Out of time, Out of fear: Life 1: Enter "The Fear"
In a town called Kuoh, a mundane town in Japan..to the naked eye, in truth, this location is a hotspot for the supernatural, all manner of things gather here, though under the formal supervision of Devils from 2 of the 32 Pillar clans, Gremory & Sitri, recently began an increase in strays, though as of now, this is not the focus of our tale..no, our tale begins in the afterlife, in the underworld in fact, after a great war, a climactic battle, one soul in particular is judged, at least, this one, was a man who, in life, felt nothing but agony with every breath, every blink, this man suffered, He shared His suffering through Fear, sowing terror upon His majesty's foes, hoping to shove His fear onto others, so They may feel His pain...for fear without explanation, is far, far worse than any other, for it is no emotion, no rationale behind it...but instinct & instinct alone, funny, isn't it? how Äs Nödt's story ended..
...And now here He is, in a nightmare of His worst imagination, "The Fear" now stands in judgement, feeling more afraid than He ever has in life...He sighs, nervously rubbing His Non-existent lip, without His mask, His grotesque face is laid bare to all, No lips, His teeth bared to all, all can see His shame...He hasn't forgotten how it came to this...
(POV: Shuukei)
Black eyes open as their owner rises from His bed hastily, looking at the mirror, He sees his mouth...it's alright, that was just a dream...no, a nightmare...who "Was" that man? why was that nightmare so vivid? who was "His Majesty"? so many questions, nowhere near enough answers...no matter, I'll be late for school if I keep contemplating nightmares. My name is Karagami Shuukei, I am 18 years Old. as far as I remember I was an orphan, I moved out of the orphanage to live on My own when I reached 16 years of age, in truth...people fear Me, for whatever reason, I try my best to be polite, friendly even...perhaps it's how I look? after all, I'm fairly tall even without My boots, maybe it's My eyes? "blacker than the darkest void" I heard someone describe once, I'm not that bad...I Hope anyway, Well, that's enough contemplating. as I walk, I notice something...odd, a little(Just don't say that to Her face) girl, 4 feet-6 inches in fact, white haired, amber eyed...and She's looking at Me, I smile faintly...one of My few friends here, the school "Mascot", Koneko Toujou, She and I are...well, I'd want to say friends, but We understand each other to some level, We both need Our space, when Our schedules Align, We just sit down somewhere, Alone...Together, yeah...alone together, I like the sound of that.
(POV: Neutral)
"You're late...something happen?" She asks, Her eyes gazing into Her friend's, truth be told She could tell something's up with Shuukei, She feels something in His soul...but it isn't what She thinks, it's not something In His soul, but His entire soul that's different, but He IS human, and right now, He's concerned with something, It's a Quirk of their bond, They've known each other for a few months at this point, and yet somehow can understand each other beyond Words, They wouldn't call each other "Friends" per say, but the understanding IS there.
"Not much, just a bad dream...Say, ever wondered how much wood would a woodchuck chuck if a woodchuck could chuck wood?" Shuukei asked, clearly trying to forget His dream...with a bad joke, almost made Her smile though, She knows Him well enough at this point, in truth, She was surprised by how well They got along at first, the ordinarily silent & unapproachable "Mascot" and the distant & Hardworking "Scarecrow", and yet They're as thick as thieves, though He's part of the Photo club, He takes pictures of things that He finds beautiful, mostly beautiful scenery, sunrises, sunsets and more, and She's part of the Occult Research Club, as skeptical as Shuukei is, He finds Her interest in the occult almost adorable, though She'd easily correct Him if He called Her cute(Though She deeply enjoys it),And as much as She'd wish She could come clean to Him, She knows He's unaware of Her true nature, of the wider world that surrounds Him, and although His soul feels off, She'll never put Him in harm's way to prove it.
"700 pounds, real funny, You told this joke before Shuu" Koneko dryly replied, "You made me read more about Woodchucks than I ever would have in My entire life just to humor You, and I can't say I'm proud" She continued, She saw the side of Shuukei nobody else had, Except the orphans He grew up with, the somewhat witty(If uninspired) Joker wanting to see everyone He cares about smile, and sure enough, She was smiling, if VERY slightly, which in turn made Him smile widely, walking next to Her, all worry faded from His previously furrow-browed expression, it poked something in Her heart.
"Look at them, almost like A Pair of Newly-weds!".
"Aww, Koneko-chan is so Cuuute!".
"Kyaaa! Are they A Couple?" - "Don't say that, There's no way in hell that Gangly Scarecrow could ever end up with our Mascot!".
And there's the peanut gallery, if there's one thing that Irritated both Shuukei & Koneko, it was almost definitely the nosy nature of their peers, almost as though they didn't live lives of their own, and were all too eager to Budge & Prod into others', Shuukei often wondered if that's just how people are, when He was younger & still in the orphanage, He wasn't able to engage in A Few of his Hobbies due to His fellow orphans' Curiosities, but He often indulged them, He'd tell jokes, write poems & paint pictures that still line the walls, He did all that purely out of desire to see if there was "More" to the world, and that was His "Fatal Flaw" as some would call it: He was eternally curious, almost to A Dangerous degree, He'd want to know everything about everything if He could, something that He still wants, but to a much less crippling extent, for knowledge is like the sweetest venoms, but venom all the same.
"And here's your stop, Neko" Shuukei stated, briefly ruffling Koneko's hair almost fondly, briefly smiling when She almost leaned into his touch, like the cats He'd seen around his neighborhood, She was just too cute, truly, He has one of the best friends in the world, and nobody can protest that fact. before Shuukei takes a look at the nearby clock & goggles, He has 5 minutes, and His classroom is, well, fairly far off, He breaks into A Sprint, Making it with one minute on the clock, taking deep breaths as he sits down, softly running his hand across his forehead.
"Ara ara, You're almost late, Shuu" A Melodious voice came from behind him, Shuukei's eyes widen slightly as another friend of his, Akeno Himejima, One of the two "Great Ladies of Kuoh", puts a hand on His shoulder, a teasing smile on Her face as She almost seems to leer at how well He fits in his uniform, Shuukei gulps lightly, running that fast was never His strong suit, though he could manage it for some reason, He didn't do much exercising, mostly the required amount to prevent too much weight gain with His diet but not enough to be really noticeable, and yet...
"Well, I'm glad I Wasn't, Akeno-san" Shuukei replied, He was still astounded She gave him the time of day, He was no bootlick like most of the academy, but He looked up to her for some extent, She was akin to a mentor to him in some fields(Let it never be said Shuukei serves bad tea when He has guests over, no sir) and A friend as far as He saw it, hell, She's the one who got him into tea ceremonies, He was never one for such frivolities before, but now He positively adores tea-making & hosting ceremonies, not to mention...no, That's beyond Him, He knows She's out of His league, He's just "Creepy Shuu", as some people took to calling him, She's...Well, She's Got more to do with Her life than entertain His Loneliness forever and He knows it.
Timeskip to that evening
After a lengthy day, Shuukei was on His evening walk, He didn't spend much of His day contemplating on His nightmare, but now that He had the time He couldn't help but think about it, who WAS that man? He looked so similar to Him it scared Him, but...He still has lips, His eyes aren't as haunted...He isn't religious, hasn't been since...well, it doesn't matter anymore, what DOES matter is how He seems to...well, unnerve people when near them, He's done His best to curb his more...Intrusive, tendencies since the orphanage days, He wouldn't say He's scary, but fear is..well, fear is well & truly within the eye of the beholder, just like beauty, and to Him, fear is being alone again. Fear is being rejected by the few people He opened up to, fear is...a feeling that's currently creeping up His spine, He sees one of the people He finds bothersome, but in an oddly endearing way, one of the "Perverted Trio" of Kuoh Academy(and arguably the only one with a brain), A young man by the name of Issei Hyoudou, while Shuu can't say they get along, Hell, He'd certainly say he'd rather not interact with the Lech at all, He understands how Issei's mind works, and it's something He'd rather not have to think about. and-wait...something's off with that girl Issei's with, why does she have wings-IS THAT A SPEAR?!.
POV: Raynare
Now that I can finally put this accursed mission to an end, playing house with that pathetic degenerate, look at Him, dying with a smile because He finally got to see some Breasts, I might finally prove myself worthy to lord Azazel-Crunch...someone saw me, as I turn around I see him...black eyed, black haired, terrified, angry? why does He bother? why am I, a Fallen Angel of the Grigori, afraid of a human? what if I misfire a Spear and it takes my hand clean off? what if this whole plan of Mine falls at the Seams and I end up dead, or worse, in Cocytus for this?-wait, think clearly Raynare, he's just some human, not your Nightmares made manifest, just another spear and Look at him run, It's almost funny.
"HAHAHA, You think I'll let You Escape?!" I Yelled out, admittedly I'm enjoying this hunt, He's running fairly well, for a Human.
Fwoosh! Swish! Zoom!.
I keep throwing spears but they somehow keep missing, does He even understand He's the one being hunted? ah well, I'll just enjoy this hunt as long as it lasts., eventually one gets the human's left knee & He collapses, not screaming though, silently gritting His teeth, I commend that resolve. "I admit, I'm impressed with Your pain tolerance, that perv was screaming the moment it hit Him, what's Your name cutie? at least you'll know who it is that killed You, Mine's Raynare, if you WANT to blame Someone, blame Yourself for being at the wrong place at the wrong time, though I suppose it was inevitable, what with the extermination of your Kind".
"My...kind? the hell's that supposed to mean?" the human asked, letting out a strangled yelp as I stick another spear, this time into His stomach. "You don't know? Your kind, the Quincy, humans that evolved spiritual awareness & manipulation, capable of seeing things beyond the physical, not like it'll serve You much use, but You can take that Revelation to the grave" I Say before flying away, leaving the Perv & the Quincy to die. shame that, a quincy could've been useful to my plan.
POV: Shuukei
Pain...everything hurts, the fact I'm going out like this...sucks, goddamnit...I can't help but think about what Raynare said though...Me? Quincy? spiritual awareness?...god, at this point I've gone delusional haven't I? I'm seeing Akeno as I die, I thought i'd see my parents, or the orphanage matron, or even...huh, she's got wings...neat.
POV: ?
This body...this "Second life" I was given...is now A Devil, well...I suppose I'm still a quincy, Which means if I can get into contact with My vessel, I can begin teaching Him-Me...this is weird, Now if only He didn't Inherit My-Our...Schrift
AN: And that's a wrap, Shuu is reincarnated by Rias(He was fading in & out of consciousness as it happened, hence why He saw Akeno), and it should be pretty obvious who the last POV was, New Avalon should be updated in the next week, Going through some Writer's block, See Ya Soon!