still_guns
For the Empire!
- Location
- Bridge of ISS Conundrum
Skeleton-chan...
*shudders*
*shudders*
Harry And The Shipgirls: Prisoner of Shipping (A HP/KanColle Snippet Collection)
- Thread starter Harry Leferts
- Start date
- Crossover
Harry Leferts
Suave Shadow Cabal Kaiju
True enough.
Well, that is what Hone-Onna are as their name literally means "Bone Woman". In folklore, they are women who returned from the grave out of love to be with the one that they love, granted it ended badly, but considering the Japanese issues with death to begin with...
Harry Leferts
Suave Shadow Cabal Kaiju
Well, it is not impossible that some of her Officers, especially the ones from the 1920s who might have been to Britain, were upper crust types. That said, as she mentioned she's not an expert in such things.
Hopefully she's not too severely affected by something that apparently applies to a fairly high proportion of asian adult population or she might find herself regretting that cheese later; the joys of lactose intolerance.
"Skeleton-lady is much nicer than previous skeleton! Prettier, too!"
"... previous skeleton?"
"Big meanie wanted to hurt mommy and big brother! Hoppou went *pow!* right in the teeth!"
Snippet 5: RCNAnon
- Location
- USA
Ron, Duke and Warspite 10
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Molly Weasley walked next to Dreadnought as the pair let the four others get ahead of them by a good distance. Enough that they were still following along but each group had their own bit of privacy. It certainly helped that Summer, the dear, had placed herself behind the other three. The large abyssal was very attached to Ron and she was glad they'd already had plans to purchase the manor, as she wouldn't have fit in the Burrow.
As her thoughts wandered she turned to look at her companion, who was also sizing her up. Molly couldn't help but notice the similarities between them, such as their height and general build (short and plump, she could be honest with herself) but also the differences. Whatever Arthur might have said, she'd never had skin quite as perfect as the battleships. Yet the most important thing about her was that Molly felt a similar soul, that of a mother doing her best for her children.
It seemed that Dreadnought at least had thoughts along a similar line and the mother of all battleships let a small grin pass by her face before turning back to look at the four in front of them.
"I've been wanting to meet you for a long time Mrs. Weasley." Dreadnought's voice was smooth as a calm sea, worthy of any Edwardian Matron.
"My feelings are much the same Lady Dreadnought." Molly matched the other woman, with both of them gliding along behind their brood in a manner that wouldn't have been out of place in a period play. Provided of course that the period play involved giants and restoring destitute properties.
"I think we can dispense with the formalities." Dreadnought let that smile come back onto her face for a split second. "If I'm not mistaken we'll be related at some point and I don't believe in standing on ceremony when it's unnecessary. So if you would, please just call me Dreadnought."
"Then I'd ask you to just call me Molly." Mrs. Weasley let a bit more of her natural good humor into her face. "I agree with you, especially since you're the only in law I'll be getting. That I know of."
Dreadnought nodded. "You're speaking of your other son… Percy? I believe it is. The one involved with Mrs. Opyodo from Japan and Supply Princess."
"And Amisi, yes." Molly nodded. "None of them have parents in the same manner that Warspite and Duke tend to treat you."
"I suppose not. Most ships don't have a direct mother, just a number of sisters." Dreadnought's eyes looked on ahead, as if searching something out. "Which puts me in a rather unique position of watching over them when most others think they perhaps don't need it. I'm sure you understand."
Molly held back a snort, her mind on her oldest two.
"Bill and Charlie are the last people anyone would think need looking after if you put aside their jobs. I'm still their mother and they both know it."
They could both smile at that, a mutual understanding of women who still cared and watched over those who were more than capable in their own right. As they passed the gatehouse, the quartet in front would stop as Ron briefly pointed his wand at the door, fixing what appeared to be a broken lock on the door. Though it was a small change, sitting in the frame properly instead of dangling slightly made the building look much more like it merely needed cleaning than it did a full renovation. Not that either would be out of the question.
"But I would be remiss if I didn't get to what was actually on my mind." Dreadnought's feet began to move again once the group in front of them did, Molly matching her pace.
"My son and not one but two of your daughters." Molly had of course known this was coming and she'd even meant to bring it up herself if for some reason Dreadnought hadn't.
"Yes. Your young son and two of my daughters." Dreadnought's wording had been deliberate and she looked over to see Molly's reaction.
Molly merely let the ghost of a smile cross over her face and nod in agreement. "Yes, that is true. You'll forgive me for thinking that Ron is much more mature than he might otherwise be."
"There's no doubt that he is mature for his age." Dreadnought's voice held no tone to begrudge that statement. "It is simply his age in general that still has me holding some concerns. Fewer than I had to start with mind but..." Dreadnought's sentence trailed off. It wasn't that she couldn't enunciate. It was that it was simply easier for Molly to understand they were natural worries for any mother than to try and list them out like a briefing.
Molly nodded, her mind drifting back a few years. In it there was an undoubtedly much younger Ron, coming home for the first time with a big smile on his face and a trophy in hand.
"I understand where you're coming from Dreadnought. I would be lying if I said I hadn't had some concerns of my own about the age difference when this all started. Even now I nourish one or two, simply because it's natural as a mother to do so but overall I'm not worried."
Dreadnought's eyebrow quirked upward. "Oh? Would you share why?"
Molly nodded. "Four years ago my son was for lack of a better term, at a loss. His brothers all set high bars to clear and Ginny is the youngest as well as being the only girl." Her face went melancholy for a split second. "I regret I didn't notice at the time, even with Arthur's work picking up we were still in rough straits." She smiled. "Warspite changed all that. Whatever she saw during their chess matches she nurtured and now Ron is blooming because of it."
Molly went silent for a few moments, with Dreadnought letting her catch her thoughts.
"My lack of worry isn't simply from his maturity. Nor is it from the way that he absolutely adores both of your daughters. No it's the fact that he's determined to be worthy of both of them."
"Worthy of them?" Dreadnought interjected, causing Molly to look over to her and smile briefly once more.
"Yes. He knows they both love him and he loves them as well. At the same time he can see all the effort they put in. All the time they're away fighting the Abyssals. Never doing less than the best they can for everyone. It's a hard example to live up to but Weasleys have never been quitters. So he's putting in the same amount of effort to be worthy of them because he's stubborn like that. So he reads up on naval architecture after he works on his normal studies and memorizes blueprints after doing the same with spells. He's even starting to exercise now, to get himself in proper shape. I think that one is because of his friend Harry." Molly felt herself smiling, even though she hadn't meant to. "He's pushed himself so much farther than I thought he'd ever go four years ago and he's only reaching higher with time. Even if something terrible were to happen, he couldn't stop because it's part of who he is now."
"I see." Dreadnought's voice wasn't as easy going as Molly's but she wasn't disapproving. If anything her face seemed somewhat lighter than before.
They'd reached the front door of the manor house proper by that point and the pair paused as Ron turned the key in the lock of the door. It was a bit of work given the age of the mechanism but it turned and they all entered. The interior was, frankly put, a mess. Dust was very evident and there was almost no furniture inside, at least visible from the entrance. What there was looked ancient and was equally dust covered.
Molly immediately pulled at her wand, with Ron doing the same.
"Scourgify!"
Waves of magic flowed outwards, caked on dust being blasted away to reveal aged wood and plaster beneath. Of course that was only the entrance and it required several spells from both of them before it was even comfortable to breathe in. Dust was still hanging in the air, light from the windows somewhat dirty from the age but illuminating an aged but worthy structure.
"Ron, why don't you go to the right and we'll go to the left." Molly pointed with her wand and he nodded.
"Sounds good Mum. Meet back here?"
Molly nodded and the two groups separated back out.
The rooms were all in a similar condition, dust layered over everything and mostly lacking in any sort of ornamentation. Molly continued to cast cleaning spells, getting rid of the worst of the dust. A thorough cleaning would need to be done later to get everything.
"Do you mind if I continue our conversation?" Dreadnought walked behind Molly now, looking around at the manor house as it was slowly cleaned.
"Feel free. Just don't mind the cleaning." Dreadnought nodded when Molly glanced back at her.
"You spoke earlier of how your son had changed. My daughters have done the same."
"I'd seen some of that." Molly spoke between cleaning spells, letting Dreadnought lead the conversation.
"I'm sure you have, they both have met you more than I've seen your son. I don't think you know the full extent of it though. Warspite is happy, truly happy, when she's with him. Even before he repaired her she smiled more. Now? I can't truly speak of how much it lightens my heart to see her be free of pain we all thought she'd never lose."
Molly could hear subdued emotion in Dreadnought's voice, hidden behind proper decorum and the still growing relationship between them.
"Duke is more self confidant than she's ever been, in a good way. She's speaking with her peers more and she's branching out from only her sister and Warspite being close."
Dreadnought's voice carried only approval in that.
"It is all thanks to your son and I'd approve of him in a second if only he were of age. I can't help but think of all that might happen between then and now. Then my daughters spring the plan to buy this house on all of us and..." Dreadnought's head shook. "I don't disapprove necessarily. It's all just very quick."
Molly was quiet for a moment as she finished up with the last bit of dusting in the room, revealing a sagging sofa with a faded red color and mahogany accents from under ages of dust.
"I think it's the war." She gestured outwards, towards the ocean that surrounded Britain. "Everyone knows anything could happen. Even with the abyssals held at bay there's so much going on elsewhere that every moment is precious. Otherwise I think they might be content to wait."
Dreadnought couldn't help but let out the tiniest snort.
"I suppose you're right. I can still remember my boys pining after loves left behind, even though we were merely out to sea. It's simply different when it's your family involved."
Molly smiled. "Everything is."
Dreadnought allowed herself a small grin as well. "That's true enough."
There was a pause and then Dreadnought spoke once more.
"I do hope I haven't come across as overbearing Molly. As I said I don't disapprove but..."
"But you're worried about your daughters." Molly nodded to Dreadnought. "I understand Dreadnought. I think we'll both be watching over them for a while more. I'm not quite ready to have grand-babies from Ron after all."
Dreadnought allowed another small smile and nodded.
"Thank you for understanding. I look forward to the day when we can both want and be happy for that."
Molly smiled in turn and nodded.
"I think this will be the start of a wonderful relationship."
"I do too."
Dreadnought then tilted her head as she remembered something.
"Do you happen to have a cousin of some sort named Donald Weasley?"
Molly paused, thinking for a moment.
"Why I believe I do, on my Grandmother's side. Why?"
"Well he served on me during the war and now he's reminding me to tell you about some jam..."
The two matrons continued on, oblivious to the concealed set of eyes and ears that had tracked them since their entrance. As well as the thoughts slowly churning behind them.
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Hope you all enjoy my latest contribution. Comments welcome as always.
----------
Molly Weasley walked next to Dreadnought as the pair let the four others get ahead of them by a good distance. Enough that they were still following along but each group had their own bit of privacy. It certainly helped that Summer, the dear, had placed herself behind the other three. The large abyssal was very attached to Ron and she was glad they'd already had plans to purchase the manor, as she wouldn't have fit in the Burrow.
As her thoughts wandered she turned to look at her companion, who was also sizing her up. Molly couldn't help but notice the similarities between them, such as their height and general build (short and plump, she could be honest with herself) but also the differences. Whatever Arthur might have said, she'd never had skin quite as perfect as the battleships. Yet the most important thing about her was that Molly felt a similar soul, that of a mother doing her best for her children.
It seemed that Dreadnought at least had thoughts along a similar line and the mother of all battleships let a small grin pass by her face before turning back to look at the four in front of them.
"I've been wanting to meet you for a long time Mrs. Weasley." Dreadnought's voice was smooth as a calm sea, worthy of any Edwardian Matron.
"My feelings are much the same Lady Dreadnought." Molly matched the other woman, with both of them gliding along behind their brood in a manner that wouldn't have been out of place in a period play. Provided of course that the period play involved giants and restoring destitute properties.
"I think we can dispense with the formalities." Dreadnought let that smile come back onto her face for a split second. "If I'm not mistaken we'll be related at some point and I don't believe in standing on ceremony when it's unnecessary. So if you would, please just call me Dreadnought."
"Then I'd ask you to just call me Molly." Mrs. Weasley let a bit more of her natural good humor into her face. "I agree with you, especially since you're the only in law I'll be getting. That I know of."
Dreadnought nodded. "You're speaking of your other son… Percy? I believe it is. The one involved with Mrs. Opyodo from Japan and Supply Princess."
"And Amisi, yes." Molly nodded. "None of them have parents in the same manner that Warspite and Duke tend to treat you."
"I suppose not. Most ships don't have a direct mother, just a number of sisters." Dreadnought's eyes looked on ahead, as if searching something out. "Which puts me in a rather unique position of watching over them when most others think they perhaps don't need it. I'm sure you understand."
Molly held back a snort, her mind on her oldest two.
"Bill and Charlie are the last people anyone would think need looking after if you put aside their jobs. I'm still their mother and they both know it."
They could both smile at that, a mutual understanding of women who still cared and watched over those who were more than capable in their own right. As they passed the gatehouse, the quartet in front would stop as Ron briefly pointed his wand at the door, fixing what appeared to be a broken lock on the door. Though it was a small change, sitting in the frame properly instead of dangling slightly made the building look much more like it merely needed cleaning than it did a full renovation. Not that either would be out of the question.
"But I would be remiss if I didn't get to what was actually on my mind." Dreadnought's feet began to move again once the group in front of them did, Molly matching her pace.
"My son and not one but two of your daughters." Molly had of course known this was coming and she'd even meant to bring it up herself if for some reason Dreadnought hadn't.
"Yes. Your young son and two of my daughters." Dreadnought's wording had been deliberate and she looked over to see Molly's reaction.
Molly merely let the ghost of a smile cross over her face and nod in agreement. "Yes, that is true. You'll forgive me for thinking that Ron is much more mature than he might otherwise be."
"There's no doubt that he is mature for his age." Dreadnought's voice held no tone to begrudge that statement. "It is simply his age in general that still has me holding some concerns. Fewer than I had to start with mind but..." Dreadnought's sentence trailed off. It wasn't that she couldn't enunciate. It was that it was simply easier for Molly to understand they were natural worries for any mother than to try and list them out like a briefing.
Molly nodded, her mind drifting back a few years. In it there was an undoubtedly much younger Ron, coming home for the first time with a big smile on his face and a trophy in hand.
"I understand where you're coming from Dreadnought. I would be lying if I said I hadn't had some concerns of my own about the age difference when this all started. Even now I nourish one or two, simply because it's natural as a mother to do so but overall I'm not worried."
Dreadnought's eyebrow quirked upward. "Oh? Would you share why?"
Molly nodded. "Four years ago my son was for lack of a better term, at a loss. His brothers all set high bars to clear and Ginny is the youngest as well as being the only girl." Her face went melancholy for a split second. "I regret I didn't notice at the time, even with Arthur's work picking up we were still in rough straits." She smiled. "Warspite changed all that. Whatever she saw during their chess matches she nurtured and now Ron is blooming because of it."
Molly went silent for a few moments, with Dreadnought letting her catch her thoughts.
"My lack of worry isn't simply from his maturity. Nor is it from the way that he absolutely adores both of your daughters. No it's the fact that he's determined to be worthy of both of them."
"Worthy of them?" Dreadnought interjected, causing Molly to look over to her and smile briefly once more.
"Yes. He knows they both love him and he loves them as well. At the same time he can see all the effort they put in. All the time they're away fighting the Abyssals. Never doing less than the best they can for everyone. It's a hard example to live up to but Weasleys have never been quitters. So he's putting in the same amount of effort to be worthy of them because he's stubborn like that. So he reads up on naval architecture after he works on his normal studies and memorizes blueprints after doing the same with spells. He's even starting to exercise now, to get himself in proper shape. I think that one is because of his friend Harry." Molly felt herself smiling, even though she hadn't meant to. "He's pushed himself so much farther than I thought he'd ever go four years ago and he's only reaching higher with time. Even if something terrible were to happen, he couldn't stop because it's part of who he is now."
"I see." Dreadnought's voice wasn't as easy going as Molly's but she wasn't disapproving. If anything her face seemed somewhat lighter than before.
They'd reached the front door of the manor house proper by that point and the pair paused as Ron turned the key in the lock of the door. It was a bit of work given the age of the mechanism but it turned and they all entered. The interior was, frankly put, a mess. Dust was very evident and there was almost no furniture inside, at least visible from the entrance. What there was looked ancient and was equally dust covered.
Molly immediately pulled at her wand, with Ron doing the same.
"Scourgify!"
Waves of magic flowed outwards, caked on dust being blasted away to reveal aged wood and plaster beneath. Of course that was only the entrance and it required several spells from both of them before it was even comfortable to breathe in. Dust was still hanging in the air, light from the windows somewhat dirty from the age but illuminating an aged but worthy structure.
"Ron, why don't you go to the right and we'll go to the left." Molly pointed with her wand and he nodded.
"Sounds good Mum. Meet back here?"
Molly nodded and the two groups separated back out.
The rooms were all in a similar condition, dust layered over everything and mostly lacking in any sort of ornamentation. Molly continued to cast cleaning spells, getting rid of the worst of the dust. A thorough cleaning would need to be done later to get everything.
"Do you mind if I continue our conversation?" Dreadnought walked behind Molly now, looking around at the manor house as it was slowly cleaned.
"Feel free. Just don't mind the cleaning." Dreadnought nodded when Molly glanced back at her.
"You spoke earlier of how your son had changed. My daughters have done the same."
"I'd seen some of that." Molly spoke between cleaning spells, letting Dreadnought lead the conversation.
"I'm sure you have, they both have met you more than I've seen your son. I don't think you know the full extent of it though. Warspite is happy, truly happy, when she's with him. Even before he repaired her she smiled more. Now? I can't truly speak of how much it lightens my heart to see her be free of pain we all thought she'd never lose."
Molly could hear subdued emotion in Dreadnought's voice, hidden behind proper decorum and the still growing relationship between them.
"Duke is more self confidant than she's ever been, in a good way. She's speaking with her peers more and she's branching out from only her sister and Warspite being close."
Dreadnought's voice carried only approval in that.
"It is all thanks to your son and I'd approve of him in a second if only he were of age. I can't help but think of all that might happen between then and now. Then my daughters spring the plan to buy this house on all of us and..." Dreadnought's head shook. "I don't disapprove necessarily. It's all just very quick."
Molly was quiet for a moment as she finished up with the last bit of dusting in the room, revealing a sagging sofa with a faded red color and mahogany accents from under ages of dust.
"I think it's the war." She gestured outwards, towards the ocean that surrounded Britain. "Everyone knows anything could happen. Even with the abyssals held at bay there's so much going on elsewhere that every moment is precious. Otherwise I think they might be content to wait."
Dreadnought couldn't help but let out the tiniest snort.
"I suppose you're right. I can still remember my boys pining after loves left behind, even though we were merely out to sea. It's simply different when it's your family involved."
Molly smiled. "Everything is."
Dreadnought allowed herself a small grin as well. "That's true enough."
There was a pause and then Dreadnought spoke once more.
"I do hope I haven't come across as overbearing Molly. As I said I don't disapprove but..."
"But you're worried about your daughters." Molly nodded to Dreadnought. "I understand Dreadnought. I think we'll both be watching over them for a while more. I'm not quite ready to have grand-babies from Ron after all."
Dreadnought allowed another small smile and nodded.
"Thank you for understanding. I look forward to the day when we can both want and be happy for that."
Molly smiled in turn and nodded.
"I think this will be the start of a wonderful relationship."
"I do too."
Dreadnought then tilted her head as she remembered something.
"Do you happen to have a cousin of some sort named Donald Weasley?"
Molly paused, thinking for a moment.
"Why I believe I do, on my Grandmother's side. Why?"
"Well he served on me during the war and now he's reminding me to tell you about some jam..."
The two matrons continued on, oblivious to the concealed set of eyes and ears that had tracked them since their entrance. As well as the thoughts slowly churning behind them.
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Hope you all enjoy my latest contribution. Comments welcome as always.
Last edited:
- Location
- Beyond the Unknowable Veil
- Location
- Wherever I feel like being
- Pronouns
- He/Him
House elf? That's what my money is on anyway.
- Location
- USA
Yeah, that was a long time coming.
Fixed, thanks.
Well, this one I'm not going to spoil but it's certainly a good guess.
ecs05norway
Zenryoku Zenkai!
Hmm, Molly's cousin would be a Prewitt, most likely... unless there's more intertwining of the family tree. Then again, they -are- purebloods.
A Weasley is more likely to be Arthur's close relation than Molly's, still.
...Dreadsmol. Called it.
Sure we cant go with Smoldread?
Cheetar
(is a cheetah)
- Location
- space
or Smolnought.
Harry Leferts
Suave Shadow Cabal Kaiju
Considering that it all gets converted to fuel, ammo, and the like, not that likely.
Oh, now that would have been a story and a half...
I really do love that Molly and Dreadnought are building a rapport here. And they really do fit well as friends as well.
Well... I suppose that someone should have. Granted, in Harry's case, most of them are about the same age as him mentally.
It was.
Hmm... what happened with Smolspite?
Alternatively, Smol Duke or Smol Summer.
Snippet 46: Harry Leferts
Harry Leferts
Suave Shadow Cabal Kaiju
Gently easing himself into the heated waters of the bath, Harry let out a soft sigh of relaxation. Hearing a chuckle, he opened one eye to find Tsubaki not far from him and smiling as she leaned against the side of the bath, "You seem to be enjoying yourself, Harry-Kun."
Just shrugging with an embarrassed chuckle, the wizard nodded, "Hai. This is a nice bath after all." Shifting a bit so that the waters now reached his neck, Harry gave her a smile, "And it is nice to relax a bit."
From nearby, another of the Arashi, Keiko's daughter Kikyo, laughed, "Oh, we know it, Harry-Kun. And trust you me, this bath? It gets a lot of use." Stretching, she gave a sigh, "Nothing like a nice, hot soak after a full day working on the farm. Especially when mucking out the barns or what have you!"
Another laugh could be heard and Harry could see Koyuki give her Hone-Onna cousin a snort from where she was in a different bath, "Says you!"
Still grinning, Kikyo shot right back at her, "Yes, says me! Not like you know the joys and pleasure of a hot bath!"
Lips curled into a smile, the Yuki-Onna shrugged, "Yes? And? You can keep them!"
Head tilted to the side, Harry blinked some and frowned as he noticed that there was no steam coming from the bath that Koyuki as well as the other Yuki and Tsurara-Onna were in, "Wait, the water in that bath isn't warm?"
Amused, Keiko shook her head, "No, quite the opposite, Harry-Kun, which is why we told you to get into this one. Look for yourself as it should become apparent why in a few seconds."
Confused, Harry turned and watched. Sure enough, several seconds later there was a noise and he watched ice cubes drop down into a chute that entered the water, what looked like a whole bag's worth. Eyes wide, he boggled, "What the..."
From where she was washing herself, Yukina lightly laughed, "There's an ice machine, Harry-Kun, which takes water from the pool and freezes it before returning the water as ice. Unlike the bath that you are in now, the waters for that one are also chilled through a machine. While we can take warm and hot baths, we prefer icy cold ones. So we modified one of the baths here in the bathhouse to have water as cold as we like."
Thoughtful, his adoptive mother nodded, "That does make sense. I remember the legend of that Yuki-Onna... though sometimes it was a Tsurara-Onna. The one where her husband practically forces her into a hot bath and when he enters the room, finds melting chips of ice are all that remain."
Softly snorting, Fuyumi, a Tsurara-Onna, shook her head, "That old story? Despite what it says, none of us would actually melt in hot water. It is uncomfortable for us after a time, sure. Really uncomfortable depending on the temperature... but a visit to a hot spring wouldn't make us melt away. I mean, I could have a bath with you guys right now and it would not bother me in the slightest at all to do so. But we just like cold waters more."
Yukina slowly nodded with a hum, "Always thought that the Yokai in that story just up and left while faking her death. Makes sense really as she would be unable to make an excuse about why she was not in the bath. Best to leave her husband wondering and also act as a warning."
Eyebrow raised, Nagato considered that for a few moments before nodding, "I suppose that makes sense considering the story itself." Glancing around the bath, she tilted her head some, "Though I am surprised that you have a hot spring here."
Dumping water over her head, Yukina laughed, "Not that surprising when one thinks about it, there are hot springs all over Japan and even a couple here in the area of Kushiro. This one is just one that was buried until we dug it up over a century ago." At seeing the interest, she continued, "Ian-Kun used dowsing to find it back in 1880. Then he used a drilling spell to reach it since it was about forty feet down with us building the bathhouse around it so that we could all enjoy it without needing to worry about the weather outside. We have an outside one as well, though that one is for pure relaxation."
As his mother nodded, the black haired wizard looked around the bathhouse. Here and there he could see some of his male cousins, though there were few. One of them, Fuyuyoshi, a son of one of the Yuki-Onna, was bathing beside his Hone-Onna wife, Maya. Said man gave Harry a nod and he could remember the short introduction about how they got married just two years ago.
Besides the male cousins though, there were a few other males there as well, husbands of the various female Yokai that made up the Arashi Clan. All of them had come to the bathhouse after a meal of roast duck and the like. But one thing that Harry noted was how natural everyone was when bathing together. There was no real shyness or anything of the such. As well, there was a closeness there. Seeing the thoughtful look, Chiho leaned towards him, "Something wrong, Harry-Kun?"
Glancing at her, Harry shook his head, "Not really? Just wondering about..."
There was an understanding look on the Hone-Onna's face, "About how close we all seem?" At his nod, she smiled some, "There's reasons for that actually, and one is that we're... very communal, I suppose the best word would be. We're not like some Yokai clans where everything is pomp and such. All of us work together and help each other out, which dates back to when Ian-Kun was alive and lived here as a matter of fact."
Head tilted to the side, Nagato raised an eyebrow, "Oh?"
With a nod, Tsubaki hummed some, "It actually dates back further than that. Remember, we were prostitutes who stuck together. We had to, and to work together as well as support one another if we were going to survive the time that we were in before and after meeting Ian-Kun. And when we came together officially to form our clan, we continued that."
Keiko smiled a bit and chuckled, "Remember how I stated that we were practically other mothers to Henry-Kun? I did mention that I nursed him alongside my own child at the time when needed. That was not a joke, as sometimes I did nurse him when he was an infant, as did some of the others such as Tsubaki-Chan, Yukina-Chan, Mifuyu-Chan, and others. And Lyra-Chan nursed some of our children as well after giving birth. We honestly didn't differentiate between them. We continued that even after Ian-Kun was gone."
Cocking his head to the side, Harry's eyes widened a bit, "Wait, so you actually did nurse my Great-Grandfather? Really?"
Lightly laughing, the Hone-Onna nodded, "We did as a matter of fact." Her lips curling into a smile, Keiko shook her head, "Henry-Kun sometimes got hungry and Lyra-Chan was not around. So one of us who could nurse and was around would simply pick him up and feed him. Neither Ian-Kun or Lyra-Chan, as I said, had much of an issue with it. And to be quite honest, I remember Kikyo-Chan here being nursed by Lyra at times when I was not around but she was."
For several moments, Harry and the others considered that. Than, Shiromizu tapped a finger against her chin from where she was bathing, "And this works for you? Really?"
Various Yokai listening gave nods at that. Yukina, meanwhile, leaned against the bath's edge, "Hai, it does. Even before we formed the clan, our children were raised as siblings even with different Kaa-Sans. Keiko-Chan's and Mifuyu-Chan's children were just as much mine as they were theirs. And this continued with our grandchildren, and great grandchildren, who have all basically been raised among each other. We are more than just a clan, we're a close family. So, yes, as he was growing up, Henry-Kun considered us all his Kaa-Sans with Lyra-Chan being the Kaa-San who gave birth to him."
One of the other Yuki-Onna spoke up with a nod, "We even teach each other stuff we learned in school. I mean, the Tsurara-Onna in the family are not around during the warmer months, so they can't really have the same schooling as the rest of us. Henry-Nii-San helped by getting us some time turners when he sat on the Wizangamot, which we use for lessons for them when homeschooling. All of us that go to school helping tutor them."
Chiho shrugged slightly and shook her head as she spoke, "Some might think it odd or strange... but we found that it worked and still does."
As she nodded, Nagato glanced towards Harry with a thoughtful look on her face. Then, she looked around at the various Yokai, 'Well... not a bad example to live up to, I suppose.'
Beside her, the British born wizard was also considering things. Part of him wondered, briefly, what it would have been like to grow up with the Arashi Clan. With many mothers, aunts, sisters, and the like. A small smile appeared on his face as he shook his head, 'It might have been nice, I guess... but I'm happy as it is.' Dismissing it for later thought, he tilted his head some, "Um, by the way... what happens tomorrow? And do you want me to do any chores?"
Her lips curling into a smile, Kieko shook her head, "No, Harry-Kun, you don't need to do any real chores. And in regards to farm work, we would need to train you for anything first before we did so, which we do not have time. If you ever do though, we would not mind an extra hand or two around when you visit once we do teach you what to do."
While Harry nodded, Tsubaki cleared her throat, "As for tomorrow... it was Ian-Kun's birthday when he was alive, and also the day we enshrined him. For the most part, it is a private festival I suppose that you could say. It is led by the two of us who double as Miko at the Shrine. One is myself, since as a Hone-Onna I look towards Izanami-Sama being the Kami of my species, and as the first Hone-Onna in a way. Thus, I am the Miko for Izanami-Sama at the Shrine. Before becoming a Hone-Onna, I was a Miko as a matter of fact. The other is Fuyuse-Chan."
The Tsurara-Onna, who was one of Ian's Yokai lovers, waved at Harry with a smile, "Hai, as Kuraokami created us Tsurara-Onna and Yuki-Onna, I am her Miko at the Shrine. And various members rotate in and out as the Miko for the other Kami such as Ian-Kun." With a small shrug, Fuyuse shook her head, "Generally, the festival is a way to give thanks to Ian-Kun in regards to him having rescued us from the situation that we were in. The celebration is in the honor of both his life, and his deeds as well as the founding of the Arashi Clan. We also honor those who have passed on in the clan at the same time, such as Lyra-Chan, Henry-Kun, Koyomi-Chan, and the like."
Slowly, Harry nodded at that while considering what the next day would bring.
Just shrugging with an embarrassed chuckle, the wizard nodded, "Hai. This is a nice bath after all." Shifting a bit so that the waters now reached his neck, Harry gave her a smile, "And it is nice to relax a bit."
From nearby, another of the Arashi, Keiko's daughter Kikyo, laughed, "Oh, we know it, Harry-Kun. And trust you me, this bath? It gets a lot of use." Stretching, she gave a sigh, "Nothing like a nice, hot soak after a full day working on the farm. Especially when mucking out the barns or what have you!"
Another laugh could be heard and Harry could see Koyuki give her Hone-Onna cousin a snort from where she was in a different bath, "Says you!"
Still grinning, Kikyo shot right back at her, "Yes, says me! Not like you know the joys and pleasure of a hot bath!"
Lips curled into a smile, the Yuki-Onna shrugged, "Yes? And? You can keep them!"
Head tilted to the side, Harry blinked some and frowned as he noticed that there was no steam coming from the bath that Koyuki as well as the other Yuki and Tsurara-Onna were in, "Wait, the water in that bath isn't warm?"
Amused, Keiko shook her head, "No, quite the opposite, Harry-Kun, which is why we told you to get into this one. Look for yourself as it should become apparent why in a few seconds."
Confused, Harry turned and watched. Sure enough, several seconds later there was a noise and he watched ice cubes drop down into a chute that entered the water, what looked like a whole bag's worth. Eyes wide, he boggled, "What the..."
From where she was washing herself, Yukina lightly laughed, "There's an ice machine, Harry-Kun, which takes water from the pool and freezes it before returning the water as ice. Unlike the bath that you are in now, the waters for that one are also chilled through a machine. While we can take warm and hot baths, we prefer icy cold ones. So we modified one of the baths here in the bathhouse to have water as cold as we like."
Thoughtful, his adoptive mother nodded, "That does make sense. I remember the legend of that Yuki-Onna... though sometimes it was a Tsurara-Onna. The one where her husband practically forces her into a hot bath and when he enters the room, finds melting chips of ice are all that remain."
Softly snorting, Fuyumi, a Tsurara-Onna, shook her head, "That old story? Despite what it says, none of us would actually melt in hot water. It is uncomfortable for us after a time, sure. Really uncomfortable depending on the temperature... but a visit to a hot spring wouldn't make us melt away. I mean, I could have a bath with you guys right now and it would not bother me in the slightest at all to do so. But we just like cold waters more."
Yukina slowly nodded with a hum, "Always thought that the Yokai in that story just up and left while faking her death. Makes sense really as she would be unable to make an excuse about why she was not in the bath. Best to leave her husband wondering and also act as a warning."
Eyebrow raised, Nagato considered that for a few moments before nodding, "I suppose that makes sense considering the story itself." Glancing around the bath, she tilted her head some, "Though I am surprised that you have a hot spring here."
Dumping water over her head, Yukina laughed, "Not that surprising when one thinks about it, there are hot springs all over Japan and even a couple here in the area of Kushiro. This one is just one that was buried until we dug it up over a century ago." At seeing the interest, she continued, "Ian-Kun used dowsing to find it back in 1880. Then he used a drilling spell to reach it since it was about forty feet down with us building the bathhouse around it so that we could all enjoy it without needing to worry about the weather outside. We have an outside one as well, though that one is for pure relaxation."
As his mother nodded, the black haired wizard looked around the bathhouse. Here and there he could see some of his male cousins, though there were few. One of them, Fuyuyoshi, a son of one of the Yuki-Onna, was bathing beside his Hone-Onna wife, Maya. Said man gave Harry a nod and he could remember the short introduction about how they got married just two years ago.
Besides the male cousins though, there were a few other males there as well, husbands of the various female Yokai that made up the Arashi Clan. All of them had come to the bathhouse after a meal of roast duck and the like. But one thing that Harry noted was how natural everyone was when bathing together. There was no real shyness or anything of the such. As well, there was a closeness there. Seeing the thoughtful look, Chiho leaned towards him, "Something wrong, Harry-Kun?"
Glancing at her, Harry shook his head, "Not really? Just wondering about..."
There was an understanding look on the Hone-Onna's face, "About how close we all seem?" At his nod, she smiled some, "There's reasons for that actually, and one is that we're... very communal, I suppose the best word would be. We're not like some Yokai clans where everything is pomp and such. All of us work together and help each other out, which dates back to when Ian-Kun was alive and lived here as a matter of fact."
Head tilted to the side, Nagato raised an eyebrow, "Oh?"
With a nod, Tsubaki hummed some, "It actually dates back further than that. Remember, we were prostitutes who stuck together. We had to, and to work together as well as support one another if we were going to survive the time that we were in before and after meeting Ian-Kun. And when we came together officially to form our clan, we continued that."
Keiko smiled a bit and chuckled, "Remember how I stated that we were practically other mothers to Henry-Kun? I did mention that I nursed him alongside my own child at the time when needed. That was not a joke, as sometimes I did nurse him when he was an infant, as did some of the others such as Tsubaki-Chan, Yukina-Chan, Mifuyu-Chan, and others. And Lyra-Chan nursed some of our children as well after giving birth. We honestly didn't differentiate between them. We continued that even after Ian-Kun was gone."
Cocking his head to the side, Harry's eyes widened a bit, "Wait, so you actually did nurse my Great-Grandfather? Really?"
Lightly laughing, the Hone-Onna nodded, "We did as a matter of fact." Her lips curling into a smile, Keiko shook her head, "Henry-Kun sometimes got hungry and Lyra-Chan was not around. So one of us who could nurse and was around would simply pick him up and feed him. Neither Ian-Kun or Lyra-Chan, as I said, had much of an issue with it. And to be quite honest, I remember Kikyo-Chan here being nursed by Lyra at times when I was not around but she was."
For several moments, Harry and the others considered that. Than, Shiromizu tapped a finger against her chin from where she was bathing, "And this works for you? Really?"
Various Yokai listening gave nods at that. Yukina, meanwhile, leaned against the bath's edge, "Hai, it does. Even before we formed the clan, our children were raised as siblings even with different Kaa-Sans. Keiko-Chan's and Mifuyu-Chan's children were just as much mine as they were theirs. And this continued with our grandchildren, and great grandchildren, who have all basically been raised among each other. We are more than just a clan, we're a close family. So, yes, as he was growing up, Henry-Kun considered us all his Kaa-Sans with Lyra-Chan being the Kaa-San who gave birth to him."
One of the other Yuki-Onna spoke up with a nod, "We even teach each other stuff we learned in school. I mean, the Tsurara-Onna in the family are not around during the warmer months, so they can't really have the same schooling as the rest of us. Henry-Nii-San helped by getting us some time turners when he sat on the Wizangamot, which we use for lessons for them when homeschooling. All of us that go to school helping tutor them."
Chiho shrugged slightly and shook her head as she spoke, "Some might think it odd or strange... but we found that it worked and still does."
As she nodded, Nagato glanced towards Harry with a thoughtful look on her face. Then, she looked around at the various Yokai, 'Well... not a bad example to live up to, I suppose.'
Beside her, the British born wizard was also considering things. Part of him wondered, briefly, what it would have been like to grow up with the Arashi Clan. With many mothers, aunts, sisters, and the like. A small smile appeared on his face as he shook his head, 'It might have been nice, I guess... but I'm happy as it is.' Dismissing it for later thought, he tilted his head some, "Um, by the way... what happens tomorrow? And do you want me to do any chores?"
Her lips curling into a smile, Kieko shook her head, "No, Harry-Kun, you don't need to do any real chores. And in regards to farm work, we would need to train you for anything first before we did so, which we do not have time. If you ever do though, we would not mind an extra hand or two around when you visit once we do teach you what to do."
While Harry nodded, Tsubaki cleared her throat, "As for tomorrow... it was Ian-Kun's birthday when he was alive, and also the day we enshrined him. For the most part, it is a private festival I suppose that you could say. It is led by the two of us who double as Miko at the Shrine. One is myself, since as a Hone-Onna I look towards Izanami-Sama being the Kami of my species, and as the first Hone-Onna in a way. Thus, I am the Miko for Izanami-Sama at the Shrine. Before becoming a Hone-Onna, I was a Miko as a matter of fact. The other is Fuyuse-Chan."
The Tsurara-Onna, who was one of Ian's Yokai lovers, waved at Harry with a smile, "Hai, as Kuraokami created us Tsurara-Onna and Yuki-Onna, I am her Miko at the Shrine. And various members rotate in and out as the Miko for the other Kami such as Ian-Kun." With a small shrug, Fuyuse shook her head, "Generally, the festival is a way to give thanks to Ian-Kun in regards to him having rescued us from the situation that we were in. The celebration is in the honor of both his life, and his deeds as well as the founding of the Arashi Clan. We also honor those who have passed on in the clan at the same time, such as Lyra-Chan, Henry-Kun, Koyomi-Chan, and the like."
Slowly, Harry nodded at that while considering what the next day would bring.
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Death_Sheep
Cat Owned
- Location
- Wisconsin
- Pronouns
- He/Him
Interestingly enough, this mode of parenting has been seen in feral cat colonies and I believe bonobos as well.
Harry Leferts
Suave Shadow Cabal Kaiju
Probably not, but it would likely be something that they would consider for after if they succeed.
There's been a few human societies with this type of set up as well.
... which is still a little toller than Hoppou.
The latter is less than amused.
If they don't know about it yet, they would likely be very interested in the 'cooling ring' Harry made for Benio. Might allow bypassing the whole 'can't be around in the summer' issue.
Snippet 45: SisterJeanne
- Location
- Mountains of Appalachia
And more Butterknife 2.0 backstory. This one about everyone's favorite gun nut.
Hound's Devotion
De Breuil Estate, Upstate New York
April 13th, 1861
"Up, up! David Up!" The five year old girl declared imperiously to the laughing young man as she ran toward him across the grass of the front yard while the groom took his horse.
"Yes, Miss Delilah!" David picked the little girl up and spun her around twice as she shrieked in glee. He then lowered her to the ground at a cough behind them.
"David Potter, you are a bad influence on my girl you know." Jèzebel de Breuil, dressed in her normal severe black dress 'in mourning for her dead father and Delilah's absent father' walked onto the porch. "But she seems to love you, you rogue, so I'll forgive you this time. Come in, we have fresh-pressed cider from our apple trees."
David lifted Delilah to sit on his shoulders and walked inside to her parlor, where Jèzebel poured the cider for him, then after a pout from Delilah, a small cup for her.
As Delilah sipped the cider, David's voice became more serious. "South Carolina fired on Fort Sumter and declared that they were seceding from the Union. President Lincoln is going to be sending out a call for volunteers to put down their rebellion."
Jèzebel's hand shook and her voice cracked. "So it has come to war then?"
David gravely nodded.
Jèzebel frowned, "What will MACUSA do?"
"They are going to call this a No-Maj matter and bar us from taking action. You know as well as I how powerful some of the families who have property in the South are. And how scared the leadership is of the Nomajs. Father will try to change their minds but...." David's voice was dark.
Jèzebel set her cider cup down. "I know. It's a battle I have been fighting ever since...." Her voice trailed off. Delilah watched the adults in curious silence.
"And Norimune?" Jèzebel's voice was hushed
"She's with the exiles in Niagara. They are still debating what to do. They didn't expect this to happen, none of us did. I told my man there to report his observations to you."
"None of us did. David, what are you going to do to leave your part of the network to me?" Jèzebel's voice rose in shock as Delilah stared in surprise. Mother never lost control like that.
"What I must do, Jèzebel. Lincoln is right when he says that this nation cannot be a house half free and half slave, it must be all of one or the other. That's why I brought the news myself. You deserved to hear it from me personally than via a letter from where I will be going as part of the 2nd New York Volunteer Infantry." David's voice was firm and sad.
Jèzebel began to cry. "Just be careful, David. If MACUSA found out..."
Delilah watched in solemn silence as the setting sun stained David's face red. "I know. I won't be coming back. I didn't get an O in Diviniations alongside you back at Ilvermorny for no reason. But if a man is not willing to fight and die for what he believes in, it is of little worth and no account. Fare Thee well, Jèzebel. Remember me fondly."
Jèzebel hugged David as their tears flowed. "Fare Thee well, David. God bless."
Gettysburg, Pennsylvania
November 19th, 1864
Delilah stood alongside Mother as they listened to the speaker's powerful baritone. She sniffled a little at the knowledge of what was happening here.
For three long years, all she had had of her Uncle David was letters delivered every week. Simple things, but he always found time to write a few sentences for Delilah that Mother would read as they hugged each other.
"...But they, I am sure, will join us in saying, as we bid farewell to the dust of these martyr-heroes, that wheresoever throughout the civilized world the accounts of this great warfare are read, and down to the latest period of recorded time, in the glorious annals of our common country, there will be no brighter page than that which relates the Battles of Gettysburg!" The Honorable Edward Everett, leading public speaker of the day, former Senator and President of Harvard, finished with a flourish among polite applause.
Delilah didn't clap.
His final letter had been penned on the First of July as he and the rest of his unit rested after their march to the small crossroads town of Gettysburg. He had told her be diligent with her studies and that he looked forward to hearing her poems when the war was over.
The band struck up a solemn tune joined by the singers as the new Federal Cemetery here was consecrated.
Somewhere under the freshly turned earth stained with the blood of thousands lay Uncle David. He would never pick her up or hear her poems. She could not forget the look in Mother's face when she received the news that he had fallen.
"Ladies and Gentlemen, the President of the United States!"
Delilah looked at the stage to try to drag her mind out of the painful memories. A tall man in a dark suit rose to his feet. His thinning hair and beard were streaked with gray and deep lines of pain and stress scored his face. But his eyes....
Delilah looked into his dark eyes. Compassion and pain were there sufficient to fill an ocean. But most of all there was a spark of belief, of faith, of a dream that called to something deep inside her.
His high-pitched voice sounded in her ears as he began to speak.
"Four score and seven years ago our fathers brought forth on this continent, a new nation, conceived in Liberty, and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal."
His voice was reverent, filled with a fire of belief that caused her heart to ignite.
A belief that some things were worth dying for because they were more infinitely precious than very life itself. For without them, life was not worth living.
"Now we are engaged in a great civil war, testing whether that nation, or any nation so conceived and so dedicated, can long endure. We are met on a great battle-field of that war. We have come to dedicate a portion of that field, as a final resting place for those who here gave their lives that that nation might live. It is altogether fitting and proper that we should do this."
Delilah nodded along, seeing his logic as he built upon that fire of belief beginning to burn inside her. Not just blind faith, but reason to advance from first principles.
"But, in a larger sense, we can not dedicate—we can not consecrate—we can not hallow—this ground. The brave men, living and dead, who struggled here, have consecrated it, far above our poor power to add or detract."
Delilah's tears flowed as he spoke to her pain, her grief, her lost Uncle David. His voice was equally compassionate as he bore her up and the fire in her soul grew.
"The world will little note, nor long remember what we say here, but it can never forget what they did here. It is for us the living, rather, to be dedicated here to the unfinished work which they who fought here have thus far so nobly advanced."
Delilah gasped as she realized the magnitude of the choice offered in those words.
She could elect to do nothing, to let others take up what had to be done, and live in ease with the fruits of others' labors. Just like a slave owner would. Or she could take up the task in front of her, and show how much she valued those like Mother and Aunt Jacklyn, and Father and Uncle David by devoting her life to making the imperfect perfect so as to establish something built by her own hands and mind and soul worthy of what she loved.
"It is rather for us to be here dedicated to the great task remaining before us—that from these honored dead we take increased devotion to that cause for which they gave the last full measure of devotion—that we here highly resolve that these dead shall not have died in vain—that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom—and that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth."
"But if a man is not willing to fight and die for what he believes in, it is of little worth and no account." Uncle David's last words whispered in her ears, in her soul, as the roaring flame inside her heart grew to consume her utterly with a glorious madness that she embraced.
As Abraham Lincoln sat down, for a brief moment his gaze met that of two leaf-green eyes filled with heartfelt, soul-sustaining, glorious, liberating fire in a eight year old girl's tear-stained face.
Gettysburg, Pennsylvania
July 2nd, 1946
A lone young-seeming woman dressed in a black skirt-suit passed through the gate of the cemetery with a bouquet of lilies tied with a red, white, and blue ribbon in her arms. She walked in reverent silence to a simple tombstone, one of thousands resting there.
SGT D. POTTER
88th New York Infantry
July 2nd, 1864
Delilah de Breuil placed the lilies on the grave of her first friend. She stood there for long moments as the wind blew the perfume of flowers to ruffle the chestnut red-brown of her hair around her face.
She then spoke in a hushed voice. "The World War is over, Uncle David. Liberty has been purchased again for those in need of it, at a terrible cost. But then if it did not come so dear, we would not treasure it as we should. You taught me that well."
She wiped tears from her eyes and then resumed speaking. "My sister Colombe mentioned a poet she knew in the Great War who in turn gave all that he was for what he believed in. He... spoke to me when I looked him up in England while recuperating from my wounds, and I'd like to share part of his verse with you."
Delilah closed her eyes and her tears fell onto the rich green grass covering the grave as she whispered.
Her fingers trailed across the worn tombstone in a gentle caress.
"Sleep well, Uncle David."
Hound's Devotion
De Breuil Estate, Upstate New York
April 13th, 1861
"Up, up! David Up!" The five year old girl declared imperiously to the laughing young man as she ran toward him across the grass of the front yard while the groom took his horse.
"Yes, Miss Delilah!" David picked the little girl up and spun her around twice as she shrieked in glee. He then lowered her to the ground at a cough behind them.
"David Potter, you are a bad influence on my girl you know." Jèzebel de Breuil, dressed in her normal severe black dress 'in mourning for her dead father and Delilah's absent father' walked onto the porch. "But she seems to love you, you rogue, so I'll forgive you this time. Come in, we have fresh-pressed cider from our apple trees."
David lifted Delilah to sit on his shoulders and walked inside to her parlor, where Jèzebel poured the cider for him, then after a pout from Delilah, a small cup for her.
As Delilah sipped the cider, David's voice became more serious. "South Carolina fired on Fort Sumter and declared that they were seceding from the Union. President Lincoln is going to be sending out a call for volunteers to put down their rebellion."
Jèzebel's hand shook and her voice cracked. "So it has come to war then?"
David gravely nodded.
Jèzebel frowned, "What will MACUSA do?"
"They are going to call this a No-Maj matter and bar us from taking action. You know as well as I how powerful some of the families who have property in the South are. And how scared the leadership is of the Nomajs. Father will try to change their minds but...." David's voice was dark.
Jèzebel set her cider cup down. "I know. It's a battle I have been fighting ever since...." Her voice trailed off. Delilah watched the adults in curious silence.
"And Norimune?" Jèzebel's voice was hushed
"She's with the exiles in Niagara. They are still debating what to do. They didn't expect this to happen, none of us did. I told my man there to report his observations to you."
"None of us did. David, what are you going to do to leave your part of the network to me?" Jèzebel's voice rose in shock as Delilah stared in surprise. Mother never lost control like that.
"What I must do, Jèzebel. Lincoln is right when he says that this nation cannot be a house half free and half slave, it must be all of one or the other. That's why I brought the news myself. You deserved to hear it from me personally than via a letter from where I will be going as part of the 2nd New York Volunteer Infantry." David's voice was firm and sad.
Jèzebel began to cry. "Just be careful, David. If MACUSA found out..."
Delilah watched in solemn silence as the setting sun stained David's face red. "I know. I won't be coming back. I didn't get an O in Diviniations alongside you back at Ilvermorny for no reason. But if a man is not willing to fight and die for what he believes in, it is of little worth and no account. Fare Thee well, Jèzebel. Remember me fondly."
Jèzebel hugged David as their tears flowed. "Fare Thee well, David. God bless."
Gettysburg, Pennsylvania
November 19th, 1864
Delilah stood alongside Mother as they listened to the speaker's powerful baritone. She sniffled a little at the knowledge of what was happening here.
For three long years, all she had had of her Uncle David was letters delivered every week. Simple things, but he always found time to write a few sentences for Delilah that Mother would read as they hugged each other.
"...But they, I am sure, will join us in saying, as we bid farewell to the dust of these martyr-heroes, that wheresoever throughout the civilized world the accounts of this great warfare are read, and down to the latest period of recorded time, in the glorious annals of our common country, there will be no brighter page than that which relates the Battles of Gettysburg!" The Honorable Edward Everett, leading public speaker of the day, former Senator and President of Harvard, finished with a flourish among polite applause.
Delilah didn't clap.
His final letter had been penned on the First of July as he and the rest of his unit rested after their march to the small crossroads town of Gettysburg. He had told her be diligent with her studies and that he looked forward to hearing her poems when the war was over.
The band struck up a solemn tune joined by the singers as the new Federal Cemetery here was consecrated.
Somewhere under the freshly turned earth stained with the blood of thousands lay Uncle David. He would never pick her up or hear her poems. She could not forget the look in Mother's face when she received the news that he had fallen.
"Ladies and Gentlemen, the President of the United States!"
Delilah looked at the stage to try to drag her mind out of the painful memories. A tall man in a dark suit rose to his feet. His thinning hair and beard were streaked with gray and deep lines of pain and stress scored his face. But his eyes....
Delilah looked into his dark eyes. Compassion and pain were there sufficient to fill an ocean. But most of all there was a spark of belief, of faith, of a dream that called to something deep inside her.
His high-pitched voice sounded in her ears as he began to speak.
"Four score and seven years ago our fathers brought forth on this continent, a new nation, conceived in Liberty, and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal."
His voice was reverent, filled with a fire of belief that caused her heart to ignite.
A belief that some things were worth dying for because they were more infinitely precious than very life itself. For without them, life was not worth living.
"Now we are engaged in a great civil war, testing whether that nation, or any nation so conceived and so dedicated, can long endure. We are met on a great battle-field of that war. We have come to dedicate a portion of that field, as a final resting place for those who here gave their lives that that nation might live. It is altogether fitting and proper that we should do this."
Delilah nodded along, seeing his logic as he built upon that fire of belief beginning to burn inside her. Not just blind faith, but reason to advance from first principles.
"But, in a larger sense, we can not dedicate—we can not consecrate—we can not hallow—this ground. The brave men, living and dead, who struggled here, have consecrated it, far above our poor power to add or detract."
Delilah's tears flowed as he spoke to her pain, her grief, her lost Uncle David. His voice was equally compassionate as he bore her up and the fire in her soul grew.
"The world will little note, nor long remember what we say here, but it can never forget what they did here. It is for us the living, rather, to be dedicated here to the unfinished work which they who fought here have thus far so nobly advanced."
Delilah gasped as she realized the magnitude of the choice offered in those words.
She could elect to do nothing, to let others take up what had to be done, and live in ease with the fruits of others' labors. Just like a slave owner would. Or she could take up the task in front of her, and show how much she valued those like Mother and Aunt Jacklyn, and Father and Uncle David by devoting her life to making the imperfect perfect so as to establish something built by her own hands and mind and soul worthy of what she loved.
"It is rather for us to be here dedicated to the great task remaining before us—that from these honored dead we take increased devotion to that cause for which they gave the last full measure of devotion—that we here highly resolve that these dead shall not have died in vain—that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom—and that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth."
"But if a man is not willing to fight and die for what he believes in, it is of little worth and no account." Uncle David's last words whispered in her ears, in her soul, as the roaring flame inside her heart grew to consume her utterly with a glorious madness that she embraced.
As Abraham Lincoln sat down, for a brief moment his gaze met that of two leaf-green eyes filled with heartfelt, soul-sustaining, glorious, liberating fire in a eight year old girl's tear-stained face.
Gettysburg, Pennsylvania
July 2nd, 1946
A lone young-seeming woman dressed in a black skirt-suit passed through the gate of the cemetery with a bouquet of lilies tied with a red, white, and blue ribbon in her arms. She walked in reverent silence to a simple tombstone, one of thousands resting there.
SGT D. POTTER
88th New York Infantry
July 2nd, 1864
Delilah de Breuil placed the lilies on the grave of her first friend. She stood there for long moments as the wind blew the perfume of flowers to ruffle the chestnut red-brown of her hair around her face.
She then spoke in a hushed voice. "The World War is over, Uncle David. Liberty has been purchased again for those in need of it, at a terrible cost. But then if it did not come so dear, we would not treasure it as we should. You taught me that well."
She wiped tears from her eyes and then resumed speaking. "My sister Colombe mentioned a poet she knew in the Great War who in turn gave all that he was for what he believed in. He... spoke to me when I looked him up in England while recuperating from my wounds, and I'd like to share part of his verse with you."
Delilah closed her eyes and her tears fell onto the rich green grass covering the grave as she whispered.
"Take up our quarrel with the foe:
To you from failing hands we throw
The torch; be yours to hold it high.
If ye break faith with us who die
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
In Flanders fields."
To you from failing hands we throw
The torch; be yours to hold it high.
If ye break faith with us who die
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
In Flanders fields."
Her fingers trailed across the worn tombstone in a gentle caress.
"Sleep well, Uncle David."
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DawnofWar32
War is coming. Prepare yourselves!
- Location
- Butuan City, The Philippines
Finally caught up! Phew, that was a loooong trek, but let me say this:
I LIVED! AND I HAVE PERSEVERED!
Also, when is Harry going to meet the Butterknife Bastards?
I LIVED! AND I HAVE PERSEVERED!
Also, when is Harry going to meet the Butterknife Bastards?
Indeed, there's a small proverb that used to be the way things were done, "It takes a village to raise a child", while everyone understood that the children had their parents, there would always be someone older in the village keeping an eye on the shenanigans of the little ones or to give them something to do or to even give them a quick lesson in something that they felt like teaching that day. Basically the village was a huge community of uncles and aunts and older cousins growing up.
However, due to just how big communities are getting nowadays and with a lot of people going to cities to find work, that practice has been slowly dying.