Hello everyone back with chapter five so soon. Issei has a very interesting birthday party and meets someone special to him in this chapter. I had so much energy when I began writing this chapter but by the end of it I had to use all my willpower to finish it. That's not to say I don't think it's good. It's probably the best I've written so far but it was just sooooo long. Hope you enjoy this 5,000 word insertion and please comment something about the story. I'm dying to know if people actually enjoy it or if my grammar is scaring people off. Btw I realized I been spelling a lot of the characters names wrong and it took google docs correcting it for me to finally realize. Which is a surprise because how does google docs know who Seekvaira is spelled. Anyways enjoy!
I own nothing
(3 year time skip)
Three years have passed since Issei met Rias. The last three years have been the best in his entire life. Not only has Issei made his first real friend in Rias, but he also made three more. Over the years he met Sona Sitri, Seekvaira Agares, Sairaorg Bael, and Akeno Himejima.
Pretty soon after meeting her, Issei and Rias became best friends. The two were so close that his aunt would always say they were joined at the hip. The young girl insisted on holding one of his hands wherever they went, not that he minded.
Today was a special day for the nephalem boy. It was April 16th, making it his tenth birthday. Since moving in with uncle Ajuka, birthdays have always been a happy and cheerful event. His aunt and uncle would always shower him with gifts and presents and invite his friends over. This year was no different, being that all his friends were coming over again.
To prepare for the day, Issei was in his bedroom getting dressed for the occasion.
"Dang it. I outgrew my clothes again." The young Sekiryuutei said, holding onto a T-shirt that didn't even go past his belly button. In the three years he had grown once again going from four feet and nine inches, to five feet and 2 inches. He was almost at his aunt yuzu's chin at this point. His horns also grew another inch. His brown hair had become wild and untamed, going past his shoulders.
'Maybe I should just get clothes two sizes above what I usually wear. It's already hard enough to get custom clothes for people with four arms and tails.'
As he was contemplating this, he heard a knock on his door. Using his enhanced smelling, he sniffed out who was on the other side. Expecting it to be his uncle or his aunt, he was surprised to detect a certain crimson haired ruin princess.
"Just a second!" The boy yelled out. 'Maybe this'll work.'
"BOOST!,TRANSFER!" Using his boosted gear the boy transferred the power to the small T-shirt in his hand making go a couple sizes up. Summoning his claws he carefully cut the excess away leaving him with a T-shirt that fit.
After he checked his hair to make sure it was messy as usual, he opened his door and was attacked with a big hug. This was Rias' usual way of greeting him when they first saw each other. In the beginning, Issei would always be incredibly flustered by it but now he was more or less used to it.
"Happy birthday Issei! I made sure to show up as early as I could so I could be the first one to tell you this." The girl said next to his pointed ear. In the past three years, Rias quickly became one of Issei's favorite people ever. They hung out every week, and did almost everything together. Whether they were playing or training their magic, it was just a blast to be with her. It also helped that Issei still had a huge crush on her.
"Let's go downstairs, Akeno is down there too. Big brother couldn't make it because he was busy but he wanted me to tell you happy birthday. He also helped me get you a present but I can't say what it is because it's a secret." As Rias dragged him along downstairs the two talked about anything that came to their minds. When they finally got downstairs they saw Akeno standing alone.
The first time Issei met Akeno was a very interesting day. Rias had explained Akeno's sad past to him, and it was something they could both relate to. The day they first saw each other, Akeno was in shock seeing his appearance for the first time. Rias brought her over while Issei had been training with his aunt Yuzu, so Akeno got to see him in his full Abomination form, with golden angelic dragon wings and all. The girl was in a mix between terrified and curious when she first saw the Sekiryuutei, which didn't make for a good first meeting.
After getting over her initial shock, the two were able to become friends. Although being subtle about it, Issei even tried to convince her to use her Holy lightning magic. Which sorta backfired, and resulted in her not talking to him for a few days. Once she got over it the two were almost as close as he and Rias were.
"Happy birthday Issei, has Rias given her husband his birthday kiss yet?"
"S-shut it Akeno! What are you even talking about!"
"Oh nothing Mrs.Hyoudou." The violet haired girl laughed at her master's embarrassment. Before the teasing could continue, Yuzu and Ajuka entered the room alongside Grayfia.
"Good morning lord Hyoudou, I hope you are enjoying your special day. Rias was insistent that we show up before everyone else. She wanted to be the first face you saw on your birthday." The silver haired maid said. The women insisted on calling Issei, lord Hyoudou, despite the fact that he asked her to just call him Issei. Her statement made the aforementioned girl's face go scarlet red.
"Grayfia! Why is everyone teasing me so much today."
"Because you look so cute when you're embarrassed. Now come along, everyone else will be arriving soon." Yuzu said giggling at Rias who was hiding behind Issei's back.
Doing as instructed the group made their way over to the courtyards, where the new guests would be arriving. The first to arrive was Sairaorg Bael. Upon seeing him Issei and the boy ran at each other full speed, crashing into one another. It was a strange mix between wrestling and hugging that the boys engaged in.
Sairaorg, or Sai for short, and Issei had grown very close over the last three years. The older of the two trained with Issei often on the dragon mountains. Do to not inheriting the power of destruction that Rias had, Sairaorg decided to train his body to the extreme. The two boys became as close as brothers to one another, always competing to be stronger than the other, while pushing each other to their limits. In a hand to hand fight Issei could only compete with the older boy after boosting several times, and even then the boy would put up a very tough fight. The guy was so strong he could break the Sekiryuutei's light constructs with his bare hands. Sairaorg was also taller than Issei, who was pretty tall for his age. The Bael heir was a whopping five feet and seven inches tall. Whenever the two saw one another they couldn't help but spar, which would often get them scolded at by Yuzu or Grayfia.
"Happy birthday dragon breath, maybe today will be the day you beat me!"
"Ha I think your confused lion face, I was the one who won our last fight!"
As the two teased one another, the Bael heir managed to get Issei into a headlock. As they wrestled with one another they didn't even notice the flashing light of a teleportation circle behind them. Nor did they notice Sona and Seekvaria appearing with Serafall Leviathan along with them.
"Oh my, it's only eleven in the morning and they're already going at one another." Said the Sitri heiress.
"That's to be expected from those two. Whenever they see each other they usually end up breaking things." The Agares said with a sigh.
"Oh hey guys you made it, wassup." Issei called out to them from the headlock he was in. When Sairaorg looked up to see the guest, Issei used the moment of distraction to slip out and wrap his tail around the Bael devil's arm, and tossed him away a couple feet.
"Now now you two. You've had your fun but we can't have any broken bones today. Besides we have a lot to do today so let's get to it shall we."
"Yes auntie Yuzu!" All the children shouted. All of them taking to calling the woman auntie, do to how doting she could be to all of them. When the group made their way inside to the living room they found all sorts of games set up for their enjoyment. From cards to board games, aunt Yuzu had really gone all out this year. As the group played Yuzu and Grayfia set up for dinner.
In three years Issei learned quite a few things about his new friends. He learned that Sona had a genius level intellect, and could beat anyone of any age at chess. He learned that Seekvaira was obsessed with mecha otaku, and had hundreds of figurines in her room. He discovered that Sairaorg wanted to become strong enough to be a maou. While talking with Akeno he found out she was the daughter of a shrine maiden, and comes from a clan with their own unique ability. And of course he knew almost everything about Rias, like how she was terrified of camel's. How she wanted to be a rating games champion, after watching her idol Roygun Belphegor. How she wanted to have a full peerage, so she can spoil and dote on them.
"Ara ara Ise, you've been staring at Rias for a while now. Is there something on her face that we can't see?" Akeno teased, catching his gaze at the girl he had a crush on.
"N-no I wasn't, I was just thinking that's all." He protested looking away nervously.
"Akeno, it's perfectly fine for little bro to look at his future wife that way. Maybe he might get lucky and get a birthday kiss from Ri-Chan." Joked Sairaorg, causing both Rias and Issei's faces to go crimson red.
"I can't take any more of this teasing! Issei beat them up for me!" The Gremory heiress yelled, hiding her face behind her hands.
"I hate to interrupt you all, but dinner is ready. If you would all follow me please." One of the Beelzebub maids said, escorting the young devils to the dining room. Upon entering Issei's eyes lit up, seeing all of his favorite food dishes on the table. All the aromas added with his enhanced sense of smell, and the boy was practically drooling at the sight.
While everyone else ate with proper etiquette befitting of high class devils, Issei practically scarfed his food down. Using all four of his arms to shovel food in his mouth, he practically swallowed his food without chewing. Both Grayfia and Yuzu sighed at his antics. Even after years of teaching him to eat properly, the boy would always do as he pleased in a comfortable setting. Rias who sat next to Issei noticed he had some gravy on his chin.
"Hold still, Ise." The girl said as she wiped it off with a napkin. Suddenly realizing her mistake she retracted her hand but it was too late. All too soon Aunt Yuzu was snapping a picture on her phone, causing the girl to get flustered again.
Once dinner and dessert was done, the presents were brought out. Rias' gift for Issei was an expensive art kit, due to her noticing how much the boy loved to draw and paint. Seekvaria had gotten him a dragon mecha figurine. Sona and Serefall had gifted him a chess set, which wasn't the greatest gift considering how bad he was at the game, but he was grateful nonetheless. Sairaorg gave him a poster of the Satan Rangers, signed by all the cast including his uncle Ajuka, who was embarrassed by the gift. Lastly it was time for Yuzu's gift.
"For my gift to you Issei I'm giving you a present that your parents wanted me to give to you once you turned ten. They explicitly told me to wait until you reached this age to give this to you."
At the announcement, the whole room went dead silent. Issei suddenly became all too aware of the many eyes focused on him. Looking down at the neatly wrapped box in his hands, Sekiryuutei's hands shook when he went to open it. After removing the wrapping paper he saw a decorative wooden box. Upon opening it, the boy was surprised to see what lay inside.
In the box was a Polaroid picture of both his parents sitting next to one another under a tree. The two were staring into each other's eyes and holding hands almost oblivious to the camera taking the picture. Issei looked at the picture with a small smile. He'd seen pictures of his mother before, his aunt having shown him the ones she still had, but he'd never seen any of his father. The man looked almost like an older version of him. The same messy brown hair and similar facial features.
Looking at his mother he once again saw where he got most of his other features from. The beautiful woman had long curved red horns that protruded from her long black hair. She had four arms, and a tail as well. Her eyes were the very same color as his own.
"She's beautiful." Rias said next to him. Suddenly Issei was reminded that there were other people in the room. Looking up he saw that all his friends, as well as the adults had made their way behind him to see the picture.
"Look Issei, there's more." Akeno said from his right side, pointing into the box the picture had come out of. When Isssi looked back into the box he saw a ring, and two letters. Picking up the ring and holding it closer he inspected it closely.
It was a beautiful black and gold band that had the words, Gorou and Miki For Eternity, on the side. The word eternity being represented in an infinity symbol. Holding it closely, it was almost as if he could feel his parents love for each other within the ring. Like it was somehow alive almost.
"That ring was Miki's engagement ring from Gorou.She said she wanted you to have it." Said yuzu. Issei looked back to the picture and could vaguely make out a similar ring on his mothers top left hand.
"looks like there is a note on top of the letters, what does it say?" Serefall asked, peeping over Sona's head. Picking up the note Issei saw the words were written in cursive.
"I don't know how to read it." Issei said, embarrassed that he couldn't decipher the words.
"That's fine I'll help." Rias said, holding out her hand for the note. "It says 'hold the ring and say the word AWAKEN. Make sure you aren't standing too close to anyone else."
Doing as the note instructed, Issei moved to a more open area. And said the word "Awaken!"
Suddenly a gold light filled the room and the ring transformed itself into a guandao weapon right before him. The weapon was marvelous, being about his height. The handle was onyx black with gold accents on the side, leading to a silver blade. Etched on the side of the handle were the words, 'Gorou and Miki For Eternity', the same way they had been on the ring.
"It's so cool! Your dad was a great blacksmith lil bro." Said Sairaorg looking at his reflection in the blade.
Holding on to the weapon made the Sekiryuutei feel weirdly powerful. The same way he felt when he boosted his power several times. For a weapon that looked so tall and heavy it felt no heavier than a broomstick. Issei gave the weapon a few swings and quickly fell in love with how it felt in his hands. He could easily twirl, jab, and thrust with the spear.
"Be careful Issei, maybe turn it back into a ring for the rest of the party ok." Yuzu said, scared that someone would get hurt by the powerful weapon.
"Ok. Hey Rias, does it say how to turn the weapon back?" The boy asked, not entirely sure how to undo the transformation.
"Ummm, no it doesn't say. Maybe trying telling the weapon to sleep will work."
Holding the weapon out in front of himself, Issei shouted the word "Sleep!" And the weapon glowed once more before turning back into an engagement ring. The Sekiryuutei was now obsessed with his new gift, and didn't want to put it down for a second. Something about the ring just felt so enthralling to him, he couldn't bear to put it down.
"Are you going to read the letters they left for you Issei?" Rias asked.
Issei had completely forgotten there was more to the gift. Walking back to the box he looked inside to see two envelopes, each closed by a wax seal. One of them said from Miki on the top, and the other said From Gorou. Issei was incredibly nervous at the idea of opening either of them. He had never spoken with either of his parents, let alone heard the sound of their voices. And now he would get to read their last messages to him before they went. With a shaky hand he started with the one from his father.
'Dear Issei
It's been a long time since I wrote a letter, so I'm kind of rusty. I don't really know what to say in this thing to be honest. Well, I guess if you're reading this I'm gone and these are my last words to you. It is sad to think about. I remember holding you in my arms when you were born. You were so small you could almost fit in my hand. I know this world will be cruel to you, because it was cruel to me and your mother. I just need you to know that no matter what, I will always love you. Looking at you while you were in my arms, somehow I could just tell you would do great things. I hope you go on to meet great friends and experience all the joys in life. I want to say more, but I don't have the words to. Just know my boy, that you will always be my greatest creation.
Sincerely Gorou'
While reading the letter to himself a lump formed in his throat. Without realizing it, Issei's grip tightened on his mothers ring. Ignoring the concerned faces of all the party guests, Issei moved on to the next letter from his mom. Unlike the first envelope which had been white and gold, this one was black and purple. Issei was hesitant to open this one, he barely got through his fathers letter. A reassuring hand on his shoulder from Aunt Yuzu spurred him to continue. With a deep breath he opened the letter.
'My darling Issei,
There's so much I want to say to you, but so little time. Yuzu probably didn't tell you, but you weren't Gorou and my first attempt at having a child. Before you came along, me and your father tried and failed three times to conceive a child. When you were born I considered you my miracle baby. It hurts so much to leave you, but for your safety I must. In another world maybe, I would've been able to see you grow up, see you find love, see you grow old. But life doesn't always give us what we want. I do hope you enjoyed the present I gave you. It was an engagement gift your father made for me. I did wish for you to have it earlier but Gorou insisted that five year olds shouldn't have weapons of mass destruction. If fate was more kind we would have had more time together. Please take care of Yuzu for me darling, and take care of yourself too. I love you more than life Issei. I have to go now. Good luck my child, follow your heart.
Your mother, Miki
While reading the letter droplets of water started to spill on the page. Putting his hands up to his eyes he felt the source of the droplets. Was he… crying? He never met his parents but yet he could feel their sadness and love for him in each word.
"Are you ok?" Rias asked gently, holding one of his left hands. She held that look of concern since he started reading the letters. Akeno and Sona were doing the same on his right side.
"I'm fine." He said barely a whisper.
"Oh yeah, Issei, I haven't given you your gift yet." Ajuka said, before holding out his hand and summoning what looked to be a silver chain necklace. "This is for your ring, so you can keep it close at all times. Anything put on the necklace will return if ever lost. That is the spell I put on it."
Reaching out for the gift, the boy slid the ring onto one side, and then clasped the necklace around his neck.
"Ok sad times over everyone. Let's party!!!" Yelled Serafall right next to Ajuka's ear making the man scowl at her. As the festivities resumed, and the music came back on, everyone began to dance. Issei, very timidly, danced with Rias. Dancing wasn't one of his talents so he was nervous he'd make a fool of himself.
"It's fine, just follow my lead." She said into his ear. As the boy copied her pattern, it became a lot easier. In a weird way, dancing was sort of like fighting. In the sense that you're moving your body in many directions while trying to keep balance and grace. Pretty soon Issei became more confident in his skills. Maybe not enough to go on Devils Got Talent, But certainly enough for a birthday party dance.
After dancing with Rias, Issei also danced with Akeno, Sona, and even his aunt Yuzu. As the night went on and the sky darkened midnight was upon the party goers.
The first to leave were Sona and Serefall. Next up Seekvaira, and lastly Sairaorg. Rias begged Grayfia to stay a little longer, but her puppy dog's sad eye technique had no effect on the maid. After a little more begging she was allowed five more minutes to say her goodbyes. Because of this Issei and Rias found themselves on the terrace, overlooking the gardens they met in.
"What did the letters from your parents say?"
"Oh nothing really. Well that's a lie but I'm not really ready to talk about it yet. Is that ok?"
"Of course it is. I'm sorry that happened to you, I wouldn't know how to handle that situation if it happened to me." After she said that she tightened her grasp on his bottom right hand. It was at this point Issei realized that they were holding hands that whole time. Why did it feel so normal? He used to be so flustered and now he was just at peace.
Bringing up one of his hands to his necklace he played with the ring on his neck. "I'm fine. Even if I never got to meet them, I have Auntie Yuzu, Uncle Ajuka, and you. I don't really need anything more than that." He said while rubbing his thumb over the back of her palm.
"Thank you for coming over today. This has been the best birthday I ever had."
"You're welcome Ise, but it's not over yet. I still have one more gift for you. Close your eyes ok."
Issei did as instructed, waiting for the sounds of Rias pulling out a gift. Instead he felt a soft pair of lips pressed against his own. Suddenly the whole underworld went quiet, and all he could hear was his heart beat.
"Click!"
The sound of a camera going off froze the two children. When they looked over they could see Yuzu holding her smartphone camera, while Ajuka, Akeno, and Grayfia stood next to her. His aunt had a very sheepish expression on her face while the other three just looked amused.
"Crap, that was supposed to be on mute!" His aunt yelled to herself. "Don't mind me just taking pictures of the sky, that's all." She lied, nobody buying it for a second.
"Please send those to my phone, Yuzu. Sirzechs will be very proud that Rias finally kissed her crush." Said Grayfia with a passive expression. Issei and Rias' faces were now scarlet red from embarrassment.
"Y-you guys! I can't believe you would do this! I have to go Issei, I'll call you tomorrow ok!" The Gremory heiress yelled before she ran off. As Issei watched her go he felt a hand touch his shoulder.
"How was it my boy? Your first kiss I mean?" Ajuka asked with a sly grin.
"It was totally awesome." The boy muttered, still in a state of shock.
"I'm glad you enjoyed your birthday Issei. Now let's get ready for bed, you still have homeschool tomorrow after all.
"Yes mam." The Sekiryuutei said as he ran off to brush his teeth and take a shower. Half an hour later Issei found himself in bed, playing with his new ring in his fingers. On his nightstand was the picture of his parents framed, and the letters right next to them. After about thirty minutes of playing with the ring, The boy passed out.
(Dreamscape)
When Issei woke up again he was in a grassy field. The sky was beautiful, being a reddish peach color full of clouds.
"Wow Ddraig you really outdid yourself this time. Usually you just bring me to mountain terrain surrounded by fire for training."
"This was not my doing partner. I don't know where we are but I would never bring you to a place this comfortable. It encourages weakness within warriors, I actually planned on training you in a war zone covered in spikes tonight."
"How nice, such a shame we couldn't do that tonight. And if you didn't bring me here then who did,this certainly can't be a normal dream. I haven't had those since I met you."
"I-issei. It can't be, this isn't possible, is it."
The sudden voice behind the Sekiryuutei made him jump. He had no idea that someone else was here, he felt no other presence besides his own. Turning around it was Issei's turn to be shocked.
What he laid eyes on was a woman who looked just like the one in the pictures of his parents. The woman was tall, with four arms, large horns, pointed ears, and a long tail. Not only did she have all the same features but her eyes were the same rich brown that his own were. She wore a purple breastplate over a long black dress.
"M-mom?"
"My darling Issei, you've gotten so big." The woman said, walking towards him. She raised a hand to run her fingers through his hair. The small gesture made the boy flinch, but he didn't move away.
"Can I give you a hug?" His mother asked with tear filled eyes. After giving her a slight nod, he felt four arms embrace him tightly. Her body was soft and warm to the touch.
"They said you were dead, is this just a dream?" Issei asked with a few tears coming out of his own eyes."
"I really hope it isn't." His mother said.
Issei reciprocated the hug and soon the mother and son were hugging and crying in each other's arms. After they finally calmed down, Issei was sitting in his mothers lap asking her hundreds of questions, and telling her about his life and friends. The pair were seated in a gazebo that appeared out of nowhere when Miki waved a hand.
"How are you here right now when you're gone in the real world? How long have you been here"
"I've been thinking about that for a while now. I'm not sure how long I've been here, time feels different here than outside. My estimate is around a few years. As for how I'm here,im not quite sure. My guess is that when my physical body died, my soul was put into Elysium."
"Elysium?"
"Oh that's the name of the Guandao your father gave me. He's not that great at naming weapons. Anyway Elysium is a custom made sacred gear that can take the form of a ring. It has the power to merge with the soul of whoever it belongs to."
"Wait a second! Dad could make sacred gears!?"
"Well yeah, he was the right hand angel to god after all. He helped him make and produce most of them. The only thing he couldn't do was put legendary beast souls into them like god could. But somehow my soul ended up entwined in Elysium. Not that I'm complaining because that means I get to be with my lovely little Issei."
"I know this question is kind of a bummer, but do you know who killed you both?"
Miki grimaced at the question, seemingly having a bad memory.
"Creuserey Asmodeus. He was always bitter after I got with Gorou. He wasn't alone when he did it, but I can't remember any of his accomplices. I remember it being very surprising however because he was with an archangel when he attacked us. But that's all I can recall."
Issei felt a bit guilty for bringing up such bad memories, but the curiosity ate at him for years now. He knew whoever did that to his parents would undoubtedly try to do the same to him too.
"Let's change the topic shall we. I have a question for you, Issei. Who is Rias Gremory?"
The question made the Sekiryuutei's face go as red as his namesake.
"S-she's just a friend that's all. But we did kiss today, or rather she kissed me. I don't know what it means, it all happened so fast."
"Awww that's so cute! My son has a crush , young love is so adorable!" She hugged him once more.
"Mommmm! Can we please just talk about something else."
"Like what sweetie?"
"I do want to know what my demonic powers are for one. Every time I ask auntie Yuzu she gets all red in the face and says she'll tell me when I'm older."
Miki laughed, bringing up one of her hands to cover her face.
"So she still hasn't told you yet. Well you're in for a surprise darling. The Asmodeus clan, the original one anyway, is known for being the devils of lust and desire. So their power is very similar. Tantric Empowerment, or Sex empowerment as some call it, is a magic that allows you to gain strength and abilities from being with someone else."
Issei's jaw dropped to the ground and Ddraig started laughing heavily. It suddenly made sense why his aunt and uncle would never explain it to him.
"So your saying, from doing THAT, I will be able to use my demonic abilities?"
"Yup. That's why I can do this." Holding out her hand Miki created a heart from golden light.
"I have your fathers magic which is called Holy Light Of Creation. It allows the user to create different constructs out of light. Being the exact opposite of the Bael clan of destruction."
"Wow! I didn't know I could do all that."
"Yup! That's the reason we look the way we do. Not all Asmodeus clan members receive the power but the ones who do have our devilish appearance. Don't ask me why because I don't even know the answer to that. And pretty soon when you and that Rias Gremory girl do it, you'll be able to use the power of destruction as well."
"M-mom! We're only ten and eleven years old!"
"Oh relax darling, I started when I was sixteen."
"I can't listen to this anymore!" Issei got up from his mothers lap and ran off.
"Issei come back sweetie! It's just a part of life, it's nothing to be ashamed of!" Miki said running after her son.
End
Hope you all enjoyed the chapter. It was way longer than I thought it would be. I know some things in this chapter felt like they weren't explained enough so I definitely intend on breaking them down further in the next chapter. The next chapter will also have a few time skips as well. I just want to get to the Highschool part of this story but there is so much to explain. I hope you all enjoyed please let me know if you have any criticisms or if you just enjoyed reading.
