CHAPTER 6:
OF RELATIONSHIPS
It was the second night after their return, and Harry couldn't sleep, his mind plagued by nightmares of the Flame Dragon, twisted up with his memories of the First Task of the Tri-Wizard Tournament. Harry got up and wandered out of his tent, looking up at the skies. Ridiculously clear skies, he realised. The stars glittered in patterns that were mostly unfamiliar. He was sure the Milky Way was there in the sky, but that was it.
As he looked up at the sky, he then thought he heard something. Singing. Gentle, ethereal singing. Quiet enough to avoid disturbing the sleepers present in the tent city that had been erected for the refugees from Coda, but still noticeable.
He walked over to the source, to find Tuka seated at the table they had used for meals earlier, singing softly to herself, dressed in her green outfit from her village. Her eyes were bloodshot, and it was clear she had been crying. Harry, without trying to scare her, went around to the other side of the table, and sat down. She noticed him, and then squeaked a little, startled. "Harry, you frightened me!"
"Sorry. I heard you singing. What was that song? It was beautiful."
"Oh. Umm, it was The Lament of Solas," Tuka said. "Solas Em Marceau was my great-great-grandfather, and a renowned warrior of my people. He died to save his people when a large group of ogres attacked our village about one thousand years ago. I wish I had my harp. The song is best with accompaniment from a harp."
"Oh. Sorry."
"No, it's fine. At least our dead can rest in peace knowing that that monster is dead," she said. "But I couldn't sleep. I had nightmares. I saw my friends burned alive or eaten by that thing again. I…" She shivered. "Why does that beast haunt me so even after it is dead?"
"I don't know. Maybe it's post-traumatic stress disorder or something like it."
"Post-traumatic stress disorder?"
"It's…an affliction of the mind. When people go through traumatic experiences like war or rape or being caught up in a natural disaster, sometimes the memories and feelings haunt them. And given that you survived what happened, but you lost so much, well…listen, I'm sure the JSDF have counsellors, people who specialise in healing the mind. They won't be able to do much for your father, but they can help you if you want."
Tuka nodded, still looking morose. For a moment, she seemed to be working up the courage to ask something, before she finally did. "Umm…forgive me for being forward, but…do you or Sergeant Kurokawa have any, umm…paramours?" The last word was all but whispered, and given her fidgeting, she was clearly embarrassed.
Harry stared at her in shock. Did she just ask him if either Mari or himself were seeing someone? Eventually, he said, "Well, Mari isn't, but if I'm reading you correctly…well, she doesn't swing that way as far as I know. She prefers men, though she has high standards."
"Oh," Tuka said, blushing in embarrassment. "Umm, and you?"
"…I went on a blind date with Shino, but that was the day the Gate opened up on Japan, and we haven't exactly been able to have a date since. So I can't say. I'd have to talk with her."
"Oh. I…I usually prefer women to men," Tuka admitted. "There are some men I like, but they're usually taken by other women, and while some of my people are open to polyamory, others aren't. Besides, I'm considered young by our people's standards, so when I've made advances, I'm dismissed as being too young. But you, well…you've been so gentle and kind and helpful, and you saved my life, and…" She trailed off.
Oh. Ohhh. Harry tried to keep the dismay off his face. Was this going to be like Ginny all over again? Quietly, he asked, "Tuka, are you saying you like me because I saved you?" She nodded, her cheeks flushed with embarrassment again. "Okay…I'll be honest with you. I'm flattered to have the attention of such a beautiful woman, but…is that really a reason to be smitten with me? If I wasn't as nice as you thought I was, I could have taken advantage of those feelings. Besides…that sort of thing doesn't always work out. I speak from experience."
"Oh?" Tuka asked, curious rather than offended by Harry's words.
"Back home, amongst the hidden mage communities, I am famous as 'the Boy Who Lived', thanks to me surviving an instant death curse nobody else could as a baby. It was thanks to my mother that I survived, by the way. I didn't know it because I was raised by relatives, but I was famous for that. There was this girl who grew up on these stories, thinking I'd be her white knight. I actually saved her life after she was possessed by a warlock, and, well, she still was infatuated with me. There even came a point where we started dating…but we both realised, it wasn't working out. We ended it without it going too badly. It's just…her feelings were for the 'Boy Who Lived', and not Harry Potter. She fell in love with a figure of legend, not the person. She wanted a knight in shining armour, not an orphan boy who would give up his fame and money if it meant his parents could be alive again."
Tuka, to her credit, accepted these words, even if she didn't look happy about them. "So…what does that mean? Are you saying no, or are you just saying you want us to get to know each other?"
"The latter, of course. That way, if it turns out we do want to continue, well, we can do that. And if not, well, hopefully it'll be without any real problems, right? Though I'm a little worried about how Shino will react."
"Umm, can I talk to her? I wouldn't want to get between you two," Tuka said. "While polyamory is one thing, it has to be based on mutual consent of all parties involved."
"I didn't mean polyamory, I meant…oh, never mind…"
Tuka must've spoken to Shino fairly early the next morning, because later that morning, Shino came over to Harry while he was showing Lelei one of the books he brought over. "Hey, Harry, can we talk?"
"Sure." To Lelei, he said, "Sorry, Sergeant-Major Kuribayashi wants to talk with me. Will you be fine?"
Lelei nodded. "I believe I have grasped some of the written language. I will pick up more of it as I go along. Thank you."
Harry stood, and joined Shino, who walked away from the table they had been using, and a little out of the way of everyone else. She leaned up against a wall, crossing her arms, and giving Harry an irritated look. "Let me guess…Tuka?"
Shino nodded. "Thank whatever god is listening that Rory was there to act as a translator," she said. "I think Rory was tempted to mess with the translation just to mess with me, but I asked her not to. She said she would translate faithfully, as a courtesy to one of Emroy's favoured. I swear, that girl is fucked in the head. I'm glad she's on our side for now, or at least not our enemy. She's like a stray cat that's adopted an owner. But enough about her. Tuka came up to me this morning and began asking about us. Said you two spoke last night when you couldn't sleep. Asked whether you or Mari were seeing anyone. And she said that you told her that Mari didn't swing that way, and you were seeing me. Not to mention you were worried about the whole rescue infatuation thing."
"Well, yeah. She even said she'd be willing to be involved in a polyamorous relationship. I mean, what do you say to that?" Harry asked, flinging his hands into the air. "I just suggested that we get to know each other, because, well, I'm not even sure how things are with you. We only had that one date, and we had those idiots in the Imperial Army being gooseberries."
"Gooseberries?"
"Uhh, third wheel? You know, unwanted companions?" On Shino's enlightened expression, he then said, "After everything that happened since, we never really had a moment to even date. We socialise, true, but that's mostly with Mari. So, I'm wondering, are we just friends, can we go for more than that, or what?"
Shino sighed quietly. "…I'll be honest, I dunno. For one thing, I'm not sure whether this'd count as fraternisation as far as the JSDF's rules are concerned. You're not actually part of the JSDF, just a civvie contractor, but given what you've done, I reckon the line is pretty damned blurry. For another, given what you and Mari have told me about your life, I wasn't sure you were ready for another girlfriend. Some idiots are calling me a Christmas Cake, even though I ain't 25 yet, but I'm not just going to hook up with any old guy. Yeah, you're smart, compassionate, funny, and you cook some great meals. But you've been through shit I had never gone through. Hell, going on this expedition to this world was the first time I've seen any real action. So what if I remind you of something or someone that you'd lost? You're a child soldier, Harry. Don't get me wrong, we're definitely friends, and it'll take a lot for me to want to break that off. But are we more than that? I dunno. But if Tuka's offering, take it. You deserve some happiness."
"What about you?"
Shino shrugged. "Plenty of fish in the sea. And frankly, I'm glad you're not jumping all over that polyamory thing Tuka offered. I mean, I may just consider it for the right guy and girl, but this isn't some harem anime or some H-Game for some weirdo to jerk off to. This is reality. Tuka's a nice girl though, and to be frank, I'm sorry about what happened to her people and her father. She doesn't deserve that shit. You can't help but want to be friends with her. I'm glad you're being friendly with her, and that Lelei girl, and Rory. The more people we have on our side, the better. Though I reckon some people will exploit that."
"Exploit that?" Harry asked.
Shino's face screwed up in disgust. "You know Hazama's aide, Yanagida? I overheard him talking to Itami the other day, something about using the goodwill we generated as a means of paving the way to exploit resources here. Minerals, oil, etc. Yeah, I understand this place is an opportunity for the corporations, but we're here to ensure these idiots in the Empire don't fuck with us again, and we're trying to help people in the process, not take what is really their own stuff. That shit happened too many times back home, exploiting the ignorant. I actually confronted Itami on that later, and he agrees with me, thankfully. It's one thing to trade fairly with these people for these resources, and even then on a small scale. But to speak of such things…though Yanagida does have a point in one way. Other countries are envious of Japan for having access to the Gate, and the resources within. Apparently President Obama's fine with it, but Dirrel, one of the really hardcore Republicans, is raising a stink about needing more of an American presence here. There's dissent in a few other countries too. And word on the street is that we're going to be getting UN observers in soon to keep an eye on things."
"That's a good thing, right?"
"I hope so. But keep in mind, after the fuck-ups during the War on Terror, we're going to be scrutinised to make sure we don't make the same mistakes. Hell, I've heard rumours that the casualty report from the Flame Dragon's attack on the convoy got leaked to the press, and questions are already being asked in the Diet. This is why I hate politics. Even when we try to do the right thing, we get screamed at."
"Story of my life," Harry remarked.
He was glad he and Shino had this talk. It helped clear the air, and he was glad the hotblooded JSDF soldier wasn't holding anything against him. The last thing he needed was his life getting more complications. Then again, he knew that, before long, they'd probably be heading to Italica. He hoped that there wouldn't be any complications there. But, as Potter Luck would have it, it was a vain hope indeed…
CHAPTER 6 ANNOTATIONS:
So, this chapter wasn't in the original, but I wrote it in to give some development to both Tuka and Shino, as well as to lay the foundations of the harem without it being, well, ridiculously fast-moving. Harry has a sex drive, but he also cares about the women involved. So by talking it out, he's actually gained some respect from both Tuka and Shino. Tuka is used to a world where men have a habit of taking advantage of others, while Shino has her usual combative personality. By talking things over and explaining his reasons, Harry got their respect.
I'm actually going to take a break from posting chapters for now. I do have the next three chapters written, covering the story up to the arrival in Japan after Italica, and I'd actually like to write more of the Japan trip before I post more. In any case, it'll give some time for this story to rest before I start spamming daily chapters again.
Review-answering time! I haven't written in their reactions to Lord of the Rings. I'll do that for the post-Japan chapters.
Blaze1992: Because Harry actually bothered to talk to Shino (and Tuka also explained things), Shino isn't going to do that. Her acceptance of being part of a harem is going to be a slow-burning one, as with the rest of the romance, and she's not going to give up Harry, given that he's one of the few men not put off by her combative personality.
rmarcano321: This chapter, particularly Harry and Tuka talking, along with the scene back in the fourth chapter where Rory counsels Harry.
diagonalpumpkin: I try to remove that or mute that in my GATE stories. I do point out, for example, why Japan had Article 9 inflicted on them in the first place in at least one of them. I also call out Yanagida's little attitude towards exploiting the Special Region.
TorstenL: A crying shame, that. If you were willing to write a fanfic, I would have directed you to my challenges on the forums of DZ2 and whitetigerwolf. I have two Potterverse/GATE challenges: 'Harry Mercury' has Harry raised by Rory, and 'The New Apostle of Hardy' has a female Harry (or, potentially, a genderbent Harry) being recruited as Hardy's Apostle. I have a number of other GATE challenges on those forums too, so if your health problems clear up, feel free to give those a go.
Jostanos: Oh. I didn't realise that. Oh well, never mind.
Guest (regarding Hermione worshipping La and Elange): Depends on the deity. If they were decent sorts, Hermione would probably worship them, unless she was still religious for an Earth religion.
Guest (regarding pairings): I have no concrete pairings for Itami or Kurata in mind. However, Tyuule is definitely being paired with her 'canon' pairing from the novels, Furuta.
No numbered annotations this time.
