DISCLAIMER: I don't own anything from the Naruto universe. This is a transitional chapter: sorry! I'll try to make my next update a lot faster than this one took!

Thinking (+ flashbacks, "Naruto speaking to Kurama in her mindscape," etc.)

Emphasis

Bijuu, etc. speaking

Bijuu, etc. thinking

Tsunade huffed at Sakura, sick to death that her apprentice still loved the piece of shit on her monitor. Sasuke was simply sitting, blindfolded, and bound - sealed - in his cell, but he made Tsunade sick.

No matter what her gaki thought - and after what he did to her - she absolutely loathed Uchiha Sasuke.

"Are you sure he'll do it? And not come back to - or simply try to, OH, I don't know - immediately kill us all?" Tsunade asked the pinkette, her smirk turning vicious. "Think about it, Sakura. If you yearn to be the Uchiha Clan Matriarch, I can very easily get some sperm samples for you." She glared at the girl whom she'd trusted despite her initial reservations.

Shizune, at least, had never been a fangirl. Neither had she. Neither had Naruto.

"...Or of course, you can have your fun with him while he's imprisoned instead. I really don't care."

Sakura understood her mentor's rage, she really did but that was uncalled for. "He won't turn on us," I hope. "And you go too far! I care for Sasuke-kun only as a member of Team 7."

"Right," Tsunade said blandly, not believing that for a second. Sakura had an obsession with the Uchiha, and from what Nara Shikamaru told her, it sounded like she had had one since she was 7 years old. "And we know what's left of good ol' Team 7, ne? Tell me, Sakura: what if he does find Naruto and brings her back as his bride, hm? –Or just never comes back."

"Sasuke-kun wouldn't do that." She looked to the small toad sage that was listening to all of this for his help and tried not to wilt when she saw how anxious he looked.

And from Lord Fukasaku's icy expression once the monitor had first been turned on earlier, he obviously held no love for Sasuke. Someone needs to love Sasuke-kun. Someone needs to care about him!

And Naruto! She shot a glare at her mentor. Yes, the Godaime Hokage did love Naruto but that didn't mean that she was the only one who did!

"From your own testimony, at the end of the war, 'Sasuke-kun' imprisoned all of the bijuu so that he could solely use them for their power, and intended to kill all the Kages while we were held in those…" Here, Tsunade couldn't help but furiously strike the cabinet next to her, making it explode into chunks and dust. "Pods," she finished, offering her apprentice a saccharine-sweet smile. "He put you in a genjutsu that made you believe he had killed you, in the same manner in which he once stabbed Uzumaki Karin, a LONGER-TERM teammate of his whom he DID stab in what was nearly a fatal blow. Back then, he then tried to kill you and would have, had your other missing teammates not intervened. Orochimaru reported that Sasuke killed over a thousand of his men without blinking an eye when he asked him to, in order to get stronger so that he could kill his brother, Itachi."

Sakura kept her head down but boy did that last thing make her blood boil. Wasn't it interesting that Tsunade's teammate, Orochimaru, was comfortably wandering the streets of Konoha even now after all of the crimes he'd committed?

Sasuke-kun had helped end the war, too!

Tsunade sat down beside her desk, ignoring her ANBU who were trying to clean up the area and seal it off again. This had been a near-daily occurrence since the war ended. Tsunade had found herself detesting being here again and goddammit: she had no successor.

She continued. "Uchiha Itachi, it turns out, was an unbelievably loyal servant of Konoha. He protected both Naruto AND Sasuke when he was with the Akatsuki. But even after learning of this, of learning of his brother's sacrifice, Sasuke chose to enter the terrorist organization that was hunting those like his Genin teammate without any such lofty goals in mind. He only wanted power. …I don't think I can allow him to have it again, Sakura."

She wasn't really asking Sakura for her opinion. Tsunade was giving her food for thought. She might not like its bitter taste but Sakura needed to digest this. And MOVE. ON! She turned the monitor off and excused her apprentice.

Sakura stopped by the door to try to persuade her to let Sasuke help one last time before completely leaving her office, however. "Shishou, I understand what you're saying and the risks that are involved in releasing Sasuke-kun. But wouldn't they be worth it if we might be able to get Naruto and Kakashi-sensei back?"

Pa, aka Lord Fukasaku, watched the younger kunoichi leave and groaned as he turned back toward the Hokage. "I need a drink."

Tsunade slumped in her seat. If now wasn't a time for sake, she didn't know when it would be! She unlocked a credenza hidden behind her. "This will be the first time I've had a drink since the week after Naru-chan's disappearance." She poured them both large saucers of sake, knowing that she needed answers. She shut her door after having her ANBU leave. When he offered, Tsunade signaled Pa to put down yet another silencing, securing, sealing array. "Tell me about these so-called mermaids."

Pa bobbed his head. "If you'll tell me where Kakashi-chan is."

He grimaced - but appreciated - when Tsunade pulled out another much larger bottle of the good stuff.

He then began his tale. "The first time I'd heard of the merpeople in centuries was when Minato-boy told me a very interesting story when he was doing his Sage training…"

.

There had been some tremendous excitement at the Weasleys only minutes after they had dinner. Naruto stood, staring in befuddlement as letter after letter (from owl after owl) arrived for Harry - some smacking him in the head as the envelopes demanded him to read the messages within them. Weirder for her, The Dragon Weasley brother had gotten the jump on her (and nearly received a kunai to the throat for it) and stuffed her under a couch that should not have hidden her at all.

Sirius, Harry's godfather, had henged himself into a big dog and curled up under the table. (She thought it was a henge.) Remus and Tonks disappeared only moments before that: one through disappa-whatever-it-was-called and the other by grabbing a brick?

Kami, Naru needed to study the magic stuff more and stop looking at her parents' scrolls, didn't she? If I weren't so empty-headed I'd remember all of this stuff. Yet she was, she reminded herself, and that was the reason why she was forgetting what she'd learned over the last several months.

But now, she was feeling flat as a pancake and pissed off but honestly more intrigued by what was happening in the main room. It didn't take too terribly long for everything to settle down and Bill pulled her out from under the couch, good as new. "What is HAPPENING?! And that was totally uncool, man." She could've henged as something small: that would've been a lot easier.

"Sorry," Bill said genuinely although he was more concerned with what Harry had been (rather rightly) accused of: he had performed underage magic. "We're trying to keep your presence under the radar and… Shwwoo," he breathed, letting out what would've otherwise been a very foul curse.

"Blimey, mate. Can they really expel you?" Ron was asking Harry.

Bill wondered about that, too. –And he had to leave tonight. He looked to the blonde witch on his left and wondered if she - the young witch who punched Voldemort in the face and twice swept Harry to safety - would be enough to protect the boy back at Hogwarts when Harry, Hermione, and his little brother were out doing who knows what.

If Harry is able to return there. –How otherwise unthinkable. Dumbledore obviously could protect him but it seemed clear that he was being harassed by the Ministry.

The professors there are very good, he assured himself.
Ron, Ginny, and the twins will be fine.
As long as Harry is able to return there. –Otherwise, what would happen to the Wizarding World?

Hermione went into a long attempt at trying to alleviate Harry's worries while "Mrs. Weasley" (Naruto was trying to say and think these titles, etc., like they did, without the honorifics she'd always used when her rude self used them - but it was difficult) rubbed his shoulders. From their overlapping conversations, Naru heard that the government had threatened to take Harry's wand, to expel him - or HAD expelled him - but then took it back or something. Then he was told to stay put.

Naruto pulled a face. "So the government's more aggrieved that Harry used a spell that saved his life from Voldemort: one that CAN BE TRACED to Voldemort's wand, from what I understand," she said, bobbing her head toward Hermione who was the source of at least a quarter of Naru's knowledge here, "more than they are that he had to fight to save his life - or trying to save his cousin while being kidnapped - or caring that Voldemort's alive. That's the gist of it?"

Sirius nodded; back to himself now. He slightly clasped her shoulder after gesturing for her to come more into the now genjutsu-ed kitchen. He'd been trying to signal Harry but he was too involved with his friends and he needed to speak to her anyway. "Naruto, I think we'd all appreciate it if you didn't use his name. Names can have power, you see." The blonde blinked up at him with her big blue eyes several times, seeming to consider his words.

"Like, literally, you mean: names can LITERALLY have power."

"That's right."

Naruto hummed. "Nice dog henge, by the way."

Sirius barked out a laugh again. "Ah, you might be surprised. I actually become a dog in all ways aside from how I think," he said, tapping his temple with his fingertip, "although even my mentality is impacted by the change. –I'd like to think I'm still myself but sometimes I wonder."

Naruto remembered that some wizards can do that: "Animalus. Oh… I'm not sure that I'd like to become a real toad."

"Animagus," he corrected her in a whisper. "And it's a secret, isn't it?" Remus told him that she'd learned of their unregistered forms after *pshhhh* killing Wormtail and he owed her. –Although he was certainly worried for her soul and mind after doing such a thing.

"I appreciate you trusting me with that. I won't betray that trust," she promised.

"Well, I owe you after what you did for me, Naruto. And Dumbledore plans to…" Harry rushed into the room, looking terribly anxious and Sirius knew he would have to finish this discussion another time. Naruto patted his godson's back as she left the room to join the others. "Trust Dumbledore, Harry. Trust all of us to get you out of this! –You'll be back at Hogwarts in no time."

If not - together, we'll run.

.

"So, Bill-san…"

Bill paused and let out something akin to a squeak of embarrassed laughter and pulled the beautiful blonde aside. "Uh, Naruto: please don't call me Mr. Bill ESPECIALLY in front of the others. –That's a character that I'd rather not be associated with. –Not that he and Mr. Sluggo aren't funny because they are, it's just that…" It was clear that Naruto had no idea what he was talking about. He groaned. "Never mind. Just call me Bill."

"Alright. I hear you work with dragons, Bill. Tell me you don't cage them, please."

Bill's eyes widened and he gestured for her to sit down with him. "Dragons are dangerous creatures, Naruto. I… Well, I LOVE them but yes: they are caged somewhat by magic, you see."

"Is that right?" Naruto asked, crossing her arms (or trying to) while also trying to assess this Weasley more. "Where do you keep them?"

One of the few things Bill had been able to engage the foreign witch about at dinner was her plans to "free all toads from their wretched prisons" so he was NOT going to tell her. "You have to understand, Naruto, that if dragons were to roam free, their power would overwhelm the muggles and even the vast majority of those in the wizarding community. I assure you, however, that where I work, dragons are handled with the utmost of care."

"'Handled,'" she repeated, not liking the way that sounded at all.

"Dragons are magnificent and incredibly powerful, Naruto. Can you imagine someone that coveted that power? What that person might do with a dragon?"

"Like Voldemort," Naruto knew. "Sorry: I did it again, didn't I? How about if I call the Baddy-san 'The Big V?' or something like that?"

Bill looked thunderstruck - and as if he wasn't capable of saying anything else. Naruto sighed, blowing out her cheeks.

"Do you use the dragon's power for gain? –You or anyone you work with?"

"Blimey, no," Bill said emphatically. "Believe you me, they can handle themselves, and who in their right mind would want to try to but… What can I say? We can't allow the world to be decimated by free-flying dragons, Naruto. Where I work; I suppose one can say it's much like a nature preserve. Perhaps I can arrange a tour for you."

"I'd like that." Naruto had no idea what a nature preserve was.

Bill hummed. "I'd need your promise - your WORD - that you wouldn't release a dragon."

Bill kept talking, trying to convince her that he not only loved dragons but was on their side. To Naruto, the dragons did sound well cared for - or attended to - whatever. "Ever since I saw that giant dragon in the Gringotts vault, I've wanted to help her. …I've been so busy and feel like such an ass for allowing her to wallow in those conditions: caged down and shackled! She was a mess and felt so defeated." She wasn't sure if that was the right word to convey all the sorrow she sensed in that poor thing.

Bill blinked at the blonde several times, his expression becoming something akin to scowling. "Did you just say that there's a DRAGON at Gringotts Wizarding Bank? I once worked there! You can't be serious."

"You didn't know?" Naruto asked hotly. It was obvious that he didn't, so Naruto told him all about what she'd seen and felt there.

Bill was horrified yet scoffed and in the end said that he supposed he "wasn't surprised."

And that led to a long discussion about the magical races, fear, and prejudice.

Naruto found that it sounded like this world might be even more fucked up than the one she came from. At least Bill promised to take a look into the "Gringotts dragon" thing - or to take it up with his supervisors. He promised to contact her as soon as he was able.

Naru just hoped that poor old dragon could hold on that long.

Two days later, they were all back at HQ: Grimmauld Place - but to stay a while this time. Oh boy.

Naruto preferred any of the safehouses (but ESPECIALLY the Weasley's place) to Sirius' old family home, 100%.

.

Despite his haunted home, Naru liked Sirius so much that she wanted to teach him the Hiraishin, if she could only figure out how to explain the jutsu and he had the reserves for it. Sirius obviously needed a way to safely travel that wasn't via his occasional paws.

Surely he had another way, right?!

Interestingly enough, the thing that made her most wary of the man was in the ways that reminded her of herself: his clear recklessness.

"You need to be more careful. YOU need to survive, too, Sirius."

"Ha! I'm not so important, Naruto. –Or easy to kill."

"You're incredibly important to Harry. Sometimes people get lost - even losing their morality or sense of self - if those they love die or are lost to them, ya know."

Despite the Ministry being presented with the body of Peter Pettigrew to prove that Sirius hadn't murdered him a decade and a half ago, Sirius was still a wanted man with a high price on his head. Dumbledore had arranged for the Pettigrew issue (and even pictures!) to be brought to press but whoever Dumbledore's contact within the Daily Prophet had been was fired right afterward.

The Daily Prophet had begun an initially sly but emboldening campaign against the headmaster ever since that part of the truth came out.

Naruto wished that she could say that she was surprised by the government or any of the rest but once again, she remembered Itachi. Itachi, who had been ordered to kill his clan to put down a potential coup (or was fooled into doing so by Danzo,) was then ordered to infiltrate the Akatsuki. Itachi - whom the people of Konoha still vilified, just like the self-sacrificing, handsome, asshole wanted them to. Itachi, whose actions had driven his brother insane, much like Rin's death had Obito.

"Naruto?" Ginny asked, regaining the older witch's attention. "What do we do now?"

"Oh gosh - sorry! I was kind of in my own head, there." Naruto's current assignment (aside from cleaning Sirius' awful family estate, Grimmauld Place,) was teaching wandless defense, stealth, and escape techniques. She couldn't help but smirk at having half of those in the house tied up and waiting for instructions. It made sense that Sirius was the quickest out of his binds, considering he'd been in the big house. He lifted his hands and everyone still bound pounded their feet as a way of applause. "Any advice to speed up their efforts for my other kawaii students, Sirius?"

Sirius hummed, rubbing his stubbly chin in a mischievous fashion. "Bony wrists help; I strongly recommend them! Also, I would suggest…"

"OHHHH," George yelled out in pain, startling everyone. "Naruto! I think I did something to my hands! Bollocks!"

Naruto ran to his side - the opposite side - of the long table they had gathered around, hoping that she hadn't tied him up so tightly or given such terrible instructions that he wound up hurting himself but stopped in her tracks, not understanding what she was looking at. "Flowers?" Fred groaned and as she looked up at him, she saw Sirius winking obnoxiously at one of the twins while the other boys chuckled. Hermione was calling the twins names in a whisper - as she did so often - but Ginny seemed to approve if her pretty grin was anything to go by. "Your fingers look okay." She gasped when the ropes around both twins' wrists fell to the ground.

"Ta-dah," they sang.

"Yay! Great job, guys!"

George bowed and handed her the flowers - grabbing some of them away from his twin - very dramatically. "It's a testament to our wonderful, lovely, beautiful, and talented teacher," he said. Fred looked annoyed but echoed his thoughts. Naruto blushed all over herself.

Ron let his head drop on the back of the chair, sighing. "If she's such a great teacher, then why are the rest of us still tied?"

"I'm sorry, Ron-kun," Naruto exclaimed. She wasn't sure what was happening here but - ah, don't think about it, Naruto. "Okay, did you remember to tense up, fists together with your elbows against your ribs when I tied you? If you're all loosey-goosey, you might get tied a lot tighter." Remus and her still-active clone had tied Harry and Hermione up, so Naru couldn't be sure.

Ron had obviously forgotten to do that but Hermione was nodding and still tied, anyway. Naruto could see how much she wanted to raise her hand to ask a question, adorably enough. "Okay, just thrust out your arms, palms against each other… and jerk or shimmy one hand back," she exclaimed, gesturing as if she was doing the same. "You might have to repeat it a few times."

Hermione was the only one who remained stuck and boy was she embarrassed. Naruto stepped on Ron's toes when he was giving her a hard time about not being the best at something.

Seriously: she was going to have to have a word with him if he ever hoped to win her over!

"It's not your fault, Hermione. You're tied up differently," Naruto sighed. Her clone dispelled and Naruto looked at the twins, Sirius, and Harry, feeling impressed. Along with Hermione, they'd all been tied up with some serious, ninja or sailor-worthy knots! "Damn! How'd you get out of those?!"

"Stretched the rope," Fred said as he apparated closer to her, making Naru jump. "Move your hands back and forth quickly, pulling on them, and it'll stretch it, making the rope longer! Then grab it with your teeth and do the same."

Naruto smiled, gasping just a little. "I didn't see you do that!"

Fred shook his hair back. "You were looking away - and my hands and mouth are terribly talented. –OOOOF!" His mother had just smacked him.

"Fred, I can't believe you! Mind your tongue before you LOSE IT!"

.

Naruto bit her bottom lip as she lay in bed listening to Hermione tell Ginny about the Order of the Phoenix, about their earlier conversation regarding the trouble Dumbledore had gotten himself into with the Ministry, and about the "Minister of Magic's" jealous guarding of his position against Dumbledore, who supposedly never wanted the position.

Voldemort and his minions were taking advantage of the best and brightest of good witches and wizards and even civilians. Blackmailing, tricking, and jinxing those he needed or who were in his way. It makes Voldemort - Tom Riddle - sound like a ninja.

Isn't that concerning? Her clone had gotten the jump on Voldemort but would she be able to do it again?

Hermione and Ginny began discussing something about "a weapon" Voldemort was trying to get hold of and Naru could admit that it was concerning. She'd seen some things "muggles" were capable of here and it was terrifying; what could witches or wizards who were more powerful do? On the other hand, "people used to call me a weapon." Hermione and Ginny jumped, both holding their hands over their hearts, making her laugh. "Did you forget I was here? That hurts my feelings."

"Of course not! We thought you were asleep, is all," Ginny insisted.

"Sure. Suuuure ya did."

"Why in the world would anyone call you a weapon?" Ginny asked.

Naruto scratched at her cheek and turned toward them in her twin-sized bed. It was super comfy and warm even if she knew that only weeks ago the room they were in had been creepy as hell! "I kind of am one - but I think it's mostly so that people like me sound extra scary."

"People like you?" Ginny asked, not understanding. She didn't see Naruto nod in the dark. "You have eyes like a cat, you know. They are glowing and slit!"

"Eeep," Naruto squeaked, letting out her inner Hinata. Oh, Hinata: how I miss you.

"I think I know. Naruto is a human sacrifice, a jinchuuriki," Hermione told her youngest roommate.

"OI! And how the hell did you know about that?" Naruto raged, jumping in fright to the ceiling when Mrs. Weasley jerked open the door and barked at them, ordering them to go to sleep. That woman could seriously hide her chakra and just hide out! After she left, Ginny began her scary, whispering interrogation - not seeming to mind at all that Naruto was making her way down the wall in the dark so that she didn't potentially break the bed or something.

"Why are you a human sacrifice?" Ginny asked without giving Naruto a chance to respond. "I will NOT. ALLOW. You to be sacrificed to some muggle nonsense: your nearly lifeless body thrown into stakes or rocks or the sea so that others can supposedly gain power by sucking your bones of their sheer essence or whatever it is those who are hunting you want."

"What?" Naruto squeaked after several beats, not at all understanding that Ginny enjoyed (whenever she had the opportunity - which in Ginny's opinion wasn't enough) muggle horror movies and plays.

Now Naru was going to have nightmares! Mrs. Weasley made a repeat surprise performance and said that if they didn't go to sleep, she was going to sit down between them and "read them a bedtime story." Ginny and Hermione whined as if that were mortifying but Naruto thought that sounded REALLY nice! "I'd like a story, please, Mrs. Weasley!"

Ginny and Hermione wailed. "No, Naruto!"

Fortunately for Naruto, Mrs. Weasley was DELIGHTED to read her a story!

.

The next day, Naruto argued that the Noble House of Black was an excellent place to house Mundungus' stolen goods. Only those in the Order could even see the place, so that meant no "law enforcement, no foul," right?

"Whether you're of age or not, if you don't watch it, Miss Namikaze, I will stay up and read you another story," Molly seriously threatened.

"YOSH! OI, KREACHER-SAN, IT'S STORY TIME TONIGHT!" Naru knew that he was outside their room the night before, listening to the story. "Where are you, you old stinker?"

Sirius might not be nice to Kreacher, but Naruto would never leave him out - not when he seemed to be hovering around people… Almost like he wished that he could join in - and curse them, of course. Maybe he wished that he could feel like one of them. She knew what that was like.

Sadly, poor sad Kreacher seemed almost afraid of her.

She watched Sirius tell Harry about his family who had, sadly, chosen to side with Voldemort during the last war. He had a big wall showing their family tree - with some missing pieces and Naru blew out her cheeks, not getting how people could be like this.

"What are you thinking, my dear?" Mrs. Weasley asked, surprising her. "I didn't mean to make you jump!"

"I'm sorry," Naru smiled. "I've been realizing lately that people seem to forget I'm in the room sometimes. I guess that's from being a kunoichi," she added sheepishly although she knew that wasn't really it. She scratched her whiskered cheek. "I used to be so loud all of the time." So that people would just REACT and verify my mere existence. "Mrs. Weasley, how… I know that Sirius' family made bad choices but how can someone be glad their family is gone?"

She felt herself become enveloped in a warm, soft hug and froze.

Molly rubbed her hands over the girl's back, wondering just how few times the young woman had ever been hugged. Was that really possible? "No one's ever truly glad to lose a family member, Naruto. But sometimes a family causes someone so much pain that they have to reach out and build another family, one that supports them!" She pulled away and Naru awkwardly thanked her for the hug.

Naru wiped at her eyes, wondering what was wrong with her. She also, for some reason, felt terribly guilty. Mrs. Weasley's hug was just as nice as the one she'd received from her real Kaa-chan when she met her chakra imprint in her seal. "Man… Your kids are so lucky to have you."

.

"Sensei," Naru cried happily when she next saw Snape. "How are you? You look haggard."

Severus twisted his lips. Just when he was actually happy to see someone in Sirius Black's wretched family home, Naruto said something like this. "Naruto," he greeted her dryly. "What are you brewing?' Whatever was in her large cauldron was a grayish bubbling brown and smelled strange. The potion made his nose sting.

"Ah. I'm trying to make something to get rid of the trash. Like, an acidic bath for everything so the muggles remain unaware that we're here. Instead of putting trash outside or something, we can just put it in the cauldron!"

Severus rolled his eyes. "There are SPELLS for that, Naruto: something you would KNOW or REMEMBER had you studied over your break. How do you think I always rid myself of your awful orange concoctions?"

Naruto rubbed the back of her head and winced. He was right! "But don't the trash and messes you make disappear with your wand go SOMEWHERE? And don't we want to keep where we are a secret? –I mean, if a bunch of Black family stuff is found somewhere, aren't people going to wonder where it came from? Aren't they going to find us? Or at least realize that someone - or a group of people - are affiliated with Sirius?"

Severus thought she made a good point which was one reason he didn't think it was a good idea to have Mundungus Fletcher at HQ. Yes, the man was useful at times but he had such sticky fingers, Severus was sure he was "stealing" unwanted or cursed valuables from the estate. Whether he was or not, however, it could not be a good idea to make an acidic bath! He, once again, swept her nonsense away.

"Aside from potions, your OWL scores were horrible! You are fortunate that you're not officially in the system," he said with overly careful diction. Severus folded his arms over his chest and leaned against the wall. "You will retake them and the advanced exams again at the end of the year." If war doesn't break out before then…

"I've never been good on written tests," Naruto mumbled, knowing that she'd screwed up those tests. Most of the OWLS weren't written but the exams were just as bad as written tests. They really mattered in this world, too, so if Naruto wanted to stay here, she needed to get her shit together and concentrate more on wizard matters than she had been on her family's scrolls. I've been telling myself that for weeks.

Did I really just admit to myself that I'd like to stay here?
What the hell was wrong with her?!

"Naruto, when you leave The Noble House of Black, you'll have to use a disguise. We've learned that the Ministry is finally on to you."

Naruto shrugged. "I can henge whenever I'm not in my room? –But what about my friends? They'll know me. I can go back to Hogwarts, right?" She wanted to be useful so that she could complete her mission - and end this Voldemort bastard - but staying in this haunted place could be a little depressing. While there were always things to do, like Professor Dumbledore, Naru was worried about the students who were only learning how to defend themselves.

Snape only gave her a stiff nod, wondering if Dumbledore's plan for her would really work. "I think we should test that. We should know within your first weeks of returning to Hogwarts whether or not you can safely remain there, disguised."

.

Harry had suffered through awful and plainly weird nightmares the night before they were to return to Hogwarts. He woke up, bleary-eyed and still exhausted, to find Ron already mostly dressed in front of him. "Best get on it, mate. Mom's having a conniption."

He soon wandered downstairs, hoping to get some breakfast before they left. He ran into a red-haired woman that definitely wasn't a Weasley. It wasn't until she smiled that he recognized her. "Naruto! You changed your hair!" Naruto's sunny gold locks now resembled… very bright blood, actually.

"Does it look okay, you think? –Ah. I've been asking everyone but I'm sticking with it!" She grabbed some of her INCREDIBLY long hair and pulled it forward. It was striking. "This is the natural color of my mom's hair. Her clan's, in fact."

"Really?" Harry asked, absolutely fascinated with it, oddly enough. "My mother had red hair, too."

"I guess all the best moms do!"

Ron pulled a face and tried to figure out what else was going on. He snapped his fingers, suddenly looking satisfied. "You're hiding your whiskers."

"Yeah," Naru admitted. "Keep it a secret, okay?"

"Okay," Ron agreed, totally nonplussed.

She winked at Harry who was giving her an odd look and then pulled him away to whisper why she was slightly disguised. "They're worried that someone within the Ministry may know who I am - and if it's a bad guy, the word may easily get to Big Bad Daddy V."

Harry blinked at her several times before smacking his cheeks, feeling and even possibly turning slightly green. "Please never call Voldemort that again." Naruto shrugged, not necessarily agreeing.

Once at the train station - and oh, wasn't that neat - Naruto pushed her incredibly light trunk through a brick wall and sucked in a breath at seeing the train that would take her back… Home for now? That was insane but even though she'd "enjoyed" enough of the summer, Naru was looking incredibly forward to being back at Hogwarts.

She grabbed her roommates who were already together - and who screamed about how much they liked her new hair color. She asked them to keep it down and - like Ron - they didn't hesitate in the slightest. "NEVILLE!"

"Hey - I like your hair! And um… I saved you a seat!" He gestured down the corridor.

"Awesome!" Naru dragged her roommates toward him and swallowed hard when she felt Cedric's chakra on her left. She passed his cabin without saying anything. Naru knew that she'd have to make up with him somehow but just didn't have any idea of how to do it. She was afraid she'd been kind of a bitch to him before. "Luna?!"

"Hello, Naruto," she said airily. "Has Trevor returned yet? Or Raiya-chan?"

"Not yet," she admitted sadly. "Oooh, Neville, are you sure that we're not interrupting you and Luna?" She wiggled her now red eyebrows at him.

"N- no," Neville mumbled so low and quickly that it made her laugh. He looked all awkward: it was adorable but she'd better leave him to his own devices with girls. For now! "Everyone knows each other, right?"

"Harry and I haven't been properly introduced," Luna said with a dreamy smile.

"Harry Potter, Luna Lovegood," Ginny introduced the two as she tossed her trunk in an upper bin quite easily. (Naruto was impressed.) "Luna's in my year but is in Ravenclaw."

"Wit beyond measure is man's greatest treasure," Luna quoted with an odd little grin.

"Then I'm shit-ass-broke," Naru proclaimed, making them laugh. As everyone got comfy, Naruto was glad to see Harry seemed to relax with Neville. Neville liked Harry a lot and maybe the glasses-wearing kid had finally gotten his shit together so that he would value Neville more. She had a strong feeling that Harry was only with them because Hermione and Ron had to go off into some kind of official cart as prefects - not that she quite knew what that meant. She was sure it had something to do with being something similar to Rookie and Kunoichi of the Year.

For a second, Naru felt that bitterness hit her at being what was legitimately called the "Dead Last" in her world, again. It's not like anyone taught the Demon how to read: how was she supposed to catch up when she finally began learning years later than everyone else? And Rock Lee had graduated only the year before her although he couldn't do ANY ninjutsu, yet Iruka-sensei failed her because she had too much chakra to use one specific technique never used in battle.

Why does my mind so often go back to things like that?
Really, it made her feel disappointed in herself.

"You alright, Naruto?" Angelina asked.

"Ah! Yeah, sorry: just… being broody!" Her eyes went wide when a woman came along with a cart full of sweets just as Neville pulled out a weird little plant to show Harry. "Holy cow: what is this all about?!"

Sue her, but Voldemort or not - Naru loved this place.