Chapter Seven: Preparing for the trip home
A/N: Hey everyone, hope you all had a nice couple of days! Its been a while since I uploaded something, so here is a long chapter and the next one is going to be a nit shorter than the usual. So yea, hope you had a good start into the new year and on we go with the story. Have fun!
The next day.
Talion woke up from a peaceful dream. A dream where he and Lilith would just relax and forget everything that had happened to them. A dream where they would just lay in the grass on a nice summer day with warm weather. However, that dream slowly faded away as he woke up. As he opened his eyes and blinked the sleep out of his eyes, he saw blue eyes right in front of him. "Lilith…?" Talion asked, still in a half-sleep. "If I was, I would be resting on your shoulder" Rias teased back. "Rias? What the hell?" Talion asked slowly coming out of his half-sleep. "What are you talking about?" Rias smiled her devilish teasing smile. "Look for yourself. She is still sleeping on your shoulder." Talion looked over to his left shoulder and saw black hair. His senses also started to kick in and he could hear the quiet steady breathing coming from her. He smiled a small smile. Rias leaned back a bit. "She must have gone through a lot," she said. Talion nodded.
"You have no idea. The chaos warriors are the definition of pure evil and everyone who tries to escape them is being hunted and killed. As far as I know, she is the first one to survive a day fleeing from them, though I actually expected them to already be here. Mhm, I'll just keep an eye out for them for the time being." "Well if these chaos warriors you mention appear here, they will have to fight the entirety of the underworld to get her or you. After all, you are family." Rias said with a smile. Talion returned the smile and nodded his thanks. 'Little sis. Thank you, but you have no idea what a chaos warrior is capable of' he thought. 'Well, all in good time I guess'. "Anyway, breakfast is almost ready. You two might want to get ready. We have a lot to do today." Rias said as she turned around and headed for the door. Before she left the room she looked back over her shoulder. "You two look cute together" she teased and left before her blushing brother could reply.
After Rias had left, Lilith started to slowly wake up as well. "Good morning" Talion whispered. "Good morning" came a dreamy reply. "Did you sleep well?" Talion asked. "Yea, I did" Lilith replied dreamily. Slowly realizing the position she was in, blushed and panicked a bit as she sat up "I uh, I am sorry" she said in a hurry. "For what?" Talion smiled 'damn, she is cute when she blushed whilst panicking' he thought to himself. "You looked like you could use the rest. And I had no objection". Lilith's cheeks filled redder, but she smiled. "Thank you," she whispered. "I finally slept without a nightmare" "Me too." came a simple reply. Lilith wanted to ask what he meant by that, but she did not have the time to ask. Talion stood up extending a hand to help her up to her feet. "Come on, breakfast is almost ready. And Rias said that we have a long day today." "Oh, what is it we will do?" she asked, taking his hand. "We will find out soon enough I think" he replied and they both went to the dining room.
As Talion and Lilith joined the rest at the table, they have already started to eat. The two at first bombarded with teasing comments about how cute the two of them were together when sleeping. Every girl in the house had a peek at them sleeping of course, and word spreaded around fast. Talion slightly pissed at this, grumpily sat down and started to eat. Little time passed by and Rias started to explain what this day's plan was. "Asia and Xenovia, how about you two show Lilith around town and get her something more suitable to wear for her stay here. I don't think that the hooded mantle and black clothes would be fitting in this town. You'd be sticking out like a sore thorn, though I know someone wouldn't mind that." she said looking over to her brother to see his reaction. The reaction she received was an annoying death stare with some blushing. Smiling Rias continued "after that we would then arrange your transfer to Kuoh academy as a new transfer student like Talion." Lilith nodded in agreement.
She then looked at Asia and Xenovia "you two will, of course, be excused from school for today". Both of them nodded and agreed to take Lilith around the town. "Talion, he needs to discuss something at school with Sona, the student council." Talion's death stare intensified at that name. "Why?" he said grumpily. "We have to discuss how we manage the trip to the underworld which will be coming up soon. As you most likely already for, the next holidays are coming up. And we are going back home to the underworld to visit family." With a big sigh, Talion nodded that he understood."Fine, I'll take part in that discussion. But only because I want to see my brother, father, and mother. And knowing that smile, I know you'll make my next few hours the living hell if I disagree on joining you to not talk with Sona" he said.
Kiba and Akeno started to laugh from amusement and Rias nodded with a big smile on her face. As she looked into the others' faces, she started to explain the relationship between Sona and Talion. Talion was almost like an older brother to Sona and he was the only one she really opened up to. As Talion left, Sona was devastated and made the goodbye between them super awkward for Talion. She confessed to him that he saw him as an older brother and for some reason that didn't fit Talion at the time. "Alright, can we skip this now?" Talion said after his patience ran out. They all had a little laugh before they agreed to stop.
Asia, Xenovia, and Lilith finished their breakfast and started to go out for their tour of the town. The rest finished soon after and left for school. School itself was pretty boring for Talion, as he already knew everything there was to know regarding the stuff the teacher knew and taught. The meeting with Sona was directly after school. He wasn't really looking forward to the meeting. He didn't hate Sona. Actually, it's the opposite. He liked that girl, but there was always something awkward between them, which doesn't sit well with Talion. The meeting itself went by fairly well, without any awkwardness. Talion had the feeling that Sona didn't recognize him since their childhood and Rias felt the dagger eyes of her brother, warning her to keep it that way. After the meeting, Talion went into town to get some food.
And since that day Lilith was officially a new transfer student at Kuoh academy, sharing all the same classes as Talion. No wonder since Rias was the one in charge of selecting the subjects and of course she put Lilith in the same class as Talion. Talion didn't complain, but wasn't too fond of the idea as well. "She should at least decide what she would like to do during the time spent here" Talion protested. "She would have chosen the same subjects as you, silly" Rias said. "How would you know?" Talion shot back. "Feminin intuition" Rias said back with a smile.
Time skip. (3 weeks later)
The past few days have been stressful for some and not so stressful for others. Gasper, Koneko, Xenovia and Issei all had assessments due on the last day of school before the holiday and the rest was already finished with their stuff. Except Talion and Lilith, who haven't even touched their assessments.
Lilith didn't need to do any of the assessments as she just enrolled, but she did them anyway, mainly to challenge Talions speed in completing the assessments. They have decided to start at the same time and time themselves. They did this little competition at the dining table at breakfast, where everyone could watch them.
As Issei started the timer, both started to work. Everyone was expecting them to take an hour for each assessment (there were 5 assessments in total for each). To everyone's surprise, they were done in a matter of seconds. Speechlessly Issei pointed at the timer. From lifting the pen from the table to laying the pen back down, they took 12.52 seconds. All papers were filled out and the assessments were completed.
As the friends read through the work the two had written, Lilith and Talion just smiled at each other. Both knew that it was a tie, but it was far from either of their high scores. As Rias was finished reading through all assessments, she was dumbfounded. "Talion, Lilith, how did you two finish all assessments in such a short time?" Rias asked. "Skill" was the only thing Talion replied and Lilith could see in his eyes that she was not supposed to say anything. She now knew that Talion was hiding his true potential and identity to protect everyone he cared about. Rias also had a slight suspicion about this, but Rias accepted that he had his secrets and didn't ask any further into it.
During the great war Talion never cared for the safety of the other guardians. He was an outsider for most of the training time. But now that Talion found people he actually cared about, it made him uneasy as he now started to think of the possibilities that could occur of him hurting or killing them, and the responsibility he carries with his power. Lilith was the only one who Talion could actually open up to and talk about this issue, as she too is in a similar position.
"Well, seems like it was a tie for today Lilith, maybe next time we can make it more interesting," Talion said as he stood up. "Anyway, I'll be in the training room." He went to the fridge, took a water bottle and some food, and left the kitchen. "I will be going too then," Lilith said. "Following someone?" Akeno teased. Lilith smiled "maybe" was all she said before disappearing.
"I have the feeling that Talion is hiding something from us." Koneko said with her monotone voice "something more than he had told us on the first day we met again. Other than that he is a guardian, king of a different hell or underworld or whatever, and that he fought a war". "You only now realized that?" Kiba asked. "No, but now it is obvious," she said. "He might be hiding something, but that doesn't make him a bad person," Rias said. "He is allowed to keep secrets, such as everyone here. If he doesn't want to tell us his secrets, that is fine. He is still family" she continued.
All nodded in agreement. "Of course," Kiba said. "But it would still be interesting to know what happened to him. After All, when he left he couldn't use any magic whatsoever. And now he killed a ghoul and a stray devil, he can beat me in a sword fight without breaking a sweat, and now he has done this." Kiba continued. "I know how you feel, I feel the same way. But knowing him he will tell us one day or another. Or we will someday see his full power in an actual fight" Rias said. Kiba nodded in understanding.
In the training room
Talion was already preparing the combat droids for the training session as Lilith entered the room. "So much for keeping everything a secret," she said whilst heading over to the bench where Talions stuff laid. "I knew they would catch on sometime soon," he replied. "Not that I already told them who I actually am, but they have no reference point. So they truly don't know what a guardian or chaos warrior is capable of."
"I can only imagine the pain you felt from the great war. But promise me one thing, will you?" she said changing the topic slightly. Her voice was filled with some concern as well as her crystal blue eyes. Talion looked up from the programming panel for the droid and nodded. "Please don't let those emotions cloud your heart forever. And please don't fear what you are. You are a good man. Even if you are the king of hell. Hell is a prison to evil. Don't fear your power, especially what you could theoretically do to any of us. Your friends and family will always be there for you no matter what happens to you or to them. They are here for you, so don't worry about them, ok? And I will also always be there for you. And I know Yuri will be as well, from what you told me. After all, you two are the last ones and you aren't the same person you were during the war." she said with a confident reassuring tone.
Talion listened intensely and took in a deep breath before speaking. "Thank you," Talion started, "I will do my best to accept myself for who I have become. But I fear to lose myself in the power. By the chaos and evil. I fear what I could do to the people around me when I lose control. To my family, friends, and to you. I would never be able to forgive myself if I would wound or kill anyone of them." Talion said. He felt like he was choking when saying those words. Speaking out what you fear most to someone you care about is the most difficult thing to do.
"Hey big guy. Have you been listening? Don't worry about me Talion. And don't worry about your family or friends. Even if you were to lose control, we would do anything to bring you back." she said as she stood back up. She walked over to Talion and pulled him into a hug. "As I said, believe in yourself. Because I believe in you. You might be the only one able to keep evil at bay and keep the balance that the universe needs. I know you will find a way to use the 'evil' powers you gained from becoming the king of hell to do some good." she said into his ear.
"I had a little peek at your aura. It is a perfect balance between good and evil. Order and chaos. When one side starts to dominate, the other fights back, bringing it back to equilibrium." she continued. "You do not need to worry about what could happen. Fact is, that balance inside you will always be reached. And if not I will kick your ass for a while till it happens". "I see," Talion said with a smile. His voice regained a bit more confidence. "Thank you" he said "I think I really needed someone to say that to me, who understands the power we wield". "Anytime" she said back with a smile and placed a kiss on his cheek. Both blushed a bit after that.
"Now actually train with your demonic power. I want to see it. Plus this would be a good opportunity to start working on overcoming this fear of yours". Lilith said, with some excitement in her voice.
Talion took a deep breath and nodded as he gathered his power and channeled it through his body. These powers were the reason Yuri and himself survived the great war. The demonic power he unleashed turned him into a fighting nightmare. In battle when his emotions got out of control he would go berserk. All sense of reason was deactivated and his killing instincts kicked in. It was then kill or be killed at that time.
Though for him (thanks to his fast regeneration that can regrow entire limbs in a matter of seconds) it was more of the lines: kill. "Try to remember the power you possess when you are in the berserk state. Then imagine yourself tapping into that state. But keep a clear head." came the instructions from his mind's inner voice. Still he followed those instructions, and he tapped into the power. Talion quickly realized the similar feeling of power, which he also got when using his guardian powers. The process was exactly the same as tapping into the demonic powers. However, the demonic powers felt a bit differently. It had a cold, deadly side to it and a hot, powerful side to it.
As he dove deeper into the power, he felt his physical body change along with his magical power. He felt power surge through him. Both guardian and demonic powers are strong, but together, they are almost an unstoppable force. When Talion is fully in his element, not even the gods stood a chance against him in one on one combat. A team-up would be necessary to even stand a chance.
As he opened his eyes, he was engulfed in the flames of hell, his guardian wings extended - which in their original state are shining white like angels but had a different form, were also on flames. They turned from snow white to black and flames shot out everywhere. A mixture of orange and red flames surrounded him. Lilith was pressed against the wall on the opposite side of the room. Talion examined his hands and body. His physical appearance had changed a bit. He felt his muscles getting tougher and he felt that all his abilities were improved and doubled at least in power. "Hey, can you turn off the flames?!" Lilith shouted from the other side.
Talion easily turned 'off' the flames surrounding him, though his eyes, crown and wings stayed on fire. He had a short vision on the Yin and Yang sign. Not knowing who sent him this image, he knew what it ment. The balance was achieved and with that his fears about losing control vanished as he grinned in understanding. Lilith slowly came closer to him, eyes wide in disbelief. "What is it?" Talion asked. Concern and the fear that he hurt her unintentionally came back in a rush. "Did I hurt you?" he asked. She shook her head and pointed at her eyes. "Your eyes… your entire appearance...it changed" she stammered.
Relieved that he didn't hurt her the concern and fear vanished as fast as they appeared. "Changed? How?" Talion asked. "Your eyes… they are literally on fire. There is a crown floating above your head made completely out of the fire. And your guardian wings are burning too..." she said. "Really?" Talion asked. "So is this your true demon appearance then?" she asked. "It would seem that way," Talion said. Lilith moved closer and extended a hand out to touch the flames on his shoulders and eyes. She didn't flinch. As she removed her hand she examined it.
Even though she also has a similar regenerative ability as Talion, it didn't kick in to heal any damage. Simply put, there was no damage to heal in the first place. Astounded by this she looked into Talion's eyes. They were basically empty eyeballs with flame coming out of them. Most people would have been terrified of this sight, but she only felt a deeper connection with him. It's like she is looking deeper into his soul and she found comfort there. She slowly closed her eyes and leaned into a kiss.
The kiss froze time. Talion returned to his original appearance however his muscles were as strong and firm as ever. Talion wrapped his arms around Lilith's waist and pulled her closer to him. Deepening the kiss between the two of them. Her arms simultaneously wrapped around his neck bringing forth the same effect. The kiss was hot and full of passion. At this moment both of them knew that they could not live without the other and they would do anything to protect the other.
"My my, I think this is a bad time to interrupt" Akeno's voice came from the door "the black haired king and the black haired queen" she continued teasing. Lilith, without breaking the kiss, used this time to show some of her power. She, just like Talion, could use the force, although Talion exceeded her in every aspect of the use. But she was no novice and pushed Akeno out of the room as gently as possible, whilst closing the door shut.
A loud thunk could be heard along with some giggling and then it was silent again. After some time the two broke the kiss, gasping for air. Talion had a boyish grin on his face. "That is one way of agreeing with her statement" he said looking towards the door. Lilith put on a similar childish grin on her face. "I can't have a girl like her around me when I am sharing my first kiss" she said. "First kiss huh?" Talion's boyish grin turned into a genuine smile. "I guess I should count myself lucky then". "Yea, you should." Lilith agreed, blushing a bit as she pulled Talion into another deep kiss.
Time skip
As time went by, word of their kiss spread around the house. All congratulating them as well as teasing them to death. Before anyone actually realized it was almost time to leave for the underworld. As they all left the mansion a small tour bus waited for them outside. In it was Sona and her peerage, waiting for Rias and the others to hop on and drive to the train station. As the bus driver set them off at the train station all of them went to the train already waiting there.
It was a red train and it had gold patterns all over it. One from the supernatural world would instantly recognize this as the personal train for the Gremory family. To others it just seemed like an over decorated train for celebrities, which in a way it was. Talion disliked the color theme of this train, even as he was a little boy.
"What's wrong big guy?" Lilith's voice came from behind. "Mhm? Oh, nothing" Talion said. "Lier. You always have a sour face when something doesn't fit your taste in style" she replied. "How did…? Huh, nevermind. Well, yeah you are right. I am a bit sour right now." "And why is that?" she asked, wrapping both her arms around Talions right arm. 'Her body feels nice' Talion thought, as he said "I dislike the color red." grumpily. "But my hair is red," Rias said from the front of the group, checking in with the train driver before entering. "Red hair and the painted red on this train are two different things," Talion said. "This red doesn't resemble the house as it should."
"Excuse me sir! You might be a guest of the Gremory family, but you have no right to make fun of its traits" the train driver said in a surprisingly loud and commanding voice. "Haha, well, good thing that I am no guest, but a family member who returns after a long journey" Talion said with an intimidating voice. "Returning family member?" the train driver started, thinking about whom Talion is referring to. "You don't mean young Mr. Talion sir."
"Yes, of course I mean him. I am young Mr. Talion. Alive in the flesh and blood," Talion said with a more calmer voice. He even managed to put on a smile. "That...that can't be. Mr. Talion! It is really you! The Gremory boy first not to inherit the red hair. It's good to see you again sir!" the driver said. "It is good to be back." Talion replied. "I will send word out for your return to the Gremory's elders" the driver said, clearly joyfull. "No, please don't," Talion said, clearly disappointing the driver. "I want it to be a surprise" he continued with a smile. "Ahh, very well, I see sir, very well." "Now that that is out of the way," Rias said, "let's go. Home is waiting". The driver nodded and invited them in as he said "if any of you have something you want or need, just ask any of the workers. We will be glad to help you out in any way possible. "
As everyone entered the train with a thanks, the helpers took all luggage and brought them to the storage room. Well, all except Talion's and Lilith's luggage, as they insisted it would stay at their side. "Force of habit" they both said. And the train drove off.