([4/12/2018] Sorry about this guys, I had a major brain fart and accidentally deleted this chapter. Though, I suppose this is a good chance to address my absence in updating. Basically, I got a bit burnt out with DxD I suppose, so I took a break. I mean, I did read like, 7 of the light novels in a few months on top of writing and planning for this story, so I guess it's no surprise. I'm sorry to report that I'm only just starting the planning of chapter 7. Don't get me wrong, I have a damn strong idea of what to write, it's just that I'm at the point that I have to be super careful about not fucking the story up so I wanna take the time to carefully plan it. I got started on it today, but the BRAND NEW PEN I bought to write stuff down with decided not to work, so that annoyed me a great deal considering I'd already had it swapped from another one because that one barely worked, only for the newer one to be even worse. (That's the last time I buy a pen from work...) So that put me off for the rest of the day, shit excuse I know, but I don't think it's any secret by this point that I'm extremely fickle.
So yeah, don't worry, my drive for this story has started to return, started thiking about it again and getting excited for it. Not going to give any guarntees on when it'll be done, but it is in the works.
Laters)
Well, hmm, shit, this is rather late, ain't it? Don't have much of an excuse to be honest. Got a job since last time, but it's not like it's kept me all that busy. I've been dabbling in some other writing, but again, nothing that's kept me busy. I guess the only reason for this being so late is that the chapter intimidated me to some degree. I spent a long time debating on whether I should add certain things. The story has gotten to the point where anything I bring up in it can have an effect for the future of the story, so just writing this chapter without thinking about it would be a bad idea.
I also intended on this chapter being a lot longer, but if I included everything that I wanted to in this chapter, it would be more than twice as long, and it would take even longer to get it out to you guys. Plus, while ruminating on this chapter, I've come across some things that I found needed more thought before I dedicated myself to them.
I'm trying very hard to not screw this story up by including things I haven't thought carefully about. I feel like a sculptor, carefully chipping away at marble to make a decent looking statue.
The problem with plans is, they can change, for better or for worse. I had gone into this chapter with a certain thing in mind, but the more I thought about it the less I liked it, in that particular direction at least. Basically, while this chapter has taken a long time to come out, I think it's for the best for the future of this story. If I carelessly added something in that didn't work, the whole thing could be screwed up.
All in all, this story is actually quite scary for me to write. I've carelessly screwed up a lot of stories, and I really want to avoid that with this one.
So, while this chapter isn't as long as I thought it would be, I didn't want to make you guys wait any longer. Plus, I believe it cuts off at a pretty natural place.
So, yeah, here's hoping that this chapter is at least okay.
Yoko was a patient girl. She might not have come across as patient, the other day, but Yoko was very good at persevering. Her studious nature and academic excellence had not developed overnight, after all.
Back when she was still a short haired middle schooler knocking heads together, Yoko barely touched a textbook. Her teachers despaired over her poor attention span, though most of them gave up on the girl, considering her to be nothing more than a delinquent.
One teacher however was not so quick to give up. Halfway through Yoko's second year at middle school, the school's career advisor sat Yoko down in her office for a chat.
Yoko leant back in her chair, arms and legs crossed, a faint sneer gracing her face. Having just come from one of her regular brawls, Yoko's knuckles were bruised. The rest of her was spotless, her only wounds coming from punching too much. Her barely neck length hair was a tad ruffled, but it always had been messy. She wore a strange mix of the male and female uniform, donning the top of the girls and the bottom of the boys. It was the most the school was willing to negotiate on her utter refusal to wear the girl's uniform-truthfully, after the twenty-seventh argument about it in two weeks, the headmaster made the offer then kicked her out of his office, locked the door, closed the blinds, and wouldn't leave until she agreed.
He was in there for a week, but Yoko eventually accepted.
Kuramoto-sensei observed all of this with a blank look. She stared at Yoko, not saying a thing. Yoko stared back, also not speaking. This went on for twenty minutes until even the stubborn Yoko had enough.
"You going to scold me or not?" She said, annoyance clear in her voice. Her foot had started tapping about five minutes ago, and it continued as she waited for an answer.
Kuramoto-sensei, instead of answering, opened a file and looked it over. Her eyes scanned the document inside, ignoring the growing ball of agitation that was her student. Before Yoko could speak again, her mouth opening, Kuramoto-sensei finally addressed her.
"Your grades are decent, considering."
Yoko paused with her mouth open. She blinked. "Considering what?"
"Considering that you don't put any effort in." Kuramoto-sensei said, glancing up over her glasses to bore her gaze into Yoko's. "Despite you skipping half of your classes, and messing around in the rest of them, when it comes down to what work you actually do, you do surprisingly well."
Yoko frowned a little. This hadn't been what she expected. "So what? What do you care?"
"You're clearly an intelligent girl, Ikawazu. Putting your grades next to your fellow troublemakers, well, they don't even compare. But put them next to even a slightly studious pupil, and they pale. Natural intelligence is worthless without applying it."
At this, Yoko's anger returned. "Worthless? Who you calling worthless?"
"Does that upset you? Being called worthless?" Kuramoto-sensei raised an eyebrow. She pushed her hair behind her ear, and despite the girls indignation, Yoko's eyes followed the motion.
Yoko shook her head. "Well duh! Who wouldn't be?"
"Tough. You don't have the right to complain."
"What!?"
"As long as you refuse to apply yourself, that intelligence of yours will go to waste. Whatever potential you have will be squandered. All of it will be worthless. You, will be worthless."
By now, Yoko's knuckles were clenched so hard that the bruises started bleeding. "Then why the hell are you wasting your time on someone so worthless?" She said, spitting the words as if they tasted bad.
"Because I don't want you to be worthless, Ikawazu."
Yoko froze.
"As a teacher, it is my pride, my joy, to see young people thrive. To match their potential, to be the best that they can be." Kuramoto-sensei leant back in her seat, folding her hands together. "It's why I became the school's career advisor. It's why we're having this conversation."
Yoko swallowed, not breaking eye contact with the woman.
Satisfied she was paying attention, Kuramoto-sensei continued. "I've dealt with numerous delinquents during my career. Each one of them has gone on to either be high school dropouts, if they even get that far, criminals, or both. None of them have had the same potential that I see in you. You're a bright young woman, and I believe you can go far in life."
Yoko's face started to turn red.
Kuramoto-sensei stood up, walked around her desk and sat on the edge. Yoko's eyes glanced down at her womanly, stocking clad legs, before shooting back to her face. Yoko turned redder. "But, if you keep on as you are, you will become just like the rest. You will become what you fear most—worthless. You don't want that do you, Ikawazu?"
Yoko swallowed again, wetting her dry lips with her tongue. "N...No…"
For the first time during their talk, Kuramoto-sensei smiled. "No, of course not. But don't worry, I can help you. I can talk to my colleagues, get them to give you another chance. But you must want to improve, Ikawazu. If you don't want to become who you can be, then walk out of here, and never look back. End up as some NEET, or AV idol, if you're lucky. But if you truly, truly wish to reach your potential, then say yes, and I will endeavour to turn you into the successful young woman I know you can be."
Yoko finally broke eye contact, her flush covering most of her face. After shifting in place for a minute, she finally answered.
"Yes."
After that conversation, Yoko worked to improve herself. She spent less time skiving and fighting, and more time studying. In a year, Yoko had turned her life around. It had been slow going, relatively, but Yoko's grades steadily climbed to the top. The more she succeeded, the more her efforts were rewarded, the more Yoko studied. She experimented, found how she learned best.
The more refined her mind became, the more she started to build her well-earned pride, the less she felt content to live like a slob. Being the teenage child of a divorced, middle aged man who worked all the time, Yoko was used to living in a messy home. But Yoko's newfound sense of self-respect refused to live like that.
She learned how to do the housework, and how to cook, no longer satisfied with microwave meals. After weeks of barely managing it all, Yoko learned how to manage her time. Once she had a halfway decent schedule, her productivity skyrocketed.
The changes in Yoko were apparent. Instead of only being respected by the school's delinquents, she earned the admiration of the rest of her peers. They were amazed that such a troublemaker could do so well. Of course, there were still many who did not like her, the memory of her deeds still fresh in their minds.
Soon enough, the other delinquents began to copy her example. If their Banchou, who they looked up to, who was like them if even a little bit, could do so well, then maybe they too could have even a fraction of her success.
Even her teachers changed their tune. Soon enough she became their favourite student, a testament to how effective their teaching truly was.
The changes in everyone's attitude towards Yoko amazed her. The same people who looked down on her, who gave up on her, now looked up to her, treated her like she was a somebody. It was then that Yoko realised the importance of appearances, of how people saw you.
She experimented with her newfound knowledge. She already had skill in reading people, but once applying it further she found herself noticing their body language, how they think. By predicting how people thought, she found herself able to say and do the right things to influence others.
During her observations, she began to realise how much she enjoyed looking at girls. Her favourite subjects to study were her fellow females. She found great satisfaction in making them smile, making them blush. The fact that it was her getting those reactions thrilled her. It was a rush, having a pretty girls attention, saying and doing the right things to get them to react favourably.
The realisation that she was a lesbian struck Yoko one day, when she was watching a girl respond to her flirting. Flirting! She hadn't even realised it, but that was what she had been doing. It shocked her something fierce.
There was one person who she could confide in. Kuramoto-sensei had been understanding, unsurprised, even. The acceptance of the one adult who believed in her- the only authority figure that she respected-was all Yoko needed, and she embraced her newly realised nature.
By the time Yoko had graduated, she was the top of her year. At Kuramoto-sensei's suggestion, she took the Kuoh Academy entrance exam and passed with flying colours.
She had a fresh new start, a place where very few knew about her past. A place full to the brim of girls for her to flirt with. Her life was better than it ever had been, and it was because she had persevered, been patient. She had taken many knocks to her pride along the way, but she had done it.
And even though the day of her graduation had soured the whole experience, the fact that it ultimately worked in her favour let her push on with her new lifestyle (but that…is a story for another time).
So no, Yoko was no stranger to patience, to sticking her nose to the grindstone and getting things done.
It was the only reason she managed to put up with the week she had after her meeting with Gremory.
Yoko glared at the target of her ire, sheer indignation coursing through her mind. The injustice of it all was unbelievable; who could even dare to do such a thing? 'What…what the fuck is this?' Her eyes bore into the sight before her.
{Kombu- 680 Yen}
'They raised the price of kombu by 200 Yen! This is an outrage!' She threw another glare at the counter, where an employee was reading a magazine, not giving a single shit about Yoko's budgetary dilemma. She also cursed the local 100 Yen shop for not supplying kombu, inconsiderate bastards. Normally, Yoko did most of the weeks grocery shopping there, but for some things—such as kombu—she had to come to the grocery store.
As if her mood wasn't bad enough already from that meeting with Gremory and her cronies. She silently cursed at her father who, after the ramen had been delivered last night, realised that he forgot to go shopping, as he usually did when he had time off, to take a bit of the burden off Yoko's shoulders. While Yoko wasn't a stranger to doing their weekly shop, it was the last thing she wanted to be doing right then, exhausted as she was. Normally, Yoko would do the shopping after school on Mondays, but circumstances had led to it being delayed. It was why they even had takeout in the first place—that, and Ikawazu Tamaki was terrible at cooking, so it always fell on Yoko to cook dinner every night.
Breakfast though, he was on his own. She got up early enough as it was, she wasn't going to get up even earlier to make him some miso soup.
Running some quick calculations, she grudgingly admitted that she could fit it in their weekly expenditure; shopping at the 100 Yen store certainly helped when on a tight budget. Throwing it in her basket with an ungraceful toss, Yoko moved on to the next aisle.
As she tried to decide which type of tea she wanted, Yoko cast her mind back to the meeting with the Occult Research Club. If Yoko had still held any doubt about them all—herself included—being Devils, it had been blown away when the others stood up and released their bat-like wings. It had been a shock when her own shot out of her back, as if prompted by the others.
After Yoko received her clothes back from Himejima—in perfect condition and without a speck of blood on them—Gremory had suggested they call it a day. She told Yoko to have another day to get used to her new condition, and to return to the clubroom after school on Thursday. Apparently, there was still more to learn about what being a Devil servant entailed. Strangling her desire to tell Gremory to get bent, Yoko agreed.
As much as Yoko wanted to know everything in one sitting, the conversation had made her even more tired. A lot of information had been given, and the powerful emotions it invoked in Yoko exhausted her on a mental level. She ached to shove her face into a pillow and scream until her anger ebbed away to manageable levels. Instead she was trying to pick between green and chamomile teas while doing her father's forgotten chore.
After a yawn so large it could have its own orbit, she dropped the chamomile tea into her basket.
"Oh, my, that was a big yawn, Yoko-chan!"
Yoko froze. Sweat gathered on her forehead. Turning around in a stilted, robotic movement, she gave a polite yet strained smile. "G-Good afternoon, Satanaka-san."
Satanaka Suzuhana was a tiny old lady who barely came up to Yoko's bicep. Before she could stop herself, Yoko wondered how such a small woman could handle what she overheard last night. The bile she swallowed burned the back of her throat.
"Dearie me, you look exhausted!" Satanaka-san squinted up at Yoko's face, beady eyes magnified through half-moon glasses. In their reflection, Yoko saw the bags under her eyes, standing out against her pale skin. "You shouldn't stay up so late."
'And whose fault is that, you horny old bag?!' Yoko's brow twitched, pushing down the urge to brain the elder with her shopping basket. Clearing her throat, Yoko managed to speak with a level tone, "I had some difficulty sleeping last night. I wasn't very well yesterday, so sleeping was hard." Plus, she had to hear the old lady get railed for six consecutive hours.
"Oh my, I hope you're feeling better now, Yoko-chan."
"Um, yep, feeling better," she said, avoiding eye contact. "Still, I am a bit tired, so I'm going to finish the shopping now and go home for an early night in."
"You do that, dear. You look like you could do with an early night." With one last smile, Satanaka-san turned around and walked away. With a limp.
Yoko suppressed a full body shudder. As soon as she was done here, she thought, she was buying some earplugs.
Yoko blinked. She looked around, eyes taking in the scenery. Well, they would, if there was any scenery. If Yoko remembered correctly, her bedroom wasn't in an empty void. At least, it hadn't been when she went to bed.
She felt a faint rumbling, sending vibrations through her body. Flinching, Yoko looked around again, not seeing anything in front of her. Turning around, she flinched at the sight of a giant, red dragon looming over her. She blinked, craning her head up to take the beast in. Two piercing, green eyes stared deep into her own.
She blinked again.
The dragon blinked.
Yoko blinked.
The dragon, again, blinked. It moved its mouth, but no sound came out.
The rumbling returned.
Yoko's eyes rolled into the back of her skull.
Yoko gasped, flinging the duvet off her bed. She looked around, relieved to find herself back in her bedroom. No void this time. No dragon either. That was weird. The dream, that is, not the lack of voids or dragons in her bedroom. That was normal.
Looking at her alarm clock, Yoko saw that it was a minute away from going off. As she switched the alarm function off, Yoko realised that she was still, in a word, exhausted. Yanking the earplugs out, she threw them in the bin and got out of bed. As she went through her morning rituals—as was timetabled on her schedule, down to the second—Yoko mused on how she was going to deal with tomorrow.
Her end goal was still to figure out the truth behind her death, so naturally she would see what tomorrow could tell her about it. The question was, how would she go about it? Yoko had no idea what to expect tomorrow, Gremory hadn't given any details about it. Regardless, no doubt it had something to do with what was expected from her as a devil servant. She stopped cleaning her teeth after brushing too hard. Spitting in the sink, her annoyance grew at the sight of blood. The colour reminded her of Gremory's hair, which just made her angrier.
The idea that she was meant to be indentured to a rich snob was rankling enough. The girl was probably some spoiled rich kid, never having a tough day in her life. Her biggest worry was probably not having enough peacocks in her garden, or something equally as disgustingly extravagant. Rich people had peacocks, right?
Yoko was pretty sure that rich people had peacocks. Rich pricks.
She thought about the club she was apparently now part of. Somehow, the Devil had managed to get an entire building to herself as her clubroom. Sure, she was friends with the head of the student council, but Yoko was pretty sure that student-based bureaucracy only went so far.
Or…did it?
Yoko paused in the middle of buttoning her shirt. It couldn't be a coincidence that the girl who was: a) a Devil and, b) a friend of the head of the student council—who was also a Devil—had an entire building to herself. The same building that used to be the main school building. The building that was no longer in use because, as of the start of the last school year, was not big enough to handle an influx of new male students.
As far as Yoko could remember, the Occult Research club had only started last year. She remembered the stir it caused when the most popular girl in school started up a super exclusive club. This just so happened to coincide with the old school building no longer being used, as well as with the new school building being, well, built. Those latter two things only occurring because boys had been allowed to attend Kuoh Academy. The founding members of the Occult Research club, if she remembered rightly, were Rias Gremory and Himejima Akeno, shortly after being joined by …
Kiba Yuuto!
The boy-wonder had quickly risen in popularity after enrolling in the school. His charm, looks, personality, and general air of nicery were enough of a combo to make most girls need a change of underwear. It was believed at the time that Kiba had been allowed to join the Occult Research club because he had reached a certain status in the school; a sign that he was recognised by the most popular girl in school. It started the rumour that only the elite of the school could join the club. But what if it was the other way around. What if Kiba's status had risen BECAUSE he had joined the exclusive club? Straining her memory, Kiba did seem to be more widely known after joining.
Yoko frowned as she considered what this meant. If looked at from the outside, it sounded like some sort of conspiracy to raise Kiba's popularity faster than it otherwise would have. Which, quite frankly, was absurd. But if looked at from another angle, with the additional information that Yoko had, another possibility arose.
It's entirely possible that Kiba had become Gremory's servant after he had joined the school, the same time he joined the club. It was therefore fortunate for Gremory that Kuoh Academy had begun allowing boys to attend. But, if the earlier conclusion can be flipped on its head, then why not this one? If one considered that Kiba was Gremory's servant BEFORE he joined Kuoh, then that aforementioned possibility was obvious to Yoko.
In reverse order: Kiba joined the Occult Research club; the Occult Research club was created; Kiba enrolled in the school; Kuoh Academy became a co-ed school.
With her mind racing, Yoko came to an insane conclusion.
Kuoh Academy was turned co-ed, solely to allow for Rias Gremory's male servant to attend the same school as his master.
Yoko sat down on her bed, feeling very dizzy.
The kind of influence such a thing would suggest…it was mind boggling! Straight away, Yoko doubted her own conclusion. It was just…insane, to put it mildly! How could one person have so much influence? The high-school division of Kuoh wasn't the only one to go from being co-ed; EVERY SINGLE BRANCH HAD TOO! From elementary school to the university, each and every branch of Kuoh Acadmy had turned co-ed at the start of last year.
There was no way that such a colossal change had been made to suit the needs of a single teenage girl!
Yoko's eyelid twitched.
But…just the other day, Yoko wouldn't have believed in the supernatural. Was anything absurd, with the existence of Devils and Angels and who knows what else out there? Hell, Yoko had a gauntlet that she could summon with her mind that was gifted to her by the God of the Christian Bible!
Rias Gremory was a Devil, who was friends with the head of the student council, who was also a Devil. Gremory had an entire building to herself, that she could only use because it was no longer in use. It was entirely possible that Shitori Souna had given her friend the building. After all, one of the student council's roles was to allocate funding and clubrooms for clubs.
Was Shitori also behind the change to co-ed? No, impossible. Shitori hadn't even been the Kaichou until the start of this year. Yoko also doubted that the influence of a student council president, Devil or not, could extend to such ridiculous degrees. Which meant that either Gremory or Shitori had some incredibly powerful connections behind them. Gremory did mention that she was a "High-Class Devil", but what exactly that entailed Yoko wasn't sure. She supposed it meant Gremory was some sort of Devil nobility. Who probably had peacocks.
Yoko shook her head so hard it hurt. None of that mattered. Even if any of it was true, it didn't change a thing. Yoko still needed to find out the truth about her death. It didn't matter how much influence her supposed master had, it didn't change the fact that Yoko knew something fishy was going on.
Still, perhaps having so much—potential—influence at her fingertips had given Gremory the right to think she could mess around with Yoko's life. Hell, Gremory was probably used to treating other people's lives like chess pieces—literally, in fact, considering the Evil Piece system. With such power, money, and peacocks at her disposal, why should she care about the life of a single human girl, unless she could turn said human into her Devil servant.
If her conclusions were true, then it made her all the more convinced that Rias Gremory had been involved in her death in some capacity. It had probably been so easy for her, too. As easy as moving a chess piece from one square to the next.
Yoko ignored the small, miniscule part of her that was impressed by such cold-hearted machinations.
Regardless of if she was right or not, she still hadn't come up with a plan of action. The thought of going into whatever situation occurred on Thursday without one was not a pleasant thought. Yoko always had a plan, plans were what made her who she was. Without a plan she'd return to being the mindless thug who cared more about where her fists landed than where her life was going.
She could just wing it, she supposed. If she kept her wits about her and her temper under control, she could probably handle whatever tomorrow threw at her. The thought made her stomach churn, but by the end of it she would have the information she needed. Yoko wasn't a coward, and she wasn't going to let the fear of the unknown beat her. She would tackle the unknown head first, come to understand it, and then make it her bitch!
With her plan that wasn't really a plan decided, Yoko left for school.
Yoko made it to class three minutes early; an acceptable amount of time. Long enough that she could interact with her peers and maintain her friendly reputation, but just short enough that she didn't have to talk to them too much. Yoko didn't like people at the best of times, but she was particularly antsy lately. Any longer than three minutes and she might just punch someone.
If what Shitori had implied yesterday was true, then such an act could only end badly for everyone involved.
There was a thought. How much stronger did her new body make her? Or, reversely, how weak would it make her? Just sitting near the window made her feel like shit—how would she feel running track in the midday sun? Yoko grimaced. If her reputation was damaged by not being amazing during P.E., she was going to be pissed. She hoped she'd get used to the sun soon. As much as she liked the moon, she also quite liked the feeling of the sun on her skin and would be a tad disappointed if that was taken from her, as well as her humanity.
"Erm, Yoko-san?"
The familiar voice almost dragged a groan from her, but Yoko still turned around to address it. "Katase-chan." She blinked in surprise. "And Murayama-san too." Indeed, the brunette was standing next to her friend, shuffling awkwardly in place. Yoko also noticed how the twos fingers were entwined. "I see that Murayama-san took my advice."
The two blushed. Well, their already existing blushes deepened. Still, despite their embarrassment they didn't let go; their grip, in fact, tightened. Murayama looked away, unable to make eye contact.
"Erm…yes…" Katase licked her lips. "I'm…not sure what you said to her, but thank you, Yoko-san." She glanced at her girlfriend, catching her gaze, and the two share a subconscious smile.
Yoko felt her stomach turn a little at the sight. 'How sickening.'
"Erm…" Katase began, but Murayama shook her head.
"I get it." With a smile she let go of Katase's hand and left for her seat, throwing one last slightly grateful glance in Yoko's direction. Katase watched her for a moment before turning back to Yoko.
"Congratulations, Katase-chan." Yoko plastered on a smile.
"Thank you." Katase's face was all smiles and redness. "After our conversation last Saturday, a lot of things fell into place. Even more so after we both got together." Her face remained in Yoko's direction, but her eyes glanced away again for a second. "It…it made me really happy when she confessed to me."
"Well, considering I left you hanging for a while there, I felt obligated to give her a push as recompense." Plus, it got Murayama off her back in the moment, which was a plus.
"That's right, you reminded me; are you ok, Yoko-san?" Katase gained a troubled frown. "You weren't well on Monday, were you?"
Yoko's mouth went dry. She swallowed. "Erm, yes, just a small cold I…caught on Sunday. Nothing serious."
"I see, I'm relieved." Katase smiled. She glanced towards Murayama again, catching the brunette's gaze. They broke eye contact, embarrassed, but still looking happy. The edge of Yoko's lip curled. It was gone by the time Katase turned back. Glancing around the rest of the room, and seeing that it nobody was really paying attention, Katase leant in. "Erm, forgive me if I come across as too…well, anyway…" she took a deep breath, "I hope that…someday…you can find someone yourself, Yoko-san."
Yoko's heart froze.
"I know that…well, I remember what you said on Saturday, and I hope one day you can find someone who will soothe your fears." The sympathy was clear in Katase's eyes, and Yoko wanted to poke them for it.
The image of purple eyes flashed through her mind and sent a shiver down her spine.
"You're a good person, Yoko-san, and I hope you'll find someone who can see that." With those words, Katase stole away to her own seat next to Murayama.
Yoko remained frozen in place. She watched as the two held hands while sitting at their desk, even after the teacher started homeroom. Purple crossed her vision again, and she snapped out of her daze.
Looking out the window, Yoko rested her head on her fist.
"You're a good person, Yoko-san, and I hope you'll find someone who can see that."
A small, rueful smirk graced her face.
Katase, she decided, was not a good judge of character.
The rest of the day went on without incident. Nothing worth mentioning. The only thing of note was another dream she had that night, with the silent dragon and the void.
It might have been her imagination, but it looked a tad exasperated when she 'fainted' again.
Welp, Yoko's brain certainly has been whirring, hasn't it? Can't be good for anyone, overthinking things this much. Which, huh, is something that I can be guilty of now that I think about it. Someone reading this knows what I'm talking about lol.
Hopefully Yoko's deduction part isn't too incoherent or out there. I'm trying to show that, while she's very analytical and can make conclusions, it really isn't doing her state of mind any good. Maybe her conclusions are true, maybe they aren't. It just always seemed to me that the time when boys were allowed in Kuoh seemed to coincide with when Kiba enrolled. If it made my mind whir, the possibility would certainly make Yoko's do the same.
Also, hmm, a bit of Yoko's past, there. I had always intended on Yoko's life changing in that way thanks to a guidance councillor, but I didn't think it would end up going like that. Tell me what you thought of Kuramoto-sensei, kay? Also, I hope that Yoko's change from thug to honour student didn't seem shitty.
(also, peacocks doesn't even sound like a word to me anymore)
Again, this chapter is shorter than intended, but hopefully there's some value here with that flashback segment, the 'dream', Yoko's overthinking, and her talk with Katase.
Anywhoo, onto Review Corner.
Leblanc23—Glad you liked it! Hopefully, the conclusions she came too here seem as natural as those others did.
DschingisKhan—Seeing as I intended on Yoko being the POV more, maybe I did succeed then. Maybe I didn't explain it well? (wouldn't be the first time).
Oh yeah, it sounds absolutely terrible, when viewed through her lens lol. Silly Rias, this is why you need to think things through XD.
Oh man, Rias is certainly…something. She's written with the intent on being likeable and competent looking, but Ishibumi really fails on that front. She has several unlikable traits, and her writing isn't strong enough to make up for a lot of them, imo.
You'll be glad to hear that, while the Fallen Angel arc will be similar to canon, there's a few aspects that will be different. Especially considering somebody isn't going to be th—oops! Went a bit far there, spoilers lie that way . Heh, glad I'm keeping you guessing. Hopefully, this chapter doesn't suck, since I'd hate to kill your enjoyment.
Anywayz, hope you at least liked this chapter, and until next time!
The Azure Reaper—Yoko is smart, sure, but smart people often make stupid decisions too. In fact, because they are smart they sometimes think their thinking is flawless, and go through with really stupid things, especially when they're like Yoko. So, Yoko might be making some dumb decisions, but I'm trying to lay a lot of groundwork to explain why she would make those decisions, and what circumstances lead to those.
And Raynare, hmm, spoiler lie on this path. I can't talk about my plans for her without talking about another character, and I want to keep that character's story on the quiet for now. I can say though, with absolute certainty, that the character in question has already been discussed by somebody with someone else in a previous chapter. That's all you get for now, heh, but I hope you stay tuned to see what I'm talking about.
Raiyoukai—Your words, they are too kind!
I'm glad you liked that part, I found it pretty funny myself. And yeah, exposition dumps always suck, but I tried to make it at least worth it with Yoko's reactions to it. So, yep, Yoko now trusts Rias about as far as she can th—hmm, actually, she could probably throw her quite far now. Meh, you get the point lol.
I intend on Yoko staying distant from the core ORC members for a few arcs, at least. Hmm, maybe by the Peace Summit, the relationship will improve a little, we'll see. It won't be by the Riser arc though, I will say. Maybe it will start by then, but only a little. They won't be buddy buddy, at the least, especially Yoko and a certain character—won't say who though, mwuahaha.
Yeah, that's dumb. One of the rules of writing is to make sure that too much doesn't happen within a too small a time frame. Still, Ishibumi isn't the best writer on a good day, so what can you do.
Glad you think so, I was super worried that it would be. And yeah, it might seem like a funny gag having Yoko be kept up by that, but in true DxD fashion, the dumb stuff is what's important later lol.
Your review made me super happy, and I'm glad you enjoyed the chapter! Hopefully this chapter is ok, as well.
Banru—Yoko is the devil in the pale moonlight, lol.
BattleshipFusou—Man, the ease that Issei can accept being forced into servitude for eternity with is actually quite scary. Like, the idea that people can be ripped out of their lives on the whims of some supernatural toff is genuinely terrifying to me. The loss of free will, it ain't right.
Hmm, not sure if that's how the Boosted Gear works, to be honest. Still, I do have some, hopefully, clever stuff lined up for that. So look forward to that.
Welp, here's the part I kinda hate, waiting for the verdict, lol. Hope this wasn't shit!
