A Devilish Bargain

Sirius looked at his godson lying unconscious on the bed in the Hogwarts infirmary. It’d been three days and he still hadn’t woken up. The end of the Triwizard Tournament had been a giant clusterfuck to put it mildly, and his godson had been hit with the bloody Killing Curse.

Again.

It was a miracle that he’d survived.

Still in his animagus form, Sirius stretched, making a huffing noise. Voldemort was back. His godson was in danger. And from what he had pieced together from what Harry and his friends had told him, he had been in danger each and every year he’d been at Hogwarts. A possessed Quirrel. A bloody basilisk. A horde of dementors. And this year, the Triwizard Tournament and Voldemort himself.

Sirius made a decision. Harry was his responsibility, and he owed it to James and Lily to protect him.

No matter what it cost him.

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Sirius stood in the ritual room in his family home. An old book rested on a small pedestal beside him. It had been in the Black family for nearly a thousand years and it would be used today. He looked down at the circle he’d drawn, waiting for his head to clear. He’d had to use his own blood; unfortunately, using blood-replenishing potions would hamper the ritual.

Slowly, Sirius began to chant as he stood to the side, reading from the large tome. His voice spoke in a measured cadence; he’d had training in rituals before he fled his family to stay with James. Soon, the chanting came to a crescendo, and he called out, “... te invocabo, Sirzechs Gremory!”

His blood on the floor burst into bright red flames, the magical circle flaring into being and then slowly redrawing itself into another, one with a stylized red flower in the center surrounded by markings in a language Sirius didn’t understand. With a flare of scarlet fire, a figure appeared within the circle: a tall man who appeared to be in his late twenties. He had strong features with bright blue eyes and long crimson hair and was dressed in a black suit.

“Well. I haven’t been called in this manner in centuries. I’m surprised any such volumes remain in the mortal world,” the figure stated as he nodded towards the book Sirius had obtained the ritual from, a hint of amusement in his voice. He glanced at Sirius, asking, “And why, praytell, have you summoned me?”

Sirius gulped. This was the moment. Do or die. “I have a need for a boon, and am willing to pay the price.” The book had warned that the price could be anything from mere wealth to his soul itself.

“Oh, and what is the boon, exactly?” Sirzechs’ voice was dry. He hadn’t had any personal contracts of his own for centuries. He’d been too busy working as Lucifer for such things.

“My godson is in danger. Every year he has attended school he’s been in danger, in fact. This year, his mortal enemy used his blood to return from the grave and tried to kill him again. I think that his Headmaster, someone who should be protecting him, is using him instead.” Sirius took a breath, “I’ll pay you anything you ask. I have a responsibility to him and his parents. I need you to take him away somewhere he cannot be found and protect him. Make sure that he’s all right, he hasn’t woken up yet.”

Sirzechs blinked in surprise. Usually, devils were summoned for far less pure reasons. This man wanting to protect his godson? His willingness to offer anything in exchange? It reminded Sirzechs of his sister and what he’d be willing to offer in order to protect her. Namely, anything. Just like the wizard before him.

“I take it that your godson is a wizard like yourself?” Wizards were interesting, mortals who had magic similar to devils, if not as strong. Their magic was very different from that of magicians.

“Yes, he is. He’s had a hard life due to various reasons. Now that I’m in his life again, I have to make sure he’s all right.” Sirius’ voice cracked slightly, as he took a breath. “Please.”

Sirzechs considered his options before coming to a decision. He wanted to help the other man but he was still a devil. He would get something out of it but wouldn’t be cruel. “I shall do the following. Your godson will be taken by me to a safe place and if needed, healed. I shall ask an associate to provide a magical item that will protect him from any attempt to locate him.” Ajuka could do that easily, he thought to himself. “He will be able to attend school and live a normal life, learning magic from yourself and others. However.” Sirzechs paused, “The price is this. You shall join my wife’s peerage. They act as our agents in the mortal world and a talented wizard would be quite useful. You shall work for me the rest of your life. Do not worry, I will see you are paid well.”

Sirius drew in a breath. That was not nearly as bad as it could have been. He’d been worrying about the eternal torment of his soul. He knew what joining a peerage entailed. Becoming a devil wasn’t so bad, at least from what he had read. “That’s acceptable. If I can somehow manage to convince the goblins, I can move the family wealth elsewhere. Then, money won’t be an issue. Besides, if the Black fortune vanished, it’d stick it to the arrogant, racist pricks like my cousin Narcissa.”

Sirzechs chuckled. He liked this fellow. He had a sharp tongue. “I’ll send a message to the goblins. They will listen to me.” They were, after all, descendants of extra demons.

“So, do I call you sir, or...?”

“I am Sirzechs Lucifer, born Sirzechs Gremory and am one of the rulers of the Underworld. In private, you may call me Sirzechs. In public, you are to call me sir or Lucifer.”

Sirius managed to not faint. Barely.

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Sirius stood at Harry’s bedside. It was remarkably similar to when Harry had been in the Hogwarts infirmary.

Which was no longer the case.

It had been a hectic few weeks. He had cleaned out Grimmauld Place, leaving it empty. The goblins had transferred the entirety of the Black fortune to the Underworld. Grayfia had given him a knight piece; he felt better than he had in years.

But Harry still hadn’t woken up.

“Are you sure he’ll be all right?” he asked the devil beside him. One of the leaders of the bloody Underworld. Ajuka Beezlebub.

“He’s fine,” the devil said. “I could wake him up now, but we’re still repairing the damage to his body and soul. It’s best that he remains asleep during the process; it will be quite painful.” The devil shook his head, “He has basilisk venom in his veins. The only reason he didn’t die is due to the phoenix tears that are also present, continually nullifying the venom. If something weakened or removed the phoenix tears, he would die. Thus, it’s best for us to cleanse both from his body and that takes time. He also has a great deal of spiritual damage due to the soul vessel that resided within his scar. It’s remarkable how strong his magic was with all the damage. Once the damage is gone, he will be on par with the strongest of mortal wizards. If he ever becomes a devil, his magic will be incredibly strong.”

Sirius swallowed. All he could hear is how he’d failed his godson. He supposed it was lucky that Voldemort had destroyed the foreign soul when he hit Harry with the second Killing Curse. “How long will it take?”

“Approximately a year,” Ajuka said to him. “It’s best not to rush things.”

“Is there any way to help him learn quickly?” asked Sirius, “He’ll want to attend a school and he’s so far behind the muggles. He hasn’t attended a muggle school in years.”

Ajuka considered, “I could have him learn mundane subjects and magical theory while recovering. Any active skill, physical or magical, would be impossible though. We don’t normally use such methods as it takes a great deal of time, but if he’s going to be unconscious anyway...” He trailed off and nodded. “It’ll be good for him. I know that Sirzechs is planning on having him attend school in Japan, so I’ll add Japanese as well as a few other languages that are useful for magical study.”

Sirius ran his fingers through his hair, “Thank you. Can you tell me when he’s healed, so I can be here when he wakes up?”

“Of course.”

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Albus Dumbledore sat in his office, trying to think of a solution to his current dilemma: where was Harry Potter?

It’d been almost a year since Harry Potter had disappeared. The only thing left behind in the Hospital Wing was the ashen remains of Harry’s wand. At first, he’d assumed that Sirius had taken him and fled somewhere in one of his usual reckless escapades and so would be easily found.

That had proven not to be the case.

Grimmauld Place was completely empty and when he spoke to the goblins, they told him the entirety of the Black Vaults had been closed after all properties had been sold. There had been howls of rage from the Malfoys over that as Narcissa Malfoy had assumed her son would inherit the Black fortune.

There was now nothing to inherit.

Worse, the Potter Vaults had also been closed. No matter how much Albus had argued with them, the goblins had ignored him. They simply pointed out that as Harry’s godfather, Sirius had the right to take care of his godson’s welfare.

Albus had been shocked the goblins were willing to close the Black and Potter vaults. It’d gut their profit in Britain.

He had used Harry’s blood from his instruments to find him. And failed. And now that all of the blood was gone, he would be unable to attempt such a thing in the future.

Even if Voldemort had destroyed the horcrux, Harry was necessary for the upcoming fight. It was the boy’s responsibility, his destiny.

And Albus could not find him.

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Harry felt himself awakening. The last thing he remembered, he had dived towards the Triwizard Cup while holding onto Cedric’s dead body. He’d wanted to get him to his parents for a proper burial at least. Then there was a flash of green and something struck him and Harry had passed out.

He’d thought he died. Obviously, this was not the case. In fact, he felt... good. Better than he’d ever felt before, really. Slowly opening his eyes, he saw two figures standing at the side of the bed. One a slender man with green(?) hair and the other... “Sirius!” Harry paused, “You look...younger.”

“Harry,” Sirius said, his eyes full of tears as he knelt by his godson’s bed and took his hand. “I’m so glad you’re all right.”

“What happened?” Harry asked, “I feel good, better than I ever have. Didn’t I get hit with the Killing Curse? I thought I’d died...”

“You did get hit with one, but...well, it’s complicated,” Sirius began. “Your scar, it was a soul vessel. It contained something called a horcrux...”

The explanation took some time. At the end of it, Harry’s mind was whirling. “So you’re saying that you don’t trust Dumbledore.” With how Sirius layed everything that happened out, it made sense, unfortunately. “And that you made a deal with a devil to protect me? You became a devil. And that I’ve been unconscious for over a year?” He took a breath, “This is a lot to take in, Sirius. How are Ron and Hermione?”

“Yup. And they’re fine, I’ve been keeping an eye on Britain.” Sirius shrugged, “According to the doctor here--”

“Not a doctor. More of a researcher,” came Ajuka’s reply.

“--it was best to keep you unconscious while the damage was healed.” Sirius shrugged. “On the plus side, he stuffed all sorts of stuff in your head while you were out, so you’ll be able to attend a muggle school. I’ll be the one to teach you magic in the evenings and weekends. Luckily, where we’re going, children learning and using magic at home is commonplace.”

“Where is that?” Harry wondered.

“Kuoh, Japan. My boss’ sister lives there and attends Kuoh Academy. He thinks it’d be good to have someone help you get settled. She’s a year older than you are,” Sirius continued.

“A devil is attending a normal high school?” Harry blinked

Sirius grinned, “From what Sirzechs told me, she’s something of a Japanophile.”

Trying to wrap his mind around this strange fact, Harry ran his fingers through his hair. “And Dumbledore can’t find me?”

“It would be unlikely, but in order to make sure you will be wearing this at all times.” Ajuka tapped a small bracelet on Harry’s wrist. “I modeled it after mortal allergy bracelets, so people shouldn’t ask any questions. It completely blocks your presence from magical scrying. The only person who could find you is myself and that’s because I know how the bracelet works.”

“I’m going to miss Hermione and Ron,” Harry murmured to himself as he considered everything that had happened.

“I can get letters to them through the goblins,” Sirius offered. “Eventually, you’ll be able to meet them, but only in a safe location. Maybe we’ll take them to the Underworld. There’s no way for Dumbledore to do anything here.”

“If I may?” Ajuka offered. “There’s one more thing to discuss.”

“What?” Sirius asked, glancing towards Ajuka, suddenly a little worried.

“While healing your godson, I detected something. He has a sacred gear,” Ajuka said.

“You’re bloody kidding me. Harry has a sacred gear?” Sirius asked. In the year he’d spent as a devil, he’d learned a great deal and so knew of such things.

“What is a sacred gear?” was Harry’s question.

“A sacred gear is a magical item that is attached to the human soul,” Ajuka explained clinically. “They can range from the weaker ones that do things like double your abilities for a brief period to ones that can literally reshape the world and kill gods.”

“Uh, okay,” Harry stated in his typical eloquent fashion. “So I have one? What is it?”

“I cannot tell you. It cannot be identified until it awakens,” Ajuka said to him. “However, I can say it’s a very strong one. Possibly even Longinus-rank.”

“Uh, Longinus-rank?”

“Longinuses are the most powerful sacred gears, each with the power to kill a god in some fashion,” came Ajuka’s words. “Dimension Lost makes its user a master at space and to a lesser extent, temporal magics. Boosted Gear has the soul of the Red Dragon Emperor Ddraig within it. And so on.”

“And I might have one.” Harry’s brain has short circuited at this, and it takes him a moment to reboot. “So, what do I do?”

“Practice your magic. Exercise to grow stronger, as physical health helps as well. Eventually it will awaken,” Ajuka said with a shrug. “I’m honestly surprised it hadn’t awakened with all of the things that have happened to you, but it’s likely the foreign soul caused issues.”

“Another thing to blame Voldemort for,” Sirius muttered. “Anyway. Once we’re sure you’re all right, I’ll take you to Kuoh. I’ve already purchased a house there under my new name in the mortal world. It’s ever so creative. Sirius Potter, at your service.”

Harry gaped, “That is bloody weird.”

“Hey! I thought it worked, I can pose as your older brother,” Sirius said with a sniff. A more serious thought came into his mind but he didn't say it, I would never try to take James’ place and say I’m your dad.

“Yeah, yeah.”

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“This is a great place!” Harry said to Sirius as he entered their new home a few days later, a three-bedroom house not far from Kuoh Academy. “It even has a big yard,” he said enthusiastically. “It must have cost a fortune.”

“Hey, I have the Black fortune; I cleared out everything at Gringotts,” Sirius said with a shrug. “A house doesn’t even dent it. By the way, I also cleared out the Potter Vaults so no one could try to seize your stuff. Your money and heirlooms are presently safe in an Underworld bank. We have someone Sirzechs suggested taking care of investing your wealth.”

Harry shrugged; he knew that it was important, but he’d never really had money so it wasn’t a major concern for him. “I trust you to make sure it’s handled well. I never had to think about it before, so I am pretty clueless.”

“Well, we’ll have to work on that,” Sirius said easily. “We’ll add that to your evening lessons in addition to magical lessons.” He grinned, “They should be pretty easy, Ajuka dumped a lot of theory into your head while you were healing. We just have to work on all of the practical stuff. Teach you control, teach you how to really tweak your spells. Magic is more than memorization.”

“Yeah, I noticed that,” Harry admitted. “My head felt really weird for a while.”

“He said it’d take time for you to, well, get everything settled after you woke up,” Sirius acknowledged. He gestured with a hand, and their luggage flew in through the open door. “Come on, let’s unpack. The place is already furnished, so we’re good to go. Yours is the first room on the left, mine’s on the right...”

“Woh, you did that without a wand!”

“I don’t need one anymore. Being a devil makes magic a lot easier. Even normal wizards can go without. As a devil, it’s a piece of cake.” Sirius preened with a superior smirk.

Only to get a pillow from the nearby couch thrown at him, “Yeah, you’re awesome,” Harry said with a chuckle. “You said I could do magic, right?” At Sirius’ nod, Harry gestured with his new wand, “Leviosa.” The wand was twelve inches, cherry with a kitsune-hair core. His bags rose to follow him as he headed up the stairs. “I’m going to unpack.”

“Take your time. We’re going to have a visitor in a few hours!”

“Who?” called Harry as he opened up his bags, beginning to take out his clothing. Sirius had gotten him way too much clothing, but he insisted that Harry needed a fine wardrobe and refused to listen to arguments.

“Rias Gremory, my boss’ sister. She wanted to meet you as she got you into Kuoh Academy as a transfer,” Sirius called from his room. He’d started unpacking as well.

“Oh, okay.”

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Not long later, Harry made his way downstairs. He’d changed into a pair of black slacks and dark blue shirt. It was made of bloody silk! “Hey, Harry. Looking good,” grinned Sirius.

“Right,” Harry said before admitting, “I do like having nice clothes, though I kind of feel like a fop like Malfoy.”

“Well, stop it,” Sirius said seriously. “You can like looking nice without being an arrogant jerkass. Take me. I might be a bit of a jokester sometimes, but not where it counts. And I like to look good. It helps make people respect you too. Hell, it’s one of the things that really made me annoyed with Dumbledore. You walking around in those hand-me-downs and all when you have more than enough money to afford good clothing.”

“I guess you’re right,” Harry admitted. He was about to say more when there was a knock on the door. “I’ll get it.”

Moving towards the door, he opened it. And came face first with the most beautiful girl he’d ever seen. He couldn’t help but stare, finding her long crimson hair and deep blue eyes mesmerizing. Finally, he managed to say, “Hello?”

“Hello!” The girl’s voice was soft and melodic, “I’m Rias Gremory.”