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“The Senator will arrive in a few minutes. Be ready.”
Harry nodded anxiously, glancing up at the man and woman who had adopted him a few years ago. Ever since that night right after he had killed Voldemort and had gotten sucked into a portal. It had been three months since then, three months on this planet of Naboo, and he’d enjoyed it.
He glanced out at the windows opposite them, seeing the corner of Theed that they lived in. It was a beautiful city, a beautiful planet that he had fallen in love with during the first week he had lived here. Naboo. So much greenery and life and people who believed in social service, bettering their society.
The couple who had found him had given him a purpose again, had sent him to therapy and to a health clinic, and had loved him. He’d called them Jonathan and Martha Kent one time, just out of the similarity of it, and when they hadn’t understood the joke, he dropped it. He also hadn’t dropped out of the sky in an escape pod either. There were also lots of aliens in this galaxy, not just humans, so there wasn’t a lot of similarity between the two. But orphans and the utter abundance of people contributing to society was a common enough thing.
Not a rare thing to be found on Naboo and especially in Theed, he had found out. The bigger number of orphans had been a result of the invasion of Theed three years ago, not something that Harry had been around for but it had changed Naboo in plenty of ways.
He looked out at the speeder that was just now parking on the curb down below, eying the three women and two security guards who got out. One was Senator Amidala, the representative of Naboo, a woman his own age. The two other women were the senator’s handmaidens, all robed and cloaked, their faces only slightly visible, like shadows. The security guards flanked the senator, their uniforms simple and straightforward, their pistols at their hips. Harry had been intrigued to learn that all the security guards in Theed, on Naboo were in fact volunteers. The planet was very pacifistic, even more so since it had gotten invaded by the Trade Federation three years ago.
Harry’s eyes were drawn to the woman though, studying her from afar. She wore a set of robes that were a little understated but still well tailored, black with red lines of thread at the edges. His heart skipped a beat as the Senator stopped in front of their house, peering up at the window and meeting his eyes.
His own clothing wasn’t at all as graceful as hers was. He was just wearing a simple robe, not a wizarding one, but Naboo made. Comfortable, easy to move around in, and it kept him warm when it was cold in the mornings and cool when it was hot during the afternoon. A utility belt at his waist held more relatively mundane supplies, his wand, healing kit, invisibility cloak, broom, and a tablet. The under clothes were well made as well, comfortable tunic and leggings. Boots finished off the look.
He’d lost the need for glasses as well, his eyes having been fixed at a clinic in Theed.
These days he didn’t use a lot of magic in public, instead using it in the privacy of his home. He’d heard of the Jedi, a group of space wizards who could do amazing things with their power, but he didn’t want to draw attention to himself in that way.
All in all, it would have made him unrecognizable to his old friends.
His heart ached at the thought. He missed them but he was still unsure if he wanted to go back. Even if he could now. He wasn’t sure what had sent him here in the first place, if it was fate or destiny or just another instance of Potter Luck.
The creaking of the door opening downstairs drew him out of his thoughts and he turned around, swallowing as he heard his adoptive parents speak with the Senator. Harry walked over to the top of the stairs and stepped down them, ending up in the entryway. It was a big hall, big enough to accommodate plenty of people, and it left Harry with a lot of space between him and the Senator.
He’d heard a lot about Senator Amidala, never having seen her in person but he admired her. Being made Queen when she was 14 years old. Defending her home planet fiercely during the Invasion by the Trade Federation. Uniting the human and Gungans. Everyone he talked to had made her seem larger than life.
His adoptive parents waved him in and he walked over to stand alongside them. They’d never be James and Lily Potter but they were tons better than the Dursleys. And they’d never be like Dumbledore either.
“Hello,” Harry started, dipping his head in a nod to the Senator.
The Senator stared at him, her bright brown eyes lighting up with a little curiosity. There was a hard glint there though and Harry inhaled sharply. The entryway was big, huge enough to contain a dragon, but she made it seem small.
Her two handmaidens stood behind her, quiet and much more subtle than the Senator herself.
“Hello,” Amidala replied, taking a step further towards him.
“Would you like some tea?” His father asked, looking between them thoughtfully.
“Yes, and some privacy,” Amidala urged, her gaze stuck on Harry but not on his scar. Her voice was low and young. She was only 21, the same age as him, had already been queen for two terms. His parents had said that many people had wanted her to remain queen for another term, breaking the rules in Naboo that said a monarch could only reign for two. Amidala had said no.
Harry was a little bit in awe of her while knowing he’d been through so much too.
“Of course. This way,” Harry offered, waving a hand towards their sitting room. His adoptive parents weren’t rich by any means but they were comfortable. He’d offered to pay his room and board when he had first arrived here, having had his whole Gringotts wealth in his trunk when he had gotten waylaid. They’d said no. He had been given a bedroom and a small office of his own, off to the side of their home, without having to pay rent.
They’d said he was old enough to enter some kind of social work, some kind of work that would benefit the city. Naboo was built on that, it had seemed, and they had all but said that. He had yet to decide on what he would do though, maybe something to do with kids or orphans, making sure no one would fall through the cracks. Or perhaps something to do with veterans. Merlin knew he was one, even if he hadn’t officially enlisted in the military.
And then they had gotten this request or invitation from the palace. His parents were apparently friends of one of the handmaiden’s families, in politics themselves.
He led the Senator over to his first floor rooms, passing his bedroom, and walking over to his office. It hadn’t seen much work at all since he’d only been here for three months but now. He didn’t know how this would really work out, if they would work as a team. As a couple. It’d be an arranged marriage and Harry wasn’t sure if he liked the thought but. It wasn’t like he had to say yes to this. He liked the idea of not being alone, of having someone close to talk to.
“Please sit,” Harry offered, glancing over at the Senator as he held the door open for her and her two handmaidens. He sat down first, in the chair he had taken a liking to over the past few weeks.
The two handmaidens stopped at the door and assumed the positions of bodyguards. There weren't even any visible hand signals between the three, which impressed him even more. Though it made sense, he supposed. If these were the handmaidens that had been with her during the invasion and siege of Naboo…
The Senator sat down on the chair opposite Harry’s chair, her movements careful and coordinated. Her eyes were glued on Harry, studying him just as much as he was studying her.
His father came in with a tray of tea and snacks and carefully laid it down on the table between Harry and Amidala. He glanced between the two of them before carefully backing out of the room and shutting the door behind him. The handmaidens soon followed, probably to take up positions outside the room.
Amidala took a deep breath and let it out as soon as they were alone. And it was like she was a different person, her shoulders loosening a little, at least from what he could see under the robe. She lowered her hood, letting Harry see her entire face, see the way that the face paint was subtle. Her eyes were a bright brown, vibrant and sharp, and her hair was a dark brown, straight and pulled back into a severe but intricate looking bun.
“What do I call you?” Harry started, grabbing a mug and pouring some tea in.
“You may call me Padmé. My contact says you were interested in this for…companionship?”
“That’s what my guardians said you wanted too,” Harry commented, shrugging lightly, watching as Padmé poured some tea of her own, dropping some sugar in. “Were they wrong?”
“No. As you may know I am very busy,” Padmé answered, arching an eyebrow before continuing. “I don’t have the time to find someone now and yet.”
“You want someone to confide in that’s not connected to politics?”
“It’s a bit of that,” Padmé said, nodding in agreement, reaching for her cup and taking a sip of it. The taste surprised her, something herbal in quality and sharp. She’d never tasted something like it before. “You’ve lived on Naboo for a few months?”
“I arrived…” Harry paused, taking a sip of his tea. “A few months is accurate, not too long ago. I’m the same age as you.”
Padmé’s lips twitched. “You have an accent that I have not heard of yet. Where are you from originally?”
Harry opened his mouth and then closed it, something coiling in his gut. “Far away. It was a planet called Earth.”
Padmé tilted her head, picking up the cup of tea that was meant for her and taking a sip. “I have not heard of a planet with that name. Is it in the Outer Rim?”
He shrugged, keeping his body language loose, trying not to tense up. “I don’t think so. It was not a voluntary thing, moving from there to Naboo. But I don’t know if it was for the better or if it was…”
“Not a voluntary choice? Were you trafficked?” Padmé questioned, her gaze sharpening, her voice deepening. And now he could see the Queen in front of him, the shadows of steel in her voice. It made something warm roll through his body, goosebumps trailing up his arms, chasing away the momentary discomfort. “Your guardian said you were not a slave. Was I given the correct information?”
Harry huffed and nodded. “You’re not wrong. I was not a slave. It was more…”
He lifted his hands up and mimed a tunnel, miming traveling through a tunnel. Padmé blinked, following his movements curiously.
“I was lifted from my planet and brought here. Now I don’t know why I’m here and I don’t know where I fit in,” Harry finally offered, his shoulders curling before relaxing. “I fought a war back home and it left echoes in me. I want the same things you want. Companionship. Someone to come home to.”
Padmé arched an eyebrow. “I am a Senator. I will not be a traditional--”
“I know. I’m not a traditional anything either,” Harry interrupted, shrugging. “I’m more than willing to be the house husband, the person you come home to after Senatoring for the day.”
Padmé’s eyes sparked in amusement, her lips curling to match. “‘Senatoring’?”
“You know what I mean,” Harry retorted, glaring at her.
She snorted, turning away for a moment before looking back at him again. “What do you do for work?”
“I…I am currently looking for something to do,” Harry said, dipping his head in a nod. “Something maybe to do with social work? I know you live on Coruscant during the season so… I was thinking of advocating for people who don’t have a voice? Or what’s the situation for orphans on that planet?”
Padmé’s eyes narrowed. “I don’t know about Coruscant enough to answer those questions but I could get you in contact with the people who would. Were you an orphan?”
“My parents, not these ones,” Harry started, jerking a thumb towards the door to indicate his guardians here. “My parents back home died when I was one. They were murdered and I was left with my aunt and uncle. But… the war that I went through…It left a lot of kids orphaned and…”
Padmé raised an eyebrow as she heard his breath catch in the otherwise silent room, seeing him clearly hesitate. His green eyes darkened before he looked away, turning to look out the window across from them.
“The man I fought in the war was orphaned and it rather fucked him up,” Harry finally offered, turning to look at her. “I want to make sure that doesn’t happen. I want to make sure children are taken care of. Properly. No abuse.”
Harry looked like a general there, looked like a younger Captain Panaka, and Padmé’s heart skipped a beat. Steel in his voice and eyes. She didn’t say anything for a few minutes, letting his words sink in, taking in the whole of him. Something warm curled in her gut.
She reminded him of herself, stepping onto Tattooine and realizing that the slave trade was alive and well on that planet. Of seeing Ani and his mother and being horrified when they spoke of the buttons inside them that would go boom the minute they ran away or were considered worthless.
“You haven’t asked,” Harry said after a moment, eying her curiously.
“Hmm?”
Harry pointed at his scar before taking a few sips of his tea.
“The people on this planet and in Theed have always been polite when they see me,” Harry remarked, his voice softening a little. There was a deep seated ache in that voice and Padmé flinched at the sound of it. “The people back home would always stare at my scar first before looking at the rest of me. It was kind of freeing when I realized no one was staring at my scar in Theed.”
“I figured you would tell me if it was relevant,” Padmé offered, laying her hands on her lap. “Is it relevant?”
Harry stared at her, studying her as much as she studied him, before shaking his head. “It’s not. At least not here. It’s stopped hurting, thank Merlin. That is a very diplomatic answer.”
Padmé grinned a little bit at the weird name. “I assumed it was an injury in the war you mentioned.”
Harry made a hand wavy gesture with his left hand. “More or less. So…what is your schedule like?”
“If we both agree to this, we will fill out papers with the Naboo office. It won’t take long at all and then I travel back to Coruscant within the week. Perhaps I could take you to meet my family beforehand. I met yours. I would have liked to meet your actual family though.”
“My aunt and uncle weren’t anything special,” Harry replied with a grimace. “My cousin…was like them but he was on the way to changing for the better when I saw him last. I would love to meet your family.”
“You’ll meet my chief of security and my handmaidens,” Padmé mentioned, glancing towards the door. “This kind of arrangement is not unheard of on Naboo so they will not be surprised by it.”
“How old were you when you joined politics?” Harry asked, tilting his head in thought.
Padmé’s lips curled and took another sip of her tea. “I joined the Apprentice Legislature at age eight. It is traditional on Naboo, as you know, to find a job in social work.”
“Yes. I’m aware. You were the youngest queen Naboo had. And the only one to deal with a siege by the Trade Federation.”
“I got our people through it,” Padmé said, sighing and slipping her hands around her cup. “I don’t know how well I did though and…I still have nightmares. I wanted to save every single person from the horror of the occupation but I could not.”
“You did the best you could,” Harry offered, reaching out across the table to tap her hand. Padmé stared down at his finger before exhaling sharply. “You led your troops into the fight yourself. I wasn’t there but…”
“I could have done more. I tried every peaceful option and yet.”
“Sometimes…” Harry paused, meeting her eyes. “Sometimes peace doesn’t work and it’s not your fault. There are so many factors that go into war or a siege or a battle.”
“I listened to the calls of my people, to the reports of my handmaidens, and I was fourteen. I listened to reports of starvation, of torture at the hands of the Trade Federation and I fled.”
“You were the Queen, a symbol of hope and safety for the people. They would have been devastated had you been captured or killed. I know that personally.”
Padmé leaned forward in her chair, glancing at Harry pointedly, wanting to learn more about what made him who he was. She was intrigued more than she had ever been about this man, something in his eyes and voice that spoke of secrets.
“I was the leader of my people,” Harry explained warily. “More or less. I was seventeen and all the adults were either incompetent, dead or actively denying there was a threat. If I had been killed or captured, it would have been a major loss, despite the fact that my friends were just as competent as I was.”
“I also tried to save as many people as I could,” Harry added. “A saving people thing, my friends called it.”
Padmé grinned a little, falling just a tiny bit in love with him for that alone. Warmth curled in her stomach. “My final project as queen was to install an ion cannon in Theed for protection. There were many people who agreed with it and also many people who criticized it. They said that it went against what Naboo stood for, in terms of peace.”
Harry opened his mouth and then closed it, frowning a little. “It makes sense to me. I haven’t been in this…universe for long but an ion cannon shoots something that disables power on a ship?”
“Yes. It would be protection for an evacuation, should one be needed.”
“It makes logical sense to me,” Harry said, shaking his head. “I think…I would like to do this. If you want to.”
“I do. You provide a unique viewpoint.”
Harry grinned faintly. “A unique viewpoint?”
“We both have a people saving thing,” Padmé remarked, her smile matching his. “We’re the same age. I…don’t want kids right now.”
Harry nodded, running a hand through his hair. “I don’t want kids right now either. I want to find my place in the world and I would be honored to do it alongside you.”
Padmé blinked, her heart skipping another beat at his words. “You will be marrying a Senator. You will have to get used to having security.”
Harry waved it away. “It’s fine. I’ll roll with it.”