Chapter Four: The Order of the Phoenix

The rest of the week passed without incident, and Hoshimi was actually rather bored by its end. None the less, she had managed to only lose twenty points, as though that mattered, by the week's end and stay out of any detention, though she was threatened with it several times. No, the week, despite its explosive beginning, had only one highlight: when she found out who had sent Crabbe and Goyle after her.

Hoshimi had been sitting on the steps to the entrance of Hogwarts with Parvati, Lavender, and, of course, Asayake, and they had been gossiping about this and that, thinking of what vicious rumors they should spread. Nothing that terribly interested either Hoshimi of Asayake, but having the two witches on their side was too important to blow them off for more intelligent conversation.

Finally, the conversation had come around to cute boys. Hoshimi was not sure how, and that had led to Draco Malfoy. Hoshimi leaned forward as Parvati brought it up, her interest level in the subject having risen at least twelve notches or so, not that she knew what scale she was comparing it on, but that wasn't the point.

"He's so handsome in that naughty boy sort of way," Parvati was saying with a suggestive wiggle of her eyebrows. "I always expect he'd be the type to tie you up and... do things..." Though the ending was not as creative as Hoshimi would've liked, she still shuddered at the thought. Hoshimi was positive that he would be that type, and she liked the idea of it very much. Asayake raised her eyebrows at Hoshimi and giggled softly, and Hoshimi worked very hard to keep the blood from her cheeks. Parvati and Lavender did not seem to notice however.

"I don't think he'd raise a hand to do it himself." Lavender responded, looking disgusted at the thought of Malfoy being even remotely attractive. "Rather he'd have his too goons Crabbe and Goyle do it for him." The even faintest hint of a blush was gone from Hoshimi's cheeks as she took in that blow. They were his goons? That meant...

"His goons Lavender? They do his bidding?" Lavender looked at Hoshimi in surprise. The girl had had little to say the entire conversation after all. To have her suddenly lash out with a question out of nowhere was a little odd.

"Of course didn't you... Hoshimi! Where are you going?" Hoshimi didn't say anything as she dashed back into the castle and through the entrance hall. She didn't even know where she was going. All she knew was that she wanted to get her hands on Draco and throttle him until he saw stars, and then some.

As she turned a corridor, still looking for the increasingly reclusive Draco, she was suddenly grabbed by her arm and dragged into an empty classroom. She looked up and saw the one person in the world that she had actually wanted to see. Draco's cool grey eyes looked into her dark ones with amusement, and he smirked in that smug way of his.

"Looking for me Hoshimi?" He was so damn arrogant. Hoshimi grew angry just looking at him, but she didn't. Instead she gave him a small smile and reached up to run her hand through his longish platinum-blonde hair. It was actually very soft.

"Perhaps I was? What would you do if I were?" His smirk widened, looking even more arrogant. He leaned forward, his arms tightening around her waist, and his eyes had a seductive glow.

"I was hoping you'd say that," he whispered, his mouth mere centimeters from hers. He continued his descent, and his mouth was just barely touching hers when he felt a sharp pain in his groin. He gave a sharp gasp and fell back from her, leaning against one of the desks, as he watched Hoshimi lower her knee. "What the hell?" He asked, his pained grey eyes meeting her ever cool dark ones. How could she keep her emotions so well hidden?

Hoshimi's dark eyes narrowed as she looked upon him. "So you sent Crabbe and Goyle after me? Why'd you do it Draco?! Hoping to get into my bed?" Her voice had raised a few decibels, and her eyes had narrowed, but otherwise, she looked perfectly calm, the only thing that truly betrayed her was the small shake of clenched fist. She really wanted to hit him.

"I don't know what you're talking about—"She did slap him. His head snapped to the side, and, when he turned back to her, his hand rubbing his sore cheek, he found her wand pointed at his face. The deep red wood shone in the light, and he had no doubt she would use it if he ticked her off any more.

"Don't try to fool me Draco. Did you really think that I wouldn't figure it out? I'm not some stupid girl you can play with and seduce." Hoshimi moved closer to him, her voice lowering and becoming more dangerous. "I'm the cat not the mouse Draco. Remember that."

He nodded completely speechless, and she turned away and left the room without another word. Let him steam on that awhile.

That was the only interesting event that had happened all week, and, now lying on her bed, she found it all to be rather boring. This was truly exile. Not even some random killing or something to take her mind off the utter monotony of existence here. How was she supposed to spend her time?

She glanced at her clock. It was barely eleven at night. She could never fall asleep before two, and it was a Friday! No school tomorrow. Why the hell was she in bed so early? She dragged herself up and walked out the door. She was still in her uniform, so her walking about the common room would not be a problem.

Hoshimi reached the common room and found Harry, Ron and Hermione down there, sitting in chairs about the fire, talking. They were talking at least. They stopped the moment she entered and glared at her. She ignored them and took one to the chairs on the far side of the room, leaning back in it. This was just as boring as being in her bed, but the animosity being there made it worse. She wanted peace for just awhile.

She cast a summoning charm, and her book flew down from upstairs. She gave a soft sigh as it landed in her hands, and she opened it, continuing to read. She had barely made it a page when her book was forced down, and she looked up into Harry's green eyes.

"Shouldn't you be upstairs getting high?" It seemed as though he had some kind of anger issue that he was taking out on her. She didn't much appreciate it, and she didn't have to work hard to find the coldness in her voice.

"I can be here if I want to Harry. There's no rule that says I have to be in my room. Now leave me alone Harry, or I'll make all three of your lives hell." He continued to glare at her for a moment longer before he gave an angry sigh and left her, sitting with his friends again and turning his back to her. Hoshimi watched him a moment, wondering at the boy her father had sacrificed his life to save.

He was alone in a crowd. Sure he talked to Ron and Hermione every now and then and managed to keep a smile on his face when it was needed, but he was lost. More often than not, he was looking in the fire, not paying his friends any attention. He watched the fire as though he hoped some miraculous thing would happen.

She snorted ever so softly, disgusted by this boy. So full of futile dreams and crushed hopes, he was so close to breaking. The "light" side stood no chance without this pathetic boy, and he was already failing. England was doomed.

She didn't much care though, and she returned to her book. It wouldn't much affect her if England went down in flames, so why did it matter. She would just report her findings to Great-Uncle in the morning, and maybe she could go home early. It was most certainly worth a try.

She continued to read for some time; the thoughts of England's doom eventually leaving her head for the heroine's of ancient Avalon. If only England today was like her book. She became so absorbed that she barely noticed when Professor McGonagall came in through the portrait hole and made her way over to the fire. Hoshimi set down her book and watched the teacher speak to the three in low tones before looking about the room. Her eyes landed on Hoshimi, and she gave the girl a small smile.

"Ah Hoshimi, I'm glad that you're down here. Would you please go and fetch Asayake. We have to be going." Hoshimi raised her eyebrows and got out of her chair. What was the Professor talking about? Surely she could not seriously be talking about doing something interesting. That seemed impossible at this boring school. Still she ran to do as she was told, ignoring the cries of protest that rose from the trio. Anything to get out of Gryffindor tower.

Number 12 Grimmauld Place looked just as boring, if not more boring, as Hogwarts. It was just a dark building, non-descript, and it looked as though it hadn't been painted in the last half century. Still, this was the headquarters of the Order of the Phoenix, and it was most certainly a good hiding place.

She really didn't want to go in, and one look at Asayake told her the two were on the same page. It was hard for everyone else to see, but Hoshimi could see the disgust written on Asayake's face plain as day. The girl would most certainly raise a fuss if she was forced to step inside, and Hoshimi quelled her with a stare. It was not the time. Asayake gave her a look that was clearly petulant. It was never the time. Hoshimi silently agreed.

They then were led inside, with Professor McGonagall warning them all to be silent. The trio seemed to understand why, but Hoshimi certainly didn't. The house smelled ever so softly of decaying wood, and the dark wooden hallway resembled the mouth of some beast, and Hoshimi felt herself shiver involuntarily. She wanted to go back to Hogwarts. Dammit.

They were led down the hallway and past what looked like a window; it certainly had black curtains anyway. Then they were in what looked like a kitchen, though she couldn't be sure. It was filled with people, several of them with red hair, several of them dark and shady characters, and Hoshimi felt her stomach drop out.

This was England's best defense? This rag-tag, bunch of misfits? It seemed improbable. They could not possibly win this war. Hoshimi looked over them all as a man made his way toward her. He had light brown hair, and a poet's sad eyes. He had seen much hardship; she could tell. He wore shabby clothing, and he looked as though his meals came with the kindness of people, rather than his own needs. He looked kind, and he was giving her the same look of recognition that McGonagall had given her when she had first arrived.

He reached her and wrapped his arms around her tightly, burying her face in his chest. "Hoshimi!" He whispered ecstatically, pulling back, so that he could look at her, his hands moving up and cupping her cheeks gently. "By God, I have not seen this face in fifteen years."

Hoshimi looked at him strangely, so did most other people, only a few, such as Dumbledore, McGonagall, and a man with a chunk missing from his nose and two different colored eyes looked unsurprised by the event. They were actually smiling a little, but Hoshimi was a little terrified. She backed away from him and continued to look at him strangely, until she saw his face fall. She then worked harder to smooth out her emotions.

"I am sorry, but I do not know who you are..." Not to mention she did not like being touched so personally by anyone unless they were her lover. The man gave her a sad smile and ran a hand through his grey-flecked hair. He looked very disappointed, and she felt, surprisingly guilty.

"No, I suppose you wouldn't. I knew both of your parents very well, and I was there when you were born. You look just like your mother." He looked as though he wanted to say more, but Dumbledore chose that moment to speak, as though he did not want the man to say anything else.

"Well Hoshimi-san, you have met Remus obviously." Remus, the name rung a bell of memory in her mind. She had heard it said by her mother in the past. "Now how about we have introductions all around." And he introduced her to everyone, right down to the smallest Weasley, who looked at her with disdain on their features. The other members of the family had similar expressions on their faces. News apparently traveled fast in this family. It didn't much bother her though, and she showed them all indifference. This seemed to make the rather temperamental family angrier, but that made her a little amused.

Then she met the more interesting people. Three aurors were present. The girl, Tonks, was a metamorphmagus, which Hoshimi found positively fascinating, and she talked with the girl for a few moments, inquiring on this or that. Metamorphmagi were so very rare. Dumbledore only let Hoshimi question her for a few moments though before calling everyone to the table. They all managed to crowd around that table, obviously magicked, and Hoshimi was placed in between Asayake and Remus, who looked at her as though she were someone resurrected. It was slightly unnerving.

Dumbledore then began to speak, and Hoshimi only half listened. This was nothing terribly important to her anyway, so she just watched as everyone argued point after point, topic after topic. They could not much agree on anything, how very incompatible they all were; some did not trust one another. They couldn't win.

At some points, Hoshimi and Asayake were asked their opinion, and they gave it, taking secret pleasure in the looks of anger on the trio's faces. Apparently, they were still treated like children, and it didn't sit particularly well with them. Finally, Ron got sick of it, and, unlike Asayake, there was no one to stop him.

"Why do you care about their opinion and not ours? What makes them so special? They're the same age as us! Why don't you treat them the same?" Mrs. Weasley looked suddenly very dangerous, and Hoshimi was reminded of her own mother when she had found out about school. Better him than her.

"Ronald Weasley! These girls have had their full education! They are here as representatives of the Japanese royal family, and they are mature adults! Unlike you!" Ron sank beneath the table as the painful silence came around the table. He turned bright red and stammered apologies. Hoshimi ignored him and waited for the meeting to continue.

When it became obvious that Hoshimi had no intention of accepting his apologies, the meeting continued in haste. Some of the adults were looking at her in surprise, others in disdain, and some in disappointment. They avoided speaking with her, as though she were the one who had done wrong. She was not the forgiving type, and he had been nothing but a jerk from the moment they had met. He had tried to hit her! She sighed to herself. Stupid people. If they didn't want her advice then she'd make sure they never got it.

She did not pay attention to the meeting for a long time. She retreated inside herself as arguments started and flared down only to re-ignite in a flash of fury. These people were terrible at disguising their emotions, and both girls were disgusted by it. They both ceased to care as the meeting inched and crawled through each point that was brought up; Hoshimi had nearly fallen asleep when her attention was brought back to the meeting. Her eyes snapped open, and she looked over at who had spoken. It was Harry. Her dark eyes narrowed and the entire table went silent. They expected a confrontation.

"What did you say?" Hoshimi hissed out. They were going to get a confrontation that was for certain. Harry looked equally dangerous, and Hoshimi placed her hand on her wand, ready for anything, though she highly suspected that he would be doing the same thing.

"I said that you should go back to Japan. Sirius would not have wanted your help, so why should we?" Even Harry knew he had crossed the line when Hoshimi threw back her head and laughed hysterically, like a woman possessed. It was not a joking laugh, not even mocking. It was the laugh of irony, of utter hysterically irony. She was going to kill him. He had the distinct feeling that she was seconds from cursing him beyond recognition, and he felt Hermione shift and grip her own wand, ready for anything.

"You know nothing of Sirius Black then!" She continued to laugh, no mirth in her eyes as they looked back at him. "Then again, I'm inclined to agree with you. That prideful, pathetic, uncaring bastard would never have asked me for help. He didn't give a damn about me! It was all you. Kisama!" The adults all refused to look at her, as though they knew what she spoke of and felt the shame of it. Harry didn't notice though. All he knew was that this mere slip of a girl had insulted his Godfather, who was no longer alive to defend himself. Harry would defend him. He jumped to his feet, his wand drawn and aimed at Hoshimi, though he was so angry that his hand shook.

"Take it back!" He was angrier than he could ever remember and the bland look of indifference that Hoshimi was giving him was making him even angrier. She also rose to her feet, albeit more gracefully than he had, and she met his stare squarely. She then drew her own wand and shook her head ever so slightly.

"No," she whispered softly. Her hand was also shaking. She was angry as well, and it gave Harry some satisfaction that he had gotten through that cool exterior on some level, though he had no idea how and why. They stood there in silence a few moments; all eyes were on them, and everyone knew that they had no intention of stopping. Finally the adults decided to act.

"That is quite enough now," Dumbledore said as Remus and Arthur Weasley grabbed hold of Hoshimi and Harry respectively and forced them to lower their wands. "I know both of you are under quite a significant amount of stress, but it would be appreciated if you did not take that stress out on one another."

Hoshimi nodded, but she did not sit back down. Instead, she looked over at Dumbledore. "Is there somewhere I can go to get some air?" He nodded his head knowingly, and Hoshimi lowered her eyes. She would kill all mind readers one day.

"Of course Hoshimi-san, Remus, why don't you show her up to the roof? I imagine that it's around three anyway, so we should wrap up things here. The children who cannot apparate will stay the night here, so may the ones who can if they wish." The meeting seemed to be over, and Harry was about to leave when Dumbledore noticed him. "Oh Harry, why don't you go along with Hoshimi and Remus."

It was not a question. It was a silent, gentle command, and, for a moment or two, Harry looked ready to fight it. Eventually though, he just let his shoulders fall and nodded his head. Remus frowned as he surveyed them and shook his head in dismay. Hoshimi gave the older man a small glare. She knew what he was thinking about, and it annoyed her more than Harry did. Remus seemed unbothered by it though and gave her a small grin before leading the two of them up stair after stair until they reached a small hatch in the ceiling. He pushed it open a patch of sky was revealed. He pulled down a ladder and Hoshimi climbed up followed by Harry.

It was a cloudless night, and the ambient light of the city was blocked out by the protections spells on the house. It was an amazing view therefore and Hoshimi stood on the slanted roof and took a deep breath of night air. She then sat down on the roof and looked out over the sky. Remus sat down beside her and Harry down beside him. Hoshimi didn't pay him much attention though. Instead, her eyes looked down at her watch. It was three-thirty in the morning. It should be up. She looked eastward, and her eyes caught the bright flare of a white star. It flashed and twinkled violently through the atmosphere, and Hoshimi watched it for a long time, mesmerized.

"Sirius," she murmured after a few moments and both of the men turned to look at her. Harry looked downright dangerous again. His hand went toward his wand, but Remus grabbed his wrist and held it firmly away from Harry's pocket. Remus' did not look at him though. His eyes were fixed on Hoshimi.

"What are you talking about Hoshimi?" Hoshimi rolled her eyes and pointed at the bright white star near the horizon. They followed her gaze and looked at her questioningly, making Hoshimi more annoyed. Didn't they pay attention in Astronomy?

"Sirius," She repeated, "The dog star. It's the brightest star in the sky. My mother used to point it out to me often when I was a child, when I used to ask..." She trailed off and stood up. The men looked up at her in surprise, but all they saw was her impenetrable mask. "It's getting late. I'm going to go back to Hogwarts before I'm too tired to apparate." She then disappeared back into the house, leaving Remus staring after her in sympathy, and Harry in curiosity.