Ch. 41 - Close Encounters
"Not another one-!" Ron grumbled, moving to block a photographer's shot.
"Is it going to be like this every time I set foot in public?" Harry wondered aloud.
"No," Hermione answered. "Only near holidays, during slow news weeks, when there's an of-age public figure around, when your appearance is pretty much scheduled, when you're single and eligible-"
"You're not helping, Hermione," Harry interrupted, starting to feel blood rushing to his face.
She peered around him and down the street. "He's gone," she said. Both boys rolled their eyes in relief.
Harry, Ron, and Hermione had quickly discovered that the Hogsmeade weekend brought out far too many reporters and photographers - not nearly as many as the first weekend, but enough to be a nuisance. They kept a wary eye out for them as they walked down the crowded main street, jostled by students free for the weekend from school. Many had decided to postpone Valentine's dates until today, and wandered the streets as couples in a mockable daze, paying no attention to who they ran into.
Like now. Yuusuke walked backwards out of a side street, laughing, hands behind his head -
"Yuusuke," Keiko shouted, "look where you're-"
- and fell over Harry.
"-going," Keiko finished. She sighed. "I can't take you anywhere, can I?"
"Um..." Rather than trying to answer that, Yuusuke scrambled off Harry and helped him up. "Sorry about that. No harm done, right?"
Harry blinked, unable to focus, and tried to breathe. "Ow," he croaked. Got the wind knocked out of me... Didn't think anybody smaller than Dudley could do that to a bloke.
Keiko bent down on Yuusuke's far side, retrieved something from the ground, and offered it to Harry. Squinting, Harry realized it was a pair of glasses: his. He'd lost them in the fall.
"Thanks," he muttered, putting them on. The world refocused.
She bowed to him. "Our apologies," she said perfunctorily, kicking Yuusuke slyly in the ankle. He winced, then bowed as well.
Harry glanced around quickly for reporters - this would look a right mess in the Sunday edition! "Right right, apology accepted."
Another bow. "We won't trouble you further. WILL we, Yuusuke?"
Yuusuke quickly shook his head. "Nope, definitely not."
Just as long as you quit the bowing, Harry thought. Please!
Luck was with Harry Potter that day. Keiko straightened even as he finished the mental plea, grabbed Yuusuke by the ear - getting a yelp - and walked off with the boy in tow, just as Harry glimpsed a photographer coming around the corner.
Hermione caught Harry by the sleeve, and he and his friends quickly melted into the crowd.
-0-0-0
Harry's dog lay rolling on the icy streambank when Youko-the-fox arrived, wriggling in the unmistakable torment of "too many fleas, too few paws". Youko paused for only a half-second behind the large tree where his bowtruckle chittered happily, before he glided out onto a large stone edging this side of the stream and sat.
He'd put this off for too long, or not long enough perhaps. Dangerous to reveal myself, but surely he's noticed my scent near the cave by now. And staring at old yearbooks isn't going to get me anywhere.
The dog froze mid-wriggle, and rolled sharply to its feet. It caught sight of Youko - pristine silver fur, five tails positioned carefully to be seen, sitting regally on the stone and watching with expressionless eyes - and fell into a wary, defensive stance. It didn't growl.
Smart enough to know canine body language. Does he know what sort of canine I am? Experimentally, he flicked his tails, drawing the dog's attention to them.
The dog's eyes flew wide.
That answers that.
Slowly, Youko stood. The dog didn't move, remaining wary and cautious. Youko picked his way down to the water, and rather than jump and scare the dog into attacking, waded across the stream. The dog watched, taking a step back and turning as Youko stepped onto the bank a few feet from him, eyes on the dog even as he exposed his own flank to attack.
Clue in, boy, I can't make myself more vulnerable without submitting - and I don't do that.
The dog whined, a low sound of not-quite-animal confusion, and twisted another step. Youko shook cold water from a back paw, as the dog slowly straightened out of its defensive crouch - not completely, but just enough that Youko could tell the dog was considerably larger than himself. Though not quite so well-fed, he thought. Oddly big for a dog - patterned after a Grim, I'd guess.
He trotted forward, surprising a yip from the dog, and waved his tails almost cheerily as he walked right into the dog's cave.
Now the dog growled, chasing after him and skidding past, splay-footed in the center of the cave with teeth bared: an unmistakeable display of territorial ownership.
Youko sat on his rump, flattening an ear in query, and waited. Make no move to attack, only defend if he jumps you, don't submit, and confuse the hell out of him. It was perhaps the only strategy that would get the Animagus to shapeshift and start talking.
After several minutes where Youko didn't attack the dog, its growls slowly subsided, and its ears began to twitch in confusion.
It's about time, Youko thought, trying to spear that idea into the Animagus' mind with his eyes. Go manform - I don't have all day!
The dog blinked, as if in shock, and then seemed to sigh. Stretching, his face flattened, joints twisting and fur fading, leaving only a bedraggled human in filthy robes sitting before the fox.
"It's no good trying to fake out a kitsune, is it, sir?" he rasped.
Youko's ear flicked. You DO know... almost.
"Oh, I know," the man answered. "I was always fascinated by canines, and the magical type?" He shook his head, a faint hint of a grin hovering near his mouth. "I remember that much. You, sir," he said, pointing his finger with a waggle, "are a five-tailed fox, one of the rare silver kitsune of the Orient, and since you showed yourself I can pretty well guess that you are here to test me for reasons of your own."
Not bad for a half-starved fugitive human, Youko thought, tongue lolling in amusement as the man pushed himself to his feet and delivered a courtly bow.
"Well, then. Sirius Black, of the most-noble-and-ancient-House-of Darkmarked Gits, at your service." His eyes gleamed impishly. "What can I do for you, lord fox?"
Youko dipped his head. "The most noble and ancient House of Darkmarked Gits?" he asked, the magical sounds scratchy with disuse. Twenty years? Thirty? I'd forgotten how rarely I speak as a fox... hope I don't bite my tongue. "You amuse me, Sirius Black."
"I try," the man replied, without a shred of modesty in his voice or grin.
"So tell me, Sirius Black," Youko said, settling himself comfortably on the ground for a long story, "what is this 'Darkmarked', and what brings you to be a hermit out here?"
Sirius winced. "That, lord fox, is a long and unamusing story."
Youko turned abruptly stern. "Try me."
-0-0-0
In town, Hiei darted across the snowy rooftops, unnoticed by the bustling crowds of students and villagers in the streets below... save the rare times he misstepped, and sent a dash of snow falling on a witch or wizard's head. Even then, though, they only saw an empty roof by the time they finished glancing upwards.
Hiei's eyes narrowed. The older wizards were perhaps too complacent and set in their ways, but this many months into their training, the oldest three classes of Hogwarts students should be at least showing signs that they noticed something.
Time for a pop quiz, then. Hiei leapt from the corner of a building, landing behind the top student in core magic - Lee Jordan - on tiptoe.
"Constant vigilance," he whispered into the boy's ear, leaping away as the boy yelped and spun, hand going for his wand.
Lee's yell hadn't had a shred of power in it, and he had gone for his wand and ignored his core magic. That was acceptable, to a certain extent, but the fact that he hadn't reacted until Hiei had been through with the phrase and halfway back onto the roof...?
Unacceptable. At this rate, an entire camp of enemies could Apparate into their midst and kill them all before they touched their magic. You fail.
Hiei flickered away to talk to Genkai, deliberately kicking a footful of snow on Kuwabara, two streets over with Yukina, as he passed.
-0-0-0
Sunday passed, and the Hall was as lively as ever Monday morning. Most students tried to ignore the fact that classes began again right after breakfast; a very few, mostly third-years, frantically scribbled the last few inches of their homework, put off in favor of the excursion.
Hermione, as always, had her attention buried in the morning paper, reaching blindly for biscuits, rashers, and juice. Her questing hand found a muffin on her plate - Ron's handiwork - and she absently bit into it as she turned the page.
Harry, as always, ignored Hermione. It never took her the entire meal to finish the paper, and it wasn't as if she was the only person to spend her breakfast engrossed in the Prophet. Most of the Ravenclaw table did, in fact.
Besides, she sometimes blurted out comments about articles in the paper. It was bloody amusing, since it was something she never did with anything but the morning Prophet.
"Scandal in the Ministry," she muttered into her muffin. "Since when isn't there scandal in the Ministry? You'd think politicians had nothing better to do than cheat and steal..."
Ron elbowed her, glaring. "Hey!"
"Hm? I didn't mean your family, Ron," she said, glancing up. "They aren't politicians, they're state employees."
"Oh." Ron grinned sheepishly. "Right." With a nod, she turned back to the paper, flipping to the next page - weather and the Traveler's Report. "How's Thursday night looking?" he asked.
"Chance of sleet, turning to snow," Hermione answered. Ron made a face. "Enjoy Quidditch practice," she added sweetly.
Hagrid abruptly stood, banging his goblet on the table in the distinctive rhythm of calling attention (usually done by tapping a piece of silverware against a glass). Slowly, the Hall quieted, everyone turning curiously to face the dais.
"If yeh haven't seen th' paper today," he announced, "th' Traveler's Report tells yeh there's been a strange dog sighted near Hogsmeade."
A knot of cold twisted in Harry's gut. Sirius-!
"Th' beastie's 'a five-tailed, silver canine of unknown origin'-" Harry relaxed. Five tails and silver wasn't Padfoot. "- but what they're not telling ye is that there's only one sort of canine that's got more'n one tail like that, and that's a keet-soo-nay."
Hermione gasped in recognition.
Hagrid tapped the table with one large finger, dishes clattering. "An' yeh aren't teh go lookin' fer it!" he said sternly. "A keet-soo-nay is a magic fox, an' they aren't tha' safe."
Hagrid was warning them off a magical beast?
"They aren't bad, o' course," Hagrid hastily added. That's not reassuring, Hagrid, Harry thought. "They're tricksters and pranksters. The nicest o' them will help yeh if yeh pass a test o' your morals, but tha's not something they do much.
"If yeh offend them, or don't pass their test, yeh don't tend teh stay in one piece. So if yeh do run into it, yeh bow-" he stared pointedly at Malfoy for a second "- apologize fer intruding, and walk away calmly." He stopped, and glanced around the room. "Er, anythin' else is fer Professor Genkai teh tell yeh," he finished awkwardly, retaking his seat.
Before anyone could do more than take half a breath, Genkai stood on her chair. "There are two details about kitsune that are known by only a handful of people in the world."
"One. Kitsune in their animal form are indistinguishable from their demon cousins, the youko." A wave of instinctive terror rippled through the Hall, students shifting, whimpering, paling, or a combination of the three. "Behaviorally, youko tend towards the same activities as kitsune do. The only difference is that youko play lethal tricks and rig their games.
"YOU ARE NOT TO GO LOOKING FOR THE BEAST!" she commanded, slapping her hands on the table before her. "Should you have the distinctly poor fortune of meeting it, though, the second fact comes into play." She paused, checking that everyone was paying attention. (This was unnecessary, Harry thought: no one's attention could've been pried away at that point by anything less than a Distractivus hex and the appearance of the demon itself in the Hall.) "Both youko and kitsune can take on human form. This is how you can identify which type you are dealing with.
"The human kitsune looks fully human. They are always young and attractive, and tend to be female or feminine. Their shadows, though, remain fox-shaped. Should you encounter a stranger, check for that.
"The human youko is merely man-shaped. They retain fox ears, one of their tails, and gold or red eyes." Another pause, to let that sink in. "For both types, follow Professor Hagrid's rules. Do not run: foxes have the instincts to chase. Do not attempt to bargain. Do not offer any sort of gift, tribute, or bribe. Do not take anything offered - consider it with the same suspiscion you give items from the Weasley twins."
A stereo shout of protest came from the 7th-year end of the Gryffindor table. Genkai ignored it. "Do NOT, under any circumstances," she added, "use the word 'promise' or attempt to extract any commitments. Neither species will take kindly to it."
"Above all," she finished, "do. Not. Panic. I can count on one hand the number of times kitsune have interacted with humans in the past century worldwide, though they've been sighted on several hundred occasions. Only three youko have been in the human world in that same time period, and have never bothered to come this far into Europe. The likelihood that a fox ranked as highly as a five-tail has come all the way to Scotland for a human is virtually zero. You don't bother it, and it won't bother you. Do I make myself clear?"
A murmur of halfhearted agreement through the hall.
"Good. I'll be available for questions during class."
Thank Merlin, Harry thought, turning back to his breakfast with a hint of relief. Except...
"Hermione?" he asked quietly. "Can I borrow Crookshanks?"
-0-0-0
Snuffles -
The paper says there's a magic fox around Hogsmeade right now. Be careful, okay? Even Hagrid says it's dangerous.
- Harry
P.S. - Hermione says there might be Aurors looking for the fox. Ron says the Ministry's too stupid to send them out after a fox unless one walks into Fudge's office and bites him on the arse. So be on the lookout for Aurors, too.
-0-0-0
Slytherin/Gryffindor Defense that day was more like storytime than a class, with students asking so many questions about kitsune that Genkai canceled the day's lesson and pulled tale after ancient Oriental tale about kitsune from her memory.
A question from Hermione about the tails sparked a lecture on Inari and The Lady, and the direct relationship between rank, strength, age, and the number of tails.
Another question from, surprisingly, Neville - who rarely raised his hand in class - addressed the main concern everybody had: what youko ate.
"They eat the same things humans do, for the most part," Genkai replied. "They're quite fond of lemon rice balls and deep-fried tofu, in fact." A collective sigh of relief went through the room. "They also eat small game, like your owls do."
"So they don't eat humans at all?" Millicent Bulstrode asked. "Even though they're demons?"
"No."
"What about kitsune?"
Genkai's mouth twitched. "Actually, there has been a reported case of a human eating a kitsune." Kurama could almost hear the students blink, processing that, and stifled a smirk as she launched into another tale.
Eventually, just before the bell, Genkai stopped the flow of questions and passed back essays from the week before. Kurama glanced to the red writing at the top of the page.
Under the grade, in Japanese, Genkai had written: Stay after class. We need to talk.
Kurama rerolled the scroll and pushed it down into his schoolbag, mildly impressed at how discreet she'd managed to be. He'd expected such a request since breakfast.
The bell rang, and Kurama loitered as Genkai shooed the most persistent of the curious and worried students - Granger, of course, but also Finnigan and Brown of the Gryffindors, and Tracey, Blaise, and Pansy from the Slytherins - out the door, slamming it closed on a last, "But Professor-!"
She turned to him, and raised an eyebrow.
"I had a question about the homework," Kurama said, in case anybody could still hear through the door. He wouldn't put it past any of them to actively listen.
"In my office, then," she said, jerking her head towards the stairway as she crossed the room. He followed her up, closing the door gently behind him, and she gestured for him to sit on the heavy floor pillow before her desk. "Tea?" she offered gruffly, not entirely discarding proper etiquette as she did with her Western students. Kurama shook his head, and she sat on her own pillow across the desk, folding her hands. "A Japanese demon spotted near a school with new Japanese transfer students," she said simply.
She really didn't need to lay it out. A five-year-old could add those clues together. "They'll think it's one of us," Kurama murmured, since she seemed to expect an answer of some sort.
"And?"
"They'll watch us." Obviously. "Investigate us..." Start finding details that don't add up. It would take several weeks, at least, with Koenma's people blocking or diverting questions, but the clues were there.
Yuusuke's death certificate.
Team Urameshi.
The missing records for Hiei, Yukina, and Botan.
His own - Inari! - his own government files, each and every one clearly recording him as Minamino Shuiichi, not Kurama.
But she wouldn't have called me up here to rub the problem in my face. Unless... "You have something in mind to fix this." It wasn't a question.
"Brilliant deduction, Minamino," Genkai replied dryly, smirking.
"Let me guess," Kurama said, equally dry. "Arrange for all of us to be seen at the same time as the youko at some point in the very near future." A nod. "And just how would you go about doing so, considering that wizards would check for an illusion right off the bat, and I can't be in two places at once?"
Now her eyes joined the smirk. "Considering that you brought this down upon yourself, I would leave the creation of a doppelganger up to you."
Kurama waited. That can't possibly be her entire plan.
After a minute without a reaction from Kurama, Genkai pulled a sheet of parchment out of a stack on her desk, and pushed it to the center. "I admit to being less interested in clearing suspiscion from you, than I am in having the Youko's participation in this." She tapped the paper, and Kurama's eyes flicked down to it. "It's all the better that it would solve both problems," she added, as Kurama carefully examined the diagram, reading the notes and figures.
Interesting. "I see..." Kurama murmured. "I would be of more use than any number of illusions, I'm already here, and they wouldn't recognize me." Genkai nodded. "What's in it for me?"
"Oseizonsha-sama."