Disclaimer: I do not own any part of Harry Potter or Oh My Goddess.
Asgard is a busy place. There's a lot of work involved in keeping the Cosmos ticking over smoothly.
Fortunately a lot of it is automated now - centuries of work by dedicated deities had slowly changed their roles from hard-working labourers toiling to keep the great tree of life - also known as Yggdrasil - alive and flourishing...to system administrators.
Some viewed that as a retrograde step. The views of the Almighty were unknown.
Still, it had taken a lot of the drudge work out of life. Though given that it had been replaced with tasks that revolved around bug eradication, system performance improvements and filling out forms, it was more a case that the physical part of the drudgery had been reduced.
One particular function of the Yggdrasil had been automated to the point where it almost needed no external input. This was the important Prophecies section, which had once required the full time attention of a minor deity at all times and occupied all three Norns on a regular basis. The goal of the Prophecies section was to apply corrections to the course of history as it unfolded, following some grand plan that the Almighty had mapped out somewhere.
Not that he ever explained what was in this grand plan, or the precise reasoning behind the "course corrections" that the Prophecies section applied. While in many respects the perfect boss to work for, he did have a habit of never explaining his reasoning. This could lead to frustration and uncertainty in equal measures, but it was just one of the things you got used to in Asgard.
The old system involved many hours spent divining the future using runic arrays, a tedious and annoying task that took a lot of time and always gave somewhat nebulous results. The skill was then interpreting these results and determining if they indicated that a Prophecy was needed. Once that had been determined, many more hours were spent figuring out where and when the Prophecy should be given, the particular form of delivery and even the wording to be used. Only once all relevant factors had been worked out in the fullest was a Prophecy issued - and then the next tedious task began; monitoring the issued Prophecy to make sure it was on track to achieve the desired results.
All of this had changed after Skuld, Norn of the Future, had spent her first full shift in the Prophecies section. She had not enjoyed the work at all, and had been horrified to learn that her role as Norn of the Future meant that she would be doing it again. And again. And again.
In fact, Skuld could look forward to a job position that would require her to spend most of her time on Prophecies. The young goddess had not relished the idea, and had set about finding a solution.
Much to everyone's surprise, Skuld had actually delivered the goods. A new software program designed to perform every task involved in issuing a new Prophecy. It was fully automatic, extremely efficient and rarely required input from operators. It was even more consistent, as a lot of the individual judgement had been taken out of the process.
Skuld's development had seen the Prophecy section reduced to one office tucked away in a corner, occupied by a single deity who's main job was to keep an eye out for bugs. It had also seen Skuld given an early promotion to a System Administrator role, as the code used for the Prophecy program was top notch by anyone's standard.
These days, Prophecies was a role used to give busy deities a bit of a rest from the high pressure environment that was the main Yggdrasil operations room. The office assigned was spacious, well designed and had a good view of Asgard - perfect for a stressed god or goddess to relax and lose some tension.
Today, Sif was on duty. She was taking the opportunity to catch up on some reading, her backlog of trashy romance novels had been building up and this was a good time to work through some of them. Nothing to do but kick back, read through schmaltz and -
Sif's peaceful afternoon was disrupted by a small but persistent alarm on her terminal. Sighing, she placed a bookmark in her novel before turning to see what the problem was. Probably just another approval request - some Prophecies needed active approval before they could be issued. This screen was new, though...
Sif groaned. It would happen on my shift, she groused to herself, the first time a Prophecy has gone bad for centuries and it happens when I'm in here trying to read. Oh well, let's have a look.
On further investigation, Sif discovered that it was a high priority Prophecy - graded as a category 1. Sif had given up paying attention to the Prophecy grading system after the 17th revision in as many decades, which roughly correlated to the turnover of supervisors in the administration section that handled the grading system. For all she knew, a category 1 meant it was an inconsequential bit of a subconscious hint meant to allow some deserving soul to get the right numbers for a lotto draw, commonly known as a "hunch"...
Oh crap. Sif thought to herself. The manual (Sif was unsurprised to discover that she was the first person to access the damn file since it had been officially published) stated that category 1 Prophecies were the most important going. That meant direct oversight from the Almighty himself.
If it was so important, how did it ever get to the point where it is throwing up an error on my screen? The goddess pondered. Well, there is nothing for it but to escalate this - the good part of a category 1 Prophecy is that it is outside my delegated authority.
With a few simple commands, the details of the case were forwarded on to deities in more senior positions. It would bounce from desk to desk in a game of bureaucratic pass-the-parcel until it finally reached somebody who had both the authority to deal with the issue and the inclination to actually take action.
In a certain temple near Nekomi Tech in Japan, the phone was ringing. This was not unusual, as all of the residents of said temple had fairly active social lives. There was also the fact that one resident - a certain Keiichi Morisato - was employed (and on call when he wasn't at the shop) while the other three were goddesses who often acted as the local agent for Asgard's operations.
It should be noted that it is not common for goddesses to be present on Earth (also known as Midgard), even in temples. Keiichi was currently living through his own version of "unintended consequences", caused by a hastily made wish and the Ultimate Force working hard.
Urd floated over to the phone once she realised that nobody else was likely to answer it in time to stop the ringing from interrupting her favourite TV show. This was the second week of Belldandy's firmly enforced TV watching roster that had been implemented to limit the fights between Urd and Skuld, and so far it was working well. The only downside was that the person who had the allotted timeslot at any given moment was also on telephone duty.
Urd picked up the receiver. "Hello, Urd speaking." She had tried a number of more interesting greetings, but Belldandy had finally put her foot down after Megumi Morisato thought she had accidentally called a love hotel. Now it was just a "hello" followed by the name.
Urd stiffened as she heard the voice at the other end. She remained silent for a few moments, before she gently put the receiver down on the small table provided for such a task and walked off purposefully. She quickly found what she was after in the kitchen.
"Belldandy? Father is on the phone for you."
Belldandy looked around sharply and gave Urd an intense look, before she swiftly moved to pick up the phone herself.
"Hello, Father?"
Urd watched as Belldandy had a decidedly one-sided conversation with the Almighty. Apart from the occasional "yes, Father" and "I understand, Father", Belldandy was silent for the duration of the call. Finally there was a "I understand, Father. I love you. Bye!" and the receiver was hung up. Belldandy turned to her older sister with a serious look on her face.
"We need to have a meeting. Please fetch Keiichi and Skuld."
It didn't take long for everybody to gather in the living room. Belldandy was looking serious, which was highly unusual for her.
"I have been given a new mission by the Almighty. Urd and Skuld are to help me with it. In order to avoid any conflict with the Ultimate Force, I must ask you to work with me on this one, Keiichi."
"Sure thing. What is going on?" Her fiancé - sort of - said.
"A category 1 Prophecy has gone badly astray and we have been asked to rectify the problem. We are the only goddesses currently stationed here on Earth and sending more will only attract attention from Niflheim. Also, all Prophecies ultimately fall under our jurisdiction as the Norns."
Urd and Skuld nodded, though Skuld looked worried.
"Um, was my program in anyway involved in -" the youngest Norn started, before she was cut off by Belldandy.
"No, Skuld. This problem pre-dates your program, though not by much. In fact it was only your software that allowed us to detect the problem at all - without it we would have not discovered the issue until it was too late."
Skuld looked relieved. Nobody wanted their crowning glory (to date, at least) to be the root cause of a problem that attracted the attention of the Almighty himself.
"The complication is that we will need to move overseas for an extended period to resolve this." Belldandy continued.
"Overseas? Where?" Keiichi asked.
"England. The Prophecy dealt specifically with events in the British Isles, though the wider consequences could have a global reach."
Keiichi paled a bit. "Um, England? That's a long way, Belldandy, and I'm not sure I can afford..."
Belldandy stopped him by gently placing her hand on his. "There is no need to worry, dear. The Ultimate Force has been engaged in a limited sense - it will see to it that we get to where we need to be."
Keiichi was about to ask his fiancée - sort of - what she meant when the phone rang. Grumbling slightly under his breath, the young engineer got to his feet and walked over to answer the ringing annoyance.
"Hello, Keiichi Morisato speaking."
The three Norns watched as Keiichi grew steadily more and more nervous, making monosyllable replies - in English, of all things - to the person on the other end of the call. Finally, Keiichi looked at Belldandy with a slightly questioning expression. Belldandy just nodded. Keiichi seemed to deflate a bit, before he returned to the call.
"In that case, I think I must accept. I look forward to working with you." Keiichi said in English. After a few more pleasantries were exchanged, Keiichi hung up the phone.
"What was that, K-boy?" Urd asked.
"That was John Bloor of Triumph Motorcycles in Britain. It seems he wants to employ some Japanese motorcycle experts to help him develop bikes that can rival the best we make. Apparently he knows Chihiro, and asked her for advice. She recommended that he call me. I take it this is the Ultimate Force?"
"Yes, dear. We are needed in Britain, and so the Ultimate Force has arranged for it to happen. We should start packing to leave."
Of course, it wasn't that easy. Both Urd and Skuld had more equipment, clothes and miscellaneous junk than could be taken to the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland on a commercial flight, so alternative transport had to be arranged for the baggage. Keiichi had offered to find some group like DHL, only to be brushed off as the Norns apparently had "better methods". Privately, Keiichi wondered if any of the items transported by "better methods" would ever be seen again, but the two sisters seemed convinced.
Other issues included sorting out quarantine for Welsper, as apparently the Ultimate Force did not perceive him as being important enough to just "arrange" for the demon-turned-cat to simply waltz into the island nation without bureaucratic hindrance. Ultimately the unfortunate feline was sent ahead of the rest of the group to allow them to retrieve him shortly after their arrival in the UK.
Keiichi had managed to convince his sister to be a caretaker for the temple in his absence - a deal sweetened by the fact that she would get a much larger place than her current apartment...rent free. Not that Keiichi cared, he just hoped the buildings would still be standing when he got back.
Finally, it was time for the bon voyage party. The less said about it the better, as it involved Belldandy getting drunk on cola, Urd spiking the punch with an aphrodisiac and Skuld getting carried away with her custom built sound system. Combined with Keiichi's "friends" conspiring to get him as drunk as possible and the net result was an extremely hung-over Keiichi boarding the British Airways 747 the next day. Needless to say, he did not enjoy his flight to Britain...even if Triumph Motorcycles had arranged for him to travel First Class.
Once in the UK, the first step was to find a place to live. Keiichi's new job was based in Hinckley, Leicestershire, so the group checked the real estate pages for that area. The Ultimate Force was apparently still at it, as they quickly found an old church with an attached 4 bedroom house for sale. Even with Keiichi's new job it was outside of their budget, but Urd "just happened" to have a financial windfall in the form of a lottery win. Keiichi wanted to know why they had never had that kind of luck in Japan, only to be told that it wasn't necessary and that the Ultimate Force was for essential tasks and not to make his life easier in general.
Keiichi quickly plunged into his new job, and was soon heavily involved with Triumph's design group. This left the Norns with the harder job - taking the first steps towards fixing a broken Prophecy. Step one would be to travel south to a place called Little Whinging.
"Are you sure this is the place?" Urd asked as the three Goddesses walked down a fairly non-descript suburban street.
"Of course I'm sure. We only checked three different street directories." Skuld replied in a sarcastic tone.
"Hey, don't get testy. I was expecting something a little more...occult than this. For somebody like our subject, that is."
Belldandy giggled. "Honestly, Urd, there is no reason to expect some kind of scene out of a movie or..." The middle sister trailed off as all three Norns suddenly halted. They had just come into range of something that felt all too familiar.
"Blood wards," Urd hissed, "who would dare to use Blood Wards in this day and age? They've only been completely discredited for, oh, 800 years or so."
"They do work, though." Skuld objected, somewhat weakly. Urd just snorted.
"They give a good appearance of working. In the long term they're nothing but trouble."
"Urd is correct. Blood wards are only truly effective when they are forged and maintained in love. Even the most devoted and closest of families cannot keep it up - conflict is a natural part of all relationships, and blood wards are more sensitive than any other to negative emotions."
"And these feel particularly bad. I doubt that there has been much love here. The whole thing just feels malignant." Urd concluded. Skuld nodded. She was far behind her sisters in terms of magical ability, but even she could tell that something was very wrong.
"The wards seem to be centred on that house over there." Belldandy said. Urd glared at it, as if the building itself was somehow responsible for the malevolent atmosphere.
"Number 4. The address is correct too. We had better get a move on - the less time we spend in these wretched wards the better. I just hope they haven't done too much damage to our...what is he supposed to be again?"
Skuld rolled her eyes. "Honestly, can't you keep track of our cover story? We are the children of his mother's cousin. That makes him our Second Cousin. Our family is in Norway - our grandmother married a Norwegian and moved there after the Second World War. We've just moved here thanks to Keiichi's job - and we met him during a student exchange program to Japan."
"That's right," Urd said, "and we've recently found out about our dear relative and want to check up on him. If what the file says is only half correct, we shouldn't have too much trouble getting custody."
Belldandy just nodded. She had read the file as well, and had been truly horrified by some of the details. Normally a peaceful and forgiving person, she was having difficulty resisting the temptation to effect some early Divine Justice on the family living at Number 4 Privet Drive.
"Gah," Urd said suddenly, looking down as she put a hand over her eyes, "I think I just figured it out."
"Figured out what?" Skuld asked.
"Why your program flagged this one," Urd said darkly as she stared at Number 4, "the Blood Wards must have finally reached a point where your code deemed them to be a threat to the Prophecy."
"That would explain a lot," Belldandy said thoughtfully, "and is also why we were not alerted earlier. Your program would not have deemed this to be a serious threat until the Blood Wards had become bad enough to be considered a credible threat."
"Is it a big problem? I mean, could these Wards really cause the Prophecy to fail?" Skuld asked, anxious to check the accuracy of her software.
"I don't know," Urd admitted as she surreptitiously cast a diagnostic charm, "you just used the old written standards for the code, right?"
"Yes, of course I did." Skuld replied a little testily.
"Then it wasn't a guaranteed failure, but it was at risk," Urd said firmly, "it is easier to try and fix problems earlier rather than later, so the standards - and, by extension, your program - will flag Prophecies well before an actual failure. Which does raise the question of whether a failure would have happened without intervention, but I've always thought it was better to be safe than sorry."
"Really? That doesn't sound like you at all." Skuld said sarcastically.
"Only on business, brat," Urd replied in a snide tone, "I don't need to be nearly as serious otherwise."
"Now now, let's not fight," Belldandy said before a squabble could break out, "we need to go and see Harry."
"Let's get it over with," Skuld grumped. The feeling from the wards was getting to her.
"Fine by me, squirt." Urd said with a smirk before she marched in the direction of their target.
Harry James Potter was not having a good day. This was not unusual, as he rarely had good days. Today had started with his aunt bodily hauling him out of his cupboard and clipping him around the ear, telling him to start cooking breakfast. Today was his cousin Dudley's 9th birthday, and apparently an outing to see some film called "Pet Sematary" had been arranged. Harry, naturally, was not invited, and would spend the day with the old cat lady down the road. Harry didn't mind that so much - at least Dudley and his gang wouldn't be around to play their favourite game of "Harry hunting".
Breakfast had been served and eaten (not that Harry got anything to eat), and now Dudley was in the process of counting his presents. He'd managed to get up to 23 twice now before losing track on both occasions, and Harry was entertaining private thoughts that "Dudders" would never get any further before it was time to leave for the cinema, when there was a knock at the door.
"What kind of person comes knocking on the door at this time of day?" Vernon Dursley, Harry's obese uncle, grumbled as he waddled towards the door. Harry glanced at the clock and refrained from commenting that 9:30am was actually a reasonable hour to be up and around.
Vernon Dursley, manager at Grunnings Drills (and secretly short-listed for a promotion to director, not that he was supposed to know that), wrenched open the front door to his home and levelled a glare at whoever had decided to interrupt his son's special day. The glare disappeared rapidly when he saw two extremely attractive women on his doorstep accompanied by a fairly sullen looking teenage girl. Male libido warred with his ingrained bigotry as he noticed that one of the women was tanned to the point of looking a bit foreign. Skin that colour ain't right for around here, the overweight man thought, maybe she's a Paki? Bloody savages coming over here, stealing jobs from hard-working Britons...
"Yes? What do you want?" Vernon asked in as polite a tone as he could manage. He managed about a 2.3 out of 10 for sincerity, even with a late score from the East German judge going in his favour.
"Vernon Dursley, I presume?" The tan woman asked.
"Yes, that's me. What do you want?" Vernon replied.
"I am Urd Odinsdotter, and these are my sisters Belldandy and Skuld. I am told that Petunia Dursley lives here?"
"Yes, that's my wife." Vernon replied curtly.
Urd's eyebrow twitched slightly. "Petunia is our first cousin once removed - our father was her cousin. We were raised in Norway and this is our first trip to Britain. We were told that we have family here and we wanted to meet with them. May we come in?"
Vernon hesitated, but couldn't come up with a good excuse to turn them away. On any other day he probably would have had a dozen excuses ready to go, but today his mind was just blank (a state that Harry would privately claim to be the norm).
"Sure. Come in." He stepped back to allow the three entrance. He did not notice how all three scowled slightly as they stepped over the threshold.
In the kitchen, Dudley had finally completed his Herculean task of counting his birthday presents. Fortunately for the sanity of all involved, he was convinced that he had received more presents than he had the previous year, so the tantrum was avoided. He was now happily engaged in tearing off the wrapping paper on a variety of toys, games and similar objects that would all probably be broken and consigned to Dudley's second bedroom before the end of the month. This scene of a self-centred brat happily ensconced in its natural habitat was interrupted by the entrance of Vernon's three guests.
"Hello?" Petunia Dursley asked tentatively.
"Petunia? I am your cousin Urd Odinsdotter, and these are my sisters Belldandy and Skuld." Belldandy gave a thin smile, while Skuld essayed a small wave.
"Cousins? I'm not aware..." Petunia trailed off as she stared at the three women in confusion.
"Actually, we are your First Cousins, once removed. Our father is your cousin Erik. I don't think you ever met him, as our grandmother moved to Norway in 1946. I believe she was your aunt Violet."
Petunia just nodded dumbly. She had vague memories of her parents talking about some nephews and nieces but she had never met any relatives beyond her grandparents.
"This is our first visit to Britain. In fact we've just moved here - Belldandy's fiancé just got a job with Triumph Motorcycles. We knew we had family here in Britain and we wanted to meet with them."
Petunia just nodded again, before she appeared to gather her wits.
"Well, you've met my husband Vernon. This is my son, Dudley. Today is his birthday - he's 9!"
Belldandy's paper-thin smile gained a little more depth. "Hello Dudley, and congratulations."
Dudley stared at the newcomers suspiciously, before he turned his attention to a new target. "Muuuum! When are we going to the movies?"
"The movie isn't until 11 o'clock, Duddikins, so not just yet." Petunia soothed. Dudley refused to be placated.
"But I wanna go now!" He half whined, half shouted. Urd thought the effort to combine the two was quite impressive.
"You'll just have to wait, dear. Now why don't you unwrap the last of your presents?"
"Excuse me, cousin, but who is that?" Skuld interrupted, pointing at Harry. Dudley decided that he could contribute to this one.
"Oh, he's just the freak." The spoilt brat said in a dismissive tone.
"Excuse me?" Belldandy asked.
"He's my freakish cousin." Dudley continued, completely oblivious to the fact that his parents were waving frantically at him to keep quiet. Dudley didn't do quiet, especially not when asked.
"Oh, really. So, what is your name?" Urd asked Harry in a pointed way.
"Uh, Harry, miss." Urd developed a small grin upon hearing the title Harry had apparently chosen by default.
"Well, Harry, I am your Second Cousin. My name is Urd, and these are my sisters Belldandy and Skuld. It is nice to meet you at last."
Harry just nodded, hoping that his interaction with his new-found family members would not result in punishment later on.
"So," Urd said as she slowly turned to Petunia Dursley, "what's this about a freak?"
"The boy - he's unnatural." Vernon declared, his ingrained bigotry finally getting the better of his desire to look good in front of strangers. "We've done our best but he's just..."
"What's so unnatural?" Urd asked in a deceptively neutral tone. "Is it that he's a wizard?"
Urd's simple question hit the room like a bomb. Petunia's face went so pale it looked like she was on the verge of passing out, while Vernon's complexion went from slightly red to an incredibly deep purple in what appeared to be no time at all. Harry looked shocked, while Dudley just looked confused.
"DON'T USE THAT WORD IN THIS HOUSE!" Vernon roared.
"What word, wizard? Why not? Harry is a wizard after all, why shouldn't we say it?" Urd asked innocently.
"I'LL HAVE NONE OF THAT FREAKISHNESS IN MY HOME-" Vernon started before he was cut off.
"Apparently you will, considering that Harry is living here," Urd said. "Though I'm curious that you implied that you had tried to deal with his 'unnaturalness'. Care to explain?"
The purple hue of Vernon's face eased for a moment as a small sliver of fear penetrated his mind, before his anger reasserted itself.
"HOW DO YOU KNOW ANY OF THIS? ARE YOU ONE OF THOSE FREAKS AS WELL?"
Belldandy frowned. "We use magic, yes. There is nothing unusual or freakish about it."
"GET OUT! I WON'T HAVE YOUR KIND HERE!" Vernon shouted, his volume control apparently stuck on 11.
"Not until we get some answers about how you've been raising Harry here," Urd stated in an icy tone. "How have they been treating you, Harry? I can tell from those cast-offs that you're wearing that they haven't been clothing you properly."
"DON'T YOU DARE SAY A WORD, BOY!" Vernon started, before Urd's patience finally ended. The eldest Norn whirled on the overweight man and snapped her fingers, freezing him in place.
"I've heard enough from you. Come, Harry, let's see how you've been treated around here. Let's start with your bedroom, shall we?"
Slightly numb with shock, Harry nodded dumbly and led the three Goddesses to his closet under the stairs. It would be an interesting hour as Harry gave his newly discovered relatives a tour of his life at Number 4 Privet Drive.
It was mid-afternoon, and Dudley's birthday had been thoroughly ruined. His party had been aborted early and the promised trip to the cinema had never happened. To add insult to injury, he had been forced to stay in his bedroom for most of the day as his parents struggled desperately to justify their actions over the previous 8 or so years to an angry set of Norns. So far the only thing that had prevented any form of permanent injury being handed out was Belldandy's calming presence, but even she was looking angry at the whole situation.
OK, to most people she looked calm. To anyone who knew her, however, she looked extremely upset.
"Well. We seem to have several counts of child abuse and negligence on our hands. Of course, we aren't the law, but we are morally obliged to inform the authorities about this kind of behaviour." Urd started.
Vernon and Petunia sat quietly on the sofa as Urd read the Riot Act to them. Not that they had much choice, as Urd had rendered them mute and paralysed in order to stop them from interfering with Harry's "tour".
"That would be rather messy. Imagine it - I have no doubt the Press would get involved, and the scandal might even make national headlines! I wonder what your colleagues at Grunnings would say..." Urd continued.
Vernon was sweating. Not that this was unusual, but currently he was sweating more than normal.
"But...we could avoid all of that. We just need your cooperation with a small matter."
For the first time since the party had been interrupted, Vernon and Petunia felt a small amount of hope.
"You see, we came here today to check up on our sole magical relative here in the British Isles. Or at least the sole close relative. And frankly we are more concerned about him than we are about destroying your lives, so here's the deal..."
Urd leaned towards the immobile pair and adopted an expression normally used by her mother to intimidate senior Demons at budget meetings.
"Give us custody of Harry, without any objection. And sign a document that states you will have no further dealings with him outside of ordinary happenstance. Do that, and we'll leave you to wallow in your mediocrity. Make any trouble, and we'll bury you in the court of public opinion. Am I understood?" With that last statement, Urd lifted the silencing spell she had imposed on her erstwhile relatives.
"We understand and accept." Petunia said before Vernon could wreck any chance of making a deal that would allow them to escape this disaster mostly intact. "But there might be a problem with..."
"Don't worry about the old codger. We know how to deal with him." Urd said as she straightened up. "Now, I believe Skuld has the relevant forms ready, so if you'll just sign at the indicated places..."
"Right. That's stage one complete. Now we just have to-" Urd's commentary was cut off by Harry tugging at her sleeve. "Yes, Harry?"
"Does this mean I'm not going back to my uncle's house?" Harry asked in a small voice.
Belldandy moved in and placed a hand on Harry's shoulder. "Yes, Harry, from now on you will be living with us. Is that alright?" Urd had to hand it to her sister - there was nobody more adept at soothing people.
Harry looked relieved. "That's OK. I never liked living there."
"I don't blame you for that, Harry. We just have to sort out the last of the red tape - Bell, can you take Harry to his new home? Skuld and I can finish off the paperwork."
Belldandy just nodded, and took Harry's hand as she led him to the nearest bus-stop. The three Goddesses had teleported their way to Little Whinging, but had agreed that more conventional transport would be required for Harry's trip. As such, Belldandy would take the bus to the nearest train station, there to catch a train to Hinckley.
Urd and Skuld watched Belldandy and Harry walk away until they were out of earshot. Skuld then turned on Urd.
"Why do I have to help with the paperwork? Why couldn't I take Harry home?"
Urd sighed. "Because, sister, Belldandy is the best person to help Harry adjust to this change. She will keep him calm and make his move from the Dursley's house as painless as possible. That leaves the red tape to us."
Skuld pouted, but could see Urd's point. "OK, so what do we do now?"
"We have two sides to this - the non-magical world and the magical. You take care of the non-magical world, as you're better suited to it."
"Why?" Skuld wanted to know.
"The non-magical world is far less insular. If you go in with paperwork for Harry James Potter, the person behind the desk won't know him from any other random citizen. Plus, they're beginning to use computer records to track this kind of thing, and you're easily the best of the three of us with those."
Skuld was momentarily speechless. Urd praising her skills, even admitting that Skuld was better than her eldest sister at something? Unbelievable.
"The magical world will be more complicated. I'm going to have to use a lot of charms and memory modifications - plus some outright forgeries - to get what we want. And frankly I've had a lot more practice at this kind of thing, while you're still learning your way around magic."
Skuld was forced to accept that blunt appraisal. While she was improving on a daily basis, Urd and Belldandy both eclipsed her meagre magical skills by several orders of magnitude.
"Won't the non-magicals be suspicious of somebody my age trying to do all the paperwork?"
Urd smiled and handed over a small bottle that contained a mysterious purple liquid. "Temporary aging potion. It should last for the rest of the day. And before you ask - Belldandy tested it and has verified that it works." With that, Urd handed over a letter addressed to Skuld.
Skuld opened it, and saw a simple message. Dear Skuld - Urd's potion works and has no harmful effects. You can drink it without fear. - Love, Belldandy.
Urd quirked an eyebrow. "Everything OK then? Right, then I'll meet you back at our new home this evening." With that, Urd walked in the general direction of where she had seen an electrical retailer, obviously in search of a TV to teleport through. Skuld glanced around, and saw a complete absence of any puddles to take advantage of. Sighing, she walked in the general direction of the bus-stop.
Author's notes: as far as the OMG continuity is concerned, this follows the manga and not the TV series. It takes place a bit after chapter 278.
Known facts:
Lily Evans was born on 30 January, 1960 (Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Chapter 16)
Petunia Evans was born on or prior to 1959 (no exact date in canon)
No information on Mr and Mrs Evans, other than they were dead by 1981 and lived in Cokeworth.
Background for my crossover:
William John Evans joins the RAF at the age of 18 in 1942 (which would put his year of birth at 1924). He eventually serves as a navigator for Mosquito bombers in a Pathfinder squadron. He meets his future wife Margaret during the war - she works at a local cinema and is a year younger.
War ends, William and Margaret marry in 1948 after William musters out of the RAF (he spent part of his service posted to Europe). William becomes a Maths teacher in Cokeworth, Margaret secures a position as an English teacher at the same school.
Petunia is born in 1958, surprising William and Margaret who had resigned themselves to being childless by that point. Lily arrives in 1960. Lily gets muggle education from parents during her summer breaks from Hogwarts.
Norn placement (new history created by the Ultimate Force):
William has an older sister Violet (flower naming tradition comes from Evans side). Violet serves during WW2 as a translator (she has a gift for languages) for the Special Operations Executive. During this time she meets a young Norwegian army officer who escaped with the Norwegian government in 1940.
When the war ends, Violet marries Thor Odinsdotter (note: this name is intentional) and moves to Norway. They have 2 children - Erik (born 1946) and Rose (born 1948). Note: this makes Rose and Erik the First Cousins of Petunia and Lily, and Harry's First Cousins one removed. Both Erik and Rose are discovered to be First Generation magic-users (muggleborn in the UK) and attend the Norwegian Magical Academy (founded 1750). The Statute of Secrecy means that Violet never informs her family back in Britain about magic.
Erik marries in 1966 at the age of 20. He has three children - Urd (born 1966), Belldandy (born 1968) and Skuld (born 1973) - Second Cousins to Harry. When Belldandy turns 18 in 1986, she goes to Japan on an exchange program.
Keiichi Morisato - born 1967. Meets Belldandy during his 2nd year studying Engineering at Nekomi Tech (1986). Graduates in 1988. Gets job with Triumph Motorcycles in the UK in 1989.
When the story starts in June 1989, Harry is 8 (9 in July). Urd is 23, Belldandy is 21, Skuld is 16. This also means that Skuld is the same age as Nymphadora Tonks.
Note for the OMG purists: I'm taking liberties with Keiichi's age, just to make it fit with the Potterverse timeline. If this really offends you, deal with it.
Update: Thanks to a review by swiftrabbit, I've updated this chapter to fix a small hole in the plot.