CHAPTER 16:

GROWTH

After the fallout settled from Raynare's infatuation with Azazel being broken, things returned to some semblance of normality. True, Raynare copped more than a little mockery from some corners for her drunken rant, and she became an infamous figure on the Undernet. But Raynare weathered the aftermath with her usual sardonic grace.

If anything, Raynare seemed to be a bit more open with Harry. She was already more open with Mittelt, but that was by dint of them being virtually family. Harry had seen her at her worst, and had not judged her for it. Indeed, he had tried to help her.

Ironically, one of the things that helped Raynare in the aftermath of that sordid episode was visiting Harry's friends. True, it was Mittelt who had more interest in the wizarding world, and the petite Fallen loved chatting with Harry's surviving friends and loved ones. But Raynare seemed to be helped by speaking with Hermione and the Tonks-Lupin family. Indeed, she spoke with 'Don't Call Me Nymphadora' about the pink-haired woman's own trials and travails with love: too many wanted Tonks for her shapeshifting abilities and the perverted possibilities thereof.

Thus, a healing process has begun for the trio. Harry continued his training, intending to get strong enough to avoid being shanghaied into one of the factions against his will (with some of the Devils and the Khaos Brigade being the worst concerns), but his bond with the two Fallen grew stronger. He could definitely say that the three of them were friends, almost on a par with the friends he had made at Hogwarts.

It was strange, really. Not so much with Mittelt: despite her sharp tongue towards Raynare and her sardonic and bratty attitude, she had a rather warm personality. She reminded him of Ginny in many regards, albeit a Ginny who was a bit more textured and experienced. Then again, she was over twice her apparent age, and certainly at least a decade Harry's senior. And despite her having an interest in his misadventures, she also knew not to press him too hard about things. She was no pawing fangirl, nor did she seek a hero to save her like Ginny had once done. And given how Ginny had broken up with him prior to their hunting the Horcruxes, Harry felt a little more at ease with Mittelt. Mittelt was more quick to empathise with him than Ginny.

Raynare, on the other hand, was somewhat less approachable, albeit due to actions and attitudes on both sides. After all, she was a self-admitted honey trap who seduced people for missions, either to recruit them into the Grigori, or assassinate them. It didn't help that she had a bitter, sarcastic attitude, to say nothing of a desire for advancement. And then, there was her battle costume. What kind of good person would go into battle wearing some sort of skimpy BDSM outfit? That sort of thing just screamed 'evil' in most people's eyes, never mind the fact that it'd do sod all against any real attacks.

And yet, she also had genuine gratitude to him for saving him. And having come to know her, Harry knew that Raynare hid some real pain beneath her sultry but sullen façade. His crush on Cho aside, he wasn't sure he knew what it was like to have such strongly unrequited love. But he knew the sting of betrayal too many times, like she had. And while she was a shameless namedropper, her anecdotes about people from the past were often interesting and entertaining.

Raynare, despite her bitterness and her history of dark deeds, was a decent person, Harry believed. She was certainly far better than more than a few humans he could name. And he liked to think that he was helping her become better than that.

As for his relationship with the rest of Grigori, he was more used to Vali's little team, as well as Azazel, though he didn't go much near anyone else. Most of the Grigori only had a seeming passing interest in him anyway. And he was grateful for it, especially as his hybrid physiology was mostly secret anyway.

Of course, an interesting event happened when Azazel had him perform an experiment…

The malformed Stray thrashed within its restraints in the cage. It looked like an oversized wolf, but with a rotting skull instead of a head, and a huge scorpion's tail instead of a normal one. Thankfully, it was muzzled and chained up.

"Meet Kynok," Azazel said almost cheerfully. "Former Knight of one of the lesser scions of the Bael family. He's one of those Strays who is unequivocally a nasty piece of work, not that his former, late and unlamented King was any better. He was captured killing people in Mexico, captured on my orders."

"Why capture?" Harry asked.

Azazel sighed. "Like it or not, sometimes, my experiments require living test subjects. Sirzechs is kind enough to send me a list of Stray Devils at large and their crimes, and I use my own spies to corroborate that. A Stray Devil like Kynok is the lowest of the low, killing not just for the sake of power, but because they also get off on it. Kynok's King was a nasty piece of work as well, one of the black sheep of the Bael bloodline, and his attitude rubbed off on his Knight."

Raynare, who was standing nearby with Mittelt, snorted in contempt. "The Baels aren't much better. Or don't you remember how they treated Sairaorg for not being born with the Power of Destruction?"

"The current Bael head is an arsewipe, yes, but Sairaorg and Venelana are both exemplars of Devil-kind," Azazel rebuked Raynare, who rolled her eyes. Things had been admittedly awkward between them since the incident, and it was surprising that Azazel even asked for Raynare to come along, given what happened.

"So, what do you need a test subject for?" Harry asked.

"Well, I did a bit of thinking," Azazel said. "Until now, you've been using your Reave ability to take the energy of your foes for yourself. But that's basically mostly Albion's ability, albeit combined with Ddraig's Boost to amplify your strength. However, both the Boosted Gear and Divine Dividing have other abilities, and one of them, which I think could be useful, is one of Ddraig's. You have studied up on their abilities, right?"

Harry nodded. He had been doing so ever since coming here. "So which one?"

"Transfer, or whatever the equivalent you have is," Azazel said. "The Boosted Gear can transfer power to the allies of the wielder. I'm curious to see whether there is an equivalent skill. To get the best out of it, though, we need a source of energy, and I want you to take as much as you can from that source, even if it's to the death. As I don't want Vali or anyone else under my aegis to be harmed, well, I found a reasonable alternative."

Harry looked to Kynok, who was glaring at him. He didn't like killing in cold blood, or indeed in any other situation. He'd kill in self-defence or in defence of others, he had no regrets about killing those Death Eaters or that Nyder man or any of the Strays he'd hunted with Raynare and Mittelt. Only the fact that it was clear that Kynok, if he didn't have the restraints, would try to kill him had him agreeing to this, and even reluctantly.

So, he summoned his Scale Mail, sans his helmet, and grabbed the haunch of the Stray Devil. "REAVE!" the combined voices of Ddraig and Albion roared. Over and over again, Harry tore power from Kynok, before the Stray Devil slumped.

Azazel looked at Kynok, before nodding. "He's barely alive. Did you stop because you didn't want to kill him, or because you couldn't siphon power from him anymore?"

"I think it was the latter, I'm not sure," Harry admitted. He then approached Raynare, and looked at her. "You ready?"

She sighed. "Yeah."

Harry then placed a hand on her shoulder, and willed some of his power to go into her. Ddraig and Albion's voices roared in sync, "INFUSE!"

The results were startling. Raynare suddenly stiffened, and spasmed, a cry of…agony? Ripping from her lips. Harry whipped his hand away as she doubled over, panting. "Raynare, are you okay?" Mittelt demanded.

"Yeah, I'm fine, I'm fine…I just wasn't expecting that," the buxom Fallen panted, straightening. Oddly enough, her violet eyes had gained a slight shine to them, as if power was glowing from within.

Azazel was soon on her, scanning her body with a device. He blinked at the readout, before doing it again. And repeated that once more, shaking the device. He placed it on a nearby shelf before using another device to scan her a few more times, before whistling in realisation. "Okay, I did not see that coming. So…I have good news and bad news. The bad news is, you don't want to do that again anytime soon, Raynare. That infusion of power nearly overwhelmed your physical form. If Harry gave you much more power, it would definitely have damaged your body. Hell, too much, and you would have exploded."

Raynare suddenly winced. "Ugh, yeah, my muscles feel like I've been in the Olympics, and participated in every event."

"In a way, you're not far from the truth. Raynare…you didn't just get a temporary boost of energy. This just seemed to permanently enhance your overall power significantly. Or perhaps what it did was break through the plateau of strength you'd reached. I need more data. That being said, doing that was dangerous. In hindsight, I shouldn't have allowed this. If Harry had done this to Mittelt, it may have killed her outright, or at least critically injured her."

The growing excitement of the two Fallen was quashed by this revelation. Mittelt in particular looked horrified. "…Fuck," she breathed.

"Exactly. And it goes without saying that this doesn't go beyond this room," Azazel said. "Someone with the power to permanently increase someone's base level of power, even if just once, would be someone who would be coveted not only by the Biblical Factions, but by so many others. Even if it's a ridiculously dangerous procedure, there are those who wouldn't care." He looked to the catatonic Stray Devil. "And think about it. Harry managed to do that to you just by draining this Stray. Kynok was dangerous, true, but he wasn't anywhere near that powerful. You could have handled him easily, Raynare and Mittelt. And yet, Harry significantly amplified the magic he siphoned off from him, and infused it into Raynare permanently. If that power was a Sacred Gear, it'd be even more powerful than a Balance Breaker state. It would definitely be a Longinus by sheer utility alone."

Raynare pinched the bridge of her nose, even as she got her breathing under control. "…Fuck. I mean, it was bad enough that Harry's a hybrid of Ddraig and Albion, but this? Don't get me wrong, I don't feel like I could take on a Cadre yet, but…repeat this enough times, and I probably could."

"What's wrong, Raynare?" Mittelt asked a little snidely. "I thought you wanted power and prestige, to get back at your detractors."

"Of course I fucking do!" Raynare snapped. "It's just…I…I thought I would feel more triumphant, not nervous. I mean, I know Lord Azazel was telling the truth when he said it could have killed me, he wouldn't have lied about such a thing! But I felt it. If that infusion had been much more powerful, it could have done something bad. Don't get me wrong, it was a hell of a rush, but it's one of those things that feels good and bad at the same time."

"Very eloquent," Mittelt sneered, before she looked at Raynare in concern. "You okay?"

"Gimme a while. I wasn't joking about feeling exhausted, Mittelt." She staggered over to a nearby chair and sagged into it, breathing a little heavily.

After a moment, Azazel came over to her, and gently placed a hand on her shoulder. "You're feeling it, aren't you? The realisation that power isn't necessarily a good thing, right, Raynare?"

The buxom Fallen looked up at him in shock. "…What?"

"Power is a privilege and a burden, Raynare," Azazel said quietly. "I'm the most powerful member of the Grigori. I don't want to be a leader, but I have to be, because I'm the best option. Kokabiel would probably lead us into a war we can't win, and Baraquiel doesn't quite have my knack for diplomacy. Shemhazai could do it, but…he's too nice for his own good at times. I don't lead the Grigori because I want to, Raynare. I do it because, well, to nick a phrase from Stan Lee, with great power comes great responsibility. And while I would be the first to admit I am not as responsible as I really should be…I try, I really do. That's what it means to be powerful, Raynare. With power, you can change the world, for better or for worse. But using and gaining power for the wrong reasons leads to disaster, as power of any kind, whether it be physical, magical or political, tends to be corrupting. And sometimes, it can even prove your own destruction. It's one of the reasons why the Old Satan Faction lost to the New Satan Faction."

"Why's that?" Harry asked.

"The Old Satan Faction are basically of the view that Devils should be evil and destructive, no matter what," Azazel said solemnly. "They wanted to reignite the Great War…even if it meant the destruction of all living beings, even their own kind. They wielded power because they believed it to be their birthright, nothing more or less, and they didn't care for others, just themselves. The New Satan Faction, on the other hand, wanted to save their loved ones from further annihilation. They wanted peace, and were willing to fight for it. They had conviction, and a desire to change and evolve."

"But Vali's of the Lucifer bloodline, right?" Mittelt asked. "What's to stop him from acting like them?"

"His own will. He despises his father and grandfather, Mittelt, and given what they did to him, I can't blame them. I only hope I have made a difference. Nature can prove to be a factor, but nurture does as well. What is the greater factor, well, philosophers and psychologists have debated this since time immemorial. Raynare…I know why you used to seek power. But tell me…do you have a reason to seek it now?"

Raynare, after a moment, looked to Mittelt and Harry. Then, she said, "I'm not sure. But…despite what you said, Lord Azazel, about our…relationship…I still intend to serve the Grigori loyally. And if becoming more powerful means I can serve the Grigori better than I was, then I will do it. And I will do so as much with my own strength. This…" She indicated Harry, meaning his new abilities. "…This is only a tool, a step up, not a substitute. Maybe it'll help me get over the plateau I was suffering."

"Good answer," Azazel said. "You've grown, Raynare."

Raynare huffed, but didn't say anything further. Still, Harry had to admit, if she was being sincere, then it felt like she was growing somewhat. Whether that was for better or for worse remained to be seen.

Still, it was disturbing to learn just how powerful he was, he thought to himself, looking at his armoured arm. To think he could grant such power to others. It was dangerous, both in terms of what it could do to those he gave the power to, as well as to himself. As if he didn't have enough to deal with already.

He needed to get stronger. Not just to protect himself from anyone who intended to harm or exploit him, but also his friends. Not just those he had from Hogwarts, but those he was making in the Grigori. He may not be the hero he was supposed to be anymore, but he could still be one on his own terms…

CHAPTER 16 ANNOTATIONS:

Wow. This…was probably the hardest of the chapters to get out so far, and probably one of the biggest reasons why this fic was delayed in being published in the first place. That being said, this was also something I had more or less planned from the beginning, of this take on a Harry/Raynare fic, anyway.

In a way, this chapter shows how Raynare's character has diverged from her canon part, all due to Harry's influence, and Azazel finally biting the bullet and telling her he isn't interested in her. In canon, she steals Asia's Twilight Healing and gloats over it. Here, upon realising she has gained power, but in a method that could have killed her, she is shaken, and Azazel has taken the opportunity to impress on her how dangerous power can be.

Review-answering time! Yorae Rasante: I love Discworld and Hogfather (hell, most of the Death-centric novels in that series rank amongst my favourites), so your quote is apt. Doubly so, as this was originally meant to be Harry being the reincarnation of Azrael, whom I viewed as being a hybrid between the Discworld Death and King Hassan from the Nasuverse. And Harry has, thanks to Hermione, read a couple of books in the series.

Dragon Man 180: God, imagine a Fallen Angel/Devil/Youkai version of the Four Yorkshiremen sketch?

Odin Haraldson: It'll happen later.

WearyCurmudgeon: Fair points, but he never quite crosses the line beyond voyeurism…though his friend Matsuda tells at least one girl that he'll be raping her in his head after she insults him…and I know of a couple of fanfics where he gets called out on his choice of words. One was FILFy Teacher, while another was one of sakurademonalchemist's, I think. Issei is not far from the line, but I think he has at least some standards, lines he won't cross. I actually bring up in Óskmey that while he will gladly admire and perv on another man's girlfriend or spouse, he would never try to make a move on said woman, hence why he's content to admire Rossweisse in that story, but knows better than to get between her and Harry.

And I don't know who Tara McClay is, but I get the comparison between Asia and Izuku, even if Izuku is more badass and intelligent…well, save for where Bakugou is concerned.

Nathair1: Raynare's namedropping is something I made up for this story. Sharp is the Potions Master in the game Hogwarts Legacy, and while sharp-tongued, pun intended, unlike Snape, he always gives credit where credit is due and plays no favourites. He's basically the Snape from Severitus fics.

Also, 'bunny-boiler' is an older term for a yandere. It comes from Fatal Attraction, where Alex Forrest, played by Glenn Close, kills the pet rabbit of the daughter of the man she had an affair with, and boils it in a pot. And Harry now has a much longer lifespan than most wizards. He'll live for centuries if not millennia.

No numbered annotations this time.