"Excuse me, sir?"
The sharply dressed man turned towards me, a scowl on his face at being bothered. "Yeah, brat? What do you wa-" His words are cut short as he freezes in place. Not in surprise, not in horror, the man simply freezes. He doesn't move, doesn't blink, he's no longer even aware of what's going on. Just as it always is, just as it should be. Gotta make it fast though, I've only got three seconds.
In a quick and practiced sleight of hand, I relieve the suited gentlemen of his finely crafted platinum watch as well as his wallet, slipping both into my jeans pocket. Another day, another catch. I fix myself back into the position I was previously in and, right on cue, he unfreezes.
"-nt?"
"Ah, sorry! I thought you were someone else, my mistake!" I cheerfully reply, not even bothering to stick around to hear him moan and complain about disrespectful youths or his time being wasted. Ha, wasted time. If only he knew.
[Must you use my power so wastefully? It's distasteful.]
Must you complain all the time? It's annoying.
[Don't mock me.]
Don't mock me.
[Boy.]
Oh relax~. You're always so uptight nowadays. Learn to live a little.
I'm talking to the voice in my head again. Don't worry, I promise I'm not insane. Or, maybe I am? Just a little bit? At least I don't have delusions that the voice in my head is God or anything. I mean, it is a god but not the God. That would just be crazy. Besides, I rather prefer the god I'm talking to, even if he's a right ornery bastard sometimes.
[I am not "ornery", you're just undisciplined.]
I resist the urge to roll my eyes. He knows how much I hate it when he listens in on all of my thoughts, even when I'm not talking to him. Though, I suppose the correct phrasing would be thinking at him? So weird, but I guess a bit of weirdness is just the price of a voice in your head giving you superpowers.
[It's not some childish "superpower", boy. It's-]
'Yes, yes, a Sacred Gear. Don't get so anal over terminology, Your Majesty. Sacred Gear, God's Artifacts, superpowers, miracles, it all boils down to the same thing. I'm awesome~.'
I hear him sigh before, and I don't know how else to describe it, I feel him sink into the deeper recesses of my mind. He hates it when I use my Sacred Gear for "petty thievery" but, really, if you had the power to stop time on demand what would you use it for? Fighting crime? Bleh, no thank you. I much rather prefer using it doing what I like instead.
Power exists to be used, exploited and manipulated to achieve the powerful person's ends. And I am most assuredly powerful, how else would you describe a human being with the power to force time to halt? Okay, maybe not all-powerful, since I can only stop time within a small area (within my line of vision, and even that has a limited area of effect) and only for a few seconds, but Rome wasn't built in a day either!
Even DIO, marvelous bastard that he was, only got a maximum of nine seconds before he bit the dust. Considering I'm a fraction of his age and I'm up to three seconds I think I should be praised. My potential is as limitless as my avarice, or so the King of Fomorians in my head likes to say. Please give a round of applause to the voice in my head for his masterful wordplay. And then give me one as well, just because.
Where was I? Oh, right, the King hates it when I use his power – my power now! – "wastefully", especially on my little trips around the city to acquire new trophies. I don't get why. It's productive for both of us. I train my special eyes like he always demands that I do, and in doing so I sate the endless feeling of rapaciousness that's settled so deeply in my very bones. It's a win-win for us both, yet he's always giving me grief for it. Such a cruel god, being so mean to me even when I do as he asks.
I can distantly hear the sounds of someone shouting in the distance, something about a lost wallet and "Where the hell is my watch?!". I can't hold back my snickering at this point. A sucker's born every minute, mister. You just had the bad luck of coming across Amamiya Makoto, genius wielder of the incredible, the awe-inspiring, the fantastic, Forbidden Balor View.
It's an honor for you to be robbed blind by me, so please treasure the experience~.
I can't help but sigh with pleasure as I slice up my latest catch's ID with a pair of extra sharp scissors. Koichi Shidou, what a boring sounding name. A boring sounding name for a boring looking businessman.
His wallet was stacked though so I can't complain. You'd think in the current year people would know to not carry so much cash on them. It's all digital these days, Shidou! Learn to use a credit card, stupid. Or don't, it makes you an easy mark. Your watch looks quite nice on my wrist too, much better than it did on yours. I promise to only wear it on special occasions.
One last snip and all the useless information on the ID is cut away, falling to the floor. All I need are the picture and the name, everything else is worthless to me. A bit of superglue when I cut the name away so I can attach it to the top of this idiot's picture, then it can go up on the wall.
Did I not mention? This is my little ritual. After stealing someone's wallet, I meticulously cut up any form of photo ID they have until I'm left with just a name and the image of their face. Glue the name to the empty space above their head, apply a bit more glue to the back, then slam it on the empty space of whiteboard (that I bought with someone else's money) hanging on my wall, next to all the others faces. My own little collage of successes.
It's pretty varied too, I don't discriminate between races. If you have a wallet and I'm feeling in the mood it's just a fact that your wallet will become mine. Nothing personal, no hard feelings, I just can't help myself. It's not kleptomania though, I swear. I can say it's not because I both steal for profit and I steal for need. The profit goes without saying, but the need, the need, is what really fuels me.
I don't know if I was just born this way, whether it was fueled by my circumstances, if Dear Balor (he hates it when I call him that, by the way) has anything to do with it, or if it's just a taste I acquired. All I know is I want things. I want all of the things. I want everything. Everything valuable in the world, from shiny trinkets to priceless jewels, gimme, gimme, gimme. I want to steal it all away.
Balor says I remind him of a dragon, always hoarding its treasure even if they have no practical use for most of it. I kinda like that comparison. Dragons are super strong, aren't they? They must be, otherwise, people wouldn't revere them the way they do. If I were to be born again in another life, I think I'd like to be a dragon. Not before I think up a cool name for myself though! "Makoto" is only good as a human name, it's not good enough for a dragon. Doesn't inspire enough fear.
I exhale in contentment when I place Koichi Shido's name and face up there with all the others. Just another day, just another feast. A bountiful one at that, the guy had enough cash on him to keep my fridge stocked for the next few weeks. I love idiots that carry around ridiculous amounts of money, trying to look successful because of how much their wallets are bulging when they whip it out.
[You're such an odd human.]
Yes, yes, I'm odd. I'm definitely abnormal, you tell me every day. And, so what? I like being odd and I like being myself. A greedy human who can wield the Evil God Balor's power, that's me.
[Don't get cocky. You're still far from where you would be if you would just take your training seriously.]
Bah, more seriousness. Boring, boring, boring. I don't mind getting stronger but I'm not going to work myself to exhaustion over it. Human beings have such limited lifespans, why waste mine on the pursuit of more power? I've got all I need right now.
One second, I take a step forward.
Two seconds, my trusty switchblade is already in my hand, my finger on the button that will release my weapon of choice.
Three seconds, schwing~! Anyone that would seriously try to hurt me learns what it feels like to have the edge of a knife pressed against their bare throat. Don't breathe to heavily or too quickly, my hand might slip~.
Well, I say that but I haven't ever actually killed anybody. I've come close a few times but always pull back at the last second, going for a non-lethal wound like a shallow slash to the chest. Enough to let them know to back off but nothing that might take a life. I guess my constitution is still too weak, but I'd prefer if I never had to kill anybody.
Even a bad guy like me has values, ya know?
I'm a thief, not a murderer. Take the money and a prize, not their life.
[There will come a point where that line of thinking will lead to your life being taken.]
Mm, maybe that's true. But there's no point worrying about it. Should that time come, Amamiya Makoto will harden his heart, turn his mind to steel, and plunge the blade in all the way to the hilt. I won't show mercy to anyone that would threaten my life. My life is my most valuable treasure, after all. And just like a dragon burning thieves to a crisp, I'll cut up anyone that comes to steal my life away.
[Boy, you still cry at sad movies. Who are you kidding?]
Oi!
Kuoh Academy is an interesting place. I normally don't go because school, in general, is kinda boring, but when I do show up it's always on a day when something fun is happening. Sports Day, a school festival, the Perverted Trio getting whaled on by the Kendo Club, it's always something.
That last one is almost a daily occurrence (or so I've been told, considering the number of time of consecutive days in a row where I've gone to school can be counted on one hand) but it's still pretty fun to watch. Especially when Baldy and Glasses ditch Mullet and the Kendo girls take turns whacking him around like a pinata.
Those aren't their real names, in case you couldn't guess. I just don't care enough to refer to them as anything else most of the time, even in my own head. Issei – Mullet, to those not in the know. Seriously, who cuts his hair? Arrest them. It's a damn crime against humanity, swear to God. - is actually kind of nice, when he's not being a perverted idiot. Loyal guy too. If I had friends and they ditched me to avoid getting their own asses kicked they would find themselves stuffed in a locker, together.
Anyway, Kuoh Academy, fun place. Shame I don't really click with the people there, for the most part. I think it has something to do with Balor. Having an Evil God in your head, one that's always shoving info on the real history of the world down your throat, kinda makes you put up barriers around people. He can tell when they're lying even when I can't. He can tell when they're trying to manipulate me even when I can't. He can tell when people want to hurt me even when I can't. And it's a surprising amount of the time.
Now I know what you're thinking, that Balor's just trying to make me distrustful of others so I'll lean on him. That's just not true, for a few reasons. One, I don't need Balor to use my power. He's, as he described himself, a fragment of the true Balor that's gained consciousness. He can't influence me in any way (otherwise he'd probably make me train until my body broke, the sadist) and, if I try, I can shut him out of my mind entirely.
Two, he's got nothing to gain from it. Making me distrustful of people would inevitably extend to me not trusting him either out of paranoia. Couple that with the fact that I can shut him down whenever I so choose and we both know I'm the one holding the leash in this relationship. He's just good company, and I like having someone to talk to whenever I want, so I only make him quiet down when he really pisses me off. I've only done it twice since he started talking to me.
The first time was when I was a little kid, scared about the voice in my head (as most kids would be). I think I was 5, playing with some action figures when all of a sudden there was a voice in my head that was definitely not mine. I shut that down real quick, and he had the common sense to come back when I was better adjusted.
The second was when I was a slightly older little kid, around 10 years-old, and he told me my first real friend was stealing from me. I didn't want to believe it, told him to shut up, and he didn't say anything more. Of course, then I checked the kid's lunchbox and he was stealing from me. So, naturally, I broke his nose. Is it hypocritical for a thief to get infuriated when people steal from him? Yeah, probably. Don't care. Don't steal from me if you want to stay in one piece instead of several.
Thirdly, it's not as if he's feeding me some ideology like "Everybody lies". He just points out when people are being deceitful in ways that could negatively impact me. For minor things, he doesn't really care. It's only when my safety is put in the line of fire does he step in. My guardian Evil God, sitting on my shoulder and whispering into my ear.
Besides, it's not as if I'm entirely alone, Balor aside. I talk to Issei and his friends from time to time, mostly about perverted stuff. ...What? I'm still a healthy, growing, hormonal teenager after all! It's only natural that I'm interested in such things, especially in a school where the girl to guy ratio is about 70/30. Factor in the fact that all the girls are attractive on top of that and it's a wonder I haven't joined them on one of their little peeping escapades.
Then there's Koneko, my adorable underclassmen. Seriously, that girl is just too cute. She even purrs like a cat if you rub a certain spot on the top of her head. She says she hates it when I do that but the fact that she lets me continue on doing it tells me she definitely likes it. Might have to do with the fact that I buy her snacks on a regular basis though. She's got a sweet-tooth like you wouldn't believe.
That's four friends. Five, counting Balor. I think that's okay. How many friends is the minimum before you're considered some anti-social weirdo? I want to be just at or above that number. I'm odd but I'm definitely not weird like that. I just stop time and have a fragment of a deity in my head. Normal stuff all around.
"Senpai is spacing out again."
My eyes flicker from watching the latest beating the Perverted Trio are receiving back to Koneko on my side. She's looking kind of annoyed that my attention is elsewhere instead of on our lunch. Even her annoyed face is cute. If cuteness could be weaponized then Koneko would be the main supplier to every nation's armed forces, of this I have no doubts.
"Sorry, was thinking too hard again. Did I miss something?"
"Buchou wants to talk to you after school."
Ah, Rias Gremory. President of the Occult Research Club, which Koneko is a part of, #1 Beauty of the entire academy, so on and so forth. She's got a lot of titles attached to her name, including being heiress apparent to the Gremory family, one of the 72 Pillars of the Underworld.
She thinks I don't know but I definitely do. How could I not? From the moment my eyes met with Rias', Balor wouldn't shut up about her and her entire entourage being Devils. He keeps pushing me to meet with her too, so she can make me a Reincarnated Devil. Says it'll help make me stronger. Don't really feel like it. Seems like extra work. That's why I've skipped out on the last two times Rias has called for me.
That and I'm kind of savoring making her wait. The most beautiful girl in the school keeps chasing after me. Gives me the warm and fuzzy feeling of my ego being stoked. Yeah, I'm a little egocentric, so what? Bite me. I don't see any pretty girls chasing after you.
"Tell her I'll be there." Koneko gives me a dull look. She knows I'm lying. "Really this time!" She's not buying it at all. It hurts to not be trusted! I mean, I am lying but still, where's my benefit of the doubt?!
"I'm taking you to the club room when school's over."
Hmm. I could easily slip out a bit early and dodge her if I wanted to but that seems too mean, even by my loose standards. Besides, Koneko's looking at me with those big hazel eyes of hers, wordlessly asking me to actually heed Rias' call for once. Fine, I guess I can accept. But I'm not becoming a Reincarnated Devil unless she offers me something good.
"k."
A one letter answer and we're back to relaxing normally as we always do. She knows I won't run this time, it's an unspoken agreement between her and me now.
School is boring, but Kuoh Academy's not such a bad place.
Rias has a pretty smile.
Something like that goes without saying, considering one of those many titles of hers proclaims her as literally the prettiest girl in the whole damn school, but I really like her smile. Not just because it openly displays kindness, which it does. I like it because it hides the same thing my smile hides when I'm getting ready to add another trophy to my collection.
She wants things.
She's greedy, just like me. I don't know what it is exactly that she wants (other than to add me to her "Peerage" thing) but I do know she's got higher goals past it. That's how she's different than me. She actually has a goal in mind. I don't, not really. Owning everything of value in the world is a nice dream, but it's not a goal. If you don't know the difference then just consider it something past your scope of understanding.
"It's nice to finally meet you, Amamiya-kun. I've been trying to get in touch with you for some time now."
"Ah, yeah, you know how it is. Stuff comes up, I forget things, sorry about that. But it's nice to meet you too, Gremory-senpai."
Nothing ever comes up and I rarely forget anything I actually put my mind to. I just didn't want to come. Rias only won this time because she used Koneko against me. She finally figured out my weakness. Crafty Devil.
"Tea, Makoto-kun?"
Himejima Akeno, the second of the Two Great Ladies of Kuoh, right next to Rias. An incredible beauty in her own right. Her smile is quite nice too, but in place of Rias' almost imperceptible greed, there's a sadness to it. Sadness and a bit of an edge, like there's something lurking just beneath the surface that she's dying to release at a moment's notice.
I like her smile too. Makes my spine tingle, just thinking of what sort of hidden beast the Yamato nadeshiko of the school is hiding. I wonder what the sadness is for as well.
The people of the Occult Research Club are so interesting.
I give the girl with the ponytail a small nod and within moments there's a teacup in my hand. She must have brewed it before I had gotten here. It's probably not smart to accept drinks from strangers, strange Devils no less, but I didn't make it this far by making smart decisions.
...Wait, that didn't come out right.
[No, I think it did.]
You hush.
I take a long drink from my cup and it's only through force of will that I stop from loudly letting my thoughts be known. The taste, the flavor, the blend, it all mixes together so well that it feels unreal. I'm no tea expert and I would never claim to be but just from this cup alone, I'm pretty sure I'll never taste anyone else's tea and think they could come even close to Akeno's. And it for damn sure beats anything I've made at home.
"Delicious. Thank you very much, Himejima-senpai."
Her only response is to smile kindly in appreciation before backing away. Looks like the real purpose of the meeting is about to begin then. This should be fun. Maybe I'll become a Devil today? It all depends on my mood and how Rias plays her cards.
"Allow me to get right to the point, Amamiya-kun. What do you know of the supernatural?"
[She wants to recruit you. Take the offer, whatever it is.]
Not until she puts a good deal on the table.
[Puts a good deal on the table or puts herself on the table?]
Jesus Christ, Balor! That's a bit explicit, don't you think? Try to keep things PG-13 in my head, for my own sake if nothing else.
[Please. As if you weren't thinking it.]
...That's not the point. And don't go digging around in my head. My fantasies are strictly off-limits territory.
He doesn't say anything more but I can hear the fragmented god chuckling in the back of my mind. The Evil God's original temperament of being all doom, gloom, torment, and power has been rotted away over time by my personality and presence. What I'm left with is an ambitious, at time perverted, Evil God that has no problem making stupid remarks just to see me sweat a little. Bastard.
"Um, Amamiya-kun? You haven't said anything for a full minute now. Are you okay?"
Oh great, look at what you made me do, Balor! You made me look like a goddamn idiot! Meh, whatever. This just gives it more a dramatic reveal. I'll play out my cards first and see what Rias' does in response. If nothing else, the expression on her face should be funny.
"Yeah, I'm fine. Was just talking to my Sacred Gear." The look of pure shock I get from everyone in the room puts a smile on my own face. Yep, it was definitely funny.
"For the record, I do believe in the supernatural. Devils, for example, are something I firmly believe in. So, Rias Gremory, heiress apparent to the Gremory family, what else would you like to discuss with me?"
Author's Note: So this is just something that wouldn't get out of my head and I felt like writing it down. I love Gasper, don't get me wrong, but the state of DxD OC fics are typically Issei-replacement (including my own, because even I don't break the mold too often) and I wanted to try something a little different. A human OC with Forbidden Balor View.
Of course, I had to alter things a bit because being able to stop time is just a broken ability no matter how you look at it. The only thing holding it back is Gasper's own inexperience, and even then the fact that he's a Vampire fills in a lot of the gaps. Should I decide to follow up on this story I promise to not make the protagonist freeze people and one shot them. That wouldn't make for very good story-telling now, would it?
On an unrelated note, I'm considering rebooting my main story, "Red Dragon for a Crimson Princess". Don't get me wrong, I like it a lot, I just feel there's so much more I could have done, especially in the early chapters. Nothing's set in stone, but if I do reboot it then you can expect quite a few changes, namely to Shiki's goals and ambitions.
Anyway, this can be considered a one-shot for now. Unless it gets a really popular response, then I guess I can expand on this story in my spare time? I really like Forbidden Balor View, maybe even more than Boosted Gear or Divine Dividing. Probably because I've been watching Fullmetal Alchemist again.
Long AN aside, please review if you're interested and let me know what you think. About my other story too, if you happen to read both. Gimme your thoughts on my attempt at a first-person narrative too, while you're at it.
Thank you and have a nice day!