Ok, so this is my first fanfic, I take criticism rather well, but please no flames! And English is not my mother tong, but I tried to write as well as I could.

Small summary: basically a Tom Riddle/OC fanfic, but I'll spend a lot of time on my other character. Her background is quite crucial to the story so I'll introduce it step by step.

It's happening during Riddle's 7th year; he has already killed with the basilisk and murdered his father and grand-parents, so he's pretty deep in it…

Only Cat and little Keikoku belong to me!

DUMBLEDORE'S POV

Rubbing the bridge of his nose where the glasses had left a mark, Dumbledore was pacing back and forth in Headmaster Dippet's office. The day had had been a long one, a very long one indeed, with the news that Grindelwald's Inferi Army was growing. 'Well, no wonder there, with all the victims of the war', Dumbledore thought, sickened by the very idea of a hundred bloody corpses hiding somewhere in the darkness, waiting to be unleashed at the armed forces the Ministry had thrown in the war.

"Albus, would you please take a seat? You are giving me a headache" the tired voice of Armando Dippet came from a comfortable, yet simple looking arm chair. It was past midnight and both had been discussing ways of defeating the Inferi Army for hours, reaching no satisfying solution.

"As you wish, Armando" answered Dumbledore. As he was about to take his seat though, he noticed something from the corner of his eyes. Feeling a change in the atmosphere, he turned his head to the right, and sure enough, he could see the air faltering just like it usually did above flames. Frowning, he kept his eyes fixed on the spot. That is, before a blinding flash of light forced him to close and shield them with his hand (hey! his blue eyes were extremely sensitive and he didn't want to worsen his already bad eyesight!). He reopened them only to find that he was looking at two strangers. One was a girl in her late teens, the other one a boy no older than 10. The girl had an arm around the boy's shoulders and was holding him tightly as if to protect him from harm. Both were wearing long, dark cloaks that covered them from neck to foot, hiding their clothes and body shapes.

She stared back at Dumbledore, who started wondering whether tiredness was taking its toll at last after sleepless days, but his thoughts were interrupted by Dippet's short comment.

"Merlin's beard…" His voice trailed off as he too stared at the strange pair, disbelief obviously showing on his face. The silence went on. And then, the girl hesitantly spoke.

CATTLEYA'S POV

Cat hated the moment she actually apparated to a new place. It was always the same, people staring and staring and staring at her and her brother, not daring to utter a word, wondering whether their senses were failing them. Well, she thought to herself fairly, she would do the same if people suddenly appeared right in front of her, where there had been nothing but air seconds before… but still, she hated the awkward feeling. This time, she was standing in front of two men, one standing only a few feet away from her, the other one seated behind what was probably the largest desk she had ever seen… She felt a jolt in her stomach. Had she managed to apparate in another universe this time? Or was it still her old world? She had seen many, many different places, but everything about this one was odd to her: the men, their clothes (not once before had she met men who were actually wearing robes!), the furniture, the room, even the feel of the atmosphere…

She tightened her hold on her younger brother, not knowing whether to expect a violent reaction from them. Well, no one had ever really attacked her, but some, after having overcome the shock, had shouted madly at her, pointing at her face, and then ran away as if chased by all the demons of hell, which she found utterly distressing and a tad bit frustrating. Others had simply fainted at the sight of her appearing out of thin air, which was hardly better.

However, as the two men did not react at all, she felt compelled to break the heavy silence.

"Ummm… hello?" she tried hesitantly. Wow Cat, that sure was an awkward one, she thought to herself cynically, and yet she could find nothing else to say. How was she supposed to explain? Where was she supposed to start? Could she even trust those men with the truth?

"Hello dear", a voice interrupted her musing. The voice was pleasant and reassuring, and she realized that the standing man was smiling at her, looking at her from over his half-moon shaped glasses in a kindly way. "Would you like to be seated?"

She liked him, she decided. The man might look like a fool with his robes, long hair and beard, but there was something about his aura that would make people respect him. Cat had always been very good at reading people's aura, and the power that radiated from him was, although impressive, far from aggressive. He reminded her of her father, probably the most powerful man she had ever met, and yet always so kind and careful… As the image of her smiling father popped in her mind, she felt a pang in her stomach. She hadn't seen him for years and wondered whether he was alright. He had been extremely ill when she had left her family to fulfill her destiny… Now is not the moment to think about it Cat. Definitely not, she chided herself.

"Thank you very much" she answered, bowing slightly to the man in acknowledgement. Cat watched in amusement as he waved the small stick of wood he was holding in his right hand, only to jump as two chairs were conjured in front of her.

"Surely magic is not unknown to you, now, is it?" she heard the curiosity in the man's voice.

"Excuse me sir, it is quite hard to explain. I have seen magic, as you call it, performed before, and have performed it myself, but it was a different kind of magic… in a different place" she finished, as she took the seat, half forcing her brother to do the same, hoping the man would somehow understand the last part of her sentence. Well, not many knew of alternate universes, but he seemed to be so knowledgeable…

"Would I be wrong in assuming that you and the young man are from a… how to put it… different…aham…world"?

Gods exist and have heard my plea.

"No, you would not" Cat felt tremendously relieved that she would not, at least, have to explain about the existence of parallel worlds.

"By the way, my name is Albus Dumbledore, and this is Armando Dippet" He outstretched his hand to her. She sat there, not knowing what to do with it, eying him with uncertainty. The wizard chuckled: "In this world, we shake hands to greet each other."

"In mine, we bow to each other to show our mutual respect. My name is Mibu Cattleya, and this is my brother Keikoku. It is an honor to meet you Mr Dumbledore". She took his hand and bent her back over their enter twined hands. "And Mr Dippet" she continued as she turned to the seated man, still bowing.

Both looked extremely amused. She knew it must seem weird to them, having people bow to them when it was not their custom. But her parents had always been very strict about her showing as much respect as possible to anyone she met, especially when they were older. Respect, they always said, is the first step to understanding. Words which had, on many occasions, been proved right.

ARMANDO DIPPET'S POV

Hogwarts' headmaster was not a man who easily lost his composure. However, he had found himself dumbfounded as the pair appeared, not managing to utter a single word even as Dumbledore had been so quick to react. But then, Dumbledore was always quick to react. As his transfiguration teacher was enjoying his little chat, he could not help but study them.

The girl had long, wavy black hair. They were parted on the right side of her head, falling in uneven locks around her face and down her shoulders. Her eyes too were black, and were currently sporting a very serious look. She had noble features, and although he would not have called her strikingly beautiful, there was something in the expression on her face, in the way she held her back in a straight yet relaxed fashion, that commanded respect, something he had scarcely ever seen in a teenager. He was not easily impressed by youngsters, having taught too many of them, but obviously the girl was not the average teen.

As he turned his attention to the brother, he could not help but shiver. Where the girl clearly emitted a peaceful and extremely pure aura, the boy seemed to burn from the inside. From what, the headmaster could not tell, but when his eyes met those of the boy, he was quite startled to see that they were blood red. He quickly looked away, uneasy, but could still feel the boy's intense stare on his face.

DUMBLEDORE'S POV

"Sir, please, it is late and our tale is a long one to tell. Would you offer us a place to stay for the night?" Once again, the seriousness of her tone, and the politeness of the voice struck him. The girl was way too mature for her age, he could not help but wonder what she had gone through. Glancing sideways to the boy, he realized that she had probably been looking over him on her own for a while. Where were the parents? Which universe did she come from? He had many questions on his head, but understood the girl's reasonable request.

"But of course my dear. For tonight, and for every night that you shall spend in this world, have no worries" he answered, and he lead the children of the office without so much as a word to Armando. As he made his way to the infirmary, he studied both of them silently. The girl seemed to pay attention to every little detail she saw, while the boy's stare was fixe ahead and never faltered. He felt his curiosity as to their story growing. Well, he would just have to be patient.

This story can be seen as a crossover between HP and the manga Samurai Deeper Kyo. Cat and Keikoku come from Kyo's world, they came looking for a cure to the disease that is affecting the Mibu clan, but we'll learn more in the next chapters.

No worries, having read the manga is not necessary!

Cat is Sakuya's and Kyoshiro's daughter, Keikoku is NOT the one of the manga, I created him, and it is actually Onime no Kyo that inspired its' character.

No other character from the manga will be involved, although Cat might mention some of them!