Chapter 25 : Tempus Fugit - The non-lewd way.
The morning after, when I wake up at the crack-ass of dawn, it is with my nowadays customary headache, as expected,-
-but also while being hugged close by Sakura, still soundly sleeping as we cuddle each other under the sheets, me bare beyond my panties and her in her PJs, the cadence of her heartbeat and the rise and fall of her chest with each of her breaths doing wonders to actually lull me back to sleep myself-
-but, despite the temptation, I only snuggle a bit closer, enjoying her warmth as I bury myself in the valley of her breasts, setting myself into my meditative breathing pattern.
Inhale, exhale.
Inhale, exhale.
Inhale, exhale.
ThE wHiSpErS recede with each cycle, and an idea comes to my mind: since I don't want to wake her up and I'm quite enjoying the present situation, why not kill two birds with one stone and meditate a little deeper?
I have, after all, quite a few hours of progress to catch up on.
I tighten my hold a notch on the gorgeous brunette soft-hard body, and send my mind-self into the colorful and alien vistas of the Immaterium, fully intent on getting back to the grind until the beauty in my arms finally wakes up.
Untold benefits of being an empath?
Knowing when your girl is about to wake up before she even does, which allows you to pull yourself out of your little journey through the swirls and eddies of the psychic-soul stuff foundational to the universe just in time before she does.
I feel her stir a little in my arms, a bit of her Confusion echoing around us, Sakura still not being at one hundred percent right from the get-go, and I can only squeeze her a bit closer to me while shifting the position of my head a little to properly look at her.
A few moments later, she opens her eyes, her warm brown pupils locking into mine by happenstance, and she freezes a little, before Happiness starts cloying around her like a cape, making me feel all warm and fuzzy inside.
She gives me a soft smile, one that I can only answer in kind.
""Hey-"" We say at the same time, prompting the both of us to stop-
-until I giggle, and peck her on the lips.
"Morning, beautiful." I whisper to her, almost afraid that speaking too loudly would break the magic of the scene, and banish the warm, fuzzy feelings I'm basking in.
Her cheeks redden a notch even as she grins, before kissing me back.
"Hello, cutie." The brunette answers, her voice slightly rough in the morning and her breath being kind of a turn off at the moment.
But I don't care.
Right now, everything is right in the world.
I walk amidst the streets of Kuoh, wearing a basic white blouse and jean combo under a straight gray jacket, for once not having to endure second hand shame due to wearing the Kuoh High School borderline striper outfit masquerading as a uniform.
As I'm leisurely making my way towards Rias' hou-manor, I can't help but reminisce, really.
It has been… a long, long time since I have stepped willingly into a relationship.
Considering how I had seemed to have an uncanny talent to make those crash and burns in a few months to a year and a half tops, it was sort of understandable that I had given up on it.
It always started with the standard excitement, passion, and an incredible flurry of emotions, yet inevitably petered out like a wet firecracker after a while.
Always sounded, felt, breathed fake, like a stage play.
Always this underlying impression that I had to try too hard, to present myself in a certain way, to meet expectations, for all of it to work, to truly become 'real'.
No wonder I couldn't handle the pressure and ended up fucking things up after a while.
But here?
Now?
It sounded as natural as breathing, the communication much easier, the problems identified, pointed out, and the solutions found together.
Like a real couple.
I know, on paper, it sounds just so easy.
But it hadn't been the case, not for me.
Not when I had this weight in my belly, this… this fakely smiling mask plastered over my face, not daring to show my true feelings, to be me.
But now?
Now I was free.
And I think I was free to love, too.
I exhale deeply as I near the portal leading to Rias' manor, casting away the ghost of my Melancholia, and basking for a little bit in Joy and Optimism.
"Yuuto-kun, good day to you." I lazily wave at Rias' Knight as I cross the last few meters to the heiress' 'home away from home', the crunch of the gravel under my feet accompanying each of my steps, my aura purposefully kept locked on Serenity.
I mean, I didn't know if I'd be meeting a certain white haired Yokai today, so it couldn't really hurt to take some precautions.
The teenage blond gives me his trademark -relatively- plastic smile and a respectful dip of his head.
"Hanako-san," He answers pleasantly while gesturing me inside, "Good day to you too. How have you been since last time?"
My lips quirk up a little, because I can feel that his interest is actually genuine.
I wonder how I managed to climb the rank of his estimo-meter, but I'm not going to look a gift horse in the mouth.
"Quite well, actually." I answer easily as he closes the door behind us before stepping next to me, "I'm finally back into my rhythm and able to deal with the aftermath of my fitness regime, which is a blessing.
"I was getting quite sick of always feeling like crap in the morning." I admit shamelessly, making the boy quietly huff a polite laugh.
I wasn't really lying there: it's actually way easier to willingly go to the gym everyday when you're not constantly getting plagued by cramps and aches because you're pushing yourself.
I'll be forever grateful for Warp-based self-heal effects, because they most certainly were coming in clutch -after having tried those on an unsuspecting critter in any case-.
It certainly won't allow me to unlock Touki in a few weeks, but at least I won't have to suffer for it every step of the way.
"I can understand that," The Knight commiserates, "The beginning of my own training had seemed like a torture, at the time."
I hum consideringly.
…I'm not sure if he's alluding to his training under Sirzechs' own Knight or what he suffered when he was a test subject under the tender care of what's-his-name, and I'm not stupid enough to poke at old wounds with a stick.
"Well, I'm glad it's over and done with, now all I have to do is show some consistency." I sidestep, to which he gives me an understanding nod.
"I'm sure you will, Hanako-san," The blue eyed boy answers, "You don't seem to get easily distracted."
I blink, before smirking a little.
"Depends on the distraction, I'd say." I joke.
My sentence makes Kiba blink in turn, before his whole countenance seems to become a little stiff.
His reaction takes me aback, prompting me to ask myself what I did wrong-
"Prima-chan!"
-only for my thoughts to halt as a crimson headed missile in fast approach nearly bowls me over, making me let out a grunt of exertion as I get glomped into a hug.
I can't help but give a gimlet eye at the blindingly smiling Rias in my arms, because she sure as shit didn't use a human level of strength here.
"Rias…"/"Gremory-san…" Kiba and I speak over each other, exchanging a side-glance, before looking back at the now sheepish devil.
"Sorry!" She blurts out, before stepping back from my immediate proximity, "I-I just got a little excited, is all!"
Even under two looks of disapproval, her innocent and slightly shameful smile doesn't wither, and I can only sigh after a beat.
"Alright, alright, I get it." I answer, a little amusedly, "I guess we weren't coming quick enough, hmm?"
The Gremory heiress cringes a little, probably realizing that she did a little faux-pas here as she opens her mouth-
-only for me to give her a little headpat and a toothy smile, making her blink owlishly.
"Lead the way, then, if you want it that bad." I 'regally' command her.
The devil perks up, throws a smile that can light a whole room my way, and takes my hand in hers before happily walking me deeper inside her home, chattering all the way as if the two of us hadn't seen each other in a decade.
"-and here we are!" Rias happily chirps while throwing open the door of her living room, introducing it to me with pomp as if I hadn't been here two weeks ago already, making me give her a wry grin behind her back.
I had to admit, I liked this peppy, slightly dizzy Rias way more than her depiction in the show. I didn't know if she was really that way in the source material, but she was endearing and pure, in a way.
She still probably traipses around naked when nobody is looking and I'm not enough of a sucker for her current 'dumb puppy' persona to spill the beans about my knowledge of the supernatural, but still, I liked her.
I pan my eyes around, pausing to nod a greeting at Akeno, already hard at work making tea, my mouth salivating a little as I see what looks furiously like a Forêt Noire on the low table next to the tea set-
-and I lock eyes with a slowly blinking Koneko Toujo, her golden eyes eerily locked on me.
And I'm instantly in love.
No, not that kind of love, the girl looks like she's ten at thirteen, for fucks sake.
But because she's absolutely adorable.
She looks like an even chibier version of her anime counterpart, with slightly chubby cheeks, eyes a notch too big, shoulder length snow white hair and pale hair.
And I want to smother her in cuddles so bad.
New objective acquired: find a way to pet the catgirl.
The non-lewd way.
"-and this is Koneko," Rias introduces the aforementioned catgirl, her hand still holding mine as she more-or-less frogmarches me smack dab in front of the emotionally muted girl -trust me on this, what I can feel through her imprint in the Immaterium is actually that bad-, "She's a bit shy, but she's family."
I barely notice the minute twitch of the young Yokai-turned-Devil's features at Rias' emphasis, and almost miss the steering of something that looks like Fear in her imprint, but they're there.
Poor girl is a mess, and I can certifiably say that her sister is a bonafide moron.
She could've at least explained things to her before hightailing it, but nooo, she had to be all dramatic and in character or some bullshit in that vein.
I let none of my annoyance at the other kitty show, though, only bending a little lower to get at eye-level, which is probably a tad infantilizing, but come on, she's just so cute, and give Koneko a bright, honest smile, releasing the hold on my aura a fraction, Serenity seeping out a little more fully around us.
"Hi, I'm Hanako Prima, Rias' friend," I greet her pleasantly, "I hope we can get along."
Once more, she slowly blinks, before giving a shallow, hesitant nod.
"Koneko," She answers, her voice barely above whisper-level, "Nice meeting you. Let's."
My smile stays firmly in place and my aura tightly controlled, even if I'm fuming inside.
Rias, you absolute dumbass, can't you see that the girl is fucking stunted and needs an appointment with a therapist asap?
…Maybe she doesn't, actually, or if she does, doesn't know that humans have found a way to deal with all the things that made us unhappy decades ago?
I'll have to find a way to slip a word about it to her at some point, then.
Medication would probably do jack-all, but maybe the ear of an unbiased professional for her peerage's problems actually could.
In the meantime-
"Do you mind if I sit here?" I ask the white haired girl.
She slowly looks to the free spot on the couch at her side, before looking back to me, and gives me a little shake of her head.
"Perfect," I chirp happily, before unceremoniously plopping myself on the couch, "Say, Koneko-chan, do you like cake?"
Under the happy look of Rias at the shy girl tentatively making friends with one of her own and my expectant one, the previously nearly mute girl mannerism turns to one akin to a bobble head as she nods rapidly that, yes, she's actually that big of a sweet tooth.
"That's lucky," I comment idly, "I'll know just who to ask for help if I can't finish my plate by myself, then."
If her brightly shining eyes are anything to go by, I think I may have become her new favorite person on Earth.
[AN: Well, looks like the birthday chapter will be a two parter, because I don't want to rush introductions and key moments.
We meet Koneko, and Prima loses vs the cute!
Hope you enjoy, xoxo]