Beyond the Outer Gates Lies... Icy Embrace?

"Thank you for coming," I told them.

"Well, when you mentioned udon, I knew Sona would be here," Rias said with a wry grin, "And while I might not be able to have you join my Peerage, I have realized I could contract you as a magician. So I can't let her get any further ahead of me."

Sona sniffed and adjusted her glasses. But from my angle, I also saw her eye twitch.

"I'm pretty sure that ship has sailed," I told the redhead.

"Maybe not," Gremory's eyes narrowed, "They say it is better for a relationship if you don't work with your spouse. And I could make you a better offer."

I wanted to point out that Sona and I were not married. But that was a trap, however I phrased it. So I ignored her instead.

"Why did you want to speak with us?" Tsubaki interjected, to save her King.

"Well, you can probably figure out that it has to do with Kendra being here," I pointed over to the kunoichi, "She has hired me for a case. Of course client confidentiality means I can't tell you about it without her permission. Instead, what I can do is ask you a question or seven about the supernatural power structure in Tokyo. Something I probably should have done a while ago."

"How so, Harry?" Sona looked me in the eye. Yay.

"Okay, so I know that Sona and Rias are the administrators of Kuoh town," I held up my hand and lowered one finger, "Sona mostly the Academy, and Rias the rest of the town. But Kuoh is just one suburb of the larger Tokyo metropolitan area. And I'm not sure what kind of relationship that means you have with the city, prefecture, or national governments. If any."

I bent my middle finger, "The Shinra and Himejima exorcist clans have at least some presence in the city. But how much of a presence, and what authority does that give them? Again, if any."

Ring finger came down, "Are there any other groups I should know about? Any Youkai families? Other Devils? I think I've get a pretty good idea about the Fallen from Az and Lasciel."

I curled my pinky finger, "Is there any central authority, either between them or above them? That's kind of the big one. I should have thought of that when Sona handed out the bus passes before we went to Kyoto. There is a central authority that tracks supernatural coming and goings. One that authorizes visitors, and protects them. At least in theory..."

I raised an eyebrow at Kendra. She looked away and coughed.

"I could point out that she is young and was very worried about her mother," the Tengu said, "But really, I have no excuse."

"Right. Well when Kendra showed up and I was reminded of that," I continued, "I had to wonder if I had been illegally living in the city. Or at least, unknowingly counting on your protection since I became a Kuoh resident and student."

"And this relates to your case?" Akeno looked from me to Kendra with lidded eyes.

"Maybe not directly," I said flatly, "If nothing else, if there is some sort of central magic government, I might get myself and my clients in trouble without having the right license or ID or whatever."

Akeno and Tsubaki looked at each other, and Sona spoke.

"I take it you have not heard of the Five Principal Clans, Harry?" my girlfriend asked.

"Doesn't ring a bell," I agreed, "though based on their reaction, I can hazard a guess that the Shinra and Himejima are two of these clans."

"Correct," Tsubaki confirmed, "Along with the Nakiri, Kushihashi, and Doumon clans, they form the main supernatural power structure in Japan."

Kendra coughed again, giving her a sharp look.

"Among Humans," Sona's Queen qualified hastily, "The Youkai generally answer to the central government in Kyoto and are loosely allied with the Five Principal Clans."

"Which is to say most of us don't trust them," Kendra interrupted, "And most of them are looking for an excuse to kill or enslave us. But we do our best to keep the peace, for the sake of Japan and so the mortal government doesn't step in."

"Which is part of the reason for Shadow Kyoto and those bus passes," Rias sighed, "Since more Youkai live there than anywhere else, and it is the center of their power. They don't want the Five Clans trying anything, which is the main reason magic users and other non-Youkai, non-Humans have to register. So if someone from the clans tries to sneak in and do... something, they are a criminal and can be captured and tried."

"Back to your original question, Dresden-san," Akeno said, "There is nothing like that here in Tokyo, or really anywhere else in Japan. The Five Principal Clans relationships with each other is only marginally better than their relationship with the Kyoto Youkai."

"Tokyo also hosts two smaller clans of Youkai," Sona told me, "As well as a nondenominational conclave of magicians, and of course, us. So there is no central authority. No one for you to report to, or to censure you."

"The other side of that coin," I countered, "Is that unless someone is directly tied to one of those groups, there is nothing to stop one of the other groups from doing what they want to them. I just got lucky that one of the clans didn't come knocking on my door before I met you."

"That is not untrue," Sona agreed, sadly, "There are stories of unaffiliated Youkai and magicians running afoul of the Clans."

"What she's not saying," Akeno grimaced, "is that most of the time it is my tight-ass former family. They aren't will to put up with anyone that isn't Human, Japanese, and a true Shinto devotee. They only tolerate anyone else,. At least until the think they have the power and opportunity to get rid of them. Some of my relatives aren't that bad. But the current clan head would tear down the Japanese government and replace it with a Shinto theocracy if he could."

"And it might not just be luck," Tsubaki said with a sly grin, "Dresden-kun did call himself a wizard and advertised online. Few magicians would dare call themselves wizards, nor would they generally put a site up on the global web. The clans probably just thought you were a chuunibyou, until you started making a splash."

"Sad part is, I can't even refute that," I sighed. Then I put on my own smirk, "After all, I was in the same school as you four for like three months, and you couldn't figure it out until Rias here saw me blast Raynare."

"At the risk of copying Senju-san, I also have no excuse," Sona dropped her chin.

"These days the Five Clans cannot afford to be as quick to act and judgmental," Rias said, "Devils and Fallen and Youkai these days tend to have proper citizenship paperwork and IDs. There are too many cameras, computers, and too much suspicion. That makes it tougher on us, but also provides a screen. In the past they could destroy a rouge Youkai. These days that might result in a missing person report and a police investigation."

"Yeah," I nodded, thinking about the cards in my wallet and paperwork in my safe. The Japanese government knew about me and tracked me as a minor. If I just vanished, someone would notice. I'm not sure how much effort they would have put into it before, but now that I was getting to be on good terms with the Tokyo PD...

"I know we have been pretending this conversation is mostly about Harry," Akeno purred slightly, "But I find that I am curious what this has to do with my soon to be housemate and her reason for coming to Tokyo."

The Devils all looked at Kendra. But the kunoichi looked at me.

"You did just spend a few weeks getting to know them," I said, "But if you want to know, I implicitly trust Sona, both for our relationship and her personally. I mostly trust Tsubaki and Rias. I don't think they would betray or hurt someone. But I also fully expect them to use any secrets for themselves. Mostly for a joke, but if they were in a really bad spot, maybe as a bit of leverage. Akeno..."

The vamp gave me a fake hurt expression at my hesitation.

"She's fine. Rias will keep her in line. And really, unless it helps her get a leg up on the other members of Ise's harem, she won't do anything with what you tell her in confidence."

"I wish I could refute that," Rias facepalmed, "But I can't, if I am being honest."

Takako nodded.

"I am in Tokyo, pursuing a pair of runaway Youkai. One of whom is my younger brother..."

Kendra POV

"I'm going to pick up the udon," Harry-kun said, "I'll be back in about 20."

"Oh?" Himejima-chan prompted teasingly, "You trust us alone in your house?"

The wizard rolled his eyes at her, "Sona is Sona. She is the most lawful good person I know."

"I'll take that as a compliment," Sitri-san said.

"I meant it as one," Harry-kun told her, "And even if she wasn't, she already knows I trust her."

The young Devil blushed slightly.

"And Kendra has stayed overnight here before and will be doing so tonight... and longer depending on how tomorrow goes. So yeah, I trust her alone here."

Then his eyes narrowed. I recognized that look.

"As for you and Rias," he told the taunting Queen, "You live right next door, and Ise's mom likes me. So you can have fun imagining what might happen to your wardrobe, or your make-up, if you piss me off."

Himejima-chan blanched.

"Which just leaves Tsubaki," he said, "And while she's almost as bad as you, Akeno, just in a different way, I also trust Sona to keep her in line."

Shinra-chan looked like she wanted to deny his statement. But couldn't.

"So yeah," he concluded, "See you in a few."

He put on his shoes and his coat, grabbed his staff, and left, locking the door behind him. Seeing his focus made my stomach twist a bit. He hadn't said that he had discovered any issues with it, but he was right. Breaking up an item I knew so little about was shortsighted and impulsive. And even if it was fine, he could claim it wasn't or break it himself and demand repayment. Not that I expected Harry-kun to do something like that. But it was a risk I shouldn't have taken. There were much safer pranks I could have played.

"I will have to find a way to thank Lash, later," Sitri-san commented. I looked at her curiously.

"Who is 'Lash'?" I asked, fully aware of the meaning of the English word. Sitri-san's eyes widened and she looked away.

"I am not at liberty to say," she said, "I should not have mentioned it."

I studied her for a moment. And glanced at the other girls. Then I shrugged.

"Fine, I understand having secrets," I said, "So, then, why did you want to speak with me alone... Dresden isn't the only one who can learn to read signs."

The Devils all looked at me in surprise. It seemed they still had something to learn about subtlety. Then again, they weren't ninjas.

"We are wondering your intentions towards Dresden," the red-head said simply.

"You think I have 'intentions' towards Dresden?" I asked incredulously, "And for that matter what difference would that make to you, Gremory-san?"

I gestured at the three of them, deliberately excluding Sitri-san. I was well aware of Harry-kun's relationship with the King, her Rook, and one of her Bishops.

"We may not be interested in him romantically or sexually," Himejima-chan countered, "But he is our friend and ally, and we all owe him on some level."

"As for you having intentions to Dresden," Shinra-chan looked at me sharply, her glances not quite glinting, "It has been not even two months since you met him, and you have come to Tokyo twice, and both times you have sought him out."

"You know well why," I shot back, annoyed, "The first time I was here for Kuoh Academy paperwork. I decided to also get more insight into the people who would be influencing Kunou-dono, and Dresden was the only one around. And I am currently searching for two missing persons, so I have sought Dresden's help."

"But why," Sitri-san prompted, "You could have gone to the Tokyo Police or the Five Clans, both in an official capacity. Why seek help from one teenage boy?"

"First, even before I learned what two of the clans did to their owns daughters, I was hesitant about trusting them," I said, unable to keep anger from my voice at the thought, "And now that I have talked to the four of you? They are the last ones I would turn to. The police would help, but I probably would have needed to tell them about my connection to the case. Which would require them to exclude me. And in the end they would just have called their supernatural consultants. Either Dresden or the Five Clans. So that would have wasted time."

I looked at Sitri-san directly, "I came to Dresden, because I have seen his scrying, during the Kyoto incident. His fighting skills both there and in the Underworld. I've heard about his investigative skills. He is the obvious first choice. And if he had not been available, I would have gone to one or both of your Peerages as a second choice, for numbers and because we are allies under the Kuoh Accords. After that, I would have tried the police, but also mundane private investigators, and possibly even the Yakuza. I'm not sure of which group is more powerful in Tokyo now, Kyoto branch of the Yamaguchi owe us a favor after one of their lower rank members accidentally brought a cursed urn from the Philippines into Kyoto. Yasaka-dono and I dealt with it. But only after all those avenues of help turned up dead ends, would I turn to the Five Clans."

"Still, that doesn't explain why you are staying here," Himejima-chan needled me, "As opposed to a hotel, or even asking to stay in the Hyoudou House."

"Dresden's defenses are almost as good as yours," I directed the statement to the Gremory King instead of the Queen, "But more subtle. And I am already paying him as a detective, so it is simpler to also pay him for his guest room at the same time."

I shook my head and frowned at them, "I'm not sure what has gotten into your heads, but I have no romantic interest in Harry."

"Oh?" Himejima-chan smirked like nekomata. And Gremory-san and Shinra-chan almost matched her expression. Sitri-san's lips twitched downwards, even as her glasses glinted at me dangerously.

"We never said your intentions were amorous," Sitri-san said darkly.

Crap.

"Rias admitted earlier that she has intentions towards Harry," her Queen added, "To contract him. But she is not interested in him as a boyfriend."

"He is not exactly my type," Gremory-san agreed.

"A fact I think Hyoudou-kun is thankful for," this distracted Sitri-san enough to tease her friend, "Dragons are not known for being willing to share."

"Oh, I don't know about that," Himejima-chan leaned in closer to her King. The red-head blushed.

"As in, he would not mind sharing Gremory-san with you," I finished for Himejima-chan, "So long as he was allowed to watch."

"Your attempt to change the topic aside," Sitri-san returned her stare to me, "Your intentions might have been to convince Harry to move to Kyoto. Or just to use him as a better male role model than Hyoudou-kun."

Gremory-san pouted at that.

"But your first thought, Senju-san was of romance," she continued.

"I am here chasing a pair of runaways in love," I countered, "And being interrogated by one of Dresden's girlfriends. Is it that much of a surprise that I have love on my mind?"

They all just looked at me.

"I will tell all of you the same thing I told Dresden, back when he joked about kissing me. He is too young for me, and I am not interested in a long distance relationship."

"Excceeepptt," Himejima-chan drew out the qualifier, "In just over two months, you will be moving in next door. If your cute little ward stays here through high school, you'll be here six years. Longer if she goes to Kuoh for college, or depending on if she convinces us to let her into Ise-chan's harem."

"And by then, Dresden will likely have mastered teleportation magic," Shinra-chan said, "Between modern technology and teleportation spells, Kuoh to Kyoto barely qualifies as 'long distance', would you not agree?"

I grimaced.

"And as for his age," Sitri-san said, "For all his foibles, Harry is more mature than most men a decade his senior. He owns his own home, has fought repeatedly and without real complaint in defense of his friends and the innocent. His height also lends him an air of maturity. None of us are talking marriage until he is eighteen, but that is not so far off..."

"Sona?" Gremory-san prompted as the other King's face creased in distaste.

"I just realized, I don't know Harry's birthday."

They all considered that for a moment. And I considered setting off a smoke tag and running. But I dismissed the thought, if only because of Harry's potential reaction if I filled his main room with soot.

"Regardless, you have dodged the question," Sitri-san continued, "Which makes me... us suspicious. If you have no interest in him beyond a friendly alliance, that is fine. I can understand that Harry is not everyone's cup of tea. Even if you have potential romantic feelings, I would not mind, so long as you were willing to share with myself, Tsubasa, Reya, and my sister. But if you intend to try to take him from us, whether professionally, romantically, or anything in between... Then know that we will fight you for Harry, which ever 'we' that may be."

"Wait, was that what you thought?" I sighed in relief, "You thought I was trying to recruit Dresden? Have him move to Kyoto and work for us?"

"The thought had crossed my mind," Sona said simply.

I suppose it made sense, from their point of view. He had done us a great service while Yasaka-dono was kidnapped. He was an independent, from a professional standpoint. And now I kept showing up. Yasaka-dono thought Dresden and his girlfriends were too cute to break up, but if she hadn't... Yes, bringing the first known wizard in a century, one of proven skill and power, over to our side would be a great coup. And he would still be officially part of the Kuoh Accords, so they couldn't complain on those grounds.

"I swear to you," I told her earnestly, "I am not here to steal Dresden from you. In any way."

She studied me for a moment. And then nodded and relaxed.

Kendra kept her disbelief bottled up until we were seated. She kept giving me sideways glances as we waited, and were guided to a booth in the corner.

"Waffle Steve's?" she finally whispered sharply at me, "You think they are coming to an American family restaurant chain?"

"First," I said, "It is a Canadian company. Though there are some franchises in the Upper Midwest and northwest US. And It's surprisingly popular in Germany and Poland. Second, this isn't just a lark."

She waved a hand, signaling I should continue.

"This is pretty much the center of the early morning snowstorm clusters," I said, "and one of the few places in the area that opens before 9. So unless they are doing a lot of early morning window shopping, this or the McDonald's up the street are the only real options. Also, from what you told me yesterday, plus a few hints Kunou dropped when she was giving us her tour of Kyoto, it sounds like Shadow Kyoto in general isn't big on western style breakfasts. So this would be a rare treat for them. And check the menu."

I took one out of the stand on the table and held it out to her.

"They could eat here every day for two weeks, each ordering something different every day, and still not repeat. And that's before getting into the variety of donuts and muffins. Also, Steve's food is good, it is cheap, and the portions are big. Most places you'd be lucky to get two of those. So for a couple of runaways on a limited budget, they can eat a gig breakfast here, and then have a smaller lunch, to save."

"That does make sense," she conceded.

"Good," I said. Then I waved the waitress over, who had been watching at a respectful distance while we talked.

"Long time no see, Harry," she greeted me in English, "I thought you forgot about us."

"Sorry, Marie," I told her, giving her a bright smile back, "I had to switch schools, and then I moved to be closer to my new school. So it's not as easy to come by. Things still good?"

She gestured at the steadily filling diner. And her fingers brushed the collar of her shirt.

"Boss isn't complaining, though I wouldn't mind a vacation. But that's not for you to worry about. This your girlfriend?"

"Client."

"Ah," she nodded knowingly, "Say no more. You need time to decide? And can I get you anything to drink?"

"You can just put in my usual," I told her. Then smirked, and said, "If you still remember..."

"Of course. Boss is still trying to convince corporate to let her put it on the menu. And not a few of the regulars still ask for the Dresden special."

Then she looked at Kendra, and in perfect Japanese, both in accent and politeness asked, "Would you like something to drink? And do you need more time to look at the menu?"

"Why don't you just bring me whatever Harry's having?" the Tengu countered in not quite as perfect (but still very good) English.

"Sure," Marie nodded, and then scampered off.

"There is a story there," Kendra looked at me.

"There are stories all over the place," I countered, "If you know how to listen. But yeah. Did you see her necklace?"

She nodded. It was mostly hidden by Marie's shirt, but I figured a ninja would spot it.

"Her backstory isn't mine to tell," I explained, "But that necklace is the only memory she has of Kenya. And when it was stolen a few years ago, she was sad and desperate enough to take a chance on a teenage American wizard. I wasn't exactly flush with work back then, but after I got her necklace back, Marie was sure to spread the word about me. And her boss, her adopted mom, made sure to slip an extra slice of bacon or two on my orders."

Just then, Morisato-san stuck her head out of the back. She looked around until she saw me, and then waved. I smiled again and nodded broadly back at her.

Marie came back a minute later, and expertly plopped down two large glasses, filled to the brim with OJ, without spilling a drop.

"Your order's in. Boss was happy to hear you were back."

"She does like to pick up strays," I remembered fondly. Then my face tightened, "and on that note, Marie, could you maybe do me a quick solid?"

"Depends," her dark eyes narrowed at me in mock suspicion.

"I'm looking for a pair of runaways," I said, and her teasing look got serious, "I think they might have been coming here the last few days."

"So that hair's natural?" Marie looked over Kendra's green locks, "A boy with that color, and a white haired girl. Both maybe a bit younger than you were when we first met. A bit stiff, like rich kids who haven't gotten out much."

"That sounds familiar," I said evenly.

"Haven't seen anyone like that," Marie said flatly, "And if I had, they wouldn't have been coming in at about seven thirty."

"Well that's too bad," I sighed, "I guess we'll just have to have a leisurely breakfast here, and then look somewhere else."

"I'll tell mo... the boss not to hurry your order. And I'll get you each a water. Juice refills aren't free, since the price went up."

"Thanks, Marie," I told her sincerely.

"Just remember, Japan might not tip, but here, we're Canadian, eh."

She winked, and hurried off to another table.

"I guess you were right," Kendra admitted.

"Either that or someone is playing a cosmic joke on us," I checked my phone. 6:08

"I guess we'll have to wait and see. Should have brought our BD decks, I guess."

She sighed at me, but also hid a smile.

A whole wheat, apple waffle, big enough it needed its own plate. Topped with stripes of cherry and raspberry compote, usually used on the pancakes. A second plate with a pile of American fries, three sausage links and three strips of bacon. Well, it was supposed to be three strips, and that was what Kendra got. My plate 'accidentally' had five. Plus a glass of skim milk, though most other people got coffee instead.

"This is... a lot of food," Kendra said, shocked.

"Yup," I said, and then dug in.

"It's fairly well balanced, too," she looked at me, "Not perfect, but not bad."

"I've lived alone for... a long time," I said after I finished my mouthful, "I know to get my fruits and grains. And veggies, I guess. That's part of why I like this place. I might prefer BK, but I know their food isn't the best thing for me."

"This is... good," she was more surprised after her first bite, "The tart cherries and sour raspberries match up well with the sweetness of the waffle."

"How is everything?" Marie stopped by a few minutes later.

"Excellent, as always," I told her, "My compliments to the chef. Also, my 8 o'clock?"

She nodded, confirming what I had seen in the reflection on the window.

Kendra casually flashed two hands signs.

"One question," I prompted, a while after Sona and the others left.

"What's that?" Kendra responded.

"Your brother. Won't he recognize you?" I asked, "I guess it's possible you two don't know each other well, but your hair does stand out. And you are taller than average and carry yourself like a fighter."

"Are you saying I stand out?" she asked threateningly, "Are you saying a Senju shinobi cannot blend into a crowd?"

"I'm not saying that," I didn't back down, "I'm just strongly implying it. So far I've seen you be more of the supernatural fighting style ninja, rather than the master of invisibility style ninja. Not that I doubt your abilities in that respect. Except Rinosuke is a ninja in training, you said. So I have to think he knows at least some of your techniques and can probably sense ki."

She nodded in spite of herself

"If you have tricks to stay hidden," I continued, "you might want to clue me in, so I don't suddenly leave you behind or something."

"Good," she smirked, "Well..."

The Tengu's hair turned black, and lengthened past her shoulders and partial over her eyes.. It wouldn't hide her face if they looked closely, but she stood out less. According to Takako, this jutsu would wear off in about two hours, but until then didn't use any ki so it couldn't be detected.

And I didn't mention it before, but this was the first time I had ever seen Kendra in a skirt. And no, I'm not counting her fancy kimono from the big meeting. It was a long, heavy skirt, befitting the weather. And a thick, lumpy sweater that made her look more curvaceous. No magic or ki, other than the hair. Just clothing and acting. But if I passed her on the street, I probably wouldn't know her.

Not that Rinosuke and Sela would have noticed. Those two were in their own little world. Hands clasped, eyes locked on each other. Still, as they followed another waitress to their table, the Yuki-onna moved like a dancer. And he wasn't in his sister's league yet, but I wouldn't bet I could take the Tengu boy in hand to hand combat.

Other than the casual, stylish, and obviously new outfits, they looked just like the sketches and Kendra's descriptions. And without really trying, I could feel the cold magic around Sela, like she was resonating somehow with the Winter Mantle.

"How do you want to handle this?" I asked Takako softly, after Marie left.

"Let me turn that back. How would you handle it?" she asked thoughtfully.

"That depends," I said.

"On?"

"How they will react," I explained, "If I expected them to be bound by social etiquette, I'd go over there right now. Count on them not to make a scene and endanger all of these innocents. But they might be desperate enough that they would ignore all that. If that's the case, I would wait until they are done. Have some food weighing them down. I'd tail them to a more quiet spot before confronting them."

"I would definitely go with the latter," Kendra said, "Because if they are desperate enough to run, I can't help but think they will fight if they feel cornered."

I felt bad. Running away wasn't a great idea, but I knew what it was to escape a bad family situation. And they were just so cute, both seated on one side of the booth. Huddled together behind one menu, whispering animatedly. Their affection for each other was obvious. The booth was against a solid wall rather than a windowed one, and Rinosuke had guided Sela in first. Both to help her sit and slide in, but also so he was on the outside to protect her.

"Well," I looked down at my plate and hers. Both were close to empty. I guess she was hungrier than her previous protest would have indicated.

"Maybe we can order coffee and split a donut," I suggested, watching the young couple order.

"That sounds like a plan," Kendra agreed, watching Rinosuke and Sela fondly out of the corner of her eye. Then she paused and looked at me suspiciously.

"Just how big is one of this place's donuts?"

Not as big as one of the waffles, but plenty big. Enough that, eating it slowly with a fork, we didn't look out of place staying here while the kids started on their own breakfast.

We made small talk. I tried to find topics that wouldn't stand out if we were overheard. So nothing about ninjas, or Shadow Kyoto, or her training. Brave Duel seemed safe enough, since it was making nerd news. And I guess there was the more 'normal' news. Thankfully, Kendra took the lead, asking me about America. I had to be careful what I said. But she wasn't that well informed on my former home and generalities were safe enough.

I was telling her about what a real, Chicago-style hot dog was like, when it washed over me. A powerful wave of magic. Not the strongest I had ever felt. Hell, I could have done better, if I wanted to. But strong enough to rattle me. Strong enough I could sense it without even trying.

Sela blinked in surprise, but didn't seem to understand what she was feeling. I wasn't sure if it was an issue of her talent or here training. No-one else, including Rinosuke seemed to notice, except Kendra. Her eyes narrowed.

"Dresden, what was that?" she hissed.

"Tell you in a second."

I placed my hand face down on the table, to hide the scanning spell. And I opened my Sight for a moment.

Kendra's hair was no longer the disguised black. It was back to green, and looked more like feathers than hair. Her heavy skirt and sweater were replaced by her form-fitting shozoku. I could see mystic tendrils connecting her forearms to wherever her trio of weapons were stored. For an instant her face was that of a crow, except with green fur instead of feathers. Then she was back to Human like. And her small green, feathered wings were also visible to my Third Eye. There was also a trio of heavy chains draped over her neck and shoulders.

But Takako wasn't what I had opened my Sight for. I looked at the shimmering sphere of wrapping not just Waffle Steve's, but most of the block. It was composed of three intermingling spells. Simple, cheap spells, that only stood out because of their resonance and because the three casters had seriously overpowered them. They were simple, but it also seemed like the resonance was intentional. They were designed to fit together to make up for the magicians' lack of power and experience.

One spell was to sense mystical energies, mana or ki. Maybe something else too, if Bizarro World had more secrets. The second spell was to find supernatural entities. And the third spell was to put everyone in the range to sleep. Which explained why the other customers were yawning, despite many of them having mugs of Steve's hi octane java.

Find the target and prevent any witnesses. Too bad for whoever was doing this, that I was here.

I charged up a slightly modified version of Mana Disperse. Normally the circle was used to make it harder to create a spell, but didn't do anything to a spell that was already active. However, with a few tweaks, and more energy than your average magician could reasonably hope to expend...

The bubble popped. Or at least that was how I Saw it. I closed down my Sight and immediately launched a strong, if normal Mana Disperse. I felt a push as they tried again. It didn't work. I looked out the window, scanning the street for whoever it was. Unfortunately, they were either not visible to me, or were good enough at hiding their reaction that they didn't stand out.

"Dresden?" Kendra prompted again cautiously.

"Someone was targeting supernatural beings," I told her, "I'm not lucky enough for it to be random, and I pretty sure you're too good to be caught this soon."

"Whoever it is, they're after Rin and Sela," she came to the same conclusion.

"And we can probably guess who," I continued, "They won't be able to cast anything around here for a while. Or, if they are better than their initial attempts suggestion, at least not without me noticing. So we should settle up. Be ready to leave when those two are done eating. That way we can pre-trail them."

"Senju Rinosuke and Deruaren Sela," I called out to them.

As planned, we left when they finished eating. Found a place to watch for them, and waited. We decided that, once they were in a quiet enough place, I would approach them alone. We didn't want to risk them noticing Kendra. And while they might recognize me by description, this was my home turf... or at least close enough. So me being here wouldn't be entirely out of place, or a reason for them to immediately run.

Of course, had whichever members of the Five Clans spotted them earlier made another move, we would have acted.

It hadn't come to that, and now we were in a quiet, business area. Mostly 9 to 5, Monday to Friday sorts of businesses. Naturally it was mostly empty on an early Sunday morning.

"You've been following us," Rinosuke turned to look at me, and put his arm in front of Sela.

"Yup," I said, "Glad to see you are ninja enough to notice."

"Why?" Sela asked.

"You two have been causing the snowstorms all over the city, right?"

They didn't deny it.

"People are worried and some of them troubled by it," I pointed out, "So the Tokyo PD hired me to investigate."

"You are the wizard," the Tengu told me, "The investigator my sis... clan member mentioned. Something Hari..."

"Harry Dresden," my eye twitched, "Or Dresden Harry, if you insist on Japanese name order."

"What are you going to do with us?" Sela asked, frightened.

"I'm not sure yet," I admitted, "Part of that depends on how and why you are causing these storms. Part of me didn't want to approach you until I saw you do it, both as proof and to get a peek at the magic involved. But since someone else tried to take you back at the diner, I figured I should try to get you off the street, before they try again."

"Someone tried something at the diner?" Rin seemed suspicious.

"I think you felt the spell Deruaren-san," I told Sela, "But maybe didn't know what it was."

"That weird shiver?" she said, "It felt strange, and I don't normally get cold..."

"That was it," I said, "It was a spell to find you, and put everyone in the area to sleep. I wasn't particularly in need of a nap, so I broke the spell."

"I see," she nodded, relaxing somewhat.

"You are here for us," Rinosuke continued to stare at me, "But you can't just expect us to come with you?"

"Yes I can," I said flatly, and they blinked in surprise.

"Right now you two are in minor trouble at best," I explained, "A few counts of petty vandalism for the graffiti. They might want to charge you with creating a public nuisance for the snowstorms. Except that will be really hard for them to prove. You come with me now, we get that resolved, and the police won't be after you anymore. Then we can figure out what to do next."

Then I drew up to my full height and gave them a mid-level death glare, "You run now, or worse, resist? I give the TPD everything I have showing that you are responsible for the storms. Plus any other charges the TPD decide to level, given that I am acting as their agent here."

I doubted they would actually get charged with evading arrest or anything like that. But that was why I only said the TPD might charge them with something. Of course, if they attacked me, that was a different matter.

"We don't want to go back," Sela said softly.

"They treat us like things, not people," Rinosuke added angrily.

"It can't be that bad," I suggested evenly, "You have food, a place to stay, education. There a lot of people who have far less. And that doesn't sound like Takako."

"She's not bad," Sela admitted.

"She could do something about it," Rinosuke countered. But carefully, not wanting to deny his girlfriend or lash out at her, "But she doesn't do shit as clan leader."

I heard a squeak in my earbud, but couldn't tell if it was anger or dismay.

"I don't know about that," I said, "I'm an outsider, though from what I've heard, the clan leader is more of a figurehead and war leader than a rule maker. And maybe we can take it up the ladder. Kunou and Yasaka both seem to think they owe me, I could ask them to intervene, in return for you two taking on that debt in the future."

"Dresden," Kendra hissed in my ear.

"You would do that?" Rinosuke blinked owlishly.

"I'm looking for the path of least hassle here," I said, "and you two seem to need help. Plus, I would take great pleasure in sticking it to 'clans' that are more concerned with politics then with people."

"Dresden," Kendra hissed again. But this time her tone was warning, not annoyance. I dropped into a combat stance and pulled my blasting rod out of my coat.

Three SUVs were barreling down on us. All dark colors but not black. One grey, one navy blue, and one a shadowy red.

"So that's it," Rinosuke snarled, "You were just buying time."

His hand, that was protecting Sela from me, latched onto her breast. His other arm reached down and groped her butt. The Yuki-onna squeaked in surprise and arousal. Then he lifted her into him, and their lips met.

Everything went white. And even colder. Oddly, there was not the howling I expected, given the sudden rush of swirling winds.

I took a moment. Took a light touch of Winter. I didn't want the raw power or potential drawback, at least not yet. Just a connection to snow.

"Urg," I heard a masculine shout of pain in front of me. Then another one, except it was a different voice.

"Rin?" Sela cried out desperately.

I took three steps forward, and placed a hand on her shoulder. She whipped around, and stared at me uncertainly.

"How?" she croaked.

"I've seen worse than this," I rolled my eyes, "and Winter magic is kind of my thing. My teacher would think your clan is cute, and then casually freeze them. More importantly, those guys aren't with me. I think they are reinforcements for whoever was by the Steve's."

She nodded.

"Stay close," I told her, "We need to get out of here. I might be able to see and move better in this storm than most people, but it's still a hindrance."

"Found her!" a voice called out from the right. A man in a Shinto priest's robes emerged from the snow.

"And the wizard, too," his tone changed as he squinted at me.

He raised his hand, and a mandala formed. This one was a vertical rectangle rather than a circle. Which, from what Sona and my books said, was far less efficient. Only a few of the most stubborn schools still used those or hexes instead of round spells. That said, rectangle and hex mandalas had the advantage over circular ones in that they could be tiled.

"Infriga," I declared. I was able to figure out the basic intent of his spell, with a pointer from Lash. I fused the individual snowflakes together into a giant, stylized snowflake ice sculpture. It wasn't just for appearance. When the exorcist launched his net spell, it hit the barricade and got tangled in the tines of the snowflake.

"Wow," Sela's eyes widened, "That was incredible. And so fast."

"Keep watching, sister," I smirked, even as two more kidnappers came into view.

"We need to break through," the first exorcist told his partners. They each did a different spell, and the edges of their seals touched. Like at the diner, the spells fed off each other, so the Fire Beam and two Fireballs were larger and hotter than they should have been.

'We may need to research alternate mandala shapes, my host,' Lash noted, 'They may take countably more energy, but for imbuing items, having the spells fit together like that and support each other may be worth the trade-off.'

I altered the flow of mana, still riding my previous chant and the currents of power the kids' storm was providing. I swirled the snow in front of my barrier, cooling and partially extinguishing the three fires. And when they hit my giant snowflake, I fed the cold from the snow behind me into it. The drift behind us melted, but the barrier appeared unchanged.

Sela's eyes flicked around, taking in how my mana manipulated the snow and cold with blatant awe. The Shinto magicians, on the other hand...

"What is this?"
"It didn't have any effect?"
"Is he really Human?"

"Rude," I grumbled. Then I glanced at Sela.

"Watch, and if you feel up to it, give me a hand, okay?" I told her, "Infriga et Forzare."

I began sliding the ice towards them. And as I did, I started to lean it forward. The magicians tried to blast it again. At least they switched up their elements, one trying wind, another lightning, and the third earth.

Sela caught on quickly, helping reinforce the snowflake, increasing its size a bit, and helping me tilt it towards them without letting it fall. She was a natural, which, I know, duh; but it also made me wonder why I was the one to teach her this. Where the techniques of Winter that much more advanced than this world's Yuki-onna? Had the safety and society of Shadow Kyoto diminished the Deruaren clan? Had Sela not been taught yet, or was her teacher just bad?

Thoughts for later.

With the sculpture passing the Pisa point, and their spells doing nothing, the exorcists broke and ran. I snapped my fingers and the barrier shattered back into regular snow as I let it fall.

"Stay close," I warned her again, this time more seriously, "We don't know how many of them there are, and we still need to find your Romeo."

"He's Rinosuke," she reminded me innocently. I remembered what Kendra had said to me yesterday and managed not to facepalm.

"Dresden!" Kendra shouted in my ear, "They have him! Four exorcists surrounding Rin. Two more moving to cut me off. Or they might think they can catch me."

At the end, her anxiety became a bit mocking.

"Hell's bells," I cursed. Then told Sela, "Sorry."

I was pretty sure she couldn't keep up, so I swept her into a princess carry and charged.

"What?" she shrieked.

"Sela and I just drove three exorcists out of the storm," I explained to both Kendra and the girl, "So be on the lookout. I'm bringing her out. Part of me wants to leave her here, but there might be others or the runners might circle back. And I'm not leaving her alone. We'll be clear in a moment."

"Copy."

Sela's struggles stopped. But she did look at me doubtfully, "Who are you talking to?"

"Takako," I didn't see any point in lying.

"You said you were working for the police," she accused.

"I am. They hired me first. Takako came here looking for you two, which was the same case, so we are working together. She didn't sound too happy when I offered to sic Yasaka on your family, but I'm sure she gets it. Her main concern is your safety. That's why she came to me. And based on what's happening right now, she was right. Period."

"I see," the girl mulled it over.

We finally reached the edge of the circular storm, which was easily the largest they had created so far. Forget covering a football field, this could have covered all of Soldier Field, including the parking lot. I set her down as quickly as I could without outright dropping her, and raised my blasting rod.

Rinosuke was no longer surrounded. He was captured, apparently unconscious. Two of the four magicians were carrying him to one of the SUVs. The other seven, now including our three playmates, were going after Kendra. They were succeeding in keeping her away from her brother. They were less successful in taking her out. But they were wearing her down.

She took one out. Another exorcist grabbed him, and dragged him toward their rides, staunching the flow of blood from his temple. A moment later, unfortunately, Rinosuke was stuffed into the grey SUV, and one captor started it. The other turned back to Kendra.

"Screw this," I growled. There were still no civilians around. I shifted my blasting rod to my left hand. And Second Amendment became a silenced .38 in my right.

Sela took a step away from me. And the exorcists who noticed, flinched. Fortunately for them, between Japan's gun laws, and the fact I wasn't sure how evil they were, I wasn't willing to shoot them yet. My moral and legal objections were somewhat fuzzier on the subject of tires.

I lined up and put a bullet through the front driver's side tire of the SUV holding Rinosuke. Or so I would like to say. My aim was fine, but the slug bounced off the damn tire. I tried the rear tire, and once again the rubber won. It was only then that I noticed the rims holding the tire were definitely non-standard. By which I mean it was a milled aluminum mandala. No, there was a second seal behind the first, and I could almost make out a third. Judging by the width of the tires, the rims had at least five different spell circles. I wasn't sure what the other four did, but the visible one was a defensive spell. On a hunch, my third shot was at the windshield, and hopefully the right shoulder of the driver. But the glass only lightly cracked.

I considered trying a heavier gun, but the driver of the car with the injured exorcist decided to engage in a bit of vehicular homicide, on my person and potentially the young girl I was protecting.

"Infriga!" I growled bringing my blasting rod up. I pulled snow out of the storm and formed it into a wall. Wisely, he spun the wheel. Only to change his target to Kendra.

"Laqueus!"

Three tendrils of Soulfire wrapped around the kunoichi's torso, and pulled her over to me.

"Get in!" the driver shouted at his comrades.

"The spirits?" one of them countered.

"Leave them."

They broke and ran. I fired off a Fuego, and Kendra threw a trio of ki-laced kunai. But the driver hit reverse and used his SUV as a shield.

"Infriga!"

I tried to shift the wall to block them. But without the extra power I borrowed from standing in the storm, four of them were able to blast it with a concentrated barrage of force spells. Tires squealing, the three vehicles vanished around the corner.

Kendra tried to give chase, but my cords were still holding her.

"Harry," she glared at me.

"No," I told her simply.

"What?"

"You might be able to keep up with an SUV," I told her, "But I'd be out of steam after a block or two at most. Then you'd be on your own. And you'd attract attention doing it."

"But they have Rin!"

"Yes," Sela agreed, "We have to save him."

"If you go after them alone, all that will happen is you'll get caught. There are eight of them, and that's assuming they haven't called for help. And they have a hostage."

Then more gently I told them, "They took him. They didn't kill him. They didn't try to kill you, Kendra. You know as well as I do that would have been easier for them. They want you alive for some reason. That means we have time. But not enough to go off half-cocked or argue."

She slumped at my logic.

"Then what do we do?" Kendra asked, looking more defeated than I had seen her.

"We get Sela someplace safe," I answered, "Probably Hyoudou house, if you aren't afraid they'll corrupt her. Then I do what you hired me to do."

I opened my coat to show her the two purified silk bags hanging inside. One white, and the grey one that had her brother's DNA and keepsakes.

"Then we figure out which of the Five Pompous Clans took your brother. We find them, give them a good thumping, and take him back."

Kendra smile fiercely and nodded.

Next: Beyond the Outer Gates Lies... Family Business?