HARRY POTTER: Witchcraft and Devilry

"I put him back to sleep and removed his memory of seeing us," she replied stoically. "I've also ensured that the others won't wake for a few more hours as well."

"I wish you'd waited for morning," Rias grumbled.

"I did," Grayfia said, fluttering the heavy curtains enough to show off the bright light of the sun.

"Oh," Rias said in surprise. Turning to him, she said, "I guess you went all night, stud."

"I er…" Harry stammered, growing flustered.

"You were amazing," Rias said, wrapping her arms around his shoulders and kissing his cheek. "I couldn't have asked for a better first time."

Unshakably aware of the other woman staring at them, Harry felt his face grow red at the sudden affection.

"Now let's get that evil piece in you," Rias said.

"Your parents ordered me to return you to them in all haste," Grayfia said. "I've stretched things as it is."

"I made a deal with Harry here," Rias said. "His life's in danger, and he needs a boost to his powers. I offered to make him my bonded servant in exchange for relieving me of my virtue."

"Hmm," Grayfia said. "A shade cleverer than I thought. As your servant, he'll be spared the wrath of the Phenexes unless they want to end up at odds with the Gremorys, which won't be worth it when there wasn't even a contract to violate yet."

"Mmhmm," Rias yawned. "Everyone will be disappointed, my mother most of all, but there's no need for bloodshed. Now, what to pick?"

"As a spellcaster, bishop would probably be for the best," Grayfia said.

"I was thinking that, yes," Rias said, picking out a white bishop piece.

"Wait a minute," Harry said. "Why are they chess pieces?"

"We're in a hurry, so I'll explain quickly," Grayfia said. "Lord Ajuka is fanatically fond of chess, and he invented them, so they're based on the game."

"Now hold still," Rias said. "This won't hurt a bit."

As she pressed the bishop against his chest, it began to glow a bright red, and to Harry's amazement, it slipped inside his chest. There was no pain or even itchiness as a foreign object was inserted into him. That changed a moment later, as his scar burned and the bishop was thrown out of his chest and onto the bed.

"What the hell?" Rias asked as Harry rubbed his scar.

"Fuck," he groaned, wincing at the lingering, though fading, headache.

"I've never seen that happen before," Grayfia said in surprise. It was the most emotion that she'd expressed yet.

"I think it might be my scar," Harry said. "It burned before the bishop was rejected."

"Let's try a rook," Rias said, frantically pushing the other piece inside him before he could say a word.

He groaned in pain as his scar flared again and the rook was thrown out of his chest again.

"Why isn't it working?!" Rias exclaimed, sounding scared.

"I told you it's my curse scar," Harry said through gritted teeth.

"Harry, you don't understand!" Rias said. "If you aren't my servant, I can't protect you from the Phenexes."

"Rias, you're overlooking something," Grayfia said calmly. "No mere curse could keep an evil piece from taking hold. Since Ajuka invented them, they haven't failed once. Not in humans, fallen angels, or even dragons. This is a mystery, and if there is one thing that Ajuka loves, it's solving mysteries."

"So Harry will end up under his protection," Rias said, calming down a bit.

"Who is Ajuka?" Harry asked. "I know you said that he's the one who invented the evil pieces, but is he powerful?"

Rias laughed at that. "Ajuka is my brother's best friend and is second only to him in power. They are two of the four Satans, the leaders of the Underworld. Being under his protection is better than being under ours. The chance of the Phenexes coming after you under our protection was negligible, but there is no chance that they'd risk his wrath."

"Oh, good," Harry said.

"Now, if that's all…" Grayfia said, trailing off as she swept her hand over them. They were quickly cleaned, and their scattered clothes were put back on them. "We need to get going."

"Um, I'm going to be missed if I'm gone long," Harry said.

"It's Saturday," Grayfia said. "No one will notice your absence; I'll see to that.

Content with her assurances, Harry got out of bed, holding Rias' hand as they stepped close to Grayfia.

"So how does this work?" Harry asked. He had always heard that you couldn't apparate in and out of Hogwarts, but he had summoned Rias, and Grayfia had appeared of her own will.

Instead of answering him, Grayfia just enveloped him in her magic, and in a flash, they were gone. A moment later, they reappeared just inside a very stately-looking mansion, and Harry was shocked at having finally found a form of magical transportation that didn't suck.

"That was awesome," he said without thinking.

"So you've been returned to us at last, my daughter," a melodious but pissed-sounding voice said a moment later.

"It was a few hours, Mother," Rias said as Harry turned to look at who had spoken.

"Venelana?!" Harry exclaimed in shock, only to freeze at the realization of what he'd just done.

"You know me, human?" Venelana asked, furrowing her brow.

"Um, how do you know my mother's name?" Rias asked, sounding confused.

He almost wished that the ground would swallow him whole in that moment before remembering that he was very likely in the Underworld.

"Um, that book I read that told me how to summon you had some...accounts of certain devils the author had interacted with," Harry replied.

"No account could make you that certain about who I am," Venelana said. "There were pictures too, yes?"

"Yes," Harry said, hoping that she wasn't about to attack him.

"My, my, if it's the one I'm thinking of, it's been centuries since that thing was done," Venelana chuckled. "Was it animated?"