When Hermione awoke the next morning, she felt renewed and refreshed. That feeling was only magnified when she looked out of the window of her hotel room and saw that a beautiful day had also dawned before her.

Land of the Rising Sun, indeed! she thought cheerfully before she decided to make the most of the gorgeous morning and walk at least part of the way back to Enchanté. Not only would a stroll help her to familiarize herself with the surrounding area, but it would also give her more time to think about the strange scenario in which she had found herself.

On one hand, she still had not made a definite decision about what to do about Souan's café and the non-human regulars who seemed to rely on the place. However, on the other one, she had thought of a few options that she had not considered before. After all, she had called Harry and Ginny...after she had checked into the hotel, showered, and snuggled up alone in bed...in order to discuss the complicated situation in depth with two of her best friends and get their input.

Harry, of course, had been angry at first that she had put herself into such a position without backup.

"You just opened the portal and let in non-humans, Hermione...really? Doesn't that sound extremely irresponsible...like something you would yell at me for doing?" he admonished her before he announced his plan to immediately get an international portkey and join her in Japan.

However, along with his wife's firm backing for her, Hermione reminded Harry in no uncertain terms that she was a fully capable witch, an expert in her field...which just so happened to center around non-humans, anyway...and that she had already handled the situation herself, without being in any danger greater than Ignis's snide comments. Once her best friend had calmed down and listened to her reasoning, he finally had to concede that she was right...as usual. After that, the three of them continued to brainstorm possible solutions to her predicament until it became clear that Hermione was already half-asleep on the phone from the combination of her magical jetlag and all of the other accumulated stresses of the day.

Harry and Ginny disconnected then, but only after she agreed to give them an update about the situation on the following day. In return, they promised to tell the others and to conduct some discreet magical and legal research for her in order to answer some of the pressing questions that she did not have the time or resources to handle herself in her current location.

Consequently, as always, she was reassured and comforted by their support. Having such good friends really did make all the difference. As a result, Hermione was able to fall soundly asleep and, despite usually being a very light sleeper ever since that year on the run during the war, actually stayed that way until a stream of sunlight from the window awakened her from her restful slumber the next morning.

If she dreamed, she did not remember.

Since Hermione had stayed in a hotel in a magical section of Tokyo, she asked the English-speaking desk clerk for a map of the local maintained apparation points when she checked out. Once she had received the requested item, she picked a spot that was just a couple of streets away from the café. Then, she spun on her heel to transport herself there.

As she walked towards the direction of Enchanté from that magically discreet spot, the witch reactivated her translation spell so she could also read the signs of the local shops and restaurants as well as hear and understand the conversations of the locals. After all, since the initial surprise of the previous day had more or less worn off, Hermione currently felt more enthusiastic than anything about the possiblities of her new adventure. Therefore, she found that she wanted to learn as much as possible about all of the factors involved. That included both the simple details and the many unexpected complications!

After all, she had made the acquaintance of four beings from other worlds! How could she, a scholar, not be excited by the wealth of unknown knowledge that she could possibly learn from Misyr and the others? She knew that the issue of the café was the most important one at the moment, but she hoped that once they were able to come to an amiable agreement about that, they could become friends, and learn from one another. Who knew? Maybe she could even get Ignis to come around. Despite his prickly attitude, she knew that she would really love to know more about him and his world, anyway.

Those optimistic thoughts continued to fill her mind as Hermione also listened to the hum of the background noise of people, vehicles, and the sounds of everyday life that surrounded her while she walked. All of a sudden, however, those common sounds were interrupted when she also heard a soft metallic clatter nearby and saw a small object roll onto the pavement right in front of her. When she bent down to retrieve it, however, she realized that it was a very nice custom engraved pen.

A pleasant voice from off to the side spoke to her then. "My apologies, but that belongs to me. Thanks for picking it up."

Hermione looked over to see the owner of the smooth male voice. It turned out to be a very handsome man in a nice suit who leaned up against a sports car. The vehicle was running, so Hermione assumed that the man was in a hurry. Therefore, pleased that her translation spell was holding up well enough that she could easily understand him, she walked over quickly to return the pen to its owner.

"Ahh, thank you," he said. "I was writing a note and it slipped. I'm just glad that it didn't roll into the sewer.

"No problem," Hermione replied back to him in flawless Japanese...thanks to her spell. "It's a beautiful pen. I hope it didn't get scuffed."

The man paused and looked quite surprised for a moment, almost as if he had not expected her to speak the language so well. That was understandable, however, since she knew that she did not look the part, either...and she was basically cheating with magic, as well. Therefore, Hermione simply prepared to say goodbye to him and continue on her way. However, the man quickly recovered and spoke before she could do so.

"May I ask you a question?"

Hermione paused. "I'm not from around here, so I don't know the streets very well..." she started to explain, but he interrupted.

"Oh, I'm not asking for directions, I just...well...I feel bad that we're just standing here on the street. Would you like to go to a café or something? I'd be happy to treat you for returning my pen."

At that moment, Hermione's good mood slid away and her hard-won intuition started to warn her that something was not quite right with the situation. She started to wonder then if the smooth talking man was simply trying to hit on her...or if it could possibly be an attempt to get her alone in order to abduct her or something worse. After all, she knew that sometimes foreign tourists were considered to be easy prey in those kinds of situations.

Quite frankly, however, Hermione was far from easy...in either way...and she did not have the time or patience to deal with either one of those scenarios on this particular day. That was especially true if it turned out to be that last one where she would have to make sure the man would never be the same afterwards...or even be able to still call himself a man ever again.

Therefore, Hermione decided to avoid him...and the situation...entirely. She just apologized curtly and informed him that she had things she needed to do before she started to turn away.

"Oh, that's unfortunate," he replied before he smiled.

It was definitely an attractive look that Hermione felt would capture the attention of most women...and even some men. However, at the sight, the witch's intuition started waving a red flag again. Therefore, she turned back to face him completely as the man immediately proved why she felt like that when he spoke again.

"Do those things have something to do with Café Enchanté, perhaps...where the Demon King and the Fallen Angel stay?"

Hermione stopped, stood stock still, and crossed her arms over her chest in sudden irritation. So that was what my senses and magic were trying to tell me. It is all just a set-up. This is not about me, it's about the café and the non-humans. He's just playing mind games! she realized. She did not acknowledge his comment, otherwise, though. Instead, she simply studied him more intently than she had before - until she finally saw signs that she recognized.

Government lackey, she decided. Agent. Armed, but not currently planning to be dangerous...not to me...at least, not yet, anyways.

She had figured him out, but she continued to look at him silently until he made his next move. When it finally came, however, it was almost pathetically obvious - probably because her silence had taken him by surprise and he had been forced to improvise.

"Don't worry. I'm not anyone to be suspicious of. Okay...Hermione Granger?"

Hermione just sighed at the complete irony of his response before she finally replied to him. "Look...I'm not sure if you knowing my name was supposed to impress me...or intimidate me...or whatever. However, I've got to say that I think I'm more ticked off then anything else right now – especially since you are obviously fishing for information. Was all of this really necessary just for that? Why don't you just come to the point and tell me exactly who you are...and what you want to know? Who knows? Depending on the question...and how nicely you ask...I might even answer you."

Her directness seem to surprise him even more than her previous silence had. Therefore, he quickly introduced himself as "Kaoru Rindo, an ordinary human, and Enchanté regular."

That last bit made her pause – especially since Misyr and the others had not mentioned him. Therefore, she did not know whether he was actually telling the truth or not, so she still did not answer...not until he came to his actual point.

"Did you come here to take over Enchanté?" he finally asked.

Hermione scoffed and turned away. After all, she was not going to discuss her personal business with a stranger she had just met on the street - especially not when he had approached her in such a underhanded kind of way in the first place. The man seemed to realize that and rushed to speak before she walked completely away.

"I can already tell that the non-humans have been influencing you, but let me warn you, don't take over that place."

"Why not?" Despite herself, Hermione paused...simply because she was curious to know what the man had to say.

"Because they're dangerous: monsters, creatures, evil spirits, and freaks in human clothing. In fact, I'd be worried to send a sweet girl like you into a place like that."

That did it!

Hermione really did not know what his motives were...or if he even meant what he said. However, his condescending attitude and biased descriptions still hit too close to home to a girl who had gone through so much in a society that was prejudiced against her – especially since she would always carry the brand to prove it. Not only that, but the last one..."freaks"...that word made her think of her best friend...the brother of her heart...and how he had been treated by his own relatives through his entire childhood just because of his difference.

Other people whom she cared for and who did not deserved to be maligned by labels just because they did not fit into the mainstream mold came to mind, as well: Remus, Luna, Neville, Dobby, and so many others. Therefore, she could not let the man's apparently hateful and ignorant words slide.

She glared at him, instead, as she felt her magic rise with her anger again. Consequently, she did not know if she was grateful or not when his phone rang and interrupted them. Nevertheless, Kaoru Rindo had still obviously noticed that the conversation had not gone as he had planned, so she was pleased to note that he did not seem nearly as cocky and sure of himself as before when he said his hurried goodbye and rushed to take the call from his subordinate.

Arsehole! she thought to herself as she watched him leave before she sighed regretfully. What a waste of such a pretty face, though!

Nevertheless, Hermione then smiled again when she realized that, apparently, she had not been nearly as meek and vulnerable as he had expected her to be. He probably thought that a foreigner, unable to speak the language, and trapped by the sudden horrifying knowledge of the truth of her inheritance should have been a lot easier to manipulate – especially since she was a woman. He may have even thought that she would be grateful for his interference and let him rush in to save her...to be her knight in shining armor. That would explain the flirting, at least.

Those ideas, in turn, made her speculate about where he had received his intelligence. After all, it became obvious that...government agent or not...he had no idea who Hermione Granger really was...or his approach would have been much different!

That bit, at least, made the witch smile again and she was able to regain her former cheerfulness as she continued to make her way towards Enchanté.

However, first, she pulled out her mobile and sent a text to her friends to request that he be added to the research list.

Kaoru Rindo*...who the hell is he...and what does he really want?

When Hermione reached the little side street where Enchanté was located, she watched again as the few passers-by in the area moved right by the café without seeming to notice it. It was then that she finally realized what that situation had briefly reminded her of on the previous day before she had become distracted by the name on the sign, instead.

It's almost as if it is under a Fidelius charm, she mused.

Misyr had admitted that he and Il had placed a protective barrier around the shop. Hermione had originally thought that just meant security wards, but it did make sense that the ultra strong combination of demonic and angelic powers together would provide a much more extensive range of protection than that. In fact, when she had asked, Misyr had said that it was only on an extremely rare occasion when someone was simply able to accidentally push past that magic in order to come in straight off the street and visit the café that way.

Those people were probably attracted to the place because they had some latent or ancestral magic themselves, Hermione guessed. After all, accidental magic can sometimes actually be even more powerful than trained magic!

With that thought, she reached out tentatively with her own power in order to test those protections.

Wow, they are strong! she had to admit when they were easily able to resist her light magical advances.

As she...with increased intensity...probed the impressive structure of the spell itself, she could tell that the magic felt different from her own...which was probably why she did not immediately recognize it on the day before amidst all of the other distractions. Still, she felt that she could probably disassemble the threads of powerful protection that it provided, but it would take far more time and effort than she was willing to put forth at the moment. Therefore, she left well enough alone. After all, the barrier had not only accepted her...but it also continued to actively protect her property. She certainly could not complain about that.

Instead, she just reached for the doorknob, and after she realized that it was already unlocked, let herself in. What she saw as soon she stepped inside, however, made her pause in momentary confusion. After all, the inside of the café had apparently disappeared and a charming garden scene set up for a picnic or tea party of sorts had taken its place.

Hermione was someone who could never leave a mystery unsolved, however. As a result, she continued to search the confusing scene with her eyes and senses until she finally found exactly what she looked for: a slight flickering of sorts at the seams of the area.

It's an illusion! she quickly realized. Someone set this lovely theme up...just for me.

She then smiled as both Misyr and Il appeared and proved her deduction to be correct.

"Ah, there you are! I thought I felt someone playing with the barrier," Misyr greeted her with the same cheerful smile she had seen on his face so many times on the day before.

"Oh, yes! I just wanted to check it out. I found that it was quite impressive, too," Hermione agreed easily before she changed the topic and gestured to the scene around her, instead. "Did you do this for me?"

Il was the one who nodded. "Do you like it?" he asked with quiet eagerness.

Hermione nodded her approval as she replied honestly. "It's beautiful."

Il just smiled beatifically while Misyr explained. "It's a Welcome party," he said. "Or maybe even a Departure party...as the case may be," he added as his face fell a bit into a slight frown. Then the demon just shrugged as he and the angel...Isn't that an interesting combination in and of itself? Hermione could not help but to muse...ushered her further into the grass-floored room with ivy-covered walls where Canus and Ignis waited for them at tables laden with food and drinks.

She was not surprised when Canus greeted her courteously, but Ignis just grunted to acknowledge her presence. She kept in mind what she had figured out about the firewolf the night before, though, and spoke to them both with equal politeness.

Afterwards, she sat down in the seat that Misyr indicated was for her. It turned out to be a strategic placement, too. After all, they were seated at a round table. Therefore, she could see everyone at the same time...and she could not help but to notice what a good looking bunch the non-humans were when they sat close together like that. Plus, she knew that they could each easily see her, as well. Consequently, she just smiled around at them all.

"Did you guys prepare all of this?" Hermione then asked in amazement as she gestured to the large, and rather hodgepodge, variety of foodstuffs spread around them.

Misyr just laughed. "Most of it is from the convenience store down the street," he admitted. "Canus and Ignis picked it up while Il and I...um...decorated."

Hermione thought about the possible repercussions of that for a moment before she spoke. At first she looked at Ignis who seemed surprised by her attention. "I'm sure that you have no trouble fitting in out there," she said to him and was pleased to note that the corners of his mouth rose slightly at the compliment, "but how does Canus...?" Her voice trailed off but Ignis understood.

"He gets noticed, if that's what you mean," he replied shortly.

"But...doesn't that cause trouble?" Hermione asked, a bit startled by the idea. After all, witches and wizards always kept the Statute of Secrecy in mind when dealing with those who were not magical...especially in the modern days of technology and social media.

"Oh, don't worry about that!" Misyr exclaimed to reassure her. "The protection that Il and I provide covers more than just this building."

"So you use something like a disillusionment spell or peception filter?" she asked in sudden understanding.

"Yes!" Misyr nodded his head in such a way that his horns practically gleamed in the illusion of the sunlit garden. It was clear that he was pleased that she had caught on so quickly. "Exactly like that. People still see him...and his helmet...but it does not seem too strange to them. Part of that is the magic, but the other part is simply Canus himself. People just seem to like him."

"Well...he is very kind and pleasant," Hermione acknowledged as she turned to smile at the knight who had apparently already removed his helmet for their little party. She obviously could not tell if he returned the look or not, but his blue flames did seem to burn a little more gently than they had before.

His tone of his voice somehow matched the feeling of those flames as he spoke to her, as well. "Thank you, Lady Hermione, you are quite considerate and generous yourself."

Ignis just scoffed quietly at that from where he sat off to the side.

Hermione tried not to let the attitude upset her, though, as she continued to talk to Canus. After all, she wanted to get better acquainted with them all, including Ignis. However, she would give the firewolf his space...if that was what he really wanted.

Instead, she watched as the non-humans interacted with each other, as well. She was especially surprised about how they all seemed to want to to take care of Il...as if he was a helpless baby bird...instead of a powerful angel: fallen or not. As an alternative to asking about that in front of him, though...and risk embarrassing him...she decided to inquire about their relationships with Souan instead. In truth, she really did want to know more about her great uncle, and those four were really the only ones she knew who could help her with that.

She was very glad that she had asked, too - especially when all of them...even Ignis...spoke kindly of the man and his café. In fact, they all made it clear that they considered both Souan and his place to be one-of-a-kind. It was evident that they thought well of him...and that they missed him, too.

All too soon, however, the conversation came to an end when it became obvious that the group had ran out of drinks completely. Therefore, Hermione insisted on going out to pick up some more since the four of them had already put so much time and effort into the "garden tea party" they had thrown for her. Consequently, she was happy to do her part, as well.

...

At least that had been the plan before Hermione, immediately upon exiting Enchanté, realized that the place was surrounded by black cars that blocked her path.

Hermione then watched impassively as someone stepped out of one of those cars, approached her, and handed her a business card as an introduction. At the sight of the current bloke in a similar cut of suit, she immediately thought about Rindo, the government agent from that morning whom she had completely forgotten to mention to the others during their pleasant conversation...even when Il very briefly mentioned another café regular.

Hermione just sighed at the thought and turned her attention to the card in her hand, instead. Government Paranormalism Measures, it said.

Well, at least I finally know who I'm dealing with, Hermione realized as she read the name. It was apparently the same mysterious GPM that Ignis had mentioned so irritably the night before when he had thought she was a spy for them.

Hermione suddenly understood his irritation better and even sighed in annoyance herself as she let her hand slide down to surreptitiously double check that she still had her wand in its holster for back up...just in case. After all, she clearly recognized the signs that the upcoming encounter was probably not going to be a very pleasant one – especially not after she had so completely shut down Rindo (whom she could now only presume was part of the same organization) earlier that day. In fact, she realized that he might even be one of those who were still waiting in the vehicles around her.

Even more irritating than that, however, was the fact that there were still some muggles on the street. Therefore, Hermione knew that...on top of everything else...she was even going to have to pull back on her magical punches if things really did turn physical...as they were sure to do.

Why else would they have sent so many men and vehicles to deal with her? Perhaps that meant they had finally done their research, however. After all, if she thought about it that way, it almost seemed like a compliment.

Chapter Note: *I know that some KR fans may feel that I am depicting the agent a little harshly here.

However, even though he is basically a good guy and means well (especially when you consider his backstory), his condescending attitude towards the younger female MC throughout the main story route of CE really did annoy me quite a bit personally. Even though Kotone did not seem to think that it was unusual or inappropriate, I truly feel that it is something that Hermione would neither appreciate nor tolerate. In fact, I really think it would irritate the hell out of her, instead! Therefore, even though their relationship will gradually improve (he is one of the romantic prospects, after all), KR will definitely come to realize first that Hermione is not a delicate flower that constantly needs his direction and protection!