What did you do? The message read in a chat the boy barely ever opened.
He gritted his teeth, even though it made his skull feel like nails had been shoved in there. He wanted to reply, send a message, an audio, to make the other know exactly how full of shit he was.
The boy didn't, but instead kept on walking forward. Even though the streets were barely lit and the neighborhood wasn't the safest to be, let alone without company at night.
Where are you? Another message popped up. More insistent than usual.
The boy snarled. The other person usually didn't care about him, and he could guess that changed to make them care now. The black spots that began swelling on his face gave him enough clues to tell.
He kept on walking.
You have to come back. A third message popped up. Perfectly written without an emoticon or a glimpse of empathy for his ordeal.
The boy cradled his USB closer to his chest.
"Shut up." He wanted to scream, but he didn't have enough air in his lungs "Shut up."
He put the phone away, paying closer attention to where he was heading. He didn't want to fall, or walk into a situation he could've avoided. The neighborhood might not be the best, but he knew it well enough. One of the few people that cared about him lived around after all.
His phone vibrated again, and he resisted the need to check on it. He had sent his message, it was the reason he got it out to begin with. And he had made his intentions clear, so he doubted it was from her. That could only mean it was from someone he didn't want to think about. He had to remind himself of this.
His parents taught him to always be there when they needed him, so he had to actively avoid checking the phone after it vibrated. His blood boiled, and the pain from having thrown down with his so-called father made him a living lump of hatred and bruises. He didn't even trust himself not to smash the device if he read the wrong message, and a phone wouldn't be so easily replaceable.
He got a call, but he ignored it. He got more messages but pressed onwards.
The bastard trying to reach out to him could choke and die, for all he cared.
Although Rias didn't like the big bathroom she installed for the guest apartments, Diodora didn't care about the 'real hot springs experience' or whatever. The water was hot enough to melt all his worries, and he actually liked the close-doors aspect of it. It made the place look like an actual bathroom, huge pool of hot water exempted, with its white tiles and white pillars. The showers being to the side, closer to the door.
Diodora hadn't ever gone to the hot springs, not even in his past life. So he felt a little hesitant to bathe outside. It felt like that belonged in a different place, like a fantasy or an adult video. It'd have been different if he had brought company. But alas, Olivia had to check on Yuni so she wouldn't try anything. And, since Diodora hadn't originally been japanese either, he didn't feel like bathing with a man.
He'd have to get used to it, he supposed. This world had been written by a japanese man, so the customs would naturally follow. He knew that much. But at the moment he didn't feel like changing. The incursion had been short but made him really, really anxious. So for now he wanted to relax.
So of course, the sliding door opened behind him.
"Didn't we agree you'd keep Yuni company?" Diodora spoke up, a little annoyed. He didn't feel as weird around Olivia anymore, but he at least wanted to be able to trust her word before anything else. He understood she was madly in love with the original Diodora, for whatever reason, but that was no excuse for her to slack off in a direct order.
Prejudice against the original Diodora's actions aside, the person currently occupying the devil's body hated when people slacked off on their work.
"I don't think we agreed to anything like that?" Akeno's voice made Diodora flinch, getting him to turn around and see the raven haired Queen enter the bath with a white towel covering her body like the japanese customs dictated.
…Yeah, like hell that was the norm.
"I'm sorry, I thought you were Olivia for a moment." Diodora fumbled his words a bit, giving Akeno his back as the girl sat in front of the showers. His heart raced a little, but more due to the surprise of seeing someone else in a private space.
Akeno chuckled in that onee-san way of hers.
"I didn't mean to scare Diodora-sama like that, do forgive my rudeness."
"It's fine. I just didn't expect to have company." Diodora rested his head against the edge of the bathtub. Covering his face with the back of his elbow, protecting his eyes from the light.
"That reaction was surprisingly cute. Is Diodora-sama weak to women, by any chance?" He could almost hear Akeno's teasing smile, looking at him while she showered.
It made him chuckle. The very idea of things playing out like this, in spite of knowing what kind of world this was, felt utterly alien to him.
"I promise it was the surprise." He replied neutrally. He didn't want to spoil the mood by mentioning his previous peerage, nor was it polite to mention a girl in front of another naked one. Let alone a group of them.
"If Diodora-sama says so…"
"I'd be surprised regardless of who entered. I thought this place was made for devils coming from out of town." Diodora didn't want to sound like he wanted her out of there, but he did find it strange that Akeno would go out of her way to bathe there.
Again, Diodora had taken refuge in an apartment complex built by Rias and Sona for devils that wanted to visit Kuoh. It had all the necessities, and the space sufficed well enough to be more like a hotel than an apartment complex. But devils lived like ancient aristocrats, so that was to be expected.
Except, the two peerages living in Kuoh had their own homes. And Diodora doubted anyone lived close enough to logically arrive at the same time as he did. Let alone live inside the building itself. He knew, he had asked. And he was pretty sure Akeno lived in a shrine, or close to one.
So it begged the question of what the hell she was doing taking a bath with him?
Relax, this world can be dumb like that. He wanted to believe that thought, however… Being careful never hurt anybody, right?
"That's correct." She sounded almost happy with the answer "But nowhere it says that we can't use the facilities. Doesn't Diodora-sama think we should be able to? Working hard to keep the town safe?"
Diodora moved his arm off his face and looked at his reflection in the water. It didn't stay clear, but it gave him something to concentrate on while the raven haired girl cleaned herself.
"Not the point I'm trying to make, but yes. You deserve to do as you please." Diodora showed a worried smile, even though he doubted she was looking at him. He tilted his head "Do you ask Rias for permission or…?"
"You must be joking. No, I didn't tell Rias." Akeno sounded amused, like the idea came so out of the blue she hadn't even considered it.
"I see."
Working alone? Why? Didn't that peerage always work together to do anything? Was he getting their roles too fixed in his head? They were now alive and breathing, Akeno literally behind him. To expect them to remain the same as their version behind the screen would be lunacy. But they couldn't be that different from the characters he knew either.
He heard the water stop running behind him. He wanted to resist but turned his head a bit to see what she was doing.
She was making circles with soap in her hands.
"Please don't get the wrong idea. Rias is in charge of the town, and we follow her instructions. But she's never treated us like servants. We're free to do as we see fit, even the responsibilities entrusted to us. We're a team. It just so happens that Rias is our figurehead."
Diodora nodded. It checked out with what he knew of them, even if it rarely came up in the original story.
"Do you think that's strange?" Akeno asked, sounding a bit more serious now.
"I don't see why I should." Diodora shrugged, lifting his hands with some water to get his hair wet again "It works out, that much is evident. Whether it's due to Rias' skills or your own doesn't matter. It works and that's that."
Akeno giggled.
"Even if we're treating a high-class devil like our peer?"
Diodora released a muffled sound. He avoided laughing outright, but he couldn't help showing how funny the idea sounded.
"I'm on board with people doing whatever they want." He sat straighter, getting most of his chest and stomach out of the water, and turned his body to have Akeno to his side. She had stopped cleaning her arm and looked at him with a bit of surprise on her face "Servants this, Kings that. It doesn't matter in the end. Remember that mad nekomata that killed her master? She was simply stronger, and the title the pure-blooded devil had didn't protect them. That's simply… How things work."
He turned back to his original position, trying not to stare at the girl too much. But also not avoiding her body outright. Something told him he'd get teased because of either. Plus she was already there, what else was he supposed to do?
Compromise, of course. Stare at her naked body a little and then turn around like a gentleman should. This way, even if she objected, Diodora would simply promise not to do it again. She was japanese, so she was probably used to bathing with others. And some degree of tolerance would be afforded to an almost complete stranger, or so he wanted to believe.
He wanted to look at her more, really badly at that. But he remained steadfast and kept giving her his back.
"I… Suppose you're right." Akeno replied after some time, getting the water running again as she spoke "That's how devils do things after all."
Power ruling over everything… In this world, where people grow as powerful as gods, it might make sense. Not in the logistics sense, but in a simplistic way. If someone is strong, then they can simply force their way to the top. Simple as that. Except other factors would have to intervene in someone's ascension to power. Even devils were bound by the interference of the Bael faction, pulling the strings in the shadows. So that 'might makes right' deal wasn't as true as the author wanted people to believe.
"Well, laws are there for a reason. But that's not the topic. The high-class devils behave like they're a cut above the norm, but reality says otherwise. What good is a pure-blooded devil when literal dragons can turn into one? Our blood might be special, but that's just some of us. Those blessed with Privilege Magic like Rias or Seekvaira are."
"And Sona-san too." Akeno added.
Diodora made a face.
"I… Wouldn't place water control on the same level as the Power of Destruction, or time manipulation." He spoke slowly, but got his point across.
"I guess not." Akeno conceded.
"I mean, you're not wrong." Diodora added "In theory the Sitri also have Privilege Magic. Because the clan traits bypass the rules of normal demonic power, so their water manipulation is the same. Just, y'know, a lot more…"
Diodora let his words trail off, hearing the water stir and seeing Akeno taking a step into the bath beside him. Towel extended over her front, but barely covering her body.
He hadn't heard the water stopping while he talked, nor did he hear her steps even with his augmented devil senses. Was his own voice too mesmerizing to him or was he stupid?
It took her sitting in the tub for Diodora to remember that he shouldn't be staring at her breasts, so he cleared his throat and got his left arm to rest against the edge of the tub. A natural barrier between the two of them.
Akeno released a sigh of bliss.
"...Should I leave or—."
"No, no. Please don't feel like you ought to." Akeno placed a hand on her cheek, a pleasant expression on her face "I don't mind at all."
"As you please." Diodora sighed, doing small stretches with his neck as a way to avoid ogling her all the time.
"Perhaps it's cultural shock, but Diodora-sama doesn't need to be so nervous. This is pretty normal." Akeno explained. Even though Diodora would bet any amount of money most people didn't bathe with the opposite sex so casually.
Or maybe they did. Who knew? He had never been to Japan before. And this version was bound by lewd conventions. Gods walked among men, Heaven and Hell would eventually sign a truce, and the most popular show involved a Heavenly Dragon that fanatically chased after breasts. Anything could be real.
"Olivia might still get angry at me." Diodora was only half joking.
"Ara? Are you two in that kind of relationship?" Akeno sounded genuinely interested.
"It's… Complicated." He admitted.
"Sorry, it's probably not something you want to talk about." Akeno's expression changed.
"At least not during a pleasant bath." Diodora tilted his head in her direction.
"Much less if you're enjoying it with a beautiful girl, I bet." Akeno agreed to drop the subject, so she went back to her way of teasing.
"Is it customary here to call yourself beautiful as well?" Diodora shook his head with a smirk.
"Am I lying?" She countered.
"That's besides the point." He replied.
"I don't think so. I've seen a lot of female devils do it, while attending official meetings with Rias." Akeno lifted her arms to either side, shrugging.
It sounded like she was boasting too, but Diodora considered her words seriously.
"I… Suppose that's the case." He tilted his head to the side opposite to Akeno, the right, and looked at the water. He could see the lines between her breasts, blurry as it was "But it's not something you should be copying, young lady. It doesn't look good."
"What's wrong with boasting about oneself a little bit?"
"Nothing, but people like you…" Diodora closed his eyes. He didn't want to come across as a creep "Well, let's say it's basically like looking down on others."
"I'll take that as a compliment." Akeno chuckled.
"Backwards as it is?" Diodora smiled, eyes still closed.
"Backwards as it is." She agreed.
He wanted to submerge himself fully, stay under the water for a few seconds and forget about Akeno for a bit. He had decided to bathe instead of taking a regular shower to clear up his mind, after all. But he didn't.
His parents didn't raise a person that'd leave things halfway, after all. It felt wrong to think about them while bathing with a sexy girl by his side but…
There was only one person that hadn't gotten that basic lesson, back in his original life. And he had been a complete failure.
"So, shall we hear what you came here for now?" Diodora turned to smile at her, trying to look as relaxed as possible "Don't get me wrong. Talking like this is nice, and the view is superb. But I have a feeling there's more to your presence than you let on. Is there anything I can help you with?"
She didn't look surprised, nor did she get embarrassed. Akeno hadn't been that sort of character, after all.
Instead, she grinned at him. A bit of the real viciousness in her heart showed for a moment.
He clenched his muscles, expecting to get electrocuted through the water then and there. But instead he got to see her lift her arms to stretch.
This time, he made sure her breasts didn't distract him. Not at all.
"I didn't mean to hide it from Diodora-sama, but… Well, I guess I wanted to do this in a more pleasant way." Akeno explained. Something in her words made him panic for a moment, but he could feel no demonic power flaring up from her.
"I think being direct is the most pleasant way to do things." Diodora encouraged her to continue.
"It's nothing so serious to warrant a 'direct way', so to speak. I simply wanted to meet Diodora-sama and get a read of him." Akeno explained.
"I…" Diodora lifted his arms, and stared at the small puddles that formed on his palms "While bathing, of all things?"
"Well, you know what they say. People are at their most vulnerable when they get naked."
"While I have indeed heard that saying, I think you should be referring to 'real self' instead." Diodora argued "Or are you about to overpower me? I'll warn you, even if you're from Rias' group I won't take kindly to having my freedom stolen."
Akeno chuckled.
"Nothing like that! Rest assured, I'm not trying to entrap Diodora-sama or anything like that. I simply wanted to gauge how much of a problem you would be."
Said like that, made Diodora feel bad. A beautiful girl in nothing but a towel was telling him he could be a pest. What man wouldn't feel inadequate in such a situation?
"Your change of heart was all too sudden, and Koneko agreed that there's something not quite right with you." Akeno explained "But… Well, maybe we've been too paranoid. Not a lot happens in Kuoh. And Diodora-sama's pace have been a lot more hectic than we're used to, once we thought about it."
Diodora nodded. He knew he'd be out of place as he suddenly left and came back, with days of complete absence because he didn't leave the apartment, or because his trip to the Khaos Brigade hadn't allowed him to go back. It made sense, even if he didn't want it to. He had believed Rias would ask him upfront at some point, or Sona since she was more the blunt type.
Still, he failed to consider that the reincarnated devils had their own worries and personalities. They had always been 'Rias' peerage', bundled into a group which Diodora unwittingly thought of as a single entity.
That… Would've been a terrible oversight later on.
"So you chose to take a bath with me to see if I'm a troublemaker?" Diodora let out a dry laugh.
"If you put it that way, it sounds dumb." Akeno pounted "But believe me, I have my ways."
That didn't sound encouraging at all.
"It's great that I'm normal, then." Diodora gave her a winning smile.
"Well, no one that's normal feels the need to point it out." Akeno tilted her head, almost mimicking how Diodora had done it, even going as far as staring at the water instead of his face "Furthermore, no self-respecting pure-blooded devil would admit to be anything less than special."
No choice then, time to pull the 'feel bad for me' card.
"Most haven't gone through what I have." He lowered his voice a fraction, slowly turning it into a whisper "It's hard facing reality like that, but there's no way forward if you don't."
Akeno fell silent. Only then did he remember that she had probably felt that way at some point, seeing her mom die and stuff.
"Sorry if I touched a nerve." He commented once the silence had stretched too much.
"It's not something we should discuss during a pleasant bath." Akeno smiled, but it felt forced now.
"Agreed." He faced her again, trying to keep his smile as natural as he could "What are you doing after this? Would it be too forward to treat you to something?"
"Just asking is pretty straight-forward!" Akeno covered her mouth, halfway faux-scandalized and half amused.
It made Diodora chuckle.
"But bathing together isn't? What backwards culture is this?"
"It's about the dream, Diodora-sama. Asking the other out shatters it. The thrill comes from the obvious flirting being just impersonal enough to keep the person wondering, fantasizing." She winked, still teasing him.
"And it keeps people with no backbone happy enough, safe and secure in their own fantasies." He sunk a little more into the water. To the point his nose touched it so he could make bubbles with his breath.
"That's exactly right. So Diodora-sama knows about this sort of appeal?"
"I'm not a complete stranger to it." Diodora stretched his neck a bit to answer, only to resume making bubbles.
"As expected of Diodora-sama." Akeno chuckled.
He sat straighter again, his thoughts clearer.
"Sorry for getting defensive, by the way." Diodora stole another glance at Akeno's chest "You have every right to see whether I'm trustworthy or not."
"It's nothing of the sort." She laughed it off "We trust Rias' judgment."
'We', huh. So the others also felt something was off.
He didn't know if Akeno had said it that way for his sake or not, but he simply had to take it into account.
Just in case. Like Akeno's actions were. He had no doubt the others would do something similar. Perhaps taking turns, or perhaps baiting him like Akeno probably did when she revealed her intentions.
It didn't matter, he held no ill will against them. But he liked being informed all the same.
"Doesn't change the fact that you're in the right." Diodora added "Do what you must. Other things are not important."
He patted the bottom of the tub for his towel and surrounded his waist with it.
"Well, if you excuse me…" He said before standing up, right hand holding the small towel to protect his modesty. He smiled at her "It was lovely."
"Ara, even if I didn't wash your back?" She placed a finger on her lower lip. She didn't have any right to look that sexy.
"I bet there will be more opportunities." He laughed it off, because it was the only right thing to do. As she said, this was more about the fantasy of lewdness than what it really was. She wouldn't make a move, and he wouldn't either.
Mutual understanding, mutual respect. In a bizarre way.
He turned around, stretching his back for a moment, before taking his first step out of the water.
A big splash came from behind him, and Akeno's slender arms slithered around his chest. Scaring the shit out of him as he expected lightning to sparkle and take him down.
He could feel Akeno's nipples against his back, and her breath in his ear instead.
"Please look forward to it." She whispered, almost caressing his lobe with her lips.
Diodora shuddered, but stayed put. Letting Rias' Queen tease him for a couple of seconds more by slowly moving her fingers, before she released him.
His face was burning when he turned and tried to give her a smirk.
"Pardon my rudeness but… You'd make an excellent femme fatale." At least his words came out right this time around.
He almost didn't hear her reply due to being busy staring at her naked body.
"Don't worry, I'll take that as a compliment." She looked way too pleased with herself, like she had gotten what she wanted out of him.
He wanted to think he passed her test, whatever it was.
"Well then, if you excuse me." He tried not to hurry too much. But he almost sighed with relief when he left the bath.
…
"I have to get out of here."