Chapter 2: Realisation

"VIRGILIA!" Battler flew up from his seat, so shocked that he didn't even spare a thought for the elderly man beside her. He tried rubbing his eyes to check if he was just seeing things. However, it didn't work. Virgilia was still there, the next time he checked.

"Eh? Battler onii-chan, is that a friend of yours? She looks nice…" Ange gazed innocently and trustingly at the silver-haired witch in front of her. She looked so familiar, as though she had met her in a previous life.

"Battler-kun, what kind of unsavoury crowd have you been hanging out with?" Rudolf asked of his son, who was currently staring fish-eyed at the witch. His practical words broke into the surprise-induced state of shock Battler was in. After blinking a few times in an attempt to get a hold of himself, he steeled his nerves (reminding himself that he was a proud Ushiromiya, and the Ushiromiya family never fainted due to witches appearing in front of them) and finally spoke.

"Virgilia… what on earth are you doing here?"

"Ah, Battler-kun. It has been a long time. How are you?"

"Quit the formalities, Virgilia. Exactly why the hell am I here, as a piece on whatever idiotic game board this is, and not acting as a player? What twisted thing did Bern or Lambda do? Answer me!" An enigmatic smile was Virgilia's only reply.

"Peace, child. How about we sit down here and share some delicious tea? Your nerves must be frayed from the shock of adapting to a new kakera. However, you have managed reasonably well, regarding the fact that you have only spent a few earthly hours here." Virgilia held out the palm of her hand, and with a slight golden sparkle, a tea set appeared. The man next to her, who Battler had not noticed up until now, chuckled at the sight.

"Now, now Madam, you must remember that there are Muggles in the direct vicinity. I am sure they are wondering how you managed to succeed in such a miraculous feat." Dumbledore's eyes twinkled at the spectacle of Rudolf and Kyrie's shocked faces. The two quickly recovered from their shock, however, and Kyrie's mind was already whirring. Virgilia glanced upwards from her tea-making (the tray hovering, unsupported in the air), and spoke.

"Ah, Kyrie-san, would you like to say something? Perhaps you are turning the chessboard even now."

The ever-practical Kyrie didn't look at all shocked by Virgilia's recognition of the way she thought. As Virgilia had predicted, she really had been doing that. So far, the opponent's goal seemed to be to shock them. However, the few words they had spoken had shown great familiarity, closer than just mere acquaintances of Battler. Turning the chessboard over, why on earth would anyone go to such lengths to show a magical illusion as to dress up in Victorian clothing and turn up on their doorstep? And why was Battler playing along? At that point, Kyrie's deductions reached an abrupt halt. None of what she had observed made sense. With a sigh, she addressed the silver-haired witch.

"I don't understand what's going on, but the least I can observe, Battler's rather close to you, right?" Virgilia nodded, as though she had been expecting that answer.

"We should first sit down, and discuss this in a sensible manner. Some tea, perhaps?" A fragile-looking golden teacup hovered directly in front of Rudolf's face, causing him to jolt a little in surprise.

"V-Virgilia, what on earth is the meaning of this?!" Battler roared, shaking the piece of parchment in front of the witch's face, as though it contained a personal insult. "Hogwarts school of Witchcraft and Wizardary?! What the hell is this crap? Are you just messing with me?!" A teacup, which had been on his lap before he had flown up in such a fury, fell to the floor, but before it could crack, turned into a golden butterfly and returned to Virgilia's palm.

Both Virgilia and the old man gave him one of these annoyingly patient, belittling smiles. The man stood up gracefully, speaking up for the first time since his comment about 'Muggles'.

"I assure you, Ushiromiya-san, this is no trick. I myself, Albus Dumbledore, am the principal of this extraordinary school." Dumbledore spoke surprisingly good Japanese for a foreigner. Pausing for a moment to digest this statement, Battler sat back down, legs crossed.

"How the heck am I supposed to believe you?"

"There is an entire magical community hidden away from the eyes of the general public. As soon as we can, I must arrange an escort to show you through the main shopping district."

"Wait." Kyrie spoke up. "Even if this 'magical community' you speak of did exist, how come we've never heard of it? Logically, the welfare officers would come pester us if they discovered that we could not answer to Battler's whereabouts. Wouldn't there be a huge uproar if it was discovered that a few hundred children had gone to a 'boarding school' which had never been heard of? How come the government has never noticed? If we turn the chessboard around, your motives seem to be similar to those of kidnappers. Lure a child away with 'magic,' and send them to a place no one can be sure exists."

Virgilia held up a hand to silence her. "If we must use logic to debate this, I suppose I shall help you settle the matter. Your theory is like Schrödinger's cat box. Your truth, if I do not mince it, is that we are trying to kidnap your son. Our truth is that we are trying to send your son to our highly reputable school. Therefore, to end this debate, we will peer inside of the cat box. What you believe is that the cat is dead. What we believe is that it is alive."

"How would you manage that?"

"Simple." Virgilia smiled. "Take my hand."

Warily, Kyrie stretched out her hand towards Virgilia's. Looking at Battler, Rudolf and Ange (the latter had been forgotten) she seemed to consider for a moment, before offering her other hand to them.

"It wouldn't be overly magically draining to take you three along with me as well." As she was speaking, her fingers somehow managed to connect with the others' outstretched hands. Nodding at Dumbledore, she asked of him to do the honours.

"Certainly shall, Madam Virgilia." Turning to address Battler's family, he continued. "We will be using Apparition to reach our destination, so do not feel alarmed at any uncomfortable sensations you may experience." Kyrie looked chary at the last statement, glancing at the old man's glittering eyes behind the spectacles. As wise as Dumbledore looked, Kyrie felt as though she couldn't very well trust him.

Normal magical courtesy demanded that witches and wizards Apparate a good distance away from Diagon Alley, such as just outside the Leaky Cauldron. This was to prevent any accidents, and in times of strife, offered a little security. In fact, Harry was sure Diagon Alley had the same spell cast on it as for Hogwarts. He was therefore, reasonably surprised to see an odd ensemble appear right in front of his eyes. He was also surprised after recognising a few people in the group.

"Oh, Harry Potter! Pleased to meet you again. I'm sure you recognise Professor Dumbledore." Virgilia smiled and curtseyed. "The other four people are of a muggle family of whom their son will be attending Hogwarts." At that she paused, and addressed the gathered group (four of whom who seemed to be in a state of shock) in Japanese.

"As the magical community around these parts speak mainly in English, a temporary language charm will be cast. Do any of you have questions?" As the four in front of her shook their heads dumbly, Virgilia waved her wand, four golden butterflies appearing in her hand as brooch-like objects. "While you wear this, everything you say in Japanese will be translated and rendered into English to the listener. Everything anyone else says will be rendered into Japanese."

Dumbledore smiled. "Really, Virgilia, I wonder if this boy will have the same fascination of golden butterflies as you do." Turning to Harry, he continued. "I was wishing for you to guide this boy around Diagon Alley. I've heard that there is a need for boys of a similar age to associate in preparation for forming new friendships at a new school."

The hustle and bustle of Diagon Alley reached the ears of yet another person. Lucifer, the embodiment of pride itself, felt that her ruling passion had experienced a huge denting. Cursing Ronove with all her might, she walked on. Why was she cursing Ronove? Because that stupid butler had to make everything he offered her sound like a favour, condescension on his behalf. She had agreed to stoop as low as to become a human piece in this particular kakera, for her Battler-sama's sake, but his offer of changing the colour of her eyes… he used that tone, the tone that made her feel as if she was about to ask for a petty little thing! The nerve of him! However, she was now regretting refusing him due to the many curious stares she received, since awakening in the queer old bar. The 'Leaky Cauldron' it was called. Upon attempting to exit to where she felt a pulse of magical power, a brick wall barred her way. How much more insulting could this day get? Glaring at the wall, with a look which would normally have crumbled it to dust, but instead caused it to calmly and exasperatingly open and reveal a street filled with quaint shops, Lucifer growled, lips pulled back into a snarl.

Had Ronove arranged this entire discourteous expedition?

Pulling a letter from a pocket of her cloak (thankfully, she hadn't woken up wearing her uniform), she reread the contents. Addressed to Lucy Fay, her alias for the time being, it was an invitation to the Hogwarts school of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Apparently, Madam Virgilia had arranged for Battler-sama to be sent into this exclusive school, while she would also attend for his protection. How she could possibly protect him was beyond her, having lost all her powers as a Stake of Purgatory in this kakera. Ronove had vaguely mentioned something about her becoming a medium to summon other furniture. How crude! A medium to summon other furniture?! She was one of the most powerful demons, the eldest Stake of Purgatory, and there that stupid butler was, lowering her status to one of a medium!

Sighing in exasperation, she examined the lower portions of the letter. Ronove had arranged for her an account in the wizarding bank, and the key had been in her pocket when she awoke. Perhaps she could shop around a little, while she waited for something to happen.

But she didn't need to wait for long. As she made her way towards the Gringrotts Bank, a familiar crop of turquoise curly hair made itself visible to her.

'No! Not 410!'

Ducking to avoid detection by the keen eyes (and nose, though the bunny ears, or lack thereof, were currently in doubt), Lucifer knew her effort was futile.

"Hey! If it isn't my favourite stake nee-chan, nyeh!"

She ran, weaving through noisy young children, middle-aged mothers and an amiable-looking gentleman, who all stared at her red eyes as she flew past.

Siesta 410 shrugged as she watched Lucifer's retreating back. "Oh well, we can't all be friends. What's the matter, 45? You look as though you've seen a monster, nihi."

Another familiar head pooped out of the crowd. "A-ahh… w-well… I feel rather self-conscious about m-my hair right now… A-ah… shouldn't we continue on with our orders? We might get scolded if we don't…"

"Nihi, don't worry. Even though we've only got the form and power of normal humans here, there are still ways we can track these things down, nyeh."

"I-I hope so…" Siesta 45 cowered behind 410, covering her pink pigtails with her hands.

With the language charm in place, Battler fell to conversing with his guide. So far, all they had talked about was what Hogwarts was like, magic, and the various shops. Now, Battler burst out with an unexpected question.

"What's your family like?"

Starting, Harry spun around. Where had Battler pulled that question from? Grimacing, with a slight shrug and ever-so-slight edge to her voice, he replied. "My parents were killed. I live with my muggle aunt and uncle." This time, it was Battler's turn to start.

"I-I'm sorry. I had no idea. Y'see, my real mother's dead as well, so…"

Harry shrugged again, this time with a slight smile. "I guess the woman you were with was your stepmother? Do you get along well with her?"

"Well enough. It's my old man I don't get along well with. The geezer married Kyrie almost as soon as my mother's coffin was out of the house, so I never really forgave him. I left my household to live with my grandparents but they died, one after the other, so I've come back to this mad ol' family."

At that point, Battler was interrupted by a dark-haired whirlwind attempting to fly past him. Key word being attempting. Unfortunately for both him and the whirlwind, whoever it was ended up tripping on a raised cobblestone, crashing into him and knocking all his wind out in the meantime. Dazed and disoriented, his eyes met a pair of familiar ruby ones.

Lucifer?!

Indeed, it was the embodiment of Pride herself. Lucifer watched through a haze of emotions varying from embarrassed rage to relief the she had finally found her master, as Battler gently pushed her off him and pulled them both into a standing position. After a brief moment of hesitation, she gave Battler a slight, apologetic bow. "Forgive me, Battler-sama, for behaving in such an unbecoming way before your presence." She now spoke in slightly accented Japanese, and Battler couldn't remember if it was her ordinary accent, and not a product of the language-charm-brooch, if she was speaking in English.

Battler laughed nervously, scratching his head. "Haha… it was no problem. I really didn't expect you… uh… to be here." It had probably been translated into English, by the way Lucifer blinked in surprise at his words. She didn't know about the language charm, did she?

"Do you know her?" Harry's voice broke into the subtly awkward silence which had settled in between the two, alerting them to his presence. Lucifer immediately turned towards him, giving him a bow.

"My name is Lucy Fay, childhood friend of Battler Ushiromiya. Pleased to make your acquaintance." Battler couldn't help smiling, first at the unoriginal alias, and then at Lucifer's overly formal way of speaking.

As Lucifer raised cold eyes to scan her new associate's face, Harry couldn't help feeling unnerved by the strange colour of her irises. The only person he had ever before seen with red eyes…

Was Voldemort.

At that time, Virgilia reappeared, leading Rudolf, Kyrie and Ange back. Ange was cheerfully sucking on one of Bertie Bott's Every Flavour Beans, a packet of which the kind witch had bought for her. The latter didn't seem much fazed by Lucifer's sudden appearance, only nodding to her once and inquiring whether Ronove had arranged everything correctly, to which Lucifer answered in the affirmative.

Looking at Battler's confused expression, he knew his own face mirrored the former's. Why on earth were all these random strangers so familiar with one another? Was this more than one giant coincidence? However, he didn't have much time to ponder, as Professor Virgilia's attention turned towards him. "Oh, Harry Potter. You must be confused at what is happening. Lucy Fay comes from a prestigious magical family, where I worked as a servant. Her father, Ronove, wanted to send her to one of the best magical schools and Hogwarts was recommended to him. I was leaving the household to look for other work, so he requested that I become the new Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher, and keep an eye on Lucy in the meantime. I hope this clears matters for you."

It certainly did, Harry thought uneasily. He could easily draw a parallel between this story and another one much closer to home. However, Snape had never been the Malfoys' servant and it was hard to match him up to this eternally smiling witch. At this point, he noticed Lucy staring at him, not suspiciously, but curiously. As soon as she realised he noticed her, she quickly averted her gaze.

No one had told Lucifer that the scrawny, weak-looking boy in front of her was Harry Potter, whispered even in the world of demons to be a strange child. The 'Chosen One,' they called him, and the greatest witches could not understand his natural anti-magic barrier, rumoured to have been created by his mother's love for him. The strangest thing was that, in critical moments, the barrier occasionally rose to a strength which could rival even Battler-sama's endless nine. If Battler had buried all the digits with nines, Harry Potter's power continued to rise and fall. Truly, love's power was fickle. Fickle like her previous master. Yet, strangely enough, her previous master's love… it had endured death…

"Hey, big-ass! Snap out of it! We're going!"

Oh… God… I don't know what to say… except… I'M SORRY!!! I didn't mean to take so long to update, but I was just so busy!

Oh well, since everyone's been introduced to everyone (at least the people that matter), this story can move a little faster. Again, I'm so sorry! *dodges onslaught of stakes and siestas*