School had come to its end, though not without its own fair share of problems. Midterms were quickly approaching in response to the upcoming Golden Week, and the weather was horrible. Rain had begun to spill out onto the city, coating the ground in puddles and in a thin sheet of water. Many had come unprepared and lacked umbrellas, forcing them to rush through or use their own bags as makeshift shields.
Neither Haru or Aika had left yet. They had made a quick trip to the Nurse's Office, which had been devoid of any life, save for one. Asia Argento was sleeping peacefully on one of the vacant cots available. Her face was peaceful, if perhaps a little drowsy and tired with dark rings under her eyes. Her skin was clammy, and deathly pale.
"I thought by now she'd look better." Aika remarked as she and Haru stood by her bedside. The female pervert looked at Asia's sleeping form with worry, hands clenched together. "I know I said she'd be in good hands, but... She IS going to be fine, right?"
"She has to be." Haru replied, though it hardly sounded convincing. It was far too weak, and it sounded like he was trying to convince himself more than anyone else. "She's gotta get better."
Honestly, it hurt him to see her like this. They had gone through so much trouble to save her. He had even killed someone to save her and nearly died as a result. Rias said she would be fine, but her condition only seemed to get worse. At first, he thought she was sick, but every time he gently touched her skin, he noted how cold she felt. It was like the warmth was being sucked out of her body.
He wished he knew what was happening to her. At least then, he'd be able to do something. Or at least try to do something.
Perhaps as a result of their talking, Asia's eyes trembled for a moment before they opened. Her eyes, compared to their usual vibrant luster, were somewhat glossed over as if covered by a thin film. "Oh..." she said tiredly. "Haru-san... Aika-chan..."
"Oh!" Aika winced. "I'm sorry! Did we wake you up?"
"No, I was waking up… please don't concern yourselves..." She smiled.
"Sorry, we didn't mean to be noisy..."
"It's fine..."
Haru couldn't help but notice just how tired she sounded. She looked so weak. Was this because she was strapped into that machine for too long? "Are you okay?" he asked. "Do you need anything?"
"No… I'm just… kind of sleepy..." Her eyes struggled to stay awake. "I'm sorry..."
"Hey, it's fine!" Aika leaned over, pulling the covers over her when she noticed they were starting to fall off. "Take all the time you need. And hey, when you feel better, you and I are on for a shopping trip. We still have to show you around town!"
The nun smiled weakly. "I'd… like that..." she said before her eyes closed again and fell asleep again.
Haru sighed as he slumped in his seat. Aika shared his sentiments while she looked at Asia's face. She seemed to be getting more pale by the day. While Haru had filled her in on what she missed, she still couldn't help but feel like there was something she was missing here.
"Let's give her some rest." Aika said, pulling away from the bed. "We should probably get back home. I imagine your hot wife's dying to have her hubby back home." In spite of the teasing, even Haru could tell that she wasn't putting any actual effort into it. The situation just felt too somber, too depressing.
Giving one last look at Asia, Haru stood up and put the stool back where it belonged before he followed Aika out the door. When they pulled the door open, they were met with two familiar faces. "Kiba?" Haru asked in surprise, recognizing the Devils. "Gremory-senpai?"
"I thought I saw you two heading here." the female redhead smiled thinly, not quite matching her eyes. "It's been a while since we last spoke, Namikaze-kun."
"Y-Yeah..." Haru chuckled, scratching his cheek. Now that he thought about it, barring that time when they were about to rescue Asia and take out the Stray Exorcists, the only actual time they talked was when she and Sona were filling him in on the whole situation. And that had also been when Tamamo had more or less put her claws to their necks and threatened to kill them. "Um, about Tama-chan, I'm really sorry."
"No, no. She was perfectly in the right. The world has changed since the last time she was here. We honestly should have expected this kind of behavior, really." Rias waved a hand. "More importantly, how are you two doing? This last week has been quite stressful. Especially to you, Namikaze-kun."
That had been putting it mildly. It was still hard to believe that this whole mess started because Raynare tried to kill him. It didn't feel like a week to him at all. If anything, it felt like months. With so much that happened, it didn't even seem like only a few days passed. So much had happened, he summoned Tamamo, nearly got killed… again, actually DID get killed, and killed another person.
He still hadn't felt bad about killing Freed, oddly. Not even so much as a bad dream. Was that bad? Was it a sign that he secretly enjoyed killing someone?
… No, couldn't be.
"I think we're doing fine, all things considered." Aika admitted as she rubbed the back of her neck. "I'm just glad this idiot here's okay. Last thing I need is to see his dead body." A pause, then a grin. "Then again, I wouldn't mind getting a nice good look at him making a new one if it's going to pop up naked. I won't ask how the hell you do that, but if you did it on purpose, you certainly gave us a show."
Haru's cheeks burned and his face fell in his hands. "Can we maybe not talk about that?" he begged pitifully. "Please."
Yuuto chuckled. "You two seem close," he noted.
Aika shook her head. "Nah, we're just close acquaintances and fellow pervs. Whereas he's interested in boobs, I'm more of a third leg kind of guy?"
"Third leg?" the blonde prince asked, confused at first. Aika gave him a lecherous grin, and then it struck him. When it did, his cheeks turned scarlet. " Oh ."
"Anyway, I'll be getting out of your hair now." the human girl said, shifting her bag up to her shoulder. "See you later, Namikaze. Let me know if something happens with Asia, yeah?"
"Sure." Haru nodded. Aika smiled and then walked away, vanishing from sight. Once she was gone, Haru breathed a sigh of relief. "I can never get a beat on that girl to save my life."
"She does seem free-spirited." Rias noted. "That, and I have this feeling she and Akeno would get along splendidly. They practically live to tease."
"Hey, senpai. About Asia... She is going to be okay, right?" Rias fell quiet. Yuuto himself lost any and all warmth in his face, suddenly unable to look the younger redhead in the eyes. Haru noticed this and quickly became concerned. "Seriously, she's going to be fine, right? You guys know some healing magic, right?"
The red head woman gave a heavy sigh before she looked at Haru, as in really looked at him. When she did, he couldn't help but notice the sorrow in those icy blue eyes. "Namikaze-kun... I'm sorry, but at the rate this is going, Asia will..."
She didn't finish, but he knew what she meant. A cold chill suddenly grabbed him by the throat, sucking away all the warmth in his body and replacing it with dread. "W-What do you mean by that?" he asked shakily. "What's wrong with her?!"
"The machine she was strapped to had been attempting to tear her Sacred Gear out of her body." Yuuto said, his tone full of mirth. "A Sacred Gear is tied directly to a person's soul. If the Sacred Gear is removed completely, then it would be the same as tearing the soul apart. That person would die."
"But-but you got her out of it before it could, right?!"
"We did, yes, but the process was not without its own repercussions. The damage that's been done to her soul... No amount of healing will be able to fix it." Haru stared at her in disbelief, even as she looked at him with that grim expression on her face. "I'm sorry, but...
"Asia Argento will not live past the week."
"... What...?" Haru whispered in shock. His brain still tried to process this revelation. Even after all they did… Asia was still going to...
"I'm sorry." Rias said to him again, though he barely even heard her as his head fell and stared at the floor. "I truly am sorry, Namikaze-kun."
She walked past him, shooting him a sorrowful gaze before retreating down the hall. Yuuto bowed his head, clearly showing his sympathies to Haru before he followed his King. The redhead stood there in place, frozen and unable to move. For a good few minutes, the only sound he could hear was the tapping of rain drops against the windows.
"... This isn't fair."