Harry Potter & the Shipgirls

[darthcourt10]

Harry Leferts

Walking back out into the sunlight, Harry stretched a bit before sighing. A glance to the side though caused him to frown some as he noticed the expression on Yukikaze's face. "Yukikaze-Chan? Is something wrong?"

Rapidly snapping out of it, the Destroyer waved her hands around. "Ah! It's nothing, Yukikaze is okay."

Eyes narrowing, Harry turned to Iku who caught his look and then leaned in. "She was a little put off when you disappeared. Because of her history with escorting..."

It took a moment, but the black haired boy suddenly realized what she meant and his eyes widened. Then he became thoughtful as he glanced around the alley. 'Hmm...' Slowly nodding, Harry suddenly smirked a bit. "Mum? Before we really start my shopping, can we make a stop?"

Nagato raised an eyebrow at him, but then nodded as she caught his eye. "Of course we can, Harry. Molly mentioned that her family is going to split up a bit."

Grabbing Yukikaze's hand, and not noticing her blush, Harry began pulling her along. "Great! We're going some place, Yukikaze-Chan!"

Even though she could have easily stopped Harry, the Destroyer let herself be pulled along through the crowds. She did realize that the others were close behind, though mostly she was focused on how someone was holding her hand. Moments later though, they came to a stop in front of a store. Frowning, she read the sign out loud. "'Sugarplum's Sweet Shop...'" Then her eyes widened and she looked over at Harry. "W-what? Why are we here?"

Still holding Yukikaze's hand, Harry began to pull her inside. "Well, you look kind of down. And candy always seems to help lift spirits, so why not go and get some." Just as Yukikaze was about to say something, Harry reached up and placed a finger to her lips. "No takebacks. Now let's go and get some candy. I got to get some for Hoppou anyways."

Blushing, Yukikaze only nodded and walked inside the store with Harry with the others just behind them. It was several minutes before Yukikaze and Harry walked out, the Destroyer smiling with a massive bag of candy in her hands. "Some of that's amazing! And I can't wait to share some with Shinano-Sama, Hamakaze-Chan, and Isokaze-Chan! And White-San and Louisiana-San as well!"

All Harry did was nod as he glanced at his own bag of candy which he put away. "Yeah, though I didn't expect for them to be holding a contest for free candy. Or for one of the prizes being a ten pound bag!"

Only smiling, Yukikaze nodded before she pulled out one of the pieces of candy and looked it over with a slight frown. "Some of those are odd..." Unwrapping it, she quickly popped it into her mouth. "These ginger newts are pretty good though."

That got her nods as behind them, Nagato smiled at their interactions. Looking down at her list, she frowned a bit and looked around. "I suppose that we should visit the apothcary first. And not just for school, but also to refill for the project that you're doing with Akashi-San."

Interested, Iku looked over at Harry. "Isn't that the potion's thing?" At his nod, she frowned a bit and placed her arm over his shoulder. "How are things going with that anyways? Akashi-San mentioned us testing some things out."

With a shrug, Harry glanced around. "Well... at the moment I'm not the greatest at potions. But Akashi-Oba thinks some of them are useful. Like, bruise paste helps take care of dents in hulls. And she said that Pepper-Up if used in small amounts can keep a shipgirl much warmer in really cold conditions from her tests alongside scarves. So shipgirls can be more comfortable when doing things in the far north."

Needless to say, that got him widened eyes before Nagato looked towards the sky. 'That... would be very useful. I wonder what other things could work...'

However, when they walked into the apothcary, Ooi came to a stop and paled as she took note of one bin. "Harry-Chan... are those Unicorn horns in that bin?"

Blinking, Harry looked over and nodded some. "Yeah, those are Unicorn horns." Ooi was about to say something when Harry continued. "They collect them every two years when the Unicorns shed them."

Almost immediately, Ooi's mouth snapped shut as Louisiana turned to Harry in surprise. It took her a moment before shaking her head. "Mon chéri, did you just say what I think that you did? That Unicorn horns fall off?"

Slowly, Harry nodded as he looked through the bin. "Yeah, we asked last year. They're kind of like antlers on deers and stuff, they fall off and regrow every two years. Hagrid actually collects them in the Forbidden Forest and sells them to apothecaries. Apparently, killing a Unicorn for it's horn can lead to very, very bad things. Using the horn from one killed for it is nearly as bad as drinking a Unicorn's blood."

There was a thoughtful expression on Yukikaze's face for a moment. 'I wonder what will happen when the Statute falls then...' Shaking it off though, she began to look at the various other items. Walking up to one bin, her eyes widened as she grabbed a tooth that looked like it belonged to a Tyrannosaurus Rex. 'Dragon's teeth!'

It took some time, but the group slowly worked their way through the alley grabbing various items for Harry. At one point though, Harry noticed Ooi looking over a stand set up in the Alley and examining various bits of jewelry. The stand next to it was selling photos though, and Harry bought a wizarding one of whales leaping into the air which Iku grinned at. "For Taigei-Nee-San, huh?"

Nodding, Harry looked at the photo and then at Iku. "Think that Taigei-Chan would like it?"

All the Submarine did was pull Harry into a hug and laugh lightly. Then she gave him a small smile. "I think that she'll love it, Harry-Chan."

Soon after, the photo was joined by toy whales for Ryuuhou, though in this case they were animated and would swim through the air in the room they were released in. The whole time letting out whale songs. A fact that Iku was grinning at as she could imagine how Ryuuhou would react to them. Soon enough though, they reached Flouish and Blotts and Nagato blinked at how the bookstore was absolutely filled. "Odd... it wasn't that full last year."

Eyebrows furrowing, Yukikaze looked around. "Um... is it normal for it to be mostly women? And not students?"

That caused the group to blink in confusion as Molly came up and let out a soft squeal. "Oh my! Gilderoy Lockhart is actually signing his books today! And we should just be in time!"

Just staring at her for a moment, Nagato frowned before shaking her head. It took some time, but they managed to get all the books and were about to head for the cash register when Nagato stopped and stared at the head of the line. "What in the world...?"

Looking in the same direction, Harry tilted his head in confusion. "Uh... Mum? Is that a real life Bishounen there? Or is it just me?"

For a moment, Nagato blinked and then snorted. "Um... I don't know, Harry. But I was looking at the woman beside him."

If anything, that caused Harry to stare at her before turning to look. Sure enough, there was a tall, rather muscular woman standing just behind Lockhart leaning against the book case. A scoff caused him to turn and see a woman glaring at the one who caught his mother's eye. "That's Roya Queenie. Supposedly she's his bodyguard, but everyone knows that she just wants in his pants and his money. After all, what would he need with a bodyguard, he would be more then able to take care of things! Hmph! The nerve of some people."

Something about that seemed off about it and, as the woman who just commented walked off, Harry turned back to "Roya Queenie". Frowning, he closed one eye until it was open a crack and focused some magic. It took everything not to gasp as he noticed a hull of what looked like a Battleship overlaying the woman. But not the somewhat blurry image of a unawakened Natural Born.

No, this was the image of a fully awakened, or summoned, shipgirl. "Mum... Is that a shipgirl?"

Very slowly, Nagato nodded and frowned. "She is, and not one who hasn't awakened yet either." A gasp caused her to turn to see Hermione staring at the shipgirl and Nagato raised an eyebrow. "You recognize her?"

Only nodding, Hermione suddenly frowned. "I do... that's Royal Sovereign. But... What's she doing here? No one even..." It was then that Royal Sovereign turned and froze at the sight of the shipgirls. "And I think that we might be getting answers soon then we think."

Quickly tapping Gilderoy on the shoulder, Royal Sovereign pointed to them with wide eyes. But before she could say anything, the blond haired man caught sight of Harry and smiled in a way which caused his teeth to sparkle. Getting up, he began to walk over to them. Just beside Harry, Iku hummed to herself with a slight smile. 'Now this should be interesting...'

 

[darthcourt10]

Harry Leferts

Laughing some, Gilderoy shook his head in disbelief. "Why, it can't be, can it? Harry Potter?" There were excited mutters from the crowd and Royal Sovereign winced a bit. Just as Gilderoy reached them though, Ooi stepped between the two of them. "Hmm?"

Not even a second later, the wizard felt a shiver go down his back at the glare that the Light Cruiser was giving him. "May I ask what you were doing with my little brother?"

It took a moment, but then Lockhart remembered hearing that Harry was adopted and a glance at Nagato caused him to realize why Royal Sovereign had been trying to get his attention. 'Right, he was adopted by shipgirls.' All of this went through his head and he straightened a bit with a nonchalant smile and shrug. "I was simply coming over to greet him, that's all. And perhaps have a photograph of us both as together we're worth the front page of the Daily Prophet!"

When she glanced at Harry and noticed his resigned expression, Ooi internally grimaced. 'Dammit...'

To her surprise though, Gilderoy didn't grab Harry, but just looked towards the camera. "Just smile, Harry. A nice big one."Holding out a hand, Gilderoy gave a smile as Harry shook it. Nearly a minute later though, Lockhart let go as he stood up and spread his hands out. "Now then, Ladies and Gentlemen, this is the perfect time to make an announcement!"

As he continued, Nagato raised an eyebrow. 'We stopped here to get his autographed book? Laying it on a bit thick there. Though I suppose with how we came in during his signing...'

However, his next words caught them by surprise. "... Him and his fellow schoolchildren will, in fact, be getting the real magical me! Yes, you all heard right! As of this September, I shall be teaching Defense Against the Dark Arts at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry! And I shall, of course, be bringing along my assistant as always!" There were several claps and cheers and Gilderoy leaned in and winked as he whispered to Harry. "Thanks for playing along and don't worry, the books are free." Clapping another hand on Harry's shoulder, he smiled in a way that made his teeth sparkle. "So don't worry, Harry, I'll teach you everything I know!"

With a wave of his wand, the entire set of books came over and landed hovered in front of Harry with him taking them. Then Gilderoy swept off back to the crowd as Harry just blinked. "Did... did that actually just happen?"

Rubbing the side of her head, Nagato nodded with a slight sigh. "Yes, yes it did." With a deep breath, she looked towards Royal Sovereign and then frowned. "I suppose that we'll have to wait until school starts for one mystery to be solved..."

Suddenly, a rather unwelcome voice spoke up behind them. "You probably liked that, didn't you, Potter?" Turning, they were confronted with a sneering Draco. "Famous Harry Potter, can't even go into a store without making the front page."

From her spot just behind Harry, Iku scowled. "Harry-Chan's not the least like that, you know!"

Malfoy only scoffed a bit. "Ooo! Got a girlfriend, Potter?"

With a glance at Nagato, and a slight nod from her, Ooi smirked. "My, my, are we trashtalking? Or could it be that you're jealous?" There was a mock thoughtful look on Ooi's face as she chuckled a bit. "Maybe... Um, whoever you might be."

Eyes narrowing, Malfoy glared at the Light Cruiser. "Malfoy, Draco Malfoy. Then again, I'm not surprised that you don't know that."

Blinking, Ooi then shrugged. "Yeah, yeah... Um, whoever you are. Seriously, I just forgot your name nearly as fast as you said it. Must not be that important."

As Ooi and Draco continued though, Harry caught sight of the Weasleys and frowned as he also spotted Draco's father there. Said man reached into Ginny's cauldron and pulled out a worn textbook while sneering at Arthur before saying something that Harry couldn't hear. Moments later though, Harry did hear the crash as Arthur grabbed him and the two men tumbled into a book case. 'Blistering blue barnicles!'

It turned out that Harry was not the only one to have seen it as Nagato rushed over to where Arthur was and began to help Hagrid pull the two apart. Also making his way over, Harry barely noticed when Draco tried to shove Iku, only to bounce off her and hit a bookcase himself. Nor did Harry notice the slight smirk on Iku's face. By the time that they reached where the fight was, they were only in time to see Lucius shove a book into Ginny's cauldron and then glare at Arthur before he called out. "Come, Draco! It's time to leave."

Now close enough to hear what his mother was saying, the black haired boy only blinked as Nagato rubbed the side of her head. "Dammit, Arthur. I know his type and what you just did is only giving him what he wanted."

Beside her, Hagrid nodded some. "Aye, she be right, Arthur. Those Malfoys, you know that they're bad blood."

Grumbling, Nagato shook her head. "Ironic considering their views on blood..." Sighing, she finally shrugged though. "Nothing for it, I suppose. We'll just have to cut the trip short after this."

Much to her surprise though, Molly shook her head and grabbed her husband's arm. "No, there's no need for that now. After all, we caused the problem, not you." She then gave Arthur a look that he winced at. "We just need some air I think and some time to cool off. Perhaps we should meet after you finish your shopping over at Carkitt Market. We'll either be at the Hopping Pot or in the Museum of Muggle Curiosities." Giving her husband another look, Molly frowned. "Hopefully, that will help you calm down."

Slowly relaxing, Nagato gave her a wry smile. "Thank you, Molly. That actually sounds wonderful and we'll meet you there once we're done our errands."

With a quick nod, Molly began to guide Arthur away along with her children as Yukikaze glanced around. "Um... So we just need a few books, right?"

Lips twitching, Nagato gave her a nod. "That's right, we just have a few books to pick up and then maybe make a trip into Diurn Alley right quick. We have something else to pick up after all."

By the time they left, everything was cleaned up and Harry glanced back at Lockhart. Much to his surprise though, said person only looked excited with what had happened and was talking with Royal Sovereign who was smiling back. However, what caught Harry's attention was the own that alighted on his mother's shoulder and made him raise an eyebrow. "Mum?"

Spotting the letter, Nagato took the envelope and then read it. After a few seconds, she smiled a bit and turned to him. "It looks like Dumbledore is going to allow us to stay at Hogwarts for the night. He's also going to come and transport us to Hogwarts himself."

That got her a grin from Harry as he looked at Yukikaze, Ooi, and Louisiana. "Sweet! I can't wait to show you guys around. You'll love it and the school is awesome!"

A small grin on her face, Ooi reached over and ruffled Harry's hair. "Heh, can't wait to see it, Harry-Chan. Especially after all the stories that you told us about it."

Not long afterwards, they reached Diurn Alley and Harry was looking around before stopping as he spotted one store. "Mum?" Glancing at her and seeing the nod to continue, he did so and pointed at the store. "Can I head over there? I won't be alone, promise!"

Raising an eyebrow, Nagato turned and blinked at the sight of the toy store there. With a hum, she looked at the girls and then nodded. "As long as... Yukikaze, Iku, and Ooi go with you, it should be okay. I won't be long though inside."

Just noddng, Harry grinned a bit and began to pull Ooi along. "Not a problem, Mum! We'll be there waiting for you." As the Light Cruiser easily kept pace, Harry looked up at her. "What do you think?"

Upon entering the store, Ooi looked round and noticed various toys including plushies. Slowly, her lips turned up into a massive smile and her eyes sparkled at the sight of said toys being animated. "I think... I think that In found the perfect spot for Kitakami's gift! Now to find it!?" Gasping, she ran over to one and grabbed it before holding it up. "Look at this! It's a big, fluffy dragon!" Wiggling in her grasp, said plush let out a squeaky roar and flapped it's wings. "Eeeee! So Kawaii!"

Giggles caused her to turn to see a brown haired, motherly woman standing nearby. "I see that you like our dragon plush. He's quite popular."

Only smiling, Ooi grinned a bit. "I can see why, he's adorable!" Rubbing her face against it, and not caring that there were snickers from the others, she sighed. "And it will be more adorable to see Kitakami with it!"

Chuckling, the woman shook her head before suddenly gasping and holding out her hand. "Where are my manners, I'm Winnifred. Winnifred Poe, owner of Childhood Magic."

With a smile on her face, Ooi shook said hand and smiled a bit as she shifted the dragon over to one arm. "My name's Ooi... just that." She then looked back at the dragon plush in awe. "This is just amazing, I've never seen one like this before."

There was a proud look on Winnifred's face as she nodded some. "Thank you, it's nice to have my work appreciated." Reaching out, the woman gently stroked the dragon. "And it warms my heart when each of my creations gets a loving home."

Almost missed was the considering look on Ooi's face before she slowly nodded. "Well, I think that this little one has found just that. Is there anything that I need to know in order to take care of him?"

If anything, that make Winnifred more happy. "Well... not too much. I've worked in self-repair charms as well as self-cleaning and water repellent. Besides that... the animation spells should last for several decades as long as it's taken good care of..."

While she continued to explain to an interested Ooi, Harry watched as Yukikaze grabbed beaver one and Iku took a whale one. Smiling, Iku winked at him. "I think that Taigei-Nee-San will love this one to cuddle with."

Said whale then waved it's fluke up and down as if in happiness at that.

 

[darthcourt10]

Harry Leferts

Another day on the base, another day of practice for the various Carriers there. On the Kyūdō Range at Yokosuka, Kaga lined up an arrow at the target and took aim. Then... she released, the arrow flying true and straight at the target. In a burst of fire, the arrow transformed into a Reppu and let loose with a burst of machine gun fire that caused the target to shudder before it pulled upwards. If one could have seen Kaga, they would have noticed a very tiny smile on her face before she glanced to the side and blinked. 'What in the world...?'

To most humans, all they would have seen would be Shinano sticking her tongue out a bit as she took aim with her own arrow. But Kaga was not 'Most Humans' and could see activity on Shinano's hull and her eye was caught by one bit in particular. Mainly, one of Shinano's Shidens was on her deck with some of her maintenece crew working on it. That in, and of itself would not have been too odd. However...

It looked like they were attaching fuel drums to where a bomb would normally go. They also attached what looked like a modified drop tank. The problem with that, of course, was that today's practice did not involve bombs, nor need drop tanks. So pretending not to notice and to line up another shot, Kaga had one of her fairies look over at Shinano as unobtrusively as possible with binoculars. Firing off another shot, which was perfectly made, Kaga internally hummed as her fairy reported what looked like tiny propellers on the tanks and fuel drums. 'Odd, I wonder what the reason for those modifications could be.'

Kaga's own fairies only made sounds of confused agreement as they couldn't figure it out themselves. Despite that, it continued to bug the Fleet Carrier and Kaga kept an eye on it. When Shinano's crew began doing the same to another Shiden, she became more interested. It went without saying that Akagi, from a long time having associated with Kaga, caught sight of her expression and contacted her over the radio channel the two used for privacy. '{Is something wrong, Kaga?}'

Glancing at her, Kaga went through the motions even as her mind chewed away at the issue of what, exactly, Shinano's pilots and aircrews were doing. '{Don't be obtrusive, Akagi-San... But have one of your fairies look at Shinano's deck. In particular, one of the air crews though it should be obvious which one.}'

Several moments later, Akagi blinked as she fired off her own arrow with a form as perfect as Kaga's own. '{Is she strapping bombs and drop tanks?}' Then she furrowed her eyebrows slightly. To most, they wouldn't have noticed it. However to Kaga? It was the equivalent of her shouting out loud. '{No, wait a moment... Those are modified drop tanks and fuel drums? What is she doing?}'

Just then, Shinano fired off one of her planes which attacked the target and then rose upwards. Unlike Kaga's own planes, which were only a few thousand feet in the air, it continued until it was over 30,000 feet up. Something that caused Kaga's eyebrow to raise a little. '{Hmm... Now isn't that interesting?}'

A snort came over the radio carrying Akagi's amusement at it. '{Very interesting. Why go so high in a practice? Perhaps she's doing a little training off to the side?}'

Giving it some thought though, Kaga shook her head. '{No, I don't think that it's that. But whatever it is...}'

Wth giggles, Akagi shook her head with a slight smile. '{It's really going to bother you until you solve it, isn't it?}' At the grumbles, she giggled again and then glanced at Ryuuhou beside her. '{Hmm... actually, perhaps you might be onto something.}'

Eyebrow quirked just a little, Kaga frowned slightly as she went through the motions again. '{Oh? How so?}'

Akagi hummed for a moment before answering. '{Look at Ryuuhou. In particular her Zeros that she is getting ready to launch.}'

Needless to say, Kaga did so and then blinked in utter befuddlement. '{She has the same thing as Shinano-San, except no drop tanks. What are those two up to?}'

Head tilted to the side, Akagi gave a slight shake of the head. '{Now that, is the question isn't it? But it does make some sense.}' Getting a raised eyebrow from Kaga, Akagi continued. '{Shinano-Chan has been teaching Ryuuhou, has she not? So it would make sense that if Shinano is doing something...}'

Slowly nodding, Kaga frowned. '{So would Ryuuhou. Yes, that does make some sense I suppose... But it still does not solve exactly what they are doing.}' Watching, she could see one of the Zeroes with the fuel drum launch off Ryuuhou's deck and into the air. The process appearing to normal humans as the shipgirl firing off a arrow. Then, she observed said plane climbing up to where Shinano's plane was. '{... I need to know.}' Once the practice was over, Kaga cleared her throat as Shinano and Ryuuhou were putting away their gear. "Shinano-San, Ryuuhou-San, may I speak with you for a moment?"

That got her a wince from Shinano before the giant Carrier took a deep breath and straightened her back a little. "Um, yes, Kaga-San? D-did we do something wrong?"

Beside Kaga, Akagi shook her head and chuckled. "No, you actually did quite well, the both of you." She then gave a nod to Shinano, her next words causing the Yamato to blush. "In fact, you should be quite proud, Ryuuhou is doing extremely well under your teaching."

A blush on her face, Shinano gave a small smile as she fiddled with her skirt. "T-thank you, Akagi-San." Then she frowned a bit and tilted her head to the side. "But... what seems to be the problem then?"

Glancing at Akagi, Kaga cleared her throat. "We noticed a few modifications that the two of you made to a few of your aircraft and were wondering about them. In particular, concerning drop tanks and what looked like fuel drums."

If anything, Shinano blushed as Ryuuhou shuffled a bit in place. With a deep breath, Shinano placed her hand on the much smaller Carrier's shoulder and then looked at Kaga. "We... we were making ice cream. To give to our escorts when on Sortie." Biting her lip, she swallowed. "We don't have ice cream makers, so..."

For a moment, both Kaga and Akagi just blinked. Neither of them had expected that answer to say the least. Furrowing her eyebrows, Akagi frowned. "You were making ice cream? How does that work?"

With a nervous look, Shinano reached into her clothes and then pulled out one of the drop tanks and held it out. "I read about it in a book about the War and it was something that the Americans did. Um, see the propeller on it?" When the two older Carriers nodded, Shinano took a deep breath before continuing. "When the plane goes above 30,000 feet, it's really cold, so what is in the tank begins to freeze. T-the propeller drives a turbine that churns the mixture and causes it to become ice cream. Kaa-San tried it and said it was really good. And, um, Hamakaze-Chan and Isokaze-Chan seem to really enjoy it... Harry-Chan also liked it the few times that I gave him some."

All Kaga did was blink and slowly nod. "I see..." Internally though, she narrowed her eyes a little bit and could tell her own engineers were looking closely. 'Perhaps I can do much the same. Something else to hold over Fifth Carrier Division...'

Inside Akagi's mind though, there was a different thought. 'I wonder how Fubuki-Chan and the others would react...'

Both Fleet Carriers decided to ask for Shinano to teach them, if only because it was interesting.

 

[darthcourt10]

Harry Leferts

Opening her eyes, the first thing that Ooi spotted was the canopy of the bed she was laying in. It took a few moments, and a quick review of her logs, but she remembered where she was and gave a slight smile. At least part of it had to do with the bed that she was currently in. Ever since becoming a shipgirl, Ooi had been to many different places around the world. And the bed that she was in currently ranked up there for comfortableness. There was only one thing, in Ooi's mind that is, which could have made it better.

Unfortunately, Kitakami was still back in Japan which meant that her normal cuddle buddy was not there.

That said, Ooi just laid back with her arms behind her head as she enjoyed slowly stretching the various morning kinks and such out. A nice, restful morning was more then what she wanted. Relaxing some, Ooi's mind drifted back to the night before. Shortly after seeing the Weasleys home, they had enjoyed some 'Gnome Throwing'. Even though the shipgirls and Harry had been unsure, after one bit Harry, they got into it. Of course, considering that the things were being chuckled upwards of fifty feet away, perhaps they had gone too far.

It did not help matters much when Ron commented it might take them a few days to get back to their burrows.

By the time that Dumbledore had arrived though to pick them up, it was getting to be late afternoon and they decided to pick up Haru before coming to Hogwarts. After that, Harry had given those of them who had not been to Hogwarts before a tour of the place. Much to their surprise though, the castle was not as empty as they had thought. Besides the ghosts, Filch, Hagrid, and Dumbledore himself, the Librarian was still there. There were also at least a dozen or so magicals also living at the castle over the summer. Apparently, wizards and witches would come from all over Europe to spend the summer months using the school library for research.

A number were also there to do gather and harvest magical materials from the Black Lake and the Forbidden Forest. Ooi had been surprised to find at least one person was using the summer to do research on the merfolk. That was also not mentioning how the Quidditch Patch was used by some teams for practice out of the public eye. Said thought reminded Ooi about the picture she had taken with the Hollyhead Harpies. Despite the fact that she knew that Kitakami would tease her over having about a dozen fit young women hanging off her, Ooi looked forward to it.

Most though did not stay in the castle overnight though, instead staying in the nearby town of Hogsmeade. Someplace called the "Three Broomsticks Inn" apparently being filled to compacity during the summer months with other cottages being rented out. Which meant, of course, that they had most of the castle to themselves after a certain time of night. It went without saying that they had decided to make use of the dormatory that Harry had used during the school year to sleep in. Granted, before they had retired they had a meeting with Dumbledore, in which they had told him about the incident with the house elf. Something that had made him concerned and he stated he would keep an eye out

Now though, there was only one thing that Ooi wanted and that was a nice breakfast. Moments after making her decision, she threw her blankets to the side and opened the bed's curtains before hopping out. A glance to the side though caused her to smile a little bit. "Good morning, Haru-San."

Looking up from her book, the Miko gave her a smile. "Good morning, Ooi-San. Have a good sleep?"

With a hum, Ooi stretched a bit and was rewarded with cracking noises as her joints realigned. "Hai, it was actually pretty good." Glancing back at her bed, she made a show of becoming thoughtful. "Think that they might miss one of these beds?"

That got a soft laugh from Haru as she shook her head, a twinkle in her eye. "I think that they might miss a bed or two. Though I have to admit, I am rather tempted myself to swipe one. They are very comfortable beds after all, though perhaps a bit too much so."

Snickering, Ooi nodded some. "True enough. Ah well, something to think on." Just pulling her overnight bag out from inside her hull, Ooi began to strip off her sleeping clothes until she was just in her underwear, not even bothered by Haru being there. Nor was she really bothered by Harry being asleep in the next bed over with the curtains closed. Being in the military had pretty much knocked out such worries within a few weeks after all. "So how did your watch go? Anything of note?"

Haru gave a small smirk as she tilted her head towards the door. "Oh, it seems that a certain mischievious spirit that Harry-Chan warned us about attempted to visit us. Sadly for it, he ran right into the wards I had set up. Let's just say... he had a shocking relevation about things and leave it at that."

A grin split Ooi's face as she considered what she had been told and bit back loud laughter. It was easy to guess what had happened to the poltergeist when he had tried to enter to prank them in the middle of the night. Grabbing a change of clothes, she walked over to the nearby bathroom and walked in. "I can imagine that."

Roughly forty minutes later, a refreshed Ooi walked out with clean clothes on to find Nagato speaking softly with Haru. Upon seeing her, Nagato gave a small nod. "Good morning, Ooi. Enjoy your shower?"

With a sigh, the Cruiser nodded some. "Well, of course. I mean, I don't even need to worry about running out of hot water after all. Do you know how often I get the chance to have a hot shower for as long as I want? Not very often." Then she narrowed her eyes some as she noticed that Nagato was also in clean clothes. "Where did you go?"

Smirking a bit, Nagato hummed before chuckling. "While you were sleeping, I was making use of the bathroom belonging to the Headboy and Headgirl when they're Gryffindors. I believe that the term 'Opulent' best describes it." Her eyes then became hooded. "A lovely bubble bath with scented water, bath salts, inside of a marble bathtub that is more like a small pool."

For a moment, Ooi froze as she considered what she had just been told. Then she playfully scowled at the Battleship who's smirk grew just slightly. "Lucky."

Simply lightly laughing, Nagato shook her head some. "Well, we might be spending some time here later, so perhaps before we head home you can make use of it yourself."

Needless to say, Ooi had a grin on her face before she turned to the bed where Harry was sleeping. "Harry-Chan not up yet? It's getting a bit late in the morning."

Also turning to said bed, Nagato shook her head and opened the curtains enough to look in at the cuddlepile. Said pile consisting of Harry laying on top of Louisiana with his head on her chest. On either side and cuddled up close with Lousiana's arms around them were Iku and Yukikaze. The soft, relaxed expressions on all four just caused Nagato to smile at them. "Hmm... perhaps it is time for them to get up." Her eyes then became slightly distant. "Though considering what we are doing today, I am not sure if I shouldn't allow for them to relax a bit more..."

Ooi caught the unstated portion of what Nagato was saying and sighed. "That's right... We'll be visiting the graves of Harry-Chan's parents today, aren't we." At Nagato's nod, Ooi frowned a little bit. "I... brought along the flowers that I helped Harry-Chan pick out." Seeing the Battleship's surprise, Ooi gave a small smile. "I... know a lot about the language of flowers, let's just say."

Slowly, Nagato nodded and gave her a small smile. "Thank you." With one last look at the bed, she let out a breath. "I think that this morning, we should have breakfast down in the Common Room, just all of us."
That caused Ooi to only nod slightly in agreement.
___________________________________________________________________________
Watching as Harry kneeled down by the gravestone of his parents and began to softly talk to it, Yukikaze shuffled a bit from one foot to the other as she looked around. At the same time, she wrung her hands a little bit until a hand on her shoulder caused her to jump a bit before she realized that it was a worried Louisiana. "Is something wrong, ma chère?"

Embarrassed, the Destroyer took a deep breath before whispering a bit. "I've never been in a western graveyard before and... Well, I've seen pictures of them before, but I didn't expect it to be like this. It's so different from..." Her eyes trailed over to a statue of an angel. Said statue was sitting in a throne-like chair with it's head in it's hands showing grief. Just the sight of it sent a shiver down Yukikaze's spine. "Um... back home."

Slowly, Iku nodded some as she looked around. "Yeah, it's pretty different from the ones back home." Blinking, for a moment Iku could have sworn that she saw a woman from the far end of the graveyard watching her in interest. Said woman wore a white cloak which seemed to softly glow in the light. Then, between one blink and the next, she vanished. Something that caused Iku to feel a shudder crawl up her keel. "A lot different."

Frowning, Nagato glanced at them before letting out a sigh. "It's also a very old graveyard. Harry's ancestors are buried here as well, right up to about eight hundred or so years ago. His parents are just the most recent of them to be buried here."

Eyes wide, Yukikaze stared at her as did Iku. But it was Ooi who spoke first in surprise. "Harry-Chan's family is that old? Really?" At Nagato's nod, she shook her head in disbelief. "Wow, tht's just... wow."

With a slight chuckle, Nagato gave a small smile. "It surprised me when I found out just how old his famiy really is. But they have unbroken records right up to nearly a thousand years ago, though apparently at least one ancestor, Paverell who is also buried here, lived just before a thousand years ago."

That got her stares from each of the Japanese shipgirls and even Louisiana seemed surprised at that information. Then the American Battleship became thoughtful and glanced around in consideration. "Hmm... There is a lot of history in places such as this. Have you checked the church books?" When Nagato shook her head, Lousiana frowned. "They would record deaths and burials. Perhaps it would be nice if Harry was to know where they might be buried in case he ever wishes to visit them."

Several minutes later, Ooi noticed that Harry was waving at her and moved over. At his motion of what to do, she kneeled down beside him as he waved between them. "Mum? Dad? I want you to meet Ooi... I mean, Yuuko-Nee-San. She's one of my big sisters in a way."

Even though she felt like there was a lump in her throat at the fact that Harry was introducing her as such to his parents' grave, Ooi felt honored that he did so and bowed slightly. "Hello, Lily-San, James-San. As Harry-Chan said, I'm his big sister and he's my... my little brother that I never had." Reaching over, she placed her arm around Harry's shoulders and pulled him into a hug. "And I love him just as much as if we shared the same blood. You don't need to worry, whenever I am around, anyone will have to go through me to get to him. Because us big sisters need to protect our little brothers..."

Harry leaned into the hug a little and nodded. "Yeah, and Yuuko-Nee-San is an awesome big sister..."

As Harry continued to speak, he missed how Ooi's eyes seemed wet. But there was also a smile on her face as she swallowed. 'That's right... I got a family now. One that won't leave me or abandon me...' Closing her eyes, she took a deep breath. 'A real family.'

Oddly, when they left the graveyard with her arm over Harry's shoulder, Ooi felt the most at peace with herself then she had in a very long time.

 

[darthcourt10]

Harry Leferts

As for those wondering about the Shrine...
__________________________________________________________________________________

A frazzled Natsumi glared out at the Shrine grounds as she took a stance. "Shiromizu-San... thank you. Thank you my friend, for being here at the end of all things. At this, the final battle for the Shrine against the evil forces arrayed against us. We fight for honor and good!"

Blinking, the transformed white snake turned to the kitsune. "Uh... Natsumi-San? Aren't you taking this perhaps just a little too seriously?"

Slowly, Natsumi turned her and glared. "Taking this too seriously... taking this too seriously!? We are fighting an alliance of Yokai who wish to attack the Shrine! It is my sworn duty as the Miko in charge to defend it!"

Once more blinking, Shiromizu pointed at their foes. "... We're fighting an alliance of Yanari and Bakezōri." Then she frowned and tilted her head to the side. "I'll admit though, that Seto taishō leading them is actually pretty smart... Though, uh... where did he get the Waniguchi he's riding?"

Natsumi took a deep breath and then let it out. "That's one of the ones that Oba-Chan was storing away..." Suddenly she threw her hands into the air. "BESIDES! WHO CARES!" The kitsune then pointed at the Seto taishō who cheerily waved back. "These guys are trying to take over the Shrine! And you're ruining the mood!"

In reply, Shiromizu coughed and then scratched her cheek as she looked to the side. "Right... um, sure I am. Just, uh, making sure." She then glanced back at the group of yokai. "Besides... it's kind of cute." At that, the Seto taishō wrote something on a sign and held it up. "..."

With a slow blink, Natsumi turned to it. "'Do we have a little taishō in us?' Uh, no..."

Moments later, Shiromizu's eyebrow twitched as the little tsukomogami flipped with the sign around. "'Would we like to?' I... that... are you seriously hitting on us!?"

Reaching up, it wiped off the expression on it's face. Then, using the marker, put a new one on. Facepalming, Natsumi sighed. "Considering it's expression it just gave itself..."

Just brining her baseball bat up, Shiromizu took a deep breath. "How about no, you fucking perverted little ceramic shit."

Yet again, it wiped away it's expression before drawing two dots for eyes and a thin mouth. Then it added two slanted lines above it's eyes before writing something on it's sign and holding it up. "'Ha! You two boney ar-'"

Before Natsumi could finish, Shiromizu went red and snarled. "YOU SAY WHAT NOW!? THAT IS IT, I AM KICKING YOUR ASS ALL THE WAY TO THE DUSTBIN!"

Then the kitsune blinked at what it did next. "Aaaaand, it just drew an ass on it's face. Lovely. Oh, look, and now it's holding up a sign which has what looks like... Okay, you have to be kidding. That is beyond lewd and rude right there."

Holding up one hand in front of her face, Shiromizu cracked her fingers. "Let's beat this little perv."

With a hum, Natsumi brought up her broom in a manner to wield it as a weapon. "Yes, let's do that. Mind giving me a lift?"

Shiromizu just grinned and held out her baseball bat. "Sure, I can do that. Alley oop!"

Grinning herself, Natsumi leapt onto the bat before Shiromizu catapulted her into the air. While they were distracted by the flying kitsune, the white snake then charged into the midst of the tiny army. The chaos was only increased as Natsumi landed and swung out with her broom, sending Yanari and Bakezōri flying in all directions.

Meanwhile, at the Shrine gate, Hoppou was munching on some popcorn between sharing it with chirizuka kaiō who had caused all this.

 

[darthcourt10]

Harry Leferts

Walking through the corridors of Hogwarts, Ooi sighed a bit as she worked out a kink in her keel, or was it her back? Shaking off those thoughts, Ooi gave Harry an amused look. "Are you positive that I can't be like one of the American Submarines and steal one of those beds? Because they are seriously comfortable."

Lightly laughing, Harry looked over at her with a grin. "I'm pretty sure that you can't, Ooi-Nee. But you might be able to find out where they got them."

Much to Harry's amusement, as well as the others, Ooi had an expression of deep thought on her face. "You know... I might just do that. Or see if I can't bring Kitakami-San here next time to try one of those beds."
Grinning, Louisiana shook her head. "You just wish to have an excuse to cuddle with her, Mon Petit. It's as obvious as the hairs on your head."

In reply, Ooi grinned back at her. "Can you blame me? Kitakami-San is very cuddly, trust me on that." Sighing, she wrapped her arms around herself in a hug. "Ah, just the thought..." Then thrusting a fist into the air, Ooi laughed. "So next time, I am so bringing her! Not to mention that bath..."

When she turned towards Harry, the black haired boy snickered and shook his head. "No, you can't steal the bath either. Where would you even put it?"

Tapping her chin, Ooi finally shrugged. "Don't really know, but I would find somewhere."

Everyone was smiles as they continued to walk towards the Great Hall, eventually, Yukikaze turned towards them with an expression of curiosity on her face. "So, um... what are we going to do today?"

Simply glancing at her, Nagato finally shook her head. "At the moment? Nothing really. We'll be heading back to Yokosuka in a few hours so I thought that we should take it somewhat easy for now. So simply relax and enjoy yourselves."

Now thoughtful, Louisiana nodded before turning towards Harry with a slight smile. "Perhaps we should see that tree that you mentioned to us, mon chéri."

That caused Harry to blink a bit and then look at her. "Wait, you mean the one by the lake?" At her nod, he smiled a bit. "Sure! And maybe wade around a bit in the shallows..." Head tilted to the side, Harry frowned a bit. "Kind of wish that we had swimsuits though. The giant squid likes to play a bit and toss people into the air so they can splash back down in the water."

Very slowly, Haru turned to him and blinked. "... The giant squid likes to play with swimming students..."

Having not noticed the looks, Harry nodded some. "Yeah, you know how when you're playing in the water and tossing around your friends? The giant squid does the same with students. It also plucks any drowning and puts them back on the land while keeping any dangerous things away."

For several moments, Iku stared at him and then had an odd expression partway between amusement, confusion, and a grimace. "That's... I got nothing. How about you girls?" Getting shakes of the head, she nodded. "Thought so."

A grin on his face, Harry snickered a bit. "How about it's very ticklish?"

Pinching the bridge of her nose, Nagato only shook her head in amusement. "I would ask how you found that out, but I am rather frightened at the possibility of what I might hear. That said... I am amazed that something that's normally a predator is that friendly."

Beside her, Ooi scratched her head. "Or how it even lives in a lake. That's just weird."

Haru gave a small snort of amusement before shaking her head. "Here you are in a magical castle that doubles as a school for wizards and witches, and you're calling that weird? Perhaps we're just desensitized about things I suppose."

Glancing at her, Nagato hummed a little bit. "Speaking of... I forgot to ask if you found anything in particular while in Harry's storage shed. You were awfully quiet when you arrived at Hogwarts."

For almost a minute, Haru was silent as she considered her thoughts. "There was a rather large number of items of interest in that collection. More then a few are going to be raising eyebrows, of that you can be sure. But before I go any further, I shall be contacting someone that I know who... specializes, in antiques. He has quite the reputation in several circles and him confirming things would more then settle any issues with some groups."

Tilting his head to the side, Harry frowned for a moment. "What about Kurosawa-San?" At their looks, he shrugged. "She was part of the Archives staff at some point, right? Wouldn't she also be able to help?"

After some thought, Haru slowly nodded with a very small smile on her face. One that suggested that she was up to mischief of some sort. "That is true enough, I suppose. Yes, I think that I shall let her have a look at what I have gathered as well."

While Harry frowned at the kitsune in confusion, Nagato sighed. 'And no doubt use this to tweak the noses of her old superiors at the Archives at how she is getting first crack at them. Then again, considering how they sometimes act... I cannot blame her.'

As that thought went through her mind, Harry placed his hands behind his head and grinned some. "Hopefully Jane likes the Sea Chest that I got from the storage shed for her. I'm going to give it to her for her birthday after all."

It was then that they noticed Victory walking alongside Dumbledore, the two speaking in low tones to each other. Upon noticing them, the old shipgirl gave them all a smile and a wave with her arm. "Good morn to each of you."

Needless to say, the Japanese shipgirls all gave a small bow to the sailing ship before Nagato straightened a bit. "And a good morning to you as well, Victory. Hopefully you've been having a good day so far."

Understanding the unasked question, Victory only nodded some. "I've having a pleasant morning, besides Bumblebee here being his usual self. But then again, that's one of the perils of being friends with him."

Just blinking slowly, Harry turned to Dumbledore and raised an eyebrow. "Bumblebee?"

Simply coughing into one hand, Dumbledore tried to straighten up a bit. "Quite, she often calls me that." Then he had a mock thoughtful expression on his face. "Then again I suppose that it is normal for the elderly in regards to remembering names."

Reaching up, Victory gave him a flick to the ear. "You're a fine one for talking about being old and forgetful, Bumblebee." Only ignoring the smirk on Dumbledore's face, she turned back to Nagato and the group began walking again. "I was mainly here on some business unfortunately. You'll be happy to know that Dumbledore has already spoken to us in regards to your warning."

Eyebrows raising at that, Nagato turned to Dumbledore who's eyes began to twinkle. "As it turns out, there is a number of sailshipgirls in various navies that do not do much. No one would question if they went on a... paid vacation of sorts to perform security somewhere."

If anything though, that only caused Nagato even more amusement. "I don't suppose that some of these shipgirls would not be flying a particular black flag? Or be of a slightly... mercenary bent?"

A grin on her face, Victory raised a hand. "As the Americans say, ask me no questions and I shall tell you no lies. But I will say that they have been getting rather bored..."

Needless to say, that got her looks of amusement from everyone. However, Ooi placed her hands behind her head and nodded some. "I got to admit, that surprisingly makes me feel a lot better about things. They won't fuck around at least if something needs to be done."

Dumbledore had a serious expression on his face. "That would be my hope and I am going to try my best to prevent any problems this year. However, this would be just in case it does need to be done."

Waving a hand around, Victory shrugged. "Anyways, enough of the really serious stuff. The other reason I might as well mention as I am sure that Harry would inform you otherwise once he gets back to school. Mainly, the Royal Navy is making a donation to Hogwarts."

That caused Harry to stare at her in surprise. "Wait, the Royal Navy is making a donation? What sort and how?"

Lips twitching, Victory hummed some. "As it turned out, your friend Ron had mentioned to Warspite about what happened to a Mister Longbottom. And after some talks with Dumbledore, I found out that part of the issue is that the brooms were all generally old and donated to the school. Not one is the same type nor of the same condition, though they're all a bit banged up."

Slowly nodding, Dumbledore chuckled with a twinkle in his eye. "Indeed, it has been a bit of an issue. Up until a decade or two ago, I was able to use the money that would have gone to Binns for such things, but then things unfortunately changed and it was decided that said money should go... elsewhere, as it were. And with the war and such? Well..."

Interested, Harry looked between them with wide eyes. "So the Royal Navy is buying brooms for Hogwarts?"

With a smirk on her face, Victory nodded. "That's right, Harry. Or, rather, the shipgirls of the Royal Navy are 'Donating' enough new brooms to replace all the old ones. We did ask that Madame Hooch accompany us to buy them, but what happened to your friend shouldn't. Of course... We are making sure that it is known exactly who is donating them.'

Furrowing her eyebrows, Haru turned towards Dumbledore in confusion. "Wouldn't that cause issues? I mean, the Royal Navy is non-magical..."

Eyes twinkling, there was a rather large grin on Dumbledore's face. "You would be, of course, correct, Miss Haru. The Board was not quite happy at first. But then Madame Longbottom made several good points regarding it. And I may have mentioned that this may help convince shipgirls to join the magical world in a more... official stance. I perhaps did not mention that it may go the other way as well due to how young minds are."

There were amused and knowing looks all around at that as chuckles were shared.
______________________________________________________________________

Leaning back against Harry, Iku let out a sigh as the Sun warmed her skin. Eyes closed, the Submarine hummed gently as she felt the cool breeze brush against her skin. Since coming back, she like many shipgirls had found themselves enjoying the more simple things in life. More the one shipgirl loved to simply doze in such situations. Opening her eye a crack though, Iku could only smile at the sight of Harry reading a book. The two of them were leaning against Louisiana, who herself was leaning against the large oak tree Harry had chosen as his on the banks of the Black Lake.

On the Battleship's other side, Yukikaze was laying with one of Louisiana's arms around her. Eyes closed, the Destroyer's chest rose and fell with each slow breath. None of the three shipgirls nor one human boy really spoke, they were simply enjoying the lazy few hours before they left for home. Moving, Iku pushed Harry's legs apart enough and then laid down with her head against his stomach. Looking down at her, Harry smiled a bit with a raised eyebrow. "Comfortable?"

With a grin on her face as she nodded back, Iku let out a soft breath. "Yeah, I'm pretty comfortable." Then wiggling a bit, she looked up at him. "Especially as I have a great pillow right now."

Rolling his eyes, Harry just shook his head before placing his hand on her head and running his fingers through her hair. As Iku's eyes became hooded, Harry let out his own sigh. "Thanks, I'm glad that you're enjoying yourself, Iku-Chan. There's a reason why I like this spot after all."

Unknown to him, for a brief moment there was an image in Iku's mind. It was the same scene except Harry was older and several other shipgirls that were not there, had joined them in Iku's mind's eye. Hachi was one of them and cuddled into Harry's side with a happy smile on her face as she joined Harry in reading his book. Then the scene was gone, though Iku stored away the memory to use later on during lonely patrols of the North Pacific.

Just like she was doing with the current time as it always made things a bit easier to have them. Memories of warm, lazy and sunny days which chased away loneliness and cold. 'Dear Kami, I don't care if we're just friends or something more. Please always have him with us and giving me times like this.'

Louisiana then hummed a bit as she looked out over the Black Lake. Every so often, she spotted what looked like mermaid children leaping out of the water only to splash down. "It is quite lovely out. The Sun, it is quite warm and but not burning. But we also have a refreshing breeze to cool us. It is... perfect."

Turning a page, Harry smiled a bit. "Well, it is the Scottish Highlands. They don't get as hot or humid as back in Yokosuka."

When he looked up though, his eyes widened some and he placed down his book. Iku noted that it had two weasels in cloaks on it with one having a staff of some kind. Around there were a number of some kind of rodent with fangs. "Something wrong, Harry-Chan?"

Just glancing at her, Harry nodded in the direction he was looking as he pulled out his phone and brought up the camera. "Looks like Ooi-Nee has a few visitors right now. I got to take some pictures for Kitakami-Nee!"

Blinking, Iku looked in that direction and felt her eyebrows raise as a frozen Ooi stood in front of a group of Unicorns. As she watched, one of them stepped forward until it was inches away and simply waited for Ooi to act. Slowly, the Light Cruiser reached up with one hand until it stopped, hovering just above the fur. Then, very gently, Ooi brought her hand down onto the shining white fur and her expression shifted to one of pure awe and happiness. Expression soft, Iku shook her head. "I think that is the best end to this trip for Ooi-San that could have happened."

Only watching as Ooi seemed to be silently crying as she placed her hands around the Unicorn's neck and buried her face in it's mane, Harry just nodded and put away the phone. "Dess, I think that she really needed this."

With some final looks, every one turned their heads away to give the Light Cruiser some privacy as the Unicorn nuzzled her some. It went without saying that Ooi, when she came back to where they were, had a smile on her face which showed just how happy she was with everything. Though Harry did not expect the day after she got back to Yokosuka, for Kitakami to hug him and thank him for everything he did. Something that confused Harry before he simply shrugged and hugged her back.

 

[darthcourt10]

Harry Leferts

There was a smile on Harry's face as he looked down at the package in his hands. Said package was not very big and was addressed to him, but most would have wondered why he was so happy to get it. In all actuality, most wouldn't have known that he was happy that it got there when it did as it made some plans he had much easier and gave him more time to see them through. "They're going to be so excited for this..."

Before he could do anything else though, Harry heard the sound of flesh hitting stone alongside steel and was just turning when a weight slammed into his back. "GARURURU!" Wrapping her arms around his neck, RO also wrapped her legs around his waist and grinned a bit. "You should have kept an eye out for Submarines, Harry-Chan!"

Stumbling forward, Harry just managed to catch himself before he looked over his shoulder at the unpentant RO. "Guess that you're just too good, RO-Chan."

A grin on her face, RO reached back and flipped some of her nearly bleached blonde hair over her shoulder. "Of course I am. But it is good to see that some accept it." Then she spotted what was in Harry's hands and tilted her head in curiosity. "What's this now?"

With a smirk on her face, Harry reached back and tapped her on the nose with made her sneeze before wiggling it. "It's a surprise for someone, RO-Chan. But I can say that it's not for you or any of the Submarines."

Pouting a bit, RO closed her eyes and huffed a bit as she continued to hang on while leaning bacl some. "And you're not going to tell me? No fair, Harry-Chan." Cracking open one eye and seeing his grin, she then went back to being pressed close to his back and staring at the package as if she could see into it. "Just a hint? Please?"

Unable to help himself, Harry gave a laugh. "It's a gift for some people who might otherwise be very bored while I am at school. I'm setting up something just for them really."

Only raising an eyebrow, RO laid her chin on his shoulder. "That doesn't really narrow it down much. We'll all be bored while you're at school." In reply, Harry just shrugged and so the Submarine hummed a bit. "We are going to miss you, Harry-Chan. Last year was bad enough."

Sighing, Harry gave a nod as he looked up at the blue sky above them. "I know, but I need to learn magic since it might help me become an even better Admiral! And Akashi-Oba thinks that the potions and such that I am learning could help all of you out a lot."

Just huffing a bit, RO gave him a small squeeze. "I guess." To Harry's confusion, she closed her eyes and gave a serious nod. "Then there's only one thing for me to do!"

Before he could ask, RO buried her face into the crook of his neck and began to hum. Squirming just a bit at the sensation, Harry blushed slightly and gave her a look. "U-um, RO-Chan? What are you doing?"

Frowning, RO opened one eye and Harry was struck by how her deeply tanned skin made the blue of her eyes stand out. "What else, Harry-Chan? If you're going to be leaving again then I need to recharge my Harry-Chan reserves!"

That caused Harry to blink a little in utter confusion, but also amusement. "Recharging your 'Harry-Chan Reserves', RO-Chan? Really?"

Once more, she gave a serious nod. "Ja, I need recharging of my Harry-Chan reserves and so do the others. That way, we can last through until we can get some more of you." RO then pointed at something off to the side. "Just like the Fuso sisters are doing with Shigure-San for their trip back to Sasebo. They're recharging their luck from her after all."

With a slow blink, Harry turned to look in the direction she had pointed and raised an eyebrow. Sure enough, there were Fuso and Yamashiro sitting on a bench with Shigure between them. Both Battleships were holding one of the Destroyer's arms against their chests as they squished her between them with their faces buried in her neck. Eyes closed, they seemed to be almost vibrating while Shigure had an mostly unreadable expression on her face. There was definetely a lot of resigned amusement there though. Giving a wave, Harry got a nod from her and a slight smile. "Huh..."

However, having turned away, he missed RO give Shigure a knowing smirk and a wink. Both of which caused the shipgirl to blush and look away best that she could... which only caused her nose to be buried into Yamashiro's hair and for the Destroyer to freeze. 'Hehehehe, success!' Then RO turned back to Harry and raised one eyebrow. "You've gotten a lot stronger, Harry-Chan."

Blinking at the odd comment, Harry looked over his shoulder at her. "I have?"

Slowly, RO nodded as she raised a finger and tapped him on the chest. "You're carrying me, after all. And with no trouble! I remember a time when you couldn't!"

As he frowned and looked at her, Harry shrugged. "Maybe. Then again, I'm twelve now and you're pretty light." He tilted his head to the side as he noticed RO blush some and look away. 'Wonder what that was about?'

Then RO just tightened her hold a bit and set her chin back down on his shoulder with a small, soft smile. "Danke." Giggling some, she shook her head and gave him a bright smile. "But you have gotten a bit bigger, Harry-Chan!"

Smiling back, Harry nodded. "Yup! And one day I'll be even bigger! Then I'll be able to carry all of you."

Lips twitching, there was something in RO's eyes that Harry could not identify. "Maybe you will, Harry-Chan. Maybe you will." After nearly a minute during which RO had a distant expression on her face, she shook it off and turned back to Harry. "By the way, Harry-Chan, are you going to be coming over tonight?"

Head tilted to the side, Harry hummed a bit. "You mean over to the Sub Pens?" At her nod, he grinned a bit. "Sure! I don't mind, it's been a little bit."

RO quickly nodded some with a smile. "Well, we're all here for a couple days. Shioi-Chan, Iku-Chan, Hachi-Chan, Imuya-Chan, Maruyu-Chan, me, Taigei-Nee-San, and Ryuuhou-Nee-San. And you did just spend a few days with Iku-Chan after all." Tapping him on the nose, she giggled as his eyes crossed. "And you shouldn't spend a lot of time with just one of us, it might make us all jealous!"

Blinking, Harry furrowed his eyebrows. "Jealous? Poi?"

With a serious nod, RO gave him a frown though her eyes twinkled in amusement. "Ja, jealous. You want to know something, Harry-Chan? Something that you need to keep a secret?"

Just nodding, Harry looked at her directly. "Sure! What is it?"

Leaning in, RO glanced around before whispering in his ear. She pretended not to notice as he gave a small shiver. "Keep this a secret, but the others? They're looking forward for when you're older because we want you as our Admiral. You've treated us good, so don't forget about us Submarines when you make your fleet!" When she pulled away, she gave him an odd smile. "But no matter what, we'll always be there for you, Harry-Chan."

After a few moments, Harry just gave her a smile. "And I'd love to be your Admiral, RO-Chan. Yours and the others... Though I don't know how Goto-Oji-San would react to me poaching you."

To his confusion, RO let out a bunch of giggles and tapped one finger against her chin. "Oh, I think that Teitoku already knows~ And I don't think that he minds at all." Shifting around on his back some, she let out a soft sigh. "Just keep noticing us, okay?"

Suddenly, it was her turn to be surprised as Harry placed his package under one arm and then reached up with the other before grasping one of her hands tightly. "Don't worry about that, RO-Chan. I'll always notice you and the others, always. I promise."

Brightly blushing, RO looked down some and whispered as she tried to ignore how her engines felt like they were about to redline. "Ja, I know. And so do the others." Closing her eyes, she just laid her face in the crook of Harry's neck and closed her eyes. Slowly, she relaxed due to the feeling of Harry's movement under her with each step as he continued to walk. 'We all know, and that is why...'

 

[darthcourt10]

Harry Leferts

Having needed some new movies to watch that night, Taigei had headed to the one place on base where she could easily get some. Naka's quarters in the Light Cruiser Dorm. However, being as she was not there, Taigei had made her way over to Naka's office and, upon reaching it, was about to knock on the door when she stopped at hearing Sendai's voice. "I really don't know what I am going to do, Naka-Chan! I've really started pulling out the stops!"

Not usually being one for spying, Taigei was still as interested in gossip as anyone else and so leaned towards the door to listen in. Inside, Naka chuckled a bit. "You really got it bad, don't you?"

On the other side of the connection, Sendai grumbled. "Yes, but can you blame me? I'm really interested in him and he just keeps dodging! Sure, we've gone out on some dates, but he keeps turning down Yasen... Yasen! With me! And it is driving me nuts! The fact that he keeps doing this is making me only more interested!"

Inside the office, Naka leaned against her fist and smiled a bit. It wasn't often that she saw the "Oldest" of her sisters get as frustrated as this, but when she did it was a real treat. Especially considering the reason. 'Guess this guy somehow managed to figure out the right buttons to keep her interested. Then again, every other time a guy or girl gave in, Sendai basically dropped them soon after.' Sipping her soda, Naka shrugged a bit. "Maybe you should get him interested somehow or something. I mean, after that incident at the beach-"

Face having become pink, Sendai glared at her. "You swore not to talk about that! Do you have any idea what getting bit on the ass feels like?"

Her own expression blank, Naka shook her head. "No, I don't. And I'm not about to get involved in something like that."

Unknown to Sendai, Naka grinned internally at the sight of Sendai growling with a metaphorical storm cloud over her head. "Shut up." Then she waved her hands around and Naka choked a bit on her soda. "I've tried everything! Do you know how hard it is to sneak a cake into someone's place without them knowing, get into a bikini, and then climb into the cake so that you can jump out and surprise them when they come into the kitchen!? It's not easy, let me tell you that!"

Coughing a bit, Naka pounded her chest before gulping down some air. "Uh... No, I'm afraid that I don't know how hard it is..."

Not having noticed the wierded out expression on her sister's face, Sendai huffed a bit and crossed her arms. "I'm considering sneaking into his room after one of our dates, wrapping myself in ribbons, and asking if he wants to unwrap me. Seriously, he's interested, but he just won't give in!" Moments later, she blinked as Naka facepalmed. "Something wrong?"

Slowly shaking her head, Naka sighed with an utterly blank expression. "No, nothing is wrong..." Internally though, she was groaning. 'Guess his screen name is well chosen with a will of iron like that...'

Outside the door, Taigei blinked before turning and rapidly walking away. 'Nope, I'm just heading back to the Sub Pens. I don't need any new movies or such as it would just bother Naka...'

Meanwhile, at the Submarine Pens, Harry frowned and tilted his head as he looked at the odd device in front of him. "Uh... what is this?"

Grinning a bit, Iku giggled some. "It's a magical ice maker I picked up on our trip. See, it makes large blocks of ice, which we take out and put... right over there in that netting." She pointed towards cargo netting hanging above the surface of the water. Small streams of water came from them as above, there were several fans. "Those fans are hooked up to the solar panels and a wind turbine we got. They blow air across the ice, cooling it with the internal circulation system then distributing it throughout our rooms! It's keeping us nice and cool compared to the rest of the base."

For several moments Harry considered what he had been told before slowly nodding as he could feel a small amount of goosebumps on his skin. As he watched, another block of ice was pushed out from the ice maker by some fairies in winter clothing. Placing said block into a basket, it was pulled upwards and then along a rope that crossed the ceiling until it reached the net. Then with a yank, the bottom opened up and the ice dropped out and onto the net. "Huh... that's kind of neat."

A bright smile on her face, Iku nodded before patting him on the shoulder. "Anyways, we should be heading to the others! And Maruyu-Chan wants to show you something!"

Not quite sure what she meant, Harry allowed himself to be pushed along until they reached the Submarine's common area. Upon entering though, he stopped as he noticed Maruyu. However, before he could say anything, the small Submarine rushed over and gave him a hug. "Harry-Chan! Guess what?"

Suddenly, Harry grinned a bit and hugged her back. "You got your Kai rebuild?"

Blinking, Maruyu looked up at him in both surprise and confusion. "I... How'd you guess!?"

Only looking her over, the black haired boy shrugged a bit and then snickered. "Well... it's just a difference I guess." Seeing the confusion, he rubbed the back of his head. "Um, you know how you might notice that someone has had a slightly different haircut then normal or something? But that they're surprised that you did notice? I guess it's kind of like that?"

Maruyu just gave him an odd look at that. "Really? Because that's kind of weird, Harry-Chan." Before he could say anything though, she just hugged him even tighter. "It's nice though that you noticed."

Hearing a sound, they all turned to see Taigei walk in with a slightly disturbed expression on her face. At seeing them though, her usual one of a smile returned. "Sorry, I was... unable to talk with Naka-San, so I think that we might need to just make do with what we have."

Just shrugging, Imuya rolled her eyes. "It's not that big of a deal, Taigei-Nee-San. We got plenty of stuff to do anyways."

With a yelp though, she was pushed to the side as RO leapt forward and thrust a fist into the air with a shout of glee. "Never mind that! Let's get this party started! Who's with me!"

It went without saying that she got shouts of agreement from everyone there.

 

[darthcourt10]

Harry Leferts

Pulling the metal tankard away from his lips, Harry licked the foam and droplets of amber liquid on his lips away. As he set it aside, he noticed Taigei grab the bottle in front of her and then give it a spin. Going around and around, the bottle spun in the middle of the circle in front of them. Eventually, it began to slow and finally stopped on Ryuuhou. Reaching for a card in the pile of them, the Light Carrier gave her twin a betrayed look. "I... chose this one."

When she flipped the card there was only a moment before she grimaced and groaned. Taigei meanwhile poked her fingers together with a unsure smile. "Um... sorry?" At the look she got, she blushed some. "You did pick that card after all."

All Harry could do was snicker for a bit before Ryuuhou spun the bottle again. This time though, it landed on him and he blinked. Leaning forward, Hachi pouted some as she drank from her own foamed up tankard. "Hach-Chan was hoping that when it was my turn to spin the bottle it would land on Harry-Chan."

Scratching her cheek, Ryuuhou looked at Harry who was staring down at the pile of cards as RO resorted them and set them down. "Well... we've been playing for a while so, um... it might get to be your turn? Or maybe Harry-Chan's spin will land on you?"

Expression brightening, the blonde haired Submarine nodded some. "You're right!" Turning to Harry, she smiled a bit and leaned against one fist. "Come on, Harry-Chan! Get finished so you can have it land on me!"
Just chuckling, Harry picked one of the cards and then narrowed his eyes before flipping it. Blinking, Harry felt his eyebrows raise upwards as he frowned. Meanwhile, beside him, Imuya frowned and shook her head. "Now that is a hard one, Harry-Chan." Then she patted him on the shoulder. "But I'm sure that you can do it."

Narrowing his eyes, Harry took a deep breath and then hummed. Glancing up at the others, he bit his lip some. "Um... I'm really not used to this..."

Giggling, RO gave him a thumbs up. "Don't sweat it, Harry-Chan! Besides, you're pretty good at this!"

A small blush on her face, Maruyu nodded some. "Hai, she's right. Mogu, mogu."

With a wink, Iku nodded some. "Yeah, so show Ryuuhou-Nee-San what you got! Strike fast just like me, the Sniper of the Seas!" Now grinning, she was bouncing a bit. "Do it! Do it! Do it!"

Slowly blinking, Harry grabbed his drink and then took a deep pull before he set it down. "Okay..." Taking a breath, he let it out before slamming his finger down on the silhouette on the card. "It's a Gearing class!"

Everyone held their breath as they looked towards Iku who had the answer sheet in front of her. Gently picking up Harry's card, she compared it with the silhouettes on it before narrowing her eyes. "Is that your answer, Harry-Chan?" At his nod, Iku was all smiles. "Yup! It's a Gearing!"

Patting his shoulder, Imuya laughed as she shook her head. "See, Harry-Chan? We told you that you could do it!" Finishing off her drink, she held the tankard high into the air. "Another drink, Taigei-Nee-San! Please?"

Only giggling, the Submarine Tender got up and took the tankard and glanced at Harry who drained the rest of his. "Thanks, Taigei-Chan! I really love your ginger ale floats!"

Simply giving him a smile over her shoulder, Taigei nodded. "I'm glad that you like them so much, Harry-Chan. Though you really should also thank Ryuuhou-Chan. After all, she made the ice cream that I'm using."

Internally chuckling as Harry did exactly that to the smiling and bashful Light Carrier, Taigei rinsed out the tankards quickly and then began refilling them with ginger ale. 'I'm so happy about us laughing and enjoying tonight.'

While Taigei was making more floats, Harry leaned back a bit and looked at the game box. "This is a pretty hard game, Dess. But a lot of fun!"

Giggling, Iku nodded some as she pulled away her own tankard, a mustache of foam on her lips with soon canished with some licks. "It really is, Harry-Chan. Told you that 'Up Pariscope' was a lot of fun. Most shipgirls besides us Submarines don't really have a good chance at it though."

Softly snickering, Hachi smirked. "You should have heard about the time that Harder got Jersey to sit down and play a game with some of the American Subgirls. Apparently Jersey eventually threw her hands up and stated she would kick all the ships' asses and be able to use 'Fucking American Grade-Fucking-A Radar just like God intended' before leaving. Harder and the others were laughing so hard."

Harry turned to look at said box and read it outloud. "'Up Periscope! Pacific War Edition! Boggle your friends with your ability to identify ships simply from silhouettes just like Submariners! Over fifty different classes of ships from patrol boats up to Battleships and Carriers!'"

At least part of Harry's amusement was the image of Ryuujou on the cover in a pose and winking at the viewer with the words 'Check out my silhouette, isn't it unique?' Taking a bit from a cracker, Shioi nodded some as she leaned back on both hands. "It's pretty hard to identify a ship just from the silhouette though at times. And this is nothing compared to doing it out at sea, at night, with barely any light."

That got her nods from the other Subgirls as Taigei walked back over and set down the tankards in front of Harry and Imuya. "Here you go." Once they thanked her, she sighed a bit and sat back with a small smile. "Okay, Harry-Chan. Now your turn to spin the bottle."

With a nod, Harry grabbed the bottle and spun it... with it landing on Hachi who grinned. "Yes! My turn!"

Grinning, Harry shook his head a bit. "Yup! Your turn, Hachi-Chan! Now show us what you got!"

In reply, Hachi gave him a thumbs up and then placed her hands down on the pile of cards. "Okay... Hacchan will place her trust in the Heart of the Cards! HA!" Yanking one out, she looked at it and then grinned before showing it. "It's Kaga!"

Claps came from those around as it was easily recognizable as said ship. When she spun it though, the bottle landed on Shioi who grinned and grabbed a card. Laughing, the Submarine shook her head. "I got the same card as Harry-Chan! A Gearing!"

Slightly frowning, Iku looked at the card and narrowed her eyes. Checking it against the sheet, she suddenly smirked. "Nope! You misidentified it! It's actually a Allen M. Sumner class!" Eyes narrowing, she pointed at the shocked Shioi. "And you know what that means!"

Mouth working for a moment, Shioi looked at each of her friends only to see them all grinning. "L-look, I'm sure that I got it right! I'm positive!"

Only shaking her head, Iku sighed and then flipped around the sheet she was holding and held the question next to first the silhouette for the Gearing and then next to the silhouette of the Allen M. Sumner. Frowning, RO narrowed her eyes and then slowly nodded. "Ja, Iku-Chan is right, Shioi-Chan. And you know what that means..."

Brightly blushing, Shioi looked around again. "Mercy?"

However, Harry shook his head and wagged a finger at her. "No. No Mercy, Shioi-Chan." Leaning forward, his eyes glowed malevolently. When Shioi glanced over at Hachi, said Submarine adjusted her glasses with the light reflecting off them evilly. "And you know what happens next..."

Simply hanging her head, Shioi wiggled a bit in her spot as her face burned. Then, sighing, she got up and walked over to an open spot of the floor. Still grinning, Iku shook head as she reached to her side. "Sorry, Shioi-Chan, but that's the house rules. No bad feelings, ne?"

Glaring, Shioi stomped one foot as the others all snickered. "You all suck! SUCK I SAY!" With a shrug, Iku pressed play and the Vengaboys song "We like to Party" started playing. Still pouting, Shioi started to do an odd dance that Harry knew was from some commercial for a theme park in the United States. By the time the annoyed Submarine was done, everyone else was laughing or giggling madly. Sitting back down, Shioi glared at them all. "I hate each and every one of you."

Moments later though, her blush was for a different reason as a snickering Harry grabbed her into a hug. "Aw, that's okay, Shioi-Chan! After all I still love you and so do that others!"

To his confusion though, Shioi hid her face in her hands though he could see a hint of a massive smile behind them. Clearing her throat, Iku also had a blush on her face before she raised a hand. "Um, right then! Five minute break from the game."

Just shrugging it off, Harry then turned towards Taigei who seemed really amused. "Taigei-Chan?" Getting a nod from her to continue, Harry did so. "I heard that Akashi-Oba figured out your new Kai form since Ryuuhou-Chan is here."

It took a few moments, but then Taigei nodded with a sparkle in her eyes. "Well... Akashi-San thinks that she can add a lot to my hull to make be better able to be a Submarine Tender. Stuff like small forges and workshops so that if the girls need minor repairs, I can manage that. Oh! And she thinks that she can make me a combination Destroyer and Submarine Tender for my Kai Ni, but she is still trying to figure that out."
Eyes wide, it took a moment before Harry was all smiles again. "That would be so cool, Taigei-Chan! You'll be even more awesome then you are already!"

All the Submarine Tender did in reply was to blush and scratch her cheek. "Thank you, Harry-Chan." Glancing at the clock, she slowly shook her head. "Anyways, we should probably get back to the game. We'll be heading for bed soon enough."

Throwing her hands out, Iku grinned. "Oh! That reminds me! I found this awesome bunch of magical sleeping bags on sale! They keep you cool when it's hot out, warm when it's cold, and dry when it's wet! And best of all, you can take several, unzipper them, and then zipper the sleeping bags together to get this one big one!"

Several moments later, all the Submarines were smiles as they realized what it meant for cuddlepiles.

 

[darthcourt10]

Harry Leferts

Having just gotten home from his sleepover at the Submarine pens, Harry was just getting himself a drink when there was a knock at the door. A frown on his face, Harry twisted the cap off the bottle and then opened to the door only to blink at what met him. "Jane? Kiyoshimo-San? What are you two doing here?"

To his confusion, Jane snickered before winking. "We heard that you got back and it took a bit to convince Mutsu-Mama to come down here. Though she needed to talk with Aunt Nagato about something rather important~"

Simply raising an eyebrow, Harry frowned a bit before blinking. "Is this about Uncle John finally laying some keels in her slipway?" At the shocked expression on Jane's face, he snickered. "What? Didn't think that I would know?"

For her part, Kiyoshimo only blinked in confusion. "Wait, how did you know? She only found out two days ago!"

A smirk on his face, Harry grinned a bit. "I have my ways."

Quickly shaking off her shock, Jane huffed a bit before also grinning. "Yeah! Mutsu-Mama is going to have Twins! Just like I said and I already know that they're going to be adorable."

With a small sigh, Kiyoshimo then pointed at Harry. "By the way! We're here for what we asked for you to pick up for us!"

Nodding, Jane clinched her fists in excitement. "Dragon's milk! So that we can drink it and grow up into Battleships!"

There was silence before Harry scratched his cheek. "Oh yeah, Dragon's milk... Right..."

Expression falling, Jane narrowed her eyes at him. "You did remember to pick it up, right Cuz? I mean, you didn't forget it or anything."

Rolling his eyes, Harry let out a sigh. "No, I remembered and got some for you." All Harry did was walk over to the fridge and open the door before pulling out a small bottle of a white substance before placing it onto the table. "Here you go, normally it's used in stuff like upper end burn healing potions and the like."

While Kiyoshimo examined it, Jane frowned and looked towards Harry. "That's it? That's all that you managed to get?"

Harry just gave her a look. "Do you have any idea the looks I got for getting just that much? And for asking if it was fit for human comsumption? And this is from an actual apothecary in Diagon." He then narrowed his eyes a bit. "I also had to slip this past Mum, because I know how she might react to you two using it."

Softly snorting, Jane shrugged. "Whatever, we'll drink it and grow up into Battleships. After all, if normal milk makes you grow big and strong, then dragon's milk would make you huge and super strong, in other words a Battleship!"

Only shaking his head, Harry sighed a bit. "Whatever." Suddenly, he snapped his fingers. "Right! I found that sea chest that you wanted."

Excitement coming back, Jane perked up a bit and began to push Harry along. "Show me! Show me! Because from you say magical trunks and stuff are awesome! And I can't wait to see it!" Looking over her shoulder, she gestured at Kiyoshimo. "Come on, Kiyoshimo! You've got to see this!"

Glancing at the bottle of milk, Kiyoshimo looked back at Jane before following. Unnoticed by them, Inazuma was right outside the apartment and poked her head in with confusion on her face. "Jane? Kiyoshimo-Chan?"

Behind her, Ikazuchi looked around and frowned. "Uh, where did they go? I heard them just now after all..."

Hibiki gave a small nod. "Da, I heard them as well, and I want to talk to Harry-Chan..." Then she noticed that the door to Harry's room was open and could hear voices inside. "I think that they went in there."

With a smile, Akatsuki nodded and walked in with them following. "Well, let's go greet them!"

A frown on her face, Inazuma just waved them on. "I'll wait out here for you. Just in case Kaa-San shows up and I need to tell her where you went."

Giving her sister a nod, Ikazuchi walked to the door and opened it. Seeing Harry, Jane, and KIyoshimo around what looked like a chest, she grinned. "Hey guys! What's that?"

Just jumping a bit, Harry blinked and looked over at her in surprise. "Ikazuchi-Chan? When did you get back?"

Softly smiling, Hibiki pointed the way that they came. "We just arrived an hour ago, Kaa-San is giving a report to Teitoku." Tilting her head to the side, the white haired Destroyer blinked as she looked at the chest. "What's this?"

Patting it, Jane grinned a bit. "It's the new sea chest that Cuz got for me. It's pretty awesome as it has expanded insides and is charmed to make sure that stuff doesn't get knocked around when put inside. You know, in case of storms and stuff."

That got her an awed look from Akatsuki who made her way over to look at it. "Wow! That's amazing..." Blinking, she turned to Harry with a hopeful expression. "This is something for real ladies, where did you get it?"

While he scratched the top of his head, the black haired boy frowned a bit. "I got it from the storage shed at my family's property..." Seeing her face fall, Harry waved around his hands. "But I'm sure that I can get more elsewhere!"

Eyes wide, Akatsuki hugged him with a smile. "Thank you, Harry-Chan!"

Hugging her back, Harry only shrugged. "You're welcome?" Internally though, he frowned a bit. 'Now where to find them? Because I guess that would make for a good Christmas gift...'

Snapping her fingers, Kiyoshimo jumped to her feet. "Right! This is cool and all, but not what we came for. Jane? Forward! To Battleship-hood!"

Also jumping to her feet, Jane joined Kiyoshimo in charging to the door, only to blink as they noticed Inazuma holding a bottle to her mouth. Seeing their stares, she blushed a bit. "Um, sorry... I was really, really thirsty, Nanodesu."

With a shout, Kiyoshimo rushed forward and grabbed the bottle before hanging her head. "She drank almost three quarters of it..."

Hands waving in the air, Inazuma panicked a bit. "Hwawawa! Sorry! I didn't know that it was yours!"

More then a little amused, Harry walked forward and snickered a bit. "Actually, it's something I bought for them... And it's not that big of a deal."

Jane took a deep breath and nodded. "Yeah, at least you didn't drink all of it." Taking the bottle from Kiyoshimo, Jane swished the contents around a bit and then grimaced. "Okay, I'll take half and you take the other half?" At the nod from KIyoshimo, she tilted back the bottle and swallowed about half of what was left and then handing it to the Destroyer who chugged the rest. Meanwhile, Jane hacked a bit. "Ugh! Why does it taste spicy!?"

Blinking, Inazuma scratched the back of her head. "Um, I kind of liked it myself, Nanodesu." With a small frown on her face, she turned to Harry. "What kind of drink it is?"

Only watching as Kiyoshimo stuck out her tongue, Harry rolled his eyes a bit. "Dragon's milk."

It was then that a watcher from the door spoke up and caused them to turn to see a bemused Tenryuu there. "Dragon's milk. Seriously?" At the nod, she pinched her nose. "Okay... first, why did you get that?"

All Jane did was give her a look. "So that we could drink it and become Battleships, duh. Milk makes you grow up big and strong, especially if you drink a lot. So dragon's milk, because it comes from dragons, would be way better at that. So then we'll grow up to become Battleships."

That, if anything, only caused Tenryuu to become even more amused. "Right, of course. I suppose that makes sense. And if Harry got it for you, I am sure he checked to see if it was safe to drink?"

Giving her a look, Harry scowled and crossed his arms. "Of course I checked! Jane is my cousin, so I'm not going to give her something that could hurt her!" Then he tilted his head in thought. "Though the witch at the apothecary gave me looks and shook her head when I asked."

Slowly nodding, Tenryuu hummed a bit. "Right. Just the same though I'll get some Tums or something, just in case." At their looks, she rolled her visible eye. "Because drinking or eating something that you're not used to can make your stomach upset, duh." Turning back to Harry, Tenryuu raised her eyebrow. "So then... Where the heck does dragon milk come from?"

In reply, Harry shrugged. "A gland on their belly that leaks out from between their scales. They apparently coat their eggs in it to add another layer to the shell once it dries. Then when the young do hatch, they just lick it up from the belly patch."

Tenryuu was just able to hold back loud laughter at how green Jane and Kiyoshimo turned at that information. But then she facepalmed as Inazuma licked her lips with a thoughtful smile on her face. "It tasted pretty good actually."

With a sigh escaping her, Tenryuu pinched her nose. 'Why, Ami-Chan... Just why?'

Then Jane turned to Kiyoshimo with a frown on her face. "So? Feel anything?"

Closing her eyes, the Destroyer hummed a bit and had a look of concentration on her face. Then Kiyoshimo's shoulders slumped. "No... nothing at all."

Her own shoulders slumping, Jane nodded. "Yeah, I don't feel any different either." She then turned to Inazuma with a slight frown. "You drank more, how do you feel?"

For a moment, Inazuma frowned and tapped her finger against her chin. Then she nodded. "Um, I'm feeling thirsty still, Nanodesu."

Snapping her fingers, Jane huffed a bit. "Shoot." Moments later, she perked up and looked at Harry. "Hey, maybe we just need to drink more! Like regular milk."

For a second, Harry was silent before jerking his thumb at the bottle. "That cost me four Galleons. It's not cheap! I mean, you are talking about getting milk from annoyed mother dragons guarding their nests..."

At the looks on Jane's and Kiyoshimo's faces, Tenryuu had to turn and hold one hand on her mouth to keep from laughing.

 

[darthcourt10]

Snippet 1: S0ngD0g13

The earlier discussion about a War Demon challenging Gibraltar to a duel got stuck in my head and grew like kudzu mainlining Miracle-Gro. Of course, something that Epic can't be properly told all in one go, so here's Part One.

..............................................

The Demon's Honor, Part 1

The Northern War Demon glared back along her route and saw the smoke of her last escort as the destroyer burned; she'd heard the shots echoing and the screams of her fellow Abyssal as the Shipgirl fleet pursuing her caught up and gunned it down. A single boom rang out over the southern Atlantic and the destroyer's dying howls cut off abruptly. At least someone back there had enough heart to give Rotte the mercy-stroke; she was bold as a lion, that Ro-Class, but burning was her greatest fear...

She shook her head and turned her bows south again, flicking a half-hearted burst of flak at the seaplane tailing her with her one functioning AA gun as she limped down the coast of Spain.

Two weeks, now... Two weeks they've dogged my trail south from my home-waters, whittling away at my fleet and myself from range, never content to stand and fight! Death by a thousand cuts! Cowards, all of them! My battleships, Tatzel and Rukh, torpedoed in the night! Nebel, that mad bitch of a cruiser, ran down by those damnable torpedo boats and torn apart as she turned at bay! At least I avenged her; I hope I hit their handler when I hurled the dogs' heads back at their formation...

The Northern War Demon limped on...

It was three days later that the people of Gibraltar saw an unheard-of sight; a bleeding, ragged Abyssal steaming toward their harbor, a string of signal flags flying that indicated a desire to talk.

As a crowd gathered, the Abyssal called out in a booming voice, "I call upon the Hospitality of the Rock and ask Sanctuary from my Foes on this Neutral Ground!"

A woman stepped out of the throng, tall and dark of hair; those that saw her would swear her face was at once young and maiden-like, motherly and full-grown, and aged with the weight of years. The woman called out to the Abyssal. "Would a Pirate ask Sanctuary of me? Why should I allow you in my harbor, Bloody-Handed Reaver?"

The Abyssal smiled a red-fanged smile and brought her right fist up to her chest in salute. "Well Met, O Goddess of the Rock. I'll not deny I've slain my share and more than my share; I am what I am, no more and no less. But I have come to your door from without your waters, Gatekeeper of the First Sea, nor have I brought harm to any under your aegis, neither by Word nor Deed. I am Athirst, and I Hunger. My limbs are weary and my spirits low; I ask again for Sanctuary and Succor."

A fleet of Shipgirls rounded the harbor's northern point, and a pair of girls sailed forward. "Abyssal! We finally have you cornered! People, clear away from the pier!" the shorter of the two shouted in the Queen's English. Her taller counterpart slewed her main battery into position to cover the War Demon.

Gibraltar roared aloud, "KMS Bismarck, HMS Hood, you will stand down Now! This Abyssal has invoked my Neutrality and asked for Sanctuary; you'll not violate that." She turned to face the War Demon. "I do not trust you, Abyssal, but your words ring true. Forty-eight hours I'll grant you on my shores, and not a minute further. Harm none in that time and you'll not be harmed. Harm so much as a single hair on a monkey's head and I'll personally destroy you utterly. Agreed?"

The War Demon nodded and saluted once more. "Agreed, Gatekeeper, and I thank you for your Hospitality."

Gibraltar nodded back, her wine-dark eyes hard. "Do not thank me, Abyssal; in two days' time you'll be gone, and I'll be glad of it."

 

[darthcourt10]

Snippet 2: S0ngD0g13

A Houshou omake
........................................

"Good afternoon, Mister McAmis," said Houshou as the short American jogged up next to her on her afternoon walk, a trio of lanky, long-legged scent-hounds capering around his legs. Japan's first Carrier took in his appearance, the thin-but-wiry build on his short frame, the bark-brown hair just starting to grow out from its customary medium-fade cut and speckled at the temples with a slight dusting of gray. She took note of his crooked nose and the thin scar on his upper lip that traced through his moustache, and the ever-present hint of laughter in his hazel eyes.

He'd been jogging this same route every other day for as long as she could remember, exercising himself and the dogs he was Lead-Handler of. He nodded politely as they came to a bench and paused to rest. "Hazard, Bombard, Assail; sit, you three." Once the hounds, personifications of three Admirable-Class Minesweepers, had sat and been duly rewarded with strips of jerky from the pouch at McAmis's belt, he turned to Houshou and smiled. "Afternoon, Miss Houshou; how've you been?" His voice was soft, and still carried the accent of his youth in East Tennessee. His face split with a smirk. "And how many times do I have to tell you, 'James' is just fine; no need to go callin' me 'Mister'."

Houshou chuckled warmly as they settled into their normal routine; for as long as she could remember, the pair of them had sat to rest on this bench and chatted. "At least once more, James. I've been well, and you?"

James idly scratched Bombard's head as the Black-and-Tan laid her head on his lap. "I've been doing well myself, Houshou. Jaw's getting ready to graduate in a few months; looks to be Valedictorian. Mike's coming in on leave to see the ceremony."

Houshou smiled and petted Assail as she replied. "I'm happy for you, James. I'm sure you're very proud, and I'm sure their mother, Rest her Soul, would be proud of them and you as well."

James nodded. "Proud fit to burst. How about you? I heard Shinano's been doing good work over Yokosuka-way." He whistled sharply to call Hazard back as the Redbone Hound started after a squirrel.

Houshou reached into her sleeve and withdrew a photograph of Shinano and two other Carriers. "You remember how Shina-Chan was right after she was summoned, James? How White Plains helped her gain confidence, along with Nagato's son?"

James nodded and looked at the photo. "I remember; they really helped her out. Not that I doubted they would, mind you. I couldn't tell you 'bout White Plains, not having met her myself, but Harry's a good kid. Who's that third Carrier?"

"Ryuuhou; she was summoned very recently, and she had quite a few of the same issues as Shinano did."

"White Plains is helping her, too?"

Houshou shook her head, smiling brightly. "She's helping, but Ryuuhou's lead tutor is Shinano."

James smiled a boyish, ear-to-ear smile (that Houshou privately thought took twenty years off his face) as he laughed. "Hot-Dog," he commented, as always a gentleman and censoring his language. "I'm proud right along with you, Houshou. She's growing into a fine young woman, your tall daughter."

As the two chatted on, James felt a fat drop of rain splash down on his head and looked up. "I don't care for the look of those clouds... Looks like a storm might be rolling in." He faced Houshou and smiled slowly. "Guess we're going to have to cut our talk short, Houshou. Unless..." He trailed off with a thoughtful look.

"Yes, James?"

"Well, if it wouldn't be too forward of me, my house is only a few blocks from here, and I've got a pitcher of tea and a front porch with a roof over it; would you like to accomp'ny me, Miss Houshou?" He offered her his arm.

The Mother of Carriers smiled, a faint blush tinting her cheeks, and accepted his arm. "I'd be delighted, Mister McAmis. Maybe you can tell me how your youngest got the nickname 'Jaw'..."

 

[darthcourt10]

Harry Leferts

A pitable groan escaped from Jane who was currently slumped on the table as a somewhat amused and resigned Mutsu rubbed her back. "Ulp... Oh God... my stomach..." Tilting her head some, she gave a small glare at Harry. "I... Uh... blame you, Cuz."

Just as Harry was about to say something, Mutsu shook her head and spoke up. "Jane, while Harry is partially to blame, what with having gotten that stuff for you." She glanced at Harry who looked down at his feet as Nagato shook her head. "I will at least give him that he checked to see if human consumption was safe. The rest of the blame though sits with you and Kiyoshimo for having both asked for, and for drinking it."

With a glance to the side, Harry could see Musashi standing over the Kiyoshimo who was also moaning due to her stomach. Adjusting her glasses, Musashi nodded some. "Yes, this Musashi agrees with you. Let this be a lesson to you, Kiyoshimo-Chan."

Slowly nodding, Mutsu turned back to Jane. "You really should have known better, Jane. After all, you've drank pasteurized milk all your life, so drinking unpasteurized milk would obviously not agree with you. Add in where it came from..."

Moaning again, Jane tried to tilt her head to see Mutsu. "Can't you give me something? Anything?"

However, Mutsu only shook her head. "No, because dragon's milk is magical. So we don't know how stuff like normal stomach relief medicines would react." Leaning down some, a small smile played across her lips. "Let this be a lesson to you, Jane for the next time you have an idea like this and be thankful it's just a stomach ache."

Just nodding, Musashi looked down at Kiyoshimo who was looking at her in hope only to slump in despair at Musashi's next words. "This Musashi believes that if you're going to do something, then you should take your lumps. That is what Battleships do after all."

Over at another part of the room, Tenryuu stroked Inazuma's hair as she sipped a drink from what looked like a mini-oil drum. Said Destroyer had an even worse upset stomach then the other two. "Yeah, they're right girls. And Ami, you really should know better then to just drink something that you don't know what it is."

Pulling the straw from her mouth, Inazuma grimaced a bit. "It looked like and smelt like milk... I just couldn't help myself..."

As she put the straw back into her mouth, Ikazuchi began jumping on their mother's back. "Kaa-San! Kaa-San! Since Ami-Chan is sick, you should rely on me more! Kaa-San!"

Tenryuu simply sighed and shook her head. 'Oh boy, here we go again...' Suddenly, she perked up some as a thought occurred to her. "Actually, you want me to rely on you?" Quickly pulling a notepad towards her, Tenryuu began writing some stuff down. "How about you and Harry-Chan over there head to the pharmacy and get this stuff for me."

Ripping off the paper, she handed it to Ikazuchi who grinned before saluting. "Ha! You can rely on us, Kaa-San!" With that, she rushed over to Harry and grabbed his hand before dragging him from the apartment. "Come on, Harry-Chan! Let's go!"

Behind them, Hibiki stood up and began to follow at a much more sedate pace. "Da, I think that I will go with them."

Simply smirking, Tenryuu shook her head and chuckled. At the looks, she grinned a bit at Nagato who raised an eyebrow. "He's shopping with Ikazuchi who wants to help. Can you think of a better punishment?"

After a few moments, Nagato gave a snort and smirked a bit. "No, I suppose not. She'll tire him out if nothing else and it should get the lesson hammered in."

There was a small frown on Mutsu's face as she glanced at Jane. "Are you sure that it would be safe for Jane though? I mean, I trust you, but..."

With a snort, Tenryuu smirked a bit. "It is something passed down through my family through generations! A secret to cure all upset stomach aches through it's mystical, secretive processes! It's handed from mother to daughter in a ceremony that must be kept away from prying eyes!"

For a few seconds, Nagato frowned before raising an eyebrow. "How do you make a home made stomach ache cure sound so Chuuni...?"

Before Tenryuu could retort, Jane nodded from where she was sitting with her head on the table. "Yeah, that was Chuuni. Totally Chuuni."

Huffing a bit, the Light Cruiser stuck her nose into the air. "Hmpf! No respect, you bunch. None whatsoever." Ignoring the snorts and snickers, Tenryuu then focused her eye onto Mutsu and smirked a bit. "Though moving on, congratulations, Mutsu. Trust me when I say that you'll fit in as a mother just fine."

A blush on her face, Mutsu, ignored the soft squeal from Nagato. "How did you know? I just found out two days ago!"

Within Tenryuu's visible eye, there was an odd glint. "Fufufufufu. It's my super, mystical Kaa-San powers, grasshopper. Goes without saying that it makes me an awesome one at that." Seeing Mutsu frown in confusion, Tenryuu rolled her eyes. "I got my ways. Besides, it's written all over you."

Now blinking, Mutsu looked herself over. "It is?"

Slowly, Tenryuu nodded before snorting. "Yeah, you got the glow of a woman who just got pregnant. Aaaand, you keep rubbing your stomach like most new mothers."

Unable to help herself, Mutsu blushed deeply as she paused in actually rubbing her belly. "Oh..." After a few seconds though, the Battleship hummed slightly. "Speaking of... Considering that you are the only shipgirl I know of who has, um... been pregnant... let alone with twins..."

Raising an eyebrow, Tenryuu smirked a bit. "You're asking me for advice? Me?" At the nod, she let out a low chuckle. "Sure, I guess. If you can handle the crazy badass Matsuda School of Being a Kaa-San."

Lips twitching, Mutsu gave a small giggle. "I think that I can handle it."

However, she blinked as Tenryuu grinned. Somehow, the Light Cruiser's teeth seemed sharper then normal and there was a glint in her eye that sent a shiver down the Battleship's keel. "I'll remember to remind you of that when you're cursing my name in every language you know and a few that you didn't. Fufufufufu."

Somehow, Mutsu couldn't help but feel like she was going to both regret, and be thankful for the advice. Meanwhile, Nagato was just lost in her own little world as she tried to decide which footsies to get for her future nieces...

 

[darthcourt10]

Snippet 3: S0ngD0g13

The Demon's Honor, Part Two
...................................

The Northern War Demon, having been granted two days' Sanctuary, first went to a cafe after dismissing the more bestial portion of her rigging. I've not had a meal in four days, and not a proper meal since before I was hounded south...

The proprietor of the cafe stared in fear as she sat down at one of the outdoor tables. "Sir," she said, "could you please bring me your house special, as much as this will buy?" She pulled from her hold a dozen gold coins, old Spanish Pieces-of-Eight, and slid them to the man. "And a Tappit Hen of your best port, please."

The owner stood still for a moment before taking the coins and speaking. "I lost family to your kind; I can honestly say I hate you. But times are hard. My poverty consents, but not my will."

The Demon nodded. "I understand. I pay thy Poverty, and not thy Will."

A few minutes later the owner came back with a platter heaped high with lamb rolitos, and his son behind him carrying a glass and the two-and-a quarter-litre bottle of wine. The Demon nodded her thanks and uncorked the bottle as the men scurried away. She poured her glass full and raised it as If in toast. "To my fleet; you were good comrades and true, and Warriors every one of you. I hope to meet you all again, in the next life." She poured the wine out into the gutter, then filled the glass again and drank it dry.

....................................

After having eaten her fill at the cafe and drained the bottle of port, the War Demon moved on to the next eatery, and the next. Focus on repairing my propulsion systems and weapons; my armor is secondary, she told her imps as she walked. As she skirted a courtyard, however, the Northern War Demon heard a sound that she knew all too well...

She ducked into the courtyard and saw two men moving around one another like warships seeking position, darting in and out with thrust and dodge and parry as they fenced, the rapiers in their hands little more than streaks of light in the morning sun. The Demon stood and watched from the back of the crowd, and when the pair of fencers had finished and were passing the hat, she surprised everyone by dropping four gold coins in and nodding respectfully. "An excellent match, gentlemen. You both are quite skilled with the blade."

"My papa's the best fencer in Gibraltar!" piped up a small voice from beside her. She looked down and saw a little girl, no more than seven or eight years old, standing boldly as she looked up at the War Demon. If the fencers' panicked expressions were any indication, the girl was related to them.

"You needn't worry, gentlemen. I gave my word that I'd do no harm, and I do not break my word lightly." She knelt and met the girl's eyes. "I don't doubt that he is, Girl."

"I'm Celeste," said the girl with a grin and the boldness of youth. "You're the 'Byssal, right?"

The Demon nodded. "I am; I'm Skadi, the Northern War Demon."

"Cool.."

........................................

"I've been tailing you all day," said Prinz Eugen that evening as she sat on the pier next to the Abyssal.

"I know. You were subtle, but not very subtle. Didn't trust me?" Skadi grinned sardonically as she sipped a bottle of beer.

"No, I really didn't. I still don't, in truth. May I?" She gestured toward the cooler.

"Drink deep and slake your thirst, Shipgirl." Skadi sipped again. "I've a question, Shipgirl. The last Abyssal from my fleet; someone gave her the mercy-stroke. Who?"

Eugen startled for a second before answering. "The Ro-Class? It was me who finished her; a shell from Fraulein Hood set her alight. No one deserves to die by burning."

Skadi nodded. "Well would you know that, Prinz Eugen of the former Kriegsmarine. I imagine it got hot indeed, in that little lagoon in the Marshalls. But, I must thank you. Rotte was a brave destroyer, but she feared burning. Thank you for granting her the last mercy."

Eugen shivered despite the heat as she remembered that day in '46, the flash and the heat... She shook herself as if to clear her mind. "You are welcome; as I said before, no one deserves to die aflame." The German Cruiser sipped her beer and sighed. "You know Hood und Bismarck have sent for reinforcements; by the time limit you'll be even more outnumbered. You don't have to fight, though."

Skadi shook her head. "Oh, but I do, Prinz Eugen. War is my purpose, battle my passion. To surrender... That is anathema to one such as I. I live by the sword, and someday I'll die by it."

....................................................

The second day passed much the same as the first, with Skadi gorging herself on food and drink as her crew rushed to repair her. She was unfailingly polite to all around her, paying compliments honestly and adhering not merely to the letter of her agreement, but to the spirit, also. She watched Celeste's father, Rodrigo, and her elder brother, Ignacio, fence again.

She made sure to have food and drink sent to the Shipgirls that were following her, on her bill.

That evening found Skadi sitting on the pier again, watching the sun sink below the horizon. Eugen sat down next to her and passed her a bottle of ale. "The destroyers enjoyed the plate of Japonesas you sent them, not that they'd admit it," remarked the German. "You'll fight, tomorrow?"

Skadi nodded. "I'll fight. A favor, Prinz Eugen? A small one, though important?"

Eugen nodded. "Ja? Was fragst du von mir?"

Skadi reached into her hold where she'd stored it, and withdrew a scabbarded sword of Viking make. "This is my sword, Seeadler; it's served me well over the years. I've distant kin in waters far from here, and I'm well-aware of my odds tomorrow."

"You want me to deliver the sword to your kin?" Eugen asked the Abyssal.

She was surprised when Skadi shook her head. "No, not to her, not directly. Hoppou is still young, yet. If you could, see that my blade is given to the one she's adopted as her mother, to hold until my cousin is ready. Please, would you do this favor for me?"

Prinz Eugen looked into Skadi's eyes and saw the War Demon's Warrior Spirit...

"Ja. I will see your sword delivered to Nagato und Hoppou, Frau Skadi. Sie haben mein Wort, auf meine Ehre".

 

[darthcourt10]

Harry Leferts

Softly humming as she washed dishes in a sink, the elderly Japanese woman barely even flinched as two muscular arms wrapped themselves around her waist. With a small laugh at the whiskered face that kissed her on the cheek, she turned and smiled at the elderly man hugging her from behind. "I suppose that I don't need to ask if you're done for the day, Nagisa? Hmm?"

Lips twitching, the man shook his head and kissed her again on the cheek. "Yes, I finished my fish deliveries today with the naval base. Tanaka-San wants to send his regards to you, Kishiko-Hime. Apparently the meal you made for him and his girls was quite good."

Blushing a bit, she only shook her head. "Ah, he's a wonderful young man, isn't he? And he really cares about those girls of his." Only getting a hum, she smiled a bit. "So how were they today? Have they been getting enough?"

With a chuckle, Nagisa smiled a bit. "They've been doing well enough I suppose. Though those shipgirls have been getting attention from some of the local boys which seems to have annoyed them."

Eyebrow raising a bit, Kishiko snorted a bit. "Just the boys?"

That caused her husband to laugh a bit. "Some of the men as well. Don't see the point of it myself. After all, I got the greatest and most beautiful woman in all of Hokkaido, if not all of Japan, right here in my arms."

It said something that he felt a burst of pride at how his wife blushed at the compliment. Taking a moment, she dried her hands and then turned to put her arms around his neck. "You old charmer. I know that I'm no where near as beautiful as those shipgirls at my age."

Snorting, Nagisa shook his head and then softly kissed her before pulling back. Moments later, his hand came up and cupped her cheek as the thumb traced the winkles and laugh lines on her face. "It's no lie, Kishiko-Hime. You're as beautiful as you were when I met a fifteen year old you on the shore."

Expression soft, she ran on hand along his face with a sigh. "That was almost a half century ago, Nagisa. I'm old now and worn, not like you."

Before her eyes, the years seemed to melt away from Nagisa until where a sixty some year old man stood, a much younger one now did. Then two ears popped up on his head and a muscular, otter tail slipped out. With a snort though, he shook his head and grinned a bit. "Says you, Kishiko-Hime. To me, you have never been more beautiful. And every day is one that I thank the Kami for bringing you into my life, and another day I fall in love all over again. There is nothing, not a shipgirl, nor a yokai who could compare to the divine beauty before me."

There was a wetness to the elderly woman's eyes. "Even though I am nothing but an old woman?"

Just scoffing, Nagisa shook his head. "That only makes you more precious in my eyes, Kishiko-Hime. You are the one that I love, whom my heart beats for. And nothing will change that. The only thing that comes close to how wonderful and beautiful you are is the children that we have had together."

With a sniffle, she leaned in and laid her head against his chest. "I suppose that this silly human needs to be reminded of that once in a while, ne?"

Gently lifting her hand to his lips, he smiled and gave it a kiss. "Something that I am more then willing to do again, and again my hime." Simply giving her another kiss, Nagisa pulled back with a small smile. "Now then, what has brought this on?"

Lightly laughing, eyes sparkling, Kishiko shook her head. "Nothing, just a few comments from some of the other women in regards to their husbands. Also... I've been feeling my age lately." Her finger then pressed against her husband's lips. "I know, we still have a good number of years ahead, but it's been more on my mind lately."

Frowning, Nagisa shook his head. "Let me worry about that, and it's not a big worry at all."

Only smiling, the elderly woman nodded some before laying her head onto his chest. Moments later, the Kawuso placed his chin on top of her head and gave it a kiss. "Mmm, that does sound good." Closing her eyes, she sighed before chuckling. "Oh, our youngest gave me a call earlier."

Eyebrow raising, Nagisa softly grinned. "Oh? And what news is there from Yokosuka?"

It did not surprise him in the slightest that his wife shook in laughter. "Mostly to complain about the recent festival. Apparently he somehow found his stall placed directly across from Mamiya-San's stall. You can no doubt guess the rest."

That got a rumbling laugh from Nagisa as he tried only nodded his head. "I can imagine! Those two compete all the time over the silliest of things."

With a scoff, Kishiko smirked. "He acts like he dislikes her, maybe even hates her you know. But I know my son, he's as stubborn as the two of us. It's obvious that he is in love with her, but not sure where to go."

Stroking his hand along her grey hair, Nagisa shook his head and laughed again. "Obvious to you, and maybe to me. But to our son? Ha! He'll learn though soon enough. Can't want to see the grandchildren we'll get out of it."

Just humming, the old woman cracked one eye open as a song came across the radio. Her lips curled upwards as she recognized it and could feel the rumble in her husband's chest as she knew he did too. "Do you remember that song, Nagisa?"

Now closing his eyes, Nagisa nodded as the two began to sway from side to side. "How could I forget, Kishiko-Hime? It's the same song that we danced to so long ago when we first entered our home after marraige." Opening one eye, he leaned down and nuzzled her before giving a soft kiss. "It's a message for us. The Kami telling us that not only will we both be seeing our grandchildren, but that our son will be as lucky and happy as we are in time."

Returning the kiss, Kishiko smiled. "Hai, I understand that."

Then leaning back into her, the two of them continued their slow dance in their kitchen. A fisherman and his wife, still as in love with each other as they were fifty years before. Each day falling in love with each other again and again.

 

[darthcourt10]

Snippet 4: S0ngD0g13

Another Houshou Snippet
.........................................

By the time James and Houshou made it back to his house, the storm had hit and rain was coming down hard. The pair ran up and onto the porch, and James shook himself like the hounds before laughing. "Mercy, it's like someone knocked the bottom outta the sky; it's certainly not iced-tea weather. Come in, Miss Houshou, be welcome in my home. I'll put a pot of hot tea on to warm us up, unless you're more of a mind for coffee?" He opened the door and held it for her.

"Thank you, James. A hot cup of tea would certainly help." She looked down and frowned. "Oh, dear; I'm dripping water on your floor..."

James chuckled as he hung up the dogs' leashes. "Not the worst thing that's ever been tracked in; Jaw once got dragged head-first through a mud-bog by Rebel, Admirable, and Hazard when he was six. Now that was a mess, but he learned not to try and walk too many dogs at once. There's towels in the linen closet there to your left if you want to dry off."

As Houshou dried up the worst of the water, James went in the kitchen and started water boiling for tea. "I'm a bit short of green tea; would you prefer Irish Breakfast, Earl Grey, or Redbush?"

Houshou smiled and looked around idly, taking in the decor. "Earl Grey, please?"

She looked at the cluttered bookshelf, books on naval history and archery mixed in with Louis L'Amour westerns and James Lee Burke mysteries and William Shakespeare's plays. A dog-eared copy of The Tin-Roof Blowdown sat on the end-table by the faded green recliner in the corner, atop an equally-worn hard-back of Homer's Odyssey.

Houshou looked up at the plaque over the kitchen door, letters burned into the oak in a child-like hand, and read it softly aloud. "No one who enters my house with Empty Hands, will leave my house with an Empty Stomach..."

James came out with a blue enameled-tin camp-style coffee pot and two matching mugs. "Tea's up." He saw the plaque his guest was looking at and smiled. "It was a Father's Day gift, many years ago. The quote's my policy on hospitality, as taught by my dad."

Houshou and James sat down at his kitchen table, and he poured tea, then got the sugar and milk in case Houshou wanted some. Houshou sipped her tea and raised her eyebrow after James sat back down. "So, how did your youngest get the nickname 'Jaw'? I don't think you ever told me. I recall his given name is 'James', like you..."

James laughed. "I'd love to say there's a funny story behind it, but truth be told it's just his initials as an acronym. He's named after my grandfather on my dad's side. James Aubrey Wilson McAmis. Hence, 'Jaw'."

James started to continue, only to be interrupted by his phone ringing. He looked at the cellphone and frowned. "That's my brother's number... Pardon, Miss Houshou, but I need to take this; a call from Tennessee now, when it's the middle of the night there, is probably not good news."

He stood and stepped out of the room into the hallway. "Hello? Louie? Whoa whoa whoa, slow down, Louie. Slow down, deep breaths... Now tell me what's got you calling me this late. You saw who? Where at? We talkin' 'saw', or 'Saw', Louise? That's what I was scared of... Whose clothes? I see... Listen, Louie, I can't do ought from here in Kure to hel--"

James was cut off mid-word as every one of the minesweeper-hounds lifted their heads in unison and howled long and mournful...

 

[darthcourt10]

Snippet 5: S0ngD0g13

The Demon's Honor, Part Three
........................................

The time had come; Skadi's two days were ten minutes from expiring, and Prinz Eugen had taken the destroyers back to the Shipgirl fleet riding at anchor out beyond the strait. The Northern War Demon flexed her hands as a crowd gathered by the pier and breathed deeply of the warm Mediterranean air, fixing the scent of the salt-spray in her memory. There's something about it, the air down here. It feels more alive than back home... All the same, I miss my iron-grey sea...

"Your Sanctuary is soon to end, Abyssal. Are you ready?" asked Gibraltar from the landward end of the pier.

Skadi felt her imps moving within her hull, making ready. "I am. I thank you for your hospitality, Gatekeeper; neither yours nor that of your people was in any way wanting."

The Goddess of the Rock smiled and inclined her head in a slight nod. "I must admit I am surprised; your behavior while on my shores was beyond reproach. You could stay, if..."

Skadi nodded, breathing deeply. "If I were to surrender. The which none of those Shipgirls out there would allow me to do, owing to the vast amount of blood on my hands. The only one who might accept my surrender is Prinz Eugen, and she is but one Cruiser among many Battleships." Skadi looked out toward the fleet awaiting her. "No, the moment I step foot outside your waters they'll kill me. They fear me so much that they'll not give battle, as Warriors ought; they know the range of my guns and they'll shoot me down like a dog from beyond that range."

"I would accept your parole, if you gave it," replied Gibraltar with a calm voice.

The Demon simply shook her head. "I would not give it. I am a War Demon, and as I told the German, War is my purpose and battle my passion. To me, surrender is anathema. Gibraltar?"

"Yes, Abyssal?"

"I would ask a final boon of you. Fight me, Gibraltar, and let me see the strength of the Rock. This boon I ask, and this challenge I offer. Fight me."

...........................................

"What do you s'pose they're talkin' about?" asked Belfast to Eugen. "Reckon the Demon's going to surrender?"

"I don't believe she will," said Tirpitz from nearby. "And who here would accept it if she did? We all know her works; the Northern War Demon is no Hoppou or Wanko."

Eugen shook her head. "She won't surrender; it would sting her pride too deeply. Und Frau Tirpitz, I know she's not like the Abyssals who've allied themselves to us, but I have spoken with her; she has her honor, no different than yours or mine."

She would have continued, had evacuation sirens not began to wail from the port. The Shipgirls, thinking the Abyssal had broken her word, rushed forward only to be brought up short by Gibraltar herself roaring, "Shipgirls, stand fast! A challenge was offered and that challenge accepted! Let none interfere! My people are evacuating for their own safety!"

As the Shipgirls looked on, stunned, the Spirit of the Strait faced the Demon, her voice echoing over the water. "Who are you, that you think to challenge me? Know ye not who I am? I am Gibraltar, Gatekeeper of the First Sea and Guardian of the Pillars of Herakles, Warden and Defender of the Mediterranean! I have stood my post for millennia, and I was here when Mankind first braved the Waters in boats of wood and reed and skin! Who are you that seeks to face me?"

Skadi smiled a wide, fang-filled smile, her red eyes alight with battle-lust and glowing like twin coals in her corpse-pale face. All who heard her answer (and it was many who heard it, for a brave news-crew were broadcasting from an orbiting helicopter) could hear the wild joy in her voice.

"I am Skadi, Northern War Demon of the Abyssal Fleet, called the Devil of the Grey North Sea! A hundred-score ships have I sent to the bottom, and a thousand-score lives have I claimed! I was among the first of the Abyssals to emerge from the Deep, and none have ever bested me in open combat, Steel-Hull or Shipgirl, Man or Woman! Face me now, that I might show the world that even Gods may bleed!"

As Skadi moved to take her place, Gibraltar softly spoke. "I won't hold back..."

Skadi nodded. "I'd be insulted if you did."

.........................................

Skadi and Gibraltar faced one another, silently, intently; each awaiting some signal to begin their combat...

A lone seagull cried, high above.

 

[darthcourt10]

Harry Leferts

In front of her screen, Naka winked at the camera before raising a finger. "Ohayo, everyone! Naka-Chan, Idol of the Fleet here reporting in on the current event going on! On the scene is my very own Co-Host, Potter Harry! One of the Cutest little Co-Hosts ever!"

The screen suddenly split to show Harry who was wearing a fight suit and helmet making a Victory sign with his fingers while winking. "Hi, Hi! Harry-Chan, Desu!" He then shifted the camera to reveal that he was in an ultra-light. "And with me is the one of the two fluffiest dragons ever... Souryu-Oba!"

Said Carrier gave a small wave as the camera focused on her. "Hi everyone! Hey, Hiryuu-Chan!"

Chuckling, Harry turned the camera back on him. "Well, we're here in the mountains for a heck of a race, Naka-Nee! Currently, Team Red Party is racing Team Sip and Ship! And boy, are they going at it!"

With a blink, Naka tilted her head to the side. "'Team Red Party?' 'Team Sip and Ship?' Where did those come from?"

All Harry did was shrug on the camera. "Came up with them myself actually. Red Party is Akagi-Oba and Kaga-Oba while Sip and Ship is Haruna-Oba and Rose of course! I ship them."

On the screen, Naka facepalmed and shook her head. Off to the side, she could see Goto just groaning and holding his head in his hands. "Um, right then. So how goes the race now?"

Reaching up, Harry flicked a switch and the camera view shifted to one mounted on the bottom of the ultralight showing two cars speeding along the road at extremely high speeds. Just then, they hit a corner and the first, a sport's car, whipped around the turn. Behind it, Haruna's car drifted around the corner and sped onwards. "As you can see, both racers are being extremely aggressive in their racing."

Naka's eyes widened as they hit another curve and just barely missed the guardrails. "Holy sh-shoot! Did you see that, Harry-Chan!? Those two are insane!"

Slowly, Harry nodded as he narrowed his eyes. "Hai, I saw it, Naka-Nee. What is in that Eighty-six of Sip and Ship's? They're taking those corners so hard, I am almost afraid that they'll go airborne at any moment!" A grin then spread across his lips. "I got goosebumps running up my back!"

Just nodding, Naka frowned as she clicked several keys to reveal internal cameras for the cars. "Hai, I'm shivering here and I'm nowhere near them! But Haruna-San is being aggressive, as expected from a Battleship and Driver of her caliber!"

Inside the lead car, Kaga glanced into the mirror and hummed a bit. "Huh... they're staying with us."

Hitting a turn, Akagi pulled the car through it into a drift and nodded as they hit a straightaway and pulled ahead. "It's to be expected from Haruna-San. That car of theirs does great in the turns, but we're faster in the straightaways. But it depends on who manages to get far enough ahead of the other!" When they went through another turn, Akagi smiled at the sight of Fubuki there waving a flag for her. 'See you at the finish line, Fubuki-Chan.'

Behind them, Haruna narrowed her eyes some. "Hmm... Haruna is impressed with Akagi-San's driving." Calmly leaning one elbow against the door, she pulled the car into another drift. "Still, there's some tricks left."
With a nod, Rose smiled some as she glanced at the map before giggling as Eurobeats throbbed through the speakers. "Still, this is so invigorating! So much better then such races were back when I was with my... Third Mistress and we used to visit some country tracks to watch them race!'

Giggling, Haruna glanced at her before glancing at the speedometer which continued to slowly, but surely, tick upwards. "Hai! Haruna finds this great fun!"

140...

141...

142...

Another turn approached as Haruna worked the pedals and the clutch, once more making it through as shipgirls and humans, as well as a few hidden yokai, watched and cheered them on. Up in the Ultralight, Harry's eyes nearly popped out of his head. "Blistering blue barnacles! Did you see that, Naka-Nee? Now that was a great attack!"

Eyes also wide, Naka only nodded. "Hai! I saw it and got shivers down my back when they nearly hit the guardrail! Those four got no sense of fear on the downhill. Simply amazing!"

Biting his thumb, Harry narrowed his eyes and hummed. "True, but they're evenly matched right now. Sip and Ship's car is unbelievably fast! But on the straightaways, Red Party's car can pull ahead. It's still anyone's race right now..." Then he frowned and looked toward the cameras. "You know, I can't wait until I become old enough to learn how to drive."

Only raising her eyebrow, Naka frowned a bit. "Thinking of racing them, Harry-Chan?"

The Light Cruiser could only imagine Nagato tensing until Harry's answer as he started to laugh. "Nah, I'm not that crazy, Naka-Nee." Where she watching, Nagato relaxed some before Harry spoke up again. "But I am so getting Haruna-Oba to teach me to drive! Just like Jane is!"

Where she sat overlooking the road, Nagato groaned and facepalmed. The sound of flesh meeting flesh as well as steel hitting steel could be heard. "Over my sunken hull, Harry... And I am sure that Mutsu and John are thinking the same thing about it happening with Jane..."

Beside her, Hoppou sipped at her drink before nodding. "Big Brother too silly."

Down in her car, Akagi looked up at the rearview mirror and frowned. "Hmm... As long as we keep ahead of them in the turns, we'll be fine. We're faster then them on the straights."

Narrowing her eyes, Kaga glanced up from the map and shook her head. "We'll have to keep them from passing us in the next bit. There's a large number of hairpin turns right ahead."

Akagi only nodded and tightened her grip on the steering wheel before smirking. "Of course... But what will you do now, Haruna-San? What will you do now...? Show me that burning inside you with your Kongou boilers!"

Meanwhile, Haruna frowned a bit as she received the same news from Rose as Kaga had given Akagi. "Haruna sees... our only chance will be in the next couple of turns. However... Haruna will need to get past Akagi-San first, which will be tricky." Then she smiled a bit. "But Haruna has a plan of attack!"

Raising an eyebrow as she gripped the handrest above her head going into another turn, Rose smiled a bit. "Have a plan, Haruna?"

The Battleship only smiled and nodded before her expression became serious. "Hai, Haruna has been on this road before and noticed something. Now, hang on Rose-Chan, because things Haruna is now going to reveal her full attack!"

Smile becoming a grin, Rose nodded. "Burning Love! Full Battleship Tea Attack!"

Above them, Harry blinked and frowned a bit before turning to the camera. "Sip and Ship seems to be speeding up... But why? Is Haruna-Oba going to use her famous 'Battleship Turn'?"

On the screen, Naka bit her thumb before shaking her head. "Couldn't be. Haruna-San agreed before the race that she would not use it. So what..."

Eyebrows furrowing, Akagi kept one eye on the car behind her. "They be doing?" Seeing how the car was moving only confused her more. "Is she trying to pass me on the inside turn?"

For her part, Kaga was also confused. "That's insane though. They'll never make it at that speed."

Haruna though only smiled as she brought her car close and close to the inside portion of the turn. Just before they reached it, the Battleship brought it the last little bit and, with a clunk, the wheels on her side slipped into the gutter at the side of the road as they turned. With a grin, Haruna only continued to fight the wheel as they caught up to Akagi. "Haruna's got you."

For a moment, everything seemed to freeze as Haruna, Rose, Akagi, and Kaga all looked at the group in the opposing car.

And then it was broken as Haruna pulled ahead and then brought her car back onto the road shortly before hitting another turn. Up in the air, Harry's jaw dropped as he continued to report back to Naka. "Bloody... Did you see that, Naka-Nee?! Did you just see that!?"

Slowly, Naka nodded as her own mouth was open wide in sheer shock. "I... I did. That was some Initial D bullshit right there! But how..."

In her car, Akagi started to laugh as she kept just behind Haruna. "She used the gutters to pass me! Brilliant move, Haruna-San, just as expected from a Kongou! Win or lose, no regrets! I've enjoyed our battle!"

 

[darthcourt10]

jgkitarel

I guess that those snippets inspired me in some way.

The entire straight was aflame. Many ships in Gibraltar's ghost fleet were shattered and set alight by the bombardments of Skadi's guns. Ships from times before history, ancient fleets, and more, all were reduced to little more than splinters and soot in the air. Gibraltar's first wave hadn't been intended to last, even though they would reemerge. After they were destroyed and then reformed, they kept themselves to ensuring the protection of the harbor. They had been sent out, to fight in a battle worthy of legend, and glory. Now that they had been felled. their part was done. And, even as ships that had canons started coming into play, Sakdi welcomed them all with canon fire. But even though those ships were woefully outmatched, they came forward. Those that were lucky managed to get a volley off, and some fortunates were able to get two.

They wouldn't do more than scratch the paint, but more and more modern ships started coming into play, as did Gibraltar's shore batteries. They started doing damage. Skadi, on the last occasion she was clearly seen, was grinning, despite now showing damage, laughing in mad, bloodthirsty glee during the fighting.

Prinz Eugen watched this, and knew why.

Skadi, knowing she wouldn't survive the day, wanted to die in a battle worthy of her. Worthy of dying in. One which would bring honor to her name. She would die, but she would die in honorable battle. Not die being hounded like prey. Not being overwhelmed by enemies who had taken the opportunity that two days had provided to call in vastly superior reinforcements where she couldn't even have a chance to fight.

And any Abyssals who had come had been shouted down by Skaid and ordered to just watch. Much like how any other shipgirl reinforcements who had trickled in after the battle were told to stay out of it. That none of the observers had started fighting each other could be claimed a miracle, but it was a simple unspoken agreement.

This was a battle that would live on in legend, and they all wanted to see it.

"Mein Gott," Tirpitz said in awe. "Gibraltar is sending all of that against her, and that verdamnt Abyssal is still standing!"

"This is her Gotterdämerung, Frau Tirpitz," Eugen said. "Skadi wants to die in battle, and she has chosen her battle to die in."

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

Skadi could feel the pain of her wounds, but she didn't care. She had chosen this battle, her final battle, and she was happier than she could ever be in any other circumstance. Gibraltar had not disappointed her in what was arrayed against her. Ships from the entirety of human history, from those which were the first when mankind had conquered its fear of the Sea, to fleets that would not have been out of place in the epic poems that the Ancient Greeks were so fond of, to more modern hulls. And now, she had taken all that had come against her, and was now fighting a Ghost Fleet that represented those ships that had battled and been sunk in this sea during modern wars. Steel hulls, canons capable of firing what would have been considered impossible distances mere decades before their keels had been laid down. And Gibraltar was now bringing her shore batteries to bear.

This was the point in this battle she would die, Skadi knew. But she had declared that she would show the world that she could make even a god bleed, and if Gibraltar wasn't a goddess... no, she was a goddess. A Goddess of the Sea where humanity had first taken sail. Thousands, tens of thousands of years of history, represented by the ghost fleet that had been in this battle. These modern hulls? Skadi refused to fall to them. She would fall to Gibraltar herself.

And so, she charged into the weight of the guns that were now arrayed against her. Her canons were taken out first, her imps followed shortly after. And she still charged. If she had no canons, then she would strike with her claws. If she couldn't use her claws, she would tear at Gibraltar with her teeth.

She had one arm left attached to her body when she reached her opponent. The weight of fire had slackened enough for her to do so. And so she lashed out, one claw scoring Gibraltar's face.

And then, it was over. Gibraltar had used her shore batteries, and fired completely through her, the damage enough that, even if they hadn't been fatal right then, she would have died shortly after.

Skadi knew that Gibraltar had let her do that final attack. Let her give a wound, however minor. But she was content.

As she sunk beneath the waves, she had a smile on her face.

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

Gibraltar watched as her opponent sank between the waves, her face impassive. The victor of this fight had been apparent even before the fight began, but her opponent had wanted to die in a true battle. And so, she had granted this boon to her opponent. An Abyssal she might have been. Bloodthirsty, vicious, and merciless she was, but this Abyssal had shown that she had honor. It was the least she could do for someone who knew that she would die this day.

Not to be swatted and squashed like a particularly annoying insect. But to instead die in a battle worthy of legend.

And as Skadi sank between the waves, she closed her eyes and bowed her head, the canons of her shore batteries reloaded and ready for this final act. They fired into the air, discharging their powder and shot, one right after the other. All as a salute in honor of an opponent who was worthy.

 

[darthcourt10]

Snippet 6: S0ngD0g13

The Demon's Honor, Part Four
...........................................

"I would ask a final boon of you. Fight me, Gibraltar, and let me see the strength of the Rock. This boon I ask, and this challenge I offer. Fight me."

Gibraltar's eyes widened. "Fight you? To what end? To what purpose?"

Skadi smiled a faint smile, and closed her eyes. "I've been driven far from my home, my fleet slain along the way. My choices are Surrender or Death, and I'll not bend the knee. But if I must face Death, I'd rather it be in battle against a worthy foe, a fight fit to echo in the sagas for ages to come, and not the nameless dog's death I'd be granted by the Shipgirls." Her eyes opened and met the Rock-Goddess' own. "I'm a Warrior, Gatekeeper. Let me meet a Warrior's Fate."

Gibraltar nodded. "If it's battle you wish, then I will oblige you. I will evacuate My people, however."

Skadi nodded, her lips quirking into a crooked smile. "By all means, do so. I'd not risk the distraction of civilians making you sloppy, nor would I repay their hospitality with destruction."

The sirens began to wail, and the people of Gibraltar began to flee north. The Shipgirls started moving toward the port until the Gatekeeper's roaring voice stopped them short. "Shipgirls, stand fast! A challenge was offered and that challenge accepted! Let none interfere! My people are evacuating for their own safety!"

Gibraltar faced Skadi squarely, and softly spoke. "Shall we tell all who witness this battle, just who it is that fights this day?" She smiled and raised her voice, booming out across the waters, "Who are you, that you think to challenge me? Know ye not who I am? I am Gibraltar, Gatekeeper of the First Sea and Guardian of the Pillars of Herakles, Warden and Defender of the Mediterranean! I have stood my post for millennia, and I was here when Mankind first braved the Waters in boats of wood and reed and skin! Who are you that seeks to face me?"

Skadi smiled a wide, fang-filled smile, and she could feel her eyes begin to glow as the battle-thirst rose in her. Her voice was saw-edged and shot through with a raw, feral elation as she responded.

"I am Skadi, Northern War Demon of the Abyssal Fleet, called the Devil of the Grey North Sea! A hundred-score ships have I sent to the bottom, and a thousand-score lives have I claimed! I was among the first of the Abyssals to emerge from the Deep, and none have ever bested me in open combat, Steel-Hull or Shipgirl, Man or Woman! Face me now, that I might show the world that even Gods may bleed!"

As Skadi moved to take her place, Gibraltar softly spoke. "I won't hold back..."

Skadi nodded. "I'd be insulted if you did."

...................................

When the gull wheeling above them cried out, Skadi lunged forward into the attack, her eyes locked on her opponent as the Ghost Fleet of the Pillars began to form.

The earliest ships advanced first, Egyptian Sun Barges, Biremes and Triremes and great Quinquiremes in the livery of Greece and Carthage and Rome, their oars churning the sea as they charged her, bronze-clad rams seeking a target. At their bows stood armored Shades, ready to shoot, or to draw blades and board, if they could.

Skadi didn't waste her ammunition on these the first wave; she lowered her shoulder, roared at her imps for more speed, and bored into the press like a falling shell. They want to ram... I'll show them the way of it!

Skadi slid to her left to avoid a hail of stones flung by the slingers aboard a Rhodian vessel and lashed out to either side with her claws, tearing massive rents in hulls as she passed; a pair of biremes angled to pincer her as the Demon crashed through a quinquireme, splitting it in half in a hail of splinters. Skadi snatched a floating sweep from the water and whirled it as martial-artist might a quarterstaff, clearing decks until her weapon shattered.

Skadi cleared the press and saw galleys and feluccas surrounding tall schooners and three wooden frigates who bore the American Flag at their masts. The first to fire on the War Demon was a 12-gun schooner; as the sailship turned away to clear the line of fire for the frigates, Skadi could see at her fantail the name of Enterprise. Skadi swivelled her secondary guns into position and loosed a single shell that tore the ship apart, just as the frigates finished forming line-of-battle.

The flanks of the line were held by Congress and President, and in the center rode the Constitution; their hulls were engulfed in fire and smoke as they, three of the United States Navy's First Six, unleashed their broadsides.

Skadi twisted and turned, dodging what fire she could even as she felt the impacts of what fire she couldn't avoid, 12- and 24-pound round-shot hammering at her hull. Her secondaries targeted the schooners and galleys as the smaller ships closed the distance and opened fire with their own cannon. Secondaries, fire at will! The Abyssal's gunners poured out shell after shell, crushing wooden hulls and the iron men who sailed them, shattering planks and sending cannons pin-wheeling into the air.

By this time the frigates had switched from coordinated broadsides to each gun firing at will, and it was into this continuous roll of thunder that Skadi charged, grinning savagely as she dove headlong into the cloud of gunsmoke that obscured the frigates' hulls, their masts and the Stars and Stripes each flew the only part of them visible to the observers.

From the smoke-cloud came a tremendous crash of steel-on-wood and two titanic flashes and booms, and the masts began to fall as the explosions flung away the smoke. The War Demon had rammed Constitution and hurled two depth-charges into the hulls of Congress and President, tearing Old Iron-Sides in two as her sisters were consumed in twin magazine explosions.

But Skadi had not emerged unscathed. Her AA guns had been mangled by grape-shot and chain, and a round-shot fired point-blank had shattered the left lens of her rangefinder, blinding her in that eye.

But still she moved forward, fangs bared. Ahead of her more ships awaited, ghosts of Warriors and Warships past and present, every ship to ever wet their keel in the waters of the Mediterranean. Skadi saw the aircraft rise from the carriers far to the rear of the spectral formation and angle toward her.

........................................

"She's finished," said Bismarck to her sister. "There's no way one Abyssal can survive such an onslaught."

"Why is she even trying? What purpose could this, this Wahnsinn possibly serve?" asked Tirpitz as she watched.

She'd meant it rhetorically, but the German Battleship was surprised when Eugen answered it. "Das ist kein Wahnsinn; Das ist Tapferkeit, Frau Tirpitz." The Heavy Cruiser turned to face Tirpitz more squarely and continued. "This is Bravery, Tirpitz. Skadi may be an Abyssal, but she has her pride, her honor, and to surrender would have meant casting away both. We would not have offered true battle had she faced us; tell me I'm wrong, tell me that you, your sister, Hood, und Warspite didn't plan to kill her at range." Tirpitz's silence was all the answer Eugen needed. "As the Americans say, this is Skadi's way of going out with her boots on."

.......................................

Arrayed against her Skadi could see frigates and destroyers; there were cruisers aplenty, be they armored or protected, light or heavy, and battleships swung every gun to bear on her. Above her flew Swordfish and Avengers, Fieslers and Messerschmidts and Italian Folgores, Spads and Fokkers, Warhawks and Mustangs. They flew alongside jets from the Korean War to the present day, and leading that aerial swarm, so thick as to overshadow the sun, were three Gloster Gladiators in the livery of the Hal Far Fighter Flight.

Skadi howled aloud and seemed to explode as all her guns opened fire at once. Her main battery, her secondaries, what few AA guns remained operational; all her guns were firing as the Abyssal charged forward into a hailstorm of bombs, torpedoes, and shells from Gibraltar's Ghost Fleet.

As explosions rocked the Strait and ship after ship was sent to the bottom, Skadi's voice rose over the din, ringing loud and clear over the battlefield in a Nordic tongue...

......................................

Tirpitz had gone pale, staring wide-eyed at the battle sweeping the strait. "Oi, Tirpitz," said Liverpool, "you spent time enough up north to learn the lingo, right? What's she singin' about? It sure don't sound like 'the Dwarf from Dover'..."

Tirpitz started translating as the others crowded round.

"I am the warrior Skadi! My blade, it bites my foe-men! Long have I been a-viking along the foam-flecked whale-road; much have I fed the sea-wolves, and made them fat with feasting! Now I go to battle, to seek once more my true home! To see once more my comrades, who ever stood beside me!

O one-eyed Lord of Warriors, see that I am fighting! Judge me not unworthy, send me not to Helheim! My foe is strong before me! Bold she is, and skillfull! She meets me in the battle, and I face her unafraid!

Ye Valkyries, be not a-thirsting, for the red-ale and the salt-wine, they are freely flowing! Drink deep; I give them gladly! This is my final battle! This is my greatest glory! I die unafraid!"

Belfast crossed herself reflexively and murmured low, "A Thiarna Dia na Óstríomhairí..."

.................................

The Straits of Gibraltar were awash with flames and debris, a hellish inferno from Pillar to Pillar. Skadi had worked her way steadily through the wall of steel between her and her opponent, but she had paid dearly in the doing of it. Her armor, largely un-repaired during her stay in Gibraltar's domain in favor of her guns and propulsion, was holed in a dozen places, and her starboard shafts were barely holding together after numerous hits. Her outfit was ragged and torn, smoldering in places and burning in others, and stained with her blood in still more places. The War Demon was flooding, slowing, and her other rangefinder lens had bloody oil streaming over it from a graze on her forehead, half-blinding her, while her left arm had been shot away at the shoulder. Skadi had long-since expended all her guns' ammunition, and now wielded her own anchor as her only weapon; still she moved forward as the Goddess of the Rock finally brought her shore batteries into play with only a few hundred yards left between the combatants.

As the battle had raged on, it had drawn in nearby Abyssals, one of whom tried to make a sneak-attack on Gibraltar while she was distracted. When the Abyssal leapt from under the waves, however, it was gutted by Skadi's anchor, hurled by the Northern War Demon and accompanied by a vicious roar of, "She's Mine!"

The anchor had passed so close to Gibraltar's head that the Guardian of the Pillars felt it rustle her hair; the shock of it, and the startled realization that her opponent had saved her, threw off her concentration just long enough for the Abyssal to close the final distance and strike. Skadi's talons raked down across Gibraltar's face, scoring four bloody lines from over her left eyebrow, down across her nose and cheek to the right corner of her mouth.

Gibraltar reeled and her shore-guns fired by reflex, missing Skadi entirely. All who witnessed it gasped and all fell silent; the Abyssal War Demon had made the Goddess of the Rock bleed...

In that silence, a soft thump was heard as Skadi sank on boneless legs to the beach, then collapsed sideways and lay sprawled on the shore at Gibraltar's feet, her breath shallow and gasping. "I... I did it... I..." She trailed off as she looked out to sea, and the Gatekeeper of the Med knelt at her side. "Thank... Thank you, Gi- Gibraltar..." Her breathing slowed and her eyes dimmed. "Tatzel, Rukh... my old comrades; Nebel, Rotte... It's time to go... Home."

There were tears in Gibraltar's eyes when she rose, and a command went out to her shore-batteries. The massive coastal guns elevated their muzzles...

The Shipgirls present outside the Strait came to Attention and their own guns pointed toward the heavens...

As the Shipgirls saluted, Gibraltar's shore batteries fired, thundering out a final salute to the Warrior who'd fought so boldly...

............................................

Just at the shoreline of Gibraltar's western side, there's a grave, tended to by a tall woman with ancient, wine-dark eyes and a scarred face. At the head of that grave is a marker of armor-steel, and upon it are these words engraved:

HERE LIES
Skadi Járnbrauð, Abyssal War Demon

HONOR SHE HAD, STRONG ENOUGH TO WOUND A GODDESS

 

[darthcourt10]

Jaegerkin

Time to introduce a new boat i suppose.
Last of her kind having served in both world wars as a supply ship, and a long life as a cargo ship.
fittingly, she was the first ship to bring relief to oslo after the fighting stopped to start rebuilding after the war.

----
When the smoke had settled over St. Brendans isle, when the shipgirls had come, and the fighting was done for now.
When the inhabitants of the island came out of their shelters to pick over what remained of broken homes and ruined shops.
that was when she felt she could be useful.

She was walking point of the first convoy of supplies to the islanders, with wood and construction equipment, as well as food and medicine.
All donated by the Norwegian goverment to help the citizens of st. Brendans get back on their feet after the invasion attempt.

Protecting her were some of her old friends of the royal navy, she knew them well, for they had protected her before as well.

When she donned the livery of war for the second time to carry Food to hungry soldiers.

She wore what looked like a British uniform, but the flag she flew was that of Norway, and while she never worked the line, living her life in the frozen North sea, she carried a few barrels of akevitt she had managed to trade from some of her many aquantances.

From up Ahead, one of the British destroyer girls waved to her.

"Hey! Horsie, almost there now"

DS Hestmanden smiled indulgently at the anticipation on the girls face.

As was her habit since she awoke, she had promised each of the shipgirls protecting her, and the bigger normal cargo ships she led, a glass of the sea brew on safe arrival.
Not surprisingly, it meant there was never a shortage of shipgirls willing to escort the old freighter anywhere she needed to bring her cargo.

Almost there, turned out to be an hour of sailing, before St. Brendans revealed itself.
And the happy faces greeting her and her Flock of cargo ships warmed her boilers better than any coal had.

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

Just a short one. figured reconstruction efforts should get started on Brendans.
Wouldn't do for them to not get back on their feet as fast as they can

 

[darthcourt10]

Harry Leferts Omake: "Speedbump"

Since I'm not going to have time for a full chapter, and we were talking history... have a little something:
___________________________

Sighting the approaching shipgirls, the Abyssal grinned in glee. Sharp, bloody canines glinted in the dying light as it came closer and closer. It's dark furred body blended with the dark waters and it targeted the smallest of them. Eyes aglow, it raised it's hand up with it's chosen weapon as the incoming shipgirl was nearly close enough. It was just about to attack when...

*Crunch*

Blinking, Sammy frowned and looked around which caused Jersey to look at her. "Something wrong, kiddo?"

Quickly, the Destroyer-Escort shook her head. "Nope! I think that I ran something over though."

Jersey just shrugged a bit. "Probably just a log or something. There's a lot of them around." There was another crunch as she ran one over. "See?"

Meanwhile, behind them, the Abyssal sank back into the ocean, all life gone from it's broken body, a rock clenched in one clawed hand.
--------------------------
Because humans have been sailing on the open sea for at least 800,000 years, maybe longer (with some evidence pointing at more then a million years ago). In other words, before Homo Sapiens even arose.

And now I cannot help but imagine the girls on vacation somewhere heading out due to reports of Abyssal sightings. Finding nothing, and grumbling about missed vacation time, they return to find Harry, Rose, Natsumi, Shiromizu, Goto, Yonehara, and maybe Richardson as well as Jane standing on a pile of the Abyssals from above.

 

[darthcourt10]

Harry Leferts

In the field around the old Potter manor, there was quiet under the cloak of the night. The only sounds that could be heard was the rustle of wind across the grass and brush and the normal night time noises. If an artist was there, they would have likely put it to paper as it was a beautiful desolation of sorts. Where they stood, the ruins of the old manor stood guard still, silent but giving a feeling, if one could feel it, of hope. For the last of it's line of Masters had visited it and more then once commented on how it would be rebuilt. At long last, feet would roam it's corridors, the sounds of laughter and merriment echoing past the walls. One could be forgiven that it would be another peaceful night.

Until, that is, that is, two shadowy shapes crossed over into the boundary of the property.

With the use of magic, the two snuck across the grounds quietly. Both of them sure in both experience and pride that none would come across them. After all, they were old hats at this sort of thing. More then one owner had arrived home to find all their valuables gone at the hands of these two. Coming to a stop, one of them looked at the ruins of the manor, now seemingly looming above the grass with a quiet menace. "Blimey, will you look at that? Place is nearly gone, it is."

Grunting his companion looked before shrugging. "Aye. And so what? Mighty stupid of them Potters not to be more ready for You-Know-Who."

Just humming, the first man considered that before shrugging. "What do you think, Sean? Anything left taking in there?"

Only scowling, Sean turned and glared. "Don't be using my name, you daft fool! And as to your question, I doubt it. If there was anything it is long gone. Ain't like it was during the war."

That got him chuckles. "I remember. It was so easy to get past those spells the Aurors put up at places the Death Eaters attacked."

Softly snorting, Sean shook his head. "Agreed. And it ain't like the dead were needing what they had while alive! Now let's get a move on, I want to get at least one or maybe two hauls out by the time the morning comes. We'll return another night... maybe check the grounds to see if the rumours be true."

Raising an eyebrow, the other thief blinked some. "Rumours? What sort of rumours?"

Now grinning, Sean turned to look at his companion, greed shining in his eyes. "Of treasure! You see... The Potters never really trusted anyone, Geoff. Especially not them money grubbing goblins. According to th' stories told, the Potters made sure to bury gold and silver around here in these large, iron cauldrons. A real fortune for the taking just in case the goblins rebelled again."

Eyes wide, Geoff shook his head in disbelief. "Can't be true! The goblins would notice, they would! I heard that they keep track of all their coins somehow."

Laughing, Sean shook his head. "Oh, it's possible. Just a little bit at a time and it all adds up. But the goblin gold and silver was a trick! A distraction for the goblins from the real treasure. Way I heard it, the real treasure was in Muggle gold and silver. Stuff they called 'Dabloons' and 'Pieces of eight'."

That got him a scoff from Geoff as they passed the one remaining part of the manor. "Pieces of eight? Now I know that your pulling my leg you are. Even I know that you can't break an eight into pieces!"

All Sean did was shrug though. "Tha's how I heard about it. 'Sides, we can come back and look later, we were just lucky enough to overhear that giant woman with Harry Potter. And a small tracking charm on the kid and bam! We know where the bloody place was, didn' we?"

Inside the tower, impaled upon a spike, the skull of Catherine sat. Then, slowly, two small flames appeared in it's empty eye sockets. With a grating sound, it then turned in the direction of the thieves as mist began to pour out it's open mouth and a glow filled the room. Outside, Geoff shuddered and rubbed his arms. "You feel that just now, mate?"
Nodding, Sean frowned as they reached within eyesight of the stone building. "Aye, I did. Nothin' that worry about though, probably just some old spells. Let's just hurry up with this."

Unnerved, the two kept close to the small hill beside them as they crept closer and closer. Just as they reached it though, they stopped at a giggle. Turning, they blinked at the sight of a green haired woman, vines and leaves entwined with her hair. "My, my, and what do we have here? Two would be thieves who would steal from those of my blood?"
Pulling out their wands, the two glared with Sean sneering. "Blood huh? Relative of the Potters?"

Much to their confusion, the woman seemed more amused then anything else and shifted. "Oh, more like they are mine. For one of theirs gave Me and Mine a home away from the Courts. And for that, they only asked that we protect their treasures from those like you. I did gift the one who gave us such a gift with a grandson as his son could bear no heir and yet was of agreeable sort to Mine. And My blood had run true for they have made much mischief." Then her expression turned stern as fog began to drift across the grounds from the ruined manor. "And here you are, trying to take what belongs to Ours. But what fun we shall have!"

A yowl caused them both to turn to the side where a cat now sat in front of the doors to the storage shed. It was black of fur except for a spot of white upon it's chest. However, it was not a normal cat if the flames trailing from it's eyes had anything to say about it. The cat's stare fixed the two thieves in place for several seconds before the clopping of hooves caused them to turn back to the woman.

Except now, there were small globes of light around her just floating there. Orbs which the two men could see were not being generated by anything, though every once in a while, there seemed to be laughing faces in them. Suddenly, Sean whipped out his wand and sent a red spell at the woman. Chuckling, she caught the spell in one hand, the energy gathering there. Then in a flash, it was replaced by a brilliant red apple that she sniffed and then took a bite out of. "Mmm, wonderful. I must thank you for such a lovely snack before we begin our merriment."

Shaking his head, Geoff gulped and then began to run back the way that they came. Upon seeing that, Sean snarled at him while keeping an eye on the woman. "You coward! Get back here!"

However, Geoff only shook his head as he continued to run, unable to apparate. "I ain't dying for the likes of you!"

Moments later, he entered the bank of fog and the woman only giggled a bit. "Well now, just you and I now." At a blood curdling scream, she shook her head. "Seems that your friend has met lovely Catherine. My, my, I suppose that we shall need to scratch him off the guest list, for he has another appointment that he must get to."

Just shuddering as the scream suddenly cut off, Geoff swallowed as he began to back up. 'Just need to reach that hill. Once I got to the top, I can get out of sight of the likes of her.' Picking up on her amusement, he grimaced a bit before sending another spell that she caught, and then turned into a piece of fruit. 'Lucky me, the Moon being behind gives me plenty... of...'

Everything for him froze as he glanced up to see that the Moon was obscured by the clouds in front of him. Eyes widening, he turned and let out a scream as he was pulled off his feet and dragged away. Childish giggles could be heard all around.

Not even several minutes later, the fog dissipated and the Moon and stars once more shone down upon the grounds of the ruined manor. All once more at peace with the only oddity being the large crack in the hill that slowly closed with an odd glow deep in it and what sounded like giggles.

Then it, too, vanished. Just like the signs of the two men...
___________________________________________________________________

Blinking, Harry suddenly stopped and frowned a bit. Slightly ahead of him, Hamakaze paused and turned to look at him. "Is something wrong, Harry-San?"

Still standing there, Harry scratched the side of his head in confusion. "You ever get an odd feeling? Like something happened that kind of involves you, but at the same time doesn't? That sort of thing?"

Frowning, Hamakaze shook her head with an expression of slight confusion on her face. "I... Can't say that I have, no."

After a few more seconds, Harry just shook his head. "Probably my imagination or something." It was then that he spotted several shipgirls with a Canadian Destroyer at the head of the group. A grin sprang up on his face as he began to wave. "Miss Haida! Miss Haida! Over here!?

Only chuckling, the shipgirl Haida made her way over with a slight smile as her red hair moved in the breeze. "Hey there, Harry. Been a while, hmm?" Reaching land, she stepped onto the nearby boat ramp with her rigging vanishing in sparkles of light. With a stretch, she sighed before spotting Hamakaze and giving a smile as she held out a hand. "Hello there, I'm the Destroyer Haida, of the Royal Canadian Navy. Tribal class, of course."

Hamakaze slowly nodded and then shook the offered hand with a slightly interested look. "I am the Destroyer Hamakaze, of the JMSDF and of the Kagerou class." As they let go of each other's hands, Hamakaze raised an eyebrow at the large ship flying the Canadian ensign. "That is a rather odd Carrier."

Looking over her shoulder, Haida just shrugged a bit before chuckling, "Maybe, but Little Maggie there does her job well. Converted Container Ship or no."

Interested, Hamakaze looked over at her. "Little Maggie? Container ship?"

Slowly, Haida nodded some. "Yeah, her name's Magnificent and she's named after a Carrier we had. But we like to call her Little Maggie. As to the Container Ship? She was converted from one at the start of the war. Mostly for helicopters for ASW though we can fly Harriers off her as well..." Frowning thoughtfully, the Canadian Destroyer finally shrugged. "We're not the only ones with ships like that. A number of other nations did the same like the Irish, the New Zealanders, and so on."

Just considering that, the white haired Destroyer slowly nodded. "I see... that's rather interesting."

With a chuckle, Haida then turned back to Harry and winked. "By the way, kiddo, I got something for you." She made a show of looking around before leaning in. "I remember what you asked me the last time I was here. So I got you some maple syrup, right from Canada."

Now surprised himself, Harry looked at her. "Really? You did?"

Unable to help herself, Haida laughed. "Yup! Sure did. The real stuff, not that sugar water shit that Jersey keeps going on about."

All Harry did was laugh at that while he began planning for a group of three Destroyers.

 

[darthcourt10]

Snippet 7: S0ngD0g13

Another Houshou omake
.......................................

James shivered as every dog in the house howled as one, and nearly dropped his phone. "Louise, I've got to go; call me if you hear anything, or if you See anything. I love you too, Louie. Bye."

After he'd sat down, Houshou asked him, "James? What just happened? What's wrong; you're shaking..."

The wiry Tennessean took a shaking breath before he spoke. "That was my cousin Louise, back in the States. She's... She ain't full-blowed Magical like Harry; truth to tell she's just shy of what MACUSA would call a 'No-Maj'. But she does have the Sight."

The Carrier reached over and gripped his hand gently. "She saw something?"

He nodded. "My family's Scottish on Dad's side; Louise saw our family Bean Nighe. Our Washer-Woman, down at the ford of the creek below her parents' house."

Houshou quirked her head in question. "This is... not a good thing, I imagine?"

James let out a short chuckle; it wasn't a happy one. "Not by any stretch. A Bean Nighe is also called a 'Washer at the Ford'; they're the Scots version of the Irish Bean Sidhe. They're seen at river fords washing blood from the clothes of people soon to die."

Houshou started and her eyes grew wide. "Oh, James... Who?"

"Louie said she saw two body-armor vests with nametapes. McAmis, E. and McAmis, K." He clenched his right fist and relaxed it as he continued. "My younger brother Eric and his wife, Kate. They're both cops back home, SWAT operators for the Knoxville Police Department."

......................................

The pair sat a while longer, trying to talk and distract James from his worry, until the storm finally broke around six that night. Houshou thanked James for his hospitality and he drove her home in his Jeep.

When he returned, his son was sitting against the wall next to the front door, eyes red from crying. "Dad... There's a message on the answering machine. It's... Uncle Do-Wop and Aunt Katie... They're gone..."

 

[darthcourt10]

Harry Leferts

Some sweat beading on his brow, Harry glanced to the side. "Hamakaze-Chan? Status of targets?"

The white haired Destroyer frowned and sent out an inquiry. Moments later she received a reply and gave a small nod. "They've entered the harbor, Harry-San. We still got some time left before they come within range."

With a breath, Harry slowly nodded and made a gesture with one hand. "Hai, understood. But we still need to hurry if Operation FTD is to succeed with it's mission goals. We don't have that much time."

Eyes hardening, Hamakaze's expression turned serious. "Indeed, you're right as per usual, Harry-San."

From where she sat nearby, Haida looked rather amused as she leaned her cheek against her hand. "Heh. Pancakes are serious business with you two, aren't they?"

Blinking, Harry glanced over from where he flipped yet another pancake off the frying pan before opening the door to the warm oven. With practiced ease, he slipped it onto the large pile of pancakes inside of the oven and then closed the door. "Of course! This is very serious business!"

Her own expression one of seriousness, Hamakaze nodded from her position beside Harry. "Harry-San is right, especially with Operation FTD."

Slowly raising an eyebrow in amusement, Haida cleared her throat. "'Operation FTD?' And what would that be?"

Almost as one, Harry and Hamakaze looked over at her and blinked as they spoke as one. "Operation Feed The Duckies."

For a moment, Haida stared at them before shaking her head as they went back to work. Hamakaze, in her apron, mixed the pancake batter, sometimes adding berries and dried fruit, other times not. Once mixed, she passed it to Harry who poured it out into the pan and went to work. Just watching though, Haida came to a realization and turned gave a burst of radio static which attracted Hamakaze's attention. Once the Japanese Destroyer came close, Haida leaned over to whisper. "So... is Harry there using magic?"

That only got her an odd look from Hamakaze as she frowned slightly. "You think that Harry-San is using magic?" At the nod, she quirked an eyebrow. "Why?"

Rolling her eyes, Haida gestured at Harry. "Look at the size of the pancakes that he's flipping. He's filling the entire bottom of the pan and then flipping a pancake the same size and catching it on the opposite side. I'm no expert in cooking, but I am pretty sure that some sort of magic is needed there to manage that."

Much to her bemusement though, there was a small tinge of pink on Hamakaze's cheeks as well as a soft smile. Then the Japanese Destroyer answered her question. "If there is magic, then it is Harry-San's special magic. As Shinano-Sama said, he's... special."

Now extremely amused, Haida hummed a bit. "Hmm... Is that right?" Getting an nod, her lips curled up some in a knowing smile. "I see. Special, eh?"

All she got from Hamakaze was the slight pink tinge on her cheeks to darken just a touch. Several minutes later though, the confused Duckies walked into the cafeteria having gotten a radio call from Hamakaze. Clutching her belly some as a soft growl echoed from it, Hatsuzuki grimaced a bit as she looked around at the food. "I wonder what Harry-Chan wanted..."

Excited, Teruzuki also looked around though she swallowed a bit. "I... I don't know... Do you think that he has something for us to eat?"

Chewing her lip, Akizuki shook her head a bit. "Maybe? B-but I don't know why he would, it's not lunch yet." Eyes widening, she looked around again. "Unless... maybe he made some food for the Battleships? Or a Carrier and has some extra?"

Suddenly, there was a tap on Akizuki's shoulder and she jumped a bit before turning. For a moment, she blinked at the red haired, teenaged girl standing there. She wore a long, blue sweater that stopped mid thigh and was watching the three Akizuki with warm, golden eyes. "You three are the Akizuki sisters, right?" At their nods, the teen held out her hand. "I'm Haida, HMCS Haida of the Royal Canadian Navy, pleased to meet you."

Blinking, Akizuki took the hand and shook it as she gave a slight bow. "Ah! You must have come in with the Convoy! Welcome to Japan."

Only chuckling, Haida gave a small nod. "Good to be back in Japan." Seeing their confusion, she gave a smile to them. "I was around for Korea and did trips to Japan. And now with the Abyssals, I've escorted a few convoys, though I'm mainly in the Atlantic."

Eyes widening, Hatsuzuki shook the hand offered to her. "Do you mean the war after... Or, um, what happened..."

For a moment, Haida's smile disappeared into a grimace as she shook her head. "I... was around for the war after World War Two, I wasn't summoned yet when the current mess in Korea went down after Blood Week." Taking Teruzuki's hand and shaking it, the Canadian's smile returned. "Anyways, enough of that. It's a real pleasure meeting the famous Japanese Akizuki sisters. Heard all about how you three are experts at Anti-Air."

Blushing, Terizuki shook her head and waved her hands in the air. "A-ah, we're not that great. Not really, we just do our best."

Softly snorting, Haida shook her head. "And that is all that can be asked. Besides, from what I hear your best is pretty damn good." Rather amused at the blushing from the three as well as how happy they looked, Haida grinned a little bit. At the growls from their stomaches though, she jerked her thumb at a table set up with a pitcher of orange juice and and several small items. "Anyways, I've taken up enough of your time eh. Harry asked me if I could have you three take a seat at that table."

With confused expressions, the three Destroyers did as asked and then noticed a note on the able. Reading it, Hatsuzuki frowned some. "Harry-Chan wants us to... cover our eyes?"

Looking at her sisters, Akizuki shrugged some before doing as asked. "If Harry-Chan wants us to, I guess. I don't think that it would be that bad."

Just blinking as they looked between themselves, Teruzuki shrugged at her sister and they soon followed Akizuki's lead. To their curiosity, not long after they could hear dishes being set down as well as the clink of silverware. Then they felt a tap on their shoulders and could hear Harry's voice. "You can open your eyes now." Doing so, all three Destroyers felt their jaws drop as Harry threw out his arms to the side from his position behind three plates stacked high with massive pancakes. "PANPAKAPAN!"

For a few seconds, Akizuki worked her jaw before she looked up at Harry. "A-are all these... for us? Really?"

Only nodding, Harry grinned a bit before gesturing at Hamakaze. "Yup! Hamakaze-Chan and I made them." Seeing them about to say something, Harry leaned in and narrowed his eyes. "You three deserve it. After all, you had the early morning patrol and I know that you didn't have breakfast before going out."

All three Destroyers were about to deny it when their stomaches grumbled. The same thought went through their minds as they grabbed at their bellies. 'Traitor!'

Meanwhile, Harry only had a triumphant look on his face before nodding as he set down a jug in front of them. "Exactly. And now you get to eat some breakfast! Not to mention that you're all in for a real treat. Haida brought maple syrup from Canada! Real maple syrup!"

Eyes widening, the Destroyers looked towards Haida who smirked a bit and leaned back. "He's right, it's right from the Canadian forests to your breakfast. One hundred percent pure, maple syrup. The real good stuff, no matter what that bull headed Battleship Jersey says." Narrowing her gaze, Haida huffed a bit. "Call our stuff crap, will she. Communist... bah! That sugar water of hers probably rotted her bridge."

Not quite sure what was going on, the Akizuki sisters focused on one thing. Mainly what Hatsuzuki was now pointing at. "This... is maple syrup? S-should we even have some? I mean, this seems more like what the more important shipgirls, like Yamato-Sama should get..."

Placing his hands on his hips, Harry just gave them all looks. "Yes, it is maple syrup. Now go ahead and use it! After all, you three are just as important as Yamato-Oba!"

With one final shared look, the three poured just a little onto their pancakes before Haida reached over and poured more. "Take as much as you want, we got plenty more where that came from!"

Softly smiling, Teruzuki was the first one to take a small bite and her eyes fluttered close as she hummed in bliss. Soon, Akizuki and Hatsuzuki were doing the same before they dug in with large smiles and happy noises as a grinning Harry looked on.

 

[darthcourt10]

Harry Leferts

The mountain top was rather windy and cold, but the woman now looking out from it didn't notice it in the slightest despite what she wore. Her white dress whipped too and fro in the wind while a thick belt around her waist kept it in place, the darker cloak that hung on her back doing the same, heavily embroidered as it was. Upon her head, a gold circlet glinted in the light which also did the same with the various necklaces that she wore as her reddish gold hair floated behind her. On her brow, there was a sheen of sweat as she raised her hands, bracelets jangling against each other as she wordlessly sang.

But the woman's lips curled upwards some in a smile which showed that despite all her effort, she was happy. And that source of happiness was readily apparent as she continued to watch the small fleet of boats and ships on the sea. A fleet lead by the USCG Eagle as they moved away from the island that she was a spirit of.

Said island being that of the mystical Hy-Brasil, an island lost within the mists of time.

Every so often, the Spirit could see bits of driftwood on her shores vanish into motes of light. And from the waters around the small fleet, young girls in ancient Celtic garb appeared and were soon pulled aboard. The Spirit of the Island could only smile more at the sight as she focused. Just a short time before for her, her island had reappeared in the Land of the Mortals once more, but this time she could sense something was wrong. It had not taken long for her to realize what was wrong as, a short distance away, she could see a fleet fleeing what spirits of darkness and hate. Spirits who took forms of flesh and corrupted metal as they chased the ships in front of them with bloodlust.

Despite the pull back to the Otherworld, the Spirit had done what she could to just hold on long enough for the ships to reach the safety of her waters. For the first time in centuries, she had held open the Way through her near iron will until the last of the boats had reached her. No accident was their arrival. And then she allowed the Way to slam shut, and rejoiced in the howls of anger and hate she had heard from those dark beings upon the waves.

And now, she was once more straining to give the fleet time to escape from her waters. To not be bound by the same fate that was hers, cursed to be apart from her world except for short periods. While it was still dangerous, she could sense protectors for them in the Mortal Realm. Beings that had journeyed from the Otherworld to fight the darkness. Her song rose up and carried from her mountain. A song of farewell and good sailing, and one of hope.

For perhaps, one day, her curse would be lifted and they would meet once more.

On one of the fishing trawlers, a fisherman blinked and looked back at the slowly vanishing island. Eyes wide, he turned to one of his fellows. "You hear that? Some sort of song?"

Behind him, where he had placed a blanket around a girl that popped up near their boat, Captain Granger paused and frowned. For several moments he listened closely to the song upon the wind and his eyes tracked across the island. It was then that he spotted glints of light on top of the main mountain and frowned. "Aye, I hear her. She's singing us a song of goodbye."

Frowning, the fisherman who had spoken turned and looked at him confusion. "You can understand that?"

In reply, Captain Granger stared at him. "If one does not listen with the ears." With a glance at the small girl who was now staring at the island and humming, Captain Granger took his cap from his head and placed it to his chest. "Just listen."

The rest of his crew followed his lead where they took off their hats and placed them against their chests. And they were not the only ones as others on the rest of the ships and boats did the same. Before them, a hole formed in the still clinging fog, a tunnel through the mists. A tunnel that they entered into, keeping their eyes on the slowly disappearing island...
_______________________________________________________________________

High above the waters off the coast of Ireland, R31 blinked before shaking her head as her long ears flopped this way and that. "I say, rather dreadful weather we're having around here."

From her position beside her, R32 her sister nodded. "Agreed. Dreadful, positively dreadful. Can't see a thing though this fog, wot?"

A groan though caused them to turn to see a third girl following close behind. "Gott save me from you two." Narrowing her eyes, the girl growled as wolf ears twitched. "Why I was asked to join you..."

Smiling brightly, R31 chuckled. "Because you need the experience, of course! Why else?"

Eyebrow twitching, the wolfgirl muttered various German obscenities under her breath before adjusting her uniform. With a huff, LZ 41 only turned back to observing the ocean from several thousand feet above the surface. Having been the first of the German Zeppelins summoned, she had been extremely annoyed at the British having been the first to figure it out. It hit her German pride that they were not the ones to figure out how to summon airships.

That, and the fact that she had a damn wolf ears on her head. How and why that happened to each airship that got summoned, she did not know and neither did anyone else. It didn't stop her from joining in on the betting as to what the Japanese airships would look like. Though who and why someone bet tentacles would be involved was beyond her.

However, she was suddenly broken from her thoughts as one of her fairies had spotted something and turned in the direction given. There, below her, she could see a disturbance in the fog and frowned. "Do you see that?"

Looking in the same direction, the two British Airships slowly nodded with R32 putting a finger into the air. "I say! The game is afoot! Jolly good!"

All that LZ 41 did was facepalm and grumble.

Roughly forty miles away, Hermione frowned through the seaspray off the choppy seas as she stared ahead at the distant horizon. When a shipgirl in what looked like clothing from around the time of the American Revolutionary War pulled up, Hermione gave her a nod. "Alex, a bit anxious are we?"

The returned Coast Guard Cutter, Alexander Hamilton just gave her a small smile. "Well, considering what's been turning up, can you blame me?" Her smile then fell away as she continued to scan the ocean. "While she was after my time, the Eagle is still Coast Guard. And we'll be damned if we leave her behind."

Eyebrow raising, Hermione nodded some before her radar picked up a small airborne target. A glance though showed her it was a WWII helicopter flying above the waves. "I've been wondering about that. Your Coast Guard sent nearly all it's shipgirls including Cobb. Kind of soon to be sending her out, isn't it?"

With a glance in the same direction, Alex shook her head. "No, she was biting at the bit as the rest of us." Her gaze turning distant, the Cutter sighed. "We're all hands on deck for this, Hermione. This is one of ours after all and... If you had seen the reactions from our human counterparts at the mention that she might be afloat..."

Hermione only nodded at that quietly. "I can imagine." Closing her eyes, she gave a soft sigh. "I actually lost my grandfather in these waters during Blood Week after all. And if I thought that there was a chance..." Quickly shaking her head, the witch let out a breath. "So they think that it's her?"

Placing her hand on her fellow shipgirl's shoulders, Alex gave it a soft squeeze in comfort before clearing her throat. "Um, yeah, it might be I suppose. No one is sure, but Texas checked and... According to her contacts, there's a lot of wierd time things that happened around here, so it's not that impossible. But if it's a trap and instead the Abyssals are either pretending to be her, or one of their damn Q-ships using her hull..."

At the sight of Alex clenching her hand, Hermione nodded some. "We got Vanguard not far off as well as Dreadnought. From what I have been told, you also got a bunch of USN shipgirls with Coast Guard fairies behind us lead by South Carolina and Texas herself. If it's a trap, we'll make them regret it."

Suddenly, both shipgirls whipped around and stared towards the north and blinked. Eyebrows furrowing, Alex frowned. "That's odd... some Abyssals just showed up? And they seem to be looking for something."
Only sharing a look with her, Hermione chewed her lip some. "If this was a trap, then they would be using Submarines to keep an eye out. Not Destroyers being lead by a Cruiser. You don't think that they're also looking for the Eagle, do you?"

Frowning, Alex only shook her head. "I... don't know. But if she's somehow still afloat, then it's likely."

It was then that they received a signal from the Airships and turned towards the Southwest. Eyes widening some, Hermione began to turn. "They found something!"

Beside her, Alex also began to turn in the same direction. No matter what, the mystery of what was happening was about to be solved.

One way or the other.

 

[darthcourt10]

Snippet 439: Harry Leferts

Coming out of the fog, the USCGC Eagle appeared almost mystical as tendrils of mist clung to her hull. On her decks, various United States Coast Guard cadets were scambling here and there while at her bow, one teenager who wore the uniform of an Instructor looked out upon the waves with narrowed eyes. Soon, she was followed by other boats and sailing ships, all of them following the Eagle like cygnets following a mother swan. With her video camera, one of the cadets, Claire, panned it back to the fog they had just come through. There, just barely visible, was the silhouette of the island they had come across.

An island that, even as she recorded, seemed to vanish little by little within the fog until it was no longer visible. Once it was gone, she shivered a little bit and looked away. Part of her mind was still on that village that they had investigated. Not just what they had found, but later after night had fallen as they made their way back, they had turned towards the village.

Said village had motes of light, almost like flame, that just drifted along it's abandoned streets. Almost like torches held by people who were not there. But the worst was the main hall, the one where they had found the skeletons. Light streamed out the windows and, even where they were, they could just hear music and the sound of merriment over the wind.

Each of them were happy when they got back to the ships.

But now, the island was behind them and all that was in front of them was open sea until they reached the coast of Ireland. All of the cadets, as well as the officers, instructors, and those on the other boats and ships were tense. None of them forgot the monsters that had chased them through the rain and waves. Monsters of flesh and steel which sank at least two of their number. Closing her eyes for a moment, Claire tried not to look at the trail of holes in the superstructure beside her... Or the large, brownish red stain at her feet.

Just before her thoughts could spiral downward much more, a hand came down and clasped her on the shoulder and a voice tinged with a German accent spoke up. "Fräulein... I mean, Miss Claire?" Opening her eyes, Claire could see the teenaged girl who claimed to be the Eagle herself. "Are you..." With a glance to the side, Eagle closed her eyes and took a breath. "I am sorry that I was not able to protect her."

There was a lump in Claire's throat and she could feel a burning in her eyes before shaking her head. Suddenly, Eagle was holding out a hankerchief which Claire took and wiped at her eyes with. "Sorry... and you got nothing to be sorry about, um... Eagle. Angie wouldn't want that."

Eyes closed for a moment, Eagle's lips moved before she opened two eyes that were as blue as the sea. Eyes that turned as hard as diamond as she glare at the ocean. "I am still sorry. Believe me when I say that I will do my best to get you all home. Even if I should sink at the docks in Ireland, I will make sure that you make it."

Weakly chuckling, Claire shook her head. "No offense, but even if you are our ship, somehow... I don't think that there's much that you can do."

For a moment, Eagle stared at her before looking around with thoughtful eyes. "Perhaps... but perhaps not. There may be one thing that I can do, but... It relies on my past which I wish to forget."

Blinking, Claire furrowed her eyebrows before her eyes went wide as she remembered one piece of history. "Wait, you mean when you were a ship of the Kriegsmarine? B-but what does that have to do with anything?"

Simply tapping her finger against her rails, Eagle frowned. "Maybe nothing... but if needs must, I suppose that it could help..." After a moment, she shook her head and then looked at Claire directly. "Tell me, have you had training with firearms?"

At this point being rather confused, Claire only nodded. "I... do. Why?" Moments later, Eagle reached into her coat and then pulled out a handgun before checking it. Having made sure it was in working order and that the safeties were on, she handed it to Claire. "Here, use this if you need to. I must go and talk with the Captain."

Then Claire blinked and Eagle was gone as if she had never been there. Whipping around, the cadet could only stare as other cadets were also staring. 'Where did she... how did she... What?'

It was several minutes later that Captain Granger leaned out a window and stared at the Eagle. Mainly at the guns that seemed to have manifest on her hull and the shadows that manned them. Ignoring how one of his crew was muttering and crossing himself, he only shook his head. "Don't see that everyday."

Knocking on the window distracted him though and he turned to the opposite side of the bridge where one of his crew with binoculars stood. Opening that window, he raised an eyebrow. "Something wrong?"

Utterly lost looking, the fisherman just pointed upwards towards the sky. "Well, um, Captain... It's just that I decided to look for any aircraft when..." Seeing the raised eyebrow, he took a deep breath and continued. "I saw a chubby bunny girl being chased by a somewhat chubby doggirl. Both of them had the funniest backpacks you ever did see."

Silence met him before Jack Granger cleared his throat. "Tell me, man. Have you been drinking on the job? Or perhaps partaking of something that you shouldn't be."

Just shaking his head, though the man's ears turned red, the fisherman handed him his binoculars and pointed at a spot in the sky. "Just... Just look at those two dots there. You'll see what I mean."

Deciding to take pity on him, Captain Granger raised the binoculars and looked. After several moments though, he put them down and frowned. "Well, I'd be. You're correct, it really does look like a bunnygirl." After a few seconds, he shrugged and made his way over to the radio. "Best inform the Eagle then of what we've seen. And keep an eye out! We're not safe until we reach land!"

And, as it turned out, Captain Granger was correct as forty minutes later, the skies above turned dark. At the same time, the sea, which was already choppy, was whipped up by winds. Then similar beings to the monsters from before arrived and the lookout ducked into the bridge and then dove to the floor as bullets punched through the walls and shattered the windows. Wincing, he looked over at Jack Granger even as answering fire from the Eagle could be heard, challenging the monsters. "Captain! What do we do!?"

Eyes going back and forth, the Captain chewed his lip in a way familiar to those who knew his granddaughter. Finally, he took a deep breath. "Boys, we're one of the slower vessels and we're not armed. But there is one thing that we can do and that is help those boys and girls over on the Eagle! Man the searchlights!" When they paused, he got to his feet and grabbed one of the high powered flashlights. "Quick as you can! They can at least fire if they can see in this murk!"

Moments later, the others scrambled and on the Eagle, Jeff looked over the rail close to one of the gun turrets and stared as one of the fishing trawlers suddenly lit up with lights as it shone them towards the creatures attacking. "What are those guys doing!? They're making themselves targets!"

Grimacing, Eagle nodded before motioning for all guns on her to begin fire. Besides the 20mm guns, other shadows brought up rifles and sidearms which they began firing at the distant ships, items they had used during their lives. "They know that, but they're giving us a chance. One that we must take!"

Across the waters, various Abyssals snarled as 20mm shells and bullets bit deep into them. However, the Heavy Cruiser at the back snorted as she spotted the two Abyssal Submarines surface near to the fishing trawler. Just outside the bridge, Captain Granger watched as she raised a gun and took aim...

Which was right when a brown haired girl appeared out of nowhere on the water and brought up one foot as she skidded across the water. "GET THE BLOODY HELL AWAY FROM HIM, YOU BITCH!" Eyes widening, the Abyssal just managed to turn in time for Hermione to slam her foot down upon the Submarine's face, her propellers chewing deep. Twisting in place, Hermione grabbed the other by her hair and bodily lifted her from the water before flinging her into the air. At the height of the throw, Hermione took aim with one of her turrets and fired, the Abyssal blowing apart. "NOW DIE!"

Jaw dropping, the Abyssal Heavy Cruiser boggled at what had just happened before growling and raising her own guns. However, she didn't get a chance to fire as 15 inch shells slammed into her, ending her existence. Several miles away, Vanguard smiled and pumped a fist into the air. "I did it!"

Chuckling as she also fired, Dreadnought gave the much younger Battleship a smile. "Indeed you did, deary. Lovely shot, a true credit to the Royal Navy." Then a cheeky smile crossed her face. "Your mother should be proud."

Only blushing, Vanguard nodded before taking aim at a Destroyer and letting loose. Meanwhile, Captain Granger could only stare in disbelief as the young girl on the waves turned and stared at him with a brilliant smile. "Grandpa!"

Mouth working, Jack Granger just blinked before finally being able to speak. "Her-Hermione? Love? Is that you?" Smiling, Hermione was about to say something when there was an explosion that seemed to consume her and knocked Captain Granger off his feet. "HERMIONE!" Getting back to his feet, he looked around and spotted a whale-like beast that had popped up and fired. "No..."

Suddenly, there was an explosion inside the cloud and the monster exploded into pieces. From inside, Hermione skated out with a snarl on her face and a cut on face that bled freely. "Gah! I can't believe that I was distracted like a rookie!" Taking aim, she brought down her arm. "FIRE!"

There was a boom as smoke obscured her for a moment and then several other Abyssal Destroyers vanished. Behind Captain Granger and inside the bridge, Smith raised his head and blinked at the sight of the girl. "Uh, Captain? Is... is that your granddaughter? Walking on the water as if she was Jesus Christ, Almighty? And blowing apart those monsters with whatever that is around her?"

Very slowly, Captain Granger nodded as he boggled. "Aye... that is my little Anemone..." He then scratched his head. "Perhaps we're in Fiddler's Green? And all this is some sort of dream..."

Over on the Eagle, both Eagle herself and the Cadets could only stare at the hull of the massive Battleship pulled up alongside them, her guns speaking as they fired. At least one of them recognized her and pointed. "Holy shit! That's the Texas!"

Chuckling, Texas stood and waved her hat in the air where they could see her on her deck. "HOWDY! NOW YOU BUNCH JUST HOLD TIGHT NOW AND WE'LL TAKE CARE OF THIS AND GET YOU LOT HOME!"

A shout though caused the Battleship to blush as South Carolina gave her glare. "What are you doing, Texas! I know that I taught you better then that! Keep your attention on what you are fighting!"

With a sigh, Texas scratched her cheek. "Aw, come on, Ma. I know what I'm doing."

Even as the two bickered, the last of the Abyssals sank beneath the waves and the weather cleared up. Looking around and spotting the various girls and young women that were skating on the water around them, Claire summed up the thought running through everyone's mind.

"What the hell is going on!?"

 

[darthcourt10]

Azzaciel

Cross post from SV

The Once and Future Ship, Part 1

_____________

When first she had opened her eyes to look upon the stars above, she was confused. Had she not drifted down into the depths beneath the waves? And yet there she was, lying with her back on the surface of the sea. She had sat up and searched the horizon for land or sails, halting when she took note of what she did, for moving like this was not something she was supposed to be able to.

Even more confused she took in her new form, this in itself was not confusing, as shifting forms was what she did often, but never before had she been human. She wore an undercoat of royal blue and trimmed with white and black, at least where it was not hidden under silver mail of chains or plate. Curiously her armor had no helmet, but merely a hood of black and white.
From her shoulders hung a cape in the same blue as her undercoat but adorned with golden thread.

On her left side hung a sword with silver hilt, it's blade hidden by the scabbard fastened to her belt. On her right was a quiver of blue with a frame of silver, filled with arrows using feathers white as snow glued and bound to shafts of black.
On her back and under her cape she knew there was a great bow made from the same wood as her arrows as well as a shield, whose blue form accented with golden lines, she knew well.

While her form was concealed by her armor,it could not hide her small height. In the corner of her eyes she could see strands of hair in a lighter shade than the color of her cape's adornments, yet golden all the same.

It would be some time before she resumed to check the horizon for signs of others. But she did, and all around was the sea under a night sky clear of clouds. And so she looked upon the stars a second time this night, to divine her location as well as the way home. And so she started towards the east, to home, to Albion.

_________________


Her journey was swift and without obstacles, as such she arrived at the castle of her king at dawn. Yet she felt no joy upon arrival, only despair and grief, for her eyes showed her no mighty walls manned with guards and topped with banners of her king, but ruins besieged by greenery.

As she walked into them to search for clues as to how this could have happened, she lost more hope to succeed the more she witnessed the decay of her king's dream, of the missing coats of arms, the broken furniture. The looted treasury was the breaking point and where she fell to her knees, head held in her hands and allowed herself to cry.

Unknown to her, her sorrow for the fate of her king and his dream awoke the slumbering spirit of the castle. And SHE saw her, and SHE felt hope, that with her return not all was lost. So SHE reached out to the crying girl within HER empty walls. And as the girl looked up in wonder, hope once more blossoming in her heart, SHE told her to take all that SHE was into herself, HER walls, HER halls, HER memory, HER magic, and HER life.

As SHE saw the joy on the young spirit's face fade once more, SHE tasked her to find all that was stolen, to gather it once more, so that when their king returns, he will have everything he needs to save Albion in its darkest hour.

And as the young spirit heard the plea of the castle, she understood, and she accepted, determined to help her king once more, no matter how far away that day would be.

As SHE saw the girl's eyes, the same green as their king's, strengthen with determination, SHE started to slowly push HER essence towards the young spirit. Over the course of the day the girl would take HER all and shift her form to accommodate the new.

At dusk the last SHE would see of this world was the young spirit, no more a girl, but a woman a fifth taller than before, standing proud and with a will of steel.


And as Prydwen felt the last of Camelot fade away, swearing to honor her comrade's sacrifice by succeeding in her task and to survive until Arthur's return, she let her guard down and was ambushed by her greatest enemy for the next one and a half millennia.

Her stomach growled.

______________


AN:
In the first part she has the body of Teenturia but has ProtoArthur's armor. The sword is for charging/melee, the bow is a ballistae, the shield is her old form.
The cape is her sail.

In the second part she turns into Boobturia and her armor is just modified to fit her new frame.

 

[darthcourt10]

Harry Leferts

In the distance, once could just about see the green coast of Ireland ahead even as they the group of shipgirls and vessels moved through the waves. Destroyers and Cutters encircled the group while inside, the Battleships kept an eye out on the distant horizon. Inside, Cobb kept pace as well as she could, even with helicopters being sent out and landing for refueling as they kept an eye out in a inner circle, the outer one being various scout planes. However, by one fishing trawler, Hermione let out a sigh as she could spot the distant shore before turning to the boat beside her. "Won't be long, Grandpa. We'll be in Ireland and in safe waters."

Leaning slightly over the rail, the old fisherman only nodded silently in agreement. Every once in a while he glanced at a crew member who had paused slightly too long to watch before they headed off to various duties. At the amusement in his granddaughter's eyes, he coughed a bit and pulled out a piece of gum. "I don't suppose that you couldn't feed an old man's curiosity, my little Anemone..."

Much to his surprise, even though she blushed a bit, his granddaughter looked rather happy. Which was rather different from the young girl he could remember huffing before telling him that she was not an anemone. Then Captain Granger was snapped out of his thoughts as Hermione chewed her lip with a small chuckle. "It's... a rather long and complicated story. The long story should wait until we reach land but..."

With a small laugh, Jack Granger shook his head. "Aye, I think that would be for the best. So then... what can you tell this old salt about..." He waved a hand at her feet, even now moving across the surface of the ocean. "This?"

Head tilted to the side, Hermione considered this for a few moments before slowly nodding. "Well... I'm a Natural Born Shipgirl. HMS Hermione of the Dido class Light Cruisers."

That caused the old man to raise his eyebrow a bit. "I hope that you don't mind me saying this, Love, but you don't look the first bit like a warship to me."

Lightly laughing, Hermione shook her head, eyes sparkling in the late afternoon light. "No, I don't suppose that I do look like a warship. But I am." After a few seconds, she examined him closely. "Grandpa, do you believe that ships have souls?"

It did not take very long for Captain Granger to snort. "Anemone, I don't believe that ships have souls. I know that they do. Ask anyone who has been out on the waves as often as I and they will tell you the same thing." Before Hermione could say anything, he showed one of the places that she got her keen intellect from. "Are you saying that is what you are? Or that it's become part of you? Like a Possession?"

Quickly shaking her head, Hermione made sure to cut that train of thought off. "Not a possession, not in the slightest. But you're right, ships have souls. And it's been found how to summon them from wherever they rest to this world where they take the form of... well... girls and young women. Some, though, have gotten reborn as what one would think was normal humans and can be woken up."

Rubbing his chin in thought, Captain Granger hummed before narrowing his eyes. "That's rather interesting. But it does not explain what you are doing here, a... shipgirl or not. I don't much like the thought of you fighting, Anemone."

Her lips twitching into a smile, Hermione shook her head as her expression turned serious. "Because we're the only thing that can fight the Abyssals on a even level. You saw it earlier... if those shells had hit your ship instead of me, you would be dead."

For several moments, he considered that fact and nodded. "I suppose so." Captain Granger glanced at the large cut on Hermione's head that even now oozed blood and what looked like oil. "Abyssals then? I suppose that those are the monsters that chased us to that island and attacked after we left it?"

At the mention of an island, Hermione blinked and had her navigation check. But there was nothing about an island in the area where they had found the Eagle. Shaking that off though, Hermione let out a breath. "That's what they're called for most of the world. Some of the Mediterrean nations call them Sirens and I know that some Asian countries call them 'The Deep Sea Fleet', but Abyssals are the most common. As to what they are... they're the anger, hate, and negative emotions of warfare on the seas given form. For the most part, they hate humanity and just want to kill us, but since they're spiritual in nature..."

The Captain grunted a bit. "Can't really be harmed by us humans, and so we need to fight fire with fire. That's why these shipgirls exist then? Because they're also spiritual."

Somewhat surprised at how easy this was, Hermione nodded. "Well, yes. That is the reason why we've been awakened and summoned." She then turned away. "The war has been going on for seven years and... Grandpa, you and the others disappeared during Blood Week, when the Abyssals revealed themselves. They attacked everywhere and... I still remember parts of London burning. For months, the navies fought a holding action, but it was not until the first shipgirls appeared that we could really fight back."

Feeling a tightness in his chest, Captain Granger swallowed. "Your parents?"

Much to his relief, Hermione smiled and shook her head. "We made it through so far. They worry about me, but also know that I'm as safe as can be."

When he noticed her smile brighten as she watched him, he chuckled a bit. "And what seems to have gotten you so excited, Anemone?"

If anything, Hermione only smiled brighter before shaking her head. "I just can't wait for Dad and Mum to see you alive! We thought... we thought that you were dead, Grandpa, killed by the Abyssals." Taking a breath, she allowed herself a moment to calm down before her smile came back. "And I just know that my sisters will love their grandpa too!"

Eyebrows raising, Captain Granger gave a laugh. "Huh, so your Mum and Dad gave you some sisters, eh? Good for them! Your Mum was right torn up when they told her... No matter. So how many of the little tykes? That way I know how many to expect to bounce on my knee."

Amusement sparkling in her eyes, Hermione only waited a second or two to drop the bombshell she had been waiting to. At the same time, she had one of her fairies prepare to take a picture that she knew her father would love to have. "Just fifteen of them."

Chuckling, Captain Granger nodded. "Fifteen, eh? A nice... number..."

Much to Hermione's internal laughter, her grandfather trailed off as it actually hit him and she had to swallow the giggles that threatened to escape at the expression on his face. "Might be a bit hard considering that they're all shipgirls like me, except summoned. They're also all look like teenagers."

This time she did laugh at the expression on her grandfather's face.
____________________________________________________________________

Getting ready for bed, Harry yawned a bit as he stretched some. However, when he glanced to the side he had to raise an eyebrow. Mainly due to the sight of Shiromizu reading some manga. However, that was not the oddest thing he had ever seen and he looked over her head to see what she was reading. That however caused him to blink. "{... Is that a T-Rex in a school uniform?}"

Only looking back at him, Shiromizu gave him a snake's version of a smirk. "{Yes? After all, they do go to a school.}"

Yet again, Harry blinked and looked down at her. "{Should I even ask you what you are reading?}"

That just made the snake more amused. "{Of course! It's 'A Young Maiden in Love is a Carnivore!' Not too bad really.}"

Now really confused, Harry frowned a bit and looked back down at her. "{I see... So where did you get this? Akigumo-Nee?}" At the hissing laughter, he raised an eyebrow. "{Did I say something funny?}"
Shaking her head, Shiromizu let out a pleased sigh. "{No, I got it from the nearby store. Hedwig helped.}"

For several moments, Harry digested what he had just been told before turning to his owl. Said owl only stared back at him before he shook his head. "{Right then... never mind. I need to head to bed anyways, so see you in the morning and don't stay up too late.}"

He had the impression that if she could have, Shiromizu would have rolled her eyes at him. "{Don't worry about me, I can take care of myself." She had just flipped a page as Harry laid down when Hedwig flew down to stand beside her and gave a bark. In reply, Shiromizu looked over at her. "{You want to read this too?}"

In reply, Hedwig bobbed her head. "Bark!"

Rubbing her chin with her tail, Shiromizu seemed to consider this before turning back to her. "{Can you even read this? We're not talking English here after all.}"

All Hedwig did though was close eyes halfway before blinking. Then she fixed her with a stare. "Bark! Bark!"

Finally, Shiromizu nodded some. "{Well, you are a post owl, true enough. And I suppose that this would interest you since birds are dinosaurs... I think.}" Giving Hedwig her version of a shrug, Shiromizu flipped back to the beginning. "{Just sit down and let me know when to turn the page.}"

When she got a bark in return, Harry only shook his head and laid down on his futon and closed his eyes. 'Man... wonder what the others would think of Hedwig reading...'

Before he could get to sleep though, there was a series of barks from Hedwig and his eyes flew open at Shiromizu's next words. "{A Sailor fuku, huh? Don't know where we could get one that would fit you... Maybe ask Rose if she could make you one? It would certainly draw some looks at Hogwarts, Fufufufufufu..."

For what seemed like a minute, Harry just stared at his wall with wide eyes at the image placed into his head. Then he internally grumbled and soon fell asleep though his dreams were haunted by things such as Shiromizu and Hedwig in sailor fukus, often with the owl shouting "In the name of Bacon, I will punish you!"

 

[darthcourt10]

Harry Leferts

Standing outside a room in one of the tunnels, Haru had her eyes closed before suddenly opening them as she heard footsteps. Moments later, Kurosawa walked around the corner talking softly with Mikasa who was sipping some tea. "... I still don't understand what happened the other day. After all, I was only dressing up nice and yet someone asked me if they could take my picture for my Readman Yomiko cosplay! But I wasn't dressed up as her."

If anything though, Mikasa just gave her a small smile and a pat on the head. "I'm sure that they had their reasons, Dess. But you should take it as a compliment as I believe she is a rather popular character."

Kurosawa adjusted her glasses and then frowned some. "Well, I suppose that is true in a way. And I like the character myself..." At the look of amusement, she blushed some. "I read various things when I was younger and it inspired me to become an archiviest... Though I wish that I did better at my job."

For a brief moment, there was a stern look on MIkasa's face as she placed her hand on Kurosawa's shoulder. "Trust me when I say that you did nothing wrong. In fact, you did a very good job which is why I picked you to handle the archives here in Yokosuka."

Blushing slightly, the black haired woman gave her a small, thankful smile as she nodded. "You say that, but..." Quickly shaking her head, she sighed. "I'm still not sure that you made the right choice... Anyways, I'm still confused as to why they thought that I was cosplaying as Readman Yomiko!"

However, all Mikasa did was give her a look of amusement before coming to a stop before a similarly amused Haru. Giving the Miko a slight bow, Mikasa smiled slightly. "Good morning, Haru-San. And how are you?"

With a small chuckle, Haru returned the small bow and then nodded towards Kurosawa. "I've been well. And let me thank you for taking time out of your busy day to help me out."

All Kurosawa did though was wave her hands around. "Well, I wasn't too busy as most of the archives here are sorted and Daigo can handle them for now."

Beside her, Mikasa gave a small chuckle. "And this old Battlewagon doesn't have much to do anyways. Being bored never ends well for anyone as well."

Meanwhile, Kurosawa shifted a bit from side to side before frowning a bit. "Um, can we head in? I really want to see what you might have for us... You gave me the impression of it being really, really important."

Just giving her a small, amused smile, Haru turned to the clock and hummed. "Actually, I'm just waiting on someone to arrive." If she was in her fox form, her ears would have perked up as she heard feet. "Ah, and here he comes."

Not even three seconds later a slightly portly man walked around the corner with a small smile on his face. Around his eyes were dark circles almost as if he didn't get enough sleep, but upon catching sight of Haru his expression brightened. "Haru-San, you old fox! How are you doing!"

Only chuckling, Haru gave him a smile back as he gave her a hug. "I've been doing well for myself, Daichi-Kun." At his look, she gave him a smile. "Much better these past few years as a matter of fact."

Tilting his head to the side, he gave a small smile. "I see. Perhaps we should meet over some tea one of these days?"

Lips twitching, Haru gave a nod. "I think that I would like that, maybe introduce my niece, Natsumi, to you." She then spotted someone behind Daichi and blinked. "And who is this?"

With a glance back, Daichi smiled and patted the seemingly young man on the back. "This is my current student, Osamu. He's learning more in regards to antiquities under me at the moment."

Much to Haru's and Mikasa's amusement, he bowed deeply to them both. "Haru-Sama, Mikasa-Sama, it is an honor to meet the both of you. My Sensei thought that I might be of some use."

Snorting, Daichi shook his head. "Of course you'll be of use! Another eye is always a good thing after all."

As the young man blushed, Mikasa raised an eyebrow as she could see what looked like ghostly deer antlers coming from his head as well as a translucent tail. "Hmm. Well, I for one look forward to working with you." Turning to Haru, she gave a small nod. "Shall we?"

In reply, Haru just opened the door to reveal a room with various wooden tables set up and a large chest. There were some various items scattered around and she waited until the door was closed before clearing her throat. "Now then, I know that all of us know about the magical side of things, so I won't go into too much detail regarding that." Part of her noted that Osamu looked surprise and looked at Kurosawa in interest at that. "As Mikasa-Sama knows, a few days ago I journeyed with several others to England. The trip was mainly so that Potter Harry could pick up school supplies for his upcoming year at Hogwarts."

Daichi hummed as he stroked his chin. "Potter Harry-San? As in Nagato's adopted son and..." At Haru's nod, he frowned. "I see..."

Clearing her throat, Haru continued. "Now then, I was not there to accompany Harry for either his shopping trip or for the small visit he performed later. Mainly, I was there to investigate something my Niece told me. It seems that Harry-Chan has, upon his property, a large stone building. Said building is used to store various odds and ends that his family has picked up... Some of which even I can tell are extremely old and valuable. For example, there is a group of what looks like handwritten books in what looks like a Medieval style."

Eyes widening slightly, Kurosawa frowned in thought. "I wonder if they might have come from the Dissolution of the Monastaries..."

Somewhat interested, Haru just stored away her questions for later. "What I was interested in was a collection from Japan. It seems that starting in the 1860s, one of Harry-Chan's relatives lived here in Japan for some time and, as a result, compiled quite the collection of various items. I've brought back some of the more interesting ones for you to examine and authenticate, though there are still some there. Goto-San has already did what he could to make things move smoothly, including backtracking some paperwork."

Taking the backpack from Osamu, Daichi hummed as he opened it up and began pulling out surgical masks and gloves. Items that he began to hand out to the others. "Hmm... And what exactly are you hoping to do with said items?"

With a nod, Haru took the offered mask and gloves. "At the time, I was hoping to display them close to the Shrine. Something to draw in the visitors and such as well as provide a small amount of income. However... I underestimated both the size and value of the collection. Now? Now I think that plans need to be changed, though Harry-Chan has given me full permission to deal with the collection. It is my hope that at least one problem will be solved by it, but no matter what, I will be giving full acknowledgements to him."

Now highly intrigued, Mikasa gave her a look over her mask before slowly nodding. "Well now, isn't this interesting, Dess? Let's see what our Harry-Chan has for us, hmm?"
Opening the chest, Haru pulled out what looked like a pile of bristol board and then set it down on one of the tables. Gently, she separated them revealing the various woodcuts and such. "These are the Ukiyo-e that were in the collection. There are also other wall scrolls as well."

Quickly walking over, Kurosawa let out a small squee of glee as she saw what was in front of them. "These are amazing! And they're so well preserved!"

Just chuckling, Daichi nodded as he pulled out a hand lens and began more closely examining one. "They are, though I suppose that would be due to the preservation charms cast upon them. Still, these are exquiste examples from the time in question. While they were sold to tourists and such, they are still very much valuable pieces of our history."

Reaching in, Haru then pulled out a few wood blocks. "We even have several of the original wood blocks used. Apparently, the Potter in question bought them."

With reverence, Osamu took one and examined it with Kurosawa leaning against him. "This is... amazing." Looking up, he blinked at the kitsune. "What else?"

Haru seemed amused before she reached in and began placing small figurines on another table. "Harry-Chan's collection also includes a... collection of netsuke." With chuckles, she looked at one in particular which took the form of a small wolf. "They do come with the accompanying inrō and ojime. We also have some Okimono... but one in particular should catch your eye."

Everyone turned to watch as Haru reverently took out a box and placed it on a table all by itself. Opening it, she pulled out a wrapped object and slowly revealed it to be a kitsune made out of iron. Jaw dropping, Daichi seemed unable to breath as did Mikasa. Then the Battleship walked over and looked at it more closely. "I do not believe it... one of Sōbi-Sama's works... This is..."

Now with her own jaw dropping, Kurosawa gasped a bit. "Amazing..." She then turned to Haru and looked at her with wide eyes. "And Harry-Chan is just... letting you display it?" At Haru's nod, the bookish woman shook her head. "I don't believe it..."

All Haru could do as she brought out another item was chuckle. "Well, you should."

Meanwhile, Osamu began jotting down notes as Daichi looked more and more excited. "It seems that we should be at this for while... Excellent!"

With that, they began to get to work.
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Laying on her back, Isokaze was just watching the clouds drift by when suddenly Harry's face appeared above her. For several moments the two stared at each other before the Destroyer cracked a small smile. "Something wrong, Harry-San?"

Only shrugging, Harry raised an eyebrow at her. "I was just wondering what you were doing laying here, that's all."

Humming, Isokaze watched him for a moment before finally patting the ground next to her. "Lay down here for a moment. Okay?"

Just doing as she asked, Harry was not in the least bit surprised when Isokaze shifted and placed her head on his stomach. "Is my stomach really that comfy? Because it seems like everyone lays on it."

With a slight smirk, Isokaze nodded some as she folded her hands onto her own stomach. "It's actually pretty comfy, almost as good as Shinano-Sama's. And it's a bit better then your boney shoulder."

A frown on his face, Harry gave her a playful glare. "My what? My shoulder is not bony!"

In reply, Isokaze chuckled and gave a shrug. "Sorry, Harry-San, but it is sort of bony. But you should grow out of that soon enough." Simply ignoring his confusion, she let out a sigh. "As for what I'm thinking off... I'm just thinking about my Nee-Sans."

That caused Harry to blink as he looked down at her in confusion. Almost automatically, he placed his hand on her head and began to stroke her hair. "Um, you mean the rest of the Kagerou class?"

Sighing from the headpats, Isokaze continued to look up at the fluffy white clouds above. "Hai. Right now, the only ones of us are... Myself, Hamakaze-Chan, and Yukikaze-Chan. I miss the others and kind of wish that they would show up soon."

Harry considered that for a moment before he slowly nodded. "Huh... I'm sure that they will show up eventually." Then he tilted his head to the side as he watched Isokaze's eyes close partway. "Which ones would you want the most to show up?"

Much to his interest, Isokaze didn't answer right away for a few moments. Right when he was about to make sure that she had not fallen asleep, she spoke up again. "I think... I think that I would like to see Urakaze-Chan again. We got along pretty well."

Not quite sure what to say to that, Harry looked up at the sky in thought. "Urakaze-Chan? I think that Mum mentioned her." His eyes widened a moment later. "Oh yeah! Mum said that she took a torpedo meant for her!"

There was a bittersweet smile on Isokaze's face as she nodded. "Hai, that was how she sank. Your Kaa-San had noticed Kongou-Sama get torpedoed and was trying to avoid it when Urakaze-Chan got hit." Seeing Harry's expression, she frowned. "No, I don't blame her, Harry-San. Not in the very least."

Leaning back, Harry let out a sigh. "I guess..." After a few seconds, he spoke up a bit. "Um, I don't know if it helps, but... I remember hearing about something that Professor Crowning over in America said." Seeing Isokaze look over at him, Harry gave her a shrug. "Aunt Jersey was going on about it. Anyways... It was something about how it becomes far more likely to be able to summon a ship if they have shipgirls who had historical connections with them."

Interested, Isokaze sat up a bit. "Really? Crowning-Sensei thinks that you can get a better chance to summon a shipgirl by using connections?"

Slowly, Harry nodded. "Yeah, like with Aunt Jersey and the Taffies. They're connected and share history, so..."

Tapping her chin, Isokaze narrowed her eyes. "Hmm... That's pretty interesting, Harry-Chan. So... Maybe Kongou-Sama and your Kaa-San might help get Urakaze-Chan? I guess that makes sense. Though if I help and so does Hamakaze-Chan and Yukikaze-Chan as well..." Eyes sparkling, she turned and gave Harry a tight hug. "Thank you!"

Only blinking, Harry nodded and hugged her back. "You're welcome, Isokaze-Chan. I just hope that you get one of your Nee-Sans back soon."

With a nod, Isokaze relaxed a bit as she laid there with her head on Harry's chest. "Yeah... me too. I hope so too and can't wait." As Harry went back to patting her head, she closed her eyes and relaxed.