Harry Potter & the Shipgirls

[darthcourt10]

Harry Leferts

Sitting side by side in the Mess Hall, Taigei and Ryuuhou stared at the two plates in front of them. Both plates had a number of hot, fresh cinnamon rolls dripping with icing. With slow movements, the two leaned forward and took a deep sniff before letting out a sigh. "Cinnamon rolls..." Gently, they each took one of the buns and then, after a moment's pause, bit into them before letting out groans of enjoyment.

It went without saying that more then one of the male base personnel stumbled as they couldn't take their eyes off the two. Not helped but how they kept making sounds as they slowly worked their way through the cinnamon buns. Neither of them slowed down until at least a quarter of their plates were done at which point Taigei examined one of them. "I wonder how he does it."

With a blink as she chewed, Ryuuhou tilted her head and then swallowed. "How who does what?"

Glancing at her, Taigei took a bite of the roll in her hands before humming. Once she was done chewing and had swallowed, she frowned. "Harry-Chan with his cinnamon rolls."

For a moment, Ryuuhou frowned as she thought that over. And then nodded. "That's right, we... I mean, you, have tried to make them exactly the same."

Slowly, Taigei nodded as she chewed another bite before reaching up with a napkin and wiping some icing from her lips. "Exactly." There was a thoughtful expression on her face as she looked towards the kitchen. "I know that Harry-Chan has said that he doesn't use any secret ingredients, but mine always taste different from his."

Munching slowly, Ryuuhou shook her head. "Maybe he does use a secret ingredient? They really are the best ones."

That just got her a nod from Taigei who glanced around to see various people sometimes looking between her and Ryuuhou. But when they noticed that she had seen them, they went back to what they were doing. 'I wonder what that is all about?'

At the same time, Ryuuhou looked up as she spotted Harry walking towards the table with his own breakfast. Once he sat down, she smiled before standing up and giving him a hug. "Thank you, Harry-Chan... for everything."

Harry only returned the hug with a shrug. "You're welcome, Ryuuhou-Chan." Then he spotted two people that he wanted to talk to and waved them over. "Shinano-Chan! White Plains! Over here!"

Needless to say, Ryuuhou's neck nearly snapped from how fast she whipped her head around as the Support Carrier and her Escort Carrier momboat walked over and sat down. Though she had to blink at the sight of both the amount of food that Shinano had on her plate as well as White Plains' choice of Coco Krispies. Sitting down, Shinano smiled over at the smaller boy. "Good morning, Harry-Chan." Then she turned to the two shipgirls across from her and bowed slightly. "Good morning, Ryuuhou-San, Taigei-San."

To Shinano's surprise, Taigei blushed some and bit her lip. "Um, Shinano-San?" At the Support Carrier's nod, she took a deep breath. "You... don't have to call me that. Not after saving my life."

It was Shinano's turn to blush some as she placed her hands in her lap and shook her head. "I-it was nothing, Taigei-S-" Getting a cough, she gave Taigei a small smile. "Taigei, anyone would have done the same."
Fixing her with a look, Taigei frowned. "Not everyone could have carried me all the way back though... So thank you."

Beside her, Ryuuhou nodded. "It's much the same for me as well, Shinano-Sama."

More then a little embarrassed by the praise, Shinano only nodded before she smiled slightly. "It's good to see you out and about though. Are you all repaired?"

Slowly, Taigei nodded as she smiled and swallowed another bite of her cinnamon roll. "Hai, I'm all repaired. Though..." Glancing around, she leaned forward some, none of those at the table noticing as White Plains was adding spoonfuls of sugar to her cereal. "Akashi wants to try and come up with some upgrades for a possible rebuild."

That caught Harry's attention and he blinked a bit. "Really? That's great, Taigei-Chan!"

Giggling, Taigei nodded some. "I think so, though at the moment it's only replacing my engines and maybe adding some torpedo bulges." Looking down at her waist, she frowned some. "Hopefully it won't change too much though."

All Harry did though was shrug at that. Then he brought his foot up and tapped Ryuuhou's with it. Having gotten the Light Carrier's attention, he jerked his head towards Shinano. Eyes widening for a moment, Ryuuhou got the hint and took a deep breath to center herself. "U-um, Shinano-Sama... c-could I ask a favor of you."

With a blink from where she was about to spoon some oatmeal into her mouth, Shinano nodded though she was confused. "Okay..."

Taking another deep breath, Ryuuhou let it out before swallowing. "My airplanes have been having some issues and... could you... maybe..." Her courage nearly failing her, she closed her eyes and bowed. "Train me and my aircrews!"

Jaw dropping, Shinano stared at Ryuuhou in shock."I... I... you want me?!" For a moment, Shinano winced as her voice squeaked a bit. "Wh-why?"

Simply raising her head, Ryuuhou chewed her lip nervously. "It's just that you're well known and... I could use some help. Harry-Chan said that you could."

Looking at Harry, who only smiled back at her, Shinano withdrew into herself a little bit. She was about to say no when she spoke. "Sure, I think I can help but... what do you need help with?"

Finally relaxing a bit, Ryuuhou looked down at the table. "It's my pilots mainly. They don't have the best training and..."

Quickly shaking that off, Shinano turned back to Ryuuhou deep in thought as she considered the problem. "Hmm... what sort of problems are you having?"

Frowning, Ryuuhou chewed another cinnamon roll before closing her eyes. "Well..." Roughly five minutes later, she finished and looked up at the Support Carrier in hope. "And... well, that's everything."

Only tilting her head, Shinano considered the issues before chewing her lip. "Hmm... I don't know how much I can help. But it's going to take a bit for training. I know that it did for my own pilots. Um, I guess that we can start simple, right Kaa-San?" A frown crossed Shinano's face before she glanced to the side and blinked. "Uh, Kaa-San? Isn't that enough sugar?"

With a grin, White Plains just raised her spoon. "You can never have enough sugar!"

After a few seconds, Shinano shook it off and hummed. "Um, if you say so..."

Widely grinning with sugary milk dripping down her chin, White Plains nodded. "Yup! Now, where do we start?"

Looking up at the ceiling, Shinano furrowed her eyebrows for about a minute as she wracked her brain. Then she blinked and smiled before turning to the little Escort Carrier. "I guess first we train her some LSOs?"
More then a little confused, Ryuuhou looked between them and tilted her head to the side. "Um, LSOs? What are those?"

Brightly smiling, Shinano held out a hand upon which a fairy perched with what looked like colored flags that it waved in various ways. "LSO stands for Landing Signal Officer. I... found out that they helped my pilots out a lot when landing."

Curious, Ryuuhou leaned forward and blinked as she examined the tiny fairy. "Huh... I never heard of them before. How do they help?"

Simply setting the fairy down, Shinano leaned down as well. "W-well, when my pilots are coming down, he uses his flags to signal to them. He can tell them if they're coming in too fast, at the wrong angle... that sort of thing."

Eyes wide, Ryuuhou looked up at the giant Support Carrier. "I never knew that we had these... I think that the only one that comes close is a signal fairy with a red flag to tell my pilots to abort a landing..."

There was a small blush on Shinano's face as she shook her head. "Um, back during the War, we didn't them, Japan I mean. I... learned from Kaa-San and Enterprise-San, they had theirs train mine." Shrinking into herself a bit, she smiled some. "They really do help out a lot."

Rather then say something against it as she had expected, Shinano blinked as Ryuuhou frowned deeply. "They really do work?" At the nod from Shinano, Ryuuhou slowly hummed to herself. "Well... then I suppose that it might help me as well."

Pumping his fist into the air, Harry grinned as he swallowed the last bit of his own breakfast. "See? I told you, Ryuuhou-Chan! Shinano-Chan is an awesome Carrier and can help you become one too!"

With a nod, White Plains grinned as she placed her now empty bowl down. "Yup! Shinano is just awesome!"

Blushing, Shinano only twiddled her fingers together as she looked down. But there was still a rather pleased look on her face just the same. 'Harry-Chan... Kaa-San... thank you.' Nodding quickly, she looked towards Ryuuhou. "We'll get started whenever you wish."

 

[darthcourt10]

Harry Leferts

Above the group of three, the branches of the tree swayed in the breeze. Then, with a yawn, Harry stretched out and laid his head on Hanna's stomach. Looking down at him, she let herself smirk a bit. "Comfy, are we Harry?"

Glancing up at her, Harry nodded some. "Yup!" Moments later, he shifted a bit. "You're stomach is pretty comfy."

There was a small blush on Hanna's face at that. But her smile just turned gentle as she reached down and threaded her fingers through his hair. "Well, I suppose with how comfortable it is to just lay my head upon my sister's stomaches, it would have to be."

Much to her amusement though, Natsumi, who had joined them, laid her head on Harry's stomach. "Nah, I think that Harry's stomach is more comfy."

Blinking, Harry gave her an odd look and then glanced at Hanna who seemed to be thinking it over. "Wait, what? My stomach?"

Hanna slowly nodded though her lips twitched as she did so. "Ja, she's right actually. Your stomach is pretty comfy for a pillow."

After a few moments, Harry chuckled and then shook his head. "Then Harry will try his best to be the best pillow." It took only seconds for all three to burst into laughter. When they finally calmed down some, they lapsed into thoughtful silence as they enjoyed the summer day. Eventually though, Harry broke the silence. "You know... it's been a bit since we just enjoyed a day."

From where she was stretched out on the grass, Natsumi eventually frowned. "Huh... you're right."

Tapping her chin in thought, Hanna hummed. "I can't say the same as I'm not often in Yokosuka, but it's much the same over in Germany. It's not often that I simply... enjoy a lazy summer day as the Americans say."

With a glance at her, Natsumi raised an eyebrow. "Really?" At the nod, she gave a slight snort of amusement. "Guess that there might be more to that stuff about Germans working all the time then I thought."

However, that just got her a snort back from Hanna who shook her head. "And you Japanese are much better? Still... better then the British."

Giving her a mock insulted look, Harry grumbled. "Hanna!"

Moments later though, a snickering Hanna reached down and gave Harry's hair a ruffle. "Present company excluded, of course." Stretching out a bit, which did interesting things to her shirt though Harry didn't notice, while Natsumi did with a mutter, Hanna let out a sigh. Eyes closing a bit, she allowed the breeze to play with her hair before she opened her eyes to watch the sunlight dancing among the trees. "Still, there is something to be said about relaxing on a day like this with friends."

Natsumi gave a nod at that. "Especially after a busy school term." Feeling Harry shift a bit, the kitsune winced. "Sorry, Harry-Chan."

About to give her a look, Hanna was surprised when Harry spoke up a bit. "It's not your fault, Natsumi-Chan. Besides... all you did was remind me of something, and not about what happened."

Sharing a look with Natsumi, Hanna looked down at her nearly twelve year old friend. "Anything you want to share, Harry?" When he glanced at her with one green eye, she smiled. "We're more then willing to listen."

For several seconds, Harry was quiet before he finally spoke up. "Don't get me wrong, I love Hogwarts. Outside of the end of the year, it's been really fun. Not to mention that I made a lot of friends. And I'm learning all sorts of magic. But..."

Only raising an eyebrow as she turned her head to regard him, Natsumi nodded. "But...?"

Letting out a sigh, Harry eventually shook his head. "Sometimes I really wonder... Did I do the right thing by going to Hogwarts? I mean, it's not just what happened. It's... Hogwarts is way on the other side of the planet, which means that I don't get to see my friends here as often."

It showed that Natsumi had grown up herself some over the past year that she only cocked her head to the side. "But you can talk with us via the mail every day, Harry-Chan. Heck! We've been writing letters back and forth all year."

Hanna gave a nod at that. "She's right actually, Harry. You've kept in contact with all of us after all."

Tilting his head, Harry acknowledged the point. "I guess? But it's not just that..." For a moment, he bit his lip before he reached down and began to lightly scratch at Natsumi's scalp in the way he knew she liked. Unknown to him, she clenched her teeth as she fought off the urge to kick out with her feet. "It's more that I feel like I missed something by going to Hogwarts sometimes."

Now really curious, Natsumi shifted some more so that she could look at Harry's expression, while making sure that he was still scratching her head some. Much to her surprise though, Harry had something of a malencholy expression on his face. "Harry-Chan? What do you mean by miss something?"

When he answered though, Natsumi felt her face heat up with a fierce blush that she had to fight down. "That I'm missing going to school with you, Natsumi-Chan."

Mouth working for a little bit, but no sound coming out, Natsumi eventually managed to speak. "You miss... going to school with me?""

Slowly, Harry nodded though he gave her an odd look. "Well, yeah." Turning his attention back to the leaves. "Before I got my Hogwarts letter, I had all these plans, you know? The two of us would go to the same Middle School, and the same High School together. We'd graduate together too!"

Feeling rather warmed by that, Natsumi sniffled a bit before twisting in place so that she could hug her friend, her head now on his shoulder. "I would have liked that too, Harry-Chan." For a moment, she could just imagine the two of them going to the same schools. The two of them studying together, taking entrance exams together to the same school. Maybe with her a becoming a Class Representative or Student Council President and Harry as her helper or Vice-President, damn whoever thought otherwise. Possibly them even going to the same collage or university. However, Natsumi shook her head. "But I think that you made the right decision, Harry-Chan. Even though I didn't like it either, I know that you need to go to Hogwarts to fully grow."

Harry blinked down at her in surprise. "Really?"

Only smiling, Natsumi nodded some as she snuggled more into his side. "Yeah, I do..."

 

[darthcourt10]

Harry Leferts

There was a small, peaceful smile on Hanna's face as she considered the two. A small part of her said that she should feel jealous, but for some odd reason, she didn't. Shaking that off, Hanna gave a hum as she placed her hands behind her head. "Harry, I have been wondering something." When he looked up from Natsumi to her, Hanna continued. "I've been wondering how you're handling your education..."

Blinking, Harry tilted his head to the side in confusion. "How I've been handling my education? What do you mean?"

Slowly raising an eyebrow, Hanna shook her head. "I mean, I've been to Hogwarts and seen what they teach there. It's... not really the sort of thing that one needs to become an Admiral."

For a few moments, Harry was silent before he scratched his head. "Well... Hogwarts offers a special program for those wanting to continue a muggle education. Mostly course work and such, but I've been using the Kanmusu Education Program here in Japan."

It took a few moments for Natsumi to place that. "Wait, is that the program that helps shipgirls get a modern day education? Or even go further into college and university?"

Harry nodded with a small smile. "Yeah, that's the one. It's pretty flexible as shipgirls never know when they'll be heading out on sorties or for how long. Kind of hard when you might be at sea for two or three weeks after all. Because of that it's perfect for me to keep up my grades here in Japan. Heck, I got in because Mum is a shipgirl herself."

On Natsumi's face there was a thoughtful look. Meanwhile, Hanna nodded as she gave Harry a smile. "That's actually pretty good that you're continuing your normal education. Though..." Frowning, Hanna furrowed her eyebrows. "I wonder how they will handle things once the Statute comes down. Hogwarts will have to offer normal courses then."

All Harry did though was shake his head. "No clue. Maybe extend schooling there? I know that the international Asian school that was here in Japan before Blood Week was supposed to take in students before they were eleven years old."

Raising her eyebrow, Hanna snorted. "You mean Japanese school, don't you?"

However, the other eyebrow raised in surprise as Harry shook his head. "Nope, it was supposed to be for all the Asian countries from what I read. Japan, China, Taiwan, the Koreas... That sort of thing."

From where she was laying back on Harry, Natsumi snorted. "Yeah, and it worked out as well as you might think. There was a good reason why the staff there were extremely strict. It was pretty much the only way to keep fighting between the students or staff down with threats such as expulsion. Even then, from what Haha-ue told me, there's smaller schools in China and elsewhere that took those students in and those who didn't want to go."

Slowly, Harry nodded. "I read the same thing, though those were not certified by the ICW. Hence they gave warnings that the education might not be the best."

That caused Natsumi to snort and shake her head. "Which is just a bunch of lies. They are just as good, it's just that the ICW wanted to keep the amount of 'Official' schools down to something they could manage. And it's not fair that there's four of those in Europe and one on each other continent." Moments later though, she huffed a bit. "Great, now I sound like some of the older... folk."

Frowning, Harry watched her before he shook it off. "Anyways, Hogwarts might accept younger students or maybe continue the education there later. Maybe those NEWT classes being secondary education or something since I heard that you can leave school after the OWLs and get a job."

Just shrugging, Hanna considered that. But before she could say anything, Natsumi spoke up. "Harry-Chan?" Having gotten his attention, Natsumi continued. "Just wondering, but... doesn't the Kanmusu Education Program allow for a shipgirl to choose the school that they 'Join'? Even if they don't actually set foot physically in it?"

Blinking. Harry considered that and then nodded. "Actually... that's right. The shipgirl can choose a school to join. Though for some they go there for tests and such... But for high schools they still need to perform the entrance exams first before they can actually be put down for being there. Why?"

Natsumi moved some so that she could look at Harry directly. "Well... doesn't that mean that since you are also in the program that you could chose a normal school to join then? That's true, right?"

Completely lost, Harry just nodded. "Um, yes? I mean, I could do that..."

Suddenly, Natsumi grinned before she leaned in close. "Then why can't you go to the same school as me? Graduate alongside me?"

There was really only one answer that Harry could make to that. "What?"

Grinning, Hanna gave a small laugh. "I think that I can see where you are coming from, Natsumi."

With a glance at her, Natsumi nodded. "I don't doubt it." Turning back to the utterly confused black haired boy, she shook her head. "Harry-Chan, Hogwarts runs until you're, what? Seventeen? In that June?"

Very slowly, Harry nodded. "Yeah... pretty much. Once I've sat for the NEWTs in June, that's pretty much it for my magical education. Why?"

If anything, the grin grew on Natsumi's face as she nodded. "Think about it for a second, Harry. You might, at most, miss out on the first term for the last year of high school. We get in the same school and you'll be able to sit for most of the year! We could still go to the same school and graduate together!"

Needless to say, Harry was stunned for a few moments as he considered that, and then grinned. "You're right..." Laughing, he hugged Natsumi close as the kitsune flushed. "You're right, Natsumi-Chan!"

Wrapping her arms around him, she grinned into his neck. "Aren't I always, Harry-Chan?" Moments later, she pulled back and sniffled a bit, though the massive grin on her face gave her true thoughts away. "That's great news, isn't it?"

Still with his arms around her, Harry nodded with a grin just as wide as Natsumi's. "The very best."

All Hanna did was chuckle at the scene in front of her.
______________________________________________________________________________

Niiyodo was frowning some as she was checking some of the paperwork in front of her when she felt something poke her in the side. Squealing, she nearly leapt from her seat only to stop as she heard snickers and looked to see a certain black haired wizard there. "Harry-Chan! What the... where did you come from?"

In reply, Harry put his hands behind his back and rocked back and forth. "From outside, Niiyodo-Chan."

Raising an eyebrow, she spotted one of her fairies just shaking it's head and then held out a hand. Said fairy returned to her and she had the image of Harry crawling into her office and then sneaking behind her. Looking over her eyeglasses, the Light Cruiser hummed a bit. "From outside, huh, Harry-Chan?"

Unable to help himself, Harry grinned. "Yup!" Moments later though, he let out a squeal as Niiyodo lashed out with her own fingers and dug them into his side. "Niiyodo-Chan!"

Softly snorting, Niiyodo shook her head as he jumped just out of reach. "What? Fair is fair, Harry-Chan."

Grumbling a blit, Harry turned towards the paperwork and frowned a bit. "Working hard?"

With a glance at the paperwork, Niiyodo nodded some as she pulled a sheet towards her. "Uh-huh. Onee-Sama asked that I work on the reports from... the expedition to the island." Then she perked up a bit. "By the way, do you have yours done yet?"

In reply, Harry pulled out some sheets and handed her them. "Right here actually, it's one of the reasons that I came." As she took it, he scratched the back of his head. "Hopefully it's written up right..."

Simply glancing at him, Niiyodo smiled a bit. "Want me to check it over for you?" She was just able to hold back her grin as Harry quickly nodded. "Okay... how about you take a seat while I do that, Harry-Chan." Once he did so, Niiyodo moved her chair until she was beside him and held out his reports so that he could see. "Now, let's start, shall we?"

After some time, they were finished and Niiyodo smiled a bit as Harry leaned back his chair. However, before the Light Cruiser could say anything, Harry sat up straight and then hugged her. "Sorry about all that, Niiyodo-Chan..."

Blushing some, Niiyodo patted him on the back. "I don't mind at all, Harry-Chan. And look at it this way, when you enter the JMSDF you'll be ahead of others in knowing how to write a report."

Harry slowly nodded some and smiled. "I guess... Still, thanks." Simply watching as she nodded and went to sort it with the rest of the reports, Harry chuckled a bit. "You seem pretty happy, Niiyodo-Chan."

Just pausing for a moment, Niiyodo went back to her work. "Hai, I suppose that I am. It's because Onee-Sama trusts me enough to sort out these reports."

With his tone turning teasing, Harry grinned a bit. "Just don't become as obsessive as Ooyodo-Oba is, okay?"

Softly giggling, Niiyodo nodded some. "I'll try not to, though Onee-Sama has every reason to be." Her gaze turning distant, she sighed a bit. "Did you know that according to Taitoku, Onee-Sama is one of the reasons why Japan has survived? Because she worked so hard and was able to pull off miracles..." Once more, Niiyodo let out a small sigh. "I hope that I can be that good of a Secretary ship some day."

In reply, Harry gave her a thumbs up. "I don't see why you hope so, because I'm positive that you'll be just as good as Ooyodo-Oba. After all, she trusts you with this stuff, right?"

Expression brightening, Niiyodo nodded some. "Hai!"

Out of nowhere though, Harry snapped his fingers. "That reminds me, I didn't come by just to drop off the reports!" Grabbing his knapsack that was beside him, he began to dig through it. "I actually brought you something."

Blinking, Niiyodo leaned over some to better look. "You brought me something, Harry-Chan? Why?"

All Harry did was raise an eyebrow and looked at the clock. "Because you worked all through lunch?"

Her eyes becoming wide, Niiyodo turned and stared at the clock in surprise. "I did?" At seeing the time though, she felt her cheeks grow hot. "Heh... guess that I did."

Lips twitching, Harry nodded in amusement. "Yup! You're just like Ooyodo-Oba."

More then a little sheepish, Niiyodo scratched at her cheek. "Guess that I am, and I'll be taking that for a compliment." Watching as Harry placed some bentos in a clear spot on her desk, she licked her lips. "Now, what do we have for some lunch?" Not saying anything, Harry opened a sealed container from which Niiyodo nodded at. "Ooo! Soba!"

Placing a thermos onto the desk, Harry nodded. "Yeah, and I got you some nice tea as well from Rose... And, um... I decided to see if you could try something that I made."

Niiyodo blinked a bit as she chewed some tempura from another one of the bentos before hurridly swallowing. "Well, I don't mind trying anything that you made, Harry-Chan. Usually, it's pretty good..." She trailed off a bit as she remembered some of the things the boy next to her had tried. 'Though sometimes the western foods can be a bit heavy.'

Only nodding, Harry pulled out a final container and then opened it. Inside were several items that made Niiyodo blink. "Here, I made these for dessert.'

Softly frowning, Niiyodo took one of the items and looked. For a moment, she thought that it was one of those mini-tarts that Kongou and Rose sometimes made. But then she blinked as she realized that wasn't what it was. "Is that... chocolate chip cookie?"

A small smile on his face, Harry picked one up and pointed. "Dess! See, I made them kind of like mini-tarts. The crust is actually chocolate chip cookie. And the filling is fudge brownie! They're, well... chocolate chip brownie tarts according to the recipie that I found."

Eyes widening a bit, Niiyodo glanced around and then leaned towards him. "Well, guess that I'll just have to sacrifice myself as the test subject." Despite her words, the smile on her face and the twinkle in her eye took away any sting from them and told Harry she was just playing. Moments later, Niiyodo bit into it before giving Harry a thumb's up as she smiled. 'I could get used to these...' Then, a thought came to her unbidden which caused her to stop chewing for a second. 'I wonder if, when Harry-Chan becomes an Admiral he might want me as a Secretary Ship...'

Meanwhile, four of her fairies that were on her desk made off with one of the tarts. When they had gotten a distance away, one of them leapt into the air as he brought down his sword before slashing at it again. They slowly nodded as the tart fell into four pieces with each fairy taking one of them happily. "Desu."

 

[darthcourt10]

Harry Leferts

"This is just so odd..."

Blinking, Jones turned to regard the auburn haired beauty beside him. She had a ponytail done up with what a hair ornament which had a big letter "E" on it. "Hmm? How so?"

Simply pushing down her skirt, the woman looked around the deck of the Carrier that they were on with an interested look. "Well... since I've been back this is the first time that I've stepped on a Carrier besides, well..."

A snicker caused them both to turn to where another young woman stood. In her case though, she had a modified sailor's uniform on and hair ornament that looked like three blue feathers on it. "Since you stood on my deck several years ago to wake me up, Mama."

There was a small blush on the auburn woman's face before she smiled a little bit. "I... Yes, I suppose so, Lexy." Ignoring the snickers though, the woman turned her attention to the Carrier. "What makes it more odd is that she's named for me."

Feeling an arm around her waist, she turned down to the man beside her who smiled up at her. "Well, Minitoga is certainly a worthy successor for you, Sara."

Saratoga only raised an eyebrow at him in bemusement. "Minitoga, Sky? Really?"

However, all the man did was shrug with a small smile as he also looked around. "Well... she is your daughter I guess?" Thinking it over for a moment, Jones shrugged. "I think that's how it works."

Chuckling, Lexington (CV-16), or better known as "Lexteen" shook her head. "It's complicated and let's leave it at that." As she came to a stop beside them, she sighed and shook her head. "I'm actually surprised that you never visited her before this, Mama."

Now more then a little sheepish, Saratoga tilted her head to the side. "Well... I've been meaning too, but either she's been out on the seas or I have. This is the first time that I've actually been in the same port as her at the same time." Crouching down, she placed her hand against the warm flight deck and smiled. "And I'm rather proud of her."

All of them could feel a slight tremble run through the ship for a moment before Lexteen smiled. "Well, you got every reason to be. She's served for a long time with honor." Suddenly, she sighed and frowned a bit as she glared out at the open ocean. "And as much as I hate to admit it, due to all the death that happened, the Abyssals may be the only reason that she's still serving."

Slightly off to the side, a woman who looked exactly like Saratoga stiffened a bit. "You're joking, right? Because that's not funny, Lexy."

Lexington only shook her head a bit. "I wish that it was, um... Mama Toga. But the first months of the war saw several Carriers sent to the bottom, so the Navy rushed to reactivate her and her sisters as well as any other Carriers we had that could be used.

Crossing his arms, Jones glanaced around. "I remember that actually. Kitty Hawk, Constellation, and John F. Kennedy were the other ones also reactivated... But I heard that there was some rather odd incidents during their reactivation."

Bemused, Lexteen nodded. "You could say that. Somehow a lot of the electronics that were supposed to have been stripped out for other Carriers were suddenly back for Minitoga and her sisters. And a lot of the issues that should have happened while they worked... just never happened."

Eyebrows furrowing, Jones just looked at her in confusion. "Wait... how could that have happened? I never heard about any of this."

Simply glancing around, Lexteen chuckled. "Well... it's not classified, but not supposed to be talked about. Anyways, the theory is that while they can't manifest as shipgirls yet, they were still old enough to affect their hulls. Small things needed to get them into working order turned up in places nearby where they would be noticed and so forth." The Carrier shipgirl then nodded at the radar. "It's shown up in other ways as she's one of the few ships in the whole Navy capable of punching through the normal interference around the Abyssals. Which is sort of why they have her out and about so much."

Highly amused, Saratoga just raised one eyebrow at her. "You seem to know quite a bit about her considering that I was summoned before you were, Lexy."

There was a far off look on the younger Essex class Carrier. "I did my research after I came back and... Well, to be honest in a lot of ways I was to her how you were to me, Mama. Though more a big sister then a mom."

Walking across the deck, Saratoga pulled Lexteen into a hug. "And I'm certain that you did a good job of it. You really should be happy with her after all."

Gently smiling, Toga nodded a bit. "She's right, you know." Before Lexteen could thank her though, Toga walked over and grabbed Jones' arm her own, pressing it against her chest. "Now then, I can see that our guide is waiting for us and I, for one, want to see more of our successor."

Cheeks puffing out, Saratoga looked like she was about to say something before she paused. Then, she just let out a breath and sighed. "Oh for... I give up."

Just as she was about to walk over though, she stopped and stared at a spot by the Carrier's island with a frown. From where he was, Jones also looked but saw nothing. "Sara? Is something wrong?"

Quickly shaking out of it, Saratoga gave him a thoughtful smile. "Nothing, it's just that I thought that I saw something for a moment. But there's nothing there." Walking over, she grabbed his other arm and gave a smirk at Toga, who's turn it was to puff out her cheeks. "Now then, my twin sister is right. And I am rather intrigued with how Carriers have changed since my day..." As they walked towards the door leading into the ship, Saratoga continued to talk. "After all, you would not believe how long E was going on about her own namesake after she visited her."

When they entered the doorway, the flight deck was empty... except for a spot near the island. There, a translucent older teen girl with blonde hair stood. Quite a number of her features resembled Saratoga's except her hair color and the way she styled it. On one side of the cover she wore, was a hair ornament like Lexteen's. She even wore a similar outfit to Lexteen.

At the moment though, her face was scrunched up in utter confusion. "... I got two Mamas?" Then she faded into a cloud of sparkles that sank into the ship itself.
___________________________________________________________________________

Looking at the screen, Harry grinned as the Skype call connected to show his brown haired, female friend on the other end. "Hermione!" Seconds later though, his grin faded as he took in her exaspirated and frazzled look. "Um... something happen."

There was a tried look on Hermione's face as she snorted. "Oh, just a visitor." Reaching up, she tilted the webcame to show a certain top heavy British Submarine laying on the floor. Upholder was tied up in rope and in a uncomfortable looking position as well as with a gag in her mouth. However, she just nodded and closed her eyes as she mumbled a greeting. Placing the webcam back into position, Hermione sighed. "And one comment about ropes and gags, Harry..."

Blinking, Harry frowned a little bit. "Ropes and gags? What sort of jokes are we talking about here?"

It took a few moments, but Hermione snorted and shook her head. "Never change, Harry. Never change." Seeing him about to comment, she took a deep breath. "Right, so how's your vacation been going?"

Only leaning back in his chair, Harry shrugged a bit. "It's been going pretty well, um, except for some things." At her curious look, he winced. "Taigei got really hurt due to an attack some time ago..."

Wincing herself, Hermione nodded. "I remember hearing something about that. Hopefully she gets better soon if she hasn't already. All done your homework though?"
Just chuckling, the black haired boy grinned at her. "Finished it up a few days ago..." Suddenly, he grinned. "I do have one piece of news that my cousin Jane told me about. She apparently heard about it from Jintsuu-Oba."

More then a little intrigued, Hermione nodded some. "Go on... what did you hear from her?"

Glancing around, Harry leaned towards the screen. "Apparently Jinstuu set up this guy over in the US with her sister, Sendai-Oba. And after their first blind date, Sendai-Oba's become... interested in the guy. So now she's been after him for a week or so."

Several seconds passed before Hermione winced. "What the heck did that guy do for Jintsuu to set him up with Yasen-Baka?" At Harry's look, her expression turned deadpan. "Yes, we've heard of her even in the Royal Navy." Becoming thoughtful, Hermione hummed a bit. "What's his name anyways?"

To her surprise, Harry shrugged. "No clue. All I know is that his screen name online is 'Elderly Ferrous' or something like that. Jane can't get much more then that from Jintsuu-Oba before she starts cackling."

Hermione blinked at that with Harry returning her blink. After yet another blink, Hermione shook her head. "Right, note to self, don't annoy Jinstuu."

Expression turning blank, Harry snorted. "That's great advice for any of the Sendai class really." Moments later though, he frowned. "I wonder what they did to annoy Jinstuu-Oba that much..."

On the screen, Hermione only shrugged a bit. "Honestly? It could have been anything." Frowning, she shook her head. "Still, siccing Sendai on him is probably a bit much..."

In reply, Harry only shrugged a bit. "Probably."

Still shaking her head, Hermione suddenly perked up a bit. "Oh! By the way, Neville wanted me to pass on a question to you about something." Getting a nod from Harry, she continued. "He's been wondering why you haven't been answering his letters. Ron asked the same thing through Warspite."

That caused Harry to blink and furrow his eyebrows some. "Wait, they've been sending me letters?" When Hermione nodded, he just frowned in confusion. "That's odd... I haven't gotten any at all."

Blinking, now it was Hermione's turn to frown. "None?"

With a shake of his head, Harry leaned back. "No, none at all. I didn't even know that they sent me anything."

For several moments, Hermione chewed her lip as she went deep into thought. "That's.... rather suspicious. Why wouldn't you get any mail from them, though..."

Raising an eyebrow, Harry frowned at her. "Though?"

Silence met him for a few seconds before Hermione shook her head. "They've likely sent them through the wizard post, right?" Getting a nod, she continued. "Then if they're going missing, it's probably there."

Head tilted to the side, Harry considered that before he looked at his friend. "You wouldn't happen to know if any of them received mail from me, do you? Because I sent them some letters as well."

Fingers tapping against the desk that she was sitting at, Hermione shook her head. "No, they didn't mention any letters from you. That means that things have gotten a lot more suspicious. If it was just Neville or Ron, I could understand it as maybe being messed up. But both of them? And maybe you? Once is an accident, two is a coincidence, three times is enemy action."

It went without saying that last bit caused Harry to become rather amused, but he nodded in agreement. "Yeah, something is rotten in Denmark." He ignored the roll of the eyes from Hermione before he frowned. "Could you have Warspite pass on to Ron that I'm sending him a letter and to let Warspite know when it arrives?"

Quickly guessing what he was doing, Hermione muttered to herself before sighing. "I'll go one better and have a letter from me passed along to be sent via owl post. Maybe have Neville and Ron send letters of their own. If those just disappear, then we'll know that someone is intercepting them." Seeing Harry's face pale, she raised an eyebrow. "Is something wrong, Harry?"

Harry shook his head. "What about my Hogwarts letter, Hermione? If whoever it is that's intercepting my mail grabs that..."

To his relief, Hermione shook her head. "Don't worry about it. Worse comes to worse, you can use mine, Ron's, or Neville's as a guideline. Anyways, once we're done here I'll pass on what's needed to Warspite and the others."

Smiling, Harry let out a sigh of relief. "Thanks, Hermione. I owe you one."

All Hermione did though was just chuckle and shake her head. "No, you really don't. After all, you're a friend, Harry."

 

[darthcourt10]

Harry Leferts

Poking his head into the room, Harry smiled at Naka who was twirling her seat around in circles. "Hey, Naka-Nee!"

The Cruiser in question stopped and then gave Harry a smile back. "Hey there, Chibi. What brings you here? Been a bit since I saw my favorite co-host."

With a glance at the screen, Harry blinked. "Well, I heard that you were running a fundraiser? Because of what happened with Taigei-Chan..."

For a few moments, Naka watched him before she patted the seat beside her. Harry quickly ran over and sat down. "Well, your sources would be right in this case, Chibi. I am actually running a fundraiser. Mainly to buy some needed steel hulls for the shipgirl bases."

Confused, Harry frowned up at her. "Wait, what? Why would you need to buy steel hulls for the shipgirl bases? Wouldn't the normal funds be able to take care of that?"

Slowly shaking her head, Naka let out a snort. "Yes and no. Right now, most of the funds are going to civilian vessels such as cargo ships or to military vessels like patrol ships for the regular navy. And most of the funds that us shipgirls get are spent on keeping us in the fight or research and development. Follow me so far there, Chibi?"

After a few seconds, Harry nodded. "I think so..." Tilting his head back to look at the ceiling, Harry let out a breath. "So most of the funding for shipgirls is going into living expenses like food? Or coming up with better weapons?"

Nodding, Naka poked him in the head. "Exactly. While we don't eat as much as a full sized crew, we still eat a lot. Not to mention, when we're in need of major repairs, we eat even more then normal. A Destroyer might eat as much as twenty people or more three times a day while healing. And then you got stuff like repair fluid which isn't exactly cheap either. Hence, most of the funding is earmarked for that." Raising a finger, she wagged it from side to side. "There is also the fact that JMSDF has had to build new bases for shipgirls just to cover the coastline. And building a base is a costly affair besides the politics involved in it's placement. For example, they had to build two shipgirl bases in Kushiro and Sapporo."

Suddenly perking up some, Harry smiled. "I've been to those when they opened them with Mum." Becoming thoughtful, he frowned. "Though they were still building them when they opened up... and Akebono wasn't happy about being assigned to Kushiro."

Expression going blank, Nako took a deep breath. Then, she slowly let it out. "While even I can understand Akebono's... issues, with some of the higher ups, she was asking for it. I honestly cannot understand what possessed her to declare the Admiral at Kure a 'Shitty Admiral working for shitty politicians' on live television. Kami, sometimes that girl..." Quickly shaking it off, Naka cleared her throat and changed the subject. "Anyways... funding for things is rather tight with everything that needs to be done. Now, that doesn't mean that there's not enough for ships to be attached to the Shipgirl program, there is. And plenty of them as well. There's a number of short range transports for shipgirls to get them where they're needed and the modified Amphib docks used as mobile repair bases which are used. Those especially take a lot of money to both build and to operate in the end."

Just frowning, Harry slowly nodded. "Okay..."

Her hands clasped on her stomach, Naka gestured at the base. "There's just one problem with them. We can only have so many at a time for them, Japan has two and they're mostly used for convoy escort or to support long distance expeditions. The US has more, but they're stretched between three coastlines. I'm sure that you know how badly Taigei was hurt..."

Wincing, Harry nodded. "Yeah... Iku-Chan and the others said that if Shinano-Chan had not carried her back, she might have sank before they got here."

With a small sigh, Naka placed her hand onto Harry's shoulder and gave it a comforting squeeze. "Unfortunately true. Neither Iku nor Hachi could carry her, they'd have to tow. And with her as damaged as she was, that would be the best of bad solutions."

Eyebrows furrowing, Harry frowned a bit. "Um... So how could a fund raiser help?"

Snapping her fingers, the Light Cruiser grinned. "Simple, by buying... a number of these!" With a flourish, she pulled a picture off a pile of papers and presented it to Harry. "See?"

Confused, Harry leaned in and looked at the picture. "Um... Naka-Nee? That looks like a fishing boat..."

Lightly laughing, Naka winked at him. "Correct, or rather it's based on a stern trawler to be exact. Lightly armed with just CIWS and maybe some anti-ship missiles, top speed of twenty seven knots, and able to go through any weather." She then pointed at a section of the stern. "See, it has a ramp right here and a winch to help get injured shipgirls out of the water. At that point, they're taken to where the hold was, which now has tubs and tanks of repair fluid so they can stablize the shipgirl so they can get back to base and the repair docks there."

It took a moment, but Harry's eyes widened some. "So... they're like an ambulance? For shipgirls?"

Patting him on the head, Naka nodded. "Exactly! That's a perfect comparison for them. They're also pretty cheap and can be built in smaller shipyards. The most expensive part is militarizing them really and that's not too hard at all. But you pretty hit it on what they are, an ambulance for shipgirls that can handle things closer to home then the mobile repair docks."

Slowly scratching his head, Harry began to think. "How cheap are we talking about, Naka-Nee? 'Cause from what I remember ships can be pretty expensive..."

With a hum, Naka tapped her fingers on her desk as she thought. "In all honesty? Practically dirt cheap from what I've heard and seen. It's just that the military is too busy rebuilding to pay for some... If the fundraiser works though, we should be able to get at least one for here, another for Kure, and maybe Kushiro. That will cover the Pacific coast where most of the fighting is happening. Next time, I'll try to get one for each of the other bases such as Sapporo."

Harry just gave her a look. "What about Sasebo and Okinawa?"

Chuckling, Naka ruffled his hair. "Well, from what Onee-Chan told me, Richardson is likely to shove aside some money to buy at least one for his group. The US is likely to buy at least two for Okinawa, though they'll be made in American shipyards and be a different design." With a glance at her screen, she nodded. "And with the benefits to donations, I might get enough."

Eyebrows raising, Harry blinked at her. "Benefits? What do you mean?"

With a soft hum, Naka frowned for a few moments. "Well... it depends on the source. For example, schools that raise and donate money will get things such as a shipgirl visiting for the day. Mutsu, for example, is more then willing to go to an elementary school and read to the younger students and spend the day with them. Higher then that, I myself will go to said school and hold a concert just for them. At the highest? They get to come onto one of the shipgirl bases for a open house of sorts, and even stay the night while spending time alongside us. They'll also be able to choose a name for one of the ships."

Blinking, Harry stared at her. "Okay... that's sort of impressive."

Just waving him off, Naka chuckled. "It is. As to individual donations? Lower level benefits have things like thank you letters written by Yamato for their donations, autographed shipgirl merchandise. Higher level donations get you backstage passes to one of my shows, passes to one of the shipgirl bases as a guided tour, and the ability to name a ship. We've batted around the idea of being able to spend a day with a shipgirl, but... there's some major issues with that one." Naka then shrugged. "And in any case, I would be the one doing that one before anyone else. As for the rest? It's a massive PR opportunity besides being able to fundraise."

The young wizard only nodded as he began to think.

 

[darthcourt10]

Harry Leferts

Glancing over his shoulder, Harry blinked a bit. "You okay back there, Shioi-Chan? Hachi-Chan?"

Pressed between Harry and Shioi, Hachi only nodded with a smile. "Hacchan is fine, Harry-Chan."

Behind her, slightly uncomfortable due to her seating on the broom nearly where the bristles were, Shioi gave a weak smile. It didn't help that she was in her usual swimsuit, though she was thankful that both RO and Harry were the sizes that they were. "I'm fine as well... As long as we get there soon enough."

Only nodding, Harry turned and glanced down to where RO was pressed up against him and grinning as she looked at the water rush past. "This... is amazing, Harry-Chan!" Not moving beyond turning her head, RO let out a laugh as she felt Harry manuvur the broom thanks to his arms being on either side of her. "How fast are we going?"

Frowning, Harry hummed for a moment before giving a shrug best that he could. "Roughly about... seventy miles an hour. I don't want to push my broom too much with all of us on it after all."

It took a moment for that to filter through their minds before Shioi coughed. "Harry-Chan... just wondering, but how fact can your broom actually go at top speed? Seventy miles per hour is pretty fast to start off with."

A grin bloomed on Harry's face as he chuckled a bit. "Well, about a hundred and ninety if I really push it. Not going to with all of us on it, but..."

Needless to say, all three of the Subgirls widened their eyes at that in stunned disbelief. 'A HUNDRED AND NINETY MILES PER HOUR!? WHAT THE HELL!?'

Shaking her head, Hachi snorted some. "And we're really close to this island, right?" After getting a nod, she did some internal calculations. 'Hmm... We've been on the broom for about an hour so far and we started out at Wokyuu's island which is fifteen miles offshore. So give or take five miles and the island is about eighty five miles from Yokosuka in a southeast direction. Huh... that's not that bad of a distance.'

Moments later she was pulled out of her thoughts as Harry made a turn. "And there's the opening in the wards."

Each of the Subs blinked at the sight of the "Crack" that was partially in the air, with what looked like tiny bolts of lightning crackling around the edges. And then they were through it as Harry brought them around the edges of a volcanic cliff that soared for more then two hundred feet above them. Eventually though, they entered the caldera itself and RO looked around in awe. "This place is amazing..."

Nodding, Harry let out a sigh. "Yeah... though considering what happened..."

Just reaching over, Hachi placed a hand on Harry's shoulder and squeezed. "Harry-Chan's right, we need to be mindful." She then continued to look around and could see spots of spiritual fog in various areas. "Hacchan wants to know if you really think that it's safe here for you, Harry-Chan."

With a blink, Harry gave her a smile. "Don't worry about it, Hachi-Chan. Haru-San already said that it's more then safe for me, especially if I have a shipgirl with me."

Several minutes later, they landed on the shore of the island and Shioi looked around in curiosity. "Um, so where are they? Because I don't see them..."

Only shrugging, Harry frowned. "Actually... they probably already know that we're here so..." Bringing his hands to his mouth, he gave a small shout. "UME-SAN! SAKURA-SAN! WHERE ARE YOU?"

Giggles caused all four to turn and notice the twin, transparent girls that stood nearby. Easily making their way to the group, the twins brightly smiled. "You came back!"

Chuckling, Harry rubbed the back of his neck some. "Well, I did promise you that I would come and visit you know." He then gestured at the three shipgirls beside him. "Anyways, these are Hachi-Chan, or Submarine I-8, Shioi-Chan, Submarine I-401, and RO-Chan, Submarine RO-500."

Both ghosts bowed to the three shipgirls. "Welcome to our island. We hope that you have a pleasant stay."

Each of the Subgirls bowed right back to the two spirits. "We're sure that we will. Thank you."

Once they stood up though, they lapsed into silence and the twins began to look a little lost. Sharing a look with her sister, Sakura took a deep breath. "While we're glad that you came to visit us, Harry-San... We're not quite sure what you want to do here."

For a few seconds, Harry blinked and then turned towards Hachi. "Right! We came here because we decided to share some movies with you. Pretty sure that you haven't seen any of them."

Their eyes widening, the twins gasped and smiled. "Movies? To watch with us..." Slowly though, their smiles fell and they hung their heads a bit. "Unfortunately, the theatre that once stood here is long gone."

More then a little surprised, RO stared at them. "Wait, you had a theatre here?"

Nodding, the twins pointed towards a section of the ruins. "Yes, it was right over there when the base stood. It was for the... supervisors... that headed the base." It was obvious to Harry and the shipgirls that they were uncomfortable. "Sometimes, when we wanted to escape from what was happening, we would go inside and watch the movies being shown. Though, some of them were..."

Harry frowned some and tilted his head as both girls blushed. "Some were what?"

Snickers escaped from the Subgirls as they realized exactly what sort of movies the twins might have seen and Hachi patted a confused Harry on the shoulder. "Hacchan will tell you what sort of movies later, Harry-Chan. But that's not important at the moment." Turning back to the twins who managed to get their embarrassment under control, she gave them both a smile. "As to the movies though, technology has gone ahead and we don't need it."

As she looked around, Shioi frowned. "Yeah... you don't need those big old theatres anymore." Grinning, she ran over to a spot and cleared some of the rubble away to reveal the ground. "Over here, Harry-Chan! This spot's perfect!"

Quickly making his way over, Harry examined it and nodded. "Yup! This is a great spot. RO-Chan, do you have the-" When he turned, Harry found his head covered in a blanket. "Blanket..."

Unable to help themselves, the twins began giggling again as Harry whipped it off and gave a playful glare to RO who looked away with an innocent expression on her face. It was not helped by how she was also whistling. Hachi just gave the two spirits a smile before she pulled a giant umbrella from nowhere and set it down so that the blanket area was shaded by it. "Come over here and have a seat, you two. Hacchan is sure that you'll like this movie."

Blinking, Harry frowned as the twins sat Seiza style where Hachi had gestured on the blanket. Then he shook it off as RO placed one of the larger, flatter pieces of rubble down in front of the blanket as Shioi put a solar panal outside the shade before running a cord from it. Tilting her head, Ume examined it. "What is that?"

With a glance at her, Harry adjusted some cushions. "That's a solar panel, Ume-San."

Eyebrows furrowing, Ume turned towards him. Her expression was one of complete and utter confusion. "A... solar panel? And what is a solar panel?"

RO just gave her a small smile. "It's an electricity generating device. The solar panel uses sunlight to make electricity."

Jaws dropping, the twins stared at her and then at the solar panel before Sakura blinked. "It uses sunlight to generate electricity? Truly?" When RO nodded, Sakura leaned forward a bit to better see it. "Amazing... how does it work?"

Humming, RO looked up at the sun and frowned. "Well..." Roughly five minutes later, they had finished setting up and RO finished. "... And that is how it generally works."

For a small amount of time, the twins digested that before they shook their head. "Such wonderful things that the future has brought. We remember how they had boilers here on the island to generate power, and yet this can do the same without the smoke and coal."

With a small chuckle, Harry gave them both a grin as he set up a large, portable DVD player. "You've seen nothing yet, Sakura-San, Ume-San. Now it's time for the movie."

If they weren't surprised before, the two ghosts were now. "But where is the screen? The projector? The reels?"

Tapping the DVD player, Harry shook his head. "This is both the screen and projector and this..." He held up a DVD. "Is the reel."

A few moments later though, he blinked as the two leaned in and whispered between themselves. Slowly reaching out, Ume ran a finger along the edge. "It's so small... And so is the screen and projector! If what you tell us is true..."

Shioi gave them a smile. "We're not lying to either of you two." With a sigh, she sat down on a cushion and barely noticed the shocked looks at how she was sitting. "Pretty neat really."

Blushing, the twins glanced at the other two Subgirls and spotted them sitting much like Shioi, though Hachi was leaning against Harry as she sat crosslegged. A fact that caused their blushes to deepen even more. Swallowing, Sakura moved to whisper in her sister's ear. "Oh my... they're so open..."

Only nodding slowly, Ume couldn't take her eyes off of Hachi. "Rather uncouth... But perhaps that has changed as well?"

There was a considering look on Sakura's face before she slowly shook her head and continued to whisper. "I do not know, Ume... Perhaps? But it's so odd... Has the times changed so much that such means of sitting is normal?"

Yet again, they shared a look of befuddlement and embarrassment before they shook it off as Harry put the DVD player in and began the movie. "So, I decided to start off with some Miyazaki movies..."

Sakura and Ume both jerked as the screen lit up and then leaned forward some to better watch. So interested in what they were seeing, the two took the Ramune bottles offered by Hachi without any comment and simply watched with looks of awe.

 

[darthcourt10]

Harry Leferts

As the ending credits played for the second movie, Harry looked over his shoulder at the Hitobashiras. Both of them were still engrossed with what was on the screen though when he spoke, they jerked out of their thoughts. "So... what did you think?"

Placing down an empty Ramune bottle by one of the others, Ume frowned thoughtfully. After sharing a look with Sakura, she slowly nodded. "It was all so very strange... And yet very enjoyable!"

Beside her, Sakura placed a chocolate wrapper into a bag, the wrapper having held a chocolate bar that Hachi had given her as a gift from Enterprise. Part of Harry mused that, oddly, both her and her sister looked much more solid now and seemed to have gained some color. Then he shook his head and chuckled internally. 'Must be imagining things.'

Meanwhile, Sakura hummed and placed a finger to her chin before nodding. "Ume is right, this has been an enjoyable time. And the movies have changed so much from our time, they're even in color!"

Chuckling, Hachi nodded some with a small smile. "Trust me, we were surprised when we returned and encountered how much things have changed since we were last afloat." Her gaze turned distant and her smile softened. "It's surprising what many people of this day and age take for granted."

With a nod, RO hummed. "Like... back when we were ships, phones were large, unwieldly things one had in the kitchen. Yet now, you have ones without wires and cellphones that you can hear someone clearly on. And you can do things such as play movies or games on them. You even see the other person's face on the other side of the conversation as well with some of them as you speak to them. It's almost like being face to face with them."

Eyes wide, the twins shared a look with each other. "Truly? Telephones are like that now?" At the nods, they blinked in amazement. "Incredible..."

Just grinning some, Shioi nodded. "And that's just one thing that has changed. So much is different now, you would not believe it."

Glancing at her sister, Ume leaned in and cleared her throat, though how was beyond Harry. "What... what is the world like? Outside our island?"

Somewhat lost, Sakura made a sound of agreement with her sister. "Like... what is Tokyo like now? Yokosuka? We remember hearing that the capital was burned, but..."

Only humming, Shioi looked up at the sky as she considered the question. "Tokyo... has changed a lot in the past decades. I have no doubt that anyone used to how the city was would be able to find their way through it. Some parts are still the same but others?"

Beside her, Hachi nodded. "Other parts are way different. The city is much, much bigger with a lot more people. You have towers of glass and steel rising hundreds of feet into the air! Shopping areas where thousands go through every day!"

Their eyes widening, the twins looked between them. "Tokyo has changed that much? Really?"

Nodding, Harry was on his phone before he held it towards them. "This is a picture that I took of Tokyo on a visit a while back. That's what the waterfront looks like now." Both twins leaned in to look and their jaws dropped before Harry brought up another picture. "And this is a picture that I took when Mum took me to Tokyo Tower It's the tallest building in Japan!"

Part of Harry wanted to laugh at how shocked the two spirits looked at the sight of Tokyo from so high up. But he held it in as Ume brought up a finger to point at the picture. "M-my word... is that what Tokyo looks like now? It's so... big."

Eyes moving across the picture, Sakura only nodded in agreement. "Indeed, and so different from how it was when we were alive. They were still rebuilding from the Great Kanto Earthquake after all." With a shake of her head, she turned towards Harry. "You said the tallest building? How tall is it?"

Frowning, Ume blinked as she brought a finger to her cheek. "From what we remember the tallest building was the American's Empire State Building. We never saw it outside the pictures but that seemed so very tall already it's hard to imagine anything bigger..."

Harry was silent as he thought furrowing his eyebrows. "Well... how tall is the Empire State Building?" At the looks, he blushed some. "What? I can't really recall that over the top of my head..."

Softly snickering, Hachi pulled out a book and ran a finger down the page. "The Empire State Building is about 1, 454 feet tall. Tokyo Tower meanwhile is 1,092 feet tall, a little less then three hundred feet below the Empire State Building's height. If they ever finish the Tokyo Skytree, that's going to be even taller as it's over two thousand feet tall."

The twins just stared for several moments as they tried to comprehend that before shaking their heads. "Amazing what they have done, but..." Her eyes then widened some. "What about Earthquakes! Surely something that tall is a danger! And they're going to build something even taller!?"

All Harry did was turn before gently patting them on the shoulders. "Hey, it's okay. People have figured out all sorts of things to prevent earthquake damage. Tokyo Tower has survived both earthquakes and the Abyssals after all."

When they looked at her, Shioi gave a grin and a thumbs up. "Harry-Chan's right actually, it's perfectly safe. You'd be amazed at what they've done for that sort of thing."

Considering that, the twins slowly nodded before Sakura turned back to the phone. "Harry-San, could we... see some other pictures? If that would be possible?"

Just as Harry was about to answer, he realized that things had gone quiet and glanced around. There was the feeling of him being watched or of people looking over his shoulder. But when he looked, there was nothing there. Of course, when he looked, he missed both Ume and Sakura glaring at their surroundings as the three Subgirls also glanced around. Shrugging, Harry turned back to the two. "Sure, I actually got a lot of pictures if you want to see them."

Moments later though, he blinked as the twins bit their lips and then leaned against him to better see the pictures. Despite the coldness though, he shook it off and turned towards the phone as the spirits' eyes widened. 'He's... warm...'

Bringing up one picture, Harry smiled at it. "Well, this is a picture of Ginza during the day, and this is at night." The twins nodded as their eyes took in every detail, though the night time picture caused them to suck in breaths that they didn't need. "And this is Akihabara..." As he continued to show picture after picture, Harry tried his best to ignore the feeling of being watched. It was roughly an hour later though that he noticed the time and sighed. "Um, sorry about this, Ume-San, Sakura-San, but... we should be going."

The young boy winced a bit as the two spirits seemed to wilt a bit at that. Sadly smiling, they bowed a little as they were still sitting. "O-of course. We don't wish to take up more of your time then we already have, Harry-San."

If anything though, that caused Harry to frown before he shook his head. "Hey, no need for that! I'm going to visit again after all!"

Hope seemed to return to the two spirits as their expressions brightened. "You will? Truly?" When Harry nodded, they bowed deeply. "Thank you."

Chuckling weakly as he scratched the back of his head, Harry glanced at Hachi who seemed rather amused with the whole thing. "Um, you're welcome?" Several minutes later, they had packed up and put away the garbage for later disposal. Holding his broom, Harry waited as Shioi and Hachi got onto it and watched as Ume and Sakura stood nearby. "I'll try and visit next week, okay?'

Brightly smiling, the twins gave him a tilt of the head. "We look forward to it." Then they paused and glanced at each other. "As much as we hate to do so, could we ask of you a favor, Harry-San?"

Slightly confused, Harry gave a small snort. "Of course you can, we're friends after all."

That seemed to catch the two spirits by surprise and they blinked. "We were not sure if you considered us such, but thank you." Taking a moment to gather their thoughts, they shifted a bit nervously. "We were wondering if.... if next time you came you could bring pictures of how Kyoto looks?"

Not sure where this was going, Harry shrugged. "Sure, I don't have a problem. But, um... why Kyoto in particular?"

It was Harry's turn to be surprised as the twins bit their lips and had sad expressions on their faces. "Our family... When we were alive, Kyoto was were we lived with our family, the city where we grew up. We know that our family might not be there, but we would still like to see how things may have changed."

All Harry did was give them a small smile. "Sure, I can do that. Heck, I'll bring you all sorts of pictures."

From on the broomstick, RO grinned. "You know that you can hug him, right? No one would have a problem with that."

Before Harry could ask her what she meant, the twins did exactly that. Then they pulled away and gave another bow. "Thank you."

Only shaking his head, Harry blinked as he told them he didn't mind. Getting onto his broom, he then gave them a wave as RO climbed on in front of him. "See you again, Ume-San! Sakura-San!"

The two waved back at him with smiles. "And we hope to see you again soon as well, Harry-San!"

Sakura and Ume continued to stand there waving until the group was out of sight and lowered their arms. Then they shared a smile and a giggle as they faded from sight. Meanwhile, on his broom, Harry frowned as he went over what happened and glanced back at Hachi. "Um, guys? Has things really changed that much?"

For several moments the three shipgirls were quiet before RO spoke up. "They really have, Harry-Chan..." On her face there was a far off expression. "Everything's changed and... sometimes, it's as if the world today is an alien planet."

Where she sat behind him, Hachi cleared her throat. "Harry-Chan, I'm sure that you noticed how after being summoned that shipgirls are kept on the base for a few weeks, right?" Slowly, Harry nodded and Hachi continued. "That's to give them a period of... adjustment. I remember my first trip off-base. I had memories of where everything was and how they were, only discover that they might as well have been of another country."

Quietly thinking, Harry frowned as something finally clicked. "Is that why a lot of shipgirls don't leave their bases? Because of how different things are?"

He knew that he had hit the nail on the head as Hachi's arms around his middle tightened for a moment before she answered. "Hai. Being on base is... easier, for most of us. Even while many things about the military has changed, a lot has stayed the same. We don't need to worry about a hundred things being different like we might outside the base. Once the war is over, we'll have to move on with our lives. But by then? By then we'll be used to how things are."

All Harry did was silently consider that as it showed him a side of his friends that he didn't know about. And made a number of things suddenly make more sense even as he felt for them.

 

[darthcourt10]

Harry Leferts

Walking into his section of the kitchen, Harry had to smile at the sight of Hamakaze there looking curiously around. "Are you ready for our cooking lesson, Hamakaze-Chan?"

There was just a very small upturn to the Destroyer's lips as she gave a small nod. "I am, Harry-San." Glancing around again, she raised an eyebrow. "So, how shall we start?"

Gently chuckling, Harry pulled off two aprons from their hooks and handed one to Hamakaze and put the other one on. "Well... first we need to decide on what we're going to make as we wash up and stuff." At seeing how Hamakaze was having a bit of trouble with the strings of the apron, Harry smiled. "Need some help?"

For a moment, Harry swore that there was some pink on Hamakaze's cheeks before she nodded and turned so he could better help. "That would actually be much appreciated, Harry-San. Thank you."

Only nodding as he grabbed the strings, Harry shrugged some. "No worries, just tell me if it's too tight, okay?" Getting a nod, he tightened the apron and glanced up at Hamakaze. Said Destroyer was watching him from over her shoulder and then nodded before he tied the strings. "There, that feel okay?"

Slowly, Hamakaze twisted her torso from one side to the other as she kept an eye on Harry. When Harry didn't react besides nodding, she softly smiled. "It feels perfect." Humming, Hamakaze then followed Harry over to the sink as the two began to wash their hands. "As to what we should make... I'm not sure."

Instead of being annoyed as part of Hamakaze expected, Harry only frowned in thought as he put a glob of soap onto his and the Destroyer's hands. "Well... Is there anything in particular that you want to try?"

Rinsing her hands, and then putting more soap onto them as Harry did the same, the silver haired shipgirl furrowed her eyebrows some. "Maybe something sweet, but easy?" Then she tilted her head back and stared at the ceiling. "I don't think that I'm in the mood for cookies though. Something that Shinano-Sama might like and that I can be different with."

After some thought, Harry suddenly smiled. "Something different, huh? Well, how about brownies then?"

Just blinking, Hamakaze turned her attention onto him. "Brownies?"

With a grin, Harry gave her a nod. "Dess! You can do all sorts of things with brownies. Different icing for them besides the normal chocolate. You can also make them different by adding nuts or chocolate chips. Heck! Serve one hot and put some ice cream and whipped cream on it."

Unnoticed by him, Hamakaze was licking her lips at the last image as she considered it. 'Ice cream and hot brownie...' Quickly shaking it off, and the water from her hands as Harry turned off the sink, the Destroyer smiled a little bit. "That sounds perfect."

Handing her a towel, Harry hummed as he thought before walking over to the cabinet where he kept various items for baking. Within a few moments he brought out each of the items and nodded to himself before he turned his head to Hamakaze who just watched. "Okay, we need flour, salt, baking powder, cocoa, butter, vanilla..."

As he continued listing, Hamakaze gathered up the items and then placed them onto the countertop. Once she was done, she nodded and turned to Harry. "What's next?"

Simply walking over to the oven, Harry smiled a bit. "Well, first we preheat the oven so that it's nice and hot when we put in the brownies. Then, we need to grease the pan... Could you use one of the spoons and take some butter out, Hamakaze-Chan?"

Not quite sure what they were about to do, the Destroyer did so and held the spoon up. "Like this?"

Only nodding, Harry grabbed a piece of paper towel and brought it over. "Perfect! Now, we scoop the butter with the paper towel like so, and then rub it along the pan. That way, the brownies won't stick to the pan."

Jotting down notes into her mental logbook, Hamakaze took the paper towel and began to rub it along the pan. "Hmm... is that an issue?"

Harry shrugged a bit as he brought over the bag of flour. "You might be surprised, some people forget which causes the bottom of the brownies to stick. Now... Some like baking sprays, but I prefer butter." After a short period of time, Harry nodded. "Okay, now dust some flour on top of the butter." Taking some between his fingers, he did exactly that. "Like this."

Lips twitching, Hamakaze softly chuckled as she did as he showed. "This is more work then I woud have imagined. But... if one is going to do it, they should do it right."

Part of her wanted to giggle as Harry gave a sharp nod. "Exactly! Anyways, we're done with this, so... time for the actual mix." Grabbing a saucepan, Harry placed it onto a burner. "Now, I need a half cup of butter. While that's melting, we need to measure the sugar and some of the other ingredients so that we can stir them in after we take them off the heat."

Several minutes found Hamakaze using a whisk to mix in the dry ingredients under Harry's supervision. Frowning slightly, she leaned in to look. "Is it done?"

With a frown himself, Harry examined it and then nodded. "Yeah, it's pretty well mixed now. So pour it out evenly into the pan and we can put it into the oven to bake for... hmm, about a half hour should do it."

Pouring the batter into the pan, Hamakaze had her tongue poking out just a bit. Once the last bit was scrapped out, she took a deep breath before putting it into the oven. "There we go." At seeing Harry place the timer on twenty five minutes, Hamakaze raised an eyebrow. "I thought that you said a half hour?"

The black haired boy just smiled and gave her a nod. "A half hour works, but I put the timer on twenty five that way I can check just in case they've baked a bit faster then expected." Clapping his hands, he began to hand the various bowls and utensils to Hamakaze. "Okay, let's quickly clean these so they're done and then we can work on the icing. Between the two of us, it shouldn't take long... So, do you want to wash or dry, Hamakaze-Chan?"

Just blinking, Hamakaze considered the question before giving him a small smile. "I think that I'll wash and you dry." And with that, the two of them got down to work with Hamakaze washing before passing the item to Harry to quickly dry and set into the rack. Of course, as she did so, part of her mind wandered when a thought occurred to her. 'Wait... the two of us might look like...'

Beside her, Harry had turned to her to ask her something when he blinked as there was some pink on her cheeks. "Hamakaze-Chan? Is something wrong?"

Only shaking her head, the Destroyer just gave him a small smile. "Just had a thought about something, Harry-San. Nothing more." Passing him the final item, she grabbed one of the towels and dried her hands before glancing at the time. "We have about fifteen minutes..."

All Harry did was smile and dry his own hands some. "Well, then we should probably get the icing all done!" Walking back to the counter, and several bowls that were there, the eleven year old began to explain. "Now, we got most of the items that we need for this out already as we used them for the brownie mix, but... We're going to need honey and some icing sugar."

Tilting her head to the side, Hamakaze frowned a bit. "Is there a difference between the sugar that we used and icing sugar? They're both sugar after all."

Much to her amusement, Harry chuckled and wagged a finger at her. "Yup! There's quite a bit of difference between the two of them."

As he explained, the two of them got to work and several minutes later, Harry and Hamakaze were spreading the icing across the brownies. Once that was done, the Destroyer was looking over the brownies with a intrigued look. "So... are they any good?"

Grinning, Harry just poured two glasses of milk before he picked up one of the squares and smiled. "Only one way to see. Ready?"

Hamakaze shared a look with Harry before they then bit down on their brownies and their faces lit up. Slowly chewing, Hamakaze smiled before she swallowed and washed it down with some milk. "It's good."

With a smile, Harry gave her a thumbs up as he also swallowed. "It's not just good, it's awesome! Now, besides cleaning, we got one last thing to do."

Swalowing another bite of brownie, Hamakaze blinked and looked at him. "And what would that be, Harry-San?"

Just rubbing the back of his neck, Harry gave her a bit of a sheepish smile. "Well... it's something that I usually do when I teach someone how to make something. I did it with Shinano-Chan, so, um... can I borrow one of your fairies?" Only nodding, though she was really curious, Hamakaze held out her hand where a Fairy stood and whom stepped onto Harry's hand. Walking over to the counter, Harry set him down before placing a brownie onto a plate and handing him his phone. "Could you take a picture of us holding this?"

The Fairy just nodded and gave a salute as he smiled. "Desu!"

Walking back over to Hamakaze, who had a small blush on her face, Harry handed her a paper towel which she wiped the milk and small smears of chocolate off her face. Beside her, Harry did the same before holding the plate out for her to grab one side of it. To his surprise though, she shuffled close and placed one arm around his shoulders. When he looked, she just gave him one of her small, soft smiles in return which made him internally shrugged. "Okay, you can take the picture now."

From where he stood, the Fairy nodded and brought it's small hand down before taking two pictures. As Harry brought him back to Hamakaze, the Destroyer nodded and turned to him. "If possible, could you... send me one of the pictures, Harry-San? So that I can have it for myself?"

All Harry did was nod and chuckle. "Sure thing, Hamakaze-Chan, I can do that."

Moments later though, he blinked as she gave him a hug and a headpat. "Thank you, for both the picture and this." Then he internally shook it off as she let go and went to put away the brownies so that they could be taken to the quarters that she shared with Shinano and the others.

 

[darthcourt10]

Harry Leferts

There was a small smile on Shinano's face as she chatted with Isokaze about the day in their combined quarters. She still did not know why all three Destroyers decided to room with her and White Plains, but she was glad that they had. Even with her much smaller momboat cuddled into her, she did not sleep quite as well as she did when her three Escorts also were there.

Especially as all three were, in her mind, extremely cuddly.

However, Shinano's attention was grabbed at the sound of plates being placed onto the table and blinked at Hamakaze who had a slightly nervous expression on her face. "I... made these today. Hopefully you and the others will enjoy them as a snack before bedtime, Shinano-Sama."

When she turned to see what was set down, Shinano was unable to help the happy gasp that escaped her. "Brownies!" Licking her lips at the sight of the chocolately confections, with other plates placed in front of Louisiana, White Plains, and her other Destroyers, Shinano gestured at it. "You made us brownies, Hamakaze-Chan?"

Slightly blushing, the silver haired Destroyer sat down next to Shinano with a plate of her own. "Hai, I did. Harry-San was teaching me how to make them, so I brought most of them back with me though he took some as well."

About to take a forkful, Shinano looked up at her in surprise. "Harry-Chan taught you how to make it?"

Very slowly, Hamakaze nodded. "He did, Harry-San is..." For a moment, she seemed lost before smiling a little bit. "Harry-San is a very good teacher."

Shinano gave a slightly bashful smile at that as she poked her brownie. "Hai, I know. Harry-Chan is a very good teacher and he taught me how to make pancakes and other things."

That caused Yukikaze to look up from her own brownie with wide eyes. "Harry-San actually taught you how to make pancakes, Shinano-Sama?" Once Shinano nodded, Yukikaze slowly shook her head in disbelief. "Wow..."

Practically bouncing where she sat, White Plains grinned. "Yeah! Shinano actually makes awesome pancakes!"

With a smile, Hamakaze nodded at the blushing Shinano. "Shinano-Sama makes great pancakes." Now wanting to distract everyone, Shinano took a bite of the brownie on her plate as everyone leaned in to watch. "Is... is it any good, Shinano-Sama? Harry-San seemed to like them, but..."

Swallowing it, Shinano gave the Destroyer a thumbs up. "It's not just good, it's great!" Using her fork, she took another bit off. "I wouldn't mind eating these more often, Hamakaze-Chan."

There were nods and smiles from the others as they ate their own brownies, all of which made Hamakaze blush under the attention. However, the small, soft smile on Hamakaze's face told everyone her true thoughts even if she didn't vocalize them. Suddenly though, Isokaze elbowed her slightly. "Just at look at you, Hamakaze! I never expected to see you making brownies, yet here you are! Turning into a real dormestic!"

Just swallowing, Shinano tilted her head to the side in curiosity. "Is that a bad thing?" As everyone turned to her, the massive Carrier chewed her bottom lip a bit before she continued. "I think that Hamakaze-Chan would be great as one as she takes care of us and... would also be a good mother."

Blinking as those words bounced around in her head, Hamakaze tilted her head back some as her imagination ran wild. At least one of the images was that of her in an apron with several young Destroyers tugging at it as they called her 'Kaa-San' and she gave them a motherly smile. Then she shook off the image though she was unable to do the same with the pink in her cheeks. "I... don't think..."

Louisiana grinned a bit as she gestured at her with a fork. "Ma chère is right, you know. You would be a good mother."

As she hummed, Isokaze nodded and put her hand to her chin. "Hai, and Harry-San perhaps has started turning you into a domestic woman." Then Isokaze pumped her fist without noticing the blush on her fellow Destroyer's face and grinned. "Maybe he can teach me too! And then people will want to eat my cooking!"

Embarrassed, Hamakaze looked away. "I think that may be a miracle that even Harry-San cannot pull off."

Hanging her head for a moment, Isokaze grabbed Hamakaze's arm and shook her. "Hamakaze! Stop being so mean!"

All Hamakaze did though was smirk slightly and shake her head before turning back to their snack. Several minutes later as Isokaze and White Plains put away the plates though, Yukikaze looked up with a confused expression at a question that Louisiana had asked. "You... want me to invest your money?"

Slowly, the Battleship nodded as she propped her chin on her hands. On her face was a bemused smile as she chuckled. "Oui, that is correct, Yukikaze."

Furrowing her eyebrows in confusion, Yukikaze tilted her head to the side. "Um, okay, I can do that but... why?"

Once more, Louisiana chucked and her lips curled upwards a bit more. "I have heard from Nagato that you have done the same for Harry, non? And while I have plenty of money, it just sits mostly in the bank. So why not do something with it so that later, I can fully enjoy it?"

Yukikaze considered what she had been told before slowly nodding. "I guess that I can do some investing if you want. But I'm not really a professional, I just pick the ones that I feel will be good and that's it."

Licking the chocolate milk moustache on her upper lip away, Shinano suddenly smiled. "Could you do the same for me, Yukikaze-Chan? Please?"

As her fellow Destroyers turned and asked the same thing, the lucky shipgirl blushed while she nodded. "Um, okay... I can do that. No idea how well it will turn out, but I'll give it my best."

Feeling a hand on her shoulder, Yukikaze turned to see Hamakaze giving her a small smile. "Then I am sure that it will turn out well."

In reply, Yukikaze returned the smile even as she blushed.
_____________________________________________________________

Just raising an eyebrow as Hoppou scarfed down the brownie that he placed in front of her, Harry had an expression of amusement on his face. "Well, I don't think that I need to ask if you liked it, Hoppou."

Blinking, Hoppou licked some chocolate from the corner of her mouth. Then she grinned showing just how much chocolate and icing was smeared around said mouth. "Big Brother being silly again."

In reply, Harry just raised his eyebrow higher before getting up with a sigh. "Give me a second, Hoppou." Walking to the sink, he turned on the water and made sure it was warm before he soaked some paper towel in it. Moments later, found him sitting in front of Hoppou as he cleaned the squirming Abyssal's face. "Why do you need to be so messy?"

A pout on her face, Hoppou huffed a bit. "Hoppou not messy! Hoppou is very clean."

Now utterly amused, Harry chuckled a bit and shook his head. "Well, now you are." To Hoppou's confusion though, he began to hum. "I wonder..."

Confused, Hoppou tilted her head to the side and blinked. "Is something wrong, Big Brother?" When he leaned towards her though, Hoppou leaned back. "Big Brother?"

Suddenly grinning, Harry reached out and poked her in the cheek. "I think that maybe you've been eating a few too many treats, Hoppou."

Huffing, Hoppou gave him a glare. "Hoppou not eat too many treats! In fact, you should give Hoppou more for being mean!" All that Harry did though was poke her in the cheek which made her blow out her cheeks. "PO!"

Unable to help himself, Harry chuckled as he reached forward again. But this time, Hoppou smacked his hand to the side which made his grin widen. "Oh-ho!"

With a glare on her face, Hoppou narrowed her eyes as she puffed out her cheeks. "Stop, you're being very silly, Big Brother." Narrowing her eyes even more, she huffed. "Very silly!"

Despite trying to be intemidating, Hoppou reminded Harry more of an annoyed chipmunk then anything else. Slowly, he reached towards her cheek again with her eyes tracking his finger. Except this time he was ready when she tried to smack his hand away with his other coming up and poking her in the side. As she squealed, Harry laughed. "Got you, Hoppou!"

Rolling away and to her feet, Hoppou faced him with wide eyes. "BIG BROTHER!"

Harry for his part though got to his feet and held both hands out as if they were claws. "Sorry, Hoppou... it cannot be helped." Giving an evil laugh, he took some steps forward as Hoppou backed away. "But the Tickle Monster has awoken and will not be satisfied until he has had his fill of your laughs from tickling!"

Eyes widening as she realized the danger she was in. Hoppou gulped. Glancing around, she smiled weakly. "B-Big Brother...?" As he laughed evily again and took another step, Hoppou knew that there was only one thing that she could do and so did it.

Which was to run away as fast as possible as Harry chased her. "Come back here, Hoppou!"

Shaking her head, Hoppou ran around the apartment as Harry chased her around. "Noooooo! Hoppou no want to be tickled! Leave Hoppou alone!"

Minutes later, Nagato stepped into the quarters only to blink as Hoppou ran behind her and then climbed up to her shoulders. Then said Abyssal began to try and smack Harry with a pillow as Harry growled and playfully leapt at her. Slowly, Nagato shook her head. "Should I even ask?"

Just trying to smack Harry again, Hoppou glanced at her adoptive mother. "Big Brother being very silly again! Try to tickle Hoppou, Mommy!"

Amused, Nagato turned to Harry who grinned back. "What? She awoke the Tickle Monster and thus is must be satisified before it can go back to it's slumber. And the only thing that can do that is her laughter."

Sighing, Nagato facepalmed with a sigh. "I wish that you would not rile your sister up before bedtime, Harry. It's hard enough to get her to sleep."

Hoppou then turned to her with wide eyes. "Hoppou no need to go to bed!"

Unfortunately for her, that moment of distraction was all Harry needed as he leapt up and managed to grab her legs to pull her off Nagato's shoulders. With a squeal, Hoppou fell into Harry's arms with him raising one hand up. "Sorry, Hoppou, but this is the end for you!"

Eyes wide, Hoppou tried to squirm out of his hold as the hand came down towards her belly. "Nooooooooo!"

All the Battleship did though as she watched the two of them was just shake her head as laughter filled the room. 'These two sometimes...'

But it was something that she would not trade for anything.

 

[darthcourt10]

Harry Leferts

Hearing a knock at the door, a man glanced up from where he was doing some packing with a frown on his face. "I wonder who that might be?" With a pat to the wand in his pocket, the man walked over to the door and glanced through the peephole. "Yes?"

An elderly voice from the other side could be heard, one that seemed very tired. "Nicholas, it's me. I wish to speak with you about something."

Eyebrows raising upwards, Nicholas Flamel opened the door and greeted the ancient looking man on his doorstep with a smile. "Armando!" Turning to the other man, he felt his eyebrows raise even further. "And Jean Pierre! I have not seen you in France since... 1855, I do believe."

The other man nodded some as he squinted through his glasses. "Ah, around then I believe." Glancing around, he shook his head. "I have not left Canada since then."

Moving to the side, Nicholas smiled. "Please, I apologize for my manners. Come in, come in." Once they were inside, he turned to Armando with a small frown. "And how are you doing, my old friend?"

Upon Armando's face there was tiredness before he gave a small smile. "I... have been better. There are good days and bad days... and the bad have started outnumbering the good, I'm afraid."

Nicholas went to scratch his beard only to realize that it was no longer there. Sighing, he let his arm hang by his side as he nodded. "An unfortunate aspect of aging I'm afraid." That got him snorts from the other two which made him smile. "It's true, all of it."

Chuckling, Jean Pierre gave him a grin. "Oh, that is true enough, Nicholas." At that, a woman just past middle age stepped into view and Jean Pierre grinned. "Ah! And such beauty that graces us now, Perenelle! Beautiful as ever!"

Only shaking her head as the man kissed her knuckles, the witch giggled. "And it's good to see you as well, Jean Pierre, especially now at the end of our lives."

Yet again, both wizards snorted at that as Armando shook his head. "Please, don't treat us like the others, Nicholas, Perenelle. Neither I, nor Jean Pierre am fooled by what Albus has stated. But we shall not ask any more questions of you."

Slowly nodding, Nicholas sighed. "I suppose that it would be tough to fool you. After all, you have known us for centuries." Then he gave a self-depreciating chuckle. "Well, if you two gentlemen follow, I believe that the elves will have set out tea."

It was several moments later that the two elderly wizards were sitting across from the two, seemingly younger magicals as they sipped their tea. Finally, Perenelle spoke up. "As much as I do not mind visits from old friends, I am at a loss as to why now?"

Placing his cup down, Armando sighed. "We're both dying of old age, my friends. I do not think that I have more then perhaps a year or two left."

Beside him, Jean Pierre nodded. "It is the same for me, a decade at most."

For a few seconds, Nicholas considered this and then set down his own tea. "I see. Well, I suppose that I should have expected something like this, though I had hoped that you two would not have bothered about the Stone..." Trailing off, he noticed that both elderly wizards seemed amused. "Did I say something funny?"

With a chuckle, Jean Pierre nodded. "Oui. We are not here about your Stone, Nicholas. Nor are we trying to expand our lifespans."

Now intrigued, Perenelle leaned forward. "Well, now... Why come to us then?"

Glancing at each other, it was Armando who spoke up. "We... wish to make our deaths mean something." At the confusion, he gave a small smile. "Nicholas, we know what happened to Hiro."

That caused Nicholas to freeze before he narrowed his eyes. "I'm afraid that I don't know what you mean. Hiro died of old age after all."

If anything though, that seemed to amuse Jean Pierre. "Ah! That is what everyone thinks though. We know better though." Seeing as Nicholas and Perenelle's expressions were blank, he sighed. "It was not hard to put together."

Narrowing his eyes, Nicholas frowned. "And what do you mean by that?"

Lips twitching, Armando shook his head. "Shortly before he died, several shipgirls appeared which shocked the Muggles. I believe it was due to the fact that they were not even built." The expressions of surprise on the faces of the Flamels caused him to laugh. "Even though I am a Pureblood, and proud to be such, does not mean that I do not keep an ear as it were to the Muggle World. Not since my... failure."

Hand covering her mouth, Perenelle stared at him with wide eyes. "You know..."

Very slowly, Armando nodded and seemed to age even more. "That Tom Riddle, my favorite student, and Lord Voldemort are one and the same? Yes." Closing his eyes, he sighed. "Shortly before he revealed himself to the world, he came to visit me. He wished for political support... Support that I would not give him. Apparently though I was far too old and feeble for him to do anything more then ignore due to that. My greatest failure as both a teacher and a Headmaster."

Voice soft, Nicholas' lips narrowed to a thin line. "I'm afraid that stating that I am sorry seems... Inadequate here. But then, why have you never told anyone?"

A far off expression on his face, Armando stared into the distance. "Even then, I had the reputation for sometimes being... of a wandering mind. None would hear of it when I tried and my Great-granddaughter was killed in her home by the Death Eaters, I stayed silent to protect the rest of my family. Something that is my deepest shame."

Reaching over, Perenelle patted his winkled hand. "You were trying to protect your family, Armando. None can truly fault you for staying silent to do so."

With a snort, he shook his head. "No, because maybe if I spoke up, revealed the truth about Tom, far less would have died as his followers would have left him. But... I was afraid."

There was silence for several minutes before Flamel let out a breath. "How... do you believe that Hiro's death ties in with these shipgirls appearing? After all, they appeared I believe a week before hand."

Softly chuckling, Jean Pierre's eyes seemed to glow. "Two years before his death, we had spoken with Hiro. He explained about how two shipgirls in particular had saved his great-grandchild and that he believed he was close to repaying them. Then, a few months, we asked him and he stated that it was a failure."

Beside him, Armando nodded. "Yes, but Hiro forgot one fact. The two of us had known him for more then two centuries, even if for a few decades there we were technically enemies. We knew his tells just as he knew ours and we could see that he was lying."

Jean Pierre then continued. "And imagine our surprise when those same two shipgirls suddenly received siblings. Siblings that, according to the No-majs, were never even laid down. I know as well as Armando, and you, that such things require an... equivalent exchange of sorts. A life is needed to create life.

It was then that Armando spoke up. "And, knowing Hiro, we knew that he would have spoken with you. The Elixer of Life is truly a potent thing, able to give form and life to things that did not have it. As shown by your homunculi you and Perenelle created as children."

Hands tightening as he remembered, Nicholas nodded. It was something that he considered the height of his alchemy, giving himself and Perenelle the children that they so wished for. But they were all lost shortly after when some angry wizards had attacked his home in search of the Stone. Shaking his head of such thoughts, he let out a sigh. "And I suppose that it does not help what one foolish German apprentice of mine did back in the 1800s?"

Bemused, Armando chuckled. "No, though that is far less known in the Wizarding World, though the Muggle world knows far more, though ." Then he waved a hand. "But such things we figured out. And so, we came to you."

Staring down into his cup, Nicholas frowned as Perenelle placed her hand on his shoulder. "Why?"

Expression turning serious, Jean Pierre let out a breath. "It is nearly our time, Nicholas. If I was much younger? I could have fought the Abyssals, perhaps. But now? Now, I am old and physically weak. My country needs me, Nicholas. And this way, my death shall have meaning."

Nodding, Armando grimaced. "And as for me, I hope that perhaps by doing one last thing for my country, to protect it... I may wash away my sins and find redemption for what I allowed on my watch. My time has passed and these shipgirls will be the ones to guard King... Queen, and Country now."

His eyes closed, Nicholas was silent for several moments before he nodded. "Very well, I shall help you. Hopefully, you will be the last ones to do this though..."

As he got nods from both, Perenelle smiled towards Jean Pierre. "Though I must ask though, Jean Pierre... I was not aware that Canada had any ships that they never built which could be useful."

Laughing lightly, Jean Pierre Lavellee, the Sorcerer of Isle of Orleans, grinned. "One would be, how do you say, surprised with some of the things that my country has thought up, Perenelle. But let it be a surprise for you just the same..."

 

[darthcourt10]

Harry Leferts

One of the benefits of growing up with Goto as the Admiral of the base was that Harry was allowed to visit Nagato whenever he wanted, as long as something was not going on. The only times that he was not allowed to was when there was items such as classified information or planning for missions and battles. And the second and third was more to stop him from worrying himself sick more then anything else. However, as it was, Harry had spent hours in the office. Sometimes it was just to chat and talk with his mother and the others.

Which was something that Goto encouraged as it usually got him away from his paperwork for a while.

Other times though, Harry would either sit at a chair at his mother's desk, or on her leg and do homework as she did her own paperwork. Nothing needed to be said as they enjoyed each other's company, the younger version of Harry soaking in the affection his adoptive parent loved to shower on him. As those thoughts filtered through his head, Harry gave a small chuckle as he wrote something down. 'The more things change...'

Her eyebrow raised, Nagato turned towards her son with an amused look. "Is something funny, Harry?"

Slowly, Harry just shook his head and chuckled. "No, Mum. Just thinking about the past and how things don't really change."

A grunt though caused them both to turn towards Goto's desk where he was signing off on yet more paperwork. "I don't know about that, Harry." He then turned a glare that had caused more then one shipgirl, officer, or politician to back down onto the pile of papers. Of course, said papers just ignored it. "After all, I swear that I deal with more paperwork now then I did even a month ago."

Just humming at her own desk, Ooyodo didn't even look at him. "Perhaps if you actually did your paperwork when needed and stopped avoiding it, you wouldn't have so much." Turning to Harry and ignoring the pained expression on Goto's face, she gave him a slight smile. "Remember, Harry-Chan, when paperwork is given, get it done and don't be a slacker."

Lips twitching, Harry nodded. "Hai, Ooyodo-Oba!"

Hanging his head, Goto shook it slowly from side to side. "You're both horrible, horrible people." Only getting a grin and a smirk in return, he rolled his eyes. Looking over a clipboard, Goto hummed. "So Submarine Support Division One is nearly ready..."

That caused the black haired boy to look up in confusion. "Submarine Support Division One?"

With his hands clasped in front of his face, Goto nodded. "That's right, Harry. After all, it's more then just Taigei involved." Bringing his finger down on the sheet, he tapped it. "Taigei is the Flagship of course, with Ryuuhou supplying air support. Then for escorts they have Shimushu, Hachijo, Kunashiri, and Ishigaki. Their job will be to support Iku and the others in extending their range."

A frown crossed Ooyodo's face as she adjusted her glasses. "Something that they should be successful at. Though I hope that the Escorts and Ryuuhou-San manage to gain some experience first."

Looking out the nearby window, Harry could just see a Zero flying just above the water at the Carrier Range. Moments later, a dot fell away from it as the Zero climbed and skipped twice before disappearing far short of it's target. Having seen where Harry was looking, Goto smiled a bit. "Ryuuhou is currently being taught how to skip bomb by White Plains and Iku, I believe." Watching another Zero attempt what the first did and come closer, he nodded. "I have to admit, she's improved."

Slowly nodding, Ooyodo sighed. "She has, though I have my doubts it's enough yet."

However, Goto only waved her off before a thought occurred to him and he turned to Harry. "Speaking of... Are you still heading to Sasebo and Kure? I asked your Okaa-San to inform you of the trip."

Confused, Harry slowly nodded. "Hai, Mum told me about it, Teitoku. I'm still not sure on what you want me to do though...'

All the Admiral did though was smirk. "Just be you usual self when they try a summoning. Hopefully, your luck will come through again. If it works, then we'll be able to make two more Submarine Support Divisions which will help extend our operations further with them."

Nagato, having looked up the current rosters, only shook her head. 'By which you are hoping that Shouhou in Kure and Zuihou in Sasebo will give us Tsurugizaki and Takasaki.' A smirk then crossed her face as she chuckled. 'I wonder how Arizona would react if she ever saw Shouhou...' For a moment, there was an amused smile on Nagato's face as she imagined the American Battleship meeting the Light Carrier before she shook it off. 'I'll have to consider how to bring that about.'

Meanwhile, Goto continued to speak. "... And also enjoy yourself. There's a number of sights that you should take in on your trip after all." Then he grinned a bit. "Maybe have a Sasebo Burger while you're down in Sasebo. But if you do, send a picture to Musashi."

Just giving him a look at that, Harry frowned. "Wouldn't that annoy Musashi-Oba though?"

Leaning back in his chair, Goto gave a small hum. "Annoy her? Nah, she'd love to see it. Besides, would I annoy her like that?"

There was a pause for a moment as Harry and the two shipgirls remembered an incident earlier involving Musashi and Jersey. Then they blinked and spoke as one. "Yes."

However, Goto only waved them off with a slight smirk. "I have not the slightest idea of what you're talking about."

Only giving him an eyeroll, Harry went back to his schoolwork though he kept glancing at one sheet in particular. Something that Nagato noticed as she signed off on another piece of paperwork. "Is something wrong, Harry?"

Glancing up at her, Harry sighed a bit and leaned against his fist. "Turns out that I need to join an extracurricular activity for my schooling. But I'm only here for the holidays though..." He then snorted a bit. "If not for the Statute, I could use Quidditch I guess, but I can't right now."

A frown on her face, Ooyodo blinked a bit before she hummed. "I suppose that baseball and such would also be out. Even assuming that you somehow managed to join a team, there's the problem of how they would expect you to go to as many games as possible." Pen tapping against the wood of her desk, her frown deepened. "Perhaps calligraphy?"

Rather amused, Nagato glanced at her and shook her head. "Those clubs are during the school year, which doesn't help much." Tilting her head, she looked at the ceiling in thought. "Hmm... is there a scuba club around here that you can join? That would cover you for the warmer months..."

With a shrug, Harry frowned a bit. "I kind of hoped that I could join the Junior Sea Friends Federation, but... I'm not sure with the time that I am around for that I could."

Both shipgirls looked at him rather bemused about that. Ever since they returned, more then a few shipgirls had volunteered to help out with them after all. Musashi in particular was one who enjoyed it. At the moment though, Nagato chuckled to herself a bit. "I'll see what can be done, but no promises. The amount of time you spend in Japan due to schooling might limit you there."

Chuckles though caused all three to turn to where Goto was looking out the window. "Actually, there is one type of club that I think you could join." Seeing them look at him, he pointed out the window. "And you even have one of the most important things for it."

Just blinking, they all looked out the window and followed Goto's pointing, only to just see Hedwig napping in a tree. More then a little confused, Harry turned towards him. "Um... what do you mean?"

Smirking, Goto pointed at the tree again. "You have Hedwig, correct? And from memory she's been getting you some looks from people not in the know?"

Despite still being confused, Harry nodded. "Well... yes? I mean, a lot of people are always wondering why I have a owl..."

Now grinning, Goto chuckled. "Then you can kill two birds with one stone. Both silence those looks and at the same time get extracurricular credits." Slowly, he raised one finger into the air. "Get involved with Takagari."

Blinking, Harry frowned at him. "Takagari? As in falconry?"

Only nodding, Goto smiled a bit. "That's right. You do have groups for it after all so it would count for extracurricular and if it becomes known that you're involved? No one is going to give you a second look for having Hedwig."

The Battleship frowned as she thought it over before furrowing her eyebrows. "Would they even let him use an owl? I've never heard of owls being used in Takagari after all, so it might come across as rather odd."

Goto only waved her off though. "That makes it better actually. It'll be so different that some won't look any further. All you need though is some supplies for it..." Suddenly, he jerked his thumb at himself. "And I actually participated in some Takagari clubs when I was younger you know. So I can go and teach you what you need to know."

Expression going blank, Ooyodo gave him a look. "And thus, we find out the reason why you suggested it. You're just trying to get out of doing your paperwork, again. This time using Harry-Chan to do so!"

Quickly going back to his work, Goto only whistled a bit. "I have no idea what you're talking about, Ooyodo."

Meanwhile, Harry glanced at Ooyodo who was grinding her teeth and wisely chose to remain silent on the idea for now.

 

[darthcourt10]

Harry Leferts

Leaning against the windowsill and watching as the base went through it's daily activities, Goto blinked as Ooyodo spoke up. "Hmm? You say something, Ooyodo?"

Only sighing, the Light Cruiser gave him a look from where she was enjoying her bento. "I asked what you're so deep in thought about?"

Just glancing at her, Goto then turned his attention back to the window. Mainly he was watching Nagato walking towards Mamiya's with Harry on her shoulders with a slight smile. "Stuff."

Eyebrow twitching, Ooyodo stared at him. "Stuff. You're thinking about stuff."

Slowly, Goto nodded. "Yes, stuff. Such as if Haruna and Rose would like to go on a double date with me and Kongou. Where we might go, such as Karaoke... What exactly it is that we're protecting, important stuff."

That last bit, if anything, caused Ooyodo to raise an eyebrow. Moments later, she clasped her hands under her chin as she observed her Admiral. At times, he annoyed the hell out of her due to trying to slack off, or his attempts at humor by pissing her off. But she had seen how he had acted towards herself and the other shipgirls and not only respected him for it...

But she would rather have no other Admiral but him.

And then the moment was passed as Goto stretched his arms out. "I've also been rolling an idea around in my head due to what we talked about earlier." Seeing her frown, his expression became thoughtful as he stared at the map that took up one wall of his office. "Mainly about how Taigei's escorts as a whole don't have a lot of experience."

Frowning, Ooyodo considered that before she also looked at the map. "There's not a whole lot that we can do in this case though. Perhaps have them target some Abyssal Convoys like Fubuki-San is doing with Kana-San?"

With a hum, Goto shook his head. "Unfortunately, I don't think that would work. Maybe if we sent them down into the South China Sea to fight with the PT Imps, but..." Then he frowned thoughtfully. "But I had another idea that they could be used for."

Intrigued, Ooyodo considered his expression before speaking her next words. "And that would be?"

Several seconds passed while Goto was silent and then he spoke up with two words that caused Ooyodo to sit up straight. "The Bonins."

Boggling at him, Ooyodo's mouth worked for several moments before she shook off her shock and looked at the map in question. While a large amount of sea in that area had been reclaimed by humanity, there was a small area controlled by the Abyssals that stuck into the human controlled seas centered around the southern area of the Bonins. "You'd send them against Iwo Jima!? Teitoku, I know that sometimes your plans, as insane as they are, work... But there!?"

Only snorting, Goto shook his head. "You should give me more credit, Ooyodo. Sending them against the Princess on Iwo Jima would be suicide. No, I have another idea." Getting up, he took a string and tied it to a pin at another island close to Iwo Jima. "Rather, send them against the Oni class that's occupying Chichi Jima."

There was a twitch of Ooyodo's fingers as she stared at the island in question. Then she let her breath out as a hiss. "Cannibal Island Oni."

Pausing, Goto blinked and turned to her. "Is that what they're calling her?"

For a moment, it looked like Ooyodo was about to say more, but then calmed herself. "Among us shipgirls anyways. You saw the video recovered from one of the fighter pilots back during the first year when he was shot down during an attack. He was lucky not to fall victim to that... monster."

The Admiral could feel his stomach roil as he was reminded of what had happened. But then he shook it off. "An apt name, though I wonder due to the island's history." When Ooyodo looked like she was about to say something, he waved his hand. "Anyways, the Oni is much easier to take care of then Iwo Jima."

Narrowing her eyes, Ooyodo shook her head. "Chichi Jima is too close to Iwo Jima, just a few hundred miles from each other. Any attack would have the Princess send her aircraft against whoever is attacking Chichi Jima."

With a chuckle, Goto raised a finger. "Unless, of course, we trick her." Placing his finger on a spot, he grinned. "What would happen, do you think, if Iwo Jima Princess spotted a fleet? Say, at least two Fleet Carriers, two Battleships, and some Destroyers about here? Especially if we have some Americans involved?"

Ooyodo frowned thoughtfully as she considered it, her own Command Crew quickly coming up with and answering questions. Then she nodded some. "She would think that we're trying to attack her. Most likely send her aircraft in that direction along with her surface units."

Snapping his fingers, Goto nodded. "Exactly! Chichi Jima only has light surface units gathered there, Abyssal Gunboats and the like. Which the Shimushu can handle easily enough, especially if we have some of the Submarines there as well. Taigei herself has guns able to sink them. Meanwhile, Ryuuhou sends her planes against the Island to do as much damage as possible, maybe with another Light Carrier."

Rather thoughtful, Ooyodo nodded as she considered it. "Even if we fail to kill her, we should still greatly damage her. And considering that Chichi Jima is the main port of call for the Abyssal Q-Ships as well as a communication hub for those operating in our waters..."

Just nodding, Goto smiled grimly. "We can disrupt both their communication lines and supply lines. I'm hoping that we'll manage more then that though. It would also be a blow to the Abyssals and might, might cause them to recall the raiders to protect what remains." Then his eyes fell on another spot and he frowned. "Though... this could be another opportunity as well."

Having walked over to stand beside him, Ooyodo's eyes traced the map. "Another opportunity? How so?"

Moments later, Goto pointed at another island. "Minami Iwo Jima, where Haru-San said that there was another magical school located. There doesn't seem to be any Abyssal activity there, but... I want to know what might be there. And since Taigei is in the area..."

Eyes slowly widening, Ooyodo looked at him. "You want to send in some of the Submarines, I take it?" When he nodded, she frowned. "Would that work though?"

Slowly shaking his head, Goto hummed. "The Abyssals would be concentrated on the fleet to the North, and Chichi Jima. There's nothing on Minami Iwo Jima for us to them and they wouldn't notice a small force there. But I'd be satisfied with some floatplanes doing a flyby of the island to see what might be there. However... we won't be doing anything for a few months yet."

Glancing at him, Ooyodo hummed a bit. "Not going to send them right away?"

Only snorting, Goto smirked a bit. "No. This can sit and wait for a time, so we'll use that to plan this operation out. Maybe in October, give time for Taigei and her group to train and get to know each other along with some experience. Still..." His eyes narrowed a bit. "It's an opportunity that I can't ignore..."

All Ooyodo did was nod at that.

 

[darthcourt10]

Harry Leferts

Standing in front of her stove, Rose hummed as she stirred a pot that sat on a burner. With a slight frown, she brought the spoon up to eye level and watched as the dark, purplish contents dripped out. "Hmm... Not quite done I do believe."

Just placing the spoon back into the pot, she continued to slowly stir as behind her the door to her kitchen opened to reveal Haruna. The Battleship stood there watching as Rose continued to hum snitches of song. But what really caught her attention was how Rose swayed side to side slightly to a song only she could hear. Haruna bit her lip a bit as her eyes followed her girlfriend as she felt a small blush on her cheeks. 'Haruna cannot believe how adorable Rose-Chan looks.'

With a glance around, Haruna slipped into the room and slowly made her way up behind Rose. Once she got close enough, she quickly slipped her arms around the tsukumogami who gave a squeak. "Who-" Turning her head though, Rose huffed a bit. "Haruna!"

Only humming, Haruna placed her chin on the smaller woman's head and smiled. "Yes, Rose-Chan?" Despite the glare, Haruna could see Rose's lips twitch a bit which told her that her girlfriend wasn't really angry. "Haruna wonders if there's something wrong, Rose-Chan?"

Softly scoffing, Rose turned her head away a bit. "You know that I dislike it when you sneak up on me in such a way." Narrowing her eyes, the tea set continued. "Sometimes you are far too sneaky, Haruna."

A smile on her face, Haruna giggled a bit. "But Haruna cannot help herself, Rose-Chan! After all, Rose-Chan is just too cute when Haruna surprises her." Then she smirked a bit. "And Haruna knows that Rose-Chan enjoys it."

Eyes twinkling, Rose huffed a bit. "I certainly do not, Haruna."

Moments later though, Haruna reached out with a finger and poked Rose at the corner of her lips. "Haruna knows you do. Rose-Chan is smiling after all."

Blushing some, Rose tried not to smile though it was becoming harder all the time. "Oh tosh! I am not smiling, Haruna." However, not even five seconds later giggles erupted from her as Haruna grinned. "My word, that was harder then I though."

Haruna only leaned forwards a bit and kissed Rose on the corner of her mouth. "And it was hard for Haruna too."

With a smile on her face, Rose turned her head enough to give Haruna a soft kiss. "Mmm." Pulling away, part of her was rather pleased with the red that dusted Haruna's cheeks before she turned back to her work. "I can imagine that, Haruna."

As usual, Haruna felt an odd fluttering feeling in her boilers from what Rose did. But instead of say anything, she only stood there as she gently hugged Rose, enjoying the feeling of her body pressed against hers. Eventually nuzzling her behind the ear, Haruna sighed as the scent of tea, silver, and polish filled her nose. "Rose-Chan..."

Simply feeling happiness bubbling in her like hot water, Rose giggled some as Haruna's nose continued to tickle her. "Haruna! My word, you are affectionate today."

Just shrugging, Haruna smiled a bit which Rose could feel. "Haruna returned from her patrol and needs to recharge on Rose-Chan. So Haruna will stay here for a bit."

Unable to help herself, a laugh burst from Rose before she reached down and placed her hand on Haruna's. "I see, far be it from me to interrupt you recharging. As long as later I am able to recharge on you." Eyes softening, she tilted her head enough so that her forehead was against Haruna's neck, the smell of steel, cordite, and the sea filling her nose. "I did miss you, Haruna and I am ever so glad that you're back here safe and sound."

Expression soft, Haruna gave her a small kiss on the forehead. "And Haruna is glad as well." Watching as Rose turned back to the pot, Haruna glanced around and blinked. In a small pot there were several glass jars and in a saucepan there seemed to be lids. "Haruna wonders though what Rose-Chan is doing?"

Humming, Rose brought the spoon back out and narrowed her eyes as the goop that was there now held it's shape. With a nod, she turned down the heat and grabbed one of the jars, steam rising from both the jar and her hand as she emptied the water from inside.. Not really paying much attention to the heat, Rose then began to spoon the contents of the pot into the small jar as she explained. "Well, I'm making some black currant jam from some that I gathered just this morning! It should be quite lovely on various things for tea or breakfast."

Interested, Haruna nodded as she watched. "Ah, Haruna understands. Though, may Haruna watch?"

Smiling, Rose gave her a giggle. "You certainly may, Haruna. I don't mind in the slightest." The jar now filled, Rose quickly wiped off the top with a steaming cloth before taking one of the lids and shaking it off. Quickly screwng it tightly shut, she then placed it into a pot of boiling water and glanced at the time. "And there we go. Time for the next one."

With a blink, Haruna tilted her head to the side in curiosity. "Why did Rose-Chan do that?"

Eyebrow raised, Rose glanced at her as she began spooning the last of the jam into a second jar. "Hmm? Do what, Haruna?"

Blinking, Haruna pointed at the jar in the pot of boiling water. "Haruna is wondering why you placed the jar into the pot, Rose-Chan. It's a bit odd..."

A smile on her face, Rose shook her head. "I am simply sealing the jar, Haruna. The heat of the water will make sure that there's no bacteria in the seal as it causes the seal to tighten and become air tight." Then she pointed to a group of shelves. "Then I shall place them over there to cool."

When she looked, Haruna felt her eyebrows raise as she noticed several other jars there. Suddenly, there was a "Ting" that came from one that made her jerk a bit. "Rose-Chan? What was that?"

Placing her finger to her chin, Rose glanced at the jars and giggled a bit. "It's just the jars cooling slowly, Haruna. Each of them are properly sealed though, I made sure of that! And by the morning we can have some with our breakfast."

For a moment, Haruna's eyes grew distant as she had the image of herself holding out a scone that had black currant jam on it. Then Rose leaned forward with a blush on her face and took a bite of said scone. Voice soft, Haruna slowly nodded. "Haruna... is looking forward to it."

Rose just bit her lip as she had a similar image in her head, but it was of her feeding Haruna the scone. "As am I..." Shaking it off though, she leaned back some into the embrace and smiled up at Haruna. "Would you like to help me make some more, Haruna?"

Giving her waist a squeeze, Haruna nodded some. "Hai, Haruna would like to help. Now, what does Rose-Chan need Haruna to do?"

With a giggle, Rose gave a low hum. "Well, first, I need you to wash your hands before cutting some lemons for me..."

Quickly giving Rose a kiss on the top of the head, Haruna nodded. "Haruna will do that right now." Needless to say, after they were done, Rose had Haruna sit in a chair before sitting herself in the Battleship's lap.

Something that Haruna didn't mind in the least as they just cuddled with each other as they listened to the cooling of the jars.
_____________________________________________________________

Entering the Sub Pens, Harry walked past the docks with bags of groceries hanging from his hands. Then he passed through the door to the main living area as he glanced around. "Hello? Taigei-Chan? Anyone?"
Turning as he heard footsteps, Harry found himself watching as Imuya walked into view with a confused expression on her face. "Harry-Chan? What are you doing here?"

Bemused, Harry held up the bags. "Taigei-Chan ordered some groceries for me to deliver." His smile becoming a small frown, he looked around. "Is she here?"

However, Imuya only shook her head with a sigh. "No, Taigei-Nee-Chan is out practicing some manuvures with the Shimushu sisters." Shaking it off, she gave Harry a smile before grabbing an envelope. "But she did say that if her groceries were delivered to pay with this."

A blush on his cheeks, Harry took it. "Um, thanks, Imuya-Chan. Just give me a moment and I'll put these away."

Shaking her head, Imuya grabbed some of the bags and walked over to the fridge. "Here, let me give you a hand, Harry-Chan. Between the two of us we'll get it done quicker."

While they worked together though, Harry frowned and kept glancing at Imuya who was rolling her shoulders or neck. Finally, he was unable to help himself and cleared his throat. "Imuya-Chan?"

Only blinking, the Submarine turned to him as they placed the last of the groceries into the fridge. "Yes, Harry-Chan?"

Frowning, Harry furrowed his eyebrows. "Is something wrong? Because, um..."

Suddenly pausing as she was rolling her shoulders, Imuya sighed and shrugged. "I guess that I must have slept wrong or something," Grimacing, she rolled her neck. "As much as I love how I have a human body now, there are times when I would rather be a ship. At least then I wouldn't have a... well, pain in the neck. It'll go away though."

Eyebrows furrowing, Harry considered this. Then he just shrugged and grabbed Imuya's hand and began to pull her over towards a chair. "Come over here and I'll help it go away."

Unnoticed by Harry, there was a blush in Imuya's face as he was pulled to the chair. But all she did though was squeeze Harry's hand a bit. "I don't know how, Harry-Chan. I mean, it'll just go away on it's own after all."

With a frown on his face, Harry shook his head and snorted. "Haven't you ever had a neck rub, Imuya-Chan?" However when she shook her head, his eyes widened. "Really?"

Scratchig her cheek, she gave a weak chuckle. "Um, no? I've... seen people giving them, but never gotten one myself. Don't really see what the big deal with them is anyways."

As he narrowed his eyes, rubbed his hands together to warm them up. "Well, hopefully you like the ones that I give. Mum seems to when she comes home from a long day at work."

Confused about that, Imuya was about to ask when she felt Harry place his fingers on her skin before they began to rub in gentle circles. Stiffening for a moment, the Submarine soon relaxed in the chair. "O-oh wow... th-that's...' Eyes closing, she ignored how her cheeks suddenly felt hot. 'Why is that making my conning tower feel so good...?' A hiss escaping her as Harry worked at a particular knot, Imuya cracked her eyes open slightly. "I-I guess that these are b-better then I thought, Harry-Chan."

Only smiling, Harry chuckled a bit. "Guess so." Hearing a rumbling sound, the black haired boy frowned and then looked down at Imuya before blinkng. "Um, Imuya-Chan? Are you... purring?"

Now knowing that her cheeks were likely as red as her hair, Imuya coughed. "No, you're just imagining things, Harry-Chan." Wanting to change the subject, Imuya let out a sigh. "So, um, who else have you done these for?"

Just shrugging, Harry thought it over. "Several shipgirls." Then his expression brightened. "I know that Iku-Chan and Hachi-Chan like them for some reason."

While she nodded, internally Imuya made a note in her logbook. 'Iku, Hachi, I am going to kill you both for not telling me about this before now!' As Harry worked at another spot though, she sighed. 'But later, right now I'm just going to enjoy this...'

By the time Harry was done, Imuya was a happy puddle of Submarine. Her relaxation ended far too soon for her liking though as she suddenly heard Harry speak up. "RO-Chan! Shioi-Chan!"

Very slowly, Imuya turned her head with wide eyes to see Shioi looking at her in confusion. Shioi wasn't the issue though. That went to the Subgirl who was behind her.

Mainly because the German shipgirl had one of the biggest grins that Imuya had ever seen on her while her eyes seemed to sparkle in glee. Then she slowly waggled her eyebrows up and down which caused Imuya's cheeks to feel like they were on fire. '... I wonder if I can distract her by pointing her at Iku-Chan and Hachi-Chan...'

Somehow, she doubted it would work very well.

 

[darthcourt10]

Harry Leferts

There was an extremely amused expression on Warspite's face as she walked through the base with Ron by her side. In one hand, there was the cane that said red haired boy had made for her. For a moment, Warspite glanced at the cane, still amazed at how well it helped her, before shaking it off as Ron huffed. "Oh, come now, Ronald. You're not that angry about it."

A slight glare on his face, Ron let out an explosive sigh. "Yes, I am. You wouldn't take me to any chess tournaments unless I did all my homework. Do you have any idea how much there was! Snape just piled it all on, I know he did."

If anything though, that caused Warspite to become more amused. "And yet, it worked and now you have the rest of the summer free. Also no last minute rushing to get it all done." Reaching over, she placed an arm over his shoulder and pulled him into a small hug. "Isn't that wonderful?"

When he only grumbled, she had to bite her lip to keep from giggling. Just as she was about to continue though, there was the sound of a door slamming before someone screamed. "WELL, BLOODY FUCK YOU TOO!"

Looking up, Warspite only sighed at the sight of a brown haired girl stomping off. She was wearing what looked like a female Royal Navy uniform, except the coat was replaced by a sweater. "Oh, Hawke..."

Confused, Ron looked between the shipgirl as she passed them by, tears at the corners of her eyes and then disappeared around a corner. "Um... What just happened here?"

Only sighing, Warspite gestured at a nearby bench where Ron sat down. With a sigh of relief, the Battleship sat down beside him and seemed deep in thought. "That was HMS Hawke, Ronald. She's a Minotaur class Light Cruiser and... she has some problems with the Admiralty."

Slowly raising an eyebrow, Ron blinked in confusion. "Doesn't a lot of shipgirls? I mean... I know that you do..."

Instead of being insulted, Warspite only gave a chuckle. "That might be putting it a bit mildly, Ronald. However, for most of us, we make due. And we did extract some promises from the Royal Navy and Her Majesty's Government. That said... for some of us, it's much harder due to what happened to us."

Frowning, Ron glanced in the direction that Hawke had left in. "Okay, and Hawke is one of those I guess?" When Warspite nodded, he scratched his head. "Why her?"

Lips twitching, Warspite hummed. "Why is she having such trouble?" After Ron nodded, she continued. "She has trust issues involving the Royal Navy due to her past. You see, Ronald, Hawke just missed the War. Almost complete in her slipway and they had her boilers ready to be installed with all her guns nearly done."

Ron slowly furrowed his eyebrows at that. "So what happened?"

Sighing, Warspite looked up towards the sky. "The Royal Navy, despite how close she was to completion, scrapped her in place. She was so close and so little effort was required to complete her, yet they scrapped her. That left a deep mark on her that she carries with her."

Once more glancing in the direction that she had left in, Ron coughed. "So, uh, why did she return then?"

For several moments, Warspite was silent before she spoke up. "Because her sisters asked her too. Ontario, who was originally her oldest sister was at the ceremony where she was summoned. But being a Light Cruiser and Escort Duties being more important right now then offense, I'm afraid that she has... become quite annoyed. A number of us understand, but it still causes some issues."

There was a frown on Ron's face as he considered this and then nodded. "Huh..."

Unnoticed by him, Warspite had a thoughtful look on her face as a thought struck her. 'I wonder... Perhaps a change of scenary might help. Especially if it's important...' Tilting her head back, she looked up at the fluffy white clouds above. 'Perhaps a transfer to another theatre of the war, though this must be handled carefully.' Quickly shaking it off, she stood up and pulled Ron to his feet. "Now then, enough of such topics, I do believe that our car is waiting to take us to your tournament."

Grinning, Ron nodded. "Yeah, they won't be expecting for me to return after being gone for nearly a year."

All Warspite did was chuckle some as she placed a hand on his shoulder. "No, I do not believe that they will, Ronald. I don't believe that they will..."
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Reaching the docks with a backpack filled with various items that he needed, Harry waved as he caught sight of Hibiki and the rest of DesDiv6 there. "Hibiki-Chan! Inazuma-Chan! Ikazuchi-Chan! Akatsuki-Chan! Tenryuu-Oba! Tatsuta-Oba!"

All four Destroyers turned and began to run towards Harry and, upon reaching him, practically buried him under them as they laughed. Meanwhile, behind him Nagato shook her head in amusement. 'This bunch at times.'

Once they got off him, Inazuma grinned at Harry as he got back up. "Ready for your trip, Harry-Chan? You're going to love it, Nanodesu!"

Just nodding, Harry glanced around and blinked a bit. "Yeah, I can't wait to see Kure... though, um... How am I getting there? I know that you told me to come down to the docks, but there's nothing here?"

Nearly as one, the rest of the Destroyers of DesDiv6 turned to Hibiki who had some redness in her cheeks as Ikazuchi snickered. "Oh yes, how about you tell him how we're getting him to Kure, Hibiki-Chan." A moment later though, she winced as Inazuma elbowed her. "What?"

Sighing, Inazuma facepalmed and shook her head. "Aki-Chan..."

Ikazuchi only belinked at her twin with a confused expression on her face, thus missing the thankful look that Hibiki gave to Inazuma. "What?"

Yet again shaking her head, Inazuma turned to Harry and gave him a smile. "Anyways, Hibiki-Chan has something to show you, Harry-Chan! It's super awesome, Nanodesu! I know that you'll love it, Nanodesu!"

More then a little confused, Harry only nodded. "um, okay..." He then turned to Hibiki who seemed nervous for some odd reason. "Hibiki-Chan? Is something wrong?"

For a moment, Hibiki looked like she wasn't going to say anything, but then took a deep breath and let it out. "Nyet, it's just that I wanted to show you something and... I am unsure what you might think of it. I had it all planned out and now..."

Only raising an eyebrow, Harry hugged her. "I'm sure that no matter what, I'll think that it's awesome. Because you're pretty awesome yourself, Hibiki-Chan."

Eyes widening, Hibiki slowly smiled and brought her arms up to return the hug. "Da, thank you, Harry-Chan." Pulling away, she just kept smiling before nodding. "Just stay right there, Harry-Chan." When he nodded, Hibiki leapt off the dock and onto the water's surface. Giving Harry a final look, she closed her own eyes and concentreated. 'Just watch me, Harry-Chan.'

Up on the dock, Harry blinked as he watched her just stand there. Then he noticed the ripples spreading out from her feet and how her hair began to move in a unseen breeze. "Um... what's going on?"

Beside him, Akatsuki smiled a bit. "Hibiki-Chan is being a real lady, Harry-Chan."

Glancing at her and then back at Hibiki, Harry frowned as he realized that she was glowing a bit. "Um, is she going to power up?" His eyes then widened a bit. "Is she going to become the Legendary Super Hibiki?"

There was silence for several moments before Tenryuu let out a small snort. Tatsuta meanwhile tilted her head to the side as she mumbled to herself in confusion. "Legendary Super Hibiki...?"

Nagato pinched her nose and sighed. 'This isn't a Shonen series, Harry...'

Placing her hands behind her head, Ikazuchi chuckled at the image of Hibiki surrounded by an aura as she screamed to the heavens in her head. "Nah, Hibiki-Chan isn't going Super Destroyer mode, Harry-Chan. Nope! Our Hibiki is evolving."

Even as Tenryuu began to shake, Harry frowned. "Wait, evolving? Hibiki-Chan?"

One finger raised, Ikazuchi closed her eyes and nodded. "Yup! Hibiki-Chan is undergoing her Mega Evolution!"

Face held in her hands, Inazuma shook her head even as Tenryuu turned away and began to snort and choke pounding one hand. Sighing, the Destroyer held back a groan. "Hibiki-Chan isn't a Pokémon, Nee-Chan..."

All Tenryuu did was start to make an odd wheezing sound even as she pounded one fist against Tatsuta's shoulder. By this time, Tatsuta was just completely lost as to what was going on. Meanwhile, Hibiki tried her best to ignore the conversation, despite the images it put in her head of Harry throwing a ball while shouting "Hibiki-Chan! I choose you!" with her coming out of it.

Quickly shaking that image away, she continued to concentrate as she felt the water froth around her and begin to glow. 'Almost there... almost there...'

On the dock, Harry's eyes widened some as Hibiki suddenly shot into the air on top of a bulge of water. Moments later, said water flowed away to reveal a familiar looking WWII Destroyer underneath Hibiki's feet. "Wow... I... Is that Hibiki-Chan's hull?"

Her own eyebrows raising, Nagato nodded as the last of the water slid easily from the deck of the warship. "I have to admit, rather impressive."

Just nodding, Harry watched as ropes snaked away from the Destroyer and then tied themselves to the dock. "Yeah... this is beyond awesome." Noticing the gangplank slide out from the ship and to the surface of the dock, Harry rushed over to see Hibiki-Chan at the top of it standing. "This is so awesome, Hibiki-Chan!"

There was a pleased flush on Hibiki's face as she nodded. "Thank you, Harry-Chan. It's something that I've been working at for a while." With one hand, she tilted the brim of her hat a bit before softly smiling. "I'll be transporting you to at least Kure, Harry-Chan."

Jaw dropping, Harry boggled at her. "R-really?" When she nodded, he grinned. "Cool!"

Moments later, he stepped onto the gangplank only to stop. Realizing that, Hibiki frowned a little bit in confusion. "Is... something wrong, Harry-Chan?"

Shaking his head, Harry chuckled. "Forgot something, Hibiki-Chan." Just as she was about to ask, Harry brought his hand to his brow in a salute. "Permission to come on board, Hibiki-Chan?"

Frozen, Hibiki just stared at him for a few moments. Then she smiled a bit and returned the salute. "Permission granted, Harry-Chan. Come on board."

It took only a few seconds for Harry to reach the end of the gangplank and look around at the deck. Every so often, Harry could see what looked like transparent shadows walking around. Slowly twisting in place, he felt like his face would hurt a bit. "So bloody wicked..." Feeling a tap on his shoulder, Harry turned to see a smiling Hibiki there. "Hibiki-Chan?"

Even as she continued to smile, Hibiki pulled Harry into a hug. "Just to let you know, you have my permission to board me whenever you want, Harry-Chan. I don't mind in the least and you'll be safe inside my hull."

Hearing a choking sound, both Harry and Hibiki turned to see Ikazuchi working her mouth as Inazuma was bright red. Tenryuu meanwhile groaned as she facepalmed and muttered something that seemed to amuse Tatsuta to no end. Confused, Harry just tilted his head to the side and furrowed his eyebrows. "Poi?"

 

[darthcourt10]

Harry Leferts

Eventually, Hibiki only shook her head. 'They've gone weird again.' Turning back to Harry, she gave the black haired boy a small nod. "We'll be off in a few minutes, Harry-Chan. It'll take us several hours though to reach Kure at top speed."

Frowning, Harry tilted his head to the side as he did some math in his head. "About... Twelve hours to get to Kure, right, Hibiki-Chan?"

Part of Hibiki was, unknown to Harry, very happy that he had figured that out. It meant that he knew quite a bit about her which made her boilers run just a small bit hotter. "Around that amount of time, yes. Though if needed we can stop on the way at ports or islands." Both of them knew what she meant by that and so didn't comment. "We'll reach Kure after nightfall sometime."

Only nodding, Harry smiled as he put his hands behind his head. "So I'll get to see the stars from here on your deck?" Hibiki gave a nod which made him smile even wider. "Can't wait!" Moments later, he watched as with a wave of her hand, the gangplank came up and disappeared. With another wave, the ropes all unwound themselves from the dock and he could feel as her hull moved out into the harbour. "This is going to be so cool."

Slowly smiling, Hibiki stood next to him as the breeze washed over them as her sisters and Tenryuu leapt onto the water. "Da, I have been looking forward to it." Taking his hand in hers, she began to pull him to the bow. "Want one of the best places to watch?"

Harry's eyes sparkled as he let himself be pulled along. "Sure!" Moments later found the two of them standing side by side as Hibiki's hull slowly gathered speed. Every so often, they would wave at a surprised boater or fisherman, who would wave back. It didn't take long for Hibiki to reach the safety area and really put on the power, which made Harry reach up to hold onto his hat. "Wow..."

Meanwhile, Hibiki just watched him as he leaned over some to watch as her bow sliced through the waves. "I'm glad that you enjoyed it." A thought then occurred to her and she turned towards Harry with a slight tilt of her head. "Harry-Chan?"

Turning towards her, Harry blinked. "Yes, Hibiki-Chan? Is something wrong?"

However, she just shook her head. "Nyet. I was just wondering if you would like me to show you around my hull."

Eyes widening, Harry stared at her for a moment. "Really? We can do that?" As she nodded, he frowned in thought. "Um, just how close can we look?"

Shaking her head, Hibiki's smile grew just a touch. 'He doesn't want to bother me.' Clearing her throat, she shrugged. "You can examine as many things as close as you want, Harry-Chan. I can show you my hull inside and out."

A choking sound though caused them to turn to see Tenryuu tripping while Inazuma looked like she was about to catch fire. Ikazuchi though, despite being nearly as red as her twin, was laughing uproariously. All of which made Harry blink in utter confusion. "Um... what's wrong with them?"

Watching as a confused Nagato looked at her fellow mother, who was now facepalming, Hibiki shrugged. "I don't know..." As she turned, it looked like Tenryuu was recovering only for her to trip again as Hibiki began to drag Harry towards one of the hatchway. "First, I want to show you around inside my hull..."

Madly twitching, Inazuma groaned as Ikazuchi just kept laughing. 'Oh, Hibiki-Chan...'

The next few hours passed with Hibiki acting as a tour guide for Harry as she showed him through her hull. Shadows of people nodded at them as they passed or moved out of their way. However, Harry only nodded back or thanked them, more interested in what Hibiki was showing and telling him. One of his favorite parts was when they entered the bridge for Hibiki and Harry looked around in awe. "This... is beyond awesome."

Careful not to get in the way of any of the shadows, Harry took some steps and noticed the steering wheel. Spotting that, Hibiki gave him a slight smirk as she tapped him on the shoulder. When he looked at her, the Destroyer gestured at the steering wheel. "Would you like a try?"

For a moment, Harry stared at her and then at the wheel. Then he turned back to her and pointed at himself, which an amused Hibiki nodded at. "Are... are you sure?"

With a small giggle, Hibiki nodded. "Da, I am sure." She then placed her hand on his shoulder. "I trust you, Harry-Chan. You know this."

Still not quite believing it, Harry stepped towards the wheel with the shadow that was there moving to the side. Somehow, Harry knew that it was extremely amused by the whole thing. How he knew that, Harry didn't know and it also explained to him how to operate the wheel. It was a few moments later that Hibiki looked at him. "Um... how about we turn some to Port?"

Hibiki gave him a small smile. "Very well, let's turn to Port." She gestured at the radio man and, outside the windows, the other shipgirls moved. "You can do it now, Harry-Chan."

Nervous, though with a massive grin, Harry turned the wheel slowly towards Portside and watched as the ship turned in the same direction. "Wow..."

Both of them stood there for maybe an hour before Harry released the wheel to the shadow normally in charge of it. As they left the bridge, Hibiki noticed that Harry was yawning and raised an eyebrow. "Tired, Harry-Chan?"

There was a blush on Harry's face as he gave a sheepish nod. "Sorry, Hibiki-Chan. Um, had some issues with sleeping last night and, well... I'm kind of worn out." He then moved his foot as if to scuff it against the decking, only to stop at the last moment. "Sorry."

With a chuckle, the Destroyer shook her head. "You have nothing to be sorry about, Harry-Chan." She then looked around for a moment before nodding. "Come, I know where you can go."

Confused, though interested, Harry followed Hibiki as she lead him through corridors until they reached one room that had a closed door. It took Harry a moment, but he recognized it. "Hibiki-Chan... isn't this the Captain's Quarters!?"

Humming, Hibiki gently opened the door. "Da, this is the cabin for my Captain, Harry-Chan." Inside, there was a desk, a bed and other miscellenous items. "You can come and have a nap here."

Mouth working for a few moments, Harry turned to her. However, he could see that she was completely and utterly serious about what she was saying. "Really? You're sure, Hibiki-Chan?" When she nodded, he slowly walked inside and looked around. "Thank you..."

As she closed the door behind them, Hibiki was surprised as Harry hugged her from behind. Moments later, she turned and hugged him back. When he yawned again though, she let out a soft chuckle and pushed him towards the bed. "Now, you have a nice, nap, Harry-Chan. I shall make sure that nothing disturbs you."

Taking off his shoes, Harry stretched a bit and then did as she said and laid down on the bed. Feeling completely safe, he looked up at Hibiki who took a seat at the desk to watch him. "Hibiki-Chan... can I ask you something?"

Only nodding, Hibiki tilted her head to the side. "Of course you can, Harry-Chan. You know that."

What he said next though caught her completely and utterly off guard. "If I'm travelling in your hull... Does that make me part of your crew?" Sucking in a breath at the question and her eyes widening, Hibiki froze, which caused Harry to wince. "Sorry, I know that-"

Her voice nearly a whisper, Hibiki's words nonetheless could easily be heard by the nearly twelve year old boy. "Would... would you like to be part of my crew, Harry-Chan? Really?"

Somewhat confused, Harry nodded. "Well, yeah! I'd love to be part of your crew, Hibiki-Chan. That would actually be pretty awesome."

Eyes wet, Hibiki gave him an odd smile, one that he had never seen before. "I would like to have you as part of my crew as well, Harry-Chan. And not just on this voyage..." Opening a drawer, she pulled out a book and sat down beside Harry before opening it. Inside, Harry could see names written down as she flipped though the pages. Some were in kanji which slowly turned to Russian until they came to a blank page. "Here we go."

Watching, Harry observed Hibiki gently write down his own name, which glowed for a moment. "So... that's it?"

Quiet for a moment, Hibiki closed the book and held it to her chest. Somehow, Harry had never seen her so happy. "Hai, that's it. You are now listed as being a member of my crew, Harry-Chan." She didn't say the rest and, several minutes later, just ran her hands through Harry's hair as she stared between him and his name. 'Hopefully, you'll always be here, Harry-Chan... even if something happens to you...'

 

[darthcourt10]

Harry Leferts

As they left the small island behind them, Harry gave a sheepish grin to a bemused Hibiki. "Sorry about needing to stop there, Hibiki-Chan."

If anything though, that amused Hibiki more as she shook her head. "It's okay, Harry-Chan. We've been at sea for a few hours now."

Just smiling back at her, Harry shrugged before looking up at the stars above as him and Hibiki sat against one of her turrets. "It's so beautiful..." A glance off to the side showed the Moon rising above the water, nice and large. Then Harry looked to the side of the ship where he could see a blue glow rippling out before turning to Hibiki who was watching him, though he noted that her silver hair seemed to glow in the moonlight. "Really pretty, you know?"

Blushing some, Hibiki pulled the brim of her cap down some before nodding, "Da, it is." Her own head tilting back, she smiled some. "Out here on the sea, the stars above and the glow below... it's hard not to enjoy it." Turning to Harry, Hibiki gave him a smile. "Especially with friends."

That got her a smile back from Harry before he nodded. "Yeah." Suddenly, he stiffened and grabbed his backpack and began to dig into it. "I almost forgot!" Somewhat confused, Hibiki watched as Harry pulled out various items from inside. The thermos was obviously tea. Harry glanced at her as he pulled out some containers which had Ofuda on them with a small, sheepish smile. "Um... Hibiki-Chan? Do you have a basket and some rope? Or fishing line and a hook?"

Only tilting her head to the side, Hibiki nodded. "Da, I have some." Mentally giving the order, Hibiki could feel one of her Fairies become rather bemused. "What do you have there, Harry-Chan?"

Glancing at her, Harry grinned a little bit. "Dinner!" He then frowned some as he looked it over. "Hopefully it's enough until we get to Kure."

Eyes widened a bit, Hibiki watched as he opened one of the containers, the Ofuda flashing for a moment. But next thing she knew there was steam coming out of it to reveal stirfry there. 'W-what? How did he...?'

Not having noticed, Harry handed the container to her with some chopsticks. "Here, you can have this one, Hibiki-Chan. I got some rice balls too."

Still staring at the hot food, Hibiki looked up at him and then back at the food. Repeating it, she blinked. "Harry-Chan... How is this still hot?"

Humming, Harry gave her a glance before shrugging. "It's an old trick that Junyou-Oba taught me. Apparently some Onmyouji back during the Sengoku Jidai got tired of cold food and figured out how to use magic to keep it warm and safe to eat. She mostly uses it to keep her alcohol cold though."

Even as she rolled her eyes at what Junyou used it for, Hibiki nodded. "I see..." After a few seconds though, she furrowed her eyebrows. "Wouldn't you get in trouble though? You're not allowed to use magic outside of school after all."

Much to her surprise though, Harry gave a laugh. "Actually, they can't detect Omyoudo. The symbols are what casts the magic while I might provide a bit of power to kick it off. Kind of like..." Clinching his hand as if to grab a concept, he finally shrugged. "Kind of jumpstarting a battery is how Haru-San said it was like. Once jumpstarted, the Ofuda pulls in the needed magic from it's surroundings."

It took a few moments for Hibiki to consider that before she noticed that one of the shadows that populated her hull had arrived with a basket and a rope that had a hook at the end of it. 'That's... huh, useful.'

At the same time, Harry unscrewed the top of his thermos and then poured some tea into two cups, one of which he handed to Hibiki. Screwing the cap back on, he took the basket and the rope from the shadow and bowed. "Thank you."

Even though he didn't actually "Hear" it, Harry could somehow hear it in his head as the shadow bowed back. Somehow, he knew that it said 'You're welcome' before it turned back and went back into Hibiki's hull. Watching as Harry placed containers and the thermos as well as cups into it, Hibiki blinked. "What are you doing, Harry-Chan?"

Giving her a small grin, Harry chuckled a bit. "Well... I thought that your Mum and sisters could use something to eat as well."

Unknown to Harry, that caused some warmth to bubble up inside of Hibiki. "Da, you're right of course. They would like something to eat."

Moments later, Harry got up and then walked to the side before he waved to Tenryuu. "TENRYUU-OBA! CAN YOU COME HERE FOR A MOMENT?!"

Tenryuu rolled her eyes as she pulled up alongside Hibiki's hull, her wake not bothering the Light Cruiser in the least. "Sure thing, Kiddo. What do you and Hibiki-Chan need?"

Hooking the basket to the rope, Harry began to lower it down to her. "Here, I brought some dinner for us." As the surprised shipgirl took the basket, Harry smiled a bit. "Just pull off the tops and Ofuda and they'll be as hot as if they just came off the stove."

With her eye blinking in surprise, Tenryuu did a quick look over and then gave him a thumbs up as she tucked the basket under one arm. "Will do, Harry-Chan. And thanks, we could use something to fill our stomachs."

Just watching as she pulled away and called for the rest of DesDiv6 to come over for some food, Harry nodded. That done, he soon rejoined Hibiki by the turret though he blinked at the sight of a blanket spread out. "Where did that come from?"

Looking up, Hibiki gave him a small smile though she was thankful that the darkness hid the small blush on her cheeks. "It's getting somewhat cold to sit on the deck."

Head tilting to the side, Harry blinked. "Poi?" Then he scratched his head before shrugging. "I don't know, your deck is rather warm. Really nice actually." Unseen by him, the blush on Hibiki's face deepened, though she frowned as a breeze that drifted past made him shiver. "Though it is getting, um, a bit nippy out."

Still frowning, Hibiki glanced to the side. "We could go inside if you're getting cold, Harry-Chan. It's much warmer inside my hull."

Harry only shook his head before sitting down next to her. "Nah, that's okay." He then gave her a smile which made her boilers sputter for a moment. "Besides, I want to sit out here under the stars with you for a bit."

Now sure that if he looked closely, he could see her blush, Hibiki found herself not caring all too much. Moving a bit until she was pressed against him, she smiled as he blinked. "Da, I would like that too." Her head tilting a bit, she nodded. "Then I shall keep you warm."

For the next few minutes, the two of them just enjoyed being next to each other as they ate. All too soon though, they were done their small meal and Harry gave a small sigh before he looked towards her. "Hey, Hibiki-Chan?" Getting a hum, he continued. "It's been a few years since I've been to Kure... anything different?"

Thinking it over, Hibiki slowly nodded. "Da, they've gotten a few new shipgirls now. Well, besides Ushio."

With a blink, Harry turned towards her. "Really? I know that they have Zuikaku-Oba and Shoukaku-Oba, as well as some others, but..."

Lips twitching, Hibiki gave him a nod. "They also have CarDiv2 there as well, Harry-Chan."

Scratching his cheek, Harry nodded but gave a weak chuckle. "I've never, um, met them so... You know."

Just nodding, Hibiki took a deep breath before letting it out. "Well, they've summoned a few others. Katsuragi-San is one, but they also managed to summon Ise-San and Hyuuga-San as well. Though, um, those two are a bit odd." At Harry's look, she shrugged. "They're rather obsessed with Aviation Battleships and go on about it being the 'Age of Aviation Battleships'."

Confused, Harry frowned as he considered this before shrugging. 'Okay...?' Shaking it off, he then looked up at the stars. "Guess that's pretty good. Musashi-Oba was supposed to be stationed there, but she's been banned from the base after her first visit."

That caused Hibiki to blink in confusion and stare at him. "I did hear about that, but not why. You haven't heard why...?"

Shrugging, Harry snorted. "I don't know too much, but I did hear something about her flooding a base or something for the second time. Hence them not wanting her there... Or that's what I overheard from Yamato-Oba once."

Much to his confusion, the Destroyer next to him began to laugh, and soon enough he joined her though he wasn't sure why they were laughing. Eventually though they calmed down and sighed. Relaxing, Hibiki simply leaned against Harry as they continued to watch the Moon rise, it's light reflected in the surface of the ocean as streams of ghostly blue light danced away from Hibiki's hull in her wake. She did jump a bit as Harry placed his arm around her waist before snuggling a bit more into it.

It really was a beautiful night out on the sea.

 

[darthcourt10]

Harry Leferts

Inside the kitchen of Natsumi's and Haru's home, the only real sound that could be heard was the turning of pages and the scratching of pens against paper. Inside the kitchen, Natsumi frowned as she looked at the papers in front of her and the reference book beside. A glance at Shiromizu, in her half-human form, showed the serpent doing much the same thing. Finally, Natsumi leaned back and sighed before turning to her aunt. "Oba-Chan? Can I ask you something?"

Humming, Haru sipped her tea before nodding. "Of course you can, Natsumi-Chan. You should know that by now since you'll never learn if you don't ask."

As she furrowed her eyebrows, Natsumi let out a sigh. "Well... It's been bugging me for a bit about something you said." Getting a motion to continue, the young kitsune did. "When Harry-Chan received his letter to go to Hogwarts, you told Nagato-San that it was a good idea and that 'European magic is flexible'. Does that mean that it's better then Onmyoudo?"

For moment, Haru paused before she set down her tea. "Now that, Natsumi-Chan, is a very good question. But as a short answer, no, it's not better then Onmyoudo. Different, yes. Better though? No."

Now leaning against her hand, Shiromizu frowned. "Okay... And the long answer?"

Smiling some, Haru gave a chuckle. "Well, the long answer is that to look at how they function. The European system is something of a Jack of All Trades I believe the term is. It is flexible and has a wide range within it, hence why it is so common. But, this comes at a cost as it is a master of no magic. For comparison, African Magic, as taught at their main school, is very good at transformation magics. In fact, most of those who learn it can easily perform the Animagus process which is much harder in the European system. However, it's not nearly as expansive as the European one."

Eyes wide, Natsumi stared at her for a moment before she shook it off. "What about Onmyoudo then?"

Lips turning up a bit more, Haru considered it before nodding. "Onmyoudo can best be described as using rules and laws to perform various feats. Ofuda, for example, use the writing to guide the magic. It has to be perfect or close to in order for the spell to work. Shikinami are another example as one needs to be extremely exact when creating one or else it might go beserk. However, one can also call upon the Kami and others to help cast magic through ritual and law. In a way, it's like being a lawyer where instead of the legal system, it's magic."

Thoughtful, Shiromizu blinked and then tapped her chin. "So... it's rather rigid then? But inside that rigedity, one can do a lot?"

Head tilting from side to side, Haru hummed. "Not quite how I would put it, but close enough, I suppose for this conversation and your level at the moment. There's a reason why divination is far more effective with Onmyoudo then, say, with European magic which is nortoious for how vague it can be. Alchemy and potions are also well known parts as both operate on rules."

Shiromizu frowned a bit and then crossed her arms. "So... which is more powerful then?"

Only laughing lightly, Haru shook her head. "In all honesty, Shiromizu, it is not really a question of power. Each magical system has it's strengths and weaknesses. In the European one, you can cast a spell that could create a raging firestorm able to destroy towns. Alternatively, in the most common South American one, you can bring down a curse upon a family that would last for generations. Both of these are 'Powerful' in the sense of the term. However, the systems that they come from are different and focus on different things."

Leaning forward, Natsumi nodded as her tail wagged behind her. "Okay, but what about Onmyoudo?"

For a moment, Haru paused and considered the question. "There are... certain magic that is extremely powerful. But while they are highly sought after, they're also jealously guarded by those who know them. And so, many might consider them myths or legends. However, they're difficult because said methods rely heavily on knowing the rules and laws that one must play with and are not to be undertaken lightly."

Part of the elder kitsune was extremely amused as both Natsumi and Shiromizu leaned even further forward, the younger fox's tail smacking against the floor. However, she didn't say anymore as she just sipped her tea. Finally, Natsumi was unable to take it anymore and let out an explosive, annoyed sigh. "Like what, Oba-Chan?"

Gently placing her cup back onto the table, Haru tented her hands and placed her chin on top of them as she regarded her niece and Shiromizu. "Well... one of them is Taizen Fukun no Sai."

Several seconds passed before Shiromizu gulped and looked around nervously. "Taizen, as in..."

Very slowly, Haru nodded. "King Taizen of the Underworld, yes." Becoming serious, Haru narrowed her eyes slightly. "There's no magical words as such spoken during it. One must make offerings of such things as gold, silver and similarly expensive items, even up to human life. Though you can make subsitutes in the form of paper dolls during the ritual for simplicity's sake, afterwards you must give what is offered or taken. You then write up and read a formal letter of request to the Judges of the Underworld. Not just King Taizen, but others including King Emma. Said letter must detail very precisely what is being offered, the vitues of the supplicants, and the exact divine intervention needed. Messing up any or not being detailed enough can bring down devestating consequences."

Face pale, Natsumi swallowed. "Y-yeah, I can see why one would need to be very careful with what they're saying. That's... rather frightening, Oba-Chan."

Haru simply nodded. "It is, hence why it is not taken lightly. Even the Kami themselves would not use it without just cause. But... No one can deny that it is very powerful. In the ritual, you are asking the Judges of the Underworld themselves for intervention. It can lengthen lifespans, save a person from death... and, it is said that it can even bring back the deceased from beyond. Abe no Seimei himself supposedly used it to return his father to life after he was murdered."

Utter silence met her as both younger beings stared at her. It was Shiromizu who eventually spoke up. "Bring back... the dead? B-but I thought that such a thing was impossible..."

Slowly, Haru shook her head. "Impossible? One would think so and all evidence would point to such. But that is what is told and... having seen some things in my life, I have my doubts that it cannot be done. That said, one would need to find the rare Onmyouji who can perform such a feat and they do not advertise that fact for obvious reasons."

After some thought though, Natsumi's ears perked up. "Wait, Oba-Chan? Doesn't what you describe sound a lot like how shipgirls are summoned?"

Unable to help herself, Haru grinned proudly. "Caught that, did you?" Leaning back some, she shook her head and chuckled. "They do seem to share an astounding amount of simularities, don't they? They both involve the afterlife, sacrifices for just attention, a request normally formal, and divine intervention based on said request. I have never found out where the ritual came from and often wondered if it's a derivative... Perhaps one day I'll satisfy my curiosity, but that can wait."

Even though she was still curious, Natsumi only nodded. By the time that their 'Lesson' was done a few hours later, Natsumi was tired and felt her head about to explode as she digested all the information passed on. 'Oba-Chan certainly knows a lot of things... Must be because she's old.' Slipping into her futon, she glanced at the clock as she yawned. "I wonder if Harry-Chan is in Kure yet?" Closing her eyes, Natsumi muttered as she snuggled into her futon. "You better take care of him, Hibiki-Chan..."

With that, she slipped into her sleep and dreams. At least one of which involved herself and a certain green eyed boy...

 

[darthcourt10]

RCNAnon

I wrote a thing like I said I would, this one for Ron and Warspite. Comments and critique are very welcome.

-----

Ron Weasley burst into Warspite's room with an energy normally only seen when his older twin brothers were running from Percy's wrath, causing the normally calm battleship to jump from shock even before he grabbed her by the shoulders and almost managed to head butt her on accident.

"Warspite!" he said with a volume and enthusiasm entirely unwarranted by how close they were, "We can do it! I can get inside of you!"

Warspite found herself fighting back a blush, her mind locking up momentarily at the boy's brazen declaration, even his words blurring out as she sought to control herself. While he was young, he was getting closer to puberty every day and she wouldn't put it past his brothers to try and trick him into saying something inappropriate for a good laugh. Yes, that was it, it was simply a bad joke and they would clear it up and then not speak of it again until later, much later.

Coming back into the world Warspite only heard the tail end of what Ron had been saying.

"…and it might be a little messy but we can do it, I know we can!"

"Ronald," she forced herself to say, even as pale red colored her cheeks, "Please calm down and start from the beginning on… whatever it is that you're trying to tell me."

Ron finally managed to get a hold of himself as Warspite called him Ronald. It wasn't often she did so and with the tone of voice she used he realized that he'd been acting a bit wild… as well as being much too close to her for casual conversation.

"Sorry," he said, flushing red from embarrassment, letting his hands drop from her shoulders and taking two steps back, "I got a little excited with what Harry just told me."

"Harry?" Warspite asked, "What did Harry tell you?" Warspite's mind raced through possibilities as she thought of Ron's close friend. Harry was just as young as he was, so what her initial thoughts had been were clearly wrong, but that left even more questions than answers.

"Well you know Harry and I write each other most of the time, but this time he called me on the telephone because of the problems we've been having. You know where he called me from?"

"No, but I assume it was from Japan."

"Yes, but from Kure. He got there by riding on Hibiki! On her actual hull!"

Warspite again froze, though this time in shock instead of embarrassment.

"He did what?"

"Hibiki managed to summon her real hull… somehow I don't know he didn't really explain that part. But she did! He even says they have pictures he'll let me see when we get back to school."

"I see," said Warspite, "But what does this have to do with what you were yelling about earlier?"

"Well," said Ron, taking a deep breath, "I figure that if Hibiki can do it you probably can too. Even if it takes time you can talk to her and figure it out, do whatever it is you need to do. Then once you can do it, I can start."

"Start what Ron?" Warspite asked, her mind not quite yet grasping what he had in mind.

"Fixing you," he said, his young voice dead serious in a manner unbefitting of his still rather tender age, "I can get inside your hull and fix everything. Not just as a temporary treatment but good as new, better even. No more plug, no more steering issues, no more tiredness on long patrols. You wouldn't even need my walking stick anymore if you didn't want, you could just go for as long as you wanted."

Warspite's eyes widened at Ron's proclamation, the way he spoke about fixing her. He'd already declared his desire to help her and proved it a hundred times over despite his age. Yet the way he said this was with the voice of someone who had found a light at the end of the tunnel they had never expected to see. Even with all the repair shipgirls trying their best they'd never managed to fix her lingering issues and Ron's magic only mitigated her issues though they did so wonderfully. If it worked…

"That… that's wonderful Ron," she said, her voice still slightly hesitant. "But we don't know if it's even possible for me to do it and if such a thing would even work in the first place." She wasn't doubting his idea, not a bit, but she didn't want him to get his hopes up over what could possibly be a wild goose chase.

"I know," he said, his head dropping a bit, "Harry did mention Hibiki worked on it for a long time so I know it's a long shot. If you try though and you can do it, if you can summon your hull I know I can fix you. Even if I have to break that concrete out of you with a hand chisel and figure out how to work a welder so I can get it fixed I'll do it, I swear I will."

Warspite's heart melted at that. She should have known better. Ron had always taken her treatment seriously, more seriously than even she did at times. He'd already thought it over, already decided that he could wait until she could summon her hull, if she could. He wouldn't get down if it proved impossible, he'd simply move onto the next plan and the next one after that. His determination was nothing short of amazing for anyone, much less a boy his age.

"I know you will Ron," she said as she gestured him forward for a hug, which he nodded to and came close again, wrapping his arms around her as she leaned forward for her part, "I know you will, you've always done your best for me."

"You deserve it," he said over her shoulder, "after everything you've done for me."

Warspite was glad that Ron couldn't see her face, nor feel the way her heart started beating faster. While it was true that they'd both helped each other out, she couldn't reconcile teaching Ron playing chess with him fixing damage that had lasted thirty years and two world wars. There was so much more involved than just that, there was no way to truly quantify what friends did after all but if Ron succeeded… well she'd think about that later.

Pulling back from the hug Warspite gave Ron a smile and he gave her a bit of a blush.

"Well I suppose if we're to get started I'll need to talk to Hibiki then won't I?" she said.

"Yeah," he said with a nod, "Harry said it wouldn't be a problem if you talked with her on the phone or used the computer."

"I didn't think it would," she said with a grin, "I was wondering if he'd mentioned when they'd be back from Kure so I could."

"I uh… I didn't ask," admitted Ron, "But he said he'd be on base for a few days… so I'll go find out. Be right back!"

Warspite watched with a bemused shake of her head as Ron darted out of her room once more, exuberance beating out caution as he ran up the hall towards the base phone exchange.

As the sound of his feet pounding against the floor disappeared, she let her cheek come to rest against her hand, her mind wandering. She knew about Hibiki's history, how long her hull had lasted. She'd been around quite a long time as well but not as close to the present as the young DD had been. Still if Ron was right…

Her musings were broken by a knock on her door, a grinning Queen Elizabeth standing in the frame.

"Can I help you?" asked Warspite.

"Yeah," said QE with a tone that let Warspite know she was in a teasing mood, "What was that I heard about a young man getting inside you?"

Warspite flushed scarlet, eyes going wide even as QE started cackling. She was never going to live this down.

 

[darthcourt10]

Tristar

Dudley was not a happy camper, which in of itself had become his normal state of being, that of course might explain why he was tossing rocks into the culvert. It all started with the arrest of his parents and him getting shipped to his aunt. Who in there right mind thought it would be a good idea for him to live with his Aunt and her dogs needed to be line up on the wall when the revolution came then shot. Okay sure it wasn't so bad at first, mostly because he'd been somewhat confused why his parents had been arrested. Even after it had been explained to him he still didn't understand it and honestly he wanted to blame the boy under the stairs. Of course that initial confusion had quickly been over run by his aunts over baring nature and need to shape him into a proper man, it just honestly just grated on him. It was like she had to modes, spoil him rotten, or ordering him around like one her dogs.

Tossing one last rock he began his way home trying to keep his mind off thing. "Looky here lads it's Majorie's little pup!" Here it comes, was Dudley's only thought as he looked at the group around him. He recognized them for what they where bullies, honestly he could see the irony. Three of them half drunk teenagers only a few years older than he was just picking on because he had to live with the crazy dog lady. "Aren't you gonna say something?"

Of course Dudley didn't need words being a bully himself he knew they would be pointless, indeed if he fought back he'd just take a beating for his troubles. If he just surrendered they'd might just knock him around somewhat then leave getting there jollies. Of course he said nothing they'd just keep pressing and pressing trying to get a rise out of him, for a moment he almost considered taking it, just getting it over with......But something inside just snapped inside the young boy, he just couldn't take it anymore, his parents jailed, living with a bipolar aunt, forced to stay awake with the dogs barking all night, now this it just it, he was done.

*WHUMP*

The first boy doubled over clutching his little boys where Dudley had kicked them, the two others had no time to respond as Dudley was screaming as he lashed out.

Hours latter Dudley limped back to his Aunt's home, he'd lost badly, his chest hurt, his ribs hurt, his back hurt, his FACE hurt. The dogs barked but, he did care even as he used a shaking hand to unlock the flat's door. His vision blurry he just walked to his room ignoring his aunt's protestation to get a good look at him, he just wanted to sleep. It took some effort each step more painful than the last eventually htough he managed to take his one remaining sock off and crawled into bed.

Tomorrow was another day.

 

[darthcourt10]

Harry Leferts

Uh, distraction time!
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Walking out onto her foredeck with a plate in her hands, Hibiki paused and blinked. There, in front of her, Harry was standing in front of a small radio. "Lift those arms up high and feel that back stretch out!"

Bemused by what she was seeing, Hibiki continued to watch as Harry continued the exercises coming from the radio. 'Is he doing radio exercises?' After a few moments though, she shook her head and it was hard to keep her lips from curling upwards slightly. 'Oh, Harry-Chan...'

Hibiki then took a few steps forward and made sure that Harry could spot her, which he did. Within moments, he was giving her a grin as he finished whatever he was doing. "Hibiki-Chan! I was wondering where you got off to!"

Only holding up the plate which had food on it and a cup of hot chocolate, Hibiki gave him a smile. "I was having breakfast made for you down in the galley. Here, you go."

Taking the food, Harry just took a deep breath and let it out. "Thanks, Hibiki-Chan." Glancing over the food, he took a bite and nodded. "It's as good as it looks."

Slightly blushing, Hibiki tilted her hat some. "Thank you, I'm glad that you like it even though it's just simple."

All Harry did though was shake his head as he swallowed. "Simple is actually pretty good." Shrugging as he gathered up some more, he snorted. "People forget that sometimes simple is what one needs."

Just nodding as she watched him eat, Hibiki glanced towards the radio in confusion. "Why are you doing radio exercises, Harry-Chan? Normally I see you doing a run..."

Harry only shrugged a bit and finished chewing. "Well, I would do my run, but, um... I don't want to be running around your deck or getting in anyone's way, Hibiki-Chan."

Giving that some thought, the Destroyer eventually nodded in agreement. "Khorosho." Then Hibiki glanced towards her sisters. "It's just that normally I see Akatsuki-Chan doing radio exercises."

With a blink, Harry turned to where the purple haired Destroyer was moving across the surface of the ocean as the Sun continued to rise. "Really? I didn't know that Akatsuki-Chan did radio exercises."

Lips twitching, Hibiki chuckled some. "Da, Akatsuki-Chan does them every morning when we're on land. According to her, it makes her more lady-like." Then she leaned in towards Harry. "But Ikazuchi-Chan states that she does it so that she gets a sticker on her scorecard."

Thinking for a moment, Harry smiled some before he shook his head. "That's Akatsuki-Chan for you." Just watching as he walked over to his bag and pulled out a towel, Hibiki waited as he dried some of the sweat from his body. However, Harry noticed that she looked slightly nervous. "Is something wrong, Hibiki-Chan?"

After a moment, Hibiki glanced away and scratched at her neck. "I... Was wondering if you've been enjoying the cruise so far, Harry-Chan. It is slower then using the trains..."

Confused, Harry blinked at her before he tilted his head. "Why wouldn't I enjoy it, Hibiki-Chan? And yeah, the trains might be faster, but this is way better."

Much to his confusion, Hibiki blushed a bit and nodded. "Thank you..." Then she chewed her lip, but before Harry could ask what was wrong she spoke up. "If... Would you like to do the same thing to go between Kure and Sasebo?"

Expression brightening, Harry stared at her. "Really?" When she nodded though, he practically leapt onto her and hugged Hibiki. "Awesome! I was hoping for it, but I didn't want to bother you over it."

Wrapping her arms around him, Hibiki just closed her eyes and chuckled. "You don't need to worry, Harry-Chan. You can ask to go on a cruise on my hull anytime you wish."

All Harry did was smile at that before he took a look around then his eyes widened. "Hey, look at that Hibiki-Chan! It's the Kurushima-Kaikyō Bridge."

Slowly nodding, Hibiki tilted her head back as they came well within sight of the bridge which stretched across the Seto Inland Sea. "Which means that we're close to Kure." Softly sighing, Hibiki slowly shook her head. "It's amazing how fast they rebuilt them after..." Quickly shaking those thoughts off, she let out a breath. "Did you know, Harry-Chan, that when I came back I was amazed at the bridges?"

Blinking, Harry let go of the hug and focused his attention on her. "No, I didn't know that."

With a glance at him, Hibiki turned back to the approaching bridge. "Akatsuki and the others were even more amazed." She then gestured at the span ahead of them. "Back when we were ships, the only way across the sea here was a ferry. I remember sailing the Seto Inland Sea and seeing them... And now, Japan has built bridges across it."

Head tilting to the side, Harry tried to imagine it. For a moment, it seemed like his vision shifted and he was no longer in the twenty-first century, but sometime before World War Two. He could see various Japanese sailors on the deck and where the bridge was, there was only water with the odd ferry crossing or a ship passing or being passed.

Then Harry blinked and he was once more back in the twenty-first Century with the bridge ahead of them. Looking around, he frowned a little bit in confusion. 'What was that...?'

Meanwhile, Hibiki focused on the bridge itself and blinked. She could just make out crowds of people of all ages lining the walkways of the bridge. Some of them were holding out phones and others taking pictures. But there were also news crews as well. "... I did not expect this...'

Placing a hand over his brow, Harry squinted a bit and blinked. "Huh... Now that's a lot of people who came out to see you, Hibiki-Chan."

Eyes widening, she turned to look at him. "T-to see me?" When he nodded, she blinked. "You're sure, Harry-Chan?"

In reply, Harry just pulled out his phone and brought up a website and showed Hibiki. Sure enough, it was involving her hull gliding through the water. "Yeah, Naka-Nee contacted me earlier and said that people were going to gather on the bridge to see you, Hibiki-Chan."

Blushing, Hibiki looked back and forth between the bridge and the phone with wide eyes. "I see..."

Only nodding, Harry looked up as he placed one arm over her shoulder. "Yup! Besides, I know that I would be up there if I wasn't here. After all, you're hull is really pretty and would look awesome to see in the morning light..." Noticing that she had shifted, Harry turned and blinked as he noticed that Hibiki was red in the face. "Are you cold, Hibiki-Chan? It is a bit nippy."

Just smiling brightly, Hibiki placed her own arm around his waist and leaned into him. "Nyet, I'm more then warm enough." Looking up, she could spot people waving at her and waved back as did Harry. 'More then warm enough...'
________________________________________________________________________

Pen scratching against his paperwork, Goto was humming when he heard the sound of footsteps running towards his office. "TEEEEEIIIIIITTTOOOOOKKUUUU~" With a sigh, he set down the pen and then gripped the armrests of his chair. Just in time too as the door to his office flew open to reveal Kongou bouncing there. "BURNING..." Leaping through the air, she did several summersaults before slamming into him and knocking his chair against the wall. "LOVE!"

Grunting, Goto let out a breath as he felt the giggling puddle of Battleship settle in his lap. "Good morning, Kongou-"

Before he could get any further though, she shoved a crumpet into his mouth and winked. "I brought you some breakfast, Teitoku." Smiling, she leaned down with a twinkle in her eye. "So...?"

Once he swallowed, Goto only sighed and shook his head. "Thank you, Kongou." Even as his legs protested some due to her weight, Goto moved her slightly to a more comfortable position. "Breakfast date?"

Raising a finger into the air, Kongou nodded. "Breakfast date, dess!"

Goto simply shook his head some as he took another offered bit of food as he placed one arm around Kongou. Between their schdules, having proper dates was a rather rare and uncommon thing. Hence things like 'Breakfast dates' which really were nothing more then sharing some breakfast in his office as he worked. Sipping his coffee, and ignoring the exaspirated expression on his girlfriend's face as she sipped her own black tea, Goto nodded towards the screen. "You see the news this morning?"

Simply blinking at the question, Kongou turned to the screen which showed a familiar Destroyer passing through what she recognized as the Seto Inland Sea. For a few minutes she just observed before she finally commented. "Hibiki-Chan is on the news?"

With a slow nod, Goto swallowed another bite of food. "Hai, they've been playing it all morning on various channels. It hasn't gone international quite yet, but I expect it will in a few hours."

Her eyes narrowed, Kongou hummed a bit. "You knew that this was going to happen, didn't you?"

Just smirking, he chuckled a bit. "I did... In fact, perhaps someone may have given the media a bit of a head's up through Naka."

Eyebrows raising, Kongou considered what she was just told and gave her tea a sip. "And the reaction, Dess?"

Chuckling and placing his hand on one thigh, only to jerk it back as a smirking Kongou playfully smacked at it, Goto shook his head. "As positive as I could have hoped for. People needed this, Kongou. They see the shipgirls as their defenders and adore them for it... But there's just something about seeing a steel hulled warship steaming past. Combine the two..."

As her cup clicked against the plate she held, Kongou nodded. "And people will find their spirits rising." Glancing at her boyfriend, Kongou noticed a sparkle which drew her eye. There, on her finger the promise ring that Goto gave her glinted in the warm, morning sunlight. It was something that brought up an old thought to Kongou. "You know, Dess... I am getting closer to summoning my own hull, Dess."

Surprised, Goto turned towards her with a slight smile. "Really now? That's actually good news, Kongou and I'm looking forward to seeing it."

Expression turning sly, Kongou leaned in and Goto froze as she whispered in his ear. "And I am looking forward to see you, coming deep within my hull... So very deep until you are perhaps standing at attention inside of my Admiral's Quarters while my engines roar at full power, plowing through the waves that flow past me. Perhaps I shall fire off my burning love at the same time, Teitoku~."

Very slowly, Goto turned to regard Kongou with wide eyes and noticed her eyes sparkling. 'Did she... did Kongou just...'

Before he could react, Kongou sat back up and looked at her tea with a hum. "It seems that I shall have to get some more. Be right back, Teitoku!" Leaping off him, she was nearly out the door when she winked at him and purred, actually purred. "And just think of the positive PR if you were to ride me, Tei-to-ku~"

With that, she was gone out the door leaving Goto sitting there and blinking. After a few moments, he groaned and placed his head in his hands. "That girl's going to be the death of me one of these days... And damn me if I am not happy for it."

 

[darthcourt10]

RCNAnon

Here's another snip from me, this is set in the hypothetical far future of having graduated Hogwarts and possibly muggle level universities and applying to get into respective navies/marine corps. There are three of them, one for Ron, Neville and Harry. Comments and critiques are welcome as always.
-------


Captain Robert Appleby stared at the letter of recommendation in front of him, even as he pondered trying to admit someone so ballsy as to try and fake something like this to an Admiralty board to get into BRNC Dartmouth for the engineering track.

"This can't be real," he said, speaking to his assistant Lieutenant Clyde Williams.

"Why's that sir?" asked Williams.

"This," he said as he handed over the letter, "Claims to be a letter of recommendation from Admiral Cunningham."

"Cunningham? I don't know of an Admiral Cunningham currently serving sir," said Williams, even as he began to read the letter, which was written in long hand, not typed.

"That's because we don't have one currently serving or even had one recently," said Appleby, "It claims it's from ABC Cunningham."

Williams looked up and blinked at his superior. "ABC? Wait, Admiral of the Fleet Cunningham? First Sea Lord Cunningham? From WWII?"

"Yes," said Appleby, "Who died in 1963 if I remember correctly."

"So who would…? I mean this is just ridiculous," said Williams.

"Exactly, which is a shame considering how well he did on all the other parts of the board. Some of the highest math and engineering scores I've ever seen, decent leadership and plenty of physical ability," said Appleby.

"Well sir, there is a number here to call for further reference," said Williams, "I don't think they'd go through such lengths to get in and then provide us with something so easily proven false."

Appleby looked down at the number, again written in longhand. If this was a prank he wanted to get to the bottom of it and the number was his only lead.

"Give that to me," he said, holding out his hand, "I'm going to make the call and get to the bottom of this."

Williams handed him the letter, even as Appleby pulled out his phone and began to dial. He waited as the phone rang three times, only to be picked up and answered by a woman.

"Hello?" she said, sounding a bit confused, "Who is this?"

"This is Captain Appleby of the Royal Navy," he said, trying to keep his voice level but not managing to keep the annoyance fully out of it, "I'm calling to speak to Admiral Cunningham about a letter I received."

"Oh," she said, her voice somehow conveying a smile, "One minute please."

Appleby waited as he heard a rustling on the other end of the line, the phone set down and then the patter of something. He was about to get even more upset when a high, slightly tinny voice came over the headset.

"Hey," it said verbally. Yet inside his head, Appleby somehow heard much more.

Admiral Cunningham speaking.

He froze, the tinny voice still ringing in his head a minute later when the voice spoke again.

"Hey? Hey hey."

Hello? I'm quite busy so make it quick.

Appleby managed to get his voice moving again, somehow.

"Uh sir…" he said, "This is Captain Robert Appleby the Royal Navy. I'm in charge of one of the Admiralty Interview boards for Dartmouth. I was calling in regards to a letter you wrote for one of the candidates…"

"Hey?"

Yes, what of it?

"I was just making sure it was genuine Sir," he said, finding himself sweating, "It's not often we get a letter like yours.

"Hey hey hey! Hey Hey? Hey hey hey hey hey."

Of course it's genuine! Why would it not be? It's not often I write letters for someone like him, I see a great future for that young man in the fleet.

"Y-yes sir," said Appleby, "Thank you sir. That was all I needed."

"Hey hey hey."

Very well, good day captain.

Click.

Appleby pulled his phone down and stared at it, his face in shock. Had that really just happened?

"Sir?" asked Williams, drawing him from his shock, "What happened?"

"It's real," said Appleby simply, putting his phone down and slipping the letter into the docket of the red haired young man who'd otherwise aced his Board, then putting an "Accepted" mark into the proper location.

"It's real?"

"Yes Williams it's real. I expect we'll live to see that young man with Captain's boards on his shoulders some day. Maybe even stars."

Williams just nodded, still thoroughly confused but accepting his Captain's words as they moved onto the next candidate.

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\

Captain Appleby was looking forward to a stiff drink that night as he finished up with the last of his work. Just about to leave his phone rang, causing him to sigh. Looking at the number he noticed it was Colonel Jacobs, his marine counterpart on the boards. He answered, putting the phone up to his ear.

"Appleby here, what can I help you with Colonel?"

"I've got a bit of an irregular situation here with one of my candidates," said Jacobs, "I was wondering if you could help me."

"What sort of irregular situation?" asked Appleby, frowning deeply. The marines weren't his area of expertise, so he wasn't sure what help he could be.

"He's got a letter of recommendation here. It claims to be signed by several Admirals… but the names aren't ones I recognize."

Appleby got a sudden flashback to what had happened earlier in the day, trepidation filling him even as he took a deep breath.

"What are the names?" he asked, fearing the worst.

"Admiral Herbert King-Hall, Admiral Rosslyn Wemyss, Admiral Charles Dreyer…" said Jacobs, clearly unfamiliar with the names.

Appleby felt his stomach sink.

"Is there anything else?" he asked, hoping against hope that there would be some kind of punch line at the end of the message.

"A few more names," said Jacobs, "But it's finished with "And the Sailors and Marines of the Grand Fleet."

Appleby felt all hope flee, running away with parts of his sanity at the same time.

"So what's the issue?" he asked, the crush of the strange and unknown pressing on him even as parts of his mind figured out what was going on.

"The issue is that it reads like a bloody joke," said Jacobs, "I don't know who any of these men are and the Grand Fleet…"

"It's not a joke," said Appleby, "I had something similar cross my desk today."

"You what?" asked Jacobs.

"I had a letter signed by Admiral Cunningham across my desk today," he said, "It had a number on it, which I called. It was real. I expect yours is much the same."

"So you're saying I should treat this as real?" asked Jacobs incredulously.

"Yes," said Appleby, "Unless you want several thousand angry sailors and marines to come visit you for ignoring their letter."

Jacobs let out a sigh, Appleby could see him pinching his nose and leaning up against the table.

"Alright," said Jacobs, "I'll send it through. I could use a drink though."

"You and me both," said Appleby, "I'll tell you about my crazy letter at the pub."

"Deal," said Jacobs, "See you in a half hour."

"Aye aye," said Appleby, hanging up his phone and shaking his head. "Bloody ship girls."


/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\

Captain Watanabe stared at the pile of papers on his desk. It was a moderate sized stack, one neatly contained in a binder. Yet the names contained within…

"Sir?" asked Lieutenant Kobayashi "Is something wrong?"

"No Lieutenant," said Watanabe, "Nothing is wrong. I am just savoring this moment. It is not often one recognizes when they are part of making history."

"History sir?"

"History Lieutenant, this young man is destined for greatness one way or the other."

"How are you so sure sir?"

"Let me read you a list of the names who have talked about or recommended this young man," said Watanabe as he opened the file.

"First and foremost, an inquiry for notification of acceptance or rejection to the naval academy, signed by Admiral Goto and ten highly ranked members of the Diet."

Kobayashi's eyes widened.

"Calm yourself Lieutenant, we haven't even started yet," said Watanabe as he set the paper down to the side and picked up another one.

"He has a glowing letter of recommendation by American Admiral Richardson, commander of ship girls at Yokosuka."

Another paper slipped to the side.

"This is where things start to get interesting. We have another letter of recommendation… from Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto."

Kobayashi's eyes nearly jumped out of his head.

"Sir? You aren't…"

"No Lieutenant I am not joking with you, this is much too serious for such a thing."

Watanabe then pulled out a further sheaf of papers and laid them out.

"Character references from almost every notable admiral of World War II, including several Americans."

Then with reverence he took out a single piece of paper, hand signed and still crisp, as if it had been delivered by courier instead of by regular mail.

"Final character reference, Togo Heihachiro."

Kobayashi's eyes boggled at the paper.

"This young man is destined for greatness," said Watanabe as he carefully gathered the papers and placed them back into the file, "Of a kind most can only dream of."

"Yes sir," managed Kobayashi.

"Only time will tell what kind of greatness it will be… but I do not think we will be disappointed," said Watanabe, carefully closing the binder.

"Yes sir," said Kobayashi.

"Dismissed Lieutenant," Watanabe said as he handed over the binder, "I have letters to write."

Kobayashi saluted, hustling off to deliver the binder to a safe location.

Watanabe couldn't help but shake his head as he began to draft a letter.

It will be interesting to watch at least.

 

[darthcourt10]

Harry Leferts

As they came into the harbour, Harry grinned while he kept one hand on the hat that DesDiv6 had given him that showed he was an honorary member. "Wow... it's been a while since I was in Kure."

Beside him, Hibiki slowly nodded. "Da, same here." Looking across the hills, she slowly shook her head. "It's hard to imagine the damage they took during Blood Week."

Something caught Harry's eye and he turned before his expression fell. "There's reminders still to be seen."

With a blink, Hibiki turned in the direction Harry was looking in and nodded. There, close to shore laid a wreck, though it was hard to recognize what type of ship it was due to how the superstructure was just gone and massive holes were ripped through the hull. "The JS Akebono..."

Leaning against the rails, Harry just watched as he remembered what he had been told when he was last in Kure by the shipgirl Akebono before she had been transferred. The Destroyer proudly spoke of how, as her namesake began sinking, she drove up onto the shore all so that she could continue to fight. Even though she didn't last very long, it was long enough for the JASDF to arrive and drive off the Abyssals. "I heard that they were going to, um..."

Hibiki glanced at him. "Remove her wreck?" At his nod, she let out a soft sigh. "I don't know much, but I've heard that there's been fighting to leave her in place." Noticing Inazuma leave the group and head towards another section of the harbor, Hibiki tilted the brim of her hat some. 'Inazuma-Chan...'

Meanwhile, Harry watched as she cruised to one of the deeper spots and then came to a stop. Confused, he tilted his head to the side as she clapped her hands and then bowed. "What's Inazuma-Chan doing?"

For a moment, Hibiki was silent before she answered as Inazuma pulled out flowers and gently laid them on the surface. "That's where the JS Inazuma is, Harry-Chan. When we come to Kure, Inazuma-Chan always pays her respects to her daughter ship."

Eyes widening, Harry winced a bit. "Sorry..."

Gently smiling, the white haired Destroyer patted him on the shoulder. "It's okay, Harry-Chan. You didn't know." Several minutes later though, she perked up as she spotted several forms heading for them as she turned towards the Naval base. "And here comes some friends."

Moments later, a grinning Zuikaku pulled up beside them. "Looking good there, Hibiki-Chan. And it seems that you got the Shrimp onboard."

Puffing out his cheeks a bit at the hated nickname from her, Harry suddenly grinned. "And it's great to see you too... Shichimenchō-Oba." As Zuikaku blinked, Harry waved at a snickering Shoukaku. "Hi, Shoukaku-Oba!"

All of a sudden, Zuikaku's eyes widened and she fixed a glare on Harry before stomping her feet. "WHAT THE HELL DID YOU CALL ME, SHRIMP!"

Only tilting his head to the side, Harry blinked innocently. "What do you mean, Shichimenchō-Oba? I just called you by your name."

Yet again, Zuikaku stomped her foot as she shook a fist at the nearly twelve year old boy. "COME DOWN AND SAY THAT LIKE A MAN! YOU KNOW THAT I HATE THAT!"

Harry's expression then turned blank. "Then don't call me a Shrimp!"

Eyebrow twitching, Zuikaku pointed at him. "I call it as it is, Shrimp!"

With his expression stll blank, and looking oddly like Kaga, Harry scoffed. "Then I'm going to continue to call you Shichimenchō-Oba... Shichimenchō-Oba."

Growling, Zuikaku clenched her fist as if she wanted to grab Harry right off Hibiki's deck. Said Destroyer just turned away and covered her face with her hat as she shook silently. Meanwhile, Shoukaku waved her hands around a bit. "Zuikaku, calm down... he's just a kid."

Just huffing, Zuikaku turned away with a scowl. "He's a Shrimp. One as annoying as Kaga."

Softly snorting, Harry shook his head at her. "I aim to please, Shichimenchō-Oba."

Both of them froze though as a soft voice, that nonetheless carried a hint of steel spoke up. "Now, now you two. Be nice to each other." Slowly, Harry and Zuikaku turned to see Houshou there smiling at them gently with her eyes closed. For some odd reason though they got shivers down their back at the sight of her and could swear that there was an Oni mask behind her. "Zuikaku-Chan, you know that Harry-Chan does not like his height being made fun of. And Harry-Chan, you know that Zuikaku-Chan doesn't like being reminded of that. Now, are you both going to be nice to each other or will I need to punish you both?"

Quickly, Harry and Zuikaku shook their heads. "No, Kaa-San/Houshou-Oba-San!" The same thought though ran through their heads. 'Scary...'

Tilting her head some, Houshou nodded. "That's good... Ah! Tenryuu-Chan!"

As she moved off towards the Light Cruiser, both Harry and Zuikaku shivered some. Then the Fleet Carrier glanced up at Harry. "She's not kidding you know, she'd do it." At his look, she shook her head. "Aso pissed her off one day and Kaa-San gave her the same warning and Aso didn't believe her. Next thing that Aso knew though..."

With a gulp, Harry just nodded. "Understood." Then he glanced around curiosly. "Um, where's Hiryuu-Oba and Soryuu-Oba?"

Scratching her head, Zuikaku sighed. "Ah, those two are out on a last minute patrol and won't be showing up until tomorrow. They'll be here for that summoning thing though, whatever is going to happen there." Looking up at him, Zuikaku frowned before nodding. "So I heard about-"

Before she could finish though, the wind was driven from her by Shoukaku's elbow. Seeing Harry's confusion, Shoukaku giggled some and shook her head. "We heard all about your broom, Harry-Chan. Kaga-San told us with pride about it."

Zuikaku stared at her and opened her mouth, only to snap it shut at the look her elder sister gave her. "Uh, yeah... we heard all about it."

A smile on his face, Harry opened his mouth only to catch a flash of white in the sky. Looking up, he grinned as he realized what was there. "Hedwig!" Moments later, said owl landed on Hibiki's deck carrying a long package. She gave Harry a look before barking as she tapped one foot on it. Taking the note, Harry read it. "Hey, Mum sent my broom with Hedwig! Something about it being cleared just last night."

Giggling, Shoukaku just nodded as Hibiki continued to guide her hull into the base. "And who is this now, Harry-Chan?"

Proudly holding out his arm, which Hedwig now sat on, Harry smiled down at the Carrier. "This is my owl, Hedwig, Shoukaku-Oba. Hedwig? This is Shoukaku-Oba and Zuikaku-Oba."

Holding out her own arm, Shoukaku let out an awed sound as Hedwig flew from Harry's arm and onto hers. "She's so beautiful... Isn't she, Zuikaku?"

Only nodding, Zuikaku chuckled as her sister rubbed Hedwig on her chest feathers. "Yeah, she is at that." Then she turned towards Harry and looked up at him. "Anyways, once it's dark out, want to show me how good you are on that broom of yours? The way that Kaga was going on about it, it has to be impressive."

Chest puffing out, Harry nodded. "I'm pretty good at it. Hey! Maybe later I can take you up on my broomstick."

For a moment, both Carriers stared at him before Shoukaku began giggling madly and a blushing Zuikaku scratched her head. "Ah, jeez... Don't be saying it like that!"

Blinking, Harry tilted his head to the side in confusion. "Poi?"
_____________________________________________________________________________
About to step onto the gangplank, Harry suddenly paused at the sight of the Uniformed Officer at the bottom before snapping to a salute, which the woman returned. "Permission to come onshore, Teitoku?"

Chuckling, the woman nodded some. "Permission granted, Potter-San. And welcome to Kure." Part of her wanted to laugh as Harry slowly walked down the gangplank, mainly because it looked like he was holding himself back from running with everything he had. 'Cute.'

Once he reached the bottom, Harry bowed towards her. "Thank you for greeting me, Shimada-Teitoku."

Simply giving a small bow herself, she smiled. "Of course." She then looked him over with a hum. "You've certainly grown since last I saw you, Potter-San." Lips twitching as he smiled, she raised an eyebrow. "Do you have the package from Goto-Sama?"

Nodding, Harry reached into his knapsack and then pulled out a steel box. "Hai, I have it right here."

Tenryuu then walked over and presented a key which Shimada took and used to open the box to reveal the contents. There, inside and nestled in it's cushioning, were two vials. One contained sparkling shards of red crystal and the other contained glowing liquid. Letting out a breath, Shimada shook her head in disbelief. "Amazing... and to think that with these..." With practiced ease, she closed the box and locked it. Handing it to Noshiro, Shimada nodded to Harry. "Thank you for transporting it all the way here."

Harry just glanced back to where Hibiki stepped off her hull, with it vanishing in a cloud of sparkles. "You're very welcome, Shimada-Teitoku." Then he blinked as he noticed Noshiro stiffen as Agano came up from behind her and placed her hands on her thighs. 'What?'

As it turned out, he was not the only one to notice as Houshou simply bopped Agano on the head with a fan. "Enough of that, Harry-Chan does not need to see such things yet."

Sighing, Shimada pinched her nose and muttered to herself before she gestured for Harry to follow. "Potter-San, I'm afraid that I have to tell you that the Special Summoning attempt has been put off until tomorrow morning. Soryuu and Hiryuu were both supposed to be here along with their escorts, but they had to head out quickly for a patrol due to some reports."

Just nodding, Harry shrugged a bit. "That's okay, Shimada-Teitoku. I understand... besides, this just means that I can have a look around."

With a chuckle, Shimada nodded at that. "Yes, I suppose that is true. Perhaps visit the Yamato Museum for example, I heard that they got their shipgirl exhibit up and running."

Shaking off her thoughts, she then waved towards Maruyu who was running towards them. "For tonight though, you'll be staying with Maruyu-Chan. I hope that's okay with you?"

Grinning, Harry quickly nodded. "That's great actually! I don't mind staying with Maruyu-Chan at all."

It was at that point that Maruyu reached them and came to a stop. "Ha-Harry-Chan... Sorry... for not being there... when you arrived."

Much to her surprise though, Harry just hugged her. "That's okay, Maruyu-Chan. Besides, I'm staying with you tonight!"

Blushing at both Harry's actions and the smirk on Shimada's face, Maruyu chuckled weakly. But then she hugged him right back. "Hai! And I'll get to show you around a bit."

Looking around, the small Submarine frowned a bit. "Um, Nimu-Chan is around too and might join us, I think... I don't know about the others..."

Only shaking his head, Harry gave a shrug. "I don't mind, Maruyu-Chan." It was then that Hibiki came to a stop beside them and stared at Maruyu. "Hibiki-Chan?"

The Submarine though only smiled at the Destroyer before nodding. "You can join us too, Hibiki-San. Besides, Shioi-Chan and the others said that I should get to know you better."

Raising an eyebrow, Hibiki slowly nodded much to Harry's confusion. "Da, that's a good idea."

A roar, though, caused them to turn in time see Kiso leaping down from some crates at Tenryuu with her sword out. However, the other Light Cruiser only pulled out her own sword and easily parried the blow. Glancing towards Shimada, Harry only blinked as the Admiral was simply sipping a coffee watching the "Battle" play out in front of her. Hearing a sound, Harry looked towards Maruyu who was holding out some popcorn which him and Hibiki took some of. 'Huh...'

 

[darthcourt10]

Harry Leferts

Dumbledore was startled from his half-doze by a finger poking him in the side. "Hmm-what?" Blinking and adjusting his glasses, he turned to regard the shipgirl that was next to him with a confused expression on his face. "Victory? What are you doing here?"

Said shipgirl rolled her visible eye before snorting. "I was bored and decided to visit, Bumblebee." Walking to the chair in front of the desk, she sat back with a sigh and propped her feet up on his desk. "After all, it's been a bit since we last talked."

For a moment, Dumbledore just blinked before sighing. Pinching his nose, he shook his head. "Vicky, how many times must I tell you not to place your boots onto my desk?"

Glaring at him, Victory growled. "Just as many times as I have told you not to call me Vicky!" With a sigh, she reached across the desk and then grabbed one of the candies there. "So, you're looking rather tired and sleeping at your desk cannot be good for one of your age."

Bemused, Dumbledore raised an eyebrow as he looked at his friend. "Perhaps, but if I don't then..." For the first time in their conversation, Dumbledore looked every bit of his age. "Victory, I could back away. From both the Wizengamot and from the ICW. But if I do..."

Just popping the candy into her mouth, Victory hummed. "I suppose that it's that bad right now?"

Slowly, Dumbledore nodded. "If I was to leave the ICW, there's maybe three canidates who might replace me. One is from MACUSA and is extremely against any further breeches of the Statute. To the point where I am afraid that she may try to force the issue and lead to... unpleasantness."

With a snort, Victory shook her head. "It's lovely to see that you have the British gift for understatement. But yes, I can see where that may be a problem... And the others?"

Leaning back, Dumbledore frowned. "Another is one of the Chinese members and... well, they've been chomping at the bit to punish Japan after they released the information regarding shipgirl summoning." At the look that Victory gave him, Dumbledore grimaced. "She participated in World War Two on the magical side fighting the Japanese in China."

That got him a wince from Victory. "I see... and the third one?"

Dumbledore frowned with a thoughtful expression. "I suspect that the third one would be from Africa and unfortunately, I am not well informed as to his particular politics. Besides, of course, wanting to break the Statute now."

Rubbing her forehead, Victory considered it and then groaned. "And if you left the Wizengamot, then that leaves it open for someone such as Lucius to manipulate. Lovely, Bumblebee. And here I thought that I left such politics behind more then a hundred years ago."

As a chuckle escaped him, Dumbledore shook his head. "Well, us wizards have changed very slowly." Then he glanced at the papers on his desk and his expression fell. "However, that is not the only issue, I'm afraid."

With a frown on her own face, Victory turned to the papers and squinted her eye. "Hmm... Voldemort, I suppose?"

Only nodding slowly, Dumbledore frowned. "I have been trying to track him via odd happenings. And, while hard, there's been several signs of his passage. A runespoor escaped from a Parisian suburb, only to be found dead and decayed not two hours after it was reported missing on a truck. A cow was seen wandering in a sickly condition before dying somewhere near the French border, it's body decaying before the farmer's eyes and he reported a black mist rising from it and rushing off to the forest."

Eyebrow raising, Victory blinked. "He's putting a rather large amount of space between him and Britain... But I would have thought that his hosts would last longer."

Shaking his head, Dumbledore frowned. "As would I have, Victory. There was even a report of a known dark wizard stumbling into an inn in Germany looking rather ill, only for nothing but dust and bits of bone to be found the next morning. Voldemort seems to be going through his hosts rather quickly. Even Quinius passed rather quickly. What happened to him should not have unless he was possessed for three months more then what I suspect he was." Running a hand along his beard, he furrowed his eyebrows. "It's almost as if... something is draining him and, through him, his hosts extremely quickly. What should take months instead taking weeks or days..."

Intrigued, Victory looked closer at the notes. "Do you think that it may end him?"

However, Dumbledore sighed and shook his head. "Unfortunately not, whatever effect it is that is causing it, seems to be slowing down and slowly stopping. Perhaps it has to do with what happened with Mister Potter, but..."

With a snort, she shook her head. "You can't know that. BAH!"

All Dumbledore did was chuckle at that.

 

[darthcourt10]

Harry Leferts

Scratching his cheek, Harry hummed to himself as he looked up at the Yamato Museum after sending an email off to Ron at an address Hermione had given him. During Blood Week, the area around the museum had taken damage from Abyssal bombardment. But instead of giving up, the museum had instead rebuilt itself and reopened bigger and better then before. Glancing back, Harry frowned a bit at the car that was now parked with one of the base personnel inside opening a newspaper.

As it turned out, Hibiki arriving in her steel hull had caused a burst of activity and the shipgirls had to stay as some politicians showed up with news crews in tow. Which meant, of course, that Harry had to head out on his own to the Yamato Museum. But now that he was there though, he felt excitement bubble up inside and he walked through the doors into the much cooler inside. It didn't take long though for him to notice one of the new exhibits for the museum.

Mainly because it was hard to miss the wax figures of Yamato, Musashi, and Shinano standing together. Walking up towards them as a group moved off after taking photographs, Harry stared up at them in awe. "Oh wow... they look so real..."

Giggles from behind him caused him to turn even as the person spoke up. "Of course, we here at the Yamato Museum only have the best exhibits. And these figures were made by none other then Madame Tussauds of London, England."

When Harry turned and noticed the young woman, he frowned for a moment. 'Wait a second...' At the same time as her eyes widening, he grinned having recognized her as well. "Kawa-San! What are you doing here?!"

Rapidly blinking, the young woman let out a small laugh. "Harry-Chan? Is that you?" After he nodded, she chuckled some. "It's been a few years, hasn't it?"

Nodding, Harry continued to grin. "Yup!" Then his grin fell and he frowned. "You stopped writing me two years ago."

Slowly sighing, Kawa grimaced. "I know, and I'm sorry about that, Harry-Chan. That penpal program the schools had us in was great but, well... I got really, really busy with exams and cram school that I just... Yeah, I don't really have a great excuse." Quickly shaking it off, she gave him a small smile. "But, hey, enough of that. Besides, look at you!"

Confused, Harry tilted his head to the side in confusion. "What do you mean, Kawa-San?"

Only chuckling, she held her hand up above the floor. "You've gotten pretty big, Harry-Chan. Last time you were in Kure visiting you were a lot shorter."

There was a proud expression on Harry's face which nearly made Kawa giggle as Harry straightened his back. "Yup! I've grown a lot." It was then that he took note of her uniform and his eyes widened. "You work here, Kawa-San?!"

With a smile, she buffed her name tag. "I do, as a summer job anyways." Her eyes then began to sparkle as she looked up at Yamato's figure. "I'm a tour guide here which means that I get to tell people all about how awesome Yamato-Sama is."

Placing his hands behind his head, Harry became thoughtful. "Huh, really?"

Just chuckling, Kawa nodded. "Really. Besides, I needed a summer job as I'll be leaving the orphanage soon and, well... Museum guide is pretty good paying."

However, Harry frowned a bit as he remembered something. "I thought that you were going to join the JMSDF to work alongside the shipgirls? Or at least that's what your letters told me anyways."

Much to his surprise though, she hung her head. "I've been trying. But the competition is fierce for the Shipgirl Corps. Everyone wants to work alongside them."Sighing, the young woman shook her head. "And my circumstances don't help any." Then Kawa clinched her fist before raising her head. "But I'll make it one of these days! And then I'll work alongside Yamato-Sama! Until then though, I'll work here."
Smiling brightly, Harry only nodded before he glanced at the time. "Um, when's your next tour?"

With a blink, Kawa turned to the clock and frowned. "Probably not until the next tour group in an hour or two really. Why?"

Grinning, Harry held up a finger. "Wait right here, Kawa-San."

Quickly, he made his way over to the front desk and was speaking with the receptionist there. When he pointed at Kawa though, she frowned suspiciously. "What is he doing now...?"

Kawa soon got her answer though after Harry gave the receptionist a credit card, which she swiped. Then Harry made his way back over to her and smiled up at her. "So, where to first?" Seeing her confusion, he pointed back to the receptionist. "You're my personal tour guide, Kawa-San! That way we can talk and you can show me around."

Blinking for a moment, Kawa then gave a laugh before rolling her eyes. "Because of course you did." With a small smile, she gestured towards one of the doorways. "Now then, how about we start, hmm?"

As they began to walk, Harry looked up at her in curiosity. "By the way, have you seen any of the shipgirls come here?"

Thoughtful, Kawa eventually shook her head. "Not really, or at least not when I've been around. A shame really because I would like to meet them."

Smirking, Harry looked up at her. "Bet that you would love it if Yamato-Oba came to visit and you were here."

Even as she blushed, Kawa gave him a playful glare. "Don't be poking me, Harry-Chan. You know that I poke right back."

Harry only smirked more at that. "And I know that you're ticklish."

With that, they began their tour with Kawa explaining things and telling Harry all about the exhibits. Between those times though, the two of them caught up. For example, Harry learned that the autographed photo she won of Yamato was among her most prized possessions back at the orphanage. Eventually, the two made it through the entire museum though until they came to the main exhibit, which Kawa spread her arms at. "And here we are! The pride and joy of the Yamato Museum, our scale model of Yamato as a ship."

Looking it over, Harry still felt the awe he did the first time he saw it. "Wow.."

Softly smiling, Kawa nodded as she looked it over herself. "Yeah... it's really beautiful. Sometimes, before we open up I come here and just look her over, you know? Some of the others joke that I'm protective of her, maybe I am, but, well... She deserves it." Glancing around, she leaned in towards Harry. "Want to know something?"

Also glancing around, Harry nodded. "Sure, what?"

Pointing at the model, Kawa grinned. "They say that it's haunted." At his look, her grin widened. "No, seriously, some of the staff here claim that the model is haunted by some of those who died here in the museum when the Abyssals attacked. The model was one of the few things that made it through unscathed. They say, late at night, the turrets sometimes move and the propellers spin in place."

Only giving her a look, Harry raised an eyebrow. "Really?" When she nodded though, he frowned and looked around. 'Hmm... no one is around, so...' Closing one eye, he opened it to reveal that it was glowing slightly. 'Huh... there's magic on it, but, nothing that says it's haunted... I think that it's more protecting it?'

Unknown to him though, Kawa had been talking and frowned a bit when Harry didn't answer. With a frown, she shook his shoulder. "Hey, Harry-Chan, did you hear what I said..." Trailing off, she blinked a bit. "... Is your eye glowing? And what's with the shocked look?"

Quickly closing his eye and opening to reveal it was normal, Harry just stared at her. Before she could ask though, Harry looked around. "Um, Kawa-San? When do you get off?"

Confused at the direction that this was heading in, Kawa frowned. "Not for another three hours, why?" Getting silence as he pulled out his phone and typed a message, she huffed a bit. "Harry-Chan, what's going on?"

Much to her confusion, Harry only grinned up at her. "You know how you wanted to work alongside Yamato-Oba?" At her nod, he continued. "You're about to get your wish..."

Scratching her head, Kawa only frowned. "Okay... Whatever that means."

It was not even a half hour before Harry guided her to the front doors. There, panting for breath Agano stood bent over with her hands on her knees. Various people were muttering, only to be silenced as she looked up and froze at seeing Harry and Kawa. Next thing that Kawa knew though, Agano was hugging her tightly. "YAHAGI-CHAN! YOU'RE HERE! YOU'RE REALLY HERE!"

All the confused Kawa, the Natural Born reincarnation of the Light Cruiser Yahagi, could do was blink before slowly hugging her back. Then she looked at Harry who gave her a thumb's up. 'What in the...' Then her eyes widened as she realized what was going on. "I-I'm Yahagi...?"

Nodding, Agano grinned. "Yup! You can call me Onee-Sama though." Then the Light Cruiser blinked and looked towards Harry in confusion. "Um... Is it normal for her to faint? And what's with the grin on her face? Uh, why are you laughing, Harry-Chan?"

 

[darthcourt10]

Harry Leferts

Slowly waking up, the first thing that Harry realized was that his mouth had the feeling as if he had not brushed his teeth the night before. The next thing was the familiar feeling of being in the middle of a cuddepile. It was then that he opened his eyes to see the a head of black hair pressed against his chest belonging to Maruyu. Noticing the arms around his waist, he turned his head to see that that Hibiki was cuddled into his back. Curled up against Maruyu, Nimu softly snored while the rest of DesDiv6 were either cuddled against his legs or against Hibiki. In fact, Inazuma softly snored from where she laid with her head on his thigh.

A few moments later, the memories of the night before hit Harry and he glanced past the balloons, ribbons, and a table with party snacks to one corner of the room. In said corner Kawa, or rather Yahagi, laid with the rest of the Agano class cuddled into her. The smile on his face widened as he remembered the party that erupted at the discovery of Kawa being the Natural Born Yahagi, though the poor girl had been utterly lost at first at the whirlwind of attention.

Granted, Shimada had been apparently been rather annoyed at first when Agano had taken off as it had went against her orders to stay on base for now. Not to mention the stir that the sight of the shipgirl blowing past and out of the base's gates at her top speed had caused. Thankfully for the Cruiser, Hibiki had gotten Shimada's attention and shown the Admiral the text that Harry sent her. After that, Shimada had done some damage control stating that a new Natural Born had shown up before dissuding anyone from bothering Kawa once she arrived. Something that the bewildered young woman was extremely thankful for.

Of course, Harry couldn't hold back the snicker from the memory of the embarrassed Agano as Shimada had given her a mild talking to about telling her first next time rather then take off.

Not too long after that, after it was confirmed that Kawa was indeed Yahagi and the politicians had left, the ball had gotten rolling, First thing that Shimada had done was have a talk with Kawa as to if she wanted to be awoken as a shipgirl. Needless to say, she had accepted and then Shimada had Kawa return to the orphanage with some personnel to gather her things. All of the Aganos though would not leave her side and left with her as Shimada went to call the Yamato Museum to explain exactly what had happened. As it turned out, several of the staff had overheard Agano and everyone was in a bit of an uproar.

Upon Kawa's return, and after she had placed her things in the Agano Class' quarters, she had been dragged to the Common Room. Needless to say, she was shocked at how she was met with a massive party being attended by all the shipgirls on the base to welcome her. Kawa's smile was blinding as tears ran down her cheeks while she thanked them. Then she was dragged fully into the party that had lasted well into the night. At several points, Harry had spotted Shimada in the crowds.

It went without saying that most of the shipgirls had went off into corners as they became sleepy after their sugar rushes ran out and simply gathered themselves in cuddlepiles, like the one that Harry was in or the one that Kawa was in. Harry was suddenly broken from his thoughts as Tenryuu walked into the room with a cup of coffee in her hands. Spotting him, the Light Cruiser gave him a grin. "Hey there, Kiddo. How are you feeling this morning?"

Smacking his lips, Harry grimaced. "Great except for how my mouth feels like something died in it."

With a snort, Tenryuu shook her head. "That's what you get for eating so many sugary things without brushing your teeth, Fufufufu. Anyways, it's about nine, so if you could wake up the girls, I'll handle the others. We do need some breakfast after all before we do the summoning."

Eyes lighting up, Harry nodded. "Sure." Then he frowned a bit as he tried to move only to find that he couldn't. "Um..."

Moments later, Hibiki grumbled and pulled Harry even tighter. Before Harry could do anything though, Maruyu snorted and then tightened her own hold and what little ability he had to move vanished. Just watching this, Tenryuu grinned. "Adorable." Pulling out her phone, she took a picture. "And this I'll be sending to Nagato for her scrapbook."

All Harry did was sigh a bit as he began to try to wake up the others. It was an hour later that, finally, a bunch of sleepy shipgirls as well as Harry and Kawa stumbled into the mess hall. There they were greeted by a brown haired shipgirl in white clothing. "Good morning!"

Holding her head, Zuikaku took a deep breath. "Please... not so loud..."

Unfortunately for her, Houshou just walked up and leaned in as she placed a hand on the Carrier's shoulder. "WHY? IT IS SUCH A LOVELY MORNING, ZUI-CHAN!"

Only groaning, Zuikaku clinched her eyes shut and stumbled off. Entering the line behind Kawa, Harry waited his turn. Glancing around, Kawa blinked as she took everything in before leaning towards Harry. "Um, is this really that normal?"

Grinning, Harry nodded with a chuckle. "Yup! Or at least after a big party." Also looking around, the only thing that made Harry frown was the sight of Aso glaring at him. Though that stopped several moments later as Houshou stepped up beside her and whispered into her ear. For some odd reason, Aso paled and scrambled off to the back of the line as far away from Harry as possible. Shaking it off, Harry looked back at Kawa who seemed confused by what had just happened. "But yeah, this is pretty normal for things really."

Still frowning, Kawa shrugged it off before realizing that they had reached the head of the line and the girl that they had seen when they arrived was there. "Morning! It's great to see you, um..." For a moment, she blinked. "Do you want to be known as Kawa-San or Yahagi-San?"

With a blink, Kawa frowned. "Um... people have been calling me both. Does it really matter..."

Realizing what she meant, the shipgirl placed a hand to her chest. "Oh, I'm Hayasui, it's nice to meet you. And yes, it does matter as some want to be known by their Natural Born name or their shipgirl name. Whichever it is, we'll call you by it except maybe out on sortie where you'll be called by their shipgirl name."

For a moment, Kawa considered that before slowly nodding. "Well... call me Kawa for now anyways. I'll have to think on that for a bit though." Looking over the food, she felt herself swallow a bit. "So, uh, what's good?"

Softly snickering, Hayasui shook her head. "Pretty much everything. I may be an oiler, but I'm also a good cook. Maybe not to Mamiya-San's standards, but still good if I do say so myself." Glancing around, she leaned in. "Though between you and me, fried foods are where I am really good at."

Blinking, Kawa only nodded and chose some food and left for a table where her new 'Sisters' were gathered. Soon after, she was joined by Harry and the rest of DesDiv6, Tenryuu, and Tatsuta. Maruyu also joined, though she made sure to stay between Kiso and the visiting shipgirls. Taking a bite of her food, Kawa blinked. "This... is really good."

Unable to help herself, Noshiro gave a giggle. "Well, of course it's good! Hayasui-San is an awesome cook!"

Beside her, Agano swallowed some of the food in her mouth and gave a wink. "Though try to keep down the fried food she makes up, it can be pretty greasy."

Not quite sure about the warning, Kawa slowly nodded before she turned to Harry who was munching on some toast. "Harry-Chan? Can I ask you something?" Getting a nod, she continued. "Um, I heard something last night about a special summoning?"

With a blink, Harry looked up at her and frowned for a moment. "Well..." Glancing around, he leaned in towards her. "Don't mention this to anyone off-base, but..."

Launching into an quick explanation, Harry couldn't help but notice Kawa's eyes widen. Once he was done though, she made a "T" shape with her hands. "Whoa there, hold on for a moment, Harry-Chan... Let me get this straight, magic is real, as is wizards and witches?"

Harry slowly nodded, somewhat amused. "That's right."

She then continued. "And they got a culture all their own, which they've hidden by wiping people's memories? Also, you're one of these wizards."

Just nodding, Harry grinned a bit. "That's right." Taking a bite of his toast, Harry gestured with it before swallowing. "And that's why I'm here for a special summoning attempt. Having a wizard causes, um, good sort of things to happen."

Very slowly, Kawa turned to Noshiro who nodded. "He's not lying, um, Kawa-Chan."

Meanwhile, Harry glanced at the clock and began to eat faster as Tenryuu laughed a bit. "Don't rush yourself, Kiddo. We're not going to try the summoning until everyone's done anyways. So slow down before you cause yourself to choke."

Giving her a sheepish grin, Harry shrugged but did as she asked. Once they were all done though, all the shipgirls filtered out to the Summoning Pool and Harry was at the front when a voice caused him to look up. "Hey there, Harry-Chan."

At the sight of the Light Carrier, Harry smiled a bit. "Hiyou-Oba! I didn't know that you would be here!"

With a chuckle, the Onmyouji Carrier shook her head. "Well, of course I would be. I'm actually rather interested in what might happen." Tapping her shoulder, she pointed to another area by the Summoning Pool. "And look who finally decided to show up."

Eyes widening, Harry waved towards the two Fleet Carriers. "Soryuu-Oba! Hiryuu-Oba!"

Said Carriers waved back at him before everyone's attention was grabbed by Shimada who walked to the front. After gesturing to Kawa and introducing her, she then called Noshiro up with the metal box. It was as she opened it that Harry noticed a shipgirl nearby who's clothing made him blink. Mainly because she was wearing half a shirt on one side of her torso with the other side bare except for a band of fabric across her chest, which just preserved her modesty. Catching sight of the same thing, Tenryuu sighed and pinched her nose. "Dammit, Shouhou... you are so lucky that you've never met Arizona."

Thoughtful, Inazuma placed a finger on her chin and looked up. "You know, I wonder what would happen if the two of them ever met."

After a few moments, Hibiki snorted and shook her head. "Da, one may wonder. But I would not want to be too close if it happened."

Everyone within earshot just nodded. A tap on the shoulder caused Harry to turn towards Hiyou who pointed to the Admiral. "Looks like they're starting the ceremony."

Turning in the direction given, Harry nodded as he watched. He did note though that there was a Buddhist monk who stood against one wall nearby though. Normally, Harry would have missed him except for the rather large, beak-like nose on his face. Then the black haired boy shook it off and turned his attention back on the ceremony.

It was then that he felt it.

Suddenly, he felt somewhat drained of his magic as the water began to froth. At the same time, the vial containing the liquid began to glow brighter and brighter as the other vial, containing the crystals, began to also glow as they pulsed as if a heartbeat. Soon, the glow became bright enough that people had to shield their eyes or look away before it faded away.

When everyone could see again, they all leaned forward to see what was on the water. Then they blinked at the sight of several Destroyers Yuugumo class. But it was the two last ones that really caused them to boggle. One of them looked like Shouhou, except in clothing more like Taigei's. The main difference though was that her apron had what looked like a smiling, chibi pheonix on the front. With a blink, she bowed. "U-um, hello there. I'm Tsurugizaki, if you want, I'll take care of any Submarines you have."

However, she froze as she caught sight of an exhausted Shouhou. But not many noticed as they instead turned to an eleven year old girl in a delivery outfit. Oddly enough, she resembled a cross between Kitakami and Ooi which made everyone blink. Then she snapped to a salute with a bright smile. "Kitakami-Maru, reporting and ready to make her rounds! I'll make sure that the supplies get through before they go bad!"

After a few moments, Kiso groaned and pinched her nose. "Arr, I can just see Ooi freaking out..."

 

[darthcourt10]

Harry Leferts

"Mind if I take a seat?"

Jumping a bit, Hanna turned to find Kitakami there beside the bench. "Um, sure, go right on ahead.'

With a sigh, Kitakami sat down and groaned. "Thank you, I needed the break from... all that's going on at the base." At some shouts, she glanced back the way she came and shook her head. "At least Ooichi is enjoying herself."

There was an odd smile on Hanna's face as she glanced to the side. "Right, uh... That's great to hear?" Glancing in the direction of the noise, she frowned a bit. "I would have thought that you would be involved with the chaos."

Humming, Kitakami shook her head. "In all honesty, I'm not one to get involved in that sort of thing. Ooichi doesn't mind much though."

Eyebrows furrowing, Hanna shrugged. "I see..."

Slowly raising an eyebrow, Kitakami had a bemused expression on her face. "Am I making you uncomfortable?" When Hanna opened her mouth, Kitakami continued. "Or is it more Ooichi?" Hanna winced at that which made Kitakami chuckle. "Well, that's to be expected I suppose. I have noticed that you've been avoiding us after all each time you've been in sight of us including on your last visit."

Rubbing the back of her neck, the German let out a sigh. "Sorry, it's just... You know."

Only nodding, Kitakami's lips twitched a bit. "As a matter of fact, I do know. Trust me, we've gotten a lot of comments." Folding her hands, the Cruiser leaned forward and placed her chin on top of them. "We're not actually sisters, you know."

Hanna blinked at that and turned to regard her with a puzzled expression. "Uh, you're sister ships? You kind of are."

If anything though, that seemed to amuse Kitakami even more. "Same class, yes. But I was built in Sasebo Naval Arsenal and Ooichi was built in Kawasaki Heavy Industries in Kobe. There's another reason that we're not sisters though."

Confused, Hanna frowned thoughtfully. "There is?"

Lips twitching as she hummed, Kitakami nodded. "We're actually both Natural Borns, but we're from different families. I have been friends with Ooichi since we were small though."

More then a little surprised, Hanna blinked at that. "I didn't know that!" Becoming more thoughtful, she regarded Kitakami more closely. "Wonder what the odds were..."

Bemused, Kitakami shook her head. "I've never asked."

Tapping her cheek, Hanna glanced around before turning back to Kitakami. "Uh, if you want to know though... it's not really you being, you know. But more that Ooi is..."

Just raising an eyebrow, Kitakami laughed a bit. "Let me guess? It's because of how clingy she is?"

With a wince, Hanna rubbed the back of her neck. "That's one way of putting it, I suppose."

Quite unexpectedly, Kitakami's expression fell a bit. "It is, but Ooichi has good reasons. She's gotten better though and isn't as bad as she was." Seeing the confusion, the Cruiser frowned. For several moments she was silent before she finally sighed. "I've heard through the grapevine that you did not have a good life before..."

Expression turning stormy, Hanna soon shook it off. "No, that's putting it mildly. And I really don't appreciate it bring brought up."

Kitakami nodded at the rebuke. "And I can understand that. But this is sort of... personal, though not a secret." Once Hanna nodded, Kitakami stared off into the distance. "Ooichi and I grew up together, we were as close as two little girls could be. When we were about to take our High School tests, it was discovered that we were Natural Borns, in fact I was Kitakami. At first, Ooichi was devestated until we found out that she was actually, well, Ooi. It meant that we wouldn't be separated."

Frowning, Hanna furrowed her eyebrows. "What happened?"

The Light Cruiser was silent for several seconds before sighing. "My parents were supportive when I stated that I was going to join up. Ooichi's... weren't. They disapproved of it to say the least and gave her a tough choice. One that left her emotionally torn between joining and having me leave without her at my side."

It took a few moments for Hanna to realize what must have happened. "She started to manifest because of..." When Kitakami nodded, the German winced. "That could not have ended well."

Slowly, Kitakami shook her head as she softly spoke. "No, it didn't. Ooichi was in a bad place for a while and it took me some time to bring her back. She was extremely clingy for the longest time and afraid that I was going to disappear from her life, the last anchor she had. Things like the idea that if I got too close to someone else, she might find herself left out in the cold. Needless to say... that caused some rumors to arise. Which she overheard and made people avoid her. Please, don't judge her or me on such, but at least get to know us first."

Quiet, Hanna's thoughts swirled a bit before she nodded. "Very well, I'll try my best."

That got her a small smile from Kitakami before she bowed her head a bit. "Thank you, that's all I ask as Ooichi does get lonely from time to time even if she has me." Suddenly, she clapped her hands. "Anyways! That's enough heavy stuff, how about we talk about some better things! So, how are you liking Japan so far?"

Blinking, Hanna gave her a somewhat amused look before shaking her head. "I've been enjoying myself actually." Sounds of fighting caused them both to turn to see Ooi shouting about how she would defend Kitakami from all comers as she fought several pirate Destroyers. Said Destroyers were shouting about how they were going to capture the Goddess of Oxygen Torpedoes for the booty they could get. Hearing a snort, Hanna glanced to the side to see Kitakami trying not to laugh. "Well, except for the craziness at times."

All Kitakami did was shake her head and smile. "It keeps life from being too boring though."

Sharing smiles, the two turned back to where Ooi was being buried under a bunch of Destroyers, gasping out that she would protect Kitakami to her last. As they watched, Hanna shook her head. 'Harry is going to be so annoyed that he missed this...'

 

[darthcourt10]

Harry Leferts

Hands holding onto his broom as he rose higher and higher, Harry frowned and looked over his shoulder. "You okay there, Zuikaku-Oba?"

Blinking as she snapped out of her thoughts, Zuikaku shook her head. "I'm okay, Chibi. Just... thinking."

With his head tilted to the side, Harry frowned a little bit. "About what? It's just a bit odd not to hear you say anything."

To his confusion, Zuikaku chuckled as they entered a cloud. "I guess that I just want to think." Moments later, the broom burst through it trailing streamers of mist as above them the stars twinkled. Looking around, the Carrier shifted a bit. "You know... I've always wanted to do this."

Frowning, Harry watched her. "Do what? Fly?"

Slowly nodding, Zuikaku grinned a bit. "Pretty much. Always thought that it would be in an airplane, not like... this." Closing her eyes, she let out a soft sigh. "But this is far better."

As he considered this, Harry looked around. "I guess that it is. Though Akagi-Oba was really excited to go up to now that I think about it. And also, um..."

Lips twitching, Zuikaku looked at him. "Also Kaga-San, right?" Getting a sheepish laugh, she shook her head. "Somehow, I am not surprised. Flying is something common to all of us Carriers."

Harry frowned a bit before he nodded. "Because you want to experience what your pilots did, right?"

Tapping him on the head, Zuikaku nodded. "Among other things, yes. All of us Carriers have a love for flying and would love to, well... fly like our pilots." With a smirk on her head, she glanced back to where the base was. "It's why Shoukaku-Nee as well as the others all want to take you for a flight."

Only humming, Harry glanced back as well before slowly turning. "I guess? Though I don't understand why Tenryuu-Oba facepalmed when Souryuu said that she couldnt wait to go for a ride on my broomstick." Hearing a choking sound, Harry frowned at Zuikaku who bit back a groan. "Or why you acted like that..."

Just sighing, Zuikaku shook her head. "It's not important, Chibi. And it's something that you'll learn when you're older..." She didn't finish the rest of the thought. 'Hopefully much older.'

Still confused, the black haired boy soon shook it off before a thought occurred to him. "Oh! By the way, Zuikaku-Oba, do you have a pilot's license? I know that Enterprise does and so does Akagi-Oba..."

Blinking, Zuikaku tilted her head back before finally nodding. "As a matter of fact, I do." With a small smile, she leaned forward. "I actually own an ultralight that I sometimes take up on my days off. I've been trying to get a bigger one though so that I can take Shoukaku-Nee with me on my flights, but..." Shrugging, the Carrer frowned. "That's not going as good as I hoped."

All Harry did was blink at that. "Huh..."

Then Zuikaku reached forward a bit and ruffled his hair. "Ah, don't worry so much about it, Chibi. I've actually got it more in hand. Anyways, since we're talking flight, I got several videos from Kaga-San which had your Quidditch games on them." Seeing his surprised expression, she chuckled. "Yes, she sent some to us. Shoukaku-Nee was really into them, you should have seen her practically bouncing and cheering when you caught that golden... thing."

Raising an eyebrow, Harry snorted at her. "Golden thing? You mean the Snitch?"

Zuikaku grinned and snapped a finger. "Yeah, the Snitch. Anyways, one of these days we got to try and make it to one of your games, I know that Shoukaku-Nee would love it. And we're not the only ones who would love to go to one."

While he grinned, Harry turned the broom in another direction. "Sure! I'd love to have you and Shoukaku-Oba there, or any of the others." Giving it some thought, he slowly nodded. "You know... Dumbledore does have the Portkey and was able to bring Wanko along. It's something to talk to, um, Mum or Teitoku about."

Smirking, Zuikaku nodded. "Sounds good, Chibi. And I'll be looking forward to it." She then tapped him on the shoulder and pointed. "Can we head over in that direction, Chibi?"
After a glance in that direction, Harry nodded and turned the broom in said direction. "Sure!"

The Carrier only smiled a bit as she continued to enjoy the sensation of flight.
_______________________________________________________________________

In the early morning light, Harry waved at the slowly disappearing pier. At the end of it, Kawa waved back as did Maruyu beside her as beside Hibiki's hull, Soryuu smiled from where she was positioned. Looking up at Harry, the Carrier's smile grew a bit. "Hopefully you enjoyed your trip down here, Harry-Chan."

Grinning back, Harry nodded. "Well, yeah, of course I did! It's not often that I get to see you all in person. I loved it actually."

Souryuu blinked and then her smile really brightened. "Thank you, I'm glad to hear that."

Both of them continued to chat as DesDiv6 as well as Tenryuu and Tatsuta continued on their way out of the harbor. Hiryuu also joining in at one point in the conversation. But, all too soon, they had to turn back and allow the Destroyer to continue on their journey. Standing beside Harry, Hibiki raised an eyebrow at him. "Excited to see Jane-Chan again?"

Nodding, Harry let the cool morning air brush past him. "Weirdly enough? I am."

That caused Hibiki to look at him as she furrowed her eyebrows in confusion. "Why would being excited to see Jane again be wierd, Harry-Chan? I thought that you get along with her."

As he chuckled, the eleven year old rubbed the back of his neck. "That's kind of why, Hibiki-Chan." Seeing as she was still confused, Harry grimaced a bit. "I'm... still not used to having someone who's my cousin and doesn't treat me like... you know."

Eyes slowly widening, Hibiki hugged Harry to her surprise. "Jane-Chan would never treat you like he did. You know that, Harry-Chan."

Slowly, Harry nodded. "I know, just like I know that Mutsu-Oba wouldn't treat me like Aunt Petunia. But... it's just sometimes you know?"

Hibiki just blinked, but then sighed. "Da, I know." Looking towards her sisters, the white haired girl shook her head. "I know very well."

The two of them were silent for a bit before Harry suddenly shook his head. "Ugh, I don't want to talk about that sort of thing. Anyways, um, what about..." Needless to say, as he looked around, Harry missed the amused expression on Hibiki's face. Then he spotted something and pointed. "By the way, I've been kind of wondering what that fabric you have on your torpedo launchers is."

Not having expected that question, Hibiki turned to the launcher that Harry was pointing at. The metal tubes that contained the Oxygen torpedoes she had had fabric on top of them which Hibiki slowly nodded at. "That would be the kevlar armor that Akashi-San has started placing on all torpedo launchers for myself and my sisters as a trial run."

Blinking, Harry turned to her in confusion. "Kevlar armor? On torpedo launchers?"

With a small smile, Hibiki shrugged. "Da, it's just a thick layer of kevlar that can be placed on them. It won't protect them against things such as naval gunfire, but Akashi-San thinks that it might protect them against spinter damage or small caliber gunfire. Mainly so that there's less chance of them... blowing up."

Still kind of confused, Harry just scratched his head as he considered what he had just been told. Eventually though, he just gave it up and shrugged. "Cool, I guess." Looking back at them, he frowned a little bit as an idea occurred to him as he remembered the books he read back at Hogwarts. 'I wonder if I could enchant them...'

 

[darthcourt10]

Harry Leferts

The room was nearly pitch black except for a single lamp that shone down onto a desk. Just barely able to be seen in the darkness due to the small amount of light that shone, someone sat with their hands folded in front of their face. "So, he's almost to Sasebo, is he? Harry Potter, son of Nagato of the Big Seven. " Light glinted off glasses as a low chuckle could be heard. "We have much work ahead of us, I suppose. But our purpose is sure and for the greater good. Perhaps, a welcoming commitee is in order... Hmm... So many things to plan, and so little time to do them."

Slowly, the shadowry figure grinned a bit. "Yes, so many things to plan. I'm quite sorry, Harry, but you have no idea what is coming your way. Thankfully, everything is proceeding directly according to the scenarios. And I am looking forward to it. Fufufufufu." All of a suddenly, lights were turned on to reveal Jane Richardson at the desk before she flinched. "ARGH! What the heck!?"

Mutsu just raised an eyebrow as she looked at Jane rubbing her eyes. "Jane... What are you doing?"

Blinking away the spots in her eyes, Jane turned to her and squinted even as spots continued to flash in her vision. "Nothing.... Nothing at all."

Needless to say, Mutsu did not believe her in the slightest. "And I did not just hear you plotting with..." She glanced at the beings on the table and her lips twitched. "Smolzona and Minimu?"

To the great amusement of the Battleship, Jane had an expression on her face as if butter would not melt in her mouth. Something that did not fool Mutsu in the slightest. "I have no idea what you mean, Mutsu-Mama. I was just discussing about how to greet my favorite cousin."

Humming, Mutsu glanced around the room only to come to one part in particular. A part that caused Mutsu to feel a headache come on even as her eyes crossed. "Jane, dear. What have we told you about your shipping charts...?" Then Mutsu blinked. 'Is... is it staring at me?'

More then a little sheepish, Jane glanced at the shipping chart she had set up. "It's not that bad. Besides, can you say that Harry doesn't just ask for a shipping chart to be set up for him? I mean, just look at him! He's like one of those oblivious harem protags!"

For a moment, Mutsu was quiet before looking at the twelve year old girl. "... Jane, honey, I'm not going to ask." Then she turned back to the shipping chart and grimaced. "However, that said, you know the issue people have with your shipping charts."

Scoffing, Jane got up and then walked over to said chart. With one finger, she reached out and adjusted one portion. "I really don't understand what problem people have with them."

Just hissing, Mutsu squeezed her eyes shut and took some deep breaths. 'This must be what sea sickness feels like..." Opening her eyes again, she looked away. "Jane... I don 't know how, but that is making the inside of my bridge itch."

Rather bemused, Jane only hummed and shifted another line which made Mutsu twitch. "You're making a big deal out of nothing, Mutsu-Mama."

Eyes closed, Mutsu shook her head. "Jane? Your shipping charts keep looking at us everytime we see them."

Now extremely amused, Jane snorted. "They don't have eyes, you know."

Grimacing, Mutsu shook her head. "Yes, and? It's still somehow looking at me." Opening her eyes again, she shifted her viewfinders away from the chart. "Anyways, I just came to tell you that Harry's nearly here and Hibiki should be docking in a few minutes."

Head snapping around to stare at the clock, Jane began to rush around and folded up the shipping chart to hide away. "Crud! I lost track of time!" Soon she was running past Mutsu and out the door. "See you at the docks!"

With a sigh, Mutsu shook her head and closed Jane's door before slowly making her own way out of the house. "That girl..."

It didn't take Jane long to reach the docks on her bike. In fact, she reached them at roughly the same time as Harry stepped off of Hibiki and was greeting her father. Needless to say, the last thing that Harry had expected was the Cousin-Seeking Missile that was Jane tackle hugging him. "CUZ!"

Laughing, Harry hugged her right back with a grin. "Jane!" Once they pulled out of the hug, Harry looked her over. "How are things going for you lately?"

Softly snorting, Jane shook her head. "Things are going great actually. You?"

Much to her surprise, he grimaced a bit and glanced around. "Pretty good actually, though there has been some odd things happening." At the confusion, he shrugged. "I'll tell you in a bit."

Just raising her eyebrow, Jane frowned before she snorted. "You better, Cuz." Then she caught sight of Hibiki unsummoning her hull and grinned. "Now that's just awesome, Hibiki! How the heck did you do that?"
With a thoughtful look on her face, Hibiki hummed. "I learned from Mikasa-Sama how to do it."

Intrigued, Jane glanced to her father and grinned a bit. "Any way that any of the girls here might be able to learn it? Because I don't think that Dad would mind much heading out on Mutsu-Mama, Hiei-Mama, Jintsuu-Mama, or Ari-Mama."

All Richardson did was give her a suffering look before he shook it off. He did however glare at Hiei who was snickering. "Anyways, did anyone tell you where you're staying while you're here?"

Harry slowly nodded with a small frown. "I'm staying with you while I'm here. But, um... is..."

Understanding what he was getting at, Arizona sighed and shook her head. "Pennsy decided that she would rather be out on patrol." Seeing him hang his head, Arizona walked over and leaned down as she placed one hand on his shoulder. "Harry, you did nothing wrong. And my sister knows that, she just... wants to limit the chances of something happening by accident."

With a nod, Harry rubbed the back of his head. "I guess..." Then he shook it off and reached into his knapsack and pulled out a box with an ofuda on it. "I made you something by the way, Aunt Arizona."

Eyebrow raising, Arizona examined the box with a small frown. "Oh?"

Nodding, Harry pulled off the ofuda. "Yeah, and before you ask it was being kept magically cold." Moments later, he pulled out a jar full of something and handed it to her. "Here, it's donut butter that I made."

Frozen, Arizona stared at the jar in her hand. "... Donut butter? You don't mean..."

A large smile on his face, Harry nodded. "Yup! Its like peanut butter, but made from donuts. I found the recipe and tried it. It's really, really good and you can spread it on stuff so I thought you might like some." Several moments later though, he tilted his head and frowned. "Um... Aunt Arizona?"

Jane, for her part, blinked and turned towards her father. "Uh, Daddy? Ari-Mama is looking kind of funny. I mean, her eyes are blank and she has a wierd smile on her face."

Snickering, Hiei shook her head in amusement. "Ari is just in her happy place right now, Jane. She'll snap out of it soon enough."

Both youngsters looked at each other in confusion before shrugging. Adults were just wierd at times.
_________________________________________________________________________

Moving back his chair, Richardson watched as Harry and Jane worked together to clean the dishes from dinner. After a few moments though, he raised an eyebrow. "By the way, you were mentioning something out of the ordinary happening earlier?"

With a blink, Harry took a plate from Jane and began to dry it. "I guess?" At the looks, he frowned. "I haven't been getting any mail from my friends over in Britain for a few weeks now."

Somewhat bemused, Jintsuu sipped her drink before raising an eyebrow. "I don't see why that might be odd, Harry. After all, it is summer vacation and it might have just slipped their minds to send you some letters."

However, her smile fell as Harry shook his head. "Um, actually? I've talked with them and they have sent me letters, but I haven't been getting them." Then he tilted his head back and frowned. "And I've sent them letters, but they haven't gotten them."

Now sitting up, Mutsu put it all together. "You think that something is intercepting your mail?"

Only shrugging, Harry's frown deepened. "Maybe? I mean, that's the only thing that makes sense. But since whatever it is doesn't seem to be able to intercept emails or video chats... Maybe it's magical?"

Expression darkening, Richardson shook his head. "I don't think that I like that implication."

Sighing, Harry grimaced a bit. "I don't either, but something is stopping my mail. And, well... I don't know enough to know how or why."

With a glance at her Admiral, Arizona scowled. "Do you think that you're in danger? After the school year you've had..."

To her relief, Harry shook his head, though he looked unsure. "I don't think so. I mean, whatever it is hasn't done anything other then stopping my mail. It's wierd, and Haru-San is keeping an eye out back in Yokosuka, but nothing's turned up. She thinks though that someone is grabbing the letters when they get sorted before being sent off since they're international owl mail."

Looking at him in worry, Jane frowned. "Hopefully that's all it is, Cuz. Because you really don't need a repeat of last year."

Just shuddering, Harry nodded. "I know, trust me on that." Then he shrugged a bit. "But hey, at least I got a bunch of people looking out for me."

A smirk on her face, Hiei gave him a thumbs up. "You bet! And don't worry while you're here. Anything wanting to get to you will have to go through us first."

It went without saying that Arizona's expression turned intense. "Indeed, no one will be getting at you on our watch. You can be sure of that."

His expression softening, Harry nodded. "Thanks, Hiei-Oba, Aunt Arizona. That helps a lot." Turning towards Jane, he suddenly smiled. "Anyways, I brought that photo album that Hagrid gave me. You know, the one with the pictures of my parents in it?"

Brightening, Jane grinned a bit. "Wait, the one with the pictures that move in them?" When Harry nodded, her grin widened. "Okay, once we're done here you got to show me!"

All Harry did was smile at that and the conversation turned to lighter topics.

 

[darthcourt10]

Harry Leferts

Blinking, Harry looked around in confusion. All around him was nothing but complete darkness. And yet, light came from somewhere unseen. He could mainly tell as he was able to see his hand along with the rest of his body with ease. Even though Harry was sure that he was not floating, neither was he certain that he was standing on something either.

After all, he couldn't actually feel anything under his feet, yet swore he was standing on a solid surface.

Needless to say, it was rather unnerving to the eleven year old. For some reason though, he didn't exactly feel panicked. Just a calm, sort of detatched interest. What it reminded Harry most of, somehow, was the dream that lead him to Louisiana. Except now he was himself and he could tell that. Frowning, Harry brought his hands to his mouth and took a big breath. "Hello!"

However, there was no answer and, while he could hear his voice, he could tell that no sound actually escaped his mouth. Trying again got him the exact same thing. A frown on his face, Harry scratched his cheek in confusion. 'Okay... this is a really odd dream.' Suddenly, he felt a pull of sorts and looked around. "What in the world?"

When he felt it a second time though, he realized that the pull was not on him exactly, but through him. And it was then that Harry noticed what looked like a black string coming from his forehead and leading out into the darkness. Somehow, it was darker then the darkness itself though Harry couldn't see where it ended. Just the sight of it though caused him to feel extremely unclean, as if it was violating him in some manner he couldn't quite understand.

Before his eyes though, Harry noticed that what looked like a thicker part of the string was heading for him, pulled along. Part of him though couldn't help but note it resembled something from a cartoon. Like something being sent down a cable. However, he was unable to move and could only watch as the thicker part entered his forehead and he winced at the cold.

Then he felt a burning sensation flow through his body. A sensation that reminded him uncomfortably of what happened with Quirrel when he had grabbed the man. Eventually, it reached a spot on his back and began flowing out. With a blink, Harry twisted around his head to look and noticed a golden string coming from his back and heading out into the darkness. There was a difference between it and the black string though.

Mainly that a short distance from his body, the golden string split into several smaller strands, all going off in a different direction. Frowning, Harry blinked in confusion as he looked at it. "What in the world is that? And why is it coming from my body?"

Feeling the burning sensation continue to leave his body, Harry frowned and then his eyes widened as he noticed that the golden thread seemed to thicken. Slowly, the thicker part moved along like it had with the black string. But, as it reached each "Split" between it and one of the other strings, some of whatever it was containing split off and moved along the split off thread until it vanished into the distance.

It went without saying that Harry was extremely confused by what was going on.

As he continued to examine the thread though, Harry noticed something else. The thread seemed to be fraying ever so slowly. Not so slowly that he couldn't notice, but enough that one could see it happen. In fact, several of the smaller offshoots seemed almost about to snap. And something did tell Harry that eventually they would all snap and the golden string would vanish.

With a glance around him, Harry reached out and placed a finger on a part of the string. Eyebrows furrowing, the eleven year old frowned as an odd feeling rushed through him. For some odd reason, it niggled at his mind, in particular his memories. Something relating to Louisiana, but for the life of him he couldn't figure it out.

Curious, Harry reached for one of the less frayed smaller strings and touched it. For a brief moment, the image of white flames filled his mind. The flames were hot, so very hot that they could melt steel. But despite being hot, painful, they also felt refreshing. As well, there was a song that Harry somehow knew brought tears to his eyes.

Yanking his finger away, Harry blinked away some wetness in his eyes as he continued to stare at the string. Several more of the strings had much the same thing happen which only made him frown in confusion. Following them, Harry blinked though at how he could just make out something in the distance. But then, everything began to fade as Harry realized that he was waking up. Focusing, Harry frowned as he looked at what he had seen and could just see something that was orange.

What the heck was going on...?

Suddenly, Harry woke up in a futon that was set up in Jane's room. The reason for him waking up though soom became obvious as Minmu poked him in the cheek again. "Mu~"

Opening his mouth wide, Harry let out a yawn even as he felt his jaw pop. Closing it, he blinked at the tiny being. "Hmm? Time to wake up?"

Just nodding, Minimu pointed at the clock that was on the wall. Part of Harry noted that the clock was an Ari-Bear one, unlike the Puppy-Yuudachi one he had at home. It brought a smile to his face as he thought what Arizona's reaction to it must have been. What was more important at this time though was the fact that it was just past nine in the morning. The fact that he could see that the futons in front of him were empty as was Jane's bed, told Harry that he was the last one to wake up.

At least, that was what he thought until he tried to move and found that he was trapped by two arms around his waist. Turning his head, Harry could only smile at the sight of the peacefully sleeping Hibiki cuddled into his back. 'Cute.' Suddenly, he frowned a bit at the thought before shaking it off and clearing his throat. "Hibiki-Chan... Hibiki-Chan..."

In response, Hibiki grumbled and pressed her face into his back even more. "Mmpf..."

Biting his lip to keep from laughing, Harry shook slightly. "Hibiki-Chan... It's time to wake up." All Hibiki did though was mutter about it being too early. "It's not that early, Hibiki-Ch-"

Right then, Hibiki opened her sleepy eyes and stared at Harry. Something about her glazed eyes though told him that she was between the world of the awake and the world of dreams. "Harry-Chan... dobroye utro."

Then, much to Harry's shock, Hibiki moved and kissed him on the cheek where she held it for a second or two. "Er..."

With a small smile, Hibiki sighed as she pulled away and snuggled back in. For about twenty seconds, Harry could only feel her warm breath on his neck before suddenly stopped. If it was possible for him to have looked, Harry would have seen Hibiki's eyes snap wide open. Several moments passed before Hibiki went completely red as she realized exactly what had happened. "Um..."

Blinking, Harry furrowed his eyes. "Hibiki-Chan? You, um... awake?"

He could feel her nod very slowly. "Da... I'm awake now, Harry-Chan." Before Harry could say anything though, she pulled away from him and sat up in her pajamas before grabbing her normal clothes. "I'll... let you get changed in here."

And, with that, she quickly left through the door leaving a confused Harry just scratching his head. "I wonder what that was all about?" Then he frowned some as he rubbed his cheek. 'Huh...'

It was several minutes that Harry arrived in the kitchen as he had taken some time to make a note of his dream in his dream journal and found that he was the last one to arrive. Sitting at the table, Hibiki had a small dusting of red on her cheeks until she looked at Harry, only for the dusting to deepen and she looked away. Before Harry could say anything though, Jane practically bounced up and hugged him. "Cuz! You're finally awake." Softly snickering, she gave him a wink. "I thought that you were going to sleep the whole day away."

Glancing at the clock in the kitchen, this one being of Jintsuu as a steel hull and which Harry recognized as an art project she had made, Harry gave his cousin an amused look. "It's not even nine thirty, Jane."

Just giving him a huff, Jane smirked. "Yes? And the ceremony is set for ten-fifteen! We need to get ready!"

Still amused, Harry shook his head and looked over to where Arizona was eating her way through some donuts. Part of him noted though that some of the plain donuts had donut butter spread on them. "Morning, Aunt Arizona!"

The Battleship nodded and gave him a small smile as she swallowed. Using a napkin to pat at her lips, Arizona chuckled lightly. "Good morning, Harry. There's some eggs, bacon, and sasauge for you if you want some."

Catching sight of said food, Harry felt his stomach grumble which got a giggle from Jane. After a few moments though, Harry nodded and made his way over to the bread and took two slices that he placed in the toaster. Seeing the raised eyebrow, Harry grinned a bit. "Just want a sandwich."

Bemused, Arizona slowly nodded at him. "I see." As she continued to eat, Arizona watched as Harry took the two pieces of toast, prepared the toast, before placing the eggs, bacon, and sausage between them. While Harry took a bite of it, all she did though was shake her head. 'I suppose that at least he's not being overly messy.'

For the next half hour though, the room was just filled with conversation between chewing and swallowing. Mainly because every time someone tried to talk with their mouth full, Arizona would give them a look that caused them to become sheepish. Finally though, the group left the Richardson household and got into a transport to the Summoning Room. After all, they all wanted to see what might happen.

 

[darthcourt10]

Harry Leferts

Standing beside Jane, Harry glanced around the Summoning Room. If there was one thing that Harry had noticed, they were always a little different from each other. While there was a "Standard" form to a Summoning Room, there were always little bits that differed between each one. Harry always was rather interested in how they looked and noting the differences.

The usual design for a Summoning Pool was a circular room with a circular hole in the middle of it that was where the actual pool was located. Once, Harry had asked Haru about it, but the explanation flew over his head though it had something to do with how having the personnel standing around all sides causing a "Spiritual Whirlpool". As they swirled, the currents of spiritual and magical energies would be pulled to the middle where the pool was and become concentrated enough to punch through to the other world. Said pool was also always rather deep and used seawater pumped in and out. Stretching out to the middle, there was a small dock with a ladder reaching down to the water. On it, the Admiral in charge as well as those directly involved would stand. As well, another similarity was that each Summoning Pool had candles set up to provide light and incense burning.

From there though, they diverged and each one had it's own "Personal" touches such as it was. The usual ones though were in the types of incense used or the type of candles. Harry had heard that some of the Summoning Rooms in the United States and Canada used something they called 'Sweet Grass' in their ceremonies. Some of the British ones used torches alongside candles to provide light.

The other common one was what naval artifacts were used. Sails from Constitution and Victory were used in the American's and Britain's main ones, while a gun from Mikasa was used back in Yokosuka. Meanwhile, Canada as another example used an anchor from Niobe in their Halifax Summoning Pool. Such items supposedly added spiritual weight to the ceremony.

Beyond that, they diverged even more. Yokosuka's for example, being the one that Harry was most familiar with, had the floor of the pool almost done up as a portrait using cut stone of different colors. Inlaid bits of rose quartz gave the image of sakura blossoms adrift on a wind under the water as behind there was an image of the sea at night. More then once Harry would simply look into the pool and watch as the waves above caused it to shift and distort.

Heck, Janes' had even released a book on it. Jane's All The World's Summoning Pools was a must have for those highly interested in shipgirls... Even though Harry still wondered how they had found out about the one by Hogwarts as shown in the most recent edition, though they didn't add too much information besides it being an "Experimental Summoning Pool" in the Scottish Highlands.

At the moment though, Harry was more interested in the Sasebo Summoning Pool as the ceremony was set up. In various spots, both Japanese and American naval artifacts were with the flags for both nations. But what caught his eye was when one of the technicians flicked a switch and the bottom of the pool lit up. Eyes wide, Harry turned to an amused Jane. "Wait, you guys have spotlights in your Summoning Pool?"

Just nodding as they continued to test the lights, Jane grinned. "Yeah... after the first few times of missing Submarines hiding in the Pool, Daddy had them set up lights. That way, once the ceremony is over they can turn them on and see if there's anyone there."

Nearly as one, Harry and Jane turned to regard Albie who coughed into one hand and looked away as she whistled. Sharing a grin with each other, the two youngsters turned back to the pool. It was then that a cough caused them to turn towards Arizona who was looking towards where Jintsuu brought a metal box up to Richardson. "I am still rather at a loss as to what, exactly, is supposed to happen."

Since Jane turned towards him, Harry shrugged a bit. "It's complicated, but... the stuff in the vials we brought can create a twin to a ship, I guess? Especially if it was a conversion of another ship. In this case, Zuihou over there." They all turned to a shipgirl in a Miko outfit and greyish-brown hair. "From what they told me it's supposed to summon her as if she was a Submarine Tender/Fleet Oiler as she was originally designed."

Frowning, Arizona slowly nodded as she considered what she had just been told carefully. "I see. Hopefully, it does not harm her." At the looks, she gave a small smile. "I've become rather used to her as one of my escorts. Even my sister only grumbles now in regards to her."

That got her nods before Albie pumped a fist. "Oh yeah! A Sub Tender? Now we could use one of those!"

With those words though, the lights dimmed until the only source was the candles which flickered in the small breeze. Turning towards the pool, Harry smiled a bit. "It's starting."

Almost an hour passed before a reaction started which ended as the vials lit up and blinded everyone. Once the light faded though, every one there noted that a lot more then the usual amount of summoning supplies had vanished and turned to the pool. Standing on the water, was a twin to Zuihou. Main difference was though that she wore a seifuku with stockings and an apron on her front with a chibi pheonix. Blinking, she bowed a little bit to those watching. "Hello, I'm Takasaki! I'll help care for any Submarines and I can also act as an oiler!"

Smiling slightly, Richardson gave her a nod. "Allow me to welcome you to Sasebo, Takasaki." Then his eyes were drawn to one of the other shipgirls there and frowned. "And you would be?"

Everyone turned to stare at the new arrival and blinked. For one thing, she was tall and barrel chested compared to most shipgirls. Over a grey shirt with the sleeves rolled up, she wore blue overalls. However, all her clothing was heavily stained as was her tanned skin with oil. Her rigging, such as it was, looked more like a massive hunk of a table that could be hooked together. Another thing that caught everyone's eyes was the mass of tools that hung from her belt as she looked around in confusion and then examined herself. "What in the Hell...?" Hearing Richardson speak again, she stiffened and snapped to a salute. "Sir! USS Dewey, YFD-1 reporting for duty!"

For a moment, Richardson looked confused as he furrowed his eyebrows. "YFD..." Then seeing the surprise in Arizona's face, the rest snapped into place and his eyes widened. "As in the floating dry dock?"

Just slowly nodding, the shipgirl nodded as she continued to look around. "That's right, Sir. Last I remember was sinking after the Japs raised me and..." Spotting the Japanese shipgirls, she froze as her breath caught in her throat. "Sir..."

At the strangled sound, Richardson shook his head. "At ease, Sailor. The war is over and we won. We're now allies with the Japanese so you don't need to worry."

Very slowly, the woman nodded. "I... see..." Then she spotted Arizona and her eyes widened a bit. "Ari? I... is that really you? But I heard that you were..."

Raising an eyebrow, Arizona grimaced. "Sunk?" When she got a nod, she sighed. "I was, but now I'm back as you can see." Arizona's grimace then turned into a smile. "And it's good to have you back. Especially as we have need of someone of your skills now."

Eyes narrowing slightly, Dewey only nodded. "I see..."

Not long after though, Dewey was the only one left standing on the water as the other shipgirls introduced themselves, though RIchardson made sure to have the lights turned on. Once he was sure that there was no Submarines at the bottom, he then raised an eyebrow at Dewey who just stood there. "You can come up onto the dock now." The Floating Dry Dock winced and then muttered something which made the Admiral frown. "I didn't quite catch that."

Her next words though caused him to twitch. "Sorry, Sir, but I can't... I don't have any engines." Utter silence met that pronouncement before Arizona walked over and tossed her a rope that Dewey grabbed. Slowly, the Battleship pulled her until she could reach the ladder and climb up it. Once she reached the top though, Dewey patted her legs and walked around a bit in awe. "I can move around..." Suddenly grinning, she laughed. "No matter what, this is more then worth it."

A hand held out to her caused her to blink and then stare at Richardson. The only thing he did was give her a small smile. "Welcome aboard, Dewey, it's good to have you."

Smiling, she clasped the hand and gave it a shake. "And it's good to be back, Sir."

Much to her embarrassment though, she got a number of cheers before she was lead off by the other shipgirls. Following behind, Harry could only snicker at how Arizona begun speaking with Dewey and commenting on how they could get some donuts at the mess. Something that the Dry Dock seemed rather excited by.