The lost child

Takami was not pleased. She knew the necessity of the arrangement that she had come to with Homura. It was after all an agreement to help protect the girls. That however did not mean that she was in any way beholden to the pillar. She could just as easily destroy her with a few well placed calls. This however would bring attention to the Sekirei. The best way to describe their situation was a mutual alliance with a dash of cold war.

Albus was not happy. His pawn had already started to gather his own followers and confidants. This was something that annoyed him to a degree. True it was not essential however him being trusted by the boy or having those he had selected for him would aid immensely as it would allow him to guide the boy. He would also be able to get more reports than just those from the portraits.

Hermione and her family were worried as so far they had only seen what the boy was capable of as well as the aliens. They however knew that they would not be here if they were not going to be featured. This naturally made them nervous as they did not know how and when it would happen.

The potters were in a strange situation. True they where happy that harry was alive and well. They were also glad that he had people who cared about him even though some of them were of a questionable nature. They however were upset that the heir of the family had disowned himself. That he did not appear to even care about what was happening with them so it was this strange form of limbo that left a few of them with a severe case of mental whiplash.

A letter appeared next to a certain hound dog known as Sirius black who had been admiring the lady friends that harry had managed to gain with an eye of appreciation and slight fear. Upon opening the letter it caused him to raise an eyebrow. With everyone looking at him the man child heaved a sigh and read.

"Please note that some events will either not occur or will take place but differently due to what is being shown is within another time line, just one which has a similar frequency to your own."

Whilst the magical s did not understand as to them it was clear that there was only one timeline, that was obvious or time turners would not work. This however was due to the limited nature of the item in question, This was also because the items made use of what was known as a predestination paradox. This caused them to always effect that timeline.

Takami upon hearing this immediately understood as whilst physics such as the multiverse theory was not her area it was well known enough for most mundane to have some type of grasp of what it meant.

07

Izumo Inn

Takami saw that one name and groaned. She already had an idea of what would happen she had been trying to prepare herself mentally since the end of the last viewing. Apparently she had failed.

Akitsu wasn't used to feel happiness, she was more used to despair, or emptiness, but for once she actually felt something that wasn't the deep sadness or the helpless void she was used to, and it felt good. She was shopping with Takami and Harry, her Ashikabi, and the simple reality that someone had accepted to be her Ashikabi, and had even been the one to ask for it made her feel warm. As she waited for Takami to pay for her clothes, using her MBI card, she stared at the one person who had made her life take a turn for the better.

His long, ashen-grey hair was falling smoothly on his shoulders, the streaks of lavender inside it breaking the illusion of a younger and male Karasuba. While the resemblance was uncanny, he was still different enough from her sister that she could see him as his own person. His small yet toned body was very different from most children she had seen while walking in town, and the fact that he was more mature than most people she had met only made him more unique.

"Unique, yeah that is one way to describe the boy" snickered black. It was clear that he was trying to create some levity as his friends family was clearly still hurting at the idea of what had happened to him. This was displayed by the fact that the potters only mindlessly nodded instead of replying.

"Sirius!" barked out Minerva, the woman was annoyed at the mans childish behaviour. From her perspective she was wanting to help the boy and not push him further. Hopefully they could reunite the family and with Albus help defeat the dark lord that they all knew was going to return.

She loved to look at him, while she had only known him since the day before, she had come to love him dearly, even if she couldn't react to an Ashikabi. For someone like her, who was broken, useless and was little more than a discarded tool, to have someone not only ask to be her Ashikabi, but also tell her that he found her even more beautiful because of what she had endured was more than she could ever had wished for. For him to take her shopping, even if he was grumbling ( a bit childishly she had to admit), was something she loved him all the more for. Never, even in her wildest dreams, would she have imagined that she could have felt this way about anyone else than her Ashikabi, but she did.

In the end, she had been a bit disappointed that he had told her to take what she wanted as clothes, since she wanted to thank him by wearing clothing that he would like, but he had told her that she would look good in anything, which was why she had allowed herself to choose clothing that held a meaning for her. Takami had seemed torn about her choice of clothing, but while she liked the woman, her one true Master was Harry, and she would gladly disregard her if it was to please him. She had taken to wear white clothes that held similarities to a kimono, though it left her shoulders exposed, as well as allowing a good insight on her cleavage. It was held by a black Obi that clashed with the white clothes underneath, while chains held the part around her cleavage and circled her neck to ensure that the clothes were properly held.

She had been pleased when Harry had given her and appraising look and complimented her, she knew he was too young to feel attracted to her in the sexual sense, but she liked the idea of knowing that perhaps one day she would be able to be more intimate with him. For now, she was just happy to be by his side, dutifully.

"How shameless!" cried molly Weasley "such behaviour is completely unacceptable. Shrieked the woman getting winces from those around her. Whilst those from the magical side were split, true the tradition and mores of their culture had females dressed conservatively. Those that were used to the muggle side of the world did not find anything wrong with it. In actuality it was more stylishly revealing than actually revealing.

"The boy should not be near someone like her! He should be with a good British witch!" declared the woman. This got nods of agreement. It was common knowledge that Britain was the leader of the magical world. They had Albus Dumbledore the leader of the light as well as Hogwarts the best school for magic in the world.

Takami was about to talk when the woman continued her tirade, something that had started to irritate and annoy some members of the group. Who did the Weasley matriarch think she was demanding such things.

"It is clear that she is basically his slave!" finished up the red haired and now red faced woman as she had been listing off all of the things that were not appropriate for someone of his station. All of the wind in her sails however was blown away with a single statement.

"No different from one of your marriage contracts then?" said Takami causing a defining silence. Takami as soon as she had found out about these people had done her research. To say that she was not impressed would be putting it lightly.

-Break-

Harry waited for Takami to come back, Akitsu at his side. He couldn't help but feel irked at the looks the passers-by were giving her, the men were ogling her like a piece of meat, while the girls and women were, for the most part, glaring at her, and his newly enhanced hearing could pick up a few choice words here and there, the kindest along the lines of "scarlet woman" or "tattooed hussy". It was at time like these that he questioned mankind. While he understood the need of the masses to feel better about themselves, that didn't mean that he could accept insulting someone you didn't even know.

"Akitsu."

"...Hai, Harry-Sama."

"Don't bother with them, they don't have a clue about you. Don't let their words matter, only let the words of those that are important to you matter."

"..Hai, Harry-Sama." said the Sekirei, seemingly returning to her patient vigil, though he was fairly sure she felt a bit better.

As they waited, a pair of young men stopped next to them, one of them putting a hand on the wall he was leaning on as he gave what he probably thought was a roguish grin. His friend just stood there with his arms crossed over his chest, a broad smile plastered on his face as well. The two of them had to be around twenty, making them university students, and he had a fairly good idea of what they were trying to do.

The grangers groaned at this whilst lily and Takami just shook their head. There was always a group of men or women who had egos so large that they could not back it up. It was a side effect of more people going to what was once an extremely selective type of institution most people could get into a university, a lot of whom gained an unjustified ego.

"Hey there, miss!"

Right on the spot, he mentally groaned. Was he really going to end like that, acting like a dog in heat whenever a beautiful woman was around? The idea sent shivers down his spine. Oh God, he would have to make sure his Occlumency (improved in no small part thanks to Akemi's help and advice) blocked the hormones so that he didn't act like that.

This caused a few of the women to giggle in amusement at the boys internal thoughts whilst throwing sideward glances at the men in the group who were blushing and sputtering in embarrassment.

"My friend and I noticed that you seemed a bit bored, so we thought we'd ask you if you wanted to tag along for a karaoke. Oh, and the name's Harusegawa Ryuuto, and my friend's Takayama Takehito."

He smirked as Akitsu gave the two young men a blank stare, before going back to staring at him, ignoring them, which caused the two students to look rather taken aback at the casual dismissal. However, it did not deter them as the newly named Takehito took a glance at him, before looking back at Akitsu.

"Hey, if you want, you can bring the kid too, the more the merrier!"

"Look, you can see that she's not interested, so do kindly leave her alone now. Akitsu, do you want to go with them?"

"...No, Harry-Sama."

"There, here you have it. Now leave her alone and go try and seduce another girl." growled Harry, who didn't like how they were looking at his Sekirei. While he didn't mind people looking her up appreciatively, he really disliked it when she was ogled like a piece of meat.

His behaviour seemed to have startled the two young men, as they looked at him with a mixture of shock, surprise and anger. That did not last for long, however, as Ryuuto went to grab him by the collar, a vein pulsing on his forehead.

"Listen kid...WHOA!"

As he reached to grab Harry, the young wizard was getting ready to use some Martial Arts to beat some sense into the obviously sexually frustrated man, however he shouldn't have bothered as Akitsu had grabbed the arm threatening her Ashikabi, her whole demeanour shifting from apathetic to threatening, despite the fact that there was only the barest hints of emotion on her beautiful face. While she wasn't a physical type, she was still a Sekirei, and a Single Number to boot, meaning that the vice-grip she now held his arm in was strong enough to hurt him, and if she applied more pressure, to break his bones.

Albus was concerned. The protectiveness that these Sekirei were displaying would throw his plans into chaos. The boy was supposed to be a fervent member of the light, his allies were supposed to be of the light. The boy was supposed to follow his example and in the end become a martyr and catalyst of change. The pacifistic nature that would be engrained into the boy would cut down the number of deaths and give those who were on the other side a chance to repent.

The influence of these women however was pushing the boy further and further away from what he needed. He was not pleased about that in the slightest.

"...I will not let you harm Harry-Sama."

"Sama? Why the Hell would you call him Sama? He's a bloody shrimp and barely out of his nappies!"

"Now listen, moron." growled Harry as he yanked the taller man down by the collar, causing his friend to look at the scene in shock, while a crowd had started gathering, some taking pictures with their phones. "If you aren't of my sight in the next ten seconds, I'm going to make you wish you were never born."

To show that he wasn't kidding, he used his newly obtained strength to twist his opponent's arm behind his back, causing him to yelp in pain.

"Owowowow! What the fuck?! How the Hell can you be so bloody strong?!"

"Exercise. Now get the Hell away, before I decide I want to break your arm!" he growled, pushing the now red and panting older male away.

The potters could not help but smile at this. The protectiveness that he was displaying was in line with the potter family teachings. Even if he did not know it he was still following the family traditions.

With one last look that looked like a mix between a glare and a look full of fear, he fled, while the crowd cheered and dispersed, since the "show" was now finished. With a sigh, he looked back at Akitsu, who was looking at him curiously as she cocked her head to the side.

"Is there something wrong, Akitsu?"

"Ah...Nothing, Harry-Sama."

"If you say so...You know you can talk to me if something's bothering you, right?"

"Ah...Yes."

With that, she once again fell silent, standing dutifully behind him, her hands folded in front of her. While it irked him that she acted so submissive, he knew that if he wanted her to grow more comfortable with him and not act like a mere follower, he needed to let her some space and time to get used to her new situation. While he wasn't her Ashikabi because of a winging, he was still her Ashikabi, at least in name, and the fact that she probably never thought that she would one day be able to get one had probably some influence of how she was acting now.

Poppy smiled at this. True her field was not mind-healing but she was required to have at least some form of knowledge on most medical fields to be the healer within the school. Magical schools were notorious for their vast and varied injuries that happen within their walls. So hearing this from the boy made her happy as he was aware of the situation that the girl was in. True she might become reliant on the boy as her pillar of strength but if he let her heal it would then be her choice for such a thing to happen rather than a reaction to her situation.

It was as if she was afraid that he would vanish, as if she did the slightest thing to displease him he would throw her away. While he knew that he would never do such a thing, she didn't, or at least, she couldn't really believe it. It was just like having lived an entire life being poor and having someone suddenly telling you that you were the richest man on Earth and didn't have to pay any bills: there was a part of the mind, a little voice whispering that it was too good to be true, that there was some hidden, dark consequence to it. And he knew full well that these kind of voices were hard to ignore, they sapped the morale, made you doubt everything and everyone, even the people you were close to. It was no wonder Akitsu was still a bit weary of him, they had known each other for barely a day, and she was used to be treated like a tool, it was only natural that she would expect the same from him. And while he was determined to show her he didn't see her as a tool, he knew that deep down she was looking for the faintest sign of rejection, a sign that should he give it, willingly or not, would be amplified a hundredfold by her psyche and fears. The only thing he could do against that was treat her like an actual person, be nice to her, and make sure she knew he was there for her.

It was ironic, really, she was the older woman, but he was the one taking care of her. He only hoped it would be enough to help her out of her shell and that Karasuba wouldn't make things worse, he knew her enough to know that subtlety wasn't exactly her forte.

Takami could not help but groan as she took out another of her cigs. Lighting it and taking a draw. The last sentence was an understatement of such a degree it was almost unfathomable. The closest thing that she could compare the Sekirei to was a battering ram.

-Break-

Takami sighed as she took out another cigarette and lit it. It was the third in the last half-hour, but she had good reasons to smoke so much. When Homura had given her a call and said he wanted to talk about something, she had told him she was busy, but for once he had been unusually insistent, and she had finally relented and told him she would come by Izumo Inn. She had figured that bringing Harry could be beneficial for him, as he would be able to meet more people, and she knew Miya and Homura enough to know that they might a good influence on Harry, who desperately needed some parental influence from someone else than Karasuba.

A groan was heard throughout the room. Every one turned to the source only to see the scientist with her face held in her hands.

"I can see what my double is aiming for, I really can. I just cannot help but feel that things are not going to go as planned as that boy is chaos incarnate." groaned the scientist getting chuckles from the others in the room who could not help but feel a slight bit of sympathy for the woman.

As she came back, she was unsurprised to see that the male passers-by were ogling Akitsu for the most part, while a few were giving her appraising looks. Harry was leaning on a wall with his arms crossed, and she felt a pang of hate for the people who had caused to become what he was. He wasn't even eleven, but he was already acting like someone twice his age, he had already killed and didn't look bothered in the slightest, this was not a life she wished on anyone. Not only that, but she had yet to see him have fun or lazing around, instead she often saw him training or reading books about either complicated magical theories or mundane education. He was like a sponge, soaking up every little bit of information he could find, and to her surprise, not only did he remember it, but he also understood what he read. He was actually around high school material, and at the rate he was studying, she wouldn't be surprised if he finished his college education by himself in about two years.

"Thats incredible" shouted Hermione in shock. While those with a proper understanding of the mundane world agreed with her those from the magical side just stared at the girl not knowing why.

"what do you mean my dear" asked Albus. The old man had never bothered to look into the mundane world that deeply so he did not know much beyond the basics like how to dress like a muggle (and even this he failed at.)

"Hmm, the best comparison would be primary being taught before Hogwarts so that the child has a basic foundation. Subjects such as maths and language being at the fore" said Mr Granger using what information that she had given them so that he could create a good comparison.

"next would be high school, the equivalent of Hogwarts." this got a nod from the professors to show their understanding . It was lily potter who continued the explanation as she had wanted to go to university or college and was in the middle of doing such studies when she had the time.

"the last one mentioned would be the equivalent of an apprenticeship to get a mastery." this shocked those from the magical world. The boy was that close to having such a thing? Impossible!

As he saw her, he stood up from his leaning position, and she once again cringed at how he was standing, it was a posture she had often seen Karasuba take, it was one allowing for maximum reactivity, one that would allow him to defend himself easily should he need to, but also made it easier to draw a blade.

"So, what now?" he asked.

"An old acquaintance asked me to swing by his place, so we're going there now."

Seeing that he was about to object, she gave him the sternest glare she could muster.

"Harry, when was the last time you met new people?"

"Yesterday, when I met Akitsu. Why?"

Lord black barked out in laughter at the boy being such a smart ass. It was obvious that the boy knew exactly what was meant but decided to annoy the woman who was currently muttering of ways to punish the impudent boy, much to his amusement.

"That's not what I mean, and you know it. Harry, you need to meet new people, you can't stay holed in the Tower forever."

Both the wizard and the scientists glared at each other for a moment, before Harry shrugged.

"Meh. Might as well meet this guy, bet he'll have interesting stories about you to tell."

With a sigh, she motioned to him to follow her as she dialled for a car to be sent their way. While she didn't mind walking to go shopping, Izumo Inn was on the other side of the city, and she didn't want to lose too much time walking there.

-Break-

Harry had to admit, the place was nice. It was removed from the city's centre, meaning that the highest building around was only two floors high. While most of the house were disturbingly similar, in a way that reminded him not too kindly of Privet Drive, where the main occupation of the housewives was to have the most beautiful lawn (something his bitch of an Aunt used him for, tending to the lawn and flower beds wasn't her forte after all) and gossip about the Neighbors' life. However, the house in front of him was different, it was made in the old Japanese style, with wooden floors and sliding doors. It was like a piece of history stuck in the middle of a modern neighbourhood, but he could almost feel the peace and quiet radiating from the place.

The image of the house was shown. A beautiful wooden house that was obviously made in a traditional style. Not that many within the room understood nor appreciated. True many of the wizards lived in old manors or castle style buildings the tended to be western European in design. It also did not help that most of the magical s had an ego about how everything from Britain was naturally the best. True there were exceptions but a stone against a tsunami is going to be on the loosing side no matter how hard they try.

"Your acquaintance is some kind of old man or something, Takami?"

"No, he isn't, though I can see why you'd think that. This isn't his house, he just rents a room here. Just a piece of advice before we go in though, be careful not to anger the landlady."

With that, Takami went to ring the bell, while Harry just shrugged. He wasn't exactly the most polite person around, but he didn't think he'd do anything to anger a mere housewife, and even if he did, well what could she do about it?

"Ara, welcome Sahashi-san. Please do come in." said a melodious voice, surprising him, as he had expected the landlady to be some old crone.

Hearing the internal dialogue was causing Takami to wince with each passing sentence. This was no mere house wife that they were dealing with here. This was the pillar, Sekirei 01 a walking and talking weapon of mass destruction. She had every right to be nervous about the up coming meeting.

The woman who had opened the door didn't look a day past her thirties, and was, as he was becoming accustomed to, far more beautiful than any human woman could hope to be. She wore a white haori and purple hakama, tied by a sash-like Obi, while her lavender hair was held in place by a white ribbon. She gave off an impression of calm composure, while an almost regal air permeated her posture. But most of all, what shocked him was the fact that he had already seen this woman before, when Akemi had told him he was becoming a pillar due to the failure of the first one to protect the Sekirei. And now, the number 01, the Pillar of the Sekirei, probably one of the most powerful beings on Earth, was standing in front of him and acting like a simple housewife?

This caused an almost comical widening of the eyes in most of those there. There was however one exception.

Albus Dumbledore was many things, a pacifist, egotistical and powerful he had however no matter how hard he tried to, never forgotten a simple sentence that the previous lord potter had said in the war of grindelwald. No matter how powerful you are, there will always be someone stronger. This was proven by the small fraction of the aura the woman had when it was leaked into the viewing area to give a slight idea. This naturally caused him to start planning for this new piece on the board.

However, when the woman's eyes fell on him, he thought he could see shock for a brief moment, before the emotion disappeared, and her eyes flickered to Akitsu and narrowed slightly.

"Ara, Sahashi-san? May I ask who your friends are?" she asked, though Harry could easily tell that the polite request was anything but a question, it was something that asked for an answer, otherwise there would be dire consequences.

"Ah, yes, about that..." Takami started, looking distinctly uncomfortable.

"Hello, I would introduce myself, but I think it's only polite to introduce yourself first when you're asking for someone's name." he said pleasantly, though he made sure that this woman, even if she was the number 01, knew that he didn't plan on letting her disrespect him simply because she was older or more powerful than him. The fact that Karasuba had spent a good length of time describing her as some kind of self-respecting bitch probably didn't help, and even Akemi hadn't seemed to like her too much, the AI had described her as a coward who had ran away the moment she had had an alternative from the life at MBI. While he respected her choice as he would probably have done the same thing in her shoes, that didn't mean he appreciated to know that by fleeing to live with Takehito Asama, she had abandoned her brethren to MBI. In a sense, what had happened to Akitsu could partly be considered her fault, as she hadn't bothered to free the other Sekirei from MBI before fleeing.

Takami's eyes widened at this it was a point of view that she had never considered and what made it worse was that it was true. Everything that had happened or will happen could be laid at Miya feet, hers as well but at least she was trying to reduce and control the damage as much as she could. Miya however was just going on day by day while it all happened. It was not a pleasant thought.

He saw her eyes narrow as they flickered to his grey mane, though she still smiled pleasantly.

"Ara. Indeed, where are my manners? I am Asama Miya, it's a pleasure to meet you."

"Ah...Akitsu." said the Ice Sekirei, who seemed slightly nervous. She had probably recognized Miya for who she was, and was a bit scared of her, with good reason. He could almost feel her tremble in fear, but he put a comforting hand on her shoulder, a gesture that seemed to soothe her slightly, though Miya seemed to have picked it up too.

"I am Minaka Harry, a pleasure, Asama-san."

While he knew very well who she was, that didn't mean he was going to confront her immediately about it, he wasn't suicidal. Not only that, but he wanted to assess her personality before he revealed his hand, and Miya was just too much of an unknown for now.

However, he was unsurprised to see her eyes widen in surprise, before another emotion made itself known in them: hate. No, scratch that, hate wasn't enough of a word to describe what he could see in her eyes, it was absolute loathing. Woah...Looks like Minaka isn't her favourite person. Then again, most people I know either hate his guts or think he's crazy.

A sigh drew both people's attention, as Takami gestured into the Inn.

"Miya, not now. I'll explain things inside. And Harry, remember what I told you."

"Yeah, yeah. Akitsu?" he asked the older woman next to him, who gave him a brief nod as they both took off their shoes and stepped inside, following Takami, though both made sure to not let their guard down when they walked past Miya. Even if they knew that she would be able to strike too fast for them to properly parry, that didn't mean that they wanted to take any risks.

"The boy is good" said moody nodding in approval. From what he had seen the boy was almost always in a ready stance, always on guard. His mind analysing and taking in everything it sees. The fact that he was trying to understand the woman's personality to understand her. Something that is a good way to understand and react to a threat was just the icing on the cake for the old auror.

-Break-

Miya frowned as she watched the two guests Takami had brought with her. The woman, she could clearly tell, was a Sekirei, the sigil on her forehead made it quite clear, though she wondered why it was displayed there. However, while the woman made her curious, the true enigma was the boy. He couldn't be more than ten or eleven years old, but acted like someone twice, or even thrice his age, something that was strange by itself, but coupled with everything else about him was what made him an enigma. His hair was the exact same shade of grey than her less than savoury sister, the number 04, though it oddly had strands that were this time the exact same shade of lavender than her own. There was also his body language that put her on guard, unlike the way a child should hold himself, he instead had the posture of someone trained and used to fight, and even his body structure confirmed he had undergone rigorous training. Finally, there was his name. While she knew that Minaka did indeed have children with Takami, she knew that they didn't know who their father was, and that the scientist made sure to keep them away from MBI's mad CEO as much as she could. They didn't even have his surname, which meant that they had no way of finding out who their father was unless someone in the know told them. This boy, however, had taken the Minaka family name, which made him an enigma. Was he truly the child of the man she hated above all, or was he someone the man had taken in on a whim?

As she sat down at the table in the living room, she watched the three guests sit. Takami wasn't looking overly nervous, more bothered than anything else, which she could understand as the woman had always been a workaholic, and disliked "losing her time". The odd boy sat next to her, though he too didn't seem overly worried or curious, in fact she could tell that he seemed almost giddy about something. Finally, Akitsu, whom she had finally recognized as the number 07, was sitting in seiza behind him.

Save for the four of them, were present Uzume, who unlike usually sported a serious face, though she seemed curious about the boy as well, Homura, who was glaring at the boy since he had heard his name, and despite not being there, she could tell that Matsu was following everything on her screens.

"So, care to tell why you were so insistent of having me here, Homura?" asked Takami, breaking the awkward silence.

"Yeah...Well, we learnt that Karasuba got winged, and we were hoping you could tell us who her Ashikabi is, or at least tell us some things about him or her."

"Who told...Never mind, it was Matsu, right? I swear, when I get my hands on her..." sighed the scientist, before, surprisingly, turning to the boy. "Harry..."

"Yeah, yeah. So, what do you want to know?"

"Well that is one way to drop a bomb" stage whispered James getting a series of giggles from those that heard. His two children not able but to be amused at their brothers antics. True there were bits that horrified and disgusted them but it seems that he is coming out better than he was. They also found his non-chelant and sarcastic demeanour amusing.

There was a moment of silence, before Miya understood what the boy-Harry-, meant, and she widened her eyes. She seemed to be the only one to make the connection, though, as both Uzume and Homura were looking at him strangely, probably still trying to figure how he could answer their questions.

Finally, she managed to get over her shock, and turned to look at the scientist, who was pinching her nose and looked like she was fighting a headache.

"Sahashi-san, may I ask how this happened?"

"What do you mean, Miya? What are you talking about?" asked a confused Homura, his gaze alternating between herself, Takami and the boy, trying to understand what was happening.

"It appears that Harry-San here-" she pointed at the ashen-haired boy, "-is Karasuba's Ashikabi."

-Break-

Harry smirked at the reactions of the people present. The brunette who had introduced herself as Uzume was gaping openly, and he could tell that she was unused to the feeling. The man known as Homura was looking as if he had been kicked hard in a rather private place, though it was not that that interested him. Akemi had told him of every special Sekirei, Akitsu was the "broken" one, while Homura had a rather unique condition.

This peaked Takami's attention as it could possibly help her with her own Homura's situation. The man was in frequent and incredible pain. And she had tried to help in any way that she could but without enough information on what was going on there was nothing that she could do.

Homura, despite presenting the physical appearance of a man, was in fact a true female, though her condition was not unique in the history of the Sekirei race. As a female-dominated species, they still needed a decent ratio of males to ensure genetic diversity, but sometimes, not enough male children were born. When that happened, several of the more male-looking Sekirei could shift from female to male for a period of time that could vary, until there was again enough males to ensure a reasonable diversity in the gene pool. However, seeing as the Sekirei were now on a planet with more than enough men to reproduce with, her condition made no sense. She should have stayed as a woman, but maybe MBI's tinkering had accidentally triggered the process that turned her into a male.

Takami had her trusty note pad out taking notes again nodding. It did make sense for such a mechanism to exist in such a society It would also explain what was occurring in his body. It was something that she would have to investigate.

"Wha..How..." spluttered Uzume, making him grin.

"How? Well, I thought that was pretty obvious. She kissed me, of course." said Harry, though he then felt a slight tug on his clothes and could see Akitsu looking at him pleadingly.

"Don't worry, we'll do the same later if you want." he whispered, making the Ice Sekirei's cheeks gain a slightly pink tint as she nodded.

Now, he wasn't really comfortable with the idea of kissing, after all despite his own maturity, his personality wasn't exactly inclined towards sentimental feelings, as his memories, both as Harry and the ones he got from Tom, were surprisingly void of any kind of romantic interest. However, he knew that Akitsu needed to feel accepted as his Sekirei, and if it took kissing her, then he would gladly do so.

Looking back at the other people present, he could see that Uzume was still looking aghast, while Homura seemed...uncomfortable? Looking closer, he could see that the man was breathing irregularly, and that sweat was starting to form on his forehead. However, before he could try to understand what was happening to the male-turned female, he felt something that made his hair stand up on the back of his neck.

Carefully turning to look at Miya, he could feel Killing Intent flowing from her. It was enough to make everyone, save him (who had plenty of experience with Karasuba), if not cower in fear, at least sit stiffer and tense.

Sighing, he explained:

"Asama-san, she didn't force me. I already knew about the fact that she was reacting to me, and I was fine with the idea anyway. I owed her too much to not accept."

His words seemed to puzzle the older woman, as she turned to Takami for confirmation, and he could see her wincing, probably not comfortable about explaining his circumstances.

"Takami, can you explain things for me? I'll be in the yard." he said, before leaving the room. While he was fine with talking about his circumstances, he didn't want to deal with the looks of pity, they only infuriated him, and considering his new strength that he had yet to experiment with, he had no idea how much damage he could if he got too pissed. Akitsu just followed him.

"Well that was awkward" said a certain red head as he continued to eat of of a overloaded plate. It was both this and the boys lack of manners that caused people to look away from him with disgust. They could however not dispute the fact that it appears there was going to be an uneasy conversation about to happen.

Ivy had always been uneasy around some of her families acquaintances. Snape whose eyes seemed to follow her were ever she went. Dumbledore and his unnatural (even for magic) twinkling eyes. Whilst before this she could not exactly pin the reason of what made them seem off to her, now however she was gaining a good idea. The more that is revealed the less she wants anything to do with them.

-Break-

At the end of Takami's explanation, the room was silent, as the people present were taking in just what the boy who had been there earlier had lived , for once, was not silent because of her ability to stay calm in almost all situations, but indeed because she was speechless. While she didn't like Takami Sahashi much, the woman was not a liar, nor someone who would invent a story like the one she had just told them. That meant that while some details could be wrong because of either forgetfulness or because Takami herself honestly believed in what she said, most of what she had been told was true. And the parts that were wrong were probably few and far between as she knew the woman enough to know that she had thoroughly checked everything, from the existence of magic, to the abuse the boy had suffered.

She had trouble believing that people could be so horrible to someone of their own family, but sadly, after her past as the Head of the Disciplinary Squad, she knew that men could be either very noble or utter monsters. Nonetheless, to think that they would harm a child because of something he had no knowledge of, nor any kind of control over, didn't sit well with her, and had the Dursley's been alive, she would have gone and killed the parents, while she would have made sure that the child was properly taught manners, and not allowed to do everything and anything that pleased him.

A chill wind blew through the room, just the idea of this demure woman being angry was enough for their instincts to start screaming at them. The fact that most of them had no idea why they had a shiver running up their spine was more to do with them as both Hasegawa and Takami knew perfectly well the reason.

But to learn that there were humans that could use "magic", as they dubbed it, was surprising, as from what she knew, the other ships had arrived centuries, even millennia ago, which meant that by that point, the Sekirei blood in their descendants had to be so diluted that it wouldn't allow them the slightest use of any kind of Sekirei ability. Not only that, but from what Takami had said, these people's powers were simply too various to be directly linked to the alien species, since no matter how powerful a Sekirei was, they only had one ability. For some it was the ability to manipulate an element, for others it was outstanding physical prowess, but in the end there was only one ability per Sekirei.

"Sis...That's one crazy story..." said Uzume, her face a mask of disbelief, though she could tell that the brunette was equally having trouble believing what she had been told and accepting it.

"Tell me about it." said a male voice, as the primarily concerned person stepped inside the room. "And you don't even know the weird-...hey, you alright?"

Takami groaned at this as she had already caught the clues of what was about to happen and she knew that this would not end well.

-Break-

Harry had spent the time it had taken for Takami to explain his life story, or at least the gist of it, to the Inn's tenants and the landlady, outside the old Japanese house. Speaking of the landlady, he was a bit torn. On one hand, she was every bit the uptight bitch that Karasuba had described, but on the other, he could easily tell that there was more to her than that. The fact that all her tenants were Sekirei, meant that she had openly positioned herself as their protection, since she knew, and MBI knew it too, that they couldn't afford conflict with her.

He had spent his time simply enjoying the feeling of the beginning spring, the warm wind and the temperatures that were just perfect. Akitsu had sat at his side, never once saying anything, not even when he had laid down and put his head on her lap. In his defence, he had asked her if she was okay with it, and while she hadn't said anything, she had gotten a bit pink and nodded, though she had kept her usual, impassive, face.

Now that he was back, he was going to make sure that a few things were clear, that is what he had wanted to do, but he had stopped what he had been saying when he noticed that Homura was clutching his chest and breathing heavily. Not only that, but the temperature of the room had begun rising quickly, and the only possible person that could do that was Homura himself, or rather, herself. The man was now deathly pale, his breathing was ragged, and he was sweating profusely, a hand on his forehead as if trying to soothe a massive headache.

"Homura? Homura! You okay, bro?!" asked Uzume, as she reached for the Sekirei, only to withdraw her hand quickly as she got burned.

"Son of a...he's burning!"

"Homura-san!"

While the others were frantically trying to find a way to calm down the Fire Sekirei's powers, Harry's mind was going into overdrive, going over everything that he knew to try and find what was happening. From what he knew, Homura was unstable, as his powers were fighting his male body, since it was unnatural for it to even exist in the first place. She was supposed to be in a female body, not a male one, and her powers were affected by that fact. However, even if they were unstable, they shouldn't work up without an external trigger, like Homura...Oh. Oh fuck.

"Fuck. Fuck. Fuck. FUCK! WHY IN THE BLOODY FORSAKEN HELL DOES IT ALWAYS HAVE TO BE ME?!" he cursed, causing Miya to glare at him as she was trying to talk to Homura to calm the man, who, if the temperature of the room was anything to go by, was quickly nearing the point of self-combustion.

"Harry, what do you mean?" asked Takami, who, unlike the other people present, knew him enough to know that he had figured out why Homura's powers were going haywire, which made him the one closest to find a way to bring them back under control.

"He's reacting. To me." he explained, looking pointedly at Miya, causing the landlady to stop what she was doing and glare at him, while Uzume seemed to be torn between wanting to convince Miya that it was a valid reason for what was happening, and backing away from the obviously pissed landlady.

"Minaka-kun, now is not the time for jokes!" said the landlady, her voice frosty. The temperature in the room seemed to drop, and he curiously felt as if darkness was coalescing behind the pissed woman.

"And I'm not joking. Think about it. What changed from usually, what could have caused this situation? Why do you think his powers are going out of control? I'm going to tell you. I came here. That's the only thing that could have caused this. Takami knows him, which means that by now he would have reacted to her if he had to. That leaves only me whom he could be reacting to." he replied, his own voice as frosty as the one of the landlady.

With that, he rushed forwards, pushing Miya away from the man who by now was clutching his chest in actual pain, and was sweating profusely. The moment he touched Homura, flames burst from his body, causing the people present to yelp while Akitsu was already using her power to cool Harry and Homura down as much as she could. Unfortunately, she couldn't do much, as her power had only been used to fight so far, and she had to be careful to not accidentally freeze Harry (and the Flame Sekirei, though she cared a lot less about him than Harry), which meant she had to maintain a very fragile balance in how much she used her power. Too little, and Harry would soon roast. Too much, and he would be frozen to death.

While Harry was all for letting the Sekirei make a choice to whom they wanted to be winged to, Homura was in no state to choose, and in the time it would take to explain the situation to him, they would be dead several times over. That is why, while he absolutely hated what he was about to do, he grabbed the man's cheeks, causing the older male to open his eyes and look at him for a split second.

For a moment, a millisecond, grey eyes locked on emerald green ones. In those eyes, Harry could see that Homura was scared of what was happening. He didn't want to die, and that was understandable. It was something rooted deep into any living being's mind, the oldest fear of all, the fear of dying. But he knew that Homura also didn't want to die yet, because he had sworn to protect the other Sekirei until they found their Ashikabis, something he had learnt from Akemi. He knew the Flame Sekirei was a kind of knight in his behaviour, self-sacrificing, willing to protect his brethren while he himself didn't know if he would die before finding his Ashikabi.

The potters were worried at this. There boy might die. He was being forced to make yet another compromise in his morals. It seemed to be one thing after another for the boy and they were not happy about it but when they heard about Homura's personality they thought it would be a good thing. A moderating influence when compared to Karasuba.

Despite the passive and calm face that was being portrayed by the head master. On the inside he was cursing up a storm. The boy had gotten himself another follower. The fact that this one was a guardian of some sort was not helping. Whilst true this one might be able to control him instead of encourage the boys behaviours. Still however it was another variable that he knew too little about to be comfortable.

And then the contact was broken, as Harry literally clamped his lips on the older man's. The feeling was awkward, and there were several reasons for that. For one, despite knowing that Homura was in fact female, the body he was now kissing was the one of a male, and despite his will to help the grey-haired Sekirei, his mind was screaming "Eeeewwwwww! I'm kissing a man!", since despite being barely eleven, he was straight (or at least convinced he was, he had no idea if he was really).

Ivy could not help but giggle at the face that her brother was pulling. She did not even realise that the other magical s were glaring at the screen with disgust. Whilst it was true that there were magical potions for same sex pregnancies they were rarely used and when they were it was normally between women. The amazons being a prime example of this. Even then such things were preferred to have been done the natural way.

Due to this it was not a shock to here that homophobia was a common thing. It was not even uncommon for a gay man to hide it so that they do not get caught up in a scandal.

Then there was the fact that he wasn't used to kissing. He may have had the memories of a fifty-years old man stuck in his head, but said man was not one who appreciated things such as demonstrations of affection, which meant he had no actual experience (save for the time with Karasuba, and that time he was in shock, so he didn't really remember it).

The effect was instantaneous, as the flames were snuffed as if blown by a strong wind, while several pillars of fire burst from Homura's back, forming gigantic fairy-like, flaming wings, the sign that the Sekirei was now winged to him. Unlike the sinister, yet beautiful black wings from the time he had winged Karasuba, these were like liquid fire contained in several huge, petal-like parts. Meanwhile, and to Harry's relief, there was no burst of light from his back, meaning that this time at least, he didn't have his own giant wings of light sprouting from his back.

As Homura put a hand on the ground and breathed heavily, he put a hand on the man's forehead, and was relieved to feel his body temperature going back to normal. While he had been fairly sure that winging him would stop his powers from rampaging and harming both himself and the other people present, there had still been the little chance that it wouldn't affect the situation at all, or God forbid, make it worse.

However, as he was about to breathe in relief, he felt someone grip him by the shirt and throw him against the wall hard enough to cause it to break and send him flying outside. He felt the air being pushed out of his lungs by the shock, yet strangely it didn't hurt nearly as much as he had expected it to, and he luckily had the time to right himself before landing.

Unfortunately for him, the moment he landed, a lavender blur hit him and sent him flying once again, this time into a tree, and the shock was enough to momentarily stun him. While he managed to stay conscious, it was only barely, and his head was throbbing, making it difficult for him to think. Stumbling around as he tried to get up, he felt something close around his neck, lifting him from the ground and choking him as he tried to free himself from the vice-grip, to no avail.

Every one in the room was shocked at this turn of events, the only one who knew that the landlady was even capable of such acts was Takami thanks to her time in the disciplinary squad. It was however a shock to see the woman who had renounced violence to react in such a manner.

-Break-

Miya knew she wasn't a saint. She could hardly even be called a good person after the atrocities she performed during her tenure as the Head of the first Disciplinary Squad, not after slaughtering hundreds, if not thousands, of men and women. She had killed people who had attacked her, and others who hadn't but would have if given the time. She had been covered in the blood of those that thought they could take her Feathers from MBI, which while they weren't exactly uninterested when they took care of them, were not as bad as the foreign governments who wanted to experiment on them.

Despite that, since she had left MBI and had married Takehito, she was certain she had changed, that she had begun to understand what being human was like. She now considered herself like a normal widow, with a painful past, but normal nonetheless, that is until the subject drifted to the Sekirei or MBI. In those instances she would feel both regret and hatred, regret for having left her Feathers and hatred for Minaka, who was planning on killing off the people she was supposed to protect, all that for some form of sick amusement. But even with those subjects, she had thought she had managed to grew detached enough that she could ponder her next action carefully.

However, when Minaka's spawn (adopted spawn, she corrected herself), forced her aside while she was trying to help Homura, when she had seen him do the one thing that she knew she would never forgive, she lost it. To see one of her Feathers, one who had suffered more so than the others because of his condition, be winged without a say, without even being given a choice, momentarily brought down Miya, the widow and scary landlady personality, and replaced it with Miya, the Sekirei Zero One, Leader of the Disciplinary Squad.

As soon as the Karasuba's protégé stopped kissing Homura, she moved. In a flash, she had gripped the boy by his shirt, and, as her own rules prevented her from being too violent inside Izumo Inn, she threw him against the wall separating the living room from outside, causing it to break as he landed outside. Not letting the boy a moment of respite, she followed him, sending him crashing into a nearby tree. As he tried to get up, she put a hand around his neck, and squeezing it, she lifted the boy from the ground.

"Minaka-san," she spat, her voice laced with venom," you are aware that for what you just did, I should kill you, aren't you? "

"Release Harry-Sama." came a cold voice, and she found herself looking at Akitsu, who was standing behind her, a circle of frost around her, while the ground of the yard was quickly freezing. The Ice Sekirei had apparently foregone her neutral expression, as a frown marred her beautiful features, showing that she was not happy with what was happening.

Behind her, Uzume was standing, looking at the scene in shock, while Homura was still sitting, and taking deep breaths, and Takami was already standing up, looking at her with, surprisingly, a good deal of anger in her eyes.

"Miya, what the Hell do you think you are doing?!"

"Quiet, Sahashi-san." her voice lashed like a whip, however the white-haired woman was not deterred in the slightest.

Meanwhile, Akitsu was looking at her intently, obviously waiting for an opening to attack her and free the boy.

""Quiet"? Don't you fucking order me around, Miya! What do you think you are doing?!"

"Ara? Why, punishing this boy, of course. He was most rude, kissing Homura-san like that. Of course, considering who raised him, I did not expect him to know manners. Karasuba was never one to concern herself with them, it was obvious that her protégé would not understand their importance either."

She could see the scientist frown, before glaring at her.

"So that's it? A petty vengeance against Karasuba? Just because Harry is related to her, you're going to take something that's between you and her on someone who has nothing to do with it? I thought you were better than that, Miya."

"Sahashi-san, need I remind you of what just happened? He has winged Homura-san without giving him a choice, without caring about his opinion. That is enough for me to know what kind of man he will become if he is not chastised properly. From what you told us, I expected better from him. I am most disappointed."

"Disappointed? Homura was going to die!"

"And he would have died free, not winged to someone without asked his opinion, someone who never even listened to his choice on the matter!" she all but growled.

"That is one scary woman" stage whispered lord black to his partner in crime James potter who nodded his head frantically whilst praying that his wife did not take any notes from this woman.

Poor Sirius potter was utterly terrified by what had happened. It had come out of nowhere and suddenly his brother was thrown threw a wall. He was not even sure how his brother had taken so little damage from such a thing. The boy having been distracted during the explanation of harries transformation.

The magical members of the audience had their jaws on the floor. This woman had caused more damage to the building with pure strength than a well placed blasting curse could do. Terrifying.

After all, in her opinion, it was better for a Sekirei to die than be winged to someone who didn't care about them. It would be far less cruel, as Sekirei mistreated by their Ashikabi would never rebel against them, no matter how much they disliked what happened to them or what they were forced to do. It would be enough to drive anyone insane, loving someone with every thread of their being, while said person used them, abused them.

Then she saw Homura shakily stand up, and walk outside, with Uzume supporting him as he gave the brunette a thankful smile. While he was still pale, he seemed to be getting better by the minute, which was good. It would however have been better if it hadn't needed him to be winged to get better.

"Miya, drop it."

"Homura-san?"

The silver-haired man pointed at Harry, who was still trying to lessen her grip on his neck, and failing. Yet despite that, she could say that if it had been anyone but her holding him, even another Sekirei, he may have managed to break their grip, which was a startling fact for a human child.

"He kissed me because he didn't have much of a choice, Miya. I was about to self-immolate, and I think he knew that. Besides, and I'm the first surprised to say that, but he seems decent enough to me."

"Homura-san, are you sure that it isn't the bond talking?"

The question caused the silver-haired man to snort and shrug. He looked like he had trouble believing what was happening to him.

"Don't have a clue. Maybe it is, maybe it isn't, I don't know. But Takami spoke for him, and that already means something in my book. That, and he hasn't exactly done something reprehensible while he was here. Sure, he winged me, but it was either that or I was going to die."

Seeing that she was about to protest, he made a placating gesture, before turning to the struggling boy in her grasp.

"Did you want me as a Sekirei, Harry-kun?"

"No fucking way in Hell!" came the answer, surprising Miya, Uzume and perhaps Akitsu, as confusion flashed through her eyes.

"What do you mean, Minaka-san? Why would you wing Homura if you didn't want him as a Sekirei?"

"Look, put me down first, it isn't exactly easy to speak with you crushing my windpipe." managed to choke out the boy.

With a chilling smile, she did just that, leaving him to fall down and expecting him to land ungracefully, when he instead landed gracefully, without so much as a noise, much like a giant cat.

"Damn it miya!" groaned Takami. She just knew that this was going to come back and bite the land lady later on. Just the fact that the Ai did not like her was one thing. Now however she was making an enemy of one of the few people who could have helped her. She would need to talk to her at some point about this.

"So, like I said, I didn't want Homura to become my Sekirei, no offence to you, Homura. I mean, Karasuba's been my Sekirei for what? Two days? And Akitsu's only been for a day. I didn't even get the time to get to know them as my Sekirei yet, so I'd rather not be getting another one just yet, I hope you understand."

The silver-haired man simply shrugged.

"It's all right. I can understand that you wouldn't exactly want a male Sekirei..."

A nervous laugh coming from Harry surprised them.

"Yeah...About that..."

There was a flash of light in the room and Homura appeared. Looking around in confusion wondering where he was. Upon spotting Takami he went over to her.

"Hey Takami what is going on" asked the Sekirei who was currently being stared at by many of the females in the room but with his experience working in clubs he managed to ignore with ease.

"we are outside of space/ time watching events that could/ have happened in another time line." Takami said getting a nod from the man. Quickly giving a rundown to the fire Sekirei.

-Break-

Harry was relieved that Miya had released his neck. While he was supposedly going to be as strong as her one day, for now he was still unused to his new strength and greatly limited by his body's age. That is why, despite being stronger and faster than some Sekirei, he couldn't hope to match Miya just yet. She was the other Pillar, the strongest being on Earth, and while he had the potential to become just as strong, he was still too young and weak to resist her yet.

However, he was also nervous, because the conversation had now drifted on a rather shaky topic, namely the fact that Homura was in fact a genuine female, which would also bring rather unwanted questions. Everyone's attention was on him, but before they could ask anything, he found Akitsu crouching before him and examining him with slightly worried eyes.

"Are you injured, Harry-Sama?" she asked, and he could see concern in her eyes, which made him smile as he patted her head comfortingly.

"I'm okay, Akitsu. Thank you for your concern and for standing up for me."

He had to fight back another smile as he saw her cheeks turn a light shade of pink, it seemed that he was making some progress with her.

"Ah...It was nothing, Harry-Sama."

"It wasn't nothing, Akitsu. Nobody forced you to take my defence, but you did, and I appreciate that. I'll have to think about something to reward you, but you'll have to wait a bit, okay?" he asked, and he was rewarded with an almost imperceptible smile as she nodded.

Turning towards Homura, he motioned towards the entrance of the Inn.

"I think it would be better if we went back in. What I'm about to tell you is probably going to come as a shock, so it's better if you are seated."

Homura was shocked. He had a Ashikabi? He was a woman? There was several things that he needed to be explained to him. Thankfully he knew that Takami would be able to fill in the blanks during the break.

-Break-

After going back into the inn, Harry waved his wand to cast a basic repairing spell, causing Miya, Uzume, Homura, and Akitsu to either widen their eyes in shock or openly gape. After all, it was one thing hearing about magic, seeing it with their own eyes was something else.

"Impressive. Such a shame that Sekirei cannot use this "magic", it would be most useful."

"Actually, I'm rather sure that they can, the only thing is that their core, their "Tama" as you call it, is mostly centred around one kind of ability, which means that they'll be more proficient in that area, but I have yet to test that hypothesis. If it does happen to be correct, I intend to make sure my Sekirei can use magic too, it would be better for their security to be able to use it after all.

Anyway, I'm sure we can discuss this at a later time. Right now, I have some news for you, Homura, and frankly I'm not sure you're going to take them well."

The grey-haired man just shrugged, looking clearly unimpressed.

"Go ahead, I don't think my day can get any stranger. I mean, you're Karasuba's Ashikabi and you're a rather nice kid, you're a wizard, AND my Ashikabi. I don't think anything can surprise me any more."

Harry grinned at that, he knew he shouldn't be enjoying this, but for some reason he felt giddy at seeing the face of the man in front of him when he discovered he was in fact, a female.

"Takami how long has that boy been around karasuba?" asked Homura instantly spotting the woman's sadistic tendencies in him.

"too long" the scientist answered knowing what the man meant. Not that she could really speak as she found such things funny as well, she just hid it better.

"Actually, I wouldn't bet on that. You see, a friend of mine, who has extensive knowledge on Sekirei, knows about your condition, and what it entails. She asked that I tell you about it, but it looks like you'll find out anyway."

At that, the people present froze, and fixed him. It was no secret in Izumo Inn that Homura had a rather unstable power, and here was someone who pretended to know about it! That was, surprisingly, good news, since despite his winging, they'd all rather know why his powers acted up from time to time, if only to be sure that it wouldn't happen again.

"What do you mean? What do you know?"

"Look, Homura, I'm sorry to break the news to you that way, but...well...You're not really a man. Long story short, you're a woman in the body of a man, and if I'm right, you'll soon reverse back to your female body."

There was absolute silence in the room, as everyone stared at Harry, who had pretty much broken the laws of reality. Sure, Miya, Uzume and Takami already knew about the fact that the Fire Sekirei was special, and that his condition was something out of the normal realm of what happened to their kind when adjusted, but this was a bit much to swallow, even for them.

"...What?" finally managed to croak the main concerned person, as his hand was scratching his chest furiously.

He seemed to be stunned into shock, not that Harry could blame him...errr, her. After all, he/she had, in a single day, gotten winged, and been told that instead of "simply" being a male with an odd condition, he was in fact a female with a male body. He didn't think that it was something that the soon to be (if his estimations were right, he had about three or four days before he reverted back to a female form) female would just accept, and he knew that he was in for quite a few awkward moments.

"how does he know this" croaked out Homura. Takami decided to answer the question despite it being rhetorical.

"He is in contact with the ships AI" she said blandly getting a look of shock from the man.

Harry could also see that Takami herself was looking interested, after all the scientist could be considered one of the few people on Earth that were experts on Sekirei, yet she had not known the reason of Homura's condition herself. So to hear that he knew about it, well it was obvious that she was going to listen intently, and probably try to interrogate him back at MBI's Tower to learn how he had known about the grey-haired Sekirei's condition.

"It has to do with the Sekirei race as a whole. Back when you were on your planet, your species was mostly female, a trend that's easy to see in the Sekirei on Earth, since there's what? Two male Sekirei for one hundred and six females? Now imagine that situation on a planet with a population of one billion Sekirei. That means there were only about a hundredth of the population which was male, and that's not exactly good for genetic diversity. So, from time to time, when the number of males was a bit too low, some female Sekirei shifted and became males for a period that could vary from a few months in the best case, to around a decade in the worst."

By now he could see that all those present were listening to him, and if he was right, whoever had set up the cameras around the house was listening too. He didn't think he risked anything letting this person listening, since from what he had been able to gather from the cameras, they were all linked towards a room somewhere in the Inn, not outside, and he didn't think Miya would let someone she didn't trust live there.

"In your case, it seems that your adjustor didn't know about your condition and assumed you were male, meaning that the adjustments you went through were tailored for a male body, not a female one. Now, you should have at one point reversed back to female, after all on Earth there are more than enough men to reproduce with...Oh, don't look at me like that, I know about sex, it comes with the memories I got from Tom.

Anyway, I think that your power was somehow acting up to force you to shift back to female, and since you were locked in this body until you found an Ashikabi, it was probably "making sure" you were winged as soon as you reacted to the person you were supposed to end with, in this case, well, me.

Now that I've winged you, you should go back to female soon, probably before the end of the week, so you are warned, don't freak out."

Homura thought about the explanation, taking in the information and going over it again just to ensure that he understood everything. It did make sense if the population disparity was that wide there would have to be counter measures be they artificial or not.

Seeing the shocked face of the grey-haired Sekirei, he sighed.

"Look, I understand it's a lot to take in. When I learnt I was a wizard, that I was famous and so on, I felt the same way that you feel now, but eventually I got better. For now, I think you should stay here, it'll be easier to cope with the changes if you're in a familiar environment. I'll try to drop by from time to time, but I can't make any promises. I already have to get to know Karasuba and Akitsu, so it might take a while before I can get to know you."

Seeing that Miya was glaring at him, probably thinking he was abandoning Homura, he rolled his eyes. It seemed that even if she wasn't on the verge of murdering him any more, she still hated him, though he had no clue about how much was him, and how much it was his connections with two people she outright loathed.

"It's not as if I'm abandoning you, I'll leave my phone number if you ever need something, and feel free to call whenever you want, I'll probably answer right away, though if I'm training with Karasuba I might have to call you back.

Anyway, I think I've caused enough chaos in this house for now, I think it's time for me to go back home. Akitsu, Takami, what do you want to do? I can go back alone, it won't be a problem, so what do you two want to do?"

Akitsu simply stared at him with her usual dead gaze.

"Ah...I will come with you, Harry-Sama."

Takami, for her part, sighed.

"You two go ahead, I have a few things I have to talk about here. And Harry? When I'm back, you're going to tell me about why you knew of Homura's condition." she growled the last part, while he gulped. This was the glare usually reserved to Minaka, and he wasn't exactly looking forward to their discussions.

"Ha! The boy is more like you than I thought" laughed a certain dog father, noting the look being directed at the boy was similar to when lily was pregnant. The people started to leave in ones and groups. Homura and Takami going through what had happened. Others were headed out for food until only the headmaster was left sitting in a chair lost in thought.