Chapter 2: Familiar Shores

Nomad-117: Tada, the continuation of Big In Japan. Well sort of, not immediately afterwards as you sure will notice. Still hope you enjoy.

Summary: Curiosity lead him here, what better chance to learn about himself, the world he was supposed to live in, and his parents than experiencing it. Of course his new family wouldn't let him wander alone.

"Harry, slow down." Akeno admonished the nine year old from behind and giggled lightly. "Diagon Alley is not going anywhere."

"I know." He sighed as he came to a stop almost jumping up and down on the spot in impatience. "But Agrippa told me much about it… and it's the world my parents lived in." Harry added the last part quietly, his impatience forgotten for the moment. On one hand he hoped that perhaps he would feel closer to his parents when he followed in their footsteps, at the same time he didn't want Akeno and the Gremory's to think that they weren't important to him.

"Don't worry." Rias soft voice told him as her right hand found its place atop of his head and proceeded to tussle up his carefully styled hair. It had taken him over an hour to get his hair to comply instead of sticking out, only for Rias to undo everything in seconds. "We are almost there."

"Rias!" He complained and pulled his head away from her hand, causing the two older girls to laugh. He had long since decided that the two of them were sisters, long lost sisters. If he wasn't so happy about it all, most of the time at least, he would have been almost shocked by how well they got along. "You are ruining my disguise!"

Said disguise constituted of hair that was dyed in Gremory red, as he had dubbed it, and a bit of makeup to cover up his scar, originally a different hair style had also been part of the package, but playful teenage girls didn't go well with his plans apparently.

"I do believe that you current one is still sufficient." Grayfia noted, her red eyes gazing at them seriously though with a hint of amusement at their antics in them. Harry had to admit that she was probably right, even if only because she was undoubtedly going to attract way more attention then he. An attractive, seemingly, young woman walking around in a blue and white French maid outfit tended to have that effect. Truthfully considering all the ordinary people around them staring at her he was surprised that she hadn't caused a traffic accident yet. "I believe we should move, the pedestrian light has been green for quite some time."

Without question Harry began to move, his reasons were twofold, first he really wanted to see Diagon Alley and second even if it sounded like a suggestion it was actually an order. He had no desire to anger Grayfia, she was scary when angry. Sufficiently motivated he almost teleported across the street while the others followed at a more leisurely pace.

"What is the matter with you?" Akeno asked him with a wry grin once she reached him. "Do I have to hold onto you to keep you from moving all the time?"

Harry shrugged unapologetic in reply. "It keeps me warm." Perhaps it hadn't been the best idea for them to visit London near the end of December, but it certainly was much cooler than he could recall. Admittedly his memories might have gotten murked by his stay in the Underworld and their travels all across the world.

"You are cold? Perhaps I-"

"No!" Harry interrupted Rias, having spotted the teasing glint in her and Akeno's eyes from miles away. If he let her finish she would undoubtedly embarrass him to infinity and beyond.

"It appears we have arrived." Grayfia thankfully interrupted them and inclined her head towards their right. Harry had to admit that after seeing the Leaky Cauldron for the first time he was underwhelmed. In Agrippa's descriptions the building had seemed always far more lively and… welcoming. Given that it was protected by magic there really was no reason for them to keep up such a derelict appearance.

"I know Agrippa's last visit was a few centuries ago but… we're sure this is the right place?" Harry couldn't help but question even as he followed the silver haired adult towards the building.

"We're in the right place." Grayfia reaffirmed and sent a small glance at him. "Agrippa and Ajuka both have mentioned that the wizards have their own unique mannerism did they not?"

They certainly had, along with the fact how much they actually admired them for coming up with a magic system that was very much unlike the others. Though they also believed that it was partly to Merlin's research that the wizards were able to do so in the first place. Wishing to distance themselves from the demonic powers their mentor had studied, they did their best to create a set of rules that only incorporated human made spells and rituals, continuing the way humans had practiced magic before the coming of Merlin, although they had refined those ways radically. Given the state of the supernatural world in that time one could hardly blame them from wanting to distance themselves from the slaughter.

With a shrug he opened the door to the pub, accepting the appearance as yet another more mundane safety precaution. A single step inside was all he managed before he froze up, he had the strong suspicion that Agrippa had understated the strange mannerisms of the wizards. Their clothes alone were utterly bizarre, he saw a woman who had a vulture sitting on the top of her hat. He wished he could claim that she was the worst or only offender but there were so many more, and a couple of them walked right past Harry and onto the streets of London.

Grayfia had been stared at because of her unusual outfit and her great beauty, some of the people in here would just be stared at because they dressed like people that were mentally ill. He shook his head, they just needed to get into Diagon Alley through here, nothing more.

"Excuse me, may I help you?" The bartender asked politely and Harry smiled at him in relief.

"We would like to get into Diagon Alley, but…" Harry began to explain but trailed of with a helpless shrug.

"You don't know how? Not to worry young man." The man concluded and smiled at them kindly. "Follow me, this will take but a moment." Thus the four of them were lead into a small walled courtyard, where Harry for the first time since they got here could practically feel the magic in the air. He had begun studying magic once the Gremory's had taken him and Akeno in though he still had a long way to go. Of course that also meant that if even someone as inexperienced as he could sense the magic in the air then there was far more to discover than he had previously assumed.

The Bartender tapped some seemingly random stones on the wall and moved aside allowing them an unobstructed view of the slowly forming archway. Perhaps it wasn't the most amazing thing Harry had ever seen but he could appreciate the ingenuity behind it.

"There you go." The Bartender declared and sent them another welcoming smile. "I hope you enjoy your stay, a good day to you all." They all returned the welcoming attitude and thanked the man honestly before they walked through the archway and into the heart of wizarding London.

The first thing Harry noticed were the amount of people, they were everywhere coming and going from the multitude of shops. Never in his wildest dreams had he thought there be so many of them. And this was only a small fraction of the whole he knew. Now that he reached Diagon Alley he walked forward slowly, turning slowly around himself. Trying to take in everything at once.

Akeno, Rias and Grayfia followed him silently, ever present, but allowing him to explore to his heart's content. Perhaps if he had paid more attention he would have noticed that they seemed well aware of just why this meant so much to him, as it was he was blinded by all the wonders Diagon Alley proudly presented to its visitors.

Admittedly he saw little reason to buy a flying broomstick, and a used one at that but given the amount of children his own age and older pressing their faces against the shop window, he guessed that they must be rather popular with wizards.

Though what interested him more than such things like flying broomsticks, ice cream or joke items were far more practical things, like wands for example. Thus, without even consciously thinking about it, his feet carried him to Ollivanders.

The shop could easily be described as tiny and dusty, as thus his companions and he had little space to move as they took in the thousands of boxes that reached up high to the ceiling. Sensing Grayfia turning to the her left behind him he followed the motion and spotted what had to be the shop owner. An old man with white skin and pale silvery eyes that mustered him intensely.

"I believe you are a bit too young for a wand, Mr…?" The man trailed off, questionably.

"Harry Himejima, it's a pleasure to meet you." Harry replied politely and couldn't help but offer a courteous little bow, all the tedious lessons about etiquette had apparently left their mark on him. He was certain that Venelana would be delighted to know that.

"The pleasure is all mine, Mr. Himejima." The man assured him, his eyes staying fixated on his face. "Garrick Ollivander at your service. Though I must admit that I don't think I have served your family before." Ollivander mused slowly coming towards them. "I do not think that I would have forgotten such an unusual name… nor the presence of devils." The last part was added almost like an afterthought. Yet Harry could feel all three women behind him tense at the words and he could feel the beginning of Grayfia's scary modus appearing, the difficulty to breathe through sheer pressure of power that lashed through the cracks of her demeanor was a dead give away.

The elderly wandmaker was just as much affected as he gulped and turned to face the silvery haired maid. "There is no need for hostility my dear. I just see little reason for you to be here, devils always had little interest in my work."

The suffocating aura was reigned it as quickly as it had appeared as Grayfia gave her neutral reply. "It is true that we have little use for your work, Mr. Ollivander, but the young master has, as such when he entered your abode we followed."

"Ah, so Mr. Himejima is a magician I take it?" Ollivander mused and turned to look at Harry again. "I must confess that they are almost as seldomly interested in my goods as devils are. To my knowledge they prefer to avoid wands for some reason."

"Excuse me, but how do you know all this?" Harry asked and blinked in surprise. "I thought that-"

"We wizards are woefully ignorant about the wider world?" Ollivander teased and let out a snort. "Indeed we are for the most part, but you forget that our separation from other forces was a decision we made willingly and in full possession of our wits. Many old families would be able to find writings of these times if they were inclined to look."

"And what is your view on the matter?" Akeno asked carefully, her violet eyes studying the old human in front of her. "To my knowledge Devils and the like are not welcome in the wizarding world."

"That is true." He confirmed with a shrug. "Though I care little about them myself, they have little use for wands as such I have little use for them."

"Your craft certainly means a lot to you." Rias noted with a wry smile at the answer and seemed to relax, at least somewhat. Harry agreed wholeheartedly with her statement even though he would have chosen the word 'obsessed' himself.

"Of course, what other reason would I have or need to work as a wand maker?" Ollivander asked rhetorically and sent another glance at Harry. "Which is why I have little to offer you, young magician. You have yet to reach the appropriate age to receive a wand."

"Sorry for troubling you, Mr. Ollivander." Harry apologized and took a step towards the door. "We will be on our way then… and I would appreciate it if you were to keep our conversation private."

"Most certainly Mr. Himejima." The elder man agreed to his request with a small smile. "Perhaps you'd be inclined to visit me once you are older. I have the feeling that choosing a wand for you would be an interesting experience."

"I'll see what I can do in regards to that." Harry told him with a quick smile and tried to look as dignified as possible as more or less fled from the shop. He couldn't help but be slightly creeped out by the sheer interest Ollivander had shown in him, or rather in choosing a wand for him really. His companion followed him far more leisurely and in amused silence. "I get that he likes being a wand maker, but doesn't he seem creepy to you?"

"No, Harry, I am certain he just loves his work, you can't fault him for that." Akeno said a teasing note in her voice. "For shame, he was so eager to serve you once you are the appropriate age and here you are, complaining about his kindness."

"Truly shameful, if my mother were to hear such a thing…" Rias trailed off, a grin playing at her lips as Harry whirled around to stare at her.

"Please don't, she'll give me even more lessons on etiquette than she already has!" Harry pleaded with her, eyes wide and innocent.

"Not to worry young master, I shall be the one to inform Mistress Venelana of your antics." Grayfia assured him, the playful glint in her red eyes impossible to miss. Though any hope he had of it being nothing more than a jest faded when he spotted the serious intent beneath her mirth.

"I'll leave it to you then." He agreed weakly, knowing that resistance was futile at this point. He could practically feel the amusement radiating of his two sisters at that point but decided to ignore it. If he was foolish enough to give them an opening he wouldn't hear the end of it.

"Now, now Grayfia. I think we can let him off just this once." Rias spoke up and he nearly broke his neck with how quickly he turned towards her. "After all he was perfectly courteous with Mr. Ollivander, despite the latter unsettling him as much as he did."

"I shall take it into consideration." Grayfia neutrally replied, her face a mask of cool indifference. Though Harry thought he saw her giving him a slight nod in response to his hopeful glance. Perhaps it was nothing more than wishful thinking but for the moment that was enough for him.

Mouthing a quick thank you at Rias he caught her giggle at his relief. He knew that he was being overdramatic, the lessons, while incredibly boring to him were not actually that bad, and truth be told nowhere near as bad as what Rias had had to go through. Being the heiress of the Gremory clan her lessons were far more intense than his own were. Coupled with the other responsibilities she was burdened with he certainly didn't envy her position.

Still he was grateful for her intervention, as he led them past a shop called Madam Malkins and towards one that was called Flourish and Blotts, a bookshop from the looks of it. He was reasonably certain that he would be able to find a book about magical Japan for his Japanophile sister.

It was only once he began to browse through the books that he remembered that they lacked the appropriate currency to pay for them. As he was about to mention as much he noticed that the three of them were alone as Grayfia had disappeared.

"She went to Gringotts to change some money." Akeno told him when she noticed his confused glance. "You didn't even notice, did you? Tsk, once you set your mind to something there really isn't much anyone can do is there?" It was true, he was known to ignore the world around him once he had become sufficiently interested in something. A whole shop filled with books he never even dreamt of reading would certainly suffice. "Just remember to get something for yourself as well." Akeno reminded him and waggled her index finger at him chiddingly. "I know you mean well but don't get us something if you don't have something for yourself."

"That obvious?" He couldn't help but ask with a pout as being so transparent.

"To me you certainly are, though I don't think Rias has seen through you just yet." Akeno told him with an impish grin. "Have you already decided what to get me, hmm?"

"Not yet, for Rias I figured something about magical Japan, for Grayfia… I think she would like a few children books for Milicias." He didn't miss how Akeno's smile became positively devilish at his last words as he went on. "As for you…"

"Don't worry, I'll check the adult section for some… interesting reading material." She chuckled at his disgusted grimace before she leaned in smile still present on her face. "Just don't be too surprised at some of the childrens books, okay?" With those ominous words she disappeared into the adult section of the shop, leaving Harry to figure out what she meant by that. Deciding that it was probably best to get it over with as quickly as possible he marched towards the children's book section and began to look for what had amused Akeno so much.

It didn't take him long to find and his eyes almost bulged out of his head. Harry Potter and the Unicorns, Harry Potter and the werewolf's curse, the list went on but apparently there was an entire series about his alleged childhood adventures. Although he was rather certain he would be able to remember fighting giant spiders known as Acromantula, or meeting fire breathing dragons.

To be fair the last one wasn't that much of a stretch, he was rather certain that Tannin would count as a dragon despite the fact that he had been reincarnated as a Devil. He couldn't stop himself from letting out a bitter snort. These books heralded him as some kind of hero or even saviour. They ignored the fact how much he suffered in the earlier years of his life or that he lost his parents that night. Only he miraculously survived, and thus everyone assumed he had vanquished a powerful wizard without leaving his crib.

He assumed if he possessed some kind of Sacred Gear it might have been possible, but he lacked such a power. He was certain that it was his parents who had somehow saved him that night, and thus destroyed the man known as Voldemort at the cost of their own lives. Agrippa had warned him that he was famous within the wizarding world, but he had never expected this amount of idolisation. He had never felt more grateful for the disguise he had chosen to employ than he did now.

The thought of all the witches and wizards he had met previously, staring at him, or even worse coming towards him and asking for autographs and the like was sickening to him. With a shake of his head he left the children's book section and allowed his feet to carry him wherever they wanted.

His mind was still stuck on his apparent fame in this world. How was he supposed to deal with that, he wondered. A part of him wanted to just leave the entire wizarding world behind, but the rest still wanted to learn all what it could offer him, and what he could learn about his parents as well. Deep in thought he pulled out a book from the shelves and began looking it over without really seeing it.

"You like dragons?" The voice startled him out of his brooding and he turned to look at the speaker. A voiced eyebrow was the only sign of his surprise as he saw the size of the speaker. Standing twice as tall as the average human and three times the width he was certain to stand out, which made Harry secretly wonder just how the man in question had managed to surprise him.

"Excuse me?" He asked confused at the sudden question, and because he truly had no idea where the stranger had gotten such an idea from.

"Oh… I thought the book…" The man sheepishly trailed off, his long shaggy hair and beard unable to cover his embarrassment as his dark eyes seemed to dim somewhat.

Harry looked down and finally understood what the man had meant, in his brooding he had picked up a book about dragons, an encyclopedia by the looks of it. He chuckled softly and shook his head. Now that he thought about it, it would indubitably be fascinating to read what the wizarding world thought about the likes of Tannin and other prominent dragons. Returning to the matter at hand he smiled at the man who had begun to slowly shuffle away. "I do." He said confidently, and decided to lighten the mood somewhat. "I always wanted a pet dragon."

"Really?!" Harry swore the man's eyes lit up like fireworks at his declaration as he grinned down at him. "I wish I had a dragon too!" Wait, what? Harry couldn't help but think confused as his joke was taken seriously and the man went on. "Though I guess you'd have to hatch them. Otherwise they won't trust you."

Deciding to change topics quickly before things could get more awkward Harry bowed lightly in the man's direction and offered his hand. "Harry Himejima, it's a pleasure to make your acquaintance."

The mans hand engulfed his entire arm as he returned his handshake. "Rubeus Hagrid, keeper of keys and grounds of Hogwarts." The giant introduced himself with obvious pride.

"You work in Hogwarts?" Harry asked surprised before he could stop himself. "I heard it's one of the best wizarding schools in the whole world."

"I do." Hagrid reaffirmed with a proud smile. "And you heard right Hogwarts is the best as far as I'm concerned. Though… you look a bit young for a first year."

"I-" Harry paused at that, he was curious about the wizarding world, he was curious about his parents, but asking about the latter would undoubtedly draw attention to himself. Attention he himself would most certainly not welcome. Still, he had never considered attending a wizarding school, let alone Hogwarts before. "No, I'm still too young I'm afraid to say." He settled on saying and grinned up at Hagrid.

The keeper of keys had given him an idea. What was to stop him from attending Hogwarts after all. Rias wanted to attend school in the human world, in Japan true, but what difference did it make whether he was in Japan or England. At the end of the day his home was in the Underworld, so the distance didn't really matter.

"Oh… well perhaps I'll see you in a couple years then?" Hagrid asked with a kind smile.

Harry nodded in response, his mind already trying to come up with ways to convince his family to let him go. "I'd like that." He told Hagrid honestly, as he took the book with him. "Goodbye, Hagrid. I'll see you in a few years."

"Uh… bye." Hagrid called after him, obviously confused by his sudden shift of demeanor and departure. Harry was so preoccupied with his thoughts that he didn't notice until far later that he had absentmindedly bought a guidebook about magical Japan for Rias, a couple of Harry Potter's Adventures books for Millicas, as well as a book of… questionable content for Akeno. It was only that when they returned to their hotel that Akeno poked him in the side.

"What are you planning this time?" Akeno asked him with a teasing grin. "Don't tell me you want to prank Grayfia again?"

"No!" He denied immediately and shuddered. Once was more than enough, he had learned his lesson well. "I… I want to go to Hogwarts." He eventually told her and watched as her expression became concerned. "I know, I know but… before today I didn't even think about it, but now it just seems… like a waste not to, you know?"

"You'd be gone for most of the year." Akeno noted quietly, but said nothing more whether it be encouraging or not.

"Yes… but I thought with you and Rias planning to enroll somewhere in Japan-"

"We wanted to ask you if you'd like to come with us." Akeno revealed and pulled him into a tight hug.

"Oh…" He muttered lost for words and blinked. "Well… I mean I'm still too young anyway so… I could come with you… and maybe I won't even wanna go in a few years anyway."

Akeno shook her head at that and ruffled his hair. "No, you'll still want to go. Just promise me you'll call, write and visit us whenever possible."

"Of course." Harry agreed immediately and leaned into her touch. He could understand her apprehension, for a long time they'd only had one another. Now they were essentially part of the Gremory family, but the scars of the past wouldn't disappear so easily.

Harry was sure he would worry about her till the day he died… and probably afterwards as well. But that's what it meant to be family, didn't it?

Author Notes:

Nomad-117: Well that just happened, honestly I had no plans at all for this story. Didn't even think I would write it anytime soon, but you guys know how it is. Some days it just falls into place and you wanna write even if you don't have a plan.