Chapter Text
Original Artwork by Allister-Vinris. Found on DeviantArt.
https://www.deviantart.com/allister-vinris/art/Mysterious-jedi-in-the-shadows-588483319
Somewhere in the middle of England, miles away from London, a bright red steam locomotive was travelling south, pulling multiple carriages filled with groups of children, teenagers and young adults with it. The groups were composed of students who had just ended their school year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, a school of magic.
In one of those carriages were three friends. A red haired boy with a face splattered with freckles, a girl with brown, curly hair and equally brown eyes and a boy with messy black hair and round spectacles which allowed his bright green eyes to see better. The red-head boy, Ronald Weasley, was currently attempting to talk about the upcoming Quidditch World Cup with his two friends. To his dismay, neither of them were very enthusiastic.
While it was normal behaviour for the girl, Hermione Granger, the lack of enthusiast from the third friend was surprising and concerning. Harry Potter only listened half-heartedly to what his friend Ron was saying, something both he and Hermione noticed. They shared a look, concerned about their best friend.
You see, Harry was brooding. While this in itself was nothing new, – Harry had a habit of sulking in his corner from time to time – his lack of enthusiast at a subject which usually greatly entertained him was surprising to his two friends. They did not understand why he was feeling that way, and it confused them. Unbeknownst to them, Harry was thinking about his last three years at Hogwarts - more specifically the moments where he and his friends had been in danger.
In his first year, Harry had been in danger a number of times. The moments that really stood out for him were, first, on Halloween when he, Ron and Hermione had fought a troll that had caused havoc in the castle. Second, when he had ended-up face to face with the spirit of Voldemort while it was drinking unicorn blood in the Forbidden Forest and third: when he confronted Professor Quirrell and Voldemort while the duo was attempting to steal the Philosopher's Stone.
In his second year, the most 'memorable' moments were when he and Ron confronted the Acromantula Aragog and its colony in the Forbidden Forest. And, of course, there was the visit to the Chamber of Secrets where Harry was forced to face Voldemort's teenage self and a basilisk with nothing with a sword to save Ginny Weasley's life.
His third year in the magical world was different. For the first time since his reintroduction, Harry did not have to fight the shade of Voldemort in the defence of others. However, it did not mean Harry did not end up in situations where he almost lost his life. While Voldemort was not a danger that year, the Ministry of Magic was. They were the big bads of his third year, having sent dangerous dementors (foul beasts that could suck people's souls out of their mouths) to Hogwarts to catch Sirius Black, Harry's innocent godfather. As it became the norm, Harry ended up in danger multiple times. Excluding when he had ended-up face to face with a transformed Remus Lupin, every time Harry had been in danger was because of the dementors. Harry, Hermione and Sirius had nearly been all kissed only days earlier, and only survived thanks to the intervention of Harry's future self, who had travelled back in time with Hermione to save the lives of Sirius and Buckbeak the Hippogriff.
However, the moment that stood the most for Harry was one where, ironically enough, he hadn't been in real danger at all. It was the evening when he had first laid eyes on his godfather. The moment he and Hermione had entered the room, Sirius disarmed them, rendering them as dangerous as small puppies. Harry had been able to strike back, to lunge at him and hit him but only because Sirius hadn't meant him any harm. He held no illusions that if the rumours about Sirius being Voldemort's right hand man had been true, Harry wouldn't have been able to take a step in his direction without being killed.
This was the moment Harry was thinking about the most. Not only because it was when he learned his godfather was innocent, that he had family who loved him, but because he had been unarmed. It was the moment that made Harry realize how dangerous one disarming charm could be. If he was ever hit with it by an enemy, Harry would loose his wand and be left with no defence. It was why Harry was not in a happy mood as he travelled back to London in the Hogwarts Express. The thirteen-year-old boy was tired of being in near-death situations. Too often he had to rely on his luck because of lack of knowledge in spellwork to protect himself.
Then again, spells aren't always helpful. The Basilisk was a perfect example of that. No matter how much magic he could have known, Harry doubted he could have made a dent in the strong skin of the kings of serpents. He had been very lucky to withdraw the Sword of Gryffindor out of the Sorting Hat. Without it, twelve-year-old Harry would have stood no chances of killing the Basilisk. Harry wished he could have had the Sword of Gryffindor way sooner. It would certainly have been useful against Quirrell, Aragog or the troll. The Sword might even had been useful against the Dementors!
That line of thinking made Harry realise something. Most often than not, Harry hadn't used magic to defeat his foes. Excluding the patronus charm used against the dementors, he had never (consciously) used any powerful magic when in danger because he never knew appropriate spells to use. It was something he wished he could fix but, unfortunately, magic wasn't easy to learn, which was why schools of magic existed. Harry would have to wait until he was older before he could really do impressive magic and hold himself in a fight.
Deep down, Harry knew it was time he didn't have.
It had been three years since he rejoined the magical world, three years in a row where Harry and his friends ended up against terrible creatures or evil people. Thinking back about all the times he had been in danger, Harry realised something. He needed a powerful weapon, something he could use if he was unable to use his wand. No longer would he be defenceless with or without one! But what could that weapon be? Basing himself on his previous experiences, he needed something powerful enough to kill his previous foes. The obvious idea was an echanted work as it worked wonders with the basilisk, but it was not an option. He needed something easy to hide or, if it wasn't, not stand out for everyone to figure out what it truly was. Unfortunately, Harry couldn't come up with anything that fit his requirements.
"Harry!" came Hermione's shout. Harry jumped in his seat in surprise.
"What?" he said, staring at his two best friends.
"We're talking..." began Hermione.
"Trying to talk." corrected Ron.
"Trying to talk to you!"
"Oh." he said, suddenly feeling sheepish. "What were you saying?"
Hermione gave a small sigh of exasperation before repeating her words. "I want to know what you're planning to do these next few days."
"Uh, well, nothing, really." he said truthfully. He did not expect to do anything in the next few days, especially if he managed to scare his relatives with the revelation about his 'murderous' godfather. "Why?"
"I was wondering if you and Ron were interested in coming to my house to watch some movies."
Harry blinked. That had been unexpected. "Really?" he asked. Hermione nodded. "Well, I would certainly be interested..." He then realized something and looked at Ron. "Do you know what a movie is?"
Ron shrugged. "Hermione was explaining to me." he said. "It sound interesting."
"Well, it would certainly be nice to be all together this summer." Harry admitted. Looking at Hermione, he asked "What movie do you have in mind?"
"I don't know." she said. "We can always figure it out when we are there. We have plenty of VHS tapes."
"Fair enough. I'll be there." he told her with a nod. Hermione smiled and turned to talk to Ron. Harry looked back at the window to glance at the British countryside when he saw something intriguing.
"Is that an owl?"
Two days later, Harry and Ron met each other in the Knight Bus while travelling to Hermione's house. Harry was greatly amused by how sick his friend looked during the trip, the driver doing his usual dangerous drive.
Thankfully for the red-head, their journey quickly ended when the purple triple-decker stopped in front of a small, cozy house in Crawley.
"Never again..." muttered a green-faced Ron, wavering slightly as he stepped off the Knight Bus. "Never again..."
"You still have to go back home, mate." grinned Harry, patting him in the back. Ron's cheeks turned even greener.
"Merlin, I'm going to be sick." he blurted.
Like the true friend he was, Harry laughed at Ron's situation as they made their way to the front door of the house. He pressed on the doorbell, letting Ron calm his beating heart. They didn't have to wait long as the door quickly opened, revealing a beaming Hermione.
"You made it!" she said.
"Course we did!" said Ron, his face regaining its usual colour at the sight of Hermione, all of his worries forgotten. "Doubted us?"
"Of course not!" she protested, still smiling. "I knew you would make it."
"Well, will you invite us inside?" Harry said, cheerful.
"Of course!" she said, opening the door fully and letting them walk inside.
Hermione first gave a small tour of her home to her best friends. It greatly interested her friends, both wanting to see Hermione's childhood home. After nuking a bag of popcorn in the microwave, the trio moved to the living room and sat together in front of the television. Hermione began looking at watch to watch with her friends, seeking their opinion at every new idea. She quickly came to realize Ron would not be the only one introduced to movies as Harry had never really watched one before. Oh, he knew what a movie was and had often caught glimpses of them on the television at the Dursleys but he had never been allowed to watch one himself. It was something that made Hermione furious when Harry explained. She promised herself she would show both of her friends plenty of classic throughout the summer.
With this in mind, Hermione quickly made a choice for all three of them. She decided to start with the most classic movie of them all, one with a story of good and evil, with wizards and dark lords. Star Wars.
"I heard about it!" Harry exclaimed when Hermione made her suggestion. "Dudley kept talking about the movies when we were younger. It made me green with envy that I could never watch them!"
"Well, we're going to change that today!" she said.
So, Hermione, Ron and Harry watched Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope. The title confused the two boys until Hermione explained the reason behind. Ron was fascinated by everything he was seeing. The fact that he could see a long, moving image with sound utterly shocked him. It was something to hear it from Hermione and something else to see it for himself. For Harry, it was the story itself that caught on his interest. Harry quickly put himself in Luke Skywalker's shoes. In many ways, Harry could see his life reflected in Luke's, just like there were as many differences.
Like Harry, Luke was an orphan living with his Aunt and Uncle. Like Harry's father James, Luke's father fought in a war, something both of their uncles hid from them, thought for different reasons. (Luke's uncle wanted to protect Luke. Harry's uncle... not so much.) Just like James Potter was very good on a flying broomstick, Luke's father was a very good pilot. Just like Harry, Luke found someone who was a friend of his father, someone who could tell him more about him.
It was while watching Obi-Wan reminisce about Luke's father that something caught Harry's attention.
"I have something here for you." said Obi-Wan, walking toward a small leather chest. Opening it, he grabbed something inside. "Your father wanted you to have this when you were old enough... but, your uncle wouldn't allow it. He feared you might follow old Obi-Wan on some damn fool idealistic crusade, like your father did." Obi-Wan walked back toward Luke, a metallic cylinder in hands.
"What is it?" asked Luke, looking at the object with curiosity.
"Your father's lightsaber." answered Obi-Wan with a hint of reverence. He gave it to Luke. "This is the weapon of a Jedi Knight. Not as clumsy or random as a blaster. An elegant weapon from a more... civilized age."
Luke pressed a button, and a long, blue blade of light appeared.
Ron looked amazed. Harry outright gasped, although for different reasons. As he looked at Luke swinging the lightsaber around, Harry's amazement grew and grew. He grinned. He knew what his secret weapon would be. A lightsaber.
"Hermione..." he whispered to himself, his eyes still fixed on the screen with rapt attention. "You're bloody brilliant..."
Harry stared at the blazing red eyes, which were staring back at him, full of anger. Harry detached his lightsaber from his belt and ignited it. A bright blue blade of light emerged, lighting the dark corridor of the floating city he stood in. Holding the lightsaber with a firm grip, Harry put himself in a defensive stance.
In front of him, Lord Voldemort, Harry sworn enemy, continued to stare at Harry. "It is useless to resist, Harry. Don't let yourself be killed like Dumbledore..." Harry didn't say anything and continued to stare at Voldemort, still holding his lightsaber. To Harry's surprise, Voldemort let out a sigh of resignation before taking out his own lightsaber with much more practised motion. He ignited it, revealing a bright red blade. The colour was very similar to the man's eyes. Then, suddenly, the Dark Lord stuck. Harry only just brought his lightsaber up in time to block it. Red and blue locked together, spitting sparks of yellow light everywhere. Harry pushed the red blade away and made his own offensive move. Voldemort easily blocked him before retaliating. He attacked once, then twice, three times, four times, five times! It became harder for Harry to remain uninjured with every strike.
The two fighters continued their elegant dance as they continuously attacked each other with their lightsabers. Unfortunately for Harry, it became obvious quite rapidly who was the better swordsman. With every attack Voldemort made, Harry was pushed back, eventually leading him toward a thin platform standing over a large, bottomless pit. Harry was getting tired and scared and, just as he made a desperate strike to the side of Voldemort, the Dark Lord parried and brought his blade to Harry's right hand, slicing it in one, quick move. Harry yelled in pain. His hand, still holding his lightsaber, flew away, falling down the pit. Harry held his stump, trying very hard not to sob.
"There is no escape. Don't make me destroy you." said the Dark Lord. Trembling from the fear and pain, Harry crawled away from Voldemort, wishing to be as far away as possible. Voldemort continued to speak, not caring about Harry's actions. "Harry, you do not yet realize your importance. You've only begun to discover your true potential. Then, staring straight at Harry's green eyes, he said "Join me, Harry, and you will become a much more powerful wizard that you already are. With our combined strength, we can end this destructive conflict and bring order to the galaxy."
Harry snarled "I'll never join you! You killed my parents!"
"If you only knew the power of the Dark Side!" Then, looking amused, he said "Dumbledore never told you what happened to your father...?"
"He told me enough!" he spat. "He told me you killed him!"
"No... I am your father."
Harry looked at Voldemort with horror. "No... No...!" It couldn't be. It was too horrible. "That's not true!" he cried in denial. "That's impossible!"
"Search your feelings, you know it to be true."
And, as Voldemort told him that, Harry remembered that night. He remembered his crying mother who had pleaded to have him spared, even to the point of offering herself. For the first time in his life, he remembered how she had adressed him.
'James! Not our son, please!'
His mind became blank, filled with the horror of the truth. All he could do was scream.
"NOOOOOOO!"
Harry jerked awake, his right hand immediately going to his rapidly beating heart. It took few seconds for him to remember he was in his room at Privet Drive and not in the confines of Cloud City on Bespin, facing Lord Voldemort. Harry let out a breath of relief. "Just a nightmare... just a nightmare..." he whispered to himself.
As he calmed down, he thought about his nightmare. It was obvious now that what he had dreamed of wasn't true. It was taken straight out of The Empire Strikes Back, after all. He and his friends had watched it and Return of the Jedi after the original Star Wars. At the time, both he and Ron had been rendered speechless by the revelation that Darth Vader was Luke's father. While watching the movie, the thought that his own Dark Lord could be his father James crossed his mind but, Harry had immediately dismissed the thought, knowing it didn't make sense. If he had known that stray thought would cause him to have a nightmare later that night...
As he lay in his bed, he came to realize he wouldn't be able to go to back to sleep anytime soon. He was too awake to rest. So, Harry decided to do something productive instead. Standing up, Harry went to sit at his desk. He grabbed the first thing he noticed on it: am empty notebook. He stared at it. What could he do with a notebook in the middle of the night?
As things usually were when he couldn't distract himself, his mind wandered back to his nightmare. Now that he was more awake, he found his dream rather amusing. He could see he had imagined himself in Luke Skywalker's shoes and, with his mind out of his slumber, he was able to think back to it with a detached view. As he thought about his dream, he remembered fighting Voldemort with a lightsaber... and he immediately realised what he could do.
He could start his lightsaber project!
Harry grinned and began to write. The notebook on Harry's desk would become the first of many that would be filled to the brim with Harry's thoughts, ideas, plans and sketches for his project. He had a feeling it would take him quite some time to accomplish but, Harry had time.
He had an entire summer to figure out how to build a working lightsaber...