Chapter One: Dumbledore' Discovery

Dumbledore was a rather queer man. There were even some that thought his oddity was a kind of mental issue. It wasn't. Albus Dumbledore was quite right in the upper story, thank you very much. Well…truth is told, the man himself was actually wondering about his mental stableness as he read through a letter.

The letter looked as normal as any other letter he had received during his long lifespan. However, it was the letter's contents which worried him. It had been delivered along with the rest of his mail by a Hogwarts owl, and there had been no sender or return address marked on it.

The letter, written in a flourishing, official looking writing, went something along the lines of this;

Deepest regards to Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore, Headmaster of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry;

We have been informed that one Harry James Potter, son of the late Lily and James Potter, has been a student at your honored wizarding school for the past six years. As his closest current relations, Mr. and Mrs. Vernon Dursley, have been deemed unfit to have Mr. Potter under their care, we are requesting that all legal and guardianship rights concerning Mr. Potter to be turned over to his next closest of kin, Mr. Youko Kurama. As the Dursleys have been proven to be verbally and occasionally physically abusive towards Mr. Potter, we will be forced to take action if our requests are not complied with. We are asking you to meet us personally on Thursday, August 1st, at the pub of the Leaky Cauldron, located in London. We shall meet you there at 6:00 P.M.

Sincerely,

Lord Enma Jr.

Spirit World Co-Ruler, Son of King Enma Sr., Sponsor of the Reikai Tantei

There was something like a stamp underneath. Dumbledore vaguely recognized it as one of those Asian seals which people used instead of signatures.

Dumbledore knew it would be unwise to not show up at the Leaky Cauldron on the affixed date, when he did not even know who had actually sent this letter. Even though he had read through this 'Enma Jr.'s' three titles very carefully several times, all the man could come up with was the fact that Enma Jr. was a prince of some sort, being the son of a 'King Enma Sr.' That, and Enma Jr. was the prince of some Asian country, considering the seal at the bottom. He had no clue where this 'Spirit World' was.

What astounded him most was the fact that Harry had relations, other than the horrible muggles on his mother's side. There was not even a clear note as to who this 'Youko Kurama' was. How was Dumbledore supposed to decide if this was a ruse or not if they didn't even clearly elaborate on who they were? A thought struck him. What if this was a ploy set up by Voldemort? He immediately banished that thought. Lord Voldemort would hardly be this indiscreet. This seemed more like a practical joke that some deadly scheme to get Harry in Voldemort's grasp.

So Dumbledore decided. He would go along with this. If it turned out to be true…then it was all it better.

It was two days after the letter's coming that Dumbledore found himself sitting at a table in the Leaky Cauldron, waiting for Enma Jr. It was 5:54, six minutes before the exact time of meeting. Dumbledore liked to be a bit early most of the time, mainly because he found it rude to have to keep people waiting…and some of the ministry affiliates he often had meetings with had nasty tempers.

Sipping his tea quietly, (it was one of the few 'normal' things the Leaky Cauldron served) Dumbledore continued to glance around, focusing most of his attention on the pub entrance. When this Enma Jr. came, he wanted to be able to greet him right away.

"If you were planning on greeting us right off, I'm afraid you're rather late. Hello, Professor Dumbledore."

The new voice snapped Dumbledore's attention back to the once unoccupied seat across from him. It was most definitely occupied now. There was a young man sitting across from him, smiling amusedly.

The young man was, indeed, extremely attractive. Even Dumbledore could tell the girls would be all over him. He was relatively tall, and what could be seen of his arms past his half rolled up sleeves showed he was muscular, but he had more of a swimmer's build that of a…Goyle build. Dumbledore pictured that particular student in his mind and immediately crossed him back out. It wasn't a good idea to compare this young man to Goyle.

The young man's eyes were a deep bottle green, a shade darker than Harry's. They reminded him of Lily's eyes, but only to a point. They were rimmed with a light golden colour, and small flecks of gold could be seen here and there in his eyes as well. There was something deadly and mysterious about his eyes. Dumbledore couldn't bear to stare into them for long, and so moved onto the rest of his assessment. The young man's hair was probably the most peculiar thing about him. Dumbledore couldn't tell if it was a shade of rose red or a silvery colour. There were random streaks of the two colours everywhere, and the young man's roots yielded nothing. Dumbledore settled on thinking that his hair was actually silver, since there seemed to be more of that colour. The young man's hair was cut short, but his bangs hovered above his eyes, seemingly a bit longer than the rest of his hair.

For appearances, that was basically all that Dumbledore could take in, minus the fact that the young man was wearing a plain white muggle, button up shirt and a pair of black pants.

Hurriedly regaining his composure, Dumbledore smiled. "Ah…hello. Who would you be?" Somehow, the title 'Enma Jr.' didn't seem to fit this particular young man well, and so he deemed it safest to ask.

"I am…" The young man seemed to be considering something for a moment. "I am Youko Kurama, though Kurama will do. Pleased to make your acquaintance. I'm the one that actually sent that letter. I merely enlisted the help of Koenma. You would know him as Lord Enma Jr."

Catching onto the joke immediately, Dumbledore chuckled. "Yes…Koenma does sound much simpler than Enma Jr. If you are such close friends with this Lord Enma Jr., then am I correct to presume you are some sort of nobility?"

Kurama's lips twitched. "A Lord, actually, thought not of the same…country…as Koenma."

Making a mental note of that, Dumbledore cleared his throat. "Getting down to business…in the letter, it stated you are the next closest of kin to Harry after the Dursleys?"

"The next closest of kin who I think would treat him well," corrected Kurama calmly.

"How is it that I have not heard of this earlier? Or why have you not approached me before now?" Dumbledore asked suspiciously.

"You, Headmaster, were not informed of it mainly because I found no need to inform you of it. Harry had relatives he could live with, and therefore did not need me." Kurama stated. "However, due to the death of his godfather at the end last year, and the widely broadcasted return of 'Lord Voldemort', I found it necessary to step in. I have been watching him for a great while now, and I am…how can I put this…sick of how his aunt and uncle are treating him. I should have acted back when Lord Voldemort first arose, in his fourth year at your school, or even when he had his second near death encounter in his first year, but I was otherwise…occupied."

"Mister…Kurama…you want to become Harry's guardian, correct?" Dumbledore received a curt nod in response. He continued. "Then you are going to tell me exactly what you are to Harry if I am to allow it."

"Of course," said Kurama politely. "I am…his uncle, of sorts."

Dumbledore's eyes narrowed behind his spectacles. "I was not aware of Lily having a younger brother."

Kurama seemed surprised. "Ah? What makes you think I am related to him on his mother's side?"

"Your eyes…"

"Yes, they are green like Lily Evans'. However, that does not mean I am his mother's younger brother. In fact, I am related to Harry on his father's side. I ask you not to ask for the specifics, I have no clue how many times removed I am." Kurama said, making a face.

"Then it all becomes more complicated. You see, Mr. Kurama, I have placed a…"

"…blood protection, yes." Kurama interrupted. "I am aware. However, the blood protection breaks on Harry's seventeenth birthday, and he is defenseless from there. I would very much prefer to take him in now and not have to bother about it next year. That way, he is protected for as long as he remains under my roof."

Dumbledore's lips tightened. "I apologize for any rudeness on my part, but you are related on James' side. Presuming that I believe you are a relation, and I do not at the moment, I must inform you. The blood protection does not work with anyone not on his mother's side."

At that, Kurama let out a laugh. Dumbledore, taken aback by the abnormally sharp canines Kurama had, stared. Chuckling quietly, Kurama responded. "That is not a problem. Believe me; Harry will be well protected while he is with me. Even better than with your blood protection in place. In fact…" Kurama grew serious, "he will be better off than he was ever before."

"No ordinary wizard can…"

"Pardon, Professor Dumbledore, but did I not just tell you? Harry will be protected. That is all I can say. Even if," Kurama stressed that word, "Voldemort manages to get past my defenses; he would have me to deal with."

"Then I need proof you are related to Harry. In these dark times, I can not just recklessly give away wizardkind's last hope to someone I have just met. And there is the matter of the Dursleys and Harry agreeing to this." Dumbledore told Kurama. He was extremely reluctant to let Harry go. Who knew what this Kurama had planned?

Sighing with annoyance, Kurama reached into a shirt pocket and pulled out broken fragments of a wand. Dumbledore's eyes widened as Kurama placed them on the table, arranging them into two different piles.

"These are the remains of James' first wand. The one he foolishly managed to break into little bits in an encounter with Severus Snape." Kurama pointed at one pile. "These are the remains of James' second wand. The one that was destroyed by Voldemort. Don't ask how I got it. It'll only waste time." Kurama paused. "And this," He pulled out a wand from his pocket, "is my own wand."

It was a wand all right…just not made out of wood. It was made out of silver, of all things, with what looked like a jade handle. Dumbledore was fascinated.

"It was not, if you are wondering, made by Ollivanders. It is 13 inches, made out of a combination of silver, steel and reinforced jade. I have two cores. The first is a dark phoenix tail feather, which has been crystallized in phoenix tears. The second is one of my own hairs." Kurama seemed to think about it. "I suppose it would technically be three cores, including the tears."

Despite himself, Dumbledore was horrified. "That's suicidal!" He gasped. "Such a powerful…! Are you able to control it?"

"Would I carry it around if I could not, professor? Now, please observe." Kurama pointed his wand at the broken wand pieces on the table, and murmured something which Dumbledore recognized as a spell which would trace family members. The wand pieces glowed brightly. The idea of Kurama not being Harry's relation flew out the window.

"I see I was wrong to doubt you. You have just proved you are able to protect Harry and that you are his relation." Dumbledore sighed, recognizing Kurama's right with a nod. "So I will not object if you are wishing to take Harry in. However…Harry must agree first. And you have not yet told me of your living conditions. You are an impeccable English speaker, but I don't think you are from England."

Kurama tilted his head to the side. "You are correct. My original home is in Japan, though I have been…abroad for several years now. However, I am in the process of purchasing a home here in England. I thought Harry would like to stay where he lived for most of his life. Even if he refuses to live with me, I was thinking of giving it to him anyway…as a present."

Dropping the subject of money upon hearing that, Dumbledore nodded. He was satisfied Kurama didn't work for Voldemort; he didn't have the Dark Mark. Both of Kurama's forearms were in plain view. Dumbledore suspected Kurama had rolled up his sleeves so that the particular subject would not come up. Dumbledore also knew now that Kurama had enough money to support Harry with nothing lacking, and protection didn't seem to be too big of an issue anymore. So there was nothing else Dumbledore could object to. Besides, Kurama seemed fairly agreeable, and his distaste when speaking about Voldemort was obvious. As long as Harry was safe and happy, it was a plus in Dumbledore's book.

"Now…you do not have anymore questions?" Kurama asked, smiling amusedly.

"Actually…one more. If you were to die…who would take care of Harry?" Dumbledore asked, looking at Kurama straight in the eye. To his shock, Kurama laughed.

"If I did, then I'm sure my fiancée and friends would. Of course…I'm not going to die just yet. If that is the end of things, could we go speak to Harry now?" Kurama stood up.

"Of course…" What was that strange gleam in Kurama's eyes all about? What was so amusing?

Hiei, whom had been listening in on the entire thing, almost laughed out loud. He had been sitting at the other end of the pub, eating a strange type of wizarding cake and listening in with his enhanced demon hearing. The entire thing had been pretty much ridiculous. The things Kurama did sometimes…he was by far too nice. Why did he even have to bother taking in this 'Harry Potter'? He was even pretending to be a wizard for this Potter boy's sake.

There had been three points in the conversation which Hiei found hilarious. First off, the very thought of Harry not being safely protected while with Kurama. To not be safe while with a being who could destroy the Earth a hundred times over and still have enough energy left over to spar with Hiei on equal terms. Wow. With Kurama alone, it would've been safe. With Hiei there as well…it wasn't safe. It was IMPOSSIBLE to get within a HUNDRED METRES of Potter.

The second part had been…how the hell was Kurama supposed to be Harry's uncle? Harry Potter was related to Youko Kurama, not Shuuichi Minamino. (Ah, Shuuichi Minamino…officially, Minamino had disappeared at the age of 24, along with a certain Yusuke Urameshi. The disappearing act had been eighty years ago. So basically, Shuuichi Minamino was supposed to be a 104 year old grandpa, not the young man Dumbledore had met.) The thing was...Youko Kurama hadn't mated for a good 1, 600 years. Hardy har…So that basically meant Harry was a…great, great, great, great, great, great, great, great, great, great, great, great…oh, screw it, a grandchild. Not a nephew.

Finally…if Kurama were to die? Maybe in the past, that would have been a worry…but what? After becoming one of the top three strongest demons alive, (Hiei and Yusuke being the other two) it was not likely Kurama would just die. Having the Grim Reaper as a fiancée helped a bit, too.

Was life not a great big joke?

Allowing himself a smirk as Kurama and Dumbledore walked out of the pub, Hiei stood up and walked to the barkeeper.

"How much will it be for both my table and that table over there?" Hiei asked nodding towards the table Kurama and Dumbledore had previously been sitting at.

The barkeeper looked startled. "Come to think of it, Professor Dumbledore didn't pay as he left…ah well, if you're willing to do it, I'm fine with it." He named the price, and Hiei paid. In wizarding money, of course. He wasn't stupid enough to try yen.

Hiei thought it was fortunate that he had grown so much. People had used to think he was a child, and gods forbid that. No matter how much more patience he had for humans lately he still didn't tolerate imbecilic humans. Though he was kind of regretful that Kuwabara was dead…

All three of them…Hiei, Kurama, and Yusuke had changed. Despite his vow to be rid of Youko, Kurama had given up after his mother and stepfather had both passed away, and his stepbrother was a grown man. He had changed a great deal in appearance, becoming a strange combination between Youko and Shuuichi. His features still remained that of Shuuichi, but his personality favoured Youko much more, and his colouring was a mix between the two. He had also finally agreed to cut his hair. He was probably the one who had made the most changes. His increase in power was nothing to joke over either. The strangest thing about him was how he had fallen in love with Botan, and she with him. They had decided to marry. It was disturbing, to say the least. (To Hiei.)

Hiei had risen in power levels, just like Kurama. He found that he was on equal par with Kurama while sparring with hands and fists, but often got the better of him while fighting with their abilities. Of course, that was only when Kurama didn't use fire proof plants. Growing to around the same height as Kurama…perhaps a bit shorter…had done wonders for his temper, as well. When once, his temper had been about as short as he was, it seemed to have become a bit…longer…as Hiei grew. It was a joke amongst their friends, actually. A fairly common one which came up during reunions. However, Hiei was still Hiei, and Hiei bit people's heads off for commenting on his height. Hiei had actually managed to totally master the Dragon, and could use it without as much as a second thought now. It was something he often used to scare the crap out of Yusuke. His relationship with Kurama had improved a great bit, (considering they could both kill each other if they got really riled) and they were at the status of 'best friends for life'. Or so Yusuke put it. His little secret had been eventually figured out by Yukina. Holy crap, who had known the little ice apparition could be so fierce? She had slapped Hiei in the face, pummeled him in other areas for a while, and then sobbed all over his chest, telling him how glad she was and how much she had missed him. Hiei's expression had been a sight to behold indeed.

The ex-Spirit Detective was as goofy as always, though rather sad every time Kuwabara came up. If one even so much as mentioned Keiko…Genkai…or even Atsuko around him, they were in for a rough ride. His power levels had increased, but…due to his depression over several of his friends' deaths for a good twenty years, Hiei and Kurama had managed to get a bit more powerful than him. Just a bit. Yusuke, instead of using the 'Spirit Gun' anymore, used the 'Spirit Missile'. It was a huge wave of spirit energy which served exactly as a gigantic missile made out of spirit energy. Or demon energy, whichever one. The ex-detective had once delightedly announced that he was going to try out a 'Spirit Uranium Bomb'. That had earned several sweatdrops. Yusuke, somehow, had actually managed to fall in love with Yukina. What was more…Yukina had accepted his proposal.

Demon World had seen Hell reign that day in the form of Hiei and Yusuke trying to beat the living shit out of each other, Yukina yelling at them both to stop, while Jin, Touya, and Chuu laughed their asses off at the spectacle. Everything within forty kilometers status had been destroyed. It would have gone on for longer, too, if Kurama hadn't chosen that moment to get in the way and…well…he had tied both Hiei and Yusuke down with plants. Death plants, to be precise.

It was a somewhat unfortunate thing, but Demon World had once again split off into Three Kingdoms. After Yusuke, Hiei and Kurama rose to such powerful levels, most of the demons thought it would be pointless, since they would win every time. They HAD won every time, too…four times straight. First Yusuke had won then Hiei, Kurama, and then Hiei once more. So after that, the power had been split into three. It wasn't like before though, since all Three Kingdoms were…chummy with one another. Since their Lords were the closest of friends, why not them? Peace, of all things…peace was actually reigning in Demon World. When the more powerful demons weren't killing the weaker ones.

Hiei, thinking about such things, walked out of the pub. He was just in time to hear a 'pop', as Albus Dumbledore and Kurama both disapparated to, most likely, #4 Private Drive, where the Potter boy was. So Hiei decided to make his way there as well. He disappeared into the Makai. Being trusted by Koenma had its advantages. Such as free passage from one world to the next.

Kurama, leaving Hiei to pay for the tea and pasty Dumbledore had eaten, along with the cake Hiei had had, walked out with Dumbledore.

"I presume apparating would be a fine method of transport?" Dumbledore asked, raising an eyebrow.

Kurama merely nodded in reply. He had never apparated before…not when he had the Makai to go through instead, but he didn't mind apparating either. It was fairly easy; gathering up your energy and dumping it somewhere else. Kurama had been to where Harry 'lived' a few times before, just to check on the boy, and he was quite familiar with how to get here.

He could sense Hiei coming out of the pub just as both he and Dumbledore disapparated. He grimaced as he got that unpleasant sensation of your energy being carried somewhere else. He had experienced it before…mainly that time when he had squeezed out of the Demon World and into the Human World when he was practically dead. It was like being shoved down a narrow tube.

With another 'pop', he appeared on the sidewalk next to the already apparated Dumbledore. In Kurama's opinion, the house in which Harry lived wasn't really bad…it was just its occupants that pissed off Kurama. How dare they treat a descendant…no matter how distant…of the great Youko Kurama like garbage? He would show them. When this entire 'adopting' business was over, he would come back with Harry and have a nice, long chat.

Kurama saw Dumbledore eyeing him wearily. Smiling at the old man (though not older by any means) innocently, Kurama cocked his head to the side. "Is there a problem, Headmaster?"

"You were beginning to rather look like a fox that had cornered it's pray." Dumbledore said quietly.

You think correctly…what an intelligent man you are…Kurama thought. However, on the outside, he just shrugged. "I apologize if you're uneasy because of me. Shall we go? I've met Petunia once, and I'm not particularly fond of her…so I'd like to get it over with."

"You've met Petunia Dursley before?" Dumbledore asked with interest as they began walking forward. Despite the fact it was only half past six, it was already fairly dark, and there were no muggles walking about.

Kurama rolled his eyes. "Yes…at James' wedding. He invited me, along with the rest of the family, and I got to make her acquaintance." Acquaintance was hardly the word. Petunia had tripped and nearly tipped over the entire concession table, and so Kurama had caught her and saved his favourite pudding while at it. She had fallen in love with him for a short while, until she had remembered that two members of their family were already marrying. Then she had backed off. Then, as an afterthought, he added; "I'd like it if you didn't bring up our previous meeting again…it wasn't the best of meetings." After all…what would she say if she saw him looking almost the exact same age as he had been sixteen years ago?

"But won't she recognize you?" Dumbledore asked, ringing the doorbell.

"Probably not. I've changed a lot." Well…not all that much. Back when he had first met Petunia, he had still had long red hair. That was about it. Well…that and a much happier mood because the wedding had only been a few days after he, himself, had proposed to Botan.

"Coming!" A voice said from the other side of the door. Said door opened, to reveal a horse-necked, pencil thin woman. Her jaw dropped open. "What are you doing here?" She demanded, glaring at Dumbledore.

"I apologize for interrupting your evening, Mrs. Dursley, but there is a matter which I can not put off. Is Harry home?" Dumbledore asked politely.

Said young man bolted down the stairs. "Professor! What are you doing here?" He asked, though he seemed much more delighted than his aunt. He noticed Kurama standing behind Dumbledore. "And who's that?"

Petunia was also staring at Kurama with intense concentration on her face. "I can swear I've seen you before…"

"Ah…I don't believe so…"

Petunia gave Kurama suspicious look, but didn't pursue the topic. "Well, why are you standing on my doorstep?"

Vernon Dursley chose that moment to saunter out of the living room. "You!" He shouted, spotting Dumbledore. "How dare you show up here and…?"

"Perhaps we could discuss this inside?" Dumbledore asked pointedly. Instead of waiting for an answer, he simply swept into the house and, after pulling Kurama in after him, shut the door.

"How…you…" Vernon was spluttering. "THIS IS UNLAWFUL ENTRY! THIS IS HARASSMENT!"

Harry, however, bounded over to Dumbledore, ignoring his uncle's continued yells. "It's great to see you again, professor!"

"As it is to see you, dear boy." Dumbledore patted Harry on his shoulder. "How have you been?"

"Well…all right, I suppose. Professor, who is that? Is he an Order member?" Harry asked with interest, staring at Kurama.

Dumbledore chuckled mysteriously. "Actually…no. If we could go sit somewhere before we started conversations…?" He briskly strutted into the living room. Vernon followed, turning purple, as did Petunia. Dudley peered at them from the upstairs railing, not eager to get near wizards again. Kurama gave Harry, who was continuing to stare at the older man curiously, a cheerful wink, and then followed Dumbledore. Harry blinked and trailed after him.

Once they were all seated, Dumbledore summoned a bottle of brandy and passed it around. Well…the brandy bottle floated around and poured its contents into cups, which had been summoned by Dumbledore as well. The Dursleys did not object, but did not even touch their cups, Harry's portion was swatted away by an annoyed looking Kurama, and Kurama himself waved his wand and his cup disappeared. All in all, Dumbledore was the only one who actually had any of the brandy.

Taking a long drought of the brandy, Dumbledore left them in silence for a while. Then, smacking his lips, he made the bottle of brandy disappear, and then put on a much more serious face. He leaned forward a bit and adjusted his spectacles' positioning on his nose.

"First of all…I would like to ask you all to believe me on this, and to not think I am lying. Or holding back the truth. Actually, I only just found out about it two days ago, and confirmed it just today, so it is rather awkward for me as well." Dumbledore said calmly, looking especially at Harry as he said this. "By the way, I really do apologize for the inconvenience, Mr. and Mrs. Dursley. It really was an urgent matter though." He addressed this next part to the Dursleys, who looked none to happy at having Dumbledore in their living room.

Harry was the only one who nodded in understanding at Dumbledore.

The old man continued. "As you know, Harry; all the relations you have left are muggles, and are from your mother's side. They are all painfully close-minded and tend to treat you with a certain disrespect and anger. Am I correct so far?" He asked. Not waiting for an answer, he pressed on.

"Well…two days ago, I was in my office, looking through the little pile of mail which had accumulated over the week. I found one envelope, unmarked and unsigned, which caught my eye. So I opened it and read it, and I will admit. It almost gave me a heart attack." Dumbledore chuckled to himself. Smiling, he turned to Harry. "I have exceptionally good news, Harry. You actually have one wizard relative left alive."

Harry took in a quick gasp of air, his eyes going as wide as saucers. He didn't seem to comprehend what he was hearing. "A…wizard relative, sir? Who?" Harry asked faintly.

Dumbledore smiled brightly at Kurama. "Why don't you introduce yourself now?"

Amused inwardly at the old geezer's flair for suspense, Kurama turned to Harry and gave the latter a kind smile. "Hello, Harry…my name is Youko Kurama." He winked at the boy once more. "You should probably refer to me as 'uncle'."

Harry's jaw dropped open, and his eyes grew even wider. There was silence for a moment.

"W-What…?" Vernon began, his face remotely resembling an eggplant with a moustache, "do you mean by that? Didn't you tell us all his relatives were dead? That's why we've had to put up with him for the past…past…fifteen years!" He rounded on Dumbledore, his moustache twitching dangerously. "I demand that you give me some straight answers…NOW!"

"As I stated earlier, I was not aware Harry had any other relatives until now either. It was Mr. Kurama whom approached me just a couple of days ago and told me the truth. He is related to you on your father's side, Harry, and wishes to adopt you, if you would agree."

"If I agree!" exclaimed Harry jubilantly. "Of course I agree! As long as I can get away from these creeps!" Harry waved his hands frantically towards the Dursleys.

"Harry!" Dumbledore reprimanded, though he had that familiar twinkle in his eyes. "Though you may be free from them, they are still your relatives."

Harry completely ignored Dumbledore. He was too preoccupied with Kurama. "This is awesome! When can I move in? Where do you live? Which side are you from?"

"Ah…" Kurama looked quite amused at his 'nephew's' enthusiasm. "One at a time, please, Harry."

"Before we go onto such things," Dumbledore cut in, "I'm afraid we have something else to talk about as well. Harry…Mr. Kurama is from your father's side of the family. Do you know what that means?"

Dimming down slightly at the level of seriousness in Dumbledore's tone, Harry shook his head.

"It means that you will not be protected by your mother's blood anymore. Mr. Kurama has proved himself to be a formidable wizard indeed by showing me his wand alone, and he claims he has several other friends who can protect you in light of his absence. So I trust him. However, you must be extremely careful from here on out. Even during the holidays, you are not going to be completely safe unless you are right beside Mr. Kurama."

Harry nodded solemnly. "Yes, professor."

Dumbledore grinned. Yes, grinned. Harry was slightly taken aback. It was the first time he had ever seen Dumbledore grin like that. "On a lighter note…let's answer the rest of your questions. You do not mind, I hope?" Dumbledore looked at the Dursleys.

"Just take him." Vernon grumbled. "We're through with you stupid wizards!"

"In that case…" Kurama said softly. "Harry, you can stay with me within a week. I'll come pick you up next Thursday; I should have everything completed by then."

"Everything completed?" Harry echoed.

"I'm not quite English; you see…I've been living in Japan. So naturally, I don't have a house here. You needn't worry though," Kurama said quickly at Harry's downcast expression. "I'm in the middle of buying one. I'm actually almost done…and since it's too much trouble to drag all my things from Japan to here, I'm going to purchase all the furniture from here. I'll probably be done in a week." A thought seemed to cross Kurama's head. "Say, how about I come here this Saturday so that we can go shopping for your bedroom furniture? You can pick them out."

Harry blinked in astonishment. "Uhm…do you have enough money for all that…?" Harry asked quietly.

Kurama chuckled. "If I didn't, would I offer to?" I do a few favours in the Demon World for Koenma and I receive a ridiculous pay…not to mention the fact that I can also go steal some of Yusuke's Kingdom's National Treasure…or even grab some of our's. It wouldn't make even a dent in our treasury.

Uncertain, Harry nodded. "Well…if we run over our budget, we can always take a stop at Gringotts and get some more from my vault."

Oh yes…I had forgotten about Gringotts…I have money in there too…looks like there's no need for any stealing. "No, it's quite fine. We'll manage." Kurama stood up. "Well, I'll see you on Saturday then, Harry. If you need me, just holler my name as loud as possible. I constantly have people watching this house, so they should hear you pretty well." The last part had mostly been for the Dursleys' benefit. Just in case.

Dumbledore also rose. "It seems we are overstaying our welcome here. Good-bye, Harry…I will see you at the banquet. Ah, no need to see us out; we'll manage to find the front door ourselves." With a quirky little smile in Harry's direction, the old man strutted out of the living room, followed by Kurama. The latter paused just as he was about to leave the room, and turned back around.

"Mr. and Mrs. Dursley," He said coolly, "if a man wearing all black decides to suddenly burst in through one of the windows or front door in the next week, please don't be alarmed. It merely means Harry called for me." Neglecting to mention that this man's name was Hiei and he wasn't too dangerous, Kurama strutted out.

As Dumbledore and Kurama walked out of the front door, Hiei quickly moved to somewhere other than on top of a lamp post. He would be easily seen from there. He could tell Kurama had seen him, by the look the red…silver…head sent him, but Dumbledore obviously had not.

Hiei was just barely managing to not laugh.

Kurama had just threatened the Dursleys by using Hiei.

"Hn…damn fox is getting craftier by the century."

Chapter Two: Teaching Position

Kurama walked out of the Dursleys' home in a slightly bad temper. Lily had been a doll, but her family…they just sickened him. They treated their own son like gold, but Harry like garbage. The neglect he had been shown had been obvious up until his first year at Hogwarts. Even now, he was too thin.

Dumbledore was quiet for a while, recognizing that Kurama was currently thinking. Then the silence seemed to be too much for even him, and he broke it. "Mr. Kurama…I have a request to make of you."

Kurama glanced over at Dumbledore with surprise on his face. "A request? All right…could you give me a moment?" Kurama looked up at the Dursleys' roof, and said loudly; "Could you come down now, Hiei? I doubt you actually need to break into their home."

Said red eyed demon landed gracefully next to Kurama, startling Dumbledore into stumbling backwards. Hiei crossed his arms. "So I'm off human boy watch duty?"

"I suppose you are. Professor Dumbledore, this is Hiei Jaganshi. He is one of the friends whom I talked about at the Leaky Cauldron." Kurama gestured at the slightly shorter male. "If you will forgive me for using such childish terms, you can also consider him to be my 'best friend', and he will watch over Harry at any times when I am not available. Despite his…no, because of his cold demeanor, he is quite a good bodyguard. People get scared and run away upon seeing him."

Hiei grunted and crossed his arms. Dumbledore' eyebrows shot up to his hairline. If he hadn't known better, he would have thought that Hiei was Kurama's bodyguard, with the protective stance the shorter male was taking.

"I see. I am pleased to make your acquaintance, Mr. Hiei. My name is…"

"I know," interrupted Hiei coldly. "Just get on with whatever you were talking to Kurama about."

Dumbledore was visibly taken aback by Hiei's harsh tone, but seemed to disregard it for now. He turned back to Kurama. "If you have truly been watching Harry for as long as I believe…"

Hiei cut in right there. "You're wrong. Kurama hasn't been watching Harry since the beginning of his first year. Kurama's been watching Harry his whole life."

Looking perturbed, Dumbledore continued. "A-Ah…yes…well…I wasn't aware you could perform legilimency, Mr. Hiei."

"I can do anything you pathetic wizards can…but that wasn't legilimency." Hiei looked away. "You're answer with probably be no, just to let you know."

"I will be convinced of that when I hear that from Mr. Kurama's own lips," said Dumbledore determinedly. He turned to look at Kurama. "As you know, Harry is a student at my school. The previous five times when he had a Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher, there were noticeable…problems about them."

"I'm aware. I was watching." Kurama snorted. An evil psycho with Voldemort living in the back of his head, some dodo who proved the phrase 'blonde airhead' to be true, a werewolf (who was actually someone decent in Kurama's book. Werewolves were a type of demon, and Lupin had been a good teacher), a follower of Voldemort impersonating Alastor Moody, and some ministry witch who had forced Harry to carve 'I will not lie' into the back of his hand. Kurama had nearly sent her out the window then and there…but instead had gotten the centaurs to do it for him.

Dumbledore regained most of the sparkle in his eyes at Kurama's sarcastic tone. "Well then, it makes explaining so much easier. Our students, needless to say, are quite ill-prepared for an invasion by Lord Voldemort. The most they have covered are the Unforgivables, taught to them by a Death Eater."

"Excuse me, professor, but what is your point?" Kurama asked impatiently. He was anxious to get back to the Makai. Or…more accurately, Botan, whom had taken to mostly living with Kurama lately. She was at the level of a mid-A class demon and quite ironically enough, had begun using a scythe as her weapon of choice. Kurama had even persuaded her into wearing black kimonos, like every other ferry girl, so that the image wasn't ruined. She had been an extremely good sport about Kurama moving to England and adopting a child. Upon hearing the circumstances, she had even decided to tag along.

"My point it, it would make it much easier for you if you did not have to simply 'watch' Harry's school life, but also take an active part in it. I am asking you to be our new Defense Against the Dark Arts professor."

Kurama's eyebrows shot up to his hairline. "You want me as one of your staff? I find a few holes in your reasoning. Firstly, I am in no need for money, and a job is quite unneeded. Besides, I have things to tend to…my country can not run on its own, and I had been thinking of paying attention to it while Harry was at Hogwarts. Not to mention personal affairs. Also, would I not find it more difficult to keep an eye on Harry if he were to be in some other class while I was teaching? Would my reaction time not be slower?"

Dumbledore seemed to have thought this out, since he replied smoothly. "Harry will most likely be quite safe at Hogwarts, especially during lessons. However, there is always the threat of Lord Voldemort looming over our heads, so if he were to invade…as it is likely he will…would it not be ten times safer for Harry if a distinguished wizard such as yourself were by his side? I'm sure you have a second in command as well, and so could they not take care of your country? I have nothing to say for the personal affairs."

Hiei rolled his eyes; certain Kurama was going to say 'no'. Then he glanced over at the former redhead and had to take a double take. Was the fox actually considering it? Surely this human boy couldn't mean much to him…after all, the only reason Kurama had actually decided to take care of the boy was because he had had a chat with James Potter around a week ago. Koenma had permitted it after a lot of…persuading (i.e. threatening). James, who had been a favourite of Kurama for years and had been aware of Kurama's demon status and 'ancestor to descendant' crap, had actually begged Kurama to take care of Harry.

So, soft as Kurama had gotten over the years, he had relented.

Hiei couldn't believe he was this soft though.

"You're considering it?" Hiei demanded in disbelief. "What the Hell?"

"Quiet, Hiei." Telepathically, Kurama added; 'I'm trying to calculate the pros and cons.'

'You can't be serious, fox?' Hiei snarled back. 'You're going to take the job? Why would you want to go teach a bunch of filthy humans?'

'Because Harry Potter interests me, just as James did. Now shut up. I've decided.' Kurama looked at Dumbledore coolly. "I will accept, but only if my conditions are met."

"Very well. We are desperately in need of a Defense teacher, so I'm sure we can bend the rules for you."

"I have, as I told you before, personal matters. Personal matters being the fact that I have my fiancée waiting back at home for me. She was extremely good about moving to England and all…but I'm not sure what I should be doing with her while I'm teaching. So, I'd like it if she could come to Hogwarts with me as well…as a teacher or a teacher assistant to me, I really don't mind. Also, Hiei here tends to get violent without me around to calm him down." Kurama grimaced at the memory. The entire deal with Yusuke and Yukina had been a nightmare. "So I'll have to request that he come as a constant guard for Harry…and the rest of the school as well, if you'd prefer. Definitely not a teacher…he'd kill his entire class if one thing goes wrong."

"I'm afraid we have no other spots open, so your fiancée would have to come as your teaching assistant. Having Mr. Hiei there as a guard will only be a good thing for us, as he seems to be extremely capable. If those are all your conditions, then they are easily met." Dumbledore reassured Kurama.

"But those aren't all my conditions." Kurama said coolly. "Since I am teaching and should be getting a pay…I'd like it to go to Harry. Also, occasionally I will disappear for a while. Mainly during the full moon and occasionally at other times."

Dumbledore looked intrigued. "Are you, by chance, a werewolf?"

"No. The timing is just peculiar." Kurama retorted. Hiei was smirking at the annoyance clear on Kurama's face. Well…clear for Hiei, not so much for anyone else. "My final condition is that…I may have guests over the year. They are a rather eccentric bunch with no manners whatsoever, and so might rouse some questions."

"The guests are all easily dealt with. Your friends are welcome in Hogwarts, as long as they harbor no ill intentions." Dumbledore said cheerily. "In that case, you should consider yourself hired. I think you are quite qualified to do the job, seeing as you've played such a large part in Harry's life without anybody noticing until you showed up."

Kurama immediately grew suspicious. "What is that supposed to mean?"

"The reason Harry has not died up until now…or caved from the mental pressure…is thanks to you, is it not?" Dumbledore asked simply. "Good night to you, Mr. Kurama. Since you will most likely be unreachable by me, I will leave the details of your employment with Harry, and he can give it to you on Saturday. Farewell." He disappeared on the spot. This time, he did it silently, almost like how Hiei did.

Kurama smirked with amusement. "So he figured it out. He really is intelligent for a human. I think it's okay if you stop guarding Harry now…I already have a variety of barriers set up around him anyway."

"Your little act has prevented me from wasting a week of my time. I thank you for that." Hiei said sarcastically. "By the way…why did you say you were in the middle of purchasing a house? It's already purchased and pretty much filled up with the furniture and stuff you want, right? Except for Potter's room."

Kurama rolled his eyes. "Because, Hiei. If Dumbledore thinks I was so certain Harry would agree to living with me, he would have been more suspicious than he already was. He would have felt endangered by my foresight as well."

"That's such a trivial reason." Hiei commented.

"Better lie about trivial reasons and avoid having my secrets revealed." Kurama laughed.

"Hn. I suppose I agree." The two disappeared from the spot silently.

James Potter sat in Koenma's office, watching the 'toddler' stamp paper after paper. He had been summoned there by the oh-so-mighty-lord but said lord hadn't spoken one word to him yet.

It annoyed him.

Still, James had a whole lot of common sense, though most people didn't believe so, and his common sense was telling him that annoying Koenma when he could send him to Limbo with just one swish of his hand…well, it wasn't such a great idea.

Finally, Koenma looked up and put his stamp down. He didn't look too happy. "Ogre, get out." He ordered his blue skinned servant steadily.

George blinked in astonishment. Koenma had never once told him to 'get out'. Even when dealing with high class information, George had been considered loyal enough to stay and listen. "B-But…Koenma-sama…sir…"

"I said, get out!" Koenma bellowed loudly. Letting out a squeak, George bolted out as fast as possible, not bothering to apologize when he accidentally ran straight into Sirius, who had just opened the door to walk in.

"Whoa! Be careful, damn it!" Sirius shouted at George's back, shaking a fist at the ogre. Growling with annoyance, he heaved the door behind him shut and plopped down on the couch next to James. "So? What's up?"

Huffing, the small ruler glared and then fished around in one of his desk drawers. With a muttered 'aha!' he produced a sheet of paper, which looked like every other bit of paperwork he had on his desk.

"Starting off…you!" Koenma snarled, pointing a finger at James. "I grant your request to see Kurama again, and this is the result? You asked him to take Harry Potter in? Do you know what that could do your son?"

James blinked. "Kurama has been my guardian ancestor ever since I was born. I think I trust him."

Koenma let out a low moan. Guardian ancestor…right. Picking up the piece of paper he had fished out, he began to read aloud from it. "Guardian ancestors—deities whom watch over a descendant, much like how a guardian angel does, but with a form in the physical plain." There was more, but he stopped there. Slamming the paper back down, Koenma glowered at James. "What part of 'adopting a descendant' fits into that bill? Guardian ancestors aren't supposed to take an active part in their charge's life! They watch from afar and avert any true, life-threatening danger! Why is Kurama your guardian ancestor, anyway? He's a demon!"

"I'm surprised, I thought you would know." James commented. "Youko Kurama mated with a red kitsune once, and the red kitsune gave birth to another red kitsune, and that red kitsune mated with a human, and that human gave birth to a half-breed, and that half-breed mated with another human…it goes on and on like that, until it ends up at Harry. From around my great, great grandfather's generation, the demon blood totally ran out, and so we're virtually demon-blood less from there."

"I still don't get it," grumbled Koenma. "Why would Kurama become your guardian ancestor in the first place? He had no records of doing that for any other descendant except for you and Harry. As it is, Kurama's a highly peculiar case. Most guardian ancestors are grandfathers or great grandfathers, and occasionally ghosts of relations that possessed another body."

James shrugged. "I don't know, he just told me that I 'interested' him. It's probably the same for Harry. My parents never knew about him, so I'm thinking that he wasn't a guardian ancestor for one of them."

"I just finished saying that, you dolt. You remind me of Yusuke so much…gah!" Koenma shook his head. "We're getting off topic! In any case…YOU!" Koenma shouted, rounding his gaze on a nervous looking Sirius. "You bloody idiot…managing to fall into the Makai and getting yourself killed! Do you know how much trouble we've been having over that? It's all because a demon killed a human, but it's your entire fault for falling in!"

Sirius frowned defensively. "I was stunned, what did you expect? That I'd be doing the can-can afterwards?"

"No…ENMA, I'm going to go crazy at this rate…" Koenma shook his head angrily. "In any case…ah, there's the communication from Kurama!" Koenma stabbed the built-in buttons on his desk, and Kurama's face appeared on the large, yellow screen.

"Hello, Koenma." Kurama greeted. He was sitting in one of the conference rooms in his castle. He had opted his usual pose, with one leg crossed over the over and his joined hands resting on his knee. Botan was sitting next to him, wearing a dark blue kimono, and Hiei could be seen leaning against the wall a few paces back.

"Don't you 'hello' me!" Koenma shrieked shrilly, causing Sirius to wince and James to almost fall over. Hiei was seen cringing in the background, and Botan had covered her ears. Kurama's jaw had clenched, but he seemed otherwise unaffected. "You just pranced into the human world and decided to adopt yourself a kid? What the hell are you thinking? Humans aren't supposed to know about demons!"

"Relax, Koenma. I'm posing as a wizard. I had to make myself a specially reinforced wand so that it wouldn't burst into splinters every time I used it, but it's actually all right. Magic is just an extremely weak branch of spirit energy manipulation, after all. The only things I am having problems with are the very weak spells. The first time I tried a levitation spell, I put in too much energy and everything went up into the air. Everything you can imagine. Including refrigerators, plants, both cars I have parked in the garage…the roof tiles. Thank god the house I purchased is a remote country home, or things on the street would have found themselves up in the air as well.""

"I know what you're doing, Kurama." Koenma said accusingly. "Stop trying to change the topic! I know James here asked you to take care of Potter, but why'd you actually do it?"

"Harry Potter is quite interesting." Kurama responded calmly. "But you are forgetting, Koenma, that I do not answer to you any longer. You would do well to not speak to me in such an accusing tone."

Koenma blanched. He had forgotten, because all three of his remaining Reikai Tantei had put up with him, even after becoming Demon Lords. However, it seemed Kurama wasn't in the best of moods that day. "A-Ah…"

"It's Harry's aura which interests me." Kurama said, brushing away a strand of silver from his face. "His, and James', of course. They are most certainly not demons, but not human either. I think there might have been a stunt similar to that of Yusuke and Raizen. A little generation skipping."

Koenma choked. "What?! So the man sitting in front of me right now is a half-breed like Yusuke?"

"I was thinking more of a quarter breed. Of course, they aren't anything even near kitsune. I'm trying to figure out exactly what they are." Kurama shrugged nonchalantly.

"Hn. Werewolves." Hiei said loudly, so that Koenma could hear as well.

James coughed. "Are you implying I'm a werewolf? Because I've never transformed into a wolf in my life. A stag, yes, but not a wolf. Looney is the wolf."

Kurama, on the other hand, looked thoughtful. "You know, that actually makes sense."

Botan, who had been uncharacteristically silent this entire while, poked Kurama in the cheek. "Come on, spill it! I don't want to wait all day, you know!"

Kurama just smirked and pulled her down into his lap. "I'm getting to it. Hiei just suggested that it might be a situation similar to that of a werewolf. Transformation and temporary demon powers, but severe exhaustion afterwards. Their demon blood would have to be awakened first, of course. Dying might work, once they've gained enough power."

Sirius decided to butt in around there. "This ain't making any sense. So now you're saying James and Harry are some sort of…crazy demon werewolves?"

"No. Crazy demon, quarter-breed kitsune would make far more sense," corrected Kurama. "What do you make of it, Koenma?"

"So your demon characteristics were passed onto two members of your family. To release that power, they must die first like Yusuke, but if they don't have enough spirit power for the demon transition to happen at the moment of death, then they remain human." Koenma quickly summed it up.

Sirius' eye twitched. "Then why couldn't you have said all that in the beginning? All you people really managed to do was confuse me to death. And that's saying something…because I'm already dead!"

James nudged Sirius. "Shut up, that's my guardian you're talking to there…"

Sirius gave his best friend a disbelieving look.

Kurama coughed into one of his hands politely, effectively regaining everyone's attention. "If I may continue? Thank you. In any case, Koenma, I actually only called because of a favour I'd like to ask of you. I'd like Botan to be excused of any and all duties for the next year."

"WHAT?!" Koenma exploded. "I can't go without my head ferry girl for that long! The souls would pile up! The world would overflow!"

"Then use Ayame, I don't care." Kurama said sharply. "I'm going to go teach at Hogwarts, and I am not going to leave Botan behind. I've already spoken to Dumbledore about having both her and Hiei at Hogwarts during the time I'm teaching."

Koenma let his head slam down onto his desk. "But…Kurama…" He whined sounding like the child he took the form of.

"No buts." Kurama said a touch testily.

Koenma let out a wail. "You're kidding me!" Then he shot upright as an idea entered his head. "Well, in that case, you get to grant one of my favours!"

Kurama frowned and tilted his head to the side. "And what would that be?"

Koenma looked strangely gleeful as he hopped on top of his desk and announced clearly; "You get to take Black with you!"

There was a stunned silence, the only sound being Sirius' spluttering.

Kurama smiled faintly. "If that is all, then bring him back to life, and we can be on our way."

When Saturday rolled around, Harry was beyond excited. True, he had no particular attachment to this 'Kurama' yet, but just knowing he had relatives…pleasant relatives other than the Dursleys had kept him hyper ever since Thursday evening.

The Dursleys had been fairly tolerable for the past two days. The well concealed threat in Kurama's parting words had obviously frightened them, since they had been treating Harry almost…well.

It was close to nine A.M. when the doorbell rang. Harry was the first one there. He wrenched the front door open and grinned widely at Kurama. That day, he was wearing a casual blue t-shirt and loose black jeans.

The silverhead smiled right back at Harry. "Hello, Harry. I've come to pick you up. Are you ready?"

"Yeah!" responded Harry quickly.

Kurama raised an eyebrow at Harry's clothing. It was a blue and white striped t-shirt and some baggy, gray pants. They were some of the nicer things the Dursleys had decided to buy for him after Alastor Moody's threat. He raised an eyebrow, but didn't comment. "I was thinking we could go to Diagon Alley after we purchase the furniture. I'm presuming you have your wand?"

Harry tugged the stick out of his pants pocket and showed Kurama.

"In that case, then shall we go?" Kurama suggested. He nodded graciously towards Vernon and Petunia, who were watching him from the far wall.

"Er…wait, I don't have my money bag with me. I still have a lot left over from last year, so…" Harry trailed off in surprise as Kurama smirked.

"You won't need it. Did something come for me from Professor Dumbledore? He said he'd leave a letter for me with you." Kurama asked.

"Oh yeah, here…" Harry produced an envelope from his shirt pocket. In spidery, green writing, it was simply addressed to Youko Kurama.

Kurama accepted the letter. He tore it open at the seal neatly, and fished out one of the pieces of parchment. He looked at it, and smiled. "I have your school equipment list right here, Harry. Dumbledore really is an intelligent man; he figured out I would be paying for you. Come along, let's get going."

Dumbfounded, Harry trailed behind Kurama to the (expensive looking) sleek black car he had parked in the Dursleys' driveway. All the windows of the car had been rolled down.

Kurama pulled open the passenger seat for Harry, and with a murmured thanks, Harry climbed in. He noticed a man with black hair and penetrating, cold red eyes sitting in the backseat with his arms crossed. The only greeting he gave Harry was a cold look and the slightest of nods.

Kurama hopped into the driver's seat, and he noticed Harry's expression right off. "Hiei, stop scaring my nephew," he scolded.

Hiei let out a grunt, and busied himself staring out the window. Harry vaguely noted that Hiei was wearing all black, and was probably the 'man wearing all black' Kurama had threatened the Dursleys with. They had done well to be afraid; this Hiei seemed to be quite the character.

The car pulled out of the driveway, and Harry waved delightedly at the annoyed looking Dursleys.

Furniture shopping was…eventful. They had visited several shops, and Kurama had announced cheerfully that Harry could pick out 'anything he liked or needed'. Then, instructing Hiei to stay with Harry, Kurama had shot off somewhere else 'to get some guest room furniture'.

Harry ended up buying a furniture set for his bedroom. It was a ridiculous price, but Kurama didn't seem to mind. He had also bought several other pieces of furniture, and had ordered for the entire lot to be delivered to his home by truck within a few days. Harry had nearly fainted from the outrageous total. Kurama paid by card, of course (who carried that much cash around with them?!) and they were off again.

Even though Harry protesting hotly, Kurama firmly insisted on purchasing a whole new wardrobe for Harry. They spent a good two hours in the shop, getting Harry (and to Harry's surprise, Hiei) fitted and measured for shirts, pants, coats, and many other pieces of clothing which Harry hadn't even known had existed. Hiei hadn't seemed too happy about it all, but Kurama had stated clearly that Hiei was not going to wander around in the same clothing everyday. Once again, the clothes were asked to be delivered, and only a few clothes left with them. That is, the clothing Kurama persuaded Harry into changing into. It was a simple attire, really. A gray t-shirt with three lightning bolts going diagonally across the shirt's front, a pair of (expensive) jeans, soft soled sneakers and a thin overcoat just in case Harry got cold.

Next they went shopping for a new pair of glasses.

Then books.

Then muggle stationary, just in case Harry got sick of using quills.

Then a variety of decorations and wallpaper for Harry's new room.

Then a new watch for Harry, since his previous one had stopped working during the Triwizard Tournament and still didn't work.

Kurama even offered to get Harry a cellphone, but the young wizard quickly replied that it would be mostly useless, since electronics didn't work in Hogwarts.

The final few things they bought were mostly for Kurama or Hiei. And, while Kurama was at it, he walked into a jewelry store and came out with a necklace, for 'Botan'.

"I think she'd like this…ah, Botan is your aunt-to-be." Kurama told Harry, noticing the younger male's confusion. "Or…my fiancée."

They ate lunch in a plain old burger shop. Kurama apologized for the plain food, but stated that Hiei refused to go within five metres of a fancy restaurant. So they had to stick with burgers. Which, by the way, Harry was perfectly content with.

By the end of it all, Harry was wondering where Kurama got all that money. It was approaching two o'clock.

"Excellent, we should have enough time to shop in Diagon Alley." Kurama announced, finishing off his coke. "Do you want ice cream, Harry? I'm going to buy some for Hiei."

So Harry found himself licking away at a double scoop, vanilla and chocolate chip ice cream cone. Hiei had taken a three scoop, and Kurama a simple ice coffee.

Then Harry realized…this had only been the shopping in muggle stores.

Albus Dumbledore was currently sitting in on an Order meeting, being bombarded by questions. They were mostly all about Harry's newly appeared uncle. Also now known as Hogwarts' new DADA professor.

"How could you just hand Harry over like that without doing an identity check? Sometimes, I don't know what runs through that brain of yours, Albus, I just don't!" Molly Weasley was saying hysterically, waving her arms around like a maniac. "He could be working for You-Know-Who!"

"I assure you, Molly that he did not have the Dark Mark on him, and he acted nothing like a Death Eater. His tone carries scorn when referring to Lord Voldemort and his wand resonated with the broken pieces of James' wand when he performed a family tracing spell." Dumbledore replied slowly. "Do not ask me how he came to be in possession of James' old wand pieces; he asked me not to inquire into it, and I did not."

"But that does explain why we couldn't find James' wand when we combed the ruins of their old home for it." Lupin said tiredly. "We found Lily's, but not James'."

"But we still don't know for sure if those were actually James'…" Molly trailed off as Dumbledore gave her a stern look over his glasses.

Dumbledore began twiddling his thumbs. "I'd like it if you would all trust my judgment. I admit; I do not fully trust Mr. Kurama either. He seems to have many secrets and abilities we know nothing of. However…he seems to be a fine young man. He has protected Harry for a long time."

"That's what I find suspicious." The deep, slow voice of Kingsley Shaklebolt said from the back of the room. "If this 'Kurama' person has been watching Harry for so long, how come none of us have ever seen him? There are spells around Hogwarts which negate any attempts at spying, and so it must have been done in the flesh."

Dumbledore shook his head. "Mr. Kurama seems to be a very powerful wizard. His wand proves that. It is made out of silver, steel and jade, with phoenix tears, a dark phoenix tail feather, and one of Mr. Kurama's own hairs as the core."

There were loud exclamations of shock all around the room, the loudest coming from Minerva McGonagall.

"IMPOSSIBLE!" She shouted over the other gasps. "That's impossible, Albus! If such a wand existed…the wizard using it…"

"…would not only be a Merlin class wizard, but perhaps beyond." Dumbledore finished the sentence for her solemnly. "Yes, I am aware. That is why I am so confident about Harry's safety. It even seems that Mr. Kurama has several friends whom are powerful and trustworthy."

McGonagall bit her lip and backed down.

Dumbledore looked around at the assembled Order members. "Do you have any more questions?"

"Actually…" It was Snape. "Even if Mr. Kurama was trustworthy and powerful, the Dark Lord would find it a perfect chance to strike. Now that the last protection Potter had is gone, or at least unusable, it's almost certain he will strike. Would it not be better for Order members…particularly aurors, to stand guard near this Mr. Kurama's estate every night? It would be much safer that way."

"Severus, I have said this once and I will stick by it. Harry is safe for as long as he is with Mr. Kurama." Dumbledore said reassuringly. Then, as if to convince himself, he murmured again; "Safe…"

Yusuke let out a low sigh, glaring around himself at the mess which was paperwork. How much simpler it had been back when there had been no peace treaties with Spirit World…back then, it had been a 'brawl it out, you take responsibility for your own actions' kind of thing going on. Nowadays…paperwork, paperwork, paperwork! A demon pokes one toe beyond Makai and the entire room flooded with papers. Kurama and even Hiei had more patience for this than Yusuke did. He had been born a slacker and would remain one until the day he died.

His own paperwork wasn't too overwhelming. However…having to do the shares of both Hiei and Kurama…well, to put it simply, there were so many stacks that Yusuke's room was overflowing.

Making an annoyed face, the half-blood growled low in his throat and glanced at the clock he had nailed to the wall. It told him what time it was in the Human World. In fact, it was very useful for some things. Since Spirit World time and Human World time was basically the same, Yusuke knew exactly when to call Koenma to annoy him. Such as 3:00 A.M.

Of course, there was no concept of 'time' in the Demon World. Everything was a free-for-all, and there was hardly a decrease in activity once nightfall came. In fact, the levels of activity seemed to rise. Many species of demon were nocturnal, and only came out at nighttime to play. Yusuke still preferred to sleep at night and remain awake during the day. It was a force of habit from his human years.

Yusuke stared with distaste at the pen in his hand. Using a bit of force, he snapped it in half with one hand, making all the ink spill out onto his hand.

He just didn't think it was fair. Hiei and Kurama got to go to the Human World and have fun while he was stuck with paperwork. Why was it always Yusuke that was stuck babysitting the Three Kingdoms when the other two were away doing more amusing things? Heck, even Botan had gone with Kurama…but she could be spared, since she was Kurama's mate.

Yukina walked into Yusuke's makeshift office and smiled uncertainly at the mounds of unfinished paperwork. "Have I come at a bad time, Yusuke?"

"Nah, its fine. What's up, Yukina?" Yusuke asked, immediately perking up at the sight of his wife. They had married just a little while ago…it hadn't even been a month. However, she had already become a constant part of his life.

"I just got a message from onii-san." Yukina said softly. "He didn't sound very happy. He says he's been stuck on a shopping spree with Kurama-san and a human for the past five hours."

Yusuke snorted with laughter. "Really? That's hilarious. Imagine, Hiei on a shopping…not a murder…spree!"

"He asked me to tell you to continue with the paperwork, and that if he finds even one overdue by the time he returns he will have your hide." Yukina announced her words a lot more menacing than her tone. In fact, if Yusuke hadn't known that it was Hiei sending this message to him, he would have downright laughed at the innocent way Yukina repeated the message.

"He can try if he wants, but I wonder if he can." The ex-Spirit Detective wondered out loud.

"Kurama-san says that his kingdom had better be in working order when he comes back, or else."

"R-Roger that, I'll get right down to it."