A/N: A quick chapter to get everyone introduced and a start on where things are going. Has some scenes from the book OotP.
A Reaper-less Death chapter 3
Fred & George step forward to shake Ichigo's hand. "Pleasure to meet you mate." The twins say at the same time. Ichigo shakes hands and can feel their 'magical strength'.
Ginny steps forward, "Hi, everyone calls my Ginny."
Ron steps up and shakes his hand but doesn't say anything.
Hermione comes up next and looks at Ichigo, she turns to Harry, "Is this the orange-haired boy you were telling us about?" Ichigo looks at Hermione and answers, "Yes I am."
Harry looks over Ichigo, "How are you doing? You seem to have recovered quickly from whatever happened to you. And you are wearing much better clothes today."
Ichigo smiles to Harry, "Yeah sorry about all that. I am not sure what happened. I hope me arriving is not the reason for those creatures attacking you and getting you into trouble."
Harry nods, "I don't think so, we were talking a little about that and we think that Voldemort sent them." The others shudder at the mention of the Dark Lord. Ichigo notices and asks who that is.
Hermione answers, "He is a dark wizard that is trying to take control of the wizarding society of Britain. He just recently returned to power after being gone for 14 years. He has sworn to kill Harry and has his followers after him. That is why we are in hiding here until we can return to school at Hogwarts." Hermione looks at Harry, and he nods in agreement.
"Why does everyone shudder at his name?" asks Ichigo. Fred & George look at each other and respond, "Because he is scary git and a lot of us are still scared to say his name. When he started the last wizarding war, if anyone said his name his followers, the Death Eaters, would appear and kill you. So many witches & wizards just say 'he who shall not be named' or some such. We all pretty much know what it means and so it does not cause as much fear or subsequent death." As the twins reply, the answer comes from them alternating a few words at a time with the other finishing.
"Do you two always talk like that?" asks Ichigo. Ron quickly answers, "Yes they do, and it is so annoying, but you get used it."
"Okay, so can someone tell me about the creatures that attacked Harry last night? Sirius did not really explain."
Hermione looks at everyone, then answers, "The dementors are among the foulest creatures that walk this earth. They infest the darkest, filthiest places, they glory in decay and despair, they drain peace, hope, and happiness out of the air around them... Get too near a Dementor and every good feeling, every happy memory will be sucked out of you. If it can, the Dementor will feed on you long enough to reduce you to something like itself... soulless and evil. You will be left with nothing but the worst experiences of your life, and you will just be an empty shell that lost its soul."
"That sounds like a Hollow indeed." Says Ichigo, which gets looks of confusion. "Sorry, I come from another world and was told not to really tell anyone about it, so please don't repeat any of this. A hollow is a monstrous, soul-eating spirit that is created when a deceased human soul lingers in the living world for too long, becoming corrupted by negative emotions and transforming into a creature with a mask-like appearance and a hole in its body, driven by the instinct to devour other souls. Where I come from, I fight and destroy hollows when they appear to cause trouble".
"So that is why the dementors ran when you woke up briefly last night. You used your magic, and they fled before you were able to destroy them?" Says Harry in a questioning tone.
"In a way yes, it usually results in a battle between me and the hollow. But I think they are just different enough that they ran instead of fighting us," responds Ichigo.
"Did Sirius change your clothes for you?" Asks Harry. Ichigo responds, "No, I am able to make that slight change with my own magic. I will need to get some clothes though; I don't want to wear these all the time. Sirius said that Remus will help me with that when he arrives later."
Elsewhere, Sirius pulls out a mirror from a desk in his room. He opens it and says, 'Remus Lupin'. The mirror vibrates for a moment and the image of Remus fills the small mirror. "Is everything okay Padfoot?"
"Yes, yes everything is okay Moony. McGonigal & Pomfrey came by earlier and examined our visitor. If you are not busy, I need your help with that person for a few hours. They need to make a trip for supplies and such." Says, Sirius into the mirror.
"Oh phew, I was worried for a moment. Yes, Padfoot I can help with that, give me a couple of hours and I will be around if that will work out?" Responds Remus.
"Perfect, see you soon Moony". Sirius closes the mirror. He pulls out some parchment and writes some letters quicky for Remus to deliver on his behalf to the goblin Ragnok. He seals them with wax & his signet ring, then puts them aside until Remus arrives. He goes back up to the bedroom to check on everyone.
Back upstairs, Ichigo finds a chair and sits down. Harry takes the only other chair to sit down, Hermione sits on the floor at Harry's feet. Ron and the twins sit on the beds and Ginny sits on the floor by her brothers. "Harry, can you explain to me why you are in trouble for defending yourself against the dementors? Where I come from, if you are attacked by a supernatural creature, you can defend yourself without problem." Asks Ichigo as they get comfortable.
Harry looks around, lowers his head for a moment then responds, "Well, here if you are underage and a wizard or witch you cannot perform magic in front of muggles. It violates the Statute of Secrecy that is enforced by the International Confederation of Wizards. It means that anyone that is recognized as a wizard or witch and uses magic in front of a muggle will get in trouble. Because I cast the Patronus charm to defend against the dementors, the Ministry of Magic is using that against me. They do not want to acknowledge that Voldemort has return and could have control over the dementors".
Ichigo looks confused and says, "So if you are attacked while walking the streets, and you are underage, you can get into trouble for casting magic to defend yourself"?
"If you can prove you were attacked by a magical creature, which most muggles cannot see, you will be okay. If there is no witness, then they can expel me from school and break my wand. If I have a witness that saw them, and that person testifies, then I should be okay. I will get reprimanded for doing it again and I should be okay. At this point, I am not sure what Dumbledore has planned. The dementors was seen by Mrs. Figg, she is a neighbor, and I discovered a squib, so she could see them. If you saw them, and Dumbledore agrees with it, then you testify, I should be okay and can attend Hogwarts." Replies Harry.
"Easy enough, I did see them, I don't remember a lot at the moment, but over the next day or so I will be able to. As well, as being told enough about these things so I can know how to describe them, I will testify. I don't know who Dumbledore is, but if everything goes as Sirius discussed with me, it will not be a problem." Ichigo states.
At that moment, Sirius returns upstairs and steps into the room. "And what did I discuss that will not be a problem"? Ask Sirius.
Ichigo says, "Harry was explaining to me why he had a hearing. So, I told him that I would testify for him. I am sure that everyone can tell me enough about the dementors that I will be able to answer any questions, and I am sure after a couple more days of rest I will be able to pull up my memory of my arrival better. Unless you think that would be bad. Harry seems to be concerned about this fellow named Dumbledore not approving. Oh, and what are muggles?"
Sirius chuckles, "Muggles are people that do not use or know about magic. They have other names in other areas, in the US they are called No-Maj, in France they are called non-Magique, and if I recall in Japan, they are called Mahoujanai. As for Dumbledore, he is the Headmaster of Hogwarts and is highly respected by most wizards and witches in Britain, well he was. Amongst these young people, he is very important as he has kept them safe while attending school. And he is pretty much the only person that Voldemort fears."
Hermione interrupts Sirius, "I am not so sure about the keeping us safe part. After all, our first year we fought a Troll and Professor Quirrell from getting the philosopher stone. Our second year, we encountered the basilisk who Harry defeated. Third year was pretty safe, well except for your arrival and finding out about Professor Lupin. Then last year was the whole Goblet of Fire and the fake Professor Moody. Otherwise, he has kept us safe."
Sirius and Ichigo both look at each other, then Sirius says, "What do you mean? I only knew about my arrival and last year with the Goblet. No one told me about your first two years. Harry, why didn't you tell me about that?" Harry looks at Sirius, "Well, would it really make a difference now?"
Sirius laughs, "I guess not. Anyway, Remus will be coming by in a few hours to take Ichigo over to Diagon Alley and to Gringotts to get something taken care of. He has been recognized as a lost cousin of mine, so I need to make sure the goblins know about him and get him set up with an inheritance vault since he will be attending Hogwarts with all of you this year."
"Oh, that is brilliant Sirius, will make things a little easier and hopefully the professors can help Ichigo get home as well," says Hermione.
"Well about that, only a few people will know that Ichigo is not from our world remember. By announcing and accepting him as a cousin, as long as the goblins agree, it will make it easier for Ichigo to be in Hogwarts. He is already listed in the books to get a letter. This way Ichigo can get the supplies he needs. And by having the inheritance vault will give him some galleons for whatever he might need. And the goblins can convert galleons into muggle currency so you and Remus can get you some more clothes for you to wear besides wizarding robes, as well as anything else you may need.
"Who's hungry, after all of this I want lunch. Let's go see what is going on in the kitchen and I can show you all more of the house. Follow me." Sirius leads the way out of the bedroom and down the stairs. He shows Harry & Ichigo where the small Black family library is at as well as several rooms that are in various forms of disrepair. "Over the next few days while I have so many of you here, you all will help me to get this place cleaned up. Poor Molly has been trying to do it, but it seems most of her kids are reluctant to help. (As Sirius looks at the twins and Ron.) Maybe that will change now that Harry is here. And we can show Ichigo some basic charms and spells to try and get him prepared for school."
They finally make their way down to the kitchen. As they all walk in Moly turns as though she was ready to call them down. She laughs at the looks of several hungry men and tells them to all sit down at the table. Ginny follows Molly around to the cooking area and helps bring out plates stacked with sandwiches, chips and fruits. Molly goes back to grab some pitchers of water and pumpkin juice.
They sit down to eat and chat about various things. Hermione, Molly and Ginny tell Ichigo about the history of the wizarding world of Britain. Ron interjects some topics as he feels they are important. The twins sit down near Harry and while the others are distracted, tell him about the projects they have been working on and what they want to do. Harry smiles and listens intently to their plans and adds a couple of ideas as well. The twins are pleased with the ideas and shortly after eating rush off to see how to make them work.
Once lunch is done Harry jumps up to help with cleaning. Everyone looks at him as he starts to clean the tables. He goes into the cooking area to help Molly only to find there was not much for him to do. Ichigo follows him into the area and looks around. He returns to the table and asks Molly if it would be okay if he cooked a meal for everyone. They all look a bit surprised, Sirius and Harry both say that would love to see what kind of meals they have in Japan. Molly is curious and agrees, as long as she can watch what is being done.
After lunch, Molly gathers everyone up and goes to the room where Ichigo first spent the night. As they enter everyone sees there are buckets of mops, brooms, some spray bottles and other cleaning supplies. "OK kids, we are going to start cleaning. We need to get this place cleaned for the meetings, and with all of you here for the next couple of weeks, we can get this done for Sirius and the Order. We will start with clearing out the doxies from the curtains so we can open those and get some much-needed sunlight in here. Go grab a spray bottle and let's get to it."
The next couple of hours goes quickly as Harry and Ichigo learn about doxies and how to stun them with the spray bottles. With everyone helping out, they make quick work of the task and soon Sirius and Harry are taking out several buckets of stunned doxies to the back yard to be released. Harry relaxes and starts to think that everything will be okay and is not as stressed as he was just a day ago.
When Harry and Sirius come inside, they hear the front door open and see Remus come in. They all rush to each other and give hugs. Sirius hands the empty buckets to Harry and tells him to let Molly know that Remus is here and to send her and Ichigo to his study please. Sirius and Remus quietly walk up the stairs and out of sight. Harry returns to the room and tells Molly. She tells them to take a break, but not to go anywhere, she escorts Ichigo up to the study and returns a few minutes later to continue cleaning.