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The following is a fan-based
FICTION
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Chapter 11: (Not) Blood Siblings
This new story starts a few days after what happened with Rias and Akeno. Truth be told, I genuinely forced myself to not go out of home until necessary.
I had gotten the redhead's attention, and while this didn't officially translate into getting spied on 24/7, it was still terrifying. That and the fact that Kuroka herself got extra cautious while leaving the house. She wasn't afraid of really running on her sister, but the chance existed- and it was horrifying. Now, to make things even more complicated on myself, I also ended up having to deal with Issei and Saji trying to press me on why a few people had seen me in Kuoh Academy. I managed to convince them it wasn't the case thanks to Reya's help, but that had been quite the close call.
I thought things would have gone quiet for the time being but... it soon proved to be a mistake on my part to believe that. Especially when I had a job to do and Azazel wanted me to do something interesting: Go to Italy and recruit a certain nun that has been recently detected by Grigori. I was a bit surprised by the task, and also pissed since I knew what game Azazel was playing with. Still, I saw no issue. Why? Well, the place itself that Azazel had me sent was one I recognized way too well due to the fondness it held in my heart.
The pearl of Sicily, and my birthplace. Ah yes, Palermo and its wacky streets. I was back 'home', except it wasn't home. Some of the streets' names had been changed, and yes, I could remember how some of the roads were named around this time period. I could hardly recognize any and a quick look for my family turned out that they didn't exist. Maybe a counterpart of mine did with another familial branch to the still-existing Bivone family since that was too 'tough' to erase from this timeline from the looks of it.
Still, some historic centers were still there to explore, and I had a full map of the place memorized in my head. Tracking down the small church by the outskirts was quite the easy task hence why I took a little detour to check my hometown. It was as chaotic as I remembered it being and... it sure left me with a bitter taste in my mouth by the time the tour was over. It didn't feel like I was at home. And I could tell it was more than just the fact I had been living in Kuoh Town for a while now. Something was just missing- or it was just plain different than what I remembered of this place.
Humming to myself as I was pacing through the grassy steps beside the main road leading out of the city as I prepared to deal with the reason for my visit, I eventually stumbled on my destination. The church looked quite small and in a decaying but working state. Quite expected from a rural building like this one, and looking quite normal at first glance. No one would suspect that the holder of the Twilight Healing Sacred Gear lived here.
Once I got to the entrance, I was about to enter the church when I ended up almost tripping on someone that was trying to open the doors. It was about time for the late afternoon, so it was just right that the church was preparing for another mass for today. What I didn't expect was for the individual to be none other than the one I was supposed to recruit.
"A-Apologies," Asia Argento muttered, blue eyes moving away from my frame as she tried to appear as docile as possible.
Which was working, if not extremely too well considering how cute, tiny and extremely submissive she sounded and behaved on the spot. And one has to remember she is even younger than she was at the beginning of the show so her cuteness factor is above standards right in that moment.
"It's alright, I wasn't looking around myself and... apologies if I ask this, but does Father Cristoforo live here?"
Her eyes widened and then she smiled. "Yes. Do you wish to speak with him?"
"Yes." I held back a 'thank you', mostly because she didn't exactly offer to lead me to him, preferring to just go and take me to him without a word.
The place was a proper church alright. But the one thing that divided the rural-kind of church from the big city's churches/cathedrals was that the former were more homely. With less space and less monumentality to the sizes, masses felt less of a religious event and more of a community reunion with religious undertones. It wasn't too solemn and the priest normally used this opportunity to pick specific tales of the bible to help some parents with issues in case a child needed an 'example' to learn from.
"Father, there is a visitor looking for you."
The old priest hummed, standing up from his chair just as we entered the office and... I froze as I looked at him. He looked a tiny bit surprised himself. Something about him just struck him odd. Not the 'bad odd', the 'familiar odd' that normally hits someone when they see a face and recognize it from somewhere. It's the kind of feeling that doesn't give an immediate answer, but prompts the one subjected to it to think deeply about it. And it didn't take too long for me to recognize him and almost tear up in the process.
Hello grandpa.
He didn't marry and- that was him. It had to be him. He offered a tentative smile and then approached.
"Apologies, young man. I don't seem to recall but you do have a familiar face and-" His words stopped, the man almost fell down as he tripped on the rug. I moved quickly holding him up and he held on to me as carefully as possible. "Thank you, figliolo."
I flinched, but I hid that and managed to nod. "It's alright."
"Now," The priest mumbled calmly, pulling away from me. "How about you give me a name? I don't exactly remember you."
I offered a sad smile. "You may remember me from someone else. My name is John Bukharin."
"Hmm... Bukharin?" He repeated thoughtfully. "Heard of a name like that, but you bear a resemblance with someone from-"
"Petralcina," I answered for him and he nodded, smiling happily. "I suppose that's where you may remember my grandfather from."
"Oh oh? That's indeed an interesting guessing game you're tricking me to play, Signor Bukharin. But, I can also tell you aren't just here for courtesy," He hummed with a mirthful voice. "I suppose a certain flamboyant man was behind your current stay back home."
"Something like that, yes," I confirmed politely. "Although, I suppose the girl knows-"
"He is from Grigori?" Asia blurted out, finally quipping on the matter. "I'm sorry-"
"Oh, none of that. Asia, you are meant to make your voice clear on the matter, I'm not your guardian in this regard," The old priest remarked kindly. "Still, I suppose it's just a recruitment offer."
"Just that, yes. Plus... a special passport in case she needs to leave Italy altogether," I said while offering the document to the girl. She picked it and gave it a quick look as I waited for her to be done with it.
"I was just told about the recruitment, but how would this... work?" The blonde inquired. "Am I going to fight or do I have a choice in that regard?"
A reasonable question, and one I had an answer to.
"For now you will come to live with me in Japan. There we have a bit of a stable situation for the organization and so can provide you with trainers that can help you with the specialization you seek out of this partnership," I explained to her as kindly as possible. "From what I understand, you wish to have a career as someone that helps others. A nurse or a doctor even."
A blush appeared on her face. "S-Something like that, yes."
"Well, Grigori has people that have degrees in medicine and can provide you with field experience through their contact with the Red Cross. Of course, you will have to first deal with standard education which will be dealt with through homeschooling."
Her eyes widened. "You will teach me?"
I held back for a moment. Technically? Yes. In truth most of the material was going to be dealt with by external individuals with proper qualifications. Which I didn't have on me and was only good to help teaching, not outright teaching.
"I will be your tutor, but I will not be the one grading your final exams by the time your education has finished. Good teachers will be dispensed for that."
"Oh."
"Hmm, that doesn't sound like a horrible situation as you made it sound, young lady," Father 'Cristoforo' replied confidently, but then looked to glance at me. "Yet, there's something I wish to understand and I believe you're prepared to answer this one too, young man."
"Yes?"
"Since you two are going back to Japan, how is Asia going to handle the language barrier? After all, Japanese isn't a simple language to learn."
I smiled and pulled out a small vial out of my backpack. "This is the answer to it. It's a special herbal nectar which allows people to learn languages much easier. Once Asia takes it back home, she will be able to memorize and learn Japanese with ease."
She looked stunned by this. "Really?"
I nodded and was soon sharing the last details about the matter before finally reaching the final step of this meeting. Asia's decision on the matter. The blonde looked slightly unsure due to the simple fact that she would be leaving for a far land but the old priest gave her enough of a pep-talk to shake off any doubts about it. Plus, he delivered an exchange that really hit deep with me.
"Also, you have this good man here to take care of you. A glance and I can tell his soul is indeed good," He praised indirectly, leaving me stunned with that comment. "Also, I suppose you will treat her as family. I see Asia as the grandchild I never got."
...
"I will see her as my younger sister."
He offered a warm smile. "I'm glad to hear that. Family is-"
"Something worth fighting and dying for."
"...You truly are an unique individual, Signor Bukharin," 'Cristoforo' replied mirthfully. "And I've yet to get who your grandfather was. Any hints you can spare?"
My smile was wide and yet mostly empty. "A great man. That was who my grandfather was."
He was confused, incredibly so. If only he knew what was going on. I doubted her would be as jovial. He would be as calm or so at peace with life. After we were done with the goodbyes, I learned that Asia had her bags ready for days now. It had been her unease on the matter that had her preparing it in case of emergency and now she was ready to go. We went back to the core of Palermo and reached for the quickest street for the airport. I spent most of the walk explaining to Asia how Kuoh Town was and what to expect there. It was no Palermo, but it was still a lovely city nonetheless.
I think the most out of this trip came when we arrived at the airport and I had the chance to speak on the phone with a certain fallen angel while Asia and I waited for our flight. It was quite an interesting talk.
"John? How's the situation at Palermo? Are things alright and-"
"You know about 'Cristoforo'," I muttered first, interrupting the greeting. "You know that he is-"
"A relative of yours? Yes, I was aware that old man John shared a bit more than just a name and that smile. So, who is he to you in your original dimension?"
I sighed. "Grandfather. He died before I was born."
"Oh? Then that means you had a chance to speak with him. I'm glad to hear that-"
"Yes, but I need a favor."
The Governor-General sighed. "Yeah? What about?"
"Can you have him retire early? Set him in a safe place where to spend the rest of his life?"
"That sounds sudden," He pointed out. "Why?"
"The Church isn't going to touch him, the same doesn't extend with Diodora if he starts tracking down where Asia went. I want him out of harm's way."
"...I will handle it."
I sighed in relief. Thank you-"
"What about Asia? How is she?"
"Curious but frightened of being overwhelmed by new things. She wants to be a doctor."
"As expected from someone with Twilight Healing. Keep her hidden from anyone troublesome, John. I'll make sure she has the education she asks for."
Only for the betterment of Grigori's standing, of course. It was a kind achievement, but one still driven by pragmatism that will help a lot in the long run. I didn't say anything about it, preferring to keep some of the questions about it to myself for the time being. There was just so much to handle, and while I had been tempted to accuse Azazel of having set up that meeting, I could tell that wasn't the case. Not when he had been unaware of where Asia was until she moved in with pseudo-grandpa. It was still a shocking situation and one that I was going to study further to see if other relatives of mine were alive somehow.
But for now, I had a trip back home to commit to, and a lot of planning that I needed to rework to include Asia in them. And that was going to take a while to get all done without any issues...
AN
A new chibi! And this one is John's 'little sister'. What? Not only does Asia get herself a nice cover, but John has more reasons to head pat and hug her! Profit! Also, next time there will be some lewdery. Time to bring in some kitty-lovin' back on the plate after so much wholesomeness!
Mini-Glossary:
1) Father Cristoforo: The benevolent priest from 'The Betrothed' novel by Alessandro Manzoni, 'Father of the Modern Italian language'.
2) Signor/Signore: Mister.
3) Figliolo: Sonny.
REVIEW Q&A!
Kyugan: At this point, the Underworld doesn't know that Issei is holder of one of the Dragon Emperors' Sacred Gears.
DarkCitadel: I have plans about Rias' arranged marriage and I think I will 'change' a few canon details to fit with some things we know about her parents now.
Ylnadiir: Azazel. Leshrug!
Acqua OfThe Back: Not a rework tho.