After getting some more distance from the Leaky Cauldron Lysandra finally asked what was on her mind as we walked side by side through the London streets with our arms linked.
"Why was it so crowded there? There is barely anyone staying there usually but almost every table was taken today, did Tom get a new chef?"
"No, they are all waiting for their hero Harry Potter to show up for his first school year, those fools really think a baby actually defeated a dark lord." I answered with some ridicule.
"The credit should go to his mother who set up a sacrificial ritual to make the killing curse rebound from her son to his attacker in exchange for her life." I continued when I noticed Lysandra throwing me a questioning glance, it was considered common knowledge that it was Harry who defeated Voldemort, nobody knew the truth.
Lysandra's hold on my arm tightened as I explained what really happened.
"She was a good woman…" Lysandra just said in the end with a complicated expression.
"You said you were in the same year, were you friends?"
"No, but she was one of the few Gryffindors who didn't consider every Slytherin their mortal enemy, she actually put her foot down so the Marauders wouldn't prank the girls from other houses and she was adamant that Slytherin was part of the deal, keeping those guys off my back."
"I guess I owe her a favor then, I'll try and keep her son out of trouble, if he's going to be anything like his father that would likely be impossible though." I said with a laugh, already knowing all the trouble he would get himself into.
"Though there is one thing we really could do to make his life better and that's having a talk with his aunt and uncle about how they are treating him, but that will have to wait for the next summer break because they are about to get a visit from Hagrid who is going to introduce Harry to the magical world." I told Lysandra who gave me a grateful smile in return.
Helping Harry get his aunt and uncle off his back would be a fair exchange for the favor his mother did for Lysandra in keeping the marauders away from her. I was not entirely sure how to do that yet though, because even the Imperius curse would wear off eventually and I had no interest in putting a mark on them. They were stupid and annoying but not vile enough to justify selling them into slavery to the company in my opinion at least.
We continued on while chatting about various topics and took a bus to one of the non magical shopping streets. Lysandra had almost no experience with navigating the non magical London so she simply followed me around, never letting go of my arm as if afraid of getting lost.
I explained a lot about the non magical world to Lysandra along the way and thankfully she was not dismissive about it and seemed genuinely interested.
Eventually we reached our first destination, a shop for casual wear.
Inside I explained to Lysandra how the clothes here would be pre-made in various sizes and we had to try them out in the changing rooms until we got some that would fit. It was slightly baffling that I even had to explain that because something that I considered completely natural seemed weird to Lysandra who never voluntarily interacted with the non magical world.
The first thing I did after entering the shop was getting Lysandra try on some jeans, I just rolled my eyes at her protests that it was men's clothing. Thankfully after some reassurance that men's and women's jeans were distinctly different and it was completely fine for women to wear pants I finally got her to agree and it was completely worth it.
Her figure was perfect and with the tight fitting jeans her firm but curvy butt and shapely thighs were on full display without looking indecent, drawing admiring and envious looks from some of the women in the shop, something Lysandra seemed to enjoy.
"I think I'd like to wear that out. It feels great to be looked at with envy rather than pity for once." Lysandra said with a smug smile, giving me a quick peck on the lips, making me draw envious looks too.
"They have every reason to be envious, you're gorgeous." I replied with a grin, making Lysandra smile bashfully but she did not contradict me this time unlike the previous times when I complimented her appearance.
"Lets get you some leggings and sports bras to wear at home, they are just as sexy but more comfortable to wear, and maybe if you are open to the idea, some stockings and a shorter skirt too." I whispered into her ear, making her blush a little but she nodded, trusting me that I wouldn't steer her wrong when it came to "muggle clothes".
I convinced her to get a nice looking black sleeveless turtleneck too. She liked the turtleneck enough to directly wear it out together with the jeans.
With the Body-Tune-Up talent she would never have to worry about shaving armpits to make sleeveless clothes work and her arms were perfectly proportioned too, no longer just sticks with skin and bone as I saw in the vision but muscular yet still distinctly feminine.
By the time we walked out of the shop Lysandra was like a different person. Instead of the long and conservative skirt, she was wearing tight and form fitting jeans.
And instead of a blouse she now had the black, sleeveless turtleneck that showed off her arms and shoulders. It even had a small diamond shaped cutout at the chest area that was just low enough to show a small hint of cleavage despite Lysandra's modest chest.
Together with white ring and the mark on the back of her hand that looked like a tattoo she had a sense of mystery about her that made her look absolutely stunning despite the simple everyday clothes.
Even her body language underwent some slight changes. When we started walking through non magical London she looked somewhat insecure, but after receiving so many admiring and envious looks in the clothes shop and seeing her own reflection in the changing rooms her confidence was back. She had the same confident presence that I saw the first time I entered her shop despite being in an unfamiliar environment now.
I didn't get out of the shop empty handed either and got myself an assortment of black, white and royal blue shirts and some undershirts for the both of us.
Following Lysandra's suggestion I took the slim fit ones that showed off my athletic and muscular build, apparently she enjoyed eye candy as well and I wasn't the only one who wanted their partner to show off a bit.
When she saw me getting a royal blue shirt she also got herself a dark green one to represent her former house colors, making me roll my eyes again but I had to agree that it looked good on her too. Everything did.
We also got Lysandra a denim jacket for the colder days, of which the UK had an unfortunately big number throughout the year.
For the same reason we also both got a variety of sweaters. I had a preference for button down sweaters for the simple reason that I really liked the thought of unbuttoning them on Lysandra. I was just a simple man too, don't judge me.
Clothes were not only interesting for being worn, some clothes had some extra charm when being taken off too.
After the shop for casual wear we also visited one for formal wear where Lysandra picked out a formal black blazer and a pencil skirt that would work really well with some pantyhose stockings to create a sexy secretary outfit without looking too indecent.
The secretary outfit in particular really made my mind wander into the gutter but I shook myself out of my fantasies. Lysandra definitely noticed though if her bright blush and satisfied smile was any indication.
But to be fair, after this morning my own mind wandered there no matter which outfit Lysandra tried on. I could already tell it would be difficult not to slip back into the horny teenager phase with Lysandra around.
Naturally I also got some dress pants and a formal suit that Lysandra really liked, insisting that I buy a tie too to complete the full businessman look.
I hadn't seen that type of hungry look on Lysandra before when I was trying out any of the other outfits so it seemed like she really had a thing for formal clothes and it was great for my own confidence to see that sort of expression on her face too.
At this point she had gotten used to shopping and started trying out new clothes proactively and I was glad she was having fun.
There was no need to worry about money either. I still had nearly 6000$ left from my company salary after getting a raise of 2000$ a month for having marked Lysandra and I could convert it into any currency I wanted. Not to mention that 6000$ was a lot more in 1991 than it would have been in 2025.
Last on our list were shoes, though that one was rather easy, Lysandra disliked anything with high heels and I could get behind that, all witches and wizards were fighters and good footing was important.
She surprised me when she decided to get a pair of what the store called Gladiator Boots, which was basically just a series of leather straps that went up the calves. I had to agree that they would look great on her bare legs when she decided to go with a short skirt without stockings.
We both got some comfortable sneakers and even a pair of hiking boots each for times when we had to walk around the somewhat mountainous terrain around Hogwarts or inside the forbidden forest.
Lysandra surprised me once again when she proactively stopped before a lingerie store, asking me to wait outside as she walked in with a bright blush on her face. After some time she walked back out holding a bag but not letting me see inside, telling me to just store it without peeking. Naturally I wouldn't ruin a surprise she prepared, so I did as she asked, looking forward to it already even if it might not be anytime soon.
After a reassuring squeeze to calm the somewhat embarrassed Lysandra down again we continued with the sightseeing part of our date.
Taking another bus we got out near the Westminster Bridge and leisurely walked across the river towards the Westminster Palace and the world's most famous clock tower, the Big Ben. I made sure to start the mission for today as we got out of the bus, just so I didn't forget.
Along the way we continued chatting and doing something exceptionally lewd in public, holding hands.
Lysandra noticed my amused expression but she wouldn't get the joke so I just gave her a kiss. She was not fully comfortable with public displays of affection at first, but I pointed out that there were several other couples we already saw kissing today and she quickly started enjoying sneaking a kiss or two whenever she thought nobody was looking.
It seemed Lysandra really enjoyed kissing a lot or just had an oral fixation. That thought made me remember where her mouth had been this morning and my mind went straight back into the gutter while we were kissing.
I was forced to re-adjust my pants a little during the kiss, something Lysandra definitely noticed judging by her smug smile but slightly flushed face. Though I was not sure whether she guessed my line of thinking or just assumed it was the kiss that had that kind of effect on me.
I didn't continue with that kind of thoughts however and simply enjoyed my walk with Lysandra as we watched the various architectural marvels of Westminster.
I really liked the gothic styles and in my opinion these buildings were even more impressive than Hogwarts. At least from an aesthetic perspective. A sentiment that Lysandra shared, judging by her amazed expressions as she looked up at the Big Ben from the street just below it.
We couldn't get much closer to it than standing next to a high metal fence at the street adjacent to the tower unfortunately. I would probably have to book a tour many weeks in advance to get inside without resorting to magic so we just continued on our way. Before we went however I took a picture of Lysandra with the Big Ben in the background. Thankfully the Company Phone still had all the features of a regular smartphone.
One of the pedestrians actually noticed me taking a picture and asked about this "new camera" but I didn't want to deal with them and replied with some random excuses in French about not speaking English. Making Lysandra stifle some giggles as we walked away under the confused look of that person.
"I haven't actually noticed because of everything that happened since then, but the french accent you had when we first met was fake, wasn't it?" She asked me as we were out of hearing distance.
"It's not entirely fake, but it is not my own, it was part of the skill package of Nicolas." I replied with an amused expression while we continued our little sightseeing tour.
After seeing the Big Ben and watching the Palace of Westminster from the bridge, we went to check out the Abbey that was also just around the corner.
After walking around for a bit and finally finding the front entrance we decided to go inside. We had to buy a ticket for entry but thankfully didn't need to register for a tour. The guy at the information booth even told us we could attend the church service for free but we decided to just go in with a ticket.
We were both obviously not religious. A religious witch would be a joke, wouldn't she be supposed to go and burn herself on a stake?
My amusement must have been visible because Lysandra gave me a questioning look.
"I just thought it was funny that we would be visiting the church of all places, we better not get caught doing magic here." I whispered into her ear, making her narrow her eyes somewhat combatively at the possibility of the church starting some trouble for us, but she relaxed again, returning to her casual but confident demeanor.
"They can try." She eventually said simply, making me smirk too, agreeing with that sentiment even if I would rather avoid a confrontation with religious institutions. If they really picked a fight with us, they would be out of luck. But I highly doubted they even had the means to detect witches or wizards in this world.
After walking around inside for a bit and looking at the impressive architecture we left the place without any Inquisitors showing up to arrest us as expected.
In the Harry Potter world the only being that could be considered divine was "Death" who made the 3 "Deathly Hallows", but its existence was never proven either. So the churches in this world were without divine backing and even the inquisitors were just mundane humans who thought they already exterminated us while we were living merrily right under their noses.
Once we were outside I checked the mission status and saw it was complete, so I directly selected the credits and claimed the rewards.
Reward [ Credits ] : 5 (Claimed)
Additional objectives:
Objective 1: Have sex on the landmark and get caught.
Reward [ Credits ] : 5 (Incomplete)
Objective 2: Have sex on the landmark without getting caught (without cheesing it with powers, tech, etc).
Reward [ Other ] : 10 credits or Added Potential from a T5 or lower world you haven't been to and don't have a companion from. (Incomplete)
Maybe one day Lysandra would be interested in giving the other two objectives a try, but that was far into the future, thankfully we could take this mission three times in each world.
With that done I decided to take us somewhere where we could just sit down and relax.
While we were buying clothes I asked a few of the clerks for suggestions where we could go for some sightseeing and relaxing on our date and they all recommended St. James Park. It was perfect to enjoy one of the rare sunny days here in London and it was very close to the common tourist spots around Westminster.
When Lysandra saw all the other couples sitting or lying on the grass while chatting or occasionally sharing kisses she gave me a quick peck on the lips and happily started to drag me by the hand to find a good place for us to sit down too.
There was a nice spot on the slope of a small grassy hill that would be under the shade of a tree and not too close to any of the other couples and Lysandra simply plopped down on the grass, not caring about dirtying her clothes as it would be trivial for us to clean it with magic later.
I sat down right next to her, putting an arm around her waist for a side hug and she leaned in closer, resting her head on my shoulder while sighing contentedly.
After spending some time like that in companionable silence she looked up again, looking directly into my eyes with a happy smile and slightly watery eyes.
"I know the day is not over yet, but today has already been the best day of my life, thank you so much…"
"There is no need to thank me my love, taking you out on a date is the least I could do after taking advantage of you like that in the morning." I say with a teasing smile. Making her laugh lightly and lean in for a deep and slow kiss. This was probably the most emotional kiss we shared yet. When we came up again I noticed a few people looking in our direction, quickly averting their eyes when I looked at them.
Lysandra had her back turned to the rest of the park though so she didn't notice, likely sparing her some embarrassment.
I gave her a quick peck again and leaned back a bit so I was lying on the slope of the hill and Lysandra followed suit, using my arm as a pillow to watch some clouds drift by in the sky as time slowly passed while we relaxed.
We occasionally talked about some lighthearted topics and Lysandra loved to hear stories about different worlds and the various things that would get invented by nonmagicals in the near future.
The Internet for example sounded quite magical even for a witch, and while it already existed to some extent, it would take at least another decade for it to reach what most people in my generation would consider the golden age.
Eventually we started getting a little hungry, so we decided to go and grab something to eat. Any good date needed some food after all.
I was slightly tired of European food however and have always been a big fan of Chinese cuisine in my past life, so I managed to convince Lysandra to give it a try too even if it was a slightly unconventional choice for a date.
After asking a couple of pedestrians we managed to track down a good one that served actual high quality chinese food and none of that Chicken(TM) meat in sweet sour sauce slop.
Because it was only Thursday and a regular work day, we managed to easily get a table without reservation and were led to a table for two in a corner.
The restaurant was beautifully decorated in a traditional Chinese style. Predominantly in red and gold, with lamps in a paper lantern design and red tassels hanging from the bottom. It even had a big aquarium with some colorful fish swimming inside.
Lysandra didn't know what the food would taste like asking me to order for her so I got us two dishes that one usually can't go wrong with. Well unless you had allergies, but with Body-Tune-Up that was a non-issue.
I ordered some cashew chicken for Lysandra and got some szechuan style beef for myself, ordering some jasmine tea for the both of us too. To my surprise it was one of those pretty tea leaf spheres that unfolded into a flower when put into water. It still tasted like regular tea but looked quite fancy, so bonus points for that.
While waiting for the food Lysandra enjoyed watching the fish in the aquarium, making me note down to maybe visit an aquatic zoo with her, or even better, visit a nice tropical beach. We are not really limited to just London after all, nor are we limited to just this world for that matter, maybe she would be interested in exploring the One Piece world sometime. Once we are a little stronger at least.
Lysandra's food finally arrived while I was busy thinking about worlds we could visit and judging by how her gaze was fixed on it while she waited for mine to arrive too, it passed the look and smell test.
We both dug in immediately once we both had our dishes and I suspected that Lysandra had her first foodgasm today too after her first bite. She definitely made some sounds that I remembered from this morning. Causing her to blush slightly once she caught herself.
"This tastes amazing! I really want the recipe for this, do you think they would sell it to us?"
"We can always ask, but even if they don't want to sell their own recipes, we can probably get a book with Chinese food recipes in some book store."
I told her with a smile, happy that she was enjoying our dinner too.
The restaurant sadly didn't sell or share their recipes, citing that it was a family secret. Seeing the slightly disappointed expression on Lysandra's face made me briefly consider just reading their minds with Legilimency to get the recipes but I didn't want to become one of those assholes who got corrupted by power, using it to take advantage of those who can't defend themselves.
There would always be people who thought that it didn't matter because nobody would even know, but there would always be one person who knew and that's myself. If I kept giving myself excuses to take the easy option each time and compromise with my own morals I would gradually change for the worse.
Though I did have enough self awareness to know I was far from a shining beacon of morality. All I wanted was to stay myself and follow my own rules and avoid doing things that would leave a bad taste in my mouth.
By the time we finished eating it was starting to get dark already so we decided to head directly home. There were still a few things I had to do today in preparation for Hogwarts and time was getting short.
After paying and leaving a generous tip for the delicious food we both left the restaurant and went into the next best secluded spot from which we directly apparated back into Lysandra's home, or rather our home now.
Once we were back she immediately tackled me in a hug and started passionately kissing and thanking me once again for the date. We actually ended up making out in bed for some time but kept our clothes on and beyond some light petting and groping nothing else happened. I was still happy that Lysandra was getting more and more comfortable and forward with physical affection.
Sometime around midnight we reluctantly got up from bed again and sat down on the edge, preparing to get some work done.
"I'm about to activate something that will make your spells significantly stronger, so please don't test the more destructive ones in the house no matter how tempting that might seem."
Lysandra just rolled her eyes at my warning but nodded anyway, looking quite eager to experience the first company upgrade that would directly affect her power.
Talent Sharing: Soul Talent (Cost: 10)
The effects of one of your purchased Basic Talents now apply equally to every member of your retinue, as if you had shared them through a Binding or Heritage perk. This must be purchased separately for each valid Talent: Athletic, Martial, Wild, Science, Engineering, Aesthetic, Communication, Performance, Soul, Blessed, Land, Psychic, Covert, Administrative, and Sticky Fingers (as "Tantric Talent"). Body Tune-Up and Everlasting Talent are always shareable. This perk is obsoleted by Controls or Heritage perks that share Basic Talents and may be refunded completely after such purchases.
Just as usual, the change was not accompanied by fancy flashes of light but the effect was immediate and Lysandra gasped as she felt her understanding of magic deepen at a rapid pace.
"Is this how it's like for you all the time? No matter what spell I think about, I just understand it. Even some of the elusive and obscure spells from my family library that I once read but never understood seem quite straightforward now. When I think about some of the simpler spells I even get some ideas on how to improve them too!"
"I'm glad you like it, and yeah it's the same for me, though I am much weaker than you now, Nicolas is not a fighter and I myself am just on the level of a 3rd year Hogwarts student when it comes to my knowledge about modern wand magic."
"Don't worry, leave the fighting to me. I'll take care of those who want to harm us. They won't even know what hit them." She said with a predatory grin, reminding me that she was a witch who knew powerful dark magic and wasn't shy about using it. She was powerful enough to own a shop in Knockturn Alley without any backing from noble families.
I gave her a quick kiss in reply. I found her darker side just as endearing and sexy as her shy and loving one.
"I need you to do some introspection for the animagus ritual first before you try out new spells or improve the old ones. We can slowly hone our magic while at Hogwarts. With the Soul Talent you should have an easier time molding the form you want to take. It is usually a subconscious process done over the course of a month, but I think it should be possible for us to consciously influence it by linking our character traits with our understanding of an animal."
She nodded seriously and closed her eyes, starting with it right away, not questioning my claims despite it going against the common understanding of the animagus transformation.
Seeing her begin right away I also got up. I might not get any sleep before the sun was up again with how much there was to do tonight.