Closure

"I'm sorry you had to witness that. I'm honestly not sure what came over her. She's usually a strong and cheerful girl..." remarked Shuri, sporting an apologetic as she handed Vahn a cup of tea. Akeno had fallen asleep after unleashing her pent-up emotions, so Shuri had asked him to make himself comfortable in the residence's living room while she carried her daughter to bed and made tea.

"Thank you very much," responded Vahn, accepting the cup of oolong tea but not drinking it as he stated, "And I think she was just really happy but sad to see you..."

"Mmm...you may be right..." conceded Shuri, staring in the direction of Akeno's room for several seconds before asking, "You know, don't you? How long it's been since she and I last saw each other...?"

"I don't know the specifics, but I think it was around eight to ten years..." responded Vahn, causing Shuri's eyes to turn sad before she closed them, muttering, "I see...in other words, I've already died..."

"I'm sorry..." muttered Vahn, bowing his head apologetically. A part of him wished he could conceal the truth to allow Shuri and Akeno to be a happy family again, but he knew better than most that the only way to attain true happiness was to move forward...

"As far as I'm aware, you've done nothing to apologize for," stated Shuri, taking a seat on the same sofa but with a respectable distance between her and Vahn as she regained her smile and explained, "If you don't mind, can you tell me about her? What kind of life has she lived up until now? It concerns me somewhat that she's become a Devil, but I know there are good people among them, just as there are compassionate Fallen Angels and monstrous humans..."

"She became the Queen of the Gremory Clan's successor, Rias Gremory, an amazing and kind girl around the same age as her..." answered Vahn, hanging his head and feeling guilty as that was roughly the extent of his knowledge regarding Akeno. Most of their interactions were her serving or teasing him, so other than knowing she was called the Lightning Priestess and had a scary and mischievous side to her...he had dishearteningly little information to offer Shuri...

"I think I can understand why my daughter fell for you. You're a very honest boy, Vahn~" hummed Shuri, cupping her cheek and smiling in a near-identical manner to Akeno, making it obvious where the latter had picked up the habit.

Exhaling audibly from his nose, Vahn met Shuri's gaze and revealed, "The truth is, Akeno and I met only recently. That's why we're here. I wanted to know more about her and her past..."

"Mmm...then it may not be my place to explain her circumstances..." said Shuri, looking away from Vahn and contemplatively staring off into space for a bit before asking, "Is Vahn-sama perhaps a God...?"

"Many people seem to think so, but I'm not at that level yet..." responded Vahn, his expression cramping.

"Only a God could create a miracle like this..." remarked Shuri, staring at her hands as she revealed, "Because there are things I know that Akeno-chan certainly wouldn't. If I were a fabrication formed from her memories, that shouldn't be the case..."

"Are you saying you're the real Shuri-san...?" asked Vahn, his expression one of shock and disbelief.

"The real me should have been cremated and my spirit energy subsumed by Kagu-tsuchi-sama, but I can still feel my connection to Fire Phase..." revealed Shuri, exhaling a faint sigh and shaking her head before looking to Vahn and asking, "Can Vahn-sama tell me more about himself and this place? Perhaps I will understand more after hearing what he has to say..."

"Of course," responded Vahn, nodding before explaining everything he could about himself, the Corridor of Intertwined Fates, and the door that led him and Akeno to the Himajima Prison Complex and her...

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"The Corridor of Intertwined Fates..." muttered Shuri, taking several moments to mull over her thoughts before contending, "I believe this place—my existence—may be an echo within time, with Akeno-chan's feelings and Vahn-sama's power serving as the bridge connecting the past and present. If I'm correct, this experience may not have a happy ending for Akeno-chan..."

"What do you mean...?" asked Vahn, a prominent tension permeating his body as Shuri explained, "In situations like this, the bridge that links the past and present is often the result of powerful emotions and trauma. If you consider that this place is a prison but that you and Akeno-chan can move about freely, then the most logical explanation isn't that it's a prison for her; it's a moment in time she knows neither of us can escape. In other words, this story only has two probable outcomes...I perish, and the cycle continues, or Vahn-sama and Akeno-chan save me, destroying the bridge once and for all..."

"I refuse to allow that..." muttered Vahn, causing Shuri to blink in surprise, slightly taken aback as he went from looking contemplative to sporting a serious and resolute expression.

Clenching his right hand into a fist, Vahn asserted, "I don't care how this place came to be or what's sustaining it; if the Shuri-san before me is the real Shuri-san, I won't let you fade and become just a memory..."

Exhaling in faint exasperation, Shuri adopted a distinctly motherly smile as she expressed, "Vahn-sama is truly a kind boy, but the dead should be respected, permitted to rest in peace, or allowed to move on. My Baraqi-kun and Akeno-chan understand this, or else they could have used their power and connections to reunite or communicate with my present self at their leisure."

"But...Akeno-chan clearly misses you...and wouldn't you rather be with her and your husband than dead?" asked Vahn, his resolution waning as he lowered his gaze to the floor and adopted a conflicted frown.

"Unquestionably," confirmed Shuri, nodding affirmingly before preempting Vahn's response by expressing, "But death and learning to live with it are a natural, integral part of life, Vahn-sama. It is necessary to preserve the world's balance and order, and those who fail to respect that invite great misfortune upon themselves and those they cherish. I don't want that for my Baraqi-kun, Akeno-chan, or you, Vahn-sama. So, please, let me rest in peace...that is the best thing for everyone..."

"She's right..." said a familiar voice, drawing Vahn's and Shuri's attention to Akeno, having regained her true form as she stood at the living room's entrance in her original Shrine Maiden attire.

"Ara ara...Akeno-chan is all grown up now~" hummed Shuri, rising to her feet to approach and get a better look at her exceptionally beautiful and mature daughter.

"I love you, Kaa-chan..." muttered Akeno, surprising Shuri by suddenly embracing her. She quickly reciprocated, and for a moment, the mother and daughter became one in heart and mind, their eyes moist beneath their closed lids and throats tightening as they understood that it would likely be the last time they ever held one another.

"Promise me something, Akeno..." muttered Shuri, her voice tinged with a suppressed sob as she squeezed Akeno tightly, inhaling through her nose to prevent it from running before saying, "I don't know what happened for you to end up as a Devil, but please speak with your father...Baraqi-kun is not a bad person. He may seem serious and rigid on the outside, but deep down, he's a teddy bear full of vulnerabilities and insecurities..."

"I know, Kaa-chan...I know..." muttered Akeno, squeezing Shuri in turn. She had known for quite some time that her father, who she blamed for her mother's death, wasn't truly responsible. She just needed someone to blame, and since he bore it willingly, she forced the burden onto him even though he was hurting just as much, if not more, after losing both his wife and daughter...

Seeing the mother-daughter duo embrace one another, Vahn couldn't help but feel a tightness in his own throat, compelling him to look away. He felt like he needed to do something, but with Shuri and Akeno telling him not to, he felt powerless...

(You're not powerless, Vahn...) said Sis, her voice gentle and soothing as she asserted, (*And though you may not be able to save Shuri, there is something that only you can do. Keep Akeno safe and ensure she can live a long and happy life so that when they finally reunite...*)

Realizing that Sis was effectively parroting the motivation he had given himself at the outset of his journey, Vahn fell into a deep, contemplative silence. He knew well the pain of losing his mother, but since he learned she had already moved on, he resolved himself to live a life she could be proud of instead of insisting they be allowed to reunite. Akeno had likely formed a similar resolve, so while it felt wrong for her and Shuri to have to part, he couldn't deny it was the respectful thing to do...

"Vahn-sama...?" asked Shuri, breaking Vahn from his introspection as she and Akeno flanked him on the sofa.

"Yes...?" responded Vahn, feeling somewhat disjointed as Shuri grabbed his right hand with both her own, hugging it to her chest with closed eyes as she sincerely implored, "Please...promise me that you will take care of Akeno-chan. I believe that was always your intention, but it would put my heart at ease to hear you say it..."

"I promise. I will protect her and ensure she can live a long and happy life, no matter what..." asserted Vahn, his expression filled with every ounce of sincerity and resolution he could manage.

"I will hold you to it..." muttered Shuri, planting a kiss on Vahn's fingers before releasing his hand and staring past him at Akeno, smiling as she asserted, "You've found yourself a good one, Akeno-chan..."

"I really have..." affirmed Akeno, transitioning to her right knee to embrace Vahn's head from behind, her breasts sandwiching his neck and weighing down his shoulders as she squeezed and nestled him affectionately. Shuri cupped her right cheek and ara ara'd at this; then, as their time was very limited, she spent several hours giving Akeno advice, showing her how to prepare various dishes, and reminiscing until the time for their separation came in the form of a group of armed men with katana arrived, led there by a man named Himejima Suoh, Akeno's Great Uncle and the Head of the Himejima Clan at the time of the original incident...

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"Just hand over the accursed, black-winged child, and all of this can be over, Shuri-san...!" exclaimed Suoh, an elderly man dressed as a Shinto priest with skeletal features, beady black eyes, and a grim expression full of arrogance and contempt.

Emerging from the front entrance of her prison-like abode, Shuri sported a cordial smile that didn't quite reach her eyes as she responded, "Good evening, Suoh-sama. What brings you and our esteemed clansmen to this humble abode~?"

"I will only say it once more..." growled Suoh, his expression twisting in disgust as he expressed, "That black-winged child is an abomination, an insult to our beliefs, and a pox upon our illustrious and storied Clan. If you have any shame or self-respect left, you will hand her over and obediently consign yourself to a life of penance and servitude to the Main House..."

"Mmm...no, I don't think I will~" hummed Shuri, closing her eyes and tilting her head slightly to the side with the broadest, most sadistic smile she could offer. At the same time, high in the sky, Akeno, with Vahn at her side, providing her life force to convert into Demonic Power, prepared the most devastating attack of her entire life. Suoh and his goons eventually noticed her, but the moment they looked up, she created a crimson Magic Circle nearly five hundred meters across, hot tears streaming down her face as she made a cutting gesture with her left hand, causing thick bolts of blue and gold lightning to rain down, devastating the entire complex as she bid farewell to both her mother and her past...

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