CHAPTER 21:

DIPLOMACY

Five months since the Gate opened…

Harry had to admit, Kouji Sugawara was one hell of a smooth operator. Then again, considering he was Japan's ambassador to Falmart, he'd have to be. Sugawara managed to be diplomatic without being oleaginous, an astonishing feat, and was smart enough to deal with the likes of Lord Cicero. Didn't help that he was a handsome man too. He had been a Foreign Affairs official who had liaised with Pina and Bozes during their initial trip to Japan.

Lord Cicero was one of the war hawks of the Senate, albeit one who was known to be a pragmatist. Pina, Sugawara, and with them, Harry and Tyuule, were currying his favour, as a prelude to overt peace talks. And to this end, they were hosting this shindig at Pina's palace. Aside from using the meals as a means of lubricating the diplomacy, the JSDF were intending to make some demonstrations of their weapons, as a lesson.

Hermione and Lelei were also on-hand to help explain some things, along with the 3rd Recon Team. Indeed, one of the 3rd Recon Team, a talented cook by the name of Private Furuta Hitoshi, was one of the main cooks for the event. Apparently he had his dream of opening his own restaurant one day, and had been a chef for a prestigious restaurant until he got into a quarrel with an obnoxious relative of the owners that led to him being fired. The way he cooked Ma Nuga meat was proving to be a hit. Hitoshi had also recently entered into a relationship with Parna, who was running the tavern in Alnus Town. Tyuule, oddly enough, felt a strange sort of kinship with Furuta, a sort of sense of déjà vu.

Harry also learned more about Itami's past as the Japanese soldier got more comfortable with him. Apparently his father was abusive towards his mother, and it only worsened when his father learned that his mother had been a Squib, calling her an evil witch who had somehow controlled his mind using potions. Itami's mother killed Itami's father in self-defence, and then tried to kill herself by immolation after her sanity eroded. She was sent to an asylum, and had remained there ever since.

The Flame Dragon's head now had pride of place near Alnus, with pictures taken and dropped as leaflets throughout the Saderan Empire. Propaganda, of course, and one of the oldest kinds of propaganda, but ridiculously effective. Molt was under pressure to at least treat with the Japanese, but he was prevaricating. Given that the Japanese hadn't actually launched any incursions into his lands, he probably hoped that he could muster up an army to take them down, or at least drive them back through the Gate. Or maybe he was just trying to think of what he could offer the Japanese to get them to fuck off. Downplaying everyone else's involvement but Lelei's had been an interesting bit of propaganda from the monarch.

Trade of certain resources aside, the Japanese didn't want to conquer, as far as Harry knew and hoped. Then again, most of the Japanese he had met were the members of the JSDF, and most of them were not too bad for military types. Then again, the JSDF hadn't really fought a war before. Who knew what the politicians were thinking, and how many of them thought along similar lines like Yanagida?

And there were the international personnel who had come through. While many, Harry was sure, were here for genuinely decent reasons, he couldn't help but be suspicious of a few of them. The JSDF were keeping an eye on them, though.

By now, Pina was aware that Harry and Tyuule headed up Asterix. They knew by now that she was enough of an ally to them to risk admitting that. Which was why they were at this party. Officially, they were here to curry Pina's favour for revising parts of the treaty between the Bunny Warriors and the Empire. Unofficially, she was liaising with Asterix. Pina's views on slavery had taken a change for the better, thankfully. But given how a good chunk of the economy of the Empire was based on slavery, well, it'd be hard to change it.

"Do you think these demonstrations would help?" Tyuule asked.

"I hope that it does," Pina sighed, watching as assault rifles demolished a veritable wall of dummies dressed in the armour of the soldiers of the Imperial Army. "Already, the human cost of this conflict has been too high. My father is hoping that, once he rebuilds the army enough from levies, he can launch some sort of counterattack. Cicero and Casel are the key. Casel already has support for bringing about peace, especially with the Thierry line, but Cicero is the one the hawks listen to for the most part. Diabo can help as well."

Harry looked over to where Diabo Sol Caesar stood, watching the weapons demonstrations with concern. The handsome, if shifty-looking and pensive blonde-haired young man had a vaguely Pettigrew vibe to him, which had Harry ill at ease. Pina had said that they could trust him to a point: his ambitions had him desiring the throne, but Diabo had hinted that he would support Pina in her own bid for the throne, as long as he had a prominent enough position in her government. However, they also knew that, should Zorzal take the throne, Diabo would probably go into hiding.

"Any further news on what Zorzal has been up to?" Harry asked quietly.

"No. Ever since the body of the Piper was found outside his palace, he's become more reclusive," Pina said. "However, he's been seen in the company of strangers, and not demi-humans from the Haryo either."

"That's the problem," Tyuule said, closing her eyes. "A quiet enemy is a dangerous one. They're plotting or preparing. And one seen in the company of strangers. Were they mages?"

"They could have been, but my spies have been silent, either in fear of their lives, or else something else."

"So have ours," Tyuule said. "We just hoped you might have some information. The Japanese were considering putting a spy into Zorzal's household, but I'm worried that Zorzal will probably find out who it is and kill them. Assassinating Zorzal is a last resort, as we're trying to look for peace, and Zorzal being assassinated may just make Molt fight a war to the bitter end, even if he dies in the process. Personally, I don't care less about his fate, as cruel as that sounds Pina, but the citizens of the Empire and its vassal states are another matter, and they'd get caught up in it."

"I despise politics," Harry said, wrinkling his nose in distaste. "It always complicates things. All this?" He indicated the weapons demonstrations, which had gone on to showing off mortars. "In a way, it's a form of arm-twisting to get you to come to terms. If the Japanese or its allies wanted, they could try exploiting this world. For all I know, they may still do so. I'm hoping that won't be the case, but…as well-meaning as Itami and Hazama are, I've experienced too much of the greed of people back home to believe that it won't happen." Then, after a moment, he smirked. "Oh God, look at poor Sugawara. He's got a fangirl."

Tyuule and Pina looked over at Sugawara, who was fending off the advances of a girl of about twelve or so, at least half his age if not more. Pina tittered. "Lady Sherry of the Thierry family," she remarked. "She's quite fascinated with the cultures of Earth. Must be infatuated with Sugawara. Poor man. Still, despite her youth, she's actually very intelligent. Her family have been teaching her about the local politics."

"Yes, I met her before," Harry said. "Kept pestering me for questions about Britain."

"Better her than some of those journalists we met at Alnus," Tyuule said. "Who was that rather annoying Japanese man?"

"Oh, you mean Kazunari Komurazaki?" Harry asked. "Yeah, I heard about him from Kuwahara. Never thought I'd meet a journalist who makes Rita Skeeter look desirable until I met him. How the hell he got allowed here, I don't know. He's more of a paparazzi than a serious journalist. Shino's little sister is much better, even if she's skittish."

"The downside of freedom of speech," Pina remarked. "Still…they would never have had such things as manga without it, I am sure." She blushed a little. "Bozes and I are enjoying the latest issue Risa translated for us."

Harry chuckled a little. "Yaoi's not actually my thing. Still, there's quite a few works of literature I'd be glad to have translated into your language."

"Hermione's been doing so," Pina said. "She sent me a number of works about the Roman Empire of your world, and discussed the theory she had about our descent from a Roman group, not to mention a number of novels. There was one about a great empire and a desert world called Dune, and another called Guards! Guards!, a humorous one, apparently." She then frowned as Itami spoke into his radio urgently. Then, he began calling out for an evacuation.

Harry, Tyuule, Pina and Diabo hurried down from the balcony and headed for Itami. "What's the matter?" Pina asked.

"I dare say someone has let slip our presence to the Emperor or to Zorzal," Diabo remarked. "Marx, no doubt, that conniving snake." He said that without any real irony, despite his own love of plot and conspiracy.

"Got it in one," Itami said. "Archer's just radioed, apparently Zorzal's on his way with five of his cronies. Pina, we can explain your presence here, but Diabo…"

"Yes, I understand. Zorzal may think we're plotting against him," Diabo said. "What about Lady Tyuule and her consort?"

"Portkey," Harry said. "We'll head to Alnus for now. We wanted to talk to Hodor and Tuka about rebuilding their village, now that the Flame Dragon is dealt with."

Having arrived at Alnus, Harry and Tyuule walked down the streets of the settlement. "I don't like this, what we heard from Pina about Zorzal's household," Tyuule said quietly.

"Why did you ask if they were mages?"

"Think about it. Malfoy warned us about a possible plot by mages from your world infiltrating this one, to avenge themselves on you. Zorzal would listen to them, especially if they offered a way to deal with you," Tyuule said.

"Shit…and they wouldn't care about plunging Falmart into a state of war," Harry said grimly.

"They'd probably relish in it, and set up Zorzal as their puppet in the aftermath," Tyuule said. She looked back at the base. "While they wouldn't be able to stand against all the armed forces of your world…a small contingent of the JSDF would be easy."

"The problem is, if the Haryo are helping Zorzal…Purebloods tend to hate non-humans too. They wouldn't work together, unless it was temporary."

"That may be all they need. They'd probably try to kill each other once they had what they wanted…but that would mean so many people have died in the process before then." Tyuule scowled. "The problem is, being proactive while the Empire and Japan are moving towards peace talks may disrupt them."

"…Wait," Harry muttered. "I think I may have a solution, a fairly simple one. We do have one possibility to use as a spy, beings that are good at staying hidden until they are needed."

"Hmm?"

"Winky?" Harry called out. The House Elf appeared with a pop in front of him. "Winky…I have a job for you. It's going to be dangerous and difficult, but we need you to do this…"

Not long afterwards, they were in the tavern Parna ran, the dark-haired Bunny Warrior taking to her new line of work with aplomb. She and another called Griine were tending the bar. Meanwhile, Harry, Tyuule, Luna, Hodor and Tuka were speaking. "We've chosen another site not far from where our old village used to be," Hodor said. "We've already dug another well, and it's giving a good supply of water. We'll be rebuilding there in earnest soon. The JSDF have offered some of their building supplies. Some we have accepted, some we have not. We need only tools and supplies that work with our way of building. As wonderful as some modern amenities are, we have lived our way for a long time without the need to do things the way many Humes do. Your Majesty, I am truly grateful to you to helping our people in their time of need in what ways you could."

"Hodor, that's perfectly fine," Tyuule said. "Your people are always welcome with us. That being said, we'll need to be careful. Zorzal may act against any allies of the JSDF or my people, and that means you may be targets."

"We've known that for some time, Your Majesty," Tuka said quietly. "We know he's the sort not to leave us in peace, despite the fact that we have done little to the Empire. But while we love peace, it doesn't mean we won't fight."

"Good. To be peaceful is laudable. My people are warriors, but we do not seek battles for the sake of slaking a thirst for violence," Tyuule said. "But one must be prepared to fight for what one holds dear."

At that moment, Hermione and Lelei entered. "Harry? Everyone managed to get away from Pina's palace without any hassle. Oddly enough, Private Hitoshi's way of cooking Ma Nuga proved to be a hit with Zorzal. Itami's going to be staying in Sadera for a little while, though. But when he gets back, well…"

"I would like the Third Recon Team, along with anyone else willing, to accompany me to Rondel," Lelei said in her usual quiet monotone. "I have spoken with Master Cato, and we have agreed that I can sit for an assessment to ascend to the rank of Master."

"At your age?" Tyuule asked. "I mean, I'm sure you have the ability, but it's rare for someone your age to ascend to such a rank. Are you prepared for this?"

Lelei nodded.

"Well, I think it's past time I visited Rondel anyway," Tyuule decided. "We generally do not visit there, due to the lack of mages amongst our number. I'll bring the children and either Delilah or Mydia. And maybe we can say hello to your sister, Lelei."

Lelei's mouth just thinned ever so slightly, and Harry knew that this was going to be a somewhat fraught reunion. Hopefully, it wouldn't be anything worse than that…

CHAPTER 21 ANNOTATIONS:

Yeah, he's just jinxed himself. Next chapter, Rondel!

Now, I'm considering doing a couple of more GATE fics. Aside from a non-Potterverse crossover, I'm considering a Potterverse crossover, potentially based on my own 'Harry Mercury' challenge, or another one I can adapt. The pairings will probably shape how I do the story, and how old Harry is, but I don't want to do an also-ran of this story. So, I'm going to ask what characters from the following Harry should be paired with. I'm strongly considering Lelei, Delilah (as a main pairing), Yao, Myuute (the Siren girl), Norra/the Piper, or Pina. Leave your comments in the reviews on it, and yes, multiple pairings are allowed, as long as they are of a compatible age (I'm not pairing, say, Delilah, the Piper or Yao with a teenaged Harry).

Review-answering time! A Fan: I vaguely recall reading somewhere that in fact, the English form of Al Bhed uses Welsh pronunciations for some letters or syllables, though I can't swear to that, as it doesn't say that on the wiki.

No numbered annotations this time.