Bazett was surprised when Lancer and Harry returned, relatively unharmed.
"You two alright?"
"Kid's good. He has a lot of prana for a wizard, and his sword skill isn't half bad either. Bazett, I hate to say this, but it might be a better idea for you to hide until the war is over. With your arm you're going to be more vulnerable than Harry here without his wand."
"No. I won't give up just because of my arm!" said Bazett heatedly. She wanted to give her hero a second chance.
"He's right. Besides, I have an idea about that. Since you can't fight and your prana is basically using itself up just to heal you, why not have me fight in your stead? Just tell me what it was you wanted from the Grail and I promise I'll do my best to get it for you," said Harry.
Bazett gave him a long look.
"How do I know you won't take it for yourself?"
"An unlimited wish is nice, but the only thing I would ask of it would be to kill the bastard who ruined my life, and I could do that myself. Besides, I never go back on my word. Plus you can keep an eye on Hedwig for me and insure she doesn't get taken hostage by one of the other masters."
Bazett looked at Harry, really looked at him. If she did what he was suggesting, then she wouldn't have a stake in the war at all. But...she could give him two magic crests and keep the last one as a back up just in case.
"Fine...I'll give you a second crest, but I'm keeping the last as a just in case scenario, okay?"
"I can live with that. In the meantime we need to find a way to hide you. That blond bastard will kill you if he finds you."
Bazett couldn't believe Harry had the infamous Cloak of Death. According to him he inherited from his parents. At the very least, it did the job they needed. She was effectively hidden under the cloak from any Servants in the area.
It took him three days and a few near misses, but eventually he found a Master who didn't want to kill all the others in order to win. Emiya Shirou was a nice person. And he was more than understanding when he heard of Harry's plight.
At the very least, he didn't order Saber to kill him when he approached the boy in his own home, unarmed. Considering his Command Seals were in full view that was more than could be said about other masters.
"Shirou, I don't agree with allowing Lancer's Master in your home. At the very least you should have killed him," said Saber.
"Ano... Harry isn't Lancer's actual master. He's just the surrogate since the real one was too badly injured."
Saber blinked. That was...extremely odd. She would have to investigate this, because Masters don't willingly give up their position or command seals without good reason.
Shiro heard a knock at the door, and opened it. There was the Master from earlier named 'Hari', though why he had a such a girly name he had no idea. Behind him was Lancer, keeping a sharp eye out for other Servants.
"So where is this person you wanted to hide?"
"Bazett, you can take the cloak off now."
A young woman with short red hair and earrings that looked identical to Lancer's appeared from under a piece of cloth. She was giving Saber a calculating look, but when the Servant didn't attack she did nothing.
"She looks fine to me," Saber said tartly.
"She would, after being forced to drink nearly fifty healing potions and undergoing several spells to heal her after six hours of surgery to reattach the arm that had the command seals," said Harry crossly back. Saber winced.
"What happened?" asked Shirou.
"After I summoned Lancer I was stabbed in the back by that fake priest in charge of the Grail Wars. Kotomine damn near killed me just to gain control of Lancer. If Harry hadn't stumbled on me in that shed, I would have died from blood loss alone. I still have no idea how the hell his owl broke whatever hold Kotomine had on Lancer."
Saber stared at Harry. He stared right back. He wasn't going to back down, even if every instinct in his mind screamed for him to bow.
Shirou helped Bazett into the dining room. There she stiffened if only because there was another Master and Servant there. Harry blinked, but stood closer to Bazett as a precaution. His wand was ready for action should the need arise.
"And here I thought Shirou was having me on. Why would a Master need shelter from the War? Shouldn't you be seeking sanctuary at the Church?" asked the girl.
"Considering it was the one who was supposed to be supervising this entire thing that sent her into a near death state and stole her Servant originally...?" Harry left hanging. The girl winced, but she didn't try to disprove him.
She knew Kotomine, but she had no idea he would try to work around the Grail system.
"If you're the true Master of Lancer, then who is he?" asked the girl.
"You want the short story or the long one?" he quipped.
"Long, if you don't mind."
"I was taking a walk, Lancer spotted me and I'm assuming noticed the fact I had magic and started chasing me around in order to kill me. Fortunately for me I'm used to running long distances. During the mild fight we had, I fell into the shed Bazett here was trying to hide in while her healing spells kept her alive. If I hadn't fallen in, she would be dead. My familiar, an owl named Hedwig, managed to break whatever spell this Kotomine used to bind Lancer to him. While we were at the hospital, Bazett gave me one of her Command Seals in order to fool the other Masters as a precaution. Unfortunately we ran into what Lancer said was Archer, a man with gold hair and armor that used a lot of weapons I didn't recognize and a few I did. We managed to force a draw, but we needed to hide Bazett since she wouldn't be able to fight for the remainder of the war," said Harry simply.
The girl stiffened.
"Are you absolutely certain it was Archer?"
"That's what Lancer told me. He certainly didn't act like an Assassin, he didn't have anything to ride, didn't use spells, he was sane, and Lancer was beside me."
"But that's impossible!" she said.
"Why?"
"Because the Archer of this war is right here!"
A man came into view, wearing a red coat and black armor. His skin was very tan and his hair was completely white. Harry blinked.
"Wait, if that's Archer and Saber is right there, then how..."
"It's possible that there are two Archers. However the amount of prana needed for the one you encountered to remain here this long after the last disastrous Grail War ended..." said Bazett reluctantly.
The girl shifted uncomfortably.
"I know who his previous Master is. However Kotomine's Servant was killed in the last war. What I want to know is how he got his hands on my Father's Servant!"
Harry looked at her.
"Your father?"
"My father was killed during the last Grail War. The only reason I'm in this is to regain the glory of my family. However this War is already costing me too much and I'm not certain I would be able to fight my usual way."
"Hmm...How exactly do you fight?"
"I'm not about to tell you," she snapped.
"You tell me your way and I'll show you mine. Not like those fools back in England can track me all the way here."
The girl gave him an odd look before placing a single gem on the table. Harry lay his holly and phoenix feather wand on the table.
"Wizard?"
"Harry James Potter, at your service," he said with a mock bow.
The girl gaped openly.
"Well, if we're doing introductions... My name is Emiya Shiro, Master of Saber," said the red head who allowed them in.
"Bazett Fragerach, the True Master of Lancer."
"Well you already know who I am. I'm the replacement Master for Lancer acting on Bazett's behalf. I'm also a wizard from England who managed to escape his rather unpleasant relatives and could care less about being in the middle of another war," quipped Harry. A hoot drew his attention, and he raised his hand for his owl to land on.
"This is Hedwig, my owl. Insult her at your own risk, she's got a mean back wing."
"Back wing?" asked Archer.
Hedwig decided to use her wing to back slap the man in red.
"Never mind."
"Rin Tohsaka, Master of Archer," said the girl primly.
"Well now that that's out of the way, anyone in the mood for dinner? Archer and Lancer might have to hide, but I think I can spin a tale that Taiga will believe," said Shiro. He didn't look hopeful though.
Harry eyed Shiro.
"You're like me, right? Always willing to lend a hand to people who need it and never asking for anything in return?" he asked speculatively. Judging by the snorts from Rin, Saber and Archer, he hit the nail on the head.
"What about it?"
"Tell her a half truth. Bazett here was attacked by some whacko on the streets and you offered to let her stay until the man's caught or her family can get a hold of her to send her money to bring her home. I can act as her cousin or nephew, since my mother was a red head and a color charm wouldn't be that hard to do. Lancer can be her boyfriend since he and Bazett speak with an Irish accent (he ignored the blush from Bazett and the snort from Lancer). Archer here can be Rin's escort since no family would allow a young lady to wander the streets at night with all the attacks going on."
Rin blinked. With Shiro's personality it was a viable lie. And it explained why they were all in Shiro's house.
"And what exactly would he get out of this?"
"Well I could let him use my old spell books, since he is a magus...and I can give you jewels to work with since I don't have any better use for them," said Harry.
Rin looked at Shirou speculatively. It was true he made a half-assed Magus at best...but, he could make a decent wizard if given a chance. The two branches weren't that dissimilar.
"I still don't see how this would benefit us," said Saber.
"You don't know recent history," said Rin back.
Seeing all eyes on her, aside from a resigned looking Harry, she continued.
"Harry James Potter, son of the Pure Blood Magical James Potter and the mundane born Lily Evans, is the only known survivor of the wizard spell known only as the Killing Curse. Anyone who uses it gets and immediate sentence to the magical prison Azkaban, which is full of the most foul creatures imaginable. He is also the one who took out the menace known as Voldemort in Europe, and is hailed as the Boy-Who-Lived because at the ripe old age of one he survived an attack from one of the most powerful Dark Wizards in recent years."
Harry rolled his eyes.
"Well at least it doesn't sound like hero worship. I hate that. But you're missing a few facts," said Harry.
"Voldemort, formerly the wizard known as Tom Marvolo Riddle, is someone who drove a good portion of the pure blood wizard community into a frenzy by spouting a load of tripe about Pure Blood supremacy over those not from old magical lines. He terrorized Europe for several decades before he targeted me for some reason, and his spell backfired destroying his body. He continued to come after me for four years until two months ago he succeeded in getting a new body...which by the way looks so damn cliché it's tacky. I came here because someone who works for a place called Clock Tower paid for my Aunt's family to come to Fuyuki city, though why they did that when it's based in London I haven't a clue."
Rin's eyes bugged out.
"CLOCK TOWER BROUGHT YOU HERE?!" she nearly shrieked. Harry, from long experience of dealing with Hermione when she was emotional, covered his ears in time.
The others weren't so lucky.
"Yes, and I had to pay the goblins thirty galleons for a new passport and vaccinations before coming."
"I don't believe this...Clock Tower sponsored a trip for you during the Grail War? They had to have known that there was a high chance you would be drawn in... It's been going on for a week now..."
"...Did I break her or something?"
Shirou blinked.
"This is actually the most quiet I've ever heard her being since I've actually gotten to know her..." said Shirou. Archer nodded emphatically.
Too bad for the Servant his Master heard the comment and noticed the motion, because she jabbed him in the stomach hard enough for him to start coughing.
Fujimura Taiga about barged into Shirou's home, and Harry quickly cast the color charm on his hair, turning it nearly the exact same shade as Bazett's.
Lancer blinked. With that hair color he could easily pass as her younger brother.
Once Shirou explained the lie Harry had concocted, and the fact Bazett really was injured badly it was enough to get the woman to back off. Apparently Shirou did have a bit of a hero complex, and when Harry assisted with dinner she had no complaints.
Harry was heading to the kitchen when he heard the thump in the general direction of the bath. Apparently he was only one to hear it, as he was the one to see Bazett on the ground with a nosebleed.
"Anyone decent?" he called out.
"Not at the moment...damn, didn't expect her to faint..." said Lancer from the bathroom.
"...What the hell were you doing?" he asked.
"Taking a bath. She forgot to knock."
Harry blinked.
"So she passed out from a nosebleed from seeing you starkers? That is... PERFECT BLACKMAIL MATERIAL!" declared Harry with a grin. He took out a small camera he had bought when he heard they were going to Japan and took a picture.
Lancer, when he heard that, laughed.
"Close the door will ya?"
Harry walked past the bathroom, closed the door without looking, and dragged Bazett to the room Shirou had given her and Lancer.
By common agreement, Lancer would share a double room with Bazett while Harry had the room across the hall. Rin and Archer had another room down the same hall.
Later during dinner, when Lancer asked if she had gotten a good enough look she would blush bright red, causing both boys to laugh hard.