"S-Shiki-san, I don't know what to order."

Shiki sighed. "Just, go grab us a table, okay? And don't talk to strangers, if they come up to you just tell 'em to get lost." Asia did as he asked and walked off to find them a place to sit and eat. "Don't wander too far either!" he called out to her retreating form. Shiki turned back to the cashier to give their order. The cashier, who looked around the same age as himself, that was currently ogling Asia as she walked away. "Oi, put your eyes back in your head if you know what's good for you," he warned, startling the clerk.

"O-Oh, sorry. Didn't mean to stare at your girlfriend."

"Your girlfriend"? Asia was not his girlfriend. She was… What was Asia to him, precisely? A friend? Sure, he'd go with that. A friend that had saved his life the previous night. A friend that he felt unusually protective of. Possibly because of last night and that entire debacle? Whatever it was, it left him irritated by the way people were looking at her. She was a friend that… was currently being approached by some guy, what the hell!? "Three cheeseburgers with no ketchup, two large fries, a bottle of water and a large fruit punch, I'll be right back," Shiki said quickly before striding over to Asia and the stranger trying to chat her up.

Coming up behind the guy, who he idly noted was wearing a Kuoh uniform, meaning he was skipping school just like him, he put a hand on his shoulder. "Yo, what's going on here? You alright, Asia?" he ground out through clenched teeth.

"Hey man, what's your deal?" the student said, trying to shrug the hand off but unable to due to the vice grip Shiki had on it.

"My "deal" is..." Oh, right, he didn't actually have a reason for being this overly protective. More than that, he was pretty sure he looked like a lunatic right now, all menacing and threatening. "She's with me. Scram."

"Alright, alright, relax. I'll leave," he said and Shiki finally let go. The stranger turned and took a good look at Shiki's face. "Don't I know you from somewhere?"

"You're about to know my fist a lot more than you'd like if you don't move your ass."

With one last glare at the black-haired Devil, the unknown student walked off, muttering something about "overprotective boyfriends" under his breath. Shiki didn't pay it much mind. Maybe he was going a bit overboard but these people were trying to hit on a literal nun, didn't they have any shame? He looked at Asia, who had the most bewildered expression on her face. She probably had no idea what just happened. If she really didn't know that that guy was trying to put the moves on her maybe she did need him looking out for her.

"I'll be right back with the food," he said awkwardly, rubbing the back of his neck as he walked off back the register. What was wrong with him? Even protectiveness had its limits, didn't it? He had practically bitten that guy's head off just for trying to talk to Asia. He grabbed the tray with his and Asia's bagged food and gave a small thanks to the cashier before walking back. No point in thinking about his actions. What's done is done and he wasn't feeling up to the whole "introspection" thing at the moment.

He placed the tray on the table and took a seat across from Asia. "Eat as much as you want, it's all on me," he said before sticking a straw in his cup of punch and taking a long sip.

"Oh, um, thank you," Asia said as she reached out and grabbed a burger. She held it up and looked at it quizzically as if she wasn't exactly sure what to do with it. Shiki wasn't sure if she was just messing him or she legitimately had no idea how to unwrap it. If she was joking he figured he might as well play along.

"Asia, you just unwrap it." Asia looked at him with confusion. She wasn't joking, was she? Shiki took a burger and demonstrated for her. "Unwrap it, like that. Then," he took a huge bite, "just bite into it. Easy enough?"

"T-There's actually a way to eat like that!? A-Amazing!"

Shiki just shook his head in amusement. To be amazed by a cheeseburger and its packaging, what a girl. Well at least he was on the right track with his earlier thoughts, she definitely needed to be looked out for if something as mundane as this was such a new experience for her. No telling what someone might try to manipulate her into doing if he left her unattended.

He grit his teeth at that last thought. Was that it? Was that how she came to be associated with the Fallen Angels? Were they preying on her naivety to trick her into working with them?

'No, this isn't the time to think of stuff like that. We're not going down that road right now.' He smiled kindly at Asia. "Eat up, you don't want it to get cold."

"Y-Yes." Asia carefully undid the wrapper before taking a small bite of the burger, her eyes lighting up in delight. "D-Delicious! This burger is very delicious!"

"Have you never had a burger before?"

"No. I've seen it often on television, but it's my first time eating it. At the Church, I mostly ate bread and soup. Vegetables and pasta too."

That's it? Was that really a healthy diet to live off of while growing up? Sounded way too bland for his tastes. "Well, savor this then. Your first cheeseburger," he nudged the french fries towards her, "with fries."

Asia gave an enthusiastic nod and took another bite out of her burger, smiling widely at him.

They continued on in a comfortable silence, enjoying the atmosphere and each other's company. It had been too long since Shiki did something like this, just hanging out with someone. No supernatural stuff, no talks about work or school, just relaxing. It was nice.

"So tell me about yourself, Asia," Shiki mumbled, taking a bite out of some fries. Asia looked at him in confusion. "Only thing I really know about you is your name. Doesn't seem right for us to be friends but know so little about each other."

"W-We're friends?" Asia asked with wide eyes.

"Y-Yeah, I guess? If you want to be?" Shiki saw tears forming in Asia's eyes and began to panic. "Unless you don't want to be! I'm not gonna force you to be friends with me or anything!" Shiki half-said, half-yelled as he tried to fix whatever it was that he had said wrong. He noticed the other customers looking at the scene the two of them were unintentionally making. He glared back at them. "And what the hell are you looking at, huh?!"

"S-Shiki-san..."

"What's up?" he asked, turning back to face her after throwing one last glare at the onlookers, who thankfully went back to their own meals. Damn busybodies.

"I've never had any friends before."

Shiki was sure he must have misheard her. How could this sweet girl never have had any friends? Lucky for him he had enough common sense to not actually ask that, feeling that such a question might reduce Asia to tears. Or, more tears than she was currently shedding. Still, no friends? He'd rectify that then.

"Well, if you'll have me, I'll be your very first friend. How's that sound?"

"I would like that. I-I would like that very much, Shiki-san!" Asia said, smiling through the tears.

"First order of business as your friend then," he grabbed one of the napkins on the tray and leaned over the table, "no more crying, k?" he said, wiping away tear streaks before handing her the rest of the napkins so she could dry her eyes. She took them with a soft thank you. "When you're done with that and your food, you and I are getting out of here."

"W-What do you mean?" Asia asked.

"You haven't seen the rest of the town, right?" Asia shook her head. "And you were taking a stroll around town when you saw me?" Asia hesitated but nodded this time. Shiki knew she was lying, she had hesitated just a bit too long before answering, but didn't press the issue. No reason to push her. "Congratulations then. You've won an all-expense-paid tour around Kuoh Town, led by yours truly."

"Huh? You wanna know about me?" Shiki asked as they sat down outside of the arcade in a small plaza, both of them catching their breath after their third or fourth round on the arcade's Dance Dance Revolution machine. "You sure? I'm not very interesting."

Asia nodded. "I want to know more about Shiki-san, a-and because of what you said at the restaurant..."

'The restaurant? Oh, right, the whole "tell me about yourself" thing we never actually got around to.' Shiki thought. "Alright, fair enough. I'll tell you about me. But, like I said, it's not very interesting. I grew up in Kuoh Town, and, despite recent events shaking things up, nothing much happens here.

I go to Kuoh Academy, I'm a second-year. My father's a retired cop and my mother is a stay-at-home housewife, though she did use to be a professional chef before I was born. My two best friends, Motohama and Matsuda, are probably the two," he paused for a moment and debated telling Asia that his friends were, for lack of any better words, complete perverts, but decided against it, "weirdest people you'll ever meet, but they're not bad guys once you get to know them. I had a friend in elementary school, Irina, but they moved away a long time ago. It's actually because of them that I..." he stopped himself short and blushed, remembering something from his childhood.

"Eh? What was it, Shiki-san?"

"N-No, it's nothing." Asia stared at him curiously. "I… Alright, but promise not to tell anybody this. It's kind of childish and what I'm about to say I've never told anyone else." Asia simply nodded and that was enough to prompt him to continue. He took a breath and did his best to stifle the embarrassment he felt, turning away as he spoke. "We sort of made a promise. Well, I did, at least. I promised that, when she came back, I'd be a hero."

"A hero?"

"You know, one of those "arrives at the last minute to save the day" types. The kind of person that when they show up you just know everything's gonna be fine. I think part of it was because I really admired my father and how he'd tell me stories about how he caught the "bad guys". I wanted to be like that. Most boys do when they're kids, I think. Want to be like their father, I mean."

Thinking about those days brought a smile to his face, back when his father always seemed so happy. Ever since he retired he rarely so much as smiled, let alone display overt happiness. He shook those thoughts off. This was neither the time nor the place to delve into his father issues.

"Kinda silly, right?" Shiki laughed. "It was just a promise made by two kids that didn't know any better. It's weird too because she always made me be the villain when he'd play pretend. Though I guess it would have been weirder if I promised to grow up to be a villain?" He shook his head ruefully. "It was a silly promise anyway. Becoming a "hero" in the way we thought of heroes is impossible."

"It's not silly at all." Shiki turned back to Asia. She had a look of complete seriousness. "Wanting to help people, it's a very good dream to have."

"Uh, thank you?" Shiki said, unsure of how to approach this situation. He made a move to change the topic away from himself but grimaced from a sudden jolt of pain in his abdomen. His hand went to his stomach on reflex and flinched when he felt that his shirt was moist, most likely with blood. 'Must have reopened the wound earlier. Dammit.'

"Shiki-san? Are you okay?" Her eyes went widened as she looked where his hand was covering. "Your wound from last night..."

"It's nothing, I'm fine," he said, giving her a pained smile. It did nothing to lessen the look of worry on Asia's face. "Really, I'm okay."

"Raise your shirt, please."

'You should at least buy me dinner first, Asia.' Shiki thought jokingly before doing as he was told. Just like he suspected, his bandages had been soaked right through. Another uniform ruined, that was two in one month. He wondered at what point he'd have to start paying to have these replaced. Another thing to talk to Rias about.

Asia raised her hands to his stomach, a ring appearing on both of her middle fingers as said hands became surrounded by a soft green glow. Within a few moments the pain and discomfort Shiki felt were gone and, when he slowly undid the bandages, so was the wound. No scar, nothing, just smooth skin. Shiki gave a low whistle.

"Now that's something." He stood up and did a few stretches to test whether or not the pain would come rushing back. It didn't and it only made him smile wider. "No pain at all. You're the best, Asia. Wish my Sacred Gear would show up already and be as cool as yours."

"You have a Sacred Gear, Shiki-san?" Asia asked before retaking her seat on the bench.

"Yeah, but I can't summon it. No matter what I do it just won't show up. It better be awesome when it does or I'm going to feel ripped off for how long I waited," he said with a mock pout, making Asia laugh. Shiki readjusted his shirt before dropping down next to Asia. "Your turn then? I told you about me after all. Only if you feel up to it though." Shiki finished quickly, noticing how she gained a somber look.

Asia gave him a small nod and launched into telling him about her life. How she was left by her parents on the doorstep of a Church as a baby, never knowing who they were. Being raised by a nun alongside other orphans. Being taken from that Church when her Sacred Gear, her power to heal the wounded, manifested itself. How she was enshrined as a "Holy Maiden", tasked to perform healing "miracles" to save the lives of many people, and how it made her happy that her power could be of use.

And yet, despite that happiness, she felt so terribly lonely. Despite, or perhaps because of, the fact that she was a Holy Maiden, everyone held her at arm's length. She was viewed less as a person and more of a miracle-providing machine in the guise of a human. She accepted such a role graciously and without complaint. Yet, still, she wished she could have at least one friend. Someone to laugh with. Someone to talk to. Someone to truly understand her.

One day she came across a man. He was badly hurt, he would have undoubtedly died if she ignored him. She chose to heal him for no reason other than it was what she felt was the right thing to do. Even when she saw he was not just a man but a Devil she continued on. That single act irrevocably changed her life. A minister from the Catholic Church witnessed her kind act and notified other members of the Church.

"She's a Witch!"

"A power that can heal Devils is no blessing from the Lord!"

"A Witch that heals Devils! She's nothing but a heretic!"

She was branded a heretic by the very Church she dedicated everything to, all because her power could heal a Devil. The "Holy Maiden" became a "Witch" and was cast out. The Catholic Church abandoned her without a second thought. With nowhere left to go and no options remaining she was picked up by a group of Stray Exorcists that chose to align themselves with the Fallen Angels for protection.

She never stopped praying to God. Even when she was abandoned, even when no one spoke in her defense, even when she discovered the horrible things the Fallen Angels were doing. She always thanked God.

"I-I have a dream too. That one day, I'll have a friend. Someone to pick flowers with, and we'll buy books together and… and…" Asia trailed off as she began to cry.

If God truly exists, He must be cruel. That was the only conclusion Shiki could come to as the girl next to him shed tears. She prayed and prayed and prayed but God never answered. She was left to fend for herself, forced to turn to monsters like Freed Sellzen for protection. Even then, even after being betrayed by the Church, she still prayed to God. She unselfishly gave everything of herself to others but God never once lifted a finger to save her.

He wrapped an arm around her shoulders and pulled her in close.

"S-Shiki-san?"

But that was fine. If God couldn't, if God wouldn't, save her then it's only right that a Devil does it.

"Dummy, talking about how you wished you had a friend. Do I not exist anymore? Or did you forget about what I said earlier?"

"Shiki-san, I'll just cause you trouble."

"Please, I cause myself trouble all the time. Have you ever heard me talk? Besides, trouble is exciting."

"But-"

"Nope." Shiki cut her off, smiling. "No buts. You and I are friends. Even if you're a nun and I'm a Devil, we'll work something out. That's what friends do."

"Sorry but that won't be happening."

Shiki turned his head just in time to see a Fallen Angel descend from the sky. Weird leather-looking straps around her breasts, something resembling a black thong on her lower body, pauldrons seemingly not connected to anything other than her skimpy top with spikes coming from the right shoulder and thigh-high boots. Long black hair and purple eyes that shown with a cold, cruel amusement. She looked oddly familiar but he couldn't place her.

"You're so cruel, Shiki-kun~" That voice. That was Yuuma's voice. This Fallen Angel, this was Yuuma? She looked so different. So much more mature, for lack of a better word. "You take me out on one date and you're already with someone else? So heartless, forgetting about your girlfriend like that."

"Raynare-sama..." Asia spoke softly from behind Shiki, who had stood up and in front of her protectively.

Raynare? Was that her real name? He preferred Yuuma.

"And really, surviving as a Devil? How disgusting." Raynare spat out, reverting to her previous voice.

"Yeah, sorry about that. Between dying with a hole in my stomach or living I, weirdly enough, decided I wanted to live." Shiki fired back with a confidence he didn't feel. His hands were shaking and his stomach was in knots. He hadn't been prepared for this meeting today, not with Yuuma – Raynare, he corrected himself – of all people. "Do you actually want something? If you're here to ask for a second date I'll have to refuse this time."

"Don't kid yourself, you trash. I wouldn't waste another second on you if I had the choice. I'm here for Asia. She's our personal belonging after all." Shiki's eyes widened and he shoved Asia further behind himself. "You know it's pointless to run, Asia." If nothing else that confirmed his earlier suspicions. Asia ran from the Church and now this Fallen Angel was here to try and take her back. Raynare started to approach them.

Shiki began to panic. 'Damn it, damn it, damn it. I need something to fight her with! A weapon, any kind of advantage, just something I can-' And then he felt it, that something he was looking for. A dull throb from his right elbow all the way down to his fist. The throb became an ache and the ache became a burning sensation before, in a flash of green light, it finally appeared.

A red gauntlet with a green jewel on the back of its hand. Each of the fingers ended in a sharp talon, looking more like a claw of an animal. Two large golden spikes rested at the end. All in all, it had a rather menacing appearance. But…

'…That's it? That's all I get? A fucking over-glorified glove that comes with its own light show!? So, Asia gets to heal people and I get to punch someone, that's just great.'

[BOOST!]

'...Whoa.'

The surge of power he felt was incredible. Beyond incredible. His breathing began to quicken with excitement. Whatever his Sacred Gear just did, he wanted that again. It felt like a shot of pure adrenaline to the heart. Unfortunately, his little moment was broken up by the sound of Raynare laughing. More specifically, Raynare laughing at him.

"Is there something you want to talk about or are you just going to laugh?"

"It's just so funny! I went on that ridiculous date," Shiki winced, she really did love rubbing salt in that wound and, despite the fact that he knew it was all based on a lie it still stung all the same, "spent all that time observing you and the Sacred Gear I was told to keep watch on? A Twice Critical! All it can do is double your power. For someone like you, it's worthless. A common, unremarkable, worthless Sacred Gear." She looked him up and down. "Though I suppose it does fit."

"Yeah? Come over here and say that then. You won't be so cocky when I-"

A light spear went straight through his stomach, traveling at a speed faster than his eyes could keep up with. It was only on instinct that he shoved Asia away before she got caught in the crossfire.

"Oh."

He collapsed to his knees as the spear disappeared, hands flying to his wound to try and stop it from spewing blood.

"Shiki-san!" Asia was by his side again within moments, hands aglow with the familiar green light of her Sacred Gear. The new hole he had in his stomach quickly disappeared. "A-Are you alright?"

"I'm fine. You, leave." He gave her a small smirk, trying to play it cool. The effect was ruined by the trickle of blood coming down from the side of his mouth. "Me and my ex are about to have our first fight. Get out of here." Asia made a sound of protest. "Asia, leave!" he yelled, shocking her. This was the first time that he'd raised his voice at her. "...I don't know how long I can hold her off. Run to Kuoh Academy, ask for Rias Gremory. When you find her, tell her I sent you."

"That won't be happening." Raynare was just a few feet away from them now. If Shiki made a mad dash at her he might be able to knock her senseless. "If you leave this area for even one second," she summoned another spear of light into her hand before pointing it at the Devil, "I will kill him on the spot."

"Asia, don't listen to her. I'll be fine, I can take her. She just took me off guard, that's all."

"But," Raynare ignored Shiki, speaking only to the blonde, "if you come with me, I'll let him live. No one will go looking for him, no one will hurt him. Your Sacred Gear, Twilight Healing, actually has value to us. He's of no concern to us any longer, so long as you come with me."

"Asia, do not take that deal, she's lying. Don't go with her."

"I'll give you ten seconds to decide. After that, I'll kill him and take you with me anyway. 10… 9… 8…"

Shiki frantically tried to piece together a plan of attack, or at least a way to retreat and get both of them out of there alive but no matter how quickly he thought he couldn't come up with anything. If he wanted to protect Asia he'd have to fight, and if he wanted to live he'd have to win. Easy enough. One good shot. One good shot was all he needed.

"5… 4…"

"I'll go with you, Raynare-sama."

Asia walked towards Raynare, her head down.

"Asia, don't-"

"Thank you, Shiki-san." Asia turned and looked at him with tears in her eyes. His mind flashed back to the previous night. She had the same look then too. Was she really going to offer herself up twice in his place? Why? Why, dammit?! "I had a lot of fun today. Thank you for being friends with me. Goodbye."

Raynare covered Asia with her wings before caressing her face.

"Good girl. After today's ritual, you'll be free of all your suffering." Ritual? What ritual? What were they planning on doing to Asia? Raynare glared at Shiki. "Low-Class Devil garbage, be thankful. Because of Asia's sacrifice, you get to live. Get in our way again and you won't be so fortunate. Bye bye, Shiki-kun~." Reverting back to her Yuuma voice to hurt him one last time, Raynare and Asia disappeared, flying off into the sky.

Shiki glared at the Fallen Angel for only a few moments before stomping off in the direction of his school. This was no time to mope or whine about his failure to protect Asia. There was still a chance to save her and he had no more time to waste.

"When you come back I'll be a super strong hero, Iri! Promise!"

"It's not silly at all. Wanting to help people, it's a very good dream to have."

Hero, huh? Maybe he could give that one more try.

Author's Note: And so it goes. Trying smaller chapter for once to give scenes more impact rather than trying to fit so much in one chapter. Our dear protagonist has finally gotten his Sacred Gear, and just in time too. The big showdown's next chapter and I hope the ending to it will surprise you. Review if you can, reviews are the motivation I need an thrive off of.