Sorry this is late guys. I think I'll have to back off to an upload every two weeks. Lots of things to do, especially with my wand business I'm starting up. If I do get a chapter done in a week, then I'll upload it. But! I hope you understand and still enjoy this chapter! We are definitely more than halfway through this story, but I'm hoping it will last another four or five chapters. Granted it is shorter than Chance Untamed, but I think it's high time I get Rai and Akumu home soon.

Enjoy!

~Silverleone

Thankfully, the money I had earned working odds and ends jobs had been able to cover Akumu's stitches. Of course, the cut that extended more than half the length from her shoulder to her elbow had to be explained away by one of her own knifes. Thankfully, again, her wand sheath had a Notice-Me-Not Charm on it, meaning when she took her cloak off, the nurse and doctors looked right over it. We both had let out a quiet sigh of relief before the doctors got to work.

Now, later that same night, we were back in our apartment. Thankfully, in Umbridge's haste to get us out of Hogwarts, she didn't bother to check our bags. Which means in my free time I was still studying the more practical aspects of spell casting after reading up on the spells. Of course, I couldn't use any spells that would damage the place, so I was using the Lumos spell in rapid fire succession to improve my "rate of fire", but I had still improved over our time there.

Currently, Akumu was relaxing while I whipped up something for us to eat. The pain medicine was slowly wearing off and she was starting to get a little irritable, understandably. I stepped into the room and held out a bowl.

"Soup?" She scoffed at me.

"Is that all you can fix?" I raised an eyebrow and she ducked her head a little, holding out her hand.

"…"

"Don't apologize. You were high on drugs for the last few hours. You're probably irritable." She raised an eyebrow at my chuckle while she dug into the bowl.

"I resent that…"

"I know." I dropped into the chair across from her and sighed. After a minute or two of silence, I spoke up. "So how are you feeling?"

"Fine, of course my arm hurts…"

"As expected, you got hit with a cutting curse. It was a cut cleaner than any blade could make. We're lucky the surgeon believed it was a training accident."

"Yeah. We could have gone to a Healer. Probably would have been less complicated…?" She left the statement hanging. I pulled my glasses off and rubbed my nose.

"I know. But I needed out of the wizarding world for a while." She nodded in agreement.

"Fair enough." She shifted in her seat and dug into her pocket. "Um…I think you need to see this." She held out what looked like a necklace. I stepped over and took it. The necklace looked to be made out of two gold rings, the smaller one fitting perfectly inside the bigger one. In the middle, a flat disc held an hourglass. The glass had broken, and the sand was gone.

"What is it?" She set her food down and stood up. Walking over to the bookshelf, she pulled out a book with her good arm and handed it to me.

"Look under "Time Turner"." I raised an eyebrow but quickly looked for it. As I read over the description, my eyes widened, and I looked at her.

"Wizards can time travel?"

"Yeah."

"And they use this thing."

"Yup."

"Why'd you take it?"

"If I can't access my own magic, then there's no way I can make a portal. This is the only way back." I frowned as I read through the text again. My frown only deepened as I snapped the book shut. "What?"

"It only goes back by five hours. We've been here for weeks." When it donned on her, she grabbed the Time Turner and chucked across the room with a shout. She growled at it like it was a piece of rotten food. I placed a hand on her shoulder. "I'm sorry. I know you tried. It was broken anyways." I gave her shoulder a squeeze before replacing the book. I walked over and picked up the broken Time Turner, sighing before putting it in my pocket. "We'll find a way back Akumu."

"HOW?!" I jumped a little at the volume. I lowered my eyes a little and she folded her arms. "That's what I thought. There is no way back, is there?!"

"Akumu…"

"We've waited all this time, when the answer was there from day one! And now it's too late!"

"Akumu." I grabbed her shoulder, "I know…I know." Her mouth snapped shut and she glared at me.

"…So now what?"

"We settle down and live our lives." I thought about it for a minute. "We have two choices, really. Live in the Wizarding world, or the Muggle world."

"I'm not giving up my wand."

"Neither am I." I sighed, "But we don't have to stay here to do that, we could still get an apartment in the muggle world. At least then we're out of the Minister's grasp." She quirked an eyebrow at that.

"…You make a fair point…" After a minute she nodded, "We would fit in better in the Muggle world."

"So let's go pack."

««{{¤}}»»

Akumu slung her bag over her shoulder as she walked over to the door. I copied her and gave on final look over the apartment.

"Well, let's go start our lives." I had just started to reach for the doorknob when a knock from the other side made us jump. We traded a look before she positioned herself behind the door, ready to kick it shut at a moment's notice. I gave it a minute, then slowly cracked the door open. On the other side were three men dressed in bright red robes. "May I…Help you?"

"Mr. Rai Taiki?"

"Who's asking?"

"Aurors from the Ministry. I would ask that you come with us." I noticed the one to the right was reaching up his sleeve in my peripherals. I kept my gaze on the Auror who had spoken.

"And why, might I ask?"

"The Minister wishes to speak to you."

"Sorry, we were just leaving."

"We're going to have to insist." The one reaching for his wand said right before his arm jerked. I pulled back while letting out a short sharp whistle. Akumu kicked the door shut right as a splash of magic made the door shake.

"The window!" Akumu ran over and threw it open while I walked backwards, ready to draw my own wand if needed. She climbed out and onto the first story roof below us.

"Come on!" I spun and swung out of the window right as the door slammed open. Akumu once again cut it close as she slammed the window hard enough to make the glass rattle.

"Go!" We sprinted towards the top of the roof. Once there, I surveyed the area.

*Pop*

*Pop-Pop* I saw the three red robes trying to surround us, but they left a wide opening.

"There!" Akumu nodded and we sprinted with everything we had. Spells went flying past us, and more than once we had close calls. Our bags were slowing us down by just a hair, but thankfully the spells were a little slower. We leaped from roof to roof, trying to escape. But the wizards were proficient in their movements, and had no issue keeping up with us, popping from roof to roof as needed. I saw a chimney ahead and had an idea. "Akumu, give me a boost off!" I heard her call out in response and I kicked it into a sprint, giving myself some ground. I jumped, twisted, and planted my foot against the chimney's edge. Giving her a spilt second, I jumped again. Her arms and both of our legs coiled like springs as I reached over my back. As I jumped with the added boost, I pulled my wand out, slashing it down and across, letting out a curved slash of magic. Two of the Aurors shouted out and dove to the side. I landed just as Akumu made it to the other roof. Resheathing my wand, I spun just in time to see a spell racing for her.

"Akumu down!" She dropped onto a hip, sliding down the roof a little before rolling to a stop. I took a flying leap and landed on the same roof. The two Aurors I had aimed at popped in front of us, while the final one landed on the roof behind us.

"Surrender!"

"Why?! What does Fudge want with us?!"

"Justice! You slandered his name in front of the entire ty of magical Britain." The man scowled and took a step forward. I raised my hand, preparing a bit of my power.

"Well, sorry to burst your bubble, but we were just leaving town and have a train to catch." I threw my hand up, a single bolt of lightning jumping high into the sky. Akumu was facing away, so only the three Aurors were blinded. We disappeared before they could recover.

««{{10 Minutes Later}}»»

"Well that was fun."

"Yeah sure." I smirked at Akumu's response.

"Come on, Harry said we can always leave the alley through here." I nodded to a brick wall. I pulled out my wand and tapped the wall. Bricks rumbled and pulled back. We stepped through and I opened the door, only to put an arm out to push Akumu back. "Rats. They're in there." I whispered as I spotted the three Aurors looking around while sitting at a table.

"Can we get passed them?"

"Not without knocking over a few tables." I moved us back further when I heard footsteps coming towards us. An older man wiping his hands with a bar rag stepped around the corner right after we had straightened up.

"Ah, hello you two. Just come from the alley have you?" I nodded at him.

"Yessir. Is there a back door we can use to get out?" I asked as I noted three chairs scrapping behind him. I glanced at Akumu quietly.

"No, I'm afraid not. May I ask what's the matter lad?"

"Oh nothing, just wondering." I dropped my voice to a whisper, "Sorry if we make a mess on the way out, we'll try to minimize the damage." He raised an eyebrow, and then it clicked.

"Don't worry about it. The occasional bar fight happens. The door is straight across and a little to your left." He whispered with a wink and a smile. I smirked at him and looked at Akumu as he walked away. We nodded at each other and got ready. Not even two second later, the first Auror walked around the corner. I dropped to a crouch on my right leg, lashing out to catch the back of their knee with my left. They went down as Akumu leaped, planting a knee in another guy's chest. I rolled under a spell and chopped the final guy's arm, making him drop his wand. We booked it for the door, only to hear a spell flying at us. We split ways and spun to see a random wizard pointing his wand at us, shifting targets constantly.

"You dare attack the Aurors?" I slowly raised my hands as I got up from my knees.

"To be fair, they attacked us. It was simply self-defense."

"They have good reason for it, I'm sure." I squinted my eyes at him.

"Yes, I'm sure they do…Hn!" I snagged my wand and slashed down, a single ball of light flying at the man. He threw up a shield, which the ball harmlessly burst against. He quirked an eyebrow at the remaining wisps of the Lumos. When he looked back to the door, it was banging shut. The Aurors bustled to the door, but it stayed shut when one tugged on it.

"There's no way I'm letting you lot out that door dressed like that! Did you forget the muggles are out there?! You're lucky I don't throw you all out right now! There could have been some in here, and you're just waving your wands around!"

««{{In the Muggle World}}»»

Thankfully my wand sheath did its job, my wand on my back unnoticed even as a small portion of the handle poked out from behind my coat collar. Even with our cloak and coat, Akumu and I blended in better out here with our jeans and t-shirts. I had found a map and was searching through the local area, searching for an apartment.

"That's garbage." I looked up from my map to see Akumu staring at a poster in a shop window. Walking over, I noted it was a football tournament.

"Is that a 3 vs 3 team tourney?"

"Yeah. Why not just make it four or five teams? The roster is massive." It was true, there were 20 team slots, making about 60 people in total. Enough for 12 people for five teams.

"Huh…they've got some good money for the winners too. 1500 Euros." I let out a short whistle. "That's close to 200 thousand Yen." Akumu's eyes widened.

"Really? That's almost a month's pay."

"There abouts, yeah." We glanced at each other, the gears turning.

"We really shouldn't…"

"We could use the money to get our feet back under us…" Grins slowly grew across our faces and I ripped a stub off, leaving only two left.

««{{1 Month Later}}»»

I dropped onto the couch in our rented apartment, Akumu doing the same into an armchair.

"Oh, my lungs!" I gasped out.

"I haven't run that far, in five years." She said, trying to get enough air.

"Who thought training was a good idea?"

"YOU!"

"…Oh yeah." We both paused before laughing until our sides hurt even more. "Oh ho man…it hurts to laugh."

"Well, now that we've been practicing, we shouldn't have any problem beating those other teams."

"Don't forget, it's three v. two every game for us." I said as I got up, taking a couple of water bottles from the fridge and tossing one to her. She caught it while rolling her eyes.

"I know that. But we have something no one else does." I stutter stepped before shooting her a look.

"You better no-."

"Not magic you idiot! We are basically ninjas compared to this slow pokes. I could do that one move in my sleep." She was referring to the full backflip. It was similar to a bicycle kick, but you landed on your feet to finish the move.

"I'll admit that move looks impressive, and I'm nearly able to pull it off myself. Even still, it's not looking good for us number wise." She waved a hand at me.

"You worry too much." I shook my head with a smile.

"You're probably right."

"I know I am." I responded with a simple eye roll, nearly getting my head taken off by a pillow."

"'EY!"

««{{2 Weeks Later}}»»

"Alright Akumu, now!" I said as I sprinted down the field. She nodded, her ponytail whipping in the wind behind her. She stomped her foot, catching the ball between both heels. A jump and twist later, the ball was flying high over her head. I stopped just short of the defenders and turned around.

"Block him!" I saw the two nearest players rush me while the third stayed back. I tracked the ball, taking a few steps back. My eyes flicked to the now open area of the field. Flicking my eyes back to the ball, I pulled my arms back, catching it with my chest.

"Jason!" One bounce off the right knee and switching to plant that leg on the ground, I swung my left leg as hard as I could. The solid *whump* signified the start of the football's acceleration. The two men turned in time to see the third member of our team jump and trap the ball before punting it straight into the top right corner. The goalie was in the wrong place at the wrong time, and even his fastest movements couldn't save them from the goal. I paused when I looked at the timer and saw only two minutes left. I jogged back to our side of the field as the score board updated. Jason jogged up next to me.

"If we can stay defensive, then we win." I nodded at him.

"Agreed." I looked at Akumu, who had taken her place back near the goal. I nodded at her and she widened her stance, returning the gesture. We settled down and got ready.

At the whistle blow, the other team's front runner sprinted at me, the ball moving steadily as his feet blurred in motion. I feinted left as he moved to my right, giving him a moment of confidence. Which I promptly ripped from under his feet by rolling backwards, gaining ground on him. His eyes widened and he went to move the ball around me, but a quick low sweep had the ball up in the air. I felt my leg muscles tighten like a spring as I timed my jump. Leaping as high as I could, I headbutted the ball across the field. The second player on their team met the ball and sent it flying for all it was worth. I was on the wrong side of the field, but luckily Jason was right where he needed to be. He trapped the ball, and with neither of the two players being too close, let it settle on the ground. After a moment of scanning the field, he popped the ball into the air and sent it flying towards the other goal. The goalie blocked it without issue and wasn't exactly sure what to think of the action. Jason had nearly aimed directly for him and even if he had been aiming for a corner, there was too much distance for the ball to cover. He shrugged and drop-kicked the ball, sending it flying our way. I was intercepted by the front runner, but as he trapped the ball, I squatted down and kicked my heel between his shins, knocking the ball away. He yelped, surprised but unharmed as the ball bounced towards his teammate. I backed away, allowing Jason to engage the man. There was a tussle as the ball bounced between legs, but it broke free and I made a mad sprint for it. Kicking with all the force I could, I grunted as I sent the ball rocketing down field. I slowed to a stop as the whistle blew, signifying the end of the match. I took one last confirming look at the scoreboard before Akumu jogged up.

"We did it Akumu."

"Yeah." I turned to Jason with a smirk.

"For being a random man on the streets, you're not half bad." We nodded to each other in turn.

"You're not half bad yourself." He said, a hint of Russian in his voice, "Especially when you say this was your first tournament."

"Yeah, well, being in shape has it's perks. And thank you for joining us, if it wasn't for you, we wouldn't have made it past the second round."

"It was no problem; I was happy to join you. And I am grateful you agreed to have me on such short notice." We clapped arms, hands gripping forearms. The ref approached us and shook each of our hands, congratulating us. While splitting the money with Jason wasn't quite what I was expecting, it was welcoming to have him. The teams had only gotten better as the three day tourney went on, and by the end of it, we were nearing our skill limits. Only years of martial arts had allowed us to keep up with the more skilled footwork, our reaction times being just enough to adjust to our opponent's movements.

"I'm ready for a nap, and a day or two of not doing anything." Akumu nodded. She was finally able to rip the hair tie out, shaking her hair out. Apparently she hated having it up at all, better way to hide her identity, or something like that. Akumu's eye widened as she looked past me, her lips opening a little to mouth a 'no way'. I turned and saw someone I'd never thought I'd see again.

"Harry?!" The teenage wizard jogged up to us.

"Hey guys!" He said, a smile on his face.

««{{¤}}»»

"So, you tried to use a Time Turner?" I shook my head at Harry's question. We were currently sitting in Akumu's and I's newest apartment

"No. We read it only goes back in time by five hours. It's useless to us."

"Maybe." Hermione said as she looked over the cracked and empty hourglass.

"What do you mean by 'maybe'?"

"I've heard of other Time Turners, only a few exist. Well, existed."

"Were they destroyed?"

"More like they are stuck. In an endless loop of time. When we went to the Ministry to rescue Sirius," She paused, shooting a nervous glance at Harry for a half a second, "The Time Turners got knocked over and they got lost in an endless loop of time."

"So there isn't any left?"

"Just this one." She said, holding up it up.

"…Is there a way to modify it?" I asked. Hermione thought about it for a minute before shaking her head.

"Not even I know how to do that. Magic dealing with time is extremely sensitive and dangerous. I've never looked into it." Harry looked at her with a raised eyebrow.

"Even after our third year?"

"Professor Dumbledore had me return the one I was using, and I haven't looked into it since."

"Do you think it would be useful to have anyways?" She glanced between me and it. "Could you at least repair it?" Her eyes widened by a hint, finally getting my meaning.

"You want to keep it?!"

"What? It could turn out useful."

"We can't keep it! This belongs in the Ministry!"

"Hermione. As far as they know, all of them were destroyed. Besides, at least we might use this in the future." Harry set a hand on her shoulder.

"It did help us save Buckbeak and Sirius." Her shoulders dropped after a minute and pulled out her wand. Quietly, she waved the wand over the Time Turner sitting in her open palm.

"…Reparo." The Time Turner floated up just about an inch off her hand as her magic went to work. The glass stretched to form a seamless hourglass and just before it shut, sand poured gently from the tip of the wand to fill it up the appropriate amount. She put her wand back and hefted the necklace before looking me in the eye. "Do not use this," She paused for emphasis, "Unless absolutely necessary." She went to hand it back to me when it slipped from her hand. Akumu and I were close enough to reach out, grabbing the chain. All four of us froze as the hourglass slowly flipped twice, only to pick up speed. Akumu and I looked at each other and then the other, each of our eyes wide in horror.

"Well. This isn't good."

And that's when the world around us blurred.

File was being weird and wouldn't show up in the upload window so I had to Copy 'n Paste. So if the format is any different, blame it on anything but me. XD

~Silverleone