"I wanna meet him." Issei said earnestly.

Freed blinked and slowly began nodding.

"Alright." He mused, odd shadows flickering on his face. Freed brought his left hand up, and began stroking his chin. "I see. So you want to meet him. Hm. Hm, hm, hm, hm, hm. Hm~." He snapped his fingers. "Alright boya." He gently seized Issei's upper arm, and gestured to his left. "Let's go."

"Into the alley?" Issei was puzzled, but when he failed to move, Freed rolled his eyes and gently tugged him aside. In that moment, Issei discovered that both the grip on his arm was steel tight, and that this man had more strength in one arm than in Issei's whole body. He briefly struggled, until Freed tugged him again, nearly yanking him off his feet. Stumbling, he drifted off to the side, a leashed cloud gently guided by this shepherd's firm hand. Issei immediately found himself not only comfortably wedged between a dumpster and a powerbox, but seemed to do so of his own volition, as after Freed had shoved him deliberately in that direction he'd turned right back around to loving audience. Issei simply straightened to his feet, Freed's back straight ahead and the somewhat gloomy alley behind, and found himself wholly lost for action.

Issei felt a slight pang, the mildest of heart flickers, as the idea that he'd just agreed to follow a strange man with unknown motivation down what appeared to be a fairly labyrinthine set of alleys in search of someone he only had this mans word for knowing, was actually in fact happening.

Huh. That was...well, in a sense, it was exactly what he'd been going for. But in another, Issei somewhat felt that something had been lost in translation.

But hey - Freed was a priest right? He was. He had a robe and a cross and a big smile and was thus ipso facto priestly material. Issei swallowed, and relaxed his jaw. Freed caught the sudden loss of tension in his shoulders, and giggled to himself a little, something that Issei felt strongly uncomfortable about, but once again rationalized as simply Freed being proper jolly priest material. Turning, the albino priest waved his free hand, calling out to the crowd fondly. "Thank you, thank you - I hold mass every Sunday, and we always welcome new flock! Please, if you feel uncertain, or nervous, or even paranoid, please come in to the local chapel! I and my fellows will handle anything from counseling to exorcisms!" He grinned and spread out his arms, briefly turning entirely away from Issei. "For a small surcharge, of course!"

The crowd went wild, cheering and whistling, and Freed took another bow. The lights and applause suited the man, making his rubbery complexion glow and his thin eyes seem magnanimous. He was a man, Issei could admit, that enjoyed his time in the crowd, and knew how to play it. Issei himself, however, was in something of a dilemma. Freed had no way of paying attention to him, and Issei didn't know what to do about it. He'd just convinced himself that he was fine following Freed, no matter how much he disliked the means, and had talked himself into putting up with the man's curious eccentricities. But now, given the chance to walk away, or even try to dictate terms, he was stuck. Hesitating. He couldn't go back on his own conviction, not now that he'd firmed it. But perhaps the cross on Freed's chest was a little less burnished and polished than a REAL priest might have done. Who could really tell? Not Issei. Right? Right?! Could he tell? Was that even a real robe?

He...

He waited.

He stood and watched as Freed talked the horde into loving him, bantering with the firemen and giving people peace of mind with their mundane troubles. And Issei, swirling in a vortex of his own self-doubt and hesitation, could do nothing else. He saw Freed wave them away, saw him sending off the families and perhaps felt the first tinglings of fe-nervous anticipation get it together Issei, when those yellowed eyes looked back at him.

Ah Issei perhaps thought, this man surely has no intention of helping me, and so felt the need to step back. But didn't you decide to go see Azazel, his mind whispered back, you convinced yourself it would be alright, and it will, won't it? And yes, yes he had done that, and surely it would? The dudes a priest anyway totes for sure and sure, yeah, he probably was. And so Issei found the man slowly approaching him, with a grin that promised nothing at all.

A hand clapped Issei's shoulder fiercely from behind, and he barely stifled a scream.

"Funny to see you here, Hyoudou-san."

It was the voice he wanted to hear least in the world, at the worst possible time. But it did the trick, and Issei inhaled deeply, color snapping back into his vision. His body finally felt free to move once more, and he quickly took a step back. For convenience, of course, the shade was wonderfully cool at this time of day. Mhm

"Ah," Freed smiled gently. But Issei saw a bone-deep satisfaction playing in Freed's eyes that made him shudder and consider perhaps taking another step into the nice, cool, refreshing shade. "And who might you be."

"Pardon me, where are my manners?" The hand was extended and taken, both men shaking with the utmost seriousness. "Hello, my name is Yuuto Kiba."

Freed nodded his head vigorously. "Ah, I see, Kiba-san, was it? Kiba, Kiba, what a wonderful name. Do you get out often Kiba? My, forgive my excitement, but I feel simply," his smile grew sickly. "As though we've got a great deal to speak about."

"I thought that before, but now I'm questioning if he actually did just walk out of that dumpster." Issei mused somewhat hazily. "How did you get behind me?"

"I've been here for a while, Hyoudou-san, standing and waiting. I was interested in meeting your friend, and I simply couldn't help myself from approaching when I saw the two of you." Kiba had a brittle looking smile, oddly more pensive than Issei had ever seen him. Given that he'd never seen the man doing anything but smiling silently, this was an accomplishment to be sure. "And now that I have, I feel as though we may get along quite famously, Mr. Sellzen."

So that's his name. Freed Sellzen. What an ominous man this is.

"Ah!" Freed looked delighted. "You know me! I'm flattered." The twist in his lips was sarcastic and venomous. "I must be more prolific than I thought."

"We've heard a great deal about your work as a man of the people."

"I didn't think he was so famous." Issei mused. "First I'm hearing about it. Maybe you should ask him how to join the priesthood."

"I'm always about helping the people people boya. Wouldn't you say Kiba? Always. I live for it!"

Kiba shot Issei a happy smile that nevertheless conveyed his deep frustration. Issei, suddenly all-too comfortable again, decided instead to lean into it, and ignore Kiba altogether. It's not like he helped much anyway, Issei had it handled. As if he was in any 'danger' - ha! Like that would happen. The man was a priest, for god's sake.

Issei felt dangerously loose, the whiplash of tension leaving him even a little light-headed. Kiba rolled his eyes at Issei's demeanor, sighing and looking away. "It is a shame, Freed-san, that I've left you on the back foot-"

"-not an issue." Freed cut off warmly. "I'm very glad to have met you."

"...I can only imagine." Kiba said tightly. Issei was wondering now, at this point-

"-do you two know each other?"

"No." Kiba said immediately.

Freed clicked his tongue happily. "Yes."

"Why're you lying Kiba?" Issei said, slightly drunk on his smugness. "Why're you a liar? Why d'you gotta lie like this?"

"Yeah Kiba-chan, why lie?" Freed's eyes seemed to be staring at Kiba somewhat...hungrily.

"I'm not lying." But to Issei's taunting eyes, it felt like a point. "I am not lying."

"Sure, Kiba."

"Hyoudou-san, would you mind stepping away? I need to have words with Mr. Sellzen here."

"I bet you do."

"What wonderful friends you two are." Freed spread his arms benevolently, impervious to Issei's loud retching sounds. "I'd love to get to know the two of you better; poor Ise-kun here - you don't mind me calling you Ise, do you? - had some questions of his own, and so do you it seems. I'd love to help you both."

Kiba's eyes slowly flicked between Freed and Issei. Issei sneered at him. "Thank you, but I'll need to decline your offer." Kiba said forcefully. Issei opened his mouth to make another smarmy comment, but the look Kiba shot him strangled the words. "Actually, me and Hyoudou-san here should really be going."

"I insist." Freed bit out.

"I decline."

"Can I not offer some tea-"

"I'm afraid I must decline, as poor a guest that makes me." Kiba's hand was entering vice levels of tightness on his shoulder, and Issei had somewhat abandoned the conversation to try to subtly pry the other boy's hand off. But he either had a fondness for hand-cracked walnuts or far too much time logged in front of a computer, because those fingers were not coming off goddamnit.

"Shame." Freed mused as Kiba hauled Issei around and pulled him away. Issei shot the man a brief backwards look, and those yellowed eyes were fixed very neatly on their backs. Issei picked up his pace a little, for reasons he didn't quite get.

Kiba's steps were long and hurried, and Issei found himself breaking into the occasional jog to keep up, as they continued the brisk pace along the shadowed overhang of the various storefronts. Issei couldn't even take potshots; one look at Kiba's expression left him shuddering. The crowd parted before them, and Kiba continued to push through briskly, the startled looks melting into appreciation and awe. Issei felt his mood continue to sour as he stumbled along. Like baggage.

Eventually they slowed, Kiba's pace gradually slowing as Issei's slight panting finally caught his ear. They slowly came to a stop in front of a small bakery.

"What the hell was that?!" Issei hissed. Kiba's expression once more sunk beneath his features, a placid one rising to the surface.

The boy began slowly rubbing his arm - his own arm! As though he hadn't tried to wrench Issei's bloody limb off! The nerve! The cheek! The bare-faced wherewithal to disregard him! Rude! What a rude child this was!

"You were lucky." The boy said calmly, ignoring Issei's souring (and perhaps edging on hysterical) expression. "Your two friends, Motohama and Matsuda? They caught me on the street corner and pointed me to Freed." His lip twisted a little. "Though they were recommending I have him burn me at the stake, I appreciated the tip-off."

"That's a great idea." Issei said immediately. "It's not even too late. Cold nights, you know."

"I will pass, Hyoudou-san."

"Like hell you will." Issei felt his teeth clench painfully. "What do you think you were doing. How dare-"

"I believe it is our school-mandated duty to aid our fellow classmates, and prevent them from doing something stupid." The self-righteous expression Issei could barely make out on his face was a harsh one; his eyes were certainly judging Issei in their depths, and he found how much it grated on him to be looked at like that. A lot, as it turned out. A lot a lot! He also, on an unrelated note, was reminded how much he hated blue eyes! And blonde hair! How simply detestable this man was.

Calm down Issei, he doesn't know everything, he doesn't understand

"I was asking him a question." Issei contained his frustration. "It's not like I wanted to be part of your shared history or anything! I just wanted to-to know something!"

"You were going to follow a strange man down an alley for a question."

"I wasn't gonna-" Issei fumbled a bit. "It was - like," Issei grew red, and somewhat heated. "I just needed something!"

"I can help instead." Kiba blinked placidly.

Huh?

"W-what?" Issei turned a bit and eyed him strangely. Kiba's face was calm, but there was an edge of honesty to the words he'd tossed out casually. Help him? With his personal task? Yuuto Kiba help him, instead of...go to parties or...date cute girls or whatever it was popular people did? He felt his anger vanish with his confusion, and felt himself get frustrated all over again. He wanted to be angry right now!

"Tell me your question. I'll try to help. It matters to you, and I'd rather avoid you throwing yourself into heedless danger any further."

"N-" Issei nearly stamped his foot. "You don't need to know!" This was his task - he didn't need another dude that Yuuma could compare him to! Kiba's popularicism would surely put the poor girl a-fluster! No! "This is my thing!" He glared at the other boy.

Kiba's expression closed itself off, and he took a step back, breaking Issei's impassioned glare. Issei watched him go warily, a little startled by the sudden movement.

"Is that right?" He said softly. "Well then, I apologize for butting in. I'll be seeing you."

What the fuck. Was he walking away?

He was. Kiba was stepping back, slowly moving away, with that damnably peaceful expression on his face. Like he'd won. Like he thought he was better than him.

Issei hated that face.

"Get back here!"

"Stay, go, make up your mind Hyoudou-san." Not even once did that expression crack. "Be more decisive. And stay away from Freed Sellzen, Hyoudou-san." He said, turning away. His cool demeanor nearly had Issei hopping in fury. "You don't need to be involved with such people. Just do whatever it is you want and be done with it without troubling anyone else."

"You don't get to decide that for me, you asshole!" Issei hissed. "You don't get to stay that like 'Oh, stupid Ise-kun, stay out of the way, you don't know anything, you're just gonna hurt yourself' like you're my mother!"

"That's exactly what I'm saying. But I won't be around to protect you next time." The parting shot drifted back to him, and he watched Kiba smoothly blend back into the crowd, walking swiftly away. Issei could only stand there dumbly, so angry he was frozen.

Protect?

Protect?

This was bullshit.