AN: Well hello... Um, I would say that I had a reasonable explanation for not updating, but the thing is that I haven't got one. I must say that I am terribly sorry for this unnecessary delay.
I want to make it very clear that I am aware that it's been very long since I updated and that I feel bad about it. I'll try to publish the next chapter by Christmas. The point is that there is no need to review saying: "You took too long to update. Fuck you", and others of the sort, as I ALREADY KNOW.
As always I want to thank vendelareader and bokpricken for being amazing friends, but most importantly to SeaDevil; she's fucking awesome. I love you.
Also, I made this chapter for my birthday (today) as my gift to you, so don't go bashing on it, okay?
Disclaimer: Me no own.
Chapter three
Black holes and squiggly lines.
"A black hole has enough gravitational pull to bend even time, tocompress it so much that slows down and the closer you get to it the more it slows."
If one had to explain the strange occurrences observed by those select few who over the years were to travel across the border of the protective dome of the hidden continent, using that likeness to a black hole the dome has would be the easiest way to make it understandable. These travelers were sent to gather what knowledge the people from the outside might have gained. The first agent who was sent by the united kages ten years after the creation of the dome and was met by a curious sight. It seemed that in their absence the outsiders had progressed immensely; an almost frightening development. This agent, of course, rushed back home to report his strange findings to his leader and their allies.
The kages themselves were surprised to say the least, but thought nothing of it, as the outside and the outsiders' businesses were none of their concern. Five years later another agent was sent, this time solely by the Tsuchikage himself; not the kages united. He returned with the news that once again the people they despised so had progressed far beyond they themselves and also that much had seemed to change since the last shinobi had been sent.
As the years passed, more shinobi were sent out to explore this peculiar occurrence, and once, a kunoichi claimed to have been gone for nearly a year, but to all the people inside, she appeared to have been away for no more than a month. The explanation was simple, really, once one put some thought to it; time moved faster on the outside.
Many grew curious and amongst those who traveled on their own accord was the first Hokage's younger brother – Senju Tobirama. The young man – as he was when he traveled the most – became strangely fond of it; the world that had progressed more than one-hundred and seventy years ahead of their own. At times his trips would last for years, but as his brother died and he was named the new Hokage, his traveling ceased.
After twenty years has passed since the creation of the dome, agents reported that the outsiders had forgotten the existence of the hidden continent and that all the remaining traces were dismissed as legends. At that time the science of their neighboring land went through a revolutionary stage and the spies of the hidden continent began to bring inventions and such back with them. One of the most astounding ones had the shape of a small box, but with a flash of light, it could capture an image more accurately than any human painter could ever dream of doing. Another agent later brought a similar device which also captured movements and sound. It could replay whole conversations, but the "camera" would only show a blurry smudge instead of their high-speed movements in a fight.
But alas, despite, or maybe because of, the wonders that seemed to occur on the outside, most would not let go of their hatred for the people that lived there. It seemed to grow instead. The outsiders are vile, pathetic creatures that hated them - or so they told all their children - and you all should hate them, for they would kill you without mercy. There were those who did not believe in their parents' stories, but they were only a few.
In the sixty years that passed within the dome more than nine-hundred went by on the other side, but the people there never even seemed to care about what had happened to the warriors whom they had feared so much. There were passing notes in old legends – the kind that was written in faded books, on papers that crumbled at the touch – but those as well were only seen as mere horror stories of a time passed.
The citizens of the hidden continent cared not either way; what difference would it make? It did not matter if they were despised or forgotten; they would still be there in their homes and the outsiders would be somewhere far away in theirs. It was simple; they had their own world now, a better world, free from narrow-minded cowards. It was perfect.
Hogwarts stood as good as empty every summer, when the all the students and teachers had left. Only the ghosts and the house elves remained, but as the house elves chose to remain in the kitchen, the only ones roaming the eerily quiet corridors during the summer were the ghosts. And this warm and sunny summer, the school was bright as the world blossomed around it. When it stood this empty, this quiet, one could almost think that it was the ruin it would appear to be if anyone should come across it – anyone who wasn't supposed to, at least.
It was – as mentioned – a particularly sunny summer; heat wave after heat wave struck the country and the grass gained brown and yellow shades. This day, though, it rained and the light from the sky was so pathetically dim you would think the sun had forgotten to rise. Hogwarts was dark, empty and quiet, but it would not remain so for long; the new term would start in only a few weeks' time, and the students would return. All would go back to normal again.
One of the two great wooden doors of Hogwarts swung open and the rain gently blew in to soak the floor inside. Dumbledore stepped in with his purple robes drenched and his beard dripping with water. It was gone in an instant with a simple spell, but it had been cold nonetheless. Behind him stood the two strange warriors, paying their wet outfits no mind. They even seemed indifferent to the fact; it was quite fascinating. He briefly wondered if he should offer to dry their clothes for them, but they had been very clear on that they wanted as little involvement with magic as possible. He shrugged to himself; it didn't seem like their wet clothes bothered them anyway, so he left the issue.
They were very bewitching in a way, the shinobi; their straight posture, their strange hair and their porcelain animal masks. Cat – the captain – had short, bright blond hair sticking out in every direction while Owl's was flowing chocolate brown, tied at with a string at the end. Both of them had an air of fierce strength that sent a chill down his spine. He hoped he had made the right decision in bringing them here. He smiled at them politely.
"This is my school," He said in their language, "Welcome to Hogwarts." The warriors did not react immediately, but after a second they both turned to him and bowed deeply, still saying nothing. How fascinating, indeed, he thought as he cocked his head slightly.
Their chambers were located in a dark corner of the fourth floor, behind a painting of a young man in a tuxedo lying across a sofa with a cigar in his hand. The painting was made in a very muggle-like fashion, and Dumbledore himself had no idea of where it had come from, but he was somewhat fond of the picture. As expected, he received no comment from either Cat or Owl – there wasn't really anything to say about the room; two beds, a desk, a small fire place and large windows with a view of the great lake. Their room was password-protected so that no students would go snooping around if it were to be found and, as far Dumbledore could tell, they seemed pleased enough.
As they went down the stairs, it shook suddenly and started moving. Dumbledore glanced curiously at the warriors, but as they stood as unfazed as ever, and he could not help feeling a little disappointed. They returned to the bottom floor to walk to the great hall, but he soon realized that the other two no longer walked alongside him. He stopped to turn around, and there they stood, as if petrified, staring at the corner of a wall.
He took a careful step towards them, but suddenly their trance broke and they appeared to be back to their passive selves – although he could not know for certain if that was so, or if they simply hid their feelings behind their masks.
"Is something the matter?" Even though he well knew that the question was most likely asked in vain, he nevertheless felt curious.
"Nothing", answered the captain quickly, but exchanged a glance with his partner. As they walked past a grand window, they stopped once more; this time to watch the thestrals fly over the forbidden forest. A thought suddenly struck his mind: of course they can see thestrals, they are warriors after all. At first, he had assumed, as he did with most people, that they would not be able to see them. Now that seemed like quite the childish thought. He briefly wondered how many innocent people they had been ordered to kill and how many battles they must have fought.
He led them past the great hall and introduced them to some ghosts who had been spending the day there. The ghosts each bowed to the foreigners and the two politely bowed back in return. So not even ghosts would draw a reaction, Dumbledore mused. How peculiar. They continued to his office and he gave the guardian statue the password; as usual, it willingly jumped aside and revealed the revolving staircase.
As they entered, all the past headmasters of Hogwarts leaned forward in their portraits to catch a glance of the ninja Dumbledore had told them about. A quiet murmur broke out amongst them as they inspected the pair with interest, but neither Cat nor Owl paid them any mind. Dumbledore walked up to his desk to retrieve the map that laid there and held it out to them.
"I'm afraid it is not as accurate as I would like it to be", they glanced at the map and unfolded it, sending the numerous layers of the map sprawling out. This was the first time he had seen them look completely, utterly speechless – or so they seemed to be behind their masks. He smiled ever so slightly. "You are welcome to familiarize yourselves with the school before the students arrive in a few weeks. Though I would advise you not to wander into the Forbidden Forest; the creatures there do not take kindly to strangers intruding on their territories."
This earned him what he suspected might have been a skeptical look, but it was covered by their masks. The captain patiently folded the map while Owl turned to him and whispered something in his ear. Cat stilled for a second, but folded the last piece of the map and looked up at Dumbledore. He himself couldn't help lifting an eyebrow at their exchange.
"Well, I have some errands to run", he finally said and tore his eyes from them. "Teachers should start arriving in a week or so. You are welcome to dine in the great hall, as the house elves will provide you with food." As "house elf" did not have a direct translation, Dumbledore had to make do with the words he had, resulting in quite the awkward term.
The ninjas did not seem to mind, or even notice, however, as they both nodded in understanding and exited the office with him.
Before the students' arrival a few weeks later, they had discussed their approach towards them and their mission; whether they would guard all the classes or if they should remain focused on the boy, if they should patrol the area or shadow their charge through the school, how they should handle their introduction – if they made one, as it might be more effective if they remained unknown to the students. There were many things to decide, annoying things and details that Naruto would rather be without. Not that he ever mentioned his displeasure with the planning to Neji; no. He firmly decided to suffer in silence.
Honestly, he was shocked when he saw the school; it was huge! He had seldom been more grateful for having a partner on a mission before; the thought of keeping tabs on a place such as this alone made him shudder.
It was strange, all this magic business. Ghosts flying around, paintings moving, food magically appearing at the tables, running armors, floating candles and the stairs; they must have been the worst of all. Eventually he had just stopped using them the way he was supposed to, choosing to jump from staircase to staircase instead.
But the most disturbing thing was what he had discovered the day they arrived. How was it even possible?
He shook his head; he should be focusing on learning these damn words! He gripped his feather-pen and stared intently at the paper. He gave up, groaned and slumped back in his chair. This language is impossible. He was well aware of that he had learned tremendously fast up to this point, yet it still felt as though he could barely introduce himself to a child. He looked at Neji, who was squiggling down letter after letter with ease.
"How much longer 'til they get here?" The faster they get here, the faster I have an excuse to avoid doing this. Neji stopped writing and glanced up at him with a knowing smirk.
"Less than two hours now," Naruto groaned and threw his arms in the air, whining like a child. Neji laughed softly at his behavior and before returning to his writing.
Naruto stared up at the ceiling. Had there ever been shinobi here before? Tsunade had told them the old man had had a letter from the second Hokage himself, so there had obviously been at least one, but had there been more than that? He thought back to the time where he had first begun to think about it.
They followed the old man through the roomy corridors and he wondered if it would be hard to keep track of one boy when the corridor was filled with students. Though he supposed it wouldn't be as hard for them as it would have been for someone else. Maybe they could slip unnoticed through the crowds. How observant would these wizards prove to be?
He glanced out through a window as they passed, catching a glint of the large lake which looked so dark without the sun there to illuminate it. For a second he saw a shadow move across the surface, but he blinked, and it was gone.
He watched the wizard walk along the corridor with a familiar ease, but as his gaze wandered away from him and landed on the wall, he stopped. There on the wall. There was something there. He moved closer to get a better look, before stopping and staring in utter disbelief.
There was a fūinjutsu seal written on the wall.
"Captain?" Owl asked him. "What is it?" He didn't bother answering, only pointed at the spot on the wall. Neji's eyes followed his gesture until his gaze landed on the wall. "How..?"
They noticed a movement out of the corner of their eye and quickly pulled themselves out of their shock just as Dumbledore asked:
"Is something the matter?" The man was watching them with a childlike curiosity in his eyes, but Cat suddenly felt dread creep up through his stomach.
"Nothing", he said quickly and prayed the answer did not sound as uncertain as it felt. He sent a quick glance at Owl, who met it with a worried look. After that they followed Dumbledore again, thoughts swirling in their minds.
"What do you think it is?" He didn't bother elaborating it any further; his partner knew what he was talking about.
Neji stopped writing again and looked at him, this time with a serious face. "I have no idea. It seems so incomplete, and I haven't heard of any fūinjutsu masters traveling to the Outside." He frowned. Naruto hummed in agreement.
Neji sighed and laid the feather-pen aside. He stood and walked round the table to pull Naruto to his feet. He smirked at the yelp that escaped Naruto's lips and put his arms around his waist.
"Stop over-thinking it", He said. "Come, I want to see the students before we have to introduce ourselves."
The students arrived in a big, red and loud metal-machine which was spewing out white and black smoke. There seemed to be about seven hundred children who made their way to the carriages pulled by the skeleton-horses Dumbledore had called thestrals. Another smaller group, consisting of younger students, went over some boats by the lake.
It was not very hard to locate the boy they were to protect; a lanky boy with black hair and glasses accompanied by a girl with bushy hair and a tall boy with red hair. They ran alongside their chariot in the trees and tried to listen to the conversation that took place, but alas they could not understand much of it, and when word such as "nargles" were involved, it did not make the task any easier.
They followed them into the castle by climbing along the walls above them – it wasn't as if they were going to look up – and watched them sit down at one of the tables.
"He looks ordinary enough", Cat commented dryly. Owl agreed quietly.
Dumbledore stepped up to the podium after a hat had sung a song and the youngest students had walked up and each gotten it placed on their heads – the sorting hat, Dumbledore had told them earlier that it was called – and all the students went quiet. He began what Cat figured was a speech – he couldn't understand much either way – and was promptly interrupted by a small woman with a high-pitched voice.
Even though neither Cat nor Owl could understand more than loose and incomprehensible bits and pieces of it, judging from the students' reactions the speech was boring and unnecessary. The murmuring that broke out across the room as she finished briefly made him wish that he could have understood what she had said.
Dumbledore continued and once again a murmur broke out as he waved his hand, gesturing for them to come down.
"That's our cue", he said and walked down the wall. A collective gasp was heard as the first students caught sight of them walking down to the headmaster. Dumbledore gestured for them to speak.
Cat stepped up and as he had decided to refrain from speaking their language, which he hardly knew, he spoke in his own with a strong voice. "I am Cat, captain of the ANBU." Dumbledore translated. "This is Owl. As we have been tasked with guarding this school we would appreciate if you would follow a few simple rules to make it easier for us."
As Dumbledore's voice rang out across the hall in the foreign language, he realized that maybe it was strange to speak loudly enough so that everyone could hear when no one could understand him. But no matter; he had started now, so it would seem odd if he suddenly changed his volume. The students were murmuring again.
"You are not to be out after curfew, however important it may seem; this includes the prefects." It almost seemed as they would protest, but at the last moment, all the students held their tongue. "You are not to wander outside the Hogwarts area." The rule seemed obvious, and was already in place anyway, so there were no protests at that. "The last rule reads as follows: you are not to get in our way; if you do, we cannot guarantee your safety." His harsh voice echoed through the silent hall and even though Dumbledore had yet to translate, every single student seemed to understand the severity of what he had said.
When they returned to their chamber Naruto untied his mask and threw it on the bed before promptly collapsing beside it.
"That went well," Neji said as he entered after him. Naruto lifted his head to glare at him. "Well, it did."
Naruto groaned and let his head fall back on the bed. "Did you see that fat lady's face? She looked pissed. Bet she'll be a fucking pain in the ass. Even Dumbledore warned us about her."
Harry bolted awake, sitting straight up in his bed, gasping for air. His whole body was covered in cold sweat and shaking violently. He stared around the room with wide eyes, panting and choking slightly. He blinked furiously and lowered his head into his hands, tugging at his hair.
In the bed next to his, Ron stirred in his sleep, then groaned and sat up, albeit not very steadily, as he swayed gently, threatening to falling back to sleep. Temporarily winning the battle against his eyelids, he eyed Harry hazily.
"Harry, is that you, mate?" came the very intelligent question from Ron. "Did you have another nightmare?"
Harry nodded.
"Yeah, the same one," he fell back on his bed. "There were just all these… papers."
"Papers? Sounds like a horrible nightmare."
"I'm serious, Ron", he snapped tiredly. "They were supposed to fit together somehow. I just – I just don't know how. Like some kind of bloody thousand-pieces puzzle that I am supposed to solve without knowing why; if there even is a reason." He sighed, wiped the sweat of off his forehead and sat up again.
"I've had this same dream so many times this summer; almost every night. Even if I only pass Divination by bluffing, I can at least guess that if it returns so many times, it's got to mean something, right?" As he got no response, he leaned over towards his best friend's bed. "Ron?"
He was met by the scene of a sleeping and deeply snoring Ron. Sighing, Harry lay down again, pulling the duvet up to cover himself.
As he tried to go back to sleep, his mind wandered back to that otherwise empty room, black stone floor covered by papers. Papers filled with squiggly lines that were all supposed to come together somehow, but just refused to. The puzzle he had to solve.
AN: Weeeeeeell...? Not horrible I hope. Again, real sorry for the delay -_-' And review! As a birthday gift! ^^
