3 Troubled

Even if Angels were described as powerful supernatural entities that have a pure heart and good will, they were far from perfection. Angels, just like any humanoid creature that isn't undead (with the expectation of vampires), have complex emotions and complicated psychology; but one thing is for certain: Maslow's theory, the Hierarchy of Needs, also applies to them.

Every Angel has already reached the eighth stage of the Hierarchy of Needs, which is known as Transcendence needs. The Transcendence stage is when a person is motivated by values which transcend beyond the personal self, in this case, Angels will have the instinct to follow their religion and help others.

Irina, however, was having a… unique situation.

Because she used to be human, as a Reincarnated Angel, she had major problems in trying to maintain her 'purity' and not fall.

It's not the fact that she wasn't loved or anything; her parents were supportive and lovable, her friends and comrades were cooropative and fun to hang out with, and she was always fed in the cafeterias of Heaven with luxurious foods that she happily eat. Irina also had a big heart to help out children, orphans, senior citizens, or the unlucky.

The problem laid within her romantic love for Hyoudou Issei.

Ever since their childhood days, Irina always wanted Issei by her side, as her lover and as her other half.

But she couldn't when she became a Reincarnated Angel… until recently.

A few weeks before Christmas Day, Irina asked Michael a particular question.

"Is there a method to not fall while crossing the line with a Devil?"

As a result, Micheal gifted her the [Dimensional Room], a room where an Angel and Devil can have sexual intercourse and intimacy without the fear of the Angel falling.

After that fateful christmas night, Irina realized that Issei was always, and will be the one to receive all the forbidden emotions that she had saved up.

-Line Break-

The 'self-proclaiming' Angel saw his expression when he heard that his manager, Ravel, disappeared during the rating game against Diehauser, the [Champion]. The amount of killing intent and aura literally scared Irina, and the next day, she completely avoided him out of fear.

The day after, she realized that Issei was completely unsociable, and mostly kept to himself.

He barely spoke, and frequently skipped breakfast.

-Line Break-

It has been a few days after the members of [DxD] received the news about Riser and Ravel Phenex; nothing much has happened since then, and nothing was heard from the officials about their whereabouts.

Things were gloomy and tense in the Hyoudou Household, and Issei and his peerage members were less worried about the career counseling meeting that was happening tomorrow.

Issei himself was in a bad mood, ever since he heard the news. He sat by himself in his room, twiddling his thumbs in anxiety. It left a big impact deep within his heart, to suddenly have his cute and adorable manager taken away from him in a snap of finger.

"I swear I'll get you back, Ravel-chan…! Just hold on a bit longer…!" his vows were empty, and only made him more furious; the reason why was because he had no idea where to begin to conduct his search for her. Going to the stadium and find clues?

Not a valid option.

-Line Break-

"Ise! Come downstairs and get some breakfast!" the calling of his mother echoed throughout the mansion, but Issei did not respond.

She alarmly looked towards Asia for confirmation.

"Asia-chan, what's wrong with Ise?" she asked.

"...Ise-san is… he's not feeling himself lately."

"Why is that?"

"...Um…" being pressured, Asia tried to look navïe, and trick Issei's mother into thinking that she doesn't know anything.

"That is strange… he'll usually would tell you everything. Perhaps it's something he cannot discuss about? Asia, would you mind continuing to stir the pot? I am going to check on him."

"Y-Yes!" she answered and took the wooden spoon from her hands. As she watch her go upstairs towards his room, the sense of guilt arose from her heart

"....I'm sorry Okaa-sama, but there are some things you cannot know."

-Line Break-

His mother alarmly noticed that her son was going through some sort of depression; for the past few days, she left him alone and asked no questions, merely thinking that he was simply just exhausted, or going through one of his fanatic 'stages' where he lost his favorite porn magazines. When Asia did not know the source of his depression, Issei's mother decided to enter his room, and check on him.

"Ise? Why won't you come downstairs and eat breakfast?" she asked sincerely in her motherly tone.

"...I am not really hungry right now. You can wrap it up, and I'll eat it later." he barely projected his voice, and only managed to let out a few mumbling words in response to his mother. She barely heard him through the muffled sounds of him talking through a pillow.

"Ise, this is the fourth time you had skipped breakfast. There is something definitely wrong, and keeping it in yourself will only bring more stress."

"You won't understand, Kaa-san."

"I have to understand. I am your mother, and you are my child."

"..."

The power of motherly intuition within her is a force to not underestimate. Issei could argue, but it would only make things more annoying and difficult to deal with. (A/N: Keep in mind that Issei's parents still has no clue about the supernatural.)

"Okaa-san will listen."

"D-don't worry about it, I'm fine."

"It is not fine, Ise. If it's something you are having trouble with, and if it's uncomfortable talking about with me or Gorou, then you can talk to those beautiful women downstairs who are worried about you." she remarked.

"Did Asia-chan or Rias try to comfort you?"

"..."

"Ise?"

"...I'll come downstairs in a few minutes, just save my plate for later, okay?" he said, trying to avoid the conversation altogether.

"Fine, but you absolutely have to eat; no skipping breakfast."

"Yes, Kaa-san."

"By the way, you haven't told me that tomorrow is the three-way interview."

"Oh, that…"

"Really, you could be more enthusiastic! Besides, you never told me or Gorou about your profession."

"My bad."

"So? What are you planning to do when you grow up? What career are you pursuing?"

"...I am thinking about joining the 'Adult Entertainment' industry."

"....Cough….C-Can't you give me a more serious answer?!"

"Hahaha… sorry. Can't help myself on letting that joke pass."

".... You better give me a serious answer by tomorrow, Ise."

"I will, I will. I'll be downstairs in a few minutes."

"Good."

After she left, the brunette felt the comfortness and tenderness of his mother's love. Although she was mostly nagging and being a bit of an annoyance to him, he knew that she was only worried about him since he had such a negative atmosphere looming around like a thundercloud on top of his head.

In the first time in a few days, he smiled.

-Line Break-

Depression is somewhat of a foreign word for the [Oppai Dragon].

The last time he felt this way was during the school festival, when Raynare still haunted him.

Other than that, he could not remember any other time he felt this type of way.

'——But, in due time, you will change your mind.' the words echoed in his membrane, lingering around his head.

'Everything seems so hazy when I try to think about it. This… this 'Akatosh' fellow… no… ' he denied the sudden temptation to seek the mysterious Dragon God for answers; the disappearance of Ravel had made Issei somewhat desperate to find her himself; but he was desperate enough to mingle with elements that could be beyond the realms of reality?

He did not answer his own question, unsurprisingly.

[Knock, Knock]

There was a sudden knock on the door, snapping him back to reality. He thought it was his mother, nagging him to come down stairs once again.

"Ise-kun? Can I come in?" the voice, however, was young, filled with tenderness and friendliness.

It was his childhood sweetheart, Irina Shidou.

"..." he remained silent, and turned away from the door.

After a few seconds passed without any response from Issei, Irina let herself in.

"Ise-kun?" she called out to him one last time, and then intruded into his room, excusing herself and quietly sat down beside him. Issei did not flinch when he felt her presence, however he slightly blushed.

"Hey, wake up, sleepy head!" she poked, and her index finger hit one of Issei's funny bones, forcing him to flinch.

"If you don't wake, I'll play a trick on you~" she warned in cutesy tone, continuing to poke him further. Issei could no longer withstand the feeling of her finger pressing deep into his skin, so he turned his body face up, and covered it with his blanket.

"Try it." he raised his voice enough to startle Irina, but somehow able to project it in a low tone; it was a bit arrogant with a hint of annoyance. Irina was taken aback by Issei's somewhat rude attitude, and she wanted to retaliate.

But… she did not say anything.

At that moment, she remembered her father's words.

"Remember, the only way to get his attention is to be daring, and take the lead!"

Irina could not tell what she saw or what she felt. Then she became aware that she was uncomfortable.

Her violet eyes were glued towards his lips. Her heart was beating tremendously, and a deep, red blush appeared across her cheeks. Shyly, she inspected Issei a bit more, sneakily running her hands towards the top of his head, and started to slowly brush his smooth maple hair.

Issei did not mind it, and her hands gave him a sense of… relaxation. He did felt a bit sorry for Irina, for she did not deserve to be disrespected, because of his selfishness.

"...Sorry." he eventually apologized.

"...Ne, Issei… don't open your eyes just yet…" she plead. It was the first time since their childhood days that Irina called him without any formalities.

"...This is for being a meanie." she quickly said that, and planted her lips over his. (SXF: Chuuu)

His mouth trembled at the firm sweetness of the flesh. At first, he rapidly opened his eyes and saw the face of the beautiful angel, with her eyes closed and her lips overlapping his. Then, as expected for a perverted teenager boy like him, he returned the kiss back. She tightly shut her eyes even further and deepen the kiss with her tongue, as she let his fingers dig into her waist.

A sudden flashback came into her mind.

——Yeah, but even so. Even if you are an Angel, I don't care. It doesn't change the fact that you are my childhood friend and there's no way the fact of you being my classmate at Kuou academy will change either.

——There's no such thing as a forbidden thing between me and you. No, even if it was forbidden, I'm still your childhood friend. If you are in danger I will definitely save you.

Their shoulders touched, and Irina linked her hand with his.

It had already reached the stage where Irina was on top of him.

Her face blushed when their eyes met, but she did not turn away from him.

"Mmmmmn…" she embarrassingly let out a moan as she continued to ravage his mouth. The tenderness welled up in him, and the thought of doing 'forbidden things' with her excited him, and a bolt of desire ran down his genitals, giving it length.

Their was lust in his eyes, but also a borderline of carefulness, politeness, and unknowingly, love; he wanted to fuck her— as tenderly and softly as possible.

But… he knew what would happen if he let loose; he does not want to be the center of such hatred and disappointment from Irina's parents, for turning her daughter into a Fallen Angel.

He found the will to stop such foreplay within his soul, somehow. It was one of the most difficult task for any man to stop, once their sexual drive had been activated; but Issei knew that being selfish and fulfilling his desires would only lead to more chaos.

He gently pushed her away, and turned his backside towards her.

"Thanks, but we can't do this… not in this situation." he spoke in a lonely tone.

"...I won't leave you disheartened or dissatisfied, Issei. Remember what I said when you were having that secret rendezvous with Xenovia?"

"When we were at the pool?"

"Yeah… I said that childhood friends are more important than girlfriends. I'll do for you whatever Rias does, and I'll go even further than that. So please, don't treat me like an outcast, and let me heal you whenever you're in pain."

"...I-I understand."

"I'm glad to hear it… ne, why did you push me aside?"

"Because… because we were heading towards that 'direction'."

"So you're not interested in me…?"

"No! ...Um, I am interested, it's just that—"

"Is it uncomfortable to do it with somebody who isn't your girlfriend?"

"....Don't you have something better to do, than just sit here with me?"

"Nope~! This is the best opportunity for me to spend some time with Ise-kun! Do you not remember, before the battle with Ewald-sensei and Vasco-sensei? You had a secret rendezvous with Xenovia, and you need to make it up for me." Irina then proceed to get a hold of his arm, and put it in between her breasts.

"H-Hey, Irina...you shouldn't do things like that." Issei warned.

"...Mou, how could you be so mean!" the angel before him pouted, whereas she looked like she had been struck down, her expression could immediately be seen. Issei immediately felt sorry.

"Are you really against it, Issei?"

"It's not that… I-I was just looking out for you, since...y-you know...I don't want you to fall, because of me."

"Tee-hee~! So Darling was worried about me, all the long?" her mood changed when Issei said he was worried about her. She didn't let go of his arm, nor move its location.

Then, Irina's eyes beamed at Issei's.

"You know… I'm worried about you. Rias is worried, and everyone else. You haven't been yourself for the past few days, and I— we hate to see you like this." Irina shared her concerns. Her amethyst like eyes were wet, and Issei felt that those eyes can actually see through, not only his mind, but his heart and soul.

"...It's just that I am angry at myself."

"...I'm sure Ravel-chan and Riser-san are okay."

"...You think so?"

"Of course they are fine! As long I have faith, and believe, then things turn out to be better than expected. Ise-kun, I am worried, just as you are, but there are times that we can not let the enemy mingle with our feelings. There is no reason for you to act in such a way that everyone has to have another reason to worry. So please, please come back to being yourself."

Irina's plea finally made Issei realize that acting hopeless and desperate can not change things around.

"...Thank you, Irina. ...I can see why your counseling is very effective during your angel duties."

"It's the least I can do, for my childhood friend."

"...I guess I should tell Rias and everyone else that I am fine-" just as Issei stood up, Irina tighten her grip on his arm. Her eyes had a hurt expression as if asking 'why?'.

"...Our date isn't finished yet."

"W-What are you're saying?"

"Ise-kun, you know...we could skip school today and go on a real date, just the two of us...or we could just hide in that room and...b-boost our morale…" Irina said such stimulating words, that her wings were forcibly expanded, and began to flicker as she said that. She then hug his front side, and her breasts were pressed against his chest. The sensation of an Angel's delicate skin was pressed against him, as the sensual feeling put him in a trance.

"I-Irina…"

"It is okay for us to be together, as long we love each other… right?"

-Line Break-

The next day after school was the arranged day for the three-way career consultation. Students took turns according to their student number, and they simply waited at the school before that. The people who had club activities would continue with their club activities until it was time to begin.

Issei however, was somewhere else. Everyone in the OCR clubroom were a bit worried and assigned Irina to look for him. Asia was too busy to go and Xenovia is learning her new position for the coming year, so she has to help the Student Council. The only one who was free is Irina, and she gladly volunteer to find Issei.

Humming a tone, she walked through the hallways with a smile on her face.

"This is the perfect opportunity to spend some more time with Darling! Oh God, thank you for giving me such an advantage for being Ise-kun's childhood friend!" she thought with glee. But when she found him, he was with a certain someone that Irina was surprised to see again.

"Papa!? How did you get here!?" Irina exclaimed.

"Isn't this to be expected? This is my cute daughter's future career consultation isn't it? As a father, of course I have to skip work and rush over."

"Really papa, Michael-sama will get angry you know!?" Irina puffed out her cheeks as she got angry. Issei, being amused with Irina's sudden outburst, smiled at her.

"You look cute even when you're mad." Issei jokily said.

"I-Ise-kun!? Where were you!? Everyone was looking for you!" she pouted.

"Sorry, Okaa-san and Otou-san can't come today, due to a sudden emergency at their workplace. They reschedule my meeting with my homeroom teacher for a later date."

"Then why are you here with Papa!?"

"I just wanted to talk to him about something…" Issei narrowed his eyes away from Irina, as he blushed slightly.

"About what?" she asked.

"Don't worry Irina-chan, Issei-kun here promised me lots of grandchildren!" Touji stated while patting Issei's back.

Hearing him say that, Irina face suddenly turned red!

"Mmm! R-Really. Papa, please don't talk about that topic in front of your daughter and her childhood friend!" Irina became even angrier, but Touji continues to tease her.

"Irina-chan is also cute when she gets angry."

"I agree." Issei, wanting to tease Irina some more, smiled again, which made Irina's ears blow stream.

"A-A-Anyways, Ise-kun, let's go back to the clubroom! Everybody is waiting, you know?"

"Yeah...I know." He shrug his shoulders and walked with Irina back to the clubroom.

"See ya later, Touji-jin." he waved a farewell to Touji, and walked with Irina back to the OCR club room. Touji, happy with the result of his earlier discussion with Issei, waved back.

End of Chapter 3