Two Scarred Souls Heal Each Other
Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter or Naruto. They belong to their respective authors and publishing/media companies.
Warning: Yaoi/Slash. Harry/Ibiki. Please don't read if its not your cup of tea.
Author's Notes: Thank you to all my wonderful readers who reviewed and/or added this story to their favorite list! My muse adores you all and so do I! To show my love and appreciation – a new chapter that is 5 days ahead of schedule! Mwa ha ha ha!
Please vote in Hermione's pairing on my profile page. Thank you!
Also, Hermione and Harry refer to each other as brother and sister. They will be introduced to everybody as such too. In addition, their names will not be changed to Japanese names. Its out of respect for their parents that they will keep their original names but will add Black in honor of Sirius. And another in honor of Remus.
And again - Big thanks to one of my best friends and beta: latte2. To my other dearest friend, Manriq203, thanks for the encouraging messages! "Mock all flaws unmercifully. It will build character." Way to stick with the Posse Creed, ladies! Keep up the good work!
.
Chapter 1: Hello, Konoha!
.
Fire Country, Elemental Lands
.
In a green meadow, located not far away from the road leading to Konoha, a sudden popping noise echoed throughout the clearing, slightly disturbing the peaceful afternoon of its animal inhabitants. However, that peace was completely shattered by a loud crash and the subsequent string of muffled curses that chased it. Soft hooting sounds and low female laughter mixed together to form a strange harmony that accompanied a blistering tirade against all means of magical traveling.
"Really, Harry!" Hermione giggled helplessly, as she watched her companion sit up from the ground, sprinkles of dirt upon his clothing and grass woven though out his ebony locks. "One of the most powerful wizards of today's generation. Beaten! By a goblin portkey!" She burst into laughter, delighted by the irony and the indignant expression on her brother's face.
Harry scowled furiously at Hermione. Well, as furiously as he could due to the presence of a snowy owl that flew to perch on one of his shoulders. It was hard being intimidating with Hedwig diligently pulling grass from his disheveled hair. "Its not my fault that portkeys hate me. At least my beloved Firebolt never betrays me." he mumbled, a small pout on his face while lovingly patting the pocket that contained his shrunken possessions which included one precious broom.
Hermione snorted in disbelief before reaching down to help him get to his feet. Together they carefully looked around the clearing with sharp gazes, avidly taking in their surroundings and monitoring for any hidden threats. Thankfully, nobody witnessed their sudden arrival in Fire Country as they both despised the Oblivate charm. Instead, Hermione and Harry watched the interactions of a small flock of birds and the scavenging journey of a brown rabbit.
"Its very beautiful here." stated Hermione, a sense of rightness coursing through her veins. She glazed upon the idyllic meadow and the picturesque sky filled with slow drifting clouds and warm breezes. 'We did it! We actually made it to the Hidden Countries. We'll be happy here. Harry will be happy here.' she thought with determination. 'I'll make sure of that.'
"It sure is." Harry agreed as he stared closely at the trees, unselfconsciously trying to identify the local flora. He had no idea that Hermione and he had made a silent vow to each other. 'I'll make sure that Hermione is happy here. She deserves it.' whispered through his mind.
Meanwhile, Hedwig's head was swiveling back and forth. Fluffing her feathers, she examined this strange new land her Harry had brought them too. As if she would let her chick leave her behind. Utter nonsense. "Hoot!" she cried outraged at the very thought, sharply turning her head to peer intently at Harry. Her large amber eyes flashed vehement warnings against such dastardly deeds. Puzzled, Harry glanced back at his beloved familiar before extending a hesitant hand to pet and soothe his temperamental owl. Exchanging mystified looks with Hermione, he shrugged lightly to convey his utter bewilderment over Hedwig's actions and tightened his grasp on the leather bag thrown over his other shoulder.
"Well. Shall we go?" he questioned Hermione in a soft tone, still somewhat on edge as to why Hedwig was violently glaring at him.
Equally cautious, Hermione nodded her head in agreement. "Definitely. The faster we get there, the faster Dobby and Crookshank can join us.' she replied.
One brief look at their helpful Goblin map and a quick Point Me spell later, they were walking briskly in the direction of the Hidden Village Among the Leaves: Konoha.
Harry and Hermione gaped looking at the large gate that loomed before them, a mere dozen meters away. After traveling for a few hours on a well worn out road, they finally saw the city of Konoha in the distance. Once they were closer, they were amazed by the astounding large gates and wall that surrounded the city. The imposing structures suddenly struck both of them a symbols of the massive undertaking they were attempting to complete. They used a few minutes to strengthen their mental fortitude. Unknowingly, they had paused before the gate guards' desk and attracted the guards' attention.
Konoha's village gate was heavily guarded by shinobi, whose skills and training were extremely useful in subduing or eliminating any threats to the village. Most days the duty post was a predictable routine: checking the passports of merchants or visitors, greeting the returning shinobi/civilians, checking the merchandise of caravans for illegal contraband, and monitoring for enemy shinobi or suspicious activities. Today that monotony was surprisingly disrupted by the appearance of two strangers.
The two chunin guards, Kotetsu and Izumo, chuckled quietly as they watched a young man and woman gawk unrepentantly at the Legendary Gates of Konoha. They were a strikingly attractive young couple. The brunet man was very handsome with his tousled hair and unusual emerald eyes. Likewise, the woman was beautiful with her dark brown, long curly hair and intelligent hazel eyes. However, the most peculiar aspect of the pair was the majestic white owl that rode on the young man's shoulder. After looking in their direction, the owl flew over and landed delicately on the gate guard's desk. The white owl shuffled across the expanse of the desk and then stood completely still.
The gate guards stopped all activity and peered cautiously at the owl. After a moment of contemplation, Izumo looked at his partner and asked "Tetsu. Is it just my imagination or is that owl staring at us?"
Kotetsu peered closely at the white owl and turned to his partner."Yes, Zumo. That owl is definitely staring."
While the two British people were putting their thoughts in order, Hedwig engaged Kotetsu and Izumo into a staring contest. Izumo was the first to break. After a minute that slowly ticked by, the urge to blink overpowered Kotetsu. Triumphant in her victory over the two that dared to stare at her wizard, Hedwig chuffed happily in delight.
At the sound of Hedwig's laughter, Harry's head snapped sideways, looking for his wayward familiar. He was quite horrified to see her perched on the guard's desk and judging from the shocked expressions on their faces, it was quite possible that she was bullying them too! He rushed quickly to the desk, fervently hoping to avoid any unwanted incidents.
"Oh, Merlin! I am so sorry about Hedwig's behavior." apologized Harry.
"Hedwig?" muttered Izumo looking critically at the unknown man.
"My snowy owl. Her name is Hedwig." explained Harry.
"You have a pet owl. Why?" Kotetsu questioned, very interested due to the fact that owls were not common, especially as pets. 'Maybe it is a summon animal?' he wondered.
"Ummm….well she was a gift. . And she is very good at delivering mail. Plus, she is very smart." Harry told the visibly curious gate guards. Upon hearing the compliment, Hedwig puffed up her feathers in pride. At least until her wizard said "Sometimes, even too smart for her own good."
"Hoot!" came a loud indignant cry.
"Ow! Ow! Hedwig stop pecking me!" yelled an injured wizard as he rapidly hopped around trying to avoid attacks by his furious owl and calming her down at the same time.
Izumo and Kotetsu watched the two with absolutely fascinated expressions painted across their faces. "I think it's a summon." revealed Kotetsu to his friend. "Has to be". He nodded resolutely, confident in his amazing skills of deduction.
"Huh…Well, I think it s a nin-owl." Izumo disagreed with his long time partner. "Definitely."
"Nin-owl. Nin-owl! Of all the asinine…" The disbelieving Chunin turned to argue his stance to his friend, only to be interrupted by a discreet feminine throat clearing sound.
Standing in front of them was the forgotten unknown young woman. She looked at them with laughter dancing through her eyes even though her face maintained a calm composure.
"My brother and I would like to apply for authorization to move into Konoha. Can you please direct us to the proper place to accomplish our endeavor?" politely inquired Hermione, desperately trying to contain her amusement over the current situation. However, she made a mental note to research summon animals and nin – owls in order to figure out why they had mistaken Hedwig as being one. Focusing back on the matter at hand, she presented their passports (compliments from the Goblins in thanks for their wartime actions) to the chunins.
"Ah, yes. You need to go to the Hokage's Tower. It's the large tower that is straight ahead. No funny business though! Its filled with highly trained shinobi who will not be tolerant of law breaking. " warned Izumo as he handed back the stamped passports to Hermione;
"Yes. Thank you for your help." Bowing gracefully, she reached out her hand and unerringly grabbed a hold of her ragged and literally hen-pecked brother. She dragged him unceremoniously behind her as she marched through the gates towards the Hokage's Tower.
"Wow! I can't wait to tell the gang about them!" Izumo said excitedly as they watched the two strangers enter Konoha. Truly, it had been quite awhile since anything interesting had happened to them on guard duty.
Kotetsu nodded his head in agreement before stating imperiously "Summon animal."
"Nin-owl!"
Walking throughout the village, their eyes swept back and forth, taking in the details of hopefully their new home. The overall atmosphere of Konoha was very relaxing. Hermione was pleased to observe that her research on Konoha was spot on accurate. The city was a mixture of Japan's feudal era and modern society. The shops were bright and colorful, offering a myriad of goods from groceries to weapons. There were plenty of restaurants too, ranging from large bar-b-que restaurants to small ramen stands. However, the young witch was most surprised by the numerous bookstores in Konoha and was curious about why so many of the books were orange. 'Maybe it's a popular color.' she wondered. Hermione couldn't wait to go shopping in the bookstores. She was sure to find some fabulous new treasures.
Harry was also interested in a few of the stores and businesses that they walked past. He was particularly intrigued by the attire worn by a lot of the people. 'They look like robes' he thought. 'Only less bulky and more stylish!' Once they settled in, he was determined to buy some Konoha robes at the earliest opportunity. Overall, the people seemed friendly as they wandered in and out of different businesses. The roads were clean and in relatively good shape. Which was odd because they saw people traveling by hopping from one building's rooftop to another. As the siblings continued their journey to the Hokage's Tower, they realized that they were being observed too. Mostly because of a white feathered anomaly.
"Look Mommy! See the pretty birdy!" announced a young child.
"I see it. Wave to the pretty birdy, honey!" chimed back an overly cheerful mother.
Harry heaved a long suffering sigh as he futilely tried to straighten his hair into a presentable state. He ruefully glanced at the snowy owl that was soaking in the attention with loftiness and poise. The wizard huffed out a quiet laughter before reaching up to give her a apologetic scratch on one of her favorite scratching spots. Hedwig leaned into his touch and eased over to lovingly preen his tangled mop of hair. Watching the two make peace, Hermione let out a low giggle. 'They are so cute together.' she squealed in her mind.
Reaching the center of the village, the witch and wizard beheld the large, red Hokage's Tower. As much as he tried, Harry just couldn't contain it.
"Go! Go Gryffindor!"
"Harry! Must you act so immature?!" cried Hermione after she lightly slapped Harry's arm.
"Hmph. As if you weren't thinking the same thing." scowled Harry.
"I admit to no such thing." Her lips twitched slightly as she declared "Come on. Lets get this over with. I can't wait to rest and call Dobby. Poor Crookshank must be terribly worried!" Hermione determinedly marched into the Hokage's Tower, completely focused on gaining authorization to live in Konoha and securing housing. The faster they got a house, the faster she could be reunited with her beloved familiar who she missed horribly after watching Harry and Hedwig all day.
'Worried? Crookshank? Poor Hermione. She must be incredibly tired if she's suffering from such delusions. That goblin portkey probably affected her more than she realized' thought Harry as he rushed to keep up with his exhausted sister.
It only took a few moments to be directed to the appropriate office in the Hokage's Tower. It was a very non-descriptive room and was staffed by a bored clerk. He blandly handed them the necessary paperwork and lazily pointed to the chairs they could sit in. After filling out the few pieces of paper, they presented the new paperwork along with the goblin's paperwork to the office clerk. After briefly scanning the information, his eyes visibly widened and his demeanor become more congenial and disgustingly servile. Hermione and Harry exchanged a quick glance that simultaneously asked the same question, 'What the hell was in those papers?'
"Welcome to Konoha, Miss Potter – Black and Mr. Potter –Black. We are so delighted to have you here in our fair city." gushed the office clerk. "Now, all your paperwork appears to be in order. The only thing remaining is the passing of the security checks."
"Security checks?" questioned Hermione while Harry stoically stared at the clerk.
"Ah, yes. Security checks. Nothing to be alarmed about. You have to meet with our village's security division. After a brief interrogation to ensure you harbor no ill-feelings to the village, you will be cleared to live in the village. No problem, see! As long as you're not enemy spies." he joked nervously.
However, after seeing the non-amused looks on the Potter-Black siblings' faces, he quickly moved on. "Please wait in the sitting area located though those doors and a shinobi will arrive soon to escort you to the Security division". The clerk gestured nervously at a waiting area located on the right as he discretely tried to blot his nervous perspiring brow with a hankerchief.
Seeing the affect they were having on the meek clerk, Hermione briskly but politely thanked him for his help and walked with Harry to the waiting area.
"So…Security checks, huh? Bloody hell!"
"Language Harry!"
"Hoot!"
Harry sat in a small interrogation room, nervously bouncing one foot up and down. The room was wood paneled and furnished with a fine, dark hued table with matching plush cushioned chairs. It gave off a feeling of understated elegance and wealth. Definitely different from the interrogation rooms he was familiar with and much more like a receiving room in a wealthy manor.
'Wealthy.' thought Harry as he examined his fine surroundings. 'This probably has something to do with the paperwork from the Goblins.'
Despite the room's comfortable atmosphere, he was feeling quite apprehensive about the upcoming questioning session due to his experiences in the war. After all, he received no helpful information from the shinobi who led the siblings to their individual interrogation rooms. The man was quite bizarre with his green spandex outfit and bushy brows. He spoke a confusing and bewildering dialogue that frequently mentioned spring time and youth. Entertaining: Yes. Informative: Hell No!
Feeling his nerves heighten even more, Harry closed his eyes and focused on strengthening his mind's shields in hopes of calming down. Unknown to him, he was being observed though a disguised wall paneling.
Hidden behind a specially sealed wall, Ibiki Morino intensely observed the young man with Haruto Hyuuga. He leafed quickly though the immigration papers before turning to face the young Hyuuga.
"So, is he a threat based upon his chakra?" he questioned.
"No sir, Morino-san. In fact, his chakra coils are barely even formed. Like his sister, his chakra coils appear extremely stunted while an alternative energy system is circulating heavily throughout his body. Although, his energy system does seems to be larger than his sister." reported Haruto in a clear and concise manner.
"That energy source is not demonic, right?"
"Yes sir, Morino-san. A Hyuuga medic nin and Tenzo-san verified the energy system is non-demonic and appears to be naturally."
"Very well. I shall proceed with the interview." Ibiki stated before leaving the room. 'Another freakin bloodline. Whoopie. Why the hell are they even wasting my time. Their paperwork is beyond reproach. And there is no way in hell the Council will not approve a new bloodline in Konoha. A damn waste of my damn time' he thought darkly to himself.
Opening the door, he swiftly entered the room. It was only due to his shinobi training that Ibiki didn't stumble or make another horrible rookie move when captivating emerald orbs looked at him. The young man was stunningly attractive. His tousled ebony locks provoked illicit desires to feel and touch. Perfectly sculpted pink lips begged to kissed and ravished. His 5'7 height was clearly detailed as being firm and lithe through his clothes. But the crowning jewel in his beauty was his hauntingly emerald eyes. They were shadowed by tragedy and sadness, but gleamed with hidden strength and power. This man would be a deadly foe in battle.
Quickly clearing his mind of such foolish thoughts, Ibiki swiftly crossed the room and sat down. He ruffled though Emerald's paperwork while collecting his thoughts. 'Emerald. Shit! This is freaking unbelievable! Get it together Morino!' he inwardly snarled to himself. Reigning in his composure (mentally that is), he began the interview.
"Good afternoon. My name is Ibiki Morino and I am here to conduct your entry interview to Konoha. If you don't feel like answering the question, simple state that you decline answering. Do not attempt to lie to me. Understand?" Ibiki growled ominously, staring intently at Emerald.. 'No, damn it!'…. Mr. Hadrian James Romulus Potter Black in front of him.
Harry was quite puzzled at this moment of time. His magic was positively purring underneath his skin as he looked upon the scarred yet darkly handsome visage of the shinobi. 'Warrior' his magic seemed to whispered and Harry had to agree. Mr. Morino's uniform clearly defined his well toned 6'1 muscular body. His silent entrance into the room portrayed the image of a sleek, deadly predator. And his voice. 'Oh Merlin, his voice!' inner Harry wailed in delight. It was rich, dark, and sensually delicious to his ears.
This interview had just become absurdly difficult.
'Shit!' a jounin and a wizard thought at the same time.
Thank you for reading my story! Please review!
Created and posted: 1/22/13. Reviewed and revised: 01/22/13
Special thanks to liluka and Vahinepapaya for pointing out the plot holes sprinkled throughout my story. I hope I have filled some of them in and added more descriptive elements to the story as well.
I know the questions of why they chose Konoha, how the Goblins helped them, and what did they pack are left unanswered. They will hopefully be cleared when our expatriates put their house in order in the next chapter.