Kuoh Town

[Bloodedge]

Takumi's hand remained upon Eira's face, moving only in the same trembling manner found in his eyes. The wings which spawned from her back and enveloped him were not what his vision implied at all. They were quite different, in fact. Something was even more familiar about this, but... what could it have been? What importance did this figure hold, and what was this moisture on his hand... his left hand, which took its dragon form as the green gem on its back glowed. Eira's pleas did not reach Takumi per se, but they did reach another: the Red Dragon Ddraig himself. "Eira Gremory. Your words fall on deaf ears. There's no soul in this body; it's in the Boosted Gear now. Give me your soul, and I'll take you to the one you want. He can't hear me, but maybe he can hear you since this body is still reacting to your presence." The Welsh Dragon's words rang true. To preserve the fragmented soul of his partner, he had moved the boy's soul from the main part of his body to somewhere deeper within, into Ddraig himself. The simple fact that it managed to pull toward the outside world regardless of this could be blamed on Eira alone, so Ddraig believed there was every chance she would have a bigger impact than the dragon himself managed. If she were to accept this offer of his, Ddraig would waste no time in taking Eira's soul and transferring her to Takumi's subconscious plane, which Ddraig shared with him. There, one would find Takumi standing in an endless world filled with an inferno that he walked through aimlessly.

[Apollymi]

Words that were heard next by Eira, weren't Takumi's as she would have expected. Instead it belonged to Ddraig who once again referred to her by name. He explained the situation of Takumi's missing consciousness. Apparently Ddraig had the ability to move souls, and had moved Takumi's following the traumatic experience of his day. He made the offer to Eira to do the same to her, that she might be able to reach him in his torment. Eira's eyes widened even as tears continued to fall. "Sou..na, something like that happened. Hai, take me to him!" she said this with an extreme bit of affirmation. She fully intended to help pull him out of his torment. She didn't want him to suffer more than he had to.

Conveniently enough, Ddraig immediately moved the girl and she was placed within an inferno wandering like a lost soul trying to find, Takumi. She saw him in the distance walking aimlessly and did what was only natural to her. She called out to him. "Takumi!" she called his name as she approached him rapidly, this place was monstrous to her, lonely and saddening. She wanted to help him and she'd aim immediately to wrap her arms around the lad. "Gomennasai, Takumi," she whispered her apology, still crying for this boy's sake.

[Bloodedge]

This world of flames spread far, farther than the eye could see. No matter what direction one looked in, there were only more flames. Ddraig inhabited this world, and though he could no longer be seen by Takumi, he currently took his place behind Eira from the moment she entered. Takumi moved forward - the only thing he could do. Suddenly, the outcry of Eira did exactly what Ddraig believed it would: it reached Takumi's ear and caused him to stop moving away. After his walking ceased, he turned to face the woman, looking upon her with eyes only slightly less blank than they were in his physical form... yet with deep crimson eyes that only previously showed themselves when he was in a very different state of mind. "...?" A small noise passed his lips, making known his curiosity in nothing more than a light utterance. Just then, Eira threw herself around him and apologized. Seeing her run into this embrace showed him more of what was missing in his earlier vision. She wasn't connected to the black feathers that filled his mind's eye... she was connected to the moment the last feathers fell, when he had the chance to be himself again. Just then, he took a metaphorical step toward understanding what this person meant, as well as what name should be applied to this form. "E-... Eira... Gremory..." he said, speaking as if he had only just learned the words. Still, the name his physical self had applied to her returned moments later. "Kuzure. Every time... you're there..."

[Apollymi]

Seeing Takumi in this place, he responded to his name enough to stop moving away, it was like he couldn't see. He couldn't see the large dragon inhabiting this place and he couldn't see what was in front of him. But at the very least, he responded to Eira in the most strange of ways, his curiosity led him to turn and Eira saw in him the blandness in his eyes which was similar to what she'd seen of him in her bed. Even so, she couldn't give up, and it seemed that the lad was closer to himself now than he had been initially. "Takumi..." she murmured, as he said her name, as if it wasn't a name he knew or understood or even a set of sounds he was used to saying. Her eyes widened just a bit as he mentioned that word again. 'Kuzure.' It was true, Eira was indeed associated with Ruin, with disaster and with everything horrible that could have occurred with people. In this moment though, she didn't mean to cause it in the lad, she never meant to cause such things, but she was associated with it. In this case she meant only to shelter him from it. "Gomennasai, Takumi..." she said again thinking about it more. "I can take that from you too." she mentioned quietly. "Give me that emotion too. I'll take it so you don't have to feel it. I ruin everything for everyone anyway... let me have this and come back to me," she said looking the lad in crimson eyes she wasn't really used to seeing from him.

[Bloodedge]

Again, she apologized, and again, Takumi was lost in confusion. An offer was placed on the proverbial table for her to take this away from him just like the other things, which let her earlier words properly reach his mind at last. She wished to take away his negative emotions, did she? No, that just wouldn't do. This was true simply because he was in fact molded by these feelings to be the pawn which held the negativity of his master within himself... because he remembered what she was. This time, Takumi's right hand rose to Eira's face in a conscious effort to wipe her tears, and when he was done, he aimed to raise her chin. "Iia. Every time there's ruin... you're there... pulling everything back together. My body died, and you picked it back up. My mind died, and you pulled it back out. Now... here you are again. You gave me this new life, and things keep happening around me that make you like this. I'm not much of a devil then, am I? Leave me my ailments. They're all I have left from being a human now."

[Apollymi]

Eira apologized to Takumi and it seemed that he came back to himself quite a bit. In fact he came back to himself enough to properly verbalize his own desires. It seemed that he thought that Eira was responsible for pulling him out of ruin every time he was confronted by it. Her eyes widened just a little at this explanation, in fact she hadn't expected such a thing and seemed stunned by the tenderness of this lad's actions. Even while he was despairing all on his own, he seemed to think more of her than of himself, enough to wipe away her tears. "Iie, you're great, as a person. Trying to look after me when you have so much of your own to deal with... It's fine if you aren't much as a devil, I'm enough of that for both of us," she said with gentleness in her tone. Her right hand came to his face and she looked him in the eye, "Your emotions make you who you are... I won't take them from you, if you won't release them to me," she said. "But let me take care of you, Takumi. Come back to us, and let us help you," she murmured to him in their moment of closeness. She knew that his feelings were important to him, but she couldn't let his sorrows drown him and everyone else around them. It was a matter of safety, and at the very least, she and everyone else that was part of their peerage, wished only for his health and happiness.

[Bloodedge]

"It's... all I can do," he replied to the amount he wished to do for Eira's behalf, in spite of his own life's tribulations. "You gave me this life, so I'll live it for you. I'll keep all my own problems, and everything I feel about them... but if I don't have at least that, there's nothing of the human me left. There's no point to my humanity anymore, but I want the memories... so I'll remember what I need to be, and what my hesitation caused." As he spoke, the hand he had upon Eira's face moved down ever so slightly, sliding along her cheek. "I don't need help anymore. That me out there is nothing. I'll live my own life now. It's... what I meant to tell my mother," he stated as his right eye - the eye on his side which held the most remaining humanity - shed a single tear. With that, his gaze lifted from Eira, focusing instead on the massive red dragon behind her. "I see you, Ddraig. I'm ready." A nod came from the Welsh Dragon, only to be followed by the two souls in this plane of existence being returned to their original forms. Once outside, Takumi was returned to staring into Eira's face, his eyes now permanently just as crimson as the hair upon the woman's head.

[Apollymi]

This lad apparently wished to do much on behalf of Eira. And though she found it strange for him to have this much devotion based on a decision she made on a whim, it made her heart warm to know it. Takumi's speech didn't stop there, nor did the gentleness of his approach, his hand moved around her face and her heart felt a strange pang within it. He shared the resolve that he'd been meaning to share with his mother, and even beyond it, how he intended to live, even while holding on to what had made him suffer so. Eira felt drawn in by such emotion, and felt privileged to be part of a moment she felt was so personal. Knowing this about the lad, how could she even begin to question his choices. She got to witness this lad's last tear as well and reached for it softly brushing it away as the lad finally turned from her and acknowledged the giant dragon in the background. In doing so, they were both released back to their bodies outside of the realm of his sacred gear. In the comfort of her bed wrapped in her wings, Eira looked into Takumi's eyes and found them a stunning shade of crimson. "Sou ka..." she said to the lad. "Okaerinasai, Takumi..." she murmured as she looked into this face of his. She remembered why she'd come here and spoke beyond this directly to him, allowing him the truth he'd need if he was set in his decision. "If you are going to live your life for me, I should be honest with you. I'm a Succubus and in order to ensure my power and yours, I need to mark you twice. Once with a command seal which is mildly similar to physical hypnosis, to keep you from saying the words which trigger your Juggernaut Drive. Keeping you from rampaging outside of moments were it is necessity is important for the safety of us all..." she explained, both to Takumi and Ddraig as she assumed the Red Dragon Emperor might be capable of resisting her power if he wished it so. "But I won't abandon you completely, if I mark you as mine with my power... I can share it with you and you can share yours with me. It will boost you up a bit and give me a bit more of your power," she explained. This was a lot to take in and she whispered his in slow marked sentences while holding the lad, unlike the others, she couldn't find it in herself to let him go. This was something she hadn't even realized she was doing but she fully intended to mark him before letting him leave this place.

[Bloodedge]

Back in his proper body, Takumi's shaking ceased abruptly. This was a very different person, or rather a return to the person he was deep inside. A gleam swept over his eyes when he was welcomed back to this plane. "... Hai. Tadaima," he said hesitantly, yet without the timid undertone he usually presented. He fell silent as Eira explained her true nature as a devil. She went on to note that she had to mark him twice in some way, once to restrain whatever power he'd used earlier, and again to form some bond between his power and hers. This was certainly something he couldn't turn down, even though it interestingly didn't sound optional in the first place. The strangeness of how she worded this aside, Eira had yet to release him from her grasp. "What are you waiting for, then? That didn't sound like something I could say no to. Besides... I'll do whatever it takes at this point."

[Apollymi]

Eira got to witness something very strange from the lad as she greeted him, and it seemed to her that he lacked the normal amount of timidness he seemed to have. This was abnormal but she could just as easily align it to the lad's newfound resolve. Whatever the case, she explained what needed to happen for this lad to continue and be an active member of her peerage. He mentioned that she didn't make it sound optional and asked her what she was waiting for. "Well deals with devils aren't supposed to seem optional..." she teased in a manner she would likely never get used to. "Gomen... what I mean is... I reincarnated you without giving you a choice and I normally don't do that sort of thing. The people with me are with me because it is their wish, I could relinquish you if you wanted to go, but if you fully intend to stay. Then those are my terms..." she explained as her grip around his person remained. "But if you are sure, I'll..." Eira's power would flare around the pair of them, if he consented. And she'd find herself looking the lad in the eye. Hers were glowing and if this worked properly his would glow in response. Her intent was to first place the Command Seal which would stop him from using his Juggernaut Drive. This particular mark would appear on the upper part of the lad's dragon scaled arm, in the form of an ornate skull like tribal mark. As the type of hypnosis it was, it could technically be overcome by the boy's will, should his life be in danger he'd be able to call upon the power briefly before it was locked away again. This would keep a rampage like the one which happened today from happening.

After this Eira's eyes released the lad, but her power still prickled about her body. Strangely she would show even more of it now, the full attractive force of her as a Succubus would wash over the lad in her warmth. "And now to give you back something else," she said as she aimed to bond with the lad in her bed. Her wings retracted as she no longer needed the held warmth needed for the Command Seal. Instead she let herself rest against him as his proper mark settled, the form of which would be unknown to her initially. A tingling sensation across the lad's skin would occur until it was time to move on. Given both of their current states, she could place two levels of this mark without any need for shifting as her hands traveled down his body to rest around his torso and held him while trying to respect his known boundaries. Even so, the girl's body was awash with power, more than even she'd managed to siphon off him the last time she'd taken it directly. "How does your body feel?" she asked the lad, knowing his emotional state couldn't be healed in a single day, and allowing her eyes to meet his once again.

[Bloodedge]

"Sou. I guess that makes sense." true enough, a deal with the devil seemed to be exactly that which humans spoke of. Perhaps this simple saying did indeed come from fact, from those who actually made deals with devils. Eira informed the lad that these were indeed not optional things for Takumi, though his remaining her servant was. If he wished to do so, though, these were requirements. Takumi's brows furrowed, and he spoke again while retaining eye contact. "No matter what, I'm staying with you. Give it to me," he said with great conviction in his tone and visage. Over the next few moments, the eye contact already shared between them became a spell which pseudo-sealed Takumi's Juggernaut Drive. Following this, Eira retracted her wings, but continued embracing the young male to apply the other sort of mark she mentioned by sharing her powers between them. Takumi felt strangely during this application, and this went well beyond how his own body felt. His heartbeat thumped, then slowed drastically.

His eyes widened, never breaking contact with Eira's, and a light tint spread across his face. This apparent warm feeling was far from the forefront of his mind, and the same could be said of whatever power he was gaining or giving. Everything was replaced with something else entirely, much like the case of his empty mind earlier in their meeting. 'She's...' he thought. Wherever this thought went, Eira was soon questioning how he felt. The next words escaping Takumi may have also answered her question, but perhaps... perhaps it was just as much the completion of his own thoughts, if not more. "... Incredible," he finally spoke through a mouth that didn't want to close at this point.

[Apollymi]

The boy's maintained eye contact let Eira see his conviction and just like the others she'd given marks to this day, he accepted them without hesitation. His words rang through her mind with adamant fervor but still she gave pause while she looked at him. Whatever the lad was thinking she kept her hands on him and didn't let him go. In fact, of all the people she'd laid hands on today this parting was one of the hardest to force to happen. When he finally answered her stating that he felt incredible she was almost willing to let him go, except...

She looked down at his still open mouth and in a moment of selfishness couldn't resist. Every fiber of her being told her to add a third mark to this lad and she heard his words in her ear once more. 'No matter what, I'm staying with you.' If she had any more resistance left, she lost it as she stared at the lad, "Takumi... I..." she lost her words as she pressed her mouth against his, a burst of power would aim to leave her person as their lips connected but, she'd not known him long enough to be sure this power would settle with him as well. She felt strangely emotionally invested in the lad to start with, this moment of selfishness was likely spawned from that. But if it worked both of them would feel exceedingly powerful beyond the first two instances and would have more power to share between them. When Eira pulled away her eyes would still be open but the power she'd used to mark the lad would be receding just the same. Still she hadn't let him go yet, and instead she was content to hold him just a bit longer.

[Bloodedge]

Presumably, their business was concluded with the application of a mark which Takumi felt appearing over his left shoulder. Still, Eira held onto the male and met his stare, which itself was one potentially linked to Eira's Succubus aura. He didn't seem to have become any less affected by this, despite obtaining the second level of Eira's mark... but there was more. Following his claim of dedication, Eira stammered over her retort. Had she even intended to bring this clause to a close, she apparently chose to abandon it in the same moment she decided their mouths required immediate contact with one another. The first two levels of her mark had given Takumi the tattoo of a dragon's head, then its neck. Now, the wings were being added to the seal, but Takumi wasn't bothered by or concerned with that at all. He reflexively took a tight hold of the crimson-haired Succubus, and his eyes widened, then closed. He simply couldn't resist in spite of the freak-out he would have experienced at an earlier point of this exact day.

Eventually, Eira pulled her head away. Takumi's eyes opened then, and he saw that hers were open as well. No words were spoken by the woman. Takumi had every intention to ask why this happened. He'd felt the growth of his mark during this kiss, but it hardly registered in his mind. So, he would ask why she stared in such a way, and what this gesture was really for. He'd ask what she intended to say when her sentence fell short. He'd... do none of that. His mouth opened again to spew a full list of questions, but given what had just happened, and given the fixation he'd regained on Eira's eyes, he only ended up pushing forward to kiss her lips again.

[Apollymi]

Strangely when Eira kissed him, Takumi didn't pull away at all. And instead he grabbed hold of her as well, she was quite sure the mark settled by the time she pulled away. Though she had no idea why she'd forced it onto him in the first place. With her powers receding she figured the lad would want to be alone or maybe not to be connected to her anymore. But strangely nothing came from the teen after she pulled away. No, instead even with her Succubus powers no longer active he pushed his lips against hers again. Her eyes widened immensely because of all the reactions she expected, she didn't expect such a reaction from the boy. She kissed him back for a few moments unable to resist something so freely given to her. After this though when the kiss broke she'd speak to him. "Ano... I should explain, that I was staring because I didn't know if I could give you another mark or not. But I felt compelled to try," she said. "You said you'd stay with me no matter what. That made me really happy," she said. Eira felt so possessive of Takumi and oddly as if she wanted him to keep his word. She shifted her person to hold his face with both of her hands. "I want you to stay with me," she said this with a certainty she hadn't known she'd possessed. Eira realized she was most content when she was like this but she also didn't intend to potentially take advantage of the lad while he was strongly affected by her abilities. 'He should be immune to me right? Was that kiss his own decision?' she questioned herself.

[Bloodedge]

An already-fleeting moment vanished in a relative instant as Eira pulled away, despite returning his gesture initially. She felt compelled to explain her earlier staring, but Takumi had hardly noticed past his own unbroken gaze. His eyes widened. Only now did the expanding mark even register to him. His interpretation of Eira's movements shifted without much additional thought. What had he even been thinking before now? "Sou ka. I thought..." He paused there, closing his eyes and reaching out for one of the hands which held his face. What he thought was initially confusion became something entirely different... something he supposed he should put away. Surely he'd let himself misinterpret something at some point. 'Bakamono. You're just a Pawn,' he thought. 'Partner...' Ddraig spoke in his mind, though the young devil didn't listen at all. Takumi used his grasp to pull Eira's hand away from his face, freeing him to sit upright. "... Suman." With that said, he made every effort to extricate himself from Eira's hold entirely, intending to then do the same in removing himself from her bed.