“We simply cannot let them go, Molly!” McGonagall protested, slamming the counter for emphasis. The whole Order was gathered in the Burrow while Harry, Hermione, and the rest of the Weasleys from the twins on down were out cleaning. They had called for Minerva because she would have to know of the three wizards’ choice to not return to school that year.
“Believe me, I’ve tried, Minerva,” Mrs. Weasley said angrily, crossing her arms. “They simply won’t listen to reason! All they keep saying is that Dumbledore left them with a job to do.”
“The devil with what Dumbledore said! Hogwarts will be the safest place for Harry and the others! We can’t have him galloping around the countryside on a wild goose chase!”
“I’ll have to disagree there,” Kingsley interrupted calmly. “From the looks of things, Voldemort basically has the Ministry within his grasp, and it won’t be long until he interferes with Hogwarts like he did two years ago, yet this time Dumbledore is gone. There’s no telling what he’ll do, and if he knew where Harry was, just sitting there waiting for him, it’d only be a matter of time until he got his hands on the boy.”
“I’m afraid Kingsley’s right,” Lupin admitted, though it was clear he did not like it. “Harry is safer on the run, where Voldemort has no idea where he is.”
McGonagall sighed in defeat. “I would feel a lot better if they had more protection.”
“They have Hermione!” Tonks offered cheerfully, her hand tightly grasping Lupin’s. “There’s no doubt that she has everything planned out, with a back-up for a back-up plan.”
“And Ron is known to surprise all of us every once and a while,” Bill chuckled. Everyone else grinned weakly, still fearful for the young wizard's safety.
“I agree with all of you completely,” McGonagall continued, “but it’s going to take more than brains, courage, and luck for them to survive! What they need on their side is experience! Knowledge of what a war truly is, because they cannot afford to make mistakes! That is something no mere 17-year-old possesses.” Here she paused before staring off into space, her mouth slightly open in concentration.
“Unless . . . ” she said quietly, then she grew excited, “Unless there is a way to provide them with that protection!”
“What are you talking about?” Mr. Weasley asked.
McGonagall didn’t answer; instead she just turned to Mrs. Weasley. “Molly, do you remember the people you met almost three years ago, during the Triwizard Tournament?” When she was met with a blank stare she added, “The three shinobi?”
Realization dawned on Mrs. Weasley’s face as she recalled the event. “Why—yes, yes I do!”
“Zose zree strange people?” Fleur exclaimed.
Bill grinned. “Yeah, I remember them, too! They were really something.”
“Who are you talking about, Minerva?”
“What three people?”
“They are three shinobi—some type of ninja—who were accidentally summoned to Hogwarts by Neville Longbottom, and while they waited for Albus to send them back they helped protect Harry and the school, as well as the other champions! The adult, Kakashi, nearly died saving them in the graveyard.”
“Wait a minute, you’re telling me these people were there in the graveyard along with Harry when Voldemort returned?” Lupin was beyond amazed at how this small tidbit of information had never made its way to him or the others in the room.
“It’s a long story,” McGonagall explained hurriedly, “but the two boys had a foreign power that the Dark Lord wanted, so he had them kidnapped alongside Harry. Naturally, at his loss the story of those three was hushed up, and it took a powerful Memory Charm from Dumbledore to make sure that Rita never wrote about it.”
“Why is that? Where are they now?” Kingsley demanded.
“That’s just the problem,” the headmistress sighed. “You see, these people are from something similar to another dimension.” There was silence for a moment as everyone tried to process what she said.
“But that’s impossible!” Lupin protested.
“Actually, if you’ve seen what they’re capable of, you’d believe it,” Mrs. Weasley answered slowly. “I didn’t see that much, but going off of what stories the boys and Ginny told me, it all makes sense. I was also there when they left.”
McGonagall nodded. “They would certainly be formidable allies, and considering how strong they were two years ago there’s no telling how strong they are now.”
“Well, let’s just say these people are from another dimension,” Lupin began, still not completely sure he bought the story. “How are we going to get them here? Have Neville make the mistake again?”
“I highly doubt that will be necessary. Albus took careful notes on how he would send them back, and I’m sure we could use them to our advantage. I will return to the school immediately and bring back what I can.” And with that, McGonagall excused herself and walked outside where she quickly Disapparated.
There was silence once again as everyone digested this rather difficult piece of information to absorb.
“Are you sure about this, Molly?” Tonks asked, doubt evident in her voice.
Mrs. Weasley paused for a moment then nodded her head resolutely. “With them at their side, I would be able to sleep better at night.”
The rest of the Order decided they would just have to wait and see, because if Mrs. Weasely was fine with sending the three teenagers with these strangers, then that spoke greatly of their power.
----------------------------------
A few hours later, McGonagall reappeared, and Mrs. Weasley hastily shooed the children off to do a few more last minute chores so they could have some privacy.
“I have them,” the new Headmistress said in a hushed voice, as if speaking loudly would cause the notes to disappear. “It lays it out, in plain detail what needs to be done, in order to get there, and get back. It’s almost as if Albus knew this would happen,” she muttered under her breath.
“However, from the looks of it, this will only occur in the same place that they were summoned and sent back the first time, so there’s no telling where that could be. If memory serves, it shouldn’t be that dangerous because all three of them were together when they came, and there were no injuries on them.”
“Are you sure these will work?” Mr. Weasley asked in disbelief, gazing at all the intricate instructions.
“Absolutely. If Albus figured out a way, then it must be true,” McGonagall said fiercely, as if doubting the instructions was an insult to Dumbledore. “From what I can make out, this will make sure that, when done correctly, no more then five to ten minutes will have passed between the dimensional interchanges. This will ensure the fact that we won’t be waiting years for them to come, and the shinobi won’t be forced to make a tough decision to stay here indefinitely.”
She paused for a moment and glanced up at everyone. “We will need someone to appeal our case to their Hokage, who is similar to our Minister of Magic, yet in a good way,” she added at the looks of disapproval in everyone’s faces. They had all but given up hope in the Ministry now.
There was silence as everyone mulled over the dangers of the mission, weighing the pros and cons of it.
“I’ll do it,” Lupin finally said. Tonks shot him a worried look and he grasped her hand tightly. “I’m aware of the dangers, but if they’re as good as you say they are, it’s a chance I’ll have to take. Just tell me all that I need to know about this place."
---------------------------------
Lupin watched the faces of McGonagall, Tonks, and the rest of the Order disappear from his sight only to be replaced by an interesting swirl of purple electricity that pulsated all around him. After what seemed like a few seconds but yet an eternity, a hole was ripped behind him and he was thrust through it, as if someone had grabbed him from behind.
He landed with a thud on dark tiles, unable to cushion his fall. He watched in amazement as the small ripple in time and space twisted slightly, then disappeared with a faint pop! Taking a look at his surroundings, it appeared that he was in a hospital of some sorts, and to some strange stroke of luck he was the only one there, with the only occupants for company being two hospital beds, ready for new arrivals.
Lupin grunted from the discomfort and pushed himself up, dusting off his new robes. They had all decided that while wizard robes would most likely make him stand out, it would give more credit to his story and grant him the permission to see the people he sought. Bracing himself for whatever would happen, the wizard walked over to the door and slid it open.
As soon as he entered the hallway, people immediately ceased what they were doing and turned to stare at him. It seemed like a relatively normal hospital, even by Muggle standards, but what was most curious were the hairstyles. Even the small amount of people he happened to meet had the most outlandish hair colors and they were mostly spiky. If he didn’t know better, he would have guessed he landed in a world made of Nymphadoras!
But no matter, he had business to attend to, so Lupin quickly pointed his wand to his throat as discreetly as he could and muttered the necessary spell to allow him to converse with the peculiar people. Once the slight tingling sensation subsided, he put on a cheery smile and walked up to the closest nurse, who was simply holding a clipboard and had short, brown hair.
“Excuse me, but could you bring me to your Hokage?” he announced in Japanese, the words foreign on his tongue.
“What business is it of yours?” she asked warily.
“I have a proposition, one that must be delivered only to the Hokage,” Lupin insisted. His orders were to keep as few people informed about their request as possible.
She glanced at him again as if sizing him up, took note of the wand, but dismissed it as something unimportant.
“Right this way,” she said coolly. As they walked down the hall, the man grew wary of how people raised their eyebrows of how tightly he grasped his wand, most likely thinking him ridiculous for placing so much confidence in—to their eyes—a mere stick. Going against his better nature, the man hastily stuff his wand into his pocket, his fingers itching for it to be returned.
About a minute later they arrived at what the wizard took to be the front desk, where the woman who was escorting him bent over to whisper to the receptionist. The man nodded and made some sort of gesture at the wizard, and before he knew it, there were two figures on either side of him. Lupin spun around and had to blink twice in order to make sure he was seeing things correctly.
There were two people in front of him, wearing masks that looked like different animals; one a cat and another a bird of some kind. The cat-masked one had spiky brown hair, while the other had similar gray hair. Both men wore similar garb: a mere silver vest over a dark blue sleeveless shirt, matching dark blue pants, and on their arms were long gloves made of the same blue material yet there were also silver arm guards over it, and what appeared to be small swords latched onto their backs.
Lupin could not help but gulp. Their presence was quite intimidating.
“We apologize,” the nurse spoke, “but as you must know we need to take all precautions before showing you to the Hokage. If you would just follow these two ANBU, you will be submitted to questioning so we can make sure that you are not an enemy in disguise. Our current situation requires this,” she added, as if to justify her actions.
Lupin’s eyebrows rose. He didn’t have time for this! He needed to see the Hokage now!
“Wait! I have been told that your Hokage would be willing to see me if you delivered the message that I am sent from the place Kakashi, Naruto, and Gaara went nearly two years ago!” This new piece of information alerted those around him and they struggled with an answer.
“I shall present Hokage-sama with this message, and bring back news about how to continue,” the cat-masked ANBU said. He held his hand up as if he wanted the wizard to be quiet, yet with two fingers instead of one, and then disappeared in a puff of smoke.
Lupin was slightly startled that there were others like his kind that could do something along the lines of Apparition, but then reminded himself that McGonagall said these shinobi were not to be underestimated.
---------------------------
Tsunade sighed, Surely paperwork would have to end sometime, right? A furious knock on her door provided the escape she wanted and she eagerly bid the person entrance.
“Hmmm, surprised to see you here,” she addressed the ANBU who knelt a couple feet away from her desk. “Don’t tell me you’ve heard anything of the Akatsuki yet? We just had dealings with—”
“It has nothing to do with the Akatsuki, Tsunade-sama,” the man’s deep voice assured her. “This matter has to do with a strange man who suddenly appeared in the hospital and wishes to speak with you.”
“Really? Who is it?” To say she was curious would be an understatement. Usually those who wished to see her sent a message hawk, and why would someone appear in a hospital of all places? Unless—
“What did he look like?” she asked quickly.
“He wore long, black robes and had a few scars across his face, most likely evident of a fierce battle. Despite his rather frail appearance I sense much power within him, and he had a specific message for you, one he said would cause you to send for him at once.”
“Yes, yes, what is it?”
“He said that he was sent from the place that Kakashi, Naruto, and Gaara went almost two years ago.”
Tsunade gasped, her suspicions made clear. How could it be? She thought that the incident before was merely an accident? Why were they contacting them? And why now, years later?
“Send for him at once!” she ordered, standing up as she did so. “But first, get me Kakashi, and have him don his ANBU uniform again. I need to make absolutely sure that this man is telling the truth!"
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Kakashi sighed in content as he lay against his favorite tree, pouring over the contents of his beloved and infamous Icha Icha Paradise. Today he was rereading the most recent—and coincidentally, final—edition. It had taken a lot of time for him to fully understand the fact that the great Jiraiya-sama was dead. No one knew, but he had spent hours at the Memorial Stone, weeping for the man who had become a grandfather to him. Once he had his fill of grief, he began thinking about how horrible Naruto was feeling, as well as Tsunade. Other than him, those two were the only other living ones who were as attached to the Sannin as he was, though most likely more.
He had just sent Shikamaru after the boy to try and cheer him up, because he didn’t think he was up to it. Shikamaru had recently lost his sensei to the Akatsuki—Asuma, one of Kakashi’s dear friends, so he figured the chuunin would be able to reach out to the boy more effectively. There were times like thos where the jounin doubted his ability to endure the emotional torment the shinobi life brought, but he would always realize that despite the setbacks, there was absolutely no way he could turn his back. It had become too much of who he was.
Anyway, all he was looking forward to was a calm and peaceful day, pushing aside the horrible trauma from his mind and just enjoy himself. As he began to read, he sensed the chakra of another shinobi fast approaching, but after a moment’s reflection relaxed and placidly turned a page.
“What is it now, Tenzo?” he asked in mild amusement. His friend and former ANBU charge appeared in front of him, kneeling in the traditional symbol of respect.
“I apologize for interrupting you, Kakashi-sempai,” the ANBU began, his voice slightly muffled by the mask, “but the Hokage sent for you. She wants you to come immediately and wear your old ANBU uniform.”
I knew it wouldn’t last long, he mentally groaned. “I’ll take it the mission is S-rank then?” Haven’t had one of those for a while.
“It’s not necessarily about a mission,” Tenzo began, “A strange man appeared in the hospital, saying that he was from the place you, Naruto, and Gaara went almost two years ago.”
Kakashi dropped his book in shock. “Wha—what?” What are they doing here? Is something wrong?
“Did you happen to catch a name?” he inquired as he lifted the book off the ground. He brushed the dirt off its precious pages before pocketing it, a million questions and memories flooding his mind.
“No, but he was about our height, wearing black robes, carrying a peculiar stick—”
“A wand,” Kakashi interrupted without thinking.
“Wand?” Tenzo asked, clearly confused.
“It’s the way wizards channel their magic,” the jounin informed him offhandedly.
“What’s a wizard?”
“Never mind, I’ll tell you all about it later.”
“Short, brown hair,” Tenzo continued, curious to find out more about this strange person when circumstances permitted, “and he had numerous scars across his face, evident of a fierce battle.”
“Did he have a mechanical eye?” Kakashi asked in spite of himself.
“A—a mechanical eye?” Now Tenzo was really confused. What sort of people were these wizards?
“Forget that, it’d probably be the first thing you’d mention anyway,” Kakashi waved off the comment. “I’ll be sure to meet you in Tsunade’s office in five minutes.” With that the copy-cat ninja disappeared in a puff of smoke, closely followed by Tenzo who had a smirk on his face, eager to discover the mystery that was this strange man.
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Lupin drummed his fingers on his leg nervously as he sat down next to the bird-masked On-boo person, or whatever he was called. It had been about ten minutes since the cat-masked man left, and he had done nothing but sit. He just prayed that everything would work out and the Hokage person would let him explain his case. People came and went, some taking the time to glance at him, others too busy with the various events that came with a hospital.
At one point there was a man rushed through the entrance doors who was bleeding profusely and looked like he had gone up against a cheese grater. Lupin only got one good look at him because as soon as he entered with his friend that was holding him up, the man was surrounded by seemingly hundreds of nurses and doctors alike, tossed on a gurney, and some lay their hands over him and the area around him lit up in a green, ominous glow.
Those causing the green light ran alongside the gurney as the injured man was wheeled off down the hall at a speed faster than what Lupin personally viewed as safe, and he felt sick all of the sudden, the green glow all too similar to the cursed light of the Avada Kedavra. It was obviously their way of treating injuries, but it was too mind-boggling for Remus to think that something that reminded him of a force so devastating from where he came was so life-saving here. He had been forced to watch his dear friend Sirius perish from it.
Suddenly the cat-masked man from before appeared before him in a puff of smoke. Lupin didn’t even blink, having been so used to the Weasley boys do this that he was practically immune to it.
Strange, even some chuunin jump slightly whenever an ANBU or other advanced shinobi comes unannounced like this, Tenzo observed. What type of fighters are these wizards? For some reason, the prospect of being able to duel with one of this man’s kind caused a mischievous smirk to appear on his face.
“The Hokage will see you now,” he began, “We will need to ask you a series of questions to make sure that you are truly who you say you are.” He then turned to the other ANBU. “You may go back to your post; I’ll be enough for him.” The bird-masked man bowed slightly before disappearing in the same fashion.
“Do you mind traveling this way to the Hokage? Or would you prefer to walk?” Tenzo asked pleasantly.
“Whatever’s faster,” Lupin sighed wearily. “I need to speak to your Hokage as quickly as possible."
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When the smoke cleared, Lupin blinked and noticed they were in a simple room, the only furniture being a desk with a stack of paperwork off to the side, a chair, and some bookshelves. The woman sitting in the chair was the largest-busted woman he had ever seen in his life (he politely focused his eyes elsewhere), and there was another On-boo standing next to her, his hair silver like the other man’s, but with more volume and it looked like he had some type of wolf mask. The man who escorted him there took up an position next to the wolf masked man. There was also another woman with short black hair on the opposite side holding—a pig with pearls and a red vest.
What kind of place is this?!
“What is your name?” the woman he supposed to be the Hokage, asked.
“Remus Lupin,” he answered.
“And you say you come from the place Kakashi, Naruto, and Gaara went almost two and a half years ago, yes?”
Lupin paused for a moment, then nodded. Of course it wouldn’t be two years exactly, this is another dimension we are talking about. The time difference must be slightly different. “I am a wizard from England, and those three were brought to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry by a student named Neville Longbottom on accident.”
“Why are you here?” the woman continued to ask.
“Because Harry—the one Kakashi was asked to protect—is going to take on the Dark Lord Voldemort in order to save our world, along with his two friends, Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger,” Lupin explained, trying to keep it as simple as possible but still get enough details across. “I have been sent here by Professor McGonagall to ask their assistance again to protect these three to make sure they are not thwarted in their endeavor.”
“From what Professor McGonagall understood, accepting missions around here means you ask for a price. We are prepared to do so, and have it here.” Lupin reached into one of his pockets and pulled out a small, palm-sized brown bag filled with gold and set it on the desk table. The Hokage straightened up immediately, pulled the drawstring, and gazed at the gold.
For some reason there was a strange glint in her eye and the black-haired woman was staring at her in concern.
“Uh . . . I was told that they were paid for their services last time, and have brought the same amount and a little more.”
“How long will it be?” The woman asked after she had closed the small bag of gold, albeit with a little difficulty.
“Most likely around a year, just like last time, but we have made it so that no more than five or ten minutes will have passed from the moment they leave, similar to what happened two and a half years ago, if I am correct.”
There was silence as the Hokage pondered over what Lupin had presented to her, then the ANBU with the silver hair walked forward and whispered something in her ear. She nodded.
“It seems that everything you have said is true so far, but I shall need to see a demonstration of your magic as you so call it.”
Lupin wasn't surprised. It appeared that this was a very militarist society and it would have been common protocol to discuss what had happened with the commanding officer, so it made sense that she would know about withdrew his wand, pointed it at one of the stacks of paperwork that lay on the ground, and muttered, “Wingardium Leviosa!” To everyone’s amazement but the silver-haired man, the stack of paperwork rose up in the air and encircled the Hokage.
As soon as he set it down carefully, however, the silver-haired man stepped forward and yelled, “Stupefy!”
Acting purely on instinct, Lupin shifted his center of gravity and bellowed, “Protego!” causing the spell to reverberate off an invisible wall and collide with the real wall to his right, leaving a small burn mark.
Lupin stared in shock at the sight of a wand in the other man’s hand, as well as everyone else but the Hokage. This man chuckled and carefully took off his mask.
“Tsunade-sama, this man is telling the truth. He is a wizard."
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Chapter notes: Hello! It's so great to be back into the world of writing crossovers! I hope you all enjoy this one as much as the last one!
Chapter end notes: So—whaddya think? I know I got some remarks over the last crossover about there being no net change throughout the entire story, but there was a reason for that. I wanted to show how easily their two worlds could have combined. However—be rest assured that that this crossover will be different in that regard. There won't be incredibly drastic changes (like say . . . Naruto kills Voldy?) but they will be rather significant. I hope you will enjoy them! (There will also be some romance!)
Thank you all for taking the time to read and hope you have a nice day!