Watch Them Grow

It was as I was making my way to the kitchen that I was halted in my tracks as a loud thumping noise rang throughout the house. I turned to look over my shoulder at the front door as it shook on its hinges from the force from whoever was enthusiastically knocking on it.

As I continued to look at the vibrating door I seriously contemplated simply ignoring whoever was there. I knew, just knew it was trouble. I could feel it in my bones. The very same instincts that I've honed over the course of living with Serafall and her never ending pranks and peculiar brand of madness were screaming at me not to open the door, to just ignore it and carry on to the kitchen and make myself a nice relaxing breakfast.

It was still early in the morning, barely past seven and only a few hours since the end of the battle with Kokabiel and his Fallen at Kaou Academy. And wasn't that a mess? While the school wasn't too badly damage it had suffered enough that Sona had to shut the Academy down for the day and had already summoned Devil contractors to quickly repair the damage.

Not to mention the hours I and the others had to spend on convincing Serafall and Sirzechs not to come charging into the city while having an army at their backs. Surprisingly it was Sirzechs that was persuaded first, trusting my words that their sisters was safe and helped us convinced Serafall who was far more riled up than I had seen her before. Her face was a mask of rage and fury that could not hide the utter terror that she felt at the realization how close she came to losing me and her sister.

However they did send some Devil to do some damage control on the rest of the citizens of the city. They had a lot of memories to erase if they wanted to keep the presence of the supernatural world contained. Truthfully I doubt they'd completely succeed, too many people had seen the fight even if they had not understood what they were seeing. I had a feeling that rumors of stars falling down from the sky will soon become an urban legend of this city.

I'm convinced that the only reason why the secret of the supernatural world hasn't been fully exposed by now was thanks to Ajuka Beelzebub. In the modern world of cameras and internet there was no way they would have kept the existence of Devils and Angels under wraps and they only barely succeeded in doing so was due to a little invention of his.

I couldn't begin to explain how it worked but from what little I understood he had somehow created a living and sentient computer virus and had it invade the internet. It searches for and destroys any incriminating evidence of the supernatural world it finds there before tracing the source of the data and informing a squad of Devils about the leak. I was sure it was much more complicated than that but that was the gist of what I understood.

The Devils that were sent to wipe memories would also remain to replace the lost guards. It seemed that when then the Fallen army came charging into the city they intended to ignore the small handful of Devils guarding the city that were there, as even with their bolstered numbers they were posed no real threat to them not as outnumbered as they were. Unfortunately that was only so long as they were unprovoked.

The Fallen ran into one of the patrolling teams of Devils from where they decided to enter the city, the Devils numbering only a dozen strong. The squad leader decided to let them pass unobstructed for now before they attempt to contact the Underworld for emergency support.

Unfortunately one of the guards, an eager newly recruited Devil by the name of Leeroy Jenkins, decided to ignore the order and charge the Fallen swarm while screaming out his name like a battle cry of the Gods themselves. Which predictably resulted in the death of most of his squad when the Fallen retaliated with a barrage of spears.

The single guard who had been spared simply survived because the Fallen didn't seem to care whether he and the other Devils guards lived or died. And before he could even do anything the barrier came up and sealed them inside of the city.

The only upside of the entire mess was Asia. I had quickly summoned her when I realized how injured everyone was. And while they weren't back to full strength, with a good night's rest or two they will be. Surprisingly, or maybe not considering it's her, she even patched up the four Fallen who somehow managed to survive, albeit they were badly injured.

They bore her healing them with utter silence as they continued to stare wide-eyed at me before giving her a nod of thanks when they were recovered and took off into the air without another word.

I decided to let them go seeing as I had no reason to stop them. With so many witnesses in both the Devil and Church Factions there was no way I could completely repress the information about my combat skills. And a healthy reputation can be just as useful as a hidden trump card at times.

Another stream of knocking jolted me from my thoughts, and with a heavy sigh I reluctantly approached the door. Might as well get it over with, knowing my luck if I ignore it things will only get worse.

Unlocking the door, I swung it open to find myself looking at…nothing apparently?

"My Lord!" A voice filled with excitement called out and I looked down to find the blue-haired exorcist, Xenovia I believe her name was, kneeling down on one knee while keeping her head respectfully lowered. "My Lord, I have come to serve-"

The rest of her statement was cut off as I slammed door in her face and turned around to head back to my kitchen. I knew I should have gotten some sleep last night, I was beginning to hallucinate.

Unfortunately for my attempt at denial of reality, the enthusiastic banging on the door resumed before I managed to take as much as two steps away. I just palmed my face in both my hands as I tried to stave away the upcoming headache I knew will result from this new mess. It's too damn early in the morning to deal with crap like this.

Spinning in place, knowing that there was no avoiding this, I approached the door with the gait of man walking to his doom and swung it open again to find Xenovia still kneeling on the ground but this time she was looking up at with a single finger held up before her face.

"My lord, it's rude to interrupt people when they're talking. Doubly so when they're trying to swear eternal loyalty and servitude to you." Though the words were reproachful the tone she spoke them with was still filled with respect. "Now as I was saying," she lowered her head again, "I have come to serve you my Lord. Please accept me into your household."

I just started dumbly down at where the exorcist was kneeling with her head down by my feet before I palmed my face again. There was so much crazy in that statement that I was sure it would have had Serafall herself dumbfounded.

"You know what?" I stepped back to one side and wave her in. "Come on in. If I have to deal with all of this crap this early in the morning I wanted to do it after breakfast. Maybe with a full stomach and a large cup of coffee in me the world will start making sense again."

A small sarcastic part of my mind, which sounded oddly like Archer, helpfully pointed out that the world hasn't been making any sense for a long time.

=========x===========x============

"So let me get this straight," flipping a pancake into the air as I spoke, "you left the Church because you see no reason to continue serving them with God dead. And now you want to serve me as one of my knights because you think I'm King Arthur?"

"Not think. Know." Her eyes gleamed with such conviction that it would have made even the most self-assured people doubt themselves. Unfortunately for her, she would have made a far more convincing image if her cheeks weren't smeared with maple syrup and if her mouth wasn't filled to the brim with so much pancakes that it caused her cheeks to puff out like chipmunks. As it was the words came out so muffled out that I barely understood her.

At first she refused to eat, saying something about how it wasn't right for a mere servant to dine with her Lord, let alone eat food cooked by his hands. But after much prodding and eventually outright ordering her to, she finally complied.

And now I watched as she sat at my kitchen table devouring a stack of pancakes in a manner that would have made starving wolves proud. Apparently they didn't feed them that well at the Church, or at least their choice of focused on the more nutrition variety rather than taste. Then again it could simply be that my cooking is just that awesome.

I shook my head at the sight before I turn my attention back to the pancakes I was cooking. "And why do you think I'm King Arthur?" I asked.

I could hear her swallow before answering. "Who else but you could possibly wield such a blade as Excalibur?"

"You for one." I pointed out as I flipped the finished pancakes on a plate before I started another batch, splitting my attention between her and my cooking. "Your two friends for another."

"Fakes." She waved away dismissingly. "You yourself called them mere toys and were angered at us for daring to name them Excalibur." She took another bite from here pancake, occasionally muttering 'Holy Mother of Jesus this is good' as she did so, before nodding to herself. "I can now understand your disdain for them my Lord. Such mockeries have no right to be called by the same name as your sword."

I resisted the urge to sigh as I carried on, "And even though I have told you, repeatedly I might add, that I'm not King Arthur you don't believe me."

She finished her current mouthful before speaking. "Your confusion is understandable. After all it has been a millennium and a half since you have been put to rest after being wounded at the battle of Camlann. It is only natural for my Lord to be somewhat confused after having slept for that long."

"Ah, but do not worry my Lord." She continued, misinterpreting the cause for the distress on my face, "I'm certain your memory will return with time. And even if it does not, I shall continue to serve you faithfully." She saluted by banging her fisted over her chest, and if she wasn't holding a fork tipped with a piece of pancake on it at the time she would have looked rather chivalrous.

Going on nothing but pure desperation, even though it was becoming apparently clear that nothing I was going to say would get through to her, I argued, "Then if I was truly the King who pulled the sword from the stone, wouldn't I have Caliburn as well?"

She tilted her head at me, "And don't you?"

"Of course I do." I answered back without thinking, the pride in my swords shining through- the spatula slammed into my face as I attempted to face-palmed, forgetting that I still held it in my hands. You know, this would hurt a whole lot more if I didn't have my Queen's defense.

"My Lord!" Xenovia cheered out at the revelation, her eyes twinkling like stars.

I felt my patience with the entire situation reach its breaking point and I yelled out as my frustration got the better of me, "I came from another world!" before slapping a hand over my mouth, realizing the stupidity of my mistake as soon as I said it.

To my utter bewilderment instead of looking at me as if I was insane or even surprised at all, she simply nodded instead as if she knew all along. "I know my Lord," She confirmed, "you hail from the land of fair Avalon, the domain of the fairies, where you recovered from your wounds."

My mouth hung open like an idiot as I continued to gape at her ability to twist anything I say to fit her world view.

"This would also explain your lack of a past." She carried on speaking, although more to herself than to me. "When you first appeared and the Church learned of your existence, they committed a not inconsiderable amount of resources in an attempt to discover everything about you, but they failed. However if you were in Avalon this entire time it would make sense why no one could discover your past, not when you were in an entirely different world."

It was incredible how close to the truth she could get yet still be oh so very very wrong.

"But now," She held a fist in front of her, fork still clasped within it, eyes shining with excitement, "you have returned. Just as the legends said you would, to guide your people in our greatest hour of need."

She was so overcome with excitement that she was practically vibrating in her seat before, no longer able to contain herself, threw her arms up into the air with another exclamation of 'My Lord', before she leapt out of the chair and knelt at the ground.

"Please, grant me the honor of serving under you." She pleaded with her head lowered reverently to the ground.

It was a good thing that she was looking down towards the ground rather than at me or else she would have witness her precious 'Lord' repeatedly bashing his head onto the wall.

"You know what?" I threw my hands up in surrender before turning back to the stove. "Fine, I give up, you win. You can join me."

"Thank you my Lord-"

I cut her off before she could finish, "And stop calling me 'my Lord' all the time."

"Yes, my King!" She immediately complied without actually doing so. Why do I have a feeling that this will be a common occurrence from now on? "I promise you, you'll not regret your decision." Her expression did a one-eighty then as her excited smile disappeared from her face only to be replaced by a troubled expression.

"However my King." Her voice was filled with trepidation as she spoke. "I regret to inform you that I no longer have the Durandal." I turned to look at her at that but she looked away, unwilling to meet my eyes. "I gave it to Griselda to take back to the Church. Chosen wielder or not, they would never let me keep it. Not without a fight, so I thought it best to avoid any trouble by handing it back now rather than waiting for the Church to send someone to forcefully retrieve it." She shrugged, "The Church has always been rather zealous in their insistence on always having all of God's Holy Swords under their control."

"Still," She quickly added, turning her eyes back to me as a small hint of panic entered her voice, "there is no need worry. Even without Durandal, I'll be sure to be of use to you my King. I promise."

"It's fine," I reassured her, "it doesn't matter to me whether you have the sword or not." And it didn't. I could simply project a copy for her whenever I wanted to. Though going by the expression of surprise and relief on her face, she didn't seem to think of it as unimportant as I did.

I didn't understand why she was making such a big deal out of it. It wasn't like she would still be able to wield the sword as a Devil. Other than me, I don't think it was possible for and Devil to wield a Holy weapon. Speaking of which.

"Are you willing to become a Devil?" I asked her with all the gravity the situation deserved, "If your serious about following me, then the only way you can realistically do so I by becoming a Devil. Are you still willing to follow me even if it means giving up your humanity to do so?" Giving her one last time to back out.

She did not hesitate.

"So long as you lead the way," her expression solemn, resolved. "I'd willingly follow you to Hell itself my King."

I looked at her, and I mean really looked, as I wondered where the sudden devotion came from. Then something clicked in my head as the pieces came together and I understood. She had nowhere else to go, did she?

With God gone, the purpose that she dedicated her entire life for was gone as well. It's not that she had no place to go to, I'm sure the Church will have no problem taking her back, it's that she had nothing to live for.

This girl, she was born in the wrong age wasn't she? She was the type who needed a cause to fight for, a just King to serve under. She needed a purpose in her life other than simply living, something to give her life meaning. That is why she dedicated her life to the Church so fiercely, and why she was so ready to dedicate herself to me even though the last master she served betrayed her.

Like the boy who dreamt of becoming a Hero this girl dreamt of becoming a knight.

And who was I to refuse her?

"Very well." I put down my cooking utensils and took the frying pan out of the fire before reaching a hand out into the air. A small magic circle that held the Sitri crest at the heart of its design appeared over my hand before disappearing after depositing a knight chess piece onto my palm.

I walked over to where she was still kneeing before I knelt down myself in front of her and held the chess piece to her chest, over her heart.

"To become my sword is no easy task, yet do you still swear to become it? To take my cause up as your own, to fight my enemies as you would your own? To follow me down the path that I walk, though it is filled with nothing but hardships and the only thing that may awaits us is our deaths, yet will you swear to willingly follow me down that road for no reason than I deem it Just?"

The words, while formal, did not truly matter so long as they spoke the truth. The bond cannot be forged properly with lies, deceit will do nothing but make the bond that binds us fragile.

Golden eyes peered back into eyes equally gold as she intoned, "So I do swear, my King."

The world around us erupted under a crimson light as the Knight piece floated out of my grasp and into her chest, which rippled like water as it accepted my piece.

"Then bare my name as your own and become my Knight. And just as my causes became your own, yours shall become mine in turn, your enemies I shall take on as my own. Now come, be reborn into this world as the sword that shall strike down the enemies that dare bar my path! Become the blade that cuts the chains that try to bind me! So that at last we may stand victorious under the blue skies of the coming Dawn."

With the final words slipping clear from my mouth the crimson light disappeared as the ceremony was complete.

And like that, in the middle of my kitchen with her face covered in maple syrup and fork in hand, Xenovia became the first Knight of Emiya Shirou. My Knight.

After a moment of silence as we took everything in, I rose to my feet and wiped my knees, "Well, now that done," I looked up towards the ceiling, "it's time to deal with you guys."

They hung like bats off the ceiling of my Kitchen, crouching upside down yet somehow managing to hang off the ceiling with nothing but the flat of their feet making contact with it. It was as if gravity had no effect on them.

Despite their size they still managed to appear inconspicuous, blending into the surrounding of the kitchen like they belonged there. How was that possible I did not know, but they somehow managed to pull it off.

"I swear are you guys like Ninja Fallen or something?" I asked as I stared up at the four of them.

The one who I mentally dubbed the leader of the group, for no other reason than he stood out in front while the other three lined up behind him, stared back at me with startling blue eyes before he slow raise a fist before his masked face, extend the index and middle finger straight out before solemnly intoning with one of the most serious tone of voice I had ever head, "Nin-nin."

The other three Fallen turned to look at one another before shrugging. The looked down at me, and just like the first, they raised they hands before their faces set in a ninja hand seal I had seen once, before they too intoned as one, "Nin-nin."

…Serafall is going to love these guys. I can tell.

I just shook my head at their unexpected antics. Really? Who would have guessed that Ninja Fallen apparently have a sense of humor?

"Ok, seriously." I looked back up at their leader as I spoke. "What are you guys doing here?"

"Orders." The leader answered. "Kokabiel-sama's final commands were should he fall, we are to protect you and thus safeguard humanity's future."

"Even if that means becoming Devils yourselves?" Even with their stealth abilities, there is no way they can follow me down to the Underworld and remain undiscovered. Not for long anyway.

A shrug was my response. "We already fell from Heaven to complete our duty. What is descending to Hell compared to that? At least it will be warm down there."

I stared up to them, and was stared back in turn by four pairs of eyes ranging from sky blue to forest green. Not one of them looked away or even reluctant.

What is with these Fallen Angels and why did they all have to be so damn likable?

"Very well," I sighed out and scratched the back of my head, "if you're so determined I won't try to dissuade you." I'm probably the worst person to try to talk people out of following suicidal ideals after all.

"Well, now that's done. It's time to deal with you." I turned to look at the final occupant on the ceiling. "Gasper, what are you doing?"

There hanging upside down from the ceiling next to the Fallen, like the bat that he was still dressed up as, was Gasper.

"Hanging out." And I swear he was being utterly serious as he said that. I decided not to comment on it as there was something far more unsettling I had to deal with.

I pointed up to him and asked, "And what are you wearing?"

"A Bat-Girl costume." He answered as used a hand to hold down his short skirt and by doing so prevented the rest of us from being traumatized for life by flashing us.

"Why?" Somehow knowing I wasn't going to be satisfied with his answer.

"It's cute." He chirped, sounding oddly happy for some reason.

At that moment I seriously considered praying to God for help for the first time in my life, but then I realized that God was dead and I was on my own. Deciding to take the tried and true method of ignoring everything I turned back to the stove and began cooking a large enough breakfast to feed the lot of us.

And that was how I used up all my pawn pieces and found myself with four new Pawns in addition to a Knight in my Peerage.

========x=========x===========

Pulling open the window of the second floor hallway, I carefully stepped out onto the ledge before reaching out and griping the edge of the rooftop. Taking a moment to insure I had a secure hold, I hoisted my up and over onto the roof. Making sure I made plenty of noise as I did so, so that she may hear me coming.

Treading lightly, I climbed up to the peak of the roof, watching were I set my foot down so I did not damage the any of the tiles.

Once I reached the ridge, I took a moment to make sure my footing was secure as I wouldn't want lose my balance and fall tumbling down no matter how unlikely that was to harm me, before I turned to around to face her.

She was squatting down at the end of the ridge, resting her arms on her knees as she stared out at the sunrise. She didn't bother to turn to face me, so all I could see was her back as she stared out onto the horizon.

I waited, there was no need of me to say anything, and sometimes just being there is enough. I had been hoping she'd come, waiting for it actually. That's how I was able to sense her the moment she arrived. How she simply waited here, as if she knew I would be coming after her. She was right, I was willing to go much farther than this if it meant helping her.

It was not for Kokabiel's sake alone that I revealed Excalibur. There was one other person I needed to save that day.

The wind pulled on my hair as I watched over her. She was dressed in that same school uniform that she wore for the fight, though undamaged somehow. Her white hair drifted behind her on the steady breeze.

"Once there were two sisters." She began, speaking in her usual monotone voice, her eyes never leaving the sun. "They were as different as can be. One as black as the night, the other as white as snow. Yet despite their differences they loved each other, more than anything else in the world.

"Though they were poor, they were happy. In this world full of treasures, the only treasure either of them ever wanted was each other. And that was how they always wanted it to be. Even if they had no gold, even if there was never enough food, so long as the two had each other they were happy.

"That is why they promised to never leave one another, that no matter what life threw at them, they would always be together.

"But one day things began to change. The big sister found a job. Now the two sisters finally had a house to live in. They no longer had to steal or beg for food, they could buy their own. They had more food, better clothing and a nice warm place to sleep.

"But they were not necessarily happier.

"The big sister had to spend a lot of time working, and had less time to spend with the younger one. And whenever she returned from work, she was always very tired and couldn't play with the little sister as much as the younger one wanted to.

"But still, even though she was busier now, they were still happy. For at least they always had each other.

"Until they did not.

"One day the younger sister woke to find her elder gone. She kept asking everyone 'where was she, where was she', but no one answered her. Even after she was taken away, imprisoned all she could ask 'where are you? Where did you go?', and still no one answered her.

"But as time passed, the amount of times she would ask would drop, until one day she stopped asking all together. By then they didn't need to answer her. She had begun to realize the truth.

"That her beloved sister had abandoned her.

"'Why', that's what she kept asking herself during those hellish days. 'Why?' Did she get tired of looking after her? Did she get sick of working so hard for the two of them when she didn't have to? Did she…did she no longer love her? But in the end it did not matter why, for she understood…

"That for all their promises, for all the times they've been there for each other, the older sister left her younger one without so much as a goodbye.

"And now for the first time since the day she was born, the little sister was alone in the world-"

Her voice hitched towards the end, breaking, leaving her unable to finish speaking.

Silence returned again, this time broken up occasional sniffling. I didn't say anything, didn't ask if she was alright when she so clearly wasn't. I just stood there, simply waited there for her. That was all I could do.

When she began to speaking her voice was no longer the emotionless monotone that she usually spoke in. It was faint, but for the first time I could hear true emotion held in it.

"For a…for a very long time I thought my sister had stopped loving me." She turned her eyes up to the sky, "But there is no way that can be true, can it? After all," she raised a hand up to the sky, fingers stretch out as if could touch it. "Look. The sun, it's still there isn't it? It hasn't burn out. And the stars still shine at night, they haven't gone away. Then …

"There is no way that can be true,

"For as long as they burn she will always love me. Until the day they extinguish she will continue to do so and forever after, outlasting the sun and stars themselves."

From beneath her skirt a long white tail appeared, along with a matching pair of white colored cat ears on her head. When she turned around, the face I saw was filled with neither courage nor determination. It was broken hearted thing, filled with soul-searing pain and sadness. Yet still,

Still,

She carried on.

Despite her fears, in spite of her pain, she called out her name loud and clear.

If that was not courage, I did not know what is.

"My name is Shirone." Her eyes shone with unshed tears and her bangs continued to drift in the air in front of her, pulled by the wind. "It means 'white sound' and it… and it was the first gift my sister had ever given me. The first gift anyone had ever given me."

And despite how sad she looked I could not help but feel a glimmer of joy. At long last, her walls were beginning to tumble down and finally she has stopped hiding. She was allowing herself to feel again.

"I am Shirone, the little sister of the black cat Kuroka. And…and…"One of her ears was weakly raised while the other laid half way down to her head as she spoke, but now they both fell flat against her head as she continued, ".…and I miss her. So so very much. Despite everything she's done she's still my sister and I love her so. With every beat of my heart."

Tears fell freely down form her eyes now, not even trying to hold them back any longer. She looked back at the horizon again, and for a while no one said anything the silence only broken by the sound of the wind, until she decided to speak up again.

"Neh- Shirou. The sun and the stars, they're still shining. They haven't extinguished yet, have they?" She asked, so quietly that I could barely hear her. "So that means that she still loves me…right?"

I turned to look towards the horizon. "Yeah," I nodded, "they're still shining."

"…that's good."

And so the hurt, lonely kitten finally gathers up its courage and leaves its box to face the world.

==========x============x============

Sometimes, there are no villains to fight.

No monsters to kill.

Sometimes the thing that's hurting you comes from inside of you.

Sometime the monster only lives in you.

It shone in the darkness, as if it were a splinter of light.

Steel-greys eyes examined the blade carefully. He held it high before him, slowly spinning it left then right in his left hand, as his eyes trailed over inch of the sword. Looking for flaws or imperfection that simply wasn't there.

"A sword of light." No one was there in the woods with him but if there were, they would have heard the shocked disbelief that filled it.

From his soul which could only forge tainted swords, where he was sure that nothing else could be born, for the first time it forged a sword crafted from the purest of lights. Untainted, unspoiled, it was sword as clean as rays of a morning sun.

"It was that simple." He lowered the sword while he stared blankly at the trees ahead, lost in his own thoughts. "It was always there, this power was always there." He looked down at his empty right hand. "I always could have done this."

He continued to stare down at his empty hand for a time, before he raised his head and clenched his hand into a fist. He held the sword up before him, and after taking a moment to examine the blade one final time, he flipped it before thrusting the sword down, deep into the ground before him.

Releasing the hilt, he took a step back and examined his work. The sword was planted tip first, like a grave stone protruding from the earth, shining so brightly it was if it stood beneath the light of the sun rather than in a dark clearing within the Kuoh Academy's woods.

Crossing his legs he dropped to the ground and sat before the sword. He stared at it, not moving, not sure what to do before he ran a hand through his hair and looked away. After a moment he let lose a sigh and turned back to face the sword.

"Well guys, I've decided." He spoke to the sword as if it were a living thing. "I'm…I'm going to try living for once. I'm not quite sure how to go about it but…but…I'm willing to give it a shot." He took a deep breath and shut his eyes before carrying on. "I'll probably…no, I'll definitely not be very good at it and I'm sure I'll make an utter mess of it." His eyes drifted open and gave himself a determined nod. "But I'm going try."

He raised himself to his feet and dusted his pants before turning around and walking away, towards the exit of the clearing. Just as he was about to set foot outside of the clearing's boundary and onto the road that will lead him out of the woods, he hesitated.

Pausing, he turned his head and looked back at the sword that still shone in the dark. The only light in a place filled with shadows.

"Goodbye."

Then he strode out and this time, he didn't look back.

=========x===========x==========

These Children are so very remarkable.

Watch them as they trip and fall,

Only to get back up and learn.

And if you look away from them for but a moment,

They'd be grown before you know it.

The King piece was balanced precarious on its edge, only prevented from tipping over completely by the finger that held it in place.

After a moment of contemplation, the chess piece was set back down to its proper place. But a moment later it was pulled back onto its edge. On and on this went, the king piece set down only to be tilted back again, balanced on its edge.

Tsubaki paused in the middle of her work to observe her King's unusual behavior as she stood over the chess set and played with the King piece. There was no else but her in the Council room to witness the scene but her. The others have been sent home to rest and recover from their ordeal. Only Sona and her had been uninjured enough to work today.

"Kaichou?" she cautiously ask, slowly approaching her King. "Are you alright?"

Sona ignore her, focusing on the King piece that she kept tilting and setting down. Tsubaki was about to asked her again but she was interrupted.

"Tsubaki." Sona called out to her as she finally set the piece flat on the board and let it go, though her eyes never looked away from it even as she spoke. "Put the chess set away."

"Pardon?"

"Just pack it up and store it away someplace. I'm not going to need it anymore." She leaned over the board and brought her hand next to the King piece, her index finger held back by her thump.

"Sometimes when we grow up we need to put away our old toys. We need to let go of them and move on if we wish to continue growing." She then flicked the tip of the King, knocking it down on its side. "And I refuse to stop growing."

She rose up to her full height before turning to face her Queen. She pushed her frames up her nose before he spoke, "Put it away Tsubaki. I'm not going to restrict myself any longer." She turned and walked away, intend on finishing the rest of her work. "It seems like I've out grown this game."

So be sure to keep both eyes on them…

…and watch them grow.

==========x=========x==========

At first it was little things…

So small that he barely noticed them, thought nothing of them.

…didn't realize she was dying.

Then one by one, things kept failing.

She would drop things, trip more often and sometimes run into doors.

Then one day her legs simply refused to work.

And through it all she would smile. Cheer him own as if he was the one dying and not her.

A pale and thin hand rose up to cup his check, feebly wiping away the tears that fell down them with her thump.

"Hey, Oni-chan, don't cry…there's no need to cry….because….because it was fun….So much fun."

She was laid over his lap while he had his arms wrapped firmly around her, refusing to let go as they were seated in the magic circle her mother crafted so long ago. It was the only thing that could lessen her pain.

In the darkness of the shed the smile she sent up to his tear stricken face was dazzling, even as it she looked up at him with unseeing eyes.

"I love you…thank you… and…bye-bye." Then she was gone, her hand falling to the ground.

The boy yelled out, begging the girl in his arms to wake up, pleading with her not to die. But it was too late, the girl was gone. He could feel the beat of her heart stopping beneath his hands.

But despite knowing that she was gone, that there existed no hope, no magic that could bring her back, he refused to let her go.

Even as the warmth continued to drain her once living body, replaced with the coldness unique to the dead alone, his grip on her never less lessened. He prayed, he begged, he pleaded but no miracle ensued. The girl in his arms did not wake up.

It was then, as he looked around for something, anything that could save her that he caught sight of the circle beneath them. And a flame of desperate hope began to burn once again in his heart.

Once, in another place and time, a dying boy was saved here. Though he had no hope, no chance of survivable, not with the inhuman warrior behind him, he was still saved by a Knight unlike any other.

It was here that miracle a was born.

It was here that miracle of their meeting happened.

And it will be here that another miracle will occur.

Staring down at the circle, he offered it everything he had. His body, his life, anything and everything he owned, he was willing to pay it, just to bring someone that could save her.

Nothing happened.

No matter how much he yelled or what he offered the magic remained stubbornly silent. An hour had passed as he continued to try and still the circled remind dull, lifeless as the girl in his arms and all the while her body continued to grow colder until she felt like ice to his touch.

And still he refused to let go.

He continued to scream out until his voice broke form all his yelling and then he continued to whisper instead, in near silent pleading.

It was during the end to one of his beseeching episodes that an idea came to him. One born from desperation rather than any form of reason or logic.

In this world, all Magecraft will suffer from interference. The rules that govern the universe will make it so, because of it many spell that may have been possible become impossible.

So to escape that interference, all he needed was to enter a different world.

I AM THE BONE OF MY SWORD

The shed around him disappeared. Replaced with a world of endless swords and steel. A world were the Dawn will never come nor the sun ever set. A world trapped in perpetual twilight.

He tightened his arms around the girl, as both of them remained in the boundary of the magic circle that he brought along with them to the heart of his soul.

He gathered his breath for one last attempt, one last desperate gamble before he exhausts himself. His final chance.

He raised his face to the sky and yelled out with a voice hoarse from screaming.

"I don't care whose listening, whether you're a God, Angel or even the Devil himself. For her sake, you can have it all, everything I have I offer you. Any price, any debt I'll gladly pay it. To save her, I'll do anything, give you anything. So please someone. Anyone. Save her. I don't care whether if you take my body, my life or even-" He took one final deep breath and with all the power he had in him, he yelled out.

My soul!

Just please, please save my sister!

Beneath them, the circle flicked. Too quick and feeble for even him to sense, but it was there. The azure light it burned with was a meagre thing, too dim and gone too fast for him to notice. Fading away not even a heartbeat later.

But it was enough.

More than enough.

For a miracle had happened.

It was someplace far away, literally worlds apart. And yet somehow, someone heard his prayer.

She twitched, freezing in mid-step before turning around and looking over shoulder. Raven hair framed baby-blue eyes with just the faintest trace of green in them that looked up into the distance sky, looking for something that's not there.

"Is someone calling me?"

And that was how a Demon Lord, and her Hero, met.

===Chapter End======

===Original Author's (Fahad09) End Notes====

End of Arc 1: Why Angels Fall

* Story Stop*

(Or as I know how everybody is going to refer to it, the Kokabiel Arc)

Author's Notes:

Now, before we do anything else I want to ask you all to turn and look towards the distance horizon. Do you see that tiny dot there? Can you tell what it is? Is it a bird? No. Is it a plane? No. Is it a…Magic Girl? Yes! Yes, it is a Magic Girl. Ladies and Gentlemen Serafall is finally coming in the very next chapter. And who is that white haired and sometimes bloodthirsty Loli with her? Yes, it's Ilya! They are both coming in the next chapter.

Alright now that out of the way allow me to say, Holy crap, we've reached the end of the first arc! And in less than two months too. I must admit when I first wrote this story I was afraid that no one would be interested in reading it and it will die after the first three chapters or so, but at the time I'm writing this its been 8 weeks, 150,000 words, 1000+ fav/follow/reviews later and still going so strong. I even have a good chunk of the next arc planned out and several ideas for the arcs after it.

Now since this is the end of an Arc I believe I need to take some time to thank a few people. 'Bigreader in The Omniverse' for helping me fix up my work and get it out all in time, Artful Lounger for providing me with far more DxD information than the wiki ever did, and captor2000 along with all the others who took the time to provide with some constructive reviews. I don't know how it is with other authors but I read every single review I receive, twice (ok, three times but that's only because I love reading them). They really help give me the confidence I need to keep writing so thank you all so much.

Now onto the chapter itself. Originally I wanted this and the last chapter to be paired up but I decided to separate them to let the last chapter sink in. A death of a character like Kokabiel needed to be honored. And I was afraid people will be too mentally worked up to appreciate anything else I had to add.

And yes, there will be major consequences for Shirou's fight. But it won't appear right away. The information needs time to spread, for the people who hear about it to confirm its authenticity and decide how to act on it, but when it does there will be massive consequences down the line.

I remember reading a review that asked if I had a central message in my story. While I'm not sure if I ever will, what I hope to convey in this chapter was growth.

Something that I always disliked about canon, and in fact many anime in general, is that get over your past you must a) punch the Villain who hurt you in the face or B) find out that what you know about your terrible past was a lie and learn the truth. All of the solutions are external.

But life doesn't work like that. You don't always have a convenient enemy to hate, to blame for your problems. Sometimes you have to face your past, not because it comes back to haunt you but because you have to. To grow, to heal, that is something all of us have to go through.

Kiba no longer had anyone to blame. The ones who killed his friends in the holy sword project were all punished and executed. Justice was served, but he could not heal. And there was no left to blame. No one but the Excaliburs. Unthinking and unfeeling pieces of metal who in truth could not be held responsible because they were merely tool. Here Kiba didn't get to break a single Excalibur, he didn't get fight Freed or Valper. He was simply confronted with a single fact. His friends didn't save because they wanted revenge, it was because they want him to live. It was his choice on what to with this knowledge.

Koneko this time didn't have Kuroka conveniently taking a blow for her or finding out she committed the crimes she did to save her. She just acknowledged that even though her sister had did bad things, she still loved her. Sometimes the people we love do bad things, commit crimes or hurt us. It us up to us to decide if we can forgive. And remember Koneko was very young when all this happened so she probably didn't understand what was happening at the time and it had to have been explained to her when she was older. And odds are that person wasn't painting Kuroka in a positive light.

Sona, well I think with her it was pretty much self-explanatory. People are always afraid to leave their comfort zones because it is difficulty and we risk making a fool of ourselves. But only by doing what is difficult, by doing something difficult can we continue to learn and grow.

Oh, and I was just looking at the DxD wiki and ran into the Kokabiel page. Am I the only one who can't look at Canon Kokabiel without feeling a little depressed anymore?

Now I'm sure most of you noticed but for those of you who didn't I will post the stats of any ongoing chapters in my profile page. Including release date if I'm close to completion. So if you want to know when the next update is coming look there.

I've decided to put up a character poll, so be sure to vote. But it won't be a popularity poll, but one to see if liked how the character was developed (that means even if you didn't like the character, but you like how they were fleshed out vote for them).

I think I covered everything. Now I'm going to take the rest of the week off to enjoy the final stretch of my vacation without dragging my laptop around. If anyone have any questions though, please don't hesitate to PM me or add them to your review and I'll get back to you. Now I'm crossing my fingers and hopping I'd get a Tv tropes page at last.

Thanks for reading and I hope you liked this chapter.

Read more chapters at:

archiveofourown.org/users/fahad09

https://www.fanfiction.net/u/4141631/Fahad09