Harry Potter & the Shipgirls

[darthcourt10]

Harry Leferts

"ONEE-CHAN! ONEE-CHAN!"

"Dammit, someone get the kid out of here! Who even lets their kids near these monsters!"

Struggling against his mother's arms, a young human boy reached out towards the three teary Kitsunes, "ONEE-CHAN! LET MY ONEE-CHANS GO! THEY DIDN'T DO ANYTHING WRONG!"

With a sniffle, the one with near blonde hair shook her head, "It's Haruto-Kun, we'll be okay... Just promise your Onee-Chans that you will grow up to be a strong man."

The red haired Kitsune beside her also nodded, "And... and to be kind as always."

Crying, the young boy struggled all the more as he reached for them, "I PROMISE! PLEASE, DON'T GO, ONEE-CHAN! I NEED YOU! PLEASE!"

Each of the Kitsune were openly crying, their expressions stating that they wanted nothing more than to be able to comfort the boy. His last sight of them before they were gone was the three Yokai being roughly hauled to their feet by Aurors from the Magical Diet. Then in a gust of wind, they were gone. The last of the Aurors, their leader nodded towards an older teen with a smile, "Good work telling us about these three. Unregistered Yokai are dangerous after all, both to us humans and the Statute." He then smiled a bit, "You're going to go far, kid."

With another nod, the leader was gone leaving behind an empty home, silent except for the sound of sobs. A glare on her face, the woman glared at the teen, "Ichiro-Kun! How could you!? You know that those three were harmless!"

Adjusting his glasses, the teen looked down at his mother unrepentant. In fact, he had a bit of a sneer on his face, "Harmless? Hardly. The three of them should have been in the Reserves where they belong. I do not know why you and Otou-San allowed those... things, to babysit Otouto and having him call them Onee-Chan?" Shaking his head, Ichirou snorted, "You and Otou-San may not care about our family's reputation, but I do. What I am doing is for our family!"

Now it was his mother's turn to sneer at her oldest, "No, what you are doing is for you and you alone. Not for our family."

Only shaking his head as if she was a child, the teen walked away, "Believe what you will, but Otou-San's reputation in the Diet is almost mud compared to what mine shall be. And I will make it better. Hate me, but in the end I am simply doing what needs to be done to improve our standing."

Unknown to him, his little brother was glaring at him with a look of pure and utter hate in his eyes. He would never forgive his older brother for taking away his Onee-Chans! Never!

And he would also look for his Onee-Chans. One day, he would find them too! Then they would all be happy...

Being shaken, the sixteen year old blinked some and turned as a soft voice spoke, "Haruto-Kun? Are you alright?"

Just blinking, Haruto turned and gave a thin smile to the Yokai next to him as they stood on the shore with the horizon gradually lightening, "Hai. I am alright, Mie-Chan." Looking away, he didn't notice said Inugami blush, "Just... thinking of the past."

A near twin to the Inugami snorted some and grinned before shaking her head, "You need to stop worrying so much about the past, Haruto-Kun. And more about the present." Poking him, and getting a wince, she frowned, "Especially about taking care of yourself."

Hissing a bit, Haruto shook his head, "I'm fine, Ichika-Chan." At her raised eyebrow and crossed arms, which empathized her bust, he coughed, "No, really, I'm fine."

Unseen by him, both Inugami shared a look and shook their heads.

Meanwhile, Haruto continued to look out to sea as he stood on the shore. His eyes continually scanning the horizon, only to blink as Ichika spoke up, "I could send out one of my planes, you know." At his look, she shrugged, "It is getting lighter. Or maybe one of my broomstick riders or even a Tengu. They would be able to spot them."

Biting his lip, Haruto considered what she said, only to shake his head, "No, I don't think so. Too risky, we can't have the Diet find out that you five are here. If they find out, they'll stop at nothing to bring you in at least, and possibly try to kill you in the process for resisting."

Slowly nodding, Mie frowned as she looked at her twin sister, "Haruto-Kun is right, Ichika-Chan. If they even catch a whiff of us being here then many Yokai in the reserve might get hurt just to bring us in."

All Ichika did was scowl heavily before kicking a stone, with it shooting out across the water like a cannonball, "Yes, and that sucks to no end! Those fucking bastards... where were they when Blood Week happened? Huh? When you, me, and the others had to defend everyone! Then once things calmed down, they waltzed back in and stated that they were still in charge! Fuckers... especially..."

Pausing, she bit her tongue at the last moment. However, Haruto had his own angry look on his face, "My asshole of an Onii-San." Closing his eyes, he sighed and shook his head even as his hands clenched into fists, "I can only hope that in the end, he gets his."

Gently, Mie took one of his hands in hers and held it. When he looked at her, the Inugami Carrier only smiled, "Yes, but you, Haruto-Kun, are better then he is. A better man especially, for all your Nii-San has ambition, that is it. You, on the other hand, care for others and have a big heart to go along with your kindness and intelligence."

Lightly blushing, Haruto nodded some, "T-thank you, Mie-Chan." The Inugami in question bowed slightly, but did not let go of his hand, her thumb tracing along the knuckles. For a few seconds, the sixteen year old boy looked her over. Mie wore a rather fancy Kimono, though modified as she her arms were bare for the most part, with a cloak. On her Kimono, one could see cranes and the night sky. Her sister, Ichika, wore a similar Kimono though it was modified so it was mostly a top with a red skirt and white, thigh high socks. Both Inugami though had ribbons around their ears. Realizing that Mie was blushing and chewing her lip from his staring, Haruto looked away, "S-sorry."

Only shaking her head, Mie finally let go of his hand and held them in front of her against her body, "Y-you have nothing to be sorry about, Haruto-Kun."

Unseen by said boy, Mie's sister had a massive grin on her face and was about to open her mouth to tease them both, when she spotted something on her range finders. Blinking, she looked out over the water and nodded, "Ah! Here they come now."

Strain practically bleeding from his body, the sixteen year old turned back to the waters and relaxed as he spotted three forms come into view.

All three of them were Kitsune, though of different colors and their uniforms being somewhat different. What was similar though was their rigging, like many shipgirls it took the form of their bows being split with them standing between the two halves. Even from where he was, Haruto could see two of their three turrets visible as well as their underwater torpedo tubes for two of them. All three of them wore Obi and like with Ichika, their tops were highly modified Kimono, though for two of them cleavage was highly visible which always made Haruto blush some as much as they teased him.

Besides that, they wore short skirts of somewhat different design and color. From what he knew, that was mostly due to differences between their original hulls. But for the most part, Haruto ignored that as he was just glad that they were okay. Upon seeing him, the three Kitsunes' expressions all lit up and they sped up some. Reaching the shore, they dismissed their rigging and hugged him, "Haruto-Kun!"

Wincing a bit, he gave a nod and smiled at them best that he could, "Good morning, Onee-Chans."

Yes, the three were the Kitsune that he knew from his childhood and had been taken to the Reserves. His father and mother had found out where, secretly. The reserve in question being the Ryukaku one, and his father was planning on paying to get them snuck out. But before anything could be done though, Blood Week occurred and it took two years before the Diet was able to reach the island. Most everyone expected those there to be dead, wiped out by the Abyssals. Yet... they were alive. Despite questioning, none of the Yokai ever said how it was that they drove off the Abyssals.

It was years later, when Haruto arrived searching for his "Onee-Chans" that he found out the truth.

The Abyssals had attacked the island reserve with the aim of killing everyone there. But the three Kitsune had turned out to be Natural Borns and awoken alongside Mie and Ichika. Working together, they drove the Abyssals off time and again. The Yokai had realized well before this point what would happen if the Diet found out and hid that fact from them. It had taken Haruto some time searching the island under the suspicious gazes of both the guards and the inhabitants, to find the three Kitsune. As soon as they smelled his scent though, the three had jumped him with hugs...

Hugs which the teenager found were... far more enjoyable then he had as a child, much to his embarrassment.

For some time after, Haruto had visited the reserve with food and the like under the excuse of humanitarian efforts. Nothing big, just rice and the like which he risked his life getting to the town. Unknown to most, it was to meet with the three Kitsune and, later, the two Inugami. It helped that despite the destruction of Mahoutokoro, which Haruto barely escaped as a First Year, he had rapidly advanced in his studies and graduated only a few months ago as a fully qualified medic. His older brother had offered to find him a spot at a prestigious hospital.

Said brother's expression when Haruto turned him down and moved to the Reserve full time was one that he treasured. A wince brought him back to the present though and the Kitsune with the hair the color of honey frowned and looked up to give him a narrowed eyed look. Yes, the three were short, enough so that they had to look up at him despite looking to be around eighteen to nineteen years old. Something that never failed to annoy or fluster them.

At another slight squeeze, the teenaged boy winced again, which made the Kitsune scowl, "Haruto-Kun..."

Coughing, Haruto looked away, "Ah, it is nothing, Hachimitsu-Onee-Chan."

Her arms crossed, Ichika snorted some and shook her head, "Haruto-Kun was bringing in some supplies earlier and the guards roughed him up some." Seeing him give her a look of betrayal, she pointed one finger at him, "If you are not going to tell them the truth, I will."

Tail puffing up, the crimsoned haired of the Kitsune sisters scowled, "Those bastards! If I could, I would kick their asses! How dare they hurt you, Haruto-Kun!"

Lightly laughing, Haruto brought one hand down between her ears and rubbed her head, "Ah, it is okay, Haruhime-Onee-Chan. I'm big and strong after all."

Pulling back some, the blue haired Kitsune narrowed her eyes, "Still, if we get our hands on that bunch..."

Only sighing, Haruto shook his head, "Mikage-Onee-Chan..." Softly smiling, he pulled them into a hug as he ignored the slight ache that made, "Its okay you three."

Just glaring up at him, Haruhime scowled as she tried to ignore how nice the hug felt. How right his arms felt around her and her sisters. Instead, she focused on something else, "We're your Onee-Chans though! It is our job to take care of you just like we did when we babysat you!"

Lips curling up into a smirk, he hummed, "Well, considering that I am bigger then you..."

That got him three flustered Kitsune telling him not to call them short, while the two Inugami simply shook their heads with smiles.

 

[darthcourt10]

Yellowhammer

Debrief

MACUSA Embassy, Magical Chiyoda

Shortly After The Hunt for Norimune.

Delilah de Breuil smirked slightly as she was escorted through the halls by one of the security personnel. Rounding a corner, she saw a rather familiar face next to a young witch waiting by an opened door to a conference room and her smirk grew.

"It has been a while, hasn't it?"

Mary Maleficus gave a nod. "Indeed it has. Follow me for the debrief."

Delilah nodded and stepped inside at Mary's gesture then glanced over at the young witch following Mary as the door closed behind them. "I haven't had the pleasure."

Kisei stirred. "Kisei Suzuki"

Delilah's eyebrows raised. "Ah, I should have picked up the family resemblance. I worked with your grandmother in '48."

Mary pointed to a lone chair on one side of a table. "Swordsman assigned her to me. That said, we are wasting time here."

"True, Mary." Delilah sat herself and then raised an eyebrow as Mary brought out a potion bottle. "Veritaserum then?"

Mary carefully tapped three drops into a water glass. "Yes, orders from Upstairs. Between you and me, New York is furious about what you got involved in. Damn it Delilah, did you have to make such a trash fire?"

Delilah gave a smug smile. "To quote someone I met in 1927 when I asked her that very question, 'It seemed like a good idea at the time.'"

Mary gave her a very unamused stare as Kisei coughed suspiciously.

Delilah sighed as she picked up the glass and the other two took seats facing her. Kisei pulled out a quill and parchment and activated them. "Right, no time like the present. Bottoms up!"

She drank the potion-laced water under Mary's gaze and then closed her eyes. "Standard establishing questions then?"

Mary nodded and fixed Delilah with a considering stare. "Yes, Negative answer baseline."

Delilah smirked and began to speak. "My name is M-mm-mm-aaarrr-y..." Sweat beaded her forehead and she began to shake. "M-m-m-m-aaallll..." She shook back and forth then her eyes snapped open. "Shit...can't do it."

Mary continued to watch her coolly. "Positive answer baseline. State your name and rank."

Delilah nodded. "My name is Delilah de Breuil, Colonel in the MACUSA Corps of Aurors. MI-I-I-Bbbbbb..." Again Delilah began to sweat and shake as her eyes locked on Kisei and her jaw clenched. Her hands balled into white-knuckled fists as she visibly refused to speak and began to tremble violently. Blood began to run from her nose uncontrollably.

Mary leaned forward. "Kisei Suzuki is cleared for UMBER AGATE data."

Delilah gasped out with visible relief on her face as the tension inside her broke. "Special Agent Ocelot!" She worked her jaw, her face pale and then wiped the blood from her face with a handkerchief pulled from a pocket of her skirt-suit. "You could have informed me in advance that she was cleared for my existence, Echidna!" Delilah declared with a furious glare.

Mary matched Delilah's glare. "After what you put us through dealing with the mess at the nomaj embassy, you deserved that!"

Delilah stared into Mary's eyes for long moments then nodded slowly. "Fair enough. I will state for the record, I was unaware that you were present and would have tried to avoid your involvement if I knew of you being here. Next question then."

Mary steepled her fingers. "Purpose of travel to Japan."

Delilah's face froze and her eyes lost focus. Her jaw worked like a machine and then she began to speak in a monotone. "Data requested is sealed with an Unbreakable Oath under CYAN CLOVER security level pursuant to Section 19 subsection seventeen paragraph a-4 of the Magical Secrets Act of 1867 amended in 1885 as follows..."

Mary frowned, then shot a look at Kisei who was staring in shock at the robotic agent reciting bureaucratic minutia. "Unbreakable Oath means that she can't tell us no matter what. Someone high up in Langley or New York had to have laid that on her." Her eyes tracked back to Delilah. "Cease inquiry."

Delilah blinked several times and focused on Mary as her face returned to normal. "I blanked out on you?"

Mary nodded.

"MSA protocols?"

Mary nodded again.

Delilah sighed. "The Great God Security strikes again. I think I am allowed to tell you that my mission was strictly covert contact and observation with no active measures planned or authorized." She hesitated and nodded. "Do you want to tell me what I can remember of events?"

Mary sighed. "Yes. In your own words, starting at arrival."

Delilah leaned back in her chair and closed her eyes. "I left the Woolworth Building via International Floo to the embassy here with my luggage. Nothing illegal, just my standard traveling kit plus clothing. I had arranged for hotel rooms downtown and elected to go nomaj to lower my profile, room 14001 at the Hotel Okura. I also contracted with Jacklyn Fox to assist me in making contact with.." her voice trailed off and she worked her jaw while visibly struggling with herself. "The people who I was supposed to meet."

Mary's eyes sharpened. "Fox is still alive? THE Jacklyn Fox?"

Delilaah smiled smugly. "She is. As far as I know, she is the same person who MIB contracted for activities in the Pacific during the Big One. You know her?"

Mary nodded. "Tell her I owe her for that pickup for me and my team on Los Jardines in 1943. Also tell her I still hold that IOU for twenty Galleons for that card game on the trip back home. And that she can't bluff worth a damn when that drunk on torpedo juice."

Delilah shrugged. "Good luck getting it out of her, although I will pass it along. Anyway, I checked in with the Ambassador and Chief of Station as per normal procedures, then took a cab to Hotel Okura. Future events suggest that a surveillance agent 'made' me upon exiting the embassy, potentially assisted by compromise Stateside before I left. Something for the CounterIntel boys and girls to look into, I suppose. Upon arrival, I secured the room with the normal subtle warding against observation and waited for Fox before going to the first address on my list in the morning. Unfortunately the individual I was looking for had not updated her address since after the War and instead it was a bar containing a nomaj biker gang."

Mary shook her head. "What happened?"

"Fox started an altercation with them." Mary's palm met her face as Delilah smiled smugly. "After incapacitation of the combatants, I performed field expedient Obliviations on all present before departing with Fox in tow ahead of the arrival of local law enforcement. I then proceeded to the second address in Kamakura where I made contact with a friendly native and established an emergency safehouse. Which was used for an overnight stay while letting Tokyo cool down a bit."

Mary fixed Delilah with a basilisk gaze. "So you had not returned to the Hotel Okura at this time?"

Delilah nodded, her eyes still closed. "Correct, I had not. The following day, Fox and I returned to Hotel Okura. Upon entering the lobby, my instincts pinged and I made a five man team waiting for me in the lobby. In addition, upon arrival, the room that I was staying in exploded, although I do not know what caused it."

Mary leaned forward. "TPD forensics found traces of Erumpent Horn in the remains. Your doing?"

Delilah shook her head. "Negative, I did not have any Erumpent horns or associated explosive products, apart from three flashbang grenades and two smoke. To the best of my knowledge, neither did Fox. My theory is someone bungled in trapping the room and I ran into their cover/backup squad."

Mary nodded. "So your room blew just like Budapest in '56. What then?"

Delilah opened her eyes and stared at Mary. "At that point, with a unknown number of hostiles present who had just used lethal force to attempt to box me, I went hot. I ordered Fox to acquire an escape vehicle while I neutralized all enemy agents present with nonlethal but incapacitating damage before Apparating into the back seat of that hideous Civic that Fox had stolen. With the cover of a smoke cloud and mass panic I was confident on breaking contact."

Mary spoke flatly. "Go on."

"Unfortunately, elements of the enemy had acquired a blue SUV with customized charmwork making it immune to bullets and the damaging spells I cast, although I was trying to avoid unexplained phenomena in front of nomaj witnesses. I engaged it in a rolling chase through downtown Tokyo until I elected to dispose of them with a field expedient spell to form a ramp from the asphalt ahead of my car plus a paint transformation charm on one of my bullets to temporarily blind the driver. The plan worked and I last saw the SUV in ballistic flight over the wall of a friendly embassy which had the capabilities to deal with them while I broke contact with nomaj law enforcement and ditched the car en-route to the safehouse. Upon arrival, I laid low with Fox while owling a report to New York to request a mission update considering events. I was informed to come in out of the cold for this debrief."

Mary scowled. "You knew that was the Nomaj US Embassy Tokyo, yes?"

Delilah's lips quirked in a smug grin. "I did, since I had memorized the relevant street maps as part of my pre-mission prepwork. You know how I am about Proper Planning Preventing Piss-Poor Performance, Echidna. In my snap judgement, this mess makes it easier for MACUSA to interrogate the hit squad for data of interest to us and also negotiate with the local government from a position of strength as the aggrieved party holding some of the attackers. Tell me that I am incorrect in dealing a few aces to Uncle Sam in this shitstorm that we can play for leverage with the Diet."

Mary subsided. "I can't refute you and you know it, you smug bitch. We are both too old for this shit. Do you have any idea who the hostiles were?"

Delilah sighed. "Limited info only. The ones I saw were Asian ethnicity, and some of the spells used in the hotel and chase were from a Far Eastern magical tradition. No faces or names that I recognized. That's all I know."

Mary sighed. "Figures. And you haven't been to Japan recently."

"Correct, this is my first trip to Japan since before World War II. The last time before this trip was a conference on potion pricing and import tariffs in 1926. Simpler days."

"Tell me about it." Mary tapped her lower lip with a finger and then nodded. "Let me get the antagonist in you then." She filled the glass with water with a flick of her wand and then pulled out another potion bottle.

Delilah visibly relaxed as she drank the nullifying agent then took a deep breath. "Testing, my name is Kisei Suzuki. Right, it's out of my system." She glanced over at Mary who was reviewing the transcript and notes. "So who were the hit squad?"

Mary sighed. "Preliminaries suggest some ultra-nationalists who think that the country needs a return to the 1930s and telling the ICW to get bent."

Delilah rubbed her temples and muttered. "Fucking great. Let me guess, they also are all about Japanese purity and would be pissed at a halfu, or a nonhuman, or anyone who won't kiss their yamato damashii."

Mary nodded in turn. "That's about it."

Delilah frowned. "Charming. Mary...as I said, sorry for dropping this spitting cobra in your lap. I'll be in country for a while, and if you need backup, call me. I'll give you the number of my current burner or you can reach me through the normal family covert channel. Officially I'm on personal time here and have been encouraged to use the last three decades of accumulated vacation by Accounting."

Mary snorted. "You on vacation? That will be the day! Let's get drunk, tell lies to each other and turn my trainee's hair white with our stories of the good old days."

 

[darthcourt10]

Shaithan

Sisters

Heligoland had been hit hard by the abyssal war. The initial attacks during Blood Week and the subsequent occupation of the island by Abyssals had seen every last person on the island die. Afterwards, the state had bought every last square meter of the island, officially seizing that which was either no longer possible to trace ownership of or where the owners refused to part with land at a reasonable pre-war price.

Scientists had studied the ruins of the Abyssal installation for years, trying to find commonalities with other conquered Abyssal installations.

Various parts had been postulated to be dormant, a theory that had sent down shivers many a military spine. If the installations had dormant parts, what was needed to awaken them again?

The surrender of Wandering Princess and her fleet was seen as a godsend. The scientists had put the idea of settling Wandering Princess on Heligoland forward, Tirpitz had thought that her flottila of DDs may well be used to sweeten the deal.

Things had taken several unexpected turns. One of the first had been Wanko's declaration that while she or Hoppo would have offered a good home to Tirpitz' destroyers if they had come across them before they met Tirpitz, by now, the little ones had a strong bond with their Flagship and it wouldn't be proper to cut this bond.

Upon reporting that back to a smirking Bismarck and Hartmann, Tirpitz had her captain underline and red circle the reminder of extra fuel rations for Bismarck's spawn. As for Hartmann, the base doctor had been tipped off about Hartmann's state of fitness and hearing from Bayern that Hartmann now had to do daily exercises warmed her boilers. Schadenfreude, the most German of joys.

Still, for Wandering Princess, Heligoland had been a good offer. She didn't want to be close to the front lines and while the North Sea wasn't secure, there was a layer of security between her and other Abyssals.

Wanko's boyfriend had thrown another tidbit into the negotiations. There was a magical island near Britain where a magical pest monster lived, the so-called quintiped. According to the man, those monsters were likely results of dark magic and the deed to the island would be ceded to whoever cleansed the island of these beings, as they were very agressive and dangerous. And old contract from the late 1600s stipulated that. When asked why it hadn't been cleansed already, he claimed that both the Malfoys, LeStranges, Potters and Blacks had at various times teamed up in various combinations to get the island. It never ended well and tended to prune family trees.

Britain had supported the idea of putting the princess on Heligoland as it was uninhabited and had been written off for human habitation by Germany, especially when Scapa Flow pointed out that the princess herself was a rather unwilling participant to the war. The main sticking point had been the contract for the deed to the hidden island. Hagrid had procured one and once it became clear that the island would technically belong to Scotland, the headaches had started again. While the highest government officials were aware of the magical world and working behind the scenes on transitional laws as well as having a whole ministry basically ready for creation, there was still unwillingness to openly acknowledge things. Reporters had stumbled across these expenses more than once already and every time things were explained to ensure the story stayed silent, there was an increased risk that someone would decide to run the story anyway. Having to involve a devolved government even more didn't sit well with the British. While it was likely that Holyrood would accept giving up an island they had never even known they possessed and which before an exterminator went over it was basically uninhabitable, it was still another chance to take, another chance that the increasingly fragile statute would come crashing down before those in the magical world who could see were ready to move things into the transition phase.

Nevertheless, feelers would be extended to Holyrood, asking them if they were willing to accept the old contract. If they were, Retribution would be given the go ahead to kill everything that moved on that island.

The final contract was rather short. Modelled on the accords signed between the Northern Ocean Princess and the Southern Harbor Princess and the Supply Depot Princess on the one hand and representatives of various human nations, the contract ceded the island of Heligoland to Wandering Princess as her own, sovereign territory. In return she would continue hosting the various scientists studying the Abyssal ruins, as well as other scientists that may visit the island with valid reason. Wandering Princess and her fleet were welcome to join convoy escorts and would be paid for doing so. She would also receive schooling in various things she was going to need for leading her fleet and territory.

By now, things had settled down. Wanderer's girls tended to patrol coastal waters in the southern North Sea, bringing revenue that way. Heligoland also hosted a few offshore windparks maintained by sailing girls for a second revenue stream stream.

It had quickly become apparent that her fleet was too small, though. After talking it over with diplomats from the EU, she had been given both the blessing for giving birth to new girls and the reassurance that this wouldn't change anything about the Heligoland accord.

With help from Scapa Flow and a few admirals, they had come up with a reasonable number for her fleet that would allow her to keep things running smoothly. It did help that one of the dormant facilities deep inside the ruins was a nursery. Several repair ships had been invited to watch over the process, as for all that Wandering Princess knew how to spawn new daughters, for her it was a completely randomized process and she wanted to ensure her future daughters were well.

Vindictive shook herself while she made her way into the fortress. Things had changed here from the last time she had been there. Two Wa-class transports had been captured near Portugal while the installation princess they followed had been destroyed. Wandering Princess had been overjoyed when hearing that, Wa-classes that followed a moving installation princess tended to have construction material and crews aboard. And, as luck would have it, one of the captured Was had construction equipment, the other had crews. While initially reluctant to release the Wa-classes to Wandering Princess, given their likely origin as human PoWs, it were the Was themselves that had opted for working for Wandering Princess.

Over the weeks, boatloads of concrete and steel had been brought to Heligoland while the construction crews began repairing the damaged sections of the fortress as well as laying the groundwork for more infrastructure, among them dedicated quarters and laboratories for human scientists.

Deep in the fortress complex, the arguably safest spot on the whole island, Wandering Princess paced nervously. She had laid forty eggs, but her eggs worried her. She remembered the eggs of her destroyer daughters, the eggs she had laid now were too small. Scapa Flow had promised to come as soon as possible and, as far as Vindictive was aware, was mere hours behind her.

Coming into the nursery she was greeted by Wandering Princess sitting in the middle of the chamber, eggs arrayed around her, with tubes connecting the eggs to her rigging.

"Well, Scapa is coming," Vindictive said as a greeting, leading to Wandering Princess sagging down in relief.

"That is good to hear," she gave back. "Look, these eggs are too small. I fear they'll come out crippled," she said.

Behind them, Retribution entered the nursery, pushing a massive cart full of food in front of her.

Vindictive boggled as Wandering Princess began scarfing down the food. "I was under the impression that once the egg is laid, all ye have ta do is wait?" she wondered out loud.

Wandering Princess shook her head and pointed at the various tubes. "My eggs stay connected to me and I need to feed them," she explained, before wolfing down more food. "I don't want to risk things by not feeding them," she added as she finished off a lasagna.

Vindictive filed that under interesting tidbits. Abyssals birthing processes were still barely understood, from what she heard the Pacific Princesses didn't need to stay connected to their eggs.

"If you'll allow me, I'd like to take a look at the destroyer eggs," Vindictive asked.

Wandering Princess nodded while wolfing down dumplings.

The new fleet Wandering Princess had set out to spawn was very much a gamble. While she could estimate if it would be a big or small girl, anything beyond that was anyone's guess. Her story of wanting a heavy cruiser and getting a Re-class being ample illustration.

Getting her stethoscope, she listened for the engine sounds coming from the eggs. Scapa would later bring imaging tools so they could have a closer look at the eggs. But for now, the engine sounds and construction sounds were promising. Steady engine sounds like the ones she associated with healthy abyssal destroyers. Malnourishment didn't seem to be a problem either, if the rate at which Wandering Princess devoured food brought to her by either Retribution, Torture or Hellfire was any indication.

Careful to not step on the umbilical cords, Vindictive made her way between the eggs, listening on every one and marking down those she felt needed more attention later one. Especially the eggs for the big girls would need a second look, three of them had incredibly strong engine sounds coming from them.

Packing away her tools she smiled reassuringly. "Well, lass," she began. "The engines sound well, it's the steady sounds of idling engines. Nothin's erratic, everything is strong and steady," she gave her initial findings. "Once Scapa is here, we'll be able to discern why your destroyer eggs are so small. Especially when their engines are as healthy as they sound," she added to the visible relief of the princess.

"That's good to hear," she said slowly.

Vindictive carefully sat down next to the princess. "Don't worry, lass," she promised. "Even if there are problems, you'll not be left alone with them," she added.

Wandering Princess nodded slowly. "Thank you," she breathed. "I think I overdid it with so many daughters at once," she confessed.

Vindictive hugged the Princess. "We should have been able to spot that hatching this many girls might be a problem as well," she gave back. "Don't worry, we'll get through this," she promised.

Several hours later, Scapa Flow made her way into the fortress complex through a large entrance, constructed specifically for visiting installations. The wee lass had grown on her through the months she had spent in her waters. She had been sad to see her leave for the south, but she understood the motive. Her waters were, technically speaking, part of the front line. Abyssal raids through the GIUK gap were not unheard of and Wandering Princess needed time to rebuild her morale, refit her daughters and to process the extensive changes that had happened to both her and her last surviving daughter. Then there was the whole change that the stray destroyers Tirpitz had picked up had undergone. Coupled with the data Hoppo had sent, it had been theorized that even a bog standard I-class could potentially develop a humanoid form.

Stepping from the elevator, she entered the nursery with great care. For all she knew that abyssal eggs were quite sturdy, she didn't want to chance anything.

Wandering Princess set down her spoon and smiled. "Miss Scapa!" she exclaimed happily, while taking care to not disturb the peacefully snoring Vindictive nor tipping over her giant pot full of soup.

Scapa grinned when seeing this, it was good to see Wandering Princess being happy. "Hello, lass," she greeted. "I've come as fast as I could. I've also brought some imaging equipment," she said, bringing out her rigging.

Several fairies began dismounting the rigging while one of her cranes began to lift a massive cylinder up.

"What do you have there?" Wandering Princess wanted to know.

Scapa grinned. "Quite the miracle, really. It's a big X-ray machine. It should allow us to see inside your eggs without disturbing them," she explained.

"Oh, that's good," Wandering Princess gave back happily.

"Now, let's begin," Scapa said as the crane slowly lowered the cylinder, directed by the fairies on the ground.

Once it was over the egg, the fairies stepped back while fairies within Scapa's rigging started the machine.

The only sounds remaining were Vindictive's snoring and the soft whine of the machine.

After about a few minutes, the whine stopped and the fairies went back to the cylinder, directing it upwards and to the next egg.

Wandering Princess looked at Scapa expectantly. "And, what did it show?" she wanted to know.

Scapa smiled lightly. "Patience, wee one," she said. "The picture is getting developed, as soon as I have it, we can look at it. It might be a good idea to wake up Vindictive for that as well," she added.

Wandering Princess pouted a bit, before hunger distracted her and made her turn back towards her soup and shovelling great quantities of food down her gullet.

Scapa watched the princess with wonder. She had barely finished her soup when Torture brought in large meatloaves and mashed potatoes, a meal that the princess set out to devour as if she hadn't just devoured a goulash cannon's worth of soup. She herself slowly stepped between the eggs, lowering her X-ray machine over each one.

By the time she was finished, Wandering Princess had devoured all the meatloaves and mashed potatoes, chased those down with dozens of cabbage rolls cooked in cabbage soup with beef and now she happily munched burgers.

Scapa had her fairies bring out the various X-rays taken while Wandering Princess called in her daughters and gently shook Vindictive awake. Other fairies left her rigging, intent on checking out if what she suspected to be true.

About half an hour later, everyone was assembled. The destroyers were kept informed through radio, getting them down into the nursery had proven to be nearly impossible. In the end, the eldest trio of Haken, Hatchet and Hammer had gone down into the depths of the fortress. They carefully kept to the sides of the room, so they wouldn't disturb their little sisters in their eggs.

Scapa smiled at the assembled girls. "Well, I can open with good news. There's no observable problems," she stated. "In fact, I'm quite sure the girls are going to be hale and hearty," she added, before unfurling one of the first X-ray taken.

The assembled girls craned their necks to see better, while three of Scapa's fairies that had seen the picture before described it to the Ha-class trio.

The picture showed a growing girl enveloped by an abyssal rigging.

The same repeated with the other girls that were supposed to be small ones. While the specifications varied, it tended to be 4 or 5 gun designs. One girl however was an oddity, she wielded 7 guns and 4 triple torpedo launchers all mounted centerline. Her deck was almost completely flush, save for a small bridge tower.

"Well, that's a long boat if I ever saw one," Vindictive commented.

The others could only shake their heads, it looked like RNG had decided to be funny again. All in all, it would be 27 healthy destroyers.

The big girls so far hadn't been any surprises, there were three Ne- and three Ri-class heavy cruisers maturing. There were also two Tsu-class light cruisers.

It were the final five that gave the explanation why the Princess was eating at a pace that would see her defeat the Nine Clanheads Challenge several times over. One was a nascent installation class, Scapa theorized that Wandering Princess taking over the ruins had something to do with it. The second girl was a Wo-class carrier, the third was another Re-class and the final two were battleship types Scapa couldn't readily place. From what she could tell, 3 17" quad turrets. She made a note to thoroughly check the girls over once they were hatched and to send them on to Halifax and either Wanko or Hoppo. Quad mounts tended to be a royal pain and for previously unknown battleship designs? Scapa didn't want to bet on everything going smoothly there.

Scapa gave a small grin. "Well, from what I can tell, your prospective girls are all healthy. A few of them are heavy eaters, though," she said.

Wandering Princess mulled that over. "Won't that make it difficult for me to keep this fleet going?" she wanted to know.

Scapa shrugged helplessly. "We'll have to see, lass. But whatever comes, I'll help you out," she promised.

Wandering Princess fidgeted a bit, she both desired and dreaded assembling her girls as a fleet to do more than milk runs along the coast. With two Re-classes, a Wo-class and two heavily armed battleships, she commanded a respectable amount of firepower. Transoceanic convoys would be easy to secure as most convoy raiders tended to go for badly defended ones. But here the problem of not enough cruisers reared its head again. She didn't want to roll the dice on more cruisers any time soon. The needs of her unborn daughters were neverending and she looked forward to their hatching and no longer having to eat for them as a proxy. And once they had hatched, there were other things to consider. She knew that Retribution would easily be able to reign in her younger sisters, but she would need to impress upon them that each of their elder sisters was to be respected.

Her main worry were her newest Re-class and the two battleships. Battleships tended to be headstrong and while Abyssals had an innate loyalty to their mother, this loyalty was not always as absolute as the one displayed by Hoppo's daughters. Daughters ran away all the time, some even rebelled against their mothers, neither of which Wandering Princess wanted to happen.

Over the next few days, the daughters that had been busy away from Heligoland were coming back. It was estimated that the new girls would hatch at about the same time and with help from Scapa for rearranging the eggs, they had managed to clear enough space for all the elder sisters in the nursery. Of course, they were packed in there in a way even sardines would protest, but it was theorized that it would be good for the little ones to immediately see their elder sisters.

The last hours before the hatching saw a slowing down in the endless feast Wandering Princess had found herself subject to. The princess breathed a sigh of relief. She loved her little girls dearly already, but bringing them into the world had been exhausting. She planned to leave the rest in the hands of her older daughters and sleep for a few days.

About 60 minutes from the first hatching, the first umbilical cords were severed from her rigging. The Underway Replenishment ports closing and her UnRep crews finally standing down from their seemingly unending ordeal.

Vindictive and Scapa made rounds between the eggs looking for the one that was most likely to hatch.

The various older destroyers whispered excitedly whenever Scapa or Vindictive would start listening closer. Torture sat relatively close to her mother, a cigar in each mouth and an extremely grumpy disposition. Of all the sisters, she was the least enthused about getting new sisters. She and Hellfire were hoping for a trip to Japan or Australia as they hoped for a rebuild that would give them a humanoid form. Out on the water, the difference was insignificant most of the time, but in the base, it tended to be more of a hassle. Then again, if, what Scapa, Vindictive and their Mother had theorized was true, one of their new little sisters would be an installation class. A chance of getting their humanoid form at home may well be close. Torture wasn't going to fall for blind enthusiasm, though. She'd let a little sister work her over once it became clear that her little sister knew what she was doing.

Hellfire sat before the Night Sisters. The little ones were the most excited to meet their little sisters and considering how much they had loved to dote on Retribution, the little ones were set to be spoiled.

Retribution brought the last meal for Wandering Princess, a modestly sized lasagna.

While she made her way over to her Mother, something made her pause. A cracking sound from one of the eggs, an egg that immediately found itself the center of attention.

Cracks began to appear on the black surface, whoever was inside seemed very insistent on getting out right now.

With a final, high-pitched crack, the egg opened to reveal the little installation.

Her rigging began stretching itself, unfolding the cranes, runways and artillery platforms.

The girl herself stretched languidly, her spiked tail swishing lazily and her cat ears listening for the various sounds in the room.

Wandering Princess stood up and went to her newborn daughter. "Hello, little one," she greeted. "What's your name?" she wanted to know, while gently patting her head.

The installation looked up at her mother, purring under the ministrations. "I am Fortress Island," she introduced herself.

Wandering Princess smiled happily. "Welcome, daughter," she said before realizing something. Fortress Island was distracted and following her gaze it was clear by what. The lasagna seemed to hypnotize the little one. "Wait until your sisters are hatched, then we'll all eat together," Wandering Princess gently ordered.

"Mau," Fortress Island pouted, but she followed the instruction.

The hatching seemed to have kickstarted things. Several eggs started developing cracks and the first destroyer girls began to hatch.

Wandering Princess took great care to caress each of them, to ask their name and to guide them towards their sisters. The Night sisters immediately started talking with their newborn sisters, telling them of the world that awaited them.

Torture and the Ro quintuplets tried to keep their gruff demeanor, but under the assault of over two dozen pairs of destroyer eyes, resistance was futile.

One thing did worry Wandering Princess, her daughters were quite willing to mingle with the destroyers and light cruisers, but so far they gave Retribution quite a bit of room.

Her thoughts were distracted by the first of the cruiser eggs hatching. It was one of the Chi-class cruisers. And just as the first Chi-class was about to hatch, her sister did her level best to catch up.

Wandering Princess had to blink when the girls broke out of their shells. The usual Chi-class form was there, but her girls had wolf motifs on their rigging, the elder of a wolf trying to eat the moon and the younger of a wolf trying to eat the sun. They wore wolf skin capes and wore the wolf jaws as hats. "Welcome, little ones," Wandering Princess greeted them, reaching out to pat both of them on the head. "What are your names?" she wanted to know.

The elder grinned. "I am Moonchaser!" she announced proudly.

The younger mirrored her elder sister. "I am Sunchaser!" she declared just as proud.

"And together we're the Dread Wolves!" they finished together.

Wandering Princess smiled at her daughters' antics. She was sure they would get along fabulously with the Night Sisters. "Welcome, my daughters," she said happily. "Let's introduce you to your sisters," she added, leading them to the Night Sisters who immediately started talking to their newest little siblings.

The next ones to hatch were the Ri-class cruisers. And unlike the Chi-class, they bore no readily apparent surprises

All three of them immediately sought out Wandering Princess upon hatching, eagerly awaiting headpats.

"So, what are your names?" the Princess wanted to know.

"I'm Riot!" the first one declared proudly.

"I'm Rival!" the second introduced herself, trying to get closer to her Mother to get more headpats, an action that saw her getting growls from her sisters.

"My name is Rigour," the third said slowly. "Now excuse me, we need to have words with Rival," she added before dragging her sister back and chiding her unseemly display of craving affection this badly and being unwilling to share it.

Wandering Princess had to facepalm when she heard Riot exclaim "Wait, you're a Tsundere!" at her youngest sister. That right there promised to be a delicate balancing act. At least it seemed like Rival had been made to understand that trying to monopolize affection was a bad thing she shouldn't do.

The next girls to hatch were the Ne-class cruisers. Again, there were no visible surprises. All three of them seemed somewhat overwhelmed and Wandering Princess shuffled Nefarious, Nebula and Nemesis to the I-class sisters. They happily allowed them to sit down next to them and lean on them to relax a bit. With all the various girls talking in the room, the noise level had risen quite high.

Wandering Princess had returned to the last eggs. The Wo-class was the next to hatch. Wandering Princess went over to her daughter and gently lifted the big piece of eggshell that sat on her daughter's hat off said hat.

"Wokyuu~!" the young Wo-class cooed in thanks.

"What is your name?" Wandering Princess wanted to know while looking her daughter over.

The Wo-class took off her hat, giving her mother big eyes. "I am Wonder," she said softly.

Wandering Princess happily reached out and patted her daughter's head. So far things had gone well, her daughters had all accepted her and that was important. Silently, she waved Retribution to her side.

Retribution immediately went to her Mother. She knew that the last three of her younger sisters would be the diceyest ones. Of the Re-classes she had met, not one had not immediately challenged her. So far only one of these meetings had turned violent, in every other case, posturing had been enough to establish a pecking order.

The battleships were the first to hatch. And while a few of the destroyers had entered the world with a bang, the battleships broke out of their shells rather violently. Their tails stood on end, the guns swivelled to and fro. Both girls hissed loudly and the maws on their riggings opened and closed.

Wandering Princess stepped towards them. "Welcome, my daughters," she greeted them.

Both girls fixated on her for what seemed like an eternity. Slowly, they relaxed, their guns lowered and they moved forwards to hug their mother.

"What are your names?" Wandering Princess wanted to know.

"I am Tyrant!" the elder introduced herself.

"I am Typhoon!" the younger followed.

"Those are good names for battleships," Retribution commented.

Both Ty-class battleships looked at their elder sister. Part of them wanted to challenge her, but pretty much every other part ganged up on the impulse and beat it to death. They could see their elder sisters humongous guns, could feel her sheer presence. For all that they knew in their steel that their Mother held them, their elder sister felt older than their Mother.

"It is a long story, my daughters. One you will get to hear soon enough," Wandering Princess promised.

By now, only the Re-class egg remained. Contrary to the expectations, the young Re-class broke her shell in a very deliberate and controlled manner.

Once she had made her preparations, simple stretching broke the shell and the assembled sisters could see their youngest.

Slowly, the Re-class got up and moved towards Retribution, before plopping down next to her sister and looking up at her. "Sister?" she asked slowly.

"Sister!" Retribution confirmed.

Wandering Princess stepped to her youngest daughter. "What's your name, little one?" she asked one last time.

The Re-class looked up at her Mother with a smile. "Mama!" she said happily. "I am Retaliation!" she introduced herself, gladly accepting the headpats before she went to hug Retribution.

Retribution wrapped herself protectively around her little sister while Retaliation tried her best to maximize contact with her elder sister.

Wandering Princess smiled when seeing how utterly Retaliation trusted her big sister.

The various onlookers cheered the display of sisterly affection.

After a while, Scapa Flow cleared her throat. "I think it would be a good idea to use the showers," she remarked, leading to many an embarassed cough.

From the ceiling, her fairies began lowering showerheads and fairies and specters began hosing down the various newborn girls.

After about thirty minutes, the last girl had had her shower and it would now be time to leave the nursery. Yet, considering how long it had taken to get everyone into it, it promised to be a difficult endeavour.

Scapa Flow grinned widely. "Well, girls," she began. "I am a harbour," she continued. "Ye know what a harbour can do?" she asked.

The various girls around the room were quite puzzled and none could see the connection.

"A harbour harbours ships. So why shouldn't I be able to do the same?" Scapa exclaimed. "I'll need a bit of room," she said, leading to the girls retreating to the walls as much as they could.

Scapa stood in the center of the room, slowly stretching her rigging outwards. "Okay, humanoid destroyers and cruisers first, please," she announced.

The various girls made their way over towards her and, at her urging and reassurance, stepped on the rigging, seemingly shrinking in the process.

"Everything is as it should be!" Scapa reassured the others.

One by one the girls entered the rigging, until only the non-human destroyers and the heavy units were outside.

"Okay, I need you girls to help your elder sisters into my rigging. Without water it's difficult for me to embark or disembark them," Scapa explained.

Carefully the Re-classes and Ty-classes helped their sisters into Scapa Flow.

After almost an hour, they were done.

"Now, hop in," Scapa encouraged the remaining girls, who did so.

Slowly pulling her rigging closer together, Scapa smiled. It was a rather time-intense way of moving a large group around, but considering that the other option would have been to try and move the same group through two exits, with only one big enough to accomodate the non-human destroyer bodies, she was sure that overall, they had saved time.

After deploying the cleaning crews that would clean up the nursery, Scapa carefully stepped into the elevator.

The elevator groaned, but moved. The line betwen girl and harbour was a very fine one this time, she would need to convince Wandering Princess to not use that nursery again. Whoever planned it either hadn't thought of having DDs down there or had started construction of the Nursery before deciding that it needed to be well-defended and not thinking deeply about accesibility.

With the elevator coming to a stop, she made her way out of the fortress into the harbour.

Moving into the middle of the harbour, she deployed her rigging once more, focussing more on the harbour than on the girl part.

Unlike the embarking, the disembarking went considerably faster, with several groups sailing out of her rigging at once. Vindictive acted very put-upon over getting transported like that, but Scapa just knew she'd brag about it later.

On shore, her fairies had assembled a feast for the newly born abyssals, a feast that every last one of them was looking forward to, even Fortress Island who had actually snatched the lasagna.

There was something to celebrate right now. Other things could wait. For now, it was good to see the older Abyssals dote on their younger sisters.

-x-x--x-

This killed my sleep cycle. It's almost 4 am. Why am I doing this to me?

I'll get around to naming all the destroyers and giving them their own traits.

 

[darthcourt10]

Harry Leferts

Eventually though, the four had to separate from their hug, though not before the three Kitsunes made their ire at the issue of their height being poked at known. Something that Mie and Ichika smiled at, having long figured out that it was a sort of game. Haruto would make a comment about the height of the three Yokai, and in turn they would become both irritated and flustered by it. Their "Revenge" though never went beyond words or finger flicks alongside fan whacks.

Looking him over, Hachimitsu hugged him again to his surprise before she nuzzled the sixteen year old's chest making him blush, "I'm glad that you're okay, Haruto-Kun."

More than a little confused, the teen looked down at the Kitsune's head, "You're glad that I'm okay? Why? You and the other Onee-Chans were in more danger what with needing to head out at night to fish. An Abyssal could come across you or one of the guards."

With a simple sigh, Hachimitsu looked at Mikage with a frown, "Mikage-Chan? If you would?" With a nod, said Kitsune shipgirl reached up and whacked Haruto in the forehead with her fan, getting a yelp, "Thank you."

A grimace on his face, the wizard rubbed here the folded fan had hit him, "What was that for?"

In response to his question, he got another finger flick to the forehead from Haruhime this time, "What was that for?! We're Yokai, not to mention shipgirls! We can take a bit of injury." Sniffling a bit, she shook her head, "But you're a human on that little boat of yours..." Clenching her hands, the red haired Kitsune glared at him, "Every time you head between here and the mainland we worry that the Abyssals might catch you!"

Sighing, he pulled them all into a hug once more, "And I'm sorry about that. If there was another way..." Gently, Haruto kissed them each between the ears before shaking his head, "Someone needs to bring in supplies needed. And the guards either can't or won't besides what they themselves need. Besides which..."

To his surprise, he felt two more pairs of arms reach around him in a hug and blinked as he noticed that both Ichika and Mie were now hugging him. The second of whom gave a sad smile, "Besides which, us shipgirls need a lot of resources to keep going. Which you have been supplying."

Beside her, Ichika smiled some, "Which we're thankful for..." Then she stuck out her tongue with a somewhat disgusted look on her face, "Though I wish that it was in another way then what you've been doing."

Also grimacing, Haruto shook his head, "You and I both. But it is the only way to keep you all going for as little resources as possible." He then gave them a soft smile, "If I am able to do this much? I'm happy. Besides which, any Abyssal would need to be able to catch me first and I've mapped out the islands between here and the mainland. So if I need to apparate somewhere, I can." Then the sixteen year old gave them all looks, "An option that you guys don't have."

Haruhime summoned up all their thoughts as she frowned, 'Baka.' Then she looked up at him and scowled some, "Still! Worrying your Onee-Chans like that is not good either!"

Lightly laughing, he ruffled her hair, "Sorry." Checking his watch, he shook his head some, "We need to get going before it gets too light out."

Pulling back, Ichika looked herself over with a sigh, "And we need to get changed into more normal clothes. Because otherwise a guard on patrol might notice what we're wearing and ask questions." Eyes rolling, she grumbled a bit, "What I would not give to be able to wear these clothes all the time! I mean, they're really nice..."

With a look at her own clothes, Mie hummed, "Yes, they are quite nice... I am rather thankful that awakening as a shipgirl gave them to me."

As the others gave their own agreements, Haruto shook his head before gesturing towards some rocks nearby, "You can get changed over there while I stand guard."

The Yokai walked past him towards the rocks, with Hachimitsu calling out, "Don't go peeking now~"

Rolling his eyes, the teenaged boy turned his head, "Trust me, I won't..." He trailed off as he turned to find that all three Kitsune's tails had moved in such a way that he got glimpses that made his face burn as he whipped his head back around, 'Dammit! Dammit! Don't be thinking of them like that! They're my Onee-Chans...' A moment later, one thought surfaced, 'Well, Onee-Chan figures as we're not related. And that was...'

Needless to say, he smacked himself in the head though.

Behind the rocks, Mie gave the three Kitsune a look, "You three are terrible, you know that?"

An expression of pure innocence on her face, Mikage blinked wide eyes, her sisters doing much the same, "What do you mean? We've done nothing terrible."

Only shaking her head, the Inugami sighed, '... Kitsune.'

Changing out of her clothes, Hachimitsu smirked as she noticed that Ichika was giving her a thumb's up behind her twin's back. Internally though, she was sighing, 'Hopefully, Haruto-Kun realizes soon enough that we do like him that way. Granted, if we can break him of the issues he might have...' Briefly, she had the image in her mind of cooking with an older version of the teenager embracing her from behind before the dream her tilted her head back as Haruto descended... Feeling heat in her cheeks, she shook her head with a slight smile, 'He really has grown into a true man, just as he promised us. One that I am proud of.'

She gave a glance to her sisters who seemed to share her thoughts and all three grinned with the same thing running through their minds: 'Though we won't wait much longer if he doesn't make a move...'

Haruto suddenly blinked and looked around as he felt a shiver go down his back. Shaking it off, he sighed a bit and looked up at the sky in thought even as he kept an eye out. Internally though, his thoughts were on a different track. Oh, Haruto knew how they really felt for him, all five of the Yokai. That they cared extremely deeply for him, possibly even loved him, though he was only less certain of that fact then he was of his own feelings.

After all, he was not an idiot nor a fool.

There was also the fact that he also knew that he would be lying to himself if he did not admit that he returned at least the attraction to them as they were beautiful. In fact the most beautiful in his mind out of all the young women he had ever met. Even when he was younger, it was the three Kitsune that he compared any girl he had met against. For them, for the promise he made with them, he had worked hard. He had studied as much as he could, pushed himself to his limits. Which showed as he had became a qualified Healer at the young age of fifteen years old.

Once he was a qualified Healer, and thus able to enter the Reserves under an old law on the books, he began his search for his beloved Onee-Chans. The three girls that he looked up to so much. No one could really stop him as the law stated that a Healer could choose to set themselves up in the Reserves as an official to help out the Yokai. It was just that no one really had because it was considered a dead end for any career.

In fact, the only ones that the Diet had sent were the ones who had caused trouble for them.

Upon his arrival, Haruto was met with suspicion. After all, the other Healers who had come and gone were more often than not of the type that would have gotten them tossed from any hospital. Hence, they were certain that he was more of the same...

But Haruto had not cared about that and settled in to do his job best that he could. By day, he would work helping out in what ways he could. Not just as a healer, but also as a resident. When night fell, he returned to the guard quarters on the island to sleep before the next day renewed his search. Hoping... always hoping that his Onee-Chans were still alive somewhere in the Reserve.

And then, one day... he was healing a child's broken arm and had just finished when he had heard a gasp. Turning, he was met with the sight of Hachimitsu there with her hand against her mouth, eyes tearing up. At the time, Haruto was also struck by one simple fact that he had not realized from his memories...

She was beautiful.

When he was reunited with the other two, he had much the same thought as them, even as they all cried. Even with their eyes red from tears and snot coming from their noses as they blubbered, he had thought that he had never seen any girl more beautiful then they were. Shortly after, they introduced Mie and her sister, Ichika. And, eventually, they let him in on their secret when he had come to realize that for some reason they were starving. Which he had fixed best that he could.

Time had passed and the Kitsune had begun to tease him, which he had at first subscribed to them fitting themselves back into their "Onee-Chan" role for him. Perhaps it had been like that at first, but that changed over time and their teasing had taken on a flirting tone from time to time. And those times had become more and more common. Often, he teased them back and, before he knew it, he had realized that he loved them.

Or, rather, realized that he had always loved them.

Not just them, but also Ichika and Mie as well soon enough. He had even moved in with them, sharing the same hut which, while crowded, had become home because they were there with him. Even now, his thoughts strayed to images of them with him. They came when he was asleep, and when he was awake. At times, there was nothing that Haruto wanted more than to sweep them up into his arms and kiss them, something he thought that they also wanted. But...

At the same time, there was one small problem. When he had been younger, the three Kitsune had been his "Onee-Chans", and there was still some of that there. Yes, they were not related in any way. But there was still a disconnect between how he had seen them as a young boy and how he saw them now that he was becoming a young man. One that he struggled with every time it came to his thoughts. And those thoughts were coming to him more and more often.

Especially when things like what had just happened occurred, which he could not force from his mind. Or when he held them close and felt their bodies against his, their scent tickling his nose. Then there were the times when he had heard them laugh, or when they teased each other, sometimes with Mie caught in the crossfire and blushing as her twin laughed, which also turned his mind to the Inugami. Something that the Kitsune not only did not seem to mind, but seemed to actually encourage.

Sighing, Haruto glanced at the boulders and shook his head, 'Yeah, I love them dammit.' He then rubbed the side of his head as he softly muttered to himself, "Dammit... dammit... dammit. What the fuck am I going to do... They're my Onee-Chans, but they're not related to me and neither Otou-San nor Kaa-San actually adopted them into the family. So there is no actual connection in that way. And I love them. But..." Finally, he let out an explosive sigh, "I got to make a decision..."

Before he could though, he heard Haruhime call out, "Okay, we're done now."

With a sigh, he turned and nodded, "Good to hear..." Trailing off, he nearly choked a bit and felt his face heat up as all three Kitsune wore cut off jean shorts as well as t-shirts. While most of those in the reserve wore more traditional clothing, like Mie and her sister, others wore cast off modern ones. The sight of their legs bare made Haruto gulp a bit, and when he looked at their faces, he could see the twinkle of amusement in their eyes... as well as something else. Taking a deep breath, he put a smile on his face, "So, time to head home then?"

Coming up beside him, Mie hooked her arm around his, while her sister did the same with his other side. An action that made the three Kitsune pout as the Inugami smiled, "Yes, it is time to head home."

Moments later though, the three Kitsune walked a bit fast in order to be in front of him. Something that made Ichika roll her eyes, though her lips curled in fond amusement as she noted that Haruto was unable to keep his eyes up. It did not take them long to walk over the crest of a hill revealing the main town in the reserve, ramshackle as it was. Noticing a cart filled with wood heading to a warehouse, Ichika nodded, "So you brought some wood back then?"

Just nodding, Haruto looked at her, "Hai, and it wasn't that hard to get." Shrugging, he shook his head, "There are a lot of wooden pallets out there brought in one the convoys. And no one looks twice if you buy broken ones on the cheap... which take only a reparo to be fixed. You can get a lot of wood from them and, well..."

Looking over her shoulder, Mikage gave him a smile that caused him to blush a bit, "Wood which has gone into repairs for homes and the like here. And everyone is thankful to you for bringing them in." She then chuckled a bit, "Well, for that wood that can be used for rebuilding. Anything that can't be used for that is good for fuel." Glancing around at the treeless island, she grimaced, "Which helps out a lot."

That brought a nod from Mie before she looked around at the treeless island and sighed. According to the old stories, once there used to be large forests. But with the amount of Yokai in the reserve, they had been cut down for building material and fuel. Now there was barely anything left. Something that she found sad, 'I wonder what it had looked like...'

Meanwhile, the Healer gave a wave towards an elderly Itachi who waved back with a smile before some laughing children passed by them. Shaking her head, Hachihime glanced around, "We got to visit the Ponds first."

Simply nodding, the group of six headed towards "The Ponds" and reached them. Once, they had been used as dry docks before the end of WWII when the Kamo Government had used the Yokai in the reserve as a workforce. Afterwards, they had fallen into disrepair until after Blood Week. The Yokai had used netting at the mouth of the dry docks so that the seawater could enter and leave. Inside, Haruto could see fish going about here and there, fish that were added to as the three Kitsune brought large containers filled with live fish in water and lowered them into the flooded dry docks.

Once the fish were out of the buckets, they returned the buckets to their holds. In this way, the town had a fresh supply of food just in case. Other fish were dropped off with the fisherman except for the very few the Kitsune kept for themselves, mainly for Haruto... because they had another way of supply.

Entering their home, they watched as he pulled out barrels which he poured into jars. Each one was filled with thick, brown liquid... old cooking oil from untold non-magical restaurants. With some transfiguration, he transformed the used cooking oil into fuel oil and poured them into five other barrels. Taking one that was full, Hachimitsu put in a rubber pipe and began to suck at it. She was soon joined by the others, all of them with grimaces on their faces.

Finally, she pulled away and took a deep breath, "Okay... all done refueling." A disgusted look on her face, the Kitsune shuddered, "Ugh... what I would not give for real food."

Lightly smiling, Haruto chuckled some and brought out a small bag of rice, "Well, give me some fish and I'll make something up." Taking the fish that was given to him by Mikage, the others inside the freezer she had within her, he shook his head, "At least it keeps you going."

Just flopping back, Haruhime grunted, "Sure, it keeps us from starving. But that doesn't stop it from being utterly disgusting just the same. We know where this stuff is coming from after all."

Only shaking his head, the wizard began to cook a small breakfast for all of them. As he did so, Ichika crawled forward until she was leaning against him, back to her chest, "So, did you get all the supplies that you wanted?"

Nodding, Haruto glanced at her, "Hai, I did. My clinic now has been refilled with antiseptics, rubbing alcohol, bandages, and the like. I'm just thankful that with how restricted potions are that I can make use of No-Maj items for replacements, even if they're not quite as good."

When he winced a bit, Ichika frowned before grasping his shirt and lifting it, giving a hiss at the sight of the bruise in his side, "Is that why...?"

However, he shook his head, "No... at least not wholly." At their looks, Haruto sighed, "It... they keep suspecting me of smuggling things in with the No-Maj items. This time they dragged me into an interrogation room to try and get me to spill while Sunada-San was watching over my cargo. Pretty sure that I know who is pushing them though."

Scowling, Hachimitsu shook her head, "I'm sure." Then, her expression became gentle and she gently placed one hand on the bruise as her ears drooped, "But that you go through this for us..."

Moments later, the teen placed his hand over hers and smiled, "And I don't mind." Meeting each of their eyes, he nodded, "You're all worth it."

Each of the female Yokai blushed at that, but Hachimitsu didn't move her hand from where it was. Instead, she leaned against him and closed her eyes as he continued to cook.

 

[darthcourt10]

Tackweld

A wild update on the Cowes summoning saga appears!

-----------------------------
Part 7
Sadly, due to my complete lack of artistic talent, on this side of the fourth wall we will never get to see the poster Francis made.
--------------------------
The next afternoon, Ron had convinced Francis to play some World of Warships. Previously, Francis had little desire to download the game, but Ron suggested that it was basically a harder game of chess. The two were face cam skyping like when they were playing chess.

"I don't know, Ron," said Francis, "What Nation would you recommend to a beginner?"

"Welll..." replied Ron, " I am rather obviously biased to the British. The ships have interesting quirks, but it is the line I know best. So, you could start with that, or we both could play a new nation."
Francis was puzzled, but didn't say anything. " Harry has been on my case for awhile to do the Japanese tech tree."

Francis was even more confused, and this time he spoke up. "Wait, who is Harry?"

"Harry is Harry Potter-Nagato, adoptive son of the Japanese battleship Nagato. He goes to school with me. He grew up on a Shipgirl base, and has been exposed to Shipgirl chaos in much higher concentrations than I have. He is a very close and loyal friend, but he is a bit odd."

Francis did not ask for further clarification on "Odd", but he did ask another question. " So, that means, by adoption, Harry is family to both a Japanese battleship, and via his adopted little sister an Abyssal Princess, an Entire fleet of Abyssals?"

Ron replied with a simple "Yep." as Francis struggled to get his brain to process that.

At that moment, the download concluded with a slight "ding" from Francis's computer.

Francis sighed and rubbed his forehead, brushing aside his rather long, too long in his opinion, brown hair. "So, lets do the Japanese tech tree then. How do we set it up so we can get into the same battles?"

Ron looked away from his camera and clicked a few things. " I will need to enter you into my friends list. What is your gamer tag?"

Francis looked at the piece of paper he wrote it on. " ArtistOfWhight, each word is capitalized, no spaces." A few seconds later a popup appeared in Francis's WoWs window. " Is your tag "R.W. CME. ?"

Ron looked slightly embarrassed, "Yeah, I couldn't think of a good one, and Warspite suggested it."

As Ron and Francis played their first match in the Hashidate, discussion turned to their various projects. Ron spoke for a short time on the things that needed to be done on his next gift for Warspite and Duke.

Francis then mentioned the poster he was working on.

Francis had, by this point, pinned an enemy cruiser between himself, Ron, and the edge of the map.

"CDV Cowes hired me to make a poster."

"A poster?" asked Ron, "What is it for?"

"Here, take a look." Francis held up a paper copy so that Ron could see it. "The Civil Defense Volunteers want to attempt a Shipgirl summoning." Replied Francis. "They want to see if they can get some of the ships that were built here. The big problem, next to needing the Navy's approval, is to fund the whole thing."

At this point, Francis finally reduced the enemy cruiser he was shooting at to a hole in the water.

"First, good job on that kill, Francis, you are learning fast! Second," Ron continued. " Usually, from what I have heard, private summonings usually do not even ask for the Navy's approval, I am happy to hear that the CDV are sensible."

"Actually, according to Grandfather, Cpt. Ewart said that the Mayor would not support the attempt without the Navy's approval. I hate to ask, but......."

At this point, their allied battleship put down the last remaining ship on the enemy team.

"You are wondering if I could get Cpt Ewart in touch with someone who could give their approval?" Asked Ron. "I will do one better." Ron opened Shipgirls Online on another tab. Once he had found out that Harry was a moderator, and under pressure from Warspite and Duke, Ron had joined. A few seconds later, a message was sent, and in a matter of milliseconds Warspite's phone chimed. Ron had the response he needed before Francis had even closed the battle results screen. Ron then typed a number into their skype text chat. "This is Warspite's number, She would very much like to speak to Cpt Ewart."
At that remark, Francis nearly fell out of his chair. He was amazed.

----------------------------------
What do you think?

Feedback is always appreciated.

Tackweld

 

[darthcourt10]

Harry Leferts

Last patient of the day having left, and having secured all the medicines, Haruto was looking through a folder on his desk as he wrote on a sheet of parchment. It was not the only folder either as there was a number of others as well. All patient files that he had made during his time as the Healer in the Reserve. Close at hand was a clipboard that showed what medications and such he had used that day which was also compiling by lamp light. Leaning back some, he looked at the papers on his desk and shook his head in some disbelief, 'First day back after a supply run is always busy.'

About to continue his work, he jumped a bit as two hands came down on his shoulders, "Haruto-Kun?"

Placing his hand against his chest, Haruto turned to find Mie there looking at him, "Mie-Chan? What are you doing here?"

Lightly blushing, the Inugami gave him a shy smile, "Sorry for startling you, Haruto-Kun. But it is getting rather late and the others sent me to get you."

Haruto opened his mouth to say something and blinked as he realized how dark outside it had gotten. Eyes widening, he looked at his watch and cursed himself before shaking his head, "Sorry, Mie-Chan. I lost track of time..."

Only looking at the papers and folders, Mie shook her head with a gentle expression on her face, "That is okay, Haruto-Kun. We all know that you work hard after all here." Tilting her head to the side some, she shook her head, "But we don't want you to overdo it..."

Rubbing his face, the Healer shook his head, "Hai... but then, I am the only Healer around dammit. Kami..." Quickly shaking it off, Haruto turned and began to put the papers into their folders and the like, "Just give me a bit to put these away."

Mie gave a slight nod as she stood there, "Of course." She stood there and watched as he took each file before placing them into a weather beaten group of filing cabinets. As he did so, the Inugami turned shipgirl considered the young man in front of her. Young man, because she could not see him as a boy, not after all that he has done for them and the others in the Reserve. At first, her and the other Yokai had seen him much like they had with other Healers who came and went in the Reserve. Most stayed for, at most, a few weeks and left as soon as they could. Even though they met him with suspicion and such, he continued to do his work.

And then, an epidemic of Cholera happened on the island and attitudes changed towards him.

While the guards retreated to the main outpost of theirs on the island, Haruto was in the thick of it, trying to help as much as he could. For days, the new Healer had worked himself to near collapse as he worked to save lives. One of the things he brought was information regarding ways of keeping those sick hydrated with some solution that used water, salt, sugar, and some bananas which he had fought with the guards to get. Mie as well as her sister and the three Kitsune were some of those that helped him as he worked.

One day, she had been shocked when she came across him using an eye dropper to drip some of the potion given to him to prevent from being sick into the mouths of several infant Yokai, only taking some of the daily doses for himself. And she had not been the only one to catch him doing so either. Mie could still remember him giving her a tired smile when she had asked why...

"I'm a Healer and I swore an oath. They might not give me enough potion for everyone, but I can help some of them... and I am a lot stronger then they are."

Not everyone though, could be saved even with his efforts. But those around at those times could see how it tore at him. And every time, he helped dig the graves, or comforted those who were left behind. The fact that he treated the deceased with respect, only increased that which those there had for him.

The epidemic had almost burned itself out when she spotted him sway and then collapse from pure exhaustion. Her and the other Yokai had rushed him to her home to recover. It took him nearly three days to do so, after which he was right back at it until the epidemic was finished.

Since then, the Yokai on the island had treated him not just with respect, but as one of their own.

While there was a death toll, it had been a lot less then what most had feared at the start. One of those saved was Mie's and Ichika's own father, who they were certain was going to die and join their mother on the other side. But he had been saved, and it was around that time that Mie and her sister began to fall for the young Healer. If there was one thing that Inugami looked for in their prospective others, it was loyalty and dedication, something that Haruto had in spades. Neither her nor Ichika were too bothered by the fact that the Hachimitsu and her own sisters were also after him, despite how normally Kitsune and Inugami did not get along.

Everyone needing everyone else working together had pretty much beaten that issue out.

Blinking, Mie shook herself out of her thoughts as she watched him close the filing cabinets with a sigh and walk over to the magical sink. Quickly washing his hands with No-Maj antibacterial soap, he dried them with magic. Looking over at her, he shook his head, "Sorry about this, Mie-Chan."

Only smiling, she shook her head, "You have nothing to be sorry about."

Haruto took a deep breath and blew out the lantern before shrugging, "Still, you didn't need to wait for me, you know." Summoning a ball of light over his hand, he gave her a smile, "But I really appreciate it."

Just shaking her head, Mie hummed, "I don't mind at all, Haruto-Kun."

Soon enough, the three left the small clinic, though Haruto looked back in before he closed the wooden door. It was not too impressive, one waiting room with a smaller one in the back where he performed examinations. All of it old and worn, though he always started the day with cleaning it to make sure that it was good. Closing the door, he locked it before turning and extinguishing his light. One thing that the Reserve as a whole did was perform a blackout, not that there was much issue there.

Looking up at the nearly Full Moon, he let out a sigh and nodded, "It's a lovely night out."

Beside him, Mie nodded as she was easily able to see in the semi-darkness, "Hai, it is." Placing her arm through his, she began to walk alongside him, the Healer trusting her not to bring him astray. As they walked, the Inugami began to chat with him, "... By the way, Ayane-San asked that I thank you for the fabric that you brought. She's already hard at work with it."

Remembering how the Jurogumo in question had reacted when he had first brought her spools of thread and the like, he shook his head, "Really? It is just canvas, nothing to write home about."

Eyebrow raised, Mie wagged a finger at him, "To you, perhaps. But to her? It is something that she can use to either patch or make new clothing with that will last. And that is rather important." Getting a chuckle, she smiled, "Still, she was thankful for it and wanted me to let you know that."

Just shrugging, Haruto rubbed the back of her neck, "Well, as long as she does make use of it, that is what matters in the end, right?" At the nod he could see in the Moonlight, he smiled himself, "I'm glad."

Head tilted to the side, Mie shook her head. Instead of saying anything about that though, she continued to chat with him as they walked. At one point though, she shook her head, "You put yourself at risk to bring in toys?"

Blushing at the light rebuke in her tone, though he knew that there was some pride as well there, Haruto rubbed the back of his neck, "Well... it is getting close to Christmas. And I know that they're not much..." Sighing, he looked down some, "The Kami know that they're mostly cheap things..."

Moments later though, he blinked as he felt a warmth on his cheek. Turning, he stared as Mie pulled away from where she had given him a peck on the cheek. All the Inugami did though was smile, "That is more than enough, Haruto-Kun. The children will be happy for that."

It was not long afterwards that they reached their own little hut. Yes, it was not impressive as the place his family called home. Nor was it as comfortable as the Guard Quarters on the island. It sometimes got chilly on cold nights, and hot and muggy in the middle of summer.

The roof even leaked some when it rained.

For Haruto though, none of that mattered as it was home on the island. And that was for one main reason as it was where the three Kitsunes he had called Onee-Chan lived as well as Mie and Ichika. That made it far better then anywhere else he could have stayed.

Entering, he smiled some, "Good evening, everyone."

Seconds afterwards, he blinked as a wooden spoon whacked him on the forehead. Mikage had a scowl on her face as she placed her hands on her hips and reached as high as she could, "Haruto-Kun! Why are you so late!?"

About to answer, he was beaten to it by Mie who giggled some behind her hand, "Ah, I found Haruko-Kun working hard in his clinic."

More giggles escaped her as he gave her a look of betrayal. Yet again though, the wooden spoon thwacked him on the head and drew his attention back to a very irritated Kitsune, "I have almost half a mind to not give you any dinner! Worrying your Onee-Chans like that."

Before she could react, he pulled her into a tight hug, "If I say sorry, will I still get dinner?"

A blush on her face, Mikage looked away, "I'm not sure about that..."

However, behind her, her tail was wagging furiously while her ears twitched. More than that, she leaned more into him which made him smile as well. From where she was seated, Hatchimitsu gave a huff while crossing her arms, which drew Haruto's eyes to her chest before looked away, not seeing the slight smirk on said blonde Kitsune's face, "Hmm... maybe we should to teach him a lesson..."

Ichika hummed some and leaned forward, "But, Hachimitsu-Chan, if we do that then he won't enjoy the meal that we cooked for him." Her smirk became a grin, "And we would need to deal with his growling stomach all night."

Mock giving it some thought, the Kitsune nodded, "That is a very good point." Then she smiled and gestured at the table that was set up, "Come and have dinner with us."

Deeply bowing, Haruto gave a sigh almost of relief as he let go of Mikage, "Thank you for forgiving this lowly soul." Glancing up, he smirked a bit as all three Kitsune as well as Ichika were blushing, 'Got you.'

Looking away, Haruhime grumbled a bit, "Saying such things..." She then snorted some, "A lowly soul you are not, Haruto-Kun." Her expression softened some, "We just wish that you would not worry us so much and take better care of yourself."

Once more, Haruto bowed a few times, "Hai, hai, sorry about that Onee-Chans."

Simply rolling her eyes, Hachimitsu patted a spot beside her, "Now, come and sit. You do need dinner to keep your strength up for all the work that you do."

After he sat down, he was not surprised when Haruhime plopped herself into his lap, the other two Kitsune leaning against him as they talked of their day and he spoke of his own. That night, he laid awake in the futon with Mikage sleeping on top of him, Hachimitsu and Haruhime on either side of her, Meanwhile, Mie and Ichika slept against him as well, the three Kitsune between them. Looking at them as they made soft sounds, he smiled and closed his eyes before sleep claimed him with one final thought...

'This is truly home and I am blessed by the Kami.'

With that, he drifted off into dreams filled with things like the Yokai sleeping alongside him in his family's home, little children running here and there with laughter filling the halls.

 

[darthcourt10]

Yellowhammer

Operation: BUTTERKNIFE (Prologue)

Guernica, Spain, 26 April, 1937
Spoiler: As the Clouds of World War II gather...

"Nice to see that the rain has passed, no?" The middle-aged man with graying hair and one corner of his mouth turned up in a permanent grin with a scar glanced over at the woman who was with him as he adjusted his armband with a three pointed red star then lowered his hand to rest on the butt of his revolver.

"Yes it is, Jacques. Just in time for the farmer's market." The blonde with him, stepped aside to allow a group of farmers to lead their laden donkeys past them. Idly one hand caressed the hilt of an ornate rapier that she wore opposite a pistol along with her own armband.

Neither one commented about the thunder from the east. Both of them were veterans of the Great War, and knew that the thunder there was the man-made sound of the hungry guns drowning out the screams of wounded and dying men where the Republican and Nationalist armies grappled.

"At least we can get something to eat that is not monkey meat or worse from a ration tin." Jacques joked as they stopped in front of an abandoned monastery, then turned to look at the blonde as her eyes narrowed and grew distant.

Softly she replied, "You wouldn't say that if you had to survive on raw monkey and rainwater for a week hiking through a rain forest. Be thankful"

Jacques snorted. "Another one of your stories, Dove? Pull the other one, it has bells on it."

Colombe turned and stared him in the eyes. "Jacques. We first met during that big attack on Le Mort Homme near Verdun back in 1916, right?"

The man nodded as he fumbled out a dirty pack of cigarettes..

"That was twenty years ago, right?"

Another nod as he pulled out a cigarette.

"If you met me for the first time today, how old would you say that I am?"

The Frenchman frowned thoughtfully as he looked at her. "Twenty...maybe twenty-five years old? You have aged well, Dove. Found the Fountain of Youth like in those bourgeois fairy tales?" He barked a laugh. "Children's stories."

Colombe sighed. "Nothing so simple, although I wouldn't be surprised if the Fountain of Youth exists somewhere out there. Jacques. I haven't aged a day since Louis XV was on the throne before the Revolution."

The Frenchman stared at her, his unattended cigarette drooping between his fingers. "Merde! Impossible!! That would be..."

Colombe smiled smugly. "Magic? Exactly. To plagiarize one of my youngest sister's favorite authors, 'There are more things in Heaven and Earth, Jacques, than are dreamt of in your Marxism.' Let me give you a light." She snapped her fingers and a flame formed on her fingertip.

Numbly he lit the cigarette and took a deep drag. He spoke in a shocked voice "Then that night where it seemed like the dead came to life and swarmed our lines...."

Colombe nodded somberly as she waved the flame away. "Magic too. Of the darkest and foulest sort."

"Merde." His eyes were distant and haunted. "I could live without knowing that. But why...?"

Colombe gave her friend a compassionate look, "Tell you about it? Because if you didn't come to my aid despite the sorcery worked that night and get that Inferi off my throat, I wouldn't have made back it to my sword to plug the hole in our lines. Verdun might not have made it if Le Mort Homme fell that night. You were there, you know how close that it was. You are owed the truth that sometimes, it is the common person who makes all the difference in the world with his courage and heart. People like you, my friend."

Jacques shook his head. "Right. That still doesn't explain why you are here as opposed to doing magic things."

Colombe bent to the door and traced a fingertip on the padlock holding the doors shut. "Because the PCE communists plan to burn this monastery to celebrate May Day, according to what you told me about the last Commissars' council meeting."

Jacques shrugged and spat. "Right, and so? It is just a monastery established by some aristo or another."

Colombe's eyebrow twitched as she popped the now-unlocked padlock open. "True. But this is where any magical artifacts from here may be stored. And between me and you, some artifacts react extraordinarily poorly to fire. I'd like to do a survey and grab anything that needs disposal to handle it in a way that won't result in a demon rampaging through the streets say." Silently she added 'and to grab anything worthwhile for my collection. Delilah and Jackie both have birthdays coming up.

Jacques blinked as she opened the door. "Wait, wait, demons exist?"

Colombe nodded as she slipped inside. "For all practical intents and purposes, yes. You would be surprised at the kind of shit a budding Dark Lord will summon."

He followed numbly. "Unh-hunh. Werewolves?"

"Oui. Transform on the full moon too. Silver bullets are a myth though, although decapitation works well if you ever have to fight one. Don't get bitten." She closed the door behind them.

Jacques shook his head as she headed toward the library. "Right, next thing you will tell me is that vampires exist like in that gothic novel."

Colombe shrugged. "Supposedly they do, or at least that's what my Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher said back in the day. Never met one since not too many are from around here, they are more native to Eastern Europe. Poland, Russia, Romania, Hungary, that part of the world. There's a reason Stoker set Dracula in Transylvania and I have wondered sometimes if he was tipped off by those in the know. Never been out that way, maybe I should one of these days when I have nothing better to do."

She entered the library and then chanted in Chinese, sketching a sinuous arc with a fingertip. A smug smile spread across her face as her eyes seemed to glow.

"You make it sound like you are some kind of wandering hero like King Arthur's Knights, or the Paladins of Charlemagne, Dove." Jacques said, leaning against a bookcase.

"That...actually may be more true than I thought when you said it." Colombe responded absently as she moved to the back wall and stared at the bookcase covering it. She then blinked and focused on one of the codex Bibles in the case. "Now that's some clever spellcraft."

"What is?" Jacques wandered over and then frowned as Colombe drew her rapier and sketched a circle with the point.

"Sach Dekhakar!" The book flashed and then expanded slightly as Colombe smiled smugly. "Someone in the past was a naughty boy. This isn't a Bible at all, but a book of knightly poetry enchanted with a few spells. Orlando Furioso, or if you don't speak Italian, The Rage of Roland..."

She flipped through the codex. "Well well, best keep this safe just in case there are any boobytraps in it. I'll just put it here..." She stuffed the book into her magically enspelled backpack.

Displaced air cracked behind them.

Colombe and Jacques' heads snapped around to see a figure standing in the middle of the room with his head bowed and a blackthorn wand in his hands.
Spoiler: A Dark Stranger

"Pasibaisėjimas!" The man hissed out as his head rose and his wand sketched out a hex.

Colombe's hand froze an inch from her hilt as her mind whirled and footsteps closed with her. In the distance she could hear the sound of aircraft engines.

Before her was that old monk from Japan speaking to her. She heard his voice echo in her head.

"Never again shall you meet your father, for you have failed the test."
Spoiler: Confrontation in the Library/Leitmotif

The sound of gunfire caused her to blink and refocus. Somehow Jacques had pulled his pistol free and emptied it into the advancing wizard.

The Dark Wizard staggered and then gave a happy smile. "Brave and strong... but only human. No challenge at all."

With that his free hand moved like lightning and Jacques' head flew from his shoulders in a crimson fountain in front of Colombe's horrified gaze. The wizard then licked the blood from the longsword he had produced, his eyes half-closing in bliss.
Spoiler: The sword

"Bâtard!" Colombe moved in a blur as her rage at seeing a friend's death overpowered the terror spell. The wizard staggered as her strike landed as she flash-stepped past him and turned.

Half of his wand fell to the ground, cleft cleanly in two by Muramasa steel. In the distance an air-raid siren began to howl.

Furious crystal blue eyes met cold steel gray, and then the figure smiled happily, revealing a mouth full of fangs.

"Fräulein, you shall pay for that."

He shifted into a Ochs stance from the German school of fencing, leveling the point of his bloody blade at her face.

Colombe gave a nasty smug smirk and gestured with her free hand, forming a ring of fire spinning around it as she in turn shifted into a ready position with her blade held low and to his left in septimus.

"I was just about to say that. En garde!"

With that she flicked her wrist, throwing the flaming chakram at his face. Instinctively the wizard cast a shield spell, deflecting the ring to slam into a bookcase and set it on fire. This diverted his attention critically for a crucial half-second as Colombe blurred into motion again, her point snapping from septimus to quartus to thrust for his face as she went low to high under his guard with a flash-step assisted lunge. Only his instinctive flash-step to the side prevented her from impaling his head instead of only ripping open his left cheek from mouth to ear with her point.

For an instant, the only sound was the crackle of the spreading fire and the drip of blood as the combatants faced each other again. Then a siren began from overhead and both sets of eyes widened in shock.
Spoiler: STUKA!

"Ritterabschirmung!!" "Testudo Magna!!"

A segmented geodesic dome of golden energies sprang to life around Colombe as a crackling ghostly set of plate armor with a black cross on a white field blazoned on it surrounded her foe.

The the bomb released from a Ju-87 Stuka of the Condor Legion as part of the Bombing of Guernica exploded in the street just outside and interrupted her duel.

 

[darthcourt10]

Harry Leferts

Taking a deep breath, Lycoris let it out with a sigh. 'You can do this...' Feeling a hand slip into hers, fingers intertwining, she turned and blinked as her eyes met the brownish red ones of her girlfriend, "Kisa-Chan?"

A slight smile on her face, the Abyssal War Demon shook her head, "You can do this, Lycoris-Chan." Leaning a bit, she gave the Abyssal Princess a kiss on the cheek, "I know that you can."

On Lycoris' cheek, a dusting of red appeared as Abyssaragi smiled. Moments later, a black gloved hand placed itself on her shoulder. Turning, Lycoris found Aircraft Carrier Water Demon smiling at her, "As do I, Lycoris-San."

With another deep breath, the Princess nodded, "Right! Let's do this then, Lycoris will do her best."

Hearing a giggle though, she blinked and looked at Abyssaragi who seemed rather amused about something. But the Destroyer War Demon just waved her off, and instead, Lycoris knocked on the door. A few seconds later, Goto's voice came through, "Come in."

Lycoris then gripped the door handle and opened it to reveal a conference room there. Glancing to the side, the Abyssal could see a coffee machine as well as a tea machine. While part of her wanted a drink, she instead walked over and bowed to the Admiral who stood and bowed back, "Teitoku."

Chuckling, Goto gave a nod though he seemed amused by something, "Lycoris-San, Abyssaragi-San, Naitokurēn-San, it is good to see you. And thank you for coming..." He then gestured at the seats, "Please."

All three Abyssals walked to the table across from him and sat down while Niiyodo took orders for drinks and brought them over for all there. While sitting there, Lycoris let her eyes trail across each of those there. Besides Goto himself, Nagato and Ooyodo were also there, likely as his Secretary Ships. However, they were not alone either as she could also see Yonehara and his Secretary Ship, Akagi-Maru as well. The converted Merchant Vessel nursing a coffee as she looked over some paperwork, every so often gesturing at what was there to Yonehara who glanced at it.

Eventually, they all had drinks and Niiyodo smiled some at her older sister before bowing to Goto and getting permission to leave. Once she was gone, everything was silent for a time. Taking a sip of his own coffee, Goto set it down, "I assume that you have an idea as to why I asked for you to come to this meeting."

With a nod, Lycoris frowned, "The Refugees."

Slowly nodding, Goto sighed some, "Yes, the Refugees." Placing his hands on the table, he stared at them for several moments, "First, the good news... from the checkups over the last few months, we can be sure that they are safe. They don't seem to be in any further danger from the implants that occurred, though we may watch them for... some time."

Relieved, Abyssaragi's shoulders slumped, "That is good to know..."

A slight smile on her face, Naitokurēn smiled at her fellow Abyssal Demon, "Very good to know." Turning back to the shipgirls and Demons, she nodded, "You do not know how much that takes off our minds."

Just chuckling, the long Battleship shook her head, "No, I think that we do." Nagato then gave them a slight smile, "Mainly because we felt much the same way once it was confirmed."

Thoughtful, Lycoris though furrowed her eyebrows, "But you said that you may be watching them for some time." Eyes meeting those of Goto, she frowned, "Why?"

Meeting her eyes, the Admiral sighed, "While we are sure that the implants will not harm them, it would be ill advised not to keep an eye on them in the future in case something does crop up, unexpected as it may be. There are some... concerns, to say the least."

Each of the Abyssals stiffened at that with Abyssaragi frowning, "Concerns?"

Ooyodo placed her hands on the table, "Nothing too bad, we think. But it was something that Doctor Norihara noticed about two weeks ago. I am sure that you know of..." Glancing at the files in front of her, she nodded, "Andy?"

Confused as to where this was going, Naitokurēn gave a slight nod, "Yes, he has a disarmed Re-Class tail grafted onto him... why?"

The Light Cruiser took a sip of her coffee and set it down, "Four weeks ago he was playing on the base jungle gym and managed to hurt himself. In fact, he gained a cut on his head that bled until it was stitched up." She made a gesture with her finger were it was, "In two weeks, it was healed and the stiches were removed, but Doctor Norihara noted that the scar did not look right and took a small sample."

Grimacing some, Nagato continued, "She then examined the scar tissue only to find that it was Abyssal tissue instead."

Eyes widening, Lycoris choked a bit, "A-abyssal tissue?! How?!"

Nagato shook her head some and looked at the file open in front of her, "Doctor Norihara believed that the Abyssal tissue... devoured the human scar tissue that formed, taking its place there. Human scar tissue is dead tissue after all, but that is currently the only real theory we have to explain it. Hence why there needs to be continued observation of those harmed by Research Princess."

After the three Abyssals nodded, Goto glanced at Yonehara who had a look on his face, "As you also know, we have been seeing if we can perhaps reunite them with their families."

For his part, Yonehara sighed and rubbed his face, looking much older than he actually was, "That... has fallen through."

Her throat feeling like it was being constricted, Abyssaragi swallowed, "B-but why...? They did nothing wrong."

Growling in a way that reminded various people of his wife, Yonehara clenched his fists, "Because some people out there are fucking morons." At the looks, he sighed and rubbed his forehead, "I... we did interviews with their families. Some of those who do want to meet with them, turned down taking them in. Not because they hate them, but because they fear what might happen to their families. Some were worried about what would happen if the implants one day went out of control, or lashed out. Others... were worried about how other people might go after their family to get at those experimented on. I can't even say that they're wrong to worry over it because some people so hate Abyssals..."

Beside him, Akagi-Maru gave a nod, "Some outright stated that they wanted nothing to do with them due to being part Abyssal now... including stating that their relatives were dead and what the children were was simply something possessing their corpses and pretending to be them."

Utterly horrified, Lycoris stared at her before closing her eyes, feeling the pinpricks of tears at the corners, "No..."

Also tearing up, Abyssaragi shook her head, "They... but they did nothing wrong. Just because they were experimented on doesn't make them bad. All of them, they're good children and teens. None of them would hurt someone."

With a sigh, the Admiral glared out the window, "Hai, I both know and understand this. The issue is... other people might not. But it gets worse."

Chuckling bitterly, Naitokurēn shook her head, "How could it get worse? Some of their families hate them, others fear them. What could be worse?"

For several moments, no one said a thing, but then Nagato spoke up, "There were some who wished to take them into their custody. But a number of those acted... oddly, to say the least and we placed them under observation and investigation." Her eyes seemed to glow with anger, "We were not going to make a mistake, not with this... and if we had handed them the children in question, we would have."

Scowling, Goto looked ready to kill something, "While it appeared on the surface that they were totally accepting of them, and wanted them, a large number of those families it turned out were planning on... dealing with them. Likely psychological abuse as well as emotional due to hating Abyssals. But at least one was caught planning a..." Silent for a few seconds, he looked angrier then any of them had seen him before, "Let us call it what it is, torture and murder with the excuse of claiming that the child ran away. They were going to involve some through online methods as well, which is how we caught on."

Just shaking her head, Ooyodo sighed, "With that, we really cannot take the chance. Not just for humanitarian reasons as we could be placing them within hands reach of those who want to harm them. But also due to politics as well as such a thing would be a nightmare to say the least. Especially if, in defending themselves, they lashed out. Hence why we cannot give them back to surviving family members though we are offering visitation."

Her shoulder shaking, Lycoris sniffled some before looking up at the group. She could see in both their expressions and eyes just how much they hated this, how disgusted they were with the situation. That, perhaps, was a good thing as it showed that they were trying to do what was right.

But that still did not make her feel any better.

Instead, she looked at each one with a shake of her head, "What do we do now? They..."

Getting up, Goto walked around the table and placed one hand on her shoulder, "While this is awful news, it is not the end. We have... one other possibility. One that will see them grow up happy and carefree as possible. And where they won't be hated. You have my word that I will not abandon them and neither will those around this table. Admiral Richardson as well as Admiral Settle and several others are much the same. What happened to them was horrific and they should not suffer due to the crimes of another."

Simply blinking, Lycoris took a deep breath and let it out, "Thank you..."

A few hours later, Yonehara walked into his quarters to find that dinner was almost done. While he at first he didn't want any food, the smell was enough to make his stomach growl. Instead though, he walked into the kitchen to where Ashigara was at the stove cooking, her tail sweeping through the air as her ears twitched as he sighed, "I'm home."

Turning, she gave him a smile, "Welcome home, Love." Ashigara then took in how he looked and the fact that he went straight to the fridge and opened it before pulling out a can of beer, "Bad?"

With a sigh, he walked over to the table and sat down, "The worst." Popping open the beer, he took a deep drink of it, "Had to break the news to Lycoris about what happened."

Ears drooping, Ashigara shook her head, "Those poor children." Scowling a bit, she snarled, "If I got my hands on those bastards who were going to do what you told me..."

Just waving her off, Yonehara grunted, "You don't need to worry about that, they'll be taken care of."

Still cooking, Ashigara gave him a glance, "We could always adopt one or two of them you know. We have the room and between the two of us, well..."

Lightly smiling, the Captain shook his head, "I won't deny that I didn't consider it when you brought it up, Ashigara-Chan. But..." Scratching his neck, he grimaced a bit, "We could only take one or two of them. What about the others? Or any siblings? Besides which, we're both pretty busy with things anyways as it is. Even your Nee-Sans would not be able to take them all as much as they would want to." Taking another sip, Yonehara smiled a bit, "Though Plan B could work out well enough. It will just take some agreement..."

 

[darthcourt10]

Savato93

It was… strange.

It looked like a life preserver ring painted red, with a set of basic limbs, two horns, and a mouth without lips. It waddled around on its little feet, exploring the room and picking up random objects, waving brushes and sheets of paper around—all seemingly without eyes.

Was she still sleeping, or something?

"What the heck…" Fluffy mumbled, struggling to comprehend the sight obscured by her heavy eyelids.

The creature seemed to have heard her—twisting around, it threw its little hands up in the air. "Skapati!" It chirped happily.

...Okay, she HAD to be dreaming.

Grumbling, the Princess rolled over and returned to sleep.

XXXXXXXXXX

"Is that the last of it?"

Marble twisted around to look into her open hold, silently counting the articles of loose furniture removed from the O'mega. "...I think so."

Standing on the water just off the aft-end of the ship, Sunny held up her arms, her demonic rigging mirroring the gesture. "Alright, sweetie, come on over here and I'll help you down. Don't want to risk hurting yourself tumbling over the side, after all."

"Okay!" The Oku-class carefully waddled over the sloped aft deck, the claws at the end of her flippers digging into the steel as much as they could to keep her from sliding. Once she got close enough, Sunny's rigging gripped Marble's lower body and carefully lifted her up, bringing her the rest of the way down into the water. "Thanks, Aunt Sunny," Marble said brightly, as she swam in a little circle to confirm everything was working as it should. "And… sorry, if I left claw marks on the boat. I didn't want to fall."

Sunny waved her off. "Think nothing of it. It's much better that you mess up this hull, than to have your own get messed up. Besides, we're going to be restoring this ship for a while— fixing any scrapes you made is just one more bullet point on an already very long to-do list."

"If you say so…" Marble looked back to her cargo. "So what will we do with all this furniture? It's all in pretty bad shape."

"Well, Sonata will probably want to hang on to the stuff that was in her old 'throne', especially that massage chair. But the rest…" Sunny ribbed her chin. "We could have Uncle Harry restore everything with magic, if he was okay with that. Otherwise, we'll probably just break it down and use the materials to make new furniture for the ship…"

"Sunny!"

The pair looked over to shore, where Patty was waving for them. "What's up, sis?" The Demon asked.

"Regalia brought home a note from Admiral Goto. He wants to speak with the heads of the fleet, said it was something urgent."

Sunny arched an eyebrow. "Huh." She turned to Marble. "You think you can take that stuff to the storehouse and unload it all yourself? I can grab someone to help you if you want; otherwise, I've got to head out."

The Oku-class shook her head. "No, I can handle it. Could you maybe bring back some milk for me, though?"

Sunny grinned. "Sure, I can do that."

It was only after they made their way to shore and went their separate ways that Marble realized something:

Wait, we have a storehouse?

Drat. She had no clue where that was. Maybe she could ask someone?

Shrugging, Marble plodded along the path to the housing area. As she reached the square, she found herself looking at an unfamiliar sight: a small group comprised of several destroyers, a cruiser, her aunt Renita, and her partner Fluffy, all huddled around Aunt Ruadri.

What was this all about?

Ruadri looked up and smiled at the sight of the curious Oku-class drawing near. "Oh, hello, Marble. Already finished helping Sunny with the yacht?"

Marble nodded. "Pretty much, yeah. Everything's off the boat, just need to unload it from my hold."

"Well, in that case," Ruadri gestured to the small group of Abyssals sitting down around her, "How would you like to stay and hear a story?"

XXXXXXXXXX

"Hello, ladies..." Admiral Goto nodded to the Abyssal sisters as they filed into his office. "You all are looking particularly lively, compared to the last time we met."

Tanith gave a brief nod. "Thank you, Admiral. Now that much of the stress we endured as fugitives is gone, many of us are feeling pretty good about our future."

"I'd say," Ooyodo said off to the side, a small grin on her face. "I almost didn't believe Nagato-san when she said you all had brought home a genuine ghost ship, until she showed us the bodies. The disappearance of the O'mega was one of the biggest mysteries-at-sea in recent history, before Blood Week. She was state-of-the-art for her time… and now, she's all yours."

Sonata wiggled a hand. "Well, she's not quite state-of-the-art anymore… but we're going to rectify that. And with installations on hand, we think we can get around ninety percent of the restoration work done no problem."

"If you'd like, I can see about setting you up with a reliable woodworking company. I'm assuming that decking and wood furnishing are the ten percent you can't do yourselves…?"

"Perhaps we can talk yachts at a later time," Ritou cut in. She turned to Goto. "You had something important you wanted to speak to us about, Admiral?"

The admiral nodded. "Yes, that's right." Reaching under his desk, Goto pulled out a folder and set it in front of the girls. "Do you recall the Abyssal hybrids? The prisoners that Mad Scientist Princess was experimenting on, before the Abyssal clones broke out and brought them to safety?"

Several of the girls' expressions turned sour. "Yeah, we remember…" Sunny answered softly. "Those poor people… are they doing alright?"

Goto gave a light shrug. "As well as they can, given their circumstances. They're gradually adjusting to living with their… changes… and are being given regular checkups to ensure their health. With your mother's assistance, we're fairly confident that the implants shouldn't inflict any further harm."

There was a small sigh of relief from the Abyssals. "It's something, at least," Ritou said. "They can't go back to being normal, but... they still have a life ahead of them."

"Which, unfortunately, brings us to the reason we asked you all here," Ooyodo signed. "The refugees… we can't find a home for them."

Ritou's eyebrows shot up. "What!?"

Goto nodded solemnly. "The refugees are… in a difficult spot. The disfigurements inflicted on them are, for the most part, impossible to hide; they have very clearly been altered by their contact with the Abyssals. People will be free to draw their own assumptions when they see them, and the risk of being discriminated against—of being labeled as subhuman freaks, or Abyssal monstrosities—is very much real, regardless of what the official reports will state."

Goto and Ooyodo could see the blood visibly draining from the sisters' already pale faces. The threat of being hated, simply for being different, was not a foreign concept at all for them. No, they were very familiar with this particular form of racism… and they had firsthand experience to the tragedies that could unfold, when it couldn't be stopped. "But… b-but what about relatives?" Sunny stammered. "They have to have someone, that could give them a home without judging them... right…?"

Ooyodo shook her head sadly. "We thought the same thing, at first. But after we did some investigations... those relatives, a lot of them now hold grudges against the Abyssals for murdering their family. If we let them take care of the refugees… they may take out their aggression on them."

A look of horror slowly crept onto Sunny's face. "You mean… they'd be abused? Like Uncle Harry?" Her sisters began to look between one another, terror in their expressions.

Goto and Ooyodo grimaced. "Much as I don't want to make that connection… yes," the Admiral said. "I don't think we need to tell you that the last thing we want, and the last thing they need, is to be given over to people who would continue to torment them beneath the public eye."

The room was silent for a time, as the flagships digested the information. Eventually, Tanith spoke up. "...you are asking us to give them a home."

The Admiral nodded. "We understand you are still working to establish yourselves, and are ill-equipped to take on refugees at the moment… but as it stands, Avrora is the best candidate."

"You have plenty of space to accommodate them all," Ooyodo added. "Along with that, the refugees would have isolation to safeguard them from prying eyes, and installation-class Abyssals on the premises to maintain their health. But above all… we know you won't lash out at them for something they had no control over."

The sisters were silent.

"The JSDF cannot look after these people indefinitely," Goto continued. "More than just taking up time and resources that could be better put towards the war effort, it would put them within arms' reach of outside groups that would seek to hurt them, or worse. I sincerely wish that we didn't have to ask you to shoulder this burden, but-"

"Who said you would even need to ask?"

Goto blinked at Tanith's sudden exclamation. "These people have suffered enough," she continued, standing up. "They've lost their home, their loved ones… they have been mutilated, for no other reason than to satisfy the curiosity of some sadistic bitch. They deserve another chance to live their lives, to be happy… and if their own flesh and blood can't be trusted to care for them, to give them a home free of judgement and hate, then the Fleet of Laughter will do so instead." There were sounds of agreement from her sisters.

The Admiral and his secretary glanced between each other, eyebrows raised, before looking back to the girls. "I'll be quite honest," Goto finally said, "I understood you girls would feel quite strongly about this matter… but even then, we thought you would ask for some sort of concession before agreeing to shelter the refugees."

"You're certain you don't need to take time to discuss this with the rest of your family?" Ooyodo asked. "This is a fairly significant decision to make without their input…"

"With all due respect, Miss Ooyodo," Sunny interrupted. "You're forgetting who we are. What we, what ALL of our sisters, have been through." She looked to her other sisters. "If they heard this, they'd give you the same answer."

A small smile crept onto Goto's face as he nodded.

"Very well. We'll start making the arrangements."

XXXXXXXXXX

"Alright, that's everything! Double-check, make sure it's all tied down!"

The pilot of the Boeing C-17 glanced down to his clipboard, a small smirk on his face. It was strange—for years, he'd flown this transport back and forth between Unalaska and the mainland US, serving as the island inhabitants' lifeline by ferrying precious supplies… with the blessing of the surprisingly-benevolent invaders. Now, though, his shipment was instead taking off from this island, destined for the invaders themselves. It wasn't quite a full reversal, given he would be flying to Japan, but it was close enough.

"Sir! Excuse me, sir!"

The pilot looked over to see two girls jogging towards the transport, lugging backpacks and a suitcase behind them. He held up a hand. "I'm sorry, ladies, I'm going to need you to stay back. We're preparing to take off."

The two girls, twins from the looks of it, came to a stop in front of the man, pausing to catch their breath. They couldn't be more than fifteen or sixteen years old, with slim bodies and shoulder-length black hair. "We want to come along!" The girl on the left eventually said, panting. She gestured to herself, then her sister. "I'm Carrie Bridges, and this is Sherri. We wanted to meet the Fleet of Laughter…"

The pilot shook his head. "I'm operating a cargo transport, not an airliner. I can't just give rides to anyone who asks." He gave the pair a quizzical look. "Why would you want to go out of your way to meet the Abyssals, anyway?"

"We… we were away from home, when Blood Week happened..." Sherri said. "Visiting a museum in Anchorage. Ended up spending the next four years in foster care, terrified for our family and friends. We feared the worst, when Unalaska came under siege… but when the smoke cleared, we found out that everyone was okay… thanks to the Abyssals sacrificing themselves."

"We wanted to meet what was left of them," Carrie continued. "Wanted to get to know them. To… to thank them, for protecting everyone we knew and loved."

For a long time the pilot looked between the two girls, their big doe-eyes and pleading expressions. Finally, he sighed. He tapped his radio. "Change of plans, boys. We've got a couple of ladies here who want to hitch a ride with us to Japan."

The twins' eyes lit up in excitement and gratitude.

 

[darthcourt10]

Harry Leferts

Walking down the Seventh Floor corridor an hour after his lesson with Hoshi, though he still felt a little sore from it, Harry glanced around. Under one arm was a box which he kept a hold of as he frowned, "Grandmother? Are you here?"

From behind one of the suits of armour, a now familiar fox walked out and transformed into the human form of Siusan. Said fox-woman cocked her head to the side in a way that would have reminded many people of Harry himself when curious, "I am here, Harry-Child. Just as I promised I would when I left, though..." Furrowing her eyebrows, she frowned some, "I am unsure why?"

All the thirteen year old did though was hold up the box that had been under his arms, "Well, I was thinking that we could share a dinner, Grandmother. Just you and I."

Shocked, Siusan stared at him for several moments before her eyes became watery, "I... would like that, Harry-Child. Though are you certain that you wish to-"

Closing the distance, Harry placed his hand on her shoulder and nodded, "I do, Grandmother." He then gave a small shrug, "While we've shared meals, it is always with Hoshi-San there. And this would be the first time just you and I would." A grin then crossed the wizard's face, "Not to mention, I already went and got the food."

Just blinking at him, Siusan leaned into his hand and closed her eyes as she nodded, "Yes, I would like to share a meal with you then, my child." Waiting, she watched as he walked up and down the corridor to summon a version of the Room of Requirement. As he did so, the Irish fox spirit considered everything that had recently happened with a lightened heart.

Despite her fears, Harry had accepted her fully into his family. Not a single hint of rejection forthcoming from him and after every lesson, and a short meal with Hoshi, the two of them would talk. Nothing too heavy, just various things as the two relatives got to know one another. Siusan would speak often of far off times in the past, of a side of the family that Harry was unknowing of for the most part. Of his grandfather's family, the Evans. In the past two weeks, Harry had learned far more of his family then he had in the other years that he had lived from Siusan.

On the wizard's side, he often spoke of the time he had spent in Japan. And while some of it confused and bewildered the old fox, she enjoyed the tales of such a foreign land. She had even commented that it had reminded her of tales that some of hers and Brigid's grandchildren had told her during the Age of Sail, though even then the family had begun to drift away from her, much to her despair.

Now though, her last "Grandchild", Harry, accepted her with open arms.

Thus, she had no issue with hearing his tales and enjoyed them. Granted, she had some ideas regarding the girls in his life. Not that Siusan had much issue with what she suspected as she was from a time when such things, while uncommon, were not rare. And sometimes she amused herself with what Brigid's likely response would have been, despite the pang of pain it brought to her. Because for the first time in decades, even centuries... she was fully happy even though she suspected that the other boot was going to drop, it never did.

As the door formed to the Room of Requirement, she shook her head and followed Harry through the door. Once inside, she closed it behind her and looked around in some interest. It was not a fancy room, the floor being of stone worn by innumerable feet with a crackling fireplace in one wall. There was a table in the middle with two chairs which made her swallow.

Because the scene reminded her so much of times with Brigid and her own children and grandchildren, when they would sit around a table for meals.

With a blink, Siusan could almost see Brigid sitting at the table. The ghostly apparition looked at her with a smile and then at Harry before nodding and fading away. Blinking away some tears, she realized that Harry had walked over and placed a hand on her arm, "Grandmother? Is something wrong?"

Only shaking her head, Siusan chuckled, "Nothing is wrong, Harry-Child. Just... some old memories." The hand clenched around her heart lightened some as she looked around, "This reminds me so much of older days when I was a younger vixen." Walking over to the table, she ran one hand along the wood with a nod, "Yes, I remember having meals in places like this when I was younger."

Scratching his cheek, Harry gave a chuckle, "Well... I thought that this would be more familiar to you. Hence, well..."

Lightly smiling, the Irish fox nuzzled his hair and kissed his cheek in the way that grandmothers do. Pulling away, she patted his hand, "And I am happy that you thought of such for me, Harry-Child. It does me good to have you as a grandchild." Allowing him to pull out her seat after he set down the box, she sat down. Once he was seated, she tilted her head to the side, "What food have you brought to the table, Harry-Child?"

Harry gave her a light smile before shrugging, "Have you ever had Southern style barbecue chicken? Cooked in a smoker and everything?"

Frowning, Siusan shook her head even as she licked her lips some, "No, I have not. Though I will admit to be partial to chicken, as I am a fox." Placing her hands on the table, she smiled at him, "Though if you say that it is good, then I believe you."

A chuckle escaped from Harry before he shook his head, "Good? It's more than good, Grandmother. It is great." At her bemusement, he continued, "Louisiana does great at Southern barbecue and I asked her to make some. Natsumi-Chan loves it and barbecue rabbit, which is great as the meat just falls from the bones from how cooked it is."

If anything, that caused the fox to become more bemused, "Did you not mention that Natsumi-Child has a friend who is a rabbit? As strange as that is to me... And how does she react to knowing that you have both eaten such?"

With a shrug, Harry rubbed the back of his neck before pouring out some drinks for himself and Siusan, "As long as it is not in front of her, she has no problem. Like she explained, it is more a feeling of awkwardness and such considering that she is an Inaba." He then gave another shrug, "Though I guess that there is a lot of difference there. I mean, I've eaten deer and Dad could become a stag..."

Considering that, Siusan gave a nod, "I would suppose so." The fox took a sip of her drink, a beer and hummed, "This is quite good."

Snickers made her give Harry a curious look, with the teen shaking his head, "Oh, trust me, you'll like what else."

As he opened the box, the Irish fox was about to ask when the smell hit her and she sniffed. Even as she did so, her mouth watered at the scent that tickled her nose enticingly, "That smells...'

Grinning, Harry nodded, "I know, right?" Placing some bread in a basket, he pulled out a container and opened it. Steam wafted up from it and Siusan leaned forward to see the oddly cooked chicken that was in it. Using some tongs, Harry placed several pieces onto a plate and handed it to her, "Here you go, Grandmother."

Just taking the plate, Siusan gave him a nod, "Thank you, Harry-Child." Looking around, she gave him a befuddled glance, "No utensils?"

However, Harry shook his head at that, "Not really, no. Barbecue is usually eaten with the hands..." Pausing, he gave her an unsure look, "Is... is that okay? I thought that..."

Quickly, his Grandmother reached over and placed a hand on his arm, "No, it is fine." Lightly laughing, she smiled, "It is not often in such times as these to find a food that one eats with one's hands. It was far more common long ago." With a hum, she took a deep sniff and sighed, "It does smell lovely though."

Lips twitching, Harry gave a laugh of his own, "Tastes even better actually, just remember to use the napkins and such to wipe your hands of sauce."

Only nodding, Siusan gave some thanks before taking one of the pieces of chicken and biting into it. Almost immediately, she gave a soft moan as the taste exploded in her mouth. Chewing, she swallowed some before taking a drink of beer, the mug floating in the air at a gesture, "This is truly lovely."

Also chewing, Harry gave his own swallow before licking his finger a bit, "I know, right? Though a little bit messy."

Siusan laughed yet again, "Ah! Messy perhaps, but it is not nearly as so as some that I have eaten over the years. Still..." Licking her lips, she shook her head, "I think that I will want for more of this, Harry-Child. This is delicious!"

That got a laugh from the black haired teen who nodded as he took another bite, happy that she was enjoying it. Both of them slowly made their way through their meal while lightly chatting, though it did Harry's heart good to see just how much Siusan was enjoying the simplicity of it all. Grinning a bit as he watched her lick a bone and put it aside, he decided to ask a question that had been bothering him for some time, "Grandmother, may I ask a question?"

Glancing at him, she nodded with a confused expression on her face, "Of course."

Briefly taking a sip of his drink, Harry considered how to word it, "You mentioned before that some of my family were given names that you didn't think fit them. Like how Mum's Dad, Grandpa, was named 'Harold' which you thought didn't fit him like Renard did... What about my name? Did Mum do right?"

Not answering right away, Siusan chewed on another bite of chicken, enjoying the taste. Though she enjoyed the time being spent with Harry and the talk even more... if just slightly. Finally, she gave a nod, "Your name both fits and does not, Harry-Child. Lily-Child did good in giving you the name that she did, but while it fits... it does not fit entirely."

Considering that, Harry swallowed the bite in his mouth, "Is it because Harry could stand for a number of names?"

Slowly, she nodded some with a slight smile, "Yes, Harry is a name of power. I am unsure if either Harold, which means 'Ruler of Armies' would fit better or perhaps Henry, which means 'Home Ruler'." Becoming thoughtful, she hummed some, "Though as you wish to become an Admiral from what you have told me, Harold could perhaps fit better... though I can also see you do well as the Head of a Household." Chuckling, Siusan gave him a look of amusement, "Perhaps, Harry fits and does not, Harry-Child, because both Harold and Henry fit as well. A balance."

Lips curling upwards, Harry shook his head, "Huh..."

Eventually, between the two of them, they finished off the food. Leaning back in the chair, Siusan placed her hand on her stomach and laughed, "Ah, I am fit to burst, Harry-Child. This is one fox that will have a hard time running with such weight." Looking at him though, she got up and walked over before dampening a cloth, "Though you were right that while good, it was quite messy."

All Harry did though was close his eyes as he felt her clean his face of the sauce before opening them. The Irish fox spirit smiled at the happiness in those emerald orbs, happy that Brigid's eyes shone, though also at the fact that Harry did not pull away from her hands as she gently cleaned him.

Granted, a few moments later, she chuckled as he returned the favour.

Once both their faces were clean, Harry looked at her, "So... you enjoyed yourself?"

Placing her hands on his cheeks, Siusan nodded, "I have, Harry-Child. Thank you so very much for this."

Moments later, the thirteen year old was hugging her as she hugged him back just as fiercely, "I'm glad then that you enjoyed the meal, Grandmother." Hearing her sniffle some, he pulled back with confusion on his face, "Is something wrong?"

Shaking her head, Siusan chuckled, "Ah, it is nothing. Just the fact in a few short days you will be off again to Japan, Harry-Child. Nothing more."

Eyes widening, Harry looked away and coughed, "Um, right... about that..." With a deep breath, he turned back to her, "I... was actually wondering if you wanted to come with me, to Japan. And, well... spend the holidays with us? Myself, Mum, Hoppou, Rose and the others?"

Jaw dropping, the fox stared at him, "... Oh... oh, Harry-Child. I... you wish for me to come?"

Harry nodded as he placed his hand over hers, "I do, Grandmother. And I already talked with Mum, my adoptive one, and she sees no issue with you staying over the holidays with us." Expression bright and yet soft, he looked at her eyes to see confusion warring with joy and hope, "You're family after all. Please... say yes."

Swallowing the lump in her throat, Siusan did not say anything for several seconds before closing her eyes and chuckling, 'I could never say no to your eyes, Brigid.' Opening her eyes, she gave a small nod, "Of course, Harry-Child. Though I may need help as, well..." Biting her lip, the fox shook her head, "I have never been so very far from home."

Brightly smiling, Harry shook his head, "Don't worry about that, Grandmother. I'll be right there, trust me."

Just nodding, Siusan smiled, "Of course I do..."

 

[darthcourt10]

Yellowhammer

Operation: BUTTERKNIFE (Part I)

L'Instant Pour Soi, Lyon, Vichy France.

18th December, 1941
Spoiler: Behind Enemy Lines

Colombe gave the trio of German soldiers on leave outside a small nod as she exited the beauty salon. Politeness cost her nothing, after all, and she was on the clock here. Hefting the large purse with a size expansion charm containing her rapier, she began to make her way down the street.

The whispers behind her of "Pute Boche" did hurt a little though. Since that was the role that she was playing, she couldn't even say that they were wrong to call her a German whore.

"What is a nice Aryan beauty like you doing alone?" One of the soldiers leaned close and she could smell cognac on his breath as he tried out his French on her. She had heard far better French from Jacklyn, honestly. Which was saying something.

Colombe gave him a flat stare and responded in perfect German. "On my way to have lunch with Obersturmführer Helmer Wolff of the Sicherheitsdienst to discuss my impending marriage to him."

Her lips curled in a smug smile as the drunk's face lost all color.

Running afoul of the dreaded secret police could be... well... if some of the rumors that she had heard were true, the Eastern Front was always hungry for men and was rather unpleasant duty to boot. Of course if she got found out she would envy the drunk shivering in a Russian trench who dared insult an officer's fiancee. What she had pieced together in the last year in occupied Belgium, Holland, and France under the thumb of Hitler and Grindlewald had made her sick to her stomach. What was happening in the territories that the Nazi eagle clutched in its claws reminded her all too much of her time spent in the Congo before the abuses of the rubber and ivory trade were brought to light. It was bad enough in Africa, but to have it happen in her homeland brought tears of grief and fury to her eyes.

Which was what led her to Lyon. While supposedly part of the 'zone libre' under the civilian French government based in Vichy, in reality France was a German puppet in all but name. Witness the trio of German soldiers who were 'vacationing' in Lyon... with rifles slung while they accosted her.

Or more relevantly, the man she planned to meet and deal with at the cafe and hotel that he had picked to meet with 'Mademoiselle Marie-Claire de Bury' from Metz.

As she boarded a streetcar, her face grew distant as she remembered her younger adopted sister.

Marie-Claire du Chasteler had a smile and a kind word for everyone, even her older 'bastard half-sister' when Colombe returned home from Beauxbatons in disgrace. "I believe in you, Colombe, you might not be a bride to enhance the prospects of the Du Chastelers like Papa intends for me, but you will be the dove that flies free and travels to distant lands only to return home with such wonderful stories for me."

A tear trickled down her cheek and she whispered "Little sister, please forgive me for being too late to save you and your husband from the Terror."

"Rue de Verdun!"

With that she started from her memories of two centuries gone and pulled the bell rope before standing and proceeding to her lunch date at the Brasserie de l'Hotel de Ville.
Spoiler: Lunch Date

She took a deep breath as she reached the door; mentally steeling herself for dealing with Karl Wolff. The worst part of it was if you ignored his fanatical belief in Hitler and the Nazi message, the young officer was not a bad person. He sincerely believed that he was doing the right thing against Germany's enemies by rounding them up and shipping them to concentration camps where they could not harm people.

Which was what made him dangerous of course. In that way he was no different than the Jacobins who had butchered the de Burys in the Terror.

She gave a quiet word of thanks to the maitre'd along with slipping him a wad of francs as he guided her to the table. Wolff was running late, and she checked the clock over the bar before ordering Rosette de Lyon pork sausage and lyonnaise potatoes for two and a Coteaux de Lyonnais red wine to wash it down.

She had gone into deadly danger enough on an empty stomach, and had no desire to do that again if she could help it.

As the waiter departed, a blond-haired young man in the gray-green feldgrau uniform of the German army modified with SS collar tabs entered and she gave him her best warm smile, remembering experiences with dealing with potential employers of her magical and martial services across half the globe over the last two centuries plus Papa's long-gone lessons on a proper aristocratic lady's deportment.
Spoiler: Helmer Wolff

"I trust that you were not waiting too long, Mademoiselle de Bury? I had a minor matter come up at the office. Members of the Milice arrested a gang of Judeo-Bolshevik bandits that had been causing trouble and I had to supervise processing of their arrest paperwork."

Colombe shook her head, taking the opportunity to swallow down her bile as she read the underlying subtext. Another Resistance cell had been broken and was in the hands of the Milice police militia that the Vichy government ran with the 'assistance' of the Reich Main Security Office, like the man seated across from her who helped coordinate their efforts. She steeled her voice to politeness and responded in German. "No. I totally understand. Duty is Duty and always must take command of a soldier's time. I took the liberty to order a hearty lunch for you." Which with any luck the chef pissed in.

Wolff gave a happy smile and leaned across the table to grasp her hands. "Just so. The mark of a true Aryan woman is how she supports her man as he goes off to battle, taking care of hearth and home. Although you must be descended from one of Brunhilde's fellow Valkyries to have such steel in you."

Colombe gave a surprised blink as her cheeks flushed in response as her food arrived. "I merely did what I saw was my duty. After all 'Man without woman, is head without body; woman without man, is body without head' as the saying goes. Some suitable maiden I would be if I could not arrange to have my man well fed." Her lips curled in a smug smile. "Or if you prefer the short version, Im Krieg und in der Liebe ist alles erlaubt (all is fair in love and war)." Not that you have any idea of how true that saying is yet.

He laughed and began to dig into the sausage happily as the stone-faced waiter poured the wine. "Just so. If I didn't know better, I would think you have some scheme in mind."

Her smug smile widened and her eyes twinkled as her voice lowered into her best imitation of her sister Jacklyn, "Well, if I may impose on your driver to wait for a long lunch, I was thinking that we could go upstairs here into one of the rooms that the Hotel de Ville rents and I would give you a nice surprise for dessert...."

 

[darthcourt10]

Harry Leferts

It was supposed to be a convoy run to the US, simple and quick. Something for her to cut her eye teeth on while being as much a PR show as anything else. Yamato and Enterprise leading a Convoy along the Central Route and back, the Battleship that was the "Symbol of Japan" along with the Grey Ghost, the ship the Japanese has feared. Now working alongside one another to show how things had changed and that the two nations had changed. It had been simple...

For the most part.

Throughout the convoy run, Kawa, or "Yahagi" as her ship name was, had been antsy. After all, for all her training, this had been the first real mission outside of the odd patrols. All of those had taken place on "Safe" waters around Japan. Which was not to say that she had not enjoyed herself. As a Japanese orphan, she had never gone too far from the main islands. The furthest she had ever gone before becoming a shipgirl had been one school trip to Okinawa just before the war.

Neither Wake nor Midway had been too impressive all told, though she had not stopped at said places, just passing them with the convoy. Hawaii though was impressive with both Enterprise and Yamato taking a day or two that the Convoy was stopped there to show her around Pearl Harbor and Honolulu. After that, was the final leg of that portion of the journey to Puget Sound. Once more, a week was spent just relaxing as the next convoy got set up, with Enterprise taking charge to show Kawa all around the area.

Oddly, Yamato had pouted rather often, only to smile when Kawa had looked. Strange that...

However, that said, Kawa had used shopped around a bit and enjoyed herself for as short a time as it was. According to Enterprise, there was another convoy that they were scheduled for that would take them down to California, which the Light Cruiser could not wait for, though it was at least six months away. Besides a few looks around, the three of them had done PR tours to various schools and the like. Something that somewhat flustered her as she found herself now being in the same position as Yamato and Enterprise among others.

Unlike the two of them though, it seemed that she was more approachable for the little kids. Result of which was them often clustering around her and asking questions. Not that it bothered Kawa too much as she was used to it from her time in the orphanage. In fact, she easily slipped into the role of a big sister figure for all the little kids that were there. Something that only made her more popular with the kids.

All in all, she had enjoyed her time even more than she had expected.

The week soon passed and they found themselves heading back to Japan with another convoy full of food and raw materials as well as some finished ones. Yet again, they had a few days stop over at Hawaii where some of the ships stayed to give needed supplies for the islands. Then onwards past Midway and Wake. It had been just a few hours after they passed when one of the Destroyers had laughed during a conversation with her. Said Destroyer, a Fletcher (though not Willie D, she noted later), had commented that she had worried over nothing and that everything was clear sailing...

Less then five minutes, the first Abyssal aircraft had appeared with Destroyers and two Light Cruisers charging the convoy while far off shells from a Battleship rained down.

Much to her internal amazement, as soon as the battle had started her nervousness had fallen away to reveal the steel underneath. Chasing the splashes from the far off Battleship, Kawa, or Yahagi, focused on not being hit by the bombs falling around her. The whole time, she was firing her own guns at the Abyssal Light Cruiser that she was in a duel with, outside of the odd attack at Destroyers as the allied ones clustered around the fleeing civilian ships to protect them.

Gritting her teeth as one of the bombs exploded close enough that several cuts appeared on her cheek from shrapnel, Kawa narrowed her eyes even as she felt blood and oil drip from her wounds. Taking close aim, she took a deep breath... and fired. The shells crossed the distance within less then three seconds, slamming into the stern area of the Abyssal hull drawing a screech. But more importantly, it blew off the being's legs leaving her dead in the water for a quick torpedo reload and finish. Hearing a boom, Yahagi narrowed her eyes at how the Destroyers were trying to fight an Abyssal Merchant Raider, which was basically a stripped down Heavy Cruiser.

She didn't even hesitate to charge in.

With a glance at her, Enterprise spotted another flight of planes and let loose, "She's not doing too badly, is she, Princess?"

Eyes cloudy from looking through her Spotter Plane, Yamato smirked, "Of course not, this is Yahagi that we are speaking of. I expected nothing less from her."

Angling her CAP in for an attack at one troublesome Abyssal Destroyer, leaving it dead in the water, the Carrier nodded, "I heard and read the reports from what happened in Ten-Go. Her and her crew managed to impress the fuck out of us at the time." With another glance as said Light Cruiser got in close to the Abyssal Merchant Raider and was now firing at close to point blank range, Enterprise smirked, "I can see why now." A laugh escaped her as she shook her head, "Nice shot, Princess! Got them right at amid ships."

Tilting her head, Yamato smirked as well, "And a congratulations to you as well, Enterprise. Both Wo class in one attack, very nicely done."

Suddenly a call went out that froze their blood, "SUBMARINE!"

Head whipping around, Enterprise looked through one plane of her CAP after another before her eyes widened, "YAHAGI! LOOK OUT!"

Eyes widening, the Light Cruiser who had just left the burning Abyssal Merchant Raider behind, turned and looked. She could just see the head of a SO class five miles distant. But more importantly, she could see the bubble trails halfway between the two of them that showed torpedoes heading in her direction. She barely would have the time to turn with how close they were and that would be risky. Out of the corner of her other eye though, she realized that one of the tankers was also right in the path of the torpedoes. Something that the Abyssal likely realized.

Which meant that either she took the hit, and massive damage... or she dodged and allowed the slower, and less armoured Tanker take it. It was either her or the Tanker. Escort or the one being protected. Inside her Bridge, she knew that her Captain was about to make an order...

It was then that she remembered one important fact and spoke to her crew, "Trust me." After a brief second, her fairies all gave their acknowledgement. For her part, the Natural Born narrowed her eyes as she tracked the torpedoes heading towards her, 'One shot... that is all I got for this.' Legs tensing as she felt every erg of horsepower concentrate, she sucked in a breath even as she heard people shouting for her to move. Meanwhile, time seemed to slow to a crawl.

She could see both Enterprise and Yamato shouting at her.

At the same time, she could see the Abyssal smirking, pleased with likely crippling or perhaps killing a shipgirl.

The torpedoes crept closer and closer. Forty feet... thirty feet... twenty feet... fifteen feet...

Yahagi then jumped, her feet barely clearing the water as the torpedoes sailed underneath. The Light Cruiser brought all her weight back and slammed into the ocean surface, all seven and a half thousand tons impacting the water. Being less then fifteen feet away as the water exploded and compressed around them, the torpedoes detonated from the shockwave.

Meanwhile, Yahagi was not still, her guns turned towards the shocked SO-Class. By the time the Abyssal realized what had happened, and was about to happen, it was too late. Not even a second later, the Submarine's head vanished in a spray of ichor and Abyssal steel as the Cruiser's shells took it off.

Hearing utter silence, Kawa blinked and looked around in surprise before smiling in relief at the fact that the attack was over. Lightly laughing, she rubbed her forehead clean of sweat, some blood, and water, "Wow! That was a rush!" Seeing Enterprise and Yamato rushing for her, she gave them a worried look, "Are you two okay?"

To her surprise, both Capital ships grabbed her as best they could with their rigging out. Then she became bemused as the two began to check her over to see how badly hurt she was, Enterprise shaking her head, "What the Jesus fucking Christ was that, Cuddly?! The Hell?"

Confused, Kawa tilted her head some, "Uh, what was what, Enterprise-San?"

Staring at her, Enterprise tried to say something, only to be beaten by Yamato, "I believe that Enterprise-San means the torpedoes..."

Kawa blinked at that and furrowed her eyebrows, "Uh, the torpedoes?" At their nods, she shrugged, "Um, we're girls? Not just ships so... I just jumped over them. I figured that the shockwave from me hitting the water would set them off or send them off course at least."

Both the Battleship and Carrier just stared at her in shock as she nervously chuckled and scratched the back of her neck. Then, Enterprise turned to Yamato and the two nodded and came to an agreement. Much to Yahagi's embarrassment, neither of the two left her side, having her between them. And as soon as they hit the shore in Yokosuka, they practically carried her off to the docks between them.

Not, of course, that she complained much when in the baths she found herself between the two...

 

[darthcourt10]

Yellowhammer

Operation: BUTTERKNIFE (Part II)

Brasserie de l'Hotel de Ville, Lyon, Vichy France.

18th December, 1941
Spoiler: Operation Start

In the upstairs room that Colombe had rented, she closed the door behind them and shot the lock. "Now let me get you out of that uniform and give you the surprise I promised." Her lips curled in a cat-like mischievous smirk as she tapped her chin with a finger and then pointed it at Wolff. "Petrificus Totalus!"

The SS officer froze as white light played over him and his eyes widened in shock.

Colombe reached into her purse and pulled out her rapier along with a small glass vial filled with a bubbling black potion and his eyes bulged further. "Don't worry, this is not what it seems." She sketched wards on the walls and window and then flicked the rapier to the bed, where four ropes appeared at each corner.

Her smug smile widened and turned cold as the Nazi glared at her ."Actually, I take it back, this is exactly what it seems."

With practiced haste she stripped him down to bare skin and tied his ankles and wrists to the bedposts. "You can blame my good friend Lyra Potter for this touch. She has the most wonderfully obscene mind I have ever seen or heard rumors of. Which reminds me, time for the pièce de résistance now."

She then reached into the purse and pulled out a tricolor scarf which she promptly used to gag Wolff.
Spoiler: The Pièce de Résistance


He made an inarticulate sound around the gag as her blade delicately flicked out once and a lock of his close-cropped hair fell free.

Colombe carefully stirred the hair into the potion and set it on the nightstand in the room. As it began to change color, she patted Wolf on the cheek. "Don't worry. Your part in the proceedings is finished. Enjoy your afternoon, Boche Dreksau." Her voice was as cold as a Russian winter as she finished and began to change from her blouse and skirt combination into his uniform.

Five minutes later, she stuffed her clothing into the purse, and then tapped it with her rapier's flat, chanting in Urdu as she did so. The purse Transfigured into the shape of a military dispatch folder and she slid the rapier inside carefully. She then looked at the potion on the nightstand and grinned smugly. "Well, nothing for it. I suppose a toast in order before action so à votre santé!"

With that she tossed back the Polyjuice potion and grimaced in revulsion as her body swelled and writhed. "Ugh...forgot how much I hate this part."

Wolff stared in horror as the girl he thought that he knew spoke those last words from his own face.

Hôtel Terminus (Gestapo Headquarters), Lyon, Vichy France

18th December, 1941

Colombe got out of the back of the staff car, and returned the salute of the door guards with the arm that was not carrying the document case containing her true self.

She stepped inside and took a deep breath, remembering the hand-drawn sketches and floor diagrams of the building that the Resistance had given her.

She then blinked at the oak archway confronting her with runic motifs carved in it just inside the door. Her skin tingled with the feel of spellcraft on it, and she took a deep breath before stepping through it, feeling all eyes in the vestibule on her.

To her surprise, nothing happened. No alarms, no counterspells, not even a peep.

Lips quirking in a smug smile, she opened the door to Amt VI (Foreign Intelligence).
Spoiler: The plot thickens

As she headed down through the offices, a conversation behind a cracked door reached her ears.

"... We appreciate the Ahnenerbe's assistance in technical matters to insure that only proper Aryan stock are allowed to enter the building. How can we be of service to you in turn Sturmbannführer Drachenzähmer? Perhaps a few racially pure ladies to enliven your evening?"

The voice that responded caused her to suddenly stop and check her (borrowed) watch as a pretext while her ears pricked. She remembered hearing that voice four years ago in a burning church in Guernica. She thought the owner dead when she had dug herself out of the burning rubble that was all that remained of the monastery.

"Insure that the local French government pass my expedition to Algeria swiftly and with all due support. Also, insure that they produce all records of Bou Baghla's activities, with especial care to anything... unusual. Such is of especial interest to the Reichsführer-SS along with my colleagues in Überprüfung der sogenannten Geheimwissenschaften who consult with our leadership on matters of importance to the Reich."

Colombe's fist clenched, and then slowly relaxed. As much as she wished to unsheath herself and charge inside to take revenge upon the German mage who had killed her friend in Spain, the mission that she was on was too vital for personal score-settling. Noticing the hall was clear, she quickly ducked to the door and nudged it open a bit to peek within.
Spoiler: Face of a Vampire


She smirked in smug satisfaction at the sight of her foe's profile with the scar that she had put there stretching from cheek to ear before heading down the corridor.

A familiar voice from behind her stopped her in her tracks. "Halt."

She turned to see that the mage had stepped out into the hall. "Jawohl Herr Sturmbannführer."

The Mage pinned her with a cold gaze. "Purpose of your being here?"

Colombe hefted the document folder and steeled her voice to a professional bark. "The transcripts from the interrogations of the Judeo-Bolshevist bandits that we captured, Herr Sturmbannführer. One of them said that they were in contact with an agent of the British so I was ordered to cross-check with our archived files on known enemy agents and reports from England."

The Vampire nodded. "Then be about it with due haste!" He pointed to a door that she had passed.

"Zu Befehl, Herr Sturmbannführer!" With the dismissal, Colombe hastily turned and headed to the indicated door, then took a deep breath as the door clicked behind her. That had been entirely too close, and she was not sure how long until the Polyjuice potion wore off. She was even less sure of her ability to fight her way clear and escape if her cover was blown, especially with a mage on site.
Spoiler: The Files


She turned to the filing cabinets, and opened the first one, flipping through the papers rapidly with her eyes wide and unfocused. Opening the second one, her eyes narrowed at the sight of Pierre Malfoy listed as an informant along with the rest of his family and her lips drew back from her teeth. Someone needs to do something about him and his treacherous brood.

Finally reaching the final cabinet, she flipped through them again, and then acquired a smug smile. Now for the fun part of the operation. With that in mind, she pulled the rapier out of her folder and hastily carved a glyph on the front and sides of the filing cabinet before replacing the sword in her folder. Then she pointed at the carved glyph and whispered "Faqaeat Alhawa'!"

A pale blue transparent bubble filled the inside of the filing cabinet and her smug smirk grew. Another point and she whispered her second spell. "Incendio Maxima!" A fire began to burn inside the cabinet, but the smoke and flames were trapped by the bubble that she had cast and warded the cabinet with.

Her lips curled in triumph and she sketched a pentagram with her fingertip. "Salamandra Ignis!" With a muffled pop, a small lizard formed of flame appeared from the raging fire followed by a second moments later, and she hastily slammed the drawer shut. With that she turned and grabbed a piece of paper from a nearby desk and began to ostentatiously read it as she made her way out of the building.

She really did not want to be anywhere near that cabinet when someone opened one of the drawers and caused the flames inside to flashover in an explosion of superheated fire. Not to mention a pack of Salamanders that would be delighted to get out and enjoy starting fires.

As she reached the front foyer, she glared at the desk clerk and snapped. "Bring my car around, I need to return to Milice HQ! Blasted French fools can't get anything right!"

----------------------------

As her Imperiused driver sped toward the edge of town, they passed a trio of fire trucks heading the other way toward the plume of smoke that she had just left.

Colombe smiled smugly before gulping in pain as the Polyjuice potion began to wear off. "Merde... I don't know who is having a worse time of it right now, me or Drachenzähmer."

A.N.-Incidentally, Japanese were considered Aryans under the Third Reich's racial laws. So Muramasa and his 'children' would have been as 'racially pure' as any classic blue-eyed blond haired German from the recruiting posters. Noriluck, Colombe haz it.

 

[darthcourt10]

Savato93

Props to K9Thefirst1 for helping come up with the specifics for the Mi-class.

XXXXXXXXXX

"Be honest with me, Tippy… do you think my scarf will match this stuff?"

Regalia's tail let out a low grumble.

"Hey, I'm just trying to prevent people freaking out whenever I come around; a Re-class in normal clothing is a lot less threatening than one in full uniform. But dammit, it's getting cold in Japan! I need something to help me stay warm!"

Tippy huffed.

"...fine, geez! I'll go in uniform." Regalia pouted as she put her casual clothes away. "But next time I have a chance to get some new clothing, I'm getting something that goes with it. Maybe a pair of white khaki pants, and some darker shirts…" Stepping over to the coatrack in the corner of her bedroom, Regalia grabbed her parka and slipped it on, followed by her scarf. After slinging her backpack over her shoulder, she was off towards the Vanishing Cabinet, to meet with Grandma Hoppou for today's training.

To her surprise, however, when she reached the cabinet, she found someone else was there. "Mom?"

Tanith turned around to face her daughter, revealing that she had donned her public clothes beneath her coat. "Hello, Regalia. I hope you don't mind if I join you in going to Japan...?"

Blinking, Regalia shook her head. "No, not at all." She tilted her head. "But what do you need to go to Japan for?"

"Admiral Goto says that there is a plane inbound from Unalaska. In addition to the belongings we left behind, it appears we will be having a couple of guests as well." The Princess gestured to her clothing. "I was hoping to come greet them as they arrived."

"Visitors?" Regalia's eyes widened. "Wow." She was thoughtful for a few seconds, before looking up to her mother. "Do you think Grandma might like to greet them, too?"

Tanith smiled. "I don't know. Why don't we go ask her?"

With that, the pair stepped through the Vanishing Cabinet, one after another, and were whisked away to Japan.

XXXXXXXXXX

"Hey, Nuri? You doing alright?"

The Airfield Demon looked up from her work to Ritou. "I'm fine, Sis. Just inspecting the blueprints sent to us by the Atlantic Gateway Princess—the ones for the new Abyssal class." She waved a hand. "Since we're going to be taking in the hybrids, we're going to need some more hands to help look after their health. The Mi-class would be best suited to such a task, not to mention it would free up us installations to handle other duties."

"I see..." Ritou stepped around the table to get a closer look. Laid out in front of her were eight different designs for a new Abyssal—one being Nuri's original proposal for the Mi-class, and the rest having originated from the Atlantic Princess. One of those was a dreadfully small thing, only slightly bigger than a destroyer. The next ship was much more in line with what she expected of a repair ship, reminding her of Akashi. The rest, though...

"Currently, I'm looking at Design III-C," Nuri stated. "It feels like the most well-rounded of the bunch."

Ritou leaned in, looking at the dimensions of the ship in question… and her eyes widened. "Twenty-nine thousand tons!?" She exclaimed. "My god, that's almost as big as a Standard!"

Nuri pursed her lips and nodded. "Yeah, I know those numbers are pretty extreme for an auxiliary ship… but it's not as if she would be a completely defenseless target. Her secondary armament is just as robust as almost any other ship her size. And just think of how much she can do, with all that space for tools and supplies! She could possibly tend to the needs of an entire fleet without issue!"

"Something Miss Atlantia would be thrilled to have, I'm sure."

"She'll certainly be an investment, but it would be more than worth it, if she can help to bring that many more comrades home alive." Nuri tapped a compartment in the prospective repair ship's hull. "That said, I think it could use a little bit of tweaking."

"Hmm…" Ritou reached into her hold and produced a chair, sitting herself down beside Nuri. "In that case, what do you say I lend a hand? Two heads are always better than one in times like this."

Nuri smiled. "Sounds good to me."

And so the pair went, hashing out the fine details of the prospective new Abyssal class.

XXXXXXXXXX

"Po? Visitors?"

Tanith nodded. "Yes, Mother. It seems they hitched a ride with our recovered belongings. According to them, they're Unalaska natives that were in mainland Alaska when we claimed the island; they want to meet the people that protected their family and friends."

Hoppou closed her eyes and tilted her head slightly. Her expression was thoughtful as she mused over her daughter's words. "So… Hoppou separated them from their home." She frowned. "Endangered everyone they knew and loved."

"Well… That is true." Tanith kneeled next to her mother. "But if they're so interested in getting to know us, then perhaps they don't hold it against us."

Hoppou nodded, but her frown persisted. "That may be true… but the fact remains that Hoppou did wrong by them. Hoppou needs to apologize."

"So you'll come with us?" Regalia asked.

The little Princess nodded again. "Yep! Hoppou wants to meet these girls, too!" Circling around the still-kneeling Tanith, Hoppou clambered up onto her shoulders. "Hoppou can give Regalia her lesson tomorrow. Let's go!"

Tanith couldn't fight the smirk creeping onto her face as she stood up. "Of course, Mother."

As the three departed from the residential block, Hoppou opted to pass the time with some chatter. "So… has Regalia been telling Tanith about her studies with Hoppou?" she asked from her position atop her daughter's shoulders.

"She hasn't, no…" Tanith said, sparing a glance to her sheepish daughter. "But I'm not overly upset by that. We've all been quite busy, lately."

Regalia scratched her scalp. "Yeah…" she shook her head lightly. "Anyway, Grandma's been showing me how to work on tasks more specialized than my normal damecon team is equipped for, like coppersmithing, operating a foundry, even carpentry." She smiled brightly. "She says that once I can prove myself capable of handling those jobs, doing them well, she'd be willing to install the facilities in my hull to do it all myself! Isn't that awesome!?"

Tanith's eyes widened. "Well, now I do feel a little put off that you didn't tell me about that earlier, Regalia. That's wonderful!" She reached over and gently stroked her daughter's hair, eliciting a happy giggle. "If you keep it up, one day you might end up becoming the first Re-class repair ship!" The two of them chuckled softly.

"Oh, that reminds Hoppou…" the little princess spoke up. "How has Nuri been doing? She put a lot of work into her repair ship… and Hoppou worried that criticizing Nuri's design may have upset her. Is she okay?"

"Nuri's not too bummed. Really, she's taken your judgements to heart," Tanith answered. "She's been spending all her free time poring over the blueprints traded to us by Princess Porta, trying to see how they can help her improve her own design."

Hoppou nodded. "Good. Hoppou didn't think Nuri's original ideas were bad... but Hoppou knew that if Nuri was really committed to helping others with the Mi-class, she could do better." Resting her head atop Tanith's own, she closed her eyes in thought. "Hoppou just wonders what she will come back with…"

XXXXXXXXXX

Yawning, Ritou stretched in her chair. "Oof… I think I need to get up, move around a bit..." Glancing at her internal clock, the Princess blinked. "It seems like we've been at this for, what, three hours?"

Next to her, Nuri nodded slowly. "...about that long, yeah…" she grumbled as she rubbed her eyes. "I could probably use a break, too."

Ritou leaned forward, looking over the schematics laid out before them. "On the bright side, I think we've got things as well thought-out as possible, at this point," she surmised. "At least, given the guidelines we're working with."

"I guess so…" Nuri said. She reached out and picked up the notes for her revised design, looking over them one final time.
Spoiler
Mi-Class Repair Ship

Displacement:
27,367 t light; 28,040 t standard; 29,009 t normal; 29,785 t full load

Dimensions: Length (overall / waterline) x beam x draught (normal/deep)
(750.00 ft / 729.00 ft) x 96.00 ft (Bulges 104.00 ft) x (36.00 / 36.64 ft)
(228.60 m / 222.20 m) x 29.26 m (Bulges 31.70 m) x (10.97 / 11.17 m)

Armament:
16 - 5.00" / 127 mm 50.0 cal guns, 150 rounds per gun
Dual purpose guns in deck mounts
4 x Twin mounts set amidships
2 x Twin mounts each at fore and aft
20 - 1.57" / 40.0 mm 60.0 cal guns, 200 rounds per gun
Anti-air guns in deck mounts
10 x Twin mounts on sides, evenly spread

Armour: 36mm cemented plate over machinery spaces at and below waterline in turtleback layout, 51mm plating over guns

Propulsion:
16 x Oil fired boilers (12x double-ended, 4x single-ended)
4 steam turbines, two high-pressure units feeding into two low-pressure units
Geared drive, 2 shafts, 22,033 shp / 16,437 Kw = 19.00 kts
Range 5,000nm at 14.00 kts
Bunker at max displacement = 1,745 tons

Facilities:
2 x winch cranes stationed amidships, steam powered
4 x machine shops with various repair tools
6 x cargo holds for storage of spare parts and other necessary resources
10 x turbo-electric auxiliary generators
8 x auxiliary water pumps
1 x hangar bay for repair/recycling of recovered aircraft
1 x Small-scale metal foundry for on-site production of small- to mid-sized hull patch plates

Miscellaneous notes:
Added a bulbous bow to improve fuel efficiency.
The size of the length and beam should help the ship to handle exceptionally well even in rough seas.

"Even for a girl as big as her, she has a lot packed in," Ritou mused. "Makes me kinda wonder what she'll look like, once she's actually built."

"Not too off-putting for the children that will be living here, I hope…" Nuri rubbed her chin. "In a sense, the Mi-class will be the 'nurses' to us 'doctors'. I want them to be approachable, friendly, caring… like, you know, a real nurse."

Ritou arched an eyebrow. "So if I'm hearing you right, you want to take a nurse… the ladies who use syringes and big-ass needles… and make an Abyssal in the image of one." She snorted. "Yeah, I see no way that could go wrong."

"They're Abyssal. They're going to be scary regardless," the Demon retorted, rolling her eyes. "What's important to me is that they act the part."

The Princess chuckled. "Relax, I support your idea. Just trying to lighten the mood a bit." She looked back to the designs laid out on the table. "All that remains now, I suppose, is to see what Mother thinks of these new plans…"

 

[darthcourt10]

Year Three - Prisoner of Shipping Part 2a Christmas

START

 

[darthcourt10]

Harry Leferts

Lowering her book slightly, Hermione raised an eyebrow at the sight of Harry across from her in the train compartment as Neville and Ron chatted with each other. The last of the Potters looked relaxed and happy as he looked out the window at the winter countryside. Not that there was much to see as it was mostly covered in snow. However, what kept getting Hermione's attention was the fact that Harry had a fox in his lap who he was gently scratching behind the ears. Said fox also had her (Harry had told them such) eyes closed as she enjoyed the gentle touches. All that the shipgirl knew was that the fox's name was Siusan, which one of her crew supplied meant 'Lily'.

The reason that she was watching the fox though was an odd feeling, an instinct that told her that the fox was more than it appeared. Part of that was due to the fact that when it had looked at her, she had seen far more intelligence and age in it's eyes than any fox had any right to have. All he would state is that he was taking her back to Yokosuka and Ron had asked him if she was one of the foxes at the shrine there, which got him a shrug and a smile as he stated that, yes, Siusan knew the foxes there.

Which was suspicious, yes, but... Hermione had not said anything because she trusted her friend, if nothing else.

Shaking off those thoughts, the Light Cruiser gave Harry a slight smirk, "You seem happy, Harry."

Harry blinked and looked over at her with a small smile as he continued to pat the fox in his lap with a nod, "I am, and why shouldn't I be? No more worries about Sirius Black, I'm heading home for the holidays to spend time with my family..." Feeling the fox stir a bit, he scratched her behind the ears and smiled down at her, "And I got a number of plans. Everything is pretty much perfect at this moment."

Just nodding, though she was still somewhat suspicious, Hermione decided that it was best to just drop it and their conversation switched targets, "So are you ready to perform the familiar ritual then? You told me that you were getting ready for it."

Blinking, the messy haired wizard gave a nod, "I am and had to get all the materials together for it. The hardest part was the blood that was needed."

Needless to say, that made all three of the others blink. Slowly, Ron raised a finger, "Blood?"

Arms crossed with a grimace on his face, Harry nodded, "Yeah... remember how part of the ritual involves writing a 'Contract' between the two 'Parties'?" At their nods, and widening eyes, he shrugged, "The ink must be made from the blood of the two beings being bound as familiar and master. There is also a potion that is involved that also has to be made with the blood of the two mixing. If it was not for the benefits... well..."

Shuddering, Neville shook his head at that, "Better you then me, Mate." Looking at his pocket where he could feel the weight of his toad, he had a somewhat disgusted look on his face, "I would never be able to drink toad blood."

Meanwhile, the shipgirl of the group became rather thoughtful, "I wonder..." When they looked at her, she made a motion with her hands, "Well, considering the old folklore regarding demons and the like. Writing contracts in blood for one's soul... familiars drinking blood... When you look at it, one could easily take what Harry is describing and twist it through word of mouth to make it look evil."

Across from her, Harry gave a shrug, "Makes sense to me, though the whole contract bit actually brought me to learn stuff about blood magic. Apparently, one could write a contract out with consequences magically added, then signed in blood to bind the people signing it. Break the contract, and the consequences fall onto you. Stuff from ruining your entire family all the way to death in pretty horrible fashion." A shudder escaped from him, "One of the descriptions was of a man who broke such a contract and all his blood escaped his body from every pore and opening possible. Seeing something like that... I can't blame people for considering it evil."

Neville frowned, but then nodded, "Gran told me about that sort of thing actually." At the looks, he continued, "Before the 1600s, it was pretty common among the old families to be honest to use contracts and such, usually to put an end to family feuds. The penalties for such were bad enough that, well... people went out of their way not to break said contracts. Fell out of favor though due to changing attitudes and the like, but some families supposedly still make use of said contracts. Not just to do things like make agreements, but also for protection."

Eyebrow raised, Hermione frowned, "Wait, how could something like that be for protection? I mean, putting an end to a feud or such, I can understand in that case..."

Much to her surprise though, it wasn't Neville who spoke up. Rather, it was Harry who did, "Usually said contracts like Neville's talking about were to put someone under the aegis of protection of a family. In that case, the family had to protect the person under their protection or else they would be the ones to break the contract with the consequences. An example would be... well, my ancestor Joachim Potter and the female Centaur, Elm."

Perking up, Ron looked at him, "Oh? What happened there?"

For several moments, Harry was quiet before he gave a shrug, "Apparently, Joachim Potter was a young lad of... sixteen, I think? Anyways, he was in Kingly Vale when he was attacked by group of trolls. He survived though due to a female Centaur named Elm and he swore his friendship to her and gifted her with a bracelet that would let him know if she was in danger. Something that happened a few scant days later as her brother, whose name wasn't mentioned, tossed her from the herd for protecting a human and tried to kill her when she was unable to get out of the woods fast enough with an injured leg in the time frame given... With Joachim and his father this time coming to the rescue and fighting the other Centaurs off. Two contracts were made, one that Elm would be under the Protection of the Potters and the second was with her brother that as long as she was, her old herd could not do anything against her."

Head tilting to the side, Hermione frowned, "What happened? I am assuming that being as she was under the protection she had a duty?"

Slowly, the black haired wizard nodded though he noted that Siusan was listening, "Her duty was first to be a companion when he went hunting, which she excelled at. The second... was when he was nineteen and his wife gave birth, and no he was not married to Elm. Her name was Lucinda Malfoy and it was an arraigned marriage via the Wizangamot as the Potters with the Blacks had been fighting with the Malfoys and their allies. She died in childbirth with their second and third child, a pair of twins. Though from what was written, there was no love lost between her and Joachim. Elm then stepped up as a wet nurse for said children and apparently their relatives in the Malfoys were pissed when one of them found out that said children sometimes called her 'Mother' as a result." Waving a hand, Harry shook his head, "Anyways, some of the Malfoys teamed up with a few members of her old herd and tried to ambush her and Joachim... Didn't work and that is the reason why there are no Centaurs in Kingly Vale, due to both contracts."

Wincing as it was easy to guess what happened, Hermione only shook her head. A thought then occurred to her, "What happened to Elm?"

Briefly, Harry blinked as he thought and gave a shrug, "She lived a very long life for a centaur, dying at age ninety. Joachim was actually something of an artist as well, and had her pose for a portrait of her nursing his twin children as one example, a copy of a portrait he had heard of. There's also some statues and the like..." Shaking his head, he hummed, "After her death though, he had a tomb built in Ancient Greek style on the Potter property where she was laid to rest. Apparently, there were issues with the idea of burying her in the local churchyard due to being a Centaur. When he died ten years later, Joachim was buried in the tomb as well."

Ron gave his friend an odd look before shaking his head, 'I wonder if he had any other children after his wife died...'

Soon enough, the conversation turned to other matters with the trolley lady coming and going. After she was gone, Harry pulled out a box and opened it with the smell of hot food tickling their noses. Leaning forward, Neville blinked as Harry brought out two Submarine sandwiches, some sort of meat on them with cheese, "What's that?"

Looking up, Harry smiled a bit, "This?" At his nod, he chuckled, "Veal cheese sub, sort of like one of those Philly steak cheese subs, but substitute the steak for veal." Taking a bite, the thirteen year old chewed and swallowed, "Pretty good, Natsumi-Chan sent them with a box enchanted to keep warm. They're from a place in her hometown."

It took a few moments for Hermione to realize what was not mentioned, "She used an Owl box to get them from her hometown to Yokosuka, and then to you?"

Only nodding as he took another bite, the Japanese raised wizard grinned, "Got it in one. She bought one for her grandparents so that they could more easily keep in touch."

Unnoticed by him, the Light Cruiser narrowed her eyes some as Harry placed the other submarine sandwich in front of the fox. Said fox promptly began to eat said meal with enjoyment. Shaking that off, Hermione just sighed to herself, 'Great, this is going to bother me for some time...'

For some odd reason, she got the odd feeling that her reaction amused both Harry and the fox.
_____________________________________________________________

Grinning, Harry rushed forward off the platform after saying goodbye to his friends as the fox perched on his shoulders kept a hold, "Mum!"

Lightly chuckling as she hugged her son, Nagato smiled, "It is good to see you, Harry." With her smile still on her face, she gave a wink to the fox, "And your little guest."

In reply, the thirteen year old pulled away some, "Right!" Spotting three familiar Destroyers, his smile grew, "Akizuki-Chan! Teruzuki-Chan! Hatsuzuki-Chan! You're escorting us home?"

Akizuki rapidly nodded with a smile on her face as she accepted the hug from Harry and returned it, "Hai, we're on escort duty. Also, we're here because we want you to meet our sister, Suzutsuki-Chan!"

Humming, Hatsuzuki smiled at him as it was her turn for a hug, followed by Teruzuki, "Nee-San was out training with us the last time that you were in Yokosuka getting used to being a shipgirl, so you just missed her." Her hair flaps moved a bit like they were dog ears, much like Yuudachi's sometimes did, "But that just means that you have the chance now."

That got her a bright grin from Harry, with said boy hugging Teruzuki, "Great! I can't wait to meet her..." His grin then turned evil, "And stuff her with food."

Each of the three Akizuki sisters there gulped a bit, but also bit their lips as they had the thought that they wondered if that meant that they would be stuffed as well. Something answered when Harry smirked and gave them a wink. It was not long afterwards that the group was in front of the house where the Vanishing Cabinets were and found Hoshi waiting for them. The Kyuubi nodded at them and smiled at Siusan, "It is good that you're joining us for the holidays, Siusan-San."

With a nod, Nagato turned and bowed some, "It is good to meet you, Siusan-San, I am the Battleship Nagato, adoptive mother to your grandchild. I hope that you enjoy the holidays with us."

Blinking, the fox leapt off Harry's shoulders and transformed back into Siusan who gave an unsure bow herself, "Thank you, Nagato, for caring so much for Harry-Child and being... being there when I could not." Looking up into the Battleship's eyes, as said shipgirl was taller then her, the Irish fox gave a shaky smile, "I hope that I enjoy these holidays and do not insult you in any manner."

Much to her surprise, Nagato merely waved her off, "Think nothing of it." Glancing at her adoptive son, she smiled, "Harry having family who cares is more then enough, and being his family? That makes you family as well." Her expression softened as she looked at Siusan, "No one deserves to spend the holidays alone."

For a few moments, the fox stared at her in disbelief, feeling like she was unable to breath. Once she came to her senses, she took a deep breath, "T-thank you."

Her shock returned as Nagato gave her a hug for a few moments, tears prickled at the corners of Siusan's eyes as she brought her own arms up in a hug. It was not helped that she felt Harry hugging her from behind either. When they pulled apart, the shipgirl offered her a napkin which she took gratefully. Gently, Nagato guided her through the house to the basement bunker where the Vanishing Cabinet was.

Not even minutes later, Siusan was walking through the halls beside Harry looking curiously around them, "These were dug?"

Beside her, Teruzuki nodded some with a hum, "Hai, back during the Second World War. If not for the Abyssals, they would have shut them all down and sealed them... but, well, with air raids and such they refurbished them. It's why they look a lot nicer now."

As the Irish fox nodded in thought, an impressed look on her face as her visitor pass bounced from where it hung from a lanyard around her neck, she hummed. Suddenly, Nagato seemed to remember something and turned to Hoshi, "Speaking of... I remember Harry mentioning that you told him that both you and Tsuki-San had entered these tunnels looking for something at the end of the war?"

Hoshi gained a look of distaste on her face, but nodded, "The... place is much deeper in the tunnels, I do not think that the refurbishment has reached the area that it was in. It was a small facility for Sub Unit-942 where they performed some of their experiments on subjects. Theirs was less physical then some and more... spiritual." With a shake of her head, she ignored how Harry was giving a slowly more and more horrified Siusan an quick explanation, "We wished to get them out before either the remnants of the Kamo government attempted to kill them, or MACUSA did."

Eyes narrowing, Nagato glanced at Harry before turning back to Hoshi, "What were they doing?"

Glancing at her, the Kitsune shook her head, "They were playing with matters much better left alone. And while I would wish not to speak of it..." With a sigh, she turned to Siusan, "From conversations, you know what reincarnation is, yes?"

Siusan gave a small nod, "Yes, that is when a person who is dead gains a second chance at life?"

With a nod, Hoshi gave her a smile, "Indeed, it should be noted though that when a soul is reincarnated, under most conditions they have no memories of their past lives. At best, feelings of familiarity. There are exceptions though when someone is reborn with memories of their past lives." Getting a nod, she continued, "What this group was trying to do was research regarding reincarnation."

Lost, Harry tilted his head, "Wait, research into reincarnation?" It took a few seconds of thought before he realized what one possibility was, "They were trying to awaken memories from previous incarnations?"

Just sighing, the Kyuubi nodded, "Hai, that was one aspect they were researching. They were hoping to awaken memories and skills from past lives in people. For example... imagine someone suddenly having the skills and knowledge of Abe no Seimei for instance fighting in the war. Or a great swordsman such as Miyamoto Musashi being awoken in his new life. Unfortunately for those who were... affected, it was hit and miss as someone could well have been a peasant as much as a samurai. More so, said former lives had a habit of... overwriting their current ones, basically replacing the person that they were with the one that they had been. Often causing a lot of problems. They tried to make it selective as well."

Rubbing her face, Nagato shook her head, 'Monsters...'

Meanwhile, Hoshi continued her explanation, "Another thing they attempted when this showed issues was forcing reincarnation or to overlap memories from a dead person onto a live one. The second was problematic to say the least and often ended badly. The first..." Pausing, she sighed and shook her head, "There were a number of children that they had conceived under their purview. Some were human, others were Yokai. From what we were able to figure out, they managed to open portals to the afterlife and snatch souls, emplacing them into mothers who gave birth to infants hopefully with the memories of their previous lives. Then they could use magical effects to age them to adulthood. That last was never managed, but they had a few that they were aiming for including..." She looked at Nagato, "Yamamoto-San himself."

Utter silence met her at that, but before Nagato could say anything, a fairy came out from behind her hair. The Battleship had seen the Admiral, Yamamoto angry before, enraged even... this was one of the few times she had seen him completely apoplectic though, "DESU! DESU DESU DESU!"

Coughing, she looked away before turning to Hoshi, both of them ignoring the fairy's very descriptive shouts of what he would do to such people if he got his hands on them, "And what happened to the children? I am assuming that in some cases they were..."

Lips pressed thinly, Hoshi nodded, "Myself and Tsuki-Chan did get them out before any harm befell them while taking care of those involved in the experiments. And while some of the children had memories of their previous lives, others... did not, though we have kept an eye on their families in case anything turns up. That said, some of them were not even Japanese souls, which was even more troublesome. But all of them were as well as could be expected after that." She then turned to Harry and rubbed her hands together, "So then, putting that back into the past, am I right to assume that soon we might see some more peanut butter treats?"

Taking the hint for what it was, Harry laughed some, "Hai, I'm going to get started baking soon enough."

All of them blinked though as Siusan furrowed her eyebrows, "Peanut butter? And what is this peanut butter?"

Much to her bemusement, Hoshi placed a hand on her shoulder and the Kyuubi shook her head sadly, "You poor soul..."

 

[darthcourt10]

Harry Leferts

Having used his time turner, Harry went back eight hours to catch a quick bite to eat and a snack as well as some much needed sleep. Using it again, he brought Nagato and the others who had been with him in London back a few hours. Something that if he was to perform his plans, were needed.

Currently, Harry was crouched on a concrete floor in one of the warehouses as he made lines on the floor using chalk. Every once in a while, he consulted the paper next to him before nodding even as Natsumi examined the two circles that were interlinked, one circle smaller than the other. Tilting her head, the Kitsune blinked, "So this is a Western ritual circle?"

With a glance towards her, the wizard shrugged some, "One of them anyways..." Getting up, he stretched some and walked to five dots before drawing circles where they were and then removing the dots, "This is one of the least complicated ones considering things."

Slowly blinking, Natsumi looked from him at the whole array and raised an eyebrow, "This is one of the least complicated ones? Really?"

Making a symbol in one of the circles for water, Harry nodded, "Hai." Placing a bowl in the exact center, he filled it with water donated by Shiromizu and made as pure by her as possible. The thirteen year old moved to the next, but this one was "Earth" and he placed some stones and soil into it. One by one, at each of the four outer circles, he placed a different element. The one for "Air" was left empty while the one for "Fire" was filled with oil that was lit on fire. Harry then pulled out a funnel and carefully poured a white-silvery powder out between the smaller circles, making one big one. With a glance at Natsumi, he smirked, "Least complicated." Harry then gave a shrug, "Believe it or not, this one has a pretty decent margin of error for the circles."

Eyebrows raised, Natsumi only scratched her cheek, "Huh..." Watching as Harry picked the middle point between each "Element" and then made a line to the inner circles, she crossed her arms, "What's that you're pouring anyways?"

Not looking away from what he was doing, the teen wizard answered her, "A mixture of ground up white quartz and some silver. Isn't quite needed according to the book, but it boosts the ritual beyond other means. Just chalk or charcoal would be good enough really, even a line carved in the dirt. I just want to make sure that all the bases are covered for this."

With a moment of thought, Natsumi gave a nod, "Makes sense. Though looking at this, no wonder rituals fell out of favor if this was what was used by western magicals."

Once more, Harry gave a shrug, "It is a bit more complicated than that. Rituals can be as simple as the local mage walking to the sea with the first fish of the season, gutting it, and tossing it into the water in order to ensure a bountiful fishing season. Or... it could be more than a dozen magicals chanting at the exact same time, on an exact date, in an extremely complicated ritual circle more than a mile that needs to be close to perfect as possible. Wands are just simpler and get a consistent result."

From where she was setting up a camera, Aoba gave a shrug, "Makes sense to me." Making a last minute adjustment, she nodded, "I'm ready here, Harry-Chan."

Giving a thumbs up, the black haired wizard nodded, "I'm good here." Checking his watch, he nodded again, "And almost midnight."

Ooyodo adjusted her glasses from where she stood next to her sister, "Is that important?"

Several seconds passed as Harry considered the question and nodded, "It is, symbolism matters a lot when it comes to rituals and what you're trying to do." Holding out a hand, he began to tick off on it, "Hedwig is an owl, and more than that a snowy owl. Hence, choosing the Winter Solstice, the longest night of the year as well as the first day of Winter. Owls also represent death, so the Winter Solstice is even better as it is midway through the year between the 'Death' that is Autumn and the 'Rebirth' that is spring. Night time is when Owls are most known for, so that is another boost. Midnight is when the night is partway through, and also the beginning of the 'Witching Hour'. Silver in the sand is meant to represent the Moon at night, and right now the Full Moon happened about four days ago. Couldn't get anything better for this for symbolism."

Rapidly blinking, Ooyodo gave a slow nod, "I... see."

With a deep breath, the wizard chuckled some and stepped into the larger of the two interlinked circles before setting down a goblet, a bowl, and a piece of parchment. Then he cleared his throat, "Okay, Hedwig? If you would?"

Not even a moment later, Hedwig landed in the smaller circle and looked up at Harry before giving a bark. A slight smile on her face, Natsumi giggled some, "I think that she's ready, Harry-Chan."

Lightly laughing, Harry grinned at the Kitsune before turning back to the owl, his smile falling away, "Are you sure about this?" Hedwig bobbed her head and nodded while clacking her beak. Chuckling, Harry kneeled down facing her and took a deep breath. Once he heard a beep telling him that it was now midnight, he spread his arms, "My name is Harry James Potter, Son of James Fleamont Potter and Lily Marie Potter, Nee Evans. I call upon the forces to grant me the boon of a bond with my familiar to be, the Snowy Owl, Hedwig. Between us is the Contract of our Bond and our Word."

As he continued the ritual, which amounted to him stating that according to the contract that Hedwig would be a friend, a companion, an ally, and a servant, Aoba blinked behind her camera that was recording. Moving away from it, she raised an eyebrow, "Huh... look at that."

Watching as the sand glowed as if it was in the light of the Moon while each element floated above their bowls, Niiyodo nodded, "That... is so incredible."

Finger tapping her chin, the Journalistic Heavy Cruiser hummed, "Pretty neat, though to be honest I am surprised just how small it is. The big circle is just big enough for him to kneel in it, while the bigger one can't be more than... ten feet. Pretty small, though this does make me wonder something..." When those not involved in the ritual turned to her, she cocked her head to the side, "Just how big would a ritual circle need to be to have a dragon in it like what was described in his family history?"

It took a few seconds before Natsumi muttered some to herself, "I don't want to know..."

Meanwhile, Harry just continued the ritual and pulled out a vial that he uncorked and poured into the bowl in front of him. Even where he sat, he could smell the metallic scent of blood, "Our shared blood, proof of our Bond with which we shall sign the Contract." Pulling out a quill, which was one of Hedwig's own feathers, he dipped it into the bowl and signed his name, the words glowing crimson in the dim lighting. Hedwig walked over and dipped her foot into it before pressing it against the parchment next to Harry's hand, the bloody footprint also glowing with the words slowly lighting up one after another. Pulling out a silver knife, Harry cut the tip of his finger and then one of Hedwig's talons, getting a bark. Pressing the wounds together, he took a deep breath, "Our Shared Blood now flows from one to the other, solidifying the Bond." Finally, he pulled away and poured out another vial, this one glowing, into the goblet, "And now we shall drink, making the bond permanent."

Taking a sip, he grimaced a bit as he could taste the blood, but drained part of it before holding it out to Hedwig, with the Owl drinking.

With another deep breath as the parchment glowed and a thin ribbon extended from his cut finger to Hedwig's own cut, he closed his eyes, "The Parties are agreed! Master and Familiar we are, so Mote it be!" There was a short flash from the parchment and the ribbon slowly faded away as did the light. Letting out a breath, Harry stood up, "And that is that."

Just blinking, Aoba looked from him to the circles and blinked as she realized that the glow was gone, "Wait, that's it? Seriously? No... no bright lights that make us look away? No sound? No... things made out of magic swirling around the two of you?"

Amused, Harry chuckled, "Nope, none of that. What just happened is exactly what the ritual was supposed to look like." Tapping the side of his head, he grinned, "I can sort of feel her here."

Pouting, the Heavy Cruiser groaned, "Oh come on... this is magical bullshit! It is supposed to be awesome and shit!"

Suddenly, a voice with a slight Welsh accent spoke up, "And what were you expecting? Clouds parting and a light coming down from the Heavens? All the while a Choir was singing? Or perhaps fire and brimstone considering what some think."

Not noticing every one besides Harry staring, and even him raising an eyebrow, Aoba waved a hand, "That would be awesome..." Stopping, she frowned and looked around, "Wait, who said that?"

The voice spoke up again, "I did." Following it, Aoba boggled a bit as Hedwig gave her a look before speaking, "And here I thought that you understood English." Turning, the owl looked at her wizard, "Was I wrong, Harry-Wizard?"

Lips twitching, Harry chuckled some, "No, I don't think that we were, Hedwig."

Raising a finger, Aoba pointed at the snowy owl, "The owl is talking."

In reply, Hedwig made a gesture with her wing, "And so is the ship! How about that?"

Mouth moving for a moment, the Heavy Cruiser paused as she realized that everyone was staring at her in barely concealed amusement, "Okay, one? You didn't slip any special stuff into the oil that you were burning, did you?" At the shake of the head, she gave Hedwig a look, "Second, your owl is pretty damn sarcastic."

Eyes wide, Hedwig blinked at her, "Sarcastic? Why, I have no idea what you are talking about." Turning to Harry, she cocked her head to the side, "Do you know what she is talking about, Harry-Wizard?"

Shoulders shaking as he tried not to laugh, Harry coughed, "No, no, I am sure that I don't." Once he had his amusement under control, he gave her a look, "It is actually kind of neat to hear you speak, Hedwig. But... the book also stated that you can act as a helper?"

Hedwig considered the question and clacked her beak before closing her eyes. Then she opened them and everyone just stared a bit as she was looking down some at Harry from where she stood on the floor in front of him, "Like this, Harry-Wizard?"

After a moment, Harry nodded, "Seems about right."

 

[darthcourt10]

RCNAnon

This one took a bit longer than my others but it's also larger so... yeah. Summer is now that much closer to ending for my snips... I'll catch up to HL eventually.

Anyway hope you all enjoy.
----------

As they entered the Leaky Cauldron, the normally somewhat cheery pub grew quieter. It was one thing that they had shipgirls with them. It was quite another with Summer, who even with the notice me not ring was getting quite a bit of attention.

Ron took up position in front of her, protecting most of her legs from casual view as his mother once again huffed.

"My word! It's like you've all never heard of Frost Giant's before. Can't a lady go shopping without all sorts of hooligans staring at her?"

Thankfully it seemed that most of the pub wasn't all that interested in facing his mothers wrath and went back to their drinks. The rest at least were quiet about it and didn't make any trouble.

As they made their way through the crowd, Warspite and Duke took up positions slightly to the side of Ron and Summer until they made it out the back and his mother began to tap the bricks with her wand.

"There's going to be a lot of people Summer. But nobody is going to hurt you ok?" Ron was glad he remembered to tell her that, as he barely got a nod and then another gasp as the wall opened up to reveal Diagon Alley.

Ron felt his hand grabbed and then squeezed hard by someone who was twice as tall and easily three times as massive as he was before the magically enhanced muscle was included. Yet he didn't make a noise. Instead he waited it out, patting Summer with his free hand until the initial wash of noise and color passed.

"Are you ok?"

Summer looked down with a start, seeming to realize how hard she was squeezing his hand.

"Y-yes… I'm sorry..." She seemed upset that she'd even indirectly hurt him.

"You're fine Summer. I said I'd protect you right?"

Summer's face seemed almost disbelieving for a moment and then she nodded, smiling at him.

"Yes."

"Lets go we've got some clothes to get you."

As they entered the portal and were once again flanked by their shipgirl escorts, Ron felt Warspite lean down next to his ear.

"That was well done."

Ron felt himself blushing a bit as he glanced up to his long time friend and Warspite gave him a wink before standing back upright.
As they proceeded into Diagon Alley, there were inevitably stares. Even with the Notice-me-Not ring Summer was simply too big to not get at least a little attention. Thankfully with how busy Diagon Alley actually was, nobody seemed to have the time or attention to pay much attention to them aside from curious glances.

His mother led them to an out of the way corner of Diagon Alley, even more cramped than normal and almost off to some of the other alley's that weren't quite as reputable. Still there was at least an air of respectability around as they headed for a building that had the seemingly freshly painted sign "Flannery's House of Muggle Finery's and Knickknacks."

With his mother going straight to the door, Ron led Summer inside, making sure that she had room to duck under the door.

Inside was not what he expected. Instead of the normal cramped, closed in but slightly homey store that dominated Diagon Alley, they had entered a store which had ten foot ceilings, what looked to be muggle lighting or spells designed to look like muggle lighting and comparatively wide aisles. Even Summer could comfortably stand upright, though her hat's wide brim could probably reach if she looked up too much.

The front was clearly full of various muggle clothes and outfits, some quite modern while others were visibly dated to a muggle… but would probably appeal more to certain sectors of Wizards and Witches. In the back were more varied items, including beds, mattresses, furniture of all sorts, what appeared to be muggle literature and metal implements of various kinds. What Ron didn't see was anything obviously electrical or high tech.

At the front, standing behind a counter with a somewhat old fashioned cash register was a pale, younger looking witch with frizzy brown hair and a bright smile.

"Hello! Welcome to Flannery's how can I help you today?" Her voice was as cheery as her smile, though her eyes did dart to Summer as she looked around.

"Mrs. Weasley and party here for a custom fitting." Ron's mother spoke with more formality than he thought the situation deserved.

The girl's smile remained on her face for a few more moments as she waved her wand at the door, the sign switching from "Open" to "Closed" and then locking itself as a shade dropped down over the front glass. Finally the girl pointed her wand at herself and what appeared to be a number of charms disappeared.

Standing before them was no longer a young human woman with average looks and frizzy hair. Instead there was a several inches taller, smooth faced, woman with sleek red hair and an ageless look in her eyes.

"Ooh I was hoping you would all show up soon." Her voice was long and elegant sounding, a refined speech that went at odds with the way she cracked her neck.

"We made the best time we could. The Knight Bus is busy these days." Molly spoke, while everyone else looked on in shock.

"I can see. You aren't getting her through the average fireplace." The woman, whom Ron had a rather clear inkling on what she was, turned to face them. "Since your mother didn't see fit to inform you of who I was before, let me introduce myself. Flannery Conroy at your service, I'm a vampire."

Despite the inkling that he felt before, Ron couldn't help but stiffen up a little at the pronunciation of such a fact. He could feel Warspite and Duke do much the same, though Summer seemed more confused than anything.

"As you can see Flannery is harmless." Molly reached into her purse and tossed a blood red lollipop to the vampire, who quickly chomped on it and began sucking.

"Mostly 'armless. Still need blood." Whatever else went along with it, Ron had to admit that seeing someone sucking on a lollipop made it hard to see them as dangerous.

"Which you get from the muggles now that they're aware of such things." Ron realized his mother was humoring the woman in front of him.

"Aye. Just take away all my fun will you?" The vampire shook herself and pointed to Summer. "I'll need you to take off that ring of yours to fit you properly."

Ron looked up to Summer and watched as she carefully removed the ring. Holding it gingerly between her fingers, Summer looked back and forth for a place to put it. Ron held out his hand and Summer nodded, carefully placing the comparatively tiny ring down.

"I'll find something so you can carry it without wearing it." Ron smiled as he patted Summer's arm.

Summer nodded, then looked down as Flannery immediately began to circle around the large abyssal.

"Ooh. I mean I've heard about you abyssal's but seeing one up close is something else. I like the white on white you've got going but we can certainly pull some more colors for you..."

Ron could feel part of his brain melting away as colors started to get discussed but he did his best to focus. It was the least he could do for Summer.

"Miss?" Flannery turned as Warspite interjected. "If you don't mind me asking, why the more… non-magical look."

"Oh, well I'm sure you know since you're with Molly here but the Statute is falling and anybody with more than a couple inbred brain cells can see that."

Flannery reached out to touch Summer, causing the abyssal to jump in surprise as her waist was displayed.

"So I decided I'd get in on the fact wizard's are going to have to be getting more muggle items. Business isn't great at the moment, just enough to pay for everything but I'm well positioned in Diagon Alley thanks to some other business' getting hit hard. It's a pity about the war and everything but I saw an opportunity and took it. When the statute finally does fall I'll get all sorts of business from people who know they need clothes at least but there's an entire market about to open up."

"I see. Do you happen to have anything in our size?" Warspite pointed between her and Duke.

"I'm fitting her. I've certainly got stuff for you." Flannery smiled and pointed at Summer.

"Good!" Warspite grinned and patted Duke on the back. "We've got some shopping to do ourselves."

Duke merely flushed, glancing at Ron before shaking her head once.

"Yes. Shopping to do."

Ron felt himself blush slightly as he remembered what Warspite and Duke were probably thinking about. Not so much the object itself but the process involved. Then he shook himself. It wasn't as if they'd minded when they were in their swimming suits it was just… He shook himself again. This time literally.

"Well I've got a little bit of everything and some resizing charms, so feel free to look around!" Flannery turned back to Summer. "You'll need a bit of custom fitting so we'll go to the back."

Summer turned to look at Ron, clearly expecting him to come along.

"I can't come with you this time Summer. It's uh..." Ron tried to think on how to explain nudity and clothing to her.

"I think you can come to the back and sit near. We'll need somebody to decide if she looks good." Flannery interrupted, smiling at Ron. "Since you're buying."

"That's… true." Ron felt himself flush a little bit but Summer looked happy.

"Come on then." The vampire began to head towards the back, with his mother and Summer following along Ron felt he needed to do the same. "You two feel free to look around. I accept payment in Pounds and Galleons!" Warspite nodded in response and then Ron was off, swept up in the excitement of a clothes designer with infinite time on her hands and a new subject….

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\

Duke felt herself trying to hold back a sigh as she went through the available items at the front of the store. It wasn't that there was a lack of selection, there was a surprisingly large one in fact. Instead it was that Warspite was helpingher and while it was far from unwelcome most of the time the mere fact that she was getting the item for Ron made her friend more teasing than normal.

"What do you think about this one?" Warspite held up one that besides being much too small was also bright pink with some sort of pattern on parts of it.

"I think that wouldn't even fit Ardent much less you or I." Duke tried to keep her voice level. "Not to mention that color..."
"No pink for you then." Warspite nodded as if that was the only thing important about what she had just said. "Perhaps a nice red..."

"Warspite, I don't think the color is all that important." Duke held up a plain black number, looking to see if it would be appropriate. "What we, I need is something sturdy and that Ron can work with easily."

"You'll also be wearing it Duke, so you should make sure you like it." Warspite smiled as she dug through a pile of clothing that while much sturdier than only a row away was something Duke still had a few issues with in the context of Ron. It had taken much more bravery than she was ready to admit to wear the red number she'd put on for the hot spring in Japan.

"That… that's true. I'm not going to be showing it off though." Duke held up the pure black sports bra and then put it back on the rack where she'd found it.

"No?" Warspite's words caused Duke to look up at her friend."

"...Not that I can think of." Duke spoke slowly, wondering where Warspite was going with the line of questioning.

"Don't you think Ron is going to have to make some adjustments?" Warspite's eyebrow quirked upward at her friend. "At the very least he'll need to make sure it fits properly."

Duke found her eyes widening involuntarily and she gulped. She'd been so focused on the mere idea of purchasing what Ron needed she hadn't thought about what might come afterwards.

"I… uhm… I hadn't thought about that." Duke could feel embarrassment bubbling through her at the thought of Ron examining her in such a manner.

Warspite finally took pity on her friend and shook her head. "I'm sure he's going to be a perfect gentleman about it Duke. I doubt he'll even touch it while you're wearing it either, simply look to see if everything is in the right spot."

Duke nodded. "That… that makes sense." She felt a mild sense of relief.

"Though he's probably going to need to get close if all those runes he's working on are going to fit on it, even with your size." The grin on Warspite's face told Duke that she'd been saving that for last exactly to see her reaction.

"Thank you so very much for that image Warspite." Duke let her exasperation flow clearly through her voice, though Warspite merely continued to smirk.

"That's what friends are for isn't it?" Warspite pulled out a nice red and black number, holding it up for Duke to examine. "This one is cute don't you think? It might actually even be appropriately sized for you."

Duke took a look at the proffered clothing and then took it from Warspite. It was appropriately sized, at least close enough that she was sure Flannery could resize it properly and the color was nice…

"Alright Warspite I'll get this one." Duke shook her head at her friend. "Even if I know you just want to see my face when I'm wearing it."

"Not the only reason." Warspite grinned even more at her friend, already tugging her towards the back of the store. "I want to see Ron's face when he sees you in it as well."

Duke wasn't sure if she was more impressed or frustrated with her friends foresight… and perhaps mildly jealous she wouldn't get to do the same thing. Instead she simply shook her head as Warspite headed back towards the furniture section of the store.

"If only I could do the same thing for you." She said with her own half smile.

Warspite chuckled at the comment. "I'll gladly let you pick out something for me to show Ron when it's appropriate Duke. It's not as if I plan to hold anything back from him when the time comes."

Duke could only nod to that. "Yes… I suppose that's true." She found a smile within herself. "I think the same yet..."

"We've got time Duke." Warspite had a sparkle in her eyes. "Plenty of time. I waited a hundred years to be fixed… another five is nothing compared to that." She grinned and pointed towards the back. "To that end though, I think we should do some furniture shopping."

It was Dukes turn to quirk an eyebrow. "Oh?"

"I think we should find a nice large bed for the master bedroom. Miss Flannery seems to have quite the selection too."

"I suppose that makes sense." Duke grinned at Warspite. "It will need to be quite the large bed to fit all three of us."

"Yes. Especially if we are to have any room at all if Summer decides she wants to join."

Dukes eyes widened.

"Do you really think…?"

Warspite shrugged.

"I don't know but I certainly want to be prepared if she decides she likes Ron as more than just a protector."

Duke nodded. That made plenty of sense given they weren't sure about a lot of things with Summer yet, though Abyssals as a whole seemed perfectly inclined to show love and affection if they were given the same.

"So a really big bed."

"Quite." Warspite grinned. "Perhaps a few smaller ones for other rooms until Ron is grown but then." She smiled again, clearly pleased with herself. Duke could only shake her head and nod in agreement. After all it wasn't as if she disagreed with the planned outcome.

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\

Ron was glad that Summer had gone into the dressing room with Flannery and his mother, as it gave him time to soothe his wounded hand with a couple charms he'd learned from Harry and Hermione. Even if he was getting to be pretty good at ship-girl repair, personal repair was… difficult for someone as straightforward as he tended to be. Metal could be welded and beaten into place. Flesh not so much.

It also gave him time to look around and find a nice long silver chain to slip Summer's notice me not ring onto. Then he headed back to the dressing room to wait for the results.

There was muttering and the swish of cloth for at least ten minutes more before Flannery stuck her head out of the dressing room with a grin.

"Are you ready to see something nice?"

Ron nodded, not quite trusting his voice at the moment.

"Good! Cause she looks great." Flannery flung open the curtain separating the interior with a grand gesture.

Ron's eyes went wide at the sight before him. Summer was wearing what he would generally call a "Secretary outfit", a tight white blouse with a black skirt that somehow managed to hug her chitin covered legs as if they were built more like what you would expect to see on a non-abyssal. He'd grown so used to the sight of Summer in her plain white dress that what he saw was shocking despite how conservative it really was.

"It looks good." He managed to choke the words out, looking up to see Summer blushing.

"It does." His mother stepped out of the dressing room, looking up at Summer like he was. "Flannery also has a few more items for her but those aren't quite as appropriate for you to see."

Ron gulped and nodded, his mind immediately trying to picture said items while at the same time not. For his own sanity of course.

"I've got a few different colors that might go well with her too, reds and blues mostly but those can wait." Flannery smiled. "I've done the measurements and I've got some things I want to try out for her. It'll be fun."

Summer nodded, tugging at her top slightly but perfectly happy as Ron looked at her.

"So… do we need anything else? Like sleepwear and such?" Ron turned to look between his mother and Flannery.

"I've got that covered as well, though your mother didn't think you needed to see that quite yet." Flannery looked a bit put out at not being able to show off what she'd decided on.

"It's essentially her dress." Mrs. Weasley seemed less than impressed with the vampire's pouting attempts. "With a little more covering the important bits."

Ron nodded. It wasn't as if he needed to be concerned with such things.

Flannery waved her wand at that, a large pile of clothing flying out after them and folding into a neatly contained pile. Which she promptly handed to Ron.

"Come on the, lets go see how the others are doing!"

Not having any real reason to complain aside from the fact he could just barely see where he was going, Ron simply followed after. At least he could still see Summer clearly as she walked carefully beside him, the skirt something she apparently had to get used to. Yet she smiled clearly when she looked down to him.

"Thank you..." she said in her quiet voice.

"You're welcome Summer. If you need anything else let me know ok?"

Summer simply nodded in return.

They found Duke and Warspite in the furniture section, the two battleships whispering to each other as they pointed at a few sets of beds.

"See something you like?" Flannery eagerly greeted the two.

"A few things." Warspite had on an enigmatic smile as Ron looked at her. "We'll probably need to discuss shipping with you."

"Lovely!" Flannery bounced up and down, then looking at something in Duke's hands. "Oh! You found something to wear as well."

Duke's cheeks flushed slightly but she nodded as she attempted to to hid the item in her hands by balling it up.

"Err… yes. I think it will do just fine."

"Do you need a fitting?" Flannery's offer was completely justified but that simply made Duke flush more and nod again.

"Well come on then!" The vampire flashed a smile at the remainder of the group. "This should only take a minute, you can all wait up front."

Heading up to the front, Ron looked to see Warspite who was still smiling walking beside him.

"So were you looking at furniture for the house?" Ron asked, making sure to stay in the center of the aisle.

"Yes. Duke and I thought it might need a bit of a personal touch given how long it has been since it was used."

Ron nodded, that made perfect sense to him.

"I should probably look at some stuff too. I never really had my own furniture to pick out."

"Duke and I picked out some items we thought you might like. Of course if you want more we can always go shopping together again." Warspite nodded.

"That sounds good." Ron smiled back to her.

Warspite looked pleased as they reached the cash register.

It was only a couple minutes before Duke and Flannery came back, the vampire clutching the red clothing in her hand and tossing it on Ron's pile before heading behind the cash register. It was, unfortunately for Duke's complexion, right at Ron's eye level.

"If you'll set everything down right here then I'll get it bundled for you."

Ron had to wonder why the vampire had tossed the sports bra on the pile only to ask him to set the entire pile down on the counter but it seemed she shared the same sense of humor many of his friends did. He did as she said anyway, setting down the clothing as she began to bundle and wrap the various pieces.

"That'll be 20 galleons for everything." Flannery said after she had gathered everything. "Or equivalent in pounds."

Ron pulled out his wallet, which at Harry's suggestion had been enchanted with a space enhancing charm so it could hold the bulky wizarding currency at the convenient size provided by the muggle item and pulled out twenty galleons. It made him truly happy to be able to do such a thing for his friends, especially for something as simple as clothing.

Handing over the money the vampire cashier smiled and rang it all up before handing him the two carefully packed bags of clothing.

"You're a very lucky lad you know that right?" She said as she did so.

"Yeah, I know." Ron smiled, glancing back at his companions.

"Good. You all enjoy yourselves!" Flannery gave them a grin before she waved her wand, charms returning her look to that of a mousy young woman and flipping the building back to open.

"Thank you." Ron nodded to the woman.

"Yes, thank you for your time Flannery." Mrs. Weasley said, handing over one more lollipop.

"No problem for a friend. Come back if you need anything else." The younger sounding voice was somewhat out of place given what they'd heard before but fit the charmed appearance perfectly.

As they headed out the door, Ron looked to Duke.

"I'll get started on your uhm… enhancements as soon as I can."

Duke looked a little embarrassed but she nodded in return.

"Thank you Ron. I'll be looking forward to it. I'm sure you'll do a sterling job."

"Right..." said Ron's mom as they once more entered Diagon Alley. "Now that we have clothes we need to go get some toiletries and then..."

As she went down the list Ron realized to his chagrin that they were not nearly done… and he'd certainly end up carrying more bags by the time they were.
----------
Comments appreciated as always.

 

[darthcourt10]

NotHimAgain

So. Like I said, here is the Non-Select stuff from my snippets, along with the stuff from those snippets that I wanted to keep. I'm probably going to go over the main snips and mark them as no longer canon. First, though, I'll be wanting to get some Sailor Moon going.
Spoiler: Sayaka Stuff

Mamiya shivered and adjusted her coat, looking up at the sky. With winter on its way, she was most looking forward to crawling under the kotatsu with a nice bowl of tangerines and a good book, dojo work be damned. In spite of that, though, she had found that there was a certain satisfaction in taking a walk in the brisk autumn air. It was refreshing, she might even say.

That didn't make it any less cold, though.

A group of young teens passed her, a Caucasian boy with several girls gathered around him. Mamiya raised an eyebrow—the boys at his school were probably quite jealous of him. Then she paused, and looked back over her shoulder. Something about him… How had the description she'd heard gone?

"Excuse me," she called, and the boy halted in turn, looking back at her. "Would you happen to be Harry-kun?" The girls shuffled around, a bit defensively the kendo-ka in her noted in the back of her head, and the boy nodded.

"Yes," he said, "I'm Harry Potter-Nagato. Why do you ask?"

Mamiya laughed. "Ah, Tatsuya described you very well," she smiled. "A good thing, too. It would have been embarrassing if I'd gotten it wrong—Ah, my name is Haneda Mamiya. I'm Tatsuya's older sister."

"I hope you've heard good things," Harry replied mischievously.

"Don't worry," she said, "Everything I've heard from Tatsuya and Nagawa-san is definitely praiseworthy."

One of the girls surrounding him blinked in confusion. "Who's Nagawa-san?" she asked.

"That's Ushio, she's a Natural-born."

"Huh? She's friends with Ushio?"

"Classmates, actually," Mamiya replied. "I was actually on the trip with her when she Awakened… Man, she was a lot shyer then."

"She isn't still?" another girl chimed in dubiously.

"Oh, she's been showing her good side a lot more lately. I guess it's because she's bound and determined to help with Yuki-chan."

There was a moment's quiet, as everyone thought this over. Finally, Harry spoke up. "Who's Yuki-chan?" Mamiya fell quiet herself. Did he not know?

"Yae had her baby a day or two before Halloween," she explained. "Did you not hear about that?"

"Really?" The girls perked up at this as well, their interest peaked.

"Yes—hang on, let me get my phone. I've got pictures if you want to see them."

-----

"… Oh, I don't know," the Richardson girl shrugged, "as an older sister myself, I'm obligated to maintain that my sisters are far more adorable."

Mamiya shrugged. "That's fair," she said. "I know that… that…" she paused, looking around. "Does anyone else hear a voice?"

The girls and Harry went still as well, everyone straining to hear whatever it was Mamiya had heard. She felt herself begin to go cold. What if it was one of the monsters out there that Tatsuya fought—had been fighting for all of these years? Could she do anything about something like that? The kids—did they know anything about—

"Matooo…"

Harry perked up. "Wait a second." He bolted around a corner, followed momentarily by the girls as they exploded into chatter and warnings. Mamiya gaped—what if it's dangerous?—and ran after them herself.

Then she stopped.

A tiny little Yamato was standing in front of a food stand. Actually, no. She was trying to walk away from it. Struggling, "Mato"-ing in frustration, drooling…

Harry knelt down in front of her. "Hello, Yamapi," he said, glancing back up at the stand. "Would you like some imoyoukan?"

Mamiya caught herself watching the little Yamato for signs that she would grow into real Yamato size, and mentally kicked herself. Darn Yae and her Toku obsession!

"So, what are you doing here?" Harry asked as "Yamapi" dug into her snack. "Aren't you usually with Akechi-san?"

"Yamapi" considered this, then lowered the imoyoukan from her mouth. "Mato," she said, spreading her arms wide and waving them. "Matomatomatomatomatomatomatomatomatomatomatomatomatomatomatomatomatomatomato. Mato." She held out her free hand and gave the thumbs up sign. "Ya!" she cheered, then crammed the imoyoukan back into her mouth.

"Say, cuz…" Richardson said, crouching down beside Harry (who was nodding seriously), "who exactly is Akechi?"

"Oh, right. She's a girl from my old school…"

Mamiya felt the world around her begin to tune out. Just what was going on here?
Sayaka shrugged on her jacket, pushed the door open, called "I'm going," to her mother, and froze on the doorstep as the door closed behind her.

"Hello, Akechi-san," Potter said, waving cheerily. On his shoulder sat Yamapi, mouth full and visibly straining to swallow down whatever it was that she had been given by Sayaka's former schoolmate.

What was he doing here? Sayaka had decided from the outset to avoid contact with him. Did that mean that Yamapi had ignored her feelings? Or wait, not the feelings that were stirring up, ears flushing slightly, heartbeat increasing, but her wishes? Her explicit decision to deny herself those feelings? Why would she do that?

"Hello, Potter-san," she replied, trying to hide her increasingly trembling tone. "How did you find my house?"

He laughed, reaching up and patting Yamapi on the head. The "smol" finally managed to swallow her mouthful, then grinned in satisfaction. "Actually, Yamapi brought me here," he confirmed, and Sayaka made sure to shoot her little charge a brief glare. "It was impressive—she was even trying to walk away from imoyoukan."

"And?" Sayaka asked, maybe a little too quickly, "Why did she bring you here?"

Potter's vision flickered away briefly, thoughtfully. "Well," he said, "she told me that you were feeling a little down, and she wanted me to help cheer you up somehow."

-----

"That's… not exactly what she said," Jane pointed out, straining her neck as far as she could to look around the hedge. Natsumi grabbed her by the shoulder and dragged her back into cover.

-----

Sayaka twitched slightly. "Yeah, well, she's wrong," she snapped back curtly. "I'm just fine, and I don't need cheering up." Deliberately casting her gaze on the ground before her, she stalked down to the sidewalk. She had to go, she had to leave now, just keep walking, walking, walking, she could do this—

"Where are you going?"

Her gaze flickered up. They locked eyes, and she felt her face heat up like a blazing summer's day.

"Th-the-the…" she stammered before her nerve failed her entirely and she turned and ran. "SEE YOU LATER!"

She heard Potter call out behind her, but his words were drowned out by the blood pumping through her ears and the desperate agony.

I promised Momo.

I promised Momo.

I promised Momo.

-----

Struggling to his feet, Harry looked down at the spot where his feet had become glued to the ground for a brief moment. Yamapi walked over, dabbing at it slightly before trying to pull up a handful and shove it into her mouth. Puzzled, Harry reached down himself and pulled a piece of the sticky brown substance off to sniff at it.

"Saltwater taffy?" he exclaimed.

"Harry? Are you alright?" Natsumi called as she and the girls ran over, and Harry waved, pushing himself to his feet.

"I'm fine," he replied, waving his sample in the air, "It's just taffy!"

The girls pulled to a halt in front of him. "Taffy?" Jane asked, kneeling down by Yamapi. "How's that?"

"I think I've got a working theory," Harry said. There was more he wanted to say, but Jane cut him off.

"Great!" she replied cheerfully. "We're going to need all the info we can get for Operation Christmas Vacation!"

"Huh?"

"Hey, Akechi-san is a bit of a mess, no two ways about it," Jane pointed out. "That means we've got to do something to help her, right? Come on, it'll be fun."​

Spoiler: Franky Stuff

Franky slumped to rest her back against the train seat, looking down at the floor. Another day, another session, more training, more blah blah blah blah blah. It was all starting to run together, a tangle of a daily routine that was running farther and farther away from any kind of sense that it could make, and all that she could get out of her experiences was that she wanted to go back.

Not back to America. Back to before Dad's endless stream of failed relationships. Back to before Mom walked out into traffic. Back to when her grandparents were actually nice. Back… She didn't know back to when. Back when things were better, probably.

However long ago that was.

The train groaned, creaked, and stopped.

Around Franky, passengers were beginning to look around, ask questions, look up at the massive dent that had formed in the roof wait a minute.

The next moment, claws were shredding through the metal and passengers were screaming, fleeing through the doors, the emergency exits, and as she stood to join them someone's briefcase hit her in the head, knocking her down to the floor. Someone stepped on her stomach, another kicked her in the side, and by the time she had pulled herself up on the seat there were at least five bruises forming in a variety of other places. But that didn't seem to measure up to the chimeric monstrosity that was tearing around the train car, batting fleeing passengers around the small space and roaring. Franky released her grip on the seat and dropped back to the floor as a rear leg kicked at where her head had just been a moment ago.

Then the creature spoke.

"GIVE HIM BACK!" it roared, still lashing out. "GIVE HIM BAAAAACK!"

And suddenly, something deep in the back of Franky's heart clicked into place, and the will to flee was gone. Something else, not quite so readily identifiable, had taken it's place. Suddenly, Franky knew what it was she had to do.

Climb shakily to her feet, vision blurring slightly from the knock her head had taken against the floor.

Stand and face the monster that everyone else was fleeing, feeling each breath in and out, her pulse thundering in her ears.

Open her mouth, taking in a deeper breath, in preparation.

And speak.
"Give who back?"

One moment, the creature was facing away from her. The next, it's face was directly against hers, eyes wide and almost literally glowing with rage. One massive paw came up, resting against her chest, and Franky realized that it had claws that might even be longer than her head was large.

"My son!" it snarled. "Those wizard bastards, they took him away! Shoved him in the back of a truck, and he was gone off to one of their preserves! I-I-I want him back!"

Franky continued looking at it, staring it right in the eye. So she had been right. It hadn't been anger, or just a love of chaos, that had triggered this rampage. It was something that she knew and understood very, very well.

"I can't say I know exactly what you're going through," she said, truthfully, lifting a hand and resting it against the paw that had her pinned against the window. "But I've been hurt enough to know how much it's hurting you. And I am sorry. For everything you're going through."

The beast stiffened at that. "What would you know?" it growled, leaning in closer. "You've never lost someone like this!"

"I've lost two people, actually," Franky replied, gritting her teeth to keep her jaw from trembling. "My mom? She ran out into the street after the neighbor's kids, pushed them out of the way of a passing car. The guy in the driver's seat, he was trying to text his teacher. Didn't even notice her until she hit the windshield. And my dad? He kind of died that day too, somewhere deep down important." Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed the claws beginning to retract, the heaviness against her chest beginning to shift slightly. "He just spends his days trying to make a relationship work, but they're just getting shorter and shorter. Brought two different women home two different days once. Barely pays attention to anything else. And somehow he hasn't lost his job yet." The paw was no longer pushing against her chest to hold her there, it was slowly sliding down her chest. "Because of me, I suppose. Got to provide for the daughter he doesn't know how to care for anymore. It's been years, and he still hasn't gotten any better. So yeah. I do know what it's like losing people."

She looked up, biting her lip to bring focus back. "And that's why I'm telling you, you can't do this."

The paw, briefly resting on the floor, came up again with claws beginning to extend.

"These people, they don't know a thing about wizards, or preserves, or whatever," Franky continued. "You can hurt them as much as you want, and it wouldn't change anything. It won't help. Lashing out never does."

"But…" the monster's voice was a whisper now. "But my son."

At that moment, it was over. It could have kept arguing, searching for a reason to keep fighting, but the desire was no longer there. The monster simply slumped over against Franky's chest, howling with grief and pain. Franky brought a hand up, resting it gently against its forehead.

Just a moment of commiseration and shared sorrows in a world full of madness and violence.
"Still, I'm pretty impressed," and Richardson nodded along with Goto's assessment, scrolling past pictures of a young Caucasian girl and an older, slightly ill-looking woman sitting next to each other on a bench at a train station. "Walking up to a rampaging Nue and talking her down? I'd say brass balls, but she's pretty much a baseline human from what you've told me. Maybe cast iron?"

"It was pretty surprising to get the phone call," Richardson agreed. "It may have had something to do with that woman's curse though." He frowned, thinking back. How had it gone again? "Monsters shall seek you out… something like that?"

"What are you talking about now?" Goto asked. Richardson sighed, lifting the receiver away from his head to think for a moment.

"Do you remember a while back when you were looking into ridiculously badass monster hunters?" he replied. "Stopped with that German warrant officer and that one Higgs guy?"

Goto snorted at some memory that the question dredged up. When he next spoke, he was deadly serious. "You think she's connected somehow."

"Well, we don't know how the whole thing works, but the woman apparently cursed her entire family line," Richardson said. "When you think about that, it looks like it might be connected, doesn't it?"

"Mmm," Goto agreed. "It would be nice if we could get Haneda-kun to tell us more. He's still closing Miyuki out on a few details."​

Spoiler: Tsubaki Stuff

The Tsu-Class gingerly stepped under a hanging cord or tube of some kind, stretched herself high over something wet on the floor, and found herself pressed up against some sort of console. Immediately, she sank down against it, hanging on as if it were a lifeline in a roaring storm—which, after some odd fashion, it probably could be.

"It's okay, it's okay," she whispered. "Just have to find Talon. Find Talon, and we're out of here and home free." She drew a long, shuddering breath.

It had taken her a month sitting on the edge of this Princess's territory, watching the way patrols moved and Abyssals idled, to find a way in that no one would notice. After another month of dodging them, skimming just enough off the top of their supply depots that no one would notice the difference, she'd found her way to the place that she'd heard them speak of as the "laboratory" in the hushed tones of frightened peasant. It was another two weeks to observe patrols around there and find a way to sneak in to the place that she knew, just knew, that Talon had to be.

Now she just needed to find a way through, to wherever they kept the prisoners.

Someone's foot slapped wetly against the floor, and she ducked down, huddling against the console as she waited for it to pass by.

That was another thing that she'd discovered. There were… things in here. Evil things, that shouldn't have existed. Whoever this Princess was, she was well worth the fearing.

I shouldn't say that—it might be her! The Tsu-Class bit her lip, screwing up her courage, and sank into a runner's starting position.

"T-Talon?" she whispered, voice quivering. The footsteps stopped, and she very nearly started, pushed off and bolted deeper into the shadows

"Tsubaki…" a hoarse whisper came back to her on the wind. "Tsubaki… is that you?"

She nearly bolted upright, turning to face the direction of the footsteps. "Talon! Yes, it's me! I'm here—"

Then something landed on her from behind, knocking her to the floor, rolling her over roughly. For a moment, everything was stars. The next…

A face was pushed into her own, a grinning, stitched-together crisscross of Abyssal white and Shipgirl pink with the eye in the pink flesh glowing like a red foglamp and the one in the white glowing with the light of madness.

"It's the darndest thing…" the figure giggled. She leaned in closer and her nostrils flared, sniffing at Tsubaki. "YOU'RE ONLY HALF RIGHT!"

Her teeth closed over Tsubaki's shoulder, and darkness sped over the smaller girl's consciousness.

-----

"She fainted. Fainted? That's too bad, they taste better awake. Awake? Why do we eat them? What else are we going to eat? Don't get food, no sir, don't get no food. Oh, but we do get food. We get everything else, it all moves and squeaks and squishes, right? Tasty tasty! Ew no, that's gross.

"Wait, how did she get in here?

"There's a breeze blowing somewhere. Where's a breeze coming from?

"Ooh, feel the wind. That would be nice. We should eat the wind. How would we do that? We're smart, we'll find a way.

"Bring her? Might as well. Could use a snack along the way."
When Tsubaki came to, she was lying on a sandbar. Startled, she scrambled to her feet, scanning the blue expanse for something, anything, turning around to find an unfamiliar island jutting out of the water.

"What's going on?" she whispered. "Chart, chart, chart…" She slowed. "Nothing?"

Well, not quite nothing. Just the absence of any kind of landmarks worth noticing, and in the middle of the day there were no stars out to be setting her course by. So she was lost. Utterly.

Now if only she could figure out what happened. After the months spent tracking Talon down, finding a way into the "laboratory," if it had somehow, randomly gone to waste, she couldn't—

Like a bucket of water, the memories poured down through her body, setting her shivering.

That. That thing. The thing that was… that was her. How? What was it? What did she do now? It—had it—

An arm landed beside her, a pasty white one from some Abyssal, and she screamed and tripped into the surf.

"Oh, you're awake now!" The thing chirped, drifting up beside her and pulling her up by the neck as if she were a rascally kitten. "Good, good, awake is more fun. Look, food! Eat up!"

Tsubaki looked back at the arm, and threw up.

"Or not. More for us, then. Unless we have to eat you, then there's even more for us," it rambled on cheerily.

"Kah… kah… Talon?" Tsubaki managed. The thing paused.

"Where did you hear that name?" it asked.

"Talon, please, it's me! It's Tsubaki!" she begged. "You remember me, right? You knew my name last night, didn't you?"

"Did we?" it mused, dropping her back on the sandbar. "Things come and things go. We don't exactly worry about them."

"Talon!" Tears were beginning to form in her stomach. "Please!"

The Talon-Thing paused, then turned and leaned forward to stare her in the face. "No, no, don't cry," it said. "It messes up the taste." It fell over on its side, and began snoring. About thirty seconds later, Tsubaki actually began to believe that it was asleep.

"Things come and things go…" Tsubaki whispered to herself. Did that mean that somewhere inside that thing, Talon was still alive? Of course she was! She had to be!

And Tsubaki was going to help her find her way out.
It was about three days into their journey that Tsubaki was roughly shaken awake from her fitful sleep on some abandoned beach in what she thought might be Brazil by something small and warm slamming into her stomach.

"Here, we brought food," Talon said, leaning over her like an expectant mother bird. "Eat, you should eat! Fishes aren't filling, they aren't aren't aren't!"

Groaning, Tsubaki looked down and gaped. A small, human child—male, wearing soiled clothing—was resting on her lap, rigid from whatever terror her companion had seen fit to loose upon him. "Talon?" she asked nervously, "what is this?"

"Food!" Talon chirped. "Go on and eat! We already ate ours!"

Tsubaki choked on a mouthful of air. This was… She looked down at the boy, who was staring at her with wide, frightened eyes. Her eyes.

No.

"Are you crazy?" she shrieked. Talon gave her an impassive look.

"What's your point?" she asked.

"We can't just eat a human!" Tsubaki cried. "When they find out about it, they'll come after us! Really come after us! They'll eat us alive!"

"They won't find out."

"YES THEY WILL! They have humans who can find out all sorts of things just by looking around rooms, like how many people were in them, and what they were wearing, and how long their intestines are! They'll definitely, definitely find out!"

Talon glared at her, then looked away. "Fine. Keep it, keep eating disgusting fish. Never grow up right, never will." She stalked away.

Tsubaki brought her arms—still shaking slightly—up, and hesitantly embraced the child. It didn't take him a moment to shift around to embrace a beacon of safety himself.
The boy and Tsubaki didn't speak anything like the same language, but through trial and error they had sorted out that his name was Pascal, that "banheiro" meant he needed to go and "com fome" meant he wanted food, and that Talon was "mal" and a "canibal." The last one sounded close enough to English to set Tsubaki's stomach churning, but she tried not to comment on it. Talon had simply laughed and loudly clacked her jaw, causing Pascal to hang on to Tsubaki even harder, eyes wide with terror.

Mercifully, since the encounter they'd had with those Abyssal destroyers out on patrol, Talon hadn't eaten anyone else—and hadn't offered her leftovers to Tsubaki, who had paled and refused immediately. Pascal had had nightmares that night, weeping softly for someone called Tia Lila.

After three or four tries, Tsubaki had gotten across to him that she wanted to know if he knew any English at all. Pascal had screwed up his face in concentration, then brightened proudly. "God as my witness!" he crowed, and Tsubaki decided not to press the issue further.

Somehow, it felt like things had sunk into a routine of some kind. Tsubaki wasn't sure whether she felt grateful for that or not, but she was happy to have Pascal with her.​

Spoiler: Other Stuff

"Beg pardon, young David," the old man said, capturing the wizard's attention from the spell formulae he was drawing out, "I had a few questions for you."

"About Diehl?" he asked, sitting up in his seat. The old man nodded.

"From what I understand," he explained, "she comes from a particularly light-aligned family. Yet, here she is, rubbing shoulders with dark witches and wizards. How did that come to happen?" Was this about what Diehl had asked for earlier today? It seemed that the old man didn't quite trust her based on their interactions.

Rubbing the back of his neck, David called the memories up. "Let's see… Our families were old friends, all things considered. Even back then, Diehl was… unusual. More concerned with books and learning than fun, always asking harder and harder questions… Her parents weren't excited about it, but my father said I should be more like her.

"We were about ten when the war with He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named was about to come to a close. Diehl's relationship with her parents was always rocky, but about that time she became interested in dark magic. The Unspeakables and the like. Her parents were… opposed to the idea. And then… they died. Murdered in their beds. My father—he was a Death Eater then—wanted to take her to meet him, but she had vanished entirely. I didn't see her again until we started Hogwarts, and by then… she was pretty much gone."

The old man considered the story, then nodded. "Her parents. Did she…"

"That's the rumor—"

"And if you have time to be discussing rumors," Diehl snarled, slapping a new sheaf of papers down in front of David, "you have time to be working." David turned away—as far as he was concerned, the rage that burned within Diehl at any word of her parents' deaths was as good an admission of guilt as any. Since she was in the same circles as him, he wondered why she didn't come out and say it, take more pride in her deeds. But he subsided under her glare and returned his attention to the papers.

"Miss Diehl," the old man called, and she paused in the moment that she entered the doorway. "You will receive access to my notes, though only those I allow."

She paused a moment, then nodded. "Thank you," she said and left.

The old man turned back to David. "Now, about Durant…"
"… Of course you were dropped," Mrs. Bones was saying irately, "you sewed another candidate to his own bed!"

"He was harassing me and the instructors weren't doing anything to stop it," Diehl said evenly, fiddling with the pieces of metal in her hands.

"That coffee blend you created was outlawed the moment we were finally able to analyze it!" Mrs. Bones pressed on.

Diehl rolled her eyes. "That blend was created for someone of my BMI, physical condition at the time, and genetic structure. Dawlish had no business pinching it for funsies."

Glaring Mrs. Bones prepared her final push. "You created a portal to an alternate dimension of evil," she beat out, "in the sink of the girls' lavatory."

Diehl frowned, biting her lip. "Okay," she said. "That one, I'll admit, was poorly thought out. But on the bright side, we found out that the Great Old Ones were all killed centuries ago."

...

"The Admiral's! Prized! Beagle!"

Diehl actually grimaced at this one. "That wasn't me!"
When she was three years old, her Gran took her to see her mother in the morgue. She still remembers it vividly—sterile halls of an old building, formerly white, that had browned with age to create an aesthetic ripe for a horror movie. Gran had strolled forward with that unhurried air of hers, pulling her along as she complained and protested and asked for Ma. Wait, that wasn't right. Pleaded for Ma, begged for ma, more like. And Gran had dragged her into that room, let the door slam behind her, hoisted her up onto a counter, and yanked the sheet from the table.

She'd screamed, clasping her hands to her eyes, and turning to run, but Gran had her by the hair with one hand, pried her eyes open with another.

"Dinnae look away," she commanded, crisp, firm, even as she twisted her head around so that she could see the places where her mother had been ripped open, the places where her arm and her throat weren't anymore. "That is why we do whit we do. That is whit we fight against. That is our duty."

Her eyes began to blur with tears, finally taking some sort of mercy on the rest of her.

"GIL!" a familiar voice called out and she broke away from her Gran's stunned grip to fall from the counter and flee towards the door, even as it opened and let her father in. She threw herself into his arms, sobbing desperately and clinging like she was a baby again.

"Wha'dye think yer doin' 'ere, boy?" Gran said, voice low and darker than she'd ever heard from the emotionless woman. She felt her father shift against her, one hand coming up to cup the back of her head.

"What do you think?" she heard him say, voice the calm of a man who knew he could die at any moment, but simply had no reason to give a damn. "I'm here for my daughter."

"Ye've got nae right," Gran said, voice promising a storm.

"I've got every right," Da said, voice promising the same. "And you know, I think I get it now. I'd heard Anna's stories, but part of me always wondered if she were telling the truth, if she wasn't making it up."

"An' wha'dye think now?"

"I know it was true." Da stood, holding her against him. "And I know why Anna loathed you the way she did."

"HAULD YER TONGUE, LONDON BOY!" Gran roared, and ice cold ran down her back, summoning more tears, but Da just held her tighter.

"No," he replied.

"Ye have no idea whit ye're doin'," Gran snarled like a wildcat.

"I'm protecting my daughter from a… what did Anna call you again?" His voice took on a mocking lilt. "A genocidal maniac."

As he carried her away, she ended up bouncing up and looking over his shoulder for a split second, right into Gran's studied calm gaze.

In the days that followed, sitting wearing Sunday clothes in bright buildings as men shouted at each other, the townspeople looked down at her sadly, whispering "obviously false" and "no way he could have" and "nothing we can do."

That was when Gran started. When her days became simple violence.

Every day, she had killed something. Flies and lizards, or mice and rats, or weasels and rabbits. If she cried or hesitated, half food and double training.

By nine, she'd killed a wildcat bare-handed. That was when she'd realized it.

When she fought the hard ones, when she was close to death, she could see her mother.​

 

[darthcourt10]

Snippet 363: Harry Leferts

Blinking slowly, Harry circled around Hedwig in awe and he was not the only one as others looked at her in surprise as well. She still looked like a snowy owl, mind you...

If a snowy owl stood almost seven feet tall.

Arms crossed, Harry cocked his head to the side as he came around to the front of the owl and hummed, "You know, this makes a lot of sense. I mean, one of the old tales from folklore is how witches sometimes rode their familiars. And the book also stated the same thing, but did not go into detail." Looking at her back, he scratched his chin in thought, "Considering things... I could ride you."

Hedwig clacked her beak some, "Hopefully you do not mean in the manner that some perhaps could take such a thing." Eyes narrowing, she tilted her own head, "And in such a case, or any other, I shall not be using a bridle, thank you."

Confused, Harry was about to say something when he heard choking noises and looked over at Aoba who seemed like she was trying not to laugh. Shaking that off, he turned back to Hedwig, "Right..." Deciding to ignore that, as well as Ooyodo giving the Heavy Cruiser a whack to the back of the head, the wizard softly smiled as he looked into her eyes, "It's good to finally be able to talk to you like this, Hedwig."

From the link, the teen got the feeling of amusement and knew, somehow, Hedwig would have given him a raised eyebrow, "And we could not before? Or do you mean to say that we were talking past one another and made good guesses? Though I suppose that means that we would both be good at that one human game... charades, I think that it is called."

Lightly laughing, Harry shook his head with a grin, "Maybe." Becoming thoughtful, he hummed a bit, "Do you mind if I try something? From the book about familiars?"

Bemused, the giant owl shook her head, "Of course not."

With a nod, Harry closed his eyes and concentrated. Following the link, he gave a mental knock to Hedwig and could feel her perk up some in curiosity. Then, a door seemed to open and he "Walked" through it before blinking. Except... it was not with his eyes that he blinked.

Rather, he blinked Hedwig's eyes.

A slight mental command made her look at Harry's face and he could see every bit with her vision. In fact, her vision was so good that he could pick out the pores in his skin from where he was. When she looked at his clothes, he could see the individual fibers of the fabric as well. Briefly, he was confused at the soft thumping sound until he heard a mental chuckle, 'Heartbeat.'

Much to Harry's bemusement, he could see his eyebrows shoot up and feel them at the same time. Hedwig then turned her head and focused in on the various shipgirls as well as Natsumi, and much to Harry's amazement even in the low light conditions of the warehouse, it was like day to the vision of the owl. As well, he could pick up details of the others as if he was inches away, when Hedwig was a good twenty feet away.

It was... amazing.

Slowly, he explored a little bit of the other senses of the owl, much to her amusement. Among others, he could sense where magnetic north was. More than that, he could sense lines of electromagnetism of the Earth's magnetic field and how they were orientated. Harry gave her a brief mental message and Hedwig replied by opening her wings and giving a few flaps as she hovered over the ground. For Harry, he could feel her muscles move as if they were his own. A grin spreading on his lips, which he could see from Hedwig's eyes, he laughed, "I have got to use this to go flying."

He could feel a mental smile from his familiar, "And I would take you on it, Harry-Wizard."

Opening his eyes, Harry staggered a bit as now he was seeing out of two sets of eyes at the same time. Looking from his eyes and out of Hedwig's, giving him a weird sort of double vision. Quickly, he closed his eyes and withdrew along the connection and shook his head, "That... was odd."

Niiyodo walked up with a clipboard as she made some notes, "How so?"

With a glance at her, Harry hummed and explained. Once he was done, he furrowed his eyebrows as something occurred to him, "Huh... is that like what it is for Shinano-Chan and the others when looking through their pilots' eyes?"

Considering that, Niiyodo looked at her sister and back at Harry, thoughtful herself, "Maybe? It does sound similar when we're looking through our scout planes..." Then she smiled brightly, "Still! That is incredible."

Just nodding, the thirteen year old pulled out his wand, "There's other things like... how apparently one can cast spells through a familiar." Glancing at Hedwig, and getting an owl version of a shrug, he followed the directions as he cast the spell. Instead of focusing on the wand, he focused on the connection between him and the owl, "Lumos Duo!"

Much to their surprise, and amusement, two beams of light shot from Hedwig's eyes. As she turned her head in one direction and then another, the beams followed, "My, isn't this illuminating. Always knew that I was bright."
Snorting at that, Harry smirked some. Then he became thoughtful, "Can you see like that?"

He had to blink as the owl turned to him and the beams caught him in the face, "Oh, I don't know, Harry-Wizard. Can I?"

Lips twitching, Harry brought his hand up to shield his eyes, "I suppose so." Cancelling the spell, he blinked away the few spots in his vision before shaking his head, "Right, one more important one... Protego!"

In front of Hedwig, a shield formed in midair, a greenish glow from it. Walking towards it, Natsumi bounced a piece of stone in her hands for a moment before tossing it at the shield. Upon impact, the stone was deflected, which made the Kitsune nod, "That works."

Looking towards Harry as she made another note, Niiyodo frowned, "What about you?" At his look, she continued, "The ritual gives you some benefits, right?"

Harry crossed his arms for a moment before looking around, "Well... I can confirm that I got enhanced low light vision now."

At that, Ooyodo perked up, "Enhanced low light vision?"

Slowly, Harry gave a nod, "While not anywhere near to what Hedwig can pull, I... can pretty much see everything in the warehouse as if there was more light. From the book, even a dark, moonless night would be enough for me to see as if a Full Moon was out just from starlight if I wanted. And if clouds covered everything... well, it would be more like a normal Moonless night."

Tapping his chin, he frowned before concentrating. Moving, he felt their eyebrows raise as none of them could hear him walking, even Natsumi stared, "Wait, so you literally have a silencing charm of sorts built right in if you want?"

With a shrug, Harry shook his head, "I got to concentrate, but, yeah, I can move without making a sound.."

Eyebrows furrowing, Ooyodo nodded, "That... would be useful." Turning back to Hedwig who was watching her Master in interest, she frowned, "Wasn't there something else that familiars could do?"

Now looking at Hedwig himself, Harry gave a nod, "Hai, according to the book they could take a human-like form." Hedwig had a look of interest and he gestured at her, "Why not give it a shot? It is supposed to be slow the first time and get quicker the more used to it you are."

For several moments, the owl did not seem to know what to do. But then, Harry felt a "Twang" on their connection and she began to change. Slowly, feathers began to melt and run together into soft skin, alongside the scales on her feet. Meanwhile, her beak began to soften and form a nose and pair of lips.

However, with that said, Harry and the others cringed a bit. Mainly because they could hear her bones cracking and twisting into new positions. The only reason he didn't put a stop to it was because she did not seem in any pain. In fact, she held up her feet and watched as they made a snapping sound as they shifted from digigrade to plantigrade, with her back toe twisting around to the front and one of her other toes making a tearing sound as it split into two, one of which was a big toe, "That is rather interesting..."

Finally, she was done and what stood there was a young woman, thankfully clothed with some of her feathers having become such. Beneath a sleeveless tunic, they could see a boiled leather cuirass that covered her torso. One thing that said object showed though was that she was actually rather flat, comparable to Ryuujou. Behind her was a feathered cloak as well that covered her back. Knee length leather boots covered her lower legs while the thighs were covered by a dress. Not that was enough to hide the fact that said thighs were muscular as if she spent all her time working on them. So, too, were her arms also toned, showing little fat beneath the nearly snow white skin. From her head, hair fell that one could not tell if it was white with black speckles or black with white speckles.

It was then though that the group noticed little things that made her somewhat inhuman as well. Her eyes, looking like molten gold, were a bit too wide for a human face with a predatory look to them, while her hair had a somewhat feathery appearance. The nails on her fingers were less like fingernails and more like claws. Something that, Harry was certain, was also true of her toenails if one could see them. More than that, her every movement as she looked herself over and tested her movements, had a predatory undertone to them. Not a single bit of wasted energy as her muscles moved. Rather then subtract though from her looks, those there could not help but think that the non-human parts instead added to her appearance, giving her an inhuman beauty.

Granted, all of them winced as she twisted her head around so that she could examine her back, "Hmm... I am rather good looking for a human female."

Spotting movement, Harry's eyes widened slightly as he boggled at her "Cloak" in disbelief, "Er, Hedwig? Your cloak, is that your..."

Just blinking at him, Hedwig turned and looked at what was on her back. Then, she spread her cloak revealing that they were actually wings, her wings which seemed to have split into wings and normal arms, "Interesting..."

A frown on her face, Aoba examined them and took some pictures before humming, "Do they have to be visible? Makes it harder for you to, well, hide..."

Considering the question for a few moments, Hedwig made a motion and her wings with them being pulled into her body until it looked like they had never existed with a sucking sound accompanying it. Head tilted to the side, she reversed the process and withdrew her wings again and again until it was close to instantaneous. Turning her attention to her clothes, Hedwig frowned, "I wonder..."

Her clothes shimmered for a moment and changed, with her now wearing a tank top and pair of jeans that clung to her. Taking another picture, Aoba hummed as she moved behind the transformed owl, "Nice ass and legs."

Just smirking, Hedwig stretched out her leg as her thin lips curled up into a smile, while ignoring the looks from Ooyodo shot at the Heavy Cruiser. She then twisted her head around to look down her back, "They are rather nice..." A smirk crossed the familiar's face, "What did you expect with legs that looked like they could be used for drumsticks?"

Meanwhile, Natsumi was considering the seemingly young woman in front of her. Without the leather armor and tunic, it was obvious that she really was flat chested, though at the same time from what she could see of her arms and shoulders? The Kitsune was certain that there was muscles there. Her arms, while not bulging like those of a weight lifters, was still toned and muscular, like a martial artist. So, too, did her shoulders show muscles under the skin, 'I... would not want to get into a fight with her.' Looking at her hands, and in particular the claw like nails, she shuddered a bit, 'I really do not want to get into a fight with her.'

Chuckling, the lone wizard of the group had a twinkle in his eyes, "Looking pretty good, Hedwig."

Said person preened a little, "Thank you."

All Harry did was shrug some, "What? It's true." Then he smirked a bit, "Anyways, how about a meal to celebrate. Bacon will likely taste even better now to you..."

Eyebrow raised, Hedwig snorted, "Bacon is already the food of the gods. How could it possibly taste even better now?"

However, Harry simply turned and began to clean up, not answering her question. Though she was confused at the high amusement coming down their link now...

 

[darthcourt10]

Weaver

Sunday, 22nd December 2013

Among the throngs of last minute Christmas shoppers in Middlesbrough was a group of eight; a boy in his late teens, a girl who looked to be a year or two younger, a young woman who's appearance suggested that she was somewhere in her early twenties and five pre-teen girls. To most onlookers they weren't anything out of the ordinary; a group of siblings and step-siblings perhaps, although the boy looked very amused about something.

Someone with a great deal of familiarity with navel ships and shipgirls on the other hand would notice that they were in something resembling a convoy formation.

Dan was fully aware of this fact and that he was one of those being escorted, much to his amusement. Especially since, ironically, he was supposed to be looking after the ones doing the escorting. Less than a week into having human form, the four River-class destroyers had collectively decided that they needed to get a Christmas present for their flagship/mumboat. So he'd volunteered to help take them shopping, Forward tagging along to help ride herd on the destroyers, C9 doing so largely because she didn't have anything better to do and was curious, and Ambrose volunteering to help mind the newly summoned World War One vessels.

The last week or so had been strange. While Dan and his family had had time to get used to the idea of taking in the dinky destroyers when they showed up, now they had it turned out that there was still some adjustment needed. It was worse for the destroyers; finding out that Patrol had been reborn as a human and had a family had been something that had taken some time for them to get their heads around. But like Dan and family, they were more than willing to make the effort to get to know them. His parents' adoption plan wouldn't be put into motion until they'd had time to do so, although Dan had already started moving his stuff into the spare room.

Of course, it might not just be the destroyers. Dan glanced sideways at the scout cruiser walking next to him. Shipgirl relatedness was always a tricky issue and this instance was a little more so than usual, but Forward was probably related to his mum somehow since while they weren't the same class exactly, they were part of the same series. Which meant that even though her and Patrol had only served together briefly, it wouldn't be right to leave her out.

Then there was C9, who was currently bringing up the rear. She wasn't related in any way and she hadn't spent much time with Patrol back when they were all steel hulls, but there weren't many other World War One submarines around and she looked young enough to trigger Mum-ing instincts. On the other hand, she'd probably be assigned elsewhere once decisions were made and in the meantime she was also triggering whatever submarine depot ship instincts Ambrose had that weren't being thwarted by her currently being an armed merchant cruiser, so that was probably keeping things in check.

At least the other individual who'd shown up that day wouldn't be a factor. Heugh Battery showing up had taken everyone by surprise and was the source of much glee on the part of the local artillery troops, glee that was only slightly diminished by it being frequently pointed out that her presence was the result of a naval summoning. He'd met her once, at an impromptu Hartlepool Bombardment reunion, and she seemed likeable enough and even more dedicated to her patch than Zetland was to hers.

Brushing his thoughts aside, he redirected his attention to the girls he was with and the wide-eyed looks that all but Ambrose were giving the surrounding shops. To him it wasn't really anything special but he supposed that it'd be different for someone who was last around in the Edwardian era. Still, it made him smile.

"Come on. The first place we're going to go is over here."

With that he headed for the entrance to one of the two major shopping centres, the shipgirls adjusting their course to accompany him while more or less staying in formation.


A/N: Didn't really want to stop it there but it's late and I'm tired.

 

[darthcourt10]

Yellowhammer

Operation: BUTTERKNIFE (Part III)

Occupied France, 22 December 1941
Spoiler: Flight from France

Colombe looked up at the three-quarter moon and visibly restrained her urge to pace around the night-shrouded farm field. She instead restricted herself to glancing at the pair of young men, one visibly limping who had appeared in the farmhouse the night before. Considering their poor French, she suspected that they were shot-down aircrew instead of her fellow SOE agents or the French Resistance.

Not that it made what they were doing in the dark any less dangerous. The Gestapo, Milice, and German army were all on the watch for the radio transmissions needed to set up a pickup field. Spies and informers were everywhere, rewards were posted, and as much as she hated to admit it, the Nazi message of Jewish and Communist hatred and racial superiority had found willing converts outside Germany.

That did not count the fact that she was certain Grindlewald's followers were also after her. If that vampire impersonating a SS Sturmbannführer was not one of them who was pulling strings from behind the scenes, she would eat her scabbard raw. So in addition to the full mundane weight of the Nazi state, secret police, and the hated collaborators, she had one of the most powerful Dark Wizards after her plus his loyal followers who wished to enslave non-magicals 'For the Greater Good'.

She grinned in smug triumph as a shape passed across the moon and the cell leader flashed a flashlight at it in Morse.

She was never more alive than in these moments.

Standing alongside brave and true comrades fighting the good fight against nigh-impossible odds for what she believed in. In a very real sense, fighting against what the Nazis and Grindlewald represented was what she lived for after all.

She was the biological daughter of a heroic young woman named Julie d'Aubigny who elected to fight for the right to be free of society's constraints and was willing to put her life on the line repeatedly no matter the foe to defend that freedom. Her beloved adopted father Jean-François du Chasteler had taught her the importance of family, of honor, of loyalty, and because she was a noble, that just as she had been given much she would have to live up to that higher status as an example for her peers. Her family whether biological or adopted, sisters of Muramasa steel, or those of shared ideals was what she swore to protect and honor no matter the cost to her.

Flashlights flickered to life, illuminating the landing field and the plane overhead turned to make the landing. Suddenly there was the sound of a motor coming closer along with headlights as the plane touched down and began to taxi. Colombe's head snapped around
Spoiler: Trouble's Coming


"Boche!"
Spoiler: That Others May Live Free

Colombe thrust the rolled up-rug containing her true form and brooch into the arms of the nearer of the RAF aircrew. She snapped out orders with the commanding presence of an aristocrat that knew in her steel bones and with the experience of two centuries of fighting for her life across half the globe what needed to be done, "Get this on board and take off!"

Her eyes turned to the farmer and the other Resistance fighters and her voice sounded above the advancing armored car's motor. "I'll delay them, get the plane off and then get your people clear! Go and don't wait for me!"
Spoiler: The Plane, the Plane!


"Halt! Surrender!"

The Lysander taxied in a U-turn to prepare for emergency take-off, as the RAF aircrew sprinted to the fixed rear ladder to board. Colombe gritted her teeth against the increasing pain and weakness as her true body was separated from her avatar by increasing distance and pointed her finger at the vision slit of the advancing steel beast.

"Incendio!"

The armored car exploded into flames that illuminated a platoon of troops charging behind it. Her lips curled back from her teeth in a savage, smugly mad smile as she gestured with both hands to form a wall of fire behind her, shielding the landing strip and the Resistance from the advancing Germans. Her flames illuminated her smiling face and silhouetted her as she began to slowly and calmly walk toward the advancing enemy's muzzle flashes to draw their fire.

A fragment of a poem that her youngest half-sister Delilah once shared with her while floating down the Mississippi in 1927 came to her head unbidden. As the bullets began to fly, she gestured at a stray hay-fork and flicked her wrist, impaling the leading German soldier with it. The plane's engine howled behind her as the pilot advanced it to full take-off power as she began to recite the poet's words in time with her spellcraft as she cast spell after spell and the first slug punched through her shield spell to shatter her left forearm..

"Then out spoke brave Horatius, the Captain of the Gate:
'To every man upon this earth, death cometh soon or late;
And how can man die better than facing fearful odds,
For the ashes of his fathers, and the temples of his Gods,
And for the tender mother who dandled him to rest,
And for the wife who nurses his baby at her breast,
And for the holy maidens who feed the eternal flame,
To save them from false Sextus, that wrought the deed of shame?
Hew down the bridge, Sir Consul, with all the speed ye may!
I, with two more to help me, will hold the foe in play.
In yon strait path, a thousand may well be stopped by three:
Now, who will stand on either hand and keep the bridge with me?"'

She grunted as a rifle bullet plowed into her avatar's chest and collapsed to one knee before leveling her finger at one of the surviving German soldiers. As her vision began to fade, she hissed out yet another spell through the agony consuming her as she made a slashing motion with her hand.

"Kaṭa ŏpha!"

The soldier came apart in front of his comrades' horrified eyes. With those words, darkness opened up before her and claimed her with one final thought.

I hope that I made you proud.

------------------------------

RAF Tangmere Airbase
West Sussex, United Kingdom

23 December 1941
Spoiler: The Home Front

Lyra Potter watched as the Lysander landed in the early-morning predawn dimness. Fresh bullet holes marred the matte-black painted air-frame, and the ambulance she stood next to hurried to the side of the plane. She sighed and followed a more sedate pace. More and more she was reminded of the toll the years had took on her both with the increasing aches and pains as well as the passing of old friends and lovers.

She just hoped with all her heart that she would not have to bury another one today.

When she arrived, one of the two aircrew rescued from the Continent was speaking to her fellow WAAF nurse.

"...craziest thing I ever saw. That girl just thrust this bundle into my arms and pinned me with her gaze as she gave me my marching orders. I swear, the RAF lost a great Group Commander with her. Then she turned on her heel and began to march straight toward the Jerries and their armored car just blew up!"

Lyra sighed and spoke with her best maternal tone. "Flying Officer. May I remind you that loose lips sink ships. Our operations are classified for a reason. She gave you a bundle to carry away? May I get it for transport to the proper authorities?"

The pilot nodded. "Sorry ma'am, here it is." With that he produced a rather ratty carpet rolled up and crudely tied with twine.

Lyra carefully took it. "Thank you. Just don't spread the news of what you saw to anyone ever. There are brave men and women across the Channel tonight doing their duty too and your words put them at risk."

"Yes ma'am!"

With that Lyra walked back to the cottage SOE had taken over at the airbase. Once inside, she stepped into the kitchen, and took a dusting of Floo powder from a sugar bowl next to the stove. Sprinkling it in the flames, she then spoke "Potter Manor" and vanished in the fire.

--------------------------

When Colombe came to, the first sight she was was an ornately carved wooden canopy with masses of red brocade on the four posted bed that she had found herself in. She shifted and then groaned in pain as her wounds made their presence known.

A hand reached behind her neck and another tilted a vial of fizzing green healing potion into her throat. "Drink all of this Colombe. You look terrible."

The Belgian swallowed and then gave a coughing, pained laugh and the ghost of a weak smug smile. "You should see the platoon of infantry that the Boche brought to try to capture me, Lyra."

Lyra moved into her field of vision, clad in a black dress and gave her a very un-amused stare. "What possessed you to try to match yourself against them?"
Spoiler: Heart of a Muramasa

Colombe shrugged with a hiss of pain as her avatar's wounds slowly closed. "It was the right thing to do, Lyra. Somehow they found out about the landing field and sent troops after it, including an armored car. I don't know if it was a traitor or Divination or what, but they wanted us badly. And the only way we could get everyone else out of the trap was for someone to hold the line and draw their fire."

Lyra slapped Colombe. "So you volunteered yourself. Again. Not caring what the danger entails or the cost on those of us who love you, like me, who you would leave behind to mourn when you take one risk too many." The widow buried her head in Colombe's chest and cried.

Colombe sighed, and her eyes wandered over to the painting over the fireplace as her undamaged arm embraced Lyra around the shoulders. Ian Potter and a much younger and radiant Lyra stood in it exchanging their wedding vows, while below it on the mantelpiece rested a shining kyo gunto. Colombe's eyes fixed on the scene of two of her oldest and dearest friends at the happiest moment of their lives and her own tears fell as she whispered quietly. "Lyra. I miss him too. I always will, and when you go to join him in Heaven, I will miss you equally as much. Immortality...or whatever I have that passes for it is a curse."

The rapier sighed. "Or perhaps my love for you is the curse, I don't know. I can't forget those who knew me, wielded me, taught me, loved me....and I can't forget my feelings for them. Even now their ghosts are here in the room with me. Always. Watching me, judging me, reminding me of my failures. Reminding me of all the times I fall short of what they saw in me. What you see in me."

Lyra raised her head to stare into Colombe's haunted eyes as the rapier whispered in a hushed voice. "And there's something inside me, a madness, that drives me on. Even when every fiber of my very being screams at me to stop and finally rest, that I have done enough to be worthy of their love, it replies 'no, never enough' and points me at another evil that I am called upon to fight to protect those who I love. Then once the evil is slain at my feet and those who need protecting are liberated, it beckons me on again."

Colombe laughed mirthlessly. "I suppose at bottom all I really am is a sword. But if that is what I am, then I shall serve and defend what is right and true as long as I can until I run across whatever can destroy me. Perhaps then I can finally find the peace I so desperately seek and be told 'enough' in a way that satisfies me. Be told by Papa, Mother, and the rest of my family that I made them proud at long last."

Colombe's musing was cut short as Lyra grabbed her shoulders and kissed her deeply with considerable passion and even more considerable skill.

Lyra gave her a very crooked perverted smile at the Rapier's shocked blink as she spoke with a very serious tone at odds with the normal belief that she was just an insatiable perverted fiend."You idiot! I couldn't be prouder of you and any of your ghosts would say the same if they could talk!! Hm. Story idea to bounce off you later. 'Lady Chastity's Sexy Seance' would be fun to plot out. But for now I have you covered with Section X of SOE. I reported to London that you took wounds during the evacuation and need convalescence before checking in with the report from your successful mission. It was a success right?"

Colombe laughed as the black mood that she was in lifted and gave a smugly triumphant grin. "Yes it was. I got into their files and with the aid of your son's friend from school when he arrives after the Christmas holidays at Hogwarts my memories can be turned into a copy of the SD's files in Lyon. The only copy now since I set a pack of Salamanders loose in their filing cabinets along with a rather large magical incendiary bomb. I suppose I'll have to be under your care...Nurse Lyra."

Lyra's smile turned even happier.

A.N.: I did some research and realized that Lyra was probably alive into the 1940s and her son Henry would have been in his First Year in Hogwarts when Dumbledore was the Fifth Year Gryffindor Prefect.

 

[darthcourt10]

Harry Leferts

Walking out of the warehouse, Harry glanced to Hedwig who was looking around curiously as she experienced what it meant to be in a human body. Hands in his pockets, he gave a bit of a nod as he realized something which made the transformed owl look at him, "And what is so funny, Harry-Wizard?"

Lips curling, Harry cocked his head to the side, "Not much... just that you keep turning your head fully in the direction that you are looking towards. That's all."

Confused, Hedwig frowned some, "What do you mean? I have to turn my head to look."

That... made the wizard pause some and look at her, "Wait, what?"

If anything, that response made Hedwig even more confused, "I need to turn my head to look in any direction, Harry-Wizard."

Now it was Harry's turn to look confused, "Turn your head to look in any... wait." Furrowing his eyebrows, he gave her a suspicious look, "Do you mean that you can't turn your eyes without turning your head as well? No looking out the corners of your eyes?"

Hedwig gave a nod at that, "Yes? I am an owl."

For several seconds, Harry stared at her and he was not alone. Gently, Natsumi took Hedwig's wrist and held it up, "Is this an owl's wing?"

Blinking, the owl scoffed, "Obviously it is a wing, not an arm..." Eyes widening, she looked down at her arm, "... I'm not an owl right now..." Moving each digits, she turned her head and boggled at Harry, "Right now, I look and am... human."

Arms crossed, Harry met her gaze evenly before realizing what the issue was. Focusing on the connection between them, he could feel Hedwig's attention as he was once more gazing from her eyes. One thing that he noted, briefly, was that on the darkened base he could see so many stars in the night sky with his vision. More than that, they were in so many colors.

Quickly though, he shook that off and his consciousness poked Hedwig's as if asking for permission, which she gave. Harry could feel her paying close attention as he moved the eyes in her sockets one way, then another, and then another. All of which gave her some idea of how it felt and how they moved. Pulling back, he watched in amusement as she continued doing the same with thing and expression on her face like she had discovered a new toy, "That... is amazing."

Chuckling, Aoba gave her a look, "Not that amazing."

The owl gave her a look, "For all my life, if I wanted to look in a particular direction, I needed to turn my head in that direction. Now..." Rolling her eyes, she grinned, "Now like this, I don't need to do that!"

Only shaking his head in amusement, Harry patted her arm and guided her towards the golf carts, the warehouse locked and clean, "We should get to the mess hall and get some food into us. And I need to get cooking some things for you and Grandmother to eat among other things."

Natsumi shook her head with some amusement, but also disbelief, "I cannot believe that you never introduced her to peanut butter, Harry-Chan! How could you now do that?!"

Much to Hedwig's amusement, her wizard waved his arms around, more than a little flustered, "I said that I'm sorry, Natsumi-Chan! It was just that I was busy with various things around Hogwarts and reconnecting with Grandmother that it fell to the wayside!" Getting a huff from his friend, Harry gave her a sheepish grin, "I am going to correct it, just you watch."

Giving him a moment, Natsumi finally nodded, "Very well."

Just shaking her head in amusement, the transformed owl got into one of the golf carts and away they went. The headlights on said carts were turned down low as they made their way through the darkened naval base. Despite the fact that no Abyssal attacks had happened for a few years now, the base still shut off most of the lights after sunset. Here and there, she could spot the telltale glow of people using night vision goggles to see with due to her vision. Feeling Harry "Knock" on the door to her mind, Hedwig let him through.

Moments later, she could feel him using her vision to also look around, though he was interested mostly in the night sky. Looking up, Hedwig sent a thought his way, 'Why so interested in the stars?'

A chuckle echoed over their link from Harry, 'Because they're beautiful. And looking through your eyes... there is so much to see.' With a slight mental tug, Hedwig turned her head in a certain direction, 'Like right there. I can actually see the Orion Nebula with your eyes.'

Still bemused, Hedwig sent him a slight chuckle, 'I see, Harry-Wizard.'

Both of them were quiet as they simply explored the new mental link between them. Eventually, Harry spoke up again, mentally that is, 'You do realize that elsewhere you can't call me "Harry-Wizard", right? It would bring up questions.'

Hedwig only shrugged at that, 'Perhaps. But it still fits well enough.'

The two of them turned to each other and shared a smile before going back to what they had been doing. Soon enough though, they reached the base mess hall and Harry got off in time to see Siusan smile at him. Upon catching sight of Hedwig though, the Irish fox blinked some as she looked the transformed owl over in interest, "And you're Hedwig now?"

With a nod and a slight bow, Hedwig smirked, "That I am."

Much to her surprise, Siusan gave her a hug, "Thank you for this, Harry-Child told me that you did this not just of your own free will, but that you spoke to him through the one named Shiromizu. Just protect him, when I cannot."

Hugging her back, the owl nodded, "You do not even have to ask. I am loyal to my Master."

Part of Siusan suspected that there was more to what she had said than that, but kept quiet. Instead, she looked around the mess area, currently empty but for them, though it seemed like someone was in the kitchen, in curiosity. As Harry gave her a hug, she smiled and patted his head, "Is this where you cook, Harry-Child?"

As he nodded, the wizard hummed, "That's right." Guiding her and Hedwig to a nearby table, Harry sat them both down, "Here, have a seat and I'll make something up."

Nodding, Siusan did as asked and glanced around. When she turned back though, Harry was gone and she blinked before feeling the traces of magic in the air. Remembering what he had told her about the object he had, she simply nodded, 'Ah, of course.'

While she was doing that, Hedwig's nose was twitching as she underwent something close to sensory overload. As an owl, she barely had a sense of smell. Thus, now with a human's sense, she could smell the food cooking in the kitchen. Already, her mouth was watering from what could be smelt there. Spotting Siusan looking at her, Hedwig blushed some, "Is something interesting?"

Only shaking her head, the Irish fox shook her head, "Nay, child. Just taking in things is all."

Voice dropping to a whisper, Hedwig glanced around, using her eyes as well as turning her head, "I am as well."

With a nod, Siusan did not say much more. Mainly because at that moment Harry walked out from the kitchen pushing a cart with food on it. Hedwig's eyes zoomed right in to the large pile of bacon, able to smell it from where she was already. Upon reaching them, Harry began to set out plates for everyone who took them gratefully, Natsumi smiling up at him as he gave her some chicken, "Thanks, Harry-Chan!"

Smile on his face, Harry chuckled and nodded at her, "You're welcome, Natsumi-Chan."

Hers was not the only one to use chicken though, as Hoshi and Siusan both got some as well. Other quickly, though good, cooked food was given to the others. Finally, Harry placed the plate of bacon in front of Hedwig, who took a deep sniff, "Mmm..."

Lightly laughing, he patted her on the head, "Hope that you enjoy it, Hedwig."

The owl turned and gave him a look, "It is bacon, of course I will enjoy it." Picking up a strip, she turned it this way and that to examine it even though she wanted to gobble it down right there. Part of it was that this was the first time that she had ever picked up a piece of food with hands. Hands, that just a short time ago, never existed. A slight smile on her face, she opened her mouth and took a bite.

Almost immediately, taste like nothing she had ever had before exploded across her taste buds. Every one paused as she let out a loud groan and closed her eyes for a bit. At least Natsumi swore that Hedwig trembled a bit when she began to chew. Swallowing, the transformed owl opened her eyes and fixed a somewhat blushing Harry with an awed look, the wizard coughing, "So I take it that it is good then?"

Still awed, Hedwig stared at him, "How is it so much better now...?"

Chuckling, Harry relaxed some, "Because you're human, or close to it anyways. We got more of a sense of taste than owls do, so everything just tastes... more, to you."

For several moments, Hedwig continued to stare at him before looking down at her plate with sadness. When he asked what was wrong, she sighed, "Now when I eat it as an owl, it won't be the same..."

That got her another headpat from Harry, which she enjoyed.

It did not take long for all the food to be gone, with the black haired wizard once more leaving. Though much to his amusement, Hedwig had asked for, and gotten, bits from the others meals. With the result that each time she shuddered and groaned in pleasure from the taste. However, Harry returned with a cart that had some desserts on it, though he placed a plate of peanut butter cookies in front of Siusan, "Here you go, Grandmother. My special chewy peanut butter cookies, fresh and warm from the oven."

Smiling, the Irish fox nodded some, "Thank you, Harry-Child." With a nod, she took one and turned it over in her hand for several moments out of interest, though her nose was tickled by the smell of it. Taking it, she took a bite out of it before closing her eyes in bliss for several seconds at the taste that rolled over her tongue. Siusan took her time chewing that one cookie before finally swallowing it, already missing the taste. Opening her eyes, she shook her head, "That was..."

Hoshi gave her a smile and nodded, "Excellent." Looking at her own cookie, she took a bite and sighed in happiness, "Peanut butter is truly wonderful, a gift to this world."

All Siusan could do was nod in agreement, though she gave a look to Hedwig who looked blissed out after her first bite of chocolate brownie. Something that amused the fox to no end, before she turned back to the delectable treats in front of her. After all, her Harry-Child had baked them and she was going to enjoy each crumb.

Which is exactly what she did, while hoping for more.

 

[darthcourt10]

Weaver

Saturday 21st December 2013

It had begun, as many visits from the Good Idea Fairy do, with alcohol. Not a particularly large amount mind you, just enough to for it to be a good thing that there were other lifeboat volunteers who could deal with things if there was a shout and for common sense to be less vocal than usual.

It had started with one of them talking about how he was planning to get some fish for his pond sometime after New Year's to replace the ones who'd died from some fishy disease earlier in the year and complaining how much they cost. One of his friends jokingly commented that the pond in question was big enough to summon a shipgirl in. The conversation moved on, eventually arriving a couple of pints later at the subject of Zetland and what she was doing for the holidays, with someone commenting that it was a shame that none of the other lifeboats were around and wondering if Zetland ever got lonely because of it.

It was then that the Good Idea Fairy struck. One of them had the pond, another, the only non-RNLI volunteer of the four, did woodworking in his shed, both lived within easy walking distance of the pub and they'd all had enough to drink to prevent them from thinking better of it. So they headed out with the intention of giving the world's oldest lifeboat an early Christmas present to the house of the man with the pond, the woodworker taking a detour back to his own home to retrieve about a third of a rubble bag's worth of assorted off-cuts.

The best of the off-cuts were arranged in a pile by the pond, then after some discussion the pond's owner made a speech.

"Oh great and mysterious realm that shipgirls come from. On behalf of the Redcar RNLI we ask that one of our old boats be returned to us. We've already got the oldest but we think she could do with some company so if one of her successors could come back that'd be great, thanks."

They then collectively launched into an off key rendition of the RNLI's unofficial anthem.

"Home, home, home from the sea
Angels of mercy, answer our plea
And carry us home, home, home from the sea
Carry us safely home from the sea.

On a cold winters night
With a storm at its height
The lifeboat answered the call.
They pitched and they tossed
Till we thought they were lost
As we watched from the harbor wall.
Though the night was pitch black,
There was no turning back,
For someone was waiting out there,
But each volunteer
Had to live with his fear
As they joined in a silent prayer.

Home, home, home from the sea
Angels of mercy, answer our plea
And carry us home, home, home from the sea
Carry us safely home from the sea."

At first nothing happened but they kept on singing.

"As they battled their way
Past the mouth of the bay,
It was blowing like never before.
As they gallantly fought,
Every one of them thought
Of loved ones back on the shore.
Then a flicker of light
And they knew they were right.
There she was on the crest of a wave.
She's an old fishing boat
And she's barely afloat.
Please God, there are souls we can save."

The pond started to bubble. Encouraged, they sang louder as they approached the end of the song.

"Home, home, home from the sea
Angels of mercy, answer our plea
And carry us home, home, home from the sea
Carry us safely home from the sea.

And back in the town
In a street that runs down
To the sea and the harbor wall,
They'd gathered in pairs
At the foot of the stairs
To wait for the radio call.
And just before dawn
When all hope had gone
Came a hush and a faraway sound.
'Twas the coxswain he roared
All survivors on board
Thank God and we're homeward bound. "

The pile of wood disappeared. They sang the last repetition of the chorus anyway.

""Home, home, home from the sea
Angels of mercy, answer our plea
And carry us home, home, home from the sea
Carry us safely home from the sea."

"Woof!"

Song finished, the looked in the pond to see a Newfoundland looking back, tail wagging slightly and head cocked.

It was at that moment that the memory of a comment by Zetland regarding her opinion of how smaller boats usually came back finally decided to rise to the surface of the brain of the one who'd joked about the pond's size.

"Zetland is going to kill us."
******************
Monday, 23rd December 2013

Package under his arm, Dan approached the door to Zetland's room and knocked.

"Woof! Woof!"

"Shush. Come in."

Opening the door he was met by the sight of Zealand sitting on her sofa, a Newfoundland sat on the floor beside her.

"Hi. Thought I'd bring you your Christmas present since I'm not sure if I'll get a chance to visit again until after Christmas."

He gestured at the dog.

"I heard about what happened. Not sure what they were thinking to be honest."

"Me neither. I had words with them about it when I found out. Not that I've got a problem with my furry friend here herself, although I think that she did with me until I broke out the Hobnobs. Still took me most of a packet to win her over."

She scratched the dog behind the ears.

"Dan, may I introduce Crossley. Crossley, say hello to my friend Dan."

"Woof!"

 

[darthcourt10]

Harry Leferts

Eyelids twitching, a soft groan came from between two thin lips. After a few more moments, two eyes the color of molten gold opened and stared at the ceiling in confusion before their owner suddenly sat up, "What... where...?" Looking around, Hedwig frowned some, "Why am I sleeping on my back..." Feeling her hands on the ground, she turned and stared at them, "Oh, right." Flopping back down, the transformed owl looked at one of her hands by holding it above her, "I'm... human. Or close enough."

Turning her hand, she considered it for a few seconds. She wiggled her fingers with a small giggle as she watched them. Part of her still could not believe what had happened the night before. Her, Hedwig, was now a fully fledged familiar to her wizard. Even now, she could feel the link to him in the back of her mind, his magic ebbing and flowing across the connection that they now had.

And she was never happier.

Lips curling upwards, she let her hand flop down onto her belly and just laid there. As an owl, she would never have been able to lay on her back. Or, rather, it would have been extremely uncomfortable to say the least. But as a human? It didn't bother her much at all. Looking around the room, her Master's room, she took a deep breath and held it for a few moments before letting it out. Stretching, Hedwig let out a sigh of relaxation before sitting up again, something that amused her at how easy it was to do despite her being an owl.

Still stretching, she let out satisfied grunts as various joints popped before chuckling. If anyone had been there, they would have seen some dark amusement in her eyes as she looked herself over, "Wonder what Mother would make of the fact that I can take human form?" Once more, Hedwig let out a chuckle as she imagined the cursed woman's reaction before frowning, "Though... now that I am able to do this, I need to plan. She will not take this laying down and she could threaten Harry-Wizard..."

Moments later, her hands clenched until the knuckles were white and her fingernails nearly drew blood. However, she let out a breath and relaxed some, "No, I will not let her. And I will make sure of it..."

With a shake of the head, she stood up before walking to a mirror and looking herself over. Twisting in this direction and then another, Hedwig slowly nodded to herself. While she did not know much about human mating, she did know that the form she was in currently was one that would have attracted human males and others. Not that she was too concerned about that for the moment.

That could wait until after a certain problem was no longer a problem.

Until that point though, Hedwig was not looking for such. And she also knew that as a familiar, she could look forward to a very long life. For she could only die when Harry did or he released her, and she suspected that her wizard would live for a long time yet. With a slight smile, her clothing shimmered and became the grey tank top and jeans that she had wore the night before she turned for the door. Opening it, she entered the apartment where she was met with the smell of cooking and Harry at the stove, "Harry-Wizard."

Looking over his shoulder, Harry gave a chuckle and gestured at the table where Siusan was sitting, "Good morning, Hedwig. Just have a seat and I'll have breakfast done soon." He then tilted his head some, "Is eggs alright with it? Or do you want something else?"

In reply, the transformed owl snorted, "Eggs are fine, Harry-Wizard. I've eaten other birds before and it is not much different." Once she sat down, Hedwig glanced at the various things there in curiosity. There was a small bowl of fruit on the table, and a pitcher of what she recognized as orange juice. Considering that, she nodded and poured herself a glass before examining it, "Hmm..."

Just glancing at her, Harry chuckled some, "I think that you might like that, Hedwig."

Noticing that Siusan was watching her with some amusement, Hedwig took a sip of her drink and her eyes widened before she closed them with a hum. If there was one thing that she was not used to, and hoped never to be used to, it was the sense of taste that her new form gave her. Said sense made everything she had eaten before seem bland by comparison, flavours bursting in her mouth every time she ate or drank something.

And there was now so much for her to discover.

Eyes opening, Hedwig nodded some, only to blink as Harry set a plate with some sausages, eggs, and of course, bacon. Smiling, she began to dig into the meal after thanking him, making happy noises. A chuckle escaping him, Harry gave her a look of amusement as he sent a message over their link, 'Well, you seem to be enjoying yourself.'

Glancing at him, the owl nodded some, 'Of course! This is all... so delicious. How do humans not eat all the time?'

Softly snickering, Harry shook his head, 'Some do.' Ignoring her hum, the thirteen year old turned to Siusan, "Is there anything that you wish to do, Grandmother?"

The Irish fox blinked at that and considered the question before frowning, "I... am unsure, Harry-Child. All this..." She made a motion around her with a fork, "Is so very strange." Yawning, Siusan shook her head some, "And I am yet still a bit tired."

Pausing for a moment, Harry considered that before nodding, "If you want to have a bit of a lay in, that would be fine. I have to report in to Teitoku about some things as well. And also see Niiyodo-Chan about my recovery efforts."

While somewhat curious, Siusan smiled, "That sounds lovely, Harry-Child. And it has been some time since I have had a long, sound sleep." Looking at the food, her tone became one of amusement, "Especially with such food filling my belly. Before you know it, I shall be less a fox and more a ball."

A grin stretched across the wizard's face at that, "Well, then I'll roll you around, Grandmother.'

Eyebrow raised in amusement, Siusan poked at him with her fork, which he easily dodged, "I think not, Harry-Child."

Lightly laughing, Harry grinned at her before taking a bite of his sausage and humming, "How about later we visit the hot springs, Grandmother? I think that you might like that."

Blinking, the fox cocked her head to the side, "Hot springs? You mean springs that have hot water?" When he nodded, Siusan frowned in thought, "Well, I have never been to one to bathe. And back in Britain, well... it has not been common for families to bathe together."

Harry shrugged at that, "It's not like that here in Japan actually. Skinship and all that sort of thing, no one really minds it all that much. Besides..." A smile appeared on his face, "I think that you might like it."

Considering that, Siusan finally nodded some, though she still looked unsure, "Very well, Harry-Child, I think that would be nice."

If anything, that made Harry smile at her before turning to Hedwig who just finished her breakfast, "Oh, right!" His smile became a grin as Hedwig looked up, "How about you deliver a letter for me to Jane? I can use my time turner to help you go back an hour or two while you take the train to get close..."

Slowly, Hedwig gained a grin as she realized what he really wanted, "I think that I can do that, Harry-Wizard..."

From where she sat, Siusan gave them amused looks before shaking her head some, 'Yes, Harry-Child truly does have the strong blood of a fox in him... I am looking forward to seeing what else he shall do.'

Three hours later, or twenty minutes in real time, Hedwig left the train station close to Sasebo and glanced around with a nod. Taking a high speed train as a human was... different. Shaking off her thoughts, and ignoring the man walking out gripping his bruised wrist, she ducked into an alleyway. Said man glared at her and ran after her shouting, only to stop as there was no one there, not seeing the owl taking flight. Later, said man would be unable to do his work for the day and get yelled at by his boss for it.

Meanwhile, the snowy owl flapped her way the short, for her, distance from her train stop to Sasebo. Spotting the Richardson Household, she landed on a sill and knocked on it with her legs, the window being opened moments later by a happy Jane, "Hey, Hedwig! Nice to see you, want to come in?" Hedwig bobbed her head and flapped to Jane's chair before holding out her leg where she held a letter. Taking it, Jane gave a nod after reading it, "Okay, I'll get in touch with Cuz then about this."

Grabbing a piece of bacon from her plate, she held it out to Hedwig. Meanwhile, Hiei was sipping her coffee as the others ate when a voice spoke up, "I do hope that Hiei did not cook this morning."

A frown on her face, Hiei grumbled a bit, "No, I didn't cook this morning. And I am not that bad."

The same voice spoke up once more, "So you claim, while others say differently. Facts speak for themselves after all."

Opening her mouth, the Battleship turned and was about to tell off whoever was talking when she paused. Jane's jaw was dropped and everyone was frozen and staring at Hedwig, 'Wait... that wasn't one of them. So who...?'

She got her answer moments later when Hedwig made a shrugging motion with her wings and spoke with a Welsh accent, "After all, one sees odd things happen when one eats your cooking. Thus, it is best to be careful when there is a chance of such." Cocking her head to the side, the owl looked directly at Hiei, "Just good advice."

Very slowly, Arizona sniffed her coffee with a frown before turning to the only man there, "John... did the Lieutenant Commander prepare the coffee this morning?"

For his part, Richardson shook his head some, while ignoring the shout from Hiei, "No, it was Jintsuu."

When everyone turned to her, said Light Cruiser shook her head, "No! I swear, it was just normal coffee this morning! Not... something that does this!"

Poking her head over the table, Albie blinked, "You're talking."

Head tilted to the side, Hedwig blinked, "Am I? Why, I never would have guessed. Perhaps though you are just thinking that I am talking, in which case, can you really understand me? Can I understand you? Are we able to understand one another in the end, when we communicate with noises while not really understanding what the other is saying? Are we just talking past one another?" Eyes becoming hooded, she gave the Submarine a look, "Though you are a Submarine in the shape of a girl who is talking and that is truly strange when one thinks of it."

Now poking her head up, Archie gave a nod, "A very snarky talking owl."

Meanwhile, Shimakaze tilted her head to the side while humming with her eyes closed, "Though she does bring up a good point."'

Unknown to them, back in Yokosuka, Harry was cackling at the reactions as Hedwig continued to confuse the bunch of them.

 

[darthcourt10]

Yellowhammer

Operation: BUTTERKNIFE (Part IV)

77 Baker Street (SOE Section X Headquarters) London, England

24 December 1941
Spoiler: England Defiant

The fire in the fireplace blazed green and Colombe stepped out of the flames. She then walked to one side before facing the pair of unsmiling wizards in Home Army uniforms pointing wands at her. "Colombe d'Aubigny reporting in."

The flames flashed green again. "Lyra Potter reporting in."

One of the two checked a list and nodded at them. "Pass, Room 13."

The two ladies nodded and walked down the hall, passing others both in uniforms as well as civilian clothing both muggle and magical. Reaching the wooden door marked Room 13, Colombe opened it and curtsied Lyra through like a servant for her mistress; an effect ruined by the smug smirk on her face.

"Hmmph, just for that I'll spank you when we get back home!" Lyra remarked with a lecherous smirk on her face as Colombe closed the door behind her.

The French rapier giggled and blushed. "Promise then?"

"Of course it is a promise, dear." Lyra grinned and moved to the teapot beside a plain wooden table with a number of chairs. "Tea?"

Colombe nodded, "Oui. Rationing over there is...bad. The Germans are stealing crops from the fields and the mouths of the French people. Food as a weapon." She bowed her head as Lyra handed her a cup of tea. "Merci."

Lyra sighed, "Not that it is better here, honestly with the U-boats prowling the Atlantic. At least the berry bushes that we planted in the Great War are producing, as is the orchard. Some Land Army girls helped me bring in the pears and apples while you were fighting the good fight."

Colombe frowned as she sipped her tea. "Henry was not available to help you?" she asked with a somewhat concerned expression on her face.
Spoiler: A Moment Between Friends

Lyra aged visibly as she looked down into her own cup of tea. "No. He's training for special military deployment overseas along with my nephew Regulus Black. You know Regulus was nearly Sorted into Gryffindor?"

Colombe shook her head. "No. You never told me." She chuckled. "I suppose that if I had gone to Hogwarts as a girl instead of Beauxbatons I would have been sorted into Gryffindor from all that you and Ian told me of your time there. Chivalry, bravery...."

Lyra laughed as her mood lifted, "Not so! Slytherin like Ian and I, my dear. You have what we look for, Colombe. Cunning, determination, resourcefulness, and above all ambition. After all, you plan to find your father despite being unable to enter Japan thanks to your oath...well, and the war...because your ambition is to meet him and find out why he did what he did to you. And your ambition has been to make the du Chasteler family respected and admired by your deeds, no? Even when your wand was snapped by Beauxbatons you found an alternate path to become the witch that you promised your father that you would be!"

Colombe stared at Lyra in shock. "Wait. How did you know about what happened at Beauxbatons? How did you know about my promise to Papa?!?"

Lyra grinned triumphantly and raised a hand with two fingers extended, then lowered one. "For the second, I know you, and I know how you won't let yourself be anything other than the best that you can possibly be. You are just the type of person to promise your father, bless his soul, that you would be the best witch that your family would ever have when you left and then make it so. "

The triumphant grin widened and the other finger dropped. "For the first...well something nagged at me until you left to handle that nasty business in the Congo. Namely that you were highly trained in magic from what I saw and yet you never used a wand or had a wand on you. Add in you mentioning that you learned how to pleasure a girl at Beauxbatons by practicing on your suite-mate when I asked you how you learned how to do that and I figured out the place to look for your past."

Lyra leaned back in her chair with a cat-like smile and sipped her tea, "So I bought a few histories of Beauxbatons to do some research while you were running around Africa and Ian was in Japan tending to family matters there; yes very Ravenclaw of me I know. Your expulsion was mentioned in a chapter on the ghost of the Headless Headmistress of Beauxbatons. Not by name really-although you do show up on the 1718 intake of students-but only you would be expelled for running the headmistress up the flagpole in her underwear and then celebrating with a few Veela entertainers and a sword duel through the halls on broomstick. Followed by cursing the Headmistress when she snapped your wand with said curse resulting in her dying in the Terror. Where were you when I was at Hogwarts and needed a partner in crime and romance?"

Colombe smirked and raised her teacup in salute. "Flat on my back in Castle Moulbaix mostly in the 1870s. Someone who I am pretty sure was my bâtard great-nephew Hippolyte blindsided me with a nasty Dark Curse while I was fighting the Communard maniacs in Paris in 1871 when they tried to launch the second Revolution. Didn't quite kill me, but I was in bad shape and spent over a decade recovering from it. I now suspect that some of the healing potions I was having delivered by owl might have been adulterated by him to boot before he tried to kill me again by base treachery in 1895. At least while I was house-ridden I managed to get quite good on the Bösendorfer piano that I bought, especially once I adapted one of the musical spells I learned in Beauxbatons to enchant the piano."

"I'd like to learn that if you feel like teaching it. Us Potters have a few musical instruments in the storage shed." Lyra smiled.

"As would I." a new voice sounded from the door and both ladies turned to see a nattily dressed man with dark hair and beard starting to go gray. "After the war though, of course."

Lyra smiled. "Albus! It's good to see you again."
Spoiler: Christmas 1941

Albus Dumbledore entered and gestured with his wand to pour himself a cup of tea. "My apologies for the delay, Lyra. MACUSA followed the lead of President Roosevelt and has joined the war against the Axis Powers and Grindlewald." He sighed as he sipped the tea and sat, "They Flooed over a delegation with several liaison officers for the Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare unexpectedly quickly afterward, and one of them requested to sit in when your friend's memory was sifted. Rather vigorously in fact."

Colombe frowned slightly, then shrugged. "If they are cleared by you and Lyra, I don't have any objection, really. It makes sense, some of the names I saw might be agents over on their side of the Atlantic." Lyra nodded her approval.

Dumbledore smiled and turned to the door. "Now that is settled you can come in, Miss de Breuil."

Behind him, Colombe's jaw dropped as a familiar young woman with leaf-green eyes, chestnut hair, and dressed in a skirt-suit appeared. Delilah de Breuil curtsied as she entered, shooting a quelling glance at her older half-sister before smiling sweetly. "MACUSA Auror Major Delilah de Breuil at your service. Don't mind me, I'm here as an observer. Our Department of Divination strongly suggested that I sit in on this debrief, so here I am."

Colombe smiled smugly and her eyes twinkled as she regained her composure. "Colombe d'Aubigny du Chasteler, Auror de Breuil. May I introduce my dear and intimate friend Lyra Potter née Black?"

Lyra gave her own smile with just a hint of mischief underneath. "It is always a pleasure to meet a beautiful young lady like yourself, Miss de Breuil."

Delilah closed the door and watched with interest as Dumbledore and Lyra raised a variety of wards. Colombe took the opportunity to give Delilah a 'what the HELL are you really doing here?' look, only to get a smugly knowing smile back as Delilah sat across from her.

Colombe supposed that was some kind of decade and a half-old revenge for putting Delilah in a full-body bind jinx when they first met. If it was, her youngest sister was achieving her goal since that 'I know more than you do' smile was really getting on her nerves.

Once the wards were finished, Dumbledore placed a silver bowl on the table in front of Colombe. "Now just look into my eyes and think back on the moment you entered their headquarters."

Colombe nodded and bit her lip and gazed into Dumbledore's blue eyes, that seemed to expand and crowd everything else out of her view. She felt like she was made of clear crystal under their gaze as he tapped his wand gently on her forehead. "Legilimens!" With that she was swallowed up as she returned the salutes of the soldiers at the inner checkpoint before the headquarters....

--------------------------

Delilah watched the stream of silver mist flow from Colombe's temple to the bowl with keen interest. The bowl filled with the mist of her sister's memories and the image of the inside of a building formed, complete with sounds like a nomaj black and white picture.

She leaned forward, resting her chin upon her tented hands as the movie that was her sister's memories played out, only raising an eyebrow as the viewpoint shifted to show a scarred man in SS uniform with officer's tabs.

As memory-Colombe walked outside and got into the car the movie of her memories faded and Colombe blinked and looked around the room. With that, Delilah stirred and spoke in a calm voice. "A question. Why did you listen at the door before going into the filing room?"

Colombe focused on her sister. "I remembered that voice. I fought him in Guernica in 1937." She grinned nastily. "Gave him that nice permanent smile too. He's lucky that the bombing interrupted our duel."

Delilah nodded to herself with the same kind of smug satisfaction that she had when she felt her trigger break smoothly and the intricate mechanisms of the 1847 Colt Walker revolver that was her true self moved one after the other like a table full of dominoes collapsing in sequence. A sequence that ended in her target getting a .44 caliber lead bullet right where she wanted it to land. "Guernica. I'm not surprised. Did he say anything then?"

Colombe shrugged. "Boasts, death threats, the usual after he Apparated in. He talks a bigger game than he brings." She leaned back, visibly racking her memories. "Cast his spells in German and...another language. Nothing Western European...maybe Polish or Russian or something. Sounded a bit like soldiers from that part of the world."

Delilah nodded. "I see. Well I should not keep Professor Dumbledore from his Christmas plans, that said, I do have something to make it a bit more cheerful." She reached into a skirt pocket and pulled out a five pound bag of lemon drops. 'Merry Christmas, Professor."

Dumbledore smiled like a little child as he carefully took the bag of candies and departed.

-------------------------------
Spoiler: Private Conference

As the door closed behind him, Delilah raised a finger to signal 'please wait' and then produced her wand with a flick of the wrist, reapplying and strengthening the wards. Finally, she turned to the other two ladies. Her eyes tracked to Lyra, who was watching with interest. "Colombe, can we trust your friend?"

Colombe nodded. "We can, Delilah. I trust her with my life. She knows everything about me. Everything."

Delilah leaned forward, her 'disinterested observer' facade vanishing in an instant to show keen eyes. "I'm Colombe's younger half-sister. Same father, different mothers in case you wonder. And the reason I came over here is because it seems that she stumbled across something explosive and powerful in Spain in 1937. Something that Grindlewald and the SS-Ahnenerbe are apparently after, and they may be well ahead of us. Dammit Colombe, do you have to make my life complicated!? First Louisville and now this!?"

Lyra sighed and poured more tea. "Considering what I have seen of her life and what she has told me, I cannot even say that I am surprised. What kind of trouble did you get into this time, love?"

Colombe blinked in confusion. "I have no idea what you are talking about Del."

 

[darthcourt10]

Harry Leferts

Knocking on the door, Harry waited for a few moments before he heard Goto's voice through it, "Come in."

The thirteen year old opened said door and walked in before closing. A slight smile on his face, he turned to the Admiral and gave a salute, "Potter Harry, reporting, Teitoku."

Lightly chuckling, Goto shook his head with a slight smile, "Welcome back to Yokosuka, Harry." Becoming thoughtful, he gave a hum, "How have things gone so far on your project."

Walking forward, Harry pulled out a folder and placed it on the desk before opening, "Very well as a matter of fact. It is all in my report here."

His lips twitching, the JMSDF Officer opened said folder and began to leaf through the various papers that were there. Slowly nodding, he gave an appreciative nod, "Very impressive. Did you type all that up last night after arriving?"

Much to his amusement, Harry shook his head, "No, I actually typed it up before we came here. One of the things that I bought at Hogsmeade during my first weekened there was a magical typewriter." Grinning, he gave a shrug, "Among other things, it has a magical spellcheck."

That made Goto blink before he looked up at Harry, "A... magical spell check? Really?" At the nod, he became intrigued, "How does it work?"

Scratching his neck, Harry frowned some, "It is sort of odd really. But... when using it, the typewriter has this mist above the paper? It shows corrections and the like, which you can tap and have them make those corrections to the paper. Hogwarts doesn't allow them for students because, well... a good chunk of the Hogwarts Board doesn't want us using 'Non-traditional methods'. And a lot of people use either quills or dicta-quills which write down what you say. Fred and George are working on one that they tell me that spell checks as well." With a shrug, he shook his head, "Still pretty useful for a device, I have a report on them on page 6 for the possibility of using them in shipgirls so that they can write reports while still at sea. Since typewriters of that type have been around since well before World War Two, it could be sneaked in."

For several moments, the Admiral considered that before leaning back in his chair and thinking. Eventually, he gave a nod, "That... could be very useful." Sitting back up, Goto gave Harry a nod, "I want you to buy some at the next opportunity. If nothing else, it would be a useful experiment and there is a fund for such."

Just nodding, Harry tapped his finger on a page, "Speaking of funds... if you look at page nine, you'll find a full list of what I have managed in my... resource hunting."

Quickly flipping through the pages, Goto reached said page and paused. For several moments, he was staring before he gave Harry a look, "Is this right? What you wrote down here?"

The thirteen year old gave a nod, "Hai, I have recovered about one thousand, and thirty five Kilograms of gold for the special fund. All told, by today's gold prices that is over four million. I have also recovered a similar amount of silver. As well..." Pausing for a moment, Harry pulled off his backpack and brought out a lockbox. Inserting a key, he turned it around and opened it, "These."

Leaning forward, Goto froze. Interested in why he would have that reaction, Ooyodo walked up and her jaw dropped at what was inside, "That..." Reaching in, she pulled out a blue crystal the size of a chicken's egg, "Is this..."

Hands in his pockets, Harry gave her an amused look, "A sapphire? It is..." He then gestured at it, "There was a box of them and a few rubies in the Room of Requirement. Under normal circumstances, the Headmaster would have taken custody, but... there was an issue."

Eyebrow raised even as he looked at them, Goto took a deep breath and let it out, "What sort of issue?" Moments later, an envelope was held out and he took it before reading, "They came from the goblins?"

Glancing at the lockbox, Harry gave a nod, "Hai, one of the Headmasters was involved in a goblin rebellion and took the gems from one of their fortifications in the region after defeating the goblins. They caught him either just before the end of the war, or just after and demanded he turn over the gems. When he didn't..."

That brought a grimace to Goto's face before he shook his head, "Let me guess... the goblins made sure that he did not live long after that fact."

His tone dry, the wizard shook his head, "Oh no, it took him some time to die according to his portrait." A grimace on his face, Harry ran a hand through his hair, "The issue, of course, is that handling them in the magical world in Britain would be a no go. Far too many issues with the goblins, especially as they are in control of the economy, thus they would come across the gemstones and demand to know where they came from. Even though laws regarding them state that it would be totally legal to own or sell them, the goblins..."

From where she was examining one of the gemstones, Nagato frowned, "The goblins would still cause trouble unofficially for whoever did so."

All Harry did was nod at that before turning back to Goto, who had taken the gemstone from Ooyodo, "Of course... us claiming to have found them in an old shipwreck here in Japan? Well, that would be a nice run around for selling them with the goblins unable to tell one way or the other." He tilted his head some, "Professor Dumbledore also gave half to the Royal Navy as well, which they're pleased by."

Muttering to himself, Goto shook his head, "I can imagine why..." Gently, he placed the gemstone back into the box, which was followed by Nagato doing the same. Leaning back in his chair, the Admiral considered the box after he closed and had it locked before turning to Ooyodo and Nagato, "Your opinion?"

Quietly thinking, the Light Cruiser frowned, "It... is a bit troublesome, I will admit. There could be issues, but at the same time, this could be a windfall. This would be of benefit to both our non-magical and magical reserves if we do this right." Already, her thoughts were rushing around her head, "In either case, we had plenty before this regarding what could be used for buying in the magical world. This... would pad out our expenses there easily, I think. Especially as any interaction with the magical side of things is completely unofficial, this would fit well."

Still looking for a second or two at the box, Goto turned to the report of how much gold had been recovered before nodding, "And this helps so that no one notices the fact that we have an area where funds are going and seemingly disappearing." Grimacing, he shook his head, "That would be far too noticeable." Eyes closing, he considered things before nodding and looking at Ooyodo, "Write up a report on this and I want it on my desk when you can. And when we use them, I want full documentation that will be able to be released with the fall of the Statute. Make sure to cover all our bases in regards to this as you have with the other magical expenses."

With a nod, Ooyodo gave a salute, "Hai!"

As she walked over to her desk, Goto handed the box to Nagato who placed it within a safe that was inside her hull. Shaking his head in some disbelief, he gave a chuckle to Harry, "You don't do things by half, do you?" At seeing the teen grin, he turned back to the report before going through it. Flipping through one page and then another, he gave a nod before pausing at one bit, his eyebrows raising, "Hmm... some of these potions are rather interesting. Cat's Eye potion?"

Nodding, the thirteen year old frowned in thought, "It is one of the older potions, not really used that often now. Those that drink it have their eyes transformed into those of a cat's with all the benefits. Low light vision and the like, and then it goes away about two hours after."

Thoughtful, Goto hummed some, "Interesting, especially with Operation Witching Hour." Seeing Harry straighten, the Admiral pulled out some papers and handed them to him, "It is due for the twenty ninth."

Now looking through the papers, Harry felt his eyebrows raise in surprise, "So we are doing this? And why are there no names for who I am transporting?"

Hands clasped in front of him, the older man met his eyes, "John was rather interested and talked to some people. As such, on the Twenty-ninth, you will be on the JDS Asuka with one of the family brooms. You will perform a series of tests regarding the usage of such with ships with a group of individuals from both the Japanese and American militaries off Mikura-Jima. This is not official, just for curiosity. But it will give us a better idea of some capabilities."

All Harry did was nod at that, understanding what was not said, "Understood."

Lips curling up into a smile, Goto clapped his hands, "Now, that aside you have done a good job, Harry. A very good one, especially with the summoning materials." Shaking his head, he chuckled, "These will help greatly, especially with the summoning tomorrow."

Giving another salute, Harry grinned a bit, "You're welcome. May I be dismissed to go to Niyodo-Chan in regards to them?" When he got a nod, the teen bowed, "Thank you."

Once he was gone, the Admiral looked through the report once more before shaking his head and giving them to Nagato, "He has done good, you know. And you should be proud of him."

Nagato glanced at him as she opened the safe and smiled, "I am proud of him, after all he is the Pride of the Big Seven. Though..."

Understanding the worry in her tone, Goto sighed and nodded, "If there was another way, I would not involve him. However, we need to know something about magical capabilities and we'll be getting that. But I can promise you that he will be safe on the Asuka during the tests and they will only be a few hours long. The only thing that they are going to be doing is having them fly him to the nearby island and back, as well as to a nearby LCS and back. After which, he is going to be flown back here." A slight grin appeared on his face, "Though I do wonder what the reactions will be when he enters the Naval Academy and they open his file. I almost wish to see what their expressions will be when reading them..."

 

[darthcourt10]

Yellowhammer

Operation: BUTTERKNIFE (Part V)

77 Baker Street (SOE Section X Headquarters) London, England

24 December 1941
Spoiler: The Guernica Codex

Colombe stared at Delilah as Lyra cradled her teacup with a perverted smile as she looked between the half-sisters.

"Delilah. Explain what you are talking about. What, exactly, is this thing from Spain that the SS is after?" Colombe snapped, leaning forward to confront her youngest sister.

Delilah shook her head. "You remember after you left Spain in 1938 how you sent me that medieval codex that you found in the monastery in Guernica for my birthday? Thank you for that incidentally."

Colombe responded absently, "You're welcome, Del. I know that you like poetry and have even written a few..."

The revolver blushed and cut her sister off, "That's beside the point. Your note mentioned that it was enchanted to appear like a copy of the scriptures, yes?"

Colombe nodded slowly, "Yes, I had a spell of true seeing up and I saw the aura from it. That was some impressive spell-work. Wait. You don't mean...?"

Delilah sighed heavily, "I do mean. I picked up that it was enchanted too, and that there was a second spell 'underlying' the one that you saw. Which took me the better part of two years to crack as a side project. Nasty thing too, if I had made any missteps, it would have burned the codex to ash."

Lyra leaned forward and joined the conversation, eyes glittering. "So what was hidden by the second spell?"

Delilah made a face, "When I finally unlocked it, the poem of Orlando Furioso that was written on it expanded. The illuminated letters and illustrations that the scribe had written it with animated. Magically."

Colombe gave a low whistle. "So the poem was magical then?"

Delilah nodded, "Yes and more relevantly described the action of Orlando, or if you prefer the French version, Charlemagne's peerless knight Roland from the magical perspective. Right from the time a century before the Statute of Secrecy was put into effect...and certain wizards began to take steps to hide places, people, and artifacts from the nomaj and each other because they were too dangerous. People who only survived in the corpus of oral myth and folk stories that became epic poems...such as Roland, Merlin, King Arthur's weapons and the like."

Lyra drummed her fingers against the table. "But this happened before the Statute, when these people were well known, yes?"

Delilah nodded, "Yes, exactly. Unfortunately, my grasp of 15th Century Lombard language and poetic allussions is...not great and the second spell interfered with translation spells. So I had to call in an outside specialist in the language from Columbia University. Doctor Henry Jones translated it from the Lombard to English with assistance from Professor Abélard Ménétries." Delilah paused and then continued, "of the École normale supérieure de Lyon."
Spoiler: The Race Begins

Colombe's face paled and then flushed with anger as the pieces came together for her. "Merde! Then SS-Sturmbannführer Drachenzähmer was looking for that manuscript? That dégénéré fils de pute vampire who killed my friend in 1937 was trying to rob that monastery for it. But...he couldn't get in until the Republicans desecrated the monastery to no longer make it holy ground."

Delilah nodded grimly. "I suspect so, Colombe. The first indication that I had that this was trouble was five months after France fell when a team of Grindlewald's agents tried to burn Dr. Jones' translation. Along with Dr. Jones and myself." She smirked smugly. "They failed, but that was enough for me to seriously consider the translation as something of value."

Lyra tapped her lips with a finger. "It holds together. So," her eyes sparkled, "What do you think exactly he is after?"

Delilah frowned, "Henry only had sent the first eight cantos over to Lyon to be translated. Although that was the part with what the normal Furioso calls the 'Tomb of Merlin' and what this version calls 'The resting-place of Morgan'. As in 'Morgan le Fay' also called in the Lombard 'madre di mostri', the 'Mother of Monsters'. It is pretty heavily hinted that some of her knowledge of how to summon up, control and make monsters was kept there. For instance her disciple Melissa was noted to have a book that summoned demons along with a ring of invisibility that also deflected all spells."

Colombe sighed, "Of course. It has been a while since I read the Furioso, but I remember giants, an ogre, and a sea monster...?"

Delilah nodded. "The sea-orc in Cantos Eight and Nine, yes. Immune to magic and immortal. So if I'm right and they are after Morgan's resting place, we need to get there first and secure it."

Lyra laughed, "Henry will be upset that he won't be able to come along for this. Potters have to Potter after all."

Colombe smirked, "No doubt. So we know who and what, now where is it?"

Delilah sighed. "That I don't know. I know from the poem that it is under a mountain of flint 'so sheer and steep like a needle piercing the golden skies around it' with an enchanted forest around it, and that is all 'outre mer', or in other words over the sea. But where...?"

Colombe frowned thoughtfully. "That rings a faint bell. Wait. I heard something like that back...right before the Great War. And if nothing else, I know where to look."

The other two looked at her and the rapier smugged back. "Drachenzähmer was planning a trip to Algeria, so if he is ahead of us, let's follow his trail."

Lyra sighed, "Just tell me that you won't run off half-cocked again with your sister, Colombe. Please?"

Colombe smiled, "No worries, I'll make sure you nurse me back to health first. If I'm going back to Africa, I plan to do it right. Besides we will need an excuse to have the British drop us behind enemy lines."

Delilah grinned smugly, "Leave that to me and the COI that I'm a part of. In the meantime, we can check what records are in England about Morgan le Fay, Drachenzähmer, and start pinning down any terra incognita in North Africa."

The revolver paused, and then glanced over at Lyra, "And...pardon me for asking but are you the Lyra Potter who writes Lady Chastity?"

Lyra's grin turned crooked as Colombe refilled her tea and began to sip it, "I am, why?"

"I'd like to purchase an autographed copy of your latest Lady Chastity book for Jackie's birthday. She's a huge fan and I confess I wouldn't mind one for myself." Butter would not have melted in Deliah's mouth as she watched her elder sister closely.

Colombe shot tea out of her nostrils as Lyra laughed musically, "Oh I'm sure I can arrange something!"

 

[darthcourt10]

Harry Leferts

Hands on the wheel as he drove the golfcart along the base roads, Harry glanced to Siusan who was sitting beside him and looking around curiously. Part of him was amused by the visitor pass that hung from around her neck before turning his attention fully back onto the road, "How are you enjoying the holidays so far, Grandmother?"

Glancing at him, the Irish fox gave a small smile and a slight nod, "I am enjoying myself rather well, Harry-Child. There is much that is very new to me."

Finger tapping the wheel, Harry cleared his throat while hanging his head some, "Sorry about not spending too much time with you today..." He frowned slightly, 'Though I am concerned about Akechi-San...'

To his confusion, Siusan seemed shocked by that before her expression softened some, "There is nothing to be sorry about, you are still young and you do have friends." Her expression became one that was bittersweet, "I am just glad that you wish to spend time with me."

A frown on his face, the thirteen year old shook his head, "I want to spend time with you, Grandmother." His lips then curled upwards some, "And I especially like the tales and such that you tell me of our family's past. I've learned far more than I ever thought that I would."

Chuckling, Siusan gave him a smile, "And I am glad to tell you of them." Briefly pausing, she became thoughtful, "Though I am not too bored as I have been speaking to Hoshi. From her, I... have learned much about the foxes of this place. Some of the tales..." Shaking her head, the fox sighed though there was a slight smile, "I have enjoyed hearing of them, she has even spoken of taking me to her hometown to meet Natsumi-Child's grandparents."

That made Harry chuckle some, "Well, I think that you might have fun there, Grandmother. I know that when I met them, I did. Also, they are very knowledgeable about Kitsune and the like, especially with their family history."

Not saying anything right away, the other occupant frowned in thought. Eventually, she gave a nod, "Yes, she spoke of how their family is descended from a marriage of a fox and a man. I am interested to know more and how they dealt with such things." Frowning, she closed her eyes, "Perhaps... I shall find out where I went wrong."

Frowning, Harry glanced at her, "I don't think so." Seeing her turn to him, he gave a shrug, "That you went wrong somewhere. Or if you did, it was something that the others were also at fault for." Head turned slightly towards her, he shook his head, "It takes two to tango after all."

For a few moments, she considered that before nodding, "Perhaps. But I still feel as if I was the one who was at fault for everything that has happened." The two lapsed into silence for some time before they came around a bend and Siusan blinked at the sound of heavy equipment. Turning, she watched as what she believed was called a "Bobcat" came out from inside a tunnel. Head tilted to the side, she furrowed her eyebrows, "What is going on there?"

Briefly looking in the same direction, Harry shook his head, "They're clearing out some of the old tunnels on the base, Grandmother." When she turned to him, he continued, "They started construction of them back in the late 1930s, and built more during the Second World War. Afterwards, they fell out of disuse and many of them were sealed up. But due to the Abyssals, they've been reopening them and fixing those. That one..." Frowning, the wizard hummed for a few moments as he gave it another glance, "Was probably an underground aircraft hanger from the looks of it, maybe for the Ohkas."

Still curious, Siusan turned towards the teen beside her, "Why would they reopen them?"

Driving, the young wizard considered how to answer before finally shrugging, "For many reasons to be honest. That one? I can sort of see where they're making a runway. They're probably going to use it for UAVs, like Predator drones, to keep them safe from Abyssal attacks. I know that some of the bigger ones are used for either ground vehicles or helicopters." Humming, he frowned some, "Others... are used for storage. After all, things like ammunition and such need to be placed somewhere safe from attack. That's not counting the ones being unsealed by the city government, those are usually used as either shelters for people or emergency vehicles, or to store things like food and the like. They're reopening a lot of them."

While still confused at some of what Harry stated, such as what a "Predator Drone" was, Siusan gave a small nod. Though that said, she did understand a little, "Yes, I suppose that underground would be a good place to store weapons and the like, Harry-Child. I have seen when such places were hit in the last war..."

It was not much longer before they reached their destination. Driving towards what looked door in the cliff face, Harry tapped his swipe card against a reader there. With a clunk, the doors rose upwards and he drove the golf cart into them before pulling into a small parking spot. Getting out, he walked around with a smile and held out his hand, "Need some help, Grandmother?"

Lips curling up into a smile, Siusan took the offered hand and nodded, "Thank you, Harry-Child." Once she was out, she looked around and tilted her head, "Where are we going to reach these hot springs? I thought that you mentioned that they were on an island?"

Harry nodded as he began to walk, the Irish fox beside him, "They are actually, but while I was gone it turned out that they found another pair of Vanishing Cabinets. These don't go that far... but they set them up here with the other end being on the island in a hidden spot. Much easier for everyone then to sail to where it is."

Simply nodding, the female of the pair smiled, "Yes, I suppose that it would be at that." Entering a room behind him, Siusan blinked a bit at the small girl that was seated at a desk looking rather bored. She didn't look much older then perhaps twelve years of age with white hair up in spikes. More odd was that she was wearing some sort of trench coat with bandages across her chest as she had a lolipop in her mouth.

For some odd reason, she reminded Siusan of that "Battleship" she had seen.

Meanwhile, Harry gave a wave and a grin, "Hey, Musa-Kun. So they got you on duty guarding the way to the hot springs?"

Bored look in her eyes, the girl moved the lolipop from one end of her mouth to the other and sighed, "Yup, the Brassholes got me guarding this place, Har-Chan. Can't do shit with those Abyssals, and they say I get into too much trouble if I'm not given something to do, the pricks."

Chuckling, the teen grinned, "I can imagine." He then began to do the paperwork for the trip and hummed some, "Though you do get in trouble, Musa-Kun. And a lot of it."

A smirk on her face, she snorted, "And? You get in as much trouble as I do." Seeing his look, she shrugged, "Okay, fine, they caught me TPing that one asshole of a Lieutenant's car. So what? Dickhole deserved it for talking down to me."

Only shaking his head, Harry completed the paperwork and shrugged, "Maybe, if it is the one that I am thinking of. Anyways, I'll see you when we get back, Musa-Kun."
Making a salute with two fingers on her hand, the shipgirl turned back to her game as she leaned back on the chair, balancing it on two legs as she played a game, "Ciao."

Still grinning, Harry stepped into the cabinet followed by Siusan. It was only after they left the hidden bunker on the island, and another shipgirl there, behind that the Irish fox turned to him in confusion, "You know that shipgirl, Harry-Child?"

Hands behind his head, the teen snorted, "Musa-Kun? Yeah, I do. Her actual name is Musashi, but everyone calls her Musa-Kun because she asks for it. She was a Corvette built before the Japanese-Russo War. In the early thirties though, she was a hulk used to imprison juvenile convicts, so... it sort of left a mark on her." Frowning, he scratched his chin, "I sometimes wonder if some of her steel after she was scrapped somehow found its way to be used in Musashi-Oba. Either that, or her name was enough to get some sort of effect considering that Musashi-Oba dresses and acts similar at times..."

Just nodding, Siusan frowned some, "I... see."

Looking around, she gave a sniff and cocked her head to the side. From where she was, she could smell a slight hint of sulfur on the air. But it was also covered up by the smell of the various flowers as well, which confused her due to it being late December. The air was also a little warmer then she had expected. When she turned to Harry, he smiled a bit and waved a hand, "There's a ward over the island, it keeps some of the warm, humid air from the springs in during the winter months. That lets some of the more cold tolerant flowers and such here keep living and blooming through the winter."

For a few moments, Siusan considered that before nodding with a slight smile, "It does improve the smell a little, I suppose."

With a hum of agreement, the teen nodded. Soon enough, they reached one pool which had a flat stone area nearby. From where they stood, the two could see the steam slowly rising into the evening air and Harry looked over at the Irish fox, "Well, time to get ready."

Blinking, Siusan looked over at him and then the pool in interest before heading to one of the small booths to slip out of her clothes, Harry taking the other. 'This... shall be interesting.'

A few minutes later, found her looking through her basket of bathing supplies when Harry looked over her shoulder, "Is something wrong?"

Only shaking her head, the fox smiled, "No, nothing is wrong, Harry-Child. I am still a bit confused as to why we must bathe and wash before entering the water. After all, I am used to bathing in the springs to get clean."

Harry gave a shrug at that, "It is mainly so that the water stays clean for others when they use it, Grandmother. Anyways... want me to wash your back?"

Surprised, Siusan looked over at him, "Wash my back?" As he nodded with an unsure look, her own expression softened, "I... would not mind such, no." Her eyes gained a far off look to them, "It has been many centuries since one actually wished to wash me..."

Filling one of the buckets from the spring, Harry brought it over and set it down next to a stone stool which Siusan sat on. Pouring some water over her, and getting a hum, he began to soap up a rag, "Well, I don't mind. You're family after all."

As she was turned away, he missed the small, happy tears in her eyes, 'Yes... family.' Feeling him began to gently clean her back, Siusan let out a happy sigh. She had not been lying when she had stated that it had been centuries since one of her family washed her. In some ways, it had been even longer than what she had told him. Closing her eyes, the Irish fox spirit simply enjoyed the close feelings for the first time in a very long time. Eventually, he rinsed her back and handed her the cloth, with her washing her doing the rest of her, though she allowed for him to shampoo her hair, followed by some conditioner.

Once that was done, she washed his back with a gentleness that came from her being his "Grandmother", followed by cleaning his hair much as he had done hers while Harry did the rest of himself. Like before, she did not say much, just enjoying the fact that this said more than words could about how the black haired teen had accepted her as family. A sort of bonding experience for the two of them. When the last bit of suds were washed away, Siusan felt a bit happier about it, more close to her "Grandson" than she had before.

With a small nod, she turned to the hot spring itself, "So now we bathe ourselves in this hot spring, Harry-Child?"

Standing up, Harry held out a hand, "We do, come on, Grandmother." A grin on his face, he chuckled, "I think that you might enjoy it."

Just a bit bemused, Siusan took said hand and allowed herself to be guided over to the hot spring. Dipping a toe into it, she could feel the heat of the water, though it was not too hot. Gently, the fox slipped into the waters and sighed happily as she felt the heat soak into her body, "Ah, I think that you are right, Harry-Child. This old fox does enjoy this for her old bones."

The wizard shook his head some as he sat down in the waters, "You're not that old, Grandmother."

Opening one eye and spotting the grin on his face, she chuckled, "But I am, though you are a cheeky Kit." With a deep breath, she allowed the water to reach her shoulders, "Still, you were quite right. This... is lovely."

Simply moving until he was beside her, Harry hummed some and nodded, "It is, and better with family."

Unable to say something around the lump in her throat, Siusan nodded and gently kissed him on the head before she relaxed even more as the two chatted about various things here and there.
____________________________________________________________

Hoshi sipped her tea as she chatted with her old friends in a small café in Natsumi's hometown, not noticing a Kitsune walk through the door, "... I will admit, before Natsumi-Chan spoke to me about Siusan-San, I did not know that there were fox spirits elsewhere in the world."

The Kitsune who just walked in paused at that and turned to their table. Meanwhile, Chiyo gave the other Kyuubi a look as she nibbled some cake, "Didn't Tsuki-Chan tell you about that one Kami in the Americas... Coyote, I think? Though I think that she mentioned that there were fox spirits in Native American mythology as well, though she had not met them."

With a slight nod to grant her the point, Hoshi frowned, "That is true enough, I suppose. Still, I did not know that such existed in Harry-San's homeland of Britain either... though, granted, Siusan-San is from Ireland, not England."

A throat clearing made them turn their heads to where the shorter Kitsune had walked in. Said Kitsune for her human-guise looked more like someone of mixed Japanese and European ancestry, "I'm sorry, Hoshi-Sama, Chiyo-Sama, but I could not help but overhear that you mentioned a fox spirit from somewhere other than Asia? From Ireland?"

Sighing, Hoshi gave the other, younger Kitsune due to being a one tail, a look, "I have told you, Haruka-San, call me Hoshi-San. I do not deserve the 'Sama' in my view."

Only frowning, Haruka shook her head, "You do, though, in my view. After all, you rescued myself and the others from that... place, below Yokosuka." A shudder went through her, "For that, you deserve to be Hoshi-Sama, not San."

While Hoshi gave a sigh and a shake of her head at the old argument, Chiyo snickered, "She is right though." Turning her attention back to Haruka, she smiled a bit while ignoring the mutters from her old friend and gestured at the seat. While some might have considered her asking in regards to the conversation as being rude, Chiyo did not mind it much at all, "I must say that I am surprised to see you here though, Haruka-San. From what I was told, you were still performing some work out in the woods."

Taking said seat, the new member of the conversation smiled a bit happily, "It went along better than I had expected. That pack of Honshu wolves that settled in just outside of town is getting along nicely with the rest of the ecology and already, I can see improvement. Less boars causing trouble for example." Haruka then gave a shrug, "Besides, I am good as a ranger. Doesn't let my degrees in ecology and the environment go to waste."

Amused, Chiyo chuckled, "Or your doctorates in biology, zoology, and botany." Shaking her head at the slight blush on the far younger Kitsune, she chortled, "Though you spend most of your time out in the woods keeping an eye on things. A good work ethic, though we do not see you often in town."

Now blushing more, Haruka shook her head with a sheepish grin, "Well... I am happy outside of town. And my cottage is more than enough for me to be happy with both my duties and my studies."

Her own lips twitching, the other Kyuubi shook her head, "Stop teasing Haruka-San, Chiyo-Chan." At the answering grin, Hoshi turned her attention back to Haruka, "As to your question, I did state that I came across a fox from Ireland. She is... interesting." Her gaze became far off for a moment, "Though perhaps a bit distant due to various things, not that I blame Siusan-San very much."

Eyes widening a touch, Haruka stared at her before turning back to the table, "An Irish fox spirit named Siusan..."

Though her eyes narrowed a bit, along with Chiyo's, Hoshi hummed and nodded, "Hai, she is quite interesting, but a touch uncertain." Turning to her friend, the Kyuubi gave a smile, "She already accepted the invite to come and see you."

Clapping her hands, Chiyo let out a laugh, "Excellent! I look forward to meeting Harry-San's 'Obaa-San'. From everything that you have told me, she seems extremely interesting."

Meanwhile, Haruka had a frown on her face while furrowing her eyebrows as she stared down at the table top. Feeling a hand on hers, she jumped a bit to find that Hoshi was giving her an questioning look, "Are you alright?"

Lips curling up into a smile, the younger fox waved her off, "Ah, it was nothing. Just... thinking about how I did not ever think that there would be an Irish fox coming to Japan."

After a few moments, Hoshi nodded and soon the three were chatting together about various things, though Haruka continued to have a confused and thoughtful look in her green eyes.

 

[darthcourt10]

Yellowhammer

Operation: BUTTERKNIFE (Part VI)

Potter Manor, England

15 January 1942
Spoiler: Loved I Not Honour More...

Delilah de Breuil contemplated her weapons and gear spread out over the breakfast table thoughtfully in the late-morning sunlight. She ran a finger along the nine inches of gnarled English oak with a Thunderbird tail feather core that was her primary wand with a contemplative smile before loading it into the quick-release holster on her left forearm.

A door opened behind her and she instinctively glanced at the noise. Her eyes widened and she blushed red as a tomato before hastily jerking her eyes back to the instruments of war on the table.

Lyra had stepped out of the bedroom with a magnificent case of bed hair, a loosely tied tousled kimono with a pattern of snowflakes, several love bites on her neck...and a rapier in her hand. A very familiar gold and patterned steel French Rapier that was the true body of her oldest sister.

Delilah stared at the matching steel of the revolver that was her true self and blinked tears away.

Could I ever find someone to trust so much and love so deeply to allow them to wield me like my sister has found with her 'friend'?

Delilah's hands moved on autopilot as she heard the firm, decisive tread of Colombe come out of the room to join Lyra and she bit her lip to avoid looking that way despite all her trained instincts and her very nature screaming at her to collect data to make the shot when it became necessary.

Instead her gaze dropped to her backup wand (aspen wood, white river monster spine, seven inches, firm and unyielding). She checked it before slotting it into her right thigh holster. Her hands moved to a bandolier of potions (Healing, Wide-Eye, Polyjuice, Felix Felicis, Draught of Living Death, Invigoration, Cure-All, Veritaserum and Skelogrow check) next as her ears pricked at the soft conversation behind her.

"I wish that we had more time together." A voice filled with heartbreak.

The bandolier of potions got locked into position on her hauberk of cured horned serpent skin and she moved to a beaded Lakota medicine pouch with the symbol of the Wakinyan in dyed porcupine quills on it. Unbidden Delilah's mind's eye expanded to see the high prairie of the Great Plains; a herd of bison moving below the hilltop where she sat her horse as far as the eye could see as lightning flickered in the distant clouds to open gates into another world....

"I do too, my love." The sound of tears being held back in the voice.

Delilah slipped the rawhide thong of her medicine pouch over her head to let it rest against her heart and her hands moved to a Bowie knife. She hefted its brutal lethal elegance before sliding it into the sheath on her left thigh under her traveling dress.

A kiss from behind her. Whispered endearments half-heard. Nothing for her ears, let her sister have what comfort she could as the sand grains in the hourglass fell.

Delilah moved to her scoped 1903 Springfield Rifle to automatically check the bolt action and barrel before sliding it into a holster on her hauberk where it vanished. Four boxes of .30-06 bullets followed (full metal jacket, hollowpoints, enchanted incendiary, the box with the hollowpoints filled with silver fulminate produced alchemically and then sealed with hard wax...). An Ithaca 37 pump shotgun was next to vanish into a holster in the back of her hauberk. Four more boxes of 00 Magnum buckshot and slug rounds vanished into their place.

A quiet, tear-filled voice. "If I had asked you to swear that you would stay here with me forever instead of going to battle would you have?"

Delilah paused for a moment, her hands shaking minutely, before resuming her check on the sharpened stakes of ash carved with a cold-forged iron axe into sharp points that had then been blessed by the village vicar. The vials of holy water and pouches of consecrated salt from the same source was next. Delilah then automatically gave the sign of the Cross and bowed her head before reverently placing the pouch containing the Eucharist into its place in her arsenal of gear.

"Oui. I would, and I would keep my oath. You know that, Lyra. But..." Matching tears in her sister's voice as it broke behind her.

A garrote of enchanted piano wire with a cutting charm to her left forearm holster. Fairbairn-Sykes Fighting Knife into her right forearm sheath. Stiletto into her left boot. Lockpicks and derringer into her right boot. Medical kit, check. Mark I Trench Knife into the sheath between her shoulderblades.

A deep, sad sigh and a voice filled with the burden of what was about to come. "But I won't. Because if I did, it would break us both. I couldn't have loved you and Ian so much..."

1911A1 .45 caliber pistol with spare clips into her lower back holster. Grenades into the hip pouches in her hauberk, frag and smoke on the left, flash-bang and thermite on the right. Hauberk on, and buckled into place. Blouse over the hauberk. Mobility and access check performed.

Colombe's voice joined Lyra's as they spoke as one. "Loved I not honour more."

Delilah finally reached the end of the table and picked up her true body, checking the loads in her cylinder. She slid herself home in her shoulder holster with a thump of finality. She paused for a long moment in quiet stillness, hoping without hope this moment could last for a lifetime for Colombe's sake. But it couldn't. Duty called.

Delilah turned, her coat in her hands, to see the sunlight illuminating Colombe and Lyra in a passionate embrace, the light shimmering from the gold of her sister's hair and the silver with hints of midnight black of Lyra's as the strands mingled. They broke their kiss and Lyra slowly handed her sister the rapier that was her true self before stepping back to stare into her eyes.

"Come back to me, Colombe d'Aubigny-Muramasa du Chasteler." Lyra's voice was sadly proud and resolute as the blade passed hands.

Colombe kissed the hilt reverently in a crusader's salute to Lyra before sweeping it down in a flash of steel and sheathing herself. "I give my word that I shall, Lyra Potter née Black. Wait for me." Colombe's voice was equally resolute and determined.

Lyra nodded and then held her head up high to see them to the door.

At the door, Lyra paused, and gave a faint smile as she waved her wand. "I suppose that it is custom for a lady to give her knight a token of her favor as they leave for quest...so." The smile widened and grew perverted as she handed Colombe a near-transparent triangle of black silk fringed with white lace.

Delilah's face turned red again and she sputtered as Colombe flushed pink and then laughed happily before tying it to her hilt and turning to the waiting carriage. "Only you, Lyra, only you. I'll be back with it to return it to its proper place before you know it. Audieu."