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FICTION

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Chapter 31: Deserved Punishment

"This is… frustrating."

With this quiet words, Akeno Himejima addressed the predicament she was currently facing.

Lying on her bed, sight directed at the ceiling and only her night clothes on, the young woman continued to contemplate what she should seriously do.

A full day had passed since her father had given her the proper phone number to contact Hoitsu, a full day to accept the idea that there wasn't any other excuse keeping her from calling her classmate and… a full day of procrastinating about the future.

Her first few days with her new situation at school had been dealt particular ease, Sona and her peerage being helpful and the workload wasn't as unfair as she first thought. The only issue that truly got her quite annoyed more than once was how she was supposed to deal with Yuuto, Issei and Gasper.

The former Dhampir was still as introverted and scared of people as when he was first left sealed by Rias, the feminine boy showing some surprise at seeing how 'empty' the Occult Research Club looked when he was led to the currently unused club-room and he was completely floored when the Queen told him the reasons of this whole predicament.

Surprise, fear, a little bit of anger and disappointment. The overall attitude being one of pity regarding the Gremory heiress, but also some logical acceptance of the situation and appreciation about the fact the situation hadn't escalated to a worse state.

The boy was obviously unwilling to join her with the cooperative stance with the Sitri's peerage about hunting down Strays, citing how he couldn't still control his power and how he wouldn't fare well with 'strangers'.

Something that Akeno knew well enough, his sheer panic at dealing with new people being one of the things that characterized most of Gasper's personality during the first time they had the chance to speak with each other.

Moving on to the second boy of the peerage and the only Knight, Yuuto Kiba was good in not showing how saddened and depressed he truly was about the situation happening to Rias. The redhead was like an older sister to him, having been there to take care for him and help him when he was still recovering from surviving the Holy Sword Project.

While he knew that the instance that led to Rias' forced stay at home was legitimate, the Himejima was keen about the few brief scowls appearing when Hoitsu and she knew very well that it was only a passing and momentary emotion from the blond. He would still help around with the Student Council, but his smile lost quite the brightness it once had.

Few students noticed his sudden mood-change and the rumor mill in Kuoh Academy started to offer several theories about what was going on. Some connected his sour state with Rias not being there, other even going as far to say that they were an item but those were quickly silenced by the large majority of girls crushing on the 'pretty boy', reminding how there was no proof of such relationship having happened and thus debunking the extreme theory swiftly.

But while Gasper and Yuuto were quite the problematic individuals to properly settle with the new situation, it was Issei that was the worst to deal around. Even though he had never showed open hostility towards her, the blatant attempts to rapidly conclude any chat she would try to commence would show how he was unhappy to be around her.

She had tried to approach Asia, to apologize about the situation, but he would always be there to stop her from interacting with the former nun.

Without any club assignment, nor mission keeping him away from the school or away from the Theater Club, the brunet spent most of his time after-school to watch the few works his newly-announced girlfriend.

The news of their engagement was proclaimed by the blonde, the girl motivating the fact she was the one confessing this revelation because of the reputation over her boyfriend's head.

Some thought that there was a context missing, some opposing to the former group going as far to say that there had been signs all over the place and nobody ever noticed, while the rest just was fine with the fact one of the Perverted Trio had found the kind of happiness that led him away from his lecherous way.

Akeno tried to intercept them while they were on their way back home but, much to her surprise, they would never walk back to the Hyoudou's residence. Visiting the boy's house, she found herself dealing with a wary and annoyed Miki Hyoudou barring her from truly entering her home.

The mother was adamant in not telling her where her son would go, saying that he was just doing some favors for a good friend of his and that it was also going to help with his adulthood.

Her strange explanation quite confusing, the Himejima returned home with a minor headache at dealing with someone far more experience in diverting a discussion to different, insignificant topics to her case.

Sleep came quickly, her mind filled to the brim with the need to rest and she was granted some of it moments after finishing dinner and going to her bed.

A new day and she had yet to truly decide how to approach both Issei and Hoitsu.

By calling Hoitsu and hopefully try to scavenge something out of the ruined relationship she had destroyed, maybe having the chance of apologize to both Asia and the young Hyoudou would become a possible thing.

But how should she approach the initial contact? Should she try to appear friendly, maybe… easy-going?

No, that would make it feel like she was just trying to exploit the situation to- Wait, was she exploiting him or-

Akeno screamed against her pillow, headbutting it and then nuzzled close to it trying to seek of comfort from it.

Speaking with someone and finding some way to redeem herself shouldn't feel this difficult and yet, because of the context relative to her behavior about the past events, she knew that forgiveness was several steps away from her reach and that only careful thinking and wording will get her to the road she wanted to commit herself into.

And thus, pushing away her dreadful nervousness, the Himejima picked her phone and called the number written down in the small piece of paper that had stayed idle for a whole day.

Pressing the last key, the phone vibrated a little, the familiar sounds of the line connecting properly giving her some minor relief. Hopefully she wasn't calling while he was busy, that would have been quite a damning situation to face with her current emotional fragility.

Then the receiver answered and…

"Hello?"

It was his voice. Her heart warmed up a little, her face reddening at hearing him after so much time.

"H-Hoitsu-kun?" She started, trying to not lose herself in the happy memories. "I-It's me, Akeno."

"Oh." His tone showed confusion, a little bit of anger and annoyance, but she was glad the two negative traits were placed in minor quantity, hopes of managing through this discussion rising a little. "Hello, Akeno-san."

Akeno-chan! The girl wanted to scold him at first, but she bit her own lips to stop herself from screwing her current footing, knowing that he was right in being this formal. Still, it didn't make it any less annoying and painful to digest for her. At least he didn't chided her for the intimate honorific she used to address him.

"I-I'm sorry if I'm disturbing-" The Himejima tried to appear polite, to try and look like she was genuinely trying to-

"You are not." He interrupted coolly. "But I find myself waking up now from a tiring day, how may I help you?"

There wasn't the negative attitude that Issei turned at her, there wasn't anything.

There wasn't anything that could give her an insight of how he was feeling about it.

While his initial tone had let out some feelings about the matter, now he was trenching up, blocking any possible hint about his current mood and behavior regarding her.

It was like trying to drive a ship through the mist, unable to see where it was going and how to avoid any dangerous spots of the sea. And so Akeno knew that to avoid falling in the uncertainty that had ruled over her mind for the entire day of yesterday… she had to wing it and pray for the best.

"I wished to d-discuss about what had happened few days ago- I wish to apologize about-" Her lips rapid-fired, trying to gain as much ground as possible but…

"A moment." His voice interrupted once more, the order quickly complied by her mouth, closing down mid-speech and letting the boy solve whatever was going on by the other side of the call.

Silence interluded the sigh that would tell he was back as he spoke once more. "Sorry, Kunou needed some help with putting on some gloves, what were you saying?"

Hearing his input to continue, Akeno was ready to resume her determined speech but…

A moment passed, then two and finally her eyes widened as she realized what was going on. Gone was the momentum she had accumulated and gone was the fierce emotion driving her words out of her lips.

She froze, feeling her world graying once more before another sigh terribly reached the closest ear to the phone.

"From my understanding you wish to apologize to me, even though it was Asia and Issei that you betrayed the most, Akeno-san-" He seemed somewhat disappointed, almost like urging her to expose her case, to not choke on her own words any longer.

And so she did talk. "I-I tried to reach for them first- but they aren't- the reason I'm calling is because I have to apologize about- I should have told you and-"

"Akeno, stop a moment. You are-"

"N-No! I- I can't find peace in myself at the fact I can't apologize to you directly, how much of an idiot I've been. I tried to avoid a rightful confrontation and I- I betrayed you like this."

Tears started to stain her sheets, her chest twitching a sob or two as she let the waterfall come down for the second time after it happened in front of her father.

Moments of tense silence passed and then… a tired but moderated sigh reached her attentive ears.

"I can't currently leave Tokyo because of some unfinished important business here, but we could spend lunch together tomorrow if you are free and able to reach the city-"

"I-I can do that." She sniffled, her hopes lifting off once more. "But where e-exactly-"

"I will send a message later today, right now I'm busy and I can't actually give you anything precise."

"I-I understand."Akeno replied with a nod to herself. "T-Then, I shall s-see you soon?"

"Hopefully. Have a good day, Akeno."

"Bye..." The call ended and yet her eyes were fixed on the device's display a little while before she dropped back on her pillow and hugged it closely.

She did it! She managed to get a chance to ask for forgiveness and… to see him once more.

Cuddling the pillow closer, her head snuggled onto it with affection. A preparation, she explained to her mind, some 'training' for the hug she was going to give him when she will see Hoitsu after so much time.

A good hug, nothing perverted or forward, just something to see if everything was truly lost or not. A giggle left her lips at the thought of their last 'hug', how he looked so panicky when she was 'intrigued' by his dominance while he tickled her so mercilessly.

And while her logical side complained about the fact she shouldn't be this much hasty, her wild imagination cared little about the laws of the world, different dreams and visions filling her with renewed vigor and… determination!

After finishing the early morning training session and eating some delicious lunch, I found myself wandering alone out of the apartment, giving a fake and boring reason as to not cause any unneeded interest from the others to join up with my plans for today.

While having someone around to support was nice, I needed to be alone to properly contact the manager of the Anteiku, mostly because the current tension of keeping identities secret would cause some issues if someone asked the wrong questions about Ghouls.

The walk was uneventful as usual, no Ghoul would try to attack in broad daylight without a massive reason and reaching the Nerima Ward was surprisingly easy. Still, I had to deal with some words about my current situation with a certain Himejima.

Maybe we should have been a little more stern about Akeno.

Uh? Why so? I think she got enough to face between regrets and her new situation-

But she will easily mistake a predicament for another without proper explanation.

'You invited her to lunch, I think that counts as a date.'

I blinked, eyes going wide for a brief moment and I was glad that there was no one around to notice my sudden mood swing. Most of the people were either working or still studying at the various Unis of the Capital.

She wouldn't- Actually she would. Dammit. Wait if you knew about this, why didn't you tell me before i-

Guilty pleasure of pranking you a little, I mean, I wanted to see that kind of reaction but… I don't think the costs will be worth it if she ends up stalking us once more.

I will make sure that she doesn't try anything of that sort. I will be blunt and precise with my wording and-

I turned the corner that led to the small section of the street where the Anteiku faced and jumped away as a two large light-blue tendrils smashed on the floor right where I once stood.

Those were connected to two semi-identical figures wearing blue cloaks and masks to cover their faces-

"Oh, the Bin Brothers." I muttered nonchalantly, my tone causing them to look surprised for a moment before turning furious at the meek way I addressed them.

"Oh, a dead human." One of the two, the younger one, returned with some poison. Both retracted their Bikakus, but I quickly rushed at them, catching them off-guard once more, this time capitalizing on the situation.

The one closest to the wall was slammed on it by my fist, the mask cracking and breaking as the first victim recoiled in pain and shock.

My free hand went to grasp the unscathed Bin and forced his head to bend towards my approaching knee and-

Crack!

I let go of the unconscious brother and focused on the recoiling one, in my hand a Light Spear as I forced the blade deep in his chest. He gawked, blood spurting from his mask but there was no strength in his hands and soon he turned limp.

Taking back the Spear out of him I proceeded to stab the unconscious one too right in his chest. Both individuals were brutal murderers, no matter how young they looked, and they had already killed more than enough to warrant the death penalty in Japan if they were humans.

Sighing I remembered the place I had to visit and… the fact two members of Aogiri Tree were there.

I huffed, my face darkening as I knew what was going on inside the cafe, my ears having picked the noise of trashing few moments before ending the Bin Brothers.

I walked and reached for the empty window that led inside the shop and… stared at the tall blond staring over a bloody Kaneki Ken. Yakumo Oomori, or Yamori, glanced my way with a thrilled smile, by the entrance doors Nico was looking with wide eyes and then… I noticed something strange in the scene.

While Kaneki and Touka were wounded and Banjo with his small group was cowering just like in the Canon, I could see the familiar face of one Ayato Kirishima kneeling as some blood trailed down his head as he stood between the Ghoul leading the 13th Ward cadre and… Hinami Fueguchi?

It would seem like the situation had escalated… immensely.

"You smell like a human." Yamori stated amused, taking a step towards me. "But also something else."

I frowned in mock-confusion. "Are you saying that I don't shower?"

His smile twitched, minor anger building up in his features. "Quite the opposite. I think you smell pristine, well-cared, but I find myself questioning how much Human you actually are."

I gave a mock-offended look and placed one of my palms on my chest. "Did you just assume my race, you jerk?" I asked, trying to not smile at this little joking around. It's Jason and he is weaker than me! "I might be a Battle-Tank or an Attack Helicopter and you would still label me a human, tsk."

He frowned, the smile dropping a little. "Are you mocking me?"

"I mean, I generally mock people that are dumber than me. Are you trying to confess about your lack of mental capacities or-" I ducked away from the Kagune coming my way, the spiky tendrils missing me but the owner already charging to compensate for the lack of any genuine hit.

I moved through his punches and, the moment he tried to land a kick, I proceeded to slam my own leg on his knee. I felt the bone snap and his while limb bent in a wrong way.

I flinched a little, it wasn't a nice sight at all and the yell filled with a mix of anger and pain told me he was starting to realize that shit had hit the fan.

He tried to deliver slam his fists onto my head but I ducked and headbutted his chin. I felt the bones of his jaw crack, forcing me to move out of the way to avoid getting my hair stained in blood.

Jason recoiled, one hand holding his destroyed jaw together while the other trying to grasp something to keep himself standing. His Kagune dissolved with his concentration missing, I decided that enough was enough and… I didn't want him to trash the place in his Half-Kakuja form.

Thus three Light Spears stabbed deep on his chest, one of the piercing deep enough to destroy his Kakuhou and shatter any chances for the sadist to get out of here alive.

He looked at Nico and Nico looked at me. "I advise you leave the place now that you can, Nico-san. I don't wish to incur in her wrath, but if you end up causing any trouble I will have no choice and put you down."

Threat delivered and face paling at the seriousness in my voice, the man nodded and swiftly rushed out of the damaged Anteiku, leaving me to deal with the dying Yamori.

He looked furious, incredibly angry and very akin to a rabid animal. A dangerous monster created by an imperfect society, the lance that pierced his head terminated his life instantly and put an end to his misery.

I sighed in relief at the fact the worst was over and I turned my attention to the others.

Everyone was staring at me, either in shock or fear or both. I blinked and looked at the bleeding Kaneki, looking ready for some tactical faint and thus intervened.

Crouching slowly, I helped him a little up, his eyepatch coming loose as his Kakugan was revealed to the world while I brought up one of the tiny bottles with Phoenix's Tears.

Right as I brought it up to his lips, I saw some people looking quite alarmed at what I was doing but then the liquid did its intended effect and healed the young man.

Kaneki blinked once, then twice before finally realizing that he was feeling better and that his wounds were gone. Eyes going wide at the lack of any of the injuries previously putting him in a world of pain, he slowly was pulled up by me as he stared at his unscathed body and… shredded clothes.

I turned towards the closer of the two Kirishima siblings and Touka narrowed her eyes as I approached and crouched near her. I sighed tiredly. "Look, it worked on your buddy, don't you think that the same content will actually help you too?"

She glared at me for a little while, before then letting her guard relax a little as I helped her to careful sit without paining her hurting leg and then offered the small vial.

Drinking it quickly, her Kakugan disappeared as her body made a rapid recovery and soon she could stand up on her own too like the brunet.

Finally my attention shifted to Ayato and he looked particularly… defensive about this all. He was protecting Hinami, I could see that but I think that was… excessive?

I didn't crouch as he seemed ready to make use of his Kagune against me if I got too close. He might be in the different side this time around, but he still had that edgy personality on him, didn't he.

"Look, kid, I know you're trying to be protective of your girlfriend, but I'm not here to hurt anyone. You could take the healing stuff now or suffer home and spend some days idle to recover from this situation." His eyes narrowed dangerously but he didn't reply, preferring the silence.

There was some silence and I waited for a response, looking at my watch and noticing it has been half an hour since I last looked at the time. Just as I got myself distracted on that, the little Fueguchi turned to the Kirishima and poked his shoulder, Ayato glanced back and at her worried look and, few moments later, he sighed in defeat. "F-Fine, I will take that blasted thing."

I smiled and nodded, handing him the vial as he consumed it without hesitation and… he stood up without any wounds. "Was that so difficult, kid?"

He frowned at the mocking way I was addressing him but I was looking elsewhere. As soon as he reacted to my words, I felt a new energetic pattern approaching and I turned towards the broken space where the window that gave off to the street once was and I saw a short figure jump inside the shop.

"Stop where you are, you evildoe- Uh?"

I was staring at none other than… Eto Yoshimura.

I can understand Ayato having never joined Aogiri Tree, but to see the Canon leader of the terrorist organization being part of Anteiku?

This is turning out to be a massive AU case.

The girl frowned, eyes fixing first to the dead Jason and then she looked back where I had left the Bin Brothers, confusion plastered on her face.

"Who exactly did all of this?"

I lifted my hand and she tilted her head on the side.

"That's impressive but… aren't you a human?"

I sighed. "I already had a discussion about this. Let's just say I'm a unique human."

"A unique human?" She repeated with a skeptical tone. "Should I call BS now or are you going to say 'sike'?"

I blinked in surprise. "What if I am telling the truth?"

"I would call you a fat liar, even if you are fairly slim."

"You are the one calling something like a 'unique human' BS when you are a 'unique Ghoul' yourself."

She lifted her finger before stopping on her own thoughts. "Touché, but how did you even know that?"

"Can feel your energy pattern is different from the others, it's kind of complicated."

She shrugged. "That sounds like my life." A small smile appeared on my face.

"Sounds quite rough." I chuckled and she nodded, showing a smile on her face to match my own.

Few moments later, a familiar elder arrived, followed by a silver-haired man. Yomo blinked in surprise at the sight while the manager looked particularly calm about the scene he was looking at.

Finally his sight landed on me and he frowned.

"I can explain." Eto and I stated at the same time, eyes turning to each other and then we burst in a chuckle.

For some reason the older Yoshimura shivered, muttering about 'two of them' as he entered inside while Yomo picked his phone to call someone to come and clean things up.

The following talk was surely going to be a funny one.

AN

I think I forgot to say that, while Hoitsu ain't in Kuoh, he will still interact somehow with the people there. In fact, I've planned to have an alternative way to introduce Xenovia and Irina since both Issei and Asia are currently… living in Hoitsu's home.

It's not much of a big reveal but it will also serve as a good platform to launch their relationship even forward at the end of Volume 3.

Kiba has a minor grudge but… he will recover from it and get something interesting out of it.

Future milestone 1: 696 Followers and Favorites.

P a treon . com (slash) socialistbukharin

REVIEW Q&A!

AbyssRhythme: I don't think I will manage to put anything from Rick Riordan as I'm not very acknowledged about his books and so I will have to first ready something about them before doing anything about those. Ghouls' diet will be solved differently than you theorized, but the issue with your theory is that the reason Ghouls need RC cells is because their Kakuhou (the organ that form the Kagune and allows the formation of the Kakugan) requires such nourishment. It's not something their stomachs truly need but something they need to be healthy and have a working body.

NexusPrime42: Marvel and DC are big no-no because this story's universe would be expanded way too much for me to deal well with. Also Thor is kind of dead in DxD.