AN Get out your fluff hats everyone! And watch out, because there is some minor fluff coming your way. That, and I have a game for you. It's called, "who can guess what anime Darkness was discribing". Cookies for whoever gets it right! And, before I forget, somebody asked me if I had a mailing list. Sorry to say, but no, I don't. I'm just a very poor writer who only archives at ff.net. *sniffle* I'm so deprived!
And speaking of cookies... all the other writers seem to be getting them except me! I love cookies! *hint hint* Just so you know.
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Chapter 6
"So let me get this straight," Duo said loudly, staring at the television screen. "This kid got hit by a car and died, then he met some girl who flies around on a boat oar. Now he's alive again and has this special power called Spirit Energy? Not only that but he was hired by this toddler who's really, like, a thousand years old, and now he takes out bad guys?"
Wufei nodded curtly, staring with unconcealed fascination at the screen. His small kitten, named Hiei, played on the floor by his feet. "That's about it."
"And that short black-haired guy and the long haired redhead are demons who are part of the toddler's team because of some punishment? And the annoying carrot-top person used to be his rival, but now they're friends?"
Wufei nodded again, staring in interest as yet another demon died at the hands of the black haired boys sword. "It's called Anime," Wufei said, tearing his eyes off the screen as a commercial flashed on. "A Japanese type of cartoon. The way that the black haired one moves, it's intriguing. That's what I felt like when we were running from that base back home."
Duo frowned. The Chinese boy had been running awfully fast that afternoon. He had thought he was hallucinating, because even if he'd never admit it, getting shot in the arm is not an experience that he enjoyed, and it hurt like a bitch. Finding nothing more to say, Duo stood up and stretched his arms, bending over backwards to touch his hands to the floor in a way that made most people wince.
"So, how do you think Harry and Heero ended up explaining that scar reaction thing to Draco?" He pushed himself into a handstand. Even though the event took place nearly two weeks ago, neither boy had said a word about it, and Heero's scar had somehow vanished.
"They probably told him something close to the truth, but stretched it enough to avoid him knowing too much. I'm almost positive they only told us because we were in a different time. I'm also quite sure that if needed, they could somehow make us forget, but aren't worried because we know how to defend ourselves properly." Wufei abruptly stopped talking as the television show came back on.
Duo laughed softly and righted himself before walking out of the room, shaking his head. Yes, his koi would think of something to tell Draco, and hopefully the blond wizard wouldn't hunt down the others and ask if they knew anything. He frowned suddenly, stopping behind the corner that would lead him into the entrance room of Malfoy Manor.
Someone was there.
"Hello Professor," Draco's voice said softly. "Thank you for coming on such short notice, but I'm afraid that I have a bit more paperwork to give to the ministry today. I'm sorry I can't show you around the manor more properly."
Duo peeked around the corner, frowning thoughtfully at the extremely old looking man talking to Draco.
"It's no problem at all Mr. Malfoy," the old man said, just as softly. "After I received your letter, I was most intrigued about these exchange students. The letter from their old headmaster must have gotten lost or delivered to the wrong school, and I wanted to meet them personally. I'll just have a house elf show me where they are, good luck with your paperwork."
Duo pulled himself back from the corner and retreated back down the hallway. He moved in the direction of the library, where his friends were most likely to be. Ever since their trip to Diagon Alley, Harry and Heero had been spending hours at a time teaching the pilots how to control their magic and teaching them various spells and potions. Trowa and Wufei in particular had taken a liking to the art of potions, while Duo and Quatre perfected their skills working on charms and transfiguration.
As Duo entered the library, he spotted Trowa and Quatre hunched over an extremely thick book, reading its contense quickly. Harry and Heero sat opposite of each other, staring into each others eyes, mostly likely having another one of their mental conversations.
"Hey guys," he said loudly, disturbing the peaceful silence. "It seems we have company. Some guy who really wants to meet us."
All four boys looked at him, hardened masks slipping down over their features as a natural instinct.
"What did he look like?" Harry asked finally, standing up.
Duo flashed a smile at his second boyfriend, loving Heero's expression on Harry's features, and vise versa. The long haired boy had spent a lot of time with the dark haired wizard, wanting to know more about the life he had had, getting to know the side of Heero he had been denied for so long. Harry's story had been even more fascinating with the bits Harry told him, even more so the story about the scruffy dog that always seemed to be napping. He loved how he could relate with Harry's feelings about his friends, especially the was his and Draco's relationship worked. Draco admired Harry, Harry loved Duo, Harry was willing to spend enough time with Draco as to not be kicked out of his house. He was even trying to change that relationship into simple friendship.
With everything he loved about Heero, and things he could relate to in Harry, Duo had almost instantly fallen in love again.
Drawing himself from his thoughts, Duo sensed a presence behind himself, hidden behind the door and switched flawlessly into Japanese. "^Old, long beard. Apparently blondie sent him a letter about us.^"
"^The headmaster?^" Heero said softly. "^But why would he be here? Draco had paperwork to do today, and the only other people here are us... but why would we matter right now?^"
"Well obviously the letter from your old headmaster didn't reach him, so he came to meet you in person." Harry said, smiling at someone behind Duo. "Hello professor."
The old man stepped into the room and nodded at Harry. "Hello Harry, might you want to introduce me to your friends?"
===
Albus Dumbledore loved puzzles. He could find them in nearly any situations, which is why he was extremely talented at solving them. Tom Riddle had posed as an interesting and complex puzzle, as had many of his other students. But the most complex by far was without a doubt, Harry Potter. There was just something about the boy that seemed to be missing.
Harry had grown up in a house hold of nearly abusive relatives and survived without a mental scratch. Most people would be somewhat tramatized after spending ten years of the most influential part of their lives half starved and closed in a tiny cupboard. Of course Albus had known about Harry's horrible upbringing. He had regretted his decision before even appearing on Privet Drive all those years ago, but it was a decision that had in some ways, protected the child from what would be in store for him ten years later.
But when Harry had arrived at Hogwarts, there hadn't been a single scrap of anger or resentment in his being. No jealousy, not misgivings, just the most pure and honest emotions that could be found in a child. He hadn't isolated himself, as Albus had expected, or distanced himself from the people, he had settled right in as though he belonged there.
And now, the puzzle that was Harry Potter just became more complex. Draco Malfoy had written to him, telling him that five boys had appeared from Japan, and one looked almost exactly like Harry. Not only that, but Harry spoke Japanese fluently, and had close ties with each of the boys. He had to investigate further, and he most definitely had to solve this puzzle.
===
Harry fearlessly gazed back at his headmaster, smiling a bit as he noticed the calculating look in the constantly twinkling eyes. He then smiled and nodded in response to the headmasters question, walking towards where the four boys were now standing. "Of course, Headmaster." The dark haired boy nodded first at Quatre and Trowa, introducing them with wide smiles. He moved on to Duo, and lastly Heero. "I'm afraid that Wufei isn't with us at the moment," he said, almost lazily.
"I'll get him!" the boy clad purely in black grinned. "He was watching some cartoon thing." He frowned suddenly, placing a finger to his chin in a thoughtful manner, though the playful gleam never left his eyes. "Him and Hiei. I still can't believe he named that stupid cat Hiei."
Heero rolled his eyes. "Why don't you get Wufei now, koi," he said softly. "I'm sure the professor would like to meet him."
Duo stuck his tongue out at Heero, darted forward and pecked him on the cheek before running out of the room laughing like a hyena. And Heero turned back to the man who had been influencing his life since before he could walk and talk, not that the man knew that little detail.
"I suppose you wanted to test us to see what year we'll qualify for." He said grimly, not wanting to be tested by this cooky old man just yet, again but knowing he didn't have a choice.
Dumbledore blinked at him, for the first time noticing the resemblance between this Japanese stranger and the Boy Who Lived. "Of course, I would have brought along the other professors as well, but most of them are away for the duration of the vacation." He smiled winningly at the boy, who's expression didn't change in the least. "So, I'll have to test you five myself."
The honest truth was that Albus wasn't really going to test the boys, he just wanted to meet them, try and place them into the unfinished puzzle that was Harry. But by testing them, he would beat two bludgers with one bat, so to speak. He would get a good glimpse of their abilities, and he might be able to pick out the technique of where they learned it, therefore giving him a school to write to about them.
He nodded in the general direction of the plush chairs. But before anybody moved, Duo reappeared with a grumpy looking Chinese boy in pristine white silk clothing that was completely opposite of Duo's heavier looking black. Albus noticed a tiny black puff of kitten sporting a white starburst on its forehead and glowing red eyes sitting on the boys shoulder and decided that it must be the Hiei Duo had been talking about.
"This is Chang Wufei," Harry pipped up from his seat next to Quatre. "Wufei, this is Professor Dumbledore, he wants to test you all for placement at Hogwarts."
Wufei nodded at the old man, sitting down comfortably in a chair next to Trowa.
Dumbledore smiled. "Well, why not do one at a time, so I can judge you all separately, and not based on each other's talents... Mr. Barton, would you please..."
Trowa stood up, pulling his wand from his left sleeve. Hidden under the fabric of his blue shirt was a sort of wand-holster he had picked up from Diagon Alley. He wasn't the only one, he knew, Duo had managed to get his hands on various items that couldn't be found back home. Quatre and Wufei had picked up some strange items as well, quills and bottles of ink. Parchment and wax seals, it was almost as though they were living in the eighteenth century. Heero had simply grunted and cast a glance at his lap-top, wondering if it would be usable at Hogwarts, or if he needed to charm it to operate.
"Now, Mr. Barton, why don't you change that table into a feather and levitate it for me."
Trowa lifted his visible eyebrow but did as the man said. It had been a little difficult for him to master the use of a wand, in comparison to wandless magic. But after practicing for about two weeks, he could do what the headmaster asked as simply at doing a double back handspring while on the tight-rope. In other words, the table changed into a feather so fast that Dumbledore blinked in surprise. After about a dozen more tests and questions, Trowa sat down and Wufei stood up, pulling his wand from his back pocket, next to where he kept his gun.
"Mr. Chang... why don't you summon all the books on the far back corner shelf towards you and then demonstrate the proper way to conjure deserts."
Wufei sighed, lifting his wand and doing as he was asked. After all the books had stacked themselves in neat piles, Shenlong's pilot conjured a large dish of traditional Chinese sweets that were nearly impossible to find back home. He smirked and blinked some chopsticks into existence before selecting a treat and eating it slowly. Dumbledore managed to snitch a sweet from the tray, his eyes wide at the strange taste.
Duo yipped in joy and sprung for the plate, grabbing a handful and shoving them into his mouth. Wufei simply shook his head, muttered a derogatory comment in one of the few languages Duo didn't know, and continued with his test. Then it was Duo's turn.
After nearly twenty minutes of banishing objects, conjuring them again, answering questions, and laughing himself silly as Trowa and Heero were forced to dance the Tango, he sat back down to watch Quatre's test.
Quatre flew through his test with the same ease as the other pilots had. For some strange reason, they all had a natural talent with their magical gifts. Even after only two weeks of learning, practising and reading about the wizarding world they had nearly mastered the use of their wands and the new way of thinking that was involved with magic. Add their faster then normal pace of learning, and the vast size of Draco's personal library, it was almost expected for them to learn so fast. When Quatre sat down again, Heero stood up, noticing the sudden gleam in the older man's eyes.
"Mr. Yuy, would you please demonstrate the Patronus charm for me?"
Heero frowned, pulling the wand Wufei had given him when he had first regained conscienceness two weeks ago out of his shorts. Being hesitant to cast that particular charm was somewhat of an understatement. The Perfect Soldier knew that Dumbledore was fishing around with his and Harry's relationship, and he didn't want to prompt any ideas that were too close to the truth. He and Harry had decided long ago, before they had first found a way to give Heero his own body, that their secret should be kept as it was, a secret. Especially from people who would try and use them and exploit what they were. Finally, Heero sighed and braced himself, having no reason not to cast the spell.
"Expecto Patronum," he said forcefully, concentrating on the memory of finally winning the war and being free of Dr. J.
Much to his surprise, as well as the surprise of his double, the patronus that emerged from the wand was not a graceful yet powerful stag. It was a fox, or a rippling white image of one anyway. Duo gasped as it flew from the wand, swirling into existence before scanning the room and slowly padding towards Duo. It gracefully jumped into the American's lap before giving off what looked to be a yawn, resting calmly and fading away.
"^That was odd.^" Trowa said softly. "^From what I've read about that spell, it's supposed to summon the casters idea of a protector. Harry said that his was a stag, and I assumed Heero's would be one as well.^"
Duo's face slowly broke out into a grin. He jumped to his feet and flung himself at his boyfriend, whispering words in every language that he knew, trying once again to explain this huge rush of love that he felt when Heero did something amazing like that. Even if it was just a misty shadow curling up in his lap like a dog.
Heero caught the flying Duo expertly, cradling the long haired boy in his arms and stroking his hands down the long rope of hair that showed them all who Duo was. Gentle kisses rained down on Heero's lips and after a moment of embracing they both released the other so that Heero could continue with his test, which he passed with flying colors.
And with the results of the five boys, Albus became even more confused. The wand movements, pronunciations and everything else seen and spoken today was nearly one hundred percent Hogwarts teaching. And the boys were so comfortable with their magic, Albus wouldn't be surprised if they could pass their practical N.E.W.T.'s now, rather then at the end of the year.
"Well boys," he said gayly, standing up and smiling down at them. "I'm pleased to say that you all will joining Harry and Draco in seventh year. You will be receiving a letter near the end of the summer with your book list and uniform requirements..."
He was cut off by Duo's noise of disgust. "Sweater vests and slacks?" The boy asked, "do you think I can just wear my old uniform." He gestured to the clothes he was wearing, in some ways resembling a preachers outfit.
The other boys quickly agreed, saying they would feel more comfortable in their usual uniforms. In the end, Duo and Quatre managed to convince the elder man to let them have their way. Albus seemed to be at the same loss as everyone else with the arrival of two perfectly matched puppy-dog looks.
"I'll see you in September." He smiled at them, trying to avoid looking into Quatre's aqua eyes, or Duo's violet ones as to not to feel his heart wrench once more. He nodded his head at the other boys before turning to Harry. "Mr. Potter, if I could have a word with you regarding Snuffles..."
Harry nodded and stood up. "I'll see you all at dinner," he said lightly. =Keep practising and try and keep the other's occupied.= He advised Heero, while walking down the hallway with the headmaster. =Explain to them about Sirius, Duo already knows. Talk to them about apperation, or animagus. Explain how it works or something.=
Heero chuckled. =No problem.=
===
Harry returned from his talk with Dumbledore mysteriously quiet. He gave each of his friends a small smile before quietly stating that he wanted to spend some time alone and requesting that they don't bother him.
The four boys and his double didn't bother asking what was wrong. They knew from hard lives that sometimes one must solve his own problems alone. But it wasn't so much as a problem as Sirius being sent away on a scouting mission up north. He would just really miss his constantly napping Godfather
"^So, this animal changing thing,^" Duo said, twirling one of his knives through his fingers in a dangerous yet beautiful pattern. "^It allows the wizard to change into what ever animal he connects most with?^"
"^Well, more or less,^" Heero said, reaching over to snatch the knife and throw it at the target he had conjured. "^Sirius' form is a dog, and my dad's was a stag. One of the professors at Hogwarts can change into a cat. Sirius taught Harry and I how to do it last Christmas. It took hours of practice and careful training.^"
"^So, what's your form?^" Duo asked, summoning the knife back to him with a flick of his wrist.
"^Come now Duo,^" Heero lightly scolded. "^I can't tell you all my secrets, that would hardly be fair. Besides, nobody is supposed to know that Harry is an animagus, it's supposed to be a weapon for the war.^"
"^But,^" Duo pouted, turning slightly teary eyes towards his boyfriend. If anything, Duo was a master of the puppy-dog look, Heero never could cope against them. "^I want to know!^"
"^Fine,^" Heero muttered. "^Harry's form and my form are actually different. His is a type of silver fox, and mine is a gray wolf.^" He sighed, pulling out his gun and casting a silencing spell on it before firing five shots in rapid succession at the target. He replaced the safety before summoning the target towards him to see how well he aimed.
"I don't know how you are so good with any weapon you pick up." Duo grouched.
"A life time of practice," Heero said softly, an unwanted rush of memories assaulting him. His grip tightened on his gun while he tried to force the images and taunting voices away. He eventually became aware of a soft, calloused hand on his cheek.
"Hee-chan?" Duo asked softly, gazing intently into his boyfriends deep blue eyes. He then lifted his other hand and carefully brushed back the chocolate colored bangs to reveal the forehead, blemished with the now hidden lightning scar. "Are you okay?"
Heero relaxed, leaning into Duo's caress. "Hai, I'm just tired. Want to go bother the house elves for some food?"
===
Harry stared into the fire, transferring his gaze from it to the green powder held loosely in his left hand. With a sigh he tossed the powder into the flames and stepped into them, taking off his glasses for safe keeping as he did so.
"The Burrow." He said simply.
Almost immediately his world began swirling, his vision flooded with flames and fleeting glimpses of other fireplaces. After a few seconds, his spinning began to slow and he calmly stepped out of the fire into the Weasley's bright kitchen, not sure if he should be proud or amazed at his triumpth of the Floo Network. He smiled, gazing around calmly and seeing Mrs. Weasley washing some pots and pans at the sink. He spotted Fred and George outside, in the process of what looked to be target practice with gnomes.
"Hello Mrs. Weasley," he said softly, smiling slightly when she jumped. The smile faded when a pot began flying towards his head. After quickly dodging it with reflexes born for years on the Quidditch team and half a life as Heero, he smiled again.
"Harry!" Molly Weasley gasped, reaching for her wand to summon the pot back towards her. She dumped it into the sink and hurried to embrace him as she would with any of her children. "What a wonderful surprise!"
Harry smiled, hugging her back just as warmly before stepping away and ducking away from her usual hair tousle. "Is Ron in his room, or do I have to send out a search party?"
"I think he's upstairs. I told him to clean his room nearly a week ago, and he's just getting around to it now... that boy - I don't know what to do with him!"
Harry chuckled. "Thank you Mrs. Weasley," he said softly, turning around to head up the stairs. "Perhaps I could help him a little bit."
The savior of the wizarding world then started up the stairs and towards the highest bedroom, where his best friend would be. Sure enough, when Harry stepped into the almost frighteningly orange room of Ron Weasley, said boy was lying on his unmade bed reading a comic book.
"What's Martin Miggs done this time?" Harry asked, stepping over a pile of dirty laundry and flopping down on the bed.
Ron gave a surprised squeak and threw his comic book into the air. It was caught by the breeze from the open window and drifted carelessly into the outside world.
"Don't do that!" The red head complained, casting a sorrowful look at his window, he wasn't finished reading that one yet! "What are you doing here anyway?"
Harry grinned. "How would you like to spend sometime away from Fred and George's pranking ways at the Malfoy Manor with me? Some of my friends from Japan are over and I'd really like you to meet them, seeing how they're going to be attending Hogwarts this year."
Ron's expression was slightly more then confused. "How did you meet people from Japan?" He asked finally. "And mum said I couldn't go anywhere until I clean my room."
Harry rolled his eyes and tugged his friend to his feet. "Well, let's get to cleaning!"
===
Wufei cast another look around himself and smiled in satisfaction. In his opinion the plot of land Harry had shown him weeks before was looking better then it probably ever had. He had spent the last few days fixing the rotting gazebo, doing it purely by hand without the help of magic.
Well, mostly by hand anyway. But magically restoring the wood didn't count his mind.
And while he had been working, he had been able to sort through his thoughts and opinions about his new environment. And for the most part, he was pleased with it. By spending a year training to be a wizard his life could become much easier. There seemed to be spells for nearly everything as well as potions and plants with magical properties. And even if something was not attainable through a wand, Harry had been teaching him how to control wandless magic as well.
And the shear volume of books in Draco's library could keep him occupied for a life time. Ever since Wufei had been very young, his schooling had been very important to him, but it had been forced to end when he reached fourteen years or age. Because he had gotten married. Not by his own choice but by the tradition of his upbringing. Meilan Long, a girl who called herself Nataku, hadn't been his wife even a year before dying in an attack of the Alliance. One thing led to another and soon enough he had become a Gundam Pilot, met up with the most unlikely people who would become his best friends, and later became top notch Preventers.
All before the young age of sixteen.
But all that was in the past, and Wufei had long since dealt with how his life had turned out. What he needed to do now was deal with the weeds in Harry's garden.
They were getting out of control again.
With a small smile down at the black kitten lying in the grass, Wufei set to work.
===
Quatre looked around the well light hallway he was standing in. Every single inch of the area was screaming with memories, begging for his attention. With ease that came from practice, Quatre ignored the memories and focused again on his task. After Heero had explained how the apperation trick had worked, Quatre had found a book that helped perfect the skill. Which is what he was doing now.
In his minds eye he pinpointed the exact location of where he wanted to land. His aqua eyes were open but unfocused as he allowed his magic to pulse just enough to give him that final push. With a faint 'pop' he disappeared, and instants later reappeared in a completely different area.
With a triumphant smile, the blond haired boy sat down on the bed of his and Trowa's room.
"So, you've perfected it?" Trowa asked idly, looking up from his book, 'A Guide to Animagus'.
Quatre beamed at the usually stoic boy, reaching over and taking a firm hold of his hand. "Yes, I'm glad I took the time to learn, it will make traveling on missions much easier. How's the animal thing going?"
Trowa marked his place in the book with his free hand and smiled, his one visible green eye twinkling with mischief. "I might have gotten it right."
Quatre rolled his eyes, curling closer to his boyfriend. "Of course you would have," he admonished himself. "You always did have a natural bond with animals."
"I did work in the circus," Trowa pointed out. "There were animals there that needed training."
For nearly two years Trowa had lived and preformed with a traveling circus. He had used it as cover so no one would realize his Gundam pilot abilities. While on a mission he had met the blond sitting next to him and they had almost instantly clicked, neither willing to destroy the other and both surrendering. Quatre had taken an instant liking to the quiet boy, Trowa had admired the blond. They had kept in touch through the war and its aftershocks, becoming closer until they became lovers.
Something that Duo had bet would only take a few months, rather then nearly a year.
"So, what animal are you?" Quatre asked.
Trowa smiled again. "A cat."
===
Harry bounced into Heero and Duo's shared room, grinning widely. "Hey," he said loudly, tossing a pillow at the slumbering bodies. "Wake up!"
Heero's eyes snapped open and he sat up, getting out of bed and moving to stand next to his double. The barrier spell set on them tingled a bit at the close contact but otherwise kept them apart. Duo, however, remained peacefully and blissfully asleep, choosing to ignore the distraction.
"You might want to wake him," Harry grinned. "I saw Wufei on my way over, and it looked like he was plotting some sort of revenge for the blue hair last night."
Heero 'hn'ed in response, seeing Duo twitch on the bed at the mention of Wufei.
"Or," Harry said, moving over to the bed. "I'll wake him!" With that, the Boy-Who-Lived jumped on the bed, right on top of Duo's stomach and resisted the initial push. When Duo had settled back down, Harry proceeded to slowly inch his hand towards Duo's most prized possession. His hair. With the hair in hand, he slowly moved it until it was right where he wanted it, and proceeded to stuff the half undone braid into Duo's open mouth.
Duo choked and sputtered, waking up. "You!" He growled playfully, latching onto Harry's upper arms in a firm grip. "I should have known you'd do something like this!"
Harry grinned and calmly zapped Duo with a bit of his magic. Duo yelped and let go, allowing Harry to escape. "One of my friends is coming over in a bit," he called on his way out the door. "Remember that you're Japanese exchange students alright? And that you've got a translator spell to help you with English."
Heero nodded stiffly and Duo grinned. "Alright, later!"
Harry grinned and proceeded down the hall to the next door, and the room that Trowa and Quatre shared. He merely poked his head in and informed them of the soon to be arriving visitor before continuing on his way towards Wufei's room.
The poor Chinese boy was still attempting to return his hair back to its normal color. "You could try 'finite incantatium'." Harry grinned, sitting himself down on the desk.
Wufei spared him a glance and continued with his attempts.
"Oh honestly!" Harry sighed, throwing his hands up into the air. He impatiently pulled out his wand and instructed his friend to do the same. "The spell is easy enough, second year material! Just say the words, flick your wand and your hair should be back to normal."
Resisting the urge to stick out his tongue, Wufei did as he was told, though he wasn't happy about it. With ease he returned his hair to normal before leveling Harry with a glare that rivaled one of Heero's.
"And why didn't you tell me this sooner?"
Harry let loose a cheery grin, not effected at all by the glare. "Oh, you know. Seeing you with random hair colors is actually amusing. Who do you think *taught* Duo all those spells?"
And then he ran.
===
Ron stared a little harder at the group of boys sitting around the picnic blanket in Draco Malfoy's back yard. Draco had once again disappeared to fill out paperwork for the ministry, though he had talked briefly with Ron on his way out. But these boys, out of all of them, only one looked even remotely Japanese. Hell, most of them weren't even Asian looking.
"Guys," Harry said happily from his spot next to Ron. "This is my best friend, Ron Weasley." He smiled widely, pointing to each of his co-pilots. "This is Heero, Duo, Trowa, Quatre and Wufei. They're all using translator spells," Harry continued. "So don't worry if they start talking in Japanese."
Ron sat down on the blanket, eyeing the food that was laid out. Small dishes filled with rice, strange looking vegetables, meats and other odd looking things. There was an awkward silence before one of the boys started talking.
Three guess's who.
"Heh," Duo grinned, watching with maniacal glee as Ron selected a slice of meat that looked like a flowered sausage. He continued speaking right as Ron bit into it. "I didn't think you would like raw fish."
With a sputter the food came flying out of Ron's mouth and nearly hit poor Quatre in the face. Out of pure luck the blond managed to dodge, watching as the chewed remains of squid fell harmlessly into the grass. "RAW FISH?" Ron choked out.
Duo cackled.
"Actually," Heero said, bopping Duo upside the head and selecting a few pieces of the squid for himself, expertly handling them with his chopsticks. "It's squid, and it's partially cooked. The house elves just picked it up this morning." He popped the food into his mouth, eating it with a frown. Talking to Ron while in this body was going to be difficult, he would have to be extra careful as to not set something he wasn't supposed to know slip.
Ron groaned, "so this is all raw fish and stuff?"
"Baka," Wufei muttered, taking a dish of rice and pouring a little soy sauce over it. "There is rice and vegetables if you do not want the fish. However," he said, pointing at one dish. "I highly recommend that you try some of that."
Ron cast him a glance, decided he was trustworthy and reached over to pick up a dry papery sort of food, taking a large bite of it.
Duo burst out laughing once again. "Wufei, I can't believe you!" He howled, abandoning his own lunch for rolling in the grass. "You had him eat seaweed!"
Ron turned a faint shade of green.
"Guys!" Harry admonished. "Stop tormenting Ron, he's only going to be here for a few hours. And I won't see him again until the start of the term because he's going on a trip to Egypt."
"What's so great about Egypt?" Quatre asked, taking a bite of some vegetables. "I've been there lots of time with the Maganac's and I never saw anything special."
Trowa shook his head. "I read that the Pyramids and such are still standing," he said. "And that some people are allowed to venture inside and look around."
Ron nodded. "Yeah, my older brother Bill works as a curse breaker there, we're going to visit him." He didn't think twice about the 'still standing' statement.
The boys seemed fascinated with that information and instantly began grilling Ron for more details. Eventually their meal began to disappear, Duo and Wufei fighting for the last piece of flowered squid.
"I had it first," Duo protested, keeping the food in a good grip with his chopsticks.
"You ate half the plate," Wufei corrected, not letting it go, "let us have some as well!"
"I have a bigger stomach!"
"What you have is a big mouth!"
"Wu-bear!"
BAM!
Duo let out a wail as Wufei's fist made impact with his head. He dropped his chopsticks and the squid, watching with distressed eyes as Wufei ate the squid with a look of smug contentment in his eyes. The long haired American growled, getting to his feet.
"I suggest you run," he hissed, holding his hands as though holding a long stick. A dangerous looking scythe suddenly appeared in his hands and he let out a battle cry, swinging the weapon with perfect control.
Wufei stumbled to his feet and took off running, Duo chased him until they were out of sight.
Ron glanced around and frowned, none of the other boys even looked worried.
"Don't worry," Quatre smiled, looking up from his and Trowa's card game. "They do things like that all the time. They'll calm down in a while."
Ron didn't look too sure but decided he didn't even know these boys, so who was he to judge. Although, he couldn't help but flinch as Wufei ran past, not even winded with Duo's scythe nipping at his heels.
"OMEA O KOROSU!" Duo screamed, "I'll show you! That was my squid and you know it!"
"Duo, if you get sent to jail again, I'm not bailing you out!" Heero said calmly as the two boys ran past again. Harry sighed, this was going to be a long day.
=================================
AN Review and I'll update.
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And speaking of cookies... all the other writers seem to be getting them except me! I love cookies! *hint hint* Just so you know.
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Chapter 6
"So let me get this straight," Duo said loudly, staring at the television screen. "This kid got hit by a car and died, then he met some girl who flies around on a boat oar. Now he's alive again and has this special power called Spirit Energy? Not only that but he was hired by this toddler who's really, like, a thousand years old, and now he takes out bad guys?"
Wufei nodded curtly, staring with unconcealed fascination at the screen. His small kitten, named Hiei, played on the floor by his feet. "That's about it."
"And that short black-haired guy and the long haired redhead are demons who are part of the toddler's team because of some punishment? And the annoying carrot-top person used to be his rival, but now they're friends?"
Wufei nodded again, staring in interest as yet another demon died at the hands of the black haired boys sword. "It's called Anime," Wufei said, tearing his eyes off the screen as a commercial flashed on. "A Japanese type of cartoon. The way that the black haired one moves, it's intriguing. That's what I felt like when we were running from that base back home."
Duo frowned. The Chinese boy had been running awfully fast that afternoon. He had thought he was hallucinating, because even if he'd never admit it, getting shot in the arm is not an experience that he enjoyed, and it hurt like a bitch. Finding nothing more to say, Duo stood up and stretched his arms, bending over backwards to touch his hands to the floor in a way that made most people wince.
"So, how do you think Harry and Heero ended up explaining that scar reaction thing to Draco?" He pushed himself into a handstand. Even though the event took place nearly two weeks ago, neither boy had said a word about it, and Heero's scar had somehow vanished.
"They probably told him something close to the truth, but stretched it enough to avoid him knowing too much. I'm almost positive they only told us because we were in a different time. I'm also quite sure that if needed, they could somehow make us forget, but aren't worried because we know how to defend ourselves properly." Wufei abruptly stopped talking as the television show came back on.
Duo laughed softly and righted himself before walking out of the room, shaking his head. Yes, his koi would think of something to tell Draco, and hopefully the blond wizard wouldn't hunt down the others and ask if they knew anything. He frowned suddenly, stopping behind the corner that would lead him into the entrance room of Malfoy Manor.
Someone was there.
"Hello Professor," Draco's voice said softly. "Thank you for coming on such short notice, but I'm afraid that I have a bit more paperwork to give to the ministry today. I'm sorry I can't show you around the manor more properly."
Duo peeked around the corner, frowning thoughtfully at the extremely old looking man talking to Draco.
"It's no problem at all Mr. Malfoy," the old man said, just as softly. "After I received your letter, I was most intrigued about these exchange students. The letter from their old headmaster must have gotten lost or delivered to the wrong school, and I wanted to meet them personally. I'll just have a house elf show me where they are, good luck with your paperwork."
Duo pulled himself back from the corner and retreated back down the hallway. He moved in the direction of the library, where his friends were most likely to be. Ever since their trip to Diagon Alley, Harry and Heero had been spending hours at a time teaching the pilots how to control their magic and teaching them various spells and potions. Trowa and Wufei in particular had taken a liking to the art of potions, while Duo and Quatre perfected their skills working on charms and transfiguration.
As Duo entered the library, he spotted Trowa and Quatre hunched over an extremely thick book, reading its contense quickly. Harry and Heero sat opposite of each other, staring into each others eyes, mostly likely having another one of their mental conversations.
"Hey guys," he said loudly, disturbing the peaceful silence. "It seems we have company. Some guy who really wants to meet us."
All four boys looked at him, hardened masks slipping down over their features as a natural instinct.
"What did he look like?" Harry asked finally, standing up.
Duo flashed a smile at his second boyfriend, loving Heero's expression on Harry's features, and vise versa. The long haired boy had spent a lot of time with the dark haired wizard, wanting to know more about the life he had had, getting to know the side of Heero he had been denied for so long. Harry's story had been even more fascinating with the bits Harry told him, even more so the story about the scruffy dog that always seemed to be napping. He loved how he could relate with Harry's feelings about his friends, especially the was his and Draco's relationship worked. Draco admired Harry, Harry loved Duo, Harry was willing to spend enough time with Draco as to not be kicked out of his house. He was even trying to change that relationship into simple friendship.
With everything he loved about Heero, and things he could relate to in Harry, Duo had almost instantly fallen in love again.
Drawing himself from his thoughts, Duo sensed a presence behind himself, hidden behind the door and switched flawlessly into Japanese. "^Old, long beard. Apparently blondie sent him a letter about us.^"
"^The headmaster?^" Heero said softly. "^But why would he be here? Draco had paperwork to do today, and the only other people here are us... but why would we matter right now?^"
"Well obviously the letter from your old headmaster didn't reach him, so he came to meet you in person." Harry said, smiling at someone behind Duo. "Hello professor."
The old man stepped into the room and nodded at Harry. "Hello Harry, might you want to introduce me to your friends?"
===
Albus Dumbledore loved puzzles. He could find them in nearly any situations, which is why he was extremely talented at solving them. Tom Riddle had posed as an interesting and complex puzzle, as had many of his other students. But the most complex by far was without a doubt, Harry Potter. There was just something about the boy that seemed to be missing.
Harry had grown up in a house hold of nearly abusive relatives and survived without a mental scratch. Most people would be somewhat tramatized after spending ten years of the most influential part of their lives half starved and closed in a tiny cupboard. Of course Albus had known about Harry's horrible upbringing. He had regretted his decision before even appearing on Privet Drive all those years ago, but it was a decision that had in some ways, protected the child from what would be in store for him ten years later.
But when Harry had arrived at Hogwarts, there hadn't been a single scrap of anger or resentment in his being. No jealousy, not misgivings, just the most pure and honest emotions that could be found in a child. He hadn't isolated himself, as Albus had expected, or distanced himself from the people, he had settled right in as though he belonged there.
And now, the puzzle that was Harry Potter just became more complex. Draco Malfoy had written to him, telling him that five boys had appeared from Japan, and one looked almost exactly like Harry. Not only that, but Harry spoke Japanese fluently, and had close ties with each of the boys. He had to investigate further, and he most definitely had to solve this puzzle.
===
Harry fearlessly gazed back at his headmaster, smiling a bit as he noticed the calculating look in the constantly twinkling eyes. He then smiled and nodded in response to the headmasters question, walking towards where the four boys were now standing. "Of course, Headmaster." The dark haired boy nodded first at Quatre and Trowa, introducing them with wide smiles. He moved on to Duo, and lastly Heero. "I'm afraid that Wufei isn't with us at the moment," he said, almost lazily.
"I'll get him!" the boy clad purely in black grinned. "He was watching some cartoon thing." He frowned suddenly, placing a finger to his chin in a thoughtful manner, though the playful gleam never left his eyes. "Him and Hiei. I still can't believe he named that stupid cat Hiei."
Heero rolled his eyes. "Why don't you get Wufei now, koi," he said softly. "I'm sure the professor would like to meet him."
Duo stuck his tongue out at Heero, darted forward and pecked him on the cheek before running out of the room laughing like a hyena. And Heero turned back to the man who had been influencing his life since before he could walk and talk, not that the man knew that little detail.
"I suppose you wanted to test us to see what year we'll qualify for." He said grimly, not wanting to be tested by this cooky old man just yet, again but knowing he didn't have a choice.
Dumbledore blinked at him, for the first time noticing the resemblance between this Japanese stranger and the Boy Who Lived. "Of course, I would have brought along the other professors as well, but most of them are away for the duration of the vacation." He smiled winningly at the boy, who's expression didn't change in the least. "So, I'll have to test you five myself."
The honest truth was that Albus wasn't really going to test the boys, he just wanted to meet them, try and place them into the unfinished puzzle that was Harry. But by testing them, he would beat two bludgers with one bat, so to speak. He would get a good glimpse of their abilities, and he might be able to pick out the technique of where they learned it, therefore giving him a school to write to about them.
He nodded in the general direction of the plush chairs. But before anybody moved, Duo reappeared with a grumpy looking Chinese boy in pristine white silk clothing that was completely opposite of Duo's heavier looking black. Albus noticed a tiny black puff of kitten sporting a white starburst on its forehead and glowing red eyes sitting on the boys shoulder and decided that it must be the Hiei Duo had been talking about.
"This is Chang Wufei," Harry pipped up from his seat next to Quatre. "Wufei, this is Professor Dumbledore, he wants to test you all for placement at Hogwarts."
Wufei nodded at the old man, sitting down comfortably in a chair next to Trowa.
Dumbledore smiled. "Well, why not do one at a time, so I can judge you all separately, and not based on each other's talents... Mr. Barton, would you please..."
Trowa stood up, pulling his wand from his left sleeve. Hidden under the fabric of his blue shirt was a sort of wand-holster he had picked up from Diagon Alley. He wasn't the only one, he knew, Duo had managed to get his hands on various items that couldn't be found back home. Quatre and Wufei had picked up some strange items as well, quills and bottles of ink. Parchment and wax seals, it was almost as though they were living in the eighteenth century. Heero had simply grunted and cast a glance at his lap-top, wondering if it would be usable at Hogwarts, or if he needed to charm it to operate.
"Now, Mr. Barton, why don't you change that table into a feather and levitate it for me."
Trowa lifted his visible eyebrow but did as the man said. It had been a little difficult for him to master the use of a wand, in comparison to wandless magic. But after practicing for about two weeks, he could do what the headmaster asked as simply at doing a double back handspring while on the tight-rope. In other words, the table changed into a feather so fast that Dumbledore blinked in surprise. After about a dozen more tests and questions, Trowa sat down and Wufei stood up, pulling his wand from his back pocket, next to where he kept his gun.
"Mr. Chang... why don't you summon all the books on the far back corner shelf towards you and then demonstrate the proper way to conjure deserts."
Wufei sighed, lifting his wand and doing as he was asked. After all the books had stacked themselves in neat piles, Shenlong's pilot conjured a large dish of traditional Chinese sweets that were nearly impossible to find back home. He smirked and blinked some chopsticks into existence before selecting a treat and eating it slowly. Dumbledore managed to snitch a sweet from the tray, his eyes wide at the strange taste.
Duo yipped in joy and sprung for the plate, grabbing a handful and shoving them into his mouth. Wufei simply shook his head, muttered a derogatory comment in one of the few languages Duo didn't know, and continued with his test. Then it was Duo's turn.
After nearly twenty minutes of banishing objects, conjuring them again, answering questions, and laughing himself silly as Trowa and Heero were forced to dance the Tango, he sat back down to watch Quatre's test.
Quatre flew through his test with the same ease as the other pilots had. For some strange reason, they all had a natural talent with their magical gifts. Even after only two weeks of learning, practising and reading about the wizarding world they had nearly mastered the use of their wands and the new way of thinking that was involved with magic. Add their faster then normal pace of learning, and the vast size of Draco's personal library, it was almost expected for them to learn so fast. When Quatre sat down again, Heero stood up, noticing the sudden gleam in the older man's eyes.
"Mr. Yuy, would you please demonstrate the Patronus charm for me?"
Heero frowned, pulling the wand Wufei had given him when he had first regained conscienceness two weeks ago out of his shorts. Being hesitant to cast that particular charm was somewhat of an understatement. The Perfect Soldier knew that Dumbledore was fishing around with his and Harry's relationship, and he didn't want to prompt any ideas that were too close to the truth. He and Harry had decided long ago, before they had first found a way to give Heero his own body, that their secret should be kept as it was, a secret. Especially from people who would try and use them and exploit what they were. Finally, Heero sighed and braced himself, having no reason not to cast the spell.
"Expecto Patronum," he said forcefully, concentrating on the memory of finally winning the war and being free of Dr. J.
Much to his surprise, as well as the surprise of his double, the patronus that emerged from the wand was not a graceful yet powerful stag. It was a fox, or a rippling white image of one anyway. Duo gasped as it flew from the wand, swirling into existence before scanning the room and slowly padding towards Duo. It gracefully jumped into the American's lap before giving off what looked to be a yawn, resting calmly and fading away.
"^That was odd.^" Trowa said softly. "^From what I've read about that spell, it's supposed to summon the casters idea of a protector. Harry said that his was a stag, and I assumed Heero's would be one as well.^"
Duo's face slowly broke out into a grin. He jumped to his feet and flung himself at his boyfriend, whispering words in every language that he knew, trying once again to explain this huge rush of love that he felt when Heero did something amazing like that. Even if it was just a misty shadow curling up in his lap like a dog.
Heero caught the flying Duo expertly, cradling the long haired boy in his arms and stroking his hands down the long rope of hair that showed them all who Duo was. Gentle kisses rained down on Heero's lips and after a moment of embracing they both released the other so that Heero could continue with his test, which he passed with flying colors.
And with the results of the five boys, Albus became even more confused. The wand movements, pronunciations and everything else seen and spoken today was nearly one hundred percent Hogwarts teaching. And the boys were so comfortable with their magic, Albus wouldn't be surprised if they could pass their practical N.E.W.T.'s now, rather then at the end of the year.
"Well boys," he said gayly, standing up and smiling down at them. "I'm pleased to say that you all will joining Harry and Draco in seventh year. You will be receiving a letter near the end of the summer with your book list and uniform requirements..."
He was cut off by Duo's noise of disgust. "Sweater vests and slacks?" The boy asked, "do you think I can just wear my old uniform." He gestured to the clothes he was wearing, in some ways resembling a preachers outfit.
The other boys quickly agreed, saying they would feel more comfortable in their usual uniforms. In the end, Duo and Quatre managed to convince the elder man to let them have their way. Albus seemed to be at the same loss as everyone else with the arrival of two perfectly matched puppy-dog looks.
"I'll see you in September." He smiled at them, trying to avoid looking into Quatre's aqua eyes, or Duo's violet ones as to not to feel his heart wrench once more. He nodded his head at the other boys before turning to Harry. "Mr. Potter, if I could have a word with you regarding Snuffles..."
Harry nodded and stood up. "I'll see you all at dinner," he said lightly. =Keep practising and try and keep the other's occupied.= He advised Heero, while walking down the hallway with the headmaster. =Explain to them about Sirius, Duo already knows. Talk to them about apperation, or animagus. Explain how it works or something.=
Heero chuckled. =No problem.=
===
Harry returned from his talk with Dumbledore mysteriously quiet. He gave each of his friends a small smile before quietly stating that he wanted to spend some time alone and requesting that they don't bother him.
The four boys and his double didn't bother asking what was wrong. They knew from hard lives that sometimes one must solve his own problems alone. But it wasn't so much as a problem as Sirius being sent away on a scouting mission up north. He would just really miss his constantly napping Godfather
"^So, this animal changing thing,^" Duo said, twirling one of his knives through his fingers in a dangerous yet beautiful pattern. "^It allows the wizard to change into what ever animal he connects most with?^"
"^Well, more or less,^" Heero said, reaching over to snatch the knife and throw it at the target he had conjured. "^Sirius' form is a dog, and my dad's was a stag. One of the professors at Hogwarts can change into a cat. Sirius taught Harry and I how to do it last Christmas. It took hours of practice and careful training.^"
"^So, what's your form?^" Duo asked, summoning the knife back to him with a flick of his wrist.
"^Come now Duo,^" Heero lightly scolded. "^I can't tell you all my secrets, that would hardly be fair. Besides, nobody is supposed to know that Harry is an animagus, it's supposed to be a weapon for the war.^"
"^But,^" Duo pouted, turning slightly teary eyes towards his boyfriend. If anything, Duo was a master of the puppy-dog look, Heero never could cope against them. "^I want to know!^"
"^Fine,^" Heero muttered. "^Harry's form and my form are actually different. His is a type of silver fox, and mine is a gray wolf.^" He sighed, pulling out his gun and casting a silencing spell on it before firing five shots in rapid succession at the target. He replaced the safety before summoning the target towards him to see how well he aimed.
"I don't know how you are so good with any weapon you pick up." Duo grouched.
"A life time of practice," Heero said softly, an unwanted rush of memories assaulting him. His grip tightened on his gun while he tried to force the images and taunting voices away. He eventually became aware of a soft, calloused hand on his cheek.
"Hee-chan?" Duo asked softly, gazing intently into his boyfriends deep blue eyes. He then lifted his other hand and carefully brushed back the chocolate colored bangs to reveal the forehead, blemished with the now hidden lightning scar. "Are you okay?"
Heero relaxed, leaning into Duo's caress. "Hai, I'm just tired. Want to go bother the house elves for some food?"
===
Harry stared into the fire, transferring his gaze from it to the green powder held loosely in his left hand. With a sigh he tossed the powder into the flames and stepped into them, taking off his glasses for safe keeping as he did so.
"The Burrow." He said simply.
Almost immediately his world began swirling, his vision flooded with flames and fleeting glimpses of other fireplaces. After a few seconds, his spinning began to slow and he calmly stepped out of the fire into the Weasley's bright kitchen, not sure if he should be proud or amazed at his triumpth of the Floo Network. He smiled, gazing around calmly and seeing Mrs. Weasley washing some pots and pans at the sink. He spotted Fred and George outside, in the process of what looked to be target practice with gnomes.
"Hello Mrs. Weasley," he said softly, smiling slightly when she jumped. The smile faded when a pot began flying towards his head. After quickly dodging it with reflexes born for years on the Quidditch team and half a life as Heero, he smiled again.
"Harry!" Molly Weasley gasped, reaching for her wand to summon the pot back towards her. She dumped it into the sink and hurried to embrace him as she would with any of her children. "What a wonderful surprise!"
Harry smiled, hugging her back just as warmly before stepping away and ducking away from her usual hair tousle. "Is Ron in his room, or do I have to send out a search party?"
"I think he's upstairs. I told him to clean his room nearly a week ago, and he's just getting around to it now... that boy - I don't know what to do with him!"
Harry chuckled. "Thank you Mrs. Weasley," he said softly, turning around to head up the stairs. "Perhaps I could help him a little bit."
The savior of the wizarding world then started up the stairs and towards the highest bedroom, where his best friend would be. Sure enough, when Harry stepped into the almost frighteningly orange room of Ron Weasley, said boy was lying on his unmade bed reading a comic book.
"What's Martin Miggs done this time?" Harry asked, stepping over a pile of dirty laundry and flopping down on the bed.
Ron gave a surprised squeak and threw his comic book into the air. It was caught by the breeze from the open window and drifted carelessly into the outside world.
"Don't do that!" The red head complained, casting a sorrowful look at his window, he wasn't finished reading that one yet! "What are you doing here anyway?"
Harry grinned. "How would you like to spend sometime away from Fred and George's pranking ways at the Malfoy Manor with me? Some of my friends from Japan are over and I'd really like you to meet them, seeing how they're going to be attending Hogwarts this year."
Ron's expression was slightly more then confused. "How did you meet people from Japan?" He asked finally. "And mum said I couldn't go anywhere until I clean my room."
Harry rolled his eyes and tugged his friend to his feet. "Well, let's get to cleaning!"
===
Wufei cast another look around himself and smiled in satisfaction. In his opinion the plot of land Harry had shown him weeks before was looking better then it probably ever had. He had spent the last few days fixing the rotting gazebo, doing it purely by hand without the help of magic.
Well, mostly by hand anyway. But magically restoring the wood didn't count his mind.
And while he had been working, he had been able to sort through his thoughts and opinions about his new environment. And for the most part, he was pleased with it. By spending a year training to be a wizard his life could become much easier. There seemed to be spells for nearly everything as well as potions and plants with magical properties. And even if something was not attainable through a wand, Harry had been teaching him how to control wandless magic as well.
And the shear volume of books in Draco's library could keep him occupied for a life time. Ever since Wufei had been very young, his schooling had been very important to him, but it had been forced to end when he reached fourteen years or age. Because he had gotten married. Not by his own choice but by the tradition of his upbringing. Meilan Long, a girl who called herself Nataku, hadn't been his wife even a year before dying in an attack of the Alliance. One thing led to another and soon enough he had become a Gundam Pilot, met up with the most unlikely people who would become his best friends, and later became top notch Preventers.
All before the young age of sixteen.
But all that was in the past, and Wufei had long since dealt with how his life had turned out. What he needed to do now was deal with the weeds in Harry's garden.
They were getting out of control again.
With a small smile down at the black kitten lying in the grass, Wufei set to work.
===
Quatre looked around the well light hallway he was standing in. Every single inch of the area was screaming with memories, begging for his attention. With ease that came from practice, Quatre ignored the memories and focused again on his task. After Heero had explained how the apperation trick had worked, Quatre had found a book that helped perfect the skill. Which is what he was doing now.
In his minds eye he pinpointed the exact location of where he wanted to land. His aqua eyes were open but unfocused as he allowed his magic to pulse just enough to give him that final push. With a faint 'pop' he disappeared, and instants later reappeared in a completely different area.
With a triumphant smile, the blond haired boy sat down on the bed of his and Trowa's room.
"So, you've perfected it?" Trowa asked idly, looking up from his book, 'A Guide to Animagus'.
Quatre beamed at the usually stoic boy, reaching over and taking a firm hold of his hand. "Yes, I'm glad I took the time to learn, it will make traveling on missions much easier. How's the animal thing going?"
Trowa marked his place in the book with his free hand and smiled, his one visible green eye twinkling with mischief. "I might have gotten it right."
Quatre rolled his eyes, curling closer to his boyfriend. "Of course you would have," he admonished himself. "You always did have a natural bond with animals."
"I did work in the circus," Trowa pointed out. "There were animals there that needed training."
For nearly two years Trowa had lived and preformed with a traveling circus. He had used it as cover so no one would realize his Gundam pilot abilities. While on a mission he had met the blond sitting next to him and they had almost instantly clicked, neither willing to destroy the other and both surrendering. Quatre had taken an instant liking to the quiet boy, Trowa had admired the blond. They had kept in touch through the war and its aftershocks, becoming closer until they became lovers.
Something that Duo had bet would only take a few months, rather then nearly a year.
"So, what animal are you?" Quatre asked.
Trowa smiled again. "A cat."
===
Harry bounced into Heero and Duo's shared room, grinning widely. "Hey," he said loudly, tossing a pillow at the slumbering bodies. "Wake up!"
Heero's eyes snapped open and he sat up, getting out of bed and moving to stand next to his double. The barrier spell set on them tingled a bit at the close contact but otherwise kept them apart. Duo, however, remained peacefully and blissfully asleep, choosing to ignore the distraction.
"You might want to wake him," Harry grinned. "I saw Wufei on my way over, and it looked like he was plotting some sort of revenge for the blue hair last night."
Heero 'hn'ed in response, seeing Duo twitch on the bed at the mention of Wufei.
"Or," Harry said, moving over to the bed. "I'll wake him!" With that, the Boy-Who-Lived jumped on the bed, right on top of Duo's stomach and resisted the initial push. When Duo had settled back down, Harry proceeded to slowly inch his hand towards Duo's most prized possession. His hair. With the hair in hand, he slowly moved it until it was right where he wanted it, and proceeded to stuff the half undone braid into Duo's open mouth.
Duo choked and sputtered, waking up. "You!" He growled playfully, latching onto Harry's upper arms in a firm grip. "I should have known you'd do something like this!"
Harry grinned and calmly zapped Duo with a bit of his magic. Duo yelped and let go, allowing Harry to escape. "One of my friends is coming over in a bit," he called on his way out the door. "Remember that you're Japanese exchange students alright? And that you've got a translator spell to help you with English."
Heero nodded stiffly and Duo grinned. "Alright, later!"
Harry grinned and proceeded down the hall to the next door, and the room that Trowa and Quatre shared. He merely poked his head in and informed them of the soon to be arriving visitor before continuing on his way towards Wufei's room.
The poor Chinese boy was still attempting to return his hair back to its normal color. "You could try 'finite incantatium'." Harry grinned, sitting himself down on the desk.
Wufei spared him a glance and continued with his attempts.
"Oh honestly!" Harry sighed, throwing his hands up into the air. He impatiently pulled out his wand and instructed his friend to do the same. "The spell is easy enough, second year material! Just say the words, flick your wand and your hair should be back to normal."
Resisting the urge to stick out his tongue, Wufei did as he was told, though he wasn't happy about it. With ease he returned his hair to normal before leveling Harry with a glare that rivaled one of Heero's.
"And why didn't you tell me this sooner?"
Harry let loose a cheery grin, not effected at all by the glare. "Oh, you know. Seeing you with random hair colors is actually amusing. Who do you think *taught* Duo all those spells?"
And then he ran.
===
Ron stared a little harder at the group of boys sitting around the picnic blanket in Draco Malfoy's back yard. Draco had once again disappeared to fill out paperwork for the ministry, though he had talked briefly with Ron on his way out. But these boys, out of all of them, only one looked even remotely Japanese. Hell, most of them weren't even Asian looking.
"Guys," Harry said happily from his spot next to Ron. "This is my best friend, Ron Weasley." He smiled widely, pointing to each of his co-pilots. "This is Heero, Duo, Trowa, Quatre and Wufei. They're all using translator spells," Harry continued. "So don't worry if they start talking in Japanese."
Ron sat down on the blanket, eyeing the food that was laid out. Small dishes filled with rice, strange looking vegetables, meats and other odd looking things. There was an awkward silence before one of the boys started talking.
Three guess's who.
"Heh," Duo grinned, watching with maniacal glee as Ron selected a slice of meat that looked like a flowered sausage. He continued speaking right as Ron bit into it. "I didn't think you would like raw fish."
With a sputter the food came flying out of Ron's mouth and nearly hit poor Quatre in the face. Out of pure luck the blond managed to dodge, watching as the chewed remains of squid fell harmlessly into the grass. "RAW FISH?" Ron choked out.
Duo cackled.
"Actually," Heero said, bopping Duo upside the head and selecting a few pieces of the squid for himself, expertly handling them with his chopsticks. "It's squid, and it's partially cooked. The house elves just picked it up this morning." He popped the food into his mouth, eating it with a frown. Talking to Ron while in this body was going to be difficult, he would have to be extra careful as to not set something he wasn't supposed to know slip.
Ron groaned, "so this is all raw fish and stuff?"
"Baka," Wufei muttered, taking a dish of rice and pouring a little soy sauce over it. "There is rice and vegetables if you do not want the fish. However," he said, pointing at one dish. "I highly recommend that you try some of that."
Ron cast him a glance, decided he was trustworthy and reached over to pick up a dry papery sort of food, taking a large bite of it.
Duo burst out laughing once again. "Wufei, I can't believe you!" He howled, abandoning his own lunch for rolling in the grass. "You had him eat seaweed!"
Ron turned a faint shade of green.
"Guys!" Harry admonished. "Stop tormenting Ron, he's only going to be here for a few hours. And I won't see him again until the start of the term because he's going on a trip to Egypt."
"What's so great about Egypt?" Quatre asked, taking a bite of some vegetables. "I've been there lots of time with the Maganac's and I never saw anything special."
Trowa shook his head. "I read that the Pyramids and such are still standing," he said. "And that some people are allowed to venture inside and look around."
Ron nodded. "Yeah, my older brother Bill works as a curse breaker there, we're going to visit him." He didn't think twice about the 'still standing' statement.
The boys seemed fascinated with that information and instantly began grilling Ron for more details. Eventually their meal began to disappear, Duo and Wufei fighting for the last piece of flowered squid.
"I had it first," Duo protested, keeping the food in a good grip with his chopsticks.
"You ate half the plate," Wufei corrected, not letting it go, "let us have some as well!"
"I have a bigger stomach!"
"What you have is a big mouth!"
"Wu-bear!"
BAM!
Duo let out a wail as Wufei's fist made impact with his head. He dropped his chopsticks and the squid, watching with distressed eyes as Wufei ate the squid with a look of smug contentment in his eyes. The long haired American growled, getting to his feet.
"I suggest you run," he hissed, holding his hands as though holding a long stick. A dangerous looking scythe suddenly appeared in his hands and he let out a battle cry, swinging the weapon with perfect control.
Wufei stumbled to his feet and took off running, Duo chased him until they were out of sight.
Ron glanced around and frowned, none of the other boys even looked worried.
"Don't worry," Quatre smiled, looking up from his and Trowa's card game. "They do things like that all the time. They'll calm down in a while."
Ron didn't look too sure but decided he didn't even know these boys, so who was he to judge. Although, he couldn't help but flinch as Wufei ran past, not even winded with Duo's scythe nipping at his heels.
"OMEA O KOROSU!" Duo screamed, "I'll show you! That was my squid and you know it!"
"Duo, if you get sent to jail again, I'm not bailing you out!" Heero said calmly as the two boys ran past again. Harry sighed, this was going to be a long day.
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AN Review and I'll update.
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