Harry Potter and the Wizards of the East
Chapter One
East Meets West
The summer loomed like an endless sea as far as Harry Potter was concerned. September and school seemed like a distant dream, especially when his Aunt Petunia was in one of her moods. She had roused Harry from his bed early in the morning and sent him outside into the yard with the command to make the garden "spit spot" before she, Uncle Vernon and Dudley returned from their day trip into London. To Aunt Petunia, spit-spot meant the lawn was perfectly manicured, the flowerbeds had no sign of weeds and the bushes were trimmed so perfectly a level could be held up against them and stay perfectly straight.
Ugh.
So summer vacation was barely in its infancy and already Harry was wishing it were over. Even double potions with Professor Snape was better than this, grumbled Harry as he struggled with a particularly stubborn weed. If he could use his magic, the gardening job would be so much simpler and faster too! But magic was forbidden to Hogwarts students when they were off campus. Therefore Harry was forced to do this job the Muggle way.
Time crawled by. The sun was hot and it had been particularly dry. The normal rainy English climate had forsaken them these past few days and was replaced by hot dry weather that made the earth hard and baked. It was not the sort of weather that made weeding and garden chores easier to do. By noon Harry had managed to get all the flowerbeds in the rear of the house done to Aunt Petunia's standard of perfection. The bushes on the side of the house were his next task.
As he was going to fetch the hedge trimmers, he heard the low thrumming of a motorbike engine coming from the street. He gazed toward Privet Drive and saw a sleek black, blue and silver Kawasaki Ninja motorcycle paused in the road in front of his home. The rider was wearing a skintight leather-riding suit that was the same coloration as the bike. The faceplate on the rider's helmet was tinted so dark that his face was invisible. Although Harry couldn't see his face he knew the rider was looking right at him.
The hairs on the back on Harry neck stood up and he felt the tightening grip of fear clench his stomach. Something about the man on that motorbike had him spooked but he didn't know why. His scar didn't hurt, which quickly ruled out any dark magic being afoot, but there was still something that wasn't right about what he was seeing.
As he stood returning the rider's stare, the man on the bike pulled the cycle into the driveway in front of the house and the bike powered down. The rider got off the bike and spoke to the vehicle, which lifted up onto its center stand and parked itself. Okay, thought Harry, I was right. That motorcycle is magic and the man riding it is a wizard.
But who is he and why is he here?
All Harry could tell at first was the man was shorter than he was, maybe five feet four or so, and weighed maybe a hundred and twenty pounds. He had a hard lean look, like a predatory animal, and walked with the confidence of a man who knew no fear. The rider approached Harry swiftly removing his helmet as he walked. Harry gasped inadvertently in surprise at the face that was now gazing at him beaming with a friendly smile. The man on the bike was no man but a youth not much older than Harry himself. He was Eurasian with dark almond eyes and shaggy brown hair that seemed to have a mind of its own. He was more beautiful than handsome and had nice straight white teeth. Harry couldn't believe he noticed the man's teeth. Too much time spent in the company of a girl whose parents were dentists! Dear Hermione was a great friend and he missed her. It was obvious how much he missed her when there were things he would notice – like people's teeth - because they made him think of her.
The rider waved to Harry saying, "Good afternoon!"
Harry looked at him puzzled and responded, "Hello. Who are you?"
After he closed the distance between them the young man in riding leathers said, "I'm Hiro Yui and I was asked by Professor Dumbledore to give Harry Potter a message." He unzipped his leather riding jacket and from an inside pocket pulled out a letter that bore the Hogwart's seal prominently on the back of the envelope. Before he handed it to Harry he asked, "You are Harry Potter, right?"
Harry nodded and Hiro handed him the letter adding, "Had to be sure. I was only told where you lived and what you looked like. And, please don't be offended, but you aren't the most remarkable looking person. Except for that scar…."
Hiro let the thought trail off not sure if going further with this thought would be appropriate. Harry sensed his uncertainty and stated, "It's okay, everyone notices my scar and asks about it."
"If you don't want to talk about it, that's fine with me," Hiro stated quickly.
"No, its okay. Really," Harry stammered. "You aren't offending me." He looked down at the envelope. It was odd getting a hand delivered message but considering much difficulty he had in the past getting letters from the school, it made sense that the headmaster would have someone deliver the letter to him personally. This method would upset his Uncle and Aunt far less than the time he got a letter from Ron's mom that came via normal post with way too many stamps on it.
Harry opened the letter and read:
Dear Mr. Potter,
You are invited to return to Hogwarts for a special summer session. This is the first time in our thousand-year history that the school has been opened to our students for the summer. We hope that you will join us for the next eight weeks for what should truly be a historic event.
School will be in session for half day special enrichment classes to be taught by our staff and visiting faculty from other wizarding schools. There will be trips to Hogsmeade as well as outdoor sports, Quidditch tournaments and other diversions.
Our special summer session begins on July the first. The Hogwarts Express will eave from King's Cross station, platform nine and three-quarters, at eleven o'clock.
A list of your needs for the summer session is enclosed.
Yours sincerely,
Professor M. McGoneegall
Deputy Headmistress
Harry raised an eyebrow. Summer school? He looked up from the letter at Hiro and asked, "Do you know about this?"
"What? That Hogwarts is doing summer school?" he replied. "Yes, I know, because my father is going to be one of your teachers."
"Really?" Harry said. "What subject?"
Hiro shrugged. "Not sure. I was told that summer school was going to be different from the normal curriculum. That's why I'm here. My father thought I would enjoy going to a Western magic school."
"Where do you go now?"
"I study at the Celestial Temple of the Akashic Buddha," Hiro said. "It's a monastic school hidden deep in the Himalayas. Is very remote and the passes through the mountains are so treacherous that usually the only way you can only get there by is by flying."
"Wow," Harry said impressed. "So…monastery school? Its all boys?"
Hiro shook his head. "No, its co-ed. It's just that all of the Masters who teach us are Buddhist monks and nuns. My father is one of the most senior of the Masters who teach at the Temple. That's why the Abbot allowed him to leave the Temple grounds and accept Master Dumbledore's invitation to teach at Hogwarts." He saw the confused look on Harry face and added, "The monks and nuns who are devoted to the Temple's service very rarely leave the mountain. It's part of their vows. I also had to get permission to come here, since I, too, am bound to the Akashic Order."
"You're a monk?" Harry stated incredulous.
Hiro nodded. "Yes. And the only reason I have long hair is that the Abbot allowed me to stop cutting my hair in anticipation of my journeying to the West to study here over the summer. He thought I would fit in better if I at least looked like one of you."
The new boy did look like he would fit in at a Western school, although clad as he was at the moment, he looked more Muggle than wizard. Harry didn't know much about Buddhist monks but he had a feeling that they didn't dress in skintight leather on a regular basis. He must have gotten permission to dress the part of a Western student too, though Harry as he gave the leather-clad Hiro the once-over.
Hiro noticed Harry giving his riding outfit the eye and stated, "My mother bought this for me. She didn't want me to get road rash if I took a tumble." He paused and then added, "Even been on a motorcycle, Harry?"
"Once but I was too young at the time to remember," Harry replied. Considering he was an infant at the time Hagrid took him on his motorbike the statement he made was the truth. He looked at the bike and asked, "Is that bike magic?"
"It is now," Hiro said then explained quickly, "It was a Muggle motorcycle when it began its life. A wizard friend of my mother's, a chap named Francois Dubois, wanted to magic the bike so he could ride it. Somehow the spell went awry and Francois got sucked into the bike. Now the bike is alive because it's him, Francois! I mean it still looks the same but it's really a wizard transfigured into a motorbike. Bad thing is he is stuck that way until we can figure out what he did wrong and undo it."
"Maybe Professor McGonegall can help," Harry offered. "She teaches Transfiguration. She might be able to figure out what Francois did wrong and fix it."
"Well, that's part of the reason why I'm taking him to Hogwarts with me. I was hoping someone there might be able to undo the botch. If your Professor McGonegall can't help, maybe the Headmaster can. My father told me Albus Dumbledore was a Transfiguration Master before he became the head of your school."
Harry nodded in agreement. "He did teach the class before Professor McGonegall. Maybe he and Professor McGonegall can help."
Hiro looked relieved. "Thanks. I have a feeling Francois will be doing wheelies all the way to Hogwarts once I tell him the good news. He really wants to be human again. He's getting pretty tired of living on petrol and sleeping in a garage."
Harry laughed despite the fact he did feel sorry for poor Francois. As much as he really wanted to spend all day chatting with Hiro, if he didn't get his chores done by the time his Aunt and Uncle returned he would be in a lot of trouble.
"I wish I could spend the day with you Hiro, but I have to finish my gardening before my Uncle and Aunt get back from London," Harry said the disappointment obvious in his tone of voice.
"We can still talk," Hiro said as he unzipped and removed his leather jacket. "If I stick around and give you a hand with your work."
"Thanks but-"
"Its okay, I don't mind," Hiro interrupted. "I am a Akashic. Part of the duties of every student is helping to maintain the Temple grounds. Gardening is a part of my routine at home. I have no problem doing while I am here."
Harry smiled. It would be nice to do this drudgery with a friend. The time will pass more pleasantly and the job would get done quicker too. "Thanks, Hiro," Harry replied smiling at his new friend. "Maybe…maybe if we get done early you can introduce me to Francois."
Hiro returned the smile saying, "I'd be happy to."
The two boys got to work and Hiro quickly showed he was no stranger to gardening. Harry let him do the pruning of the bushes since Hiro seemed far more adept with the clippers than Harry was and he also was very good at cutting stubborn bushes perfectly smooth and level. As Harry busied himself cutting the grass he noticed that, although his new friend was not doing anything overtly that would make the neighbors suspicious, Hiro was using magic. It was very subtle and Harry himself would have missed it completely if he hadn't been looking directly at Hiro when Hiro was casting.
Hiro was making the flower seeds he was planting in Aunt Petunia's flowerbeds sprout, the green leaves and flower buds lifting up towards the sun. No wand was used to spawn the growth, just simple words in a language Harry didn't understand and a hand gesture that looked like Hiro was drawing in the air. Very subtle but effective. And problematic since Harry had been given seeds to plant, not flats of pre-blooming flowers. Harry sighed. He hadn't told Hiro not to use magic. That was his fault but not he had to figure out what to do about the front garden that was now full of almost blooming flowers that had been nothing more than dirt and mulch in the morning.
Harry approached Hiro saying, "You can't do that. Use magic I mean. My Aunt and Uncle hate magic."
Hiro looked at Harry and said, "No one has to know these flowers were only seeds a little while ago. Tell your family you planted flats of flowers. People here do that all the time, don't they?"
"Um, yes, but I don't have the money to buy flats of flowers. My Aunt gave me seeds. She is going to know-"
"Not if you tell her I did it," Hiro interrupted. "That I gave you the flowers."
"She'll know. I have no Muggle friends."
"Don't worry," Hiro replied smiling confidently. "I am quite able to pass for one of them."
"What do you mean by that?" Harry asked.
"You'll see..." Hiro replied with an impish twinkle in his eye and Harry realized he wasn't going to get anything more out of him until their work was done.
Harry returned to the lawn and let Hiro finish the flowerbeds. Once all the yard scraps were bagged and placed on the curb for pickup and the tools put away, Hiro grabbed a bag that could not have possibly fit in the motorcycle's small trunk and followed Harry into the house. Harry wasn't so sure he should let Hiro use the bath but they both were hot and sweaty and the chance to cool off in the tub was a reward Harry knew they both had earned. Harry went to his room to grab a clean set of clothes and then went to where Hiro was waiting by the door to the bath.
Hiro motioned to Harry to follow him into the bath and Harry did so not sure why Hiro had called him in. "Look," Hiro began. "I get the impression time is of the essence so I have an idea. Temporarily I'll shift this little bath into one we can both use so we'll finish up and have everything in place before the Muggles return."
"You can do that?"
Hiro nodded. "Yes, easily. And, if you have never bathed in the Eastern way, now you will get the chance!"
And with that Hiro again gracefully sketched designs in the air, which, this time, Harry could actually see what he was drawing. At the end of Hiro's finger glowed a flame, which was painted into the air as Hiro moved his hand to form the words of the spell he was casting. Harry saw what he realized were Chinese characters being traced with flame into the air before Hiro and, as he painted the words of his spell and incanted softly in his native tongue, the room they were in began to shift, and the small cramped English bathroom melted into a beautiful old Chinese bath house. The tile floor gave way to teak and the tiny bathtub became a huge deep wooden tub large enough to hold six people in extreme comfort. A corner with low stools and buckets full of soapy water, soft sponges and other toilette items filled one point and where they stood was a wall with towel racks holding soft bath sheets. The room smelled vaguely of orchids and a cool breeze wafted in through the angled slats on the far wall
"Whoa," breathed Harry who wasn't sure if this was real or a dream world he'd been sucked into like the time he was pulled in to the Pensieve.
"Its real," Hiro reassured him. "Come on, let's get cleaned up fast so we can soak in the tub!"
Harry stood there puzzled and wasn't sure what to do when he saw Hiro remove his leather pants and hang them near the slatted window so they could air out and then proceed to strip off the rest of his sweaty clothes. He had seen naked boys before but none of the Gryffindors looked like Hiro. He was built like a panther, hard and muscular with a very well defined torso and long lean legs. Hiro had no visible body fat and Harry felt pudgy even though he was thin by English standards. Hiro sat on one of the stools and began scrubbing himself with the sponges from the buckets and soon his whole body was covered in frothy white lather. He smiled though the bubbles at Harry.
"Come on, time's a wasting!" Hiro called merrily as he began to work on his mop of hair.
Harry sighed and with his back to Hiro stripped out of his grimy clothes, grabbed a towel to hide his nakedness and sat on stood beside Hiro. Hiro saw Harry sitting there with the towel around his waist and laughed. Harry blushed and took off his fogged up glasses clearing away the mist with the edge of his towel.
"Harry, I'm not a girl!" Hiro teased tossing a soapy sponge at Harry hitting him in the chest with it. "You don't have anything I haven't seen before. Get on with it!"
"We…we don't bath in front of people," Harry stammered.
"And we don't bathe alone," Hiro replied. "I warned you this was going to be an Eastern style bath house. We're going to do this my way today!"
But before Harry could object he had a whole bucket of soapy water dumped on his head. He was soaking and soapy and his towel was now more a sponge than a towel. Harry quickly grabbed the bucket beside him, got up quickly and retaliated in kind giving Hiro a hot soapy headfull. Hiro laughed, grabbed a bucket of clean water and hit Harry with it. Harry found a bucket near him and splashed Hiro and soon they had a soap and water fight going on full tilt. They didn't stop until the spell making the soapy buckets and clean water buckets had gone its course and they were out of ammo. By that time both were clean enough to hit the soaking tub, which they did, letting out an enormous sigh of relief as the hot water soothed their tired muscles. The two of them soaked in silence, enjoying a few long minutes of peace and quiet.
A shrill voice calling, "Harry! Harry Potter? Where are you?" broke the calm.
Harry was flying out of the tub as Hiro stated, "If you open that door your aunt will see we're not in Surrey anymore."
Harry stopped four feet from the door. "What?" he blurted.
Hiro motioned to the room around them. "I didn't transfigure your bath. I opened a gateway that led us to a bathhouse I know that is down the hillside from the Temple."
"We're in CHINA??" Harry cried incredulous looking horrified.
"Um, Tibet, actually, but through that door you're blocking is your home. Walk out there and you're back on Privet Drive."
Harry grabbed a dry towel, wrapped it around himself and quickly left the bathroom. He saw that he was, indeed, back in the Dursely's house just as Hiro said he would be. He went to the top of the stairs and quickly called out, "I was in the bathroom. I'll be right down."
Harry ran to his room, dried off swiftly and got into a clean set of clothes. He ran a quick comb through his hair and then ran down the stairs just as Dudley was coming up.
"You're wet," Dudley sneered looking at Harry's hair and noting the damp spots on his clothes.
"I was in the bath getting cleaned up," Harry told him.
"Better have left it neat if you know what's good for you," Dudley told him as he shoved his way past Harry and headed up the steps.
"Dudley wait!" Harry called but it was too late. Dudley was walking right toward the bathroom and as he opened the door Harry saw his cousin come face to face with Hiro Yui.
"Who are you?" Dudley demanded.
"Hiro Yui," Hiro replied and Harry breathed a sigh of relief when he saw the bathroom was not only back to normal but that Hiro was dressed in his very Muggle looking riding leathers. Hiro's hair was dry and it looked like he'd only used the bathroom to relieve himself as opposed to what had really gone on in there. Hiro was carrying his satchel, which Harry suspected held his toilette and changes of clothes, and he deftly slipped by the portly Dudley heading towards Harry.
Dudley turned around demanding, "What is HE doing in MY house?"
"He had to use the bathroom," Harry explained.
"Potter!" Aunt Petunia called in her shrill voice.
"You'd better go and see what she wants," Hiro whispered to Harry. "I can handle your cousin" Harry flashed Hiro a worried look and Hiro added, "I won't hurt him. Just going to
distract him is all."
Harry went downstairs. As long as Dudley didn't wind up with a pig's tail, much as he had deserved it the time Hagrid bestowed it upon him, all would be well. Aunt Petunia was in the front room looking both annoyed and puzzled.
"I did what you asked," Harry said as he entered the room. "The whole yard."
"Where did those flowers come from?" she demanded.
Before Harry could answer Hiro entered proffering what looked like a delivery slip. He handed it to Harry's aunt saying, "Your receipt, Mrs.Dursley. All five flats were delivered and planted as per yours instructions. I didn't mean to intrude but I've been doing runs all over town today and I really needed to, um, go…"
Petunia Dursley stared at the yellow invoice noting the clearly stamped "paid in full" at the bottom. The flowers she saw were all noted on the paperwork and the shop's name was one she knew well. The Chinese delivery boy was not a face she remembered seeing around the shop but, then again, their delivery people changed about as often as their floral selections.
"Is that motorbike yours," she asked tilting her head towards the driveway.
"Yes, and I'll move it out of your drive. I didn't mean to block your car."
"You carried five flats of flowers on that thing?" she asked.
"Strapped to the boot, yes," Hiro replied smiling, then added, "You should see how creative I can get when I go on deliveries for my Uncle's restaurant."
Petunia rolled her eyes. No wonder they these kids don't last long, she thought to herself. "Thank you," she said to Hiro, then sounding like the Queen herself she said, "You may go."
Hiro bowed politely to her and headed towards the front door. As he passed by Harry, Hiro gave him a knowing wink and then left without saying a word. Hiro's quick lie had saved Harry from the wrath of his Aunt Petunia. Out of the corner of his eye Harry saw his Aunt staring at the receipt as though trying to figure out when she placed the order. Harry had no idea how Hiro knew what shop his Aunt used to buy her flowers from but he was glad his new friend knew enough about Muggles to come up with this brilliant deceit.
I just hope that piece of paper doesn't evaporate or something, thought Harry as he tried his best to make himself as unseen as possible. Leprechaun gold only lasted an hour or so. He hoped whatever spell Hiro had used to conjure that flower shop order form was far more long lasting.
Petunia sighed and stuffed the paper into her pocketbook saying, "Well, it looks like you got some unplanned for help with your work."
"He just planted the flowers," Harry stated.
"I see," Petunia replied not so sure she believed him. Then again, the delivery staff rarely did anything extra unless you paid them, she recalled, so chances were the Chinese boy only did the flower planting. She signed and said, "Go, you're done for the day."
Relieved, Harry left quickly and raced upstairs for the solace of his room. On his way down the hall he noticed Dudley flopped across his bed totally engrossed in a magazine. When Harry dared to peek in he saw what had his cousin so thoroughly entranced. Dudley was reading what had to be one of the raciest men's magazines ever published in Britain. It was one of those sold in a brown wrapped because the covers were deemed too raunchy to be left out where just anybody could see them.
Harry quietly backed away and went noiselessly to his room. Tacked to his door was a note written on parchment saying, "Told you I'd keep him distracted…"
Harry removed the note quickly and ducked into his room. Harry did not want to know where Hiro had gotten that magazine. Harry also wasn't so sure he wanted to know how a monk even knew that such a publication existed, let alone how to get his hands on one when no shop would ever sell something like that to someone their age. Harry sighed. Hiro Yui had to be one of the strangest wizards he ever met and Harry had met his share of weird wizards. Summer at Hogwarts was going to prove interesting.
That is, if he ever gets there!
He still had the task of convincing his Uncle Vernon to take him to King's Cross station. He also had that list of items Professor McGonegall said he would need. He went to his desk and looked at the letter. He had all the books and school stuff he would need but what he didn't have was a swimsuit. What he wore for the TriWizard Tournament wouldn't do for the Hogwarts summer session. He also didn't have much in the way of summer clothes either. Dudley's hand me downs were barely okay for around the house but they also wouldn't be right for school. Even Ron, whose wardrobe was mostly hand me downs from his twin brothers Fred and George, would tease him about his baggy clothes.
Wardrobe issues aside, he still had to convince his Aunt and Uncle to let him go back to school for the summer. He picked up the letter from Hogwarts and read it again. July first was only a few days away. It was hard enough escaping from the Durselys each fall to go to school. How was he ever going to manage to get away from them for the summer?
Chapter One
East Meets West
The summer loomed like an endless sea as far as Harry Potter was concerned. September and school seemed like a distant dream, especially when his Aunt Petunia was in one of her moods. She had roused Harry from his bed early in the morning and sent him outside into the yard with the command to make the garden "spit spot" before she, Uncle Vernon and Dudley returned from their day trip into London. To Aunt Petunia, spit-spot meant the lawn was perfectly manicured, the flowerbeds had no sign of weeds and the bushes were trimmed so perfectly a level could be held up against them and stay perfectly straight.
Ugh.
So summer vacation was barely in its infancy and already Harry was wishing it were over. Even double potions with Professor Snape was better than this, grumbled Harry as he struggled with a particularly stubborn weed. If he could use his magic, the gardening job would be so much simpler and faster too! But magic was forbidden to Hogwarts students when they were off campus. Therefore Harry was forced to do this job the Muggle way.
Time crawled by. The sun was hot and it had been particularly dry. The normal rainy English climate had forsaken them these past few days and was replaced by hot dry weather that made the earth hard and baked. It was not the sort of weather that made weeding and garden chores easier to do. By noon Harry had managed to get all the flowerbeds in the rear of the house done to Aunt Petunia's standard of perfection. The bushes on the side of the house were his next task.
As he was going to fetch the hedge trimmers, he heard the low thrumming of a motorbike engine coming from the street. He gazed toward Privet Drive and saw a sleek black, blue and silver Kawasaki Ninja motorcycle paused in the road in front of his home. The rider was wearing a skintight leather-riding suit that was the same coloration as the bike. The faceplate on the rider's helmet was tinted so dark that his face was invisible. Although Harry couldn't see his face he knew the rider was looking right at him.
The hairs on the back on Harry neck stood up and he felt the tightening grip of fear clench his stomach. Something about the man on that motorbike had him spooked but he didn't know why. His scar didn't hurt, which quickly ruled out any dark magic being afoot, but there was still something that wasn't right about what he was seeing.
As he stood returning the rider's stare, the man on the bike pulled the cycle into the driveway in front of the house and the bike powered down. The rider got off the bike and spoke to the vehicle, which lifted up onto its center stand and parked itself. Okay, thought Harry, I was right. That motorcycle is magic and the man riding it is a wizard.
But who is he and why is he here?
All Harry could tell at first was the man was shorter than he was, maybe five feet four or so, and weighed maybe a hundred and twenty pounds. He had a hard lean look, like a predatory animal, and walked with the confidence of a man who knew no fear. The rider approached Harry swiftly removing his helmet as he walked. Harry gasped inadvertently in surprise at the face that was now gazing at him beaming with a friendly smile. The man on the bike was no man but a youth not much older than Harry himself. He was Eurasian with dark almond eyes and shaggy brown hair that seemed to have a mind of its own. He was more beautiful than handsome and had nice straight white teeth. Harry couldn't believe he noticed the man's teeth. Too much time spent in the company of a girl whose parents were dentists! Dear Hermione was a great friend and he missed her. It was obvious how much he missed her when there were things he would notice – like people's teeth - because they made him think of her.
The rider waved to Harry saying, "Good afternoon!"
Harry looked at him puzzled and responded, "Hello. Who are you?"
After he closed the distance between them the young man in riding leathers said, "I'm Hiro Yui and I was asked by Professor Dumbledore to give Harry Potter a message." He unzipped his leather riding jacket and from an inside pocket pulled out a letter that bore the Hogwart's seal prominently on the back of the envelope. Before he handed it to Harry he asked, "You are Harry Potter, right?"
Harry nodded and Hiro handed him the letter adding, "Had to be sure. I was only told where you lived and what you looked like. And, please don't be offended, but you aren't the most remarkable looking person. Except for that scar…."
Hiro let the thought trail off not sure if going further with this thought would be appropriate. Harry sensed his uncertainty and stated, "It's okay, everyone notices my scar and asks about it."
"If you don't want to talk about it, that's fine with me," Hiro stated quickly.
"No, its okay. Really," Harry stammered. "You aren't offending me." He looked down at the envelope. It was odd getting a hand delivered message but considering much difficulty he had in the past getting letters from the school, it made sense that the headmaster would have someone deliver the letter to him personally. This method would upset his Uncle and Aunt far less than the time he got a letter from Ron's mom that came via normal post with way too many stamps on it.
Harry opened the letter and read:
Dear Mr. Potter,
You are invited to return to Hogwarts for a special summer session. This is the first time in our thousand-year history that the school has been opened to our students for the summer. We hope that you will join us for the next eight weeks for what should truly be a historic event.
School will be in session for half day special enrichment classes to be taught by our staff and visiting faculty from other wizarding schools. There will be trips to Hogsmeade as well as outdoor sports, Quidditch tournaments and other diversions.
Our special summer session begins on July the first. The Hogwarts Express will eave from King's Cross station, platform nine and three-quarters, at eleven o'clock.
A list of your needs for the summer session is enclosed.
Yours sincerely,
Professor M. McGoneegall
Deputy Headmistress
Harry raised an eyebrow. Summer school? He looked up from the letter at Hiro and asked, "Do you know about this?"
"What? That Hogwarts is doing summer school?" he replied. "Yes, I know, because my father is going to be one of your teachers."
"Really?" Harry said. "What subject?"
Hiro shrugged. "Not sure. I was told that summer school was going to be different from the normal curriculum. That's why I'm here. My father thought I would enjoy going to a Western magic school."
"Where do you go now?"
"I study at the Celestial Temple of the Akashic Buddha," Hiro said. "It's a monastic school hidden deep in the Himalayas. Is very remote and the passes through the mountains are so treacherous that usually the only way you can only get there by is by flying."
"Wow," Harry said impressed. "So…monastery school? Its all boys?"
Hiro shook his head. "No, its co-ed. It's just that all of the Masters who teach us are Buddhist monks and nuns. My father is one of the most senior of the Masters who teach at the Temple. That's why the Abbot allowed him to leave the Temple grounds and accept Master Dumbledore's invitation to teach at Hogwarts." He saw the confused look on Harry face and added, "The monks and nuns who are devoted to the Temple's service very rarely leave the mountain. It's part of their vows. I also had to get permission to come here, since I, too, am bound to the Akashic Order."
"You're a monk?" Harry stated incredulous.
Hiro nodded. "Yes. And the only reason I have long hair is that the Abbot allowed me to stop cutting my hair in anticipation of my journeying to the West to study here over the summer. He thought I would fit in better if I at least looked like one of you."
The new boy did look like he would fit in at a Western school, although clad as he was at the moment, he looked more Muggle than wizard. Harry didn't know much about Buddhist monks but he had a feeling that they didn't dress in skintight leather on a regular basis. He must have gotten permission to dress the part of a Western student too, though Harry as he gave the leather-clad Hiro the once-over.
Hiro noticed Harry giving his riding outfit the eye and stated, "My mother bought this for me. She didn't want me to get road rash if I took a tumble." He paused and then added, "Even been on a motorcycle, Harry?"
"Once but I was too young at the time to remember," Harry replied. Considering he was an infant at the time Hagrid took him on his motorbike the statement he made was the truth. He looked at the bike and asked, "Is that bike magic?"
"It is now," Hiro said then explained quickly, "It was a Muggle motorcycle when it began its life. A wizard friend of my mother's, a chap named Francois Dubois, wanted to magic the bike so he could ride it. Somehow the spell went awry and Francois got sucked into the bike. Now the bike is alive because it's him, Francois! I mean it still looks the same but it's really a wizard transfigured into a motorbike. Bad thing is he is stuck that way until we can figure out what he did wrong and undo it."
"Maybe Professor McGonegall can help," Harry offered. "She teaches Transfiguration. She might be able to figure out what Francois did wrong and fix it."
"Well, that's part of the reason why I'm taking him to Hogwarts with me. I was hoping someone there might be able to undo the botch. If your Professor McGonegall can't help, maybe the Headmaster can. My father told me Albus Dumbledore was a Transfiguration Master before he became the head of your school."
Harry nodded in agreement. "He did teach the class before Professor McGonegall. Maybe he and Professor McGonegall can help."
Hiro looked relieved. "Thanks. I have a feeling Francois will be doing wheelies all the way to Hogwarts once I tell him the good news. He really wants to be human again. He's getting pretty tired of living on petrol and sleeping in a garage."
Harry laughed despite the fact he did feel sorry for poor Francois. As much as he really wanted to spend all day chatting with Hiro, if he didn't get his chores done by the time his Aunt and Uncle returned he would be in a lot of trouble.
"I wish I could spend the day with you Hiro, but I have to finish my gardening before my Uncle and Aunt get back from London," Harry said the disappointment obvious in his tone of voice.
"We can still talk," Hiro said as he unzipped and removed his leather jacket. "If I stick around and give you a hand with your work."
"Thanks but-"
"Its okay, I don't mind," Hiro interrupted. "I am a Akashic. Part of the duties of every student is helping to maintain the Temple grounds. Gardening is a part of my routine at home. I have no problem doing while I am here."
Harry smiled. It would be nice to do this drudgery with a friend. The time will pass more pleasantly and the job would get done quicker too. "Thanks, Hiro," Harry replied smiling at his new friend. "Maybe…maybe if we get done early you can introduce me to Francois."
Hiro returned the smile saying, "I'd be happy to."
The two boys got to work and Hiro quickly showed he was no stranger to gardening. Harry let him do the pruning of the bushes since Hiro seemed far more adept with the clippers than Harry was and he also was very good at cutting stubborn bushes perfectly smooth and level. As Harry busied himself cutting the grass he noticed that, although his new friend was not doing anything overtly that would make the neighbors suspicious, Hiro was using magic. It was very subtle and Harry himself would have missed it completely if he hadn't been looking directly at Hiro when Hiro was casting.
Hiro was making the flower seeds he was planting in Aunt Petunia's flowerbeds sprout, the green leaves and flower buds lifting up towards the sun. No wand was used to spawn the growth, just simple words in a language Harry didn't understand and a hand gesture that looked like Hiro was drawing in the air. Very subtle but effective. And problematic since Harry had been given seeds to plant, not flats of pre-blooming flowers. Harry sighed. He hadn't told Hiro not to use magic. That was his fault but not he had to figure out what to do about the front garden that was now full of almost blooming flowers that had been nothing more than dirt and mulch in the morning.
Harry approached Hiro saying, "You can't do that. Use magic I mean. My Aunt and Uncle hate magic."
Hiro looked at Harry and said, "No one has to know these flowers were only seeds a little while ago. Tell your family you planted flats of flowers. People here do that all the time, don't they?"
"Um, yes, but I don't have the money to buy flats of flowers. My Aunt gave me seeds. She is going to know-"
"Not if you tell her I did it," Hiro interrupted. "That I gave you the flowers."
"She'll know. I have no Muggle friends."
"Don't worry," Hiro replied smiling confidently. "I am quite able to pass for one of them."
"What do you mean by that?" Harry asked.
"You'll see..." Hiro replied with an impish twinkle in his eye and Harry realized he wasn't going to get anything more out of him until their work was done.
Harry returned to the lawn and let Hiro finish the flowerbeds. Once all the yard scraps were bagged and placed on the curb for pickup and the tools put away, Hiro grabbed a bag that could not have possibly fit in the motorcycle's small trunk and followed Harry into the house. Harry wasn't so sure he should let Hiro use the bath but they both were hot and sweaty and the chance to cool off in the tub was a reward Harry knew they both had earned. Harry went to his room to grab a clean set of clothes and then went to where Hiro was waiting by the door to the bath.
Hiro motioned to Harry to follow him into the bath and Harry did so not sure why Hiro had called him in. "Look," Hiro began. "I get the impression time is of the essence so I have an idea. Temporarily I'll shift this little bath into one we can both use so we'll finish up and have everything in place before the Muggles return."
"You can do that?"
Hiro nodded. "Yes, easily. And, if you have never bathed in the Eastern way, now you will get the chance!"
And with that Hiro again gracefully sketched designs in the air, which, this time, Harry could actually see what he was drawing. At the end of Hiro's finger glowed a flame, which was painted into the air as Hiro moved his hand to form the words of the spell he was casting. Harry saw what he realized were Chinese characters being traced with flame into the air before Hiro and, as he painted the words of his spell and incanted softly in his native tongue, the room they were in began to shift, and the small cramped English bathroom melted into a beautiful old Chinese bath house. The tile floor gave way to teak and the tiny bathtub became a huge deep wooden tub large enough to hold six people in extreme comfort. A corner with low stools and buckets full of soapy water, soft sponges and other toilette items filled one point and where they stood was a wall with towel racks holding soft bath sheets. The room smelled vaguely of orchids and a cool breeze wafted in through the angled slats on the far wall
"Whoa," breathed Harry who wasn't sure if this was real or a dream world he'd been sucked into like the time he was pulled in to the Pensieve.
"Its real," Hiro reassured him. "Come on, let's get cleaned up fast so we can soak in the tub!"
Harry stood there puzzled and wasn't sure what to do when he saw Hiro remove his leather pants and hang them near the slatted window so they could air out and then proceed to strip off the rest of his sweaty clothes. He had seen naked boys before but none of the Gryffindors looked like Hiro. He was built like a panther, hard and muscular with a very well defined torso and long lean legs. Hiro had no visible body fat and Harry felt pudgy even though he was thin by English standards. Hiro sat on one of the stools and began scrubbing himself with the sponges from the buckets and soon his whole body was covered in frothy white lather. He smiled though the bubbles at Harry.
"Come on, time's a wasting!" Hiro called merrily as he began to work on his mop of hair.
Harry sighed and with his back to Hiro stripped out of his grimy clothes, grabbed a towel to hide his nakedness and sat on stood beside Hiro. Hiro saw Harry sitting there with the towel around his waist and laughed. Harry blushed and took off his fogged up glasses clearing away the mist with the edge of his towel.
"Harry, I'm not a girl!" Hiro teased tossing a soapy sponge at Harry hitting him in the chest with it. "You don't have anything I haven't seen before. Get on with it!"
"We…we don't bath in front of people," Harry stammered.
"And we don't bathe alone," Hiro replied. "I warned you this was going to be an Eastern style bath house. We're going to do this my way today!"
But before Harry could object he had a whole bucket of soapy water dumped on his head. He was soaking and soapy and his towel was now more a sponge than a towel. Harry quickly grabbed the bucket beside him, got up quickly and retaliated in kind giving Hiro a hot soapy headfull. Hiro laughed, grabbed a bucket of clean water and hit Harry with it. Harry found a bucket near him and splashed Hiro and soon they had a soap and water fight going on full tilt. They didn't stop until the spell making the soapy buckets and clean water buckets had gone its course and they were out of ammo. By that time both were clean enough to hit the soaking tub, which they did, letting out an enormous sigh of relief as the hot water soothed their tired muscles. The two of them soaked in silence, enjoying a few long minutes of peace and quiet.
A shrill voice calling, "Harry! Harry Potter? Where are you?" broke the calm.
Harry was flying out of the tub as Hiro stated, "If you open that door your aunt will see we're not in Surrey anymore."
Harry stopped four feet from the door. "What?" he blurted.
Hiro motioned to the room around them. "I didn't transfigure your bath. I opened a gateway that led us to a bathhouse I know that is down the hillside from the Temple."
"We're in CHINA??" Harry cried incredulous looking horrified.
"Um, Tibet, actually, but through that door you're blocking is your home. Walk out there and you're back on Privet Drive."
Harry grabbed a dry towel, wrapped it around himself and quickly left the bathroom. He saw that he was, indeed, back in the Dursely's house just as Hiro said he would be. He went to the top of the stairs and quickly called out, "I was in the bathroom. I'll be right down."
Harry ran to his room, dried off swiftly and got into a clean set of clothes. He ran a quick comb through his hair and then ran down the stairs just as Dudley was coming up.
"You're wet," Dudley sneered looking at Harry's hair and noting the damp spots on his clothes.
"I was in the bath getting cleaned up," Harry told him.
"Better have left it neat if you know what's good for you," Dudley told him as he shoved his way past Harry and headed up the steps.
"Dudley wait!" Harry called but it was too late. Dudley was walking right toward the bathroom and as he opened the door Harry saw his cousin come face to face with Hiro Yui.
"Who are you?" Dudley demanded.
"Hiro Yui," Hiro replied and Harry breathed a sigh of relief when he saw the bathroom was not only back to normal but that Hiro was dressed in his very Muggle looking riding leathers. Hiro's hair was dry and it looked like he'd only used the bathroom to relieve himself as opposed to what had really gone on in there. Hiro was carrying his satchel, which Harry suspected held his toilette and changes of clothes, and he deftly slipped by the portly Dudley heading towards Harry.
Dudley turned around demanding, "What is HE doing in MY house?"
"He had to use the bathroom," Harry explained.
"Potter!" Aunt Petunia called in her shrill voice.
"You'd better go and see what she wants," Hiro whispered to Harry. "I can handle your cousin" Harry flashed Hiro a worried look and Hiro added, "I won't hurt him. Just going to
distract him is all."
Harry went downstairs. As long as Dudley didn't wind up with a pig's tail, much as he had deserved it the time Hagrid bestowed it upon him, all would be well. Aunt Petunia was in the front room looking both annoyed and puzzled.
"I did what you asked," Harry said as he entered the room. "The whole yard."
"Where did those flowers come from?" she demanded.
Before Harry could answer Hiro entered proffering what looked like a delivery slip. He handed it to Harry's aunt saying, "Your receipt, Mrs.Dursley. All five flats were delivered and planted as per yours instructions. I didn't mean to intrude but I've been doing runs all over town today and I really needed to, um, go…"
Petunia Dursley stared at the yellow invoice noting the clearly stamped "paid in full" at the bottom. The flowers she saw were all noted on the paperwork and the shop's name was one she knew well. The Chinese delivery boy was not a face she remembered seeing around the shop but, then again, their delivery people changed about as often as their floral selections.
"Is that motorbike yours," she asked tilting her head towards the driveway.
"Yes, and I'll move it out of your drive. I didn't mean to block your car."
"You carried five flats of flowers on that thing?" she asked.
"Strapped to the boot, yes," Hiro replied smiling, then added, "You should see how creative I can get when I go on deliveries for my Uncle's restaurant."
Petunia rolled her eyes. No wonder they these kids don't last long, she thought to herself. "Thank you," she said to Hiro, then sounding like the Queen herself she said, "You may go."
Hiro bowed politely to her and headed towards the front door. As he passed by Harry, Hiro gave him a knowing wink and then left without saying a word. Hiro's quick lie had saved Harry from the wrath of his Aunt Petunia. Out of the corner of his eye Harry saw his Aunt staring at the receipt as though trying to figure out when she placed the order. Harry had no idea how Hiro knew what shop his Aunt used to buy her flowers from but he was glad his new friend knew enough about Muggles to come up with this brilliant deceit.
I just hope that piece of paper doesn't evaporate or something, thought Harry as he tried his best to make himself as unseen as possible. Leprechaun gold only lasted an hour or so. He hoped whatever spell Hiro had used to conjure that flower shop order form was far more long lasting.
Petunia sighed and stuffed the paper into her pocketbook saying, "Well, it looks like you got some unplanned for help with your work."
"He just planted the flowers," Harry stated.
"I see," Petunia replied not so sure she believed him. Then again, the delivery staff rarely did anything extra unless you paid them, she recalled, so chances were the Chinese boy only did the flower planting. She signed and said, "Go, you're done for the day."
Relieved, Harry left quickly and raced upstairs for the solace of his room. On his way down the hall he noticed Dudley flopped across his bed totally engrossed in a magazine. When Harry dared to peek in he saw what had his cousin so thoroughly entranced. Dudley was reading what had to be one of the raciest men's magazines ever published in Britain. It was one of those sold in a brown wrapped because the covers were deemed too raunchy to be left out where just anybody could see them.
Harry quietly backed away and went noiselessly to his room. Tacked to his door was a note written on parchment saying, "Told you I'd keep him distracted…"
Harry removed the note quickly and ducked into his room. Harry did not want to know where Hiro had gotten that magazine. Harry also wasn't so sure he wanted to know how a monk even knew that such a publication existed, let alone how to get his hands on one when no shop would ever sell something like that to someone their age. Harry sighed. Hiro Yui had to be one of the strangest wizards he ever met and Harry had met his share of weird wizards. Summer at Hogwarts was going to prove interesting.
That is, if he ever gets there!
He still had the task of convincing his Uncle Vernon to take him to King's Cross station. He also had that list of items Professor McGonegall said he would need. He went to his desk and looked at the letter. He had all the books and school stuff he would need but what he didn't have was a swimsuit. What he wore for the TriWizard Tournament wouldn't do for the Hogwarts summer session. He also didn't have much in the way of summer clothes either. Dudley's hand me downs were barely okay for around the house but they also wouldn't be right for school. Even Ron, whose wardrobe was mostly hand me downs from his twin brothers Fred and George, would tease him about his baggy clothes.
Wardrobe issues aside, he still had to convince his Aunt and Uncle to let him go back to school for the summer. He picked up the letter from Hogwarts and read it again. July first was only a few days away. It was hard enough escaping from the Durselys each fall to go to school. How was he ever going to manage to get away from them for the summer?