Hello everyone. Lets get one thing straight:
YuukiAsuna-Chan: This was exactly the type of commentary I didn't want to have. No one is forcing you to read my story, you don't need to write four consecutive comments stating the same thing. Comments 1-3 I can swallow, but the fourth one was just plain rude and offensive and you have been reported for that one. I can't feed everyone's foot-fetish. Leave me alone!
Now then! Lets get on with the fun shout outs!
Nintendoes Gamer: I feel a very unusual sensation - if it's not indigestion, I think it must be Grattitude.
13loop: Well, this one has feels too! And its 4.5K words long.
: magnificent comment, please write more soon.
Moneymaka and diggerboy4: Thank you! It wasn't the easiest to write, but I was proud of the result. I'm glad to hear it had the desired effect.
On a final note guys, lets spam so many reviews I don't have to see Yuuki's anymore next time I check them! Enjoy chapter 12!
Earth – Issei's safe house
Issei finished the spell that would raise her from her comatose sleep. Slowly the fallen angel blinked her eyes before sitting up and looking around her with a feral expression in her eyes. Soon they found Issei, who stood idly next to the bed. "What have you done to me?" Raynare asked, looking up at Issei with big frightened eyes.
"You mean besides saving you from utter destruction like your buddies?"
"What did you do to them?!" Raynare asked.
"Me? Nothing. The Gremory devils who found you lurking around in their territory were not so forgiving though. They saved that Holy Maiden of yours by the way. I think they are most grateful to you for delivering them a bishop with Twilight Healing." Issei replied. He calmly proceeded towards the kitchen, rummaged through some cupboards and proceeded to make him a cup of coffee.
"I'll have you know trying to kill me is pointless." Issei said when he heard Raynare sneak up behind him. Was she really so foolish to think he'd fail to notice the knife she wore in her belt? To prove his point he unfurled his fourteen wings, turned around and spread his arms. "Feel free to try."
The only response he got was the knife cluttering to the ground. Raynare gasped and backed off, tripping over her own feet and falling back down on the bed. "What do you want from me?" She asked in a frightened voice. Issei contemplated telling her his motives, then decided against it. "You will serve me, obey my every command and not complain whilst doing it." Issei released a bit of magic, making the bones of her knuckles deform slightly to create an uneasy feeling. "Do I make myself clear?" Raynare gulped and nodded.
"You will follow me like a shadow unless I tell you to do otherwise. You will not speak unless spoken to and if anyone but me speak to you, the first thing you do is ask permission from me to speak. You will make no attempt to contact Azazel, you will make no attempt to escape. From this point onwards you will address me only as Master. Understood?"
"Yes." Raynare said. "Yes, what?" "Yes, master."
"Good." Issei yanked her off the bed, and placed a teleportation circle on the ground. Issei intentionally placed the exit a small two meters off the ground, so that when they emerged in the middle of the ORC he flared his wings and made a graceful landing. Raynare didn't fare so well, producing a little yelp before crashing to the ground. The ORC members, who were lounging around on the couch looked up from whatever they were doing. Koneko stuck out most, her bright wings shining against the dark themes of the clubroom interior.
"Everyone, this is my new slave, Raynare. Feel free to use her in any way you please, but don't cause her unnecessary harm." Issei said answering everyone's startled looks. "I will see to doing that myself." None too gently he pulled the fallen angel to her feet again. "Raynare, as far as you are concerned these are your masters too. Same rules apply."
"Yes master." She replied in a small voice.
"Alright, first things first. Asia." Issei said, beckoning her over. "Raynare, this is the innocent girl you killed, you will apologize to her." Issei looked at the fallen angel expectantly. "I'm… sorry." Raynare said through gritted teeth. Pathetic, she didn't even try. "One more thing, Raynare," Issei said, walking into his room and coming back with a bundle of cloth. "from now on, you will be wearing this."
"Really, a maid's outfit?" Raynare said, before whimpering when the bones of her arms started to bulge and deform. "yes master…" she said weakly, fighting tears, before retreating into Issei's chamber to change.
"Don't you think this is taking it a bit far?" Rias asked as she watched Raynare's sulking form retreat. Issei shook his head. "In the end she will be grateful for it… I hope." Rias carefully studied Issei. "In that case I will trust your judgment. She is your prisoner after all." She paused for a moment, leaning in to whisper in Issei's ear. "Issei, Koneko is recovering." Rias said. "Slowly." She added. "I think a change of scenery might do her good."
"What did you have in mind?" Issei asked. "The Gremorys have a mansion up in the mountains, mostly used for recreational purposes. I talked to my brother, he said we could borrow it for a week or so." Rias replied. Issei nodded in agreement. "Yes, sounds good. There has been a theory regarding Koneko I have been wishing to test, a remote area will do nicely for that."
Rias clapped her hands. "Alright, everyone! Let's pack. We are taking a vacation."
Overall cheers of approval arose from the ORC members, save for Koneko who looked a little saddened. Issei made way for her as everyone rushed off to their respective homes to pack. They would meet up again in an hour to take the teleportation circle there. Issei sat down next to her on the couch and tentatively put an arm around her, pulling her to him. "Hey, what's wrong?" He asked.
"She's doing this because of me, isn't she?" Koneko asked. "Yes." Issei replied, deciding to tell her the truth. "She must think me weak now that I am no longer her Rook. She's going to kick me out, isn't she?" Koneko asked, tears in her eyes. "Koneko, it's true you are weakened right now. As much is to be expected after… what I put you through happened. But you are by no means weak and I am very, very certain Rias will never 'kick you out'."
"I just wish I could hide the wings." Koneko whispered. "I have been trapped inside for weeks now." Gently Issei moved his hand along the curve of her primaries, eliciting a gasp from Koneko. Angel wings could be very sensitive in… more private settings. "That's one of the reasons we are going to the mountains. Who knows, the fresh air might do you some good." Playfully Koneko punched his arm, her earlier sadness gone. He really did have a way with her.
Gently Issei pushed a kiss to her cheek. "Now go and pack, I will see you within the hour." And so the seven of them found themselves in front of the large white mountain resort. "Here you go, Raynare. You get to carry the suitcases." Issei said, dropping his and Koneko's on top of the fallen angel's. She wobbled under the added weight, but managed to remain upright.
"Rias, me and Koneko will be back for supper, alright?" He said. The president nodded and led the rest of her peerage into the house, the fallen angel with three suitcases in tow. "Where are we going?" Koneko asked. "You will see." Issei replied, before scouting the skyline with his eyes, looking for a suitable cliffside. "Come." He said, when he spotted one and placed down a teleportation circle.
The place Issei had fount was about as good as he was going to get it. Behind the cliff was a large tall grass clearing, very soft if one were to… fall. "Are you going to do what I think you are going to do?" Koneko asked, peering over the edge of the cliff. "I'm not going to push you, if that's what you are asking." Issei replied. "I just have a hunch I'd like to test. Come here please, a little bit away from the edge." He said, gesturing to the middle of the clearing.
"Have you been exercising your wings each day, like I asked you to?" Issei inquired. Koneko nodded. "Good. Spread your wings and try to take off." Issei said. Koneko stood in the middle of the clearing and spread her wings as wide as she could. She shot a questioning glance Issei's way, who nodded encouragingly. With one powerful downbeat she raised herself some two meters into the air. When she pulled her wings up, however, she lost control and tumbled down towards the ground.
"It's as I expected." Issei said when she struggled back to her feet. "Ouch…" was his only reply as Koneko started to rub her sore knees where they had connected to the ground. "Why did you make me do that?" Koneko asked. "Angels," Issei stated, "are born without knowledge of flight. Unlike devils, whose wings are more for show and rely on levitation more than anything else, angel wings function much as a bird's. In other words," Issei said, pulling Koneko to her feet, "welcome to your crash course in angelic flight training."
"What you just did is a mistake every angel makes when they first spread their wings. Spread your right wing please." Koneko did as she was asked. Issei gently held it up by the leading edge so she wouldn't have to strain her muscles to keep it in place. "Every feather has a specific function; books upon books have been written on the subject. These for instance," Issei said, stroking his fingers across the feathers at the very tip of her wing, "reduce the disruption of air after the downbeat, making for more efficient flight."
"It's however more important you master the basics right now. That way your wings become a tool rather than a burden." He moved back to the center of her wing and grabbed a fistful of feathers. None too gently he pulled. "Aah!" Koneko said as her wings tensed and all her feathers stood on end. "Hold your wing like that, I'm gonna let go now." Slowly Issei released the hand full of feathers, taking in the form of her wings.
"Memorize this feeling." He instructed. "Right now the feathers on your wings are disconnected, in other words air can flow through. Before, you kept your feathers closed, which has about the same effect as flapping a large piece of wood up and down." Issei said. "You produce the same up force as down force, which means you negate any lift you created on the down beat with the upbeat."
He stepped back, releasing Koneko's wing. "Alright, try again, but open your feathers on the upbeat this time." Koneko did as she was asked. Issei watched as she flared out her wings and attempted to take off once again. She actually managed to remain airborne for a full two seconds before the strain became too much and she sank to the ground again, wings quivering.
"One day," Koneko said, "you will have to explain to me how you do those vertical takeoffs." Issei smiled and gently massaged the area between her shoulder blades where the primary flight muscles connected to the frame of her skeleton, relaxing the strained muscles. "Sheer muscle power and a high degree of control on the trailing edge of the wing. Most angels under the two hundred mark are incapable of vertical takeoff. You will be happy to know you made it about as far as the average one-hundred-and-fifty year old on your thirty-second day of angelhood." He said. "Wanna see how it's done?"
Koneko nodded and blushed when Issei took off his shirt. "For the sake of argument we are going to assume seven pairs of wings function as one." He said. Koneko just stood there, staring at his defined chest muscles. God, Issei had a sexy six-pack going and what was better, it was all hers! "Well, you coming?" Issei said, impervious to her staring.
Koneko snapped out of it and stepped towards Issei. "Put your hand on my back, right between my shoulder blades." Issei instructed. He involuntarily shuddered as her lithe fingers ghosted over the base of his fourth wing pair. After all, wings could be sensitive in… private settings. Issei spread his wings, forming them into a unified shape of a huge wing. It wasn't as effective as the takeoffs he did in which all seven were used separately, but showing off one of those would teach Koneko nothing.
"Look at the shape of my wings. Notice how the primaries are mostly straight and trailing edge curved? It's basically a large air scoop." Slowly he raised his wings, letting Koneko feel the work of his muscles as they raised the large appendages into the air. "Wings are meant to glide, like an airplane. The key to a vertical takeoff is to push down with so much strength that you gain enough altitude to perform a slight dive and gain forward momentum. Once you have momentum you can do almost anything, including a near vertical climb. Going into one of those from takeoff is possible, but I have not seen any angel under two-hundred-and-fifty master those." He said.
He turned around and firmly grabber hear around the waist. "Ready?" Issei asked. "Ready for wha-" her question turned into a scream as Issei pushed down raising both him and Koneko a good twenty meters into the air. "Issei! I have no idea how to do this!" She screamed as he twisted in the air so his back was facing the ground now, then corkscrewed and made a vertical dive down the cliffside.
After a dive of maybe twenty meters he leveled out, entering a gentle horizontal glide. "We start off slow." He assured her. Gently he turned her around so her back was to his chest. "Spread your wings." He instructed. Koneko did as she was told, but kept too little force on her primaries, which caused the wings to flare and snap wide open. "Whoa!" Issei said, quickly pushing Koneko's wings shut again and flapping his own to regain some speed.
"Let's try that again. This time, actively angle your wings into the wind." He instructed. He let go of her trailing edges and allowed her wings to flare out again. He felt her wings starting to generate lift. "I'm gonna let you go now."
Before she had time to reply Issei pulled his arms back and slightly angled his leading pair of wings, granting him a little altitude so Koneko was now gliding on her own. "Issei you bastard!" He heard Koneko shout. "Trust your instincts!" He yelled after her, hoping he would not have to prevent her from splattering into the ground. Those things could really destroy a new flyer's ego.
Issei halted in midair and entered a hover, watching as Koneko stumbled through the air, clumsily moving her wings as she tried to turn corners, remain at a steady altitude and retain her speed. "Very good Koneko! You are doing great!" He shouted in encouragement. Eventually she gained enough confidence and began to experiment, making dives, climbs, corkscrews and loopings. "This is great!" Koneko yelled.
"You haven't even begun to scratch the surface!" Issei yelled in reply. After a while Koneko began to fly circles around Issei. "How do you hover?" She yelled at him. "Why don't you observe and find out yourself?" Issei yelled, altering his movements so his seven wings resembled a single pair. He watched in amusement as she fumbled around, trying to nail the tricky maneuver. Eventually she gave up and set a crash course for Issei.
"oomph" Issei said as her light frame crashed into hers, quickly wrapping his arms around her to prevent her from falling to the ground. Koneko turned her head to the side, trying to see the way Issei moved his wings. They were moving very fast, almost a blur. "Do you know how hummingbirds hover?" Issei asked.
Koneko shook her head. "Alright, spread your wings." He said, granting her enough space within their embrace to do as he had asked. "Relax the whole of your wing, save for the leading edge." He told her. Experimentally he gave her trailing edge a slight push, satisfied with the way it dangled back and forth limply.
"Good, now you move your primaries in a figure eight through the air. And do it quickly. You have to fight the urge to use any other muscles save the ones in your primaries, otherwise your wings will lose all their lift. Let the tension in your wing tissue do the work." Koneko nodded in understanding. Issei stopped moving his wings for a moment and turned them over in the air. Beating his wings furiously he pushed them straight up into the sky, gaining a large amount of altitude. Their clothing grew slightly damp as they pierced the clouds.
"Give it your best shot, I will catch you if you fall." He said, before pushing her away from him. Issei watched as she circled around and tried to enter a stable hover. She moved her wings too slowly and yelped as she fell down. Quickly she caught herself and started circling again a hundred meters below Issei.
Quickly he descended, falling into a trajectory that matched hers. "You need to move your wings quicker!" he yelled at her. "It feels strange!" She replied. "I know! Hovering is very counter intuitive to bird-like creatures such as us!" He watched her try again. She actually managed to hold her hover for a few moments, but then began to pull her wings straight using the muscles in her lower wing.
"Keep your wings limp!" He yelled after her as she plummeted down through the clouds. He saw himself fall through those clouds, remembering how he had once struggled with the trick. Quickly he folded his wings and dove after her. When he regained vision of Koneko she was hovering in the air. Giving a delightful whoop Issei swooped around and entered a hover next to her.
"You're a natural!" He exclaimed. Together they watched the setting sun. "Wait here!" He said, then quickly flew off. A few moments later Issei returned with his shirt on. "You ready to return to the house? I think dinner will be soon." He said. Koneko nodded and followed him. Together they soared through the air, Issei was carefull to avoid pockets of turbulence and hot air. Although Koneko could probably handle them, he would rather not attempt it with her at these kinds of velocities.
Soon Issei set down on the roof, flaring his wings in awesome display as his feet touched the white tiles and turned around. Not a moment too soon as Koneko gracefully crashed into him, sending them both sprawling. As luck would have it, she ended up straddling him. "I'm gonna have to work on those landings…" Koneko muttered, nestling her head into Issei's chest. "It's the takeoffs I'm more worried about. Until you master the vertical takeoff you are stuck jumping from ledges. Maybe we could invent a bastardized version, combine leg and wing strength…" He mused.
Dinner was amazing and the mood was good as everyone shared their stories of the day. Issei listened with quiet satisfaction as Koneko told every one of her exhilarating flying adventures, describing every minute detail. An angel's first flight was something that would forever remain within their memories, no matter how old they grew.
Later that night, when Issei was relaxing in one of the armchairs next to the fireplace, Koneko came up to him and crawled into his lap. He stroked her hair in long, languid motions as she softly purred. "I'm so glad you aren't furious with me." Issei said. "What do you mean?" "I took away your Rook piece, forced a strange set of wings on your back, binding you to a new set of rules and had you bedridden for nearly three weeks."
"You saved my life. Besides, I like these wings." She said, softly touching the primaries of her right wing. "They are truly extraordinary, Koneko. Never before have I seen wings made out of living fire, save for on a phoenix." Issei replied, moving his hand along the trailing edge of her wing, where harmless soft blue flames softly danced around. He wrapped his arms around the girl as she sighed in contentment.
After a while Issei gently moved the girl so he had some more liberty of movement. He reached for the delicate, wooden box next to the chair. He opened it, shifting the velvet interior aside to reveal a rather… plain object for such an elaborate packaging. Gently he lifted the brown, ceramic teapot from the box and set it down in a bowl on the table.
"What are you doing?" Koneko asked.
"Briefly excuse me, will you." Issei said, before making a slight jog for the kitchen. A moment later he returned with a large copper kettle. He sat down again, letting Koneko retake her old spot. "When I was nineteen," Issei said, removing a pouch from the box, "I helped an old Chinese lady who'd lost her cat." He gently spread the herbs on the palm of his hand and dropped them into the pot.
"She had no children, no one to give her legacy to. Instead she gave me this. Do you know what this is?" Issei said, gesturing to the teapot.
"A teapot?" Koneko asked uncertainly.
"Exactly. For three hundred years this pot was handed down through her family. It must be regularly used, otherwise the clay dries and the pot crumbles." Issei poored the boiling water into the pot, not stopping when it was full. "Every time the pot overflows, slight sediment is left behind." He took out two cups and shot her a questioning glance. She shook her mind and he placed one back in the box.
Issei poured his tea, letting the flickering light of the fire dance across the ceramic surface. It glinted and shone, breaking the light in a myriad of colors. "This was first done over six hundred years ago, Koneko. Each time someone drinks tea form this pot, that memory stays alive."
Issei stared into the flames of the fireplace sipping his tea, watching them grow and recede.
Wait, pause, rewind. Grow and recede?
That was strange, the flames were altering in intensity at a steady rate. A very steady rate. A rate he could feel in his arms. The rate of Koneko's breathing! Could she have the Gift? Was that even possible in newly made angels? Then again, she was the first of her kind, so in theory anything was possible.
"Koneko?"
"Hmmmm?" The half-asleep girl in his lap mumbled. "Could you breathe in really deep for me?" He asked. Koneko raised her head of his chest and gave him a strange look, but did as she was told. The flames in the fireplace responded immediately, grew in size and intensity, almost escaping the stone confines of the fireplace. "Do you trust me?" Issei asked. Koneko nodded.
Gently he lifted her off his lap and placed her down on the carpet next to the fireplace, then sat next to her. "This is gonna sound weird, but I want you to stick your hand into the fire." Koneko's eyes grew wide. "Why would I want to do that?"
"Do you trust me?" He said, looking straight into her eyes.
Hesitantly Koneko reached out, tentatively testing the grounds as her fingers neared the fireplace. Slowly, very slowly she pushed her hand into the flames. "Why am I not getting burned?" She asked incredulously.
Issei reached out for the pile of wood next to the fireplace and pulled a chip of wood out of the pile. He held it in between himself and Koneko. "Reach out with your other hand, touch the wood and imagine the fire from the fireplace flowing through you to light it on fire." He said. Koneko once more did as she was asked. Issei watched as the wood started to glow and eventually combusted in flames. Quickly he tossed it into the fireplace. "Alright, you can take your hand out of the fire now."
"What did I just do?" Koneko asked. "Talk to me Issei!"
"You can control fire, Koneko. It appears," Issei said, "that along with your wings, you received something bestowed on very few of angel kind. We call it the Gift of Manipulation, or just the Gift for short. What these angels can manipulate is random, but each and every Gift is unique. There are a few ground rules to it, however. Gifts cannot be used against other who have Gifts. Using your Gift turns your blood acidic. The effects are temporary and you do develop a resistance to it over time, but overuse can kill you. When your blood turns acidic it starts to eat through the veins in your body. It first shows as a bloody nose, perhaps tears of blood. Then the flesh under your nails starts to bleed. Beyond that several smaller arteries on your arms and legs open up. Keep going," Issei stated, holding Koneko's gaze, "and you will fry your heart, brain, or die from blood loss.."
"So you have a Gift as well, I saw you bleed after the fight with Riser." Issei nodded. "You can control bone, can't you?" Koneko said.
"It's considered a very personal question to ask about one's Gift and an act of great trust to answer it." Koneko's face turned sad, thinking that was all Issei was going to say. Issei hesitated for a moment, then made up his mind. "A long time ago," he said, capturing Koneko's attention once more, "I was feared for my Gift. Mine is linked to life itself. I could make dead pets return, heal the most grievous wounds." Issei paused for a moment, a hint of longing in his eyes. "Over time, however, as certain… events…" he held Koneko's gaze, speaking the unspoken words to her, "came to pass, those aspects of me started to dwindle. First I lost the ability to heal the mind, then mend flesh. I have but a vague connection with blood now. All those things resemble life. What remains now is the ability to control bones. Death."
Koneko sat on his lap and embraced him tightly. "You will get the full extent of your Gift back. I will heal your spirit." She promised. "And don't you dare say it's a promise I'm not gonna be able to keep!" She said when she saw Issei making to speak up, mirroring Rias's earlier words.
"I wasn't going to. I think the power is already returning to me." Issei said. "I brought you back to the land of the living, didn't I?" He said, answering Koneko's unspoken question in her eyes. She tightened her embrace even further, burying her head in his chest again. "I love you Issei." She said.
There it was, those three words, those three dreaded words Issei had hoped to avoid for a while longer. "I…" What was he to say? Did he love her? Was he going to make the leap of faith? Would she hurt him again?
No. Koneko would never intentionally hurt him. Not like that bitch Gabriel. "I…" He looked down into Koneko's expectant eyes. He felt the warmth swell within him as he took her in and realized he never wanted her to look at anyone else with those eyes. Those big, beautiful, hazel brown eyes. One last time, for her, he would offer the broken pieces of himself to another. There was no going back now. "I love you too." And they sealed their silent promise with kiss between lovers.