Chapter 3 - Presidents and Nuns and Strays! Oh My!

Taka went to school with his headphones on embraced by the melody. He didn't normally use them during school as teachers then to complain about that kind of things. Right now however, he could use something to focus on and the Kill la Kill soundtrack seemed like just the thing to grab his mind.

He considered what to do as killing a fallen would probably impress Rias and the other Occult research club members but if he went around bragging it, he might get his ass killed. Then he saw the two Kuoh Oujos and pulled down his headphones, making his decision to just let her know and let come what may.

"Yo Bucho" he said with a lazy wave to the high-class devil making her way to school. This attracted the attention of not just her also the ever-present admirers around her.

"Oh hello Aotaka-kun. How are you and Ise adjusting to the club." Rias replied with a demure smile wondering why someone like Aotaka would draw so much attention to himself. Perhaps it was because he no longer had to hide his nature from them anymore?

"Eh Ise's probably halfway done already with the stuff you gave him to do and I'm going to do some after school so by the end of the week we should be ready for more. Being part of the club seems like a pretty interesting thing but what's weird is an annoying bird got attracted to the stuff you gave me.

"A bird?" Akeno queried, her mind already reaching the answer.

"Yeah nasty little crow kept on peck and scratching at me, they seem to have something against the Occult Research Club materials. I don't suppose you can do something about this."

The onlookers were somewhat perplexed by the conversation as the goings on of the ORC were unknown to all but those Rias invited.

Rias looked a bit troubled at the news that Fallen were not only in her territory but attacking members of her peerage.

"I'll try Aotaka-kun, Some of our items attract birds but they shouldn't be bothering my little newbies. Perhaps you should tell me later where you saw this crow."

"Sure" Aotaka replied already heading to his class room now that Rias had gotten the information, he had a morning of languages again and needed a clear head to deal with it, perhaps he should call in his deal with Rias now and see if she could get him some arcane languages to use.

Angelic and Demonic scripts would probably be useful for him even though he sucked at most forms of magic, as runes relied almost entirely on knowledge. He didn't know if the shield around his house would block out magic power at the heightened levels he was using them for and that was problematic but if he could refine the barrier to specify on demonic and holy magic, they would be more effective. He also need to know more about what he was so he needed books on angels which he could explain by saying he needed to know more about the 3 factions.

As he sat down and though about the stuff going on in his life mainly the fact that he had killed someone yesterday and wasn't feeling much sorrow about it.

Yeah Dohnaseek was an enemy but he figured that he should feel something. He wondered if becoming a devil was lowering his empathy but he re-watched the death of the Going Merry and cried like a bitch like he always did so that wasn't it.

'Was it because he was a fallen?' that in fact troubled Aotaka even more as it meant he would have a hard time being objective about fallen and would make certain decisions that his fellow devil might encourage as it would be against their long-time enemies.

In short it made the whole 'Be careful when you fight the monsters, lest you become one' thing a lot more dangerous and while Taka wasn't some saint, morality was important to keep himself balanced, just because a fire can burn everything in its path doesn't mean it should.

While the new devil was busy navel-gazing about his various issues, Kiba had decided that he couldn't blame himself for not noticing Taka. The guy just didn't register more than a small spike on people's radar.

Seriously for a big guy, he was surprisingly hard to notice since he tended to blend in with the background. Kiba had seen illusion magic that hide people less effectively than Taka was able to do without even thinking.

He saw Taka stop the musing that he had been doing recently to go and look in his direction with a quirked eyebrow as if to say 'what?'

'So not only adept at hiding his presence but also has situational awareness as well but all of its unrefined so it's instinctive, with training he would've been a good swordsman…or perhaps an assassin?'

Honestly Yuuto was pleased that Taka and Ise were now part of the peerage as he didn't really have any male friends and the only other male in the peerage was the cross-dressing vampire shut-in and he wasn't that desperate.

So he hoped that Yume and Ise would have an easy time adjusting to life as a devil after all if someone originally from the church could adapt without any major issue so could they…right?

Student Council Office

"So Rias told me that you meet a 'crow' yesterday, would you mind sharing some more details, after all fallen are all devils' problem and this is not only the Gremory clan territory as I'm sure you know" said the Student Council President Souna Shitori or rather Sona Sitri, giving Taka a pointed look.

"Well…it's not like there's a lot to tell you, compared to the last fallen I fought, the pathos and finale was really lacking. I mean I wasn't expecting a 'I am your father' but still" Taka said blandly

"Are you mocking Kaicho!?" yelled some guy with blond hair, Taka soon recognized that he was Genshirou Saji who if he remembered correctly was turned into a devil a while ago but they never really talked much even before he became a devil so it didn't really affect him.

"Eyyy kinda?" he said "Irreverent humor is just my thing like Ise's perverseness and Sitri's getting angry at people who aren't taking things as serious as she is" as Sona's glasses began to shine ominously.

Rias just sighed wishing that Aotaka would stop being himself for just a second. "Before I lose a pawn can you please just get on with the story"

"Haaa well I was on my way home when this fallen called Dohnaseek showed up and tried to kill me offhand, didn't even give any banter before he started. We traded blows, I got to test out my fancy new wings, I light him on fire and now there's a nice burn mark on the road to my house."

"So you defeated him by yourself?" Sona asked with a faint hint of suspicion as Aotaka wondered why he was giving this report to both her and Bucho.

"Yeah is that really surprising? I almost got Raynare and becoming a devil gave me quite a bit more power."

"Yes when you hid that you were a magician from the faction in control of this area." She said with a not quite hidden amount of reproach.

"Is that what this is about? Look I was planning on hiding it until I could get some real instruction from a magician and get a clear idea of where I'm at, it's nothing against you Sona" Aotaka said with uncharacteristic respect.

"I understand Aotaka, but still it will not shine well on me that I didn't realize it…though perhaps I should have expected it" Sona responded.

"Wait…" both Rias and Saji said simultaneously "do you two know each other?"

"Well kind of" Aotaka replied with a shrug "I had some stuff to sort out when I came to Kuoh and Sona helped me with dealing with it out as the President" surprising both Rias and Sona's peerage except for Tsubaki her queen who remembered him from when she and her king were in their second year.

"Stuff to sort out…about your father?" asked Rias which promoted Aotaka to look at her that questioned not that how she knew but why she would bring it up now. Seriously there was a time and a place.

"Yes…I needed information about payment plans and the like and Sona was the best source of info, now I'm curious as to why there have been so many fallen attacks in an area controlled by two high ranking devil? It seems a bit odd" in a clear message to the previously mentioned high-ranking devils to get off the topic of his father which they opted to take.

"Well…it seems to me that the first attack was supposed to be simple strike and kill the target in this case Ise before any devil could respond when you got involved and threw this off." Sona said analytically as Taka looked a bit pleased at his ability to screw with people's plans.

Sona then continued on a bit more hesitantly not wanting to offend.

"As for the second…well forgive me but it is common practice for some fallen to kill weak sensing devils when they're alone and you seem like a prime target."

This confused Rias as she remembered that when she revived her two pawns, yes Ise had a low amount of power that might make him a target but Aotaka had a reasonable amount for a low class devil so...why?

She then consciously sensed his power to find it almost as low as Ise's she could still clearly sense that he was a devil but something was…

"Are you…suppressing your power Aotaka-kun?" She asked clearly expecting an explanation.

Taka just shrugged and revealed the minor mystery.

"I wanted to prevent people from getting an accurate read on my power but I guess It hasn't really gone the way I planned, still Dohnaseek underestimated me and gave me time to adapt so it worked kinda."

'You seem a bit too quick to use deception Aotaka' the two kings thought, it was a reasonable plan but coming up with it so quickly showed overly militant thinking for the tentative ceasefire that now existed for between the three factions.

"That's good thinking Aotaka-kun but it's a bit unnecessary, the situation between the three factions is a lot less dangerous than they used to be and in our territory you have the time you need to learn how to deal with the more…volatile elements." explained Rias.

"Oh…well I really do need to get more info on the factions if that the case Rias, that should be included in the deal that we had right?"

"Deal?" Sona asked curiously, wondering what Rias had offered him to attract him to her peerage.

"Yes our deal was that I would help him in increasing his experience and knowledge to the best of my ability and yes Aotaka that would include information about the 3 factions, though I would have given you that anyway." Rias then paused thinking for a moment.

"I initially planned on having Akeno helping you with your magic since she also uses fire magic…but considering your style and already being acquainted …would you mind helping out him out Sona?...as a favor"

Both Aotaka and Sona looked at her wondering where that came from, yes they knew each other but after the first couple weeks or so that Taka was at Kuoh, they didn't really associate much. Aotaka then realized that this might work out as he wouldn't have to spend a lot of time with the fallen hybrid. Yes he felt that his seal would work but no need to test it more than necessary. Plus despite the sparse contact they had since he and Sona did know each other fairly well...

"I don't understand Rias, I have no problem with doing it as a favor but I specialize in water magic not fire, how could I help with Taka's magic" Sona asked, wishing to know her reasoning.

"While the two of you do specialize in different elements, you both also have a high degree of control over your elements though you do it differently."

"Really? Interesting, how do you control your water Sona?" Taka asked openly curious.

Soan responded with by creating a small bird out of water in her hand and sending it flying at Aotaka, he noticed that it was amusingly a hawk.

He responding by sending an equally small spiraling ball of fire that turned the bird into a puff of steam.

"Creating moving constructs out of your element intriguing…and less predictable than normal attacks." Aotaka observed, giving a nod of respect.

"Yes…and you concentrate your element through rotation, increasing its power to compensate for your low reserves." Sona noted, returning the gesture.

After a moment of contemplation Aotaka stood up and said "Well this should work out alright Bucho, and thank you Sitri-senpai for accepting me as your humble student, I'll be ready for lessons after I finish the grunt work my cruel King dropped on me so…in about a week's time, would that be alright?"

"Yes that would be adequate Taka, it will give me some time to work out a training schedule for you and set a time that won't interfere with both my and Rias's peerage time."

"Alright well this was nice, again sorry against for the whole hiding from you Sona...I wasn't ready to deal with more of the moonlit world at that time."

Sona looked at him for a moment before shifting her glasses obscuring her violet eyes.

"I understand Taka, I won't hold it against you…you always did have a bad habit of hiding." she finished, giving him a direct look that Aotaka actually flinched at.

With this Yume gave a few quick goodbyes and went on his way once more to start handing out the flyers Rias had given him and forget that look that Sona gave him…

After he left the room was silent for a moment before Rias looked at her friend and fellow king and asked a simple question

"…Ok what was that"

"Haah" was all that Taka could say as he finally finished giving out his flyers, now resting with his customary headphones on his head playing.

He had taken a bit longer than Ise who had already finished thanks to his pervert power and should be doing his second job around now.

Still since he didn't have the necessary demonic power, he had to get to his contractors the old fashion way which Yume could sympathize with thanks to his own issues with power.

And speak of the actually a devil now, Ise was just coming up on the road probably on his way back from his job and following him…was…a…girl

Since the first time Ise got a girl's attention, Aotaka got paralyzed he could excused for feeling a bit suspicious…oh and the fact that the girl that was with Ise was a freaking nun happened to raise several more warning bells

So he slide the headphones back down around his neck and waited for Ise and the blond nun to reach him with a disarming but a bit strained smile.

"Yo Ise how you doing man" Taka greeted putting his hand on Ise's shoulders and digging his fingers into the idiot "and who's this girl you're with, he did kidnap you did he Miss" he directed to the blond nun who he noted was cute, innocent-looking and more importantly didn't have a sense of power to her, fallen or otherwise though she did seem…refreshing somehow.

'Ok maybe this isn't as bad as I feared.'

"Ano Ise helped me, I don't know well Japanese so I was lucky that he came and helped me when I was lost."

'So she didn't even initiate contact? This doesn't seem to have anything to do with Raynare but still it's weird.'

"Ise can I talk to you for a sec" Taka said not really making it a request as he dragged Ise causing the Longinus user much pain, which Aotaka really didn't feel too bad about.

"Okay what in God's name are you doing with a nun Ise" questioned Yume distractedly as he looked around for the source of that annoying grinding noise.

"Ow did you really have use that name to make your point? It hurts you as much as it does me" said Ise as he held his head in one hand at the sudden sharp pain, then he noticed something "hey how did you recover so fast? The pain is still annoying me."

Aotaka looked at him strangely for a second before blinking and saying quickly "I guess I've got a higher pain tolerance than you Ise, now the nun…"

"Ahh well I saw her in the park and I just could leave her…she isn't like Yu-Raynare I didn't sense anything bad from her and that 'language' ability helped us communicate, is it a problem?" he asked hoping he didn't do anything stupid.

"…well actually from what I know it might not really be a problem, she isn't built like she fights like an exorcist nor does she have any power. She seems like an ordinary nun." at this last part Ise flinched which caused Taka to sigh and asked resignedly "she isn't ordinary is she."

"No…I think she might have a sacred gear like I do, she said something about a power that god gave her when she showed it to me."

At this little tid-bit the growing suspicion suddenly halted 'she just blatantly showed it to him? weird… maybe'

"Hey Ise is this sacred gear something…for fighting?"

"No it isn't for fighting, Asia-chan isn't a fighter" he said defensively, easing Taka's worries and giving him some ammunition.

"Oh Asia-chan is it?" at the small blush on Ise, Taka had to chuckle 'this might be good for Ise.'

"Alright this isn't really bad she's probably already aware of the factions but she's not one of the fighters so she won't be a threat" then something important struck him as he once again remembered the last girl he saw Ise with.

"Hey…Ise, I don't know what she's doing here but you should probably let her know that you're a devil" at this Issei predictably froze up and asked tentatively.

"Why?"

"Raynare" was his response which prompted a flinch "She lied to you about what she was and even if it isn't really the same situation, I can tell you like Asia so you should try to be as honest as you can and maybe she might not accept but you really shouldn't hide something like this."

Ise was obviously taken with the nun so Aotaka felt that hiding something like this could cause more problems later on.

He looked at Aotaka for a few seconds before gritting his teeth. "You're right I wasn't really planning on it but she's a nice girl, she even helped a child that got hurt, I shouldn't be lying to her even if it's just by not telling her things"

The way Ise phrased it brought up issues that Taka was still dealing with, his angelic heritage was a problem and who knows what it could mean if other people found out, but Ise was a friend who he could trust.

If he told Ise the guy would probably try to help him the best he could…and that was the problem. Even if Ise was a Longinus user, Taka could not in good conscience let him get involved in a fight that would get him killed if things went south. Plus he still didn't know what issues leaving a peerage would cause besides it wasn't as if he was on limited time, he could sort this out when the timing was right.

Right now he needed to help Ise get past the Raynare incident and if Asia could help that would be great, though he wished that the next girl he was with wasn't something as complicated nun.

'Nothing's ever simple with you is it Ise' Taka thought as he went with Ise back to the golden-haired sister.

"Oh Ise-san are you done talking to your friend? Mr…I'm sorry I don't remember your name."

And when Taka saw the cute sad look on Asia's face at her assumed error, well some people say his small heart grew three sizes that day.

With a small smile he patted the small sister on the head and reassured her.

"Don't worry I forgot to introduce myself, call me Taka and you're Asia right? Well Ise just needed to hear something advice about something."

"Ano? About what Ise-san" She asked with an adorably perplexed look at the kind boy she met who was looking quite a bit worried, scratching his head and not meeting her eyes.

"Well Asia, I wasn't really planning on saying anything since I was just going to help show you were need to go but I think I should let you know something."

Asia's attention was now firmly on what the boy needed to say to her.

"…I'm a devil."

At this Asia's crystal green eyes grew wide and shocked at the revelation. She looked a bit worried and tense though Yume noticed that there wasn't any hate in her expression just shock which encouraged him that this might be the right choice.

"A...a devil then why did you help me?"

"Well you looked like you need it" he said sheepishly and even if it wasn't anything fancy, Taka saw that Asia relax at the simple words.

"I was told that devils wouldn't help anyone without a cost."

At this Taka decided to interject.

"Whoever told you that wasn't completely wrong, devils do require payment for their jobs…but they weren't completely right either, devils are people too and people help people every day without expecting anything."

"Are you a devil too Taka-san?" Asia asked a bit tentative at Ise's tall black haired friend with the piercing blue eyes.

"Yeah a while ago I was really hurt and so Ise made the sacrifice to become a devil in order to help me out and this was the result."

Hearing what Ise had done, Asia gave him a smile that seemed like the dawn rising.

"Going so far to help a friend…you may be a devil Ise-san but I think…I know that you're also a good person as well."

Ise who was so nervous at what her reaction felt all the tension that was running through his body disappear.

"Thank you Asia, now let me show you were that church is!" he exclaimed as he took the golden nun by the hand and lead her away but not before thanking Taka for his advice.

As Aotaka watched the two he felt glad that things had worked out, the two might even end up being friends despite being part of different sides after all wasn't he told that tensions between the factions was decreasing and Ise had that boosted gear if something happened.

He placed his headphones back around his head and went back to the club with a sense of satisfaction at helping the two, then he remembered something

'…was there an active church in this town?"

Occult Research Club

Aotaka was just lying in a couch relaxing a bit, he would get started with the contract work soon and he wanted to talk to Rias about setting up the teleportation circle so that it would link up to the one he had in his house. Now that he didn't need to hide his magic maybe he could finally get some use out of it without worrying about someone noticing.

Suddenly he could hear a raised female voice even though the headphones he was wearing, so he opened his eyes and got up to see what the issue was.

"The church is enemy territory Issei! You should even get close to it"

"What going on?"

With a sigh Rias who was sitting at her desk, directed her attention to her other pawn.

"Ise here almost went into a church, can you believe it?"

She then noticed that Aotaka looked like yes he could believe that and he didn't know what the problem and then she remembered that she didn't have a talk with him about the weaknesses of devils but still he was a magician so.

"…Aotaka you do know not to go into any churches or shrines right?"

"…of course Bucho what do you take me for, now got back to criticizing Ise you know how he is" Taka said with a blank look that did not hide the nervous sweat building on his face.

Rias just looked at him for a moment before just becoming resigned to ridiculous gaps in his education "Haaa Aotaka those holy places are enemy territory for devils and going into them alone is just asking to be attacked by an Angel, and just in case you don't know holy items like light, crosses and holy water are also dangerous to devils."

"Got it Bucho so should I get ready to make some contracts now? It's a bit late but I can get started."

Rias paused for a moment "No there's a job that I have received a job that needs to be completed and it will good for you two to learn what the members of the peerage can do."

Aotaka's interest was raised "a battle? What is it?"

Rias got up from her desk and answered as she went to gather the rest of her peerage. "We are hunting a stray devil"

Yume followed his interest now completely on this mission 'stray devil huh, well judging by the name I won't just be learning about what they can do but also what happens when a devil leaves their master.

Convinently Unused Building

"…Well this place looks like crap" Taka said bluntly as he observed the abandoned building with shattered windows and scratched up walls,

He was a troubled mood after learning on the way that the stray devil they were hunting had not only killed their master but was also hunting humans.

When he heard that the target was a devil who had run away he thought this was some way for frightening him from doing the same but after learning that the same devil not only killed their master but was also hunting people and eating them to grow stronger he had no qualms about helping out.

Together Rias and her peerage entered the building wary of whatever was hiding in the shadows cloaking much of the building.

"Stray devil Visor! We are here to destroy you."

Suddenly a heavy scent of blood flooded the area and a low voice began emanating from the shadows.

"What a nice scent…yes you will be most delicious when I make your body the same beautiful red as that hair"

With that Aotaka saw the Stray Devil and his reaction was simply.

'What. The. Fuck.'

The stray had the upper half of a beautiful woman armed with two spears with long black hair and a nice chest without anything covering it (this held most of Issei's attention) but Taka was a bit distracted by the giant, animalistic lower half armed with claws. She looked like some kind of beast centaur.

Shaking his head to get rid of the freakish appearance he observed Kiba moving at incredible speeds granted by the knight piece, Taka noticed that a sword had suddenly appeared in his hands which he promptly used to literally disarm the stray before she could even use her weapons.

He gave Rias a look and asked "Were did that come from?"

"It's Kiba's sacred gear Sword Birth which allows him to create blades with various properties, still for an opponent like this, an ordinary sword is sufficient"

'Huh…so his scared gear doesn't just do one thing, it allows him to create weapons to match the situation and use that ridiculous speed to take down his opponents before they even know what happening. I thought most devils would focus on pure power but there are people like Kiba and Sona who are very flexible in their attacks.'

He then saw Koneko attack with strength and durability that outclassed her opponent completely, a trait of the rook class but Aotaka was certain that she had more.

'I can spot trends; Kiba has a sacred gear, Akeno part fallen, Ise has a freaking Longinus (no I'm not going to let that go) and even if Rias doesn't know it, my mother's an angel. If Koneko caught the eye of a high-class devil with sacred gears and hybrids galore then she had to have something more before becoming a devil'

"Hey what Koneko's story, does she have a sacred gear or something apart from what the rook piece gives her?"

After staying silent for a moment "Members of my peerage each have their stories, you will have to ask them if you wish to learn them" Rias replied with a tone that made Yume feel that it was probably something that shouldn't be asked casually like his own family situation.

'So I'll just wait a bit before trying to find things out.'

Taka gave a small nod and watched as Akeno summon a great deal of lighting with incredible ease to strike down the Stray, ending the 'fight'.

'Honestly I'm actually kind of disappointed, this person was a devil who killed her king but anyone here could defeat her in a straight fight with minimal danger. Sure she might have done it discreetly with poison or something but I get feeling that Bucho pays more attention to quality than other devils'

He also learnt that she was apparently the ultimate sadist which explained several strange things he had noted her saying.

'Wonder if it has anything with her being a fallen then again Dohnaseek was just a battle maniac…which in fact might be why he fell…maybe fallen each have their own quirk that related to why they were cast out…"

His musing were then interrupted when he saw Rias uses…something black with an outline of red to erase the stray from the world completely. His lips dry at the display, he had to ask "wh...What is that?"

"It is the Power of Destruction" Akeno answered "while the Gremory's don't usually have it, Rias' mother was from the Bael clan so she and her brother inherited it.

'Inherited magic? Like how I can shape weapons out of fire? Still…magicians can learn magic from studying how devils use theirs even though the source of their abilities are different, so maybe I can learn how to do something similar'

As they headed back Aotaka focused on Rias wondering just how such a power worked, Akeno noticed his focused look and decided to poke some fun at the mage.

"Ara Ara has our Bucho captured your attention with her display Aotaka-kun" she asked with a demure smile

"Well yeah" he said absently, still thinking about the aptly named power of destruction, this caused the peerage to stop suddenly and look at him as he was still in his own little world thinking.

"Pardon Aotaka-kun?" Rias asked wondering just were that came from.

"Taka you're interested in Bucho too!" yelled Ise, finally shaking Yume out of his musing.

"Huh? Well yeah that Power of Destruction thing was pretty impressive, I knew that Rias' power had some kind of special quality but that was something else. It's one thing to know that there are some crazy powers out of there but I didn't expect to see something like that so soon, thanks Rias that was pretty informative." He said slipping back into his fugue state before stopping.

"Wait…why are you interested in the power of destruction Ise? You already have that game-breaker sacred gear don't get greedy" he said as Ise stuttered and tried to take back his words as the peerage's attention now shifted over to him while Taka continued on obliviously to the problems he had cause for his friend

TBC

Yep welcome to the third instalment of On Burning Wings, this chapter's a bit shorter than the others and has less action so it's more of a set up for the end of book one in chapter four. This contains a bit of spoilers about Taka's growth but first thing, Taka will not be getting the power of destruction as it is an inherited ability however Taka will be studying it to try and improve his magic, it won't be for a while but can you say Flames of Ruin. Sona makes her appearance in this chapter and I have to say she will serve an interesting contrast to our hero, she and Taka have a bit of a history from when he was still recovering from his father's death, nothing really dramatic but it will serve as a foundation for their relationship in the future romantic or otherwise. So I hope you enjoy this chapter and please review on my writing style so I can get a sense of what I need to improve now see you next time in 'The Priestess, The Pervert and the Pyro'