CHAPTER 7:

THE PRINCESS AND THE POTTER

Rimuru, thankfully, recovered fairly quickly, though he too was astonished by the changes. And Harry was astonished at how swiftly the sextet of Ogres were integrated into the village. Though technically, they weren't Ogres anymore, but rather, Kijin, a form of evolved Ogre.

Interestingly, they may have been given their Japanese-like culture four centuries ago by yet another Japanese Otherworlder, one who was Hakurou's grandfather and mentor. Benimaru and Hakurou were very much like samurai, while Souei seemed to be like a shinobi or ninja. Rimuru identified Shuna's outfit as being close to that of a shrine maiden or miko, a priestess in other words.

The next day, Harry was repairing the loom in Garm's workshop with a Reparo. Garm did the actual tailoring, whereas his brother Dord did the dyeing and the like. "Handy spell, isn't it?" Garm noted.

Harry nodded, only to turn and find Shuna looking on from the door in curiosity. "Can we help you?"

"Oh! Yes, actually. Lord Rimuru spoke to us about you last night, why a human was present here. You're an Otherworlder, like Hakurou's grandfather, right?"

"Yeah, though I'm from a place called Britain, whereas Rimuru reckons that Hakurou's grandfather comes from Japan, which is on the other side of the world…my world, anyway."

Shuna nodded, walking in. "I was actually curious, because you're a mage from that world, and can use a different type of magic to us." She tapped her face near her eyes. "When Lord Rimuru Named us, we gained new skills. I can use Analysis. Lord Rimuru said it is not dissimilar to one of his Unique Skills, Great Sage, though I have a few advantages over his version. I was Analysing the spell you used to repair the loom. I'm…sorry if I was intruding."

She looked so embarrassed, and any annoyance at being spied upon was smothered by Harry's amusement at that embarrassment. She was a bit like Ginny, albeit with less shyness and hero-worship. "No, it's fine. Do you know magic yourself?"

Shuna nodded, stepping into the building proper. "I was secluded somewhat. While we had a martial culture, I am closer to a form of royalty in the hierarchy, and I am also a trained shamaness, or a priestess. I am not much of a physical combatant, at least compared to the others, but I am a highly-skilled mage. They lauded me as a bit of a prodigy, to be honest." She chuckled sheepishly. "It's a little embarrassing, really."

"No, no, it's all right. I know a little of what it's like. I was famous back home…well, amongst the wizards and witches, anyway," Harry said, before his face fell. "I also know that fame is pretty fickle. Did you come to talk to me or see my magic?"

"No, actually. I'm actually well-versed in textiles and dyeing, and Lord Rimuru pointed me to this place," Shuna said. "I mean, if Master Garm and Master Dord are willing to allow me to help?"

"Of course, girl! We'd welcome the help! You might be able to teach us a few tricks!" Garm said. "I tend to specialise more in battle gear, but maybe you can concentrate on more mundane clothing?"

Shuna nodded. "I believe we can even get silk clothing. I've spoken with Souei about getting Hellmoths for silk. You're already using leather, flax and cotton, I noticed."

Soon, she was bouncing ideas off the two Dwarf brothers. Harry didn't understand much of it, but he was impressed that she knew so much about textiles, enough that the Dwarf tailors were impressed. After a while, he cleared his throat. "I'll be going, okay?"

"Umm, Harry?" Shuna asked. "If it's not too much trouble…can you show me more of your world's magic later? Maybe when lunchtime comes round?"

"…Okay," Harry said, but he could tell she noticed his hesitation and his tone, given the way her lips pursed.

As he left Garm's workshop, he was halted by a voice. "You'd best be careful around Lady Shuna."

Harry turned to find Souei near the door, the dark-skinned Kijin's gaze boring into him. "I'm not stupid. She's clearly someone dear to you guys. Besides, she's an Ogre…well, a Kijin now like the rest of you. She's probably more powerful than I am, physically and magically. If I tried anything stupid, they'd probably never find my body."

Souei nodded. "That is partly what I meant, but there is more. As she said, she was secluded away, due to her being precious to us. But a result of that is that she has a strong curiosity. It's understated, but all the more insatiable for it. And her brother is very protective. Lord Rimuru told us that your past was a painful one, and that your magic is something of a sore point at times. Kindly do not lash out if she touches a nerve. As you know, we too have suffered recently, the deaths of comrades, friends…and loved ones. And while we have mourned during our flight, our own wounds on our souls are still fresh. Master Hakurou was right, though. You see us as potential threats, true, but you still see us as people regardless. That is heartening. More than a few humans are not so kind."

"…Thanks, I guess. And I'll try not to be too snippy with Shuna."

Souei nodded in acknowledgement. "Good. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have Hellmoth cocoons to deliver…"

Harry spent the rest of the morning watching Hakurou sparring with some of the Hobgoblins, ready to repair their weapons if need be. Watching him fight, even in a spar, had Harry resolve not to get on the older Kijin's bad side. He might have to join those sparring sessions himself soon. As powerful as his magic was, Rimuru himself pointed out that it was better not to be a one-trick pony.

As Hakurou finished the morning's training, he had Harry follow him. "Lord Rimuru tells me you're an Otherworlder, one of four summoned by Falmuth."

"Yeah. I would've been more grateful, I was in prison at the time for a murder I didn't commit, but they pretty much enslaved me. That, plus the Unique Skill I had…well, it wasn't a good time."

"And the other Otherworlders?"

"Were arses of the highest order. Don't get me wrong, I understand hating being kidnapped and forced to obey the will of that bastard Razen, but they turned on me, bullied me. Probably because I was the odd one out, being English, not Japanese."

"Ah, yes. I believe my grandfather was from Japan, albeit from a time long before yours," Hakuro said. "I have never heard of this 'England' or 'Britain' your people come from, though I believe my grandfather spoke of Westerners, particularly the Portuguese. To overcome adversity is a welcome trial, but to bully the vulnerable is simple cruelty. My grandfather and his comrades instilled in us codes of honour we still follow to this day. I believe Lord Rimuru identified it as 'bushido', or at least an evolution thereof. Though I find myself curious, were any of the Otherworlders swordfighters?"

Harry frowned, trying to recall anything he knew about those bastards. Eventually, he said, "Kyoya Tachibana did use a sword, in conjunction with a Unique Skill that was basically a more powerful version of standard Thought Acceleration, I think. He was the nastiest of the lot, pretending to be polite and all, but he just hid his nastiness better than the other two. I get the feeling he'd do anything to win a fight. I do remember seeing him fight a condemned criminal as a demonstration of his power, though. He tormented the man, although his victim was a rapist, so I can't feel too sorry for him. Kyoya's got skills, I'll give him that, and he was facing an armed opponent. But he's a nasty piece of work. I get the feeling he'd do the same to anyone he fights."

Hakurou harrumphed. "Pragmatism has its place in warfare. But one does not use power to dominate the weak and the vulnerable for the sake of domination. Power is for stewardship and protection, not for cruelty." A smile touched his lips. "Actually, Lady Shuna was asking Lord Rimuru questions about you before."

"Oh?"

"Don't be so surprised. Lady Shuna was secluded, and she has a keen intellect. That has given her a great curiosity. In addition, you're a boy about her age, a human, and from another world to boot, as well as a mage."

"If this is to warn me not to hurt her, Souei's already given me that spiel already. Plus, I know better than to piss off a Kijin princess who probably has more raw physical and magical power than I do."

"Ah, young Souei has warned you, eh? Well, that's fine, but that's not the full reason why I wished to bring up this subject. Lord Rimuru has spoken to us a little of your suffering, of your plight, of the curse that plagues you. I, for one, wish to help, and Lady Shuna wishes to as well. So…let her become your friend. Be tolerant of her curiosity, Harry. She had few friends her age back home due to her station, and those were slain by the Orcs. Don't speak to her solely of the dark moments of your life. Instead, speak of the times when you were happy as well."

"…I'll try. But would I have to worry about an overprotective big brother? I got the impression Benimaru was like that."

"As long as you don't cross a line with her, he'll tolerate you. I'll see to that," Hakurou said. "The young master listens to my counsel. Most of the time, anyway…"

Those weren't reassuring words, but Harry joined Shuna for lunch, though Benimaru also came along, as did Hakurou and Shion. Benimaru looked wary, but only in the way someone protective of their siblings would, Harry guessed. There was no real rancour. As they ate lunch, Shion said, "Lord Rimuru has designated me as his…secretary, I believe he called it. In other words, I manage his time and appointments. And if anyone belligerent gets too close to him…I whack them."

"What place do you have here, specifically, Harry?" Benimaru asked.

"…I'm not sure yet. I'm still trying to find it," Harry said. "I mean, aside from being Rimuru's friend and, well, stepson. My Repair spells at least mean that, if something's broken, I can fix it a lot of the time. I'm also a decent cook, and I have some domestic skills in general. But that's about it. Rimuru's far better than me in combat ability, to say nothing of you guys. Compared to you lot, I'm just a relatively normal teenager with magic. And half my conceptions about the monsters of this world are wrong. I mean, the Goblins, well, Hobgoblins are decent people, and, well, when I think Ogres, I think mindless brutes. You guys have an actual culture. Besides…I've been cursed with a particularly nasty Unique Skill, one I'm finding hard to control."

Benimaru scoffed. "And yet, Rigurd was singing your praises, saying you helped stop Ifrit when it went on the rampage. Even fighting a delaying action is worthwhile. You may be no warrior or fighter, but you're not afraid to fight if necessary."

"I was a berserker, Benimaru, not a fighter. Ifrit nearly burned me to death, and when Rimuru healed me, I was pissed off. I lost control, and if it weren't for sheer bloody luck, I could have killed bystanders, or wiped out part or all of this village."

"And? You at least recognise your shortcomings, instead of boasting about your feats," Hakurou said. "For someone with your fame back home, you are rather humble, or at least self-reflective and self-aware. And Lord Rimuru told me you have another Unique Skill, one that grants you similar abilities to his. A versatile mage is a better one than a specialist, most of the time, and you also have spells not native to this world. Raw power is not everything. Take it from someone who has three centuries of experience."

"…You're three centuries old?" Harry asked. "Wow, you're older than Dumbledore."

"Oh, I'm an outlier for my kind. Ogres have an average lifespan of a century, though as Kijin…well, never mind that. I feel like eating."

As they ate, Benimaru said, "So, Shuna, how's progress with the textiles?"

"Rather well, thank you, brother," Shuna said. "I'm learning as much from Garm and Dord as they are from me. We should have silk clothing before long, both as everyday wear and battle outfits."

"Silk in a battle outfit?" Harry asked.

"You'd be surprised at how strong silk is, and Hellmoth silk is particularly strong," Shuna said. "It can also be enchanted to enhance its durability and resist staining."

"Hmm. Actually, I do know a cleaning spell. Doesn't get everything off, but it helps. Maybe it could help with keeping swords clean. Kaijin said something about ensuring blood doesn't remain on a sword or something like that. Dunno about rust or anything, and I'm not sure how good it'd be for upkeep on a sword. I've only used a sword once, really."

"Really?" Benimaru asked. "On what?"

"A Basilisk. Huge snake, petrifying gaze if you see its eyes indirectly, otherwise, it's lethal. So's the venom. I killed it, but I only survived the venom because of a Phoenix," Harry said with a shrug. "Yet another stupid thing I did."

"How old were you?" Hakurou asked.

"Twelve, nearly thirteen. I was saving the life of my friend's sister. Like I said, another stupid thing I did. I survived from sheer luck."

"Luck is sometimes all you need, but it's often fickle," Hakurou pointed out. Then he muttered quietly, "Though maybe a Phoenix would be handy the next time Shion decides to cook."

"What was that?" Shion asked sharply.

"Nothing," Hakurou said hastily.

Harry was sure there was a story there, but he decided not to press. "Actually, I'll tell you one story that was less about luck, and more about my power. Long story short, I had to save my godfather and one of my friends, not to mention myself, from a bunch of soul-sucking demons, ones that make you relive your traumas. Time-travel was involved. And I finally managed to use properly a spell even adult wizards have trouble with: the Patronus. A guardian against those demons."

He was then struck by an idea. He hadn't even tried to cast the Patronus while on this world. He was too depressed to even try to think of a happy memory. Hell, it was probably a mistake to even try now. And yet, he wanted to illustrate his story. He wanted to show Shuna, not to mention the other Kijin, what he was capable of. So he got up from the table, and pointed his hand at the sky. He couldn't use a wand, what with his old one being snapped, and he wasn't sure if he could use something as a substitute. He'd gotten used to wandless casting, albeit with difficulty, but he wasn't sure if he could do it.

But in the end, not all of his memories of Magical Britain were unhappy. It just had an unhappy ending. He forced himself to think of as many good times as he could, with Ron, with Hermione, with Sirius and Remus, and, of course, that time when he took his new Firebolt out for a spin.

There was no Dementor, no Boggart masquerading as one. All that was in the way was his own personal demons. They could not be trivialised or overcome easily, but maybe he could just this once, do it for the enjoyment of these Kijin.

So, he looked to the sky, focused on his good memories, and roared, "EXPECTO PATRONUM!"

A fountain of white light blasted from his hand. And rushing from the blast was a familiar antlered form, that cantered around, coming to the ground, and approaching them. He couldn't help but laugh, a brayed cracked thing of sheer disbelief that he managed to pull it off.

Shuna's eyes lit up at the sight of the spectral stag, and even Benimaru, Hakurou, and Shion looked impressed. "…He's beautiful," Shuna murmured.

Harry nodded. It would still be a long time before he could get over his self-loathing. But this was yet another important step in the process. If nothing else, not all of magic was something to be loathed…

CHAPTER 7 ANNOTATIONS:

So, here we have it, the beginnings of the pairing. I was trying to figure out how to get it going, before I realised, Shuna was hinted to have been somewhat secluded in the Ogre village. For someone as intelligent as she is, I would imagine she therefore has a strong curiosity. She'd basically be like a less bossy and more demure Hermione.

Honestly, determining a pairing for Harry in this story was a touch tricky, as mentioned in my reply to Jurassik-master's review back in Chapter 5. Souka was one possibility, but her age was tricky to pin down, and besides, there's her canon relationship with Souei. I actually gave serious thought to Hinata, albeit a Hinata who got a hint, but that would be for an older Harry, as would Frey. Elen hasn't quite grabbed me, and neither has Treyni.

People are no doubt wondering, why not Shion? Because Shion is a bimbo. To be fair, she's very beautiful, and a capable fighter, and a decent person. But she is, bluntly, an airheaded idiot who can't cook a meal if her life depended on it, and who has an impulse control issue when it comes to people insulting Rimuru, agreeing to things on his behalf without waiting for his input. In other words, she's a fucking idiot.

Review-answering time! Wall1114: The second season goes through some pretty dark shit, but it still retains the charm of the series. I actually grappled with how Harry handles a certain scene (defined by one word: Megiddo), until I read the fifth volume of the novels the anime was based on. So that helped resolve matters.

Sparda B-312: I wasn't going to give him a cane, but now that you said not to…what about the Threaded Cane from Bloodborne? How about a variation of that?

ImHateful: No, I do not have a Discord, and this matter is over. Do not press the issue.

No numbered annotations this time.