Yo, thank you for waiting so long for this late update! i was really busy and i had this enormous writer's block! i'm really sorry! ohh, and i am working on a Naruto fic... haven't posted it yet... it's narutocentric, kinda... i just started it!

Reviews!

momocolady: thank you!

flower123: at first i thought that this was going to be a ginny/harry fic, but it would be too awkward... thank you for reviewing, and hope you like this chapter!

Butterfle: thank you! and i passed! i was taking level 9, though it was really hard, because the test i took goes off of stuff from a different course book than the one i used...

Beth5572: well, here it is!

The Calm Before a Storm

With that agreement, the meeting ended, and the Order Members were escorted to the edge of the Hogwarts grounds, where they Apparated away. Harry and Namiko watched as they left, thinking of the mission that they had just agreed to.

Soon, only Dumbledore, the teachers, Ron, Hermione, Ginny, Draco, Harry, and Namiko were left. Dumbledore cleared his throat, which effectively brought all attention to him. "Now, I think that some leisure time is in order. You may do whatever you want until dinner, and I expect you to be at the Great Hall on time. There are certain things that I wish to discuss with you, Draco, Harry and Namiko."

They all nodded, and one by one, they left, until Harry and Namiko were the only ones with Dumbledore. "Professor," Harry began, before Dumbledore interrupted him.

"Albus will be fine. I am no longer your professor, Harry." Harry nodded.

"Albus it is, then. Well, I was wondering, could we have that clearing in the forest… um… modified for our training purposes?"

Dumbledore raised an eyebrow. "Oh? What modifications do you have in mind?"

"Well…." Harry paused, then continued, "we would like to put up some wards around the clearing, so that anything we do won't effect anyone else on Hogwarts grounds. We will also need to put up spelled dummies and targets, so that they will withstand anything that we do to them. And we will need to put and enlargement charm on them."

Dumbledore was nodding. "Yes, that is reasonable. Very well, you may have these arrangements made. Do you need any help doing these tasks?"

This time Namiko answered. "Ah, no, I think that Harry and I have sufficient skills for this. Thank you for the offer, and thank you for agreeing," she said with respect. Then she continued, "If you two don't mind, I think that I will go start on it right now, so have a good day, and I will see you at dinner."

Dumbledore looked confused as she finished. "Dinner? Will it take that long for you to set up?"

Namiko laughed gently. "Oh, no, it is really very easy to set up. It's just, I think that Harry would want some time with his friends, and I won't want to be intruding. Bye, Dumbledore-san, Harry." She gave Harry a quick kiss on the lips before bowing to Dumbledore and disappearing with a rush of cold wind.

Dumbledore looked at Harry rather oddly. "You got yourself a good one, young Harry. Make sure to keep it." And he left, leaving a gaping Harry in his wake.

Namiko walked to the clearing that she and Harry had designated as their training spot. She looked at it critically. Needs to be bigger she thought, and she raised her hands. Blue light streamed off them and surrounded the clearing as she chanted under her breath. Suddenly, the clearing grew to about 3 times its original size! Namiko nodded in satisfaction and started creating dummies.

She started by summoning a few wood clones, which she instantly started enchanting to withstand fire, water, lightning, wind, and anything else that she might shoot at it. She also made Harry's clones, considering that he probably wouldn't want to do them today. He was probably going to spend the whole day with his friends. And she didn't want to waste time tomorrow.

The spelling of the dummies was a long and arduous task, including a variety of different spells that were of difficult caliber. Harry and Namiko would need strong spells to withstand their powers.

Once that process was finished, Namiko started to create a cleared area by first burning all of the grass. Putting out the fire with a stream of cold water, she surveyed here work. She now had ten dummies, five for Harry, five for her, and a cleared area of about 60 ft. in diameter.

Now she frowned. The hard part was next. Putting up wards around the whole area. (A/N: and this area is HUGE). She sighed, and walked to the middle of the clearing, where she sat down cross-legged. She closed her eyes and began to focus her pale blue power into a thick shield that spanned the whole area of the clearing.

She worked for many hours, skipping dinner. The wards slowly solidified into a substantial barrier to successfully block any attacks aimed at it. Yet Namiko continued to work, pushing the barrier into the ground to block any earthquakes, and thickening it even more.

Night fell and the surrounding area grew dark, but the area inside of the clearing was still bright, lighted by the sheet of power that glowed as it was being formed. By now Namiko was sweating profusely and the barrier was about 6 inches thick. A pounding suddenly interrupted her work.

Namiko slowly opened her eyes and looked up. Harry was standing there, pounding on the barrier with his fist, making it shake and tremor. Namiko stared at him, as he yelled, in a muffled tone, "Namiko, you forgot to program it so that it let's humans in!"

At first she didn't comprehend what he was saying. Then her eyes widened, and she smiled tiredly. "Gomen, gomen!" she yelled back as she once again was surrounded by her power, though it was substantially less than when she began. In fact, it was almost gone.

The barrier suddenly glowed a brilliant green, then to all senses seemingly disappeared. Harry walked in then. Namiko smiled sheepishly, and said, "Gomen, I guess I was going to do that at the end."

Harry looked at her with an amused smirk. "What were you trying to do, keep an elephant out?" Namiko mock glared at Harry and looked away, crossing her arms in front of her chest and pouting.

Harry laughed and hugged her, setting his chin on top of her head. "So, were you?" he asked after a pause. Namiko slapped his arm.

"Of course not!" she said indignantly. "Would I do that?"

Harry looked at her slyly. "One can never tell what you would do next, Na-" he stopped talking as he saw Namiko's darkening face.

"Harry Potter…" she said dangerously as she brandished the sheath of her blue blade at him. "I'm going to give you a three second head start."

The next day Namiko woke just as the sun rose. Dumbledore had arranged for Harry to sleep in his old bed, considering that it was summer, and no one was here. Namiko was sleeping in the girl's dormitory. Apparently, Hermione and Ginny decided that they wanted to keep her company because they're sleeping there too.

Namiko stood up and stretched, rubbing the sleep from her eyes. She yawned as she picked up her clothes and went into her bathroom to dress. She would take a shower after training.

She got out and looked at Hermione's and Ginny's sleeping forms. Sighing, she went down the stairs into the Gryffindor Common Room. Exiting through the portrait of the Fat Lady, she quietly padded down to the first floor, and out of the castle. She reached the clearing in the Forbidden Forest and immediately started running laps around the edge of the clearing.

As she finished her 25th, and final, lap, she heard a soft chuckle. "Only you, Namiko, would get up at the very crack of dawn and train." Namiko looked up to see Harry stepping into the clearing wearing faded jeans and a t-shirt. She smiled.

Harry started to run his laps around the field as Namiko took out her twin swords and started going through her kata. (A/N: yes, I know that she was using one katana, or a Japanese long sword, in the battle, but I recently decided that twin short swords, or kodachis, would be better.)

Harry finished his laps and jogged to her. He was slightly out of breath. Taking out his single emerald katana, he said, "Are you warmed up?" Namiko nodded. "Well then, would you care to spar?" Namiko's mouth curled into a wicked grin then, and she got into a ready position. And the battle started.

The battle raged on and on, but in the end, Namiko still would not be denied. She casually flicked her wrist, and the katana in Harry's hands slipped out of his grip and flew to him. "Hey!" he called out, "no magic! This was a swords duel!" Namiko smirked.

"In a real battle, one must learn to use all of their resources and powers to win," she said sagely, and flickered to him, with her blade pressed against his throat. "Dead," she announced, before sheathing her swords and helping him up. Harry grinned as he took his sword and sheathed it.

"Well," Namiko said airily, "now that we have that out of our system, why don't we start practicing our… marksmanship."

Harry agreed, and they started lobbing all sorts of powerful elemental attacks at the targets, which miraculously were still standing when they were done.

Namiko wiped off some sweat from her brow, before turning to Harry. "Well, now that we've finished our morning training, how about we go get some breakfast?" Harry agreed wholeheartedly, and they walked to the Great Hall of Hogwarts.

Upon entering the hall, they saw that the only person there was Dumbledore, who was just striding into the Hall.

"Oh, good morning, Harry, Namiko," he said cheerfully, nodding to them. Namiko bowed and said, "Good morning, Dumbledore-san. I hope that you are doing well?"

Dumbledore nodded. "As a matter of fact, I have just been thinking about your ability to control Blood." Namiko's expression grew wary. "And, I have been wondering, if you could heal a person with the power of blood, why could you not also harm someone?"

Namiko looked confused. "No reason, I just never thought about it before, as I have my other elements for hurting and killing." Dumbledore nodded.

"Yes, I believe you do, but using Blood for battle, and not just for healing would be very useful. Think about it." Now Dumbledore turned to Harry. "Harry, I think that you will find that a certain redheaded mother has been very worried about you. You might want to go see her." Harry shrugged.

"She has nothing to be worried about. I am more than capable of taking care of myself." (Harry)

Dumbledore sighed. "Well, now I can honestly say that I tried to get you to visit her. Though you will visit her sometime, yes?" Harry hesitated, then nodded slightly. "Good. Now time for breakfast!"

Namiko shook her head helplessly at Dumbledore's carefree statement. No matter how old he is, he is still the same old Dumbledore-san I knew when I was a kid.

About thirty minutes later, Ron, Hermione, Draco, and Ginny came in. Harry was surprised. It was only 8 o'clock. The Ron he knew before would never have waken up so early. And the suspicious thing was that he was looking alert and refreshed, not groggy like he did every morning when he was in school. I guess things really have changed a lot in my absence he thought.

After a hearty breakfast of bacon and scrambled eggs, the six friends went outside, to the Quidditch pitch. As they walked there, they made small talk, commenting about the weather, and how everyone looked today. More than a few compliments headed towards Namiko, which she just brushed away by laughing and saying, "You are too kind."

However, when they reached the Quidditch pitch, the talk turned to serious matters. They talked of the war, and how the Light was faring. Of the most likely outcome that their little adventure to Malfoy Manor. And finally, there plans for said adventure.

Ron immediately took charge. "Now, the Malfoy Manor is huge. It has at least three floors, and many different bedrooms, kitchens, that sort of thing. What we need to be sure of is to not get lost in that horrible labyrinth, and to successfully make it to our designated location, which is at this point, the basement. Dumbledore and the Order have concluded that Malfoy would be hiding his fellow Death Eaters there, as he would not want any suspicious activity going on aboveground." Ron spoke with a confident voice, confirming that he had done this many of times.

They discussed a plan of action, what to do when they were in the Manor, what to avoid, and what to take from the Manor for later inspection. They discussed who would do what, based on their strong and weak points. They discussed where they should go, and what they should do once they were in it, with the aid of a large, spread out map of Malfoy Manor that Draco had provided them with.

Then a nagging question came to Harry's mind. "Why are you four going over this with us, but not the rest of the Order? I mean, don't they have people who are the head strategists?" Hermione, Ginny, and Draco looked at Harry with blank faces, while Ron said quietly,

"I am the head strategist for the Order. Ginny is most often used for infiltrating bases, as she is very quiet on her feet, and quite petite. Hermione is our equipment head, making all the spelled contraptions that protect and help us, though she is a strong fighter as well."

"And Draco?" Namiko asked quietly.

Ron turned to her. "Draco is second in command, next to only Dumbledore himself. He is a quick thinker and a powerful wizard. He is a good leader."

The news shocked Harry. For Ron to compliment him, either they had become very good friends, or Draco was really, really good. Or both.

Ron looked at them gravely as his sister, his girlfriend, and his one-time rival nodded. There was and uncomfortable silence, which was broken by Ron's grave statement as he finished recording the planning, so that he could give it to Dumbledore.

"We attack tonight."