Resonance
Chapter Eleven
Pansy Parkinson did not like the look of the foreign girl Draco led into the compartment. She had, of course, heard of the foreign Princess and the two young women who accompanied her – who hadn't? Witch Weekly had yet to stop speculating on them and the Daily Prophet were publishing every single morsel of information they could find with heavy lashings of scandal and lies to go with it, all the while still managing to gush over their Power, Beauty and Elegance.
Jealousy was an ugly thing, but Pansy rarely blinded herself to the good traits of others simply to sooth her own ego, it was a bit stupid to even try.
This girl... she was beautiful, very beautiful, and extremely graceful, her dress was gorgeous and Pansy had been hankering after one of the same style since she saw it at the Quidditch World Cup – she didn't actually like the game, but she knew Draco adored it and made the effort to show some interest in her future husband's hobby. But the way Draco was pandering to her, offering her his seat with as much of a charming smile on his face as he could muster, sitting beside her perhaps a touch closer than decorum would allow. Had he suddenly forgotten the agreement between their mothers'? That come their twentieth birthday, if neither of them had found themselves a suitable Pureblood Spouse they would marry each other?
"These are my Housemates, Blaise Zabini, Gregory Goyle, Vincent Crabbe and Pansy Parkinson." Oh he was introducing her last now was he? Pansy refrained from 'hmph'ing audibly. "We're all in Slytherin at Hogwarts."
The quasi-Kunoichi nodded book and Airi-chan on her lap, "It's a pleasure to meet you all," he said with a small smile, "I take it Slytherin is one of the houses at Hogwarts, yes? For the... Cunning and Ambitious?" he asked his knowledge of the houses was a little shaky, he didn't see how splitting people up with certain personality traits was useful or very healthy.
Blaise nodded approvingly from where he had been lounging in the corner, "That's right."
"This is Miss Haku Yuukinari, one of the Princess's Apprentices," Draco introduced smiling at her in what Pansy considered to be a disgustingly besotted fashion.
"So," the young Pureblood began lounging in her seat, trying to appear as nonchalant and idle as possible while still being elegant, "Will you be joining us as a student?" she asked.
Haku nodded, "Yes, according to Dunbedoru-hakase, even though I am considered a legal adult by my own people, I must adhere to the laws in this country and attend your school as a Student like anyone else," he explained a slight frown of distaste colouring his features.
"You don't sound too happy about that," Blaise commented.
"Iie," he stated before sighing slightly, "My apologies, I mean no," Blaise's eyebrow climbed towards his hairline as the girl shifted and ran her fingers through her pet rabbit's fur, "I am not comfortable with the thought of being separated from Tsunade-sama in an unknown location for any period of time. It is simply... not done where we are from," he shook his head and offered them an apologetic smile. "I have always stood by my Master's side, always."
Pansy twitched noticing the odd look on Draco's face, the one that was torn with guilt, pity and admiration all at once and her eyes narrowed – he knew something they didn't.
"What House do you think you'll end up in?" the pug-faced girl asked the answer would reveal a lot about the foreigner.
"Hufflepuff," Haku answered unhesitatingly, taking them all by surprise.
"Hufflepuff?" Vincent echoed, confusion carved onto his face, "But that's for Mudbloods and weaklings," he pointed out frowning. He didn't notice Haku's face darkening, none of them did, save for Blaise and Pansy, the latter of which twitched uncomfortably.
"What makes you think that, Miss Yuukinari?" Blaise asked drawing attention away from Vince before the foreign girl killed him via the power of her eyes alone.
There was a moment of silence, the girl's face was contemplative and somewhat cold, she stared at them with inhumanly sharp and steady doe-brown eyes, "Tell me, what do you think is strength – or power?" she asked.
"Money, obviously," Draco stated as if this were a given.
"Physical power, correct?" Blaise questioned, he got the feeling that the girl didn't mean strength in the way that most would think of it especially when your teacher could shatter the ground with her fist.
"Influence," Pansy decided, "If you have influence, you have power over people."
"Pure blood?" Greg suggested looking at the young girl curiously.
"It's the Dark Arts," Vince declared nodding self-importantly, happy that he had remembered one of his father's more insistent lessons.
Haku's smile was thin as he set aside his book, "And that is why Hufflepuff," he told them, their expressions so confused and curious that his smile became a touch warmer. Really, they were just children there was no need to be harsh or play with them. "None of those answers would have come to my mind," he explained, a wistful look came to his face a memory of hair the colour of sunshine passed in front of his eyes, "Do you have someone important in your life?" he asked a faraway smile flowing onto his face.
For all of a minute, Pansy wondered if the myth of Dark Veela was true, if they had not left the European Wizarding World and fled to wherever it was that Haku called home. She looked... beautiful, distant and cold, like a star in the night sky and – by the Spirits Pansy was going to Avada herself and then incendio all of her Selwyn romance novels when she got home.
Blaise looked thoughtful, "I have my mother..." he admitted softly and despite her shortcomings, she loved him and did try her best to provide an appropriate father figure for him while growing up – it just turned out that decent fathers were not Pureblood men, she often ended up killing them and taking their fortune before they could do something incredibly foolish that may damage him, such as trying to sire a pureblood child with her that would take precedence over him. That was one of the big reasons that his mother often killed her husbands over.
Haku's smile became next to radiant, "When a person has something important to protect... That is when they truly become strong," he explained running his fingers through Airi's fur, remembering, "People will go to extraordinary lengths for those they hold precious. Children rallying their villages to fight off an army, a wife who carried her terminally ill husband across mountains in her bare feet to get him to a doctor over three-hundred miles away in the Country's capitol... a boy throwing himself in front of what he believed was a fatal attack to protect his bestfriend," Haku's head bowed his heart squeezing painfully at the look on Naruto-kun's face when he realised what had just happened, what the Uchiha boy had done.
"That doesn't explain why you would be in Hufflepuff," Pansy pointed out, more for a need to make it seem like she wasn't gaping like a love struck idiot. Like everyone else in the cabin – apart from Zabini.
Doe eyes blinked and then she smiled again and Pansy's heart pattered very annoyingly, she was straight goddamnit! She was not an abomination!
"Because for Tsunade-sama..." she trailed off, "For my Master... I would fight, I would kill and I would die," she finally affirmed looking directly into Pansy's eyes, brown orbs now pale icy green, like chips of jade. And it was everything the Slytherin could do not to start apologising for existing.
Blaise nodded, "I see it now, yes," he admitted, "Just because your most dominant quality is your loyalty doesn't mean you can't be ruthless either," he pointed out before looking at Draco, "Granger for example, she's about as Ravenclaw as you can get but she's got Solid Gold Dragon Balls, even the teachers have stopped bugging her after that time she put Professor Lockhart into the Hospital Wing."
Draco pulled a face, "If the woman wasn't so terrifying I would have kissed her for that, before having to raid Hogsmeade for Mouthwash potion – Mudblood germs, euurgh," he complained.
"Ano," everyone looked at him, "What does 'Mudblood' mean?" Haku asked, tilting his head innocently, he had a damn good idea what it meant but he wanted them to explain it to him, fully and completely.
The look on Draco's face suggested he would rather do anything but.
"Mudbloods are inferior creatures," Pansy recited with a look of revulsion on her face, "They're Witches and Wizards who have dirty blood, muggle blood," she explained, "they shouldn't even be allowed to attend the same school as us," she stated with an angry sniff.
Haku refrained from unleashing any Killer Intent if only through sheer unadulterated willpower, that sounded entirely too close to the sorest points of his past for him to pass without comment, "So... because they come from different families... you consider them 'unacceptable'?" he asked voice deceptively placid. So placid in fact, that Blaise immediately paled at the oh so familiar look he saw many a time before his mother was widowed again.
Pansy nodded, "Yes, yes I do. Muggles like to hunt down our kind, make sport of us, it's dangerous to allow those animals into our world, what if they tell someone and word gets out? We'd be hunted down again," she declared haughtily.
Haku stared at her, face stony.
"I see," he mused softly before picking up his book and getting to his feet, "Very well, it is probably for the best anyway," he said lightly as the younger teens looked at him in confusion, "I will leave you to it."
"Wait, why are you going?" Draco asked, voice just shy of panic.
Haku tilted an eyebrow at him, hand on the door, "I am obviously not welcome as one of your so-called 'Mudbloods'," he pointed out voice chillingly polite, "I shall not intrude upon your presences any longer, sayonara," before pushing the compartment door open and stepping out, the polished wood sliding shut with a faintly audible click – and not the bang that Pansy was expecting.
Draco glared at her, "Pansy," he hissed, "Are you an idiot?" he bit out.
"Well done Miss Parkinson," Blaise drawled lazily, "I do believe you have just pissed her off and considering how she looked almost exactly like my mother before she was widowed, again, I would not relish being in your shoes," he informed her with an unpleasant smirk, Pansy had always annoyed him on some level.
Really, she wasn't inbred to the same degree as Draco, but somehow she ended up even stupider and obtuse than even Vincent whose father had married his first cousin.
It wasn't that they were Racist.
He knew entirely too many of those to be offended by this point – heck, practically every Shinobi was Xenophobic to the point of murderous – it was more the fact that they had no basis for their hate!
He sighed and rubbed a finger across Airi's angular skull. If it were something justified, such as the happenings in Mizu then he would be a lot more understanding and tolerant of their beliefs but all the History books he had combed through just had no basis for that hatred. None at all, just that it was long and bitter and deeply rooted, not in fear as he had at first assumed, but out of sheer arrogance and the belief that because of their special Talents that they had more of a right to exist on this earth than their mundane counterparts.
Having seen Muggle London, Haku would have pointed out that the reverse was much more true, while the Wizarding world had stagnated in their superiority complexes, the Muggle one had flourished with their open mindedness and determination to advance.
Briefly, the dark haired male contemplated how Zabuza-sama would have taken to this world, how he would react to his sudden wealth, the mystery behind just how Haku had inherited a Kekkei Genkai without having a single drop of their blood, this Boy-Who-Lived nonsense and the school of Magic...
Haku shook his head and laughed lightly, the former Kiri-nin would have beheaded Dumbledore and carried on with his life as usual, perhaps joining that new Village in the Country of Rice, they were apparently always looking for Nuke-nin and Kekkei Genkais were always welcome. If it had not been for the presence of one Orochimaru, then Zabuza-sama probably would have gone, but there was bad blood between him and the Snake Sannin. And he didn't trust the paedophilic Shinobi with his apprentice.
The Quasi-Kunoichi glanced to the nearby window, at the grey and rain streaked world outside before shaking his head and making his way back to Tsunade-sama's train compartment. He ignored the look of poison on Ron's face as he slid the door open and entered, he merely thought it to be the younger teenager's disgust at his preference of clothing.
"Are you alright, Haku?" Shizune asked, catching the odd mixed expression of melancholy and mirth on her friend's face.
He nodded, "Just wondering what Zabuza-sama would have made of all this," he admitted, not noticing the way both Ginny and Ron sat a little straighter, they were both intensely curious about this 'Zabuzisana' who raised Haku.
Shizune pursed her lips for a moment, "How would he have reacted?" she asked.
Haku chuckled, "Killed everyone the moment he found out they were lying to us, stolen the money and gone back home," he answered without hesitation.
"Something I'm beginning to think that we should have done in the first place," Tsunade muttered resentfully as she tugged unhappily on her Kimono.
Haku didn't say 'I told you so', he didn't have to.
The storm was really in full swing by the time the Hogwarts Express began to slow to a stop, the dark malevolent skies growling with thunder and flashing with trapped lightning that on occasion lanced down in a brilliant display of destructive power to lick at the spires of the Castle. Haku's eyes burned with the after images as he stared out of the window, hugging Airi to his chest as the Train finally came to a stop at the station and all the students began to riot around them. He had not bothered to change into his uniform, he had already spoken it over with Tsunade-sama and the Sannin had agreed with his decision to remain in his Kimono and Furisodes as they were easier to move in than the cumbersome robes of the uniform. And while there was little chance of fighting, a Shinobi's paranoia was not something to be neglected – regardless of how 'safe' the environment is supposed to be.
When Haku found out his house, he would charm his clothing to match their colours.
The only problem now would be the dormitories... Haku couldn't stay in them, he couldn't share sleeping space with a group of loud, undisciplined, civilians. He couldn't. He might kill them by accident during those precious split seconds between sleep and wakefulness, before his brain realised that Zabuza-sama wasn't there because he was already dead and that he was in a different country entirely with his new Mentor, a woman who taught him how to Heal so that no one would have to lose their most Precious Person like him again.
Shizune gently touched his shoulder, "Do you want me to take Airi-chan for you?" she asked softly, brushing her knuckles soothingly against his cheek. Haku nodded wordlessly and held the docile rabbit out to her, Shizune smiled and gathered the rabbit close to her along with Tonton, the two creatures snuffling at each other briefly before settling, unperturbed at their close proximity. Tradition states that new students had to cross the Lake before being Sorted into their various Houses, due to Shizune and Tsunade not actually being students they were permitted to use the carriages to get up to the castle while Haku was forced to journey with the Academy students – who were much older than he had been expecting. Good grief, they were the same age as Naruto-kun who was already a Genin and these children were only just starting their Training.
If this were a Hidden Village, Haku did not doubt for one moment that they would have been wiped out due to this idiotic and wasteful practice. Thank goodness they weren't a village, they had this Kekkei Genkai but they only began to learn how to use it in the pre-teenage years, they didn't even have any physical training before hand! Half of them did not even know of this world until two months ago!
Haku shook his head in silent disgust as he stepped out of the Compartment and followed the bellowing voice summoning the First Years toward him.
One little girl looked up and sneered at him, her pretty little face twisting, "This is for first years, or are you stupid as well as ill-bred, Mudblood?" she demanded, her light voice thick with scorn.
Haku looked down at her, with the rain and the darkness, she couldn't see through her glasses, he knelt down and took them off her, ignoring her spluttering and grasping hands as he calmly slipped them into the front pocket of her robes, "You don't want to lose those on the boat, Ojochan," he told her warmly.
A racist eleven-year-old, how horrible, she was merely parroting the words and beliefs her parents had impressed upon her since birth. It was sad really, she was merely an echo of their beliefs, not even her own person. He couldn't hate her or treat her with cruelty for that misguided blind faith, he was guilty of it as well in regards to Zabuza-sama.
She spluttered but was unable to speak as a very large man came over, his dark eyes glinting with warmth, "An' you must be tha' Princess's Apprentice, righ' missy?" he boomed out cheerfully. Haku got to his feet and laughed lightly, craning his head to get a better look at the Giant before him.
"That I am," he agreed, winking at the eleven year old when he heard her gasp in realisation, her pale face blossoming bright red as she realised she had just foul mouthed one of the Princess's Entourage. "Dumbledore-hakase said that I was to journey with the First Years across the lake."
Hagrid nodded, "We got an odd number so I figger ye could go wit' tha last boat. Only two wee'uns ter keep an eye on," he told the young Shinobi who nodded and bowed politely before the large man turned and made his way to the foremost boat – due to his immense size, he had to ride alone.
Giving the little first year girl – a Slytherin for certain he assumed – a cheeky little smile, Haku made his way to the tiny boat and the two first years clinging to the sides as the turbulent lake waters threatened to capsize them. He hopped in and smiled at the tiny pair, both boys and neither of them looked pleased to be in the boat in this weather – even less so with the older boy in the boat with them.
"Ready? FORWARD!" Hagrid called over the sudden snarl of thunder in the air as all the boats lurched forward against the waves, making one of the boys squeak and latch onto the calm Shinobi's sleeve, scooting against the one spot of calm in their boat.
Haku noticed the trouble before anyone else.
A little first year boy, absolutely minuscule, was leaning out of his boat with fearless boyish enthusiasm, apparently having spotted something moving in the water. Haku had already slipped free of the two eleven year olds when he saw the boy's balance shift, without thinking the young Shinobi raced across the turbulent waves just as the boy pitched into the murky water with a shriek. Several girls screamed while the boys shouted for the Giant man who lead the fleet of boats, Haku paid them no mind as he lunged into the water after the boy, grabbing him by the scruff of his neck and wrenching him out of the water and free from the grasp of the large tentacled beast that threatened to drag him under the water. Haku launched himself into the air, Chakra pumping into his feet to compensate for the extra weight in the form of a screaming eleven year old as the tentacle stretched up after them.
Fingers suddenly bristling with needles, Haku flung them as hard as he could at the questing limb, they all bounced off but the pinpricks of pain were apparently enough to deter the creature from attempting to grab at his prey again.
The white clad Shinobi landed with a crouch on the surface of the water, one arm still wrapped protectively about the eleven year old child, brown eyes wary as he observed the water and felt it through his feet, nothing approached them, it seemed to be clear.
Ignoring the wide eyed stares, Haku gently set the child back into the boat, "Perhaps now your curiosity will be kept on a better leash, hm?" he teased the boy who blushed and grinned up at him toothily, not for a moment did the Ice Nin believe that the boy had learned his lesson. He was probably as curious as a basket of kittens and even more prone to trouble at that! Chuckling and shaking his head, the Shinobi ruffled his hair and made his way to Hagrid, walking alongside the Giant's boat to explain the situation as they continued their trek along the lake, the young Shinobi keeping an eye on the students and the water to prevent another attempted snatching by the creature – no matter what Hagrid said about the creature being friendly, Haku was not about to trust any animal with an untrained, helpless child.
Finally, they reached dry land and it was a subdued and awe-filled group of children that met Professor McGonagall along with one cross dressing Harry Potter who looked at her with such serene calm that for a moment she wondered if Albus was wrong and had brought someone completely different. Neither Lily nor James had displayed such calm grace at the world around them.
Quickly, they were ushered into a side room to await the Feast, Haku was already trying to do his best for the small students shivering and sneezing miserable lot that they were. They must have been cold, what a foolish thing to do, to take them across the water in such weather and then not even provide warm clothing or towels in which to dry themselves when they got in. They could quite easily catch a cold!
The boy he rescued from the water clung to his side like a baby chimp would to its mother and continued to do so even as they were called into the Great Hall for their Sorting ceremony.
It was impressive, Haku would give it that, gold plates and cutlery, the ceiling enchanted to appear as the night sky outside as it was – like an overgrown skylight. He could see Tsunade-sama and Shizune-senpai sat at the table on Dumbledore's right side, the guests of honour, with Tonton and Airi at their feet and Snape-sensei sat beside Shizune with his dark eyes locked on Haku's face. The Shinobi offered him a warm smile and a slight inclination of his head in greeting, an action that was mirrored by the Potions Professor ever so slightly before the Ice-nin's attention was captured by the singing Hat.
What manner of Genjutsu was this?
Subtly making a handseal in his sopping wet sleeve, the Shinobi released a burst of Chakra in the hopes of breaking the illusion, but the hat just kept singing. He bit down on his tongue until he tasted blood and yet the damnable rag kept warbling as though it... Haku did not think he would ever truly come to accept the eccentricities of this world, in fact, he was fairly sure he would go insane long before he ever did. And he rather enjoyed being sane.
Eventually the Hat ceased singing amidst polite applause from the rest of the student body who were all watching the elderly woman with the thistles in her hat unrolling a long scroll.
"When I call your name, you will put on the Hat and sit on the stool," she informed them, her tone of voice brooking no disagreements or commentary or complaint as her eyes pinned them to the spot, "When the Hat announces your house, you will go and sit at the appropriate table.
"Ackerley, Stewart!" one of the boys who had been in the boat along with Haku trembled slightly as he wriggled his way out of the tight knit crowd and sat gingerly upon the stool, the wide brim of the singing Hat dropping onto his head and practically swallowing it, only his nose prevented it from falling to the same level as his chin.
"RAVENCLAW!" the Hat bellowed a moment before it was hoiked off the first year's head and the house of Blue and Bronze broke into polite applause as he stumbled over to join their ranks.
"Baddock, Malcolm!"
"SLYTHERIN!"
"Branstone, Eleanor!" the rude little girl from earlier – her glasses now perched on the tip of her nose – hurried forward and sat herself down eagerly on the stool, the Hat swallowing her eyes for all of a moment, a moment that seemed to stretch before –
"HUFFLEPUFF!" the poor girl looked traumatised with this proclamation but never the less was chivvied off to the house of Yellow and Black.
"Cauldwell, Owen!" the second boy who had been in the boat with Haku squeezed out of the crowd and sat on the stool.
"HUFFLEPUFF!" Haku smiled at him when he caught the nervous look the child gave him as he staggered to his new house as they applauded his appointment politely.
"Creevey, Dennis!" the tiny child who fell into the Lake reluctantly unpeeled himself from Haku's side and skittered to the stool.
"GRYFFINDOR!" The house of the Brave and Noble, a good house for his curious Kitten.
Slowly but surely each of the students were Sorted, some took a while and others barely touched the Hat before it shrieked out their destination, Haku found himself having to offer silent encouragement to more than one eleven year old as their large frightened eyes sought his as they made their way to their new Houses. Whatever for the Shinobi didn't know – he hardly knew that the act of saving Dennis Creevey from a Lake Monster and walking on water had secured him a place in the First Year's hearts as not only a hero but also someone who would protect them.
The P's came and went and Haku allowed himself to relax, no doubt Tsunade's threats had been heeded by Dumbledore-hakase for once.
"Whitby, Kevin!"
"HUFFLEPUFF!"
Haku took a deep breath when at long last, only he remained, stood amidst the curious and fascinated stares of the other students, some who recognised him from the Daily Prophet and others wondering what a teenager was doing being Sorted.
"Yuukinari, Haku!" the Deputy Headmistress summoned.
Making his way to the stool, the incredibly short stool designed for eleven year olds, Haku gracefully folded his legs and took a seat, hands folded demurely in his lap with his feet tucked to one side. The hat descended and Haku physically had to prevent himself from yanking it off and setting it on fire when he heard the voice tickle inside his head.
'I wouldn't advise that Yuukinari-san,' at least it spoke Japanese, 'Indeed, the knowledge is here in your head, I'm enchanted so that there can be no mistakes in the Sorting Process. Now, let us find where you belong, hm?
'Not a bad mind, not a bad mind at all. Very smart and incredibly driven, oh yes, there is no room for slacking in you is there? A great deal of talent sleeps within you still my child, such talent and yet no desire to use it for yourself.
'Cunning yes, brave – incredibly so, a nobler soul I have not seen for some time and a thirst for knowledge that would rival even that of Miss Granger and the Lady Ravenclaw herself. Oh my yes.
'Where to put you though my boy? I believe you already know this answer don't you? Every action you have taken, every step that brought you forward, every drop of blood on your hands,' Haku winced here, 'All for that one all encompassing thing.
'Your loyalty and love for Momochi Zabuza. Indeed, there was no doubt in your mind, was there? You knew where you would go.' He did.
'Then let's not keep you any longer.
"HUFFLEPUFF!"
As if there was even a doubt.