Author's Note: At last, an update. This was a chapter I've been hard-pressed to write as it's a lot of explication and setting up for the future. The original outline I had for this chapter was vague at best and half the time I found it rather difficult to connect from one idea to the next. Hopefully it turned out well. The action will definitely be picking up soon. I hope you guys enjoy the chapter; I'm already hard at work beginning the next one.
Allen woke, as usual, before the sun and proceeded with his traditional morning work-out. He continued until he had worked up a light sweat and could hear someone moving around in the kitchen. Slipping past the covered mirror and out of the room he silently made his way to the kitchen where the previous night had been one long extended explanation of the events of the past twenty-four hours. Surprisingly, Ginny had taken all of it well, including the death of Dean who she had previously dated. Nonetheless, it had all been a rather depressing conversation and dinner in general, and Allen had been happy to escape to the guest bedroom to sleep after it all.
He paused in the doorway to the kitchen, watching as Harry scurried around grabbing pans and ingredients down from shelves. He had to be preparing lunch in addition to breakfast for him to need that much food. Allen cleared his throat, asserting his presence. Harry's head snapped up.
"Oh, good morning Allen. I hope I wasn't making too much noise." Harry beckoned at the table, requesting the young exorcist to take a seat.
"Thank you," Allen said sliding into a seat. "I've been up for a while."
"Ginny hates it when I'm too loud in the kitchen. Last night was rough for her, even if she didn't visibly show it. Best to let her sleep. She's leaving for Quidditch camp tonight."
"Quidditch?" Allen asked, curious. Dean had mentioned the word in a vague context, but at best Allen had only garnered the information that it was a sport of sorts.
"It's a sport wizards play. I guess in terms of Muggle games it would be like football, except it's played on broomsticks and well it's a little more complicated than that."
"Broomsticks?"
"Well, yes. Umm, we use them to fly and well there are people trying to toss a ball into a hoop that someone else is guarding all while trying to dodge these other balls. And then there is someone trying to find this really small, golden ball called a snitch that flies and catch it before the other team. You score points for throwing the ball through the hoop successfully and when the snitch is caught the game ends and the team who caught it receive 150 points," Harry floundered along trying to explain the sport as Oliver Wood had once explained it to him.
Allen merely nodded, fiddling with a white glove on his left hand. Harry paused to inspect the young man who was currently wearing what could only be considered normal clothing in comparison to what he had been wearing the day before. Allen was clothed in a white long sleeved shirt which was tied at the color by a red ribbon. Over the shirt he wore a dark grey vest and matching black pants which tucked into boots that rested just below his knees. But what took Harry aback were the pure white gloves the exorcist was wearing now.
"People tend to see me differently when they get a look at my hand," he said looking up into Harry's eyes. It was like the boy could read his mind.
With a mumbled apology, Harry went back to work fixing breakfast and preparing for lunch.
"Would you like any help?" offered Allen. Turning slightly to look at the boy, he pointed at a bowl with some ingredients around it.
"Do you know how to make pancakes?"
"Yes," Allen replied, standing up from the table. The two worked in companionable silence; Harry carefully assembling sandwiches and Allen stirring the ingredients for pancakes.
"Do you suppose there will be more akuma in the near future?" Harry said, breaking the silence and glancing at Allen from the corner of his eye.
"Most likely," murmured Allen, continuing to mix the batter.
"Right. Figured as much. I was thinking it may be best if you came to work with me, at the Auror's office. If anymore akuma show up, cases would be directed to my department."
"Brilliant," Allen said thoughtfully.
Harry sat at his desk, scratching away at the mound of paperwork that had quickly accumulated over the course of a day. Allen lounged against one of the walls of the office, paging through a copy of the Daily Prophet, marveling at the moving pictures. The auror had offered the exorcist the spare chair in the office, but the boy had politely declined in case someone in more need of a seat came; proclaiming he was quite comfortable on the floor. They sat in companionable silence until the head of a man with hair the color of Ginny's popped out of the fireplace, startling Allen.
Harry, looking up from his work, began to greet his best friend when the red head interrupted him.
"More of those weird creature-things you reported to the department were spotted," he said urgently. Allen shot to his feet.
"Where?" Harry asked, pushing his chair back so he could get a better look at the fire place.
"Grimmauld Place," came the reply. Quickly standing, Harry grabbed a fistful of Flue Powder from a dark green jar on his desk and made his way towards the leaping flames.
"I'll meet you there," said the disembodied head before disappearing as suddenly as it had appeared. Happy grabbed Allen's upper arm and threw the powder into the dancing fire with the other. Stepping into the now green flames, he pulled the young exorcist in after him. Before Allen could protest and point out the absurdity of standing in a fireplace that clearly was lit, Harry shouted their location, whisking them off to the ex-headquarters of the Order of the Phoenix.
Allen stumbled out of the fireplace into a dusty living room, every inch covered in cobwebs and caked in filth. Sputtering, he coughed several times, attempting to clear his lungs of soot. The red head from before patted him on the back: "I take it, you've never used the flue before."
"No, Ron, he hasn't," replied Harry as he walked out of the fireplace. Grabbing the exorcist's hand, he dragged the stunned youth through the house, Ron trailing behind. Reaching the door he paused, drawing his wand and gesturing for his fellow Auror to do the same. Harry hurled the door open, and rushed onto the street, Allen, whose eye had already activated, and Ron following closely. They were greeted by the sight of a lone woman with long blond hair who seemed to be successfully repelling the group of Level One and Two akuma, blue energy crackling around her.
Crown Clown activated as Allen leapt into the fray, easily destroying the monsters. The silver lining of his uniform flashed in the sunlight as he leapt from one floating grey orb to the next, sinking his claw into each until they exploded, leaving a cloud of smoke in their wake. The remaining akuma that had been attacking the woman soon turned their attention towards the lone exorcist. As Allen dispatched the last of the Level Twos, Harry approached the woman, whose long hair obscured her face from view. She did not see Harry, her eyes trained attentively on Allen and the akuma.
"Excuse me, Mam," Harry said softly, reaching out to touch her shoulder. She jumped back from the outstretched hand, striking a fighting pose, a strip of paper gripped in her hand.
"Blimey Harry. It's a bloke," Ron said, staring at the figure of what was unmistakably male once one saw past the long, flowing hair.
"What are you doing with my charge?" he growled.
"Your charge?" Harry asked, confusion written on his face.
"Me," Allen answered, coming to stand next to Harry. "Good morning Link. May I introduce to you Mr. Harry Potter and his associate, whose name I did not quite catch."
"Ronald Weasley," Ron supplied.
"It is Mr. Potter who has so graciously invited me into his home during these uncertain times," Allen continued to relate to Link, who visibly relaxed, stowing away the talisman.
"It's a pleasure to make your acquaintance," Link said, nodding to both of them.
"You seemed to have dropped this," Allen said, holding out a hair band. Link grabbed it and quickly threw his hair into a ponytail, grateful to have it out of the way.
"What were those things?" Ron asked after a brief moment of silence.
"I'll explain later Ron," Harry said, glancing to Allen who nodded his silent approval. Link watched the exchange, looking at Allen with his eyebrows raised in question.
"If I might talk to you for a moment Allen," Link said, beckoning him over to the side. Allen obliged, walking over to the inspector. "We need to go. The Order has set up a place for us to stay. And the sooner we get there, the faster I can report that everything is as it should be. The Vatican is already breathing down my neck about this."
"I think we should stay near Harry. With his job we would have better access to information about the appearance of akuma, rather than blindly wandering about hoping we run into them."
"We are not meant to become involved with civilians."
"He already knows everything. He has already been attacked by them, watched comrades die. He has been involved whether we want him to or not. And this "Wizarding World" is his world, not ours. He has every right to be included in its protection."
"Leverrier won't be pleased, and neither will the Vatican. You're already in enough trouble. Don't add to it."
Allen sighed, running his hand through his hair in frustration, before at last replying: "Well, tell them that Harry is a necessary and vital component to the success of the mission and that his involvement will allow us to better complete it so that we can get home quickly. I'm sure they'll like that."
Link groaned, turning away and pacing a few steps away before turning to face Allen again. He rubbed at his face as if to alleviate the stress of the decision. The amount of trouble he would incur by giving in to Allen was hard to estimate, but in terms of what they would gain by involving Harry…it might just outweigh the cons to it. Throwing his arms up in the air in a sign of defeat he glared at Allen.
"Fine. But you are going to have to find us a new place to stay. The Order's place is in the middle of nowhere and I doubt he lives anywhere near there."
"Thank you Link," Allen said, beaming at the inspector. Turning, he walked over to Harry and Ron, who had been watching the two members of the Black Order converse.
"You and your mate figure everything out?" Ron asked, his curiosity taking hold.
"Yes. Sorry for the rudeness," Allen said, apologetically.
"It's not an issue," responded Harry, glancing back at Link, who was some distance off and appeared to be talking into his hand.
"Do you happen to know of a place Link and I could stay? Preferably near you house, if it's not too much to ask I would like to continue going to work with you."
Harry stared at Allen, a look of surprise crossing his face. "I had assumed you and you friend would be staying with me. I figured it would be the best situation for all of us."
"Thank you Harry. We truly appreciate it. I'll go inform Link as to the arrangement." Harry watched as Allen jogged over to Link. Those two are very unique individuals Harry thought.
Ginny had been leaving the house to head off to Quidditch training camp when Harry arrived with Link and Allen in tow. Shaking her head, she strolled over to Harry and kissed him good-bye, whispering into his ear: "Try not to get yourself killed." Walking to the curb she hailed a cab, and headed off towards the assigned meet up area for the team.
On the way back to the Ministry and then on the way home, Link had practically interrogated Harry as to every minute detail pertaining to magic. Allen had stepped in when necessary, but otherwise let the two men be, choosing instead to lose himself in his own musings. Ever since the attack at the Orphanage when he'd stabbed himself with the exorcist blade there had been something at the back of his mind that was bugging him. It wasn't anything awful, just an overall feeling of being uncomfortable. Unfortunately, the one thing that usually was able to calm him down was off limits—the Ark. Plus, being under constant supervision made it difficult to even attempt to get within a hundred foot radius of it.
He was awoken from his ponderings after he was once more ushered into the house and Harry asked him to show Link to the guest room. Harry said he would bring another bed in later.
"Here's 'Home Sweet Home' for the time being," Allen said, gesturing at the humble room. Link looked around, overall much more comfortable looking than their shared abode at the Black Order Headquarters. The covered mirror caught his eye, but he did not comment on it. Allen would tell him eventually. As the youth had pointed out, he was like a piece of furniture which was why he could talk to him the way he did. If he had to guess, the hidden mirror probably had something to do with the 14th. Hearing Harry calling them to the kitchen for dinner, Link set down what little luggage he had and followed Allen out of the room.
Link and Allen were surprised to find two extra people sitting at the dining room table when they entered behind Harry, helping to carry some dishes. One they knew was Ron, but the young woman with mid-length brown hair, curling down her back and a figure obscured by the tell-tale signs of pregnancy, was unfamiliar.
"Hermione Weasley," she said, extending her hand towards Allen. Setting down the dish of green beans, he shook it.
"Allen Walker," he said. "And this is my friend and work associate, Howard Link." Link inclined his head at the mention of his name as he set down a basket of biscuits.
"I'm sorry to surprise you like this," Harry said to Allen and Link, "but Ron and Hermione have always been involved in such matters and I believe they would be invaluable. Plus Ron's already seen the akuma." Link huffed and muttered something about needlessly involving people, but Allen smiled at the two newcomers into their group.
"It shouldn't be an issue. The more eyes we have the better. Isn't that right Link?" Link shrugged in response and took a seat across from Ron and Hermione. Allen and Harry both sat and began to pass the food around, Allen heaping potatoes, green beans, and chicken on to his plate.
"So based on what little Harry has told us; only the word akuma really, I tried to do some research and have found absolutely nothing on these creatures, except a line mentioning it as something similar to a demon," Hermione said as she delicately tucked into a small bowl of salad.
"I'm not surprised," Link said. "Information surrounding them and their creator is kept completely secret from the rest of society."
"But why? Don't they have a right to know? And couldn't they help fighting them, or whatever it is you do?" Hermione asked.
"Why do you keep the Wizarding World a secret from muggles?" Allen countered.
"To protect…" Hermione trailed off.
"Exactly," replied Allen. "Plus, only exorcists can destroy akuma, we are the only ones capable of wielding the sole weapon that can injure them."
"Is that what the claw thing was?" Ron asked, enlightenment dawning on his face. "But where do you keep it?"
"It's called innocence. And it's actually my hand." With that Allen pulled his glove off his left hand, revealing the blackened scales and cross mark that covered the back of his hand. "When I 'activate' it, it becomes the claw."
"Bloody hell! That's amazing!" Ron cried in disbelief.
"So this innocence is the only thing that can defeat akuma. Does everyone have it in their arm? How does it get there? Can anyone get it?" Hermione queried, her questions only ceasing when Ron nudged her gently with an elbow. "Sorry," she murmured.
"It's fine," Allen assured Hermione. "Only those who can accommodate the innocence can use it, very few people in fact can. And no, not everyone has it as part of their body. Mine's parasitic, which means it is attached. Others have it as a physical weapon like a sword or hammer."
"What's your innocence Link?" Harry asked, after a moment's contemplation.
"I'm not an exorcist," he replied.
"Then what kind of sorcery were you using?" Ron asked.
"They are spells and talismans specific to the group I trained with," Link supplied.
"But you don't use a wand?"
"No."
"Fascinating. I wonder if a wizard could do it. Or even a muggle."
"Likely not. It requires quite a bit of training, and I don't believe it has to do with magic inclination. But it isn't a way to dispose of them. I can only detain, not destroy. Only exorcists with their innocence can."
"Do you think there might be a way to combine the two magics together so that wizards could stand a chance of defending themselves?" Hermione said thoughtfully.
"Possibly. I'd have to look into it. Maybe if I could take a look at some spell books."
"I still have some of mine from school," Harry said, motioning towards a bookshelf in the connecting living room. "You're welcome to take a look."
Link and Hermione continued to converse, brainstorming the possibilities of combining the magic of the Wizarding World and that of the CROW in order to create a way for non-exorcists to defend themselves. Ron, Harry, and Allen engaged in their own conversation about some of the adventures they had had over the years. Eventually the night began to wind down and Harry brought up the subject of how his friends could best help.
"I want you two to keep your eyes out for akuma and any attacks. We need as much information on them as possible. See if there's a pattern to their attacks. It's likely that a large concentration could signify where the leader is hiding."
"Of course Harry. We'd be glad to help," Hermione answered.
"Please don't needlessly put yourself in danger," Allen said. Harry and Ron exchanged knowing glances, the likelihood of that was slim. The trio of friends were magnets for it.
Ron soon called it a night after noticing Hermione's repeated attempts to hide her yawns. Harry bid his two friends good night before leading Allen and Link to the guest room and transfiguring an unused bureau into a bed for Link. The two Black Order members bid Harry good evening as he headed off to his own room.
Harry had noticed Allen seemed to be a bit distracted, if not on edge like when he was escorting Harry to his house a few days ago, looking for possible akuma. He had barely talked on the way back to the house from Grimmauld Place, and even at dinner he had seem to spend most of the night looking into the distance. In the few days he'd known the boy, he had always been alert and attentive, taking in everything around him. Maybe he would ask Allen tomorrow, see if there was something he could do.
As Harry climbed into bed and began to drift off to sleep, haunting music began to drift through the house.
Author's Note: Thanks for taking the time to read this chapter. Hope you enjoyed it. Feel free to review, I always appreciate it.