She who found bonds of friendship
II
"Now arriving at Kuoh Central Station. Our next stops are…" The young blonde haired girl only managed an odd look at the intercom as the language went into one ear and out of the other. The girl thinned her lips before shaking her head and going back down to the suitcase next to her and unzipping it, fishing out a small folded piece of paper and slowly unveiling it fully before examining the contents.
Her eyes danced between the note and the writing on the display several times before she let out a relieved sigh as she realised she was finally in the correct location. Giving herself a smile, she rose up from her seat and folded the note back up and slotted it back into the bag before grasping hold of the handle and pulling it behind her.
Stepping off of the train and into the station itself, instantly finding herself surrounded by a virtual swarm of the daily commuters coming and going from the train. Despite the tsunami of bodies, she found it remarkably easy to navigate through them without being bowled over. She had plenty of experience when it came to navigating large crowds of people, a rather odd benefit from her previous…
Shaking her head, she dismissed the sudden swirl of pain that passed through her heart as she recalled her old life. Instead, she opted to focus on the new opportunity that lay before her, all she actually needed to do was find someone who could speak a word of Italian.
…
Her face fell and her shoulders slumped, dragging herself through the station without being given a second glance by anyone else in the building. She didn't try to call out to anyone either, being unable to fluently speak the language of the country she probably wouldn't be able to find any actual help and would probably wind up being a nuisance to someone and she didn't want to put anyone in an uncomfortable position.
Closing her eyes, she opened them up again and gave a single nod of determination.
She would find her own way to the church from here, it couldn't be that hard to locate the House of God.
Continuing her walk forwards, she found herself already dazed by the hustle and bustle combined with the chattering in the unfamiliar language. Her own minor skills in speaking Japanese consisted of a few phrases such as 'I like pencil cases' and 'Do you know the way to church?'.
Of the two of those, only one of them was actually relevant to her dilemma. It would likely result in her getting some directions but it would be something. Or it might come out as a broken sentence that no one would understand and she would get odd looks for. That was also a possibility.
"Hmmm?" She stopped walking, a curious hum broke through the background noise directly to her right. The girl found herself turning towards it and soon found the speaker "It has been sometime since I last saw a woman of God." The man continued on, the polite smile never once leaving his face as he stared down at her "And one so young, it is somewhat refreshing to see the youth finding the wisdom of the Heavenly Father."
The girl though, understood none of those words but from his posture and the tone of his voice it was clear he was being friendly to her. Therefore she steeled herself and opened her mouth to reply to him "Excused me? Do you have knowledge of the church path?"
The man in the dark green suit, long furry hair and similarly coloured top hat somehow managed the art of staring at her with his eyes closed. His right brow rose ever so slightly as her broken sentence filtered through his ears, turning his head to the side he examined the suitcase by her side before a frown worked its way onto his face.
"I see." That she did understand "You are not Japanese, are you?"
"N-no." She spoke in English, she could tell that this man was a foreigner in Japan as well, switching to a language she at least knew of and was better at speaking.
"Hmmm?" The man hummed again, this time his eyes opened slightly and a flash of recognition flowed through them. "That accent of yours…" his smile seemed to grow, his right hand raised itself from his coat pocket and he pointed at her "Italian?"
She found herself stunned when he suddenly switched from English to near perfect Italian without even trying. Her mouth slightly agape and her eyes wide, the man noticed her surprise and merely waved his hand at her.
"It's nothing that impressive, Sister." He remarked "It is merely that the wife of a close friend of mine is also Italian. I've actually been teaching him how to speak the language in secret so he can surprise her." he paused before his lips thinned, "Well…I suppose the important part is that he is trying, even if he struggles from time to time. I suspect he would find her quite surprised if he offered to carry a barrel for her but instead found himself talking about carrying some punches."
The young girl giggled to herself, raising her hand over her mouth and giving a subtle shake of the head before she looked back towards the man "I think it's very lovely of him that he thinks so dearly of his beloved." she cupped her hands together and smiled at the man "The vow of matrimony is one of the greatest vows that can be taken in the House of God, that your friend is trying so hard means he really does love her."
"Quite so, quite so." The man chuckled alongside her, approaching her and dropping himself down to be at eye level with her "Still, you seem to be having a spot of bother here, Sister. I assume you are rather new to town?"
The girl flushed in embarrassment for a moment before she nodded her head, turning towards the station from the corner of her eye "I was sent here to be stationed at the local church."
That prompted a reaction from the man, a puzzled frown came upon his lips as he stared at her "That old place? To my knowledge it hasn't been occupied by the clergy in many years…" he rolled his jaw for a few moments before he shook his head and the smile returned "I suppose that means that the church is finally getting around to having some influence in the far east once again?"
The girl couldn't bring herself to nod at him in that regard "I just hope to spread the word of God as dutifully as I can." she replied to him in an earnest tone of voice.
"I have every faith in you, Sister." He gave her a reassuring nod as he rose back up to his full height, crossing his arms behind himself "It also appears my manners have taken leave of my, dreadfully sorry about that." he raised his hand and gestured to himself "Lev Lainur."
The young girl smiled up at him, bowing her head as was the custom when one person greeted another in this country "Asia Argento."
"Well then, Sister Argento." Lev gestured with his hand further up the street "I would not be one to leave a worshipper of God lost in an unfamiliar city." his hand lowered back down to his side "Would you do me the kindness of allowing me to lead you to your destination? It would put my heart at ease if I was unburdened with the knowledge of you roaming the city with no true idea as to how to get to your destination."
Asia stared at him for a few moments before she nodded her head at him, giving him a beaming smile "Thank you for your kindness signor Lainur."
"There is no need for formalities when speaking to me, Sister Argento." Lev shook his head at her as she dragged her suitcase, following behind him "To my knowledge there are only a select few whom you would ever need to do so to and I myself would never think to be of their calibre."
Asia shook her head from side to side as she walked in step with the older man, Lev inclined an eyebrow at her in slight puzzlement, awaiting an elaboration.
"As the children of God, we are all made in his image." Asia explained, looking up at him from the corner of her eye and giving him a pure smile "So that means that showing proper respect to everyone you meet is akin to showing proper respect to God, the same applies to love. To love one another, is to love God. Therefore you should always show kindness and treat others with respect."
Lev hummed to himself "Even if they would not show you the same respect, Sister?"
Asia briefly paused at his words, not because she didn't have an answer, but because there was some strange tone about them. As if it was a subtle hint that he was not speaking hypothetically and knew more than he was letting on. After a split second, she quickly dismissed that as a possibility and merely put it down to the nice man asking an innocent question.
"Especially then, Signor Lainur." She replied back to him with absolute confidence "If we allow ourselves to show anger and hostility in the face of such emotions instead of kindness and patience, then how can we ever expect the world to be a better place?" she gave a sad smile "I think it would be terribly sad if everyone treated each other poorly. Maybe treating everyone with kindness might not change the world but…" Asia held her head up high "I would rather repay cruelty with kindness, then cruelty with cruelty. Besides, is it not the words of the Son that in the face of Revenge we should instead turn the other cheek?"
Lev remained silent as he walked alongside her before a genuine chuckle emerged from his lips, the man shook his head in amusement as he earned a curious glance from the young girl. After a few moments, the man held up his left hand and waved it to her "Do mistake me for laughing at your words, Sister. I was merely surprised by the abundance of goodwill you have within you."
He paused, turning down to face her and opening his eyes to give her a fixed look that almost had her rooted on the spot.
"If no one else will tell you this, Sister Argento. You are a credit to your faith and a shining beacon in some rather dark times." He paused for a moment before he leaned back and continued on, not allowing her a chance to retort "But then again, I am a Teacher so perhaps it is merely my nature not to allow children to go unpraised for their efforts and mentality." he explained away as he resumed his walk, Asia remaining still for a moment before she made a noise of surprise and took off after him, dragging her suitcase behind her.
"H-hang on! Yo-you can't say something like that and run off!" The girl cried out with a red flush on her cheeks, unsure of how to respond to the genuine praise being directed at her rather than the ability she had been born with.
"You need not say anything." Lev responded with a casual wave of the hand "I tell my students the truth and there is no reason why I would not do the same for you."
"B-but I'm not one of your students!"
"True. But as a Teacher, I am obligated to cultivate the young minds of humanity to achieve their fullest potential." Lev explained as she quickly caught up with him, the man's tone shifting into one that would be more at home in a lecture hall "Humans respond well to praise when it is earned and require aid when they are troubled, that is the way of all things. Therefore, if I were to see a young girl such as yourself do something worthy of praise and remain silent on it, then I would hardly be able to call myself a teacher, now would I?"
Asia stared at him with a subtle sense of awe for a few moments as she walked alongside him for a few moments before a smile slowly formed on her face. "Your students must be really lucky to have you."
Lev released a chuckle from his throat as he shook his head "You are much too kind to me, Sister Argento." he waved his hand casually as if to try and swat away her praises "I believe I do the role that is expected of a teacher and little else."
"E-even still!" Asia loudly responded with a shake of the head "You really do care for your students a lot and I think that's wonderful!"
Lev remained silent for a few moments before the smile on his lips shrank slightly but seemed much more genuine than before "Watching the growth of people is something that I feel rather passionately about, I will admit. However, I believe that cultivating the young minds of students to reach their potential is reward enough therefore…accepting praise for doing what is expected of me feels rather disingenuous."
Asia shook her head at him "Even if you feel that way…I'll still congratulate you on doing a good job." she smiled up at him "Being a teacher is a lot of hard work, isn't it?"
"Oh yes." The man nodded his head with a sudden look of fatigue "While I would not normally admit this, there are times when it truly does wear on my spirits. Not because of the work but…sometimes watching students not trying their best, not living up to what I truly believe they are capable of…it can be quite disheartening."
Asia looked on ahead of them "You can't force them, Signor Lainur. Everyone is their own person with their own freedoms, to force them down a path they personally do not want would be wrong."
Lev thinned his lips, then looked down at Asia from the corner of his eye "Is that so? This might seem an odd thing to ask but did you always wish to be a woman of God, Sister Argento?"
Asia blinked in surprise but answered without a shred of doubt "I have always loved the Lord and truly believed in his teachings. It doesn't matter what path I choose, as long as I can express that freely then I am happy." her smile became more sombre "Really, that is all I could ask for."
Lev remained silent for a few moments before he looked away from the young girl "I see."
Romani had been expecting to run into Issei on his way to work again today and sure enough, he did so. Spotting the boy at the junction they would normally meet at basically every other time he would head off to work. Although he was more surprised he hadn't met up with Lev yet but be supposed the man might have taken a different route.
Or he got into school earlier than Romani, that might have also been a thing.
"Hey, Roman-sensei." Issei greeted, raising his hand and presenting the man with a half smile as he stopped walking and waited for Romani to catch up to him. The boy looked towards Romani's empty hands before he gave a curious hum "No big bag of sweets today?"
Romani gave a weak chuckle as he scratched the back of his neck. "Yeah…Sitri-san sort of chewed me out for bringing in all those candies yesterday." Issei gave him a knowing expression as he nodded his head, resuming his walk as the nurse caught up to him "Saying how as the school nurse, I should know better when it comes to student dental hygiene."
Issei snorted and shook his head "That makes sense…" he then paused and made a face "Actually…you're a nurse not a dentist? Do you actually know about dental hygiene?"
Romani blinked before he shrugged "I know about as much as anyone else but that doesn't mean I specialise in it." he reached up and scratched the underside of his chin. "If I were to explain it…I know about brushing your teeth twice a day and flossing and not taking in an overabundance of sugary food and drinks."
The young boy just stared at him with a puzzled face "Hang on, isn't that just common sense?"
"Well, yeah but as the school nurse I have a sort of responsibility to make sure people are actually following it." Romani explained "It would be like me not commenting on someone eating burgers every single day for every single meal."
"That just sounds gross anyway." Issei responded with a mildly put off face "I mean, I like a burger as much as the next guy but eating them every day?" he shook his head "No way."
"I like to think that's the normal response." Romani admitted before he looked at the teenager "So how come Toujou-san can tear her way through all those sweets without…you know…"
Issei shrugged "I don't know." shaking his head, he raised his hand "Oh, you should probably stick to calling her Shitori-kaichou." Issei pointed out "You know…keep up appearances and all that."
Romani rubbed his forehead and nodded along "Right, right…I'll probably still end up calling her Shitori-san though." he replied as he lowered his hand back to his side "I'm terrible when it comes to that sort of thing. I just see everyone as students and…" he slumped his shoulders "I think that there might be a notice in the student council room that tells members to remind Romani to call Shitori-san, Kaichou."
Issei didn't deny it, mainly because he couldn't. While he hadn't actually been to the student council room before, Shitori-kaichou and the others gave the impression that they were very meticulous about that sort of thing and very much sticklers for the rules. For others it might seem trivial, not for the student council though.
The nurse remained silent for a few moments before he looked back at Issei "Sooo…done anything…you know…Devil related?"
The young teenager jolted in surprise before he stared at the nurse "What do you mean?"
"You know…" Romani waved his hand towards the boy "You're part of the Occult research club now…what do you actually do?"
The teenager gave another blink before he gave a noise of understanding "I actually completed one of my first contracts last night." he explained, a pleased expression coming upon his face and he puffed out his chest "It was actually pretty cool."
Romani was still staring at him in apprehension "Pretty cool?"
"Yeah." Issei nodded his head "I met with this guy and we talked about Drago M-ball."
"...Huh?"
"Yeah." Issei continued to nod his head enthusiastically "It was actually pretty chill, the guy was a big fan of the series and was probably pretty close to me in terms of being a fan." he thrust a thumb into his chest to punctuate the sentence before he paused for a moment then gave a light hearted sigh "W-well…I say contract but I didn't actually form one."
Romani stared at him in silence, still trying to work out what Issei was talking about in the first place.
"We just stayed there talking about Dargo M-ball for like…two hours." He reached up and scratched the back of his head. "It's actually a little embarrassing now that I say it out loud."
"Wait, wait, wait…" Romani raised up his hand, stopping Issei and giving him a puzzled look "You just went to this guy and talked about…an anime for two hours?"
Issei nodded his head "Yeah. That's sort of what we do, just go and see someone and do some little task for them." he explained before his expression shifted and he leaned forwards "Also I have thing called a Sacred Gear that…does something."
Romani stared at him, raising an eyebrow "Does something?"
"Yeah…"
"...Do you know what it does?"
"...Not really, no."
"Oh…what even is it?"
"It's this red metal glove that appears around my left arm." Issei raised his hand and gestured to it, his bag still in its grasp "It looks cool but I don't actually know what it does." a pause "But it looks cool and I think that's what counts, right?"
Romani released a huff of amusement and shook his head "Frankly, half of the stuff you're saying is going over my head but as long as you're safe-" he cut himself off when he noticed the way Issei's eyes instantly darted away from him and to the side, the teenagers face suddenly becoming expressionless. Romani paused, then stared at the young man, frowning "Issei-kun? Why did you look away from me just now?"
"W-who, me?" Issei pointed at himself, rocking on his heels and shaking his head "I didn't do anything."
"Issei-kun, you're making me a little worried now." Romani replied in a slow voice with a clear touch of worry colouring his words "You are safe, right?"
"I'm fine!" Issei waved his hands and gave a strained smile "Buchou said that everyone looks out for each other at the Club so we're all good."
"Why would you need to be in a position where others are having to look out for your safety?" Romani blurted out, his eyes wide and mouth slightly agape. The man stopped walking and reached out to take hold of Issei's shoulder before turning the teenager to face him "What happened?"
Issei continued to fail to meet his eyes, staring off past the nurse for a few moments before he made a noise and shook the nurse's arm free from him "It's nothing to worry about, Roman-sensei. It all worked out and I didn't get hurt-"
"But you could have been?" Romani pressured further before he looked away and bit his lower lip "Look…If you're trying not to worry me then you aren't doing a good job." he turned back to the teenager "Listen, Issei-kun. I might not understand a lot of things but if you're in a position where you are in danger then I need to know as a staff member of the school."
"But-" Issei reached up and rubbed his forehead "I know you care, Roman-sensei but there isn't a lot you can do." the boy lowered his arm, wincing at the guilty look on the man's face "It…I get that you want to help me but this is…" he sighed and shook his head "Just forget it, there isn't a lot that can be done and Buchou said not to worry about it in the first place."
Romani watched as Issei started to walk on ahead of him, the nurse thinned his lips and closed his eyes. An agitated sigh left his throat before his eyes opened back up again and he moved to follow after the teenager. "Look…" Romani spoke as he got close and cycled through several words in his mind before he decided on the right ones "Just try to stay out of trouble? Okay?"
"I mean, I'm not going looking to start fights, Roman-sensei." Issei defended himself with a half smile "And I don't want to make trouble for everyone by getting hurt." he thumped his free hand into his chest over his heart "I'll take extra care of myself, you know?"
The nurse exhaled and rubbed his eyes "I suppose that's good enough for me that you're going to make an effort." he replied, trying to bring some levity back into his tone as he lowered his arms "Still though…why did you have to end up joining a club that was so dangerous?"
Issei blinked several times "I mean, not like I had a choice."
"...Oh…right…" Romani made a face and looked off to the side. "Yeah…I'm sorry, just forget I said that."
Issei remained silent for a few moments, noticing Romani's posture slump even further and the nurse seemingly falling into a depression. The teenager frowned to himself for a few moments before he spoke up, eager to change the topic "So, Koneko-chan seemed a little upbeat yesterday." that got the nurse to perk up slightly "By that I mean she didn't immediately call me a pervert the second I walked into the room!"
The teenager spoke the latter part of the sentence with a cheer in his voice "So that's progress!"
Romani managed a chuckle in response to that, turning to Issei and raising an eyebrow "Really? How many minutes?"
"...Three." Issei admitted after a few moments, giving a shrug as he adjusted his grip on his bag "I think she actually didn't notice me because she was busy eating snacks." the boy remarked, his expression shifting to become more thin "But that's three minutes longer than last time we met so I'm making progress."
Romani just stared at him, blinking several times before he tilted his head. "I mean, the only reason she didn't immediately call you a pervert is because she was just ignoring you." he squinted his eyes in thought "Is that really progress?"
"I'm just going to count it as progress in my head, Roman-sensei." Issei remarked as he tapped the side of his head before he lowered his arm back to his side. "But I take it Koneko-chan was more preoccupied with all the food you brought in yesterday."
"I'm still not sure I'm supposed to encourage student activities that involve hiding the equivalent of contraband." Romani remarked as he stared ahead of them with an awkward smile on his face. "That being said, I now understand how she was able to find all my hidden stashes with ease."
"Really?"
"Yeah." Romani nodded, his expression shifting and becoming more serious "Magic."
Issei blinked once "...Magic?"
"Yes." The nurse nodded again, his serious face never once shifting as he spoke "That's the only thing I can come up with that will explain how she was easily able to find everything I was trying to hide." he turned to face the young man "I hadn't even opened the bag yesterday for more than a minute and she just barged into the nurses office."
Issei furrowed his brows "Are you sure that wasn't a coincidence?"
"The only reason Toujou-san ever visited the nurses office was to borrow food from me." Romani explained, raising a single finger and assuming a lecturing posture "And she always seems to have a sense for this sort of thing and given what I now know, it makes perfect sense that she has some sort of magic."
"Magic…that is perfectly tailored to finding sweets?" Issei guessed with a hint of incredulity, Romani nodded his head vigorously at the answer, the teenager made a face at the man for a few moments before his expression became more thoughtful "Wait…so if you can make magic that lets you hone in on things that you love, then maybe…" he scratched his chin and looked away from the nurse "I wonder…"
Romani noticed Issei's thoughtful expression and raised an eyebrow at the teenager; he'd only ever really seen the boy put on that sort of face when he was getting invested in something he was really passionate about. Then he remembered where most of Issei's more public interests lay and sighed.
"Issei-kun…"
"Hm?" Issei turned towards Romani and saw the resigned look on the nurse's face "What? What is it?"
"Are you really going to try and make some sort of magic for…" The nurse trailed off, then nodded to him slightly. "You know…that."
Issei gave the nurse a dumbfounded face for a few moments, not quite understanding what the nurse was actually talking about before he gave a face of understanding as realisation set in. "Well, I mean it was just a thought." He replied while raising his right hand in a placating manner "But it's an opportunity, Roman-sensei! Imagine being able to find the perfect breasts."
Romani just stared at him in silence.
"...Okay, maybe you can't imagine that considering…you know…you're married." Issei pointed out before he gestured to himself "But this is important to me, you know?"
Romani continued to stare at him in silence, so much so that Issei was starting to feel beads of sweat build up on his brow and the back of his head. "It's not like that all the time, Roman-sensei!"
"...If you say so."
"Roman-sensei!" Issei all but whined as he followed after the nurse "It's just one of those things, besides I don't even know if I can do magic."
"Why not?"
Issei paused, then made a face that could be best described as embarrassment. Scratch that, it was embarrassment. The teenager scratched the side of his neck as he looked away "W-well I…can't…"
Romani raised an eyebrow "You can't?"
"...I can't teleport by myself." Issei replied in a quiet tone of voice as he looked down "Buchou says my demonic energy is…really low."
"...Oh." Romani nodded his head several times, pretending he understood the implications of any of that. He didn't but it seemed Issei was bothered by it. "Well…I'm sure it will get better?" he ventured with a strained look "Um…These things take time to grow?"
"You think so?" Issei turned to the man and smiled at him in a hopeful way, before Romani could actually answer Issei decided to respond to himself "Well, I guess it makes sense." he nodded to himself "I haven't been a devil very long so I guess it's just me being a new one is all. I'm sure I'll get loads of energy when I get older." he nodded once to the nurse "You're right, Roman-sensei."
"...I'm not sure what I said but I'm glad your spirits have been raised, Issei-kun." Romani replied as he leaned back slightly and nodded his head.
Issei didn't show much reaction to Romani's comment, the boy continued to walk along before he paused as he took notice of something ahead of them. His brows furrowed slightly and he ceased his movements. The act caught Romani off-guard, turning to face him with a puzzled look.
"Something wrong, Issei-kun?"
Issei didn't respond to him, still staring ahead as if transfixed by something.
Romani slowly turned his head to face the direction that Issei's gaze was seemingly lost into, soon finding what it was that had caught the boy's sight. The nurse similarly found himself surprised, blinking several times before he resumed his walk in the direction of it.
"Huh." He spoke to himself in a quiet tone "I wonder who that is?"
Issei shook his head, then rushed to catch up with Romani. The nurse gazed at the boy from the corner of his eye and took notice of the slightly enthusiastic expression on his face. Withholding a sigh, Romani shook his head at the boy and returned his attention back to the odd duo that was in front of him. Despite it all, Issei didn't seem to have changed in the least.
Still wearing his emotions on his sleeve, not that he was in any position to complain about that.
"Morning, Lev." Romani called out as he got close enough, the man in the green suit turned towards the voice and smiled towards the nurse.
"Roman." Lev nodded back to him with a good deal of cheer in his voice, then took notice of the person next to him. Romani could have sworn he imagined the smile wavered for a split second before it straightened itself out once again. Dismissing it as a trick of the mind, he directed his attention to the young blonde haired girl by the man's side. "And speak of the Devil, Hyoudou-kun."
The man paused for a moment before he turned to the young girl by his side. "Ah, this is one of the students who goes to the school I teach at." he explained, Romani found himself blinking in surprise at the use of Italian. Not because Lev was speaking it - he already knew that much considering the man was teaching him every now and again - but because he was using it with the young girl, which meant that she was also Italian.
The young girl nodded her head towards Lev, then turned towards Romani and Issei before she gave them a smile that was so pure Romani was almost convinced he was staring into sunlight. As if there was a very real danger that if he stared at her innocent expression for too long he might end up going blind.
"Hello." She greeted the pair in Italian, bowing her head ever so slightly.
"Good morning to you as well." Romani replied, rather clumsily, in Italian although rather than look offended. The girl merely gave him an encouraging smile as though his efforts in speaking to her in her home language were more than enough. Being looked at that by a young girl really didn't help the fact it was marginally embarrassing for him.
"N-nice to meet you." Issei nodded back to her, stuttering slightly at the start of the sentence before he managed to compose himself towards the end.
Issei then paused when he noticed several sets of eyes staring at him, the boy looked around at the flabbergasted expression on Romani's face and then to the marginally puzzled look on Lev's before finally landing on the pleasantly surprised expression on the young girl. That one almost punctured right through his heart before he noticed the looks not vanishing. "...What? Why are you all looking at me like that?"
"Why?" Lev replied slowly, tilting his head "I was just surprised you were capable of speaking Italian, Hyoudou-kun."
Issei gave him a look that made it perfectly obvious he didn't understand what the teacher was saying.
"U-um…Issei-kun?" Romani waved him over, then ducked the pair to the side "You just spoke in perfect Italian." he whispered to the young boy. Issei blinked once again before giving Romani a shocked look.
"I did?" He whisper shouted back "How? She just sounded like she was speaking Japanese to me!"
"She was definitely speaking Italian." Romani countered swiftly, looking over his shoulder to see the duo of the young girl and Lev giving the pair curious glances. Romani presented them both with the best smile he could muster, although it likely looked more nervous than he intended it to be given the way the girl suddenly looked much more worried. Turning back to Issei, he returned to whispering to him "How are you speaking Italian?"
"I don't know!" Issei responded back with an equally puzzled whisper "I'm not even that good at the English class, how am I supposed to be speaking another language?"
"Umm…M-maybe its something to do with…you know…" He nodded to the young man, Issei remained silent for a moment before he made a noise of understanding.
"You think that me being-"
"Yeah."
"But that doesn't make sense." Issei replied back, looking confused "How does me being…that lead to suddenly being…um…what's that word where you can speak more than one language?"
"Multilingual."
"Yeah, that."
"I don't know." Romani explained as he stepped back "Umm…I'll try and give an excuse." He turned back around to face the duo and chuckled as he looked to Lev "Sorry about that."
"It's nothing you need to apologise for, Roman." Lev assured him as he raised his hand, giving a slow nod of the head "And I understand now completely."
Romani and Issei stared at him ""You do?"" the pair responded at the same time, both sounding equally confused.
Lev gave another nod of the head "Of course. Naturally with the amount of time that Hyoudou-kun spends in the nurse's office, you decided to eventually include him in some of your practice Italian lessons to pass the time, didn't you?" the man chuckled to himself "Although I hadn't imagined Hyoudou-kun being able to make such rapid progress. He sounded more fluent than yourself."
Romani managed a weak chuckle "W-well…"
"But regardless." Lev turned to Issei and levelled him with a somewhat stern look, Issei found himself rooted on the spot "If you are that skilled when it comes to Italian after less than a year of learning, then I expect to hear wonderful things from your English teachers."
"Y-yes, Lev-sensei." Issei nodded his head, trying not to sound too panicked at the prospect of it. He still wasn't sure how he was able to speak Italian but if it was related to being a devil, then did that mean it was only Italian he could understand or were there other languages he could understand as well?
"Excellent." Clapping his hands once, Lev returned his gaze to Romani "Now, as you have no doubt realised. The lovely Sister here is a rather recent arrival to Kuoh, therefore I felt it necessary to guide her to where she needed to go."
Romani nodded his head, turning to the young girl and gesturing to himself "I'm Romani Archaman. Lev's friend."
"Hyoudou Issei." The boy to his side greeted her with a wide, somewhat overly welcoming, smile "Nice to meet you!"
"Greetings to the both of you." The girl bowed her head at the pair once again, raising it up and smiling "I am Asia Argento, Sister of the church." She looked towards Romani and squinted at him ever so slightly before nodding her head "Signor Lev was right, you are a good person."
Romani blinked once at her before his cheeks flushed ever so slightly and he looked away, rubbing the back of his neck "Shucks, if you're going to say that without warning I might get a bit embarrassed you know?"
Asia blinked once, then made a slightly panicked face of her own "Ah! Sorry, that wasn't my intention!"
"Don't apologise, you haven't done anything wrong."
"But now you're feeling uncomfortable."
"I'm starting to feel a little guilty that you're panicking about this so much!"
"Now I have made you feel guilt?"
Lev cut the pair of them off with a heavy sigh, the man crossing his arms behind his back and shaking his head "Goodness me." He looked down at the young girl "You shouldn't worry so much, Roman is a bit of an awkward one at the best of times." then turned his attention onto Romani "And is being told you're a good person by a Sister of God-" Issei suddenly flinched, attracting Romani's attention for a split second "-really enough to fall into a panic over?"
Romani looked down "Not really, no." he admitted to himself, giving another nervous chuckle "Probably looks a bit odd from the outside, doesn't it?"
"Just a touch, but that is just how you are." Shaking his head, he turned back to Asia "Worry not, Sister Argento. You've done nothing to cause offence."
"Really?" Asia responded with a hint of concern, something Issei wasted zero time in trying to put to rest. Motivated both by the fact he didn't like seeing that expression on the blonde girl's face but also by the fact he'd barely been able to contribute to the conversation up until now.
"Totally." Issei hurriedly nodded his head, Asia turning towards him and regarding him curiously, the boy gestured to Romani with a thumb "Roman-sensei is just a big worry wart is all. He probably got all embarrassed when you complimented him."
Asia blinked before she let out a faint sigh of relief, the gentle smile returned to her face "I see, thank goodness for that. I did not wish to spend my first few hours in this town causing problems for people."
"Hey, no problem for me." Issei remarked, thumping a hand on his chest "Even if you did cause a couple problems, I wouldn't mind helping you out with them in the least."
Asia remained silent for a few moments before she regarded Issei with a similar expression to Romani "I see, you're a good person too." she turned towards Lev and chuckled ever so slightly, to Issei it sounded like the chorus of angels. "You were right about your students, Signor Lev."
Lev was stone faced for half a second before he looked down at the young girl with a gentle smile "Dear me, now I believe I understand how Roman feels when he gets complimented. It really is rather abrupt to be told such kind words." with a chuckle to match his smile, he shook his head and returned his attention to the pair in front of him "Anyway, I ran into Sister Argento in the town and she looked rather lost, it appears she is to be placed in the church."
Romani blinked once "The church?" he then frowned "As in the church no one has been in for-hang on." he turned to Asia and looked at her in slight puzzlement "You're going to the church in Kuoh, right?"
Asia nodded along with his question before she answered "Yes, I am. I was flown out to Japan all the way from Italy to help restore the presence of God in the town."
It was Issei's turn to stare at the young girl in puzzlement this time "Wait, the Vatican are just flying you out all by yourself?" he remarked as he pointed to her luggage "Isn't there anyone with you?"
The question caused the young girl to hesitate for a moment before she answered "Oh no, the Vatican didn't send me anywhere. Coming to Kuoh…was a choice I made on my own."
Romani tilted his head at the young girl, his frown not lessening in the slightest "Really? I mean that seems a little…" he trailed off, pointedly looking at the single case of luggage she had with her and the complete lack of a guardian. If it hadn't been for the fact that Lev had apparently spotted her in town, that meant that someone who didn't speak the language of the country was going to be wandering around Kuoh without the slightest idea of where she was supposed to go.
"And the church?" He turned to Lev and raised an eyebrow "Did you hear anything about people moving into the church? Because I didn't." he paused for a brief moment before he elaborated further "Then again, I'm not actually that big on local news."
"Suffice to say, Roman. I was as surprised as you were to learn about a new nun entering the church." The man gave a hefty sigh "Still…" he turned to look down at the young girl "You didn't tell me that this was a choice you personally made, as opposed to being sent here by an actual authority."
Asia made a noise as she waved her hands in front of herself "No, no! It's not as bad as you're thinking, really. It's more of a…" she paused as she seemingly searched for the right words "They're associates of the Church." she hastily explained "A…um…a different orthodoxy?"
Romani blinked once, then made a face "Oooooh. So it's like that." he nodded his head at her, though his frown lessened ever so slightly the concern in his eyes didn't "Still, shouldn't you at least have someone with you?"
Asia chuckled ever so slightly, nervously rubbing the back of her head "Someone was supposed to be waiting for me when I entered the country but they were a little late so I had to make my own way here." lowering her hand, she clasped them in front of herself "Still, I shall not be dismayed by the trials that God puts before me."
Another wince from Issei, this time the boy closing his eyes and reaching up to clasp the front of his head as he gave a faint groan. Romani turned to him and raised an eyebrow in concern "You alright, Issei-kun?"
"Yeah, yeah." The boy waved off the concern easily enough, rubbing his forehead and hissing between his teeth "Must have a headache or something developing. Keep getting this pain in my forehead." with a sigh, he lowered his hand and blinked several times. "Huh, gone now." he paused, thinning his lips "That's a little strange."
A shrug from the nurse "It does sound off but I think you should stop by the office if it persists just so I can have a look at you."
"Okay." Nodding his head, the boy turned back to Asia "Still though, are you sure you should be wandering around here by yourself?" pointing at Lev "Lev-sensei and Roman-sensei have to get to school before the bell goes and…well…"
"Please, don't worry too much about it." Lev waved off his concerns "I can handle being perhaps a few minutes late to work and I could hardly say I was a Teacher if I was leaving children to wander the streets unaccompanied." gesturing to the young girl at his side, he smiled "You two can go on ahead, I can escort Sister Argento to the Church and then be back in enough time."
"Alright then." Romani nodded his head once "If you say so." he gave Asia one final smile "It was nice to meet you, Miss Asia. I hope to see you around the town." he paused for a few moments "Also I hope your situation becomes a little more stable."
Asia nodded her head back towards him "Thank you for your concern, Signor Romani. I'll be fine, as long as I have faith in God-" Issei flinched again, now Romani was starting to get a little concerned about the idea he had a headache "-then I am sure that I shall be fine. However, your kindness towards me is appreciated all the same."
"Good luck, Asia-chan." Issei waved to her "I hope the church isn't as empty as it looks, otherwise it will probably get lonely for you."
Asia stared at him as she clasped her hands together "I do hope that you shall all visit the church for prayer."
Before Issei could respond to her, Romani placed his hand on his shoulder and smiled down at the young girl "We'll think on it, for now we won't keep you." he nodded to Lev once "I'll see you later then."
"Naturally, Roman." Lev nodded back, then raised his hand and pointed towards the nurse "Be sure to be careful on the way to school. It would not do for you to fall over any more uneven slabs." he chuckled when Romani levelled a flat look on his friend, turning away from the nurse and gesturing for Asia to follow along after him. The young gave the pair one final bow before she took her suitcase and followed after the teacher down the road.
It was as they were leaving, Romani noticed something somewhat odd. While it was the direction to the old church they were going, it was technically the scenic route. He only knew that much because Leona had brought it up once when they visited along that route. If he recalled correctly, she sometimes went out on an early morning jog in that direction.
Nothing strenuous, but at least enough to make sure she was in better shape than him.
"Come on, Issei-kun." Romani nodded on ahead, leading the pair onwards in the direction of the school "Lets get-"
There's blood everywhere.
So much blood.
The floor is caked in it, it leads further and further across the tiles.
It's almost unrealistic, as if someone has spilled a can of paint.
But the smell is all too real, that thick metallic scent fills the entire room to the point it almost produces a gagging reflex.
He's not even there and he can see it, that revolting sight that would turn the stomach of anyone.
The blood continues to lead across the room, stretched out like a path no one should follow.
It comes to a halt at the foot of something. It can't be human, it's not recognisable in the least. It just isn't. Like someone pulled apart a mannequin and put it back together wrong.
"Aaaaaah!"
There's a scream, one of genuine horror. An incomprehensible sense of terror floods the room, whomever entered had no idea this sight was what lay in store for them.
He turns, but he isn't there.
But he is there.
He can smell it, he can feel it.
He whirls on the sound-
"Roman-sensei!" Issei called out, catching the man as he slumped forwards, coughing and sputtering heavily with his skin turning ashen by the second. The man's eyes were glazed over as he was seemingly staring at nothing "O-oi, Roman-sensei!"
Issei continued to call out to him, dropping his own bag in the confusion and holding onto the nurse in an effort to stop him from falling to the ground. The surprising thing was how easy Issei found it to support the grown man's weight, he was sure he would have had some trouble before. Guess he really was feeling the benefits being a Devil granted him.
"I-Issei-kun?" Romani called out, looking up and blinking, staring ahead of himself as if he couldn't actually see anything. Then light seemingly entered his eyes as he became aware of his surroundings, stumbling back from the teenager and almost falling over in the process, only being held up by Issei gripping his right arm. "Where-? I'm back?"
"Huh? Back?" Issei blinked at him "What do you mean-" he cut himself off, eyes going wide as he looked left and right. Noticing that the shouts and the scrambling had been able to attract a couple of stares from passersbys. "Hang on, Roman-sensei."
Pulling him forwards, Issei righted the man and kept close until he was sure the nurse wasn't going to fall over "Are you…did you…" Issei looked around, then leaned close to him "Did you have some freaky vision?"
Romani turned towards Issei, his skin still a sickly shade of white, the man audibly gulped as he stared down at the student "S-something like that." he managed to respond, but couldn't keep the shake out of his voice as he stumbled forwards, still looking very sickly and incredibly disturbed by something. "I…I don't know…"
"Come on, Roman-sensei." Issei spoke, walking alongside the man to steady him "Lets just hurry up and get to school already."
"R-right."
Issei looked back up, still seeing the man looking rather pale "Why didn't you let me say anything to Asia-chan about the church?"
"H-huh?" Romani looked down at him, furrowing his brows slightly.
"When Asia-chan asked us to visit her at church, you spoke up before me. How come?" He gave the nurse a puzzled look "I wasn't going to do anything to her."
"I know that." Romani managed a weak chuckle "But while I might not know much…I get the feeling a Devil walking into a church isn't a good idea."
Issei blinked once, then snorted "Ah, right. That makes sense." he chuckled to himself "...Thanks then, Roman-sensei." he paused for a moment before a sigh escaped him "Man, that sucks though. I wanted to be able to visit her."
"I'm sure you'll see her…around." Romani replied as he staggered forwards, reaching up and rubbing his eyes and hissing under his breath "She'll be living around here as well, probably."
"Huh, I guess you're right." Issei grinned "That's good. She's just my type as well."
Romani sighed "Really, Issei-kun? You know nuns are celibate, right?"
"...They are? I thought that was a myth?"
"...I mean, I think they are." Romani frowned ever so slightly "Priests can't get married, right?"
"...Oh damn." Issei cursed to himself "Still, it would be nice to have a friend though." he pondered aloud.
"You know what, Issei? I can think of worse friends you could make…" He paused for a moment "Though it would be quite odd, now that I think about it." he looked down to see the puzzled face "A devil and a nun as friends?"
Issei snorted once again "I guess that would be weird."
"Just a little bit."
Lev hummed to himself as he walked alongside Asia, occasionally glancing down at the young girl before he turned back to stare ahead of them. In truth, he was taking the path that was a fair bit longer than it truly needed to be, although it was all for a rather good reason.
He had to be certain of something and the young girl's initial sense of being a fish out of water when he spied her at the station seemed to confirm it.
"Have you been to many places such as this before?" He asked suddenly, the young girl blinked and looked up at him. "Forgive my intrigue, I just so happened to notice the way you were almost enraptured by the sights around you."
Asia made a noise of understanding before shaking her head "No, I didn't spend much time away from churches when I was growing up so I didn't get out to see places like this very often." she admitted, looking around with a sense of awe, almost becoming fixated on every glowing corner shop sign or billboard. "Are they all this colourful?"
Lev hummed to himself before he responded "Not all. In truth, Kuoh is something of an exception. It might be a somewhat small town but it certainly has a rather grand personality." he looked around as he spoke, "You can barely go anywhere without some small measure of excitement, although whether that is a good or bad thing depends entirely upon the individual in question." he added on.
Nodding her head, Asia hummed to herself "I see. I suppose it is something that people have to get used to when living here, isn't it?"
Lev paused for a moment, tilting his head and grunting "Not all. This is one of the busier parts of the town towards the centre. A lot of the main shops and restaurants are located here so it's naturally a bit louder than other places. However, Kuoh has its own little districts where it's a bit quieter. Places where you can go to just be alone with you and your thoughts, the park is a rather popular place for such things."
"Ah, that sounds nice." Asia gave a gentle smile "The churches where I grew up always had such lovely gardens, sometimes I would simply sit there and watch the flowers. Well, when I had some free time."
"You had a busy time growing up?"
"Oh, don't misunderstand. I don't have any regrets." She waved her free hand to placate the teacher "Everything I did during my time there, I don't regret a single moment of it. I think I was living the best life that God intended for me."
"God intends for you to live your life for you. At the end of the day, I believe that what God truly wanted was for people to find happiness within themselves." He pointed to himself "But enough about theology, there are other places where peace is more prevalent, I imagine the church you seek to enter will be one such. I cannot imagine it being in rather good condition."
"Oh?" Lev paused at the voice, turning around and looking over his shoulder. Spotting the individual in question jogging on the spot before halting. Dressed in a light grey hoodie, a sky blue shirt and similarly coloured shorts with long pink socks and white trainers, Leona stared at him in surprise "I didn't think I'd run into you here, I thought you'd be at work by now."
"Good morning to you as well, Leona." Lev nodded to her in greeting "Ordinarily I would be, but I encountered someone who looked as though they needed my help and well…" he gestured to the young blonde girl by his side "Leaving a Sister of God alone would be rather ill-mannered of me."
Leona blinked once, then turned down to the young girl and blinked again in surprise "Oh? I see." she nodded her head once, stopping her jogging and placing her hands on her hips, tilting her head ever so slightly "Hello there, little miss."
Asia remained silent, then looked to Lev for some manner of translation.
"She's Italian." Lev explained.
The way Leona's eyes suddenly glowed and she locked onto Asia with a sudden intensity almost had the girl frozen on the spot, where it not for the fact that the grin that threatened to split her face was anything shy of welcoming "Well, well, well~!" She all but sang as she swaggered over to Asia and leaned over slightly to look the girl in the eye "Always pleased to meet a fellow Italian girl!"
"Ah-" Asia looked momentarily put off but the sudden intensity before her smile returned "Ah! You're the one Signor Lev was talking about earlier!" she bowed her head slightly in greeting "I'm really pleased to meet someone else from Italy, Signora Leona!"
"Awwww!~" Leona reached out, patting the young girl on the head "Aren't you just the cutest." leaning back, she gave the girl a curious look "Still though, doesn't explain why you're here." she turned to Lev "I didn't know you had any relatives in Italy."
"I don't." Lev replied to her "She was by herself at the train station and I suppose my guardian instincts took over."
"Hmm." Leona nodded her head "Good thing to, leaving her all alone like that. Saddening to hear about." she looked down at Asia before returning her attention to Lev "I'll take care of it from here, you should be getting off to work."
"While that is true, I can still-"
"Up, up, up!" Leona cut him off, raising her finger and wiggling it slightly "I have a free morning and you don't not to mention I haven't had the opportunity to speak to a fellow Italian in sooo long." the woman almost whined as she slumped her shoulders "Come on, I'm responsible."
Lev stared at her for a moment before giving a light-hearted sigh "I suppose I can't argue that." he agreed with a nod of the head, turning to Asia and speaking in Italian again, something that earned a raised eyebrow from Leona "Signora Leona shall be leading you from now on, don't worry. She's a good woman as well and will take care of you."
"Alright, Signor Lev." Asia responded after a moment, smiling up at him "Thank you for all your help, I'll keep you in my next prayer!"
Lev chuckled as he retreated from the duo "Knowing that I have done my good deed for the day is reward enough, but your prayers are a welcome addition. Good luck, Sister Argento. Take care of her, Leona."
"Naturally." Leona chuckled to herself before shifting her focus back towards Asia as Lev started to make his retreat. "Well then, I'm Leona Archaman! And you are Sister Argento?"
"Asia Argento, Signora Archaman." Asia greeted her with a nod before she made a noise of understanding "I met your husband earlier, he was a very nice man."
"...Really?" Leona made a small noise at that, her smile dropping ever so slightly before she shook her head. "I'm glad to hear that, Romani has always been someone who likes to see the best in everyone he meets…It's why I love him." she paused for a moment "Anyway! What brings you all the way to Japan?"
"I'm here for the church." Asia explained "Signor Lev was leading me to the one at the top of the hill."
Leona stared at her "...Really." she gave a curious hum "I could have sworn that it had been abandoned but if someone told you otherwise, then I suppose their information is better than mine." smiling down at the young girl, she gestured ahead "Come on, I'll lead you there…unless you'd like to stop for some food first." she added, "I had a light snack before I came out and working the muscles always makes me a little peckish."
"I don't know…" Asia replied in an unsure tone "I was told to get there as soon as I could-"
"Come on, it's only a little detour." Leona gently argued "And you look like you could do with a good meal. How long has it been since you had a proper breakfast?"
Asia blushed ever so slightly and looked down at her rather thin gut "W-well, I-"
"It'll be my treat."
"...Well, the bible does say not to reject charity by strangers." Asia whispered before looking up "A quick break?"
"Then straight up to the church. I promise."
"...Alright then."
Leona smiled down at the young girl "There we go, come on then. I know this nice little pastry shop around here."
AN: Ah Lev.
What a nice man.
I'm sure there's nothing strange about him at all.
Nothing.
Anyway, some butterfly effects are going on here right now regarding Asia.
Whether this will ultimately save her…
Who knows?
Anyway…
Happy new year!