A Demon Misplaced

~Doomsday Clock~

Rias often pondered if she was cursed.

Power, wealth, fame—all three she had. Yet misfortune hunted her, like bloodhounds hot on her tainted trail—eager to find her, rip her flesh apart with baneful fangs, take their rightful morsels and leave the leftover for crows to feast on. Her Pawn had been left with a nasty wound last night. Nothing too grave, but it required a fair bit of magic to mend the broken arm. Thankfully, she did not need to sleep with him and heal him with her Devil's Touch. Issei, in her opinion, had enough distractions on his mind and making appearances in his bed, naked no less, would deter him more.

That was the tip of the iceberg.

A priest showing up, wounding her servant, murdering her client, that was a problem, and by Lucifer, she was livid. Had her Peerage not arrived on time, the boy would've been dead considering the number of Fallen that had flocked there.

"You're distracted," Sona said. Lunchtime was dull today, and she decided to spend it with her childhood friend, and co-owner of Kuoh. The Sitri heiress' eyes observed her keenly. She'd always found the gaze of those purple eyes piercing. "More than usual might I add. Does your Pawn bother you that much?"

"Not as much as yours," Rias replied with a smile. It was game between them. Two young flowers blooming into ladies and learning to tongue lash whoever stood in their path. "He is the reason why I'm distracted, yes, but not because of his behavior. He was shot last night by a priest."

"The Vatican removed all their exorcists from here eighteen years ago." Sona reminded her. She drank some water before continuing, "I'm assuming the Fallen were there too."

"Twenty," the redhead said and Sona's eyes widened behind the oval glasses. "I know. Here I thought there were five to six at best. They're planning something. Those miserable-"

"Did you tell your brother about it?" Rias shook her head causing Sona to sigh. "I know you're angry at him, at everyone, but this is beyond you, Rias. If things get heated-"

"They already are," Rias cut her off this time. Fury danced in her turquoise eyes. Every fiber in her body commanded her to rush out there, unleash her powers and reduce all of them to ashes. "They killed one of my clients, and someone else in Downtown while they were at it. I sent a letter to the Grigori's outpost."

Rias pushed back into her chair, the chessboard before them showed Sona's overwhelming victory against her. The beige army stood mighty, tall, unwavering as a lone white King remained alone. Not the first time it happened nor would it be the last, Rias knew that much. The Sitri heiress was talented in strategy, always planning six steps ahead along with contingencies in mind. How she envied the brain Sona had. Despite the defeat, Rias had made Sona struggle a bit more than usual this time.

"You know what this means," the Sitri heiress leaned forward, chin resting against her conjoined hands. Despite the seriousness, Rias couldn't help but notice how Sona had pulled off the Gendo Ikari look pat down. "Don't do anything foolish. You've got enough on your plate as it is."

"I'm not doing anything until I have guarantees," Rias smiled. "I'm not the same girl you know."

"Yes," Sona replied, eyeing the clock a bit. There wasn't much time left before the break ended. "You've changed a bit. Which is why I have to ask, why the sudden transition?"

Rias thought about her answer and it all went back to that day, when she went to bring back the night she resurrected Issei. The fear she felt that night, someone sneaked up on her, weapon in hand, and there wasn't a damn thing she could do about it. It was a wake-up call for her as she slowly realized over the last few weeks. Naruto Uzumaki, ass that he was, was the wake-up call. He proved nothing was easy. His own life, from what little she found out, was riddled with misfortunes left and right—events that affected him even now from what Akeno relayed.