Note-- I can't make an excuse for why this one's out so late. It was fun to write for these characters again and I felt myself getting more used to it. I won't make any promises of timely updates since we all know I'm not good at that. But this story is still one I'm interested in, wanted to let everyone know that. Thank you to anyone still reading this.

--End

Smoldering bodies and cackling flames were all that were tethering him to reality. Evidence of the battle fought for a purpose he could no longer remember was birthed from the ashes of the deceased. The flame slowly swirled around him, consuming the rest of the world and leaving but a circle with him and her body. The flames were able to cauterize the wound in his shoulder, making him forget all the pain. From the bottom of his throat he felt a lump growing. While a scream was what he intended, his heart had a different plan. Rhythmic sobs produced unbreakable blockades within his throat, disallowing any screaming from taking place. His soul felt disconnected, as though the surrounding smoke carried it into the sky, allowing him to see the battlefield and reminisce on every second of it. From this aerial view, he could see Akeno's descent and Hanzo's quick paces. Seeing members of the club again slammed his spirit right back into his body and doused the flames surrounding him. No, it'd be more accurate to say that the flames never existed. A lone mirage caused by the loss of one he sought to protect. Just the remnants of growing grief. His shoulder was still wounded and dripping blood. "Kid? Get up." His ears only twitched at the familiar nickname. While his lips did move to attempt communication, the blockage in his throat just wouldn't allow it. Mirroring his movements after being struck by lightning, his body started trembling.

"Save her," was all his weakened voice could muster. "Whatever you did to me, do it to her. She can live right? Like one of us?"

Rias stepped forward only to be met by Akeno's palm. "What good would doing that do?"

"Akeno, stand down." Her usually collected voice was more intense this time around.

"You'll be too so-"

Her eyes were pleading, but her voice was demanding, "Step down." After a long silence followed by an exhale, she looked at him. "I could make her one of us, but would she want that?"

"What do you mean? It beats the condition she's in now!" Pure emotion shattered the dam that formed in his throat. "Would you prefer she di-"

Rias' expression firmed up and for a moment, her hand flinched, "So you'd willingly make her her own enemy?"

"We came to save he-"

"To her we're demons, Naegi. She never found out what you are, had she known, she wouldn't have thought twice about giving you up to her allies."

His head shook and he grit his teeth. "She's like me. She was born with her gear and was betrayed at the last moment. She was kind to people… she helped me and asked for nothing. She didn't ask for this, I jumped headfirst into it. But I'm the one that gets to live?"

She gave the two next to her a signal to leave and once they were out of earshot, she sat beside her Pawn and frowned. Gentle fingertips tapped his back before a reassuring hand flattened against it. "You hardly knew her, and you're still so affected. Did you feel a kinship?"

His eyes dried for a second, which was but a momentary stall in the water lines on his face, "I'm not sure. I hardly knew her, it shouldn't hurt as much as it does."

"We should move away from here. This can't be good for you." She gripped his arm and tenderly tugged towards herself. Reluctantly, he moved his body up and strolled away with her. "You don't have to be hardened to death like the rest of us, Naegi. No matter what anyone tells you, they've led different lives. But, with that, you also have to have a respect for life. Do you think someone so close to the church would be happy as a demon?"

Licking his lips to try and summon any type of strength, he managed a low, "I don't know."

"Are you happy as a demon?" Her words were blunt and cut through him instantly.

"I'd like to think I am," a weak smile managed to creep into his expression, "aside from you know, tonight."

While positivity crept on her, all that snuck its way onto her face was worry, "I hope that answer never changes."

"Think I can teleport again? Or was that a fluke?"

"We can certainly try. Your home or the training camp?"

"My house, if you don't mind. More comfortable." Not even making a comment, she just moved away from him and made a magic circle beneath them. Both of her eyes occasionally glanced at his nearly nonexistent shoulder. Weightlessness captured the two of them rapidly and soon, the two were standing in the living room of his home.

"Looks like I've got it down, at least I haven't failed completely today." Naegi nearly fell over and started tumbling to his stairs and above. She pondered just how many times he had walked up those stairs alone. His back turned to her, he slowly began fading into the shadows near the top.

She shook her head again and walked up the stairs with him. "Let me at least help your shoulder before I go." By the time she reached his room, he was plopped on his bed. Overall, it was a drab white room with hardly any decoration. Relatively clean carpet covered the floor and a single desk was stuffed into a corner. No memorabilia except for a single photo on his desk and nothing on the clean walls. "Figured I'd clean up after the last time you were here," sorrowful eyes revealed the truth behind his light hearted words.

"As if your room was that dirty," she had a realization and groaned a little. "I need to grab the materials from the camp, is that okay?" He nodded and she left in an instant. Leaving him to his own thoughts, he wept silently and allowed those same water lines to burst open and rush out. As the valves behind his eyes opened fully, he gripped at the sheets beneath him and let out another groan. Despite the constant agony of his shoulder, his heart seemed to have been damaged the most. For those moments, Naegi could only stare down and weep.

That was until she appeared behind him, just as quickly as she left. She was close enough that he could feel the warmth emanating from her. Supportive hands placed themselves on his back and he closed his eyes as she tended to his wound. They sat in silence with the occasional pained noises from Naegi being the only sound in the room. Eventually, the sound of him sucking in air was overpowered by the quick snip of the wire used to seal his wound. "Try not to let it get infected okay?" were the only words that she could bring forth. He was hunched over and just staring at the wall.

"Yeah, I- uh. I got it. Try to get some alcohol or something sterile on it and keep myself going," he turned to meet her with a wide smile and beet red eyes.

She did her best not to focus on his tone and face too much before standing up from his bed. "Seems like you want to be alone right now. I'll leave you to think."

He reached out for a second before clasping nothing but air in his hands. Sitting there, he began to recount everything that happened in the past few hours. A moment of peace allows for recollection, bringing him to a single conclusion. "Think you could call everyone over?" He asks just as a circle appears beneath her feet.

"I'll see if they're awake. If not, I'll bring who I can." Without another word, she vanished yet again. Naegi's eyes opened and closed repeatedly as he sat on the edge of his bed. Just falling over would be all it took to finally get rest. Once the severity of his movement hit his wound however, those same eyes shot open.

Within a few long, and admittedly rather agonizing minutes, his entire room lights got overpowered by the deep crimson of the circle on his floor. Through the science breaking wonders of magic, those he wanted to meet were right in front of him. The two darker haired ones behind each shoulder of their leader. "Here they are," she announced in that same low tone.

"So, what'd you wanna say? No mu-"

"Thank you," Naegi spoke out with sheer confidence. "Akeno, you saved me without giving it a second thought. The moment I was in over my head, you were there. I wouldn't be here without that."

Brimming with her usual nonchalant nature, she nodded and immediately asked, "Of course. The better topic is, do you want to be here?"

Before she could speak again, he just half-smiled and moved his head over. "I'd absolutely be dead if you didn't show me what an actual fight is like. We didn't have any time to prep, but getting tossed around by you helped me at least get over the initial fear."

"I mean, sure. But what are you getting at here? Like half an hour ago, you were breaking down."

"Let him finish Hanzo," Rias raised her voice and closed her eyes, getting an awful sensation.

"No, it's okay. I haven't been here long enough to demand his attention. I just- uh. It didn't feel right not thanking them when they're the reason I'm even alive. I wanted to say that. I'm scared." Naegi took a second to swallow down and collect himself before continuing, "I mean, even thinking about tonight makes me shake. I'm a wreck and I don't know what to do."

Silence became an authoritative presence in the room as they anticipated his next statement. Hanzo cut in, "And?"

"Oh, yeah sorry. Yeah I'm scared and I probably will be for a long time. Hell, I don't know if I'll ever be okay with seeing this kind of stuff. But I'll try." For a moment, Hanzo gave him an extreme look of sympathy and understanding before his face hardened again. He glanced at the two helpless eyes in front of him and had to avert his gaze for a second to still his nerves.

Giving him a half smile, Rias glanced over at the two other pieces before giving them a quick signal. "We should probably leave."

"You guys are probably tired," He interjected faster than ever before. "I don't have much room and only 1 other bed but if you all want, you can stay the night." Everyone turned to him to see his trembling hands and a mild twitching in his cheek. He gulped down and shut his eyes to breathe deeply. Waiting for a response, he found a lump forming in his throat. A lump of regret for even asking that sort of thing. "Um, I'll even offer both beds to anyone who wants them. There's one in this room and another in the one straight down the hall. It's a little dirtier but should still be fine." Nudging her queen a little to remove the dissatisfied look, Rias gave him a look of confirmation. Never one to concede, Akeno could only shut her eyes and barked out a quick command before everyone scurried to their newly assigned sleeping locations.

"Should have known it would have ended like this, Kid." The pair ended up gazing not at the moonlit sky, but at the drab ceiling of the small living room. Small bits of discolored paint from the gray walls clung to the edges of the ceiling, which provided at least some sort of change of scenery for the two.

Laying on his couch with his arms across his stomach, Naegi added, "It's fine. Was just trying to help."

"I think you're confused about who wanted to help who," Hanzo grumbled before stretching a little. "Closeness to the King applies in everything, not just the dining table. Sleeping anywhere near those stairs would be impossible for you."

"For me, right? So why are you dow-"

"Down here? Cause I wanted to keep you company. Also, dusty rooms mess with my nose."

Mimicking the older demon's mumble, Naegi said, "Not that dirty," then raised his voice to answer, "But I meant why are you on the floor? There's another couch."

Hanzo shot a quick glance at the piece of furniture, whose edges were warped by the darkness around them. Afterwards, he looked up and to his left, directly at Naegi's outline, "My feet hang off the edge."

"And I gave you the bigger o-" He slammed his hand into his palm before recoiling both in pain and at the command to quiet down from upstairs. He got up and grit his teeth before fiddling with the couch and eventually revealing that it could pull out into more of a bed shape. "Three, I had three beds," He added and shook a little from the pain before setting himself down on his couch.

With a hand gripping his knee, the man rose and now found himself comfortably looking down at the seated one before him. "Thanks man, my shoulders were killing m-" He saw Naegi reach up and grab his wound the moment he said shoulders. "Insensitive of me, my fault." He walked over and brought his voice to an almost unhearable low. "I was told specifically not to do this kind of thing when we started training, but since you're sleeping on a couch I figured you should at least be comfortable."

Naegi nearly gasped and screamed as a heavy hand placed itself upon his damaged shoulder. Through sheer willpower and teeth shattering clench, he managed to quell the onset of a scream. The right half of his face lit up with a luminous white that was spreading itself across his shoulder. "What are you doing?" Hanzo brought his unoccupied hand up to his lips to give a universal sign of silence.

As more of the glow spread to his shoulders, he could see traces of it spiraling around Hanzo's arm and resting in a spot mirroring Naegi's. It was as if the light itself was alleviating the pain he felt, though the wound still very much remained. He could still feel the itch of the stitching and the sensation of his skin being held together, but there was oddly no pain. Noticeably more serious, Hanzo plopped down onto the extended couch and laid back, "When someone's in pain, it never hurts to have someone else to share the burden with. It's in our blood, happens everywhere in nature. Wolves let their sick set the pace for travel, they place them at the very front of the line so no one gets lost." Smiling to himself for a second, he let the entirety of his body sprawl over the newly moved bed.

"You… took my pain?"

He nodded, "Yep, well, everything that my gear lets me. But, just cause I did that doesn't mean it isn't still your job to heal. That's entirely up to you."

Continuing his disbelief, he tapped his shoulder while stating, "You didn't have to do that."

Hanzo shrugged and adjusted the sheet to better fit his entire body, "Didn't want you tossing and turning all night, Kid. I haven't heard anyone move around, so I'm assuming your parents are working the night shift, can't have them wondering why you're awake."

"No, my parents aren't here. Haven't been for a long time," whispered Naegi.

He eyed the younger one, waiting for an addition to his statement. Even in the dark, the grimace spread across his face was clear. Scooting himself deeper into the couch, Hanzo assured, "Is that why you recommended we stay here? I doubt this house would feel very comforting."

"Nope, I'm used to the gloom in this place. I have no issues being alone," Naegi paused. "But, I figured it wouldn't hurt to offer all of you."

"Sorry that the sleeping arrangements ended up like this. I thought she'd have a little mercy on you, considering, y'know."

A second after Naegi shook his head, he spoke again, "She probably understood that you'd help me. Plus, I offered the beds to whoever would take them."

"Used to sleeping in places like this?"

"Sort of. I used to have a friend that'd come over almost every weekend. She'd take my bed and knock me to the floor. You?"

Hanzo smiled and responded, "It's all I had for a long while. Honestly, a couch is an upgrade." He broke the silence with a few rhythmic taps, questioning, "So I guess you're used to guests in the house?"

"Not at all," Naegi laughed and spoke through a cough assaulted by spit, "she moved away years ago and I haven't really had much interaction with other people."

"I guess it's sort of hard to get used to new people. Especially when you have a schedule like that."

"I guess, but it is nice to not have to clean blue hair off your pillow every night." His brow furrowed and he began choking on his spit again. Hanzo was stern in demeanor and brought his blanket up higher. "Do you think that one of those-"

"I can't give you a direct answer. But this life has a funny way of bringing up the past. Get some rest." The larger one turned his back, closing himself up to any discussion for the night. With an unheard mumble, Naegi decided to turn on his side and attempt to ignore the events of the previous night.

Sunlight crept its way up the outer walls of the house, penetrating through the thin, curtainless windows. It crawled and stretched through the room until it reached the couch where Hanzo slept. Stopping at the top, the sunlight was seemingly disappointed that it could not surprise the demon. In a fit of rage, the rays struck Naegi and pushed his eyes open. Now basked in the morning rays, he grunted and turned around, wrapping himself tightly in the blankets. "Accept me, protect me. Don't let me wake up yet," his breath nearly ran out at the end of the sentence.

"Might as well get up before those two do. You'll really wanna get ready before Rias gets up."

"I'm not meant for this. We went to bed so late, and I couldn't exactly sleep well on the couch." A yawn that could shake the windows came from the top floor. He bit down and covered his ears to calm his senses and collect himself.

"Too late, wait at least an hour before even thinking of going upstairs." His matter-of-fact tone was entirely lost on the groggy one.

Waving while rubbing one of his eyes, he yawned just as loudly. "If you want me up that bad, at least let me brush my teeth."

He reached out in sheer desperation. "Wait no," he called, "that's the exact opposite of what--" His warning came too late, as Naegi was already up the stairs. He calmly dragged his feet across the floor, not even paying attention to the squeaking hinges to his left. In the dark, he could make out a messy mass of red, with a single strand standing defiantly towards him. The hair on his next stood up as the red grew brighter and began crackling. With a swift jump backwards, nearly leading him to fall off the stairs, he managed to avoid the flame. His panicked yelp got a mere yawn of acknowledgment from the crimson demon as she put her flame out.

"Is the house burning?!" His voice echoed from down the stairs. "I told you, stay away. She's quick to send those damn things out in the morning, especially after an operation."

His voice rose and fell with each step he took to the bottom, "Having second thoughts about this whole sleepover thing."

"Look man, I tried warning you."

"Thanks, I really am grateful." He sighed, "But--"

Folding his hands across his chest, he interjected, "The gratitude doesn't mean much when it's followed by the word 'but.'"

"I think being a little more active with your warning would be nice. But I'd be a stain on the wall right now if it weren't for the heads up. See, so the second 'but' means that we're cool, right?" Naegi gave a hopeful expression.

Hanzo just smiled and patted him on the back, "Of course, Kid. Come on, we gotta find something in your fridge. I can at least give you a nice meal after last night."

"It's cool, no need to dance around it. Thanks." Shortly after, the entire group assembled on the lower floor. Instead of focusing on the previous events, they tried to maintain a jovial atmosphere, one that would hopefully raise the spirits of their newest piece. From arguments over food to light banter between the group, the entire world seemed to melt away as they all continued to talk. Over the course of the morning, Naegi began to slowly distance himself from everyone else. Rather than being an active participant in their fun, he stepped away and assumed the role of a passive observer. As no more than a shadow on the wall, he closed his teary eyes for a second. Upon their opening, he saw the faintest vision of a young girl standing amongst the group. In the middle of them all, she was laughing and the faintest hint of a green glow made its way through the room, stopping just short of reaching the one person it had healed.