The exorcist faced the assembled devils blankly, the devils numbered in the dozens but he didn't care about that, nor did he care that he was alone in the face of the hordes of hell at this point he welcomed death. His entire existence was a joke, he was a dog of the church sicced upon its enemies with one meaning to its existence. Kill. Killing was his purpose, he breathed in the fetid stench of death and feasted on the rotting flesh of his enemies. All he had was the target, standing at the forefront of the army wearing a twisted smirk as he eyes the simpering nun behind him. So small and fragile, the exorcist had vowed to keep her safe, and he would die in the pursuit of that goal. By the end of this day he would either be immortal, his deeds carved in stone as an example to future generation, or his blood shall water the stones of this forsaken cathedral to an absent god.

"One last chance exorcist, hand over the girl and I might be persuaded to let you live." The noble devil sneered one last time.

His answer was a hail of bullets, fired into the heart of the swarm. And so the massacre began.

The exorcist dashed at the assemblage, the barrels of his pistols smoking. When he plowed into the front lines he fired a couple shots, the spraying of blood was all he needed to know he had hit his targets. Holstering a pistol he drew out a long and thin road from inside his coat, upon activation a thin blade of light arose from the handle. Using his sword he brought down several more devils, severing arms and heads as he made his way into the ranks to chase after the retreating form of Astoroth. His pursuit was halted momentarily as he crossed blades with a devil knight but a clip to the gut fell the devil soon enough as the warrior of god stepped over the corpse to continue the chase. He had left the nun inside the threshold of the church knowing that her status as a saint would activate the defenses. They wouldn't last for long being as their was only one their so the exorcist had to distract the devils so she could complete the ritual to call the angels. Blasting his way through the heart of the devils he paused for a moment to draw a glowing sphere of glass from his coat. With a grunt he smashed the orb on the ground and covered his eyes just before light flooded the area. The devils around his dispersed in a rain of ashes as the holy light destroyed their very being and the ones farther howled in pain as the light seared their flesh. The exorcist's coat provided some protection but the intense heat cooked his insides, he bite down the pain and carried on. His movements had slowed a bit from the intensity of the pain and he felt the bite of steel hitting his opened chest just enough to rend apart the flesh in a shallow cut that bleed like crazy. He turned to the lucky devil and put one between his eyes before dashing back down the street, hoping to draw off the devils. His plan worked a little to well, the devils didn't even glance back as they took to the sky howling for the blood of the pitiful exorcist who had killed their comrades.

Their rage was counterproductive however as their numbers were steadily reduced as the exorcist produced a long rifle and snapped the pieces together on the fly before they began to drop from the sky, courtesy of said exorcist. A devil wielding a spear dived towards the exorcist, looking to impale the foul mortal, but to his surprise the exorcist caught the spear just under the blade with his arm then slammed the elbow of his other hand down on the haft which snapped the spear in two before he twisted around and buried the blade hilt deep into the devils spine then ran off, leaving the gasping devil to die as he picked up his rifle from where it fell.

With the enemy effectively halved by the Birth of heaven grenade and further reducing their numbers during their charge through the city of Vienna, Italy the exorcist doubled back to the church to find The nun on her knees, beseeching the angels for assistance along with the other members of the congregation. If the exorcist wasn't so found of the girl he would've laughed, but he couldn't find it in himself to do so. The nun believed whole heartedly in the love of her god, something the exorcist himself could no longer find in himself, and who was he to take that away from her?

Stepping towards the entrance he positioned himself behind a fallen pillar near the doorway, which had been ripped of by the devils during their initial conflict. A frightened nun, one that belonged here at this particular church, tossed a steel case towards the exorcist upon his request. He opened it to find several clips of ammunition along with a disassembled auto rifle, which he ignored. The auto rifle was specialized to handle large groups of enemies sure, like werewolves or undead, but lacked the necessary firepower in order to pierce through a vampires skin or the barriers that a devil was sure to have. His rifle on the other hand possessed the firepower but lacked the speed necessary to handle large groups at once, which had lead to unprepared and uncreative alike to the promise land. A few devils flew over the roofs of the building closest to the square, but they spiraled out of the sky to the rifles rebuttal.

Seeing that the sky wasn't an option the remaining devils descended to the ground and poured into the courtyard, the exorcist's rifle dogging them all the way. They fired bolts of magic which slammed into the building to shower the exorcist in debris. As he ducked down to avoid the missiles the exorcist pulled out a peculiar device from his pocket, pressing the button located at the top the courtyard exploded into fire and death.

When the smoke cleared to reveal the charred remains of their forces the remaining survivors glared hatred into the eyes of the exorcist, they numbered less then four but they radiated power, that of a high class devil. Throwing his empty rifle away and shucking off his coat the exorcist revealed to the world his muscled body, honed from years of combat for the church. His pistols where clipped into a pair of holsters located under his arms supported by a harness around his shoulders and back over his black shirt, which was drenched in blood from the cut running up his chest, that was tucked into a pair of cargo pants. hanging from his belt was the hilts of a pair of light swords and several daggers on his person. He was lightly equipped compared to the armored devils he stared down, plate mail glinting in the moonlight. Grabbing the swords and flicking them on he lept over the rubble. The devil in the middle fired off bolts of magic but they were dispelled by the swinging of the exorcist's blade. The tallest one on the left summoned a jagged blade as his lumbering compatriot materialized a battle ax, the smallest one in the middle chose to face the exorcist as he was, with his hands glowing with power. the exorcist and the devils met head on, deflecting the sword to the side the exorcist countered with a thrust that was evaded. Flipping over the Ax-man's swing the exorcist planted his boot into the swordsman's chest to send him stumbling backwards.

landing on his feet the exorcist rolled to evade the Magician, he came out of the roll bringing his blades up in to block the Axeman's overhead swing, the force of the blow cracked the ground and shattered one of the blades. the exorcist rolled out the way, drawing his pistol he fired at the Axeman who deflected the bullets with a shield of his magic. Before the exorcist could attack once more, the swordsman reentered the fray by a horizontal slash to the exorcist's head, the exorcist brought his blade up to halt the blade and was thrown back by the force of the swing to slam into the chapel's fountain.

Standing from the fountain the exorcist was wet and bleeding, his arm had dislocated and he had lost a pistol. With his good arm the exorcist dropped his sword and reset the limb.

"Alright you bastards, I'm tired of your shit." He said, and the swordsman sprinted towards the fountain, the earth shattering under the force of his launch. the exorcist smiled and just as the devils blade was poised to invade his gut, he whipped out his remaining gun and blew the devils head off.

"Azmodon!" Shouted the Axeman, his hand outstretched in horror.

Sidestepping as the body slumped to the ground the exorcist picked up his sword and looked the devil strait in the eye."Oops." In a blind rage the Axeman, far larger than the other two, charged the exorcist who rushed forward as well, digging in his pocket.

"Die!" The devil swung his huge weapon in a deadly arch, looking to cleave the mortal in half. the exorcist rolled past the blow and stuck something in the gap between the devils helmet and armor. A second later the devil exploded in a shower of blood and light leaving only the mage and the exorcist.

"Where's Diodora." The exorcist circled his opponent who smirked at the exorcist.

"Behind you." The mage pointed towards the cathedral, it was the exorcist's turn to smirk.

"You seriously think I'm gonna fall for tha-" A sudden scream rang through the night, causing the exorcist to turn towards the cathedral to see Astoroth Heir forming a massive magic circle in the air. The exorcist had violated the first rule of combat, Never take your eyes off your opponent. A black appendage pierced his chest and the exorcist was flung to the ground.

"Foolish boy, never turn your back on a devil." The mage stomped over and kicked the exorcist in the gut, but found himself trapped in a death hold.

"Foolish devil, never kick a man when he's down." The exorcist smirked, blood caking his teeth, that held the pin of a grenade." 'Cus when he gets up, your fucked." The devil exploded in a manner reminiscent of the Axeman, the force sent the exorcist sprawling. His body was burned with the fires of heaven and bleeding to death from the hole in his back but the exorcist still managed to stand on his feat and drag himself up the stairs to the church. The Astoroth didn't even notice his presence until the exorcist shoved a gun in his face and pulled the trigger, but it was to late. The devil had weakened the buildings supports and it was coming down. the exorcist had two choices. He could let the Innocence in his life be snuffed out but he would live, the alternative however...the exorcist didn't even hesitate to rush into the cathedral and forced the congregation out, managing to throw a paralyzed The nun through the chapel doors just before the building came down crushing the exorcist beneath millions of tons of marble and metal.

*]~[*

Issei stepped out into the cold and dreary day, the slow moving tide of students filtered out behind him as they uneasily shifted around him as he made his way to the side of the progression. Cutting through the mass of bodies was easier than you would think, having blue hair and an unsavory reputation allows one space among the many teens that went to school here. Most treated him with a cold indifference, while a few others glanced worriedly in his direction. Issei didn't mind though, he was in the middle of his second year at the academy and had grown used to the sparsity of humanity that casually floated his way from time to time. He was an oddity, most people said he had a bad attitude or an aura that followed him around. He didn't understand a lick of it.

Stepping out onto the concrete path outside the perimeter wall of the campus, Issei was struggling to find a good song to walk home to when a soft pounding met his ear through the small barrier the earbuds provided. Looking up he saw a small girl wearing the girls uniform of the academy, a white blouse and dark skirt with a tailed red colored corset that really didn't do her any favors.

With a blank face she beat the side of a vending machine, her tiny fist surprisingly vocal against the metal. Based on prior experience with the coin trap, Issei guessed that the machine had 'stolen' her money. Now as it was said, Issei had a reputation. This reputation was birthed after a few scuffles with some local bullies that decided he'd be a good target because of his hair and quiet nature, he managed pretty well in the five on one the teasing had devolved into but he didn't manage some feat of extraordinary supremacy by beating all five of them half to death with a cocky grin and a skirt soaking ease. That only happened under certain conditions: a highly skilled martial artist that had trained for years in whatever school going against several arrogant assholes that knew jack squat, a grown man being attacked by toddlers, a lethally trained militant, or if you're the protagonist of a poorly veiled self insert fanfiction. Since he was currently none of those things, the best Issei could do was hold his own until somebody decided to intervene. Though he was proud to see a couple sporting black eyes or a swollen face the next day, the pain in his ribs kept him from mounting his high horse. That incident had perked some interest in a few people, but it wasn't until his first Phys Ed class rolled around that people really got started.

Anyway, Issei had developed a reputation as a delinquent. A rough and tumble, no nonsense leather clad bad-boy with leathery knuckles and a bad attitude, which in America would've made him popular but in pleasant traditional japan it only made him popular with the police. But really, as cliché as it sounds, he was just a sweethearted bookworm with a bit of a sweet tooth and a fondness for old leather. One could also argue that he was a bit of a masochist because he kept putting himself into situations that blew up in his face, that or he was just insane. So either way it was a simple thing for him to walk up to the girl and offer her his spare pack of candies.

"Hey, uh, Koneko!" He called out to the girl, sliding off his bag as he walked over, causing her to turn around and blankly watch him. He remembered her name, vaguely, from the few times he had met her. Hazel eyes were alert as he unzipped a couple pockets in his search for something before he pulled out an unopened plastic packet of little green and white disks. "Here you can have this, that damn things a coin trap anyway so I wouldn't worry to much."

Koneko simply stared at him, the white of her hair glinted from the faint light that managed to escape the cloud cover and it went directly into his eyes making it a little hard to see the wariness of her gaze. She seemed a little on edge to be honest, though he supposed he would be too when the resident thug started handing out bags.

"Listen, there isn't any strings attached. The bag ain't even been opened, see." He wiggled the green swooshed bag between them. "I've got plenty more at the house so here." He pushed the bag more insistently towards the girl leaving about two feet of distance between her and the bag.

It took a moment but, looking a little hesitant, Koneko slowly reached out. Carefully watching every twitch of his face and body for any, any sign that this was a trick, before snatching the bag away from him and darting down the street without a word.

"You're welcome! I guess." He called after her, but she paid him no mind as she turned a corner and disappeared from view. Issei visibly slumped before he zipped his bag with a sigh. "Oh well, there went that."

lifting his bag off the ground Issei shrugged the encounter off before popping a mint in his mouth and walking back to the other side of the street leave down the opposite direction of town. As he continued on his way he looked about the street as he passed by a few buildings, there where a few homes that probably belonged to the families of a few of the students that went to the Academy, mostly girls since the place was once female only, having let boys join a year or two back, a random convenience store you see everywhere and a few small businesses that where winding down for the day.

"Issei!" A voice called as he walked past the bakery, the smells already filling his head with visions of ooey gooey deliciousness. The voice was soft, and sweet much like the cinnamon rolls she often smelled like. With a smile coming to his face, as easily as all the others he sent her way, Issei turned towards the noise.

"Yuuma!" Issei said happily as he laid eyes on the girl. She hung out the glass door of her family's bakery with a box in one hand as she waved him down with the other. Walking up to her, Issei was greeted with a one armed hug that left him a bit flustered by the way her chest pressed against him but he brushed it off.

"Hey Issei how was your day?!" She said cheerfully, holding a soft pink box in her hands. She softly swayed side to side wearing a cute apron with the box placed before her lap held in both hands, the innocent posture called attention to her breast and Issei did his best not to look. Though he failed, miserably, he only looked once or twice. Maybe three…

"Fine, fine, How about yours?" He said, noting how cute the flour speckled about her dark black hair made her already cute facade adorable.

"It was wonderful Issei! I had this super hard math test today though, but I totally aced it." She brought up a fist and pumped it in victory with a wink, closing one of her violet eyes for just a brief moment while she held the pose that caused her softer parts to jiggle.

"Really! That's awesome Yuuma I knew you could do it." He said, reaching out for a high five. She slapped her smaller hand against his rougher and larger palm.

"Thank you, but really it's all thanks to you. Helping me study all those nights after work was a really great help Issei, you're really smart so its no wonder I passed." She said with a bit of a blush, the wind pushing her black feathered earrings into a twirl that drew attention to her neck, a pale and graceful thing that had this tiny little mole that just barely peeked out from behind her trapezes, it was a single flaw in her skin but one that just sent his motor running every time he glanced at her neck.

Or maybe he just had a weird fetish?

"Eh, It's not so much as smart it's just…" God she smelled good, it was like a mixture of cinnamon and sugar had just came out of the oven. It was warm and sweet, warm and sweet...just like Yuuma.

Issei began to blush, a fact that did not escape Yuuma as he soon found her to be extremely close as she pressed her hand against his face.

"Issei, you're burning up. Are you ok?" She said as her hand shifted from his forehead to his cheek a few times during this Issei could see down her shirt, strait through her apron to her simple white cotton brassiere and cleavage. Issei grew hotter at the sight, practically glowing at this point he averted his eyes and began digging in his bag.

"I-im fine." He stuttered out as he frantically pulled a book from his backpack and handed it to Yuuma after taking a step back and calmed himself. "Here's that book I borrowed."

His only friend looked unconvinced as she closed her hand around the book before saying. "Are you sure you're okay? You can stay inside the shop for a while and I'll walk you home, I'm sure mom won't mind. Dad mite, but he'll get over it." She added with a giggle.

"Seriously I'm fine, and thanks but I gotta get to work." He said waving off her concerns and began to turn away down the street, not noticing how disappointed Yuuma looked as she mumbled to the side before she popped up like a lightning strike.

"Oh hey Issei!" She called before he got to far down the street. Running up to him she tossed the box from she had been holding into his hands, the still warm contents heating his hands through the cardboard. "I made these for you!" She said with a prideful smile and a bit of color to her cheeks.

"Whoa cool, thanks Yuuma you, are awesome." He said after peeking under the lid to see eight oozing cinnamon buns covered in powdered sugar. "Anyway I gotta go, the company's working on this house on sixth street and could really use an extra set of hands. Bye!" He said walking off.

"Bye Issei!" She called after him before entering the bakery with a smile.

"Now Yuuma." Said a man in a pale gray overcoat as he sat at a table in the dark. "What have I said about perusing with strange young men late in the evening."

"Can it Dohnaseek, you're only pretending to be my father." Yuuma sneered as she walked past the older man who gave a chuckle in response before lifting his hat from the table to his heart with a sigh of nostalgia.

"Ah, how they grow up so fast. It seems like it was only yesterday when she was bouncing on my knee saying. 'Daddy, daddy, daddy go faster!'. Oh wait..." the look of nostalgia was replaced by a leering grin. "That was yesterday."

"Be quiet!" Yuuma hissed, her eyes flicking towards the door. "Issei could here you, you worthless sack of shit!"

"Quite worried about his opinion now are we? How strange of you." The man noted with a mocking tilt of the head.

"Shut it Dohnaseek, I've been working on this kid for half a year now and I don't wanna throw all that away over your fucking mouth! What the hell was I thinking when I called you? You don't do anything!" Yuuma said in exasperation as she walked past towards the stairs leading up to the private rooms.

"Oh please, we all know that if it wasn't for Dohnaseek you would've jumped the boys bones by now and ruined the entire operation. It was truly your best tactical move." Said her 'mother' Kalawarner as she stepped out from behind the counter, causing Yuuma to stop. "Though perhaps you should've been the mother and let Mittelt do the seducing, wouldn't you agree?"

"Oh no, there was no way in hell I was gonna let that brat do my job! Besides Issei prefers breast like mine over tiny little bumps like hers." Yuuma said proudly while grabbing her chest.

"Even so, I wish you would hurry things along already I getting quite tired of this charade." Said Kalawarner, who was dressed in a plain dress with an apron tied around her waist. "It has become rather old."

"Seduction like this takes time, you've felt the aura coming off of him, what if he has a Longinus? Power like that would please Lord Azazel, and promote the cause of course, I'm going for my A-game on this one." Yuuma argued, still holding the book from Issei in one hand.

"And what's that, blue-balling him to death? Cus I'm all for cuckolding." Dohnaseek said rather crudely causing an exasperated sigh from Kalawarner.

"Unfortunatly for you, no." Yuuma smirked. "Now come on I only got a few more hours and Daddy, I wanna play!" She finished, shifting into her childish persona once again as she lead Dohnaseek up the stairs and leaving Kalawarner sneering in disgust. Slut.

*][*

Carpentry isn't as easy as one would think. It requires both brains and brawn to get the job done along with a steady hand and a cool head. Carefully planning each and every tiny detail down to the length of the nail all the way to the angle of the floor must be considered with everything. Jesus was a carpenter after all, so they all must live up to his perfection.

"Son of a goddamn bitch, come grab this fuckin' board Issei!"

It was a lesson his coworker Takeshi didn't seem to have learned. Slipping his hammer back into his tool belt, Issei quickly descended his ladder and moved to help the man. Though Issei was still in his teens he had been with the crew longer than Takeshi and so he was considered the older mans senior, a fact that Takeshi didn't like at all. Still, Issei helped the man tear down the frame for what felt like the eighth time that day and bore through the insults and threats hurled his way and built the A-frame himself before nailing a sideways board across the top that stretched to another A-frame and finally, after three hours of waiting, finished their second saw horse.

Issei's job consisted of morning prep and evening clean up on sight for a local construction company called Hirogura Home Renovations. He'd show up on location and prepare the sight for the rest of the crew to come in and work. Running electrical cords, setting up saw-horses, moving furniture and electronics, marking water-mains and such before heading on to school while in the afternoon he helped the crew with whatever needed to be done before heading home. He usually made about fifty to eighty bucks a day depending on the time available, it wasn't much to live on but he managed.

Climbing back up the ladder Issei was about to hop up onto the roof when he heard a vehicle pull up. Looking back he saw his boss, a tall man with a beard, step out of a white colored van with the company logo stenciled on the side.

"Ah Teshi, your here early for once." He said, glancing in surprise at the new-hire as a few more hands pilled out from the van.

"Well you know what they say Mr. Tekao, the early bird gets the worm. I woulda had the roof finished by now if it weren't for Issei screwing up the horses for the hundredth time." Takeshi said. Issei had to try really hard not to chuck his hammer at the sleazy bastard.

"Well then, it was very kind of you to help him Teshi considering you set the last ones on fire." Tekao noted sharply.

"Hey that wasn't my fault, Issei tossed those paint cans all over the place so I tripped. How is that idiot's screw up my fault." Takeshi argued, and Mr. Takao didn't seem all that pleased as he looked up at the roof to find Issei prying up shingles.

"You hear that Mr. Hyoudou! Teshi here says you made him set the horses on fire!" He called up. "What do you say?!"

"Your brother-in-law's a jackass!" Issei responded, his voice coming from the far side of the roof atop the three story house. Slightly faded from the distance and objects in between, but they heard him clearly. His response had the crew laugh as they moved to their separate spots which in turn caused Takeshi to turn red and storm off.

It was a few hours later that Issei bid the rest of the crew goodbye and left to go to his home nearly half a town away.

*]~[*

Koneko stepped through the portal and found herself in a lavish, step down room with a desk at one end and a pair of long couches situated on both sides of the recessed floor with a table in between. In this room were three people, a blond haired young man with a perpetual smile known as Yuuto Kiba who sat alone on a couch. And a pair of older girls with highly sexualized figures, the one sitting behind the desk had long red hair that fell wildly down her back while the other girl beside her had jet black hair held up in an impossibly long ponytail by a single orange bow. Both where the most popular girls in school, Rias Gremory and Akeno Himajima respectivly. Stepping down into the recessed living room, Koneko seated herself on the couch opposite of Kiba.

"So he finally found his way home, I was beginning to worry about you Koneko." Said the red haired girl who lent forward and placed her elbows on the desk in front of her. "Did you find out anything?"

The little girl nodded. "Crows."

"Ah, I figured as much. One does not give off such an aura and not attract attention after all, though it is a wonder why they've been so quiet for so long. I thought that they would've made a move on him by now." The redheaded foreigner said placing her head on the bridge of her fingers.

"Perhaps they are waiting for something Rias." Said the Japanese girl at her side, her almond shaped eyes slinking over to Rias.

"Perhaps. But for what is the question? And why is Issei-san so interesting to them? You followed him home Koneko, did you see anything?" Rias asked the little girl, who shook her head in the negative as she munched on the mints in her lap.

"If I may, Ms. President shouldn't we be focusing our energies elsewhere? We do not have much time to worry about him after all." Said Kiba.

"Perhaps you are right Kiba, however he may be dangerous and I cannot in good conscience leave a potential threat unattended." Rias said seriously, her eyes showing her determination to her duty.

"Besides, if even the Grigori are keeping an eye on him would it not be best to snatch him away from them as soon as possible? He could be the answer to our problems." Added Akeno, who had a soft smile but a scheming glint in her eye.

"I must object, whatever Hyoudou-san is it cannot be good news. We have all been in his presence, we have felt the energies coming off of him and if I personally believe that nothing good can come of him being allowed into the peerage." He argued. "The air around him is thick with a taint, being around him sets my teeth on edge. Whatever he is, it is not good."

"However, it may just be that he has a sacred gear that hasn't fully manifested. I remember once upon a time when swords would just randomly pop out of the ground Kiba." Rias replied, a fond memory playing out in her head that had a smile grace her lips.

"That is a possibility." Kiba sighed, his shoulders slumping as a hand reached up to pinch his nose. "My apologies Ms. President, the decision is you but please be careful."

As Kiba relaxed back into the couch, Akeno lent over to whisper in Rias' ear. "Intimidation aside, don't you find the oppressiveness simply thrilling. Perhaps we should invite Issei over for a more private screening."

"Not everyone is as crazy as you Akeno, Issei's aura doesn't effect me in the slightest." Rias said calmly and assuredly, however Akeno didn't look convinced but dropped it anyway as she left the room to prepare tea.

Across town Issei sat down on his couch in front of his TV with a box of cinnamon buns in one hand and gallon in the other. He smelled of sweat, grease, and sawdust and gave no fucks about as he parked right in the middle of the couch, kicked off his hot ass shoes and plopped his tiered feet right on the coffee table with the box of pastries on the cushion next to him and the milk in his lap.

This was his favorite part of the day, the unwind after work. Usually he zoned out to the sound of the TV before migrating to his bed upstairs but today he had desserts to eat. God bless Yuuma. She was such a sweetheart. The buns where about as big as a fist, each thoughtfully wrapped in waxed paper about half way so he cold hold on to them. Flipping open the lid he snatched one out of the box and shoved it into his mouth, he'd have a sugar rush from hell but it was worth it as he was going to eat the whole damn box. Having warmed them up in the micro wave, the thick syrup dripped down his chin and onto his sweat stained shirt but he didn't care it was dirty anyway.

At the moment he looked like a complete pig, covered in syrup with powdered sugar falling to his lap. But he was done for the day, all that was left for him was a bath and nobody visited him so his response to the mess was to place his thumb under the lip of the milk jug and flick off the lid which shot off to somewhere in the house. Seeing the air that it got, the teen gave a small chuckle before he swallowed a few gulps of milk to wash down the ooey gooey deliciousness that was his best friends cinnamon rolls.

He damn near choked when hands came down over his eyes.

"Who am I Issei?!" Said a voice that was full of cheer and cuteness.

"Yuuma?! What the hell are you doing here?" Issei said as he shot to his feet, milk dribbling down his chin. The girl was standing behind his couch with a grin wearing a dark fuzzy gray coat and scarf and Issei was now embarrassed of his dirty appearance and slobbish tendencies.

"I came here to check on you, look at you you must have a fever your burning red." Her nose crinkled in a way that warmed his heart and sunk it all at once. "You smell funny."

"Never mind that Yuuma, its practically midnight what are you thinking coming all this way at night?" He couldn't believe how she could be at times, it was dangerous for a cute girl like her to be out this late. "Plus you have school tomorrow!"

"Oh hush Issei, I know what I'm doing now go upstairs and get cleaned up while I get dinner ready." She demanded, rushing the poor confused boy up the stairs before he could protest.

Once she was alone, Yuuma looked around a the living room and saw the opened box of cinnamon buns she had spent all day trying to perfect and remembered how greedily Issei had been devouring them. She warmed at the that, not the loin burning warmth of lust but the kind of warmth that bloomed from the heart. With a smile she lifted her bag of groceries from the floor and made her way towards the kitchen, bare feet padding the whole way. About halfway across the room she felt something round underfoot and, lifting her foot, discovered a small blue cap around the size of a large coin.

"Must've been in quite the rush to get at those buns." She mused before bending over and picking the cap off the floor and making a detour over to the living room table to place the cap back onto the milk with a smile. "Silly boy." she whispered softly before leaving for the kitchen once again.