DISCLAIMER

The following is a fan-based

FICTION

High School DxD, New, BorN, Hero and other products related to the DxD Series are all owned by Ichiei Ishibumi, Miyama-Zero, Fujimi Shobo and TNK.

Please support the official release.

Chapter 8: Trust and Beach

Preparing for an intervention was surely difficult. Even though I wasn't the one getting subjected to that.

Then again, I doubt anyone in that position I was in at the time would have found it easy to actually find which words to use and which should be outright forsaken for their personal good while interacting with Ophis. Of course the girl was friendly even back then, of course she was a listener that tended to grasp what I could say if provided with just enough reasoning to a concept. But what I was planning to say, the topic I was bringing up to her, had the chance of putting all of that in jeopardy.

But I had to do it.

Sure, one would ask: where's the issue in getting powered-up via snake? The answer is 'nothing'. More power is good, but only if I can control it and I actually know that it exists within me. Let's make this as clear as possible, I don't mind the free power-up if someone actually told me there was one to begin with. If I ended up brawling with someone above my tier because they can sense I'm strong, but I am not aware of that, I might as well commit to sudoku mid-battle. Like, what's the point of being powered-up if I can't even get that power to help me to begin with? What's the point if the power-up does more harm than good for me by keeping me ignorant?

And no, I know what many would say about this reaction. That I'm nagging over something that means nothing. Except it does mean something. And that something is that Ophis could easily become more prone to do things to me without telling me. And those things could be as beneficial as those could end up becoming troublesome. So yes, the moral issue wasn't the power, it was the decision to keep me in the dark about it. Hence why I wasn't really that angry. Upset maybe, but angry? No.

Yet that seemed to still leave an uneasy Ophis on my lap as she finally visited and took notice of my current behavior. She could pick up. I wasn't exactly in a good mood and she was somehow to blame for it. Her gaze would hardly follow what was going on by the TV screen, looking at the wall over it and... waiting.

Patience flashed within her tense posture, with the situation turning slowly evident to me: she was waiting for me to tell her something she was meant to flinch at. It was odd how I could tell when that happened, but this behavior... was just like the one many kids had when waiting for their parents to bring up a bad subject. It was the same attitude I would get as a child when waiting for mom to pull me in a lecture. I was soon patting her head, trying to loosen her tension but only managing to do little with that gesture. I sighed, looking down at Ophis and then deciding to finally strike.

"I'm not angry."

There was a pause, and I waited for a response. It came a minute or so later, but I wasn't sure if it was because she was thinking about it, or still trying to understand what was going on. Maybe both as far as I could see on the spot.

"You are not?" She asked with a hint of skepticism, her tone opening for other questions like 'why are you so tense?' or 'why are you trying to yank me into this?'.

"I'm not. Just frustrated."

Ophis hummed. "Why are you frustrated?"

...

"Do you know what lying does to friendships, Ophis?"

The girl didn't respond quickly. I think the counter-question had left her a bit more confused than before. And it became apparent that she was extremely interested in the matter when she used the remote to turn off the TV and then turned around to look better at me.

"...I don't know."

Frowning at that genuine reply, I was momentarily taken by that truthfulness, but I also noticed how that answer opened up a new perspective I hadn't taken under consideration: Ophis did what she did with little understanding of what that lie would have led to. Considering her previous instances where lying was a necessity, I could see why she saw no issues on lying even in this circumstance, ignoring that there was a reason why lying was bad when doing it to specific people you feel the need to be more open with.

"It tends to strain the bond. Because good friendships are born from trust and honesty," I explained flatly, feeling a bit dispassionate due to the circumstances.

The Infinity Dragon took a moment to further ponder on it, her head tilting to the side and her gaze moving elsewhere as she focused on this new piece of information. Then, she seemingly understood.

"I lied to you, so you are upset."

I slowly nodded. "You gave me one of your snakes to help me, but you decided to not tell me anything about it."

Instead of outright commenting on this, Ophis was lost in her thoughts once more. Yet, I could tell that response had left a sharp feeling within her. A reaction which was affirmed by how her grasp of my shirt tightened uncomfortably. It wasn't painful, it didn't hurt, but it sure put a pressure on the matter which expanded on my pre-intervention's doubts.

"I'm sorry," The girl apologized numbly.

"For what? Lying or being caught?"

Surprisingly enough, she didn't hesitate to answer that. "Being caught."

"Hmm, already being honest now?"

"Yes."

"Why did you give me that power?"

"Protect you."

I slowly nodded. "And why didn't you tell me about it?"

"You would have been mad. And refused it."

Within the right reasons, dammit! Why can't anyone just stop and think before doing things for others when they don't want that kind of help? Like, I get it, that rule doesn't apply when a very serious reason is applied, but I was fine with and without this power. I don't mind them, but now I may have an extra target to worry about in due time.

"I would have preferred if you still told me."

"You would have-"

"We would have talked about it. You would have had the chance to make a point on why that would have been necessary."

There was another pause, a lengthy session of silence, with Ophis taking this chance to reorganize her thoughts with what I was telling her.

"I'm sorry."

"Why?" I asked in a similar way that I did with her previous apology.

"Lying is bad with friends. I just didn't want to..."

"Be in a conflict with me against you?" I guessed and she nodded, urging me to reach out and ruffle her head. "Hmm, you're a bit silly alright."

"I'm not silly," She replied swiftly, and I could taste the hint of a pout at that. "I just don't like fighting with someone I don't want to fight."

"Well, if there is no conflict in a relationship and it's always so peaceful, then I think that wouldn't be a pleasant friendship."

...

"What?" Ophis inquired, confusion dripping from each letter.

"Let me ask you this: we are different individuals, right?"

She nodded. "Yes."

"And we have different opinions and views of the world."

"Yes."

"So, it would be quite normal to be opposed in some circumstances," I reasoned calmly. "Hence why people talk about big decisions. They can change things a lot and need to be talked about before making a step in a direction or in the opposite one."

The girl hummed at this, thinking some more over it. "So, being against each other is fine?"

"In a way, yes. We don't necessarily need to fight or shout at each other to make our points valid. Right now, we are having a discussion, and it is quite peaceful, right?"

"Yes," Ophis confirmed, and I smiled at that.

"Which is what I am talking about. Sure, we may clash mid-conversation, but I think it helps remind us we are two different people having a talk as friends."

...

"I see," The little dragon admitted calmly, leaning forward and pressing her forehead onto my chest. There was a longer break from that. No TV meant no distracting noises, and cuddling made for a good reason to actually keep quiet and think about the entire situation.

It was crazy, like really crazy. This conversation with Ophis felt as 'right' as it had been before. She had her own doubts about a few things I said. I could pick up this much from her voice, but I knew she was actually putting an effort in trying to get all of that solved.

"How about we hit the beach one of those days?"

The question came out of the blue, and it definitely hit Ophis out of nowhere from the frown adorning her face at the moment.

"The beach? Why?" She inquired, interest perking at that topic.

"Do you know how to swim?" I asked quietly and the girl hummed.

"No. Never needed to."

"Well, I guess I can teach you how to. Plus, we can have fun there playing volleyball."

There wasn't exactly an issue with that on Ophis' end. And the girl was easily convinced of giving this a try despite how 'draining' that felt compared to the usual. We agreed on a free day for both and we were soon checking the beach together with Kuroka. The Nekoshou was just craving for that and decided to go on a preemptive visit to the clothes shop to buy herself some bikinis. What surprised me about this move was that she didn't invite me to join her. I was sure that there was a reason for that, and it became apparent only as the visit happened and she showed that her bikini, the one she ultimately favored, was indeed... worthy of surprise. And attention.

The burgundy red bra and the panties offered little cover for her skin, but those were far from the skimpiest outfit yet. Provocative, but not entirely pulling in unwarranted attention. It was nothing too scandalous, but it was eye-catching. Still, the visit at the beach was fun for the three of us. For many reasons. I ended up spending some time with Ophis as the girl slowly but surely got hold on how to swim. And while her expression didn't fully admit it, her bodily language confirmed that she was ecstatic for this new discovery. She spent a solid hour swimming and waddling on her own, going underwater and moving around to explore everything around her. I had to keep an eye out for her whenever she was too 'immersed' into the moment when underwater. She still needed to breathe and that was a need she tended to forget about when swimming. Quite tiring, but it managed to set Ophis up for a quick nap as soon as we were out of the water.

Her entire body was wrapped up with two layers of towels, only her face freed so she could breathe properly while actually 'sleeping'. It wasn't the perfect rest, but she would go 'unconscious' to recover any energy lost at the moment. Considering we were also far from the small groups of families that had taken the chance to visit the beach, a certain cat-girl had decided to poke and inquire for some 'heavy petting'. What resulted was a slow-paced but fairly intense kissing and groping session. Nothing too extreme as we were still in public, but I sure got the kitty meowling hard while getting her to squirm at my touch. Ophis rested without showing any hints of knowing what happened, thus making the entire stealth foreplay session a complete success. And one that definitely made Kuroka a tiny bit bolder with these circumstances through future events similar to this one.

All in all, things were fine and I had no regrets whatsoever with the current state of things. That was until the month came to an end as a new crisis came up. It started as a normal day, with a pleasant morning. Then I received an unplanned visit from a very distraught Issei and a somber-looking Saji seeking asylum and a place where to crash and rest while also skipping the school day. Yes, I know: why the hell are you allowing two students to skip school out of the blue and... the answer was very simple to elaborate through his reaction to whatever was going on.

"S-Sensei, sorry. I just need... a place to stay. Just- Just for today?"

Issei looked like a wreck, while Saji looked a bit better. His face was red, tears were flooding out and he looked ready to just fall down on his knees and give no shit to the world as he continued to sob. His guy friend looked less distressed, but exceptionally pissed at what had caused all of this. This was the sight of two guys that got screwed in a not-so nice way, but also messed up by some unexpected BS. I let them in, I let the two take the couch on the couch and they started to tell me what was up. I was slowly growing upset with each word they provided, angered by what had just happened. I wasn't angry at the boys, but I definitely had a reason to behave angry towards a moron I was very disappointed in.

As I granted the two dudes permission to stay at my house and proceeded to tell their parents that the two friends had plans to spend the night here at my house for a sleepover, I started to plan out a serious discussion with a few individuals. And while I knew how risky that was, I wasn't planning to speak with no idiot when it comes to handling the situation discreetly. I just needed to reach this person, have a proper talk with her, and that should get things done.

Now, where is my formal outfit so I can go to Kuoh Academy in the mighty form of a 'full angry uncle'?

AN

Aw shit! Things are just going to get nuts quite soon. Still, Ophis' path to understand how friendship works is still a long one and Kuroka is more than happy to fill up the gaps by getting her needs satisfied. Things are just going to get spicier with the kitty quite soon and... yeah, next time Bukharin goes to Kuoh Academy, stealthily avoiding Rias and co. and gets in contact with the very individual that was going to be sympathetic on the matter. And before anyone thinks it's a bashing situation about the character that dun goof'd, no. I don't plan to bash anyone, but bring up a stupid reaction that can happen due to the circumstances they are all in.

REVIEW Q&A!

Barrytrey0430: Joke answer: Bro Gamer Tomboy.

Mistletainn: One thing is expect a Rule63 situation, another is having to deal with kink reversal. It's not that simple to call out kinks beyond those that are known.

Middernacht: I can totally see Issei failing to pull an 'Austin Powers' attitude to John's masterful 'Doctor Evil' acting.

FireKing500: There will be a degree of training, yes. Nothing too extreme tho.