Making a Deal With a Devil

by EmeraldGuardian7

[ON HIATUS] After picking up a strange paper in the Department of Mysteries, Harry accidentally summons a devil to Privet Drive. Of course, this devil doesn't look at all how you might expect. She looks to be a regular, albeit exceedingly attractive, girl. Their lives now tied together, how will Rias Gremory affect the war against Voldemort?

8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8

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A/N: Hey Everyone, finally got this done for all of you. I had hoped it would be done much earlier, but unfortunately it had taken longer than expected. Anyway, a quick thanks to Shadowz101 and Kizaruboss1 for their input on this chapter as always. I also want to thank all of you for all the favorites, follows and many reviews. I appreciate them all! Apart from that, I've just this week started my third year of University, so that will probably affect my updates. I'll do my best, but if I go a while without an update, don't worry. I will be back, but am probably just busy with school. Anyway, thanks again and please enjoy.

Warning: Things get a little heated at the end of the chapter… but nothing too bad. ;)

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Harry followed Grayfia through the many halls of Gremory manor once again, his mind still going over his meeting with Sirzechs that had just taken place. He was so stuck on the new information that he'd learned that he didn't even notice right away when the silver haired maid stopped in front of a large set of double doors.

"Mr. Potter," he snapped back to attention immediately. "Rias and her peerage are in the courtyard through these doors. She is expecting you therefore you may enter at your own discretion."

The devil turned to leave, beginning down the hall, "Thank you, Grayfia." The woman hesitated in her stride before coming to a stop. She stood there for a moment, unmoving, before slowly turning back around, her eyes intense.

"You need to be careful going forward," she stated. Harry froze, listening carefully, he had a feeling her warning had more to it than there might first appear on the surface. "You are going to need to prepare yourself. You will learn quickly that Devils respect strength. Wizards are strong in their own fashion, but as you are right now, you are woefully unprepared for what is coming. The powers you have gained from the Deathly Hallows have given you the chance to survive this, but without training you will be no better off than before."

"What do you mean?" Harry asked, not really wanting to know the answer.

"You are stepping into a much broader supernatural world. Because of the way you've found yourself here, you're already allied with the Gremory clan. This will be a big boon for you but will also make you some enemies as well… powerful enemies. As Sirzechs has said, we have followed your progress these past few years, and we've seen all the times you've pitteded yourself against more powerful opponents. There is a certain type of strength required to be able to do that, and you're going to need that strength again going forward. You are the husband to the future Lady of house Gremory. Your actions will reflect on them as it will on the new faction you are forming, intentionally or not. You need to stand strong in your convictions both inside and outside of a fight."

Harry stood there stunned, trying to gather his thoughts. Grayfia had gotten a little passionate there at the end, and it still felt strange to see something like that from the usually stern woman. "Thank you again for the advice, Grayfia."

She held his gaze for a moment before her features seemed to relax ever so slightly and she nodded her head in acknowledgment, "Good luck Mr. Potter."

Without further ado, she turned back around and continued on her way, disappearing around the corner. Watching the place he'd last seen her for a moment, Harry himself turned around only to sag against the wall. If there ever was any doubt before, his life was now officially crazy.

He was currently in the Underworld about to visit his devil wife and face her best friend who'd tried to kill him. The older brother of his wife was a Devil King and had been watching him over the years, including all the life and death struggles he'd gone through after becoming a wizard. Now, he wasn't even human anymore apparently, and he was expected to eventually run his own faction of the supernatural world. It was overwhelming, but it made Grayfia's words make all the more sense. He couldn't give in, he couldn't avoid confrontation, and he couldn't be meek. Others were relying on him. The wizards and witches of Britain to defeat Voldemort, and his new family for the new role he had to play.

Harry knew he hadn't really been giving his best so far. He'd allowed Rias to dictate their plans so far, not that she'd made any bad choices per se, and he'd almost let Mrs. Weasley and Hermione get to him. It was a defense mechanism more than anything. Lessons he'd learned from his early years at the Dursleys when he'd been so much weaker than them. Be quite, comply with their demands, and don't draw attention to yourself. Attending Hogwarts, he'd started to gain confidence for the first time as he learned about what he thought was his true place in the world. Unfortunately, learning that most wizards were looked at like ants from the true powers of the world had brought back that feeling of helplessness and he'd found himself reverting to his old state of mind.

Grayfia was right however, he had been given the power that would allow him to compete. He wasn't yet even close to ready, but he had the latent ability. With some hard work, he would be able to make a difference, and the first step laid in staying strong in himself. Maybe if he was able to get that right he'd be taking the first step in making himself more worthy of a girl like Rias.

Pushing off from the wall and standing straight once again, Harry eyed the big door. Reaching forward he pushed them outwards and stepped outside into a courtyard. He wasn't sure what exactly he expected but a comfortably warm temperature more fit for sunny summer day back in England was not it. The artificial sun shining down on him and normal looking scenery was still unnerving. This was supposed to be hell wasn't it? Where was the fire and brimstone.

A group of young devils were there working away but they all stopped when he entered. Spotting Rias first he started across the courtyard affixing a smile on his face.

"Harry!" She said happily as she saw him. "Did you meet with my brother? Grayfia said he wanted to talk to you. Did it go ok?"

Harry's smiled twitched, "Yes I did. He explained some things that I didn't know yet. I can fill you in later."

"Oh ok," she said. He saw a flash of concern in her eyes, but it was gone in an instant. "Let me introduce you properly to my peerage. This here is Kiba Yuuto, my knight." She indicated to a handsome looking blonde boy around their age.

"It's nice to meet you Kiba," Harry said holding out his hand. "My name is Harry."

Taking his hand he shook it, but Harry couldn't help but notice the sword he held in his off hand. To his surprise, he allowed it to drop where it shattered across the ground as if made of glass, the glowing particles dispersing and disappearing completely. "It's good to meet you Harry. I'm sure we will see each other lots if you are the President's new… husband," he spoke, drawing Harry's attention back up to meet the devil's grey eyes. The teenage devil didn't look like he knew how to feel about the situation, but he was still putting his best foot forward.

Stepping back, Rias spoke again, "Next up is my adorable little rook Koneko Toujou."

Harry glanced back at Rias again, amused at her introduction, but turned to the girl in front of him after a moment, "Hi Koneko. It's good to meet you." While the others looked about his age, this girl looked several years younger. He wasn't sure exactly how old she was, but it did surprise him. She was somewhat on the short side, had white hair that didn't quite reach her shoulders, and large amber eyes. She seemed like a cute kid, except for the completely blank expression on her face which he found unnerving.

"President married someone she barely knows… seems suspicious," she said deadpan making Harry sweatdrop. "He seems better than Riser though."

"Errr… thanks Koneko," Harry scratched his head nervously. "I'm sure we'll get to know each other better soon."

The girl in question continued to stare at him unblinking. Just as he began to shift uncomfortably under her gaze, she nodded once before pulling a small sucker candy out of her pocket, unwrapping it and sticking in her mouth contentedly.

Pausing for a second, Harry turned to look at Rias one more time, buying a few seconds before he was officially introduced to the last member of her peerage because he knew exactly who was next. He could see the nervousness on his wife's face. Taking a deep breath Harry turned to face her, trying to push away thoughts of the pain he'd suffered at her hands.

Looking at her closely for the first time, despite whatever feelings he may currently have towards her, he could admit she was extremely beautiful. Her figure was just as inhumanly perfect as Rias. She wore a school uniform similar to the one Rias had worn the night they'd first met, her jacket falling under and accentuating her large breasts. She had black hair tied back into a single ponytail that was so long it stretched all the way down her legs, with a few other loose strands at the top. She currently had her head bowed forward, hiding her face from view.

"Harry, as you know, this is my Queen Akeno Himejima. She-"

"I can take it from here Rias," she interrupted, though her voice was quiet. She raised her head to look at him, giving Harry a look at her large violet eyes. He noticed immediately that they seemed to be shining with unshed tears. "I'm so sorry for what happened, Harry. I understand that you may not be able to accept my apology after what I did to you, but I offer it all the same. My action have shamed both my master and the Gremory Household as a whole. Worse of all, I almost cost you your life. I wish to make amends however I can and will place myself at your mercy." She bowed her head once again.

Harry heard Rias gasp beside him and noticed the other two peerage members seemed tense as well. He started getting that familiar feeling that something big had just taken place and it was going right over his head. His first instinct was to just brush it off, but stopped himself before he could. That's what the meeker side of him would do. He would want to stay out of the limelight, avoid confrontations, and let things go. In reality, despite what Akeno had done to him, she had left her fate up to him. He could do whatever he decided fit as recompense. He was sure Rias would step in if he crossed the line, but it was the thought that counted. Brushing it all off would do this situation a disservice, and to be truthful he wasn't sure he could move past the fact that she'd almost killed him that quickly. He wanted to let it go, but it was easier said than done.

"Rias informed me that you had thought I had enslaved her?" Harry asked neutrally.

Her head whipped back up, looking surprised. It seemed she had been expecting to just be handed some kind of sentence, not asked a question. "Wha- I- yes. I had been told stories and been warned to stay away from wand wielding wizards like yourself. I wouldn't have just attack but… I couldn't understand understand how Rias would have made such a decision all of a sudden, and then I heard her say she was trapped… I just reacted. I'm sorry."

Akeno averted her eyes again while Harry studied her, "If I remember correctly, Rias had also mentioned it was all an accident at that same time?"

"I didn't notice that she had said that at the time," the devil said, her face flushing slightly.

Harry narrowed his eyes. Something wasn't quite adding up. He liked to think he was a good judge of character, so he didn't think Akeno had lied to him, but she seemed to be potentially holding something back, "You were distracted by something else." He stated. "I did notice you staring at me when I first arrived. So something else was bugging you apart from Rias' situation then. What could possibly be important enough to distract you so that you missed key details and almost cost me my life?" Some heat entered his voice during the last question.

She flinched, "I… it's not important. I was mistaken."

"Akeno," Rias suddenly spoke, sounding concerned.

"President… I-" Akeno began before stopping, "It's really not important. What I did was wrong, I know it was wrong."

"Oh, but it is important," Harry interjected. "I have a feeling whatever it is has to do with me. We're in a difficult situation right now, and if aren't honest with each other we can't go forward."

She met his gaze once again and it was easy to see the emotion swimming in her eyes, and also tinge of fear, "I felt something."

"You felt something?" Harry repeated, causing her to nod.

"I…" she paused. "When you first came in, I assumed you were a devil, but I looked closer I noticed otherwise. I wasn't sure what you were. For a moment I thought a human but that didn't seem right. There was… is… something more to you… and it scared me. It seemed wrong somehow. All of my senses were screaming out at me to run away as fast as I could or better yet to destroy what was causing this feeling, and then I heard that you were one of the wizards I had been warned about. I thought you had harmed Rias. I acted."

"I see," He commented after her admission, his mind already contemplating what she had said. Akeno's words were troubling, but he had an idea to what she was talking about. The question was whether she was really able to sense his new powers as Master of Death and if they would really affect her like that. Death was the antithesis to life, so it was only natural that living beings shied away from or were outright terrified of even the very concept of death. Akeno's reaction sounded like a textbook case of fight or flight responses to him, something ingrained into all living creatures.

"Why didn't you tell me any of this, Akeno?" Rias asked, stepping up beside Harry. "I'm your King… and your best friend."

"Because it doesn't matter. I almost killed your husband. Even if he actually was binding you to his will, we were in your family's home. I should have waited for their instruction instead of taking matters into my own hands. I have shamed them."

"Akeno, I-" Rias began.

Harry cleared his throat, catching all their attention, "I believe you."

"You do?" She sounded surprised.

"I do, but I'm not sure if I can forgive you just yet," Harry said.

Akeno looked down and Rias stiffened, "I understand."

Harry continued on, "The reason I say that is because right now it is all just words. I believe them and even understand why you did what did. I, myself, would go to any lengths to protect my own friends, but I will agree that in this instance you stepped out of line. I'm starting to realize that I may have been too lenient in the past, and that forgiveness needs to be earned." He paused, the air thick with tension. "Therefore, to truly earn my forgiveness, I want you to continue to serve Rias to the best of your ability. I want you to be the best Queen possible, to defend her at all times, to continue to be her friend, and trusted confidant. It will take some time, but once I've seen you do that and I'm convinced you won't make a similar mistake in the future, then we can properly put this all behind us."

Akeno's eyes widened. "That's it?"

"I wouldn't take your task so lightly. The support of your friend should be one of the most important things you do," he admonished.

She looked stricken, "Of course it is! I only meant-"

"You meant you were surprised that I wasn't giving you a traditional punishment," he interrupted. She nodded. "Well, like I said, I understand why you did what you did. Don't get me wrong, I'm still pissed that you weren't paying attention enough to ascertain the situation before trying to kill me. In the end, you only managed to cause me copious amounts of pain and the loss of an afternoon, but you didn't do it out of any malicious intention against me, only to protect your friend. I'd much rather give you a task to better yourself than I would punish you for an ego boost."

Akeno opened and closed her mouth a few times, seeming to be at a loss of how to respond so Harry continued on, "Now that we have that out of the way, let me officially introduce myself. My name is Harry Potter. I'm heading into my sixth year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry in Scotland, and have just recently learned that devils, angels, and fallen angels are more than just figures of myths and legend. Then, coincidentally enough I married one." Harry smiled, extending his hand like how he did to the others. "It's nice to meet you properly this time Akeno, and I hope we can both move forward from the events of yesterday and maybe one day be friends."

Tentatively, she took his proffered hand and shook it, "I'd like that, Harry."

Feeling somewhat relieved now that it was all over, he was shocked when Rias was suddenly beside them, a big smile on her face, and her eyes shining. "I'm so happy everything has been worked out. I don't like it when our family is fighting." Then with no prior warning, she pulled them both into a hug. Harry stiffened simply in surprise, but he couldn't find it in him to complain as he found himself pressed up against two extremely shapely bodies. He was pretty sure it was a devil thing but they all seemed to be inhumanly beautiful.

After the two of them were finally released from his wife's grip, Harry backed up a few paces, hoping with enough distraction he could get his own mind out of the gutter. "So what were all of you up to before I arrived?"

"While I was waiting for you to finish with my brother, I thought we'd take advantage of the space available while here in the Underworld, and we were all doing some training," Rias explained.

Harry grinned, "That sounds great. Do you guys mind if I join in?"

Rias' expression stilled, "You want to train with us as well?"

"I've had a few people suggest it so far, and I agree it's a good idea. I need to get stronger. Right now I'm a liability when I'm around you and I have no way to protect myself around the three factions. I need to get a true feel what their power is like."

"I can't argue with that." Rias conceded. "It will be a good idea for you to get a handle on your new powers as well. The only one we know for sure of is your regenerative abilities. They seem to be quite strong."

"Perfect," Harry turned back towards Rias' Queen. "If you want another way to make things up to me, Akeno, why don't we have a little duel now that I'm ready for you!"

"What?" The shocked exclamation came to Harry in stereo from both girls.

"You want me to attack you again?" Akeno asked incredulously.

"Yes. I think it would be-"

"No way!" Harry spun around as Rias grabbed his arm. "There's no way I'm allowing it. She almost killed you before!"

"Exactly!" Her expression revealed her confusion at his response. "She was able to easily overpower me before. Now that I'm prepared for it, I need to see how my skills compare so far. I need to see what I have to work on."

"I don't like it Harry," Rias crossed her arms underneath her large breasts, pushing them up, and Harry had to focus on keeping eye contact.

"I think this will help me move on from what happened," Harry muttered just loud enough so only Rias could hear him. "I'm confident she won't try to attack me again, but, for my own peace of mind, I need to know I can protect myself from that level of attack in the future."

Rias was hesitating, "I understand, but still… you could get hurt."

"If Akeno agrees, I'm sure she could restrain herself from almost killing me this time," Harry spoke loud enough for everyone to hear this time, drawing the girl in question's attention, her purple eyes widening in shock again. "Right, Akeno?"

"Of course I won't!" She exclaimed, though she still looked nervous. "Are you sure you really want to spar with me though?"

Harry grinned, "Why don't you show me what you've got?"

He summoned the Elder Wand to him, allowing it to materialize in his hand. Akeno, while still looking a bit weary, did get into a ready stance.

"Be careful at least,"Rias said, a frown on her face as she moved back.

"We'll be fine Rias. Trust me. I'll be careful," he tried to reassure her. After a moment her face softened and she gave a small nod. Smiling back, Harry turned his attention back to his new opponent. While ready she hadn't moved, and he had a feeling she was still weary about attacking. "Stupefy!"

A red streak of light shot across the courtyard towards the black haired devil. If she was surprised she didn't show it, move her hands up in a fast gesture, they glowed softly as a semi-transparent shield sprung into existence before her. His stunner splashed against it with no effect.

Harry paused, watching her contemplatively. While this happened, she dropped her shield, watching him as well without moving. It didn't seem like a single stunner was going to work, and unfortunately his signature disarming charm was also useless as there was no wand or other weapon to take away from Akeno. He needed to find a way to get around her shield.

Flicking his wand again, another crimson bolt of magic flew towards her. So focused on his strategy, Harry didn't even notice that he had cast it nonverbally. This time she didn't even bother to throw up a shield and the devil simply sidestepped it. Bringing down his wand again and again, he launched a barrage of stunning spells intermixed with other low level jinxes like the stinging hex, tickling charm, body bind spell, and so on. They wouldn't do much, but they could pose as a minor distraction. He was trying to test the waters so to speak.

If anything, it did force her to shield once again, all his spells splashing off a mostly invisible dome about a foot from her body. Preparing himself for the next part of his idea, Harry idly noted that Koneko and Kiba had moved to Rias' side behind him. This was good news for him since they were out of the line of fire, not that he thought they'd actually get hurt. He'd seen Rias' power at Privet Drive.

Watching his curses explode off her shield in miriad of different colours like mini fireworks, Harry prepared the next part of plan, "Bombarda!"

Instead of aiming directly at Akeno, he launched his attack at her feet. With a loud blast, the floor in front of Rias' queen exploded, causing he to jump back. Grinning at his success, Harry fired off another volley of stunners, hoping to end things quickly. To surprise, Akeno was nimble enough to still dance out of the way of his attack. Twisting, turning, and bending at just the right moment to avoid most of his spells. For the first time, one instance of his crimson magic splashed off her skin but instead of dropping unconscious, she merely stumbled a step before whirling back to face him.

Shocked, but not willing up his momentary advantage, Harry pressed on, "Bombarda! Bombarda! Bombarda!"

Boom. Boom! BOOM!

The very ground beneath and all around Akeno's feet fractured and heaved. If he didn't know that he could fix it afterwards, he would have felt bad about tearing the Gremory's courtyard apart. Once again thinking he'd got the upperhand, he was shocked when two batlike wings erupted from the devil's back and she soared into the air, away from the damage he'd caused to the ground.

Finally having got enough, Akeno made a sign with her hands as she hung in the air, causing them to light up and a moment later a stream of yellow lightning to come his way. Eyes widening, he flashed back to the similar event yesterday, he froze. All he could think about was the immense pain he'd gone through the day before. Forcing those thoughts away as the electricity grew closer, Harry dived to the side, unable to think straight as his fear ramped up.

BOOM!

This time it was the ground near Harry that was exploding with the force of Akeno's attack. Coughing as he inhaled the dust now hanging in the air, Harry climbed back to his feet. Looking at the devil in question, he was surprised to see her giggling, a dusting of pink on her cheeks, her legs rubbing together, and her chest heaving in a visibly pleasing manner.

Holy shit! Was she getting off on this? Despite being a bit freaked out and suddenly questioning his decision to train with her, it took a supreme effort of will for him to keep his mind clear. Concerning or not, seeing Akeno writhe around like that in the air was pretty damn erotic.

"Akeno is a bit of sadist," Rias' comment from the sidelines was just loud enough for him to pick up on.

"Yeah, no kidding." He glanced over in her direction.

He turned his attention back to his opponent just in time to see her hands, crackling with electricity, unleash another stream of lightning at him. Tightening his grip on his wand, Harry faced it head on as he cried, "Protego!"

An invisible shield sprang up between between them, Akeno's lightening crashing against it a second later. For one glorious moment it held and Harry thought he had stopped it, then with a sound akin to tinkling glass, his shield charm shattered. The lightning continued on its path hitting him for the third time in twenty-four hours.

Flying backwards and crashing across the ground, his body arching once again as the electricity passed through him. It hurt like hell, but he wasn't in any immediate danger like last time as it obvious she wasn't using her full power. The fact that a weakened attack was still enough to put him on his arse that easily stung his pride.

"Harry!" Rias' voice sounded, but Harry barely paid it any mind.

Gritting his teeth as to not cry out, he tried to think of a solution, but the pain was too distracting. This was ridiculous! He'd survived Voldemort's cruciatus curse and still managed to fight afterwards, he was not going to be taken down by a little bit of lightning! Starting to get angry, he began to feel a strange sensation building up inside of him. He wasn't sure what it was, but following his instincts, he pushed this unknown energy farther and and farther, once again not noticing how his shadow on ground was flickering and writhing.

Finally reaching the peak of his buildup, Harry released the energy with a roar, a wave of darkness spreading out from his body. As it went, it cleaned out the residual electricity in Harry's body and even dispersed Akeno's attack. Forcing himself to his feet, he could hear worried shouts from somewhere on the sidelines, but he couldn't see them. Whatever this power was, the way the residue hung it in the air, it almost looked like one of Fred and George's Peruvian Instant Darkness Powder bombs had gone off. It was an interesting effect, but he didn't care much to investigate it at the moment. He needed to be able to see his opponent so he could up the ante. Just as the thought crossed his mind, as if a gentle breeze had suddenly appeared, the shadows hanging the air seemed to almost blow away.

Seeing his target just as Rias called for him again, he let loose his magic, "Confringo!"

A fiery streak shot from his wand at high speeds, but even then Akeno still managed to summon her own shield in time. While his earlier jinxes had bounced of her defensive use of demonic power with no effect, at least this one did something, if not as much as he hoped. Impacting her shield, his blasting curse exploded in a discharge of flames and her shield seemed to reverberate with a loud gong-like sound.

Seeing that she seemed to be able to handle it, Harry prepared to cast another spell. It was something knew he'd read about when running Dumbledore's Army the year before, but never had gotten around to teaching them. The shield piercing hex.

"Scutum Confractus!" He shouted, a silver coloured light rocketed from the end of his wand like a bullet. He followed it up with another overpowered blasting curse, "Confringo Maxima!"

Punching a small hole in her shield like it was nothing, the rest of her protection shattered away much like his own shield charm had earlier. Her violet eyes widened in surprise before the following, much larger than before, blasting curse struck her right on. In a large explosion of fire, Akeno tumbled through the air, before she flapped her wings and righted herself midair. While he'd definitely done something this time, she still didn't look as bad as he'd expected. Her clothes were a little torn, something he tried his best not to pay attention to, and she looked a little singed, overall she seemed fine.

Giggling once again, it seemed she had forgotten her earlier awkwardness. "It seems you do have some fight in you, Harry. You definitely know how to treat a lady." Her hands began to spark again, as she licked her lips. Why did she have look so damn arousing when she threatened him! "We should play together again soon. Don't worry, I'll make things just as good for you as you have for me."

Just like that, she unleashed her power once again, and and he could already tell it had much more power to it. Moving his wand in a circular motion, he intoned, "Praesidium."

A semi-transparent golden hued circular shield hovered at the tip of his wand. It had a diameter large enough to cover most his body but he had to move it around with his wand for maximum effect. It didn't stay static like a normal protego, but it was much more powerful.

Without further ado, Akeno's power clashed against his own. Luckily the shield held. Unfortunately, the force behind it was so great that it Harry back a few steps and made put both hands on his wand, lest he lose his grip. Seeing him manage to withstand her attack only seemed to make her more excited. The pressure of her attack increased, causing Harry to grit his teeth further.

Attempting to angle his shield to the side, he started deflecting some of it away instead of holding the brunt of the attack head on. This caused large arcs of lightning to fly off to the sides. It looked so much like how Dumbledore had dispersed Voldemort's attacks at the Ministry that Harry wondered if that was the trick, to bleed the energy of the spell off to the sides with deflection instead of just shielding. It was something that was worth investigation, but that would have to come later. Harry was just noticing that those arcs of electricity were striking dangerously close to Rias, Koneko, and Kiba. Not even considering that they could defend themselves if needed, Harry stopped deflecting and once again took the brunt of the attack back on himself.

"Ara Ara ! You're handling it so well!" Akeno cooed, her whole body suddenly wreathed in lightning as she let out an orgasmic moan. "Is it as good for you as it is for me?"

The pressure on Harry's shield skyrocketed. What the hell was wrong with this girl? He had made a really big mistake challenging her. Digging his feet into the ground, he was still slowly being pushed as back. Even worse was the hairline fractures that were becoming pronounced on his shield. He tried to feed it more energy, but nothing was working. The cracks just grew larger.

Starting to panic, Harry felt that same strange energy building up inside him again. He still didn't know exactly what it was, but he fed to his wand nonetheless. The edges of his shield as well as the cracks began to glow with a black light. Suddenly it all exploded outwards, a mass of shadow consuming the lightning as it was released directly from the source. Just as quickly as it had dispersed Akeno's attack, his own power also faded away. Feeling exhausted, Harry felt himself fall to his knees.

"You took that as well?" Akeno's voice called out, somehow sounding even more excited. "Let's try this."

Harry watched with wide eyes as another streak of Akeno's intense power surged towards him. He couldn't do anything more about it. His brain felt overloaded by sheer force of will he'd to put into that last defense. He now understood even better why Grayfia had said what she had. If he was going to stay in this world of angels and devils, he would need to get stronger. He needed to train.

Preparing himself for the pain he was about to feel, he was surprised by the shout that rang out, "ENOUGH !"

A complicated crimson coloured seal floated in front of his body taking the hit from Akeno's devil power. Glancing around he saw Rias a few feet away, her hands glowing and raised, a look of deep concentration on her face. It seemed even she had to work pretty hard to stop a hit like that from her Queen.

Seeming to snap out of her mid-battle haze, Akeno flushed as she floated down to the ground, "Oops. It seems we are done for today. I hope we can do this again Harry-kun."

'Kun?' Harry brushed that off for the moment. There was no doubt in his mind that Rias was right to call her a sadist. At the moment, as Akeno stood there with a serene smile on on her face, there was no trace of the girl who had only minutes earlier had been getting off on the mere thought of electrocuting him.

"I don't know about that!" The crimson haired devil interjected. "I think you went a bit far Akeno!"

"Aw..." the raven haired devil pouted. "Don't get so worked up Rias, it was just a little bit of fun. Don't you agree, Harry?"

"Yeah…" Harry shifted nervously as both girls eyes fell on him, "Fun… that's definitely the word I'd use for it."

Rias was looking distinctly annoyed, "Harry…"

"The ending was a bit… err… intense though," He quickly added, hoping to appease her.

Rias did look slightly less irritated that he was agreeing… that was until her Queen spoke up again, "It was intense for me too." Harry gulped as Rias' eye began to twitch. Akeno just giggled, "Already acting like a doting wife, I see Rias. Don't worry I won't steal your husband away from you… yet."

"I am not- Harry tell her I'm… we're…" Rias started getting flustered, pink tinging her cheeks.

Not wanting to get into this now, Harry looked around wildly for an escape. "Kiba!" The other boy's eyes widened, his eyes darting to his master and back to Harry. He looked extremely reluctant to get involved. "So, what was that sword I saw earlier? Did you make that with magic or something?"

Rias' knight blinked in confusion at the shift in conversation before his brain engaged to decipher what Harry had said, "My sword? No that's not magic. That's my Sacred Gear, Sword Birth."

As he said this, the air around Kiba's hand and the area extending outwards began to shimmer and twinkle as a sword materialized there. The sword he was currently holding had a long grip, easily long enough for him to grip it with two hands. The hilt was somewhat triangular, coming to a 'v' near his hands. It was straight across on the other side, except for where it suddenly jutted up into another peak along the blade. The blade itself was straight and western styled, but the most distinctive feature was its black colour. It was if the sword were absorbing the very light around it.

"A Sacred Gear?" Harry asked confused. "What's that?"

"Sacred Gears are items with powerful abilities bestowed upon humans by the original God from the Bible," Rias interjected as she rejoined Harry with Akeno at her side. "It is part of God's system to enact miracles on Earth. It has been stated that certain individuals with Sacred Gears have grown to become very powerful and influential and that a large number of the people who have had their names etched into history, were most likely Sacred Gear possessors. Sacred Gears can vary from something common to one of the thirteen Longinus, which means they are capable of killing a god."

Harry's eyes widened, the whole idea of devils and angels still blowing his mind. With all the new revelations, he hadn't taken time to think about what they meant… that God was in fact real… but Rias had mentioned gods in plural.

"Is that…?" His eyes flickered back to Kiba's sword.

"Oh! No!" Kiba was quite to dissuade him. "Sword Birth is powerful and quite useful, but it is nowhere near the abilities of a Longinus."

"Oh, I see," he looked back at Rias, scratching his head as he pondered on whether to ask him question.

"What is it, Harry?" Of course she noticed his dilemma right away. "Is something wrong?"

"No… it's just," Harry paused. "Are the Hallows a Sacred Gear?"

Rias looked pensive, "I'm not really sure if I can answer that properly. As far as I know… no, I don't think so. We have most of them recorded and the Hallows have never come up as a Sacred Gear. Sacred Gears are bonded to a human at birth and that isn't the case for you, though the way in which they are bonded to you now seems similar. You'll need to speak to someone else with more knowledge on the subject."

Harry nodded, "Another thing to look into I guess… not that it's that important."

"I wish I could answer that for you," Rias said apologetically, but Harry waved her off.

"It's fine," Harry paused for a second. "You did say gods, earlier on, right? As in plural? More than one?"

His new wife's face brightened with comprehension, "Of course! As is obvious from what I explained before, God from the bible is real. He leads Heaven and was one of the Underworlds main enemies in the Great War. Apart from that, the gods of all the pantheons are all around somewhere, be it the Greeks like Zeus or Poseidon, the Norse like Odin or Thor, or even the Shinto gods here in Japan."

Harry shook his head, "I guess I shouldn't be surprised by that anymore."

"You'll get used to things," Rias placed her hand on his shoulder. He smiled at the gesture, something she returned before addressing them all as a group. "I think that's enough sparring for today."

Splitting up, the group started cleaning up. Despite the magic itself not being that impressive, watching Akeno reassemble the damaged courtyard with magic cast simply through her hands was still awe inspiring to him.

"I still have a long way to go," Harry commented.

"You did well today," he looked over at Rias with a raised eyebrow. "You did! You have to understand the power difference that exists between anyone from one of the three factions and a regular human. You did manage to hold off Akeno's attack, even when she let loose."

"I didn't last long at all." Harry insisted. "I don't know how I am going to survive amongst the rest of devil-kind like this. You already said there will be those who will come after me. I can't always rely on you to protect me."

"Don't worry about that. You'll train. You'll learn more about magic and how your new powers work." She reassured, "You'll be ready. I'll make sure of it."

Harry smiled weakly, "Thanks Rias."

"It's nothing," she said. "We're together now. We need to work together and support each other.

"I… I like that," then clearing his throat, he continued on, "as for education, there was something I really want to learn."

"Oh?" She looked at him curiously, "and what's that?"

"Can you teach me to travel via transportation circle?"

---

"Would you mind zipping me up?" The question broke Harry out of his thoughts as he looked towards Rias. It was later that day and the two were back in the bedroom from earlier to get ready for a dinner with the whole family.

"Uhh… sure," Harry answered, feeling surprised as he moved towards her.

Allowing his eyes to trail over her, he gulped as his mouth went dry. Being around Rias was a constant reminder of just how beautiful she really was. She'd put on a formal looking red dress that, at the moment, was open at the back, displaying a stretch of creamy pale skin of her back. She had her long red hair tied up in a knot, and partially left in a ponytail. It was different look for her, her hair usually hanging loose down her back from what he'd seen so far, but he liked it. If you'd asked him a week earlier, Harry would never have imagined he would be this lucky to be close to a girl like Rias.

Coming up behind her, he started slowly zipping it up, his hand ghosting over her skin as he did so. She seemed to shiver slightly at his touch and it was only then that he realized that she didn't seem to be wearing a bra.

"Like what you see?" She asked in a somewhat breathy voice, and all he could think was that he really did.

The dress was more of a darker burgundy than the crimson of her hair, and even after being zipped up, it still left her shoulders bare. Looking in the mirror over her shoulder, he got some kind of inexplicable satisfaction from seeing his own image standing there, almost possessively, behind her own. Despite that, it was her that he focused on. From the front, her dress was only more alluring. The fabric was cut in such a way to show off a tantalizing amount of cleavage, while also hugging her slim waist, as well as emphasizing the curve of her hips and rear.

"You look stunning," he said before thinking, both of them blushing slightly. "I… well… I mean-"

"Thank you, Harry." She said, spinning around to face him and wrapping both her arms around the back of his neck. It was a very intimate position and Harry was highly aware of that fact. Trying not to stare down at her chest, he was now finding it surprisingly hard to look away from her full, enticing red lips. "You don't have to be so tentative you know? We are married, even if unconventionally. We're stuck together."

She said the last bit jokingly but it hit right at the center of the issue for him, "That's the problem. I know you've told me not to feel bad… that it was an accident, but we are stuck together! I'm not complaining, we're just getting to know each other and I… I already like you... I just don't want to take advantage of the situation."

She cupped his cheek, "I know it's a weird situation, I'll agree with that, but we need to make the best of it. I too," Rias paused, blushing herself to his surprise, "I have found myself liking you already, so you're not taking advantage."

Harry smiled even if it was a bit uncertainly. The whole romance thing was still mostly a new thing to him. His time with Cho had been so brief and so much of a disaster he barely even considered their one kiss and single date a relationship.

"I'm glad to hear that," he said. "Still… I don't really know what's ok. I'm new to this whole relationship thing."

"This is my first relationship too, so I think it's just important we agree to communicate," to his surprise she suddenly leaned forward, pressing her lips against his cheek. Pulling back slightly after a moment, he could feel her hot breath on his ear. She whispered, "You know, not all the stories about devils are false, including the ones about the seven sins. We're well known to indulge in our lust."

Harry's whole body shuddered at the images she conjured in his mind with her words. Pulling back completely, Rias was now the picture of perfect innocence. He sighed, already missing the feeling of her body pressed up against his. It almost scared him how fast his life was changing.

Shaking his head as if to clear it, he asked, "So should we get going then?"

"Not until you get ready yourself," Rias answered looking down at his clothes.

Realizing that he was still in the same stuff as earlier, Harry knew what she was getting at. "Right. What exactly should I be wearing?"

At his question, Rias got a strange grin on her face and for some reason that Harry couldn't understand, it scared him.

---

Harry followed Rias towards the dining room, grumbling under his breath all the way. That was the last time he was going to ask her for help on something to wear, especially with the new abilities of his cloak. The fact he could transform it into anything she requested just seemed to make her more indecisive. He felt like a human sized dress up doll. In the end, he'd put his foot down and just shifted everything over to a generic formal pants, collared shirt, and tie.

Finally they reached a large set of doors and Rias stopped. Harry had to clamp down his own sense of nervousness that was resurfacing. Hopefully this second meeting with her parents wouldn't end with him laying on the floor unconscious like the last one. A deep breath from Rias left him feeling conflicted. While it was nice to know that he wasn't alone in this feeling, it would be even nicer to know that she thought that there wasn't anything to be worried about at all.

She pushed the doors open, Harry following behind her. As the dining room came into view, he had to admit it was impressive, and that was saying something, especially after eating in the Great Hall of Hogwarts for the past five years. While the Great Hall had the enchanted ceiling and was much larger in actual size, it was designed to seat upto a thousand students, while the Gremory's dining room was designed only for their family and a few guests, yet looked like it could seat many many more if needed.

"Ah, you've made it, our darling daughter, Rias," a man who shared the family's long crimson hair and had a short beard upon his chin spoke with a smile. Harry recognized him briefly from the day before.

"Good evening father," Rias responded, her one eye twitching slightly. Harry was starting to get the impression that she didn't like being coddled by her family. She'd reacted similarly to both her brother and father now.

"Also a big welcome to our Guest of Honour." He continued, "Welcome Mr. Potter. I only just got to introduce myself last time. I wanted to welcome you to our home. I've heard that you've already met Rias peerage, so let me introduce you to my wife."

Indicating to the woman beside him, she stepped forward, "It's a pleasure Mr. Potter. My name is Venelana Gremory."

Looking her over, Harry could see the striking resemblances between mother and daughter. Their facial structure was quite similar, and even their hair fell in a similar shape, though Venelana's was much shorter, falling just below her shoulders, and it was coloured brown. She appeared to be in her twenties, something Harry knew was much much younger than the truth, and she had an attractive figure, her bust falling just short of her daughter's.

"It's an honour to meet you both, Lord and Lady Gremory," Harry said, inclining his head. He wasn't big into this kind of formal stuff, but after asking Rias earlier, he'd learned their proper titles. He had thought it would be best to be polite and make the best impression possible.

Both of them smiled, Venelana especially as she looked to her daughter with her eyes twinkling, "At least this one seems to be more polite than the Phenex boy, if anything. He may just yet turn out to be a good catch after all."

"Mother!" Harry shifted uncomfortably on his feet as Rias got herself all worked up.

"Why don't we all get seated for dinner," Zeoticus spoke up over the two woman, interrupting Rias' complaints.

Following her, Harry stopped at what seemed to be where he was to be seated. Thinking about it at only the last second, Harry pulled Rias' chair out for her, like he'd seen in stolen moments on the telly when he was younger. His Aunt Petunia had never let him watch it with them, but he'd been able to sneak a few minutes here and there over the years. If the smile she gave him was any indication, he had done the right thing.

Sitting down himself, Harry allowed his gaze to trail across the rest of the table. He saw the rest of Rias' peerage: Koneko, Kiba, and Akeno, but also a young boy with the same coloured hair as Rias. Said boy eyes were wide and shining as he looked at Harry's new wife, nearly vibrating in his seat with obvious excitement.

"Rias!" The boy exclaimed. "It feels like you've been gone for so long! Are you here to stay now?"

"Hello Millicas," she replied with a fond smile. "I've missed you too. I'll be around for a little while, but I will have to return to Earth for school soon enough, you know that."

"Awwwww…" he pouted. "It's so boring around here without you."

She tried to console him, "We'll just have to spend time together again now before I leave."

"I guess…" Harry thought he still seemed a bit upset.

"Anyway, I wanted to introduce you to someone special," Rias said, turning slightly towards Harry. "Millicas, this is my new husband, Harry."

The boy's blue-green eyes widened again, suddenly fixated on him. "Husband?"

"Yes Millicas," Zeoticus spoke up from the end of the table. "That fact is to be kept under wraps for the moment though. Do you understand?"

"Of course, Grandfather," he replied dutifully, bowing his head towards the older devil.

"Millicus is my brother and Grayfia's son," Rias explained to him.

Harry nodded, turning back to the boy in question and holding out his hand, "It's nice to meet you Millicas."

He shook Harry's hand enthusiastically, "It's nice to meet you too! Now I have someone else to play with as well!"

Caught a little off guard, Harry wasn't sure what to say, but Zeoticus stepped in again, "Rias and Harry will probably be very busy over the next little while, so I don't want you to be bothering them too much, ok? Otherwise, I'll have to tell your mother."

The boy, whose face had began to fall, paled considerably at mention of getting trouble with his mum. Harry couldn't blame him really, while he'd gotten a hint at a softer side to Grayfia that morning, he still didn't want to ever get on her bad side.

"Don't worry about it Millicas, I'm sure we'll have time to get to know each other," Harry offered, feeling a bit out of his element. He wasn't quite sure how to deal with children, his only experience being when with his peers when he'd been that age, and they weren't good memories. Dudley had always made sure none of the other kids in primary would come near 'the freak.'

"Really?" The youngest Gremory asked, hope shining in his eyes.

Harry scratched the back of his head awkwardly, "Sure… why not?"

The other boys happy smile was enough for him to know he'd said the right thing. Glancing at Rias out of the corner of his eye, he couldn't quite name the look she was giving him, but for some reason he felt his heart seem to flutter oddly in his chest. She really was beautiful.

Giggling from down the table drew his attention to Akeno was looking at the two of them, "So cute."

Harry narrowed his eyes, trying to fight off the embarrassed blush he could feel rising on his face. Looking back at the head of the table he saw a small smile on Rias' mother's face as well as a contemplative look on her father's.

"Why don't we get started," Zeoticus said, as a stream of maids suddenly entered the room with platters of food. It threw Harry off a bit, not really used to being served in such a manner. Really he was the one stuck doing all the serving as a child, having considered himself lucky if he even got to eat, and then at Hogwarts having all the food simply appear on the table. "Seeing as how you are so fond of your new home on Earth, Rias, I instructed the chefs to prepare some Japanese cuisine for us now that you've returned."

"You didn't have to do that, father," she complained, but Harry could see her eyeing the food hungrily anyway.

Looking it over for himself, Harry wasn't quite sure what to pick. He wasn't familiar most of this type of food. The Dursleys had never eaten it, his uncle going on about how this 'foreign garbage' wasn't good for them, but based on the level of obesity between him and his son, Harry didn't think traditional english fare was any better for them. Even things a bit closer to home, like french food, were usually held in disdain, unless his aunt was trying to impress someone.

Serving himself some safe looking rice dish, Harry looked around cutlery. His eyes came to rest on two small wooden sticks. He knew what chopsticks were even if he didn't know how to use them.

Rias nudged his arm and asked quietly, "Do you need some help?"

Harry paused for a bit second, feeling stupid that he couldn't even figure this out on his own, but he tried to force his own pride down, and nodded.

She held out her own to show him, "You're right handed correct?" He nodded. "Ok so make sure to lay one of them in the valley between your pointer finger there and your thumb, ok? It's probably best to balance it on your ring finger."

It took him a moment, as he fumbled the lightweight wooden utensil, but he got it how she explained a moment later, "Ok."

"Good, now place the second chopstick in the valley between your pointer finger and thumb along with the first chopstick, but rest this one on your middle finger instead of your ring finger," she explained.

"What?" He asked already starting to feel overwhelmed.

"Just copy me," Rias said soothingly. Looking over her hands, he did as she said. It felt a bit awkward but he did manage to get it. "The chopstick on the bottom should remain mostly stationary. The index and middle fingers do all the heavy lifting with the second chopstick. Basically, you'll now use your index and middle fingers to move the top chopstick up and down, opening and closing them to pick up your food."

Testing it out, Harry could see it worked like she said. It wasn't exactly a comfortable action for him, but it worked. The food itself was also different than he was used to, and there were a few things he wasn't too inclined to try, but overall he made it through alright.

"Are Sirzechs and Grayfia not coming for dinner too?" Harry asked Rias, nodding his head towards her young cousin. He spoke quietly, trying to draw attention to himself. He didn't want to appear rude by prying.

"No," Rias shook her head. "Millicas spends a lot of time with my mother and father. My brother has a lot of commitments for his job, and Grayfia is often there to assist him. However, she does spend a lot of time helping out here as a maid as well. I know they do make lots of time for him though."

"That makes sense," Harry said with a nod. He still had a bit of a hard time visualizing the prim and proper Grayfia as a maternal figure but he really didn't know her that well. It kept throwing him for a loop how young all the devils he'd met looked.

Conversation stayed light for the most part. Harry tried to avoid looking at Akeno, who had taken to looking back and forth between him and Rias suggestively. Kiba, just like he had sensed about him earlier, was formal and polite, and to Harry's surprise Koneko seemed the biggest fan of the food. He wasn't sure how such a small girl could put away so much, but she hadn't stopped eating since they'd been served.

"You've been trained as a wizard, I hear," Rias mother finally asked as the dinner started to wind down.

Harry paused, everything he'd learned from Sirzechs earlier coming up in his mind, "Yes… I am."

"I see…" there was a very faint frown pulling down at the corner of her mouth. "You have schools for your training, do you not?"

"We do," Harry answered, "I go to Hogwarts in Scotland. I'm sorry to say that I don't know much about the others around the world."

"It's an interesting idea I'll admit," she said. "Most magicians still subscribe to the whole master and apprentice model themselves. I have to say, I don't think I've interacted with any wizards in a long time, but that's to be expected with the nature of things these days, I guess."

Harry opened his mouth to speak, but was cut off by Rias who looked angry, "Harry informed me what Sirzechs told him earlier. Why wasn't I ever told any of that? Harry was hearing it all for the first time, but if it had been anyone else who knew what I was talking about, I would have looked like a fool. As it is, I gave Harry wrong information. Shouldn't I have been taught the truth?"

Zeoticus shifted in his seat, "Rias…"

"No!" She cut him off, as some of the maids started clearing the table as if nothing were happening, "Do you know how embarrassing this is. I'm the heir to this family and I don't even have correct information on the major human faction of the supernatural world! You should have taught me this."

Her father sighed, "You're right. I should have taught you about our full history with human wizards and magicians. You have to understand that people like to pretend it never happened. It's not talked about much these days." Harry noted that several of the others in the room had perked up about this, and Zeoticus must have noticed this as well. "Why don't we discuss it later some time?"

Rias didn't look quite satisfied but she nodded in acquiescence. The next few minutes, as the table continued to be cleared, were spent in relative silence. Even as dessert was served and then consumed, no one said much. It was if the weight of the earlier conversation was pressing down upon them.

"I'm assuming my son informed you that I'd like to talk to you tonight," the head of the Gremory family asked as they all stood.

"He did," Harry confirmed calmly even though inside he was less than confident. "Did you want to do that now?"

The red haired devil inclined his head, "Follow me."

"I'll meet you in your room afterwards, ok?" He said giving Rias a reassuring look.

She hesitated for a second before nodding and stepping back, "I'll see you soon then."

Harry smiled, a warm feeling spreading through his chest since she was actually worrying for him. Following Zeoticus' earlier instructions, he trailed the devil out of the room and down several more of the long halls. He was starting to get a bit more comfortable with the building, even if he was sure he couldn't quite navigate himself around completely yet.

To his surprise, they came across a large, familiar set of doors. Pushing them open, Harry entered behind him. "Have a seat."

He did so as Zeoticus himself settled down. Silence stretched between them for a few moments, before Harry finally interrupted it, "I thought this was Sirzechs' office."

His face shifted imperceptibly, "No, it's my study actually. I lent it to him so that he could have his meeting with you earlier today. You're probably not aware, but once he was made the Satan Lucifer, he was required to give up all claims to the Gremory name. He is now known as Sirzechs Lucifer, and has access to the old Lucifer family estate."

Harry didn't speak for a moment before finally beginning to ask, "So Milicas is-"

"A Gremory," Rias' father interjected. "The positions of the four Devil Kings are no longer hereditary. Milicas will not continue on the Lucifer line, he is still considered a member of our family."

"I see," Harry responded.

"Something about this bothers you?" he asked, a curious look on his face.

Harry hesitated, "I… I can't imagine being forced to give up your family for power... any kind of power, really."

He really couldn't. He'd lost any chance to know his own parents at the age of one-year old, and wished more than anything he get that chance back, so for someone to just throw that away... it infuriated him.

He nodded his head, "I think I understand what you are thinking, but you have to remember that no one forced my son into this," Zeoticus explained. "We did not banish him from our family. Despite the perks some may think it brings, it has actually caused our family it's fair share of hardships, especially on the succession of it's headship. One of such problems was finding a suitable match for Rias."

"And that's where I've messed things up for you," Harry grit his teeth but managed to keep his voice level. "You must not like me much."

Rias' father leaned forward, his eyes shining with interest, as he steepled his fingers, "I won't lie to you, I am disappointed that our contract with the Phenex Clan will not go through."

"Even though you're daughter hated it and was doing everything she could to free herself?" The wizard retorted before he could stop himself.

The Lord of Gremory looked bemused for a moment at his audacity before his face settled into a more serious look, "I'm glad at least Rias had found a husband who does care to defend her."

"What?" Harry blinked in confusion.

"As I was saying, I did not take any pleasure in denying my daughter what she sought after," he said. "As you have most likely already been told, our race as a whole is in danger of extinction. While the Evil Piece system has helped the problem, the low fertility rates for pureblooded devils has not improved. The match we had planned would have done much to help this while making both our families stronger." He sighed. "I have been informed that this may be a sensitive topic for you, so why don't we move on. The contract has been ended, Rias has gotten what she wanted, and in the end we may have gotten an even better deal."

Harry couldn't suppress a scowl. He still wasn't quite happy with the pureblood nonsense, be it wizard or devil, and the reference towards his new powers had pushed him over the edge, "A better deal..."

"Despite what my daughter has told you, and even though we are not evil, we are still devils, greed is in our nature," Zeoticus replied, an understanding look on his face that threw Harry off as it seemed out of place in the conversation. "Oh, I'm sure you'll make a better husband to Rias than Riser Phenex ever could, and that does make me happy, I'm simply commenting on the side benefits we were lucky enough to discover you happened to bring along. It's only natural for us to focus on that."

He wasn't quite sure how to feel about that, but Harry had another question, "What about the Phenex clan themselves? Won't this cause problems with them?"

"Ah… yes… that," for the first time in their conversation, Harry saw the devil's face fall into a complete frown. "There is a very good chance it will cause complications down the line. If you had managed to best Riser in some kind of duel, it would be much more simple, but now it will appear that the Gremory family broke faith, irregardless of how the situation came about."

"So what does that mean for me?" Harry asked, his mind focused on the word 'duel.'

"It means that you will follow the request I had Sirzechs make of you to play the part of Rias' Contracted Magician," he said sternly, "It will buy us time to figure out a solution and approach their family properly with the least severe repercussions."

"Sirzechs explained what a Contracted Magician is, but I still don't know how I will go about doing that," Harry admitted.

"All you need to do is to make sure, if ever asked, to identify yourself as a mage contracted to the Gremory Household. No other information needs to be given other than that. Do not allow someone to tell you otherwise. The details on contracts are considered private clan business," Zeoticus said firmly. "It should go without saying but keep your wand hidden, especially so if you meet any other Magicians."

"I guess that's simple enough," Harry finally offered. He was still having a hard time reconciling the fact that these other magic users had such a hate for the wizarding world, but he decided to focus more on that later. Lord Gremory had settled back down at his agreement, "Is that all you wanted then?"

"No, it is not," Zeoticus looked at him calmly. "Despite how you may feel about any of this now, or any plans that may or may not have been in place, it is time that I officially welcome you into the family… for we are family now, and the Gremory clan always takes care of their family."

Harry swallowed thickly, not quite sire how to respond. Rias had said something similar before and even Sirzechs had joked around about Harry calling him big brother, but somehow this felt much more official. With a start, he realized that was because it was. This was the head if the family welcoming him into the fold. These were beings from whole other race, beings spoken about only in myth and legend, beings said to prey upon humans to steal their very souls, and yet, they'd already offered more to him than the Dursleys ever had. Harry wasn't sure how he felt about most of them still, but he couldn't deny this felt a little bit nice, even if he was still weary of most of their intentions.

"I… thank you," he stumbled over his words. "So… what now?"

Zeoticus rose from behind the desk, coming around to face Harry with no obstructions between them, "Now, we make things official."

"I don't understand," Harry looked at him questioningly.

Adding to his confusion, Zeoticus seemingly switched tracks, "I heard you were practicing creating transportation circles. Is that correct?"

"Yes, Rias was showing me earlier," Harry's ears reddened slightly, "I haven't quite got it down yet, but I'm working on it."

"You were able to use a circle though before correct," his eyes drilled into Harry.

"Of course," Harry replied, confused. "I've used them a few times now. I'm just… still learning to form them myself."

Zeoticus' posture relaxed, "Ah good. I'm sure you'll have it down in no time then. You'll probably have some initial difficulty since it is a use of your magic dissimilar to how you've been taught before." He paused for a second looking Harry over, "Give me your hand, if you will."

"What?"

"I'm going to imparting you with the Gremory family seal," the head of the family explained. "It will allow you to eventually travel past the wards on your own of our family's properties as well as serve as identification. Something I'd also ask you not to reveal to anyone outside the family for as long as you continue to play the role of Rias' magician."

Taken aback by once again by how real this was all becoming, Harry offered his hand somewhat tentatively, and Zeoticus took it with a firm grip. A moment later his hands began to glow with a crimson energy, quite similar to the colour he'd seen from Rias when she used his power. The back of his hand began to tingle for a few seconds before suddenly undergoing an intense, almost painful, itching sensation that made him want to squirm.

A moment later, his hand was released allowing Harry to snatch it back. He resisted the urge to scratch it in favor of examining the glowing red symbol printed onto his skin like a tattoo. At the very center, it had what looked somewhat like a stylized backwards facing 's'. It was a familiar looking design as it was the same one that had present on all the circles he'd seen Rias create. Around said symbol was a complicated circle design with several layers all intertwined with intersecting arcs. At five equally spaced points with these circles were drawings of small crescent moons. Just as soon as he had finished examining it, it seemed to almost sink into his skin and disappear.

"It's gone," Harry observed verbally in surprise.

"Try focusing on where it was and what it had looked like," Rias father coached suddenly, making Harry jump.

Despite that, he complied immediately, bringing up an image what he'd just witnessed. His hand tingled, luckily this time without pain, as the symbol faded back into view. It really did look like a tattoo… well except for the glowing. The way it appeared and disappeared reminded him strangely of the ink on the Marauder's Map.

"Perfect! That was everything I needed," the devil exclaimed, breaking Harry out of his thoughts. "You probably shouldn't keep my daughter waiting any longer… unless there was anything else you wished to ask?"

He looked at Harry expectantly, "No, I'm fine. Thank you Lord Gremory."

"I told you before, please call me Zeoticus," he waved his hand through the air, "You're my son-in-law after all now."

"Right… well thanks again," Harry responded somewhat uncomfortably. He knew he had to get used to it eventually, but this whole suddenly having a family thing was taking him awhile to adjust to, even if it sounded quite nice. Standing, the wizard and the devil just looked at each other for a second, before Harry moved to leave. "Have a good night then."

"You as well, Harry," he heard as he shut the study door behind him.

Taking a moment to reorient himself, Harry remembered the best way to get where he needed to go, and set off. The house was big enough that it took several minutes to reach Rias' room. Arriving there, Harry hesitated on the threshold, unsure whether he was supposed to knock first or just head in. Was he still a guest in her room or was it technically their room now? It was all too confusing for something so simple as entering a room.

Before he could come to a decision, it was taken out of his hands as the door opened for him, Rias standing in the entranceway, her eyebrow quirked, and an amused look on her face, "Were you planning on staying out here all night?"

She moved out of the way, allowing him to pass, which he did, though feeling a bit foolish. Turning around once he was inside, Harry froze, unsure how he had not noticed that Rias had changed. She had looked absolutely stunning in her dress her earlier, but now Harry's brain nearly short circuited. He'd already seen her completely naked several times, and yet the sight of her in a t-shirt and panties was somehow even more sexy.

The shirt wasn't tight persay, but her bust was big enough that it didn't leave anything to the imagination. It was quite easy for him to determine that she wasn't wearing a bra. It was only because he'd gotten a quick flash when she moved that he knew she was wearing underwear at all, and not just going bare down below.

Sauntering forward, Rias approached him, shocking him by throwing her arms around his neck, leaning forward before stopping when their faces were only inches apart. Harry's heart was pounding and he could feel Rias breath on his face. His eyes were locked with hers, though he couldn't resist the urge to glance down at her luscious looking lips. Unnoticed to even himself, he had slowly began leaning forward too. Taking this as his agreement, she closed the distance between them, their lips crashing together.

For Harry, who had only one previous experience kissing a girl, a mostly bad experience at that, this was much much better. Rias' lips were so soft against his own, and without overthinking it, he wrapped his arms around his waist pulling her closer. She moaned softly against his mouth, moving closer herself causing Harry to stumble and before he knew it they'd fallen backwards against the bed. They separated at the sudden movement, Harry trying to regain his breath that he'd lost when she'd fallen on top of him.

The short reprieve didn't last long however, as soon Rias had returned for more, not that Harry could find it in himself to complain. Grinding up against him, Harry instinctively opened his mouth in a small gasp, but this only seemed to give her the access she had been waiting for as he suddenly felt her tongue invading his mouth. Being naive and sheltered as he was, Harry hsf only heard about this from Seamus' attempts at bragging in the dorm room back fourth year, not that any of them had believed the then fourteen year-old in his tales of getting with one of the older Beauxbaton girls. One thing was for sure, his kiss with Cho had not been like this.

Harry had never felt this close with anyone before and for someone who had spent the majority of their life feeling lonely, starved for affection, he couldn't help but lose himself in the experience. Somehow in the following moments, Harry found that his hands has snaked themselves down farther around the generous curves of her ass. He couldn't help but giving the supple flesh a gentle squeeze, causing Rias to moan once again into his mouth.

Pulling back after a moment, Rias remained hovering over Harry, giving him a heated gaze. Breathing heavily, he returned her gaze as he tried to slow the racing of his heart. Grabbing one of his hands, she slowly pried it off her behind. With a flash of mortification, he quickly retracted his other hand as well, getting ready to apologize when her next actions brought him up short. Still holding his hand, she guided it up to touch her chest, all the while a sultry smirk adorned her face.

Sitting there somewhat frozen for a second, she gave him a small nod of encouragement. That was all Harry needed before he tentatively gave her breast a squeeze. She let out a small whimper, biting down on her lip in a way that only made the whole scene sexier to him. Now presented with the opportunity that almost any teen boy wished to be in, Harry brought his other hand up, running them over the curves of her large breasts, continuing to squeeze them gently. He was embarrassed to admit it, even to himself, but he found himself captivated by them.

If he had been sure before that she wasn't wearing a bra, the feel of her hardened nipples poking the palms of his hand through the cotton of her shirt confirmed it. Suddenly feeling a bit bold, he tweaked one of them them, drawing a loud gasp from Rias. Pulling back, she stared at Harry with a hungry look adorning her face as she hurriedly pulled her shirt off above her head. This of course gave him an unobstructed view of the wonderful globes of flesh he'd just been playing with, but that soon changed when she descended upon him.

Holding him down against the mattress with surprising strength, she attacked his mouth once again. He returned her actions with as much fervor as he could, though he found he was in the disadvantaged position at the moment. Breaking away once again, he was surprised when instead, Rias started working her way across his jaw, down his neck, and then his chest after she succeeded in loosening his shirt. Caught up in the moment, Harry's mind was lost to the sensations of it all, and it wasn't until he felt one of her hands snake down to somewhere much lower on his body, that his brain rebooted.

Jumping at her touch, he instinctively scooted back a few inches. It wasn't that he hadn't liked it per say, but more that it had served as a wake up call for how far things had escalated from their first kiss. Breathing heavily, he leaned back on his elbows watching his new wife. Rias had appeared shocked at his sudden movement, but she too seemed to be waking up from their lust filled haze. If the extreme reddening of her cheeks were any indication, how far they had been heading was dawning on her as well.

Flopping down onto his back, he let his breathing start to slow. He really did feel exhausted all of a sudden. A moment later Rias crawled up beside him also flopping down on her side. It made her still exposed breasts jiggle in front of his face, not really doing much to help him settle down, but he did his best to ignore it for now.

"It's probably best if we cool off a bit," Harry finally said, his eyes meeting her own, before he quickly looked back up at the ceiling. "Almost didn't stop when we should have there."

There was no response for a minute before she finally answered quietly, "I wouldn't have minded if we'd gone farther."

Looking back at her, he saw a mixture of embarrassment and nervousness play out across her face. Despite everything Harry found this amusing as he let out a chuckle, "I probably wouldn't have either. Trust me on that, but I think it might be best if we continue to get to know each other a bit more before we… you know… do that."

To his surprise, Rias smiled at that, "Actually, I like that."

"Good," Harry pushed himself up part way, never taking his eyes off her.

Hesitating for a moment, before giving into his own idea, he leaned down once more to kiss her gently, cupping her cheek with one of his hands. She reciprocated the gesture with the same calmness. It wasn't as passionate as their previous few kisses, and didn't push towards anything further, but even so, it was no less intense.

He pulled back after a few moments, feeling content. Almost reluctantly, he withdrew his hand as well, allowing his thumb to trail over the velvety softness of her skin, momentarily ghosting over the corner of her lips.

Standing up once he'd finally disengaged himself from Rias, Harry focused on his outfit once again, allowing it to shift over to a simple t-shirt and boxers.

"I'm so taking you out shopping soon," Rias spoke up, also rising from the bed.

"What?" Harry looked at her.

"We need to get you some new clothes," she said.

"But the hallows let me-" Harry tied to explain before he was cut off by a loud sigh.

"You're such a guy," she complained, while rubbing her temples as if his words had pained her, "As cool as your powers are and even if they let you transform your cloak into different clothes at will, you are not going to wear an invisibility cloak for the rest of your life. That's disgusting."

"But-"

"No buts!" She said. "We'll go out sometime soon. It'll give me a chance to show you around the Underworld too."

Feeling chastised, Harry moved across the room a bit grumbling to himself until he came across the shelf he'd noticed earlier, "What's all this?"

Padding across the room she came up beside him. "Oh, that's some of my anime and manga collection!" She explained excitedly.

"Right…" Harry remembered something about it coming up in the conversations they'd had with Ron and Hermione. "That's that… err… Japanese… animated stuff, right?"

Rias' eyes widened, "I can't believe I forgot you haven't seen any yet!"

Grabbing his arm, she dragged him to another corner of the room where a loveseat, sat facing a large flat screened television. Pushing him gently onto the piece of furniture, she held a case, with a picture of an animated person on the front, in her hands. He might have been able to focus on what she was trying to show him if said case was also not right in front of her still bare breasts that continued to jiggle slightly as she nearly vibrated with excitement.

Averting his gaze, he asked, "Would you mind… uhh… you know, putting on a shirt please?" Glancing down he saw a frown slip onto her beautiful face. Feeling like a heel, he suddenly blurrted out, "It's just that I can't focus, when… you know. It's too distracting."

Harry quite sure what he was expecting to a comment like that, but it hadn't been for her to giggle. "I guess I can cover up for now, if it will help my husband resist the urge to ravage me on the spot."

Despite she being the one to initiate the teasing, her cheeks had pinkened slightly again to match his own. Setting the case down, Rias returned to the bed, putting on her discarded shirt. It still didn't leave much to the imagination, but it did help him focus. Coming back towards him, she proceeded to insert the disk from the case into a DVD player before returning to his side and sitting on the loveseat as well while the show came up.

"So… uh… where did all that come from earlier?" Harry asked curiously.

"Just felt like it," she shrugged with a smile. "I sort of wanted to thank you too. You've been really good with my family… and you were good with Milicas."

Harry shifted awkwardly, "I didn't really know what I was doing. I don't have much experience with kids."

"Well you did great," she repeated with a smile. "I can tell he likes you already."

"I'm glad," Harry fidgeted, surprised he even wanted ask the question that he was about to, "So… how was it?"

"Hmmm?" Rias looked at him questioningly.

"The... err…. Kiss. Did I do ok?" Harry wanted to sink into the floor, wishing he'd never opened his mouth. Why did ever let that insecurity rear up? "I don't have much experience."

"Oh," Rias' eyes widened, before her face flushed deeply. "I… it was actually my first kiss."

"Oh... " Harry answered, feeling surprised that someone as beautiful as Rias had never kissed someone before, but the more he thought about it, it didn't surprise him. She had, up until recently, been trapped in that contract with the Phenex devil. "I guess we'll just have to learn together than."

Once more, Rias shot him a blinding smile. "I like that. Together."

Before anything else could be said, the title sequence of the show came on. Snuggling up against him, Harry couldn't help but smile himself. If this was what having a family was actually like, he could get used to it.

Turning his attention to the TV, the words 'Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood' flashed across the screen.