“Kyaaa! What are you doing Az-?!”
Before she could complain any further, he kissed her neck.
“Wai-nnnn~.”
Her toes curled at the sudden feeling of her neck being sucked. Instinctively wrapping her legs around his waist, Cleria let herself drown into his embrace. As for Azazel, his fire had been stoked and he would need an hour…or two to calm down.
[I’ll look for you later, brother.]
.
|DxD|
.
“Akeno. Can you go and check if Asia is done with her bath? Breakfast is almost ready.”
“Yes, mama.”
In the Himejima household, morning preparations for breakfast were already underway. The aroma of fried meat and vegetables filled the house and the sound of sizzling pans silenced the bird calls outside.
The house was busy with the pitter-patter of footsteps and the stairs seeing frequent use. Contrary to her kind personality, Shuri was rather strict in how she enforced the rules of her house. Despite it only being 08:00, no one was allowed to be asleep beyond that time.
With three plates having been laid out and pans sizzling with oil on the stove, breakfast was almost complete. With Akeno having left to call Asia, Shuri was left alone in the kitchen to continue with her work.
“Hmm~ hmm~…hmm~ hmm~.”
Humming a melodious tune, she went about stirring the onions she was frying. Ever since Asia arrived, she had begun mixing in Western cuisine in consideration for the little blonde who couldn’t quite stomach true Japanese foods which would consist of squid, octopie, and other traditional cuisine.
It wasn’t an inconvenience to her to have to change their whole palate. Trying new things to cook was always enjoyable for her so there were no problems. And…it was always especially enjoyable to watch Asia consume plate after plate of food.
[Just like her brother…]
Seeing Asia always made her think of him. Even though their time together was so short it could be counted in hours, his presence was the most impactful since her resurrection.
[It’s only been twenty days since he vanished. I hope he’s alright…]
She felt her heart tighten in worry since…
[But where could he be?]
There was no sign of his disappearance. All she knew was that the forest became quiet and Cleria telling her he vanished along with Aurelia in a pillar of light.
Doof! Doof! Doof! Doof! Doof! Doof! Doof!
Hearing multiple footsteps come down the stairs, she cleared her thoughts and put on a smile as heads full of blonde hair and black hair entered the door.
“Asia. Good morning~.”
The little blonde ran up to Shuri and gave her a hug.
“Good morning, aunty~. How are you?”
“I’m fine too, Asia. Why don’t you and Akeno take your seats while I dish up, hmm?”
“Okay, aunty.”
“Yes, mama.”
The little girls went over and took their seats while Shuri began dishing up. With the clatter of metal against ceramic, she first dished food for the girls before finally ending with herself. Knowing how voracious Asia was, there was still a lot of food left for anyone who would want seconds.
Taking her seat at the head of the table, the two girls waited for her to sit down and take the first bite before they finally followed. And that was the moment when their eating habits were revealed.
Fitting her personality, Shuri was elegeant in her way of consuming food. Using a mix of chopsticks and a knife to eat, not even her nails were dirtied.
As for the two girls…
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“...”
Shuri could never get used to how they seemed to eat like animals. At the very least, Akeno was better. Asia was a different story entirely. Ignoring the cutlery placed on the table, the little blonde was very traditional in using her hands to stuff her face. With her cheeks containing traces of onion rings, fried eggs, and bread crumbs, she continued to eat without caring for her image.
Shuri could only be thankful that Akeno was somewhat refined. Although her daughter also used her hands, atleast she would pick up her fork every once in a while. But, she was still messy in her eating.
Just from observing, she could tell that their eating habits reeked of Igor’s influence. But compared to the blonde, they weren’t so fast that they left afterimages. In a way, him stuffing his face certainly looked better than these two who had their cheeks filled to the brim with food.
[Sigh…]
She could only be thankful that they closed their mouths when they chewed.
*Knock!* *Knock!* *Knock!*
“...”
A trace of nervousness appeared on Shuri’s face. Just from her senses, she could tell that the person at the door was a fallen angel. The problem was, she couldn’t tell who it was. Apart from Akeno, the only other person she knew who was a fallen angel, was…
“Baraquiel?”
Clang!
Hearing the name, Akeno dropped her utensils on her plate, a look of shock on her face.
“Papa…?”
Naturally, she also heard the knock on the door. But when she heard her mother say her father’s name, it was like a switch had been turned on.
KRRR!
Pushing back her chair, she got off her seat and darted straight for the door.
“A-Akeno!”
Shuri tried to stop her but it was already a foregone conclusion.
[I’m…I’m not ready!]
Having to potentially meet the father of her child, her emotions were all over the place. From contempt, to nervousness, she didn’t know how to feel. But thankfully(?), her worst fears were soon calmed when she heard her daughter call out a title other than “father”.
“Uncle Azazel?”
“Hello, Akeno. My, my…you sure have gotten a lot bigger since I last saw you. What are you? Nine, now?”
When Shuri walked around the corner, she came face to face with a familiar, yet unfamiliar face.
[Azazel…did he appear in Igor’s memories?]
Figuring that maybe he did appear briefly, she cancelled that thought and walked over towards them.
“Good morning, Azazel.”
“...”
The fallen who was pinching a struggling Akeno’s cheeks widened his eyes when he saw Shuri.
“Well I’ll be…”
Azazel observed Shuri and what he saw truly surprised him.
[Is this really Shuri?]
Just the vitality alone he sensed from her made her seem like a woman fresh out of her teenage years.
“Shuri! You’ve grown younger!”
Finally letting go of Akeno’s chubby cheeks, he approached Shuri with wondrous eyes.
“It’s like you’re twenty-three instead of thirty-three. And…it’s good to see you’re alright.”
Seeing her in person like this, he was genuinely happy for her miraculous recovery.
“Thank you for your kind words, Lord Azaze-”
“Please. Just Azazel is fine. After all, you’re family.”
“...”
Shuri felt a bit complicated hearing such a statement. But before Azazel could ask her what was wrong, Akeno hurriedly grabbed the helms of his coat and asked excitedly.
“Uncle! Uncle! Are you here to help us find papa?”
“Heh~.”
Ruffling her hair, he responded to her question.
“Of course! He is my brother too, you know?”
“Yayy~. Then let me get my things quickly, Uncle!”
Doof Doof Doof Doo-
“Ah? Wait a moment, Akeno.”
“Hm?”
With already one foot on the stairs, Akeno turned to face Azazel with a questioning gaze.
“Is something wrong, Uncle?”
Chuckling sheepishly, the cadre explained.
“Listen, Akeno. Before we go, I need to talk to your mother for a bit…privately.”
“Oh…okay. Then I’ll be waiting, uncle!”
Not being a stranger to such requests, Akeno gave them some space and returned back to the kitchen.
““…””
With both Azazel and Shuri left standing alone in the hallway, the atmosphere became somewhat awkward. Initially, Azazel was going to ask for help, but after spotting Shuri’s earlier expression when he said “you’re family”, he could guess that her amnesia did more damage than he thought.
[Haaa. I should’ve came with Cleria.]
Scratching the back of his head, he was about to reveal his intentions when Shuri cut him off.
“Please follow me…Azazel.”
Leading the way into the living room, she gestured for him to sit on the sofa before she also sat down next to him. Not wanting for there to be any lingering husband, she got straight to the point.
“I believe your visit isn’t just for pleasantries.”
Compared to before, her voice was a little sharp, far different from her usual welcoming tone. It was clear that hearing Baraquiel’s name was like a switch that offset her mood. And if it wasn’t even more obvious, the picture of the man in question wasn’t hung on the walls of the hallway like usual.
“Alright, Shuri.”
Getting into business mode, he stopped all unnecessary pleasantries.
“I won’t ask when. I won’t ask why. The reason I’m here today is because I need your help in finding my brother-”
“Cuba. He is in Cuba. In a town called, Baracoa.”
“...”
Azazel could see it. Her expression was calm, but he could see the immense disappointment in her eyes. And from how she casually recited this information, it was glaringly obvious that she knew his whereabouts for a long time.
He was hoping to quickly copy her magic signature and quietly retrieve ‘that’ book from where it was hidden, find his brother, and bring him back in a stretcher. It was a crude plan, possibly ranking on elementary in its execution. But it was one that maybe would’ve worked considering the current situation.
But with Shuri knowing his whereabouts and how that book would specifically log the person’s current state, his plan went down the drain.
[Brother. Would it have killed you to atleast come back and bury your wife if you thought she was dead?]
He could understand his grief. After all, he wouldn’t know what to do with himself if he had possibly lost Cleria to Serafall that day.
“I see…”
Shuri revealing the knowledge of Baraquiel’s location yet doing nothing about such knowledge already indicated that she had no intention of pursuing him or possibly reconciling. And the worst part was, Azazel couldn’t blame her.
“I apologise. As his elder brother, I am also ashamed of his actions and can offer no excuses on his behalf-”
“Of course there are no excuses. Putting myself aside…”
*Clenches Skirt*
“He abandoned his daughter…”