CHAPTER 2:

EIKO AND HARRY

Harry had thought he was dreaming, that he had been pushed into a hole deep within a cave, a bottomless pit that had somehow led to him ending up in a ruined village on another world. Oh, and he had been accosted by a blue-haired girl with a horn, accompanied by bat-winged teddy bears with pom-poms. Not a nightmare, thankfully, as it seemed to end not too badly, but it was bloody weird.

Of course, when he woke up, any notion that it was a dream was swiftly dispelled. Whether that was for better or for worse remained to be seen. Because he was looking into the concerned features of Eiko Carol.

"Hey, you're awake!" she said. "Are you feeling any better, Harry?"

Harry nodded, a little weakly. "Where am I?"

"My home in Madain Sari," Eiko chirped. "Your Eidolons were very helpful, carrying you here. Very chatty, too. They told me some of the horrid things your so-called relatives did. Not to mention where you came from. You come from another world…well, apparently you originally came from here. But your birth mother died giving birth to you, and your adoptive parents died saving your life."

Harry nodded. The Eidolons had told him, told him that the Dursleys had lied about the car crash, about his parents being drunkards. His true parents had been summoners of Madain Sari, and his adoptive parents had been heroic mages. He found them comforting fictions, albeit things to take hope in. Now that he was in Madain Sari, he was beginning to truly believe them. It was either that, or this was a dying dream, and he was lying, neck broken, at the bottom of a pit in the caves.

"Is there…anyone else here?" Harry asked.

Eiko shook her head. "No. Besides the Moogles and our Eidolons, we're the only ones here. My grandpa…" For a moment, she halted, and had a look on her face, a look of loss. "Two weeks ago, he died(1)."

"Sorry…"

"It's okay. He looked after me when my parents died. As for everyone else, well, Madain Sari was hit by a massive storm that killed almost everyone," Eiko said, rather solemnly. "That's why the place was in ruins. Some people might have left, but they haven't come back. Well, except for you. We're the last members of our tribe, Harry."

Harry blinked. He couldn't really comprehend the enormity of such a statement. To tell the truth, despite her surprising maturity (at times, anyway), neither did Eiko. It was hard for anyone to comprehend such a thing, let alone a pair of young children.

"Your Eidolons told me that some meddlesome old man removed your horn(2)," Eiko said. "Apparently they don't have summoners over there. Well, not quite. Well, I've met your Eidolons. How about you meet mine? Okay, come on out!"

Harry was bemused to see a blue-furred wolf, a green cute…thing, possibly a rabbit or possum or something with a ruby-like jewel on its forehead, and a magnificent, red and gold bird appear. "Whoa!" he murmured, his eyes wide with wonder.

"Harry, meet Fenrir, Carbuncle, and Phoenix(3)," Eiko said proudly, indicating the creatures in their turn.

Carbuncle, the green thing, bounded up to Harry and nuzzled him affectionately. "Hi, Harry! I hope we can be friends!" it chirped.

"Carbuncle," the wolf, Fenrir, said in a low, albeit amused rasp of a voice(4). "You're crowding the pup."

"Indeed," Phoenix said haughtily, with an eye-roll. The voice was androgynous and ethereal. "But it is good that Eiko has met another summoner. I would like to believe that we are good company to her, as are the Moogles, but another human, and one who does not wish to exploit her power, is a good thing."

"Uh…okay," Harry said. "It's good to meet you."

"Loquacious, ain't he?" Fenrir chuckled.

"Fenrir, don't use such big words!" Eiko berated the Eidolon.

"Says the girl who keeps reading that tattered copy of I Want to be Your Canary," Fenrir snorted. "Says the girl who kept on annoying her grandfather by spouting terms like 'thaumaturgy' and 'cross-dimensional evocation', trying to sound smarter than you are."

"I AM SMART!" Eiko snapped at the wolf, who was literally howling with laughter. Harry couldn't help it, he chuckled at Eiko's indignation. It was the first time in a very long time he had laughed at anything…

Upon learning that Harry could cook, and cook well, the Moogles begged him to cook that night's dinner. Eiko's cooking was prodigiously awful, and could probably be used in battle for lethal purposes. Harry actually agreed rather quickly: unlike the Dursleys, the Moogles were encouraging, and it was funny to hear entreaties for a good meal coming from a flying teddy bear-like creature.

Ingredients were a bit lacking, but Harry had been forced to learn how to cook well by his aunt. Fish, potatoes, and vegetables seemed like a safe option, though Harry was a little wary when he learned that a specialty of the area was a kind of noxious hopping bug called an Oglop. They were apparently often put into soups and stews.

As he worked in the kitchen, Harry found that he was enjoying himself. Now that Petunia wasn't hovering over his shoulder (a couple of the Moogles were, but they had good temperaments and were actually giving him gentle advice on occasion, not to mention were encouraging), he actually found that he liked cooking. It didn't hurt that he was probably going to get more than the table scraps. He was actually salivating at the thought of actually eating this meal.

It was the smell of this cooking that actually, truly brought it home that Harry was here, in Madain Sari. While the pain of landing at the Eidolon Wall, the sights and sounds, all contributed to this not being a dream, it was the simple smell of cooking food that brought it home to Harry, that this was real.

He wasn't on Earth anymore. He may have shivered at the fact that he was far away from home, except this place, already, felt more like home than the Dursleys' house. There, he was little more than a servant, continually told he was an encumbrance, lucky to be there. Whereas here…

Okay, Eiko was a little loud and shrill, but even now, he was already beginning to think of her as a little sister…or a big sister. Sometimes, she acted older than he did, and other times…

As he cooked, he asked one of the Moogles, Morrison, whether there were any other races in the world. "Plenty, kupo!" Morrison said. "Humans, along with summoners, who are actually humans, just with horns and the ability to speak to Eidolons. There aren't as many humans on this continent now: most of them are on other continents, especially the Mist Continent. Then, you have the Dwarves, who live in Conde Petie nearby. They love a good meal and respect the natural world. Then, there are the Qu: known for being gourmands and excellent cooks. The Burmecians also live on the Mist Continent: a graceful people, who look like rats. However, they are lovers of art and peace, though Burmecia has its own military. There are a number of other different peoples here on this world, but I won't list them all."

"Wow," Harry murmured. So many different types of people.

"There are also many monsters roaming the lands. They can't get into Madain Sari: the old wards still work against them. We will have to teach you to fight, and how to use magic and your Eidolons to drive off monsters, as you and Eiko may need to get supplies from Conde Petie."

Harry wanted to ask more, but he was sure that the fish he was cooking was almost done, so he decided to concentrate on that. It was strange, though. Here, he truly felt at home, even amongst these semi-ruined buildings…

"Wow, this is good!" Eiko said after finishing a few mouthfuls of food. It was a sentiment all the Moogles agreed with.

"Thanks," Harry said, a little timidly. He wasn't used to being praised by anyone. Understandably so, but still, he still felt nervous.

The pair of them then ate in silence, as did the Moogles. Anima and Yojimbo, though they didn't need to eat, were nearby, perusing the bookshelf in their human forms. Anima had a book in her hands, looking at it carefully. "Wow," she murmured. "This takes me back. Remember when we attended the premiere?"

Yojimbo chuckled. "I seem to recall Ramuh and Bahamut facepalming as Valefor and Mindy chucked peanuts at the stage. Shiva stayed the night with the main actor. And Daigoro relieved himself on some noblewoman's dress. I believe the duel I fought with her husband the next morning was rather one-sided. He was lucky I chose to spare him after I defeated him. Then again, he was Lord Avon's main sponsor."

"What are you talking about?" Eiko asked.

"We're talking about the premiere of I Want to Be Your Canary," Anima said, replacing the book carefully.

"Wow," Eiko said. "I know you guys are old, but…wow."

"Did you hear that, Anima?" Yojimbo asked with a smile. "She just called you old."

"I'm used to it. I got used to it after the first few centuries or so," Anima said with equanimity. "Besides, you're older than I am. I was only a few decades into being a summon when that girl…what was her name?"

"Yuna."

"Yes, when she finished off Sin, and(5)…" She shook her head. "Straying from the point somewhat. Anyway, my point is, you're older than I am, Yojimbo."

"True. And yet, you're our de facto leader," Yojimbo said, raising an eyebrow.

"Is it normal for your Eidolons to talk like this?" Eiko asked Harry.

"Pretty much," Harry admitted. "Don't yours?"

"Not as much," Eiko said.

The rest of the meal carried on in silence, save for Eiko and the Moogles making appreciative comments. Harry was glad that they had enjoyed the meal, and they reassured him that they weren't buttering him up.

After the end of the early dinner, the two of them returned to the Eidolon Wall. Eiko explained that she prayed at the Eidolon Wall twice daily, to the spirits of the Eidolons. Harry didn't know how to pray to the Eidolons, partly because he was more used to praying to God, and partly because praying to beings you could talk to like they were family seemed slightly silly, but he did as he was bade anyway.

Afterwards, Eiko answered his questions on some of the Eidolons on the Wall. She pointed out Ramuh, Shiva, Ifrit, Bahamut, Atomos (Harry especially didn't like the look of that one, which was little more than a massive gaping maw), the Thirteen Zodiac Eidolons(6)… Harry's mind was all awhirl with new names and beings. All part of this new world he had found himself in.

As they left the Eidolon Wall afterwards, with night falling, Harry watched as two moons rose into the sky, one red as blood, the other a cool blue like the ocean. And it was only now that the full weight truly hit him of the fact that he was no longer on Earth, more so than the smell of his cooking had.

He didn't know what to make of that.

"Harry…" Eiko tugged on his sleeve, bring him to look at her. She smiled reassuringly. "You're not alone anymore. And neither am I. Welcome home, Harry."

The simple reassurance of a normally rambunctious girl caused him to embrace her in a hug. "I'm home…" he murmured.

That night, for the first time in a long time, Harry slept in a decent bed, a comfortable, if old bed. It took some time for him to get to sleep: in fact, it took Anima singing a song, softly, like a lullaby, to help. When he had asked her what it was when she sang it to him in the cupboard under the stairs, she said it was a song from the world she had once been part of long ago, the Hymn of the Fayth.

Before his eyes finally shut, he fervently hoped that this was no dream, that he wouldn't wake up back in the cupboard, that Madain Sari was where he would be staying for the rest of his life.

When he woke up the next morning, it was to Eiko shaking him awake roughly. So much for it being a dream. But he could live with that. He could live with a rambunctious little sister than have to deal with the Dursleys ever again.

He was home. Well and truly at home.

CHAPTER 2 ANNOTATIONS:

So, Harry's first day and night in Madain Sari. And he's getting used to the fact that he's in another world.

There'll be a series of time-skips over the next two or three chapters: this chapter is set about a year before the beginning of the game proper, and Harry and Eiko will end up on better terms with the dwarves of Conde Petie, and will even make friends with the Black Mages in their village when the Black Mages first arrive. I'm putting the first Black Mage arrivals about six months prior to the beginning of the game.

1. Eiko's grandfather is said to have died a year before the game begins, so I'm putting his death at two weeks before Harry's arrival. She's had enough time to mourn, I think, and Eiko is, at times, mature for her age. She probably understood the reality of what was happening when her grandfather began to die. Other than that, or the Summoners have a different perspective on death in their belief system.

2. Given that, for the time being, I have no intention of bringing Harry Potter elements into this story (other than Harry himself), I'm still divided as to whether I should keep Dumbledore close to canon, or else make him the bashable Dumbledore, hence this statement. I could do the latter, but when writing a villainous Dumbledore in Sins of the Father, I actually found it very hard and draining to write a villainous Dumbledore. So that'll be a decision for the future. Given that most of my fics have Dumbledore as a deeply flawed but decent man, I might just go the other way for a challenge.

3. Unlike the game, where you have to learn these, I'm actually having Eiko know these three Eidolons from the get-go.

4. When I wrote Fenrir, I actually knew who his voice artist should be from the get-go. Namely, Steve Blum. Come on, you know it's a good match.

5. As with Harry Gainsborough and the Philosopher's Stone, I'm positing here that the summons on Spira were the first ones to be created, and that Yuna's actions scattered them across many worlds, including Gaia.

6. By these ones, I mean the Ivalice Espers seen in Final Fantasy XII.