A/N: What can I say? I'm on a role! Anyways, the Trio meets Dorothy, Harry meets Babbo, and we get a clue as to what happened during this alternate Second Wizarding War. Oh, and they get upgrades, because… well, that's what happened in the manga, so why mess with what works?
Also, on a side note: the robot mentioned in the last chapter is Marvin the Robot from The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy. Is ANYONE surprised that LUNA, of all people, could lead her friends to the oldest robot in the universe? I didn't think so.
And everybody should know what the stone ring that brings people to other planets is: a Stargate, from the Stargate franchise. Once again, is anybody surprised Luna would be the one to find an alien artifact?
Disclaimer: I think I forgot to do this last time. If I did, then consider this the disclaimer for the prologue, this chapter, and every chapter after words- I own nothing. There. Now you can't say I didn't tell you all!
OoOoO
X
OoOoO
Chapter 1: Talking Toys and Exotic Hair Colors
"…I will take all you hold dear, Harry Potter! Mark my words: you will beg for death before I am through with you…!"
"…Why would you…? Your family stands against everything these fuckers believe in…!"
"…I lost Mummy… and now I've lost Daddy… Harry, what do I do now…?"
"…Dear Merlin… how could they…? She's only twelve, damn it…!"
"…I wonder… what would Candice think of you now…?"
"…I AM DEATH, DESTROY OF WORLDS…"
OoOoO
Harry's eyes snapped open as he awoke, automatically taking in as many details of his surroundings as he could. Lying on his back as he was, he could see the clear blue sky above him, which told him: 1) he was outside, and 2) it was daytime. He could feel grass on his back, as well as a slight incline, and a quick pulse of magic told him that, bar the occasional stump, tree, rock, and… what appeared to be a giant mushroom, he and the girls were lying on a rolling meadow.
…Or was it a field? Eh, whatever.
Determining that they were safe for the moment, Harry finally let out the groan he had been holding in- it'd been a while since he'd gone to sleep without first being tired out from a night of hot, raunchy sex, so it'd been a long time since he'd had nightmares. He flopped an arm over his eyes to block out the bright sunlight… and did not feel the semi-comforting prick of his glasses pushing into the bridge of his nose. He immediately shot up in shock; he was seeing perfectly clearly without his glasses!
Hearing a small sound from beside him (and completely forgetting the fact that his glasses has mysteriously vanished), he looked down and saw his Gabrielle, whimpering from a nightmare as she slept, curled up to his side as if to let his presence warded away her demons.
…Everybody had been effected by the war, though some more than others.
He decided to kill two birds and all that and gently shook her awake. The hand with the small-but-wicked looking dagger was caught easily, almost as if he'd done the same thing many times before.
…Again, the war effected everyone, though some more than others.
"Gabby… I can see you," he said, his voice tinged with awe.
Gabrielle blinked the rest of the sleep and nightmares away and stared quizzically at her boyfriend. "Um… bravo, mon amour...?" She hesitantly asked, wondering what exactly about seeing got Harry so excited.
As if he was having some sort of epiphany, Harry repeated, "No, Gabby… I. Can. See. You!" this time looking meaningfully at her. It took her a moment, but when her sleep-addled mind finally connected the dots, she gasped, sharing Harry's awe.
"Your eyes! Your glasses! How-?"
Harry was grinning. "I don't know! But I can see as clear, if not more so, as I ever could with my glasses!"
Gabrielle let out a joyous whoop as she tackled him in a hug, "Oh, this is absolument merveilleux, Harry!"
"Ha-hah! My eyesight is normal! No more worrying about my glasses falling off at the most inopportune times! I-" Harry stopped mid-rant, looking down at where his hands had lightly brushed against something soft and feathery as they encircled her, something that wasn't there yesterday… or whenever it was they'd gone through the gate. He blinked at what he was seeing, than blinked again just to make sure, before voicing a question that'd just popped into his head:
"Gabby? Were you aware you had wings?"
Gabrielle let go a little to look at Harry oddly. "Cher… I'm Veela, remember? My people have wings."
"Yes, but usually only when you transform, dear. You have a pair of wings now," Luna, just awakening from a nap that was less troubled than her fellow girlfriend's, said from her place on Harry's other side. She gave her fellow girlfriend's new appendages a look over and smiled. "And might I add, they look absolutely beautiful on you."
Gabrielle twisted her head around as far as it would go (which was actually slightly more than a normal human, due to her Veela ancestry) to see a small wing (relative to her- it was about the size of a hubcap, maybe smaller) of pure white feathers, sticking out just over the back-dip of her sundress. Twisting her head in the opposite direction to see over her other shoulder revealed the wing's companion. She spread them, and gave a cute little pout. Both Harry and Luna had to restrain themselves from taking her right then and there.
"Mou… not very big, are-" As if responding to her thoughts, her new wings suddenly expanded to three or four times their previous size. "-they… oh my. That is… very convenient, non?" she mused, before shrinking her wings back to their previous size with a thought- her specific thought had been for them to shrink to their smallest size, but it looked like this WAS the smallest it could go, apparently.
"Be thankful," Luna groused, "at least your wings can shrink. None of my new appendages can retract in any way!" She crossed her arms and huffed. Their collective states of mind switched as it was now Harry and GABRIELLE who wanted to ravish LUNA- disgruntled Luna was damn sexy.
Their brief moment of lust over (or rather, fought down for now; they were ready to go anytime, and more or less anywhere), Harry and Gabrielle looked over Luna to see what she was talking about… and gaped in awe. Sticking out from under her skirt was a single, silver, fluffy fox tail, with matching fox ears where her ears used to be. They gave her already-ethereal air even more mystique.
"Luna…" Gabrielle began as she collected her wits, "You look… magnifique! Like… like…I don't think I've ever seen anything like it!" Harry just nodded in agreement, still speechless- though they had been perfect before, he found himself now utterly entranced by his girlfriends' new features. He had a sudden need to explore each new inch; he wanted to see how many new spots he could find that would drive them wild. Unfortunately, they were out in the open still, so he'd have to wait. But soon, soon…
"Harry? Mon amour? Why are you chuckling malevolently and rubbing your hands in glee?"
Harry shook himself back into reality and blinked, seeing both girls looking at him oddly. "Oh, no reason, love, just… thinking about some… plans for later… mwahahaha…"
"I know that laugh! That's your 'I plan to do naughty, naughty things' laugh!" Luna crowed with a grin as she started to bounce in place, "Can you tell us what you're planning to do to your innocent little girls, Harry? Please?"
"Oui! S'il vous plait, mon 'Arry?" Gabrielle jumped in, bringing her French accent back just a tad bit for effect- she knew the effect her using the accent had on people, and Harry- sweet, kind Harry that took everything she was in stride and never asked her to be anything other than herself- was, by no means, immune to its effects.
…Also, as an interesting side note, the accent sometimes came back when she was experiencing intense emotions, like when she was noticeably nervous… or really randy. Not that her lovers cared- when she confessed this to them, they'd confessed in turn that they found it both absolutely adorable and drop dead sexy.
The night that followed had been incredible.
…Not that it usually wasn't incredible, but that time had been much more… intense.
…Very, very… intense…
…Mmmm…
…Ahem. Moving on.
"Nope. Gotta wait 'til later, love," Harry said, resolutely shaking his head.
"Please…?" "…'Arry?" They both wheedled in unison.
"No," Harry bit out, his will running out fast in the face of his two extremely hot girlfriends on their knees (which, despite him still sitting down, didn't lose any of its effects whatsoever), begging in stereo. He hoped they let it drop soon; he was only a man, and he wasn't going to be able to take much more of-
"Pretty please, Harry?" "…Wiz ze sherry on top?" They simultaneously hit him with puppy dog eyes, all the more effective because of Luna's slightly-larger-than-normal silver-grey eyes and Gabrielle's deadly combination of doe-like sky-blue eyes and her almighty "Aura of Lolicon."
Oo LEMON WARNING oO
"…Fuck it," Harry muttered as his will, usually as strong as iron in the face of insurmountable odds, broke like a cheap eggshell. He wandlessly threw up a obscuration barrier and, as soon as the half-dome finished enclosing their little bit of grassy meadow/field/who-gave-a-fuck, tackled Gabrielle to the ground. She squealed in delight as she went down, which turned into a breathy moan as Harry started pulling down the straps of her sundress and kissing his way down to that one sweet spot at the junction of her shoulder and neck.
Luna, not wanting to miss out on any the fun (like she could; as soon as Gabrielle couldn't go anymore, Harry would have turned right around and dragged her down for some lovin') whooped and quickly joined the already-writhing two-person pile, unbuttoning her short-but-modest skirt as she did so. She was just in time to join Harry in playing with the younger blonde's breasts, each of them lavishing attention on a pink nipple that capped a pert B-cup. They soon had her mewling in need.
Harry's hand, meanwhile, had not been idle- it had creeped down, then up her sundress, stopping at the hem of her soaked panties. "Panties today, Gabby?" he asked, letting go of her nipple and looking up at her flushed face, "I'm surprised- you usually go without."
Since Luna hadn't stopped her ministrations, Gabrielle's reply came in between pants. "Vell… you… know vhat… zey say about… life, yes? Variety… is ze… spice… and all zat…"
"Harry, less talking, more trying your best to make her beg!" Luna interrupted, before letting her hand take her mouth's former place as she proceeded to try her best to shove her tongue down the Veela's throat.
Harry chuckled at their antics as he returned to her nipple, his hand pulling down her panties with practiced ease. His thumb immediately went for the little button that was already peaking out of its hood , and Gabrielle gasped into Luna's mouth as he made contact and started gently rubbing. That gasp became a loud moan when that rubbing was soon joined with two of his fingers pumping into her.
Moan turned into to a strangled scream and an iron grip on his hair when, leaving her nipple (which was quickly taken up by Luna's mouth- Luna had finally let Gabrielle come up for air), he slowly lifted the hem of her dress higher and kissed his way down to her cute little outie bellybutton, then past that to where his thumb was, replacing it with his lips and some gentle suction. She screamed again, this time longer and louder, when she came soon afterwards, her orgasm prolonged as Harry removed his fingers and replaced them with his tongue in an effort to catch all her juices. He raised his head up when she finally released his hair, licking his lips to catch any juices that might had escaped his eager mouth.
"Absolument… belle," he whispered as he gazed upon her heaving bosom and the sundress now raised wantonly above her petite waist as well as lowered past her breast, leaving it nothing more than a belt with nothing to hold up.
"Tais…toi! Your cock… in me… right now!" Gabrielle growled out between pants as she tried to catch her breath.
Harry chuckled as he quickly took off his cloak, which was followed by his button-down shirt, tie, and shoes in short order. He took the time to chirp out a cheeky "Yes ma'am! Whatever you say!" and to give her a salute that earned him a growl from the slightly (slightly?) frustrated girl. He quickly had his belt undone and his pants around off, followed by his boxers, leaving him naked and revealing his considerable length (and girth! Can't forget just how deliciously thick he was, too!). Gabrielle licked her lips at the sight, spreading her legs a little wider in anticipation. Harry wasted no time positioning his rod at her entrance, but when she tried to thrust herself onto him, he pulled back. She whined in protest.
"Arry…!"
"Nuh uh uh!" Harry teased, pushing the tip of his cock into her wet folds, then withdrew it and rubbed it along her outer lips and around her clit, making her squirm. He shivered as a jolt after jolt of pleasure went through him; he so wanted to just thrust into her and give her what they both wanted, but Luna had told him earlier to make the younger blonde beg, and he didn't plan on disappointing. As sexy as disgruntled Luna was, unless it was in playful jest, it was never a good thing if YOU were the reason why she was disgruntled. "Tell me, ma cheri, what do you want?" he purred out, still teasing her with the tip of his cock.
She tried to get him in her again, only to be held in place by Luna, who had, without her even noticing, moved from her side and behind her head. Gabrielle found her head resting on her fellow girlfriend's lap, her arms held back and her new wings lifted off the grass by the way Luna's arms had slipped under hers to once again to play with her breasts. It all added to her torment. "S'il vous plait, mon amour! Please, 'Arry! I-" she begged, only to be cut off by Harry's lip.
"What do you want, Gabby?" he asked again when he released the tongue he'd been sucking on, repeatedly slipping the tip of his cock just past her outer lips before withdrawing again, a not-quite thrusting that was driving her mad.
She whimpered. "I… I…"
"Yes, Gabby?" Thrust-thrust-thrust-thru-
"Le condamner tout! Fine! I vant you to fuck me! Is that vhat you vant to hear? I vant you to pound me into the ground until I am bowlegged!" She screamed at her tormentor, finally breaking.
Harry smirked. "Your wish is my command," he said, before plunging into her hard and without warning. The sudden pleasure-pain made her scream again, this time wordlessly and in release, and she continued screaming as Harry pounded right through her orgasm. She was deliciously tight and wet and hot, and thanks to all the teasing from earlier, he could already feel himself close to edge.
Gabrielle, still unable to thrust back thanks to Luna holding her down, started screaming out gibberish (or insanely fast French, he couldn't tell which), with the occasional "fuck me", "harder", and "don't stop." Figuring out the rest was probably the along those same lines, he obliged, quickening his pace and tilting her pelvis to change the angle a bit. That last part apparently let him hit a particularly good spot, because only two strokes later she was making a keening wail in the back of her throat as she came hard, squirting her juices up onto Harry's abs and squeezing him until he went over the edge with her and bathed her insides with cum. They both collapsed bonelessly, Harry seeing stars while Gabrielle not really seeing anything, her last orgasm having shut down her brain, leaving her with nothing but a large, goofy, dazed smile and a bit of drool running down her chin
Meanwhile, Luna was getting more and more randy, having had Gabrielle's head bumping at her most intimate of places for the past fifteen minutes; every time Harry thrust into the delectable Veela, said Veela's head would come up and lightly smack her slightly protruding clit through her now soaking panties. That, along with watching the extremely erotic sight of Gabby's pounding up close and personal, made it so that, when Harry finally regained enough of his senses to pull out, Luna was immediately there, replacing his cock with her tongue so that she could catch the l'essence de Gabrielle-flavored spunk that was already beginning to dribble out. Gabrielle herself could only make a pitiful, but still damn sexy, mewling sound as her over-sensitized flesh was further stimulated, tuckered out and almost unconscious as she was.
Harry, having been shoved away by Luna in her rush to get in on the action, watched the highly erotic sight of one blonde going down on another. His cock, having never completely gone down despite the rather sizable load he had just released, returned to full mast at the sight. He grinned evilly as he turned his attention to Luna's upraised bum, her new appendage lazily swishing above it- Luna had been awfully rude, pushing him away like that… maybe a little lesson?
Luna, distracted by the treat she was trying to completely extract from her fellow girlfriend, didn't notice as Harry moved behind her. She did notice, though, when he called her name.
"Luna?"
Luna gulped down her current mouthful before answering. "Yes, HarRYYYYYYYYYY!"
Harry leaned over her, being careful to avoid crushing her tail, and without warning thrust into her tight rosebud, bringing his hands up to grab the round, firm-yet-slightly-soft C-cups that looked larger than they really were on her willowy frame. Her panties had been ripped off along with what was left of her blouse, the remains tossed carelessly aside. The lubrication still left on his cock from Gabrielle made sure it was more pleasurable than painful, though the suddenness of it made sure there was still with a degree of pain… not that Luna minded- she was unashamedly an ass girl.
Harry leaned over further, until his mouth was just by her ear. He tweaked her nipples, a slightly rosier pink than Gabrielle's. "You've been a baaaaaaad girl, Luna…" he drawled as he began thrusting, "…And bad girls need to be… punished."
Luna's only answer was a whimper as, with a firm slap on her ass, he quickly upped his pace and the power behind his thrusts to just short of "brutal."
Oo LEMON END oO
OoOoO
Three more hours (or so) and several mind-blowing orgasms (apiece) later, the Trio was walking through the meadows, the evidence from their activities either gently tergeo-ed away or, in the case of Luna's blouse, repaired with appropriate modifications. The only indications left of their naughty deeds were the perpetual grins on all of their faces and the funny way the girls were walking.
After he'd finished pounding Luna into a puddle of satisfied goo, he'd done as he'd promised himself and explored each inch of his girls' new features. He'd been happy to discover that, Luna's tail was sensitive, especially the base, which was sensitive to the point where a good lick, nibble, or rub could wind her up like nobody's business… which wasn't all that hard, actually, since both she and Gabrielle usually were ready just about anytime, anywhere. Several nips, licks, and rubs were enough to give her a soft orgasm. Doing the same where Gabrielle's wings met her back got much the same result.
Also, gently stroking Gabrielle's wings and Luna's tail, along with scratching Luna's now-furry ears, had a calming effect, similar to how both girls got whenever Harry brushed out their hair: like the war never happened, and everything was alright with the world.
He was also pleasantly surprised to find that 20/20 eyesight wasn't the only thing he'd gained- apparently his stamina and endurance had increased by a substantial amount as well, judging by how, after he'd brought both Luna and himself to completion, he'd found himself rearing to go only after a short rest, much shorter than it used to be. Both of the girls, when they had regained enough of their wits to realize what had happened, had been eager to test his new limits. So far, he'd been able to go nonstop for an hour straight before needing a rest that was longer than five minutes. Needless to say, the girls were delighted.
…And slightly goofy.
…And bowlegged, just like Gabrielle wanted.
Of course, he had to wonder about these changes, though- the war had taught him never to take things at face value. What had caused them? Were they permanent? Was this all that had changed about them? Were there going to be anymore changes?
…There were too many questions and not enough answers, and he wasn't exactly a fan of going in half-cocked while missing critical information, especially after Sirius. They needed to find a spot to stay as soon as possible, so that they could work on fixing their lack of in-
"Hallo! Young ones!"
Harry, as well as the girls, both of whom had been in a blissful daze, were shaken from their thoughts (or own little worlds, in the case of the girls) by what sounded like an old man. Looking around, though, didn't reveal a single human within sight. "Oro, is anybody there?" Harry asked the open air, instinctively slipping into the persona he'd developed after starting his wanderings around the world.
He'd become too famous- or rather, infamous- after the war, to both magicals and non-magicals thanks to a rather ungrateful Ministry of Magic. But instead of disguising himself using the traditional ways, he'd chosen to let his Slytherin side shine through and… well, "changed" was too strong of a word for what he'd done to his personality, but he'd started letting the childish wonder he felt at finally being allowed to control his own life shine through, giving himself a "harmless wanderer" air that, along with Luna's "Quirky-in-a-good-way-ness" and Gabrielle's "Aura of Lolicon", disarmed everybody but the blackest of hearts the trio had ever encountered. The girls had once told him he actually looked adorably clueless when he was the "Rurouni", a name they took from the fictional character he'd used to fine-tune his persona.
…What could he say? Rurouni Kenshin was fucking awesome, and he'd been absolutely hooked when he first read it as part of his attempt to finally have some kind of childhood.
"Down here!" "Here!"
They looked down as suggested, and blinked as one, trying to comprehend what they were seeing.
"Harry?"
"Yes, Gabby?"
"Um… is that a talking rock I'm seeing?"
"Oro… this one believes it is."
"With a mustache?"
"Yes."
"And a little rock next to him?"
"This one thinks so, yes."
"…Luna?"
Luna shrugged. "Don't look at me. This was never in any of Daddy's books."
The talking mustachioed rock and his little rock friend, for apparently that was what it was, started getting uncomfortable with all the bewildered staring, so decided to get their attention again by clearing his throat. By their collective starts, it seemed to have worked.
"How sunny you three were at first! Has something joyous occurred?" "Really joyous?"
Harry blushed at the question, snippets of the three hours plus of hot sex they'd just had swimming through his head. The girls just giggled.
"Oro, you… could say that, yes."
"Ah… quite long since we've seen a human, indeed. And may we ask you a favor? The sun's rays are so harsh today, and the waters of the brook would be so soothing…"
"Of course! This one would be glad to do it for you!" Harry said, giving them that crooked little smile of his before walking over to the afore mentioned brook. Once again, he was completely oblivious to the blushing and swooning of the two girls that followed him; seriously, if he ever realized what that smile of his did to girls…
OoOoO
Meanwhile, a pink-haired girl looked down from her place above and several paces behind our heroes, hovering upon what could only be described as the product of a mating between a broom and a halberd. She'd been spying on the three people below her for a while now, ever since they suddenly appeared out of nowhere in the middle of a field. Just by observing them she'd already learned several interesting things.
First of all, all three had higher-than-normal stamina, judging by how they'd walked at a steady, yet quick pace across the rolling meadows below her for quite a distance and weren't even close to tired. Hell, they weren't even winded!
Second, she'd seen a lot of societies over the course of her travels, but she'd never seen a werecreature like the older blonde, nor had she ever seen anything like the younger, winged girl before. Whatever they were, though, their magical reserves were high, almost as high as herself. The older one might have looked a little frail- an image not helped by the plain white blouse and red skirt combo she was wearing- and the younger might have looked… well, young, especially in that innocent little sundress of hers, but they were obviously not to be messed with.
And finally, there was the man. Strange as those two were, the man they were with was the real curiosity: despite the moderately warm day out and the long walk he'd just taken, he was wearing what looked like a heavy black cloak and, as mentioned before, wasn't even sweating. It was like he didn't feel anything at all!
And then there was his magic… or rather, his lack thereof. Whereas his two companions were relatively powerful, and the normal, everyday person would have close to nothing, he… well, the best she could put it was that he was LESS than nothing. To her magical senses, he was like a hole in the middle of the world, and the ambient magic around him just seem to just flow right through him, ignoring him completely. Truth be told, she found it a little unsettling… and a lot interesting. What secrets was he hiding, she wondered…
She glanced down at her hand, where several ARMs were worn, and smirked as she got an idea. She took off one of her ARMs, dropped it, and activated it.
'Let's find out what you're capable of, shall we…? '
OoOoO
"Aaaaah! Lovely, lovely! You three have restored us, indeed!" "Lovely!" The mustachioed rock and his little companion praised as Harry, Luna, and Gabrielle sprinkled the water they'd collected onto them.
"It was no problem, Mr. Rock and friend!" Luna answered, giving them a warm smile.
"Oui, we were happy to help, Monsieur Galet, Junior de Galet!" Gabrielle added, giving them her own sunny smile.
…Did those rocks just blush?
The mustachioed rock chuckled. "But what brings you here, young one? Whence came you?" he asked.
Harry looked to the girls beside him, who looked back, their silent communications going something along the lines of:
'Well? What should we say?'
'Play it safe, I think.'
'Yes, I agree. We want a low profile.'
'Agreed. The usual wanderers story?'
'Yes.'
'Yes.'
It was near instantaneous, so the mustachioed rock didn't notice any sort of break when Harry answered, "We have no home, I'm afraid. We are travelers, that we are, and we go where the wind takes us."
"Oh? Really? All three of you?"
Harry and the girls nodded.
"Well, now, then you might want to know that-"
BOOM!
The trio quickly spun around at the sudden noise, and was greeted with the sight of a strange, armored, silver golem, its arms, legs, and pelvis looking like they were made from those mundane magnet toys that had recently become popular back ho-… in their old world. Almost like it knew they had seen it, it suddenly charged at them, surprising them with its speed.
"What in the-?"
"Run, young one!"
But the warning came too late, and the golem was upon them. The rocks winched, afraid their new friends had been hurt.
They needn't had feared.
Harry, on instinct, had reached out and grabbed onto the golem. Surprisingly, it had halted its charge.
"Oro… you know, that wasn't very nice, that it wasn't," he admonished it, not quite caring if it understood or not, before, with strength that surprised even himself, slammed it into the ground hard enough for it to bounce back up, then gave it a roundhouse kick as it was still coming back down that sent it into- and through- a nearby tree. The group watched in shock as the tree lost its war with gravity and toppled to the ground, though not on the golem.
"…A human…" '…protecting us?'
"…Harry?"
"…Mon amour…?"
"What… was that?"
Harry stared at his hands- did his strength increase too? Once again, what else had changed about them?
Nearby clapping reminded them of reality, and the group turned their attention to the source to see a rather attractive girl, younger than Harry and Luna but older than Gabrielle, perched atop a nearby stone column. She had her long, pink hair in two braids, and next to her was a strange-looking silver broom, topped with a ruby-red sphere. It was obviously for more than sweeping… flying, maybe? Perhaps a channel for magic? She was certainly had enough power they could barely sense through her mask.
"Very impressive~!" she called out from her perch, before hopping down to the ground. The French-maid-like dress she wore fluttered up as she dropped, exposing a good bit of creamy thighs and long, smooth legs. Gabrielle and Luna stared at said legs, took in the rest of her figure, simultaneously turned to each other, and grinned lecherously. Harry, as par character, was completely oblivious to this exchange.
"Oro, and who might you be?" he asked their new guest, giving her that smile of his. At the girl's sudden blush, Luna and Gabrielle's lecherous grins only grew. They'd been wanting to… expand their family for a while now, but thanks to the Ministry sending out warrants for their arrests to just about every major government in their old world, both magical and non-magical, they just couldn't- anybody they invited could turn them in. But since they were in a literal whole new world now… well, the saying "the world is our oyster" comes to mind...
The pink-haired girl stared at the man before her and tried to fight down her sudden blush. He hadn't looked this hot from above! Those brilliant green eyes, that adorably messy black hair he had in a short ponytail, that smile… drool. It was a pity he had that cloak on, because, even if she could see a bit inside it, it was not enough to tell if his body looked anything like his face!
But that wasn't a problem with the two girls with him: Both curvy in all the right places, and they knew how to make those outfits of theirs look good, despite (or maybe because of?) their simplicity. And both had an air about them, too: the older girl was more otherworldly, with her silver fox ears and lazily waving tail both contrasting with and blending in with her shoulder-length dirty-blonde hair, whereas the younger was more… well… innocent, with her angel-like wings and her back-length, silvery-gold hair, but with a underlying current of something so completely sensual that it was effecting even her, and she was pretty sure she was straight! Really, it was enough to make a girl jealous!
She cleared her throat to give herself enough time to collect herself, then gave her own smile in return. "My name is Dorothy! Please to meet you~!" she chirped.
"D-Dorothy?" the mustachioed rock stammered, immediately recognizing who it was that stood before them. Pity nobody noticed its sudden anxiety.
She moved over to the downed golem from earlier and examined it. "Hmm… it's a bit banged up, but I think it's still in working order…" she assessed, before holding her hand over it. It glowed, then turned back into a ring with a poof. Harry and the girls raised an eyebrow at what they'd just witnessed as Dorothy bent to pick up the ring, "…True, it was the weakest of all my ARMs… but still!" She put the ring back in its place on her finger. "What did you use?"
Harry tilted his head as he studied the girl that had introduced herself as Dorothy. "Oro… what do you me-?" he asked, but was interrupted by the mustachioed rock behind him.
"RUN! That's an ARM! And that woman-!"
While Harry had been studying Dorothy (and getting shouted at by the rock), she'd been doing the exact same thing, walking over to get a closer look at the places where people usually had ARMs on their persons: their hands, around their neck, and hooked to their pants at the waistbands. She was surprised to find nothing.
"That's odd. No ARM," she muttered, perplexed.
"Oro, just what IS an ARM?" Harry tried again. This time he wasn't interrupted.
"What's an ARM?" she repeated, seemingly genuinely surprised he had asked such a question, "What tree did you fall out of?"
"Oh… so I take it these… ARMs are common to these lands?" Harry asked, seamlessly recovering from his faux pas.
"Yes. You said 'these lands'… Are you travelers?"
The trio nodded in eerie unison.
"I don't know of any countries that don't use ARMs, but… I suppose you can call it 'magic,'" she explained, "Each ARM is an accessory with unique powers engraved into it mystically."
Harry processed this new information and immediately latched onto the important parts, just like he was taught during the war. "'Each'? Then I take it there are more of these ARMs than your golem?"
Dorothy blinked at the answer. "Erm… yes. You really don't know?" She looked him over once more. 'Indeed… he isn't wearing one,' she realized. Then a bigger realization occurred to her: '…Then he flung it with his own strength? But not even someone twice his size can do that!' She unconsciously went into a classic thinking pose: one hand rubbing the chin while the other supported it from the bottom. She continued her ponderings. 'I just assumed he must have one…! I should know not to assume… wait.' She snapped her fingers as she suddenly got an idea, her delicate features taking on a sly look briefly before she was able to school herself.
She wasn't fast enough, though, and the trio noticed, but didn't comment; this girl might have ulterior motives, but she was probably the only guide to this new world they were going to find for a while yet (well, one that could move under her own power, at any rate), so might as well let her do her thing and take care of whatever might come when it comes.
With the trio looking on, she held up her hand and called out: "Weapon ARM: Ring Dagger!" A ring on the hand glowed monetarily before vanishing, replaced with a simple, but finely crafted dagger that she caught with practiced ease. A thought, and it was gone as quickly as it appeared, replaced with a ring on her finger once more.
"Would you like this?" she asked, "As travelers, you should know the value of having a dagger on you at all times. Come with me, and it's yours~!"
The trio looked to each other and shared another silent conversation:
'What do you think, girls? She has something planned. This might be a trap, but she has no reason to.'
'Yes. By the cut of her dress and all those… ARMs, she has no need for money.'
'Could she just want to mug us for the thrill of it?'
'Possible, but the chance at getting one of these artifacts to study is too good to pass up.'
'"Opportunity waits for no one" once again, eh, mon amour?'
'True. And we are hardly defenseless.'
'So, are we agreed, then?'
'Yes.'
'Yes.'
Decision made, Harry nodded for the group and gave her a small, disarming smile. The girls grinned at Dorothy's returned blush- heh heh heh…soon, my pretty, soon…
"Alright then, we'll follow you, that we will," Harry agreed.
"Besides, it's not like we're going anywhere specifically, nor are we on a schedule, so what do we have to lose?" Luna added cheekily. Gabrielle giggled at her fellow girlfriend's comment.
Harry and Gabrielle turned to the two rocks and bid them goodbye before following their new guide, much to said rocks' protest.
"Young ones, wait!" the mustachioed rock called after them, "You gave us water! You shielded us! We won't let you-"
"Do not worry, Mr. Rock. We know what we're doing," Luna cut it off, having stayed behind for a bit. She leaned over and gave the rock a hug, whispering as she got close where its ear would be if it were a human head of proportionate size, "We may not have ARMs, but that does not mean we are not armed." Giggling at her pun, she gave the rock a kiss and went to catch up with her two lovers, throwing a farewell over her shoulder as she did. The mustachioed rock could only watch helplessly, not having the limbs needed to move.
"Bad thing, Dada?" the little one asked.
"That woman… Dorothy…" it replied, eyes shut as it began praying for the safety of the three nice humans, "…Is a famous WITCH…"
OoOoO
"Just as I thought! The Seal of Babbo!" Dorothy announced as the quartet made it to their destination some two hours later, "This is where an unimaginably powerful ARM sleeps!"
"Oro… I see, that I do…" Harry said absently, studying the ruins before him. Luna and Gabrielle just nodded as they did the same from beside him. Internally, the three of them were wondering what they were doing here.
…Whatever. They finished their part of the bargain. Now to collect payment… "Oro… I do believe you promised us that ARM for following you here, that you did," Harry said, turning to their guide.
Dorothy looked up from the map she had out before her and turned to Harry. "Huh? I did, didn't I? Well…" She trailed off before, without any warning, dived in to give him a long, hard kiss on the lips. Harry blinked in shock, even as the training the girls put him through kicked in and he started kissing back. Behind him, Luna and Gabrielle looked at each other and giggled at the scene; looked like this might actually be easier than they thought it'd be!
When Dorothy finally came up for air, she was breathing hard and had a tomato-red blush adorning her cheeks, while Harry was a bit dazed. Seeing this, she giggled. "There, additional payment for going into the cave with me, with the Dagger Ring after we're done~!" She said with a wink, before turning back to her map.
"Ororo…" was all Harry could say, his mind having not yet rebooted from the surprise kiss with wonderfully soft lips.
As Harry was recovering, Dorothy was musing upon her current situation, her face turned down towards her map so that it looked like she was doing something:
'The ARM "Babbo," surrounded by mystery! Who knows what's been put here to protect it? And…' Dorothy slyly looked over to her new companions: the older blonde had picked up a twig from somewhere and started poking at the hunk, who was only now beginning to awaken. '…Even if he doesn't have an ARM, his strength could come in handy~! Not to mention his companions- they might have some handy abilities. I don't expect to need them, of course, but you never know…' She turned back to her map, trying to ignore the blush she could feel warming her cheeks. '…Besides, you don't see eye candy like him every day! Yummy~! And those girls with him! They make a girl seriously reconsider her life choices… especially the younger one! I find myself wanting to drag them behind one of these pillars and…'
Luna looked over at the slightly drooling Dorothy, lost in an ecchi daydream if the blood leaking out of her nose was any indication. She discreetly caught her partner-in-crime's attention from where it'd been focused on one of the columns, and pointed out their guide. Gabrielle smirked and whispered, "My, but she's got it bad for our Harry, non?"
Luna returned her fellow girlfriend's smirk. "Oh yes, but she will not crack for a while, not unless we give her a… push, as it were. Luckily, we'll get a chance after this little expedition, and again after we rescue the princess in the crystal coffin, along with her guardian rose. That should do it, then we can turn our attentions to… other prospects."
Gabrielle looked at Luna, noticing her now completely white and faintly glowing eyes for the first time. Also, now that she was closer, she could see just a hint of fang peeking from under her lips. "…Luna?" she asked, curious and just a little concerned for the older blonde. Luna noticed and her eyes immediately dimmed to their usual silvery-gray. She waved off the younger blonde's concern.
"No need to worry, Gabby. My Sight just seems to have increased exponentially. I think it may have something to do with my new… additions," Luna responded, before taking on a wondering expression. "…I wonder who in my family married a kitsune? Though this DOES explain why nobody else ever saw the things I could see… every major family line in Europe has some fey blood in them, but a fox youkai usually native to Japan? Not so much, I think. How absolutely curious…"
Her musing was cut short as the quiet of the ruins was broken by a resounding -CRACK!- that echoed off the walls and columns around them, magnifying the sound and causing all the girls to jump. They quickly looked to where it had come from, fearing some kind an attack, only to drop their jaws in shock at what they saw.
Apparently, while Dorothy was busy being a pervert and Gabrielle and Luna were plotting, Harry had moved to the entrance of the ruin and, after examining the roots that had grown over it, proceeded to test his new-found strength by punching the natural barrier as hard as he could. His fist went through the good half-foot of twisted, dead, only-slightly-softer-than-a-rock wall of roots with only the slightest pain, before retracting, yanking out the rest of them in one human-sized chunk that left a neat little hole for them to stoop through.
Noticing his companions' expressions, Harry just shrugged and gave them that crooked smile of his as he carelessly tossed aside the piece of dead wood he'd ripped out like old stucco, completely oblivious to the subsequent swooning. "Oro, is something the matter?" he asked, scratching the base of his ponytail. Dorothy shook herself from her shock first, only being so quick because she had a job to do.
"Damn…" she whistled, walking up to his hole and examining it: a little rough, but they would be able to get through easily! Just how strong was this guy? First he kicks away her Ring Armor like it's a toy ball, then he does this?
…His muscles must be spectacular underneath that trice-damned black cloak. Drool…
…No! Bad Dorothy! Bad!
Dorothy once again shook herself awake from yet ANOTHER daydream, only to see that the hunk and his companions (huh. Just who ARE those girls, anyway?) had walked right past her and into the cave. "Oro! Are you coming or not, Ms. Dorothy?" Harry called back. The two blondes giggled knowingly. Dorothy blushed for the nth time that day and rushed to catch up with them.
"Damn it! I'm supposed to go first!" she called after them as she ran.
OoOoO
"Oro… I must say, I have never seen architecture like this before, that I haven't. And this one has seen many ruins in his travels," Harry said, looking around as he followed Dorothy, "And you say there is some sort of treasure in here?"
Dorothy nodded. "Yes, though I don't know what kind. It's a most mysterious ARM; no one who's gone looking for it has returned. It must be unlike any other." Her face turned determined. "It's Babbo… the unknown! And I'm going to add it to my collect-!"
"Wah!"
Dorothy and Harry turned back to see who had cried out, only to see Gabrielle hovering over a hole in the ground, her wings, extended until they were several feet wide and nearly covering the whole corridor, slowly beating up and down in powerful strokes. She maneuvered herself until she wasn't directly over the hole before dropping down, her wings returning to their previous size. She was breathing slightly harder than normal, just enough to draw attention to her rising and falling chest. Harry, Luna, and Dorothy just stared before they realized what they were doing and either turned their head away and blush furiously once again (Dorothy), continuing unabashedly staring (Luna), or worriedly rush over to check on her (Harry).
"Etes-vous bien, mon amour?" he asked, concerned as he checked over her. Gabrielle stopped him by hugging and laying her head on his chest. He automatically returned the hug.
"I am fine, mon Harry, no worries," she told him soothingly. He nodded, reluctantly agreeing when his hands and eyes couldn't find anything.
"Besides, the hole wasn't all that deep anyway- a few feet, tops. I checked," Luna added. Harry looked up just in time to catch her eyes flash white for a second. He quirked an eyebrow in question, but Gabrielle, who had looked up, too, just whispered a quick "We'll explain later" to him. He nodded, again reluctantly.
Dorothy, who had missed the whole byplay between them, leaned to the side to look around Gabrielle, trying to get a better look at her wings. "Wow… those actually work! I honestly didn't expect that! Are those part of you, or are they an ARM…?"
Gabrielle stepped out of Harry's embrace and considerately spun around for Dorothy, her sundress fluttering around her shapely calves. The other three couldn't help by take a small peek. "No, they are a part of me, just like my arms and legs… though I must admit, I am slightly unusual according to my kind's standards, since we can usually retract our wings completely into ourselves."
"Your kind?"
"I am Veela, a storm nymph… or, at least, that is what we are called. In reality, we are more beings of passion than any kind of weather phenomena."
Dorothy nodded, at least one of her questions finally answered: she now knew what the younger blonde was!
…Of course, she had no idea what a Veela was, but it was a start! Maybe the library at Caldia had something on them…?
But that was something to think about for later. At the moment, they had other things to worry about, like getting Babbo.
"Thanks for answering my question, um… you know, I don't think I ever got your names…"
"I am Gabrielle. Gabrielle Delacour." Gabrielle gave a small curtsey.
"Luna Lovegood. A pleasure to meet you… even if it's been a while since we actually met…" Luna introduced herself next, giving Dorothy a smile to take the sting out of her words.
"Oro, and this one is Harry Potter, but please, call me Harry," Harry finished, giving her his crooked smile.
"Ahem. Thanks once again, Gabrielle," she said, quickly turning around and walking off to hide her blush, "Alright, let's keep going!" Once again, Luna and Gabrielle looked at each other and grinned lecherous, planning the deliciously naughty things they were going to do to the girl, then the deliciously naughty things they were going to get HARRY to do to the girl, when she finally cracked. Oh yes, when they finally wore that girl down…
Harry shivered, having felt two incredibly malevolent auras behind him. But when he turned around, all he saw were his two girlfriends, looking absolutely angelic. He turned his eyes back forward, resolving to keep a closer watch on their surroundings… though he couldn't help by feel that those auras were somewhat familiar…
"Dorothy? You mentioned earlier that ARMs are all unique. Is there a way to categorize them?" Gabrielle asked as they were entering a large cavern, their path turning into a causeway.
"Hmm? Yes, actually. They come in several categories: regular, everyday tool ARMs, Weapon ARMs that transform into some sort of… well, weapon, Guardian ARM's that summon a protector, Dark ARMs that have some kind of negative effect on both user and victim, Holy ARMs to heal wounds and cure curses, Nature ARMs that manipulate the very world around you, and those that are so strange, they have no classification," Dorothy told them, before throwing a wink over her shoulder and adding, "I should know, since I'm collecting them~!"
"Oro, is there any reason why you're collecting ARMs?" Harry inquired.
"…That, my dear, handsome friend, is a secret~!" Dorothy answered as she turned to him and gave a… well, one could call it a smile, but it was a dark smile with just the slightest hint of viciousness, a smile that told the ancient, reptilian parts of the human mind that she had a goal, and any sort of interference with said goal was going to be met with pain, and lots of it. The smile sent a shiver down both Harry and Gabrielle's spines.
Luna, on the other hand, didn't even look the slightest bit perturbed. Her eyes glowed ever-so-slightly, though…
But dwelling on the sudden bad vibe they got from their guide would have to wait until some other time, because only seconds later she cheerily announced "We're here!" as the group arrived at the end of the causeway and entered a large room, devoid of anything but a pedestal and a treasure chest.
"Mou… a little obvious where this Babbo is, non?" Gabrielle asked, staring pointedly at the lone treasure chest.
"Oro… this is too easy," Harry muttered, scoping out the large, empty room for any signs of traps, ambushes, or other things of the nasty variety. Seriously, this place was just setting off his gut instincts like there was no tomorrow… and he'd learned to trust his instincts. It was the only reason why he survived the early days of the war.
Dorothy nodded, her face grim. "I agree. Only robbers or the ARM's crafter would hide one like this, and either one would set traps to prevent it from being stolen!" She looked back along the causeway as she continued, "We passed the remains of destroyed ARMs on the way in- others have come here seeking Babbo, but they met something too powerful!"
"But the question is: what? And where is it?" Harry asked, voicing everyone's thoughts.
…Well, almost everyone's; as soon as Dorothy had turned back to face the room proper, Gabrielle had flicked her wrist, summoning all the afore pointed out broken ARMs and having them shrink as they flew into the pockets of her sundress- they may be broken, but it didn't mean they couldn't be studied and repaired. Really, all they needed was a working ARM for comparison, and they were going to get one of those when they were done, if their guide kept her promise! When she was finished, Gabrielle looked up to see Luna looking at her over her shoulder. She smiled and nodded, and Gabrielle beamed back as they both turned the attention back to the room.
Dorothy sighed; they weren't going to do any good just standing there, were they? She took a step forward… and froze, as the jewel imbedded in the pedestal suddenly flashed, summoning the biggest golem any of them had ever seen. Ever. It was big enough to cause a deafening -KABOOM!- by just falling the foot or so it had from where it'd appeared in the air. The group looked up at it in awe and not a little bit of fear.
"Oroooooo…" Harry trailed off, eyes bugged and neck craned as he tried to see the top of the golem. He could, barely, since it nearly reached the ceiling.
"Tch. Just as I thought: a guardian!" Dorothy griped as she instinctively brought her broom into position, already knowing it wasn't going to do much good against the monstrosity.
"…Ve are going to have to fight zat, aren't ve?" Gabrielle asked rhetorically, wondering how they were going to accomplish such a task. Sans maybe Harry's Necros Wand, there was no way any of their spells would hurt the damn thing- it was huge! It was nearly wide enough to cover the entire room! Seriously! Maybe extremely concentrated Passionfyre…?
"Well, Harry, think you can knock it over?" Dorothy asked, looking over to the still-dumbstruck man.
Harry looked at her, looked at the golem, looked at his fists, and sighed. "This one will check. I do not think I can, that I don't, but it is worth a shot…" he replied before he moved so fast he seemed to have teleported. He was quickly at the things giant, thick legs, and proceeded to punched the stone as hard as he could. He got fistful of pain and a small crack in the stone- or whatever it was that the golem was made of- for his troubles.
"ORORO!" He also had to frantically dodge as the giant tried to return the favor, putting a sizable crater in the ground with its fist.
"Oro… I don't think that's the answer, that I don't…" he said as he hurried back over to the group, nursing his stinging hand. It wasn't broken, thank Merlin, but it still hurt like a bitch!
"Shit…" Dorothy bit out in answer before raising her hand, the bracelet around her wrist glowing faintly. "Alright then, that means I'm going to have to fight a guardian with a guardian!" she said, before holding out the hand she'd raised earlier. The bracelet's glow rapidly intensified until, with a faint pop and a mighty roar, a winged lion appeared next to her. "Guardian ARM: Flying Leo! Go!" she commanded. Immediately, it charged its much bigger foe and began attacking relentlessly.
Meanwhile, Gabrielle was trying to transform into her full Veela form, but couldn't seem to pull it off. Instead, though, there seemed to be a knot in her chest that was getting tighter and tighter, until eventually…
Dorothy, trapped where she was as her guardian did battle, jumped as a bolt of violet lightning struck the giant in the chest. It didn't do much damage, but it distracted it enough that Flying Leo was able to get a good blow in. Still, she turned to the source to see Gabrielle staring in shock- and maybe a bit of awe- at her faintly smoking hands. "Zat vas… new," the winged blonde muttered, "I vonder vat happened to my Passionfyre…?"
Dorothy was distracted yet again as a dark blue fireball blew past her and stuck the giant in the shoulder, once again doing minimal damage, but drawing its attention long enough for Flying Leo to land another good strike. She turned to Luna, who was already holding another fireball in her hands and rearing back her arm for a throw. She tossed, and the ball of fire struck again, this time on the chest, near the scotch mark left by Gabrielle's lightning bolt. Flying Leo was once again given the chance to strike.
"Wha-? How-? Were those ARMs?" Dorothy stuttered, staring between the two other girls and pointing at their hands.
"Natural abilities- remember, Dorothy: we've never even heard of ARMs before arriving in these lands," Luna said as she readied another fireball. She threw it, then turned to Harry, who had stood there the whole time, tensed with the Necros Wand's tip poking out from under his sleeve as he readied himself to defend the girls should the giant before them decide they were the bigger threat. He felt so bloody useless- he didn't dare use his wand because he was pretty sure blowing a chunk out of the damn thing would really get its attention, which would put the girls in danger- especially Dorothy, who looked like she couldn't move while her lion guardian was out- but he couldn't even move, because then he would be leaving the girls wide open! Damned if he did, damned if he didn't!
"Harry! Get to the chest! The only thing that can do enough damage to the golem is Babbo, and you're the only one that can open the damned thing! Go!" Luna shouted, making herself heard over the din of the battling guardians. Harry turned from watching the battle to tell her he was not going to abandon them, but a look into her softly glowing white eyes convinced him otherwise. He sighed and gave her a nod of understanding- if the resident Seer was so sure…
He once again moved as quickly as he could, this time weaving around the golem's giant legs and to the chest at the other end of the room. As soon as he made it, he quickly unlatched the lid and opened it, to reveal… wait.
This… couldn't be right.
No.
Fucking.
Way.
Nope, he had to be seeing things.
Harry couldn't help but stare incredulously down at what could only be described as a mutant cup-and-ball, the silver cups attached to a silver-capped wooden handle made it look much like a small mallet, while the ball attached to the cup via a sturdy chain was a sleeping, disportionately large metal head, complete with mustache, goatee, giant eyebrows, and a snot bubble coming out of its long nose. He couldn't believe it- this was what was going to take down that giant golem?
The snot bubble popped as Babbo (?) awoke and blinked the sleep away from his eyes. He mumbled something unintelligible, groaned, than seemed to finally notice that someone was staring down at him. But instead of being perturb in anyway, he just glared and growled out, "What are YOU looking at?"
Before Harry could collect himself enough to answer, Maybe-Babbo completely dismissed him and began studying his surroundings, apparently not even acknowledging the battle going on just several meters away from his resting place. "…And where am I? I can't remember a thing. How long have I been asleep… and how did I get in here?" he wondered aloud.
"Oro… are you Babbo?" Harry finally recovered enough to ask, already resigning himself to just blasting away at the giant golem behind him. At least he was away from the girls now, so if he did get the damn thing's attention, the only things with a chance of getting flattened were him and the freaky talking toy.
Babbo hopped out of his chest to do more surveying, seeming to completely ignore the battle going on right before his eyes. Seeming to be satisfied with what he saw, he turned to Harry and said with a great dignity that just seemed completely ridiculous coming from a large, metal sphere shaped into a crude caricature of a human head, "Yes, I am Babbo… and that is all I remember!"
OoOoO
X
OoOoO
Translations and other Notes:
Absolument merveilleux- Absolutely marvelous
Magnifique- Magnificient
S'il vous plait- Please
Absolument belle- Absolutely beautiful
Tais-toi - (You) Shut up
Le condamner tout - Damn it all
L'essence de Gabrielle- Essence of Gabrielle
Monsieur Galet- Mister/Sir Boulder
Junior de Galet- Little Boulder/Boulder Jr.
Kitsune (Japanese)- Fox
Youkai (Japanese)- does not have a precise English translation, though "demon" is often used, despite being closer in characteristics to nature spirits
Tergeo (spell)- cleaning spell, siphons off the contaminant
OoOoO
A/N: I was looking through the manga again, and I just realized that, though Rapunzel is one ugly-ass bitch, she actually has a decent pair, so I was wrong about her being flat. Doesn't change the fact that her and Girom are going to die horrible, painful deaths… fu fu fu…
Alright… due to me adding two more otherworlders to the series (Luna and Gabrielle), Snow's Seven Dwarfs, also called Team MAR, has been changed to The Knights of the Round. I will reveal who the last three new characters are later, when they appear, though you might be able to guess one of them if you've ever read the tales of the Brothers Grimm. Hint: There's another tale that features Snow White, only this time she's not alone.
Next time: The end of the battle for Babbo to helping out Jack and her mother… wait… HER? Well, I did warn you in the last chapter… Fem!Jack!
P.S.
Thanks to Kaishi no Kokuei and Techpriest of Tzeentch for the corrections!
Don't forget to review!