Hey guys, I've gotten some questions about the scenarios I place the cast of this story in. The answer is... (drum roll) ...They all come from situations I think of and how I would react to them. I like to mentally prepare myself for any and all situations whether they be romantic, trauma, problematic or just life. For example, back in chapters 41-44, Issei was willing to give his life to save his family. I've seen that scene in my head and made that decision. Also, with Matsuda and Motohama, that was something I've experienced (but that's another story). Another example... I'm getting off topic. Point is, these are all thing I think of and I have Issei act how I would. That includes this one.
Without You
The morning after was a little cold, but the heat of another body kept them warm. Ravel's head still remained on Issei's chest as she slept lazily. Last night was something she would make sure she'd never forget as long as she lived.
Issei, on the other hand, was just waking up. As his eyes adjusted to the light of the room from the window, a light buzzing went off to his right side. "Huh?" Reaching over, he found his phone was the source of the buzzing. Rias was calling him. "Hey, Rias. What's up?"
Ragged breathing was the response he got. "Issei. Where have you been? I've called you a million times."
He moved his phone away and checked it. Rias had in fact called him 12 times over the last 2 hours. "What's wrong? You wouldn't call that much unless..."
"Asia's gone into labor."
By this point, Ravel was starting to wake up. She really shot up whenever Issei almost threw his phone. "Dammit all! Why does this always happen when I'm not there to help?"
The bliss drunk Ravel slowly rolled off of him. "I assume we have to go now?"
"Yea, Asia's went into labor a few hours ago. Six hours is a long drive, so we gotta go."
As he moved off the bed and began gathering clothes, she just stared. "Why don't we just teleport? Through a portal?"
"Problem is, you're not part of my peerage yet. I don't have a bishop piece to make it happen either. I can't bring you with me through mine if you're not part of the peerage!" He realized he was yelling at this point and that Ravel was shocked and looked a little scared. "I'm sorry Ravel. Its just... this always happens. Something where I can't be there when one of them is in labor. I was in coma when Rias was, fought a dragon killer when Kuroka got in. Hell Akeno got lucky. Now Asia is and we're 300 miles away."
Ravel rolled off the bed, still naked, and walked up behind him. Her arms snaked around him and held his bare torso. Her breasts pressed into his back. "It's alright. We can do this. I'll be your navigator. I can call out traffic we need to dodge and where police are set up."
Issei sighed heavily as he turned to hold her. "Thank you, Ravel. You've done so much for me. I don't know how to make it up to you."
"You don't need to. I'm your bishop. I will follow you till the end of time."
As she spoke lovingly, he noticed that her normal tsundere persona was gone. Replaced by someone that was willing to show their love. "You alright, Ravel?"
Ravel instantly blushed, realizing what all she just said out loud. 'Play it cool! Play it cool!' She looked up to his eyes. "W-What do you mean?"
"Well, you're never really this lovey dovey. Even with me." He watched as her eyes bounced around the room, trying to look anywhere but at him. "Are you feeling warm?"
She shook her head, throwing his hand off of her and backed up a bit. "I, I'm fine. Trust me."
While it was still a little weird she was acting this way... okay really weird, they had a more pressing matter at hand. "Whatever you say. Get ready, we leave in ten."
"No shower?"
"You better hurry if you want one." Issei turned back to his suitcase with a cheeky smirk. "Unless you wanna smell like me."
That shocked her straight up. Her cheeks went bright red and her fists clenched. "Why you!"
Twenty minutes later, they were on the road. Ravel took her shower but didn't have time to put her hair in her drills so she wore it straight down her back. While she was in the shower, Issei had packed his things as well as hers. Afterwards they basically ran downstairs and out to the car which had a bit of snow on it. They took off once it was cleared.
Ravel sat in the passenger seat with her phone in her hand. She was looking at a gps for bad traffic on the route home. "Alright, we look clear for now."
"Perfect. Any police around?"
"Nothing for a long time. Why? Can't we just outrun them?"
"Not all of them. Some highway patrol cars are significantly faster than the normal ones." As they spoke, said patrol car passed them in the other lane. That car was an early 2000's Nissan GT-R. "See?"
She turned around and looked out the back glass. The police car quickly turned around and began to speed up behind them. "Uh, Issei? He turned around."
One glance in the mirror confirmed it. "Yea, appears he did." That didn't change anything. He kept the car at around 100 mph.
The lights on the police car then switched on. "I-Issei! He's going to pull you over!"
"Says who? I'm not stopping. We've got somewhere to be." A little grin came across his face as he downshifted into 4th gear with the paddles on the wheel. "I suggest you hold on. Don't want you bumping your pretty little head."
Before she could really brace herself, the car raced forwards. It took her a minute to fully hold on as she tried to look at the speedometer. Finally, she got a glimpse of it. "160! Are you trying to kill us?!"
As much as Ravel feared for her safety, she saw the smile on his face. "I know what I'm doing. Ravel we're devils. We have the instinct and reflexes to do these kind of things. Besides..." The siren was beginning to fade as they sped on. "...it's too much fun!"
Terrified as she was, she had to admit, something about the adrenaline of going this fast was amazing. The high she was getting from the speed of the car was giving her goosebumps. She turned around again to find the patrol car, it was fading in the distance. "So, what about your license plate?"
"What about it?"
"Can't they just send you a ticket or come find you at home?" By this point, they had rolled off on an exit to take a backroad for a little bit.
"A simple trick. Press that button." There was an unmarked button on the center console that looked like the others.
When pressed by Ravel's finger, a clunking noise came from the back of the car. "What did that do?"
"Changed the plate. I set this car up so that whenever I go out of town, I have a plate that is not registered to this car. That way, I can run and not worry about them tracking me. Even if they do come, I'll have the registered plate on it." He grinned as he explained his genius plan. "The best part is since I own a dealership, we have plenty of spares lying around."
Ravel thought a moment. She'd seen this somewhere, but where? A few seconds went by before she had her answer. "You got that from a movie."
Issei had been caught, but he wasn't about to let it go. "I don't know what you mean."
"You were watching a movie with Rias and Irina the other day. I remember the main car had that plate switching thingy on it." She wasn't wrong. The movie, The Transporter, was what Issei and the others were watching. Ravel had come in to ask a question and noticed the swapping of plates scene. "Geez you're so predictable." Of course, after a few seconds, they both just started laughing at each other.
The rest of the trip was smooth sailing.
Rias and Akeno were waiting in the room with Asia as the former nun laid uncomfortably on the bed. They had gone in at around 5 that morning and had been there all the while. Around noon, the rest of the girls came in.
Of course, the kids stayed at home and Kuroka volunteered to watch them. Ophis, Kunou, Yuuma, and Le Fay also stayed behind. Ophis had no interest in going, Kunou was studying for her exams, and Le Fay was working on a project for one of her classes. Despite Asia's pleas, Yuuma stayed home. She wanted to get everything ready for when the babies came home. Rias had told her that it could be a couple days, but she insisted.
As they waited for dilation, as well as Issei and Ravel to come in, Asia's stomach growled. "I'm hungry."
The doctor walked around the edge of the bed and sat in the chair next to her. "We are unfortunately running low on food today since our delivery last night never came. I'm sorry. If your friends would like to go and get you something, I will let it slide."
Koneko had taken Akeno's spot in the room and was playing on her phone. "Issei said he's about a fifty miles away still. At the rate he drives, it'll be about 30 minutes."
"My, isn't he reckless?" The doctor chuckled.
"That's how he puts it." Rias' hand rested on her forehead. "He says he's 'wreckless' since the only accident he's been in was the one that him and Asia got in years ago." As her mind rolled back to that time, she was able to take a look back. "Wow, without that happening, we probably wouldn't be where we are.
Asia, who had started to doze off, looked back up. "What do you mean? I just remember being hit by a truck." Most people would say that in a gloomy tone, *cough* Koneko *cough*. But Asia just seemed curious as to where this was going.
"Think about it. After Issei beat Valdos, he proposed to me. Then we had Ellie and he proposed to all of you." She then turned her eyes to the nekomata beside her. "Some in more romantic ways then others."
Koneko, still scrolling through her phone, just shrugged.
She didn't want to talk about how the three youngest fiancée's had yet to been married despite it being just over a year.
Within a few minutes, Asia and Koneko worked out a food plan and the young neko left to find it. Rias stared at the girl she thought of as her younger sister. Since she herself was a mother, she'd read the risks of giving birth. One was that the human body was very fragile during birth and that twins could cause a lot of damage. Even though Asia was a devil, her body was human as far as structure. That mean that she could have issues. Akeno was half human and that resulted in Shuri being a C-section. Needless to say, she was worried.
Stepping outside the room, Rias walked to where no one would see her. She brought her hands together and did the one thing she'd never tried. "Dear Lord Michael." *ZAAAPP* "I know I shouldn't pray." *ZAAAPPP* "But please protect Asia. *ZAAPPP* "As she gives birth today." *ZAAAAPPPP* The last one made her hit the floor.
Irina and Xenovia found her resting against the wall, holding her head. "Rias! Are you alright?" Irina asked as she knelt before her.
"Y-Yes, I'm fine. Just a bad headache." Rias' hand was still firmly gripped on her head.
"What happened? You were fine a second ago." Xenovia kneeled next to her friends and offered a hand.
Rias looked away for a second. She wasn't sure if it was shame, or guilt, or some other third thing. "I prayed for Asia."
Both the angel and knight looked at each other then back at Rias. "You know how dangerous that is Rias!" Irina shook her shoulders gently. "You shouldn't do that."
Xenovia just stared. She didn't think Rias would go to these lengths for anyone. But if she did, it would be for Asia. "Thank you, Rias. I know how much it hurts to pray as a devil. Thank you."
The three of them stayed in the hallways for around 15 minutes before the sound of sprinting feet rounded the corner. Issei and Ravel were running in at full speed. "Rias? Are you alright?" He slid on his knees on the tile floor up to his wife. "You look tired."
"I-I prayed for Asia and paid the price. It was worth it." She was about to rest her head, but restrained herself. "She's waiting for you. Go on."
"Thank you, Rias. For sticking with her." He kissed her, then the swordsman, then Ravel. "I'll go check on her."