Author Notes:
So, I'll be trying to include these notes at the beginning of each chapter to address questions. I'll try to respond to individual comments that I actually currently have an answer too. Hopefully it'll be helpful!
So this chapter was a bit of a pain to get to. My summer has been busier than expected. All things considered, I hope it turned out okay. I always hate writing long conversations. (So much easier to read as a manga).
Reality breakerr: Thank you so much for your advice and your compliments! I'm always trying to make this fic as good as possible, so it always feels great to hear that I've succeeded somewhere! I just wish I could move the reviews for the Accelerator one-shot into that story as well.
As for your question about pairings, I unabashedly ship Touma with Makoto. As for Hitoshura, I've always considered him and Pixie to be an unofficial couple by the end of the game. I've always felt like there was some subtext there, and to be honest I think they'd be a good match. Since this fic takes place after Nocturne, that relationship has already been established, even if Pixie isn't present in the story (yet). However, I do have a plan for another character to possibly begin developing some feelings for him, so stay tuned!
Now, for the last question. Yes, the Imagine Breaker did affect Naoki. I will actually be editing the first chapter because I forgot to include an important detail. Normally, he would have easily been able to withstand Makoto's lightning by activating a protective spell, but when Touma tried to move him out of the way, his hand touched him and momentarily prevented him from using magic. The lightning still didn't do much damage, but it did inflict the paralysis status ailment, meaning that he couldn't break his fall, and when he took damage from crashing into Touma, it qualified as a critical hit and knocked him unconscious.
That one asshole (I'm not insulting him, that's actually the username): That is actually a fantastic point, and I'm sorry I didn't provide an explanation. The fact that the Demi-Fiend is experiencing human emotions and has yellow eyes rather than red, despite having gone through the True Demon Ending, is going to be a plot point that I will address later on.
Without further ado, please enjoy my next chapter, and be sure to let me know how I can improve! As always, thanks for reading!
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Touma felt exceedingly awkward.
He, the mysterious boy, and the equally mysterious girl now all sat around the table, forming a triangle. Touma's hands fidgeted in his lap as he desperately tried to think of a way to break the ice, but fell short with every attempt. The girl had finished clearing out Touma's fridge, her stomach apparently bottomless, and now quietly munched on a single cracker, the last one from a bowl that sat in the middle of the table. In the silence of the room, every minuscule crunch seemed deafening. The tattooed boy leaned back against the couch, tense and unmoving. Touma couldn't even tell if he was breathing or not, the only motion being his strange golden eyes, which slowly shifted from Touma, to the girl, to the cracker, then back to Touma, his expression blank.
What the hell am I supposed to talk about? What am I even supposed to think? Even with my bad luck I've never been in a situation this weird! Is that girl really a nun? Is that guy really an esper? What's with the horn and the tattoos? And why does she eat so much? Touma's mind raced with questions, and sweat began to bead on his forehead. Okay, Touma, think. Think rationally... You're probably not in any danger, and these seem like fairly reasonable people. Maybe we should start with names? That usually gets things going, right?
"Er...", Touma started. Instantly, his guests' eyes snapped over to him, the silence finally broken. Suddenly the center of attention, Touma gulped, then continued. "Uh... So, now that we've all... met... Maybe we could, I dunno, start with each other's names?" Smooth, Touma. You're a regular silver-tongued gentleman. Totally not looking like a loser right now. With the way they're looking at you, they probably think you're-.
"Kashima."
The boy's voice seemed to tear through Touma's thoughts as he said that word. His voice was surprisingly deep, with a strange, immeasurable authority to it, and the slight reverb seemed to fill the room with its presence. He could tell that the girl sensed it, too. Her eyes grew wider, and her attention immediately focused onto him, her expression a mixture of enrapture and nervousness.
Touma looked back at the boy, and their eyes met. His baleful yellow gaze seemed to pierce right through Touma, and he shuddered slightly, as though the natural order of his brain was momentarily disrupted. There was now no doubt in his mind. He's not an esper, is he? He's something completely different. Something even more abnormal.
"My name is Naoki Kashima", the boy continued, "and you have already introduced yourself, Touma Kamijou." His voice lowered as he spoke Touma's last name, and gave him a knowing look. Touma gulped again, feeling more and more uneasy.
But then Naoki's gaze shifted to look into the girl's emerald eyes, and Touma's subconscious seemed to sigh in relief. The girl, however, had the opposite reaction. Her eyes snapped fully open as she jolted into a rigid upright position, sweat already appearing on her forehead. Touma looked down and noticed that her hands were shaking as well, enough that tiny cracks spidered across the snack she was holding. Touma grew concerned, this wasn't the same nervousness he felt when the boy looked at him.
This was outright fear.
But then Naoki's expression changed as well. It seemed to soften somewhat as he looked at her, and he turned his head ever-so-slightly until he looked past her rather than directly into her eyes.
"Forgive me. It appears I was wrong", he said apologetically. The girl continued to stare at him, her nervousness now visibly mixed with complete bewilderment.
The two were quiet, Naoki apparently becoming lost in thought, and the silence grew heavy. Not again, Touma thought, once again desperately trying to think of a way to make conversation.
"Uh, so, what were do doing, exactly? On my balcony, I mean?", he asked the girl. She jumped, as though she had forgotten he was there, and looked in his direction, surprised.
"Well, I didn't mean to land on your balcony", she said, with a hint of incredulousness, "What I was trying to do was jump from one roof to the other."
"What?! But this building is over eight stories high!", Touma exclaimed, "What were you thinking?!"
"Well it's not like I had much choice in the matter, I was being pursued by-", she stopped mid-sentence, as though she had just realized something. "Wait a minute! I completely forgot to introduce myself!", she cried, her demeanor once again doing a complete 180 as she smiled cheerily. "My name is Index! It's very nice to meet you!"
Touma raised an eyebrow skeptically. "Really? And that's your actual name? That sounds more like an alias to me. Who names their kid after a part of a book?"
"But it is my real name! Index Librorum Prohibitorum." Well that's a mouthful. "And my magic name is Dedicatus545. It translates as-".
"The Consecrated Lamb That Protects The Knowledge Of The Mighty", Naoki chimed in, having returned to the conversation. Index and Touma both turned to him, shocked. His eyes flicked from one to the other. "What?", he asked, shifting uncomfortably, "It's not difficult to translate."
Well, that's odd. What happened to that scary composure from earlier? I guess Index isn't the only one who can switch gears at the drop of a hat.
"Okay, then tell me this", he said, turning back toward Index, "Why would someone be chasing a nun across a bunch of rooftops?"
"Probably for the 103,000 Grimoires", she said, matter-of-factually.
"The Grim-wha?" Touma had never heard that word in his life.
"Grimoires. You know, books full of supernatural knowledge?", she explained. Naoki suddenly seemed very interested in the conversation, leaning toward her as she spoke. Apparently not noticing, she continued. "Let's see, there's the Book of Eibon, The Lemegeton, The Book of the Dead, the Necronomicon, the Secret Doctrine... those are just a few examples of the Grimoires." Naoki leaned in closer, hanging on every word, and his eyes widened with every title she spoke, while Touma only grew more confused.
"So where are they?", Touma and Naoki asked in perfect unison. Index startled a bit at their synchronization, before continuing.
"I carry them with me", she explained with a smile. Naoki and Touma glanced at each other, entirely unsure of what she meant.
"Um, how exactly?", Touma asked, "I don't see any books, and I doubt you're hiding an entire library under that dress."
Index glared at him. "Are you really questioning my honesty? I assure you, I'm carrying the secrets of over 1,000 volumes!"
"What, you got a key to a warehouse somewhere?"
"That's not what I mean!"
"Is this some kind of joke?"
Naoki looked back and forth as they talked as though watching a tennis match. Finally he spoke up.
"Are they invisible?"
Index stopped shouting at Touma and looked at the tattooed boy, surprised. "Well, yes, I suppose. The whole point is to keep them hidden so no one else reads them." Naoki nodded in understanding, then closed his eyes and slumped back against the couch, looking crestfallen.
"Yeah, it figures."
"Wait." A thought suddenly occurred to Touma. "Keep them hidden from who? Who's chasing you?" Naoki's eyes opened back up and he looked at Index, clearly also curious. Index's expression sharpened, and she leaned forward, as though what she was about to say was of utmost secrecy. Touma and Naoki leaned in as well, both now extremely curious as to what it could be.
Index spoke in a low voice, with a tone of absolute seriousness.
"A society of sorcerers."
... Are you kidding me?
"Really? Sorcerers?", Touma asked, deadpan.
"Yes, surely you've heard of sorcerers. People who perform magic?" Index clearly believed what she was saying, and based on the look on his face, so did Naoki.
"Are you one of those new-age religious people or something?", Touma asked skeptically.
Index's face fell. "Wait, are you making fun of me?" Touma looked away and sighed. "You are, aren't you?! You're making fun of me!"
"No, it's not that. It's just that that's a bit much for me", he explained, staring off into space, "Yeah, I get that there's a lot of strange stuff happening in the world, but I can't buy magic. This is Academy City. Supernatural abilities aren't exactly unusual here, but they're definitely based in science, not magic."
"You're willing to believe in supernatural powers possessed by individual people but not magic?", she asked, clearly indignant.
"Well, fine then", Touma said, looking her square in the eye, "if magic is real and you know so much about it, use some right now."
"I can't, I don't have any magical powers."
"Well then how are you so sure it exists?"
"Because it does!", she yelled, suddenly very forceful. Touma recoiled slightly at her rising anger. Okay, maybe I'll try a different approach.
"You know", he said, "I was born with a sort of unexplainable power myself." His guests both looked at him curiously. "It's my right hand", he explained, lifting it in demonstration, "Whenever it comes in contact with any kind of supernatural power, it cancels it out. No matter what type of esper abilities I encountered, it worked every time with no plausible explanation. Who knows? Maybe it could even work on divine miracles." His guests stared in awe at his hand, seemingly fascinated with his story. Then Index snorted and turned to the side, seemingly trying not to laugh. Naoki simply raised an eyebrow and smirked slightly.
"Hey, what's with the faces?!", Touma exclaimed angrily, "You guys look like you're listening to a used car salesman!"
"Well, can you blame me?", Index laughed, "I'm guessing you probably don't even believe in God, and now you're telling me your right hand can cancel a miracle?"
"Grrr... You still play make believe, and you refuse to consider that my hand is something special?"
"Magic is not make-believe! We just went over this!"
"I'm going to have to agree with her on that one", Naoki said.
"You believe her? Then why don't you show me something magic? Then when you see what my hand does to it, you'll have no choice but to believe me."
Naoki tilted his head, clearly questioning Touma's logic.
"Alright fine, I will show you something magic!", Index cried, standing up fully, "My robes! They're magic!"
Touma and Naoki both turned to look up at her, confused. Index extended her arms, displaying her gold and white sleeves. "This garb is known as the Walking Church! It's an impenetrable protective barrier!"
"The Walking Church?", Touma repeated, "What does that even mean? You keep throwing out terms like I'm supposed to already understand them!"
Naoki raised an eyebrow at Touma and chuckled slightly. "You don't know what the work 'walking' means?"
"That's not what I meant!", Touma yelled, "What's with the sarcasm all of a sudden?!" Naoki simply grinned in reply.
"You two are acting like children!", Index screamed, sprinting into the kitchen.
"Hey, where are you-!"
She came rocketing back into the room, waving a knife around crazily. "Maybe a little experiment will get it through your thick head! Take this knife and try to stab me with it!"
"Whoa!", Touma yelled, jumping back to avoid her aimless swings, "Are you crazy?!"
Naoki looked up at her calmly, not even flinching as the knife swept by his face. "I gotta admit, I'm starting to wonder, too."
"How many times must I say it! These robes have been sanctified in the same way as a church, which means they're as strong as an entire building! So while I'm wearing them being stabbed with a knife won't injure me one bit!"
"Yeah, okay, that's interesting and all, but I'm still not gonna stab you!"
"Are you serious?! These robes are an exact replica of the Shroud of Turin. Their protective ability is unquestionable! They absorb and negate all damage aimed at me, physical or magical!"
"I bet Almighty attacks could still get through", Naoki muttered to himself.
"What did you just say?! Are you questioning me too?!"
"Oh, I get it", Touma said, "Since they're magic, all I'd really have to do is touch your robes with my right hand and they'd be canceled out, huh?"
"Mhm. That is, if your power works as you say", she replied smugly.
Gritting his teeth, Touma got up and moved towards her. "Alright then, fine! Just remember that when it's over, you asked me to do this!"
Charging forward, Touma reared his right hand and clapped it down onto her shoulder. A shock of bizarre, indescribable sound rang out and echoed through the apartment as his fingers clutched the fabric.
Then there was silence.
Index, having braced herself for impact, now relaxed and looked questioningly at Touma. Touma looked at the robe, confused as to why nothing had happened. Naoki looked on curiously, then sighed and slowly stood up, picking up the empty cracker bowl and making his way toward the kitchen.
"Uh, okay. That's strange", Touma said.
Index smirked. "Well, what a surprise", she gloated, closing her eyes and lifting her chin triumphantly, "I guess it really was nothing."
RrrrIIPPP!
In an instant, the entire robe shredded itself to pieces, the protective barrier erased from existence. Touma looked on in absolute shock and horror, strips of torn fabric cast all over the room like confetti.
"Er-... I-.. uh-... It-...", Touma stuttered, his mind too terrified to formulate correct sentences.
Index slowly opened her eyes and looked at him, confused. "Um... What's wrong?"
"Oh... Uh... it's nothing", he said, desperately trying to maintain eye contact, fearing for his life. The angry yells of those thugs and the crackling of the lightning on the bridge were nothing compared to the sheer terror of the current situation. He knew that the second she looked down, his life was over. I wonder if I can make it to the door before she can react? No, I'd have nowhere to go. Maybe if I don't say anything? But it's only a matter of time before she realizes! How has she not already noticed?!
Naoki quietly walked back into the room with a refilled bowl of crackers, every step seeming like an earthquake in the comparative silence of the room. He made his way past the two with eyes forward, not even giving them a passing glance, slowly passing around the table and sitting on the couch. The bowl rustled as he dipped his hand into it and pulled forth a solitary square. Lifting it deftly to his mouth, he bit down. The crunch felt as though it made the room tremble. Chewing slowly and deliberately, he turned half-lidded eyes toward the pair and stoically took note of the situation. Turning his attention back to the bowl, he leaned comfortably back against the sofa, his horn pushing into the fabric and propping up his head as he chewed.
Finally, pushing the partially-chewed cracker into his cheek so that he could enunciate, he addressed the two silent teenagers, still not looking in their direction.
"So, Index. Why weren't you wearing anything under that robe?"
Index stared, not saying anything, then her eyes gradually widened. Touma felt his life flash before his eyes as her gaze seemed to lower in slow motion onto her body. Her mouth began to open, and he could practically feel her sharp intake of breath, a sound that he knew heralded the beginning of the end.
...Just my luck.