"I don't like this."
The girls looked at the extremely agitated Inner Moka with concern. They were currently gathered around the bed of Bloodriver Akasha. She had been stripped and clothed in better garments and laid down. She was still unconscious.
"What don't you like?" Kurumu asked. "Your mother being alive, Harry being gone…?"
"Everything! Harry, mother… I hate not being able to feel Outer Moka. I've never been this long without my rosary."
Kurumu wrapped an arm around Moka. A potentially deadly move considering Moka was likely to toss her out the window.
But it just went to show how bad Moka was feeling as she didn't respond at all.
The room was suddenly filled with the smell of burning and sea salt.
Standing behind them was a bedraggled Harry. He looked like he had been put through a tumble-dryer.
Ruby and Mizore were instantly by his side.
"Mako, fetch water for drinking and clean clothes." Ririko ordered. "We will take Harry and get him washed."
Harry didn't put up even an ounce of fuss.
It was unusual for everyone to be in the bath at once. But for today, no one objected to Moka's herbs and Ruby had cast a barrier around a section of the water for Mizore.
"What happened, Harry?" Shizuka asked as she sat opposite. She desperately wanted to hug him, but as she was going into heat it would inevitably lead to other things.
"He refused to listen." Harry shrugged as he stared at the water. "You can watch my memories later, but, I dropped him in the subterranean lava lake.
"There was nothing left to regenerate."
"What if he becomes a wraith like Riddle?" Keito asked.
"Then he goes in an orb, like Riddle." Harry smirked.
"He can be one of those Pokémon!" Yukari giggled.
"What's a 'Pokémon'?" Ririko asked.
"It's a new computer game Keiko told me about. She wants to show it to me over the holidays. She sent me the manual for her game."
"And it involves monsters in balls?" Mizore frowned.
"Yep!"
Mizore turned to Kurumu with a serious expression. "These people have stolen our ideas. We need to stop them."
"Is she being serious?" Shizuka whispered to Ririko.
"Does it matter?" Ririko sighed as she raised her arms and stretched. "She wouldn't know where to find them anyway."
There was a splash and a squeak as she over stretched, lost her grip and slipped under the water. She emerged looking liked she'd been dragged out of a lake by her feet.
"Is this Fairy Tale crap done with?" Keito asked.
"The major players are dead or in custody."
"Lingling!" Harry's hands shot to his crotch as the girl floated in, utterly naked.
"Oh good, you recognised me." She beamed.
"We're naked in here!"
"Harry, don't be purposefully obtuse." Ririko scolded. "The girl wants in the harem. She obviously cares about you. She gets on better with us now she isn't trying to steal you.
"We know you find her attractive, so…" She grabbed the girl by the arm and pushed her on to Harry's lap.
Harry blushed as Lingling wiggled in his lap as she tried to get more body contact.
"Her father has been in talks with my father." Moka said. "They are discussing an arranged marriage."
"Arranged?" Harry frowned.
"It is just a formality." Lingling shrugged as she put her arms around his neck. "The marriage is ours, the arrangement is simply the formalising of alliances."
"This isn't a ploy to get me in your family?"
Lingling laughed. "Of course not! It is a ploy to get me in yours."
It was the same evening and Harry and Moka were standing over the sleeping form of Bloodriver Akasha. Touhou was the only other person in the room and he was observing silently from the corner.
Harry held his hand out to Moka. In it was the silver rosary.
Moka shook her head. "You should do it. You are the one who handled the rosary. I only ever wore it."
Harry didn't respond, he just placed the rosary on the sleeping woman's chest.
The rosary glowed as it sank into Akasha's body.
Touhou stepped forward. He made some arcane gestures before nodding to the teens and leaving them.
The teens were transfixed by the stirring Akasha.
"Wake up sleepy head." Moka prodded her impatiently.
"Five more minutes, Moka." Akasha groaned sleepily. Then her eyes shot open, she looked between the two people beside her bed.
"Moka? You're out? I'm out! Wait… I'm awake… I- I should be asleep… no… yes?"
"Do you remember your name?" Harry asked gently.
"Of course, Harry, I'm Akasha Moka. No… I'm Bloodriver Moka." She sat up and began to rub her temples. "I have two personalities… I think. I remember things I shouldn't. I'm my own daughter… and my own mother!"
Harry pulled her hands away from her head. "Here, drink." He said as he pulled her mouth to his neck.
Moka popped the top of a Blood Replenisher potion.
Akasha drank so heavily that Moka retrieved a second potion. But Akasha was looking better, she was nearly glowing. But still confused and upset.
"I don't know who I am." She said miserably. "I'm two people. One should be dead and the other shouldn't exist."
"You've been gone too long for me to call you 'mother'." Moka squeezed her hand. "But you were so close to me all these years that I still think of you as 'sister'.
"But you'll have to use 'Akasha'. Moka is mine." She smirked.
Akasha gave her a forced, if genuine smile. She looked at Harry. "I guess this is it for us."
Harry frowned.
"What? Why?" Moka demanded.
"I won't get in the way of your relationship with Harry-chan." Akasha said firmly.
"Don't be an idiot M- Akasha. Harry loved you since the day you first met. And I know you loved him. If it wasn't for his stupid streak of nobility, he would have left Kurumu to die and stayed with only you."
"Polygamy isn't really for me. Oh… Issa! This is such a mess."
"What's the big deal." Harry said sullenly. "Just tell him he is now the lucky member of a harem."
"You are not sharing out those girls like party favours." Akasha scolded.
"Harry has been saying that he is the harem." Moka glared at him. "A mutilation of the definition worse than modern culture's, but Ririko said it best. Harry is the sex toy we pass around."
"How the hell is that 'saying it best'?" Harry demanded. "Screw this! I'll see you later. Someone needs a lesson."
Harry made to stand but was pulled back down by both Moka and Akasha.
Before they headed back to Japan, they had to deal with one last issue.
Shuzen Akua.
The girl was sitting in a magically secured room at the Huang Compound courtesy of Touhou and the Sendos.
Harry, Akasha, Touhou and Fei-Hong were present.
"Why did you try and break into our home?" Fei-Hong demanded.
"He lied to me!" She pointed at Harry angrily. "He said I could visit Moka."
"How was that a lie?" Harry asked, not sure he was going to appreciate the answer.
"Well I'm sitting here, aren't I? I came to see my little sister!"
"You broke into our home… to visit your sister?" Touhou was amused.
Harry was not. "Are you that dumb?" He demanded irritably. "All you had to do was knock on the bloody front door!"
"I did knock!"
"Knocking down the front gates and storming in is not what-"
"Harry-chan, relax." Akasha said as she tried to be stern. She couldn't help the giggles. "Akua, I'm sure Huang-san won't mind if you want to visit. But please knock like a civilised person in future."
"Huang-san, would you mind if I put a ward on your home so that if a vampire tries to break something, they get drenched in water?" He asked the Head of the Family with a bow.
Fei-Hong was clearly enjoying this as much as his Great-Grandfather and Akasha. "I see no issues with that. Might I ask that you make it include young children as well?"
"Huh?"
"It has been a long time since Fangfang was a small boy. Even longer since Lingling was a little girl. But I remember having to fix or replace many expensive items… that no one would admit to breaking."
"But… they're grown up now."
"And, if my wife and I are so lucky, our home will frequently house the many grandchildren you will give us."
So many questions and retorts went through Harry's mind.
Touhou had begun to fade. He had spent much of his remaining energy fighting Alucard and his time was coming to an end.
That was until Harry dragged Akasha into the Yasha's room one night and had her turn him in his sleep.
The main reason he did this was because he could see the pain in the Huang family's eyes. Harry wasn't going to let them suffer like he did.
Touhou had been quite indignant about being turned without his consent. He had started to have a go at Harry and Akasha until Harry had literally picked up a shocked Lingling and planted her in front of the old man.
"You've got complaints about involuntary immortality? Tell it to her." Harry said pointedly.
Lingling caught on quick and simply looked up at her Great Great Grandfather innocently.
Touhou had shuffled off in a huff.
They were finally back at Yōkai Academy. Harry had insisted on taking the bus. He was not sitting on a plane for five hours. Again.
"Potter-san, welcome back." Fushimi bowed as Harry entered his office. "I hear things went well in China."
"I was attacked multiple times. I had to save most of the world from a genocidal lunatic. There was property damage that only five students' families could hope to cover the cost of.
"If that is what you think 'went well' is, then I dread to ask what happened here."
Fushimi tried valiantly not to smirk. "I believe, using the same scale, things went practically perfectly here."
"No attempted murders?"
"No."
"No property damage that saw parts of the school closed?"
"No."
"No one admitted to the nurse due to grievous injuries?"
"N-… Does food poisoning count?"
"No."
"Then no."
"Food poisoning?"
"Soon after you left the Chairman found a teacher for Home Economics. She is currently on probation." Fushimi explained.
"Not fired?"
"Shuzen-sama felt she was not being malicious, simply… over enthusiastic."
"Shuzen?" Harry gulped. "Which one?"
"Shuzen Issa. Is he a problem?"
Harry breathed a sigh of relief. "Him, not really. His wife was trying to kill Moka, his eldest daughter was trying to kill anyone who would keep Moka away from her, and his second eldest… "
"I have seen Kahlua-san around campus." Fushimi saved Harry from having to insult his future sister-in-law.
News of Fairy Tale's demise was not covered up. In fact, it was on the front page of the school newspaper even before they had returned.
Harry had threatened Hermione with multiple detentions if she ever pushed herself like that again. But she hadn't cared. She was too relieved that Harry and the others were back safe and sound.
At the moment he was once again in the Chairman's office. It was a bit more crowded with Shuzen Issa, Bloodriver Akasha and Fuhai Touhou there as well.
Relaxing on the couch behind them was the Bus Driver.
"The Floating Garden has been successfully landed on the ocean bed." Mikogami Tenmei informed them. "I have sent word to the sea bound Yōkai of its existence and a warning not to approach it."
"Is it dangerous?" Akasha asked from where she was sitting next to Harry, unconsciously holding his hand.
"No, but I felt it would be a suitable prison for powerful criminals. Even I would have trouble escaping those depths."
"What happened to the monsters that worked for Fairy Tale?" Harry asked.
"Killed." Touhou said firmly. "Let the memory of Fairy Tale rot in the annals of history."
"Even those not on the Floating Garden?" Harry pressed.
"We attacked the various holdings around the country." Tenmei said. "We are sure to have missed some."
"Our priority now is finding the rest of Alucard's clone eggs" Touhou set the topic. "It is unlikely that they would pose as big a threat as Alucard himself, but they are still a danger."
"My agents are scouring their records of all the places they officially visited." Tenmei assured them. "I have also spoken with Issa's eldest daughters for more information.
"This will be a long campaign to eradicate Alucard's intentions."
"Is this something I need to be involved with, or can I go back to being a student?" Harry asked.
"Your involvement will likely only be in the final execution of certain plans that may arise. I will also be summoning you to briefings, both before and after certain events.
"Harry-chan, I have not stated this blatantly, but I shall do so now. I intend for you to be my successor."
"Successor? Are you leaving?"
"It won't be for years, kid." The Bus Driver spoke up. "If Tenmei decides to travel, he'll give us plenty of warning. I can hold down the fort till you're up to scratch."
"When you say 'successor', do you mean for your position as Headmaster?" Harry asked worriedly.
"For starters." Tenmei smirked.
That did not sound appealing to Harry. Not after his past few years as a student. It wasn't that he hated the school, he just knew how bad things could be, after all…
"So basically, I'll get paid to do what I'm doing now."
"I do not get paid, Harry-chan."
Harry's grumbling was interrupted by the phone on the Chairman's desk ringing.
There was a terse, mono-syllabic conversation on the Chairman's part before he slammed the phone down.
"That was the representative of the Japanese Magical Government. Apparently the ICW have sent people to investigate what happened over Tokyo."
"What's to investigate?" Touhou frowned. "It was a Yōkai matter."
"That is not what irritates me. They have sent Dumbledore Albus as one of the representatives."
"Bugger me." Harry groaned.
"They on their way?" The Bus Driver asked.
The Chairman grinned darkly. "Apparently Dumbledore wants to meet on 'neutral' territory."
Harry had tried to slip away from the meeting by citing he needed to get started on his homework. Issa had grabbed him by the back of his blazer.
Neutral territory turned out to be the same place Moka had set up the meeting with Sirius in their first year, Kanda River.
"Toji-san, I trust you have been provided with the appropriate translators." Harry bowed in greeting to the Japanese Official. "I have no intention of speaking anything but Japanese."
Toji returned the bow. "I have been informed that everyone here speaks Japanese."
"Harry, please, I need to talk to you."
Toji sighed. "I may have been lied to. Dumbledore-san, tell your man to speak Japanese or not to speak at all." He glared at Dumbledore and Sirius.
"Black-san is Harry-chan's godfather. He has every right to speak with him."
Harry cringed at being referred to like that by Dumbledore.
Toji flicked his wand at Sirius and the man collapsed. "Take him into custody. He is here on false pretences." He instructed one of the Japanese wizards he had brought with him.
"Toji-san!" Dumbledore said angrily.
"Are you here under false pretences as well?" Tenmei asked casually. "You see, should that be the case, you will not only have lied to the Japanese magicals, but caused them to lie to us.
"As per our treaties, they will have no say over what we do with you."
"I am here to address the incident that occurred over Tokyo several days ago." Albus said seriously as Black was taken away. "The existence of the magical world was nearly revealed! Questions must be asked and charges handed down."
"It was a Yōkai matter." Issa said dismissively.
"Which would have affected the Wizarding World. This violates the treaties with ICW."
"Yeah, but it didn't affect the Wizarding World." The others stepped aside as the Bus Driver stepped forward.
"An incident this severe cannot be ignored."
"It can, and it will. The treaties don't care about 'near misses'."
"Who are you?" Dumbledore frowned.
"I'm the senior signatory of the treaty." The Bus Driver smirked. "Along with Bloodriver Akasha, Fuhai Touhou and Mikogami Tenmei.
"And I only signed because Tenmei is a friend and spent months arguing with me. It was the only way to shut him up." The Bus Driver indicated his compatriots as he named them.
It was clear that Tenmei was glaring at him from under his shadowed cowl.
Of course this revelation caused quite the reaction from Dumbledore who stumbled back in shock. "Impossible! I know for a fact Bloodriver vanished over a decade ago."
"And then I returned." Akasha smirked.
Tenmei stepped forward. "You are a hair's breadth away from violating those treaties. You did read them, yes?"
"Should I give the word?" The Bus Driver grinned.
The problem for Dumbledore was that he wasn't aware that the Bus Driver or 'Nurari', was still around or even existed. Sure, he had read the legends of the 'Supreme Commander' of the Yōkai, but he hadn't been seen in several centuries.
"Nurari, please stop scaring the mortals." Tenmei said tiredly.
"Nah… unless the ICW swears to remove this fool, then they are on notice that I will consider voiding the treaty."
"You can't!" Dumbledore exclaimed frantically. "You don't have the authority! Doing so would break the tenuous peace we currently have."
"But we don't have peace." Akasha stepped forward. "We have a truce. An agreement to cease hostilities. The only reason the treaty exists is because I pushed for it. Tenmei may have spent months arguing with Nurari, but I spent years arguing with Tenmei!
"And now you are here, hounding my people. Hounding my Harry. Sticking your nose into Yōkai affairs."
"Kid, show him what you did to Alucard." Nurari turned to Harry who was standing behind them.
"Alucard?!" Alucard was a monster of legend, Dumbledore looked like he might have a heart attack at the thought that the monster might have returned.
"That would kill him." Akasha pointed out. "He's basically human."
"That was the point." The Yōkai grumbled.
"Toji-san, please send word to your superiors that we will no longer respond to the ICW unless you are the messenger." Harry stepped up. "Let them know that we will be sending an official notice very soon."
Toji glanced nervously at Tenmei who gave a slight nod.
"That is unacceptable." Dumbledore drew himself up.
"Also tell them that we will be filing charges against various Englishmen."
"And that if they approach Potter-san again… it will be the last time." Nurari warned.
Touhou produced a piece of script with Chinese kanji, he tossed it at his feet and the Yōkai vanished.
They arrived back in the Chairman's office and the Bus Driver turned Harry to face him. "You weren't surprised by my personal reveal… how long have you known who I am?"
Harry shrugged. "Probably about the time you and Shizuka abandoned us in the sunflower field. She really didn't want to argue with you or pass on my displeasure."
"You got that from her reluctance?"
"There were little things as well. The occasional interaction with other students where they instantly answered or obeyed, as though they were compelled."
The Bus Driver, Nurari, grinned. "You're a rare find, kid. The last time I really got involved was when the fools killed off the last batch of elementals.
"Tenmei and me, we got most of them."
"I think Alucard was one of them. He said something that indicated he was involved." Harry said quietly.
"Don't worry about it, kid. You're our new protégé. Anyone comes after you, goes through us."
"Harry-chan, you may not realise this, but elementals are not true Yōkai. They are not compelled to obey Nurari, just as I am not." Tenmei explained as he took a seat on the couch.
"But vampires and yasha, such as us are." Issa added. "I understand Gyokuro submitted to your will." He turned to Nurari.
"Little bitch was begging on her knees." He scowled.
"Whereas a strong willed Yōkai such as Akasha, Touhou and myself can resist, but we will be impaired should we attempt to fight."
"What Issa is trying to say is that Nurari considers you an equal." Akasha tried.
"Will. Future tense, Bloodriver." The Nurarihyon growled. "The kid still has a lot to learn."
Moka found herself conflicted over her intent to remain a virgin until she and Harry married. This was because she was now the only one not having sex with him… aside from Yukari of course.
Issa and Akasha had said goodbye as husband and wife. Issa had had to spend the past years learning to treat her as his daughter, and as much as he loved Akasha, he loved his daughters more.
Plus he had no intention of being the member of a male harem with the boy.
Akasha had dragged Harry to bed, claiming everything about him as hers. She set herself as the head of the harem.
None of the others would dare challenge the Bloodriver, one third of the Three Dark Lords. But it wouldn't matter as Akasha was simply Outer Moka with more experience.
This was part of the conflict for Moka. She feared Harry would tire of waiting for her. Those fears were proven unfounded when Akasha dragged her to bed and taught both her and Harry how to enjoy each other without the final act.
During the following holiday, Hermione had requested that the Sendos escort her to England. Her parents had already moved back after consultation with the Chairman.
He had pointed out that as Hermione was now free to live in England, she could easily return to visit her parents. This also meant that she and her parents were free to spend as much time together as they wanted.
But Hermione had a mission in England. This mission led to her and the Sendos sitting in a room at the Leaky Cauldron waiting for someone.
Yukari opened the door to Black Sirius.
"You." Sirius sneered at the girl he saw as part of the group keeping him from his godson.
"What is wrong with you, Sirius?" Hermione demanded as she stood from the table where Yukari's parents were sat. "What did Yukari ever do to you?" She asked as she pulled the nearly fourteen-year-old girl behind her.
"She's one of the ones that kidnapped Harry!" Sirius glared.
"Are you really that delusional? Yukari is only thirteen. Harry saved her when she was only eleven. Nobody has kidnapped Harry. The only people guilty of trying are you, Dumbledore, Malfoy and me."
"Then why hasn't he come home?" Sirius challenged. "If he is free, why doesn't he read my letters?"
"What letters? You mean the one you sent with Dumbledore?"
"Exactly."
"Why didn't you just post it?"
"Because he only gave me a muggle address!"
"You had a bloody muggle motorbike you pillock!"
"That was different!"
"Why?" Yukari asked quietly in heavily accented English. "All you had to do was put it in an envelope, address it, buy the stamp and hand it to the post office.
"Don't you care about Harry-chan enough to do something so simple?"
"Don't you dare question my care of Harry." Sirius drew himself up.
"Harry-chan asked a very important question after that meeting in Japan on New Year's Eve." Yukari told him. "If you were that worried about him, why didn't you go with him? Why didn't you just go to Japan and stay with him and keep him safe?"
"Harry came all the way to Scotland, just to save me when Riddle attacked the school." Hermione said. "He really didn't like me. Not after I betrayed him… but he still came. He commanded a group of powerful people-"
"Monsters and murderers." Sirius sneered.
"I was the one who killed Riddle." Hermione scowled back. "But our point is, if Harry can cross oceans and face his greatest enemy for a girl he can no longer stand, why can't you do the same for a boy you claim to love?
"Or were you a Gryffindor in name only? Like Wormtail?"
"Why yo-URK!" Sirius found himself slammed into the floor of the room as a pink-haired vampire appeared from nowhere and held him by the throat.
"You disgust me Black." Akasha snarled. "If it wouldn't hurt Harry I would have his parents' souls called back so they could judge you.
"Like Hermione, I hoped you would see reason. But I am a realist and it is why I followed her here. Unless you intend to contact Harry by the means he gave you, then you should leave him be. If you refuse to apologise then consider him dead… or we will kill you."
The enraged Dark Lord released the wheezing wizard and turned to the elder magicals. "Sendo-san, return us home. This is a failed mission, our time is better spent with the ones we love and that love us."
It was a few months later and Harry was concerned. It was the holiday and they were staying on Okinawa with San and Marin. Keiko and Yui had joined them having just accepted positions on the staff at the Academy.
He gathered everyone in the restaurant at the close of the day.
"Has anyone else noticed the large black dog watching us the past few days?"
"Your godfather." Akasha nodded. "I haven't seen him, but I can sense him."
Moka frowned as she closed her eyes and concentrated. She soon opened them and looked at Akasha. "How could you sense him? Are you always looking?"
She nodded sadly. "I grew up always having to look over my shoulder." She gave Moka a soft smile. "It is also good for keeping track of mischievous children."
"This dog… it comes up to here?" Kurumu asked curiously, indicating her shoulder as she sat.
"Yeah. Sounds about right." Harry nodded.
"It might be about to die." She grimaced, her eyes on the glass front of the restaurant.
They all turned to see a short black haired girl holding the dog up by its throat.
They burst out the front.
"Akua! What are you doing?" Akasha demanded.
"This one was spying on Moka." The eldest of the Shuzen daughters sneered, not looking away from her captured prey.
"Actually, he was probably spying on Harry-chan." Akasha said as she calmed herself and stepped up beside her.
"Put it down, sister." Moka grimaced at the dog. "You have no idea where that thing has been."
Akua appeared indecisive.
"Akua-san, it is just a wizard in the form of a dog." Harry added. "Even Marin, Yui and Keiko could deal with him and they're human."
The dog whined as the dark-haired vampire spun to face them. "These are the humans you call friends?" She locked eyes with her younger sister.
"For several years now." Moka nodded. "Keiko and Yui are a part of our harem."
Akua smirked and folded her arms, unfortunately she didn't release the dog, it squeaked as it was squashed. "So by friends you mean close servants who handle Potter's sexual desires for you."
"When Moka says 'harem', she means the real meaning." Hermione giggled. "I am part of the harem, but I am not sleeping with Harry. So is Yukari."
"Real meaning?" Marin asked curiously. "Wait, first, we should go inside, just in case someone calls the police." She took San's hand and led her back to the restaurant.
Moka grabbed Akua by the arm and dragged her along, the dog sliding on the floor behind her.
They managed to get Akua to release her prisoner and they soon had Black Sirius sitting beneath their harsh gaze.
"I really hope you learnt Japanese." Yukari sneered at the man.
"I did." Sirius said simply. "And I'm sorry for how I treated you last time we met, Sendo-san."
"What?" Most of the girls tensed and stood with Harry.
"He was rude to me." Yukari said, still sneering at the dog. "Hermione-chan wanted to talk to him so my parents and I went with her as protection. Akasha-chan went too."
Harry wanted to ask why they didn't tell him. But he saw the glares from the others directed at Hermione and Akasha… so he decided to wait for them to approach him.
"Why are you spying on us?" Harry asked, bringing them to the matter at hand.
"Observing." Sirius corrected. "I… I was trying to determine if you were really here of your own free will."
"My word isn't good enough?" Harry asked pointedly.
"Both Succubae and Vampires are adept at mind control." Sirius said firmly. "So, no. Your word is not good enough."
"And what did you learn by observing him?" Yui asked.
"He appears to be acting of his own free will." Sirius admitted reluctantly.
"Wow… no need to be so happy about it." Keito muttered sarcastically.
"Yeah, I don't get it either." Mizore spoke up. "Shouldn't you be happier? Didn't you see Harry being happy today?"
"He's jealous."
They all turned to the young English witch.
"Hermione-chan?" Ririko said questioningly.
She had clearly struck a nerve as the wizard refused to meet their eyes now.
"He is jealous that Harry is happy without him." Hermione elaborated with distaste. "I don't know why, after I discovered all Harry had been through and all you had done for him, I was relieved he was able to be happy."
"So he's just a jealous arsehole?" Keiko asked disbelievingly.
"What do you intend to do now, Sirius?" Harry asked, trying to stay on a more practical topic.
Sirius looked completely unsure. "I don't know. There isn't anything in England for me."
"What about Professor Lupin?" Hermione asked. "Tonks? You have your freedom now, you could reconnect with all your old friends."
"The ones who never doubted for a second I would betray James and Lily?" He gave her a sad smile. "Even Remus… I told him about our meeting." He nodded to Yukari. "He believes vampires are irredeemably evil. The same for all of you.
"It doesn't help that I told him what I researched about Japanese magicals and how they bind the magic of baby non-magical born. He wouldn't believe me."
Sirius rubbed his temples in frustration. "I won't ask you to go back to England, Harry. I don't particularly want to return myself.
"But this still feels wrong. You're only seventeen. You shouldn't be tied down so young. I didn't even agree with James and Lily getting married so young."
"You are entitled to your opinion, Sirius." Hermione said sternly. "Just make sure you don't impose it on others. I don't really agree with Harry's polygamy, but I know they are all happy so I keep my uninvited mouth shut and try and support them."
Sirius sighed. "Do you know what I like about you, Hermione-chan? You remind me of Lily. She had her opinions, but once she learnt how things were, she shut her mouth and kept her own counsel."
"Again… what do you intend to do?" Harry pressed.
"Rent a room?"
Renting a room actually meant Harry paying for a room. As much as the idiot had tried to learn about Japan and the various Yōkai before he made his trip, he had forgotten to get Japanese money.
Harry had purchased another room for Akua. He had suggested that she spend the week with them and then, maybe, she could take Moka on a private trip, just the two of them before she needed to be back at school.
Marin hadn't been too pleased that Harry was having to pay for his foolish godfather so she had forced him to clean dishes in the kitchen the following day. Hermione was quick to confiscate his wand until Marin realised he was a wizard and decided he could follow her around and fix and clean what she wanted.
By the time they headed back to the Academy, Sirius and Marin had worked out a deal where he had room and board in return for working at the inn.
Sirius appeared to be more accepting of Harry, or more specifically, the harem. But Harry was happy to finally get back to school.
Back at school, Harry had been called to a meeting with the Chairman.
"I want you to reconsider Huang Fangfang for the SPC."
Harry frowned. "On what grounds?"
"Teaching." The Chairman smiled beneath his habitual cowl. "As you know, he is heir to the Huang family. I believe that working for you will give him experience that will ensure he brings his family honour. At the moment he lacks any of the qualities that his senior family members can claim."
"I set a strict policy on recruiting for the SPC." Harry said carefully. "I understand what you want… but, I don't really want to break the policy and I don't think it would benefit Huang-san like you think."
"Oh?"
"Like you said, he doesn't have the right qualities. He might learn them working for the Committee, but, it might just send him the message that rules can be bent for him."
"You have become much more cynical, Harry-chan." The Dark Lord smirked.
Harry smirked back. "If it saves my life or my family's."
"Do you have an alternative suggestion?"
Harry thought for a few moments. "What club is he in?"
"I don't believe he picked one."
Harry sighed in frustration. "Well he's getting detention for that. He is also being assigned to the Newspaper Club. I will have him cover SPC activities. It will let him observe and learn without getting more special treatment."
Harry spent more time talking to the Chairman and Bus Driver, so much so that he earned enough respect that they invited him to use their names.
He learnt more about the treaties between the magicals and Yōkai and came to a conclusion that changed the whole world.
"Humans are incredibly intelligent." He explained to the Three Dark Lord and the Supreme Commander. "That should be obvious from the technology we use of theirs.
"All the magic and laws in the world aren't going to stop them from finding out about monsters."
"Harry-kun, even magic cannot breach the barriers around places like the school." Touhou frowned.
"It's not the school they will find." Harry shook his head. "They will find monsters in their cities. They will find them in their homes.
"Take Nekonome Shizuka, she is terrible at hiding her tail and ears. If it wasn't for Yukari, Ruby or myself, every human would notice them.
"There are plenty of other Yōkai who can't fully control their form.
"But that is a benign example and can be explained away. Here's a nefarious one:
"Imagine a monster, like Saizou, who thought humans were there for his use. He wouldn't care about laws and would go to a school and feast on human children, he would go and rape any female that caught his eye.
"The human police would confront him… and he wouldn't hide his true form."
"It has happened before, Harry." Akasha assured him. "Our enforcers have always dealt with it."
"And the surviving victims? The police who attended the crime?"
"We employ wizards and witches who will alter memories as needed." Tenmei answered.
"And the media?"
"The same."
"And can they alter the memories of the whole world? Can they erase all references from their records? Including their visual recordings?" Harry pressed.
"Our people have always been able to get there before reporters. Certainly before they write their articles."
Harry pulled out the smart phone Keiko had bought for them. She had decided to pursue a career in computers and was now responsible for the school's brand new computer network, Yui was the IT Teacher.
"This is a live feed of forest fires… in California."
The device was passed around with great consternation. It ended in Nurari's hands.
"The kid's right." He said unhappily. "I use this app on my phone. I never considered that it might catch monsters."
"Do you have a plan, Harry-chan?" Toufou asked.
"I believe it comes down to three options:
"One, we make a huge announcement that monsters are real.
"Two, we wait for something like the incident with Alucard and just deal with the fallout.
"Three, we warn the governments and various institutions that we exist. We also start to relax our laws on hiding our true forms."
"We all know which one would be best." Akasha sighed.
"What about the magical world?" Tenmei countered. "They won't like this."
"We don't answer to them." Nurari said firmly. "We will tell them what we are going to do and then they can make their own choices."
As an act of courtesy they decided to inform the magicals of their intent first. This only happened because Akasha and Harry insisted. No one was going to argue with the Dark Lord who enjoyed threatening them with her boyfriend.
The issue came from the magicals. They were completely against the idea of humans discovering they existed and began making actual threats against them.
They started to act on those threats at a time that made Harry and the girls very angry.
Mizore was about to turn seventeen. It was the traditional time for a yuki-onna to find their mate and start making babies. The Snow Priestess had requested that Harry marry Mizore properly.
There had nearly been a murder when Moka heard the request. She was going to be the first to marry Harry. Fortunately she didn't hold Mizore responsible, but Akasha and Harry had to stop her from trying to have 'words' with the Snow Priestess.
Mizore herself didn't care. She already had Harry and that was good enough for her. Not that she would object to a wedding and the legal right to call herself Potter Mizore.
Akasha had spoken harshly with Moka in private. She warned her that, whilst she could postpone her final consummation of her love for Harry until they were married, she couldn't force the others to postpone their weddings for her.
Akasha had seemed shocked when Moka called for Hedwig and penned a letter to her father asking him to arrange her wedding for as soon as possible.
Issa had rushed to the academy with Akua, begging his daughter to reconsider. Akasha, who was secretly pleased that her plan had worked, acted suitably annoyed with Moka's father for his behaviour.
Akua took a different path.
Harry had been walking to class first thing that morning when he experienced déjà vu. He was thrown into the forest, smashing through trees. As he picked himself up he ran through a mental list of students who would attack him… provided Issa wasn't looking for another conversation.
He was only slightly surprised when he saw Akua glaring at him from across the small clearing.
"If you don't want me marrying Moka, take it up with her." Harry sighed.
"Moka-chan is young and foolish." She sneered at him. "She is completely fooled by whatever spell you used on her."
"Then why didn't I use it on you?"
That caught her off-guard. She scowled as she couldn't come up with an answer. She changed tactics. "I can't convince Moka to get rid of you, but I can convince you to leave."
"Without violence?" Harry asked curiously.
Again, she hadn't thought that far. She had momentarily forgotten Harry's nature. She would be lucky to touch him in a fight. And even if she did, it would hurt her more.
"Akua, you are centuries old. It has been centuries since Jasmine died." He ignored the look of utter hatred sent his way. "Why haven't you looked for happiness? Someone to share the good memories of Jasmine with?"
"No one can replace Jasmine!" She declared angrily. "I will never betray her!"
Harry conjured two chairs facing each other and sat down. "I saw Jasmine. She was full of love and happiness. She loved you.
"She would want you to be happy. She would want you to smile and laugh like you did with her. Like you started to do with Moka."
Akua looked down, guiltily.
"If Moka had been alive when Jasmine was… what would Jasmine have thought of her?"
Akua's face lit up. "She would have adored her!" She beamed with just a hint of sadness. "We would have laughed and smiled and played forever."
"Have you ever told Moka about Jasmine?"
The scowl returned. "Why bother? You already told her."
Harry shook his head. "I told her she existed. I told her they looked similar. I told her you loved each other.
"But that is all I know. Only you can tell Moka about her smile. Her laugh.
"Moka is incredibly important to you, yes?"
"She is everything." Akua declared solemnly. Since the ultimate demise of Alucard, she had realised that her dream of becoming a First Ancestor and destroying humans had been ended. By the Elemental in front of her. All she had left was Moka.
"Then tell the current most important person in your life about the first most important person in your life."
Harry used a purchased pensieve to allow Akua to share her memories of Jasmine with Moka. The pair were often seen laughing together by the lake after classes.
It didn't stop Moka from insisting on marrying Harry and it didn't stop Akua from glaring at Harry… but it did serve as a distraction.
And that was when the attack came.
Keiko needed to head to Tokyo for some equipment, Ruby insisted on accompanying her, much to Keiko's delight. The Bus Driver had driven them there. There was some concern when they were gone for most of the day on a trip that should have only taken three or so hours.
What the Bus Driver failed to realise was that he was bringing back the wrong witch.
Harry and Yui were waiting at the bus stop, annoyed and worried.
"What took so long?" Yui demanded of her friend.
"Long lines." Keiko said woodenly.
Harry was staring at her eyes. They were glazed, unfocused. He looked at Ruby with a frown, the normally demure demeanour was absent as the expression appeared bored.
"Nurari… sound the alarms." Harry said quietly.
That was when the witch tossed her staff aside and swiped a wand at Harry. A cutting curse slashed up through his torso and deep into the left side of his face leaving a nasty gash. His black uniform collapsed into his upper body without anything physical to support it. He always walked around with his clothed parts as air.
Yui was shocked, but she managed to grab Keiko and drag her onto the bus.
Nurari lifted his head to the sky and roared.
The witch was casting more curses at Harry, but he had vanished, only his shredded clothing remained.
She never saw the stunner hit her from behind.
But it was too late, a bag of marbles fell from beneath her skirt, spilling out and transforming into wizards and witches looking for a target.
And that was when the first of the Harry's people arrived. Gin, the fastest in the school, arrived almost as soon as Nurari roared.
His momentary hesitation was enough for the magical invaders to target him and start to curse, but it was not enough for them to hit him. He was immediately amongst them, snapping wands, arms, legs… the screams were terrifying.
But then the sound of rushing wind came and more magicals arrived, this time with magical creatures such as massive dogs, tamed hippogriffs, young dragons, large snakes.
They had little control over them, just enough to point them at the rest of the arrived Newspaper Club and School Protection Committee.
Unfortunately for the magicals, they severely underestimated the force they would face.
It wasn't the true werewolf, the succubus, the young vampire.
It was the Dark Lord, the Bloodriver.
It was the Sendo child, in the form of a medium sized nundu that towered over them.
It was the enormous griffin, that simply stared at the various creatures and had them cowering in fear.
A temporary standoff emerged.
Temporary in that it lasted the six seconds it took for the massive phoenix to appear behind the students.
"I SHALL ERRADICATE YOU FOR DISTURBING ME!" The phoenix roared as it drew up and flared its wings.
Harry had only moments to react as he turned to air and struggled to control the air in the surrounding area. Everyone except a few of the students began to struggle to breathe as the Phoenix flapped.
Most of the creatures went flying far into the ocean along with the bus, most of the wizards and… Nurari.
Unfortunately, it flapped twice. Not really an issue, but when it reared its wings for the second flap, it sent a powerful gust towards the school.
In the ensuing silence, broken only by a lot of people sucking in gulps of air, the phoenix surveyed its work with pride, nodded, and then vanished.
Harry reappeared and looked livid. "Akasha, take charge. I need to make a rescue." He growled as he twisted on the spot, vanishing with crack to reappear far over the ocean.
"You stupid idiot." Moka growled as she stalked over to a gobsmacked Fangfang and hoisted him into the air by the front of his blazer. "Didn't you learn your lesson from the last time?"
"Last time? What happened?" Lingling demanded as she floated over.
"Your brat of a brother tried to challenge Harry when they first met. He nearly destroyed the school by summoning that bird!"
"He succeeded this time." Mizore sounded fairly impressed.
They followed her gaze to where the forest was flattened and the school practically ripped up.
Storming towards them was a livid Chairman. "Huang!"
The witch who had been posing as Ruby was clearly Japanese. She had reverted to her natural form twenty minutes after she arrived. Polyjuice was obviously her method of disguise.
She woke up an hour later, tied to a chair and surrounded by a lot of angry looking monsters.
She had simply glared at them. Unwilling to volunteer any information.
Harry had no intention of giving her options. "Imperio!"
Instantly her eyes became unfocused.
"Is that what I looked like?" Keiko asked from where she was being held tightly by Yukari and Yui.
Harry ignored her though. "Where is Tojo Ruby?"
"I do not know." The witch responded.
"Who does know?"
"I do not know."
"Is she alive?"
"I do not know."
"Who do you work for?"
"The ICW Special Taskforce."
"What is your mission?"
"To infiltrate the Yōkai Academy, kill the adults and dangerous monsters and capture the rest."
Harry opened his mouth but paused as he felt Moka step up next to him. "How can we find Tojo Ruby?"
"Answer her." Harry ordered.
"You would have to ask my superiors."
"You see, Harry-chan? She is a grunt. She won't have the necessary answers." Moka explained. "But we can use her to find those that do."
Harry left the interrogation to Moka as the Chairman entered the SPC building.
"Toji-san appears completely unaware of what is happening. He says that everything seems normal at the government buildings." Mikogami informed Harry as the others listened.
"The witch posing as Ruby says she is ICW." Harry said. "Could they be operating from outside the country?"
"It is possible." He allowed.
"What about the tracking charms?" Yukari asked.
"Sendo-chan." Harry tensed at the reluctant tone in the Chairman's voice. "I have sent my people to check on various parents. Yours are missing."
The now fourteen-year-old witch was suddenly in the secure embrace of Kurumu. They still held their personal rivalries, but none of them denied their care and love for each other.
"Anyone else?" Harry asked grimly.
"Black-san reported they were attacked, but Otanashi-san was able to deal with them."
"Harry, we need to go to New York." Moka said as she stormed up. "That is where the witch was dispatched from."
New York, the location of the non-magicals' United Nations Headquarters. Why did the magicals have their headquarters there? Because it made it easier to spy on the muggles.
They had a very willing guide in the form of Sirius. He had accompanied Dumbledore there when they had met with ICW representatives when they confronted Nurari and the Three Dark Lords over the Alucard incident.
They also had a willing guide in the witch that was now one of Ririko's thralls.
The second they arrived in New York, Harry and Yukari were able to find the tracking charm on Ruby. Akasha led Yukari, Touhou and Tenmei into the building, ignoring the receptionist.
Touhou took the lead as he used his sorcery to move them past guards and through locked doors, taking them deep into the lower levels.
Mikogami was neither gentle or hesitant as he removed the heads of any who opposed them. His speed was enough to rival Gin's.
When they finally reached their destination, Yukari screamed… an agonising sound of loss, denial and anguish as she saw her father lying on the floor with her mother sobbing into Ruby's shoulder.
It was the last sound Yukari would make for years.
There was the sound of rushing wind as Harry's form coalesced from the air.
"I want them all dead." Harry said coldly. "Everyone who was involved."
"Harry-"
"I know." He interrupted Tenmei. "We can't. Killing them would make even the humans fear us." Harry's heart was filled with a darkness that he hadn't experienced even when dealing with Alucard. "I am taking the witches. They need time to heal. Someone else can deal with this… if they don't… I cannot promise I won't kill them."
"Touhou, take them to Nekonome-chan's house." Akasha ordered.
Akasha had remained only long enough to briefly discuss their options with her peers. She then left and returned to the Academy to collect the rest of the harem and take them to the grieving magicals.
It was two days later that they met again, this time at the house of Shuzen. There were many monsters seated at the large table in the grand ballroom. Most were in human form, simply because their true forms where unsuitable for a chair, table or even house.
Others wore their true forms with pride.
"Blood calls for blood! The blood of children calls for it twofold!" An angry, older werewolf shouted angrily as he stood from his chair.
"Then it is good that our children remain safe." Tenmei glared at him.
"Because they failed? Our children are not safe because these arrogant fools had a change of heart! They are safe because they were beaten!
"They now know that they can reach places like your school. They will try again and they will not use the same methods. We all know the humans have those powerful bombs-"
"Lucien." Nurari said softly. "If there is one thing you don't have to worry about, it is human weapons. This was an attack by magicals. The fools consider humans less than we consider them."
"Never underestimate your enemy." Lucien scoffed. "I know Japan doesn't permit magicals born to humans to have magic, but other countries do. One day, one of those magicals will gain enough authority amongst their kind and they will look to the weapons of humans."
"He's not wrong."
Everyone became still as they looked at the youngest person at the table. The English boy rumoured to be a griffon… and an Elemental.
"Harry-san?" Touhou asked gently.
"Foreign countries, like America and England, they will know about non-magical weapons and they will pose a threat. But… the Academy is safe. Much safer than it was two days ago."
The boy looked tired. They knew he was the consort of the recently awakened Bloodriver, they knew that his family had been targeted and were the only ones to lose someone on their side.
The boy's anguish and fatigue was like blood in the water for the leaders of the monster world seated at the table.
But what the boy didn't realise was that his pent up anger was even more potent. They could sense the power… they knew the reports on Alucard and would not doubt Nurari.
"We will continue with our plans to reveal ourselves to the humans." Akasha said, drawing attention away from Harry. "But we will warn them about the actions of the magicals. We will ensure that they know that they attacked a school of children.
"They will know what countries like Japan does to magicals born to humans."
"You intend to sow distrust between them before they could even meet." A beautiful lady with golden curly hair mused. A sphinx, and one who was familiar with the English boy.
"We intend for the magicals to reap what they sow." Touhou said gravely. "They attacked children. We shall tell no lies to the humans."
"Including the fact that they taste delicious?" A pale man in a fedora and black long coat grinned as he licked his lips.
"Yes." Harry looked the man straight in the eyes. "We'll also tell them to contact us if they believe a monster or Yōkai was involved. Most human countries don't have the death penalty… we'll be happy to discuss extradition into our custody."
The man scowled and stayed silent.
"We will still face persecution." A Minotaur in monster form growled. "They will hunt us just for pleasure. For trophies. Are we to just sit back and accept that? Do we run and report it to human officials?"
"No. You kill the hunter." Nurari said darkly. "You kill the hunter and come to us. We will determine if you were justified and not simply lying so you could kill."
"How?" The Sphinx asked. "Will you simply weigh the words of a monster against the humans?"
"Magic." Harry stated. "We will use magic that will make you tell the truth. We will use magic to view your memories.
"If humans start making accusations against monsters, we will demand that they submit to our magic before we will consider investigating."
Tenmei sat forward, garnering their attention. "We have lived amongst the humans in secret for centuries. We have enforced the laws that prohibit monsters and Yōkai from harming humans.
"We are telling the humans how it has been, that we exist, that we have existed.
"We are telling them that we will continue to exist. We will not hide. But we will not submit to their laws over ours."
The ICW denied they had attacked Yōkai Academy and kidnapped three magicals, killing one. They had accused the monster world of trying to invade and conquer them.
It didn't matter. Sendo Fujiko now lived in Okinawa under the care of San and Marin. Sirius had sent several wizards packing with the help of San.
Akasha had made a quick trip to England to warn the Grangers of what might be coming and convinced them to move to Okinawa where Sirius and San could keep them safe.
Fortunately there were several recently graduated Yōkai students staying at the Inn and in the area.
Tenmei had privately assured Harry that his friends in the human world were placed high enough that Japan, at least, would be a safe haven for monsters.
There was no big announcement. Leaders of human countries didn't go on television and announce that formerly mythical monsters were real.
The Americans had pointed out that they would need at least a year to form an official department that would respond to any monster related incidents. Should local law enforcement report a creature or unusual sight, the government would need to be able to inform those officers that they weren't hallucinating and that the monster was free to move as long as it didn't infringe on human laws and freedoms.
Yukari still wasn't speaking. Harry had taken her and her mother to the Floating Gardens that now sat on the bed of the sea so Fujiko could speak.
"If I speak… I will kill." Yukari said, her voice hoarse from lack of use. "I- I can feel my magic. I can feel it and it is hate!" She hissed. "I want them all to die. My words won't matter, my desire for their death will be realised by my magic."
Fujiko held her daughter tightly as she cried. Yukari was stoic and unmoved. She didn't reject her mother's love, but she didn't welcome it.
Fujiko sent her daughter home so she could speak with Harry.
"I do not want my daughter to live in sorrow. Even the loss of her father hasn't changed her intent to be with you… so you should respect her decision."
"I wasn't going to reject her, Fujiko-san." Harry frowned.
Yukari's mother smiled sadly. "Yukari's father rejected my advances for many years before we married. He feared he would hurt me if he accidentally spoke.
"My mother cornered him one day and apparently convinced him to stop being stupid. Consider this me following in her footsteps."
Yukari didn't speak. She refused to use a notebook like San. She acknowledged others and would respond to simple questions, but she wouldn't use gestures beyond a nod, head shake or pointed finger.
Harry had sat her down on the bed in the shared bedroom they sat cross-legged opposite each other. With a nod of consent from Yukari he entered her mind.
She finally smiled that day.
The following morning she tried to be annoyed with her friends. Kurumu had used her abilities to drag the other girls into Yukari's dreams.
Yukari was approaching fifteen. She now understood Ririko's words regarding sex.
So of course they stumbled in on her fantasy of passionate lovemaking with Harry.
Still, she was touched that they had all gone to such lengths to communicate with her.
Then the wedding came. Moka was a mess of nerves to Harry's calmness.
"Are you using charms or potions?" She had demanded the day before the wedding.
"No. I don't understand what you are nervous about." Harry frowned. "You do want to get married… right?"
"Of course!" She said irritably. "But there are thousands of monsters out there! Why doesn't that make you nervous? Most of them want to kill you."
"You're afraid of them?" Harry queried doubtfully.
"Don't be stupid Harry." She snarled.
"Harry, just shut up and hug her." Sirius sighed from where he was sat on a sofa with many of the other members of the family. "She has a seemingly irrational fear, she doesn't want you dissecting her thought processes, she just needs love and support."
Moka was livid and turned to give the wizard a piece of her mind… but Harry grabbed her and kissed her, holding her tightly against him.
"How would you know?" Hermione queried the old dog.
"Because Lily went through the same thing. Her best friend's mum explained it to James whilst we were there."
Fujiko pointed at herself and nodded with a wry smile.
"Succubae don't usually get married." Ageha shrugged.
"Only exceptional circumstances lead to a snow-woman's marriage." Tsurara smiled as she hugged her daughter closer. "I got what I needed from Mizore's father and didn't need more."
"What about you, Akasha?" Lingling asked. She was trying to pay attention to the conversation… but she was far more interested in the fact that Moka and Harry were still going at it.
"I was centuries old when I married Issa." She smiled fondly in remembrance. "My nerves were fine. Issa, however, was a mess."
Issa.
The whole wedding had been arranged under the looming shadow of a possible attack by magicals or other monsters. This wedding was the biggest event since Alucard's original defeat.
But there was no attack to spoil the event.
Just the blubbering from the front row where Moka's father sat.
Akasha was mortified.
Fortunately Fujiko had managed to cast a privacy spell around the man before it went on too long… but anybody with in view could see the tears.
Akua didn't know who to be mad at. Harry for finally stealing her beloved sister, or Issa, for ruining her beloved sister's big day.
The honeymoon was an unusual affair. Harry and Moka spent a fair amount of time alone as they toured Romania and the former areas of Wallachia, the kingdom of Vlad Tepes of the House of Dracul.
But Harry couldn't leave Kurumu for too long due to their bond. So every other day they port-keyed back to Shizuka's home to tend to the Succubus' needs and the desires of the harem.
The Academy was still being rebuilt and the harem and Harry treated it like one big holiday. Hermione had been very disappointed with them, but Harry had pointed out that this was probably the last chance he would get to have a holiday.
She still held study sessions with Akasha, Yukari and occasionally Moka.
Meanwhile, the magical governments were threatening severe sanctions and possible military action against the monster world if they continued on their course to reveal themselves to the humans.
Harry was often present at the meetings where Touhou and Akasha represented the Yōkai.
"I have decided that this will be the last time we meet to discuss this situation." Akasha said irritably as she sat at the end of the long table. Touhou on her left and Harry on her right.
Touhou was in his traditional Chinese formal garb, Harry in a suit and tie and Akasha in a long black skirt, a white blouse and a short coat. She looked every bit a noblewoman from early Eastern Europe… if you ignored the pink hair.
"We will continue to meet as long as it takes to convince you to put aside these foolish notions of revealing all and sundry to humans!" Dumbledore glowered from the other end of the table.
With him was one of the chief negotiators of the ICW and an aide. For some reason he had Lupin Remus standing behind him. All were dressed in Western European robes.
"We shall not be present." Akasha said. "In less than a month we will officially lift the restrictions on our people. Nothing you have said over the past year has convinced us to deviate from our course and you and your people are equally intransient.
"These meetings are now pointless events where we waste our time."
"Walk away from these meetings and we will have no choice but to take real, physical action." The negotiator warned.
"You tried that once already." Touhou smirked. "My great-great-grandson sent you packing quite neatly. He is a mere child. How do you expect to withstand the entirety of the Monster World?"
Dumbledore glowered. "You do not represent the 'entirety of the Monster World'. Lupin-san is a werewolf and has been in contact with the packs of Europe.
"I have people making accords with the giants.
"The Mer-people have sworn to stand with us, as have the centaurs."
"But he's not a werewolf." Harry frowned. He was curious if Lupin now knew Japanese. "He's a cursed wizard. If he stood against a true lycan, he would be dead before his heart could beat."
"I may be cursed, but I am a werewolf." Lupin said in clear Japanese. "I have defeated Greyback and won the allegiance of the wolf packs."
"Why on earth would you lie about something like that?" Akasha asked in confusion.
"Oh?" Touhou looked at his friend.
"Greyback came to the Academy with his fellow Death Eaters. They wanted to take Harry-chan back to their master. Morioka-san ripped two of their heads off. The survivor was sent back with a message. Two heads, one of them Greybacks."
"That's a lie!" Lupin objected.
"Why would we lie to each other?" Harry asked calmly. "We aren't bothered with convincing you. But we will be asking the true lycans to visit the cursed wolves and correct their knowledge." He finished with a small smile. He was pleased to see his former professor pale.
"We will also ask our mermaids to speak with the various schools around the Atlantic and European seas. The same with the centaurs, although I fail to see how they would be of use in a battle."
"You do not have permission to enter sovereign territory!" Albus steamed.
"Tread carefully, boy." Touhou frowned. "You may have declared your borders for yourselves, but never forget that we were there long before then. We have never acknowledged them."
"If I was you, I'd be more concerned about the other monsters that you allow to live and work amongst you. The goblins and gnomes might have signed treaties regarding banking, but those treaties also protect them from attack.
"The best you could hope for is that they stay neutral and close their premises." Akasha smirked.
Dumbledore was silently furious, but the others were clearly shocked.
"The goblins and gnomes have nothing to do with the Monster World!" The negotiator argued.
"They are part of the Monster World." Harry retorted. "Obviously Dumbledore knows."
"The goblins would never risk another war." Dumbledore growled angrily.
"You are the ones being aggressive Albus-tan." Akasha said patronisingly. It didn't help that the centuries old vampire looked like a sixteen-year-old.
"Let's just go." Harry turned to Touhou and Akasha tiredly. "Nothing will be said here that will change their minds or ours."
Akasha simply nodded and stood, Touhou following.
"In one month our people will start to exercise their new freedoms." Harry told Dumbledore firmly. "If you attack us the treaties will be voided and you will pay the price. Remember, they are magically binding."
"We cannot simply let you leave." Dumbledore said as he also stood and drew his wand. The others also stood and drew theirs.
"If you attack us it will be considered an act of war." Akasha was unconcerned, even as Touhou and Harry readied their magic.
"War is sometimes necessary."
This raised Touhou's eyebrows. It was not what he expected from the official negotiator. "It sounds like you came here today prepared to do war, was this meeting simply a ruse?"
The negotiator took a more aggressive stance and signalled with his hand. Around the room invisibility cloaks were dropped and more than thirty wizards and witches were revealed with their wands pointed at the three Yōkai.
"We've checked the treaties. There are no penalties for stopping you from threatening our way of life." The man smirked. Obviously not a real negotiator. "You will surrender and submit yourselves to unbreakable vows to follow our every instruction.
"Or we will kill you."
"But there are penalties for attacking unprovoked." Akasha sighed. She glanced at Harry before turning her attention to Dumbledore. "You have drawn weapons on us and threatened us. The treaties are broken.
"Stand down and leave or your actions will be ones of war."
"Take them down." The man sneered.
And that was when they all began choking and suffocating. Except the four at the table and the Yōkai.
"Stop this!" Dumbledore ordered frantically. "You are killing them!"
"Welcome to war, boy." Touhou scoffed.
Some of the suffocating magicals had tried to cast bubblehead charms, but they didn't help.
Harry began summoning the wands to his hand.
"Avada Kedavra!" The 'negotiator' roared.
Touhou quickly gestured and the air shimmered in front of Harry, absorbing the curse. The man was shocked as the spell flew back at him.
And then he was dead.
"You murdered him!" The aide gasped as he began to shake with fright.
"No, I merely returned his curse to him." Touhou said as he sat back down. "It is entirely his fault for sending out a curse that instantly kills.
Harry now had the thirty wands plus the backups on the table before him. They were engulfed in flame for a brief second before it vanished with the wands.
"You have truly become a monster, Harry." Dumbledore said sadly.
"Ha!" Akasha scoffed. "You are the monsters. Attacking unarmed children, setting up ambushes behind the façade of a search for peace, casting killing magic at us… when we reveal ourselves to the humans, we will tell the truth about you.
"They will know your crimes and they will hate you."
"You should probably ask your muggleborn about just how good humans are at hunting and killing." Harry said pointedly to the old man. "Some of them are not exactly restrained when it comes to war. They've been known to wipe out entire cities of innocent civilians all in the name of 'justice'."
"He's right sir. If the muggles come after us, we will be outnumbered and outgunned." The aide warned, his face pale.
"You're a muggleborn?" Harry asked curiously.
"Y-Yes sir." The man was very nervous about being addressed by these titans of power.
"What country?"
"Canada, sir."
Harry sat back down and gave the man his full attention. Akasha remained standing, silently staring at Dumbledore.
"If you were to go to the Canadian muggle government and explain that the magical world exists and give them proof, what do you think they would do?" Harry asked.
The man thought about it for a few seconds. "They would be… confused. Worried. We have been living in secret amongst them for a couple of centuries."
"And their reaction, after they decided on a response?"
His eyes darted back and forth in thought. "Negotiation. Talks to learn more about us. Are we a threat, have we committed crimes, are we possible allies.
"Unfortunately, the darker side of the government will try to kidnap magicals to investigate and experiment." He grimaced.
"And what would the response of the general public be?"
"Fear, curiosity, excitement, denial."
"But the general response." Harry pressed.
"Apathy." The aide chuckled. "There will be interest, but, unless it directly affects the person, they won't care."
"And why would it?" Harry smiled.
The man nodded slowly. "It wouldn't. In some countries the garb of magicals will draw attention, but that would be it."
"And when they start accusing us of using magic on them?" Dumbledore interrupted, his annoyance at being side-lined clearly showing.
"Tell them to prove it." Harry shrugged. "It's what we intend to do. If a human accuses a monster of a crime, that human must submit to magical interrogation.
"Likewise if a monster accuses a human. The monster will submit to magical interrogation."
"And I suppose you will allow the humans to imprison monsters that do commit crimes." Dumbledore scoffed.
"Please." Harry said patronisingly. "Humans don't have the ability to hold a monster. We will kill the monster ourselves and present the humans with the body."
Akasha had to hide behind her hand to disguise her giggles.
"As I said, you have truly become a monster." Dumbledore said in disgust. "Your parents would be ashamed."
Dumbledore screamed in pain as a hairpin shot through his right shoulder. Akasha had a visible aura around her as she glared at the old man being held by Lupin.
"We are done here." Touhou said with finality. "Consider this treachery a gift." He gestured to the fallen magicals around them. "A free shot. Next time, we will respond in kind. We will end you."
He gestured quickly with his hands and the three of them vanished.
All around them the bodies began to breathe deeply. The 'negotiator' jerked awake.