Chapter Seven: The Investigator

Note: I have decided that the part of Master Kang will be played by Chow Yun Fat.

Thank you everyone for your awesome comments! I didn't see any in particular that needed addressed here in the notes. I do, however, want to apologize for it being so late in coming. Hope you all enjoy this latest installment.

The next morning, the three friends expected to have to search the Daily Prophet for the news article that Percy had alluded to in his letter. But there was no such need. It was on the front page.

Ministry Seeks Educational Reform

Percival Weasley Appointed Hogwarts Special Investigator

They all exchanged a glance, then Hermione began to read the article aloud.

"In a surprise move last night the Ministry of Magic passed new legislation giving itself an unprecedented level of control at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.

" 'The Minister has been growing uneasy about goings-on at Hogwarts for some time,' said Junior Assistant to the Minister, Percy Weasley. "He is now responding to concerns voiced by anxious parents, who feel the school may be moving in a direction they do not approve.'

"The Ministry has now passed Educational Decree Twenty-three, which creates the position of Hogwarts Special Investigator, a position intended to provide the Minister with a clear picture of what is really going on in the ancient institution, and understand to what standards our children and their educators are being held. Mr. Weasley has humbly accepted his nomination to this position, and promises to be an impartial judge of conditions in the school. He will have the right and responsibility to inspect each of the teachers at each grade level and to make report directly to the Minister himself.

"The Ministry's new moves have received enthusiastic support from parents of students at Hogwarts.

" 'I feel much easier in my mind now that I know that Dumbledore is being subjected to fair and objective evaluation,' said Mr. Lucius Malfoy, 41, speaking from his Wilshire mansion last night. 'Many of us with our children's best interests at heart have been concerned about some of Dumbledore's eccentric decisions in the last few years and will be glad to know that the Ministry is keeping an eye on the situation.'

"Among those 'eccentric decisions' are undoubtedly the controversial staff appointments previously described in this newspaper, which have included the hiring of werewolf Remus Lupin, half-giant Rubeus Hagrid, and delusional ex-Auror 'Mad-Eye' Moody.

"Rumors abound, of course, that Albus Dumbledore, once Supreme Mugwump of the International Confederation of Wizards and Chief Warlock of the Wizengamot, is no longer up to the task of managing the prestigious school of Hogwarts.

" 'I think the appointment of the Special Investigator is a first step toward ensuring that Hogwarts has a headmaster in whom we can all repose confidence,' said a Ministry insider last night.

"Wizengamot elders Griselda Marchbanks and Tiberius Ogden have initiated dramatic protests at the investigation of Hogwarts and its teachers.

" 'Hogwarts is a school, not an outpost of Cornelius Fudge's office,' said Madame Marchbanks. 'This is a further disgusting attempt to discredit Albus Dumbledore.' (For a full account of Madame Marchbanks' alleged links to subversive goblin groups, turn to page 17)."

Hermione finished reading and looked across the table at the other two. "So now Percy has the authority to inspect the teachers, and probably to make staffing recommendations, all with his nose so far up Fudge's ambitions he's blind. This is outrageous!"

Harry hoped his letter reached the other boy before he arrived at the school.

But a grin was unfurling on Ron's face.

"What?" said Harry and Hermione together, staring at him.

"Oh, I can't wait to see McGonagall inspected," said Ron happily. "Percy won't know what hit him."

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Percy was neither in their History of Magic class, nor in their Potions class. Professor Snape returned their moonstone essays marked as they would be if they were OWL exams, so that the students would have an idea of what to expect and how far they needed to improve. Harry got an E on the essay, and in a playful manner withheld that information from Hermione until they reached the Great Hall for lunch. Fred and George mentioned that Percy had inspected Professor Flitwick just before lunch. "It wasn't too bad," said Fred. "He just lurked in a corner taking note on a clip board. Flitwick treated him like a guest, and he behaved like one."

"Who've you got this afternoon?" Fred asked Harry.

"Trelawney, and Professor Kang."

"Right. Well with Umbridge out of the way you shouldn't have any more trouble, so no more detentions, all right?" said George. "Angelina'll do her nut if you miss any more Quidditch practices."

Percy was already in the Tower when they went up for Divination, calmly sitting in a corner chair. Though Professor Trelawney looked quite nervous at having a visitor, she went about her class as usual, passing out copies of Dream Oracles and instructing the class to divide into pairs and begin interpreting each other's dreams. Percy asked her a few questions, namely about the length of her tenure and the originator of her appointment to the position of Divination teacher. He also asked her plainly what was required to teach the subject from an administrative point of view.

Then he asked her if any students had shown any natural talents in Divination, and Harry sighed as his name, of course, came up. "Why yes! Mr. Potter has, in fact, been receiving some very lucid dreams of late. We're not sure yet if he will develop into a true Seer, or if the Spirit World is trying to get his attention for a specific, but temporary, reason. According to him it is a recent phenomenon. And as it is time to check on the students' progress, let's just see if he's had any repetitions."

Harry looked at Ron with a raised eyebrow as the two came over to his table. "Now, my dear, have you had any further visions along the same line, or are they still randomized?"

Taking a deep breath, he answered her. "I'm not sure yet if it's a pattern, as I've only had this dream repeat once. It's of a room in the castle, full to the brim with various kinds of lost and broken things. There are books, papers, furniture, dishes. And on one of the piles, the dream focuses in on a single object. It's a tarnished silver tiara on a stack of books. It casts two shadows. The one on the right is normal, cast by the light. But the other shadow is darkness, and has only ever come from darkness." He shook his head. "I still have no idea what it means, but—" He stopped, thinking about the image. "It's not going anywhere. It's important, but it's not urgent."

"Fascinating," said Professor Trelawney. "And would you judge this to be a figurative or literal vision?"

Harry thought about it, and reached out to the force, putting the images from the vision into the forefront of his mind. The same image was mirrored back, along with a feeling of darkness coming from the tiara. "Literal. It's a cursed object. But where it is, or why I'm being warned about it, I have no idea."

Trelawney nodded sagely. "Yes, it is often hard to tell the why behind a prophetic vision. And all of your other others have still been randomized?"

"Yes."

"Well keep up with that dream journal, and perhaps further clues will be provided later."

Not long after that, class was over, and Harry and Ron got ready to leave class. Percy stopped Harry with a hand on his shoulder. He gave him an intense look and nodded. Harry smiled slightly and nodded in acknowledgement. Percy was going to contact his mother.

There were several other classes over the next few days which featured Percy sitting quietly in a corner and taking notes. He inspected Professor McGonagall and Professor Grubbly-Plank while Harry, Ron and Hermione were in those classes, but they didn't see any of the other inspections until the last one, with Professor Kang.

Percy didn't seem to know what to make of the aged, but agile, old Master. Not only was he teaching them magic, but he was also teaching them truly basic self-defense; how to dodge spells and snap wands, not just use defensive magic. And he didn't use the terms witch or wizard, but woman or man instead. At the end of the class, trying to make a point to Percy, and thereby the Minister, Harry asked Professor Kang, "What should we do if we are confronted with a non-magical assailant?"

Well aware of the tensions between his student and the Ministry, Professor Kang nodded. "This is another area where it would depend on how they intended to attack you. But the most important thing to remember is not to underestimate a man just because he has no ability to use magic. He may have a knife, or a gun, or even," and he drew his katana from the sheathe at his back, "a sword." He let the class stare at him in shock for a while, then continued. "But even those weapons are not the only way a man can hurt you without magic. Some, like myself, have trained their bodies in such a way as to be a living weapon, though these are far fewer. The average man or woman on the street is fairly lazy, and it is far easier to shoot you with a spell or a gun than it is to learn the disciplines of the various martial arts."

Here the professor paused, then sheathed his sword and had everyone return to their desks. "I have one last thought for you today. One of these days, you will leave these stone halls and enter the real world. You will no longer be children, no longer have the relative protection afforded the innocent by some evil men. A thief may hesitate to steal from a child where he would not from an adult. The dark wizard who threatened your country thirteen years ago was not the first of his kind, nor will he be the last, and it will take skilled men and women to resist such creatures. That is why we teach you how to defend yourselves now, when you are still young and relatively safe. Because that will not always be the case." The bell rang, and as the students began gathering their possessions to leave, he said, "Don't forget, your OWL revisions are due next class, and the only one you hurt by not doing them is yourself."

Percy nodded to himself and scribbled furiously on his note pad.

Harry left the classroom with Ron, and they went to lunch together. Ron asked Harry, "Do you think Percy will try to have any of the teachers sacked?"

"I honestly don't, Ron. He might have a very Slytherin amount of ambition, but he's still honest. He's seen for himself what's actually being taught, and he won't think we're trying to build an army or anything."

Harry was proven right, and things evened out at the school. Harry ordered a leather-bound parchment journal from Scrivenshaft's Quill Shop, one which included a magical lock which would only open with the correct key and was charmed against basic unlocking charms. It was also charmed smudge-proof and waterproof, had an Obscurus Charm that could be triggered with the tap of his wand to prevent over-shoulder snooping, and had his initials engraved onto the front cover in gold.

Into this book he began to write his observations about the force and its several aspects. He wrote down everything he had done with it up to this point, wrote down the Patronus Sword Spell, and the various techniques he had begun using to access it, including his thoughts about how one should be considered to have attained the ranking of Knight or Master. A Jedi Knight would have to swear to uphold a code of morality and conduct, concepts he was still trying to find the right words for, and he would have to pass certain tests before he'd be allowed to make that oath. It would be a magically binding oath, so it could not be entered into lightly. It should only be taken by those who passed the tests, understood the oath, and truly agreed to it. It couldn't be something like the Triwizard Tournament, which he'd been entered into against his will.

Harry's training with Master Kang proceeded at a truly impressive rate now that they had access to the Room of Requirement. He was not only going through katas now, but was also improvising, sparing against both his Master and several opponent dummies that the Room brought forth for him. Because of that success, Master Kang brought in a new kind of tool for their training. It was a metal ball the size of a large orange or a small grapefruit, and it was covered with evenly spaced wooden studs. It had obviously been made with magic, as it was able to float and flit around the room, but it was based on something from the Star Wars books, and realizing what it was made Harry grin. "It's a practice drone, isn't it?"

"Yes. It can be set with increasingly strong stunners and can be set either to a flight pattern or to a truly random flight path, bordered only by the confines of the room it is flying in. I wouldn't use it on that setting while outdoors, however. Now, we're going to test your ability to use the force outside of your own senses. Trust in the force to show you the drone, and to show you where it is aiming. We already know that you can block stunners with your lightsaber, which is why I used the stunner, but something I'm going to want to do later is find out if that ability to block spells has any limitations." He picked up a motorcycle helmet, a grin on his face. "For now, let's see how you're doing." Then he handed the helmet to Harry.

Harry looked at the helmet, and he saw that the face shield had been rendered completely opaque. He nodded and put the helmet on, fastening the strap under his chin. He drew his oaken sword, then flipped the face shield down. He focused on the sword and cast the Patronus Sword Charm, reaching out with the force to find the remote. In the darkness of the helmet he was made completely blind, but this made him instinctively reach for the force, and in its currents and eddies he easily found the remote. What was not easy was figuring out where it was aiming.

Harry was not completely successful that day, and received several low-powered stunners to his arms, and one to his rear end that was just embarrassing, but Master Kang assured him he shouldn't expect to pick everything up instantaneously.

Three days later, Harry was sitting at dinner, writing in his journal, when he sensed ill intention behind him and tensed. He activated the Obscurus Charm on the journal to be on the safe side. Sure enough, Malfoy snatched the book away. He said, "What's this? Keeping a private diary, are we Potter? Not too private here at the dinner table."

Harry smirked at him. "Private enough."

Malfoy frowned, not being able to read the text. He held it in one hand, reaching for his wand, likely with the intention of casting a revealing charm. But Harry took the opportunity to close the book with a quick touch of the force, and closing the book activated the locking mechanism.

Unable to break into the journal, Malfoy tossed it to the table and moved on. Harry shook his head at the retreating white head, then returned to his dinner, only to see Ginny Weasley looking at the diary as if it were going to explode. Fear was coming off of her in waves, and frankly it was making him ill. He knew. The sight of the diary had triggered her buried anxieties about the diary of Tom Riddle.

"Ginny," he said softly. "It's not him, I promise, and I'm not doing what he did." He tried to calm her, as he had done once for Hermione. But it was not as effective against fear as it had been against rage, especially not so deeply rooted a fear as this. "This is just me putting my thoughts and experiences on parchment."

But she shook her head, got up from the table and ran out of the dining hall as fast as she could. He took a deep breath and let it out again.

Hermione had seen the whole thing. "I'll go talk to her."

Harry nodded. "I'm sure she'll appreciate a friendly face. And I'm never doing this at the dinner table again."

Seeing Harry sitting in front of the fire every night with his legs curled up underneath him and his hands laying palms up on his knees had become a common sight in the Gryffindor common room, so no one remarked it. However, tonight was no ordinary night. Tonight, Harry was actively trying to see the future through the force. He'd read many of the books that Professor Trelawney had recommended, having seen in him a true talent for Divination, and a budding Seer. But rather than use any of the trappings of fortune telling that she so often used, like tea leaves and crystal balls, he was relying solely on the magic of the earth to tell him what it wanted him to know.

He could see the force of magic more readily now than he could when he first began, and could see more clearly through its churning depths. He'd only been doing this for a few months, so he predicted that trend would continue. It affected everything, from his schoolwork and spell-casting to his interactions with his fellow students, the teachers, and his friends. He could see several flashes that could only be tiny slices of the future; himself holding a baby girl with golden curls and his mothers green eyes; Hogwarts embroiled in a massive battle, spell-fire everywhere, war wards cracking overhead before collapsing; a high-ceilinged room of towering shelves, covered in dusty orbs of glass, some with a warm glow coming from within, others gone dark. The final image he was given was of Arthur Weasley standing in a hallway. Behind him, silently slithering along the base of the wall was a massive snake, and it rose up against him as he read the Daily Prophet. Harry spotted the date on the corner of the newspaper and quickly memorized it. Then the snake struck, over and over, leaving Arthur a bleeding, bruised mess.

Coming out of the trance, Harry quickly wrote down all of the visions in his dream journal, beginning with the last so that he would not forget the date on the paper, the eighteenth of November. That was still several weeks away, so there was time to prevent it. He would need to report the vision to Headmaster Dumbledore so that he could take the necessary precautions.

Harry knew one way to make sure that the Headmaster knew about this. He wrote a quick note, and then called for Dobby. The tiny humanoid popped into existence and said, "What can Dobby do for the great Harry Potter?"

"Stop calling me great, for one. But for now, please deliver this message to the Headmaster. If he needs to speak with me, I'll be awake for another hour or so working on homework. Can you do that for me?"

"Of course, Harry Potter, sir. Dobby will do it at once." And with a snap of his fingers and a crack in the air, the elf was gone.

Having done what he could for Mr. Weasley, Harry turned his thoughts to the first of his visions, the little blond child. She was his daughter, of that he had no doubt. What was in doubt was whether or not he would survive the coming conflict so that she could be born. And who, he wondered, was her mother? He was a teenager, so girls were definitely on his radar, but it seemed that the force already knew enough to say he would have one, if not who.

He had a thought, and went to the fire in the hearth and gently levitated out one of the coals. He then concentrated on making the molecules it was made of still and become cold so that he could touch it. Once that was done, he took it in hand, and while focusing on that vision of the future, he sketched his daughter's face onto the parchment beneath the description of the vision.

He felt Hermione watching him over his shoulder, so he wasn't surprised when she said, "Wow, Harry. That's really good. Who is it?"

Harry smiled a smile of wonder. "She's my daughter." Shock came off of his friend in a wave. "Oh, she's not even possible just yet. But the force showed her to me."

Hermione sat down next to him, processing that thought. "That's—that's amazing, Harry. Ron said Professor Trelawney was taking a more positive interest in you. Is this why?"

He nodded. "She thinks she's found the next great Seer. She doesn't know how I'm getting such vivid visions and dreams, of course, but she has been of a help in showing me what to look for, what's a regular dream and what's coming from the force of magic."

Hermione looked again at the sketch of the infant girl, looking carefully at the shape of her face and features, a suspicion forming in her mind. "I think I know who her mother might be."

Harry grinned at her ruefully. "Don't tell me. If it happens, it happens. I don't need to know who she is until I've figured that out for myself."

"You and Ron are my best friends, Harry. I'd like for you to find happiness some day."

His grin softened into a smile. "And you really want to find happiness with Ron, don't you?"

She blushed. "Yes."

"I may have to prod him to get him to realize that."

"Harry! Don't you dare!"

Harry spotted Ron coming down the stairs from the boys' dorm, and felt bad feelings begin from his friend as he thought he and Hermione might be flirting or something. To nip that in the bud, he waved Ron over, and the other boy realized he'd been imagining it. For the next half-hour, the three of them discussed homework and Quidditch, and other random things. He made no mention of the vision he'd had of Ron's father being hurt, not wanting to upset him when there was plenty of warning to avert it.

Then Dobby popped back into the room. "The Headmaster asks you to come and see him in his office, Harry Potter, sir."

Suddenly all business, Harry bowed in acknowledgement, then stood to go. Ron said, "What's the Headmaster want, Harry?"

"I think he wants to know more about my visions."

Ron frowned. "Trelawney must've told him. You think that can help—you know—" he looked around to make sure no one else was listening, "the 'old crowd'?"

Harry said honestly, "I certainly hope so." Then he turned and left.

It took Harry several minutes to describe his methods to Professor Dumbledore, and several more to describe what he'd seen. Then the aged wizard fell silent, sitting back in his chair and mulling over what he had just learned. He said softly, "I took the time to read the book you began with. A truly remarkable story. But your recreation of its physics, for lack of a better word, is far more so, and I must congratulate you."

He paused, then continued. "Harry, the corridor you saw Arthur guarding has at its end the door to the Hall of Prophecy in the Department of Mysteries, one of the many Departments of the Ministry for Magic. The room with the globes in it is that very Hall. Each one contains a prophecy. Those that were dark have either been fulfilled or negated. Those which still glowed contain a currently valid prophecy. One of them has your name on it, and Voldemort's. If anyone other than either of you touches it, it will be destroyed in a minor explosion. Voldemort knows only half of the prophecy, because the man who told it to him only overheard so much before running off to tell his master it."

Harry swallowed a feeling of trepidation. "Were you the person who heard that prophecy?"

"Well deduced. Yes, I was. Perhaps I should have told you before now, but honestly, I didn't want to add this on top of your other burdens." Professor Dumbledore looked old, as if the weight of his knowledge had stripped years from his life.

Slowly, Harry said, "The force of magic isn't exactly like the force of Star Wars, you know. There are certain paths that magic can take which would have been unavailable to a Jedi of the Star Wars universe, paths like transfiguration and charms. But there is every reason to believe that seeing the future through prophecy and through accessing the force of magic will still produce similar results. The future is always in motion, difficult to see. Professor Trelawney has told me that even when a prophecy is made, it can be negated by the choices of those involved, and I know this is true of the force, as well. With knowledge, this future you're worried about could be changed."

The Headmaster stared at Harry, his eyes widening in surprise. His eyes flitted around a little as he thought about it, then he said, "Just as you've changed the future that you saw for Arthur Weasley." He nodded, and said, "You're right, of course. All right. The prophecy foretold that a male child would be born at the end of July to parents who had defied Voldemort three times. It stated that this child would have the power to defeat him, power that he does not know of. But it also stated that he would himself mark the child as his equal, and that either must die by the hand of the other, for neither can live while the other survives."

Harry sat back, trying to get hold of his emotions. He was being told that he was foretold to either kill Voldemort or be killed by him. "So he tried to kill me before I could stand against him, but Mum's sacrifice, whatever she did, ensured that what he did would mark me instead of kill me. And whether I choose to believe this prophecy or not, he does, and will continue to try to kill me." He thought about it, centering and meditating lightly so that his emotions, which wanted to rage against anything and everything right now, stayed calm. "Do you believe this power to be the force?"

"I certainly believe that it's possible."

"I understand. May I be excused?" Harry suddenly felt the need to get out of there, to get somewhere he could explode in peace.

"Of course."

Harry left the office quickly, scrambling for the force as he went to return calm to his mind. It wasn't working, not completely, but it was enough to stop him from doing anything rash. He headed for the seventh floor and the Room of Requirement. Inside, he walked into a room that was suddenly full of breakable objects and bare stone walls. Closing his mind to the force, he allowed himself to indulge his anger and frustration without the risks of doing so while actively using it. He began grabbing hold of the various bits of glass and crockery and lobbing them at the walls, where they shattered with satisfying noise.

His parents had been betrayed, had died, because someone made a prophecy in the hearing of a Death Eater, a prophecy that aimed Voldemort at him like a marksman with a rifle. For a few minutes he indulged in the unfairness of it all, the loss of those he'd never known, the pain of never having known them, the anger with Dumbledore for never telling him why. Then, covered in cuts from flying debris, he simply sat down in the middle of the floor, on a cushion that had mysteriously appeared the moment he was ready for it, curled into a ball and wept like a small child. He remained like that until he simply cried himself to sleep, having allowed himself to be broken for a little while, but knowing he would have to pull himself together in the morning.

If Harry was down for the next few days, most people didn't notice. Hermione did, as did Ron, but they were his closest friends. Dumbledore knew because he knew what had caused it. One person outside that circle, however, did notice.

Harry was sitting on a large rock, staring out at the Black Lake. The giant squid was catching chunks of bread that he was tossing listlessly into the water, presumably to eat them once they had been dragged beneath the surface. Luna Lovegood, the girl he'd met on the train, came walking up to him. She watched him for a while, a curious look on her face, then took another chunk of the bread in his lap and tossed it to the squid. In a dreamy, soft voice, she said, "While I'm sure Humphrys is enjoying this, I'm not sure that you are."

A small snort of laughter puffed out of his nose. "That's because I'm moping."

She studied his face. "I'm sure that's not what you're doing. I think instead that you are thinking in circles. You've learned something and you aren't sure how to deal with it."

Harry turned to look at her. She was a lovely girl with long, scraggly, dishwater blonde hair, blue eyes that were like deep pools of water, and an aura that seemed to bubble with different colors, all bright or soft. She could be many things, but never cruel or angry. "You're right," he found himself saying. "I found out why Voldemort wants me dead."

Luna said nothing, just letting him talk.

"There was a prophecy given before I was born that a boy born at the end of July that year would have the power to defeat him. It could have been me or Neville at that point. But then he marked me, making me the only person who fits the prophecy. I do not want to become a murderer. Neither do I want to leave him alive to continue to hurt people."

Luna surprised him, then, by saying, "There is a third choice, you know. Killing does not have to mean murder. Murder is defined by what is in your heart. Is it murder when you kill in self defence? Is it murder if you kill to keep your friends or family safe. Or is it only murder if you kill in order to gain something for yourself? A trinket, a woman, information, enjoyment." She patted his hand. "It's not a good thing that you'll have to kill him. But it's not murder, Harry."

Harry looked at his hand where she had touched him, a shiver of prescience creeping over his spine. "Luna—"

But she shook her head. "It's all right. I'm sure your friends will help you deal with the aftermath. I know I would if I were your friend."

He looked her in the eyes, and almost fell into them. He was shocked at her statement. But he was also entranced with what he was feeling from her through the force. It was as if his entire future were wrapped around her, or at least had the potential to be. He didn't want it to just be the force, though. He wanted there to be something between them other than the future. Still, he saw his daughter in her face, and knew that it was very likely that he would one day fall in love with her. He already liked her very much, just for her support. He took a deep breath. "Thank you, Luna. And I would like it if you were my friend. Would you like to be?"

She smiled at him. "I'd like that very much." Then she walked away, leaving him staring after her.

He looked back out at the lake and saw the waiting tentacles of the squid searching for more bread. "Well, Humphrys, friends is a good place to start, don't you think?"

If Hermione noticed that Harry was starting to hang out with the unusual Ravenclaw, she didn't mention it, though she did grin at him once or twice when she caught him staring at her. Ron, of course, was oblivious, but neither Ginny nor the twins were. In fact, the twins were trying to figure out a way to use his distraction against him to pull a good prank or two.

Percy had completed his inspection of all of the teachers, and he had presented his recommendation to the Headmaster before leaving the school to present it to Minister Fudge. The report was also published in the Prophet for everyone, including the students, to read. He had found instruction lacking in several areas, but none so much that he would reccommend that any of the teachers be replaced. He thought there was an inordinant amount of bias on the part of Professor Snape, but that his actual teaching was quite good. He thought Binns' information was out of date in several areas, and sadly lacking in student interaction, but he was a ghost, so there wasn't really anything that could be done about him.

Harry slowly came back to himself, and threw himself into his studies, his training, and his budding relationship with Luna. She had begun joining him for his morning run around the lake, and though he kept himself focused on the force as he ran, he did not use it to increase his physical ability while running, so Luna was reasonably able to keep up. They would then go their separate ways for breakfast and classes, but would spend lunch and dinner together. He told her what a Jedi was, and she asked him question after question. Many of her questions were related to the aliens of the Star Wars universe, though he assured her it was a fictional story. But she also asked many questions about his training and his motivation for it. She was interested enough that she asked him if he thought she could become a Jedi.

He told her, "Yes, I do. But I'm not in a position to teach you yet. I'm still learning myself, and I have to put the situation with Voldemort first."

She chuckled. "Oh, I know that, Harry. It's enough for now that you think I'll be able."

He smiled. "All right. I can tell you that I got started at the beginning by learning how to meditate. Then, once I was able to reach a meditative state no matter what I was doing, I used that to begin touching my own magical core. After that, I could sense the ambient magic all around us, and that is how I've been able to do what I've been doing. That ambient magic is what the book calls the force." He shrugged. "I'm finding new things every day. Did you know Hogwarts is actually alive, for instance?"

"There have always been rumors that it was, that the founders put so much of themselves into the castle that parts of their souls stayed within it."

Luna said it matter-of-factly, but the thought made him stop in his tracks, his eyes widening to the size of golf balls and his pupils contracting to pinpoints. "Hogwarts is a Horcrux?"

She shook her head. "No, nothing so dark as that. Back then there were other ways. They gave of their souls through light rituals that did not involve any kind of sacrifice. And since it was a free-will gift, it did not have the effect of making them immortal, or trapping them on this plane, as a Horcrux would. The method has been lost to time, of course. The rumors also say that the Sorting Hat is an extension of the will of the school."

Thoughtfully stroking his chin, Harry said, "That's why he keeps singing about unity. It's Hogwarts herself that is calling for it!"