Chapter Thirty-Three - Don't Leave Without Me

Vin opened his eyes for the first time since going to bed, only to find himself surrounded by a hauntingly familiar darkness. It encompassed him from all sides, like a blanket that refused to be pulled away.

Then, with a start, it all clicked - and the only thing Vin could do was let out an exasperated sigh.

"So much for a good night's sleep…"

Vin floated within the dark expanse of the dream, just like he had every night. It would always remain the same, by the time he realized his situation, all the memories of dreams past would rush to fill his head once more; and by the time he woke up, they would all vanish like the nighttime breeze as it gives away to the morning sun.

"Bheithir, I know you're here," Vin shouted out into the endless black, "Just cut the theatrics already and come out."

The familiar sound of rumbling responded, shifting and scraping until once more, the world of his unconscious gained light once more. The sight of the blinding light's rays endlessly refracting off the sparkling, glass-like crystal body of his partner, who stared down at him with those piercing amber eyes.

Although, perhaps 'partner' was too generous at this point. Once upon a time, a few measly weeks ago, he was sure that the dragon was his ally. But the recent exchanges between the two within the waking world weighed heavily on his mind, and now, he remained questioning if his soul's little roommate had his best interests in mind.

"What is it, child?"

That disconnected voice questioned him. It always seemed to set his mind on edge. Try as he might, he'd never been able to pin down the point of the sound's origin. It wasn't natural at all, it seemed to come at him from every angle, yet none of them at all, like the words spoken to him by the living statue were being directly planted into his mind. But if that were the case, then how come he could feel his ears taking in the sound? Vin had never even seen the dragon open her mouth at all, perhaps it was simply impossible for it to do so…

Still, Vin refused to let the unsettling nature of her icy and unnatural baritone, and with a furrowed brow, Vin stepped forward, arms crossed.

"So… What's your goal here, Bheithir?"

"Pardon?"

"You heard me, what's your goal," Vin engaged, "Issei's dragon is simple enough to understand, he wants to defeat a rival of his. Same with Vali's dragon. It's simple, it's straightforward… Sure, it's not the safest goal for their partners, but hey, at least their dragons let them know about it. Meanwhile, with you… I've got nothing."

Bheithir remained silent, only shifting ever so slightly. So, Vin pressed on.

"You've been saying a whole bunch of things to me all this time. At first, it was all about growing stronger and learning about using my Gear, which I understand. I learned how to use it better, grew stronger, and the Gear evolved into its proper form. But now, you've been all cryptic about things," Vin began to pace back and forth on the gigantic palm of Bheithir's talon, "You've been telling me all about how I should still grow stronger, how I should be outgoing, to fight, and struggle, and evolve. Yet at the same time, when I get myself into trouble, unlike Issei or Vali's dragons, you aren't by my side to help me with the power that you obviously have. It's like it's all an inconvenience to you. You're giving me mixed signals here."

"Is this really all you have to tell me?" Bheithir grumbled, "Continue to stay your course, child. Nothing needs to change from what it is now. Why do you believe you need such an elaborate goal? It is not the nature of every creature to simply pursue a higher standard, a greater strength?"

"You're deflecting," Vin pointed out, "What I'm asking you is why you're so two-sided about all this. You claim that your goal is for me to grow stronger, but you're never there to help me. As of late, you've been a massive hypocrite. On one hand, it's 'grow stronger, achieve a greater power, challenge yourself', and then on the other it's, 'I won't bail you out again, your life is in your own hands now'."

"What's the fucking deal, Bheithir?!" Vin shouted, "Why exactly are you so damn obstinate? We're a team after all, so let's start acting like one!"

Vin cut himself off as the light surrounding him grew higher and higher in intensity, forcing him to squint his eyes, and shield his vision. Yet, he could still make out the massive figure of Bheithir begin to stand a little taller, her talon's flexing on the hand in which he stood.

"A team?" Bheithir made a noise that sounded like a scoff, "Don't be ridiculous. What we are is simply a little collector…"

Light began to overtake Vin's vision, forcing him to close his eyes. Bheithir's talons tensed back. A ringing pierced through Vin's ears, like the aftermath of a ruptured eardrum, leaving everything around him muffled. Yet still, her accursed voice still made its way to his brain, however quiet.

"... And his master…"

Bheithir's talons snapped into a fist, crushing the poor teen in his last moments.


Vin's eyes slammed open, as he shot up in bed. His chest heaved, as he took liberal gulps of air to fill his lungs. His entire frame, from his head down to his toes shuddered, the faintest of phantom pains flaring up, encompassing his entire body.

Vin hissed, looking down at his trembling digits, "...What the hell? Did I sleep on the wrong side of the bed?"

It was at that point when Vin realized that this was decidedly not his bed.

Flying up from his bedding, the teen's emerald eyes flitted around the room. A very large, open space, a couch of all things near the center of the room, a large desk, a coffee table, and gathered around the top left corner of the room, a mountain of cardboard boxes, some torn open, while others remained sealed.

Once more, Vin had awoken in a room he was not entirely familiar with.

Yet, when the revelation that he had found himself in this exact same situation at least three other times in the past year dawned on him, Vin found himself unable to do anything but massage his brow and let out a weak groan.

"…I feel like this is starting to become a habit…"

Slowly, Vin pried himself from the decedent and expensive covers, and got to his feet. Waddling over on unstable legs, Vin made his way over to the mountain of cardboard. Digging through, he quickly pulled out articles of clothing, throwing them on as he went without much care for fashion. First a simple pair of socks, then a fresh pair of boxers. A pair of faded navy blue jeans joined the ensemble soon enough. Finally, Vin's fingers latched onto the hem of a shirt's collar.

Quickly, the teen yanked the shift out from the piles in the bottom of the box and held it before him. A long-sleeved black t-shirt, with a pearlescent pattern of reflective vinyl that arced along the right side of the shirt, from the shoulder down to the hem.

Oh.

This shirt was something he had all but forgotten about. But when faced with it again, he couldn't help but dredge up the memories in perfect detail. Memories of his first outing with his new found family back in Italy, the crazy shopping mall trip where Vanessa used him like a dress-up doll.

Vin smiled wistfully. Simpler times…

Which was really saying something, because a group of armed robbers came to take the entire place hostage on that trip.

All the more reason to enjoy the summer before him. He had two months to simply relax, and hang out with his friends before going back to school starting with the next semester after the summer vacation. Nothing could sully that…

Determined to fill the grumbling need for sustenance in his stomach, Vin pushed through the door leading out into the hall of the Hyoudou residence's third floor.

The long hallway was as immaculately decorated as his bedroom. Walking past various gorgeous paintings of landscapes and seasides that hung in the spaces between doors, Vin made his way out of the one end of the 3rd floor hall, into the large stairwell that led down to the entranceway.

Making his way down, the teen wearily eyes the collection of numerous suitcases that crowded a space near the front door. Deciding not to give it all much thought, Vin took a left, striding into the large, well-lit space that was the Hyoudou's new kitchen/dining room.

Not exactly to his surprise, he found the massive table already filled with the rest of his peers, each one of them snacking away at the plates of breakfast set before them. As he set foot into the room, Issei poked his head up from his food, perking up when seeing the teen.

"Good morning Vin," Issei greeted with a small wave, sparking the rest of the group to turn their heads upward, each mumbling out their own version of a greeting.

"Morning," Vin made his way over to an empty seat at the table, the seat right at the end, to the left of Kiba.

Soon enough, Mrs. Hyoudou came out of the kitchen, wheeling out a cart with various items, jars of creams, china, sugar, a pot of coffee, and a plate stacked with rice, fish, and some egg.

"Here you go, dear," Mrs. Hyoudou set the plate of breakfast in front of Vin, "Would you like a coffee?"

"Sure, that would be great, thank you," Vin graciously nodded, a cup of coffee sounded perfect.

"And how would you like it?"

Vin hummed, "Two creams, one sugar please."

"Absolutely," Mrs. Hyoudou quickly mixed the drink, gently setting down the cup of steaming brew in front of Vin, "You enjoy your breakfast now."

"Right, thank you so much," Vin smiled, taking his coffee, gently blowing on the contents, before taking a small sip, shivering in delight as the liquid gold warmed his palette and brought energy back to his body.

"So, how was your first night here, Vin?" Rias asked from her spot across the table, to Issei's right.

"It was really nice, thanks for asking. Although, truth be told, I was a bit unnerved at first, since it's such a change of peace from what I'm used to," Vin awkwardly scratched his head, "Not a bad thing, mind you."

"Of course not," Rias smiled, "Well, I'm glad that you're enjoying your new lodgings. I'll admit, I was a bit… hesitant when my brother informed me that someone outside my peerage would be living with us, but my worries were quickly dashed when I learned that it would be you who would join us."

"She's right," Kiba smiled, "It's great that you're here. I still have to thank you for all the help during the Excalibur incident."

"Ah, thanks guys, you're going to make me blush," Vin smiled, picking up his cup for another drink.

"Oh, that's right," Vin lowered the cup from his lips, "I noticed a ton of suitcases by the door. Are you guys all planning a trip or something?"

"Actually, yes. We're planning on visiting my family home over the summer," Rias sipped at her tea, a small smile dancing across her features.

Vin gawked, eyes darting to the end of the room, checking to make sure that Issei's parents were well out of earshot.

"When you mean your family home, do you mean?"

"In the underworld?" Rias finished for him, "Yes, that's correct."

"Well…" Vin slumped back in his seat, "That certainly sounds like quite the adventure."

"You're coming too kid. You know that, right?"

All eyes snapped over to the end of the table, where Azazel sat, a mug of coffee already sitting steaming in his hands. The Governor General flashed them all a crooked smirk, before taking a deep swig of his drink.

"You have got to stop doing that," Rias sighed, placing her hand over her heart.

"But why should I when you all react in such a great way?" Azazel retorted, "Anyway, like I was saying, since I'm now your club's supervisor, that means I get a plus one for this little trip. So the kid's coming along too."

Rias shrugged, "I don't have any complaints. He's more than welcome to join us when we leave today."

Vin froze a moment before his food was about to enter his mouth, "Wait… When are we leaving?"

"Today."

Vin's eyebrows shot up into his hairline. However, instead of exploding out into a burst of panic, the teen slowly set down his utensils, and got up from his seat.

"If you excuse me, I have to go take care of something of the utmost importance," Vin spoke quietly, so silent, it was practically a whisper.

"Of course, go do what you need to," Rias nodded.

The next thing anyone knew, Vin was sprinting out of the kitchen, back up to the third floor.


"I… Made… It…"

Vin stood panting at the front door. Without a suitcase of his own, the boy was left with an overstuffed backpack, and a duffel bag slung over his front.

"Well done," Rias congratulated, "Now, shall we go? The Gremory Train is waiting for us."

"Gremory Train?" Issei spoke the question on everyone's mind.

"You'll see when we get there," Rias winked, before casting a magic circle that lit up the ground beneath their feet.

The next thing Vin knew, he and the rest of the group were standing inside some decrepit storefront of some sort. Old merchandise lined the shelves and counters all around the group, the layers of grey dust that lined all the items indicating that they hadn't been touched in years.

"Where are we?" Asia asked aloud.

Rias didn't spare a glance as she made her way towards the storefront, flanked by Kiba and Koneko. Meanwhile, Akeno turned around to face the group with a smile.

"This is a little shop owned by the Gremory family. As you can see, it's no longer open. However, it serves as a great place to warp to. Buchou's family owns several such locations around town," Akeno giggled, "After all, it wouldn't do for regular humans to spot a group of teenagers suddenly appearing out of nowhere."

Rias pushed open the door to the store, as the early morning sunshine filtered into the building. Slowly but surely, the group filed out, only to find themselves spat out across the street from Kuoh's train station.

"Hmmm… That's convenient," Azazel rubbed his chin, "That also explains all the random vacancies around town…"

"Indeed," Rias nodded, "However, now's not the time to dwell on that. We have a train to catch. Follow me, everyone."

Vin trailed Rias and her peerage as they made their way across the street and into the station. A location that Vin had become somewhat familiar with now, having used it when first arriving into Kuoh for his mission. Yet, surrounded by friends, the sensation of despair and fear that had been etched into his bones felt ages away.

A brief smile graced his features. They beat the odds, and they all lived in spite of it. It kind felt good to stand in that same spot where the mission had properly begun, and be stronger in spite of it all.

Following behind, Vin passed into the main lobby of the building, where the group gathered near the small elevator that led people to the various train platforms.

As he approached, Rias performed a quick head count, before nodding in satisfaction. Pressing the button to call the lift, Rias and Akeno stepped into the rather cramped space as the doors opened.

"Issei, Asia, Xenovia, you three will come with us," Rias directed the teens inside, before turning to the others, "Once we're off, Kiba, can you and Koneko take Azazel and Vin down?"

"Of course," Kiba nodded gratuitously.

"Wonderful, we'll see you on the other side then," Rias smiled as the hydraulic doors to the elevator slid closed with a hiss.

"So…" Vin hummed, "I'm kinda curious, how are we exactly supposed to get into the underworld via train, of all things? I'm not exactly seeing 'Hell' listed as a destination on any of the lines."

"We aren't taking those trains," Koneko replied in her ever-flat tone.

"Okaaaay… Then what train are we taking, because this place only has three platforms."

As the elevator doors once more slid open, Kiba turned to Vin with a grin, pulling out a keycard from his wallet, "How about I show you?"

Filing into the elevator, Vin found himself wedged tightly into a corner of the small chamber. Peeking over Azazel's shoulder, Vin saw as Kiba tapped his keycard over an unmarked space above the elevator buttons, and suddenly, with a lurch, the elevator that was previously on the ground floor began to descend.

"Oh~ So it's like the Vatican, I get it."

Kiba turned back, "The Vatican has elevators that operate like this?"

"Yep, just instead of a keycard, it's a key that you'd put into a lock to unlock a panel with a keypad. Then, if you punched in the passcode for the corresponding floor, you'd get sent down there."

Kiba hummed, right before the chime of the elevator cut the conversation short.

"We're here," Kiba smiled, as the doors opened.

Stepping out of the elevator, Vin paused to take in the sight. Despite obviously being underground, the platform was lit up with a sky just like it was outdoors. On the rails in front of the platform stood a majestic train engine. Each of its cars glistened a deep crimson, the machine was nothing short of breathtaking to an aspiring engineer like himself.

"We better get on, Buchou and the others have already boarded," Kiba encouraged the group onward, stepping up to the train, and hopping through the door of the second cabin.

Vin followed shortly after, hoisting himself inside, as he glanced around at the train car. Now, Vin had been on a fair few trains throughout his life, and not a single one of them was anything like the interior of this particular train cabin.

Instead of rows of seats, the entire layout was open in concept. A spattering of chairs and couches all over the room. A bar top with stools against one of the back walls, a large semi-circle of a couch smack-dab in the middle of the room with a large coffee table centered in between. Frankly, it was more akin to a fully decorated living room or lounge than a train car.

Regardless, Vin plopped down on a spot on the couch next to Xenovia, who was staring at the other end of the furniture, as Rias, Akeno, and Asia grappled for Issei.

"Uh… What are those four doing?" Vin leaned over to his girlfriend.

"Pursuing skinship," Xenovia replied.

Vin shook his head, "Sorry, what?"

"They do this quite a bit," Xenovia shrugged, "Perhaps we should try it ourselves. After all, they say skinship is an effective method to grow closer."

Brain screeching to a halt, Vin froze. A variety of images raced through his head, each one more lewd than the last.

"Do you like what you see?"

"I'm ready for you, Vin~"

"Vin, I'm so close~"

Vin shrugged off his backpack suddenly, standing up from his seat, and marching towards the bar top, where he snatched up a handful of tissues, pressing them against his nose.

"Vin, are you alright?" Xenovia stood up in concern.

Vin turned around, one hand holding the tissues to his nose, while his free hand flashed her a thumbs up, "Yep, never been better!"

From across the room, the scandalized voice of Rias Gremory drew the attention of everyone else aboard. Looking towards the couch, Vin saw that Issei had somehow gotten his index finger trapped within Akeno's mouth, with Asia and Rias fuming from his left and behind him respectfully.

"Akeno, don't you dare try to steal my beloved Issei away from me!" Rias cried, "I will warn you, anything you try to do, I shall simply outcompete you!"

Vin looked on at Issei, who rapidly grew paler as he became the center of the girl's feud. While it was a bit cruel, Vin snickered at the sight. Trouble in paradise…

Slowly, Vin watched as an older man in a freshly pressed uniform silently slipped into the cabin, making his way into the room without disruption at all, a mark of a truly skilled worker. The emerald eyes of the Fallen teen locked onto the man as he approached Rias from behind.

"Lady Rias, while I encourage you to communicate freely with your servants, if I may, could I ask you to follow proper procedure for the time being?"

The spooked screech of Rias silenced all conversation in the group, all heads turning to face the man who had just arrived.

"Oh my~ That there might be a time in which I have seen my Lady act as a proper young woman. Truthfully, it brings me great joy that I have lived long enough to see such a thing," The man chuckled.

Rias covered her rapidly reddening face in her hands and whimpered pathetically.

"Allow me to introduce myself. Familia of Rias Gremory, my name is Reynald, I've served as the conductor of the Gremory Family's private train for the last five hundred years."

"It's a pleasure to meet you!" Issei stood up, bowing at the waist, "My name is Issei Hyoudou, Buchou- er, Rias Gremory's Pawn."

Asia and Xenovia soon followed.

"I'm Asia Argento, her Bishop, pleased to meet you."

"Xenovia. I'm Rias' newest Knight. All the best."

Vin slowly stepped forward, tissues long since abandoned. Reynald turned to him in slight confusion.

"Ah, and you are?"

Vin bowed as gracefully as possible, "Vincenzo Corsetti, sir. Newly reincarnated Fallen Angel under the service of Governor General Azazel. It's nice to meet you."

"I see," Raynald dug into his uniform blazer, producing a small device, not too dissimilar to a thermometer gun, "While I scan these three, may you please produce a piece of valid identification?"

"Um… What kind?" Vin walked over to his bag resting on the couch.

"A driver's license, passport, health card, insurance card, anything of that sort," Raynald replied, scanning over Issei, and with a nod, switching to Xenovia.

"Let me see here…" Vin dug out his wallet, flipping it open, and rifling through his cards, only to realize one small detail.

His entire existence and connection to the Corsetti family was expunged. While he'd largely forgotten about it, he'd legally been going under a different last name the past nine months.

So staring down at his debit card, moped license, and insurance card, all listing him as 'Vincenzo Romano' caused Vin to silently panic.

Xenovia came and sat down beside him, watching as Reynald began to scan Asia.

"That's quite the convenient technology, isn't it Vin," Xenovia turned to remark to her boyfriend, only to see his sweating, nervous wreck of an expression, "Vin, what's wrong?"

"I'm screwed," Vin whispered.

"What do you mean?"

Vin tilted his wallet to show Xenovia, "I introduced myself as Vincenzo Corsetti. But legally, that's not who I actually am!"

"What?!" Xenovia hissed, her eyebrows shooting up.

"The Vatican changed my last name to distance me from my family!"

"Now, Mr. Corsetti, was it?" Reynald turned to face the teen, "May you show me a valid piece of ID?"

"Um… Well… About that…" Vin sweated, "Is this really necessary? I mean, I'm with them, and they all checked out fine."

"Mr. Corsetti," Reynald's voice turned grim, "I have operated this train for nearly five hundred years now. In my time, I have stopped several cases of identity theft, smuggling, and even two terrorist attacks. I have seen everything that there is to see, and as such, there is no form of trickery that can deceive me."

Reynald thrust his hand out, "Now, your identification, Mr. Corsetti."

"What if I told you that I had a brain fart, and actually, my name was Vincenzo Romano?" Vin smiled nervously.

"Get the hell off my train."


"You can't be serious!" Vin yelled from the station platform, "It's not my fault I got my name changed! Look, my girlfriend is in that cabin, she can vouch for me!"

"That may be so," Reynald stood in the entranceway of the cabin, "But we have a policy here, and if you simply cannot produce the proper ID that matches the name you obviously greeted me with, then as a matter of principle, I cannot allow you to ride the Gremory Family train."

"You're joking…" Vin snarled, "I demand to speak to your manager!"

"I am the manager here."

"You're seriously going to kick me out?! Just like that? What about Azazel? My boss is on that train!"

"Is your boss carrying your ID for you?" Reynald raised a brow.

"I don't know! Maybe?"

The conductor sighed, "We're almost a full ten minutes overdue to depart. I'm sorry sir, but you simply don't have the proper identification. We need to leave."

"Wait, wait, wait!" Vin yelled, running up to the train, only for Reynald to shut the cabin door, "Hey, you can't do this to me! What the fuck am I supposed to do?!"

The gigantic train let out a massive hiss, and before slowly beginning to lurch forward.

"Hey! Waaaiiittt!" Vin ran after the train along the platform, yelling and cursing after it. Before the train disappeared in a burst of purple light, causing Vin to sink to his knees on the now-empty and abandoned station platform.

"Fine! I didn't want to ride your stupid fucking train anyway!" Vin shouted to nothing but the empty space which the Gremory Train once occupied.

Fuming in anger, Vin turned to the nearest object, a poor, innocent trash can, and with a yell, he swung his foot, denting the steel to a considerable degree.

"DAMN IT!"


As the train took off, the peerage of Rias Gremory sat in a stunned silence. None of them quite managed to comprehend exactly what happened. Except for Xenovia, who sat fuming silently, her foot bouncing over and over to help burn off her anger.

"So… What exactly happened just now?" Issei asked.

"What did it look like? Vin got kicked off," Xenovia growled.

"Yeah, I get that. I'm just wondering why he did."

Xenovia finally relented her bouncing, massaging her temples.

"How much has Vin told you about his past?"

"I think Akeno knows the most," Issei replied, turning to the Queen, "You two were talking about stuff like that before, right?"

"No, he didn't say anything important," Akeno brushed off, eyes narrowing for a moment, "Look, he didn't have what he needed, whatever. It's a shame, but it's not like he's part of our family anyway."

Xenovia glared daggers at Akeno, "Excuse me?"

"All I'm saying is that this was a trip for our peerage to go on, he was always a plus-one. So honestly, his absence doesn't mean much."

"Take that back right now," Xenovia spat, "He's as much a member of our group as anyone else is."

"Actually, he's not," Akeno retorted, "He's not a devil, he doesn't carry an Evil Piece, he won't be coming with us into any Rating Games. Hell, he only 'joined' our group yesterday. I have no clue why he's even living with us. But hey, I guess that's just what happens when a Fallen Angel plans your lodgings. Guess their title as watchers is correct, they always want eyes everywhere."

"Are you insinuating that he's a spy?"

"Can you prove he's not?" Akeno sniped back.

"I know he's not. He's not that kind of person."

"Right, because he's your boyfriend. 'Love blinds', I suppose."

The look on Xenovia's face turned downright murderous.

"Say that again… I dare you…"

Gasper shrieking back into his box spurred Issei into action.

"Enough!" Issei shouted, standing up in front of the two, "Akeno, that was off-side."

"But Issei-!" Akeno froze as she saw Issei's glare.

"Just because I can see why you would say that, it doesn't mean you're in the right, Akeno," Issei said, "Apologize."

"Fine," Akeno relented, getting up from her seat, "I'm sorry, I guess. I'm going to use the washroom."

With a slam, Akeno exited the train car, leaving the group alone once more.

Xenovia gripped the material of her skirt in fistfuls as she sucked in breaths through her teeth. Turning to her, Issei slowly approached the volatile knight.

"Are you going to blow up at us?" He asked simply.

"No. Not at you all," Xenovia shook her head, slowly releasing her hold on her clothing, "I'm just… Argh! How could she say that?! Vin's a good person."

"We know," Issei reassured, "We all know that Vin is a great guy, don't worry."

"Everything's alright back here?" The door connecting the front car opened up with a slide, revealing Azazel, "I know we got a long trip, but isn't it a bit too early to be slamming stuff back here?"

Red eyes roving over the train car, Azazel's eyes widened a fraction of an inch, "Wait, where's Vin?"

Issei scratched the back of his head sheepishly.

"Well, about that…"


"Man, this game was significantly easier than the last generation," Vin grumbled, setting his Nintendo 3DS on the bench seat to his left as the credits of Pokemon Y scrolled along the dual screens.

"So, do you think that they noticed that I was gone by now?" Vin asked his legs, "I mean, they have to have, right?"

[Why are you asking me, child?] Bheithir grumbled, [Did I ever claim to be all-knowing? Do not ask me such pointless questions and squander my peace.]

Vin took a swig of water that he bought from a vending machine, "Geez, what crawled up your ass and died?"

[You did, child.]

Vin snorted, choking back on his water.

"Wow. Okay, I did not expect you to reply like that. Why didn't you ever tell me you had jokes?"

[You simply never asked.]

"Fair enough," Vin conceded, staring up at the ceiling of the platform's pavilion.

"Hey Bheithir, if we could go on a trip anywhere, where would you want to go?" Vin asked, "I mean, who knows? We might have a pretty free summer now, might as well use it to go somewhere nice."

[...]

"Bheithir?"

[While I appreciate the sentiment, no one can take a vacation back in time.]

"Well I don't know, maybe we can. We'd just have to find something that reminds you of those times."

[I'm not exactly looking to remember.]

"I see…" Vin closed his 3DS, placing it back into his backpack, before shifting his gaze back out to the platform, "Well, perhaps we could at least find someplace nice for you out there. It's a wide world after all."

Vin's phone buzzing in his pocket broke off the conversation. The teen standing up and fishing the device out of his pocket. Reading the caller ID, Vin immediately hit accept, and shoved the cell phone up to his ear.

"Azazel! I'm so sorry, but-"

Azazel's withering sigh cut off his tirade, "It's alright kid, I heard the story from the others. It's not your fault, I didn't even really consider the fact that you're legally under a different name."

"So… What's the plan?" Vin asked, pacing slowly back and forth.

"The path we're taking is the fastest one to the Gremory Family Territory, but it's not the only one. We're lucky that we caught this in the first hour of our little five hour trip," The Governor General explained, "I've made a call, and I'm having someone come pick you up. It's going to be slower, but if you enter the underworld through the Grigori, and then get a ride out from there to the Gremory Residence, you should be able to arrive… Eh, around dinner-time, perhaps?"

Vin pinched his brow, "Well, it's better than nothing. What do I have to do?"

"For now?" Azazel asked rhetorically, "Nothing really. Just grab your stuff and wait outside the station, he'll know what you look like."

"Gotcha. Anything else?"

"Nope, that's it. Talk to you later, kid. Don't hesitate to call if something happens on the way."

"Right. See you."

With a click, Vin hung up. Pocketing his phone, he bent down to grab his bags.

"Whelp. I guess that's all I can do, huh?" Vin slung his backpack over his shoulder and scooped up his duffel bag, before heading towards the elevator up, "Waiting shouldn't be bad… Yeah, I can wait…"


Two Hours Later

"Holy shit, I lied," Vin groaned, face resting in his hands as he sat hunched over on a bench out front of Kuoh's local train station, "This is the worst…"

Despite being used to far warmer in his home city of Rome, Vin couldn't help feeling worn down sitting under the hot rays of the Japanese summer sun.

"You'll be back around dinner time," Vin impersonated, "Tch. Yeah sure, I'll be there by dinner time, if they're having dinner at a quarter to midnight."

Vin weakly lifted his head out of the cradle of his hands, gazing around the passerby. For the past while, this had been what he was doing: people watching. It wasn't exactly interesting, but hey, it was preferable to doing nothing.

Except that it only ever seemed to remind him how homogenous the Japanese were as a people. Most people have some shade of brown or black hair, usually in pretty similar styles. Office workers in suits, housewives carrying bags of groceries. All the same, every single day.

Which is why the stoic monolith of a man that suddenly entered his vision caught his attention so quickly. Clad in a grey suit, the man's sheer height and presence easily eclipsed those of any other person milling around in the crowd.

As the man approached the station, Vin began to recognize more details, his beard, his hairstyle, all of it evoked some feeling of deja-vu within the teen.

The man stopped a foot from where the teen was sitting.

"Vin, I presume?" The man's deep, gravely voice called out.

"That's me," Vin nodded.

"Good. Azazel called me to escort you to the Grigori," The man explained, while extending a hand to the boy, "I never got to introduce myself, I am Baraqiel, Cadre of the Grigori. I believe this is the second time we've met now."

"Baraqiel…" Vin repeated, as the gears turned in his mind, "Wait, you're the guy who showed up to take Kokabiel away!"

"Indeed," The fallen nodded, "I'm glad to see that you've remembered me."

Vin reciprocated the Cadre's handshake, all while getting to his feet, "Yeah. Thanks for that, by the way."

"It's no problem," Baraqiel dismissed, "It was a task that had to be done regardless. I'm shocked that your group was able to injure someone as skilled as Kokabiel that much by the time we arrived."

Vin hoisted up his bags, "We got lucky, that was all."

The two began to walk through the crowds, heading away from the station.

"Luck has nothing to do with it," Baraqiel countered, "Take pride in your accomplishments. Facing down someone like Kokabiel, and not only living to tell the tale, but to also grievously injure him? That's not something just anyone can do."

"..." Vin ruminated on the Cadre's words, before shoving them aside. After all, they weren't dealing with Kokabiel any longer, "So, where exactly are we headed?"

"Here," Baraqiel pivoted.

"An alley?" Vin raised a brow.

"We'd do best to not have eyes on us."

Vin shrugged, tailing Baraqiel as they headed further into the alleyway, until they reached a dead end. The Cadre performed a quick scan of his surroundings, before reaching into his suit's blazer, pulling out a small, black object emblazoned in gold with the sigil of a winged, inverted cross. An object not too dissimilar from a passport.

"Here, grab hold of my hand," Baraqiel encouraged, "That way, both of us may pass through to the Grigori."

Silently, Vin stepped forward, latching his left hand onto Baraqiel's right, holding onto his duffel bag with his other.

"You may want to brace yourself," Baraqiel warned, "Travelling to the underworld for the first time through a method such as instant transmission can be strenuous on the body."

The passport in Baraqiel's hand pulsed brightly with golden light, which overtook Vin's vision, forcing the teen to close his eyes. For a brief moment, Vin's stomach lurched and heaved, hit by a massive wave of nausea, as if a full day on the sea had hit him all at once in the span of a second.

Suddenly, the sound of countless voices speaking and bustling around filled Vin's senses.

"We're here," Baraqiel prompted Vin to open his eyes, the sight utterly enrapturing the young fallen.

Where they now stood was a massive circular chamber. Nearly as big as a full convention center. People lined up in a variety of queues, and groupings of them stood in a large center platform that, with a hiss, began to sink down into the floor.

"Is this…" Vin spoke breathlessly.

"Indeed. Welcome to the Grigori," Baraqiel nodded, "This is our primary entranceway. This is where everyone enters the Grigori from. Think of it like a human airport."

Vin nodded in understanding.

"Follow me, we shall take a service lift to get to our destination faster. We need to tend to a few things before we leave."

"What kinds of things?"

"First of all, we need to get you one of these," Baraqiel held up the passport, "This will allow you to freely travel to the Grigori on your own."

Vin had to admit, that did sound rather enticing.

"Sounds great, lead the way."

With that, Baraqiel began to take off, walking across the crowds of people who all moved to the side to make way for the Cadre. Vin awkwardly slinked behind him, trying his hardest to tune out the whispered gossip and theories of the other fallen in the area, all of whom seemed very interested in who exactly he was, and what he was doing with a Cadre.

Thankfully, the quick made it to their destination across the room, a much smaller elevator that lined one of the walls. Stepping into the tube-like elevator, Baraqiel tapped his passport to the panel, and then pushed a button, causing the doors to shut, and the elevator to begin its descent.

It was in this entirely clear glass elevator that Vin could gaze out across the Grigori. Staring in awe at the landscape. Massive, jutting towers, all crammed as close together as possible. They all bulged and leaned in unnatural ways, rooms and chambers affixed to the sides in an almost haphazard way. While the tower in which they travelled down was the largest, each of the buildings seemed to try and reach as close to the sky as possible. Nearly impossible in their height.

"I'm not aware is Azazel ever spoke to you about the Grigori's situation," Baraqiel commented, "But due to our bustling population, and relative lack of space to accommodate them all, we've had to take creative approaches into maximizing the amount of space we have available."

"I can see that…" Vin continued to gaze out at the sights.

"So, with the little space we had, we've built upward. Many of our buildings serve multiple uses, in order to try and make the most use of space as possible. The building we're currently in, the Babel Building, occupies all of the Grigori's research facilities, its archives, as well as its government."

"Babel Building? Like, the Tower of Babel?" Vin asked.

"Indeed. When this building project was in its infancy, Azazel had famously declared that we would be building a 'Heaven of our own creation'," Baraqiel explained, "With all these towers that reach as far into the sky as possible, and given our origins, it's not hard to see what Azazel was speaking about. It's not the prettiest compared to our former home, but it's our own, and that's more than enough for us."

Vin could empathize with that. A home of your own creation… He lost his home too, and just when he thought he had found a new one, that too was ripped out from under his feet. Now, he hoped that this new home would be one that could weather the inevitable storms.

The elevator slowed to a halt, the door sliding open seamlessly.

"Follow me," Baraqiel instructed.

The two fallen made their way into a large, corridor-like room. The sides of the chamber were lined with desks, each one seating a fallen angel who typed away on a computer, or scribbled away with pens, flipping through mountains of paperwork.

"This is the room where all the important paperwork for the Grigori flows through for approval," Baraqiel mentioned, as they moved deeper and deeper into the room, "And in the end, it all flows through one man."

"One guy?" Vin looked around at the sheer volume of physical paperwork in the room, "Who the hell could manage all of that?"

"I believe you'll see in a moment," Baraqiel remarked, as they finally reached the foot of a large desk, situated right at the end of the room.

Well, Vin assumed it was a desk. The unimaginable amounts of papers stacked up on top, in front, and beside the thing made the shape of a desk pretty hard to make out.

"Ahem," Baraqiel cleared his throat loudly, "Shemhazai, I have business that we need to discuss."

"Baraqiel?" A rustling emerged from behind the stack of papers, revealing a young adult with a head of silvery hair, "What's the matter?"

The fallen's purple eyes fell to Vin, "Is that the human that Azazel reincarnated?"

"I'm glad to see you're as sharp as ever," Baraqiel remarked, "Indeed he is. Vin, this is Shemhazai, Cadre of the Grigori, and in fact, the Grigori's Vice-Governor General. Shemhazai, this is Vincenzo Corsetti, as you've already deduced, the human that Azazel recently reincarnated."

"Yes, it's wonderful to meet you," Shemhazai nodded, "It's also wonderful to see that we've finally moved beyond the stage where assimilation with the modified evil pieces would result in the rather gruesome death of the victim."

Vin grew a few shades paler.

"Yeah… It's good to meet you too…" Vin croaked out.

"Anyhow, Baraqiel, while it's delightful that you're here to visit me, I'd like to know what you need from me. I'm rather busy at the moment, with all this paperwork regarding the recent summit. Not to give any mention to how much work Azazel's foisted onto me after assuming the position as a chemistry teacher and club chaperone, of all things."

"Of course, we need to get a Grigori Pass for Vin here."

"Vincenzo Corsetti? So V.C., huh…" Shemhazai hummed, before raising his left hand, a magic circle appearing in the air in front of his open palm. Reaching into the circle, Shemhazai rooted around for a moment, before pulling out a single black passport, nearly identical to Baraqiel's.

Tossing it over to Vin, who caught it with one hand, Shemhazai returned to behind his desk.

"I anticipated such a visit, so I filled this out as soon as I got his registration papers," Shemhazai called over his walls of paperwork, "I trust that the information is accurate?"

Vin flipped open the passport, scanning over the identification. To his shock, everything, from his birth date, height, weight, to his real last name was present. The only things missing were a signature, fingerprint, and his photo.

"How… How did you get all this stuff?" Vin asked in disbelief, "The Vatican changed all my documents. Even my birth certificate."

"That's implying that we didn't already have them on file before they changed them," Shemhazai shot back, "We're called watchers for a reason, after all."

"Right…"

"Anyway, just take that to Janet in registration services, she'll help you with the rest," Shemhazai waved, "It was nice to meet you, but if you excuse me, I must return to my work. I have several hundred stacks of paperwork to sign off on before the day's out."

"Of course, thanks Shemhazai," Baraqiel nodded, directing Vin away from the overworked Vice-Governor General, and towards a blue-haired woman's desk on the left side of the room."

Looking up, the woman floundered back, "Ah, Baraqiel, sir! How can I help you today?"

"Actually, we're just finishing up registration for a Grigori pass. Shemhazai sent us over here."

"Oh, he did?" Janet turned to look at Vin, "Hello sweetie, could I have you pass for a moment?"

"Sure thing," Vin set the passport on an open section of her desk, which she quickly took.

"Wonderful," Janet nodded, as she looked over the contents, before pressing a button on her desk.

"Huh?!" Vin flinched as a massive white screen shot up from the floor right behind him.

"Turn right here sweetie, and give me a straight face," Janet signaled, having stood up from her desk, a digital camera in her hands.

Somewhat bewildered, Vin simply compiled, and endured the harsh flash of the camera. Opening his eyes up once again, he was surprised to find that the screen was already gone, and Janet was once more behind her desk, typing away quickly.

"Great!" Janet placed the open passport on the desk, alongside a black pen, "Now, all I need you to do is sign on this line here, and then press your finger on this pad, and then onto the box right there."

"Okay," Vin quickly scratched down his full name, and following her instruction's, placed his thumb onto the ink pad, only to reel back when the ink began to glow with a gold light.

"It's alright," Janet reassured, "We use this to tie your unique magic signature to your Grigori pass. Having it glow just means it's working."

Nodding, Vin pressed his thumb firmly onto the passport, which glowed one more time. Slowly lifting his thumb off, Vin found his thumbprint left a shimmering gold on the passport's card, despite the fact that the ink was originally black.

"There you go!" Janet smiled, "You're now an official citizen of the Grigori, congratulations!"

Vin rubbed the back of his head, taking back his passport, "Ah, thank you."

"Anytime. Have a wonderful day, you two."

Baraqiel gave a thankful bow, before waving for Vin to follow him out of the hallway.

The two men waited out front of the chamber for the elevator, listening to the ever so faint elevator music play through the speakers in the hallway.

"So, what's next?" Vin asked after a moment of silence.

"Next, we get you a ride to the Gremory domain," Baraqiel revealed as the elevator opened up for them.

"How am I going to get there? I don't suppose you guys have an airport or anything like that?" Vin questioned, as the elevator began to sink down the side of the Babel Building once more.

"We'll drive there," Baraqiel answered simply, "It will be a long drive, but realistically, it's the only way to get into the Gremory domain as a Fallen."

"Uh…" Vin's brain flashed with all the recent memories of his little identity crisis.

As if sensing his thoughts, Baraqiel set a hand on the teen's shoulder, "Relax, thanks to new regulations with the summit, all you need to pass through to the Gremory domain is your Grigori pass."

"Oh thank goodness," Vin breathed a sigh of relief, "So, I suppose I'm taking a bus or something?"

The elevator halted, as Baraqiel smiled, "Not quite."

The doors slid open, Vin's eyes opening wide as saucers at the sight before them.

"Azazel, ever the showman, figured you would like to appear in something a little more 'flashy'. He said to consider it his apology for this little mix-up."

A massive smirk grew across the teen's face. Now this was one hell of a compensation.


It was safe to say that by the time Issei had arrived at the Gremory Family Estate, he was thoroughly exhausted. Not a single person had expected their ever-so-smooth train ride to be interrupted by a damn dragon of all things. Despite getting a nice soak in the hot springs after, every single one of his bones ached something fierce, and his exhaustion was nearing critical levels. Likely in part to going over his boost limit during his little scuffle with that dragon Tannin.

Yeesh, Ddraig could say they were all he wanted, but deep down, Issei really hoped that he wouldn't have to meet the Blaze Meteor Dragon again anytime soon…

But hey, the celebration they were getting was certainly an interesting experience. Truthfully, after the recent tussles where he'd been told how inadequate he was, to see so many people celebrate their return was just the self-esteem boost he needed.

Walking past both the adoring crowds, and the majestic golden gates that marked the entrance to the Gremory Family Estate, the group was met with rows upon rows of people dressed up like maids and butlers. Each one of them bowing deeply at the waist with practiced elegance. By the time that peerage made their way to the courtyard proper, all the servants spoke in unison.

"Welcome home, Lady Rias!"

The Crimson Princess beamed happily, "Thank you everyone. It's a pleasure to be home."

"Lady Rias, welcome home," Grayfia emerged from the crowds of servants, her appraising eyes passing over the group, "Governor General, I was under the belief that you were to meet with Lord Lucifer, not join us here."

"That was the plan," Azazel admitted, "One of the kids got left behind, and had to go into the Underworld through the Grigori. He's due here any moment now. When he gets here, I'll take his place, and head over to Sirzechs. Don't worry, I've alerted Sirzechs beforehand."

"I see. Well then, we'll keep an eye out for them as we proceed," Grayfia turned around, "We've prepared some carriages to take you all to the main residence. If you'll follow me."

Grayfia led them into a variety of carriages, pulled by large, powerful steeds, the likes of which were unseen on the surface world.

"I'll ride with my servants," Rias volunteered, "They're all a little nervous, so it might be best if Issei, Asia and Xenovia ride with me and Akeno."

Xenovia glared daggers at Akeno, "Actually Buchou, while I appreciate the offer, me and Kiba were having a gripping conversation about sword tactics before we got interrupted by that dragon, and I would really like to continue that discussion."

"Really?" Rias asked, not sounding entirely convinced. Akeno, for her part, narrowed her eyes at Xenovia.

"Yes. How about you take Gasper with you?" Xenovia offered, "After all, he's usually more out of place than the rest of us, and he's the most comfortable around you and Issei."

Issei glanced over at the blue-haired swordswoman, a message passed between them mutually.

Eventually, Issei sighed, "She does have a point, Buchou."

"Issei…" Rias turned to her beloved pawn before sighing, "Alright then, I'll ride in this carriage with Issei, Asia, Akeno and Gasper."

The bag-headed Dhampir waddled blindly over to the group, Rias gently helping him into the carriage before the Rias' pawn, queen, and other bishop joined her, along with Grayfia. Before the carriage took off with a crack of the reins.

Xenovia hoisted herself into the second carriage, taking a seat next to Koneko, who gazed out the window, practically disassociated from reality.

"So, how long are you planning to hold onto this?" Kiba asked.

"Hold onto what?" Xenovia questioned back, only to be met with Kiba's knowing stare.

Pouting, Xenovia sunk into her seat, crossing her arms under her bust, "I want an apology. Not to me, I want her to give one to Vin."

"You know she isn't going to do that," Kiba replied.

"And why's that?" Xenovia huffed.

"Because Vin's a Fallen Angel," The two knights turn to Azazel, who stared out the window of the carriage as it moved along the ground, "More specifically, he chose to be a Fallen Angel."

"And what does that have to do with-" Xenovia paused, as the realization hit her, "Akeno's father is Baraqiel, another Fallen Angel."

"Smart cookie," Azazel remarked, "I'm not in any place to tell you what happened. Just… I'm pretty sure you three already know that she doesn't have the greatest opinion of her father. That same negative opinion extends to me, Vin, and pretty much any other Fallen Angel."

"But she met Vin before he became a Fallen! Is she really so shallow that something like that would impact her view of a person so drastically?"

"I know her reason, and I can tell you with a hundred percent certainty that it's not shallow," Azazel warned, "I know what she might have said was hurtful, but just try to ignore it, alright?"

"How can I just ignore something like that?" Xenovia shouted, "I won't ignore someone besmirching the character of one the people I hold dear."

Azazel sighed, "As your new club chaperone, let me impart some wisdom onto you. When you live as long as I do, you begin to learn that no matter what happens, and what you do, there will be people right there to discredit you, to scream about how everything you are is wrong. The important thing is that you learn to stick by your morals, because if you know what you're doing is right, then the opinions of everyone else shouldn't matter."

"That still doesn't make what she said right," Xenovia frowned.

"No, no it doesn't," Azazel agreed, "But that's just what life is, kid. One massive, disorganized, beautiful clash of perspectives and ideologies."

"What a profound statement," Kiba remarked, "Do you write your own speeches?"

Azazel grinned like a cat, "Nah, I make Shem write them for me. That's what he's on the payroll for, after all."

The sound of the hooves of the house scraping to a halt froze their conversation.

"Huh, that was faster than I thought," Azazel hummed, "What do you say we put this conversation on ice for a while? If you need to vent any sort of frustrations, just come find me."

"I must say, you certainly didn't give me the greatest impression at the summit," Kiba admitted, "So color me surprised. I certainly didn't peg you as a mature person."

"I'm chaperoning a group of superpowered teenagers, kid," Azazel chuckled, "Someone's gotta be."

The door to the carriage opened up, revealing the long red carpet that had been folded across the courtyard. As the small group of four stepped out, they made their way along the path lined with even more servants, eventually assimilating back with the main group.

Right as the group fully formed once more, a small red-headed boy burst from the lines of maids, running along, a carefree smile etched onto his face.

"Auntie Rias!" The boy called out, "You're back!"

Rias fell to her knees, arms open wide, as the little boy crashed into a hug with the Gremory heiress.

"Millicas, it's so good to see you!" Rias pulled him out of the hug to look him over, "My goodness, look at how much you've grown!"

"You're the one who told me to get big and strong!" Millicas puffed out his chest proudly.

"Um… Buchou, who's the kid?" Issei asked, thoroughly confused by the sudden turn of events.

"Right, this is Millicas Gremory. He's my big brother's son, which means that he's my nephew," Rias explained, turning back to the child, "Go on, introduce yourself to my new peerage members."

"Greetings, my name is Millicas Gremory. It's a pleasure to meet you," The young Gremory bowed to punctuate his sentence.

"My, good looks and all the charisma to match," Xenovia smiled fondly, "He's a bonafide Prince Charming."

Before the conversation could be taken indoors, the sounds of tires kicking up the gravel of the courtyard's path drew the attention of the crowd. With wide eyes, everyone watched as a limousine pulled into the courtyard, right at the end of the red carpet. Its black paint job shimmering in the sun, the golden emblazonment of the winged inverted cross an easy signifier to its identity.

"Tch, how tacky," Akeno scoffed quietly.

"Wait, what is this?" Issei stood back, shocked.

"That's the iconography of the Grigori," Azazel supplied, "Looks like the last of our group has arrived."

The door to the limousine clicked open, a foot reaching out from the darkness of the interior, and pressing down on the carpet. The figure emerging from the vehicle, standing tall.

"Well, you finally made it kid," Azazel smiled, "We nearly missed you there, didn't we?"

"Yeah, I got a real scare there for a second," Vin sighed, before cracking a bright smile.

"Hey guys, I finally made it!"

"Vin!" The group cried out.

"Ah, who is this?" Millicas asked.

"This is Vin, he's a friend," Rias supplied.

Millicas lit up, "Ah, I see! Welcome, it's nice to meet you!"

"You too," Vin gave a bow.

"Vin, your bags."

"Oh, right!" Vin turned around, finding Baraqiel standing behind him, each of the Cadre's hands holding one of the teen's bags, "Thank you so much."

"Heya Baraqiel," Azazel swaggered over to the limo, "Did everything go alright at the Grigori?"

"It did," Baraqiel nodded, "He's been set up with a Grigori Pass, reflecting his proper identity this time."

"Good, good…" Azazel turned around, "Alright kids, this is where we part ways. Remember, don't do anything I wouldn't do!"

"I'm pretty sure that would just get us in trouble," Issei shot back.

"That's the idea!" Azazel shot a thumbs up, "I'll be back tomorrow morning, when we'll begin your training proper. Until then, goodbye!"

Azazel quickly took Vin's seat in the limo, alongside Baraqiel; and just as fast as the limo arrived, it pulled out of park, and turned to leave the Gremory Estate, leaving Vin standing there, the sole center of attention.

A beat of silence passed over the crowd, as Vin sweated, desperately searching for some way to fill the awkward void.

"Um…" Vin struck a pose, jazz hands flaring pathetically, "Ta-daaa…"

The entire crowd remained absolutely stone-faced.

Right up until a single voice cut through the tense silence.

"Pshht!" Millicas Gremory snorted, before losing control, "Ahaha!"

"Well, at least one person laughed…" Vin's shoulders relaxed as he walked towards the group, "Er… Sorry for the interruption."

"Let's just head inside…" Rias nodded.


Vin flopped down on the unreasonably soft mattress within one of the many Gremory Estate's guest rooms. Tossing the day's clothes by the bags that sat ungracefully in a pile at the foot of the bed, Vin sat back in his pajamas. Too tired to bother moving the bags anywhere more suitable, Vin just stared up at the ceiling of the massive chamber.

He had just come off of dinner with the Gremory family, an event that Vin could only describe as possibly the tensest eating experience he ever had. Not that the devils were unapproachable, no. Rias's parents, Zeoticus and Venelana, as they had introduced themselves, were wonderful people.

It was just that Vin's entire life was led with an air of in-formalness, table manners were enforced, certainly. But if you were to put a gun to his head, and ask him which fork was for a salad, and which was for a steak, Vin wouldn't hesitate to tell you to pull the damn trigger.

Ergo, the entire dinner was a horrific game of subtle observation and copying the actions of those who knew better. Hopefully no one had caught onto the fact that Vin had eaten his dinner in the exact same order as Zeoticus.

Vin sighed. This entire day was nothing short of a clusterfuck, and that was putting it lightly. From being suspected of identity theft, thrown off of public transportation, and left behind on vacation, to journeying to the Grigori to get a passport, and the subsequent journey to get all the way to the Gremory Estate…

Wait, wasn't this supposed to be a vacation!? Whatever happened to that?

Oh well, he was finally alone, in his own little room… Actually, scratch that, his own gargantuan room. And he could just relax, and decompress, and-

*Knock* *Knock* *Knock*

Damn it.

With a groan, Vin forced himself off the bed, trudging towards the door, and cracking open…

…Only to find his girlfriend standing by his door, clad in nothing but a set of rather loose-fitting pajama clothes. Not that he was exactly complaining.

"Xenovia? What are you doing here?"

"I couldn't sleep," She replied, "I'm not used to sleeping in such a big room."

"Xenovia, the room's at Issei's house are massive as well."

Xenovia huffed, "Look, can I come in or not?"

Vin sighed, "Yeah… Yeah, you can come in."

"Good," Xenovia trotted inside, Vin slowly closing the door behind her.

"...Eek! Vin!" Xenovia opened her mouth to speak, only for Vin to come up behind her and wrap her in a hug, his face burying itself in the crook of her neck.

"Ssssh…" Vin whispered, "I'm tired."

"So, how are you holding up?" Xenovia asked, "You had a long day."

"I have… Honestly, I think I'd get tired just talking about it," Vin remarked, "What happened with you today?"

"A lot of things," Xenovia exhaled, "We fought a dragon."

"WHAT?!" Vin practically flung off Xenovia.

"Azazel arranged a test with a dragon. Tannin, if I remember correctly."

"Shit…" Vin sat back on the bed, stunned, "...Did you win?"

"Vin, it was a three story tall dragon," Xenovia deadpanned.

"Well I don't know!" Vin defended, "You're super strong. But hey, I'm sorry for believing in my girlfriend!"

Xenovia giggled, coming over and planting a kiss on his cheek, "You're such a goofball."

"I'm your goofball."

"You are," Xenovia admitted, "Hey… Do you think I could sleep with you tonight? I miss you."

Vin pondered for a moment. The last time they'd done something like that, he woke up feeling like it was all a mistake. But at the same time, they weren't with the church anymore, Xenovia was a devil now, not to mention, most importantly, they were in a relationship.

Catching on to his hesitation, Xenovia quickly back-tracked, "It's fine if you don't want to… I just…"

"Xenovia," Vin cut her off, giving the knight a tender smile, "I'd like that."

Xenovia's face lit up with a smile, "Thank you. Now c'mon, we need to get some sleep. We have a big day ahead of us tomorrow."

"Right," Vin got up, heading over to the wall, and flicking off the light switch.

Returning to bed, he slipped under the covers, scooching over so that he was pressed up right next to Xenovia.

"Good night, Xenovia," Vin kissed her cheek.

Quickly turning around, Xenovia pecked Vin on the lips, causing the boy's face to explode in a burst of red.

With a sweet grin, Xenovia winked, "Good night, Vin."

The two closed their eyes, determined to get as much rest as possible in the tranquil presence of each other.

Oh, how blissfully naïve were they to believe that sleep would come peacefully that night…


Hi once again, everyone! I know I said that I was going to upload more frequently, but I have a three reasons for why I haven't up until now…

One: I have a job

Two: Elden Ring

Three: Elden Ring

Yeah, Miyazaki and George's wacky little game, like many, has captured my life in a stranglehold recently. You know, it's my first Soulsborne game that I've really delved deeply into, and it's made me gain a significant appreciation and interest in the other games.

But enough about that, this chapter was one that was initially very hard to write. Shaking off the rust from the Peace Summit arc proved to be more of a challenge that I anticipated. But once I began to experiment with how to change up the formula for what I believe is probably one of the more 'done to death' chapters in DxD fanfics, I really started to get the ball rolling, and the result is the massive chapter you see before you. I really liked how this turned out, and the opportunity to really just establish my own version of the Grigori was really fun. I like to envision the mood and aesthetic similar to some places like the town from Soul Eater, just this cartoonish amount of dense urban sprawl.

Overall, I hope that this chapter was something that all of you could enjoy, and I would love to hear your impressions! Reviews are always welcomed, I read every one.

I know some of you have been letting me know about your concerns about Vin, and his lack of heroic moments during the series as of late. I want to let you know that the issue is a little complex, but basically, a large portion of why that might be the case is because, yes, Vin essentially got sidelined during the fight at the Peace Summit. This was mainly due to a lack of planning on my part, since I didn't ever have a villain for Vin to fight that was prepared for the Peace Summit. I want you all to know that this is not going to be an issue going forward, and beginning with this arc, we're going to see more and more events of Vin getting stronger, and becoming a big, significant force.

With all that said, if you want to share your comments, thoughts, theories, or really anything related to my story with me, please leave a review. And if you enjoyed what you've read, a favorite and/or a follow is greatly appreciated.

With all that said, I'll see you all next time, have a happy Easter, and rock on!