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Harry Potter and the Four Guardians

Chapter Six: The Shinigami's Fortune

By: Elf

"So, why are we protecting him?" Hotaru asked Setsuna as she fingered her wand.

Setsuna held her own wand in her hands, twirling it back and forth idly. She answered, "Because, if Voldermort gets his hands on this child all of our worlds are in danger. Imagine a force such as his being used in a person like Voldermort's hands."

Hotaru nodded and replied, "But he's not evil. Dark, yes, I won't deny that, but he's not cruel and they made him a Gryffindor for heaven's sake."

Setsuna sighed as she began to pace her classroom. She explained, "Firefly, imagine if Death came to play. Not your powers, but true Death, the true Shinigami."

"What are you talking about?" Hotaru asked, suddenly afraid of what her aunt was about to tell her.

Sestuna answered, "Imagine someone as evil as Voldermort had a power such as the Shinigami to call his own. Imagine who would be hurt, who would be killed. There would be no stopping him."

"Not even with someone of Trunks' power?" Hotaru asked, wide-eyed.

Sestuna shook her head, causing her long, dark green hair to fly around her. She answered, "Can Trunks fight Death? He's died before, Hotaru. His nightmare even has a name: Cell. Cell cannot be brought back to this plane, but he could be brought back to Trunks' world. True, that there are warriors there who could easily defeat him, but he would kill many before Vegeta, Goku or Gohan could stop them. Besides, they're all occupied now by stopping Majin Buu. The Supreme Kai had to pull many strings to get him here, but it was worth it."

"What about him though? He died. The Fourth Guardian killed himself. There were always Four ready to protect him. Where will we find the Fourth?" Hotaru inquired, knowing all of the dangers of their mission.

Setsuna smiled, lighting up her sherry colored eyes, as she answered, "The Fourth will reveal themselves when the time is needed."

"Still, I wonder how the *he's* going to take it," Hotaru mused as she leaned against the window, looking at the night sky.

******

Duo looked at Harry's wand outstretched at him. Duo swallowed as Harry glared at him with those brilliant, true green eyes. Harry was a good person, a strong person, someone who would fight to save others. Someone selfless to the end.

Someone that Duo wanted to spill his whole story to.

Dammit.

Harry growled, "I'll ask you once again, Duo. Whose bloody side are you on?"

Duo sighed and answered, "Yours, of course."

"Still, you're hiding something. Why were you talking to Snape?" Harry pressed, his wand never wavering as he made sure that Duo couldn't get close enough to disarm him.

Duo grinned and answered, "I couldn't sleep. So he gave me this." He held out his small vial of Sleeping Draught.

Harry scrunched up his face and retorted, "Snape's never that nice, not even to the Slytherins."

"Damn," Duo snorted as he walked up, ready to knock him out, "Harry, I'm sorry but I . . ."

"Stupify!" Harry snapped, waving his wand at him.

Duo fell in an ungraceful heap on the ground, looking up at Harry. Harry pointed his wand and Duo saw the steel in his eyes, the sheer determination. Duo sighed and said, "I think I was born in this plane of existence, but I was transferred to a dimension that magic didn't exist, but super technology did."

Harry's eyes widened as Duo found he could move again. He stood up and spat, "A Professor G was the one sent to take care of me, if you could call what he did that. Instead he abandoned me to make me live through a plague, watching friends get sick and die while I never did. He left me to wander alone in space, yeah, I said space, until I was found by a priest. Wanna hear the rest?"

Harry nodded mutely and managed, "How did that happen?"

"Beats me if I know," Duo sighed as he rested against the wall, not really wanting to tell Harry everything, but also wanting to. Confliction. Damn.

Harry swallowed and asked, "Would you go on?"

"Sure. Anyway, the world where I came from. Earth had grown too small for us humans so they built colonies in outer space at five Lagrange points. Well, I grew up on one of those colonies in an orphanage. Every family that adopted me I ran from or made them give me back. Bad behavior works wonders and the fact that strange things happened whenever I was around," Duo answered, not looking at Harry, but looking at an old church, an elderly priest and a beautiful nun.

Harry smirked and said, "Strange things happened around me, like my cousin about to pound the life out of me and suddenly I'm on top of the school building. Or my glasses molding onto my face so he couldn't pull them off, or my hair growing back after my aunt almost shaved me bald."

Duo looked at Harry and Harry grinned sadly and said, "I rather don't like living with my aunt and uncle. It's gotten better since Hogwarts, but this is home."

Duo smiled and knew what it cost Harry to confess that he came from a neglectful family. Duo looked up at the ceiling as he slid to the floor and went on, "Well, the Earth and the Colonies were having trouble with each other. The Earth claimed that the Colonies were part of it while the Colonies demanded that they should be separate. They warred with each other senselessly. I was untouched by it until one day."

"What happened?" Harry asked.

Duo told him everything. He told him about Maxwell's Church. He told him about stealing a mobile suit. He told him about Operation Meteor. He told him how Professor G "found" him, while after a while he had planned it all along. He told the story about how he first met Heero. He told him about Trowa, Quatre, and Wufei. About OZ, about the countless battles. He even explained Hilde.

Harry listened in complete attention, a look of awe on his face. Harry asked, "So, you've killed before?"

"I don't know how many people I've killed, Harry. That's why I'm not afraid of Lord Voldermort. He may be very powerful, but he's just a man, Harry. He can be killed," Duo answered, looking down at his cross.

Harry swallowed and asked, "What does Shinigami mean?"

"It's Japanese for God of Death. My best friend, Heero, as I told you was Japanese. Well, the OZ soldiers called me the God of Death," Duo confessed, grinning wirily.

Harry asked, "Would you kill me?"

"No. Never. Maybe Malfoy though," he answered with a smile.

Harry grinned back and stated, "That's why you're so odd. This must be very queer, then?"

"You have no idea, pal," Duo answered as he stood up.

Harry asked, "You said you were tortured?"

"Yeah, a couple of times by OZ for information. I have a very high tolerance for pain though," Duo replied with a smile.

Harry frowned and demanded, "How can I believe you? Can you prove it?"

Duo smirked as he lifted up his shirt. He wasn't as badly scared as Heero, Trowa, or even Quatre, but he had a few nasty ones here and there. Like where a bullet had nicked his ribs, or a mercenary stabbing him, or where a shard of shrapnel had imbedded itself in his side and where he tore it out, or where a doctor had to go in and repair internal bleeding after being beaten by over eager OZ soldiers.

He pointed to the shrapnel wound and stated, "This came from a piece of aluminum shrapnel that decided to embed itself in my side," he pointed to the stab wound, "I got into a scuffle with a Merc and the bastard stabbed me," he pointed to the bullet wound, "Barely missed," and finally the surgical wound, "OZ beat me up so bad that I had internal bleeding that had to be corrected surgically. Still, the doc that Heero took me to didn't have much anesthesia and I passed out while he was operating."

Harry's eyes widened as Duo pulled his shirt back down. Duo then held out his watch and pressed a button. A light beamed out of it in a crimson glow. Then he pressed another button and a tiny hologram of himself emerged, smirking at Harry. He was glad that he had kept his watch on when he was brought here.

"Want any more proof?" Duo asked with a smirk as he turned the watch off.

Harry mutely shook his head lifted up his hair so Duo could clearly see the lighting shape scar. He said, "Since you told your story, I'll tell mine. Some parts I don't know or remember, but I'll tell you everything I can of what I know."

Harry's tale, while not as violent as Duo's, was just as tragic. He started with how Lord Voldermort attacked his family while his father tried to fight him off, but ended up dying too. Harry's mom died protecting him, creating some sort of magical shield for Harry that ended up almost killing Voldermort and ended with Harry receiving his lighting shaped scar.

Then Harry was taken by Hagrid to his Muggle aunt and uncle's house to live. There, Harry was neglected, emotionally abused, and over worked. As Harry went on, Duo made a mental note of meeting Harry's cousin Dudley and putting the fear of the God of Death into him.

Magically, around Harry's eleventh birthday was when the owls started with submissions into Hogwarts. That's how Harry had first met Hagrid, the towering half-giant with the heart of gold. Harry was brought to Hogwarts, uncovered where Voldermort was and defeated him.

Duo learned about Professor Lupin, Ringtail, also known as Peter Pettigrew, had betrayed Harry's mother and father to Voldermort, placing the blame on Harry's godfather Sirius Black. He learned about the Triwizarding Tournament, and how he was set up to bring Lord Voldermort back into power.

Harry's green eyes were almost glowing when he ended by saying, "And everyone is more aware of Voldermort now, trying to find him and stop him before he gathers too many forces."

"Any idea on what he's gathering?" Duo asked, suddenly knowing that he had a purpose now. After all, he was pretty good at losing battles.

Harry nodded and answered, "Yeah, all of his Death Eaters, the dementors, and the giants. Hagrid this summer went to go talk to them."

"What's a dementor?" Duo asked, unfamiliar with the term.

Harry shivered as he answered, "A horrid creature that use to guard Azakaban. They suck the happiness right out of you and force you to live your most horrid memories. They feed on grief and fear. They can also suck the soul right out of a person."

"Ack. Remind me that I never want to run into one of them," Duo replied with a frown.

Harry shrugged and held out his hand. Duo took it and Harry said, "I'm sorry I attacked you."

"If I would of been in your shoes I'd be dead right now," Duo replied, smiling, "Thanks for giving me the benefit of the doubt, pal."

Harry turned to the Fat Lady and said, "Peach Pudding."

"Yes, yes, isn't this a little late to be up and about?" the painting grumpily chided as the door swung open.

Duo asked, "A little testy, isn't she?"

"You should see her when she drinks," Harry replied with a grin.

Duo stuttered, "She can get drunk?"

******

Trunks watched from the window as Duo and Harry settled back into their beds. He watched Duo take a few drops of the Sleeping Draught before he went out like a light. Trunks then flew into the room and settled back down in the bed.

He looked up at the roof and wiped the thin film of sweat from his face. His training tonight had been unsatisfactory. A little voice in the back of his head that sounded remarkably like Vegeta was chiding him, telling him that he had to work harder, get better.

Become a Super Sayan again.

It was even more frustrating than training with Gohan and trying to reach it. He remembered his power before the Kai had placed him here, how he defeated his reality's androids and Cell. Now, he barely had the power he did when he was a fourteen-year-old boy.

Then he had blown stuff up today. He knew he had to be careful, harness his emotions, his temper, but there was something about Snape that he didn't like. He didn't think the man was evil, at least not in this present case, but perhaps Snape's striving for his worthy students to be perfect irked him. He had almost an uncontrollable urge to punch the man in the face. Still, he had proven to himself if he created an energy field around himself using his ki he was immune to certain potions.

He wished that his mother was here. Bulma would have scolded him, cooked him a big dinner, and then give him a big pep talk about over coming his problems. He smiled softly as he turned in his bed, remembering his last conversation with his mother.

"So, the Supreme Kai wants you to go to this dimension and protect someone you've never met?" Bulma asked skeptically, one hand on her curved hip as her keen blue eyes observed her son.

Trunks nodded happily and answered, "Yeah, he does. Out of all the warriors in our dimensions he chose ME to do this."

"Trunks, honey, do you know anything about this world?" Bulma asked as she tilted her head and watched him.

Trunks shrugged and answered, "What is there to know? I mean, I'm pretty powerful now. I'm not on Gohan's level or even Goku's, but I could go toe to toe in a fight with Vegeta."

"Thank goodness that your father didn't hear you say that," Bulma replied with a smirk. Still, Trunks saw the wistful expression in her eyes as she thought of Vegeta. He wished he could bring Vegeta back, just for his mother's sake. Despite Vegeta's ego and gruffness, he loved his mother in his own way and she loved him right back.

Trunks leaned over and kissed her smooth cheek. He assured her, "Mom, I'll be fine. The Kai promises me that all I'll be doing is protecting one boy. He also tells me that there are no warriors on my level there, so that this should be fairly easy."

"Still, I just got you back, Trunks. I don't wanna lose you again," Bulma replied, hugging him.

He chuckled and said, "Mom, I'll be back, I promise. Besides, I know that the Supreme Kai doesn't want to piss you off."

"Well, maybe you'll find a girl," Bulma mused with a wicked grin.

Trunks blushed and only looked down at his shoes, groaning, "Mom."

Trunks let that happy thought drift him to sleep.

******

"You mean Duo fought in a war?" Ron asked incrediously the next morning as they walked to breakfast. Harry was lucky that Duo and the twins already walked down to the great hall, discussing different curses. Harry knew that Duo was gaining knowledge to protect himself. Maybe he was even going to go after Voldermort, but Harry was going to do everything he could to stop Duo if he did.

Harry shook his head and corrected, "Duo helped wage a war, Ron."

"How do you know he's telling the truth?" ever skeptic Hermione asked as they walked into the Main Hall, peering at Duo with her keen brown eyes.

Harry remembered the haunted look in Duo's eyes as he told his story. He answered, "Because I just do, Hermione. Besides, his watch."

"What about it?" Hermione asked as she looked at Duo's wrist.

Ron asked, "Does it have some brilliant sort of gadget on it?"

Harry nodded and answered, "Yeah. He pressed a button and there was a red light, like a flashlight, and he even made a holographic projection of himself." He was secretly thanking Dudley for watching sci-fi movies and playing Duke Nukem 3D.

"Wicked, did he do anything else?" Ron eagerly asked.

Harry swallowed and answered, "Showed me scars that made mine look painless."

"What sorts of scars?" Hermione asked, crossing her arms as they sat down.

Harry sat beside Duo, who looked at Hermione. Duo answered, "War scars. Stuff that a pretty lady like you shouldn't see."

"Show us the watch!" Ron enthused as he leaned closer to Duo.

Harry groaned and hid behind his hands. Duo chuckled, "It's okay, Harry. I knew you were going to tell them anyway."

"What makes you so sure?" Hermione asked.

Harry looked up to see Duo grin as he twirled his wand in his fingers. Duo answered, "I know what it's like to have an inseperatable best friend."

There was a loud gasp in the room and the four looked up to see Trunks eating. Ron mused, "I'm wondering why he doesn't bloody choke himself."

Harry gaped, "I'm wondering how he doesn't eat his hands."

"I'm wondering why he needs to eat like that," Hermione murmured as the wheels in her brilliant mind began to turn.

Harry saw Duo's eyes narrow as Hotaru sat beside Trunks as she delicately ate a grapefruit half. They were talking. Rather, Hotaru was talking quietly while Trunks shoveled food into his mouth. Duo gave him a panicked look and asked, "Do you think that she likes Trunks?"

******

"So, Divination, what can I expect here?" Duo asked as he settled down into one of the over stuffed chintz armchairs. At least all of the other classes, except for Hagrid's, looked like classrooms. Duo thought this looked like a cross between some sort of Poor Man's Cafe, Granny's parlor, and an opium den. Heavily perfumed inscents smoked in various corners of the room, and not even inscents that Duo liked, all of the windows were blocked off so no sunlight came in, and the many lamps had dark red scarfs draped over them, making it look like a vampire lair from a bad horror movie.

Duo studied some crystal balls and glared at one of the tea cups. Quatre would have a shit fit in here, Duo thought sadly as Trunks sat down beside him, looking very out of place with all of the tea cups. Still, there was a pack of Tarot cards on Duo's table. So, Duo opened them up and started searching until he found the Death card. He smirked at it while Harry took his other side and Ron sat beside Harry.

Poor Neville almost sent a tea set crashing, but somehow, Trunks was there, holding it in his hands. The lavender haired youth smiled at Neville before setting the tea cups down and Neville grinned broadly and thankfully at him. Trunks gave him the victory sign before he sat down beside Duo.

Ron snorted, "A bunch of hogwash. Still, its fun to make fun of Trelawney though."

"I wonder how she'll predict my death this year," Harry mused with a mischievous grin on his face.

Duo smirked and asked, "She predicts your death?"

"Both years since we've started this class," Harry answered with a grimace, "She's been wrong both years."

Duo looked over beside him at Trunks. Trunks had a grinning, lovely, dark complected classmate clinging to his arm. Duo felt someone tap on his shoulder as he recognized Lavender Brown. "Hey, this is your first Divination lesson, isn't it?" she asked, smiling broadly at him.

Trunks was turning bright red as the girl kept talking to him and holding his arm. He looked as if he was about to faint or bolt. Duo realized that's how Trunks was with every girl, even Hermione. Yesterday she had offered to help him in Charms and he turned bright red and stuttered something. Well, every girl except Hotaru. He treated Hotaru as if she was just another guy.

Duo smiled brightly and answered, "Yeah, it is."

"Wanna be my partner?" she asked, smiling brightly at him.

The dark-haired girl asked Trunks the same question and Trunks squealed, "I'm pairing up with Neville, right?"

Neville smiled as Trunks practically rushed to the round-faced boy's side. Neville said, "Sorry Parvati."

Duo normally wouldn't mind being with a pretty girl who was fawning all over him, but maybe Hotaru was in this class. Not even Hilde had affected him this way, and he cared for her, but this was different. And he barely knew her.

"Oh, dear, there's an odd number of students, thirteen, this year," a soft, misty voice crooned as a tiny woman in brightly colored robes and scarf appeared. She had glasses that made her eyes look several times bigger than what they were and she was so bedecked with jewelry that Duo thought she was going to fall over any moment.

She drifted over to Trunks and looked him over. Trunks looked back, just as curious and confused as she was. She said, "You are descended from a long line of warriors, aren't you?"

"Yeah, how did you know?" Trunks asked, peering up at her with keen blue eyes.

She smiled and asked, "Are you a Cancer, born in late June, early July?"

"Umm, no," Trunks answered, watching her.

She smiled brightly at him and said, "But you've traveled a long way to get here." She then looked at Harry, who in turn, groaned.

She said, "You poor thing. You will experience great hardship this year."

Harry rolled her eyes as she flitted over to Duo. Duo quickly slid the Death card back into the deck and looked up at her with guiltless eyes. She froze as she reached him. A shaky hand reached out and touched his own. He watched for a moment, curious on what she was going to say or do.

"You were born in the winter, with Saturn as your planet, correct?" she asked fearfully.

Duo shook his head and answered, "Actually, my birthday is October 30, the day right before Halloween."

"My dear, Pluto was in your alignment as well as Mars. Death surrounds you like a cloud," she gasped with a shaky voice. Lavender and Parvati gasped loudly and backed away from him. Dean Thomas and Seamus Finnigan looked at him as if he had suddenly sprouted horns that looked really cool.

Harry looked down and snorted. Ron was giggling madly as Trunks suddenly turned his attention to Duo. Duo quipped, "Anything else you can tell me?"

"But it never touches you personally. I've seen darkness, Duo Maxwell," she whispered, pulling away, "Watch yourself here because there are ones that would do almost anything for this power."

With that she drifted to her chair. Duo rolled his eyes and Harry leaned over, whispering, "If she only knew." Duo did smile at that.

******

Hotaru studied her Arithrmancy problem and chewed on the end of her quill. She wished that Setsuna had gotten her into Divination along with Trunks. Still, Duo Maxwell was in that class with his brilliant violet eyes, smiles, sly grins, and his long, beautiful hair. Duo Maxwell with the darkness behind his eyes. Duo Maxwell with his unspoken promises.

Duo Maxwell who spoke to something inside of her, speaking of completion without even knowing it.

Hotaru snapped her quill in her hand. Her dark red ink dribbled on the parchment and she cursed sharply in Japanese. Hermione Granger, one of the people who hung closely to Harry Potter, looked up at her with a kindly smile in her keen brown eyes. She leaned over and asked, "Do you need help?"

"Please," Hotaru answered, glaring at that one problem. She had been able to complete all of the others except this one problem. She picked up her broken quill and pressed her fingers together on the broken ends, sealing them together. With a short spurt of power, the quill was whole again. She licked her lips and shook off the sudden weariness that it caused.

Hermione smiled and leaned closer. She explained, "You twist the twelfth here and place it in the fourth. You then separate them and you should get your answer."

Hotaru did, her eyes widening as she finally had the correct answer. "Thank you," Hotaru told her happily as they signed their names on their work.

Hermione smiled and pushed her curly brown hair behind her ears. She replied, "No problem. If you need any other help, just ask."

Hotaru smiled and said, "I will."

Hermione smiled and asked, "Do you mind that I ask you something?"

"What?" Hotaru replied as she looked into Hermione's keen brown eyes.

Hermione asked, "What was your classes like in Japan?"

"Very intense, but then again, my speciality is healing. I'm planing to be a Healer. My studies were more focused on that than anything else," Hotaru answered, remembering the story that Setsuna told her to tell.

"You may be called upon to heal others here, Firefly. Maybe you should tell them that you're going to be a Healer and you've trained on that."

Hermione asked, "What makes you want to be a Healer?"

"Well, my father was a Muggle doctor before he died," Hotaru confessed, part of it in truth, "And I have a natural talent to do so."

Hermione's expression became very focused and thoughtful as she said, "That's a very rare talent. Few have the ability to heal on their own, but there are healing spells that counter that."

"Still, my guardians want my magical abilities more diverse than just healing and Defense Against the Dark Arts," Hotaru replied, shrugging, "So that's one of the reasons why I was sent here."

The Professor cracked his knuckles and said, "Enough everyone. I suggest heading to your next class, but by our next class I want pages 323 to 328 completed. This is the year you take your O.W.L.S and you must succeed. See you soon."

Hotaru gathered up her books and stood up. She sighed, "That's a lot to get done in a night."

"As he said, our O.W.L.S are coming up. Our studies will be more intense this year," Hermione explained as they walked out of the classroom. Hotaru was glad that their next lesson was Defense Against the Dark Arts then lunch. She wanted to talk to Setsuna again.

As they walked, Hermione blushed as she asked, "My friend, Duo, well, I'm not supposed to be asking this, but are you and Trunks . . .?"

Duo was wondering about her social life and asking if she had a boyfriend? Hotaru felt her cheeks flame as she answered, "No. Trunks is just something familiar. Besides, every other girl that talks to him makes him blush uncontrollably." Still, Duo Maxwell was wondering about her. If the situation wasn't so dire that would make her giddily happy.

******

There was something bothering Harry in the back of his mind. Something so dire that caused him to walk to the owlery and send Sirius a letter. Something about Duo.

He wrote:

Sirus,

Are their any magical beings that can't stand to touch a unicorn? That even a wand with a unicorn hair burns them?

And do you know of a Professor G?

Thanks,

Harry.

PS: Anything about Voldermort?

He gave Hedwig the message and whispered, "Be careful, Hedwig. I know you're smart and have done this before, but I don't want you to get in Voldermort's hands."

Hedwig nibbled gently on his finger before she took flight. Harry sighed and gathered up his books. He then proceeded to make his way up to DADA, wondering how Professor Pluto was going to teach.

******

Duo saw Hermione talking to Hotaru as they walked down the hall. Ron's eyes widened as he leaned over and whispered, "That's the first girl that I've seen Hermione chatting with that wasn't Ginny."

Duo wasn't all that surprised. Intelligent, practical Hermione didn't seem like the type to have a gaggle of girls falling her around or vice versa. Still, Duo was relieved that Hotaru wasn't talking to Trunks.

Speaking of the devil, Trunks tapped Duo on the shoulder. Duo spun around and Trunks asked, "Is Neville around?"

"Um, no," Duo answered, looking around for the chubby Gryffindor.

Trunks breathed a sigh of relief and asked, "If there's going to be any partering up, would you be my partner?"

"Ummm, okay, but why me, what about Hotaru?" Duo asked skeptically, peering at the muscular boy.

Trunks pushed his lavender hair out of his intense blue eyes as he answered, "I need a sparing partner for later. I was going to ask you in this class if I got a chance."

Sparing partner?

Duo's eyes widened as he asked, "What makes you think I'll be any good at sparring?"

"I heard about you disarming Malfoy and his flunkies," Trunks answered with a shrug, "Besides, you speak fluent Japanese."

Duo cocked his head and replied, "So?"

"So . . . Umm, I'm just tired of everyone asking me about Japan and everything," Trunks answered in a rush.

Ron grumbled under his breath, "And having Neville ruin every spell you try."

"That too. Even though he needs help, everyone bullies him," Trunks replied, causing Ron to blink in surprise and turn around at Trunks.

Duo grinned and stated, "Good hearing."

"From my father's side," Trunks replied as they walked into the classroom. He pointed to Harry running in and said, "There's Harry."

Duo leaned over and whispered, "You know who he is?"

"Who?" Trunks asked, lifting an eyebrow as they sat down together.

Duo answered, "The guy who defeated Lord Voldermort."

"But isn't he alive again?" Trunks asked doubtfully.

Duo nodded and added, "He wants Harry dead. I'm not going to let that happen."

Harry and Ron sat down, with Hermione and Hotaru taking seats behind them. Duo was pleased to note that the two ladies were not giggling or pointing at anyone. He started to get out his equipment and books as the rest of the Gryffindors filed in.

Duo heard several of the guys gasp, especially Trunks. Duo turned around to see the tall, voluptuous figure standing in the doorway, her long dark green hair swirling around her till it fell to her knees. She said, "Welcome to Defense Against the Dark Arts. I am Professor Pluto."

To Be Continued!

Whoo, I'm almost done with the plot set up. Thank goodness. Soon we'll have action and romantic entanglements and all sorts of fun stuff.

I took creative liberties and changed Duo's birthday to the October 30. I think original his birthday is like June 26 or something like that. I'm not sure, but it just seemed more sense to have the God of Death's birthday be the Day of the Dead.

Oh, yes, one more thing, calling all fan artests. Got a picture for this story or wanna draw one, please do. E-mail it to me at slaybrat@aye.net. Sometime in the near future I should be building a website and I'd love to have some pictures to go with this story.

Thanks and don't forget to read and review! Comments keep us starving authors alive.