So if you remember, I started Worlds Apart with a letter as well. What can I say, I'm not one for change. Anywho, it's the official first chapter! Enjoy.
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Chapter 1: Another Letter
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In the early hours of the morning, as the sun was just waking and stretching across the sky, the Hokage's desk was empty. No wizened old man sat behind it, reviewing mission requests or discussing important village matters with trusted confidants. Neat folders of papers and stacks of scrolls were placed in its drawers, but its surface was clear. The hardwood gleamed in the morning light.
The desk had seen many dangerous or strange requests submitted on its surface throughout its time. Sometimes, they were even dangerous and strange. But they were always submitted in person, or by scroll. They never simply appeared. That was, until that morning.
Hours before anyone entered the office to begin the day's work, a rectangular letter materialized on the Hokage's desk. There was no address written on the front, only a wax seal on the back imprinted with a tiny coat of arms and six tiny words surrounding it:
Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.
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"Kakashi-sensei, this is boring."
Naruto Uzumaki whined about the training exercise he and his teammates were in the process of completing. It was not the first time he had done so. Said teammates were beginning to get annoyed.
"Please, Naruto, shut up," Sakura Haruno had resorted to pleading with the usually easy-going ninja, but she had a look in her eye that warned him that if he didn't cooperate, there would be some severe beating in his immediate future. The only reason she hadn't already hit him was that she would be breaking the rules that their sensei had laid out for them: sit still, close your eyes, and clear your mind.
She sat on Naruto's left, to his right sat Sasuke Uchiha, who was attempting to ignore the discussion/argument completely, sitting in the perfect image of meditation with his eyes closed, but every so often one of his eyebrows would twitch in irritation.
Squad seven sat in the shade of a large tree in their designated training area. Summer was fast approaching Konoha, and the temperature increased with each passing day. There had been a recent lull in mission requests as of late, so the team had been mostly training for the past several weeks. Naruto squirmed in his position; he wanted something "more important" to do than boring training.
"Quiet Naruto; this is important," Kakashi Hatake lazily flipped a page of his book, seeing his student's expression. "If you are ever interrogated by an enemy, you have to be able to defend your consciousness. The best way to do that is to put up defenses around your mind, and the only way to do that is to first clear it of any thoughts. And if you don't start putting effort into this training, I'd say Sasuke will be able to see everything in your head before you can say occlumency."
The blonde ninja screwed up his face in concentration after this announcement but seconds later replaced the determination with confusion. He opened one eye and squinted at his sensei.
"Ock-loo-what?" Kakashi's other two pupils also opened their eyes, waiting to hear the answer.
Kakashi sighed, closing his book, "Nevermind. We're moving on. Combat practice." Naruto noticeably brightened at the prospect, while Sakura frowned. Sasuke was still eyeing his sensei curiously.
"One on one battles, same as yesterday," Kakashi stood from his regrettably comfortable position leaning against the giant tree, "Close quarters taijutsu only, no ninja tools or ninjutsu. Five minutes, then swap out. Naruto and Sasuke first."
"I'm gonna beat you for sure this time Sasuke!" taunted Naruto as he straightened his headband.
"In your dreams, idiot," Sasuke replied. It was the most he had said all day.
Sakura maintained her worried expression as both boys raced out from the shade of the tree and into the open field. Kakashi stepped forward to stand beside his pink-haired pupil.
"I noticed a distinct improvement in your timing yesterday," he said offhandedly.
"Really?" she asked, a distinct hopefulness sparkling in her tone as she nervously pushed a strand of hair behind one of her ears.
"Yep," he replied assuredly, "...You're just as good as they are, Sakura. You just have to know it."
He could practically see the wheels turning in her brain as she mulled over this statement. He gave her a small encouraging smile and she returned it brightly before returning to watch Naruto and Sasuke.
Kakashi felt a presence behind him and turned to find a masked ANBU member kneeling before him.
"Yes?" asked the silver-haired ninja.
"The Hokage wishes to speak with you immediately. Alone," the elite ninja informed him.
Kakashi nodded, refraining from asking any questions in front of Sakura. "Sure." He had no doubt all would be explained to him when he arrived in the Hokage's office. The ANBU disappeared. Sakura looked at Kakashi questioningly. He just shrugged.
"Make sure they don't kill each other," he inclined his head toward Naruto and Sasuke, before disappearing in a swirl of green leaves.
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He knocked on the door to the Hokage's office three times.
"Enter."
He quietly opened the door, entered the room, and closed it again behind him. The Third sat facing the windows behind his desk. Generally, if the higher-ups wanted him, it was for some S-rank mission that the village couldn't afford to fail, a mission that required the Sharingan. As such, as soon as he walked in the room, he was briefed and sent on his merry way. But this time, the village leader seemed to be deep in thought. It was... unsettling. But by the time he reached the desk, both hands were returned to his pockets, and he retained the image of calm.
"You wanted to see me sir?" he asked placidly.
"Kakashi..." still the elder shinobi didn't turn to face him. "How long has it been... since you practiced magic?"
It was an interesting way to begin the conversation, and it took Kakashi a moment to comprehend the question. He hadn't discussed his involvement in the wizarding world for ten years... It felt wrong to be talking about it so openly after all this time. He forced the words from his mouth.
"A long time," he replied.
Technically, it was six months ago, when he had rediscovered his wand and performed the Lumos charm. But he wasn't lying, six months was a long time ago. Technically.
The Hokage finally turned around in his chair to face him; Kakashi immediately felt the sternness of his gaze. Whenever he looked really serious, Kakashi always had the uncomfortable feeling that the leader could see straight through his mask, to his thoughts, though his rational mind knew that he possessed neither mind-reading jutsu nor legillimency skills. The Hokage held a letter in his hands.
Not a scroll, a letter. They didn't use letters.
But Kakashi knew some people who did.
The Hokage handed the letter to him wordlessly. After noting that there was no address written on the front, or any indication as to who the letter was directed to, he flipped it over to open it. His eye only glanced over the blood red seal bearing the Hogwarts crest. He removed the tri-folded parchment inside and began to read:
Sarutobi, or the current Hokage of the Leaf Village,
After you have been so generous with your help in our time of need, I regret to ask for it again. Truly, I am sorry to have to involve you in this crisis.
If you have received this letter, it will mean that the Wizarding World is in great peril. It will probably mean that Harry Potter was not able to defeat Lord Voldemort. Harry is the greatest hope we have, and though I have every confidence in his abilities, and in his heart, I have never claimed to know conclusively how the battle would end.
As such, if Lord Voldemort is not defeated by Harry Potter, there remain very few choices the good people of the Wizarding World have left. I believe if Harry cannot do it, there may be others, others that Lord Voldemort disregarded as weak long ago. They are you, the shinobi of the Hidden Leaf.
This letter is a Portkey, a transporter that will take whoever holds it to Hogwarts in three days time.
I know of two in particular that protected Hogwarts in the past, and if they or any others can step up to the task, then maybe all hope is not lost. Maybe they can end the fighting. Maybe this world still has a chance to live again.
For if he gains control, we will not live under his reign. We will only die a little every day, until such a time that our souls can move on to a better place.
I have long stood by the statement that help will always come to those who ask for it. I am pleading for it. You are truly our last hope.
Sarutobi, old friend, I am afraid my time here is short. I am in the process of giving Harry all the information I can about Lord Voldemort and how to defeat him, but I do not believe I will be there to see the final confrontation. This will be my last letter to you. I thank you for your friendship over these many years, and for your service to the Wizarding World.
Farewell,
Albus Dumbledore
Kakashi finished reading but stared for a moment at the words themselves. They were written in faded green ink, as though they had been penned many years ago and forgotten about. He looked at the signature. Albus Dumbledore. Most had said that he was the greatest headmaster Hogwarts had ever seen. He could sometimes still hear the kindly chuckle from the elder wizard that followed him through the Portkey the day they left Hogwarts. It was strange to think that such a formidable man was now probably deceased. He slowly lowered the letter and placed it on the desk before him.
The message contained much more pressing matters than the impending demise of Albus Dumbledore.
"It seems to me that this letter was written some time ago," Kakashi thought out loud, choosing to work up to the most important issue at hand.
"Yes, I believe it was," the hokage replied, now staring at the parchment himself over folded hands.
Kakashi didn't know how to approach such a subject delicately, so he asked bluntly.
"Do you know if the war has ended? Did Potter kill Voldemort?" He was surprised at the obvious tension and even slight fear in his own voice.
The Hokage continued his silence for a moment. Then, "...Yes, he and his organization were destroyed."
Kakashi let out a relieved breath slowly.
"I was contacted two years after your mission was completed by a Professor Minerva McGonagall. She informed me that the war was over and that Voldemort had been defeated by Harry Potter... He even managed to keep his own life."
This revelation bolstered Kakashi's spirits even more. His mind quickly jumped back to the letter.
"Then—" Kakashi began.
"—Why the letter?" the Hokage completed, "Exactly... I have been thinking about it all morning, and I cannot come up with a concrete answer."
"Is it possible that he's returned?"
"Voldemort?" Sarutobi said with raised eyebrows, "No. The Professor was quite clear. There is no chance of him returning, not this time."
Kakashi was silent. It was good news, but it didn't make him any less confused. Why was a letter written nearly a decade ago, a letter that was never meant to be sent, sitting on the Hokage's desk? Was it code of some sort? Had Harry gotten himself mixed up in some other trouble? He resisted rolling his eyes. It wouldn't be the first time.
"The only logical explanation that I can come up with," the Hokage continued, "is that the letter was sent by mistake."
Kakashi asked the obvious question, "How?"
The Hokage leaned back in his chair, "Knowing Albus, he somehow charmed the letter to appear on my desk if things had not turned out as he planned."
"I don't understand—"
"You can ask the current headmistress yourself when you arrive in three days." Sarutobi cut him off.
Kakashi was at a loss for words for a moment. "...I'm...going back?"
"You and your squad will depart to the Wizarding World by this Portkey in three days. It may be old, but I assume the magic still holds. You will confirm that this is nothing more than an accident and return home. There are no time constraints for this mission, though I don't think you would need more than a few days to get to the bottom of this."
"Understood," Kakashi replied automatically.
"That is all."
Kakashi made his way to the door, but he stopped just before it. He wanted to know for certain.
"Sir?"
The Hokage turned back to the shinobi from his position looking out the window.
"Professor Dumbledore... He is dead then?" Kakashi asked.
Sarutobi nodded. "The year after your mission."
Kakashi was more than a little shocked. It was that long ago.
"I'm sorry for your loss," Kakashi stated without thinking.
"His death is a loss to the Wizarding World. But judging by this letter," he lifted the parchment from his desk, glancing at the faded green ink, "his death was on his own terms. Albus Dumbledore was a man who knew full well that there are things far worse than death, and he did not fear it, nor was saddened by the prospect of his own passing. So neither am I. And neither should you be, Kakashi."
Kakashi only nodded once and left the office. He set down the hall deep in thought. So Dumbledore was dead. And if he had fallen that early, who knew how many others had been killed after him. Apparently Harry had survived, but what about Ron and Hermione? And Neville and Luna and the Weasleys? Had all the Death Eaters been wiped out? Surely not. Conversely, what about the Order? Lupin and Tonks and Kingsley and Mad-Eye? What about them?
His heart fell suddenly. Of course they would want to know what had happened to Rin. And he would tell them what he knew, but really what did he know? One day she was here, and the next she was gone. Presumed dead, KIA was the official statement. He began to dread the discussion.
And he had to drag his squad along with him.
They would want to know everything; he'd have to explain everything—about magic, about the war, about Hogwarts, about his mission. He sighed as he headed back to the training fields, already formulating responses to the obvious questions. He was reminded of one of the more cryptic answers his sensei gave him when he asked about magic.
"There's more than one kind of magic, Kakashi..."
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Thanks for reading. Questions, comments, concerns, exclamations, nargles? I think nargles are defined as creatures that make your brain fuzzy... so it actually makes sense. Is there anything about this so far that's making your brain fuzzy? I hope not.