Chapter 215 — Proposition and Coming Clean

Yuki

I looked at Kuroka as she leaned towards me seductively.

She was rather attractive.

I couldn’t deny that.

But I already had my answer to her request.

“No.”

“Are you sure? What if I offered you something in return?” Kuroka asked coyly. 

“No, I have no interest in having a child with you,” I replied.

“See, Nee-sama? You’re just bothering Senpai,” Koneko said with a bit of smug satisfaction in her voice.

Kuroka laughed at Koneko’s response.

“We are both Yokai, Yuki-chan. We have instincts that your friends don’t understand. And I know that Kitsune have heightened desires the more tails they have,” Kuroka said as her grin turned mischievous. “So if you give me a child, you can have my body and do whatever you’d like with me until I get pregnant.”

Kuroka leaned forward to the point that her breasts were nearly spilling out of her kimono.

I kept my eyes from lowering as I replied.

“Still no.”

“You’re no fun, nyan. Well, I’ll just go ask the Sekiryuutei instead then. However, it was fun to find a new way to bother Shirone. It was fun seeing you again, Fox-chan and Shirone. Bye, Vampire boy,” Kuroka said as she stood and walked towards where Issie was standing with Rias, Asia, and Bikou.

“K-Koneko-chan, maybe your sister isn’t so scary,” Gasper-kun said, bringing my attention back to our group.

Koneko turned and glared at him.

“…I’ll let Xenovia-senpai know that you have plenty of extra energy for physical training, Gya-kun.”

“Noooooo!” Gasper-kun wailed as he clung to my arm. “Yuki-senpai! Koneko-chan is bullying meeee!”

I looked down at Koneko.

“I don’t think that was necessary, Koneko-chan.”

Koneko gave me a determined look.

“Yuki-senpai, you’re not allowed to be around Nee-sama on your own.”

I gave her a confused look.

“I wasn’t planning on it, but why does it matter?” I asked.

“Nee-sama is sneaky and may try something while the two of you are alone. I don’t want her to do anything strange to you,” Koneko replied while shooting her sister a glare.

“If it makes you happy, sure. I won’t be around her alone. Though I do think you’re worrying over nothing, Koneko-chan.”

Right after I finished speaking, Rias shouted from the other side of the room.

“Absolutely not! Ise’s my servant, and as his [King] I will not approve of that kind of arrangement! If Ise wants to touch a girl’s body, he has me, and you will not be having his child!”

“A-And if you could, you would have to wait your turn!” Asia added. “I’m going to have Ise-san’s c-child too, so you can’t cut in line!”

The room was silent besides Kuroka’s laughter at Rias and Asia’s outburst. 

Issei looked confused, excited, and slightly scared as he was sandwiched between Rias and Asia, who hugged him from the sides and shielded him from Kuroka.

Both Rias's and Asia’s faces were bright red.

Asia’s was from the embarrassment of shouting that, and while Rias also seemed slightly embarrassed, she mainly looked angry.

Being riled up by Bikou earlier defiantly was part of it.

Bikou was still with their group, watching them with a smile of amusement.

Arthur, Xenovia, Irina, and Yuuto had stopped their discussion to see what was going on.

Arthur looked faintly annoyed.

Yuuto and Irina seemed confused as to what had happened.

Xenovia, on the other hand, looked very interested in the discussion about having children.

Kuroka finished laughing and gave Issei a wave before walking over to Vali, who was reading a book on his own as he ignored the room.

Koneko turned and gave me an annoyed look as if to say this proved her point.

As I was about to reply, Akeno sat beside me.

“Ara. It looks like Rias and Aisa-chan aren’t the only ones who are worked up. What’s gotten you upset, Koneko-chan?”

“Nee-sama,” Koneko replied.

Akeno’s smile softened as she nodded. 

“Is everything alright? She didn’t try anything, did she?”

“…I’m alright. Yuki-senpai handled it.”

Akeno glanced at me.

“She can be rather reliable when she’s not busy pushing herself to the point where she needs a healer.”

I ignored her jab.

“I’m surprised you decided to sit with us rather than teasing Rias over what happened with Kuroka,” I said.

“While normally I’d love to rile Buchou up a bit more, she’s already pretty worked up. If I decided to poke at her now, she might lose it after dealing with Bikou and Kuroka. I’d rather not bring her wrath upon myself right now, but I'll definitely find a chance to mess with her later,” Akeno said with a playful smile.

I watched her for a moment.

I wasn’t certain that her reasoning was entirely true.

I could tell that she was still in a rather poor mood and was likely forcing herself to act normal.

After she had finished talking to Sona-Kaichou, she had moved to sit alone in a corner of the room and only broke out of her thoughts when Rias and Asia shouted at Kuroka.

She had been spending more and more time by herself as her mood continued to decline due to Baraqiel-san being nearby.

I decided not to bring it up right now.

There was no point in making her more upset by pointing it out.

“…Not bothering Buchou is probably a good idea. Especially since Nee-sama probably asked Issei-senpai for the same thing she asked Yuki-senpai for,” Koneko said.

Akeno’s smile stiffened, and her eyes narrowed on me.

“I think I understand what she wanted, but what exactly did she ask you for, Yuki-chan?”

I blinked at the sudden intensity in her gaze.

It almost felt like I was being interrogated. 

“She asked me if I wanted to have a child with her. She came over to talk to Koneko-chan, and she brought it up after she noticed that I had an additional tail from the last time we met. She mentioned that she was planning on asking Issei-san, as she wanted a child of a legendary Dragon, and I think she only asked me to bother Koneko-chan,” I replied.

“That is rather interesting. Maybe Koneko-chan and I should have a conversation with her just in case,” Akeno said with a dangerous look in her eyes.

Koneko nodded in agreement. 

“I don’t think that’s necessary, you two. I told her no immediately and that I wouldn’t be changing my mind.”

“Yuki-senpai should be left alone around Nee-sama, too. She tried to seduce Yuki-senpai when she first said no by offering her body to her. Nee-sama is sneaky and will play dirty if you let her,” Koneko said to Akeno, ignoring me.

Akeno’s smile widened.

“You’re right. I think we will need to have a long chat with your sister, Koneko-chan. I’ll need to talk to Buchou since she’s propositioning Ise-kun as well.”

It was nice that the two of them wanted to look out for me, but it was strange how intense they were being about it. 

“A-Akeno-senpai a-a-and Koneko-chan look k-kind of scary right now,” Gasper-kun muttered beside me.

I patted him on the head as I looked around the room again. 

Kuroka was bothering Vali as he tried to read his book.

Saji-san and Issei were talking while Sona-Kaichou and Asia watched from the side.

Issei waved his arm animatedly while Saji-san looked worried.

Rias was glaring at Bikou as he smirked at her and continued to taunt her.

Arthur, Irina, Xenovia, and Yuuto were looking at a sword Yuuto had summoned and set on a table in front of them. 

And Koneko and Akeno were both watching Kuroka intently.

I didn’t know if we would be able to cooperate to deal with Loki. 

Mainly because it was likely that someone would attack someone else before that point.

________

Irina

It was late at night after Ise-kun had gone off with Vali-san, Saji-san, and Azazel-sensei to contact one of the Dragon Kings, Midgardsormr.

While they were busy gathering information on how we would be able to defeat Loki, everyone else went off to do their own thing.

Kuroka-san and Bikou-san had mentioned using the pool, and Arthur-san followed after them, saying he would keep an eye on them.

Xenovia, Gasper-kun, and Asia-san went to watch a movie Gasper-kun wanted to see.

Rias-san and Sona-kaichou had left to go chat in one of the lounges and play chess.

Akeno-san and Koneko-chan had stayed behind to talk, and Koneko-chan told Gasper-kun that she would join them watching the movie in a bit.

Yuuto-san and Yuki-san had both left to train before bed.

Yuuto-san had said she wanted to train after speaking to Arthur-san about his swordsmanship.

Yuki-san hadn’t said anything besides that she was going to train. 

I had followed her and waited in the hall outside her training room for a while before approaching the door.

I wanted to fully clear the air between the two of us.

Yuki-san deserved to know that what happened when we tested her ability wasn’t just her fault.

I had a feeling that if I never told her, she would blame herself, and that didn’t sit right with me.

I raised my hand to knock on the door to her training room and froze. 

I realized I didn’t know exactly how I wanted to explain it to her.

I had spoken to Yuuto-san, Asia-san, and Xenovia about my concerns and then sent a message to Gabriel-sama as well.

She had quickly responded and reassured me that my friends were right and that nothing was wrong with being attracted to another girl.

I had felt so relieved when I read her message, but also saddened that the people I had trusted and relied on in the past had let their own biases affect their faith and teachings.

But now that I was trying to talk to Yuki-san herself, I was nervous and froze.

I was going to have to admit that I found her attractive and that’s why I kissed her when she ordered me to do something.

I felt my face heat as I thought about that moment again.

I slapped my cheeks and put on a serious face. 

I could do this.

She might think less of me or be bothered by the way I had been looking at her, but I should still tell her.

Xenovia, Yuuto-san, and Asia-san had told me that Yuki-san would judge me. 

From our interactions, I believed them.

Yuki-san was quiet and reserved but seemed like a good person.

I took a breath.

Then I knocked on the door.

I waited a moment, but there wasn’t a response.

I tilted my head and knocked again. 

I waited again, but there still was no response.

Yuki-san must not be able to hear me while she was training.

I hesitated for a moment before opening the door and stepping inside.

As I opened the door, I could hear the crack of lightning.

Turning towards the sound, I saw Yuki-san moving quickly as she attacked multiple training targets.

Her fur had turned black while the tips of her tails and ears had turned a dark red.

She moved differently than normal as she launched spells at each target and moved through the room.

It was less controlled and more aggressive.

She disappeared in a burst of stomach-turning movement before reappearing in the area above the last target in the room.

That’s when I noticed something different about her.

Some of her tails looked like they were shrouded in smoke.

It clung to Yuki-san as she moved and left a trail of quickly dissipating smoke behind her.

I had seen her in her Malediction’s Embrace ability before, but I’d never seen something like this.

I continued to watch as she tore apart the stone dummy with her long, claw-like nails as she landed.

She panted as the pieces of the dummy crashed to the ground.

I couldn’t help but stare as she let out a long breath and stood to her full height.

She paused as one of her ears twitched.

She quickly turned towards me, and my eyes met her altered ones.

Her ringed pupils stared at me unblinkingly.

I realized I hadn’t announced myself when I entered.

“U-Ummm h-hello, Yuki-san! I was–well, I c-came to talk, and the door–you didn't answer–s-so yeah…” I stammered awkwardly.

The corner of Yuki-san’s mouth rose as she watched me fumble through my words.

I let out a long sigh and slumped for a second before straightening up and trying again.

“I came by to talk to you, Yuki-san.”

Yuki-san closed her eyes and her fur began to turn back to its normal color.

I noticed that the smoke surrounding her tails had disappeared sometime between when she had noticed me and now.

“What was with the smoke? Is that a new spell or a part of your state ability?” I asked 

“It’s not part of Malediction’s Embrace and it’s not really a spell.. It’s a kind of curse magic I’ve been experimenting with recently, but I haven’t made much progress with it yet,” she answered. “So, Irina-san. Is there something I can help you with?”

“Oh! Right! Well first of all I’m sorry for coming in unannounced and interrupting your training. I tried knocking but you didn’t answer.”

“It’s alright. I can get pretty caught up in my training routine recently. It’s for the best you just came in. My training sessions can go for a while.”

I gave her a concerned look.

“I know you’ve already been told this by everyone but you still need to take care of yourself.”

Yuki-san nodded.

“I know. Koneko-chan and Asia won’t let me forget that.”

“They’re good friends,” I said with a smile. “We are both blessed with the people we have around us. Rias-san and the rest of the peerage are good people.”

“They are. And I am very fortunate to know them,” Yuki-san said while smiling softly.

My smile widened seeing her look so happy.

“But getting back to why I came here. I’d like to talk with you for a bit if that’s alright.” 

“Sure. But let’s talk somewhere else. There’s a room nearby that we can use,” Yuki-san replied as she moved towards the door. 

I followed after her and we walked down the hall and entered a smaller room beside one of the other training rooms.

It had a couch and two chairs set up around a coffee table.

There was a small kitchen area with a sink and refrigerator.

Yuki grabbed a towel off of the countertop and wiped the sweat off of her face before opening the fridge and grabbing a sports drink.

“Would you like one, Irina-san?” 

“Thanks but I’m good,” I said as I sat on the sofa.

It wasn’t as soft and plush as the ones in other parts of the house but it was still comfortable.

Yuki-san draped her towel over the back of her neck and sat on the chair nearest to me. 

“What did you want to speak to me about?”

I looked down at my lap and stared at my hands for a few seconds.

I let out a slow breath as I looked back up at her.

“I wanted to talk about what happened when you were testing your Dream’s Voice ability on me.”

Yuki-san nodded and waited for me to continue.

“I talked to Asia-san, Xenovia, and Yuuto-san about it,” I admitted. “After talking with them I feel better about it, but I wanted to clear things up between us.”

One of Yuki-san’s ears twitched, but otherwise didn’t react.

I pushed past my nerves and continued.

“When… When you used your ability on me and I reacted by… by kissing you, it wasn’t only because of your ability.”

Yuki-san’s brow furrowed.

“But did you react that way then?” She asked.

“I…” I swallowed. “I think it happened because I find you attractive.”

Yuki blinked.

I could see that she didn’t quite understand what I was saying so I continued.

“I’m attracted to you Yuki-san. It’s not the first time I’ve been attracted to another girl. I’ve thought like that about other girls before, not just you,” I said as I felt my cheeks heat in embarrassment.

This was much worse than telling Yuuto-san, Asia-san, and Xenovia.

“I was taught that it was wrong,” I continued. “That it was sinful and immoral. That being attracted to and liking other girls was wrong, so whenever I felt that way I buried it inside myself. Or tried to.”

I let out a small, awkward laugh 

“That obviously didn’t work,” I said. “When you used Dream’s Voice on me you were all that I could focus on. And when you ordered me I couldn't stop myself from reacting that way. So it wasn’t your ability’s fault for what I did. It was mine.”

I let out a breath after I finished.

I felt lighter after admitting it.

At the same time, my stomach was twisted because now Yuki-san knew.

I looked down again.

“I’m sorry I didn’t say anything sooner,” I added. “And I’m sorry I acted so strangely after it happened.”

I glanced up at Yuki-san.

She was watching me quietly with a thoughtful look.

I had no clue what she was thinking as she looked at me. 

She might be uncomfortable with me now that she knew.

She might be disgusted by being looked at that way

Or maybe it would be alright and we could move past this like it never happened. 

After a moment she finally spoke.

“It was both of our faults.”

I quickly looked up.

“I was using an ability I didn’t fully understand how to control yet,” she said. “Neither of us could have known how you would react, but that doesn’t put the blame solely on you. We can say that we both are to blame and move past it.”

I nodded.

That was fine with me.

I wanted things to be easier between us and if we agreed it was okay then I was happy.

“And I appreciate you telling me something so personal,” She added. 

I stared at her.

“Wait,” I said. “You’re not upset or bothered by how I see you?”

That got a confused look from her.

“Why would I be?”