I don't own Naruto or Harry Potter!

It was finally the last day of Winter Holidays, which meant Hermoine would go back to Hogwarts with the Weasleys, and Harry. Neji, Tenten, and Lee would also accompany them back to school. It was odd, for the last four days of the holidays, Hermoine had felt odd and scared around the three guards, but she had no idea why. Hermoine, Harry, and Ron ended up sitting across from the three guards on the car ride to King's Cross Station. "So, Tenten, how old are you?" Hermoine found herself asking in an attempt to make conversation in the awkward silence.

Tenten smiled. "I'm twenty-one and so are Neji and Lee. You three are fifteen, correct?" Hermoine and her two friends nodded. "How are your studies going?"

"Quite well. When did you three graduate from Hogwarts?" Hermoine asked.

Tenten exchanged looks with Neji and Lee. "We did not attend Hogwarts, but rather a small Academy in our hometown in Japan. It was a school meant for special children in our community." Tenten explained. "Once you graduate from the Academy, which is usually when you're around twelve or so depending on your skill level, you get put into group of three. Then these groups of three train under an older, experienced teacher for hands on learning, as opposed to the theory and basics taught in school. You stay in these teams until you're ready to move on your own and no longer need the guidance of your teacher. Of course, we'll always be close with our teacher," she made eye contact with Lee and Neji, "especially, Lee."

"Why's that?" Ron asked.

Neji smirked. "Our teacher is the one who inspired Lee to wear green spandex all of the time." The fifteen-year-olds blanched.

"Why do you wear those bandages around your forehead, Neji?" Hermoine asked.

Tenten glanced at her teammate in worry. His curse seal was always a sensitive topic, even for her. As Tenten predicted, Neji scowled at the question. "I was branded by members of my family as a child. The pureblood line brands all of the non-pure lines within our family. I am from a non-pure line."

"Is it just a mark? Like a birth mark?"

"No, the head family can use it to inflict pain on the rest of us." Neji answered stoically. His hands were clenched into fists, so Tenten gently put her smaller hands over them in a comforting gesture.

"That's horrible! Is it done with magic? This may be rude to ask, but can I see the mark? It might be possible to reverse the curse." Hermoine asked. Before Tenten could intervene and change the subject, Neji untied the bandages and slowly unwrapped them from his forehead. It revealed his pale forehead and the green mark that ruined his life. "I've seen that before!" Hermoine exclaimed.

"What?" Neji asked.

"It was in one of the texts in the restricted section of the library. It was a text about lost magic from other countries…I know I saw that mark. I think there was something about reversing it! When we get back, if you can help us sneak that book out of the restricted section, I'll help you reverse that curse. And teach you how so you can do it to your family members." Hermoine grinned happily, but Neji remained stoic.

"Is it really possible?" he whispered in Tenten's ear.

"I don't know, Neji. But maybe these people can help. Maybe this is why Tsunade-sama sent us out of all the other teams. Maybe she knew that these wizards could free you from your cage." Tenten responded.

"You give her too much credit, Tenten. Even if she is the Hokage. I think it was fate that led us here."

Lee broke into their conversation with the protest of, "No, it was our youth that gave us this tremendous opportunity!"

When they finally arrived at King's Cross Station, the three shinobi –once again dressed in their ANBU uniforms and masks –walked with the Weasley's, Harry, and Hermoine to the train. The students sat in their own compartment, as did the shinobi. "Goodbye, Dragon. I'll find a cure for Bird, I promise." Hermoine told Tenten as she left their company. Tenten merely nodded in response before following Lee and Neji to their own, separate compartment.

Since some students stayed at Hogwarts for the holidays, there were a few empty compartments. Neji chose one at the back of the train –which was where the trouble-makers were most likely to be –and the team sank into the seats. Tenten drew the curtains over the windows closed so that students passing by couldn't see them.

"Ready?" she asked the boys.

Lee, who was sitting across from her, nodded. "Yosh, my youth is recharged!"

"Tiger, I don't think you can recharge your youth." Neji retorted.

"Of course you can, Bird! You are simply not youthful enough to know how!" Neji moved to pinch the bridge of his nose, but stopped when he realized he was wearing a mask. Instead, he opted for scoffing.

"Calm down, you two. We have a long train ride and I don't want to spend it listening to the two of you fighting over anything." Tenten interrupted.

"Sorry, Dragon." Lee apologized.

"My apologies, I did not mean to start a verbal fight with Tiger." Neji apologized. Tenten just sighed in response. When they weren't fighting or training, their team sure was dysfunctional sometimes…

It was almost a week into the next semester when Hermoine talked to Harry and Ron about her deal with the guards. They all sat in the common room late at night when everyone else was asleep. "Tomorrow night, we'll sneak into the library to get that book." She told the boys.

"Sure. We'll use the invisibility cloak. Although, we're getting a little big to all fit…" Harry responded.

"Hm, well Hermoine has to go because she's the only one who knows what this book is. And it is Harry's cloak… I guess I'll stay behind. This prefect will just have to turn a blind eye to our trouble-making for once."

"When have you ever had eyes to spot trouble, Ronald?" Hermoine teased her red-haired friend.

"Oh, come off it, Hermoine." Ron responded.

"Well, I'm going to bed. We'll meet back here at around eleven tomorrow night, yeah?" Hermoine asked. When the boys affirmed their answer, she picked up her books and left for her dormitory. When she reached her dormitory, she set her books onto her trunk and changed into her pajamas. Usually Hermoine avoided changing in front of her roommates, but they were all asleep anyways, so it didn't matter. When she was done, Hermoine lay down on her bed and closed her eyes, drifting into a deep sleep.

When she woke up, all of her roommates were still asleep. "Wow, they sure get more sleep than me…" Hermoine muttered. She quickly changed into her school robes and made her way down to the common room, where Ron and Harry were already waiting for her. "Good morning."

"Morning, Hermoine." The boys chorused.

They trio made their way down to the Great Hall for breakfast. Tiger and Bird were standing in the hall, Bird by the teachers table and Tiger by the main entrance to the hall. "I wonder where Ten- I mean Dragon is?" Hermoine asked as she didn't see Dragon in the hall.

"She is patrolling the outside of the castle, youthful students!" Lee, er Tiger, answered.

Hermoine turned sharply in her seat to see the tall guard looking at her. He was probably beaming with his too white teeth, but Hermoine couldn't tell because of the mask. "Oh, thank you, Tiger."

"You are welcome, youthful student!" And with that, Tiger walked away and started walking around the hall. It seemed that he never ran out of energy, unlike Dragon and Bird.

That night, Hermoine met the boys in the common room. Harry and Hermoine slipped under the Invisibility Cloak and left the common room. They made their way to the library by awkwardly shuffling to keep themselves covered. When they finally reached the library, they creeped into the restricted section. Hermoine browsed through the books until she found what she was looking for. Using her wand, Hermoine took the book out of the shelf without a sound. She grabbed it and tucked it under her arm within the Invisibility Cloak, and the two hurried back to the common room. Harry took off the invisibility cloak and went to their respective dormitories. Hermoine stowed the book in a hidden compartment within her trunk and then fell asleep. All these late-night adventures were making her tired during classes.

Hello Readers! I hope you liked this chapter, please review and tell me what you thought. I recently realized that I really prefer writing in Tenten's pov, so I might have a lot more Tenten chapters. But I'll try and write from other point of views since it'll make my writing better (I hope). Well, have a great day/night. Happy Writing/Reading!

~Nerd

QoU: What ninja clan would you like to be a part of?

My answer: Personally, I'd rather not be from a huge clan. But the Yamanaka clan or the Uzumaki clan would be cool to be a part of.