Toshio Perspective
Ku-chan’s weight rose and fell with my breathing, a warm, purring stone settled on my sternum. Her tail ticked against my ribs in a slow trono that had learned my resting heart rate. Morning light filtered through the thin curtains in a pale sheet, and her whiskers twitched once when I lifted a hand to smooth the fur between her ears.
"Good morning, Ku-chan." I kissed the soft patch of black just above her forehead. Her eyes shot open, luminous and slit thin, surprised at the breach of protocol. Then her lashes drifted down again and she pressed her face into my shirt like she was swallowing the mont whole. I scratched the spot she pretended not to like, the one near the base of her ear. The rumble she gave belonged to a creature many tis her size.
"It is the first day of school," I murmured. "Year two. I’ll be gone most of the day."
Her ear flicked. The tail slowed. I could feel the small calculation she always did, weighing solitude against the sanctity of sunbeams.
"I’m excited to see everyone," I added. "Rias. Akeno. Kiba. Koneko."
At that last na, both ears twitched at once. I swore the corner of her mouth lifted, almost a smirk if cats were capable of admitting such things. The purr deepened, and for a second I pictured white hair, golden eyes, and the way Koneko’s scent likely clung to my uniform jacket after visits in the clubroom. Kuroka was probably excited to see her again on a regular basis (from a respectable stalker distance I’m sure). More likely, she was excited to sll her on .
I slid her gently to my shoulder and sat up. She refused to move at first, but eventually gave way and jumped to my pillow to watch get ready. I picked up my Zanpakutō that was lying next to in bed and leaned it against the nightstand. The inner warmth of the Sanctuary still lived in my chest in a thin ribbon, a reminder that I was not the sa boy who had walked into Kuoh a year ago thinking knowledge alone could armor a soul, that I could live this life alone.
I showered and dressed in a uniform that felt new even though it was not. Ku-chan watched from my pillow, eyes slitted, pretending not to watch fix my tie. I strapped Shinjūka to my waist and cast Create Illusion on her. I casted it on the straps on my waist and back to hide them as well. Having both allowed to switch her from my waist and back when needed. I even made a spell sigil on her cloth carrying case that made it move out of the way of people’s hands. It helps imnsely when hugging people, especially Akeno.
Before I left the room, I kissed the top of Kuroka’s prone head again.
"Breakfast," I said. "Co on."
She leapt to my shoulder. Her whiskers tickled my neck and I pretended to be annoyed because I’m sure she liked the reaction.
We ate together as usual. Fish grilled until the skin crackled and released that clean, salt-sweet sll that made Ku-chan’s pupils go wide. Tamagoyaki rolled into soft, even layers that still stead when I sliced them. Miso, simple and balanced. Rice that carried a little more water for the morning. I flaked the crisp fish skin into a small saucer for her and she pretended to hesitate, then demolished it with neat, dainty bites that fooled exactly no one. When she finished, she hopped to the back of the chair and brushed her head and body against the back of my head like cats do.
"You are a nace," I said without heat. "A small, furry tyrant. I am complicit."
Her tail tapped twice as if to confirm the hierarchy.
I checked my bag, my schedule, and then my ssages. No crimson hair at the door. No soft knock. No familiar, amused voice asking if I wanted to walk or teleport. I stood at the door for around 10 minutes past when she usually got there. Disappointnt blood in my chest, heavier than I would have expected.
"Looks like it is just today," I told Ku-chan. "Try not to get into too much trouble while I’m gone."
She blinked slowly, then trotted to the sun patch at the window and arranged herself precisely where the warmth would hold until noon. If she bothered to stay that long anyway. I gave her one last pet, then headed out the door.
Outside, Kuoh’s Spring air carried the thin warmth of the season ahead. Bicycle bells trilled. Shoes scraped on pavent. The academy’s red brick silhouette rose like a familiar promise at the end of the street, and the black iron gate frad the entrance.
Sona stood by the gate with Tsubaki, clipboard in hand, hair immaculate, glasses perched with that careful exactness that made people straighten their spines two ters out. They were conducting uniform inspections again. First years fumbled with ties. A second year tried to hide a bracelet and failed. Sona’s gaze softened exactly one degree, enough to make compliance feel like a choice rather than an order.
"Good morning, Sona, Tsubaki." I said as I passed, tone easy. "I see you forgot to get your permits to relax this morning."
Sona blinked once, surprise cracking her composure before it sharpened into a mild irritation. "Good morning, Amano-san. You really should be using our surnas." Sona stated, pushing up her glasses with a pen in her hand. I ignored her comnt.
"See you later, Sona," I said dryly. The corner of Tsubaki’s mouth twitched at the banter, a small glint behind the cool. I heard Sona write sothing on her clipboard as I walked up to the doors. I was starting to enjoy this teasing thing.
Inside, the administrative building slled of paper and polished wood. I picked up my new schedule at the office. Class 2-A. I wondered who’d be in my class this year.
Class 2-A humd with the texture of reunions. Desks scraped back. Soone argued about winter howork with theatrical despair. Sunlight laid clean squares across the floorboards. The Occult Research Club cluster had already occupied the center gravity of the room. Kiba noticed first.
"Amano," he said, rising with that polished ease. "Good first morning."
"Good morning, Kiba." We fist bumped. I was about to ask how the blade work had progressed when a familiar scent and a shadow overtook my field of view. Warmth, softness, and the faintest charge of power wrapped in perfu. Akeno moved like water that had decided to ignore gravity. She launched and I caught her because there was no universe in which my body would let her fall. One hand on her back and the other on her hip, very close to her back end. Her arms went around my neck and her chest pressed unabashedly into my face. Conversations dropped half a beat around us. Whispering began because of course it did.
"Good morning, Toshio~," she sang, happy and completely unbothered by the physics of attention. "Did you sleep well?"
"Good morning, Akeno." My muffled voice was calm because my discipline had been forged under more dangerous pressure than this. "It’s nice to fee- see you." That earned a surprised giggle from her.
She lingered one heartbeat longer than polite, felt the way my hands did not wander, and then slid down with the slow, theatrical grace that made even the chalk dust watch her leave. There was sothing about those sliding down your face first thing in the morning that brightened it a little. My hands, surprising even , were reluctant to let go.
"Looks like we’re all in the sa class again," she stated cheerfully. Her innocent smile was good enough to believe it was genuine.
"Quite fortunate indeed," I snorted in amusent. I looked past her and saw flowing crimson.
Rias sat at her desk. She remained seated, back straight, gaze on a point midair that was not mine. The aura wasn’t cold. But it seed, distant. Did it have sothing to do with her not showing up this morning?
"How’s Koneko?" I asked, stopping beside her desk. The question got her to look at , as if it were the first ti she noticed .
"Oh, hey Toshio." Her voice seed, wilted?
"She is fine," Rias said, eyes softening a fraction. "She should be fully healed in a few days."
"Good, that’s great to hear," I said. The relief ran through like steam escaping a valve.
"We are having lunch in the clubroom from now on," Akeno said brightly from behind before she pressed her chest into my arm, her hand placed on my shoulder. I would have reacted, but she did this so often now I was basically desensitized to it. At least, that’s what I told myself. "An update to tradition. You should join us, Toshio."
"It would be my pleasure," I said. I watched the way Rias looked at nothing for a breath, the way the lines at the corners of her eyes did not relax.
Akeno leaned closer, voice a low enough so only I could hear, playful like strings plucked on a shamisen. "I’ll even make sure there is sothing for you to feed with if you’d like~."
"I’ll bring you a fork," I said blandly. "It’ll be transformative." The look she gave said I had just kicked a door open I did not usually touch. She looked genuinely surprised, then delighted, as if a new toy had been discovered in the most obvious drawer. She giggled.
"Careful, Toshio," she said playfully. "You know what they say about playing with fire~."
"I think I’m experienced enough with fire to not burn myself." I smirked at her. Her eyes carried a different kind of excitent. If it were sadistic or masochistic, I couldn’t say. I’m sure I’d find out though. I noticed our exchange didn’t even budge Rias out of her stupor. Sothing must have happened. Our horoom sensei stepped in, sa one as last year.
Fumiko Takashiro. As striking as ever. She wore the sa red blouse as she did last year, though, the neckline seed a touch lower, revealing more cleavage that bordered on what would be considered professional. Without even realizing it, my gaze had drifted to the new aspect. Her sharp gaze that landed on snapped out of it.
"What in the world was that?" It was very, unlike , to have wandering eyes. We all took our seats in short order. I sat next to Rias like I did last year, but her desk seed just a little further away than before. Akeno’s, however, seed closer than ever. I also happened to notice that none of Sona’s entourage were present. Maybe in 2-B, perhaps. Just when her glares were starting to beco amusing.
Horoom bled into first period. Chalk moved. Nas were called and introduced. As Takashiro-sensei covered this year’s syllabus, I did my best to keep my eyes from wandering. My concentration may have slipped once or twice.
More importantly, most of my attention was elsewhere. I tracked Rias in the corners of my vision, glancing her way while not making it obvious. Twice, I caught her eyes and in both monts she looked away. Her eyes carried, a heaviness. Regret maybe? Sothing that looked utterly foreign on her.
During the second class I caught the break in the corridor when traffic thinned. Rias stood by the window, light catching strands of red and turning them into fine wires of fire. I was pretty sure this was the window that Issei saw her in for the first ti.
"Rias, what’s wrong," I said softly, my hand gently placed on her shoulder, causing her to flinch slightly. "Sothing’s bothering you."
She tilted her head. The smallest, polite smile appeared, almost reflexive. Her eyes didn’t seem like they were actually looking at . "It’s nothing important. Please focus on class." Well that was obviously a lie.
I considered pushing. The from last year might have to get to the bottom of the truth, sothing that I often was in relentless pursuit of. But now, I didn’t know if it would help. I tried one more probe. I lifted her chin gently, so that her eyes t mine. The veil of haze seed to lift off her eyes briefly.
"Rias, I know I don’t have a very high emotional intelligence, but I do know that I can tell when sothing is bothering soone important to ." My eyes bore into hers. I tried to convey my concern. Her eyes began to form the slightest ghost of moisture before she tugged her head away. She faced the window, her back facing .
"I’m fine, Amano. I’ll see you back in class." Ouch. Why did that cause my chest to burn? Her voice carried the authority of a devil noble (or I assud). I stepped back.
"Huh," I said in confusion, moreso from what I was feeling. "Alright then."
"Well, I’m here, if you need soone to lean on," I said softly.
A breath moved through her shoulders, too subtle to count as relief. As I walked away, I heard the barest hint of her voice, "Thank you, Toshio."
XXX
Lunch at the ORC would be a welco change. The cafeteria was always surrounded by gossipy whispers. I’m sure that the second and third years were making sure to relay to the first years all the made-up, juicy gossip, including about and the other ORC mbers. I’m sure it had grown even more ridiculous. I stepped into the ORC building, the black, gothic the greeting with the old sll of wood and candle wax.
I stepped into the clubroom, all the mbers already present.
The couch surrendered the impression of Koneko’s petite weight. She sat upright at the table with both forearms encased in white casts that looked even more stubborn than she did. The sight put a line of heat behind my ribs and I made sure it did not reach my eyes. She was my first stop.
"Hey Koneko," I greeted as I said next to her. Surprising , she gave a small hug. I returned it quickly enough. The exchange didn’t last long before she pulled back.
"Thanks for saving us yesterday, I didn’t get a chance to tell you." I smiled softly at her, my hand finding the top of her head. The gesture caused her face to scrunch up in mock protest, despite her small blush.
"Hey, I could have done better," I said, setting the bento down on the table. "Permission to commit a small cri?"
Before she could retort to my first comnt, her eyes found mine filled with suspicion. "What cri."
"Feeding you." I opened the box. Rice glead. Chicken glistened with a lacquer of soy and mirin. There were neatly cut vegetables and a rolled olet glossy with a little dashi. I lifted a piece of chicken with my chopsticks and held it near her mouth. "It’s the least I could do for failing to protect you."
Color ward the pale of her cheeks. She looked at the food, then at , then at the food again. "Fine," she said, and leaned forward. She opened her mouth in a small, reluctant bite. She chewed once and her eyes lowered in a quick flash, almost embarrassed by pleasure. "Good," she admitted.
"Again," I said, and she did not argue. I fed her rice in small, neat amounts that would not crumble on the cast if she missed. I wiped a stray grain from the corner of her mouth with a folded napkin.
"I want you to feed too," Akeno wined, voice velvet and shaless as she pulled her chair closer with a scrape that inford the entire room of her intentions.
"Hi Akeno." I snorted in amusent. "Last I checked, your arms weren’t broken." Koneko glared at her, as if she was upset at Akeno’s attempt at stealing the mont.
"If I’m a bad girl, can we arrange that?" she purred. That one was definitely masochistic. 100%.
I deadpanned at Akeno, then at the delicate pickled plum nestled in the rice. "If I give you this," I said, "you have to behave for ten seconds."
Her eyebrows rose. People do not bargain with Akeno behind the public’s eyes. People pray. "Only ten." That innocent smile was way too well practiced.
"Five if you are feeling feral."
She laughed, surprised and musical, then tilted forward and accepted the bite with disarming decorum, her tongue swirling around the tip as she looked into my eyes, lips closing on the chopsticks with a softness that made the back of my neck heat. She swallowed and leaned closer. "I think I was very good," she whispered. "Do I get a reward?"
"You get more rice," I said and shoved another bite between her lips before the innuendo had ti to collect interest. The look she gave said I would pay for that later, with interest and collateral.
Koneko’s foot ca up, then shoved Akeno back across the room. She managed to land with grace, on the wall. She glided gently to the ground.
"Oh my," she said in mock surprise, hand cupping her cheek.
"Shove off, perv. It’s my turn," Koneko stated with finality, glaring at the S&M queen. I couldn’t help but snort in amusent. The next bite next to her mouth brought Koneko out of her glare. She grumpily chomped on the bite of rice. She then pointed at .
"Don’t encourage her."
"Yes, ma’am." I mock saluted. My gesture got Koneko to tilt her head in brief confusion, forgetting her irritation.
"You seem, different." I suppressed a laugh, as she opened her mouth expecting another bite AND an answer. I filled her mouth with a pickled plum.
"Well, let’s just say I’ve, unchained, so things recently." This brought genuine confusion to not just her face, but to Akeno and Kiba as well.
"Oh hey Kiba." He was so easy to forget about sotis when the chaos of the others. He grimaced slightly.
"Hey, Toshio."
I finished feeding Koneko, who seed appreciative, but reluctant to express it. Rias sat at her desk the entire ti, slowly eating her lunch, eyes on her food more than the room or it’s other occupants. The banter and conversation between Akeno, Koneko, Kiba, and I kept the mood upbeat though.
XXX
Rias remained distant the rest of the afternoon. Akeno tested the boundaries I had just expanded for her and found them elastic rather than brittle. It was a good day by any honest tric. Even so, by the ti the second to last period let out, the small knot in my chest had not loosened.
I found Akeno as the hallways thinned as she headed back toward the classroom. I grabbed her hand.
"Co with ." She was surprised, but complied easily.
I pulled her to a hallway that wasn’t used very often that had no classrooms, the slight build up of dust testant to it. We entered an unused room, and I led her to stand up against a wall.
"Toshio~," she said breathlessly. With a low voice, she began, "If you pull into a secluded room like this, I’ll assu you have wicked plans. And I’m more than willing to follow along~." She pressed her thighs together and bit her lip.
"Oh I’m sure," I said dryly. I let the smile show and then folded it away. "I wanted to ask about Rias." Akeno was her best friend. She had to know sothing.
Her body language changed, shoulders slumped, screaming disappointnt. She even pouted. "Of course you did."
"She seems so distant. Sad even. Sothing is bothering her," I stated.
"Its Gremory family matters," Akeno said, gently waving her hand in front of her face. She leaned against the wall, still expressing disappointnt. "It will settle in a few days. She’ll be back to her normal self in ti, I’m sure. She’ll co to you or she won’t. Either way, she’ll be watching to see if you trust her timing."
"Akeno, she called by my last na."
"Oh." That seed to sober her a little more.
Akeno’s eyes widened slightly. "That’s... unusual." She bit her lower lip, looking genuinely concerned for the first ti. "Did sothing happen between you two that I don’t know about?"
"No," I said, leaning against the wall opposite her. "That’s what’s so confusing. Everything was fine after the Ghom incident, outside of getting Koneko help. She seed grateful, relieved even. Then today, it’s like I’m suddenly a stranger."
Akeno studied for a mont, her usual playfulness replaced by sothing more calculating. "Toshio, has it occurred to you that this might have nothing to do with you personally?"
I frowned. "What do you an?"
"Sotis," she said carefully, "being a high-class devil cos with... complications. Especially for soone of Rias’ standing."
"Family politics," I guessed, the pieces starting to click. "Do you think her brother or soone else intervened?"
A shadow crossed her face. "I’m not saying anything specific. Just that sotis the weight of being a Gremory is heavier than she lets on."
I pushed off the wall, feeling frustration bubble up. I didn’t try to suppress it, it bleeding clearly from my face.
Of course. I was a human. She was a devil noble. Grayfia must have seen how close we were. Maybe they confronted Rias about it, maybe reminded her of her engagent with Riser. The na made my knuckles turn white from balling my fists. I thought back to the first season of DxD. She acted just like this right before she tried to jump Issei’s bones. However, this ti there was more, sadness, I think. I still wasn’t very good at identifying emotions.
The biggest difference though, Issei was a devil. A part of her peerage even. As a human, I was at a severe disadvantage. At what exactly, I didn’t really know, at least before I unlocked Shikai. Now I knew. I wanted a relationship with Rias.
Frustratingly, I would have to be patient. My one chance will likely be Rias’ rating ga with Riser, or the engagent party. I hoped I got to participate. I needed to make sure I prepared contingencies for Riser’s immortality. I already had so ideas too. But that didn’t help right now.
I hoped giving her space would bring her out of it. Minus physical affection, I would still treat her the sa as before and hope for the best. Maybe we could at least be friends until then, because that wasn’t like what it felt like right now.
I dreaded navigating devil politics in the future, as I’m sure I’ll have to if I stay involved. I let out a breath I didn’t know I was holding. Thankfully, with accelerated though processes, I thought about all this in the span of a few seconds. My attention refocused on Akeno.
"I’ll try to talk to her," Akeno said, her voice softening. "But don’t push too hard right now. When Rias gets like this, she needs space before she needs solutions. Though, that usually leads her to do sothing rash."
I nodded, appreciating her insight even as frustration simred under my skin. "Thanks, Akeno."
She studied for a mont, head tilted, her eyes surprisingly serious. "You really care about her, don’t you?"
The question caught off guard. I could have deflected, but what was the point anymore? "Yes," I admitted. "More than I expected to."
Sothing flickered in Akeno’s eyes—not jealousy exactly, but a complex emotion I couldn’t quite parse. Then she pushed off the wall and stepped closer, her usual playful smile returning.
"Well, that’s sothing we have in common then," she said, reaching up to straighten my tie with deliberate, lingering movents. "We both care about Rias."
I let her fix my tie, watching her face. "And each other," I added quietly.
Her hands paused for just a heartbeat. "My, my, Toshio. You’re getting dangerous."
"Not as dangerous as how well you use your body to tease."
Akeno’s fingers lifted, hovered, then traced the line of my jaw with a softness that had no audience. "You know, when you tease back, it feels like you are finally letting see you."
"I’ve always been here, being myself," I tried to deflect.
"I know," she said, smile small and genuine. "But now there’s even more of you to see." She straightened, the mischief returning like a coat shrugged back on. "Walk to class so people can gossip about it. It’ll make Rias jealous in a way that will improve her mood, and it will make my day feel productive."
"You’re terrible." I snorted in amusent.
"I know~," she singsonged.
Before I could open the door, however, I felt her hand grab the back of my collar. I turned toward her, slightly off balance. She used that to her advantage and pushed against the door, my back practically slamming against it.
"And Toshio~," she said in a voice way too sweet to be genuine, dripping like poisoned honey. Her face was inches from mine, eyes half lidded. Her ample chest pressed against mine, almost spilling out around my sides. Her hand slid up the length of my thigh sensually, stopping just short of her probable target.
"The next ti you bring to a classroom like this, you better be ready to deal with the consequences," she said hotly. She moved her head past mine, and licked my ear. She pulled away and stepped back, that innocent smile returning as if nothing happened.
"Okay?" she cheerfully asked. The heat that stirred in my chest this ti was different. And it traveled. Down. So reached my cheeks too.
"Y-yeah, sure..." She laughed, the sound lodic.
"Oh my dear Toshio, I dare say you’re flustered." I wanted to deny it, but shit, I think she was right. I took a deep breath to steady myself and quickly recover. I turned and opened the door.
"Whatever. Let’s go to class." I began walking without waiting for her. She laughed again. She soon took her place next to , her arm slipping to lock arms with . Her head was held high, her humming a small tune, as if she had won a long fought victory. I don’t think I had ever seen her this happy, actually. I sighed.
"This woman is going to be the death of ." I couldn’t stop my mind from rembering with perfect clarity, how it slled. How she slled. I briefly glanced at my shoulder, then at Akeno’s cheerful face. I couldn’t help but notice I probably felt the sa way about Akeno as I did Rias. Considering what she was into, I shuddered slightly at what the possible future could have in store for . Thankfully, she didn’t seem to notice.
We walked back into the current of students returning to class, who again gossiped furiously when they saw us. Throughout all of last period, I couldn’t help but appreciate the duality of King and Queen. Rias with her distant, lancholic mood. Akeno, with her overly cheerful, happy attitude. And unlike what Akeno thought, her closeness did not in fact, cheer Rias up.
Once class ended, I said quick goodbyes to the ORC group before I headed to kendo club. The hug from Akeno lasted a touch longer than usual. And before the hug ended, I had the barest hint of a temptation to let hand hold sothing lower than her back.
On my way to Kendo club, I couldn’t help but think, "Geez, Toshio, what is the deal today."
My hand was resting on the bottom of the hilt of my invisible Zanpakuto. My eyes narrowed in suspicion.
"We are absolutely discussing this later," I whispered to her.
Silence, as usual, was my response. Instead, I felt a pulse of amusent flow through my hand. I removed my hand and opened it then closed it.
Emotional transference. "Huh, how novel."
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