HP: Spirit Talker

Junko, from the moment she found out what we were going to do and for what purpose, was very speechless, yes, she was actually silent the whole time, but her glances in my direction were clear enough that at the end of this venture, the two of us went to my office to talk. But I didn't want to lose my comfort, so we waited until Momo brought me hot chocolate and my mother her favorite red tea, and then I closed the door. For a while, we just drank our drinks, and I also snacked on delicious homemade cookies with a drop of fruit liqueur, which makes homemade pastries something incomparable.

Mom, on the other hand, sipped her tea the Japanese way. I don't like it for obvious reasons, and that's putting it mildly, so I don't practice it, but for Junko it's the order of the day, I mean, she knows how much I dislike it, so she started expressing her displeasure with it. That's a good start, heartfelt. After we finished our cups and I poured myself a refill, the woman spoke while looking me in the eye, as is customary in Japan.

— Son, I must ask you to step down as heir to the Hoshino clan and family. — Mother said in a cool, even tone.

— What made you think that? — I wanted to laugh when I heard her words, but I could feel how serious she was, so I decided not to escalate the situation.

— Please, — the woman twitched the corner of her lips. — You had a unique artifact in your hands that could be the jewel of any clan or clan treasury, but you gave it to your servant. — I nodded in agreement as Junko continued. — You could have taken her as your concubine, performed the appropriate ritual on the clan stone, and then used this witch to establish a new junior branch of the clan. — I nodded once more. — To deliberately release a benefit for the clan, a serious benefit, to harm the clan because someone else might get it. Or do you disagree with me?

— Why not? I agree, that's exactly the principle I operate on — well, most of the time, that's for sure. — But what makes you think that my decision about Hermione is a loss for the future of our family and clan?

— She's not bound by vows! — Junko snapped, stepping forward, her mask of calm and equanimity falling away, a mask through which I could feel her emotions, her state of mind.

— She swore an oath of service to me. — I replied in the same even and calm tone. — That's why the girl was kidnapped — to beat me.

— She swore an oath to you — not to her clan or her tribe, but to you! — I could barely hold back a smile: Junko has no right to give orders to anyone in my house, and that obviously depresses her, she does not feel like a mistress. That's logical, because she really isn't a mistress and never will be, and asking Zashikiwarashi — she's obviously not used to it and has to literally step over herself every time.

— Right, — I finish my drink and put the cup aside, returning to the most comfortable position in the deep armchair. — And why did I do that? — I said thoughtfully, with an obvious hint.

— You're soft-hearted! You are not ready to be the head yet, so you should give me that right until you get your wits about you. — Junko crosses her arms over her chest and lifts her chin a little higher, her eyes and emotions frozen with ironclad confidence in her words and conclusions.

— Okay, — I nod. — If I'm such a bad head, then tell me, how is the oath of service to the family or the clan fixed?

— By a ritual on the altar, of course.

— Where is Hoshino's altar now?

— In the Imperial Chancellery.

— Where exactly? — I got a confused look on my face, so I'll clarify. — I mean the location, the geographical location. Do you know it?

— No, why?

— In that case, tell me, if you do not know it, what did you do in the negotiations with the Celestial Fox? What did she give you in exchange for the return of her regalia?

— You say that as if you know where the remains of the Hoshino family altar are, — the angry woman grinned skeptically, completely ignoring the question about the regalia, but I decided not to dwell on it, as it was pointless.

— I know, — I nodded calmly, and my mother's eyes widened. — Unlike you, my pact with the Ayakashi has done more good for the family and for me personally, right now. You don't believe me? I've made a full alliance with the tanuki, and we'll seal it this summer with Kokoro-san's wedding. As a gift of friendship, I was given all the information about the Hoshino Altar shards. — After pausing for a moment to let my mother know what I was talking about, I realized.

— No charge. Next thing you know, we'll have a big business together. A family business. Not enough? Please do: Se-dono is not only gathering some of the tanuki, but also those who are having a hard time in their homeland, those who have lost their homes, — I grinned, because according to our agreement, the elder of the tanuki family will declare to everyone that she is tired and wants to take care of her grandchildren, and to keep her busy, she will move in with her granddaughter and son-in-law.

She will hand over her authority to another elder who, according to the legend, is even older than she is. But in reality, it is her son, who has mastered the art of transforming (the fairy leaf on a tanuki's head when he transforms into anything), the same elder, the original, still alive and quite capable, just for the sake of this deception — to hide from the world the presence of another powerful tanuki, tanuki of the level of Se himself, or the same Heavenly Fox he is hiding.

And if the world learns of the power of Se's son, who is a promiscuous bachelor and a disappointment to everyone, a new round of political games and various confrontations will begin, which will not benefit tanuki at all. And so the elder, played by Se-dono's son, is already so old that he has already begun to go into marasmus (a lie, the tanuki intentionally showed him going into marasmus for the sake of entertainment, it was even before the beginning of the cunning plan, and then they all laughed together at others).

As for the tanuki part, some of these people will move here, a seventh to be exact, and they are the most numerous of all Japanese ayakashi, nobody even knows their exact number, so there will be no serious loss, only some places in the big cities will be given to other tanuki from the hinterland, to those who have been hiding from the war. — The Ayakashi settlers will establish a new settlement on my land, and just by living here, they will increase the natural magical background. And since they are not originally settling on English land, but on mine, they will obey only me.

— That's not enough, — Junko shook her head. — Ayakashi or mages could be recruited without any mediation.

— Yeah, sure, — she grinned. — If Lissa says a few words, they won't even talk to us, not even to lie, just to keep quiet. But Se-dono has so much authority that Celestia will have to wipe her face.

— Well, let's leave the tanuki alone, especially since I was never against an alliance with them. We were talking about your servant, and I think your decision is wrong, even dangerous.

— It's simple. When I rebuild the altar, we will perform a full ritual of service to the Hoshino family of Hermione's lineage.

— You should have taken her as your concubine if you were going to hand over such a valuable artifact. — Her mother continued to stubbornly pursue her lineage. — You're being illogical.

— It's very logical, — I sighed heavily. — Think about it: if I have all the more or less promising girls under me, who will my descendants marry? Those Mudbloods who are in power in Britain now? Have you even seen them? — Junko grinned contemptuously at my words, after all, she is a Hoshino, and we can sense when all sorts of nasty things are around us. — Hermione will lay down a strong bloodline, and our familia will help our vassals not get cursed, so that alliances can be made without fear of getting dirty. That makes sense to you, doesn't it?