Summary; sequel to AVLP, very much AU as it's a crossover. Hakkai, Sanzo, Goku and Gojyo, or Harry, Indigo, Neville and Ron are on their way to Hogwarts! Poor Hogwarts, you really weren't prepared for these boys, or their friends…
Snapshots of Christmas
Harry was everything Alice had wished for her godson.
He was intelligent, polite, well spoken, and just a little bit charming. So very like his mother…
Alice glance around, trying to locate her son, failed and looked back towards Harry. Then she smiled slightly.
It seemed Harry wasn't all Lily after all; he had his father's talent for unexpected disappearances.
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Archibald Longbottom was not a particularly nice man.
He was loud, and rude. He was also physically very strong, though nothing special magically, which was why he could manhandle a struggling 11 year old towards a window with little trouble.
"Let go! I don't wanna-!"
"Now, now Neville, it's your party piece-"
"Let go of him you old shit or I'll break all the bones in your arms!"
Archibald jerked, his grip loosening enough for Neville to pull free, and twirled around.
Harry Potter, Alice's godson, was standing there. Neville was half hidden behind him, and Harry's eyes were glittering with an eerie green light.
An intelligent man, a coward or a Slytherin would have turned and ran, self preservation instincts overriding everything else. But Archibald had never claimed intelligence, and had been a Gryffindor for a reason.
"What do you think you're doing boy?! Neville! Get back here!"
Neville edged a little further behind Harry, glaring mutinously at Archibald.
"No," said Harry, very firmly, "You are not throwing him out of a window again."
"Why not?" asked Archibald smirking, "He'll bounce, and it's fun."
"He'll bounce," repeated Harry softly, then his eyes flashed with a green fire and he snarled. "Will you?!"
Archibald stepped back on reflex, and two feet hit him in the chest. He went out of the window behind him with a spectacular roll-bounce motion, but it seemed Neville's amazing powers of extreme bouncy-ness were not shared with his great uncle.
Harry paused for a moment, tossed a complicated hex gesture he seen Jackie use at the body, and left the room, gently guiding Neville before him.
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Ron was suffering from TMR syndrome. Otherwise known as To Many Redheads, it was a common side effect of being over exposed to a Weasley Christmas. The only cure was to spend at least an hour away from all other Weasleys, so that's what he was doing.
To be precise, he was going to visit Luna Lovegood, who was very pale, very blonde, had a look of permanent surprise and was about as un-Weasley as you could get.
He was about half way through the woods to her house when a wild swell of fearhateragehowdarehe? swept through him.
Ron collapsed against a tree, gasping and clutching his head as it got stronger, and stronger and then just dropped to nothing.
He sat there for a while dazed and seeing spots while he tried to work out what the hell had just happened.
The fear had been full of grit and rocky lumps of determination and Goku. The rage had flowed like some deadly black flood and Hakkai. But why had he felt it? Indigo was the empath, not him. And even if he had been an empath, those two were at Longbottom manor, far from here.
What the hell was goin' on?
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Indigo had been in the library when the surge came.
He dropped his book, and clutched at his heart as he struggled to ride it out.
It was Hakkai and Goku, with their others running with them. It was rage and hate and fear and a body going out of the window and the sharp taste of satisfaction and-
It stopped as suddenly as it had come. Indigo dropped like a puppet with the strings cut at the sudden loss, the silence, and became a crumpled pile on the floor.
"Master Indigo! Is you being alright?!"
Ah, a house elf, Linny, right? They were always so attentive…
"I believe I have just experienced a remote reading," Indigo muttered dazedly. "How very unexpected."
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Midnight saw four small figures converging on Stonehenge .
Harry and Neville were confused, having received a terse summons, in Indigo's handwriting but delivered by a bird they didn't recognize. Ron had some ideas, but was worried as his letter had been delivered by a falcon. Indigo was afraid, he'd gotten a letter written on rice parchment backed with deep blue silk, in Sanskrit telling him to come here, at this time, and to get his minions along.
He could only think of one person who would send something like that.
"Hey Ron. What's goin' on?" Neville sounded clueless.
"I'm not certain, but I think our Not-So-Merciful-Goddess is digging her claws in again," said Ron, tightening his robe around himself. "It's got that feel about it. What happened this afternoon, huh? I could since you guys, distinctly not happy. Murderous even."
"We had a little run in with a rather unpleasant man," said Harry. "But how do you know?"
"Not a damn clue. I'm hoping Indigo will have some ideas."
"I have some as to how I felt it," said Indigo quietly, not moving from the concealing shadow of the alter. "Why you did is a mystery to me. Perhaps Bosatsu will have some ideas. And since when did unpleasantness warrant being pushed out of a window Harry?"
"ACK!" went Neville and Ron simultaneously. Harry just blinked.
"I really wish you wouldn't do that," He said mildly, "How much did you get? And aren't we trying to avoid getting her attention?"
"I saw enough," replied the blond boy, stepping into the moonlight and tossing his green eyed friend the silk backed letter. "And it's seems that we have it none the less."
"Yes my ducklings," cooed the slightly maniacal voice of Kanzeon Bosatsu as she appeared in her crackle of light. "Yes you certainly do."
Ron summed it all up perfectly: "We are so screwed."
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Christmas morning at the Burrow tended to start at about 5:30am, either because the Twins went around waking everybody up, or because Mrs. Weasley made a lot of noise in the kitchen as she began the days cooking. So Ron wasn't all that surprised to be woken before 6.
But Fred, who had done the waking, was extremely surprised to find himself face down on the floor, one arm twisted up behind him and a knee in the small of his back. He responded by yelping.
Ron blinked the sleep from his eyes, and flushed slightly. "Uh… Sorry. You shouldn't have pounced on me like that. It's scary."
He let go and moved back. Fred stared at him for a second, and then grinned. "We knew it! Malfoy's been teaching you scary ass-kicking tricks!"
"WHA?! No way man, that was entirely my own invention!"
"Suuurrree it was!"
Fred ran out, laughing wildly.
Ron swore, and ran after him.
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Neville loved Christmas! Lovelovelovelove loved it! It was a fantastic time of year with food and snow and presents and food and all sorts of good things!
He zoomed into Harry's room, and jumped on the bed. "Wake up! It's Christmas!"
Harry jerked awake, looking rather like a startled cat. "Huh? Wha? Neville? Neville, it's too early to be awake."
"It's Christmas, we have presents, Get Up!"
"But…" Harry seemed quite adorably horrified. "It's 6 in the morning. That doesn't even count as morning yet! Real morning doesn't start for another hour. We can't get up yet!"
"It is Christmas." said Neville sternly; fixing Harry with a stare he'd learnt from his grandmother. "Morning comes earlier on Christmas. Now yet up! We have to eat before we can open our presents!
Harry let himself be dragged from the room, utterly perplexed.
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"INDIGO! UP! Food! Presents! Get up!" The lump in the bed that was Indigo stirred once, and then went still again. Miranda continued, undeterred. "Wake up, my dearest brother! It is Midwinter's and I wish to open my gifts!" She yanked back the coverlet, not at all surprised to find another layer of blankets underneath, Indigo loathed the cold. "Now GET UP!"
"Nrugh…" Indigo just curled up a bit tighter.
"As impressive as your shouting is Miss Miranda," chirped Jackie, entering the room with a tray n his hands, "there are easier ways. Indigo, pet, I brought coffee."
Indigo's head poked out from under the covers, and he blinked sleepily at the duo that had invaded his bedroom. "C'fee?"
"Yes, coffee," said Jackie as he grandly poured a cup. "But you have to sit up to drink it."
"D' wan' s' up."
"Well that's too bad Indigo, because you can't drink it lying down."
Indigo groaned, and obediently sat up. The coffee was, for lack of a better term, inhaled.
"It's 10 past 6." Were Indigo's first words on reaching a state of partial awareness. "I shouldn't be aware of anything for another hour, at least. What happened?"
"Shouting, coffee and coverlet stealing!" said Jackie brightly.
"It's Midwinter's," added Miranda, hugging her brother and looking at him with huge puppy dog eyes. Which were ignored.
"I was up until 1 o'clock last night with the fey," muttered Indigo darkly. "So were you." Jackie was glared at evilly. "Why are you awake?"
"Elementary my dear Watson!" said the black haired boy, an insane gleam in his eyes, "I didn't sleep!"
"Goddamn-"
"He already did!" yelled a 6 foot man with hair that exact same shade as Indigo's, sweeping into the room.
"Satan!" cooed Jackie delightedly.
"Stalker boy!" replied the man, in a similar tone.
They hugged. Indigo started swearing.
"Hiya, Grepapa!" said Miranda happily, releasing Indigo to get a hug from her great grandfather. "How have you been?"
"Everything is wonderful, you beautiful girl! And all the better for seeing you! I heard that I have a new grandbaby, tell me Indy-baby, is it true! Do I have a second great-grandson?!"
"Yes," said Indigo, giving the man a look that stated plainly that any attempt to hug him would be met with violence. "Now get out of my room, all of you."
"But Indy-baby-"
The mans eyes seemed to grow huge, even as Indigo seemed to gain a fiery aura.
"OUT OF MY ROOM YOU *&$£%#! It's too early to deal with this shit!"
"Eek!"
The trio fled, slamming the door behind them.
"My big brother is scary." stated Miranda proudly.
"I know!" said Lucifer, his violet eyes sparkling with mirth, "Isn't it just wonderful?"
Next time: Back to School and Magic Rats