The Order of the Phoenix, along with Harry, Ron, Hermione, Fred, George and Ginny were gathered in the large, mostly clean lounge, the only room big enough to hold them all plus the extra people who were coming. A large table had been set up with several empty chairs, including one in the middle of them for Dumbledore. Small, hushed conversations were going on about who these people were and what they looked like.
"I bet they're some kind of elite group of wizards," Ron suggested to Harry and Hermione, "you know, really powerful."
"But Ron, Dumbledore is the most powerful wizard alive." Hermione reminded Ron. "Besides, I think it's probably some people who are from somewhere else, maybe from another country where they've dealt with "demons" before, which is why they know how to handle them."
"In that case, why couldn't they just tell Dumbledore and the Order how to defeat them; wouldn't that be easier than coming here in person?" Harry asked, joining the debate. The mysterious identity of these people sparked his curiosity.
"Maybe it's something really complicated that has to be shown, or maybe it's like an object or a weapon that needs to be made or something." Ron put in, his mind no doubt thinking up some large, dangerous object that could be used to defeat the "demons".
The sound of the door opening quietened the room down, and all eyes turned to the door as Dumbledore came through, followed by some of the most weird people any of them had ever seen.
The first was the one Dumbledore had shaken hands with; chin-length dark blue hair, glinting dark eyes, a white lab coat and beret and small rectangular glasses. Following him was a laid-back-looking man with long, dark red hair that swept to his middle back, a large black and gold-rimmed hat on his head and a matching black and gold uniform, one hand in his pocket and a white mask on his face. Then came a stern-looking woman, again in black and gold but with blonde hair done up in a messy bun, a monkey on her shoulder and a large x-shaped scar on her face.
Then came a man in a mostly black uniform, the heavy clothes making him seem even larger than he was, a mask covering his head and two large steel rings on his shoulders. Next came a rather scruffy-looking man who looked around his forties, a kind smile on his face, curly grey hair and red glasses covering his eyes, a large moustache and slight beard making him look older.
The last in the black and gold uniforms was a teenager who couldn't have been more than a year older than Harry, however his bright white hair made him look older at first glance. He looked slight compared to the others who had so far entered, and had silver eyes. What was mostly striking about him, however, was the large tattoo-like scar on his face that ran all the way down the left side of his face, making Harry's own scar seem rather insignificant.
Following him were more people, though they were dressed in black and red uniforms rather than gold, leading many to suspect some special significance behind the gold. First was a teenage girl with shoulder-length dark green hair and a very short red skirt who smiled at the wizards, behind her the tall red-haired boy with an eye-patch who had spoken to Dumbledore earlier who gave them a large grin. Following him was a small, old man with a single hair on his head, black make-up around his eyes and strangely empty eyes.
Then came another woman, who looked very nervous and kept glancing down at her feet, soft brown hair framing her face. Following her was a man who looked strangely like a vampire, however he too had a slightly nervous expression. He had black hair with a white streak at the front. Then came a boy who could only have been eleven at most, with a large blue hemisphere seemingly glowing on his forehead. Then came a young man of around twenty with dark spiky hair twisted into a high ponytail and strange metal bracelets on his arms.
Only two more followed; a tall, bald man with closed eyes and strange headphones on his head and a tall, slim, young man with dark blue hair that fell past his waist and was tied up in a ponytail, a sword at his hip.
They sat down, Komui in the centre, the Generals around him and the other Exorcists on either side of them as they observed the wizards sitting opposite them.
To be honest, they didn't look like people fighting a war. Several of them were clearly family with the same ginger hair colour, the older two the mother and father with five sons and a daughter. Two more teens were also there, along with other men and women that seemed to be almost a random assortment of people; in short, they looked nothing like an army, or a secret organisation. A few of them bore the marks of battle; obvious scars and slightly haunted shadows in certain people's eyes indicated that at least some of them knew how to fight. However, none of them seemed to have the physical capabilities all exorcists had to have, that was clear simply from looking at them.
"Perhaps first we should introduce ourselves?" Komui said, the question only hinted at. "I am Komui Lee, Chief Supervisor of the Black Order, an organisation under the Vatican that exists to destroy akuma. We are from the year 1895, and have come at the request of one Albus Dumbledore, since we believe these "demons" you have been having problems with are akuma." He swept a look across the wizards before turning to the blue-haired teen sitting at one end of their semi-circle. "Kanda, if you could start off all personal introductions, since it is only polite for them to have our names."
"Tch." Kanda looked a little annoyed at this, since Komui had already said his name, but complied anyway. "In case you haven't guessed, I'm Kanda." He didn't bother with his first name. The other Exorcists followed suit, introducing themselves around the circle.
"Noise Marie."
"Chaoji Han."
"Timothy Hearst."
"General Froi Tiedoll." That cleared up what the gold decorations on the uniform meant.
"General Winters Sokaro."
"General Klaud Nine." Here they went past Komui.
"General Cross Marian."
"General Allen Walker." To be honest, Allen felt slightly odd referring to himself as a General, since it was easy to forget he was one since his friends treated him the same. He also didn't miss the slightly shocked looks on the wizards faces when he said he was a General; he could tell he would probably have to answer questions on that later.
"Arystar Krory the Third."
"Miranda Lotto."
"Bookman."
"Lavi."
"Lenalee Lee."
With all the introductions over, the members of the Black Order turned their rather expectant eyes to the wizards in front of them. Said wizards now had a lot to mull over, though there wasn't much time for that right now. Dumbledore definitely hadn't mentioned them coming from a different time, though judging from the slightly amused glint in his eye he had known. They also seemed to come from many different countries and backgrounds if their looks were anything to go by; then again, looks could be deceiving. Deciding to take the initiative, Mrs Weasley introduced herself.
"Molly Weasley."
"Arthur Weasley." Her husband followed her example.
"Kingsley Shacklebolt."
"Remus Lupin."
"Nymphadora Tonks."
"Sirius Black."
"Alastor Moody."
"Minerva McGonagall."
"Hestia Jones."
"Dedalus Diggle."
"Elphias Doge."
"Mundugus Fletcher."
"Sturgis Podmore."
"Emmeline Vance."
"Severus Snape."
"Bill Weasley."
"Charlie Weasley."
"Fred Weasley."
"George Weasley."
"Ron Weasley."
"Hermione Granger."
"Harry Potter." It was nice, Harry decided, to have people not react with shock and awe when you introduced yourself. It made him feel normal.
"Ginny Weasley."
Allen was rather glad that, even thought here were quite a few people sitting there, not one of them was an akuma. That was lucky; it meant they could explain without being attacked, given the nature of the buildings protection.
Dumbledore then began to speak.
"As you already know, I am Albus Dumbledore, Headmaster of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry and Leader of the Order of the Phoenix. We are wizards." He brought out his wand and flicked it in the direction of the middle of the table, a golden fire erupting from the centre, twisting into a phoenix shape before vanishing, leaving the table completely unmarked. "Around fourteen years ago, a dark wizard named Voldemort was defeated, and vanished. However, recently he has come back, revived by a dark ritual. Because of this I have reformed the Order of the Phoenix, who stood against him last time. He will stop at nothing to regain control of the Wizarding World and kill all those who do not possess magic. Unfortunately, the Ministry of Magic refuses to acknowledge his return, and as such they are making many people defenceless."
The Black Order members nodded at his explanation, though they clearly had deeper questions, they could be asked at a later time. Meanwhile, Komui spoke up.
"You have also recently had trouble with akuma, yes?"
"Indeed."
"And you believe these events are connected?"
"I believe it is too much of a coincidence for them not to be connected."
"Very well."
Komui took a deep breath and began to explain their own situation.
"Around two hundred years ago a strange cube was found that contained a strange message. "We are the ones who triumphed over darkness, and the ones who shall soon meet their end. Yet impending doom awaits in the future. Thus, we bring salvation to thee." The message then spoke of a being known as the Millennium Earl, the one who creates akuma, along with a substance known as innocence, which the Cube was also made of. Innocence is a partially sentient substance that forms a bond with a specific human, known as an accommodator. The Innocence, in the form of a weapon, can then be used against an akuma, and is the only known substance that can destroy an akuma. The Black Order was created to find the original one hundred and nine pieces of Innocence, along with their accommodators, and use them to fight the Earl and his family, known as the Noah clan. Accommodators are, in the Black Order, known as Exorcists."
The wizards were a little confused, this "Innocence" sounded like magic, or rather more like their wands if it chose it's wielders.
"Now, I do have one rather important question before we begin." Dumbledore nodded for Komui to continue. "How many wizards are there in your world?"
Dumbledore raised a single, silver eyebrow at the slightly peculiar question.
"In the world, there are thousands of witches and wizards. May I ask how many of you there are in return?" The Exorcists and Komui relaxed slightly at Dumbledore's words. This magic wasn't some form of Innocence then; it was real. As for his own question, Komui took on a slightly grave air.
"In terms of the Black Order, there are several branches, each with hundreds of staff. However, in terms of Exorcists...there is only one not currently present, and she is a non-combatant exorcist."
It was a shock, to say the least, that almost all current exorcists were before them. Fourteen of them; no wonder some of them looked young. If they were the only people who could fight...
"Now, about the akuma, can you tell me what they looked like so we can get an idea of what level they are?"
"I can do better than that." Dumbledore produced a copy of the Daily Prophet's latest edition out of thin air and floated it over to Komui, who was a little startled by the quality of the photograph and the fact that is was moving, but didn't say anything.
"Level ones, good we got here in time."
"What exactly do you mean by level ones?" Sirius Black asked, curious by nature and slightly irritated; people had already died, that surely meant they were late?
"Well, perhaps I should explain what akuma are first, no?" Komui spoke lightly, he didn't mind the interruption at all. "Akuma are made from three things; a machine, a soul, and tragedy. When someone dies, the Millennium Earl appears before their loved one, and offers to bring back the soul of their loved one; all they have to do is say that person's name. This binds the soul into a mechanical skeleton and forces them to do the Earl's bidding. The Earl then has them kill the one who brought them back and wear their body as their skin; as such, akuma are usually hidden until they reveal themselves in the form in this photograph. However, as the akuma keeps killing, they evolve into higher levels. Each level is more intelligent and human-like than the previous, as well as much stronger. Level four is the highest we know of. Luckily, the ones in this picture are level one, though some may have evolved by now. However, the mere presence of akuma means the Earl must be here, and if he's here then the Noah clan are also here."
"Noah clan?"
"A group of thirteen humans on the side of the Earl. There are Noah "genes" in all of us, and every generation or so they appear, turning their hosts into super humans. They are in control of the akuma, have grey skin and seven stigmata on their foreheads; we can give you detailed descriptions of most of them if you need it since we know what they look like, though one of them does have the ability to change shape." One of Dumbledore's eyebrows raised a little at this; it sounded rather like magic to him.
"Perhaps we should move onto what you wish us to do about the current situation?" Komui suggested lightly. "There will be plenty of time to ask questions later."
"Of course." Dumbledore replied. "Akuma attacks have been happening recently, and we believe that Voldemort has something to do with them; perhaps he has made some sort of deal with your Millennium Earl. For this reason, I fear Hogwarts may be in grave danger; and since magic can not do anything to akuma, my students would be in danger if something like that were to occur." Komui looked thoughtful.
"We wish to protect as many innocent people as possible; thus we need some form of headquarters, and it would be unwise to have that in the same location as your headquarters. How large is your school?"
"Hogwarts is a castle; I assure you, we have plenty of space. " Dumbledore smiled; this is what he had been hoping for. Of course, they would have to notify the Ministry, however, with the base of the Black Order at Hogwarts he could keep a close eye on things, as well as have a nice ace up his sleeve should direct conflict happen any time soon.
"In that case, if you don't mind, we should set up our base of operations there. We may bring some more people through, of course, so we need a large space, as well as a quick way to get information of any attacks straight to us. Then we can send out Exorcists immediately to deal with the akuma."
"Of course. I shall see to it that you have everything you need. Also, perhaps it would be wise to have the younger Exorcists attend the school as students, then they would be able to protect the school's population more efficiently. They would, of course, be treated like normal students, at least for the most part, while attending." Komui looked thoughtful. This would give the younger ones a small chance at making normal friends; and live like normal teenagers for once, at least for a while.
"What age are your students?"
"My students are between eleven and eighteen, with seven different year groups each split between four houses."
"In that case, we have three exorcists who are of that age, and two more who are a year older and can probably attend. If we place one of each of the older ones in each house and the youngest in any house, that should be enough."
"You should know, the houses are decided by personality traits, and they don't tend to get on well with each other."
"We can sort that out at a later time. Perhaps, now we are introduced, we should end this meeting for now; if we have confirmed each other as allies."
"Of course. I am sure no-one here has any reason not to agree with that."
While Komui and Dumbledore had been talking, everyone else had been busy analysing the other side, though perhaps none more so than Lavi, whose single eye scanned the Order of the Phoenix with precision, logging every single movement and trait into his memory for future use. McGonagall's stern expression offset by the fact her eyes flickered over the younger exorcists in slight worry; the motherly look on Mrs Weasley's face, the sneer of Snape that made him sure the man was wearing a mask of darkness; a spy probably. The mischief Tonks' held, clear from her face and bright pink hair, along with the way her eyes flitted over to gaze momentarily at Lupin, who was weary and held a sad aura. The gaunt look on Black's face like he had either been in a prison recently or was in one currently, the serious looks on both Mr Weasley's and Shacklebolt's faces, along with the twitching fingers of Fletcher. The haunted look in Potter's eyes, the fierce look in Granger's, the twins who looked like they should be grinning naturally, even though they weren't currently. Overall, he couldn't see one uniting thing about them; they were more like a secret, underground resistance than an organization. Then again, he supposed that that was what they were.
Harry didn't know what the think of the Exorcists of the Black Order. Their uniforms, each one unique yet similar, all bearing a strange metal cross over their hearts, made them look like an army, more so than the Order of the Phoenix at least. Still, they didn't look particularly elite or special, in fact if they had been dressed in normal clothes then they would just have been an assortment of odd people, not a fighting force. Komui was clearly a leader, though to be honest he didn't look much like one aside from the uniform, though the Exorcists clearly had no problems in letting him speak for them for now. However, there was one other thing on his mind. Before they had come in, Harry had been trying to catch Dumbledore's eye, to no avail. The Headmaster didn't even seem to notice him, let alone look at him. It annoyed Harry. Why was he doing that?
Eventually, it came to people's attention that the meeting was over for now, and the wizards started to stand, those who didn't live here leaving with varying amounts of speed. The Black Order, however, stayed in the room, chatting to each other as they waiting for their hosts to tell them what to do.
Mrs Weasley, being the unofficial organiser of the headquarters, returned to her guests and coughed then smiled at them.
"Now, how about I show you to your rooms? We've prepared quite a few of them, don't worry, there'll be plenty of space. Come on, follow me."
-CROSSOVER
A/N: This chapter is really an introduction chapter to make them get to know each other; the main characters will meet properly next chapter. ^^ Review? Tell me what you think? Is this length chapter better?