It's been about a year or 2 since I joined the site and I haven't finished a single story. With that fact, I've decided that I will finish this story before I publish any new stories. Not sure what's going to be entailed by me saying that but just don't expect any new stories till this one is done.

Also, I want to thank everyone for their support as I haven't said anything yet. To think that this story would break 200+ for follows and favs wasn't something I ever anticipated for this story when I first wrote it. While the journey for this story is a little bit over the halfway mark, I wanna continue to have a fun time writing. Anyways, let's get on to the story.

Chapter 16: A Dance with Her

Issei sat alone in one of his hidden rooms and was currently staring at a whiteboard…again. He decided that the person that he would propose to next was Xenovia, as it just felt right to him. Why? He didn't know, himself. His gut just said to choose her.

"Now…what's a good idea? Can't take her to skiing, Asia went. Koneko went to a festival. Now what?" Issei had been asking himself that question for the past 4 hours.

Draig just face-palmed at his lack of progress. Sure, the guy could think quick in a fight, but with romance, he was kind of hopeless at times.

"Partner, what about the dance that's coming up?" The Dragon suggested.

"Dance?" Issei raised a brow. What dance?

"Y'know…" The Dragon waited for Issei to catch on.

"Uh…" Issei elongated the sound, waiting for Draig to point things out.

"The formal Dance at school?!" Draig sighed.

The event had slipped his mind. There was supposed to be a formal dance party that the new Student Council had proposed for Valentine's Day. It had originally been planned by the old Council but the new one decided to finish the preparations and make it happen.

"Oh, riiiiight!" Issei enunciated in a dumbstruck revelation.

"Seriously, how could you forget?" Draig reprimanded him.

"I can't help it! I was too busy trying to plan out the next proposal!" Issei fired back.

"Now's your chance, Partner! This is the perfect setup for a proposal!" Draig encouraged him, speaking as if he was motivating his host into battle.

"Right!" Issei spoke with flames in his eyes.

The gauntlet had once again been thrown and he had picked it up.

"Now that I said that…I have to scrap all of my ideas now." Issei sighed, breaking the excited traction he made.

"Why did you have to kill the flow?" His dragon partner groaned.

Later that day, Issei looked into what was going on at the event, using his connection to Saji.

"Hey, so I need a favor." Issei spoke to his fellow Pawn.

"What's up?"

"I need to know the sorts of activities that are being planned for the Dance." He plainly spoke.

For the next while, he wrote down everything that Saji told him to the exact detail. However, he had to promise Saji a favor, which, he assumed would be coming in the near future.

The next day, Issei found Xenovia in her room, studying, as that was what Irina told him. When he asked her, he was met with another incident.

"Hm? You want to see Xenovia? Why don't you come to my room instead, Darling?" Irina pressed herself against him and whispered into his ear with a husky voice, breathing with a low voice, making Issei's spine shiver. She lightly licked his ear while moaning sensually as she pressed Issei's hand to...something.

He sneaked a peek at his watch and saw that Irina was going through a personality-switch again.

Crack.

That sound alone was enough to warn Issei of what was behind him. His watch also turned dark pink, with a blaring light flashing.

"Irina-chan…what are you doing with my Issei?" Akeno's voice crawled to their ears as Issei began to sweat cold bullets. She made sure to emphasize 'my' to get the point across that she wasn't going to share.

He turned his head around with a creak and froze when he looked in her eyes. There was a lot less light in her eyes, a sure-tell sign for him to immediately get away from Irina. He snaked out of Irina's grasp and scooted away to a reclining chair.

"Nothing at all!" Issei's voice cracked in fear.

"I'd hope so. If something, say, overly intimate were to be going on…I might do something I would regret. Ufufufufufufu." Akeno grinned with a disturbed expression. Her brows furrowed and a dangerous glint flickered in her eyes.

Issei narrowed his eyes to her side and they widened to the size of saucers when he saw lightning beginning to crackle in her hand. He gulped. The room went silent before Akeno closed her eyes as she turned and walked away, not even losing her smile.

He sighed in relief. If he hadn't made any of the girls hide the fact that he was engaged to them, he was most likely to have been killed by now. He saw too much anime and played too many visual novels to not know how things go with yanderes.

'Wait…' A long and agonizing pause ensued in Issei's subconscious.

'Does this mean?'

'That she knows everything?!' Draig finished for him.

'Given their nature. There's no way that Yandere Akeno would not know about what I've been up to. Then again, she may have stopped watching me after I confiscated her equipment.' Issei mused.

He walked upstairs and shook his head to clear away his negative and fearful thoughts. He would have to worry about yandere Akeno later…er, if he lived that long.

He knocked on Xenovia's door, receiving a polite reply.

"Who is it?"

"It's Issei."

"I-Issei? Give me a moment."

Issei heard rummaging come from the other side, specifically, the sound of a door being crammed shut. What was up with that?

The door slowly opened to reveal Xenovia looking rather flushed and unsettled. Her hair was a bit of a mess, with locks of hair sticking in different directions.

"Is something wrong?" Issei asked, curious yet confused.

"No. Nothing is wrong. Did you need something?" Xenovia cleared her throat.

"So, I heard that the School Dance is next week?"

"Yes. It's supposed to happen at 6:00 pm. Why? Did you need to know more?" Xenovia went on.

She felt her heartbeat speed up when Issei got onto that topic.

'What's he getting to? Is he g-g-g-g-going to ask me out to the Dance?' She stuttered in her mind.

"So, you found a date yet?" Issei paused as his sheepish smile melted into a darkish look of realization.

'Wow…real smoooooth, Issei.' He snarked at himself.

"No. What about you?" Xenovia asked, her heart festering hope.

"I did." He spoke plainly.

Those two little words made Xenovia look down in disappointment. To be honest, she had been approached by several guys, who were eager to ask her out to the dance. She had been holding out for Issei to ask, hanging on to a little seed of hope that he would pick her for the Dance. As the Student Council President, she felt it was her duty to show up and make sure things proceeded smoothly at the event.

Now that Issei said that, she felt her hopes get smashed.

"She's standing in front of me." He added with a sly smile.

Xenovia snapped up to look at him, dumbfounded.

"Eh?"

"That's only if you want to go as my date, though." Issei scratched his cheek in embarrassment.

This wasn't the smoothest date proposal but he swore that the engagement proposal would be better!

Xenovia smiled brightly as her original emotions of disappointment and angst were replaced with joy and relief.

"Yes." She happily agreed.

Issei felt like he'd been punched in a positive way when Xenovia smiled at him. It was so pure and ecstatic. How could he stay calm with that?

"G-Great. Then, it's a plan. We'll leave for the Dance next week." He nodded.

"Yeah!" Xenovia agreed with gusto as Issei left.

As he walked away, his heart began to finally calm down from its short run. He had to admit, at first, he didn't like Xenovia much at all. She was pretty, yes, but she was too overbearing and arrogant at their first meeting. The anger he felt when she insulted Asia and wished to execute her, was something that made his blood boil.

However, when comparing now to then, his views of her had hit a total 180.

Inside of her room, with her back against the door, Xenovia smiled to herself as she walked over to her closet. Opening it gingerly, she looked inside and found herself looking at an elegant cobalt blue dress. It was sleeveless, and almost reached her ankles. Golden lines decorated the dress, almost cascading around it in eye-catching detail. The dress had been a gift from Rias, who encouraged her to attend such events to expand her horizons, (while also hoping to push her along with advancing things with Issei).

"Still, I wonder if I actually look good in this." She sighed.

She then shook her head. She shouldn't be having these thoughts now. Matters were already decided, the best she could do now was to retain her composure

Issei, on the other hand, was in his now-named, "Plan Room", making calls and arranging events to occur. He was now on a roll and he wasn't going to stop. Looks like it was going to be another all-nighter for him now.

Weeks went by, and the night of the Dance had arrived. The other girls of the Harem had stepped aside, deciding that they'd give Xenovia a chance to have some alone time with Issei, though everyone besides Asia and Koneko remained oblivious to what was really going on.

Xenovia walked downstairs wearing her gold and cobalt dress, with a small sword hairpin in her hair. She was spotted by the other girls, who were staying home, and proceeded to be surrounded by them.

"Uwaaah. Xenovia-san, you look so beautiful." Asia complimented her friend with her hands clasped together. Admiration was clearly shimmering in her eyes.

"Very classy. Xenovia-senpai." Koneko monotoned, but the positivity was still clearly stated.

Footsteps were heard as Issei walked forward, wearing a black suit with a red shirt and a white tie. He looked at her warmly as he extended an open hand.

"Shall we go?" He asked.

Xenovi only nodded and smiled serenely as they proceeded to walk out of the door.

"R-Remember, don't do anything obscene while you're out. Behave yourselves." Rias shyly reminded them with a bashful blush on her face.

Akeno remained silent as she waved them off.

The two got to a black limo and entered as the driver took them to Kuoh Academy.

"Issei, is it really necessary to have a limo drive us?" Xenovia questioned, feeling as if this was just too extravagant for a simple school dance.

"Of course. Walking is out of the question for this kind of etiquette and I want you to be treated like a princess, even if just once." Issei stoutly replied.

Not wanting to step on his feelings, the bluenette nodded in understanding.

"I also wanted to say, you look very beautiful in that dress. It matches your hair and your eyes. It's like gold and sapphire just clothed you." Issei commented, his approval clear.

Xenovia immediately went pink as she looked away, trying to hide her blush. Her tone also heightened a bit when she spoke. This was all the indication that Issei needed to know that she was flustered.

"T-Thank you."

Finding this new type of reaction cute, Issei only chuckled.

"What's so funny?" Xenovia asked him, feeling teased.

"Nothing. It's just that I find your behavior cute."

That was the final blow as Xenovia turned away, not wanting to let him see steam puff from her ears.

Finally, the two entered the grounds and Xenovia was utterly shocked by what was going on. Things were not supposed to be like this.

A massive white tent had been pitched on the empty grounds of the Academy. It was easily able to house a few hundred people, judging by its looks. The Academy looked turned off and completely quiet compared to the bustling bright tent.

"I thought the Dance was supposed to be in the school's gym?" She asked.

"Not sure. Let's check out the tent. Maybe we'll learn about what's going on." Issei suggested.

The two walked through the front gates and followed a white stone road that had been planted there. Candles lit the way as signs telling to follow the trail to get to the School Dance Event.

Entering through the white tent's entrance, a massive dance floor was in the middle of the room. Hundreds of tables clothed in white fabric were scattered around it. Balloons and silk streamers coiled around the walls of the tent as a bulb chandelier hung at the top of the ceiling. A large stage and sound booth were set up at the side that stood opposite to the entrance.

Xenovia spotted Saji and walked over. He was wearing a black suit with an indigo shirt and a black tie. Standing by both of his sides were

"Saji-kun! What is all of this? This was way too far out of budget?!" She demanded answers.

No one had ever let her in on this happening even though she was Student Council President.

"Well, the Headmaster of the Academy said that he was going to change the Dance's events and contents. He said that some strange donor gave a crap ton of money for the school to organize this." Saji frantically waved his hands in fear.

Xenovia glared at him, not believing his story.

"I'm serious! The Headmaster just came in and used his authority to!" Saji pleaded his case.

"It's true. Gen-chan couldn't do anything." Momo Hanakai walked over, wearing a red dress that went with her white hair.

"Sorry, Xenovia-san." Ruruko apologized as she bowed her head.

Xenovia wasn't really angry, but she was rather appalled as all of the Student Council's hard work had been for nothing,

Making a sigh, Xenovia broke her frown and made an apologetic smile.

"Sorry, Saji-kun. I didn't mean to be so high-strung with you. It's just that everybody worked so hard to prepare for the Dance's preparations."

"It's fine. Apparently, things are going to turn out real nice and fancy. Also, all of our plans remained. It's just the quality of content that's been changed." Saji smiled bitterly, trying to reassure her that he felt no resentment.

However, Saji and Issei traded knowing looks. It was actually through the collaborative works of Issei and the Student Council that this night happened. With a very generous amount of donations from his bank account, along with paying for the entire night, Issei had managed to make things go his way.

After beseeching Saji for approval to do this, he finally managed to persuade him after hours of begging. The Headmaster wasn't hard to convince after he threw about 750,000,000 Yen at him. Even though he hated to seem this way, money did have its uses.

"Well, looks like people are already starting to flood in, so we'd best get ready." Xenovia seriously spoke as the Student Council nodded.

When all of the participants gathered and sat down, Xenovia walked to the dance floor and spoke into a microphone.

"Hello, everyone. I want to thank you all for coming here tonight. As you all may know, there were sudden changes to the content of tonight's events. However, that does not mean that there has been a negative impact in any way. Therefore, I have a prepared list of events for tonight. First, there will be a sit-down dinner of extravagant preparation. Second, there will be a live band performance by a professional group. Lastly, there will be the formal dance." Xenovia announced.

With that said, Xenovia made her speech before letting everyone turn loose.

Seating herself across from Issei alone at a private table, as Issei ensured, the two waited for the food.

"I wonder who that donor was?" He faked interest, though it managed to fool, Xenovia.

"Me too. It's strange for someone to just come up and do this sort of thing. Maybe it's someone we know?" She remarked.

"Maybe. Oh well. Let's just enjoy the night." Issei waved the matter away, hoping that he wouldn't slip up and spill the beans.

Waiters entered from the entrance flap, carrying shining silver trays covered with cloches.

"For tonight, we shall have 5 course meal, starting with appetizers." The waiters explained as they revealed what the appetizers were.

It was mini-cheese quiches with salmon bites wrapped in cucumber and gyoza.

The 2nd course, Soups, were a choice of Crème Shrimp soup or Tomato soup, accompanied by garlic bread or cheese bread.

The 3rd course, Salad was either Caribbean Crab Salad or Green Salad with croutons, cranberries, tomatoes, bacon bites, and a selection of dressings.

The 4th course, the Main course, was Seared Salmon with a side of white rice and pickled vegetables or Grilled Steak with a side of cheese potatoes.

Lastly, the 5th course was dessert. The students either had a choice of Crème Brule, Strawberry shortcake, or German Chocolate Cake.

At the beginning of the course, Issei had actually broken into a sweat, feeling very nervous as to how Xenovia would take this. When he saw her reaction to him rewriting the night's events, he was very worried. It was at his reluctance to change everything in the first place, but he had been given a chance so he felt the need to seize it.

"Issei? You've been staring around for a while now. Is something wrong?" Xenovia looked at him, clearly worried.

"Er, well, I was just wondering how the food was." He fumbled his words as he internally smacked himself.

"The appetizers are well done and thoroughly cooked. I like it. The original meal plan was to have a buffet style but this makes things much more organized." She remarked, with a small smirk before taking another bite of her gyoza.

With a small exhale of relief, Issei finally began to eat. While dining, the two decided to start talking.

"So, after graduation, what do you plan to do?" Issei asked.

"I want to become the Headmistress of my own cram school. I've learned that education is a vital thing in society and it also expands one's own common sense. When I first met you, I lacked a lot of it due to growing up as a sheltered girl." Xenovia then broke into an emotional smile.

She looked at him sweetly as memories surfaced in her mind.

"After spending time with you, I've learned that there's a whole lot more in life to enjoy."

Issei cleared his throat to hide his touched expression before continuing to eat.

"What about you, Issei?" She looked at him with a worried expression.

For a long time, she worried about his future choices. The amount of time she got with him hung on what he decided to do and where he decided to go. With the other girls already vying for his attention, this already reduced a lot of her time with him, when one thought about it.

"I think I'm going to go to a university and then I'll go on to become an entrepreneur." He passively spoke. The reason behind the word 'think' was because he didn't know if he'd live for that long.

Sensing this, Xenovia put a gentle hand on his own.

"Don't worry. We'll all definitely get to the future together." She smiled.

The two later changed topics continuously whilst joyfully eating dinner. Much to Issei's surprise, he found this Xenovia to be much peppier than the real one. Running with this chain of thought, Issei found that while things were much more hectic with the Personality Ray causing fiasco side-effects, these new sides were interesting and loveable as well.

When dinner was through, the Stage was already prepared, with equipment having been discreetly set up for a band to come and play.

Xenovia was honestly surprised when she saw that it was a band that she had grown to like. When the other students saw, they were amazed to see that a professional band had willingly come to perform at their Dance.

"Hello, Kuoh Academy! Are you ready to light up your night?!" The lead singer shouted into the mic.

He was met with several shouts of excitement, kicking off the show.

Xenovia looked around and found that everyone had started to move with the flow, jumping with joy and looking on in wonder as music echoed and filled the tent. She couldn't help but feel excited as chills traveled her skin, making her tingly with adrenaline while breaking into a smile.

After a list of several songs had been played, the band ceded their stage to a small orchestra, playing a soft but energetic tune, perfect for dancing gracefully.

Issei looked around and found that pairs were already forming, which meant it was time for him to make his big move.

Extending a hand to Xenovia, he looked at her charmingly.

"Shall we?" He suggested.

Taking his hand with a smile, the two stepped onto the floor, moving with grace as they smoothly danced a slow waltz.

"So, I take it that Lady Venelana taught you?" Issei guessed.

"Yeah. She said that since everyone besides Asia and I, knew; it would be good for us to learn." Xenovia answered while turning elegantly before resuming her steps with her partner.

While the two danced, several took notice of how much more graceful they were when compared to several of the other couples. It was like they had done this sort of thing before.

"When did Hyoudou know how to do a two-step waltz?" A passerby whispered.

"I didn't think he'd actually be active enough to learn any of that." Another commented.

"If only they knew." Issei chuckled.

"Nevermind them. They don't understand anything since they're shallow." Xenovia waved off the comments.

The comments honestly bothered her, as she had expected the negative critique of Issei's character to die down, but clearly, that wasn't the case. She had also noticed the disparaging comments that people made about him. She had half a mind to whip out Durandal.

"Thanks, Xenovia." Issei still had a sore spot when it came to rumors. He still remembered the other night at the restaurant.

"Let's not focus on this. How about we change topic?" She suggested, hoping to brighten things up.

"Sure. How do you feel about how the night went?" Issei had been eager to know her opinion.

He didn't care about what other people said, as they were superficial. All he cared about was how the woman in front of him felt. Xenovia went silent for a moment before grinning and giving her honest opinion.

"It was very fun to me. The dinner was delicious. It was a little coincidental to see that salmon was on the menu, since it's my favorite." She chuckled.

Issei made sure to note that comment.

"The band is also my favorite one, right now. I've been wanting to go to a live performance to one of their shows but I was pretty upset that all of the tickets were sold out. Looks like I don't have to worry about that anymore. This dance is also something I'm greatly enjoying. It's a fresh change since I don't have to worry about survival or anyone getting hurt. For once in a long while, we don't have to worry about fighting. We can just enjoy our normal lives like normal people." She sweetly smiled, making Issei's heart go pitter-patter.

Finally, the last event ended, with Xenovia giving her closing speech, thanking everyone for attending as well as wishing a good night to all participants. When she was about to leave the tent flap, Issei stopped her, gently taking hold of her wrist.

"Xenovia, can you stay behind with me for a bit? There's something that I want to talk to you about." He looked at her with a soft but serious expression.

"Uh, ok." She felt a little nervous, unsure of what was going on.

To be honest, she had felt a little suspicious the whole night. She didn't know why, but she just felt it.

Issei held her hand as he led her out to a more quiet and vacated place of campus. While walking, Xenovia blushed as she felt his large hands gently caress hers.

Finally, the two arrived to an unexpected sight, well, Xenovia didn't expect it, at least.

What lay before them were candles lighting a small circle of stone, like how a square in a park would look. It was directly under the moonlight, making it much more dazzling than it sounded. Walking over to the designated spot, Issei turned around and faced Xenovia.

"Issei, what does this mean?" She asked, feeling absolutely nervous and taken aback.

Her heart felt like it was ready to burst as butterflies flew around in her stomach.

"Xenovia, I've known you for about a year now. When we first met, it was clear that we didn't like each other. I didn't like how you called Asia a heretical witch and I'm sure that I was nothing more than a small-fry to you." He made a bitter smile as he recalled the past.

"But, after spending a year with you and learning more about you, I decided that you were much more than you presented yourself to be. You're clearly smarter than you seemed, adding to your already strong character. You're earnest and you try hard for what you aim for without any fear. And you also don't hesitate to protect and honor the people that you care about." Issei fondly spoke while Xenovia held her breath.

She knew where he was going with this, but didn't dare to believe it, afraid that this wasn't the case.

"That's what made me fall in love with you, Xenovia. You're beautiful, strong, and righteous. And though, I can't promise all of my being to you only, I can swear that I won't ever ignore you. My feelings are very real, just as they are for the other girls at home. I know that my words are wrong in several ways but I just have to do this. Therefore…" Issei stopped as he knelt down on one knee.

He took out a small box and opened it, revealing a silver ring with a large sapphire gem.

"Xenovia Quarta, will you marry me?"

Xenovia was very silent. It was so quiet that even a leaf falling could be heard. She kept her head low, with her bangs covering her face. Suddenly, Issei saw a droplet fall from the side of Xenovia's face. Sniffing then came as her lips contorted.

"I..I've been wondering for how long…I…how long I'd have to wait and see how you felt about me." She sobbed between sentences as she wiped her eyes.

"I've been wondering for so long if I was just annoying to you. I was scared because I've never felt this way before. When I found out that you died fighting Shalba…" She trailed off as she struggled to hold her cries in.

"I didn't know what to think. But now…I'm going to make sure that…that doesn't happen again." She looked at Issei and broke into a smile.

"Yes. Yes, I'll happily be your wife." She sniffed as she dove forward.

Pulling each other into a tight embrace, Issei smoothed Xenovia's back as her tears of joy wettened his jacket.

"I promise, I'm going to love you now and forever." Issei swore as Xenovia nodded in agreement.

Separating for a moment, the two stared into the other's eyes, feeling emotion override them as they both trailed closer and closer to each other. They were so close that they could feel the moisture in each other's breaths.

Finally, the two kissed beneath the moonlight, solidifying their promises as they relished the bliss of the moment, becoming absorbed by it. The kiss wasn't lustful, remaining pure and untouched by sexual desire, as odd as that may have been. Rather, passion and love filled that specific void.

Issei was surprised with the fact that even though he had proposed for the third time now, he was still feeling the same unrivaled happiness as before.

Finally breaking apart for air, they smiled and touched foreheads, calming themselves down, though the deep pink color on their cheeks failed to disappear.

"So, tell me. It was you who orchestrated everything, wasn't it?" Xenovia gave him a suspicious smile.

"Caught me. I'm glad that you liked it."

"Figures. At first, I thought it was Rias, but considering what you just did, it's clear that you set everything up. To think you'd go so far that you'd do this to the School Dance." Xenovia chuckled.

"I know how much the Academy means to you, as you said that you wanted to give back to it. So, I thought this was the perfect place to propose to you. It was a little tacky, to me, though. Sorry, I could've done better." Issei apologized.

Xenovia shook her head.

"Nope. It was perfect. That makes this place even more memorable to me. It was where I met everyone and now…" She then looked up at Issei before going in for another deep kiss.

"It's where I got engaged with the man of my dreams." She giggled cutely.

This, however, reminded Issei to tell her something very vital.

"Xenovia, I'm sorry to say this but there's something that I have to make you swear to do." He looked at her, guilt smeared all over his face.

"What's wrong?" She asked, worried.

"Until, it's time and everything is ok, I need you to keep the fact that we're engaged a secret. I…" Issei didn't get to finish as Xenovia nodded in calm understanding.

"You plan to propose to the others?" She asked.

The Sekiryuutei only nodded.

"I know, Issei. I'm not worried or upset. I'd actually be bothered if you didn't propose to the others." She chuckled.

When the two arrived home, the pair explained what happened and were surprised by the details of the Dance, as it sounded far to extravagant for a simple High School event. Issei thanked whatever power was at work that nobody suspected that he was the true mastermind behind everything.

However, Issei wasn't done; not by a long shot.

And that settles Chapter 16. It's not as long as usual and it may not be up to par but I did my best to write out the proposal to Xenovia, it was a killer, and I'm glad that it's done.

I'll also announce that this story won't go past 23-24 chapters. I won't milk it for more than it's worth and it's also time that this story ended soon. It makes me sad to say this, but the journey for this story is coming to a close soon.

Again, thank you for continuing to support this story and I will see again for Chapter 17.