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FICTION

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Chapter 12: Cornering Someone for Something

The Occult Research Club-room was the perfect copy of what was represented in the show, thus I will not spend time to describe the peculiarly humongous size of the room or the fact it had a fucking shower in the middle of it.

While in the 'Anime' side of the story the fact a student could easily be pulled out of class and pardoned because he had to speak to an important character, I was fairly sure how things were unfolding right now was quite illegal by the school's rules.

I never heard of a school that could allow students to be literally pulled out of a classroom mid-lesson and given as justification the fact 'they were going to talk with a big name'.

It just was wrong and dumb by logical thought available and present. Just like the blasted shower in the middle of the room.

Seriously, who would really want to shower in front of people? And why?

Rias was someone that, from my understanding, doesn't have any issue in showing some skin around, my mind reminding me how she would spend her nights sleeping 'with' Issei without clothes.

It's a miracle the boy hadn't regressed back to when he was going with his perverted ways because of this occurrence, but I was quite certain it had all to do with Asia.

The former nun seemed to be less worried about losing Issei to someone, it was a strange change in her attitude towards the brunet compared to the Canon that was almost difficult to spot on.

The blond would still seek the boy's presence, happy to be around him much to my glee, but she wouldn't exert herself in showing her interest about it by going too far.

My only theory connected to the first encounter and how the initial interactions weren't as intense as in Canon: Issei didn't get to give her a full tour of Kuoh Town until I was mid-training with Azazel and, without Raynare there to interrupt and cause a heroic rescue to save the blonde, Asia's idea of the boy was… a little more personal.

There wasn't much of a Knight in Shining Armor kind of idea in the girl regarding the boy she cared for and that offered her the chance to slowly learn more about him to a moderate pace.

Plus there was the fact Issei himself didn't present himself as a teen that launched himself at every oppai he saw, thus mostly removing the chances of the blonde to get jealous about other girls and push herself to 'catch his attention'.

That is why I could only suppose Rias was having a particularly difficult time with the brunet and Asia. In the show the redhead would have some sort of advantage over both 'Kohais' as she was quite resourceful and gave off quite the confident presence compared to both the boy's and girl's uncertain reactions to everything about the supernatural world.

With Asia standing on some strong foundation and becoming an important element in Issei's life, the Gremory's chances of teasing and playing around with the boy's (now non-existent) embarrassing habits turned quite useless if not antagonistic.

The atmosphere at the club was quite tense for some reason and the club was divided in two visible sides.

Occupying both sides of the couch I was sitting in were a nervous Issei and the stoic-looking Koneko, the little Nekoshou munching at some candies as silence reigned all around us.

Kiba took one of the chairs near the center of the room, Rias was sitting in the couch to the opposite of the one I was currently seated and Akeno was humming happily as she finished preparing some tea.

I had long contemplated the fact they would reveal themselves there, but this theory was discouraged by the fact Sona wouldn't allow that.

As I had said long before, the Sitri heiress still considered me part of some 'honorary peerage' as I was a member of the Student Council and giving up the 'honor' of revealing what was going on in the school's backstage wasn't something she was going to truly accept nor do.

So I knew that whatever was going to happen, it wasn't going to be incredibly big or important plot-wise.

Finally the Himejima came to pass and, even through I politely declined her offer of a cup of tea, I was presented with a steamy one of it. Groaning, I held it close but didn't sip at it until I could study its content.

The words shared the day before with Baraqiel were still ringing dreadfully in my mind and I knew that every possible attempt to 'seduce me' was now going to be something of be wary of while around her.

The girl sat near her buchou, smiling sweetly and waiting for something to happen. Without hesitation I glanced at the tea in the cup and I did notice an odd shade to it and I noticed that I wasn't the only one suspecting some foul play going on.

Koneko's eyes were fixed at the liquid, her candy-munching interrupted as she frowned at the cup. Her nose was sniffing at it and then, in a mere blink of an eye, her hand swiftly slapped the cup away, uncaring of the tea spilling on the ground and the container exploding in shard as it slammed on the floor.

Issei yelped in surprise but it was her reaction that surprised me the most

"K-Koneko?!" Our attention shifted to the wide-eyed Akeno, the girl shocked, a little angry but mostly dismayed at how her plan had been ruined by the silver-haired girl.

"Koneko-chan… why did you slap Hoitsu-san's cup away?" Rias's voice showed some surprise and reprimanding tone. The girl looked a little more tense now that the King was interested on the matter and I decided to intervene just because it was my kohai suffering this double attack.

"I think Koneko-chan spotted a mosquito on the cup and since it was quite close to her-"

"I almost jumped at that." The girl faked an apologetic tone and nodded towards my direction. "I'm sorry, senpai."

"There is no need to apologize to me, Koneko-chan. Still, I think that was quite the excessive reaction and you should apologize to Akeno-san-"

"I-I am fine with that." The Himejima interrupted nervously, causing me to frown at her. "I-I suppose accidents can happen a-and I forgive you, Koneko-chan."

There was some barb in the usage of that honorific, but I guess that did screw some of her plans. I wonder if it was some aphrodisiac or something worse…

Thank the Gods I wasn't going to deal with that ever again, since now her plan was clear to me and she knew it wouldn't work with me anymore.

Rias seemed ready to mount a protest, as her lips parted to make space to some response to what was going on… then she stopped and seemed to think about this a little more.

"Ignoring what has just happened… I assume you wish to know why you got invited here this urgently, Hoitsu-san."

I nodded. "That is correct, Rias-san."

There was a brief smile then the girl turned to Koneko. "I've been told that you are now living alone, in your own house."

I blinked at the curious beginning of something incredibly convoluted. "Yes, that is the case."

"And how did you exactly 'bypass' your parents about this? Did you buy your new home and-"

"If you mean that 'I avoided fighting with them' with 'bypass them', then no, I did fight them about the subject." I corrected quickly. "But in that very fight we managed to sort out the issues and have them accept my current plans for the future."

The Gremory fidgeted in her seat as she thought about my words, then she continued. "But you did have to make something to get them to see your point."

Sighing I nodded. "I had to show them results that my plans are starting well and they would be until I was careful around."

… "What?"

"Actions matter more than words." I stated calmly. "That is an unspoken rule of life that helps almost everywhere. If you wish for someone to understand and approve of what you want to do with your life then you need to prove that your idea is worth of consideration-"

"This is actually a… different case." The redhead sighed, putting the chat in a stall as I narrowed my eyes at her sudden interruption.

I continued to stare at her for a little while, her sky-blue eyes darting away from direct contact and I sighed tiredly as I decided to push up the discussion.

"Are you dealing with an arranged marriage?"

True silence reigned in the club-room.

Issei looked quite confused, Kiba and Akeno looked shocked at the precise question and Koneko merely showed surprise at my words. Yet it was Rias' reaction that won it all.

The heiress to the Gremory family went still, frozen as her eyes widened in evident shock, fear and dismay.

"H-How did you-"

"It was a mere theory of mine, taking under consideration the fact that you come from a traditional rich family."

"B-But how did you know t-this was the case?" Kiba asked, breaking away from his shocked state.

"As I said, it was merely a theory, an assumption that was answered positively by the reaction of most of the occupants."

"S-Still, that is something big, buchou!" The brunet looked incredibly clueless about some bits of the situation, but part of the disgusting mess was starting to sink in his brain.

He had all the rights to be like that, but I decided to focus on the matter at hand. First we solve this mangled debacle, then some explanation will be given by Rias and only Rias.

"Rias-san, I suppose you have a copy of the contract with you as you are directly involved with it."

She nodded. "I do, but I've already searched for any clauses that I could use against him but-"

"There is none that would help." Well, that sucks big time as I did kind of hoped that something could have been done about it, maybe avoid completely the Phenex Arc with some cunning planning but…

It wasn't the case.

Which means that I would have to be ready to personally meddle if something strange happens and Canon derail for a reason or another.

"Have you thought of declaring the contract void since you weren't signing it willfully?"

She blinked. "What?"

"You could mention that the pressure exercised by both family ended up influencing your decision and, against the chances of performing your pondering with the lack of a peaceful and free capacity, you were forced to sign such contract."

I waited, expecting the girl to rebuke my idea as it was actually standing on some frail foundation. While the girl was this desperate to get out from the contract, she wouldn't go as far to face the possible wrath of her parents about it-

"It could work."

… "What?"

The redhead smiled. "It is a pretty weak excuse, I think that is why you seem this much surprised of seeing me agree to that… but I can plan something from it."

I blinked once, then twice. "Could you elaborate?"

"My brother has already mentioned that he would support me in case I vouched a good and compelling case that he can get behind and my parents aren't interested about the arranged marriage themselves, so convincing them should be easy..."

"And the issue is?"

Rias sighed. "There are some members of the close group of 'friends' of my family that might not see this in a positive light."

"From my understanding, you have quite some time to deal with this." She nodded at my affirmation. "Then you should focus on building up some backing from those groups and provide yourself a cushion for an eventual fallout."

She nodded. "I will do that."

There was a relieved smile and she relaxed on her couch. "Hoitsu-san, thank you."

I snorted and she frowned. "I mean it. I would even reward you-"

"If you wish to do something then apologize to Asia, since you have been avoiding her since she joined a club that wasn't yours." I stated seriously. "If that was your attempt at befriending people, that was poorly-made."

She flinched at my tone but nodded slowly at my request. "I-I can see your point. I guess I wasn't particularly honest with her and-"

"I want you to also never try to bring her to whatever you are planning here."

Tension sparked once more at the sudden threat, but I ignored the sudden frown from the Gremory. "I don't know what you are talking about, Hoitsu-san."

"Then let us speak within the hypothetical case." I smiled at the fact the pressure I was feeling was actually bearable. "If I discover you tried to manipulate Asia once more, I will make sure to create some real opposition. And that, Gremory-san, is not something you truly wish to face, trust me."

And with that weight finally delivered, I got up and started to walk towards the door that lead outside of the club-room.

"Where are you two going?" Rias asked with a mix of surprise and annoyance. Following me closely was Koneko and it was the silver-haired girl that answered the older teen.

"If you remember, Rias-buchou, I asked to be exempted from class for only a single lesson as today I have an English exam during the second hour of school. In ten minutes I have to be back to class and I don't wish to be late for it."

The redhead nodded at her excuse and turned at me expecting some motivation from me too. I shrugged. "I have class too, plus I think this discussion is over and… you have to explain stuff to Issei."

"Yes, but-"

Click

The door closed behind us and I sighed in relief at the fact she wasn't giving chase.

"Do you wish to be escorted to class, Koneko-chan." I offered and she spent few moments to hum about it and then…

"Okay."

The rest of the school-day seemed to fly at how quick it went.

Kunou enjoyed her second day at the Academy, while I was glad to not get annoyed by Rias after that 'little chit-chat' we had earlier that morning.

It had seemed like the whole day was actually going to be a very normal one, without any major issues or problem to face and… I found it the annoying way that it wasn't the case.

Just as we turned the corner for the small street that led to our home, Kunou squealed happily and rushed forward as she quickly spotted Koneko in the distance, waiting right by the entrance of the house.

The Nekoshou seemed quite dismayed by something or, once I noticed whom was waiting by her side, someone.

Akeno waved happily and smiled as I slowly approached, the little blonde frowning at the unknown individual and went to ignore her as she intercepted her senpai with a hug.

"What are you doing here?" I asked without hesitation at the still smiling Yamato nadeshiko.

"Hello to you too, Hoitsu-kun, I thought of passing by and see if you needed some help-"

"Pass." I stated quickly and her smile only widened at the refusal.

"It isn't something you can refuse~-"

"Watch me." I gestured the two girls to get inside the house inside and, once I stepped inside, I was about to close the door behind me to keep the young woman out when she suddenly put her feet in and-

It blocked my chances of closing.

She didn't move at first as I tried to deter her by carefully adding some little more force and get her to back down but-

"T-This is~ New~"

I completely forgot whom I was trying to deter with pain and… she was enjoying through it all.

I backed away from the door and she smiled deviously as she closed it behind.

"Ara, Ara, was I that much… scary there?"

Yes, yes you were, you crazy masochist.

She giggled at my lack of response and proceeded to slowly venture inside the house, her violet eyes locking onto the kitchen area visible by the end of the living room.

"Oh?" She quickly marched towards the shiny room, I followed her closely as she entered inside and stopped to stare at the large communion of modern appliances and various cooking utensils carefully put in the various cupboards and drawers.

Her eyes were shining through the whole time and I started to notice that I had yet to see Kunou and Koneko when I entered the house. I suppose the blonde could have gotten the older girl to follow her to her room, having mentioned that she would have wanted to show her senpai her room.

And so I was here, alone with the currently distracted 'Priestess of Thunder' as she studied the whole Kitchen in silence.

Finally she stopped to nod to herself. "I would like a kitchen like this for myself." Then she turned to look at me, her smile changing in something quite mysterious and dreadful for some reason.

A chill went down my spine as she curiously approached the sink and she opened the tap.

The sudden burst of water caused her to yelp while also close the tap before causing too much of a mess to clean after and… her lips twitched in amusement.

"Oops."

God-fucking-dammit. Why I had to deal with this perverted woman-

Why was I getting the attention of the more perverted ones?!

"Can you take me to the bathroom-"

"I am picking some towels and some pair of fresh clothes." I interjected quickly, knowing that bathroom and perverts created the worst nightmare for those trying to keep the V-Card for the right moment.

She pouted and waited there as I quickly rushed upstairs to pick said objects. I was glad that she didn't try anything with this much water wetting her clothes and rendering some feature visible.

It wasn't a full sight, but I could see her cleavage and her toned stomach. I had a little blush because of that and the girl milked this opportunity by using the towels very slowly and very carefully.

Once she had the dripping water issue dealt with I left the kitchen for a while to let her change with the pair of clothes I had procured to her. The Himejima spent the same amount of time, if not more to complete this simple task and I was tortured by little teasing from her side.

"Hoitsu-kun, could you help me with the bra? I'm having trouble getting it off~."

"My legs are tired, could you help me remove the skirt~?"

"Actually, could you give me a foot massage~? I would like a very extended one~."

This is… mind-shattering.

My pride and virtue was put to a difficult challenge against someone that was professionally the perfect perverted woman.

Thankfully she didn't make any first step nor pressed on with any of the blushes she could spot on my face and kept herself from passing over my 'safe line' of distance.

As Kunou and Koneko descended from upstairs and sat by the living room's table, Akeno and I started to prepare something and… by something I mean the Himejima decided to take the lead with the preparation of the menu.

Miso soup was something I had the ingredients to make, but I was quite an inept in making traditional Japanese dishes, having most of my knowledge coming from Western cuisine.

Thus I was pretty much given a secondary role of support during the preparation, following the smiling woman as she gave orders over orders.

It was a quick process that surprisingly didn't crash and burn as I had initially thought it would and the result was delicious.

Kunou and Koneko were both glowing happily while eating the content of the soup. Akeno didn't try anything funny during the moment spent all together and few minutes later, both girls retreated back to the blonde's room and I was left alone once more with the Queen of Rias' peerage.

We were cleaning the empty plates when something unusual happened.

I was bracing myself for any eventual strike from Akeno, still giving enough focus to the plates I had to complete, when I heard the girl sigh tiredly. I glanced her way and I saw her stopping for a moment, eyes closed and I frowned.

"Something's wrong?"

She looked surprised and almost jumped at my question before giving off a nervous look. "J-Just thinking outloud. Nothing to worry about."

I narrowed my eyes at her. "Are you… sure?"

The Himejima blinked and nodded slowly. "I am fine."

'I am fine'. I gave off a perplexed expression and planned how to tackle this sudden sadness of the girl.

"And what if I tell you that I don't believe it and I said that I could offer you a shoulder?"

There was some silence as she went still for a moment and then nodded to herself.

"I would say 'good job' and then ask to replace the shoulder with your bare back." She replied, her smile twitching in weak amusement as I groaned at her surprising response.

"Cheeky, but I am trying to help you there." I sighed and continued. "What got you this sad, Akeno."

She tilted her head and then turned her attention back to the sink. "I… guess I was thinking about about my childhood."

Oh.

"My mom was… quite supportive when I wanted to help her around with the house chores. It was fun when we were both doing those and..." She smiled sadly. "Right now I was reminded of those times, when she was… still alive and-"

Akeno bent a little over the sink and I sighed as I slowly spread my arms open at her. The gesture was caught almost immediately by her attention and she moved softly to press her head onto my chest.

The sobbing began a little muffled as Akeno pressed her face close to my shirt, the girl was crying quite calmly as I silently had one of my arms wrapping around her while my free hand started to carefully run through her hair, lulling her as she let out everything she was holding in.

Few minutes of this passed and I didn't speak nor move further as she needed some time to rest.

Finally she started to sniffle a little, her head turning as she looked up with a small smile.

"S-Sorry. I stained your-"

"That's alright." I quickly reassured her with a small smile of my own. "How are you doing?"

She sniffled a little more. "J-Just a little tired now. But… I feel better."

She moved out of the hug and nodded. "T-Thank you."

"You are welcome."

As she used one of the unused towels to clean her face off the tears, the two other girls finally emerged from the kitsune's room and sat prepared for the little Math session.

The study session that followed was quite interesting as Akeno decided to take a more active role than before by joining the group with her own homework, which I had to help with myself as I was the one sharing that burden with her.

It was livelier than usual and it got quite adorable when Kunou asked to the Himejima if she could sit in her lap to see better what was going on the table. The Yamato nadeshiko blinked and nodded as the little blonde settled on her legs and looked both at the hybrid's and the Nekoshou's homework.

It got real when Akeno patted her head with a smile and let out the strongest kind of Ara, Ara.

"Ara, Ara, aren't you a smart girl?"

Kunou smiled and nodded at her 'newly-named Neechan'.

It was around two hours later, with both girls having completed their homework that I escorted them by the door and out to the open.

"Thank you as always, senpai." Koneko bowed a little.

"And as always, it's just my duty, kohai." I waved at her.

The Himejima merely smiled and nodded. "I hope that I could ask to join you all once more if I have the chance."

"If you can come and don't commit anything remotely lewd, then yes."

She giggled. "Now, that is quite the difficult promise to maintain."

"Please do and… remember to do that when you feel sad." I whispered at her, the silver-haired girl on the side frowning at the secrecy.

Akeno blinked and hummed comically. "You mean… groping?"

I facepalmed really, really hard at that. Goddammit, you perverted woman!

"Hugging! Ugh, why are you like this?"

"Because I am special and… I know that you like me this way, why would I change?"

That very question caused me to frown at her, eliciting some giggles and then she suddenly blinked.

"Actually… there is something on your cheek. Let me..." She approached her finger softly touching my left cheek and then…

Chu~

I felt my face explode in red, my brain going a little blank for the embarrassing even currently unfolding as the Himejima pressed her lips on said cheek.

Kunou blinked in surprise while Koneko frowned at the action, both staring and giving their judgment to the situation from afar.

She pulled back with a content smile and nodded. "That is a 'thank-you' for being there for me… even through I didn't deserve it."

I nodded slowly and dumbly, causing Kunou and Akeno to giggle at it while Koneko cracked a quick smile.

Yet as I waved at them while they walked away from the street and turned the corner, I had in mind to return back home and wait for Baraqiel's return.

But, much to my surprise and mostly to my dismay, as I turned to face the entrance door, I saw him looking from the corner.

The Fallen Angel was peeking from said corner, eyes murderously locked on my figure as his hands twitched furiously and cracking the surface he was holding onto.

He was giving me quite the…

ゴ
ゴ
ゴ
ゴ

Murderous glance.

I saw him disappear in a blur and I instinctively braced while yelling. "I have a good explanation!-!"

He appeared right in front of me, his hands squeezing at my shoulders as he gave me the greatest of glares. "You will. After we start a special round of training without Tears of Phoenix. Only then you can explain, Hoitsu-kun."

AW SHIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII-

AN

Today I'm supposed to do another 4k chapter for another story and do the 'Standard one-shot' for a HP competition. Hopefully things go well…

Quick assurance: Most of the Arcs are going to happen and the Phenex Arc will still happen, just in a different setting and with different events. That is what happens when the timeline is changed.

Also quick reminder: This scene is still a pending consideration about Akeno's position and role as this could be the start of a close friendly bond with some perverted moments or I could make it a romantic thing. Thankfully I don't plan any ships happening until a little later.

Lastly a small hint, I've plans for the character I will ship Kunou. It will be a shocking surprise but actually a plausible choice. He will appear quite soon too...

Future needed milestone: 696 Followers and Favorites.

P a treon . com (slash) socialistbukharin

REVIEW Q&A!

RedBurningDragon: A quick encounter, a swift one that opens up a different route for the Phenex arc.

User may be a smug prick: It's stronger than the Force and the Schwartz combined!

Eternal Gunslinger: Part of it, yes. I mean, if it works, why not copy it?

Guest-Questioner: I think it has to do that there is still a good chunk of the fandom quite attached to the original characterization of the protagonists and other characters and don't accept any particular change to their overall behavior. I'm not receiving much opposition, but there is still some and I expect some more to come at what I've planned to do with this story.

Guest (Chapter 11): I think she wouldn't care as the relationship could be a pervert/non-pervert kind contrast.

ThatIdioticMelody: Thousand thanks and yes, it does tend to get difficult once I have to give enough 'screen presence' for the girls in question.