High School DxD: Fox of Ill Omen

Kusari

When the last seal broke, the sound was softer than I wanted it to be.

Just a small give of magic and paper, as if the room beyond had been waiting politely to be permitted to exist again.

Rias opened the door.

Then a high pitch scream sounded out.

“Nooooo! Don’t come in!” A girly voice screamed from the room.

“Good morning to you too. We are coming in now.”

Rias and Akeno entered the room.

Issei, Asia, and I glanced at each other before following them in.

The air inside was stale in the way enclosed places always were.

Not filthy or dusty.

Just too still, too untouched by ordinary life. The sort of air that had gone long stretches without being disturbed by people who had anywhere else to be.

The room itself was stranger than I expected.

Not a cell.

That would almost have been easier, but not something Rias would’ve permitted.

It was furnished.

Lived in, in a fashion.

Things had been arranged to make it cozier.

There were books, a bed, computer equipment, boxes, ordinary objects that wanted to give the impression this had been made into a personal room rather than a prison.

I hated that more.

The curtains were drawn shut, creating a gloomy atmosphere, and there was what looked to be a coffin in the corner of the room.

There were also multiple plush stuffed animals around the room as well. 

It was a strange mixture. 

And I couldn’t see the [Bishop] anywhere.

A box sat near the center of the floor.

A large cardboard box.

There was a small sound from inside it.

Not movement exactly.

More like someone trying to make themselves smaller and failing.

For a second, no one spoke.

Then Issei did what he always did when silence became too heavy.

“...Uh.”

That was eloquent, even for him.

Rias folded her arms and looked toward the box.

“Gasper,” she said, not unkindly. “We’re all here.”

The box made a tiny distressed noise.

Then the person inside screamed again. 

“Noooo! I don’t want to meet new people! I don't want to leave my rooooom!”

I stared.

That was the other [Bishop]?

A member of the peerage had been sealed in this room for that long, and what waited inside was a terrified thing in a cardboard box.

My anger did not ease.

If anything, it sharpened.

This wasn’t a dangerous or rebellious child.

This was a scared one.

One terrified to meet people or leave the comfort of their room.

And their fears had been reinforced by locking them in a room alone.

Rias began explaining before Issei could start talking too much.

She removed the box from the hiding [Bishop], revealing a small cowering boy dressed in a girls Kuoh Academy uniform. 

He had bond hair, blood red eyes, and delicate doll-like features that would have made him look feminine before the dress was put on him.

Issei was instantly excited not realizing he was only dressed like a girl.

“Oh! Another beautiful girl! Plus she’s a foreigner as well!”

Issei glanced between the [Bishop], Yuuto, and Asia as if to compare the three blonds of the group.

“While he may look this way, Gasper is a boy, Ise.” Rias said.

Issei looked stunned for a moment.

“He has a preference for wearing girls clothes. They fit him quite well.” Akeno added while grinning at Issei’s shock.

“I finally get a male comrade in the peerage and he looks like this?!” Issei shouted.

“Eeeeek! I’m sorry! I’m sorry I don’t look like a boy!” Gasper let out a shriek at Issei’s shout and panicked to apologize.

“Ah! No it’s alright! I just thought you were a bishoujo for a moment. I couldn’t tell that you were a man. Now I feel robbed….”

“I-I’m sorry! I just t-think that girls close are c-c-cute…”

They both seemed dejected.

I wasn’t sure what to expect in this room but this was not anywhere in my mind when I imagined how this would go. 

“Senpai is harassing Gya-kun.” Koneko said. 

“No I’m not! I was just shocked and my dreams of another blonde haired boshujou in the peerage were shattered.”

“…So Issei-senpai is dreaming of small boys dressed as girls…”

Despite my mood and how much I hated this room I nearly laughed.

“Koneko-chan! Don’t make it sound weird!” Issei shouted.

Gasper-kun finally glanced at the rest of us.

“S-So, umm… who are a-all of these people?” He asked Rias while nervously pointing at us.

“These are my new servants. Kusari and Issei are my [Pawns], Asia is my other [Bishop], and Xenovia is my [Knight]. They came with me to meet you.”

Rias introduced all of us to the cowering boy. 

He seemed scared by the number of people in the room.

“Now, we can head out of your room. Would that be alright? You won’t be sealed in here anymore.”

Rias gently spoke to him.

I watched how he flinched when she got closer to him.

It only made my gaze on her colder.

“Nooooo! I won’t go outside! It’s scary out there! Plus I will only cause trouble! If I stay here I won’t ruin anything!”

Gasper-kun panicked and backed away from Rias.

Issei stormed forward and spoke angrily to him while grabbing his arm.

“Hey Buchou told you to—”

“Issei don’t!” I was already moving to stop him when the room went white as Gasper-kun shrieked in terror.

When the light faded Issei was no longer holding Gasper-kun’s arm and Gasper-kun was huddled in the far corner of the room.

“W-what happened?”

“Hmmm…. that is very interesting.”

“But I was just holding him…”

Asia, Xenovia-san, and Issei were all voicing their confusion.

“Please don’t get angry! I-It was an a-accident! Please d-don’t h-hit me!” Gasper-kun wailed while making himself as small as possible.

My eyes snapped back to Rias.

“Hit?” I muttered.

Koneko glanced at me for a moment before looking back to Gasper-kun.

“The Evil Eye that Stops the World—Forbidden Balor View. That is the name of Gasper’s Sacred Gear. It has the power to stop time for everything in his sight.”  Rias explained

“Wait. He can stop time?” Issei asked.

“Yes, but because he has little control over it, it was ordered for him to be sealed away.”

Rather than teach him to harness his ability he was sealed away until Rias was judged as powerful enough to control him.

“His name is Gasper Vladi, my first [Bishop], a Dhampire, and a first year student at our school.” Rias explained.

My attention kept dragging back to the room.

The contained shape of it.

The justification for trapping a small scared boy in it.

Gasper-kun had been sealed because he unconsciously activated his Sacred Gear.

Because he could not handle it.

Because it was deemed dangerous.

Because authority had judged it necessary.

The logic was easy to follow.

That was part of what made it so ugly.

Then Issei asked the question that made me pause.

“How did you make a guy with a Sacred Gear that strong into your servant with only one piece?”

Rias summoned a book from midair and opened it to a page explaining Evil Pieces.

“I used a Mutation Piece.”

I stood still.

“A Mutation Piece? Like the one of the ones you used on me?” Issei asked, pointing at himself.

Yuuto began to explain. 

“That’s correct. One of the pieces Buchou used on you was a Mutation Piece. They are different from the usual Evil Piece, as they can be used to reincarnate more powerful beings. So Buchou used one on you as well as using her other [Pawn] pieces. With it she was able to reincarnate you for less pieces than she would have normally needed.”

“Buchou possessed two Mutation Pieces that she had used on Gasper-kun and you Ise-kun.” Akeno added.

Yuuto nodded in agreement before continuing.

“It’s extremely rare for High-Class Devils to have one. Roughly one in ten Devils possesses a single Mutation Piece. It’s a bug in the Evil Piece system that was kept as it was interesting. Gasper-kun also needed one of those pieces.”

“The issue is his ability.” Rias said. “Gasper’s sacred gear possesses a special ability that increases his power while he is unconscious. Due to this his power is constantly growing and he may eventually attain a Balance Breaker.”

“So, will he passively become stronger even if he does nothing?” Issei asked.

“Yes. It is a difficult situation. And due to my evaluation it was judged that I am now able to…. control him. It is likely due to both Issei and Yuuto unlocking their own balance breakers.” Rias said while glancing at me.

I heard all of it.

And inside my chest something cold went a shade colder.

A Mutation Piece.

I had not told Rias the truth and I didn’t think that Sirzechs-sama had either.

No one outside the smallest circle of Sirzechs-Samoa’s arrangements knew.

Outsiders could look at me and think only that I was worth three [Pawn] pieces.

It seemed odd. A little unusual.

I looked at the book in Rias’s hands and wondered, suddenly and bitterly, whether her treatment of me would have been different if she had known from the beginning.

That it had taken three Mutation Pieces to reincarnate me as a Devil.

Being worth so much was most likely the main reason I was still alive today.

Would she have looked at me and seen not a concerningly quiet and subservient Kitsune, or would she have seen me as something more dangerous?

Would that have made me more valuable?

More frightening?

More difficult contain?

If my Mutation Pieces were common knowledge when I was placed into her peerage there may have been complaints from the Phenex side of a Maou abusing his powers by giving away such a valuable servant.

Even though i was restrained heavily enough to make it unbelievable. 

Gasper-kun’s Mutation Piece was openly explained because it had already been absorbed into the logic of why he was here.

My own remained hidden.

For now.

That thought came suddenly enough in me that for a second I almost wanted to laugh.

Of course.

Even with learning about Gasper-kun and that Rias had a servant sealed away, I was still thinking about how I would tell her more.

Gasper-kun had gotten back into his box and had shuffled over to us again.

“...U-uh, e-even though that’s true,  I’d rather you didn’t talk about me...”

Issei, being Issei, kicked the box lightly.

There was an immediate shriek from inside.

I stared.

“He doesn’t seem that impressive.” Issei muttered.

“Gasper is from a Pure blooded Vampire clan of a good lineage, even though he is a half-blood. He has a powerful sacred gear. Until Kusari joined the peerage he was the second best in terms of magical skill. He has multiple Vampire abilities and is well versed in human magic as well. Plus he has the blood of a Daywalker, which means he can walk in sunlight despite being a Vampire. Though he does hate drinking blood and sunlight. If I did not have a Mutation Piece he would have likely cost both of my [Bishop] Pieces.” Rias explained.

“Well when you say all of that…” Issei said.

And through all of it, the voice from the box remained timid enough to make my chest tighten.

I watched the cardboard more than I watched the others.

The trembling.

The whining.

The way every mention of outside, daylight, blood, training, or class made him panic harder.

How much of that had been there before he ever met Rias?

How much belonged to whatever pain or cruelty had shaped him first?

And how much of it had been fed by being sealed in this room?

That was the worst question.

Because I could not answer it cleanly.

And because no one else seemed to be asking it as urgently as I was.

“I hate the sun! I hate blood too! I’m perfectly fine in my cardboard box’ the light and people outside are scary!” Gasper-kun whined.

“…Giod for nothing Vampire.” Koneko muttered.

She sounded cruel but looked at Gasper-kun with a bit of fondness that she normally would hide.

“Koneko-chan is a meanie!” Gasper-kun cried out

The scene should have felt lighter than it did.

Instead, every sound from the box made me think of rooms I had not been allowed to leave.

Of the fear of power leading to restrictions.

Of the punishments for stepping too far out place for even a moment.

The memories made me stop and think of something darker.

What if my next release came too closer to the threshold of what was too dangerous to be controlled?

What if the one after that was worse?

What if the easiest thing, the practical thing, became to keep me just as I was now?

Partially sealed.

Manageable.

Useful and unthreatening.

Crippled.

I watched Rias while she spoke.

Watched the ease with which she explained Gasper-kun’s condition and history to the others.

No cruelty in it.

No casual contempt.

And still she had only been able to realse him now.

This room existed under her authority too.

My thoughts slid in an uglier direction.

Would she have accepted my seals so easily if she had been the one to receive me wrapped in chains for trying to fight back?

Would she have been another  to add more if she had decided herself that I could not be trusted with more of my own power?

I knew that Rias wasn’t that kind of person.

I still could not push the thoughts away.

“For the time being, Ise, Asia, Koneko, Xenovia- I will leave Gasper’s training to you until I come back. Akeno and I will be dealing with preparations for the meeting between the Three Factions. And Yuuto, Onii-sama wanted to hear from you about your Balance Breaker, so you’ll accompany us. Kusari you can have the evening to yourself.” Rias said.

She seemed to not want to include me further with Gasper-kun at the moment.

I didn’t know if that was for the benefit of Gasper-kun, Rias, or me.

“Yes, Buchou.”

“You got it Buchou!”

Yuuto and Issei answered.

Asia, quietly and gently, had already started looking toward the box with the expression she used for frightened animals and broken people.

Xenovia looked far too eager, which was exactly the wrong attitude for this situation and therefore inevitable.

I said, before I could stop myself, “I want to help too.”

There was silence after my quick offer to assist.

Rias turned her head toward me with a complicated look in her eyes.

Akeno’s gaze flicked over too, more concerned and questioning.

Yuuto’s remained unreadable.

Koneko’s eyes had already been on me before I spoke, as though she had expected something like this.

Issei looked surprised.

Asia looked hopeful, then uncertain the second she saw Rias’s face.

I kept mine blank.

There were many reasons I could have offered if anyone had forced me to explain.

Gasper-kun is my junior in the peerage.

His training concerns all of us.

I am suited to helping manage unstable, frightened people if I have to be.

I understand being looked at as dangerous.

All true.

None of them the real reason.

What I meant was simpler and uglier.

I need to see this.

I need to know what kind of person she is when the dangerous one in the room was decided to be too much.

Rias studied me for a second too long.

Then she said, very evenly, “No.”

I felt my shoulders tighten.

The answer was small enough that nobody else would read much into it if they did not know us.

There was too much quick thought behind it.

Too much awareness.

She knew why I was asking.

And she knew exactly why she could not let me go like this.

And it was only making this look worse to me.

Containment of a simpler kind.

Not another seal.

A refusal from my [King].

Issei glanced between us.

He was trying not to look like he noticed anything.

He was bad at that.

Asia’s hands tightened on her skirt.

Yuuto looked to Rias with a question in her eyes.

Koneko finally looked away from me.

Xenovia-san, blessedly, missed it entirely because she had already attached a rope to Gasper-kun’s cardboard box and was talking about discipline.

The poor boy inside the box shrieked on cue.

Akeno tilted her head, smile gentle in a way that would have comforted anyone who did not know her too well. “Kusari-chan, why don’t you stay here for now?”

I looked at her.

Then at Rias again.

There was an understanding passing between them before either said anything more.

Akeno knew there was tension.

Yuuto almost certainly did too.

Koneko definitely did.

Asia noticed enough to look concerned for everyone. 

Only Issei had enough context to know the shape of it and not enough to know the full content.

Gasper-kun, of course, noticed nothing except Xenovia-san threatening his future with exercise and Xenovia-san was busy threatening him.

I could have refused.

I thought about it.

Then I said, “As you wish, Buchou.”

The words came out too smooth.

I heard it myself.

Rias’s eyes sharpened for just a breath.

That was enough to tell me I had chosen the wrong answer if the goal had been to hide how much this had affected me.

Issei scratched at his cheek and said far too casually, “Uh... I mean, if Buchou says so, then... right?”

He wanted to help.

Or rather, he wanted to know whether he should stay.

I appreciated that more than I wanted to.

Rias saved him from the decision.

“Ise,” she said, not taking her eyes fully off me, “go on ahead with the others.”

He hesitated.

Only for a second.

Then nodded. “Yeah. Right.”

The others began to move.

Xenovia-san dragged the shrieking cardboard box toward the outside with all the enthusiasm of someone who believed physical training solved most problems.

Asia hurried after them, distress radiating off her in little waves because she still had not properly met the other [Bishop] and was probably blaming herself for that somehow.

Koneko passed close enough to me that I could feel her checking my face without openly doing it.

Yuuto paused for the briefest instant at the door, looked back at me, then at Rias, and left without a word.

Akeno lingered just long enough to give Rias a look I could not fully read.

Then she left too.

The door shut.

Silence settled around the room again.

The old building felt too close.

Rias and I were alone in the room where she had sealed one of her own peerage members.

She looked at me.

Not the way she had during lunch.

Not the bright, competitive thing.

Something quieter now.

More serious.

And, I thought bitterly, more dangerous for that.

“Kusari-chan,” she said softly.

I did not answer immediately.

The silence between us stretched long enough that it was obvious this was no casual pause before another assignment.

Then I said, “Buchou.”

Nothing more.

There was no point pretending I did not know why she had kept me here.

The strange thing was that part of me was relieved she had.

That, more than anything, made the hurt underneath my anger worse.

Because if I had stopped wanting her explanation, this would have been simpler.

Rias drew in one slow breath.

Then she said, “Stay. I want us to talk.”

And because I already knew that if I walked away now without hearing her out, I wouldn’t be able to trust her with anything again. 

So I nodded my head once.

“Yes, Buchou,” I said.

But my voice was colder than it had been the last time she asked.

And both of us heard it.

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