As Irumi began to eat, the savory broth warming her, a soft knock sounded at the door. Akeno rose gracefully to answer it. Standing in the hallway was Koneko Toujou, the petite, white-haired first-year, her expression as impassive as ever, though her golden eyes held a flicker of concern.
"Toujou?" Irumi blinked in surprise, seeing the usually aloof girl.
Koneko stepped inside, her gaze sweeping over Irumi, assessing. She gave a soft, barely audible hum, a sound that somehow conveyed "You seem alright."
"Koneko," Akeno chided gently, "no need for such coldness. Irumi has been through an ordeal."
"The President asked me to check on her status," Koneko stated simply, her voice a quiet monotone. She took a step closer to the bed, her eyes lingering on Irumi's arm, as if sensing something.
"Dragon," she stated flatly, pointing.
Akeno smiled. "It seems Irumi possesses a Dragon-based Sacred Gear." Irumi nodded in confirmation.
"Toujou," Irumi asked, curiosity overcoming her initial surprise, "are you… a devil too?"
"Yes," Koneko replied, her single word hanging in the air. She made a slight movement as if to leave.
"Why don't you join us?" Akeno offered quickly, gesturing to the tray. "There's plenty."
Koneko hesitated for a fraction of a second, then gave a tiny nod. She retrieved another chair, sitting with her usual quiet poise. The lunch continued, the atmosphere shifting from the intensity of revelation to something quieter, almost normal.
They spoke of mundane things—school clubs, upcoming tests, favorite foods. Akeno skillfully steered the conversation towards lighter topics, sharing stories, drawing out Irumi's dreams of studying music and Koneko's quiet passion for pastries, candies and anything sweet related.
It was a fragile moment of connection, a bridge between the horrifying reality of the night before and the uncertain future. For Irumi, the simple act of eating and talking with peers, even under these bizarre circumstances, felt grounding, a reminder of the life she was fighting to protect.
Sometimes the best thing to do with someone that has lost has much as Irumu, but even Akeno... Koneko. Talking. Talking about the weather, the bizzarre, the mundane and the unimportant. It reminded that life continued to go on no matter what.
As long as you kept breathing no matter how many times you fell, you could always stand up again.
As the meal concluded and the conversation lulled, a powerful resolve surged within Irumi. The talk of protection, of power, of becoming a devil to fight… it crystallized. She pushed aside the tray and swung her legs over the side of the bed.
"Ito, what are—?" Akeno started, concern flashing in her eyes.
But Irumi was already moving, fueled by adrenaline and unwavering determination. She ignored the stiffness, the pull of bandages, and strode purposefully out of the room, leaving Akeno and Koneko exchanging a look of startled comprehension.
04/11/2012, Occult Research Club, After School
Sona and Rias were in the middle of an heated discussion with Makoto quietly looking at them, his hands in his pockets. It wasn't a discussion that needed his intervention, actually he asked how Irumi was doing, but he never received an answer as Sona immediately started fighting with her best friend.
'Children. Just obnoxious children.' Lucifer commented unamused. Then frantic footsteps were heard by Makoto, footsteps directed towards the Occult Research Club.
Irumi burst through the door of the Occult Research Club, her chest heaving slightly, the bandages visible beneath her slightly disheveled uniform.
"President Gremory! I want to become a devil!" Shw shouted.
Her eyes scanned the room, landing first on Rias Gremory, who sat behind her ornate desk, then flicking to the unexpected figures of Makoto Yuki and Sona Sitri.
Her fierce momentum faltered instantly, replaced by a wave of mortification. 'Why is Senpai Yuki here? And the Student Council President! What have I done…?'
Her gaze darted from Makoto's calm presence to Sona's sharp, assessing look.
'Senpai Himejima said Student President Sona was a devil too… Oh god, did I just announce it to everyone?'
Rias, who had been beaming with unusual brightness, looked momentarily taken aback by the sudden entrance, then her expression softened into genuine warmth upon seeing Irumi.
"Ito! I'm so glad you're on your feet!" she exclaimed, rising slightly. "Let me just finish speaking with Sona and Yuki, and I'll be right with you, okay?" Her tone was reassuring, trying to smooth over the abruptness.
Sona, however, was not placated. She turned back to Rias, her glasses glinting. "Rias, this is far from 'over' or 'well'. We will discuss this later. In detail."
Her voice was icy, the promise of a thorough debriefing hanging in the air. With a final, pointed look that encompassed both Rias and the bewildered Irumi, Sona turned on her heel and strode out of the clubroom, the door clicking shut with firm finality behind her.
Makoto's gaze shifted from the departing Sitri heir to Irumi. His grey eyes held their usual calm, but with an underlying intensity.
"Are you alright?" he asked, his voice low and steady. Then, referencing her explosive entrance: "And… becoming a devil? What was that about?"
Irumi flushed crimson. She stammered, words tangling on her tongue. 'What do I say? How do I explain? I completely messed up!' Her eyes darted desperately to Rias, silently pleading for intervention.
"He already knows the basics, Ito," came Akeno's voice, calm and amused, as she entered the room behind Irumi, having followed her from the infirmary. "About the supernatural, about the attack."
"What!?" Irumi whirled around, eyes wide. She looked back at Makoto, scrutinizing him anew. "But Senpai… you're not a devil? Are you… are you an angel? Or…?"
The gears in her head turned frantically. If humans had power, it was usually Sacred Gears, according to Ddraig and Akeno. But Makoto felt… different.
"Or maybe… you aren't human at all!?" The question burst out, laced with shock and burgeoning curiosity.
Makoto simply shook his head, a faint, almost imperceptible smile touching his lips.
"Yuki here is… quite unique," Akeno supplied, a knowing smile playing on her own lips as she moved to stand near Rias's desk. "We were rather surprised ourselves when we learned the extent of it." Her cryptic answer only deepened Irumi's confusion. She looked utterly lost.
'Partner,' Ddraig's voice suddenly resonated within her mind, sharp and disapproving. 'I do not like this boy. His aura… it's wrong. Alien. I strongly advise limiting your interaction with him.'
'WHAT?' Irumi mentally shouted back, incredulous. 'Senpai Yuki saved my club! He's always been kind! He helped fight that monster! You can't be serious!'
'Trust my instincts on this, partner,' Ddraig insisted, his mental tone brooking no argument. 'He is dangerous.'
'I said no, Ddraig!' Irumi's mental retort was firm, fueled by loyalty and her own perception of Makoto. 'He's my friend!'
Makoto, Rias, and Akeno watched as Irumi seemed to space out, her expression shifting rapidly from confusion to internal conflict, her gaze fixed somewhere beyond the room. "Irumi?" Rias asked gently, leaning forward slightly. "Is everything alright?"
Irumi snapped back to the present, a look of frustrated determination on her face. "No. Senpai," she said, turning directly to Makoto, "you and Ddraig need to talk. Now. He says you're dangerous, but I obviously don't believe him!" Before anyone could react, she focused inward.
'Ddraig! How do I summon you? Properly!'
'If you insist on this folly, partner… very well,' Ddraig's voice grumbled, laced with reluctance. 'But do not say I didn't warn you.'
A sudden surge of power filled the room. A complex, crimson gauntlet materialized around Irumi's right arm and shoulder, intricate designs etched into its surface, a large, green jewel glowing with contained energy at its center.
"Ddraig?" Akeno breathed, recognition dawning.
"The Red Dragon Emperor?" Rias gasped, her hand flying to her mouth, violet eyes wide with shock. "You… you are the Red Dragon Empress of this era!?"
Both Rias and Akeno spoke simultaneously, their voices a mixture of awe and stunned realization. An immense wave of relief washed over Rias, so profound it visibly loosened the tension in her shoulders. She sank back into her armchair, a long, silent sigh escaping her.
'This… this is beyond anything I hoped for. The potential… the power… and she wants to join us. The burden… it lifts.' The weight of her responsibilities, the constant pressure to strengthen her peerage, seemed to momentarily ease.
"Greetings," Ddraig's deep, resonant voice emanated from the glowing green jewel, filling the clubroom. It held a distinct edge of hostility. "I am Y Ddraig Goch. And you, blue-haired human? Who are you?" The question was directed solely at Makoto, a challenge.
Before Makoto could answer, an insistent, metallic whine echoed within his mind.
'Universe! Waiiiit!' Fafnir's synthesized voice screeched with unusual urgency.
'What's the matter?' Makoto queried calmly.
'I feeeel him! My good old buddy Goch! Inside the Magician!' Fafnir's excitement was palpable, even mentally.
'The entity you sense is not the Ddraig you knew, Lizard,' Odin's measured voice interjected.
'Silence, old maaan!' Fafnir retorted aggressively. 'I just want to seeee who this Goch is in thiiis world!'
'Very well,' Makoto conceded internally. He met Ddraig's challenge through the jewel.
"My name is Makoto Yuki," he stated evenly. "And I believe there's someone here who wishes to speak with you." He reached into his blazer pocket.
"Senpai!" Irumi yelped, eyes wide with alarm as Makoto pulled out the sleek, silver form of his Evoker. "What are you doing with a gun!?"
"This isn't a gun," Makoto replied simply. In one fluid motion, he raised the Evoker to his temple and pulled the trigger. The sharp crack echoed in the room, not of gunfire, but of shattering mental barriers.
Reality seemed to warp momentarily. Behind Makoto, towering nearly to the ceiling, materialized a figure of gleaming, dark metal. It was a dragon, but unlike any natural creature—a cybernetic marvel of articulated plates, piston-like limbs, glowing red optical sensors, and jagged, black horns that scraped the plaster overhead.
Steam hissed from vents in its armored torso, and a complex display panel pulsed with yellow light on its chest. Fafnir, the Evil Voracious Dragon of the Hermit Arcana, loomed in the confined space, his metallic bulk radiating an aura of ancient power and mechanical menace.
"I am Thou, Thou art I," Fafnir's voice boomed, a deep, synthesized bass layered with grinding gears and hydraulic hisses. "From the Universe in thy Soul I am born. I am the screeching sound of infernal machines. I am the greed that doomed the dwarves and made Asgard tremble. I am Fafnir."
The glowing red optics fixed on the Boosted Gear.
"And I have come… to salute a deeeear buddy." The synthesized voice held an unmistakable, almost childlike joy, reflected in the pulsing yellow heart-light on his chest.