Kindred Spirits

by Tailkinker

This is a work of fan fiction based on the Harry Potter series and the Sailor Moon franchise created respectively by J.K. Rowling and Naoko Takeuchi. The characters and settings belong to their respective owners and no copyright infringement is intended. This story is written purely for entertainment purposes and should not be considered as part of the official canon of either series.

Unlikely Allies

"Thanks for that, Harry," said Dudley. "Not sure I could have managed this on my own."

"You're not stupid," replied Harry. "You're just out of practice using your brain. And I'm not trying to be insulting with that," he hastened to add. "Uncle Vernon didn't really encourage you to think."

"Well, I'm surprised I did this well," admitted Dudley. "Most of my mistakes were minor ones."

Harry started piling up the textbooks and notebooks. "Maths isn't easy," he said. "And even a minor mistake can throw everything off. But keep at it, and you'll have this licked soon."

There was a knock at the door, and Harry looked up. "That'll be Hotaru," he said.

"Not sure how you got so lucky as to have a girl like her," said Dudley with a grin.

Harry returned the grin, remembering using similar words himself when Dudley first met Hotaru, two years ago. "Me neither."

Hotaru stepped in, removing her shoes at the door and stepping into her slippers. Sirius and Harry had adopted the practice, but the Dursleys didn't see the point. "Hello, Harry-kun. Dudley-san."

"Ohayo," said Dudley. He'd heard the word used on occasion, but his pronunciation was terrible. Hotaru grinned at him anyway.

"Close. It's O-ha-yo, Dudley. Try again?"

"Ohayo?"

"Much better," said Hotaru, her grin widening.

"You got Sirius' owl, then?" asked Harry.

"I did," she replied. "Papa's a bit worried about me going off to London overnight with you, but he said, 'If Black-san is with you to chaperone, it should be all right.'" She made a moue. "This despite the fact that he let me live in Diagon Alley with you, unescorted for three weeks."

"Knowing Tomoe-sensei, it's probably his idea of a joke," observed Harry. "After all, who'd trust Sirius to chaperone anyone?"

Hotaru giggled at that. "Where is he, anyway?"

"Just here," said Sirius as he entered the kitchen. He held out a slip of parchment. "I need you to read this."

Harry took the slip, and opened it. On it, in loopy handwriting, was written, 'The headquarters of the Order of the Phoenix can be found at number 12, Grimmauld Place.'

The memory rushed back into him, and he was astonished that he'd forgotten. Sirius' London townhouse, which had been in his family for generations, was a creepy, rather decrepit mess the last time that he'd seen it, with an absolutely vile little House Elf supposedly cleaning it. Supposedly, because it remained quite filthy. He recalled the oppressive silence and the dimly lit rooms. It had been filled with cobwebs and dark artifacts, with dust everywhere and a strong musty odour. Sirius had mentioned that he'd be loaning it to the Order to serve as headquarters.

"Why did I forget all this?" he asked.

"Fidelius Charm," said Sirius. "Same thing we used to protect your parents. So long as the secret keeper doesn't rat out the secret, it can't be discovered by any means." There was no question why he chose the word 'rat'.

"What secret?" asked Hotaru. Harry passed her the note.

"So we're going there?" he asked Sirius.

"In just a second, yeah."

"Going where?" asked Dudley.

"To the headquarters of the Order," said Harry.

"Where?" asked Dudley in confusion.

"Headquarters."

Dudley frowned. "Which headquarters?"

"Doesn't matter how many times you tell him," said Sirius with a grin. "You're not the secret keeper. So the Fidelius Charm keeps it from sticking in his brain."

"I see," mused Harry.

"As amusing as this is, we don't have a lot of time," said Sirius. "Grab your overnight bag. We'll take the floo over."

Grimmauld Place was almost as bad as he remembered it. Harry noted that some small amount of cleaning had been done, and that a heavy curtain had been placed over the portrait of Sirius' mother. Given the portrait's tendency to verbally abuse any who walked by, he decided that this was probably for the best.

"Where is everybody?" he whispered.

"Probably in the kitchen," said Sirius. Though not whispering, he still kept his voice low. "It's the first place we got habitable. Molly and her brood have been here a month, working on the house."

"I shoulda come to help," said Harry. "Voldemort's my problem as much as yours."

"We started while you were still in Japan," pointed out Sirius. "Plus, you had your court battle to worry about."

They made their way down the stairs—the kitchen was located in the basement, as it was intended to be used by House Elves, not humans. In contrast to the rest of the house, the kitchen was sparkling clean, and brightly lit; Harry blinked as he entered.

"Harry!" Hermione slammed into him at top speed, wrapping her arms around him. "Oh, I've been so worried! I heard that you were expelled and that you had a court hearing or an appeal or something and you won and you'll be coming back—"

Hotaru cleared her throat, and Hermione stepped back, looking abashed.

"Sorry," she said. "I just..."

"It's all right, Hermione," said Harry. He slipped an arm around Hotaru. "We know you're a huggy person." He glanced over at the table. "Hey, Ron. You look beat."

"Mum's had us cleaning this ruddy place every day from dawn until dusk," he complained. "Fred and George have been enjoying it, though. You wouldn't believe the stuff they've gathered." He glanced over at Sirius. "None of your things, though. Stuff like doxy eggs and the like."

"Well, as long as they're not taking anything that belonged to my family," said Sirius. "Not that I'd care, but some of that stuff is really dangerous." He grinned. "Let them know that, once I've finished screening it, they'll get first pick."

There was a knock at the door, and the portrait of Walburga began screaming. Sirius sighed. "I keep telling people not to knock," he complained. "I'll be back in a bit." He turned and hurried towards the door.

"So how did your appeal go?" asked Hermione.

"Pretty well, considering all charges were dropped," said Harry. "There was one woman, though. Kinda looked like a toad. She was trying to steamroll me."

"What do you mean?" asked Ron.

"She wouldn't accept my passport as evidence, because it was Muggle," he complained. "Despite the fact that apparently British Wizards use Muggle passports whenever they travel abroad."

"Typical Pure-Blood," sniffed Hermione. Then glanced at Ron. "No offense."

"None taken," said Ron. "After all, we're Blood Traitors, remember?"

There was a sound of feet on the staircase, and Sirius returned, along with four other women. At the forefront was Meiou-sensei, wearing a smart business suit. Behind her were two young women that Harry didn't recognize—a tall woman with short blond hair and a confident demeanour, and an elegant, pretty woman with long green hair. And behind them was another girl that Harry immediately recognized.

"Ami!" he said with a grin. He switched to Japanese. "I didn't expect to see you so soon."

"Hello, Harry-kun," she replied. "It's good to see you again. I heard that there was some unpleasantness when you came back to England?"

"There was," he said. "I'll fill you in later, though." He turned to the other two. "I'm sorry, but I've not met you before. I'm Harry Potter. I'm pleased to meet you." He bowed to them.

"Ten'oh Haruka," said the blonde. "And this is Kaiou Michiru." She glanced at Meiou-sensei. "They all know?"

"They know," confirmed Meiou-sensei.

"We're members of the Sailor Soldiers," said Michiru. She spoke in accented but literate English. "We are what is known as the Outer Soldiers. Normally, we watch for threats from outside the solar system. But because the Inner Soldiers are so young, we have come in their place to fight Voldemort."

"Except me," said Ami. "I'll be going to Hogwarts with you, to keep an eye on the school from within. I'm the youngest of the senshi, except for Chibi-Usa."

And Hotaru, thought Harry. But he didn't know if the Outer Soldiers were aware of her status, so he didn't say it. Instead, he said, "Well, I'm certain that Neville will be happy to see you again."

Ami blushed at that. "I...didn't think I made that much of an impression on him."

"Oh, you did," said Ron. "He told me that he couldn't believe that a cute girl would be at all interested in him."

Hermione smacked Ron's shoulder. "Tact! Honestly, Ronald."

Ron rubbed his shoulder. "What?"

Ami's blush deepened, and the other Soldiers were carefully smothering grins. But Harry turned as he heard more footsteps coming down the kitchen stairs.

Lucius Malfoy stepped into the room. His eyes narrowed as he looked over the gathered people.

"Mudbloods, Blood Traitors and foreign witches. Do you really think that this motley crew can defeat the Dark Lord?" His voice was unctuous, and his expression patronizing. "And if you can, what does this say about our way of life?"

"That it needs to be overthrown," snapped Hermione.

"Mind yourself, Lucius," said Sirius sharply. "I know damn well that you'd just replace Voldemort if you could. But we've got your Unbreakable Vow to help us take him down."

"My son feels that the idea of Pure-blood supremacy is no longer supportable," said Lucius. "He is the future of House Malfoy, and so I listen to him. He mentioned several of the people in this room...including you, Weasley." He glanced at the Soldiers. "And what of you four? Where do you stand on this issue?"

"We have our own goals," said Meiou-sensei. "They happen to coincide with those of the Order, and so we will be working with them. Even should our own goals be met, we will continue fighting Tom Riddle until he is destroyed."

"I see," said Lucius. "So I can assume that all four of you are Mudbloods."

Sirius started to rise, his face enraged, but Meiou-sensei raised her hand, and he stopped.

"None of us were born to magical families," she said. "But we are the inheritors of a magical legacy that stretches back twelve thousand years. Your magic is but a pale shadow of the power we wield."

Lucius nodded. "Power, I can respect. I shall allow you the chance to prove your boast on the battlefield." He turned to Sirius. "So. When do the rest of your Order arrive?"