Heavy Day

by DarkSlayerNull211

Do I believe I can change the world? No, and I don't have the right to do so either. What I'm offering here are just the means to clean our mess. (New Chapter, plus small update.)

1. Part I: Meet the New Boss

A/N: I know, I know. I'll get to that in a minute...

But before that...

Hello there!

I'm DarkSlayerNull211... or just Null if you prefer...

Null as in the German word for zero, not the English word null... Just letting you know...

Why am I introducing my self, some of you ask...

Well, that's simple. Because I'm sure a great deal of the people reading this might not being all that familiar with my other story Of Aces & Jokers and probably have no idea who I am. But then again, most of you who are aware of my other work don't know much about me either.

Bottom line, I was trying to be nice.

And with that out of the way, let's move along.

Now, I'm sure that some of you who already know me have a lot of questions, so I'll just head straight to addressing those (bear with me, new comers. I promise you it'll be worthy)

Why haven't I posted anything in the last year? The truth is, around two weeks after my last upload I got involved in a little car accident.

Don't worry! I'm fine now.

Nothing two surgeries couldn't fix.

Seriously though, it took me around 9 months to fully recover. But like I said, I'm fine now.

And for the record, I got hit by a car why walking. I wasn't driving drunk or something like that, okay?

I also just moved to a new apartment last month. It still takes me the same amount of time to get to school, but it is a lot closer to work. Not to mention it's on a fourth floor, too!

I like high places.

Well, if you are fine now, then why aren't you working on oA&J? Why working on a new story? To be fair, I originally wasn't planning to start this until next year. But after watching the trailers for Guilty Gear Xrd, I couldn't help myself. What does Guilty Gear have to do with this? Nothing, actually. It's more like a personal experience that inspired me a little bit.

Well, there is the title, but I actually called this story Heavy Day at Work as a temporal name until I could come up with a better one. After the release of the trailers, I decided to stick with it. Minus some dead weight.

Don't worry, I'm not dropping oA&J, and this story is actually rather short. It was originally meant to be a one-shot, a really long one. But in the end I just decided to divide it into shorter chapters. It'll probably be around three chapters, plus epilogue, in length.

And if that isn't enough because you were really looking forward for the next chapter, then just keep reading and you'll be in for a special surprise.

To any newcomers that might be reading this. It's fine if you never heard of my other story before, you can still jump right into this one all the same.

I would like to believe this isn't that big of a deal, but I don't want to take any chances either.

And before I forget...

I know I've said before how much I love MGR. I mean, after MGS4, Rising is my favorite game in the series. I don't even feel as hyped about The Phantom Pain as I did for Rising. Although that's probably because I don't care about Big Boss as much as I do for Snake...

I'm not saying I hate the game, on the contrary. I just think I'll probably let this one pass (Give me Frankie back and that will most likely change...)

Why am I telling you this? Because I want to make this perfectly clear... ahem...

The character in this story addressed as Armstrong HAS NOTHING TO DO with a certain senator fond of nanomachines. And in fact, that's not even the character's real name.

Are we clear on that?

Good.

And since that's all I have to say for now...

...THEN LET'S GET THE MAIN EVENT STARTED!

…

Guilty Gear Xrd... You can't tell, but I'm actually dancing right now. (/ O w O)/

…

---

Disclaimer: I own nothing. And I don't know how to make that any clearer.

---

Heavy Day

Part I – Meet the New Boss

For many people, waking up early in the mornings is always troublesome, that is a fact of life. No matter the time nor where you may go, this will remain true...

...

Somehow, it feels like we already addressed this subject once before, doesn't it? ...Well, not that you would remember anyway...

But as stated back then, the reasons behind this particular aspect of people's minds would never be the same for every single person.

Furthermore, even with so many different hardships (or perhaps because of them) people also found ways to either overcome such obstacles or at the very least make the so arduos battle of the morning routine a little less brutal.

One clear example, coffee...

...Such a heavenly gift.

Still, there is no denying that, when one's body is forced to keep going so early in the morning after being denied the hours of sleep it so desperately craved for...

(Stare)

"..."

Well, let's just say that even the simplest of things can easily get on your nerves.

(Stare)

"..."

Like being stare at for over five minutes by a little girl for no apparent reason.

(Stare)

"...Sigh..."

The little redhead's staring wasn't so bad by itself, it was the chain reaction brought forrt by this what was getting annoying.

(Whisper... whisper... whisper...)

For starters, the fact that she decided to hide behind one the many ornamental plants that littered the large hallway wasn't exactly working in her favor, it might have for most normal people but in her case, with that bright and long hair of hers, the frilly pink dress she wore, contrasting with the green cover she took, it just made her stand out all the more, which then led to all the other people passing by to take immediate notice of her. To her credit, she seemed completely unaware of any of that, but only because she was way too busy staring at him intently.

But that didn't change the fact that she was drawing all the attention to her and what she was doing, and this then led to what was truly getting under her target's skin, that all the people looking at her while whispering to themselves would eventually move their attention to him and then they would start to comment about his own looks.

Granted, while his brushed-down, white hair wasn't that uncommon it was still pretty rare, and those bandages he had to wear around his left eye while it still heal were bound to draw some attention too. Another thing he though might add to this was his own attire, the brand new black suit he was forced to wear and that, quite honestly, made him feel all the more uncomfortable, it just wasn't his style. Well, the suit did catch a lot of eyes, mostly from the female side of the spectators, and in a completely different way than he had imagined.

Not that he would care, though...

Bottom line, he wasn't in the mood to be the target of all that commotion, and that was the main reason why he went out of his way earlier on in order to find a semi-empty hallway where he could get a chance to rest, if only a bit. And he succeeded for a while, until that little red figure with the playful smile came rushing from the same direction he came, stopped abruptly for no apparent reason and looked at him like she just saw a specimen of a seemingly extinct creature, only to then move in a blur of motion towards a space to his left, the very same spot that she was still occupying.

Had he been in a less exhausted state he would have laughed, or at least chuckled a bit, at the weird display of skills she gave. But that just wasn't the case.

(Stare)

It was around the time he took another sip from his cup of coffee, only to realize that it was almost empty, that his patience with the situation at hand began to run out. He tried to loosen up his black necktie a little without making it come undone as a means to relax somehow, but to no avail.

(Stare)

"...Sigh..."

(Stare)

And so, with not many choices left, he decided to go to the root of the problem.

"So... Is there something you would like to say to me?"

---

4 days ago. Tokyo, Japan.

Rias Gremory, the next head of the Gremory house, one of the most (if not the most) influential families within the high ranks of Hell's aristocracy.

And as one would expect from a child raised under such a name, she always conducted herself with the utmost elegance and delicacy...

...Or at least as close as an overly energetic 7 year old could get to such regal standards.

But as much as she would prefer to live her days by having fun and simply making the most out of life, that by no means meant she wasn't aware of her own position. And so, more often than not she would take the initiative whenever opportunities to get involved in some of her family's work affairs came along, especially if they also offered the chance to see and/or experience something new and exciting.

And that night, as she was casually walking back to her room after taking a bath, it just so happen to offer her exactly that.

It wasn't unusual for her parents to be overly busy with work, sometimes moving to a new project immediately after the previous one was over, her brother having an even worse schedule due to his position. So she wasn't particularly surprised when she overheard her father, Lord Gremory as he was known by most, talking with someone on a job related argument that night while she was passing by his studio's door on the hallway she was crossing.

"...Or rather... How did you even knew we were here...?"

But that comment she heard from him managed to catch her attention.

Even if she and her family were at one of the many residences they owned in the human world, it wasn't exactly hard for them to be found by some of their employees, so her father's sudden question was something she found a bit odd. However, it was the tone of his voice what truly intrigued her, she would occasionally hear her father speak in either a rather authoritative voice (the most commonly used) or, in some really rare occasions, with a tired air in his words because of his workload.

But this time?

This time he sounded... annoyed, no other way about it. Her kind and affectionate, even if sometimes dead serious father seemed to have exhausted all of his patience somehow.

"Ha-ha-ha... Now, now. No need to be so mean, Gremory-san." And then a new voice was heard, a rather unique one which she just couldn't recognized at all. In fact, Rias was pretty sure that was the first time she ever heard it.

While her father once again tried to reply to the mysterious person "Shut up! ...I don't want to hear that from..."

"Okay... ...Let's all just try to calm down a little here..." Only for a third voice to interrupt him.

"...Mother?"

Sure enough, not only was her mother also present, but it seemed that she wasn't doing any better than her husband in dealing with the stranger. Something that became quite obvious after Rias heard her mother speak again. "But seriously, what do you want anyway?"

Her curiosity finally taken over completely, Rias carefully opened one of the antique double doors slightly in order to be able to peek inside, while also being mindful of not interrupting whatever was going on in there.

As for what she saw taking place...

"Dear me... Is that any way to talk to an old friend? It has being so long since the last time we met... ... And here I was hoping for a warmer reaction... ...Sigh..."

"We're not your friends!" Came Lord Gremory's sudden yell, it even managed to make Rias flinched a little, partially because of how sudden it was but mostly because of how pissed off her father looked, he even seemed ready to punch the magical projection that showed the person's face. In fact, he probably would have done it if not for his wife subtly putting her hand on his shoulder.

And speaking of the other person's face, Rias couldn't make it clealr from where she stood. Both, the angle of the image as well as the lighting of the room only allowed for a glimpse of the person's mouth to be seen.

The very same mouth that lost the smile it had so far in the blink of an eye, quite literally.

The person... or rather, man as Rias came to realize, discarded his casual, almost goofy like tone of voice and ended up adopting a far more serious attitude as he addressed them again. "Calm down, Gremory. I was just joking... And as for what I want my dear Venelana...". The Gremory heiress would even go as far as comparing the man's new demeanor to that of her father.

The sudden change also seemed to be enough to bring the married couple back to a more stable state of mind, the annoyed aura they gave off dying almost as fast as the man's silliness.

Said individual did show a brief smirk as he saw this, showing just how much he was enjoying the whole thing, but it faded away as he continued talking. "I wanted to invite you to a certain event we're organizing. I was told to simply send you a notification, but I felt it would be best to tell you in person, you see..."

"Not interest." Was all they said at exactly the same time.

"Heh... You youngsters are so rash..." The stranger added playfully

"Tch.." The sound made by Venelana's tongue and her husband's deep stare towards the screen were the only replies they offered.

Although, judging by his nonchalant posture, none of that seemed to bother the man in the least. "Well, if that is indeed your answer then that's that. Just don't forget it was your decision not hearing me out..."

"Don't worry, we won't..." Despite the rather blunt comment coming from the head of the house as he was about to cut off communications, their acquaintance just kept talking to them without a care in the world.

"It's not a big deal anyway, I'm sure your son will be more than willing to fill you in on the details later on... Sigh... But just what am I gonna say to Eva-sama... After she went through all the trouble of setting this up"

"...Whut?" And what he said was more than enough to force his audience of two to stop and look at him with wide eyes. "Wait... You don't actually mean lady Eva, do you?" Venelana couldn't help but ask in mid disbelieve.

"Hmm? Oh! My apologies, I guess I should have been more specific... Heh, you probably assumed I was just talking about the Ithavoll group before, right?" Much to Rias confusion and her parents chagrin, the silly smile and air returned to the unseen man just as he continued with his explanation. "But that's far from the case. Eva-sama, with the support of the Sankt Kaiser's Order of the Sword, as well as ours, has been working really hard in order to make this happen... ...She even went as far as to personally push around the Megalo-mesembrian government in order to get approval..."

"She... did?" Now it was Lord Gremory's turn to ask in bewilderment.

"Well, as kind and empathetic as she is most of the time, it's no secret she won't take a no for an answer when it comes to things she is heavily invested into. And she can be quite straightforward too." The man finished as he fixed the monocle he wore over his right eye.

And it didn't escape the man how both adults were looking into the distance, as if contemplating something. Rather than letting them assess the new information, he continued with his taunting monologue. "But like I said, it's not a big deal if you don't come. Your son's confirmed assistance is already more than enough"

"You said that before... How did you manage to get Sirzechs to agree with it?" And it was Venelana the one who managed to recover in time to continue with the questioning.

"Oh... But I didn't. It was Eva-sama the one who asked him personally." The stranger smiled at the just before continuing. "We only needed one representative of each faction to show up, but after they heard her explanation, both Sirzechs and Azazel agreed in having all four Maous as well as the Grigori group coming as well"

"Say what!" Not that far behind Venelana was Lord Gremory, his face matching the somehow shocked tone of his voice.

Of course, the other man didn't bother to pay him any attention as he kept going. "We have yet to hear Michael's answer, but I wouldn't be surprised if at least one member of the Seraphim shows up too, all things considered"

"Cut it out with your pitiful attempts at trolling and start giving us straight answers!" Finally reaching boiling point, the head of the house lashed out as his voice became distorted thanks to his growing anger and power, even making his wife flinch a little while also causing his daughter to fall on her butt. Yet his intended target didn't budge one bit.

But rather than being disturbed by Lord Gremory's display, the facless man just took a slightly surprised attitude as he explained himself. "Well, I don't know about the trolling part, I was just trying to lighten the mood a bit..." He stopped long enough to let them see the smile returning to his face before casually adding... "Something you could use yourself, my friend"

"Quiet" And it wasn't long before Venelana joined her husband's efforts.

"Now, now...That's no way to act in front of a young child." The mocking male said in a somehow offended tone. As he was about to say something else, his attention went from the two figures in front of him to the large doors in the bacground. "You okay over there...?"

And as fate would have it, the moment the still unseen man finished saying that was also the moment Rias was trying to pick herself up from the floor.

"GYAAAAHHHH!"

Only for the sudden comment making her lose her balance and ending with Rias once again falling to the ground, only this time face first and causing a lot more noise in the process.

"Wait... don't tell me... Rias?"

Sure enough, after Venelana called out her name Rias poked her head trough the double doors she had use as a cover. A sheepish smile and a slight blush adorning her features.

"Y-yes, Mother..."

"Hmm... ...Rias, huh?" The stranger mussed.

Which in turn caused Venelana to react with a rather fitting... "Oh, crap..."

"Hmm... What exactly is going on?" Despite finally being able to take a good look at the mysterious man, Rias' attention went instead to the figures of her parents, with her mother having an expression on her face that matched the words she unintentionally let out while her father merely settled with a simple, yet classic palm to the face.

In the end, it was the strange man who offered any form of reply. "So! ...This is that daughter of yours I have yet to meet, huh?" Even if it had nothing to do with what Rias asked.

Turning ever so slightly towards the direction of his voice, the little redhead was finally face to face (...well, sort of...) with the person who had been pocking on her parents patience. A meeting that, judging by their expressions, was the last thing her parents wanted to happen.

"It is nice to finally meet you, Rias-chan" The man said to her with what had to be the most normal tone of voice Rias heard him use so far.

Not really sure of what to make of all that was happening around her at the moment, Rias decided to simply return the greeting as she rubbed her still sore face from her earlier encounter with the ground. "Uhm... ...L-likewise...?"

"Awww... Isn't she just adorable?" The still nameless man exclaimed while completely dropping the normal air he adopted, again. "And she looks just like you Venelana. That must be such a relieve, huh?" He added while also helping Rias to finally understand why neither of her parents seemed fond of that person. "But, do you mind if I ask why is she naked?"

Not really liking being ignored nor the condescending attitude, the Gremory heiress wasted no time before answering him with a clearly upset tone. "I sleep better like this"

"Oh! Is that so?" Again, his voice held that mocking tone, even when pretending to be surprised.

"It is so." She said back, refusing to let the man win... whatever the hell he was trying to do...

But it still appeared that the older male wasn't about to let her win that easily, as he then simply asked "My, aren't you an odd one?"

"Yeah...? Well, you're blue" And she wasn't joking.

Now that she stood so close to the magical projection, Rias could clearly see the pale blue tone of the man's skin, like that of an actual corpse, and those white robes and golden mask he wore certainly did an amazing job in making it all the more obvious. Even the man's gray hair seemed to also bear the sickly looks the rest of his body did. The fact that he looked as young as her mother just added to the disturbing feel.

Rather than taking offense on the comment she threw at him, the older man just look at her with a raised eyebrow for a brief moment before bursting into laughter, much to the surprise of all the other people present at the moment. "Hahahahahahaha... That I am, aren't I? It's actually a really funny story. You see, sometime ago I..."

"WAIT JUST A MINUTE!"/"HOLD IT RGHT THERE!" But just as the odd man was about to start with his supposedly funny story, both of Rias' parents suddenly jumped to action, her father posing himself in between his daughter and the man's image while her wife ran to Rias and covered her ears. And both of them had this panicked expression showing on their faces.

"You won't be telling that story to my child, you hear me!" Venelana's freaked out voice was the first thing to come after the bizarre occurrence.

"I... don't see what the problem is... It is quite funny when you think about it. Once you move past the gory side and..." The weird man began, and this time he actually looked surprise by the sudden turn of events. But just as he was about to give away more unwanted information

"WE MEAN IT BALDER!" The mighty roar coming from Lord Gremory interrupted him before he could go too far.

So intense was his voice, that Rias was capable of hearing every word he said even while her mother still kept her hands pressing against her ears. "Balder?" She let out the foreign word without really realizing it.

"Oh! Dear me, just where are my manners? Heh... Sorry for the late introduction Rias ojousama." The man said as he began bowing in a (supposedly) respectful fashion. "The name is Balder, I'm the CEO of the Ithavoll group..." And all the while the Gremory family just looked at him with some level of bewilderment.

"Ah. And I'm also a Lumen Sage." Balder added with a smile.

"Wh-what...?" While Rias just deadpanned.

"Sigh..." And her parents pulled a double facepalm.

"You're doing that on purpose, aren't you?" Asked an irritated Venelana.

"But of course! Otherwise I wouldn't be able to enjoy those priceless reactions you people always give" With Balder's shameless retort coming lmost instantly.

Rias had to give this Balder person credit, for all the nonchalant and blunt answers he gave, not once did he drop the polite facade. Still, that train of thought didn't go too far before the full implications of his claims finally dawned on her. "Waiwaitwaitwait... WAIT! ...A Lumen sage...?"

"Yep. The Lumen Elder at that." The face Balder showed as he added that last bit of info was an exact match to the one he sported when he mentioned being a Lumen Sage, which actually made him look rather creepy this time around.

"B-but I thought they all perished during the Unification War" Judging by the exasperated look in Rias' face and the way her breathing began to accelerate, it was easy to tell just how much the revelations about Balder's true identity affected her. And if that raised eyebrow and confused look in his eyes were to be trusted, then it would seem those weren't exactly Balder's intentions...

Or maybe they were and he was just acting the whole thing...

Rather than leaving Rias to sort her thoughts alone, her father approached her, placing a hand softly at the top of her head as he kneeled down next to the very confused child.

"Most of them did..." Venelana commented from behind, her hands holding her daughter's shoulders softly.

"...All but one actually..." Lord Gremory's glare found its way back to Balder's image just as he finished his short explanation.

"Is that why you're the Lumen Elder too?" Rias asked the blue man, finally calming down as her previous confused look changed into one of skepticism.

As for Balder, he just looked to the side as he shrugged his shoulders, a playful smile appearing on his face as he replied. "It is technically the truth...I mean, there is no one left, so..."

"And your company... Am I to assume you're talking about THE Ithavoll Group? The energy conglomerate that holds contracts with even the likes of the Mid-Childan and Megalo-Mesembrian governments or the Sankt Kaiser Church?" By that point, Rias' face showed not skepticism but downright disbelieve at what the Lumen Elder was claiming.

Of course, said man just ignored her in that regard altogether yet again. "Hoh... You sure know your stuff, young one... But just to clarify, we're not really involve in any form of business with the Saint Church, that would be against their norms. Not to mention illegal on our end. We simply work together in many philanthropic events. You know, for the greater good."

Somehow, after Balder finished his statement, the idea that he was acting all along seemed all the more plausible to the Gremory heiress.

"Still, I'm very much impressed with your level of knowledge in all these subjects, especially considering your age" And for the first time since she met him, Balder showed a very serious and sincere attitude as he voiced his opinion on Rias' display of skills.

"I'm the next head of the Gremory house, is only natural to know at least that much, isn't it?" Rias exclaimed with as much confidence as she sould gather. And to her credit, it was quite a lot.

But then again, said serious mood Balder assumed didn't last for long. "Heh. I suppose so. Say..." Especially once that weird smile of his returned. "Since you're so interest in such matters, and giving your willingness in taking over your family's business..."

"Stop it, Balder. We're not about to let Rias go to something like that alone" Venelana ended up casually cutting Balder's proposal short as she finally stood up, although rather than letting go of her daughter she pulled Rias towards her in a hug of sorts.

"I don't see what the problem is. You already stated your lack of interest in the matter, and it isn't like she will be any danger with her brother and his colleagues around. Not to mention Eva-sama overseeing the whole affair..."

Keeping with what had become common ground in the conversation, Balder was once again interrupted, this time by the girl's father. "That's not the point. And you can stop playing around, we're going"

Despite Lord Gremory giving him the answer he wanted to hear from the start, that didn't seem to stop Balder from further taunting them. "Hmm... You don't say?"

Taunts that were ultimately ignored by his targets, with Venelana insted again questioning Balder. "Just tell me something... What reason could Lady Eva possibly have to gather all of us like this?"

"Come on now, old friends... You don't actually expect me to just let it all out in the open, do you? You know my only redeeming quality is how serious I take professionalism, and it goes without saying that what we're to discuss here is a rather delicate subject"

Aside from Venelana once again making a sound with her tongue at the way in which Balder addressed them and Lord Gremory rolling his eyes at the sage's description of himself, there was hardly any form of surprise in their reactions.

But then again, in Balder's eyes that hardly meant he was done with trying to lure them into... Well, whatever he was trying to pull off. "Still, seeing as we've been friends for so very long now, I see no reason why I shouldn't give you at least one straight answer"

And again, the same reactions as before were present in both adults, except a lot more intense in Venelana's case due to Balder's insistence of using certain types of remarks.

"More like you only give straight answers when is convenient for you" Said the Gremory patriarch as he passed a hand across his hair, exhaustion starting to take its toll on him.

"Well, yes. I am a businessman after all. But back to the main point..."

Completely ignoring Balder's boast, more out of habit than anything else, their eyes and ears still lend their full attention to him as he prepared to continue.

"You do remember the incident that took place in Gallia a little over a year ago, right?" Balder suddenly questioned them.

"You mean when the whole imperial capital was reduced to a charred carcass in a single night?" Venelana said. "I don't think anyone could forget something like that so easily. What about it?"

"Lets just say that not all the rumors surrounding the whole affair were completely wrong" The Lume Sage offered with a polite smile.

Not really knowing where Balder was going with that, Lord Gremory decided to push the conversation a bit more "Like the one that said that the cause behind it was a new type of weapon the Orussian government was developing?"

"A new type of weapon, huh? Well, I suppose that is one way to put it. Except that there is nothing new about what happened there and it wasn't Orussia the one behind it" Balder's smile actually morphed into a rather twisted grin the moment he finished saying that. And it wasn't long before the other two understood what he was trying to say.

"Wait... Are you implying it was the Bureau who did it?" While it was a rather bizarre thing to see her father in such shock, what truly disturbed Rias was just how easily Balder's mood reverted back to an aloof with a touch of goofiness state as he answered back. She had her doubts before, but now she seriously considered that the so called Lumen Elder might have some sort of mental problem.

"Now, now. I never said that." The ease in which Balder reverted to his polite persona only helped to reinforce the child's view of him.

"Then, was it you?" It was Venelana's turn to inquire Balder over his statement, although unlike her husband she was far more blunt in her tone of voice.

"I never said that" While Balder's answer ended up being identical to the one he gave before, in every single way possible, just like when he was talking to Rias.

Venelana was about to say something else until Balder suddenly interrupted her by raising his hand in a halt motion. "Sorry, but that's as much as you will get for a preview. You want to hear the whole thing? Then you know where to go. Not to mention the real reason why Eva-sama asked for this meeting in the first place"

While her parents were busy glaring sternly at the grinning sage, Rias took the opportunity to ask something that had been bothering her for quite some time. "S-say..."

"Something on your mind, Ohime-sama?"The Lumen Elder said as he turned to look at her.

Not even paying any mind to Balder's comment, Rias carefully continued with her question. "You keep mentioning this person... ...Eva-sama... Um... you wouldn't happen to be talking about..."

"The wife of our dear hero Sparda, Umbra Elder, head of the megalo-mesembrian council and leader of the Order of the Sword following her husband's passing...?" Balder ultimately cut Rias' question short as he began to absentmindedly list the many remarkable positions that person had over the years. He even went as far as to use the fingers of his left hand as if trying to keep count of all the titles he was referencing from the top of his head. "She already retired though." He added suddenly, almost like an afterthought.

The ancient sage met Rias excited and restless eyes with a cheerful smile before finally answering her unasked question. "But of course I'm talking about her! She is the one calling the shots on our end now"

"Seriously!" Rias yelled excitedly, her eyes now displaying some rather flashy sparks on them.

In fact, she was so excited that she failed to notice Balder's smile taking on a more sinister form for a fraction of a second, unlike her parents, who saw it coming from a mile away. "Oh... crap"

"Would you like to meet her?" The sage casually offered.

"..."

However, it took the Gremory child several seconds to fully process the meaning of Balder's offer.

"..."

Once she did though...

"KYYYYYYYYYYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHH HHHHHHH!"

The highest pitched squeal anyone ever heard was the answer she gave. Even the high class candelabra hanging from the studio's ceiling shattered like cheap glass due to Rias' reaction.

"Wait... Is that blood coming out of his ear...?" Venelana wondered after she looked over at the image of Balder, who was staring at her child with a dumbfounded expression.

But in true Balder fashion, that only lasted for a second and it was then replaced with him bursting into laughter again. "Hahahahahahahaha... I'll take that as a yes then"

"Waitwaitwait! I can really meet her, right? ...You're not lying to me, right?" Rias kept asking, not really knowing if such an incredible thing was really happening or if Balder was just messing with her.

"Relax, I'm serious about this"

"Waaaahh..." Rias just stared at Balder's general direction for a little while, her eyes reflecting a dreaming look on them

Her parents however, were less than thrilled with the way the conversation progressed and were about to step in before things got even more messier.

"Ne, ne..." But before they got the chance to try anything at all, their daughter suddenly called to their sickly looking guest one more time. "Does she really holds contracts with both Madama Butterfly and Madama Styx? Did she really fought the Infinite One to a draw?Is it true that she has a small group of students she personally trains?IfsocanIapplytobecomeone?How..."

And so, the only thing the three adults could do was watch speechless as Rias began to assault Balder with wave after wave of questions. Not only that but, as she went on, the small girl was able to let out words at a rate that pretty much defied what biology established as possible for a 7 year old child. She certainly didn't seem willing to give her parents any chance to stop what was already happening.

As for Balder, he just kept staring at Rias with confused eyes and an uneasy smile. However, once Rias was done with her barrage of seemingly nonsensical words the Lumen Elder merely cleared his throat once, took a deep breath and then proceeded to reply to every single one of Rias' questions, at exactly the same pace she used and without any apparent effort on his part. All the while keeping that fake smile of his. And after he was finally done with that he then said... "Now, if you have any other question, then you should probably wait and ask her in person"

"Yay!" This time, Rias' voice was more like a whisper meant solely for her rather than an over the top yell.

Something that in turn finally gave Lord Gremory the opportunity to intercede in the matter. "Hold it right there. We're not taking her with us." He said without looking at his daughter, ignoring her offended face and choosing to focus solely on Balder.

"My, oh my. And what would be the reason for that?" Once again, Balder's tone turned into a taunting one, not only showing himself to be unfazed by the comment, but almost looking as if things were going exactly as he wanted them to go.

"Do you really expect us to bring our youngest child to something like that?" Venelana asked him this time, which caused Balder's smile to grew slightly.

"Is that why? And here I was thinking it had something to do with you trying to avoid explaining to Eva-sama why she hasn't met your daughter yet." The sage mused as a mocking grin appeared on his face once again.

"O-of course not..." Both parents said in unison as they averted their eyes to the side.

"Besides... It's not like we didn't want her to meet Rias... is just that we never got the chance to... ..." Venelana said in between whispers while a slight blush appeared on her face, and by that point Balder had to actually put some effort in fighting back his chuckles.

"Well, then I don't see any problem. Like I already said, security will not be a problem, believe me on that. And this will be a great opportunity to properly introduce the next head of the Gremory house to her."

With her hopes renewed thanks to that last turn of events, Rias took the opportunity to address Balder one more time. "Say, can Akeno come as well?

"Uhm... I have no idea who that is, but... SURE! The more the merrier"

"No, wait..." Again Lord Gremory tried to protest, and again did his efforts went to waste.

"As a matter of fact..." Balder trailed off a little as he took notice of something happening to his right. "Ah! Perfect timing there..." He then called to someone off camera

"What...?" Only for a male voice to reply in return. It sounded a bit faint and distorted, yet perfectly understandable.

"I need to ask you for a favor"

"I'm a little busy right now" The voice spoke again, this time sounding rather annoyed.

"This will just take a second"

"...Sigh... ...What do you want..." The person finally approached Balder while also exposing himself to the Gremory family. And what they saw was a rather tall man wearing a gas mask of all things and who was also carrying a box filled with suspicious looking items. Perhaps the most peculiar being the small metallic object at the very top of the lot, having dozens of light blue cables jolting and connecting all around it and, more importantly, also having a digital timer on the side, a timer that was quickly approaching zero, yet both men paid it little mind.

"You see..." Balder continued while the other man rolled his eyes in annoyance, or at least that was the impression he gave to both, Lord Gremory and his wife, despite them being unable to actually see his eyes due to the red colored eye windows the mask sported. "Not only have my dear and old friends agreed on coming to our meeting, but they also promised to bring along their daughter and another guest, so I want you to go and tell Eva-sama and the others about it so the proper arrangements can be done"

The man with the gas mask turned to look in the general direction of the weirded out parents (who were still staring at the timer) and their still naked child (who was instead staring at the gas mask he was wearing), however it was impossible for any of them to discern exactly what he was looking at. He spend no more than 1 second doing so before returning to look at the sage wearing the golden mask, yet he didn't say a thing.

"..."

"..."

"...You know... This has been on my mind for a while now..." He finally began saying absentmindedly. "...You seem to have no problem assuming we don't have anything else to do other than whatever you request"

"Oh, don't be like that. It's not like there is much for any of you to do right now. In fact, there's hardly anything going on at all at the moment" Balder stated with a bright smile.

"..."

And it was then that a massive pinkish-red flare was seen bursting to life from the large window behind Balder's desk. It was apparently rather far away, but that only served to illustrate the sheer magnitude of the phenomenon, given how clear it was for them to see it.

"..."

"I'm sure that's nothing to worry about" And it was just after the sickly pale man finished saying that when the figure of a white-haired person just flew past the window in the background, as if said individual had been hurled with great force.

"..."

"Don't you have other things to do, please hurry up so you can do what I just ask you..."

"Go do it yourself" Was the annoyed reply the second man ended up offering just before a hidden blade jolted out of his left forearm, which he then used to bluntly cut off one of weird box's cables.

And it didn't went unnoticed, neither by parents or child, that the moment he did this the timer in the small device just stopped altogether, just as only 7 seconds remained before it reached zero.

"...And don't come complaining to us once the boss finds out about... well, that... She's totally gonna blame you for it..." Having said all he had to after he pointed at the window behind them, the masked man then simply walked out of camera and then left the room, still carrying that huge box filled with suspicious stuff.

"So, it is settle then" Of course, Balder ended up pretending the whole thing never happened and thus reassumed talking with his still unsure audience of three without any shame. "We'll be expecting to see your little princess and her partner over here as well. I'll send all the information you need tomorrow morning. Until next time"

He waved good-bye at them with a brimming smile before cutting off communications. And once his image was gone...

"I always forget how much I hate that guy..."

"Hmm..."

---

"And that's what happened"

"... ...I see..." Not really knowing how to react after hearing Rias' story, her target simply settled with acknowledging the incident. He looked briefly at her from the corner of his still intact eye and found her not only occupying the space to his right in the bench he was sitting on, but also showing a rather annoyed expression. "Sorry you had to put up with that idiot" He offered while a slight twitch suddenly formed in his left eye, although thankfully, it was perfectly concealed.

"Don't worry about it. If I can really meet lady Eva, then dealing with that annoying man is just a small price to pay!" Rias exclaimed in an overly eager voice. The older male simply remained silent as he saw the sparks that suddenly were in her eyes, doing little more than taking a sip from the cup of coffee he still held in his left hand.

But it wasn't long before something caught the child's attention. "You talk as if you know him?"

"...Sigh... That's because, unfortunately, I do." He admited, somehow bitterly.

And with Rias catching up quickly to that, she simply said "Ah, I see" before deciding it would be for the best if neither of them touched the subject on the Lumen Elder again.

"..."

"..."

"I'm Rias by the way. Rias Gremory"

"I know that much"

"Heh... Yeah... I guess you would after listening to everything I said just now..."

"Well, there is that..." He stopped briefly in order to take another sip of coffee and then calmly continued with his statement. "But I actually knew who you were the moment I saw you coming down the hallway"

"Eh? You knew? How come?"

"It is part of my job to know about a lot of subjects. One of them being the clans that act as the current leaders of Hell's hierarchy"

"Your job... You... work?" Rias asked, now understanding why he looked somehow fatigued.

"I do" He was about to move the cup next to his mouth again when he suddenly felt a rather disturbing sensation coming from his right. Turning his head slightly this time, he was met with the sight of Rias once again staring at him, the only difference being that, instead of the more curious look she had before, her eyes were now closer to an angry glare.

"What?" He asked her while trying as hard as he could to keep a neutral tone of voice, an act that would normally be second nature to him, but given his worn out and sleep-deprived state, it actually required some minor effort on his side.

"You know... When someone tells you their name, it is proper etiquette to return the gesture. I've only been addressing you by you all this time" She said in a somewhat lecturing fashion, thankfully. And now aware of what the problem was, he simply did as she asked.

"Sorry about that. I'm Vergil" Vergil finally answered, only bothering to keep eye contact with the blueish-green eyed girl until he was done, and then returned his attention back to the wall in front of them.

"Uhm... Vergil...?" She trailed off, looking at him curiously.

"Just Vergil" He added calmly.

"... ...I see. Vergil" Said Rias after a brief pause, this time with a more bright tone, as if testing the sound of his name.

Vergil only spared her a quick glance, as she too moved to look at the opposing wall, before taking yet another taste of coffee. Once done with that he then siad. "Still, since you brought the subject of proper etiquette, would you mind telling me why you keep staring at me?"

Rias caught the sight of Vergil's deep-blue eye once again moving to look at her through bangs of white hair, since the cute little redhead had began to stare curiously at him yet again. And apparently she did so without even realizing it, for the moment she became aware of what Vergil said she wasted no time in turning away, a rather marked blush spreading across her face.

"...Uh... So-sorry... It's just that... Vergil... you... look kinda familiar..." She said as she remembered how puzzling it was for her when, after only getting a short glimpse of him when running down the hallway, Vergil's visage somehow steered a feeling akin to being about to recall a random memory only for it to slip away at the last second.

"Plus... you're quite the looker..." Not really knowing where that last part came from, Rias immediately brought both of her hands to cover her blushing face before she began to shake her head sideways rapidly, trying to shake away the nerve wreckage. At least she was thankful she managed to keep it as a thought somehow.

"Geez... Even the way he sits is cool..." She couldn't help but think after taking a brief glance at him.

"Really... ...Figures..." As for Vergil, he really didn't pay much attention to what Rias was doing, and aside from that annoyed comment he thought after hearing he looked familiar to her, his only reaction was to look at the random employee of the Ithavoll Group's main office building who was passing by, and who in turn was looking at the weird display Rias was giving. It was a good thing that the hallway became almost entirely empty by the time the Gremory heiress was halfway through her little flashback-story.

"S-say..." Rias suddenly said with a meek voice, attempting to cover what had just happen, even while her face was still painted red and her eyes were somehow teary. And all of this was either, ignored or unnoticed by the blue-eyed male, who was still looking in the direction the random employee went, much to the girl's relieve.

Appeased by this realization, Rias was able to get her act together just in time as Vergil turned around and asked her. "What is it?"

"Vergil... you're a devil, right?"

"..."

Vergil didn't answer right way, partially because he was taken aback by the pinkish hue that adorned the girl's face as well as the nervous smile she held, not to mention the weird look on her eyes, but mostly it was because he was unsure of how to address the sudden question. After a little consideration (and another sip of coffee) he settled with simply saying... "Right..."

It wasn't exactly a lie. Just half the truth. Besides, if he didn't went into too much details when asked about his name in order to avoid starting a mess, then there was no reason for him to start now.

"I see!" The redhead girl exclaimed happily. "To tell the truth, I was a little uneasy until now. All the people I've seen here turned out to be mages"

Vergil simply kept looking at her unfazed. After a brief pause, he then said. "Well, the Itavoll Group's main branch is located in Elenpios, the birthplace of the Sankt Kaiser. And it just so happens that because of this most of the staff are indeed mages"

And it was true.

While the Ithavoll group had existed long before the civil wars that would later give birth to the massive conflict known as the Unification Wars, the core office was originally located in the capital of Vigrid, and was also one of the most prominent citadels of the now extinct Shutra Empire. Of course, given that most of the territories ruled by them ended up leveled to the ground by the end of the war, including Vigrid and Fortuna, there wasn't much the energy conglomerate could do other than try to move on... quite literally.

And they just had to find the perfect place to start anew in the homeland of the hero who brought the dreaded and bloody fight to an end.

After all, who could refuse such a magnificent publicity and marketing tool?

At least that was what Balder always said when people brought the subject up. Although, considering his character, must people always assumed there was far more to it than just that.

"I take it you're not too fond of them?" Vergil asked casually.

"It's not like that, but..." Rias took a brief moment to find the right words, "I mean, mages can be quite scary, you know...?"

The blue-eyed devil simply said "I'll bet" before trying to get another taste of the cup he was carrying.

And it was preciesly then when Rias chose to speak again. "Like the Dark Angel"

COUGH! COUGH! COUGH!

It was just as Vergil was about to swallow the coffee he just drank when Rias made that comment, and the sudden mention of that particular name caused him to choke with the (surprisingly) still hot beverage. It was by sheer luck that the thing didn't come out of his nose too. He turned to look at Rias and found her staring into space with a scared look on her face, no doubt imagining the type of monstrous being that Dark Angel was.

Letting out a sigh of relive at this, Vergil then simply went along Rias' comment, although not without shaking the slight hint of nervousness in his voice. "Ah... Right... The Apostle of Destruction..."

"Yes. The Immortal Mistress of the Night. No one, be it angels, devils, fallen angels, or the Bureau dares to mess with her. A true monster indeed. I heard she..." Rias continued to narrate as fear began to overcom her.

Vergil didn't say anything though , instead he simply moved his head to the left as the twitching of his left eye from before returned, only far more intense. And as Rias began to list the many heinous rumors that circulated around the infamous creature, Vergil's mind ended up going down the memory road.

"... ...even Vergil heard of her, so..."

He managed to hear Rias' voice saying in between his own reminiscing. Of course he knew about her, and there was absolutely no way he could ever forget that woman. How could he forget the one person that put him through hell for over three years straight? Back when he was but a child, no less. Just the first six months alone were brutal enough to easily put Hell to shame, quite literally. A claim that he could indeed sustain, since he had been there more than a few times and there was no comparison.

"[Maybe she was trying to get rid of you back then by indirectly killing you]"

"I wouldn't be too surprised if that was ideed the case" Vergil thought in reply to that comment in a rather calm fashion, despite of how disturbing the subject actualy was.

Rias voice was then faintly heard saying "...don't you think?"

Vergil managed to break free of his train of thought just in time to hear Rias asking him something. He simply stared at her with a blank look, having no idea what she was talking about. Nevertheless, he wasted no time before saying something in return. "You're overthinking things. Besides, there is no one as messed up as that woman here"

And then a male voice was suddenly heard "Ah! So that's where you were" apparently addressing them.

But rather than turning to the direction it came from, Rias instead kept looking at Vergil as he brought his right hand to his face and let out a heavy sigh. It was also then that she realized that, much like his left eye, Vergil's hand was wrapped in bandages, even the tips of his fingers and thumb.

"...Geez, dude. We've been looking all over the place for you..." The voice was heard again, and along it came the sound of two different sets of footsteps approaching them.

Having no reason not to turn and take a look this time around, Rias did just that, and met the sight of two guys walking towards them, both dressed in formal black suits, an exact match to Vergil's attire save for the bandages the white-haired devil had on.

"What exactly do you mean by we? I found you sleeping in one of the empty conference rooms" The man who was walking the closest to them suddenly said as he eyed sharply at his companion, who in turn was walking just a few steps behind him.

And this unexpected comment managed to get reactions from all three people present, with Vergil just letting out yet another long and heavy sigh, Rias flinching slightly at the sound of the newcomer's voice for some reason. As for the actual target, he simply gave a shrug while letting out a loud yawn.

After just a few seconds, both men finally stood right next to them, and Rias took the opportunity to take abetter look at the two. They were tall and with a light built, not unlike Vergil himself. Another trait they had in common was the slightly pale yet fair tone of their skin, quite the contrast to the corpse-like look that Balder sported. She also discovered that they were devils as well, much to her relieve, although she also noticed that there was something off about the general air around them.

It was the man that reached their position first the one Rias started with. The one thing that caught her attention right away was his navy-blue hair, mostly because it was one of the few things that set him apart from the other two aside from his face. He sported a somehow unkempt hairstyle which while a bit messy, it wasn't too wild either and appeared to be about the same length as Vergil's, although it was probably slightly longer, particularly the bangs at the front, with most of them kept slightly to the right, so as to prevent them from getting in the way of his violet eyes. The best way the young girl could described it was stylishly unkempt.

Whether this was intentional or not on his part was beyond Rias, just as she was clueless as to where did she come up with such a term.

But despite the misleading look, the blue devil showed himself to be the serious type, with the comment he directed to his companion, the tone he used, as well as the look on his eyes. And that was what truly intrigued her, that somehow he reminded her a lot of her brother Sirzechs even though she had no idea why, but at least she now understood why she reacted in such a way when he spoke before. There was something about the stranger's aura that made her draw a parallel between the two. He also remined her a bit to Akeno, although it wasn't hard for her to figure out it was because of the feeling of static he gave off.

And then there was the other one, with a red head of hair, although unlike hers and her brother's, it was of a darker shade. Marking a contrast with his companion, he kept it in a brushed down fashion, however unlike Vergil, his bangs were slightly parted and were a bit shorter, barely reaching the level of his scarlet eyes. Furthering establishing the differences between the two, the red devil seemed to have a not-so-serious and lazy personality, given his apathetic and informal tone of voice, uninterested eyes and how he constantly kept yawning loudly.

Whereas Vergil was exhausted because he was worn out, the red haired man was just a lazy bones with a scent of smoke and ashes. Ironically, and much like the case with their blue haired colleague, he reminded her a great deal to someone else, the leader of the fallen angels himself, Azazel. Although somehow, the Gremory heiress had the feeling that this man was a lot more irresponsable and a lot lazier, as imposible as that might seemed. At least that was the impression he gave her, until he finally became aware of her presence, his previously bored eyes morphing into ones filled with curiosity as he crouched down next to her.

"So... Who's the kid?" He asked with a somehow more awake tone as he moved his eyes to look at Vergil, while at the same time revealing himself to be the one who had called out to them in the first place. And as soon as he was done he returned to look at Rias with a still very curious look, as if trying to figure something out.

"I'm not a kid! My name is Rias. Rias Gremory" She ended up answering instead. But despite how abrupt her reply was, not to mention how close they were to each other, the man's reaction to this was rather dull, only going as far as narrowing his eyes a bit as he contemplated something.

"So, that would mean you're that Gremory's daughter, right?" The older redhead said nonchalantly before turning to address Vergil again. "She looks a lot like Venelana though"

"That's because she is her mother" Vergil clarified before Rias had the chance to say anything.

And this time the information given to the red haired devil actually got a more notorious reaction from him, given how he stared speechless at Vergil with a look of bewilderment.

But it wasn't long before he regain theability to speak, this time while casually jerking a thumb at Rias no less. "Wait. So, you're saying cute-little-redhead over here is actually the great... who knows how many greats... granddaughter of the elder stalker brother? And that Venelana and Gremory got together?"

There was a small pause after he finished his sentence, although neither Vergil nor the blue haired devil seemed to care much for either that or the chain of reactions that preceded it. Rias on the other hand, while already confused with what the stranger said, just became utterly lost the moment she saw his previously skeptical and bored expression being replaced by a more lively mocking grin.

"Well, ain't that something" The male redhead said with an amused tone as he finally stood up. Although not once did his grin fade away nor did he stop looking at her, apparently finding who her family was to be rather hilarious for whatever reason.

"Really... It's actually a relieve to see that that weirdo's descendants aren't anything like him..." The red devil commented yet again as he looked into the empty space to his left, seemingly pondering on something that caused his grin to grew even more. At least he wasn't like Balder, a condescending jerk who pretended to hide his taunts behind a clearly fake friendly disposition. The red devil was more like a straightforward, honest jerk. A rude, straightforward and honest jerk, but straightforward and honest all the same.

"Was all of that really necessary? Didn't you already saw the current Lucifer not too long ago?" The blue devil finally spoke again, showing that he wasn't particularly amused with the behavior his companion exhibited, as if he was already more than used to things turning like that. Not only that but, unfortunately his voice still managed to disturbed Rias somehow, especially given how sudden his comment came again.

"Meh... It was only a glimpse when he arrived earlier on. Besides, if anything, the guy looks a lot more like his old man when he was younger" The red devil responded as he gave a shrug.

"Well, putting that aside for the moment. I also happen to recall that the Gremory family were looking for their missing children just now" The blue devil spoke once again, which also made Rias feel a little uncomfortable. This time however, it had a lot more to do with the fact that he was actually looking at her as he talked. It wasn't in a hostile fashion though, but more like he was expecting to hear her answer to the new piece of information he gave them. Honestly, it was becoming harder and harder not to compared him to her brother.

Still, it wasn't long before Rias finally caught up to what was just said to her. "AH! I forgotI I got separated from Akeno after we got lost..." She suddenly recalled, much to the surprise and amusement of her small audience.

"And you still manage to ran into her, huh? Well, aren't ya the lucky devil, Vergil?" The red devil said again as he directed another curious look at Vergil.

With the blue-eyed devil proceeding to reply without seeming to care much for the mocking tone used by his colleague. "Actually, she ran into me. I was here long before she came running down the hallway. And speaking of which..." Vergil turned to look at Rias with a raised eyebrow, while the girl not only returned the gesture but also dropped the concerned expression she had the moment her eyes met his. "That was a rather cheerful smile you had for someone who got lost"

He finally finished saying, causing Rias to look away in embarrassment before trying to explain herself. "Ah... Well... After I got off the elevator on this floor I ran into some workers of the building. I explained my situation and then I asked them where was the conference supposed to take place, and..."

She made a small pause as she tried to fight off the embarrassment building up inside her. "After they told me what I needed to know I overheard one of them saying that they saw lady Eva on her way there too, so... I might have gotten a little bit too excited and just took off after that... And that was when I met Vergil... We then started talking and I lost track of time and... and..."

By that point Rias was so nervous that she began to play awkwardly with her index fingers while her eyes became a swirly mess. She was almost certain of what their reactions would be like after hearing her excuse, she would be most likely yelled at on one side, undoubtedly mocked on the other and... Well, she wasn't even going to try to imagine what reaction could Vergil had.

After a few seconds passed by without anything happening though, Rias finally lifted her eyes and looked at the other devils.

"Lady Eva, huh? As popular as ever, boss..." Was the nonchalant answer the blue devil offered to no one in particular. Quite the contrast to what Rias was expecting, but she would take that over being chastised by him any time.

"Heh... You really are quite popular with kids." Was the teasing comment the red devil directed to Vergil instead of her. Something she was quite grateful for.

"Shut up." Was the perfectly calmed answer the white haired devil gave at him as he took another taste of coffee, showing that at the very least, he wasn't particularly mindful of what had just happened, much to Rias' delight.

Unfortunately, that didn't last for long.

"So. What were you two talking about to lost track of time like that?" Rias barely had time to basked in her peace of mind before the red devil suddenly asked.

Much like before, he was actually addressing Vergil instead of her, apparently more out of curiosity rather than another attempt to tease, but the very question still pose a threat on itself. There were quite a few embarrassing details she said back then, and thinking back she had no idea why she brought them up in the first place, to a complete stranger at that. But then again, she was just so self-conscious the whole time she was talking to Vergil that she just couldn't help it. And now the prospect of her slip of mind coming back to bite her seemed to be about to become a terrifying reality.

"Just knock it off already" Even the irony of the blue devil's reprimanding to the fellow redhead went unnoticed by Rias.

Panicking, she ended up answering the question with the only thing she could come up with. "We were talking about the infamous Maga Nosferatu... the Dark Angel!"

"..."

"..."

"..."

The one answer that, while saving her from being humiliated in front of the blue-eyed devil, it also turned the object of her infatuation into a target on his own.

"Hold on a sec there..." The red devil exclaimed.

"...Dark Angel...? Are you talking about Evangeline? And the blue devil finished.

"Who...?"

Once again there was a brief moment of silence as all three males stared at Rias with a blank look, still not completely sure on how to react at what she just said. After no more than two seconds though, two of them just ended up bursting into laughter while the other rolled his eyes in annoyance.

"...Sigh... Well, now... Isn't that something..." The bluehead ended up saying after calming down a little, referencing the comment made by his peer just moments before.

"Really... You just can't make this sort of stuff up... ...Pffffhahahahahahhahahaha...!" While the redhead was barely able to said that comment before reversing into laughter.

"What's going on here?" Rias just had to ask, despite not really expecting anyone to answer.

"Sigh... Just ignore them" In the end however, Vergil still took it upon himself to offer some sort of reply, even if it wasn't that much of a help in clearing her doubts. Given that he really wasn't in the mood to put up with any of what was happening, it wasn't much of a surprise when Vergil brought the conversation back to a more proper direction.

"Could you just tell me already what is it that you want?" He asked just before letting out a long sigh, clearly showing how much his fatigued state was starting to really affect him. But rather than showing consideration, the red devil just answered while pretending to be offended.

"Gee... Is that any way to talk to your friends?" The older redhead suddenly said in amusement.

While Vrgil simply responded by saying. "I don't recall ever referring to any of you as my friends"

"Really now? Cuz, the way I see it, other than us, the only other option you have when it comes to friends are those girls... You know, your classmates..." The red devil actually used air quotes as he said that last part, while the blue devil just brought a hand to his face and uttered something under his breath.

"Girls?" But it was actually Rias rather than Vergil the one who showed any reaction at the comment, one that wasn't particularly happy.

"I was also referring to them when I said any of you. And if those are really my only options, then I rather remain alone" The blue-eyed devil cut his acquaintance's mocking words short, all the while keeping a relatively calmed behavior.

But that hardly seemed to be a deterrent for the red devil as he continued to say "Well... Wasn't that quite a fast deni... Urgh!"

But before the whole thing could carry on any longer, the blue devil suddenly brought it all to an end the moment he smacked the head of the teasing redhead.

"Just give it a rest already. I know that you're bored, but that doesn't mean you can make the rest of us waste our time just for your own amusement. You were more productive when you were ditching work sleeping" The blue devil preached at his colleague, although rather than doing so with a serious attitude, the blue devil just seemed to be annoyed.

"You're damn right I'm bored! We arrived here long before dawn, and all they had us do since then was help set up the security and organized the megalo-mesembrian troops, nothing more. Of all the people they could have got to do it... Why us?"

"Well, this whole thing was set up by the higher-ups, as in... our bosses, so it wasn't much a matter of choice for us. Besides, I don't see why you're complaining, given that you barely did anything before quitting"

"Hey! I always get things done, you people are the ones always complaining about something. I mean, does it really matter how I do things? As long as it gets the job done it should be just fine"

"... ...No, it's not just fine... And yes, it does matter. Causing a whole battleship to crash in an enemy base is never the best way to make an opening in their defenses..."

"Oh, c'mon! How long are you gonna keep bringing that up...? I saved us a lot of time back then..."

"Yes, you did. Not to mention, you almost killed must of us too..."

…

"Uhm... Just what exactly are they doing?" Rias somehow managed to ask after finally breaking her gaze away from the little scene the two older devils were performing. The uneasiness in her voice was rather obvious, but then again no one could really blame her, considering how fast the conversation-turned-debate was escalating. It certainly seemed to be only a matter of time before the whole thing would take a turn for the worst.

"Like I said, just ignore them. That's what I always do" And still, none of it appeared to bother the blue-eyed devil in the least, given how he answered Rias' question without looking either too concern nor interest in the events unfolding right next to him. In fact, he didn't even try turning to look at what was happening, he just kept staring at the wall in front of him and, aside for another long sigh, his only response was to drink some more coffee.

As much as she wanted to believe him though, Rias had a lot of trouble accepting Vergil's suggestion... "I-is that so..." Especially since both devils were now shrouded in lightning and fire, like in those funny anime scenes with two character about to fight an awesome yet ridiculous battle.

Except that this wasn't some special effect added for drama or laughs, they were literally surrounded by azure lightning and crimson flames.

Not to mention they were also causing some damages to the hallway.

"Yes, it is" But all of Rias worries died away the moment she felt Vergil's hand gently touching her head, right after he was done with his short yet calm claim. She was so surprised and flustered because of this that she offered no resistance the moment he literally forced her to stop looking in the direction of the two noisy idiots, making her look at the wall in front of them instead. And since he did the same thing again after she tried to look away in an effort to hide her silly-looking face, Rias had no choice but to stare at the empty wall too.

At least he wasn't looking at her, instead just ignoring the commotion taking place just a few inches to their right.

Yet her happy moment was rudely disturbed the moment the red devil's yell reached her. "And they just keep messing with our free time! As if we don't have to put up with enough crap already!"

A yell that was quickly met with another equally loud one, this time courtesy of the blue devil. "Okay, now you're complaining for a completely different reason!"

"I am not! The only reason why I even bother dealing with this lethargic and dull environment is because I at least get to do as I please in my breaks... But how am I suppose to keep going like this if they take away my freedom like that!? It's been over a year since the last time something worth the effort happen!"

"You always do as you please! Stop saying such nonsense already!"

"Tch... Hey Vergie!" Feeling like he was going nowhere, the red devil suddenly called fo Vergil. "Back me up dude. I mean, how many times have they not ruined your breaks? Hell, how long has it been since your last day-off? Isn't that annoying?"

"Annoying as hell, alright" But despite appearances, Vergil's seemingly supportive claim came in a rather absentminded tone, with him doing little more than bringing the cup of coffee closer to his lips shortly afterwards.

"Assh..."

SNIKT!

That so eloquent comment was cut short in a rather literal fashion. Just as the red devil was mid-way through his word, something slashed at the wall, leaving a rather long and pronounced mark in between both devils. Needless to say this caught Rias by surprise, given how she had been looking at that specific portion of the wall all along only for the weird phenomenon to happen without a warning. Eventually however, she managed to pull her act together, and then noticed how both devils were eyeing Vergil with a rather upset glare.

She turned to look at him as well and found that, not only was he still holding the cup of coffee just inches away from his mouth, but was also eyeing at them with his uncovered eye.

"Did he do that just now?" She wondered to herself.

"While I've never cared much in regards to your antics..." The blue eyed devil began to speak in an evenly tone, never moving his eye from the other two. "I would appreciate if you could show some restrain. There is a young girl present"

Now, Rias already found herself charmed by Vergil pretty much from the moment she met him (which was around half an hour ago), despite said devil hardly making or saying anything remarkable until then, simply acting the way he always did in general. But after that little display of chivalry (at least that was how she saw it in her mind)...

"Geez, Vergil... If you keep that up, I'm really gonna fall for you..." She thought as she brought her hands to the sides of her face, blushing madly all along and completely missing the fact that Vergil was actually referring to her as child in that last part.

And it appeared that Vergil's little display was also able to bring the verbal duel of the other two to a proper end.

"Fine, fine... Gee..." Especially given the reaction the red devil gave.

Thankfully, the blue devil was generally more level headed than his colleague, so there wasn't much complaining on his end either. And since everything seemed to finally returned to a more calmed state, Vergil chose to keep steering things in his favor. "So let's try this again. WHY-ARE-YOU-HERE?"

Whether Vergil meant that as an insult or not was beyond the other three, mostly because the expression on his face never changed from that neutral one he showed so far. That of course, didn't stop his two no-friends from getting a bit annoyed by it.

"Why? Do you even know what time is it? This crappy gig is about to start and, since you just disappeared all of a sudden, the boss send us to look for ya" The red devil infromed him.

Vergil remained silent for a few seconds after hearing what the red devil told him. And after a short while he simply said... "I'm not going"

"Okay? Care to tell us why" The blue devil just asked before his companion had the chance to start another pointless argument. Although, he was clearly surprised by Vergil's answer as well.

"Well, I guess it would be more accurate to say that I'm not going just yet" Vergil elaborated, even if it really didn't help the others to understand his decision.

"Then when are you coming?" Still, the bluehead insisted, clearly defiant regarding the white-haired devil's decision, but not quite crossing into a disrespectful action either.

"Not sure, actually. Still, showing later on is a better option than being there at the beginning and causing an uproar from the get-go" Again, Vergil offered a not so useful answer.

"Sigh... More like you don't want todeal with the uproar... Still, I do see your point. Fine, do it your way, but at least explained to the boss yourself" The blue devil then tried to negotiate.

A negotiation that ended the moment Vergil simply said "Not happening"

"... Why?"

"Because I can already tell what the outcome of that would be and I'm not in the mood for another sermon"

"Sigh... Fine" And finally, the blue devil just gave up.

And while the whole ordeal seemed to finally be coming to a close, there was one thing that Rias couldn't help but ask about. "Uhm... You people keep talking about your boss... Do you work for Balder?"

"Like hell we do!" Came the collective answer all three devils yelled at the exact same time while a look of disdain and annoyance became visible on their faces.

"O-okay..." Rias was about to let the whole thing die until she remembered something that caused her curiosity to stat burning anew. She probably would regret it, but she just had to know, so she ended up asking the fellow redhead since he was the closest to her. "But what about that man with the gas mask?"

Sine the red devil was the closest to her and wasn't busy talking with the other two, he was the only one who actually listened to her question."Huh?" Of course, that didn't meant he help her learn anything, at least not right away.

"When Balder contacted my parents, he also talked with this man. He was wearing a gas mask and was carrying a box with some weird stuff" Rias elaborated in the hope pf eventually larning something. "He didn't seem fond of Balder either and mentioned someone he called his boss, so I was wondering if you knew him?"

And finally geting a general idea of what she was saying, the red devil was able to shed some light on the subject. "You mean HUNK? Yeah, he's the same as us. He probably hates Balder the must too"

"Hunk? Why was he wearing a gas mask?"

"Beats me. He wears it all the time"

"Is Hunk really his name?"

"Who knows. I'm not even sure why he always spells it all in capitals either"

By that point Rias was already more than just unconvinced with the answers the red devil gave her, so she opted to try and see just how reliable his knowledge truly was.

"Just for how long have you known him?"

He didn't answer right away though, instead he looked back at her with a confused expression before suddenly calling at the direction of the other two males. "Oi! Al...! How long has it been since we met HUNK?"

Rias wasn't that surprise by what the red devil did, she kind of saw that coming the moment he simply stared at her instead of answering her question. What really caught her off guard though, was the reaction given by the blue devil as soon as he heard his co-worker's call, turning suddenly while also looking truly upset for once. He then yelled "I told you to stop calling me that!" with nothing but contempt in his voice.

And considering he had been able to stay relatively serene and collected so far despite everything... Well, it goes without saying how bewildering the response was for the young Rias.

"Yeah, yeah... Just answer the question, will ya" The red devil said, completely unfazed by what just happened.

And once again, going against what Rias expected, the blue devil was perfectly capable of returning himself to a more sound state of mind despite everything, even going as far as to actually respond to the question imposed on him, "A little over a year. Why?". Although it was rather clear that he was still unhappy with the name used to address him.

And just in the same way as the bluehead, Rias' fellow redhead was able to remain in character too, as he completely disregarded most of what the other devil did and said, instead being more interested in answering Rias question, "Well, there you go". Although this was more out of boredom than anything else.

"Thanks..." But even after getting her answer, Rias herself was far from impressed.

As for Vergil, he seemed to be more concerned with the fact that he finally ran out of coffee than what the other two males were doing. At least that was the case until he realized that Rias was still insisting in knowing more about their masked acquaintance. "Well, this can't be good..."

Now, it wasn't a secret that none of them were saints, and Vergil himself had no trouble whatsoever admitting that. But it wasn't an exaggeration to say that, out of the whole bunch, the fittingly nicknamed Mr. Death was the one character whose story should be kept as far away from any children as possible. And let's not forget that this is the youngest child of the Gremory family we're dealing with.

It really didn't help that Vergil was the only one who had any real notion of how to properly act around children nor that the red devil seemed to be perfectly fine with answering Rias' questions as a way to deal with his own boredom.

"[Not to mention Al doesn't have much common sense when it comes to kids... But then again, and unlike you, none of them do...]"

Vergil knew better than to take that comment as acompliment, instead replying to it wit a rather annoyed thougt. "That's because they don't have to deal with cocky little idiots and cry-babies on a daily basis..."

"[Why not letting them help you every once in a while if it is so annoying? Thy could certainly use the experience...]"

"Like hell I will do that"

"[What? Trying to go for the tsundere appeal?]"

"You know..."

But before Vergil could continue with his private conversation, his previous fears became true once Rias asked the one question he was hoping would go untouched.

"Did he come too?"

And sure enough, the other two didn't seem to find any reasons not to answer.

"Uhm... No, he didn't..." With the thunder devil being the one to speak first.

"Why?"

"Well... He kinda died a while back" And with the fire devil being the one to start going into details.

"What...?"

"He always dies though... And then he shows up alive again later on, that's his thing" Al added casually, more like a clarification rather than an attempt to appease the shocked girl, which obviously caused her to become even more confused.

"..."

However the bluehead, being the more level headed of the two, was the first to realize that the details regarding the Grim Reaper might not be suitable for such a young child, a fact that became quite clear as he tried to deter Rias from keep inquiring. Keyword here being tried...

"And also... HUNK has... ...some issues..."

But as stated before, he really had no idea of how to properly deal with a situation like that one, and all his attempt at changing the subject accomplished was to make Rias' curiosity grow even more.

"...? ...Like?"

And fittingly. it was the older redhead the one who actually kept replying.

"Well..."

---

SNAP!

"...! ...Did you just break that Soul Eater's neck while shoving a hidden blade through the back of its head"

"Well, yes... ...Why?"

"Just... asking..."

---

CRACK!

"Wait... Did you just reap off the spine of that Nefastarrius"

"You know a better way to deal with these things?"

"...Uh... Well, no... ...not really"

---

"Hey! Where the hell is HUNK? We're getting our asses kicked here"

"I think he just got eaten by Phantom"

"Seriously!? ...Well, that sucks..."

"Wait, something's happening over there"

"GYAAAAAARRRRRGGGGGGGHHHHHHH!"

BOOM!

SPLASH! SPLASH! SPLASH!

"..."

"..."

---

"There were chunks of rock and lava everywhere"

Thankfully, being too engrossed in their memories prevented both of them from actually saying anything, and thus all Rias got as a response was that one line spoken by the red devil, a nod given in return by the blue devil, and a freaked out expression on their faces as they stared at the empty space in front of them for a brief moment, apparently way to disturbed by what they were seeing in their memories...

Eventually though, their attention was taken away by Vergil as he finally stood up from his seat. "You two seem to have a lot of free time for people who are still on duty..." The blue-eyed devil commented casually as he approached Rias, causing his two colleagues to jolt slightly.

"So you say... But aren't you fooling around as well" The blue devil tried to remind Vergil.

"I don't know what you're talking about" Only for Vergil to replied nonchalantly at the comment as he took hold of the now empty cup in his bandaged hand before offering his free left hand to Rias.

Although rather than just offering a hand, Vergil actually pulled Rias to her feet himself, he did it gently but it was still a very sudden action, one that the girl had no chance to oppose due to many reasons, among which the fact that she was so flustered that she could only said some nonsensical mumbling in a whisper-like voice while her eyes became a somehow swirly.

"C'mon. I'll help you find your friend and then I'll take you to your parents" Her self-imposed escort proclaimed as he led her down the hallway, avoiding the sections that were damaged by the other two black suits. And all the while being completely unaware of her state. "O-o-o-okay"

"And what about the tea party" The older redhead was able to ask before Vergil could move too far away.

"I'll just ask Armstrong to tell me of a good time to go in"

"Suit yourself then" And after the short replied of the blue devil the two pairs began to walk away in opposite directions.

But just as they were about to reach an intersection, Rias managed to call out to the other two one last time. "Excuse me! I never got your names"

"I'm Alastor. It was nice meeting you, lady Gremory"

"...Ifrit... Take care of yourself, chibi..."

Only Alastor turned around to answer properly, while Ifrit just kept going and casually replied in between yawns.

Ance done, they kept walking until they disappeared around around a corner, leaving an excited Rias looking in the direction they went with a glint in her eyes.

"Whoa! That's so cool! They have the same names as the dragons that served Queen Sheba... The Azure Dragon and the Inferno Lord... They even have similar powers..."

"Yeah... Go figure..."

The Gremory heiress turned to look at Vergil, not because of his sarcastic comment, but due to a sudden thought that came to her. All three of them seemed to be at least around their very late teens, so... "Say... Are you guys related?"

And Vergil's answer came first in the form a dry chuckle before actually saying anything.

"Thankfully no. I already have enough with my siblings as it is. I don't think I could survive having those two in my family as well." He finally said just as he began to walk away, with Rias promptly following him.

"You have siblings?"

"Yeah. Two of them"

"Younger siblings?"

"Yes..."

"Heh... figures. You really have an older-brother-air around you, Vergil"

"Well, thanks... And don't fall behind..." Despite his sarcastic tone and seemingly annoyed reaction, Rias couldn't help but to let out a short giggle. He really looked like an older brother just there. He had a cold personality, no doubt, yet he was also caring.

"You really aren't giving me any chance to resist you..." She said to herself before catching up to him, getting a hold on his free hand and walking merrily by his side.

"[Well, aren't you the ladies man?]"

"Shut up..."

"[Yeah, yeah... I'll be taking a nap now, so don't wake me up, kay?]"

"... Sigh... …So, where did you last saw your friend anyway..."

---

"They're late!" Was the comment made by the person pacing in front of a set of grand double doors, clad in a black suit and whose fair, almost effeminate, features were distorted into an angry snarl. An ankle-length mane of silky black hair flowed behind the figure with every step.

Seriously, it was hard to tell just what gender he... she... Well, it was confusing as hell, lets just leave it at that (no pun intended, of course)

"Geryon, you already said that seven times in the last two minutes" The blond woman sitting in the adjacent bench calmly reminded her companion, apparently not caring as much about the situation at hand. She was wearing a black dress suit, her long hair was tied loosely and hanged over her left shoulder. However, the one thing that would caught anyone's attention right away (aside for her gorgeous looks, perfect figure and bewitching blue eyes, of course) was the regal crimson coat she wore over her shoulders.

"Because they're late, Eva!" The cigaret in Geryon's mouth was almost dropped due to the angry yell the devil released, but somehow it remained in place just fine.

"Just what the hell are they doing? Those idiots are probably..." That comment, as well as Geryon trying to take a look at the digital clock at the top of a wall were interrupted the moment Ifrit showed up coming down the hallway.

"Gee... Would you calm down? For someone who can manipulate time and space, you sure lack a lot of patience"

"You're the last person I want to hear that from"

Rather than taking offense at Geryon's retort, Ifrit simply shrugged before adding. "Doesn't make what I said any less true"

But just as Geryon was about to say something back, Eva put an end to it all, calling their attention by clapping her hands a bit as she stood up before addressing them. "Okay, enough of that you two"

She only took a couple of steps before standing tall, and despite the height difference between them (which leaved her in a clear disadvantage) she still adopted a rather authoritative posture, arms crossed just beneath her chest and a stern glare directed at the other two. It wasn't condescending, but more reminiscing of an adult scolding a child. And it worked just fine, with both devils immediately stopping their argument once they caught sight of it.

And with things back to normal, she then proceeded to address the fire devil directly. "So... Did you find him? And where is Alastor?"

"I'm over here..." Sure enough, Alastor soon came from the same direction Ifrit arrived, a bar of chocolate was held in his teeth while he placed a second one inside an inner pocket on his suit's jacket. He moved past the other two devils and came to a stop in front of Eva. "Sorry, I ran out of candy and needed to get some more... As for your question, yes we did find Vergil..."

"Oh... Then where is he?"

"He said he is not coming, at least not yet" Despite everything, Alastor had no trouble answering her with a nonchalant attitude, even eating his bar of chocolate calmly all along.

"Come again?"

"Yeah... Something about him showing up from the start not being a good idea..." Ifrit then elaborated upon their findings as he walked to them.

"You know he has a point... I honestly don't see this ending well if the first thing they see is his face..." Alastor offered while casually pointing at the doors a few feet away from them.

Eva however, didn't say a thing, instead simply appearing to be in deep thought and with an unreadable expression on her face.

"So basically... You idiots blew it..." Still, Geryon commented after finally reaching them.

Which prompted Ifrit to point something out as well. "And what about you? I don't see Guildenstern anywhere either"

"Couldn't help it. He locked himself in his underground lab again. There is no getting him out of there anytime soon"

Despite knowing it would be futile, Alastor still tried to defend their actions. "Well, it was the same for us too. Vergil actually ran into the youngest daughter of the Gremory house. Apparently she got lost and Vergil decided to help her out in the meantime"

Despite the new piece of information, Geryon still looked rather unconvinced. "Isn't that convenient"

"It's not like we can't have him joining in later on" The blue devil still tried to debate, although he wasn't doing such a good job, given that he just finished devouring what was left of the chocolate as he said that.

"Oh well... I guess that explains you deciding it was okay to just go and buy chocolates"

Of course, the sarcastic comment didn't surprise Alastor one bit.

"Hey... You know I can't help it because of my accelerated metabolism. I'm usually good if I just eat lots of junk food during breakfast, but in case you forgot, we actually had to skip that in order to get here in time"

"I don't know what's more ridiculous, that lame excuse of yours or the fact that Ifrit always refuses to eat meat he didn't kill..."

"Get off my back, will ya... Besides, you're not one to talk. Out of all of us, you're the one with the most noxious habit" Ifrit retorted while he pointed accusingly at the lit cigaret in Geryon's mouth.

"I'm not one to talk...? You're literally a walking incinerator..."

"And that's precisely why I'm telling you! People already have enough dealing with guys like me around, and idiots like you aren't helping"

"Just let it go. If you keep this up he is going to start with his speech about second hand smoke" Alastor tried to persuade Geryon in backing off, even while Alastor himself seemed to not really care much about their argument to begin with. He was just trying to spare himself from some annoying trouble.

But Ifrit didn't seem to share that thought. "Hell, you're even worse that Guildy. At least the dude no longer tries to steal children's organs and now only goes after corpses"

"Most of the time anyway" With the blue devil's total indifference cemented with how he casually added to Ifrit's accusation while going after the second bar of chocolate.

"WHAT! How am I worse than that freak?"

Rather than answering right away, Ifrit just kept staring with an Are-you-serious look. It wasn't until Geryon realized what was coming when the fire devil finally spoke again.

"Secondhand smoke kills, you know. It's far worse than the fumes you inhale directly. Take diethylene, one of those nasty carcinogens your doctor might have warned you about on your last visit. Firsthand smoke has between 5.3 and 43 nanograms of diethylene, whereas, secondhand smoke has 680 and 823 nanograms. And don't get me started with quinoline, that's another effective one. Secondhand smoke has 18,000... …!"

"SHUT UP!" In the end however, after growing increasingly annoyed as the little speech went on, Geryon just lashed out at the lecturing male with a punch to the face, even if Geryon ended up as the one who actually received any damage and Ifrit just stared back nonchalantly.

"Well, that was pretty lame" Although, it was Alastor who made a comment on it, just as he calmly ate the remaining half of his chocolate in a single bite.

The whole thing appeared to be about to continue, until all of a sudden and without any actual explanation, all three devils found themselves lying flat on the ground and with very sore bodies. They looked up to find Eva staring at them with a glare that, while appearing to be perfectly serene, it still somehow managed to disturbed them to their very cores. It might have something to do with how her eyes seemed to glow with a light of their own, despite the shadow her hair casted on them.

And it wasn't long before she talked to them with a matching voice "While I've never cared much in regards to your antics... Could you people at least pretend like you care about this?"

"Not my fault" Geryon was the first to speak after successfully standing from the ground.

"Well, it's kind of hard for us. We were originally dragons..." With Alastor casually pointing out as he remained in the ground, lookingat Eve in theyes.

"Yeah. Even after Sheba turned us to her side by beating the living crap out of us, she hardly ever bothered with all the bureaucracy side either, so..." And Ifrit adding his own two cents in the argument.

But despite thir honest disposition, non of what Alastor and Ifrit said semed to change Eva's impression. Something that became rather evident when she then said. "Funny you said that... Because according to Butterfly and Styx, that never stopped you from..."

"Okay, okay! We get it!" Alastor suddenly yelled seconds after pulling himself from the ground. His face reflecting panic perfectly, but for some reason he was also blushing in embarrassment.

"Yeah! We'll be good, so no need to go there!" And Ifrit himself was fast in joining the other devil too. By the looks of it, he wasn't in any better shape either. Whatever Eva was referring to, they really wanted to avoid it at all costs.

"Are you sure? I can always let you sort things out personally, you know?" Just as Eva finished saying that, her shadow, projected all along in the wall behind her, began to shift and appeared to be about to take the form of two very familiar figures.

"No need! Really..."

"Yeah... We're fine..."

They assured her, and seeing as they finally caught her message, Eva then decided to let the whole thing slip.

"As long as you get it, then it's fine." She said before walking past them and towards the large doors at the other end of the room. The creepiness of her shadow already gone, causing the two former dragons to let out a sigh of relief as a more natural color returned to their faces.

But that didn't stop Geryon from taking a shot at them. "You two are pathetic"

"Oh believe me, we know" Alastor muttered under his breath as a depressing aura of resignation came down on both, him and Ifrit.

"Don't fall behind now" Eva called out, causing them to snap back to reality and follow after her.

"Sigh... Great... And with Vergil out of the picture, we'll be the ones to take all the heat first... And here I was hoping to use the bastard as a scapegoat..." Ifrit casually commented before noticing Eva staring at him again. "What? You thought the same too. Isn't that why you left the young ones back home?"

"Sigh... Well, you got that right... But in any case..." Not minding much that comment, Eva turned to look at her subordinates straight, just inches away from one of the entrance to the room the infamous meeting was taking place.

"Once crossing these doors, you'll have to behave. Understood, kids?" She asked, causing Alastor to smile and reply with a simple...

"You're the boss, boss"

---

"So, Shiro... How's your very first assignment as a Colonel going?"

Shiro couldn't help but let out a soft chuckle as he walked down the hallways of the security branch. Even if he never turned to look at the holographic screen moving at his side, he could still imagine the mocking grin in the caller's face perfectly.

"Things are going just fine, thank you very much Clyde. The Hückebein already finished sorting out the megalo-mesembrian troops, and the first couple of shifts for the guards ended without incidents. Not even you trying to get under my skin will be enough to ruin my day" And this time, the newly appointed colonel turned to give his friend a grin of his own as he step into one of the many elevators that littered the walls of the otherwise dead-end of a hallway.

"Heh. Fair enough. And I see they ended up going with that name, huh? Hückebein... I remember how much they hated it back when they were in Gallia14 months ago..." The man on the screen commented as he began to recall old times.

And Shiro looked to be ready to go back the memory road too, bu t in the end was able to resist the urge and instead focused to replied to his old friend. "They still hate it. It wasn't until General Armstrong and Lady Eva pretty much forced them to accept the name when they finally stop complaining"

"That certainly sounds more like the... Hmm?" But before Clyde could continue, something seemed to caught his attention off screen.

"Vice admiral Harlaown, Admiral Graham is requesting your presence in his office..."

A voice was heard by Shiro, even if the owner couldn't be seen on the screen either. After giving a quick node, Clyde turned to him again "Sorry, guess will have to continue this conversation some other time"

"That's fine with me. I should also go back to work" As if it was planned that way, the moment Shiro finished his sentence the elevator's doors opened, allowing him to reach the hallway leading to the security force's command room.

"Okay then. Try not to get yourself kill, colonel"

"Heh... Thanks for the vote of confidence"

"Oh! And before I forget, could you help me out with a favor?"

That comment caught Shiro by surprise "I don't know... What's this about?"

"Well, since Vergil is over there too, I was asked if you could deliver him a message..."

"Sounds easy enough. What's the message?"

"Hmm... Let's see" Clyde searched through a bunch of files and papers he had over his desk, and after a short while he retrieved a small piece of paper with some words written on it which he then proceeded to read out loud "Tell him that Selv said hi..."

Shiro wasn't sure what to make of that and after a couple of seconds he simply asked "That's it?"

"Pretty much. And no, I don't know what the deal is either. Must be some family thing. I mean from what I heard, the girl looked a lot like him"

"What? There's more of them out there...? But, wait... So you never met this person?"

"Like I said, I don't know what the deal is, you should probably asked Lady Eva if you're curious. And no, I never met her, it was Lindy. She then asked me to ask you..."

"Well, whatever. I'll try and tell him as soon as I get the chance, okay?"

"Thanks, and good luck..."

"Sure, sure..."

As soon as he finished, Shiro deactivated the holographic screen, seconds before he entered the command room, causing most of the staff working inside the overly large room to look at him.

"Ah! Lieutenant-colo... Sorry, I mean Colonel Takamachi..."

"It's fine, no need to apologize. To be honest, I'm still not use to the rank either" Shiro commented with a friendly smile, trying to reassured the operator who had address him. And he was technically telling the truth, after all, he only got the promotion recently. Once noticing that the young woman was at ease again, Shiro the proceeded to address the staff on duty. "Okay. Report!"

"Yes, sir"

One of the operators at the opposing end of the room pressed some of the keys on his keyboard before a display of the status of all of the security cameras, sensors and checkpoints in the building and adjacent areas appeared in the many large screens around the room. All of them displaying a green light, much to the officer's relieve. "As you can see, everything is in order. We haven't gotten a single report of suspicious activity..."

The female operator from before commented and only stopped in order to input some commands on her own computer, which caused a list of the many guards patrolling the area to appear on the screen closest to Shiro. "And most of the units patrolling have already reported in for the change of shift as well"

"Yeah... All but one..." Shiro commented upon seeing the full list. "Hotel... That's the codename for the patrol in charge of east section of the sewers, right?"

"That's right. They should be contacting us anytime now..." A third operator commented from his booth just below Shiro's platform. And as soon as he finished n incoming call was reported on his screen. "And that's them"

"Okay then. Lets not make them wait" Shiro pressed one of the buttons in the terminal in front of him, connecting the call and allowing everyone to hear it.

"HQ... Do you read..."

"This is HQ. What's your status?"

"This is Manfredi, reporting for the change of shift"

"Anything to report on your end"

"Negative. All clear"

"Roger that"

And just a couple of seconds later, a second call entered from the same location.

"This is Johnson, relieving Manfredi on the guard, sir"

"Acknowledge." Shiro responde, but instead of cutting of communicatios right away, he called out to one of the soldiers. "And Manfredi?"

"Yes sir?"

"Congrats on you retirement"

"Thank you, sir"

After that, communications ended and the report was added to the chart displayed in the room's central monitor.

"I guess that means the 4th shift ended without problems too" Shiro commented happily, finally resting on his chair as he allowed himself some minor relaxation.

"Now, let's just hope it stays like that" He added as he stretched his arms while the staff that was close enough to heare him all nodded in agreement.

---

"Ah! That's right... Today is your last day on the job, huh?" Johnson said casually as he rested against a wall, his weapon placed right next to him, just beneath one of the bulbs illuminating the area, while Manfredi gathered the rest of his stuff.

"Yep! With the end of the shift comes the end of my day. Now I can finally go and chase my dream"

"Yeeeaaah... I'm not really sure how the whole dogsled racer thing is gonna work for ya... But hey! Who cares? You're finally free to that whatever you want, so... Godspeed to ya"

"Thanks. But what about you, Johnson? Have you considered ..."

"Retiring? No thanks, I'm good. I still have some of the old beast in me, so I think I'm gonna stick around for a while"

"Suit yourself. In any case, it was nice meeting you, my fr-... WHAT IN THE WORLD?!"

Completely taken aback by the sudden reaction of Manfredi, Johnson turned to look to his right only to find two purple orbs of light deep within the sewer, seemingly floating near the top. Most of the large structure was pitch black in the section where they appeared, apparently no longer having any functional lighting systems, and they just couldn't make out exactly what it was, but something was there. And for the briefest of times, the glowing orbs seemed to flicker, or rather...

"Wait... Is it just me or did that just now look like blinking eyes..." Manfredi commented as he reached for his weapon.

But since Johnson already had his with him, he aimed the sophisticated looking lance/rifle hybrid at whatever it was in front of him. "Tch... Can see a thing... Manfredi! Light!"

"Roger" Manfredi pulled out a large crystal from one of his pockets and aimed one end at the dark section, yet nothing happened in the end.

"Dammit! Did you forget to charge it?"

"I didn't! And it was working just fine before!" Manfredi yelled in panic.

And it was around then when the blinking of the lights occurred again, almost as if staring intently at them. But this time, it was also accompanied by a disturbing clacking sound. And the echoes produced by the sewers walls did one hell of a job in hiding from where exactly it came from.

"Forget it! Use mine!"

Once again Manfredi tried to provide illumination with the new crystal, but just like before it proved futile.

"Dammit"

Finally losing his patience, Johnson was about to open fire on whatever that thing was, but the moment he took aim the glowing orbs just disappeared and the noise just faded into oblivion.

"The hell! Manfredi! Try to contact HQ!"

"I'm trying! But it isn't working!"

"What are you saying!" Johnson tried to activate his own communicator, only to read the Signal Lost message on the screen.

BANG!

That sound was the only warning they had before one of the many light bulbs that illuminated the section behind them suddenly exploded.

"Wha..."

BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG1 BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG!

Followed by pretty much every single light bulb left, until only the one right above them remained.

"WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON!"

"LIKE I KNOW!"

With no other choice left but to fight back, both soldiers stood back to back, their weapons held firmly within their grasp and their eyes looking around in search of anything.

CLACKCLACKCLACKCLACKCLACKCLACKCLACKCLACKCLACKCLACK CLACKCLACKCLACKCLACKCLACKCLACKCLACKCLACKCLACKCLACK CLACKCLACKCLACKCLACK!

And then, that sound returned a thousand times stronger.

"HOLY...!"

With the glowing eyes returning soon after, this time just feet away from Johnson. They began to move closer and closer, until he was treated with a better look of what was in front of him.

"ARE YOU KIDDING ME!" Johnson yelled, with Manfredi turning around almost right away.

They both saw the weirdest looking mask they had ever seen floating above them, with the two orbs from before turning out to be two small purple dots and a gaping moth showing some really goofy teeth while some purple miasma instead of drool dripped down from it. The whole thing seemed to be made out of gold, was slightly larger than an adult's head and sported some markings across its surface which glowed with the same eerie light.

CLACKCLACKCLACKCLACKCLACKCLACKCLACKCLACKCLACKCLACK CLACKCLACKCLACKCLACKCLACKCLACKCLACKCLACKCLACKCLACK CLACKCLACKCLACKCLACK!

Just as they were about to shoot it, two large curved blades emerged from underneath the head. The golden blades then closed and opened repeatedly, almost as if imitating a pair of scissors, appearing to be ready to tear them to shreds.

CLACKCLACKCLACKCLACKCLACKCLACKCLACKCLACKCLACKCLACK CLACKCLACKCLACKCLACKCLACKCLACKCLACKCLACKCLACKCLACK CLACKCLACKCLACKCLACK!

But with their gaze now focused on what was beneath the head, they could also faintly see a large and long body extending well into the darkness beyond, with many sharp limbs extending and contracting at the same rhythm as the unbearable noise that plagued the place.

CLACKCLACKCLACKCLACKCLACKCLACKCLACKCLACKCLACKCLACK CLACKCLACKCLACKCLACKCLACKCLACKCLACKCLACKCLACKCLACK CLACKCLACKCLACKCLACK!

And because they were so busy staring at the beast in front of them, Manfredi never saw the steel fan that was coming his way from behind.

CLACKCLACKCLACKCLACKCLACKCLACKCLACKCLACKCLACKCLACK CLACKCLACKCLACKCLACKCLACKCLACKCLACKCLACKCLACKCLACK CLACKCLACKCLACKCLACK!

The very same one that ended up severing his left leg as it moved past them.

CLACKCLACKCLACKCLACKCLACKCLACKCLACKCLACKCLACKCLACK CLACKCLACKCLACKCLACKCLACKCLACKCLACKCLACKCLACKCLACK CLACKCLACKCLACKCLACK!

While also cutting off Johnson's right arm as it changed it's trajectory and went back the way it came.

CLACKCLACKCLACKCLACKCLACKCLACKCLACKCLACKCLACKCLACK CLACKCLACKCLACKCLACKCLACKCLACKCLACKCLACKCLACKCLACK CLACKCLACKCLACKCLACK!

The last thing they saw was a set of grotesque jaws coming down of them...

CLACKCLACKCLACKCLACKCLACKCLACKCLACKCLACKCLACKCLACK CLACKCLACKCLACKCLACKCLACKCLACKCLACKCLACKCLACKCLACK CLACKCLACKCLACKCLACK!

Just as the last source of light left broke, returning everything to the bowels of darkness...

CLACKCLACKCLACKCLACKCLACKCLACKCLACKCLACKCLACKCLACK CLACKCLACKCLACKCLACKCLACKCLACKCLACKCLACKCLACKCLACK CLACKCLACK!

And the steel fan returned to the hand of its wielder.

---

A/N: In case you didn't notice, Heavy Day is meant to be a prequel to Of Aces & Jokers.

It takes place 2 years prior to Eva's death and a little over eight years before the prologue of A&J.

Why I didn't say so earlier?

Because i didn't want to make the newcomers feel underwhelmed with the prospect of not knowing what's going on.

Most of you probably have no idea what's going on anyway, but at least now I can tell you that's the way it's supposed to be.

What do you think of my take on Eva?

I know is quite different than what most people do. But to be fair A&J features some heavy deviations from the classic formula.

This is fanfiction after all, that's the whole point of it.

And yes, those were indeed Alastor and Ifrit in this chapter.

And yes, they were the two devils that appeared alongside Vergil in the extra chapter of A&J.

I said this back then and I'll say it again.

I FREAKIN' LOVE THESE TWO!

Seriously, I do.

While I have no problem admitting that DMC3 is the best game in the series so far, my personal favorite has always been the original, which is where these two first appeared and they are indeed one of the reasons I love that game so much.

All those moves that you people love to pull off in the series... Stinger, Rising Dragon, Shock, Air Raid... They were all introduced with them. And in a lot of cases, the newer versions of those moves ended up getting nerfed in favor of making Rebellion the main weapon.

But mostly, my love for them comes from the fact that the original DMC was the first game of the series I played, the first game I ever bought with my own money, and the game I've finished and completed the most, with run #24 being the last one I counted before losing count entirely. And that was back when DMC3 was still a few weeks away from release... And I'm talking about Dante's Awakening.

And Alastor and Ifrit also happen to be the devil arm's with the most appearances, even if most of them are outside of their home series.

I mean, we have Viewtiful Joe, Okami, Sengoku Basara, Onimusha... Even Bayonetta gives a couple of nods to them.

The only weapon in the series I like more is Yamato. And in case you forgot, Yamato also debuted in the original game.

But going back into what actually has relevance to the story...

If your wondering why is it that they're dragons and not devils, that's simply because their Devil Arms are modeled after dragons, which in my opinion makes them even cooler. And... That's about it.

And as stated by them, they were indeed dragons originally, but they were later turned into devils by Sheba after she got them to joined her... by kicking their asses. Does that remind you of something?

As for their personalities. I pretty much built those around what they said to Dante before attempting to kill him upon their first meeting. You can go to the DMC wiki and take a look there if you don't remember about it. I took that as a basis and complemented it with the classic red oni/blue oni deal. What I was aiming to create were more amoral versions of Sol and Ky.

They're ancient devils, after all. They're not downright bastards, but they can't be good guys either.

As for their physical appearance, I was asked once by this girl in college if they were meant to be L and Light. I was drawing them during a small break in between classes when she was passing by.

Now, I want to make this perfectly clear because I don't want to deal with the same crap I did whit the Madoka Magica subject.

I love Death Note. I do. Is one of my favorite mangas... and animes... and live action adaptations...

But the thing is, I don't like L or Light as much as I like Ryuk, Near or Light's dad...

I wanted the physical build of Alastor and Ifrit to be similar in order to reinforced the notion that, while being opposites, they still have a lot in common. And to make their displays of supernatural strength, especially in Ifrit's case, all the more surreal

As for their hair, since they were introduced alongside pretty much every major character in the series, including Dante, I opted to give them some resemblance to him. That's why I gave Ifrit a shorter version of the hairstyle he used in the first game, while Alastor got a slightly longer version of the one he used as Tony Redgrave in the first novel, to be more precise that one cover by TokyoPop that is quite infamous among BlazBlue fans.

Which also means that Alastor's hair isn't nearly as messy as L's and Ifrit's isn't as plain as Light's. Just saying.

As for the color of their hair, I think that pretty much goes without saying.

That being said, I did borrow L's sweet tooth and gave it to Alastor, with a rather ridiculous reason for it just for good measure.

I actually had the idea of giving each Devil Arm a quirky side when dealing with food and habits, as a way of paying homage to Dante's infamous ability of sustaining himself with nothing more than pizza, strawberry sundae, tomato juice and good old Jack Daniels.

In Alastor's case he, got a craving for sweets, and the fact that his metabolism makes it impossible for him to get drunk. We're talking about a stupidly impossible form of electrolysis.

Ifrit got his self imposed rule of not eating anything he doesn't kill, and yes that means he often has the diet of a vegetarian, but whenever he finds himself in the wild and has some free time, he just goes nuts. The thing about smoking was something I decided because I thought it would be funny.

And Geryon got not eating anything with his/her bare hands, that and being an avid smoker, because considering his/her powers, the dangers of smoking didn't seem all that dangerous.

And don't worry, you'll find out what the hell Geryon is next chapter.

And then we have Vergil...

He does have some weird habits too, but does won't become obvious or funny until much later.

Also, considering this is a prequel and that his family is still pretty much alive and well, I don't think it's correct to say he was out of character in this chapter. It's just that he hasn't reach that turning point in his life that makes him into what we know, at least not just yet.

Once it happens though, it will be quite brutal. And he... Well, you can see where this is going.

One thing I do want to address is Rias' crush on him.

I actually added that at the last minute as I was typing that part. I thought it would be cute, I mean we all had a childhood crush, and it seemed like a good idea to include something like that.

And I'll admit, giving Issei some competition that in fact doesn't exist was something that I found way too funny to let it pas.

Still, I'm not really sure if it will be something that will carry on to future stories as an actual thing and develop or not. I'm willing to just leave it like that, an innocent crush, but if enough people find the idea appealing I can always give it a shot.

And speaking of romance, I've been entertaining this idea for a while.

How would you guys and gals like if A&J has a harem plot going on, but with Fate as the main character and Dante and Nanoha as targets to be conquered by the third Dark Angel.

Yes, Fate will eventually go by that monicker, and she will be the third caracter to do so. Vergil being the second... And Vergil's mentor the first.

Oh! and by the way... Alastor's and Ifrit's cameo appearance in Sengoku Basara?

Yeah, that stuff is gonna be canon here...

I know there is also some Onimusha going on, and to ease your worries... SB take priority over Onimusha as to what truly happened during the sengoku period.

I know I spend too much in the author's notes talking abaout Al and Ifrit, but I'm planning to use each chapter of this story to deal with a bit about some of the devils that will make appereances in A&J.

Today was the turn for those two, next chaptr we'll deal with two more and so on.

And on a final note, I just want to give you this fair warning.

The epilogue here will be heavy on the spoilers for some future stories.

Now, as their author, I can assure you that this are the type of spoilers you can afford to know, they're only the tip of the iceberg after all.

But in the end that doesn't change the fact that they're spoilers. And that was the main reason why I chose to work this as a short story with chapters rather than a one-shot.

So, consider yourselves warned.

...

And that's it for the first chapter.

I guess I could go a little more into detail about HUNK, but that would ruin the surprise for you later on.

I know there wasn't so much action, but I don't want to spoil you too much :p

In any case, all the action you were expecting will be coming with the next chapter, along some interesting surprises.

And yes, I'll try not to get in any more car accidents now.

Until next time...