terribly sorry, sir," Ginny said.
"So if I would like to see the rest of it, it would have to happen in the presence of this Albus character?" Harry asked.
"Quite correct, sir. That would be well within the mission parameters."
"All right, then!" Harry said determinedly after a moment of consideration. "Tomorrow at first light we ride out. I hope Brian can help us in some way." Adventure had come to Tatooine and he wasn't about to let his one chance slip through his fingers.
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Harry found himself lying on the ground and the face of an old man not far from his own, looking at him with concern. He blinked the fuzziness away and took another look at the stranger.
"Brian? Brian Dumbledore?" he asked. "Boy am I glad to see you!"
"The desert is not a place to be traveled lightly, Harry - with all the angry centaurs running around," the old man reminded him in a kind voice. "Now tell me, young Harry - what brings you to this place?"
"You, actually, and this droid here," he said, pointing to D0-BE, who had managed to survive the encounter with the centaurs unharmed. "He says he has a message to an Albus Dumbledore. Do you know of him?"
"Albus Dumbledore? Oh,yes! He's me! But I haven't heard that name in a long, long time. We better get away from here - the centaurs are easy to scare off, but they usually return soon, and in bigger numbers."
Dobby started to squeal about something excitedly, bouncing around on his short legs.
"Right! Ginny!" Harry exclaimed. He ran down to the speeder where he had last seen the young - at least in appearance - girl.
He did not need to worry, though. When they got to the landspeeder they found her there unharmed - even more, there were quite a few unconscious or even probably dead centaurs lying on the ground.
"Harry, sir!" she called out to him the moment she saw him. "Are you unharmed?"
"Yes, I'm fine! I was more worried about you - are you ok?" Harry asked.
"I remain fully functional and unharmed, yes," she nodded. "Can I assume our business in these parts is concluded?" she pointed towards old Brian walking towards them.
"Yes, soon. We've been invited to his house for a chat - it's not safe out here, like we could see for ourselves."
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After a few moments, quite a few surprising facts were revealed to Harry that would change his life as he knew it forever. Tatooine might have been indeed one of the planets farthest planets from the bright center of the universe, but fate has a long reach indeed and none can escape it's grasp.
"My mum and dad were not killed by the Emperor!" Harry said. "They died in a speeder accident!"
"That's what your aunt and uncle told you. The truth is that both of your parents were very powerful wizards and part of the Order of the Phoenix. They believed in and fought for what was right - not what was easy. When Voldemort started his crusade for power they chose to oppose him. They managed to foil many of his plans, but eventually a student of mine - Darth Severus - betrayed them and thus in a way, killed them. The rest of the Order was destroyed quickly after that so no-one with power was left to oppose Voldemort's rise as the Emperor." Brian sighed, breathing out the old, bitter memories of friends long lost. "Only a few wizards remain, but their powers are not nearly enough to stop the Emperor."
"So there is no hope? The galaxy is doomed to suffer the evil of Voldemort and sooner or later even the Rebellion will be crushed?" Harry asked. "I can't believe this!"
"There is one hope, Harry," Brian continued rather hesitantly. "A prophecy was made a long time ago about a Chosen One - a being with such unimaginable power that when his powers were revealed, he would become a nexus of magic himself. It is foretold that the Chosen One will bring balance back to the magic and overthrow the rule of the Dark Side."
"What is a nexus of magic?" Harry asked him.
"Magic is like a field of energy that surrounds us and flows through us. Wizards have learned to control this energy - to shape it and make it do their bidding. Like this…" Brian waved his hand and said "Wingardium Leviosa!" To Harry's surprise a holocube from the table rose up in the air and remained floating there. "Powerful wizards do not even need to say the more simple incantations out loud - they can get the desired results by simply concentrating on them." The cube slowly drifted back to the table and landed in its previous resting place.
"A nexus is usually a place that is very strong in magic - it flows more easily there and is more easily accessible. The Chosen One from the prophecy, however, is a living being. A being around whom the magic swirls, in who's veins it runs, who's will it fulfills. With magic as with all powers if two equally strong powers come to bear against each other - like in a wizards duel, for example - they would cancel each other out. There's no other power even close to the one the Chosen One commands."
"Who is this Chosen One, then, and why hasn't he blasted Voldemort's arse off his throne, Brian? What is he waiting for?"
"Who knows? Maybe his next life? This is how these things happen, Harry. Being the Chosen One is like being in love - you just know you are. Bones to balls." Brian got up. "Which reminds me, I have something for you - your fathers lightsaber. An elegant weapon from a more civilized time - before the Empire."
"Anyway, I believe someone had an urgent message for me?" Brian gave Dobby a questioning look.
Dobby's holoprojector lit up and the image of the beautiful girl who had stolen Harry's heart the first moment he saw her appeared on the small table before them.
"Headmaster Dumbledore," she spoke. "Years ago you led the Order of the Phoenix against the growing darkness that was to become the Empire. Now I ask you to help us, the Rebellion, fight against it. I regret that I am unable to present this request in person, because my ship has fallen under attack and I'm afraid my mission to bring you to Hogwarts has failed. I have placed information vital to the Rebellion inside this droid. My friends in Hogwarts will know how to retrieve it. This is our most desperate hour. Help me, Albus Dumbledore, you're my only hope!" And with that, the message dissolved into a burst of static and disappeared. Albus leaned back and seemed to be deeply in though.
"You must come to Hogwarts with me if you want to become a wizard, Harry," he said after a moment.
"What? I can't go off with you! I can just imagine the look of ecstasy on my uncle's face when I tell him that!"
"I cant do this alone, Harry. I'm becoming too old for this. She needs your help!"
Harry felt like his heart was being ripped apart. Part of it wanted to just grab the old man and the droids, find the nearest spaceworthy ship and blast off towards Hogwarts to help that mysterious girl. The other part was afraid of the consequences if he did.
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'Funny how things turn out,' Harry thought while sipping his drink in the Mos Eisley cantina. 'Yesterday I was a moisture farmer yearning for excitement and adventure, desperate to get off this sandball - and today I have all that and it's not what I thought it would be. And now I'm a wizard in training, I've been introduced to this 8 foot tall feline humanoid - Crookshanks and are waiting for the captain of the "Hogwarts Express" - supposedly one of the fastest ships around. Funny…that's the word.'
A young man about his own age, but obviously much more experienced, slipped into the seat on the other side of the table.
"I'm Solo. Ron Solo."
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Time seemed to be set on the "fast-forward" setting. Just a moment ago they had met Ron and Crookshanks in landing bay 9 ¾ and been shot at by the imperial Death Eaters, the next moment outracing imperial battle cruisers, the one after that Harry was training with Albus and now they were all hiding in the hidden cargo compartments aboard the Hogwarts Express and being pulled inside a battle station the size of a moon.
"Here's where the fun begins…" Harry heard Ron's whisper, as the ship settled down in one of the many hangar bays.
Fun. Harry had learned a lot about fun. Mainly that it was having a drink in another star system whenever someone mentioned it.
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Harry couldn't believe his luck. He was here. And she was just behind this door. And he was about to open the door and see her in the flesh for the first time. And he was going to rescue her and they were going to live happily ever after - or however long the story goes. Ron was having a half-arsed conversation with someone over the prison block comm system, doing a fine job in confusing whoever had the misfortune of being on the other side and buying them some extra time. Harry figured they had caused a bit of a disturbance once they had opened fire in the front room and they didn't have long before some unwanted company arrived. He took a deep breath and pushed the button to open the door, then stepped inside. The sight of her almost made his heart stop.
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The slight breeze from the opening door had awakened her. For a moment she lied still on the hard surface of the cell's bed, then slowly opened her eyes.
'There you are at last!' she thought with a wide inward smile she was careful not to show on her face. 'Took you long enough!' He seemed to be totally petrified on the spot by the sight of her. 'Well, Mr. Potter, let's see how you like the fruits of your own fantasy!' she shifted slightly so the soft cloak that she had wrapped around herself to keep her warm slid off revealing about 85 percent of her skin. She nearly laughed out loud when the short figure almost dropped the futuristic rifle it was carrying.
"Aren't you a bit short for a Death Eater?" she asked, arching one eyebrow, just like the real thing.
"Oh, this…" Harry pulled his helmet off. "I'm Harry Potter, I'm here to rescue you!"
"You're what?"
"Here to rescue you! I got your 'house-elf' with me! I'm here with Albus Dumbledore!"
"Albus? He's here?!" 'That's a surprise,' she thought. 'Seems we have some changes in the script here…At least I'm not locked in a girls lavatory - now that would have been a major distraction from the heroic feel. What did he mean with 'my house-elf'? Anyway, if Professor Dumbledore is in this dream, I can't wait to see him again! He might only be a dream figure, but I'm certain he can still give us some useful advice!'
They ran out of the cell and nearly collided with Ron and Crookshanks. The hallway was thick with smoke and blaster fire.
"Can't get back that way! And there's no other way out of this that I know of!" Ron yelled to be heard above the whine of blasters and explosions.
"What the Hell do we do, then?" Harry yelled back.
"What?! You stormed the detention block of a battle station the size n a moon with no get-away plan?" Hermione thought she should yell at someone, too.
"The plan was to let the old man deactivate the beam trapping our ship and take off, not to go running around rescuing damsels in distress!" Ron shouted back at her.
"Well, look who's the damsel in distress now!" she shot back. "Guess I have to rescue you now!" She grabbed Harry's rifle and blasted a small grate next to Ron.
"What the hell?!" Ron screamed at her.
'Great, can't get along with him even in a dream,' Hermione thought. 'Funny how Harry always tries to stop us, but even he seems to realize there's no changing that.'
"Well, someone has to save our skins! Into the chute, fly boys!" she shouted and dived into the tunnel. After a long slide she was thrown into the infamous trash compactor. She got up, looked herself over for any injuries and promptly drew the cloak around her. 'Shit! Just amazing how transparent a wet fabric goes!' After a moment three others fell into the pit, splashing her with more water.
"Now let's get out of here before we're drowned or squeezed into a pancake - and don't even think about shooting the door! It's magnetically sealed!" she warned Ron.
"I wasn't going to…" Ron started indignantly, but was cut off by a knowing "Yeah, right," from her.
Suddenly the world turned into a blur and Hermione found herself along with Harry on a small ledge overlooking a big chasm. The doorway was now unreachably on the other side with the bridge controls destroyed.
'What happened?' she wondered? 'Dream flickering from scene to scene? That must be it…but why to this scene?' Then it dawned to her. 'That's where she kissed him for the first time! And on the cheek, like I did on that day in King's Cross. There are just too many similarities here…' Harry, meanwhile, had pulled a length of rope with a grappling hook attached to it from his belt. He threw it at one of the mechanical contraptions hanging above them and managed to catch it in his first try. 'Must be hero's luck,' Hermione smiled.
"Hold on tightly!" Harry told her. She put her hands around his neck and kissed him on his cheek. Harry looked at her surprisedly.
"For luck!" was all she said.
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They had managed to slip back into the hangar bay housing the Hogwarts Express undetected and found Ron and Crookshanks waiting for them. Suddenly the squad of Death Eaters guarding it turned and ran to one of the hallways in the far corner of the hangar, facing away from them. They took the chance immediately.
Almost instantly after entering the hangar Harry saw what had diverted the Death Eaters attention. It was Albus facing down the most notorious villain in the galaxy after the Emperor himself - Darth Severus. Their swords - the blue and red blades of energy - were currently held at the ready, each holding their attacks for the moment.
Albus glanced towards the hangar bay and saw that the younger ones had almost made it to the ship. He smiled - his work was done. The next moment he abandoned his defensive position and the ruby-red blade of Darth Severus terminated the life of the greatest white wizards ever to live.
"NO!!!" Harry yelled in denial and disbelief. He hadn't ever before seen anyone else killed so callously, without any thought of showing mercy. The shock of it made his body and soul go numb.
The Death Eaters had heard his anguished cry and turned around - the next moment deadly bolts of energy were flying all around them but none hitting, luckily. Harry started to return the fire, angrily picking off one Death Eater after the other.
"Come on, Harry! Come on!" he heard Mione's voice through the blaster fire. "It's too late for him! We have to go!"
He knew that, of course, but the rage and anger inside him demanded that he kill each and every enemy in the vicinity before he left.
'Run, Harry, run!' he suddenly heard her clear voice much closer - like coming from a headset.
He turned immediately and ran up the boarding ramp of the Express.
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She found him in the main area of the ship, sitting behind the holotable - leaning on it, actually. The expression of grief on his face put a spike right through her own heart. She put the blanket she had found over his shoulders.
"I just can't believe he's gone," Harry said, his eyes locked on the table.
"There was nothing you could have done, Harry," she reminded him quietly, holding him comfortingly.
Suddenly Ron burst into the scene.
"Come, mate, we aren't out of this yet," he said and ran to the gun turrets.
Harry immediately followed him, glad for the interruption. Grief was something he'd handle later - he'd get more of his revenge now.
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When he entered the cockpit of the Express after a short skirmish with the Imperial starfighters she found the Princess leaving it.
"Your friend in quite a mercenary. Wonder if he really cares about anything - or anybody," she told him when they came face-to-face in the narrow doorway.
"I care!" Harry told her. Hermione left quickly so he wouldn't see the smile on her face. She silently sneaked back to the doorway to overhear the conversation between the two. It was one thing to hear it from the TV or see it in the movie and totally another to be right in the middle of it and being the subject of the discussion.
"So, what do you think of her?" Harry asked while sitting down in the pilots seat.
"I try not to," Ron scoffed.
"Good!" Harry let slip before he could stop himself.
A smile spread across Ron's face.
"Still, she got a lot of spirit. What do you think - can a princess and a guy like me…"
"No!" Harry said immediately. He bit his tongue right after that, hoping it would help in the future.
'Hah!' The subject of this particular conversation thought, hearing those remarks from her hiding place. "Sorry, Ron, but that ship has already sailed! Tough luck, Solo!"
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"As you can see from this, the battle station is nearly impervious to a large scale attack. However, we have detected a weakness. If a small fighter unit can slip into this crack between sectors R/Hr and H/G and fire a pair of proton torpedoes up this tunnel into the reactor core, it would cause a chain reaction that would destroy the station," the strategical officer finished the briefing.
"This is suicide," Ron whispered to Harry. "You heard it - it's practically impenetrable! These people are delusional!"
"I'm not abandoning them - or her, Ron. If all you care about is yourself, mate, then I wish you good luck!" Harry told him angrily.
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Harry was crawling through the blizzard, numb from the freezing cold. Finally the exhaustion dropped him. Suddenly a glowing blue shape materialized before him. Someone he knew.
"Sirius?" Harry managed to whisper.
"Yes, Harry," the image of his dead godfather answered in a voice straight from beyond the grave - low and moaning. "It is I, Harry."
"Sirius! Sirius, I'm so sorry you had to die because..." Harry started in a teary voice.
"Oh for Gods sake, shut up already, Harry!" Sirius suddenly exclaimed in his usual voice. "Ah crap, there goes my act! Seriously, though, Harry, if you don't stop moaning about how you're responsible for everyone's - including my own - death, I just might come back from the great beyond to kick your ass myself!"
"What?" Harry was dumbfounded.
"Let. It. Go! Comprende?" Sirius arched an eyebrow. "Anyway, I'm here to tell you to go to the planet Burrow. There a former teacher of mine called Flitwick will teach you in the ways of magic. So long and thanks for all the fish!" Sirius waved him.
"No! Sirius, wait!" Harry's head dropped to the snow.
The blue ghost of a former Marauder gazed at him til the area around them grew fuzzy. He lifted his gaze from the spot where Harry had been just a moment before and peered into the fog surrounding him.
"So what do you think of this so far, Hermione?" he asked suddenly.
"What?" came a surprised voice from the swirling mess.
"Come out, don't be shy. It's just me, Sirius," he said.
After a moment Hermione appeared in front of him.
"Is it really you? But how?" Hermione seemed surprised beyond belief.
"Yep, me. And almost the same way as you - I'm sort of interested in finding out what's going on in my poor, clueless godsons messed up head just as much as you."
"But, you cant have used a Watcher potion! You're dead! DEAD!" she yelled.
"I'm aware of that, thank you for reminding, though," he grinned at her. "I'm here because I promised to his parents that I'd watch over him. Some promises can have funny side effects, as I found out when you fed him the Dreamer." He let out a bark of his trademark laugh. "We once did the same thing to James so me and Remus could see what was going on in his head. Never once could look Lily straight in the eye after that!"
"But what is going on here, Sirius, do you know? We just seem to flicker through the scenes of the movie we watched earlier tonight. Sometimes I see things through his eyes and feel what he feels - just like the description in the book about the Watcher says it should be. But sometimes I'm in other places - doing the things or experiencing moments that the corresponding character in the movie did. Why is that?"
"Ah," Sirius started to explain. "When you're out of the picture, the potion works properly. When, however, he thinks about you - imagines you in a place or a situation, then that is where you end up." He scratched his head. "Funny how James seemed to think me and Remus'll end up in hell all the time. He had a vivid imagination of that place, too." He peered through the surrounding fog. "You'd better go now - old Flitwick is about to introduce him to his greatest fear. It's something you should see. I'll see you in a couple of flics…"
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"That place…it feels cold," Harry said.
"The dark side is strong in there. In there you must go!" the diminutive being told him, sitting on a fallen tree trunk.
"What will I find there?" Harry asked.
"Only a boggart…AH FIDDLESTICKS! OBLIVIATE! Only what you bring with you…" the old teacher managed to correct the situation.
Harry slowly entered the dark cave beneath the gnarled and twisted tree. It was barely bright enough to see where he was going, but not much beyond that. He took a few steps deeper inside. He saw someone already in there. That someone seemed to be resting against the cave wall.
"Hello? Who's there?" he called out. When no answer came back he started moving forward carefully.
The person was clad in a dark robe that obscured any features. The hood of the cloak resting over her shoulders was pulled up to cover the face. The person wasn't moving. Harry stepped next to him or her, crouched down and gently shook the shoulder closest to him. The body suddenly fell sideways, the head coming to a rest in his lap. The hood fell away to reveal a mess of brown hair. Harry brushed the hair out of the face. He suddenly felt his hands becoming wet and sticky - horrified, he realized they were covered with blood.
"No!" Harry felt his heart skip several beats and constrict in a most painful manner. "No, Mione, NO!!!" His scream made the cave walls tremble.
The next moment the vision was gone - he was crouching in the cave alone, his hands visibly clean. He swallowed hard and needed several minutes to compose himself before he climbed out of the cave.
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"Can you tell me, teacher, what fuels our powers?" Harry asked the little but powerful wizard.
"Usually wizards get the best results when they are calm, their minds tranquil, Harry," Flitwick explained. "This is considered to be the best and correct way of how to use magic. The dark wizards, however, fuel their magic with emotions - anger, rage - that kind of things. That is what fuels the most powerful, deadly magic spells that are created to kill another person. "That's why the white wizards had such a hard time opposing the darkness that now rules the universe."
"Would it be possible to use the good emotions - like love - to do that?" Harry wondered,
"Theoretically, yes," Flitwick nodded. "Never been done before, though. Kinda hard to manage that, I suppose, when staring down someone who tries to kill you." He continued after a moment, "Well, Harry. Seems that I have thought you everything I can."
"So I'm a wizard now?" Harry asked excitedly.
"No, my boy, not yet. You have to face Darth Severus and Voldemort before you become one," Flitwick shook his head.
"Ok!"
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Harry Potter, the Chosen One, was facing Darth Severus in the Death Star throne room - behind them in a high-backed chair sat Lord Voldemort himself, goading them on.
"Yes, yes…Release your hate, your anger! It's the only way to win this battle, young Potter!"
Harry raised his blue lightsaber in a ready position. Severus was looking at him with utter disgust on his face.
"However feeble your skills are, we could use you still, Potter. Kneel before us and join us if you want to live."
"Me? Join you? Now there's a thought," Harry spat.
"No?" Severus arched an eyebrow. "Then maybe someone else will…someone you care about? How. About. The princess?"
"She'll never join you! You'll never get your hands on her!" Harry shouted.
"Really?"
The doors hissed open behind Harry. For a moment he thought the two dark wizards had got reinforcements.
"Harry?" a voice that spoke directly from his heart…
Like in a moment that was stretched out like a piece of elastic band, Harry turned his head to look behind him. There stood Mione in her white clothes, looking at him. Her eyes showed fear and concern for him.
"I think you're right, Potter. We can't have a Mudblood join us, now can we?" Darth Severus's voice sounded in his hears. A blast of blue lightning shot past him. It hit Mione straight in the chest and threw her back against the steel wall. She slid down slowly, leaving a trail of blood on the wall.
Harry felt the universe pull back - and then hit him with everything it had.
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Hermione felt sharp pain in the back of her head as she was thrown against the wall. The next moment she found herself floating above the room next to Sirius.
"You ok, Hermione?" He asked, looking intently down at the room.
"I think so…" She said. "What just happened? What is this, Sirius?" She looked at Harry's godfather.
"A possible future," Sirius said gravely.
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Darth Severus looked at the young man in front of him. Something in him had changed, he knew that - he just wasn't sure what. Suddenly the weapon in Harry's hand caught his attention. It was pulsing - not like it was about to malfunction…not at all. Suddenly it seemed to shift several tones a second and suddenly stopped at the ruby-red that matched his own blade. The next move came so fast it wasn't humanly possible.
Darth Severus's head fell down some endless pit while his body collapsed in front of Harry.
"Good! Excellent! Now kneel before me and take the place that is rightfully yours!" Lord Voldemort's high-pitched laughter echoed through the room.
Harry looked up, his eyes meeting the Emperor's. The foremost dark wizard became suddenly very afraid of the young man before him. He was afraid to look in those eyes. They were burning with the green flame of a lit lightsaber - the color of the killing curse.
"Why don't you step outside for a moment and give me time to consider it?" Harry's impassionate voice said. He raised his hand and suddenly the entire section of the viewing platform - the chair, the controls and the Dark Lord were blown out into the freezing cold of space. The shielding panels slammed down the next moment to protect the room from the vacuum of space.
"That's a 'no' in case you were wondering."
Harry walked back to the body of the person he had loved from the first moment he saw her - it had felt like several years had passed since. The saber fell to the floor with a clunk when he discarded the weapon and sat down next to her. She pulled her into his arms. He felt tears starting to run down his eyes.
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"What is this, Sirius? What is happening to him?" Hermione asked through the tears.
"Love turned into grief channeled through anger," Sirius answered. "He never grieved for the one's he loved or the ones he felt responsible for - and considering the fact that he's the only one who can stop Voldemort, Harry thinks each and every one of those Voldemort kills before he's stopped is his responsibility."
"But…He has grieved - hasn't he? How could he not?"
"You were there, Hermione. You saw it. It started with Cedric and the nightmares he had after that. I believe you remember clearly how angry he was when he arrived at the headquarters. Then when I got killed and…" he motioned down at the scene below them. "You got hurt in the Ministry - he just dug a deeper hole in his heart to bury those emotions and heaped others on it to cover them. As you saw, it will end badly. After the Ministry incident he nearly pulverized Albus's office. And when Albus himself was killed he took off after the killer himself, doing everything he could to bring him down."
"But he talked about those things!" Hermione tried.
"He gave reports about them, yes. Did he ever sit down with anyone to say just how sorry he felt or how bad he felt about it? No, he did not," Sirius answered the question himself.
"What can be done, Sirius?" she whispered.
"Hermione - I just died, they didn't make me omni-sentient!" Sirius rolled his eyes. "But I'd suggest you work with him to let go of his anger and pain. It should lead to a much more acceptable future and unlock his powers much earlier."
"Unlock his powers?" Hermione blinked. "You mean these powers he has here aren't just his fantasy? He really has them?"
Sirius nodded. "Ouch. I don't like the look of this," he said suddenly, looking down at Harry.
Hermione looked down quickly and saw Harry sitting where he had been with Mione's body in his lap, picking up his weapon. She watched confusedly until Harry pressed the top of the weapon under his own chin.
"Someone...anyone - SIRIUS, DO SOMETHING!" she yelled in panic.
'Why does it always have to be me?' Sirius thought, annoyed, and then suddenly pushed her.
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Harry almost pressed the activation button of the weapon when a warm hand suddenly caressed his cheek. The hand slid down quickly and pried the weapon from his weak fingers and threw it away from him. He opened his eyes and found her beautiful brown eyes - full with life and tears - staring into his.
"I will never leave you, Harry," she whispered to him. "I never have and never will. Next time, please check for my pulse before you do something silly, ok?" she said with a smirk.
Harry burst into tears and laughter, feeling relief and happiness creep back into his body. He felt like he was a phoenix on the burning day - flaring into flames and ashes one moment and being reborn to a new, wonderful life in the next. He waved his hand over her head and all the blood vanished from her hair.
"What do you say that we leave this place before Ron blows it up along with us?" He grinned at her.
"He always had a lousy sense of timing," she grinned back at him.
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The doors to the Great Hall opened and the two heroes accompanied by Crookshanks stepped through it. All the rebels who could were attending the awards ceremony - wanting to witness the historical moment when the men who had almost single-handedly brought down the Empire were going to be honored by their leaders. Many thought that it should really be the other way around, but they kept their silence. The heroes walked down the aisle to the small platform in the other end of the Hall where the leaders of the Rebellion, and princess Mione among them, were waiting for them.
They reached the platform and walked up the steps, remaining at attention a few steps from the rebel leadership. Ron stepped forward first, and the princess placed the Medal of Honor around his neck. With a wide smile on his face Ron stepped back next to Harry.
Then Harry stepped forward, looking into Mione's sparkling eyes. After receiving his medal, he was expected to step back and salute the gathered rebels - but hat wasn't what Harry had in mind! Instead, he stepped forward and swept the princess off her feet into a passionate kiss. Hermione felt the surroundings fade into a blur as Harry's lips connected with hers, his tongue gently teasing them open and getting entangled with her own most sharp and agile tongue. He suddenly felt his hands roaming downward from where they were around his waist as the heat from the kiss seemed to spread all over them.
"WHAT?! Here? Now? IN FRONT OF THE CROWD?!" her panicked voice whimpered in her head. And unfortunately before the impulse carrying the thought that 'it's only a dream - to hell with it, enjoy yourself!' could make it through the confused crowd of impulses another one carrying the 'Finite incantatem!' slipped to the front.
Hermione jumped up from her bed, pulse racing and her face flushed from the recent experience. She tore the door to her room open and stormed down the stairs where Harry was still enjoying a quite stimulating dream.
"HARRY!!!" she yelled at once.
Harry jumped a meter into the air and looked around wildly before his eyes settled on her.
"What?" he asked, blinking.
'Gonna tell him that you were snooping around his dreams and really liked the way his hands felt like, but would like to keep such activities a little more private, are you?' a voice grinned in her head. 'Ah, crap! I need an excuse, quick!' Hermione thought desperately.
"Meow!"
"Um, where's Crookshanks?" she managed.
Harry blinked. He tried to focus on where the sound came from. Then he looked up.
Poor Crookshanks was hanging from the small chandelier above them.
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A/N:
The chapter is over, but I'll put this bit of explanation in here just in case you thought I'm totally mental now.
Dreams are usually a mess of jumbled scenes influenced by what's happened during the day (if there were any significant happenings). Dreams are random - they don't come with a table on content in the front and an index in the end - they are quite confusing.
Now Harry's dream - I chose this way to drive home hte point that Harry never grieved over the death of those characters close to him. He just channels those feelings into anger and rage.
1. His parents - he's too young to remember. Not much else to say.
2. Cedric - when he is killed in front of him Harry just feels very sick. Then there is this adrenaline-boosted action against Voldemort and he gets back. The moment he does - he goes numb. This is the time he should be comforted, explained that it's ok to feel bad - whatever. Instead he's forced to witness the confession of B.Crouch Jr. and then go through what has happened with Dumbledore. There I believe is one of the big mistakes Albus made. Sirius wants to go with Harry to the Hospital wing, but Albus says they have to do it now - Harry has to understand to heal. Very correct, but he goes totally the wrong way about it. After that Harry ends up in the Hospital wing where he hears Fudge blow him off, thinking him crazy. And we have the result in book 5 in angry!Harry, who after being forced to spend a month with Dursleys is having nightmares about Cedrics death every night. He never dealt with all that grief inside him.
2.Sirius - someone who he loves so much that it forces Voldemort out of him during possession, dies. What does he do? Enter angry!Harry who runs off after the killer. And the beginning of book 6? Well, apparently after destroying half of Dumbledores office, he went home and thought 'What the heck, that's enough grieving. I'll be ok now."
3. Dumbledore - again right in pops the angry!Harry who takes off after the killer in anger. I can only hope that he found some closure in the funeral.
In my fic luckily Hermione and Sirius were able to intervene. What's going to Hapen to Harry in book 7 - i have no idea, but he should be a right mental case the way JKR has written him.
A/N for fun: now that you've been through the terrifying experience of chapter 8, following is a section that the author thought prudent to remove from the main text as it is so horrible to some minds as to outrank Vogon's poetry - yes, the third worst piece of literature in the galaxy! Here we go! Your sanity is at risk, but remember - don't panic!
"Albus never told you what happened to your father?" Darth Severus asked the battered young man.
"He told me enough!" Harry yelled through tears. "He told me you betrayed them!"
"No, Harry...I AM YOUR FATHER!"
"NOOO!!!"
"Search your feelings, son. You know it's true. It's all this grease I've been smearing on my hair to try and keep it down that's confusing you." Darth Severus explained...
I'm sad to inform you that 3 beta-readers and 5 editors were lost in the process of bringing this bit to you!