The Chaos that consumes the world

II

The gentle creaking of the wheels was the only sound to be heard, the peace was welcome to him as ever but it carried with it a note of sadness. No, perhaps not as much sadness as much as it was disheartening for him. While silence in a library was always something to be championed, he figured that achieving that silence at the cost of having next to no one residing in the library was something of a double edged sword.

Still, he found his peace in the work all the same.

Wheeling the cart and then sliding it to a halt, he ceased the movements and walked around to the front as he scanned the shelves. Humming to himself almost silently as he reached towards the cart and extracted the first of the books. Examining it for a moment before he went to work filling up the shelves as swiftly and carefully as he could.

He had done this often enough that it had become something of a learned behaviour for him, of the many jobs he had over his life this was certainly one of his favoured ones. Especially because of the peace and quiet it would offer, even when it was full of guests it was one of the more peaceful locations he had been. Perhaps unnervingly so, given that he had spent quite a lot of his youth in loud and boisterous locations.

A creak met his ears, a gentle clack of footsteps upon the carpeted floor and his mind went to work. Within a split second a name crept into his mind and he felt the corners of his lips pull themselves upwards into a polite smile. Without turning his head to look at the individual, his quiet words parted from his lips.

"Good morning, Martha. Back again already?" He waited for a moment before he felt something else that was a little bit different than usual. Inclining his head for only a moment before he continued on. "And is the one beside you the Jennifer you have been gushing about so much."

A muffled groan reached his ears and he felt his lips pull into a much lighter smile at the weak blow which fell against the back of his left shoulder. The chuckle that escaped him was rather genuine as he turned around and found himself looking at the pair of young women, both of whom were in their early twenties. His eyes landed on the blushing and rather frustrated expression of Martha, the freckled red-head looked close to hitting him again before her shoulders dropped.

His eyes lingered on her for a moment longer before they moved towards the unfamiliar blonde, a woman who he had not met and was now blinking in clear surprise at him before her expression settled into a polite if a little uneasy smile. Likely because they were very much strangers to one another.

The blonde nodded to him once, shyly raising her left hand and giving him a little bit of a wave which he returned the moment he placed away the other book. He could see she was very much fighting back the urge to let her eyes wander to the elephant in the room. All but certain Martha had told her about it.

"I was starting to get a little bit worried when you didn't show up for the last couple of weeks." His eyes turned back to the redhead, placing his hand against the cart and leaning onto it while raising an eyebrow. "Given my advice, I was…feeling a touch worried that I might have overstepped but given than you are both here now, my heart is indeed feeling quite a bit lighter than before. Certainly as though you have breathed new life into me."

"Lucas stooop!" Martha whisper shouted at him, slamming her hands over her face to clearly fight back the blush that was showing on her face, he could see by the reddening ears on her face what was happening. He merely smiled at her and avoided laughing, all the while Jennifer glanced between the two of them with a still unsure expression, the look of a third wheel if ever there was one.

Turning to her fully, he extended his left hand. "And I believe this is our first time meeting one another in person, I am finally pleased to meet the one who captured the heart of this young maiden."

Jennifer made a noise, her expression shifted into one of innocent confusion as she reached out and took the hand into her own, shaking it up and down, speaking in a slow and bemused fashion as she did so. "Huh? What do you mean captured her heart…?" she turned to Martha and squinted at her. "Isn't he your boyfriend?"

He stopped moving, he dared not even breathe.

He felt his heart plunge down into his stomach, even as he maintained his face he felt every single ounce of his being frozen up at the words. The words which very strongly implied that he had rather catastrophically messed up the situation and perhaps made a blunder that was not going to be easily fixed. Snapping his attention from Jennifer to Martha and watching as she pulled her hands from her face, now staring at him rather mortified.

Oh no.

"That-that is to say that…Her friendship is-"

It was when he turned back to Jennifer that he realised his blunder, especially because her lips were already twitching to the point where she was mere moments away from bursting into laughter. He felt his worry melt away within a moment, his arm slumping back down at his side and his features flattening out as he stared at the young woman, then gradually turned his head back to Martha who at least looked a little bit guilty.

Perhaps he would have received her guilt better, if it did not look as though she was also about to laugh.

Martha stepped back, nodding her head towards the direction of Jennifer. "It was her idea."

"Which you went along with?" He blandly pointed out, though even then he felt his own lips pull themselves up as he closed his eyes, bringing his hand up and pressing it flat against his shirt over his heart and hunching himself forwards, a breath rushing itself free of him. "Though I feel as though I aged a hundred years at that moment, I would say it was rather unfunny…but I am certainly glad to see I was not mistaken."

He paused for a moment, then glanced up and between the two of them expectantly.

Martha rolled her eyes at him and shook her head. "No Lucas, you're not mistaken…I did ask her out and she did say yes."

That warmed his heart and offered him a pleasant surprise, he had never thought his advice in that sort of thing would have amounted to much. All he really told Martha was to be up and honest with her feelings and what she wanted to do. It was better to live with the pain that came with rejection than to live forever with uncertainty.

"How long?"

"A couple of weeks ago." Jennifer was the one to answer this time, fighting back the final remnants of her humour as the girl adjusted the black rimmed glasses over her eyes and smiled rather cordially at him. "It was something of a surprise to me when she asked me aside and then started to speak to me in rather…old english."

Ah.

He had given her some lines to speak, now that he recalled clearly. Though they had been placeholders for her own words.

"Old English?" He offered an innocent smile and a tilt of the head, pretending as though he had nothing to do with it and then nodding his head up and down upon the hum of acknowledgement he received. "I see, that would certainly be out of the ordinary. Though I would say that given where we all stand now, it certainly worked out well for everyone, did it not?"

He tried his best to ignore the accusing look that Martha was now sending towards him, all the while Jennifer raised a lone and rather amused eyebrow towards, almost as if she was silently asking whether he was serious or not. He merely inclined an eyebrow as he looked between the two of them for a few more moments before he turned back around and returned to filing away at the shelves. "But on a lighter note, you both have my most heartfelt congratulations as to your courtship."

A chuckle from behind him, Jennifer still sounded rather shocked. "You know, Marth talked about how you talked like a knight but I thought it would be ironic…not that I'm complaining about it or making fun of you." she hastily added on when he turned and looked over his shoulder towards her. "It's just that it seems like…nevermind."

"I'm not that ignorant as to how I sound but some things are just difficult to lose." He replied, shrugging his shoulders as best he could as he turned back around and slipped the next book in. Pausing just for a moment as he pulled it back and examined the title, he hadn't even noticed what it was before he filed it away. Staring at the title for a moment before he closed his eyes and placed it back into the shelf without making another word. "I was raised to be rather polite and I suppose I never saw a reason to lose all of that as I grew older."

A grumble from behind him, Martha was likely going to make it a little issue again.

"And that is not me saying that I am a grandfather." Rolling his eyes just a touch, he spun around to face the ginger woman before she could even get out the words. She paused and gave him a playful glare before she settled just a touch. "Just that I am older than you. Though aside from that, would it be impolite if I asked how the first date went?"

A chuckle from the blonde and raised brows. "You look rather impatient about it."

"Heh…perhaps I am a touch too invested in it." He jerked his head towards Martha for a moment. "Just that she…no, I'll spare her all of the embarrassment that might come with me trading stories about her during her less than confident moments." he smiled at the two of them, then glanced towards the direction of the clock and raised an eyebrow at it before his gaze returned to Martha. "And do you not have a lecture due to begin? I would certainly not like to imagine you putting your education at risk just to come and speak with me."

Martha made a subtle click of her tongue as she slumped. "But it's boring."

"It's a university course on politics, Martha." He reminded her with a shake of the head. "It has never been exciting but it is important all the same. There's some adage about medicine tasting foul being some of the best for you." waving his left hand, he smiled encouragingly at her. "Just compare the two and think of this as one of the more bitter pills you'll have to swallow throughout the course."

Jennifer leaned towards Martha and nudged her shoulder. "Don't worry, I'll make sure she attends the lecture. I'll even have her back before nine, sir."

A faint snort escaped him, glancing down and bringing up his left hand to rub the front of his face. He didn't bother to hide his amusement as he rubbed his brow before pulling the hand down. Martha similarly made a series of noises that made her own thoughts on the comment rather apparent. Still, perhaps he did come across a touch overbearing at times. Maybe, but really it was all for the best interests of the young girl.

"Then I shall leave her in your capable hands." Jennifer held a rather smug smile while Martha shot him an affronted glare, one that he pointedly avoided looking towards until it settled into an irritated glower.

"Excuse me?"

The trio turned to the new voice, he straightened himself up just a touch as he realised he hadn't even heard the stranger approach. A tanned man with hair white as snow, sharp features and rust coloured eyes, a smart look about him with the long black coat, velvet coloured vest and white undershirt.

The eyes of the stranger drifted over the two girls before they landed on him and a polite smile was offered. "Would it be terribly rude if I were to interrupt?"

His wariness lasted for only a moment before he shook his head. "Not at all, was there something I could help you wish, sir?"

"I was curious as to where you kept the books on ancient myths and legends?" The man asked with a tilt of the head, then paused for a moment and continued on with an elaboration. "Specifically those related to the Arthurian era."

It was nothing more than a harmless question.

"It is actually this shelf, sir." He stepped to the side and gestured towards the case he had been stacking with books once more. With a sweep of his hand, he gestured across the length of the shelf with a touch of a smile at the appreciation the man was showing to the legends. "We have something of a collection of the old books, though there have been some more recent additions with the ever expanding interest in the old tales."

A hum from the man as he stepped forwards, eyes sweeping over the shelf before they glanced towards him. "Would you have any recommendations?"

"...Le Morte d'Arthur is the tried and tested classic for those who appreciate the origin of stories, so to speak." It was only a slight pause before he replied to the man, instantly pulling out the book in question and holding it up for them to see. He paused for a moment and then lowered it back down as he teetered his head from side to side. "Though if you were to ask my personal opinion, then I would say that it has an air of…exaggeration when it comes to the feats. For fantasy I would say that the Mists of Avalon is another one which is rather…liberal with the sources but it does make for an interesting read for those with little understanding of the original legends."

A hum from the man as a means of continuing on.

"Though…I have found 'The Once and Future King' to be another interesting tale with the liberal use of the source. The depiction of Sir Lancelot was certainly interesting to me and I can appreciate the characters."

The tanned man remained silent once he finished speaking, then placed his hands together and gave another hum as he inclined an eyebrow. "In which case, I shall take all three of them. My thanks for your recommendations, Lucas."

With that, the man turned to the shelf and gently procured the selected novels as though they were made from glass, though what he noted first and foremost was that he did not even search for them. His eyes and hands moved from spot to spot without even a moment of hesitation. The movement was much too perfect.

Their eyes darted towards him for only a moment as they selected the last of the books, inclining their head in a thankful nod and then turning off before they walked away without a single word. What he noticed as well was the reason he heard nothing nor sensed their arrival, they didn't make even an ounce of noise as they walked. Disturbingly silent.

He might have been slow on the uptake for a lot of things, but he did not consider himself a fool. Turning back to the two women, he offered them both a polite smile and a nod of the head towards them. "Sorry about all of this, I am still working and I would hate for us to be continually interrupted. Perhaps we could all get together at a better time if you were all so inclined?"

Marth and Jennifer looked between one another and then back to him, the former offered a rather abashed nod of the head, bringing up her left arm and rubbing herself on the neck as well as letting out an almost embarrassed giggle. "Yeah, sorry about jumping you at work. Might not be the best place for it…what about down at the King's stone tonight?"

He regarded her with a raised eyebrow. "Hmm. So long as you drink in moderation."

Jennifer raised her brows silently.

Martha made a small noise as she shrugged her shoulders, "Hey, I'm not that bad…well, I'll see you later tonight then, Lucas. We'll meet at the usual place around eight and then walk there." she waved to him as she turned and moved away.

Jennifer matched the movement and offered a nod of the head. "Pleasure to meet you, Lucas."

"And you as well, Jennifer."

With that, the blonde turned and followed after the girl, despite that he could still hear her whispers over everything else. "I was just joking but is this guy actually your older brother or your dad?"

"Jenny! Stop!" Martha whined back.

With a roll of his eyes, he focused his attention back on the matter at hand. The man who had appeared without making a single sound. One that clearly required most of his attention, either it was nothing more than a mere coincidence and his own paranoia - which had happened before - but there was something pooling in his gut that told him there was more to the man than met the eye.

He would keep his guard up while they were around.

Nothing had happened from the time the man entered to the point where they had left with the books, thanking him for his recommendations and then leaving. It had been rather a surprise but he had kept his calm, to his knowledge they could have just as easily have been one of the mages from the Clocktower who was in the town for whatever reason, it wouldn't have been the first time one of them visited cornwall.

The man had done nothing to earn his suspicion beyond his nature and his choice in literature, but he didn't react that way every single time someone came up and asked for a book on King Arthur or the Knight's of the Round Table. Perhaps it was just him being more and more paranoid over nothing as the years went by.

Pulling his hand from his pocket, he placed his key in the front of his apartment and twisted it, the moment he heard the click he pulled it back out and stepped inside, closing the door behind him and locking it. His lips pulled up the moment he heard the familiar jingle of bells, turning his head and looking out to the end of the small hallway as the white and black cat rounded the doorway and plodded towards him, meowing all the while.

Dropping down, he reached out and allowed them to all but slam their head into his palm as he ran his fingers over the top of her head. She was always rather demanding when it came to times when she wanted to be petted, but that was just how she had always been like. Purring rather loudly as she twisted around, dancing between his legs and staring up towards him, bell around the collar jingling once more as he rose up and took a couple of steps forwards.

Then he paused.

Something was wrong.

Taking a quick sniff of the air, his eyes narrowed just a touch as he glanced around. He wasn't sure what it was, but he could tell something was amiss. Then his eyes snapped down towards the cat, it was then that he noticed the issue.

The smell of cat food.

Freshly put out cat food.

He hadn't been in all day, so it couldn't have come from him.

His eyes turned from the cat and narrowed, his posture tensed as he started to advance through the house, slipping his shoes off as he did so to quiet his noise. Socks on the carpet making barely even an ounce of sound as he stalked down the hallway towards the inner apartment, eyes darting to each and every single point and searching for something out of place.

Nothing so far.

He rounded the corner, then froze.

Sitting on his sofa was the tanned man from the library, with one leg crossed over the other, elbow resting on the arm of the seat and hand placed upon their chin, their eyes met across the room and the man offered that same polite smile. It seemed far more insidious now than before.

Stepping out from around the corner, his eyes narrowed on the man as he stared at them in silence. When he spoke, it was clear and confident. "I shall give you this one chance to leave my property before I call the police, should you think to try and stop me you will mind me less than fragile."

The man raised a lone eyebrow and pulled their hand from their chin, as if somehow amused by their words. "Of that, I wholeheartedly believe you, Lucas." uncrossing their legs, they rose up from their seated position and adjusted their clothes. "But I did not come here to fight you and I have little interest in causing you distress, rather that would be one of my last intentions."

"Breaking into my home does not fit your words."

"True, though I believed what we had to discuss was rather more suitable for some private ears." The man replied, though he showed very little guilt in his actions. He tensed when he watched the tanned man move his hand out of his pocket, the movement was slow and deliberate, revealing a single paper ticket which they slowly lowered onto the table.

"That is a plane ticket with a pre-planned flight for Japan." They went to the pocket once more, then removed another piece of paper and placed it down on the table, this one accompanied with a credit card. "And that is stocked up with one-hundred and twenty million Japanese Yen. Enough for an extended stay in the country, though I doubt you will use most of it."

His eyes lingered on the items, then turned to the man. "Excuse me?"

"There are a series of items that shall eventually come into Japan and be in the town of Kuoh within the next few days. The flight leaves in twelve hours." He added on, almost as an afterthought. "And it is something that I believe you would have a vested interest in, something that has been so far from your hands for the better part of…a very long time, Sir."

He straightened. "I'm sorry, I think you have the wrong-"

"Five of the seven fragments of the Excalibur blade will be in Kuoh at the exact same time."

He froze at the words.

"Only Excalibur's Ruler and Blessing will not be there at the time." The man paused for only a moment, then turned and faced him for a split second. The air around him shimmered as a light slowly formed.

His breath caught in his throat and his eyes widened as he stared at the shape, the glowing light gradually diminished to reveal the blade in full. Golden hilt and handle, a green stem moving up the blade and a pommel the shape of a leaf. It was nothing like the sword he knew, the one he had seen with his own eyes. But the light it shone, the aura it unleashed upon him. It could be nothing else.

Immediately, his attention snapped back to the man.

"The Church believes it to have been stolen by the same thing, but I procured this one myself." The casual reveal nearly threw him off balance. "Though…there is an eighth piece, is there not? After all…what sword would be complete without a handle? That which you have kept hidden for so very long indeed."

His eyes narrowed immediately, then widened as the man held up something in his right hand, it had not been there before and yet was there now. A hilt, curved golden metal upon a sapphire blue handle a wide golden circle for the pommel, where the blade would have begun there was only a shattered fragment of steel.

He stepped back, glancing from the man to the blade and then finally to the items on the table. "This is…what do…what are your intentions?"

The man took in a deep breath before he replied. "The legend of King Arthur's death is rather clear. As is the ultimate fate of Excalibur, returned to the Lady of the Lake…or so was promised by his final and most faithful knight. A promise that went unfulfilled and I would finally grant the offer of being done. That is all I give you, the chance to fulfil the final order of King Arthur and return the sword to the Lake where it was bestowed so many years ago…but it is a choice you shall make all on your own."

A moment of silence passed.

"And…If you should choose to complete the final wish of your King…I would very much like to help you, Sir Bedivere."

It was an offer too good to be true.

And yet…

Yet…

And yet…

A forest with dusk setting upon them.

Golden rays illuminate the face of the greatest man to ever live.

He stares into their fading eyes.

"I order you, my Knight. Go through this forest, pass the blood-soaked graves and head towards the lake. There, cast away my famous sword."

His breath catches in his throat as he stares at them.

His heart shatters.

How desperately he wishes to obey.

Yet all his hands hold at the stump of the weapon, broken and battered.

And yet…after so long, after so very long.

He cannot risk letting this chance slip, not now.

"...I…I see…How…who are you?"

The man remains silent for only a moment, a smile comes upon his face. "My name, Sir Bedivere, is Jedidiah." he slowly spreads his arms, staring at him with an almost gentle look. "And you may at last rejoice, for the wish you have held in your heart for so long…will finally come true."

Something brushes against his leg, he stares down at the white and black cat as it purrs and stares up at him with a tilt of the head. He lets out a short sniffle as he lowers himself down, placing his hand flat against the top of their head. "...I'm sorry, Mordred. I don't think I'll be able to give you breakfast tomorrow."

The cat just rubs itself against his hand.

Martha would take care of Mordred.

She always complimented the cat, she had a good head on her shoulders as well. If anyone could take care of them, it was her.

Closing his eyes, a shuddering breath escaped him as he turned his head towards Jedidiah. "...How would you help me?"

Jedidiah smiles as though they already knew what he was going to ask.

He wasn't expecting visitors who didn't have injuries, though at this point he should have considered it to be the sort of thing that happened often. That being said, he was more expecting someone else whom he had traded more words with, probably someone like Issei or even Akeno.

Koneko probably also fit into that category, but that was only because she would stop by to steal food from him and then leave. Though at this point he would say it was just like a regular little ritual for them.

Asia was a given.

His mind was wandering and he realised he had just been dumbly staring at them as they stood in the doorway for the last couple of seconds without saying anything, which was probably rather awkward for the both of them. Shaking his head slightly, he leaned back into his chair and wheeled it around to face the visitor, bringing his hand up to wave at them as he did so.

"Hello, Rias-san."

It was a polite enough greeting, which is why he was rather a bit surprised when the girl offered a touch of a wince at his words, it only lasted a second but it was a rather instant thing that she did the second he spoke. His brows furrowed just a touch as he looked at her face for a moment, then spoke again at a much slower rate. "Is something the matter?"

The teenager paused for only a moment, an easy smile coming across her features. "No, not something that would need your professional help. Just…" she trailed off for a couple of seconds, then pursed her lips before shaking her head from side to side. "No, nevermind. It is just me being a little bit silly."

He raised an eyebrow, slowly nodding his head up and down. "If you say so…but then again, I wasn't really expecting you to come around for a health check or something." with a wry smile, he brought his arm up and rubbed the back of his neck. "To tell you the truth, I actually feel as though I'm suddenly a little useless when it comes to you and the others around school. Considering you can just use magic and stuff to heal all of it…that and Devils are more hardy and all of that."

Rias jolted in response to his words. "I assure you, Romani-sensei, that you're still very much a valued member of the faculty even if we don't require your services…especially given that you're important to both Issei and Asia." a moment of silence, then the girl let out a plaintive sigh as she placed her hand flat against her cheek. "I often wonder how close you and Mrs Archaman are to stealing them away from me."

Stealing them away? That was a pretty strange way of phrasing it.

"I mean, they're your friends?" He paused for a moment, unsure of how he was supposed to phrase how things worked for them. The frown born of that uncertainty grew for a moment as he stared at the face of the young woman for a couple of seconds. "You are all friends, right? I know you hang out a lot now and Asia was talking about it but I don't know if it's like some sort of employment thing for all of you or-"

The redhead brought up the flat of her palm, showing him a smile as she nodded her head up and down. Cutting off whatever else he was going to say in the process. "Yes, I would certainly like to believe that we are all friends within my peerage. It is part of the pride of the Gremory family, you know? To treat our peerages as though they were born into our own families." The smile on her face turned a touch more indulgent, almost proud. "After all, to select a peerage is a rather important coming of age for a Devil and it would be foolish if one didn't treat their new pieces as brilliantly as they could."

That was relieving, he supposed, that they treated people so well. The way she spoke was a touch weird but at the end of the day, he was really just relieved about it all. "That's…that's good. I won't pretend to understand all the nuances about it but I'm happy that it was you…not that I'm happy that it happened in the first place but…" he trailed off and cringed, realising how it sounded now that he was saying it out loud. "I mean, if it had to be someone then-"

"I…" Rias opened her mouth to speak, interrupting him once more, then her eyes wavered for a moment before she turned her head away from him and thinned her lips. Briefly closing her eyes for only a moment, a breath escaped her and she returned her eyes to him. "I am happy to know that you think so highly of me, Romani-sensei…even if I'm not entirely sure that I am really deserving of all of it."

Silence between the two of them.

The teen jolted as though she realised what she had just said, quickly clearing her throat and then chuckling under her breath. "Goodness me, I appear to be putting on quite the little show, don't I? I've almost forgotten what I came here for in the first place. I-"

"Are you alright?"

Rias paused. "Excuse me?"

"I mean, I'm sorry if this sounds sort of sudden…" He brought his hand up and frowned, leaning back into his chair and wincing to himself. It had been something he just blurted out without even thinking about it. Literally the first thing that came into his head and nothing else.

She just felt as though she was being a little different, a bit closer to everyone than he would have expected. It could have been her just riding off the high of a win, but it didn't feel like that was it to him. Though he wasn't one to talk, he was a bit clumsy when it came to this sort of thing.

"I just felt like asking if you were alright. You did come off some sort of win down in Hell and I guess it was pretty important, it sounded important so…just wanted to ask if you were feeling alright."

The girl remained silent for a moment, then stared at him for a few seconds before her shoulders dropped, the smile on her face turned a touch bitter for only a moment before it returned back to its regular form. "I am perfectly fine now, Romani-sensei. I would say the most stressful part of it all is behind me but…I am a little ashamed of something that happened."

He kept silent as he adjusted himself.

"There was a brief moment - if only for a second - where I wasn't entirely sure that we were going to win." She revealed quietly, almost as though she was ashamed of the thought. Her expression dropped and she glanced away from him, bringing her arms across and gripping them tightly. "It was only a fleeting moment but I am worried that if it had lasted any longer that I might have done something rather…shameful. Especially after all the work my peerage put into winning, all the training we went through, and all your wife put in-"

Oh, so that's all it was.

He nodded his head up and down, understanding what she was getting at. "Ah, that sort of thing is natural. At least for me it is. Doesn't really matter what you're doing or how well you're doing it, there's always that little voice in the back of your head that's just telling you that things are about to go wrong. Everyone has that and I definitely still have that…it's nothing to really be ashamed of."

Rias didn't look all that convinced, rather she looked a little bit worse. "It…I do not believe it is quite so simple, Romani-sensei. I am the King of my peerage. The very heart of it. Every single one of my pieces put their complete faith in me and I'm the one who…for a moment I didn't do the same for them." she stressed the words and stepped back, turning from him and placing her hands flat against the desk, leaning over it.

Well, they were all teenagers at the end of the day and this was a lot of responsibility for them. Being team leader of something like this, it wouldn't surprise him if the sports captains around the school had the same sort of worries.

"You know how often I would have those thoughts towards Leo?" He suddenly asked, Rias turned to him and blinked. "A lot more often than I will ever admit to her, that's for sure. I'd just stare at her and then just…I'd feel like I'm seeing her for the first time and going 'why on earth are we here together?' and I'd just constantly think I'm not good enough or that maybe she made a mistake or something, which…which is pretty ugly to think about."

Bringing his hand up, he rubbed the side of his neck again, his lips forming a tiny smile. "It's never any better when they say something to try and reassure you because it feels a little placating or something…" pulling his arm down, he looked towards the red head. "In the end it's just a matter of…being yourself. I said the same thing to Issei-kun a while ago but…feels like I'm just wandering away now."

He grumbled quietly, shaking his head from side to side. "Point of it all is that I don't think you should be ashamed of being worried for the future because that's just part of growing up. I think the important thing is that you were able to pull your confidence back."

Waving to her, she blinked at him twice.

"You say you lost confidence in them? I say you managed to get your confidence back or something. It only lasted for barely a second before you got rid of the thought, you didn't even act on it. I would say that's some pretty good work in overcoming your anxiety when faced with stress. A lot of people probably wouldn't have managed that."

He was fairly certain that he wouldn't have been able to do it either, well perhaps before. Now he wasn't entirely certain what he was coming to terms with at this rate. He'd come close to dying more times in the last month than he had done so in the last thirty years of life. That was definitely saying something for what it was like living around here.

Rias maintained her silence, then hummed quietly to herself, turning from him and chuckling. "Hmmm. I hadn't quite considered that angle of it. Many might have seen me losing confidence in my peerage for even an instant to be a sign of weakness on both our parts, me for choosing individuals so weak and them for not being strong enough to meet my expectations."

He made a face at her. "Yeah…that sounds really toxic."

"I have noticed that it is a touch different to how humans operate." She admitted but didn't seem all that bothered. He supposed that if she grew up in that sort of environment, then that was just how she viewed things.

There was something a little strange about all of this, however.

Adjusting himself, he leaned forwards and rested his arms on his knees, raiding his brows just a touch as he stared at the teenager. "Not that I'm not grateful you've come to me to talk about this but…we've not really talked all that much in the past and I'm…well…I'm a little surprised that you just came here and just…" trailing off, he glanced towards her and took note of her expression.

"...I suppose you might be right when it comes to the speed of it, we've shared few conversations between us which does seem to be rather a shame." She replied after a moment, lips turning thin and bright blue eyes flickering to the side. A light breath escaped her as she turned around and sat against the desk, folding her arms over her chest. "Maybe because you are now close to most of the members of my peerage in some capacity, it seemed as though perhaps I was missing out."

A frown came to his features, opening up like this wasn't really necessary if she wanted to come round and chat. "My door is open for more than medical problems, you're allowed to come around and talk…I think most others do." making a short sweeping motion to the desk she was currently sitting on. "Or you can just pull a Koneko-san and raid my supplies for food…"

"Is she still doing that?"

"She never stopped."

A chuckle from the teenager. "Perhaps because you encourage her too much? I could have sworn that Sona would have had words with you over all of that."

He slowly fell back into the chair, his shoulders rising and falling. "I mean, I did say I would stop hiding things in the ceiling panels, the problem was that Koneko-san was climbing through the air ducts which was a little bit of a problem when she was falling through the ceiling sometimes…probably not the best image to give for a school."

A moment of silence.

"Also I may or may not have raided some of the lunch supplies for the cafeteria - after hours - and preserved some of the forgotten things which people didn't eat." Letting the words settle, he stared at the amused expression of the teenager for a couple of seconds. "But all of that aside…you can just talk to me about anything you want and I'm not all that sure as to why people keep showing up…Issei-kun is sort of a given because of how often he would end up here but aside from that I think most others sort of drifted in somehow."

Another light chuckle from the scarlet haired girl, a shake of the head soon followed it. "Amusing as that might be, I'm not here just because I was getting a little jealous of my peerage spending their time with you over me. Issei and Asia have known you longer than I so it's understandable. No…" she trailed off, then uncrossed her arms. "...Perhaps because even now, you just see me as nothing more than a student."

He blinked.

Was that what it was about?

"I mean, you didn't bring up being a noble after I found out you were a Devil so I figured that it was just something you didn't talk about or liked to keep seperate." Scratching the side of his head, he let out a low hum. "It's still a bit strange to consider that the title of 'Great lady' or whatever the students around here call you is actually pretty accurate."

"True, that was rather amusing to me." Rias hummed, then a more genuine look played across her face. "Though I do appreciate it more, to be honest with you…I would say that I just wished to hear some honest thoughts on the matter." her eyes landed on him. "I'm just a student to you and you are just a nurse, if I ask you something then you will speak honestly."

He raised a brow. "Are you worried that people might try and water down their thoughts or something?"

"...I just wanted to hear it from someone who wasn't connected to me to be certain." She exhaled, lowering her head. "If I asked anyone else then they might have apologised themselves or they would have just told me it was all fine. But they are my peerage and I wouldn't know if they were trying to spare my feelings. With you…I would say there is a comfort in your ignorance."

A faint huff escaped him, rolling his eyes at the girl. "Well, glad that I'm a bit stupid when it comes to this sort of thing then?" he relaxed. "Probably for the best, especially since Leo is sure I would freak out over what was effectively a sports match, can't really be sure for half of the stuff. Very wild and I'm not a wild person. I'm a tame person. Like a hamster. I like running around inside my little plastic ball."

Rias brought her head up and stared at him, her expression blank and he soon felt himself cringe under the weight of the stare. Turning his chair to the side, he turned from the teenager and stared at the wall right in front of him. Clearing his throat after a couple more seconds of what was growing into an awkward silence. "S-so…anything else you wanted to talk about?"

A noise from the girl. "I was curious what you intended to do for Asia while she was in school?"

Asia?

He turned to her, tilting his head to the side.

She noticed the look and elaborated. "What I mean to ask is whether you would consider setting up a health club, perhaps? I am aware that other schools have such clubs for students who wish to learn about first aid and the sort. Though with her Sacred Gear she might be a little…overqualified."

"She's probably more qualified than I am at my own job." His response earned him a faint smile but he frowned after a moment. "I don't think I would be all that good at something like running a health club in the first place. I'm a lot better at just treating the little injuries as they appear and…well, I think it would be better for Asia to spend more time around you and the uhm…Occult Research Club which…hang on, what do you actually do there?"

Rias froze up for half a second, then straightened herself rather rigidly. "We do research into the occult."

He squinted at her.

She gave him a winning smile.

…They were just going there to mess about and have fun, weren't they?

"Alright then." He shrugged his shoulders and turned back, electing to ignore the faint sigh of relief that the young girl let out. "So long as you all remember to have fun. Club business is more Sitri-san side of things anyway. I just put plasters over cuts and stuff."

Rias gave a rather disapproving hum. "I would say that your role is a touch more important than just that. If it were so simple, then they would just hand the supplies to the other students and let them worry about their own injuries."

"Now you sound like Lev."

"Whom do I sound like?"

He jolted at the sudden voice which echoed through the room, he and Rias snapped their heads to the doorway as the long haired man stepped through the now open door, removing his tophat as he did so and keeping his smile polite, sparing a glance towards Rias before his sights landed on him. "Though if myself and Miss Rias are of one mind then perhaps there is something worth listening to."

His shoulders slumped. "Yes, yes."

"I believe that lunch is fast coming to a close, Miss Rias. I would urge you to make yourself ready for the bell."

"Yes, quite right, Lev-sensei." The girl inclined her head to the man, then turned to him and smiled once again. "Thank you for speaking with me, Roman-sensei. I'm glad we had this talk."

"Anytime." He waved to her, the girl waved back and swiftly departed the room, politely closing the door once she walked through.

"You seem to have grown rather close with the members of the occult research club in the last couple of weeks, Roman." The door was barely even closed before the man spoke again, opening his eyes and looking down at him with an indiscernible expression, if Romani didn't know him better he would have said Lev was being accusatory despite his friendly tone. "I certainly hope that they aren't taking advantage of your patience. I've heard some rather bewildering rumours regarding the young Miss Toujou."

Keeping his face still, he grumbled under his breath. "You make it sound as though I'm being bullied out my lunch or something." glancing up, he paused as he noticed the expression still on the face of the man. "No, it's fine. Just that they're all friends with Asia now and because she's staying with me and Leo they just drop by more often than they would otherwise."

Lev let out a low hum, staring at him for a couple of seconds before a smile came to his face once again. "Well, alright then. So long as all is well. How is Asia, by the way? It was a bit of a surprise when she was suddenly enrolled in the school with yourself and Leona as guardians of her." a raised eyebrow. "I had to double take at that."

"Hehehe…yeah…she needed somewhere to stay and me and Leo had met her and…it just sort of happened."

It was a highly condensed set of events and one that he didn't want to think about.

"And you offered to lend a hand to her? Well, that certainly seems to be a rather bold move of you to say the least." Lev carried on, bringing his hand up and rubbing the underside of his chin. A flicker of concern danced across his face, a faint breath escaping as he pulled his hand down. "Still, I know you're not one to make decisions on the fly like this, especially not like this. But if you do need help, then I would be more than willing to keep an eye on Asia while she's in the school, if it would bring you peace of mind."

It probably would and he knew that the ORC wouldn't be around her all the time, that and it would be a little nice to hear how she was doing in her lessons.

"If it wouldn't be too much trouble." He replied slowly, then frowned. "I don't want people to think you would be playing favourites or going out of your way for her or something-"

"Nonsense." Lev cut him off. "She's a new student and one who is in dire need of settling in. I suspect she will have to deal with quite the culture shock moving forwards and it would be rather despicable of me to leave her flailing around. Though with how her first days went, I would say that she doesn't have too much to worry about…she's done rather well to learn Japanese so quickly."

Romani froze up for a moment and mentally cursed himself, he'd overlooked the fact that Asia would be able to speak all languages fluently now. Sure, learning a little bit of Japanese was expected but anyone who had met her the first time around would have known that her mastery of the language wasn't very good. He chuckled awkwardly following the comment, waving his hand from side to side. "Y-yeah, she was…really driven…ha ha…"

A chuckle from Lev. "No doubt the influence of Leona, I would say. Still, she certainly seems to have fallen into favour with the Occult Research Club…a touch puzzling for a sister of the faith to dabble in the art of pagan hunting but to each their own." the man shrugged.

Staring at the green suited man for a couple of seconds, Romani tilted his head and squinted. There was something about Lev that seemed a little different today. "You're sounding pretty chipper. Did something good happen?"

"Hm?" Turning to him, Lev opened his eyes and then smiled. "I suppose I'm making a poor effort of hiding my good mood, it's made me a little more patient than usual." he mused to himself, angling his head back just a touch. "But yes, I am in a rather good mood as of late. Recently received some rather pleasing developments from a relative of mine, he's managed to get himself a rather exclusive contract for work and I would say that it's only up from this point out."

Family news? That would do it…actually, he just now realised this was the first time that Lev had ever mentioned having a family. It was rather strange but still, if Lev was happy for them then it was certainly something worth celebrating. "I don't know all that much but you can wish them congratulations from me as well…though I don't think they'd actually know me and it would probably sound a little weird coming from a stranger…"

"They'd appreciate the thought all the same." The reassurance from Lev was welcome but it didn't do an awful lot for him. "Now then, I suppose I should adhere to the advice that I gave to Miss Gremory not that long ago and actually be on my way. Time waits for no man, as they say. I'll leave you to your work, Roman."

Lev turned from him and made for the door, only to pause at the last moment and glance over his shoulder. "Ah, future word of warning. I'd have a closer look at Asia's choice of friends. Though I have nothing against their work as students I am a little troubled by their status across the school. They've all been raised onto something of a pedestal but the student body and I don't need to tell you what it would be like for Asia to find herself suddenly thrust into that sort of climate."

He…he hadn't considered that angle of it.

"Then again, Hyoudou-kun is a member of ORC as well and no one is going to put him on a pedestal." The man added on, then frowned more visibly. "I do believe that there are some rather unsavoury rumours circulating around him, mostly involving blackmail concerns. Though I don't take a word of them seriously." he excused, smiling once more and pulling the door open. "I'll leave you to your day, Roman. Good luck with the rest of your endeavours…and I suppose congratulations are in order for becoming a father."

That time, Romani groaned and dropped his head into his hands. It certainly wasn't anything like that. "We're more like a guardian or something. Nothing like parents for her…I don't think at least. I mean, I never thought about it…I don't think I'm father material, you know? But yeah, I'll make sure that everything goes well with Asia at school…" he trailed off for a moment, furrowing his brows as he debated the words of the man.

"But…" His words brought Lev to a halt as he stepped out into the hallway. "But I think that Asia will be just fine with the ORC. They…I think they'll take good care of her. Especially Rias-san, I think that she values all her club members an awful lot, whether they're new or old."

Lev remained silent as he stared at him, smiling once again although this one felt a little different than before. "If you say so, Roman. I'll leave you to your work and get back to my own. Have a pleasant day."

The door slid shut with a gentle click, leaving him alone in the room.