Time Again

Yumi Kiba was an individual with unparalleled curiosity, she would often get herself into trouble because of it. Today was a little different though. Today, she would be following Issei on Rias' orders. Reasons being; keep Issei out of trouble, get him out of trouble if need be, protect him from trouble. Normally, she would follow these order to the letter, but being as curious as she was, she usually stayed out of situations until need be.

Like when Issei crossed paths with the girl from the Church again and didn't avoid her like Rias told him to. She followed him the entire day, staying out of his sight of course, she didn't know whether or not his enhanced Demonic senses would spot her instantly or not.

Nearing the end of the day, with nothing happened, Yumi thought that Rias' worries were for not, until a the Fallen angel Raynare appeared above the fountain. She was about to leap into action, but stopped when she saw Issei turn his back to Raynare.

Curiosity got the better of her, so she waited to see what events would unfold.

Issei handed the Church girl something small, while having enhanced sight as a Devil, distance was not her forté. She saw Issei turn back towards Raynare and become engulfed in a bright crimson red light. It was so bright that she had to shield her eyes from it.

When the light dimmed she looked back only to see Issei no longer standing where he used to be, instead, floating a fair distance away from Raynare, was a figure in Crimson Red armor.

Dragon Armor.

Her eyes widened in realization. The puzzle pieces in her head, the very few that were there anyway, connected. Issei was the Red Dragon Emperor, the Red Dragon that had visited Rias and given the warning. That also raised the question, why would he warn Rias of a situation he could handle himself?

She put those thoughts aside as she saw another flash of light and Issei and Raynare disappeared from sight. Deciding to find out more about the situation, Yumi made her way over to Asia.

"Hello?" Yumi called when she was near.

No response came from Asia.

Confused, Yumi made her way in front of Asia. When the latter made no movement, Yumi pushed her hood back to reveal that her eyes were closed, even though she was moving moments before, it was like she was in a deep sleep or trance.

Suddenly, Asia's eyes flew open, her blue irises turning red, her blonde hair turning platinum in color, 4 Devil's wings sprouting from her back and a red glow emanated from her. After a very short amount of time, the wings disappeared, and her eyes and hair returned back to their normal colors.

"What the hell just happened?" Yumi was shocked at what just transpired, she had never seen anything like that happen before.

She sensed an energy build up behind her, spinning around she saw what looked to be an opening in space, almost like a portal opening in front of her. The portal was sending off waves of energy, in amounts she had never felt from anything ever before.

Before she had time to make a decision, the color of the portal changed, to a crimson red. While Yumi had no idea what was going to happen, she felt like she didn't want to be so close to the portal in-case anything decided to come out of it. She picked Asia up and moved her off to the side, which, thankfully, her precaution wasn't unwarranted.

A heavily armored red dragon appeared as the portal dissipated.

She looked on in shock, not making a sound in case it was hostile. She backed up carefully and quietly in hopes to get into a hiding spot just to be safe. It was all for not though, as the dragon locked sight with her.

Yumi froze in place, not sure what to do. The red dragon turned and slowly walked over to her, which didn't take long do to long strides. It was then that the dragon's mood seemed to shift from indifferent to curious.

"Ki-ba?"

Her eyes widened, the dragon spoke her name? The dragon could speak? The dragon knew her name?

That, is when she noticed it. The color of the dragon was the same as the armor Issei wore just minutes ago, for the most part as well, it looked similar in everything but exact shape, this was obviously shaped like a dragon.

Yumi cautiously walked the few feet that separated her from the dragon, when the dragon made no movement she walked to the side of its head to look it in the eye to confirm her suspicion. When she came face to face with its giant emerald green eye, she knew for sure.

This was Issei.

"Issei? Is that you? What happened? Are you ok?" Yumi worriedly asked.

The look in his eye softened considerably, almost as if he wanted to shut in all his pain.

Yumi wasn't having any of this. She created a large sword and smacked him with the flat side of the blade, she assumed that the sharp edge wouldn't do any damage to him anyway, but she was cautious none the less.

Issei reeled back from the hit, startled by the sudden violence by Yumi.

"I don't know why you look like this, nor do I care that you look like this. You're still Issei in there aren't you? Even if you're not completely sane you're still you are you not? Even if you're in pain and suffering the person who you are doesn't change." Yumi wasn't sad in the least bit, she was angry.

Full consciousness returned to Issei, as well as the rage of the dragon subsided. The only reason Issei didn't attack anyone outside of the portal, was because of his iron strong will to not hurt anyone but Raynare.

"I'm sorry Yumi, I let my anger get the better of my judgement." Issei never wanted any of his family to be in danger.

"If you're sorry then turn back to normal, it feels weird talking to a giant dragon version of the person I like." Yumi huffed.

"As you wish." Issei's armor took on a red glow and disappeared. Standing in its place, was a sheepish looking Issei.

"See? Back to normal, everything is fine now." He smiled reassuringly.

"Very well, one thing I have to ask though." Yumi paused. "What did you do to this girl?"

"Oh you mean Asia? Well here's the thing, I technically didn't do anything to her, but what happened to her is my fault." Issei twiddled his thumbs.

Yumi's curiosity peaked, but she glared at him regardless.

"I may have 'borrowed' one of Rias' evil pieces and made a few 'modifications' and then gave it to Asia."

Yumi stared back in surprise. "You, stole one of Rias' evil pieces, modified it, and gave it to a girl you just met?"

Issei nodded after each pause in Yumi's speech, his expression unchanging.

"I'll tell you everything you want to know, on one condition."

"What's the condition?" Yumi's curiosity peaked higher.

"You allow me to make you my Knight instead of Rias'." Issei said bluntly.

Yumi looked on in shock. "Let me get this straight, you want me, to be a part of your peerage?"

Issei nodded his head. "Yes, while it won't technically be official, that won't be an issue. Which I can't tell you why it won't be, unless you accept my offer that is."

To Issei, Yumi looked to be in a moral dilemma, on one hand her loyalty to Rias was undoubted, she owed her life to Rias since she had been saved by her. On the other, her curiosity would never be sated.

"Alright." Yumi relented. "I'm a reasonable person, I will accept, as long as I have the option to return to Rias if I ever decide to. This of course means you can add any clause you want that will prevent me from telling your secrets."

"I find your terms, acceptable. I hope to earn your loyalty like Rias has." Issei smiled.

"So how's this going to work?" Yumi asked.

"Simple." Issei stated pulling out an oddly shaped Knight piece from the air. "I put this Evil Piece in you, and it's done."

"Before we do this, I have one question. Why does that Evil Piece look so weird?"

"Again, simple." Issei smiled. "This one is heavily modified, once you use it, you'll never want to part with it."

Before Yumi had a chance to say anything further, Issei closed the small gap between them and pushed the Evil Piece into her body. What happened next was similar to what happened with Asia earlier. Yumi's eyes turned red, her hair platinum, and instead of 4 wings, 6 wings appeared from her back, and her aura had the same red glow.

Yumi collapsed to her knees, her breath was ragged and she had broken out in a sweat. To her, it felt like her body was in a sauna. She turned to look at Issei.

"What's... what's going on?" She managed to breathe out.

"You see, the physical reaction to the Evil Piece is dependent from person to person. I do have to say, I don't think I've seen a reaction quite like that before." He laughed lightly.

"Issei, can we get away from here? We don't want someone stumbling across us." Yumi advised.

"As you wish." Issei created a portal a moment later. "Let us take our conversation where nobody can overhear us."

Yumi nodded and made her way into the portal.

Issei picked a still unconscious Asia from the spot where she was laying and walked into the portal himself with the portal closing behind him.

On the other side of the portal, a room that was an exact copy of the club room at school appeared before Yumi. She quickly made her way to one of the couches as she didn't know if assimilating with the new Evil Piece had further side effects.

Issei, who came through just moments later, quickly made his way to the couch opposite of the one Yumi had claimed and gently lay Asia down on it. He then made his way over to the wooden desk Rias usually sat at and plopped himself down in the leather chair.

"Now that you've accepted the Evil Piece, I can explain some things to you." Issei stated. "Mainly who I am, what the Evil Piece I gave you does, and who taught me how to modify Evil Pieces. I will also answer a few of your questions as well if you have any."

"Who I am, is Issei Hyoudou, also known as the Red Dragon Emperor. The Evil Piece I gave you, allows you to gain potential special abilities for your Evil Piece. As for the person who taught me how to make these and modify them, it was Ajuka Beelzebub himself."

Yumi remained silent as she processed the new information she was just told. Firstly, Issei was the Red Dragon Emperor, that would explain why his passive aura and power seemed to be so intense. It also explained how he got out of extreme situations with ease. Secondly, he was personally taught by the second strongest Satan next to Rias' brother. Thirdy, she didn't know what to think about the Evil Piece, aside from gaining "special abilities", she hadn't a clue how to handle it.

"First things first Issei, when the hell are these side effects going to wear off?" Yumi was already tired of them, being a Devil prevented normal human sicknesses.

"The side effects shouldn't last much longer for you since you didn't pass out. As for Asia I'm not so sure, I may have made the mistake of giving her the piece before turning her into a Devil." Issei gave a sheepish look to Yumi.

Yumi simply rolled her eyes. "You didn't think about that before you gave her the piece?"

"Not really." Issei admitted. "Can you blame me though? I travelled a really, really long way to get here, not that the trip was of my own volition, but semantics you know?"

Before Yumi could reply, a soft sigh came from the direction of Asia. Both turned their heads to see a waking Asia. Issei rushed over to her side to prevent her from panicking.

"Asia, it's me Issei, you're safe, you'll never be bothered by those Fallen Angels ever again."

Asia fully opened her eyes to an unfamiliar room, but since Issei had told her that he was there, she had no reason to panic. She tried to get up, but found her whole body to be sore and a significant lack of energy to be had.

"Is there a reason why I feel so sore?" Asia asked.

"Sorry about that, it's a side effect of assimilating with the Evil Piece you accepted into your body. The effects should ware off in a short while now that you've regained consciousness." Issei smiled in reassurance.

"Evil Piece?" Asia had never heard that term before today.

"Think of the pieces on a chessboard, King, Queen, Bishop, Knight, Rook and lastly the Pawn. Each of these pieces have special traits; Queens are worth 9 Pawns. They possess all the characteristics of Rooks, Knights, and Bishops. Rooks are worth 5 Pawns. They gain superhuman strength, which allow them to have very high offensive and defensive capabilities. However they're not very quick and can be beaten by high-speed opponents easily. Bishops are worth 3 Pawns. They gain enhanced magical abilities which can be used to conjure a multitude of offensive and defensive spells. Of course, more powerful spells consume more magical power, also known as Mana. Under normal circumstances, this power takes a long time to regain, however that won't be as much of an issue, the piece I gave you has the ability to enter a 'caster' state, which allows you to use maximum magical power for minimum Mana usage for a certain period of time. Knights are worth 3 Pawns. They gain increased speed and mobility, enabling them to perform high-speed attacks and maneuvers. However, if they are not careful, due to their low defensive capabilities, they are vulnerable to powerful attacks. Their legs are also their main weakness. Pawns are worth 1 Pawn each. The traits of Pawns is the ability to promote into a Queen, Rook, Knight, or Bishop in enemy territory or with the permission from their King." Issei leaned back as he finished his explanation, thankfully, he would only have to give it one more time.

Asia gave a thoughtful look for a moment before asking. "So what piece am I?"

"You, Asia, are a Bishop. Since your Twilight Healing is a pure magic ability, the Bishop filled that role perfectly."

Issei paused before continuing. "I would also like to inform you, that you are now a Devil because of the piece, which also makes you a Bishop under my peerage."

Asia went into thought, when she had touched the piece Issei gave her, it told her what it was, and what it would do, along with the consequences, and benefits, of becoming a Devil. It had told her as well, that she would help more people if she walked the path of a Devil rather than the Path of a Human.

Asia looked back at Issei. "Is there a reason why I don't feel even regret my decision? I mean, I believed in God before this and now I can no longer go to Heaven?"

Issei nodded. "The piece I gave you, has memories stored in it, memories that are locked away and can only be unlocked by me. What currently is happening, is you are sensitive to receiving the emotions of the memory of someone who became a Devil and has accepted who they are."

"I am also sorry to say, you won't be able to go to Heaven when you die." Asia's eyes downcast at this.

"Additionally, over time, when I feel you are ready, I will unlock these memories, which will in turn allow you access to the knowledge of your newfound power and powers. The same applies to the piece I gave Yumi except since she has already accepted her position as a devil, therefore, no memories."

Asia tilted her head to the side. "I'm not quite sure I follow the whole Piece thing."

Issei sighed, he really didn't want to explain further unless he absolutely had to. He definitely didn't want to tell them that their pieces contained memories from their counterparts in Issei's previous life. He also wouldn't mention that they were the pieces used by their former selves either.

"I'd ok." Issei smiled. "I'll explain it better and in a lot more detail at a later time, just remember not to push yourselves too far otherwise your power will rebound. Although, that doesn't mean you cannot try new things, just if you are, tread lightly and carefully."

He turned and looked at Yumi.

"That means you too, don't make anything too crazy unless you think you can handle it alright?"

Yumi just glared at him.

Issei ignored it for the most part.

Time passed and the effects of the pieces wore off. Yumi left to go do whatever she normally did at the end of the day. Issei brought Asia home with him, and instead of having to make up an explanation, he put his parents under a spell that would prevent them from even questioning anything 'out of the ordinary' when it came to him.

He didn't go straight to bed at first, he wanted to make some minor adjustments to Rias' Bishop Evil Piece. The adjustments only took him half an hour to make, he may have been taught by Ajuka himself and become proficient, but he was no means a master like Ajuka. He made himself a quick 2-way portal, one that would lead into the hiding place for Rias' pieces and the other to take him back to his room. Unlike the adjustments, this only took him less than a minute to do.

He arrived back home and went straight to bed.

Waking first thing in the morning, first thing he did was wake Asia up, he had to explain a few things to her about his Reality Marble to her, like how he could offset the time in the Marble to be 12 hours different to that of Japan. When Rias decided to take them on a training camp trip, he wouldn't have to worry about Asia in the daytime when he wouldn't have time to train her.

After doing so, he showered and got ready for school. For most of the day, he spent time with his friends doing some of the perverted stuff he missed doing with them, like hiding in a locker in the girls' change room. However, due to his extremely poor luck when it came to peeping, he got his ass kicked by Koneko when she discovered him.

It was near the end of the school day, and he had a plan, a plan to be a part of the conversation that took place with Rias and Lady Grayfia. As the Red Dragon Emperor of course. Before he left however, he got chewed out by Rias for peeking, and that if he really needed to see a naked girl that badly, she would offer herself if it kept him in line. Needless to say, Issei accepted the offer almost instantly.

Finally when it was time to leave, he stepped outside the door and armored up, keeping his presence completely hidden of course. Now all he had to do was wait to sense the magic of Lady Grayfia and he would make his entrance shortly after.

Moments later, he felt Grayfia's magic appear, and heard the voices of her and Rias start talking to each other. He decided to make his entrance, he walked forward and was about to knock on the door, but to his surprise, he was met with an enormous wave of Rias' destruction magic. Nothing he could handle of course, but it had surprised him that she had detected him so easily. He caught the magic in his hand with a mix of his Dragon and Devil magic.

"Show yourself, eavesdropper!" Rias' voice was stern and full of fight.

"Now now Rias, what would you think your brother would say if he learned that you had the courage to attack me of all visitors?" This was probably the last time he would ever need to change his voice, Raisers game was soon after all.

He walked through what remained of the door.

"R-Red Dragon Emperor?" Exclaimed both Rias and Grayfia.

"Oh, a pleasure to meet you face to face Lady Grayfia Lucifuge, Queen to Sirzechs Lucifer. I'm sure no further introductions are needed as I have met Rias once before as you probably know." Issei tried to lighten the mood if just a little.

It didn't work and the room was engulfed into an awkward silence.

"So, what exactly did you come to tell me Grayfia? Did Raiser finally decide to send for me? You can tell him I refuse if that's the case." Rias said, breaking the silence.

"Not exactly, Sir Phoenix will be making a visit tomorrow. Since he might show off his own peerage, your brother would think it wise that you have your peerage with you when the time comes." Grayfia explained.

"I would also recommend having your peerage with you. Having your family with you in tough times will always turn out for the better than if you were to deal with it by yourself."

"I agree with the Red Dragon Emperor, you never know when you'll need help." Grayfia nodded in agreement.

Rias sighed, sat down, and put her head in her hands. An idea came into fruition in Issei's mind. He walked over to where Rias was sitting an knelt down in from of her.

"I have an offer, if you're willing to accept it Rias Gremory." He spoke softly.

Rias looked up from her hands. "What kind of offer?"

"An offer of help and protection. I will give you a seal that can be used once to summon me. Wherever you might be, no matter how far away, I will come."

Rias and Grayfia both looked shocked, the Red Dragon Emperor was offering his personal assistance?

"I... I accept your offer."

"Very well then."

Issei took her arm in his right hand and placed his left hand over top of it. Activating his magic, all the orbs in his armor grew in brightness as he infused magic into her arm. Waves of power flew out of Issei as he infused her arm with the seal.

Once it was done, a bright green seal rested on her forearm.

"The seal will turn invisible shortly, and it will only appear once I have been summoned. To do so, call out to me when you need me."

Issei got up from his position and moved away from Rias.

"I have accomplished what I came here to do. I bid thee both farewell, Rias Gremory, Lady Grayfia."

Issei created a portal to his room, he stepped inside of it, and activated it.

Upon arrival, he instantly de-activated his Balance Breaker and laid down his bed, he was exhausted, the type of magic he was familiar and adept with, was battle oriented magic, not the type he just used.

As Issei lay on his bed awaiting the arrival of Rias, he looked back on his choice of decisions since he'd arrived. Did he have to really go through this charade to keep the others safe? At this point, even he wasn't sure. Being a 5000 year old being was tough, aside from him having to save everyone from certain death, he had to prevent everything from descending into utter chaos if he messed up.

Before his line of thought could continue, the floor started glowing red with the Gremory insignia. A figure emerged and it was none other than Rias Gremory in all of her red haired glory.

"Rias? What are you doing here?" He asked her.

She could just be here on a friendly visit right?

"Issei, please sleep with me!" She desperately cried as she practically jumped on him.

Definitely a friendly visit.

"I'm sorry, I don't think I heard you correctly, could you say that one more time?"

"Take my virginity, this is urgent!" Her eyes told Issei all he needed to know, she had no other option but to turn to him.

Before long, Issei found himself shirtless, on his back, and in the dark laying in bed while Rias removed her own clothes.

"Do you not want me?" She asked.

"It's not a matter of not wanting you."

"I considered many options, but this is the only way." She continued on.

"The only way?" Issei feigned curiosity.

"He won't be able to complain once we've sealed the deal." Her face had a serious, but embarrassed look on it. "Your potential is limitless, and you have very few shortcomings. You also look like you could climax in a few minutes if I asked you to"

"Only if asked... just putting that out there." Issei grinned mischievously.

Rias positioned herself overtop of Issei.

"Issei, is this your first time?"

"Yes?" As hard as he tried to prevent it, his tone came out un-assured.

"I doubt either of us will be perfect, but we'll manage somehow." She said as she took off her bra.

Issei had two options. Fulfill Rias' request, thus taking her virginity and turning her into "damaged goods" in the betrothal contract. Following this option though didn't guarantee voiding the contract. On the other hand, he could use a sleep spell on Rias and win the Rating Game.

The second option seemed the most moral choice, but did morality have a place in steps to saving the lives of trillions? After a short time of consideration he finally made a decision. A third choice.

"I will accept your request Rias." He paused. "However just know that you might end up feeling regretful for making such a decision lightly."

Rias stopped undressing herself. "What do you mean by lightly? This is the only option I have left."

"That is a lie and you know it! You want to do this to spite him don't you?" Issei snapped at her.

"That's... that's not true..." Rias said after being surprised by Issei's harsh tone.

"I'm sorry Rias." Issei sighed. "I didn't mean to snap at you like that, as your servant, as your pawn, as a member of your peerage. I only want what's best for you."

Rias felt no ill intent from Issei's words, only sincerity and honesty. She moved off of Issei and thought to herself some more. Was she making a rash decision? Was this her only option?

Before she was able to make a decision, Issei embraced her and whispered in her ear.

"You won't remember that it was me who said this, but, you will remember what as I say as an option out of your situation."

Rias had no idea what Issei was talking about, but she would hear him out none the less.

"Beat that punk Raiser in a rating game, that will show everyone that Rias Gremory is worthy of choosing someone for herself."

The next thing she knew, her whole world turned black as she fell unconscious.

Issei carefully laid her down next to him and used a small amount of magic to re-clothe her, and himself. As tempted as he was by her request, it wasn't the right choice. If he had indulged, he didn't think he could ever find it within to forgive himself. While this Rias may physically be the same on that he knew and loved, this Rias was most certainly different. For starters she had no memories of him, she was also younger than his Rias. Although he did concede the point that being 5000 years old made the amount of people his age limited.

Issei waited for 10 minutes and Grayfia still hadn't shown up, she was late considering how fast she arrived the first time this happened.

[Issei, I was going to let you remember on your own, but after sitting here for 10 minutes, I might just cry.] Ddraig said out of the blue.

"What do you mean Ddraig? It's not like there's anything stopping..." Issei trailed off. He hadn't removed the anti-magic barrier he had placed since Rias arrived. Dammit, he felt like such an idiot.

Grayfia made her arrival shortly after the barrier. her face upon arrival was a knowing one, which swiftly turned to confusion at the sight of two fully dressed people with one of them, being her younger sister-in-law in particular, sleeping.

"Well this is a surprise." Grayfia said, breaking the silence. "I would have thought she'd have stripped you and seduced you into spending the night with her."

Issei only smirked. "Yes well, that was her plan. My sleeping spell is something she didn't account for."

Grayfia gave him a confused look. "Sleeping spell? I as far as I was aware Rias took you into her peerage only a few days ago."

Issei continued smiling. "That part of the story is very true, what your sister didn't know however, was who she was bringing into her peerage."

Grayfia looked even more confused.

"Here, I'll show you. Balance, Break!"

[Welsh Dragon, Balance Breaker!]

In an explosion of crimson light, Issei donned his armor that had served him since the first time he fought Raiser for the right of Rias Gremory.

"That red armor..." Grayfia trailed off in awe.

"Yes, I am the Red Dragon Emperor, or more formally, the Emperor of Red Dragon."

"Why do you sound so different? You had a deeper voice last time we met did you not?" Grayfia asked.

"I used magic to modify my voice, handy when you don't want anyone to figure out your identity." Issei answered.

"Now." He continued. "I will ask of you to return your sister to the room she stays in at the old school house, she has a big day tomorrow and she cannot miss it."

Grayfia nodded in agreement, she walked over and picked Rias up and started to leave.

"Oh, and few other things..."

Issei described in detail what he wanted Grayfia to do, and say when, and if, the time arose. He had a few backup plans as a precaution in case things didn't go the way he wanted them to go.

After he was finished, Grayfia left immediately to set up what he had planned. Issei on the other hand, de-activated his balance breaker, immediately laid in bed, and drifted off into a dreamless sleep.

This next week would be interesting.

Author's Notes: Hey everyone! Sorry for the long wait for chapter 5, I had originally planned to have this written and released much earlier, but a combination of real life and figuring out how I wanted to write parts of this story took up a lot of time.

No worries about next chapter though, I know exactly what I want to do with it. As always, leave me a review if I have made any mistakes. I pride myself in trying to make my spelling and grammar when I write these stories as perfect as possible (as everyone should in my opinion). Unlike some writers who I won't name.

Also as always, these chapters are written in my spare time so do not have any expectations as to when these are released.

Also can I just say, 160 favorites and 195 follows? You guys are insane! I love all of you who are enjoying this like I am, I never expected this story to get the kind of attention it did. You guys are the greatest!

Last thing in this note, I have another story idea which will be my own version of the story: Highschool DxD ALT. The authors name is Demons Anarchy of Pride,and they currently have 4 chapters uploaded at the moment so go give them a view, and when you leave a review, let them know I sent you over!

Catch you guys in the next chapter, or in the next edit. ~Shad0wReaper133