DMAW Chapter 101: The Quiet Between (Patreon)

Ichigo frowned as he held the phone to his ear, his gaze drifting away from the window as Yasaka finished telling him about some random ancient Oni who had decided to assault Kyoto.

Ibaraki-dōji.

He was vaguely familiar with the name; it was one of Japan’s many ancient myths. Though Ichigo was considerably less interested in the creature’s illustrious history than he was in the fact that his wife had personally gone out to fight it.

“Are you okay?” he asked, his brows drawing together. “Did you get injured?”

“Just some minor scratches,” Yasaka answered soothingly. “An old, decrepit thing crawling out of its grave for the first time in centuries is hardly my match.”

And despite her words, they had the opposite effect on him. If they really were minor scratches, then Yasaka would never have bothered mentioning them at all. Which meant she was absolutely downplaying whatever injuries she did receive.

“Yasaka,” he said somberly, his voice resonating with deep worry, “be honest with me. How badly are you hurt?”

“I am being honest, dear,” she said with amused patience. “They really were minor scratches, nothing I cannot heal on my own. I may not have your monstrous regenerative abilities, but I am the high priestess of an entire faith. My knowledge of healing spells and incantations far outstrips yours.”

Even still, the worry continued to gnaw at him and something unpleasant and heavy coiled tightly in his chest.

“I can be there in literally half a second,” he said resolutely.

“Ichigo, no.” Her answer came immediately, and beneath its affection was the same firmness he heard so often from her when she was giving out austere commands to her subjects. “This is my war, a Japanese issue to be dealt with by the people of Japan.”

“I am Japanese,” he grumbled, leaning one shoulder against the window frame.

Yasaka let out a demure laugh, which he might have enjoyed more if she had not been laughing at his entirely reasonable objection.

“Yes, dear, and I would never deny you your birth heritage. But you are also one of the reigning Demon Kings of the Underworld. We cannot afford to involve outside powers; it would invite the forces of the Night to do the same. Amaterasu-sama has no wish to see our lands become the staging ground for another world war.”

Ichigo closed his eyes and let out a deep sigh, because he understood the reasoning perfectly well. That was part of what made it so irritating to him. Once upon a time, someone threatening his family would have been all the reason he needed to go and beat the shit out of them, but now… politics got in the way. As it always did.

And once again, Ichigo was left with the reality that there was such a thing as being too powerful. It was as the two Dead Kings had told him when he met them in the Golden World of Timelessness –

Gravitas. When Power moves, it moves that which is around it.

He was a far cry from a sixteen-year-old breaking into Soul Society to rescue his friend from being unfairly executed. Even his words carried consequences, never mind something as significant as swinging his sword.

“Just… just be careful, princess,” he said at last, rubbing a hand over his face.

“Of course I will,” she assured him softly, before a familiar note of amusement entered her voice. “I’m not you, diving headlong into danger with an eager smile.”

He rolled his eyes, though an easy smile began tugging at his mouth all the same.

“I don’t always smile,” he said wryly.

“Oh please,” Yasaka said with a laugh. “As if I don’t know you. You’re at your happiest when you’re roughing someone up. I truly did marry a thug.”

Ichigo let out a deep chuckle. “You don’t seem to mind when that someone is you.”

He heard her splutter on the other end and could practically imagine her going red. “Darling! Behave!”

Her mortified chortling warmed his ear, and Ichigo found himself relaxing against the frame as he listened. Even though it had only been about two weeks since he last saw her, he found himself missing her.

“But what of you?” Yasaka asked, her curiosity gentling the teasing in her voice. “For the last few days, rumors have abounded of the Devil Empire finally dealing with its own rebellious elements. There have even been whispers of Dragons rampaging through the Underworld.”

Ichigo tipped his head back against the frame and sighed toward the ceiling. Well, he wasn’t really surprised she knew – he also knew she was just being polite in saying that they were rumors. Intelligence agencies throughout the supernatural realms were probably gathering intel left and right about the Devil Empire being outright attacked.

“Man, do I have one hell of a story for you, princess. Remember when we talked about the Emperors’ War and the Dragons interred by the Aesir and Vanir…?”

And for the next several minutes, Ichigo told her what had happened, although he left out the finer details of the machinations that had brought the Old Satan Faction so obligingly into their hands. Even if she was his wife, Ichigo wasn’t about to go spill the fact that the Crown Princes had purposefully orchestrated the Old Satan Faction invasion. Instead, he told her about everything else: about the assassination squad made up of human Heroes, and about the ancient Dragons whose arrival had rather spectacularly complicated and endangered everything.

His mouth twisted as he reached the White Dragon Emperor’s brief incursion through Infernity, and he spent perhaps a little longer than necessary explaining just how thoroughly he intended to discourage a second visit. Nevertheless, by the time he reached his own recent progress toward True Immortality, some of that irritation had given way to a quieter satisfaction.

Through it all, Yasaka listened without interrupting, though he heard the occasional thoughtful hum and, once or twice, the faint rustle of something moving on her end of the line. No doubt, even as she listened to his narrating, she was working through her own impressive list of military issues to deal with.

“That…” she began when he finally finished, only to pause before releasing a slow breath. “That is quite a lot.”

“Tell me about it,” he replied dryly.

But instead of asking about the Dragons or his new power, Yasaka remained quiet for another moment, and when she spoke again, the careful softness of her voice made his smile falter.

“Are you okay?”

Ichigo glanced down at his free hand, flexing his fingers before letting it fall to his side.

“Perfectly fine, princess. I just…” He sighed, his gaze returning to the view beyond the glass. “I just wish I wasn’t dealing with all of this. And I wish you weren’t dealing with all the crap on your end either.”

“We’ll persevere, dear,” she told him kindly. “And when this is over, we’ll be together again, laughing and smiling about considerably more pleasant things.”

“Yeah, I know.” Ichigo turned around and settled his back against the window, his expression softening just a bit. “I just wish that was now instead of sometime in the future.”

And he did, more than he particularly cared to dwell upon while she was so far away. He wanted an afternoon with her and Kunou that was just fun and enjoyable. As much as he loved the crunch and thrill of battle, the plots and machinations of those in the dark tried his patience to no end.

“Actually… speaking of the future, Yasaka…”

His words trailed off as a sudden knot of nervousness caught in his throat, and he found himself rubbing the back of his neck as he searched for the right words to say.

“Ichigo?” she prompted, sounding faintly puzzled.

“When this is over, when everything’s back to normal, or as normal as it gets for the two of us, I want to take you to meet my dad and sisters.”

For a brief moment, there was no answer, and Ichigo caught himself holding his breath before Yasaka’s voice brightened in his ear.

“Of course. I would love to.”

His mouth spread into a broad smile, and the tick of nervousness melted away. It wasn’t that he was uncertain about introducing Yasaka to his family, it was the modicum of guilt he felt over introducing them so late. If he was being honest with himself, he should have introduced them a long time ago. But he had been too caught up in adventure and diving deeper into the supernatural world – his home in Karakura long forgotten for the literal legends and myths he was meeting on the other side of Creation.

Somehow, at some point, he had drawn a line between Karakura Town and the rest of his life, keeping his birthplace and the people there insulated from everything else. Almost treating them as if they belonged to another world. Which, technically, they did when it came to his new life in the Underworld. But given how often he dipped back to Earth, it wasn’t very kind of him to keep them at arm’s length.

A lesson he learned well from his last two trips. Still – that didn’t mean he was about to expose Yuzu and Karin to what it meant to be a Demon or all the other horrors that walked around. Honesty or no, he was still an overprotective big brother.

“Though…” And he was broken from his thoughts as Yasaka’s uncertain voice cut through the phone line. “Do you intend to explain our full relationship to them, or…?”

“Everything,” Ichigo answered immediately. “We’ll tell them everything. I don’t want to hide anything from them anymore.” His smile grew a touch crooked as he added, “Especially not you, Mrs. Kurosaki.”

There was a soft sound on the other end, followed by a faint rustle, and Ichigo chuckled as he imagined the expression on her face.

“Thank you, dear,” Yasaka said, her voice quieter now. “That means a great deal to me.”

“No,” he murmured, shaking his head despite her being unable to see it. “If anything, I owe you an apology. You’ve been so remarkably patient with all my worries about my human family, and I know I haven’t exactly made things simple for you.” He looked down, brushing his thumb along the edge of his phone. “You really are the perfect wife, Yasaka. I owe you so much.”

“Mou~” Her flustered protest drew another smile from him before she continued, “Stop, you’re going to make me cry! I can’t be in this kind of state with a war on my hands!”

Ichigo laughed, because the warmth in her voice rather undermined any attempt she might have been making to scold him. He could practically see her turning her face away as her cheeks puffed out in a pout.

She really had been patient with him, more than he had any right to expect. Between his own uncertainty and the rather considerable complications surrounding his family, Yasaka had allowed him to set the pace without ever making her acceptance feel conditional. He would have to do better at showing her how much he appreciated that, preferably in ways that involved fewer apologies and considerably more time spent together.

“But I appreciate you saying so, Ichigo,” she added, and the quiet intimacy of her voice settled pleasantly in his chest.

For a little while, he was content simply to listen to her breathe, though eventually his thoughts turned toward the other person he had been missing.

“How’s Kunou doing?”

“Oh, don’t even get me started.” Yasaka sighed, the affectionate exasperation in her voice immediately familiar. “She has been so restless and nosy this last week. She does not appreciate her new security detail, nor the restrictions on her movements, even within the palace.”

“I’m not surprised,” Ichigo said lightly. “I imagine she’s even less thrilled about not being allowed to sneak out into the city.”

“No, she has been very vocal about that particular injustice. Her tutors and maids have all heard her complaints at considerable length.”

“But not you?” he asked, raising an eyebrow.

Yasaka did not answer immediately, and Ichigo’s smile faded a little as he waited.

“…I think she’s staying quiet around me out of consideration,” she admitted at last. “She sees the soldiers passing through the streets and the messengers coming and going by the minute. She knows I’m stressed, even if she does not fully understand the reality of the war.”

Ichigo lowered his gaze, his fingers tightening slightly around the phone.

“That last part isn’t necessarily a bad thing,” he said quietly.

“No,” Yasaka agreed, just as softly. “It isn’t. And the day she truly understands what I’m feeling is the day I will cry myself to sleep.”

“Yasaka…”

“She’s getting lonely, Ichigo.” Her admission came with a tiredness that made him wish, all over again, that he could simply reach across the distance and pull her into his arms. “What little time she spent with the other children of the Clan nobles has essentially disappeared. I barely have time to spend with her myself, and you’ve been away and occupied with your own affairs for quite a while now.”

Ichigo let out a leaden breath and pushed a hand through his hair.

“I’ll try to call her as often as possible,” he promised. “Even if it’s just for a few minutes.”

“Thank you. I would appreciate that, and I know she would too.”

“I’d offer to bring her to Infernity and have her play with Millicas, but that’s a whole other can of worms,” he muttered, his mouth tightening as his mind drifted toward Zekram.

“Oh?” Yasaka asked, her attention sharpening. “Has something else happened?”

“Yeah,” Ichigo said, the displeasure in his voice clear. “But like I said, that’s a whole different conversation. I’d rather explain it in person, with Tiamat.”

“I see,” Yasaka answered, and he was grateful that she did not press him further.

A comfortable silence settled between them, although Ichigo could faintly hear movement beyond her end of the call, and he suspected that whatever privacy she had found for herself was rapidly coming to an end. Sure enough, Yasaka released a reluctant breath before speaking again.

“I need to return, Ichigo. There are things that require my immediate attention.”

“Of course,” he said, straightening away from the window. He understood all too well the burdens of Empire and an ongoing civil war. “Go kick their ass.”

“Naturally,” she replied wryly, before her voice softened once more. “And thank you, dear. Talking with you has helped more than you know. I’ll call again when I have a little time.”

“Any time, princess.” Ichigo smiled to himself, already looking forward to it. “Love you.”

“I love you too. Mwah.”

The little kiss she sent through the phone drew a quiet chuckle from him, and even after the line went dead, Ichigo remained where he was for another moment before walking away into the dark of his penthouse.

=======

Rias stood before the window with her arms folded beneath her chest, watching the gardens beyond the glass as though something in their carefully maintained beauty might help settle her thoughts. She had always admired the geometric patterns that hedges had been trimmed into – of course, now that she was older, she understood they were all aligned in magical sigils. It was the same with all the stone cobbled paths and the fountains and pavilions placed throughout the gardens; everything served a purpose.

Her thoughts soured as her mind drifted back to that family meeting a few days ago now – where the origins of House Bael had been revealed.

Her fingers tightened against her arms as she remembered the terrible helplessness of her own blood answering another’s command. All the training she had done, all the strength she had painstakingly accumulated, and Zekram Bael had still reached into her as though she were nothing more than a convenient puppet for him to command.

Everything served a purpose.

And how well she had served that purpose – being the hidden blade placed at Lord Ichigo’s side for the old Demon’s twisted obsession. Her elder brother had been right, as he often was, she was not ready to play at this level.

Even more aggravating, old Zekram had done the same to Millicas and her mother.

Rias pressed her lips thin and raised her gaze from the gardens to the window glass, her reflection staring back at her with a tight and frustrated expression. She had no intention of spending the rest of her life waiting for her brother or Lord Ichigo to save her whenever something threatened her... but wanting otherwise was considerably easier than doing anything about it, and the distance between herself and the beings who had fought across the Underworld had never seemed quite so immense as it did now.

How much longer would it take? How much more would she have to train?

Did she expect to suddenly wake up the next day and be the equal of the Satans? No, of course not. There were Devils who had spent centuries, millennia even, striving for power and yet still kissed the ground beneath the Satans’ feet. But with everything going on around her, it didn’t feel like she had the centuries and millennia to catch up.

Her peerage needed to grow stronger. She needed to grow stronger, and –

“Rias?”

Her gaze flitted from her own face, and she saw Akeno’s reflection step into the room, followed closely by Sona and Tsubaki. As Rias turned around, her Queen’s usual polite smile was present, although it softened somewhat as her eyes moved over Rias’s face.

“We were beginning to wonder whether you intended to join us,” Akeno said quietly, undoubtedly picking up on her less-than-pleasant mood.

“I’m sorry.” Rias let her arms fall and made herself smile. “I lost track of time thinking about things.”

“So we gathered,” Sona replied, adjusting her glasses as she glanced toward the window. “Though you have been doing rather a lot of that lately.”

Rias opened her mouth but quickly closed it – there really wasn’t anything she had to say to that. Sona merely raised an eyebrow in response, questions burning in her gaze. Sona, like the others, no doubt noticed that something had happened outside of the invasion... something more unsettling.

“The castle has been rather tense,” Tsubaki said carefully. “Has there been more news?”

And there it was; she held back a sigh.

She glanced between them before smoothing a hand over her skirt. There were things she could explain, certainly, but the moment she began, it would lead to a deep spiral of past histories. Her family history. And though she trusted them all with her life, Akeno especially, this was still something deeply personal, something rooted in blood. For now, at least, Rias wanted to keep the matter to herself… at least until she had more time to digest and process everything on both an emotional and intellectual level. She had only just begun making sense of it herself, after all.

Besides, knowing that something like that had happened within these very walls would only add to their worries, and as much as she cherished her friends and her peerage, them worrying over her needlessly would not help matters.

More than that, she didn’t want them to be involved too deeply in the games between Demons. Let them focus on their own trials and tribulations, rather than concerning themselves with the thousands of years of history that led to the formations of these grudges and rivalries.

“Nothing we need to deal with,” she answered, moving away from the window. “Father and mother have been occupied; big brother and big sister Grayfia are also consumed with keeping the Underworld safe. The servants are just reflecting the stress everyone has been under after the Old Satan Faction’s attack.”

Akeno watched her for another moment, her fingers folding together before her waist, but she did not press the matter. Rias felt a small flicker of gratitude and reached for her friend’s arm as they prepared to leave the room.

As for Sona, her eyes narrowed but her oldest friend then sighed and said nothing. Rias felt both a twist of relief and appreciation that she had decided to go along with her bullshit. Rias then walked to them and, as one, the four young women turned around and left the room.

“And how is everyone else?” Rias asked.

“Restless,” Sona replied as they entered the corridor. “Which is hardly surprising. There hasn’t been an open attack on the core territories since our older siblings reconstituted the Empire. And then there’s the matter of House Bael…”

Rias nodded along; it really was unprecedented. But the Satans had assured everyone that the threat was over and things were turning back to the normal swing for most denizens of the Empire… most.

The Upper Nobility had been rocked when her brother and Lord Ichigo personally took apart the Bael territory, and then Lord Serafall had summoned the Parliament of Hell to tell them in no uncertain terms that the First Pillar had lost its status.

There were private enquiries aplenty, but the Satans were resolute in their silence and so was everyone who shared the blood of Bael. No one, no one, wanted to anger the Crown Princes any further. Their monstrous display of power during the invasion had sent virtually everyone quivering in fear – a stark reminder that their Dread Lords were more than capable of turning their ire on their own people if they so wished, and that they would all be helpless if that ever happened.

“I would appreciate knowing whether the tournament will continue,” Sona continued. “Even a provisional announcement would be preferable to having everyone speculate.”

“You’re worried about the schedule?” Rias asked, glancing at her.

“I’m worried about several things,” Sona answered primly. “The schedule happens to be one of those for which I might reasonably expect an answer.”

Which was fair enough, Rias supposed, though she smiled a little at how thoroughly that sounded like Sona.

“I imagine the organizers are waiting to hear from the Satans,” she said. “It would be difficult to arrange the next round without knowing whether everyone can safely attend.”

“Or whether the venues and transport routes remain available,” Tsubaki added. “There have been conflicting reports about how much damage was done.”

Sona’s expression grew more serious, and Rias found herself listening as the two discussed the uncertainty surrounding travel and supplies. While she didn’t know the particulars, the attack and loss of access to the Bael territories had not done their economy any favors. Things would be messy for the foreseeable future.

“And then there’s also the issue with border security,” Akeno said, her voice quiet.

Rias frowned as she considered her Queen’s point. She was vaguely aware of the treaty agreed amongst the Three Great Powers – but what did the recent invasion mean for their shared borders with the Fallen?

She sighed in her mind – here she was mentally exhausted just thinking about such things, meanwhile her brother and his peers were actually dealing with it all.

But then, if there was one thing she knew for certain about the Crown Princes, it was that they had considerable hands moving behind the scenes. Though she did not envy Lord Serafall as foreign relations were her department, after all.

Before any other grand matters could enter her thoughts, however, raised voices reached them through the doors ahead.

“You’re completely missing the point!”

“No, you’re missing the point! Clearly her oppai in the second chapter–”

Rias closed her eyes briefly, recognizing Issei’s indignant voice even as Akeno released a weary little sigh beside her. Apparently, whatever effect the invasion had wrought upon the rest of the Empire, it had failed to interrupt her Pawn’s zealous perverseness.

And when they entered the sitting room, she discovered that he had found an equally enthusiastic opponent.

Issei and Saji stood on either side of Yuuto, both leaning past her Knight as they argued over a book clutched in Saji’s hand. Yuuto’s face was dark, and he was clearly at the end of his patience, while the other girls in both peerages had sensibly turned away from the boys and wholly ignored the disagreement.

Rias glanced at the cover of the manga volume in Saji’s hand and crossed her arms with an exasperated sigh – it was a collection of doujin hentai. Honestly, these boys…

“Issei,” Akeno said with a censuring tone.

Both boys stopped, though Saji looked considerably less pleased when Tsubaki stepped forward beside her.

“Genshirou,” Sona’s Queen said, her voice carrying a depth of disappointment that made him visibly wilt. “Really?”

“We were just discussing–”

“We can hear what you were discussing,” Akeno interrupted sweetly. “From the corridor, in fact.”

Issei’s mouth closed, and Rias watched with some amusement as Saji attempted to edge the offending book behind Yuuto. Her Knight stepped neatly aside before he could be recruited as a shield, his expression coloring just a bit more alert as their eyes met. Rias had to withhold a chuckle – that was her Yuuto, ever her loyal protector.

“Master,” Yuuto said, turning toward her, “have you heard what we’ll be doing next?”

“Not yet.” Rias sighed as she and the others walked into the room, allowing Issei his temporary reprieve as the others began paying attention. “But I imagine we’ll be leaving for Infernity in a few days. I don’t think Lord Ichigo will keep us here much longer.”

“Not in a few days. Right now.”

Everyone froze at the sudden voice and Rias felt that intrinsic tug of submission in her soul as the Demon Lord materialized behind the two Pawns, his hands tucked into his pockets and his brown eyes flitting over each of them.

For several seconds, the room became so quiet that Rias could hear her own breathing. And then, in a moment that inspired complete terror in all their hearts, Lord Ichigo withdrew one hand from his jacket and took the book from Saji’s unresisting fingers, and turned it over.

His eyebrow rose and slowly he looked at Sona’s Pawn who started to turn a sickly shade of pale.

Issei also looked as though he desperately wanted to say something, but by some miracle of Lucifer the boy’s self-preservation won out and he remained dead silent. The Demon Lord turned the doujin over in his hands and then, with little ceremony, set the whole thing on black fire as it burned to ashes within the second.

“So,” the Satan said, brushing his hands together. “How’s everyone been?”

Instantly everyone dropped to their knees and bowed low before the Crown Prince. To which he immediately sighed and said, “How many times do we have to go through this?”

And Rias felt invisible hands raise her from the ground to her feet, even as Lord Ichigo stood there with a mildly annoyed expression.

“One Hell of an interruption to your tournament,” he said as his gaze moved around the assembled peerages before returning to alternating between her and Sona, and something in his expression gentled. “How are you feeling?”

Sona answered quickly. “We’re doing fine, Lord Ichigo, we weren’t hurt at all during the invasion.”

He nodded, but his eyes flickered over to her briefly, and Rias felt herself wince slightly as the memory of the pain of being possessed returned fresh.

“That’s good.” He gave her a small nod. “Well, anyways, I’m here to take you back to Infernity. If you need to gather any belongings do so now; we’ll be heading to Iravex in about five minutes.”

Sona blinked, her brows drawing together.

“Do you mean Grevex, Lord Ichigo?”

“No, Iravex. My personal citadel.” He glanced toward Rias again. “You’ll be staying there for about two days before being shipped back to New Lilith. We’ve decided to pick the tournament back up and you’ll be in the full competition.”

“I didn’t think the tournament would be restarted so soon,” Rias said with a frown.

Lord Ichigo shrugged and said, “After everything that’s happened, we’ve decided that the people need a distraction from the worries. As it is, watching a bunch of kids beat the crap out of each other is just the distraction we need.”

Rias blinked, mildly affronted… when he put it like that… it made it sound like they were nothing more than a glorified circus act rather than a centuries-old tradition to promote group strength and promote their standing in their stratified society.

“Wh-when you say your personal fortress,” Akeno began shyly, “does that mean we’ll be living with you… sir?”

And those brown eyes fell heavy on her Queen, and for a moment he just stared at Akeno… something deep passing through his eyes. Confused, she looked over to her best friend and noted a faint pink dusting her pale cheeks. Rias frowned imperceptibly… was it her imagination or…?

But then Lord Ichigo snorted and broke the moment. “In your dreams, Himejima. You think I’m inviting a bunch of high-school teenagers over for a slumber party in my personal living space? No, you’ll have separate quarters. Last thing I need is to explain to Sirzechs or Sera how their little sisters became dragon snacks.”

Sona blanched next to her, and there was a collective flinch as everyone else remembered the terrifying power of the Dragon King who had slaughtered a legion of Fallen Angels and Kokabiel himself.

At the same time, Rias couldn’t help but remember the somber ocean blue gaze of Lord Ichigo’s consort, her own ancestral grandmother. There was a small part of her that found herself thinking that the ancient Dragon wouldn’t truly hurt her. Despite the primal and ferocious power that clung to her skin, there was a gentleness to her eyes. Something nurturing and, dare she say, kind.

But suddenly, a rogue thought entered her mind, and Rias frowned profusely.

Wait a minute… if Lady Tiamat is consort to Lord Ichigo… does that technically make him my ancestor-in-law?

She quickly banished the thought and shivered to herself. If the Demon Lord ever found out she had such thoughts there was no telling what sort of punishments he would force her to go through under the guise of ‘training’.

“Ah, but how cruel of you, my master.” And instantly the room went frigid cold and Rias could see her own breath, even as her own shadow twitched beneath her feet. “To take such lovely children away from me. Why, my home hasn’t been this lively in millennia.”

Her grandmother’s voice curled through the room a moment before the ancient Demon appeared beside the Crown Prince, crimson hair spilling over one shoulder as she regarded them with an expression of wounded affection. Several members of both peerages hastily moved away, and even Sona stiffened as Gremory’s presence settled over the room in a cold, icy grip.

Rias swallowed and did her best to keep a sour complaint behind her teeth. Whereas her brother, Lord Ichigo and big sister Grayfia always had the presence of mind to rein in their ferocious auras, her grandmother never bothered. Quite the opposite, Rias was certain the ancient Demon delighted in the fear and terror she provoked.

However, her mind suddenly went blank, and her eyes widened almost comically when her grandmother wound both arms around Lord Ichigo’s and rested her head upon his shoulder.

Rias stared dumbfounded and beside her Akeno choked, a flicker of yellow static arcing from her Queen’s fingers.

Gremory then met Rias’s eyes and winked, looking entirely too pleased with herself, while Lord Ichigo continued looking unbothered as though the ancient Demon had not just draped herself over him.

“To reiterate: does anyone need to grab anything before we leave?” he asked.

“Master,” Gremory complained, drawing the word out with a pout, “you have yet to invite me into your personal chambers.”

Rias’s mouth fell open, and she became vaguely aware that several other people had made similarly unfortunate expressions.

Lord Ichigo finally turned his head, giving the first Gremory a heavy scowl.

“No one here is going into my personal space,” he told her. “Least of all you, you salacious headache.”

Her grandmother’s green eyes nearly glowed with delight even as her expression became more petulant and pouty. “But my Lord, so oft you’ve promised to hurt me. I am so eager to give you your pound of flesh… my flesh.”

Her grandmother pressed closer, her voice becoming so childishly sullen that Rias felt her skin crawl.

I think I’m gonna puke.

“Gremory.”

And he didn’t raise his voice, he didn’t so much as change the look in his eyes, but everything shuddered and Rias felt her own soul scream as Satan’s displeasure descended onto reality.

Her grandmother’s perverse expression only grew, but the eldest Gremory averted her eyes and rested her head again against the Demon Lord – and she fell deathly silent.

Rias licked her lips as her throat went dry… because never in a million years did she ever think to see Lord Ichigo standing arm in arm with her grandmother… looking like a man who just scolded his misbehaving wife when they were in front of company.

Slowly, despite herself, Rias raised a trembling hand.

“Excuse me,” she said in a meek voice, fighting the desperate urge to scream her desperate and disturbed thoughts at two immensely powerful Demons. “But… what is going on?”

Lord Ichigo looked toward her, frowned for a moment, and then appeared to remember something.

“Oh, right. You don’t know.” He gestured vaguely toward her grandmother with his own head. “Gremory is my new Bishop.”

Rias blinked rapidly.

Huh?

Hello?

Excuse me?

What the fuck do you mean she’s your new Bishop?!

Gremory settled her head more comfortably against his shoulder and smiled at her.

“Forever and ever.”

And Rias felt the corner of her eye twitch violently.

Suddenly she remembered the dinner with Lord Ichigo and her brother’s family. How Grayfia and the man had disappeared into his private apartments, and then returned with him sporting a prominent kiss mark on his cheek in Grayfia’s shade of lipstick! And then there was the fact her recently revealed ancestral grandmother was his familiar and consort! And now her grandmother was bound to him as well as part of his peerage?! And she was clinging to his arm and pouting about being denied entry to his bedroom?!

Rias hugged herself and gave the Demon Lord a wary look.

How was it that all the women of her family were suddenly involved with him so intimately!?

And – oh my Lucifer – was this her future too!? She was already his ward! Was Lord Ichigo also going to get his dastardly clutches on her as well?!

Her eyes immediately went to his hands… his big strong hands capable of unleashing immense power and deciding the fate of billions. Rias swallowed a sudden lump as she recalled Akeno’s old teasing about him possibly taking her as a concubine.

As she imagined those hands and what they could do… she realized this may become one of the weirdest family traditions of all time.

=======

Akeno blinked as she looked around the spacious room, her gaze passing over a collection of broad sofas and low tables before settling on the enormous television mounted on the opposite wall. A bar occupied one side of the lounge, its polished shelves lined with glasses and bottles, while a wide staircase curved toward an upper floor.

For a moment, she could only stare, because she had been standing in the Gremory castle just a second ago but now, judging by the familiar-colored sky out the windows, they were back in Infernity.

She could only surmise that Lord Ichigo had teleported them. Luckily, this time, none of them ended up face-hugging the floor.

Akeno turned toward him, only to find the Demon Lord watching their reactions with a faintly amused expression. His hands were tucked into the pockets of his black and orange jacket, the white shirt beneath it and his casual jeans making him look rather like any normal pedestrian rather than a Demon King reigning over literal billions.

Her eyes then lingered on his face, on the boyish curve of his smile, and she found herself smiling to herself in return… before she quickly realized what she was doing and schooled her expression.

“Whoa, this place is awesome!”

Issei’s enthusiastic declaration drew her attention toward him, though Lord Ichigo merely chuckled.

“I’m glad you like it.” He withdrew one hand and pointed toward the stairs. “Up there, you’ll find a pair of hallways with enough bedrooms for each of you. Pick whichever ones you want.”

“We’re going to live here?” Momo asked, her excitement breaking through her usual politeness.

Akeno looked toward Sona’s Bishop and found herself rather grateful that someone had asked before she could. A bedroom of her own, in a place that looked clean, comfortable and entirely free of mysterious plumbing noises?

The prospect was almost enough to fall down and kowtow to the man in worship.

And judging by the expressions around her, she was far from alone. Several of Sona’s girls were already looking toward the staircase with barely concealed anticipation, while even Koneko had lifted her head to examine their surroundings more closely.

“Only for the next couple of days,” Lord Ichigo said dryly, apparently having no intention of allowing their hopes to grow unchecked. “Once the tournament resumes, you’re back in your hotel suites in New Lilith. And once the tournament’s over, you’ll be returning to your usual place in Grevex.”

Their collective enthusiasm plummeted at the declaration, although Akeno remained quite willing to appreciate the opportunity while it lasted. The hotel suite had been lovely, and this looked lovelier still; either was a considerable improvement over the utter dump into which he had deposited them.

More importantly, between this stay and the tournament, she could look forward to an extended period without Gobdad and his incessant complaints and insults on their quality as tenants.

Akeno folded her hands before herself and silently resolved to enjoy every moment. Her eyes then flickered back to the Demon with his soft smile… every moment.

“Normally, I would have sent you straight back to Grevex,” Lord Ichigo continued. “But consider this little vacation a reward for your performances in your opening matches.”

Sona then turned toward him, her expression shifting with surprise. “You watched our matches, sir?”

“I did.” He nodded toward Rias as well. “Both of yours.”

And suddenly Akeno was considerably less interested in the bedrooms as she felt butterflies bloom inside of her.

Because he had watched them.

He had watched her, putting his training into practice in an actual Rating Game. And a light, airy excitement rose through her stomach before an unwelcome thought caught at its edges.

What did he think? Did he like what he saw? Did she live up to his expectations? Did… did he have any expectations?

Rias had wanted to preserve some secrecy around her Queen for future matches, and Akeno had followed her orders, allowing their opponent to draw the wrong conclusions while Issei prepared the deciding blow. It had worked, and she had been perfectly satisfied with her own part in it.

But that also meant that she couldn’t show off; that he hadn’t seen everything she had to offer. And, again, would that negatively affect her standing for the individual rankings of the tournament?

Was he able to discern their strategy? That she wasn’t fighting back to the full extent of her ability on purpose?

Her fingers tightened against the fabric of her skirt as she looked at him, suddenly remembering every exchange she might have ended more decisively and every opportunity she had deliberately allowed to pass. Surely, he had recognized the strategy. He was hardly someone who needed every little detail explained to him, and yet… the doubt and anxiety clawed at her mind and filled her chest, pressing down and choking the air in her lungs.

“Wh –” Her voice caught in her throat, and his eyes moved toward her. Instantly, Akeno felt a faint warmth rise into her cheeks. She took in a deep breath and did her best to keep herself steady as she looked into those stalwart brown eyes.

“What did you think of our performances?” she asked in a quiet and demure voice.

His smile softened a little, and she found herself standing just a touch straighter beneath his attention.

“I think you all did exceptionally well,” he answered. “Not perfect, but miles ahead of where you used to be. I am…”

He paused, his gaze drifting briefly across the others before his mouth curved again as his eyes fell on her.

“I’m proud of you all.”

Akeno’s eyes widened and the butterflies began to do somersaults. She reached up and spun a lock of her hair around a finger, even as she shifted her weight onto the other foot and smiled happily at the floor. Mentally however, internal Akeno jumped into the air and rocked a fist in the air with a delighted shout.

Approval get!

“Thank you for the kind words, sir,” she said with a polite bow.

His gaze lingered on her for a second longer, at least, she felt it did, and then Lord Ichigo turned his attention back toward the room.

“Anyways, feel free to look around and get yourselves settled in,” he said lightly. “Dinner should be ready before too long, and someone will come let you know when it is.”

“Will you be joining us?” Rias asked.

Akeno looked up at once, a note of anticipation and hope ringing inside of her.

“No.” He shook his head, and her hopes of sharing another meal with him – even with others – immediately came crashing down. “I have my own plans for the evening. But I’ll be around for a bit longer if anyone needs something clarified.”

And with that, he turned toward the doors, leaving them to take possession of their temporary accommodation.

Conversation broke out almost as soon as he was gone. Most of the girls went upstairs to claim a bedroom, and the boys drifted away toward a door in the direction opposite to the one Lord Ichigo had taken.

A moment later, Issei’s voice carried back to them.

“Unholy crap! He has an arcade!”

Akeno chuckled beneath her breath as several heads immediately turned in that direction. She hoped the boys would take the time to enjoy themselves, particularly Issei. He had been instrumental in their victory, after all.

She then wandered toward Rias and Sona, with Tsubaki joining them as Sona folded her arms and looked thoughtfully toward the doors.

“Do you think the tournament will continue with the existing brackets?” she asked. “Or will they reorganize the remaining matches?”

Rias put a finger to her chin as she pondered for a moment before shrugging lightly. “I’m not sure. We could ask Lord Ichigo. He said he would be around for a little longer.”

Sona and Tsubaki both shifted nervously, and Akeno noticed the small hesitation that passed between them before Tsubaki spoke.

“Honestly… he seemed somewhat unnerving. More so than usual.”

Akeno glanced toward Rias and found her friend already looking back; a clear moment of understanding passed between their gazes.

“We noticed it too,” Rias admitted, folding her arms beneath her chest. “It isn’t as though he’s deliberately trying to pressure us, but…”

She trailed off, her brows drawing together as she searched for the words.

“Like there’s more of him,” Akeno said quietly.

Sona nodded almost immediately, and Tsubaki released a small breath.

At first, back in the castle, Akeno had scarcely noticed it. There had been rather a lot competing for her attention, after all, and Duke Gremory’s stifling aura had made it difficult to focus on anything else. But as they lingered in Lord Ichigo’s presence, it became very obvious that something about the Demon Lord had changed.

He had always possessed a depth of power she could scarcely comprehend, though he generally kept it held back and still; like a distant sun hanging above the world, or an ocean whose gentle waves gave little indication of the sheer force they carried. And that was Lord Ichigo in a nutshell, reserved and easygoing, even though he was an infernal furnace of impossible power.

But standing before him now felt as though the sun had moved closer to the world, and as though she now stood partially submerged in the sea.

Even the familiar murmur of submission within her soul had changed. It was more like a silent demand now – the regal austerity of a crown and throne as opposed to the insidious whispers of something dark and foreboding.

Akeno’s fingers curled into her skirt.

She had a sneaking suspicion that the Demon Lord had grown even more powerful since she last saw him, which was a horrifying thought in and of itself.

Sona shook her head, apparently deciding against pursuing that thought.

“Let’s leave him be. I would rather not disturb whatever goodwill earned us this vacation.”

Akeno briefly looked toward the doors, her gaze lingering there for a few seconds, before returning her attention to the others.

“We should also account for the possibility that, if the tournament won’t be restarted, then the brackets may be redrawn and randomized,” Tsubaki said.

Sona’s mouth tightened as her brows knit together.

“That would be incredibly aggravating. We have already spent hours studying our possible opponents in each bracket. We’d have to start from scratch.”

“There’s also the possibility that some teams may choose not to participate in light of the invasion,” Rias pointed out.

“Which I would understand,” Sona replied, adjusting her glasses. “But rearranging the whole tournament would be… excessive. Not to mention unfair.”

Rias gave her a pointed look. “Sona, please. Our respective elder siblings are the very definition of excessive. And you think the Crown Princes care about fairness? Just look at what Lord Ichigo has put us through.”

Akeno sighed along with the others, although she found it rather difficult to dispute the point. She knew too little about Lords Ajuka and Falbium to grasp their personalities, but she could easily imagine Lord Ichigo finding himself amused by watching everyone discover that weeks of careful planning had become useless.

Lord Sirzechs and Lady Serafall would absolutely enjoy it as well. Blasphemous as it might be for her to think… but the Satans were kind of gremlins…

Still, Akeno much preferred her Dark Lords to have a mischievous bit of chaos in them as opposed to the ancient genocidal maniacs Hellbent on destroying everything they could get their hands on.

“We should at least review alternatives,” Sona said with a touch of resignation.

“Alternatives based on what?” Tsubaki asked wryly. “We don’t know which teams we would face. And even if we asked Lord Ichigo, would he actually tell us?”

Akeno exchanged another look with Rias, a hint of exasperation entering her King’s eyes as they both had the same thought.

No, he absolutely wouldn’t.

In fact, there was a good chance that he would just lie straight to their faces and let them fail miserably. Only to then frame the deception as another harsh lesson – that they should always verify the veracity of intel freely offered to them.

“If the brackets remain the same,” Rias began, “then most of our preparations should still be useful. Though I imagine some people will have reconsidered their approach after watching the opening games.”

“Some people certainly have reason to,” Sona answered.

Rias’s eyes narrowed a little, and Akeno’s smile grew as she recognized the change in direction. Within moments, the two Kings were going back and forth trading subtle barbs while also trying to get the other to slip up and reveal some iota of their own respective strategies.

Tsubaki looked at her and as Akeno met her eyes, they both smiled knowingly. It was such a familiar sight, after all. Childhood friends Rias and Sona may be, but they also considered each other their archrival. They fully intended to tear into each other on the battlefield and claim victory.

However, as their discussion continued, Akeno’s attention drifted toward the doors again.

She briefly bit her lips as she could still sense the monstrous presence of the Demon Lord not too far from them.

She looked back at Rias as her King responded sharply to one of Sona’s questions. And, normally, this was the part where she would jump in with some faux cheer and then rope Tsubaki into it for their habitual back and forth but…

Her fingers fidgeted against the cloth of her sleeves as she kept glancing at the door from the corner of her eye.

“I’m also going to have a look around,” she announced abruptly.

Rias glanced at her briefly and then nodded before returning to Sona and diving fully back into their debate.

And as she took a deep breath, Akeno slipped away from the conversation and made her way toward the door.

=======

Ichigo stood beneath the slow-moving shadow of a massive fish with numerous fins and a long muscular tail. Briefly, his gaze flitted to the glass walls and curved ceiling, and the millions upon millions of gallons of water in the aquarium surrounding him. Its clear, crystalline waters shimmered with passing schools of silver fish, their translucent bodies flashing with little currents of magic whenever they turned.

Far off, an enormous ray lay half-buried, the span of its fins being large enough to support a truck, and every so often its breathing stirred the sand.

It had cost him a minor fortune to have the place built – but given how far Iravex was up in the sky, he wanted to give Tiamat some connection to the sea that was so far below. Even if it was just a small sample.

But he quickly tore his eyes away and set his attention back to the task at hand.

Before him, an enormous projection of his personal perception of the ever-shifting threads of eternity hovered. Its countless threads and paths twisted at impossible angles before flitting in and out of existence. Purple branches divided into innumerable smaller possibilities, some fading before they could properly form while others wound together and became something else entirely. And through it all, gold glimmered like sparks caught within a tangled net.

Entirely too much gold, he thought with a tired sigh.

Unfortunately, he couldn’t make full sense of it – he couldn’t tell where one Will began and another ended. He imagined it was the limitation of his power – also the fact that he was viewing Eternity from within itself, rather than from outside looking in. For all his powers, he still did not have the full mastery that the most powerful True Divinities like Set possessed.

Nonetheless, he did his best in trying to peer through the shifting eddies... it also didn’t help that he could only look at the present and past as the entirety of the future was blocked off by Ophis.

However, instead of raging against the cosmic serpent for the umpteenth time in his head, he decided to withdraw his gaze.

“Enjoying yourself, Himejima?” he asked, looking over his shoulder.

Akeno stopped midstride, having been caught trying to sneak up behind him. However, she quickly composed herself and folded her hands, giving him a polite bow. “Yes, sir. Thank you again for the accommodations.”

“You’re welcome,” he said, a faint smirk touching his lips before he returned his attention to the projection.

She lingered by the entrance for another moment, then quietly stepped into the room. Ichigo followed her progress through the movements of her aura, feeling the little fluctuations of anticipation and nervousness as she came closer and stopped several feet behind him.

He knew well enough that this wasn’t merely a ward visiting her legal guardian; she was trying to capitalize on her parting declaration the last time they spoke.

Steal his heart, she had said. Ichigo chuckled to himself; well, he wasn’t going to dash her aspirations. He did tell her she was more than welcome to try again some time in the distant future.

Nonetheless, he kept his silence. Just like the last time she was in his presence, the power of an intended silence went a long way in getting someone to lose their composure. As silence often invited uncertainty and doubt. Besides, there was something rather amusing about the way her poise began falling apart the longer he left her standing there.

Her shoes shifted against the floor, and after several more seconds, she finally cleared her throat.

“Uhm… may I ask what you’re looking at, sir?”

Ichigo smiled to himself and lifted one hand, beckoning her closer.

She obeyed quickly enough, although her last few steps became noticeably smaller as she drew alongside him, and she stood less than arm’s distance away. From the corner of his eye, he caught the pink dusting her cheeks.

“It’s a visual representation,” he explained, gesturing toward the web. “Makes it easier to keep track of things when I can look at them as well as feel them.”

“A representation, sir?”

He glanced down at her, briefly noticing the unusually thick lashes framing her eyes before he pointed toward a cluster of purple threads that wound through the cosmic web.

“See those?”

Akeno nodded, following his finger.

“That’s Time.”

Her head turned sharply toward him, and Ichigo’s mouth twitched at the expression on her face.

“Or, well, as much of it as can be made sense of from a spatial perspective,” he amended. “But everything that could happen, everything that might have happened, all the little possibilities that go into deciding which becomes which – that’s all the purple stuff moving and jumping around. But you see the gold?”

She nodded again, rather more slowly this time.

“That would be divine interference. Someone reaching in and changing things, making new possibilities and getting rid of others. Or, in this case, several someones.”

For a while, she merely stared, and Ichigo allowed the silence to settle as he followed another flicker through the projection. This one lasted slightly longer before dissolving into a mess of overlapping possibilities – all of Eternity at the whims of the Undying.

And it was changing, every second, every moment, changing in an unending flux. Time was always moving, after all.

“It’s so… chaotic,” Akeno finally murmured.

He gave a soft chuckle and looked down at her with an amused smile. “You thought it would be more of a straight line?”

Her brows drew together. “Maybe? Or… something like a river, with lots of smaller rivers branching off it?”

“Yeah, if only,” he said with a sigh. “The sad reality is, kid, Eternity is a mess. It’s like one, giant mutating glob folding in on itself. We’re all just caught inside.”

Akeno’s gaze moved toward a particularly bright knot of gold, and he felt her nervousness sharpen into something rather less pleasant.

“Are you… are you fighting Deities, sir?”

Ichigo snorted. “No, I’ve had my fill of immortal fights for this week.”

Her expression turned shocked and she mouthed ‘this week’ in confusion. He could clarify, but honestly, he was just humoring himself at this point. All of this was so beyond Akeno, and every other Devil for that matter, that he doubted she could even begin to understand the full scale of what he was showing her.

That being said, it did help him somewhat to explain the concepts to someone else. In a weird way, voicing it out loud made it more real to him.

“What I’m actually trying to do,” he said with a small scowl, “is find Issei’s counterpart. I owe the White Dragon Emperor a sword through the face.”

She didn’t comment on his desire to murder her Pawn’s mythic counterpart, instead, Akeno looked from him to the projection, then back again as her brows furrowed in thought.

“But...” she trailed off thoughtfully, “you can’t find him because of Divine interference?”

“Clever girl.”

Her cheeks immediately darkened, and she looked away with a little smile she was clearly trying to conceal. Ichigo chuckled beneath his breath, although his amusement quickly faded as his eyes returned to the web.

It should have been simple. Vali Lucifer had escaped Infernity, yes, but he had taken rather more of Ichigo’s power with him than he probably appreciated. His miasma had sunk into the asshole’s flesh, and through that into the more nuanced parts of his existence. Even if someone had managed to purge most of it, there should have been enough left for Ichigo to track down.

But for the last several days, every attempt he made to locate the White Dragon Emperor was utterly rebuffed. Something was blocking his senses, or rather, someone.

Someone very powerful – because Ichigo couldn’t even attempt to fight through whatever was blocking him. Every time he attempted to power through, he would find himself fighting something that used to be, or even something that never was. Whoever was opposing him was immensely gifted in manipulating reality.

And it wasn’t Ophis, of that he was certain. He knew the touch of the Void well enough by now, the cold absence it left in its wake, and there was none of that here. This was entirely different.

At first, he thought it might have been Tsukiyomi. But he quickly dismissed that thought as he couldn’t reconcile the idea with the ongoing Shinto civil war. Tsukiyomi could not afford to take his attention away from Amaterasu; the moment he tried to move against Ichigo in the Realm of Time, the Sun would capitalize and take a massive advantage.

Which left Ichigo to logically deduce that someone else was interfering with him.

Ichigo’s frown deepened because, as far as he knew, he hadn’t managed to offend any other Immortals enough to warrant this sort of interference in his personal affairs. Admittedly, he had been rather busy lately, but he liked to think he would remember making another enemy in the Fourth World.

But then, there were other possibilities. Perhaps it had nothing to do with Ichigo himself? Perhaps Vali had found himself a patron?

However, his thoughts paused as something lightly tugged against his jacket, and he glanced down to find Akeno’s index finger hooked into the edge of his pocket.

As his eyes traced up her arm, she looked away shyly, her blush so furious that it even crept past her cheeks and down the pale skin of her neck. Ichigo gave a small shake of his head and said nothing. Well, if anything, he supposed he could allow her that much.

As he was about to return his gaze to Eternity, Akeno suddenly asked, "S-so... do you live around here?"

He gave her an amused look before saying, "About fourteen floors higher at the apex of the fortress. And before you get any bright ideas, there are immensely powerful Reavers that will devour anyone who wanders around without permission. So don't try sneaking into places you shouldn't be."

Akeno began to splutter at the implication of his words. "I-I-I would never! I-I was just curious! Really!"

"If you say so," he said in a purposefully disbelieving tone to get a rise out of her. And he was rewarded for his efforts when she looked aggrieved and gave him a soft glare.

He continued to hold her gaze for a few seconds, but then Akeno looked away, an angry pout on her expression which made Ichigo's chest rumble with quiet laughter.

Her cheeks puffed out, Akeno then asked, "And Duke Gremory... that was a surprise. I didn't think a Pillar Lord would become your Bishop. You two seemed... close."

And just like that Ichigo's good humor fell away, because the Demon in him could easily sense Akeno's magic coloring with jealousy and bitterness. He frowned heavily, because that was one bud he definitely needed to nip right away.

"Himejima," he said in a strict tone. "Stay away from Gremory."

Her head whipped around and she gave him a look of shock, even as a flash of hurt passed over her face. "No - that's not what I- I-I'm sorry, I didn't mean to impl-"

“Akeno.”

And the weight he put behind her name made her instantly go still, and her mouth promptly fell shut.

"I'm serious," he said, putting gravity into his words. "Stay away from Gremory. That's a Demon of old. She's nothing like Grayfia, Sirzechs or me. She will hurt you and she'll enjoy every second of it. Being Rias' Queen will offer you no protection - trust me. That thing will only ever look at you as a disposable tool or a source of entertainment. Under no circumstances are you to approach or talk to her. Do you understand me?"

Akeno wordlessly nodded and her finger slowly slipped out of his jacket. He felt a pang of sympathy for her - he didn't mean to use such a strict commanding voice - but Gremory could not be trusted to be left around children it was unrelated to, especially not vulnerable ones like Akeno. If that monster sensed even an iota of negative thoughts being sent its way, if it ever felt a wisp of jealousy or resentment from Akeno, it could drive the poor girl insane with nothing but its words if it wanted to.

And crush on him aside, Ichigo would be damned before he let his own Bishop hurt an innocent girl who already had so much emotional baggage.

Again, the urge to lay a comforting hand on her shoulder came to him, but for the same reason as last time, he stopped himself. He had already drawn a line, and though he entertained her with conversation and indulged her as a sort of reward, he wasn't willing to take it any further. One, because it would be wholly inappropriate and two...

Around them, the aquarium brightened unnaturally.

Ichigo closed his eyes and let out a knowing breath as sapphire light spread through the water, turning the glass walls into shimmering curtains of blue. Beyond them, the kelp began growing, its long fronds unfurling toward the ceiling while little blooms of color opened along the coral beds. The fish scattered through the sudden abundance, their bodies swelling with fresh vitality, and somewhere beneath the floor, the enormous ray buried in the sand stirred with a low, contented sound.

Akeno looked around in wonder as a cool breeze brushed through the room, carrying the unmistakable scent of the sea.

Oh Lucifer...

Pinching the bridge of his nose, Ichigo said, “Himejima, you should go back to the others. I think dinner will be served soon.”

And before she could get a word out…

“Dinner does sound lovely, does it not, beloved?”

He opened his eyes to find Tiamat entering through the opposite doorway, and his exasperation promptly fell away to a much different, much darker feeling.

She wore a short black robe that ended high upon her thighs, the silk moving over her skin with each unhurried step. Its belt had been tied so loosely and with so little effort at modesty that the entirety of her cleavage was left visible as her breasts swayed with the movement of her hips.

Habitually, Ichigo’s eyes went up and down her lithe form, drinking in the sight of her.

But as much as he appreciated the sight – and he most certainly did – he knew perfectly well that this little entrance had not been arranged solely for his benefit.

Her ocean-blue eyes remained fixed upon him as she approached, her pupils narrowed into thin serpentine slits. Draconic power thrummed beneath her skin, gentle enough to fill the aquarium with life and possessive enough that Ichigo could feel the territorial intention behind every step. She came to a stop before him, lifted one hand to the back of his head and pulled him into a kiss.

And whatever mild protest he might have considered making disappeared when her tongue slipped between his lips.

Ichigo’s arms wound around her waist almost immediately, pulling her against him as his own Demonic instincts stirred in delighted answer. Her fingers tightened in his hair, and he kissed her back with enough enthusiasm that the disapproving part of his mind found itself very firmly outvoted.

She was his. Always and forever his. She was warm and soft against him, her familiar presence flooding their bond, and for several indulgent seconds he saw no reason whatsoever to concern himself with anything else.

However, when she finally withdrew with a satisfied hum, he remembered they had company.

“Come, beloved,” Tiamat said, taking his hand. “You have kept me waiting quite long enough.”

Ichigo gave her a dark look, although it was somewhat undermined by the way his eyes lingered upon her lips. Through their bond, he felt her amusement curl around him like a cool current, entirely unrepentant, and he allowed her to pull him toward the doorway.

But before they reached it, he glanced over his shoulder.

Akeno stood where he had left her, her hands clasped tightly before her skirt and her expression painfully still. The blush had faded from her face, and the sight of the stricken emotion in her eyes took some of the pleasure from his own.

“Like I said, Himejima,” he told her, more neutrally this time, “you should go back to the others.”

She nodded after a moment, although he could feel the effort it took her, and Ichigo turned away with a quiet coldness.

How very silly of him…

He had warned Akeno of monsters, and for a brief moment, he had actually managed to forget he was the greatest monster of all. And that Tiamat herself was mother to so many.

But then, wasn’t that what drew him to Tiamat in the first place? It wasn’t just her beauty that stood out even amongst the supernatural. No – it was that arrogance, that unflinching confidence coupled with ferocious savagery.

Yes… as savage and cruel as the sword that was his soul.

=======

Ichigo lay entirely nude on the bed; his upper body raised against the pillows with his hands folded behind his head. His bedroom was cool and filled with the scent of sea salt. The only light came from the low lamps along the walls and the faint blue glow that still clung to Tiamat’s eyes from the aquarium below.

She was stretched out on her stomach between his legs, ankles crossed and feet idly swaying in the air. Her white hair spilled over one shoulder as she worked him with her mouth, lips sealed around the head of his member while her breasts were pressed together around the rest of him, soft and heavy and slick with saliva. Every slow drag of her tongue drew a low sound from his chest. He watched the way her shoulders shifted, the deliberate roll of her hips against the mattress as she took him deeper, unhurried and thorough.

When he came, it was with a quiet, bitten-off curse. And Tiamat didn’t pull away; she swallowed around him, throat working once, then twice, before she finally drew back. Her tongue slid out, slow and deliberate, catching what little remained at the corner of her mouth.

And all the while, she held his gaze.

Ichigo reached down and patted the top of her head, the pads of his fingers gently massaging through her hair.

“Good girl.”

The look she gave him could have sundered the sky, but she said nothing. She simply pushed herself up onto her hands and knees, crawled forward, and swung a leg over his hips until she was straddling him. And as her weight settled against his abdomen – still glaring down at him, pupils narrowed to slits – Ichigo chuckled and ran one hand down the curve of her spine.

There was still anger in her gaze, a Dragon’s furious sense of territorial possessiveness. But he was used to it now, in fact, he even enjoyed it. And it wouldn’t be wrong to say she liked it too.

He tilted his head and met her glare with amusement. “Was that really necessary?”

Tiamat’s chin lifted haughtily and a low growl rumbled through her chest, more vibration than sound, and she braced her hands on either side of his head.

“I told you,” she said, voice low and edged, “she would learn what it means to try and snatch from a dragon’s clutches.”

She then traced a nail from the hollow of his throat all the way down his chest and abdomen. And firmly – almost a little too firmly – she grasped his length and guided him to her entrance.

“And beloved, now that your war is ended, your little witch shall learn the same lesson too.”

He raised a single eyebrow; that was a frightening thought. But, at the same time, he didn’t really have a problem with Tiamat asserting her dominance, not on Gremory of all people.

She then sank down in one slow, deliberate motion. The tight heat of her walls drew a rough hum from Ichigo’s throat; her own breath caught, a sharp little whimper that only further aroused his hunger for her.

And for one frustrating moment, she stayed perfectly still, fully seated, her eyes still locked on his. Ichigo’s hands then slid to her waist, thumbs resting just above the curve of her hips. He gave her a small, crooked smile even as his eyes burned crimson.

“At the very least,” he said with a dark laugh, “we get a round of angry sex out of it.”

Tiamat’s only answer was another growl, low and possessive, as she began to move.

=======

Kuroka’s ears twitched as Vali drew another heavy breath and slowly pushed himself upright, his remaining hand clenched in the sheets. She immediately leaned forward to help, but the stubborn idiot shook his head before she could touch him. Honestly, would accepting a little care kill him?

But she held her tongue as she watched him settle against the pillows, relief loosening the knot beneath her ribs. The molten veins were gone, and his magic finally felt like his own again. He looked exhausted, pale and terribly diminished… but better.

And for now, Kuroka could be grateful for that much.

“Well, look who’s back from the dead!”

She threw an annoyed look at Bikou’s flippant address, but at the same time, she couldn’t find it in herself to be really angry. The monkey Yōkai had really helped them out, saving them from the Satans’ retribution and Vali’s life as well.

Bikou ran a hand through his brown hair and prodded Vali with his tail, but the half-Devil only gave him a slight glare in response before letting out a deep sigh and closing his eyes in thought.

Kuroka frowned at the sight – he had already been laconic as it was, but after losing his arm and going through whatever nightmares Satan’s miasma poisoned his mind with… he was practically mute now. He spoke at most three or four words a day.

“Well,” Bikou began, “the good news is that you’re free of Satan’s poison. The bad news is that the old man refuses to regrow your arm.”

“Don’t be ungrateful.”

And Kuroka nearly fell to the ground as a monstrous and crushing weight fell onto her shoulders, a surge of might that she knew all too well could rip her apart with little to no effort. And not just her – the others braced themselves as well as the sheer gravity of the presence threatened to tear them asunder.

Her eyes shifted to Vali and concern bloomed within her as he immediately began sweating and the veins under his skin bulged as he strained himself in his weakened state to stay conscious.

“I have done more than warranted, unfilial child.”

Golden light erupted through the ceiling, and she could feel the cosmic attention of one of the most powerful, if not the most powerful, Senjutsu masters in existence.

She slowly clasped both of her hands together and gave a slight bow. “Praise the Great Victorious Fighting Buddha.”

There was a small pause that was quickly followed by Bikou’s outraged exclamation, “Oi, old man! Don’t make my friends worship you.”

The corner of her eye twitched as she considered knocking Bikou over the head. She wasn’t worshiping the legendary Sun Wukong! She was trying to keep them all from getting killed!

But the Golden Heavens snorted in contempt.

“Unfilial brat, see how others treat your elders with more veneration than you yourself do? Have you no shame? Even after I have treated your friends and provided you sanctuary, you still dare to voice a grievance? I should burn your body and reincarnate your soul into a snail.”

Bikou angrily shook a fist toward the Empyrean Light and yelled back, “Yeah, well, if you’re so great why can’t you give Vali back his arm?”

“I shall do no such thing, let the lesson stand. The confounded pride of Lucifer – child, you may bear the Vanishing Emperor but you would do well to remember you are not his equal! Even now, as we speak, I am shielding you from Satan’s wroth gaze. But know this, your time in my shadow is limited. Make of it what you can, ere the Moon Slayer finds you in his grasp!”

Kuroka’s chest tightened with worry at the Great Sage’s proclamation. Honestly, how did things even get to this point? Shirone was currently under Satan-sama’s protection, considering he had taken the Gremory princess under his wing. And while she didn’t know him on a deep personal level, everything she did learn about the man pointed at him being a decent fellow. Well, as decent as a Demon could be.

But she knew, at the very least, her baby sister would be safe and could grow up secure in his shadow. Especially given how Infernity was shaping up to be a haven for the various non-Devil species in the Underworld.

She wanted to sigh even as a twinge of regret filled her. If only he had existed ten years earlier, she could have been living peacefully with Shirone in the Underworld if Infernity had existed back then. But, at the same time, her eyes drifted to the strained young man on the bed…

Vali, oh Vali… why did you have to go and make enemies with the one Demon who was welcoming of Yōkai? You and your damnable need for power and conflict! And me and my horrible taste in men…

But she was broken from her sorrows as Bikou once again began to blaspheme against the legendary Monkey King.

“Well if you can’t give Vali his arm back, can you at least beat the crap out of that damn Demon King!?”

At that, Vali looked up and glared heatedly, his eyes burning with a baleful, sulfuric yellow. “He’s mine.”

But the Golden Heavens ignored him and said, “The Dark Lord’s power swells as he walks the Steps of the Stormcrown, and he does so to counter the haunting shadows of the Infinite Ouroboros. The Heavenly Courts have decreed that none shall impede the path laid forth, for he is a vital shield ‘gainst the horror that festers. And none too wish to earn the ire of the Red Destroyer.”

Kuroka’s brows furrowed at the words; most of that didn’t even make sense to her.

“What?” Bikou said, giving voice to her own thoughts. “What does that even mean, old man?”

“Unfilial child, avoid the Earth. A sickness has come.”

=======

“Good night, Dad,” Yuzu said, pausing beside the sofa while Karin continued toward the stairs.

“Night. Don’t fall asleep down here again,” Karin added over her shoulder.

Isshin waved them off with a huff. “Such little faith in your father! Sleep well, girls.”

He waited until their footsteps faded upstairs before settling deeper into the cushions and returning his attention to the television. The newscaster was delivering grim news about some new virus that was making its way through the French countryside. He leaned forward with his eyes narrowed as he picked through the details of the hospital footage. So far, doctors had recorded widespread cases involving painful stomach cramps, severe body aches and unusual green scaly-rashes spreading across patients’ arms and legs.

Isshin frowned at a photograph of the discoloration. He couldn’t recall seeing anything quite like that, and the growing number of hospital admissions certainly wasn’t encouraging.

Rubbing his beard, he let out a weary breath. “Yeesh. Hope it’s not another pandemic! I’m still dealing with the stress of the last one!”

=======

A/N: A plague on both your houses!

And with this, things have spilled over into the human world. There was a lot of focus on Rias and Akeno in this chapter, but I thought it'd be a disservice to their character arcs to ignore them - and the tournament that got so rudely intterupted. Also, I did feel that for the last several chapters, Tiamat's motherly aspects had taken control of her scenes. It's good for her Chaos Karma aspects to show up every now and then remind the story that yes, she is very dangerous and cruel. Not just the grieving mother.

This was another very long chapter 12k words, so I did use AI to edit and do a grammar/spell check. If you notice any irregularities or mistakes, please let me know!

Have a lovely weekend!

Ichigo projecting Eternity