Hey there.

This one took a while longer than it should have. There were a lot of things going on in the last month or so that wore down on my sanity and ability to write. It took some time for the 'train of thought,' shall we call it, to get back up to speed again. Anyway, here's your Christmas present.

An iconic scene is coming up in this chapter, with a bit of a spin to it.

Disclaimer: I do not own High School DxD, nor do I own Type Moon or any of its intellectual properties.

Published: December 23, 2020

Updated: April 1, 2022

…

Chapter 4 – Another Side

If one word could accurately describe Issei's life within the last ten days, it would be: chaotic.

Last Sunday, he went on his first ever date with a girl named Yuuma Amano. It was a dream come true for the second-year student, to take his first steps away from the life of a lonely pervert and begin working toward his dream of becoming a Harem-King. Or at least, he thought that he did. He woke up on Monday morning, with almost no memory of what happened as the sun went down that night, and nobody had a clue what he was talking about; not his parents, not his two friends, not any of his classmates at all. Everybody looked at him like he was crazy, like Yuuma didn't even exist.

And that was another thing: For the next several days after his phantasmal date, he noticed that he felt very sluggish in the mornings. Almost like he hadn't gotten any sleep the night before when in fact he did. Furthermore, the longer he stayed in direct sunlight, the more disoriented he felt. It was like a large spotlight was shining full blast in his face. He was often ducking between every bit of shade he could find between home and school and back.

On the positive side, there were some aspects to whatever happened on Sunday that somewhat evened the field. In his mad dashes for cover in the mornings, he found that he could move faster than he remembered doing before. It wasn't by much, but it was still noticeable. At night, to his surprise, he was also more sensitive to sounds and could see clearly in pitch-black darkness. He could even understand everything his English teacher was saying in class, and it was all nonsense to him just last week!

It wasn't until Wednesday that he learned what was going on with him. Classes had just come to an end when Yuuto Kiba of all people came into the room asking for him. He didn't say much until the two were out of earshot of the lamenting fangirls (of both Rias and himself). Once they were clear, he explained that Rias Gremory, the President of the Occult Research Club, wanted to speak with about something important, but he wouldn't say exactly what. Just that she would explain everything.

The moment he walked into the main meeting room, Rias Gremory greeted him by name, to his inner joy, with a warm smile from her desk. One by one, the beautiful redhead introduced the club's members; the gentlemanly Yuuto Kiba, the stoic Koneko Toujou, the tantalizing Akeno Himejima, and herself, the venerable President.

Upon asking what Rias wanted to talk to him about, she delivered the ultimate shock. The supernatural was real, and everyone in the club, including Issei himself, was a Devil.

She began her explanation of the supernatural with a history lesson of sorts, including the Three Factions and the Great War that left all sides in shambles in its aftermath. The Devils were especially hard hit, given the massive casualties from that war as well as a civil war that followed soon after, their already low birth rates, and their innate vulnerabilities to anything related to the Biblical God. As such, in the years following the war, a new system to repopulate the race was implemented by way of transforming humans and other species into Devils. These newly minted Devils were to become servants to the high-class Devils that reincarnated them.

From there, she told him everything that happened on Sunday, from her standpoint: When she first became aware of the Fallens' presence in Kuoh, up to reincarnating him in the park, and in turn making him her servant, after his 'date' had put a spear in his gut (though not in those exact words).

Issei wanted to be angry –furious, even– that she knew about his killer and her cohorts and simply let them murder him. Rias or not, it was his life! But before he could tell her off, what she did next shocked him again.

In an almost complete reversal of station, she stood from her desk, approached him, and bowed in a full standing saikeirei. While bowed, she expressed her regret in having been partially responsible for his death, and apologized for reincarnating him without his express consent. Her flowing crimson hair kept her face from view, but the genuine remorse in her voice was undeniable. (1)

At a loss to say anything else, he accepted her apology. When he asked why he could barely remember any of that evening, she and Akeno speculated that his mind may have partitioned those memories as a means of suppressing the trauma he felt. She promised him that she had done nothing to alter or influence his mind at the time of his reincarnation, and offered to help him in any way she could if the memories came back.

Having cleared the air between them, Rias continued her lecture about what his new life would lead to. Among other things, he could attain power, wealth, respect, learn to fly and use magic.

All well and good, but the moment she told him of the possibility of gaining his own servants, which could lead into making a harem, he was sold. No longer would he wallow in self-pity for what he had lost, no more wondering about the what-ifs of things to come. His path was clear: Become a high-class Devil and, in turn, become the Harem King! With no further persuasion needed, he humbly asked (read: begged) to begin the process right away.

Much of the rest of that week was devoted to a crash course in Devil history, business and social etiquette, and working with his Sacred Gear. Currently, there was no success on the latter front. When he wasn't being personally tutored by Rias on something, he was out and about passing around flyers for contracts. It was menial work, something that familiars did regularly, and Rias had explained as much. It was, however, the easiest way to get his face known to potential clients, and he wouldn't be stuck with flyer duty for very long.

Come Sunday night, he saw a vastly different aspect of the Devil's life than what he expected. Granted, he didn't exactly know what to expect, but this wasn't it.

There were no contracts for anybody that night, because an order came down from someone called an Arch Duke about hunting a Stray Devil called Vizer. Having already given Issei her lesson on the Evil Pieces and how they operated, she decided to take him along to demonstrate their power to him first-hand. She told him that he would be strictly observing, much to his relief. His mind was still reeling from all that he had learned in just the last three days alone.

The group tracked the Devil to an old warehouse on the edge of town that was forgotten after the company that owned it closed down for good. Koneko had identified the scent of blood straight away, which put everyone on alert. True to her word, there was blood everywhere inside, yet not a single body was to be found. It wasn't long into their search of the premises that the culprit made its presence known.

While initially distracted by her voluptuous upper body, Issei quickly realized what a monster she was. Her head and topless torso were humanoid, but she had a beast-like lower body, four legs of which were shaped like two humanoid arms at the front and two feline legs at the back, and a gaping mouth in the middle of her stomach lined with freakishly large teeth. Everything about that creature was like something out of a horror or dark fantasy video game.

Despite all that, Rias and her group made absolute mince meat of the monstrous Stray. Kiba cleanly severing her front legs, Koneko sending her flying into a wall with one punch, and Akeno frying her with lightning magic until he could smell the charred flesh. Rias' Power of Destruction, as it was called, left not even a trace of blood behind as she obliterated the Stray upon its last request:

"Kill me."

He asked Rias if it was like this for all Strays, if all they had to look forward to was death. That wasn't always the case, according to her, since it was entirely possible for Strays to return to their masters alive and reform if they hadn't been too far mutated by the Evil Piece bound to them. She promised him that he would never have to worry about that at any rate, since she had no intention of ever mistreating him.

It was all so much to take in, but for better or worse, he was in this for the long haul. And if it meant achieving his dream, it would be worth it.

Back to Tuesday night, a little over a week into his Devil tenure, Issei arrived at the old schoolhouse.

It had been a busier day than he thought it would be. Contracts with two new clients (one of which was going to take a lot of time getting used to), followed by meeting two people he hadn't expected to meet in one place: Connor, the foreign exchange student from America, and Asia, a nun who was quite possibly the nicest girl he had ever met.

When he looked at Asia in the eyes, it was like the whole world stopped. He was face-to-face with one of his ideal girls: Bright green eyes, blonde hair that shined like gold in the sun, an expression of absolute innocence. She was as natural of a beauty as Rias and Akeno, in her own special way.

He wasn't sure what to think when she claimed to have been assigned to the church in town. Even before becoming a Devil, he had never been there. He always found it to be a bit creepy. The chills down his spine he felt from looking at the old church now told him all he needed to know about that place: Stay Away. He was just glad that Asia didn't stay there, and especially glad that Connor lent his aid to her.

Issei was surprised when he actually met Connor. The American was different than what he had expected. Some of the rumors at school said that he was a friendly guy, others made him out to be a hermit, and the more extreme stories claimed that he was a spy for the United States government. He had no idea how someone came to that conclusion. Issei had chalked him up to being another pretty boy that went for the lone wolf act.

That being said, Connor turned out to be pretty mild-mannered. At least he did, up until he loosely explained his being fully aware of the supernatural. If he knew about Sacred Gears, how much did he know about Devils, or Fallen, or anything else related to the Three Factions?

'Something for later,' he dismissed, opening the door to the ORC's meeting room. Rias was at her desk with Akeno by her side, and Kiba and Koneko were seated on one of the couches.

"I'm back, Buchou," he greeted.

"Ise, have a seat."

He was expecting a reception like this, being late to get back and all, but Rias's voice was a little more icy than he was prepared for. Stiffly, he placed himself in one of the chairs facing her desk.

"You've got some explaining to do."

"W-What do you-"

"You were taking so long to get back, I was getting concerned. So I sent my familiar to look for you. Imagine my surprise when I find that not only are you in the company of one Connor Lochlainn, someone you've never spoken to prior to today, but also the company of a nun of the Catholic Church."

Suddenly, Issei felt incredibly small. He hadn't considered it then, but here in the hot seat, it was entirely possible that she would be mad at him for what he did.

"U-Um… she was just in town and wanted to know where the church was. I didn't think that there was any harm in showing her there. She was nice, so I thought it would be okay."

"Ise, I'm all for allowing you to meet new people and make new friends, but there are some people that you simply cannot be friends with. Don't ever go near that girl again. As Devils, we cannot associate with members of the Church. Exorcists, especially. They will kill you without a second thought."

The bit about exorcists didn't make much sense. What did they have to do with this? "But, Buchou, I-"

"No buts. This is not up for debate. You got lucky that they decided not to attack you in the first place, even more so when you and Connor left with her still following you two."

"Who's they?" Issei blurted, mustering the courage to speak up, "Buchou, he said no one was in there!"

"And you believed him?"

That rapid response made him pause. Why did he believe Connor?

"W-Well, he said it was dangerous inside the church, that it might collapse really easily," he stumbled at first for an answer.

"While that may be true, Ise, you only met him just today, right? He doesn't know you, and you don't know him. The only prior connection between you two is a game that he invented to torment you and your friends. He could have been lying to you."

"That's-… I…"

He had almost forgotten about that game. He had been so busy with Devil business in the last few days that he barely had any time to spend with Matsuda and Motohama. And from what he heard, the hunts never stopped just because he wasn't there.

At that moment, a flyer began to flash among the stack on Rias' desk. Someone was calling for a contract.

"Ugh, not now," Rias groaned, annoyed at the bad timing.

"I'll take care of it," Koneko volunteered, standing up.

Taking the flyer in her hand, she wordlessly walked to the teleportation circle in the corner of the room. Within moments, the first-year vanished in a flash of light.

"Back to the matter at hand," Rias continued. "Ise, my familiar only told me what she saw, but not what was said between the three of you. I assume there's more to the story than what you've already shared. What exactly did Connor say to you after you left the church grounds?"

Issei hesitated. He wanted to tell Rias that everything was okay, and that Connor hadn't done anything suspicious. Sadly, he wasn't the best of actors, or even a good liar. Anything he said would easily be called out by any one of the three people there.

"Ise, this is important. I wouldn't be asking you to tell me if it wasn't," Rias pressured.

He flinched and relented, unable to stand the look she was giving him.

"He said-"

Before he could finish, a seal of the Gremory house placed on the corner of Rias' desk began to quickly flash a bright red.

"What is that?"

"Koneko!"

Everyone except Issei jumped to their feet in surprise. Issei stood up as well, but out of confusion.

"H-Hey, what's going on?"

"That's the emergency beacon!" Akeno explained. "Something's happened with Koneko-chan. We have to go, now!"

Not needing to be told twice, he bolted for the circle and stood next to Rias as the other gathered around her.

"We'll finish this later, Ise, but Koneko needs help."

He got no chance to answer as the circle flashed brightly and the room was left completely empty.

Emerging from the teleportation circle, Rias and her peerage were greeted with a grisly sight.

Unlike the warehouse that the Stray Devil Vizer had inhabited, this was just a house not unlike the many that they visited to fulfill contracts. Unfortunately, that's where any dissimilarities ended. Blood was splashed across every surface of the darkened living room the group found themselves in. No wall or piece of furniture was left unmarred. The worst of it, however, was the decapitated human body against the wall furthest from the door.

Long rapier-like swords were pierced into the body's hands, feet and torso, and the body itself was nailed to the wall in a position resembling an upside down crucifix. Blood consistently dripped from the stump where the person's head used to be, adding to the vast pool beneath it. Painted in blood to the right of the hanging corpse were the words, 'Retributionem peccatorum videbis.' While everyone recoiled at the grotesque display, Issei couldn't stop himself from vomiting. (2)

A groan brought everyone's attention to the center of the floor, where Koneko lay on her side with her legs curled up to her chest and her arms holding her abdomen. A small pool of blood was forming underneath her, and her face was twisted in pain. That was an expression that Issei had never seen before on Koneko, and hoped he wouldn't see again after this. It really had no place on her.

"Koneko!" Rias exclaimed, making to rush to her Rook's side.

"STOP! GET DOWN!"

Koneko's strained yell was their only warning before the sound of gunfire blasted through the room. Issei could've sworn he felt something fly just millimeters next to his ear as he ducked. The ORC members scattered and found cover behind whatever furniture in the room that was closest.

A crazed laughter could be heard over the ringing in everyone's ears.

"The gang's all here, yeah?! Alright, now it's a party!"

From behind a large chair, Issei got a look at the speaker. It was a young man, probably not much older than him. Clothed in a bloodstained white shirt and pants and a dark gray overcoat, his straight white hair reached to his shoulders, and his red eyes and sinister expression promised nothing but pain to anyone he set his sights on. In his left hand was a very long-barreled pistol that he seemed to have no issue using only one hand to wield, while his right hand leisurely held a sword whose blade seemed composed of solid light.

Kiba swung around to the side of the room to draw the attacker's attention, and Akeno pulled up a sofa to provide cover for Rias as she tended to Koneko. Issei stayed close to Rias and Akeno, wanting to help but not knowing what to do in this situation. Looking over Rias' shoulder, he could see blood coming from the first-year's stomach between her fingers.

"I'm sorry, I panicked… I was the bait… hurts to move…" Koneko ground out through clenched teeth.

"Don't talk, Koneko, I've got you," Rias comforted while she assessed the wound, both front and back. "No exit wound. Ise, keep your head down. Akeno and Kiba can handle this."

"Who is this guy?" Issei asked, a little loud thanks to the ringing in his ears.

"An exorcist. I'll explain once we're safe," Rias cut the conversation quickly.

While she worked, Kiba created a double-edged straight sword with his Sacred Gear and charged. His quick slashes were met head on with precise one-handed parries and wide unpredictable arcs. Kiba would never say it to this man's face, but he was good. No amount of attacks managed to slip through his guard, even with Akeno providing fire support.

"You're going to pay for what you did," Kiba stated resolutely.

"Aww, concerned about your tiny friend there? That's sweet. So sweet, I might just vomit in my own mouth. So, between you and the, uh… toothpick back there, which one are you; the big spoon or the little spoon?"

Kiba said nothing in rebuttal and pressed the attack. Not that the man looked concerned about it one little bit. Between trading blows with the Knight and dodging the occasional blast of magic fired from the Queen, he looked to be thoroughly enjoying himself with the fight.

Rias stood to her feet, having staunched the bleeding on Koneko's stomach for the moment, and faced the man with a piercing glare. "So, you trespass into my territory, kill one of my clients, harm my precious servant, and you have the gall to crack jokes? You must simply be begging to die, good sir."

The psychopath shrugged, giving a facetious grin. "Not really, sugar tits. That's more at the bottom of my to-do list. I just wanted to see if Black Keys were good for anything other than to exorcise shitty devils like you. Turns out, they make for great nails. I mean, look at that guy. I did all that before I cut off his head, and he was thrashing around like a man possessed." He paused to mockingly convulse and blubber as if reenacting his victim's suffering. "When I saw the little flyer on his desk, it all made sense. I tried getting to the root of the problem, but then the little shit starting swinging at me the moment she saw me. Rude!"

"He shot me… before I even left the circle… He was waiting for me!"

The exorcist rolled his eyes and huffed. "Okay, yeah, so I shot her first. Get all persnickety about the little details, why don't we? Anyway, I'm glad you're all here, because now we can decorate the whole house wi-" he stopped mid-rant, his eyes fixating on Akeno, who was glaring daggers at him.

"Oh, I know that look! Those are the eyes of a natural-born killer! I think you and I could get along, even if you are a shitty devil. What'dya say, big sis? Wanna go slaughter a room full of brats after this? Maybe stab some people on the way? It'll be a great bonding experience."

"Do not call me that. I am not like you," Akeno growled, disgusted at the very thought.

"No, no, no. Don't you be modest!" he chided, wagging his finger at her like she was a child. "I can tell just by looking at you. Hell, my mural pushed a few of your buttons, didn't it? You're a genuine sadist. You see somebody on the ground, writhing around in agony, like your tiny friend there, and you think to yourself, "I should really help that along," and the thought of stomping on their throat and watching the life leave their eyes is-"

"Enough!"

The killer's fantasy was interrupted by Kiba rushing to attack again from behind. He brought his own blade to bear in a split-second and blocked the strike to his neck. Both swords locked, and he glowered down at the blond.

"Here's a tip, shithead! If you're gonna sneak attack someone," He broke the lock and brought his gun to bear at Kiba. "Do it quietly!" He fired six shots in rapid succession, all of which missed their mark but forced Kiba to keep his distance. "Honestly, what're you shitty devils teaching your pets these days, eh? No brains or manners whatsoever!"

"You're one to talk, with a foul mouth like that," Kiba rebuked.

"At least I'm honest with myself, boy scout!" the man sneered. "As long as I get to kill what I want, when I want, especially you shitty devils, I couldn't care less who tells me where to go!"

Akeno readied her next barrage of lightning, but stopped and turned to her left. "Buchou, we need to leave. I can sense more people coming."

"Issei, pick up Koneko and get behind us! You too, Kiba, get back here!" Rias commanded. Kiba acknowledged by charging again, but with extra force, pushing his opponent back and over a dining room chair, sending him falling to the floor.

"Don't touch my butt." Koneko warned Issei, making him blink.

"Uh- okay, yeah, no problem," he hastily agreed. For such a small and cute girl, she could hit hard with both her words and her attacks. The shattered teeth from Vizer's mutated stomach had been all proof he needed for the latter. He looped her arm over his shoulders and held her by the waist, lifting her up to standing height. Kiba, having sped back to the group, kept his defensive position between his King and the priest.

"Oh, hell no! You're not leaving!" the exorcist yelled, rushing toward the group with his weapon reared back for an overhead strike.

"Buzz off." Despite her pain, Koneko grabbed the sofa and hurled it in the priest's path like it was a tin can, forcing him to abandon his attack and forward momentum. It was just the diversion they needed.

Within the next moment, they were gone in another bright flash, leaving no evidence of their ever being there, aside from the blood spilled by Koneko's wound.

The madman hissed in outrage, his plan having been thwarted, then turned his anger to the sofa, hacking it to pieces while shouting obscenities with every swing of his light sword. His fit of rage was finished by the time three more men, dressed in similar vestments to himself, appeared through the living room door with weapons drawn.

"Freed, what happened? Did you find the girl?" the first of the three new arrivals demanded.

He turned to them and snarled, "You assholes couldn't get here any quicker? Fuck, you're slow! No, she wasn't here, but this house had a Devil's contract slip lying around. Figured I could kill two birds with one stone. Y'know, cleanse the sinner, purge the Devil, it was a win-win. Or at least, it would've been, if you guys hadn't dragged your fucking feet!"

"So you gave away our presence here?! God damn it, Freed! We're trying to lay low, and you do this?!" the second man exclaimed.

The youngest of the four rogues coldly approached the older man and smoothly leveled his gun at his face, forcing him to stare down the barrel. "You are just as bored as I am waiting around for that slut of a nun. I just decided to do something about all this down time. And those shitty Devils? They were gonna find out eventually, anyway. Somebody was gonna screw up and get us caught, so I decided to take the first shot. And speaking of…" he trailed off, grinning menacingly at seeing the man's face lose color.

"Freed."

"What?!" he snapped, turning around.

"Was this really necessary?" the first man asked, pointing to the body on the wall. Both he and the third exorcist could barely look at the mess.

"Oh," Freed uttered calmly, almost instantly forgetting his earlier agitation. "Killing him, or making a decoration out of him?"

"The second."

"No. But it was pretty fun." His manic smile and deranged cackling sent shivers down his compatriots' spines, making them wonder if keeping him around was worth the risk. (3)

"There are two kinds of exorcists you'll likely see in your lifetime, Ise."

Presently, Rias addressed Issei in the main meeting room, with Kiba remaining to the side with his arms crossed and his expression firm. Issei had passed Koneko to Akeno for treatment of her injury, and the two had only just exited the room when Rias began her new lesson.

"The first are the ones that adhere to their creed and devote themselves to exorcising Devils and hunting beings that the Church deems to be evil. While dangerous to us in and of themselves, normal exorcists are nothing compared to the ones like what you saw tonight: the Strays."

"Strays?"

Rias nodded. "They are exorcists who grow far too fond of the act of killing Devils. It becomes a sport to them instead of a job, and they become ruthlessly indiscriminate killers in the process. Many times, such exorcists are disavowed and expelled from the Church, or even executed if a charged crime is severe enough. Exorcists that get thrown out often find employ under the Fallen Angels, since they share a passion for killing Devils with little to no restraint."

"And where you see one, there's bound to be at least one or more that you don't see," Kiba added, bringing his arms to his sides. "Stray exorcists never operate alone. I thought it was strange that he was by himself, but if reinforcements were nearby, that means we have a new infestation to deal with."

"So, what do we do now?" Issei asked, overwhelmed by all this new information.

"We're going to be careful from now on. I'll have a plan outlined for everybody to hear by tomorrow. Come to the club room as soon as school is out. If you come across anyone suspicious in the meantime, do not make contact. Avoid confrontation as best you can. This isn't how I wanted you to first learn about exorcists, Ise, but I hope that you've come to understand just how dangerous the situation is."

"Uh… yeah, I get it now."

Just his damned luck. He meets the one girl that perfectly fit his longest running fantasy –surpassed it, even– and now he can't so much as speak to her anymore? Why was life so unfair?

His downtrodden thoughts were interrupted by the feeling of a soft hand cupping his left cheek. He looked up to see Rias giving him a warm, compassionate smile that threatened to liquidate his heart.

"You're my servant, Ise. Your safety, everyone's safety, is my responsibility. I won't take it lightly." She pulled away, to his displeasure, and put on her air of authority once again. "So, on that note, let me be clear: Don't go near the church again, and until I say otherwise, steer clear of Connor Lochlainn as well. Understand?"

"Y- Yes, Buchou."

Rias nodded. "It's getting late, so you should head home for the day. Kiba, go with Ise to his house, then teleport back. I don't want anyone getting caught alone while there are exorcists running around town at night."

"Of course, Buchou."

"Great, I'm being escorted by a bishounen," Issei grumbled. Kiba only chuckled awkwardly.

"It's only for a little while, Issei-san."

"You're both dismissed."

"Hai, Buchou," the two boys sounded off.

Rias put her thumb to her lips as they quietly walked out, lightly biting the nail. The lack of recent activity from the Fallen Angels had certainly been suspicious, but if they had been calling in Stray exorcists to make up the numbers, it would make sense. Contracts would have to wait until the problem was sorted out. As much as she wanted to go on a manhunt for these killers, it was too risky.

Any further plan of action required knowing whether or not Connor was a threat, and if so, what to do with him. Was Connor a part of the Church, one of the Strays, or a completely rogue element?

One way or another, she had to speak with Sona about this. Taking a sheet of paper from a drawer in her desk and scrawled a short message to her fellow King, then held her hand out to invoke a magic circle. From it, her adorable familiar appeared in its true bat-like form.

"Get this to Sona, immediately," she commanded.

The little bat chirped and clutched the letter in its claws before setting out through the window. With that done, Rias could now focus on more immediate matters. She stood up and walked briskly from the meeting room to the bedroom where Akeno had taken Koneko.

The furthest door in the east wing housed the room specially reworked for the use of healing magic. Prior to remodeling, it was the one private bedroom in the building that was slightly bigger than all the others. Now, it featured a lavish queen-size bed in the center, with numerous magic sigils on the walls and the bed itself designed to strengthen the effectiveness of the 'skinship' healing method used by both Rias and Akeno. Rarely ever did this room see use beyond that purpose in recent history, but it more than paid for itself when it counted.

Opening the door, Rias found Akeno sitting to the side of the queen-size bed, still fully clothed and looking wistfully at the sleeping Rook. Rias wasted no time and began to disrobe.

"How is she?" she asked, her clothes falling to the floor, article by article.

"I managed to extract the bullet, so she's resting much easier now," Akeno answered, pointing to a small table near the wall. "It was a hollow point. He wanted to make her suffer, so he aimed for a painful non-lethal area. Had she been shot in the chest, she would be much worse off, even without the light poisoning. As it is, she still needs a full night's recovery."

Without another word, a fully nude Rias passed Akeno and climbed into the bed and brought the younger girl as close to her as possible, practically enveloping her.

"I'm so sorry, Koneko," she lamented, her eyes beginning to moisten. Turning over, she looked to Akeno from the corner of her eye. "I've sent my familiar to give Sona a heads-up. As soon as Koneko is healed, I'm meeting with Sona personally, and it's about time we set up a meeting with Lochlainn, too."

"Ara ara~ Finally going to make your move, Buchou?" Akeno quipped, trying to get a smile or a fluster from her friend. Her smile faded as the look Rias gave her said that the heiress wasn't in the mood for jokes. "Are you sure about this?"

"I gave him the benefit of the doubt, Akeno, for over a week, but this business with the nun and now these Stray exorcists changes things. I want to know why he's really here, and what he knows. If it turns out he's some sort of agent for the Church, then I will not risk my peerage's safety with him any longer. My carelessness almost cost us Koneko, and put the rest of us in danger. I'm not taking any more chances." She turned back and closed her eyes to concentrate on the healing spell, bringing the sleeping nekoshou closer to her. "Good night, Akeno."

Akeno stayed silent as she continued to gaze at her King. Behind closed doors, her best friend really was too hard on herself sometimes. There was no way she or any of them could have known that Koneko was walking into a trap. Even so, she was right about the escalation of recent events. Tonight had been too narrow of an escape.

"Good night, Buchou," she quietly said, leaving the chamber and retiring to her personal room.

She knew what was really going on. It was about more than just the exorcists. Rias' fiancée, Riser Phenex, had been pressing to move up the arranged marriage between the two, and the elders of both families had just recently passed the motion. The original agreement had been for Rias to finish college before going forward with the marriage. Rias had hoped to find a way out by then, but it seemed that was no longer on the table.

Riser was an arrogant womanizer, believing he was untouchable thanks to his immortality as a Phenex. The thought of marrying him was revolting, and a stressed Rias tended to act more aggressively or irrationally. She'd known her King long enough to see the signs. If things with Connor came to blows, she dreaded what they might be forced to do to him for something that wasn't his fault.

As Akeno drifted off to sleep, for the first time in a long time, she found herself hoping that Rias would be wrong.

The next morning, Asia sat at the dining room table of her apartment, waiting patiently as Connor fixed up her breakfast. Connor had offered to make her something since he already had his before coming over to check on her. She had set some random ingredients on the kitchen counter to prepare her own breakfast, but had been nervous about what to do with them until Connor arrived.

When he emerged from the kitchen after ten minutes, along with some western utensils, he presented to her something she had never seen before. He described the dish as an omurice, using white rice, ham and green peas as his choice ingredients, all of which was bundled with an omelet of fresh eggs and lightly decorated with ketchup. (4)

She wasn't sure what to make of its appearance, but it certainly smelled nice. When she took the first bite…

"How is it?"

"Mm! Delizioso!" (Delicious!) Asia's face lit up as she held a hand to her cheek. The blend of flavors was beyond anything she'd ever tasted. Having lived on soup, bread and water for most of her life, it felt amazing to experience such new things.

"Heh, glad to hear it. I'm still trying to figure out how to make it really wake you up in the morning. Maybe salt and pepper on the ham before…" His musing stopped when he noticed her suddenly distant expression. "Asia? Is everything okay?"

"Connor… can I tell you a story?"

He was confused by what she meant at first, then his eyes widened slightly. "Er- Asia, it's okay, you don't have to if you don't want to."

"No, I… I really want someone to talk about it with me," she insisted.

Recognizing the tone in her voice, he quietly sat down across from her at the table.

She summarized her formative years as best she could, about how she was left on the doorstep of an orphanage in Italy that was funded by the Catholic Church, and about she was raised in the faith, just like everybody else there. Her life then was simple, and she'd been raised to be happy with the simple things in life, and to be thankful for what she had.

"I was always taught to be kind and patient to everybody, so that God's love would make itself aware to everyone, even to people that did not know Him.

"When I was eight years old, I found a puppy that had been hit by a car. His back legs couldn't move, and he was crying so loud. It hurt so much to see him like that. I cried and prayed to God that someone could help him. And God answered me. My Sacred Gear awakened and he was back to normal, like nothing happened. I was never so happy in my life. I felt like I had done something right all by myself.

"The matron of the orphanage saw me do it, and called it a miracle. She told the Church about it, and I was considered a 'Holy Maiden.' I was moved out of the orphanage and named a vicar."

"A vicar?" Connor asked.

"Yes. I was treated well. The people in the Church took care of me, and I got to help heal the people that needed it. I also learned what I could and couldn't do with my Sacred Gear, and I got better at healing the people that I could help. I even got to meet the Pope on my ninth birthday. I was happy to be doing my God-given duty."

She paused and looked down at the table, tears beginning to well in her eyes. "And yet… for all the kindness that people showed me, and how thankful they were for me helping them, nobody ever tried to become my friend. I was always just the Holy Maiden.

"Then, about a month ago, or something like that, I found a Devil that had been hurt. I don't know how he was hurt, but I wasn't thinking about it. I… I just can't bear the thought of leaving someone in pain. So I healed him, and he ran away without a word. Someone in the Church saw me heal him and rumors started spreading. People called me names like 'witch,' 'evil,' 'heretic' and other things. Before I even had a chance to explain myself, I was excommunicated. They told me to leave and never come back."

At this point, she was speaking between sobs, which got harder as she went on. "But… what hurt the most… was that… all the people that I knew… for my whole life… they just turned away like what I did was unforgivable… I felt like they didn't care about me at all…"

She let out a laugh that sounded more like a blubber. "It's because I'm stupid… I can't… I can't do anything by myself…

"About a week after I was excommunicated… I met Lady Raynare… and she said that she and the Grigori would take care of me. They did, but… it really wasn't any different from what happened before. I was still treated differently."

Her tears intensified. "This is one of God's trials, I always said… Since I'm so clumsy, and I… I wanted something that I didn't have… God gave me this trial… I just have to endure it…

"I know… someday… I'll be able to make friends… and go shopping for flowers… buy books with them… and just… talk…"

The dam broke there. Her face fell into her hands and her sobbing morphed into a hard and painful wail. She had never told this to anybody, and to hear it all now brought back all the pain in one fell swoop. The Bible said that God would never let you bear more than you could handle, but it hurt so much to think about it all.

She cried for a few moments before she felt a hand on her forearm. She looked up to see Connor reaching across the table, having moved her breakfast to one side.

"Asia," Connor started solemnly, "I think you've accomplished a lot more than you realize."

She gave no audible reply, but he had her full attention.

"If what you went through was a trial by God, then I'd say that you weathered the storm. You're halfway around the world, and people don't know who are or what you've done, so none of that can be held against you. Unless somebody from your past goes out of their way to look for you, I really don't think you have to worry about any of that anymore. This is like a fresh start. A lot of people don't get one."

Asia's eyes widened. Was that true? "But… But I don't know anything about Japan. I'm not smart, I-"

"Then you'll learn, just like I did," he cut off her self-deprecation. "A little bit at a time, if need be. You've got nothing but time, anyway. Besides, you've already made two friends."

"W-what?" Had she, really?

"Yeah. Me, and Issei. He and I are just the first of many, I think. You're one of those people that could make friends with someone just by saying 'hello' to them."

"B-But what about the Grigori? Won't they-"

He smiled in assurance. "You let me worry about that, okay? My issues with them are mine alone. They want to talk to you, they'll have to talk to me. Just focus on your breakfast for now." With that, he stood up and went back to the kitchen. To clean up, she presumed.

Asia smiled and sniffled as a fresh tear fell down her face. She couldn't believe it. For the first time since her exile, and even before that, she felt that her most earnest prayer had been answered.

'Is this what it feels like to have a friend?'

Another one of God's blessings.

Connor's thoughts about his new charge occupied his mind during the entire trek to school.

Before he left, he told Asia to lock the door to her apartment and not answer it for anybody until he came back in the evening. He didn't like locking her in, but if what he suspected was correct, he wanted her to be safe while he wasn't close by. To that end, he set the security runes on both apartments at high alert.

Having heard her side of the story, he thought back to his meeting with Tobio, and some things about the whole situation still didn't add up. The Vatican was the most well defended place in Italy against supernatural entities, that was a well-known fact. And if Asia was such a widely revered 'Holy Maiden,' security around her would be similarly strict. Vicars were highly respected members of the Church's public side; it wasn't a title that was handed out freely. The way she found that Devil in those conditions was way too conspicuous. How did he get so close to her without setting off any alarms? If he was injured when she found him, why was no one giving chase in order to finish the kill, again, without raising any alarms of an intruder?

He couldn't imagine anyone in the Vatican wanting to work with a Devil in order to oust someone like Asia. Unless this Devil actually had an inside man to help him? To get him inside, then spread hearsay around in order to get her cast out. However marginal, the possibility was there. Even if that was proven false, there was no Devil crazy enough to risk infiltrating the Vatican for one person and then just give up once that person was outside its walls. He wouldn't be surprised if she was followed to Kuoh, if not by the same Devil that got her exiled, then someone working for them.

Throughout her story, Connor came to understand why Asia was the way she was. And he felt like an idiot for not seeing why she trusted him so easily.

It was because she was alone, desperate for companionship.

Her whole life was ripped away from her in the fraction of a second, with one decision. She could have had all the good intentions in the world, but it didn't seem to matter in the eyes of the people she knew (or rather, thought she knew). Add on the fact that she was almost conditioned to blame herself for everything bad that happened, so of course she would latch onto the first people to really help her. How long had she kept it all bottled up? How long had she gone without a shoulder to cry on, someone to just talk to, someone to help bear that pain?

After hearing everything, the thought of looking her in the eye and saying that he couldn't help her seemed… hard to stomach. Having her around was going to invite trouble, but he knew that before even making his rather arbitrary decision last week. Now he was in deep.

Going forward, he would need to find a way for her to provide for herself; the scholarship he was on couldn't reliably pay for both of their living expenses. For what he had in mind, it would take some work on his part to hammer out a deal.

Sticking his neck out to help someone he barely knew was just one more rash decision to add to his growing résumé.

This time, though, he didn't immediately regret it.

…

(1): Form of bowing that conveys utmost respect or sincerest apology.

(2): 'Punishment of the wicked' in Latin, according to Google Translate. Again, not so good with foreign languages.

(3): For Freed, I was going for a mix of the canon psychopath we all know and love/hate, and the John DiMaggio version of the Joker. A bit OOC, considering that he's also a sexual fiend in canon, but I found that part of him to be distasteful to write. So here, he's more interested in violence. A guy who torments his victims and takes joy from killing in increasingly creative ways, but will get testy when he's outmaneuvered or misses an opportunity.

(4): A popular western style Japanese dish, or yōshoku.

…

I'm playing with an idea for later chapters, but I'd like a little input. If Connor finds a way to summon Nasuverse Servants, which three of the seven main classes would suit him, or better yet, which specific Servants? This is all still up in the air, so nothing will be set in stone for a while. If you have any suggestions, please let me know.

If you would like what you read, leave a favorite, a follow or a review to let me know. Any advice or support that you could give would be greatly appreciated. If you'd like to take a shot at the challenge listed in chapter 1, send me a PM, I'd love to hear your thoughts on it.

As always, thank you for reading!