A Hollow Familiar
A great first response guys and girls. Two things before you start;
Ichigo will not be a servant to Rias, in the sense of an Evil Piece or any other binding.
Ichigo is currently a normal hollow, albeit one with far more power than the average hollow. His form is similar to his first hollow form that was presented during his training with the Visoreds. The main differences are that he has no tail, no fur of any sort and no markings other than the ones on his mask.
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Chapter 2:
'Another day, another no show,' Rias though in dejection, as she appeared at her family's home within the Underworld. Looking around at the foyer, she tiptoed quietly towards the kitchen, a bulky and slightly bloody bundle held in her hands. Depositing her package in one of the industrial sized freezers they had, she proceeded up to her room, relishing the idea of a hot shower to soothe her aching muscles. 'I suppose I can take Minotaur off the list now too,' she mused as she stepped into her bathroom and started the shower.
When she had initially returned home several days ago, thoughts of the mysterious creature occasionally flitted through her mind, but she was able to ignore them for the moment as she was tutored by both her parents and various mentors they had arranged to ensure she had a proper upbringing. This minor interest soon turned into a full blown obsession though, as she found nothing in her encyclopaedias that even hinted at a creature that would hunt Devils for survival. Sure there were creatures that should give her pause, such as the Nine-Headed Hydra for its deadly poison, or Minotaurs for their aggressiveness, but none of them actively sought out a Devil to fight. Even her tutors didn't know of such a creature and when asked why, she lamely responded that she wanted to know where they stood on the food chain, much to their amusement.
Left with no other avenue to pursue within the confines of her home, she thought back to what she remembered about the creature itself. When she considered its voracious appetite and its emaciated appearance, a plan began to slowly form her head. If the beast was hunting them out of desperation, then perhaps by offering it a meal, she could get another look at it. Now several days later, she still had nothing to show for her effort.
'I've tried Chimera, Unicorn, Minotaur, Cerberus…the only creatures left are going to leave me broke if I have to order them,' she whined piteously as she pressed her forehead against the glass wall of her shower.
"Is something the matter Mistress," a cultured feminine voice spoke up from the entryway, startling Rias slightly.
"Grayfia! What are you doing here?" Rias asked flustered, as she reached for her towel in an effort to preserve some of her modesty.
"I was delivering a missive from Sirzechs-sama to your father and he bade me to check on your whereabouts."
"I was just having a shower Grayfia…nothing more."
"They are slightly concerned that you have been attempting to sneak food out of the house Mistress. They suspect that you are trying to bond with a familiar, one unheard of to our society if your recent questions are an indication," Grayfia stated, watching as Rias' eyes grew slightly in alarm.
"That's not what I'm doing at all!"
"If that's not the case then they'd like to remind you that they will not tolerate any pets being kept on the estate."
"I'm not trying to sneak a pet onto the grounds!"
"If you're not after a familiar or pet…then what are you doing when you sneak off to the human world Mistress?"
"I…nothing, just…" Rias tried to answer, only to fall silent as the door to the bathroom was opened once again and another figure entered. "Mother! Why is it that everyone is barging into my bathroom tonight?!"
"Why dear, am I interrupting something? Were you and Grayfia bonding like you used to when you were younger?" Venelana Gremory asked with a slight smile on her face, even as Rias flushed in embarrassment.
"We were doing nothing of the sort!" Rias snapped back, even as her mother laughed lightly at her. She soon composed herself and levelled a more serious expression at her only daughter.
"Rias, there's something important your father and I need to discuss with you tomorrow morning. Please be dressed by 08:00 and wear something…nice," she said before retreating from her daughter's bathroom.
"Something…nice?" Rias muttered in confusion, glancing at Grayfia in confusion, even as the maid looked down at her feet.
"I believe it has to do with the missive I delivered earlier. If you will excuse me Mistress I will be returning to the Master now."
"Wait Grayfia, what's…" she tried to say, only to fall silent as the woman disappeared with a flash, her magic teleporting her away. 'What have they planned for me now?' she thought with a hint of worry, her mind playing through several scenarios, now of which she appreciated.
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'She's back,' a part of his mind whispered to him, causing Ichigo to pause mid-chew on the limb of a hollow that he was consuming. Rising up off his haunches, he took a long, slow sniff, before shivering with delight as he detected her wondrous scent. Growling in frustration, he returned to his meal and desperately tried to put her out of his mind.
When she first appeared days ago, he'd just assumed that she was another monster like the toad he'd eaten before. When he spotted her though, he was forced to conclude that he couldn't have been further from the truth.
She looked like an ordinary teenage girl, albeit one with red hair, no different from any of the other countless ones he watched walk past him every single day. Yet the energy she possessed, it called to the monster in him, incensed it into a frenzy he'd not felt since becoming a monster several years ago. It had taken all of his willpower to leave her unharmed that day and it was fortunate that he'd come across a mindless hollow in his bid to escape, tearing it to shreds before it even had a chance to notice him.
If he'd thought that, that would be the last time he'd see her, he was sorely mistaken as she continued to appear in town, day after day. At first her reason eluded him, as it seemed that she would visit seemingly random locations all across town. It was only when she visited the site where he'd fought the toad that he grew alarmed.
Approaching the area with caution, he'd watched as she sat in a concealed position, watching a lump of meat with curiosity. Puzzled, he'd watched her till she left with a discontent expression on her face. Without her overpowering scent on his mind, he thought back to the day he'd eaten the toad and tried to remember whether she'd been there or not. The more he analysed the situation, the surer he became that she had seen him that day and was now trying to lure him out.
That thought caused him to bristle in anger, until he looked at it from a different point of view, one far kinder than he was used to using. He looked human-like certainly, if one were to ignore him being over eight feet tall, with pale white skin; long, shaggy, orange hair; claws for both his fingers and toes and a gaping hole where his heart should be. He also looked like he was heavily malnourished so it could just be that she was trying to feed him to help him survive, while sating her curiosity.
Despite the logic behind his thoughts, his instincts warned him against indulging in them and so he found himself ignoring her and the unappetizing lumps of meat she brought with.
Today though, he was fed and bored, a startling change from the usual for him. Thus he stretched his legs and leapt into the distance, looking forward to seeing what she'd brought this time.
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'Why?' Rias thought with a frown as she scowled at the bait placed not too far away from her. 'Why now?! How can they force this on me?!' she vented in outrage, her demonic energy flaring slightly in agitation.
When she'd been summoned to her father's office this morning, she'd naturally been a bit apprehensive about what they wanted to discuss with her. When she entered and saw her brother, father, mother, Grayfia and a man she'd been introduced to as Lord Phenex with one of his sons, Riser, she'd felt her stomach sink.
She stood there and listened as the two heads of house spoke about the decline of the 72 Pillars. Of how more and more noble blood continued to die out due to a lack of heirs. Thus was the actual topic of the meeting brought up.
Lord Phenex already had several sons that could continue the Phenex line, but being that Rias was the only heiress to the Gremory line, theirs was in jeopardy of dying out. With each word he spoke, Rias grew more and more conscious of how his son stared at her with roving eyes, a glint shining within them.
She'd wanted to shout her protestations at that point. He was several years older than her. She wasn't ready for this. He was staring at her like she was nothing but a prize. None of these protests made it past her lips though, as her brother calmly stated that it did indeed seems to be for the best, but they would need to discuss it further, before an answer could be given.
Assuring them that he fully understood, Lord Phenex and his son soon left in a flash of flame, leaving her alone with her family. Unwilling to listen as they debated her future for her, she'd stormed out of doors, ignoring the calls for her to return and teleported far, far away from them all.
Now, here she was again, having splurged her savings on a lump of hydra meat, a beast that even the strongest Devils feared to engage, waiting for the unknown beast to emerge once more.
Hearing a rustle ahead of her, her head snapped up to the bait she'd left out, spotting two men standing over it curiously.
"Wait!" she shouted, rushing out from her hiding spot. "Leave that alone." As she drew closer to the men though, she slid to a halt as she finally felt their energies.
"Well, well, what do we have here?" the one that had stooped down to inspect the meat asked, as he rose to his full height and smirked at her. He towered over her and had blonde hair and blue eyes with a muscled physique that showed through his jeans and t-shirt. "Well Eligor, it seems we're not the only ones looking for that mindless beast Raynare was babbling on about."
"It would seem so Berith, but looking at how pathetically she was trying to bait it, I can't help but wonder if it's just one of their pets that managed to get off its leash," Eligor commented as he scoffed at her attempt. He stood taller than Berith, with grey eyes, black hair and wearing a black suit that gave him a far more intimidating appearance than his laidback companion.
"No, that's not it at all," Rias shot back, her mind racing as she took in the situation she was in. Her powers while impressive for someone her age; did not mean that she could take on two opponents at once. Before she could summon her magic to teleport away, she was sent flying with a cry of pain as a third Fallen Angel appeared behind her, his heel striking her in her lower back.
"What do you have to report?" the third spoke with an authoritative tone, his light brown hair blowing slightly in the breeze as his cold brown eyes bore into Rias' own. He was the shortest of the three, standing at no more than five and a half feet, but his power was far more potent than either of the other two.
"The girl knows something about the beast we're looking for Orias. It may even be a pet of hers," Eligor commented as he shrugged towards the bait they'd found in the area.
"I see. Our objective was to ascertain what manner of creature it was. If she knows something, then we'll take her back with us."
"Man what a pain this mission has turned into," Berith commented as he walked towards Rias, before reaching down to pick her up. As his fingers were about to close around the fabric of her dress, she suddenly rolled away from him and unleashed a torrent of crimson energy point blank at his face.
Struggling to her feet, Rias launched similar volleys at the other two Fallen Angels, sending them scattering as they fled to the air to avoid her attacks. Hearing a high pitched whistle, she spun on her heel and instinctively released a demonic blast at the spear of light heading her way, triggering a small explosion that covered the immediate area in thick smoke.
Straining her senses to the limit as she peered through the dense smoke, she cried out as a light lance tore past her leg, cutting deep into her thigh, before a hand clamped down on her throat, crushing her airways.
"You're turning out to be more trouble than you're worth you little bitch," Berith spat, the right side of his face badly burnt and bleeding. Seeing her bringing her hands up again, he tightened his grip even further, causing her to hack and cough violently.
"Enough. We're leaving," Orias spoke as he blew the smoke away with a burst of wind from his wings and landed near the pair.
"You're certainly losing your touch if a little girl managed to give you such a wound Berith. Perhaps you rookies need to leave home more often," Eligor commented as he landed ahead of his comrade.
"Fuck you! When they're through questioning her, I'll have her pay me back tenfold for this disgrace," Berith snapped, his eyes glancing over her budding breasts with an evil glint.
"I forgot how lustful you brats are. Your mind rarely strays beyond thoughts of your next conquest doesn't it?"
"Shut it old man. Just because you were…"
"Yes? Don't tell me you're losing your intelligence now too," Eligor said with a sigh, as he glanced over his shoulder to mock his comrade. His insult died in his throat though, as he stared wide-eyed at his comrade and the pale white claw thrust through his chest. "What…what is that?!" he screamed as Berith was tossed aside like trash and in his place stood a monstrous beast.
"That…that's what we came looking for," Orias commented as he watched transfixed as Ichigo lifted his claw and began to lap at the blood coating it, much to their disgust. Rias though, could only stare transfixed up at him, her mind in disbelief that he stood now in front of her.
"Capture it alive if possible, I'm sure they'll want to study it to find out more of its origins," Orias ordered, summoning a light lance in his right hand, just as Eligor did the same.
"Understood," Eligor answered as he rushed forwards, thrusting his spear towards Ichigo's shoulder. Just as contact was about to be made, Ichigo lifted his arm out of the way, surprising Eligor as his light weapon skated across his ribcage in a shower of sparks, before being grabbed in a vice-like grip. Face to face with him, Eligor's nostrils smarted at the rancid stench coming from Ichigo's jaws, before they were on him in a flash, tearing out his jugular like it was nothing more than wet tissue paper.
Staring at the being in front of him, Orias was left dumbfounded as his two companions were taken down within seconds of one another, with almost contemptible ease. "Bastard…" he cursed as he leapt into the air, summoning another light lance in his free hand, before hurling them both towards his target. Watching with satisfaction as Ichigo was engulfed in a blinding explosion, he dimly heard Rias cry out as she was thrown back by the attack. Floating above the carnage as he waited for it to dissipate, he flinched as he felt something latch onto his wings, causing him to plummet to the ground. "Impossible…" he murmured as he saw Ichigo with his claws dug deep into his wings and nary a scratch on his person.
Grunting as he was flipped in mid-air, he gasped for breath as he was forced into the ground stomach first, before Ichigo's weight crashed into him, sending him even deeper into it. Groaning as he tried to rise to his knees and dislodge his unwanted passenger, he found himself literally eating dirt as a clawed foot forced his head back into the ground, while another dug its way into his spine.
From where she knelt with her dress ruined and bruises starting to form on her body, Rias found herself in utter disbelief yet again as she watched the unknown beast dominate his opponents. When he latched onto the Fallen Angel's wings, she had to plug her fingers in her ears as her enhanced senses were assaulted by the man's pained screams, as his wings were torn off his body. Whether it was to silence his screams, or for some sick pleasure, the beast pressed its heel down harder and harder on the man's skull, before a sickening crack echoed through the area and his screams died away.
Instead of bending down and feasting on the corpses as she half-expected though, she was surprised as it raised itself up to its full height and inhaled deeply, before snapping its gaze in her direction. Panicking as it began to stride towards her, Rias crawled backwards as quickly as she could, barely noticing the thin trail of blood that followed her from a cut on her thigh.
"Stay away from me!" she pleaded as she continued to backpedal frantically, while tossing a blast of demonic energy at it when she could. It didn't seem to faze the beast though, as it simply continued to march towards her, before it leapt the distance separating the two of them and pinned her arms above her head with a single arm.
Shuddering as it lowered its face to her own, Rias could see that what she assumed was its face, was actually a rather intricate mask that covered it. It had several blood red stripes that ran vertically over its eyes and ended just below its chin. As it leaned in even closer, she held her breath as it slowly sniffed her from her neck, down her chest and stomach, before stopping at the bleeding cut to her thigh and inhaled deeply once more. When she felt something moist press against it, she had to suppress the whimper in her throat as it lapped at her wound with gusto, before throwing its head back and uttering what could only be a pleasurable moan in her mind.
'So this is how it ends…' she thought as the beast turned its attention back to her, its jaws now closing in on her neck. Before it could though, it was struck in its shoulder by a thin crimson beam, causing it to howl in agony and leap off of her to confront the newest threat.
"Now, now Ichigo…I know you don't want to do that. You're not the type after all," Kisuke Urahara spoke as he landed amongst the destruction, a midnight blue cloak covering him from head to toe.
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Attack of the evil cliff-hanger! My friend actually had a different idea for the ending here, where Ichigo ignored Rias completely and began to eat the Fallen Angels, but considering that I've been building it to be that her scent drives him crazy, I thought this was more appropriate.
Now just a few things that I'm sure will come up in your reviews.
1 – Yes Rias seems weaker than her canon self, but this is due to the fact that I am basing this 4 years before the start of the series. She will eventually get to the point where her attacks cannot just be brushed off.
2 – Rias appears more prudish now than in the manga and anime. I plan to build her into that open persona as we go on since I can't imagine a pre-teen being so open, unconcerned about displaying their body.
3 – Ichigo's evolutionary path will be revealed in a bit more detail in the next chapter.