Harry Potter & the Shipgirls

[darthcourt10]

WickedestCard

So...I got a silly little semi-canon, semi-non canon omake that was on my mind cause I like I said I got back into building model kits though I did add a little bit of character at the end so hopefully this is a fun little read for everyone.

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Gambier's Weird Dream


A certain floofy haired escort carrier smiled happily as she sat in the pilot seat of a USN F-4 Phantom II while her boyfriend sat behind her as her radar operator as she took him out on a cruise flight. She wasn't sure how she managed to convince her superiors on greenlighting this but that didn't matter as she increased the thrust to the engines and climbed up into the sky. While Gambier Bay's fairies were trained on the upgraded versions of the Grumman Wildcat she was able to fly more advanced planes herself such as the so called "Triumph of thrust over physics" she was currently in. Over the radio, she heard an excited 'Woo' as she and her backseater climbed rapidly.


"Alright, we're going to be leveling out at 18,000 feet and then gain airspeed. So get ready to go supersonic okay! You're gonna love this" Gamby said with confidence as the jet fighter reached the desired altitude and she banked the wings a bit to help level out the aircraft.


"Copy that Gamby, though I'm gonna enjoy this now matter what since you're here," came the response, causing the blond to blush slightly. Still she pushed the aircraft faster over the ocean, reaching a solid 80% of the speed of sound when suddenly her radar operator came through the radio.


"Hey, Gamby? This radar system is fully online and functional right? Because it's showing something coming at us fast...from our 4 o'clock!" came his steadily worried traffic as her eyes widen in surprise. That couldn't be right because she knew there wasn't supposed to be another flight near this flight path and they were still very much within sight of the California coast so it shouldn't be Abyssals. Still her instincts kicked and and her first priority was to spot the bogey and second was to make sure that the two of them were safe. She cranked her head back trying to spot the radar contact and when she saw a flash of bright red Gambier Bay rolled the plane over to the right harshly.


As she finished her aileron roll she looked up to her 2 o'clock and felt her heart drop. There, easily going faster than the speed of sound was a bright red MiG-21 with black stars painted on its wings as it clawed for more altitude. This was her worst nightmare, this bogey now became a bandit. Gambier Bay now had one objective, make a break for San Diego and to get the two of them to safety.


"Hold on! Try and get the ATC on the radio, I'm giving it everything she's got!" Gambier Bay declared as she gained a determined look on her face, she wasn't going to let anyone down this time. She had too much riding on this and she wasn't going to lose someone so close to her if she had anything to say about it. Not this time.


Gamby rolled the F-4 to the right and dove towards the ocean and engaged the afterburners. Quickly she and her backseat felt the G's hit them hard as they accelerated, the fuselage rattling as the crack of a sonic boom would have been heard and she yanked the stick into her gut. She could hear the groaning from behind her as the two of them pulled hard G's but she managed to level out about 3,000 feet above sea level, over 1,000 mph and kept the afterburner going. She could make it, she knew she could make it to more friendly airspace.


"Bandit launched missile! Break, Break!" her boyfriend called out, fright clear in his voice as Gamby did just that, rolling right and giving the elevator all it was worth. Luckily her efforts were rewarded as the missile streaked past them.


"This isn't going to be enough Gamby! We need to transform, hold on!"


"Wait, WHAT! WHAT DO YOU MEAN TRANSFORM!" Gambier yelled over the radio as suddenly the cockpit twisted and the wings folded in odd directions. She felt the fuselage shift underneath her feet as well and soon she feels the entire aircraft settle in a completely different form still flying through the air.


"Behold! THE PHANTOM BAY!" came the triumphant battle cry from her longhaired companion as she now sat underneath him in the pilot's chair.


Looking through the now futuristic screen she saw the mecha (which was too big to be from the F-4 they were just in) had a twin Vulcan cannon set up on it's right forearm as well as a third Vulcan mounted over the shoulder. On it's left hand it had a missile module as well as small thrusters that came from nowhere on its legs and feet. All of which made no sense as she was flying an unarmed Phantom.


"Gamby, you handle flying I'll handle the weapons! Now break left!" the now weapons officer said as Gambier did just that, dodging an incoming missile. Looking down she now noticed that the controls of the mecha were different as well as she held a glowing golden ball in each hand yet she flew the mecha skillfully.


"Alright, here he comes! For a gun run, get ready to dodge at the last minute and I'll get the shot in"


"Gotcha...I'll get it done!" Gambier yelled back as she concentrated on moving just enough to dodge the cannon rounds heading at them. The two of them knew that the MiG would need to get close to really make use of it's gun. The escort carrier could hear her boilers running hard in her ears as she looked at the Soviet built plane and as it flew at them near it's top speed she hit the controls for the thrusters and side-dashed to the left and swung the body around.


"Gotcha bitch!" came the confident response the mecha's right arm tracked the jet fighter and the Vulcans roared to life as hundreds of rounds ripped through it's fuselage. It burst into intense flames as it spiraled out of control towards the ocean and the two pilots sighed in relief.


"Ha...that was close. Good job Gamby, you really are the b- wait...I've got another contact on radar GAH!" he started to say when the mecha rocked and warning lights came on as damage readings came up in front of them.


Looking up they saw that there was a large spaceship that had fired a beam weapon at them and was bearing down at them. Gambier Bay tried to get the mecha to fly out of its range but it's controls were sluggish and the thrusters were having a hard time picking up power. The Phantom Bay's armor wasn't going to stand up to a lot of punishment from a proper warship.


However, a bright light was seen above them and powerful beam of energy impacted the warship and powered right through it. Soon explosions were seen erupting around the hull when it suddenly it's reactor detonated and the ship was ripped apart by the sheer explosive force. As Gambier Bay worked the controls to keep the Phantom Bay steady through the shockwave though thankfully the thrusters finally came back online and she was able to fly out of the way of the debris. As they flew up and above where the ship was they saw a Gundam transform into a jet and fly away.


Then all around them the surroundings melted away as they could hear the roar of a cheering crowd as they looked at the platform where their model was standing. Looking around even more confused than before she let out a startled yelp as she was lifted up by her boyfriend's sweeping hug. Still in the corner of her eye she saw another young woman picking up the model of Wing Zero and with a confident smirk walk away.


"We did it Gamby! We did it!" came his happy voice as he spun her before putting her back down. Still she was glad to see the look on his face of them winning whatever they were doing and just as she saw him lean forward she felt as if she was falling down.


"Huh?" came Gambier's confused and groggy response as she woke up suddenly in her bed. The blond escort carrier blinked as she tried to get used to the darkness. A quick check of her bridge told her it was still early, around 0400.


Finally as she got her bearings, she took a look around her room and saw on the table the model kits that were being worked on by the two of them. She smiled as she remembered that she had managed to find a store that still had a good selection of Gunpla, or Gundam plastic model kits, so close to Christmas. Granted as she, White and Shin'you browsed the rows of boxes Gambier Bay noticed that most of the kits were of the ones more popular in the States and the West than in Japan but that made sense as it was one located in Yokosuka after all. It did mean that she could find a good Gundam that were more familiar to him. Finally she settled on two kits in Wing Zero and HeavyArms Custom and got ready to get them sent back.


It turns out her present turned out to be a couple of model kits as well as he had gotten her both a F2M-2 Wildcat and a F-5 Tiger along with paint and custom decals so that it could fly the colors and squadron numbers from her own air crew. Gambier had a smile that lit up her face when she opened the kits. She knew full well that her hull and flight deck weren't suitable even for late war aircraft let alone the powerful jets that would come to define air power. Currently, South Dakota was thinking that she and her sister ships through copious use of MSSB could possibly fly the F8F Bearcats. But with these she could say that her crew could get a supersonic jet on her deck. It was a bit silly, yes but it was a nice thought when she realized that he had wanted to build all four of them together.


She admitted that she snorted before breaking out into giggles as her boyfriend nonchalantly said he didn't trust his own hands to not snap the plastic. Looking over to the door to her small living room area she giggled as he insisted he'd sleep there as to not give her Taffy mates more ammo to fire at him. However all of this also brought another shopping memory to mind when a few certain battleships got wind of her shopping for her boyfriend and declared that'd help with making sure 'they're youthful love will burn bright over the winter holidays' and she blushed when she realized far too late she had been dragged to a swimsuit shop. Luckily White was there soon enough to help her out of that jam.


Still, figured she'd go back to sleep for a while longer. Tomorrow she was going to take him to the Summoning Ceremony on base and she'd had to help escort him and a few other to where the view area was. She fell back asleep with a smile on her face as the thought of being able to spend the afternoon with him again.
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As a quick note, I'll probably do a couple other silly or cute thing before getting back to Solie and the CDP stuff as well as including Trieste. Granted that doesn't mean that the silly can't include Trieste and others such as the Smols as I've been a bit behind actually writing them for a while now.

Either way, what do you guys think?

 

[darthcourt10]

Harry Leferts

Looking at the Sun that hung a little above the horizon, Eric turned and regarded the others before letting out a breath, "Well, I guess that it is time to go then."

With a swipe of her claws, Hinata detached the raft from the wheels and axels beneath it before carrying it over to the water. Setting it down, she held it in place while looking towards the Sun herself, "Is... this really a good idea? Sunset is in about an hour and..."

A grimace on her face, Samantha walked over and placed a hand on the Jorogumo's thorax, "And we'll have two hours of somewhat light, yes. But..." With a sigh, she shook her head, "We had considered heading to Hachijyo-Jima before meeting you because of how much strain it put on our engines. But with you and how you wrapped the raft in silk..."

Considering that for a few moments, the Spider Yokai gave a small nod, "You think that we can get to another island closer to the mainland."

Just nodding, Samantha gave a small smile, "Yeah, it is pretty much a straight line from here to Mikura-Jima. If we go at fifteen knots partway, we should reach it just after Sunrise tomorrow."

Internally, Yumiko did some internal calculations and gave a slight nod, "Hai, if we go all night at that speed, we should make it about then. And after that... we'll be picking up radio signals probably between here and there that will tell us more."

Helping Sora onto the raft, Eric smiled at them before getting on himself, "Sounds good to me." A laugh escaped him and he shook his head, "Heh, a bunch of Swiss Family Robinsons we are."

Somewhat lost as she helped push the raft out onto the ocean, Hinata looked at the others, "Swiss Family Robinson?"

The Submarine Tender snorted some as she attached the towlines to herself while the others did the same, "A book that Mom has and we read. Pretty famous piece of literature, in it there's a family who gets stranded on an deserted island. And they make due with what they have while flourishing." Considering, she gave a sound of surprise, "Actually, in the book they were stranded on the island for about ten years."

Head tilted to the side, Sora chuckled a little bit, "Eric-Kun told us all about various books about castaways like us that he read about, the dork."

Glancing at her, Eric snorted, "But you still love me."

Lips curled upwards into a smile, the Kitsune kissed him before pulling back, "Hai, I do." Then, she smirked a bit, "My dear man Friday."

Snickers came from the others which made Hinata blink in confusion as she knew that there was a joke there before she shrugged it off, "Maybe when we get back, we'll read them." Various others nodded in agreement and she took a look towards the west. Noticing everyone looking at her, she took a swallow and smiled, "Okay, let's weigh anchor."

Nods met her and so the various shipgirls smiled before they headed out with the raft behind them as they resumed their journey at twelve knots.

As the Sun was setting though, about three hours later, the JS Fubuki anchored offshore and her helicopter went up before flying over the island. Shortly after, it landed with DesDiv6 with both Tenryuu and Tatsuta as well as some boarding party personnel onboard with the eyepatch wearing Light Cruiser looking at the pilot, "There's a heat source nearby, you said? Up on that hill?"

Just nodding, the pilot pointed, "Hai, it is just up there and the ship's keeping an eye on the dock in case they go there."

With a nod, Tenryuu patted the helicopter, "Thanks, keep it warm." Sword sheathed, she looked around before shaking her head, "Lovely place this is... always wanted to come here when I was younger."

Chuckling, Tatsuta gave her sister a look as they made their way towards the site of the odd heat source, "Oh?"

Softly snorting, the other Light Cruiser spread her arms wide, "Why wouldn't I? This place is a tropical paradise..." Tenryuu's expression fell a bit, "Or, rather, was."

Head tilted to the side as she considered that, Tatsuta patted her sister on the shoulder, "Well, perhaps when the war is over and they rebuild, we'll come back and see it then."

That brought a smile to Tenryuu's face and it did not take them long to reach the location. One of the personnel furrowed his eyebrows as he looked over the shelter, "Okay, this is pretty damn good for what might be a few hours worth of work. But..." Looking up at the leaves suspended above, he poked them, "How the fuck did they find a spider's web this big?"

One of the others jerked his thumb at the outside of the logs, "Not just there, but also here as well, Sir." Taking one of the threads, he wiggled it around a bit, "Strangest thing that I've ever seen in my life."

Eye narrowing slightly, Tenryuu frowned as she stepped inside the shelter to find that the coals were just barely glowing, "We just missed them. But spider silk..." Crouching, she examined the ground and her eye lit up projecting a beam of light that lit up the inside, "Hmm... What do you girls figure?"

Looking around themselves, Akatsuki pointed at a log that was laid across the shelter, "Well, it looks like there were at least seven different people sitting here." Pointing at a flat rock, she gave a nod there, "And two more there."

Just humming, the Light Cruiser nodded, "Sounds about right for me..." Standing up, she walked over to the coals and swept them up, "Give it about... four hours, tops, since they left."

Surprised, one of the boarding party shifted his shotgun a little, "How do you know that, Ma'am?"

Grinning a little, Tenryuu shook her head, "Me and the girls? We've been to a number of the islands over the years. Sometimes, we catch people out on them and using them to hide. Smugglers, salvagers, and some of those Reclaimer idiots. Once we even came across an Abyssal cult that was functioning as wreckers, fuckers." Her grin turned savage, "That was fun when we dropped on their heads with special forces."

Their own expressions savage, the personnel only nodded in agreement while privately wishing that they were involved themselves.

A shout though made them turn and they all came out of the shelter to find one the men having kicked some dirt to reveal a chewed pig's head, with other what had to be pig bones as well as bloody feathers. Nodding, Tatsuta hummed a little, "They must of caught them from the escaped livestock." Internally, she shared a sigh of relief with her sister, 'Which means that if we're right, there's less danger...'

Minutes later, they were at the nearby hot spring and found more signs that were there with Inazuma taking pictures for later proof. Crouched, Tenryuu looked at the holes poked in the wet ground and shook her head, "Okay, I think that we can confirm there being at least eight or nine of them. But..."

Scratching his head, the Lieutenant of the Boarding Team frowned, "Ma'am? What made those holes in the ground."

For a few moments, Tenryuu considered them and then sighed, "There's spider silk for the structure of the shelter, and strong shit as well. We also know that in the mess hall for the container ship, there was a lot of silk found with bird bones and fish bones wrapped up in it. Now this... I think..." Pausing, she frowned, "I think that we're dealing with either Jorogumo or Tsuchigumo. At least one with the survivors."

That provoked a reaction from the boarding party and they jumped away from the holes. One of them gripped his gun as he looked around, not entirely sure how effective they might be, "You mean the spider Yokai that eat people? Those ones?"

Just scratching under her eyepatch, Tenryuu shrugged, "One in the same. But I heard from a Kitsune that their reputation is overblown nowadays. Most live among humans and don't harm them." Seeing the looks, she grinned, "Welcome to the Moonlit World, folks. And there's no Clocktower to give us Enforcers for help, but we're practically Heroic Spirits, so nothing to fear."

Each of the boarding party personnel shared a look before they went back to the helicopter as they had a group to catch.

Less than an hour later, the Fubuki was underway and Tenryuu was in the briefing room with the Captain and XO shaking their heads at what they had just been told, "A Jorogumo..." Taking off his hat, he gave a sheepish chuckle, "Should have expected that since we got a three legged crow nesting onboard."

Bemused at that fact, the eyepatch wearing Light Cruiser looked at the map before them, "The world's gone strange on us and it's not done yet. But the issue is now finding them, we can make a search pattern, but despite what some might think that is still a massive amount of ocean to cover.'

Also looking over the map, the XO frowned, "Hai. People think that it is easy if you have a general idea of where a normal sized ship might be. But even the coast guard with a radio beacon transmitting coordinates can take time to find a ship in trouble. And we don't have that."

Ikazuchi frowned a little, "Hopefully, they don't get into the twenty mile boundary limit around Hachijya-Jima before we catch up to them."

Frowning, the Captain looked up at her, "More magical oddness?"

However it was Tenryuu who answered, "You could say that. A number of signs point to the fact that someone has taken up residence on the old island. And from what we know? It might be an actual dragon, possibly a child of Ryuujin that's holed up in the hotel there."

Briefly, it looked like the Officers there were going to ask if they were kidding, only to see the looks in the shipgirls' eyes and deciding not to. Instead, they began to plan on how they were going to find one speck of a raft in the middle of the ocean at night. Their only advantages being that they knew which direction it was likely to go in.
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Night had long since fallen and the group was slowly making their way across the ocean. Looking off to the side, Eric pointed, "That must be Hachijyo-Jima."

Also looking in the same direction, Sora smiled, "Hai, that does seem about right for the position." Looking towards Samantha, she raised an eyebrow, "Samantha-Chan?"

Glancing over her shoulder, the Submarine nodded after a moment of checking her maps, "You're right, that is Hachijya-Jima. Which means that we're nearly at the midway point-" Suddenly, there was lights flashing in the distance and she frowned, "Something's heading this way, from the island."

Everyone became nervous at that with them considering whether to make a high speed run for it.
However, that became moot as a few minutes later, Hinata pointed, "There! There's something disturbing the water!"

At that, Samantha paled though in the night no one could see it, "Holy shit... that's enormous..."

The wake of whatever it was came to a stop just thirty feet from them before the water parted to reveal a massive, draconic head that rose above the water. Said head was big enough that it looked like it could swallow a train, with teeth several feet long. All of it, though to their astonishment, was composed of clear water. It seemed to observe them all for several moments...

Before it opened it's mouth and lunged.

For a few moments, they were covered by water and there was an experience of vertigo before the water disappeared and they found themselves, and the raft, on a carpeted floor. The water disappeared leaving the floor dry as a bone before they heard a gong sound and looked up from the bottom of the staircase that they were on. They could see various Yokai around them, some of them in ceremonial armour.

Of course, that was when their attention was drawn by a woman walking down one of the side staircases. She was dressed in what looked like the finest silks with her hair held in place by jeweled ornaments. But what caught their gaze was the massive, elk-like horns that rose from the sides of her head and how her lower body was that of a serpent. That, and what looked like a ghostly version of the dragon that had brought them there. Beside Eric, Sora softly whispered to him, "A Wani... No one do anything, we must have Trespassed into her territory."

A chuckle made them look up to the dragon who gave a nod, "You have, and now you are before the Court of Akiye-Hime, for that is who I am. Daughter of Otohime, granddaughter of Ryuujin." Those names made them all pale, "Now, speak so that my Court may know of whom you are and why you have trespassed in Our Domain."

Needless to say, they all shared looks and turned back to her with Eric bowing, though he noted she glanced at where his arm used to be, "My name is Baker Eric, son of Baker Ellen, a teacher and with me are..." He introduced each of them by name before taking a deep breath and bowing deeply again, "We're sorry for trespassing as we did not know that this was your domain, milady. All of us were stranded on an island, Torishima, for some years. And we are making our way home to Japan."

Lower half curled onto a pillow, she tilted her head some and smiled, "Interesting, so you were stranded on the Bird Island? We know of this place, though tell us thy story and We shall decide."

Bowing, Eric took a deep breath, "Myself and my sister, Baker Samantha, were in Aogashima with our parents visiting almost ten years ago now, along with our friend, when we wished to go on a tour boat to see Torishima by ourselves, which our parents allowed..."

He continued to tell his story as the various Yokai and spirits in the Court listened, Akiye-Hime above them all. A tale of hardship and survival, of care and dispair. Finally, after what seemed like hours, he slowly ran down to the present.

Several moments passed while the Ryuu considered what had just been told to her. Finally, she smiled, "Rise, rise before the Court of Akiye-Hime. For We have heard your story and it has moved Us. Truly, an epic of survival and the indomitable will you have all shown that perhaps I shall see shown in a play." Thoughtful, she nodded, "We shall allow for you to leave, but not before we shall have you dine with us, for I know that my Ojii-San would frown upon not giving you hospitality." Seeing them open their mouths, Akiye-Hime raised a hand, "Please, do not worry about your state within Our presence. For our own Chichi-ue was but a normal fisherman when brought to our Haha-ue's home." With that, she stood and bowed, "So please, simply concern yourself with food and drink for a time as we spend a few hours."

It went without saying that none of them said otherwise and simply followed her into a dining room and she motioned for them to sit while various foods were brought forth. As they ate, she asked other questions and expressed some surprise at the fact there was a Jorogumo Kami among them, which made Hinata blink, "But... I'm not, a Kami I mean. Sure... I am kind of a ship, your Majesty, but..."

Chuckling, there was a twinkle in Akiye-Hime's eyes and she shook her head, "No, you are a Kami. Perhaps a lower ranked one, I suppose, but still a Kami." Lips curling, she hummed a bit, "We wonder what the reactions of the Jorogumo to one of their own rising to such heights will be though... and look forward to the years to come."

While still disbelieving, Hinata only shook her head and said nothing else. For Eric and Samantha, though, they finally recognized where they were and bowed slightly to her, with the Submarine Tender speaking, "Your Majesty, my Onee-San and myself recognize this place. Is this not the Hachijo Royal Hotel?"

That brought a proud smile to the Ryuu's face, "It is indeed. When we came upon this place after the shadows from the sea rose, We fell in love. Hence, We have decided to claim it as our Palace above the waves and had Our subjects repair it." Her eyes became sorrowful, "Though few were the ones We managed to bring into the safety of Our Domain here. Still... We do have hopes and love Our Palace, away from the one of Our Esteemed Family while Our followers perform their mission." Looking around, she puffed herself up some, "We hope that our Ojii-San, Haha-ue, Oba-Sans, and Ojii-Sans enjoy it. Though if you wish, you can come and see Our Grounds."

Sharing a look, they just nodded and bowed while stating it would be their honor.

Of course, what they did not expect the beauty of the grounds, or the rebuilt town nearby. One where Yokai of all sorts, spirits, and even a few humans lived. People rescued by Akiye-Hime and her forces. According to her, her family outside of her was not able to do much due to restrictions, which her being half-human could get around.

Finally though, the hours had gone on for some time and she brought them back to their raft. Motioning them onto it, she smiled, "We have enjoyed our time here, and We hope that we can call each other friends at the least and perhaps see you visit sometime soon."

Getting confirmations, she made a motion with her fan and the waters rose up around the raft and the water surrounded them. When it fell apart, it revealed them a distance from the island with only Akiye-Hime before them and they bowed with Eric speaking to her, "Thank you, your Majesty for your hospitality."

What they did not expect was for giggles to escape her, "Do not worry, my friends. You may call me Akiye-Hime. For you have earned such through your deeds, may they live on in legend." And, I shall give you both two gifts and I shall also ask of a boon." Reaching into her Kimono, she removed something that she tossed to Eric, "A gift, to help you in your life. The second gift is to look to the Sun and it's servant, for an Eagle shall appear followed by those it guides and they shall take you home." Taking a deep breath, she then bowed to them, "As for the Boon, I ask that when you arrive home, you tell the authorities that Hachijyo-Jima is my domain as I am searching for my Chichi-ue, for he is still alive somewhere. If they wish to send a representative, they are welcome to do so. Especially if it is my Itoko."

With that, she bowed and turned into water before vanishing.

Several minutes passed while they looked out where the dragon had vanished. Turning to the others, Eric blinked, "Well... that happened." As they shook their heads in disbelief, he turned to the wrapped package and his jaw dropped at the giant pearl inside, roughly the size of his fist, the surface iridescent, "Uh..."

Eyes wide, they just shared a look at that.

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On the bridge of the JS Fubuki, who like her namesake was the first for a Destroyer in that she had railguns, laser CWIS, and a fusion reactor powering it all, was her Captain. If you had told him even three years ago he would be standing on the bridge of such a ship, he would have asked you if you had smoked something recently. But, now? He loved his ship and gave the bulkhead a little pat and could also swear there was a small tremble under his hand. Then, he turned his attention onto their current mission.

Upon hearing that there were illegal salvagers at a known wrecksite from Blood Week, him and his crew had headed there escorted by DesDiv6, but were beaten by the JS Kaga. Instead, due to what had been found on the wreck, they headed towards Torishima to investigate there. What they had found there stunned them all.

Survivors... from Blood Week had been living on the island for ten years it seemed.

After that, it turned from a law enforcement mission to a rescue mission. From there, they tracked whoever it was to Aogashima, just missing them apparently. They had gotten something on the edges of radar when it went into the area of restricted waters around Hachijyo-Jima. But by their own calculations, whoever it was would be just going around the island. And now, the sky was lightening with sunrise less than fifteen minutes away.

However, suddenly, the Captain was drawn out of his musings by a tug on his pants and looked down. As usual, there was nothing there, but he felt another tug and hummed some, "Yes, Fubuki-Chan? What is it?"

Feeling another tug, he allowed himself to be pulled across the bridge by the invisible spirit of his ship, much to the amusement of his crew. Now, granted, Fubuki-Chan had not done it to just them either, as she had also did so with other members of the crew, often when she needed them to notice something. And all of them treated her, though they could not see her, as a little sister or daughter figure. Leaving plates of cookies and other baked treats out for her or a bowl of ice cream. Vanilla being one of her favorites.

Chuckling as he came to one of the bridge windows, the Captain looked out it, "Hmm? Is there something that you need me to see?" There was a tapping sound on the window and he tilted his head some, 'I wonder what has her attention?' Looking out the window, he furrowed his eyebrows in confusion when he noticed the three legged crow that the crew had adopted as a mascot of sorts. It seemed to stare him in the eyes before lifting off and flying out to the side and circling back.

Once it did so after a few times, the Captain gave a nod and turned to one of his crew, "Lieutenant Nakamura?" When said Officer looked at him, the Captain nodded towards the crow, "Send out the UAV and have it follow Utsuho-Chan. Use the infrared... also, have the ship turn in the same direction while informing Tenryuu-San."

It said something that none of them questioned the Captain, simply performing their jobs to the upmost efficiency. Down on the deck, one of the ScanEagles was placed onto pneumatic launcher and moments later, it was in the air and flying behind the crow as it flew, the Fubuki turning behind it to also pursue. On the bridge, the Captain merely waited for some time before the UAV operated spoke up, "Sir? We're detecting multiple objects on radar. Seems like at least two are Capital Ship length, one is around Light Cruiser in size... and possibly one Submarine. Contact in five minutes."

Slowly striding across, the Captain stood behind the UAV operator and watched the onboard camera as the sea passed by. On the infrared camera, the crow, nicknamed "Utsuho-Chan" by the crew, blazed with heat, guiding the way. But they could also just pick up a heat source ahead. And then, on the high resolution optical camera, a speck appeared.

A speck that resolved into a raft being pulled by, apparently, shipgirls including one that looked like she had a spider for a lower half, a Tanuki, three Submarines, and with a Kitsune holding a young man on the raft. Behind the Captain, the XO ordered the helicopter in the air and then nodded.

For his part, the Captain also nodded and then looked around, "We found them... now let's bring them home."

Sharp nods came from the crew as they went to their duties as cheers and celebration would come when they had them onboard, and not sooner.

With Eric and the others, they looked up towards the odd object and the crow that cawed before the words of the dragon princess came back to them and they slowed down. And when minutes later, a sound made those of them who grew up in the modern day gasp and Samantha laughed with tears coming down her face, "That's a helicopter! Holy shit, that's a helicopter!"

Less than a minute later, the helicopter appeared and soon slowed above them as they looked up in amazement. It lowered some and one of the crewmembers gave a thumbs up before dropping out and landing in the water. With just a glance towards the Jorogumo, he swam over and grabbed hold of the raft, "Do any of you have need of assistance?"

The group shared looks and just laughed even as they cried.

And they were still laughing and crying when the Fubuki appeared over the horizon steaming towards them at full speed as the various Midget Submarines clustered around them, DesDiv6 joining them and the helicopter circling around them.

 

[darthcourt10]

Yellowhammer

A Matter Of Correspondence

Castle Moulbaix

3 June 2014

Ehren du Chasteler lowered the recently purchased dip pen from her latest letter that she had written and surveyed her calligraphy. Her eyebrows narrowed minutely as she surveyed her handiwork and compared it to the ideal that her mother had set.

A worthy attempt but not up to the standards that she set for herself.

She shook her head. Practice made perfect after all.

Mr. Ronald Weasley
Passel House

3 June 2014

Sir,

I am writing to inform you that I and my family will be visiting England from the 19th of June through the 7th of July. While I shall be visiting my cousins the first two weeks of the planned trip, my schedule is free the weekend of the 5th and 6th of July. I am hopeful to catch a Chudley Cannons match that weekend, along with my mother Colombe and sister Claire if you can make arrangements to purchase tickets.

I was thinking for ease of travel to and from the game, along with hopefully celebrating a Cannons victory that we could stay the weekend at your residence or a hotel nearby. Please respond so I can finalize the planned travel itinerary.

In conclusion, I hope that your studies of magic and naval engineering are bearing fruit for you. I include a copy of a treatise Mother picked up in China on the nature of enchanted items and machinery along with translation notes from the Chinese courtesy of my sister as we convalesced after Verdun. I am hopeful that I shall see you and Jean Bart soon.

Your friend,

Ehren du Chasteler

She nodded in satisfaction at her message, and then began to seal the letter with powder-blue sealing wax.

Finally addressing the letter and sticking it to the scroll that she had had magically copied thanks to Kasuyu, she headed up to the top of the tower to the owl roost.

Two pairs of gold eyes blinked at her as she entered, and she smiled before handing over a fresh hand-prepared rodent sausage to each owl. "Guten Abend, Uhu, Bubi."

A hoot answered her as she knelt to carefully observe the two eggs that Uhu was brooding in the nesting box that Miho had built for them. "I must ask your mate to deliver these letters for me, Uhu. The one with the scroll goes to Ronald Weasley at Passel House. The one without is my correspondence to Cousin Draco at Malfoy House. Until Bubi returns, I shall sit and keep you company and well fed."

Another hoot answered her as she pulled out the thick leather falconer's glove that Misaki and Chihiro had located for her in the attic. Her fingers rubbed the heraldry of Grandpapa du Chasteler stitched into the tooled heavy leather, and then extended her arm. Bubi flapped and leapt from his favorite perch to her arm and clucked as he nuzzled her ear with his beak.

She smiled at him gently and then tucked the scroll into the enchanted pouch that a post owl carried on the job, followed by the separate letter. "Are you ready for your visit to England?"

A bob of the head answered her as she opened the door to the roof with her free hand and then ducked outside.

Her heart beat faster as the wind blew her hair around her face as she placed it into her face. She braced herself with one hand on the stone rampart of the castle wall with a deep breath to center herself as Bubi half spread his wings, tickling her cheek with one of his primary feathers.

As her breath left her lungs then she flung her gauntleted hand up and out with a twist of the torso and legs to help Bubi take to his domain of the air. The sight of her owl taking to the air brought tears of joy to her eyes as he circled her once and then flew off into the setting sun.

She rested both hands on the stone of her home, watching him fly freely as her reminiscent smile lit up her face.

While it was true that the young girl who had left home on her own for the first time to England was no more than a memory held by her and her family, seared away in the experiences of England and then Verdun which has stamped themselves on her steel and her soul, she was also more than she had been then.

She was both closer to Claire in her understanding of how precious and beautiful her beloved innocent sister was and also further apart, as she had endured an ordeal that would have broken her sister. She understood Mother better as only a fellow combat veteran could be, and was closer to her big sister Ying, aunts, and had even forged a relationship with grandmother Norimune based on shared experiences.

Even...

Her thoughts strayed to her earliest memories of a blond-haired man with gray eyes clad in the field uniform of the Waffen-SS.

Of courage under fire, devotion to duty, true belief in what he had been taught. She knew that it was a terrible lie that had destroyed him, but he believed so brightly in it.

Of his fervent belief in the words that were engraved on her blade, on her heart, and her soul.

Words that she tried to redeem.

Meine Ehre Heisst Treue

Vati....

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

Khohlo ea Marena a Mararo

June 8th, 2014
Spoiler: Vati and Tochter

Helmar Wolff sipped from the beaten-gold goblet on the table in front of him and then narrowed his steel-gray eyes with blood-red flecks at Cortana. "Repeat that." The flickering torches lit up the private banquet hall and glittered on the silver highlights of his midnight black SS uniform.

The blond headed avatar of the legendary sword took a deep breath and responded in her flat soprano voice. "Your agents among the wizards' government in Africa have confirmed the newspaper reports of matters at Verdun. We have names for all the participants to go with their photograph along with information."

She placed her finger on a blowup freeze frame. "RCMMP Auror Wei Ying from Canada. A senior member of the Canadian magical community who is well-regarded in ICW circles."

The finger moved to the green-eyed and chestnut haired young woman who was talking with Wei Ying in the photograph. "MACUSA Auror Colonel Delilah de Breuil. A classmate of Auror Ying from Ilvermorny who was frozen by a temporal accident. Very well connected in the Magical American government as the daughter of Jezabel de Breuil, one of the founders of MIB."

Wolff steepled his fingers in front of his face and spoke with controlled fury in his voice. "Also someone who knew Her personally in 1942. The one next to her is the Ifrit that killed my Master. Very dangerous, both of them."

Cortana nodded. "Yes, Zamarad is the name of the Ifrit. The two with the carved chest are Sabah and Andraste. No other names were given to the Aurors who let them pass under Auror Ying's orders. The young man behind them is Nightbane, and the woman with him is Tsukiakari. The ICW had no other information on them."

Wolf nodded. "And the Asian women?" He asked thoughtfully as he idly licked a sharpened canine.

"Masamune-no-Tokunotakai and Muramasa-no-Norimune. The second is a Japanese sword spirit of that oversized blade you see with her. Similar to myself. The first is unknown, but research noted that Masamune was a legendary Japanese swordsmith, so it is highly likely that she is also a blade spirit. Norimune has a long record of actions serving as a magical mercenary and troublemaker." Cortana reported, tapping the photograph. "Tokunotakai may be an apprentice or ally of Norimune."

Wolff leaned forward, with a hungry gleam in his eyes. "And now we come to it. The du Chastelers."

"The girl is Ehren du Chasteler. No other information is given about her, although her physical resemblance and name suggests that she is the daughter of Her." Cortana's voice was flat as she pointed to Ehren's determined face.

Wolff inspected her face minutely his eyes gleaming. "Mein Tochter...." He closed his eyes then opened them. "A perfect specimen of Aryan maidenhood. Once I correct the woolly headed lies and falsehoods that She has no doubt filled my dear child's head with, she will be second only to us among the Herrenvolk as my loyal subordinate after I grant her the Gift of purging any tainted weak blood from her."

He pulled out a creased snapshot of Ehren buckling her Stahlhelm to her head from his uniform pocket, the shield of the SS clearly visible on it. "See even now the great truth of existence which Der Führer taught us calls to her."

Cortana nodded jerkily. "And for Colombe du Chasteler?" A folder marked with ICW seals and the Magical Government of Uganda and with Colombe du Chasteler's name inscribed at the top was placed in front of him.

Wolff's eyes glittered as he began to read the ICW's file on Colombe and his lips curled in savage glee. "Oh, I have such wonderful plans for Her..."

 

[darthcourt10]

Harry Leferts

Looking at the group of laughing and crying people, Tenryuu gave a small smile. She waited until they had calmed down and turned to her, an easy grin on her face, "Yo! I'm the Light Cruiser, Tenryuu, first of the Tenryuu Class..." Glancing at some of them, she gave a small nod, "But I also go by the name of Matsuda Ryoko." Tenryuu then pointed at her biological daughters, "These are my daughters, Ami and Aki, better known as the Akatsuki class Destroyers Inazuma and Ikazuchi. And my other daughters, Akatsuki and Verniy as well as my Nee-San, Tatsuta, the other Light Cruiser." Placing her hands on her hips, she smirked, "We're here to bring you home."

Wide eyed, Samantha gestured at herself, Sora, Yumiko, and Hinata, "W-wait, some of those were normal names. Does... does that mean that you're like us?"

Head tilted to the side, Inazuma blinked, "Um, if you mean if we were just ordinary girls before becoming shipgirls, than Hai."

Utterly lost, the Jorogumo frowned, "Ship... girls?"

Just nodding, Tenryuu smiled, "That's what they call us. I mean..." Scratching under her eyepatch, she hummed, "The official title is Kantai Musume, Fleet Daughters. Though most just shortened it to Kanmusu. Shipgirls is the basic English translation and so... became the most common, of course."

Chuckling, Eric gave a nod, "Our Mom would agree since she was an English teacher."

Samantha than took over and cleared her throat, "Well... I'm Baker Samantha, I-354 Submarine Tender." Ignoring the raised eyebrow and figuring it was due to what she was, she continued, "That is my brother, Baker Eric, Yamada Yumiko or the Oiler Karasaki, beside me is Hanai Hinata or the Food Ship Hōyo. And on the raft with my brother is Tsukuda Sora-"

Now looking away, the Kitsune took a deep breath, "Just... call me Sora-San or Tsukuda-San, please."

Eyebrow raised at that and how those there did not comment, Tenryuu merely nodded and continued to listen and write about the names being given to her. Finally though, Samantha was done with it, only for Ikazuchi to speak up, "Wait, Baker? And your Kaa-San was an English teacher?" At the confused nod from the two siblings, though it looked like they had begun to realize what was about to happen, the Destroyer frowned, "Is her name Ellen?"

That made both Eric and Samantha turn to her and gasp with the male of the two nodding, "Ellen?! That's our Mom's name!"

With a swallow, the Submarine had a look of hope in her eyes, "Our Mom... she's alive?"

Frowning a little, Tenryuu hummed and nodded as she noted the blonde hair that both had, "Hai, she's alive. And now that I think about it, she did mention that she lost two kids during Blood Week with your names... took a toll on her." When Akatsuki asked when that was, she shrugged, "One time when both of us went out drinking alongside Takao, Maya, and Nagato as well as Kongou. Got her a little depressed... until Kongou tried talking to her in English, but was drunk so it was more Engrish. Which Ellen kept trying to fix until she got so frustrated she said that she was going to throw a bunch of tea into a harbour. And then Kongou got angry and started to talk like one of those Whatchamacallits... Chavs. Went downhill from there."

Both Eric and Samantha facepalmed at that. Meanwhile, Sora only nodded with a small smile, "Sounds like Ellen-Oba-San." Turning towards Inazuma, she frowned, "How do you know her?"

Softly smiling, Inazuma giggled, "Baker-Sensei works at the local school and teaches English. She also gives classes for us shipgirls as well."

Relieved, the two siblings just nodded.

However, Hinata had a frown on her face, "Um, Tenryuu-San? Can... I ask you question?" Getting a motion to continue, she did so, "You mentioned something called 'Blood Week?' What did you mean by that?"

Grimacing, the Light Cruiser let a hiss escape before sighing, "Well, it has to do with what else was going on the day that I assume that you were stranded and we'll give you a full debrief on the Fubuki. But to clear some things up... things went to shit for some time."

That only got her nods and the group turned to the closing Destroyer. Not long found most of the group on the stern of the vessel with the only one left in the water being Hinata. It went without saying that DesDiv6 was confused as the Jorogumo picked up the now empty raft and placed it onto her back as her "Fairies", as they had been explained the little beings were called, secured it. Docking her head to the side, Akatsuki frowned, "Hinata-San? Why are you doing that?"

With a small smile on her face, the Yokai smiled a bit bashfully, "It carried us this far. And... it does not seem right to just leave it out here to drift and be smashed apart."

Verniy considered this for a few moments, and then nodded, "Da, that would not be Khorosho." She then smiled, "Need some help?"

Head tilted to the side, Hinata considered that question before shaking her head, "No, that's fine. They have it secure, so give me just a moment." To the confusion of those watching, she crouched. Moments later, their confusion became surprise as she leapt upwards and into the deck, easily absorbing the recoil as she landed. With a nod, she smiled, "And there we go."

One of the sailors backed up and blinked which caused Hinata to cringe. But then, Eric laughed and shook his head, "Okay, that was pretty awesome, Hinata-Chan."

Lightly blushing, the Jorogumo smiled just the same as others chimed in, "Thank you, Eric-Kun." Walking over, she looked over her shoulder to where the raft was secured, "Um... where do you want me to set this down?"

Right then, before anyone else could speak up, another voice did, "Actually, you can set it down in the hanger in one of the out of the way areas." The ship's Captain nodded towards one of the other sailors, "They'll take care of it considering that it deserves as much honour as we can give it for its journey."

Almost immediately, all the new shipgirls came to attention at seeing his uniform and saluted, "Sir!"

Simply smiling, the Captain returned it, "From what I hear, it should be I who is saluting you." Bowing a little, he chuckled, "I am Captain Hashimoto, Commanding Officer of the Fubuki Class Destroyer, Fubuki herself. Welcome aboard, all of you."

They all bowed some at that before straightening, "Thank you."

Gesturing for them to follow once introductions were done, he pointed out where they could set the raft down. Once they did so, Hashimoto gave them a once over before frowning at Hinata. For a moment, she thought it was because of what she was but then, the Captain sighed, "I deeply apologize, Hanai-San, but the ship's corridors were designed for those who were not much wider than a human. Please accept my apologies for the problem."

Deeply blushing, Hinata waved her hands around, "There's no need for that! Um, give me just a moment..." More then one set of eyes widened as her thorax and spider abdomen shrunk and seemed to merge with the rest of her body, the spider legs retreating into it. At the same time, her pedipalps lengthened slightly and the exoskeleton on them melted into smooth, human skin as they became normal legs.

Very long legs, some of the sailors noted.

Once she was done, the transformed Jorogumo straightened put her skirt and took a deep breath before smiling, "There we go. I haven't used this form since, well, um... you know."

His lips twitching, Hashimoto gave her a slight nod, "Of course. Now, if you'll follow me, I'll take you to the meeting room for a briefing and to explain some things about the world at large." He gave a look to one of the younger sailors there, "If you wish for something to eat, just ask. It is likely to take all the time we have as we get back to Yokosuka to handle it."

Yumiko frowned a little and looked around, "Not quite sure, but... some food would be nice."

The lone Jorogumo then spoke up, "As long as it does not have caffeine in it, I'm fine." At the odd looks, she scratched her cheek with an embarrassed expression, "Caffeine is kind of like alcohol is to normal people for us Jorogumo. So if we drink something like strong coffee, we actually get drunk."

Everyone blinked at that with Akatsuki frowning as she crossed her arms over her chest and tilted her head to the side, "Huh, that is a shame. Because coffee is an adult drink for very elephant ladies."

Raising an finger with a tired expression, Ikazuchi sighed, "The word is elegant, not elephant."

Akatsuki just gave her a look, "That was what I said, elephant."

Bemused at the argument, the recently rescued teens and younger shipgirls shook their heads. Eric then glanced at his girlfriend and turned back to the Captain, "Sir? If possible I would request for toothbrushes, toothpaste, and mouthwash."

While a little confused at the request, or why the larger Kitsune was blushing badly and the other girls rescued were snickering, the Captain gave a small nod, "Of course."

There was a part of him that did wonder about that, but he put it aside for the bigger question. Mainly, what had happened to them and to confirm their identities, though already their pictures were being sent through the database back in Yokosuka to match them with pictures of them when younger. And deep within the Fubuki's engine room, one of the technicians there worked at a console before looking towards her beating heart, which was contained with several super powerful magnets. Inside the field, charged atoms fell inwards towards the center of the space at a high rate of speed, faster and faster until they collided, producing energy.

And the small, marble sized orb of plasma, an artificial star in all but name, grew until it was the size of an small orange, giving off heat and light that further powered the Destroyer as she began to go at her top speed back to Yokosuka.

 

[darthcourt10]

Harry Leferts

An alarm began to beep in the darkened room only for a slender, female hand to reach out from under the covers and slap around for it. Finally, said hand hit the alarm and silenced it, with the owner of said hand being revealed to be Ellen Baker as she sat up and stretched, "Urgh..." Feeling her shoulder pop nicely, she sighed, before a male hand grasped her and pulled her back down, "Ken!"

Her husband just mumbled to her as he kissed her neck and wrapped his arms and legs around her body, "Lets just ignore that for a few more hours... no work or anything."

More amused than anything else, Ellen whacked him, "Come on, Kenny. We both have work as much as we wish otherwise." Prying his hand from her, she began to get up, only to be dragged back down, "Oof!"

Smirking, her husband pulled her close, "Work can wait."

Only rolling her eyes, Ellen sighed, "Really? We're doing this?" Getting a mumble, she smirked some, "And yet, here I was the more active of the two of us last night."

Unable to help himself, Ken chuckled, "Very true, Ellen-Chan." His smirk widened as she shuddered at the feel of his rough hand brushing against her smooth skin under her shirt, "Mmm... but you tired me out."

Eyebrow raised even as she felt her cheeks flush, his American wife gave him a sigh, "Obviously not enough." Kissing him, Ellen pulled back, "But we still have work and also..." Her gaze became hooded, "I suppose that this means that you don't want to shower together, hmm~"

Laughter escaped from her as Ken perked up at that.

Forty minutes later found him cooking breakfast as Ellen was watching the previous night's game on a tablet. Ken had to smile at the big grin on her face and the sparkles in her eyes as she watched the game. His amusement only grew as she pumped her fist a few moments later, "Go Sox, go!" Seeing a homerun, she jumped, "YES!" Almost immediately after her outburst, she flinched, "Er..."

Pausing himself, her Japanese husband listened to see if anyone else had been awakened. At hearing nothing, he turned and gave his sheepish wife a look, "Ellen-Chan..."

Weakly chuckling, Ellen looked away from him as she paused the video and took a sip of coffee, "Um... opps?"

Just shaking his head due to long since being used with his wife being a hardcore fan of the Red Sox, Ken simply shook his head and chuckled, embarrassing her more and getting a slap to the shoulder from her. Soon enough, the two finished their breakfast and made their lunches before spending what little time they had left with each other. It was the quiet moments that they had that they enjoyed before the busy day swept them away. Just the two of them drinking coffee and making small talk.

Finally, they drained the last of their coffee and looked at the time. With a sigh, Ken gave Ellen a soft smile, "I'll try to get home at a decent time, Ellen-Chan... or at all. But with the work we're doing at MLIT..."

Huffing a bit, Ellen just frowned, "I really wish that you could tell me what this big project that they've got you working on is." Upon seeing him open his mouth, she held up her hand with a small smile, "I teach at a school where there is a large number of students, Ken. Trust me, I know a little about classified things." Briefly, she remembered that one elementary student who popped ears and a tail who she saw. Something that lead to a very long chat from personnel on the base and certain secrets being told to her, though she did not mind nor did the other teachers. She brushed those memories away, "There's things that I know that I wish that I could reveal to you, Ken."

Gently cupping her face, her husband nodded, "I know. And trust me, when the day comes? I'll tell you everything. But what I'm helping to work on will change a lot of lives, Ellen-Chan. And for the better." The memory of some of the pictures of the "Youkai Reserves" went through his mind along with the anger at them existing before he shoved them into the back of his head, "A lot of lives."

Quickly washing and rinsing their mugs before placing them into the dish rack to dry, Ellen sighed, "Well... time to head to work. But first." Turning, she began to walk to the second bedroom of their two bedroom apartment, "We need to say goodbye to the kids for the day."

Behind her, Ken gave a nod and followed her as she reached the door and opened it. Inside was a child's bedroom that had two beds in it, one on either side of the door. Flicking on the light revealed that the room was basically split in two. On one wall was a number of posters for movies and idols, and on the other some boy band that was several years old. Each bed was also different with one having blue sheets and the moon, while the other was pink with flowers on the comforter along with stuffed animals...

However, no one was sleeping in the made beds, a fact that made the couple's hearts ache from an old pain.

Licking her suddenly dry lips even as she felt her eyes tear up, Ellen looked towards a framed photograph, "Good morning, Eric, Samantha. M-Mom and Dad are heading out to work now for the day. We'll be back by evening, myself at least. And then I..." A tear spilled down her cheeks as she forced herself to smile, though her lips were trembling, "T-then I'll tell both of you how my day has been, hmm? A-a-and Dad will do the same when he gets home too. We'll spend time with you both just like we always do okay?"

Slowly nodding, Ken gave a weak smile of his own as he supported his wife, "N-now, both of you be good, okay? Eric? Take care of your sister while we're at work. And Samantha? Take care of your brother, you know that he needs someone to have his back."

A small sob escaped from Ellen as she nodded, "T-though you'll have he-help from Sora with that, Sam. She'll help take care of your brother along with y-your Auntie Miho and Uncle Takuma since her parents would n-not be far." By this point, the tears were falling freely both Ellen's and Ken's eyes at the memory of their friends who also went missing along with their daughter. Trembling, the American walked up and pressed two fingers to her lips before touching the photograph of her son. Something she repeated with her daughter's, "A-a... and remember. Mommy and Daddy love you so very much and are so proud..." Swallowing last the lump in her throat, she continued, "Please continue to watch over us and k-know that we both miss you so very, very much..."

Pulling his wife into his arms gently, her husband nodded, "As your Mother said, we miss you every day. Please... just keep smiling down on us. And we hope that you have a good day."

With that, he reached over with trembling fingers and turned out the light before they backed out of the room and closed the door. Before it was fully closed, he paused and looked at the light which shone on the picture of his children as his wife sobbed into her chest. And he could feel his heart breaking all over again before nodding and closing the door fully.

Face still buried in his chest as hot tears ran down her cheeks, Ellen sobbed, "I miss them... I miss my babies..."

Gently stroking her hair, Ken kissed the top of her head before laying his head against hers, "So do I, Ellen-Chan... every day I draw breath. But they are in a better place, a happier one. And they watch over us every day." With a sniffle, but not saying anything, Ellen nodded before he guided her to the sink, "Now let's wash those tears away..."

Once that was done, the two left the apartment to go to their jobs, though not before saying goodbye once more.

They were not the only ones as in one Reserve, two Kitsune looked down at a picture from a wallet of a young female Kitsune smiling up at them as tears dripped down their cheeks. Both of them had known what would happen if they took their two No-Maj friends through the Floo Network. But they had done it anyways to save them. All they could now was that the two were safe, and that their missing children were happy wherever they were. Gently, the male of the two took his sobbing wife into his arms and nuzzled her.

In Tokyo, a female Tanuki police officer along with her husband who was also a Tanuki, paused before the small shrine. In it was the picture of a young, female Tanuki smiling up at the camera. Both of them whispered to the picture that they loved her and hoped she had a pleasant day before bowing to it, eyes wet and pain in their hearts. And when they got to work, they sat down at their desks which had a framed photograph of the same little girl.

And, in Yokohama within a loft above a small restaurant, an adult Jorogumo woke from slumber as her husband also joined the world of the living. Sharing a soft kiss, the two quietly left their bedroom before showering and changing, literally in the case of the Yokai. Then, they began the process of opening their restaurant. Though not before sadly smiling at a photograph of a young girl who was shyly smiling in it. Beneath the framed picture was a small plaque. Gently, they touched their fingers to it and softly whispered some words before they nodded and went about the process of opening up their business and getting ready as the Sun rose.

Meanwhile, as the morning wore on, various people in the JMSDF were at work confirming something amazing and a fusion powered Destroyer came ever closer to Yokosuka...

 

[darthcourt10]

Harry Leferts

Standing at the front of her classroom, Ellen Baker walked back and forth with an open book in front of her. But instead of looking at it, she was instead looking at her class as she spoke.

"...
I shall be telling this with a sigh
Somewhere ages and ages hence:
Two roads diverged in a wood, and I—
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference."

With a small smile, she closed her book and nodded to the class made up of mostly Japanese students who were listening or taking notes, "As I mentioned, that was the poem by the poet Frost Robert called 'The Road Not Taken'. It is one of his more popular poems and many see it as being just about following your own path, not following others'. But there is more to it than that as a matter of fact."

One of her students raised his hand and she nodded to him, "What do you mean, Baker-Sensei?"

For a few moments, Ellen hummed before answering, "The poet himself stated that it was a 'You have to be careful of that one; it is a tricky poem-a very tricky one' and he is right. Look at the difference in the last lines between what the narrator sees as the present, and him looking back on it. That sigh, for instance? Is it a sigh of regret for what he did? Or is it one of satisfaction with following the path less travelled by? Is the Narrator considering, at the end, what could have happened if he chose the other path, or is he happy that he did not? He could well be of the sort that looks back on every decision made wistful for what could have been."

Another one of her students raised their hand, this time a female, "So the poem can itself have different meanings depending on how the person reading it thinks?"

Just smiling, Ellen nodded, "Exactly, which is one of the reasons why it is so popular. In a way, it perfectly encapsulates life. Many times, one will come upon a crossroads and be given a choice between different paths, much like the Narrator had. When you do, what path will you chose? Will you, when looking back, be able to sigh with satisfaction? With sadness? Perhaps wondering what would have happened if, instead, you had taken the other path? A path... less travelled by?"

The rest of the lesson passed and soon enough, it was over and the class rose and bowed to her with her bowing back. A smile on her face, she bid them good day after assigning homework and left the room with the chatter of students behind her. Once the door was closed, she leaned against the wall with her eyes closed and a happy smile on her lips. Eventually though, she pushed off the wall and began to walk towards her next class as she mused on the differences between her experiences as a student back in the United States and here in Japan as an English teacher. Back in the US, it would be the students walking to different classes, but in Japan, they stayed pretty much in the same classroom and the teachers switched between them for lessons.

Partway to her next class though, one of the older teachers met up with her and began walking alongside her, a kindly smile on his face, "Have a good class, Baker-San?"

Lightly giggling, Ellen nodded as she looked over at the math teacher, "Hai, Takahata-Senpai. We were covering some of Frost Robert's poems in class today, such as 'The Road Less Travelled By'. Quite a few of the students were interested in it."

Chuckling, Takahata shook his head, "Ah, yes, I remember that poem. Definitely an interesting one, and thought-provoking as well, especially how you teach it." That got a light blush on his face before he gave her a sly look, "So, how many confessions and love notes this month?"

Much to his amusement, the American blushed heavily, "Thankfully they've toned it down." Somewhat bemused, she shook her head, "I still do not understand why I get at least one student a month confessing to me. I'm married after all."

Eyebrow raised, Takahata gave her a once over. She was wearing her usual white blouse with a blue jacket over it and brown skirt. Despite the fact that she was nearly thirty eight, the American looked at least a decade younger and even he would admit she was a beauty, 'And people comment on how Asian women don't seem to age until they're well old...' He sighed a little as he remembered that despite being American, the cheerful woman was actually well versed in Japanese culture to the point that one might think she was raised in Japan, which only improved her attractiveness, 'Ah, her husband is truly blessed by the Kami to have such a wife...' Lips twitching at the confused look she gave him at the sigh, he chuckled, "Quite the mystery."

Knowing that he was teasing her a bit, Ellen pouted which only made the older teacher chuckle more.

It was then that they noticed that the Principal came walking up to them and, upon seeing her, smiled, "Ah, Baker-Kun, I'm glad that I caught you before you reached your next class."

A little confused, Ellen frowned, "Uegi-San? Is something wrong?"

However, the fact that the Principal frowned in thought made her slightly worried, "I'm afraid that I am unsure about that, Baker-Kun. There's some representatives from the base in the Office and they asked to see you." He frowned a little deeper, "They also asked that I place a substitute for the rest of the day in your place as there is an urgent matter that needs your attention."

While the three of them were well used to the military needing things from the school due to being just on the border of the base and handling most of the students from there, this was... odd. For some reason, Ellen felt her guts twist in concern, but nodded and bowed, "Of course. May I pick up my things? I'll handle any assignments at home if possible and, if not, I shall inform you, Uegi-San."

Just nodding, the Principal smiled and bowed back, "Of course, of course."

Ellen left and watching her, Takahata chuckled, "Some students will be disappointed at not seeing Baker-San later."

Chortling, Principal Uegi shook his head, "I think not, but then who could blame them? She is the best English teacher that I have had the honour to work with." Stroking his small beard, he hummed and sighed wistfully, "What I would not give to be a young man with her as my Sensei..."

That got Takahata to shoot him a look before they shared a smile and soon went their separate ways.

Not long afterwards, Ellen entered the main office and blinked as she found Fubuki there with one of the Lieutenants for the JMSDF. Upon seeing her, the Destroyer's face lit up before she bowed, "Baker-Sensei."

Despite being confused at what was going on, the English teacher bowed back, "Fubuki-San." After introductions with the Lieutenant, who kept glancing at her, Ellen frowned, "Is something wrong, Fubuki-San? Nothing wrong with your children, I hope?"

Blushing at what the other woman had said, and obliquely hinted at, Fubuki shook her head, "No, they're doing well. And I have some hopes that some of them might be going to school in a year or two. They're both nervous and excited at the thought."

Wistful, Ellen nodded some, "Most children are, I remember Samantha and Eric..." Blinking away some tears at the bittersweet memories, she shook her head, "Anyways, you wished to see me?"

In return, the Destroyer motioned to a small meeting room off to the side, "Let's get some privacy first." Once inside, Fubuki closed the door and turned towards the teacher who sat down after a gesture, "Baker-Sensei... Ellen-San, something has come up of rather big importance regarding you."

Eyebrow raised at the change in both names and honorifics, Ellen blinked, "Something has come up?"

Chewing her lip, Fubuki gave a small nod, "It is in regards to your children, they've been found-" A sob cut her off as the teacher began to cry, "Ellen-San?"

Through feeling constricted, the American shook her head, "I-I'm sorry, Fubuki-San. I... I understand now why you called me here." Shaking with emotion, she gave her a sad smile, though tears were already running down her cheeks, "My husband and I have known that they were dead for some time, so thank you for informing me that you have recovered t-their... their re-remains..." Sobs broke free from her as she began to break down, "M-my babies are finally home and I-I can bury them properly..."

Quickly, Fubuki made her way around the table and placed her hand on the older woman's shoulder, "Ellen-San, that's the thing. They're not dead."

Stunned, Ellen looked up at the erstwhile shipgirl's face, "They're... not?" Getting a shake of the head, she felt her heart swell, "They're alive?!"

With a small smile, the Destroyer nodded, "Hai, they're alive and on my daughter... on the JS Fubuki right now coming to Yokosuka after being rescued from a raft that they had made. They've been on one of the islands, Torishima, for all these years."

Mouth working, Ellen boggled a bit before gripping Fubuki tightly, new tears springing to her eyes, "They're... my babies are alive? And... and coming here?"

Humming, Fubuki smiled, "Hai. Their fingerprints check out." Reaching into her clothes, she pulled out two pictures that she placed on the table, "We had these taken and sent for you to see them."

Trembling hands reached out and took the two photographs with the teacher gasping as she saw the two familiar, though older, faces looking back at her. Eric's was obviously of a young man of around twenty, heavily tanned and with little fat in his face. There was some light scarring here and there on his face, but nothing big. And his hair was obviously in need of a hair cut, but...

It was him, her son.

Bringing her hand up to her mouth, Ellen cried out with tears now spilling down her cheeks. With shaking hands, she took the other picture and more sobs broke free, even as Fubuki held her. In the picture, a face not unlike her own though with more Japanese features looked back. Unlike her brother, her skin complexion was still paler than average, but she was obviously a beautiful teenage girl. It was obviously her daughter, but she looked back at Fubuki, "H-how is she so young though? S-she's E-Eric's twin sister...? So she should be the same age."

Gently rubbing the other woman's back, Fubuki took a deep breath, "Samantha-San, as it turns out, was a Natural Born and awoken during the attack that sank their ship with her being a Submarine. As did Sora-San, though things went wrong there." Already knowing the silent question in the teacher's eyes, the Destroyer pressed her lips together thinly, "She stayed with them because she was unsure what was happening back in Japan, and did not want to leave either her injured brother or friend behind to what could be their deaths."

Eyes closing, the teacher grabbed hold of the Destroyer and simply cried, "I'm so proud of her... b-but how injured...?"

Sighing, Fubuki held her gently, "I'm afraid to say that Eric lost his right arm in the original attack. Hence, he was unable to hold onto her effectively and it was only recently that they were able to make a run for it back to the mainland with another survivor, some shipgirls that were Midget Submarines that spontaneously summoned themselves by them, and finding another survivor hiding in a grounded shipwreck the next island over. We managed to find them between Hachijyo-Jima and Mikura-Jima. In fact, they had almost reached the other island."

Ellen chuckled through her happy tears as she held onto the shipgirl, "I don't care, F-Fubuki-San. My son and daughter a-are alive. Tha-that is all that ma-matters in the end." Pulling back, she took the Kleenix offered to her by the Lieutenant and wiped at her eyes before blowing her nose as she tried to bring herself back together. Though she was still crying, "H-have you talked with my husband? Ken?"

With a small smile, the shipgirl nodded, "Hai, we have. He's being picked up from work as we speak and the other parents are also being informed. Though..." Fubuki frowned a little, "We have not been able to find Sora-San's parents and they are listed as missing, presumed dead."

Only nodding, Ellen sniffled a bit, "H-hai. I remember the attack on Aogashima when the Abyssals showed up with a Battleship. Shells fell all around us and the two of them looked at each other before grabbing Ken's and my hands. They started dragging us to a building that they stated would be safe and... and I remember flames swirling around us... " Furrowing her eyebrows, she frowned, "And... next thing I remember is that Ken and I woke up in one of the field hospitals just outside of Tokyo. They stated they found us walking around in a daze, though I don't remember that." With a deep breath, the teacher looked up the now deeply frowning Destroyer, "We never could figure out how we got from Aogashima to Tokyo within apparently hours, but we did."

Chewing her lip, Fubuki looked down at her, "Ellen-San, you know about Yokai and such, right?"

Briefly looking at the Lieutenant who blinked some, the American nodded, "I do, after all I was let in due to having seen one of the elementary students drop his disguise for a few moments by accident. But what does that-" Let it not be said that Ellen Baker was not intelligent as she connected what she had been told in that meeting with what had happened with her. Her voice was one of horror and dismay, "I... I was obliviated, wasn't I?"

Now grimacing, Fubuki gave a small nod, "Hai, it seems so. And Sora-San is a Kitsune so..."

Hands clutching her head, Ellen felt like screaming in both grief and pure rage, "THOSE FUCKING BASTARDS! I'M GOING TO GET MY BASEBALL BAT AND CLOBBER THE FUCKING SHIT OUT OF THEIR HEADS THAT THEY CALL BRAINS!" What followed was a number of curse words and the like which made even the two Naval personnel, who was well used to such things, widen their eyes. The human Officer even took a step back at how descriptive the teacher got in what she wanted to do to those who arrested her friends. Descriptiveness that the shipgirl ascribed to her being an English teacher. Finally, Ellen wiped at her eyes and turned towards Fubuki, "They shoved them into one of those Reserves, didn't they?"

Lips pressed thinly, the Destroyer sighed, "I would think so, yes. Most likely they got you off the island via Floo. Which means that we'll be making a few contacts with people on the other side of things..." She chewed her lip some, "Though that does beg the question of what to do with Sora-"

Ellen cut her off with a shake of her head, "It's in their wills that were opened after the Courts declared them dead two years after Blood Week. If anything was to happen to them, my husband and I would be Sora's guardian... not that she needs such at her age, I suppose. We did much the same for Eric and Samantha." Placing her head in her hands, she sighed, "They also didn't have family, so they left everything to us and it's all in storage right now."

Only nodding, Fubuki gave her a slight smile, "I see."

They waited until the American managed to fully pull herself back together after the revelations that had shaken her world. But then, Ellen had gotten up and left with them though she paused as the Principal looked towards the two JMSDF personnel and then back at her, "Baker-Kun? Is everything fine? We, uh, heard shouting..."

Despite herself, Ellen gave him a smile, though watery, "Hai, I just got some good and bad news..." Taking a deep breath, she let it out, "But the good news is... they found my children and the child of a friend, alive."

Eyes widening, the Principal stared at her for a moments before a wide smile crossed his face, "That is very good news." Pausing, he gave her a shake of the head, "Do not worry if you need to take a few days off, Baker-Kun, we can cover for you here."

That just got him a nod and a bow from the teacher and soon they were on their way towards Yokosuka Naval Base though Ellen wondered about her husband... who clued in regarding their friends much like she had and nearly busted his knuckles slamming his fist into the table.

At roughly the same time, Kashima with another Officer was in a small resturant in Yokohama with two parents staring at a picture of a face, though older now, that they never thought they would see again. It did not take them long to close up the resturant before they headed towards a nearby school to pick up someone. And two Tanuki were at the same time being flown towards Yokosuka on military helicopters as well...

 

[darthcourt10]

Harry Leferts

AN: As a bit of an aside... I was listening to this song when writing the last part:
It fits it quite well considering the subject matter.
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Looking out the window from the meeting room, Ellen gently blew on her cup of coffee while keeping a watch on the harbour. Sometime... any time now, the ship with her children were going to come into view. While, yes, the pain in her heart had lessened some, it was still there. And she knew, somehow, that it would not vanish until she could hold her babies in her arms once more. Hold them, and tell them how much she, their mother, loved them and had missed them all these years. Part of her wondered what had happened to them, how they had changed...

And that hurt, that for all these years she was not there when they had needed her the most.

One of her hands clenched tightly and shook before she put it down. Inside her, emotions warred with each other and not just those brought up by what had happened to her children. Some, quite a bit, was due to the realization of what had happened to her friends. Closing her eyes, Ellen leaned her forehead against the cool glass of the window pane. She could remember meeting the two of them when she had first come to Japan with her husband.

Ellen, at the time, had been a bit unsure of things. She had wanted to be a teacher, an English teacher with her having just finished her degrees, a Major in both English and Teaching. However, some schools had told her that she was overqualified for a job there. It had not been until her husband, who had gotten his majors in engineering and infrastructure work, as well as a minor in mechanics, mentioned that Japan was always looking for qualified English teachers that she had considered going there.

Shortly after their children were old enough, Ellen had accompanied her husband back to Japan on short trips to see the country that gave birth to him. At first, his extended family had not been too fond of the "Gaijin" despite what her Father and Mother-in-Law did or said. But if there was one thing that she was not afraid of, it was hard work. She polished what Japanese she had learned from Ken up until she was nearly as good as a native speaker. At the same time, she had taken every lesson about Japanese culture that she was taught to heart.

It had paid off when Ken's grandmother, who had lost her husband to Americans, greeted her warmly and called her "Granddaughter" on one trip. She had also stated that despite being born in America, she might as well be Japanese, though a bit perky. Ellen... was not afraid to say that she had cried at that moment due to finally being accepted.

Thus, when he suggested getting a job in Japan to teach English, she had accepted it full heartedly.

Granted, she was still a bit nervous internally as this was not going to be a short trip, but... she was happy. Her brother also came along because he wanted to learn Asian cuisine and eventually opened a small resturant before Blood Week with his Chinese-Japanese wife that served Chinese cuisine. Both of them had since gone back to the United States and reopened in Boston, and she was thankful that they were safe.

As for her, almost as soon as she had applied for a job at the school just outside of Yokosuka Naval Base, she had gotten it. The Principal had nearly blurred so fast with accepting someone of her qualifications and who also knew enough to fit in with the local culture. It was there that she met Sora's mother. Despite that, it had taken her time to fit in with the school staff. Her first real friend though was the Phys-Ed teacher, Miho Tsukuda. Almost from the very start, the two had clicked after talking about baseball. Miho wanting to know more about American teams and her about Japanese ones.

Much to the amusement of their husbands, they were just as fanatical about their favorite teams as the others. Miho being mad about the Hanshin Tigers and her with the Boston Red Sox. Granted, both women had glared at Ken when he commented that perhaps it was because both teams were cursed that they got along so well...

He had slept on the couch for a week because of that.

Once, Ellen had managed to convince her friend to go to a Red Sox game, which she had brought the whole family too. At the time, she had not been sure where her friend had gotten the money, but now she had an idea. Still, they had fun in Boston and, when they came back to Japan, Ellen had taken her family to a Hanshin Tiger game. Which had been a thing that cemented their friendship and often the two would go to baseball games together with both families growing very close.

Having noticed the mutual crushes their children had, Ellen had asked if there would be an issue. Miho had snorted and shaken her head before stating she had no problem with their children getting together. Though she expected it would be years before they needed to discuss joining their families.

Now looking back, Ellen could see that many times, Miho and her husband had looked like they wished to tell her and Ken something. A secret of some sort that they were keeping, but never could keep the nerve. Once, when the two of them were cuddled up one night talking, Ken had stated that he thought that, perhaps, the two might have connections to a Yakuza family, but not be involved. Something that was not impossible with how much money they seemed to have at times. Upon them being declared dead though, along with the will was a sealed envelope that Ellen was supposed to open due to being the declared guardian of Sora in their will.

She had never gotten the courage to open the envelope to see what was written, including the fact that their will hinted that it contained the secret that they held for so long as she felt it was not right for her to know.

With a sigh, Ellen came out of her thoughts and looked out towards the harbour, "Don't worry, Miho... I'll make sure that your daughter is well taken care of now. I failed you once, I won't do so again..." Lips twitching, she giggled a bit, "And who knows? Maybe I'll get some grandkids with fluffy tails out of it."

That thought made her smile and she sipped her coffee at the image in her head. Suddenly, the door opened and there was Ken, his own eyes red from some crying. Upon seeing her, he smiled, "Ellen-Chan..."

Quickly setting the coffee down, Ellen ran across the room and practically jumped him as she hugged him. It was only him grabbing the doorframe that stopped them from tumbling back as she buried her face in his chest while he wrapped his arms around her, "Ken... they're alive..." Looking up into his face, tears brimmed in her eyes, happy ones, "Our babies are alive and... and will b-be home soon."

Brushing her hair to the side, he had his own tears before gently kissing her, "Hai... our son and daughter are finally coming home, Ellen-Chan. And we'll be there to greet them." Swallowing thickly, he nodded, "We'll both be there and hold them close and tell them how much we love them and missed them."

Not saying anything, Ellen nodded against his chest before sighing as she felt a bit of tiredness in her limbs as everything began to catch up to her. But she did not, and would not, allow for exhaustion, physical or emotional, to take her until she had her children in her arms. Moments later, an unsure voice spoke up, "Um... hello?"

Looking up, the English teacher noted a woman who looked to be in her early thirties beside a similarly aged man. Said man was slightly heavyset, but not too much and Ellen suspected that he was a cook of some kind due to that look being around him thanks to experience with her own brother. Pulling away from her husband, she smiled and bowed as did he, "Hello, I'm Baker Ellen and this is my husband..."

Her husband smiled a bit, "Hagihara Kensuke, but my friends call me Ken..." Tone turning dry, he smirked at his wife, "Except sometimes my wife here calls me Kenny."

Cheeks puffing out, Ellen gave him a look that made him laugh. But, she noted the two new adults relaxed some. The man chuckled a little and shook her husband's hand, "I'm Hanai Hikaru and this is my wife, Yui." Heading mumbles, he shifted a little to reveal a younger girl of about seven who was holding a five year old boy's hand, "And this is our daughter, Tsukiko and our son, Natsuo."

A small smile on her face, Ellen crouched down, "Hey there." When they gave a wave, she chuckled and stood back up before looking at the two adults, "You have very lovely children, Hanai-San."

Getting a nod from the two, she was about to say more when she felt a small tug on her skirt and looked down to see the young boy looking up at her, "Um... Ellen-San, can I ask a question?" Simply smiling and telling Natsuo he could ask, the boy scrunched up his face in confusion, "Why do you have a different name than your husband?"

That got a wince from his parents, and Yui turned towards Ellen, "I am so sorry, Baker-San."

However, much to her surprise, the other two adults chuckled and the blonde haired woman waved her off, "Don't worry about it, children will ask questions and I promote that being a teacher." Ignoring the widened eyes, she turned back to the little boy, "I have a different name because it was something that the two of us chose when we got married when very young. It is also why our children have the same family name as me."

While curious, the boy only nodded before his attention was grabbed by cookies and he dragged his older sister over. Glancing at the other man, Ken cleared his throat some, "I... take it that you've been brought here because the Fubuki will be bringing your children home?"

Jumping a little, Hikaru gave a small nod, "Hai? Though how..." It took only moments for him to realize and he gave them a nod, "You as well?"

Softly smiling, Ellen sighed, "Two, our only ones. We... thought that they were killed during Blood Week."

Expression understanding, Yui reached over and gently squeezed her shoulder, "We understand, Baker-San."

Not long after, another couple arrived, the female of which was in a Tokyo police uniform while her husband was in a business suit. After the other two couples introduced themselves, they nodded with smiles and bowed as the husband spoke, "I am Yamada Yusuke and this is my wife..."

With an easy smile on her face, the woman smiled, "Lieutenant Yamada Noriko of the Tokyo Police Department." Holding out her hand, she shook the others with them returning the gesture, "Pleased to meet you. And unless I miss my guess, we have one more couple..." Voice trailing off as she noted the saddened looks of Ellen's and Ken's faces, though she did raise a mental eyebrow at the flash of anger in the American's eyes, she slowly blinked, "I... take it that you know of what happened?"

Eyes closing as she centered herself, Ellen opened them and gave a sad smile, "Miho-San and her husband, Genji, were friends and we know that they would have wanted to be here. But... we'll take their place for them."

The other two couples simply nodded at that and gave sad smiles as they believed she meant that the two were dead.

For the next forty minutes, the three couples talked and got to know one another. Part of Ellen thought that they had even formed tentative friendships due to their shared situation. But then, the door opened and Captain Yonehara walked in. Giving Ellen a nod after she greeted him, he motioned for the table and they all sat down, though the children were chewing on some treats, "I'm sorry about the delay, but this is... a rather extraordinary situation, you have to understand. And we are contacting various people regarding it to clear up any issues." He glanced at Ellen who narrowed her eyes briefly but soon relaxed. With a nod, he looked down at the papers before him and paused before giving a sigh, "First, I feel we need to clear the air about a certain subject."

A frown on her face, Noriko furrowed her eyebrows, "Oh?"

Hands clasped on the table, Yonehara shook his head, "It has to do with your children and a fact regarding some of them, and I do not just mean being shipgirls. But it is one that all of you know about and are cleared to know. About the existence of another, hidden side of the world and in particular the existence of Yokai."

Nearly all of them froze, except for Ellen who gave a small smile, "Well, I do teach a number at my school. Aki-Kun is quite the adorable little Inugami after all, and for a Kitsune, Haru-San can hold her drink, or so I assume."

Jaws dropped, the others turned to her and Ken blinked, "Wait..." Bringing up his finger, her husband pointed at her, "You know about Yokai existing?! What the hell, Ellen-Chan!? For how long?!"

With a hum, the English teacher considered her answer, "For a few years now actually. Like I said, some of my students are Yokai and a few have had... issues... keeping the disguise up. All of us teachers were informed since we have children from some of the major Yokai clans such as the Ono Clan."

At that, the others relaxed some before Noriko looked between them curiously, "So you both know about Yokai? And magic?"

Slowly, Ellen nodded with a small smile, "We do, as a matter of fact, or at least I am assuming my husband knows." Giving him a raised eyebrow and a frown, "And I think that it has something to do with that project of yours with the government."

Looking at Yonehara, the Engineer got a small nod and he sighed, "The Non-Magical government is planning out to clean up the Reserves when the Statute falls in a few years while letting the Yokai that wish to move out, re-enter Japan as a whole. Mostly infrastructure stuff like rail and roads to them as well as sewage and water."

If anything, the other Yokai relaxed more at that. Sharing a look with her husband, Noriko released her disguise with her ears and tail popping out followed by her husband. Yui looked unsure for a moment before backing up and also releasing her transformation as did her daughter. While both Tanuki were surprised to see a Jorogumo, when they looked at Hikaru, he shrugged, "One hundred percent human." Standing, he reached up and kissed his wife best that he could as she was crouched down, "And fully in love for nearly twenty five years."

Chuckling, Ellen had a twinkle in her eye, "Guess that explains why you wouldn't drink the coffee then."

Just scratching the back of her head, Yui nodded, "Hai... I don't want to meet my daughter drunk."

That made the others chuckle or lightly laugh. Hearing a throat being cleared, they turned towards Yonehara who brought out a folder with a sigh, "Now, we're still gathering information regarding some things, but..." He opened them to reveal copies of a picture before passing them over. All the adults reacted with widened eyes at the sight of the raft being pulled by Yokai shipgirls except for one Submarine with one boy being held by a Kitsune on said raft, "Now, they've identified which ships they belonged to..."

What followed was a half hour meeting filled with more questions than answers, which Noriko commented was normal this early in the investigation. After all, they didn't have all the answers yet. A frown crossed Yusuke's face as he examined the picture, "May I ask why Sora-San has what looks like nine tails?" Glancing at Ellen, who was frowning, he continued, "From my understanding she is not even a century old yet."

Grimacing, Yonehara shook his head, "That is one of the questions that we don't have an answer to yet. But some of our experts think that since shipgirls are Kami, they can affect that sort of thing. Though they also think that she does not have access to what a full Kyuubi would have in their abilities. It mostly denotes their spiritual power."

Only nodding, the Tanuki hummed a bit.

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Having gotten the word that the Fubuki had entered the harbour, the three families had practically rushed out the door. Outside, waiting for them, were a number of cars that took them to where the Destroyer was going to be tied up, which the group watched shortly after arrival. It was only because of her husband's hands on her shoulder that Ellen didn't rush forward as the gangplank was lowered. The sound of the wood meeting the concrete was loud in her ears, nearly as loud as the sound of her own heartbeat.

And then... the world went silent as Eric appeared at the top of the gangplank.

Eyes wide, Ellen began to tremble as Samantha appeared behind him and so did Sora, the three being the first off the ship. Their movements were in slow motion as they walked down the gangplank, silent. And then, Samantha's eyes met hers and gasped with the world rushing back into being as tears sprang to her mother's eyes at her next words, "Mom... Dad?"

Bringing her hands up to her mouth, Ellen sobbed, "Sam... Eric..." Then, before she knew it, she was running across the concrete as the two young adults rushed down the gangplank, also crying. When they got off the gangplank, their mother was already there pulling them into a tight, warm hug, "Eric, Sam! M-my babies!"

The two siblings brought up their own arms and hugged their mother just as tightly back, their faces buried in the crook of her neck as hot tears ran down their cheeks and sobs broke free from them. Walking up, tears running down his own cheeks, their father flung his arms around them, "Samantha-Chan... Eric-Chan..."

Still sobbing, Ellen pulled back just a touch to look at her children's faces. Fingers traced cheeks and such that were familiar and not as she choked a little, "You're real..."

Just nodding, even as he felt his own throat constrict, Eric chuckled, "Y-yeah, Mom... we're real. I..." Burying his face in his mother's neck, her scent filled his nostrils and made him feel like he was a little boy again, safe within her arms from all the dangers of the world, "We're home..."

With a sniffle, the English teacher choked back a laugh, "Y-yes, you are. B-both of you... F-finally, you-you're both home."

Her husband just swayed back and forth, "We're so, so sorry... w-we never knew that... that you were..."

Only shaking her head, Samantha sobbed, "You have nothing to be sorry about, Dad. W-we should have done something before now. B-but we didn't know and..." Almost unable to talk due to the emotions bubbling up, she still forced herself to finish, "We're sorry about having you worry and think that we were dead, and... and..."

Stroking her head, Ken kissed her hair, "You have nothing to be sorry about, Samantha-Chan. Absolutely nothing. We love you and we're j-just happy that you're back. That you're alive and that we can tell you that."

Face still buried in his mother's neck, Eric nodded, "W-we're happy too, Dad... we love you two and m-missed you every day. P-please don't be angry..."

Gently kissing his cheek, Ellen shook her head, "Oh, Baby... we could never be angry with you. Not about this, we love you too much..."

Wiping at her eyes, for all the good it did, Samantha sniffled, "M-Mom, I... because of me, Eric is.. is..."

Ellen noticed her son look down and looked at where his right arm had been, and was now gone. Part of her wanted to wail about it, to scream in anger at the heavens for whoever allowed this harm to come to her son. Instead, she reached up and cupped his cheek ('When had he gotten so tall...?') and shook her head, "As I told your father when you were born and I held you for the first time... you're beautiful and perfect, Eric. And nothing, absolutely nothing changes that. You hear me? To me, nothing is wrong with you."

His eyes widening at those words, Eric felt a fresh burst of tears and hugged his mother as tight as he could with one arm as she whispered soft words of encouragement to him through her own sobs.

Inside her heart, Ellen could feel that wound, raw for so many years, slowly heal and close. Each tear taking more and more of the pain away. Because now, after so long, she could hold her babies in her arms. And in the end, that was all she had wanted.

Out of the corner of her eye though, she could see Sora shift from one foot to the other unsure. Disengaging a little, Ellen looked over at the Kitsune who had a heartbroken look on her face, "M-my Kaa-San and Tou-San are..."

Bittersweet smile on her face, the American could not help the thought that went through her mind, 'You two should be here...' Taking a deep breath, she shook her head, "If they could have been here, Sora... they would have been. But..." Opening her arm, she smiled, "Come here."

For a few moments, Sora stared before her eyesight became blurry and sobs broke free as she ran for the comforting arm, "E-Ellen-Oba-Chan!"

Tears running from her eyes, Ellen blinked, "I am so sorry, Sora... b-but I promised your parents to be there for you. And I swear that I will be. Please forgive this old woman for not doing so before..."

Eric's arm around her as well, the Kitsune let out a wail, "OBA-CHAN!" Pulling back a little, she shook her head, "Y-you have nothing to apologize for..."

With more sobs wrecking her body, she held on tight to the woman who had become an aunt to her for so long..."

And theirs was not the only reunion going on as both Yumiko and Hinata rushed down the gangplank and towards their families. The Tanuki was the first to reach her parents, the two older Yokai pulling her into a hug, "KAA-SAN! TOU-SAN!"

Holding her daughter close, Noriko shook her head, "We are so, so proud of you, Musume... you are so very strong..."

Beside her, her husband nodded, "Very strong... stronger than we could have been."

Lips trembling, Yumiko shook her head, "I-I'm only as strong as y-you both made m-me..."

Sobs breaking free, her parents just held her close to them.

Coming to a stop before her family as tears stained all their faces, Hinata looked at her parents and then at the two younger children who looked up at her in awe. She was unsure what to say and it seemed her parents did not know either though Yui covered her mouth as tears ran down her cheeks. Then, Tsukiko stepped forward, "A-are you our Onee-Chan?"

To Hinata, it felt like her boilers were about to burst as she nodded, tears dripping down her face, "H-hai... I'm your Onee-Chan, Hinata." Looking from one to the other, she sniffled a bit, "Wh-what are your names?"

With a glance at their parents, her younger sister swallowed even as she began to tear up. After all, her parents had told both of their children about their older sister who they described as being very brave and smart and beautiful. And now... she could see for herself that every word was true. Slowly, she nodded though her throat felt like it had something in it for some reason, "I-I'm Tsukiko..."

From beside her, feeling somewhat shy, the young boy nodded, "A-and I'm Natsuo..."

Looking from one to the other, Hinata smiled, "Natsuo-Kun and Tsukiko-Chan... wonderful names for a-a wonderful O-otouto and Imouto..."

Eyes widening, the two stared at her before they began to cry and wail. Then they threw themselves into their sister's arms, "ONEE-CHAN! ONEE-CHAN!"

Gently, arms that could tear apart tanks wrapped themselves around them, to envelope them in protection of her steel, "I-Imouto... Oto-Otouto... Onee-Chan is here, finally home..."

Moments later, her parents joined the embrace as they began to cry themselves.

Up on the mainmast, the Spirit of the JS Fubuki looked down and held her clenched hands to her chest, "Utsuho-Chan... this feels... I feel so happy that my reactor feels like it could burst!"

Beside her, the crow looked at her and the ship spirit could see a ghostly woman overlaying it who placed an arm over her shoulder before the crow spoke, the ghost's mouth moving with the words, "And so you should be, Fubuki-Chan. Because of you, three families are once more whole. This... love... is truly powerful."

Just nodding, the Fubuki's spirit looked down at the shipgirl who shared her name. Said shipgirl was looking up at her with a proud smile on her face and a nod, which nearly made Fubuki-Chan's reactor's internal fusion glow all the more brightly in pride, "I... just wanted to make Kaa-San proud and do my best..."

Almost as if he had heard her, the Captain of her hull patted the rail gently as he looked on at the reunion with a small smile, "You did good, Fubuki-Chan. I'll make sure that there's some of those ice cream sandwiches, made with fresh cookies from the oven, for you as a reward. And barbecue pork for Utsuho-Chan. You both did good and I'm proud of you."

The two beings straightened and puffed out their chest in happiness, though they continued to watch the teary reunion down on the dock with smiles as did the Fubuki's crew, proud that they were part of it.

 

[darthcourt10]

Harry Leferts

Eventually, Ellen sniffled as she pulled back a little and turned to the crew of the Fubuki who was lining the rails and watching with smiles along with DesDiv6. She noted that one or two of the crewmembers from what she could see had wet cheeks as well though the shipgirls were smiling with tears of their own in their eyes. Turning fully, the American blinked still wet eyes at them before standing at attention in a near perfect salute, "Thank you... thank you for bringing my children home."

Behind her, her children as well as Sora and her husband also came to and saluted them. At the same time, Yumiko and her parents did as well as Hinata's family, though the younger members were a bit unsure. Lightly smiling, the Captain saluted them back followed by his crew as he nodded, "It was our great honor to do so, Baker-San."

With a small nod, Ellen walked forward and reached out to place her finger tips against the ship's hull, "And thank you, Fubuki-Chan. You made this mother very, very happy." Part of her could almost swear that the hull warmed under her touch with a slight shudder. But she smiled nonetheless before turning towards the shipgirl who shared the same name, "You must be proud of your daughter, Fubuki-San."

For a brief moment, Fubuki opened her mouth as if to say something before closing it. Becoming thoughtful for a few seconds, she smiled and chuckled as she looked at the steel hulled Destroyer, "Hai, I am very proud of my daughter, Ellen-San. She has done my name well and with great honor."

Up on the main mast, the spirit of the warship looked down at her mother and felt her cheeks heat up before she grinned and threw her hands wide as she cheered, her horns blasting, "Eeeeee! Thank you, Kaa-San!"

There was a small smile on Fubuki's face as she turned back to Ellen and shrugged.

In return, the American shook her head before sighing and walking back to her children and pulling them into a hug again. Looking up at the Captain, she smiled before calling out, "I heard that the raft that carried them is still on board?"

Lips curling, Captain Hashimoto moved aside a little and nodded, "Hai, it is. And if you wish to come and see it, permission granted. We will be moving it off ship soon to a place where it can be stored due to the honour it has accrued."

Just nodding, Ellen walked back onto the ship followed by her family as did the others. It did not take them long to reach where the raft was, in an out of the corner part of the main helicopter hanger. Bending down, the English teacher placed her hand on it and bowed her head as she closed her eyes, "I... do not know if you have a spirit yet, Raft. But these are strange times that we live in, and if you do have one... know that you have a Mother's eternal thankfulness. You brought my Son and Sora home across the sea. For that, I thank you from the bottom of my heart."

With another nod, she stepped back and each of the adults walked forward one at a time and thanked it.

Shortly afterwards, they entered the meeting room that they had left to find Goto there as well as Ooyodo talking with Captain Yonehara. Turning to them, the Admiral smiled and bowed to the group, "I am Isoroku Goto and allow me to welcome all of you home."

Bowing back, Eric glanced at his friends and nodded as he spoke for all of them, "Thank you, Isoroku-San." He grinned a little, "It's good to be home finally."

Just chuckling, the Admiral shook his head a little, "I imagine so." Gesturing at the chairs, he continued, "Please, have a seat since we have quite a bit to go over. Since I imagine that you're hungry, I've already sent for some food for a late lunch as I expect that we might be here for a while as we need to do a full debrief."

A frown on her face, Yui glanced at her daughter and turned back to the Admiral, "Is that really all that necessary? From what we were told, they explained what had happened to them on the ship. Do we really need to have them relive that?"

Glancing at the youngest non-shipgirls there, Goto shook his head slightly, "Not all of it, for... certain reasons."

Ellen understood that parts of the tale was rather dark and not really for the ears of children. However, that was when Hinata's father spoke up, "Natsou-Kun? Tsukiko-Chan? We have some food packed in our car, perhaps someone could accompany you to go and get it?"

Both kids were about to argue that fact when Kongou flipped from one of the ceiling vents, making Ellen twitch. But the Battleship ignored that and went into a pose, "Born in Britain and raised in Japan, I'm the Battleship Kongou, Dess!" Grinning, she winked some, "I'll accompany such fine youngsters out."

The two children just looked at her in pure awe and soon enough, they left.

For several moments, everyone was quiet before Yusuke, Yumiko's father, looked up at the vent and craned his head to the side to get a better look, "How did she...?"

Just blinking, his wife also frowned, "I... don't know? That should not have been big enough for her to get through, and yet she did."

When she looked towards Yui, the Jorogumo shook her head, "Don't look at me, I may be a Jorogumo, but I could not fit in that space."

About the only one who was not confused was Ellen who pinched her nose with a sigh, causing them to turn to her, "That is because that is Kongou-San. It is best not to ask..." Her eyebrow twitched a bit, "At least she has not interrupted one of my classes to be inane again..."

Rather amused, the Admiral leaned back with a small smile, "Ah, yes, I remember that. You threatened her to have the Boston Tea Party happen in the harbour here. She went on about it and asked that I arrest you for threatening to go through such a war crime."

As Ellen's husband shook his head in amusement and both Ellen and Goto chuckled, Ooyodo looked towards the ceiling with a long suffering look. Eventually though, the Light Cruiser cleared her throat some, "Perhaps we should take advantage of the time we have before they return to speak of... certain matters."

Only nodding, Goto sighed, "Of course." Turning, he regarded the teens, "Perhaps you could give us an overview of what had happened?"

With a glance to their parents, the group began to slowly tell their story. Upon hearing of how he lost his arm, Ellen gripped his hand and held it. But her face paled at being told how close he had come to dying at the hands of the other survivors, and what they had done afterwards. Closing her eyes, Noriko sighed and shook her head, "Despair is truly a terrible thing for what it can drive a person to. I am not angry with them... but I do pity them."

Beside her son, Ellen simply nodded in agreement as did Goto, Yonehara, and Ooyodo.

Continuing their story, the group of young adults watched as the Admiral made several notes on a notepad he had. What was in it, none of them could see, but they could see the Light Cruiser nod every once in a while. Finally, their story came to an end and Goto leaned back in his chair with a small frown, "I will admit, I am not quite sure why the radio signals were so scrambled for you back there. They shouldn't have been."

Leaning against the wall, Tenryuu frowned a little, "You know... when we went to Torishima, we noticed the same thing happening." Eye narrowing, she scratched her chin before blinking as one of her crew remembered something, "Beyonnaise Rocks..."

Eyebrow raised, Yonehara frowned as he leaned forward, "What about them?"

The Light Cruiser turned to him and shook her head, "Maybe it was the eruption? Sometimes, volcanic eruptions can mess with radio signals because of lightning in the ash cloud. Fills up the airwaves nearby with static. And since that place has been erupting since just after Blood Week."

Considering that, Goto closed his eyes in thought before nodding, "I suppose that is as good an explanation as we have for now." With a sigh, he turned to the group and frowned, "I assume that Captain Hashimoto has already filled you in about much regarding the current circumstances of the war?"

Samantha grimaced a little as she looked towards her mother, "He did, and... I'll admit that there are things that make me uneasy." At the nod, she continued, "The name for the monsters, Abyssals is okay. I mean, it fits now that I think about it. But... the idea that some of them have joined humanity..."

Reaching over, Ellen gave her daughter's shoulder a squeeze, "I can understand how you feel, Samantha. Trust me... but I will state that Hoppou is different from most as are her family. And if the war is to be over sooner..." Getting a frown, she shook her head, "Just give her a chance, that is all that anyone can ask."

Only nodding, the Submarine sighed a bit before Yumiko spoke up, "Um, Teitoku?" Getting a nod, she frowned slightly, "What happens to us now?"

Not saying anything, Goto leaned back some as Yui frowned and spoke, "What do you mean what happens now? You come home."

Before anyone could speak up, the lone American adult sighed, "They're going to join the fight, aren't they?" When the other two couples went to speak up, she held up a hand, "I know how you feel, God... trust me. But I have been around shipgirls for a very long time as a teacher and... I know how they think to some extent. They simply cannot just walk away."

With a small sigh, Ooyodo nodded, "She is unfortunately right." Motioning with one hand, she shook her head, "It is perhaps an artifact in regards to our last lives that we feel the need to do something. A lot of Natural Borns, when they are Awoken, do feel the need to go out and help."

Looking at her daughter, Yui noticed her looking troubled and felt tears prickle at her eyes, "But... we just got you back..."

Hinata opened her mouth, only to close it and look at the others, "Kaa-San, I... I was alone on that ship for so long. And the others were on that island for just as long." Clenching her fist with the sound of steel under strain, she let out a breath and looked her parents in the eye, "I can't just sit back and not help, because doing so could mean that someone would have suffered like I had. And like you have for all these years. I-I'm sorry, but I just can't stand here and not try and stop that."

Eyes widening, her mother stared, "Hinata-Chan..."

Getting up, Yumiko looked at her own parents, "I agree with Hinata-Chan, Okaa-San, Otou-San. Maybe I don't understand everything, about why I'm a shipgirl. But..." Voice turning gentle, she looked at her mother, "You're a police Officer, Okaa-San. Protect and Serve... that is what I want to do."

Not saying anything, both Samantha and Sora nodded even as Ellen held her daughter's hand. After a few moments, Hikaru spoke up and looked at Hinata with a sad chuckle. He could still see the small girl that he used to give piggybacks to and teach how to cook, "When did you grow so strong."

A small blush, Hinata looked him in the eyes, "I learned it from you, Tou-San."

When her father turned to him, Goto gave an understanding nod. Leaning back, the Admiral took a deep breath and let it out, "I will state though that there are other ways than sending them out to fight. As Yumiko-San, Hinata-San, and Samantha-San are logistics, they will be kept away from the fighting. Yumiko-San and Hinata-San, for example, can be kept on the base. And Samantha-San can keep inshore and not too far away." Pausing, he looked at Sora and smiled slightly, "As for Sora-San? Until her hull is built, she is going to be kept away from any fighting at all."

Lightly blushing, the Kitsune in question looked down, "Hai, I understand."

The sound of a throat being cleared made them all turn to Yonehara who furrowed his eyebrows, "Sora-San? May I ask what ship you are? From the reports, you appear similar to a Yamato, but... you won't give your name."

Just wincing, Sora grimaced, "I... do not wish to have the name I do because it is something given by arrogant men." Seeing the looks, she stood up and sighed while bowing, "I... am the Yamato-Kai ship, Onogoroshima, the name given to me by the Kamo Government as I was being built."

For several moments, no one said a thing before Yusuke grimace, "I understand now why you did not wish to give you name." Shaking his head, he groaned, "The Kamo government was insane and arrogant. Somehow, though, I am not surprised that they gave such a name to you."

Ooyodo pinched her nose and bit back a groan at imagining just how many supplies will vanish down their new Capital Ship's stomach. Instead, she took a deep, calming breath before letting it out and turning towards her, "If I may, what are your specifications? In general?"

Blinking at that, the Kitsune took a few seconds to consider, "I... was built based on A-150-A4 plans. My hull is a somewhat stretched Yamato style with eight twenty inch guns in four double turrets with a displacement of... they estimated to be about seventy eight thousand tons. My belt is about nineteen inches thick, single piece and with a speed of twenty seven knots."

Everyone was somewhat silent at that. For the civilians and one police officer, it was due to being somewhat confused, but thinking that it was big. For the military members, it was more the sheer amount of insanity that they just heard. Slowly, Goto shook his head some, 'Definitely insane...' One bit though, made him blink and go over what she just said, "Shikigami?"

Lips pressed thinly, Sora nodded, "Hai. It was one of the ways that the Kamo Government decided to get around crew requirements that they were going to institute. Every ship was going to have three dozen Onmyouji who would each control about fifteen Shikigami. That would give each Capital ship over five hundred extra crew for the more simple duties." She shifted a little bit unsure, "But... I was never completed and was scrapped by ICW Occupation Forces at being about forty five percent complete."

However, Goto only made a sound of interest. Before he could say anything, the door opened and Kongou returned with the two children who rushed over to their Onee-Chan and began to talk about everything as the Battleship wheeled in a cart filled with food, "Lunch!"

Chuckling, the Admiral smiled and nodded, "Thank you, Kongou." Turning back to the group, he took a deep breath, "Now, I am sure that you expected to head home, but there are other things needed. Firstly, and most importantly, all of you need a full check up due to being away for so long. We do not need medical complications popping up." Getting nods as even the adults understood that, he continued, "Most likely, there will be an observation period as well, so a few days. That also brings up the next part..." A small smirk appeared on Goto's face, "I am going to assume that you all wish to have a long, hot shower afterwards as well as perhaps hair cuts or what have you. All of which will be provided to you, though I assume that the shipgirls among you will also like to visit the Repair Baths to get rid of any damage that has built up. We will, of course, provide to your needs for as long as you wish. Which includes a warm, clean bed tonight."

That caused eyes to widen, but those who had been stuck in the Izu Islands just brightly smiled and nodded rapidly as they dreamed happily of hot showers and the like...

 

[darthcourt10]

lt_agn02

Finally managed to get back to writing this!
________________________________
Sitting in the admiral's room, Aso felt the sheet of paper bulge out at her. The walls of the room started to collapse as it got smaller and smaller. Sweat poured down her forehead as the word "Reassignment" danced a jig over and over in her head. Her breathing began to accelerate as she tried to hold her tears back. The room fell around her until she felt the walls and the ceiling squeeze her into her chair.

From her desk, Admiral Shimada set down her teacup to look at a carrier hugging herself in fear.

"…Aso? Are…are you okay?"

The girl looked up at her CO, the tears and snot dripping from her face. "A-Admiral…please…please don't do this!" she begged. "I-I'll be good! I'll be good, I promise! Please…please don't sent me so far away!"

"Aso, calm down and listen to me. You will just be there on loan for six months. We are not abandoning you or kicking you out, you follow?"

"I-It's Pearl Harbor! Even if you take into account their ship girls playing nice over here, that doesn't change the fact that Americans never forgive anyone that does them wrong! If they find out a Japanese carrier will be staying there, they're going to kill me and mail my head back in a box!" she protested reaching up to protect her neck. "After everything I said, I wouldn't be surprised if they actually did!"

"You're overreacting," Shimada countered with a groan on her lips. "You've seen Enterprise and Yamato friendly with each other. You know that the JMSDF can, and often does port calls there." The admiral narrowed her eyes. "Heck, I know for a fact that you're a fan of Louisiana-san's sweet potato pie."

Aso puffed out her cheeks. "That was Houshou-san's wasn't it?"

"Where do you think Houshou-san got the recipe in the first place?"

Aso's eyes narrowed, then she looked away, a small blush on her face.

Shimada leaned forward. "Now before you get too riled up, you're aware of the situation that Pearl Harbor is in, correct?"

"I…I have a vague idea. It's under siege by Abyssals, right?"

"Good. That makes explaining things easier." The admiral narrowed her eyes. "For some reason, despite the siege, they were able to stay alive even with supply routes cut."

Aso's eyes widened. "Seriously? That's impossible! They're so geographically isolated that they could fall the moment the Americans ran out of supplies!"

"I'm aware of that," Shimada noted, "but the fact remains that between the day they were cut off from the world and the day trade was reestablished, they did something. I don't know what it was, but by some miracle, by the time we arrived there, the actual death toll was far lower than the catastrophic death toll we predicted. Yes, there were hungry people. But they were hungry and, most importantly, alive."

"H-How is that possible?" the carrier asked. By her recollection, Hawaii itself went black for two years. Two years without so much as a single supply ship! She suppressed a gulp. Without her occasional assistance, the food situation at the yokai village was such that it could last one year, and that was being very generous.

She put her hand to her chin. It didn't make sense at all. The village was one thing. Depending on the season and the crops, they could last quite a while without outside input. One bad season could spell disaster of course, but in the end, it's just a small village by comparison. With most of its resources going purely into agriculture. They have enough food stocks to last a bad harvest. An entire island chain is a totally different ship. With millions of residents, they shouldn't last more than a few months.

"Maybe they're using magic over there?" she asked. "I heard that the gai – I mean, Nagato's son – could multiply food."

Admiral Shimada shook her head. "It's a possibility, but the fact remains that this…'Statute of Secrecy' thing is actively preventing American magicals from taking action." She leafed through the folder on her desk, then pulled out a photograph. "This was the aerial reconnaissance photograph taken before we broke the siege." Then she pulled another picture out. "This one was from before the war."

Aso took both of the pictures in hand. The older photo from before the war was the Hawaii she was familiar with. At least from the pictures on the internet and the books she read. Sunny beaches, a bustling metropolitan city, that kind of thing. Then she looked toward the newer photo. Immediately, the carrier noticed something oddly different.

The city was leveled, obviously. The Pearl Harbor Naval Base was razed to the ground. If it was just that, she would have shrugged. War was war after all and cities being leveled aren't all that uncommon. However, near the bottom of the photograph, something odd caught her eye.

Offshore, the carrier spotted several elliptical structures in the water. She cocked her head as she tried to look closer. "Admiral, correct me if I'm wrong, but I think…I think they might be some sort of… protected area?"

Shimada nodded. "I talked to the Americans. They said it was some kind of aquaculture that the Native Hawaiians whipped up. There was something like it in Kaneohe before the war."

"Aquaculture…maybe these are what kept the islands alive?"

"That's what I'm betting on," the admiral commented, "but the real issue I see is the quantity. Even with modern technology, it would take more than just two years to build just one. These are all over the islands." She leaned forward, her eyes meeting with the carriers. "I'm not just sending you to Hawaii on a whim. If I wanted to just punish you, a week of Alaskan convoys is more than enough. However, because you decided to look into things like agriculture and infrastructure, that changes things."

"…Ma'am?"

"You have six months," Shimada told her. "Disaster relief, infrastructure, industry, and agriculture. Learn as much as you can." She pointed to the pictures. "Furthermore, I want more info on these protected areas popping up around the islands. If Japan could use them in any way, we need to bring over as much information as possible, understood?"

"Y-Yes, ma'am!"

"I must warn you, Aso. You better make sure you learn. Your yokai village will be the guinea pig for any ideas you bring over."

The carrier's eyes went wide at what the admiral just told her. "W-Wait…you can't mean…"

"That's the point. Based on the info you bring back, they could be the first to reap the rewards of your hard work." The admiral crossed her arms. "If you're insistent on helping them out so much, you should at least be willing to take full responsibility by learning how to help them rebuild properly." Shimada leaned forward. "Now then, answer me honestly. For the sake of the yokai village, are you, Aso of the Japanese Maritime Self Defense Force, willing to do that?"

Aso gulped. Until now, she was helping. Just helping. She didn't want to cut into their autonomy. The village leaders had their own ways of dealing with everything and she respected that. But if she were to take a more active role officially, there was a non-zero chance that she might step over lines that couldn't be crossed. And yet, despite everything, there was this opportunity. The chance to help make things better. To learn more about how to rebuild from the ground up.

The carrier steeled herself, then answered. "I'll do it."

Shimada nodded. "Excellent. Go to your room and pack everything you need. Houshou should have a copy of the standard packing list, should you have any questions. The convoy leaves tomorrow at 12pm sharp."

The carrier stood and saluted, excusing herself from her room.

 

[darthcourt10]

Yellowhammer

De Profundis: The Exploration And Research Logs of USS Trieste (DSV-0)

Entry #2

0953, 18 June 2014

Office of the Oceanographer of the United States Navy

Trieste entered and snapped to attention, saluting the dark skinned and gray haired bespectacled admiral waiting for her. "Sir, DSV-0, USS Trieste reporting as ordered."

Rear Admiral Thomas Foster returned the salute. "At ease, Trieste and welcome back to us." His voice was filled with the molasses-smooth drawl from his youth in the Deep South.

Trieste smiled. "It is good to be back, Admiral. Even if I will be of no use fighting the Abyssals, I will serve to the utmost limit of my capabilities."

Admiral Foster smiled, "No need for combat duties for you, we have enough ships to hold the line. You should know that the bulk of the World War Two US Navy is coming back to fight for us once again. Plus the Japanese, British and other fleets are manifesting as well."

Trieste nodded in acceptance of those words as something inside her unclenched then nibbled her lip. "A personal question, if I may inquire. Destroyer Escort Five Three Five, USS Lewis. Is she back yet?"

Foster tapped a query into his desktop computer and smiled at the response on the screen. "She is back and working the Seattle-Japan convoy runs currently. Why are you interested in her?"

Trieste blushed cutely and tapped one boot clad foot against the carpet like a bashful schoolgirl. "She was one of my primary support ships for the Project Nekton deep oceanic dives in the 1960s and I got along well with her, sir. She's a friend. Honestly the only person I am close to, since I have no real sisters who have manifested. It may be a long time before Alvin or Trieste II come back and they are the closest relatives that I have. I'm used to being alone, especially on a dive of course."

"Aha. I will make a note of that and see if I can get use of her when the time comes." Admiral Foster scribbled the note and then gave Trieste a measuring look. "In brief, while we are holding off the Abyssals and building up our strength to reclaim the oceans from them, we have a bigger problem. We have questions that need answers. What the Abyssals are, what they are capable of, where they came from, and most important, what don't we know that we should know in the depths of the ocean? Are the Abyssals a precursor of something greater from the depths that will menace us all?"

Trieste nodded along as her expression became focused, "Which is where I come in, Sir. You need someone to look and shine a light on those mysteries and get answers."

"Exactly. Are you on board, Trieste?" The admiral's tone was challenging as he looked at the young dark hared shipgirl in front of him.

Trieste snapped to attention with a crash of steel and saluted with a determined look. "Yes, sir!"

Admiral Foster returned the salute and then stood up from the desk. "Raise your right hand and repeat after me. I, state your full name and service designation..."

"I, USS Trieste, Deep Submergence Vehicle Zero" Trieste's eyes glimmered with saltwater tears as her electrical motors picked up a notch with solemn pride.

"Do solemnly swear..." The admiral spoke the words of the commissioning oath that he had taken decades before at Annapolis from memory.

"Do solemnly swear." Trieste's voice was hushed with the solemnity of this moment to her.

"That I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States..." His eyes stared into hers, measuring the spirit in front of him.

"That I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States." Trieste thought of Lewis's stories of the War and the cost of these words in brave ships and braver men. Costs that Lewis and her sisters had shouldered willingly as she would now.

"Against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same;" The admiral's fatherly voice was hushed in turn by the meaning of these words to him.

"That I take this obligation freely, without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion;" A saltwater tear trickled down Trieste's cheek from the emotions coursing through her now-shipgirl body.

"And that I will well and faithfully discharge the duties of the office on which I am about to enter." An involuntary smile lit up Trieste's face at the thought of being ordered to explore the secrets of the oceans on her dives as she repeated the words.

"So help me God." The Admiral finished with suspiciously shiny eyes behind his glasses as he saw the character and purpose reflected in the shipgirl's face in front of him.

"So help me God!" Trieste said, feeling the weight of those final words as greater than the crushing depths of the ocean at the bottom of the world.

Admiral Foster's face gave a warm welcoming smile. "Then let me be the first to welcome you to the United States Navy, Lieutenant Commander Trieste!" He extended his hand, and she shook it, the glove of her deep-sea diving suit firm against his palm.

Trieste blinked the tears out of her eyes. "Glad to be on board, Admiral Foster. Um, sir, you should know that since the start of my awakening I have been picking up a repeated infrasonic melody on my hydrophones."

The Admiral blinked. "You are picking up music too low in pitch for humans to hear?"

Trieste nodded. "Yes sir, it's repeating with variations, and my crew of faeries has confirmed to an 83% probability that it matches an observation that I logged on the Nekton dive into Challenger Deep in 1961. Target bearing analysis puts it on a rough heading corresponding to that segment of the Pacific as best that I can tell."

She walked over to a Mercator chart of the Pacific hanging on the wall and drew her finger across the map into the Central Pacific. "I think that I can use my Gertrude sonar telephone to re-transmit it into a rough format that humans can hear."

The Admiral nodded sharply. "Do it, Commander."

A faerie clambered out of the steel neck plate of Trieste's suit and gave her a thumb's up. The a moment later, a haunting, ethereal, alien song embodying loneliness and allure filled the office.
Spoiler: The Siren Song

 

[darthcourt10]

Yellowhammer

A Tale of Two Dinners

Ishikawa Restauraunt, Shinjuku, Tokyo

April, 2014, Immediately After The Reserve Inspection Tour
Spoiler: A Cluster Of Spiders

Shigeru Miyata looked up from the menu as his daughter Naomi entered the private room that he had reserved. One look at her face, even with her mask up, caused him to sigh behind his own public persona.

I was afraid of this.

She knelt on the far side of the table and placed her order. The waitress bowed and departed, letting Shigeru center himself.

The elderly civil servant gave Naomi a firm look as she pulled out her wand. "Wait until she returns with the sake and dinner, then we shall speak, Daughter."

Naomi nodded sharply. "Yes, Father."

Once the food and drink were served, both father and daughter cast privacy wards. The moment that the last symbol flared to life and Shigeru cast a lightning discharge to short out any nomaj listening equipment, he looked at Naomi. "How bad is it?"

Her voice was furious. "Worse than I feared, much worse. There are no less than six shipgirls present. And it is only by the especial grace of Kannon that we have not had them lead a massive breakout."

Shigeru stared in shock. "Six, truly?" He repeated in a slow voice.

"Truly. A pair of Inu who were small carriers, and a trio of Kitsune who are small destroyers. The last is an Unawakened Nekomata. They are all very close to the Healer, who is a good man, thankfully, and the only reason -- the only reason! -- that things have not gone straight to Jigoku! There was a cholera epidemic that the staff covered up and downplayed as they sheltered in safety!!" Shigeru turned pale as Naomi elevated her voice.

"Healer Haruto risked his life to save who he could. It is only by his skill and dedication and the especial grace of Kannon, Amaterasu-Omikami, and the Seven Luck Gods that they only lost two hundred thirty eight!! De Breuil has experience with Cholera and said that it could have been well over three thousand or more if he had not nearly killed himself with karoshi(overwork) to save as many as he could!!! If he had failed, or if the plague outbreak had been more serious, the first indication we would have had would have been when the guard post was leveled by the shipgirls and then they swarmed out of the Reserve!!!" Naomi's eyes flashed as she released all the stress, anger, fear, and shame that she had been keeping bottled up through her inspection tour.

Shigeru steepled his fingers and listened impassively as Naomi continued to vent her concern, the glitter in his dark eyes and his paler than normal skin the only sign of his own distress.

Finally Naomi's words trailed off, and Shigeru spoke. "I see. You have written your unvarnished observations down, Daughter?"

Naomi nodded jerkily, "Yes, Father. I was going to prepare a second report full of the usual pablum about Nikko Reserve, but I... just cannot."

Shigeru sighed. "Unfortunately, I need you to prepare that to leak to the people who we need to keep in the dark just a little longer. You must understand that as long as they just have suspicions that you found things are slightly worse to Nikko, then you are protected. If this is made public, the government will fall in the scandal and that will complicate the situation immensely."

Naomi stared at Shigeru. "Complicate the situation!! How can you say that!?"

Shigeru smiled. "Easily." The smile vanished instantly and his voice grew stern. "However, if the government falls, Kyoto will have an unavoidable delay in funneling resources and manpower to the reserves. With an interruption of the subsidies we arrange for the local leadership there and payment to the guards and Healers plus shipments of foodstuffs, medicine, and other supplies, a breakout attempt is certain as the inhabitants feel that they are cut off and left to swing."

Naomi winced. "So what do we do? I checked the Deathwatch ward status and Jukai-B has had a spike in deaths. Six hundred three in the last week. They have an epidemic ongoing right now."

Shigeru spoke in a firm voice. "I will arrange for several Healers to be sent there along with an emergency shipment of medical supplies tomorrow. Or Chief Healer Ogata will be in divorce court tomorrow night after his wife finds out about his bastard daughters with his secretary."

"As for the rest, give me a copy of your true report, I will make sure that it gets to the right hands in Kyoto and Tokyo to make necessary changes. Write up a second report filled with pablum and any useful suggestions that Councilor Ito can push with no political cost and give it to him and send me a copy through the normal channels," Shigeru sighed and drained the last of his sake, "and we will both light incense to Kannon to bless our efforts to buy time and stave off disaster."

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

Honmoku Makado Mamematsu

Yokohama, Japan
Spoiler: And A Convocation of Cutlery

Ying looked at the small family-owned restaurant across the street from a school and glanced at Delilah. "Del, your contact is here?"

Delilah nodded as she entered. "Yes, this is where we are to meet Honjo and Aunt Chisuheri."

Ying blinked. "Another of Grandfather Norimune's sisters?"

Inside there was a slightly heavy-set cook behind the counter fixing seafood, and a rather leggy brunette woman manning the cash register.

Delilah nodded as they took a seat at a corner table with their backs to the wall. "Yes. Chisuheri got religion around the time Sis was born and is now a card-carrying Buddhist monk and a pacifist. Before then, she was a vampiric berserker. No, I don't understand it either, but that's the story. Now she is a senior member of the Japanese Non-Human Rights Organization which is pretty much what it says on the can."

A voice sounded from the door as a silver haired lady in a tailored business suit walked to their table. "Who is your friend, Delilah-san?"

Ying bowed and responded as Delilah pulled out her cellphone to take a picture of Chisuheri's face. "Auror Wei Ying of the Royal Canadian Magical Mounted Police, and the oldest daughter of Colombe du Chasteler, Great-Aunt Chisuheri."

The Buddhist's jaw dropped briefly. "And here I thought that Umi-chan had been sniffing her potion fumes when she told me that Colombe's daughter arrested her."

Ying smiled smugly, "Yes, it is part of a plan to resolve her legal difficulties. Once she is able to get out of the wheelchair and travel, I will be escorting her to a magistrate who can take her testimony about all the incidents that she was involved in so that she can tell her side of the story."

Chisuheri blinked as a pair of young-seeming women, one with light hair and glasses and the other dark-headed with sharp golden eyes entered to join them. "Wait. Colombe is in a wheelchair? What happened to her?!"

Delilah opened her mouth, noticed Honjo and a friend entering earshot, and closed it with a snap as she smiled smugly and shifted her phone to take a picture of the new arrivals.

Ying, unaware of the identity of the last two tsukumogami, promptly dropped the bomb. "Masamune-no-Fudo happened to Father. She and Colombe beat each other within an inch of their lives and are convalescing at Moulbaix."

Delilah took a picture of the brief shocked look as Honjo groaned and the mystery sword's eyes narrowed. "Fudo-nee no baka. I am unsurprised. Let me guess, Toku-chan was unable to prevent the fight?" Honjo spoke in a weary voice.

Delilah nodded, giving Ying a look to be quiet. "Yes, I was there and Fudo called out Colombe for a duel over Tokunotakai's honor. Full power, and while it was in the warded salle d'armes with no outside witnesses, both of them are pretty battered and getting medical attention from Kasuyu and Tokunotakai. Plus Ying's younger sisters Claire and Ehren. I should introduce my niece. Wei Ying is Colombe's oldest daughter, a school classmate of mine, and my counterpart north of the border in Canada."

The mystery woman spoke in a cool, precise tone. "Fudo's eldest sister Masamune-no-Kotegiri. I am assisting Honjo-nee with the political matters that bring us together."

Ying and Delilah bowed their heads. "I am Muramasa-no-Norimune's youngest daughter, de Breuil Delilah and du Chasteler Colombe is my eldest sister. Ying and I recently found out our family relationship, and I recruited her to assist me with the digging."

The conversation paused as the brunette approached the table. "Welcome to Honmoku Makado Mamematsu, I am Hanai Yui and I shall be your waitress. May I interest you in our house special?"

Once the orders were placed and Yui departed, Delilah and Ying pulled out copies of their reports from the Ryukaku Reserves after privacy wards were cast. "We were able to piggyback on Miyata Naomi's inspection tour. Apparently her Councilor wanted a no-bullshit look and she got us in. There's good news, bad news, and really bad news."

Honjo passed the her copy of the report to Kotegiri, who started to read. "Please, elaborate." Her eyes sharpened behind her glasses.

Delilah sighed. "The good is that the Healer assigned there is a miracle worker who is the kind of hero I wish that we had more of. He sees the Yokai there as people and is moving heaven and earth to take care of them on a shoestring. Also he's insanely popular, and would be a mortal lock for mayor if he wanted to run, which he does not. He just wants to fight disease and save people."

Honjo glanced at Kotegiri as Chisuheri rubbed her chin and spoke. "Anything that we can do to help him?"

Delilah nodded. "He has friends on the mainland who are supporting him, and he is being very creative with what he is doing such as getting nomaj medical supplies to supplement the authorized magical shipments. Brilliant really. Hinata Haruto is his name. I think that helping him would be best be done through local channels if we can steer a well-connected donor his way. I have access to some funds on the nomaj side that I can send your way immediately to support him and others, Aunt. I'll make arrangements with people I know stateside to get a revenue stream going either directly or through some cutouts if you can have your treasurer drop me a call or an owl."

Ying chimed in. "He is also using nomaj vitamins to ward off nutritional diseases. I have a great-great-grandniece who is married to the CEO of a chain of drugstores back home. I shall speak to her and arrange shipments in bulk from Canada as charity to be distributed through Great-Aunt Chisuheri's organization."

Chisuheri smiled. "That's good. Now what's the bad and worse?"

Delilah scowled. "The bad is that someone in the Reserve Bureaucracy has it out for Healer Hinata. When we arrived, one of the guards was violating procedures by giving him the third degree. And this is not the first time that it happened to him. There was at least one other incident that resulted in several guards giving him a beating in his clinic. Supposedly it was to find out about smugglers, but he is smart enough to be selectively blind and deaf and does not ask questions he does not want answered."

Kotegiri's eyes glittered and her thin razor edged smile chilled the air. "Tell me that you have names of these guards, de Breuil-san."

"Miyata mentioned a report on that incident and looks to be trying to dig up the details. The worst is that we dodged a massive bullet with that. For now. When we went ashore with Hinata-san, the local Yokai were watching us like foreign invaders and if any of us had made anything resembling a hostile move aimed at him, we would be fish food at their hands. The really bad part is that there are at least six shipgirls on that reserve, one nekomata, three kitsune, and two inugami. With the kitsune and inugami both related to each other, sisters I think, and romantically involved with the Healer. Which shows that they have good taste, if you ask me." Delilah's face was grim as she continued. "If that utter shithead takes another shot at Hinata and connects, you can expect to see riots there backed with naval artillery."

Ying spoke with banked anger in her voice. "In addition, conditions that the jorogumo family that Father helped escape described are apparently endemic through the Reserves. There was a near-miss on a cholera epidemic on that island not too long ago," everyone present winced with their own memories of the dreaded lethal disease as Ying continued, "Thanks to Hinata and some of the members of the community who volunteered and worked with him as his assistants the death toll was only two hundred thirty eight instead of thousands. And the poor man mourns all two hundred thirty eight individually."

Honjo's eyes flashed and she looked at Kotegiri, who nodded sharply. "Rest assured that what can be done to fix the situation will be done, de Breuil-san."

Delilah sighed and rubbed her temples. "Thank God for that. It needs to be done yesterday too, since we only have to get unlucky once for this powder keg to blow."

Everyone nodded and then waited as the waitress came with their food orders.

As she left the conversation resumed as Delilah began to eat her seafood catch of the day special. "I don't know if we can get into another tour if another is planned. I expect that Miyata-san will write a fairly scathing report too, and she was asking about ideas to stretch out the money for the Reserves as far as possible to do the most good. Unfortunately, I'll need to put a leash on Sis again once she heals up and we still need to handle the legal mess that she is in.

Honjo nodded and poured sake for herself and her sister. "Rest assured that the Diet will drop the matter of your sister's actions here soon enough. Expect that the paperwork gets misfiled as well for your borrowing of Akutoku's car." Chisuheri chuckled at the memory of that memorable first meeting with her nieces.

Ying glanced at Delilah only to get a 'not now' look from her aunt. "Thank you, Honjo-san. We will be returning to Moulbaix soon, and I need to speak to my mother and some other associates in New York sooner rather than later. For starters, Ying and I both need to make sure that no new fires are burning in our backyard and check our own enclaves. Once I do that I'll pop back here and touch base with you and your friends, Aunt Chisuheri to arrange access to what resources we can provide."

Kotegiri spoke in a curious voice. "Toku-chan is well?"

"When we left, yes. As I said, she is helping nurse Fudo and my sister back to health." Delilah responded after a sip of her sake. "She is getting along well with Colombe's family too. Sis has arranged to employ the family that she rescued there while giving them a hand up to make a new life for themselves. Just don't be surprised if she comes back knowing how to play a piano thanks to Claire."

Kotegiri gave a warm smile. "When you see Toku-chan next, please relay the message that Honjo and I are quite proud of our imouto's actions and that we support her travels." Kotegiri's voice cooled noticeably as she continued. "Also let Fudo know that when she returns to Japan, I wish for her to see Honjo immediately upon arrival. If she is foolish enough to take precipitate independent action involving Toku's recent travel, inform her that she will answer to me and my First Master personally. Those exact words."

Both Chisuheri and Honjo paled slightly at Kotegiri's words, and Delilah blinked. "I shall give her your message by tomorrow. Speaking as someone who has to ride herd on my idiot sisters more often than not, I wish you the best in herding cats with Fudo."

Kotegiri smiled serenely. "It is a matter of steel and velvet to herd nekomata." She nodded to Honjo who had her own serene smile. "And selecting a strong right arm to act alongside my own efforts. So, I am curious about your oldest sister, especially the things that did not make it into the ICW files. You said that you are the oldest child, Wei-san?" Chisuheri leaned back and cocked her head as the shift to familial gossip.

Ying nodded. "Indeed. I have two younger half-sisters, du Chasteler Claire and du Chasteler Ehren. The first is the spirit of her piano who manifested in 1990...."

 

[darthcourt10]

Harry Leferts

Walking down the hallway, Eric gave a quiet sigh of relief as he noted that his parents and the others had gone for a quick trip to the commissary for some needed toiletries for him. Just some actual soap and shampoo, though... as he rubbed his chin and felt a slight bit of stubble there, he hoped that they brought him a razor and actual shaving cream. Sure, the fairies that belonged to his sister and the others could conjure something like shaving cream, but they didn't know any spell to shave.

And that meant that he ended up having to use a shaving blade which took a while to learn and get used to even as their crews taught him.

Granted, he always wondered why every time, Sora would lightly blush and look away. But that was beside the point, he supposed. Part of him wondered which was better, which was why he was willing to give it a try.

Besides the fact that he needed a shave, and that for the first time in nearly a decade he was going to be able to have a hot shower with soap and shampoo, there was one other reason that Eric was somewhat relaxed as the adults had gone to get the toiletries. Mainly what he noticed from their reactions. Hearing him sigh, Samantha gave him a look, "Something wrong, Bro?"

A grimace in his face, her brother considered not answering for a few moments before he sighed, "Sam... do I stink?"

No one said anything for a few moments, but Samantha's voice came out extremely dry, "No, you utterly reek." Sniffing herself, she gave a small shrug, "I probably do as well to be honest... so do the rest of us." Grimacing a little, the Subgirl shook her head, "We've only had rain showers and the odd pool of water... well, besides the ocean. But no soap or anything so I wouldn't be surprised if all of us stink to high heaven.

Scrunching her nose, Sora leaned in and sniffed her boyfriend for a few moments before frowning, "I... don't think that he smells that bad." At their amused looks, she turned away, 'He smells... like a male.'

On Eric's sister's face was a small smirk, "No, I suppose that to you he doesn't stink.."

Lightly blushing, Hinata cleared her throat, "I don't think that he smells that bad either, though, um... it has been several years for us all."

There were nods at that before Samantha stretched some as they reached stairway that they were supposed to use and walked up it to a door, which they opened, "That is true enough, I suppose. We probably just stopped noticing it after a time." The group walked into where they were told the "Repair Docks" were, whatever those were. Looking at the showers, the Submarine nodded to herself and walked into the shower room, "Let's get out of these clothes and nice and clean... God, I'm going to scrub my everything down until I'm redder then an apple just to make sure that I'm clean."

Chuckling, Eric shook his head and shrugged as he walked in after her with the others following, "You're not the only one, Sis. I'm going to be getting clean as well..."

It was ten minutes later that their parents showed up and arrived at the shower rooms. With a sigh, Ken looked at his wife and took the basket of male toiletries into the male side. However, he came out less than a minute later looking puzzled, "Ellen-Chan? This is the shower that we were supposed to go to, right?"

Eyebrow raised, the English teacher frowned, "Yes? The girls will be able to get checked out by Akashi and Eric can go into the examination room to be checked out by the base doctor." Frowning, she shook her head, "It is a good thing that the repair docks have both types of rooms just in case they are ever needed."

Unsure, Ken looked around, "Well... Eric's not in the shower room and I don't see him around."

About to answer, Ellen frowned and thought it over before wincing, "I... have an idea where he might be actually. Just wait here."

Ignoring the confusion, she walked into the girl's side. Unknown to the others, as soon as they had entered, they had started to shed their clothes and uniform. The Submarines had it easiest with the only thing they had on being swimsuits. Hinata was the next easiest as hers was just an apron, skirt, and blouse along with the rest.

But Eric's was a somewhat dirty sailor's outfit with one sleeve pinned to his side. It was not too easy to get it off for someone who only had one hand to use, which is why Sora walked over and undid the pin, "Here, Eric-Kun, let me give you a hand."

Sighing a bit, he gave her a small smile that made her boilers skip a little, "Thanks, Sora. I wish that I could help more, but..."

Expression softening, the Kitsune kissed him before pulling back, "Hai, I know." With a small smile, she gripped the bottom of his shirt and helped pull it over his head, "Now, let's get the rest of this off you."

As they did so, he groaned a little, "Sounds good to me." Looking at the shirt, Eric scrunched up his nose a little bit, "Uh, Sam? Not sure if they're going to be able to get it cleaned... sorry, Sis."

However, the Submarine in question just waved him off, "Don't worry about it." Tossing her swimsuit into a basket, she shrugged, "I'm not and nor are my boys."

As the fraternal twins were talking, Sora took a moment to look over her boyfriend and licked her lips. Due to the living on the island, there was pretty much no fat at all on him, just lean muscle under tanned skin. Something that, personally, she had no issue with. Not in the slightest as a matter of fact and something that she had voiced and shown many a time. Shaking that off, she noticed that he had finished and gave him a look, "Mind giving me a hand, Eric-Kun?"

With a chuckle, her boyfriend started to help her as well, "Not at all. With that Kimono of yours, you need more than one person helping you get changed into or out of it after all and I don't mind."

Placing her hands on her hips, Samantha snorted, "Yes, we all know that well enough."

Just giving his sister a look, and getting a tongue stuck out at him, Eric rolled his eyes as he helped the best he could, "Real freaking mature, Sam. How old are you?"

Samantha smirked a little at him, "Twenty or so, and looking younger..." Looking at herself, she shook her head, "Which sucks in all sorts of ways to be honest. I mean, how much has my aging slowed down?"

Only shrugging, her brother shook his head, "Who knows? I mean, they probably do here because shipgirls or something, but you would need to ask."

Before his sister could reply though, his mother entered the shower room, "Eric? Are you..." Upon seeing them, she blushed and rapidly turned around, "Eric! What are you doing in here?!"

Confused, Eric blinked and looked at the others, "Uh... getting ready for a shower? What else would you be doing in a shower room?"

For a moment, Ellen closed her eyes and pinched her nose, "Yessss... but I meant more about the fact that you were in here with your sister and the others. After all, you're a boy and they're girls."

Scratching his head, her son frowned for a few moments before wincing, "Ah, right..." Glancing at the others, he chuckled a bit weakly, "I, um... it doesn't really bother me?"

From where she was, Yumiko gave her own shrug, "Or us, really. I mean..." She looked at Eric briefly before shrugging, "We've basically seen each other so many times over the years in various states, well..." Frowning, the Tanuki furrowed her eyebrows, "We just don't notice. Back on the island we had to go outside during rainstorms and scrub down, or do so in the ocean. Sort of hard to become embarrassed around each other after years of that, right?"

With a deep breath, Ellen nodded, "Right, I can understand that... just... give me a moment and I'll go and get the soap and such for you." Several moments later, still not looking, she set down the various baskets down on benches, "Okay, that one is Eric's..." The American pointed at one basket, "And these are for the rest of you."

They thanked her and she left before Eric walked over and grabbed a bar of soap and sniffed it, "Huh... smells nice actually."

Giggling softly, Sora hugged him from behind with a smile, "So... I do your back and you do mine, Eric-Kun?"

Needless to say, that got her a grin from him and eyerolls as well as giggles from the others.

Meanwhile, Ellen had caught those last words as she left and raised an eyebrow, 'Well... I think that answers my question of those two.' Internally, she giggled, 'Good, they fit so well together and will give me plenty of babies with fluffy tails!'

As she came out, she was met with the other parents who were various degrees of uncomfortable. Yumiko's father looked about ready to rush in there with a scowl on his face as his wife tried to calm him. Seeing that Ellen was alone, he frowned, "Where's your son? Don't tell me..."

Just sighing, Ellen shook her head, "They're all taking their showers now together. But, well... they don't see an issue."

Frowning, Noriko glanced at her husband before turning back to the teacher, "They don't? How...?" It took her only a few seconds before she sighed, "Ah, right... because they were alone on the island, correct?"

Slowly, the American nodded, "That's correct. Things like modesty took a backseat to survival there, so they're not bothered in the slightest by being naked around each other." Ellen scratched her chin in thought, "I mean, it is not all that unexpected... you see that sort of thing in literature plenty of times where that just falls away to the wayside of things." Lips twitching, she motioned with her hands and shrugged, "At least they still wear clothes?"

On Yusuke's face was a small grimace, "Not that it helps much..."

Rolling her eyes, Noriko punched her husband in the arm, "It is not that bad really, and no different than things were in our youth." Shaking her head, she sighed a little, "After all, mixed bathing was not an issue back then and some Yokai onsens still have it."

Eyebrow raised, Ken looked at her, "Really? But that would mean..." Frowning, he tilted his head as he considered them, "That you were around before the Meiji Restoration when mixed baths fell out of favor..."

With a chuckle, the Tanuki police officer smiled, "Normally I would say don't comment on a lady's age, but... hai, both me and my husband were born before that. I was born in 1780 and my husband was born in 1790."

Yui raised her hand a little with a sheepish look, "I was born in 1840 myself." Looking thoughtful, she turned to the doorway to the shower room, "While I am not sure about you... I don't really see an issue with this. But then, I'm Jorogumo."

Arms crossed, Ken sighed a little, "I suppose that this actually hammers home the fact that they are going to have to learn to live away from the island, which might well be as big of a challenge as survival was."

Each of the parents nodded at that, even as they resolved to help their children all the more.

 

[darthcourt10]

RCNAnon

Weasley's Warship Workshop 9

Due to a procedural mishap Ron had several hours after his visit with Jean Bart before he needed to return to Hogwarts. With his father still busy that meant the easiest place for him to go was Passel House. Where Warspite just happened to be off duty and waiting to welcome him, along with a very eager Summer.

The visit with Summer had been enlightening, as the Battleship Princess was much more… docile when he went to check on her with Summer. She'd even responded to several questions that weren't exactly directed at her but had proved useful in the end. Summer seemed pleased with that as well and in the end Ron had put several of the very basic strengthening runes he'd learned onto the back brace, which seemed to work as intended.

That had left only part of his time for Warspite and though he knew it was a blessing to be able to see her at all, Ron wished he had more time to spend with her. It certainly didn't help that he was still somewhat distracted by the activities of earlier in the day. Namely his time with Jean Bart on the motorcycle.

"Ron are you alright?" Warspite asked as Ron somewhat absentmindedly moved one of his chess pieces.

"Of course." He said on instinct, before realizing that Warspite was looking at him quite seriously. "Why?"

"Look at the piece you just moved." Warspite's voice had taken on a somewhat sarcastic tone, her eyebrow quirking.

Actually looking at the board in front of him caused Ron to blink, as he'd just moved one of his bishops into striking range of one of Warspite's knights to take a simple pawn, with no further exchange easily available for him.

"I might have a bit on my mind." He admitted sheepishly, looking back up to Warspite.

She sighed, shaking her head as she picked up the knight in question as if she was going to move it but merely held it in her hand and pointed it at Ron.

"Why don't you tell me about it then. We have time." Warspite reached out for the handsome wooden box used to contain the pieces, placing the knight in the appropriate slot while indicating the game was over for now.

Letting out a bit of a sigh, Ron began to sort out his pieces as well while he did his best to marshal his thoughts. Eventually the pieces were all in the box and the board was put away, leaving Ron with Warspite looking at him and no other distractions. All it took was a further quirked eyebrow and he began to talk.

"You know how I went to see Jean Bart today?" He started.

Warspite simply nodded.

"Well, we went to eat of course. It's just… we took her motorcycle to the cafe and back." Ron flushed a bit at the memory

Warspite's eyebrow had just lowered, but almost immediately rose again. "Yes and…?"

"And…" Ron found his mouth going dry but he soldiered on. "And I had to ride behind her. With my hands around her. Which… was distracting." He found himself fighting down a blush of mixed embarrassment and humiliation, looking down at his feet.

Warspite's eyebrow didn't lower but a small smile came to her face, which Ron did not manage to see before his self imposed impairment.

"You found her attractive." Her voice made the words a statement and not a question.

"...Yes." Ron sounded quite upset at himself for that.

"Did you do anything untoward to her?" Warspite managed to keep her tone level for the moment but she couldn't help but let the smile widen slightly. She knew it was a rough moment for Ron but between the silliness of it, to her at least, and the fact that he had brought it up to her in the first place she couldn't help it.

"No!" Ron's voice came out a little louder than he meant it to, his head jumping up to see Warspite grinning at him. "I… I mean… I'd never." His tone trailed off at the end, somewhat surprised to see Warspite looking at him like that.

"I know Ron, I know. Come here for a moment." Warspite's voice softened and she raised a hand to him even as she stood, gesturing for him to follow her, which he did immediately. It was only a short distance to a small love seat that had been put in the parlor, which Warspite pulled him down onto.

Ron blushed more despite himself as Warspite's hand wrapped around him, pulling him up against her side. In other circumstances he might not have noticed but her he could not ignore the fact that Warspite felt like a woman against him, anymore than he could ignore the scent of oil and steel that was a part of her just as much as any other ladies perfume. The fact that he'd never met a perfume he truly liked only made it that much more distracting.

"If you couldn't tell already Ron, I'm not upset at you. Not in the slightest." Warspite's voice had a relaxing tone to it, the hand not around Ron's waist reaching up to run lightly through his hair.

"Why not?" He asked, his blush going down slightly but not fully, his head leaning slightly into her touch.

"Why should I be?" Warspite countered, her tone taking on a bit of humor. "From what I understand Jean Bart is attractive Ron. Even for a battleship she has very graceful lines and I'd be an idiot to think you wouldn't notice that."

Ron made a small noise of agreement, his head nodding under her fingers as Warspite switched from stroking to lightly scratching at his head.

"Since you didn't do anything untoward to her, there's nothing to worry about. She didn't say anything did she?"

Ron paused for a moment and then shook his head. "No, she didn't say anything about that."

"Then that matter is closed." She said, leaning down to place a kiss onto his head, which finally relaxed Ron enough that his body stopped tensing against hers.

There was silence for a moment as Ron soaked in Warspite's presence, the battleship doing much the same to him.

"I might even have to send her a thank you note." Warspite said idly, looking down as Ron looked back and up at her.

"Why?" Ron asked, his face scrunching up in confusion.

"She marked out another thing we're going to have to deal with." Warspite said with a smile. "What was that delightful term they used in Japan? Ah yes, "skinship.""

Ron's cheeks started to flush again, though it remained at a thankfully low level.

"Skinship?" He said. "What do you mean by that? Isn't that..." He paused, flushing slightly more.

"Not exactly like in Japan Ron." Warspite said with a small grin, placing a finger down and playfully touching his nose. "Not for a while. We have to consider propriety after all."

Ron nodded, which drew a bigger smile from Warspite for a few moments.

"What I meant was that I don't want you to be unfamiliar with me. We spend little enough time together as is, so when we get the chance we should do more things like this." She squeezed him up against her side again, causing him to flush. Cutely in her opinion but the poor boy was already going through quite a bit.

"So… we should be closer." Ron said, starting to grasp what she meant. "Not inappropriately but..."

"But I want you to be able to touch me without being afraid to." Warspite said, nuzzling closer to him. "You have desires and thoughts Ron. That's normal. It's what you do with them and how you react that is what matters."

Ron nodded to her, relaxing against her side.

"I understand." He said. "I think."

Warspite grinned to herself, soaking in the feeling of him and shaking her head.

"Does that mean I should have skinship with Duke as well?" He asked.

"Eventually." Warspite said, her voice turning amused once more. "We should break the idea to her slowly though. She's not quite as adventurous as I am."

Ron snorted but didn't say anything more, causing Warspite to grin again and lean down for one more kiss on his head, as another thought passed through hers.

She might have said it in idle fancy but the idea was not a bad one. It was high time she met Jean Bart in person. Ron might not have noticed anything from the French ship but Warspite knew Ron had a way about him… which he most often simply didn't notice. Best to see for herself.

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\
AN: Not my longest or best but I wanted to get something out again before I got too stale. Hope you all enjoyed.

 

[darthcourt10]

Shaithan

Secrets

Janine Tarkan grumbled as she made her way through the supermarket. The things she'd need to discuss with her sister were wide and varied and she'd rather prefer that her sister was stuffed and thus less likely to explode at her. There was only one problem, her sister was a big eater. So she'd need to prepare big meals. Looking over the shopping cart, she grinned. Lasagna was always well-received by her sister. Sure, it would be a big one, but considering the amounts her sister could shovel down her gullet, she didn't expect it to last three days.

Firing off a message to her sister that she was coming over for a talk and some food, Janine began packing her purchases into bags.

One quick apparating later, she was in her sister's flat in Rostock and began to prepare the lasagna.

Over in Wilhelmshaven, Aisha Tarkan stared at her mobile before heaving a deep sigh. Getting up from her desk, she absentmindedly patted the Wolpertinger sleeping on one of her filing cabinets.

Making her way over to Hartmann's office, she greeted Kaiserin. "Is the old man in?" she wanted to know.

Kaiserin nodded. "Yeah, be careful, he's currently handling Bismarck's little ones. I think he also expects his son to deliver him grandbabies sooner or later," she whispered conspirationally.

Aisha chuckled. It would be a while yet before Hartmann junior would settle down for this. There was a war on, such things took priority. And there was still decent odds on Hartmann and the Hippers actually calling the whole thing quits. Friends, maybe with benefits, but nothing more.

Shaking off her musings, Aisha looked at the office. "Anything big coming up?" she wanted to know.

Kaiserin checked, before shaking her head. "Nah. The tailor has an appointment later, but knowing the old man, he'd pay to get out of that one," she gave back.

Aisha shook her head. "He gets to be promoted to Grand Admiral, but tell him he has to be fitted for an uniform and he's doing his level best to pretend he isn't there," she mused. "Well, I'll have to see him now," she said before knocking at the office door.

"Come in," it came from the inside.

Entering the office, Aisha had to fight very hard to salute. The soon to be Grand Admiral had two babies in his office, was in the process of feeding them and was rather smeared with baby food.

"Admiral," Aisha managed to get out, barely.

Hartmann nodded. "At ease. So, what exactly is burning?" he wanted to know.

"Nothing on base. It's my sister, she sent me a message that we need to talk and she's making lasagna," Aisha gave back.

"How serious are we talking?" Hartmann wanted to know.

"She's making lasagna. She wants me to be unlikely to blow up, regardless of what she tells me," Aisha explained.

"So she has big news," Hartmann concluded.

"Definitely," Aisha agreed. "And considering how out of the blue this comes, that she makes heavy food and didn't even check where I actually am, I'm thinking very bad news," she laid out.

Hartmann nodded, while feeding the babies. "Do you want someone to accompany you?" he wanted to know.

Aisha shook her head. "No, she'll just clam up and we won't get anything out of her. Unless it's literally bad enough that she no longer cares if a third party knows immediately," she explained.

"Well, let's hope it isn't that bad," Hartmann mused. "And considering that you said she didn't check...," Hartmann trailed off.

Aisha nodded. "She's in my Rostock flat, so I need to go there," she gave back.

"You do that. Keep me informed about the things she tells you. The more we learn about the magical side of things, the worse it gets," Hartmann mused.

Aisha nodded. "Indeed, sir," she agreed.

Twenty minutes later, Aisha's Audi barreled down the A 29. Thankfully there wasn't a lot of traffic, allowing her to hit the gas. There was a 4 hour ride in front of her and her sister better had some very good reasons to call her with this short of a notice.

Five hours later, Aisha finally pulled in the parking lot in front of her second home.

Getting out she saw the neighborhood's tom sunning himself on the steps. Seeing her, he jumped up and began rubbing himself on her legs. "Come here, tubby," she greeted him affectionately, lifting the purring tom up. "You got heavier," she accused him with a grin.

The tom simply purred and rubbed his head against her chin.

After a bit, she reluctantly put the big cat down. She needed to face her sister.

Making her way up the stairs, she was greeted by one of her neighbors. "Oh, is something happening?" the old woman wanted to know.

"My sister decided that today was the perfect day for her to visit from Berlin, no matter if I'm actually here," Aisha grumbled.

The woman laughed. "She needs a man to settle down with," she commented.

"I don't think my sister is made for that. She manages to neglect plastic flowers enough for them to wilt," Aisha joked, making the old woman give a barking, fox-like laugh.

"That bad, huh?" the old woman chuckled.

Aisha nodded. "Yeah," she agreed. "Anyway, I've had a five-hour drive, I need to rest a bit," she excused herself.

The old woman smirked. "You do that, deary. I'll have to drag my man out of the cellar again. He really should stop playing with his model trains, he's going to be ninety soon," she grumbled.

Aisha laughed lightly. It was a familiar complaint, one she'd heard for over twenty years now. "You do that, Miss Fuchs," she agreed before going up another set of stairs and cursing her cheapskate teenage self for chosing a house without elevator and her lazy-ass twen self for not actually moving out.

Opening her door, her nostrils were hit by the aroma of tomatos, cheese, meat, basil and oregano. The scent alone made her mouth water.

Going in, she saw her sister sitting in front of the TV, watching some crime show.

"Lasagna is basically ready," Janine said instead of a greeting.

"Hello, good to see you, how have you been?" Aisha shot back at her younger sister.

"Yes, yes," Janine gave back.

Aisha shrugged. It was familiar. She went to her bedroom to get some comfortable clothes, the evening already promised headaches, the least she could have were comfortable clothes.

"Wine?" Janine shouted from the living room.

"Nah, I'll take water," Aisha shouted back.

The meal itself was peaceful, both sisters eating in silence.

Finally, Aisha finished her third helping and leaned back. "Well, I'm full. Roll me over to the couch, would you?" she joked at her sister.

Janine took that as her cue. Getting her wand, she began to weave privacy and other spells.

Aisha sat heavily on the two-seater, mustering her little sister. People were always surprised by them being sisters, what with Janine being almost a head smaller than her rather tall sister. Aisha had worked for everything in her life. She had ambitions, ambitions that currently included to one day become Grand Admiral herself. Janine had none of that. She had undeniable talent, if her marks from the Brockenakademie were anything to go by, but she lacked ambition. She wanted a job where she could kick back and wait for retirement, a job she seemed to have found years ago. Aisha knew that her job was technically important, but not viewed as such these days.

"Okay, what I'm about to tell you really should not reach the allies, otherwise I'm basically dead," Janine began dead serious.

Aisha groaned. "What a way to start off. Okay, what do you mean, allied governments?" she wanted to know, leaning back a bit.

"You know, the allies. Russians, French, Brits, Amis and their lackeys," Janine explained as if talking to a small child.

Aisha sighed long and drawn-out. This was going to be hell. "So, you want me to not tell our allies about things that may potentially concern them?" she wanted to know.

"Why would you? Those are internal matters, their meddling is not welcome," she explained. "Also, they are not our allies. In fact, we have finally cast off the last thing tying us to their yoke," she added.

"I'll regret asking," Aisha grumbled. "What did you maniacs do?" she wanted to know.

"Nothing big," Janine reassured her sister. "The Archmage finally did what his predecessors should have done in the 90ies and left the ICW," she said. "Not like we had a voice there, anyway. So we are finally rid of that stupidity, nothing stops us from throwing out all those damn foreigners and we don't need to hear their whining about this or that," she explained.

Aisha paled. "You maniacs," she said tonelessly.

Janine looked at her sister. "What?" she asked.

Aisha pinched the bridge of her nose. "So, you're telling me, you're not just turning away from the rest of the magical world, but also working on ensuring the rest of the world doesn't talk to you again? And you might actually throw out foreign nationals?" she asked incredulously.

Janine nodded. "It'll be great, no more whining about "Help us with the abyssals!" or "Verdun is waking up! Do something!" or any such drivel," she gave back. "It's not our problem and we're not going to spend lives on saving some foreigners," she added decisively.

Aisha wondered if she would be able to survive the evening without committing sororicide. Or telling the Bundeskanzleramt that they should say screw the statute and topple the magical government right now.

There was isolationism and then there was this. Dig a hole to hide in, build a wall, keep everyone they don't like out and then wait in their hole for the rest of the world to die.

"What was this about Verdun?" Aisha wanted to know.

Janine shrugged. "Some necromantic entity in Verdun stirred. The Frogs complained that we should help them with that," she stated dismissively. "The islanders also whined about some Ascension Ritual in the North Sea. Honestly, it's their countries or their waters, what do we care?" she asked exasperatedly. "We don't go to them and whine about needing help to exterminate the corn demons, do we?" she asked rhethorically.

"Corn demons are real?" Aisha asked in surprise. It was a story from their grandparents they had been told about, rye aunts living in the rye fields and hunting disobedient children in the bad old days.

Janine nodded. "A real pain in the arse. Intelligent enough to know they're hunted. Still, should take only 2 more seasons and those pests are finally relegated to museums and folk tales," she gave back. "At least if the projections hold true," she added quickly.

"Are these beings sapient?" Aisha asked slowly.

"Does it matter?" Janine shot back. "They're carnivorous and humans are a preferred prey for them. They die within days in captivity anyway," she countered. "But, no, they are not sapient, they're about as smart as the smartest dog, so about as idiotic as a meter of country lane," she went on to reassure her sister.

Aisha was far from reassured, the dismissive way her sister talked about it rubbed her wrong. "Any other species you're taking care of?" she wanted to know, leaning forward. This all was a trainwreck and her sister's attitude really didn't help.

Janine shrugged. "Sure, mostly smaller pest species like erl kings. The scrats aren't a problem and you have to give one thing to Grindelwald, he made our job in that regard way easier. Waterpeople for example used to be a plague and drowned hundreds each year. There's very few nixes and necks remaining these days and they're basically dying out due to no longer being able to find mates in their rivers and lakes. Have to thank the Unkönner industry for that one, the pollution started and basically finished what Grindelwald made policy," Janine laid out.

"Wait, wait, wait, you're saying that nixes were killed off by pollution?" Aisha asked incredulously. She knew enough about all the negative effects of pollution, but hearing that it drove a magical species to extinction was something else.

"It was interlocking factors. Pollution weakened them, the Archmages in the late 19th/early20th really didn't like them drowning swimmers as it broke the statute so they started to pressure them into polluted rivers, Grindelwald decided to stop half-assing it and had all those that couldn't be used as labor killed and after the war, the only thing changing was that we couldn't enslave or kill them any more. No one cared about letting them live anywhere non-toxic. From what I heard, MACUSA and a few others used the idea to break a few restive water dwelling beasts of their own. Force them into toxic rivers, let the pollution do the rest," Janine explained. "Sure, some fled, either into the sea or another country, but that means they're no longer our problem," she added.

Aisha stared at her sister, horrified. She shouldn't have been surprised, the magical world did get up to some really disgusting things in the name of secrecy, but gloating about driving a species basically to extinction and its method being called an inspiration was horrifying. And the worst thing, though unknowing, the industries that had polluted the rivers for decades had helped, had enabled this atrocity. She didn't want to know how many magical species had been broken or killed in that way, crushed between the statute and muggle pollution. And she couldn't really doubt it. Too much data had shown what pollution had cost the world, there was no rational reason to believe that magicals would have been exempt from the damage done.

"Honestly, the biggest pest problem these days are the industrial sprites and their descendants, the office sprites," Janine dropped, unaware of her sister's pondering.

"Industrial sprites? What?" Aisha asked incredulously.

Janine nodded. "Yeah, there's nature sprites, basically pest fairies. They live in the woods and have basically vanished these days, the acid rain basically did them in," she laid out. "Some of those sprites had migrated to the cities in the early 19th century and they began taking up residence in factories. It changed them. These things have insect-like wings in the woods, the factories changed their wings and hair to metal. Their nests made of things they could scrounge up in factories as well. Very annoying to get rid off, as things that reliably kill their woodland relatives don't even register to them as toxic," she grumbled. "Anyway, they stick to factories, power plants, dockyards, machine shops and such environments. From them a second branch split off that inhabits offices. Not as agressive as their industrial counterparts and far easier to kill, but far better at hiding and far more dispersed these days," she laid out.

"So, let me get this straight, you people are currently doing your level best to exterminate a lot of magical species for being pests," Aisha began only to be interrupted by her sister.

"We exterminate the dangerous ones. Species that prey on humans exclusively or mostly exclusively. Industrial sprites for example are an annoyance and basically only a "would be nice to get rid of them," thing. Erl kings, corn demons, such things are getting hunted. They're an active threat to humans, so they need to go," Janine laid out. "We'd go after vampires and werewolves as well, but there's difficulties with that," she added helpfully.

Aisha groaned. This whole situation was fractally terrible. She'd have to alert Hartmann, who in turn would have to alert the Archministry of Magecraft to get confirmation that Magical Germany was not, in fact, currently going on a genocide run of sapient beings. It was bad enough that they were conducting extermination campaigns against non-sapient beings for being pests. And that was not why she had come here. She'd have to focus, otherwise they'd be here all night and she'd really like to get some rest at least.

Looking at her sister, she fixed her with a glare. "This is all terrible, but not why you called me here," she ground out.

Janine stiffened. "If you can't guarantee that this won't leak to the allies, I won't tell you more," she finally gave back.

"Why?" Aisha finally asked. "They're our allies as well...," she trailed off, remembering what her sister had dropped earlier in this conversation. "You're not operating under those ideas. To you, every foreigner is an enemy and everything they do is a threat to the nation. Even living," she realized.

"Well, they are," Janine confirmed glibly. "They may have pretended to be allied to us, but honestly, that was bullshit from the beginning. They just wanted a battlefield none of them would feel bad about destroying beyond any chance of recovery," she added.

"So you sit in your ivory towers, paranoid about foreigners that may not even hate you any more, hating their very existence and doing your level best to keep them out," Aisha stated darkly. "And so the cycle continues, you hate foreigners because they are foreign and thus inherently hostile and thus hated enemies. Wonderful," she groaned.

"I do not share your paranoia," Aisha finally ground out. "France has been a great ally, Britain is an ally, the Americans are our allies and even the Russians are. We're fighting a war for humanity's survival together. You people on the other hand do gladly turn your backs on other nations in times of need. So, tell me, did you help the Poles during Blood Week?" she asked accusingly.

Janine bristled. "Of course not," she shot back. "We had needlessly spent hundreds of people on killing abyssals already, always pressured by our so-called allies to help them, the only thing we did was evacuating whoever we could in Germany, not that those numbers mattered," she added. "Sure, the Allies whined at us, but we could finally start ignoring them. They were too busy at home to meddle in places where they don't belong," she finished.

Aisha shook her head. "And that's what it all boils down to, isn't it? As long as it doesn't directly hurt you, you're more than willing to just watch others die," she forced out.

"So, what happened to convince you that I should know?" Aisha asked, leaning forward and fixing her sister with a glare.

Janine shook her head. "If you don't reassure me, I'm not telling you anything," she insisted, clamming up.

Aisha brought her fist down on the table between them. "God damn it, Janine!" she shouted. "Does it get through your skull that I may actually want our neighbors to survive, that I don't consider screwing them over at every opportunity to be a worthy goal?" she roared.

Janine flinched back. "Do you think I want to be here?" she finally asked. "Do you think it's fun having you sit there, act as if you understand? These people are our enemies and they will act against us given any pretext!" she shouted back. "We can not afford to let them have any pretext," she finished.

Aisha looked at her sister. "You seriously believe that. You seriously think that the other magical governments are going to declare war on you given half the chance. Nevermind that blowing them off ever since Blood Week and now even walking out of their club would have seen ample opportunity for them to do something about that," she shouted.

Janine shook her head. "They were in no shape to do that," she objected. "Now they are in shape and they will attack us," she insisted.

"Why? Why would they attack you? It's not like you're letting loose some monster on the world...," Aisha trailed off as her sister flinched. "That's it, isn't it? Something broke loose and it's bad enough that you fear the allies will invade you over it. God damn it, talk, Janine!" she demanded.

"If the allies find out about this, the Archmage will have my head. And I mean that literally!" Janine shot back.

"I can not promise to conceal stuff from our allies that may negatively impact them," Aisha laid out severely. Sagging back on the two-seater, she massaged her nose. "I can protect you, worst you have to come live on base with me," she offered.

"Extend the offer to my colleague," Janine demanded.

Aisha shrugged. "Sure," she agreed. It would be a hassle, but securing witnesses to the crimes of Magical Germany was in itself worthwhile.

Janine sagged down, collecting herself. "Okay, how much do you know about the magical slave factories of the Reich?" she wanted to know.

Aisha pondered the words. "There were more than the one in the Spessart, weren't there?" she demanded to know.

"Yes. Four remain in Germany, the ones outside were, as far as we can tell, all destroyed. Thankfully, none of the research fell into the wrong hands," Janine explained. "Now, the status of the Spessart factory is basically mirrored by the other three," she continued. "Currently, the order is to destroy them completely, both the tanks and artillery pieces built there and the workforce. Now, that is basically hitting roadblocks every other day. Ward schemes flickering and needing to be fixed, the people working on it getting replaced with almost clockwork-like regularity and above all the Archmage's office exerting pressure so shit gets done," she explained. "Also fair warning, that Spessart factory? Better buy up the surrounding land quickly and erect a fence. We can't fix those wards any more and they will come down within a year," she added as an afterthought.

"What do the factories have to do with that?" Aisha wanted to know.

Janine shrank into herself. "Well, we didn't just build planes and tanks. We also had harbors and ships," she admitted. "Their purpose was to help force England into submission and to control the Baltic. We wanted four harbors. We had three," she admitted. "There was Frosthafen in the Baltic. It was basically finished in time to be given up as untenable. The only thing there should be a rotting harbor," she continued.

"Where is it?" Aisha wanted to know.

"Off the Estonian coast, perfectly situated to interdict all shipping into Russia and to monitor the Russian movements into the Baltic," Janine explained.

Aisha groaned. An island like that? A perfect apple of Eris. But it was a dead island and decaying, at least if her sister was to be believed. Small mercies, she supposed. "And the other two?" she asked.

"There is Sturmhafen, it's north-east of Shetland and east of Faroe," Janine continued. "It had begun to build U-Boats as it was intended as an U-Boat harbor. West and East Germany worked together to destroy the workforce there in the 50ies. We also scuttled the submarines there in the Norwegian Sea. That harbor was also decaying, but recently, Abyssals have made it their home. Judging by where they roughly had to come from and their behaviour since they got there, they went too close to Azkaban. It doesn't look like they want to leave their harbor anytime soon," she explained.

"Any idea what types?" Aisha wanted to know.

"Not really. These harbors are warded against scrying spells, it already takes some creative use of the monitoring spells to get what information we have," Janine admitted.

"Now tell me one thing. What motivated your governments to work together in the 50ies and destroy the submarines in Sturmhafen?" Aisha asked with genuine curiosity.

Janine groaned. "Politics," she bit out. "Okay, this is a bit involved. Basically, both sides of the divided Germany had knowledge of these harbors. And unlike the tanks, which we were aware were quite useless by then, magical submarines or surface ships would be a different beast. Both sides feared claiming Sturmhafen, because the only remaining escalation would be claiming Kalthafen. By removing Sturmhafen from the equation, only Kalthafen remained, basically a tripwire that the other side was planning something big and was tapping into all it could possibly get its hands on. It would basically tell the other side that the colonials and Ivan were about to throw down and we would have to batten down the hatches. Also, we really, really wanted to keep every bit of knowledge and research from the allies," she laid out.

Aisha nodded. "Okay, and what is it about Kalthafen?" she wanted to know.

Janine got up and went into the kitchen, getting herself some water. "Kalthafen was supposed to have a sibling harbor in the North Atlantic near the convoy routes to Britain," she began. "And while constructing Kalthafen and its fleet went comparatively smoothly, its opposite harbor was never built, partially because we lacked a suitable island or island chain to base the planned southern fleet out of," she told her sister. "We did however finish Kalthafen and its fleet. Only, without a southern pendant, it was mostly useless in the minds of its planners. So, the fleet was ordered to wait for further orders. Not that it really mattered, most everyone crewing these ships and working dockside were undead slaves anyway. The end of the war saw four of the five people who were authorized to give the order to set sail get executed, those that would have received the orders are dead as well," she laid out.

Aisha pondered that. "So, what went wrong?" she wanted to know.

Janine sat down heavily across her sister. "Kalthafen has gone active," she stated plainly. "The fleet has sortied twice already. Once shortly before the Ascension Ritual in the North Sea, the second sortie a day ago. The first was small, the fleet basically left the harbor and did a small round trip. The second brought them quite a way from their harbor. Considering all angles, we're pretty sure we're dealing with a minimum grandmaster level necromancer here," she elaborated.

"Grandmaster. I'm guessing this is bad," Aisha mused out loud.

Janine nodded. "Yeah. I'm about ready for journeyman level. From journeyman it's up to Young Master, Master, Old Master, Grandmaster. People like Grindelwald or that British guy are at the level of Archmaster or Archgrandmaster. You have to have a lot of talent and a lot of time and a lot of research objects to reach Old Master. Anything above that means dedicating your life to it and being an unicum. Most necromancers stay around Young Master. From what I know, the necromancers we have are at most Masters and a few Old Masters. The grandmasters that didn't manage to make themselves scarce were executed and Grindelwald is still sitting in Nurmengard, though that is getting debated as well, might be better to just off the old codger," she rambled. "So, either we have a grandmaster who turned up after the war and who learned the lesson of not being seen, or it's one of the few that managed to go into hiding. Could also be their offspring. Final option would be a lich or vampire," she added before trailing off when seeing her sister's shocked face.

"You are what?" Aisha demanded to know.

"What?" Janine gave back.

"You're telling me you're doing necromancy as if it was completely normal!" Aisha said slowly.

Janine shrugged. "You can learn a lot of things through necromancy. Häscher for example have to know at least some basics for forensic purposes," she explained. "Murder investigations tend to be so much easier when the victim itself can be asked questions and they tend to not lie," she added. "Also, dealing with small pests is far easier that way. No more looking for insect spray for one," she continued with a small maniacal laugh. "Finally, the construction of the harbors involved a lot of necromantic rituals, so to keep watch over them, you have to actually know what they did back then and what the various readings actually mean," she finished her explanation.

Aisha continued staring at her sister. "Why would you chose such a field?" she finally asked. She couldn't believe it. Sure, her sister had always been somewhat off, but going and practicing necromancy. From everything she knew this was basically black arts and somewhere around extremely blasphemous.

Janine shrugged. "It was interesting. Also, it's hilarious, so many people seem to think that Archnecromancers and such do it in self-study or by travelling the world looking for knowledge in far-off, remote places. That's not the case and in most cases wasting time. There's whole libraries filled with necromantic works and studies and reports and experiments and what have you. No need to go traipsing around the roof of the world to find a hidden castle atop a fivethousander. Chances are, even if there's a castle, the library has been either torched or moved to one of the necromantic libraries. Sure, you might find the notes of a dead Archnecromancer here and there while searching, but that's really more down to luck than anything else," she laid out. "Most necromancers are either trained by a master or it's part of their education, either secondary or tertiary," she continued. "Now, many nations have flat-out banned the practice completely, some have officially banned it without ever doing anything to actually enforce the ban and continue teaching at least some of it and a few nations didn't even bother banning it. They may not necessarily teach it, though," she explained patiently.

Aisha shook her head. It was interesting. That kind of explanation was so like her sister. And one thing made sense. There being libraries and schools where Necromancers could study their craft. Her sister had a point, running through remote areas in hopes of finding the notes of a long-dead necromancer had to be an incredibly long shot.

"We'll have to deal with that another time," she promised her little sister with a sigh and a shake of her head. "What ships do you have in Kalthafen?" she wanted to know, trying to get this evening back on track. There were so many things to unpack, things that would need dealing with, in some cases relatively quickly and then there was the nebulous deadline of the statute collapsing. It was bad enough that they couldn't put a definite date on that, there were conflicting forces both in the magical as well as the mundane world either trying to preserve it for just one more day or trying to blow it up just that bit earlier. Kalthafen's fleet, crewed by undead slaves? If it was seen, it would shatter the statute in about the worst possible way, Nazi-era warships crewed by people enslaved by the Magical Nazis wreaking havoc on the oceans.

Janine looked at her sister. "It's one aircraft carrier, three battleships, five heavy cruisers, six light cruisers and around fifteen destroyers. The carrier and two of the battleships are foreign designs, the rest of the ships is based on German designs. The German battleship is the third Bismarck-sister, the other two are an Imperator Nikolai I we seized during World War One and managed to hold onto, the other is a North Carolina-class built after acquiring her plans. The carrier is a Shokaku-class," she began. "We've never been there, to be honest. There was no need," she continued. "Now, we're going to have to check on all three harbors, ascertain their status and worst comes to worst, we're going to need a fleet to destroy Kalthafen," she finished, sagging down.

Aisha boggled. "You may need a fleet? Anything else?" she asked incredulously. "I can try to limit how many people are briefed on Kalthafen's existence for now, but if you need an actual battlefleet, that won't be possible. That will go up to the EMK and likely to Nato as well," she laid out. "It would be a serious committment of our forces and we'd likely have to look at allied back-up. Either Wandering Princess and her fleet would have to come with us, or the French and Brits would have to commit forces. Hell, we might have to tap the Americans. Because right now, we only have Tirpitz as a fast big-gun boat. Bismarck is still on maternity leave for over a year and rebuilding the twins with three-eighties may not be worth it," she explained. "Don't get me started on the CV and cruiser situation. At least we're not going to run out...," Aisha trailed off. "U-Boats. Okay, that might work. We might be able to take the fleet out with U-Boats, but before we're going down that discussion, I need you to gather the intel. Find out what is going on in Kalthafen and report back to me," she ordered her sister.

Janine nodded. "Will do," she said listlessly.

Aisha looked at her sister. "You okay?" she asked carefully.

Janine shook her head. "Not really," she gave back. "I've just betrayed my country," she said glumly. "It'd need a miracle for the allies to not hear about this. And once they whine at the Archmage over this, he will be able to work out that it was either my colleague or I who blabbed about Kalthafen, especially as he is unaware of Kalthafen's activity. I don't think I'll be able to go home after this," Janine finished.

Aisha boggled. "The Archmage is unaware?" she blurted out.

Janine nodded. "Yeah, we simply concealed the first sortie. We thought that it was something else. Now we had to conceal the second one as well, otherwise there'd be questions," she laid out. "Why do you think I ran to you like I was still six years old? I have no idea what to do!" she admitted. "This harbor and its ships were supposed to rot away!" she shouted.

Aisha flinched back, she hadn't expected that. "Could it be shipgirls?" she asked carefully.

Janine looked at her sister with incomprehension. "Shipgirls?" she echoed.

Aisha nodded. "They have been around long enough, after all," she laid out. "Though, were they maintained?" she asked curiously.

Janine scratched her cheek. "Well, we are dealing with professionally done necromancy and technomancy here. They definitely were maintained, the draugr in Sturmhafen had to be destroyed before the ships could be destroyed, after all," she mused. "So, depending on how much infrastructure remains, the harbor could have fully operational yards and factories to supply parts," she finished.

Aisha groaned. "Oh boy," she let out. "So, your battlefleet not only has a safe harbor, it also has the means of doing major repairs. But, to come back to my question, could these ships have awoken as shipgirls?" she wanted to know.

Janine shrugged. "I don't think so," she admitted. "From what I know, you need a ritual for them to appear," she added.

Aisha shook her head. "There's other ways. You can have natural-born shipgirls and there are the spontaneous manifestations. Or they can get thrown at you by a Canadian harbor refusing to wake up," she laid out. "Though, to be fair, the closest I could see would be a spontaneous manifestation. Though that usually involves abyssals as a clear and present threat to human settlements," she added.

Janine shook her head as well. "Nothing there should be able to conduct such a ceremony, Kalthafen waking up would at the least make waves comparable to Scapa Flow manifesting, far more likely we'd be looking at Halifax levels of magical quakes and I seriously doubt anything there can actually give birth," she countered softly. "I know you mean well, but it's better to look at the facts and they tell me, things are going to be bad," she added.

Transfiguring an old newspaper into a pen and piece of paper, she wrote down coordinates. Tapping it with her wand and muttering a few words, the paper sealed itself. "If I don't report to you in person, assume that I am dead. The paper itself will unseal itself within thirteen days. In it are the locations of Kalthafen, Sturmhafen and Frosthafen. Send shipgirls there to claim or destroy them," Janine said, while handing over the paper. "Good luck," she said and vanished with a crack.

Aisha sagged down putting her hands over her face. "Can't even properly say goodbye," she groaned. And it left her to figure out what to tell her parents. "Sorry, Janine is presumably dead due to some magical World War Two relics being not as dead as hoped," was definitely not a good option. "You better come home, because I want to kill you myself for that stunt!" Aisha growled at the empty room.

-x-x-x-

Well, this ballooned into an info-dumpy piece of garbage with little action, yet, I can't really trim it down without making it feel constricted and unnatural. Janine ultimately doesn't want to talk about the stuff she spilled. So she stalls, dumps unrelated trivia to head off her sister's wrath and generally doesn't get to the point. And as annoying as it was to write and is to read, it feels more natural to me that someone who's out to evade stuff will actually try to evade and drag out things. And Aisha doesn't want to force the issue, as she knows her sister. She needs her to talk herself into a corner and into actually spilling the beans, lest she clams up. She can get forceful once she has talked herself into a corner.

 

[darthcourt10]

Year Three - Prisoner of Shipping Part 4d

START

 

[darthcourt10]

Harry Leferts

After several minutes of deep thought regarding what their children had gone through, Ellen remembered a question that had occurred to her. Turning to the other parents, she cleared her throat a little,. "If I could ask you all about something that is kind of bothering me..."

Eyebrow raised, Yusuke gave a slight nod, "Sure, Ellen-San, go ahead."

Just nodding, the teacher frowned a little, "It is about how our children are magical warships. One of the things that the Admiral mentioned was that they know of a number of them..." Pausing as they simply made noises of agreement, she continued, "How many were there? And how did you have so many? From what little I know, the magical side has a much smaller population."

For several moments, none of the Yokai said anything, just quietly considering their answer. Noriko finally sighed and shook her head a little, "There's... a number of reasons for that. One thing to remember is that while it is true that the population on the magical side of things is lower than on the non-magical side, we still have a hefty amount. Especially us Yokai since sometimes normal humans can become such under certain circumstances if requirements are met."

Crossing his arms, Ken frowned slightly, "I remember old stories that my Obaa-Chan used to tell us when we went to visit her in the mountains. About Yokai and the like, such as how sometimes people were transformed into such."

Slightly smiling, Noriko chuckled, "Some of those stories are not too far off when one gets down to it." Her smile falling, she sighed, "But as to us Yokai, we actually outnumber magical humans, probably three to one if not more. We're also longer lived so even something like a child once a decade does not bother us too much. After all, we'll always be able to have children for a few hundred years, which adds up in and of itself."

Intrigued, Ellen blinked, "Huh... that does sound interesting."

Yui frowned slightly in thought before grimacing, "Some Yokai also have large amounts of children. Multiple births are not uncommon among Kitsune, Tanuki, Nekomata, and the like. My... Okaa-San had eight or nine children before me, though I was only a few days younger than most of my siblings. But... us Jorogumo don't have the numbers that we once did either."

Grimacing slightly, the female Tanuki turned back to Ellen, "No one is quite sure about the pure numbers mind you. Because a lot of us Yokai live in the Non-Magical world, and others live much like the old ways up in the forests and the like. I know of at least one clan of Kitsune who dug an entire system of tunnels in one hillside and live their lives like normal foxes, with no one the wiser for the most part. But... the Diet does publish some figures."

With a small nod, Yusuke took over, "By their own estimates, there's about six or so hundred thousand on the magical side, mostly either in the Reserves themselves or the Shanty towns just outside of them. The Yatsugatake Mountains have a large reserve in them... with towns around them of Yokai that were 'Released' from the Reserve, but resettled just outside of them, or who went there because they did not have skills to be able to live fully in the outside world."

A scowl on his face, Ken glared at a wall nearby, "The... uh, non-magical government knows about them. We're going to be doing stuff like bring in water, electricity, sewage, and schools to those places. Let me just say that some people are very angry and want things to be upgraded as soon as possible so that they can live like any other Japanese person."

Eyebrows raised, the two Tanuki shared a look at that before nodding. Noriko then turned back and bowed to him, "That would be a great help." Waiting until he gave a slight nod and a bow back, she sighed, "But it also ties into the whole issue of the... Magical Navy, you could say. As you can guess, the Reserves are really overcrowded. And in the build up to the War, the Kamo needed bodies to pad out it's numbers. To that end..." She trailed off ro a moment before sighing and continuing, "To that end, they decided that they needed a navy because of various hidden islands. But they did not have enough personnel to handle it, so they came up with an idea."

Straightening, Ellen frowned, "What sort of idea?"

Once more, Noriko shared a look with her husband before turning back to the lone humans, "The idea was to put forward a proposal to the Yokai as a whole. If one was to serve for ten years in the Magical Imperial Navy, and later the Magical Imperial Army, they would be given a free ticket out of the Reserves along with immediate family. As well, they would be given a small parcel of land and be paid... some of the land would be in places like Sakhalin and in China for example. And that once the war was finished, when the Magical government took over Japan to rule beneath the Emperor with the Statute fallen, we would no longer need to hide. Of course that, along with the chance to get out of the Reserves meant that a lot of Yokai jumped at the chance."

Her husband grimaced as his tail twitched, "It was considered a great offer, and to Yokai, ten years was not a huge deal. And it was not just male Yokai who joined up, but female ones as well. Tens of thousands signed up just for the chance to get out of the Reserve system..." Glancing at his wife, Yusuke sighed, "We were two of those, unfortunately to our everlasting shame. I was in the Army, though thankfully in the rear and my wife was a secretary, so we weren't directly involved in anything. Still..." Remorse was on his face and he shook his head, "A lot of our fellow Yokai joined up for the chance of freedom. Pretty sure that upwards of sixty percent had joined up near the end. Of course... at the end of the war, MACUSA and the ICW cracked down even harder on us Yokai, sending greater numbers to the Reserves during the occupations."

A far off look on her face, Yui sighed, "Those... were dark days, indeed."

Looking between them, Ken furrowed his eyebrows, "Wait... if that was true, and I am assuming that you had numbers even then... Couldn't you have fought back? Stopped them?'

Bitter expressions appeared on the faces of the Yokai there and they glanced at each other. Turning back to the human couple, Noriko grimaced, "The issue is that us Yokai were never... well, really all that united." She shrugged a little at the looks, "You got rivalries and grudges that go back centuries between different groups and families. Sort of hard to ignore when one Kitsune's father killed yours about two centuries before in a duel, while your sister killed someone else's sister because she found her in bed with her husband five hundred years before. We have very long memories after all, and long lives which provide a lot of fuel to cause a lot of issues. Kitsune, traditionally, do not get along with Inugami or Tanuki as well as Itachi. Because we're rivals, if you were."

Ellen tilted her head a little, "What about the Clans?" At their surprised looks, she scratched her cheek, "I've taught some from the Ono Clan, the Kaku Clan, and so forth. So..."

Lightly chuckling, Yusuke shook his head, "The Clans are unique in that they generally present a united front regardless of their species or what have you. They buried the hatchet a long time ago, as the saying goes, and now attack one and the others will jump in. The Magical Diet prefers to ignore them for that reason. They don't have official power, but unofficially and traditionally? They hold a lot of sway in the Yokai communities." He then gave a small sigh, "But yes, because of that you had a larger navy than one could have expected. Especially with aquatic Yokai and the like joining up."

Just nodding, Ellen and Ken continued their chat.

Meanwhile inside of the shower room, Sora sighed as she leaned into Eric, who she embraced from behind as the nearly steaming hot water cascaded over them both, "That feels so good."

Tilting back his head, Eric gave her a kiss that made her hum before chuckling, "It really is." He then jerked his thumb back to the small stool that they had been using before, "Come on, let's get all soaped up again. We got years of grime on us and just the short showers on the Fubuki was not enough to really get clean."

From where she was scrubbing down one of the giggling Midget Submarines, Samantha gave him a look, "No, not really. They were what, five minutes tops? Enough to get some stuff washed off, but not too much. This though, it is a lot better." Looking down at the squirming Submarine, she nuzzled the Yokai Subgirl, an Otter Yokai from her tail, "Right?"

Bright smile on her face, the Midget Submarine nodded, "Hai, Onee-Chan!" Turning, she gave an equally happy look to Eric whose back was being scrubbed at by Sora, "You're going to be all squeaky clean, Onii-Chan."

Unable to help himself, Eric laughed some, "Of course, especially with Sora helping me." That got him a kiss on the cheek from said Kitsune and a smile. Shortly after, he was gently working shampoo into her tails as she gave out a small purr, "Feels good?"

Sighing, Sora nodded before giving him a hooded look over her shoulder, "Hai, Eric-Kun. Mmm... feels really good."

Lips twitching, her boyfriend shook his head before his gaze returned to what he was doing. Every once in a while though, Eric did give his girlfriend a look over. To his eyes, Sora was beautiful in every way. Yes, she was a bit too thin and a little bit sickly looking, but he did not mind that much though he did think her rather curvy. And now, she was looking a bit more healthy with the grime and salt washed off her. With the dirt removed fully, her skin was pale and smooth with her brown hair that cascaded over her shoulders having regained some lustre while two fox ears on her head twitched as she worked shampoo into said hair.

And in his hand was one of her nine tails that she had. He could remember the night that it had happened, when he could no longer hear a heart beating in her chest, just the rumble of two or three boilers. To their astonishment, her one tail split first into two the first night and then four the second, and finally eight before a last tail appeared. Something that had freaked her out a little as she was far too young to be a Kyuubi. Though, best that they could figure, it was more her spiritual weight as it were than anything else.

Eventually, he shook that off and stood up, helping her to her feet, "Well, let's go and rinse off again."

Giggling, Sora's eyes twinkled some as she turned and hugged him. Something that showed that she was actually about a head taller than he was, which had been another surprise when she started growing to such a height. Sometimes, his sister teased him about liking tall girls, which he rolled his eyes at.

Currently, her eyes were gazing into his before she leaned down and kissed him. Pulling back, she sighed a little, "Hai..." She then smirked a little, "And you'll need to help me wash out my tails as well."

However, all that did was make him grin as he followed her, promising to make sure that all the shampoo got out.

 

[darthcourt10]

Lord Khuzdul

I have finally started writing again, just in time. A very tiny little snippet for now, with the rest to come. The "party tonight" is about what is happening on the magical side of Turkey and the rest of the Middle East, to some extent. Then, we'll be back to Yavuz and her rapidly depleting patience.

---

"Good news first. The world's in great shape. Canadians jumped the gun and woke up their nice little harbor. The tidal wave that unleashed certainly made things lively. The Mill on the Meuse barely got a stopper shoved into it – remind me to find something that du Chasteler girl can appreciate and send it to her. Japanese somehow summoned one of their warcrime extravaganzas, as something positive, at least. Thanks to the Potter kid."

"Just another day at the office."

"Meanwhile, Alexander's Wall is crumbling, there are alarms blaring from at least a dozen Shayatin seals, jinn are up to something, there are gulyabani sightings after a hundred years – as if the regular shit was not bad enough – and our guy in Adana says Shahmaran is apparently interested in the waking world again."

"What's the bad news?"

"Well, the coffee is running low, you really need to handle the leak in the flush tank, and we are fresh out of troubleshooters."

"Okay, I am going to handle the tank, and you go get the coffee. And let's hope tonight's guests have a better idea about the last one. Now get going, and none of that butterfly wing shit now, we cannot afford distractions, not today."

"Alright, Ilyas, alright. I thought we agreed about you not questioning me."

"Hızır, stop trying my patience again. I am not questioning you. I am telling you to keep your hands to yourself. We are busy enough as it is. Now get moving!"

"I knew quitting the 'wander the earth and meet once a year' thing was a mistake. I am getting too old for this shit!"

 

[darthcourt10]

Yellowhammer

Smells Like Butterknife Spirit

Castle Moulbaix, Belgium

June 1st, 2014

Claire du Chasteler hummed thoughtfully to herself as she headed up to her room from the kitchen to change out of her pajamas.

As she entered, a misty rain pattered the window and she hummed a brief chordal sequence from Rossini's storm movement from William Tell as she watched the rain fall, turning the grounds outside to a monochrome gray.

She then frowned, for while Rossini was majestic and certainly gave meaning and color to such an event, this rain was not powerful and hammering, but just there. A melancholy rain that seemed to bleach out the world with its existence.

Confusing....

With that insight her face lit up and she dug through her dresser until at the back she found an old, worn white T-shirt. She gently stroked the faded image on it of a young boy in a swimming pool swimming toward a dollar bill.

Her mahogany eyes teared up as she remembered the first time that she had worn this.

Pukkelpop Music Festival

Hasselt, Belgium

1991

"You don't have to do this if you don't want to." Mother said in that Mother-voice filled with concern and care for her.

Claire shook her head, even as she shivered a little as a group of rowdy college students passed her, reeking of alcohol and some kind of acrid tobacco. "I do want to, Mother."

Mother sighed. "I don''t understand you sometimes, Claire." She paused to give a tattooed boy a threatening look as he made his way toward them. He changed course at the unspoken promise of trouble in her look.

Claire nodded. "I know, it's confusing me too." Her voice was small and shy and her fingers twitched as they finally found a spot to stand in the crowd. "People confuse me," she whispered to herself.

She wished that they came with musical notation, or at least spoke to her like the great composers did in their interpretations of the essence of what it was to exist.

A voice blasted from the loudspeakers, drowned out by the cheers of the crowd periodically. "For our nex--- ---band all the way from Seattl---- ----ive it up for Nirv----"

"Life's confusing, Mother...." Claire whispered as the guitars and then drums from the new band on stage started to play.

"Load up on guns, bring your friends
It's fun to lose and to pretend
She's over-bored and self-assured
Oh no, I know a dirty word"

As the thunder of the instruments faded to a relative hush, the lanky blond-haired singer spoke words that somehow touched her very being. They were confusing, but life was confusing and messy. Somehow she sensed that this song spoke to her what confusion and uncertainty and not knowing what to do really was. That the seeming nonsense made sense of what she was learning about the world.

"I'm worse at what I do best
And for this gift I feel blessed
Our little group has always been
And always will until the end"

Swept up in the emotions of the moment she began to clumsily dance along with the song and the crowd as the chorus hammered her with harsh, almost violent chords and words.

"Hello, hello, hello, hello
Hello, hello, hello, how low?
Hello, hello, hello, how low?
Hello, hello, hello

With the lights out it's less dangerous
Here we are now, entertain us
I feel stupid and contagious
Here we are now, entertain us

A mulatto, an albino
A mosquito, my libido"

She felt confused and uncertain and alone, true.

But it was fine for she was not the only confused and uncertain and alone person in the world.

Others were like her looking for connections, for meaning, for what Mother had with her sisters Aunt Jackie, Aunt Del, and Aunt Zamarad.

Mother was so happy being a Big Sister, maybe she could be a Big Sister too someday.

She might like being a Big Sister if a suitable Little Sister could be found.

"And I forget, just why I taste
Oh yeah, I guess it makes me smile
I found it hard, it's hard to find
Oh well, whatever, nevermind"

Claire's hair flew around her face as she danced, one of the thousands engraving the memory on her heart.

She lost track of time, of everything around her, of all her shyness and worries and trouble communicating as a girl. The only thing that existed in her world was the music and her.

Her spirit was engraving each drumbeat, each guitar chord, each word on her heart to join the other great pieces of music collected there.

Each one speaking to the human condition. Each one speaking to her in its own way.

On the way out, Claire spotted a stall selling Nirvana tour merchandise. After one look at her joyfully smiling daughter's eyes, Colombe sighed and pulled out her wallet to buy Claire a Nevermind tour T-shirt.

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

Claire pulled on the old and worn T-shirt over her bra and tucked it into her blue jeans.
Spoiler: The T-shirt

She was much less confused now, and was a Big Piano Sister like she wanted to be.

And it was as fun as Mother's being a Big Sister was.

And she understood much more as she learned song after song.

Truly there was music to express everything in the world.

But sometimes you needed to return to your roots, return to your early moments to honor the person you were who became the person that you are.

And while she had outgrown her confused grunge phase, she could still pretend to be the young piano listening to the radio, and hearing of a rock festival nearby that mother could take her to.

A festival where she heard a song that spoke to her heart.

Her fingers found her keys and she began to play from memory as she stared at the falling gray rain spattering her window and thought.

Because while everyone died sooner or later, music and beauty would endure in some form.
Spoiler: Anthem Of A Generation

Ehren silently entered and sat in a chair, listening to her sister play the music written by a tormented young musical genius who in the end flew too close to the sun.

As she began the song engraved on her heart again, Claire gifted her beloved Little Dagger Sister with a warm smile, and began to sing the words for her.

"A denial, a denial
A denial, a denial...."

 

[darthcourt10]

lt_agn02

Despatch pressed her fingers against her temples as she stared blankly at the computator in front of her.

How could this have happened while she was gone?

How could America become so...so...lazy?

America was supposed to own half the world by now. After the Second World War, every civilized nation with half a mind was supposed to be at America's doorstep, hat in hand, asking politely to join the greatest nation in the world.

"Doesn't it frustrate you too, Alton?!" The ship girl asked.

"...No, not really," the former Chicago answered, turning a page in her book. "Food is a lot better. The Internet is so convenient. I actually freeze up a lot more when I have to choose something, so I don't really know how to feel about that. I mean, there's so much television shows, but I don't know what to watch."

"Not that." Despatch turned her laptop around to show the screen. "The United States is supposed to be the greatest in the world. Why are we kowtowing to the demands of other nations?!"

"...We have a three-week mandatory acclimation period and that's how you choose to spend it?!"

"I'm just saying. We are the biggest and the best in town. Why do we still have only fifty states and a small handful of territories?"

"Because we don't want to kick off a war where we'll be playing the role of Germany?"

"Don't be so dramatic. There's no way we could lose a war on American soil. Either way, I thought the Philippines would be the fifty-first after all I went through fighting the Spanish."

"We both know that the Filipinos hated us as much as Spain."

Despatch scoffed. "Since when did feelings have to do with anything?" She proudly waved her arms outward. "I overthrew the kingdom here, put it in American hands, and since then things have been better than ever! Aside from the Abyssals, of course."

Alton firmly placed her hand on her face. Of all things, why did she have to deal with this?

"You better not say anything like that in public when Admiral Settle finally allows us to leave the base."

"Don't worry, don't worry," the girl nonchalantly responded. "It's not like there's anybody still bitter about it."


On the other side of the base, Petty Officer Leilani Clark clenched her fist angrily, causing the man in front of her to flinch. Instinctively, the sergeant protectively hugged the horse behind him.

"I swear she's had her shots! She's well-trained! Honest!"

Clark turned back to the rider she pulled over and whipped out a ticket pad, the sudden anger leaving her face. "Sir, regardless of how well-trained your horse is, not wearing a helmet with a reflective vest or belt on-base is against regulations and you have none of the above. Furthermore, your horse is not registered with security or the stables." Before he could answer, she held up her hand to stop him. "Your cowboy hat does not count as a helmet. This isn't Texas."

 

[darthcourt10]

Harry Leferts

Gently combing his girlfriend's hair best that he could, Eric softly smiled, "Almost done..."

A soft, but happy, sigh escaped the Kitsune as she leaned back her head, "Hai... Mmm... that feels so good to have my hair combed after so long. No more tangles."

Lips twitching, Eric chuckled a bit, "True enough." Placing his comb to the side, he ran his fingers through her hair, the strands parting, "That really does feel nice and clean."

From where she was, Samantha snorted some as she wrestled with another giggling Midget Submarine, toweling them dry, "Of course it does. I half expect that the two of you will spend a lot of time simply doing that." She then turned her attention to the small Submarine that she was toweling, "And you, little missy, need to comb your hair as well."

On said Submarine Neko's face was a grin as her tails swished, "Does that mean that Onii-Chan will comb my hair too? And brush my tail?"

Sharing a look with Sora, who giggled and got up, Eric patted in front of him, "Come on over and I'll give you a comb over."

Just throwing her hands in the air, the Midget Submarine cheered, "YAY!"

Watching this, Samantha rolled her eyes as she grabbed another Submarine and got to work drying her, "You're going to really spoil them, aren't you, Bro? Seriously?"

Unable to help himself as he combed the purring Subgirl, Eric chuckled as he gave a small shrug, "Yes, and? What's wrong with spoiling my little sisters? That is what the job of an Onii-Chan is after all."

That got him bright smiles from the other little Submarines there before the first Submarine was done and she went to throw on one of the small Yukatas there, while the next one came over and sat down in front of him for a little bit of pampering... Thankfully, for him and the time, Samantha was done drying and she started brushing and combing the others as did Sora. Which meant that it took a lot less time than they had feared it would to finish it.

Eventually, they were all done and he got up himself before rolling his shoulders a little under his Yukata, "Being this clean really feels nice..."

Beside him, Sora stretched happily, though she noted that Eric was watching with a slight smirk, "Mmm, hai. It really does feel nice to finally be clean. No more tangles in my hair, no more grime on the skin... everything finally clean."

Nodding, Eric gave a chuckle, "Agreed."

Out of the corner of his eye, he caught sight of Hinata also stretching, though it was obvious that she did not notice he was looking. When he looked back at Sora, his girlfriend had a slight smirk on her face and gave him a wink which he sheepishly grinned at. It said something that the Kitsune was not at all bothered by his wandering eye. Rather, she seemed amused by his reaction more than anything else.

Internally, she was just shaking her head in amusement. Oh, Sora knew that some girls would have an issue with their boyfriend watching another girl stretch. And, perhaps, in another life she would have as well. But after everything that they had gone through on the island? Sora didn't feel threatened in the slightest, despite what some might have thought. After all, the two of them had been together for years and she trusted Eric.

Granted, she had also given the Jorogumo a once over herself as the spider Yokai had stretched and simply nodded, since as per all the stories of her species Hinata was very beautiful, leggy and curvy.

Moments later though, she noted that one of the small Midget Submarines, a Tanuki one, was giggling as she looked at Eric. Raising an eyebrow, Sora looked down at her, "Something wrong, He-14?"

The Submarine giggled again and grinned behind her hands, "Um, it is just that Onii-Chan is all pink!"

Unable to help herself, Sora looked at her boyfriend and giggled as after the scrubbing that they had put him through, he was, indeed, somewhat pink despite his tan. Twinkle in her eye at the look he gave her, she grinned, "I suppose that he is at that."

Sighing, Eric rolled his eyes, "Yes, yes, pick on the only human without superpowers here."

However, that only got more snickers from Sora before she wrapped some of her tails around him and placed an arm over his shoulder, "Aw, I didn't mean to make you feel bad, Eric-Kun." Leaning down slightly, she nipped his ear which provoked a shudder from him, "Perhaps I'll just have to make it up to you later~"

At that, he gave her a look before shaking his head though he had a slight smirk on his face, "Perhaps." With a chuckle, he placed his hand over hers and gave it a slight squeeze, "Let's head out of here as I'm sure our parents are waiting for us..." Those words made his breath catch a bit and he could see the same on the faces of the Natural Borns. But then, Eric shook it off, "Besides which, we still got more checkups to do."

Grimacing, Yumiko shook her head, "And I am not exactly looking forward to that either... I mean, Repair Ships? What the heck is that and how does that even work?"
If she expected an answer though, she did not get one and the group just walked out.

Upon meeting their parents though, they were surprised as the adults looked at them in shock for a few moments before relaxing with smiles. Walking over, Ellen looked at first at Samantha, then Eric, and finally at Sora, "Well now, you all look much better with all that dirt finally off you. It looks less like you're trying to cosplay as Pigpen."

Turning from where she was examining her daughter, Yui frowned as she was unsure if she should be insulted or not, "Pigpen?"

Just blinking, Ellen turned to her and winced as she noticed the expression. However, it was her husband who came to her defense with a chuckle, "A character from Peanuts Comic."

All of the parents suddenly had a look of realization at that and chuckled some. Softly giggling, Noriko looked at her daughter with a small grin, "Hai, that name fit them quite well." Grin widening, she continued, "Though hopefully she does not attract dirt like him."

Lightly blushing, the Tanuki shipgirl's ears drooped a little, "Okaa-San..."

Hikaru shook his head before turning to his daughter and gently placing a hand on her shoulder, "Still it is good to see you clean, daughter. And while it was obvious before, you are truly your Okaa-San's daughter. Beautiful."

Blushing, Hinata twiddled her fingers a little before hugging him, "Thank you, Otou-San." Feeling a tug on her Yukata, she looked down at her younger siblings, "Hmm? Something wrong, Tsukiko-Chan? Natsuo-Kun?"

The two looked up at their older sister in awe before sharing a look. Bouncing around a little, they grinned, "Otou-San is right, Onee-Chan! You're really pretty!"

Needless to say, that made Hinata blush all the more, though she was also happy and softly smiled down at them as she patted their heads, "Thank you."

However, before anyone could answer, the sound of someone knocking made them turn to find a smiling Akashi beside the door to the Repair Docks. Bowing some, she straightened, "Hello, I'm the Repair Ship, Akashi. I heard that there are some shipgirls who need repairs or a checkup?"

Seeing as no one else quite knew what to do, Ellen bowed back, "Indeed, Miss Akashi. Those would be our daughters and the others here." With one hand, she gestured at the girls in question, "I am assuming that you have been told their situation?"

A small grimace on her face was all that Akashi allow be visible, but she nodded, "Hai, I was informed as to what had happened." She then smiled softly and stepped to the side, "If you'll just come inside the Repair Docks, I'll do my best to make it as quick as possible for all of you."

When both Samantha and Sora glanced at her, and she noticed that the other Natural Borns glanced unsure at their own parents, the English teacher cleared her throat, "Would it be possible for us to accompany our daughters, Miss Akashi? That way, we can ask a few questions for you?"

Understanding what was unsaid, the Repair Ship simply nodded, "Of course. And in the meantime, Eric-San can be checked over by Doctor Misaki at the same time."

Eric glanced at his father who gave a small nod and soon the two walked over to the door that lead to the small examination room. Before they went in, Ken softly spoke to his son, "Eric-Chan? Are you alright?"

The young adult sighed a little as he considered it. Finally, Eric nodded, "As much as I can be, I suppose." Looking at the door, he grimaced slightly, "Let's just get this over with..."

Just nodding, the two of them entered the small examination room to find an older man in a doctor's coat and with a piercing glare. For a moment, both men were reminded of the stereotypical 'Grumpy Doctor' from so many television shows back in the United States. But neither made a comment about it.

For his part, the doctor gave Eric a once over before frowning and shaking his head as he muttered. Patting the examination bed, he put on some gloves, "Okay, we're going to keep this simple since the Doctor on the Fubuki already gave you a brief examination. We're going over the bloodwork and such now, so expect something in a few days. Right now though, I'm just going to give you a physical and look at you for any obvious signs of injury or illness."

Bemused at how the doctor was acting, Eric only nodded, "Um, okay then. Do you want me to..."

Giving him a look, Doctor Misaki sighed a little, "Hai, I can't well give you much of an examination with you wearing that Yukata. But once I'm done, you can put it back on." After Eric slipped the clothes off, the doctor came over and began his examination. The first place he started, obviously, was where the young man's arm had been, ignoring the wince from Eric's father, "Hmm..." Examining it and fingers poking and prodding, Doctor Misaki frowned, "How did this happen?"

Unsure, the young man looked at the doctor and then his hand before taking a deep breath, "Do you want the whole story?" At the look, he shrugged, "Well... my arm got hurt during the sinking. Sora, who was my best friend then and my girlfriend now-" He didn't notice the grin on his father's face, "I guess became a shipgirl then, but... something went wrong and she nearly drowned. So I dove after her and my sister helped get her towards the surface when the... Abyssal aircraft fired into the water. Next thing I knew, my arm was hurting and the water was filled with blood."

Only nodding as he continued examining the amputation, the doctor looked at him, "I see... was that when it was amputated?"

However, Eric shook his head, "No, that was... two or three weeks after. My arm had some wounds on it and, well, the adults who survived didn't let my sister's medical fairies work on it. Instead, they washed it with seawater and used a bottle of peroxide or alcohol from a first aid kit they recovered after picking out what metal they could see before pouring the whole bottle on it. And they wrapped it up to heal."

Already knowing where this was going, Misaki scowled, "Idiots... you can always be sure about missing some. And using seawater to wash it. And let me guess... they didn't change the bandages that often due to a lack of them." At the nod, his scowl deepened, "Fucking morons. They should have let the fairies do their job... might have saved the limb since I am assuming that it went septic."

Shuddering, Eric only nodded, "I guess? That was what my sister said anyways... I don't remember much except it started to turn a funny color and there was this nasty smell from it. After that... I don't remember much as I got really hot and couldn't focus on anything. But... I remember my sister having enough and forcing one of the adults who had a penknife back."

That got him a look from the doctor who stared, "Do not tell me that said man was going to amputate with a fucking Kami damned penknife?"

Just wincing, Eric rubbed the back of his neck with one hand, "That... was what he was going to do. But Sam went and used one of her fairies after it knocked me out to do so. And when I woke up..."

He nodded towards the lost limb and Misaki shook his head, "It is a good thing that her fairy did so because otherwise, Kid? You would very likely not be among us anymore." That caused both father and son to wince. But the doctor ignored it and went back to examining it with a small frown, "Whoever the fairy is, though, did a damn good job of amputation. With how technology has advanced, perhaps one of the bionic prosthetics would work for you. They're advanced enough now that you would barely notice that it is not a natural limb..."

 

[darthcourt10]

Harry Leferts

Samantha had not been quite sure what to expect when she heard the words "Repair Docks" spoken. While, yes, it had been explained to her that it was where shipgirls went for "Repairs", which in her mind meant being healed, she was still confused about it. It just sounded... strange, somehow. And hence, she was not sure what to expect from the place in question, even as she walked through the doors to it...

What she definitely had not expected was what looked like a bathhouse with a bath more in common with a pool than anything.

Eyes wide, Samantha looked around the entire room that they were inside. Obviously, at some point it had been a simple warehouse, but it wasn't anymore. While she was half-Japanese and lived in Japan for a number of years before... the incident that left her, her brother, and others stranded, Samantha had not been to many traditional bathhouses. But looking at the area before them now, she had a very good idea how one would look.

It was also at this point that the Subgirl noticed that they were others waiting in the room. Two of them resembled Akashi with similar uniforms on them, though one had greyish, nearly steel coloured hair and the other had pink hair that was in a braided ponytail. There was also a pair of girls, Japanese Twins, watching them with interest though she noted that they kept glancing at Sora in thought. Unsure, Samantha looked at a smiling Akashi, "Er..."

Lightly chuckling, the Repair Ship gestured at the two who resembled her, "Let me introduce my sisters, Momotori-Chan, and Mihara-Chan. And beside them are the twins, Konohana Sakura and Konohana Ume, the spirits of an Installation."

And, sure enough, when Samantha looked at the twins she could see the massive Installation overlaying them. It was contained in some sort of Caldera, but she could make out slipways, foundries, and the like, "Huh." Bowing, she smiled, "I am Baker Samantha, Submarine I-354. And I am very pleased to meet you."

The gathered girls in front of them bowed back, "And we are very pleased to meet you as well."

Just looking around curiously, Hinata frowned, "Um... this doesn't quite look like how I expected it to..."

A light chuckle came from Akashi and she shook her head, "I'm not too surprised about that to be honest. It was something noticed after the first year or so of the war." Seeing the interest, she continued, "You see, no one was quite sure how to repair and heal us. At best, you might need specialists. But then, during a lull, some of the girls went to Furofushi Onsen, which is an iron hot spring... and when they came out, they were completely refreshed and, more than that, all the wear and tear was gone. Needless to say, we noticed and after some experimentation, found that waters similar to that had a rejuvenating effect on us shipgirls. No one is quite sure how, but it works, so we created a version... hence the Repair Docks, which uses a special 'Repair Fluid' based on mineral rich hot spring water." She gave a small shrug, "Works wonders, trust me. Especially with our fairies going to work."

Still unsure, the newly arrived shipgirls looked at one another. Finally though, Sora cleared her throat, "How... how do we do this exactly?"

Bemused, Akashi chuckled slightly, "It is rather easy when all is said and done. All you need to do and act like it was a normal bath and we'll do the rest. That's basically it."

Frowning, Hinata looked at the bath and chewed her lip, "Do we need to transform into our true forms, or..."

Lips twitching into an understanding smile, the Repair Ship nodded, "You're a Jorogumo, correct?" At her surprised look, Akashi shrugged, "We were informed ahead of time due to needing to know about our patient. But if your worried, see that spit where Momotori-Chan is standing by?"

Confused, Hinata gave a nod, "Hai? What about it?"

With a chuckle, Akashi looked at her, "That's the... deep end of the pool, if you will. Yamato can stand there and it would reach her chin, which should be, if you fold your legs beneath you, probably at your collar bone. Though we can try with you in your normal human form and see where that goes if you want."

Hinata wrung her hands some before nodding, "I... think that I want to try the second... if that's okay with you."

Not bothered at all, Akashi shook her head, "That is perfectly fine. Now... the buckets are for rinsing yourselves off first before you enter the Docks. Just like you would before entering a hot spring. If you need anything, including food while we work, just ask. Rose-San, who is a tea set Tsukumogami, provides refreshments for recovering shipgirls as sometimes they can be in the Repair baths for hours or days being repaired, though it should not take that long."

She finished up gesturing at a nearby door, and Ellen nodded some, "Once you start working, Miss Akashi, I'll go and get something to tide us all over."

The pink haired shipgirl merely nodded at that before turning to the others. Unsure, they obeyed the instructions and rinsed themselves off, though more than one shuddered at the tingle left behind by the repair fluid. With deep breaths, they all slipped into the waters of the Repair Docks and groaned as almost immediately, pains that they did not know that they had seemed to go away. Eyes widening, Samantha bit her lip before shifting, "How the heck does that feel so damn good...?"

Unable to help herself, Momotori smiled at her, "That's normal for the first time. Be thankful that we have not needed to use the Enhanced Repair fluid." Bemused, she shook her head and gestured at the rail in the ceiling, "Comes along there in these buckets that dump their contents onto shipgirls. They like to call them 'Instant Repair Buckets' because they get rid of a lot of damage that accrues."

As she listened, Hinata heard a small splash and noticed Sora smiling at her. The Battleship gestured to the small area next to her, "Come and lay beside me, Hinata-Chan."

Despite being unsure, the Jorogumo still made her way over and laid next to the Kitsune. Lips curling into a small smile, she glanced at one of her newest friends, "This is nice."

Humming, Sora sighed a little and gave her a smile in return before chuckling, "It always is with a friend."

Lightly blushing, Hinata twiddled her fingers a little, "Agreed... after all, I don't have that many of them." Her voice lowered a little as she glanced at her mother who was chatting with the other mothers, "Being what I am and all..."

Moments later, she found her hand being grasped by someone and looked up to find the Kitsune beside her smiling, "You got one in me than. And more in the others, which you should always remember. We're your friends now, Hinata-Chan."

That got her a happy nod from Hinata before the Jorogumo leaned back and hummed happily as she felt each lap of the small waves of the pool wash away more and more of the aches and pains she had felt build up for years. Not that she really noticed much until this point as they had never gone away. Yet now, with them slowly fading, she could realize just how much her body had ached. And looking around, she could see much the same from the others around her.

Yumiko then chose that moment to speak up and draw attention to her, "I... dont want to sound ungrateful, Akashi-San, but... is there anything else? Or do we just sort of float in the bath?"

Chuckling, Akashi shook her head with slight amusement, "As a matter of fact, that is part of what you will do. The rest is up to myself, my sisters, as well as Ume-San and Sakura-San." She held up her hand and a fairy appeared on it, "We're going to send out fairies over to you to examine your hulls and internals to make sure that there is nothing wrong and fix any issues that we can do so at this moment." Giving a slight nod towards her sisters, she continued, "Hopefully, you do not mind that my sisters will be helping as will the twins as they're learning and it is best done on the job. My own fairies will be supervising though."

From where they stood, Ume spoke up, "Actually, in the case of the Midget Submarines, we can handle those on our own." At the looks, she smiled, "Our... facility built many of them after all and all our fairies know how they operate. So we can handle them easily enough and fix them up."

The Repair Ship considered that for a few moments before giving a nod of her own, "That sounds fine, you would likely know more about such than I would anyways." She then turned to the shipgirls in question, "Would that be fine with you?"

Sharing looks, the group just gave shrugs with Samantha speaking for all of them, "Sure? You know more about this sort of stuff than we do."

Unable to help herself, Akashi's lips twitched into an amused smile before she summoned her rigging. And she was not the only one either as her sisters did much the same as did the Twins. But where the Repair Ships hung out along the edges of the pool, the Twins stepped onto the surface and kneeled as their rigging shifted. Softly smiling, Sakura gave a slight nod towards the Midget Submarines, "Now, if you'll come over, we can begin."

With a glance towards their "Onee-Chan", four of the Midget Submarines made their way over and laid down inside what looked like submerged trays. Oddly, they felt rather comfortable and the Twins eyes began to become clouded over. Unseen by everyone else, they found themselves beside one of their drydocks with four Midget Submarines inside as their fairies, now full sized to their eyes, went to work. They watched as they performed maintenance on the Midget Submarines, with one climbing inside the cramped quarters to work on the internals as the others did their work from the outside. Dents were smoothed out and any sort of corrosion was removed and new metal put in. Even new coats of paint was applied.

Meanwhile, Akashi placed some fairies onto the various girls as did her sisters, though they put more due to this also being a learning experience. Samantha and the others watched with wide eyes as the small beings stood on their stomachs with "Desus" before vanishing, seemingly disappearing into their skin within the blink of an eye. As well, they could feel the fairies moving through their corridors as they performed survey work for any damages.

As she got the reports back from them, Akashi began to nod as she had her crew go through any spare parts she had, in contact with her sisters as well as the Twins. She felt her smile grow a touch as Sakura and Ume released the Midget Submarines that they had been working on back into the bath proper. The hulls of said Subgirls looking nearly brand new, while their bodies had regained more of a healthy color. Even as she watched, the Twins took the next four Midget Submarines, 'Good, they're going to be able to get a lot of work done quickly.'

Then, Akashi turned back to her work with the others and grimaced some internally at the reports that she was getting, 'These girls... will take a bit longer...'

 

[darthcourt10]

Savato93

As always, the port of Yokosuka was in a state of constant motion. A number of shipgirls milled about on the docks and in the water, setting out or returning from patrols, as well as looking after the few ships still operating under the Abyssal threat. In all, it was business as usual… save for a recent arrival from the Bering Sea. The Omega stood out among the ships currently in port, for several reasons; for one, she wasn't a fishing boat or container ship. With so much of the world's oceans being contested by Abyssals, leisure ships in general had fallen out of favor with many people, which made a large, unarmed ship such as her a rare sight.

The second, slightly more unsettling reason, was that she was currently crawling with said Abyssals.

Off to the side of the ramp leading off the ship, one of the Omega's old dinghy hoists had been repurposed and reinforced to handle a slightly larger—and livelier—load. "Wow, everything is so tall and shiny here!" Marble exclaimed happily, wiggling in the air as she was lowered down to the ground. "I want to explore!"

Below her, Tanith chuckled. "We will get to that soon enough, Marble. Right now, let's get you fitted in your new harness." Sitting directly underneath the suspended Oku-class was a slab of metal and rubber resting on all-terrain tires. The rubber top of the slab was molded to conform to Marble's underside, and had straps to help hold her in place. The entire contraption was more or less an oversized dolly, thrown together on fairly short notice to spare Marble's underside from being worn down through constant land-based movement.

It was a good thing that they discovered her antifouling had been ground away when testing the hoists… that would have presented problems down the line if left unfixed.

After a minute of adjusting her seating and fiddling with the straps, Marble was ready to go. She tested the harness by pulling herself forward and back with her flippers, doing a little spin in place, before letting out a hum of satisfaction. "I like this!" she announced brightly. "It feels more like I'm sailing again."

"Just as it should," Tanith said with a nod. "This will be much better for your hull… and everyone's ears." She suppressed a shudder, recalling the grating screech of her daughter's shell dragging over solid rock and concrete. "Now, your older sister has been coming here often to be taught by Mother, so she knows her way around. Once they arrive, she can guide you and the others. Okay?"

"Okaaay."

After a quick hug, the carefree hatchling rolled away on her dolly, eager to check out the surrounding areas. With that done, Tanith turned towards the offloading ramp, where a certain pair was hesitant to set foot on the pier. "I hope you two are not too nervous. It would be a shame for you to come all this way just to stay on the ship."

Standing beside her flagship, Fluffy couldn't help but fidget. "I-I know that, Princess. It's just that this is… this is the first human settlement I've ever seen that wasn't an abandoned, bombed-out wreck. Seeing what humans are actually capable of building when nobody is trying to knock it all down? I'm not gonna lie, it's pretty intimidating."

"...I see." Tanith nodded slowly, pursing her lips. "In that case, what if I told you that you aren't the first?" Fluffy tilted her head slightly as the Princess continued. "Many of us were put off as well, when we first visited Japan. Unalaska is nothing like this—there are no skyscrapers, no trains or subways, no heavily-fortified naval bases. Just a small town of a few thousand inhabitants."

Fluffy lowered her gaze, her expression thoughtful. "Well… I guess you have a point about that. But what about all the people? The only human I've met up to now is Uncle Harry… I doubt they're all gonna be like him."

"And… and me…" next to Fluffy, Renita finally spoke up. "What if something happens? What if I freak out again? Someone might get hurt… or worse."

"I will admit, you both have valid fears," Tanith replied with a soft nod. "But... that does not necessarily mean they will come true." She reached out and rested a hand on both Fluffy and Renita's shoulders. "I think you two will handle this outing just fine. You are both thoughtful, good-natured girls; as long as you treat strangers with friendliness and respect, they will most likely treat you the same way. But even if they do not, or if something unexpected happens, you will not have to deal with it on your own—your family will be there in some form, to help you. Understand?"

"...yeah, alright," Fluffy agreed.

"Good." Stepping back, Tanith gave the pair a small smile. "You two have done well at home, settling into your new routine. Now, though, I think it is time for you to have some fun."

"Mom! Aunt Renita! Fluffy!" The trio turned around to see Regalia approaching, waving a hand over her head in greeting. "You all made it in one piece—GUPHF!" Focused on the Abyssals in front of her, the Re-class didn't notice Marble rushing towards her from the side, excited to see her, until they collided in a loud crash of metal hitting metal.

The momentum Marble had built up with her dolly was enough to carry her for several more meters after the impact. She looked around in confusion as she came to a stop. "Regalia? Where'd you go…?" She asked.

Behind the Oku-class, her sibling laid face-down on the ground, with her legs and rear end dangling in the air and her tail hanging down over her head. "I'm… 'm right here..." she said in a muffled, dazed voice.

Tanith struggled to suppress a giggle. Make no mistake, she was concerned for Regalia after literally getting run over by her little sister… but she just looked so ridiculous in her current pose. "Are you okay, Regalia…?" She managed to get out.

Still face-down on the concrete, Regalia gave a weak thumbs-up.

Fluffy snorted, before doubling over in laughter. In no time, the other Abyssals joined her in laughing their butts off at the Re-class's ridiculous pose; even Renita let out a small chuckle. As she picked herself up, Regalia giggled, too—she didn't mind the laughter from her family, since she knew it wasn't being directed AT her.

Standing a short distance away, Hoppou couldn't help rolling her eyes with an amused grin at the scene before her.

…

"Now, then… let this be a lesson for you, Marble. You need to be very careful when you are rolling around, or else you risk hitting something—or someone."

Sitting in place with some improvised wheel chocks wedged under her tires, wearing an expression like a guilty puppy, Marble nodded. "Yes, Mama." She glanced beside her. "Sorry, big sister."

Next to Marble, Regalia dabbed at her bloody nose with a paper towel. "It's okay, Marble, I forgive you. You didn't really hurt me… just popped a valve or two. No problem at all to fix."

Hoppou nodded. "Yep. Hoppou is confident Regalia can take care of her damage, now that she's been receiving medical training." Turning her attention to Renita, she stepped over and gave her a careful hug. "How have you been, Renita? Are things okay at home?"

Renita nodded slowly, returning her mother's hug. "I've… been doing a little better. I'm having an easier time sleeping… and I have a little more energy."

"Good. Good." Hoppou reached up and rubbed her weary daughter's cheek. "Any improvement in Renita's condition, no matter how small, is an achievement. Things will continue to get better as long as you keep moving forward… remember that, okay?"

The Re-class closed her eyes and nuzzled against her mother's palm. "Okay, Mommy."

"Oh! Did something happen here?" The girls turned to see Millie stepping off the ramp of the Omega, with Kora alongside. "I thought I heard some commotion, but I was busy with the engines belowdecks."

Kota nodded in agreement. "Yeah, sounded like some sort of scrape."

Regalia shook her head. "No, no, nothing like that. Just a little accident." She paused to pull the paper towel away from her nose and tap the back of her hand against it, to confirm her nosebleed had stopped. "Anyway, are you two looking forward to exploring a modern city?"

"You know it!" The Ko-class answered, puffing her chest out proudly. "This is gonna be great!"

Millie, meanwhile, rocked her head slightly. "Well… I'm kinda nervous, admittedly. But I'm sure everything will work out just fine. I'll just try to focus on enjoying myself."

"That's a good attitude to have, Millie," Tanith said with a nod. "Now, since she comes here often through the Cabinets, Regalia will guide you girls around, show you whatever you might be interested in. Mother and I will be busy with another matter in the meantime."

"What would that be?" Fluffy asked.

"Hoppou-chan, Tanith-san." Tanith turned to see Ooyodo had arrived, a clipboard in hand. "I've managed to set up a meeting for you two with some government officials. Are you ready to speak with them?"

Tanith held up a finger. "Just one moment, please." She turned back to the other Abyssals. "If we hope to enlist aid from the humans and Yokai, we need to work out the matter of salaries and benefits… which, in its current state, Avrora cannot really provide. As such, Mother and myself hope that the Japanese government might be able to pay any volunteers in our stead."

"We won't bore you by making you come along." Hoppou waved the young Abyssals away. "For now, just go out and enjoy yourselves!"

As Tanith, Hoppou and Ooyodo walked away, Regalia turned towards Fluffy, Renita and the fledglings. "Alright, everyone…" she said, clapping her hands. "Where shall we begin?"

 

[darthcourt10]

Yellowhammer

De Profundis: The Exploration And Research Logs of USS Trieste (DSV-0)

Entry #3

1558, 23 June 2014

US Naval Academy, Annapolis, Maryland
Spoiler: Trieste In Her Element

Trieste waved farewell to her current set of spotters as their relief descended to the bottom of the swimming pool where she was sitting cross-legged. She then returned to the waterproofed e-book reader (Castro's Advanced Marine Biology) and began to take notes on the chemosynthesis processes of Riftia pachyptila tubeworms that congregated around geothermal vents two thousand meters below the surface.

Truly the oceans were full of wonders. That thought caused a broad, happy smile to break out across her face as she held her breath from habit while submerged. Unlike her normal rigging, she was only wearing a midnight blue one-piece swimsuit with US NAVY in gold letters down the side and was concentrating on being as 'girl' as she could be.

Her machinery thrummed a pitch higher as she thought of her successor ALVIN submersible who had rolled back the curtain of ignorance to shine the light of understanding on something humanity never knew existed in 1977. Her eyes then widened slightly as she remembered minute temperature variations in the Marianas Trench during her dive.

Perhaps there were black smokers down there that could support chemosynthetic life. Life that could have sang the song that was calling to her. A hypothesis to collect evidence for once she got back to the depths.

She closed her eyes and listened to the melancholy sussurus of sound from the depths of the Pacific for long seconds then opened them and checked her dive watch.

Sixty-three hours, fifty-eight minutes, forty-three seconds and counting on this test of her diving endurance.

Her lips curled in a smile and she gave an OK sign to the pair of burly midshipmen in SCUBA gear who were her current safety spotters before returning to her e-book and her recorded observations of her functioning in a dive. One of her faeries alerted her to the time and she then flipped mental gears to begin to work on her correspondence using the [email protected] email that had been set up for her to keep in touch with the children who had witnessed her self-summoning.

As her Admiral had explained to her, her admirers were the future of the Navy. And the future was bright indeed.

"Dear Paul. The important thing in exploring is to always prepare and get ready for what you are about to do. Before I explored the deepest parts of the ocean, I was tested on lesser dives to find out if any problems existed in me and fix them. Likewise, for you and your science club friends one stept at a time will achieve all your goals. Always keep your ambitions in sight and reach for them as I have done, but also pay attention to the path between where you are now and your goal. Also pay attention to everything, some of the greatest discoveries have been sparked by someone just being in the right place at the right time, like the giant tubeworms I am studying now. No one thought that anything like them existed, and the expedition that found them in the Pacific in 1977 was so sure that the underwater volcano that they were examining was so inhospitable to life that they did not even have a marine biologist on board. Instead, they stumbled across a deep-ocean wonderland of giant worms like in the photo I am sharing with you that can reach the size of a man. All thanks to paying attention to other things than they looked for.

Your friend, Trieste."

She nodded in satisfaction at her response to this message and sent it on its way through the internet -- quite an amazing invention! -- before turning to the next message in her inbox. After all, since she was going to be down here until she reached her limits of endurance, she may as well be productive with her time. Idle hands were the Devil's workshop, after all.

"Dear Jennifer...."

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

0400, 29 June 2014

US Naval Academy, Annapolis, Maryland

Trieste gasped for air like a beached fish as she lay on the concrete lining the edge of the pool.

Finally she gave the concerned medics and divers around her a shaky smile and a thumbs-up as her crew reported that the CO2 levels on board her were dropping out of the red zone on the instruments.

One hundred seventy-one hours, thirteen minutes, twenty seconds without breathing assistance or stored gas.

Over a week underwater on her own.

She felt light-headed and dizzy as she was helped to a sitting position. The team who had assisted with her test began to applaud as she regained her strength and stood upright on her own on legs that firmed up more with each passing second. She raked her fingers through the sodden tangle of her hair and then gave them a much firmer smile.

"T-thank you." She coughed out in a hoarse voice. "Thank you all. What's the next test in the planned cycle?"

"Medical checkup next to make sure you didn't damage anything, Commander. You need to pack your bags for transport to Norfolk where Acheolus is waiting for you in the repair baths." The officer in charge responded. "Then sea trials in the Chesapeake Bay and off the Virginia Capes."

Trieste saluted. "Aye aye sir. Off to Atlantic Fleet I go." She chuckled as her stomach rumbled thunderously. "After I hit the chow hall to grab a bite to eat. I might not have fuel bunkers like the rest of the shipgirls, but I'm starving."
Spoiler: King Hall

"King Hall opens at 0630 and we notified them that there's a hungry shipgirl inbound while you were gasping for air. Breakfast menu all right for you?" The midshipmen around her grinned knowingly as they resolved to watch what would transpire.

"Lieutenant, right now I'm so hungry I could eat a full grown Physeter macrocephalus sperm whale raw with a little salt. Scrambled eggs, bacon, and hash browns is good enough for me. Add in a pot of Navy Coffee and I could kiss the cooks." Trieste responded as she licked her lips, perking up noticeably at the promise of breakfast.

Laughter greeted the next exchange as she made her way to the showers to change. "Some of the cooks are women you know."

"Don't care. Kiss 'em anyway. Mmmm.... Eggs, bacon, and hash browns with a cup of Black Joe to chase it all down." Trieste mumbled to herself as she headed in the general direction of terrorizing one of the largest dining facilities in the US Navy.

 

[darthcourt10]

Harry Leferts

Climbing down into the Samantha's hull, one of Akashi's fairies looked around in interest before moving aside so that the others could come down. Noticing the Captain of said Submarine, he gave a small nod and saluted, "Sir!"

Lips twitching, the Captain saluted him right back, "Lieutenant. Welcome aboard our ship."

Simply bowing slightly, the Lieutenant noted that the Captain's XO had an otter tail behind him and similar ears, "Thank you, Sir." Glancing around, he chuckled, "She is a very good ship."

Unable to help himself, the Captain lightly laughed and gave a nod, "Indeed she is. Samantha-Chan is an extremely good ship."

Eyebrow raised at that, the fairy blinked, "You call her by her human name?"

With a small shrug, the Captain gestured for him to follow, "Hai, because that is her name. And in a way, it works better than calling her 'I-354' all the time." Scratching his chin as he walked through a hatch, he hummed, "A bit strange all that has happened, and never would I have thought that our ship's Kami would be half American, but... in the end she is our ship and that is all that matters."

Giving a slight nod as he ducked beneath a hatchway, Akashi's Lieutenant smiled a little, "That is true, I suppose, Sir." Glancing around, he was already making notes as small bits of wear and tear were visible to his sharp eye. For example, there were a few spots of corrosion here and there, the orange of the rust standing out, "Permission to ask a question?"

Already expecting the question, the Captain chuckled, "You wish to know how we managed for so long, I take it?"

Frowning, the Lieutenant just nodded, "Hai. No offence, but even shipgirls need repairs of sorts, even if that is just dipping in a hot spring to heal. A bit of professional curiosity on my part, if you will."

The Submarine's Captain stroked his chin a little before turning back to the personnel from the Repair Ships, "How much do you know of magic?"

Only frowning, the Lieutenant glanced at the others before turning back, "Not too much, Sir. For most of us, we're still getting used to it and even in the afterlife, well... we don't have much reason to come across magicals such as yourself." At the laugh, he blinked, "Sir? Did I say something funny?"

However, he was waved off, "Not at all, but if you must know, I'm a Squib. My parents were magical as was my older brother, but I was not. Joined the No-Maj Navy just before the First World War. Even served on one of the German Submarines we got as reparations." As they continued to walk, he continued, "Left the No-Maj Navy about 1927 to help train up Submarine crew for the Imperial Magical Navy. Ended up in command of Samantha-Chan at the end of the war." Gently, he stroked the metal of the hull, "We even managed to survive to the end of the war. Ourselves and five other Submarines..."

For several moments, he was quiet before sighing. Something that Akashi's fairy frowned at, "And then what happened?"

Not saying a word, the Captain had a far off look in his eye before turning back to him, "As I said, I'm a Squib. Myself and a number of others were out at sea when orders to surrender came through. Two days later, we hooked up with an American Submarine, the Foxfish and surrendered to her. Her XO though as soon as he found out that a number of us were Squibs, stated that Rappaport's Law had to be obeyed according to their orders. Which meant our memories being wiped of magic. Turns out, MACUSA wanted to impose that as terms of surrender. Don't know if they did or not, but the female Captain, a Jackie, shot that down. We had a talk and shared a dish of sake under the moonlight where myself and the other Squibs composed a poem. She then took on our crew who were going back, gave me my sword, and saluted us as we dove our Submarines to below crush depth." Lips pressed thinly, he shook his head, "She understood, I think. That we were going to die as ourselves instead of having so much taken from us."

Understanding, Akashi's Lieutenant simply nodded, "Hai."

After a few more moments, the Captain shook his head, "But to answer your question, Lieutenant, we do have two magicals on-board and made use of something called the 'Doubling Charm'. It creates copies of something, though they do not last nearly as long. We simply replaced the faster wearing parts with copies. Even if they lasted a few months, that stretched our ability to operate. Same with the other ships in our Flotilla."

Only chuckling, the Lieutenant shook his head before the tour continued. And, he had to admit, it was impressive. There was a lot on the ship including a small workshop that from the outside seemed about the size of a cupboard, but inside had tools and the like to effect minor repairs for Submarines. In one small area there was also trunks, apparently with expanded insides, which could hold parts and supplies in stasis spells. Even the kitchen was enlarged to the point where there were three cooks operating. There was also plenty of room for storage of torpedoes and other things that Submarines needed.

That said, he could already spot the various issues. Small bits of damage that had been repaired best that they could for example. Areas of corrosion on the hull and in parts of the machinery that obviously they could not fix with simple magic. He even found some fuel lines that that had been taped of all things due to leaks. Something that made him wince to no end. Once he was done though, he nodded and went back to Akashi to get together a work force who soon got started on their job.

Meanwhile, outside of the odd spiritual realm that the inside of their hulls were, the various shipgirls simply enjoyed the bath as they could feel the wear and tear wash away. Coming up to where her daughter was, Ellen gently stroked her head with made the Subgirl open her eyes, "How are you doing, Samantha?"

Humming, Samantha took a deep breath before letting it out, "A lot better now, Mom. Heck, I'm feeling aches that I did not know that I had disappear."

Lips twitching her mother chuckled, "That is good to hear, Honey." Gently kissing her daughter on the forehead, she happily smiled, "Really good to hear." Getting another hum, Ellen turned to Sora, "And how are you doing, Sora?"

Shifting a little, Sora gave her a happy smile, "Much better, Ellen-Oba-Chan." After a moment, she rotated her shoulder and nodded, "And it feels like my shoulder is not killing me anymore."

Confused, the American furrowed her eyebrows, "Your shoulder? Why would your shoulder hurt?" Her expression became one of concern, "Did something happen?"

Lightly blushing, Sora scratched her cheek some, "Um... sort of?" At the look she got, she continued, "There was a group of Abyssals that we're heading for the island and I killed a number with two salvos. Samantha-Chan and the Submarines took care of the others, but..."

Yumiko gave her friend a look, "Hai, and then you started to spit up blood."

Eyes widening, Akashi quickly made her way over and did an examination. Not even a minute later, she whacked the Kitsune upside the head, "Your turret is barely even braced! What were you even thinking firing it!?"

Just looking from one to the other, Ellen frowned, "What happened?"

Sighing, the Repair Ship rubbed the side of her head, "Okay, a bit of a lesson about turrets. Battleship ones in particular." When she got a nod, she continued, "In Battleships, the turret sits in the barbette. It is attached to the rest of the hull by a comparatively small piece of metal and sits on bearings, which is what allows for it to turn. Now, they got several decks which help secure it. Sora-San, here, doesn't have the decks all the way up as she should. So the first blast of her guns likely busted the bearings and the second nearly tore the turret out sideways and did a lot of damage to her internal structure." Akashi gave the Yokai Battleship a look, "Thankfully, as shipgirls that is repairable. Though she will need to be fully, ah, built as it were before she can fire her guns again."

With a sigh herself, Sora looked down before grimacing, "I... how are we going to do this then? I had to eat practically all the metal that was on that Container Ship that was not part of the ship itself just to get to this point."

Eyebrow raised, Akashi gave her an intrigued look, "You built yourself up by eating shipping containers?"

One of the small medium sized Submarines, Ho-32, chose that moment to speak up, "Hai. We tore apart the shipping containers and brought back the metal for her to eat. Same with anything inside like cans and stuff. Worked great and she got bigger."

From where she had been sitting beside the part that her daughter was in, Yui frowned, "How does that even work?"

Akashi gave a small chuckle and shook her head, "Very well, actually." Seeing the looks of confusion, she explained, "Shipping containers are about... let's say two tons. The Container Ship in question carried about fourteen thousand of them. About twenty eight thousand tons of steel, along with whatever was inside of them. One thing that we noticed is that if a shipgirl eats steel or what have you? They're able to repair a small bit. We actually feed Akagi-San as well as Kaga-San and the other Carriers aluminum cans which, when combined with a bath in Repair Fluid, replenishes their aircraft numbers. So steel is not that big of an issue and explains quite a bit as you would need a lot of steel for it without the Repair Baths."

Tilting her head a little, Sora chewed her lip as she felt hope rise in her chest, "So with the Repair Baths...?"

Gently smiling at her, the Repair Ship chuckled, "You would need less steel, but it would finish your construction quicker. That is assuming that other ways do not work out."

Looking out as she finished with the last Midget Submarine, Ume frowned, "We have been talking it over with our crews, Akashi-Senpai. But... we need raw materials for that. And a lot of them first."

Arms crossed, Akashi frowned, "What sort of materials? I can see what I can do after all, which might be quite a bit."

The Twins shared a look with each other before speaking, "A lot, the more the better. But we can make due with even low grade ore by using transmutation to make it nearly pure iron. It would also help us if we need to make more parts..." Pausing for a moment, they continued, "We also have the plans for the twenty inch guns that she should have had and can forge them for her."

It went went without saying that caused not just Akashi's eyebrows to raise, but the others as well. Finally, the pink haired shipgirl gave a small smile and nod, "Sounds good to me, I'll clear it with Teitoku and the others." A thoughtful look crossed her face, "And I think that I know where to go..."

______________________________________________________

Considering the folders in front of him, Goto hummed before opening the first. He scanned through it and then the next one followed by another. Finally, the Admiral was done and leaned back, "Your thoughts, Akashi?"

The Repair Ship tilted her head a little and then gave a nod, "Well, beyond everything else? That they are lucky to still be alive considering. Extremely lucky at that seeing as they have gone nearly ten years with no real maintenance."

Hands clasped in front of his face, Goto frowned, "That bad?"

Waggling her hand, Akashi shook her head, "Not as bad as you think. They had no real battle damage since, from what I have been told, they avoided fights outside of ambushes near Torishima. And those were always done with overwhelming force. No, what was the real issue is the wear and tear that they had. That is where they were lucky." Tapping her arm as she crossed them over her chest, she frowned, "In general, even with all that they were doing to slow down the wear? I'd estimate that they would have had five more years at best before the corrosion and such of their hulls got to the point of no return in that they would not have been able to really function. At which point? It would be a slow, lingering death if Abyssals did not show up to kill them."

Grimacing at the image, Ooyodo shook her head, "But are they fine now?"

Eyebrow raised, Akashi gave her a look, "Define 'Fine' for me." Getting a sour expression, she chuckled, "They're not fine yet, not by a long shot. But they'll be getting there. All the Midget Submarines are fully repaired, though I think that they should be given rest for some time."

With a small nod, Nagato frowned, "I don't think that anyone will disagree with you on that, Akashi. After all they have been through, they deserve to be given a nice, long rest before anything else might be asked of them." Internally though, she held back a small squee at the memory of seeing the small, cute Midget Submarines, 'So adorable..."

Unknown to her, the others gave her matching, knowing looks and smirks as they knew how she might react to the adorable Subgirls.

Clearing his throat though, Goto brought the attention back onto him, "And what about the others?"

Head tilting slightly in acknowledgement, Akashi frowned, "Honestly? They're all in somewhat worn shape. If possible, I think that they should all come for a daily visit to the Repair Docks for at least a week for us to work on them. Mostly in replacing and the like, thankfully, those parts worn out. Something that will not be too hard, though time consuming as we also need to get rid of any rust or corrosion that they also have. In that, Sakura-San and Ume-San are a Kami send in that their dry dock facilities can handle it and speed it up. They're also able to produce the parts needed as well quickly and efficiently."

Eyes narrowed, Ooyodo frowned and decided to confront the elephant in the room, "And Sora-San? I very much doubt that a week will be enough considering her current condition."

That brought a sour look to the pink haired Shipgirl's face, "And you would be right in that. She is going to be... problematic, to get up to a proper state. For Sachiko-San, we could rely on the fact that most of the work is in the spiritual realm as it is. But as shown by the Battleship, Jean Bart, a shipgirl who has been summoned or awoken incomplete is harder to get repaired. That said..." Akashi had a thoughtful look on her face, "Ume-San and Sakura-San believe that they can finish the job for the most part. Complete with having her gain the twenty inch guns she was meant to have from the very beginning."

Intrigued, Goto leaned forward, "Go on, Akashi."

With a slight nod, Akashi pulled out another folder, "As noted in the debrief, she did indeed devour all the metal containers on the Container Ship beached at Beyonnaise Rocks. This actually helped her 'Build up', as it were. The Twins believe that they can finish it, they just need the steel and such to do so."

At that, the lone Light Cruiser winced, "I am unsure as to where we might get the resources. Especially with how tight they are at the moment and the government will not be happy with the amount of steel that would need to be consumed." The sound of a chuckle made her turn to Akashi whose smirk had widened just a touch, "Unless... you have a better idea?"

Her arms crossed, Akashi gave a slight nod, "As a matter of fact? I do." Reaching into her clothes, she pulled out another folder and a map that she unfolded on the desk, "See, it was them and one of the things that they did which made me realize one of the things that can be done."

Eyebrow raised, Nagato leaned forward and frowned at the map of Yokohama, in particular where there was a circle drawn on it, "Oh? And what would that be?"
Tapping the spot in question, the Repair ship nodded, "Shipping containers."

Simply adjusting her glasses, Ooyodo frowned and shook her head, "That won't be too much help, Akashi-San. They're needed for shipping materials back and forth, and even then, the amount needed..."

However, Akashi shook her head, "Actually? Right here is where a shipping container graveyard is located."

Needless to say, that bit of information made all of them blink in confusion. Frowning, Goto leaned forward, "Shipping container graveyard? I don't follow."

Clearing her throat, Akashi took a deep breath before she began, "Despite what some think, shipping containers actually do have a useful lifespan. They generally are used for ten years and then basically tossed aside due to corrosion issues and the like. And some of them, well... the owners don't even wait for them to be completely spent before tossing them. That is not counting damage either, as one that gets rent or such is also tossed aside. So ports often have what amount to small graveyards of shipping containers that just... sit and rot."

Finger tapping her arm as she considered things, Nagato frowned, "I assume that the containers recovered from shipwrecks from Abyssal sunk ships are also placed in such places as soon as anything salvageable from their contents are done?"

Only nodding, Akashi hummed a little, "Hai, that is right." She frowned slightly a bit herself, "That is one of the duties of the smaller Submarines, right?" The Battleship gave a slight nod in answer which the Repair ship shrugged at, "Then, there's likely a number there as well."

A scowl on her face at the obvious waste of resources, Ooyodo leaned forward, "Should they not be recycled? The Japanese government did put forward such."

In reply, the pink haired shipgirl scratched the back of her head, "You're right, they should be recycled. But... issue is that many of them have hazardous materials that have been sprayed on them to keep the issues of corrosion down. Usually, before any recycling happens, they need to be sandblasted all the way down to bare metal, so they're not often recycled that quickly and pile up."

Goto did not say anything right away before he gave a small nod, "I see... and from what I know of, they can triple the amount that they take in, correct?" At the nod from Akashi, he gave a hum, "How much metal are we talking about?"

Frowning, Akashi considered things before glancing at the others, "I checked with the people who operate it and, according to them? Roughly about twenty thousand tons of scrap metal. And that is just one, there's another near to Tokyo with ten thousand tons and Sasebo has another fifteen. More than enough for them to fully build up Sora-San completely."

Silence was the only thing that could be heard as they considered things. Eventually, Goto became thoughtful and he started rhythemically tapping his fingers as he continued to think for another few minutes before he nodded, "Get me a cost estimate for this. Ooyodo?" The shipgirl in question nodded, "If needed, tap into the rainy day funds that we have. Because this could be useful for more than just Sora-San." At their looks of confusion, Goto smirked, "Hana-San is not quite complete herself, correct? Thankfully, she has less issues, but she wants to be a Carrier like Shinano-San. Also... from what I have been told, was not the Yamato class designed to be upgunned to twenty inch guns themselves?"

Eyes widening slightly, Akashi gave a nod, "Hai, they were. And since Sora-San has the plans for the guns..." Getting a nod, she continued, "I think in such a case, it might be best to use Musashi-San then as a test bed for such."

A small smirk on his face, the Admiral chuckled, "Well, looks like we have the beginnings of a plan..."

 

[darthcourt10]

Yellowhammer

Heart of Hunger

Castle Moulbaix

14 June 2014
Spoiler: Ying and Ehren

Ehren smiled at her oldest sister Wei Ying as the Chinese-Canadian RCMMP Auror walked alongside her to the Vanishing Cabinet. "I am glad that you were able to visit for Toku and Mutti's birthdays, Sister."

Ying nodded absently, looking at the castle with eyes that had seen too much recently. "Luckily we managed to deal with two nests before too much damage could be done. My task force needed a breather before tackling the larger ones further away from settlements, as well as to plot the data we gathered since they are acting with a controlling intelligence and purpose. It is... difficult to deal with. Especially since the Statute of Secrecy must take as little damage as possible."

Ehren stepped close and hugged her older sister. "I can tell that this outbreak is hard on you, Sister. If... if you need to speak of it, I shall listen. Family stands by family, ja?"

Ying paused, seeming to look through Ehren for long moments and finally sighed as she spoke slowly. "Wendigo are not just creatures of evil, cold, and hunger but also a body-less spirit, and a concept. The First Nations tribes had developed taboos to protect themselves from the Wendigo when they began to explore the North. Chief among them was not eating of human flesh, even when faced with famine, starvation, and the terrible cold death that the mid-winter brings when the snow is deep and game is scarce."

Ying's voice lowered to a quiet hush and became shadowed with dark memories. "But there is power in blood and flesh and some people, both First Nations and then Europeans have learned to wield that power, cultivate a taste for it. However, the taste of human flesh awakens an endless hunger as the wendigo spirit possesses the man or woman who consumes it, causing them to sink further into acts of depravity and madness as their abilities swell. That is bad enough, but it also awakens any latent magic when one is possessed. For normal humans, they can infect others through various means then, which I will not go into. Worst of all, for wizards and medicine men... it is truly terrible as they have made a literal deal with a devil. Ones that can be summoned and manifested to do the caster's malign bidding as not just cravings but also actual creatures like the Inferi save far faster, and deadlier."

Ying rested her forehead against the polished wood of the Vanishing Cabinet. Her voice was hushed and quiet. "In 1873 I was sent to infiltrate a suspected cult that was worshiping the Wendigo in the Yukon. We knew travelers and prospectors were going missing there, so I was sent in after the RCMMP investigation reports there were altered. What I found...."

She trailed off and swallowed before resuming in a pained voice, "The staff at the RCMP patrol post that I visited had been corrupted, probably by one of them being forced to eat man-flesh and then persuading the rest that they had killed an elk or caribou for meat instead of... what it actually was. When I found out, when I sensed that the stew being served that night was tainted...." She took several deep breaths and looked at the silently horrified Ehren. "One of the officers was a friend before... what happened. He cast a spell to isolate me, so that my screams for help or attempts to Apparate out of the deathtrap that the station now was would not work. Then he called forth his kin who had been summoned up to feast on me when I was still living, gloating how they would enjoy that the most."

Ying shook her head. "Too late did they find out that they had trapped a tiger in there with them and the isolation spell cut both ways. I fought my way to him somehow, and killed him in combat. That broke his minions, whom I then banished and slew with steel and spell. After the last of them fell, I was able to examine the spell trapping me among the cooling corpses and managed to master it and take it down, before alerting the RCMMP to what was going on. We drove them back from civilization once more, sealed them away, and now warn recruits as to the dangers. But it is a never-ending struggle, and now they are stirring once more."

Ehren stepped in and hugged her sister around the waist from behind. The Teutonic dagger's eyes glimmered with controlled tears as she whispered in Ying's ear. "Thank you for entrusting your pain to me, Sister. I... have my own traumas. When Vati and Mutti broke up, I was not yet what I am now. But... things went very badly at the end. They fought, and I was used on Mutti. I nearly disemboweled her when I was wedged in her pelvis by Vati. That... was the last time that I saw them together, and I often wonder if I could have prevented things going so wrong between them. I remember the good times they had, the love, the shared moments before... that."

Ying silently reached down and squeezed her sister's hand wordlessly as their mingled tears fell.

"I wish that I could speak to you more, Ehren, but I have my duties to attend to and they call to me. Canada needs me to protect it from the menace that is stirring." Ying finally said as she turned in Ehren's hug to look her half-sister in the eyes.

Ehren nodded sharply and released her sister, stepping back with a slap of leather on leather as she came to attention and saluted the Mountie. "Jawohl. Befehl ist Befehl. Know that my thoughts and prayers go with you, Big Sister, and that I look forward to speaking to someone who understands such matters of importance."

Ying returned the salute. "And thank you for opening yourself to me and giving me your trust. I promise that I shall be there for you and make you proud, Little Sister."

Ehren nodded, then watched Ying enter the Cabinet and close the door behind her. The dagger's hushed voice filled the silence as she laid her hand on the polished wood. "Shall I make you as proud of me as I am of you, I wonder?"

She then shook her head sharply as the silence lingered. "I promised Claire to be her Little Sister. I promised Mutti to be her daughter. I promised Del to be there for her responsibilities. I promised the family that I would stand alongside them. And I now promise Ying that I shall be her support, someone that she can confide in, and I can confide in her."

Ehren took a deep breath. "And next week I shall be introducing Mutti and Claire to our Malfoy cousins. Whose secrets I am honor bound to not speak of until released by Lucius, Draco, or Narcissa. Toku, meanwhile, will be going back to Japan to handle shrine business before returning. Del is dealing with problems of her own in America."

Ehren's shoulders slumped as she finished, "And as for me, I shall endeavor to train and study more to hone my skills and abilities further. Mutti was right that while I did some things well in Verdun, I was also a recipient of rookie's luck, and cannot expect to be so fortunate twice."

Her hand found the hilt of her dagger and her thumb traced the SS insignia. "And yet I am no closer to dealing with the evils of my nature. Perseverance is a necessary but difficult skill for me to practice. Still, Aller Anfang ist schwer. All beginnings are hard, and I am as of yet a beginner in my path to my goal."

 

[darthcourt10]

Harry Leferts

Softly smiling, Ellen glanced towards her children who were walking beside her. Both Samantha and Eric, like the other "Castaways" were now wearing shirts and jogging pants given to them by the JMSDF to wear for now. At least, in the case of the shipgirls, until their uniforms were fixed up and cleaned. In the case of her son, part of Ellen suspected that he likely would be given one of the uniforms that were worn by her daughter's crew or one of the others. Something that, oddly enough, did not bother her too much when all was said and done.

Happily sighing at the return of her lost children, the English teacher turned to the others. Yumiko was currently talking to her own parents, who nodded and were talking back. Part of what was being said was, from what Ellen could tell, about what had happened to the relatives that their daughter had been staying with when Blood Week happened. Her gaze then went to Hinata, who was between her parents with her younger siblings hanging off her and giggling.

The young woman was not bothered in the slightest by the weight that hung around her neck nor did she really seem to notice. Ellen wondered, briefly, if that was because Jorogumo were that strong or if it was the fact that she was a shipgirl shining through. One thing that she did know though was that the three siblings were extremely happy and in a good mood with each other. All three wore smiles and laughed at various things.

Of course, seeing the Jorogumo made the American think about other things. Ellen had seen the look in the Yokai's eyes sometimes when she had looked at her son. She was no fool after all, it was easy enough to recognize what was going on there and it amused her slightly. Granted, she did wonder how her son and Sora might deal with it, but decided to leave what would happen up to them. After all, Ellen thought, she did trust them.

It was then that giggles drew her attention to the group of Midget Submarines. The smallest, the Ko-hyoteki Subs, all looked like little girls of around five or six with various Yokai features. Some had fox, dog, cat, Tanuki, or even otter and badger features. Said features having come from their crew. It had surprised her when she had been told about said crews, but in the end it did make some sense to her. A normal Submarine in WWII was cramped after all. A Midget Submarine? That had to be worse.

Meanwhile, Ho-31 and Ho-32 both the oldest looking Submarines after her daughter, being about twelve years old. Both of them noticed that she looking at them and frowned slightly, "Is something wrong, Okaa-San?"

Briefly, Ellen's smile brightened at that and she felt something flare in her chest, "No, nothing is wrong, you two. Just thinking how lucky I am and happy with everything that has happened."

That got her bright smiles and, when they turned back to a conversation with her husband, Ellen thought back to what had happened...

********************************************************************

Sitting beside where her daughter was laying in the Repair Pool, Ellen blinked at the sound of a small voice, "Um... e-excuse me, Ellen-San..."

Just turning, the American noticed that it was one of the small Midget Submarines who spoke up, "Hmm? Yes..." Searching her memories for a second, she remembered what the Inugami's Subgirl's name was, "Ha-45?"

Eyes lighting up at her name being called, the Midget Submarine became slightly nervous and glanced at Samantha before turning back to her, "We... we were wondering something...?"

Her expression shifting naturally to the one she wore as a teacher when dealing with a nervous child, which seemed to work as the Midget Submarines relaxed, Ellen smiled, "Well, I don't mind answering any questions..." She shot a small glance at her daughter and smirked, "If you want to know embarrassing stories about Samantha as a young child, I got plenty."

Needless to say, that caused said Subgirl's face to go red and not from the heat of the bath, "M-Mom!"

Wagging a finger at her, Ellen grinned and snickered, "Mother's prerogative~"

That got her a number of giggles from the smaller Submarines before they all calmed down. After a few moments, they began to look nervous before Ha-45 twiddled her fingers, "Um... we-we were wondering about... well... Samantha is our Onee-Chan, right?"

Ellen's eyebrow raised and glanced at Samantha who shrugged some, "That's what they call me, Mom. And with how my job is a Tender? It's pretty much true... And they call Eric, Onii-Chan because he's the closest they have had to a big brother and he's my brother, so..."

Lightly chuckling, the American ruffled her daughter's hair and turned back to the Midget Submarines, "I see... well, I don't have much of an issue with you calling her or Eric that."

All of the Midget Submarines gave a happy gasp, even Ho-31 and Ho-32. But then, Ha-45 swallowed and hung her head a bit, "W-well... si-since Samantha-Onee-Chan and Eric-Onii-Chan are... are our Onee-Chan and Onii-Chan... w-we were wondering if..." Shrinking a bit, she chewed her lip , "I-i-if you c-could be our Kaa-Chan...?"

Shocked, Ellen stared at them for a few moments, which made them cringe and another of the Midget Submarines looked down, "B-but if you don't..."

Getting up, she walked over to them. Crouching down, Ellen gave them all a smile before gently patting the heads of those closest to her, "I'm sorry for not saying anything right away. I was just... surprised is all. But if you want to call me Kaa-Chan? Kaa-San? Okaa-San, or such? I don't mind it." Seeing their wide eyes, she glanced at Samantha and shook her head, "I always wanted more children. But... after Samantha and Eric went missing, I... I just could never bring myself to try."

Tears at the corner of her eyes, Samantha blinked, "Mom... I didn't..."

On her mother's face was a sad smile, "It's okay, Samantha. That is not something that should be unexpected and, well... you're not at fault." Wiping a little at her own eye, she gave a sniffle, "I'm just happy that my children are home, at last." Ellen then turned to the Midget Submarines and gave them smiles, "And that includes you, by the way."

It went without saying that all the Midget Submarines teared up at that even as Ellen softly smiled down at them. Ha-45 was the first one to launch herself at the English teacher, tightly hugging her as she cried, "KAA-CHAN!"

And this was followed by the other Midget Submarines doing much the same, none of them hugging her too tight considering their strength, but still tightly. And Ellen hugged them back as tight as she could, while kissing foreheads and the tops of heads. She did not care in the slightest about the repair fluid soaking into her clothes. Clothes could be cleaned or replaced after all. Instead, she welcomed them into her heart, her next words causing them to cry even more, "Welcome home... my daughters. Welcome home."

From where she was watching, Samantha was also crying in pure happiness. Tears that increased as her mother turned to her and opened her arms slightly more, the Natural Born Subgirl launching herself into the warm arms of the woman who had carried her for nine months and raised her for more. All Ellen did was welcome her daughters, the one that she gave birth to and her new ones, with tears in her own eyes...
________________________________________________________

Coming out of her thoughts, Ellen felt two small hands take hers and looked down to find two of the Midget Submarines there holding them. Both little girls brightly smiled up at her happily as they gave a small squeeze, which made Ellen laugh, "Hello there, Ha-56, Ha-77."

That, if anything, made their smiles brighten still further as they spoke, "Hello, Kaa-Chan!"

Lips twitching, Ellen shook her head as she noted her husband had one of the Midget Submarines on his shoulders as he walked, the little girl cheering. When she had told him, he had laughed and agreed with them, especially when they asked if that meant that he would be their Tou-San. It reminded the couple of when their children were five or six after all. Hence, they did not have much of an issue with it.

But now looking at them, she was reminded of one fact and she gave a small nod, "We're going to have a busy few days, I think." Seeing the curious looks given to her, Ellen continued, "After all, we do need to go and get clothes for all of you, beds, and the like..." Frowning, she tapped her chin in thought, "Though I suppose that we'll need to go house hunting. We won't have enough room otherwise and some of you will have to share a room."

Giggles erupted and at her confused look, some of the Midget Submarines chanted the same thing, "Like Eric-Onii-Chan and Sora-Onee-Chan~"

Eyebrows shooting up, Ellen quickly turned to her son and noted that he was, in fact, holding hands with said Kitsune. Both of the two young adults blushed as she gasped, only to blink as she smiled, "Eric? Sora? Is... is this true? Are the two of you together?"

Deeply blushing, Eric cleared his throat and nodded, "Um, yeah, Mom. Sora and I? We're together and have been for years now and... er..." Glancing at his girlfriend, he gave a small shrug, "We kind of share the same bed, if you catch my drift."

Rather than be angry, to his surprise, his mother simply smiled in acceptence, "I see. Though that is to be expected, I suppose, you were on an island for such a long time that sort of thing was bound to happen if you got together." Her eyes then narrowed in a glare and she gave a pointed look though there was a twinkle in her eyes, "Though I would ask that you not do such... lewd behavior as you are right now, young man."

Confused, Sora and Eric shared a look before they turned back to her with the Kitsune asking the question that was on both their minds, "Uh, 'lewd behavior', Ellen-Oba-Chan?"

Frowning, Ellen gave a short nod, "Indeed! Holding hands in public! Do you not have any shame whatsoever?" Sniffling, she turned to Ken who was trying not to laugh, though she could hear snickers coming from the others, "Wherever did we go wrong, Ken? I thought that we raised them better than this?"

In reply, her son gave her a look, "Really, Mom? I mean, really now?"

Her lips madly twitching, Ellen sniffled and made a motion as if she was going to cry, "Doing so very lewd things to your girlfriend in both public and before your Mother! Shameful! Simply shameful!"

The two Tanuki adults turned away as laughs broke free from them while Hinata's parents had massive grins on their faces, though Yui was hard to tell as she held her hand up to her face as she tittered behind it. Her daughter though was giggling madly as were the Midget Submarines, and Yumiko as well as Samantha were loudly laughing at it. Rolling his eyes, Eric turned towards Sora, "Could you?" Clearing her throat, Sora nodded before bringing up her free hand and placing it over Eric's face, "Thank you."

Unable to look at him, or Ellen, Sora simply nodded, "You're welcome, Eric-Kun..."

 

[darthcourt10]

mikelima777

CFB Esquimalt, Vancouver Island, British Columbia, Canada
January 20, 2014

Over the years since Blood Week, the navies who had kanmusus became more and more dependent on their "shipgirls" to fight back against the Abyssals, gradually reopening some parts of the seas to human activity once more. At the same time, the navies learned how to support what had become an integral part of their forces. Indeed, it had turned out that kanmusus despite the complaints from secretary ships were relatively cost-effective versus their steel-hulled counterparts. Maintenance was completed in days if not hours via the repair pools, versus lengthly maintenance even for regular repairs at the dock.

Resupplying was no different. A steel ship needed supplies to feed and supply the crew, fuel, munitions which could include missiles each costing in the millions of dollars, as well as spare parts in case of mechanical failures. Shipgirls, and allied Abyssals as it turned out could be resupplied with food. Lots of food. While some shipgirls could eat a whole restaurant's worth of food, it was still considered cheaper than the resupply costs of a modern missile destroyer, plus it boosted the local economy.

The need for food was a problem for nations that relied on food imports. Japan for instance, still had some rationing as convoys and fishing expeditions guarded by kanmusus were the lifeline for the island nation. This was not the case for ships based out of North America, particularly the United States and Canada. Indeed, the arrival of the kanmusus helped alleviate some issues with overproduction in the agricultural sector. Grain products, meats, and even dairy products which weren't being diverted to aid other countries in need and would have previously been left to waste, were now being funnelled to the military to feed the troops and kanmusus. Some folks joked that the Iowa-class battleship Wisconsin, known in navy circles for being a "Cheeseweeb," singlehandedly made a dent in the surplus dairy production of the state of Wisconsin.

As a result, allied shipgirls visiting North America were often encouraged to dig in and eat up as much as possible before returning home. Over the years, these included ships like Yamato and Musashi. Both Japanese battleship indeed were often sent across the Pacific for training and other operations, as the Americans could afford to regularly supply their fuel tanks, sortie after sortie.

At CFB Esquimalt, repairing the damage caused by the abyssal attacks starting on Blood Week eventually led to a new mess hall, primarily used to support the Canadians' Pacific-based kanmusus. While regular personnel often ate at this new facility, the staff there specialized in making food in portions fit for reincarnated warships. Tonight, many of the tables had been reserved for special guests, some of whom still remembered the last time they set foot at the naval base, nearly a decade ago.

Following their ordeal, the crew of HMCS Regina were to be granted retroactive promotions, even those who were choosing to retire. This also came with compensation, as they were considered on sortie up to when the ship finally docked again in Esquimalt. Many of those who chose to retire were granted pensions and assistance with transitioning to civilian life, though they were also asked to be careful of what they disclosed to family and friends. A plurality of the crew had decided to continue service, albeit in other roles as it had been announced that their ship will be retired from active duty. Whether as a training ship or as a museum ship, she would be kept as a memorial to those lost on Blood Week.

After the Wardens and the crew of HMCS Regina sat down, Captain (N) Wilson stood up to make a quick speech and led a toast to the crew members and those of the Fleet of Laughter that never returned. Soon the smells and sounds of food caused humans and abyssals alike to salivate as mess personnel rolled out carts loaded with food, placing them on the table. The Wardens were rather amused as the Regina crew members dug into their almost shipgirl sized portions of the greasy fries, cheese curds, and gravy, with some sailors having additional toppings like pulled pork or braised beef. One of the French-Canadian sailors jokingly complained that the extra toppings were heresy, while a couple of sailors trash talked about hockey. Plenty of drinks were also downed as the sailors and officers chatted amicably with each other, while others talked about what they planned to do afterwards.

As he ate, Commander Ferguson absent-mindedly stroked his wife's "antlers" as she took another forkful of poutine, as well as pondering what happened after they arrived. Commander Ferguson's parents, brother and sisters had been surprised to learn that he survived, and were understandably shocked when he revealed his marriage to Tandy. Despite some trepidation from his family, they were willing to give Tandy a chance, and the family was planning a dinner to welcome back Bruce and to welcome Tandy and the children to the extended family. Bruce and Tandy were a bit mortified when his mother gleefully proclaimed the fact she had more grandchildren and clearly planned to spoil them. The idea of Nathan and Natasha being corrupted by his mom sent shivers down Commander Bruce Ferguson. Today, Bruce was somewhat confused when Tandy came in asking what happened to her shorts. They were now plaid in red and green, and her shoulder pad was now starting to appear rounded off, like an oversized hockey player's shoulder pad.

Captain (N) Wilson was considering an offer to be promoted as Commodore in charge of the Wardens who were to be redesignated as a unit of the Royal Canadian Navy once all the necessary paperwork was completed and they were officially inducted into the RCN. Commander Ferguson was also likely to play a role, as his wife was to remain as the Flagship of the Canadian abyssals, and as a temporarily liaison between the RCN and the Fleet of Laughter before a long term volunteer is found. The Canadian government was entering talks to formally recognize the Fleet of Laughter in Avrora, given it meant that a friendly fleet would help protect the critical sea corridor along the Aleutians between Asia and North America. To the Canadian Government, it became a priority to make sure the Wardens felt welcome in their new home, and that included making sure they were on good terms with the Warden's matriarch and sister ships.

***

Greengrass Residence, United Kingdom

Cyrus Greengrass was finishing up the last rasher of bacon from his breakfast when the wards alerted him to an arriving delivery. He could see a European Eagle-Owl flying towards the manor carrying a large parcel. With a swish of his wand, the windows to the breakfast nook opened as the owl landed on the perch. The owl raised a leg, letting Cyrus detach the parcel, before making a beeline for the bacon set aside for the owl. "Ah, I was wondering when this was going to arrive."

Evelyn, his wife raised an eyebrow at the Canada Post postmark stamped on the massive parcel. "Is that what I think it is?"

"Yes, my dear. My cousin's latest bundle of goods from the great white north." Taking a look inside, Cyrus grinned, "plus some gifts for Daphne and Astoria."

He mentally noted to himself to take some time to fill a number of forms as a contingency should the end of the Statute of Secrecy threaten the safety of the Greengrass family. Cyrus examined the cover of Jane's All the Summoning Pools, which was to be given to Daphne, as his eldest daughter was planning to work with Tracy Davis in finally summoning the family narrowboats. His smile turned into a frown as he spotted a plush doll meant for Astoria, made in the likeness of a certain blonde Japanese destroyer.

 

[darthcourt10]

Harry Leferts

Once the laughter died down, Sora turned to Ellen and shifted a little, "Um, Ellen-Oba-Chan?" Getting a sound to continue, she did so, "Do... do you have any problem with how we're together?"

Eyebrow raised, Ellen gave her a look, "No? Why? Should I have an issue with you two together, especially when I've been expecting it for some time?" At her stunned look, she walked over and gave Sora a hug, "Sora, honey? This is not unexpected for me or... for your parents."

Her eyes widening slightly, the Kitsune stared at her, "M-my parents...?"

Slowly, Ellen nodded with a small sigh, "We could all tell that you and Eric had the biggest crush on one another, Sora. It was not that hard to see that, what with how the two of you acted." Both young adults in question blushed lightly at that being said, especially as they could remember when they were younger. A small, look of reminisce was on her face along with a fond smile, "Miho and I... we had actually talked about it."

Licking her suddenly dry lips, Sora looked into the other woman's eyes, "Y-you did? You talked with Okaa-San? About..."

Just smiling, the American chuckled, "About what to do? We did, and believe it or not, she was well in favor of it." Now looking at her son, Ellen continued, "As far as she was concerned, Eric, you were a fine man to become her daughter's husband. I admit... I'm actually happy to see that the two of you are together as well, as I always hoped for it to happen. You both just fit so well, even back then."

Bashfully smiling, Sora nodded at her, "Thank you, Ellen-Oba-Chan."

Waving her off, Ellen gave her husband a look at his next words after he chuckled, "Genji-San said much the same thing actually. We made bets on-oof!"

Ellen ignored how her husband was now clutching his stomach as she withdrew her elbow from his gut and smiled at Sora, "As I said, we talked about it. About the only question on our minds was when and how the two of you would get together, though... this was not one way that we expected."

Giving her boyfriend's hand a squeeze, the Kitsune shook her head, "We did not expect this either, Ellen-Oba-Chan. But... at least it is one of the few good things that came from what had happened to us."

At that, Ellen nodded some, "Agreed." Looking away, she chuckled some, "Miho even suggested that perhaps if you had not confessed by the time you were fifteen, we arrainge something between the two of us. Perhaps an Omiai... not that I really was all that interested in that as I wanted what would happen to develop naturally, without outside pressure."

Tears prickling at her eyes, Sora wiped at them, "S-so my Okaa-San and Otou-San... they would be happy? With Eric-Kun and I being together now?'

Only nodding, the teacher gave her a tight hug, "They would be extremely happy..." Glancing around, she took a deep breath and let it out, "And, I am certain, will be."

Now looking at her, Sora's eyes widened, "T-they're alive? B-but I thought... and the way that you talked..."

Eyes closed, there was an ashamed look on Ellen's face, "I... figured out that they were alive, Sora. But as for why they were not here... that is both mine and Ken's fault, I'm afraid." Blinking away some tears, she took a deep breath, "We were on Aogashima when the Abyssals arrived. But somehow wound up in Tokyo wandering around in a daze, with no memories. B-best that I figure, Miho and Genji m-must have used magic to get us back to Tokyo j-just ahead of the attack. And since I know that they're Kitsune..."

Very rapidly, the young woman connected the points in her mind, but it was a grimacing Yusuke who spoke, "You believe that the Diet arrested them and threw them in a Reserve." At her nod, he shook his head, "I... wish that I could say that you were wrong in that thought, but... it is not unlikely. And if you did make it via Floo from Aogashima to Tokyo, then you would have ended up in the main Floo office in the Magical Diet building as during the chaos, they were transferring it all there. Something that is standard during Natural Disasters or when large groups from one area are using the Floo to get somewhere else."

With a slight nod to him, Ellen turned back to Sora and bowed deeply, "Please... accept our apologies for this. B-because your M-Mother, m-my friend got us to safety, she is suffering now..."

She had expected more than a few things, but she barely had expected Sora to let go of Eric's hand and walk over before sweeping her up into a tight, warm hug. She even allowed her disguise to slip and reveal her Kitsune self before wrapping her tails around the American. In a voice thick with emotion, Sora sniffled even as she nuzzled the older woman, "You have nothing to apologize for, Ellen-Oba-San. Okaa-San and Otou-San... they would not care as long as you got to safety." Briefly, she tightened the hug, "And I don't care either..."

Arms coming up, the American hugged her as tight as she could and gave a small sob, "Thank you, Sora. Thank you..."

They stayed like that for a few moments before the Kitsune pulled away with a smile and headed over to her "Ken-Oji-San" and gave him a hug as well. When she was done, she gave a small sigh, "I hope that Okaa-San and Otou-San will see me one day..."

Now, it was Ellen's turn to hug her, which she did, "We're working on it, Sora. Trust me, I want nothing more than to see your Mother beside me as we watch you and Eric unite our families.

Only nodding, Sora gave a sigh, "That would make me happy too, Ellen-Oba-Chan... that would make me happy too..."

Eventually, the three adults pulled apart. Taking Sora's hand in hers, Ellen gave her a smile, "But... to get back to the point of our conversation, Sora? I don't mind at all that you and my son are together. Rather, I'm extremely pleased by that."

Blushing lightly, Sora gave a nod to that and another hug.

It was shortly after, when the tears had been dried and such, that they started walking again. Which was when a familiar voice called over to them and they turned to find Tenryuu, Tatsuta, and DesDiv6 walking towards them. The eyepatch-wearing shipgirl with a large grin on her face, "Hey there, Ellen-Chan." Looking towards the younger shipgirls there, she gave a nod, "We've been looking for you."

Cocking an eyebrow, Ellen frowned a little and was about to say something when Yui spoke up, "You... know each other, Ellen-San?"

With a blink, the American turned towards her, "Hmm? Oh yeah, I've known Tenryuu... or Ryoko as she was originally named before being awoken as a shipgirl, for years now."

Lightly laughing, Tenryuu grinned all the wider and gently punched Ellen in the arm, "Ellen-Chan and I? We're actually drinking buddies and sometimes go out to the local bars together. Gets us both out of the house and stuff."

The other adults shared a surprised look, but gave a nod nonetheless.

Meanwhile, Hinata's younger siblings came up to DesDiv6 with looks of awe on their faces. Shuffling a little, Tsukiko swallowed a bit, "Are... are you really shipgirls?"

Brightly smiling, Inazuma gave a small bow, "Hai, we are. I am the Destroyer Inazuma, with me is my twin sister, Ikazuchi." Said Destroyer grinned showing off her fang-like tooth, "And my other sisters, Akatsuki and Verniy... who was named Hibiki."

Reaching up, Verniy tipped the brim of her hat while Akatsuki bowed, "We're very pleased to meet you."

Lips twitching, Hinata placed a hand on her siblings' shoulders, "They were the ones who helped rescue us, by the way."

Eyes widening, the two children had their jaws drop and turned towards the three Destroyers, "Really?"

Puffing out her chest, Ikazuchi smirked, "That's right! And you can rely on us for that sort of thing."

Only shaking her head some, Inazuma sighed at her twin before turning back to the two awestruck children, "Well, your Onee-San was almost to safety as it was. So she likely could have made it without us helping, Nanodesu."

From where she was, Tenryuu glanced over at the children and smiled before turning back to Ellen. Said woman had her arms crossed and her eyebrows furrowed, "You said that you were looking for us, Tenryuu?" Getting a nod, she frowned a bit more, "Why?"

Tenryuu chuckled a bit before scratching underneath her eyepatch, "Actually? For a few reasons that are connected with each other." Seeing the confusion, she shook her head, "Long story short, Ami pointed out that it might be a bit... much... for all of you to go to the Mess Hall for the first day. A lot of shipgirls and such wanting to ask questions." Getting a nod, the Light Cruiser continued, "Right, well... there's a few shipgirls that want to meet you as well. So... we figured having all of you gathered in the same spot for now."

Blinking, the English teacher frowned as she considered that. Finally, Ellen nodded some, "I suppose that makes sense... but where? And who?"

Just jerking her thumb in a direction, Tenryuu smirked a bit, "Well, the place in question is Mamiya's, and she is one of the shipgirls in question." At that, Hinata perked up and looked in her direction, "As to who else? Taigei's going to be one with some of the Submarines, though thankfully I-353 is out on a training patrol for a few days yet, so she won't be there. And Yamato as well as her sisters as well. Mamiya told me that she's cooking up a storm for all of you."

Confused, Samantha looked between her mother and the Light Cruiser, "I-353? Why is it a good thing that she is out on patrol?"

Wincing, Ellen looked at her having already met the Submarine in question, "Samantha? Honey? The Submarines have a... certain reputation-"

At that, the fang toothed Destroyer chimed in, "Yeah, of being lewd." Seeing her mother's glare, Ikazuchi winced, "What? It's true!"

Still glaring, Tenryuu pointed at the two youngest, "And? There's children here, Aki! You should know better!" Ignoring her grumbling daughter, she turned back to Samantha who had an odd look on her face, "Anyways... while they have that reputation, it is generally not true. I mean, up to a few years ago, they could be a slight bit... suggestive, but not much more than that. Mainly so that they could actually get some attention, but they've pretty much stopped that now... issue is, well... Tanker Submarines like I-353... they're, um... not one of those who have stopped and it's not an act."

Pinching her nose, Samantha groaned, "Oh, sh-" Seeing the little kids, she changed what she was going to say, "Shoot. I'm going to have people think that of me, aren't I? And they're going to, um, be problematic..."

Tone dry, the Light Cruiser nodded, "To say the least." She then gave a shrug, "But Iku and the others aren't bad, so you should fit in fine with that bunch."
With a glance at her mother, who smiled and nodded, Samantha gave a small nod of her own, "I guess that I wouldn't mind meeting them then..."

Around her, the other shipgirls there also gave their own nods of agreement with that.

 

[darthcourt10]

Yellowhammer

A Du Chasteler Road Trip

Castle Moulbaix

18 June 2014

Ehren du Chasteler turned to her sister and extended her hands. "Here, Claire, I'll pack the keyboard for you."

Claire smiled and blushed as she handed over her electronic keyboard, then smoothed out her black knee-length dress. "Thank you Ehren."
Spoiler: Claire's Outfit...

The piano paused as Ehren carefully placed the keyboard on top of the suitcases and hang-up bags in the magically expanded trunk of their mother's 1928 Mercedes limousine. "Do you think that they will like me, Ehren?"

Ehren turned to her sister and gave a smile as she opened the door to the back of the limo for her. "Of course they will, Claire. Everyone likes you. Cousin Draco and his mother both expressed interest in music as well. I am certain that they have a piano in their estate just waiting for you to make its acquaintance."

Claire's relieved smile lit her face up as she took a seat, joined by Ehren in her contrasting ivory lace dress.
Spoiler: ...And Ehren's Dress

The dagger reached behind her and adjusted her true body in the hidden sheath sewn between her shoulder blades. "I'll protect you, Big Sister."

Claire smiled and then tapped the leather seat that they sat on. "Thank you Ehren. I have not been in this car since you manifested. Before, Mother would take me to Brussels for concerts about once or twice a year. Just this year has been...." She trailed off and hummed a few bars from The Empire Strikes Back's "The Asteroid Field" in wordless explanation.

Ehren reached over and squeezed Claire's hand. "I know. There have been a lot of changes, and it concerns me too. But we get a vacation as a family out of it. Two weeks with the Malfoys, then you get to meet Ron and perhaps Jean Bart when we go to visit him."

Claire smiled shyly as her mother appeared at the castle door, clad in a blue motoring coat over her wine-red dress, blue suede gloves, and a beret with goggles straight out of the pages of a 1908 fashion catalogue.
Spoiler: Colombe's Motoring Outfit

Colombe grinned at her daughters as the rapier slid behind the wheel up front. "Ready to head to England and meet the cousins, girls?"

"Yes Mother." "Ja, Mutti."

With that the antique classic car headed down the driveway.

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

Wiltshire, England
Spoiler: A Du Chasteler Vacation

Colombe sang happily (and off-key) in time with the girls in the back of the car who were carrying her efforts to at least scare the notes as they went by. The day was not too hot and actually clear skies, and traffic was light as she turned off to the local roads leading to Malfoy House.

"Wam! Bam!
Mon chat, splatch
Gît sur mon lit
A bouffé sa langue
En buvant dans mon whisky
Quant à moi
Peu dormi, vidé, brimé
J'ai dû dormir dans la gouttière
Où j'ai eu un flash"

(Wow! Boom!
My cat, splatch
Lying on my bed
ate his tongue
Drinking in my whiskey
As for me
Slept little, drained, bullied
I had to sleep in the gutter
Where I had a flash")
In the back, Ehren gave Claire a grin which the Piano returned with interest as their road trip continued then launched into a enthusiastic chorus of the French drinking song that the sound system in the car was playing.

"Ça plane pour moi!
Ça plane pour moi!
Ça plane pour moi moi moi moi moi!
Ça plane pour moi!
Hou! Hou! Hou! Hou!
Ça plane pour moi!"

("That Plane For Me!
That Plane For Me!
It's high for me me me me me!
That Plane For Me!
Ho! Ho! Ho! Ho!
That Plane For Me!")

Presently Colombe nodded as she sensed powerful muggle-repelling wards at a crossroads, and turned into the gravel driveway. A pair of high yew hedges flanked the drive and eventually it reached a pair of wrought-iron gates with the Malfoy coat of arms at the top above swirling and vaguely disturbing abstract decorations. Colombe slowed the car to a stop at the closed gates and then stepped out of the car after giving her daughters a look to stay in the car.

As her feet touched the gravel, the iron of the gate twisted and contorted to find a stern face. "State your purpose!" it spoke in a harshly clanging voice.

Colombe gave the guardian spirit a measuring stare as Claire gasped in musical shock at the sight and Ehren's eyes narrowed. "Colombe d'Aubigny du Chasteler and family to see Lord Lucius Malfoy. We are expected."

The gates silently swung open in response to her words.

Beyond the high dark green hedges the drive continued to a carriage house covered with ivy and moss. Colombe parked the car, and then looked at the girls. "Time to walk, girls. I'll manage the luggage."

Ehren nodded, her lips quirking as she sensed the eyes of the gargoyle rain spouts on top of the stone building follow them as they got out. Colombe opened the car trunk, then drew her rapier from her side and gestured with it, chanting in Greek under her breath.
Spoiler: Luggage Spells!

As the bags animated, Claire clapped in glee and began to hum The Sorcerer's Apprentice happily. Colombe's eyes sparkled and she flicked her fingers at the floating luggage as they began to walk and spoke in a commanding voice. "χορός!"(dance)

The bags began to dance along with Claire as the piano skipped up the cobble-stoned path to the manor house to the sounds of Dukas's music. Ehren's lips quirked in a happy smile at the sight of her sister's joy and she looked around her, admiring the magnificent grounds and the looming grandeur of Malfoy Manor.
Spoiler: Malfoy Manor

Ehren's eyes sharpened at the sight of lights glimmering from the diamond-shaped windows as they approached the front doors. Then she momentarily tensed as the doors swung inward at the touch of a unseen hand.

Colombe murmured. "Watch and observe how I introduce myself, girls." Ehren nodded as Colombe stepped inside with her daughters flanking her. The hall beyond was vast and gloomy with family portraits following them with sharp eyes. A red carpet covered the dark green and black serpentine marble floor and floating magical candles slowly drifted to illuminate the scene.

Colombe's focus was to her right where a silver tray rested in the jaws of a life-sized anaconda sculpted from iron with shimmering greenish gems for eyes. She smiled smugly, then flicked her hand, making a business card appear in it. Ehren blinked as she saw the House insignia of the Du Chastelers embossed into the creamy pasteboard, with a gold border and gold lettering showing Colombe's name and titles. Colombe bent the top left corner of the card over and then placed it in the tray, where it vanished in a puff of emerald flame. In the distance a bell chimed.

Colombe turned to her daughters. "Victorian etiquette. I am letting the lord of the household know that I arrived and wished to speak with him, hence the top left corner turned over. If it was the lady of the house, it would be the top right. Courtesy demands that I wait until a servant or junior member of the house arrives to escort us to where the lord of the manor awaits."

Ehren nodded, memorizing the explanation as Colombe gestured, separating their floating luggage into three groupings. With a pop a pair of wizened creatures half her height with bat-like ears and bulging green eyes clad in filthy rags appeared in front of them. The leftmost one spoke. "Masters Malfoys will sees you now, Missus. Follows."

Colombe nodded, and spoke with an aristocratic air. "I and my daughters shall. The center stack of luggage is mine, the right is Claire's, and the left is Ehren's" With that, she followed the first house-elf, trailed by her daughters.
Spoiler: Meeting the Malfoys

Ehren murmured to her mother as Claire looked around curiously. "Those are house-elves, ja? Narcissa spoke of them to me when we were shopping. Apparently they are common in wizarding families."

Colombe nodded sharply, "Oui, they are. Do not let the looks fool you, for they are unbreakably loyal to their family and the match of almost any wizard in magical power. I am unsurprised that the Malfoys have them as staff." She then paused at the door that the house-elf led them to and stiffened her spine minutely as she murmured to herself. "À vaillant coeur rien d'impossible."

Ehren mentally translated the words to herself, 'To a valiant heart, nothing is impossible', as she stepped inside and smirked smugly behind her cool mask at the scene presented.

Lucius sat enthroned in a chair carved from some shimmering dark wood carved like a dragon's body on the far side of what was clearly a study judging from the bookshelves, portraits, and ornately carved desk. To his left, Narcissa sat in her own phoenix-carved chair in an elaborate dress, while to his right, Draco stood in his dark Hugo Boss suit, flanked by Cleopatra and Niobe on either elbow. The surprise was the near-identical twin of Draco on Narcissa's elbow, clad in a green dress. Behind Draco, a older shipgirl in her mid-20s stood with a cool look on her face.
Spoiler: Nimue Malfoy Dressed Up

As Ehren watched with well-hidden amusement, the clear twin sister to the known Draco, and memories of Ehren carefully not telling her family about her while never mentioning that Draco was an only child versus just 'the firstborn' flashed through Colombe's eyes as she showed obvious shock. Colombe gave Ehren an accusatory glare that bounced off the Teutonic Dagger's coolly smug face like spitballs off a Panzerkampfwagen VI's turret as one pale-blonde eyebrow elevated in wordless response.

Got you, Mutti. You know how I keep my sworn word, and I did swear myself to secrecy in the matter of Nimue.

Claire, bless her heart, ignored the byplay between the rest of the family and gave a shy smile and wave to the assembled Malfoys.

Colombe recovered smoothly enough, curtsying in the proper style for one noble to meet a peer. "Greetings, Lord Malfoy. May I introduce my daughters?" Lucius nodded gravely, then Claire stepped forward and curtsied as the books on etiquette Mutti had had them learn dictated. "Claire du Chasteler, my middle child."

Next it was Ehren's turn and she curtsied to her cousins in greeting. "And you have already met my youngest and designated heiress Ehren du Chasteler. Unfortunately, my eldest daughter Ying is dealing with unavoidable important matters in the Americas and is unable to visit at this time."

As Ehren finished, Lucius stood and bowed to her. "Welcome to our manor, Cousins Du Chasteler,. I am Lucius Abraxus Malfoy, this is my wife Narcissa, my son and heir Draco and my daughter and second child Nimue. Draco is accompanied by his companions SMS Niobe formerly of the High Seas Fleet, USS Washington, and HMS Cleopatra of the Royal Navy. Please, sit, rest, and talk, for you have had a long journey to mend the division in our family tree."

With that and a wave of his wand, a trio of padded chairs slid across the floor for the du Chastelers to sit in. Colombe seated herself and nodded her head. "And I thank you for your hospitality, Cousin. Both given to my daughter Ehren at her first meeting as well as today and in the future. I also wish to thank you for your invaluable assistance in the matter of Verdun. I am led to believe that Ehren told you of who and more pertinently what we truly are?"

Lucius nodded sharply and gave a thin smile, leaning forward as the House-elf reappeared with two trays containing brandy decanters and snifters. "The spirits of enchanted items, yes?"

Colombe smiled in agreement as the brandies were served and then breathed in the aroma of her brandy with a happy sigh. "Fundamentally yes, although I was born the normal way with my rapier manifesting at birth. Ehren is the spirit of my master-crafted dagger that I acquired in the Second World War, or First Wizarding War if you prefer, while Claire is the spirit of Ludwig Bösendorfer's masterpiece of Piano crafting which I ordered in 1873. Claire manifested in 1990, and then Ehren a year and a half ago."

With that she glanced over at Claire, who was speaking to Nimue in a soft voice about musical bands that the Malfoy daughter liked. "I was unaware that your daughter would be present, so while I brought birthday presents for you and your family, albeit a bit belated to give to Draco, I shall have to make some arrangements to give Nimue one. Perhaps a shopping trip to London for her and then a night out at the Proms? Claire has been inquiring to me about their concert schedule." Colombe finished with a fond, indulgent smile directed at the brunette as Nimue's face lit up in response to Claire's comments.

Narcissa smiled happily and interjected herself, "That sounds like a lovely idea, cousin. We can use the family's private box at the Royal Albert Hall and give you both a taste of proper British society."

Colombe nodded in agreement, "Indeed, on the condition that when you visit the Continent next, I return the favor with my private box at the Palais des Beaux-Arts in Brussels to listen to the National Orchestra of Belgium." She smiled smugly and sipped her brandy. "Claire has all of their planned concerts memorized. She is both a musician in her own right, especially on the piano and other keyboards, and a connoisseur of music."

Ehren smirked to herself as the parents spoke then nodded to Draco, noticing that he was wearing the watch that was her present to him. "Guten Tag, Cousin Draco, Niobe, Cleopatra. A pleasure to meet you finally, Washington. It is good to see you and your family once more. I was hoping to speak to Nimue as well, but," all of the teens smiled at the sight of Nimue and Claire speaking animatedly about Northwest Pacific indie bands, "I fear that Claire has found a fellow enthusiast to speak music to."

Draco spoke quietly to Ehren as they sat in their own conversation circle, "Thank you for the birthday message. That was impressively done." Beside him, the shipgirls nodded as Washington sat down to silently observe the byplay, taking mental notes.

Ehren gave a small smug smile. "It was my pleasure. My eldest sister Ying, who played Darth Vader, has impressive skills at illusion magic. Claire did the choreography and music on her true body, of course, while I organized things and did the filming with my laptop. I trust that you did not get into too much hot water over our shopping trip?" With that she brushed back her hair from her ear to show that she was wearing the Annoushka pearl and brown diamond stud earrings that Draco had gotten her.

The girls giggled happily, showing off their own jewelry purchases as Draco smirked. "Not too much trouble. Father was upset when the bill came in, but then your mother's note and the brandy she gave him mollified him. All is forgiven now."

Ehren's smile grew happier. "Sehr gut. Mother had a litter of kittens when she read the receipts that I gave her upon returning home. She was not prepared for me to take advantage of Harrods to do all my shopping for family obligations so efficiently. She claims that I am as much a headache for her as she was to Grandpapa when she was a student at Beauxbatons."

Draco, Niobe, Cleopatra, and Ehren laughed in Schadenfreude at the thought of how their shared experiences impacted their parents. Washington gave a faint smile as she continued to take notes on these new players in the life of Draco Malfoy.

 

[darthcourt10]

Tackweld

Part 8.5
Have a silly that I thought up......
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Meanwhile, in Poland..........

Adm. Kazimierz Wawrzaszek did a double take when he saw the flag that the girl in his summoning pool was flying. It was not what he had expected with this summoning attempt.

Wawrzaszek had hoped he would never see the flag of the Imperial Russian Navy flown on his base. Even so, he had his duty.

The shipgirl announced her identity "Repair Ship Kamchatka of the Imperial Russian Navy, Glad to Serve the Tsar once more!"

The chamber went deathly quiet, even the murmuring of the lesser dignitaries in the gallery ceased.

" Welcome to the 21st century, Kamchatka. I am Adm. Kazimierz Wawrzaszek of the Polish Navy, we have much to discuss."

Thankfully, Wawrzaszek was able to have his aide delay the observers from the Sejm long enough that he could get Kamchatka to his office and lock the door. His sigh of relief as he slid the lock over did not go unnoticed.

"Sir?" Asked Kamchatka.

"Why did I lock the door?" finished Wawrzaszek. " Because I did not want this important meeting to be interrupted." Adm. Kazimierz Wawrzaszek walked over to his chair and motioned to the one on the opposite side of the desk to him. "Please, sit."

"Firstly," Began Adm. Kazimierz Wawrzaszek " it has been over a century since you were last above the surface. Many things have changed during that time, some may be shocking, but do not blame me, I am only the messenger."

"I promise to not be angry, Admiral."

Thus began Adm. Kazimierz Wawrzaszek's first post summoning briefing.